From: "janet. ghazi" Date: Tue, 5 Jan 2016 11:03:07 +0000 Subject: With Love And Trust Iam Waiting To Hear From You Soon Dearest love one, Thanks for your mail, I will really like to have a good relationship with you, and i have a special reason why i decided to contact you.I decided to contact you because of the urgency of my situation here and after reading your profile, I am Miss Janet Ghazi, 25 years old girl from Sudan, the only Child and only daughter of Late Dr Ghazi al-Sadiq, Guidance and Religious Endowments Minister, under the leadership of president Omar Bashir of Sudan, who is now battleing with United Nation, after many innocent soul were killed, My father was killed by government of Omar Bashir along side with my mother, I am constrained to contact you because of the maltreatment I am receiving from my step mother. She planned to take away all my late father's treasury and properties from me since the unexpected death of my beloved Father. Meanwhile I wanted to escape to the Europe but she hide away my international passport and other valuable travelling documents. Luckily she did not discover where I kept my father (FID's) File which contains important documents. So I decided to run out of the country to the refegee camp where I am presently seeking asylum under the United Nations High Commission for the Refegee here in Dakar, Republic of Senegal. I wish to contact you personally for a long term business relationship and investment assistance in your country. My father of blessed memory deposited the sum of US$6,800,000 (Six Million Eight Hundred Thousand Dollars) in Bank with my name as the next of kin. However, I shall forward you with the necessary documents on confirmation of your acceptance to assist me for the transfer and investment of the fund. As you will help me in an invsetment, and i will like to complete my studies, as i was in my second year in the university, when the crisis started. it is my intention to compensate you with 10% of the total money for your services and the balance shall be my investment capital. This is the reason why I decided to contact you. Please all communications should be through this email address only for confidential purposes. As soon as I receive your positive response showing your interest I will put things into action immediately. In the light of the above. I shall appreciate an urgent message indicating your ability and willingness to handle this transaction sincerely. you can call me on phone if you want to speak with me on phone. i have no phone here, but you can call me with this number +221772961771 it is the (Rev Father Dick Moore) Number here in the camp, call and tell him you want to speak with me ( Janet ) he will call me because i am staying at the female hostel. Awaiting your urgent and positive response. Please do keep this only to yourself, please i begg you not to disclose it till i come over, once the fund has been transfered. yours Sincerely, Janet. From: "janet. ghazi" Date: Fri, 15 Jan 2016 07:58:26 +0000 Subject: GOOD MORNING MY DARLING Hello Darling, Good day my love and how is your day going and i believe you are doing very well as mine is full of pains going day without food which made me to be worried of moving out from this refugee camp, this place is nothing but like a prison but i seriously know you are there to make a change to my condition, i believe you will see me through of this pains i am going through, i so much believe in you and i pray that let God give you all it take to finish this transaction, receiving your respond says it all that you will get me out of this place and as well get this money transferred, i don't know how you will feel if i give you miss call so that you will call me back, to enable us speak on phone, meanwhile .This bellow is the contact of the bank, i have let the bank know about you this morning, the only thing they need now is a conformation mail from you as my foreign partner, please i want you to send an email to the banks immediately you read this mail. Tell the bank that you are my foreign partner whom i have introduced to them as my foreign partner that you want to know the possibilities of transferring the money in to your account over there in your country. This is the contact of the bank and deposit information about the account of the money below. International Standard Bank European Headquarters 24 Bank Street London E-18 6LE United Kingdom Tel : +447968815608 +447968815608 Fax No: +447031892857 Email:::: bankisb.transfer@aol.co.uk write-to-transfer-bank_manager-office@writeme.com Contact Person: Mr. Gerald Gabriel (Manager ISB Bank) INFORMATION OF MY ACCOUNT Name of Father Dr Ghazi al-Sadiq Next of kin Miss Janet Ghazi Amount US$6,800,000.00 Dollers Account Number: BLB/0100 50303 06023/QB/91/B. My darling please try your possible best to communicate with the bank with their email addresses as soon as you hear from the them you let me know. i will be waiting to read your lovely mail soonest. Thanks yours Janet Date: Sat, 16 Jan 2016 04:00:33 -0500 From: BANK ISB TRANSFER Cc: janet.ghazi@hotmail.com Subject: INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BANK PLC LONDON European Headquarters 24 Bank Street London E-18 6LE United Kingdom +447980819621 / Fax: +448704958801 write-to-transfer-bank_manager-office@writeme.com SATURDAY 16TH JANUARY 2016 ATTN: SIR. REFERENCE TO YOUR PARTNER REQUEST FOR THE RELEASE OF HER LATE FATHER FUND (DR GHAZI AL-SADIQ). THE DEPOSITED FUND WILLED TO HIS NEXT OF KIN MISS JANET GHAZI, WE HAVE ACKNOWLEDGE THE RECEIPT OF YOUR PARTNER MAIL INQUIRY IN RESPECT TO THE INHERITED FUND DEPOSITED IN OUR BANK HERE IN LONDON BY DR GHAZI AL-SADIQ, WE HAD CONFIRMED THE DEPOSIT DOCUMENT ISSUED BY OUR BANK AND THE OWNERSHIP DOCUMENTS ALSO WHICH YOUR PARTNER FORWARDED TO US FEW DAYS BACK. FURTHERMORE BEFORE WE WILL START OPENING AN ACCOUNT FOR YOU AND GETTING THIS FUNDS TRANSFERRING, YOU ARE TO PRODUCE LEGALITY OF YOUR CLAIMS FROM THE SIDE OF THE NEXT OF KIN TO ENABLE US PROCESS THE RELEASE ORDER, YOU SHOULD PRESENT THE FOLLOWING DOCUMENTS VIA E-MAIL OR FAX ATTACHMENT FOR THE CONTENTS TO BE VIEWED PROPERLY. 1. YOU ARE REQUESTED TO DRAFT AN APPLICATION LETTER REQUESTING FOR THE CLOSURE OF THE LATE DEPOSITORS BANK ACCOUNT AND TRANSFER OF THE SAID FUND INTO YOUR NOMINATED BANK ACCOUNT. 2. YOU SHOULD SEEK RESPONSIBLE LAWYER BASED IN SENEGAL AND THE LAWYER WILL OBTAIN AN AUTHORITY LETTER (POWER OF ATTORNEY) DULLY SIGNED BY SENEGAL CHIEF JUDGE MANDATING YOU TO MAKE THIS CLAIM ON BEHALF OF YOUR PARTNER SINCE SHE IS RESIDE THERE IN SENEGAL. NOTE. THIS POWER OF ATTORNEY MUST BE ENDORSED BY A SENEGALESE RESIDENT LAWYER. (SINCE THE MONEY IS ORIGINATED FROM AFRICA AND NEXT OF KIN IS CURRENTLY RESIDING IN SENEGAL) 3. BEFORE WE ACCEPT ANY OF THESE DOCUMENTS FROM YOUR LAWYER IN SENEGAL, THE LAWYER MUST FORWARD TO US HIS NOMINATION CERTIFICATE AND IDENTITY SHOWING HIS RIGHT AS A REGISTERED LAWYER. 4. THE LAWYER SHOULD PRESENT ON YOUR BEHALF AN AFFIDAVIT OF OATH FROM THE FEDERAL HIGH COURT THERE IN SENEGAL. ON RECEIPTS OF THE ABOVE DOCUMENTS/INFORMATION, WE SHALL VERIFY THEM AND AS SOON AS WE ARE SATISFIED, WE SHALL PROCESS YOUR CLAIM AND EFFECT THE FUND TO YOUR BANK ACCOUNT. THE SAID FUND CAN BE TRANSFER TO YOUR ACCOUNT IN YOUR COUNTRY IN JUST THREE (3) BANKING DAYS AFTER OUR VERIFICATIONS OF THE NECESSARY DOCUMENTS.. WE SINCERELY APOLOGIST FOR THE INCONVENIENCE, AND WE PROMISE TO GIVE OUR CUSTOMERS THE BEST OF OUR SERVICES. THANKS FOR YOUR ANTICIPATED COOPERATION. OUR DUTY IS TO SERVE YOU BETTER. YOURS SINCERELY, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER MR.GERALD GABRIEL +447980819621 / Fax: +448704958801 E-MAIL: write-to-transfer-bank_manager-office@writeme.com From: "janet. ghazi" Date: Sat, 16 Jan 2016 12:25:45 +0000 Subject: FOR THE BANK REQUEST CONTACT THIS LAWYER Hello Darling Compliment of the day and also about your state of health which is the most important thing in my life with hope all is well and fine with you thanks be to God almighty who gives you good health in more abundantly Amen, Meanwhile, thanks for your ability to help me transfer the money to your position pending my arrival to meet with you and l want you to promise me that you will not disappoint me and myself l am promising you that l will not disappoint you as well. now about the bank respond, I have with me here the last statement of account and my late father death certificate and my birth certificate, I thought it's the only thing the bank will need from us but since they need the (power of attorney) and the (affidavit of oath) and (application letter) from the high court here in Senegal, i have to meet the Reverend father about it and he gave me the contact of this lawyer below, he is a registered lawyer in the United Nations Camp here and he is also a registered member in (Senegalese Bar Association) who will assist us in preparing the remaining documents for us. such as ( power of attorney ) and the ( affidavit of oath ) from the high court here in Senegal, Please l will like you to contact him through email and phone today,when your contacting him, tell him that you are my Foreign partner and you want him to prepare a ( power of attorney ) and the ( affidavit of oath ) and (application letter) from high court here in Dakar Senegal and that he will do it in your name to enable the transfer of my (Late) father's ACCOUNT in International standard bank London. to the account in Your country. His contact in-formations are as follows, STEPHEN DICKSON PRINCIPAL ATTORNEY SAGE LAW FIRM 48 AVENUE LAMINE GUEYE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT ROAD DAKAR-SENEGAL. PHONE +221766606428 EMAIL bar_stephendicksonlawfirmchamber@hotmail.com stehpenlawfirmchambe@mail2triallawyer.com So, l will like you to contact him for the preparation of the (power of attorney) and the (affidavit of oath ) and (application letter). Please try and contact me when you are incontact with him and let me knowif he agrees to assist us! so please try and get the money transfer and from it you can send me some money for me to prepare my documents and come over to discuss batter to share. From my deepest heart, Yours Inlove Janet From: "janet. ghazi" Date: Sun, 17 Jan 2016 08:12:23 +0000 Subject: FW: RESPONSE FROM BARRISTER STEPHEN DICKSON Hello Darling, How are you doing and happy Sunday, i wish you all the great new week ahead, Darling this morning i found that mail bellow and its from the lawyer, that mail he sent it to you and a copy to me, Darling Now i have seen the response from the law firm, please for my future and for my life, help me out, since the bank are now waiting for us to send them this documents, there is no need to be wasting time and since the lawyer have promise to help us to get all this document, please for the seek of my future help me out to send this money to the lawyer so that he will get this documents ready for us ok. Honey the only problem that we have now is to get the money, I want you to tell who ever you Collected money from that we will pay them back in two weeks later which i know that we can pay them back in a week time because as soon as we get those document the bank will transfer the money immediately. This documents gives you full authority and credibility to represent me to the bank and to anywhere. Everything concerning this transaction is completed only to send this documents to the bank and once the receive it the bank will make the transfer. Please honey be fast, so that the lawyer will start up the process, there is no need for us to delay our self since the bank are now waiting for us, please honey, call the lawyer immediately ok, my prayers are with you. God will surely provide for you, please take good care and God bless you for me, looking forward to hear the good news from you soonest. Yours inlove Janet From: bar_stephendicksonlawfirmchamber@hotmail.com To: CC: janet.ghazi@hotmail.com Subject: RESPONSE FROM BARRISTER STEPHEN DICKSON Date: Sat, 16 Jan 2016 17:49:14 +0000 (SAGE LAW FIRM DICKSON CHAMBERS) AVOCAT STEPHEN DICKSON. SENIOR ADVOCATE BARRISTER STEPHEN LEGAL SAGE.ESQ MAIN OFFICE:48 AVENUE LEMINE GUEYE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT ROAD DAKAR SENEGAL, PHONE: +221764984983 FOR YOUR ATTENTION, SEQUEL TO YOUR EMAIL AND YOUR PARTNER EMAIL ON HOW TO PREPARE A POWER OF ATTORNEY AND AFFIDAVIT OF OATH FOR YOU AND YOUR PARTNER (MISS JANET GHAZI) THE APPLICATION AUTHORIZATION LETTER THAT WILL ENABLE YOU STAND ON HER BEHALF TO TRANSFER HER LATE FATHER FUND FROM (INTERNATIONAL STANDARD BANK PLC LONDON) TO YOUR ACCOUNT IN YOUR COUNTRY OR ELSEWHERE. IN THIS JUNCTURE AM BRINGING TO YOUR NOTICE, YOUR FULL INFORMATION'S IS HIGHLY NEEDED BY ME, THEY WILL BE USE IN PREPARATION OF THE DOCUMENTS, THIS FOLLOWINGS ARE VERY IMPORTANT IN THIS CASE, 1) NAME ...... 2) ADDRESS... 3) TELL..... 4) FAX... 5) DATE OF BIRTH .. 6) COUNTRY... 7) PROFESSION... THESE INFORMATION ARE VERY IMPORTANT AND WILL BE USE AT THE HIGH COURT FOR THE PROCUREMENT OF THE DOCUMENTS, LISTEN VERY VERY WELL, PRIOR TO MY ENQUIRIES FROM FEDERAL HIGH COURT OF SENEGAL, REGARDING THE PREPARATION OF POWER OF ATTORNEY AND APPLICATION AUTHORIZATION LETTER AND AN AFFIDAVIT OF OATH SUPPORT SWORN ON YOUR BEHALF AT THE FEDERAL HIGH COURT OF DAKAR-SENEGAL WILL ATTRACT THE COST. 1) EURO 700 (SEVEN HUNDRED EURO'S) FOR THE REGISTRATION FORM FEE OF THE AFFIDAVIT OF OATH SUPPORT IN THE FEDERAL HIGH COURT OF SENEGAL. 2) EURO 600 (SIX HUNDRED EURO'S) FOR THE PROCUREMENT OF THE AFFIDAVIT OF OATH SUPPORT SWORN ON YOUR BEHALF BY ME AT THE FEDERAL HIGH COURT OF SENEGAL. 3) EURO 540 (FIVE HUNDRED AND FORTY EURO'S) FOR THE DRAFTING SIGNING AND SEALING OF A POWER OF ATTORNEY ON YOUR BEHALF, YOU AND YOUR PARTNER. THIS PAYMENT WAS CHARGED AT THE HIGH COURT BY THE CHIEF MAGISTRATE AND THE COURT ORDERS.THE TOTAL CHARGE FOR THIS DOCUMENTATION WILL COST A TOTAL SUM OF EURO 1,840 EURO'S (ONE THOUSAND EIGHT HUNDRED AND FORTY EURO'S ONLY ) PAY FOR THE LEGALIZATION FEES WHICH IS NECESSARY . SEND THE MONEY TOTAL OF EURO 1,840 EURO'S WITH MY NAME AND ADDRESS OF MY CHAMBER, SCAN AND SEND THE PAYMENT INFORMATION AS SOON AS YOU SEND THE MONEY TO ENABLE MY CHAMBERS COLLECT THE MONEY FROM OUR BANK HERE IN SENEGAL. IT WILL ONLY TAKE US TWO WORKING DAYS TO PROCURE THE DOCUMENTS REQUIRED. I AM WAITING TO RECEIVE THE PAYMENT SLIP. HERE IS THE INFORMATION YOU NEED TO SEND THE MONEY THROUGH WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER OR MONEY-GRAM TRANSFER SERVICE, NAME.......................STEPHEN DICKSON QUESTION............... POWER ANSWER..................AUTHORITY COUNTRY................SENEGAL STATE......................DAKAR (MTCN) COTROL NUMBER................................... SEND THE CONTROL NUMBER WITH NAME OF SENDER AND THE PAYMENT SLIP YOU RECEIVE AND QUESTION AND ANSWER IMMEDIATELY YOU SEND THE MONEY OK. YOURS SENIOR ADVOCATE BARRISTER STEPHEN DICKSON.ESQ TEL / +221764984983 stehpenlawfirmchambe@mail2triallawyer.com BARRISTER DICKSON.ESQ Year Established: 198 From: BARRISTER STEPHEN DICKSON Date: Mon, 18 Jan 2016 07:51:54 +0000 CC: "janet. ghazi" Subject: ATTENTION (SAGE LAW FIRM DICKSON CHAMBERS) AVOCAT STEPHEN DICKSON. SENIOR ADVOCATE BARRISTER STEPHEN LEGAL SAGE.ESQ MAIN OFFICE:48 AVENUE LEMINE GUEYE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT ROAD DAKAR SENEGAL, PHONE: +221764984983 ATTENTION MR , WITH ALL DUE RESPECT, I HERE-BY BRING TO YOUR NOTICE THAT YOUR MAIL HAS BEEN RECEIVED, AS OF YOUR REQUEST BELLOW IS THE BANK ACCOUNT DETAILS, YOU CAN GO AHEAD AND MAKE THE PAYMENT THROUGH THE GIVEN ACCOUNT BELLOW, ACCOUNT HOLDER....... ... CAMARA OUSMANE NAME OF THE BANK..... .... BANK OF AFRICA SENEGAL BANK ADDRESS.............. YOFF DAKAR SENEGAL ACCOUNT NUMBER............ 05007960000 BANK CODE..................... SN100 CODE AGC..................... 01022 RIB..................... 77 SWIFT CODE..................AFRISNDAXXX IBAN.......................... SN08 SN10 0010 2200 5007 9600 0077 YOURS SENIOR ADVOCATE BARRISTER STEPHEN DICKSON.ESQ TEL / +221764984983 stehpenlawfirmchambe@mail2triallawyer.com BARRISTER DICKSON.ESQ Year Established: 198 If you received a similar letter, please ignore it. Do not answer it. If you do, you will end up on more of the mailing lists used by the criminals behind this fraud. Read more.... , . On Newsstands Now: Here's Everything You'll Find in CityBeat's Latest Issue From a Bigfoot hunt to delightfully spooky ghost stories from one of Cincinnati's watering holes, here are the stories you'll find in CityBeat's latest print edition. By CityBeat Staff Oct 19, 2022 For many of us, Bigfoot is a legend present only on an episode of Ancient Aliens, or perhaps only among the towering, mysterious pines of the Pacific Northwest. However, for CityBeat's latest issue, we went on a hunt for Bigfoot in a place where the massive furball had allegedly been spotted before Ohio's Pleasant Hill Lake Park... Richard Smith hereour Iowan readers (we must have some) might just about recall this 2014 story: Iowa officials unaware of suit against fertilizer plant that got $200 million in tax breaks, about an outfit called Orascom: The lawsuit alleges Contrack and two other companies collaborated to win USAID-financed contracts to build Egyptian infrastructure for which they should have been ineligible. They formed a secret, joint venture to conceal that one of the partners was an Egyptian company, the lawsuit alleges, because only U.S. contractors were eligible. Orascom didnt tell Iowa officials and were not required to that it is contesting a lawsuit filed by the federal government in 2004 alleging its subsidiary, Virginia-based Contrack International, was part of a joint venture that improperly won $332 million in U.S.-financed construction contracts in Egypt, officials said. The Iowa Economic Development Authority and Lee County approved the incentives for a subsidiary of Cairo-based Orascom Construction Industries , which is planning to invest $1.4 billion to build the plant near Burlington. Their failure to uncover the lawsuit disclosed by Orascom in its annual report raises questions about the research that went into the deal, which has been criticized as rushed and overly generous . State and local officials promised an Egyptian company $200 million in tax breaks to build a fertilizer plant in southeast Iowa without knowledge of a pending lawsuit alleging one of the companys subsidiaries defrauded U.S. taxpayers out of millions of dollars, officials told The Associated Press. By the time that story broke, Contracks share of the suit had been settled, on a no-liability basis, naturally, for a mere $3.5Mn. But, oh dear, its not just Iowan officials who may be missing things. The plot just keeps on thickening: Contrack, which is a fair-sized US defence contractor, turns out to have ties toNorth Korea. Cross-posted from Finance Uncovered, a reporting and training project that equips journalists and campaigners around the world with skills and tools to investigate tax abuse, money laundering and corruption and then helps our participants get their stories published or broadcast., a blog thats well worth bookmarking. This pieces author is George Turner, a British investigative journalist. You can follow him on Twitter as @finuncovered; hes also associated with @theoffshoregame. After North Korea last month claimed it exploded an H-Bomb, western leaders stressed the need to tighten international sanctions against the pariah state. The prospect of tighter sanctions will be of more than passing interest to a US billionaire and his extensive business dealings with Pyongyang. Today Private Eye published a piece on the North Korean activities of American Egyptian tycoon, Naguib Sawiris. The story is based on research from Finance Uncovered. Here we reveal the documents that show how Sawiriss business interests in North Korea, which include links to a bank associated with the regimes WMD programme, are connected to a major US defence contractor, Contrack Watts Inc (which was until recently named Contrack International). US authorities, who declined to comment for this story, appear to have been unaware of links between one of their wealthiest citizens, and the rogue state. Who is Naguib Sawiris? Naguib Sawiris is a multi-billionaire telecoms magnate. A truly global citizen, he was born a Coptic Christian in Egypt and educated in Europe. His business empire is controlled from a luxurious tower on the banks of the Nile, yet according to Companies House filings he is usually resident in the the UK, where amongst other things, he runs a hedge fund. As Sawiris confirmed during a recent case before the UK supreme court, he has US citizenship. He is also deeply involved in global politics: a large donor to Mitt Romneys failed presidential bid, a power broker in his native Egypt and a regular visitor to Davos. When trouble flared in Cairo after the overthrow of President Morsi, he was the then special envoy to the Middle East Tony Blairs first port of call. That port being in San Tropez. Sawiriss fortune derives from managing the telecoms empire of his familys business Orascom. Orascom Telecom Holdings was a global telecom player particularly in the developing world. The company held licences across the globe, from Zimbabwe, Syria, Iraq, Italy and North Korea. When the majority of Orascom Telecom Holdings was sold to Russian telecom giant, Vimplecom in 2011 for $6.6bn, Koryolink, the North Korean cell phone network, was one of the few assets Sawiris held onto. The North Korean adventure After building telecoms networks in a number of challenging countries around the world, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK) must have seemed like the final frontier for Sawiris. At some point before 2008 he was introduced to the opportunity by Ri Chol, who at the time was the North Korean permanent representative to the UN in Geneva. It has been suggested that in addition to his diplomatic duties, Chol was also responsible for managing Kim Jong Ils private bank accounts in Europe. In 2010 Ri Chol was recalled to North Korea to be vice chair of the DPRKs committee of investment. After the initial introduction, Sawiris visited the country several times to build relationships with the North Korean leadership. He has been photographed with Kim Jong Il. The vice premier of the DPRK cabinet was at Koryolinks grand opening in Pyongyang. Its personal you know, I went drinking with these guys at night, we made jokes, we get along well, and Ive done nice stuff there, Sawiris told Euromoney in 2011. Ive repaired their tramways, Ive recovered their hotel, donated medicine when they had the floods. The hotel mentioned by Sawiris is Pyongyangs Ryugyong Hotel. When construction began in 1987, it was the first building outside the United States of over 100 stories. Originally intended to be a display of North Koreas might, the giant windowless concrete pyramid became a national embarrassment for the best part of two decades after building stopped in 1992. It resumed in 2008 by Orascom and the exterior has now been finished, although reports from the country suggest it is still an empty shell. Documents from Orascom indicate that the company spent over $30m on the hotel. A profitable enterprise The effort Sawiris made to gain access to the North Korean market seems to be paying off. Koryolink is making a lot of money in North Korea. The 2014 annual accounts of Orascom Telecom Media and Technology Holdings (OTMT) show that the company made revenues in excess of $340m in its North Korea mobile phone (GSM) segment. A Finance Uncovered analysis of Orascom Telecoms 2012 annual accounts shows that the companys two million North Korean subscribers equivalent to 10% of the countrys population made average revenue per user of $13 a month. These are huge revenues in a country where wages are very low. The best paid workers are said to be paid around $70 a month, according to recent reports. In 2013 average earnings were thought to be around $25-30 a month. Recent news reports indicate that the company is having difficulty repatriating profits, and that the North Korean regime may have even appropriated the company. This is denied by OTMT. How Koryolink manages to be so profitable is a mystery. Networks in other parts of OTMTs former empire are far less lucrative. Djezzy, the phone network Sawiris set up in Algeria achieves an average revenue per user of $9 according to the 2012 annual report of Global Telecom Holdings despite Algeria having a GDP per capita more than four times North Koreas. In Pakistan, Mobilink, another former Sawiris company with 36.1m subscribers generates $2.50 per user. In Bangladesh it is $1.70 per user. Sawiris splits the substantial profits of the cell phone business with the North Korean regime, who also have a stake in the business. According to some analysts the North Korean Regime has earned between $400m-$600m from the cell phone industry up to early 2013. Orabank Cell phones are not Sawiriss only business in North Korea. Buried in the list of subsidiaries in the Orascom Telecom and Media Holdings accounts is a reference to another enterprise, Orabank. This bank is not mentioned anywhere else in the annual report. According to a report from Bloomberg, Orabank was opened the day after Koryolink in a ceremony in Pyongyang. An organisational chart filed with the SEC at the time of the Vimplecom merger in 2011 shows that Ora Bank NK is a subsidiary of Oracap Far East, of Malta. With the huge difficulty faced by companies moving money into and out of North Korea, it is not unusual for a company operating in the country to set up their own bank. But these tend to be hotel room operations nothing more than a telex machine in a hotel room. Orascoms accounts suggest that Orabank is a much more substantial enterprise. The first quarter report of 2009 from Orascom Telecom Holdings shows that Oracap Far East paid $1m for a licence to operate a bank, had $180,000 in cash and had committed to invest $127m. The 2010 annual accounts of Orascom Telecom Holdings shows that the company wrote off $48m that it had invested in Orabank. What exactly Orabank does is difficult to know. Other than these brief snapshots, there is no mention of Orabanks revenues or business activities in Orascom annual reports. Sensitive links Sawiriss various businesses in North Korea may raise some eyebrows in Washington DC. Not only is Sawiris a political mover and shaker, documents found by Finance Uncovered show that Koryolink and Orabank has a link to the US defence industry. Sawiriss North Korean businesses are owned by OTMT in Egypt. The majority of OTMT is owned by OTMTI in Luxembourg. According to a Federal Communications Commission application form submitted by another Sawiris company, Accelero Capital Investment Holdings, OTMTI is in turn is owned by companies based in the Cayman Islands. The eventual owner is the Marchmont Trust, a Jersey family trust. The trustee, who looks after the Trusts assets is the February Private Trust Company, which is based in the UK Crown Dependency and tax haven, Jersey. As of 2012, one of the five directors of the February Private Trust Company was Kevin Struve. At the same time, Struve was also a director of Contrack International, now Contrack Watts, a major US defence contractor and another Sawiris family owned business. As of last year, the latest data available at the Virginia SEC, Mr Struve is still listed as a director of Contrack. We tried to contact Struve to ask him whether it is appropriate for the director of a US defence contractor to control businesses with high level links to the North Korean regime. Struve did not respond to our questions. Sanctions Sawiriss dealings with the North Korean regime raise issues with regards to sanctions. Few people we spoke to, including senior US officials, appeared to know that Sawiris was a US citizen, and so subject to the US sanctions regime. US sanctions prohibit any US citizens from dealing with a person or entity appearing on the sanctions list. A spokesperson for the US Treasury, although refusing to comment on this case, said that the prohibition is drawn purposefully broad in order to cover a variety of interactions. According to official North Korean media reports, Orabank is a joint venture with the North Korean Foreign Trade Bank (FTB). The FTB was designated by the Secretary to the Treasury Jacob Lew in 2013 as a key financial node in North Koreas WMD apparatus. Sanctions only apply to designated entities after entities are placed on the sanctions list. If Sawiris and his companies stopped dealing with the Foreign Trade Bank after it was placed on the sanctions list, then it has complied with the law. But Orascom Telecom and Media Technology Holdings (which Naguib Sawiris is the CEO of appears to openly acknowledge a risk that business may be harmed by enhanced enforcement of sanctions. Buried in the small print of the OTMT annual report is the following disclaimer (emphasis added): There can be no assurance that if international sanctions are changed or subject to enhanced enforcement, the Companys operating subsidiary in DPRK will be able to finance its operations transfer funds to and from the company or operate its mobile phone network in DPRK. We put it to Sawiris that the disclaimer in his companys annual report was akin to an admission that the company may be breaking sanctions in North Korea. We also asked whether he had ever dealt with people or companies on the US Department of Treasury Sanctions List. We were told by a spokesperson that Mr Sawiris does not comment on these issues as a matter of policy. It is unclear if Sawiris or OTMT has broken US sanctions. But the facts we have uncovered do raise serious questions. For several years Sawiris has been free to operate a bank in North Korea, a joint venture with a financial institution which later was considered by the US Treasury to be financing the countrys WMD programme. He has shared the profits of his burgeoning mobile phone business with the regime, and appears to have given tens of millions of dollars to their projects. All this was done as other Sawiris family companies received hundreds of millions of dollars from the US Department of Defense. As world leaders around the world consider how sanctions against North Korea should be toughened in the wake of their latest nuclear test, perhaps next time they are in Davos, they should ask their old friend Naguib. SHARE By June Fletcher of the Naples Daily News Thanks to fast-rising home prices, Southwest Florida sellers saw a big bump up in average price gains since purchase in 2015 a percentage that's roughly twice the national average, a new report says. Nationwide, sellers who sold their homes in 2015 made an average of $20,378 from their purchase price, RealtyTrac reported Thursday. That's an 11 percent gain the biggest since 2007, the Irvine, California-based research group said Thursday. But Collier County sellers who sold their homes last year made an average of $49,900, a gain of 21 percent from when they purchased their homes. In 2014, Collier sellers saw only a 7 percent gain, or $16,900. Lee County sellers saw average returns of 23 percent, or $33,000 in 2015, compared with 6 percent, or $8,900, in 2014. While such gains sound impressive, they don't compare with the returns of housing's go-go years. That happened in 2006, when Collier's sellers walked away with an average of $168,375, a 73 percent gain from their purchase price, while Lee County sellers made an average of $121,000, a 92 percent gain. Daren Blomquist, RealtyTrac vice president, said that while "the history of the market is very speculative," Southwest Florida home sellers shouldn't expect such wallet-bulging windfalls to return any time soon. Because of government restrictions on lending, "there are checks and balances in place now that weren't then," he said. Meanwhile, the percentage of sales to investors, cash sales and distressed sales continue to shrink throughout the region, while the percentage of traditional sales backed by loans from the Federal Housing Administration is ticking up. That's an indication that the region's real estate market is stabilizing, said Blomquist. "It's generally a good sign that the Southwest Florida market is broadening, and not just dependent on wealthy cash buyers," he said. While so-called vulture funds dominated the market during the down years between 2008 and 2013, swooping up short-sales and foreclosures, their participation in the market has fallen as once-abundant bargains have dried up, Blomquist said. In Collier, bank-owned sales dropped to 7.3 percent of the market, or 960 sales in 2015, from 11.1 percent, or 1,487 sales in 2014. In Lee, once the center of the housing crisis, the 2,416 sales made up 10.5 percent of all sales, while in 2014 it was 15.9 percent, or 3,552 sales. The lack of deals has steadily driven institutional investors to cheaper markets than Southwest Florida, Blomquist said. In 2015, 98 sales in Collier were made to institutional investors, down from 317 in 2014. The percentage dropped to 0.8 percent from 2.4 percent. The percentage of Lee County sales to institutional investors fell to 1.6 percent, or 351 sales last year, from 5.7 percent, or 1,256 in 2014. Since investors often buy with cash, their departure is one reason cash sales have fallen in Southwest Florida, Blomquist said. Cash sales in Collier made up 57.5 percent of all sales, or 7,603 sales, compared to 60.2 percent of sales, or 8,058 sales, in 2014. In Lee, about half of all sales in 2015 were for cash, down from six out of ten a year earlier. And as the competition for housing has eased, there have been more opportunities for traditional buyers who need a mortgage. In Collier County, the count of FHA-backed sales rose to 829 in 2015, or 6.3 percent of all sales, compared with 582 sales, or 4.3 percent, a year earlier. In Lee County, 12 percent, or 2,761 sales, were FHA-backed in 2015, compared with 8.2 percent, or 1,844 sales, the prior year. But Blomquist saw some warning signs, too, particularly in the fact that home prices in the region have accelerated for 57 consecutive months in Lee County and 41 months in Collier County, while incomes generally have remained stagnant. "At a certain point I could see a definite chilling of the market as affordability hits a wall," said Blomquist. "This is most likely going forward." However, in a separate report released Wednesday by MetroStudy, chief economist Brad Hunter noted two factors that could counterweigh the pressure on traditional buyers: job growth has strengthened, and Southwest Florida housing starts have risen 35.3 percent in the past four quarters, loosening tight supply. New home closings make up about 18 percent of the region's market, MetroStudy said. In the least surprising development of the young political season, the proposed solar energy amendment backed by Florida's power companies won out over a competing amendment backed by libertarians and environmental groups. While both proposals would put the topic of solar power before voters, their potential impacts on the state's energy market are markedly different. The one backed by Floridians for Solar Choice would have made it legal for residents to lease solar equipment and use the power generated in their homes. Excess power could be sold to neighboring properties, something called a third party power purchase agreements. Florida is one of four states that prohibit such agreements. Electricity can only be purchased from a utility. Now, when Floridians make the substantial investment to buy solar equipment, they can only use the power they generate themselves. Passage would foster small-scale solar power generation now almost nonexistent in the state. The other, backed with millions of dollars from Florida Power and Light, Duke Energy, Tampa Electric and other conventional power produces, would essentially keep the status quo. Called Consumers for Smart Solar, its main selling points, according to its supporters, are that it allows state and local governments to regulate solar producers, prevents fraud and protects traditional electric customers from subsidizing solar users who still need to connect to the traditional grid for backup power. On Tuesday, Secretary of State Ken Detzner said the Consumers for Smart Solar effort had reached the 683,000 verified signatures needed to make it on the 2016 ballot. Only one other amendment, seeking legalization of medical marijuana, was certified for the ballot. Consumers for Smart Solar was created about seven months after Floridians for Solar Choice. Critics believe its main purpose was to prevent Floridians for Solar Choice from collecting enough signatures to get on the ballot. With two similar sounding petitions circulating, voters wouldn't be sure which one, if either, to sign. A Consumers for Smart Solar video contrasting the two proposals says Floridians for Solar Choice's plan would benefit, "Big, out-of-state solar companies." That's doubly ironic. The biggest thing in the petition drive leading up to Tuesday's certification was the role big, in-state electric companies played in gathering petitions. The amendment labeled as being for "consumers" was in fact bankrolled by the producers. Consumers for Smart Solar has raised about $7 million and spent almost all of it, according to state campaign finance reports. While some of the money went to advertising, consulting and legal fees the bulk, more than $5.3 million was spent directly on petition gathering paying people to stand in public places soliciting signatures. FP&L and Tampa Electric each contributed more than $900,000 to the effort, Duke Energy more than $1 million. Gulf Power Company put in $715,000. Only 13 of the 90 contributions received by Consumers for Smart Electric were of $1,000 or less. Conversely, Floridians for Solar Choice raised about $2 million through the end of 2015. Most of it, about $1.5 million, came from the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy, a Tennessee-based nonprofit group that relies on foundation grants and environmental groups for its funding. Of about 550 donations to Floridians for Solar Choice, 77 were of $1,000 or more. Floridians for Solar Choice spent just over $1 million for petition gatherers. A bill that would accomplish many of the same things as the Floridians for Solar Choice amendment would have has been introduced in the Legislature but hasn't been heard by a committee. Stephen Smith, executive director of SACE, said the petition drive fell about 200,000 short of the required 683,000. The collected signatures are good for two years so the group may try to get on the 2018 ballot using the same signatures. He said he's hopeful the state Supreme Court will find the Consumers for Smart Solar language unacceptable and strike it from the ballot. According to the Consumers for Smart Solar website, their effort is all about protecting consumers and enshrining the right to have solar energy (as long as its purchased from an existing utility company) in the state constitution. Sowing confusion among voters is not listed as one of its goals. With that in mind, it will be interesting to see just how much money the big electric companies put into getting the Consumers for Smart Solar amendment passed, compared with how much they spent just getting it on the ballot. A significant drop off in the effort would signal that passage maybe wasn't the goal to begin with. That wouldn't really be surprising at all, would it? (Connect with Brent Batten at brent.batten@naplesnews.com, on Twitter@NDN_BrentBatten and at facebook.com) Dr. Judith Gates talks about gender inequality during the 2015 "Progressive Voices Speak Out" speaker series at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Greater Naples. Gates gave a presentation on "The War Against Women" with Shelter for Abused Women and Children Executive Director Linda Oberhaus. Lance Shearer/Citizen Correspondent SHARE Vic Walczak, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union in Pennsylvania, speaks at a previous year's Progressive Voices Speak Out lecture, held at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Greater Naples. The church is hosting the annual speaker series again, with the first speech scheduled for Feb. 10. By Lance Shearer Yes, there are progressive voices in Naples. While Collier County is known, correctly, as a hotbed of conservatism, and winning the Republican primary makes the general election a mere formality for candidates seeking public office, not everyone agrees with the dominant ideology. In 2008, for example, 54,450 in Collier voted for Barack Obama for president, although that 38 percent was swamped by John McCain's 86,379, or 60 percent. But there is an audience locally for liberal thought, and that is the niche that the Progressive Voices Speak Out lecture series aims to fill. Since approximately 1995, the group has brought speakers with national credentials to Naples each winter to give their take on the issues of the day. Luring speakers to come to Naples, with travel expenses and honoraria furnished, is not a hard sell, said David Griffith, who founded the series. Each of the talks is held at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Greater Naples, just south of Pine Ridge Road, on a Wednesday evening, preceded by a social hour with complimentary wine, soft drinks and hors d'oeuvres. Over the next month and a half, Progressive Voices will host six talks on topics from campaign finance to the Middle East and "the end of religion." "We are unabashedly leaning toward a progressive view of the world," said Griffith. "We're not endorsing candidates, but we're offering a viewpoint you don't usually hear in Naples." The first speaker, on Feb. 10, will delve into politics. Paul S. Ryan will give a talk entitled "Is Our Democracy Being Stolen?" focusing on Super PACs and the Supreme Court's 2010 decision in Citizens United, that unleashed a flood of unlimited money into our elections. The court's 2013 decision in Shelby County v. Holder struck down an important section of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that required certain counties and states with histories of discriminatory voting laws, including several counties in Florida, to get pre-approval from a federal court or the U.S. Department of Justice for any voting law changes. "The Supreme Court has handed the reins of our democracy to billionaires, while rolling back voting rights protections for the rest of us," said Ryan and no, he's not related to the other Paul Ryan, the Republican speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. Paul S. Ryan has testified as an expert on election law before Congress, regularly represents the Campaign Legal Center before the Federal Election Commission and as a campaign finance law expert on news programs of CNN, NBC, C-SPAN, NPR and other broadcast media outlets. He is quoted regularly by The New York Times, Los Angeles Times and the Washington Post, among others. Ryan is a graduate of UCLA's law school, admitted to practice law in the District of Columbia, the State of California, the Supreme Court of the United States, the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. On Feb. 17, Jim Kenney, executive director of Common Ground, an adult study center focusing on the world's great religious, philosophical and spiritual traditions, will speak on "Islam in Europe: Fears and Realities." Kenney is one of the original Progressive Voices Speak Out lecturers. February 24 will bring Jean-Marc Oppenheim, a Middle East historian and Fulbright scholar who teaches graduate and undergraduate courses at Columbia and Fordham Universities, speaking on "Controlling Chaos in the Middle East." The following Wednesday, March 2, James Morrow will give a lecture entitled "Foreign Policy and the 2016 Election: ISIS, Russia, China and Europe." He is a professor of world politics at the University of Michigan, and will discuss options for U.S. foreign policy in each of the current "hot spots" in the world. On March 9, Rev. Brent A. Smith will speak, taking as his subject "The End of Religion is a Beginning." Smith is a graduate of the University of Chicago Divinity School and a professor in the religious studies program at Grand Valley State University in Michigan. This new conversation changes what is meant by the concept of "religion," he says, as well as all concepts that have been related to "religion," like "belief," "dogma/doctrine," and even "secular," "irreligious," and "not religious." Progressive Voices Speak Out's 2016 winter program concludes on March 16 with "Ethics, Survival and Climate Risk Management," presented by Dr. Jan W. Dash, physicist, managing editor of "Climate Portal," and an official non-governmental organization observer at the recent Paris Climate Conference. "We want to be a beacon of progressive ideas," said Jim Swonk, Progressive Voices chairman. "We know many people are with us. Take the Citizens United decision 80 percent of Americans are against that. When somebody pays for your election, they expect something back. In Naples, there are a lot of voices on the very conservative side, but we feel they don't have all the facts." In addition to the Wednesday evening lectures, all the speakers will conduct additional workshops while they are here, often delving further into topics related to their lecture subjects. All lectures are at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Greater Naples at 6340 Napa Way, just south of Pine Ridge Road, on Wednesday evening, with a $15 suggested donation including complimentary wine and refreshments, with reception at 6:30 p.m. and lecture beginning at 7. For more information, call 239-455-6553. Corey Perrine/Staff Dr. Howard Freedman uses a slit lamp biomicroscope on Robinson Gonzalez, 3, during an exam at a Lions Club eye clinic in Bonita Springs. SHARE Corey Perrine/Staff Robinson Gonzalez, 3, has his eyes checked by Dr. Howard Freedman of North Naples while being held by his mother, Adriana Gonzalez, at a free Lions Club eye clinic in Bonita Springs. By Alexi C. Cardona In 1925, Helen Keller attended a Lions Club International Convention and called on them to become "knights of the blind in the crusade against darkness." Since then, the organization's work has included raising funds for eye exams, glasses and eye surgery for adults and children in the community. On Sunday, the Naples Lions Club will offer eye and health screenings from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Immokalee Technical Center. A group of ophthalmologists, nurses and volunteers will screen for diabetes and high blood pressure in addition to vision problems like glaucoma, cataracts and blocked tear ducts. Translators will be available for Spanish and Creole speakers. Jack Arvold, president of the Naples Lions Club, said the organization tries to provide medical services to migrant workers in Immokalee who may not otherwise have access to care. "They work hard and move around a lot," Arvold said. "We may never see the same face twice." Dr. Joseph Carpentieri, an ophthalmologist and member of the Naples Lions Club, said migrant workers can suffer from conditions such as pink eye and infections because of the dirt, sand and dust that gets in their eyes working in fields. "When you blink with dust and sand in your eyes, it's like sandpaper," Carpentieri said. "The sclera, the white part of the eye, could need surgery." The organization collects donated glasses, sanitizes them and determines the prescription. "They're almost like a new set of glasses," Arvold said. The Naples chapter has hosted the screenings in Immokalee for about 10 years, occasionally as often as four times a year. Lions Club International is a service organization that raises funds for charitable causes. Their projects include vision, disability and youth programs. For more information, see http://e-clubhouse.org/sites/naplesfl/index.php. - - - If You Go: What: Naples Lions Club vision screenings Where: Immokalee Technical Center, 508 North 9th St. When: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 7 Cost: Free SHARE By Iris Shur A recent gathering in my neighborhood ended with conversation about our years as teenagers and young adults and some of the crazy things we did. Everyone had a story. Now you have to picture a gaggle of 10 women in their 60's and 70's sitting around with their eyes lit up remembering their wild days. We were all transported back several decades. At first the stories came out in fits and starts. But then as one outrageous trip or prank was revealed, we were vying for the "microphone" to tell our tale. Pretty soon we each tried to top the other. "Well, you think that was something. You won't believe what I did." One woman was at a university near Kent State University in 1970 and, because of student uprisings, they canceled classes a week before regular spring break. With time on their hands, she and a girlfriend decided to travel to Washington, D.C., and New York City because they had never been there. They told their parents they were staying at each other's house. Then they hitchhiked from Ohio. The first person who picked them up asked, "Where are you going?" "Either Washington, D.C., or New York," they answered. He was going to Washington and so off they went with nary a plan and very little money. The tale was peppered with lots of fun and excitement and I think my neighbor would have loved to do it again. The rest of us said, "Wow, were you lucky that nothing bad happened to you," and we conjured up all kinds of mishaps that could have befallen her but, of course, did not. Another neighbor recounted the time when she was driving alone at night along a difficult coast road in California. She was nervous about driving in the dark but all the hotels in that resort area were beyond her budget. Since she was extremely tired she pulled over to the side of the road, got out and sat on a bench. A gentleman came walking along and sat next to her. She told him her predicament. He said he lived in a trailer nearby and she was welcome to come and stay with him overnight. She took him up on his offer and was adamant that he acted like a gentleman and that they had separate sleeping accommodations. A few weeks later she drove back to where his trailer was but it was gone. She had wanted to thank him for his hospitality and had brought him a gift. No one in the area ever heard of him. "He was my guardian angel," she told us. We all were amazed at her luck in being in one piece. "We wouldn't have gone with him," we all said. "Scary." The stories were now coming fast and furious. It was all we could do to get heard. The topic seemed to be one that stimulated us all. Then I told mine. In my early 20's I traveled alone to Lima, Peru. While there I heard about Machu Picchu and decided to go. First I flew to Cuzco where I stayed overnight. The next day I got on the train to Machu Picchu, planning to purchase a ticket on board. Apparently they didn't allow that so I spent the trip trying to avoid the conductor. Once at Machu Picchu, I discovered that there was only one place to eat and you had to have reservations. Of course I didn't have one but I went anyway. People were giving me food off their plates. I didn't actually have any idea why this Machu Picchu was important or even what it was. Then I found out that everyone was there on a tour with a guide. I had to sneak around to follow an English-speaking tour looking as if I belonged. Can you believe that I won't even travel alone to the next state by myself now? How did I possibly do what I did then? When we had run out of stories we could safely share, we all sighed and said, "I would never have let my kids do any of that!" - - - Iris Shur can be contacted via email at theshurthing@aol.com. Large fishing boat going out for a sunset cruise in Destin, Florida SHARE By Bill Walsh It's an age old narrative, folks from cold places move here with the expectation that with all this beautiful water surrounding us, that the fishing just borders on nirvana. Just drop a line with bait in the water anywhere and you're on the receiving end of a desirable, often delectable sea creature. It only takes a few on-the-water experiences, for them to figure out ''that ain't so.'' That the most frequent interloper on their dreams of fish a la carte is that infamous but extensively despised catfish. These demons seemingly cover every inch of open water, take any bait and feed endlessly. They proliferate like rabbits and are so despised everyone finds a way to release them off the hook alive and kicking; and without sustaining a possible serious injury to themselves in the process. With that as a prelude to our article this week, let me introduce you to, Bill and Marge who recently relocated from frozen Buffalo, New York to Southwest Florida. Recently retired, Bill was a dedicated fishing addict fishing the lakes in upstate New York as well as an occasional foray into Lake Erie when the walleye bug would ensnare him. Marge generally went along for the sheer adventure of Bill's fishing exploits. I met them first time on a late evening phone call. A rather tense individual introduced himself (Bill) and his opening spiel went something like, "just retired; bought a place here; bought a new boat; me and the Mrs. have been on the water everyday; all we have caught is catfish punctuated infrequently with a tiny perch or sea robin to break the monotony; we need help!'' We booked a trip for the following week and I promised them I would show them the places to fish where they could avoid their addiction to trophy size catfish. Nice folks and they seemed relieved. As Bill and Marge boarded that unusually nice winter morning, we took a few minutes to get to know one another and inquire about their fishing habits and techniques. They were using brand new saltwater oriented equipment light rods, top notch spinning reels loaded with twelve pound test mono and first class terminal tackle. As Bill so aptly put it, "The equipment has performed perfectly; we have never lost a catfish; we're batting a thousand.'' They used fresh shrimp for bait on Lindy rigs with circle hooks or tipped jigs if they were drifting the open waters. "So what do you think the problem is? I asked in a rhetorical sense. Bill was quick to respond. "Well, I think it's a lot like real estate, you know location, location, location! We try spots that look great, a little cove with a moving tide; we set up drift and we're like a catfish magnet." "How about charts; do you know where you're at," I asked politely as possible. Bill's response to that was brusque, "Do we have charts? We have every electronic chart or plotter known to man. We know exactly where we are but the fish we're looking for, obviously, don't." He was getting a little perturbed by the questions. With that, thought it best we move on; started the engine and we got underway. Our first fishing spot was up at the south entrance to Rookery Bay. It features a deep center channel cut and side channel shallow drop offs; two distinctly different bottom terrains. We'd try the center channel first on a drift working bottom rigs in 15-20' of water, much like the bottom terrain in the Passes they had been working. The morning incoming current was fairly strong, so we tied on one ounce weights to make sure we were holding bottom on the drift. And off we went. They both got strikes within the first two minutes. Huge topsail catfish. "'This is just like the open water you fished in the Passes; get the same results here; we're going to move over to the side drop offs and anchor up and I think you'll see the difference. We moved to the east edges of the cut in 10 feet of water and dropped anchor. We slipped lighter weights on the Lindy rigs, impaled a half a shrimp on both hooks and had at it again. Now, we were still in the late winter season and our most frequent catch on this spot had been sheepshead along with a few black drum and snapper. I had expectations of one of those three stopping by for a visit that morning. Marge spoke up first; "Gee, we've been in the water a whole five minutes and we haven't had a catfish yet; wonder of wonders." Just then her rod doubled over with the drag screeching and their first real struggle with a Florida fish began. Marge began screaming louder than the drag as the fish headed north; Bill wasn't much of a help as he went into panic mode. Getting that fish anywhere near the boat was a momentous event. We finally got the net under a nice five to six pound black drum and hoisted it aboard. They had their very first Florida real catch. Lots of hugs and atta girl for Marge. But they also learned that structure holds fish not open bottom. We stayed on the spot for a half-hour longer and landed a couple nice mangrove snapper to go along with the broiled blackened drum for dinner. We pulled off the spot and I put the two of them to the test to select the next spot. We headed toward the docks along Keewaydin Island and cruised along the docks till they told me to "stop." They were learning quickly; their choice was a dock we work frequently that holds good water flow and generous bait schools. We worked it for the hour remaining in the trip and we had a couple of minimum keeper size sheepshead. The couple were thrilled to escape without a catfish avalanche and a few fish for dinner and the learning experience was invaluable. Capt. Bill Walsh owns a charter fishing business and holds a U.S. Coast Guard license. Send comments to dawnpatrol charters@compuserve.com. Emigrating from Cuba to the United States is the theme of Una Noche, the opening night film. SHARE "CHRISTOPER ISHERWOOD AND DON BACHARDY" 1968 ACRYLIC ON CANVAS 83 1/2 X 119 1/2" DAVID HOCKNEY Freda Kelly, today, finally talking about being a member of the Beatles inner circle By Dayna Harpster In Southwest Florida, where film festivals are as ubiquitous as citrus trees, Susan Bridges and Tom Falciglia set out to plant a star fruit, an offering that would coexist with others while promising something different. Eventually, that would become the Bonita Springs International Film Festival, the first of which is Feb. 12 to Feb. 16 at the Center for the Performing Arts Bonita Springs. Both longtime foreign film fans, co-chairs Bridges and Falciglia began on fertile ground. The recently spruced Moe Auditorium & Film Center on Bonita Beach Road had been the site of foreign film screenings for years. "Films for Film Lovers" began as a monthly event in 2008, soon increasing to weekly and regularly drawing a capacity audience of 200 to the Moe Auditorium. And that was before the auditorium's sound system, screen and acoustics were upgraded. The 400-seat Hinman Auditorium just steps away would serve as a second venue. "We said, 'Let's look for films that have a tie-in with art, or music," Bridges said. The result is a lineup that includes films that either have another art form as the subject matter or are notable for their inclusion of an art form, such as an outstanding soundtrack. Audiences will learn more about one man's decadeslong quest to introduce listeners to authentic American roots music, a shy teenager who becomes an assistant to the Beatles and their families for years, the woman who photographed the iconic image of the Depression, a man who stole the Mona Lisa from the Louvre in 1911 and others. The festival also dips into the culinary arts with a documentary about the family behind Nathan's Famous Hot Dogs and early celebrity chef and inventor Homer Cantu. Galas bookend the festival, which includes more than 70 films in categories ranging from shorts to animated films to documentaries and features. Opening night includes a red-carpet walk with many of the filmmakers in attendance, Bridges said. Attendees will be welcomed with music by an eight-piece band playing the type of music featured in that evening's film, "Una Noche." Set in Havana, the film centers on Raul and Elio, who build a raft and embark on a journey to Miami. "The filmmakers searched for two years to find nonprofessional actors for this film," Bridges said. "And I don't want to give the story away but some people don't get the ending at first, and then they have an 'aha!' moment." In a real-life twist as well, two of the three young stars who had been on tour with the film at earlier festivals suddenly didn't show up at the next stop on a tour, Bridges said. They were found to be in Miami claiming political asylum. Following the film, the opening night party features Cuban food plus craft beers, cocktails and desserts. Music figures into several other film festival features. "This Ain't No Mouse Music" is the title of the 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 13, documentary about Chris Strachwitz, who since 1960 has been the guiding force behind Arhoolie Records, bringing Cajun music out of Louisiana, Tex-Mex out of Texas and blues out of the country. Filmmakers Maureen Gosling and Chris Simon had known Strachwitz for decades and had wanted to make a film about his musical detective work. But he said no. It was only after another filmmaker approached him that he agreed to work on a documentary with the two women. "At that point he became pretty cooperative and invited us to go to Texas and Louisiana to find musicians to film or record," Gosling said. "Some were ones he knew before and was visiting again. "So we went with him to Houston and San Antonio and a couple of other places in Texas, and to Cajun Country in Louisiana. In New Orleans, he arranged for the Treme Brass Band to do a second-line parade and set up a recording situation next to a bar in a former slave quarters. It's a very interesting setting." The title refers to Strachwitz's distaste for the "Mickey Mouse" corporate, overprocessed, inauthentic sound of much of pop music. Gosling will be present, and so will many of the other filmmakers, for question-and-answer sessions and how-to talks on the ways their films came into being. In the case of "Good Ol' Freda," about an assistant to the Beatles, producer Kathleen McCabe of Baltimore joined the band's fan club as a 16-year-old in 1964. One of the perks of membership was the ability to be matched with a pen pal in Liverpool. McCabe became the pen pal of a boy who worked on the club with Freda Kelly, the organizer. The boy's sister also was involved in the fan club. Over the years, they all became close friends. McCabe knew that Kelly's work with the Beatles continued to grow; eventually Kelly not only worked for the band but also did things like helping their parents with deluges of mail. But she never talked about it until 2008, when she agreed to let McCabe make this film. "We were at a family wedding," McCabe said. "A daughter of my original pen pal was getting married. And after many glasses of wine one night we got talking about it. And those talks led to having things like 'A Night with Freda Kelly' at my house in Baltimore, and 40 or 50 people would come. They were supposed to last about an hour, but at four hours I would have to say 'OK, everybody's got to go home now.'" McCabe's film has the cooperation of the remaining Beatles and their families, which is rare. "Freda became especially close to Ringo's family," McCabe said. "And his mom is featured in the film. It's one of the most emotional parts. We go there to film with Freda, who hasn't been there in 40 years. And when she does, everything comes flooding back to her." Filmmaker Joe Medeiros said his "passion project," titled "The Mona Lisa is Missing," began in 1976 when he read in a book about Leonardo da Vinci that the painting had been stolen from the Louvre and remained missing for more than two years. Vincenzo Peruggia, an Italian laborer who had once worked at the Louvre, made off with the painting in August 1911 and kept it until December 1913, when he approached an art dealer with it and was arrested. Medeiros, a graduate of Temple University's School of Theater, Film and Media Arts, tried for years to write screenplays based on the story. But they just never seemed to work. Instead, he took a course and found he was adept at writing jokes eventually becoming head writer of "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" and the Mona Lisa project languished. "I always tried to go back and write it," Medeiros said. "But I always wanted to know the reasons why he did it. And once we started getting Google I was able to find the man, and his daughter, and found out that she was alive in Italy." They met. "Celestina Peruggia knew less about her father than I did," Medeiros said. And beginning in 2008, with her full cooperation, he began a journey that included research in the archives of the Louvre to uncover the details of the heist. Filmgoers will hear about the sequence of coincidences that led the project to completion on Monday evening at a screening with Medeiros present. On Tuesday, closing night ceremonies include an award to Falciglia aptly named the Tom Falciglia Film Award to be given in future years as well for dedication to the art. "He has been there every Monday, introducing each film and leading the discussion, besides being instrumental in launching the festival," said Bridges. Annie Lisa, Teresa Sievers' sister, is interviewed by detectives in July 2015. (Screengrab) By Jacob Carpenter of the Naples Daily News Two days after Bonita Springs Dr. Teresa Sievers was found bludgeoned to death, her sister, Annie Lisa, said she had no reason to suspect Teresa's husband was involved. Lisa said Mark Sievers "worshipped the ground" her sister walked on and adored their two daughters. There was never any talk of domestic violence. And the idea of Mark Sievers having an affair was out of the question, she said. "The girls are home-schooled. He's with the girls all the time. There's no way on God's green Earth," Lisa said. Lisa's statement to detectives reinforces a common thread in the high-profile homicide: that nobody suspected Mark Sievers would want his 46-year-old wife dead. Her account was among 63 audio and video files released Wednesday by the State Attorney's Office as part of a public records request. Lee County sheriff's investigators have arrested two Missouri men, Curtis "Wayne" Wright Jr. and Jimmy Rodgers, on murder charges in the June 2015 death of Teresa Sievers, who was found in her Bonita Springs home. Mark Sievers hasn't been arrested, but previously released documents show detectives believe he orchestrated the killing with the help of Wright, his childhood friend. In a nearly 90-minute interview with detectives, Lisa described her sister as a hard-charging but compassionate mother and doctor, who rarely hid her feelings. By comparison, Mark Sievers was goofy, forgetful and eager to please, in sharp contrast to his wife. Lisa said she and her sister were close, often communicating several times a week. Although she noticed her sister becoming slightly more distant in the weeks before her death, Lisa chalked it up to job-related stress. Lisa added that her sister never spoke of any prior instances of domestic abuse, and she had no reason to suspect otherwise. "My sister would never tolerate that," Lisa said. But while Lisa was sure that Mark Sievers wouldn't engage in extramarital affairs, sheriff's detectives said they discovered photos and videos proving he was involved with multiple women. And by mid-July, Lisa changed her tune, telling detectives that Mark Sievers had become possessive with the couple's children. Investigators interview Teresa Sievers sister Annie Lisa "He yelled at me that the girls aren't going anywhere, that they needed to get back to normal," Lisa said. Detectives haven't directly hypothesized about Mark Sievers' potential motive, but they've noted the existence of the tawdry photos and videos, along with the fact that they discovered five life insurance policies in Teresa Sievers' name totaling $4.4 million in her name. Mark Sievers initially cooperated with investigators, but later stopped talking and retained a lawyer. He has maintained his innocence, his lawyer has said. Newly released statements from Teresa Sievers' mother, Mary Ann Groves, and her co-worker and close confidant, Lenka Spiska, were also among the files released Wednesday. Investigators interview Teresa Sievers mother Mary Ann Groves In her statement three days after her daughter's death, Groves never hinted at any belief that Mark Sievers would be involved in the killing, describing the couple as committed to each other and their children. "I wouldn't have a clue who would harm my baby," Groves said. Spiska painted a more bleak picture of her friend's life, telling detectives four days after the homicide that Teresa Sievers was taking medicine for depression. "We were working on that," Spiska said. "She said she realized that she never had happiness in her life." Spiska added that Teresa Sievers would sometimes toe the line with other men and tell her husband of her near-trysts, which would make him "very jealous." "She would tell him everything," Spiska said. "It was one of those, 'Why do you tell him everything?' Why does she have to stir up this drama when she knew how he was going to react?" The files released Wednesday also include dozens of short interviews conducted by detectives, many of which reveal little, but do show the lengths to which deputies went. Detectives spoke with everybody from Teresa Sievers' hairdresser to the couple's pool boy to former employees of Teresa Sievers' holistic medicine practice. Investigators interview Teresa Sievers mother-in-law Bonnie Sievers Investigators walk through suspect Curtis "Wayne" Wright's home Investigators walk through suspect Jimmy Rodgers' home 911 call in Teresa Sievers case Taylor Shomaker interview about Teresa Sievers case Jimmy Rodgers employer Tyler Juliette speaks to investigators RELATED STORIES: Staff writers Jessica Lipscomb, Greg Stanley, Kristine Gill and Ryan Mills contributed to this report. Three Hillsborough County women were arrested Monday in Naples, accused of trying to sell fake David Yurman bracelets to a jewelry store. Naples police say the first transaction happened Dec. 10, when 19-year-old Janel Melise Rosa sold a counterfeit David Yurman bracelet to Paradise Jewelry, 5455 Airport Pulling Road N., for $700. The owners noticed the bracelet was not solid gold but only gold plated after they sent it off to be smelted, according to an arrest report. On March 28, police say another woman, 32-year-old Jessica Annette Sotomayor, went to Paradise Jewelry and tried to sell an identical counterfeit bracelet. Employees recognized it as fake and declined to purchase the bracelet. The owners notified the Collier County Sheriffs Office, which issued a bulletin with surveillance photos of Sotomayor. On March 31, police were called to Thalheimers Jewelers, 3200 U.S. 41 N., for a similar issue. Employees said a woman later identified as Shannon Marie Warren, 29, was trying to sell a David Yurman bracelet they recognized as counterfeit. Officers found Rosa and Sotomayor in a minivan in the parking lot and brought all three women in for questioning. Police learned the women had been buying the fake bracelets online for $30 and selling them across the state for about a year, according to reports. The three women each face a felony charge of fraud to obtain property under $20,000. Sotomayor faces an additional charge of giving a false name to an officer and is named on a warrant from Hillsborough County for failing to return leased property. SHARE By Liz Freeman of the Naples Daily News Lee County mosquito control plans to start aerial and ground spraying right after dark, earlier than normal, to kill mosquitoes because of a coming weather front and a public health emergency for Zika. "We will try to beat the weather a little bit if we can," Wayne Gale, executive director of the Lee County Mosquito Control District, said Thursday. District officials were briefed at their regular meeting about the status of Zika and what the Florida Department of Health in Lee is doing after two travel-related cases were confirmed locally. Statewide, three more cases have been confirmed, Dr. John Armstrong, the state surgeon general, said during a Zika briefing in Tampa with Gov. Rick Scott. That brings the state's caseload to 12. One of the new cases is in Broward County so the public health emergency is expanding to include Broward. The initial emergency issued Wednesday was for Lee, Miami-Dade, Hillsborough and Santa Rosa counties, where Zika was first detected last month. The other two new cases are in Miami-Dade and Hillsborough. All the state's cases are travel related, where the individuals traveled to Haiti, Colombia, El Salvador, Venezuela or elsewhere. None have involved pregnant women who face the greatest risk if infected because of the chance their babies may be born with abnormally small heads or other birth defects. On Thursday, Scott called for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control to provide at least 1,000 Zika antibody tests so the state can test people, especially pregnant women and new mothers who have traveled to the affected areas and have Zika symptoms. Right now, the state has capacity to test 475 people, according to the governor's office. "With over 20 million residents and 100 million tourists, we must stay ahead of the possible spread of the Zika virus and take immediate action to ensure Florida is prepared," Scott said in a statement. The governor also is asking the CDC to conduct a conference call with hospitals within the next two weeks to get them prepared for treating people with Zika. About one in five people infected show symptoms, which include low-grade fever, rash, joint pain, body aches, headaches and vomiting. The Lee mosquito control district doesn't have the test used to detect Zika in the mosquito linked to the virus but is working to get it for its own laboratory, Gale said. Still, there are no signs the Zika-linked mosquito is present locally since the two cases in Lee were confirmed in people who came from elsewhere a few weeks ago. "I don't have anything to indicate it's in our mosquitoes," Gale said, but added the district is doing its due diligence. The public health emergency suspends normal spraying rules and the Lee district could spray during the day, but that isn't effective and there are no plans to do it, Gale said. Current plans are not to add more spraying hours at night; just spraying earlier because of the potential weather front. If the weather remains good, the district will stick with its normal spraying schedule. When it's wet, windy and cold, mosquitoes are not flying and the chemical must come in contact with flying mosquitoes to be effective. "We will do everything we can to spray as quickly as we can but, like I say, we have constraints," Gale said. If the situation was different with active disease locally, the district might take different action. "But we are not in that state right now so I am just trying to kill all the mosquitoes," he said. The Aedes breed of mosquito linked to Zika breeds in artificial containers and the public health department is educating the community about being proactive, which includes draining water in containers, fixing window screens, wearing protective clothing and staying indoors, Jennifer Roth, an epidemiologist with the Lee health department, said. Notices also have been sent to health care professionals about Zika, the symptoms and testing that is done through a state laboratory. The Zika virus remains in someone's blood for one week after the onset of symptoms, so the window for testing is short-lived, Roth said. The individuals who became infected were ill enough they went to their doctors, she said. A year ago, Roth said doctors in the community would not have recognized Zika because the current outbreak did not start spreading in South America until last year. Zika was first detected in 1947 in the forest of Uganda and is common in Asia and Africa, according to the World Health Organization, which last week said Zika is spreading explosively in the Americas. By Kristine Gill of the Naples Daily News Animal service officials are investigating an unlicensed dog rescue facility after complaints from volunteers surfaced last month. Darlene Izzo, the owner of a greyhound rescue called 45 MPH Couch Potato, could face citations after she was found with 25 dogs on a property where she didn't have county permission to keep them. Izzo has run the rescue out of her home in Golden Gate Estates for the past four years according to Collier County Domestic Animal Services standards. On Jan. 14, DAS investigators said they learned Izzo had moved some of the dogs to a new facility in North Naples on Rail Head Boulevard that was not licensed through the county. Reports show that animal control officers visited the site and found that while the dogs were not in imminent danger, improvements needed to be made to the site to meet code. Six of the dogs needed immediate medical care for leg injuries and diarrhea. Reports show some of the problems might have stemmed from previous owners. DAS officers also said the kennels the dogs were placed in were too small given the size of the dogs. Officers gave Izzo and her group 24 hours to make the improvements and said that she could not keep pets at the facility until improvements were made. Volunteers told DAS officials they believed Izzo had taken on too many dogs and was overwhelmed, reports show. Reports show volunteers with the rescue group removed the animals at Izzo's direction. Izzo said she wanted the animals fostered by volunteers until the new facility could be repaired, but instead the volunteers gave the dogs to a Miami rescue group. DAS checked with that rescue group, said spokesman Daniel Christenbury, and determined the dogs were being cared for properly in their new homes. Upset with the way her volunteers handled her directions, Izzo said she filed a civil report with the Collier County Sheriff's Office. Deputies said they are not pursuing criminal charges related to the rescue. Reports there show Izzo did give permission for her volunteers to give about a dozen of the dogs to Homeward Bound Greyhound on the east coast, but later said she never gave such permission. Detectives spoke with Homeward Bound officials and determined the dogs were still at the rescue as of Jan. 15. Izzo said she fears the dogs have been taken out of state. In the meantime, DAS continues to investigate the new facility and Christenbury said Izzo could face citations. Izzo said her dogs were not mistreated and that she did not know she needed to have the new facility approved by DAS. "I should have gone to the permit office," Izzo said by phone Thursday. "I did not. I did not know I should have gone there." Izzo said she plans to meet with DAS officials Friday to show that the dogs had been well cared for before their Jan. 14 visit. She said the dogs were only at the new facility for three weeks before DAS visited. "I loved the greyhounds with all my heart and soul," Izzo said. "I would never let something happen to them." Judy Rummler, center, and her husband Bill Rummler, left, talk to Bonita Bay residents who attended their talk Thursday at the Bonita Bay Community Association. The Rummlers lost their son Steve to an overdose in 2011 and started a foundation in his honor to heighten awareness of chronic pain and addiction to the drugs sometimes prescribed to treat it. (Kristine Gill/Staff) SHARE By Kristine Gill of the Naples Daily News Old photos of Steve Rummler show him singing at the piano, holding up a fish he caught and smiling alongside his parents. His parents Judy and Bill Rummler compiled the pictures after their son died of a heroin overdose in 2011. Steve Rummler was 31. He was a talented musician. He had a fiancee and a job and family and friends who cared. But he also had a crippling addiction to opioids. Steve Rummler had been taking prescription pain medications on doctors' orders since 1996 when a back injury left him with severe and constant pain. Soon, his addiction spiraled out of control. He died of a heroin overdose 45 days after he completed a treatment program for his addiction. It was the first time he had taken the street drug. "We didn't realize he was part of an epidemic," said Judy Rummler. Since his death, Rummler's parents and his fiancee have been raising awareness from their home state of Minnesota and their new home in Bonita Springs about the dangerous link between chronic pain and the possible addiction to some medicines prescribed to treat it. On Thursday, Judy and Bill Rummler gave a presentation at the Bonita Bay Community Association for dozens of people who gathered to learn more about what officials are calling a nationwide problem of overdose deaths and addiction to prescription drugs. "We need to be active," Judy Rummler said. "We need to be sure change is happening." Alongside the Rummlers Thursday was Brenda Iliff, executive director of the Hazelden treatment center in Naples. Iliff talked about the problem of prescription painkiller addictions affecting people of all ages, and especially those over age 50 here in Naples. "Half of our overdose deaths are people over age 50," she said. The Rummlers and Iliff cautioned that not all opioids are bad and not all prescriptions will lead to addiction. They also said that if you suspect someone is in need of help for an opioid addiction to contact Hazelden or the David Lawrence Center. Since it began, the Steve Rummler Hope Foundation succeeded in getting legislation passed in Minnesota. Steve's Law protects good Samaritans who call 911 about an overdose and gives first responders access to an overdose antidote. The foundation has also worked with national legislators to change the laws around the issue. "We've played a role in some of the changes you've seen out there," Bill Rummler said. Judy Rummler said she hopes the foundation can work toward removing the stigma associated around addiction so that families and victims aren't afraid to seek help. "You just think somebody like that can handle anything." Judy Rummler said of her son. "I miss him every day and it shouldn't have happened." For more information about the organization visit www.SteveRummlerHopeFoundation.org/video. SHARE There's a welcomed sight now at the corner of Golden Gate Parkway and Goodlette-Frank Road. It's construction workers. Crews for Gates Construction are beginning to transform the long-barren concrete wall into the Freedom Memorial it was intended to become in the Fred W. Coyle Freedom Park at the intersection's northeast corner. Completion of the project to affix granite to the flag-shaped monument is getting underway, a result of about $1.9 million in fundraising and a $1.38 million construction contract awarded to Gates in June by Collier County commissioners. More than a decade in the making, the project is important to the community because it honors the heroes of Sept. 11, 2001, plus military personnel and first responders. Importantly, it's also a gateway from Interstate 75 into the city of Naples that Coyle represented both on the Naples City Council and County Commission. There are plenty of deserved accolades to go around as workers begin to bring this to fruition, starting with monument artist and designer Gerald A. Ladue of Naples. There's North Collier fire district spokesman Jerry Sanford, who worked with the New York city fire department before relocating here; he has been involved in the fundraising since the start. In the past year, however, it's been Naples Mayor John Sorey who has been the driving force, leading the successful fundraising push that enabled the construction workers to be on the job today. Sorey anticipates substantial completion in late April. That's encouraging, because it would be in time for Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, 9/11 commemorations and Veterans Day. A recent $10,000 donation is a reminder that fundraising is ongoing. There are enhancements envisioned that can be completed beyond the work Gates is now tackling. Send checks to Freedom Memorial Foundation of Naples Inc., 6017 Pine Ridge Road, No. 249, Naples 34119 or donate online at www.freedommemorialfoundationofnaples.org/. We won't be surprised to see another wave of donations once the work on the waving flag monument gets further along. Naples Luxury Realty Group is launching a brand new site for Marco Island luxury real estate, marcoluxuryrealestate.com. From rare waterfront lots to elegant estates this will be the go to destination for anyone interested in all the fabulous properties that Marco Island has available. Whether your desire is to fulfill a dream of living on a tropical island or to diversify your investment portfolio, Marco is flourishing with opportunities. Luxury is more than just a word in Marco Island- its a lifestyle. What better way to enjoy Marco Island's tropical atmosphere and stunning temperatures than from your very own Marco Island home. Marco Island has some of the finest waterfront condos for sale in Florida with picture-perfect canal, bay front and Gulf of Mexico beachfront views. Or maybe you prefer to build your own dream home. There are still plenty of Marco Island lots for sale right now. With the numerous condos, and houses available in a variety of styles, values, and floor plan options - it can sometimes get overwhelming. But with Marcoluxuryrealestate.com youll be at ease, everything is simply yet extensively broken down for you- because finding your dream home doesnt need to be stressful. A sun-drenched jewel on the edge of the Gulf of Mexico, Marco Island features six miles of beach and over 100 miles of waterways within its 24 square miles. The City of Marco Island is located in Collier County, a short drive from the City of Naples. It is well known for its high quality of life, natural resources, casual atmosphere, and friendly people. Marco Islands residents and visitors alike call this special Island ... paradise. If youd to find out why please check out http://MarcoLuxuryRealEstate.com, where your dream home is waiting. Marcoluxuryrealestate.com was started by Corey Cabral to give thorough descriptions of the top luxury properties in the top communities, within one of the most desired SW Florida cities Marco Island. The combination of the finest shopping districts, dining, arts, culture, the Gulf of Mexico and the best winter weather in the U.S.A. makes Marco Island one of the first choice among those seeking the best in luxury lifestyle. Corey Cabral designed Marco Luxury Realty Group to give thorough descriptions of one of the top waterfront communities in the country. Cabral is a top producer, bringing 30+ years of experience buying and selling quality Southwest Florida real estate. Comcast Business is looking for Floridas most innovative startup companies and entrepreneurs to participate in its Innovations 4 Entrepreneurs competition. Current and aspiring business owners across Florida can enter the competition for a chance to win up to $30,000 and participate in a day of mentoring with teams of business experts who will provide advice on how to implement their plans. Based on a 250-word essay submission, applicants will answer the question: How could your business use technology to help enhance your business? Startups and entrepreneurs are encouraged to visit the Comcast Business Community to submit their application and essay and review the full program details. Entries are due by March 11, 2016. The online application can be found at http://cbcommunity.comcast.com/i4e Entries will be judged and two winners will be selected from Florida and each of the other 14 Comcast Business Regions: one winner for startup companies (in business two years or less) and one winner for entrepreneurs (in business for more than two years). The 30 regional winners will each earn $10,000 in cash. We have a strong community of startup business and entrepreneurs across Florida that play a vital role in creating new jobs. Technology can go a long way to helping them turn their business goals into reality, said Gary Phillips, Vice President of Comcast Business in Florida. Were excited to find two of the best in the state and help them transform their businesses. From the regional winners, six grand prize winners will be selected three startups and three entrepreneurs who will earn an additional $20,000 in cash, plus a trip to Philadelphia to spend a day attending group sessions with industry experts, who currently include: Anita Campbell, Founder, CEO & Publisher of Small Business Trends; Robert Irvine restaurateur, TV star and entrepreneur; John Jantsch, Marketing Consultant, speaker and best-selling author; Denice Hasty, Senior Vice President, Product and Marketing, Comcast Business; Sam Schwartz, Chief Business Development Officer at Comcast; Louis Toth, Managing Director for Comcast Ventures; and experts from Drexel Universitys Charles D. Close School of Entrepreneurship. Regional winners will be announced April 25, 2016. Voting from among the regional winners will take place between April 26 and May 13, 2016. The six grand prize winners will be announced June 6, 2016 with the Grand Prize event planned for August 2016. PGA Tour Champion and knee replacement recipient Fred Funk will join Dr. Robert J. Zehr of the Zehr Center for Orthopaedics at a free educational seminar on Wednesday, February 10, 2016 beginning at 6 pm at Physicians Regional Medical Center, 6101 Pine Ridge Rd., in Naples. Speaking on Arthritis - Whats New, What Works, board-certified and fellowship-trained orthopaedic surgeon Robert J. Zehr, M.D. will present general information on non-surgical as well as surgical treatments for advancing arthritis in hips and knees, including minimally invasive surgical techniques, robotic arm-assisted surgery, and rapid recovery programs. Funk will share his experience with joint replacement. In 2009, he had his right knee replaced with a Stryker Triathlon knee implant. Funk is a paid spokesperson of Stryker Orthopaedics. The pair will then host a Q&A session. Space is limited to 80 people and reservations are required. Register to attend by calling 1-888-STRYKER (1-888-787-9537). The Tipperariana Book of the Year Award took place in the Abymill Theatre, Fethard last Friday night, January 29, 2016. The organisers of the upcoming Tipperariana Book Fair (February 14) selected Scenes from an Indian Summer by John Fogarty as this years winner. John hails from Fethard and his fictionalised memoir tells the story of summer 1963 from the perspective of a twelve-year old boy. Fethard Historical Society hosted the presentation, which was attended by a large group of Johns family and friends as well as society members. Mary Hanrahan, P.R.O. spoke about the selection process, pointing out that Scenes from an Indian Summer was chosen as this years winner because it embodies all the qualities necessary: it is beautifully written, professionally produced and, above all, it is intrinsically of and about Tipperary. The fact that John is a Fethard man must be seen as an added bonus! Scenes from an Indian Summer is a narrative laced with humour, sadness and a searing honesty. The author does not shy away from the more disquieting aspects of life as it unfolds. While the book will strike a chord with readers of a certain vintage it also has a much wider scope. It deals with adolescence, loss, eviction and emigration, all themes that have a universal resonance and are particularly relevant to Ireland 2016. The author wisely refrains from either commenting on, or moralising about, what happens. He tells his story with great skill and leaves the reader to draw his/her own conclusions. Scenes from an Indian Summer is both an entertaining read and a very important record of social history. John will attend the Tipperariana Book Fair on Sunday, February 14, and will have copies of his book for sale. So come along, meet the author, buy a book and get it signed. An exhibition that began with a series of sketches drawn 16 years ago went on display in Clonmel this week. Wag Tail Water Fall is visual artist Des Dillon's first solo solo exhibition since 1998. It was officially opened at Clonmel library by comedian and actor Jon Kenny on Monday night and continues until Saturday, February 27. The exhibition features large 3D textile wall hangings and smaller 3D collages. "It follows my journey as I travel from my house in Newcastle into the dense woodland nearby, walking by the stream, going for a swim in its beautiful waterfalls, climbing up and out of the wood and finally arriving on the open mountain", says Des. "It portrays a series of things that I have seen on that journey, combined with things that I imagined on the way". Immediately inspired by these surroundings when he moved into the house (11 miles from his home town Clonmel) in 2000, he filled many sketch books with drawings and ideas for a new exhibition. However other demands on his time meant that one of the country's most talented visual artists put those ideas on the back burner for many years. In the meantime he created the theatre show Teac A Bloc (featuring life-sized puppets) with local traditional Irish group Rattle The Boards, which toured the country for three years and is still performed occasionally; and created a series of large commissions for individuals, companies and schools. From 2012-14 he created the puppets, costumes and set for Mag Mell, a large theatrical production, along with Jon Kenny and musicians Benny McCarthy and Conal O'Grada. The show is due to resume touring this summer. Son of Carmel and the late Jim Dillon, Des studied Textile Design in Galway from 1983-1986. He has exhibited throughout Ireland and has had a number of overseas exhibitions, including in Australia. He has also used his skills to create masks, puppets, costumes and sets for theatre companies including Galloglass, Siamsa Tire, Bickerstaffe and comedy duo DUnbelievables. Northern Ireland Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness hammered home the message during his visit to Clonmel last Friday that if Sinn Fein can share power with the DUP in the North then southern political parties will have to also put the past behind them and work with his party in government. Mr McGuinness came to Clonmel to officially launch Tipperary Sinn Fein candidate Cllr Seamie Morris' general election campaign at the Clonmel Park Hotel. The event was attended by close to 200 Sinn Fein activitists and supporters, many of whom travelled from Cllr Morris' home base of Nenagh for the occasion. In media interviews and in his campaign launch speech, he highlighted the good working relationships and friendships he forged with the North's former First Ministers DUP leaders Ian Paisley and Peter Robinson in the powersharing arrangements at Stormont. He said during the time he worked in government with both DUP leaders there was never one word of recrimination between them. "And God knows there was enough on each side to recriminate about," he remarked Responding to Fine Gael, Labour and Fianna Fail ruling out doing a coalition deal with Sinn Fein, he said he listened to politicians in the Dail talking about not wanting to go into government with Sinn Fein and the recriminations about the past and he felt there was a lesson to be learned in this part of the country from their experience in the North given all they had gone through there. It was put to Mr McGuinness that some political commentators regarded Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams refusal to enter into any coalition deal with Independent Tipperary TD Michael Lowry after the election as hypocritical in view of the support the party has given to Thomas "Slab" Murphy, who has been convicted of tax evasion. Mr McGuinness responded he didn't think Mr Lowry was going to be the deciding factor in the formation of the next government. "When the election is over the people will see a very changed political landscape because of the rise of Sinn Fein. Whatever people say prior to the election about who they will do deals with, at the end of the day, the pressure will come from the people of Ireland around the formation of the next government and we certainly expect we will be in the mix for that and are prepared to use our mandate in the interests of the people of this island. So it's all to play for." Cllr Seamie Morris responded that the national media were falling over themselves to complain about Thomas Murphy and Sinn Fein's support for him and yet bankers, developers and politicans who caused the economic crash had faced no jail sentences. In his campaign launch speech, Cllr Morris said they had a genuine opportunity to elect the first Sinn Fein candidate to the Dail in Tipperary in 98 years. He outlined that he was first elected to Nenagh Town Council in 2004 and has contested two previous elections for the party in the old North Tipperary constituency and managed to increase the Sinn Fein vote on each occasion. Mr Morris said he was proud of his record of standing up for ordinary people who had been hardest hit by cuts imposed by the last two governments. He declared he had never been afraid to take on the establishment and the auction politics and cronyism of Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and Labour. The House approved a bill 427-0 that would revamp the Federal Housing Administration's condominium loan program and expedite the approval process for Rural Housing Service guaranteed loans. The bill would streamline the FHA's certification requirements for condo projects, allow more commercial space in FHA-approved condo buildings and relax current owner-occupancy requirements. It also would authorize the Agriculture Department to use direct endorsement lenders to approve RHS-guaranteed single-family loans. The FHA and Department of Veterans Affairs have used the direct endorsement process for many years. If the Senate passes a similar bill, it would likely take RHS a couple of years to issue the regulations for its direct endorsement program and complete the application process to approve its direct endorsement lenders. Currently, RHS lenders have to send loan applications and closing documents to the Agriculture Department in Washington for loan approval. The bipartisan bill, sponsored by Reps. Blaine Luetkemeyer, R-Mo., and Emanuel Cleaver, D-Mo., also includes proposed reforms to the Department of Housing and Urban Development's rental assistance and public housing programs. "This comprehensive, bipartisan legislation represents the first real reforms to the programs and processes at HUD and the Rural Housing Service in decades," said Luetkemeyer, who chairs the House Financial Services Subcommittee on housing. The National Association of Realtors has been a strong supporter of the bill. "This legislation will put homeownership in reach for more families, and we applaud Congress's work to take us there," said NAR President Tom Salomone. "We look forward to seeing it advance through the legislative process and to the President's desk, so it can be signed into law." Condominiums are among the most affordable choice for first-time buyers, urban dwellers and older Americans, according to NAR. However, the group claims that the government's policies make it difficult for condominiums to gain and maintain FHA certification so buyers can use FHA financing to purchase a unit. At least 50% of the residents of a condominium project must be owners under current HUD rules. The Luetkemeyer bill would lower the owner-occupancy requirement to 35% but leave HUD with some flexibility to raise or lower it further. The bill would also allow exceptions to FHA restrictions on commercial space in condominium projects. The current limit is 25%. Despite the bill's backing by the vast majority of House lawmakers, the Obama administration raised concerns that it would allow lenders to approve higher limits of commercial space in condo projects. But the administration stopped short of threatening a veto, saying in a statement Feb. 2 that it "looks forward to working with the Congress on continuing to improve the bill as it moves forward." The month of November could be foreshadowing of the prediction made by Weiss Analytics that fewer homes would gain in value this year. The percentage of homes in the U.S. that rose in value in November fell to 57.9% of all homes, according to Weiss' data. That's down from 59.4% in September. Weiss Analytics, in Natick, Mass., in December predicted that the number of homes that will gain in value on a monthly basis would decline in 2016, after three years of double-digit price increases. The November data had not been released at the time of its prediction. "The steady erosion of homes that are appreciating is continuing," Allan Weiss, CEO of Weiss Analytics, said in a Wednesday news release. "This is nothing like the rate of erosion we saw in the percent of houses rising in the 18 months prior to the housing meltdown," he said. "However, this steady decline in appreciation is concerning." The fastest-appreciating metropolitan area in the U.S. in November was Reno, Nev. However, Nevada's second largest city saw its rate decline 14.5% from the prior year, dropping to 85.5% from 100%. After Reno, the fastest-appreciating metro areas were Port St. Lucie, Fla.; Portland, Ore.; Flint, Mich.; and Santa Rosa, Calif. The slowest-appreciating metro areas in November were Oklahoma City and Fayetteville, Ark. Given how far the housing market has come since the foreclosure crisis, it's easy to forget how recently it was that "strategic default" was a top-of-mind concern in the mortgage industry. The debate surrounding this phenomenon was fierce. The notion that borrowers who could afford their homes would rather walk away than be saddled with the debt of an underwater mortgage was so inconceivable that the industry's initial reaction was out of touch. Warnings about tarnished credit scores and the harm strategic defaulters cause to their neighborhoods fell on deaf ears when coming from the same banks blamed for far greater offenses. Meanwhile, critics claimed the mortgage industry was holding borrowers to a double-standard, perhaps most notably in an Oct. 2010 episode of "The Daily Show," where the Mortgage Bankers Association was lambasted for the perceived hypocrisy of expecting consumers to remain current on their loans when itself walked away from the headquarters building it purchased at the height of the real estate bubble. The video, seen below, didn't pull any punches, going so far as to refer to then-MBA president and CEO John Courson as a "deadbeat dad." Now that the fog has cleared and strategic defaults have declined in step with overall mortgage delinquencies, it's helpful to look back at this issue and what it means for the future of mortgage lending. As the cover story of the February issue of NMN magazine explains, strategic defaulters who expected their credit to recover faster than their homes' value were wrong. Still, enough time has passed that strategic defaulters are now beginning to see their foreclosures come off their credit reports, positioning them to become homeowners again. The timing couldn't be better. After years of refi-fueled origination volume, lenders have their hopes pegged to a resurgent purchase market in 2016 and beyond. But it raises the question: will strategic default rear its head again in the next downturn? A 2013 study published in the Journal of Finance gauged consumer perceptions on strategic default in a series of surveys conducted over two years. It found some 82% of respondents said it was morally wrong to strategically default. However, the study also found that knowing someone who strategically defaulted increases the probability of declaring a willingness to strategically default themselves by 51%. What's more, the study found that while consumer attitudes toward caps on executive compensation and greater regulation of financial institutions have softened over time, the rate of homeowners willing to strategically default, as well as those who believe strategic default is morally wrong, have held steady. "Taken together, these results are consistent with the view that the decision to default is based not just on economic considerations, but also on ideological or emotional ones," the study concludes. These observations suggest that despite the gamble of walking away not paying off for most homeowners, strategic default was not an anomaly of the Great Recession and the industry must account for this risk in the years ahead. 'Get me more' 'It's a hell of a deal' (NaturalNews) For any number of reasons known only to him, President Obama has neglected to enforce federal drug laws that classify marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug, and thus, ban its recreational use. Three states Washington, Oregon and Colorado openly defy the federal ban, after citizens there have passed ballot measures calling for legalization of social pot use Most other states either decriminalize pot possession or have approved marijuana for medical use only.In the wake of this patchwork of state legislation, comes a great deal of confusion about the right policies to follow when it comes to marijuana use, as evidenced by a recent case in Alabama a state that has only recognized legal non-psychoactive marijuana.As reported by pro-marijuana magazine, the state has struggled over the past several years to convince a Christian-dominated, conservative legislature to approve measures that would allow the consumption and use of marijuana for medical purposes.That said, the magazine reported that Winston County Sheriff Hobby Walker nevertheless devised a small-town medical pot program of his own, which involved persuading his deputies to steal pot from the department's evidence room.Another report by AL.com noted that a pair of former deputies for the department have filed a lawsuit against Walker, in which they claim he wrongfully terminated them in 2015, because they refused to steal pot from the evidence room that he wanted to give to his dying aunt.As AL.com noted further: Sheriff Walker advised that it was not for himself but for his aunt that was dying of cancer and needed the marijuana to help her with her appetite," the lawsuit claims.The fired deputies say they were asked multiple times by the sheriff for more marijuana after that. During the aforementioned time frame, they said Walker attempted to get pot during other law enforcement eradication operations, but was having problems obtaining it.Green and Moody said that eventually they contacted other authorities, including officials in the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, the state attorney general's office and the FBI. Their lawyer, Jay Stover of Gadsden, Ala., told the news site that one of those agencies asked the deputies to record some of their conversations with the sheriff, which they did.The deputies gave Walker marijuana one last time on Sept. 23.Green and Moody were fired on Nov. 30, and they say they believe that the firings are related to the sheriff's requests."They were directed to break the law," Stover said. "Now they have to sue to protect themselves."Also named in the suit is the Winston County Commission. Thus far, no criminal charges have been filed, which is something Stover says is "not right.""In Alabama, it's called distribution, on top of tampering with evidence," he said.Speaking for the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, Senior Trooper Johnathan Appling said, "Consistent with Agency policy, ALEA's State Bureau of Investigation does not discuss possible criminal investigations or special inquiries."At one point, according to the lawsuit, Walker told the deputies, "It's a hell of a deal asking for dope, isn't it? Here we are trying to get drugs and I'm trying to get you boys to get me some." The kissing bug is a potentially lethal parasite Existing drug treatments for kissing bug disease can cause nausea, weight loss, and nerve damage (NaturalNews) With Ebola now a back page news item, a new boogeyman pathogen is quickly taking center stage. So-called "kissing bug disease" is the latest mainstream media scare that reports claim is already inside the bodies of 300,000 Americans.The strange condition, which is already being dubbed "the new AIDS," supposedly doesn't show symptoms initially. But once they emerge, the disease, also known as Chagas' disease, can quickly turn fatal much in the same way as AIDS.Thesays kissing bug disease is technically a parasite, and many doctors aren't even aware that it exists. Researchers say it can be cured if detected early, but because of the nature of its symptoms, this is often difficult.At a recent gathering of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene in New Orleans, experts explained how Chagas is spread by kissing bugs. The parasite itself, known as, is spread through the feces of bugs, and can lead to fever, fatigue, body aches, rashes, diarrhea and vomiting.One of the more odd symptoms is a purplish swelling of one eyelid, as well as unusual skin lesions. If left to run their course, these and other harrowing symptoms can eventually turn into heart failure, which by that point is too late to cure."The disease can be fatal if not treated," says Melissa Nolan Garcia, an epidemiologist from the Baylor College of Medicine in Texas, as quoted by the. "You are normally asymptomatic until disease has progressed, at which time treatment is not helpful. We call this the silent disease."Before ultimately killing its victims, the chronic phase of kissing bug disease typically includes organ enlargement, digestive problems, and heart failure. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) lists eyelid swelling, also known as "Romana's sign," as the most recognized marker of the disease."During the chronic phase, the infection may remain silent for decades or even for life," says the CDC. "The average lifetime risk of developing one or more of these complications is about 30%."For their research into the disease, Garcia and her team followed 17 Houston-area residents who had become infected, as well as collected 40 kissing bugs from 11 central-southern Texas counties. They found that half of the bugs had fed on human blood, as well as blood from dozens of other animals ranging from canines to raccoons."We were astonished to not only find such a high rate of individuals testing positive for Chagas in their blood, but also high rates of heart disease that appear to be Chagas-related," added Garcia."The concerning thing is that the majority of the patients [I spoke to] are going to physicians, and the physicians are telling them, 'No, you don't have the disease,'" she went on to say.At the present time, there are no officially approved treatments for Chagas' disease. Two drugs currently being used as experimental treatment, benznidazole and nifurtimox, have not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and reports indicate that these drugs can cause nausea, weight loss, and nerve damage in patients."Until recently [kissing bug disease] was considered a problem only in Mexico, Central America and South America," explains(WP)."Over the past few years, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has seen cases across half the United States, but in most cases the victims were believed to have been infected abroad." Benefits of medical marijuana Treatment of Glaucoma, by decreasing the pressure inside the eye, according to the National Eye Institute. Reversing the carcinogenic effects of tobacco, by increasing lung capacity. Controlling epileptic seizures, by binding to the brain cells that control excitability, regulating relaxation. Decreasing symptoms of Dravet's Syndrome, by interacting with brain cells to quiet the excessive activity that causes seizures. Stopping the spread of cancer by turning off the Id-1 gene, which cancerous cells copy and which normally helps them to spread through the body. Decreasing anxiety levels when used in low doses. Relieving pain and suppressing nausea, which helps with the side effects of chemotherapy. Slowing the progression of Alzheimer's disease, by blocking the enzymes in the brain that produce amyloid plaques, which kill brain cells. Easing the pain of muscle contractions in patients with multiple sclerosis, by binding to the nerve receptors. Reducing the symptoms of Crohn's disease, by regulating gut bacteria and intestinal function. Relieving the discomfort of arthritis, by reducing inflammation and promoting sleep. Will it be passed in Florida? (NaturalNews) A constitutional amendment that will allow the medical use of marijuana will be proposed in Florida's November ballot later this year. Organizers say that there is growing public support for the proposal, and that the predicted larger number of voters in this year's presidential election should help pass the measure which only narrowly failed back in 2014.A petition drive to put the issue on the ballot has already achieved 692,981 certified voter signatures which is almost 10,000 more than the required number.To date, over 20 states have already legalized medical marijuana, with several high profile medical professionals also changing their minds about the controversial topic over recent months.Opinions are, as always, split over the idea of smoking recreational pot however many people are starting to agree that marijuana should be legal for medical use. The benefits of smoking pot have been arguably overstated and misrepresented by advocates of legalization, however the hope is that new laws will allow researchers to study the drug's medicinal uses, getting a better picture of how it impacts the body.So far only 6% of marijuana studies are focused around the medicinal properties of the drug. These studies have found that there are at least two active chemicals that have medical applications: cannabidiol (CBD) which impacts the brain without giving the user a high, and tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) which relieves pain, among other things.It is likely that over 60% of Florida voters will finally approve a medical marijuana law, which is the required approval percentage for constitutional amendments. However, the Legislature is a little timid when it comes to the issue. In 2014, lawmakers did actually approve the use of non-euphoric pot to treat seizures, but have since failed to provide the product, due to problems establishing the necessary regulations to oversee its production and distribution.So the group is hoping that with more votes, better laws can be established legalizing medical marijuana , and meaning that Florida finally joins 20 other states who have embraced the medical benefits of pot.It is however important to note that there are also negative effects of smoking too much marijuana, or using it for non-medicinal reasons including dependency, decreased memory function and confused emotions.The health benefits provided by medical marijuana can also be gained from THC pills, which may even be more effective than smoking pot.1. Fox13News.com 2. BusinessInsider.com 3. www.tampabay.com Sad but true: prejudice based on genetic status Banned from receiving an education because of DNA Ethical issues abound regarding access to genetic information (NaturalNews) Most everyone knows not to head to work, a social event or school with a raging cold, complete with frequent bathroom trips and excessive nose-blowing. Doing so would certainly land you some nasty stares, and likely lead to the suggestion that you head home instead of spreading your germs to others.Now, what if you take those same settings a school or the workplace, for example and consider someone who has a genetic marker for an ailment? Should they be on the receiving end of unkind looks and be told to leave because they're bound to develop an illness or infection which they do not yet even have?It would be ludicrous to think it could happen, but the sad reality is that it already has. Yes indeed, people are being judged and removed from society all because of their DNA . They're shunned from the public simply because of what makes them unique.Sixth-grader Colman Chadam, a student in Palo Alto, California , knows this firsthand. Because he has the genetic marker for cystic fibrosis, a contagious lung disease, he was asked to leave the school a few weeks into the school year. Feeling that the removal was absolutely uncalled for he doesn't have the infection, after all his parents filed a lawsuit against the school district on the grounds of genetic discrimination or prejudice based on genetic status.According to the family's attorney, Stephen Jaffe, the school district violated the Americans With Disabilities Act as well as the child's First Amendment right to privacy The lawsuit makes it very clear that Colman Chadman (CC) never had cystic fibrosis, only the genetic marker for it. Even with the marker, it's not guaranteed that he'd end up with the condition. The lawsuit provides some background about the boy:Despite having this knowledge, school staff members and others continuously interrogated his parents about his condition, often seeking details about his medical history. They even went so far as to inquire about any home treatments he might have been receiving. This ultimately culminated in a series of lengthy email exchanges, emergency school meetings and letters. Finally, the family was informed that the "ideal solution" was that the young boy be removed from Jordan Middle School, where people were clearly unable to grasp that the boy simply had a genetic marker for a condition, but did not actuallythe condition.All of this is a sad commentary about how unfairly people are choosing to interact with one another. It's difficult enough that many individuals face challenges when they do have certain ailments, or even if they so much as look "different" in the eyes of the so-called popular masses. People are alienated, questioned and treated unfairly based on appearance, physical abnormalities or other limitations. In these instances, people often say that it's what's on the inside that counts.However, in Colman's case, even that uplifting thought has been cast by the wayside. Today, it seems that people are even judged based on what's inside of them: their DNA.The lawsuit perhaps sums it up best, stating:Is this really the direction society wants to move in?(1) Wired.com (2) Assets.DocumentCloud.org SynBio already being used in food, cosmetics, soaps and other products GMO-dominated countries aggressively blocked moratorium on SynBio Is SynBio about further depopulating the planet? (NaturalNews) A much more sinister and extreme form of genetic engineering has taken the world by storm, and all 193 member countries of the United Nations, as well as one other, have agreed that this rapidly expanding technology needs to be properly regulated.It is known as synthetic biology, and it involves engineering artificial organisms at the DNA level. Nobody knows what long-term effects these organisms will have on humans or the environment, but products made using SynBio are already showing up in consumer products and even in food.A unanimous decision by the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) urges member countries to adopt regulatory standards in consideration of SynBio's many unknowns. The permanent consequences of the technology appear to be many, and yet little is known about what they entail."Synthetic biology has been like the wild west: a risky technology frontier with little oversight or regulation," said Jim Thomas from the ETC Group. "At last the UN is laying down the law."On the one hand, purveyors of real food are barred from even mentioning the possible health benefits of their products without the government's position. But when it comes to genetically modified organisms (GMOs), these man-made monstrosities can be brought into the commercial mainstream without so much as a lick of proper safety testing or even basic labeling.According to Friends of the Earth (FoE), SynBio technology is already showing up in all sorts of consumer applications even though it has never been formally acknowledged or properly tested. And if nothing changes, SynBio lifeforms could eventually become dominant on the planet, overwhelming and supplanting all the natural ones."The multibillion-dollar SynBio industry has been slipping untested ingredients into food, cosmetics and soaps; they are even preparing to release synthetically modified organisms into the environment," said Dana Perls from FoE-US."This decision is a clear signal that synthetic biology urgently needs to be assessed and regulated."If SynBio is this much of a threat, then why didn't the UN member nations impose a moratorium or ban them completely? Many of them tried to do just this but were overwhelmed by pro-GMO nations like Canada, the U.S. and the UK, which aggressively manipulated the proceedings to keep SynBio in the development pipeline.Many of the countries opposed to SynBio are located in Africa, Asia and Latin America. According to ETC Group, the most strongly outspoken ones include Malaysia, Bolivia, the Philippines, Ethiopia and Egypt, which fought to impose a moratorium but ultimately failed."It was good to see delegates of the South stand up for the interests of their farmers, peasants and biodiversity here in Pyeongchang," added Neth Dano, Asia Director of ETC Group, about the meeting that took place in South Korea."This is not the moratorium many of us wanted, but it's a good step in the right direction."At a recent conference that took place at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent Carmine Nigro spoke his mind about SynBio technology. She warned that it represents a threat not only to the planet but also to humanity, which will likely suffer exceedingly as a result of its deployment."These technologies [synthetic biology] do not just pose a risk to individual buildings or cities, but if cleverly deployed, can reduce our population by significant percentages," he said. Why is Zika being blamed for birth defects? Is Zika a bio-weapon? The most likely cause behind the spike in Brazilian infant birth defects (NaturalNews) The establishment mainstream media continue to parrot the same hysteria regarding the Zika virus that it's causing birth defects but there is so much information intentionally being left out. The mainstream media's false narrative is causing the public to fear a benign, asymptomatic viral infection, as the true origins of birth defects and brain damage go unstudied. Also, the mainstream media fails to tell the whole story of why Zika has become such a big problem in Brazil in recent years and how the outbreak is connected to the release of genetically modified mosquitoes in 2012.As Zika becomes the newest health scare, health authorities are urging women to delay pregnancy. News reports are multiplying the scare tactics, warning people not to travel or procreate. Pictures of babies with shrunken heads and small brains are flashed across the screen as Zika virus is blamed for causing a record number of birth defects called microcephaly The birth defect is real, with affected newborns' heads measuring 32 centimeters or less in circumference, but the causes are not fully understood. The causes are varied and more likely resemble chemical toxicity, vaccine damage, pesticide exposure and drug interactions.Of the initial 4,180 suspected cases of microcephaly, only 270 cases have been confirmed by Brazil's Health Ministry as actual microcephaly. Of the 270 cases, medical researchers could only correlate six cases of microcephaly to the Zika virus . This means 264 confirmed microcephaly cases didn't even show a trace of Zika virus! So why is Zika virus being blamed for the birth defect?Zika was first isolated in 1947 by scientists working for the Rockefeller Foundation. Zika was "discovered" in a rhesus monkey that was being held in captivity. Many people still wonder if Zika was created in the lab for experimental purposes.For decades, Zika transmission was extremely rare. The virus didn't start spreading until after 2012 right after the biotech company Oxitec released genetically modified mosquitoes en masse in Brazil. Zika outbreaks quickly exploded from sites where genetically modified mosquitoes were released to combat dengue. Zika has now spread to 21 other countries and territories.What's appalling is that Zika virus (ATCC VR-84) can be purchased from ATCC labs. It was deposited by Dr. Jordi Casals-Ariet of the Rockefeller Foundation and sourced from the blood of an experimental forest sentinel rhesus monkey from Uganda in 1947.The question remains: Is Zika virus a bio-weapon, intentionally released via genetically modified mosquito? Perhaps it wasn't intentionally released but instead was an unintended consequence of releasing GM mosquitoes into the environment to eradicate dengue. Maybe this Zika strain is a resistant, mutant viral strain the evolution of a mosquito-borne virus caused by a biotech experiment gone bad?In the wake of Zika's spread, Brazil is now mobilizing 220,000 soldiers to try and eradicate mosquitoes that carry the Zika virus. This means that tons of insecticide will be sprayed in and around homes, further exposing pregnant women and young children to brain-damaging chemicals.In 2014, the Brazilian Minister of Health mandated that all expectant mothers receive the new Tdap vaccine. This meant that, at 20 weeks gestation, a vulnerable, developing young life would be exposed to aluminum adjuvant, mercury preservative , formaldehyde, antibiotics and a host of other chemicals that could damage a fetus's developing brain. It's no coincidence that birth defects have spiked in Brazil because of the toxic elements that fetuses have been exposed to.It's also very obvious why Zika is being blamed for the birth defects. The biotech industry is using Zika virus to cover up three science experiments that have gone bad (Tdap vaccines, insecticides, GM mosquitoes). In this way, nature can be blamed, more insecticides and vaccines can be sold, and more GM mosquitoes can be released. The public is taught to fear nature even more and stop reproducing.Don't buy into the propaganda! Cardboard casings, plastic containers, charred fuses and other pyrotechnic junk littered San Franciscos Aquatic Park beach following a Super Bowl 50 fireworks show, and federal workers filled four 50-gallon trash cans while cleaning it. National Park Service Lynn Cullivan said "quite a bit of debris" washed up on the beach Sunday morning, and staff spent several hours removing it from the along the pristine bay. The San Francisco Chronicle was the first to report the story. "We don't know where it came from," Cullivan said, "but there was a lot of it so one presumes it was generated by a large fireworks show." National Park Service There was indeed a large fireworks show on Saturday night, put on by Macys, an official Super Bowl 50 Host Committee partner. The fireworks are set off on barges under the Bay Bridge, about three miles away from the beach park in the Marina District. Macys spokesman Orlando Veras on Thursday emailed NBC Bay Area a statement that read, in part, "Macy's along with Pyro Spectaculars, our pyrotechnic partner, are investigating the conditions that caused debris to appear. It is likely this occurrence is the result of an unusual combination of wind, tide and currents, and we are working to implement further safeguards to minimize any impact on the bay and shoreline for the upcoming display." National Park Service Veras also touted his California-based fireworks team as some of the most "trusted and responsible experts in the field with a long history of producing local displays and many of San Francisco's annual celebrations" including the Fourth of July show. He said Macy's would address "all concerns to ensure another great celebration of the big game." The next Macy's Fireworks show is Friday at 10 p.m. in San Francisco. The Super Bowl will be held Sunday at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California. San Francisco, a city 45 miles away, has been hosting many of the pre-party activities. Two people in southeastern Brazil contracted the Zika virus through blood transfusions, a municipal health official said Thursday, presenting a fresh challenge to efforts to contain the virus on top of the disclosure of a case of sexual transmission in the United States. The two unrelated cases in Brazil may be the first of people contracting Zika via blood transfusions in the current outbreak, though the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, along with other health bodies, have said that Zika could be spread via blood transfusions. That concern led the U.S. Red Cross to announce it is asking travelers to Zika outbreak countries to wait at least 28 days before donating blood. Canadian officials said that people who have traveled outside of Canada, the continental United States and Europe won't be able to give blood for 21 days after their return. Brigina Kemp, a top health official in the Brazilian city of Campinas, told The Associated Press that a gunshot victim and a transplant patient each tested positive for Zika after receiving blood transfusions from different donors. Kemp said staff at the University of Campinas' hospital first noticed something was wrong in the middle of last year, when Brazil's first cases of Zika were beginning to be reported. Generally so mild that it only causes symptoms in about one out of five cases, Zika began to raise alarm bells after doctors here started to notice a possible link between the virus spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito and the terrible birth defect microcephaly. The hospital staff noticed abnormal blood work on a young gunshot wound victim who spent months at the facility. The patient received dozens of blood transfusions from 18 donors between February and May 2015, when he died. Because the region was in the throes of a dengue outbreak at the time, the staff suspected that disease, which is closely related to Zika, and tested him for it, Kemp said. But the tests came back negative and the blood sample was shelved. But when an organ transplant patient tested positive for Zika after developing a fever, the hospital's blood bank staff started looking for other possible Zika cases and tests on the gunshot victim's blood samples came back positive. Transfusions in the two cases were traced to separate donors who had Zika, both of whom reported having suffered symptoms days after they gave blood. The blood bank then informed Sao Paulo's Adolfo Lutz Institute, which also tested the samples and informed Campinas' health department of the results last month. The Health Ministry said in an email to The Associated Press, that while the case of the gunshot victim was not yet part of a scientific study, "the case is among multiple investigations under way into the behavior of the virus." Dante Langhi, president of the Brazilian Association of Hematology and Hemotherapy, told the AP that an academic paper about the transplant case was slated to be published shortly in a specialized medical journal. Langhi said he had been told that researchers investigating the transplant case had determined that the patient contracted Zika through the transfusion, and not through a bite by the Aedes mosquito that is the virus' main vector. "The situation must be evaluated and discussed by technical and government authorities," Langhi said. Meanwhile, a Brazilian health workers union called off a strike set to start Thursday because it could affect the country's battle against Zika. The union's members include workers who go door-to-door in Rio de Janeiro trying to eradicate the mosquito. The union had threatened to strike if the national health ministry failed to meet demands for better work conditions by Thursday. Cook County Commissioner Richard Boykin is urging Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner to declare a state of emergency days after the Chicago Police Department released startling crime statistics for the first month of 2016. Boykin held a news conference Thursday morning at the Thompson Center. He plans to send a letter to the governor which would ask the federal government to provide additional resources to help combat Chicagos violence, especially in the neighborhoods where gun violence is more prevalent. These individuals deserve the same level of protection that everyone else gets throughout the city on the North Side and downtown, Boykin said. January brought a bloody start to 2016 as Chicagos streets saw more violence than they have in 15 years. NBC 5s Charlie Wojciechowski reports A Santeria priest accused of stealing human remains from a Massachusetts mausoleum was arrested as a fugitive from justice in Bridgeport, Connecticut, where investigators found human skulls, bones and bloody altars in his apartment, according to police. Police arrested Felix "Cuba" Delgado, 40, as part of a drug investigation Tuesday. Delgado is the second Santeria priest in Connecticut accused of stealing human remains in Massachusetts, although it's unclear if the cases are connected. Bridgeport Violent Crime Reduction and FBI Safe Streets Task Force investigators searched Delgado's Hallet Street apartment after receiving information he was selling heroin and prescription pills from his residence, according to police. Delgado was wanted in a parallel investigation out of Worcester, where he's accused of breaking into a 112-year-old mausoleum. Police said the caskets had been removed or forced open. Bodies were also taken out, but police said small bones were left behind. He was charged in Bridgeport as a fugitive from justice. It's not clear if he has an attorney. Police said Delgado was reported to be a high priest of the Santeria religion who was keeping the remains of humans and roosters in his basement. Santeria is an Afro-Cuban religion developed from the beliefs and customs of the Yoruba people and incorporates some elements of the Catholic religion. "I heard a bunch of witchcraft stuff going on," Joshua Colon, Delgado's neighbor, told NBC Connecticut. Neighbors, largely from Puerto Rico and the West Indies, where Santeria is practiced, believed Delgado was involved in the dark arts and were afraid to complain for fear he would curse them, police said. "It's spooky that it's right next door," Colon said. According to police, investigators found two human skulls and a "long" bone in Delgado's basement that were "configured in a 'Palo Mayombe' type alter, which is a sub-culture within the Santeria religion." They also discovered carved figurines, candles, antlers, flowers, miniature coffins, rum, religious statues and carcasses of chickens strewn about his basement. Chalk drawings of symbols like stars, the moon and a skull were observed on the cellar floor, police said. Bridgeport police seized the remains, which will be taken to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Worcester police obtained a warrant for Delgado's arrest charging him with eight counts of body disinternment. Bridgeport police were holding him in custody on a $125,000 bond ahead of his arraignment Wednesday and his extradition to Worcester. The district attorney's office for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has coordinated his extradition with the court. Delgado's arrest is the second time Santeria has made headlines recently in Connecticut. Former Santeria priest Amador Medina, 32, was charged after police found bones in his Hartford apartment. Authorities said Medina stole the bones from a mausoleum in Worcester and used them for Santeria ceremonies. Medina has said he bought the bones from someone else. It's unclear if Medina and Delgado are believed to have stolen from the same mausoleum or whether their cases are connected. Worcester police previously reported burglaries from two mausoleums. The Cultural Association of African Religions Babalu Aye, a group connected to Santeria, has said followers of the religion do not recognize the use of human bones in their practice. Medina's membership was revoked. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are in a tug-of-war over who's the best standard-bearer for progressive values as they road test lines of argument for the first one-on-one debate of the Democratic campaign. The race for the Democratic nomination, once seen as a sure thing for Clinton, took on new vigor this week after Sanders held the former secretary of state to a whisper-thin margin of victory in Iowa's leadoff caucuses. The tone of their back-and-forth has become increasingly sharp this week, and the candidates agreed to add four more debates to the primary season schedule, including Thursday's faceoff in Durham, New Hampshire. In a tussle over their very political identities, the two candidates are engaged in an ongoing argument over who is more committed to and capable of carrying out a liberal agenda on health care, income inequality, worker rights and more. Sanders, favored in New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary, said Wednesday that Clinton's record is "just not progressive" on any number of issues, including her vote as a senator to authorize the war in Iraq. Clinton called that a "low blow" and pressed her counterpoint that she's the candidate with the ability to actually implement progressive changes. "Good ideas on paper are important, but you've got to be able to translate them into action," she said. The two made their rival cases in interviews and appearances around New Hampshire and in back-to-back appearances at a town-hall style forum on CNN on Wednesday night. Polls find Sanders holding a commanding lead over Clinton in New Hampshire, and he was eager to lower expectations for how he would finish. He cast himself as an underdog going up against "the most powerful political organization in the country." Clinton, for her part, has signaled her determination at least to narrow the gap before Tuesday's vote. And her prospects are much stronger after Iowa, as the race moves on to states with more diverse electorates that are to her advantage. The two campaigns even skirmished over why Sanders was doing so well in New Hampshire polls. Sanders' campaign accused Clinton's of insulting New Hampshire voters by suggesting that they only support the Vermont senator because he's from a neighboring state. That was after Clinton's campaign manager referred to New Hampshire as Sanders' "backyard." On the broader issue, Clinton offers herself to voters as "a progressive who gets things done," part of her pitch that she's the one with the practical skills to implement a progressive agenda. Sanders counter-argument is that it will take a "political revolution" to achieve goals such as universal health care, a fairer tax system and an incorruptible campaign finance system. Asked earlier in the week if Clinton was a progressive, he said: "Some days, yes. Except when she announces that she is a proud moderate. Then I guess she is not a progressive." Sanders added that it was hard to take on the establishment "when you become as dependent as she has through her super PAC and in other ways on Wall Street or drug company money." Clinton said she found it amusing that the senator thinks he can be the "gatekeeper" of who's progressive. The Durham debate will be the first faceoff for Clinton and Sanders since former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley dropped out of the race after a poor showing in Iowa. The candidates next meet on Feb. 11, then on March 9 for a debate that has long been on the schedule. Under an agreement announced Wednesday, there will also be a March debate in Flint, Michigan, where the city's water contamination crisis has been attracting national attention, and two debates in April and May on dates still to be determined. Former pharmaceutical chief Martin Shkreli refused to testify Thursday in an appearance before U.S. lawmakers who excoriated him over severe hikes for a drug sold by a company that he acquired. Shkreli, widely scorned for boosting the price of a long-established and potentially lifesaving drug by more than 5,000 percent, exercised his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination when he went before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. "I intend to follow the advice of my counsel, not yours," Shkreli told Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), who urged the pharma "bad boy" to answer questions from the panel. The lawmakers summoned him to answer for the decision that made him infamous: raising the price for Daraprim, the only approved drug for a rare and sometimes deadly parasitic infection. The 32-year-old Shkreli faces separate criminal charges of securities fraud in connection with another drug company he owned. Members of Congress launched into fiery lectures directed at Shkreli, and Rep. Elijah Cummings, the top Democrat on the panel, called the profits earned from Daraprim "blood money." "Drug company executives are lining their pockets at the expense of some of the most vulnerable families in our nation," U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Maryland, said. "It's not funny, Mr. Shkreli. People are dying and they're getting sicker and sicker." The committee's chairman, Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), asked Shkreli to excuse himself from the panel after he invoked the Fifth Amendment to all questions from the committee members and responded to comments from Rep. Cummings with "smart aleck" facial expressions. [[367668701, C]] "His lawyer better advise him better because a jury would love to convict someone like him if he was on trial," Congressman John Duncan said after Shkreli left the room. Though he remained tight-lipped during the hearing, Shkreli took to Twitter after leaving Capitol Hill and mocked members of Congress: "Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government," he wrote. Shkreli also responded to criticism over his facial expressions, claiming he "had prior counsel produce a memo on facial expressions during congressional testimony if anyone wants to see it." "Interesting precedence," he tweeted. [[367668511, C]] The brash entrepreneur and former hedge fund manager, who pleaded not guilty after his arrest in December in New York, has been out on $5 million bail. He walked into the packed hearing room well before the session began and met the crush of cameras. Even a few members of the House panel were swept up in the curiosity and snapped Shkreli's photo on their cellphones. He wore a sport jacket and button-down shirt, conservatively preppie attire that contrasted with the hoodie he had on when he was arrested. Also appearing before the lawmakers was Turing's chief commercial officer and the interim CEO of Canada's largest drugmaker, Valeant Pharmaceuticals. Documents from Valeant and Turing show they have made a practice of buying and then dramatically raising prices for, low-cost drugs given to patients with life-threatening conditions including heart disease, AIDS and cancer, according to excerpts released this week by the House panel. The two companies' executives are stressing their commitment to ensuring that cost isn't a deterrent for patients who need the drugs. Turing has taken new steps to ensure affordable access to Daraprim "for every single patient who needs the drug, regardless of ability to pay," Retzlaff said. "To our knowledge, no patient needs to pay $750 per pill for Daraprim," she said. About two-thirds of patients get it through government programs that benefit from a discounted price of a penny a pill, Retzlaff told the panel. Valeant has "heard very clearly" public concern over drug prices and is responding, Schiller said in his testimony. He noted the company has created a price rebate program that discounts Nitropress and Isuprel up to 30 percent in deals with big hospital purchasing groups. The two drugs most often are used by hospitals and other healthcare providers as part of procedures subject to their own price caps, Schiller testified. The documents show how executives at both companies planned to maximize profits while fending off negative publicity over the price hikes. [[238427591, C]] Presentations by Turing executives, part of the trove of documents, show that as early as last May, the company planned to turn Daraprim into a $200-million-a-year drug by dramatically increasing its price. Turing bought the 60-year-old drug from Impax Laboratories in August for $55 million and swiftly raised its price. Shkreli said in an email to one contact: "We raised the price from $1,700 per bottle to $75,000. Should be a very handsome investment for all of us." But anticipating a possible backlash, the company warned in an internal memo that advocates for HIV patients might react to the price hike. Valeant likewise identified revenue goals first and then used drug prices to reach them, committee staff said in a memo. It said Valeant believed it could repeatedly raise the prices of Nitropress and Isuprel without repercussions because they're administered by hospitals, which are less price-sensitive than consumers. Valeant used patient assistance programs to distract attention and justify its price hikes, according to the memo. Talk to any theme park regular and the topics won't necessarily be about a beloved vintage roller coaster or a buzzed-about stage show or a fried treat on a stick. (Mmm, anything on a stick.) Instead, they'll dig down into the nitty-gritty of doing the park, from the best way to optimize a park visit, to early entry, if it is available, to which days may or may not have the most foot traffic. So the new EZ Rez online booking system from Universal Studios Hollywood should give plenty for park-obsessed people to chew on, much like the aforementioned fried treat on a stick. A bunch of stuff rolled out from the announcement, which was made on Tuesday, Feb. 2, including "the unique opportunity of booking date specific tickets." "Advance savings" are part of the deal with booking online, too. What's bound to pique the interest of hardcore parkists, though, beyond securing a specific date, is that an EZ Rez booking gives early entry to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. Define "early entry," you say: It's one hour before the park opens. A glance at the online calendar also reveals Universal Studios Hollywood is moving into demand pricing, with variable pricing depending upon the day of the visit. Theme park regulars might guess that select weekdays -- hellooo, Tuesdays, sometimes, but not always -- will be a bit less than weekend days on the admission front, and they'd be correct, by about five to ten dollars, depending upon the time of year. If being tied to a particular date isn't your bag, can you still purchase an "anytime" ticket? Yep. That's still a thing. Of course, booking a ticket for a specific date in the future is something Universal Studios has already done, for years, via Halloween Horror Nights. But choosing a Saturday three weeks hence, for the scary experience, didn't mean you could do the same with a general theme park ticket. So what will Harry Potter enthusiasts do with that extra morning hour, ahead of the official park opening, when Wizarding World debuts on April 7? And what did Hogwarts students chow down upon for breakfast in the Great Hall, anyway? Magical muesli and enchanted eggs? Whatever sustenance you choose, magical or not, best eat early before making for the park and that extra hour. A British law student is reportedly demanding a lifetime supply of Kit Kats from Nestle and threatening legal action if she doesn't get it after buying a multipack that contained eight wafer-less chocolate bars, NBC News reported. "The failure to take due care in the manufacturing process resulted in a product being defective. As a result I feel as though I have been misled to part with my money and purchase a product that is clearly different from what has been marketed by Nestle," Saima Ahmad, 20, wrote in a letter to the candymaker, according to British newspaper Metro. A spokesperson for Nestle UK told NBC News that a "Kit Kat finger without wafer does leave our factory from time to time but is extremely rare and we have checks in place to try to prevent it happening as far as possible." Nicole Madison Lovell was, by all accounts, at that awkward stage of growing up that all kids go through: clinging to childhood ways while beginning to venture into the adult world. The 13-year-old still played in the snow with much younger children, a neighbor said. Her mom said she loved pandas and kept toys from the "Minions" movies in her bedroom -- the same room where she apparently blocked the door and climbed out a window after telling 8-year-old friends she would sneak out that night to meet her 18-year-old "boyfriend." Nicole was believed to be carrying a blue blanket with yellow Minions on it when she vanished, police said. Like others her age, Nicole was tech-savvy, posting on Facebook and chatting in other social media. Unlike her peers, she had to take medicine every day to keep her transplanted liver from failing, and survived other harrowing health problems earlier in life that left her with a tracheotomy scar in her neck and made her a target of bullies. Police say preliminary indications show Nicole was stabbed to death soon after she was discovered missing last week, but they're revealing little else. David Eisenhauer and Natalie Keepers, both engineering majors at Virginia Tech, are jailed on charges that could imprison them for life. Friends and relatives are gathering to say goodbye to "Coley," who's been called sweet, energetic, outspoken and friendly -- "an angel," according to longtime friend Davy Draper. Both Thursday's funeral and visitation Wednesday night at McCoy Funeral Home in Blacksburg will be private, they said. The funeral home's online obituary says Nicole was born in Radford, loved to sing and dance, and was a member of Auburn Baptist Church. It includes the family's thanks to law enforcement officials and the community and is accompanied by a portrait of Nicole showing her blue eyes and face framed by long brown hair, superimposed on a background of clouds. Nicole's mother Tammy Weeks, who carried a plush panda bear toy to a police news conference Tuesday, said her daughter had touched many lives before hers was cut short. She became too overwhelmed with emotion to finish her prepared remarks and had to be ushered away. Stacy Snider, their neighbor, said Nicole and her mother had a great relationship. "Tammy spoiled her rotten. Bought her everything she wanted. Everything," she said. Nicole endured a liver transplant as an infant, leaving her with scars that became fodder for bullies, her mother said. She also was diagnosed with lymphoma, spent six months in a coma after developing a respiratory condition, and contracted a drug-resistant bacterial infection. But she always pulled through. Snider said she had known Nicole since she was born. "She was a lovely little girl. Very caring. Very loving. And she wouldn't hurt anybody. And that's probably what got her in trouble," Snider said. Nicole had gone sledding with Snider's 8-year-old twin daughters the day before she disappeared, and Snider found nothing odd about that. "She was just friendly with everybody," Snider said. "I mean, she had friends her age. But I mean, she was a kid at heart." After Nicole vanished, Snider said, her daughters told her that the seventh-grader had showed them a picture of "David," along with a thread of texts they had shared using the Kik Messenger app on her phone. Nicole had told her girls that she would be sneaking out to meet him that night, Snider told The Associated Press. That information was shared with police, and Kik Interactive then gave the FBI the evidence needed to make an arrest, company spokesman Rod McLeod told the AP. Police initially charged Eisenhauer with kidnapping on Saturday, then added murder after Nicole's body was found, two hours south of campus. Another Virginia Tech student, 19-year-old Natalie Keepers, is charged with being an accessory before and after the crime, and helping to dispose of the body. Their attorneys have declined to comment. Meanwhile, at Blacksburg Middle School, Nicole's classmates have been decorating a cherry blossom tree that will be planted in her memory once the weather warms up. O'Dell reported from Richmond, Virginia, and Allen G. Breed from Blacksburg, Virginia. Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders will face off in four more debates under an agreement reached by the campaigns and the national party on Wednesday. The additional debates will held in Flint, Michigan on March 6, and two other cities in April and May, with details to be determined later. Clinton has sought a debate in Flint to bring attention to the city's water contamination crisis and Sanders said he wanted it to be scheduled before the Michigan primary on March 8. Clinton and Sanders are meeting Thursday in a debate at the University of New Hampshire just days before Tuesday's first-in-the-nation primary. Clinton narrowly defeated Sanders in Monday's Iowa caucuses but Sanders has maintained a solid lead in New Hampshire. It will be the first debate since former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley dropped out of the race, leaving just Clinton and Sanders competing for the nomination. The former secretary of state wanted to debate Sanders in New Hampshire as she tries to close her deficit against the Vermont senator. Sanders, meanwhile, has vowed to take his campaign all the way to the party's summer convention and requested three extra forums to ensure the party will have debates throughout the spring. Two other Democratic debates are already on the calendar: Feb. 11 in Milwaukee and March 9 in Miami. In a sign of growing tensions, leaders of the rival campaigns have traded snippy statements over the details of the three debates. Sanders' campaign wanted one of the debates to be held in California and another in Brooklyn, New York, and questioned why Clinton, a former New York senator, might be reluctant to debate in her adopted home state. Clinton's campaign accused Sanders' team of playing games. Sanders said Wednesday in an interview with CNN that he got commitments to debate in Michigan and California but could not reach an agreement on holding one in New York City. "New York City is our largest city. I would have loved to have a debate in that city. But Secretary Clinton has not agreed to do that," Sanders said. "But I believe we are looking at a debate, perhaps, in Pennsylvania or somewhere else." DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Florida congresswoman, said the times and locations for the final two debates will be determined at a later date and the party will work closely with both campaigns as they finalize the remaining details. Fans of the Bard have a unique opportunity right here in South Florida. A rare edition of Shakespeares First Folio is on display at FIUs Frost Museum of Art right now. Published in 1623, just a few years after his death, the First Folio contains all 36 of Shakespeares plays, including 18 which had not been previously published. Without the Folio, the world would not know Lady MacBeth, there would be no out damn spot!, no three witches, thered be no Tempest, the book is a treasure trove of words and without the book, half of Shakespeares words, half of his ideas, they wouldnt exist, said James Sutton, chair of FIUs English Department. The human experience, the power of the language in this book is for the world." If you think its a foregone conclusion that Shakespeares works are the be-all and end-all of English literature, youre not only probably correct, youve also just used two phrases coined by the Bard himself. The list of Shakespeare-isms we use in everyday language is shockingly long. Its Greek to me. Foul play. A tower of strength. Good riddance. Send me packing. Dead as a doornail. The long and short of it. Give the devil his due. Seen better days. Come full circle. A sea change. A foregone conclusion. The be-all and end-all. All of those phrases are straight out of Shakespeare, and chances are, you use them without ever thinking of their origins. Such is the hold his works still have over the English language, 400 years after his death. The 36 plays are for the young, the old, the educated, for the unlearned, for every culture, Sutton says. School groups are taking field trips to see the Folio every day, and as a bonus, theyre getting a full immersion Shakespeare experience thanks to FIUs First Folio: The Globe Theatre Experience. Thanks to 3D, virtual reality technology, visitors are taken on a tour of London, circa 1598. You walk up to the Globe Theatre, and along the way pass barkers and food stands until the stage is in front of you, with an actor launching into the opening monologue of Richard III. We thought that this would be just a really innovative way to bring Shakespeare to a new generation of students," said David Frisch, a graduate student in English Literature who helped create the virtual reality tour. Its a total success, judging by the responses from students. On this day, a group of high school kids from Somerset Academy in Homestead was captivated by the entire First Folio experience. It's every educator's dream for their students to engage with the authors and the concepts and when they're here and they're getting excited and see so many different angles about it, it's great, a great opportunity, said Raquel Paz, an English teacher at Somerset. In honor of Black History Month, we are celebrating the leaders who are paving the path right here in South Florida! We spent some time getting to know Chief Delma-Noel Pratt of the Miami-Dade Police Department. As the North Operations Division Chief, Delma-Pratt is one of the highest ranking women in law enforcement in South Florida. As part of NBC 6s Black History Month coverage, were introducing Miami-Dade Police Division Chief Delma Noel-Pratt. Timothy A. Barber of The Black Archives also explained the historic significance of the Overtown and Liberty City neighborhoods to the black experience in South Florida. NBC 6s Jawan Strader speaks to Timothy A. Barber of The Black Archives in Overtown. According to their website, the area began as Colored Town at the turn of the 20th century. It consisted mainly of black workers who built and serviced the railroad, streets and hotels, many of whom arrived from the Bahamas and from various southern states, serving as the city's primary workforce for more than five decades. NBC 6s Michael Spears speaks with Timothy Barber of The Black Archives about the significance of the Liberty City neighborhood to South Floridas history. NBC 6s Sharon Lawson speaks with Timothy Barber of The Black Archives in Overtown about the impact of I-95 construction in the neighborhood. The Lyric Theater in Overtown has seen the likes of Cab Calloway, Count Basie, Lena Horne and Aretha Franklin. While urban renewal and the construction of two expressways contributed to the area's decline in the mid 1960s, Overtown has seen a resurgence as of late. The very history of Miami is incomplete without the history of Overtown," the site says, attributing to Professor John Hope Franklin of Duke University. NBC 6s Willard Shepard speaks with Timothy Barber of The Black Archives in Overtown about the history of the neighborhood and its impact on todays Overtown. Marhsall L. Davis of Miami's African Heritage Cultural Arts Center also discussed the significant contributions African-Americans have made to the arts in South Florida. "It has had a tremendous effect on so many people who came here to get their foundation laid in the arts, and to believe in themselves," he told NBC 6's Trina Robinson. NBC 6s Trina Robinson discusses the impact of the African Cultural Arts Center with Marshall Davis. According to their site, the AHCAC exists to provide training and access for Miami-Dade County's African-American community by offering instruction in dance, drama, instrumental music, vocal music, media and visual arts. They also provide in-house performing arts companies, as well as a residency program for emerging artists. NBC 6s Erika Glover speaks with Marshall Davis of the African Heritage Cultureal Arts Center about Black Lives Matter protests in South Florida. And in case you missed it, take a look at last February's Black History Month special, "Breaking Barriers" hosted by Jawan Strader and Trina Robinson. In honor of Black History Month, we celebrate those who are breaking barriers across South Florida. Hosted by Jawan Strader and Trina Robinson. NBC 6 South Florida is celebrating Black History Month by honoring those who are Paving the Path. How are you or a woman you admire #PavingthePath? Tweet us at @nbc6 and let us know! Be sure to watch our Black History Month special, "Paving the Path" celebrating trailblazing women here in South Florida, airing on February 25th at 7 p.m.! Mark Richt's first Miami recruiting class has a distinct Florida feel. Of the 18 new Hurricanes, 17 of them hail from the Sunshine State. Among them include five early enrollees, and the class got stronger Wednesday with the signing of wide receiver Ahmmon Richards _ who was considered to be on the bubble. "We truly believe we got guys that can help us win," Richt said. "And that's what it's all about." The class also includes Michael Irvin Jr., the son of Hall of Famer and former Hurricane great Michael Irvin. He'll play tight end, as will newcomer Jovani Haskins of Bergenfield, New Jersey, the only non-Floridian who signed in this class. The Maryland man charged with murdering his 2-year-old daughter and her mother confessed to lying in wait for the mother and child outside their home early Tuesday and then shooting them each multiple times, court documents show. Daron Boswell-Johnson, 25, was charged Wednesday in the deaths of NeShante Davis, 26, a beloved elementary school teacher, and their daughter, Chloe Davis-Green. The mother and daughter were shot outside their townhouse about 7 a.m. Tuesday in Fort Washington, Maryland. Boswell-Johnson, of Forestville, Maryland, was angry over $600 in monthly child support he had been ordered to pay, sources tell News4. He was confirmed to be Chloe's father in December through a DNA test conducted as part of a paternity suit, sources said. According to the preliminary investigation, Boswell-Johnson went to Davis' and their daughter's home early Tuesday to confront Davis about the child support, officials said Wednesday evening at a news conference. "This is another tragic case of domestic violence," Prince George's County State's Attorney Angela Alsobrooks said. "These are issues that have to be resolved in our families, in this community." Boswell-Johnson was arrested Tuesday in Montgomery County, Prince George's County Interim Police Chief Hank Stawinski said. Boswell-Johnson waived his Miranda rights and provided a statement to Prince George's County police on Tuesday in which he confessed to the crime, according to court documents. He told police he drove to Davis' home, parked down the street and waited for her to exit. Boswell-Johnson told police he then approached Davis at gunpoint and demanded she drop the petition he pay her $600 per month in child support. He then shot her and the toddler multiple times, he told police, court documents say. Witness statements and surveillance video corroborate the confession, police said in court documents. Boswell-Johnson was escorted outside Wednesday by police. He expressed little emotion, walking in a white jumpsuit with his head down and ignoring reporters' questions. Boswell-Johnson faces two counts of both first- and second-degree murder. He's expected to be held without bond. Information on his lawyer was not immediately available. Davis and her little girl were found shot in the parking lot of their townhouse on the 1300 block of Palmer Road after a witness said he heard yelling and then multiple gunshots. Davis' body was found right away, next to her car, Prince George's County police said. The injured toddler then was spotted through the tinted windows of her mother's blue Chevrolet. Chloe was rushed to a hospital, where she died. Davis' mother, Carolyn Turner, learned from News4 on Wednesday that a suspect had been arrested in the killing of her daughter and grandchild. "Did they catch him?" she asked. "Yes, ma'am. He's in custody. They have charged him," News4's Tracee Wilkins replied. Turner's eyes widened and she wept, her head in her hand. She said she didn't know Chloe's father and that Davis hadn't spoken much about him. He didn't appear to be a big part of their lives, Turner said. She said she wanted to ask him "why?" "Why? You didn't have to shoot her or my grandbaby," she said. Davis was a second-grade teacher at Bradbury Heights Elementary School in Capitol Heights, according to the school's website. She worked for years as a teacher's aide at the school and was in the middle of her first year teaching after recently graduating from Bowie State University. Davis likely was headed to drop Chloe off at day care and then head to work when they were shot, school officials said. A friend of Davis' for more than a decade, Melonie Parker, said at an emotional service Tuesday night that she was heartbroken. "Who can shoot a child?" she asked. "How could you look a child in their face and shoot a child? I don't understand." Davis' mother, sister and other loved ones mourned their deaths at Community Temple Bibleway Church in Cheverly, Maryland. Members of the crowd prayed and cried together. "I'm going to miss her. And Chloe," Turner, said Tuesday night, unable to speak any longer. Investigators searched for evidence at the crime scene for hours Tuesday, with the county's acting police chief and chief prosecutor on hand to ensure nothing was overlooked. "This is absolutely unacceptable in any civilized community that a child should be killed," Alsobrooks said Tuesday. "We are absolutely enraged." On the scene, Stawinski told reporters Tuesday that investigators were pursuing viable leads. "This is a profoundly sad day, and my prayers go out to the family for a crime that, frankly, shocks the conscience," he said. A parent at the school where Davis taught, Tiffany Byrd, said Tuesday afternoon she was preparing to speak with her son about why he would not see his teacher again. "I have no idea how he's responded knowing she won't be back now and he'll have a new teacher," she said. "Miss Davis was awesome. She really, really helped him to improve a lot," Byrd said, saying her son had struggled at another school but earned all As and Bs since entering Davis' class. The father of a student at the school wiped away tears as he spoke about Davis. "It really hurt me. The school called this morning," Erik Hines said. "Miss Davis was an excellent teacher." Counselors were available at the school Tuesday to help students and staff members coping with the tragedy. World leaders pledged more than $10 billion Thursday to help fund schools, shelter and jobs for refugees from Syria's civil war, money that British Prime Minister David Cameron said "will save lives, will give hope, will give people the chance of a future." But participants at the aid conference in London acknowledged that prospects for ending the conflict have rarely been worse: Peace talks are suspended, fighting is intensifying, Russia and the West are at odds, and millions of Syrians are suffering from bombardment, homelessness and hunger. "The situation in Syria is as close to hell as we are likely to find on this Earth," said United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was no more upbeat. "After almost five years of fighting, it's pretty incredible that as we come here in London in 2016, the situation on the ground is actually worse," he said. The one-day meeting, held under tight security at a conference center near Parliament, aspired to bring new urgency to the effort to help the 4.6 million Syrians who have sought refuge in neighboring countries including Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. Another 6 million people or more are displaced within Syria, and a quarter of a million have been killed. Previous calls for international donations have come up short, and the five-year war has driven a chaotic exodus of hundreds of thousands of desperate refugees to Europe. Thursday's pledges are intended to slow that migration, by creating school places and secure jobs for Syrian refugees in the Middle East, and economic support for the overburdened host nations. Cameron said participants had pledged almost $6 billion for 2016, and another $5 billion by 2020. The British leader called the conference hosted by Britain, Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the U.N. "a real breakthrough, not just in terms of money but in terms of how we handle these refugee crises." The tally falls short of the $9 billion the U.N. and regional countries said was needed for 2016 alone, but it was a significant improvement on half-hearted previous fundraising efforts. Last year's conference, in Kuwait, raised just half its $7 billion target, forcing cuts to programs such as refugee food aid. Aid groups welcomed the money, but slammed the international community for allowing the war to go on. Peter Maurer, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, said the world had shown a "lack of political action and ambition to resolve the crisis." "Humanitarian aid is always just a quick fix, and never enough," he said. Cameron told reporters that the international community would stand with Syrians for "as long as it takes to secure peace," acknowledging that the goals of a cease-fire followed by a transitional government remained distant. Thursday's meeting opened hours after the latest U.N.-led bid to start peace talks in Geneva was suspended for three weeks a sign of major difficulties. Kerry blamed Syria's government and Russia for the peace talks stalling. He said he and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had spoken by phone Thursday and agreed to continue discussing "how to implement the cease-fire." Russia's Foreign Ministry said the two had also agreed to try to ensure the pause in the talks was as short as possible. Neither statement mentioned any concrete measures. Russia gave the conference a cool reception, declining to send President Vladimir Putin or a senior minister to the event, attended by 30 heads of government or heads of state. Russia was represented by its ambassador to London, Alexander Yakovenko. The Syrian government, backed by Russian airstrikes, has increased the pace of attacks on opposition forces in recent days as the talks faltered. The U.N.'s Ban told the conference it was "deeply disturbing that the initial steps of the talks have been undermined by the continuous lack of sufficient humanitarian access, and by a sudden increase of aerial bombing and military activities within Syria." He said that "the coming days should be used to get back to the table, not to secure more gains on the battlefield." The stalled peace process increases pressure on donor countries to commit long-term aid to the war's victims. Aid workers warn of a "lost generation" of Syrians if some 700,000 refugee children who are not attending school don't get an education. Education campaigner Malala Yusafzai and 17-year-old Syrian refugee Mezon al-Melihan met with Cameron and other leaders to press for $1.4 billion for education for children in Syria and its neighbors. "Without education, who will bring peace?" al-Melihan said. Donor countries also want to see the refugees employed on infrastructure projects which would also benefit the host nations or in special business zones where Syrians and local people can work side by side. In return for opening up their economies to the newcomers, host countries are promised loans from international financial institutions and more access to European markets. Cameron said the move would create 1 million jobs in the region, "for refugees and residents alike." Syria's neighbors had warned the conference that the burden of so many newcomers was becoming intolerable. Jordan's King Abdullah said his country housed almost 1.3 million Syrian refugees, a fifth of Jordan's population. The Jordanian figure includes all Syrians in the country; the U.N. says it has registered 630,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan. "We have reached our limit," the king said. "Our country will continue to do what we can do to help those in need, but it cannot be at the expense of our own people's welfare." The exodus from Syria shows no signs of ending. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told the conference that 10,000 Syrians who have fled bombing in the city of Aleppo are waiting at the Turkish border, and as many as 70,000 others are on the way. Amateur video showed thousands, including women and children, running with their belongings toward the frontier. Turkey says it has taken in more than 2.5 million Syrians since the war began in 2011. More than 70 countries were represented at the conference, but there were few Syrians. Neither President Bashar Assad's government nor opposition groups participated. In Jordan's Zaatari refugee camp, home to 79,000 Syrians, some agreed with conference organizers that the best future for refugees was in their home region. "We don't want to go to ... foreign countries," said Abu Khaled al-Nassar, a refugee from the southern town of Daraa. "With all my respect to these countries, the traditions are different, and we live here in an Arab country, Jordan. We understand each other. "So we call on the donor countries to support us with investments in order to find jobs. We don't want to go to Europe we will stay here, work and produce." The peace talks in the Syrian civil war are taking a break. The fighting is not. U.N. Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura announced Wednesday there would be a "temporary pause" in the indirect peace talks between the government and opposition, saying the process will resume Feb. 25. The delay reflects the rocky start of the talks Monday in which neither the government nor the opposition even acknowledged that the negotiations had officially begun. "It is not the end, and it is not the failure of the talks," de Mistura told reporters after a meeting with opposition leaders. Both sides remain "interested in having the political process started," he added. The conflict that began in March 2011 has killed at least 250,000 people, displaced 11 million and given an opening for the Islamic State group to seize large parts of the country from forces loyal to President Bashar Assad. "I'm not frustrated I'm not disappointed," de Mistura said of the pause. "When you have a five year war and had so many difficult moments you have to be determined, but also realistic." The last round of talks broke down in 2014. The Saudi-backed opposition, known as the High Negotiations Committee, had been reluctant to come to the talks, saying the government should first end the bombardment of civilians, allow aid into besieged rebel-held areas, and release thousands of detainees. On Wednesday, delegation head Riad Hajib said the Assad government had not met those demands. "The HNC delegation will leave tomorrow and will not return (to Geneva) until we see positive steps on humanitarian issues," he said. "This regime that ruined the Geneva negotiations in 2014 is doing it again during this political process," Hijab added. "We came to Geneva to prove to the world that this regime does not believe in a political solution." The head of the Syrian delegation, Bashar Ja'afari, said the opposition "had orders from its masters to ruin the talks." "Yes, there is a failure. It is a failure of everybody except the government of the Syrian Arab Republic," Ja'afari said. "Those who have the responsibility of this failure are the Saudis, the Turks and the Qataris. They are the real handlers and the masters of the Riyadh group." On Wednesday, Syrian government forces, backed by Russian airstrikes, blasted their way into two Shiite villages in the north, breaking a long-running rebel siege, Syrian TV reported. The villages of Nubul and Zahra are located in the middle of opposition territory and have been blockaded by rebel groups for about three years, with the army occasionally dropping food and other aid to those inside. Reaching them marked a major victory for government forces, which have made significant advances in Aleppo province in recent days. The Syrian troops severed a key supply route linking the rebels in the city of Aleppo to the Turkish border. If the pro-government offensive succeeds, it will be one of the biggest blows to the insurgents since they captured large parts of Aleppo, Syria's largest city, in the summer of 2012. The offensive has led the opposition to accuse Damascus of negotiating in bad faith. The two delegations were not meeting face to face but were in separate rooms, with de Mistura shuttling between them in the so-called "proximity talks." He had scheduled the talks to last six months. De Mistura said he will ask the U.N. Security Council and the International Syria Support group of about 20 regional and world powers to address some of the pending issues in the talks, including what can be done "to make a difference for the Syrian people." He said both sides had expressed concerns about the talks, with the government wanting to address "procedural issues before talking about (the) humanitarian side." He said "the U.N. cannot allow simply procedural matters to actually become more important than actually the result for the humanitarian situation for the Syrian people, who have been waiting for us to deliver not a conference but something concrete for them." He said he would not directly address the battlefield developments, but that "military activities and other reasons" had made it impossible to make headway on humanitarian issues, such as the lifting of sieges on many cities, towns and villages. Western powers expressed support for de Mistura and sharply criticized Assad and Russia. French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius said France condemns the "brutal offensive by the Syrian regime with Russia's support to encircle and asphyxiate Aleppo and its hundreds of thousands of residents." In a statement, Fabius said France backs de Mistura's move to suspend the talks under such circumstances, saying Assad's regime and its supporters "visibly don't want to contribute to them in good faith, thus torpedoing peace efforts." "It is difficult in the extreme to see how strikes against civilian targets contribute in any way to the peace process now being explored," he said, noting that de Mistura "paused the talks in Geneva in part because of the difficulty of seeking political solutions while humanitarian aid is continually disrupted and innocent lives are taken." U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby noted that Russia had voted for the U.N. Security Council resolution that paved the way for the talks, noting the measure called on Syria's "regime and all parties to cease bombings and other attacks on civilians not eventually, but immediately. Not soon, but now." For the opposition, the government's advance in Aleppo cast a long shadow over the talks. Basma Kodmani, a member of the opposition's negotiating team, described the offensive as a "horrible development," saying it sent the message that "there is nothing to negotiate. Just go home." Syrian TV said the siege of Nubul and Zahra was broken by the army and pro-government militias known as the Popular Defense Committees. The Hezbollah-owned Al-Manar TV also reported the advance, showing video of the fighting on the outskirts of the villages. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition group that monitors the conflict, said the Syrian army was 1 kilometer (less than a mile) from the two villages. Meanwhile, an aid convoy headed to a besieged rebel-held town near Damascus. The convoy heading to Moadamiyeh is the second aid delivery to rebel-held areas near the capital in as many days, a spokesman for the International Committee for the Red Cross said. Pawel Krzysiek told The Associated Press that 12 trucks of food, medicine and medical equipment were expected to arrive later in the day. He posted a photograph on his Twitter account showing hundreds of people waiting for the supplies. The humanitarian situation in the town worsened toward the end of 2015 after the government choked off the last access point. Opposition activists and residents say there are dozens of cases of severe malnutrition in Moadamiyeh. Kodmani called the latest aid delivery a "positive development," but said "it is way below what we are hoping to see happen." After 6-year-old Etan Patz disappeared in 1979, his father got a wrongful-death judgment against a prime suspect and sent the man a message each year: "What did you do to my little boy?" But Etan's parents asked a court on Wednesday to throw out that judgment against Jose Ramos, a convicted Pennsylvania child molester. They said they've become convinced their son's killer is more recent suspect Pedro Hernandez, who was tried on a murder charge last year, when jurors deadlocked. "After sitting through the trial and hearing all of the evidence, my wife and I the parents of Etan Patz now believe that Pedro Hernandez, and not Jose Ramos, was the perpetrator of this heartless crime," Etan's father, Stanley Patz, said in a sworn statement. Hernandez, of Maple Shade, New Jersey, and Ramos deny killing Etan, who vanished while walking to his school bus stop and became one of the first missing children pictured on milk cartons. Etan was declared dead in 2001. Ramos was extensively investigated but never charged. Hernandez, who wasn't a suspect until 2012, confessed but later said his admission was false and was prompted by mental illness; he faces retrial this year. Stanley Patz has said before he found Hernandez's trial persuasive, but the family's move to clear Ramos is a rare step that adds another twist to the case's tortuous history. Hernandez's lawyer, Harvey Fishbein, called the Patzes' filing "a blatant assault on Mr. Hernandez's ability to receive a fair and impartial trial." Although it's unclear whether jurors would hear anything about the civil judgment, Fishbein noted Etan's mother, Julie Patz, is likely to testify for the prosecution, as she did at the first trial. The Manhattan district attorney's office declined to comment on the filing, first reported by the Daily News. Ramos is in prison and couldn't be reached for comment. A lawyer who has represented him said he hadn't been in contact with him recently. Ramos knew a woman who sometimes walked Etan home from school, and Ramos told federal authorities about interacting with a child he was all but sure was Etan on the day he vanished. Ramos has since denied having anything to do with Etan's disappearance. Manhattan prosecutors concluded the evidence against Ramos wasn't strong enough to charge him criminally, but the Patzes sued to make their own case against him. After Ramos stopped cooperating with questioning, a civil court in 2005 held him responsible, by default, for Etan's death. The court awarded his parents a never-collected $2.7 million. Legally, the civil judgment is separate from the criminal case. But the Patzes "think it's unjust for that judgment to stand, holding him responsible for something they believe he did not do, and they want the record correct," said their lawyer, Brian O'Dwyer. But he said the Patzes didn't feel bad about having blamed Ramos, noting Ramos didn't cooperate in civil court to assert his innocence. The NBC10 Investigators take you into the world of illegal gun sales and the destruction it causes families. For weeks, investigative reporter Harry Hairston sifted through data and sat down with those responsible for getting illegal guns off the streets. Use the interactive map above to see how gun violence is impacting the city of Philadelphia, neighborhood by neighborhood. NBC10 Investigator Harry Hairston went behind the scenes of illegal market gun sales. Michael Hagan, Jr. loved Philadelphia. Michael loved the city, the vibrancy of it," remembers his father, Michael Hagan, Sr. But a bullet would take 32-year-old Michael's life in the early morning of July 1st 2012. "Our lives, at that moment changed forever, said Michaels, mother, Carol Hagan. Shot dead on 4th Street, Hagans body was left on a sidewalk. His killer has never been found.[[367772031, C]] Somebody killed my son for a few dollars. Couldnt he have just robbed him and let him live? Thats how bad these guys are. They dont have respect for life," said Hagan, Sr. His son was one of 285 homicide victims by firearm in 2012. That number went down to 198 in 2013, up in 2014 to 207 and rose again last year to 233. Authorities believe many of these homicides and other gun crimes were committed with illegal firearms. "I like to think that when I purchase a gun from a criminal or someone else that shouldn't have it, then I'm saving a life," an undercover agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives ATF tells hairston. In an exclusive interview, the undercover agent shared some of his experience buying undercover guns. "I've gone into homes where it's like an open flea market, where you had 15, 20 guns spread out on the table and he had 10, 11 people were there everyone buying or purchasing the guns," the agent said. The ATF agent tells us guns are being sold in every single neighborhood. According to federal agents, some of the illegal sales are done in cars, out in the open on a neighborhood street and even at a business in Center City. NBC10 Investigators The undercover agent says he stumbled upon the owner of a barber shop in the 1100 block of Chestnut who was illegally selling assault rifles. In the basement, there was a shooting range," the agent said. The business is now replaced by new construction. The most recent ATF report from 2014 shows in Pennsylvania, the feds recovered 8,929 illegal guns. One third of those 3,187 were found in philadlephia. Sam Rabadi, the special agent in charge of Philadelphia's ATF field office, tells us at least half the guns on the black market in Philly are stolen or from straw purchases in Pennsylvania. The other half comesup I-95 from states in the South. Law enforcement calls that stretch of interstate The Iron Pipe Line. Drugs from Philly are taken down South and traded for guns where illegal purchasing is easier, Rabadi said. In just the last three years there have been more than 19,200 crimes using firearms, according to Philly police. Authorities were unable to tell us how many illegal guns were involved in these crimes and the ATF says illegal guns keep coming to town. "It's constant. It seems like it's never ending. Sometimes it feels like an uphill battle, like we are never going to win the battle," said the undercover agent. That outlook frustrates Hagans mother. "It makes you sad and angry that it just keeps happening over and over again and that these guns are out on the street, she said. Since Hagans murder, his family is determined his death not be in vain. They tell us they are working to make the city safer by speaking out against illegal guns and pushing for tougher sentencing. When you lose one of your children to gun violence it, you know, it never heals. It just dont. A cosmetology and barber school with a campus in the Miramar area is facing closure Wednesday amid accusations of mishandling federal funds, a move that may burden students who have already poured thousands of dollars into their education there. This week, the Department of Education cut off federal funding for 23 Marinello Schools of Beauty in Nevada and California, directly impacting more than 2,000 students. Not just that, student Antonio De La Rosa, a San Diego veteran who got his barber license there, told NBC 7 he believes the school's disorganization and unprofessional conduct has resulted in a waste of hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars. School administrators are accused by the federal government of falsifying financial aid records, by allegedly offering funding to some students with invalid high school diplomas. They're also accused of cheating students out of money by either charging too much or withholding the financial aid they deserve. The school denies the allegations. The company sent NBC 7 a statement, which says in part: "The allegations disclosed yesterday for the first time, which are unfounded, were accompanied by an organized and unprecedented press release. Without providing Marinello any time to refute or defend these untrue allegations, the Department chose to cut off funding to our students at 23 schools, none of which have ever been found to have any curriculum or instructional deficiencies by our nationally recognized accreditors or the states in which they operate." Read the full statement below. De La Rosa said he sought his barber license after serving in the Marine Corps between 2002 and 2014. The retired staff sergeant said he was "flabbergasted" at some of the practices at Marinello. He told NBC 7 he saw students get their high school diploma in one day, and courses were priced tens of thousands of dollars above classes at other schools. De La Rosa, who served two tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan, said more than anything, he was shocked by unprofessionalism from school instructors and administrators. "I deserve my education and they're not giving it to me," he said. Here is Marinello's complete statement: Despite Marinello Schools of Beautys long history of compliance with regulatory requirements, the Department of Education has delayed funding to our students for over two months without specifying allegations of wrongdoing or even allowing us to respond. Repeated attempts to get the most basic information from the Department of Education about their potential concerns were rebuffed. We repeatedly informed the Department that its actions could lead to the closure of the schools and it refused to provide any information about its concerns. This complete lack of due process has caused Marinello irreparable harm. The allegations disclosed yesterday for the first time, which are unfounded, were accompanied by an organized and unprecedented press release. Without providing Marinello any time to refute or defend these untrue accusations, the Department chose to cut off funding to our students at 23 schools, none of which have ever been found to have any curriculum or instructional deficiencies by our nationally recognized accreditors or the states in which they operate. We intend to appeal this decision and believe we have done nothing wrong and will defend ourselves vigorously. We object strongly to the lack of due process the Department has afforded, which in turn has put our operations at risk. If the Department is convinced of its position then it should have provided us with due process to contest its findings. The Departments unilateral action risks the worst possible consequences for our students, faculty and staff: the disruption of education for approximately 4,300 students and the loss of approximately 800 jobs, all without providing us sufficient opportunity to respond to these unfounded allegations. We have helped tens of thousands of deserving students obtain licensure in professional occupations for more than 110 years, but that may end due to these unprecedented and unfounded actions by the Department of Education. After being heavily damaged by a fire, a popular restaurant along San Diegos Embarcadero is back in the mix, and one of the first orders of business is giving back to the firefighters who saved the eatery. On Wednesday, as a heartfelt thank you to first responders, the staff at the Top of the Market restaurant located at 750 N. Harbor Dr. presented the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department (SDFD) with a check for $5,000. We excited to present the San Diego Fire Rescue Foundation with a $5,000 donation today. We were joined by San Diego... Posted by Top of The Market San Diego on Wednesday, February 3, 2016 (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js#xfbml=1&version=v2.3"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk')); Over the past few months, the eatery has spearheaded fundraising efforts for the San Diego Fire-Rescue Foundation in hopes of raising money to donate to the fire department, specifically to purchase life-saving devices for firefighters known as the Personal Escape System (PES). The equipment enables firefighters to quickly deploy out of a multi-story building amid a firefighting mission. The PES gives firefighters the ability to exit a burning building in less than 30 seconds, should they become trapped. The equipment is essential in todays fire environment, where homes burn faster than ever. Currently, the SDFDs escape system takes four minutes. The purchase of PES devices will allow for safer firefighting. SDFD Chief Brian Fennessy and many of the firefighters that helped battle the blaze at Top of the Market were at Wednesdays donation ceremony. They proudly accepted the check and met with restaurant staffers who are grateful the business was saved by fire crews. [[367587151,C]] "We are grateful to the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, said Dwight Colton, the restaurant company's Vice President of Operations. "Given what we experienced, it is our pleasure to support a cause for our first responders and give back." Employees are helping clean up the mess left by a fire that burned the attic of the Fish Market Restaurant. NBC 7s Bridget Naso reports. The fierce flames from the May 2015 fire also damaged the lower-level Fish Market sister restaurant, but Top of the Market took the brunt of the fire and water destruction. The eateries sustained more than $2 million worth of damages. Following the blaze, both restaurants temporarily shut down for extensive repairs and renovations. A fire sparked in the upper levels of the Fish Market Restaurant, sending smoke above the Embarcadero. NBC 7s Bridget Naso reports. The Fish Market reopened in August 2015, and, after a seven-month-long closure, Top of the Market reopened on Dec. 17, 2015 with new, updated features. The eatery is nestled along the San Diego Bay, near the USS Midway Museum, and is known for its scenic views. As the everyday items we use in our homes change, so does the modern environment in which fires spark and the challenges firefighters face when battling a blaze. NBC 7s May Tjoa has the story. To all the lovers out there: Dont get caught out in the cold this Valentines Day. Cupids holiday is around the corner and our friends at Yelp dont want anyone to end up in the doghouse. To that end, heres a list of romantic spots to take your date from extravagant to budget-conscious that will leave you feeling the love. Starlite (Mission Hills) This location is like a choose-your-own-adventure story. On one hand, you could cuddle up at the bar with a couple of craft cocktails and your cutie by your side. If you choose this path, the expertly-made drinks and stunning decor makes that a night out in and of itself. If you go another route, you could end up with late-night dining as the chandelier sparkles. Both choices would get you at least peck on the cheek, we bet. Le Parfait Paris (Gaslamp) Grab your Valentine by the hand and escort them to this delightful bakery in the heart of downtown San Diego. Over a couple of red Macaron a la Fraise and glasses of champagne youll be transported to Paris without ever leaving SoCal. Theres no need to spend a ton when its packaged up in French romance. Pastries and a coffee or cocktail wont break the bank, but this experience comes packed with brownie points. Free or Cheap Things to Do in San Diego Alexanders (North Park) Now, to another land known for love:, Italy! This Italian-inspired gem in North Park is known to make hearts flutter so reservations are suggested, andiamo! The indoor white decor is chic and will win over any dining companion but if weather permits, the back patio is a solid win. Vintage black and white films are often played on the patio, and paired with the soft light and warm heat lamps your love is sure to burn brighter. Addison (Del Mar) For those who make Valentines Day a true ritual and want the night of a lifetime, the perfect choice is a table for two and Chef William Bradleys nine-course Valentines menu at Addison in Del Mar. Its a feast for the eyes and the senses and only served on Feb. 14 with limited seating. Yelpers report the ambiance is the epitome of romantic and the service is both discreet and top notch. Make your reservations as fast as you can and ask about the wine pairing option. Whisknladle (La Jolla) Valentines day lands on a Sunday this year, so why not switch it up and take your darling out for a stroll by the sea and through the village, and then to Sunday brunch at Whisknladle. Snag your date some drinks from the Lively and Spirited or Boozy and Unapologetic menus and then dive into a mid-morning feast. The Cinnamon French Toast, topped with whipped cream and Mexican chocolate, is better than a box of candy. BO-beau Kitchen + Bar (Ocean Beach) A search for Romantic on Yelp in San Diego results in this location as a solid recommendation. The little Bo-beau Kitchen + Bar cottage aims to transport you to the feel of a small, French village. For around $50, the prix fixe Valentines Day menu invites you to dine your heart out with three courses with plenty of option from which to choose. For instance, pick the melted Brie fondue to get the night going and end the night on a sweet note with desserts like a red velvet heart cake or cream cheese vanilla moose with tart cherries. Bon appetit! Trish Sanderson is the community manager and marketing director for Yelp North County San Diego. She leads the local community of Yelp reviewers both online and off. Six high school students accused of beating and kicking a man in a downtown D.C. Metro station last week were charged Wednesday with multiple counts of assault, including on a police officer. Six Woodrow Wilson High School students appeared in court after the Jan. 28 attack in the Gallery Place-Chinatown station. The five boys and one girl, all 16 or 17, were charged as juveniles with aggravated assault, assault with significant bodily injury, assault on a police officer and conspiracy. All but one of the students was released pending a court date later this month. Metro Transit Police Chief Ron Pavlik previously said he and riders were disturbed by the assault. "It's troubling when you see this kind of wolf pack mentality," he said. Chancellor of DC Public Schools Kaya Henderson dismissed concerns about students acting violently on Metro. "I reject this notion that wild bands of roving students are attacking people on the Metro. There are incidents on the Metro this year, just like there are incidents on the Metro last year and the other years," Henderson said, "Just like this year, just like last year, kids have been riding the Metro to and from school." The 35-year-old victim, who had been headed to work, was exiting a Red Line train about 8:20 a.m. when a teen who was part of a group of as many as 30 youths tried to board the train and then sucker punched him, Metro Transit Police said. The victim swung back, and the teens lunged at him. The teens then got back on the train, leaving the victim injured on the platform, police said. Surveillance video of the attack shows a group of people rush onto an already-crowded Metro platform. Transit police intercepted the train at the Woodley Park station and arrested the teens. The victim was taken to a hospital and treated for cuts to the head, police said. It wasn't immediately clear if the teens would be allowed to return to Wilson High; D.C. Public Schools leaders are checking the status of the students. The D.C. Office of the Attorney General declined to comment on the charges. Anyone with information for police is asked to call 202-962-2121 or send a text message to MYMTPD. A new program in Washington, D.C. will give area children free books for the first five years of their lives. City officials will launch the "Books From Birth" program Thursday. The early childhood literacy program will mail a book to each child in the District every month from the time they are born until they area 5 years old. The program will also connect families with resources and educational information at the city's public libraries. Click here if you're interested in participating in the program. Montgomery County Police are asking for help to finding a missing 66-year-old woman who has Alzheimer's disease. Nancy Eillen Strohmeyer last spoke with a relative via phone around 7 p.m. Wednesday. Since then, the family has not seen or heard from her. Strohmeyer lives in the 13100 block of Millhaven Place in Germantown, Maryland. She is five feet, seven inches tall and weighs 130 pounds. She may be wearing a tan coat over a turquoise sweater, police said. Strohmeyer's family is concerned for her safety, and says she needs medication. Authorities are actively searching for her and have asked for a helicopter to expedite the search. If you have any information about Strohmeyer, please call Montgomery County Police at 301-279-8000. Charges will not be filed against a police officer who fatally shot a man in the middle of a Metro tunnel last spring, the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Columbia announced Thursday. The U.S. Attorney's Office determined there was not enough evidence to pursue federal criminal civil rights or local charges against a Metro Transit Police officer in the death of 35-year-old Bobby Gross. The officer was called to the Potomac Avenue Station in Southeast D.C. on March 12, 2015 for a report of an unauthorized person in the westbound tunnel about 400 feet from the platform. Metro personnel told police they saw Gross running through the tunnels between the two stations wearing a t-shirt, boxer shorts and no shoes. Gross was reportedly sweating profusely and carrying a large branch. The U.S. Attorney's Office says the officer found Gross on an elevated, 21-inch catwalk that runs along the tracks. The officer spoke to Gross, but he did not reply. When the two were about 10 feet from one another, Gross pulled a large branch from behind his back and started walking towards the officer. Train marker signs attached to the tunnel's walls prevented the officer from backing up without risking a fall onto the 750-volt third rail, the U.S. Attorney's Office said in a press release Thursday. "Drop the stick or I'll shoot you," the officer warned. The officer fired one round after Gross continued to advance. The U.S. Attorney's Office says the officer fired four additional rounds after Gross sprinted towards the officer and thrust the branch at him. Gross fell onto the tracks after the last shot, and was pronounced dead at the scene. The officer was placed on paid administrative leave, which is standard procedure. The U.S. Attorney's Office says that under federal criminal civil rights laws, prosecutors must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that officer's use of force was excessive and willfully deprived an individual of a constitutional right. Accidents, fear, negligence and bad judgement do not establish a criminal violation, prosecutors added. The Metro Transit Police Department has 490 officers, according to Metro's website. Metro said the department is unique in that it has authority in three jurisdictions: the District of Columbia and parts of Maryland and Virginia. Officers provide law enforcement on the system's subway and bus networks. A Clarksburg, Maryland, couple is facing child abuse charges after police say they restrained their 7-year-old son with plastic wrap and zip ties. Craig and Nicole Williams were charged with first-degree child abuse on Dec. 2, 2015 after their son was treated at a local hospital for "multiple abrasions, blisters and bruises over his entire body," court documents state. Police said the victim told medical staff he was frequently restrained with plastic wrap and zip ties. When asked about the blisters on his hands, the boy said his hands had been stuck in hot water. According to court documents, the victim also revealed he sometimes thinks about not wanting to live anymore. Nicole Williams, the victim's stepmother, told police she had helped wrap her stepson in plastic wrap that is typically used for moving. She said the boy was wrapped from his shoulder to his knees, and a cloth belt or rope was then tied around him. According to police, Nicole Williams told investigators her husband used zip ties to restrain the boy Dec. 1. Authorities said Craig Williams admitted to restraining his son, adding that the boy had been restrained that way for 30 days in the home. Police said Craig Williams told a nurse at the hospital he had been wrapping his son in plastic at bedtime for the past seven months. Neighbors told News4 they saw no sign of mistreatment of any of the couple's six children, who range in age from 1 to 17. In a statement to NBC4, David Driscoll, the attorney representing Craig Williams said, "I don't believe police looked as deeply as they could or should have into the back story of this case." He went on to say, "Right now, what's out there for public consumption is nowhere near the full story." Alexandria police have arrested a second suspect in the slaying of a man whose body was found in a popular park in December. Boris Rosa Castro, 19, of Fairfax, is charged with murder. He is being held without bond. Castro had been wanted in connection with the homicide of 22-year-old Eduardo David Chandias Almendarez, who was found dead in Four Mile Run Park on Dec. 4, 2015. Almendarez had been stabbed multiple times. On Tuesday, an off-duty Fairfax City police officer saw Castro while driving to work and remembered that he was wanted in connection with the case, police said. He then contacted on-duty officers, who responded and detained Castro, Alexandria police said. "This is a great example that officers such as this one are never truly 'off-duty' and continue to look out for the communities in which they work," Alexandria Police Chief Earl Cook said in a release. Cook thanked Fairfax City Police for helping to apprehend Castro. Police did not specify how they had identified Castro as a suspect. The victim had last been seen in the park several days before he was found dead. Police previously said Almendarez had "been a victim of a crime and may be endangered." Castro is the second person to be arrested in Almendarez' death. In January, police announced they'd arrested Edwin Alexander Guerreo Umana, 18, of Arlington. Umana was charged with murder. Police are asking anyone with information about the case to call Det. William Oakley at 703-746-6606. Virginia lawmakers are looking to crack down on toll violators who live out of state. A bill that was advanced by a House subcommittee this week would allow Virginia to enter into enforcement deals with other states so that people who aren't paying their tolls can be penalized, WTOP reports. The states would be able to share information about toll cheaters who haven't paid so that officials in the drivers' home state could prevent them from renewing their vehicle registration. The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles has estimated that 200,000 drivers who live outside of Virginia owe the state about $8.8 million in tolls, penalties and fees. Officials say the largest number of out-of-state toll violators in Virginia live in Maryland and Washington DC. Some emails forwarded to Hillary Clinton's personal server while she was secretary of state included contained references to undercover CIA officers, according to U.S. officials who have reviewed them. But contrary to some published reports, three officials said there was no email on Clinton's server that disclosed the identity of an undercover intelligence operative. Rather, they said, State Department and other officials attempted to make veiled references to intelligence officers in the emails references that were deemed classified when the messages were being reviewed years later for public release. One of the now-classified email chain originated with a member of the CIA director's staff, leading some officials to question how Clinton could be blamed. Clinton campaign spokesman Brian Fallon said no intelligence officer had been identified in the emails, and that misleading details from the emails were being leaked to hurt Clinton's prospects. You might have heard about Tinder. But are you familiar with Kik? How about Down? Police warn that dating and anonymous messaging apps -- including some that are mysteries to parents -- are getting into the hands of children who are too young to use them. That can expose children to content they aren't ready for, or worse. Recently, reports surfaced that Nicole Madison Lovell, a 13-year-old Blacksburg girl, may have used the messaging app Kik to connect with an 18-year-old college student who is now accused in her murder. And Prince George's police say a pornographic photo sent through the Kik app led them to investigate an elementary school choir director -- who is now accused of making child pornography on school grounds. Many of these apps say they are not to be used by preteens. But Montgomery County, Maryland police said young people are drawn to them. "These kids have no idea who they are talking to," said Rick Goodale, of Montgomery County Police. "And the dangers is these kids eventually may want to end up meeting somebody." Here's a parent's guide to some of the newer apps: Kik Kik is a popular messaging app with 250 million users around the world, according to the company's website. But parents are alarmed by reports of sexual predators using the app to contact children. Last year, a 14-year-old Fairfax boy was accused of using Kik to create a contest to generate child pornography. And an anonymous man who claimed to be a convicted sex offender told WOOD TV, an NBC station in Michigan that the app is easily used by predators to contact children. "I can be whoever I want to be. I can get anybody I want. I can achieve my sexual glorification through this app," he said. Whisper Whisper is a free app that lets users share secrets anonymously. Users post pictures with accompanying text and others comment in reply; there are no profiles. The company says this anonymous model helps prevent cyberbullying because people can be honest about themselves, the company's CEO told Mashable. But the app also has a private messaging service, which enables predators to attempt to contact teens. It's easier to find someone nearby, because the app allows users to see posts within a 25-mile radius. Yik Yak Yik Yak is designed for people in a specific area. Similar to Whisper, users post messages, or "Yaks," similar to bulletin board messages. The app is anonymous and users see posts made within a 10-mile radius. Schools are concerned about the potential for cyberbullying and threats. At least 11 college students across the U.S. were charged for making threats on the app during the fall 2014 semester, reported CBC News in Canada. A former student at Michigan State University was sentenced to two years of probation Wednesday for making a school shooting threat on Yik Yak, the State News in Michigan reported. Down Down, which used to be called "Bang with Friends," is a social media app that works with Facebook to identify friends on Facebook that say they are willing to hook up. TeenSafe, a technology company that helps parents navigate new technology that their kids use, has called Down a "digital booty call." Omegle This video chatting app can be used to connect users with anyone -- with no identity verification and no moderation. TeenSafe called it "perhaps the most dangerous" app on the TeenSafe 2016 App Blacklist. Ask.fm Ask.fm is described as an app for "social Q&A." Users create profiles which let anyone ask them questions. The primary audience is ages 13 to 25, with half of registered users under the age of 18, the app's co-founder told CNET. Users can stay anonymous, leading to what CNET described as a "parent-free digital space," and that can lead to concerns of cyberbullying, reported WBNS-10TV. What Parents Can Do OnGuardOnline is the federal government's website to help Americans stay safe online. A special section, Protect Kids Online, is a guide for parents, covering everything from child identity theft to cyberbullying. Common Sense Media has guides for parents, complete with reviews, of popular apps and games. HighTechDad compiled a brief guide for parents about the latest apps and their dangers to kids. Deleting and blocking apps will only do so much; he advises having conversations with your kids and making sure they know how to be safe online. Or check out TeenSafe's blog. A multi-million budget shortfall may force a popular Virginia bus service to slash service and increase fares. Nine lines may be eliminated on the OmniRide and Metro Direct bus lines in Northern Virginia, according to a proposal by the Potomac and Rappahannock Transportation Commission. The commission serves fast-growing Prince William County. The plan also calls for reduction of Friday service and for other lines to be consolidated. All of the PRTC bus lines -- including its OmniLink and Cross County Connector service -- would be affected in some way. The proposal also calls for fares to increase by an average of 5 percent. "I really don't see how or why they would cut anything based on the amount of people who ride the bus in the morning, commuter Gregory Budd told News4. Lower gas prices have led to lower gas tax collections, contributing to the $9.2 million budget deficit. And the county lost some federal funding after converting I-95 HOV lanes into toll lanes. "As gas prices have precipitously declined, so has [gas] tax revenues," said Frank Principi, chairman of the commission. Now, the PRTC is facing the "imminent depletion" of a motor fuels tax reserve fund that it uses to pay transportation costs. Local leaders said they are trying to work with the commission to find other funding for the bus routes, so that service can be maintained. But until then, public hearings will proceed on the proposal, which would take effect in July 2016. Other riders said they would turn to alternatives if needed to make their commute work -- including the region's free, informal carpool services known as slug lines. "Slug is pretty easy," said rider Dan Moon. "You don't have to pay for it, that's for sure." Among the proposed cuts, according to the PRTC: OmniRide commuter bus: Elimination of the Capitol Hill route; Elimination of two trips on the South Route 1 route; Elimination of one trip on the Dale City Washington route; Elimination of neighborhood routing on all Lake Ridge routes; Elimination of neighborhood routing on the Dale City and Lake Ridge DL and DLX trips; Route consolidation of all trips serving Crystal City requiring Dale City passengers to transfer at the Pentagon; Elimination of Modified Holiday service; and Reduction of service on Fridays. Metro Direct commuter bus: Elimination of two trips on Linton Hall Metro Direct; Elimination of all non-rush hour and reverse-commute trips on Manassas Metro Direct; and Reduction of frequency of mid-day trips on Prince William Metro Direct OmniLink and Cross County Connector local buses: Reduction of frequency on all OmniLink routes; Elimination of one trip on the Route 1 OmniLink route; Restructuring of Manassas and Manassas Park OmniLink routing including a reduction in frequency of service; and Elimination of three Cross County trips and reduction in frequency of service. Under the proposed fare increase, new one-way fares would be: OmniRide SmarTrip fare $6.50; Metro Direct SmarTrip fare $3.25; OmniLink and Cross County Connector fare $1.50; OmniLink and Cross County Connector reduced fare for seniors/disabled $0.75; Local bus day pass $3.40; Local bus weekly pass $13.65 Four public hearings on the proposed budget, service cuts and fare increase have been set for: Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2016, 1 p.m. Manassas City Hall, Council Chambers 9027 Center Street, Manassas, VA 20110 Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2016, 1 p.m. PRTC Transit Center 14700 Potomac Mills Road, Woodbridge, VA 22192 Wednesday, Feb. 10, 2016, 7 p.m. PRTC Transit Center 14700 Potomac Mills Road, Woodbridge, VA 22192 Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016, 7 p.m. Manassas City Hall, Council Chambers 9027 Center St, Manassas, VA 20110 As the number of Zika-virus-infected nations and jurisdictions around the world jumped to 30 Wednesday, four Boston public schools cancelled planned school trips to the Dominican Republic, Ecuador and Nicaragua. Officials wouldn't say which schools or how many students involved but issued a statement: "Boston Public Schools is canceling a small number of field trips to countries where there is currently an outbreak of the Zika virus to protect the safety of students, staff, and families, and to prevent transmission to the Boston community. The district is not canceling all global field trips. These decisions were made after working with leaders at the impacted schools, and with the safety and wellbeing of our students, families, and staff being a top priority. The district and school leaders are working to find alternative destinations where possible and appropriate, and to ensure that students and families who need refunds receive them." Dr. Anita Barry, director of the Infectious Disease Bureau with the Boston Public Health Commission, said school officials did not consult with her about the decision, but said it is understandable given some of today's realities. "Sometimes in the teenage years," Barry said, "some young women may be pregnant, and of course it that were the situation, we certainly would advise them not to travel to countries where the zika virus is circulating" because of the risk of grave brain and skull damage from Zika to developing fetuses. According to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, females aged 15 to 19 in Boston gave birth to 318 babies in 2013, the most recent year with available data. The Boston teen birth rate of 12.2 per 1,000 was close to the overall state rate of 12.0. Aside from the issue of pregnant girls and women, asked what advice she would give schools about whether to have students make trips to areas where mosquitoes carrying Zika have been reported, Barry said, "We're not aware that Zika virus would cause more severe disease in teenagers. In fact, only one out of five people who are infected with Zika get any symptoms at all, and usually they are pretty mild." Spots checks with state school and teacher associations Wednesday indicated that Boston is one of a very few and maybe the only Massachusetts school district so far cancelling travel over Zika concerns. Elsewhere in the city, Boston College High School, which runs service trips to the Dominican Republic and Ecuador, is following the Zika concerns but has made no decisions about cancelling any trips, according to a school spokeswoman. EF Education First, with a major office in Cambridge, runs educational tours to several Zika-infected countries, including Bolivia, Brazil, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Nicaragua, and Panama. EF spokesman Adam Bickelman said by email, "Given that the CDC [Centers for Disease Control] warning is very specific in nature, cautioning those that are or plan to become pregnant about the risks of travelling to the affected areas, we are not making any major changes to our tours at this time We are aware that Boston Public Schools is consulting with their student groups that are traveling to Central America to determine next steps on a case-by-case basis. However at this time no Boston Public School groups have officially cancelled their plans. We do have a few individuals from other school districts that fall under the CDC guidelines, and we are working with them on a case-by-case basis to determine a solution that works best." Barry, the infectious disease chief, said, "For most students, it probably wouldn't be an issue, but for some other students who might be pregnant, it could really cause some really serious outcomes, birth defects in a baby. So I think you have to weigh the benefits and the risks there." Airlines and cruise lines have offered various policies allowing pregnant women to cancel or reschedule trips if they have concerns about travelling to areas with reported Zika infections. Travel Insured International said its seen a 30 percent increase from last year in the last month in sales of "cancel for any reason" travel insurance policies, which it attributed to people being concerned about cancelling a trip based on Zika concerns. With videographer Justin Mintzes Gov. Charlie Baker said his administration is cooperating with the investigation into the death of a 3-year-old boy who suffered traumatic injuries at his Boston home last weekend. The Republican governor on Wednesday said the state Department of Children and Families had been involved with the family prior to the boy's death. He said DCF had received a report from a daycare provider on Friday that the child was clean, well-fed and in good shape. "What nobody seems to know at this point - which is why we're collaborating and cooperating with the D.A. - is what happened after that," Baker told reporters. The boy was taken to the hospital Sunday night after he was found unresponsive in his home in the city's Roxbury neighborhood. Police confirmed the boy died Tuesday. Wednesday, the boy's former daycare teachers came to his Roxbury home to pray and place candles out front. One of the teachers told necn the boy was a wonderful, normal, innocent child who loved to eat cereal. Authorities haven't released the nature of his injuries or the cause of death. No one has been criminally charged. DCF spokeswoman Andrea Grossman said the agency is conducting an internal investigation. The agency, which had an open case with the family, has taken custody of another child who lived in the home and confirmed that the social worker and supervisor assigned to this case were both licensed. Baker in November said he was making changes to the department following a series of high-profile cases, including the death of a toddler who became known as Baby Doe after her remains turned up on a Boston Harbor beach last summer. The girl was later identified as 2-year-old Bella Bond. Rachelle Bond is charged with being an accessory in her daughter's death. Bond's boyfriend, Michael McCarthy, is charged with the girl's murder. Both have pleaded not guilty. Baker said in November that a new intake policy will clarify protocols used to screen and investigate reports of abuse or neglect. The changes are also designed to help social workers identify which cases should be sent up for a higher-level review. Baker also said at the time that the changes would ensure the safety of children in the state's welfare system by helping DCF "be responsive and accountable in its mission to protect every child we serve in every way we can." Other changes included: requiring non-emergency reports of abuse and neglect to be reviewed in one business day; requiring criminal and sex offender background checks on parents, caregivers and all household members over 15 years old; and evaluating whether a parent understands how to appropriately care for and discipline a child and provide for the family's basic needs. Training on the new policies was scheduled to begin this month. A Springfield, Massachusetts, man charged with terrorizing a family with a toddler with his aggressive panhandling has been held on $500 bail, but instead of being sent to jail, he was sent for a mental health evaluation and treatment. The Republican newspaper reports that Tykwia Lee pleaded not guilty Wednesday to carjacking. Prosecutors say the 46-year-old Lee asked a man for money as he entered a pizza shop last month. He then allegedly accosted the man on the way out, banged on the man's vehicle's windows and tried to force his way inside, where the man's wife and 2-year-old child waited. Prosecutors asked for $10,000 bail. But Lee's attorney said her client is mentally ill and "like a child" and it would be "inhuman" to put him in jail. A log truck driver has pleaded not guilty to negligence in an Interstate 91 crash that killed a Florida man last year. The Valley News reports Mason Morissette, of Woodstock, Maine, entered the plea on Tuesday to a felony charge of gross negligent operation of a vehicle with death resulting and a misdemeanor offense in Winsor Superior Court. He faces up to 17 years in prison if convicted. Police said 54-year-old David Stefanik, of Shalimar, Florida, pulled his truck into a breakdown lane in Norwich in August because he had a flat tire. Police said 24-year-old Morissette sideswiped the truck, killing Stefanik. Police allege Morissette was texting before the crash. Morissette is due in court March 7. He and his attorney declined to comment on the charges. This is the 11th least snowy winter on record in the Burlington, Vermont, area, through this point in the season, according to data from the National Weather Service. So far this season, Burlington has seen 19.2" of snow, but most of it has melted, especially after a recent stretch of mild days and rain. Since record-keeping started in 1895, ten other winters have seen less snow through this point in the season. The winter with the least snow by now was in 1980, with 10.9" of snow, the data shows, and the winter with the most snow by this point was 1978, with a whopping 99.4" of snow by February 3. As Special Olympics Vermont prepares for its 21st annual Penguin Plunge on Saturday, organizers noted the Burlington Waterfront does not have the kind of ice and snow cover it has had in many past years. The Penguin Plunge sees teams take a chilly dip into Lake Champlain to raise money that supports pursuits of athletes who have intellectual disabilities and who take part in Special Olympics programming year-round. Even despite the lack of ice and snow, Lisa DeNatale of Special Olympics Vermont said the more than 1,400 participants in this year's Penguin Plunge are still very brave to go into the water. "It still is February; the lake is still cold," DeNatale pointed out. "There are many people who choose not to plunge, so those who do have really demonstrated 32 degrees of courage." DeNatale said by Wednesday morning, the event had raised $318,000 for Special Olympics Vermont, with more money still to come in over the next few days. The number of participants also set a new record this year, she said. Rick Marsh, a maple syrup producer in Jeffersonville, Vermont, said the recent mild temperatures created conditions that enabled him to collect sap and boil it down to syrup. "The trees don't look at the calendar, as I say, they look at the weather," Marsh told necn. Sap doesn't usually start running from maple trees until closer to spring, but Marsh was able to take advantage of the weather to get a jump-start on producing Vermont's signature product, maple syrup. "It had a really good flavor," Marsh said of his early syrup production. "I've boiled on the second of February twice, but never on the first on February. If you get a run right now, it's a bonus." Marsh said he would like to see some snow cover to help insulate the trees' root systems from subterranean freezes, should the mild temperatures return to normal February cold. However, he noted the lack of snow in the woods has made mobility much easier for maple syrup producers, enabling them to tap trees far more efficiently. While many of Vermont's lower-lying communities have little or no snow on the ground, in the mountains, ski resorts like the Killington Resort have been running snow guns whenever they can. A Killington spokesman said over the past week, snow makers have been able to make snow several nights, helping boost trail coverage. Killington plans to leap into action as soon as the temperatures drop to crank up machine-blown snow, the resort said. On Burlington's snowless Church Street Marketplace, a planned Winter Weekend celebration will go forward, with ice sculptures, games, outdoor activities, and lights in cool colors like blues and purples. "The warm temperatures are great, because it means people can be outside a little bit longer than they might otherwise," Becky Cassidy of the Church Street Marketplace said of the milder air expected for this year's Winter Weekend celebration, as compared to last years. Cassidy seemed to find one silver lining, as Vermont waits for winter's return. A Wallingford Chinese restaurant will be closed for the near future after a kitchen fire caused serious damage early Wednesday morning. Firefighters responded to Hong Kong Chinese, at 822 East Center Street, after receiving a call from an alarm company around 3 a.m. reporting a smoke detector in the building going off. When crews arrived, the restaurant's kitchen was ablaze and it took about half an hour to extinguish the fire. The restaurant was empty at the time of fire, so no one was hurt and firefighters were able to contain the flames to the restaurant. The strip mall has eight to 10 businesses and the owner of the nearby Frans Bakery was working overnight and he was the first one to realize what was happening. I ran outside and I looked, I said, Oh my God, the place is just billowing with smoke, Larry Hurowitz said. Smoke did make it into some of the businesses near the Chinese restaurant, so firefighters opened the doors to those stores and said the fire didn't spread beyond the kitchen into the restaurant. "The fire was contained to the kitchen area and it didnt get into the restaurant portion," Wallingford Fire Chief Richard Heidgerd said. "So, luckily theres not a lot of structural damage to the building. Thats whats allowing the other occupants to be in business today." Mike's Barber Shop, however, will not be opening today. "Ill be open tomorrow, once we get this place cleaned up," Mike Falcigno, the owner of Mikes Barbershop, said. Hong Kong Chinese won't be opening any time soon due to the damage, according to fire officials. "We were able to keep the power on, which is important to the protection of food, and again, with the clearance of the health department, that allows them to open for business," Heidgerd said. The health inspector for Wallingford also responded. Fire investigators believe the fire was electrical and started in the kitchen, but the exact cause is not yet known. The road the fire was on was closed earlier in the morning, but it has since reopened. The scene has cleared. Jeb Bush was in Manchester during the Iowa caucus, while Chris Christie was in Nashua - an indication that the Republican candidates have put all their eggs into New Hampshire's basket. Voters here seem to think it's working. "I think it will help, I think New Hampshire voters expect to be able to meet their candidate," said Sunapee resident Karin Berthiaume. At yet another town hall event, this time in New London, New Hampshire, Jeb Bush tells the crowd to focus on the First in the Nation Primary and not what happened in Iowa. "You can reset the race or you can let pundits say it's already over," Bush told the crowd of more than 200 on Wednesday. Bush who essentially skipped any organizational efforts in Iowa finished sixth in the caucuses. In a one-on-one interview, Bush told necn that there is no such thing as momentum coming into New Hampshire. "Look, my dad had 'Big Mo,' remember that, in 1980?" Bush said. "He had 'Big Mo' he won Iowa and lost in New Hampshire." He then went on to take a not-so-subtle jab at Marco Rubio, who had a stronger-than-expected third-place finish in Iowa. "If people rest on 'Marco-mentum' or momentum, they're going to be surprised because people here they take it seriously, they want you to come and earn your vote and that's what I am doing," Bush said. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has a similar strategy, pinning his hopes on New Hampshire and dismissing the caucus results that put him in tenth place and three outsiders at the top of the pack. "There's two different kinds of trucks in this race," Christie told an overflow crowd in Bow Wednesday afternoon. "The Marco Rubio/Ted Cruz truck is the new, shiny, smells-nice truck, then there's the Chris Christie truck, it's old, it's beat up, it's nicked up, it doesn't smell as good as it used to, but man the Chris Christie truck knows how to get out the mud, you know why, cause he's been in the mud before." Next Tuesday will be make or break for Christie and Bush. Political analysts in New Hampshire say they need to finish in the top four to justify continuing their campaigns into South Carolina. Norfolk churches to join massive hymn-sing Norfolk churches to join massive hymn-sing Christian mission organisation OMF is appealing to churches across Norfolk to join 10,000 others on February 21 to sing the classic mission hymn, Facing the Task Unfinished, which has been arranged for today's Church. Google Fiber on Wednesday announced free gigabit Internet service to residents of selected public housing projects connected to its fiber optic service in U.S. cities. The program was launched at West Bluff, an affordable housing community in Kansas City, Mo., where 100 homes have been connected to Google Fiber. Across the Kansas City area, Google is now working with affordable housing providers to connect as many as nine properties that could reach more than 1,300 local families. Google described the program as an extension of its work with ConnectHome, an initiative of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Obama administration. + ALSO ON NETWORK WORLD Google Fiber eyes Chicago and L.A. + HUD Secretary Julian Castro said in a conference call that under the ConnectHome program, up to 200,000 children in affordable housing in 28 different U.S. cities are expected to be connected to fast Internet. Google Fiber is expected to be a part of those connections in Atlanta, Durham, N.C., Nashville and San Antonio, he said. There will be no cost to local housing authorities, their residents or HUD. Google will absorb the costs of the free service and there will be no fees or contract. The Kansas City area was the first Google Fiber location in the nation, starting in 2012. Today, the service is available in two other cities -- Austin, Texas and Provo, Utah -- with work under way in six others. Normally, residents in Kansas City pay $70 a month for Google Fiber fast Internet service. In addition to free Internet, eligible residents will work with ConnectHome partners like Connecting for Good and Surplus Exchange to be able to purchase discounted computers and learn new computer skills, Google said. In Austin, Google plans to complement free Internet service for some families with investments in computers labs and digital literacy classes. Plans for other cities were not announced. "We plan to bring gigabit Internet to select affordable housing in all of our Fiber cities," Dennis Kish, vice president of Google Fiber, wrote in a blog. "The U.S. has some of the most expensive broadband in the world, while lagging far behind other countries in Internet speeds," he added. "And for families in affordable housing, cost can be one of the biggest barriers to getting online." Early in its rollout of Google Fiber in Kansas City, there was concern that not enough low-income residents were buying into the service. Meanwhile, government officials in both Kansas City, Mo., and Kansas City, Kans., hailed Google Fiber's arrival as a boost to business interest in the area, even as they have worked to reduce the digital divide. This story, "Google Fiber to be free for select affordable housing residents" was originally published by Computerworld . Canonical is the commercial sponsor of Ubuntu, the open source operating system. Ubuntu is a firm favorite in the server world, but that's not enough for a company whose charismatic founder (and one-time space traveller), Mark Shuttleworth, wanted Ubuntu to be the operating system for everything. To this end, Canonical has spent a couple of years building a lighter-weight version of Ubuntu that first saw the light of day within a mobile phone setting. It has to be said that Canonical tried to go down the smartphone route several years ago, when it tried to shoehorn Ubuntu onto Android handsets. At the time, the idea was that Ubuntu would be used when the phone was docked with an external monitor. The Ubuntu operating system would then kick into gear and create a true desktop computing experience out of a tablet. That never flew, and the company launched a crowdfunding campaign to build a full mobile operating system. That campaign failed, and Canonical instead created its own mobile version of Ubuntu. That mobile play is being extended today, with the launch of the Aquaris M10 Ubuntu Edition tablet, the first of a planned series of converged devices. The cut-down version of Ubuntu takes a very different approach towards mobile interaction than the platforms we're used to: iOS, Android, and Windows Phone. I've had a trial Ubuntu phone for a year or so now, and it's certainly a different way of looking at the mobile user experience. Rather than being completely application-centric, as is the case for the other platforms, Ubuntu introduced "Scopes" mobile pages, which are essentially aggregation destinations for web content. As an example, a "near by" scope might show local weather, local foreign exchange rates, and local sightseeing options. Scopes are a great way for a new player, without an existing mobile customer base or application ecosystem, to more rapidly build up functionality for their users. Alas, my experience with the phone has been that, while a novel concept, the execution of the device itself, and scopes, in particular, creates a performance burden that means users will be reluctant to adopt the platform. It's an issue I spent time talking with Canonical about, so more on that later. In terms of today's news, the tablet differs from the mobile device in that it doesn't just constrain users to the mobile operating system, but rather contains the full Ubuntu desktop experience. In this way, it is more like Canonical's original Android+Ubuntu strategy in that it has a mobile-optimized experience as well as a more traditional one. It is also, it must be said, akin to Windows in the current era, with the traditional start menu paradigm as well as a more smartphone-like app driven one. History hasn't been kind to Microsoft's dual approach in this way. I wonder whether Canonical will fare better. Speaking about this converged approach, Canonical CEO Jane Silber was buoyant, saying that: "Were bringing you everything youve come to expect from your Ubuntu PC, now on the tablet with BQ, soon on smartphones. This isnt a phone interface stretched to desktop size - its the right user experience and interaction model for the given situation. Also, in terms of applications, we have something no other OS can provide: a single, visual framework and set of tools for applications to run on any type of Ubuntu smart device." In terms of specs, I didn't get to trial a device yet, so I had to go by what the company has said. Canonical suggests the tablet has full multitasking and windows management, desktop notifications, fully featured file creation, browsing and management, and a fully responsive application development approach that supports both touch and point/click input. As for the device itself, this is the third mobile device developed in partnership between Spanish manufacturer BQ and Canonical. The Aquaris M10 Ubuntu Edition tablet has a 10.1-inch multitactile FHD screen with Dragontrail Asahi protection. It is built light, with 8.2 mm of thickness and 470 grams in weight, and includes a 7280 mAh LiPo battery. It has a MediaTek Quad Core MT8163A to 1.5 GHz processor. I spent time last year while at the OpenStack Summit in Tokyo, talking with Canonical's founder Mark Shuttleworth about the vision for Ubuntu in mobile. At the time, after using the smartphone for awhile I was a little dismissive. This feeling wasn't reduced any by the fact that Shuttleworth himself wasn't toting an Ubuntu phone. Shuttleworth's approach was that the cut-down Ubuntu operating system was applicable to a number of different areas, in particular for connected devices and IoT use cases. As such, people shouldn't look at the project as purely a smartphone opportunity, but rather one which Canonical and its partners can leverage for a number of industrial uses. This is a compelling argument. After all, most criticisms of Ubuntu mobile come back to the user experience and performance. Neither of these issues are particularly relevant for an operating system that is powering connected sensors and devices. In a conversation with Silber, I discussed this multi-faceted value proposition for Canonical itself. She told me that the IoT opportunity is massive, and it is, in her words, going gangbusters for Canonical. As to the criticisms of both application availability and performance for end users of the mobile devices, Silber indicated that this was still small, but the developer ecosystem is growing. It will be interesting to see whether the introduction of this tablet moves the needle in this regard. WikiLeaks' founder Julian Assange will accept arrest by the British police if a UN panel on arbitrary detention rules against him, according to a tweet by the whistle-blowing website. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention is widely expected to announce its decision on Friday on an application by Assange over his confinement in the Ecuador embassy in London since 2012. The move late Wednesday by Assange apparently aims to bring his detention at the embassy to an end, whatever be the outcome, while also putting pressure on the relevant governments to reciprocate and abide by the decision of the UN panel, if it is favorable to him. WikiLeaks has published leaked diplomatic cables and other information that embarrassed several governments and international businesses. In 2012, Assange was granted asylum by the government of Ecuador and has since been under the protection of the country's embassy in London. He is wanted by police in Sweden for questioning about certain allegations of sexual offenses. U.K. police have said that they would arrest Assange to meet the extradition request from Sweden if he comes out from the Ecuador embassy. Assange and his supporters fear that from Sweden, he could be transferred to the U.S. to face charges under the country's Espionage Act. "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," Assange wrote in the Twitter message. However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me, he added. Although the publication of the documents were politically embarrassing to the U.S. government, it was a protected act of free speech and political expression, according to the complaint to the UN Working Group. The U.S. commenced investigating Assange and WikiLeaks, and "instigated a series of search and seizure and surveillance measures, which do not appear to be regulated by any meaningful due process in which Mr. Assange is able to assert his rights," it added. The Human Rights Council of the UN General Assembly in September 2013 requested states to take into account the views of the Working Group and, where necessary, to take appropriate steps to remedy the situation of persons arbitrarily deprived of their liberty. States were also asked to inform the Working Group of the steps they have taken. Just five weeks into 2016 and its already been a busy year for the cybersecurity industry. Here are just a few highlights so far: FireEye goes on a shopping spree Ignoring Wall Streets trepidation, FireEye continues to remain aggressive on the acquisition front by grabbing iSight Partners and Invotas. With the addition of these two companies, FireEye can claim leadership in: Threat intelligence. FireEye/Mandiant was already strong in this area, and with the addition of iSight, FireEye becomes the instant market leader. FireEye already had a different view of threat intelligence, pivoting from cyber-adversaries (i.e. threat actors, TTPs, etc.) into the enterprise. With this perspective, FireEye believes it can help customers anticipate attacks and become more proactive with prevention, detection, and response. By adding iSight, FireEye attains a broader view of the threat landscape that can be integrated into its products and used to create a variety of threat intelligence services for enterprise and mid-market customers. Oh, and lets not forget that FireEye picks up a few hundred cybersecurity experts in the deal, which is especially important given the acute global cybersecurity skills shortage. This will certainly boost FireEyes services presence and revenue. FireEye/Mandiant was already strong in this area, and with the addition of iSight, FireEye becomes the instant market leader. FireEye already had a different view of threat intelligence, pivoting from cyber-adversaries (i.e. threat actors, TTPs, etc.) into the enterprise. With this perspective, FireEye believes it can help customers anticipate attacks and become more proactive with prevention, detection, and response. By adding iSight, FireEye attains a broader view of the threat landscape that can be integrated into its products and used to create a variety of threat intelligence services for enterprise and mid-market customers. Oh, and lets not forget that FireEye picks up a few hundred cybersecurity experts in the deal, which is especially important given the acute global cybersecurity skills shortage. This will certainly boost FireEyes services presence and revenue. The Integrated Cybersecurity Orchestration Platform (ICOP) market. Invotas sells a market-leading ICOPs solution that helps organizations streamline incident response operations and automate remediation tasks. Just about every enterprise organization needs these IR capabilities, and since it doesnt make sense for them to write their own software, the ICOPs market is poised to be a big deal in 2016. With Invotas in hand, FireEye becomes an instant player and can now address 4 of 5 areas I call out in my IR fab 5 concept. Youve gotta admit that FireEye's CEO has a lot of chutzpah. Dave is on a mission to create a new type of cybersecurity company and is willing to march down this path with or without the millennials on Wall Streets support. Invotas and iSight are bold moves that have the potential to make FireEye a multi-billion cybersecurity vendor over time. No more Norse Speaking of threat intelligence, old friend Brian Krebs posted a recent blog claiming that Norse was terminating operations and possibly offloading its assets to network device manufacturer SolarFlare. Personally, I am sad to hear this news, as Ive worked with the Norse team and believe that it did offer useful and unique threat intelligence. Unfortunately, its difficult for CISOs to really determine which commercial threat intelligence is of high quality and valuable and which is nothing more than open source with a pretty GUI. According to ESG research, 72% of cybersecurity professionals believe that at least 50% of all commercial threat intelligence feeds are redundant with each other (note: I am an ESG employee). Furthermore, 26% of enterprise organizations claim that it is extremely difficult to determine the quality and efficacy of each individual threat intelligence feed. Amidst this threat intelligence market confusion, Norses value was lost on many organizations, which ultimately led to its demise. Nevertheless, there is value in Norses assets that deserves a new home. Rather than get sidetracked with threat intelligence, SolarFlare should reach out to firms like Check Point, Cisco, FireEye, Fortinet, IBM, Palo Alto Networks, and Symantec with the resources to turn Norses loss into a market win. Symantec Unchained Okay, its been a long and sometimes painful journey, but Symantec and Veritas have finally completed their divorce proceedings. Now Symantec must reinvent itself as a cybersecurity market leader as soon as possible. To do so, it needs strong market visibility, thought leadership, and an aggressive acquisition strategy to fill product holes. For starters, Symantec may look to add a leading SIEM player (AlienVault or LogRhythm), a next-generation endpoint vendor (Cylance, Hexis, Invincea, or SentinelOne), and an ICOPs innovator (CyberSponse, Hexadite, Phantom Cyber, or Resilient Systems). COLUMBUS A 62-year-old Columbus man pleaded not guilty to drug and weapons possession charges in connection with a police raid at his residence in a local mobile home park in December. Platte County District Court Judge Robert Steinke scheduled Steven Randall for an April 4 jury trial stemming from the Dec. 17 raid conducted by Columbus Police and a Nebraska State Patrol SWAT team at the defendants home in Elm Creek Trailer Park. Steinke reduced Randalls bond from $350,000 to $100,000, 10 percent allowed for release. The defendant has been in custody at the county jail since the day of the police raid. Randall is charged with possession of methamphetamine (28 to 139 grams) and possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, Class 1C and 1D felonies that each carry a maximum sentence of 50 years imprisonment. The defendant is also charged with possession of a deadly weapon by a prohibited person, a Class III felony with a maximum penalty of 20 years behind bars, and possession of a short-barrel shotgun, a Class IV felony punishable by up to five years in prison. Court documents describe multiple handguns, three shotguns and ammunition, more than an ounce of meth, marijuana, drug paraphernalia and other items seized during the bust. Police Investigator Jeremy Zywiec wrote in his statement supporting Randalls arrest that the search warrant was sought following a meeting with a confidential informant. One of the shotguns was located in the bedroom under a pillow on the bed, Zywiec wrote in his statement. The shotgun was a pistol grip shotgun with a total length of approximately 25 1/2 inches. The barrel length was measured at 15 inches, Zywiec wrote. Officers also seized a digital scale, large quantity of meth and marijuana pipes and notebook paper with dollar amounts and weights noted that appeared to be a ledger of drugs sold or purchased, the investigator wrote. Randall, who had an outstanding bench warrant in Platte County for failure to appear for a debtors exam at the time of the raid, was previously convicted of burglary in August 1978 and forgery in October 2002. COLUMBUS A 29-year-old Columbus man is accused of selling powerful prescription pain medication to an undercover informant while awaiting trial in district court on charges stemming from a drunken driving arrest and leading police on a high-speed chase last September. Defendant Ricky Johnson waived his preliminary hearing in Platte County Court on a charge of delivery of a controlled substance (Tramadol) in connection with a Dec. 8 drug deal at his city apartment that was recorded by a confidential police informant. Judge Frank Skorupa scheduled Johnson for arraignment Feb. 12 on the charge in district court. The drug charge is a Class 3A felony, punishable by up to five years imprisonment. The defendant was already awaiting an April 4 jury trial on charges of fifth-offense driving under the influence of alcohol, operating a motor vehicle to avoid arrest, driving during revocation from a DUI and possession of a controlled substance in connection with a Sept. 6 chase through residential neighborhoods and the downtown business district. Court documents describe a December drug transaction in which Johnson and the informant agreed to meet the afternoon of Dec. 8 at the defendants apartment on the west side of the city. With law enforcement authorities looking on from a distance, Columbus Police Investigator Jeremy Zywiec wrote in his probable cause statement supporting Johnsons arrest, the defendant met the informant at the door to his apartment and completed the sale. Zywiec wrote that he soon after retrieved the recording device from the informant and 44 white tablets wrapped in plastic. A Nebraska State Patrol Crime Lab analysis later revealed the 50-milligram tablets to be Tramadol hydrochloride. Court records in the September chase recount Johnson heading out for a birthday bash with a friend when his plans went astray during an attempted traffic stop in the downtown area. Johnson told police officers he was originally going to play pool at a downtown bar then visit other downtown locations to mark his birthday when his plans were interrupted by the attempted traffic stop on a vehicle with no rear license plate. A 20-minute pursuit that started with the attempted stop ended in the downtown area, near 24th Avenue and 11th Street. Police officers pursued a 1991 Buick Century driven by Johnson through residential neighborhoods and business districts stretching from Fourth Street on the citys south side to 53rd Street just north of Columbus as Johnson blew through stop signs before reaching speeds near 100 mph on Lost Creek Parkway. The defendant attempted to elude police along a chase route that stretched from Third to 48th avenues, with speeds reaching close to 70 mph on Third Avenue and 23rd Street, and managed to avoid at least one attempt to disable the vehicle with a spike strip, according to police radio traffic during the incident. After police successfully deployed another spike strip, Johnson stopped the Buick in the downtown area and both men attempted to flee on foot before they were taken into custody. Police subsequently searched the Johnson vehicle and seized meth and drug paraphernalia. Johnson said he knew his license was revoked, according to court documents. Johnson said he knew he had meth in his pocket because he purchased it on his birthday (Sept. 5). Johnson was previously convicted of DUI in 2005 and 2008 in Nance County and twice in 2008 and once in 2010 in Platte County. Johnsons drivers license was revoked for 15 years in 2010 after his fifth DUI conviction. Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. One of Editor & Publishers 10 That Do It Right 2021 Reporter Noelle McGee is a Danville-based reporter at The News-Gazette. Her email is nmcgee@news-gazette.com, and you can follow her on Twitter (@n_mcgee). A headache is one of the leading reasons for patients to visit their general practitioner. A headache diary is a valuable tool to track the progressions, changes, and efficacy of treatments for headaches, which is particularly useful for patients who suffer from frequent headache symptoms. Migraine Diary & Tracker | Journaling Tips Play When patients record the important factors about their headaches and share this in the consultation with their general practitioner, it gives a much clearer picture of the condition rather than reporting symptoms based on memory alone. This allows healthcare providers with the information needed to make the best treatment decisions and improve health outcomes for patients. Which information to record The information that should be recorded in the headache diary depends on the specific patient case and the aim of the diary. However, the following list is a general guide of useful information to include to provide a suitable outline of the condition: Characteristics of headaches Frequency Duration Intensity Warning signs Related symptoms Possible triggers Medications used and effect This information should be recorded on a regular basis to obtain an overall picture of the headache symptoms and treatment. This may continue for a set time frame of one month, for example, or on an ongoing basis to allow the patient and the health practitioner to gain a deeper understanding of the patients condition. It is important to be as specific as possible when recording details about the headaches in the diary. Patients should be instructed to describe the type of pain, such as burning, aching, sharp, dull, or throbbing, as well as rate the intensity of the pain on a scale from 1 to 10. How to record information The ideal way to record the information in a headache diary will differ for each patient. However, it is important that each individual finds a medium that they feel comfortable using. Some people prefer to use a paper form that they can fill out, while others prefer to write notes in a calendar or notebook. There are also electronic headache diaries and dedicated smartphone apps that can help to remind people to fill in the details of their headaches on their electronic devices. It is best to regularly record symptoms and lifestyle factors in the headache diary, usually at least once a day. This helps to ensure that a complete and broad picture of the headache patterns is recorded, which can help to identify problematic areas and suggest appropriate management techniques. Patient-practitioner consultation A headache diary is a very valuable tool that benefits both the patient and the health practitioner. While the patient themselves can begin to see patterns forming in the diary and possibly link certain triggers to headaches, the diary provides more comprehensive information to the healthcare professional than would be possible if the patient simply recounted the event by memory. Additionally, as the patient trials different treatment methods to reduce the frequency and intensity of the headaches, a headache diary can help to keep track of progressions and the efficacy of different treatments. Any triggers or particular lifestyle changes that have an impact on the nature of the headache quickly become apparent to both the patient and health practitioner who have access to the diary. References Further Reading CANTEL MEDICAL CORP. (NYSE: CMN), has entered into a definitive agreement with North American Science Associates, Inc. (NAMSA) to acquire NAMSA's Sterility Assurance Monitoring Products division for $13.5 million in cash consideration. For the year ending December 31, 2015 this business had adjusted sales of $5.7 million. The Sterility Assurance Monitoring Products division manufactures a broad suite of high-quality biological and chemical indicators which are used to accurately monitor the effectiveness of sterilization processes. These indicators are designed primarily for the industrial segment serving medical device, life science and other manufacturers, representing a new end-market for Cantel's Healthcare Disposables segment. This transaction is expected to be neutral to GAAP earnings per share and slightly accretive to Non-GAAP earnings per share in fiscal year ending July 31, 2016 and accretive to both GAAP and Non-GAAP earnings per share in fiscal year 2017 and beyond. NAMSA's sterility assurance products will be integrated into the Crosstex product portfolio and reported in the Healthcare Disposables segment. Gary Steinberg, President and CEO of Crosstex said, "This acquisition not only allows us to expand our sterility assurance product offering, but also broadens our presence into the important industrial market segment. We look forward to delivering to these customers a high-quality sterility assurance product offering they have come to expect from the NAMSA product line, and are excited to provide additional product solutions to these customers with Crosstex's complete infection prevention and control product portfolio." Subject to customary closing conditions, Cantel Medical expects the transaction to close in the third quarter of Fiscal Year 2016. The prevalence of past-year generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) for adults aged 50 and older with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is much higher compared to older adults without COPD (5.8% vs 1.7%), according to a new study published by University of Toronto researchers. In a paper published online this week in COPD: Journal of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, investigators reported that individuals with COPD had over three times the odds of generalized anxiety disorder compared to those without. (COPD is an umbrella term for several chronic lung diseases including emphysema and chronic bronchitis.) Sleep problems, chronic pain, and functional limitations, partially explained some of this excess risk for anxiety among those with COPD compared to those without. "Even after accounting for 18 possible risk factors for GAD, individuals with COPD still had 70% higher odds of GAD compared to those without COPD," said lead author, Professor Esme Fuller-Thomson, Sandra Rotman Endowed Chair at the University of Toronto's Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work and Institute for Life Course & Aging. The study was based upon a representative sample of 11,163 Canadians aged 50 and over drawn from the 2012 Canadian Community Health Survey. More than 700 of these older adults reported that they had been diagnosed by a health professional with COPD. COPD is now the third leading cause of death in the US. The study also investigated predictors of generalized anxiety disorders specifically among the older adults in the sample who had COPD. Key risk factors for GAD among those with COPD included lack of social support and exposure to parental domestic violence during the older adults' childhood. Older adults who do not have a confidant available for important decisions had more than seven times the odds of having anxiety in comparison to those with a confidant. Co-author and doctoral student Ashley Lacombe-Duncan commented, "Our findings suggest that screening for anxiety may be particularly important for patients who lack a strong social network. Individuals with COPD may be prone to social isolation, particularly if they also experience functional limitations that impair mobility." Older adults with COPD who were exposed in childhood to parental domestic violence on more than 10 occasions had five times the odds of generalized anxiety disorders in comparison to those with COPD who had not experienced this early adversity. Lacombe-Duncan notes that "the chronic chaotic and violent home environment may have predisposed individuals to anxiety. Further research is needed to understand the pathways through which witnessing chronic parental domestic violence during the respondent's childhood may increase the prevalence of anxiety disorders among older adults with COPD." Dr. Fuller-Thomson adds that this study "highlights how healthcare providers can play a significant role in identifying and providing promising interventions to reduce anxiety for individuals with COPD, in particular by screening for and addressing pain and functional limitations and targeting those most at risk." A new course designed to get radiographers who have taken a career break to return to practice has been launched at the University of Derby. The Return to Practice in Diagnostic Radiography course, which is due to have its first intake next month (March 2016), is the first course in the UK to be approved by the College of Radiographers. And in addition, Health Education East Midlands have pledged to support 10 students by paying for their fees as well as providing a 500 bursary. Sue Errett, Programme Leader for the new course and Lecturer in Diagnostic Imaging at the University of Derby, said: This course has been developed as the Society and College of Radiographers identified that a number of radiographers nationwide are keen to return to the profession after a career break. Health Education East Midlands also asked the University of Derby to develop this course as a mechanism to increase the radiographic workforce in local NHS Trusts, which are often short staffed and relying on agency staff. The University of Derby is the first university in the country to get a diagnostic radiography specific return to practice course approved. Some universities do have generic return to practice courses which cover multiple health care professions but none which are specific to diagnostic radiography. Last year the Government listed Medical Radiographers on their 2015 Shortage Occupation List. The six-month course at Derby offers a mixture of formal study in the academic setting, alongside a supervised clinical placement, to provide a structured way for returnees to meet the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) return to practice requirements. It begins with theoretical classroom contact and simulation activities in the Clinical Skills Suite, followed by the opportunity to apply underpinning theory into current clinical practice in a supervised clinical placement. Sue added: At Derby we recognise that radiographers returning to practice will have different learning requirements. With this in mind we have tailored the course to meet the requirements of individual returnees by using a gaps analysis exercise. This will take into consideration their previous experience, length of career break and their scope of practice/speciality." We have built flexibility into the course to ensure that returnees can secure part time hours during the practice element of the course if required. The course provides 20 credits at Level 6 and is available to diagnostic radiographers from both plain film and other imaging modalities who have previously been registered with the HCPC but have not practised their profession for more than two years. It is also available to individuals who qualified as a diagnostic radiographer but then did not practice or register with the HCPC post qualification. Emma Hyde, Head of Diagnostic Imaging at the University of Derby, added: This course is an excellent way to prepare diagnostic radiographers who have been out of clinical practice, and let their HCPC registration lapse, to return to a clinical role. With the current UK shortage of qualified radiographers, this is an ideal time to for anyone thinking of returning to the profession to do so. To find out more about studying the Return to Practice for Diagnostic Radiography course, and to apply, visit: www.derby.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/return-to-practice-radiography 'We are living in the age of cities. It is an urgent time, and an uncertain one. Never before have human beings built so much with such haste. Yet we understand so little about how our urban world grows - and sometimes declines.' begins a thought-provoking new report by Anthony Townsend of New York University, in which he describes a new and exciting focus for academic research - the science of cities.The rate of urbanisation in recent decades has, indeed, been extraordinary. In 1950, New York was the only metropolitan region with more than 10 million people, which is the usual definition for a megacity; today there are 35 megacities, of which the largest, Tokyo, has around 38 million people. And this growth in the world's urban population seems set to continue, from 3.9 billion in 2015 to over 5 billion in 2030. Statistics such as these underline that, on an ecological timescale, large cities are a new phenomenon, and one about which we know far too little.One thing we do know, however: cities as presently constructed are unsustainable. They account, for example, for over 70 % of all energy consumed on the planet, are major sources of air and water pollution, and are sinks for huge quantities of materials. Yet, despite these imbalances, there are also reasons to be optimistic about our urban future. With their high population densities, cities offer great opportunities for using energy and materials more efficiently, for example through industrial symbioses or by using mass rapid transport systems instead of private cars.These circumstances - the rapid growth of cities and the huge environmental challenges they pose - account for the growing interest shown by universities in urban science. Townsend reports that 'since 2005, more than a dozen new labs, departments and schools have been launched with a common purpose - to pursue deeply quantitative and computational approaches to understanding the city'. These include the Santa Fe Institute's Cities, Scaling and Sustainability project, New York University's Center for Urban Science and Progress, and MIT's SENSEable City Laboratory. By far the largest of these new institutions, however, is ETH Zurich's Future Cities Laboratory FCL in Singapore, which, together with its sister programme Future Resilient Systems FRS, will soon employ around 200 scientists working on different aspects of urban science.The new urban science aims to make cities more sustainable, resilient and liveable. Townsend identifies three general characteristics, all of which apply to the research conducted at the Future Cities Laboratory FCL. Firstly, urban science involves a confrontation between two traditionally separate modes of inquiry: a descriptive approach based upon field work and surveys aimed at understanding the individuality of cities; and a deductive scientific approach aimed at uncovering the common processes that influence the structure and dynamics of all cities.Secondly, the new urban science is multidisciplinary, and draws upon theoretical ideas from across the contributing disciplines. At FCL, teams of architects, engineers, ecologists, social scientists and computer scientists focus on the 'metabolism' of cities, studying them as ecosystems characterised by stocks and flows of resources, including energy, water, capital and information. Future Resilient Systems FRS, made up of an equally diverse team, relies heavily upon complexity theory, studying urban infrastructure systems as complex socio-technical systems composed not only of engineered structures, but also the people who make up the subsystems of users and operators.Thirdly, the new urban science depends heavily upon digital technologies, which provide not only previously inconceivable analytical power but also access to huge amounts of data. Indeed, many of the questions that urban science attempts to answer have only become tractable thanks to the increasing availability of 'big data' from such things as smart phones, wifi-connected sensors and satellites. So it comes as no surprise that at the heart of FCL is a sophisticated digital laboratory known as 'Value Lab Asia'. This is equipped with state-of-the-art tools for modelling multi-dimensional data and simulating urban phenomenon, such as the daily travel behaviour of millions of city dwellers.In conclusion, 'cities stand as both the main cause of, and the best solution to, some of humanity's most pressing problems - from climate change to migration to resource scarcity'. With the world in a phase of unprecedented'urbanisation, the new urban science is emerging now as a coherent body of theory and knowledge that can contribute to a more sustainable urban world. And in doing so, it is also changing the ways that universities do their work. (Peter Edwards/ETH-Zukunftsblog) A former parent volunteer at Paul Munro Elementary School has been arrested and charged with six counts of embezzlement. Jennifer Marie Musick, 40, turned herself in to the Lynchburg Police Department on Thursday. The charges relate to the theft of more than $31,000 from the Paul Munro Elementary Schools Parent Teacher Association. She served as treasurer of the PTA during the 2014-15 school year. She no longer is PTA treasurer nor is she a member of the PTA at Paul Munro, according to another PTA board member. According to the Blue Ridge Regional Jail online records, Musick is accused of embezzling from the PTA fund in August 2012, twice in 2013 and once more in 2014. PTA and PTO funds are not controlled or maintained by any Lynchburg City Schools personnel. These funds are managed solely by volunteers of the schools. Additionally, LCS does not have authority over PTA or PTO leadership, Lynchburg City Schools spokeswoman Cindy Babb said in a news release Thursday. Current Paul Munro Elementary School PTA President Christie Hooper said the PTA became aware of possible financial issues in the fall of 2015, when Virginia PTA contacted the school about unpaid membership dues. According to Hooper, Virginia PTA said it had not received dues for the 2013-14 and 2014-15 school years. Thats what alarmed us, Hooper said. It led members to look more closely at the PTA's two bank accounts. One account funds some classroom expenses for teachers and things like student field trips, plays and reading incentives. A second account, created to maintain funds for a new playground for the schools 50th anniversary holds special project funds. Hooper said the PTA obtained access to the accounts in the fall and someone had basically dried our bank accounts clean. Hooper said although the money has not been recovered, the financial loses will not impact teachers or students. The PTA has held several successful fundraisers this year. Paul Munro has an active PTA with strong parental involvement. Paul Munro and LCS value these important partnerships with parents and the community, and we will continue to encourage parental involvement in our schools; however, this recent unfortunate incident of misconduct serves as a reminder that all community organizations must engage in best practices and remain accountable to one another so that funds are used appropriately. Hooper said the experience has made the new PTA stronger than ever, and inspired many to rally behind the school. It has also led the PTA to change its policies and procedures putting in place numerous precautions. The PTA has rewritten its bylaws, appointed both a treasurer and treasurer-elect who jointly are responsible for finances, requires no less than three signatures on every check, implemented a nepotism policy and requires that all cash handled at fundraisers be counted by all members. Now we have more than just one pair of eyes doing it, Hooper said. Anyone with information is asked to contact Det. Chad Davis (434) 455-6166 or Crime Stoppers at 1-888-798-5900. The Free Clinic of Central Virginia has received a $5,000 grant from the Delta Dental of Virginia Foundation. The funds will be used to pay for dental supplies and financially support the Vir-ginia Commonwealth University dental students who volunteer their time to work in the clinic. For our dental program, we rely really heavily on volunteers and students from Virginia Commonwealth University and from Howard University so the Delta Dental funds will help us provide services to about 1,600 patients, Free Clinic of Central Virginia Executive Director Christina Delzingaro said. The clinic which serves the underinsured and uninsured provides about 3,000 dental visits per year. Delzingaro said the money will pay for amalgams for fillings and other supplies and will help cover some of the costs incurred by dental health students while they are here in town. We take this 5,000 and we leverage it, Delzingaro said. She estimates the money will support 4,118 hours of dental care by dental students Weve had a long-standing relationship with Delta Dental and are just really thrilled that they continue to support our work, she said. In December, the foundation awarded a total of $475,000 to 18 non-profit organizations that work to positively improve the oral health of Virginians through education and access to care. Since 2012, the foundation has given out more than $3.6 million to 44 non-profits. LINCOLN The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission hasn't raised the cap on fees in years for a number of its licenses, permits and stamps. Omaha Sen. John McCollister told the Natural Resources Committee Wednesday his bill (LB745) would allow the commission to adjust fees in 48 categories of user fees, which supply 87 percent of commission income. Most of those caps for hunting and fishing have been in place since 2003. And many fees haven't been raised since 2008-2010, he said. Game and Parks Commission Director Jim Douglas said revenue hasn't kept pace with maintaining a three-month operating balance in fish and wildlife and all the activities that serve Nebraskans. "The commission isn't looking at increasing the overall authority for us to spend dollars by any great amount. We need some additional dollars even to spend the current authority that we have on the fish and game side," Douglas said. Game and Parks is looking to do a major pheasant initiative in the state. And it's being asked each year to partner with natural resources districts on new reservoir systems, such as Lake Wanahoo, north of Wahoo, Dakota Countys Pigeon/Jones Creek Watershed and Prairie Queen Recreation Area near La Vista. On the parks side, he said, the commission needs money for operations, like maintaining 8,000 picnic tables, 6,000 grills and 350 miles of gravel roads inside the parks. Some of 545 boat ramps need repair. Two conservation officer positions are going unfilled, and Nebraska already has the lowest number of officers among neighboring states, he said. Douglas said in the past few years, the commission identified $44 million in deferred maintenance needs in the park system, and the Legislature appropriated $17.5 million toward that. Additional funding bills were passed to bring the total to $30 million -- $14 million short of the need. "People want more services, and parks are filled up constantly," he told the committee. The park system has a $750 million economic impact. Add hunting, fishing and wildlife viewing, the impact rises to $2.4 billion, said Commissioner Rex Fisher. Of the top 10 tourist attractions in the state, more than half are state parks and recreation areas, with 23 million visits annually. Fisher said it's clear the Legislature wants the commission to maintain its reliance on a user pay system. "If the Legislature raises the caps, it will not automatically raise permit fees. It will allow the commission to do so," he said. "I can tell you our board will not take raising fees lightly." Any proposal to raise fees would be done in a public meeting, with a hearing for public testimony prior to any action, he said. Conservation and wildlife groups testified in favor of the bill. No one opposed the bill. Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers testified in a neutral position, giving a cordial warning to the committee that the bill amended sections of state law that surround the section regulating the ability of the commission to set hunting seasons for mountain lions. It may be, he said, that the committee would once again kill the bill he has reintroduced that would take away the ability of the commission to set hunting seasons for mountain lions. "I don't believe in attacking from ambush. There's a difference between ambush and surprise. But I don't even want anybody to be surprised," Chambers said. He pointed out he was "very serious" about wanting to protect mountain lions. "I just want to let the committee members know that when you send Sen. McCollister's bill out, you're giving me a vehicle for what I intend to do, but that won't be my only vehicle," he said. LINCOLN Phones buzzing in backpacks or pockets are becoming an everyday part of university life, even in the midst of a lecture hall or small seminar class. After all, those texts, Facebook messages and Snapchats arent going to respond to themselves. Digital distractions in classes continue to rise, University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Journalism and Mass Communications Associate Professor Barney McCoy said. When he first studied the issue in 2013, McCoy found 30 percent of college students admitted to checking their phones 10 times in class per day. In a study published in January, McCoy said that frequency has grown. Now one-third of students said in a survey they will spend time on their phones or other digital devices for non-class purposes as many as 11 times a day. To me, thats not a surprise, McCoy said. Its a trend weve been seeing. The latest study, including 675 students in 26 states, also contains an alarming new data point. Some students are paying more attention to what's on the small screen in front of them for 20 percent of class time. For McCoy, 60, the technological advances that have brought Wi-Fi to college campuses and allowed classes to connect with teachers and students around the world have also been responsible for the proliferation of digital devices drawing students attention away from the subject at hand. The ability to communicate beyond the walls of the classroom is greater than its ever been, McCoy said. But thats a double-edge sword. We can converse with people around the world, but it is also a distraction. Students see it both ways. Leye Yu, a third-year international student from southeast China, said he saves his social media use and texts until after class, but will often have the phone out for academic purposes. For a lot of international students, the phone is also a dictionary, Yu said. I use it to learn words I dont know, but I dont check texts or emails during class. Freshman Casey Smith of Howells said she will use her phone to take notes, send an email to a professor or set reminders on her calendar, but she admitted the urge to reply to a text or check other apps can sometimes be overwhelming. Sometimes its boredom, sometimes your mind is on other things and youre wondering if someone has replied yet, Smith said. A generation of college students who have grown up with an instant connection to the world in their pockets feel it isnt a big deal. Three out of 10 students surveyed in McCoys study say they are still able to pay attention to the instructor even when their phone is open in front of them, while one-fourth of respondents said it was their choice to check their device whenever it suited them. Thirteen percent said using a digital device for non-class reasons outweighed any distraction it may cause, while 11 percent said they just cant help themselves. Finding a middle ground in the Age of Digital Distraction is a problem with a three-fold solution for universities, McCoy said. First, students need to be more aware of the costs associated with being distracted from the instruction going on in the front of the classroom. That 20 percent of class time they are spending on their phone? That's tuition money out the window, McCoy said. But should professors ask students to turn their phones in at the beginning of class, or ban them altogether? McCoy said probably not. Smith said more of her professors prohibit students from using their phones in class than not, which does work. If its a teacher whos never said anything about checking your phones, I would do it more often than one who says dont check your phones, Smith said. "I think other students feel the same way." McCoy said professors should engage in a dialogue with students about when it would be appropriate to scroll through Instagram posts in class to avoid a building resentment. I think its going to be very difficult to enforce bans and not have some student resentment develop or even students say they arent going to take that class anymore, he said. Students want to be treated as adults -- can we have a formal dialogue about this and talk about how using these devices in class is a potential distraction? Instructors should also be on the hook for engaging students so that they dont feel the need to pull out the iPhone to check their Twitter timeline, McCoy said. They could maybe find ways to incorporate the devices into their lectures or create more interactive lessons that would bridge the boredom gap. McCoy said universities need to provide opportunities for professors and others to learn more about how to use technology more effectively in the classroom. Clearly there are different perceptions about devices across age groups, he said. Its important for teachers of any age to stay current with technology, and universities and colleges need to support that. Students like Smith will keep being early adopters of technology, even if it diverts their full attention from whats happening at the front of a classroom. Were used to doing multiple things at one time, she said. "Now, you can text from your laptop which has come in handy. Believe It or Not, Some World Leaders Lasted Just Minutes Colfax County Commissioners got a clearer picture recently of the checks imposed on officials in the states open meetings act if the subject of county business comes up outside of public view. Prior to a January meeting of the board, Commissioner Gil Wigington sent email messages to Commissioners Jerry Heard and Mike Dvorak giving his opinion that commissioners should freeze their wages for the coming year. Wigington message did not seek responses and none were given by Heard or Dvorak. The board of commissioners should limit discussion of an issue to what is actively done before the public, said Pam Bourne, a private consulting attorney retained by the county, during a speaker phone conversation with board members. Sending out an email to each other and exchanging thoughts would be subject to an open meetings act (violation), Bourne told the board. Commissioners, she said, should limit their discussion to what is actively done before the public. Wigington told the legal adviser there was never any back and forth communication in an email exchange. I just gave my reason for a wage freeze, he said. Wigington, Heard and Dvorak discussed the 2016 wage package for county elected officials and employees the next day at a regular public meeting. All three commissioners voted to freeze their wages this year at that meeting. As long as the email didnt solicit responses, its not going to circumvent the act, Bourne said, adding that the board was wise to take the issue seriously, refrain from discussion and wait to talk about a possible freeze at the next days public meeting. Discussion outside of a public meeting should be very limited, the consulting attorney said. At the January meeting, the board voted unanimously to increase the salaries of the county sheriff, clerk, assessor, treasurer, district court clerk, county surveyor and county attorney. The board also gave the countys appointed offices a pay bump for this year. The board gave the countys hourly employees an average 1.75 percent pay increase with a ceiling of 30 cents an hour. Colfax has about 50 hourly employees, with employment of about 65 when elected officials and deputies of elected officials are included in the total. In other business, the board voted to pay more than $13,000 in medical and security bills run up in recent weeks by a 27-year-old jail inmate currently being housed at the Nebraska Diagnostic and Evaluation Center in Lincoln. The Schuyler man, who is not being named because of health privacy laws, rang up a $7,423 bill at Bryan Medical and $5,825 bill for private security protection while awaiting an open bed at the Lincoln evaluation center. The county is now paying a per day rate to the diagnostic center. County officials initially thought the inmate tested positive for a communicable disease after finding a blood smear on the wall of his cell, but learned later after hospital testing that the test results were negative. A communicable disease is any disease transmitted from one person or animal to another; also called a contagious disease. Sometimes quarantine is required to prevent the spread of disease. A local district judge ordered the Schuyler man to undergo a psychiatric evaluation to determine his competency to go to trial. He has been charged with felony terroristic threats in connection with a domestic dispute. (Newser) It may sound crazy, but dead deer are posing a serious safety risk at one Alaskan airport, KCAW reports. Heather Bauscher usually spends her day shooting fireworks at ducks and eagles to scare them away from the runway in Sitka. But ever since hunting season started in November, deer carcasses have been a more pressing concern. Thanks to a combination of hunters not wanting deer parts smelling up their garbage and the airport's location on the Pacific Ocean, carcasses are washing up directly adjacent to the runway. And that draws birds. "Its like Las Vegas when the buffet is called, except for birds," as KCAW puts it. With 80 or so species of birds living near the airport, it's important to be vigilant about keeping the runway carcass-free. If a bird strikes a plane, chances are it could severely damage the turbine to the point of completely destroying that engine, Bauscher tells KCAW. The FAA reported 60,000 occasions of birds hitting planes in the US between 2000 and 2009. And an employee of the Alaska Department of Fish and Game is urging local hunters not to dump their carcasses in the water. Theres a lot of steps between somebody pitching some animal remains overboard or leaving them on the beach and planes crashing, Bauscher says. But it can happen. (Dozens of whales are mysteriously dying in Alaska.) (Newser) When Kerrie Evans went to her first prenatal visit in October 2009, she says she told her doctor she was concerned about cystic fibrosis, but she was never offered screening to see if she was a carrier for the disease, she had trouble contacting genetic counselors, and her doctor never asked if she got genetic counseling. Her daughter, now almost 6, ended up being born with cystic fibrosis, and Evans has filed a so-called "wrongful birth" lawsuit against her healthcare practitioners, claiming she's due almost $14.5 million in damages since the care team didn't diagnose the girl's condition and, thus, Evans didn't have a chance to terminate the pregnancy, the AP reports. Evans filed the lawsuit in 2011, but a Montana jury just heard opening arguments in the case Wednesday. As the Bozeman Daily Chronicle reported earlier this week, Evans' lawyer says the little girl is the "love of [Evans'] life," and the mom is suing to "make her child's life as happy as possible." Of the damages Evans seeks, $10 million is for the girl's medical and psychological care; she's said to have a "severe form" of the inherited disease, in which mucus-producing cells produce a thick, sticky fluid that hurts the lungs and digestive system. Nowadays, treatment has improved to the point that life expectancy for patients is nearing 40: "It's far from the death sentence or life not worth living that some would have you believe," an attorney for one of the healthcare practitioners told the jury. The lawyers for the care team say Evans only asked about Down syndrome, and that a doctor did talk to her about cystic fibrosis, but she turned down a blood test that would have told her if she was a carrier. "Dr. Peters did not give (the girl) cystic fibrosis," another attorney told the jury. "She was either going to be born with cystic fibrosis or (she) was not going to be born." (Here's why another couple also sued for wrongful birth.) (Newser) The story of a retired Ohio police officer trying to buy the K-9 partner he loved like family touched people around the country, but it may not have a happy ending after all. Matt Hickey offered the city of Marietta $3,500 to buy his former partner Ajax, the AP reports. But because the dog was still city property and fit for duty, Hickey was informed he'd have to bid on Ajax at auction. To that end, supporters raised more than $70,000. Then on Tuesday, the city announced a deal wherein Hickey could keep Ajax while serving as a volunteer officer with the auxiliary police. Now Hickey has refused that deal, citing the same health concerns that forced him to retire in the first place. He tells WCMH it wouldn't be smart for him to serve as an officer in any capacity. He's now hoping to find another way to take ownership of Ajax. (Read more police dog stories.) (Newser) The Zika virus is now officially a public health emergency in Florida, where at least nine cases have been detected in four counties. Gov. Rick Scott signed the emergency order on Wednesday to cover Miami-Dade, Lee, Hillsborough, and Santa Rosa counties, WESH reports. State health officials say all nine cases involve Florida residents who were bitten by mosquitoes in Caribbean or Latin American countries before returning to the state, reports the Miami Herald. Officials say Haiti and Venezuela are involved in three cases each, two cases were contracted in Colombia, and one originated in El Salvador. On Monday, the World Health Organization called the spread of Zika in the Americas an international emergency. The virus has been linked to the birth of babies with abnormally small heads in Brazil, but health officials from the US and the United Nations say they aren't getting enough information from Brazil to examine the link or track the outbreak, the AP reports. Brazilian law bans the sharing of genetic material like blood samples, and researchers in other countries say they are having to use private samples. "It's almost impossible to get samples from the country," says an expert at Germany's Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine. "It's not going via official government channels. Our source is simply the rich people who want a diagnosis." (Health officials in Texas say they're dealing with a sexually transmitted Zika case.) (Newser) For Julian Assange, there's good news and bad news. The good is that a UN panel has ruled in his favor and found that Britain is essentially keeping him in arbitrary detention, reports the BBC. The bad is that London doesn't care and vows to arrest him if he tries to leave the Ecuadorean embassy, reports Reuters. The developments come after Assange appealed to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention to look into his case. The official ruling is to be made public on Friday, but both the BBC and the Guardian say the panel has sided with Assange. The WikiLeaks founder has been holed up in the embassy for more than three years, hoping to avoid being extradited to Sweden to face sex-crimes charges. In an earlier tweet, Assange said he would turn himself in to police if the panel ruled against him, reports the AP. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," he wrote. That appears unlikely: A spokesman for Prime Minister David Cameron said Thursday that the ruling isn't legally binding and that Assangewho also fears extradition to the US over the leaking of military secretswould be immediately arrested if he tries to leave. WikiLeaks, meanwhile, says it is awaiting confirmation of the news reports about the ruling. (Read more Julian Assange stories.) Improving access to college credits for high school students and developing a bilingual education program are a couple of the priorities for Schuyler Community Schools. Over the last three years, the district has involved parents, community members and staff in helping to create a list priorities they feel should be addressed to improve the school system. Each year, the top items on the list are discussed to eventually implement. The latest round of priorities for 2016 were highlighted Monday evening by a group of about 35 people. The group gathered at the high school and created a list of pros and cons or barriers for the top-ranked priorities on the list. The priorities were ranked based on input from more than 250 parents and community members, as well as 200 district staff members. There was no formal action taken during the public meeting, but the community planning session does play a pivotal role in helping provide direction for the school district. Whatever we do here tonight doesnt put any increased burden on this budget. In other words, youre going to reprioritize how to spend $20 million, said Superintendent Dan Hoesing. Overall, there were 29 items on the 2016 list. Some of those have been carried over from past years. Only the top 15 were hashed over by those at the meeting. Hoesing said none of the priorities have been particularly surprising. They cover areas such as academics, extracurricular activities, technology, transportation, buildings and grounds, support service programs, school governance and public relations and school climate and learning environments. Five of the top 15 priorities fall under the umbrella of academics and include improving student access to college/dual credit classes, improving special programs like ELL and SPED, helping students who are in the middle achieve academically and developing a K-8 bilingual education program. The bilingual program was a high priority for parents, who ranked it as the second most important behind college/dual credit classes. But such a program was ranked low among staff at 22. Other high priorities are expanding a student behavior program, increasing the number of guidance counselors at the elementary and middle schools and addressing facility needs at the high school. Hoesing said he will take the input from the community meeting and summarize the positives and negatives to present to subcommittees that will then come up with an implementation plan the board of education could adopt in the future. (Newser) In an effort to keep young military enlistees from leaving to start a family, the Pentagon is going to start offering to freeze their eggs and sperm, the New York Times reports. According to the Military Times, nearly 72% of enlistees are 30 or youngerprime years for starting a family. Defense Secretary Ash Carter says freezing soldiers' eggs and spermwhich will start as a two-year pilot programwill "provide greater flexibility for our troops who want to start a family." He says it will also give soldiers facing injury "additional peace of mind." As the New York Times notes: "Hundreds of veterans suffered injuries to their reproductive organs in Iraq and Afghanistan." Having a store of frozen sperm or eggs on hand means a genital injury wouldn't keep soldiers from having a baby. But the program brings up a host of issuesboth moral and financial. The military will have to deal with numerous ethical questions surrounding the preservation of reproductive materials, such as whether the wife of a soldier who dies in battle can then use his frozen sperm. And the procedure to freeze eggs, a relatively new science, can cost up to $10,000. The Pentagon is still working out the details of the pilot program and estimates a cost of $150 million over five years. The program is part of the military's "Force of the Future" initiative, which includes increased parental leave and child care. A major goal of the initiative is to increase retention among female enlistees. After 10 years of service, the number of women staying in the military is 30% lower than their male counterparts. (Read more US military stories.) (Newser) A civil rights activist who has gained prominence in the Black Lives Matter movement is now throwing his hat in the ring for the mayorship of Baltimore. DeRay Mckesson, 30, the 13th and last candidate in the Democratic primary, filed right before the deadline in what the Baltimore Sun labels "a surprise move." The Baltimore nativewhom Hillary Clinton has called a "social media emperor"has been a public school administrator in the city, as well as in Minnesota, and has lobbied to end police killings and boost community policing. In a Medium post Wednesday night, Mckesson painted himself as "a non-traditional candidate," someone who's not a political insider or linked to a "well-connected family." "I am an activist, organizer, former teacher, and district administrator that intimately understands how interwoven our challenges and our solutions are," he wrote. "I am a son of Baltimore." The Democratic primary is slated for April 26, and the Sun points out the winner has historically taken the general election, too. Former mayor Sheila Dixon is currently the front-runner. (Read more mayor stories.) (Newser) While the Panthers and Broncos face off at the Super Bowl this Sunday, young people in China heading home for the Lunar New Year have their own pressure to face: the badgering of well-meaning family members who want them to get married. Marriage and producing kids hold a lot of weight in the Chinese culture: Some singles even "rent" fake mates to go home with them for the holidays to appease probing relatives, the New York Times reports. But the term "bihun" ("must marry!") has now become somewhat of a parody of itself, and one group of friends decided to take a rather public stand against wedded life by plastering a nearly $6,000 ad in a busy Beijing subway station, where it will stay up for a month. The ad looks to be the efforts of the Anti-Forced Marriage Alliance (based on the graphics and info found on the Women of China website), which looks to have crowdfunded some of the money for the ad. The poster, which shows a smiling cartoon woman and advertises a singles hotline at the bottom, reads: "Dear Daddy, Mommy, don't worry. The world is so big. There are so many different ways for people to live. Singletons can also be very happy." The groupmade up of students, artists, and civil workersoriginally had a stronger message and graphic: a slightly angrier-looking cartoon woman making an "X" to symbolize "no," with "bihun" crossed out on her T-shirt and text that read "Must marry, Back off! Scram! I'm a member of the non-marrying tribe." But the ad agency that made the poster for the friends, together with the city's industry and commerce bureau, wouldn't approve the original, so the group softened it. "[We] just thought, the pressure is too much," a woman who'd only go by "Coby" told the Times. "It's at its worst at this time. So we thought we'd put up an ad in the subway where a lot of people would see it." (Maybe some found true love in this crowded Guangzhou station?) (Newser) The body of a missing Italian student was found with signs of torture, including multiple stab wounds and cigarette burns, by the side of a highway on the outskirts of the Egyptian capital, an investigating prosecutor told the AP on Thursday. Giulio Regeni, a 28-year-old grad student, went missing in Cairo on Jan. 25, the fifth anniversary of the uprising that toppled longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak. Regeni's body was found Wednesday along the Cairo-Alexandria Road in western Cairo and was positively identified by his roommate, said prosecutor Ahmed Nagi. Nagi said the cause of death was still being investigated but noted "all of his body, including his face" had bruises, cuts from stabbings, and burns from cigarettes; he said it appeared to have been a "slow death." A slightly different story emerges from Alaa Azmi, a head criminal investigator in Cairo's twin province of Giza, who says the body of Regenisaid to be a University of Cambridge studentwas found on Wednesday morning with "bruises and cuts." An initial investigation showed it was a road accident, he notes, adding the preliminary forensic report hadn't mentioned any burns. "We have to wait for the full report by forensic experts. But what we know is that it is an accident," he says. An employee at Cairo's central morgue confirmed Regeni's body was brought there. Italy's Foreign Ministry has requested that the body be returned to Italy as soon as possible. (Read more Egypt stories.) (Newser) Questions are still flying about the Iowa Democratic caucuses, in which Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton were separated by just two-tenths of 1%. Stories are going around of inconsistent counts, a lack of voter registration forms, and crowded rooms full of confused voters and untrained volunteers, write the editors of the Des Moines Register in an editorial. "What happened Monday night at the Democratic caucuses was a debacle, period," they write, and the state's Democratic Party must submit to an audit to "assure the accuracy of the caucus results, beyond a shadow of a doubt." The party has so far "dug in [its] heels" and "refus[ed] to undergo scrutiny," but the truth is, the results were simply too close and too many doubts have been raised about other aspects of the caucuses. To refuse to consider those doubts just makes the doubtersin this case, Sanders supporterseven more sure of their suspicions. It's time for an audit and the release of the raw vote totals, all coin flips, and other information. "And then call for a blue ribbon commission to study how to improve the caucuses, as the Republican Party of Iowa did after its own fiasco in 2012. Mondays mess showed that its time for the Democrats to change, too." Click for the full editorial. (Read more Iowa stories.) (Newser) A Missouri couple is allegedly robbing its way across the American South with the FBI and US Marshals hot on its heels, AL.com reports. "I guess they see themselves as some kind of modern-day Bonnie and Clyde,'' one Missouri lawman says. The crime spree may have started as early as Jan. 22, when Blake Fitzgerald and Brittany Harper are suspected of stealing guns from a Missouri doctor's home. Four days later, they allegedly stole a car, using it to lead a police chase two days after that. According to ABC News, the couple is suspected of robbing a hotel and taking the clerk hostage on Sunday. Later that day, they allegedly tried to carjack the manager of a McDonald's before stealing another car and kidnapping its owner, ultimately dropping her off at a hospital. Those three crimes took place across a 60-mile stretch of Alabama, Fox News reports. The spree continued Monday with the couple allegedly robbing a Georgia gas station and briefly kidnapping its cashier. Most recently, they're suspected of robbing a Florida Piggly Wiggly on Wednesday before fleeing back across the state line. It appears Fitzgerald, a convicted felon with three children, has been teasing police on Facebook. I wasnt planning on going for a run today, but those cops came out of nowhere, ABC quotes his Facebook page. "We have no idea why they're running or where they're running from or running to," one Tuscaloosa police officer tells Fox. An officer dozens of miles away had a similar question: "We want to know what the motivation is. I mean, what's the whole point in all of this?" Fitzgerald and Harper, both in their 30s, are considered armed and dangerous. (Read more armed robbery stories.) (Newser) Virginia authorities have released disturbing details of the kidnapping and killing of 13-year-old Nicole Lovell, the AP reports. Suspects David Eisenhauer and Natalie Keepers planned the crime, they said Thursday, deciding together that Eisenhauer would cut Lovell's throat at a remote location they pre-selected, and going to separate Walmart stores to buy a shovel and cleaning supplies. According to the commonwealth prosecutor, Keepers, 19, told FBI investigators that she "was excited to be part of something secretive and special," and admitted to going with Eisenhauer, 18, to buy the shovel before the alleged murder and the cleaning supplies after, while Lovell's body was in the trunk of Eisenhauer's Lexus. The prosecutor says Keepers told police where Lovell's body was and where to find the cleaning supplies and a Minions blanket of Lovell's in Keepers' dorm room, ABC News reports. Authorities say the duo planned for Eisenhauer to "lure" Lovell away from home "on the guise of a date," according to the Roanoke Times. But Keepers insists she wasn't present at the actual murder, and says she's long struggled with her mental health and self-mutilation. The relationship between her and Eisenhauer isn't entirely clear; they went to high schools five miles apart in Columbia, Maryland, and then both attended Virginia Tech. Keepers' dad says they just learned about Eisenhauer in October, and that he "dropped everything" last year to rush Keepers to the hospital when she needed an emergency appendectomy. As for Lovell, she's said to have used social media to escape the bullying she experienced in seventh grade, including Kik Messenger, an app on which she apparently met Eisenhauer. She told 8-year-old friends she was going to sneak out to meet "David," her 18-year-old "boyfriend." Eisenhauer initially denied all involvement, but ultimately admitted he watched Lovell climb out her window, gave her a side hug, and brought her to Keepers. (Read more Virginia stories.) Bill Cosby's accuser, model Chloe Goins withdrew her civil lawsuit following the prosecutors' refusal to file charges against the comedian. The model claimed that the former "Cosby Show" star sexually assaulted her after her drink got drugged at a party at the Playboy Mansion back in 2008. The accuser also described Cosby as a "serial rapist" and demanded damages in excess of $75, 000 in her lawsuit. Goins filed the complaint last October and explicitly described her ordeal at Cosby's hands in an LA party at Hugh Hefner's Playboy home. After getting knocked out by the drink Cosby offered her, she was surprised to wake up naked with Cosby. "Ms. Goins awoke to find that her breasts were wet and sticky, as if someone had been licking them, and Bill Cosby was biting one of her toes as he crouched at the end of the bed," the lawsuit stated as quoted by Yahoo News. According to a report by The Vulture, prosecutors found the case difficult to prove due to a strong evidence showing that the accused was not in California when the alleged indecent assault took place. Goins' case is just one of the several complaints lodged by dozens of other women against Cosby. In a pre-trial for multipleBill Cosby's accuser, model Chloe Goins withdrew her civil lawsuit following the prosecutors' refusal to file charges against the comedian. The model claimed that the former "Cosby Show" star sexually assaulted her after her drink got drugged at a party at the Playboy Mansion back in 2008. The accuser also described Cosby as a "serial rapist" and demanded damages in excess of $75, 000 in her lawsuit. Goins filed the complaint last October and explicitly described her ordeal at Cosby's hands in an LA party at Hugh Hefner's Playboy home. After getting knocked out by the drink Cosby offered her, she was surprised to wake up naked with Cosby. "Ms. Goins awoke to find that her breasts were wet and sticky, as if someone had been licking them, and Bill Cosby was biting one of her toes as he crouched at the end of the bed," the lawsuit stated as quoted by Yahoo News. According to a report by The Vulture, prosecutors found the case difficult to prove due to a strong evidence showing that the accused was not in California when the alleged indecent assault took place. Goins' case is just one of the several complaints lodged by dozens of other women against Cosby. In a pre-trial for multiple counts of sexual assault charges filed against Cosby, the defense panel's key witness, former District Attorney Bruce Castor, testified about his decision not to press charges in relation with Andrea Constand's rape claims back in 2005. "The behavior detailed within (police interviews) was inconsistent with a person who had been sexually assaulted," Castor testified. "Her [Andrea Constand] actions, on her own, including going to a lawyer before going to police, had created a credibility issue for her that could never be improved upon," said Castor as quoted in a report by USA Today. counts of sexual assault charges filed against Cosby, the defense panel's key witness, former District Attorney Bruce Castor, testified about his decision not to press charges in relation with Andrea Constand's rape claims back in 2005. "The behavior detailed within (police interviews) was inconsistent with a person who had been sexually assaulted," Castor testified. "Her [Andrea Constand] actions, on her own, including going to a lawyer before going to police, had created a credibility issue for her that could never be improved upon," said Castor as quoted in a report by USA Today. Japan's defense ministry vowed to take a strong military response against North Korea's ballistic missile test veiled as a satellite launch which the reclusive state plans to proceed with in a couple of days. In a strong-worded statement, the defense establishment authorized Japan's Self Defense Forces (SDF) to destroy incoming missiles, rockets, or other forms of projectiles that threaten the security of its citizens. "We have defenses ready to deal with all threats, but in view of the announcement I have put the Self Defense Force's Aegis destroyers and our PAC-3 units on alert and issued an order to shoot down any ballistic missile threat," remarked Japan's defense minister Gen Nakatani as quoted by Reuters. Likewise, South Korea is clearly infuriated with the North's recent provocation describing the reckless act as "direct challenge to the international community". "We warn that if North Korea proceeds with a long-range rocket launch, the international society will ensure that the North pays searing consequences ... as it would constitute a grave threat to the Korean peninsula, the region, and the world," said South Korean official Cho Tae-yong as mentioned in a report by BBC News. The planned rocket launch of an Earth observation satellite sometime around February 8 to 25 follows an earlier announcement by North Korea about its hydrogen bomb test which the US thought as possible but most likely a failure. The military-oriented totalitarian state is allocating a huge chunk of its GDP towards defense spending particularly on its homegrown nuclear weapons and ballistic missile program which the country spent many years of developing according to Al Jazeera. Residents are reporting that a top al Qaeda commander, who was in charge of the terrorist group's combat operations in Yemen, was killed overnight most likely by a U.S. drone strike. According to the reports, via the Independent, the leader, Jalal Baleedi, was one of 12 militants who were killed in the southern region of the country. Baleedi, who had a $5 million bounty on his head, was in a car in the Abyan province when the drone strike occurred. A total of six people died in that attack. Reuters reported that Baleedi was killed along with two of his guards. The other strike killed six militants who were traveling via car in the Ar Rawdah, Shabwa province. Baleedi, who was also known as Hamza al-Zinjibari, was reportedly involved in the plans to target western diplomatic individuals in Sanaa two years ago. He had also led numerous other attacks, which included the beheading of soldiers. Baleedi was believed to be the leader of Ansar al-Sharia, an alias for the al Qaeda group in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). The U.S. State Department reportedly views AQAP as the deadliest branch of the al Aqaeda organization. The AQAP has been tied to numerous unsuccessful plans to bomb Americans. Some sources have claimed that Baleedi might have recently left al Qaeda to become the branch leader for the Islamic State in Yemen. These reports have not been confirmed. Featured Post The Occasionally Fabulous Cartooning Life of Eric Orner, part 1: Ethan Green and Disney by Mike Rhode Eric Orner has been a professional cartoonist for decades, and worked his way through many types of cartooning. Early in the s... ComicsDC is a blog for information and events relating to cartoons, cartoonists and comics including comic books, webcomics, comic strips, political cartoons, animation and caricature in Washington, DC and its environs (roughly Baltimore, MD down to Richmond, VA and Annapolis, MD out to Front Royal, VA). Press releases including store events are welcomed. Established 2006. Subscribe by email Get new posts by email: Subscribe Upcoming events calendar ComicsDC logo Upcoming Events UPCOMING EVENTS - CLICK HERE TO PULL UP POSTS Mike Rhode, editor in chief Our Motto "All men should strive to learn before they die, what they are running from, and to, and why." James Thurber, writer and cartoonist. Translate "Every noble work is at first impossible." - Thomas Carlyle ComicsDC 2012 logo by Michael "MJ" Pohrer Another Logo Blog Archive Reader maps, or Where in the world is ComicsDC? Our First Principle "I try to be interested in very nearly everything. I always think boredom is to some extent the fault of the bored." - Julian Kestrel, the hero in Kate Ross's novel Cut to the Quick . Islamabad: A Pakistani firebrand cleric today praised a deadly Indian air base attack last month that threatened to scupper peace efforts between the nuclear rivals. Hafiz Saeed, alleged mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks and leader of the banned Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) group, encouraged further violence following the air base assault in Pathankot that left seven Indian soldiers dead. Addressing a rally of around one thousand people in the disputed Pakistan-occupied Kashmir region, Saeed said: 800,000 Indian troops are committing genocide on Kashmiris. Dont they have a right to carry out Pathankot style attacks for their defence? Saeed, who remains a free man, also lauded Kashmiri militant leader Sayed Salahuddin, who heads the United Jihad Council (UJC) that has claimed responsibility for the attack. You have only seen one attack on Pathankot. Matters could easily escalate. Crowds at the rally shouted slogans including The war will continue until the liberation of Kashmir and We are ready for jihad. Indian officials believe another groupthe Pakistan based Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) -- was behind the siege. Saeeds freedom and his frequent calls for jihad against India irk New Delhi, which considers JuDa UN designated terror organisationto be no more than a front for Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), the militant group blamed for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that left 166 people dead. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi : Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs headed by Home Minister Rajnath Singh will today finalize the broad schedule of Budget session during which the government is keen to pass the crucial GST bill. The CCPA meeting will be followed by another convened by Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu with opposition leaders to discuss the duration of the session in in view of upcoming assembly polls in five states. The Budget session is likely to begin on February 23 during which the government wants to push its legislative agenda, thwarted in the last two sessions, while the Opposition is raring to target it on a host of issues including dalit scholar Rohith Vemulas suicide and imposition of Presidents Rule in Arunachal Pradesh. Usually, the Budget session begins in the third week of February and concludes early May. There is a recess in between when the budgetary demands for grants are discussed in the committees. However, the process for the assembly elections in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry, where the tenure of the assemblies is set to end in May-June, will begin in the midst of the session and that could raise questions about the number of sittings. A curtailment may be necessary to facilitate campaign by leaders during the elections. The other option could be doing away with the recess between the two parts of the budget session in order to finish the agenda before assembly polls. Sources said Naidu will take the view of leaders of parties including BJP, Congress, Trinamool Congress, Left, AGP, AIADMK, DMK, which have stakes in these states, on the issue. In a letter to opposition leaders, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu said he would like to seek their advice regarding ensuing budget session that is coinciding with the election schedule of five states. Government sources say there are precedents when the budget session had been held without a break but declined to divulge whether the all-party meeting has been called to arrive at a consensus for a similar approach. The CCPA headed by Home Minister Rajnath Singh will finalize the duration and schedule of the session, whose main focus will be passing of the General and Railway budgets. Government is also keen to get passed a number of key reform measures including the contentious GST and Real Estate Bills. The General Budget is expected to be presented in the Lok Sabha on February 29, the last day of February, as is the practice. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Islamabad: For the second time, a Pakistani court today sought a larger bench to hear a petition to prove the innocence of legendary freedom fighter Bhagat Singh in the murder case of a British police officer after the plea was last heard nearly three years ago. A Lahore High Court (LHC) two-member division bench, headed by Justice Khalid Mahmood Khan and constituted by chief justice Ijazul Ahsan, conducted the hearing of the petition, nearly 85 years after Singhs execution by the colonial government. Justice Mahmood, however, referred the case to the chief justice for constitution of a larger bench after petitioner Advocate Imtiaz Rashid Qureshi argued that a three-member bench had awarded death sentence to Singh, and therefore, a larger bench not less than five members should be formed to hear the plea. After the hearing, advocate Qureshi - also chairman of the Bhagat Singh Memorial Foundation - told PTI that the court had accepted his plea to constitute a larger bench for hearing of the plea. Under the law only a larger bench comprising more than three members could undo the decision of the three-bench member that had awarded death sentence to Bhagat. We have also requested the LHC for regular hearing of the case, he said. Last hearing of the petition was held by Justice Shujaat Ali Khan in May, 2013 when he referred the matter to chief justice for the constitution of a larger bench. The chief justice then formed the two-member bench that held its first hearing today. In the petition, Qureshi said Singh was a freedom fighter and fought for independence of undivided India. Singh was hanged by British rulers on March 23, 1931, after being tried under charges of hatching a conspiracy against the colonial government. He said Singh was initially jailed for life but later awarded death sentence in another fabricated case. The petitioner further said Singh is respected even today in the subcontinent not only by Sikhs but also Muslims and that the founder of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah had paid tribute to him twice during his speech in the central assembly. It is a matter of national importance and should be fixed before a full bench, he said and pleaded the court to set aside the sentence of Singh by exercising principles of review and order the government to honour him with state award. Earlier in 2014, the Lahore police had provided the copy of FIR to the petitioner on the courts order. Singhs name was not mentioned in the FIR of the murder of British police officer John P Saunders for which he was handed down the death sentence. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. Washington: Honda is recalling an additional 2.2 million Honda and Acura vehicles because the drivers air bag inflators made by Takata can explode and hurl shrapnel into the passenger compartment. The recall is a big chunk of the 5 million additional vehicles to be repaired for Takata inflator problems that US safety regulators announced last month. Hondas recall includes older model years dating to 2005, but also has some newer vehicles from as recently as the 2015 and 2016 model years. The recall brings to about 24 million the number of vehicles recalled in the US due to Takata inflator problems that have caused at least 11 deaths and 139 injuries worldwide. Takata uses ammonium nitrate to create a small explosion that quickly inflates the air bag in a crash. But the chemical can degrade over time when exposed to heat and humidity and explode with too much force, blowing apart a metal canister designed to contain the explosion. Honda said in a statement last night that no inflator ruptures of this type have been reported in any of its vehicles. The company will notify owners by mail and replace the inflators for free with new ones made by manufacturers other than Takata. But parts wont be available until this summer, the company said. Honda said it has told dealers to provide loaner cars for free to any customer who asks for one while waiting for replacement parts. Replacement inflators will be sent to high-humidity areas along the US Gulf Coast first, then to the rest of the country. Affected models include some 2007 through 2011 Honda CR-Vs, 2005-2012 Acura RLs, 2007 to 2016 Acura RDXs including early production 2016 models, 2007 to 2014 Honda Ridgelines, 2009 to 2014 Honda Fits, 2009 to 2014 Acura TLs, 2010 to 2014 Honda FCX Claritys, 2010 to 2014 Honda Insights, 2010 to 2013 Acura ZDXs, 2011 to 2015 Honda CR-Zs and the 2013 to 2016 Acura ILX including early production 2016 vehicles. The recall brings to 8.51 million the number of Honda and Acura vehicles recalled in the US for Takata inflator problems. Honda is Takatas largest customer and has stopped buying its inflators for new models. Also yesterday, Honda announced the recall of an additional 364,787 vehicles worldwide for a separate air bag issue. The recall covers the 2008 through 2010 Accord sedan. The company says moisture can get into an electronic control unit and cause it to malfunction. If that happens, the air bags may not inflate in a crash. Bengaluru: Five persons have been arrested for the alleged assault and stripping of a Tanzanian woman here with the Karnataka government today saying it viewed the incident seriously but rejected suggestions that it was a racial attack. As the incident on Sunday night took a serious diplomatic turn, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said five men had been arrested and that Minister for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj spoke to him. A report would be sent to her, he said. Case has been registered, five of them (accused) have been arrested. Sushma Swaraj also spoke to me, I will also be sending her a report through my Chief Secretary, he told reporters at Invest Karnataka 2016, a global investors meet, here. The Chief Minister said he has asked the police to conduct an inquiry on why complaint was not taken immediately. I have asked them to take action against officials if there is any fault on their part, he said. The 21-year-old Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of mistaken identity after a woman was mowed down by a car here. She was reportedly dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends when she reached the accident spot mistaking them to have caused the fatal accident though a Sudanese was involved in it, police said. Swaraj had described it as a shameful incident and spoken to Siddaramaiah, seeking stringent punishment for the guilty, while the High Commission of Tanzania had sent a Note Verbale to the External Affairs Ministry on the issue. Voicing concern over the incident, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi today sought a report from the Karnataka government, according to party General Secretary Digvijay Singh, in charge of Congress affairs in the state. Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately, Singh said in a series of tweets. But asked if the Congress high command has sought a report, Siddaramaiah said, Why will high command seek report on everything? It is you people who are saying... State Home Minister G Parameshwara told a press meet here that five persons had been arrested and more arrests would follow depending on the inquiry. The minister, who named the victim, denied that the Tanzanian woman was paraded naked saying, No such thing happened. He also said, This is definitely not a racial attack and maintained that the incident was a response to an accident that had happened earlier, in which a Sudanese driving a car in an alleged drunken state had mowed down a woman and injured her husband seriously. Noting that the government has taken the case seriously, he said, If there are any lapses on the part of police officials, we will take very serious action, including suspension. For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi : Following News Nation campaign, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj has once again helped an Indian abroad. Gurpreet, an Indian woman who was kept at a refugee camp in Germany along with her eight-year-old daughter by her in-laws was brought back to India on Thursday after much efforts by Indian government. After her revival, she thanked Indian government while talking to media. Governments efforts has also been lauded by social media especially because of the quick rescue operation. Gurpreet had posted a video in Hindi language on February 02, 2016, pleading the Indian government to take her home. This was brought to Sushma Swarajs notice by News Nation who immediately ordered her rescue. Notably, Gurpreet hails from Faridabad in Haryana. I appreciate and Congratulate the External Affiars Ministry of India for Rescuing nd Evacuating Gurpreet Kaur. https://t.co/7qtCdm3r4e Sucha Singh Chotepur (@SChotepur) February 3, 2016 Gurpreet and her daughter have boarded flight to Delhi. Safe journey. Gurjit Singh (@AmbGurjitSingh) February 3, 2016 I thank GoI for listening to me-Gurpreet (Woman who ws rescued from refugee camp in Germany) on her arrival in Delhi pic.twitter.com/lw9c8nYaTg ANI (@ANI_news) February 4, 2016 For all the Latest India News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. London: A UN panel has ruled that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been arbitrarily detained in the UK, a media report said here today. No official announcement has yet been made by the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in Geneva but BBC Radio 4 reported that it understands the decision has been made in Assanges favour. The UN panel has been considering a request by Assange for a ruling. It is due to announce its findings tomorrow. Assange, 44, was granted political asylum by Ecuador, which has housed him since 2012 at its central London embassy. The whistleblower has said he is willing to surrender to British police if the UN panel finds that the three years he was holed up inside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London does not amount to illegal detention. In 2014, he had complained to the UN that he was being arbitrarily detained as he could not leave the embassy without being arrested by the British police. The Australian national is wanted for questioning in Sweden over sex assault allegations against two women, which he denies. WikiLeaks, founded by Assange in 2006, released 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and 250,000 diplomatic cables enraging the United States. Assange fears being extradited to the US to be quizzed over the activities of WikiLeaks if he travels to Sweden. The UN group does not have any formal influence over the British and Swedish authorities and the UK Foreign Office said it still had an obligation to extradite Assange. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. 1. U.S. acceptance of coexistence as the only alternative to atomic war. 2. U.S. willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging in atomic war. 3. Develop the illusion that total disarmament of the United States would be a demonstration of moral strength. 4. Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war. 5. Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites. 6. Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination. 7. Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N. 8. Set up East and West Germany as separate states in spite of Khrushchev's promise in 1955 to settle the German question by free elections under supervision of the U.N. 9. Prolong the conferences to ban atomic tests because the United States has agreed to suspend tests as long as negotiations are in progress. 10. Allow all Soviet satellites individual representation in the U.N. 11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, demand that it be set up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two centers compete with each other as they are now doing in the Congo.) 12. Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party. 13. Do away with all loyalty oaths. 14. Continue giving Russia access to the U.S. Patent Office. 15. Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States. 16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights. 17. Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers' associations. Put the party line in textbooks. 18. Gain control of all student newspapers. 19. Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under Communist attack. 20. Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policymaking positions. 21. Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures. 22. Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American Communist cell was told to "eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms." 23. Control art critics and directors of art museums. "Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art." 24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them "censorship" and a violation of free speech and free press. 25. Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV. 26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as "normal, natural, healthy." 27. Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with "social" religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity which does not need a "religious crutch." 28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of "separation of church and state." 29. Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis. 30. Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the "common man." 31. Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the "big picture." Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over. 32. Support any socialist movement to give centralized control over any part of the culture--education, social agencies, welfare programs, mental health clinics, etc. 33. Eliminate all laws or procedures which interfere with the operation of the Communist apparatus. 34. Eliminate the House Committee on Un-American Activities. 35. Discredit and eventually dismantle the FBI. 36. Infiltrate and gain control of more unions. 37. Infiltrate and gain control of big business. 38. Transfer some of the powers of arrest from the police to social agencies. Treat all behavioral problems as psychiatric disorders which no one but psychiatrists can understand. 39. Dominate the psychiatric profession and use mental health laws as a means of gaining coercive control over those who oppose Communist goals. 40. Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce. 41. Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents. 42. Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition; that students and special-interest groups should rise up and use united force to solve economic, political or social problems. 43. Overthrow all colonial governments before native populations are ready for self-government. 44. Internationalize the Panama Canal. 45. Repeal the Connally reservation so the United States cannot prevent the World Court from seizing jurisdiction over nations and individuals alike. New Delhi : Pimenova is just 10 and she's already earned an editorial in Vogue Italia and starred in campaigns for the likes of Armani Kids, Roberto Cavalli Junior and DSquared2 kidswear. Kristina Pimenova has 1.1 million followers on her personal account, which is managed by her mother. Kristina is from Moscow and has been modelling since the age of four. Kristina's naturally beautiful looks have earned her the name of most beautiful girl in the world. When you google the most beautiful girl in the world, its Kristina Pimenova who would appear in your search results. Pimenova at the tender age of 10 is quite serious about her modelling career. She has in fact moved from Russia to Los Angeles so that she could sign with modelling agencies LA Models and New York Models over there. Pimenova's portfolio can be found under the Youths section on the LA Models website, showcasing photos of the child beauty- who is exactly 10 years and 1 month old. Have a look at some of her beautiful modelling pictures: Lahore: The Pakistani lawyer of Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, the mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attack, today said he does not expect an early conclusion of the case as a number of witnesses still have to record their statements in court. The Islamabad High Court last April had ordered the anti-terrorism court (ATC) to conclude the case in two months against seven accused including LeT operations commander Lakhvi. Nine months passed by since the court set a deadline (to conclude the case) but the conclusion of the case is not in sight, Lakhvis lawyer Raja Rizwan Abbasi told PTI, adding it was up to the prosecution to ensure that the remaining witnesses record their statements in the trial court. To a question whether any time frame about the conclusion of the case could be given, Abbasi said No. Meanwhile, two witnesses appeared in yesterdays hearing of the ATC held at the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi. A government official and an employee of a business and engineering firm that sold engines to one of the suspects recorded their statements in court, a court official said. The trial court adjourned the hearing till February 10. The Pakistani firm had sold eight Japanese Yamaha engines to one of the Mumbai attack facilitators who supplied them to the terrorists, including Ajmal Kasab, for reaching Mumbai in a small boat. Earlier, the companys general manager said his firm had sold the engines to absconding accused Amjad Khan, a shadowy LeT organiser and financier from Karachi. The Yamaha engines were used by Kasab and the other terrorists to power their boat to reach Mumbai. Khan and nine other co-accused, said to be either trainers or facilitators of the terrorists who launched the attack in Mumbai, had been declared proclaimed offenders or fugitives by the anti-terrorism court. Khan, who figured in majority of dossiers provided to Pakistan by India, allegedly played a key role in arranging and providing funds to the 10 terrorists who attacked Mumbai. 20 suspects were named in a charge sheet filed in the anti-terrorism court in 2009. While 56-year-old Lakhvi is currently free on bail at an undisclosed location in the country, six other accused - Abdul Wajid, Mazhar Iqbal, Hamad Amin Sadiq, Shahid Jameel Riaz, Jamil Ahmed and Younis Anjum - have been lodged in Adiala Jail for over six years in connection with planning and executing the Mumbai attack in November, 2008 that killed 166 people. For all the Latest World News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. New Delhi : What would you do if you buy your favorite pack of chocolate and find it defective? Probably visit the grievance cell or demand apology for the same but a 20-year-old girl in London has asked for a lifetime supply of chocolates from the company. Saima Ahmad, 20 a Law student in England is threatening to sue Nestle after buying a multi-pack of KitKats missing their signature wafers. Ahmad reportedly wrote a letter to Nestle with the demand after her monetary and emotional loss. They go about advertising the unique concept of KitKat, but Im so disappointed by what I have purchased, the Kings College law student told Yahoo. Im hoping they will apologise to me and in future focus more on quality of their product. I wouldnt rule out taking this further if Nestle do not apologise or compensate me adequately. As I mentioned in my letter of complaint, an unlimited supply of KitKat would do. Ahmad had purchased the defective KitKat multi-pack for 2 ($2.88) last month and when she opened it didnt have wafers. For all the Latest Lifestyle News, Food News, Download News Nation Android and iOS Mobile Apps. THE BRITISH embassy in Paris is offering a typically British prize for people who help encourage other expats to register for a referendum vote today - afternoon tea at the ambassadors residence. One winner and their family will be invited to the residence a magnificent 17th century townhouse next door to the embassy offices and on the same street as the Elysee in a competition for todays Overseas Voter Registration Day. With a referendum on the UKs EU membership due at the latest by the end of 2017, and possibly as soon as June this year, the embassy is urging Britons who have a right to take part to make sure they are registered in good time. An embassy spokeswoman said: The British Embassy will be tweeting messages showing just how quick and easy it is to register. It really only takes five minutes (the time it takes to make a cup of coffee or eat a croissant) and can be done online now at www.gov.uk/register-to-vote. All we are asking people to do is encourage others to vote by tweeting photos of themselves holding a sign or poster saying #YourVoteMatters and tagging @UKInFrance The most creative or unusual image will win they may be on top of a ski slope or walking through the Catacombs of Paris: the possibilities are endless. Contributions should be tweeted by the end of today. The new British ambassador, Sir Julian King, has taken over from Sir Peter Ricketts this week. An embassy spokesman said they cannot at present guarantee he will be there on the day the winner is invited as this will depend on his diary engagements, which are still being worked out. Previous stories: Do not miss your referendum vote Cameron backs his EU deal NICOLAS Sarkozy, president of Les Republicains, has condemned the introduction of plain packaging for cigarettes. Last November, parliament narrowly passed a law to introduce plain packaging for cigarettes from May this year in a bid to cut the number of young people taking up the habit. But Mr Sarkozy yesterday warned party members at a meeting on agriculture and rural France: "If we accept the neutral cigarette packet, in six months you will be offered a neutral bottle of wine, and this will be the end of our names; it will be the end of our land; it will be the end of our know-how. Tomorrow, fundamentalists will demand a neutral bottle for wines. Then neutral cheese. Mr Sarkozys comments were described as inappropriate, unacceptable and irresponsible by the president of the French Office of Tobacco Control, Bertrand Dautzenberg, who pointed out that the tobacco industry in France is virtually non-existent. There are no cigarette areas in France. The majority of French tobacco is made in Poland. EU laws already mean tobacco firms must cover 65% of the packaging with health warnings, but Frances Health Minister Marisol Touraine said when the law was passed that, from May, the rest of the packet will be the same shape, same size, same colour, same typeset. It is estimated that there are 13million smokers in France, and about 78,000 people die of tobacco-related illnesses every year - making smoking the leading cause of premature deaths in the country. The World Health Organisation also said that one-third of teenagers smoke. Meanwhile, students at lycees across France could be allowed to smoke on the premises for the first time since a ban was imposed in 1991 as the state of emergency continues, it has emerged. Michel Richard, of the SNPDEN school administrators union, has called for school students to be allowed to smoke in designated areas inside school grounds. It has been reported that some schools have already taken this step. Mr Richard argued that student smokers gathered in groups outside schools could be an easy target for so-called lone wolf terrorists. He said that he had written to Prime Minister Manuel Valls to call for the ban on smoking in schools to be, at least temporarily, lifted. "We are always going to fight against smoking, but when it comes to the difference between a Kalashnikov and a cigarette, the risk just isn't the same," Mr Richard told Le Figaro. Photo: Julie / Flickr DO YOU have a Boulevard Aristide-Briand near you? Or do you send your child to school in a Jules-Ferry or a lycee Emile Combes? If so, you are already familiar with key names in the construction of the French Republic. Between them, these three politicians were responsible for free state schooling, obligatory education for girls and the rock of state neutrality towards religion on which la Republique is built: the principle of laicite. The term is very much in the news, with a new laicite charter being introduced into schools this autumn alongside classes in morale laique. Presenting the charter, Minister for Education Vincent Peillon explained: Everyone is free to have his own opinions but no one has the right to contest teaching content or miss a class in the name of religious precepts. Public debate over the Muslim community in France pops up in the news regularly and is nearly always related in one way or another to perceived challenges to this element of the Constitution. Peillons remarks refer also to repeated evangelist pressure to alter class content, in particular regarding the theory of evolution. A recent example was the proposal to swap two Christian holidays with Jewish and Muslim ones: confusing whether France was secular or multi-religious. Left and Right politicians often unite to initiate laws to protect laicite. Once the source of conflict with the Catholic Right over private education funding, the principle, an important element in the integration process, regularly generates ill feeling these days among extremist sectors of the Muslim community. That is why, a century after the original 1905 law, several new laws have been passed to protect it. First, a few explanations. Laicite does not translate well. Secularity is close but confusing. Laicite is not easy to define either. It has evolved over two centuries and is evolving still. The concept was born of the Revolution, which guaranteed freedom of conscience to all and first separated State and Church. Napoleon backtracked, signing a concordat with the Vatican in 1801 that was to poison Church-State relations during the 19th century and put laicite on the back burner for much of it. (For historical reasons, this concordat still applies in Alsace and Moselle.) Having been suppressed by the Vichy regime (along with liberte, egalite, fraternite without which laicite could not function), the principle was cast in the constitution of the Fourth Republic in 1946 the State is indivisible, laic, democratic and social and remains firmly in that of todays Fifth. To understand the concept is to go a long way towards understanding the French. Maybe it could be defined as their permanent search for a delicate balance between sharing what they all hold in common, the Republic, and catering for diversity. It is the principle that protects both personal and collective liberty and, as such, is the responsibility of both State and citizen. The indivisibility of the State is the States refusal to recognise any religious or ethnic community. France is one. There are two major dates in the history of laicite: 1881 and 1905. In 1881-82, Minister of Education Jules Ferry decreed school to be publique, gratuite et laique state-run, free and non-clerical. Teaching in French to a national programme provided children, whatever their linguistic background or beliefs, with the theoretical possibility of equal opportunity. It created a framework in which adults could bring no pressure to bear on pupils to adhere to any philosophy, religion or political idea. That remains the basis of the French educational system today. The 1905 law, engineered by Emile Combes and Aristide Briand, enforced the neutrality of the State and State institutions through the separation of the Churches and the State. Since that date, the State recognises no religion and therefore cannot directly fund any either. If the same law grants the individual total liberty and privacy regarding beliefs, there is one condition: they must not disturb public order. Given the repeated trauma that religion has caused in Frances recent history from the Wars of Religion to the expulsion of the Huguenots and the Dreyfus affair this means no proselytising and nothing that could be remotely interpreted as such. It also explains why, in France, religious belief is far more than a private matter. Things spiritual belong to the realm of intimacy. It is extremely unusual to see anyone wearing any conspicuous religious symbol in public. To do so is perceived as a deliberate act, a message to others. It is unthinkable to ask someone what their religion is and most people will be frankly embarrassed by anyone saying what theirs is. When Nicolas Sarkozy publicly announced he had appointed Frances first Muslim prefect, he sent shockwaves throughout the land. Knowing this helps in understanding intense French reaction to young girls wearing veils. It is seen not only as an unacceptable way of bringing religion into the public sphere, but also a form of peer pressure on other girls to do the same. Which takes us back to Jules Ferry and neutrality in the classroom. This insistence on the privacy of beliefs was of course also reinforced after World War II by the fate of Frances Jews under the Vichy regime, and the obligation to publicly show their religion by wearing the yellow star. As a result of the trauma of State responsibility in their deportation and extermination, no statistics may be made regarding peoples religious beliefs, ethnic origin or colour. All citizens are not only equal, but remain neutral in the eyes of the State. The mosque debate The 1905 law was finally well accepted by both Catholic and Protestant churches in France, who benefited financially when the State handed existing buildings and their costly maintenance over to local authorities. But the State cannot fund new religious buildings. Hence the mosque-building debate and recent legislation allowing local authorities to contribute. For with generous donations from Saudi Arabia and Muslim foundations abroad pouring in, the inherent risk of encouraging fundamentalist movements to develop in France is obvious. Under the Nicolas Sarkozy government, the training of imams in France to Republican principles was considered. But the State cannot finance religious education either. The impasse has been paradoxically circumvented by the Catholic University offering courses, and Algerian imams due to work in France being trained in French and laicite at the government-funded Institut Francais in Algiers. Conspicuous symbols and full-face veils After a number of potentially inflammatory cases in which some schools were confronted with Muslim girls wearing Islamic headscarves, legislation was passed in 2004 banning the wearing of any conspicuous religious symbol or sign in state schools. Never specifically aimed at the Muslim community (kippas, large crosses and Sikh turbans fall under the same category), the new law, despite fears it would be perceived as discriminatory and arouse further reaction, had the almost immediate effect of calming the situation, though some veiled Muslim girls and turbaned Sikhs found their way to private schools. But this legislated solely for public schools, not privately run establishments. In March of this year, Fatima Afif, an employee dismissed in 2008 from the privately run Baby Loup creche in the Yvelines for refusing to remove her headscarf, won on appeal for wrongful dismissal on the grounds of religious discrimination. New legislation is now under consideration to cover pre-school structures and religious symbols in the workplace, none of which are currently covered by law. When, in late July, a police officer in the town of Trappes stopped a fully veiled young women for an ID check in the middle of Ramadan, he did not know he was unleashing days of rioting. But Cassandra, 22, was not infringing any law on laicite. This time it was the one against dissimulating the face in the public sphere, put into effect by the Sarkozy government in 2011. Introduced ostensibly as anti-terrorism legislation, many felt its real purpose was more anti-veil. In fact, the number of women in France wearing the niqab is extremely small, and the number of women fined likewise. Laicite with an adjective The latest solution of Frances politicians to calm the debate has been to add adjectives. Sarkozy invented laicite positive, in which the government took into account the existence of religious groups in France. He created a representative Muslim council, through which to address the Muslim community in France. Representative of only a portion of Frances Muslims, many of whom are non-practising, it has created more problems than it has solved. The Hollande government has coined laicite apaisee, a low-profile approach in which negotiation would replace legislation as the best way of winning over those who regard the principle with suspicion. True laicistes believe the principle cannot survive any moderating tags. It must exist alone. Universities oppose campus headscarf ban proposal In early August, Le Monde published a report signed by members of the Haut Comite de lIntegration (HCI), a body no longer briefed to deal with laicite since the creation of a separate mission last April. It called for a Muslim headscarf ban in universities. Government replies were swift but hardly in unison. Minister of the Interior Manuel Valls stated evasively that the subject needed to be considered, while Genevieve Fioraso, Minister for Higher Education, warned that we should avoid problems where there are none. For Gerard Blanchard, president of La Rochelle University, and vice-president of the national CPU, Conference des Presidents dUniversite, laicite is not an issue on his campus or anywhere in France. We have 14% foreign students in La Rochelle, mostly from South East Asia, and we only ask women students to take off their veils in science laboratories, for safety reasons. That has never posed a problem. The University Presidents Conference has issued a public statement against any specific university ban. For Blanchard, the over-mediatised debate that burst upon us mid-summer is without foundation. He is adamant that he has never had a complaint from a teacher. An environmentalist, he is far more concerned by pressure that could be brought on teachers to introduce non-scientific versions of the origins of the universe into the syllabus. No university teacher should ever have to submit to any pressure on the content of his teaching. Jean-Loup Salzmann, president of the CPU, and president of Paris XIII, in the heart of Seine- Saint-Denis, one of the most multi-cultural universities in France, firmly believes in laicite, but sees no need for new laws on the campus. His main concern is elsewhere. He is angered by the incongruity of the State promoting laicite on the one hand, while financing the Catholic universities on the other. Expressing a personal opinion, he said: The main issue for these young Muslim women, who have enough problems coping with family pressure, is to achieve independence and emancipation through their studies, whether they wear a veil or not. An anti-veil law would achieve the opposite of what we want. Many of these women would then not have access to university at all. How the principle of laicite is applied today NICOLAS Cadene, chairman of the Observatoire de la Laicite, a watchdog committee created last April by President Francois Hollande to report on how the principle of laicite is applied in France today, spoke to Connexion. Can you define this difficult concept for our readers? Laicite is a principle which allows us all to live together. It is not a ban on religion or religious practices. On the contrary, it guarantees believers and non-believers alike the freedom to express themselves, to practise or not to practise a religion as they choose, on condition that public order is not disturbed. The State adopts an attitude of total impartiality towards citizens, who are all equal in the eyes of the State. Do the current religious bank holidays not favour one religious group? Christian festivals have, for the majority, become traditional holidays with little religious significance. Still, the State does not want to be seen as favouring one religion over another. In 1905, there was no Muslim population. But I dont think this poses a real problem. Employees can use their RTT (recuperation of unpaid overtime in the form of days off) as they wish. The Stasi Commission (set up by President Jacques Chirac in 2003) went a long way towards identifying issues in the workplace. We shall build on that. The conspicuous religious symbols ban was seen as directed only at women. Is that not a form of discrimination? If people set out to present themselves in a way which is obviously a proselytising or a provocative attitude, that is not acceptable. It is not so much what people wear or their physical appearance, as the reason behind the choice. This is one of the subjects we shall be working on. Islam has no clerical hierarchy. Isnt the laicite legislation trying to apply to individuals a law aimed at an institution? Doesnt the 1905 law need to be adapted? Not at all. The principle enables us all to live together. But, of course, we must avoid situations in which one group feels stigmatised by the law. That is one of our major subjects of reflexion. But there is no question of adapting the principle to new circumstances. It is one of bringing people to understand that laicite is not a ban on religious practice but a system of personal freedom and helping them to adapt to the principle. There has been talk in the press over banning the Islamic headscarf at university. [The full-face veil is already banned anywhere in public]. The State has a duty to protect minors from any form of ideological persuasion, hence the headscarf ban in schools. University is a world of adults. But the Republic has a duty to protect its citizens against the dangers of extremism. Some people attribute to laicite powers it simply does not have. There is an urgent need for strong political action, at state and local level, in order to resolve the many problems the threat of extremism has brought to certain sectors of society. The Observatoire has published its first report, a history and background to the concept. What else has it achieved? We helped draw up two important documents: the laicite charter and the syllabus for non-religious morality for schools. Both take effect this year. In addition, our report has pinpointed situations needing close attention in public administrations and local authorities (non-Metropolitan France included), as well as in the private sector. How do you see your work developing? We need a better definition of laicite that reiterates the States position of neutrality and is more clearly understood by all, in France and at an international level. We are drawing up guidelines for the application of laicite and religious practice in the workplace, and in the wake of the Baby Loup issue [see main article], for pre-school structures. We must show people how to react to situations. Overreaction is one of the major problems we face, when so much could be achieved by negotiation and taking things calmly. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate BRIDGEPORT, Conn. Self-anointed high priest of Santeria Felix Delgado is wanted in Massachusetts on charges of digging up the graves of children and allegedly grinding their bones for use in religious rites. Worcester, Mass., police confirmed Wednesday they are eager to get Delgado back to Massachusetts. He is charged there with eight counts of disinterment of a body, accused of breaking open caskets and stealing the bodies of three adults and two children. The crime shocked the Worcester community when it was discovered in October. Some of the bodies had come from the mausoleum of a prominent family there. Delgado, 40, was arrested Tuesday by Bridgeport police after a heroin investigation led police to his Hallett Street cellar, where they found two human skulls and bones, along with bloody chicken carcasses and carved figurines, among other items. City police charged him with being a fugitive from justice, a felony. He told us he knew we were coming because he had gotten a sign, said an undercover Bridgeport detective after he booked Delgado on fugitive from justice charges out of Massachusetts. He told us he was a high priest and he was putting a curse on us Ill let you know how I feel later. Worcester police said they are working with the Office of the Connecticut Medical Examiner to determine if the remains found in Bridgeport are the ones stolen from the cemetery there. Bridgeport Police Capt. Armando Perez who experienced the fear of Santeria as a boy in Cuba said Delgados neighbors were terrified of him. Santeria is a primitive African-West Indies religion with often frightening overtones. The Santeria priests prefer the bones of children because they believe it gives them more power, Perez said. But it appeared Wednesday the newfound power hadnt done much for Delgado. Police said shortly after he was booked Tuesday night he complained he wasnt feeling well. He was taken to Bridgeport Hospital. On Wednesday afternoon, Delgado was pushed in a wheelchair before state Superior Court Judge William Holden. He is suffering from high blood pressure and high cholesterol, his lawyer, Assistant Public Defender Makana Ellis, told the judge. Worcester police want him, Assistant States Attorney Nicholas Bove told the judge. Ellis said her client was waiving extradition to Massachusetts. Holden ordered Delgado held in lieu of $125,000 bond and continued the case to March 2 for Massachusetts authorities to come and fetch Delgado. Delgado mouthed something to his godson who, dressed all in white, was sitting with other family members in the gallery. We have nothing to say, the man, who only identified himself as Delgados godson, said as the family left the Golden Hill Street courtroom. Delgado had been under investigation by the Statewide Narcotics Task Force for allegations he had been selling heroin and prescription pills in the area. Members of that task force and local police were serving a search warrant at Delgados first-floor apartment when police said they made the gruesome discovery. Perez said they found several altars filled with strange carvings, dried flowers and herbs throughout the apartment, but a more terrifying discovery awaited them in the unfinished cellar. Descending into the gloom, he said they found a large altar in one corner, over strange chalk markings, which held two human skulls and the bones from at least two human bodies. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate If youve been thinking about leaving the cooking to someone else at your next dinner party, the Greater Bridgeport metro area is a good place to be. The Thumbtack website, which connects potential customers with local service providers, recently gave the Park City the No. 2 slot over such major urban areas as Los Angeles and Denver in its listing of the 10 Best Cities to Throw a Dinner Party with a personal chef. (Poughkeepsie, N.Y., was No. 1.) Bridgeport also scored high on the Yelp foodie rating site for restaurants where you can host an event for your friends or family, with Ralph n Richs, the Star of Istanbul, Tonis Tuscan Table, Ola Restaurant and Pho Hong Thom all getting at least four stars out of five as dinner party locations. Lucas Puente, who crunched the numbers for the Thumbtack survey, says several factors went into Bridgeport being rated so highly. The thing that really made Bridgeport stand out was the number of personal chefs with high ratings, who are available for the size of the market, Puente told me from his office in San Francisco. There are a lot of options and the people who use them are very satisfied, he adds of the positive data that was gathered during 2015 for the report released on Dec. 6. The price is also right. The average dinner party size in Bridgeport is 12 guests, Puente reports, and the average cost for that gathering is $592.59. By way of comparison, the average cost in New Haven is $819.11. (Puente also points out that surrounding towns such as Fairfield, Trumbull and Stratford were included as part of the Bridgeport metro area.) Karen Inwood, who lives in the Black Rock section of Bridgeport, has been working as a personal chef for 13 years and says 2015 was one of her best years. When I ask her what it would cost to have her do a theoretical dinner party that I would throw for eight to 10 people, she laughs, and tosses the query back in my direction. The first question I would ask you is: Whats your budget? I can do a dinner for eight for $3,000 or $400. We have to build the budget around the menu. Obviously, it would be very different for lobster than it would be for a nice pasta ... and there are millions of (inexpensive) ways to doctor up chicken. A nother private chef who lives in Bridgeport, Scott Murray, agrees that a budget is the first and trickiest step to a successful dinner party. Do you want a plated sit-down dinner for 10 or a buffet for 30? I can do anything from mac and cheese to fois gras, says Murray, who has been in the business for about five years. One of the first things people ask is: How much? But Im always reluctant to talk about that until we get into the menu, and I never charge for doing multiple drafts of a menu. The first thing Inwood does after a serious query is to visit your house to discuss the gathering. I look at the situation and what I have to work with. Some people have huge kitchens, some are regular and some are very small. Ive done them all. Inwood has clients with their own serving staff and others who take a more bare-bones approach. I am not above doing dishes, she adds, laughing. Dinner parties are as susceptible to trendiness as the restaurant world. There are a lot of people on the farm-to-table train now and a certain amount who want everything organic no hormones or additives, which is great for me, because thats the way I like to live, Murray says. Food allergies are also factored into any menu. Murrays average dinner party size is 20 guests, but Ive done a lot of deuces, especially around Valentines Day, he says of preparing romantic dinners for two. Murray worked in the food business before he became a private chef. For Inwood, it has been a second career that still surprises her. I am an optician by trade, but when I started plotting my escape from marriage, a friend said, You should be a personal chef. You set a perfect table and youre a great person. When Inwood pointed out that she wasnt a chef, her friends response was to print up business cards saying that she was. At her first gig, someone who knew Inwood asked her why she had never told him what she did for a living. Because I just started today. Im still faking it till I make it, she jokes. I pride myself on being very flexible and friendly. Part of the deal is you have to make people feel comfortable about you being in their homes, so its great when a client says. Were going to Wyoming, lets bring Karen along for the ride. jmeyers@hearstmediact.com; Twitter: @joesview TED CRUZ WINS IOWA: WHAT IT MEANS By Chuck Baldwin February 4, 2016 NewsWithViews.com A Ted Cruz victory in Iowa was not surprising. Not at all. Typically, the Republican presidential candidate that can "Out Christian" the rest of the field wins in Iowa. And Cruz is the best at doing that since G.W. Bush that Ive seen. But unlike Bush, Cruz will NOT be the Republican nominee. Count on it. And I, for one, am glad he wont be. The Cruz victory has got to be seen as a slap in the face for Liberty Universitys Jerry Falwell, Jr., who personally campaigned in Iowa for Donald Trump. As much as I like Jerry, Jr., he is not his dad and will never be able to galvanize Christian conservatives like Jerry, Sr., did. The once powerful Religious Right passed with Jerry Falwell, Sr. Faithful readers of this column know that I have already expressed my feelings that Cruz cannot be trusted to be faithful to the Constitution--especially in matters that pertain to the Warfare State and the Police State. His ties to the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) and Goldman Sachs cannot be taken lightly. Birds of a feather still flock together. His staff is littered with New World Order fellow travelers. You are reading one Christian writer who would FAR rather vote for an unbeliever that will preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States than vote for a believer who will NOT preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. And there is nothing about Ted Cruz that convinces me he would be faithful to the Constitution--his Christian rhetoric notwithstanding. Plus, of all of the GOP presidential candidates, Ted Cruz is probably the deepest in the pocket of the Israeli lobby--not that the rest of them aren't also. However, I still maintain that Rand Paul is the LEAST obligated to the Israeli lobby of all of them. (Rand Paul also demonstrates more fidelity to the Constitution than the rest of the field put together. And now that Rand has pulled out of the race, there really isnt a constitutionally literate contender left.) Unlike many of my Christian brethren, I am convinced that the Zionists in Israel and America are a major destructive force to liberty and a direct threat to the Biblical, Natural Law principles upon which the United States was founded. The more allegiance a U.S. politician has to Zionism, the more harmful he or she is to America. Put Ted Cruz at the top of the list. Obviously, this primary season has just begun, and an Iowa victory portends very little for things to come. This could wind up being a very interesting and unusual election season. Let your mind ruminate over some of these possible scenarios: 1. The GOP has a brokered convention, and establishment insiders pick Jeb Bush or Marco Rubio. This is a distinct possibility. The establishment is going all out to defeat Donald Trump, but his momentum is significant. It is very feasible that no candidate will have mustered the necessary delegates to win the nomination on the first ballot. If that happens, you can be sure that the establishment knows how to manipulate the convention to ensure that an insider wins. The two candidates who fit that bill the best are Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio. Rush Limbaugh is revealing his establishment loyalties by saying (with a straight face even) that Rubio is NOT an establishment candidate. But he is. If this scenario becomes reality, a host of the Trump/Cruz/Carson/Paul supporters would abandon the GOP in November like rats off of the proverbial sinking ship. Then again, the GOP establishment would rather burn the house down than let a principled conservative win, as they are much more closely aligned with liberal Democrats than they are conservative Republicans. 2. Donald Trump sees the GOP establishment rigging primaries to defeat him and decides to run as an Independent. I realize Trump signed a pledge that he would not bolt the GOP, but everyone knows that Trump is still holding that ace up his sleeve. Of course, many people know that Trump has had a long-standing personal friendship with the Clintons, and they fear he is playing the system to ensure a Hillary victory. Thats speculation, of course. But given that Trump talks and acts from the hip (assuming he is NOT a Hillary mole), his loyalty to his pledge will surely be tested, as the GOP establishment will do everything it can do to stack the deck against him. As the primaries (and passions) heat up, Trump is indeed the loose cannon in the field that could do just about anything--including jumping ship and running as an Independent. 3. Hillary is indicted or begins losing significantly to Bernie Sanders, and Democrats scramble to bring another insider (like Joe Biden) into the race. Officials in Iowa are saying Hillary defeated party rival Bernie Sanders by the skin of her teeth. Plus, everyone is aware that some of those local victories were determined by coin tosses. The Democratic machine gave Hillary the win in Iowa and everyone knows it. The Clinton camp has got to be worried after the embarrassing victory in Iowa. Sanders support is growing, while Clintons support is waning. The party machine is going to have to work around the clock to keep her afloat. But if Sanders begins to pull away from Hillary, her establishment buddies will turn on her like a pack of wolves on a bleeding lobo. Indictments are still hanging out there, and if it becomes obvious that Hillary isnt winning primaries by landslide margins, watch the insiders throw her to the wolves and enlist another insider such as Joe Biden. Such an event would upset the applecart BIG TIME. And dont forget that the former Democratic senator from Virginia and true war hero who served in the Reagan cabinet, Jim Webb, is waiting in the wings for just the right opportunity to enter the race. Wow! The possibilities are almost endless. Obviously, Bernie Sanders is to the Democrats what Donald Trump is to the Republicans: a major thorn in the side. 4. Former NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg enters the race as an Independent--bringing with him $1 billion to spend. Or, Democrats tap Bloomberg if they abandon Clinton. Bloomberg is another loose cannon that could shake things up this year. No doubt about that. But a billion dollars or no billion dollars, Bloomberg is mostly a one-string banjo. The only thing he is passionate about is disarming the American people. And while Clinton and Sanders might be just as bad on the Second Amendment, Bloombergs fanaticism on the issue would drive away virtually all of the gun owners in the country--including Democrats and Independents. The fact is, the mood of the country is more favorable toward the Second Amendment now than at any time in recent memory, which is why the Democratic Party will probably ignore Bloomberg. But two independent billionaires in the general election (if it came to that)--one an ultra-liberal and the other a tough-talking conservative--would definitely shake things up. No doubt about it. Imagine (we are just ruminating here) a four-man race that includes the two major party candidates and two independent billionaires. And if it does become a four-man race between the above-mentioned people, can you imagine what would happen if Ron Paul suddenly decided to jump back in the race? Ron is still as sharp as a tack and more fit than many men half his age. The last time anything remotely resembling the above happened was in 1860. And you know what happened the year after that. And personally, I see regional separation (no, it would not have to be bloody--and I highly doubt that it would be) as a good thing, not as a bad thing. In fact, I think it is inevitable. Its not a matter of if. Its only a matter of when. But I digress. Suffice it to say, folks, this is shaping up to be the most unusual and unpredictable election season in my lifetime--maybe since that election back in 1860. Hold on! P.S. Recent events have graphically illustrated the need for the American citizenry to have an educated and informed understanding of the laws and protocols--as well as our rights and duties--when placed in contact with police officers. Sadly, most Americans are totally unprepared to deal with even routine traffic stops. Violent interactions between police officers and citizens are escalating. Sometimes the blame lies with law enforcement, and sometimes the blame lies with the citizen. Knowing how to respond to a police contact has never been more important. My attorney son (a former prosecutor and now defense attorney) recently delivered an address to the folks at Liberty Fellowship in Kalispell, Montana, entitled Police Contact: How To Respond. I believe EVERY citizen in the country needs to watch this video. It might even save some lives. I encourage readers to order at least two: one for themselves and one for a friend. To order the video presentation, Police Contact: How To Respond, go to: Police Contact: How To Respond DVD Related Articles: 1 - 'End Justifies the Means' and Ted Cruz 2 - Did Ted Cruz Succeed Fooling Iowa Voters With His Shaming Letter? WEDNESDAY, Feb. 3, 2016 (HealthDay News) -- Michelangelo, the renowned painter and sculptor, suffered from arthritis in his hands, but it's likely that his intense work helped him keep using his hands until he died, a team of doctors says. Chiseling and hammering probably accelerated the arthritis, the experts said. But, that activity also prolonged his ability to use his hands. The doctors examined three portraits of Michelangelo when he was between the ages of 60 and 65. All three paintings show that the small joints of his left hand have arthritis-related deformity. Earlier paintings show no such signs, the doctors said. Their conclusions were reported online Feb. 2 in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. "It is clear from the literature that Michelangelo was afflicted by an illness involving his joints. In the past, this has been attributed to gout, but our analysis shows this can be dismissed," lead author Dr. Davide Lazzeri, a specialist in plastic reconstructive and aesthetic surgery at the Villa Salaria Clinic in Rome, said in a journal news release. There are no signs of inflammation in Michelangelo's hands, Lazzeri noted. There's also no evidence of the small lumps of uric acid crystals that can form under the skin of people with gout, he explained. Letters written by Michelangelo reveal that his hand symptoms developed later in life. By 1552, he had great discomfort when writing. Eventually, he could no longer write and only signed his letters, the team said. Even so, he continued to create masterpieces and was still hammering up to six days before he died in 1564. That was just three weeks before his 89th birthday, they noted. "The diagnosis of osteoarthritis offers one plausible explanation for Michelangelo's loss of dexterity in old age and emphasizes his triumph over infirmity as he persisted in his work until his last days. Indeed, the continuous and intense work could have helped Michelangelo to keep the use of his hands for as long as possible," Lazzeri said. More information The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more about arthritis. [February 04, 2016] Personetics to Present Real-Time Personalised Digital Banking at Finovate Europe LONDON, February 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Premier event takes place in London February 9-10, bringing together leading FinTech innovators and financial institutions Personetics, the leading provider of personalised digital guidance solutions for the financial industry, has been selected to showcase its solution at Finovate Europe 2016 (London, February 9-10), widely considered to be Europe's premier FinTech event. Personetics helps over 15 million digital users of the world's leading financial institutions receive personalised, real-time, relevant guidance at each step along the customer journey. Used by some of the world's largest banks, the Personetics Predictive Analytics platform anticipates individual customer needs to deliver a uniqely engaging digital experience. "Finovate attracts Europe's most forward-thinking financial institutions. These organisations realise the urgency of providing personalised and useful information and guidance in order to remain relevant to their customers in the digital age," said Personetics Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer David Sosna. Personetics will demonstrate how its solution is used by leading banks worldwide to increase customer engagement, satisfaction, and response to offers. On-stage demonstration will take place Wednesday February 10th between 1:00-2:40 pm. The Personetics team will also be at hand to demonstrate the solution at the Finovate exhibit hall before and after the on-stage demo. ABOUT PERSONETICS Personetics helps over 15 million digital users of the world's leading financial institutions receive personalised, real-time, relevant guidance at each step along the customer journey. Accurately anticipating individual customer needs, the Personetics Predictive Analytics platform enables financial institutions to deliver a uniquely engaging digital experience. Working with leading financial services providers including three of the top fifteen global banks, Personetics delivers proven results elevating customer satisfaction, affinity, and trust. The company is led by a team of seasoned FinTech entrepreneurs with a proven track record, and was recently named to the KPMG FinTech 100 List, a 2014 Gartner Cool Vendor, and a Top 10 Company to Watch by American Banker. For more information, visit http://www.personetics.com. SOURCE Personetics [February 04, 2016] Are your friends killing your social (media) life? New social media platform promotes privacy, free expressionand better friendships For more media materials please visit: http://www.multivu.com/players/English/7752351-Just10/ TORONTO, Feb. 4, 2016 /CNW/ - Greater intimacy and happiness is possible on social media -- if you just dump most of your friends. That's the message this International Friendship Month (February) from a new social media platform launching today called Just10. A new University of Oxford study suggests that no matter how many online followers or friends, the average person has only has 4 REAL friends. One careless or ill-advised social media post can literally ruin your life or career, meaning many say little of substance for fear of recrimination. Just10 protects you by allowing you to choose just 10 friends and ensuring that all data disappears after 10 days. It will never make members' data public-facing or searchable; it's ad-free, and it will never sell or rent subscriber information. Just10 also takes free expression well past the "Like" button. It offers Meactions, commenting icons that allow for a range of emotions and responses to what people post. While there are stock Meactions available, unlike any other social network, people are also quickly and easily able to upload their own pictures, even of their own faces, so they can offer highly personalized and tailored responses and comments. Why settle for Reactions when you can have Meactions? "We felt that it was impossible for people to freely express themselves if everyone in the world is watching and judging," said Frederick Ghahramani, who over the past decade has built and invested in start-ups that have generated billions in product sales, but who is also a father, and mindful of the day his own kids will be online. "I don't want my kids' futures undone by something stupid they might say in the heat of the moment. And I want them to have a safe space online where they can freely express their ideas and opinions, without fear of being profiled and tracked by advertisers looking to exploit their data, hiring managers looking to profile their personalities, or even jealous exes." Reports of security breaches at major retailers, health insurance companies, and financial institutions are also a concern, along with online fraud, which costs billions every year in North America alone. Given the ubiquitous nature of end user data collection, and the default public nature of most social networks, some social media wounds are completely self-inflicted. Just10 is designed for anyone who does or should value privacy, including parents who don`t want to put their children at risk, anyone who has or wants a job, business people, activists and change makers, journalists, politicians, celebrities, and anyone else who might find that expressing a personal opinion or picture could come back to haunt them. It's also for anyone worried about their information being used against them by criminals through data breaches and internet fraud. Just10 is now open to everyone; its launch campaign features fun videos like this one: http://js.tn/MeBL9A and memes that highlight the dangers of oversharing on social media. In response to concerns about social media privacy, Just10 offers protections and restrictions other social media networks lack, leading to greater freedom of expression and intimacy amongst friends. Just10 is a safe place to share personal information because members choose only the 10 people they trust the most. Just10 will never advertise to its subscribers, nor will it ever sell or rent its subscribers' information. No posts are public-facing or searchable, and all data will disappear after 10 days. Just10 also features Meactions, which allow subscribers to upload pictures (including of their own faces with various expressions) to act as comment. For more information visit http://just10.com or download Just10 on your mobile phone. NOTE TO EDITORS: Excellent b-roll, art, campaign videos (cleared for editorial use), pre-recorded sound bite interview with Ghahramani (questions written out), campaign stills, full media kit etc. INTERVIEWS AVAILABLE with GHAHRAMANI, a privacy advocate who can offer consumer and business tips on protecting yourself online. Two ways to download EPK/media kit: Brandfolder: https://brandfolder.com/just10/ Dropbox: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ijd6mryic5vuj5v/AADL51Rgk_AHEk2w6tsMsJ37a?dl=0 Other Critical links: YouTube 1st video: http://js.tn/MeBL9A or https://youtu.be/OGOgVy54AOU Just10: http://just10.com SOURCE Just10 [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 04, 2016] Kinaxis Recognized As One of Ottawa's Top Employers Supply Chain Management Solutions Provider Recognized as a 2016 Great Place to Work OTTAWA, Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ - Kinaxis (TSX:KXS), provider of RapidResponse, delivering cloud-based SCM and S&OP applications, has been selected by the editors of Canada's Top 100 Employers as a National Capital Region Top Employer. The award is given to companies that offer the most progressive programs using criteria such as a strong social atmosphere, ongoing skills development, and community involvement, among others. "At Kinaxis, we're committed to helping revitalize Ottawa's high tech sector," said Megan Paterson, vice president of human resources at Kinaxis. "There's such a wealth of talent in this city and we're truly proud of the fact we've been able to utilize it. We're not only a Canadian company through and through, but an Ottawa one as well. We're looking to continue to hire from within our own backyard, offering employees meaningful work, as well as a fun and exciting work culture. I'm extremely honored that we have once again been distinguished as one of Ottawa's Top Employers." Founded and headquartered in Ottawa, Canada, the origins of Kinaxis date back to 1984. The product that has evolved to support today's RapidResponse applications was first introduced in 1995 and now represents one of the fastest growing, and most innovative, Supply Chain Panning Systems in the marketplace. A full list of recipients, including the reasons why Kinaxis and other companies were chosen, can be found online at Eluta.ca. For more information on career opportunities at Kinaxis, please visit the company's "careers" page: kinaxis.com/careers. There are a wide variety of opportunities available at Kinaxis including positions in product support, professional services, quality assurance, knowledge services, and software development. Kinaxis has received several employer awards, including being named one of Canada's Best Small & Medium Employers 2015, National Capital Region Top Employer 2015 and Canada's Best Employers for Young People 2015. Recognition of Kinaxis in the marketplace was validated with the following awards, among others: 2015 Supply Chain Pros to Know, 2015 100 Great Supply Chain Projects and 2015 Great Supply Chain Partner. For more Kinaxis news, follow Kinaxis on LinkedIn, Twitter, Google+ or Facebook. About Kinaxis Kinaxis is a leading provider of cloud-based subscription software that enables our customers to improve and accelerate analysis and decision-making across their supply chain operations. The supply chain planning and analytics capabilities of our product, RapidResponse, create the foundation for managing multiple, interconnected supply chain management processes. By using the single RapidResponse product instead of combining individual disparate software solutions, our customers gain visibility across their supply chains, can respond quickly to changing conditions, and ultimately realize significant operating efficiencies. SOURCE Kinaxis Inc. [February 04, 2016] Heat Sinks Market 15 Company Profiles and Global 2021 Development Trends PUNE, India, February 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Deepresearchreports.com adds Global Heat Sinks Industry 2016 Market Research Report to Electronics Section of its online business intelligence library. Global Heat Sinks Market 2016 Industry Research Report is spread across 151 pages, profiles 15 companies and the Heat Sinks market analysis in this study is supported with 298 tables and figures on the industry and its players. The complete report is available at http://www.deepresearchreports.com/151169.html . This is the latest Heat Sinks market study that is comprehensive in nature, details the current state of the industry while providing a basic overview of the industry including definitions, classifications, applications and industry chain structure. The Heat Sinks market analysis is provided for the international markets, including development trends, competitive landscape analysis, and key regions development status. Development policies and plans of Heat Sinks market are discussed as well as manufacturing processes and cost structures are analyzed. This report also states import/export consumption, supply and demand Figures, cost, price, revenue and gross margins. The report focuses on global major leading industry players of Heat Sinks market providing information such as company profiles, product picture and specification, capacity, production, price, cost, revenue and contact information. Upstream raw materials and equipment and downstream demand analysis is also carried out for the Heat Sinks market. The Heat Sinks industry development trends and marketing channels are analyzed. Finally the feasibility of new investment projects are assessed and overall research conclusions offered. With 298 tables and figures to support the Heat Sinks market analysis, this research provides key statistics on the state of the industry and is a valuable source of guidance an direction for companies and individuals interested in the market. The 15 companies profiled in this Heat Sinks market research include GE, Molex, TE Connectivity, Delta, Laird, Ohmite, Aavid Thermalloy, Sunon, Advanced Thermal Solutions, American Technical Ceramics, Apex Microtechnology, Comair Rotron, CUI, t-Global Technology and Wakefied-Vette. Order a copy of this Heat Sinks market 2016-2021 global report at http://www.deepresearchreports.com/contacts/purchase.php?name=151169 . A dedicated chapter on development trend of Heat Sinks market for 2016-2021 in this report covers data and information on capacity and production overview, production market share analysis, sales overview, supply, sales, and shortage, import, export and consumption as well as cost, price, revenue and gross margin of Heat Sinks. Explore more reports on the Electronics market at http://www.deepresearchreports.com/cat/electronics-market-research.html . Another research titled 2015 Global Heat Exchanger Industry forecasts the market analysis provided for the China markets including development trends, competitive landscape analysis, and key regions development status. With 204 tables and figures the report provides key statistics on the state of the industry and is a valuable source of guidance and direction for companies and individuals interested in the market. Key Manufacturers involved in this research are Alfa Laval, SPX, Tranter, API, Xylem Inc., GEA, Funke, Thermowave GmbH, Sondex A/S, Hisaka, FBM, Ormandy, Cipriani Scambiatori, LARSEN & TOUBRO, THT, LANZHOULS HEAT EXCHANGE EQUIPMENT, Siping ViEX, LANPEC and Accessen. This report focuses on China major leading industry players providing information such as company profiles, product picture and specification, capacity, production, price, cost, revenue and contact information. Upstream raw materials and equipment and downstream demand analysis is also carried out. The Heat Exchanger industry development trends and marketing channels are analyzed. Finally the feasibility of new investment projects are assessed and overall research conclusions offered. Order a copy of this 2015 Global Heat Exchanger industry research report at http://www.deepresearchreports.com/contacts/purchase.php?name=112890 . About Us: Deep Research Reports is digital database of syndicated market reports for global and China industries. These reports offer competitive intelligence data for companies in varied market segments and for decision makers at multiple levels in these organizations. We provide 24/7 online and offline support to our customers. Connect with us: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deepresearchreports Twitter: https://twitter.com/DResearchReport Google+: https://plus.google.com/117151957945248166335 Contact: Ritesh Tiwari UNIT no 802, Tower no. 7, SEZ Magarpatta city, Hadapsar Pune - 411013 Maharashtra, India. + 1 888 391 5441 [email protected] SOURCE Deep Research Reports [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 04, 2016] Molten Salt Thermal Energy Storage Market to Reach US$2.5 Billion by 2023, Focus on Renewable Energy and Effective Energy Storage to Drive Global Demand - Transparency Market Research ALBANY, New York, February 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- In current times, tapping into renewable energy sources and aiming for maximum utilization of the energy produced will be sustainable in the long-run, says a recent market study by Transparency Market Research (TMR). In this endeavor, to conserve energy for future use, the trend to store energy in specialty units has come to the fore, which has enabled the global molten salt thermal energy storage (TES) market's estimated rise at a phenomenal 24.70% CAGR from 2015 to 2023. The market had a valuation of US$266.2 million in 2014 and will be valued at US$2.5 billion by 2023, says the report. The report is titled "Molten Salt Thermal Energy Storage (TES) Market - Global Industry Analysis, Size, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast 2015 - 2023". Browse the full Research Report at http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/molten-salt-thermal-energy-storage-market.html The report says that worldwide, the need for sustainable energy solutions, wherein renewable energy and thermal energy storage technologies are important elements, is boosting the demand for thermal energy storage systems. Molten salt TES systems can be installed in buildings, districts, and towns, wherein energy generated can be conserved for future use. With the utilization of molten salt TES systems, the dependency on conventional energy sources reduces substantially and optimum efficiency of energy systems is attained, which in turn helps fill the demand-supply gap in the energy sector. Molten salt thermal energy storage will also curb energy demand and energy consumption by end users, thereby curbing carbon dioxide emissions. In the future, it is expected that the utilization of molten salt TES systems will increase the share of renewable energy in the overall power generation scenario, especially benefiting the wind and solar energy markets. For example, concentrating solar power (CSP) units are now installing thermal energy storage technologies such as molten salt, wherein stored energy is stored to provide electricity in the absence of sunlight. Currently, the molten salt TES market is on a fast growth trajectory due to the high reliability, high performance, and optimized cost of these systems. The use of the technology for the purpose of storing energy is suitable for a myriad end uses, which ranges from centralized energy distribution units in industries todistrict heating and cooling systems to power plants to energy distribution systems in residential and commercial buildings, and more. Get Sample Report, Segments or table of Contents as per your Requirements: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=B&rep_id=6478 The output of a thermal energy storage system, such as the molten salt one, is dependent on the number of users, applicability, operational needs, and the nature of the storage cycle. In order to bridge the energy supply and demand gap and to ensure electricity supply in off-grid areas, economies around the world are displaying an inclination towards the adoption of thermal energy storage technology, such as molten salt. Apart from North America and Europe, which already have TES systems in place in large numbers, the developing economies of Asia Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa also have high potential for the adoption of these technologies. In developing economies, the low construction cost of these units and high potential of the real estate sector will accentuate the growth of the molten salt TES market. Europe, led by Spain, was the largest market for molten salt TES market in 2014, with this hierarchy expected to continue in the next few years. Browse Research Article: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/article/molten-salt-thermal-energy-storage-market.htm Global Molten Salt Thermal Energy Storage Market: Regional Segment Analysis North America U.S. Rest of North America Europe Spain Rest of Europe Asia Pacific India China Japan Rest of Asia Pacific Middle East and Africa (MEA) South Africa Israel Morocco Rest of MEA Central and South America (CSA) Chile Brazil Browse Other Research Reports: Thermal Energy Storage Market: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/thermal-energy-storage-market.html Energy Storage Technologies Market: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/energy-storage-technologies-market.html About Us Transparency Market Research (TMR) is a global market intelligence company providing business information reports and services. The company's exclusive blend of quantitative forecasting and trend analysis provides forward-looking insight for thousands of decision makers. TMR's experienced team of analysts, researchers, and consultants use proprietary data sources and various tools and techniques to gather and analyze information. TMR's data repository is continuously updated and revised by a team of research experts so that it always reflects the latest trends and information. With extensive research and analysis capabilities, Transparency Market Research employs rigorous primary and secondary research techniques to develop distinctive data sets and research material for business reports. Contact Transparency Market Research Mr. Sudip S State Tower 90 State Street, Suite 700, Albany NY - 12207 United States Tel: +1-518-618-1030 USA - Canada Toll Free: 866-552-3453 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.transparencymarketresearch.com Blog: http://www.europlat.org/category/news/energy-industry-news SOURCE Transparency Market Research [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 04, 2016] Grosse Ile Police Department Exonerates Two Individuals Using Fixed License Plate Reader Cameras LIVERMORE, Calif., Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Vigilant Solutions announces today Grosse Ile Police Department in Michigan used its fixed license plate reader (LPR) cameras to exonerate two individuals from wrongdoing. Grosse Ile has Vigilant Solutions fixed license plate reader cameras monitoring one of the bridges to the island community to enhance the safety of its citizens. Based on recent successes, they are in the process of adding additional fixed LPR cameras to cover the other bridge onto the island. Lieutenant Robert Bow of Grosse Ile PD explains two separate cases in which the cameras were used to exonerate individuals from false accusations, "In the first instance, a woman had accused her ex-husband of vandalizing her vehicle. Upon questioning the suspect, he informed us that he had not been on the island during the time of the reported incident. We began investigating his alibi, and the data from the license plate reader cameras helped to support his claim. Upon querying his license plate in our system, we were able to confirm that his vehicle was not onthe island at the time of the crime. This data allowed investigators to focus on other suspects, and ultimately solve the case." "In another case, we had someone call the department claiming that a friend had held him at gunpoint and threatened him. The suspect denied the incident, and stated that he not been on the island at the time of the reported incident. Upon checking the LPR system, we were able to find data that supported this alibi. We then questioned the complainant on his accusation, at which point, he confessed to filing a false report in hopes of getting his friend in trouble." Lieutenant Bow concludes, "It is important to note that the LPR system is unable to place an individual in a vehicle it is anonymous in nature and only provides us with data points on the vehicle's location. Because of this, the LPR data was not sufficient by itself to exonerate these individuals. But, this data allowed investigators to better focus their efforts and exonerate these individuals and arrive at the truth." About Vigilant Solutions: Based in Livermore, California, Vigilant Solutions is an industry-leading pioneer of innovative intelligence solutions that help law enforcement protect officers, families and communities. For additional information, visit www.vigilantsolutions.com. Editorial contact: Brian Shockley, +1 (925) 398-2079 ext 731, [email protected] To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/grosse-ile-police-department-exonerates-two-individuals-using-fixed-license-plate-reader-cameras-300214339.html SOURCE Vigilant Solutions [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 04, 2016] Alliance Data Signs New Long-Term Agreement To Provide Consumer Credit Card Program For Boscov's, Largest U.S. Family-Owned Department Store Chain DALLAS, Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Alliance Data Systems Corporation (NYSE: ADS), a leading global provider of data-driven marketing and loyalty solutions, today announced its Columbus, Ohio-based card services business, a premier provider of branded private label, co-brand and commercial credit programs, has signed a new long-term agreement to provide private label credit card services for Boscov's Department Store, LLC. Based in Reading, Pennsylvania, Boscov's is the largest family-owned department store chain in the U.S., operating 44 stores throughout seven mid-Atlantic states and an online store (www.boscovs.com), providing a wide variety of brand-name apparel, footwear, cosmetics, jewelry and merchandise for the home. Alliance Data's industry-leading, data-driven marketing tools will deliver custom analytics and insights for Boscov's, increasing cardmember engagement and generating incremental sales. Boscov's will leverage Alliance Data's MyLoyalty App capabilities to support individualized customer engagement and increase value to cardmembers. The MyLoyalty App will be customized for a brand-immersive experience giving customers the ability to apply, earn and connect with Boscov's. In addition, Alliance Data has signed an agreement to purchase the existing Boscov's portfolio of private label credit card accounts, subject to customary closing conditions. The portfolio has a size of approximately $200 million. Alliance Data believes that the performance of the Boscov's credit card portfolio, once acquired, will be consistent with its overall private-label credit card portfolio, and all new private label credit card accounts will be consistent with Alliance Data's credit quality standards. Closing of the portfolio purchase is expected in Q1 2016. "For more than 100 years, Boscov's has been the department store of choice in the communities we serve, delivering value through our broad selection of quality merchandise, great pricing and exceptional customer service. We are confident we can further enrich the customer experience through an enhanced credit card program with Alliance Data," said Toni M. Miller, senior executive vice president, chief administrative officer and chief financial officer of Boscov's. "Through this new partnership, we look forward to leveraging Alliance Data's customer-centric retail heritage and proven credit and marketing tools to build even greater customer loyalty." Alliance Data will work with Boscov's to enhance the card program's features designed to recognize and reward cardmembers. The industry-leading value proposition will drive brand loyalty by rewarding cardmembers with benefits such as a first-purchase discount, exclusive savings and special events. Additionally, for every purchase through the multi-tiered Boscov's B Rewarded program, consumers will be rewarded with rewards point certificates redeemable on future purchases. "We are excited to begin our partnership with Boscov's, a beloved brand with a history of success and a like-minded approach to customer care and community giving," said Melisa Miller, president of Alliance Data's card services business. "Together we will elevate their outstanding credit program by enriching the value proposition to strengthen meaningful customer relationships, grow sales and extend brand loyalty." About Boscov's Boscov's is the largest, privately held family-owned Department Store in the United States with sales in excess of a billion dollars. With 44 stores in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Ohio, Connecticut and Delaware, as well as an online store (www.boscovs.com), Boscov's has been known for offering customers a broad selection of quality merchandise, honest pricing and superior service. Boscov's is unique in that it is committed to the communities it serves and has a long distinguished history of civic and charitable activities. Boscov's online store serves consumers across the country. About Alliance Data's card services business Alliance Data's card services business is a leading provider of tailored marketing and loyalty solutions, delivered through branded credit programs that drive more profitable relationships between our brand partners and their cardmembers. We offer private label, co-brand, and commercial products to many of the world's most recognizable brands across a multitude of channels. We uphold our Know more. Sell more. promise by leveraging unmatched customer insights, advanced analytics, and broad-reaching innovative capabilities. It's how we deliver increased sales to our partners, build enduring loyalty to their brands, and provide more value to our cardmembers. Alliance Data's card services business is a proud part of the Alliance Data enterprise. To learn more, visit www.knowmoresellmore.com or follow us on Twitter @Know_SellMore. About Alliance Data Alliance Data (NYSE: ADS) is a leading global provider of data-driven marketing and loyalty solutions serving large, consumer-based industries. The Company creates and deploys customized solutions, enhancing the critical customer marketing experience; the result is measurably changing consumer behavior while driving business growth and profitability for some of today's most recognizable brands. Alliance Data helps its clients create and increase customer loyalty through solutions that engage millions of customers each day across multiple touch points using traditional, digital, mobile and emerging technologies. An S&P 500 and Fortune 500 company headquartered in Plano, Texas, Alliance Data consists of three businesses that together employ more than 16,000 associates at approximately 100 locations worldwide. Alliance Data's card services business is a leading provider of marketing-driven branded credit card programs. Epsilon is a leading provider of multichannel, data-driven technologies and marketing services, and also includes Conversant, a leader in personalized digital marketing. LoyaltyOne owns and operates the AIR MILES Reward Program, Canada's premier coalition loyalty program, and holds a majority interest in Netherlands-based BrandLoyalty, a global provider of tailor-made loyalty programs for grocers. Follow Alliance Data on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube. Forward-Looking Statements This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Forward-looking statements give our expectations or forecasts of future events and can generally be identified by the use of words such as "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "intend," "project," "plan," "likely," "may," "should" or other words or phrases of similar import. Similarly, statements that describe our business strategy, outlook, objectives, plans, intentions or goals also are forward-looking statements. Examples of forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements we make regarding the expected performance of an acquired credit card portfolio. We believe that our expectations are based on reasonable assumptions. Forward-looking statements, however, are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the projections, anticipated results or other expectations expressed in this release, and no assurances can be given that our expectations will prove to have been correct. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, factors set forth in the Risk Factors section in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the most recently ended fiscal year, which may be updated in Item 1A of, or elsewhere in, our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q filed for periods subsequent to such Form 10-K. Our forward-looking statements speak only as of the date made, and we undertake no obligation, other than as required by applicable law, to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, subsequent events, anticipated or unanticipated circumstances or otherwise. Contact: Alliance Data Boscov's Tiffany Louder Investor Relations Toni Miller 214-494-3048 610-370-3440 [email protected] [email protected] Steve Calk FTI Consulting 212-850-5611 [email protected] Shelley Whiddon Media 214-494-3811 [email protected] Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20051024/ADSLOGO To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/alliance-data-signs-new-long-term-agreement-to-provide-consumer-credit-card-program-for-boscovs-largest-us-family-owned-department-store-chain-300215163.html SOURCE Alliance Data Systems Corporation [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 04, 2016] 'How to Pronounce Italian Wines' YouTube Series CHICAGO, Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Select Italy (http://selectitaly.com), the web-based boutique travel company, boasts an exclusive food & wine portfolio thanks to a partnership with distinguished and prestigious Italian wine brands. Select Italy's collaboration with Italy's finest wineries consists of vacation packages, winery visits, and exclusive stays in historic family's estates. In order to introduce travelers and wine lovers to the Italian wine families and territories, the travel company created an initiative called 'How to Pronounce Italian Wines,' involving its partner wineries and their protagonists. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160203/329510 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160203/329511LOGO "We are thrilled at the outcome of this initiative, and when our partner wineries started submitting their videos, it was wonderful to watch how much creativity they put in this project," says Beatrice Sartori, Internatinal Communication and Marketing Specialist at Select Italy. "Besides showing the pronunciation of Italy's finest wines, these videos demonstrate the passion and culture behind the Italian wine world and its families." The 'How to Pronounce Italian Wines' YouTube series is a collection of videos made by Select Italy and its partner wineries to share the correct pronunciation of Italian wines, while introducing the history and tradition of their territories. The videos were presented first in Select Italy's Blog, Espresso, and are now all available on the company's YouTube channel. The partner wineries that took part in Select Italy's initiative are: Cantine Ferrari, Tenute Lunelli, Cupano, Allegrini, Ricci Curbastro, Tenuta di Fessina, Tasca D'Almerita, Lamole di Lamole, Kettmeir, Santa Margherita, Falesco, Antinori, and Bastianich Winery. The 'How to Pronounce Italian Wines' video collection can be found on the company's YouTube channel. For more information about Select Italy, visit selectitaly.com or send an email to [email protected]. Press contact: Beatrice Sartori Toll-free: (800) 877-1755 Email About Select Italy Select Italy is The Ultimate Source for Travel to Italy and offers a wide array of superior Italian travel products and services, including customized itineraries, state-of-the-art tours and packages, wedding/honeymoon trips, unique culinary classes, a complete pre-departure ticketing service for museums and musical events, private guided services, yacht charters, transportation, hotel reservations, villa bookings and more. Through a vast network of suppliers and cultural contacts, anything and everything you need for optimum travel to Italy is possible with Select Italy. Based in Chicago with an office in New York and Shanghai and support staff in Italy, the company has expanded its offerings and travel services to the Balkans with the launch of Select Croatia. To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/how-to-pronounce-italian-wines-youtube-series-300215207.html SOURCE Select Italy [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 04, 2016] Intrusion into UCF Network Involves Personal Data ORLANDO, Fla., Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- An intrusion into the University of Central Florida's computer network has resulted in unauthorized access to certain personal information of some current and former students and employees. After UCF discovered the unauthorized access in January, university officials immediately reported the incident to law enforcement and launched an internal investigation with the assistance of a national digital forensics firm. To date, the investigation has determined unauthorized access to Social Security numbers -- but not credit card information, financial records, medical records or grades -- for approximately 63,000 current and former students, staff and faculty members. "Safeguarding your personal information is of the utmost importance at UCF," President John C. Hitt said in an email to the campus community this morning. "To ensure our vigilance, I have called for a thorough review of our online systems, policies and training to determine what improvements we can make in light of this recent incident. "Every day, people and groups attempt to illegally access secure data from institutions around the world. Higher education institutions are popular targts. UCF will continue to work diligently to protect this important information from those who would break the law to get it." UCF, which is notifying those impacted by the incident via letters that should be received the week of Feb. 8, is offering one year of free credit monitoring and identity-protection services for affected individuals. UCF has established a web page www.ucf.edu/datasecurity with details about the incident, including the groups of current and former students and employees involved and recommendations for those impacted. UCF also has established a call center, available at 877-752-5527 from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday. Spanish-speaking operators also are available. UCF has already begun taking actions to enhance user account and password security and strengthen data security processes and protocols on the university's computer network. The university also will expand information-security education and training. Contact: Chad Binette, UCF News & Information, 407-823-6312, [email protected] America's Partnership University: The University of Central Florida, the nation's second-largest university with 63,000 students, has grown in size, quality, diversity and reputation in its first 50 years. Today, the university offers more than 200 degree programs at its main campus in Orlando and more than a dozen other locations. UCF is an economic engine attracting and supporting industries vital to the region's future while providing students with real-world experiences that help them succeed after graduation. For more information, visit http://www.ucf.edu. To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/intrusion-into-ucf-network-involves-personal-data-300215293.html SOURCE University of Central Florida [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 04, 2016] Tesla Motors' CEO Elon Musk Confirmed the Concept of Mobile Batteries as Range Extenders PALO ALTO, California and STUTTGART, Germany, February 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Tesla Motors' CEO Elon Musk confirmed thinking about the concept of mobile batteries as range extenders - Nomadic Power will achieve series readiness in 2016 Nomadic Power will offer Nomads as range-extenders for rental at major arterial roads across the country. If you are a San Francisco-based owner of a BEV and decide to go to Los Angeles, you can 'hook up' a Nomad at an Autobahn station just outside San Francisco, drop it off at a station outside Los Angeles, and then have the freedom and "lightness" of a small car in the target city. (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160204/329664 )/p> "We are delighted, that Tesla Motors' CEO Elon Musk is thinking about a concept like ours for even more extending the range of the Tesla models. We're working on that concept with support from European Union and German government and will achieve series maturity very soon," says Nomadic Power's CEO Manfred Baumgaertner. "This confirms our approach to build a long distance mobility provider for all electric vehicles on the market." Nomadic Power is a high-tech company from Germany, with a development center in Stuttgart. Nomadic Power develops and markets mobile energy systems for decentralized storage and mobile use of electric energy. - Cross reference: Picture is available at AP Images (http://www.apimages.com) - Links: http://www.nomadic-power.com https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Off7830aMp0&feature=youtu.be&t=16m4s Contact: Yuliya Rogachevska Director PR and Investor Relations +49-711-782395-6976 [email protected] SOURCE Nomadic Power GmbH [February 04, 2016] Honeywell Acquires Xtralis, A Leader of Early Fire and Intrusion Detection Technologies MELVILLE, N.Y., Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Honeywell (NYSE: HON) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Xtralis, a leading global provider of aspirating smoke detection along with advanced perimeter security technologies and video analytics software, for $480 million from funds advised by Pacific Equity Partners and Blum Capital Partners. Xtralis aspirating smoke detection solutions protect many Fortune 500 companies, iconic sites and critical infrastructures worldwide. They are used in data centers, historical buildings, airports, industrial sites and manufacturing facilities to provide very early warning and verification of threats to speed response time and minimize facility damages and potential injuries. "This acquisition fits perfectly with Honeywell's technology innovation and leadership," said Alex Ismail, president and CEO of Honeywell Automation and Control Solutions. "Xtralis' early smoke detection and advanced security technologies and video analytics software complement our growing Security and Fire business, and show our commitment to making the world safer and more secure." The company is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, with approximately 500 employees across Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific and the Americas, and has more than 30 years of fire and security experience. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2016 subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals. "Xtralis is a fantastic addition to the Honeywell portfolio that strengthens our offering for critical infrastructure and high-value assets," said David Paja, prsident, Honeywell Security and Fire. "Eliminating downtime for an IT data center is mission critical considering that the average revenue loss due to a fire or smoke is more than $5 million a week1. The addition of Xtralis to our portfolio enhances our ability to meet the needs of our customers for early and reliable smoke detection." The company pioneered the development of very early warning technology that can detect smoke in a facility at an early stage of a fire, which gives emergency responders precious additional time to help prevent or minimize physical damage and injury. Upon completion of the acquisition, Xtralis will become part of Honeywell Security and Fire, a business unit of Honeywell Automation and Control Solutions. Honeywell Security and Fire is a leading global manufacturer of electronic security and life safety technologies for commercial buildings, industrial sites and homes worldwide. 1 Source: Aberdeen Group, "Datacenter Downtime: How Much Does It Really Cost?", March 2012 About Honeywell Honeywell (www.honeywell.com) is a Fortune 100 diversified technology and manufacturing leader, serving customers worldwide with aerospace products and services; control technologies for buildings, homes, and industry; turbochargers; and performance materials. For more news and information on Honeywell, please visit www.honeywellnow.com. This release contains certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, that address activities, events or developments that we or our management intends, expects, projects, believes or anticipates will or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements. Such statements are based upon certain assumptions and assessments made by our management in light of their experience and their perception of historical trends, current economic and industry conditions, expected future developments and other factors they believe to be appropriate. The forward-looking statements included in this release are also subject to a number of material risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to economic, competitive, governmental, and technological factors affecting our operations, markets, products, services and prices. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance, and actual results, developments and business decisions may differ from those envisaged by such forward-looking statements. We identify the principal risks and uncertainties that affect our performance in our Form 10-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/honeywell-acquires-xtralis-a-leader-of-early-fire-and-intrusion-detection-technologies-300215659.html SOURCE Honeywell [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] I know what I know. Somehow, what I see is different from what other people see. Some of the $2.1 billion arms contracts cash have been traced to the accounts of wives and children of some former and serving military c... Some of the $2.1 billion arms contracts cash have been traced to the accounts of wives and children of some former and serving military chiefs,The Economic and Finanacial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which is probing how the money was spent, may restrict access to all the identified accounts this week, a source said yesterday.Also yesterday, a former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, reported to the EFCC.But his invitation was rescheduled for Monday because of operational reasons.It was learnt that the EFCC may interrogate Air Chief Marshal Badeh alongside some military officers who have also been invited.A source close to the investigation said some of the former and serving officers under investigation acquired properties in the names of their wives, children and relations to hide their loot.The source said: Our investigators have uncovered that some of these military officers under probe stashed their shares of the $2.1billion arms cash in the accounts of their relations, especially wives and children.We have traced such slush funds and we may freeze these accounts until we have screened the inflows and expenditures. The legitimately operated accounts will be freed after thorough screening.Besides, some houses belonging to the children and relations of some military chiefs have been identified as products of proceeds of financial crimes. We have already marked the properties of one of the children of a top military brass. We have invoked Temporary Assets Forfeiture Clause in EFCC Act, the source said.It is obvious that some of the arms cash were laundered through proxies, relations and phony companies. Some even registered companies in the names of their spouses or families.Responding to a question, the source added: We have done enough ground work to interrogate some of these former and serving military chiefs.Air Chief Marshal Badeh appeared briefly at the EFCC but his interrogation was shifted to Monday.We have also summoned most of the former and serving military officers referred to EFCC for probe, another source said.Attempts to get Air Chief Marshal Badeh last night were unsuccessful.Apart from the former CDS, others under investigation are Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal M.D. Umar; a former National Security Adviser, Col. Sambo Dasuki ; Col. N. Ashinze , who was the Special Military Assistant to the ex-NSA; and a former Chief of Air Staff, A.N. Amosu; the most senior Air Force officer, AVM A. M. Mamu(the Chief of Administration); AVM O.T.Oguntoyinbo (former Director of Production, Defence Headquarters); AVM R.A. Ojuawo (Air Officer Tactical Air Command, Makurdi; AVM J.B. Adigun(former Chief of Accounts and Budgeting in NAF); and AVM JA Kayode-Beckley(Director, Armament Research in Air Force Research and Development Centre); AVM T Omenyi (MD, NAF Holdings)four top officers at the Defence Headquarters(DHQ), Air Cdre AO Ogunjobi; Air Cdre GMD Gwani; Air Cdre SO Makinde; and Air Cdre AY LassaSome of the areas of investigation are: The directorate of Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has accused Justice John Tsoho of the Abuja Federal High Court 3 of bias for rulin... The directorate of Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has accused Justice John Tsoho of the Abuja Federal High Court 3 of bias for ruling that their leader, Nnamdi Kanu will not be granted bail based on reasons that Kanu was a threat to national security; that if released, he might commit the same offence again and that there was a probability that he might jump bail because he possessed dual citizenship.Faults reasons for bail denialIn a press statement issued yesterday from its London headquarters, via e-mail, signed by its spokespersons, Emma Nmezu and Dr. Clifford Chukwuemeka Iroanya, IPOB said for denying Kanu bail based on these three cardinal points, the ruling of the judge was inappropriate, biased, wrong, and must be overturned by an Appeal court Judge.According to the statement, While the first and the third reasons are very clear, we are at loss with the second reason and do not know exactly what the Hon. Justice meant by might commit the same offence again.To the best of our knowledge, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu has not even been tried in court not to talk of being convicted to have warranted the judge saying that he might commit the same offence again.Therefore, we do not understand the offence he was found guilty of committing and for which he will likely commit again if released, as Justice John Tsoho mentioned in his ruling.The statement asked rhetorically: Is there a possibility that Justice John Tsoho misspoke or that he never actually uttered this travesty of a statement? On the first reason adduced that Kanu was a threat to national security, we are yet to get detailed information on what the Judge meant by threat to national security because we know that Kanu is not associated with Boko Haram or any terrorist organization and as such, we, again are pushed to believe that Justice Tsoho misspoke.Finally, on the third reason, we are shocked to hear that a denial of bail will be based on the accused persons dual citizenship. Even though the Judge did not mention the other country to which Kanu is a citizen, we know he was referring to Britain. But we also know that there is extradition agreement between Nigeria and Britain and extraditing Kanu to Nigeria should he flee to Britain will not be a problem for the Nigerian government, so long as the extradition agreement between the two countries is still intact. The Presidency has risen in defence of President Muhammadu Buhari, saying he has achieved a lot in the area of fighting corruption in the... The Presidency has risen in defence of President Muhammadu Buhari, saying he has achieved a lot in the area of fighting corruption in the seven months of his administration.The Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, said this in a statement on Wednesday.Shehu was reacting to a recent report by the Centre for Democracy and Development which claimed that Buhari had only achieved one out of his 222 tracked electoral promises, representing 0.5 per cent of the promises.The CDD had based its report on critical sectors such as security, the economy, fighting corruption, oil and gas, agriculture, and social and environmental sectors.But the presidential spokesman said it was mischievous to attribute to the President promises he did not make during the campaigns and hold him accountable.While advising leaders of the CDD to rise above what he called petty partisanship and stop misleading Nigerians, Shehu said any unbiased person would recognise the achievement so far made by Buhari in curbing corruption.According to him, no sincere Nigerian will fail to recognise the courage of the President to tackle corruption in a country where impunity was once celebrated.The presidential spokesman added that within seven months, Buhari had successfully blocked the leakages in the system.He said as a result of these efforts, the Nigeria Customs Service had quadrupled its revenue base within seven months, a feat the service could not achieve in years.Doesnt the President deserve credit for this and other efforts to confront the monster of corruption? Shehu asked.On the economy, he said it was wrong to blame the President for the falling oil prices in the world market, a challenge which he said had made Buhari lay emphasis on economic diversification.He recalled that President Barack Obama of the United States had inherited an economy in crisis in 2009 and was not judged in his first seven months in office.Shehu explained that in the case of Buhari, it was a double tragedy because he inherited an economy in crisis on account of declining oil revenues and an economy also ravaged by large-scale corruption.He, however, said progress was being made in recovering the nations stolen funds.He said an escrow account had been opened for that purpose.Shehu added, He (Buhari) is making good strides towards improving governance by tackling corruption. Till date, a good number of persons believed to have collectively stolen billions from taxpayers have been arrested and are facing the courts.We are working with our allies across the world from Britain and America to France and Germany to China and the UAE to source, locate and repatriate misappropriated funds.So far, an escrow account has been opened for money that is being returned. This is only the start. The return of stolen funds is important, but it is just as critical to ensure that those who seek to steal realise that no longer will there be such impunity in Nigeria.He said Buharis war against corruption and terrorism had become a template for Africa and the rest of the world.The presidential spokesman said it was, however, ironic that at home, some individuals were not prepared to give these successes the recognition they deserved.Shehu said, The latest CDD episode is a shocking reminder to their failed attempt to hold the President to 100 promises in 100 days which disastrously crashed on the head of the proponent.The elevation of the act to a new high of 220 promises is a knee-jerk reaction that seeks to play to the gallery and score points against the President. A Chief Magistrate Court in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital has ordered the State Commissioner of Police to arrest the former State Se... A Chief Magistrate Court in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital has ordered the State Commissioner of Police to arrest the former State Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr Temitope Aluko over alleged perjury.Chief Magistrate Adesoji Adegboye gave the order on Wednesday, upon a Motion Ex-parte number MAD/10cm/2016, filed by the Ekiti State Government against Mr Aluko and the State Commissioner of Police, pursuant to Section 117 of the Criminal Code Law, Cap C16, law of Ekiti State 2012, Section 79 of the Ekiti State Administration of Criminal Justice Law 2014 and Section 23 (D) of the Magistrates Courts Law 2014.In the Motion, which was filed and moved by the State Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), Mr Gbemiga Adaramola, an order of the court was sought to issue warrant of arrest against Mr Aluko to be executed by the State Commissioner of Police for the purpose of committing him (Aluko) for trial for the offence of perjury.Chief Magistrate Adegboye said the order was granted as a means for the first defendant (Aluko) to attend the court for defence.The matter was premised upon an application to the State Attorney General by a lawyer, Mr Sunday Olowolafe, calling for the prosecution of Mr Aluko for alleged perjury.The legal practitioner said; I hereby apply to your office that Dr Temitope Kolawole Aluko be arrested and sued for perjury in view of the interview recently granted on Channels Television by 8:00pm on Sunday 31 January, 2016.The said Dr Temitope Kolawole Aluko now recanted the evidence he gave in the cause of the hearing of the Ekiti State Governorship Election Petition as a star witness even up to the Supreme Court. The Certified True Copy of the State on Oath, evidence of Dr. Temitope Kolawole Aluko in Court on the 12/11/14 and Nigerian Tribune and The Punch newspapers of Monday, 01/02/2016 that reported the interview granted are hereto attached.It is to be noted that if this act (Perjury) is not looked into, it will definitely defile the cause of justice and consequently rubbish the judicial proceedings.In the affidavit filed in support of the motion ex-parte by Special Assistant to the State Governor on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, he said Mr Aluko, who was a witness before the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sworn to a Statement on Oath on August 4, 2014 wherein he stated that the Election was not only free and fair, but devoid of violence, thuggery, hooliganism, snatching of ballot boxes, and related forms of electoral disorderliness.Olayinka further averred that Mr Aluko tendered and adopted his Statement on Oath on November 12, 2014 and further gave evidence under cross examination.He stated that all what Aluko said on Channels Television on Sunday, January 31, 2016 were contrary to and opposite in direction to his evidence before the Ekiti State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal.Issuing the warrant of arrest against Mr Aluko, Chief Magistrate Adegboye said since the court had the power to grant the order and it will serve the interest of justice, the State Commissioner of Police should arrest Aluko for the purpose of investigating and prosecuting him. The former Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ekiti State, Dr. Temitope Aluko, has declared that he is not aware of any ... The former Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ekiti State, Dr. Temitope Aluko, has declared that he is not aware of any warrant of arrest issued against him by an Ado Ekiti Chief Magistrates Court or any court for alleged perjury.Dr. Aluko said the rushing to the court by Governor Ayo Fayose and his cronies was part of a grand plan to hold him down and poison him after two attempts have been made on his life in the last 96 hours.He also revealed that he had uncovered an alleged plot to set his houses in Ekiti ablaze. He also defended his integrity while in the employ of the Ekiti State University (EKSU) denying the governments allegation that he was involved in certificate racketeering.Speaking in a telephone chat Wednesday night, Dr. Aluko said he made the revelation on the Ekiti governorship poll as a patriotic Nigeria who wants democratic structures strengthened.The whistleblower drew the attention of Nigerians to the fact that Fayose and his henchmen are just attacking the messenger and not addressing the message.According to him, the revelation he has just made happened before the June 21, 2014 poll as against what he told the court as the state PDP secretary.Aluko said: I was not in court and I am not aware of any court order. In fact, they have made attempts on my life twice in the last 96 hours and if they are now talking about warrant of arrest, maybe it is to try their ability to bring me down so as to be able to poison me.Nigerians should know that these people are just attacking the messenger they are not addressing the message.The document (witness statement on oath) taken there (tribunal) was signed by the Secretary of the party (PDP) and that was in guiding the interest of the party. It was talking about Saturday, June 21, 2014 election while I am telling the story before June 21, 2014 election and there is no conflict about my position.One was talking about June 21, 2014 election, that day, Saturday while Dr. Temitope Aluko is now telling Nigerians about what happened pre-Saturday, June 21, 2014. I am now telling Nigerians what transpired before the election.So, I stand by what I said. I dont know why they are making attempts on my life. By their rushing to the Magistrates Court, it is still part of their funny doings.I have nothing to be afraid of as a patriotic Nigerian, I owe it a duty to tell Nigerians what transpired so that we can deepen our democratic structures. I am not aware of any warrant of arrest.It is only the guilty that are afraid, resorting to self-help. All these moves are pointing to a sinister objective because Dr. Tope Aluko is talking about the pre-June 21, 2014 election day and it is separate from the PDP State Secretarys position of June 21, 2014 election day.The information available to me indicates that they are planning to set my houses in Ekiti ablaze and if anything like that happens, people should know whom to hold responsible.Reacting to Fayoses media aide, Lere Olayinkas allegation that he (Aluko) was collecting money from gubernatorial aspirants using his position as the PDP secretary, Aluko said the allegation was in bad taste. Telecommunications giant MTN has hired a former United States Attorney General Eric Holder to help challenge the $3.9 billion fine impos... Telecommunications giant MTN has hired a former United States Attorney General Eric Holder to help challenge the $3.9 billion fine imposed by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) for failing to disconnect unregistered users, the Financial Times reported yesterday.Citing people familiar with the situation, the newspaper said Holder, the immediate past U.S. top law officer, pleaded with Nigerian officials last month on behalf of the telecoms company.Africas largest mobile phone company was handed a $5.2billion penalty last October, prompting weeks of lobbying that led to a 25 per cent reduction to $3.9 billion.MTN, however, was still not prepared to pay the fine and launched a court challenge in December, saying the Nigerian telecoms regulator had no legal grounds to order the penalty.A Federal High Court judge sitting in Lagos last month gave MTN until March 18 to try to reach a settlement over the fine, which equates to more than twice MTNs annual average capital spending over the past five years.MTN spokesperson Chris Maroleng was not immediately available to comment.Holder, who led the US Justice Department from 2009 to2015, was one of President Barack Obamas longest-serving cabinet members. He returned to the law firm Covington & Burling, where he was previously a partner from 2001 to 2009. The Nigerian military is collaborating with its counterpart in the Republic of Benin to free an oil vessel, MT LEON DIAS, which was hija... The Nigerian military is collaborating with its counterpart in the Republic of Benin to free an oil vessel, MT LEON DIAS, which was hijacked off the Nigerian coast on Friday by suspected militants, believed to be supporters of the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu.The pro-Biafran hijackers had also threatened to blow up the ship, which is said to have five foreign crew members, after 31 days, if the Federal Government failed to release Kanu.Kanu is being prosecuted by the Department of State Services for running an illegal organisation (IPOB); threatening to break away from Nigeria to create an independent country; and importing radio transmitters and making inciting and seditious statements, while his co-accused persons had been charged with possession of firearms.The Acting Director of Defence Information, Brig. Gen. Rabe Abubakar, had told newsmen on Tuesday that the ship was seized about 7.5 nautical miles off the Port of Cotonou in Benin Republic.Dismissing the threat of the hijackers, however, Abubakar had threatened that the military would deal decisively with those he called criminals and saboteurs.Abubakar, in an interview with one of our correspondents on Wednesday, confirmed an ongoing collaboration between the two neighbouring countries but did not elaborate.The Defence Headquarters spokesperson said the military and other security agencies were making efforts to rescue the hijacked ship, without giving details.Abubakar said, The military and other security agencies are making efforts in that direction.But a military source, who confided in one of our correspondents, said the Nigerian Navy was collaborating with its counterpart in Benin Republic in the ongoing efforts to retrieve the hijacked vessel.The top military source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, explained that the militants held hostage a crew of five foreigners.Investigation revealed that the crew members were from the Philippines, Russia, Ukraine and Georgia.The military officer said the Nigerian Navy was involved in an exchange of information and intelligence with the Navy of Benin Republic.He added, One thing you must note is that the vessel in not in the Nigerian territorial waters. None of the crew members is a Nigerian.However, efforts are in top gear; we are exchanging information and intelligence with the Navy of Benin Republic.They are watching the tanker because it is in their territorial waters, 7.5 nautical miles off the coast of Cotonou.Reports had claimed that the 31-day ultimatum by the militants was given at the weekend by one General Ben, who is believed to be a Niger Delta militant.A factional leader of the Movement for the Actualisation of a Sovereign State of Biafra, Uchenna Madu, had equally explained that the said General Ben was one of the Niger Delta militants, who had volunteered to join forces with the secessionists groups.Ben is not a separatist but some Niger Delta militants have shown interest in working with us, said Madu.But Abubakar had, on Tuesday, contended that there were no more Niger Delta militants, describing the hijackers as criminals.He had stated, I must add that on this issue of militancy, there are no more militants now, what we have are criminals. The Amnesty programme has taken care of the militants.The military will treat those behind such acts as criminal and saboteurs; the law will take its course; the security agencies will do their job. The Vice-President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, has said the masses in the country will not suffer under President Muhammadu Buharis administr... The Vice-President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, has said the masses in the country will not suffer under President Muhammadu Buharis administration.He said this on Wednesday at Ota, in Ado Odo/Ota Local Government Area of Ogun State, during a brief reception held for him by the state government in continuation of the 40th anniversary of the state and the inauguration of 40 projects.The vice-president, who noted that the government was aware of the challenges facing Nigerians, most especially youth unemployment, said as soon as the 2016 budget is signed into law, the government would start implementing its campaign promises.He said, We will implement all our campaign promises. We will create jobs for the unemployed youths. We shall create 500,000 jobs for volunteer teachers. They will be trained and employed.We also have programmes for market men and women and artisans. We will give them soft loans to boost their business. The masses were those that voted for us, the masses will not suffer under this administration.President Buhari had earlier inaugurated five projects during his two-day visit to the state which ended on Tuesday.Earlier, the VP had inaugurated a newly-constructed road in Ayetoro, in the Yewa-North Local Government Area of the state, and three other projects in Ota and Sagamu.Also at the brief reception held for him at Ayetoro, he restated governments commitment to fight corruption, stressing that corrupt persons would not be spared.Osinbajo, who represented the President, said corruption which had ravaged the country, had made it impossible for government at all levels to provide the necessary infrastructure.He lamented that if not for the high incidence of corruption that had ravaged the nations economy, Nigerians would not have been suffering.Osinbajo, who spoke in Yoruba, said, The development of our country should be of utmost importance to all of us. We should continue to proclaim it loud that corruption should not be tolerated. We have to keep saying it everywhere that no corrupt person would go scot-free.Whoever is involved and whatever his status is, he must answer for such wrongdoing. We have to keep proclaiming that everywhere.The Federal Government wants to do more for Nigerians, especially in the area of micro-finance and micro-credit schemes but corruption has been the bane of our development. We need money to do all these things.Osinbajo urged the people to continue to support Governor Ibikun Amosun in his bid to develop the state while he advised the state government to ensure an even development of all the parts of the state.At Ado Odo/Ota Local Government, he inaugurated the Ilo-Awela dual carriage road constructed by the Amosun-led administration. The Senate Committee on Niger Delta on Wednesday summoned the Accountant-General of the Federation to appear before it over the non-remi... The Senate Committee on Niger Delta on Wednesday summoned the Accountant-General of the Federation to appear before it over the non-remittances of some Federal Government agencies contributions to the Niger Delta Development Commission.The Chairman of the committee, Senator Peter Nwaoboshi, gave the directive when the managements of the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas and Ecological Fund Office appeared before the Senate panel to explain reasons why they were not making their obligations to the NDDC.Nwaoboshi said the amount due for payment to the NDDC from the NLNG and the EFO which they refused to pay in the last 16 years was colossal. He insisted that they had by their action, disobeyed the nations laws.He said, The next step the committee would take now is to invite the Accountant-General of the Federation and investigate the matter to know why the two agencies of the government had not been remitting what is due to the NDDC to it.The senator explained that the committee was conducting a holistic investigation into the activities of the NDDC, especially on why they were not performing well despite the huge resources at their disposal.What we want to do is to find out first, the claims in some quarters that colossal amount had been given to the people of Niger Delta region, through the NDDC. Hence there is nothing on the ground.We want to know how much the agency had received so far from year 2000 to date? What are the projects they had executed with the money?We want to know those who were contributing to the agency. We have asked the Managing Director of the NLNG, Mr. Babs Omotowa, and he said that they have not been contributing money to the NDDC.They showed us a Supreme Court judgement which described the NLNG as a gas processing company and that there is a Gas Act that came before that of NDDC Act. They argued that the NDDC Act has not repealed the Gas Act.Nwaoboshi said the NLNG claimed that the Gas Act had given them tax holiday and that they had been carrying out their corporate social responsibilities in their host communities within the Niger Delta region.He said, We are lawmakers and we are going to revisit the two Acts. We will go into the root of the matter. We dont just make laws for the purpose of making it. Laws are meant to be obeyed. If government agencies and institutions refused to obey the law, why do we talk about the rule of law? Laws made by the National Assembly should be obeyed.Nwaoboshi said everybody had been complaining that the NDDC was not performing but they did not know that the agency had not been receiving its dues, especially from the oil companies.He said the oil companies were supposed to pay three per cent of their budget to the NDDC but that they were giving less than that.He said, When they came before our committee, I read out the Act to them and some of them started apologising. They said they thought that they were supposed to pay three per cent of the projects that they execute in their communities. There has been total disregard and disrespect for the NDDC Act and nobody will allow that.The Permanent Secretary, Ecological Fund Office, Mr. Mohammed Abass, told the committee that the NDDC was supposed to receive its funding from the states and local governments share of the fund. Al Jazeera investigates the worlds biggest alcohol consumer South Korea consumes more liquor than anywhere else in the world Se... Al Jazeera investigates the worlds biggest alcohol consumerSouth Koreans drink more liquor than anywhere else on the planet, according to an upcoming documentary on Al Jazeera. 101 East: South Koreas Hangover travels to Seoul to experience the nightlife in this work hard, party harder culture, as well as the fallout after closing time.Presenter Steve Chao explains, The government estimates one and a half million Koreans are alcoholics thats twice the worldwide average Americans consume on average about three shots of hard liquor a week. Russians six. Here in South Korea, people per week down a total of fourteen shots South Koreans drink seven million bottles of Soju every night. The drink of choice in South Korea, Soju is a fermented-rice spirit with an alcohol content of 20 percent.With the cost of policing drunks and medically treating them topping 20 billion US dollars last year, 101 East: South Koreas Hangover asks whether the cap can be put back on the Soju bottle.South Koreas Hangover screens on Al Jazeera English on 7 February 2016 at 1830 CAT on 101 East, Al Jazeeras multi-award-winning weekly current affairs programme focusing on a diverse range of stories and investigations from across Asia and the Pacific. The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, has described the Supreme Court judgment which upheld ... The National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, has described the Supreme Court judgment which upheld the election of Nyesom Wike as governor of Rivers State as shocking.Odigie-Oyegun said this while receiving a delegation of party members from Rivers State in Abuja on Wednesday.According to him, the judgment shows that there is something fundamentally wrong with the nations judiciary.The party chairman said, I still find the judgment on the Rivers State governorship election totally astonishing. There is something fundamentally wrong in the Judiciary.We have lost very important resource-rich states to the PDP. No matter how crude oil prices have fallen, it is still the most important revenue earner for the country.There is obviously something fundamentally wrong in Rivers state which needs to be investigated and addressed.Odigie-Oyegun assured the visiting party leaders that the APCs national leadership had not neglected the partys supporters in Rivers State.He noted that the state has always been in the front burner of discussions and decision in the party.He told the delegation that their visit has had a sober effect on him adding that the meeting with party leaders from the state will kick start urgent actions to address what went wrong.Odigie-Oyegun lamented what he called attempts by the Independent National Electoral Commission to bar the APC from elections in Anambra and other states which he said the party was trying to address.He assured the delegation that he would take up their request to facilitate a meeting with the President. HACKENSACK -- A judge on Thursday reduced the bail of an Edgewater man charged with fatally stabbing a 16-year-old. Judge James J. Guida set bail for Khari Noerdlinger, 19, at $300,000, with no option to pay 10 percent cash, down from the original $500,000. Noerdlinger is charged with aggravated manslaughter, weapon possession and hindering apprehension in the death of Savion Lewallen, of Spring Valley, N.Y. Noerdlinger stabbed Lewallen in an altercation Sunday night near his home in Edgewater. Noerdlinger's attorney Jeffrey Lichtman had argued for bail to be reduced to $75,000. Lichtman said Lewallen and four other people traveled from Rockland County to rob Noerdlinger. "He was attacked, he was beaten to the ground, he was injured," Lichtman said. Grootenboer has said that Lewallen and Noerdlinger worked together as drug dealers and that Lewallen believed Noerdlinger owed him money. Police found drug packaging material in Noerdlinger's bedroom that matched material found at the scene of the stabbing, she said. Lichtman submitted several letters written by community members supporting a reduced bail, and referred frequently in court to the people who showed up to support Noerdlinger, including his mother Rachel Noerdlinger, a former aide to New York City First Lady Chirlene McCray. Lichtman acknowledged that Noerdlinger has been arrested before, but said he's never missed a court date or been convicted. "He's not going anywhere, judge. "He's never gone anywhere in any of this other cases." The family of Lewallen was also in court, across the aisle from Noerdlinger's supporters. Danielle Grootenboer, acting senior assistant Bergen County Prosecutor, asked for bail to stay at $500,000. She showed Guida a picture of the 7.5-inch knife found hidden in the box spring of his bed. She also said the prosecution had a cell phone video that showed Noerdlinger at a gathering, hours after the stabbing, smoking marijuana. When Noerdlinger returned home Monday morning, Edgewater Police were at the scene, Grootenboer said. At the early point in the investigation, they let him return to his house, around the corner from the scene, she said, and sent an electronic message to a friend saying he had gotten past them. "Khari Noerdlinger did not call the police, did not reach out to these many members of the community who have put their reputations on the line," Grootenboer said. Lichtman said Rachel Noerdlinger would put up the bail. The Bergen County Prosecutor's Office must review a bail source questionnaire she filled out before Noerdlinger is released. He'll likely stay another night in Bergen County Jail, Lichtman said. The four people who traveled to Edgewater with Lewallen, Mirleny Tremols, 33, Kevensky Lubin, 18, Richard Jean-Pierre, 18, and Calim Gaspard, 23, are charged with armed robbery. They're each being held on $750,000 bail. As part of his bail conditions, Noerdlinger may not contact the family of the victim, must undergo regular drug tests, report weekly to probation and not possess weapons or drugs. Myles Ma may be reached at mma@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MylesMaNJ. Find NJ.com on Facebook. PIP Police at Ross Dock Authorities said Ross Dock was closed after Palisades Interstate Parkway Police recovered a body along the Hudson River on Feb. 4, 2016 (PIP Police) ( ) -- Investigators have found no signs of foul play in the death of a man whose , along the Hudson River shoreline Thursday morning, police said. Investigators with the Bergen County Sheriff's Office matched fingerprints from the man and developed a "tentative" identification, the Palisades Interstate Parkway police said in a statement. The man's name was not yet released. The man was between 40 to 50 years old, according to police. He was dead for the last 24 to 48 hours before being discovered. Officers responded to a 9-1-1 call around 11:15 a.m. reporting a body on the shore, near Ross Dock, an area in the Palisades Interstate Park. The site is just north of the George Washington Bridge. Port Authority police, the Bergen County Medical Examiner's Office and sheriff's officers assisted PIP police detectives at the scene. Police said they expected to release further information as the investigation continued. Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc. Find NJ.com on Facebook. hazuda-mathew Matthew Hazuda, left, and Rahul Mathew are charged with aggravated sexual assault in an alleged 2011 attack on a 14-year-old. (Bergen County Prosecutor's Office) ( ) HACKENSACK - Two men who were teenagers when they were alleged to have sexually assaulted an intoxicated 14-year-old girl in 2011 turned down plea deals on Wednesday to settle their cases and instead will head to trial. Matthew Hazuda and Rahul Mathew, now 21, are charged with aggravated sexual assault in the Aug. 10, 2011 attack. During a hearing Wednesday in the Bergen County Justice Center, the men stated through their attorneys that they were not interested in pleading guilty to lesser charges. The plea deals were not made public during the brief hearing. Judge Frances McGrogan then set a trial date for May 17. Hazuda and Mathew were 16 and 17, respectively, at the time of the alleged assault. They were originally charged as juveniles but the case was waived up to adult court due to the severity of the charges, prosecutors said. Attorneys for the pair tried to keep the case in juvenile court, but the state Supreme Court denied the appeal and the case went to a county grand jury, which indicted on the aggravated sexual assault charges. The victim told her mother about the summer time assault in October 2011, which prompted an investigation by the Bergen County Prosecutor's Special Victim's Unit and Paramus police. During the interview, the girl provided a detailed account of how the suspects forcibly engaged her into inappropriate sexual activity while she was highly intoxicated and unable to consent, prosecutors said. Anthony G. Attrino may be reached at tattrino@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyAttrino. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Scammers are still at it. Whether they use the telephone, the mail or email, they're all after the same thing: your money and your private information. Bamboozled has received so many reports about these annoying messages lately that we figured it's time to remind consumers what they can do to get rid of them. Or, at least, get rid of some of them. Let's start with your telephone. Consumers say they get lots of spam calls even though they're on the National Do Not Call list. That's because scammers don't care much about following the Do Not Call rules. Reader Kelly McKinney-Brakewood shared how busy her phone has been recently. She said she received not just one, but three calls from someone identifying himself as "Dennis Gray." Each call was from a different phone number, McKinney-Brakewood said, and each warned her of an "enforcement action executed by the U.S. Treasury." "Ignoring this will be an intentional attempt to avoid initial appearance before a magistrate judge or the grand jury for a federal criminal offense," the caller said. McKinney-Brakewood didn't fall for it. "I am always amazed -- although I shouldn't be -- at the audacity of some of these scams," she said. "They are so outlandish that I can't believe people would believe them, but unfortunately, I know some do." McKinney-Brakewood said she called the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) about a year ago to complain about unsolicited calls despite the Do Not Call list, and the agency said it was a major problem and it even received such calls on its general number. Another Bamboozled reader, Mary, 71, who asked that we withhold her last name, says she's received a whole bunch of spam calls recently. On just one day last week, she received three robocalls. "...from David Gregg of the U.S. Treasury Bureau of Detention or some such place alerting me to the fact that if I ignored them, I was subject to pending criminal problems, another credit card debt call and one about problems with my computer," Mary said. "Fortunately the IRS has stopped calling me." Even though it may not help with scam calls, all consumers should sign up for the Do Not Call list anyway. You can also put your cell phone on the list. Next, talk to your carrier. Most phone companies offer some kind of call blocking feature that may help with the spam calls you receive. Then, be sure to file complaints with the FTC and the Federal Communication Commission (FCC). There's another tool you can use. It was created when the FTC encouraged people to come up with new technologies to fight robocalls. The winner of one contest was a free service called Nomorobo (No More Robocalls). Many Bamboozled readers have reported success with the program, which allows you to sign up your number and the service detects computer-generated calls. Unfortunately, the service doesn't work with all carriers. Still, give it a try. For the record, no government agency will reach out to you by phone the first time. Not the IRS or the Treasury, and not because you missed jury duty, or because you've won a free grant. If you receive a call and you think it could be legit, hang up and call the agency directly for confirmation. We're willing to bet the call will be a fake 99.99 percent of the time, or more. THOSE ANNOYING EMAILS Unwanted emails are another fact of life these days. Whether it's the Nigerian prince (those are still out there), the lottery or the inheritance you need to capture from overseas, scammers keep trying. And yes, they're still using the IRS scam, one Bamboozled reader, Arthur, said in an email. He shared the communication, which used the IRS logo and said: "Kindly update your filling details for the year 2015 due to error and complains that we are having," it said, then giving a hyperlink to a site that surely isn't run by the IRS. "We appreciate you sparing the time to learn about our tax refunds. It's one extra way for Income tax department to make your tax payment experience better." Bollocks. There is no one way to completely eliminate spam email, so you need to be a little creative and have a lot of patience. Start by investigating what kind of anti-spam, blocking or junk mail capabilities are offered by your email service, and use them. Then be sure to "unsubscribe" to whatever emails you no longer want. The scammers won't offer an "unsubscribe" button, but legitimate (and sometimes annoying) companies will. Yes, it takes time, but it's worth it. If that doesn't stop enough of the fakes, consider having two email addresses. Use one with your friends, family and business associates, and use the second one only for online business, shopping, website sign-ups and the like. THOSE ANNOYING MAILINGS Scammers and legitimate businesses alike use traditional snail mail to reach consumers. There are several ways you can cut out the junk. Start with a site called OptOutPrescreen. This is an opt-out service offered by the credit bureaus. It's one way to limit the offers you receive from insurance and credit companies. Next, try the Direct Marketing Association's (DMA) Mail Preference Service (MPS). You can use this to opt out of receiving unsolicited commercial mail from many national companies. If you're tired of catalogs and coupons, try Catalog Choice. After you create a free account, you can enter the unwanted catalogs you receive and opt out. Finally, take a page from some Bamboozed readers who like to make sure junk mailers pay for the annoyance with their wallets. If the mailing you receive says "return service requested," "forwarding service requested," "address service requested," or "change service requested," you can send it back to the sender. Just mark the package or envelope "return to sender" and it will go back to the sender -- which may have to pay for the return mailing costs. Small satisfactions, yes, but it's something. Do you have some other resources to cut back on unwanted calls, emails or mail? Share them in the comments section below so we can all benefit. Have you been Bamboozled? Reach Karin Price Mueller at Bamboozled@NJAdvanceMedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KPMueller. Find Bamboozled on Facebook. Mueller is also the founder of NJMoneyHelp.com. Stay informed and sign up for NJMoneyHelp.com's weekly e-newsletter. 1471813_1137351816277620_6729858106378609859_n.jpg Gloucester Township Police are looking for this man (Submitted Photo | For NJ.com) GLOUCESTER TWP. -- South Jersey authorities are seeking the public's help in identifying a man who is wanted for theft from a small business. Gloucester Township Police are looking for a man who walked into a convenience store near Clements Bridge Road, asked for a pack of cigarettes then fled the scene before paying. The theft occurred last November, but authorities are still searching for the man. Police describe the man as thin, standing 5 foot 8 inches tall, wearing a black sweatshirt, gray undershirt, black and white sneakers. Anyone with information is asked to contact the police department at 856-842-5560 or via text at TIP GLOTWPPD to 888777. Brittany Wehner may be reached at bwehner@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @brittanymwehner. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook. OAKLYN -- A New Jersey deli owner is turning down donations after a fire ravaged his business Sunday night, 6abc reports. Michael Amato, owner of Amato Brothers Deli, asked customers to keep any donations raised through a Gofundme account set up by family and friends, according to reports. The fire broke out at the business at roughly 9 p.m., located off White Horse Pike, Sunday. Since, the businesses has been under renovations and Amato said they will be re-opening soon, according to reports. Brittany Wehner may be reached at bwehner@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @brittanymwehner. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook. FAIRFIELD TWP. -- The driver killed in Thursday's accident had crossed into the lane of a school bus before crashing into it, according to New Jersey State Police. The school bus driver, a bus aide and four special needs students from Bridgeton were on the bus as it flipped over from the collision. The school bus occupants were taken to local hospitals by authorities. The accident is still under investigation and there are no charges at this time, police added. Larry Waller Jr., 43, of Bridgeton, was driving westbound on East Commerce Street in a Toyota Rav4 at 7:42 a.m. when he began to drift into the eastbound lane, state police said. Osheia Wallace, 48, of Bridgeton, was driving a Kerry Bus Services school bus in the eastbound lane at the time and the two collided near Tip's Trailer Park. The school bus ran off the road and flipped to its side. The RAV4 was seriously damaged. The bus aide, Vera Cole, 82, of Fairfield Township, was seriously injured in the accident and taken to Cooper University Hospital in Camden, police said. Authorities report her to be in critical but stable condition. Wallace was taken to Inspira Medical Center in Vineland. According to school officials, the bus was taking four Bridgeton children, ages 11 to 17, to Pineland Learning Center in Vineland. The learning center specializes in special education services for students between 5 and 21 years old, according to its website. Waller was declared dead at the scene of the accident. According to his father, Larry Waller Sr., he was a hard worker and a good son. Waller was most likely returning from work at the time and borrowed his mother's RAV4. All four children and Wallace were transported to Inspira Medical Center Vineland and have since been discharged, according to Inspira spokeswoman Diana Gervasi. According to Dr. Thomasina Jones, superintendent of Bridgeton Public Schools, parents were advised of the accident immediately and a school official was sent to Inspira to assist the children until their parents arrived. New Jersey State Police identify the students as Nyreek Russell, 15, Cristal Alvarez, 14, Shy-Anne Walker, 17, and Ja-Nye Brown, 11. East Commerce Street was closed to traffic immediately following the accident but was reopened around noon. - Bill Gallo Jr. contributed to this report Don E. Woods may be reached at dwoods@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @donewoods1. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook. UPDATE: Driver crossed into wrong lane before striking school bus, police say FAIRFIELD TWP. -- The man killed in a collision with a school bus on East Commerce Street was headed home from work, according to his father. Larry Waller Sr. identifies the driver as his son Larry Waller Jr., 43, of Bridgeton. New Jersey State Police have yet to officially name the driver in the accident as of Thursday afternoon. Larry Waller Jr. (Submitted photo) "He was a good son," Larry Waller Sr. said. "He was a hard worker and a good son." The collision occurred on the 800 block of East Commerce Street in Fairfield Township -- near Tip's Trailer Park -- when the RAV4 driven by Larry Waller Jr. collided with a school bus at 7:42 a.m. Larry Waller Jr. was pronounced dead at the scene. According to his father, Larry Waller Jr. was called in to his job Wednesday night at Durand Glass Manufacturing in Millville. He borrowed his mother's RAV4. He was a diehard fisherman and hunter, his father said, and had a 9-year-old daughter. The school bus was occupied by a bus driver, a bus aide and four children ranging from 11 to 17 years old. The woman who worked as a bus aide was transported to Cooper University Hospital in Camden, according to hospital spokeswoman Wendy Marano. The bus is operated by Kerry Bus Service and was transporting Bridgeton children to Pineland Learning Center in Vineland. The children and bus driver were transported to Inspira Medical Center Vineland. A Bridgeton Public Schools employee was sent to the hospital for the children and parents were advised of the situation, said Dr. Thomasina Jones, superintendent for Bridgeton. East Commerce Street was shut down for most of Thursday morning to traffic but was opened up again around noon. The school bus was flipped onto its side and the RAV4 was seriously damaged. A school official, who declined to give his name, was at the emergency room entrance directing parents arriving at the hospital to their children in the ER. He directed all questions about the accident to district headquarters. Inspira Spokeswoman Diana Gervasi said she could not detail the extent of the injuries of those being treated at Inspira, but said one student was expected to be released later Thursday morning. Gervasi said Patient Relations staff members and nurses were on hand to comfort the students' parents. - Reporters Bill Gallo Jr. and Brittany M. Wehner contributed to this report Don E. Woods may be reached at dwoods@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @donewoods1. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook. notepad Email: robert_goddard@outlook.com or r.j.goddard@aston.ac.ukAt Aston I teach (or have taught) courses in fraud, company law, corporate governance, securities law, financial regulation and taxation. This site primarily supports my company (corporate) law and governance teaching and to a lesser extent the other subjects I teach. It is primarily an onlinewhere I record important developments, news and other items that interest me.Users of this site include my students as well as colleagues at Aston and other universities. Practitioners tell me they find the site useful too. In 2010 the site was commended in Legal Week and also chosen as one of the LexisNexis Top 25 Business Law Blogs 2010. relevant The site's primary focus is the UK but interesting items from other jurisdictions are often included as are developments in the allied disciplines of capital market regulation and financial reporting.To find information on certain topics, enter keywords into the search box above (e.g., financial reporting, pay, Companies Act, Australia, shareholder, director). This facility is not case-sensitive. If you are searching for certain section numbers from Acts, it is best to enter only the section number.If you have any feedback, suggestions for entries, or if you find a link that does not work, please e-mail me . Please also feel free to leave a comment on individual posts (only comments that are useful to other readers will be published; if your comment contains a link to another site, that site must beto the post). You are also welcome to connect with me using: BRIDGETON -- City officials say unreliable copper lines operated by Verizon are posing obstacles for the city's police department, claiming that storms and rain, in particular, will sometimes cause interference when the station is attempting to communicate with its officers. At times, the police department will have to resort to backup telecommunication platforms, according to Bridgeton police Chief Michael Gaimari. Gaimari said many of the problems had occurred within the last six months. "We have been having difficulty with ... transmissions traveling (over) the copper lines," Gaimari said. "I've instructed our guys to start documenting every problem. For the past six months, they've been really documenting (issues)," which he noted include static and other kinds of interference. Because having efficient and reliable communication between officers and the station is critical, Bridgeton City Mayor Albert Kelly said the matter is creating "a public safety issue" and needs to be addressed. Verizon spokesman Raymond McConville said Wednesday evening that Verizon was scheduled to meet with Bridgeton officials on Thursday to discuss the matter further. "At this stage ... we're working with the police department on this and are scheduled to visit with them," McConville said in an email Wednesday evening. Late Thursday afternoon, McConville said Verizon technicians visited the police station and "uncovered a few problem spots." "Those have been cleared," McConville said in an email. "Tomorrow (Friday) we'll be going over there again for some preventative maintenance." The city has been in discussions with Verizon to possibly install fiber at the police department. Though fiber-optic cable is accessible to the police station, which is on Fayette Street, city officials are concerned with the added monthly cost associated with hooking up to the fiber network. "A fiber-optic cable is in place, but it's not hooked up," said Dale Goodreau, the city's business administrator. Verizon initially told the city it would cost $1,380 per month to hook up to the fiber network -- which Goodreau felt was outrageously high compared to the roughly $350 per month fee the city is currently paying. However, when Goodreau contacted Verizon, a company official indicated the quote may have been a mistake. "So they are going to get back to us on that," Goodreau said. Goodreau said after 911 calls are routed to the police station, problems sometimes arise when the station then tries to contact officers in the field over its system that works through the city's copper network. Gaimari said if it rains heavily, they've had to resort to their portable system, which he noted has a lower wattage than the system over copper. McConville noted, however, that when Verizon officials visited with city officials roughly two weeks ago, no city official brought up the issues that had been experienced at the police station. "They didn't say anything about this," McConville said. "Once it was brought to our attention we fixed it immediately." Additionally, Verizon is scheduled to meet with various mayors and other township officials on Friday to discuss the many complaints being voiced by officials in South Jersey. In December, 16 municipalities from Atlantic, Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem counties jointly filed a petition with the state Board of Public Utilities demanding that the state ensures Verizon does not abandon South Jersey's copper networks. Officials from various towns where Fios is not available to them argue that if they can't receive fiber, Verizon should at least adequately maintain their copper infrastructure, which many claim the company has not done. Verizon denied this and fired back recently with its letter to the BPU saying the allegations were baseless. Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerMKent. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook. man-who-wasn't-there-scarlett.jpg Long before she signed on for 'Hail, Caesar!' Scarlett Johansson was in the Coens' 'The Man Who Wasn't There' ((FILE PHOTO)) For a pair of highly intellectual, darkly dour siblings - although their surface cynicism really only protects their own, deeply felt sense of decency - Joel and Ethan Coen are remarkably popular among a broad swath of American moviegoers. Their first huge hit, "Fargo," won a best actress Oscar for Joel's wife Frances McDormand, and inspired a TV series, you betcha. "No Country for Old Men" won best picture, a supporting actor honor for Javier Bardem, plus a directing prize for the brothers. And "The Big Lebowski" - well, "The Big Lebowski" has not only inspired its own convention, but probably become the most-quoted modern movie since "The Godfather." Yes, the Coens abide. And they continue to delight with their new "Hail, Caesar!", a change-of-pace period comedy that sets Josh Brolin, Scarlett Johansson, George Clooney and Channing Tatum in the middle of a goofy 1950s movie studio, and then fills it with Communists, dancing sailors and a kidnapping. Its release is sure to bring out the usual "Every Coen Brothers Movie Ever, Ranked" listicles - all packed with the usual suspects. So here's a different sum-up - a collection of a half dozen Coen projects, ranked from best to least, which tend to be forgotten, often unfairly. Dig in. A Serious Man (2009) Why You May Have Missed It: Leery of repeating themselves, the Coens followed the dark rural crime drama of "No Country For Old Men" with this fine slice of suburban angst, as a 1960s schlemiel tries to discover the meaning of existence. The lack of name stars - or obvious hook - left some audiences just as confused. Why It's Worth Finding: A terrific performance from Michael Stuhlbarg, and a peek into the Coens' Minnesota childhood. The Man Who Wasn't There (2001) Why You May Have Missed It: Having toyed with their own takes on Hammett, Chandler and Jim Thompson, the Coens finally get to mystery icon James M. Cain, in this noirish tale of jealousy and fate. The film was lauded at Cannes, but the offbeat title and black-and-white cinematography may have limited its U.S. appeal. Why It's Worth Finding: Filled with a deeply poetic fatalism and stand-out work from James Gandolfini. The Hudsucker Proxy (1994) Why You May Have Missed It: For the Coens' first big studio movie, they chose a farce, set in 1959 but filled with screwball characters and dizzying angles straight out of the '30s. Fans in the '90s, however, hated it, particularly Jennifer Jason Leigh's deliberately affected performance. The brothers' first directing disaster. Why It's Worth Finding: Great sets and beautiful miniatures, plus Paul Newman as an evil capitalist. Paris, Je T'Aime (2006) Why You May Have Missed It: One of those gimmicky, multi-director anthologies that filmmakers like better than fans - in this one, each director picked a different Parisian neighborhood. The Coens decided on the First Arrondissement, with their favorite hapless victim, Steve Buscemi, as a nosy tourist in an awkward comedy. Why It's Worth Finding: The film is, naturally, hit-or-miss, but Alexander Payne's episode is particularly lovely. Crimewave (1985) Why You May Have Missed It: The Coens co-wrote this slapstick, Hitchcock-meets-the-Three-Stooges thriller for director Sam Raimi, whom they had befriended after Ethan helped edit "The Evil Dead." The studio hated star Bruce Campbell, and Raimi's supposedly final cut; the film was re-cut, and barely released. Why It's Worth Finding: It's still a mess, but Raimi fans and Campbell cultists will be intrigued. The Ladykillers (2004) Why You May Have Missed It: The Coens aren't afraid of remakes, and with "True Grit" they (mostly) got the re-do right. This version of a beloved 1955 Alec Guinness comedy, though, gets it almost completely wrong - from Tom Hanks' ridiculous Southern dandy to way too many jokes about irritable bowel syndrome. Why It's Worth Finding: Strictly for the unstoppable Irma P. Hall, as the lady, and a solid gospel soundtrack. Stephen Whitty may be reached at stephenjwhitty@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @stephenwhitty. Find him on Facebook. NJ State Police graduation ceremony 2016 Dozens of New Jersey State Troopers could soon be reassigned to aid crime prevention efforts in Newark. (Picasa) NEWARK -- As officials develop new plans for the city's longstanding fight against crime, they're also calling for reinforcements. A "few dozen" troopers could soon be reassigned to Newark to assist city police for up to six months, confirmed Superintendent of the New Jersey State Police Colonel Rick Fuentes. Speaking at a Wednesday town hall meeting hosted by Mayor Ras Baraka, Fuentes said that if the Newark Police Department proposal is finalized, the troopers would be deployed to conduct street patrols and investigations in known hotspots of gun violence. "Our intent would be to beef up patrols and police visibility in problem locations," Fuentes said. The reassigned troopers would also be tasked with interdicting gun violence and possession of illegal guns. The exact number state troopers who could be assigned to Newark remains unclear. Announced Wednesday, the proposal comes on the heels of a wave of violence in Newark that saw nine people killed by homicide in the span of seven days. In a previous interview, City Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose said the city's struggles to contain gun crime can be partially tied to the size of its police force. The Newark Police Department employs nearly 800 officers, and is still recovering it after the 2010 layoffs and subsequent retirements that decimated its ranks, he said. In the years since, state police have often been called upon to help pick up the slack. State Troopers were assigned to Newark in 2014 as part of the TIDE-TAG initiative, a program designed to help New Jersey cities break waves of street crime. In August 2015, a contingent of uniformed state troopers were deployed to patrol the city's border with Irvington after five people were killed in three-day rush of gun violence. Vernal Coleman can be reached at vcoleman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @vernalcoleman. Find NJ.com on Facebook. NEWARK -- Four people were arrested, and about $100,000 worth of illegal drugs confiscated, after authorities busted two competing drug rings operating out of the same apartment building in Newark, Essex County Sheriff Armando Fontoura announced in a release Thursday. According to Fontoura, a task force of sheriff's detectives and officers from the Irvington and Bloomfield police departments raided the two apartments -- located on the first and fourth floors of a building at 5 Thomas Street -- Wednesday. Inside the fourth floor apartment, which authorities say was leased to Bloods gang member Nelson Camacho, 24, officers found 143 grams of heroin, 319 grams of crack cocaine, a fully-loaded Smith & Wesson 9mm semi-automatic handgun, and drug packaging paraphernalia, Fontoura said. The first floor apartment is rented to Bloods gang member Joseph Segler, 26, roommate Sean Cogdell, 26, and Cogdell's girlfriend Sadiquah Street, 27, authorities said. Cogdell was throwing items out of a bedroom window and holding a loaded Taurus 9mm semi-automatic gun when officers arrived, Fontoura said. In a search of the apartment and outside the window, authorities said they found another loaded Smith & Wesson 9mm semi-automatic handgun, a box of ammunition, 17 grams of crack, 40 grams of heroin, and 41 grams of marijuana. The two guns in the apartment were found to be stolen out of Virginia and West Virginia, officials said. The drugs found in both apartments have a street value of at least $100,000, authorities said. All four were arrested on a variety of drugs and weapons charges, Fontoura said. They were arraigned Thursday, and are bring held at the Essex County Jail on cash bonds ranging from $150,000 to $250,000 each, officials said. Jessica Mazzola may be reached at jmazzola@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @JessMazzola. Find NJ.com on Facebook. NEWARK -- Authorities are investigating allegations that Newark police officers roughed up a 14-year-old resident, dislocating his shoulder, officials have confirmed. The incident began on Tuesday, when the alleged victim, whose name is being withheld by NJ Advance Media, was approached by three police department vehicles after exiting a bodega near 14th Street and 14th Avenue, confirmed Newark Police Department spokesman Capt. Derek Glenn. The alleged victim was later approached by several on-duty Newark police officers. The victim now claims that police officers attempted to detain him and dislocated his shoulder at some point during the incident, Glenn said. An investigation by the Essex County Prosecutor's Office into the allegations is underway, Glenn said. Additional details of the incident were not immediately made available. Attempts to reach the alleged victim were not immediately successful. Asked for comment, Newark Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose said that if the allegations are true, the officers acted "dishonorably" and will be "disciplined" appropriately. Vernal Coleman can be reached at vcoleman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @vernalcoleman. Find NJ.com on Facebook. With three Gloucester County school districts set to vote on millions of dollars in capital projects on March 8, two local officials are asking the question: Why aren't school bond votes held in November? Kingsway Regional, along with the Deptford and Monroe township school districts, will hold bond referendum elections March 8. In keeping with current regulations, all three districts will keep the polls open for a minimum of five hours, and voting will close at 9 p.m. General elections, meanwhile, close at 8 p.m. -- a discrepancy that some officials say makes people less likely to vote. Deptford and Kingsway will keep polling open from 2 p.m. to 9 p.m., while Monroe Township's vote will take place from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. In Monroe, school and township officials said the voting hours had been selected to avoid interrupting the school day with polling. But Joe Rumpf, a Monroe Township school board member, said the schedule was less than convenient. "People aren't able to make it," said Rumpf, noting that senior citizens in particular tend to vote early. "There's nowhere near enough time being allotted." A new law co-sponsored by Assemblyman John Burzichelli requires school districts to keep polling hours similar to those used in general elections. But the legislator hopes that in the future, the state will take action to do away with the non-November elections altogether. "People have habits," said Burzichelli. "These non-November elections already don't get the attention they should, and odd polling hours are another distraction. That's why we took the steps we took." If the new law, signed by Gov. Chris Christie on Jan. 11, had gotten final approval just a few weeks earlier, the three Gloucester County districts voting in March would have been required to close their polls at 8 o'clock. Any districts using the minimum number of hours would have to open one hour earlier. Because the law is set to take effect on Jan. 1 following its signing, however, those regulations will not take hold until 2017. "I've found that New Jersey voters are generally very generous when it comes to education. People understand the value of schools," Burzichelli said. "But these should be carried out when people's minds are already engaged with the issues." The new hours represent only a small change so far, but Burzichelli and Gloucester County Superintendent of Elections Stephanie Salvatore both say it eliminates an hour when hardly anybody casts a vote. "We only have until eight to vote for the president, but we vote on the schools until nine?" said Salvatore. "It drives me insane." Salvatore added that she would support legislation to move the elections to November. "Speaking as a taxpayer of this county, moving everything to November would save money," she said. Gloucester County will rent out about 30 voting machines for the March elections, and that's not counting the staffing costs at polling locations. Most of important of all, said Salvatore, would be an increase in voter turnout. "You're going to get a better representation of your residents," she said. In the meantime, the superintendent encourages anyone who anticipates not being able to get to the polls to vote by absentee ballot. The forms can be obtained through the county clerk's office up to a week before the election. Andy Polhamus may be reached at apolhamus@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @ajpolhamus. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook. WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP -- An embattled township police officer who was acquitted of official misconduct last year has been fired from the department for a second time. The ongoing legal battle over his employment, however, is likely far from over. A hearing officer tasked with ruling on disciplinary charges the township brought against Officer Joseph DiBuonaventura -- whose 2012 arrest of Assemblyman Paul Moriarty on DWI charges set the stage for DiBuonaventura's trial on 14 criminal counts and most recent termination -- penned a decision on Jan. 11 ruling that DiBuonaventura lied on numerous occasions and should be discharged from office. The decision, issued by hearing officer Retired Judge Barnett E. Hoffman, was obtained by NJ Advance Media via an open public records request and also reveals that DiBuonaventura is additionally accused of writing "phantom" warning tickets to inflate his performance statistics. DiBuonaventura had been suspended without pay since the fall of 2012. Business Administrator Bob Smith issued a letter, also obtained by the open public record request, to DiBuonaventura on Jan. 25 on behalf of the administration notifying him the township adopted the hearing recommendations and his employment would be terminated 10 days from the date of the letter. While DiBuonaventura's attorney Louis Barbone did not return a request for comment Wednesday, it's likely he will appeal the decision. DiBuonaventura was first fired from the department in 2009 for allegedly lying during an internal affairs investigation, but he appealed the decision and was later reinstated by a Gloucester County Superior Court judge. If DiBuonaventura appeals his current termination, the charges that were hashed out over months of testimony during the disciplinary hearing will be reargued before a Superior Court judge. Smith declined to comment on the issue. A records request for any appeal or response from DiBuonaventura is pending with the township. The driving while intoxicated charges against Moriarty, a former township mayor, were dismissed in 2013 after the Gloucester County Prosecutor's Office deemed video from DiBuonaventura's patrol car showed the officer lied about his reasons for stopping Moriarty, thus nullifying the stop and the summons that stemmed from it. Hoffman was adamant in his decision that he was not ruling on the legality of the initial stop in the township, he was ruling "whether [DiBuonaventura] lied on his report about the stop. Again it is not the lawfulness of the stop -- it's lying about it," the decision states in bold, capital letters. In his review of the video at the crux of the case, a dashboard recording that shows DiBuonaventura pursuing Moriarty up Route 42 until he catches up to the assemblyman's vehicle in the Greentree Road jughandle, Hoffman stated that Moriarty did not "cut [DiBuonaventura] off" as the officer claimed on his written report and said during the traffic stop. In his month-long trial on charges of official misconduct, falsifying police records, false swearing and other charges related to the arrest, DiBuonaventura's defense argued Moriarty did in fact make an unsafe lane change, used a blinker too late and that the use of the term "cut off" was subjective. The defense called the only expert witness in the trial, retired state police lieutenant James Miani, to back up that argument. Hoffman didn't buy it. "I don't think that Miani evaluated the recordings based on a real world context. His approach was very clinical and academic that could be found in a police training program for new officers," Hoffman wrote, adding "just because a person doesn't signal 100' before turning doesn't mean they cut anyone off." Also at issue was DiBuonaventura's omission from his initial report that he had been tipped off by Det. Lisa Frattali to Moriarty's presence at the Nissan car dealership that afternoon, when an employee's phone call regarding Moriarty's behavior in the dealership lead to a whisper-down-the-lane scenario between multiple township officers and allegations Moriarty was "drunk at Nissan." DiBuonaventura instead wrote he was "on patrol" on Route 42, and only included the call from other officers in a supplemental report. At trial, the defense argued DiBuonaventura was "duty bound" to stop Moriarty after hearing he could be intoxicated and that his actions were in context of the greater political relationships and dynamics at play. Hoffman also upheld claims that DiBuonaventura lied during an internal affairs interview when he denied having any confrontations with or animosity toward Moriarty. One of Moriarty's former aides testified at the disciplinary hearing that DiBuonaventura told the aide township police officers didn't like Moriarty because of a contract dispute during his time as mayor. "There was certainly a continuing animosity held by [DiBuonaventura] and other police officers, namely [Det. Frattali], to take advantage of an opportunity to affect Moriarty's life in a detrimental way," Hoffman wrote. DiBuonaventura was also disciplinarily charged with falsifying reports, tickets and daily logs in an unrelated case, in which he is accused of writing warning tickets after six traffic stops in 2012 that were false, not given to drivers and later disposed of to pad their statistics. The writing of "phantom" tickets is a practice at least two former officers testified was common in the department. Hoffman upheld those charges as well. "Whether in the warnings case or the Moriarty case, there is a pervasive strain of lying," Hoffman wrote. "As Walter Scott said: Oh what a tangled web we weave, When first we practice to deceive." Michelle Caffrey may be reached at mcaffrey@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @ShellyCaffrey. Find the South Jersey Times on Facebook. bayonne city hall.jpg Applications are available again for free energy audits and related home improvements for qualified low- and middle-income households in Bayonne, city officials announced recently. (Journal File Photo) BAYONNE -- Applications are available again for free energy audits and related home improvements for qualified low- and middle-income households in Bayonne, city officials announced recently. Applications will be available in the City Hall lobby on Friday, Feb. 5 from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m., city spokesman Joe Ryan said. This program is offered statewide by New Jersey Comfort Partners, with financial support from the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities and New Jersey's Clean Energy Program. Through the New Jersey Comfort Partners Program, Bayonne renters and homeowners may be eligible to receive the following for free: a home energy audit; tune and clean boiler and water heater; check combustion appliances for gas leaks and carbon monoxide (CO); brand new window/wall air conditioner (if qualified); brand-new energy-efficient refrigerator and/or freezer (if qualified); installation of high-efficiency lighting installation of smoke/CO detectors; installation of low-flow shower heads; attic, rim, joist, and crawlspace insulation; door and window weatherization and air sealing. Some related services are also available free of charge to income-qualified households. If you would like to apply to participate in the program, and are unable to be at City Hall on Feb. 5, please contact NYS Energy Audits at 201-777-1420. Staff people speak English, Spanish, Russian, Chinese, Bengali, and Urdu. The website is www.nysenergyaudits.com. There is no contract required. Jonathan Lin may be reached at jlin@jjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @jlin_jj. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook. Donald Byrd Jazz educator and musician Donald Byrd is pictured in New York, March 12, 1990. (AP Images) If you love good jazz, you won't want to miss the Tribute to Jazz Legend Donald Byrd Saturday at the Jersey City Library's Miller Branch Cultural Arts Auditorium, 489 Bergen Ave. Guest artists Onaje Allen Gumbs on piano; Keith Kilgo, the Balck Byrds drummer, and the Spirit of Life Ensemble will take part in honoring Byrd's musical legacy at 7:30 p.m. Byrd was a rhythm and blues trumpeter/composer who performed and recorded with such greats as Herbie Hancock, John Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Thelonious Monk, Cannonball Adderley and many others. Byrd also taught at Rutgers University, New York University, Howard University and other schools. The event is part of the Community Awareness Series and is being held in cooperation with the Donald Byrd Cultural Foundation as an African American History Month Commemoration. Admission and parking are free. Children need adult accompaniment. JERSEY CITY -- During today's closing arguments in the attempted murder trial of Secaucus lawyer Todd Gorman, the defense accused the state of "persecuting" the defendant, while the prosecution argued the scenario that Gorman's attorney has posited is simply a construct of the defense, not the truth. Gorman, 51, is charged with trying to kill his girlfriend, Stephanie Schwartz, inside their Harmon Cove home on Sept. 29, 2011. He faces 10 to 20 years in prison if convicted of attempted murder. This afternoon, Hudson County Superior Court Judge Mark Nelson instructed the jury on points of law pertinent to the charges against Gorman. The jury began deliberations at around 3 p.m. "I've been living this case for a year, I've been waiting to talk to you for a year," Peter Willis, defense attorney for Gorman, said to the jury during his closing argument. "Their job is my job; to seek justice, not convictions," Willis added, gesturing toward the two prosecutors. "There is a tremendous difference in what directs you in life, in what you follow. If your goal is to convict everyone, then you become a persecutor and not a prosecutor. If you are a prosecutor, you seek justice, ladies not a conviction." Gorman has a degree in aero science engineering, is a retired Air Force captain and is a lawyer. During the trial it was revealed that the couple met in an online suicide forum that provided information on methods to commit suicide and how to obtain any materials needed. Hudson County Assistant Prosecutor Tracy McQuaide described Gorman as a person who had promise at some point in his life. She said at the time of the incident Schwartz had given him a credit card and phone and was supporting him while he was unemployed and doing community service for drunk driving. She said on the night of the incident, Gorman threw Schwartz's mother out of their apartment. In response, Schwartz kicked Gorman out and he attacked her. McQuaide said that night Schwartz called Gorman's sister saying "come get him." McQuaide added: "Despite being an alcoholic that never really drinks, he's had some drinks that day. He's taken some pills and in a blind rage he grabs whatever is available... and he stabs (Schwartz) over and over again. Then, when the police show up he is still holding her, he is still angry... He doesn't tell the police she was trying to kill herself. It was because she had the audacity to tell him to leave." During the trial, Secaucus police officers testified they responded to the couple's home on a domestic violence call and heard a woman saying "Help, help, help." They entered with guns drawn and heard her say "'Help, help, he's stabbing me.'" Gorman and Schwartz were found covered in blood in the blood-splattered kitchen. He was seated on the floor with his arms and legs wrapped around her. The defense has argued that Schwartz was trying to kill herself with a knife, and when Gorman intervened she turned on him, forcing him to defend himself. Willis said Schwartz had tried to kill herself twice before. Within a year of the incident, she took her own life. Gorman described Schwartz as being suicidal, depressed, volatile, unpredictable, violent, medicated and known to abuse alcohol. He said she attacked him a number of times, injured him and put him in fear for his life on two occasions. Willis noted that a doctor who testified for the prosecution said three of Schartz's wounds could have been self-inflicted and a doctor testifying for the defense said all may have been. The attorney said the attempted murder charge was absurd because Schwartz's wounds required only stitches before she was released from the hospital three hours later. The defense attorney reminded jurors that there was no picture of the knife in the apartment and that police had placed it in the back seat of a police car while still wet with blood. No testing for fingerprints, DNA or anything else was performed on it. There was testimony that police kicked Gorman into unconsciousness in order to separate the pair and Willis noted that as he came-to at the hospital the first thing he said was that he was attacked and "I think it was my girlfriend." He also said "I wasn't trying to kill her. I was trying to stop her from killing herself." The second statement wasn't put in a police report because the officer said he didn't believe Gorman. Willis said when the officer finally told the prosecution more than four years later, the case should have been investigated further and not blindly moved forward. But McQuaide noted that the characterization of Schwartz having tried to kill herself in the past, that night, or being suicidal at all, comes from Gorman only. Although he claims to have been injured by her, Gorman never called police, the prosecutor said. In one incident in which he dialed 911, officers described it as a verbal dispute and asked him to spend a night in a hotel. McQuaide told jurors that the responding officers gave consistent statements and when they arrived they found "someone who needed their help, who needed to be saved, and someone in a blind rage." Willis told jurors that no one saw Gorman stab Schwartz and no one even saw him holding the knife and said police jumped to conclusions about who was the victim. "I expect more from the prosecutor's office. This case is a failure, a failure of the system of the prosecution," Willis added. "When prosecutors turn to persecutors, we are in trouble. When police turn into judge, jury and henchmen, and think they have all the answers, we are in trouble." JERSEY CITY -- Jermaine Woodward wanted to talk. Woodward, 33, sat in the ninth row of the CityLine Church auditorium last night, wearing a blue sweatshirt and a black knit cap. Up in the front of the room was Mayor Steve Fulop, holding a mic and speaking to a crowd of about 125 at his fourth town hall meeting in recent weeks. After 45 minutes of audience questions about crime, murals and casinos, Woodward raised his hand to speak. "Yes, sir?" Fulop said. Woodward began to vent. Jermaine Woodward, 8, was fatally struck by a hit-and-run driver in June. His eight-year-old -- Woodward's namesake, Jermaine, Jr. -- was fatally struck on June 28 on Bostwick Avenue, an incident Woodward's family believes was a hit-and-run. In a 10-minute exchange last night, Woodward accused Fulop and Public Safety Director James Shea of ignoring witness statements and treating his family like they don't matter. "And you want to be the governor?" Woodward said to Fulop. "How can you be the governor when you can't protect none of your kids?" At one point Woodward put his head down, overcome with emotion. "That's OK," an audience member called to him. "Take your time," said another. Shea and Fulop offered their condolences. Woodward brushed them aside. "You don't understand nothing," he said. "My son is gone ... don't tell me you understand." Woodward's family insists his son stepped onto Bostwick Avenue, still inside a bike lane, at about 8 p.m. that June night and was struck by two cars that did not stop immediately. Fulop and Shea at the time said initial findings showed there was only one car involved and that the driver did stop. A Facebook conversation between the two men Woodward's family have blamed for Jermaine's death indicate they were drag racing, Woodward said last night. Neither Fulop nor Shea addressed that issue, though Fulop cautioned audience members that there "are always multiple sides to the story." "It is unfair of people in this room to rush to judgment because somebody is saying something," the mayor said. "That is totally irresponsible." The crowd appeared to be largely supportive of Woodward, with one man suggesting they write letters urging a new investigation. The mood became tenser when Woodward, who is black, said if his child "was white or a Jew," there would have been an arrest. "We've got a lot of Jews moving into our community, maybe because of you," Woodward said to Fulop, who is Jewish. Fulop urged Woodward to speak to prosecutors, who handle suspected homicide cases. "You can't ... throw punches ... You can't say anti-Semitic comments and loop it all together," Fulop said. "That's not going to solve anything." Afterward, Woodward, a boiler operator for the public-school district, told The Jersey Journal he didn't feel much better after venting than he did when he stepped inside CityLine Church. "I really don't," he said. "No answers." Terrence T. McDonald may be reached at tmcdonald@jjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @terrencemcd. Find The Jersey Journal on Facebook. jersey city police SUV.jpg A coffee shop on Kennedy Boulevard in Jersey City was robbed at gunpoint last night, Jersey City police said. ((Journal file photo) ) A doughnut shop in the Heights section of Jersey City was robbed at gunpoint last night and the robber got away with $700, Jersey City police said. An employee was behind the counter at the Dunkin' Donuts on Kennedy Boulevard, near Bowers Street, at 9:50 p.m. when a man walked into the store and pulled out a handgun, police said. The assailant ordered the 57-year-old employee to open the register, a police report said. Another employee at the shop pushed the store's panic button and the robber then pointed the gun at her and threatened to shoot her, the police report said. The 57-year-old worker then opened the register and gave the armed man $700. The robber, who was described as 5-foot-11, 170 pounds and was wearing a gray hoodie and black pants, then demanded that the safe be opened, police said. But the employees told him they didn't know the combination, so the robber, whose face was covered by a bandana, fled onto Bowers Street. jcpd.JPG Police arrested a Jersey City man Thursday morning after he allegedly broke into a Second Street bar. (Journal file photo) A Downtown Jersey City bar owner chased down a man who broke into his business, apprehending the burglar until police responded, cops said. Just before 3:40 a.m. this morning, police were dispatched to the area of Newark Avenue and Seventh Street on a call of a victim "holding" a suspect, according to a police report. One of the men -- the owner of a Second Street bar -- told the officers that the other man had just broken into his business and that when he looked out of his apartment on the second floor of the building, he saw the burglar run out toward Newark Avenue, the report states. The bar owner told police that he followed the man in his vehicle and stopped him at Newark Avenue and Seventh Street, and called police, the report states. Officers went to the bar and noted that the front door was broken off its hinges, police said. The man, identified as Alexander Palau, 36, of Academy Street in Jersey City, was charged with criminal mischief and burglary. He was also found to have an open Hudson County Sheriff's Office warrant. Police obtained video evidence from surveillance cameras at the business, police stated, although the report did not indicate whether anything was stolen. "Could World War I Have Been Avoided?" will be the Subject of the Feb. 16 Meeting of the Summit Old Guard Stephen Yellin, a popular Blogger, essayist and author, will speak to the Old Guard of Summit at its Tuesday, Feb. 16 meeting. He will speak on "July 1914: Armageddon, Against the Odds" - whether World War I was inevitable. In World War I, 10 million soldiers died, 20 million were wounded. Could the war have been avoided? On July 28, 1914, a terrorist assassinated Archduke Francis Ferdinand of Austria Hungary and his wife. Soon after, Austria declared war on Serbia, Germany on Russia and France, and Britain on Germany. Did Austria wait to declare war against Serbia because its troops were out gathering in their crops? Did Germany feel threatened by an entente between France and Russia? Did the complex system of alliances require nations to take action prematurely? Yellin will explain how the answers to these questions weighed in the choice between war and peace. All age 50-plus active men are invited to attend the Tuesday morning meetings of the Summit Area Old Guard. Meetings are held at the New Providence Municipal Center, 360 Elkwood Ave., New Providence. A coffee hour starts at 9:15 a.m., followed by a 10 a.m. business meeting, brightened by singing and humor. The speaker begins at 10:30 a.m. Old Guard members participate in sports, bridge, hikes, trips, plays, concerts and other cultural events. Call Jim Hewitt at 908-233-5507 for more information. Or log onto the www.summitoldguard.org. Picture: Stephen Yellin The defense in a Secaucus lawyer's attempted murder trial rested its case yesterday after declining to present its last witness, a psychiatrist who treated both the defendant and victim. Summations are set for today in the trial of Todd Gorman, who was charged with trying to stab his girlfriend to death inside their Harmon Cove home on Sept. 29, 2011. Gorman's attorney, Peter Willis, called for a mistrial yesterday and declined to present his final witness, psychiatrist Eric Goldman, after Hudson County Superior Court Judge Mark Nelson expanded the scope of what the psychiatrist could testify on. Originally, the doctor was to testify only on statements made by the alleged victim, Stephanie Schwartz, during her first visit to the New York City psychiatrist. After hearing arguments from Hudson County Assistant Prosecutor Tracy McQuaide, the judge enlarged the scope to include other statements made by Schwartz that the judge originally excluded in an early-January ruling. A specific statement the judge said could be admitted was a quote from a report by the doctor in which he said Schwartz "told me that on Sept. 29, she was attacked and choked." Although it was not specifically admitted as part of the scope of the doctor's testimony, he also stated in a report that "She showed me the pictures today, obvious evidence of an attack." Willis's reaction was to call for a mistrial. "I don't understand how the court can decide today, Feb. 3, the last day of the trial, that the original order has now been changed," the defense attorney said. "If a mistrial is not granted, we cannot present Dr. Goldsmith because I don't know where the prosecution is going. If they want to call him, he is here. Our position is that the trial must be aborted." Nelson said that having certain statements made regarding Schwartz's treatment and not allowing the prosecution to rebut them would be inappropriate. He also noted that the prosecution would obviously cross examine Goldsmith and would work to elicit any testimony advancing its case. All of the arguments made yesterday were presented outside of the jury's presence. During the trial, Secaucus police officers testified they responded to the couple's home on a domestic violence call and heard a woman's faint voice saying "Help, help, help." They entered with guns drawn and one officer said they heard the voice saying "Help, help, he's stabbing me." Gorman and Schwartz were found covered in blood in the blood-splattered kitchen. Gorman was seated on the floor and Schwartz was seated on the floor between his legs. The defense has argued that Schwartz was trying to kill herself with a knife, and when Gorman intervened she turned on him, forcing him to defend himself. Willis said Schwartz has tried to kill herself twice before and within a year of the incident, she took her own life. Gorman said Schwartz was violent, attacked him a number of times and put him in fear for his life on two occasions. To separate the pair, police knocked Gorman out with kicks to the head. Gorman says he has no memory of the incident. On the stand Tuesday, Gorman said he stayed with Schwartz because he believed, and still believes, that she could have been helped. Tearfully, he testified that he loved Schwartz on the day of the incident and still loves her today. Gorman faces 10 to 20 years if convicted of attempted murder. HAMILTON -- Former Hamilton councilman Kevin Meara will speak at a town hall meeting in New Hampshire Thursday night about that state's heroin problems. Kevin Meara, file photo. Meara, who left the council at the end of 2015, founded the nonprofit drug counseling agency City of Angels in 2009 after his 24-year-old son KC Meara died of a heroin overdose. The event, Solutions to an Epidemic, is being hosted by Michael DeLeon, an anti-drug activist who runs the Cumberland County-based program Steered Straight, and a Dover, N.H. church, where the event is being held. Presidential candidates have been invited to the town hall meeting, the organizers say. Meara was invited by DeLeon, who he knows from their anti-heroin efforts, and eagerly accepted the invitation, saying he wants to learn more about New Hampshire's heroin issues and if they can help efforts in New Jersey. "It's always piqued my interest what's going on in another state," Meara said earlier Thursday. And with a lot of extra news outlets in New Hampshire ahead of the presidential primaries this coming Tuesday, "I saw this as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," Meara said earlier Thursday. "I don't know that heroin is going to be number one issue four years from now in the next presidential election," Meara said. Also scheduled to appear are New Hampshire politicians, criminal justice officials and people who work recovery and addiction. In addition to Steered Straight, DeLeon has made two documentaries about substance abuse, Kids Are Dying and An American Epidemic. Kevin Shea may be reached at kshea@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@kevintshea. Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook. Biddeford-Saco-OOB Courier Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird created the series in Dover, New Hampshire. The negatives for that first comic, printed in 1984, have surfaced and the owner, a Colorado collector, came to Biddeford In September to look around. You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close The federal government plans to pour $125 million into the fight against a mysterious disease that has ravaged corals in Florida and much of the Caribbean, and now poses a dire threat to the treasured reefs off the Louisiana and Texas coasts. WASHINGTON (AP) The House Jan. 6 committee plans to unveil "surprising" details at its next public hearing about the 2021 attack at the U.S. Capitol. The session Thursday afternoon is likely to be the last public hearing before midterm elections next month. The panel is expected to include new evidence from the U.S. Secret Service about its actions with Donald Trump that day. Ahead of a report later this year, the panel is summing up its findings. The committee says Trump, after he lost the 2020 presidential election, launched an unprecedented attempt to stop Congress from certifying Joe Biden's victory. They say the result was the deadly mob siege of the Capitol. OMAHA Iowa members of the Artists Cooperative Gallery will share old favorites and newest explorations in Oldies & Newsies 2, which began early this month and will run through Feb. 28. The artists will host an opening reception celebrating the show on Friday from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the cooperatives Fine Art Gallery, 405 S. 11th St. in Omaha. Several artists will show work from early in their art careers, while others will focus on their newest pieces. Duane Adams of Griswold will display paintings and ceramics that were part of co-op shows from 30 years ago maybe longer, Adams said. They are part of my personal collection and are very nice works that I am proud of producing, he added. N. Byram of Council Bluffs, a painter, collage artist and weaver, has been a member of the gallery since 1992. Her abstract acrylic paintings deal with metaphysical aspects of self and environment. She will show a progression from some of her earliest paintings to her most recent. Sculptor Jeff Davis of Woodbine creates work in metal. Joan Fetter of Logan, a painter, will show a piece from early in her membership at the gallery and a new work. Thomas Hamilton of Council Bluffs will show the first pot he ever made. He will also be showing new bowls. Marcia Joffe-Bouska, who works in mixed media, joined the Artists Cooperative Gallery in 1978 after moving to Council Bluffs. She plans to exhibit a drawing from that period, plus a selection of her nest sculptures and a recent relief piece. Cindy Rae Mathiasen of Council Bluffs will show paintings inspired by a recent trip to Hawaii, offering many shades of green in the midst of February. Virginia Ocken of Council Bluffs paints aspects of the human figure in acrylic. Dottie Seymour of Woodbine paints, makes paper and creates artworks using mixed media. Darlys Vande Voort of Council Bluffs will show paintings in which she continues to try new avenues in my work while keeping an emphasis on strong colors, she said. While turning 100 isnt terribly uncommon these days, few who reach that milestone do so living in their own home. When Leora Torres celebrated her 100th birthday Wednesday, the celebration a birthday dinner brought in by her grandchildren was held at her home in Avoca, the same house shes lived in for over 60 years. Just making it to 100 is a surprise for me, Leora said Wednesday morning. She was born Feb. 3, 1916, on a farm south of Walnut, the daughter of Fred and Ida Kuhr. She attended country school from kindergarten through the eighth grade the went to high school in Walnut where she graduated in 1933. After high school, where she was the top typist in her class and able to type 100 words a minute error free, she lived and worked on the farm with her parents. She married the late Joseph Torres in Avoca on Oct. 5, 1940. Her husband was drafted into the Army shortly after they were married, and Leora followed him to duty assignments in Texas, Alabama, Georgia and Missouri. She held a number of jobs during those Army years, including working as a nanny, filling a secretarial position on one of the Army posts and working on the assembly line at a Coca-Cola plant. Joseph was discharged from the Army in 1946, and the couple returned to Avoca. The couples daughter, Cheryl Johnson of Lincoln, Nebraska, was born in 1950, and Leora focused on her duties as a wife and mother. With her daughter grown, she took a job as a clerk in the Pottawattamie County Courthouse in Avoca in 1968, retiring in 1974. After his discharge from the Army in 1946, Joseph worked as a salesman for Watkins products, covering a route that included eight townships surrounding Avoca. In 1963 he was hired as a deputy with the Pottawattamie County Sheriffs Office, a position he held until 1975. Following her retirement from the Pottawattamie County Courthouse, Leora joined the Lutheran Church and was involved with Womens Circle, Bible Study, Bible School, the church rummage sales along with helping at church dinners and baking pies for the East Pottawattamie County Fair. The couple celebrated their 60th anniversary prior to the passing of her husband. Leora still enjoys playing cards, something she still does monthly; reading Most anything, but Im not too fond of westerns; and watching her favorite television shows. Shes especially fond of sit-coms on TV, her all-time favorite being I Love Lucy. Leora loves spending time with her family, especially her five grandsons. A new Raising Canes Chicken Fingers restaurant on West Broadway is on the Council Bluffs City Council agenda. On Monday, the council will vote on for the creation of a one-lot commercial subdivsion for the proposed new restaurant at the northeast corner of North 25th Street and West Broadway. It is consolidating some separate lots into one lot, said Rose Brown of the Community Development Department. The plan is to create one lot that is 39,869 square feet in size. The restaurant is in the process of purchasing the property, said David Fjare, restaurant representative. Construction plans have been finished for the building, which will have both indoor seating and a drive-through, said Fjare, who believes it should be up and running at the end of the year. The national chain is popular in the South and wants to move into Iowa, he said. An employment website for Raising Canes, meanwhile, lists several job openings in Council Bluffs. Raising Canes was founded in 1996 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and named for founder Todd Graves yellow Labrador. The restaurant focuses on chicken fingers. The chain has more than 240 restaurants in 20 states and describes itself as having multiple new restaurants under construction, listing at least one opening a week as of last October, according to a press release and a calendar on its main website. Omaha has three Raising Canes locations: 12930 W. Maple Road, 10000 California St. at Westroads Mall and 7060 Dodge St. near the University of Nebraska at Omaha campus. Eaton will be eliminating roughly 250 positions from its Shenandoah facility, beginning in a few weeks through September. Jim Michels, global business communications for Eaton Vehicle Group, explained the positions will be eliminated from transmission assembly and gear and shaft machine operations. Roughly 250 positions will be impacted from this decision, said Michels. I cant emphasize enough that this was a difficult decision. It is not a reflection of the people at the facility. These are really, really quality employees, said Michels. We understand the impact this is going to have. We will treat every single employee with the respect and dignity they deserve. (Eaton) will begin eliminating positions in the near term with the entire transition being completed by the end of September. Eaton is a diversified industrial products manufacturer in the fluid power, industrial and commercial controls, automotive, and truck industries, according to its website. Michels explained there are two main reasons behind the reduction at the Shenandoah facility. The first, he explained, is that there has been a shift in the market place to automated transmissions. At the Shenandoah facility, manual transmissions are manufactured. The shift in the market has occurred at a much more rapid rate than anyone anticipated. Secondly, there is a significant reduction being forecast in 2016 in the Class 8 commercial vehicle market dropping by roughly 23 percent. With such a decline, Michels said the organization, cannot operate with current capacity at our facilities given the changes in the market place. Operations currently being done in Shenandoah will be moved to either Kings Mountain, N.C. or San Luis Potosi, Mexico, Michels said. Employees will receive 60 days notice about when positions will be eliminated. They will receive full severance packages, outplacement services and Michels said displaced employees are encouraged to seek out other positions within Eaton. Those being displaced include hourly and salaried employees, he added. These are hardworking, honest, committed people and its a tough day for all of us. The Shenandoah facility will continue to make shift bar housing, shift plates and rear plates; components needed for final assembly; leading to 85 positions being retained to support the ongoing operations. A special election in Hamburg won narrow approval Tuesday for an relatively rare property tax levy to support the local schools and community, while a public measure was approved in the Anita-based CAM schools for a property tax levy. The Fremont and Cass county contests were the only school special contests held for the Feb. 2 elections, and both went on despite schools being closed and businesses shut down because of anticipated winter weather. Other possible school special elections can be scheduled for April 5, Sept. 13 and Dec. 6 this year. Superintendent Mike Wells said the levy would generate $15,800 from the residents of the Hamburg district, located in the southwest portion of Fremont County. The 13.5-cent per $1,000 taxable valuation assessment is a public education and recreation levy, called a PERL, and will be the only one collected in southwest Iowa. Wells said previously the money would be used for recreation space and equipment, as well as for adult education classes, such as offering a technology class for community members. Equipment such as fishing poles would be available for free use by community members. The money can also help pay for school playgrounds. Some of the revenue from the PERL could offset money from the school districts physical plant and equipment levy. Any savings from the PPEL dollars could help ease the pressure on Hamburgs tight school budget, as the school district works to reinvent itself after the loss of Farragut and after declining enrollment. Hamburgs whole-grade sharing partner, Farragut the two districts operate jointly as Nishnabotna will be dissolved this summer, leaving Hamburg to operate its own middle and elementary school. The district has said publicly it plans to set up agreements for its students to attend other area high schools. The tax wont apply to Farragut residents. No reauthorization vote for the PERL will be needed. If residents decide to rescind it, a separate public measure would be required to do so. Other special levies, such as a PPEL, have to be reauthorized periodically by the school board or, depending on the assessment, directly by voters. In the CAM Community School District, a PPEL of $1.34 per $1,000 taxable valuation was approved by voters, the maximum allowed rate. The result was 131-94, with support from residents of Anita and Massena and slight net opposition in Cumberland. The money collected can be used for technology and school infrastructure projects. Students learn algebra in school because simple calculations in everyday life rely on those skills, such as determining how many Democratic delegates to award in Iowas first-in-the-nation caucuses. Want proof? For a Democratic candidate with x supporters in a precinct with C caucus-goers, the number of delegates D are assigned by the formula f(x) = [(xD)/C]. Or, adding an element of probability, as happened Monday in a precinct in Ames and a few other places across the state, a coin toss could be a determining factor. Algebra, though, is just one of many academic subjects important to understanding the modern world. Technology has increasingly grown in importance, and schools in Iowa are now looking at how to make programming as critical a component of an education as algebra and literary devices and the life cycle of an organism. For Anthony Kava, though, computer skills specifically, cybersecurity, or how to keep computer systems safe from intruders and attacks are more than just a good way to find a job after college. They are practically a life skill, he said. Were constantly connected to a global network that can be both helpful and dangerous. We want to share certain information online, but we need to understand information security in order to keep our private data private. Kava is the information technology supervisor and information security officer for Pottawattamie Countys government, as well as special deputy with the Pottawattamie County Sheriffs Office, where he works on digital forensics and is assigned to the Iowa Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. I examine devices, such as computers, tablets, phones, etc., that can contain digital evidence relevant to criminal cases, Kava said. Determining what happened after the fact requires knowledge of how systems work and interact. Experience with forensic analysis gives valuable insight into protections that can be implemented before things go wrong. Since October, Kava has been sharing that insight weekly with a group of students at Kirn Middle School participating in the Air Force Associations Cyber Patriot program, which teaches the students how to secure computers in realistic environments. They practice so they can participate in the National Youth Cyber Defense Competition. On a recent Thursday, students at the Kirn after-school club part of the CB DREAMS program funded by a 21st Century Community Learning Centers federal grant were preparing for the competition using simulated computers called virtual machines, with pre-programmed security flaws, on their school-issued Chromebooks. Aidan Morgan, an eighth-grader, showed how he had identified five of 24 security vulnerabilities built into the simulated environment. He said he plans go to college to study information assurance after graduating from Abraham Lincoln High School. It feels pretty real, he said. It all kind of stems from jobs that are coming out soon. You can get a lot of money from making sure computers are security and working with technology. Teacher Deb Hernandez connected with Kava after approaching Steve Jacobs, the Kirn school resource officer for the Council Bluffs Police Department, about having guest instructors help with the Cyber Patriot program. Jacobs told Hernandez that Kava was passionate about security, and the partnership quickly came together. Kirn is one of only 106 middle schools nationally out of 3,379 schools involved in the competition, Hernandez said. She hopes to keep growing the Kirn club, and Kava said he hopes to see the attention on cybersecurity spread to other schools as well. One area the Cyber Patriot program is clear to avoid is teaching hacking skills, how to use computers for malicious and harmful ends. Kava said he doesnt view hacking as a pejorative, because the term originally was linked to tinkerers who helped create some of the biggest shifts in technology, but stresses harming others is bad. However, hacking in the original sense taking things apart, learning how they work and improving them is good, he said. The hands-on experience allows the students to learn from doing instead of from reading online resources or reviewing reference documents Kava assembled to guide them through securing a computer system. Eight-grader John Amdor said he has been interested in computers ever since he first installed a mod a software modification, to improve gameplay or graphics or other aspects of a computer program while playing Minecraft as an elementary student. As he talks to The Nonpareil, John is working on a patch on his Ubuntu virtual system, a common build of the free operating system Linux, and the sound of success, a snippet from the Super Mario games, plays to indicate he found one of the security flaws. Its fun, John said, and Liam Reardon, a seventh-grader, adds: Id agree. Liam was working on a Windows 8 machine, and he said all of the systems the Kirn students were using were different. He said they were practicing on essentially the same platform they would face in the competition, where they would have up to six hours to find and fix as many of the problems as possible. Kava said he was amazed when he found out about the Cyber Patriot program. It gives students a chance to explore a potential career area and gives them skills to protect themselves in the digital world. My first thought was that I wished there had been an activity like this when I was in school, he said. The students enthusiasm, and how they seem to soak up complex knowledge so quickly, has made the experience extremely rewarding. Bethany Lutheran Home has proposed a new senior living facility not far from its current location on Elliott Street. The Council Bluffs City Council will hold a public hearing Monday evening concerning the final plat of the proposed facility at 2410 N. Broadway, which is currently vacant ground. The proposed facility, located just south of Emanuel Lutheran Church, would offer 55 apartments - 40 of which would be set aside for independent and assisted living needs with the remaining 15 for those with memory care needs. It would not replace the current facility, but provide more services for a growing need, according to Michael Van Sickle, the homes chief operating officer. We had a market study done, and it indicated that in the community and surrounding area there will be a need, he said. The 40 apartments, a mixture of independent and assisted living, would have three different floor plans with one plan for the memory care units, he said. All would have kitchens and bathrooms. Other features would include a community room, activity room, plus an outdoor patio off the first-floor activity room and an outdoor balcony dining area on the second floor, Van Sickle said. Plans also call for 12 garages, outdoor parking and green space. The facility will be available for the general public, age 55 and older. Estimated cost for the privately funded project is $12 million, Van Sickle said. About 50 new jobs will be created, such as nurses, cooks, housekeepers and maintenance people, he said. Van Sickle said nurses will be on duty around the clock at the facility, which he said is tentatively scheduled to open in the fall of 2017. Dave Christensen, president of the North Broadway Neighborhood Association, called the project a good fit. If anything, Christensen said, the city should consider building a road in that area to provide better access to the church and the adjacent Midlands Living Center instead of them relying on a narrow bridge. We dont have any objections to it, he said. Were not concerned with the ability of what they want to do. A call to invest in school funding For Council Bluffs Community Schools to continue the great momentum of student achievement, maintain current class-size ratios and avoid cuts in staffing and services, our district needs at least a 4 percent increase in funding. This increase is needed to keep pace with rising expenses such as salary increases, utilities, transportation, and education materials. Anything less than a 4 percent increase will inevitably cause our district to make spending cuts, potentially having fewer classroom teachers and/or support staff. My husband and I were born and educated in Iowa. We are also both currently small business owners in Iowa. After living in Nebraska for several years, we made the decision to move back to Iowa a few years ago. We made this important decision, in large part, due to the reputation of the public schools in Council Bluffs. For example, CBCSD is one of 425 school districts in the U.S. and Canada honored by the College Board with placement on the sixth annual AP District Honor Roll, and College View Elementary has an impressive International Baccalaureate Program. We decided to send our children to College View after visiting several elementary schools. We have been extremely happy with our decision. We believe CBCSDs academic rigor, focus on personal development and administrative leadership are unparalleled in the Omaha metro area. School funding not only benefits my children and all other current students, but it also furthers community development. Maintaining the current level of educational quality offered in Iowa encourages highly educated and motivated business people to move to our great state. School funding is the most worthy investment of public funds. All of our futures depend on educated youth. We ask you to contact your legislators to advocate for adequate and timely funding to our schools. Nicole Hughes, Council Bluffs Kudos to caucus volunteers Countless volunteer hours were spent locating caucus sites and calling registered voters to find volunteers to work at the Feb. 1 caucus. If you were one of those who worked to make the caucuses successful, thank you very much. You all desire a bouquet of roses. The unexpected large turnout of those who were not registered Democrats took extra time to get everyone registered as a Democrat. If someone was already a registered Democrat since the last time the county auditor had updated the files, each person simply signed in on the pre-printed Caucus Registration Form. The rest had to register as a Democrat and then sign and fill out a new voter registration form if they were registered as an Independent or Republican or had never voted. The signed form stated that they were now a Democrat for the Democrat business meeting, called a caucus. The actual vote to select the partys candidates for all partisan public offices in Iowa will happen in the June primary election. The Democrat caucus is a Democrat business meeting to elect delegates to the Democrat county convention as well as the county central committee that conducts the county party business. However, the delegate selection process does give a good indication of the strength of each presidential candidacy. The delegate process continues on up to the state convention that will elect national delegates. The national convention is given the task of selecting the partys candidates for president and vice-president. Julie Stewart Ziesman, Waukee Carson still in race, despite rumors The morning after the Iowa caucuses, NBC News ran a surprising news item from Dr. Ben Carson indicating that his campaign had, been sabotaged with dirty tricks. I need to ask voters, and they need to ask themselves: How can we continue to support potential political leaders and their staffs who promote themselves with deceit and distrust? Having known, interviewed, and supported Rep. Steve King in the past, I find it extremely difficult to believe that he would stoop so low as to tweet a false report regarding Dr. Ben Carson leaving the race for president, saying Carson looks like he is out. Iowans need to know before they vote. Most will go to Cruz, I hope. As the caucus was winding down, a Cruz supporter walked up to me and asked, Did you hear that Dr. Carson is dropping out of the race? Dr. Ben Carson is not suspending his presidential campaign. Had he intended to do so, he would have made it a public announcement. Those of us who stand with him will now be standing even stronger. If you want this nation to regain its respect, then you better do the things so many seem no longer inclined to do vote for a God-fearing candidate who can take us into a better place as a nation. Allen Stark, Council Bluffs Community Its now easier than ever to connect and chat with others in your local area. You can connect with your community by asking general questions, give area updates and recommendations and even let your community know about local events that are taking place. Homeowners in Greater Sudbury will see their property taxes increase by 3.9 per cent this year, or $102 for an average family home valued at $230,000. Homeowners in Greater Sudbury will see their property taxes increase by 3.9 per cent this year, or $102 for an average family home valued at $230,000. Councillors approved the city's $519 million budget Wednesday, and were able to include a series of options worth close to $800,000. They accomplished that by dipping into a tax rate reserve fund that will be replenished with a budget surplus from 2015 that could be as high as $1 million. Greater Sudbury Mayor Brian Bigger, who froze taxes last year, said after Wednesday's meeting that residents knew the freeze was for just one year. "I know with certainty that people were expecting an increase in taxes (this year), Bigger told reporters. I've heard a lot of positive response to the investments we're making towards capital projects, towards sustainability of our infrastructure. There was never the thought that we'd be holding to zero for years on end." The 3.9 per cent increase breaks down like this: 1.8 per cent will go towards maintaining municipal services at their current level 0.3 per cent will go toward boosting capital spending to maintain the city's infrastructure 0.5 per cent will pay for increases in budgets of police, health unit and the Nickel District Conservation Authority 1.3 per cent will fund increases in costs of provincially mandated services. Councillors also voted to include a range of new items, including two more paramedics for the city, a new Sudbury Transit pass for low-income residents, $1 million spread out over 10 years to help buy a PET scanner for the hospital, and $300,000 to build five splash parks.A number of the enhancements are geared toward Sudbury Transit, including creating a new active transportation co-ordinator position. That person's job will be to encourage and make it easier for residents to ride the bus.Bigger said improving transit has emerged as a priority for this term of city council. The goal is to increase ridership, which has flat-lined and even declined in recent years."That's the intention of a number of the measure that we've taken, and very soon we'll have free rides for seniors," he said."(We want to) help people understand the route structures and how they can best get use out of our transit system. There are number and initiatives and ideas that staff are working on related to transit."There's been strong interest and heightened awareness in transit and we have opportunities to improve our transit system. So what it's showing is there is a willingness among council to invest in the transit system."Ward 7 Coun. Mike Jakubo, who chaired the budget committee for the second year, thanked staff for their efforts throughout the process. He said the budget sets the city up for growth and development.It may not be the number everyone was looking for, but it's an investment in open and transparent government, Jakubo said. The budget will be formally approved at the Feb. 9 city council meeting. For more details on the 2016 municipal budget, go to www.greatersudbury.ca/budget. Event helps cancer patients who travel for treatment The fourth annual Cristina's Coffee House fundraiser takes place at the Caruso Club starting at 6 p.m. Feb. 28. Cristina Roque, 29, passed away in March 2012 after a four-year battle with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. Supplied photo. The fourth annual Cristina's Coffee House fundraiser takes place at the Caruso Club starting at 6 p.m. Feb. 28. The event is a fundraiser for the Cristina Care Fund through the Northern Cancer Foundation, which helps cancer patients who must travel for treatment. It's in memory of 29-year-old Cristina Roque, who passed away in March 2012 after a four-year battle with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. She spent a lot of time travelling between her Sudbury home and the Ottawa Hospital for treatments. The Cristina's Coffee House event includes live music, dancing, sweet treats and a silent auction. Tickets to the event cost $25 each, and are available through the Northern Cancer Foundation. Phone 705-523-4673. The Northeast Cancer Centre and Cancer Care Ontario are celebrating the first anniversary of MyCancerIQ, and an expansion of the tool, on World Cancer Day 2016 which just happens to be today (Feb. 4). The Northeast Cancer Centre and Cancer Care Ontario are celebrating the first anniversary of MyCancerIQ, and an expansion of the tool, on World Cancer Day 2016 which just happens to be today (Feb. 4).MyCancerIQ is a simple self-assessment of your risk of developing cancer. Introduced last year, My CancerIQ can be accessed from a smartphone, tablet or desktop computer at MyCancerIQ.ca. The self-assessment includes a personalized action plan that you can share with your family and health-care provider.Cancer Care Ontario is introducing two new cancers to MyCancerIQ this year. Now, in addition to breast, cervical, colorectal and lung cancer, people can also assess their risk for kidney cancer and melanoma.The North East region has a higher incidence rate for kidney cancer compared to the provincial average, so its important for people to assess their risks and take action to reduce these factors, said Dr. Amanda Hey, regional primary Care lead for the Northeast Cancer Centre, in a press release.According to the latest data from the Ontario Cancer Registry, the incident rate for kidney cancer in northeastern Ontario is much higher than the provincial average, with the incident rate for melanoma is slightly below the provincial average.Since the launch of MyCancerIQ in early 2015, more than 146,000 Ontarians have learned about their cancer risk and how to lower it. With these new additions, Cancer Care Ontario wants to help Ontarians better understand kidney cancer and melanoma and how to reduce their risk. Sudbury native hopes to fly high in a plane made of hemp Greater Sudbury native Derek Kesek hopes to give a whole new meaning to the saying, flying high. The ambitious entrepreneur plans to launch the world's first aircraft made mostly of hemp by the end of the year. Greater Sudbury native Derek Kesek plans to launch the world's first aircraft made mostly of hemp by the end of the year. Supplied photo. Greater Sudbury native Derek Kesek hopes to give a whole new meaning to the saying, flying high. The ambitious entrepreneur plans to launch the world's first aircraft made mostly of hemp by the end of the year. Hemp is the industrial variety of the cannabis plant it's the strain for making things, not for smoking. You can't get high off of it, Kesek said about hemp, which is used as the base material for a wide variety of products, including foods, hemp oil, wax, resin, rope, cloth, pulp, paper and fuel. When Kesek read about the plant's versatility in an article, he did something most people wouldn't do: Helaunched a company, Hempearth (http://hempearth.net/), in Waterloo. Despite hemp's low amounts of THC, the plant has only been legal to grow in Canada since the late 1990s. Kesek says hemp fibre, oil and seeds can be used to make as many as 25,000 different products. While he's working on some smaller projects, including surfboards made of the material, Kesek wants to build a small four-passenger plane to really showcase the possibilities of hemp. Under current plans, the aircraft would be around 75 per cent hemp. Instead of a fiberglass shell, the aircraft's exterior would be made of a hemp fibre, made solid with a resin. The big advantage of hemp, said Kesek, is that it is a renewable and environmentally friendly material, that grows about as fast as bamboo. Unlike many other crops, it doesn't require pesticides for large yields. In 2014, Kesek got in touch with a Florida-based small aircraft manufacturer, Velocity Inc., to build a prototype of his plane. At the time, he told the Toronto Star he hoped to have the plane ready by 2015, with plans to get it airborne in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, where the Wright Brothers made their first flight on Dec. 17, 1903. But that never happened. Velocity has pegged the cost of building the aircraft at around $500,000. Kesek said he plans to launch a Kickstarter campaign to raise that amount on April 20, 2016. In cannabis culture, the date of April 20 is often referred to as 4/20, and marks a time for cannabis enthusiasts to celebrate their favourite drug. In Ottawa, for example, pot smokers smoke up on the lawn of Parliament Hill at 4:20 p.m. on that date. Kesek said he is confident he can raise the $500,000 needed to build a first prototype within a 30- or 45-day crowd-funding campaign. Since 2014, Kesek said he has been working with partners around the world to help make his project a reality. He is currently in Costa Rica, where he is working on hemp-based biodiesel to run the plane's engine. Kesek said he has also been in touch with manufacturers in India who could manufacture aircraft at a lower cost. India also happens to have an ideal climate for growing hemp. Kesek said he draws inspiration from billionaire entrepreneurs like Richard Branson, founder of the Virgin Group, and Elon Musk, co-founder of PayPal and creator of Tesla Motors and SpaceX. Don't think that because you're from Sudbury you can't do (great) stuff, Kesek said. Rona takeover to have no immediate impact in Sudbury, company says Rona has told the union that represents its Sudbury employees that a $3.2-billion takeover from American home improvement chain Lowe's won't affect the store, at least in the short term. On Nov. 12, 2015, workers at the Sudbury Rona store were locked out after more than nine months of negotiations failed to result in a new collective agreement. They reached a collective agreement with the company four days later, on Nov. 16. File photo. Rona has told the union that represents its Sudbury employees that a $3.2-billion takeover from American home improvement chain Lowe's won't affect the store, at least in the short term. All the collective agreements are going to remain in place for now, said Jeff Barry, a representative with United Food and Commercial Workers Local 175, which represents 14 employees at the Sudbury Rona store, located on Barrydowne Road. They don't believe anything is going to be affected until at least October. While the deal is still pending regulatory approval, both companies' boards have unanimously approved the transaction. Lowe's is based in Mooresville, North Carolina, and has more than 1,800 stores and 265,000 employees in North America. Rona has its headquarters in Boucherville, Quebec, and has more than 17,000 employees in its corporate stores, and another 5,000 workers at its independent affiliate dealers. The Sudbury Rona store is one of only a few locations with unionized employees, said Barry. On Nov. 12, 2015, the workers were locked out after more than nine months of negotiations failed to result in a new collective agreement. Barry said one of the main sticking points during negotiations was securing a strong severance package for the workers. On Nov. 16, four days after the lockout, both sides ratified a collective agreement, which included the severance language the union fought to maintain. We wanted that agreement because there was a good severance package in there, if there was a store closure, Barry said. Barry added the severance packages could prove helpful if the Lowe's takeover results in the Sudbury Rona's closure a year or more down the line. If something happened and they closed the store, the members would be looked after, he said. Sudbury has a Lowe's store on Marcus Drive, around two kilometres south of the Rona location. Via The Guardian: Colombia confirms first three deaths of patients infected with Zika virus. Excerpt: Colombia has confirmed the first three deaths of patients infected with the Zika virus who had contracted a seemingly related disease that attacks the nervous system and causes paralysis. Alejandro Gaviria, the health minister, told The Guardian that another two deaths caused by the disease known as Guillain-Barre syndrome were still unconfirmed to be Zika-related. Health officials in the countrys second city, Medellin, reported on Thursday that a man and a woman admitted from other areas died in the past week after presenting symptoms of Guillain-Barre, which include muscle weakness and paralysis. Another man died in late November. All three tested positive for the Zika virus. Gaviria said Colombia has registered about 100 cases of GBS that are believed to be related to the Zika virus. Over all, Colombia has recorded more than 20,500 confirmed cases of Zika infection. Guillain-Barre-related deaths are rare but Gaviria warned that recent cases of the disorder seen in Colombia have not responded to traditional treatments of immunoglobulin. Mortality is high, Gaviria said in a phone interview a day after meeting with health ministers from around Latin America in Montevideo to address the crisis caused by the spread of Zika. Community Healthcare System signed a three-year contract Wednesday keeping its three Northwest Indiana hospitals in the Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield network, officials said. The deal comes after Community Healthcare System and Anthem failed to work out an agreement ahead of a Dec. 31 deadline. Hospital officials said in December they planned to continue to charge Anthem patients in-network benefits through the end of February as negotiations continued. Patients with Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield and other Blue Cross Blue Shield insurance plans, including Blue Cross of Illinois and Highmark, will be covered at the in-network benefit level for inpatient and outpatient services provided this year by Community Hospital in Munster, St. Catherine Hospital in East Chicago and St. Mary Medical Center in Hobart. The insurer reportedly asked the hospital system to accept lower reimbursement rates for inpatient and outpatient services at its three hospitals. About 30 percent of the hospitals patients were insured by Anthem. John Gorski, president and CEO of Community Healthcare System, said in a statement Wednesday he was pleased to reach an agreement honoring the choice of so many people. The termination and prolonged contract negotiations have been the source of great concern for our patients and employer groups and for that, we are truly sorry, Gorski said. Our goal in these negotiations has always been to ensure that our hospitals have the resources to provide the high quality care our patients have come to expect from us. Gorski said Community Healthcare System did not want patients to continue to be caught in the middle of the dispute. Another important aspect in our negotiations was getting assurances from Anthem to treat all our patients who sought care after the contract termination as if they were still in-network so they do not face higher out-of-pocket expenses, Gorski said. Representatives who can help patients work through payment or insurance issues that have arisen since the contract termination can be reached at (219) 934-8888. Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra is preparing to swoop fans off their feet with its latest Valentine's-themed production. The show "Bing Bang Boom!" will be presented at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 12 at The Auditorium at Bethel Church in Crown Point. The orchestra's production celebrates Valentine's weekend and will feature a mix of stirring compositions. "I want to present something exciting and romantic at the same time," said Kirk Muspratt, music director/conductor of the orchestra. Muspratt said one of the prime compositions on the program will be Tchaikovsky's "Symphony No. 6," which the conductor said is one of his favorite pieces of music. "It's one of the top five symphonies," Muspratt said, about the musical work that is not only passionate and stirring but was something that showed the heart wrenching side of Tchaikovsky's work. "The piece is ultra romantic and so personal," Muspratt said. Also starring on the musical roster will be Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture," which Muspratt said is a great and powerful work. "We'll even have images of virtual canons on screens on the stage," he said. Muspratt is extremely happy to introduce symphony fans to pianist Wael Farouk during this concert. Farouk, who'll perform Prokofiev's "Piano Concert No. 1," is on the faculty of the Chicago College of the Performing Arts at Roosevelt University. Farouk released a solo album titled "Russian Portraits" in 2013. Muspratt said audiences will definitely enjoy the passionate and skilled rendition of Prokofiev's work delivered by Farouk. The conductor said Valentine's weekend concerts for the symphony are always nice shows in that they bring out a diverse audience. "They can be 25-year-olds going out for Valentine's Day or someone taking their grandmother out," Muspratt said, adding the show is a very family friendly experience and something "classy" for all ages. FYI: Northwest Indiana Symphony Orchestra will present "Bing Bang Boom!" at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 12 at The Auditorium at Bethel Church, 10202 Broadway, Crown Point. Tickets are $29 to $69; student tickets are $10. Call (219) 836-0525 or visit nisorchestra.org. There will be a pre-show talk at 6:15 p.m. with Muspratt. EAST CHICAGO A Chicago man is facing child molesting charges after two girls came forward and said he touched them inappropriately, according to court records. Patrick D. Harbor, 27, faces three counts of child molesting. A warrant was issued this week for his arrest. East Chicago police began investigating Harbor after two girls who were in foster care began behaving inappropriately. One girl, who was 7 years old at the time, told police Harbor touched her inappropriately at least two times, according to the affidavit. The other girl, who was 4 years old at the time, told police Harbor touched her at least once. The incidents are believed to have taken place from May 15, 2015, to May 28, 2015, at an East Chicago apartment, according to court records. Violent crime rose 17 percent in East Chicago last year, but property crime continued on a downward trend. Police Chief Mark Becker said the rise in violent crime primarily was driven by aggravated assaults, which increased to 139 last year from 103 in 2014. The city also logged a slight increase in murder, which rose to eight in 2015 from seven a year earlier. Charges have been filed in four of last year's cases. Robbery increased by two, from 90 in 2014 to 92 least year. Rape declined by 42 percent last year, from 19 in 2014 to 11 last year, according to statistics the department provides to the FBI's Uniform Crime Report. This is the second year violent crime has increased in East Chicago, following declines in 2012 and 2013. A total of 255 violent crimes were reported in 2011, the year before Becker was appointed chief. The city logged 222 violent crimes in 2012, 204 in 2013, 219 in 2014 and 250 last year. Becker said the declines in 2012 and 2013 could be attributed, in part, to the aggressive prosecution of street gang members by federal prosecutors. U.S. Attorney David Capp said at a recent community forum in Munster that his office took 56 members of the Latin Kings and Imperials Gangsters off the streets of Northwest Indiana in the past four years. Those 56 people were responsible for a total of 36 homicides dating back to the 1990s, he said. Becker said he couldn't say for sure if the increases in violent crime the past two years might be a result of a younger gang members beginning to fill the void left after successful prosecutions. "I think if you look at the crime stats, you'll find most categories remained within standard deviations," he said. "I'm not saying that an aggravated assault isn't a serious crime, but if we're going to sustain an increase in violent crime that's probably one we can be most accepting of." The real difference is in the number of homicides, he said. East Chicago recorded homicide totals in the teens for much of the 2000s and logged 20 in 2003, when gangs were coming in from Chicago and taking over territory in the city, he said. "We obviously would like to have none, but you have to be realistic," he said. Property crime, which includes burglary, larceny, vehicle theft and arson, was down 17 percent in 2015. The city logged 1,127 property crimes, down from 1,210 in 2014 and 1,337 in 2013. Burglary fell to 246 last year from 303 in 2014. Larceny decreased to 788 in 2015 from 794 a year earlier. Vehicle theft was down to 91 from 107, and arson declined from six in 2014 to two last year. Overall crime, including all violent and property crimes, fell 4 percent to the lowest level on record since 1985. Despite the rise in violent crime, Becker was encouraged that overall crime was further reduced, he said. He credited city officials, officers, the department's support staff, police clergy and graduates of the Citizens Police Academy. "Without their efforts, we would not have enjoyed the success we have had over the past several years," he said. MERRILLVILLE A 47-year-old man is accused of inappropriately touching a girl during the summer of 2014, according to court records. Marcus Q. Williams Sr., of Merrillville, was charged this week with child molesting, a Level 4 felony. A warrant was issued for his arrest. A girl, who was younger than 13 years old at the time, told detectives that Williams inappropriately touched her at a Merrillville apartment, according to the affidavit. Williams knew the girl. When the girl asked why he was touching her, Williams allegedly told the girl, "Little kids in Africa do it," according to the affidavit. MERRILLVILLE A Gary man already facing criminal charges in an attempted robbery where a security guard was shot was additionally charged Wednesday in two separate robberies. In one case, Stephen T. Spivey, 21, is accused of on Dec. 30, 2015, pointing a gun and yelling at a One Stop Mart worker, police said. Spivey is accused of firing at the worker as he tried to run. The worker was not injured because the store, which is in the 700 block of West 45th Avenue in Gary, had bullet-proof glass. About 15 minutes later, Spivey pointed a silver gun at the forehead of a worker at King Gyro in the 5500 block of Broadway in Merrillville, according to court records. Spivey is accused of demanding the worker open the cash register and threatening to kill the worker, according to court records. The worker and Spivey were initially unable to open the cash register, but he grabbed money from it after it was eventually opened. Spivey left a trail of money as he ran out of King Gyro. A resident told police he saw a man running to a gold- or champagne-colored Pontiac Bonneville after the robbery. He was identified as the suspect in the robberies after Merrillville officers distributed surveillance video still shots to the Indiana Department of Correction parole district. Workers from King Gyro and One Stop Mart also identified Spivey after viewing a photo array prepared by officers. In the Merrillville robbery, Spivey faces a charge of armed robbery. He faces charges of attempted robbery and criminal recklessness in the Gary attempted robbery. Spivey, of Gary, was arrested Monday on charges stemming from a Jan. 26 attempted robbery of ABC Cellular phone store in Gary. A security guard was shot in his back during the incident. Spivey had his initial hearing Tuesday in the Lake County Jail and requested a public defender. Anyone with information about any of the robberies is asked to contact Gary Police Department Detective Sgt. Gregory Wolf at (219) 881-1210. Residents can also call the department's tip line at (866) CRIME-GP. EAST CHICAGO Police said Wednesday a man who attempted to con employees at two businesses on Carroll Street out of $45 might be the same person who stole money from a Griffith Subway last weekend. East Chicago police were dispatched about 3 p.m. Friday to a business in the 1400 block of Carroll Street for a suspicious man, Lt. Marguerite Wilder said. The man, who was wearing a jacket with lettering that read "Block Electric," told a business owner the electricity had been turned off and the business was operating on a generator. The man said he could turn on the electricity for $45, police said. The business owner refused to pay, and the man went to another store in the same building and made the same offer to an employee there, police said. When the employee asked the man for identification, the man ran out of the store. Griffith police said Tuesday a man posing as an electrical worker scammed employees at the Subway restaurant at 100 W. Ridge Road out of $150. The con artist in Griffith was wearing work clothes and a hard hat with "Block Electric" insignia on it. Griffith police released a surveillance photo of the man. Detective Cmdr. Keith Martin said Wednesday the man might be linked to crimes in several communities but he has not yet been positively identified. In the East Chicago case, the man was described as black, about 40 years old, tall with a heavy build and a mustache. Anyone with information is asked to call East Chicago Detective Terrence Fife at (219) 391-8318. To remain anonymous, call (219) 391-8500. Griffith Detective John Mowery can be reached at (219) 924-7503, ext. 256. Griffith's anonymous tip line is (219) 922-3085. GRIFFITH More than 50 teachers will attend an Indiana Department of Education math in-service training program Feb. 4 at Griffith High School. Griffith Principal Brian Orkis said the program will be from 4 to 7 p.m. at the high school, 600 N. Wiggs St. The featured speaker will be William Reed, a math specialist from the Indiana Department of Education. Orkis said school districts from across Northwest Indiana will send teachers and administrators. "Obviously for our teachers they can use it as professional development points or they can use it for continuing education credits for their licenses," he said. "We'll also get important information about the upcoming ISTEP test. There will be other meetings like this held around the state. This will be the only one in this area." Reed's presentation will include information about how to: Locate and use Indiana Department of Education resources; detail mathematics process standards and explain what they look like in the classroom; pose purposeful questioning, depth of knowledge and classroom discourse; and help teachers use assignments to provide best practice tools for students. INDIANAPOLIS Pregnant Hoosier women who learn their child will be born with Down syndrome or another genetic disease, defect or disorder would be prohibited from obtaining an abortion, under legislation approved 35-14 by the Republican-controlled Senate. Senate Bill 313, sponsored by state Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle, bars doctors from performing an abortion if the doctor knows the patient is seeking an abortion due to a diagnosis, or potential diagnosis, of a genetic fetal disability. The legislation also prohibits abortions motivated by gender selection, or due to the race, color, national origin or ancestry of the fetus. Holdman said he hopes the proposal, which now goes to the Republican-controlled House, will reduce Indiana abortions and demonstrate that Hoosiers believe all life has value. Opponents of the measure questioned why Indiana would force women to give birth to children with genetic disabilities if the women know they cannot or do not want to take on that burden, and the state is not allocating extra funds to help care for those children. A woman still could obtain an abortion in Indiana prior to viability, or 20 weeks of pregnancy, if the fetus either is healthy or destined to suffer a nongenetic lethal fetal anomaly where the child dies within three months of birth. In that circumstance, the measure requires doctors give women a state-published brochure discouraging abortion by detailing the availability of perinatal hospice programs that ensure "the woman and her family experience the life and death of the child in a comfortable and supportive environment." Should the legislation advance through the House and be signed into law by Republican Gov. Mike Pence, it almost certainly will be challenged in federal court where most recently enacted Indiana abortion restrictions have been struck down as unconstitutional. A separate proposal to win approval this week, House Bill 1337, encourages the burial of aborted fetuses and requires abortion doctors comply with numerous additional paperwork mandates. INDIANAPOLIS House Democratic Leader Scott Pelath, D-Michigan City, is skeptical the tax hikes approved this week by House Republicans to pay for road construction will become law. They have a long way to go to sell this tax increase to the public, Pelath said. The case just hasnt been made. House Bill 1001, which passed without a single Democratic vote, increases the cigarette tax by $1 per pack and boosts the gasoline tax by 4 cents per gallon to raise $500 million a year for state and local road and bridge improvements. Pelath said he agrees Indianas transportation infrastructure needs a big investment, but believes the state should spend at least a portion of its $2 billion reserve fund and prioritize road funding in future budgets before asking Hoosiers to pay more. The state is already sitting on a pile of money that theyve already taken from the people, Pelath said. They can address the problem without taking a dime out of anybodys pocket. He noted Statehouse Republicans pushed through tax cuts between 2011 and 2014 mostly benefiting businesses and Indianas wealthiest families that will reduce state revenue by nearly $7 billion through 2024. These numbers would pay for some pretty nice roads, Pelath said. He suggested the tax cuts that have yet to take effect be postponed so Indiana has the money it needs to improve the states roads and bridges without asking everyday Hoosiers to pay more. Pelath also tepidly endorsed the road funding package approved by the Republican-controlled Senate. and backed by Republican Gov. Mike Pence. Senate Bills 67 and 333 dedicate $1.4 billion in one-time surplus and borrowed funds to state and local road work through 2020. Theres something to work with here, Pelath said. The Senate is probably a little bit closer to our approach in that you first have to look at the money youve already collected in order to help solve the problem. That is what gives me some hope that its more likely than not that there will be an infrastructure bill by the end of the session. House Speaker Brian Bosma, R-Indianapolis, said the Republican roads plan is a responsible, long-term program that will ensure Indianas Crossroads of America are maintained and the states economy continues to grow long after this years elections are over. Our goal is to meet the needs of the next generation, Bosma said. When lawmakers return to the Statehouse Monday, the House will begin considering Senate-approved legislation and the Senate will take up House-endorsed measures. A proposal must pass both chambers with identical language prior to March 14 to go to the governor for his signature or veto. Thanks to Helen Branswell for tweeting the link to this Associated Press report in STAT: Few Zika samples are being shared by Brazil. Excerpt: RIO DE JANEIRO U.N. and U.S. health officials tell The Associated Press that Brazil has yet to share enough samples and disease data needed to answer the most worrying question about the Zika outbreak: whether the virus is actually responsible for the increase in the number of babies born with abnormally small heads in Brazil. The lack of data is frustrating efforts to develop diagnostic tests, drugs and vaccines. Laboratories in the United States and Europe are relying on samples from previous outbreaks. Scientists say having so little to work with is hampering their ability to track the virus evolution. One major problem appears to be Brazilian law. At the moment, it is technically illegal for Brazilian researchers and institutes to share genetic material, including blood samples containing Zika and other viruses. Its a very delicate issue, this sharing of samples. Lawyers have to be involved, said Dr. Marcos Espinal, director of communicable diseases in the World Health Organizations regional office in Washington. Espinal said he hoped the issue might be resolved after discussions between the U.S. and Brazilian presidents. He said WHOs role was mainly to be a broker to encourage countries to share but so far Brazil had probably provided fewer than 20 samples. There is no way this should not be solved in the foreseeable future, he said. Waiting is always risky during an emergency. Last May, as the first cases of Zika in Brazil were emerging, President Dilma Rousseff signed a new law to regulate how researchers use the countrys genetic resources. But the regulatory framework hasnt yet been drafted, leaving scientists in legal limbo. Until the law is implemented, were legally prohibited from sending samples abroad, said Paulo Gadelha, president of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Brazils premier state-run research institute for tropical diseases. Even if we wanted to send this material abroad, we cant because its considered a crime. The ban does not necessarily mean foreign researchers cant access samples. Some were shared with the United States, including tissue samples from two newborns who died and two fetuses recently examined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But a U.S. official said that wasnt enough to develop accurate tests for the virus or help determine whether Zika is in fact behind the recent jump in the number of congenital defects. The spike in cases prompted WHO to declare an international emergency Monday. Given the drought of Brazilian samples, public health officials across the world are falling back on older viruses or discreetly taking them from private patients. The U.S. official, who shared the information on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak publicly, said the CDC was relying on a strain taken from a 2013 outbreak in French Polynesia to perfect its Zika tests. U.S. researchers trying to sequence Zikas genetic code have been forced to rely on virus samples from Puerto Rico for the same reason, he said. Read the rest of the article, but it doesn't get encouraging. This is reminiscent of Indonesia's refusal to share H5N1 samples (or even report cases), and Saudi Arabia's anger at MERS samples being taken out of the country by an Egyptian researcher. GARY | Willie T. Donald is readjusting to a world of technology unknown to him during the 24 years he spent in prison for a murder he was exonerated of last week. "There weren't any smartphones in prison. People can connect more easily. The world seems smaller," Donald said, less than a week after his release. Thomas Vanes, his defense attorney, said if today's technology had been available Feb. 27, 1992, when a robbery he was implicated in took place, it might have confirmed his alibi. Donald said he was car shopping with his sister and brother-in-law in Merrillville and Crown Point when the crime spree was taking place in Gary's Glen Park section. "Nowadays, there would be a security camera with digital recording in the showrooms or maybe at one of the homes on the streets where the robberies occurred," Vanes said. A jury rejected Donald's alibi and he spent half his life clearing his name, but he said he isn't looking backward anymore. "I've earned two degrees in prison in Bible studies and business management. You have to go on with your life," Donald said. Donald, 47, credited Vanes with fighting to clear him of being the man who forced his way into Rhonda Fleming's home, robbing her of $50 and shooting Bernard Jimenez outside his Gary residence as Jimenez was protecting his family. Vanes and Donald said Gary police targeted him because he lived near the victims' neighborhood and police knew him from an auto theft investigation from which Donald was cleared. Fleming and Jimenez's fiancee picked Donald first from a police photo album and then from a lineup of six men at the station. "Officer (Bruce) Outlaw said I had been picked out for a murder and a robbery," Donald said. "I couldn't believe it. When he told me the date it happened, I said that is impossible. I told them I was car shopping with my sister and her fiance." Police had no physical evidence, but a jury believed eyewitnesses. "I was devastated. I knew I didn't commit no crimes, but they found me guilty," Donald said. Once in prison, he "kept my situation to myself." "The first time I told someone I was innocent, they laughed at me," Donald said. Vanes took up Donald's case after the trial and got his first break during a conversation with John Jelks, a Gary detective with a junior role in the Donald investigation. Jelks has since died. "Jelks was never called as a witness. Jelks said he had his reservations whether Donald was guilty," Vanes said. Vanes said Jelks knew Fleming had called police only a few days after her robbery, but before Donald's arrest, to say she had seen her robber again on her street. Police didn't respond in time, but made a record of her call. Vanes said Donald had proof he had been at work as a shipping and receiving clerk at Gary's Goldblatts department store during the second sighting, but police never disclosed the second sighting, which the defense could have used to undermine his identification as the criminal. Vanes said that was a violation of basic court rules that the prosecution disclose all exculpatory evidence. That and Fleming's later sworn testimony she was never positive about picking Donald out of the lineup, clinched their successful appeal. "I think the criminal justice system sometimes fails," Donald said. VALPARAISO A Crown Point man faces a felony criminal charge based on allegations of illegally voting in Hebron during last year's primary election. Scott Crawley, of the 13000 block of Gibson Street, had moved from Hebron to Crown Point in 2012, yet signed when receiving his ballot on May 5 that he was still living at his Hebron address, according to Ethan Lowe, attorney for the Porter County Election Board. The Hebron house, located in the 100 block of Park Place, was awarded to his former wife and has since been sold to a third party, according to the charging information. Crawley, whose age is not on court documents, was given a bond of $8,500 surety or $1,000 cash. CHESTERTON | Octave Grill in Chesterton won top honors in the Porter County Burger Wars, a month-long competition to choose the best burger in the county. Franklin House in Valparaiso was chosen runner-up. Octave Grill and Franklin House both move on to the Northern Indiana Burger Wars, which started Friday, squaring off against burgers from six other Northern Indiana counties. Octave earned a spot in the regional competition by winning the Porter County competition, while Franklin House was chosen as the wild card entry because it received the most votes of any second-place finisher in the seven counties. Burger Wars has created a lot of buzz for us, and has been fantastic advertising for our gourmet burgers, said Casey Petro, Octave owner. Since we can only serve a small amount of people at a time, we really focus on our great burgers and do the best we can for our customers. Franklin House earned runner-up and wild card status thanks to the many fans of its signature House Burger, which features peanut butter, bacon, Swiss cheese, mayonnaise, and a sunny-side up egg on a German pretzel bun. Burger Wars, an initiative of Indiana Dunes Tourism and the Northern Indiana Tourism Development Commission, is designed to highlight the fact that there are so many great burger places in the area and to encourage residents and visitors to experience multiple restaurants. In addition to awarding prizes to the restaurants, Indiana Dunes Tourism awarded a $100 Octave Grill gift certificate to one lucky person from among those who dined and voted for their favorite burger. An additional prize totaling $200 will be awarded to a voter in the regional round. People can vote for Octave Grill and Franklin House in the regional competition by visiting www.indianadunes.com/wars through June 23. The winner of each pairing will advance to a round of four on June 23, with the final round of two kicking off on June 30. The winning restaurant will be announced July 7. Octave and Franklin House were part of of Porter Countys Epic Eight, which battled in a bracket-style competition. The other top burger places in Porter County, as identified through social media mentions and surveys, are Burgerhaus, Valparaiso; Industrial Revolution, Valparaiso; Piggies and Cream at the Depot, Kouts; Pikks Tavern, Valparaiso; Village Tavern, Porter; and Wagners Ribs, Porter. PORTAGE Mike Weber said he was just "the first link in the chain of survival" last week. That chain of survival ultimately saved a Michigan man, who like Weber, was assisting in the aftermath of the massive east coast storm Jonas. Weber, of Portage, assistant director of Porter County EMA, and Chesterton Fire Chief John Jarka were deployed to Baltimore on Jan. 25 as part of an Indiana Department of Homeland Security team to assist Baltimore in cleanup efforts. Weber said his job was a staging area manager in logistics, helping manage equipment and snow removal. While working the night shift Jan. 28, Weber said he was making his rounds, bringing water to workers when he was waved down. Gavin Kilpatrick, of Michigan, had been fueling an ice melter when he apparently suffered a heart attack and fell half way under the machine, Weber said. "We pulled him out and opened his shirt. He didn't have a pulse and he wasn't breathing," Weber said. He began CPR as the other man called for emergency services. "On the 28th compression, he gasped a breath," Weber said. Baltimore EMS arrived, shocked Kilpatrick with a defibrillator and transported him to an area hospital. "An hour and a half later, he was sitting up in the hospital bed. They had to put a stent in him. It had been his third heart attack," Weber said. He was credited with helping save the man's life. Weber, who previously deployed to Dubois County in southern Indiana to assist in the avian flu outbreak, said when he and Jarka traveled east just after the storm, roads were barely open and snow was piled up to windows on stranded cars. Weber, who has also been deployed to help with the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, tornadoes in Henryville and a wildfire in Alaska, brushed off his involvement in the save. "I was just at the right place at the right time," he said. CHESTERTON | Burger Wars, a bracket-style contest to crown the best burger in Porter County, has kicked off. The Epic Eight, identified as having the best burgers in the county through social media mentions and surveys, will battle head-to-head until a winner is crowned. Porter Countys Epic Eight are: Burgerhaus, Valparaiso; Franklin House, Valparaiso; Industrial Revolution, Valparaiso; Octave Grill, Chesterton; Piggies and Cream at the Depot, Kouts; Pikks Tavern, Valparaiso; Village Tavern, Porter, and Wagners Ribs, Porter. People can visit www.indianadunes.com/wars to vote in the first round. The winner of each pairing will advance to a round of four on May 26, with the final round of two kicking off June 2. The winning restaurant will be announced June 10, and will compete against burgers from six other Northern Indiana counties starting June 13 to pick a Northern Indiana champion. The contest, an initiative of Indiana Dunes Tourism and the Northern Indiana Tourism Development Commission, is designed to highlight the burger places in the area and to encourage residents and visitors to experience multiple restaurants. The eight competing restaurants will have tourism-produced posters at their locations and are encouraged to use social media and be creative in getting diners and voters to come their way. "Burger Wars not only allows people to participate in the battle for the best local burgers, but it will help visitors decide where to go when theyre here and are craving a juicy burger, whether its beef, pork, bison, veggie or ahi tuna. We anticipate that Burger Wars will be the first of several future 'wars' in coming years," said Angela Pasyk, niche market director for Indiana Dunes Tourism. Besides awarding prizes to the restaurants, Indiana Dunes Tourism will award a $100 gift certificate purchased from the winning Porter County restaurant to one person from among those who dine and vote for their favorite burger. For the past several decades, liberals emboldened and indoctrinated in the counterculture movement of the 1960s have been the most vociferous and ardent supporters of free speech. Lately, it is hard to ignore the deafening silence from the political left as the debate about free speech and religious liberty unfolds here in Indiana and across the nation. There was a time, not too long ago, when people of all faiths understood and respected each others' differences. The idea of allowing government to dictate the terms of a persons free exercise of conscience or religious beliefs was overwhelmingly rejected by individuals of all faiths. As a descendant of people of faith who came to America desperate to escape religious persecution, I understand the history and influence of the church on American culture. However, there are those who do not appreciate this influence. In recent years, we have seen legal challenges to the presence of religious symbols in the public square and remnants of faith in our public policy. These protests seem trivial to some, but certainly transparent in the intent to limit the influence of Judeo-Christian principles on American culture. Time-honored traditions, values and sentiments have given way to political correctness dictated by the state and a less tolerant society. Again, this same liberal-progressive movement that argued against our respected traditions is now silent as Christians are attacked for their individual beliefs. The most recent attacks are no longer relegated to the public square but are now happening to Christians in their own homes and businesses. How did we get to a place in America where matters of faith are subject to restriction by the state or federal government? Why are the champions of free speech and personal freedom suddenly silent as Christians remain under constant siege for their beliefs? It is important to understand the ongoing cultural debate in America is not about the Ten Commandments on the courthouse lawn, prayer in our public schools or protecting the rights of the LGBT community. It is also not about religion in general. The concerted effort by the political left aided by the media and fueled recently by corporate interests is an attempt to reduce the influence of Christianity on our culture and replace faith and family with consumerism and nanny-state government. These political groups certainly have the right to fight for the things they believe, but they do not have the right to silence those of us who disagree. If they were true to their classically liberal ideology, they would be defending Christians, not joining the chorus of the authoritarians working to strike another blow against free people. Those who advocate limits on religious speech are shortsighted as they may just as easily become the next target of the thought police. It is why more reasonable and rational voices must stand up and speak out against current measures in the Indiana Legislature that in any way limit our First Amendment rights as Americans. I strongly encourage members of the Indiana House and Senate, especially conservatives who claim to respect our Bill of Rights, to speak up on this crucial matter. You will never have to apologize for defending liberty. Via allAfrica.com, a ThisDay report on the economic impact of disease on one family: Nigeria: The Cost of Lassa Fever. Excerpt: The nursing student, who spoke to THISDAY at the lobby of the Lassa Fever isolation ward of Irrua Specialist Teaching Hospital in Edo State, explained that before they could contact Ondo State government, because they live in Akure, their father had become seriously ill. "Last week, we then brought my parents down to this Centre for diagnosis and treatment. And we were told they needed to commence treatment as soon as possible because their cases were presented late," she explained. According to her, for each day, her Dad was given up to 17 bottles of Ribavirin, while the Mum still consumes as much as 13 bottles of Ribavirin. "The doctor said the amount of Ribavirin per patient vary because of the patient's weight," she explained. She said despite being told from Ondo State that Lassa Fever treatment was free, she has spent over one hundred thousand naira since the past six days when she brought her parents to the ward. "The testing we did was totally free, same with the Ribavirin that was administered to my parents. Though my dad died few days ago, my Mum is still on Ribavirin. But all other treatments are not free. Patients have to pay for them. There are other treatments, including blood transfusion, drugs, among others. That is what patients have to spend money on. I have spent over a hundred thousand naira[US$500] already. "There was a time they said the drug was scarce, and that we might have to be buying it. I think a bottle cost one thousand naira or thereabout. But we are lucky they didn't talk about us buying it again. Maybe it's no more scarce. I wonder how I would have been able to cope buying up to 13 bottles for my Mum every day, or 17 bottles for my dad, who unfortunately still lost his life to the disease," she explained. She also told THISDAY that though she tested negative to the virus, the hospital management has placed her on Ribavirin, as she was being monitored as well for the disease. "Even my other siblings back home are also on the treatment. I know if anyone is infected, once treatment is accessed on time, there is a high possibility of being treated successfully." She called on the hospital management and the government to do all they can to save her Mum, as she will be unable to cope with losing three people in her house to the outbreak. "Please, help me tell them to do all they can to save my Mum. She doesn't deserve the pain she is undergoing now," she said tearfully. Her tale resonates the desire to live in a country where disease outbreaks are no more, so that loved ones would not be dying before their prime. Her tale also brought to fore, the government's level of desire to stamp the outbreak out of the country. One, again, then wonders why patients would have to pay for treatment from an outbreak currently on an epidemic proportion, considering that the more people are unable to pay for their treatment, the more they are more likely not to patronise the hospital for fear of paying for the huge cost of treatment, or the more other people will be at risk. This therefore prompted THISDAY to speak with one of the health workers in the Lassa Fever Centre, who said he preferred to remain anonymous because he was not qualified to speak on the issue. According to him, the reality on ground is that Lassa Fever treatment is not free, despite government reiterating that the treatment is free. "Apart from test and Ribavirin treatment, every other one is out-of-pocket treatment. There are some patients who sometimes need dialysis because their body fluid would have to be balanced. Such persons are asked to pay for sessions of dialysis, and we all know how much a dialysis session cost. Most of them would have to get blood infusion, so they must buy the blood. Same for other types of drugs needed for the treatment of Lassa Fever," he revealed. He explained that there was an instance where a particular Lassa Fever patient needed blood transfusion, but had no money, and it was clear that if nothing was done, the possibility of losing him to the virus was high. So the staff in the Centre had to contribute money just to buy the blood and save his life. Manhattan is a mainstay for millions of visitors who come to the city every year, but many travelers are venturing into another borough for a unique experience. NY1's Ruschell Boone reports that Queens is slowly becoming a tourist destination. This is not her first trip to the city so Marla Wilson is skipping the usual tourist sites in Manhattan for Queens. First stop, the Louis Armstrong House Museum in Corona, where the Jazz great lived. "I guess a lot of the other tourist experiences you know, Times Square and so forth, they're very kinda manufactured but this feels a little bit more authentic," Wilson said. The Californian is among the thousands who will visit the museum this year many from overseas. "We get about 20,000 visitors a year here. And 20% or so are international visitors and they come from over 50 countries," said Jennifer Walden Weprin, director of marketing for the museum. The borough's culture and diversity have become big draws. NYC & Company says more than 12 million people visited Queens in 2014 with more from foreign countries than the U.S. The city says tourism is helping to boost the boroughs economy, employing about 50,000 people. "It generates $5.1 billion in revenue," said Marty Markowitz with NYC & Company. And those numbers are expected to increase with all the buzz Queens has been getting lately. "It's not like you're at Epcot Center," said one vistor. "This isn't staged." The Lonely Planet travel guide made Queens the top place to visit in the United States last year. These Middle Eastern travelers are staying at the Z NYC Hotel as a result. They wanted a room facing the Ed Koch Queensborough Bridge. "We don't have these big things in our country," said one. "A lot of people follow Lonely Planet, take their advice for where to go and what to do, so it was a great help to the local area," said Lisa Gneo director of sales and marketing for the hotel. Not everyone comes just to see Queens. Some tourists staying in Long Island City are spillovers from Manhattan, but thats not the case in Flushing, now a major destination for Asian travelers. Its not just because Flushing has a large Asian community. "It's business, it's travel, it's leisure, it's education," said Rob MacKay, director of the Queens Tourism Council. "It's a little bit of everything." There are new accommodations when they get here. There are now 178 hotels in Queens 20 more than just three years ago, and 14 more are on the way. A Staten Island man has become the first undocumented immigrant in the state to get his law license, even though he is not in this country legally. NY1's Amanda Farinacci filed the following report. Tears streaming down his cheeks, 32-year-old Cesar Vargas described his emotions as he was sworn in before a judge, the first undocumented immigrant in New York to receive a law license. "It's, it was an amazing moment, Vargas said. "It felt like the day was never going to come." Vargas passed the bar exam in 2011 but was denied the right to practice. The bar committee said his character was "stellar" but that it couldn't recommend him for a license bcause of his immigration status. Vargas sued, and in June, a five-judge panel ruled he can be admitted to practice law in New York. "I can practice. I can represent clients. I can write in my business card, 'Attorney at Law,'" Vargas said. Vargas and his mother fled Mexico after his father died. He was just 5 years old. He attended public school in Brooklyn, put himself through college and then CUNY Law School. He became a visible advocate for so-called DREAMers, immigrants who entered the U.S. illegally as children and continue to live here without legal status. Vargas made headlines confronting outspoken Rep. Steve King about the Iowa congressman's opposition to an Obama administration policy granting temporary work permits immigrant children. That he's now a lawyer sets a precedent for other undocumented immigrants to practice law in New York, joining Florida and California in allowing such a policy. "Even when challenged by the federal government, this judiciary of the State of New York said, 'We are the ones who decide,'" said Juan Cartajena, president of Latino Justice. "They, of course decided that Cesar was fit, and we are very happy for him." As for what's next for Vargas, he is currently working on Bernie Sanders presidential campaign and says he plans to use his career as a lawyer to help other immigrants just like him. Mayor Bill de Blasio suffered a huge embarrassment Thursday when the City Council abruptly shelved one of his high-profile initiatives: his bill to limit the horse carriage industry. As our Michael Scotto reports, de Blasio insists he's not giving up. Outside Central Park, horse carriage drivers were doing a victory lap while de Blasio nursed the wounds of a major political blow. "I feel great. I think that it's the right decision," said Joshua Sausville, a horse carriage operator. "I feel like my union didn't let me down." Thursday, the City Council withdrew legislation that would have reduced the number of carriage-horses by nearly half and confined them to Central Park. The council acted after the Teamsters abruptly pulled their support, a day before the council was to vote on the plan, which de Blasio negotiated with the union just last month. "We had a good faith agreement with them that was worked on for many weeks, and they didn't keep to their agreement," the mayor said. The deal unraveled in recent days as powerful interests lined up against it. Community leaders and parks advocates complained about plans to spend as much as $25 million of taxpayer money to build a stable for the horses in the park. The drivers said they'd be put out of business before that stable could be constructed. In addition, the Transport Workers Union joined pedicab drivers to block a part of the agreement that would have banished pedicabs to the northern part of the park. "We are very happy," Ibrahim Barrie, a pedicab driver, said. Despite the defeat, de Blasio insists he's not giving up on this issue and that he's going to continue fighting until it is resolved. During his mayoral campaign, de Blasio vowed to kill the industry on his first day in office. But now that he's tried and failed, some lawmakers said the issue should be put to rest. "I hope that the mayor will turn the page and move on," said City Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer of Queen. But that could be difficult. NYCLASS, the animal rights group that went all out for candidate de Blasio because of his opposition to the horse carriages, called the council's decision "outrageous and wrong." Outside Central Park, the debate showed no sign of ending. Prosecutors have cited the deposition given by Mr. Cosby in that case, parts of which became public only last summer, as key evidence. In the deposition, the entertainer acknowledged obtaining quaaludes as part of his efforts to have sex with women. A lawyer for Mr. Cosby testified Wednesday that he only allowed him to testify in the civil case, without invoking his Fifth Amendment right, because of Mr. Castors promise of immunity. In her account of what happened on one winter night in 2004, Ms. Constand said she began feeling drained at Mr. Cosbys home in the Philadelphia suburbs, and he gave her three pills and some wine to help her relax. Soon, she said, her vision blurred, she had difficulty speaking and Mr. Cosby led her to a sofa, where he touched her breasts, penetrated her vagina with his fingers and placed her hand on his erect penis. Mr. Castor testified Tuesday that, while he believed Ms. Constands account, he had declined to prosecute because he questioned if she would make a credible witness. He cited contact between Ms. Constand and Mr. Cosby in the year between when she said the incident occurred and when she went to the authorities, including at least one in-person meeting and phone calls between Mr. Cosby, Ms. Constand and her mother, some of which, he said, had been recorded illegally. But Ms. Constands lawyers, who testified on Wednesday, have said that Ms. Constand and her mother only contacted Mr. Cosby once about the alleged incident, in two phone calls in January 2005. The fight is not just playing out in a courtroom. It has engaged residents as well, who have a classic love-hate relationship with the retailer. Some love it because it employs them, sells some of their locally made products and gives them access to goods they might not otherwise find on the island. Others hate it because, they say, it crowds out local competition and disrupts Puerto Rican neighborhoods and daily routines. Walmart has 55 stores in Puerto Rico, including some operated under different names, and it employs almost 15,000 people. And now that Puerto Ricos government is nearly out of cash and still has a $72 billion debt to be paid, some are incensed that Walmart is balking at the tax, contending that as one of the largest retailers in the world, it can well afford to pay. They hooted at the notion that the tax was a death sentence. They have a lot of money, said Antonio Hernandez Brignoni, 83, wheeling a shopping cart through a bustling Walmart parking lot in the small city of Hatillo on a recent day. Come here at midnight and youll see how much money they make. Midnight, he explained, was when Walmarts managers would be counting the cash in the till. But the company counters that the tax rate is three times the average effective tax rate that Walmarts affiliated companies pay worldwide, making it one of the highest taxes in the world. Much of the courtroom discussion so far has centered on Puerto Ricos finances, with Judge Fuste expressing frustration over the governments failure to produce audited financial statements for 2014 and 2015. Members of Congress have made much the same complaint in hearings on how to help Puerto Rico unwind its debts. Richard Anderson, the outspoken chief executive of Delta Air Lines, who led the airlines transformation into one of the worlds most profitable and well-run carriers, will retire in May, the airline said on Wednesday. Mr. Anderson, 60, who will become Deltas executive chairman, will be replaced as chief executive by Ed Bastian, the airlines president. One of the longest-serving airline executives in recent times, Mr. Anderson took the top job at Delta in 2007 shortly after the airline had emerged from bankruptcy. He orchestrated a merger with Northwest Airlines the following year, a move that helped push the rest of the industry toward greater consolidation and set the template for successful airline combinations. Born in Galveston, Tex., and trained as a lawyer, Mr. Anderson has been a vocal champion of his airline and is known for his blunt views of the industry. Blood banks in the United States have begun asking potential donors not to give blood if within the last month they have visited a country in which the Zika virus is spreading. The aim is to avoid contaminating the blood supply with the virus, said to AABB, the group that represents most blood donation groups in the United States. Infection of pregnant women with the Zika virus may be linked to microcephaly unusually small heads in infants. PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. A convicted killer who was already serving life behind bars was ordered on Wednesday to pay restitution and sentenced to additional prison time for his escape in June from a maximum-security prison in far northern New York State. The killer, David Sweat, was shot and captured near the Canadian border after a three-week manhunt. On Wednesday, he was shackled and surrounded by guards in Clinton County Court. Judge Patrick McGill ordered Mr. Sweat, 35, to pay $79,841 in restitution and serve three and a half to seven years in prison for the escape, and a similar consecutive sentence for prison contraband. Mr. Sweat pleaded guilty in November to three charges. He was already serving life in prison without parole for murdering a Broome County sheriffs deputy in 2002, after the burglary of a gun shop in Pennsylvania. I see it as a victory personally for Cesar Vargas, but for immigrants everywhere, particularly for Dreamers, for those whose legal status is not of their own doing and who seek full inclusion in what is only their home, this country, said Michelle J. Anderson, the dean of the City University of New York School of Law, who taught Mr. Vargas and witnessed the ceremony. Ms. Anderson added, choking up, Hes an amazing kid. The second youngest of eight children, Mr. Vargas was 5 when he crossed the border from Tijuana to San Diego. He grew up on Staten Island and graduated from James Madison High School in Brooklyn. After law school, Mr. Vargas passed the New York State bar exam in 2011 on his first try. He applied for admission to the bar in 2012, but was rebuffed by the bars Committee on Character and Fitness because of his immigration status. His application was then referred to the Appellate Division of State Supreme Court. In 2013 he gained temporary protection from deportation as part of President Obamas program for children who came illegally with a parent and became an activist for immigration reform, founding the Dream Action Coalition. In June, an appellate panel of the State Supreme Court voted unanimously to grant his bar application, making Mr. Vargas the first immigrant without legal status to be allowed entry into the bar. But there was a problem: He had been arrested in January 2015 while protesting during a political program in Iowa, interrupting Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey. The old transportation system was a hub-and-spoke approach, where people went into Manhattan for work and came back out, Ms. Glen said. This is about mapping transit to the future of New York. Streetcars are a staple of European capitals, and have arrived in cities like Atlanta; Portland, Ore.; and Toronto. But they have failed, until now, to catch on in New York, where the Bloomberg administration rejected a proposed line in Red Hook, Brooklyn, as being too expensive. The de Blasio streetcars would travel about 12 miles per hour, with a trip between Greenpoint and Dumbo in Brooklyn lasting around 27 minutes, less than current routes on buses and subways. Barriers could physically separate the streetcars from automobiles along some portion of the route, although officials said those details would be determined later. The cars would directly link Brooklyn and Queens, two boroughs that can be difficult to travel between without a detour into Manhattan. And though an exact route has not been made final, the system would most likely serve growing commercial centers like the Brooklyn Navy Yard and Long Island City, Queens. About 45,000 public-housing residents live a short walk from the route, the administration said, a priority for Mr. de Blasio, who has focused on combating inequities. Administration officials believe the systems cost can be offset by tax revenue siphoned from an expected rise in property values along the route. Because the cars would operate on city streets, the project is not expected to be subject to state approval meaning it would not require the blessing of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who last year was quick to quash a major State of the City proposal by Mr. de Blasio to build lower-cost housing over train yards in Sunnyside, Queens. (Mr. Cuomo said the yards, which are partly controlled by the state, were not available.) The Florida Department of Health hasn't updated its website yet, but here's thenews release from the governor's office: GOV. RICK SCOTT DIRECTS PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY IN FOUR COUNTIES FOR ZIKA VIRUS. Today, Governor Rick Scott signed Executive Order 16-29 which directs State Surgeon General Dr. John Armstrong to declare a public health emergency in the four counties which have the Zika virus. There are currently a total of nine travel-associated cases (defined as disease believed to be contracted outside of the state) of the Zika virus across Miami-Dade, Hillsborough, Lee and Santa Rosa Counties. To view the Executive Order, click HERE. Governor Rick Scott said, Today I am directing Surgeon General Dr. John Armstrong to declare a public health emergency in the four counties that have individuals with the Zika virus. Although Floridas current nine Zika cases were travel-related, we have to ensure Florida is prepared and stays ahead of the spread of the Zika virus in our state. Our Department of Health will continue to be in constant communication with all county health offices, hospitals and the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). We know that we must be prepared for the worst even as we hope for the best. In addition to directing Surgeon General Dr. John Armstrong to declare a public health emergency in four counties, the executive order also: Directs the Surgeon General to immediately notify the Commissioner of Agriculture of this threat to public health and outlines that statute authorizes the Commissioner of Agriculture to issue a mosquito declaration in Miami-Dade, Hillsborough, Lee and Santa Rosa Counties. The Executive Order also says that special attention for mosquito sprays shall be paid to residential areas, as CDC guidance indicates that backpack mosquito spray measures may be most effective. Directs the Florida Department of Health to make its own determinations as to further resources and information needed in the State from the CDC to combat the spread of Zika and other measures that may need to be taken to protect public health. A City Council hearing on raising members pay began 24 minutes late on Wednesday because members did not arrive on time. Many left in the middle. One gave an impassioned speech about the all-consuming task of representing New Yorkers, while bemoaning the proposed raises as inadequate. Two days before they are expected to vote to increase their salaries by nearly a third, council members held the first, and only, public hearing on the package of bills that would raise their pay while enacting significant reforms, including banning most outside income; ending the extra payments known as lulus for serving on committees; and increasing financial disclosure requirements. Government watchdog groups have long pushed for such changes, and Frederick A. O. Schwarz Jr., who led the Quadrennial Advisory Commission on pay for city officials last year, has embraced them. The bills that would raise council members pay would also, for the first time since 2006, do the same for several other city officials, including Mayor Bill de Blasio, a Democrat whose pay would rise to $258,750 from $225,000. He has said he would forego the raise during his current term. During the testimony on Wednesday, which touched on the potential pitfalls of elected officials doing outside legal work and the criminal convictions of state lawmakers, the proposed reforms were mostly overshadowed by the size of the raise the Council has proposed for itself: to $148,500 from a current base pay of $112,500, $10,185 more than the advisory panel recommended. The parents of Etan Patz say they are convinced a former bodega worker accused of strangling their 6-year-old boy in 1979 is guilty, and they have asked a civil court to overturn a 2004 ruling that another man, Jose Ramos, a convicted pedophile, was responsible. Etans father, Stan Patz, filed an affidavit on Wednesday morning in State Supreme Court in Manhattan, saying he and his wife, Julie, had no doubt that the accused man, Pedro Hernandez, was the true killer. Mr. Hernandez, 55, of Maple Shade, N.J., was tried on murder charges last year, but a Manhattan jury could not reach a verdict after 18 days. A second trial is expected to get underway in just a month. At the first trial, the defense argued that the evidence pointed to Mr. Ramos, not Mr. Hernandez. Within hours of the filing on Wednesday, Mr. Hernandezs lawyers accused the Patz family of colluding with the prosecution to make it easier to get a conviction this time around. A New York police officer who sued the city after 12 other officers beat him in his home and detained him in 2010 was awarded over $15 million in damages on Wednesday, his lawyer said. A spokesman for the citys Law Department, Nick Paolucci, said that the verdict was still in process and that a series of post-trial motions and questions could alter the outcome of the case. Larry Jackson, the plaintiff, was off duty in August 2010 when his wife called 911 to report that an armed man had crashed a party at their home in Queens and was engaged in an argument with a group of guests. Mr. Jackson, who is black, defused the situation and got the gunman to leave before the police arrived, but the scene was nevertheless chaotic when they did, according to court documents. When Bernie Sanders won election as mayor of Burlington, Vt., in 1981, I called his office to see if there was a story there about a socialist elected official. I was interning at The Washington Post (I didnt mention the intern part!) and spoke at length to some assistant who answered the phone in the mayors office. I asked about Sanderss plans, and the aide kept answering with we which I thought a nice glimpse of contagious office socialism. After half an hour, I had enough to check with my editor, so I asked the aides name. Oh, he said a bit sheepishly, actually, Im Bernie Sanders. Sanderss lack of political airs has helped catapult him forward in the presidential race, overcoming a 50-point deficit to just about tie Hillary Clinton in Iowa. He comes across as winningly uncalculated: Other candidates kiss babies; Sanders seems to fumble for a babys off switch so he can tell you more about inequality in America. Most politicos sweet-talk voters; he bellows at them. I admire Sanderss passion, his relentless focus on inequality and his consistency. When he was sworn in as mayor of Burlington, he declared: The rich are getting richer, the poor are getting poorer and the millions of families in the middle are gradually sliding out of the middle class and into poverty. That has remained his mantra across 35 years. And yet, I still have two fundamental questions for Sanders: Can you translate your bold vision into reality? On that, frankly, Im skeptical. Im for Medicare for All, but it wont happen. And if it did, the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a bipartisan group, found that Sanderss sums come up short by $3 trillion over a decade. Last fall, Congress made a change to the rules of a resettlement program for Afghan interpreters who risked their lives by working for the American government. To be eligible for an American visa, applicants would have to demonstrate that they had worked for the United States for at least two years, rather than one. There was no reason to think the new requirement would affect the roughly 10,300 people who already had pending applications. But the State Department and the Department of Homeland Security, in a baffling move, decided to apply the new rule retroactively. Immigration lawyers fear that it could disqualify thousands of applicants, including some who have been waiting for a visa for years. This is unfair, and reflects the callous disregard bureaucrats involved in the program have shown toward Afghan interpreters since Congress created the program in 2009. As it is, the application process is drawn out. Afghan interpreters must submit a petition at the United States Embassy in Kabul, providing evidence of their employment, a letter of recommendation from an American supervisor and a description of the threats they have faced as a result of their work. Those who get embassy approval must then submit a formal visa application to the Department of Homeland Security. Here we are, in the Marco Rubio Moment. The Republican establishment is thrilled: A moderate-sounding Gen X senator from a swing state! And one so good at spin he managed to give a victory speech in Iowa after he came in third. No wonder all the other candidates are jealous. This isnt a student council election, everybody. This is an election for president of the United States. Lets get the boy in the bubble out of the bubble, snarked Chris Christie. He was referring to Rubios tendency to be rather scripted in his appearances one New Hampshire reporter compared him to a computer algorithm designed to cover talking points. Christie, pressing further and when does Chris Christie not? has also been saying that the speech Rubio sticks to is the same one hes been giving since 2010. Its true that theres always the part about his parents, the striving Cuban immigrants. And you do get the feeling youre supposed to vote for him because his dad and mom believed in the American dream. As a young man, Rubio himself was not particularly hard working. In fact, in his memoir he admits he could be insufferably demanding. But he did sympathize with his parents struggles, and when his father, a bartender, went on strike in 1984, young Marco became a committed union activist. There has been a concerted effort to portray a lawless president, an emperor of the United States, in the words of Senator Jeff Sessions, Republican of Alabama. Federal courts need to stop Obama from flouting the Constitution, was the headline on a Washington Post op-ed co-written by David B. Rivkin Jr., a Washington lawyer who was a force behind the legal attack on the Affordable Care Act. George F. Will, a Washington Post columnist deeply in tune with the capitals conservative elite, wrote in a June 2014 column titled Stopping a Lawless President that while many presidents seek to enhance their power, President Obamas offenses against the separation of powers have been egregious in quantity and qualitatively different. Immigration was only one item on Mr. Wills list of the presidents offenses, which included implementation of the Affordable Care Act, welfare, education and drug policy. Republicans in the House of Representatives have frequently mentioned impeachment. Impeachment aside, Justice Scalia, ever more unconstrained and therefore ever more useful as a barometer of right-wing thought, made his own notable contribution to this chorus. In June 2012, the court decided a high-profile immigration case from Arizona, invalidating several provisions of the states recently enacted anti-immigrant statute on the ground that immigration policy was the province of the federal government. Justice Scalia dissented and, reading a statement from the bench, provided his own rationale for the Arizona law. Ten days earlier, President Obama had announced a program to defer deportation for young undocumented immigrants who had been brought to the United States as children. Yet even though the presidents action had nothing to do with the case before the court, Justice Scalia nonetheless channeled the Republican criticism of the presidents action in his statement from the bench: The president has said that the new program is the right thing to do in light of Congresss failure to pass the administrations proposed revision of the immigration laws. Perhaps it is, though Arizona may not think so. But to say, as the court does, that Arizona contradicts federal law by enforcing applications of federal immigration law that the president declines to enforce boggles the mind. What had come to pass, he continued, was the specter that Arizona and the states that support it predicted: a federal government that does not want to enforce the immigration laws as written, and leaves the states borders unprotected against immigrants whom those laws exclude. So the issue is a stark one: Are the sovereign states at the mercy of the federal executives refusal to enforce the nations immigration laws? A good way of answering that question is to ask: Would the states conceivably have entered into the union if the Constitution itself contained the courts holding? He concluded with this red-meat line: If securing its territory in this fashion is not within the power of Arizona, we should cease referring to it as a sovereign state. In the context of the 2012 election year, this was an amazing public statement by a sitting Supreme Court justice. Am I the only one to think that it explains a good deal about the order the court issued last month, or to wonder whether the court can be unaware of the politically charged discourse its order embraces? I noted earlier that the Supreme Court has hardly ever examined the Take Care Clause. There was, however, an early sign last term that the clause might be moving from the wings to center stage. In Zivotofsky v. Kerry, a case decided last June, the court upheld the State Departments refusal to list Israel as the place of birth on passports issued to American citizens who were born in Jerusalem, despite an act of Congress directing the department to do so at the individuals request. With a majority opinion by Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, the court held that the statute was an unconstitutional infringement by Congress on the presidents exclusive power to recognize foreign governments, a power the court said was essential to the conduct of presidential duties. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. dissented in an opinion that Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. also signed. The court takes the perilous step for the first time in our history of allowing the president to defy an act of Congress in the field of foreign affairs, the chief justice wrote. The first principles in this area are firmly established. The Constitution allocates some foreign policy powers to the executive, grants some to the legislature, and enjoins the president to take care that the laws be faithfully executed. On Wednesday, officials from Michigan and the federal Environmental Protection Agency were called before a House committee to explain how they let the drinking water in Flint become poisoned by lead. Also testifying before the committee was a mother of four whose tap water has been so contaminated since early 2015 that her family has had to use bottled water for drinking and cooking and has often showered at friends homes outside the city. The crisis in Flint is the result of many failures, starting with governor-appointed emergency managers, who made catastrophic mistakes. It poses an important question for Congress and state legislatures: When and how should state officials intervene at the local level? Intervention is necessary when mayors, city councils and other authorities like school boards face significant problems that they cannot or will not fix. But state officials need to have judgment and competence to turn troubled systems around. To some people, the very idea of suspending or curbing the power of local elected officials is wrong, but there is a long history of state governments taking control of systems on the verge of collapse. For example, New York State imposed a financial control board on New York City in 1975 and Congress and President Bill Clinton did the same in Washington in 1995. Those appointed boards exercised veto power over many decisions made by local elected leaders, and helped those cities restructure their debts. When Steve Forbes ran for president in 1996 on a plan that called for no taxes on dividends and capital gains, Mitt Romney, then a private citizen, took out a full-page ad in The Boston Globe attacking his proposal as plutocratic. The Forbes tax isnt a flat tax at all its a tax cut for fat cats! Mr. Romneys ad declared, noting that Kennedys, Rockefellers and Forbes could end up with a tax rate of zero, while ordinary people would be left paying 17 percent on their wage and salary income under Mr. Forbess plan. The mainstream Republican position on capital gains has long been that they should be taxed at a low rate, but not zero. In 1996, Mr. Romney was supporting Bob Dole, the eventual nominee, whose campaign platform called for a 14 percent tax rate on capital gains. In 2003, President George W. Bush signed a law setting the rate at 15 percent, a policy that John McCain proposed to continue if elected in 2008. (The current maximum rate on capital gains is 23.8 percent, after tax increases that took effect in 2013.) When Mr. Romney was the Republican nominee in 2012, he proposed to abolish the capital gains tax for moderate earners who typically have few capital gains anyway but not for the Kennedys, Rockefellers and Forbeses, who would have continued paying 15 percent. Most of the United States knows the second Monday of October, a federal holiday since 1934, as Columbus Day. Because of a national debate about whether Christopher Columbus, the Italian explorer who landed on American shores, is worthy of celebration, Brown University has instead called the holiday Fall Weekend since 2009. On Tuesday, however, the university faculty renamed the holiday once again this time to Indigenous Peoples Day. In discussions prior to the vote, faculty expressed their support for the name change as an opportunity to show support for Native Americans on our campus and beyond, and to celebrate Native American culture and history, Thomas Roberts, a professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, said in a statement. DeRay Mckesson, whose activism over the last year and a half has vaulted him from obscure Twitter sage to a political force in the national Black Lives Matter movement, announced Wednesday that he was running for mayor of Baltimore. His entry is a step into the mainstream for a national movement that has been criticized for a lack of organized structure and tactics. His candidacy is sure to jolt the political and protest communities at a time when activists have eschewed traditional politics and sought to work outside the system. Mr. Mckesson, a Baltimore native who will run as a Democrat, faces an uphill climb. He is diving, relatively late, into a crowded race of about a dozen candidates. Among them are prominent black leaders including Nick J. Mosby, a city councilman and the husband of the prosecutor who is trying six police officers in the death of a young black Baltimore man last year, and Sheila Dixon, the former mayor who remains popular even though she left office after a conviction on fraud charges. David L. Warnock, a prominent businessman, also is vying for the nomination. The Democratic victor of the primary on April 26 is almost assured of winning the general election for an office that the party has controlled for nearly half a century. Adnan Syed, whose conviction for the murder of his former high school girlfriend was the initial subject of the popular Serial podcast, appeared in a Maryland court on Wednesday as new witness testimony was introduced in his push for a retrial. Mr. Syed, 34, is serving a life sentence in prison after his conviction in 2000 for the murder of Hae Min Lee. In November, a Baltimore Circuit Court judge granted his request to reopen postconviction proceedings, and a hearing was scheduled to allow him to add the testimony of an alibi witness to his pending request for a new trial. The three-day hearing started Wednesday before a retired Circuit Court judge, Martin Welch. Mr. Syeds lawyer, C. Justin Brown, argued that adding the testimony of Asia McClain to the record should lead to a retrial. Ms. McClain, who has married and taken the surname Chapman, said in an affidavit that she had seen Mr. Syed in a library when Ms. Lee was killed. She testified during the afternoon portion of the hearing. Mr. Brown filed a motion to reopen his clients posttrial proceedings in June based on the fact that Mr. Syeds trial lawyer never called Ms. McClain as an alibi witness and did not seek a plea agreement. The Baltimore Sun noted that most of the hearing on Wednesday was focused on the trial lawyer, M. Cristina Gutierrez. A man whose lawyer says he is mentally ill pleaded guilty Wednesday in a plot to plant a bomb outside an Army post, acknowledging that he wanted to aid the Islamic State group. John T. Booker Jr. of Topeka admitted in court to trying to set off what he thought was a 1,000-pound bomb in a van outside Fort Riley. A plea deal with prosecutors that recommends he spend 30 years in prison. Mr. Booker, 21, was arrested outside the post in April 2015 as he was trying to arm what he believed was the bomb. He had been plotting with two contacts who actually were confidential F.B.I. sources. His lawyer, Kirk Redmond, told Judge Carlos Murguia of Federal District Court that Mr. Booker had been given a diagnosis of bipolar disorder but he did not say whether the disorder was a factor in Mr. Bookers actions. Mr. Booker pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and one count of attempting to destroy government property with an explosive device. Hillary Clinton and Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont clashed in heated terms over the meaning of progressivism in America on Wednesday, with her forced to defend positions that he argued are not in line with the liberal wing of the Democratic Party. Mr. Sanders criticized Mrs. Clintons credentials as a progressive, claiming that her views on foreign policy, trade, the environment and money in politics separated her from those lawmakers who proudly wear that label. At a town hall forum hosted by CNN less than a week before New Hampshire holds the first primary election of the 2016 presidential race, Mr. Sanders suggested that Mrs. Clintons positions sometimes shifted depending on her venue. You cant say youre a moderate on one day and be a progressive on another day, he said, noting that Mrs. Clinton described herself as a moderate last year. You cant be a moderate and a progressive. Theyre different. If your eggs wont work, you wont find out until youre 39, Dr. Caplan said. A Pentagon spokesman declined to comment on the legal and ethical questions, saying that details were being worked out. The Defense Department is expected to outline the program in a memo from Mr. Carter in the coming weeks. The program, which applies only to active-duty service members, will be re-evaluated in two years, and could ultimately be made permanent. As many families know all too well, these treatments are very expensive and often require multiple attempts, the spokesman, Matthew Allen, said. We know that providing this benefit across the board would result in a significant cost for the department. In addition to cost, we want to better understand the importance of this to our force, as well as its impact on recruiting and retention. In addition to hormone therapies and egg and sperm freezing, we are going to continue looking at ways to provide additional support for these types of treatments in the future. The Pentagon estimates that the program could cost about $150 million over five years. It will be offered through Tricare, the militarys health care plan. During the height of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, several cryogenic firms offered to cover the cost for troops to have their reproductive cells frozen. It is not clear whether any soldiers ultimately used those materials to have children. In recent years, some fertility advocates have lobbied the Defense Department to cover the cost. Mr. Carter mentioned the program in a speech last week at the Pentagon. Outlining the Defense Departments efforts to improve the lives of service members, he focused on longer maternity leaves, improved child care and the creation of lactation rooms at military facilities. He touched briefly on freezing sperm and eggs. This investment will also provide greater flexibility for our troops who want to start a family, but find it difficult because of where they find themselves in their careers, Mr. Carter said. Particularly for women who are midgrade officers and enlisted personnel, this benefit will demonstrate that we understand the demands upon them and want to help them balance commitments to force and commitments to family, Mr. Carter said. We want to retain them in our military. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky and Rick Santorum, the former Pennsylvania senator, both ended their presidential campaigns on Wednesday, as the fallout from the Iowa caucuses continued to winnow the Republican field. Mr. Paul, whose once popular message of resistance to government surveillance and foreign intervention fell out of fashion amid growing anxieties about terrorism, dropped out of the race after a disappointing fifth-place finish in the Iowa caucuses on Monday. And Mr. Santorum, who failed to recapture the energy and enthusiasm that turned him into a serious challenger to Mitt Romney for the Republican nomination in 2012, announced the end of his own campaign on Wednesday evening on Fox News and endorsed Senator Marco Rubio of Florida. In his endorsement of Mr. Rubio, Mr. Santorum said he could more effectively fight for the key issues of his campaign by throwing his support behind a better positioned candidate who shares the values we believe in and who can benefit those who are struggling on the margins. MANCHESTER, N.H. The Republican presidential race has seemed at times like a contest of schoolyard insults and chest-thumping machismo. With Donald J. Trump leading the way, the campaign has repeatedly descended into a kind of primal struggle among men, each seeking to outdo his rivals through brutish intimidation. But as the race has moved to New Hampshire, its tone has quietly, but noticeably, changed: Candidates who once vied to throw the hardest rhetorical punch are campaigning in gentler terms, emphasizing their compassion and human frailty, and especially their concern for women and families. The adjustment is no coincidence: New Hampshire women, many of them independents or moderate Republicans some supporting abortion rights have emerged as perhaps the most critical swing vote in the primary next week. Tara McCarthy, 49, of Henniker, N.H., said she had been deluged by overtures from the campaigns as she tried to decide between Jeb Bush, a Republican, and Hillary Clinton, a Democrat, based on the issues she sees as most relevant to women. Facebook has taken down from its site a group called Teen Dating and Flirting, which stirred outrage over its sexually explicit content after the recent murder of a 13-year-old Virginia girl, a company spokeswoman said on Wednesday. The group burst into the spotlight this week after two Virginia Tech students were charged in the abduction and murder of the girl, Nicole Madison Lovell of Blacksburg, Va. The students David Eisenhauer, 18, of Columbia, Md., and Natalie Marie Keepers, 19, of Laurel, Md. are being held without bond. Nicole is believed to have met Mr. Eisenhauer through social media, though there has been no assertion that they connected on Facebook. But her brief comments on the page of the teen dating group, which had more than 18,000 members, drew attention to the group, prompting Facebook to investigate. The spokeswoman said the group violated Facebooks published community standards, which ban, among other things, nude images, threats, bullying, harassment, and anything that promotes sexual exploitation. RIO DE JANEIRO Brazils government is considering tightening the guidelines it currently gives doctors, hospitals, and health care providers for when to report infants born with abnormally small heads, a move intended to reduce the number of false alarms that it has received in wake of the Zika epidemic gripping Brazil. In the last few months, the nation has been grappling with a growing surge in medical reports of microcephaly, a rare condition in which babies are born with unusually small heads. According to data released this week by the Ministry of Health, there have been 4,783 reported cases since October last year. Before that, the nation had about 150 annually. But how many of the babies actually have microcephaly and whether the condition was caused by the Zika virus is still far from clear. Of the cases examined so far, 404 have been confirmed as having microcephaly. Only 17 of them tested positive for the Zika virus. But the government and many researchers say that number may be largely irrelevant, because their tests would find the presence of the virus in only a tiny percentage of cases. A former journalist with the British Broadcasting Corporations Persian service was arrested in Iran on Wednesday, Iranian activists outside the country reported, just as Irans foreign minister embarked on a trip to Britain, the first such visit in more than a decade. The former journalist, Bahman Daroshafaei, a dual citizen of Britain and Iran, was taken into custody for undisclosed reasons in Tehran, where he had been working as a translator, according to an account on Iranwire, a news service founded by expatriate Iranian journalists. The arrest may have been intended by hard-line factions in Iran, which are suspicious of improved ties with the West, to embarrass Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who has been seeking greater engagement. Jon Kinzel (Friday and Thursday through Feb. 13) With Atlantic Terminus, Mr. Kinzel transplants his studio into the cavernous Invisible Dog Art Center for two weeks, opening the space to visitors at select times. Though not quite a retrospective, the installation lets us peer into his past as a quietly inventive choreographer and visual artist, with improvised performances unfurling around his own drawings, paintings and collages, as well as props and costumes from past works. At 7 p.m., 51 Bergen Street, Cobble Hill, Brooklyn, 212-352-3101, theinvisibledog.org. (Siobhan Burke) Tendayi Kuumba and Lenka Dusilova (Saturday and Sunday) Ms. Kuumba, a dancer with Urban Bush Women, and Ms. Dusilova, a Czech vocalist and composer, meld their interests in movement and sound through a commission from the Czech Center NY. The collaboration has its premiere in Brooklyn before moving on to Washington and Prague. Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m., Jack, 505 Waverly Avenue, near Fulton Street, Clinton Hill, jackny.org. (Burke) Lyrical Dances for a Lost Generation (Friday and Saturday) For many dancers, the term lyrical may call up memories of high-school dance competitions and recitals, where dancing to pop songs with lyrics in a jazzy-acrobatic style is de rigueur. Often deployed ironically in experimental performance, lyrical dance claims center stage in this showcase organized by the dancer Raja Feather Kelly, who intends to pay homage to what he calls the J.O.D. (Joy of Dance). Participants include Cori Olinghouse, Melissa Toogood, Colleen Thomas, Larissa Velez-Jackson and Nicole Wolcott. At 7:30 p.m., GK Arts Center, 29 Jay Street, Dumbo, Brooklyn , 212-600-0047, gkarts.org. (Burke) Dada Masilo (through Sunday) Ms. Masilos Swan Lake is populated by a rowdy wedge of swans who have some fun with Tchaikovskys sacred score, which also integrates bits of Steve Reich, African drumming and call and response. Ms. Masilo trades docility and romance for brash political theater: She bravely and buoyantly uses this ballet classic to address gender and homophobia in her native South Africa, which has one of the highest rates of AIDS in the world. Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 2 p.m., Joyce Theater, 175 Eighth Avenue, at 19th Street, Chelsea, 212-242-0800, joyce.org. (Schaefer) New York City Ballet (through Feb. 28) This is the week to catch the much buzzed-about new work by Justin Peck, City Ballets prolific resident choreographer. His first crack at a story ballet, The Most Incredible Thing features visual design by the Canadian artist Marcel Dzama and a score by Bryce Dessner of the National. It shares a program on Saturday night, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday with recent works by Robert Binet, Troy Schumacher and Myles Thatcher, as well as Christopher Wheeldons 2010 Estancia, revived in honor of the composer Alberto Ginasteras centennial. Balanchine repertory, on Friday, Saturday afternoon and Sunday, rounds out the week. Tuesdays through Thursdays at 7:30 p.m., Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturdays at 2 and 8 p.m., Sundays at 3 p.m., David H. Koch Theater, Lincoln Center, 212-496-0600, nycballet.com. (Burke) Robbinschilds (through Saturday) The double meaning of Hex, the title of robbinschildss new work, refers to the six-sided shape as well as the act of casting a spell, or transferring authority. Layla Childs and Sonya Robbins, the artists that make up robbinschilds, gathered six performers who were tasked with creating an individual dance and then imparting it to the group. The final product is both a six-sided entity and an illustration of shared authority and authorship. Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 5 and 8 p.m. , Gibney Dance: Agnes Varis Performing Arts Center, 280 Broadway, near Chambers Street, Lower Manhattan, 646-837-6809, gibneydance.org. (Schaefer) Her name may not be in the title, but Company XIVs Snow White is all about the Queen. In this production, which had its debut at the Minetta Lane Theater on Wednesday, the Queen is played with relish by the actor-dancer Laura Careless, who has the kind of wicked smile that suggests fangs. That leer goes well both with her Marie Antoinette outfit and with the lingerie thats exposed as shes stripped by her mirror-bearing henchmen, who wear fishnets on their legs and jeweled ball gags in their mouths. The promiscuous mixing of a classic story with various decadent historical styles and fetish gear is the signature mode of Company XIV and its director and choreographer Austin McCormick. Along with the set and costume designer, Zane Pihlstrom, Mr. McCormick seeks to transform the Minetta Lane into some smoke-filled, antique-store Weimar cabaret. He takes the tale from the Grimm Brothers version, narrated mostly in German by the alluring Lea Helle, and adds Schubert lieder and contemporary pop songs sung live by the operatic soprano Marcy Richardson. Despite these tempting ingredients, this Snow White (which should not be confused as it is on the theaters marquee with the childrens version that Company XIV presented in 2010) is a dull tease, lasting two hours. Snow White herself (the ballet-trained Hilly Bodin) is no innocent here. Shes more a protegee of the Queen, eager to supplant her, All About Eve style, and cavort with those henchmen. The murderously vain Queen wont have that, of course, and so the show becomes a series of attempts to kill Snow White, most foiled by the seven little men who appear only in puppet form. This episodic structure occasions more disguises for the Queen and more pastiche numbers: ersatz Baroque, ersatz Pina Bausch, ersatz flamenco. But these numbers are devoid of dramatic pressure, not to speak of poetry, invention, wit or even sexiness. Vintage pop recordings like Lucky Lips promise campy fun, but Mr. McCormicks choreography consistently peters out. This isnt just style without substance; its style without style. Dog collars, whether circlets made of precious metal or spiked leather straps, can yield insights into socioeconomic history and family tragedies. This year collars with poignant back stories are surfacing at museums and on the market. At a Bonhams sale of canine art and artifacts in New York on Feb. 17, a silver collar made in 1883 for a Scotch collie named Help is estimated to sell for $2,500 to $3,500. Help, a shaggy black dog with imploring eyes and streaks of white across his face and chest, was taken to fund-raisers in Britain and France for charities assisting the children of railway workers who had died on the job. The dog was outfitted with a piggy bank, and a tag on his collar had a London address where donations would be thankfully received & duly acknowledged. Helps image appeared on badges with the slogan Help Our Noble Railway Dog, and proceeds from sales of the badges went to orphanages. Metropolitan Museum of Art: Wordplay: Matthias Buchingers Drawings From the Collection of Ricky Jay (through April 11) A draftsman, calligrapher, magician and musician, Matthias Buchinger (16741739) traveled all over Northern Europe to entertain kings and aristocrats as well as hoi polloi with feats of physical dexterity. He was especially noted for elaborate drawings featuring biblical passages written in letters too small to be read by ordinary naked eyes. This he managed despite having been born without hands or legs: His arms ended at the elbows and his lower extremities were truncated at the upper thighs. Sixteen of his amazing works are featured in this exhibition. 212-535-7710, metmuseum.org. (Johnson) MoMA PS1: Greater New York (through March 7) With a multigenerational team of organizers, MoMA PS1s every-five-years-roundup of New York art steps away from its founding premise of newness, the idea that it would be an update on the metropolitan market. The 158 artists on the roster range from 20-something to 80-something; a few are deceased. The notion that an emerging artist has to be young is discarded. Older artists newly in the spotlight, or back after a long delay, qualify. And history works in two directions. Art from the 1970s and 80s is presented as prescient of whats being made now, and new art is viewed as putting a trenchant spin on the past. 22-25 Jackson Avenue, at 46th Avenue, Long Island City, Queens, 718-784-2084, ps1.org. (Cotter) Museum of Arts and Design: Wendell Castle Remastered (through Feb. 28) This eminent woodworker became noted in the 1960s for carving chic, curvy furniture out of blocks of laminated wood. In the past four years he has revived that method with the assistance of digital and robotic technologies that enable him to make bigger and more adventurous works. This engaging show focuses on pieces from those two periods. Suspended Disbelief, made this year, has an irregularly oval, glossy black table top extending horizontally and without legs some 10 feet in the air from a trio of tall conical forms resembling the tips of monstrous tendrils. Its spectacular. 2 Columbus Circle, Manhattan, 212-299-7777, madmuseum.org. (Johnson) Museum of Modern Art: Endless House: Intersections of Art and Architecture (through March 6) This scattered but enjoyable exhibition, drawn from the museums art collection as much as its design holdings, focuses on the single-family home as a place of experimentation and regeneration; of conflict as well as dreams. Its highlight is a series of drawings and photographs by Frederick Kiesler, the Austrian-American polymath whose Endless House never completed fused fine art, architecture, furniture and lighting design into a bulbous, unstable whole. Several artists here echo Kieslers theme of the house as a reflection of the psychology of its inhabitants. None is more powerful than Rachel Whitereads sober image, made with white correction fluid, of a dwelling in East London: a preparatory drawing for a now lost sculpture crafted by filling the house with liquid concrete. 212-708-9400, moma.org. (Jason Farago) Museum of Modern Art: Jackson Pollock: A Collection Survey, 1934-1954 (through May 1) The first exhibition devoted to the Moderns unsurpassed Pollock holding gives a dazzling account of the evolution of his signature poured paintings. Its 58 works on canvas and paper also attest to the Moderns laserlike focus on accounting fully for the achievements of artists it deems great. 212-708-9400, moma.org. (Roberta Smith) Museum of Modern Art: Joaquin Torres-Garcia: The Arcadian Modern (through Feb. 15) Few artists can claim to have captured a revolution in thinking in a single image, but Joaquin Torres-Garcia did. In 1934, Torres-Garcia (1874-1949) took a hard-won knowledge of European modernism from Paris back to his birthplace of Uruguay. He gave the transplanted movement a name The School of the South and designed for it a now-famous logo: the silhouette of the South American continent turned upside down and placed above the Tropic of Cancer, where North America was on conventional maps. And he explained the meaning: The South, as a font of creative energy, was the new North, or at least its equal. The image, and the spirit that produced it, can be found in MoMAs career survey, the artists first major United States retrospective in four decades. 212-708-9400, moma.org. (Cotter) Candice Madey is arguably one of the art worlds Lower East Side pioneers, having first opened her gallery, On Stellar Rays, on Orchard Street in 2008. Five years later, she moved to her current second-floor space at 1 Rivington Street, and now she is expanding into that buildings storefront on the Bowery, as well as into its lower level. The new 4,500-square-foot gallery, designed by Buro Koray Duman, will open with a solo exhibition of the Los Angeles artist John Houck in April. The basement space will mostly be used for performances. Ms. Madey said that she wanted to sell books along the buildings long brick exterior, like the stalls that line the Seine in Paris. Starting Feb. 28, On Stellar Rays will open the final show in its current space, which in the future will probably be used for public programs. A few months ago I made a long-imagined pilgrimage to Ghent, Belgium, to see at last one of the signal achievements in Western painting: Jan van Eycks altarpiece for St. Bavos Cathedral, painted in 1432. Its dozen panels (one a copy of a stolen portion) depict Jesus, Mary and John the Baptist above a green field in which angels kneel before a shining lamb, all done with an intense realism made possible through the new technology of oil paint. It left me at a loss for words, but I am hardly the first to be dumbfounded by van Eyck. For centuries, the crystalline exactitude of his paintings so precise as to be almost nonhuman has elicited less inspiration than speechless, helpless awe. The present-day Belgian painter Luc Tuymans, in a 2007 interview with Udo Kittelmann, threw up his hands: After the Flemish primitives, and foremost among them Jan van Eyck, any artist can only be a dilettante. About two dozen paintings have been attributed to van Eyck, and only one first-rate example is in the United States: a glorious Annunciation, from around 1434-36, at the National Gallery of Art in Washington. In New York, along with a workshop picture at the Frick, the Metropolitan Museum of Art holds a pair of small, jam-packed paintings, depicting the Crucifixion and the Last Judgment, from 1440-41. The first is attributed to van Eyck and the second to van Eyck and his workshop. They may be less forceful than the examples in Ghent or Bruges, but they are no less precise and certainly no less mysterious. The Hague After the death of an artist, you can have a new look, a fresh look, and suddenly you can see things that you didnt see before, Franz Kaiser, the curator of a retrospective of work by the Dutch artist Karel Appel at the Gemeentemuseum here, said as he walked past Appels deceptively childlike early canvases and sculpture. Appel, who died in 2006 at 85, seemed destined to have a respected but not transcendent career. His involvement with CoBrA, a short-lived postwar avant-garde movement in northern Europe, attracted a flurry of attention, and he made a splash in New York in the late 1950s. But later works were received more coolly as tastes shifted away from paint on canvas. Now, thanks largely to the Karel Appel Foundation, established in Amsterdam in 1999 by Appel, Mr. Kaiser and others, Appels art has returned to the public eye and research supported by the foundation has introduced new ways of thinking about the artist. That research informs the Gemeentemuseum retrospective, part of a surprisingly fertile run of Appel exhibitions that started in New York in 2014 with a show at the gallery Blum & Poe. Im tackling two cliches, said Mr. Kaiser, the Gemeentemuseums director of exhibitions. One is that Appel was always identified with CoBrA and the other one is that Karel was just messing around a reference to the artists own description of his work. When it comes to discovering conducting talent, few ensembles boast a track record like that of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra in England. It has been a springboard for the careers of Simon Rattle, the chief conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic, and Andris Nelsons, the music director of both the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. So the announcement on Thursday that the orchestra has chosen the rising Lithuanian conductor Mirga Grazinyte-Tyla, 29, as its next music director is sure to attract attention in the music world. Ms. Grazinyte-Tyla is part of a new generation trying to shatter the stubborn glass ceiling that has kept women conductors rare. She is currently the music director of the Salzburg Landestheater in Austria, and had been rising through the ranks at the Los Angeles Philharmonic, where she is now assistant conductor and has led critically praised performances. She said in an interview that she had been moved by the Birmingham ensembles willingness to experiment. Openness is an important part of the philosophy of this orchestra, she said. The actor Matt LeBlanc will join the cast of the BBCs car-themed show Top Gear, a popular program known for its on-air antics as well as its high-profile staffing changes. Top Gear said on Thursday that Mr. LeBlanc, who played Joey on the sitcom Friends and is a self-described car nut, would join the shows host, Chris Evans, a British presenter whose hiring was announced last summer. Matts a lifelong fellow petrolhead, and Im thrilled hes joining Top Gear, Mr. Evans said in a statement. Acting out our craziest car notions on screen is a dream job and I know well both be debating some epic road trip ideas. LONDON British regulators said on Thursday that people engaged in high-frequency or algorithmic trading would be subject to newly completed rules intended to bring more accountability to the financial industry. The regulators, the Financial Conduct Authority, said that the new certification rules would apply to anyone engaging in so-called wholesale banking activities at banks, building societies and certain regulated investment firms. That would include traders who use lightning-fast computer systems and software to profit from small movements in stock prices. They would be subject to the new rules starting in September. The new measures, part of a broader certification program in Britain, would require firms to assess the fitness of people to serve in those positions; the firms would ultimately be accountable to regulators if they are not. We are determined to embed a culture of personal responsibility within the banking sector, Tracey McDermott, the acting chief executive of the authority, said in a news release. Credit Suisses turnaround is proving more painful than it could have been. The Swiss banks fourth-quarter results were riddled with the kind of exceptional items and restructuring costs that were par for the course for a European investment bank rethinking its strategy. But even after stripping these out, and ignoring the bits that Credit Suisse is winding down, the bank would have failed to turn a profit. Asia-Pacific was the only one of Credit Suisses newly created divisions that increased its fourth-quarter revenue. Pretax profit would have risen by more than a quarter from last year if adjusted for good-will write-downs. Tidjane Thiam, the banks chief executive, looks on track to hit his target for the segment to deliver 2.1 billion Swiss francs of pretax profit by 2018. But that depends partly on China, and Mr. Thiam is wary over that markets near-term prospects. If thats the good, then double-digit declines in fourth-quarter revenue in private banking in Switzerland and regions other than Asia look downright bad. Net asset declines in these regions will not help Mr. Thiam hit targets that are frankly ambitious. The ugliest aspects of the results concerned Credit Suisses capital position and markets trading performance, however. In trading, fourth-quarter fixed-income revenue fell a staggering 61 percent year-on-year far worse than for peers. 1. Martin Shkreli walking down hallway toward hearing room POOL - AP CLIENTS ONLY Washington - 4 February 2016 ++CUTAWAYS AT SOURCE++ 2. Various of Martin Shkreli entering hearing 3. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Elijiah Cummings, (D) Maryland: Like a Ponzi scheme, it appears that Turing may be using revenues from Daraprim to research and identify the next drug it will acquire and then impose similarly massive price increases on future victims. Its not funny, Mr. Shkreli. People are dying and theyre getting sicker and sicker. Based on the documents obtained by the committee, we know exactly what these companies will say as part of their public relation strategy. They will try to distract from their massive price increases by talking about their R&D (research and development.) They will downplay their massive profits by claiming that they help patients who cant afford their exorbitant prices. The testimony from the drug companies today will be the same. But the difference now that weve been behind their smoke screen. 4. Cutaway 5. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Elijiah Cummings, (D) Maryland: The people in my district are not on the Forbes billionaire last. They dont buy Wu-Tang Clan albums for $2 million. They cant liquidate assets to free up millions of dollars. They work hard. They get the early bus and many take home decent salaries, but like many Americans, they struggle every single month to support their families and to pay for their increasing cost of housing, education and health care. They live from paycheck to paycheck and sometimes from no check to no check. 6. Cutaway 7. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Jason Chaffetz, (R) Utah: Do you think youve done anything wrong? SOUNDBITE (English) Martin Shkreli, Former Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO: On the advice of counsel, I invoke my fifth amendment privilege against self-incrimination and respectfully decline to answer your question 8. Cutaway 9. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Trey Gowdy, (R) South Carolina: Is it pronounced Shkreli? UPSOUND (English) Martin Shkreli, Former Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO: Yes sir. SOUNDBITE (English) Rep. Trey Gowdy, (R) South Carolina: There you can answer some questions, that one didnt incriminate you, I just want to make sure you understand you are welcome to answer quetsions and not all of your answers are going to subject you to incrimination you understand that dont you? SOUNDBITE (English) Martin Shkreli, Former Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO I intend to follow the advice of my counsel. WASHINGTON In a clear sign of the trouble facing President Obamas trade pact with Pacific Rim nations, one of the most influential congressional Republicans on trade issues announced on Thursday that he would oppose it unless significant changes were made. The lawmaker, Senator Rob Portman of Ohio, who was a trade ambassador under President George W. Bush, objects to the accords provisions on currency manipulation, auto parts and pharmaceutical industry protections. Lawmakers in both parties have raised the same issues, but Mr. Portmans authority on trade is certain to carry extra weight with colleagues. Democrats especially complain that the accord lacks enforcement measures against countries like Japan, Vietnam or Malaysia, for example, that are suspected of devaluing their currency to make their exports cheaper. The Ford Motor Company, which has plants in Ohio, also strongly opposes the trade agreement on this basis. The separate objection of many Republicans, that the pact weakens patent protections for pharmaceutical companies to make drugs more affordable and accessible globally, has been led by Senator Orrin G. Hatch, Republican of Utah and chairman of the Senate committee responsible for trade, a longtime proponent of the drug industry. NAGOYA, Japan One by one, Japans famed consumer electronics companies have in the last five years given up on the business of manufacturing video displays, thwarted by lower-cost competition from South Korea and China. Each time, the Japanese government has been there to scoop up the unprofitable operations they could no longer afford to maintain. Toshiba, Hitachi, Sony all of their display businesses were swept up into a state-financed investment fund. The goal was to keep production of liquid-crystal displays in Japan, along with the jobs and technology that go with it. But the final piece of the puzzle the government needs to create a national champion may elude it: Sharp, the century-old company that is Japans biggest LCD producer, is looking abroad for help. On Thursday, Sharp said it was leaning toward a takeover offer from Foxconn, the giant Taiwanese contract manufacturer that assembles iPhones and other products for Apple. Under pressure from Congress to take action amid a worsening opioid epidemic, the Food and Drug Administration on Thursday announced several measures aimed at dealing with abuse. Dr. Robert Califf, the acting commissioner and nominee to run the agency, announced the measures in a phone conference with reporters. He said the steps were an attempt by the agency to toughen its response to the crisis, in which tens of thousands of Americans were addicted to the prescription painkillers and were dying of overdoses. He said the actions were part of a broader government effort: Earlier this week, the Obama administration said it would ask Congress to spend an additional $1.1 billion next year on the problem, which would help increase badly needed treatment facilities. It has reached a point where we felt we had to step back and take a careful look at everything and see what we could do, Dr. Califf said. We thought we could do more. The decrees include convening an expert panel before approving some new opioids, strengthening requirements to study a drug after it has come to market, and increasing access to training on pain management for doctors and other prescribers. Sex and death, or in the elevated language of the British director Peter Greenaway, Eros and Thanatos, walk hand in hand in Eisenstein in Guanajuato. This comedic fantasy from Mr. Greenaway about the seminal Russian filmmaker Sergei Eisensteins trip to Mexico in the early 1930s quotes Eisenstein at length, while imagining a scandalous personal life, about which little is known. Referring to his classic film October: Ten Days That Shook the World, Eisenstein calls this working vacation the 10 days that shook Eisenstein. As embodied by the Finnish actor Elmer Back, Eisenstein is a roly-poly, motor-mouthed clown with a mop of wiry hair and body-image issues. His raucous behavior recalls the Italian comic Roberto Benigni on a tear. In certain shots he resembles the comedian Billy Crystal, and in others the fitness guru Richard Simmons. The movie gleefully demolishes the cliche of a great artist as a brooding, omniscient eminence. Not since Ken Russells screen biographies of painters and composers (The Music Lovers) has a director deconstructed the myth of the heroic creator with such merciless delight. In Eisenstein in Guanajuato, Mr. Greenaway (The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover) goes to lunatic extremes Russell himself rarely approached. Beyond the arty trappings and flamboyant showmanship that are typical of Mr. Greenaway, 73, Eisenstein in Guanajuato is a brazen provocation that focuses on the Eisenstein characters embrace of his homosexuality while in Mexico. Shortly after arriving there from Los Angeles, his virginity is taken by his handsome Mexican guide, Palomino Canedo (Luis Alberti), a married philosopher of comparative religion with two young sons. Physically painful though his initiation is, Eisenstein quickly embraces homosexuality as the path to ecstasy and falls in love. As he puts it, I had to come to Mexico to go to heaven. The writer-director Burr Steers came prepared for battle, if not much else, with appealing actors Charles Dance, Jack Huston and an amusing Lena Headey as well as handsome drawing rooms and impressive estates. But as one zombie brain after another is pulverized, and as Elizabeth and her crew slip through another close call, the storys lone joke and its grinding literalness grow dull. It doesnt help that Mr. Steers, as his occasional leering peeks up Elizabeths skirts underscore, clings to some old-fashioned ideas about women and their on-screen uses. The larger problem, though, is that each moment spent on this movie is another spent away from Austens novel. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is rated PG-13 (Parents strongly cautioned). Zombie society. Running time: 1 hour 48 minutes The drama A War (opening Feb. 12) looks at the Danish militarys involvement in the war in Afghanistan and a moral conflict one commander has in the midst of it. The film is from Tobias Lindholm and is the follow-up to A Hijacking, his procedural that looked at the takeover of a Danish cargo ship by pirates. A War has received an Oscar nomination for best foreign language film. In this scene, snipers observe, and try to take down, a Taliban fighter who is transporting an improvised explosive device. In a recent interview, Mr. Lindholm discussed the scene and the research that went into his film. Here are excerpts from that conversation. Q. What was your initial interest in making A War? A. The war in Afghanistan [is] the first war that Denmark has been part of since World War II. And then, we fought against the Germans for [a few] hours and then gave up. So its not a huge part of modern Danish tradition to go to war. It has defined my generation more than anything else. I thought as a filmmaker, my responsibility was to try to describe this. In many ways you can say that we in Denmark are in a small-scale post-Vietnam phase. We as a country need to look at what weve been a part of in the last decade and try to bring the soldiers back into society and move on as a country. In this film, youre following a commander and the decisions hes making. How did you determine the perspective? A soldier said to me that he wasnt afraid of getting killed in Afghanistan. He was afraid of getting prosecuted when he got back home because of the rules of engagement. That inspired me to do this story about a commander who is put in a moral dilemma that leads to a war crime. Put [on] trial for that, he is confronted with the decisions hes made in war. I thought the best way to show that was to be with a guy in the middle of the system. She came to New York last year to study, enrolling at the Whitestone Academy, a private school in the northern Queens neighborhood of Whitestone, hoping that it would prepare her to apply for admission to an American college. New York is a modern city, Ms. Liangs mother said by way of explaining why the family chose to educate the girl in New York. Ms. Liang, who is in the 10th grade, says most students at the school are Chinese and, like her, are planning to attend American universities. The school, founded in 1981, is in an unadorned, narrow one-story building in a mixed-use commercial and residential section of Whitestone. The property was formerly the site of a metal hose manufacturer and a company that designed heavy machinery. A friend of Ms. Liangs mother who lives in Whitestone allowed Ms. Liang to stay in her three-story house, in a quiet, residential area of the neighborhood just south of the Cross Island Expressway. Her life before the attack was mainly focused on school and schoolwork. She had no hobbies, she said, though in her spare time she liked to listen to music. Popular music, she said without elaborating. She had made some friends at the academy, she said, and for fun they might go shopping. But the focus of her life was studying. She said that on the day of the attack, she woke up around 7:40 a.m., her normal time. She may have eaten her usual breakfast of bread and a glass of milk she does not recall exactly before heading to school. As usual, she headed east along 13th Avenue. Suddenly, Ms. Liang recalled, someone was slicing her face and then running away, and she was bleeding, in pain and in shock. She returned to the house to get help. She never saw her attacker but knows from watching security camera videos that a man wearing a surgical mask and surgical gloves loped up from behind her as she strolled along the sun-dappled sidewalk. Apparently hearing the attackers footsteps, she began turning to look behind her. But the attacker was already on her, his left hand bracing her shoulder, his right hand holding the box cutter at her face. A second later, he was fleeing in the direction he had come. When New York City paid $5,000 last year to settle a lawsuit by a man who was shot in the leg by police officers after he had threatened them with a machete, outrage came from all corners: police unions, newspaper editorials and even Mayor Bill de Blasio, who condemned the deal struck by his own Law Department. Our officers did everything right, the mayor said in a television interview last January. They were threatened with violence. How on earth could any lawyer, with a straight face, say we should pay money to the guy who had the machete? The settlement and the ensuing debate helped drive a new aggressive approach by the city in dealing with the roughly 3,000 lawsuits filed annually against the police. In the past year, officials said, the city has moved to improve the quality of the investigations into claims against officers: Police Commissioner William J. Bratton created a new 40-member legal unit that develops evidence that the Law Department can use to defend lawsuits against the police, and the department hired about 30 lawyers to bolster its litigation teams and to try more cases in court. PRESS RELEASE Boulder, Colorado Make a Special Impact on Someone at Valentines Day Today, space public engagement company Uwingu announced three space themed ways to celebrate Valentines Day: Name a crater on Mars for family, friends, or loved ones on our Mars map! Each crater named receives a special Valentines Day certificate. Name an exoplanet around another star for family, friends, or loved ones. Send a yearlong gift subscription to family, friends, or loved ones to space image of the day service, a Valentine that keeps on giving! Said Uwingus Ellen Butler, "Make a special impact on someone for Valentine's Day 2016 with one of these at www.uwingu.com!" Uwingu is a for-profit, public engagement space company based in Boulder, CO, led by senior planetary scientists and astronomers (see http://www.uwingu.com/about-us/who-we-are/). Uwingus twin missions are to connect the public to space and space exploration in new ways, and to create a grant fund to support a wide range of space efforts by individual space researchers, educators, and organizations. ### About Uwingu. Uwingu (which means "sky" in Swahili, and is pronounced "oo-wing-goo") consists of a team of leading astronomers, planetary scientists, former space program executives, and educators. Uwingu is a for-profit company dedicated to creating new ways for people to personally connect with space exploration and education while also raising funds to support researchers, educators, and organizations in space exploration and astronomy. A pioneer in this industry, Uwingu is currently creating the first crowd-sourced map of Mars. Individuals have named almost 20,000 craters, and the Uwingu Fund has already allocated more than $130,000 in grants. Visit Uwingus website to learn more at www.uwingu.com. Follow Uwingu on Twitter at UwinguSky and friend Uwingu on Facebook. Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo on Thursday announced that New York State would offer free testing to all pregnant women who had traveled to a country experiencing a Zika outbreak, regardless of whether they were showing symptoms. New York health officials said the state would be the first in the nation to offer free testing to asymptomatic pregnant women. The initiative is expected to significantly expand the number of blood tests being conducted in New York for the virus, raising issues about capacity as New York Citys lab hurries to develop the capability to perform the tests. In the city, some hospitals and clinics were reporting being told that the current wait time for lab results is between two and four weeks. At NYU Langone Medical Center, for example, none of the roughly 15 tests sent out over the past few weeks had been returned. The citys health department said on Thursday that it had been receiving positive test results for the Zika virus in about seven days, but that the wait was longer for an additional result that confirmed whether a person was negative. A police officer testified on Thursday that he had little knowledge of CPR the night that his partner, Officer Peter Liang, was involved in a fatal shooting inside a stairwell of a Brooklyn housing project. Officer Liang, 28, is on trial in State Supreme Court in Brooklyn on manslaughter and other charges, for the death in November 2014 of Akai Gurley, who was killed inside the Louis H. Pink Houses in the East New York neighborhood by a ricocheting bullet as he walked down the stairs. He also faces charges of official misconduct for not helping Mr. Gurley, who was 28, as he lay on a fifth-floor landing. Mr. Gurleys girlfriend, Melissa Butler, crouched over his body, trying to revive him, but neither Officer Liang nor his partner performed CPR, as is required under Police Department rules. Officer Liangs partner, Shaun Landau, 28, testified that he had received a little over two minutes of CPR training at the Police Academy, from which they both graduated in 2013. In a subdued voice, he admitted that he had never read the CPR textbooks he was given and that he was fed answers to his exams on the subject. On Tuesday, Indias Supreme Court took a welcome step toward opening the door to equal rights for gay, lesbian and transgender citizens. Citing the constitutional importance of a petition to reverse its 2013 ruling upholding Section 377 of Indias Penal Code which criminalizes carnal intercourse against the order of nature the three-judge panel decided to refer the petition to a five-judge panel headed by Indias chief justice. Section 377, which dates back to 1861, has rarely been enforced, but it has been used to harass and blackmail gays, lesbians and transgender people. In 2009, the Delhi High Court struck the law down, ruling that Section 377 violated the rights to liberty and equality enshrined in Indias Constitution. But in 2013, the Supreme Court voided the lower courts ruling, saying it was up to Indias Parliament to change the law. So far, attempts to do that have failed. In December, Shashi Tharoor, an opposition member in Parliament, introduced a bill that would have rewritten Section 377 to limit the criminalization of private sexual acts to nonconsensual sex and sex with minors, but it was voted down by a large margin. Mr. Tharoor says he will resubmit his bill this spring if only to spur public debate on gay rights. But Indias gay, lesbian and transgender citizens should not have to wait for lawmakers to repeal this antiquated and unjust law. When the five-judge panel convenes (no date has yet been set), it should reverse the Supreme Courts 2013 decision and consign Section 377 to Indias colonial past, where it belongs. To the Editor: Beyond Labels (Food section, Jan. 27), about a new generation of black chefs, inspired and annoyed me equally, for it does not go back far enough in Americas food history. The greatest specter among the invisible chefs referred to in the article was James Hemings valet, chauffeur and chef to Thomas Jefferson, who granted him his freedom 220 years ago this week. When Jefferson went to France as President George Washingtons minister of trade, he took with him 19-year-old James, the older brother of Sally, the slave who bore some of Jeffersons children. James and Sally were half-siblings to Jeffersons wife, Martha. Hemings trained under chefs at the famed Chateau de Chantilly, the five-star kitchen of 18th-century France whose culinary creations outshined those served the royal family at Versailles. Technically free in France, Hemings was paid a wage to helm the kitchen at Jeffersons residence in Paris. There he supervised a large French-speaking staff for Jeffersons extravagant dinners for royalty and the most discerning palates in Paris. Hemings returned to slavery in America, bringing with him revolutionary changes to traditional colonial hearth cooking. Meringues, creme brulee, French-style creme Chantilly (whipped cream) and continental European-style macaroni and cheese can all be traced back to his training in Paris. To the Editor: Re Help Assads Officers Defect (Op-Ed, Feb. 3): Mohammed Alaa Ghanems assertion that Washington can win leverage in the Geneva peace talks on Syria (now temporarily suspended) is flawed, and his plea that the United States take concrete steps to encourage high-level defections from the regime of Bashar al-Assad is ill conceived. The Syrian president remains keenly aware of the perils of transition from minority rule. He was well tutored by his father, Hafez al-Assad, on the art of self-preservation: Promulgate fear and sectarian conflict among competing tribes. Given the brutality of ever-changing alliances in the region, I do not envision a scenario in which Washington has leverage enough to put pressure on Damascus. Certainly, this plan appears too contrived. Mr. Assad and his regime remain heavily protected. Senior military, intelligence and political positions have been staffed for decades with layers of Alawite patronage (the minority sect that forms the regimes core constituency). Dr. Reich and Dr. Skoglund reanalyzed the findings but did not reach the same conclusions. In the original study, Dr. Manica and his colleagues sought to understand how the ancient Ethiopian man (dubbed Mota, after the cave where his body was buried) was related to other humans. The researchers found many unique mutations that linked Mota to a group of Ethiopians who live near the cave today, known as the Ari. By contrast, the researchers found that Mota was only distantly related to many people elsewhere in Africa. In fact, the analysis suggested that most living Africans shared some DNA with Europeans and Asians that were missing from Motas genome. To explain these intriguing results, Dr. Manica and his colleagues tested out different historical scenarios. In the best-supported one, a group of people migrated from the Near East back to East Africa a so-called backflow about 3,000 years ago. In subsequent generations, their DNA spread across Africa. But some of the implications of this theory were surprising. For one thing, this backflow seemed to have raged like a flood, spreading all the way across the continent in relatively little time. Those provocative implications drew wide attention in the media, including The Times. Unfortunately, Dr. Skoglund and Dr. Reich couldnt find any trace of the migration beyond East Africa. Once Dr. Manica learned of the conundrum, he and his colleagues retraced their steps. They discovered that they had neglected to take one small but essential step in their analysis. It was clear human error, said Dr. Manica in an interview. Its just something that should have been done that didnt get done. The DNA in a bone thousands of years old has broken into little fragments. After scientists retrieve those fragments, they must fit the pieces back together like a jigsaw puzzle. HONG KONG China is spending billions of dollars on a major push to make its own microchips, an effort that could bolster its military capabilities as well as its homegrown technology industry. Those ambitions are starting to be noticed in Washington. Worries over Chinas chip ambitions were the main reason that United States officials blocked the proposed purchase for as much as $2.9 billion of a controlling stake in a unit of the Dutch electronics company Philips by Chinese investors, according to one expert and a second person involved with the deal discussions. The rare blockage underscores growing concern in Washington about Chinese efforts to acquire the know-how to make the semiconductors that work as the brains of all kinds of sophisticated electronics, including military applications like missile systems. In the case of the Philips deal, the company said late last month that it would terminate a March 2015 agreement to sell a majority stake in its auto and light-emitting diode components business known as Lumileds to a group that included the Chinese investors GO Scale Capital and GSR Ventures. It cited concerns raised by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, which reviews whether foreign investments in the country present a national security risk. But thats not the whole explanation: Among voters over age 30, she won those making more than $100,000 by a 31-point margin, more than twice her 14-point lead among those making less. The same story was clear in pre-election polling, both in Iowa and elsewhere. Her strength in affluent suburbs around Des Moines flipped the Des Moines metro area, which went strongly for Mr. Obama in 2008. It probably played a big part in suppressing Mr. Sanderss margins in college towns like Iowa City, where Mr. Sanders might have been expected to run as well as Mr. Obama or even better, given his tremendous strength among young voters. Mr. Sanderss weakness among affluent voters is potentially a bad sign for his chances. In 2008, voters making more than $100,000 a year represented 25 percent of the national electorate but just 19 percent of Iowa caucus-goers, suggesting that the state may be a relatively good one for a candidate, like Mr. Sanders, who does best among less affluent voters. On Super Tuesday, the most liberal states happen to be particularly affluent ones, like Massachusetts, Colorado, Virginia and Minnesota. But there is a bright side for Mr. Sanders: To some extent, he compensated for his losses among affluent voters by doing best among lower-income voters. He won white voters making less than $50,000 by nine points, 53 to 44 percent. Mr. Obama had lost white voters making less than $50,000 per year by two percentage points in 2008. Mr. Sanders was nearly as competitive as Mr. Obama across rural Iowa. He even won along the border with Nebraska the relatively conservative, western part of the state that was basically the one place Mrs. Clinton won in 2008. Avoid criminal activity for a chance to earn $9,000? Its a choice that some Washington residents may be able to make if lawmakers approve new legislation aimed at changing the citys approach to crime prevention. Under the proposal, modeled on a similar effort in Richmond, Calif., a new office would be created to identify individuals who pose a high risk of participating in, or being a victim of, violent criminal activity. The legislation seeks funding to cover stipends for about 50 individuals a year, who would be paid to follow a program involving life planning, trauma informed therapy, and mentorship. The plan is part of sweeping anti-crime legislation the Neighborhood Engagement Achieves Results Amendment Act of 2016 that won unanimous approval by the District Council on Tuesday. It will face a final vote on March 1, before heading to the mayor and Congress. They use bottled water for drinking, washing their hands and preparing food. In between, they shuttle children to pediatricians for blood tests, lug bottled water home from firehouses and install and change water filters on their home faucets. (Even so, city and state officials have warned that lead levels were still so high in some homes that the filters might not be strong enough to be effective.) Yet many people here see no alternative but to stay. I couldnt rent out my house now if I wanted to, said Joyce Cruz, 35, a homeowner and the mother of five. Who would want to move to Flint? Mr. White said he was furious that officials did not take action to address the danger that many residents clearly saw and smelled pouring into their homes. In his neighborhood, he has endured the sight of drug sales, prostitution and other crimes. The playground where he and his girlfriend take their children is rundown. But before the lead poisoning, he still felt content in Flint, he said. Not anymore. At this point, Id be willing to move anywhere, he said. Few For Sale signs are visible on Flints worn-down streets, but brokers said that was not because there was no interest in selling. Success in the purchasing of horses is often attributed to seeing what others dont see; in other words, looking past physical issues or deficiencies that turn other buyers off. When Carrie Brogden of Machmer Hall Farm attended the 2009 Keeneland January Mixed Sale, she noticed a 3-year-old filly in the book by Unbridleds Song named Special Me, who she spotted in the back ring getting ready to sell. Not only had Special Me proven a failure on the racetrack, running three times in 2008 and never finishing closer than 16 lengths, she stood only 14.3 hands, no bigger than a decent sized yearling. But Brogden was familiar with others in her family and they were all big, beautiful horses. She approached the fillys owner and breeder, David Hayden of Dark Hollow Farm, and asked him, What on earth happened to her; maybe something in utero? Hayden explained that she had been born a month early and that the mare was diagnosed with nocardia placentitis, which is often fatal if not caught in time and treated appropriately. Even when treated in utero, it can often compromise the fetus with low birth weights and incomplete long bone growth from a premature delivery. Hayden proceeded to give Brogden a long list of expenses they had to incur trying to save her -- from paying the full stud fee to breed to Unbridleds Song to attempting to get her to the races Having knowledge of the family, the wheels started turning in her head perhaps she is genetically normal and would make a good broodmare in spite of her size, her poor race record, and her earlier problems. So Brogden, who runs Machmer Hall with her husband Craig, bid on Special Me and got her for a paltry $6,000. As Hayden said, We knew she was special, but just not for us. Weve been in this business for over 40 years, and sometimes you win big and sometimes you lose big. We lost on this one but won when we claimed Safely Home, the dam of Safely Kept and others, for $11,500. We still relish in all of Special Mes accomplishments. Special Mes first foal, named Restricted List, by Street Hero, sold for $17,000 as a weanling and then was pinhooked as a 2-year-old for $110,000, but wasnt much on the track. However, her second foal, a filly by Mizzen Mast, named Stonetastic, sold at the Keeneland yearling sale for $77,000 and went on to earn over $470,000, winning or placing in seven stakes, including a victory in the Prioress Stakes. Her third foal had vetting issues and was sold cheaply to Korea. None of Special Mes foals were on the small side and that was the case again in 2013 when she dropped a strapping colt by Twirling Candy, of whom Brogden was a big fan when he raced. She went to visit him and found him to be a very impressive individual, who was light on his feet and walked like a cat. She also liked the fact that his trainer, John Sadler, always felt he was an extremely gifted colt. Brogden decided to sell the colt as a weanling at the Fasig-Tipton Keeneland November mixed sale, and he went for $135,000 to Lanes End Farm. She actually almost scratched him from the sale, thinking he was such a great mover she could eventually sell him to someone who would be more interested in racing him than reselling him. The colt, however, was consigned to the Keeneland September yearling sale by Lanes End, but came up with a minor vetting issue, so Lanes End withdrew him and decided to keep him. He eventually was sent to trainer Chad Brown, who told Brogden he felt the colt, now named Gift Box, was the best of all the Lanes End 2-year-olds and he believed he would relish a distance of ground; in fact, the farther the better. When Brogden sold Gift Boxs half-sister by Mizzen Mast to Mike Ryan as a yearling last year, it was Chad Brown who signed the sales slip, so he likely already knew what he had in Gift Box. In his career debut at Saratoga, racing in William S. Farishs familiar silks, Gift Box was bumped from both sides at the start, dropping back to last in the 10-horse field. He made steady progress after that and closed well to finish third behind the wire-to-wire winner Sheikh of Sheikhs on a track playing for speed. The final time was a solid 1:10 flat. Of little consolation, but interesting to note, he did gallop out clear past the first two finishers. That was it for sprints. In his second start at Belmont, Brown entered him in a grass race, as main track only, going 1 1/16 miles to get a distance race in him and it was taken off the grass and run on a sloppy sealed track. He raced between horses in mid-pack and was able to swing out for a clear run at the pace-setting Matt King Coal, who had sprinted clear of the field. But Gift Box was relentless, closing with great determination, and wore down Matt King Coal to win by a nose, with an incredible gap of 18 lengths back to the third horse, earning both horses a strong 93 Beyer speed figure. To show what kind of horse Gift Box had to run down, Matt King Coal came back to break his maiden going a mile by 5 3/4 lengths, earning a 96 Beyer speed figure. He hasnt run since. Brown thought so highly of Gift Box he brought him back in the grade II Remsen Stakes at 1 1/8 miles against the Nashua Stakes one-two finishers, Mohaymen and Flexibility. Gift Box saved ground in his first two-turn race and then demonstrated a brilliant turn of foot on the far turn, splitting horses and bursting into contention, actually getting his neck in front of Mohaymen for third as they turned for home. But he was unable to keep up with Mohaymen and Flexibility in the stretch, and despite racing a bit greenly, switching to his left lead late and being steered to the inside with Flexibility drifting out in front of him, he still managed to finish a good third, beaten three lengths by Mohaymen, which as we witnessed in the Holy Bull, was a big effort for a horse coming off a nose maiden victory. Gift Box has turned in two half-mile breezes at Palm Meadows, in :48 4/5 and :49, as he moves closer to his 3-year-old debut in the Risen Star Stakes. Not bad so far for a horse out of a $6,000 pony-sized mare who was born prematurely and almost died and couldnt run a lick on the racetrack. This year, Special Me has a Candy Ride yearling, who Brogden said is already as big as her. She has had offers to sell Special Me, who currently is in foal to Speightstown and is booked back to Honor Code. As Brogden said of her, Sometimes what is outside is not always what is inside. Weve already seen what is inside her son as he prepares to embark on the Kentucky Derby trail. Mrs. Clintons campaign says she will win over young voters when they learn more about her proposals to make college affordable and to combat climate change. The difference for young voters and for all voters is the ability to get something done, Robby Mook, her campaign manager said in an interview with MSNBC this week. And what that takes is someone in Washington who can break through the gridlock. That argument won over Iris Brenner, 21, a student at Iowa State University in Ames, who supports Mrs. Clinton. For me, its been, Do I caucus for someone who is a little less exciting but who can get stuff done? Privately, Mrs. Clintons supporters say that while being a youth icon has its advantages, the support of middle-aged and older voters is enough for her to capture the nomination. In the Iowa caucuses, she beat Mr. Sanders by 23 points among voters ages 45 to 64 and by 43 points among voters 65 and older, according to exit polls. They dont have to be for me, Im going to be for them, Mrs. Clinton told CNN on Wednesday when asked about the generation gap. The Sanders campaign said excitement among young people had been organic, although it has clearly worked to improve the candidates appeal on sites like Twitter, Reddit and Snapchat, and in text messages to supporters. Young people are idealistic and they look at this country and say we can be much more, Mr. Sanders told reporters Wednesday. The discomfort, and, in some cases hostility toward Mrs. Clinton among young voters is striking. Some of them, feeling the pinch of economic hardship or the burden of college loans, suggest she is too cozy with big banks and corporate America. But polls also show they do not find her trustworthy. MANCHESTER, N.H. Frustrated and flailing as his candidacy threatens to slip away, Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey is embarking on a scalding effort over the next week to discredit Senator Marco Rubio of Florida, the man he blames for undermining his campaign and whose ascendancy he deeply resents. And Mr. Christie has a secret ally: Jeb Bush. Mr. Christie, whose White House hopes hinge on a strong showing in New Hampshire, is unleashing the kind of cutting and personal attacks that brought him renown in New Jersey but that pose a far greater risk in a presidential campaign, where they can harm the assailant as much as the intended target. Over the past 48 hours, Mr. Christie has mocked Mr. Rubio as a cosseted boy in the bubble, derided him as constantly scripted, likened him to the king of England, and, perhaps most creatively, compared his Senate career to that of a helpless fourth grader who is told which chair to sit in at school. Heres how we analyzed the fifth Democratic debate in real time, and our live fact checks. _____ Hillary Clinton and Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont will debate on Thursday at 9 p.m. Eastern, just days after the two fought to a virtual draw in the Iowa caucuses. It will be the fifth face-off between the two, but their first one-on-one contest, after former Gov. Martin OMalley of Maryland dropped out of the race on Monday. We asked New York Times political reporters what they would be looking for in the last Democratic debate before New Hampshires primary on Tuesday. ____ After Mrs. Clinton overwhelmingly even shockingly lost millennial voters in Iowa by 70 points to Mr. Sanders, Ill be watching to see if she turns the focus from her resume a misty past beyond the recall of voters under 30 toward the future, offering an optimistic vision of what she hopes to accomplish. Conversely, because Mr. Sanders lost seniors in Iowa by 43 points, I want to see if he tailors his message to try to bridge some of the gap. Trip Gabriel GOFFSTOWN, N.H. If you think finding street parking in Manhattan is tough, try hunting for a spot on Main Street in a New Hampshire suburb when Ted Cruz has come to town. With the public parking areas overrun here on a cold and rainy Wednesday, I ventured up and down the side streets, passing the parked campaign bus of Mr. Cruz, the Texas senator, twice in what felt increasingly like a futile quest. Relief seemed to present itself in the form of a hulking hardware store, with a lot offering ample empty spaces. But as I stepped away from my car, a woman called out from behind me, asking in a polite and earnest tone to take my vehicle somewhere else. Customers only. Obeying, I drove away from a half-empty row of spots. It may be high season for hotels and restaurants, but political tourists do not seem to buy many hammers. WASHINGTON Senate Democrats on Thursday blocked action on a comprehensive energy bill that had drawn broad bipartisan support after lawmakers failed to agree on including a $600 million amendment to address the crisis over lead-tainted water in Flint, Mich. Senators voted twice to end debate on the energy bill, first falling 10 votes short of the 60-vote threshold needed to bring the item to a conclusion, and then falling six votes short. Absent their Flint aid amendment, 38 Democrats, including one of the bills chief authors, Senator Maria Cantwell of Washington, voted against moving forward on the first vote, and 39 Democrats voted no on the second vote. Thursdays votes will delay, but not derail, the legislation. Immediately after, the Senate majority leader, Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, said that its authors would work through the weekend to find a path forward on the energy bill and the Flint aid amendment. Hopefully well be able to salvage this important bipartisan legislation in the next few days, he said. WASHINGTON [Follow the latest live news coverage on Colin Powells death.] The State Department has discovered a dozen emails containing classified information that were sent to the personal email accounts of Colin L. Powell and close aides of Condoleezza Rice during their tenures as secretaries of state for President George W. Bush. Two emails were sent to Mr. Powells personal account, and 10 to personal accounts of Ms. Rices senior aides. Those emails have now been classified as confidential or secret as part of a review process that has resulted in similar upgrades of information sent through the personal email server that Hillary Clinton used while she was secretary of state from 2009 to 2013. The State Department did not say who sent the emails to Mr. Powell or to Ms. Rices aides, or who received the messages. It is against the law to have classified information outside a secure government account. Of the nearly 30,000 emails from Mrs. Clintons server that have been released by the State Department under a court order, 18 emails sent to or from her have also been classified as secret, and 1,564 others have been classified at the lower level of confidential. Last week, the State Department said that 22 emails had now been classified as top secret and would not be released, and would have part or all of their contents redacted, or blacked out. A review of 3,700 more emails by the department and intelligence agencies continues. In recent months, United States and British Special Operations teams have increased clandestine reconnaissance missions in Libya to identify the militant leaders and map out their networks for possible strikes. Military planners are still awaiting orders on whether American involvement would include striking senior leaders, attacking a broader set of targets, or deploying teams of commandos to work with Libyan fighters who promise to support a new Libyan government. Any military action would be coordinated with European allies, officials said. Teams of American Special Operations forces have over the past year been trying to court Libyan allies who might join a new government in a fight against the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL. But commanders say they are dealing with a patchwork of Libyan militias that remain unreliable, unaccountable, poorly organized and divided by region and tribe. How long will the United States and the Europeans wait until they say, we have to work with whatever militias we can on the ground? said Frederic Wehrey, a Libya specialist at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, who frequently visits the country. In a meeting of his National Security Council last Thursday to discuss escalating the fight against the Islamic State, Mr. Obama asked his advisers to prepare whatever military measures were necessary to combat the militants in Libya while not undercutting the international effort to help form a national unity government. For the president, the challenge is to avoid embarking on yet another major counterterrorism campaign in his last year in office while also moving decisively to prevent the rise of a new arm of the Islamic State that if left unchecked analysts say could attack the West, including Americans or American interests. KAMPALA, Uganda A confidential United Nations report that became public this week accused the Rwandan government of secretly training rebels to overthrow the president of Burundi, a country rapidly sliding toward chaos. The report said investigators had spoken with 18 Burundian rebels who claimed to have been trained inside Rwanda to use grenades, antitank mines and rocket-propelled grenades. Accusations have been swirling for months that Rwanda was covertly backing rebels in Burundi, but until this report, written by a group of experts who monitor sanctions in the Democratic Republic of Congo, there had been little evidence to support those assertions. Rwanda has vehemently denied the accusation. According to the report, the Burundian rebels, who included six children, said they had been recruited from a refugee camp in eastern Rwanda last year and given fake Congolese identification cards so they could slip undetected into Congo. DAKAR, Senegal United Nations peacekeepers in the Central African Republic raped or sexually exploited at least eight women and girls last fall, including a young teenager who said she was released only because she had managed to scream, according to a Human Rights Watch report released Thursday. In a country where armed groups routinely prey on civilians, peacekeepers should be protectors, not predators, said Hillary Margolis, a womens rights researcher at Human Rights Watch. The United Nations mission in the Central African Republic confirmed that it had been informed by Human Rights Watch about the reports findings and said it had taken steps to address them. One of the episodes had been previously reported and was already under investigation, the mission said in a statement. The statement said that the home countries of the accused peacekeepers, the Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo, had been notified and asked to begin investigations. The mission also said it had ordered the repatriation of 120 Republic of Congo soldiers, who were immediately confined to barracks. SEOUL, South Korea Increased vehicle activity has been detected at North Koreas rocket launch site near its northwestern border with China, which could be a sign of preparations for the launch Pyongyang said it would conduct this month, according to a United States website that monitors the North. The website, 38 North, which uses commercial satellite imagery to analyze North Korean activity at the Tongchang-ri launch site and other locations, said on Wednesday that more vehicles had been seen around the sites Horizontal Processing Building, where the various stages of a rocket are received. Once received, they are assembled in the horizontal position to test all connections, perform final testing of subsystems and prepare the stages for mounting on the launchpad, said the report on 38 North, which is run by the U.S.-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins University. SYDNEY, Australia Australian health officials issued a national recall of packaged lettuce and other salad products on Thursday after 28 cases of salmonella poisoning in the state of Victoria. The outbreak, at the height of Australias summer, the salad-eating season, has been traced to more than 20 products of bagged lettuce and other salad leaves produced by Tripod Farmers. They are sold mostly through major supermarket chains Woolworths, Safeway, Coles and Bi-Lo in most states and territories. Two people have been admitted to the hospital, and more cases are expected in the coming days, said Dr. Finn Romanes, the senior medical adviser at Victorias department of health. Salmonella usually strikes between six and 72 hours after the bacteria is ingested. This particular strain of salmonella that we have detected, salmonella anatum, usually only occurs in very small numbers in Victoria, Dr. Romanes said at a news conference in Melbourne on Thursday. So far this year, we have been notified of 28 cases. LONDON When Noel Santillan typed the word Laugarvegur instead of Laugavegur into his rental cars GPS, the New Jersey resident couldnt have imagined that the extra r would make him something of a celebrity in Iceland. Mr. Santillan, 28, arrived at Keflavik International Airport on Monday morning after a five-hour flight from New York and was eager to get to the Hotel Fron on Laugavegur, a main street in Reykjavik, Icelands capital, local news media reported. But the spelling error got in his way, according to Visir, an Icelandic news website. While driving nearly six hours over icy roads, Mr. Santillan, who works in retail marketing, had an inkling that something might be wrong, local news reports said. Julian Assange the founder of WikiLeaks who sought refuge in the Ecuadorean Embassy in London in 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden has been arbitrarily detained in violation of international law, a United Nations human rights panel has concluded. The panel, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, will announce its decision on Friday morning in Geneva, according to officials there. Its findings are a symbolic victory for Mr. Assange, but they are not legally binding and may have limited, if any, practical significance. Swedish prosecutors want to question Mr. Assange, an Australian citizen, over a rape accusation. Mr. Assange and his team of lawyers say that criminal inquiry is a pretext for prosecution, and that Mr. Assange is essentially a political prisoner, targeted by the United States and its allies because of WikiLeaks role in publishing more than 250,000 leaked State Department diplomatic cables a deep embarrassment for the Obama administration starting in 2010. In a statement that WikiLeaks posted to Twitter on Thursday morning, Mr. Assange promised to leave the embassy at noon on Friday if the United Nations panel ruled against him. However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me, the statement said. MOSCOW A Russian military adviser died in a hospital in Syria on Feb. 1 after suffering severe wounds when a Syrian Army training center in Homs Province was shelled, a Russian military spokesman said Thursday. In an interview with the Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta, the spokesman, Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov, refused to give the advisers name, citing security reasons. Four Syrian Army cadets were killed in the same mortar barrage by Islamic State militants, he said. A Russian military adviser in Syria was helping the Syrian Army learn how to use the new armaments, delivered under existing contracts of military-technical cooperation, the Kremlins spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov, told the Russian news agency Interfax on Wednesday. PARIS An unidentified woman claimed in an interview broadcast on Thursday that she had tipped the French police off to the hide-out of the ringleader of the Nov. 13 Paris attacks, Abdelhamid Abaaoud, who was killed in a shootout. The woman appears to have decided to speak out because she feels aggrieved that the authorities have not done more to help her make a new start. For her protection, the security services requested that she change her name and move, and as a result she had to give up her job. The woman, who had her face hidden and her voice disguised in an interview with BFM-TV and its affiliated radio station, said she was a friend of Mr. Abaaouds cousin Hasna Ait Boulahcen, who was also killed when the police raided a rundown apartment in the Paris suburb of St.-Denis days after the attack. The woman had never met Mr. Abaaoud before, she said, but was with Ms. Boulahcen when Mr. Abaaoud called unexpectedly two days after the attacks and summoned his cousin to his hiding place in the brush under a highway bridge near the Paris suburb of Aubervilliers. They went together and found him, she said. He was with another man, who turned out to be another of the attackers. The man who organized the murder of Mr. Abu Khdeir and the two teenagers who were sentenced on Thursday all confessed to a revenge killing and were found guilty in November. But the man Yosef Haim Ben-David, the main defendant in the case pleaded insanity at the last minute. The court will rule on his case later. The court also ordered each of the teenagers to pay the Abu Khdeir family 30,000 shekels (about $7,700) in compensation. The teenager who received the 21-year prison term was not sentenced to life because the court determined that he had not taken part in the actual murder, only in the actions that preceded it. He is the youngest of the bunch, with potential for rehabilitation, the court said in its ruling. His actions are also vicious, as he captured the deceased, prevented him from resisting, assisted in strangling him. But nevertheless, he did not take part physically in the last stage that led to his beating and the pouring of fuel or oil on his body. The Abu Khdeir family criticized the ruling and said both young men should have been given life terms. The murdered boys father, Hussein, said at Jerusalem District Court that the family wanted an appeal to be lodged with the Supreme Court. If there is no apartheid or racism, you will have to do this, he said, arguing that officials had gone easy on the teenager because he is Jewish and not Arab. Many Iraqis have stayed in Europe, of course, especially those who were displaced from lands controlled by the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL. And others are still risking everything to cross the seas to get there. Last week, the bodies of five Iraqis who drowned in the Aegean Sea were returned to Kirkuk in northern Iraq. The returnees largely reflect another segment of migration: those who left Baghdad for economic reasons, or merely out of curiosity after seeing so many reports of migrants arriving joyously on the shores of Europe. When Mr. Jabiry left last summer, he said, I was thinking, I have no job here, and I never finished school. I thought of a better future there that I would find a better job, that I could continue my studies, earn more money. He added: I was crying the first day I arrived in Finland. Crying of happiness. As the days stretched into months time he said he mostly spent working out at the gym, or aimlessly hanging out with other Iraqis in the refugee center he realized it would be a long time before he could get a job or a home of his own. Last summer, Facebook was filled with posts about making the trip. Now, some Iraqis in Europe are turning to social media to warn their countrymen away. One video posted recently shows an Iraqi man complaining of the food in Europe and saying, Im just waiting for my flight to Baghdad, and I will be back soon. I would advise everyone not to take the risk and come to Europe. The complication, for Egypt and Italy, though largely unspoken, was that Mr. Regeni did not just bear the telltale signs of torture, but that the cigarette burns and head wounds were a signature form of abuse frequently associated with the Egyptian security forces. There was no proof Mr. Regeni had even been in police custody, and it would be out of character for the authorities to abuse a Westerner. But worries about the impunity of the Egyptian security forces have been growing of late, and an initial declaration by officials that Mr. Regeni had died in a car accident also raised suspicions. Mr. Regini vanished on Jan. 25 when, on the fifth anniversary of the uprising that ultimately ousted President Hosni Mubarak, he left his apartment for a meeting with a friend at a downtown cafe. It was a day of considerable tension in Cairo: thousands of police officers were scattered across the city to halt any antigovernment protest after a weekslong crackdown that saw the police arrest activists, shutter arts spaces and search apartments. Friends said that Mr. Regeni was last seen walking toward his local metro station at about 7 p.m. The search to find him ramped up in recent days amid Internet appeals for information and as his parents flew to Cairo, but ended on Wednesday when his body was found on the desert highway leading to Alexandria. Ahmed Nagy, the Egyptian prosecutor in charge of the investigation, said Mr. Regeni was naked from the waist down and with evident signs of torture all over. The wounds, which in addition to apparent cigarette burns included small stab marks, were concentrated around the face and body, Mr. Nagy said. An autopsy completed on Thursday afternoon indicated that he had died from internal bleeding to the brain as a result of a beating to the head. GENEVA Four Syrian rebel commanders huddled in a knot, all broad shoulders and shiny gray suits, surveying the hotel lounge. Gigantic portraits of Jim Morrison and Jimi Hendrix gazed down at the carpet, a checkerboard of faux zebra-hide in squares of orange and magenta. On a low sofa, a couple snuggled to the sounds of Amy Winehouse. The fighters decamped to a smokers enclosure behind a plate-glass window, its back wall a trompe-loeil image of electric-blue waves that made it seem as though they were submerged in a fish tank. It was an effect that fit their mood. They were in Geneva, notionally at least, for peace talks, but back in Syria, the government and its Russian allies were battering insurgents with scores of airstrikes. With their men under fire, the commanders were asking themselves how much longer they could credibly stay. Maybe a day, one, Maj. Hassan Ibrahim, said on Monday night. By Wednesday, the talks were indeed suspended, as the intense fighting on the ground proved there was as little to talk about as ever. In an interview earlier, under the watchful eye of an adviser from Saudi Arabia, Major Ibrahim had dutifully projected strength and determination. But when the Saudi man walked away, the Syrian, who had defected from the government army in 2011, leaned forward and confided that the fighters he led in southern Syria were struggling. Supplies of weapons and salaries from the United States and its allies are dwindling. Moving in and out of Jordan is getting harder. AL MUKALLA, Yemen A leader of Al Qaedas Yemeni affiliate was killed Thursday along with two other militants in a missile strike in southern Yemen apparently carried out by an American drone, according to a local security official in Abyan Province, where the strike occurred. The leader, Jalal Balaidi, a field commander for Al Qaeda, had been wanted by the United States for planning attacks on Western diplomatic officials and facilities in Sana, the Yemeni capital, according to the State Department, which had offered a $5 million reward for information that would bring him to justice. Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, as the affiliate is known, has captured several towns in southern Yemen since the beginning of the countrys civil war between the Houthi rebels and factions allied with Yemens exiled government in March. United States drone strikes on Qaeda leaders throughout the war have done little to halt the expansion of the group, which has faced little or no resistance from a military coalition led by Saudi Arabia that is fighting on the side of the Yemeni government. The last book that made you laugh? Living With a SEAL, by Jesse Itzler. It was unexpectedly funny. He really grabs you and drags you into his experience. One of the main lessons I took from the book we can all push ourselves far more than we do is delivered with a sense of humor that actually makes me more motivated than I would have been if it wasnt so much fun. The last book that made you furious? Michelle Alexanders The New Jim Crow. I opened it feeling like I knew a lot about mass incarceration, but she presents her case with such an unrelenting avalanche of evidence and data that I found myself even angrier at the depth and breadth of the problem. It is the one book I have given to my whole staff, and along with Senator Tom Harkin, I bought copies for every one of our Senate colleagues. I am happy that the urgency to reform our broken criminal justice system has found allies all across the political spectrum. To read that book is to conclude that this broken system is one of the most shameful, damning and tragic realities that currently exist in our nation. Tell us about your favorite poem. Langston Hughes is my favorite poet. Picking my favorite poem of his is tremendously difficult there are many that have spoken deeply to me and have inspired me. One of my all-time favorites is Dreams Hold fast to dreams / For if dreams die / Life is a broken-winged bird / That cannot fly. Hughes challenges us with such stark eloquence here, reminding us why imagination and aspiration are so important. Another poem of his I really like especially at a time when national unity is so important is: There is a dream in the land / . . . This dream today embattled, / With its back against the wall / To save the dream for one / It must be saved for ALL. And your favorite movie adaptation of a book. Hmmm. I dont know if I have a favorite. Most are just disappointing, once youve read the book. One I remember being excited about was The Lovely Bones. I was in a long-distance relationship, and my girlfriend decided we should read books together, so she chose first. I was not happy about her choice at first and tried to dissuade her, but to no avail. Before I knew it we were reading the book out loud to each other, over the phone, and I was drawn in; soon we were reading chapters on our own, and she was telling me to slow down and not get too far ahead. It was a beautiful, emotionally fulfilling book that I recommended to many, many others after I read it. So when the movie came out, it had absolutely no chance of living up to that experience. Its so hard for any director to capture the grandeur of your imaginings; so hard for an actor to compete with characters who were first animated by the mind; no two-hour movie can encapsulate the breath and bounty of a book. Who is your favorite fictional hero or heroine? Your favorite antihero or villain? If I had to pick one, and it is painful to do so, it is Superman. I read comics (read graphic novels) as a kid and was drawn into the characters. I still love superheroes and am so happy that the Marvel and DC franchises have been given renewed life and vibrancy. I am enjoying the movies and TV programs and still have, in my home, big, colorful encyclopedias of both superhero universes that have definitely been well worn. If you could require the president to read one book, what would it be? It would be presumptuous of me to recommend a book to him and the truth is, Id much rather take a book recommendation from him than give one. I have great respect for the president, and being that he was a senator, I would want to know a recommendation he had for me at the beginning of my Senate career. But O.K., if you forced me, how about: Bald Men Always Come Out on Top: 101 Ways to Use Your Head and Win With Skin. I havent actually read that one, but it would be a gentle hint to him, basically saying: Come on, Mr. President, join the ranks of the bold bald men in America. Liberate your scalp. Let the gray go. In a city with a legacy of black political activism where the unarmed Oscar Grant was fatally shot by a police officer in 2009 at the Fruitvale BART station and #blacklivesmatter was germinated the initiative begins with the premise that the words black male and achievement go together and that a college degree can be a part of their future. The philosophy might be encapsulated in a greeting scribbled on a whiteboard at Oakland High School: Welcome Kings! the somewhat grandiose title a shorthand for holding oneself to a high standard and being responsible for others. Think of it as #blackmindsmatter. The mission of the Office of African American Male Achievement is to support all of Oaklands black male students, which it strives to do through a variety of initiatives, including peer mentoring, a student leadership council and conferences that bring together role models and students a sort of uber school assembly that has the cacophonous energy of a revivalist meeting. In addition, two Afrocentric core courses have just been introduced in English language arts and history that meet the strict prerequisites for the University of California. And a career academy is in the works at Oakland High called the Khepera Pathway, which will steep African-American male students in entrepreneurship, social innovation and civic engagement, with help from a $750,000 grant from Google. While the programs are too young to be assessed, in the last two years chronic absenteeism and suspensions have dropped for black males in the district (come July, defiance will no longer be a suspension infraction). Last year, more than half the 52 students who started Manhood Development classes as freshmen the first graduating class headed off to college with scholarships from the local nonprofit East Bay College Fund. Perhaps most encouraging is the African American Male Achievements honor roll for black students, male and female, with grade-point averages of 3.0 or above an accomplishment celebrated every year at a raucous event attended by thousands at a gospel church. The percentage of young men on the roll has risen from 16 percent to 25 percent over the past three years. Each school day, Rahsaan Smith travels the citys vast economic, social and psychic divide, leaving the flatlands of East Oakland, synonymous with violence, for a middle school perched on a steep hill fragrant with eucalyptus. He is one of the few boys in Mr. Jenningss class with both a dad and a mom at home. Wait what? This is Jennifer Jason Leighs first Academy Award nomination? Now 53, the actress has long played memorable characters in cult films, from her breakout role in Fast Times at Ridgemont High to a killer roommate in Single White Female to her latest: a wild prisoner in Quentin Tarantinos The Hateful Eight. Refining her red carpet look has been a lower priority. Since Ms. Leigh met Maryam Malakpour, an editorial stylist, on a V Magazine shoot, they have collaborated for her press tour and awards season run. I dont do much celebrity styling, actually, said Ms. Malakpour, of Los Angeles. But I love Quentin Tarantino and I love the movie, and I love working with Jennifer. Shes very open to ideas, and I think that was the attraction in the first place. She knew I would be bringing her something different because of my background. She has steered her client toward two designers: Roland Mouret and Rodarte. We did a lot of daywear with Valentino, but when it came to the red carpet, because of Jennifers very petite stature, a lot of things were too overwhelming on her, Ms. Malakpour said. It is an obsession that has taken her to the other side of the world, one that has turned casual conversations into arm-twisting negotiations, and innocuous radio chitchat into a stealth attack on the mayor of New York. This is the story of Representative Carolyn B. Maloney and her unusual ursine quest: to bring a pair of pandas to the city. Securing pandas for any American city is an undertaking of extraordinary diplomatic and financial complexity. The costs of leasing pandas from China, feeding them and building a suitable habitat would run into the tens of millions of dollars. And given that four American zoos already have pandas, persuading reluctant Chinese officials to relinquish two more to New York has been exceedingly difficult. And yet, Ms. Maloney has been undeterred. After the financial crisis, 9/11, Hurricane Sandy, its about time to have something happy, she said on a recent Monday, as she strode through the Bronx Zoo, wrapped in a scarf ornamented with pandas. Lets have a panda. The foreign guests had traveled a great distance to reach Washington, stopping in Honolulu on the way and finally disembarking under heavy security. On April 16, 1972, they were welcomed to the United States by the countrys first lady, Pat Nixon. On behalf of the people of the United States, I am pleased to be here and accept the precious gift of the panda pandas, Mrs. Nixon said. The two pandas Mrs. Nixon greeted were a high-profile symbol of diplomatic rapprochement between the United States and China, brokered under her husbands administration. When President Richard M. Nixon visited China in February 1972, the government of Mao Zedong announced it would send a pair of the beloved animals to an American zoo. Nixon reciprocated the gift, up to a point, by sending two musk oxen to China. The earliest version of Zionism based the creation of a Jewish nation on the revived language of Hebrew, to unify the huge variety of dispersed Jews. Beginning in the 1920s and especially with the Holocaust, suggests Bernard Avishai, the author of The Tragedy of Zionism and The Hebrew Republic, came the idea of political Zionism, which required a state and a military both to protect Jews against anti-Semitism and to transform them into a modern state, to defend themselves and, if necessary, to defy the world. The largely secular founders of Israel, the generation of David Ben-Gurion, had a dual vision of Israel as both a light among nations and a state like others, part of the international community of nations, outward looking and socially just. When Israel has prostitutes and thieves, Ben-Gurion said, well be a state just like any other. The new Zionists religious Zionists see the world, and Israel, differently. They are sure that they represent the future. We are the real Zionists now, a settler, Igal Canaan, told me, and slowly, slowly we will be the majority of the country. They argue that they are the pioneers of this generation, taking risks to expand the state in the face of dangers from the Palestinians, whom they largely regard, in Mr. Avishais words, as a distraction on the landscape who will eventually be displaced, as others were before by the left-wing secular Zionists who built the young state. The new Zionists see themselves as honoring Gods commandments and living in shared communities like the early heroes of Israel. Defiant in the face of criticism, both domestic and foreign, they believe that they are building a religious Israel, not a European or cosmopolitan one. Zionism justified a return to the holy land in terms of universalist values, said Yaron Ezrahi, a political theorist and emeritus professor at Hebrew University. The idea was to bring enlightenment and cultural development, to bring universalism to the Middle East. But the settlers are the epitome of particularism, of localism, and they give a bad name to Zionism. If Zionism is a European movement, he said, the settlers are colonialism in a post-colonial era. Theyve lost the universal values of Zionism. Before he moved to New York four years ago, Nicolas Gerard lived in Togo in West Africa, having been posted there by the United Nations. In Lome, the capital city, he and a colleague shared a rented house with a yard and a swimming pool. Upon his arrival in New York, he stayed for a few months with another colleague in Park Slope, Brooklyn, and then rented a large one-bedroom in Stuyvesant Town in Lower Manhattan. He paid around $3,500 a month. He rode the First Avenue bus to and from his office at United Nations headquarters on 42nd Street. The route was a bit of a lottery, he said, depending on traffic. It was either very fast or very slow. Mr. Gerard, a French native who grew up in Paris and Rio de Janeiro, and studied in London, among other cities, was eager to buy a home. Now 41, he said: I havent had a stable place. New York is the most stable place Ive been. None of the people accused of plotting attacks received specific direction from the Islamic State abroad, according to the evidence presented in legal documents and other public information that were analyzed by The New York Times and the Center on National Security at the Fordham University School of Law. The Islamic State has demonstrated an ability to coordinate attacks in Europe from the Middle East. But the United States has yet to see any of those types of attacks. Instead, attacks in the United States have been lone wolf strikes. While ISIS remains a brutal and lethal force abroad, its operational reach to the United States has been negligible at best, the centers director, Karen J. Greenberg, said. In addition, nearly half of the arrests followed undercover investigations by the F.B.I., and most of the individuals were caught early on. Although the domestic plots are alarming and increasing in frequency, Ms. Greenberg said that the driving force among those in the United States inspired by the Islamic State had been foreign fighting. A third of those accused were allegedly discussing or plotting an attack in the United States; the rest were allegedly trying to travel abroad to fight for the Islamic State, or trying to help others travel. The refugees keep coming. Forced from their homes by war and economic deprivation, tens of thousands of migrants made the perilous journey to Europe last month. These asylum seekers, the latest surge in a great tide of human movement, have braved winter weather, stormy seas and closed borders in their escape from the Middle East, Afghanistan and Africa. On Thursday in London, the European Union and international donors are expected to pledge to increase their aid to Syrians displaced by war. The toll, whether measured in lives or in dollars, is staggering. New York University will host Sarah Tishkoff, a University of Pennsylvania professor, for its annual Darwin Lecture, Inference of Human Evolutionary History in Africa from Genomic Analyses, on Friday, March 4, 4 p.m. at NYUs Center for Genomics and Systems Biology (CGSB) Auditorium (12 Waverly Place, betw. Greene and Mercer Sts.). Tishkoff, who studies genomic and phenotypic variation in ethnically diverse Africans, combines field work, laboratory research, and computational methods to examine how genetic variation can affect a wide range of issues, such as why humans have different susceptibility to disease, how they metabolize drugs, and how they adapt through evolution. The lecture, hosted by NYUs Department of Biology and co-sponsored with the universitys Dean for Science, is free and open to the public. Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. For more information, email biology@nyu.edu or call 212.998.8209. Subways: N/R [8th St.], 6 [Astor Pl.]) EDITORS NOTE: New York Universitys Center for Genomics and Systems Biology The faculty at NYUs Center for Genomics and Systems Biology are integrating vast amounts of genomic data into systems and networks to predictively model the regulatory mechanisms controlling life, at the level of single cells, tissues, and across the six kingdoms of life. These studies, which span the genomes of a range of model organisms from bacteria to animals and plants, have implications for human health and agriculture. Potential applications include the development of new diagnostics for in vitro fertilization, treatment of disease states such as malaria, and alterations of organisms for practical gain, such as biofuels or nitrogen-use efficiency. The research involves the combined skills of genomicists, bioinformaticians, systematists, and evolutionary biologists all working together in signature open plan loft laboratories in a new 70,000-square- foot, state-of-the-art Genome Center Science building located at the heart of NYUs Washington Square campus. In January 2011, director Jennifer Grausman came across a story in The New York Times about Mark Landis, an unusual art forger who donated rather than sold his fakes to institutions across the United States for nearly three decades before being detected. Not much was known about Landis, The Times reported numerous attempts at contact were unsuccessful. The con was instead explored through the experiences of the museum directors, curators and registrars who had received his forgeries. Grausman couldnt shake her interest in the why behind the rouse. What kind of art forger donates his work to museums instead of selling it? This question and a shared background in the arts led Grausman and Sam Cullman, fellow director, producer and cinematographer to create their feature-length documentary, Art and Craft. Cullman and Grausman will present their film at Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art, Auburn University as part of South Arts Southern Circuit Tour of Independent Filmmakers on Thursday at 5 p.m. The film was an official selection at the Tribeca Film Festival at 2014 and winner of the National Board of Review Awards Top 5 Documentaries. After tracking down Landis and several months of communication by phone, the two were invited to meet him in person in May 2011. The first shoot was incredibly fruitful as Cullman explains, Landis was immediately captivating, and we found ourselves taken from the start by his Truman Capote-like delivery and lyrical manner. Remarkably open and talkative, Landis gave us a major interview, and we also filmed him buying art supplies and making his forgeries. Both Cullman and Grausman felt the most important aspect of the film was to be honest and approach the world of Mark Landis with responsibility and respect. Landis has been through a lot of hardship in his life in terms of his familial circumstances and his mental health issues these were essential pieces and they had to be addressed. So we chose to enter his subjective experience as much as possible. Grausman said. The film starts out as a cat-and-mouse art caper, rooted in questions of authorship and authenticity but what emerges is an intimate story of obsession and the universal need for community, appreciation and purpose. Before Art and Craft, Cullman co-directed, shot and produced the Oscar-nominated documentary, If a Tree Falls and was a producer and director of photography on the Sundance Grand Jury prize-winning The House I Live In. Grausman directed and produced the Emmy-nominated documentary, Pressure Cooker. Grausman also co-produced 3 Backyards and produced six short films. Previously she was the manager of exhibition and film funding at The Museum of Modern Art. Museum auditorium seating is limited, so advance ticket reservation is encouraged online at jcsm.auburn.edu or by calling 334-844-1484. Admission is free courtesy of JCSM Business Partners. The Museum Cafe will be open for tapas service from 5 to 8 p.m., and live music begins at 5 p.m. with Cullars Improvisational Rotation. A blog talking about Cuban cigars, culture & lifestyle including food, restaurants, entertainment, apartment or room rentals, Cuban art & music, travel, history and anything & Everything Cuba. What if you could drop into nearly any city you can imagine and be at home there? No, you dont have to be Brad Pitt or Beyonce, with houses around the world. You just have to join a home exchange club. Every time I bring this up, people are curious, but skeptical. You let strangers stay in your house? What if they steal the silver? What if they snoop through your files and steal your identity? Are you crazy? Yes to the crazy part, but realistically, I dont own a thing worth stealing, unless someone wants my couch from the Salvation Army. And I really dont think that family from Italy wants to snoop through my boring papers, but if they do, theyre welcome to them. Just let me tell you this: As a result of home exchanges, I spent 10 days on the Italian Riviera. Yes, me. The eternal cheapskate. We vacationed in a region thats so expensive, I wouldnt even let my daughter feed her pizza crust to the pigeons. No, eat that. Thats the most expensive pizza slice I ever bought, I ordered her. I forbid you to give it to the birds. I dont exactly recall, but that slice of pizza in Portofino cost around $20. Making it feel even sweeter when, later that day, we returned to our cute little apartment in the seaside town of Sestri Levante, where we were staying for free, and made cheap pasta Id bought from the local market. The reason Im bringing this up now is that the biggest home exchange company in the business, HomeExchange.com, is going to have a booth at the L.A. Travel and Adventure Show in Long Beach. If youve been considering joining, this would be a good opportunity, because itll be offering 25 percent off a regular $150 annual membership at the booth, along with the chance to enter a $500 drawing. The site says it has 65,000 members in 150 countries. This travel show isnt amazing, but its OK. This year, its at the Long Beach Convention Center, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb. 27-28. A one-day ticket costs $16, but check around, because Ive seen discounts out there on sites like Goldstar.com and Groupon. If you buy online at the Los Angeles Travel and Adventure Show website, youll pay $12, or $18 for both days, though I cant imagine why you need to spend two days here. The main reason I go to the travel show is for the discounts. Its a little heavy on the package tour exhibitors for my taste, but I have in the past received 50 percent discounts on Amtrak trips in California, and deals to Big Bear, San Luis Obispo and other places I wanted to go, along with lots of cool free maps from all over the world. Also, there are free guest speakers like Rick Steves, Pauline Frommer and the Travel Channels annoying Samantha Brown, who never met a free trip she didnt like. Note that HomeExchange.com may be the biggest online exchange company, but it isnt the only one. You can find exchanges for all kinds of niches, such as teachers or people who keep kosher. I introduced my retired friend Rebecca to home exchanging, and now shes a home exchange maniac. I asked her for some tips recently, and this is what she shared with me. If you dont use Skype or FaceTime, dont be scared off. Telephones, email and even letters can also help. Rebecca and her husband ended up making such good friends with an exchange family in France that they always have a place to visit now in Burgundy. From Rebecca: We like to Skype or FaceTime with our potential exchange partners so we feel as if we have met them. It is good to chat, talk about some ground rules and give each other a virtual tour of our houses. We also email a document that introduces them to our neighbors and fills them in on any quirks of the house. It also gives them a sense of the neighborhood where we grocery shop, where the closest pharmacy and Target are and the name of our doctor, dentist and insurance agent. We also do videos to show them how to run the dishwasher, clothes washer and dryer and thermostat. We have a basket of brochures that we collected from the local motel so they have info on Disney, Knotts, Universal Studios, etc. Thanks, Rebecca! I like the idea of the videos, it hadnt occurred to me. I do have a three-page document that I leave for my home exchange pals, telling them everything I think they need to know about my house and our neighborhood. I do also try to provide some American-style fun a cheap set of Angels tickets was thrilling to one foreign family, and I was able to give another passes to Soak City. When we went up to our home exchange near Paso Robles, the family there left us day passes to the Mid-State Fair that was going on at the time. So, is a home exchange right for you? For the guy who wrote to me asking if he had to let the strangers sleep in his bed, the answer would be a resounding no. If youre so private that it creeps you out, dont do it. Youd worry the whole time. If youre like me, and dont really care, then maybe. And, note that HomeExchange.com now has a super deluxe version, in case you want to swap your gorgeous mansion with others. Learn more about the upcoming travel show and get tickets here: travelshows .com/shows/los-angeles. And note that youll want to snag a free bag from one of the exhibitors, to haul away all the brochures and maps youre collecting. Wear comfy shoes and bring a water bottle. And stay far, far away from the timeshare booths, which have big signs offering free trips. Even I almost got sucked into one. Got a good travel tip for me? Or a suggestion? Email me at mfisher@ocregister.com. I love to hear from readers. Contact the writer: 714-796-7994 or mfisher@ocregister.com MORE FROM CHEAPO TRAVEL Laguna Beach was among the last of Orange Countys 34 cities to place a ban on pot cultivators, delivery services and dispensaries and likely the first to make it ineffective. The City Council approved the ban Tuesday night but added a sunset clause that would void the ban if Gov. Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 21, an urgency ordinance that removes the March 1 deadline on the states new medical marijuana law. On Wednesday, Brown signed the bill. The deadline called a typo by many advocates prompted most Orange County cities to jump on the bandwagon and pass emergency bans to keep local control of marijuana on the books. We wanted to make sure the governor signs the extension, Mayor Steve Dicterow said Wednesday. We wanted local control. We dont want Sacramento controlling what we do here. On Tuesday night, the City Council seemed prepared to approve the second reading of the ordinance and pass the ban with little discussion. But more than a dozen medical marijuana proponents made emotional pleas to the council. Some said they suffered from chronic or terminal illnesses and found that medical marijuana helped alleviate their symptoms. Resident Michael Beanan said beyond the many who have chronic and debilitating illnesses, there is a huge group of veterans suffering from PTSD who can benefit from medical marijuana. Since the passing of the Compassionate Care Act, the city has delayed development of sensible and safe access for veterans with PTSD and severe physical disabilities choosing medical cannabis over more dangerous pharmaceuticals prescribed by the Veterans Administration doctors, said Beanan, who served as a Navy Seal during the Vietnam War. Councilman Bob Whalen initially suggested holding off a vote until later this month to see if Brown would sign the bill in the meantime. In the end, the council followed the lead of Alameda County, the first local government in the state to add the sunset clause to a marijuana ban vote. With that, Laguna is likely the only Orange County city to immediately make its ban ineffective, said City Attorney Phil Kohn. Dicterow said Wednesday that immediately upon the governors ban, the city will look at commercial transportation of medical marijuana and how to balance that need with public safety. The City Council asked Police Chief Laura Farinella to come back with a set of local regulations that would govern how delivery service can be allowed. One of those options included making sure the service was not-for-profit. Contact the writer: 714-796-2254 or eritchie@ocregister.com or Twitter:@lagunaini A March 1 deadline that mistakenly appeared in the states new medical marijuana law prompting almost every local city and dozens more throughout California to hurriedly pass sweeping bans no longer applies. Gov. Jerry Brown today signed into law Assembly Bill 21, an urgency measure that immediately removes the approaching deadline. Its the first of many clean-up bills expected to come in the wake of the complex Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act, which Brown signed Oct. 9. That act creates a licensing program and rules for related businesses, which have gone largely unregulated since Californians voted to legalize medical marijuana 20 years ago. An earlier version of the act stated that if a city or county did not have ordinances in place by March 1 to either regulate or prohibit cultivation, the state would have sole authority to hand out licenses as that program rolls out in 2018. Worried about losing local control and without time to get input on crafting new regulations, 29 of Orange Countys 34 cities have approved new or stricter bans on marijuana-related businesses in the past three months. And the other five said they already had bans that covered dispensaries, cultivation and delivery. Unfortunately cities were advised to act as fast as possible to ban activities of this industry because it was the easiest thing to do, said Assemblyman Jim Wood, D-Healdsburg, who authored AB 21. Even Santa Ana, which is the only local city that allows dispensaries, voted Jan. 19 to ban all cultivation and delivery. And Laguna Woods, which allows patients and caregivers to grow small amounts of medical marijuana as permitted under state law, strengthened its ban Jan. 20 on commercial cultivation. I hope they will work as vigorously to stop and undo placeholder bans as they did to roll them out, Wood said. Some marijuana advocates have placed part of the blame for the rash of restrictions on the League of California Cities, which recommended outright bans over moratoriums or hastily crafted regulations. Our issue was preservation of local control, said Tim Cromartie, a lobbyist for the League. We advised our members on the most expedient, efficient way to preserve local control under pressure of the March 1 deadline. Theres no word on any local cities so far revisiting their bans in the wake of the deadline dissolving. But both Chico and Yreka, in North California, set aside votes this week on potential bans due to AB 21, according to local media reports. And Cromartie said Eureka and Grass Valley have made it clear that they intend to replace temporary cultivation bans with new regulations. Thats good news to marijuana business owners like Aaron Herzberg of Costa Mesa-based CalCann Holdings, whos been looking forward to a new era under the act, only to watch in frustration as the deadline error hampered that progress. Now that cities are no longer under the gun, I am hopeful that cities will adopt a more thoughtful approach, Herzberg said. Contact the writer: 714-796-7963 or bstaggs@ocregister.com The federal government this week tentatively approved a $100 million loan guarantee for an Irvine-based company to commercialize motor oil made from soybeans. The Department of Agriculture would guarantee 80 percent of the financing of a commercial-scale refinery for Biosynthetic Technologies, which also plans to seek up to $90 million in outside equity funding. Final approval of the loan guarantee depends on the agreement among the company, its bank and the government. Since 2014, the company has operated a Baton Rouge demonstration plant that converts soybean oil to a base fluid for motor oil. The commercial-scale refinery also would be located in the Gulf Coast region. In a 150,000-mile taxicab field trial in Las Vegas, the oil created less pollution than traditional fossil-fuel based compounds, according to Nate McOmber, Biosynthetics senior vice president for strategy and finance. Congress established the Biorefinery Assistance Program in 2008 to spur development of so-called advanced biofuels, using feed stocks such as cellulose, lignin, food waste and landfill gas. The advanced biofuels program is separate from the nations large corn-based ethanol program, which was funded under earlier legislation and is often criticized as a wasteful and environmentally questionable farm subsidy. However, advanced biofuels, touted for a decade as a promising substitute for petroleum, have struggled to gain a foothold in the market. Membership in the Advanced Biofuels Association, which represents companies making non-corn biofuels, has fallen by one-third in recent years, as firms go bankrupt or shift to other products, according to The Wall Street Journal. Some companies, such as San Francisco-based Solazyme, have switched to making plant-based oils for cosmetics. And the recent drop in oil prices would appear to make biofuel even less competitive. However, the 2014 Farm Bill extended the 2008 biorefinery assistance program to include renewable chemicals and bio-based product manufacturing. The USDA biofuel loan guarantee program historically supported only biofuels projects, McOmber said. Our project is the first and so far only renewable chemicals project to hit this milestone for a federal loan guarantee. The programs expansion speaks to the more compelling economics of specialty chemicals over biofuels. Biosynthetic Technologies converts plant-derived fatty acids into a new class of high performance synthetic oils that can replace the petroleum-based fluids common in motor oil, industrial lubricants, personal care, and other chemical applications, according to the companys website. Field trials show the oil, marketed under the trade name LubriGreen, combats soot buildup in engines, which helps keep fuel consumption low. The privately held company, founded in 2004, is funded in part by several global corporations, including BP, Monsanto and Evonik Industries. USDA is proud to support innovative biobased projects such as this one, Undersecretary Lisa Mensah said in a statement. The federal government is committed to assisting U.S. companies to better compete in a rapidly growing, global, renewable chemicals market. Contact the writer: mroosevelt@ocregister.com; on Twitter @MargotRoosevelt CAIRO The body of a missing Italian student was found with signs of torture, including multiple stab wounds and cigarette burns, by the side of a highway on the outskirts of the Egyptian capital, an investigating prosecutor told The Associated Press on Thursday. Giulio Regeni, a 28-year-old graduate student conducting research in Egypt, went missing in Cairo on Jan. 25, the fifth anniversary of the uprising that toppled longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak. At the time, police were on high alert against any demonstrations marking the anniversary and in previous days had conducted sweeps in downtown Cairo, detaining some Egyptian activists, deporting foreigners whose visas had expired and searching apartments. The cause of Regenis death was not immediately known. His disappearance and death came at a time when authorities and media close to the security services have often depicted foreigners as plotting against Egypt. At the same time, human rights groups have accused police of being behind the disappearances of Egyptian activists and suspected Islamists, a claim police have denied. Before Jan. 25, security officials said they had been gathering intelligence for months on young pro-democracy activists and foreigners. Egypt is also battling an insurgency by militants who have sworn allegiance to the Islamic State group. The militants are mainly active in the Sinai Peninsula but have carried out attacks in Cairo and other parts of the country, including kidnapping and beheading a Croatian oil worker last year and setting off a bomb outside the Italian Consulate in Cairo. Authorities often justify their crackdowns by pointing to the fight against militants, who have killed hundreds of policemen and soldiers the past two years. Italys Foreign Ministry called in the Egyptian ambassador over Regenis death, seeking maximum cooperation in the investigation. It said Italy renewed a request for Italian experts to be included in the probe and for the body to be returned to Italy as soon as possible. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said it was cooperating with Rome. News of Regenis death also prompted Italys economic development minister, Federica Guidi, to cut short a visit to Cairo and return home. Guidi had been heading a delegation of 60 business people in Cairo, aimed at finding new areas of economic commerce and to help more Italian companies set up business in Egypt. Most of the delegation returned as well. An Italian newspaper accused Egyptian security forces of being behind the killing. The strong suspicion is that Giulio Reggeni, the 28-year-old student who loved Egypt, was killed by Egypt by the system, by the security apparatus of an uncertain Egypt of today, read a page-one commentary from Il Sole 24 Ore, a business daily. Regenis body was found Wednesday at 11:00 a.m. along the Cairo-Alexandria Road in the 6th of October suburb in western Cairo in an empty lot near an auditing company and was positively identified by his Egyptian roommate, said the prosecutor, Ahmed Nagi, who leads the investigation team on the case. Nagi said the cause of death was still under investigation but said all of his body, including his face had bruises, cuts from stabbings and burns from cigarettes. He said it appeared to have been a slow death. Another person with knowledge of the case told the AP that the body was partially burned and also said his body was found on the same highway. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to media. An employee at Cairos central morgue confirmed that Regenis body was brought there. The deputy head of criminal investigations in Cairos twin province of Giza, Alaa Azmi, said initial investigations showed Regeni was killed in a road accident. He said the body had cuts and bruises and the preliminary forensic report didnt mention burns. We have to wait for the full report by forensic experts. But what we know is that it is an accident, Azmi said. After Regeni disappeared, his colleagues and friends launched an online campaign searching for him. His friends said online that he was heading to meet a friend near Tahrir Square, the birthplace of the 2011 uprising. They refused to speak to AP on Thursday. The University of Cambridge lists Regeni as a student of its Department of Politics and International Studies. Friends said Regeni was doing research on workers and labor rights, a sensitive topic in Egypt. Disgruntled workers were among the forces in the 2001 anti-Mubarak uprising, and authorities still wory over worker discontent. Ennio Scridel, the mayor of Regenis hometown of Fiumicello in northeastern Italy, said the town was destroyed by the news of his death. The town of 5,000 declared Sunday a day of mourning. If you go into a bar, you see dark faces, silences, looks that let escape all the sadness of a small community like ours, Scridel told Sky Tg24. He described Regeni as an extraordinary person, who comes from a good family. Egypt has seen continual upheaval since Mubaraks ouster in 2011. President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi was elected in 2014. The previous year, as military chief, he led the ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi following massive protests against Morsi and the political domination by his Muslim Brotherhood. Since Morsis ouster, security forces have led a fierce crackdown on Islamists, killing hundreds and jailing thousands. Under el-Sissi, they have also clamped down on other dissent, imprisoning liberal, pro-democracy activists. Egyptian authorities are deeply sensitive to media coverage of attacks on foreigners, for fear of affecting the vital sector of tourism, one of the major sources of foreign currency, struggling since 2011. After the Oct. 31 crash of a Russian passenger jet leaving the beach resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. Russia, the United States and Britain said the plane was downed by a militant bomb, but Egypt has said so far there is no sign of that and that the investigation is still ongoing. In September, eight Mexican tourists and four Egyptian guides were killed when security forces in a helicopter opened fire on their desert safari. The results of investigations into the attack have yet to be released. As in other cases, authorities clamped a media gag order to prevent reporting on the investigation. Media and officials often warn that foreigners are seeking to stir up unrest or fund activists causing turmoil. It has become increasingly difficult and dangerous to conduct research, said Amy Austin Holmes, head of the Sociology unit at the American University in Cairo. She said she knew researchers who had been barred from entering Egypt or arrested. So, above and beyond the tragic death of this bright young person who was obviously very committed and passionate about his fieldwork in Egypt, I am worried about the chilling effect this may have on others who wish to conduct research here, she said. Maram Mazen contributed to this report from Cairo. Colleen Barry contributed to this report from Rome, Italy. Hamza Hendawi contributed to this report from Baghdad, Iraq. MANCHESTER, N.H. In the crowded New Hampshire primary, no candidate may shape the direction of the Republican presidential campaign more than the man who finished sixth in Iowa: Jeb Bush. With Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, Donald Trump and Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida each finishing more than 20 percentage points higher than Bush in the Iowa caucuses Monday, the former Florida governor is facing growing pressure to either demonstrate his appeal to voters or leave the race. Specifically, many Republicans including some of his supporters and donors said Tuesday that Bush must finish ahead of Rubio in the primary here on Feb. 9 to justify continuing his campaign into South Carolina. If Rubio beats him badly in New Hampshire, Jeb is toast, said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a Bush backer who spent most of Tuesday traveling the state with him. Graham added that Bush must either tie Rubio or beat him in this state. The burden falls so heavily on Bush because of Republican anxieties about the top two finishers in Iowa, Cruz and Trump: Many party leaders fear that the nomination of Trump or Cruz would lead to an electoral rout this fall. Were Bush to continue his campaign into South Carolina, he could create a split among pragmatic-minded voters, denying Rubio the chance to consolidate this bloc of Republicans and strengthening the hands of Cruz and Trump. Many Republicans believe that if Rubio, who won an unexpected 23 percent in Iowa and closely trailed Trump, again delivers a strong performance in New Hampshire, he will have earned the right to carry the banner for the party establishment. Asked Tuesday evening by reporters how well he felt he needed to do in New Hampshire to justify continuing his campaign, Bush struck a defiant note. Oh, Im continuing on, he said. Im continuing on, yeah. Two other candidates, Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey and Gov. John R. Kasich of Ohio, are appealing to the same voters and also need a strong showing in New Hampshire. But Bush is far better financed and organized and can most likely stay in the race longer than they can otherwise. While Bush had $7.6 million in the bank and the super PAC supporting him had an additional $58.6 million as of Jan. 1, Kasich had just $2.5 million and Christie a paltry $1.1 million. And neither Christie nor Kasich, both of whom have spent the vast majority of their time in New Hampshire, has much in the way of organization in South Carolina. Bush, by contrast, has an active network of supporters there and has tapped into Grahams organization. And perhaps most important, the super PAC supporting Bush has shown a willingness, to put it mildly, to spend millions of dollars against his rivals, particularly Rubio, whom it has spent more than $20 million attacking. In reality, Bushs top advisers know Rubios finish in Iowa makes it harder for Bush to claim he is the logical alternative to Trump and Cruz. Yet he seems torn between focusing his fire on Rubio or Trump. On Tuesday, his campaign began airing an unusually long 2-minute ad in New Hampshire attacking Trump for insulting veterans, women and the disabled. And at a stop in Henniker, New Hampshire, Bush aimed some of his most pointed language yet at Trump, who finished second in Iowa, calling him a loser with deep insecurities. Yet on the same day Bush went so aggressively after Trump, he also sought to raise doubts about Rubio, incorporating Cruz for purposes of comparison. If you look at their records, theyre gifted in how they speak, but what about their life experience? Bush asked the crowd at Franklin Pierce University in Rindge, New Hampshire, likening the two senators to President Barack Obama, who was elected president after less than four years in the Senate. Is there something in their past that would suggest they have the capability of making a tough decision? Yet there are signs Bush may still have some work to do to finish in the top tier here. Speaking to a crowd at the Hanover Inn near the Vermont border during his final stop of the day, Bush finished a fiery riff about protecting the country as commander in chief I wont be out here blowharding, talking a big game without backing it up, he said and was met with total silence. Please clap, he said, sounding defeated. The crowd laughed and then, finally, clapped. The Supreme Court has a simple and appropriate way to deal with the challenge to President Obamas executive action on immigration: The case should be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. Last month, the court granted review of a lawsuit brought by Texas and 25 other states that want to block Obamas policy of Deferred Action for Parents of Americans, often called DAPA. But these states cannot show that they have suffered a sufficient injury to allow them to sue in federal court. In November 2014, President Obama announced that the federal government will not seek to deport individuals with children who are United States citizens or lawful permanent residents, who have been in the country since at least January 2010 and who do not have criminal records. This will avoid breaking up families and will allow about 4 million people to live without fear of deportation for the next three years. There are about 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States. The federal government deports only about 400,000 individuals a year. President Obama said that the goal is to deport those who are most likely to pose a danger. Deporting parents leaves children in foster homes, on the streets or worse. Texas and 25 other states brought a suit to enjoin DAPA. A conservative federal judge ruled in their favor and issued a preliminary injunction. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in a 2-1 decision split along ideological lines (the two Republican appointees in the majority and the Democratic appointee dissenting) upheld the preliminary injunction. The Supreme Court granted review on a number of questions, but the first should decide the case: Do Texas and the other states have standing to bring this suit? Article III of the Constitution limits federal courts to deciding cases and controversies. For almost a century, the Supreme Court has interpreted these words to mean that a federal court may hear a case only if the plaintiff has standing to sue. Standing is the determination of whether a specific person is the proper party to bring a matter to the court for adjudication. As the Supreme Court defines it, [i]n essence the question of standing is whether the litigant is entitled to have the court decide the merits of the dispute or of particular issues. In other words, does the litigant have a sufficient interest in the outcome to have a reason to bring the suit? The Supreme Court repeatedly has said that standing is crucial in properly limiting the power of the federal courts. In many instances, the court has dismissed lawsuits claiming that the government is acting unconstitutionally for lack of standing. Interestingly, it often has been the most conservative justices who have been the strictest in applying the standing requirements. For example, it was the conservative justices in 5-4 rulings who held that no one has standing to challenge a federal law allowing the National Security Agency to engage in warrantless electronic surveillance and that no one has standing to challenge an Arizona law giving tax credits to those who gave money to religious schools. The Supreme Court has said that in order for anyone to have standing to sue, the plaintiff must show that it has been injured and that a favorable court decision will remedy the harm suffered. But Obamas DAPA policy causes no harm to Texas or other states. The lower federal courts found that Texas was injured because it would give drivers licenses to those allowed to avoid deportation, and that imposed administrative costs on the state. But nothing in the Obama executive action requires that a state provide drivers licenses that is entirely the choice of Texas, which it could change at any time. Moreover, it is entirely speculative that invalidating the Obama executive action will save the state governments any money. Only 400,000 individuals a year are deported, and invalidating the Obama policy will not change that. There is no reason to believe that striking down DAPA will reduce costs to the states or cause more people to be deported. For decades, conservatives have urged judicial restraint and stressed the limited role of the federal courts. It is the conservative justices who repeatedly have dismissed cases brought by civil rights plaintiffs for lack of standing. If they are consistent and true to what they have professed, it is clear that the Supreme Court should hold that the federal courts lack jurisdiction to hear the challenge to Obamas immigration action. The challenge by Texas and the other states should be dismissed, and DAPA then immediately will go into effect. Erwin Chemerinsky is dean of the UC Irvine School of Law. SANTA ANA A former Irvine attorney who tried to frame a school volunteer by planting drugs in her car returned to court Wednesday, as he and his ex-wife face a lawsuit accusing them of causing emotional distress. Kelli Peters, a former PTA president, was the first to testify in her civil trial against Kent and Jill Easter, both of whom were convicted of a felony count for false imprisonment. The question for jurors now is whether the Easters should pay Peters for her and her familys emotional turmoil. Peters attorney, Rob Marcereau, described the Easters as people of privilege and entitlement, noting that both went to prestigious law schools and that Kent Easter worked at one of the countys largest law firms. Kent Easter and his wife, Jill Easter, plotted and schemed to destroy the life of Kelli Peters for a full year, and in many ways they succeeded in doing that, Marcereau told the jury. When they felt they were insulted by Kelli Peters, a lowly school volunteer, they were going to make her pay. Kent Easter, representing himself in the civil trial, contended that Peters is exaggerating and embellishing the amount of harassment she suffered to gain a financial reward. The fact that something really bad was done to a person does not give them a winning Powerball number, Kent Easter told the jury. Peters had her first run-in with Jill Easter on Feb. 16, 2010, when Easter was upset that her son wasnt in front of Plaza Vista School in Irvine when she came to pick him up. Peters testified that she told Jill Easter that her son may have been slow to line up, a comment Easter apparently mistook as an insult against her sons intelligence. Exactly a year after the initial confrontation, officers were called to the school when Kent Easter called police, saying Peters had been driving erratically in the school parking lot. Peters described the emotions she went through as the officer found bags of marijuana, Vicodin and Percocet in her car, planted by the Easters, prosecutors would say. I was crying and begging for him to not put the drugs on the car, because people would see it, Peters said, recalling that her daughter was watching. Everybody was looking at me and I felt very humiliated. As word of the drug search spread, Peters said her daughter lost friends and was afraid to sleep on her own. The stress caused Peters to lose hair, she testified, and resulted in her husband suffering panic attacks. Jill Easter, who is also representing herself against the civil case, did not show up for Wednesdays opening statements or testimony. She recently changed her name to Ava Everheart, court records show. Kent Easters law license has been suspended; Jill Easter was disbarred. Both completed their sentences. The trial is expected to continue for the rest of the week. Peters attorney has not yet outlined a specific monetary amount he is seeking for his client and her family. Contact the writer: semery@ocregister.com CAMP HILL Rite Aid shareholders have overwhelmingly approved the Cumberland County-based companys $9.41-billion sale to Walgreens Boots Alliance, the parent company of the nations largest drugstore chain. About 97 percent of the votes cast at a special meeting of stockholders Thursday morning voted in favor of the agreement, according to a Rite Aid news release. Rite Aid will become a wholly owned direct subsidiary of Walgreens Boots Alliance. Walgreens says it will pay $9 per share for Rite Aid. The companies expect to complete the sale in the second half of 2016, pending regulatory approval. Rite Aid is the nations third-largest drugstore chain. It has nearly 4,600 stores in 31 states and the District of Columbia. Walgreens, based in Deerfield, Illinois, operates 8,240 drugstores in all 50 states. Mattel Inc. and Hasbro Inc. have held talks about merging two of the worlds biggest toy companies, according to people familiar with the matter, in a deal that would bring together the manufacturer of Hot Wheels with the maker of My Little Pony. That means Barbie and G.I. Joe may finally be playing house together. Hasbro approached Mattel about a potential transaction late last year, and the companies have held on-and-off-again talks about a deal, the people said, asking not to be identified as the situation isnt public. Details of how a transaction might be structured couldnt immediately be learned. The talks may not lead to a deal, the people said. Representatives for Hasbro and Mattel declined to comment. Mattel shares rose 1.7 percent to $32.29 at 4:26 p.m. in New York, valuing the company at about $11 billion and extending a streak that has seen the stock gain 19 percent this year. Hasbro rose 1.3 percent to $75.96 after climbing as high as $78.45, valuing the company at about $9.5 billion. Mattel Chief Executive Officer Chris Sinclair is leading a charge to revive the El Segundo-based companys Barbie business, after losing market share in recent years to Europes biggest toymaker, Lego A/S, as well as Hasbros reinvigorated My Little Pony brand. Shares surged the most in almost seven years Tuesday after holiday results topped analysts estimates, even as gross sales fell. Hasbro is scheduled to report full-year earnings on Feb. 8, with revenue forecast to increase to about $4.4 billion from $4.3 billion in 2014, according to the average estimate of 12 analysts, compiled by Bloomberg. The Pawtucket, Rhode Island- based company holds the toy license for Star Wars: The Force Awakens a hit in theaters over the holiday season and said in October that sales were off to a strong start. Revenue at Mattel is set to take another hit this year as the licensing rights to Disneys lucrative Frozen and Princess brands shift to Hasbro. Last week, the company unveiled Barbie dolls with a wider array of options, including shorter and curvier versions, in a bid to boost the brands appeal. This is not the first time a combination has been talked about. Two decades ago almost to the day Mattel withdrew a $5.2 billion offer for Hasbro, citing an intolerable climate created by its competitors use of the media and politicians to fight the proposed takeover. Back then, Hasbro resisted the deal in what Mattel described as a scorched earth campaign to stop it. Should a deal succeed this time around, it would bring together Mattels strength in the girls category and Hasbros dominance over the boys toy aisle, while making the combined company a stronger competitor to Denmarks Lego, which has been growing faster than either of its U.S. rivals. A merger might not face disqualifying antitrust hurdles because the U.S. toy industry is very fragmented, according to Jaime Katz, an analyst at Morningstar Inc. If combined, the companies would have probably about one-quarter of the market in the U.S., she said. Other experts said the antitrust review would probably hinge on how broadly officials define the market. A review that looks more narrowly at the companies overlaps in specific toy categories could probably win approval contingent on the sale of some product lines, said Jonathan Kanter, an antitrust lawyer at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP in Washington. The merger would have a tougher time winning approval if enforcers take a broader view and see the combination as uniting two of the countrys biggest toymakers, leaving just Lego to keep prices in check, Kanter said. Another hurdle to consider would be merging cultures and headquarters on opposite U.S. coasts, Katz said. JERUSALEM Three Palestinians armed with automatic weapons, explosive devices and knives killed an Israeli security officer and seriously wounded another in Jerusalem on Wednesday before police shot and killed the attackers. It was one the most brazen attacks in nearly five months of near-daily Palestinian assaults, mostly stabbings, on Israeli police, soldiers and civilians. Israel has struggled to contain the violence, despite sending troops to secure cities, expanding police powers and toughening punishments for attackers. Wednesdays attack took place after Israeli paramilitary border police officers on a security patrol noticed three people who aroused their suspicion near the Old Citys Damascus Gate, a central shopping area for Palestinians as well as a main tourist draw, police spokeswoman Luba Samri said. The officers stopped them, and as they began checking one of their ID cards, the other two drew guns and knives and attacked two female officers. One of the officers, identified as 19-year-old Hadar Cohen, later died, police said. Police officers opened fire and killed the three Palestinians. They then defused the explosive devices they were carrying. The weapons indicate that a combined attack was prevented by officers who protected city residents with their own bodies, Samri said in a statement. Police identified the Palestinians as two 20-year-olds and one 21-year-old from the area of Jenin, in the northern West Bank. The Jenin Palestinian liaison office, which deals with Israel on security issues, gave their names as Ahmad Zakarneh, Ahmad Abu Alrub and Mohammed Kmail. Associated Press video from the scene showed throngs of police officers weaving through a crowd of Palestinians and a row of police cars with sirens blaring. A police spokesman sent reporters a photo of a group of officers standing around a pool of blood near the gate. Since mid-September, 27 Israelis have been killed in Palestinian attacks. At least 154 Palestinians have died from Israeli fire, including 109 Israel said were attackers. The rest have been killed in clashes with Israeli troops. Israel says the violence has been fueled by a Palestinian campaign of lies and incitement. The Palestinians say it is rooted in frustrations stemming from nearly 50 years of Israeli occupation. It was not immediately clear if Wednesdays attack was carried out by a militant group. Hamas, the Islamic militant group that rules the Gaza Strip, praised the attack as heroic, lauding the assailants ability to reach Jerusalem despite a maze of Israeli checkpoints in the West Bank. The group stopped short of claiming responsibility. Earlier, Hamas said two of its men were killed after a tunnel they were digging from Gaza into Israel collapsed. Hamas identified the men, aged 35 and 23, as members of its militant wing. The incident marks the second deadly tunnel accident in a week, after seven Hamas fighters died when heavy rainfall trapped them inside a tunnel. Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who last week said the tunnels were meant to attack Israel, on Wednesday softened his rhetoric, telling The Associated Press that the tunnels were defensive tunnels to prevent any aggression on the Palestinian people. Israeli troops entered Gaza during the 2014 war and destroyed dozens of sophisticated tunnels Hamas built to infiltrate Israel and carry out attacks. Hamas has since boasted that it is rebuilding the network, and Israelis living near Gaza have reported hearing tunneling sounds under their homes recently. An Associated Press video shot Wednesday shows four machines appearing to drill on the Israeli side of the border. The Israeli military declined to comment on the video. More than 2,200 Palestinians, including 1,462 civilians, were killed in the 2014 Gaza war. In Israel, 66 soldiers and seven civilians were killed. On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel would retaliate with greater force than in 2014 if cross-border tunnels are used to attack Israelis. Irene Lange didnt give up in the 1960s when she was rejected for university teaching jobs because she was a woman. She persevered, eventually landing a job at what is now Cal State Fullerton. Fifty years later, shes being recognized for five decades of service at the university. In October, the U.S. Commerce Department bestowed the International Trade Administrations Certificate of Appreciation on Lange for her 50 years of business education. She received the award in Costa Mesa at the Discover Global Markets: Pacific Rim Consumers conference, which was attended by more than 450 people and was part of a conference series for U.S. exporters seeking to expand into global markets. Lange is a Marketing Department professor and the department chairwoman at CSUFs Mihaylo College of Business and Economics. The recognition is well-deserved, say those shes taught and motivated. When I started at CSUF, I was interested in digital marketing, so she encouraged me to conduct research in the area, said Neil Granitz, market research and digital marketing professor at CSUF for 18 years. The award captures the human spirit in todays digital global economy, and her dedication provides inspiration to those both in the trade and education ecosystems, said Richard Swanson Jr., an alum of the international business program and adjunct professor at CSUF. For Lange, the recognition is another feather in her cap. She is the recipient of the 1995 marketing educator of the year award and the 2010 lifetime contribution award from the Marketing Educators Association. For the Lithuania native who earned bachelors, masters and doctoral degrees in marketing and economics from the University of Illinois, the path to success was not easy. Lange decided to foray into academia when very few women were teaching marketing and were considered to be more suitable as sales clerks to pitch products in stores. A chair in one school told me they dont hire women, and those days they could say that openly, she said. More than 90 percent of schools responded that way. Despite several rejections, she persevered and met Donald S. Tull, chair of marketing at what was then California State College at Fullerton, at an American Marketing Association conference. Her gender didnt stop Tull from recruiting her. She began her career at Cal State Fullerton in 1965. She became passionate about teaching, leveraging analytical and critical thinking skills under the mentorship of Tull. Fifty years later, shes still enthusiastic about teaching. It is a continual learning process as the teaching dynamics keep changing all the time, she said. I enjoy dealing with young crowds as each generation has been different with even the questions they ask. Thankful for her colleagues support to continue as department chair since 1977, she motivates them to explore their interests. With a vision to advance marketing education, the department focuses on the curriculum structure, teaching methods and administration. The field of marketing has evolved in the last 50 years but the essence of marketing giving value to customers remains unchanged, she said. The latest thing in marketing is that the Internet and social media enable marketing organizations to develop conversation and social relationships with consumers in real time. To keep current, Lange emphasizes specialized subjects like marketing analytics, which uses data analysis, and visual marketing, which uses computer-enabled design to differentiate ones products from others. The basic idea is to better understand the customers, give them what they need and offer incentives to purchase the products, said Granitz. Keen on students success, the department integrates practical learning through internships and networking opportunities with local companies. Lange attends business conferences regularly and trains students about the changes and politics of various business organizations. And she promotes professional etiquette to boost students job skills and prospects. Recognizing the importance of excellent communication skills for marketing and business students, she encourages them to take business communication classes. She took personal interest my time at CSUF, recommending me to be active in the marketing club, where I served two terms as president, said Ken Kantola, a retired vice president of marketing at Pacific Living Systems and a former student of Lange. Kantola said he owes a successful career in marketing to her simple, straightforward lectures and admires her dedication to the teaching field. Lange also manages European business travel seminars for students and directs CSUFs International Business Degree program. When the third course of spicy meatballs prepared by chef Neal Fraser was sent out to the communal dining room, food blogger Danielle Salmon knew something was off. She and 40 other food influencers from Southern California were promised a free five-course meal prepared by the well-regarded Los Angeles chef and former Top Chef Masters contestant. As they arrived Wednesday night at the historic Carondelet House in downtown Los Angeles, the culinary writers and photographers were told the evening would end with a slight twist. Fraser told them he would be cooking with experimental and fresh ingredients. Nothing sneaky, said the chef-owner of Redbird, a seasonally influenced Los Angeles restaurant focusing on modern American cuisine. Unbeknownst to the foodie fanatics gathered in the 1928 Italian villa, Fraser would be serving them an upscale meal made with McDonalds ingredients. Using foods that make up hero McDonalds products such as Quarter Pounders and Egg McMuffins, Frasers tasting menu included a chilled avocado soup, a buttermilk dressed romaine salad with bacon bits and bacon-wrapped chicken. Midway through the meal, food blogger Salmon said her table began to wonder what was going on. It seemed a little off from what he normally serves, said Salmon, Chief Eating Officer for a restaurant discovery blog called Follow My Gut. We were thinking it was a weird secret ingredient. Throughout the room, others began to nitpick and speculate. Some asked: Is it tofu? Is it synthetic food? Is he testing new dishes for a new restaurant? Im trying to think what the heck is this experiment, one male diner said. Behind the scenes, a handful of McDonalds operators could hear the chatter as they watched the dining event from a live feed in another room. With blessings from McDonalds headquarters in Oak Brook, Ill., marketing officials for 600 local Southern California restaurant operators thought the secret dinner would shed new light on McDonalds food. Hidden cameras and microphones captured the foodies eating with gold flatware in an elegant farm table setting. A video of the event will be posted online later this month. The goal: change the way people think about McDonalds food. Unfortunately the perception is that it (our food) comes through the back door processed, said Clay Paschen III, president of the McDonalds Operators Association of Southern California. But we cook. We have a kitchen. Starbucks doesnt. As the publicity stunt formulated, Fraser was approached to pull it off. At first, he declined. How do you change peoples perception? he said before the five course dinner is served. But, after taking a close look at the McDonalds ingredients, he said he realized much of it was no different than what he kept in his own kitchen at Redbird. With the exception of a dollop of sour cream used in the chilled avocado soup, every dish was created with ingredients used for a bevy of McDonalds menu items: salads, McWraps, grilled chicken sandwiches, Egg McMuffins, Quarter Pounders and french fries. I made a concentrated effort to stay true to the challenge, said Fraser, who was paid an undisclosed fee for his services. Before the meal began, he said he was apprehensive, excited and nervous. I just hope no one hits me, said Fraser, who recently appeared as a guest chef on Bravos Top Chef. Halfway through the meal, he left the kitchen to update the group of McDonalds officials watching the dining event on a television monitor. The officials, along with one reporter, were also eating Frasers courses. He said nearly every plate came back clean to the kitchen. The only dish that many diners didnt finish was the first course a peppery avocado soup made with McDonalds guacamole. The second course, a salad topped with bacon bits and buttermilk dressing, was a surprising crowd pleaser. Salmon and her guest, T.J. Valentino, said it was their favorite dish. During the evening, and before the reveal, the diners were encouraged to upload photos to their various social media accounts using the hashtag #aTasteofSoCal. Los Angeles blogger Vanessa Diaz also loved the buttermilk slathered greens. This salad is #bacon-tastic! Its probably the best #salad Ive ever had, she wrote on her BriteAndBubbly Instagram account. Even Fraser, who saw her post while cooking in the kitchen, had to poke fun of her enthusiasm. It might have been the first salad shes ever had, he said. As the diners finished Frasers coffee custard dessert, he stepped back into the main dining room to announce the big reveal. But someone had already guessed it by shouting, Golden Arches. The reaction was mixed. Some jaws dropped. Some laughed. A few looked disturbed. After the reveal, the salad-loving Diaz posted: Holy What the What!!! #shocked. McDonalds operator Scott Frisbie of Orange County, among the restaurant owners watching the live feed, approached the group with trepidation at the end of the night. I didnt know what reaction Id get, he said. But he said he got an enthusiastic and warm response. Many asked a lot of questions about upscale menu changes in Southern California, including the new line of Taste Crafted sandwiches made with premium ingredients such as guacamole, blue cheese spread, spicy buffalo sauce and applewood smoked bacon. Later on, he and other McDonalds operators mingled with curious food writers and photo-centric bloggers like Roshonda Payne. The lifestyle blogger said she had no idea she was eating McDonalds food. Its just goes to show you that McDonalds is (real) food, said Payne, whose lifestyle blog is called the The Savvy Sistah. Chef Eric Crowley, a Los Angeles cooking instructor, said he enjoyed the tasting menu even though it was homogeneous and lacked a lot of bold flavors. When he learned it was McDonalds food, it all made sense, he said. Fraser said he was particularly concerned about serving food to Crowley, who was taking meticulous notes throughout the event. I thought he was going to skewer me, Fraser said. But Crowley said he was not upset by the trickster fast food meal. He said he was excited that McDonalds was trying to improve its image. If I went to McDonalds and got food like this, I would go more often, he said. As for Fraser? When the three-hour event was over, he said he was relieved. Would he do it again? Yes. But first things first. Im going to get a drink, he said. For the record, this story was updated Feb. 9: Representatives for Neal Fraser said the Los Angeles-based chef uses Jidori or Marys Free Range chickens at his restaurants. Because of incorrect information provided to the Register, the supplier was misstated in an earlier version of this story. Contact the writer: nluna@ocregister.com and follow the Fast Food Maven on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. For years, Catholics in Southern California called Erwin Mena padre. They admired the affable, charming man who celebrated Mass, received confessions, organized prayer meetings, and oficiated at least one wedding. He accepted thousands of dollars on behalf of the Catholic Church and church programs religious CDs, pilgrimages, even a trip to see Pope Francis. But Mena was never ordained. He wasnt approved by the Archdiocese. And all that money hed been given in the name of the church was only going to line his pockets, police say. The allegedly phony priest was arrested Tuesday on roughly 30 charges of grand theft, perjury and practicing medicine without a license, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. Asked for comment by reporters, he reportedly responded not at this time. He used us, he stole from us, and thats it, Michelle Rodriguez, one of Menas parishioners at St. Ignatius of Loyola parish in Los Angeles, told the LA Times. Rodriguez was an alleged victim of one of Menas most ambitious money-making schemes in the decade plus that hes been posing as a priest, according to KTTV. He had arrived in St. Ignatius of Loyola parish in January 2015, claiming to be a substitute priest. He quickly won over churchgoers with his smiles and good-natured sermons. He smiled, talked about how good things were. There was never anything negative, said Joaquin Oviedo, a retired high school teacher, told the LA Times. He was not a fire and brimstone kind of preacher. After spending five months traveling around the parish peddling CDs and a book he claimed to have written, Mena allegedly began offering to arrange a trip to see Pope Francis during his visit to Philadelphia in September. He solicited between $500 and $1,000 from at least two dozen people, saying it would go toward airfare and lodging in convents. We were thinking, Oh, well have this great time . . . . Well see the pope and it will be a great experience, Rodriguez told the LA Times. But as the popes visit approached, and few details about the supposed trip emerged, parishioners became suspicious of the friendly new priest. When parish officials asked him for his credentials, he allegedly evaded their questions. In early June, the pastor of St. Ignatius reported Mena to the Los Angeles Police Department, whose detectives met with a lawyer and investigator for the archdiocese. Erwin Mena, it turned out, was one of 95 names on a list kept by the archdiocese of people whod posed as priests in the past. According to the Associated Press, Mena showed up at parishes and prayer groups in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Stockton, Fresno and Orange counties. He always vanished before authorities within the Catholic Church could act. Some of Menas alleged victims have been reimbursed, and those who received the sacraments which include baptism, confession, and marriage, among others from him can receive them again, Los Angeles archdiocese spokesperson Doris Benavides told the AP. But the feelings of betrayal among churchgoers in St. Ignatius parish might be more difficult to shake. We had always been raised not to question authority figures. Hes a priest what he said is holy writ, Oviedo told the LA Times. We never imagined he was a phony. Mophie, a Tustin-based smartphone accessory maker, will be acquired for more than $100 million by ZAGG, another mobile accessory maker. The company, founded in 2006, was quick to the smartphone market when it created the first battery case, the Juice Pack, to be certified by Apple. The companys product line has since expanded to include belt clips, docks and accessories for other smartphones and mobile devices. Mophie has operations in the Netherlands, Hong Kong, China and Michigan. ZAGG, based in Salt Lake City, Utah, creates protective film for devices and other mobile accessories. The merger should create a leader in four accessory categories: battery cases, external batteries, screen protection and tablet keyboards. Mophie just brings us yet another opportunity to be more diverse as a company, ZAGG Chief Executive Randy Hales said Wednesday. Mophies Tustin office will be the second largest location for ZAGG worldwide, Hales said. We dont want to disrupt the value that is there, Hales said. Its really an impressive team. There are no anticipated changes on the horizon, like layoffs, and it is likely the combined company will be hiring at some point, he said. Mophie employs some 250 people worldwide; ZAGG employs about 200, according to the companies. The merger is expected to close quickly, before the end of the first quarter of 2016, according to the companys announcement. ZAGG agreed to pay $100 million plus five times Mophies earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization if it exceeds $100 million. The purchase will be funded with cash and debt. The two companies reported $470 million in revenue in 2015. ZAGG and Mophie represent two companies with strong brands and shared values, Mophies CEO Daniel Huang said in the written announcement. The rationale for the merger is powerful and the combination enhances each companys growth strategy while offering a truly compelling value proposition. Together, we intend to build on our market leadership to deliver great products, advance the brand strength, and increase our global presence in mobile accessories. Huang and Shawn Dougherty, Mophies chief operating officer, will remain in their current roles and report to Hales. Contact the writer: lwilliams@ocregister.com, 714-796-2286 In a basement lab as hot and humid as a summer day in Miami, molecular biologist Anthony James is creating an army of mutant mosquitoes. The 64-year-old UC Irvine researcher is retooling their genes, injecting them with antibodies from mice to strip the insects of their ability to infect humans with malaria. For now, the mosquitoes are caged in paper popcorn tubs. But James is hunting for grants and other ways to finance a $25 million experimental release into the wild, where his mosquitoes could mate with their natural counterparts and spread the genetic modification through future generations. For a remedy to one of the worlds most lethal diseases last year, malaria killed 438,000 people, mostly children in sub-Saharan Africa, according to the World Health Organization its a tough sales pitch because of major ethical concerns. Not even James is convinced he can secure the funding. Biotech mosquitoes, edited with precision and ease due to advances in technology, are the newest weapon in the fight to knock down not only malaria but other devastating diseases, including Zika, a new threat thats spreading explosively across the Americas and possibly causing birth defects in thousands of children. Tailoring the genes of mosquitoes and other animals to our preferences is not new. In labs, farms and markets across the world, there are hornless cattle, feather-less chickens, glow-in-the-dark beagles, fast-growing salmon, micro-pigs and super-muscular mice. More than any other animal, mosquitoes, by far, are the most lethal on the planet, and they have not been ignored by scientists. Humans have been trying to manipulate their environments since day one, James said. We should try to use it to alleviate some of the misery around us. But James mosquitoes have something special, and, some say scary. Its called a gene drive, and it has the potential to override Mendels laws of inheritance by propelling a mutation, in this case malaria resistance, across the next generation of mosquitoes with almost 100 percent success. Hank Greely, director of Stanford Universitys Center for the Law and the Biosciences, described it as a fast, easy, cheap way to reshape life on Earth. A DISEASE OF POVERTY Parasites cause malaria. They invade the human bloodstream, inflicting fever, aches, nausea and vomiting, and in severe cases organ failure, seizures and coma. Worldwide, malaria struck 214 million people last year. Female mosquitoes pick up the parasite by biting an infected person. (Male mosquitoes do not bite humans.) The organism reproduces in the insects gut, then travels to her salivary glands. When she gets hungry, she lands on a human to feed, expelling saliva before puncturing the persons skin with her proboscis, the long serrated mouth part through which she not only draws blood, but injects the parasite. This cycle has played out for thousands of years (symptoms of what would later be named malaria were first documented in a Chinese medical canon in 2,700 B.C.), ravaging city-states in ancient Greece and delaying construction of the Panama Canal. Discoveries in the 20th century led to the development of treatments and tools to eradicate mosquitoes, including DDT, and by 1951, the U.S. had eliminated malaria. But even with all of this artillery, scientists say theres a need for genetically engineered mosquitoes. The nasty disease continues to plague poor countries, mostly in sub-Saharan Africa. Last year, 80 percent of all malaria cases were in 15 countries. Of those, just two the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Nigeria accounted for one-third of malaria deaths. Its a disease of poverty, said George Dimopoulos, a professor at Johns Hopkins Universitys department of molecular microbiology and immunology. Mosquitoes become resistant to pesticides. Some poor countries cant afford the biological and chemical agents, and their residents live in homes without ceilings and screens. Their health care systems are insufficient. International aid, which totaled $2 billion in 2014, according to WHO, isnt always enough. Compliance is a hurdle, Dimopoulos said. Drugs are given out and have to be taken for 10 days to be effective, but it doesnt happen, many times because of lack of education. They will take the drug for three days, will feel better and stop taking it. Thats how you develop resistance to the drug. Bed nets are being distributed for free, and not everyone is using them. FRANKENMOSQUITOES James estimates his mosquitoes could save at least tens of thousands of lives. So far, he has genetically engineered one species of mosquito Anopheles stephensi, which spreads malaria in Indias urban areas with the gene drive to prevent the disease. But he says his work could also serve as a blueprint for other species, including those that spread malaria in Africa. Hes not the only one tinkering with the genes of mosquitoes. Most prominently Oxitec Ltd., a British subsidiary of Maryland-based biotech firm Intrexon Corp., last month announced the expansion of its factory in Piracicaba, Brazil, where it rears mosquitoes with a kill switch. Its friendly Aedes aegypti have been genetically engineered to pass a deadly gene to their offspring. Aedes aegypti carry Zika, dengue and chikungunya. The company said its partnering with the Brazilian city to release the mosquitoes in an area with up to 60,000 residents. In a smaller release last year, Oxitec officials said, their mosquitoes reduced the number of wild larvae by 82 percent. These arent the monster mosquitoes or Frankenmosquitoes that the popular and largely uninformed press has made them out to be, said Shirley Luckhart, a professor in UC Davis department of medical microbiology and immunology. The genetic modification disappears with the mosquitoes that die. This technology will save lives and prevent enormous suffering. James and other scientists interviewed for this article said the public should play a key role in deciding whether to release genetically modified mosquitoes into the wild. In Florida, Oxitec has been criticized for not getting consent from residents. More than 150,000 people have signed an online petition urging officials to stop Oxitecs proposed release of genetically engineered mosquitoes in the Florida Keys. Are there any studies being conducted to see if these mosquitoes will harm the native bat population? Will the more virulent Asian tiger mosquito that also carries dengue fill the void left by reductions in A. aegypti? Will the dengue virus mutate (think antibiotic-resistant MRSA) and become even more dangerous? the petition says. The problem is nobody knows what would happen if an entire species of mosquitoes were annihilated, or what would happen if the entire genome of one species changed. Stanfords Greely said James mosquitoes, look like they should be wonderfully safe, because youre not decreasing the number of mosquitoes that are out there for birds and bats to eat. But until you test it, you never know. Contact the writer: jchandler@ocregister.com and @jennakchandler on Twitter CATONSVILLE, Md. President Barack Obama sought Wednesday to correct what he called a hugely distorted impression of Muslim-Americans as he made his first visit to a U.S. mosque. He said those who demonize all Muslims for the acts of a few are playing into extremists hands. Inserting himself into a debate that has ricocheted in the presidential campaign, Obama told parishioners at a mosque outside Baltimore that hed heard from young Muslims worried theyll be rounded up and kicked out of the country. He said Muslims, too, are concerned about the threat of terrorism but are too often blamed as a group for the violent acts of the very few. Weve seen children bullied, weve seen mosques vandalized, Obama said, warning that such unequal treatment for certain groups in society tears at the nations fabric. Thats not who we are. For Muslim advocates, Obamas visit was a long-awaited gesture to a community that has warned of escalating vitriol against them that has accompanied the publics concern about the Islamic State and other extremist groups. Although Obama has visited mosques overseas, he waited until his final year in office to make such a visit at home, reflecting the issues sensitive political implications. In this years Republican presidential campaign, Donald Trump has called for banning Muslims from the U.S. temporarily and Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio warned of radical Islamic terrorism. Muslim-American advocacy groups have warned of growing antagonism that has followed recent attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, Calif., by those purporting to act in the name of Islam. We have to understand: An attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths, Obama said. He said it fell on all Americans to speak up. For Obama, the visit reflected a willingness to wade into touchy social issues that often eluded him earlier in his presidency. For years, Obama has fought incorrect claims that hes actually a Muslim and was born in Kenya, beliefs that polls suggest remain prevalent among many Republicans. Obama, a Christian, was born in Hawaii. Obama, acknowledging that uncomfortable chapter in his own story, noted that Thomas Jefferson had also been accused of being a Muslim. So I was not the first, Obama said to laughter from a hundred or so Muslims who gathered for his speech. No, its true. Look it up. Obama challenged Hollywood to start casting Muslims in roles that are unrelated to national security. Drawing a parallel with African-Americans struggle for broad societal acceptance, he noted, there was a time when there were no black people on television. With no plans to ever again appear on a ballot, Obama faces less pressure to avoid political controversy, and seemed to relish the possibility that his visit would raise eyebrows among some of his most entrenched critics. Ahead of his visit, White House officials acknowledged the visit could spark controversy but suggested that would help make his point about ignorance and religious bias. Still, the president was pointed in acknowledging that concerns about violence emanating from some corners of the Islamic world were not ill-founded. He denounced what he called an organized extremist element twisting selective Islamic texts in a way that ends up reflecting negatively on the overwhelming majority of law-abiding Muslims. It is undeniable that a small fraction of Muslims propagate a perverted interpretation of Islam. This is the truth, Obama said. He added, Its real. Its there. But Obama said suggestions that Islam is at the root of the problem only play into terrorist propaganda, weakening U.S. national security as opposed to strengthening it. He said IS and other extremist groups are desperately working to legitimize themselves by masquerading as religious leaders and holy warriors. We must never give them that legitimacy. Theyre not defending Islam, Obama said. The vast majority of the people they kill are innocent Muslim men, women and children. Ahead of his speech at the suburban Islamic Society of Baltimore, Obama met with Muslim university chaplains, community activists and public health professionals to discuss religious tolerance and freedom. Among the participants was fencer Ibtihaj Muhamma. The White House said shell make history at the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games as the first United States Olympian to compete in a hijab. Nearly half of Americans think at least some U.S. Muslims are anti-American, according to a new Pew Research Center poll released Wednesday. Two-thirds of Americans said people, not religious teachings, are to blame when violence is committed in the name of faith. However, when respondents were asked which religion they consider troubling, Islam was the most common answer. We never thought that when we held our first prayers in the small room nearly a half a century ago that we would be hosting the president, said Muhammad Jameel, the mosques president. Today is a new starting point. It is also a continuing journey a journey steeped in American history and tradition. Associated Press writers Kevin Freking and Josh Lederman in Washington and AP Religion Writer Rachel Zoll in New York contributed to this report. ROME Romes only surviving pyramid from ancient times is being put in the spotlight. After a Japanese clothing magnate helped pay for an ambitious cleanup, archaeologists are eager to show off the monument, constructed around 2,000 years ago as the burial tomb for a Roman praetor, or magistrate, named Caius Cestius. Although soaring 36 meters (119 feet), the pyramid draws few tourists. Decades of grime blackened the creamy white Carrara marble exterior of the monument near a traffic-clogged intersection and a subway station. The pyramids base is below street level since the metropolis has been built up over the centuries, so many hurry by without realizing the monuments height. Archaeologist Leonardo Guarnieri told reporters Wednesday that tours, including of the frescoed burial chamber, are being given twice a month by reservation. Visitors must crouch as they make their way through a narrow corridor leading to the burial chamber. What happened to Caius Cestius remains is unknown, Guarnieri said. Inside the chamber, visitors can see an upward-sloping tunnel. He said the restoration has bolstered theories the tunnel was dug out in medieval times, possibly by grave-robbers. The pyramid is one of four known to have been built in ancient Roman days, but the only one to survive until today. Their construction reflected a fashion for Egyptian style in Rome after the conquest of Egypt, but the simple, frescoed figures on the chambers walls were done in the style of Pompeii, the ancient Roman city near modern-day Naples. With Romes heavy pollution blackening and corroding monuments almost as soon as they are restored, the pyramid is being cleaned every few months by a team of free-climbers, to eliminate the need for unsightly and costly scaffolding. Italys culture ministry, chronically short of funds to clean, preserve and protect its immense wealth of artworks, architectural gems and ancient monuments, is holding out the pyramids Japanese patron as a model of cooperation between private and public sectors. Yuzo Yagi, who heads a clothing and textile company, provided 2 million euros toward the restoration. RIO DE JANEIRO U.N. and U.S. health officials tell The Associated Press that Brazil has yet to share enough samples and disease data needed to answer the most worrying question about the Zika outbreak: whether the virus is actually responsible for the increase in the number of babies born with abnormally small heads in Brazil. The lack of data is frustrating efforts to develop diagnostic tests, drugs and vaccines. Laboratories in the United States and Europe are relying on samples from previous outbreaks. Scientists say having so little to work with is hampering their ability to track the virus evolution. One major problem appears to be Brazilian law. At the moment, it is technically illegal for Brazilian researchers and institutes to share genetic material, including blood samples containing Zika and other viruses. Its a very delicate issue, this sharing of samples. Lawyers have to be involved, said Dr. Marcos Espinal, director of communicable diseases in the World Health Organizations regional office in Washington. Espinal said he hoped the issue might be resolved after discussions between the U.S. and Brazilian presidents. He said WHOs role was mainly to be a broker to encourage countries to share but so far Brazil had probably provided fewer than 20 samples. There is no way this should not be solved in the foreseeable future, he said. Waiting is always risky during an emergency. Last May, as the first cases of Zika in Brazil were emerging, President Dilma Rousseff signed a new law to regulate how researchers use the countrys genetic resources. But the regulatory framework hasnt yet been drafted, leaving scientists in legal limbo. Until the law is implemented, were legally prohibited from sending samples abroad, said Paulo Gadelha, president of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Brazils premier state-run research institute for tropical diseases. Even if we wanted to send this material abroad, we cant because its considered a crime. The ban does not necessarily mean foreign researchers cant access samples. Some were shared with the United States, including tissue samples from two newborns who died and two fetuses recently examined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But a U.S. official said that wasnt enough to develop accurate tests for the virus or help determine whether Zika is in fact behind the recent jump in the number of congenital defects. The spike in cases prompted WHO to declare an international emergency Monday. Given the drought of Brazilian samples, public health officials across the world are falling back on older viruses or discreetly taking them from private patients. The U.S. official, who shared the information on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak publicly, said the CDC was relying on a strain taken from a 2013 outbreak in French Polynesia to perfect its Zika tests. U.S. researchers trying to sequence Zikas genetic code have been forced to rely on virus samples from Puerto Rico for the same reason, he said. In England, researchers are using samples drawn from Micronesia, the site of an outbreak in 2007. The French are relying on samples from Polynesia and Martinique. In Spain, scientists have a Ugandan strain of Zika supplied by the United States. Even Portugal, Brazils former colonial master, doesnt have the Brazilian strain; the National Health Institute in Lisbon said its tests relied on a U.S. sample from the 1980s, among others. Some researchers are bypassing Brazils bureaucracy by getting samples sent to them for testing by a private lab, said Dr. Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit, an expert on mosquito-borne diseases at the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine in Hamburg. Its almost impossible to get samples from the country, Schmidt-Chanasit told AP, referring to Brazil. Its not going via official government channels. Our source is simply the rich people who want a diagnosis. In public, health leaders have been eager to boast about their excellent collaboration. WHOs chief, Dr. Margaret Chan, said after Mondays meeting that Brazil and the United States were working very closely on studies. When asked about sample sharing, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told AP: I dont think its an issue. Behind-the-scenes, it was another story. Four officials at the World Health Organization told AP the Brazilians were starving international partners of up-to-date information. WHO has gotten zero from them, no clinical or lab findings, one of the officials said. All four spoke on condition of anonymity because they were talking without authorization. Ben Neuman, a virologist at Reading University in England, said thousands of samples or hundreds at a minimum were needed to track the virus and determine how its changing. Science only works when we share, he said. The virus sharing problems arent limited to Brazil, said Gadelha of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation. This isnt a unilateral issue; its a global problem, he said, adding he hoped the current crisis would speed efforts at international cooperation, which has long been an issue in outbreak response efforts. More than a decade ago, WHO faced a similar problem when Indonesia refused to hand over bird flu samples, arguing that Western scientists would use them to make drugs and vaccines the country couldnt afford. At the time, Brazil had a leading role in ending the impasse, helping to broker an agreement ensuring developing countries were guaranteed access to products developed from shared viruses. Lawrence Gostin, director of WHOs Collaborating Center on Public Health Law and Human Rights at Georgetown University, said there are no rules that force governments to hand over viruses, tissue samples or other information. If countries dont share, the only repercussions they face are public condemnation, he said. HARRISBURG The race for Pennsylvania attorney general is becoming very heated between two leading Democrats seeking to replace Attorney General Kathleen Kane, set off by former Gov. Ed Rendells endorsement in the race Wednesday. In a statement released by Josh Shapiros campaign, Rendell called Shapiro the only candidate who will restore integrity to Harrisburg. In a response two hours later, the campaign for Stephen Zappala accused Shapiro of being fundamentally flawed for the attorney generals office and a full-time politician and a part-time lawyer who has never tried either a criminal or civil case in court. It was a fast turn of events for the two as they collect signatures to get on the ballot for the April 26 primary. Shapiro is a former state lawmaker and the commissioners chairman in Montgomery County, Pennsylvanias third-most populous. Zappala, the son of a former state Supreme Court justice, has 17 years under his belt as the district attorney in Allegheny County, Pennsylvanias second-most populous county. Kane is considering running for another term, but she is keeping a low profile and is not backed by any visible campaign organization. Kane is fighting criminal charges, the suspension of her law license and the potential that the Senate could vote to remove her from office. Zappalas record in law enforcement includes prosecuting the corruption cases of the former state Supreme Court Justice Joan Orie Melvin and her sister, former state Sen. Jane Orie. Shapiro is a lawyer, but has never been a prosecutor, criminal defense lawyer or civil trial lawyer, and he would be the only Pennsylvania attorney general since it became an elected post in 1980 without some sort of experience in law enforcement. In other states, attorneys general often take office without law enforcement background. Shapiro has insisted he has the credentials to fix an attorney generals office riven by scandal under Kane, and his campaign suggested that its responsibilities are broader than a district attorneys crime-and-punishment portfolio. The fact is the Attorney Generals office has broad responsibilities, from holding public officials to the highest level of integrity to ensuring clean drinking water, product safety and protecting consumers from corporate wrongdoing, Shapiros campaign said. Shapiro is touting his record of helping lead a House of Representatives reform commission in the wake of a legislative corruption scandal and taking over in Montgomery County in 2012 after his predecessor had been arrested. Shapiro also is Democratic Gov. Tom Wolfs appointee atop the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency. The primary election is April 26. Also expected to run in the Democratic primary is Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli, who has run unsuccessfully three times for the office. The Republican Party has endorsed state Sen. John Rafferty of Montgomery County. He may face a primary challenge by former prosecutor Joe Peters, a former Scranton police officer who served briefly in Kanes office. Leading the pack in campaign donations is Shapiro, who reported $1.3 million in his campaign account heading into 2016. Kane did not raise any campaign contributions in 2015 while she used campaign cash to pay legal bills for her criminal defense. MOSCOW Ukraines government, already under strain from political infighting, a frozen conflict in the countrys east and a sagging economy, fell under scrutiny again on Wednesday when its economy minister handed in his resignation, saying the leadership routinely blocked his reform efforts. The countrys minister of economy Aivaras Abromavicius said he and his team could no longer drive forward much-needed reforms and received pushback on their efforts from government leaders including members of President Petro Poroshenkos party. My team and I have no desire to be a front for blatant corruption or puppets for people who want to take control over state funds as they did in the old government, Abromavicius told reporters at a press conference in Kiev. It wasnt just a lack of political will. (They were) actively seeking to paralyze our work in the government. Abromavicius, a Lithuanian native and former investment banker, advocated deregulation and wide-scale privatization in Ukraine. He was appointed as the finance minister 14 months ago along with a cadre of other political-newcomers from the private sector including finance minister Natalia Jaresko, an American. Their appointments were cautiously viewed as indicators that the new government would go through with long-overdue economic reforms. However, the changes to Ukraines government remain largely cosmetic and oligarchs still maintain huge sway in its decisions. As he announced his resignation, Abromavicius said Ukraine needed a total reset of power. We know how Ukraine ended up in the condition that its in today. Its not just Yanukovych, its the total lack of reform over 20 years, he said in a reference to ousted Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych. A group of 10 ambassadors, including those from the United States, Britain and Canada, expressed their disappointment at Abromavicius resignation in an open letter. During the past year, Abromavicius and his professional team have made important strides implementing tough but necessary economic reforms to help stabilize Ukraines economy, root out endemic corruption, bring Ukraine into compliance with its IMF program obligations, and promote more openness and transparency in government, the ambassadors wrote. U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said Abromavicius had delivered real reform results and made a difference in Ukraine on many fronts. Ukraines stable, secure and prosperous future is going to require the sustained efforts of a broad and inclusive team going forward of dedicated professionals like him, who put the Ukrainian peoples interest above their own, he said. Abromavicius said that Igor Kononenko, a Poroshenko-ally in Ukraines parliament, put pressure on the economy ministry to appoint his allies. Kononenko told Ukrainian TV channel Espreso that Abromavicius comments were false and his resignation emotional. Ukraines anti-corruption bureau said they would investigate Abromavicius accusations against Kononenko. Abromavicius predecessor, Pavlo Sheremeta, resigned after spending under a year in office over frustrations with the slow pace of reforms. LOS ANGELES Investigators scrambling to recapture a Los Angeles County murder suspect accidentally released from jail have been notifying potential targets of his freedom, interviewing those who know him best and chasing down tips from the public. Finding 37-year-old Steven Lawrence Wright is the No. 1 priority of the Major Crimes Division at the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department, Cmdr. Keith Swensson said Wednesday. This is a critical incident because an accused murderer is now out on the street, Swensson said, adding that dozens of investigators are focused on tracking down Wright. Wright was accidentally released from the Inmate Reception Center on Saturday afternoon. Deputies didnt realize the mistake until more than 24 hours later on Sunday night, when they launched their manhunt. Wright had been behind bars since April 2011 following his arrest in the shooting death of a 47-year-old man that year in Pasadena. At the time, police said Wright belonged to the Altadena Blocc Crips, and that the victim belonged to a rival gang. Wright had been found guilty of the killing in 2014 but his conviction was overturned last year after a judge found the trial wasnt fair. Wright was set for a preliminary hearing in a new murder trial next month, when he also was set to be sentenced for an attempted murder conviction. On Tuesday, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved offering a $20,000 reward for information leading to Wrights capture. Eventually were going to catch him. We just want to catch him before something happens, said Sgt. Tim Duerr, a longtime investigator in the Major Crimes Bureau tasked with finding Wright. Duerr said investigators were able to confirm sightings of Wright in the Los Angeles area since his release but not in time to nab him. Investigators also have talked to Wrights family members, who have said all he wants to do is be with his loved ones, Duerr said. Thats what we hope, he said. Obviously were going to take everything at face value. Wright was released because of a paperwork error. He was in court last week after being called to testify in a murder trial but charged with contempt of court and sentenced to five days in jail when he refused to cooperate. A court clerk incorrectly wrote down the case number of Wrights murder charge next to details of his sentence, when it should have been the contempt charge, Swensson said. The clerk did write the correct information on the second page of Wrights paperwork, but three sheriffs staff members missed it, he said. The sheriffs department is conducting a review to prevent future accidental releases. Accidental releases at the department declined from 21 in 2014 to six last year, a 71 percent drop, Swensson said. Wrights attorney, Stacie Halpern, described her client as intelligent and respectful, and she said she doesnt think hell hurt anyone while hes free. He doesnt come off as a stupid gang-banging idiot, she said. Hes older, hes mature. Hes not a typical low-level thinker. As for his accidental release, Halpern said shes still stunned. This is one of the more bizarre things thats happened in my 16 years of practice, she said. Its interesting the county could make such a big blunder. This story has been corrected to show that the escape in Orange County happened in January, not February. Follow Amanda Lee Myers on Twitter at https://twitter.com/AmandaLeeAP. Her work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/amanda-lee-myers. Weng Xiaoping, formerly a renowned doctor in China, is spending her retirement caring for stray animals. In what may seem like an unthinkable act to most people, Weng sold two of her properties for 1.8 million yuan (almost $300,000) immediately after she retired and decided to use all that money to fund her new mission in life. With the money in hand, Xiaopang moved to the mountainous village of Taipingqiao, near Huzhou city, to build a sanctuary for unwanted dogs and cats. In the past eight years, she has adopted and cared for hundreds of animals. She has also hired two assistants, using her pension of 7,000 yuan per month to pay them. These little animals need 18 buckets of rice for one meal and they eat up 50 kilograms of rice every day, the 62-year-old told Peoples Daily Online. I have to spend over 7,000 yuan on food for them every month. Thanks to the volunteers and kind-hearted persons, I can sustain until now. But Weng Xiaopings self-funded animal rescue isnt just about feeding stray animals. The place is a haven where cats and dogs no longer have suffer from diseases, abuse and slaughter. For now, Xiaopings main concern is finding someone to take over the shelter when she gets too old to continue. She owns the lease to the land on which the sanctuary is built for the next 30 years, so shes also concerned about what will happen when that time is up. I have struggled for years to look after these stray animals, she said. I really hope that a competent and nice person will inherit the base from me when I am old one day. Weng Xiaoping is just one of the few truly dedicated Chinese animal welfare activists weve covered in recent years. 29-year-old Wang Yan used to be a millionaire, but spent his entire fortune caring for stray dogs, Yang Xiaoyun, a retired school teacher, travels thousands of miles across China rescuing strays from slaughter, while Grandma Bai has spent the last 17 years and all her life savings taking care of cats and dogs. And lets not forget Ha Wenjin, a kindhearted woman who has given up her job, sold her house, car and jewelry to take care of over 1,500 dogs and 200 cats. These people are all heroes in my book. Photos: Zhejiang Daily/Deng Dehua via Peoples Daily Online Most people would love nothing more than to quit their jobs and travel the world, but they simply lack the courage, and most importantly, the funds to do so. A young woman from Alabama has managed to do it though, by meeting rich men on the internet and having them pay for dates in some of the most exotic places on Earth. Shes now in a serious relationship with one of them, and he might just turn out to be the one. It all started in December 2014, when 25-year-old Monica Lynn decided that her life was too boring and lacked adventure. So she quit her high-flying job as a financial advisor at Merrill Lynch in order to find something more interesting. Soon, she stumbled upon MissTravel, a website where people search for partners to go on holidays with. I came across Miss Travel in an article about weird websites, Lynn explained. I thought, Yes, that sounds weird but also kinda cool. This website attracts very successful men who dont have the time to date in the normal way, so this allows them to accelerate the whole thing. Theyre going on trips anyway, and they can afford to search through profiles and afford to bring one they like with them. Lynn claims that she did have reservations about the whole thing initially, but she signed up anyway and started chatting with a few guys. Within a month, she met a 31-year-old managing director who took her on a week-long holiday to Barbados in February 2015. He paid for everything her flights, stay at a five-star resort, cocktails, and even gave her gifts including silver jewellery. Lynn realises that people might get the wrong idea, but she explained that its just like regular dating, except in an exotic location. She stressed that theres no pressure or expectation that she would have to sleep with her sponsors on these trips. That depends on the person and how you behave, she said. Its like any other dating website, its just theres lots of travelling involved. In any case, shes actually only dated three men, even though shes been to nine different countries. There was no sexual connection with the first guy they became friends and are still in touch. It wasnt awkward it was just like a regular date which didnt really sizzle, except you were on a Caribbean island. We had fun but there was no sexual connection. she said. The second person Lynn dated was a man who took her to San Francisco, but again, there was no spark. Things were different the third time though, with the guy who flew her to Italy for a date. Hes Italian, hes 28, and really gorgeous, she said. He runs several successful online businesses, and also works in import and export. We had a connection before we even met, and that continued. Since then, shes been on seven holidays with the same man to various exotic locations, including Indonesia, the Philippines, Mexico, Dubai, Hong Kong, and Costa Rica. Theyre now in a committed relationship and have decided not to use MissTravel any more. After about six weeks, we decided to be exclusive to each other, Lynn said. My lifestyle hasnt changed, though. Any time he goes on a trip now, he invites me. The way I see it, I found a guy Im really serious about through online dating with a lot of travel. Naturally, Lynns mother was concerned about her plans to go on holidays with strangers. But Lynn was thorough with background checks, and now that shes in a serious relationship, her mom is happy for her. She even makes comments about when me and the Italian are going to tie the knot, she said. Lynn really hopes the relationship will work out, but if it doesnt, going back to regular dating would not be an option because shes already had a taste of dating on steroids. Dating is dating, and theres nothing wrong with a guy taking you to the cinema, she said. But if I end up single again, I wont be dating any other way. Traditional dates would just be too boring for me now. Without MissTravel, it would have taken me five to 10 years of working to do all the things Ive done in this year alone, said Lynn, who now works for a mobile startup in the time between trips. Before I found this site, Id never been outside the US and now my passport is starting to get full its opened up the whole world to me. Photos: Monica Lynn/Miss Travel Sources: The Mirror, Daily Mail Marina Stenos Rachel Zaentz Washington, D.C.-based Finn Partners subsidiary Widmeyer Communications has made several key promotions in that agencys flagship education group. Marina Stenos has been promoted to senior vice president and partner. Stenos, who joined the agency since 2011, is a STEM communications expert who was previously director of the Center for Public Awareness, Leadership and Diversity at the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. Prior to her tenure at ASME, Stenos served as executive vice president and senior producer at New Vision Communications. Stenos will now provide strategic counsel within the Finn Partners network for colleagues who work with clients focused on education advocacy, and will elevate Widmeyers profile among New York-area stakeholders and clients focused on education issues, particularly in the areas of STEM and equity. She will also continue managing Widmeyers New York PreK-12 team. Rachel Zaentz has been promoted to the role of vice president. Previously an assistant vice president in the agencys PreK-12 education practice, Zaentz is an expert in early childhood education communications. Zaentz, who joined Widmeyer in 2010, was previously a member of the education team at communications firm GMMB. Zaentz will now serve an expanded role in new business acquisition, especially as it relates to expanding Widmeyers education work on the West Coast and within the philanthropy sector. She will also continue to expand upon Widmeyers early childhood portfolio and will guide the teams issue-based expertise in that space. Full-service agency Widmeyer, which holds offices in Washington D.C. and New York, specializes in education, public affairs and health. The agency in 2013 was acquired by New York-based independent Finn Partners. Widmeyer that year reported net fees of $9.8 million. 04/02/2016 - Many economically advanced countries are failing to fully enforce regulations on political party funding and campaign donations or are leaving loopholes that can be exploited by powerful private interest groups, according to a new OECD report. Financing Democracy: Funding of Political Parties and Election Campaigns and the Risk of Policy Capture says that private donors frequently use loans, membership fees and third-party funding to circumvent spending limits or to conceal donations. Tightening regulation and applying sanctions more rigorously would help to restore public trust at a time when voters in advanced economies are showing disillusionment with political parties and fear that democratic processes can be captured by private interest groups. Policy making should not be for sale to the highest bidder, said OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria, launching the Organisations first report on political financing at a meeting of the OECD Global Parliamentary Network, a forum for legislators from member and partner countries to compare policies and discuss best practices. When policy is influenced by wealthy donors, the rules get bent in favour of the few and against the interests of the many. Upholding rigorous standards in political finance is a key part of our battle to reduce inequality and restore trust in democracy, he said. Many countries struggle to define and regulate third-party campaigning by organisations or individuals who are not political parties or candidates, enabling election spending to be channelled through supposedly independent committees and interest groups. Only a handful of countries have regulations on third-party campaigning, and these regulations vary in strictness. Globalisation is complicating the regulation of political party funding as multinational companies and wealthy foreign individuals are increasingly integrated with domestic business interests. Where limits and bans on foreign and corporate funding exist, disclosure of donor identity is a vital deterrent to misuse of influence. While 17 of the 34 OECD countries ban anonymous donations to political parties, 13 only ban them above certain thresholds and four allow them. Even when donations are not anonymous, countries have differing rules about disclosing donor identity. In nine OECD countries political parties are obliged to publically disclose the identity of donors, while in the other 25 OECD countries parties do so on an ad-hoc basis. Only 16 OECD countries have campaign spending limits for both parties and candidates. While such limits can prevent a spending race, challengers who generally need more funds to unseat an incumbent may be at a disadvantage in the other 18 countries. Finally, a lack of independence or legal authority among some oversight institutions leaves big donors able to receive favours such as tax breaks, state subsidies, preferential access to public loans and procurement contracts. The report recommends that: Countries should design sanctions against breaches of political finance regulations that are both proportionate and dissuasive. Countries should strike a balance between public and private political finance, bearing in mind that neither 100% private nor 100% public funding is desirable. Countries should aim for fuller disclosure with low thresholds, while taking privacy concerns of donors into consideration. Countries should focus on enforcing existing regulations, not adding new ones. Institutions responsible for enforcing political finance regulations should have a clear mandate, adequate legal power and the capacity to impose sanctions. Political finance regulations should focus on the whole cycle the pre-campaign phase, the campaign period and the period after the elected official takes office. You can read the full report here, including case studies of Brazil, Canada, Chile, Estonia, France, India, Korea, Mexico and the UK. For more on political finance and trust in government see: www.oecd.org/governance/ethics/financing-democracy.htm For further information please contact Catherine Bremer in the OECD Media Office (+33 1 45 24 8097). Working with over 100 countries, the OECD is a global policy forum that promotes policies to improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world. Related Documents TULLAMORE Town Council's rates are 'way too high' and unless they are reduced many local businesses will close, was the stark warning from a meeting of local traders . TULLAMORE Town Council's rates are 'way too high' and unless they are reduced many local businesses will close, was the stark warning from a meeting of local traders . The gathering on MOndaywas organised by Tullamore Chamber of Commerce prior to the Town Council's meeting tomorrow night (Thursday) to strike the annual rate. The Chamber proposed that the Town Council reduce the Annual Rate of Valuation by 4% each year over the next three years to bring ARV in line with Athlone. The Tullamore rate of 68.33 is 12.5% higher than Athlone's of 60.72 while Mullingar's AVR is 24% less (55.11) and Offaly County Council's AVR is 56.77 which is 20.3% less which means that businesses outside the urban area such as those located on the Portarlington Road pay 20% less than other companies just metres away inside the town boundary. Many of the speakers at Monday's meeting were very aggrieved at the AVR and felt that a reduction of 4% was not enough. PJ Lynam who has a business in the Tanyard called for a reduction in rates of 50%. "Our backs are to the wall. Rates are way too high, they have to be knocked down or we will all be out of business by the end of this year." Barbara O'Connell who owns two businesses - Dolan's Pharmacies, asked why Tullamore's rates were so much higher than neighbouring towns especially larger towns such as Athlone and Mullingar. John Lyons of The Business Centre pointed out that local businesses pay their rates but have no say in how the money is spent by the Town Council. "We have all had to tighten our belts, the Council should too. I want to know why the Council is spending our money if we can't afford it." He also called on the elected representatives who attended the meeting to show more support for local business people. Brian Digan of BDH in the Tanyard also felt that a reduction of 4% was not enough. He pointed out that in the past few years he had to reduce staff numbers from 14 to five, wages had been reduced by a lot more than 4% and his staff were even offering to work overtime to ensure they stayed in business. "We will find it difficult to stay in business this year. There will be more losses than profits. We should be looking for a cut in rates of at least 12% or 15% to bring us in line with Athlone and Mullingar. Why are we such an elite town that our Council feels they can charge 15% more?" Architect Peter Lyons pointed out that his company had cut costs by 15% to 20% over the past few years and he felt that the Town Council should reduce the rate by a lot more than 4%, he agreed with Brian Digan's suggestion of 15%. Noel McCann of the Bridge House also suppported the call for a reduction of 15% and said it was time for the Council to prune expenses and cut councillors' wages and staff wages. "It's time to bring the Town Council out to the Ring Road to increase the amount taken in rates." Auctioneer Shaun Wrafter thought that the rates were based on property valuations which could be appealed, but incoming Chamber President Joe O'Brien of the Tullamore Court Hotel pointed out that under the 2001 Act it was no longer possible to appeal the AVR and that the only way that rates were changed was if physical changes were carried out to the premises through extensions or demolitions. Former long-serving town councillor and businessman John Flanagan Snr said there was no reason why the County Council could not extend the urban boundary to the Ring Road, but he doubted if the County Council would agree to this. He also added that Tullamore had suffered far more than towns like Athlone, Mullingar and Portlaoise because of the many local businesses that were linked to the construction industry because of local assets such as the sand pits of the Eiscir Riada. "A 12% difference between Tullamorer and Athlone is a big disadvantage, we're not on a level playing pitch." "A town is like a business," pointed out Dominic Doheny of the Flanagan Group. "It has to compete with other towns. Are we spending more per capita than other towns? What is the Town Council's spend per capita in Tullamore?" Seamus Dolan asked the local councillors what input they had in the balancing of the Town Council's budget and wondered if requesting a reduction in the rate was "totally insurmountable." Local publican Dave Kavanagh asked if there was any representative of the Council officials at the meeting and what was the Council's justification of the rates? Joe O'Brien pointed out that the Chamber of Commerce had met with Council officials. "We told them that we had cut everything that we could to make savings and we hoped that the Council could do the same." The local councillors who attended the meeting were Paddy Rowland, Declan Harvey, Tony McCormack, Sean O'Brien, Lar Byrne and Brendan Killeavy. There were apologies from Tommy McKeigue, Molly Buckley and Sinead Dooley who were attending the County Council's budget meeting. Cllr Rowland (Fianna Fail) pointed out that the Town Council has a budget of 6million of which over 3million would come from rates. Their budget has to cover the running of facilities such as the swimming pool, the town park, housing maintenance, roads and footpaths he said. "We recognise the difficulties people are under, we will listen and we will go back to the Council and report. We will be going forward with another suggestion to the Town Council." "We recognise this is a serious issue but we can't say at this stage what the rate will be. We want to send out a clear message that Tullamore is open for business." Labour councillor Sean O'Brien pointed out that if the councillors rejected the budget and did not strike a rate that eventually the Minister would appoint an Administrator who could strike a rate of a 20% increase. "We are caught between a rock and a hard place. Over the past few years the amount taken in by rates has reduced significantly. Of the Top 20 rate payers three have now closed." He also pointed out that Local Government funding is down. "We could decide not to clean the streets and that would save 10% on rates. A 4% reduction in rates would mean a loss of 140,000 to the Town Council's budget. That is a big loss." "Tullamore is a far more progressive town than Portlaoise that is why our rate is higher. We have to try to run the town. We have to be positive. We would be telling you a lie if we said we would ask for a 10% to 12% reduction in the rate. We have to strike a rate or run for cover" he warned. There is a chasm between the Council and local businesses, claimed Ken Grennan of Grennan's Butchers. "There really is a gulf between the reality of running a business in Tullamore and what is being carried out in the Council office. Most business people are being left out in the cold. The councillors really need to understand how desperate our position is. "I agree with PJ that a reduction of 50% is what we really need and I feel that the councillors should have run out the door from this meeting with the suggested 4% decrease and been glad that was all we were looking for! "It is very difficult to sit here and listen how difficult it is for the Council to balance its budget while we're trying desperately to keep our staff in jobs. I'm disapppointed that the Councillors did not get behind the figure of 4%." Cllr Declan Harvey said he would support the Chamber's call for a 4% decrease in the rate, but Cllr Brendan Killeavy of Sinn Fein said he would be voting for a freeze on the rate not to change from last year. "We have services to run and they have to be funded," he said. Labour councillor Lar Byrne said he didn't want to see anyone losing their jobs either in business or in the Council and said he would not be voting for an increase in the rates. "We will work tooth and nail to support business in this town." "If you don't make those decisions for us jobs will be lost" warned Dominic Doheny. "We need to act boldly" urged Peter Lyons. He called on the Council to reduce the rate which would attract new business to the town which would then make up the shortfall. "The next time we come back to a meeting like this, we will be throwing in the keys," added PJ Lynam. Paddy Carragher of Quirke's Medical Hall said the councillors may have been listening to the speakers, but they did not appear to understand them. "We didn't have a choice in how our businesses went down. The shopper made their choice. The bottom line is we don't have the money to give the Council. If the Council gets 2.5million in rates in 2011 they will be doing well." The Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce's Rates Committee Tony Flanagan said that they "genuinely" thought the suggested 4% decrease was a figure the Council could work with. "If you ignore us, you are looking at disaster. We're bringing a responsible proposal to you." The meeting concluded with Joe O'Brien pleading that the Councillors do something. "Not a single business in this town has suffered losses of less than 30%, costs have been reduced. It is galling that for the last three years local businesses have been going through hell. People are extremely upset. We urgently need something to be done." Independent General Election candidate Cllr. John Foley has accused the government of 'a political stunt' following the announcement last week of a 1.7 million allocation for a new state of the art library for Edenderry. By Damian Moran e-mail: damian@offalyexpress.ie Twitter: @offaly_express "While obviously any investment for Edenderry has to be welcomed, I fear this is a political stunt by the Government, commented Cllr Foley. The feedback I am receiving from locals is that the existing library is perfectly sufficient apart from some lack of parking at times. With that in mind, and also the fact that Daingean library was downgraded to shorter opening hours recently, you would have to ask what are the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government really doing here? A lot of questions need to be answered. He added, In a horrible week for Edenderry in which two long established businesses on our main street closed, it seems we have been thrown a new library to keep us quiet. He went on to criticise the government's record on supporting SME's. The continuous waffle coming from government Ministers regarding providing support for SME's was not very evident in Edenderry last week. Does Fine Gael believe that the people of North Offaly can be conned into voting for them, in return for an odd few millions every general election? He said that people in North Offaly need to come together to ensure that they elect a TD who will work for the county, not the party. We must not allow ourselves to be unrepresented yet again. This northern part of our county has been disenfranchised for far too long. It is time for us all to unite behind an Independent candidate who will work tirelessly for the good of the County. Cllr Foley said he has put himself forward as that candidate and promises only one thing. To work 24/7 to ensure that North Offaly and indeed the county of Offaly receives the long overdue investment it deserves. How much more of "The Recovery" do we have to listen to. It certainly has not appeared in Offaly yet. He concluded by again accusing the government of trying to buy votes. An announcement of 1.7 million will not buy North Offaly, We want, deserve and are entitled to a lot more than that. We crave industry. Our SME's need support, employment needs to be provided, Ofalia House needs to begin hiring nurses so our elderly can be looked after near home. Our roads need to be repaired, the list is endless. We will not be bought off with the provision of a new library. On March 29, 1998, Daniel Lightner was featured on The Sentinels front page after being one of the first student pilots at the Carlisle Airport to fly solo with the minimum hour requirement on his 16th birthday. In 2010, a family crisis put those dreams of aviation on hold. After noticing his son, Austin, was suffering from an unrelenting fever, and with growing concerns over Austins sudden difficulty with walking, Daniel Lightner took him to be examined by his pediatrician. On Jan. 23, 2010, Austin was diagnosed with Pre-B Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia. Austins cancer is currently in remission, allowing Lightner to ascend in the air again, continuing on the journey he began when he was just 16. On Tuesday, Lightner completed a solo flight at the Carlisle Airport. Q. When did you first develop an interest in flying? A. I developed the interest during a family vacation to Orlando, Florida, when I was 14 to see my aunt and uncle. I was deathly afraid to get on an airplane. As soon as I experienced the feeling of takeoff I fell in love with flying. When I returned to Pennsylvania I got a job working on a farm tending to dairy cows to start saving for flight time. I first soloed on March 28, 1998, a day after my 16th birthday after only 6.5 hours of flight time. Q. What was that first flying experience like when you were 16 and featured on the front page of The Sentinel for your efforts? A. Freedom. A feeling of letting anything down below be forgotten. Any stress or sadness disappeared once I was behind the controls of an aircraft. It was the one thing in life that I was very confident doing and felt very natural. Q. Did you plan on getting back into aviation at some point or was Austins condition the only thing on your mind? A. After becoming a solo pilot I met my wife, Holly, and started a life together. Shortly after marriage we had two boys and my oldest son was diagnosed with leukemia. Throughout the time, wedding expenses, house, car, kids, and now cancer finances became thinner and thinner. Austin was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoid Leukemia at age 2, which became the focus of our everyday life. Every time an airplane would fly over I would stop whatever I was doing and just stare. At some point I knew that I would be back flying, but it was just a matter of time. Q. Can you provide an update on your sons current status? A. Austin is now 8 years old and almost three years in remission, cancer-free and is doing fantastic. Hes an excellent student at Bellaire Elementary School along with his 6-year-old brother Evan. Both boys have definitely experienced a different childhood life because of Austins cancer. We never take one day for granted and we appreciate and cherish every moment that we have together as a family. Q. What were your emotions like when you finally flew solo again after all of these years? A. To fly again after 17 years by myself was like winning the lottery. I truly felt like I was 16 years old again. My employer Rice Fruit Company has been extremely flexible by allowing me to get to this point, which means the world to me. Because of difficult schedules, its not always easy to just fly on the weekends. Theyve allowed me to come in an hour or two late and make up the time throughout the week. We went through some very struggling times in our life and to finally do something thats important to me was truly a great accomplishment. I feel alive and full of energy. And the best part was having your two little boys and my wife watch this dream come alive again. My goal is to complete my private pilots license and begin working on my instrument rating immediately following. My final goal is to not only be a private pilot for my familys enjoyment, but also become a certified flight instructor. Loading... OilVoice will be with you shortly... Some wore it on shirts. Others wore it in their hair. One person even wore it in his beard. But regardless of how they wore it, students and staff at Saint Patrick School were sporting pink Wednesday in support of the schools pink out for breast cancer research. The event one of three service projects initiated by the school for Catholic Schools Week acted as a fundraiser benefiting the Pink Hands of Hope, a Mechanicsburg nonprofit organization and thrift store that raises money for breast cancer. But the event was also a chance to honor Ann Ferriman, the schools financial secretary. Ferriman is currently battling breast cancer for the second time. (Ferriman) is doing really well, so we are hopeful with that, said Saint Patrick School Principal Ricman Fly. We thought, lets see if we can do something locally with breast cancer patients. That was our connection; how can we honor (Ferriman) and also help others dealing with the same disease? (Ferriman) really does a lot for the people at the school, said Saint Patricks School Secretary Kathy Hawkins. (The event) is a great opportunity to give back to cancer patients and to help out a great cause for the Pink Hands of Hope. Fly said that Ferriman sent the school a video thanking them for their support. The school also collected clothing for both the Pink Hands of Hope and the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota and participated in a food drive run through Trinity High School. Hawkins said that as of Wednesday afternoon, all collection efforts were looking strong. According to Fly, the schools service projects stand as a testament to both the schools relationship to the community and to its own strength as its own community. We are a pretty tight-knit school, Fly said. We are an important part of the Carlisle community and we want to support that community. It is very important for us to support our broader Carlisle community; it is a very symbiotic relationship. Our school does a great job of helping out not just people in the school, but the people in our community who are in need of important help, Hawkins said. Its really about helping each other and doing what you would want anyone else to do for you. Virginia Ginny Bush was modest when presented with a certificate from the Pennsylvania State Senate in honor of her 100th birthday on Wednesday. Thats no credit to me, Bush responded matter-of-factly when presented with the honor by state Sen. Pat Vance, who represents Cumberland and York counties 31st District. Oh, yes it is, Vance insisted. Im very, very pleased to present this to you. If you ever want to come over to visit us at the Senate, youre welcome. Youre welcome to bring your friends, too. Vance was among the many friends, family and media representatives attending Bushs birthday celebration that was hosted by the Bridges of Bent Creek Senior Living Community in Silver Spring Township, where Bush has lived for the past six years. Bush was born on Feb. 3, 1916 but doesnt know exactly where because no one in the family seems to know, she said. She figures that it probably was somewhere in the area of Drexel Hill, Delaware County, because thats where she grew up and lived for many years as an adult. She and her first husband, Jack Wills, later moved to Cumberland County as a central base for his meat business. While married to Wills, Bush raised five children: Ginny Wills, of New York City, who attended Wednesdays celebration; Richard Wills and Jerry Wills of Mechanicsburg; John Wills, of San Francisco; and Robert Wills, who died in 2000. Ginny Wills said her mother held a variety of jobs over the years, starting very young as a secretary for a Philadelphia bank and later working for a Harrisburg Hospital administrator. Bush, however, had a different response when asked about her jobs over the years. I raised five children, she quickly replied. After Jack Wills death at 65, Bush married her second husband, John Bush. The couple remained married until John Bushs death 12 years later. Ginny Wills attributes her mothers two very good marriages as adding years to her life. My mother had two very good marriages. I think thats very important. Plus, she must have very good genes. She really didnt exercise. Shes always been very interested in the news of the day. Shes a big reader. She also likes bridge, Ginny Wills noted. Bush is also very opinionated, her daughter attested. The feisty centenarian often hashes over current events and doesnt want Hillary Clinton to become president because she believes a woman shouldntbe president. Ginny Wills attributed this to her mothers age and how things were in her day. One of the biggest changes Bush has seen over the years, she said, is in the behavior she perceives from todays children. When I was raising children, you made sure they behaved themselves, Bush stressed. When asked if she believes that todays children behave appropriately, Bush shot an aghast look that spoke without words. My mother is very impressed when someone is quiet and well-behaved. She even talks about truck drivers not being as courteous as they used to be. When my brothers and I were growing up, we were all taught manners, Ginny Wills said. LINCOLN As a prostitute, Cynthia Mertz worked the streets of Omaha and Iowa, Florida and Georgia to fuel her addiction to crack cocaine. Her older sister, Maudie Simpson, also turned tricks. I was her protector, Simpson said. They were arrested dozens of times, but stints in jail or prison just provided a respite to clean up before getting back to work. Ive had guns pulled on me, Ive had knives pulled on me its a hard life, Mertz said. I wouldnt wish it on anybody. But last month, Mertz, now a 55-year-old grandmother, and her sister, 56, walked out of the State Capitol with a new lease on life. The sisters, both from Omaha, were granted pardons by the State Board of Pardons. Such pardons do not erase criminal records in this case, records that board officials said were the longest theyve seen in recent years. But a pardon does allow someone convicted of a felony to regain some civil rights, such as the right to obtain a passport or to bear arms. A pardon also is an official act by the state of forgiveness, a recognition that someone has left behind a troubled past, has lived a crime-free life for several years and is heading in a new and positive direction. Mertz said pardons would allow her and her sister to be examples for the grandchildren, showing that even if you make bad choices at an early age, you can overcome that. I am living proof people can change if they want to, Mertz told the Pardons Board. I am proud of who I am today. The Pardons Board, which consists of the governor, attorney general and secretary of state, meets about eight times a year and hears hundreds of pleas to forgive past crimes, from drunken driving to murder. Its a sobering cattle call of sad and often tearful stories, stories of youthful indiscretion and irresponsibility followed by maturity and epiphany. Customarily, pardons are not granted until a felon has lived a crime-free life for a decade; the wait is three years for a misdemeanor offense. Nebraska Secretary of State John Gale said he has heard thousands of cases during his 15 years on the board, but the sisters cases were among the most exceptional and incredible. Its a wonderful example that even in the depths of the most terrible circumstances in life, they can still turn their lives around and make a positive contribution, Gale said. Gov. Pete Ricketts, who also voted to pardon the sisters, said their stories of recovery were the reason the pardon process exists. The sisters filed for pardons on the same day in April. They appeared one after the other at a hearing this fall to request a hearing and on Jan. 11, when they were granted pardons. Sonya Fauver, the boards administrative assistant, said its the first time that she can remember sisters going through the process together. Mertz used a walker to shuffle up the podium at the January meeting. A smoker, she breathed through a tube attached to her nose. She said she has a chronic lung disease and needs a lung transplant. Shes had three heart attacks since 2008. Im just kind of falling apart, she told the board. Mertzs criminal record went on and on: three felonies and 32 misdemeanors, many prostitution- or drug-related. She spent time in prison in Florida and Nebraska. Her last criminal convictions in Douglas County were in 2000 for fourth-offense prostitution and failing to appear in court on a drug paraphernalia charge. She got 18 months probation and a $200 fine on the prostitution rap, and two days in jail for failing to show up for court. Her sister had one felony and 11 misdemeanors. Her last arrest for prostitution, third offense, was in 2005. She served 12 months probation. The board expressed concerns about a 2009 conviction for Simpson in Nance County, Nebraska, for third-degree assault, but after she explained the circumstances, the board voted to grant her a pardon despite that. Mertz said she has suffered from bone cancer since she was an infant. After a bone marrow transplant, her cancer had been in remission until age 14, when she had surgery to replace part of her jaw with a piece of her hip bone. It left her jaw disfigured. I overheard my doctor tell my mom I could live a week or two, or 10 years, Mertz said. I got scared and just decided I was going to live my life the way I wanted to live it. She ran away, got mixed up with the wrong crowd, the drug and partying crowd, and it all went downhill, Mertz said. She became a prostitute, working areas like 24th and Leavenworth in Omaha that were hot spots for ladies of the night years ago. Mertz said she was very lucky: Her sister protected her, and she never got HIV. A friend, Little Debbie Barajas, wasnt so lucky. She was found dead in a ditch near Glenwood, Iowa, along with another Omaha prostitute in 2007. By then, Mertz and her sister had quit the business and quit drugs and alcohol. Mertz said her main motivation was her daughter, who told her that she needed to clean up if she wanted to be involved with her grandchildren. Mertz also credited support and rehabilitation provided by Santa Monica House in Omaha, a faith in God and a change in friends. If you keep the same playground and playmates, youll keep using, Mertz said. Her sister, Maudie, followed suit. She told the Pardons Board that she learned how to work. Eventually Simpson was promoted from a restaurant cook to an assistant manager. She overcame alcoholism and a taste for marijuana. I asked God to forgive me. Now I ask the State of Nebraska to forgive me, she wrote the Pardons Board. The two sisters thanked the Pardons Board before walking out of the State Capitol, newly pardoned. I cant change the things that I did, but I can change how it turns out, Mertz said. Contact the writer: 402-473-9584, paul.hammel@owh.com COUNCIL BLUFFS A 27-year-old woman has been given two years of probation after taking a plea deal in an Iowa sex-with-a-teen case. Jessica Pritchard pleaded guilty in November to sharing obscene materials with and enticing a 15-year-old male. She pleaded guilty Nov. 3 to an amended charge of enticement of a minor and one count of dissemination of obscene material to a minor. Pritchard, who now lives in Sarpy County, received a deferred judgment and will not go to prison. But Assistant Pottawattamie County Attorney Dan Salvo-McGinn said that if Pritchard violates the terms of her probation, she could still be sentenced to up to three years in prison. Pritchard must register as a sex offender for 10 years, pay $965 in fines and pay possible restitution to the victim. She will also have to complete a sex-offender treatment program. Pritchard was arrested July 23 near Alliance, Nebraska. Boring, automated phone messages for snow days at Duchesne Academy may be a thing of the past. And its all thanks to Assistant Principal Eric Krakowski, 44, who sang messages in the form of Disney songs to announce that school was canceled this week. For Tuesday, it was to the tune of Do You Want to Build a Snowman? from the movie Frozen, and Wednesday, it was A Whole New World from the movie Aladdin. The World-Herald caught up with Krakowski, who has worked at the Omaha high school for 18 years, to get to know him a little better and talk about his clever messages that have become quite the buzz on social media. Can't play the audio? Click here. Can't play the audio? Click here. Question: Are you from Omaha? Answer: Im originally from Mishawaka, Indiana, but I have been in Omaha for 20 years. I taught theology for 16 years at Duchesne before becoming the assistant principal two years ago. Q: So where did the idea of creating clever snow day messages come from? A: I was sitting with the dean of students and the principal at a Duchesne fundraiser Saturday, and it was clear that we were going to have at least one snow day this week. The principal said to me, You should do something fun. So I started thinking about it the next day. I decided to write lyrics to the songs from Frozen and Aladdin because these kids love Disney. If I ever would play a Pandora station in the classroom, nine times out of 10, the students would choose Disney. Q: Is this the first time you sang the phone messages? A: Yes. Last year was the first year that we used an automated phone system. Before, my messages were just like, Hi, this is Eric Krakowski and ... I accepted the challenge to do something fun, and Im happy people are excited about it. Q: How did you come up with the lyrics? A: My wife believes I have a penchant for making ridiculous lyrics for songs. I do it in the car or wherever. I do it all the time. This is just the first time it has ever got caught on a recording. Writing the lyrics didnt take me very long. Q: Its clear from the messages you can sing. Is music a passion of yours? A: Its more a hobby than a passion. I enjoy singing for my own self. I sang at church for years. I am a cantor regularly for Mass at St. Margaret Marys, and I play guitar with another teacher at school Mass every Tuesday at Duchesne. I got my first guitar when I was 15. I was in a band in high school and a band in college all rock n roll cover stuff, mostly just for fun. Occasionally, Ill also sing at a funeral or a wedding. Ive always enjoyed singing. Q: Did you think your messages would get this kind of attention and be shared all over social media? A: I had no idea. I sent the message Monday afternoon at 3:35 p.m., and as I walked out of the building, a couple of co-workers said they really liked it. I got home at 5 p.m. and checked Facebook and saw someone had posted a link. It should have occurred to me this might happen, but it never dawned on me. Later in the evening, I kept getting alerts on social media. My wife was laughing because it was even being shared by local media. A former student of mine even heard about it on the local news in Denver. Q: Several Duchesne parents posted on Facebook that their entire families stood around the phone to listen to the messages and were excited to hear them. Is that what you were hoping for? A: January and February is a hard time of the year. Days are short, the weather is bad, there are midterms, people are stressed, seniors are waiting to hear back from colleges. I was just glad it made our families and students happy. It was nice to know it was a positive thing. At Duchesne, we really emphasize relationships and community, and doing something like this really helps to contribute to a fun and positive environment. Q: Youve set the bar high now. If you get another snow day in the future, will you continue to come up with lyrical messages? A: I suppose I have to. I dont think I am getting out of this one. I plan to continue to do it. Its great PR for our school and leaves a great impression. A legislative committee heard Wednesday from supporters of a bill that would create a state task force on climate change. Proponents included Lincoln author-psychologist Mary Pipher, who called Legislative Bill 802 an opportunity to educate and work through problems relating to climate change. If we are practical and prudent and make solid plans in the ways we operate, we will not only mitigate the effects of climate change, but we will improve our state in many ways in the present, she told members of the Nebraska Legislatures Health and Human Services Committee. Under LB 802, sponsored by Malcolm State Sen. Ken Haar, the task force would include the leaders of five legislative committees and representatives from applicable agencies. The bill would also create a state strategic plan on the impact that climate change has on the health and quality of life of Nebraskans. This bill is not a debate on climate change, he said. The measure comes after a University of Nebraska-Lincoln study spelled out the implications of a rapidly warming world. UNL conducted the study, which includes the role of humans in climate change, after a study authorized by the Legislature was to exclude such factors. The Legislatures study was later canceled. The annual Nebraska Rural Poll survey last year found that 61 percent of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the state should develop a plan to adapt to the effects of climate change. Seventeen percent disagreed. Haar said he has hope for the future after a climate summit at the State Capitol last week drew about 65 young people. Because young people get it, he said. They understand. Fourteen people testified in support of the bill; no one testified in opposition. The committee took no action on the bill. Contact the writer: 402-473-9581, emily.nohr@owh.com * * * Additional information on the Legislature After a lengthy and heavily contested regulatory process, a final rule deeming vapor products to be subject to pervasive FDA regulation is currently in the White House Office of Management and Budget for a final review before it is published and takes effect this year. Leaks of the purported final rule suggest it remains deeply flawed and will impose a draconian, one-size-fits-all model that risks disrupting the fast-growing vapor industry and denying access to products that pose vastly less health danger than conventional tobacco cigarettes. Unfortunately, in the final negotiations over last years omnibus bill a provision addressing this issue was dropped, but that should not be the last word on the issue from Congress. Mitch Zeller, the FDAs top tobacco regulator, told Congress If we could get all of those people [who smoke] to completely switch all of their cigarettes to noncombustible cigarettes, it would be good for public health. Indeed, vapor products are displacing regular cigarettes. The most recent data from the CDC show the percentage of the adult population that smokes has dropped six consecutive years, from 20.6 percent in 2009 to 14.9 percent in the first half of 2015. An estimated two million ex-smokers are using vapor products. So were on the right track, and Zeller warned: Lets not lose our focus on what the primary cause is for those 480,000 avoidable deaths each yearits primarily burning, combusting cigarettes. Unfortunately, his agency is poised to do precisely that with its deeming rule. This is not really regulation. Its prohibition, says Boston University community health sciences professor Dr. Michael Siegel. Hes referring to a feature of the rule that sets a grandfather date of February 15, 2007 effectively denying grandfather status to nearly every vapor product on the market and forcing each to go through a lengthy approval process or be pulled from the market within 24 months. That date and timeline were established by the Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act, passed by Congress in 2009 and it grandfathered all but the very newest cigarette products. By now deeming vapor products subject to regulation seven years later, the FDA is subjecting these safer products to more draconian regulation. Jan Verleur, co-founder and CEO of VMR Products, a major manufacturer of vapor devices, said: Its essentially a death sentence for industry. It could be held up in litigation for many years. Thats only slight hyperbole. Once the rule is final, manufacturers would be required to submit to the FDA, for each product, a Premarket Tobacco Application (PMTA) or a Substantial Equivalence (SE) report. The PMTA process is complex and expensive and would be challenging for all but the largest manufacturers the major tobacco companies to navigate. The SE choice depends upon showing that a predicate product is already approved, but vapor technology is new and rapidly evolving, ruling this option out. The investment driving that innovation would be chilled by time and expense of submitting every product for regulatory approval and the agency already has a substantial backlog. The solutions are simple but will require Congress to act quickly, because the rule currently sits at OMB and could be published any day. On the next appropriate must pass vehicle Congress should include language that either delays the rule completely or fixes its most egregious flaws the imposition of an inappropriate grandfather date and an insufficient approval period. Failure to do so will result in regulating vapor more strictly than cigarettes, destroying thousands of small businesses, and, tragically, likely increasing tobacco-related sickness and death. Phil Kerpen is the president of American Commitment and the author of Democracy Denied. He can be reached at phil@americancommitment.org. LINCOLN Gov. Pete Ricketts property tax plan could have had dramatic effects if it had been in place before farm- and ranch-land prices exploded during the past decade. A World-Herald analysis shows that the governors proposal to cap annual valuation hikes would have left ag land valued at a small fraction of its market value during that period. That could have meant substantial savings in property tax bills for at least some farmers while shifting the tax burden onto homeowners and businesses. Ricketts wants to cap the growth of taxable ag land valuations at 3 percent annually. Actual valuations increased an average of 14.2 percent in the past decade. If his plan had been in effect starting in 2005, Nebraska farmers and ranchers would have been paying taxes now on 27 percent of the market value of their property by 2015. Current law sets farm valuations at 75 percent of market value. Ruth Sorensen, the state property tax administrator, said the analysis demonstrates that the governors proposal will result in controlled growth in ag land valuations and much-needed property tax relief. The impact of limiting ag valuation hikes varies depending on the time period studied. If the plan had been in place during a period of moderate growth in land prices, it would have had a smaller effect. In fact, from 1995 through 2005, Ricketts proposal last year to lower the taxable value of ag land to 65 percent of market value would have been a bigger boon to farmers. On the other hand, if Ricketts new proposal had been in effect three decades ago, farmers would be paying taxes on just 18 percent of market value. Ricketts called the cap an important component of his broader property tax relief plan. He said it would address the rising property taxes that Nebraska farmers and ranchers say are threatening their way of life. I think it is very important to address this key issue for the people who are driving our economy, he said. The valuation cap is part of Legislative Bill 958, introduced by State Sen. Mike Gloor of Grand Island, the Revenue Committee chairman. The committee will hold a public hearing on the bill, which also tightens budget limits on local governments, at 1:30 p.m. today. Sen. Kate Sullivan of Cedar Rapids, the Education Committee chairwoman, introduced a companion measure, LB 959. That bill, to be heard by the Education Committee on Tuesday, would tighten budget limits on school districts. Three major agricultural groups have endorsed Ricketts plan, including the valuation cap. But others say it has the same flaws as the earlier proposal to lower taxable values of ag land to 65 percent. It would not necessarily result in lower property tax bills for owners of ag land because tax levies could still increase. It could squeeze funding for schools and other local governments and it would not alter the states heavy reliance on property taxes. The reality at the end of the day is that unless we change the way were funding local government, we will not reduce property taxes, said Renee Fry, executive director of the OpenSky Policy Institute, a Lincoln-based think tank. Under Ricketts proposal, the taxable value of ag land would be allowed to float up and down in comparison to market value. While it could go no higher than 75 percent of market value, there is no floor on how low it could drop. Residential and commercial property would continue to be taxed at 100 percent of market value under the plan. Voters passed a state constitutional amendment in 1990 allowing ag land to be valued separately from those two classes of property. The analysis looked at how the cap would have affected statewide taxable values for ag land during past years. Taxable values for individual parcels of land could increase or decrease more than the statewide level, depending on local land prices. From 1995 through 2005, the market value of ag land grew by an annual average of 4.7 percent. With the 3 percent cap on taxable values, farmers and ranchers would have been taxed on a slowly decreasing proportion of market value. The taxable value would have reached 67 percent of market by 2005. In comparison, from 2005 through last year, the market value of ag land grew by an average of 14.2 percent annually. With the cap, the taxable value of ag land would have fallen well below market value. It would have quickly passed the 65 percent mark and dropped to 27 percent of market value by the end of the decade. Sorensen, the state property tax administrator, said the proposed valuation cap has advantages compared to last years plan for dropping taxable ag land values to 65 percent of market value. The cap is more gradual, allowing planning time for local governments and annual adjustments instead of a one-time change. Jay Rempe, senior economist with the Nebraska Farm Bureau, said the analysis highlights the dramatic rise in ag land values during recent years and the resulting shift in property tax burdens. Agricultures portion of the total state property tax bill grew from 18 percent in 2005 to 30 percent in 2015, according to the State Department of Revenue. Rempe said the valuation cap would stabilize ag land values and lead to a rebalancing of the property tax load. Pete McClymont, executive vice president of the Nebraska Cattlemen, said the group supported the 65 percent plan last year and is backing the valuation cap this year, even though neither offers a long-term solution to property tax woes. To have substantial reform is not in the cards this year, he said. Wed like to see some relief. That relief might be minimal in the next few years. Both Rempe and McClymont said they expect ag land prices to flatten out, following the past eight years of double-digit increases. The Nebraska Farmers Union opposed the 65 percent plan last year. The group has not taken a position on the proposed valuation cap. John Hansen, the groups president, said farmers and ranchers might not get much help on property tax bills from either measure, depending on the location of their land. Ag land owners near towns and cities could benefit from lower valuations because the tax burden could shift to residential and commercial property owners. Owners of property in more rural areas, with relatively little residential and commercial property to share the burden, could see little change in their tax bills. Local governments could raise their property tax levies to offset lower ag land values and keep their funding stable. Theyre different pockets on the same set of pants, Hansen said. However, Larry Dix, executive director of the Nebraska Association of County Officials, said counties and other governmental subdivisions could reach their levy limits if the taxable values of ag land fall enough. That would put a squeeze on local governments, especially those with no other options for funding. The state school aid formula could help school districts that reach their levy limits and can show a need for additional funding. Legislative fiscal staff estimate that the cap would require boosting the state aid pool by $8 million, starting with the 2017-18 school year. But it would not alter the tax mix that goes into paying for schools. About 60 percent of property tax revenues goes to support K-12 schools, and Nebraska ranks 49th among the states in the percentage of school funding that comes from the state. Contact the writer: 402-473-9583, martha.stoddard@owh.com * * * Additional information on the Legislature Omaha firefighters battled two simultaneous house fires miles apart early Thursday. Both fires were called in to Douglas County emergency 911 dispatchers around 3 a.m. A fire at a home near North 34th and Ruggles Streets resulted in a woman being taken to Nebraska Medical Center in serious condition. A neighbor reported the fire, and dispatchers said later that three adults had made it out of the burning home. The Red Cross provided assistance to the adults. In the other blaze, firefighters arriving on the scene reported a house engulfed in flames near South 162nd and Harrison Streets. Wednesday night, firefighters doused a garage fire at that location. The garage fire may have rekindled hours later and spread to the home Thursday morning. Later Thursday morning, the house rekindled and firefighters returned to douse the home again. No injuries were reported. A representative from the state fire marshals office was called to the 162nd and Harrison location. A plan for apartments at 51st and Mayberry Streets won the Omaha Planning Boards backing Wednesday, despite opposition from neighbors. Real estate developer Christian Christensen proposes to erect three buildings containing a combined 193 apartments northwest of 51st and Mayberry. He also would put the office of his Bluestone Development firm there. The site is between a neighborhood of single-family homes and a strip mall that includes the Three Happiness Express Chinese restaurant. About 20 neighbors attended the Planning Board meeting to oppose the project. They said it doesnt fit the neighborhood of 1- and two-story houses. The proposed buildings are too large, the neighbors said. There would be too many apartments, they said. Increased traffic would cause problems on residential streets and on the already-congested Leavenworth Street a half-block away. Right now a lot of people have trouble getting out on Leavenworth, Michael Macdonald said. He said neighbors think Bluestone is overbuilding this property ... to make extra money. Another neighbor noted that a traffic study projects that 51st and Leavenworth would sink to a service level of F by 2018 if the apartments were built. Neighbor Michelle Drake asked the Planning Board to delay a vote to give neighbors time to further study traffic and work out a compromise with Christensen. We want to be able to welcome our new neighbors with good will, not animosity, Drake said. Larry Jobeun, a lawyer for Bluestone, said Christensen has had multiple meetings with neighbors. Jobeun said the developer had reduced the number of planned apartments from 215 to 193. He said the zoning on the site currently would allow 292 apartments in a building up to 150 feet high. Bluestones tallest building would be 65 feet. Jobeun said much thought and effort went into designing the complex so it will complement the neighborhood. He said it will meet city urban design standards. City planners recommended approval. Assistant Planning Director Dave Fanslau said the proposal meets city standards meant to allow infill development and increase population density using existing infrastructure in a way that complements the neighborhood. Traffic engineers said that although the future level of service at 51st and Leavenworth would sink at peak afternoon travel times, many Omaha intersections are at that level at peak times. The board voted 7-0 in support of the plans for the site and a redevelopment plan that includes $2.7 million in tax-increment financing. The total project cost is estimated at $26.5 million. The issue now goes to the City Council. LINCOLN When a blizzard closed Interstate 80 on Tuesday morning, Monica Perez and her family rolled the dice and attempted to detour via U.S. Highway 34 to get to their home in Grand Island. It was a losing bet. Perez, her husband, their 4-year-old son and a friend ended up stuck in a snowdrift in their van about 12 miles short of their destination. They joined more than a dozen other cars and semitrailer trucks that, one by one, either got stuck or were blocked by other stuck vehicles on the two-lane highway near Phillips, Nebraska. Some motorists sat for five hours before state troopers and the Hamilton County sheriff were able to rescue them with four-wheel-drive vehicles. Law enforcement officials say its not uncommon to see motorists try to drive around a closed highway in bad weather. But they discourage it because nearby roads are typically just as dangerous. The advisories that we put out were that travel was not recommended, said Capt. Chris Kolb of the Nebraska State Patrol. That means to stay off the roads or get to a place where you are safe, Kolb said. Whiteout conditions with winds up to 50 mph were reported early Tuesday afternoon when cars and semitrailer trucks first became stuck on U.S. 34, near the border of Hall and Hamilton Counties. Snowdrifts were up to 6 feet high. Snowfall totals in the area were up to 18 inches. A second, smaller group of vehicles also got stuck south of I-80 on U.S. 6 north of Clay Center. Hamilton County Sheriff Kirk Handrup said it took him an hour and a half to reach the east end of the blockade of vehicles, west of Aurora, through the snow. The drive usually takes 15 to 20 minutes. It wasnt easy. The visibility was very, very poor, he said. The sheriff came from the east, and a group of Nebraska State troopers in four-wheel-drive vehicles approached from the west, from Grand Island. Five snowplows from the State Department of Roads also were involved in the rescue mission. The Nebraska National Guard was called to provide a personnel carrier from Grand Island, but the vehicle, in the end, was not needed. While truckers are equipped to ride out a storm in their cabs, people in vans and cars generally are not. Handrup said motorists run the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning while sitting in a running vehicle, and they can become lost and freeze to death if they leave the vehicle to seek help. Perez, who was traveling back home from Dallas, said her group stayed put after trying and failing to push their van out of the snow. A cellphone entertained her 4-year-old son, Miguel, until rescuers arrived. It was very cold. Nobody could see nothing. It was all white, Perez said. The sheriff, in a four-wheel-drive pickup, drove Perez and her party back to Aurora, where they spent the night at a motel. About six other motorists, taken to Grand Island by state troopers, stayed overnight at Boarders Inn & Suites. By Wednesday afternoon, the roadblocks had been cleared and the stranded motorists and truckers had moved on. One woman, who was traveling with her husband and four children, said it was the second time that she had been stranded in the central Nebraska city by a blizzard, according to Gabby Martinez, a clerk at Boarders. She said, I dont think Im ever coming to Grand Island again, Martinez said. When the familys car was dropped off Wednesday morning, they wiped the snow off it and took off. Contact the writer: 402-473-9584, paul.hammel@owh.com Tanzanian girl attacked in Bengaluru: " We need more than just a probe" Bengaluru oi-Vicky Bengaluru, Feb 4: Even as the Bengaluru police have launched a probe and even arrested four persons in connection with an incident in which a 21 Tanzanian student was chased, stripped and beaten up, there is a clear indication that much more needs to be done by the law enforcement agencies. For starters, the incident has shaken up the students who have come from other countries to Bengaluru and the first demand is to conduct a confidence building exercise. Bengaluru Shame: Girl stripped off, paraded naked; police among onlookers Bosco Kaweesi, the legal adviser of the All African Student's Association tells OneIndia that the students will not leave. Instead they will pursue their education and even complete it. However apart from a probe, we want a meeting of the students, the local residents, political representatives and also the police, Kaweesi also said. On Sunday night, a 21 year old BBA student of the Acharya college was chased by a mob before being stripped and beaten up. Her car too was burnt down by the mob. The mob which was protesting an accident went on a rampage. A Sudanese national had accidentally run over a 35 year old lady and this had enraged the locals. Confidence building exercise Kaweesi said that the girl who was attacked is traumatised and she would take some time to recover. She will continue studying in Bengaluru, but it would be nice if there is a meeting in which confidence measures can be taken. The students need an assurance that the administration and also the locals are with them he also added. Some of the students have said that the police action was slow. There were police personnel at the spot that night, but they hardly could do or did anything. Sushma calls attack on Tanzanian woman in Bengaluru 'shameful' Kaweesi says that a meeting and a thorough investigation would help. The meeting would also comprise members of the African community from Bengaluru. This confidence building exercise is necessary, he also added. On the incident he said that the victim was attacked by the mob despite not being connected with the accident. The girl was targeted randomly he also added. Police action Meanwhile the police have arrested four persons in connection with this incident. The police have recorded the statement of the victim and based on what she has narrated the relevant sections have been imposed. Bengaluru city police commissioner, N S Megharik has assured of a thorough probe while also adding that there is zero tolerance towards a mob mindset. The Deputy Commissioner of Police (North Division), Suresh T R informed that the girl's statement has been recorded. The relevant sections have been added in the case and investigations are on he also said. The Home Minister of Karnataka, Dr G Parameshwar too visited the victim and assured them of a speedy probe and protection. OneIndia News For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Thursday, February 4, 2016, 8:47 [IST] 'Kantara' impact: 'Daiva Narthakas' above 60 years of age to get Rs 2,000 monthly allowance Late actor Puneeth Rajkumar to be conferred with 'Karnataka Ratna' award on Nov 1 Wonderla Holidays signs MOU with the Karnataka Govt during Invest Karnataka 2016" Bengaluru oi-Oneindia By Oneindia Staff Writer Bengaluru, Feb 4: Wonderla Holidays Limited on Thursday, Feb 4 announced an investment of Rs.150 Crore in the next two years in Karnataka. Wonderla has signed MOU with the Karnataka Government at "Invest Karnataka Meet 2016". This investment will be used to expanding the Wonderla Amusement park in Bidadi, Bengaluru. The MOU has been signed by the Government of Karnataka and is expected to help create 200 jobs by the time of completion. Wonderla plans to commence their expansion plan from 1st of April, 2016 and complete it by 31st of March, 2018. "We are happy to announce our expansion plans in Bengaluru partnering with Karnataka Government. Bengaluru is a hub where people from all around the world come for studies or to pursue their career which builds up potential for growth and expansion. From 2005, Wonderla, Bengaluru, has attracted more than 7.5 million people so we feel it is time to expand fun and amusement at the park" said Mr. Arun K Chittilappilly, Managing Director, Wonderla Holidays Ltd. He further added that, "The Company already signed MOU's with Government of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh to set up amusement parks in these states to strengthen our footprint in South India." About Wonderla Holidays Ltd: Wonderla Holidays Limited is one of the largest operators of amusement parks in India. It is promoted by Arun K Chittilappilly and Kochouseph Chittilappilly and It currently owns and operates two amusement parks under the brand name Wonderla', situated at Kochi and Bangalore. It also owns and operates a resort besides its amusement park in Bangalore under the brand name Wonderla Resort', which has been operational since March 2012. Wonderla's amusement parks offer a wide range of water and land based attractions catering to all age groups. It has 60 fabulous rides in Wonderla Bangalore and 58 rides in Wonderla Kochi. Wonderla is ranked India's No.1 amusement park and Asia's 7th best amusement park as per Trip Advisor ranking for the third consecutive year. Highlights: MOU signed with Hon Chairman of Karnataka Tourism Vision Group Mr.T.V.Mohandas Pai. as part of project expansion Investment of 150 crores for the expansion. Proposed year of commencement is from 1st of April, 2016 Expected to generate 200 jobs by the time of completion, which will be in 31st March 2018 OneIndia news For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Thursday, February 4, 2016, 18:16 [IST] Why handling African students in Bengaluru is no easy job Feature oi-Vicky Bengaluru, Feb 4: The incident, in which a Tanzanian student was reportedly assaulted by an irate mob protesting an accident, has sent shock waves. The Bengaluru police say that they are committed to investigating the case thoroughly. There are certain aspects to this case and also other incidents relating to African students in Bengaluru that one needs to take into account. First and foremost the police had last year a coordination committee with a nodal officer. The committee was set up to address the problems of nearly 5,000 foreign students in Bengaluru. However, this is a committee that has not been approached too many times and students chose to go directly their embassies instead. Now coming to the investigation bit of it. The police have detained four persons are questioning them. The police say that this was an attack by an irate mob and it was not a racist attack. Secondly the police are prima facie ruling out molestation and say that it was a case of assault. Delayed complaint: The police say that the complaint filed by the girl was delayed. The incident took place on Sunday but the complaint was filed only yesterday. The police however add that she may have delayed the complaint because she was traumatised. Further the police are also asking her for the name of the friend who she claimed had helped her. However, she is not revealing that name the police also add. The police during the probe have learnt that she was passing by the road where there was a protest by an irate mob when she was attacked. It was a mob reaction and not a racist attack, the police say. The tussle with the police: While this is an incident that requires condemning there are also other incidents involving African students which has not gone down too well with the police. An African student was arrested near the M S Ramaiah college six years back after he assaulted four night beat police men. There have been various incidents reported on the Airport Road involving these students. Drag racing, rash driving and also incidents of drug peddling in Kamanahalli have all been reported. In most of the cases, the police are threatened if they file complaints. The standard answer that the police always get is that they will complain to their embassy. Most police stay away when the embassy threat is handed out. This is because when a complaint goes up before an embassy it tends to blow into a diplomatic issue. We get such threats from drug peddlers also a police officer said. Go before the committee: The police had last year set up a coordination committee to address the problems of foreign students. The committee comprised a nodal officer with whom complaints could be registered. The nodal officer was instructed to immediately attend to the problems without any delay. The committee formed to cater to the problems of 5,000 foreign students in the city however has not been approached too many times by the students. In the meeting last year the police had told the students that they should approach the nodal officer if they face any problem which also includes visa related concerns. The police had also told the students not to take law into their own hands and strictly restrain from getting into altercations with the police. Further they were also told not to get into arguments with the locals. In case any local was troubling them then they were told to approach the nodal officer. 'Kantara' impact: 'Daiva Narthakas' above 60 years of age to get Rs 2,000 monthly allowance Late actor Puneeth Rajkumar to be conferred with 'Karnataka Ratna' award on Nov 1 5 arrested for assault on Tanzanian student in Bengaluru India oi-Vicky Bengaluru, Feb 4: The Bengaluru police has arrested five persons in connection with the attack on a 21 year old Tanzanian student. All the five are being questioned by the police in connection with the case. [Bengaluru Shame: Girl stripped off, paraded naked; police among onlookers] The police had detained for questioning four persons last night and the fifth person was picked up based on the investigations that the police have been conducting. The victim lodged a complaint with the police yesterday despite the incident taking place on Sunday. The police are also ascertaining her statements. Further the police have also taken statements from her friends. The police say that it was a case of mob fury and not a racist attack. The police are also prima facing ruling out that the girl was molested. The case relates to assault and rioting, the police say. The police suspect that at least 8 to ten persons may have been involved in the incident. We are still looking out for two more persons, police sources also informed. OneIndia News Bengaluru: Heavy rains lead to mayhem, wall collapse; IMD predicts more rains Rs 1,000 fine if found without wearing rear seat belt in Karnataka 'Kantara' impact: 'Daiva Narthakas' above 60 years of age to get Rs 2,000 monthly allowance Late actor Puneeth Rajkumar to be conferred with 'Karnataka Ratna' award on Nov 1 News Flash: People take out candle light march in Delhi on Divyansh death case India oi-Oneindia By Oneindia Staff Writer Bengaluru, Feb 4: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday hoped for better trade and investment between India and Hong Kong. Get all the latest national and international news updates of Thursday, Feb 4 here: 2.25 pm: World leaders pledge over USD 10 billion (9.0 billion euros) to help conflict-hit Syrians. 1.18 pm: Union MinRamvilas Paswan demands that Centre come up with law to entitle reservation for SCs, STs in pvt sector. 1.17 pm: Spain reports first known case of Zika-infected pregnant woman. 1.16 pm: Britain's PM David Cameron says donor conference raised over $10 billion to help millions of Syrians. 12.04 pm: Brazil, Russia are in recession while India & Mexico are enjoying robust growth, says IMF chief Christine Lagarde. 11.04 pm: Batting great Rahul Dravid has been named in ICC's newly appointed Anti-Corruption Oversight Group. 11.00 pm: Sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik spreads awareness of the #ZikaVirus through a sand sculpture. 9.38 pm: Maoist leader carrying a reward of Rs 4 lakh on his head, arrested by police in Khammam, Telangana. 9.19 pm: Very sad to know that 10 of our brave soldiers lost their lives in an avalanche in Siachen,says Rahul Gandhi. 9.07 pm: My heartfelt condolences to near and dear ones of our brave soldiers who were martyred in line of duty at Siachen: Manohar Parrikar. 8.37 pm: UN panel rules Julian Assange's detention illegal: Swedish Foreign Ministry. 8.19 pm: CY Leung (Chief Executive of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region) meets EAM Sushma Swaraj, earlier today. 8.16 pm: I still feel this is not a racial attack, it was a response to an accident where a lady was killed: G Parameshwara, K'taka HM TanzanianGirl. 7.56 pm: Medical Board of AIIMS has provided us FBI report with their opinion: BS Bassi, CP Delhi on Sunanda Pushkar death. 7:23 pm: Biswajeet Shah (resident of Regent Park) is arrested from Central Kolkata for making threat calls. 7:16 pm: Those who were attacked were innocent,they were not part of accident. Thats the truth-Bosco Kaweesi, Legal Adviser. 7:15 pm: Pakistan DGMO offered help for rescue of Indian soldiers who came under snow Avalanche in Siachen, Indian Army say no to Pak Army help. 7:00 pm: Ryan International School (Vasant Kunj) Death Case: People take out candle light march in Delhi. 6:53 pm: ED writes for extradition of the main accused Christian Michel in Augusta Westland chopper scam. 6:38 pm: 2 LeT terrorists killed in ongoing encounter in Bandipore, 1 more suspected to be still present. 6:23 pm: Principal, 4 others arrested from Delhi Ryan International school where child died. 5 ppl arrested. Let us give police time, investigation on. Will see result then-Bosco Kaweesi (Legal Adviser, All African Students Union) ANI (@ANI_news) February 4, 2016 6:01 pm: Retired IAS officers Khurshid Ganai & Pervez Dewan appointed as Advisors to J&K Governor N N Vohra as political uncertainty prolongs. Gurpreet (Woman who was rescued from a refugee camp in Germany) arrives in Delhi with her 8-year old daughter. pic.twitter.com/5ACrYlQ1xp ANI (@ANI_news) February 4, 2016 5:49 pm: Delhi Police arrest Ryan International School principal and three other staff members in Divyansh Kakrora Death case. 5:45 pm: I have come here to appeal to you all that you all should vote in favor of development, says BJP President Amit Shah in Kerala. 5:33 pm: BJP President Amit Shah addressing a rally in Kottayam (Kerala). 5:15 pm: Nepal's Finance Minister will visit India on 7th & 8th February, says MEA. 5:02 pm: We condemn this incident unequivocally,says Vikas Swarup (MEA) on Tanzanian Girl incident 4:35 pm: CBI Court sends suspended Noida chief engineer Yadav Singh to 6-day CBI custody. 4:30 pm: Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu pays tribute at War Memorial in on Visakhapatnamnternational Fleet Review. 4:26 pm: Bomb threat at Nabanna (state secretariat) in Kolkata (WB). High security checking is going on. Joint CP Crime at spot. 4:00 pm: NIA Court sends ISIS suspect arrested from Bhopal to 15 day police custody. 3:45 pm: Murud Beach tragedy victim's parents allegedly threatened by college administration in Pune. 3:15 pm: CJI Thakur's observes:Will hear BCCI only if there is some inherent anomaly in report." BCCI counsel said, 'We can read writings on wall" 3.00 pm: With deepest regret we have to state that chances of finding any survivors are very remote, says Defence Spox, MoD. 2.56 pm: Court said Delhi govt orders interfere with the autonomy of pvt unaided schools, says Vedant Verma, lawyer for pvt schools. 2.40 pm: Floral tribute to MA Ayyangar at Parliament in New Delhi. 2.20 pm: We condemn ISIS. Humara ISIS se koi taalluk nhi hai aur na kabhi rahega, says Asaduddin Owaisi in Faizabad, UP. 2.00 pm: I am most grateful to govt of India for facilitating my return to India, says Gurpreet, rescued from German refugee camp. 1.55 pm: US drone strike kills a prominent Al-Qaeda chief in south Yemen. 1.50 pm: Chief Executive of Hong Kong SAR CY Leung meets Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Chief Executive of Hong Kong SAR CY Leung met Prime Minister Narendra Modi (Source: PMO) pic.twitter.com/2YtirAwxBO ANI (@ANI_news) February 4, 2016 1.45 pm: German police have arrested two Algerians they suspect of links to the Islamic State. 1.40 pm: Bihar Govt delayed in paying scholarship money to some SC/ST students in college in Bhubaneswar, says Dharmendra Pradhan. 1.35 pm: Racial discrimination should not happen in India.If such a thing happens, its unfortunate, says Kiren Rijiju, MoS Home Tanzanian Girl assault case. 1.30 pm: Enforcement Directorate raids properties of NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal at multiple locations in Nashik, Maharashtra. 1.25 pm: Delhi court acquits UP MLA Mukhtar Ansari and three other accused persons in a MCOCA case. 1.20 pm: Tanzanian girl assault case: Ministry of Home Affairs seeks report from Karnataka Govt. I am optimistic that GST, real estate and bankruptcy bills will be passed in Budget session: Venkaiah Naidu. pic.twitter.com/nra1dBdSbz ANI (@ANI_news) February 4, 2016 1.15 pm: "We have been in touch and will remain in touch in future as well. Continuing our interaction with them (Congress)", says Venkaiah Naidu. She did not say that she was stripped and paraded-Karnataka DGP Om Prakash on #TanzanianGirl case pic.twitter.com/YelFrqV9D8 ANI (@ANI_news) February 4, 2016 1.10 pm: Encounter between security forces & militants underway in Hajin in Bandipore, J&K. Encounter btwn security forces & militants underway in Hajin (Bandipore, J&K) (visuals deferred by unspecified time)https://t.co/xWIQjD6qYn ANI (@ANI_news) February 4, 2016 1.05 pm: We take all necessary disciplinary action in accordance with company policy and procedures, Jet Airways says. 1.00 pm: A Jet Airways crew member involved in fake currency smuggling arrested at Bombay Airport with 2.6 crore as he was departing for Bangkok. 12.45 pm: It was decided that the President be recommended to address the joint session of Parl on 23rd Feb, says Venkaiah Naidu. 12.30 pm: If that is the case, it is work in progress, says John WH Kijazi (Tanzania ambassador to India) on 5 people arrested in Tanzanian Girl case. 12.25 pm: Thats my assessment. She was attacked because she was black like guy who caused the accident, says John WH Kijazi. 12.14 pm: First part of Budget session to end on March 16; second part starts from April 25 to May 13: Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu after CCPA. 11.30 am: Heavy snow cutters and major equipment has been put into use to clear and cut the ice blocks, which is taking time: Indian Army. 10.49 am: Regarding Tanzania students, detailed investigation is on. Of the accused persons, 5 are arrested. A detailed repport on this has been sent to MEA says Karnataka Chief Minister Suddaramaiah. 10.40 am: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley speaking at the India Investment Summit 2016 in Delhi. 10.17 am: Suspicious object found on Allahabad-Mirzapur highway, bomb disposal squad at the spot 10.04 am: Five persons have been arrested in connection with the attack on a Tanzanian student at Bengaluru. 9.35 am: Wikileaks founder Julian Assange says will exit Ecuador embassy, accept arrest on Friday if loses UN case: Wikileaks. 9.23 am: Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka govt to submit report on 21-yr-old Tanzanian woman assaulted in Bengaluru. 9.00 am: 60 Bihar students studying engineering in Odisha, forced to leave institution after Bihar govt allegedly stopped paying their stipends. 8.15 am: BJP President Amit Shah to address a rally in Kottayam, Kerala today. OneIndia News At Pathankot, this is what terrorists wanted to destroy India oi-Vicky Pathankot, Feb 4: In the aftermath of the Pathankot attack, it was said that although the response could have been much better, the security forces still managed to safeguard the strategic assets at the air base. The terrorists had come with a clear intention of destroying as much possible at the air base. Investigations that are being carried out suggest that the terrorists were planning on destroying the MIG- 21 fighters in particular. They had sufficient ammunition on them to cause heavy damage at the air base. However, they were restricted to a non-operational area of the air base and finally gunned down. [Timeline of Pathankot terror attack] What did the terrorists plan on destroying? Investigations suggest that the terrorists had a fair idea of what was present in the base. The NIA has been questioning several persons who are aware of the logistics at the air base to find out if any information had leaked. Some air force officials too would be questioned in the days to come, NIA officials tell OneIndia. Had the terrorists managed to completely infiltrate the base then the damage would have been unimaginable. They were looking to destroy the MIG-21 fighter, the MI-35 choppers and also the control room. Had they succeeded it would have not only been embarrassing, but would have also caused immense loss. The NIA says that the investigations are on the right track. There is a lot that has to be probed within the officer said while also adding that with each passing day more Pakistan links are also emerging. As and when we get the proof we are sharing it with Pakistan through the right sources. We are yet to get a response from Pakistan where the call details are concerned as they are crucial to the probe, the official also added. OneIndia News Power cut in Chennai on October 19: These areas will be affected EPS, his supporters detained for trying to hold hunger strike in TN assembly Tamil Nadu: Light to moderate rain in the next few days HC issues notice to TN on plea challenging appointments India oi-PTI Chennai,Feb 4: The Madras High Court today issued notice to the state government on a plea challenging appointment of advocates and others as members of Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission,allegedly due to their political affiliation to AIADMK. The First Bench, comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice MM Sundresh, before which the petition filed by Advocates Forum for Social Justice affiliated to PMK came up, directed government to file its counter by March 31. Forum president K.Balu alleged that the appointments were made without following any procedure transparent in nature and in an arbitrary manner without laying down any guidelines and without following the mandatory law laid down by the Supreme Court. The petitioner alleged that the members appointed belong to one particular community and prayed to declare the appointments vide government order dated January 31 as illegal and consequently set aside the appointments. The petitioner also sought an interim stay on the operation of the government order issued by the Personal Administrative Reforms (M) Department during the pendency of the petition. Advocate General A.L. Somayaji for the state and Niraimadi, Government Advocate, appearing for TNPSC, received the notices respectively. PTI Invest Karnataka: Sorry, no place for beggars and dogs India oi-Oneindia By Maitreyee Boruah Bengaluru, Feb 4: The much-hyped three-day global meet Invest Karnataka-2016 kick-started with much fanfare in Bengaluru on February 3 (Wednesday). The who's who of political and business communities attended the inaugural ceremony with the promise to turn Karnataka into an investment "paradise". In order to make Bengaluru, look like a world-class metropolis for the visiting guests from across the globe, the state government took utmost care to hide the dark realities of the city. The government officials directed the Bengaluru Police to clear all beggars from the arterial roads of the city. The state government does not want the VIPs, especially from the foreign shores, to witness people with begging bowls on traffic signals. "It has been learnt that special police officers have been deputed to check the presence of beggars on the city roads. As a large number of transgenders beg on the city roads, several of them have reported harassment from police. They have been asked to stay away from the roads," said Rajesh Umadivi, an activist. Moreover, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) officials were engaged to keep stray dogs out from Palace Grounds, the venue of the global summit. India's tech hub has a large population of stray canines and Palace Grounds locality is no different. Reports suggest that the locality has around 150 stray dogs and organisers don't want any dogs to come close to the venue. BBMP has taken the service of dog-catchers to net the canines. The three-day event aimed at attracting both domestic and foreign investment was kicked-off by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. The inauguration of the investors' meet saw the participation of Union Ministers and business leaders, including Tata Trust Chairman Ratan Tata, Infosys Co-Founder and Chairman N.R. Narayana Murthy and Walmart India CEO Kris Iyer, to name a few. Jaitley to open Karnataka investment meet, Rahul to attend Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaraiah is hoping to attract an investment of Rs 2.5 lakh crore in the coming days. We don't know if the Chief Minister's wishes would be fulfilled or not, but one thing is for sure, stray dogs and beggars would hit the city roads again once the event gets over. OneIndia News Islamic State bomber detained in Russia for attempting attack in India was recruited through Telegram Why India should get access to Islamic State bomber detained in Russia Prosecutions story may be attractive but should be backed by evidence ISIS creates wing to target cow worshiping Hindus, says Report India oi-Jagriti New Delhi, Feb 4: If reports are to be believed then Islamic State (ISIS) is preparing to target cow worshiping Hindus in India. According to terror group's propaganda magazine Dabiq, ISIS has created a special wing Khorasan to target Hindus in India, reported Zee News. The report also claims that the Sunni radical group is also planning to reach Jammu and Kashmir. The terror group is ready with a blueprint to attack not just Hindus but also Shia Muslims. Amidst increasing attempts by ISIS to lure Indians into its fold, Home Minister Rajnath Singh held a meeting with top Muslim clerics on February 2 and sought their cooperation to check the growing tentacles of the dreaded group among Muslim youth. If not me then someone else: Alleged ISIS man tells NIA Dozens of ISIS sympathisers have been arrested from various parts of India in recent days. OneIndia News For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Thursday, February 4, 2016, 9:01 [IST] Embarrassment for Congress: Ashok Chavan may be prosecuted in Adarsh Society scam Trouble for Ashok Chavan! Maha Governor tells CBI to prosecute former CM in Adarsh scam India oi-Mukul Mumbai, Feb 4: Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan could be in trouble soon. In an embarrassment for Maha Congress, Governor CH Vidyasagar Rao has given his permission to prosecute Chavan in Adarsh housing scam. Governor has ordered the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to proceed in this direction. Chavan whose name had cropped up in the Adarsh Society scam forcing him to step down as chief minister in 2010, will be prosecuted under section 197 of Cr PC, for offences under Section 120-B and 420 of the IPC. Last week, the BJP-Shiv Sena government led by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had urged Governor to allow the CBI to prosecute Chavan. Presently, Chavan, 57, is the Congress Lok Sabha member from Nanded and also heads the party's Maharashtra unit. In 2013, then governor K Sankaranarayanan had rejected the Central Bureau of Investigation plea to prosecute him when the Congress-NCP government led by Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan was in office. However, citing grounds that it has unearthed 'fresh evidence', the CBI has again sought permission to prosecute Chavan. Chavan, the son of former chief minister and union home minister S.B. Chavan, retaliated by terming it as a vendetta by the BJP-Shiv Sena government. "It's a political vendetta against me. The Congress is raising issues of public importance and highlighting the failures of the BJP-led governments both in the state and the Centre. That's why they are targeting opposition leaders and misusing the CBI," Chavan hit back. He demanded to know that when the then governor had declined sanction after consulting the state solicitor general, on what grounds the state was now going ahead with the prosecution. In the CBI charge sheet, Chavan was listed as an accused and a two-member Commission of Inquiry comprising Justice (retired) J.A. Patil of the Bombay High Court and former chief secretary P. Subramanian had accused Chavan of 'political patronage' and 'quid pro quo'. Following the rejection by the then governor, the CBI moved the Bombay High Court to drop Chavan's name as an accused in the case. Chavan and 12 others are accused of conspiracy, cheating and criminal misconduct in the infamous Adarsh Society scam -- related to a 31-storey plush building in Colaba originally meant to house families of war heroes. After the scam broke out in 2010, and the probe panel found many in the society ineligible to be members, the building was fully vacated a few years ago. OneIndia News (With inputs from IANS) On camera: Youth tied to scooter, dragged for 2 km because he couldn't repay loan Odisha: BJP leader booked for misbehaving with police India oi-PTI Sambalpur (Odisha), Feb 4: A case was registered against BJP leader Jayanarayana Mishra for allegedly misbehaving with a police officer during the visit of Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bhartai to Hirakud Dam in Sambalpur district on Feb 3. In a complaint Inspector in-charge of Burla police station Tophan Bag alleged that Mishra had abused him when he stopped the leader's vehicle from entering through the Dam. "I was instructed not to allow more vehicles through the dam for security reasons. The vehicle of Union Minister Uma Bharti and officials of concerned department passed through the it," he said. Mishra's vehicle had appeared after some time and did not have the permission to pass through the dam. It was, therefore, stopped, the police inspector said, adding he was only doing his duty. Mishra, he said, came out of the vehicle, abused him and then tried to assault him. Other BJP leaders who were present at the spot stopped him. He further alleged that some supporters of Mishra forcibly entered through the gate and passed through the dam. Mishra has, however, denied the allegation and claimed that it was the police officer who misbehaved. "Earlier, I had called on the Union Minister and she told me to accompany her. I was in a vehicle that I was asked to board. However, the Inspector in-charge of Burla police station stopped our vehicle. When I asked for reason, he started misbehaving. I never abused the inspector," said Mishra. Superintendent of Police (Sambalpur) Akhilesvar Singh said a case has been registered in this connection and investigation is in progress. PTI Karnataka govt directs seizure of Ola, Uber autos still plying, despite orders to stop Ola Cabs CEO's grandmother, aunt murdered in Ludhiana India oi-Preeti Ludiana, Feb 4: Ola cab CEO Bhavish Agarwal's paternal grandmother and aunt were brutally murdered at their residence at Sher-e-Punjab Colony in Ludhiana on Jan 29. A week after the double murder, investigating police officials have not been able to crack the case. According to reports, police are suspecting the involvement of their domestic maid Pooja, who had made a call at 12.43 pm and murder took place at 1.30 pm. Police had detained her, but released her following lack of evidence and protest by slum dwellers. Police had found multiple injuries on head, throat, arms ad legs of both the deceased-- Agarwal's 84-year-old grandmother Pushpawati and his 55-year-old aunt Dr Sarita. Postmortem reports indicated that a hammer might have used in carrying out the killings, but police is yet to recover it. Police is also searching for two drivers who were earlier employed with Agarwal's but both had left the job few months ago. On Dec 30, 2015, Agarwal's grandfather BR Agarwal had passed away. OneIndia News Jammu admin withdraws order allowing residents of more than 1 year to become voters Omar Abdullah flays attack on Tanzanian student in Bengaluru India oi-PTI Srinagar, Feb 4: Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has said that incidents like the Bangalore mob action against a Tanzanian woman cause irreparable damage to relations with African countries. "None of our fancy government summits in Delhi will undo the damage done to relations with countries in Africa by incidents like #Bangalore," he wrote on Twitter. None of our fancy government summits in Delhi will undo the damage done to relations with countries in Africa by incidents like #Bangalore. Omar Abdullah (@abdullah_omar) February 3, 2016 The National Conference working president was reacting to the incident in Bengaluru where a Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car here. The 21-year-old Tanzanian, who is doing her Bachelor of Business Management course, was dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends. PTI 32-year-old critical after being shot at in Gurugram OMG! SUV of Lalu Prasad's son-in-law snatched at gunpoint in Gurgaon India oi-PTI Gurgaon, Feb 4: The car of RJD president Lalu Prasad Yadav's son-in-law Vinit Yadav was today snatched by some unidentified persons at gunpoint near Sikandarpur metro station on the busy M G road here, police said. The white colour Toyota Fortuner was being driven by Vinit's driver Hari Prakash when four to five assailants intercepted it at gunpoint in broad daylight, a police official said. "After stopping the vehicle the assailants dragged the driver out of the car and fled with it," APRO and ACP, Gurgaon Police, Hawa Singh said. The RJD supremo's son-in-law, who is a resident of Delhi, was not in the car at the time of the incident, Singh said. Police have registered a case under the Arms Act and launched a hunt for the culprits, the ACP said. PTI Porbandar Boat association urges PM to bring fishermen home India oi-PTI Ahmedabad, Feb 4: Porbandar Fishermen Boat association has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to initiate efforts to bring back the jailed Indian fishermen and their boats from Pakistan. In a letter addressed to Modi, the association's president Manish Lodhari claimed that there are around 440 Indian fishermen, mostly from Gujarat, and around 860 boats in the custody of Pakistan. He also claimed that out of these 860, 604 boats belong to Porbandar. Lodhari expressed hopes that looking at the current "amicable" atmosphere between the two countries, it will be easier now to bring the fishermen and their boats back home. Claiming that even Pakistani authorities are willing to release the fishermen, Lodhari urged Modi to take prompt action. He also stated that families of the fishermen are living in miserable conditions and eagerly waiting for their family members to return. "Out of the 860 boats captured by Pakistani authorities in the recent past, 115 are in good shape and can be brought back. If these boats will not be brought here soon, they will also become useless," the letter, sent yesterday, stated. Lodhari also sent a separate letter to Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh about the release of subsidy to fishermen under the soft loan package. According to him, most fishermen in Gujarat have received the subsidy of Rs 5 lakh given by Agriculture Ministry and Rs 6 lakh under the PM Relief Fund. He, however, claimed that there are still 60 fishermen who have not yet received the benefit. Meanwhile, son of a fisherman from Gujarat who died in a Pakistan jail in December, has also written to the Prime Minister urging him to intervene and expedite the process of bringing back his father's body to their village in Girsomnath district. PTI Road Rage Shocker: After Tanzanian student assaulted in Bengaluru, another woman kidnapped in Mumbai India oi-Nairita Mumbai, Feb 4: Assault of a Tanzanian student in Bengaluru has made headlines across the country on Wednesday, Feb 3. Now, another road rage news has been reported from Mumbai. This time, the woman has been kidnapped at gunpoint. The 40-year-old woman has been identified as Shilpa Berma. She along with her friend was driving a car which accidentally hit a man. [Bengaluru Shame: Girl stripped off, paraded naked; police among onlookers] Shilpa's friend, who was there with the victim at the time of the accident, was quoted as saying, "The man started banging our bonnet and windscreen, asking us to unlock the door." "As we unlocked the doors, he entered the car and sat behind Berma, who was driving the car. He took out a pistol and ordered us to drive," she added. "...We tried to get off the car and escape, but he came after us and grabbed Shilpa by her hand. As I tried to follow them, he pointed the gun at me and threatened to kill me. He took away my bag and purse and started dragging her in the opposite direction," the friend added. Police have formed several teams and have been trying to locate whereabouts of Shilpa and her kidnapper. The shocking news from Mumbai surfaced at a time when everyone was discussing about the road rage case in Bengaluru. [Tanzanian student not stripped and paraded, case handed over to CCB says Karnataka HM] A Tanzanian student, who is a BBA student of Acharya Institute in Bengaluru, was allegedly assaulted by an irate mob following an accident in which a woman was killed. OneIndia News For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Thursday, February 4, 2016, 14:33 [IST] Delhi air quality projected to cross 301 by Sat; GRAP stage II comes into effect ahead of Diwali Rohith's suicide: Will Smriti Irani meet & address the issues of students? India oi-Oneindia By Maitreyee Boruah New Delhi, Feb 4: The protesting students of University of Hyderabad (UoH), Hyderabad, are all set to hit the roads of Delhi on February 20. As a part of their Chalo Delhi campaign, organised by the Joint Action Committee (JAC) for Social Justice, the students are planning to stage a protest outside the office of Union Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani and demand her resignation. They are also demanding the removal of Minister of Labour and Employment Bandaru Dattatreya from the Union cabinet and sacking of Prof P Appa Rao from the UoH vice-chancellor's post. The campus of UoH is on the boil since the suicide of Rohith Vemula. The 26-year-old Dalit research scholar was found hanged in the university campus on January 17. Rohith was one of the five scholars who were expelled, after a scuffle broke out between the Ambedkar Students' Association (ASA) (Rohith was a member of ASA) and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) in August last year. The press release of JAC issued on February 3 (Wednesday) states, "We appeal to the entire nation to join us in the protest in Delhi against the injustice meted out to our friend Rohith." February 20 is observed as World Day of Social Justice across the globe. "We are starting our campaign tour on February 8. We will be organising bus yatras to all the universities and colleges in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Besides, we will also meet student members of the All India Joint Action Committee for Social Justice across the country," adds the press release. On February 6, the JAC is also hosting a meeting at UoH. The meeting is likely to be attended by members belonging to several fact finding committees, student activists, members of progressive and democratic organisations and political parties. Although the classes have resumed in the campus few days ago, the students continued their relay hunger strike. According to the members of JAC, the relay hunger strike will continue till all their demands are addressed. OneIndia News Delhi air quality projected to cross 301 by Sat; GRAP stage II comes into effect ahead of Diwali IRCTC update: 140 trains cancelled on October 20; here is the complete list Partial solar eclipse on Diwali: Can you perform Lakshmi Puja on Oct 25? Ryan school boy's death: Police to receive AIIMS report today India oi-PTI New Delhi, Feb 4: Delhi Police are likely to receive a report from AIIMS relating to the postmortem of the six-year-old boy of Ryan International school, Vasant Kunj, who was found dead in a water tank under the school's amphitheatre on Jan 30. The report will list findings related to the boy's postmortem examination and other details which the police will match with the evidence collected during the investigation, said a senior official. The police are also likely to add IPC sections pertaining to the charge of tampering evidence in the FIR registered at Vasant Kunj North police station. Meanwhile, the police continued questioning school authorities, the official said. A team of experts from AIIMS visited the spot today, the senior official said adding that the police are yet to finalise the sequence of events leading to the boy's death. Divyansh Kakrora, a Class I student of the Ryan International school, was found dead on January 30, following which Delhi government had ordered a magisterial probe. PTI Should Kar HM have named Tanzanian victim or connected accident to the assault India oi-Vicky New Delhi, Feb 4: Dr G Parameshwar has already stirred up a controversy a few minutes after he addressed a press conference relating to the incident in which a Tanzanian national was assaulted. For starters all through the press conference he named the woman which is not morally right. Tanzanian student not stripped and paraded, case handed over to CCB says Karnataka HM Secondly he made a statement in which he said that had the Sudanese national not run over a lady and killed this such an incident would have never occurred. It is not really clear what Dr Parameshwar meant when he tried saying that the mob fury would not have taken place had there not been an accident. The assault may have been a post reaction of the accident, but to connect the two does not look like it is in the right spirit. Omar Abdullah the former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir was quick to tweet, " Because a Sudanese man is the first person in Karnataka to ever run over another person, right? Make him shut up!!! The fact is that a lady was assaulted by an irate mob. There was very little that the police did to stop the mob fury in the first place. All through the presser today, the Home Minister spoke very less about the action that was taken or not taken by the police. He even said that the girl lodged her complaint very late. While it is true that the victim went to the press before the police, it is pertinent to note that a suo motu complaint too could have been lodged. Parameshwar did say that when the four students in the car were assaulted a Hoysala or night patrol team did reach the spot. The police officials took the driver to the hospital while leaving behind one other personnel at the spot. It was clear that the one police personnel was unable to control the irate mob as a result of which the girl was assaulted. Another blooper was that the home minister all through took the name of the girl. The girl has alleged that she was molested a charge that police and the home minister have denied. However the investigation has just begun and police and the home minister are just speaking on the basis of what is prima facie available. Unless it is clearly ascertained that there was no molestation, it is not morally right to take the name of a victim. OneIndia news For Breaking News and Instant Updates Allow Notifications Story first published: Thursday, February 4, 2016, 13:35 [IST] Another targeted killing: Two non-locals killed in targeted attack in J&K Siachen avalanche: Chances of finding survivors remote News oi-Oneindia By OneIndia Defence Bureau Jammu, Feb 04: The rescue teams from Indian Army and Indian Air Force (IAF) are battling adverse weather conditions in search of missing soldiers in Siachen. The officials undertaking the search operations say that the chances of finding any survivors are now very remote. According to Ministry of Defence Spokesperson S D Goswami, search operations by specialised teams of Indian Army and the IAF have entered the second day on Thursday. As reported by OneIndia earlier, at least 10 Army personnel from the Madras Regiment, including a Junior Commissioned Officer, were feared killed under a mass of snow after an avalanche hit a military post at Siachen Glacier in Jammu and Kashmir. 10 soldiers feared killed after avalanche hits army post in Siachen The soldiers were hit by the massive avalanche in the early hours of Tuesday (February 3). "Specialised equipment was flown in to Leh on Thursday morning to further boost the rescue efforts. The glaciated area presents temperatures ranging from a minimum of minus 42 degrees in the night to maximum of minus 25 degrees during the day," the spokesperson said. According to him, the rescue teams are braving adverse weather and effects of rarified atmosphere to locate and rescue survivors. Lt Gen D S Hooda, Army Commander, Northern Command has expressed his grief on the tragic incident. "It is a tragic event and we salute the soldiers who braved all challenges to guard our frontiers and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty," Lt Gen Hooda said. An Army official told OneIndia that the search operations will continue for some more time, despite adverse weather conditions. "It's a sad day for all of us. Search operations will continue," the official said. OneIndia News Student activism reached tipping point : Narayanan India oi-PTI Kolkata, Feb 4: Stating that student activism has reached a tipping point, former Governor of West Bengal MK Narayanan today said that students' union politics has reached a stage where unions have become mere extension of political parties. "Student activism has reached a tipping point. This is transforming the University landscape across the country. Student union politics have also reached the stage where unions are mere extensions of political parties. As a consequence of this, VCs, Deans and professors often face extended period of gherao highlighting the fact that Communalism on campuses has become more widespread," Narayanan said. Chancellors and Vice-Chancellors of prominent universities of the country were invited to share their views on higher education. The former Governor was speaking at a seminar organised by Neotia University (TNU), West Bengal, where Chancellors and Vice Chancellors of prominent universities of the country were invited to share their views on higher education. Narayanan made this statement when students' agitation in several universities in West Bengal has brought to light the issue of political interference affecting the "tranquil atmosphere of the campuses". "It is evident that Universities are not in good shape. There is clearly an absence of the tranquil atmosphere. There are segments of student, no doubt, who are intensely focused on their studies and keen to enhance their knowledge capabilities, but it would seem that the vast majority of student do not belong to his category. This partly explains the decline in the standard of University education," he said. "The lack of an intellectual ferment possibly explains why Indian Universities figure nowhere in pecking order when it comes to grading Universities internationally," Narayanan observed. PTI Sushma Swaraj to pay 2-day visit to Lanka on Feb 5 India oi-PTI New Delhi, Feb 4: External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will travel to Colombo tomorrow on a two-day visit during which she will hold talks with the top Sri Lankan leadership and attend the 9th Indo-Lanka Joint Commission meeting to discuss key bilateral and regional issues. On her second visit to Sri Lanka within a year, Swaraj and her Lankan counterpart Mangala Samaraweera will co-chair the Joint Commission meet which will be held tomorrow in Colombo. The meeting is expected to discuss cooperation in areas such as economy, trade, power and energy, technical and maritime cooperation, social, cultural and educational matters, science and technology, defence cooperation, health, civil aviation, tourism and people-to-people contact. The last meeting of the Joint Commission was held in New Delhi in January 2013. The joint commission was set up in 1992 as a mechanism to address issues pertaining to bilateral cooperation. During her trip, Swaraj will call on President Maithripala Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and meet other top leaders and hold wide-ranging talks with them. The issue of fishermen is likely to come up for discussion. India-Sri Lanka relations had seen lows during last few years of the tenure of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was voted out of power, even as China had expanded its footprint in the country by building ports, highways and participating in other infrastructure projects. The ties gained momentum after the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to that country in March last year, the first bilateral tour by an Indian premier in over 25 years. PTI Tanzanian student not stripped and paraded, case handed over to CCB says Karnataka HM India oi-Vicky New Delhi, Feb 4: The Home Minister of Karnataka, Dr G Parameshwar said that the case relating to the assault on a Tanzanian student is being viewed seriously and the case has been transferred to the City Crime Branch. Tanzanian girl attacked in Bengaluru: ' We need more than just a probe' Addressing a press conference at Bengaluru today, the home minister said that the case is being probed with all seriousness and will be taken to the logical end. He further said that five persons have already been arrested and more are likely. Lokesh Bangari, Venkatesh Ramaiah, Saleem Pasha, Banu Prakash and Rehmatullah are the persons who have been arrested, he informed. The Home Minister while condemning the attack also said that reports suggesting that the girl was paraded naked and molested are completely false. Those overstaying will be reported: The Home Minister while speaking about foreign students in the city said that protection will always be provided. We have identified those areas where foreign students live and enhanced protection will be granted. The protection of foreign students is our duty he also added. Tanzanian student case: Rahul Gandhi seeks report from KTK govt Such incidents should not take place and we will ensure that they dont, Dr Parameshwar also said. Further he also issued a subtle warning to those foreign students who are overstaying without valid visas. He said in such cases their respective embassies would be immediately informed. Drunken driving and then a riot: Narrating the incident, the Home Minister said that last Sunday a Sudanese national Mohammad Ismail was driving his car in a drunken state at Hesarghatta. He hit a couple Sanauallah and Shabana. In this accident Shabana died on the spot. This angered the locals and they set fire to the car. Ismail was shifted to hospital immediately along with Sanauallah who too had sustained injuries. In the meantime the mob came across a Wagon R car in which they were four students. The mob waylaid the car and assaulted the persons inside it. The driver of the car was taken to hospital in the Hoysala or night patrol vehicle immediately. In the meantime the mob assaulted the lady student from Tanzania. However an Iranian reached the spot and whisked them away to safety. The police had immediately registered a complaint relating to the accident and had began their probe. However the victim student gave her statement to the police two days after the incident and the same was registered as well, he added. The probe is being handled now by the CCB. We have given a report to the Ministry of External Affairs regarding the same. More arrests are likely, the home minister also informed. OneIndia News Two pre-university students missing, search continues India oi-PTI Mangaluru, Feb 4: A special police team is continuing the search for the two teenaged girls who went missing from a pre-university college in the city on February 1. The girls, aged 16 and 17, had attended the classes on the day and had left the college at around 2.30 pm, the college authorities said. They had also produced before the police the CCTV images of the girls leaving the college at that time. The parents of the commerce students registered a missing complaint with police on the evening of Feb 1 itself. Police said they were finding it difficult to locate the students as they were not carrying mobile phones with them. The girls also did not have much money with them, they said. They have questioned a youth from another college on seeing a Whatsapp chat with one of the missing students. However, no substantial clue was available, police said. Photos of the girls have been published in the social media seeking the co-operation of the public in the search. PTI A great tragedy say activists after 200 bodies are recovered from roof of Pakistan hospital International news brief: Confident of Pak's commitment, ability to secure its nuclear assets, says US & more From 'dangerous' to 'secure and confident': US makes a u-turn after Biden's comment on Pak The persecution of Hindus in Pakistan continues with a Hindu girl forcibly converted and married 'India won't listen to anyone': Anurag Thakur gives strong reply to PCB Pak PM, army chief discuss role of hostile foreign agencies International oi-PTI Islamabad, Feb 4: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and army chief General Raheel Sharif today discussed the role of hostile foreign intelligence agencies and their collaborators in fomenting instability in the country. According to the Inter-Services Public Relations, the two met at the ISI headquarters in Islamabad, Chief of Army Staff General Raheel emphasised on the need for continued efforts across the country to consolidate gains of Operation Zarb-e-Azb against militants. Army spokesman Lieutenant General Asim Saleem Bajwa said the meeting was attended by security officials including ISI chief Lieutenant General Rizwan Akhtar. "The role of hostile (foreign) intelligence agencies and their collaborators in fomenting instability in Pakistan and undermining Pakistan's interests was discussed in detail," Bajwa said. The "hostile agencies" were, however, not officially identified. The participants also reviewed the internal and external threat perceptions, including those from terrorist networks. The meeting also discussed the "management of Pak-Afghan border" and how to improve it to stop incursions from Afghanistan. Sharif appreciated the efforts and achievements of the army and intelligence agencies in achieving "major breakthroughs" and bringing a noticeable change in the security environment of the country. He said the entire nation was proud of its premier intelligence agency, reiterating that the government and the nation stood behind its armed forces. General Raheel underscored the need for continued efforts across country in consolidating gains of operation Zarb-e-Azb and intelligence based operations to ensure sustainable peace. Media reported that Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan and NSA Lt-Gen (retd) Nasser Janjua also attended the meeting. PTI Sri Lanka vs Pakistan: When and where to watch Asia Cup 2022 Final Match live online? Sri Lanka lifts unofficial ban on Tamil national anthem at I-Day International oi-PTI Colombo, Feb 4: Lifting an unofficial ban, Sri Lanka's national anthem was today sung in Tamil at a ceremony here to mark the the country's independence day, in an effort to achieve reconciliation with the ethnic minority community. School children rendered the Sinhala and Tamil versions of the national anthem at a colourful celebration at the Galle Face Green park to mark the 68th anniversary of Sri Lanka's independence from Britain. The move, despite opposition from some quarters, is being seen as an effort by the government to reach out to the Tamil minority after the nearly 26-year war with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) that ended in 2009. About 100,000 people were killed during the civil war. "A new journey begins by reinstating the singing of the national anthem in Tamil," said Deputy Minister for Public Enterprise Development Eran Wickramaratne. Deputy Foreign Minister Harsha de Silva in a Facebook post said: "A first in my lifetime. After many years the Independence Day celebrations came to a close with the national anthem sung in Tamil." President Maithripala Sirisena since becoming President in 2015 by defeating Mahinda Rajapaksa, under whose leadership the Sri Lankan forces defeated the LTTE, has begun several actions to win back the Tamils in the reconciliation process. Rajapaksa had imposed an unofficial ban on the Tamil version of the national anthem. At last year's Independence Day celebrations a 'Declaration of Peace' was read out paying respects to all ethnic groups killed in the civil war with a pledge not to allow violence to recur. The Peace statement was delivered in all three languages by school children. PTI UN panel rules in favour of Julian Assange: Report International oi-PTI London, Feb 4: A UN panel has ruled that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been "arbitrarily detained" in the UK, a media report said on Thursday. No official announcement has yet been made by the United Nations' Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in Geneva but BBC Radio 4 reported that it understands the decision has been made in Assange's favour. The UN panel has been considering a request by Assange for a ruling. It is due to announce its findings tomorrow. Assange, 44, was granted political asylum by Ecuador, which has housed him since 2012 at its central London embassy. The whistleblower has said he is willing to surrender to British police if the UN panel finds that the three years he was holed up inside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London does not amount to illegal detention. In 2014, he had complained to the UN that he was being "arbitrarily detained" as he could not leave the embassy without being arrested by the British police. The Australian national is wanted for questioning in Sweden over sex assault allegations against two women, which he denies. WikiLeaks, founded by Assange in 2006, released 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and 250,000 diplomatic cables enraging the United States. Assange fears being extradited to the US to be quizzed over the activities of WikiLeaks if he travels to Sweden. The UN group does not have any formal influence over the British and Swedish authorities and the UK Foreign Office said it still had an obligation to extradite Assange. PTI Five people have been arrested in connection with Tanzanian girl assault case of Bengaluru. Karnataka CM said action will also be taken against officials found to be negligent. Meanwhile Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi today has sought a report from the Karnataka government on the incident and Sushma Swaraj tweeted that she is deeply pained. A Tanzanian student was stripped, beaten and paraded naked by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car in the city. 2008-2022 One News Page Ltd. All rights reserved. One News is a registered trademark of One News Page Ltd. by Graham Pierrepoint BBC confirms Matt LeBlanc as Top Gear presenter -- Matt LeBlanc, best known to many around the world as loveable soap actor Joey Tribbiani in the wildly successful sitcom Friends, is set to take on a whole new role in the UK shortly as the BBC have announced that the actor is to join the networks new Top Gear line-up, which is still looking to be filled since the departure of Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May last year. The show had so far only seen TV host Chris Evans lined up to spearhead the new look show, however, many rumors had spread as to who would be joining him. Amongst those rumors, it seems, LeBlanc wasnt making the announcement somewhat of a surprise to many. However, Top Gear fans may remember LeBlanc having appeared on the show twice under its previous hosts, as a Star in a Reasonably-Priced Car in which a celebrity each week is encouraged to record a lap time and, according to the BBC, LeBlanc recorded the fastest-ever run. His appointment seems appropriate, therefore particularly as the actor is also stated to be a keen petrol-head and is recognisable to many of the shows target audience. UK viewers may also know him from the long-running sitcom Episodes, in which LeBlanc plays an American actor being managed by British agents. LeBlancs appointment as host may come as something of a surprise, particularly as the names that had previously been associated with the job mainly revolve around the world of motoring or motorsport as BMW racing driver Sabine Schmitz had allegedly been selected as a presenter according to the Daily Telegraph along with motoring presenter Chris Harris and ex-Formula One driver David Coulthard. However, the newspapers claims have yet to be confirmed by the BBC despite having been made in December with LeBlancs appointment being the first to be revealed by the corporation since Chris Evans was attached to the job in 2015. The new series of Top Gear has allegedly been hit by a number of production issues, with a number of backroom staff walking out of the show and presenter Evans allegedly finding difficulty in talking to the camera while driving a trait that Clarkson, Hammond and May all perfected during their run leaving some to feel that the new show could be a shadow of its former self. With more details to be revealed, however, and with the show to go live in May, it will remain to be seen if the BBCs flagship motoring franchise remains a ratings winner. Certainly, Clarkson, Hammond and May are hoping to convert a number of ex-fans to their own show which debuts on Amazon Prime later this year. Mr Bashiru served as the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Osun State during the tenure of former governor, Rauf Aregbesola. Legendary Nigerian Musician, 2face has boldly shown his support for Nigerian Internet Fraudsters otherwise known as Yahoo boys. He made this known after replying to a comment on his page by @larfiddydigital. Read their Conversation below Oya @official2baba advice all the yahoo boiz following you to learn Forex Trading Lets make some legit money hence forth. The cleansing after election go madt gon ni. He replied @larfiddydigital nwannem gbagbue that tin. we are trying 2 recover our forefathers money. See screenshot below; Opalesque Industry Update - First Names Group is delighted to announce it has appointed Jean Pierre (JP) Koolmees as Head of its Asian operations. This key hire marks a significant milestone for the business, as it looks to build its presence throughout Asia. The appointment is effective immediately. Holding a seat on the Groups Management Committee, JP will report to Group CEO, Cengiz Somay, and will oversee both First Names Group and its subsidiary fund business Moore Management throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Based in Singapore, JP will be responsible for further developing and implementing the Asia business strategy and growth plans covering important and new investor segments throughout the Groups offices in Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan. He will work closely with the respective teams on the ground across Asia. Originally from The Netherlands, JP holds a Masters degree in Law from Leiden University, The Netherlands and has over 16 years experience in professional services. He joins First Names Group from Vistra in Singapore, which he founded in 2010. As Managing Director at Vistra he oversaw the day-to-day operation of the business and its 120+ employees. First Names Group has grown to become one of worlds largest independent trust, fund and corporate services providers, operating in key strategic locations worldwide. Its growth in Asia will further expand its global reach through its flagship offices in both Hong Kong and Singapore. Speaking about his appointment JP commented: First Names Group has great vision and ambition and I am excited to be given the opportunity to play such a central role in its expansion in Asia. I look forward to working closely with the international leadership team as well as my colleagues in Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore to strengthen the Groups positioning in Asia and grow the business here. Chief Executive Officer of First Names Group, Cengiz Somay, added: It is a great pleasure to welcome JP to First Names Group. I am pleased that our collaborative, people-focused culture and strong global reputation enables us to attract top industry talent. Establishing and building a strong Group presence in the key international financial centres of Hong Kong and Singapore has been an important element of our plans for long-term organic growth, so I am naturally delighted that we are now well on our way towards this. JP is a highly experienced professional who I am certain will be an invaluable asset as we continue to attract new business and deepen our footprint in the region. We are delighted to have JP on board and very excited to see what the future holds for First Names Group in Asia. Opalesque Industry Update - Irish Funds, the representative body for the cross-border investment funds industry in Ireland, has responded to the European Commissions call for evidence for the EU regulatory framework for financial services, as part of the Action Plan for Capital Markets Union. Irish Funds has highlighted key concerns relating to the EU policy and legislative process which have subjected industry to unrealistically tight deadlines, coupled with delays in the detailed implementing measures and the issuing of accompanying guidance. Irish Funds has called for a period of regulatory stability following the comprehensive changes made to the regulatory framework in recent years and stressed that future changes to EU financial services legislation should only be made in line with an overall cohesive approach to policy making. Commenting on todays response, Pat Lardner, CEO at Irish Funds, said: We welcome the Commissions invitation to review the EUs regulatory framework for financial services as we believe it is a necessary step to bring a greater coherence, clarity and efficiency to the European funds industry, and crucially to enable the Capital Markets Union project to succeed. We hope our recommendations will be taken into consideration by the Commission in assessing and improving the regulatory framework for financial services. In order to address issues being encountered and facilitate CMU, Irish Funds has called for a range of measures, including: An integrated regulatory reporting strategy and a single coherent, streamlined reporting framework with reporting via a single EU portal to create efficiencies and enable better access to, and monitoring of, data by regulators and policy makers Enhancements to the cross-border marketing process, including the creation of a single EU passport notification portal, the imposition of a maximum fee range regulators can levy and the development of a common definition of marketing under AIFMD Clarification on the entitlement of EU resident investment funds to tax treaty benefits, particularly in the context of the OECDs BEPS project Recognition of the important role of money market funds in CMU and the need for a proportionate solution for constant NAV (CNAV) money market funds under the proposed Money Market Fund Regulation A common European framework for loan origination funds and the removal of barriers to non-bank lending in order to achieve the goal of increasing non-bank finance via the capital markets Clarification of the rules regarding depositary location in the context of the third country passport in order to enhance protection for European investors The introduction of a new EU category of semi-professional investor within AIFMD or ultimately under the MiFID framework in order to appropriately broaden the investment horizon for such investors and in order to further diversify the supply of funding to long-term financing using vehicles, such as the European Long-term Investment Funds (ELTIFs) Appropriately clarify the asset segregation rules under AIFMD in recognition of the globalised environment in which EU cross-border funds operate as well as the treatment by depositaries of intermediary Central Security Depositories (CSDs) in relation to the services they provide Address overlaps, duplications and inconsistencies in the rules relating to financial services remuneration across the various legislative frameworks Michigan Governor Rick Snyder;t took Michigan's GOP Governor to accomplish what Al Qaeda, militia members and lone wolves could not. (Image by Michigan Municipal League (MML)) Details DMCA With Tuesday's announcement that the FBI will join the expanding investigation, anyone who doubted the seriousness of the poisoning of the Flint, Michigan, water supply should now recognize their error. After all, until the administration of Republican Gov. Rick Snyder and his emergency manager in Flint knowingly jeopardized the health of thousands, the FBI feared al Qaeda terrorists would do the same thing. As the Detroit Free Press reported: Gina Balaya, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Detroit, told the Free Press Monday that federal prosecutors are "working with a multi-agency investigation team on the Flint water contamination matter, including the FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, EPA's Office of Inspector General, and EPA's Criminal Investigation Division." The office of U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade said Jan. 5 that it was assisting the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in a Flint drinking water investigation, but at that time, Balaya would not say whether the investigation was civil or criminal. Back in 2002, there was no doubt that the FBI's investigations were very much criminal in nature. As Carl Cameron reported for Fox News on July 30 of that year: Federal officials have arrested two Al Qaeda terror suspects in the U.S. with documents in their possession about how to poison the country's water supplies, Fox News has learned. The first case involves James Ujaama, 36, who surrendered to the FBI last week in Denver. Sources say they found documents about water poisoning among several other terrorism-related documents in his Denver residence...Another former member of the mosque is also now in custody and suspected of plotting terrorist attacks. His name is Semi Osman and he too is accused of having documents about poisoning water supplies in his possession when he was arrested. On February 11, 2003, FBI Director Robert Mueller testified to the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence about al Qaeda terror threats within the United States that his agency was taking very seriously: "Poisoning food and water supplies also may be an attractive tactic in the future. Although technologically challenging, a successful attempt might cause thousands of casualties, sow fear among the US population, and undermine public confidence in the food and water supply." As it turns out, fears of terrorist sabotage of American water supplies pre-dated the September 11 attacks. Random thoughts on politics, current events, popular culture, and whatever else interests me. Hispaniola. A Caribbean island divided by old great power rivalry by European superpowers. Today still divided by race, language and attitudes. On one side of the divided island is Haiti that's 90 percent Black (African descendants) while the neighboring Dominican Republic, the other side, is Spanish speaking. But the differences do not end there even if both races and people share one divided island. Haitians are more Afrocentric and relate easily to their Black brethren in the wider Caribbean and the United States. By contrast, the people of the Dominican Republic have been forced-fed to embrace their European/Spanish ancestry and to eschew anything and all things African and Black. It is this mindset that drives today's national xenophobia against Dominican-born Haitians now elevated to governmental policy. The thing is that the Dominican Republic is better off -- slightly - economically than Haiti. That's a fact. But not by miles. The nation is still a poor, struggling developing country -- just as its neighbor. To be sure there are degrees of poverty and want. Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere with serious socio-economic challenges, an uneducated and under educated population and a political system prone to self-inflicting pain. Today in the Dominican Republic as tourists flock to pristine beaches, swanky hotels and shopping malls, they have very little knowledge that a few miles away thousands of poor dispossessed Haitians are under armed guard on plantations harvesting sugarcane, most of which ends up in US kitchens. Called "Bateys" it is the Dominican Republic's closely guarded secret of neo-slavery. A Batey is place of unmanageable abject, grinding poverty -- a Haitian sugar cane village of shacks, dirt roads, and shoeless and naked children. There is no running water, no electricity, no school for young children, no medical or health facilities. There are no paved roads or street lights; just shacks, rows and rows of barely livable shacks. Sugar cane workers work from dawn to dusk, seven days a week, cutting sugar cane by hand with machetes. For all of their toil and sweat, men may make $5 per day, back breaking day after day. These dirt poor Haitian families live in shacks about eight-foot-by-ten-foot in a structure of scrap pieces of wood -- nailed gingerly to the supporting "beams," which actually are just branches and sticks. The roof is a combination of scraps of metal, banana tree leaves, and random pieces of trash that have been tossed up there to try and keep the rain out. Even slaves in 19th century America fared better and these Haitians in 2016. Each year, as the sugar harvest approaches, as many as 20,000 Haitian workers are recruited with the promise of steady work at higher pay than they can earn in Haiti, the poorer of the two countries. With the complicity of military and immigration authorities, these destitute immigrants are loaded onto trucks, stripped of their identification papers, and transported in the middle of the night to the Bateyes, where many are housed in concentration-camp-like barracks. Estimates of the population of undocumented Haitians living in the camps range from 650,000 to one million. The Dominican Republic's government wants to kick out vast majority of these stateless Haitians. They are neither Haitian nor Dominican. They are exploited daily, are forced into abject poverty, and are the faces of Dominican shame. These vulnerable, defenseless Haitians and their children have been trapped in an endless cycle of modern-day slavery by a government bent on revenge for what it sees as historical wrongs committed in the aftermath of the Haitian Revolution of 1804 and the knowing collusion of big sugar companies many of them incorporated in the United States. Indeed, the animosity and resentment against "Dark skinned Haitians" go back centuries. And today, it is payback time today for Haitians in the Dominican Republic. You see, Haiti was once a French colony, with its economy based almost exclusively on plantation slavery. What's now the Dominican Republic was Spanish. There were slaves on both sides of the island, but the society and economy on the Spanish side were more diverse, with cattle ranches and mines just as prevalent as sugar plantations. Under the brutal slave oppression of the French, Haitians rose up and in 1804 defeated the French forces and declared their independence as the world's first Black Republic. Meanwhile, the landed white French gentry fled the young Haitian Republic for the neighboring Dominican Republic. But Haitian military power was strong enough to invade the Dominican Republic and put it under Black rule for the next 20 years. But the pressures of European and American powers combined to kill the Haitian Republic. Unfair and burdensome levies were imposed on the Haitian government. Infact, Haiti was ordered to pay France the astronomical sum, by 1804 standards, of $150 million Francs, as restitution for revenues lost due to slavery. That figure was reduced to $60 million -- still a burdensome bill. What that meant was that a struggling agricultural economy found it very difficult to pay up. The Haitian government therefore levied heavy taxes on the Dominican people and its military confiscated food, property and goods from them often at gunpoint. This only helped to deepen the resentment between the two countries and races - one already smarting from the humiliation of having been invaded by a Black army. For a people more socially and racially aligned to Spain and Europe and who rejected their African heritage this was the final humiliation. It what's at the root of hostility to Black Haitians today even though the country still needs them to cut sugar cane -- an activity that most Dominicans do not want to do because its back-breaking labor and is still reminds them of slavery and their African past. Dominican's today, cognizant of this history, are still stung by it. Relations between the countries through the early 1800s were long, complicated and bloody. But the key event was the long War of Independence fought by Dominicans against Haiti, which began in 1844. It's the longest war in the Republic's history. By 1930, when Dictator Rafael Trujillo seized power, he elevated and deepened anti-Haiti sentiments to a national level putting the focus on his country's European heritage. He presided over the most intensive and brutal pogrom against Haitians to date. Such a racist and bigoted national policy culminated in the mass murder over a few days of 20,000 Haitians in 1937. This was coupled with other persecutions and brutal repressions including forced deportations, imprisonment, beatings and extrajudicial killings. So much so that in 2007, a United Nations Report compiled by the Office for the High Commissioner for Human Rights, described what it called a "profound and entrenched problem of racism and discrimination in Dominican society, generally affecting blacks and particularly such groups as black Dominicans, Dominicans of Haitian descent and Haitians." The scathing report continued: "While there is no Government policy of racism and no legislation that is on the face of it clearly discriminatory," it said, there clearly was a "discriminatory impact" from "certain laws, particularly those relating to migration, civil status and ... citizenship." With passion and eloquence, President Barack Obama has renewed efforts to reduce gun tragedies. His proposals to strengthen safety measures and background checks for gun purchasers deserve support. But it's disquieting to hear a president deliver heartfelt orations against "gun violence" at home while he conveys scant remorse about imposing it on innocent people abroad. No less than the children whom Obama has movingly described as victims of gun violence in the streets and schools of America, the lives of many kids abroad have been -- and continue to be -- shattered or ended by U.S. firepower from the air. The fact that they aren't targeted doesn't change the predictably grisly human consequences of decisions that continue to be made in the Oval Office. And even if one accepts the faulty rationales for the ongoing U.S. drone attacks and other airstrikes in several countries, it should give us pause that there has been such a lack of presidential expressions of regret over civilian victims, other than occasional perfunctory statements. I don't question President Obama's sincerity when he sheds public tears over the victims of gun violence. I do wish, however, that he would enlarge his field of compassionate vision to include those directly suffering from what Martin Luther King Jr. called "the madness of militarism" -- in this case, U.S. militarism. In 2016, no institution is more in need of gun control than the Pentagon. Like his predecessors in the Oval Office, this president has not hesitated to lavish praise on young Americans for engaging in the gun violence of warfare. But, hidden in plain sight, a basic contradiction goes unmentioned in public discourse: If using guns to kill people in certain others' countries is to be encouraged and lauded, how effectively can it be discouraged and condemned in our own country? Reprinted from Campaign For America's Future Saying that TPP follows in the footsteps of failed trade agreements like NAFTA, CAFTA, and Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) with China, Sanders promised to "fundamentally rewrite our trade policies to benefit working families, not just the CEOs of large, multinational corporations." Rival Hillary Clinton has also stated opposition to the TPP, but will she also vow to kill it if elected? As the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) "free-trade" agreement was signed in New Zealand by representatives of the 12 participating countries, Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders strongly voiced his opposition and committed to doing what he can to kill the deal if he is elected president. He said that supporters of these agreements have sold them as creating jobs, but over and over again, they have been proven dead wrong. President Bill Clinton sold NAFTA in 1993, saying it would create a million American jobs over a five-year period. Instead, NAFTA led to the loss of close to 700,000 jobs. The conservative Cato Institute said that the trade deal with China would create far more export opportunities for America than the Chinese. Instead, the trade deal with China has led to the loss of 3.2 million jobs, and enormous, humongous and continuing trade deficits with that country. Since 2001, nearly 60,000 manufacturing plants in this country have been shut down and we have lost over 4.7 million manufacturing jobs. If the workers find new jobs at all, they are usually lower-paying. Sanders said at the press conference, "Trade is a good thing. But trade has got to be fair. And the TPP is anything but fair." Senders vowed to kill TPP if elected, saying, "As your president, not only will I make sure that the TPP does not get implemented, I will not send any trade deal to Congress that will make it easier for corporations to outsource American jobs overseas." Clinton Said She Opposes TPP, But Won't Lobby To Stop It Secretary Clinton voiced her opposition to the TPP in October, saying, "I appreciate the hard work that President Obama and his team put into this process and recognize the strides they made. But the bar here is very high and, based on what I have seen, I don't believe this agreement has met it." However, Clinton also stated that she will not lobby against TPP, leaving many to wonder if her statement of opposition, coming just before the first debate, was serious or only for election purposes because of the unpopularity of the agreement. Then Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue said in a recent Bloomberg TV interview that he believes Clinton will switch to supporting TPP after the election. Inside Trade (paywall) reported that Donohue said that Clinton has publicly opposed the deal chiefly because Sen. Bernie Sanders opposes it. So the question is, will Clinton join Sanders in vowing to kill TPP if elected? Or will she change sides and implement it? From December's post," Does Clinton Really Oppose TPP? There Is A Test For That": Then Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama in 2008 hammered her for it. 2016 Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders repeatedly hammers her for it. Even some have held up Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump's opposition to the Iraq war to hammer her for it. The "it" is then New York Senator Hillary Clinton's vote for the 2002 Iraq War resolution. That's the one issue above all others that has driven Bernie Sanders' supporters, and even some liberal Democrats, to rail at Clinton as a hopelessly, hardened war hawk, and vow not to vote for her if she gets the nomination. But Clinton's record on the resolution and the Iraq war is stuffed with as much fiction as fact. Start with the resolution. It did not explicitly call for waging war against Iraq. It demanded that Saddam Hussein permit UN inspectors back into Iraq to determine whether he was indeed ramping up his alleged stockpile of weapons of mass destruction. It gave a hard deadline for him to agree to inspection and failing that authorized military action. It hedged the war call further by emphasizing that the U.S. must continue to push for "further diplomatic or other peaceful means" to get Hussein to comply. It hedged things further by mandating that Bush before waging war tell Congress why a military assault was necessary. uspolitics.about.com/od/wariniraq/a/jt_resolution_4.htm Clinton didn't take Bush's statements on Iraq totally at face value. Bush national security advisor Condoleezza Rice swore to her before she voted that the resolution was intended to get inspections going again and not just as a cover to start a war. We now know that Bush shamelessly lied about the weapons, and Hussein's aim to make and use them. However, though it was widely suspected that it was all a tissue of lies, given Hussein's hideous and bloody record of invasion, intimidation, and gross human rights violations, there was just enough doubt to make it seem that Hussein was a real threat to blow up the region. This was enough to sell the resolution to 28 other Senate Democrats who along with Clinton voted for it. click here One of those Democrats could well have been the Democrat who progressives universally hail for having the guts to stand up to the Bush war machine, and parlayed that adulation into a big hit piece on Clinton during the 2008 campaign. That Democrat is, of course, President Obama. Things, though, were not as cut and dried as the adulation for his opposition makes it seem. He did oppose the war. But he did it not as a sitting senator but as a member of the Illinois state legislature. When he was asked what he might have done if he had been in the Senate then, he said he wasn't totally sure and added that he wasn't "privy" to Senate intelligence reports. He emphasized that as an outsider looking in Bush didn't make the case for a possible war. That's a far cry from an unabashed ringing trounce of Bush's war declaration if he had been a Senator then. Once Obama was in the Senate it was a different story. Both he and Clinton did not press Bush to scale down the war effort, threaten to cut off funds, or demand a deadline or even a timetable for withdrawal. In fact, in 2004 Obama said that he thought maybe even more troops should be sent in to insure stability. Two years later both he and Clinton opposed an amendment by then Senator John Kerry to start the troop withdrawal from the country. click here Clinton and Obama voted and acted no different than legions of other Democratic senators who once they backed the Iraq war resolution said or did virtually nothing to stop the death machine once it started rolling and kept rolling during the subsequent years. In time that would change, and as Bush sunk in the polls, and the outrage over the war grew war, the Democrats that caved to Bush on the war became tigers in knocking him and the war. By then Clinton began to openly express doubt about where the war was going and why we were there. She demanded timetables to get out and told supporters and critics that she never intended to vote for a war but for inspections, negotiations and political pressure on Hussein. She pulled no punches in lambasting the Bush administration for "misusing" the resolution to wage war. The fact then is that Clinton voted for the Iraq war resolution based on distortions, deceptions and flat out lies. The fiction is that she voted for a full blown military assault on Iraq. This makes Clinton at best and worst a willing, naive and misinformed accomplice along with many other Democrats to Bush's hideous deception on Iraq. This does not make her an Iraq war hawk. But that's the noisy refrain she'll have to endlessly hear through the campaign. Earl Ofari Hutchinson is an author and political analyst. His latest book is Trump and the GOP: Race Baiting to the White House (Amazon Kindle) He is a frequent MSNBC contributor. He is an associate editor of New America Media. He is a weekly co-host of the Al Sharpton Show on Radio One. He is the host of the weekly Hutchinson Report on KPFK 90.7 FM Los Angeles and the Pacifica Network Bernie Sanders at Roosevelt High School (Image by Phil Roeder) Details DMCA In this February 1st article in The Hill, Bud Budowsky writes, "Make no mistake about it: If Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) wins the Iowa caucuses, it will be the upset of the century, and if he wins the Democratic nomination and the presidency, it would be exactly what he says: a political revolution. The establishment members of the Democratic Party, almost without exception, support former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, whom they consider to be one of them, and oppose Sanders, whom they consider a threat to their bastions of power." The infrastructure of the Democratic Party that supports "one of them" is a nearly solid bloc from the President, whom Sanders had to visit in Washington last week to remind him that he should take a neutral stance in the presidential contest, on down through his administration, the DNC, and Congress to the governors, the state legislatures, and state committees. Be aware of this "solid bloc" that wants a very particular outcome. How much pressure was put on local Democratic officials responsible for organizing the caucuses? One wonders what role the State Party played in managing the caucuses so that Clinton could squeak out a victory? For an example of how one precinct conducted its caucus go to: http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/voter-fraud-and-missing-precincts-how-clinton-stole-iowa/ri12583 This is a C-SPAN video of a caucus where the Clinton staffer did not do a recount at an appropriate point in the process and those in charge let her get away with it when she said that she just added the number of new people who had come into the Clinton group to the first count. The Sanders staffer, on the other hand, recounted her people as one can see in the video. This meant that her recount would have been down if people who had left her group-- for whatever reason -- and there were no new people coming into the group. The chair of the caucus then put the recount up to a Yea/Nay vote. And awarded the majority of the delegates to Clinton. Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). GlobalPlatform Qualifies COMPRION eUICC Interface Tests COMPRION has successfully attended the first GlobalPlatform TestFest that focused on testing the eUICC on-card interface and achieved qualification according to SGP.11 v2.0 based on SGP.02 v2.1 GSMA specification. The GSMA introduced an initiative to define specifications for embedded SIMs (eUICCs). The goal is to provide a global standard for the remote provisioning and management of M2M connections, allowing the over-the-air provisioning of an initial operator subscription, and the subsequent change of subscriptions from one operator to another. A core specification (SGP.02) and a test specification (SGP.11) have been developed. Test validation will ensure that embedded SIMs can deliver robust, secure and ubiquitous connectivity. GlobalPlatform is responsible for the qualification of the eUICC card interface as part of the test specification SGP.11. During the last TestFest in Lisbon, GlobalPlatform granted validation of the test (and core) specifications and qualifying test tools. In interface compliance testing, one entity of the interface is simulated and the counter entity is verified. The qualified COMPRION tests check if the remote provisioning of eUICCs, for example downloading the operator profile, works the way it should. Kevin Gillick, Executive Director of GlobalPlatform, comments, We congratulate COMPRION on receiving qualification for its eUICC interface tests. Alignment with the specifications, as verified by the GlobalPlatform Compliance Program, promotes market interoperability and ensures that products perform as expected once live in the field. Diese Pressemeldung wurde auf openPR veroffentlicht. COMPRION GmbH Technologiepark 25 33100 Paderborn Germany About COMPRION COMPRION is the worldwide leading manufacturer of test solutions for smart card interfaces, terminals and smart cards. Covering contact-based and contactless technologies COMPRION provides their expertise to multiple industries, especially telecommunications, payments and M2M. Our involvement in a number of standardization and certification bodies enables us to integrate the latest standards and requirements into our high quality products. As COMPRION test systems are renowned for the most accurate measurement capabilities, the company serves all top mobile phone, terminal, card and chipset manufacturers as well as mobile network operators and test houses. COMPRION also acts as technological consultant supporting many key players in the market. FUR ALLE Jetzt Ihre Pressemitteilung mit einem Klick auf openPR veroffentlichen - : , ; As a result of a leadership conference at the end of the first semester, three Farmington High School students are starting to see some change. From Dec. 3 through 5, three JAG students from Farmington High School - Julia Keith, Molly Harris and Jeremy Gore, along with their teacher Erica Dement - had the opportunity to attend the National Student Leadership Academy Conference in Washington, D.C. The conference, which according to NSLA website, held several different break-out sessions the students could attend to help them learn skills that will help them both in school and beyond. I think we had a good group of students who attended the conference this year, said Dement. They represented Farmington well. Although all three students attended the same conference, when asked about their experience, they all had a different view about what the learned and took away from the leadership conference. For senior Molly Harris, the conference was all about leadership and what it was like to work in a team environment. We did a lot of team building activities and learned how to work together instead of figuring thinks out on our own, Harris said. The conference has shown me working in groups is not so scary. For Keith, the conference helped the high school junior understand the concept of diversity when working together. Just because we are different doesnt mean we dont have something in common, Keith said. I think the conference taught me you have to try and understand people better. Just because they dont believe the same thing you do, doesnt mean you should not show respect for their decisions. Gore believed he also learned a lot about leadership, especially respecting those who you are working with during any type of situation. I think I learned to be a leader you have respect for the people around you, Gore said. But you really need to have respect for those around you if you are going to get anything done. According to Dement, since the trip to Washington, D.C., she can see a change in her three students. Ever since we have gotten back, I have noticed a difference in them, Dement said. Whether they have noticed it or not, I think the experience has really helped them break out at the high school. In addition, Dement also believes it was good for her students to see how big JAG was nationally. More than 800 delegates were presented at the national conference and 45 to 50 just from the state of Missouri. I think it was beneficial for them to see how big JAG is, Dement said. I can tell them JAG is in 32 states and 16 schools in Missouri. But until they got to see the impact JAG has on other peoples lives, you dont realize how big it is, especially on a student aspect. During their trip to the nations capital, the students and their teacher did get a few hours to explore the nation's Capital as well. They were able to tour the Capitol, visit the Smithsonian and watch the changing of the guard ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery. But even though they were able to visit some of the greatest historical destination in the country, the three still believed they walked away with something even greater. One thing it did help was getting to know people and not just the ones from the conference, Harris said. Before the conference, I knew Jeremy and I knew of Julia, but as a result, I really have gotten to know them better. We can now talk to one another without being so hesitant. In April, 10 JAG students will attend a state JAG conference in Jefferson City. The state will be holding a Career Development Conference where the students will be able to participate in some competitive events as well as tour the state capitol itself Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism. UPDATE: A Mineral Point man has been formally charged after deputies were called to the 10,000 block of Creek Ridge Drive for a domestic in progress with shots fired and a female being held against her will. According to a probable cause statement, Rickie Reagan Sr., 56 of Mineral Point was in a verbal agreement with his wife at their residence. The report said that Reagan admitted to being in possession of a HI Point 9mm handgun and pointing it at his wife in a threatening manner. The report stated that Reagan has a criminal history of being a convicted felon and is not allowed to be on possession of the firearm. The report said that Reagan also discharged the firearm in the home which struck the door of the residence. The report said that other bullet holes and shell casings were located throughout the residence. Reagan is being charged with a class C felony of unlawful possession of a firearm, a class D felony of unlawful use of a weapon and a class A misdemeanor of domestic assault in the third degree. His bond is set at $20,000. ORIGINAL STORY: The Washington County Sheriffs Department was dispatched to a call Monday about 8:50 p.m. for a report of a domestic in progress in the 10,000 block of Creek Ridge Drive, with shots being fired and a female being held against her will. Washington County Sheriffs Department Captain Zach Jacobson said that deputies responded to the residence and when they arrived they found a male suspect in the driveway. The male subject was detained and was subsequently arrested, said Jacobson. The female was located in the residence visibly upset but physically unharmed. She advised the deputies that her husband had stated he was going to kill himself and a verbal dispute ensued. It was reported that during the dispute, the male subject pointed a 9 mm handgun at the victim and threatened her. The male subject discharged the firearm inside the residence several times, said Jacobson. The male subject exited the residence and fired several shots into his unoccupied vehicle. The firearm was recovered inside the house along with several spent shell casings. Jacobson added that during the search of the residence, several pills were located in an unlabeled bottle, which were identified as a controlled substance. The male was arrested and transported to the Washington County Sheriffs Office. Charges are being sought in connection with case. His name is being withheld until formal charges are filed. The Daily Journal will bring more details as they become available. The Missouri Department of Conservation has verified that a second bald eagle has been shot and killed in southeast Missouri less than a week apart. According to Reynolds County Missouri Department of Conservation Agent Kaleb Neece said they had a report of the eagle on Jan. 29. The eagle was shot about three miles outside of Ellington on Highway 106, said Neece. He was an immature eagle and it was still black and white. It hadnt developed the eagle look of the white head and the white feathers. I dont know exactly how old it is. Young eagles are mostly dark and grow their adult feathers in about five years. Neece said his department is still looking into it and this is the second eagle to be shot. The other one was shot in Patterson east of Piedmont. The eagle is protected and we will investigate it, said Neece. We rely heavily on the community for tips and clues. Sometimes we are able to get some autopsy information and things like that. We investigate to see if we can find who is responsible for it. Both incidents are under investigation by the Missouri Department of Conservation. Bald eagles are protected under the Eagle Protection Act. Killing one is a federal crime and can result in a $250,000 fine and up to two years in prison. Bald eagles are a cherished U.S. national symbol and the bald eagles value is hard to estimate. In some Native American cultures, bald eagles are held sacred, and their feathers are important symbols. Rewards will be offered for information related to the arrest and conviction of the persons that shot the eagles. If information is provided that results in an arrest and the reporting party asked to be considered for a reward, the reward request will be submitted to a citizen board of the Conservation Federation of Missouri. That board assigns a reward based on the severity of the violation involved. Rewards range from $50 to $1,000. Neece said anyone with any information is asked to call their local conservation agent, all of the Missouri Department of Conservation agents numbers are listed on their website or in the deer and turkey pamphlet. They can also report any information to Operation Game Thief at 1-800-392-1111. Saturday, Feb. 6 Chippewa Nature Center will host a Family Snowshoe Hike at 1 p.m. For more info, www.chippewanaturecenter.org. The Alden B. Dow Museum of Science and Art will host Super Science Day from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. featuring hands-on activities. Stock car driver Austin Dillon will also be at the musuem from noon to 2 p.m. (museum admission required). Tickets are $3 per child. For more info, www.mcfta.org. Sunday, Feb. 7 Creative 360 will host a Yes We Can! Sunday Performance - Brothers Jim (87) and Lowell (80) Tolly. Tickets are $8. For more info, www.becreative360.org. Tuesday, Feb. 9 The Worlds Greatest Mardi Gras Feast will take place from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. at the Great Hall and Banquet and Convention Center. For ticket info, www.tlc4cs.org. Proceeds benefit the Legacy Center for Community Success. Friday, Feb. 12 The Fulkerson Music Studio Concert Series presents Brush Street with Julie Mulady at 7 p.m. at the Grace A. Dow Memorial Library Auditorium. Tickets are $10 and available at the studio or the door. Saturday, Feb. 13 Chippewa Nature Center will host a Families In Nature: Winter Shelters program at 1 p.m.. For more info, www.chippewanaturecenter.org. Sunday, Feb. 14 The Midland Community Orchestra will host its winter concert at 3 p.m. at the Bullock Creek High School Auditorium. MidMichigan Health will be offering free heart assessments. For more info, www.midlandcommunityorchestra.com. Monday, Feb. 15 A Wine for Whiskers fundraiser will take place from 5 to 8 p.m. at Whine. The event features souvenir glasses and a silent auction. Proceeds benefit the Humane Society of Midland County. For more info, www.hsomc.org. Thursday, Feb. 18 Entre Amigos Mexican Restaurant will celebrate its 11th anniversary with a live Mariachi band from 5 to 8 p.m. as well as food and drink specials. Friday, Feb. 26 The 13th annual Saginaw on Stage Music Festival takes place at the Temple Theatre. The event features 15 bands and a full dinner buffet from 6 to 8 p.m. For more info, www.saginawonstage.com. Saturday, Feb. 27 MATRIX:MIDLAND will present the author, public speaker,and star of Cesar 911 and the Dog Whisperer Cesar Millan at 8 p.m. at the Midland Center for the Arts auditorium. For ticket info, www.mcfta.org. I used to know everybody who lived in Averill. Now I dont know anybody, Becky Coggins said. The people she knew as a child are all gone. The country school she attended is now the township hall and the fire department. The skating pond on the Floyd Briggs farm disappeared when the new I-75 went through. The Red Keg Hotel that once thrived on business from lumberjacks and lumber barons has been torn down. The Averill train depot is gone. Her grandfather Carl Siecherts grocery store on the corner of old U.S.-10 and Hope Road was sold years ago. The Averill that Becky grew up in has vanished. The history in our lives changes imperceptibly but quickly and Becky is only too aware of the changes she has seen in the little village she has spent her entire life in. Beckys great-grandparents William and Bertha Siechert came to Michigan from Germany in about 1884 bringing with them their two sons and one daughter. They crossed in steerage, sleeping on the floor, sometimes covered with water-soaked blankets. Bertha Siechert was born in 1831 and passed away in 1926. William was born in 1826 and died in 1910. Bertha and William were buried in the small cemetery that was behind the Red Keg Hotel across the railroad tracks when the railroad still went through Averill. As a young man, Carl Siechert decided to open up a grocery store in the area called Red Keg, a thriving center of the lumbering business. Why the name Red Keg? The story goes that a keg painted red was hung on a pole by the train depot as a signal for the train to stop. Camp Sixteen (Edenville), Red Keg (Averill), and Wright and Ketchum (also located near Averill) were some of the larger lumber camps that thrived in the late 1800s to about 1910 in Michigan. Lumber barons came to the area looking for more lucrative stands of timber to be cut and sent down the Tittabawassee and Tobacco rivers to the sawmills in Saginaw and Bay City. It was a perfect spot for the country store that Carl Siechert put up. He met his future wife when he went to visit relatives in Detroit, Michigan. A young woman named Minnie Frost from Cumberland, Maryland was also visiting relatives and the two met. They fell in love, married and spent the rest of their lives in Averill. Once someone asked Minnie why she had married Carl and Minnie replied, He had the best looking horse and buggy of anyone I had ever seen In 1911 they adopted a baby girl through the Lutheran church orphanage and named her Gertrude. Born prematurely, she was so small she could fit in a shoe box. That baby girl would become Beckys mom when she grew up. Siecherts store carried farming supplies as well as grocery staples with customers coming from Larkin, Sanford and Hope to trade there. Becky remembers stories of her grandparents generosity, each helping in their own way. Carl let customers charge things and sometimes the customers paid their bills and sometimes they didnt. When Beckys parents married in 1931, Pap, as Gert called her dad, had a house built for them on a piece of land bisected by Wackerly Road and U.S. 10 across from the Siechert home and store. Men who owed Pap paid their debt by building a home for the young couple. Becky said, My grandfather was the kind of man who would give you a thousand dollars if you needed it but if you wanted a dollar, he expected you to work for it. Minnie Siechert had wanted to be a nurse but as the oldest child in a large family she had to give that dream up. But Minnie learned to compensate for that and gave her time and skills to anyone who needed help. Becky remembers hearing about her grandma being called upon to deliver babies in the area. When someone died, Minnie was called upon to sit with the body all night as the custom was at that time. Becky said, She was a gentle lady. The Depression years saw a steady stream of homeless men riding the trains through Averill. Beckys grandmother always had food to give them and sometimes even blankets to keep them warm. Becky said, My grandparents didnt think that they were helping out, that was just the way you did things. The Siecherts were members of the little Lutheran church that was built across the river in the woods on a piece of property Henry Neiner gave to the church. Beckys mom Gert was confirmed in that little church. The pastor took the train from Midland every Sunday morning to preach there. Eventually the congregation dwindled down and the church was torn down, the land given back to Henry Neiner. Once in high school, Gert met the young girl who would become her lifelong best friend, Marville Carey Kent. Pap bought Gert a Ford coupe and Deke Bradley (his dad owned a funeral parlor) was one of the young boys who got to ride in the coupe if they would crank it to get it started. After high school, Gert attended County Normal earning a teaching certificate. Her first teaching job was at Averill, the same country school that she had attended five years before. Two of her pupils were Jack and Dallas Burrell. Their dad, Elmer Burrell, had been Gerts dancing partner at the dances held at the little township hall on Hope Road. Elmer told her, Youre the only who can waltz the way I do. Gert met her future husband Clare Z. Bailey on a blind date set up by her friend Neva Loebrich. Clare had attended Central Michigan College of Education (later it would achieve the status of being a university) and was employed at The Dow Chemical Co. They married in 1931 and rented an apartment. Pap, Gerts dad, couldnt see the young couple wasting their money renting a place and in 1932 Gert and Clare moved into the home they would live in for the rest of their life. Part II will appear in two weeks. When asked to describe his stay at MidMichigan Gladwin Pines, Ron Eaton chose one word extraordinary. If you have to be in a rehabilitation facility, this is the place to be, Eaton said. Eaton was required to stay in a short-term rehabilitation facility after undergoing surgery that required the amputation of his left leg below the knee. When Eaton contracted an infection in his leg, his MidMichigan Health Internal Medicine Physician Abid Khan, M.D., determined that he needed surgery and referred him to the University of Michigan Health System, where he was treated by Internal Medicine Physician Jeff Rohde, M.D. From the time Dr. Khan referred me to University of Michigan, everything just clicked, Eaton said. I was referred on a Friday, and traveled to Ann Arbor for a consultation the next Monday. Right after my consult, they asked if I could just stay and get my surgery scheduled to save me a trip back home to Harrison. I was in the hospital for three days, and then went to Gladwin Pines to begin my rehabilitation. When Eaton and his wife, Anne, were asked to choose a place for rehabilitation, MidMichigan Gladwin Pines was the first place that came to mind. We had visited a friend at Gladwin Pines in the past, and we both thought it was a well-run establishment, Eaton said. Our pastor often visits patients there as well and always has good things to say. Plus, we wanted a place close to home. The goal during Eatons stay was to get him able to walk again using his leg prosthesis. When he arrived, he was using a wheelchair and had no mobility. The therapist team has helped me get strong enough to walk on my prosthetic leg, Eaton said. The first time I walked on my own, I had a huge audience of staff cheering me on. My nurse even started to cry when she saw me. The staff there was extremely supportive and encouraging. Anne agrees with her husbands statements. We cant say enough about how nice everyone is at Gladwin Pines, she said. Even though I hated that he had to be away from home, I could rest easy knowing he was in good hands. Well always think of Gladwin Pines with fondness, and will be forever grateful for the therapy he received, enabling him to walk with his prosthetic leg. Ron was able to return home just before Christmas, and hes thrilled to be back in his home workshop doing the things he loves, including creating wood carvings, sculptures and handmade jewelry. UPDATE: The Washington County Sheriffs Department has identified the man they say attempted to cash in stolen lottery tickets in De Soto. According to Captain Zach Jacobson, the man was determined to have nothing to do with the theft and they are still actively investigating the smash and grab" burglary that occurred at Richwoods Farm Feed & Fuel store located at 17203 W State Highway 47 in Richwoods on Jan. 26. We actually have two other suspects identified, too, said Jacobson. They were suspicious females that had went into a Moto Mart in Crystal City last week and tried to cash in a bunch of tickets. The clerk told them they couldnt cash them in at the moment because the machines were resetting. Jacobson said that within an hour a Festus Police Department officer on patrol located around $300 worth of tickets, unscratched and laying in the middle of the roadway. Those tickets were some of the tickets stolen in that same smash and grab, said Jacobson. During the smash and grab on Jan. 26 a suspect in a truck smashed through a secured gate and then hit the building to gain entry into the front door. Items stolen included lottery tickets, cigarettes and cigarette lighters. If anyone has any information on this crime or can identify the man in the surveillance photo please contact the sheriff's office at 573-438-5478 or Central Dispatch at 573-438-1079. ORIGINAL STORY: The Washington County Sheriffs Department is trying to identify a man they say attempted to cash in stolen lottery tickets in De Soto. The tickets were reportedly taken during a "smash and grab" burglary that occurred at Richwoods Farm Feed & Fuel store located at 17203 W State Highway 47 in Richwoods on Jan. 26. Washington County Sheriffs Department Captain Zach Jacobson said they were able to get a photo of a suspect on Saturday as he was trying to cash one of the stolen lottery tickets. We actually have two other suspects identified, too, said Jacobson. They were suspicious females that had went into a Moto Mart in Crystal City last week and tried to cash in a bunch of tickets. The clerk told them they couldnt cash them in at the moment because the machines were resetting. Jacobson said that within an hour a Festus Police Department officer on patrol located around $300 worth of tickets, unscratched and laying in the middle of the roadway. Those tickets were some of the tickets stolen in that same smash and grab, said Jacobson. We had a stop and hold for those suspects as well. I am still waiting to find out what actually transpired with that, if they located those folks or not. I know they did interview one person of interest, which didnt yield a lot at this point, but we are still working it. During the smash and grab on Jan. 26 a suspect in a truck smashed through a secured gate and then hit the building to gain entry into the front door. Items stolen included lottery tickets, cigarettes and cigarette lighters. If anyone has any information on this crime or can identify the man in the surveillance photo please contact the sheriff's office at 573-438-5478 or Central Dispatch at 573-438-1079. Midland County, overall, is a healthy place to live. But that doesnt mean local residents and officials cant do better. A story earlier this week pointed out that Midland County is one of the 10 healthiest counties in Michigan. Rather than be content with that achievement, the Midland Community Health and Human Services Council brought together more than 30 local agencies to look at ways to make local residents even healthier. A Midland County Health Survey was conducted, and officials discovered a few areas to target: Substance abuse disorder, healthy weight and later life quality. Heres some of the things the survey revealed: Between 2000 and 2010, the number of households with individuals 65 and older grew by 25 percent. Twenty-two percent of the population reported that they do not engage in physical activity. Thirty-three percent of the population is overweight and 36 percent are obese. In the past five years, Midland has treated more people for opiate addiction than alcoholism. With those numbers, it is easy to see why the three target areas were selected. If Midland County is to become an even healthier place to live, targeting seniors, weight issues and substance abuse can have a significant impact if local efforts are successful. Measurable goals have been spelled out for each target area, so local officials will know down the road whether their efforts are working. In the end, Midland County could see more people seeking help for substance abuse and fewer overdoses; fewer people being obese and overweight; and a smaller number of older adults requiring emergency room treatment for falls. This plan is to help us as a community to succeed in an even greater way. We wanted to choose areas where we were confident we could make a difference, build on our successes and move forward, said Sharon Mortensen, chair of the councils Community Health Assessment and Improvement Committee and CEO of the Midland Area Community Foundation. We wish the council well as it takes on this very worthwhile endeavor. To the editor: In response to the diatribe written by Jeff Liebmann directed at Gary Glenn in his editorial 1-16-2016, Jeff leads me to think that he is the one clearly out of touch with reality and the concerns of our nation. Gary was only listening and reacting to the concerns of his voters when he asked for restrictions on refugees. The refugee crisis was brought on by the passivity of President Barack Obama and his hesitation to fight radical Islam. The problem has exacerbated! Nobody in the Obama administration seems to appreciate this evil and no wonder so many are fleeing their home countries, yet the answer is not housing them in the U.S. The answer is to create safe zones over in the Middle East. Back in 2006-2008, I subscribed to the New York Times. Joe Klein ran interesting editorials back then expressing to the readers his take on the lessons of the surge in Iran and the U.S. efforts to bring democracy to the world. He had come to the conclusion that some societies like the rule of dictators and democracy was not a sought after value worldwide, like it is here in the states. The mistake of President Bush was to topple the weak leader Saddam Hussein, leaving chaos. But the chaos was controlled by U.S. forces. Years passed and in steps President Obama, relieving those U.S. forces. The world is a much more dangerous place since he took office. It is easy to show how his actions in the Middle East made things much worse and proved he wasnt learning the lessons which Mr. Klein alluded to. He was the first president to violate the War Powers Act (unilaterally executing American military operations in Libya without informing Congress in the required time period). I am convinced that was the beginning of the debacle leading to deaths of four Americans, including an ambassador, which occurred in Benghazi. He toppled that dictatorship and was then a leading force in bringing down the dictatorships in both Egypt and Syria. He has doubled down on destroying everything true Americans hold dear, specifically our religious freedom and right to free speech. Most importantly, though, is that he has failed to learn from the mistakes of others. The U.S. is doomed! MARY LAFORET Midland A Michigan Department of Corrections probationer facing multiple felony charges after being accused of firing a small caliber pistol from a vehicle in Midland last month has been bound over to circuit court. Derek Jae Bender, 31, is a Michigan Department of Corrections probationer assigned to Mount Pleasant. He was arrested after Midland Police were called to the Speedway at 2500 N. Saginaw Road at 5:30 a.m. Jan. 6 for a report of an intoxicated man with a gun. At the scene, they found the man was a passenger in a vehicle driven by a woman who became scared by his behavior and pulled into the gas station to call police. The man fought with officers, police reported. Officers were seen with their weapons drawn, according to a caller to the Daily News. No one was hurt during the incident. Midland County prosecutors charged Bender in two separate cases. One lists misdemeanor charges of attempting to interfere with electronic communication and second-offense domestic violence. The second lists nine felony counts: discharging a weapon from a vehicle, a concealed weapons violation, felony firearm, three counts of resisting and obstructing police, possession of cocaine, felon in possession of a weapon, and receiving and concealing a stolen weapon. Bender is being held on a $500,000 cash or surety bond in the felony case. He is being represented by attorney James F. Gust of Saginaw. Benders rap sheet includes convictions of possession of burglar tools, breaking and entering a vehicle, conspiracy to break and enter a vehicle, marijuana possession and felonious assault. He was placed on department of corrections supervision on Nov. 5. The case is set for a pretrial conference in the circuit court on Feb. 16. The Sanford woman whose case of sexual harassment, retaliation and more against a Midland gym was dismissed has appealed the ruling in the states Court of Appeals. A 16-page opinion filed Jan. 5 by Midland County Circuit Court Judge Michael J. Beale dismissed Yvette M. Cormiers suit. At that time, her attorney, David A. Kallman of Lansing, stated Cormier intended to appeal the ruling. Cormier had filed the suit in circuit court in March. Named as plaintiffs are PF Fitness-Midland, LLC, of Michigan and Pla-Fit Franchise, LLC, of New Hampshire. Attorneys representing Planet Fitness filed a motion in July asking Beale to toss the case. Court of Appeals records show Kallman filed the civil claim of appeal on Jan. 26. Cormier filed on multiple points: Invasion of privacy, hostile environment, retaliation, breach of contract, intentional infliction of emotional distress and violations of the Michigan Consumer Protection Act. In Cormiers suit, Kallman gives background about what occurred during her Feb. 28 visit to the Midland gym. On that day, Cormier who had been a member for one month went to the gym to exercise and came into contact with a man inside an open common area of the womens locker room, the documents state. She left the locker room and notified the front desk that a man was using the womens locker room, and was told the gyms policy is that people are allowed to use the corresponding facilities of whatever sex they identify with. There were no signs or posters warning that men would be allowed to use the womens locker room, and nothing on the topic in Cormiers membership agreement, so she contacted the Planet Fitness corporate office to inquire. Corporate staff referenced the gyms no judgement policy, and echoed the desk workers statement regarding using the corresponding facilities of whatever sex a person identifies with. Cormier went back to the gym from March 2 to March 4, and warned other women about the policy. Beales opinion states Cormiers claims on numerous issues centered on the concept of what could have occurred, rather than stating sexual harassment actually occurred. Cormier and the transgender woman were in a common area of the locker room, which is open to other patrons, and not an area where a reasonable person would expect to be secluded. Cormiers suit does not state she was subjected to unwelcome sexual advances or communication of a sexual nature. Instead it asserts what could happen as a result of defendants policy, of being a judgment free zone, the opinion states. There is no disparate treatment because everyone is treated the same by the policy. As far as retaliation, the opinion states the gym simply exercised its contractual right to terminate her membership as a result of her complaint about the company policy, which is not illegal in nature. Beale also found there was no intentional infliction of emotional distress in the case. Regarding the Michigan Consumer Protection Act, Cormier claimed Planet Fitness violated the act by representing that there were locker rooms for men and women, and failing to disclose that members could use those corresponding to their self identification gender because she would have acted on the knowledge. That is, she would not have joined the gym if she had known about the policy. In fact, plaintiff continued to use the facilities, including the locker rooms, after learning of the policy and the possible presence of a self identified female. Plaintiff cannot honestly sustain a claim that she would not have joined the gym if she knew of the judgement free zone policy instituted by defendants, as her actions clearly indicate otherwise, the opinion states. In the opinion, Beale pointed out his ruling had to with the legal issues of the case, rather than associated side issues namely, rights for those identifying themselves as transgender. On top of an ice covered slope with constant arctic winds and less than seven hours of daylight, 20 Survival Evasion Resistance Escape specialists trained for four days in freezing temperatures, upgrading their Arctic survival training. The arctic survival training is a week-long course that gives S.E.R.E. specialists hands-on experience with building shelters and surviving in extreme temperatures. This course, taught by the 66th Training Squadron Detachment 1 at Eielson Air Force Base is the final step for these Airmen to become S.E.R.E. specialist journeymen. We brought the soon to be 5-level S.E.R.E. specialist out to the barren land on part of the Joint Pacific Alaska Range complex, said Staff Sgt. Ryan Rogers, a 66th TRS Det. 1 S.E.R.E specialist. We bring them to a peak with good packed, windswept snow, which is good for us to build shelters and dense enough for us to cut snow blocks. Instructors showed students how to cut blocks out of the packed snow to build a wall next to their tents to help block the cold, harsh winds. As the sun was setting the students melted chunks of snow from around the area for a source of water and then received tasks for the night from the instructors, who would soon leave the students for the night to battle the night cold alone. We already know the basic principles that go along the line of survival itself, said Staff Sgt. Joseph Aguilera, a 22nd TRS S.E.R.E. specialist apprentice from Fairchild AFB, Wash. This was the first time weve ever been able to cut blocks, build snow caves, snow domes, igloos and other structures that are required in these extreme conditions. Throughout the next day the students were busy cutting numerous other snow blocks, as well as digging snow caves and other structures they would be sleeping in for the night. With the shelters we built, we took our time and put in the extra effort to make them comfortable for ourselves, Aguilera said. That really helped us sleep a lot better. One of the final lessons came with help from the U.S. Army and an UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter from Ft. Wainwright, Alaska. The students were given a briefing on how the aircraft can handle the arctic environment along with the hoist capability. The Army will come out and hoist each S.E.R.E. specialist up a little bit so they can experience the rotor wash in these temperatures, said Rogers. They can convey that to their students back at the survival school on what its like to be hoisted in an arctic environment. Aguilera said the biggest reward hell take away from the training isnt for himself, but for his future students. Ill be able to pass this information to them so if the time comes, they are able to survive and return with honor, Aguilera said. JOINT BASE PEARL HARBOR-HICKAM, Hawaii -- U.S. Pacific Air Forces members provided air and cyber operations support for Exercise Keen Edge 16 Jan. 23-29; this iteration of the exercise marked the first time the PACAF staff and 613th Air Operations Center participated in conjunction with their counterparts in Japan. Keen Edge provides an excellent opportunity to focus on bilateral coordination, host nation support, and non-combatant evacuation operations, said Gen. Lori Robinson, Pacific Air Forces commander. After reaching initial operational capability as a Component MAJCOM last month, our first-time participation as the air component ensures we have the right people, pipes, and processes for effective bilateral operations. This exercise enhances our mutual understanding, demonstrates our commitment to the alliance and safeguards stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific. Keen Edge 16's purpose is to facilitate the interactions and to improve interoperability between U.S. military and Japan Self-Defense Forces personnel during real-world contingencies. The training also ensures that all subsequent exercises will be executed smoothly allowing meaningful interaction between the participating units, and improving the overall combat readiness of the U.S. and JSDF. [Keen Edge 16] is important because it allows increased bilateral processes for the defense of Japan at the operational level of military activities, explained Col. David Moeller, 613th AOC commander. For PACAF and the AOC, it allows us to continue to build relationships between PACAF, 5th Air Force, U.S. Forces in Japan and our Japanese counterparts. Moeller shared what he thinks is the most important accomplishments of the exercise. We were able to accomplish increased integration with the Japan Air Self-Defense Force for the defense of Japan, as well as reemphasize our capability to operate bilaterally, Moeller said. We demonstrated our capability as a component headquarters to conduct airspace and cyberspace operations. During the exercise, U.S. and JASDF operated under each of their countrys respective chains of command and made it a cornerstone of their training to ensure bilateral coordination was executed at all levels. Col. Koji Takeoka, the PACAF Japanese liaison officer, said although there are limitations that come with KE16 being only a biennial exercise, there were significant improvements which made the exercise a success. More robust coordination, especially with [U.S. Pacific Command] and PACAF was important. Being able to coordinate with each counterpart to make decisions helped us to know each other more deeply, Takeoka said. This is important, because we need practical and detailed information to understand each other better. Planning for Keen Edge 2016 began more than a year ago. It is the fourteenth joint-bilateral command post exercise since 1986 involving JSDF and U.S. military forces. BAN PHROMNIMIT - Members of the Royal Thai Armed Forces, U.S. Army and Indonesian National Armed Forces worked beside one another to construct a one-room multi-purpose educational building Feb. 2, at Ban Phromnimit, Sakaeo, Thailand, before the start of Exercise Cobra Gold 2016. The construction at Ban Phromnimit is one of six humanitarian civic action sites in which the Thai, U.S. and partner nations militaries will work together on civic programs to support security and humanitarian interests of friends and partner nations. It feels good just to learn different building styles, how they (the Thais and Indonesians) build compared to the U.S. A lot of them (the Thais and Indonesians) are very technically sound, said U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Raymond Camat, site chief, HCA Site 6, Combined Joint Civil Military Operations Task Force. This is not our everyday job as reservists, to get to come out here and build a building is pretty awesome, said the native of Guam. Cobra Gold, in its 35th iteration, is the largest multinational exercise in Asia and is an integral part of the U.S. commitment to strengthen engagement in the region. The HCA programs will improve the quality of life, as well as the general health and welfare of civilian residents in the exercise areas. There are still more kids out there that are not going to school because the buildings arent (big) enough to accommodate everybody, said U.S. Army Spc. Pradarlanne McNamara , combat engineer with 797th Engineer Company, Vertical, U.S. Army Reserve Center Barrigada, Guam. Im pretty sure that not only the kids but their parents are really appreciative of the effort we are putting on (for them), said the Guam native. This year, Cobra Gold will emphasize coordination on civic action, such as humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, with the aim of expanding regional cooperation and collaboration in these vital areas with partner nations and allies. This is my first time joining an international project and I feel very honored, said Royal Thai Air Force Flight Lieutenant Somngarm Funtha, with Mobile Development 12, Royal Thai Armed forces Headquarters. Im so proud to work with the U.S. and Indonesia. We always cooperate and solve problems together, said Funtha. Each of the three different engineer groups participating in the construction at Ban Phromnimit learned much from each other. Along with sharing their building knowledge, the Americans even got to interact with the school staff and children. This is a good project in that we can meet members of the U.S. Army. They are so friendly and say hello to us in Thai, its nice, said Mr. Wanchart Phetsri, computer teacher, Ban Phromnimit, Sakaeo, Thailand. Thank you all for building us a building that will be useful to us and I would like to say thank you on behalf of the principle and this community to the Cobra Gold participants, said Phetsri. CAMP FUJI, Japan - Marine Corps Installations Pacific is the back bone of Marine Corps Forces Pacific, enabling the strategic launch and recovery of military capabilities to save lives and preserve regional peace, stability and security. The Combined Arms Training Center, Camp Fuji, Japan, plays a crucial role in MCIPACs abilities. Its one of the only places in the Indo-Asia-Pacific region where Marines can do large scale combined arms training. Camp Fuji supports training across all aspects of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force, said Col. Todd R. Finley, the commanding officer of CATC Fuji. We can run simulated close air-support, as well as indirect and direct fire ranges. CATC Fuji is composed of more than 300 acres of live-fire ranges and maneuver areas which have been used by training units since the 1990s. The camp gives the Marine Expeditionary Force commander some flexibility in the training profile he doesnt get from other installations, said Finley. It has the capacity to support anything from MAGTF level operations to company level training movements. CATC ensures Marines from different combat elements are proficient in communicating and functioning together in combat conditions. As Marines, we fight in every clime and place, said Cpl. Luke Cardelli, a rifleman with Co. 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment; currently assigned to 4th Marine Regiment, 3rd Marine Division, III Marine Expeditionary Force, under the unit deployment program. We have to be fit to fight in any condition and environment. Here we have the opportunity to function in a colder environment that differs from our usual surroundings. CATC Fuji functions closely with their fellow Japanese service members. There are five Japanese garrisons in and around Camp Fuji which house the soldiers. Being this close to our counterparts allows us to build friendships and successful working and training relationships, said Finley. Bilateral training is the end goal. The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force 1st Anti-Aircraft Battalion on Camp Komakado, Shizuoka, Japan, recently invited Marines to tour their facilities. Japan and the United States are critical allies with an important relationship, said JGSDF 1st Lt. Takahashi, with the 1st Anti-Aircraft Battalion. When I visited Okinawa last year, I was treated very well by the Marines, so I wanted the Marines to have the same experience here. Our friendship is very important and this was a great opportunity to build on it. This relationship, combined with CATC Fujis facilities, provides MARFORPAC a forward-based platform for training, readiness and force projection. The Marines come here leave with not only a better proficiency in basic battle skills, but also field environment training for their military occupational specialty, said Finley. Installations like Camp Fuji optimize the effectiveness of MCIPAC allowing MARFORPAC to maintain a high state of training and combat readiness. It is another step in increasing our readiness to carry out our mission here in the Pacific, said Cardelli. With this training, we can be ready for anything, anytime and anywhere. VISAKHAPATNAM, India - The Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser USS Antietam (CG 54) and the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer USS McCampbell (DDG 85) arrived Feb. 4 in India to participate in the nations International Fleet Review (IFR) 2016. This is an international military exercise hosted by the Indian Navy to help enhance mutual trust and confidence with navies around the world. From Feb. 4 through 8, more than 50 countries will participate in the event, according to the Indian Navys website. Some of the IFR 2016 events include: the Fleet Review and Fly-By attended by the Honorable President of India, and the International City Parade attended by the Honorable Prime Minister of India. The Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson will also be present at the IFR 2016 to help deepen maritime partnerships between India and the United States. Furthermore, the visit to India and interactions with other Navy leaders are reflections of CNO's recently released "A Design for Maintaining Maritime Superiority," which mentions "expand[ing] and strengthen[ing] our network of partners." These critical relationships are enhanced by maintaining interoperable navy capabilities that deter regional aggression and build partner security capacity, said Cdr. Ed Sundberg, McCampbells commanding officer, For some of my crew, this will be their second time visiting with the Indian Navy. They have a terrific navy and my crew looks forward to continuing and expanding our relationship with them. In addition to attending various events of IFR 2016, CNO will meet with Sailors from Antietam and USS McCampbell. Capt. Michael McCartney, Antietams commanding officer said, We are excited to be part of the Indian International Fleet Review. Most of our shipmates have never visited India and look forward to experiencing Indian Culture first hand. The five-day exercise will provide a great opportunity for Sailors assigned to both ships to see and interact with sailors from all over the world. Culinary Specialist 2nd Class Malina Deru, from Taylorsville, Utah, said, "This is the type of experience that only happens maybe once or twice in your career. It's not every day that you get to represent the United States Navy amongst 50 other navies while getting to experience the culture of a foreign country." Antietam and McCampbell are forward-deployed to Yokosuka, Japan, and are on patrol in the 7th Fleet area of operation in support of security and stability in the Indo-Asia-Pacific. Theater key: GX = Galaxy 14; LG = Lincoln Grand 8; NL = Normal Theater; OV = Ovation 14; PR = Princess Theater, LeRoy Opens Thursday Meet the Patels 88 min.; PG (thematic elements, suggestive images, smoking) An Indian-American man gets help to start looking for a wife in the traditional Indian way. (NL, Feb. 4, 6-7) Opens Friday The Choice 111 min.; PG-13 (sexual content, thematic issues) A couple's relationship is tested by life's most defining events. (GX, LT, OV) Hail, Caesar! 100 min.; PG-13 (suggestive content, smoking) A Hollywood fixer in the 1950s works to keep the studio's stars in line. (GX, OV) Ip Man 3 105 min.; PG-13 (martial arts violence, brief strong language) When a band of brutal gangsters tries to take over the city, Master Ip is again forced to take a stand. (NL, Feb. 5 and 7) Pride and Prejudice and Zombies 108 min.; PG-13 (zombie violence/action, suggestive material) An army of zombies invades Jane Austen's classic tale of social class friction. (GX, LT, OV) Opens Tuesday Casablanca 102 min.; PG (mild violence) An old flame returns into the life of American saloon keeper in WW II Casablanca. (NL, Feb. 9, 11 and 13) Opens Wednesday The Princess Bride 98 min.; PG (mild language, violence) While home sick in bed, a young boy's grandfather reads him a fairy tale about a kidnapped princess. (NL, Feb. 10, 12 and 14) Ongoing The Boy 98 min.; PG-13 (violence, terror, thematic material A nanny is shocked that her new family's boy is actually a life-sized doll. (GX; LT, starting Fri.) Brooklyn 111 min.; PG-13 (sexuality, brief strong language) An Irish immigrant in 1950s Brooklyn falls into a romance with a local as her past catches up with her. (LT, starting Fri.) Dirty Grandpa 1 star 101 min.; R (crude sexual content throughout, graphic nudity, language, drug use) An uptight young man is tricked into driving his swinging grandfather to Florida for spring break. (GX, LT, OV) The 5th Wave 112 min.; PG-13 (violence/destruction, sci-fi thematic elements, language, teen partying) After a series of alien attacks nearly decimate Earth, a young woman tries to save her brother. (GX, LT, OV) Fifty Shades of Black 91 min.; R (crude sexual content, graphic nudity, language throughout) A college student meets a wealthy man whose sexual practices put a strain on their relationship. (GX, OV) The Finest Hours 117 min.; 2-D/3-D; PG-13 (intense peril) The Coast Guard comes to the rescue of two oil tankers destroyed during a blizzard in 1952. (GX, LT, OV) Jane Got a Gun 98 min.; R (violence, language) A woman asks her ex-lover for help to save her outlaw husband from a gang out to kill him. (GX) Kung Fu Panda 3 95 min.; 2-D/3-D; PG (martial arts action, mild rude humor) This time, Po must face two threats: one supernatural, the other domestic. (GX, LT, OV) The Revenant 3 stars; 156 min.; R (strong frontier combat/violence, gory images, sexual assault, language, nudity) An 1820s frontiersman goes on a quest for survival after being brutally mauled by a bear and left for dead. (GX, OV; PR, starting Fri.) Ride Along 2 1 stars; 101 min.; PG-13 (violence, sexual content, language, drug material) Ben heads to Miami with soon-to-be brother-in-law James to bring down a drug dealer. (OV) Star Wars: The Force Awakens Three stars; 135 min.; 2-D/3-D; PG-13 (sci-fi action violence) The saga continues, 30 years after the familial revelations of "Return of the Jedi." (GX, OV) 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi 144 min.; R (strong combat violence throughout, bloody images, language) A security team deals with the chaos of an attack on a U.S. compound in Libya. (GX, LT, OV) Register for more free articles. Sign up for our newsletter to keep reading. Be the first to know Get local news delivered to your inbox! Sign up! 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Ireland United States Minor Outlying Islands United States of America Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe Speaking your beliefs is one thing. Putting them into action is what counts. Which is why we're gratified by the number of Twin City residents who plan to visit Bloomington's Masjid Ibrahim mosque open house to introduce the community to Islamic beliefs and traditions. The event, on Saturday, is filled and follows President Barack Obama making his first visit to a U.S. mosque on Wednesday. The idea for the local open house sprouted in December after several hundred people joined a unity rally in downtown Bloomington to show support for the local Muslim community. "Muslim," rather than describing a religion, had become a negative word after a spate of terror attacks by fanatics who used the name, but hardly espoused the beliefs of millions of others. "After that rally in the downtown, the whole Muslim community was really, really overwhelmed with support from the rest of the communities," Mohammed Zaman, president of the mosque, told The Pantagraph. "Regardless of their faith, they showed up to back us. That also prompted us to host this for those people and really show our hospitality. The open house, at 2407 E. Washington St., is sponsored by the Bloomington-Normal Muslim Community in association with Gain Peace Foundation. So many people said they would attend that the mosque has had to close reservations, but organizers promise to set up another opportunity. Those who follow any religion usually say they are open to the views of others and welcome the chance to share beliefs. But saying that and doing it are two different things. The local Muslim community is doing it and it's heart-warming to learn the number of non-Muslims who have decided to take the opportunity to meet their members and learn about their beliefs. Dr. Sabeel Ahmed, director of Gain Peace, an outreach project of Islamic Circle of North America, will present an overview of Islam at the open house and during a forum, there will be an opportunity for discussion and for guests to ask questions and socialize with local Muslims. Muslims pray five times a day. Open house attendees also will have the opportunity to view the late afternoon prayer. The Twin Cities is home to about 200 Muslim families. It's time our community open its collective arms to welcome each other, regardless of religious beliefs. The recent rally, and now the open house, are good starts. UK Paper Industry in Favour of Staying in Reformed EU Feb. 4, 2016 - The Confederation of Paper Industries (CPI) issued its January briefing to MPs last week in which CPI Director General, David Workman, sets out the case for the UK remaining within a reformed EU. He states that the position of the UK's Papermakers, Converters and Recyclers is in favour of the UK remaining within a reformed EU. The future of UK Papermaking relies on continued capital investment, and a strength of the EU for our industry is the ability to trade freely across borders. Should the UK leave the EU, it would cast doubts over free movement and regulatory frameworks. Exporters to the EU would still have to comply with a host of EU regulations and standards, and we would be projected into a period of uncertainty. This is the type of business environment that deters investors, putting in jeopardy the 25,000 direct and 100,000 indirect jobs in the paper supply chain in the UK. This being said, reform to the EU is not only overdue but essential. EU officials legislate in isolation regardless of the consequences to European industry, placing burdens and restrictions on industries such as Paper, particularly in relation to environmental, energy and climate change measures. The UK Government is not entirely blameless either, having signed up to the most challenging Climate Change targets than any other EU country. Whether the UK remains within the EU or not, a more level playing field is needed for Energy Intensive Industries (EIIs) across Europe. We need to be operating under the same regulatory regimes as other EU countries. Failure to act will result in the loss of even more capacity. The UK's Paper Industry lost a massive 20% of its capacity in 2015 and our country is now the largest importer of paper anywhere in the world. Mr Workman commented: The debate on our membership of the EU will undoubtedly intensify over the coming months but we would urge Members of Parliament to recognise that the challenges for Energy Intensive Industries in the 21st century will be enormous and that we genuinely believe that we are in a better position to face them from within a reformed EU. The MPs Briefing can be downloaded in full from the CPI website at: www.paper.org.uk/aboutcpi/communication/mps/MPsBriefingJan2016.pdf. The Confederation of Paper Industries (CPI) is the leading trade association representing the UK's Paperbased Industries, comprising recovered paper merchants, paper and board manufacturers and converters, corrugated packaging producers, and makers of soft tissue papers. To learn more about CPI, please visit: www.paper.org.uk. SOURCE: The Confederation of Paper Industries (CPI) Breaking bad news to children is the last thing any parent would want to do, but it does happen. And while this type of conversation is never easy, taking a positive stance and discussing it properly can help assure a child and make them feel safer and secure. Know As Much Of The Story As Possible According to Everything You Need To Know About Childcare and Parenting (EYDCP), parents should wait to know the full story before discussing the news with their children. Make sure that you gather all the facts that you could so children will not fill in the missing details themselves. Granted that there are times you don't always know everything, just make sure that when you discuss the issue with them, you do not give out facts that you are unsure of or things that you hope are facts, even if it means doing so will make the news much easier for your children to swallow. Furthermore, it is always important to be honest with your children, so they know they can count on you and trust you. Use Age-Appropriate Language Talk to your children at a level they would understand. Make sure that you use terms that they are familiar with, so you don't leave them feeling more confused. Be straight to the point in a gentle way, avoid dramatic explanations and use clear descriptions regardless of your children's ages. Avoid injecting extra statements that might be conflicting to your previous explanations. Choose A Quiet Moment The way you break the news to your children is just as important as when you tell it. The American Psychological Association (APA) suggests waiting for the right time to let them know about the issue. The ideal moment is towards the end of the day when things that needed to be done had been completed already. It can be during dinner or in their bedrooms after they've eaten. Parents are also advised to stay with their children for a while after breaking the news as they might have questions which need to be answered before they can comfortably go to sleep. As much as possible, avoid sharing difficult news in the morning. Hearing bad news early in the day can affect children and their performance especially if they have an exam or a big event later in the day. Maintain A Positive Attitude When talking to your kids, She Knows advises parents to put on a brave face. Doing so allows them to realize that even though you are hurt and upset, you can still pull yourself together and move on. Having a positive attitude will help encourage your children to move past the difficult news and make it easier for them to accept it. Acknowledge Your Child's Feelings Regardless of how silly your children's worries are, do not dismiss them as nonsensical. Encourage them to talk about their concerns and have them explain until you figure out the reasoning which makes sense and finally understood where they're coming from. Make Yourself Available To Your Children Even if discussing the news repeatedly hurts you, it is very important to let your kids know that they can talk to you anytime and ask you more questions that they still might have. Do not block off their feelings as allowing them to open up will make it easier for them to process information. It is very important to reassure them and let them know that you are always there for them. Zika virus has been linked to the development of birth defects in babies of pregnant mothers bitten by the disease-carrying mosquitoes. For this reason, some countries in Latin America are advising couples not to have children for a few months or even a few years. However, the predominant religion in Latin America countries is Roman Catholicism, which forbids its members from using artificial birth control methods. CS Monitor reports that the suggestion to avoid pregnancy for a period of time is difficult to implement anywhere in the world, especially in Catholic nations such as in Latin America. Examples of Latin American countries who have issued warnings to couples about getting pregnant are Brazil, Colombia and El Salvador. However, the World Health Organization (WHO) has not issued any advisory about this yet. Catholic priests have different opinions on whether adherence to their anti-birth control stance is necessary during times of a virus outbreak. Some priests are saying that artificial birth control is wrong no matter what the circumstance is, but some are saying that there can be a compromise. National director of Priests for Life Rev. Father Frank Pavone is one of the priests who believe that the church's anti-birth control stance should be implemented despite the Zika virus outbreak. "So couples have a responsibility to live according to the church's teachings in whatever circumstances they find themselves," Pavone told CNN . "The polemical approach, that contraception is devious or demonic in origin or the smoke of Satan, may ultimately not be the best pastoral approach," Boston College theology professor Rev. James Bretzke told CNN. He also said that the church cannot be too strict during certain situations especially if they involve babies suffering because of the condition. A bioethicist named Paris also posed a question that is related to the Zika virus and catholic doctrine dilemma being faced by Latin American Countries. "The Bible says 'thou shalt not steal,' but is it wrong for a father to go get a bucket of coal to keep his family from freezing to death? The answer is no, of course not," CNN reports. This line of thinking agrees with Pope Francis' more compassionate and merciful approach in leading the Catholic church, CS Monitor added. Germany takes a big step toward making nuclear fusion a reality. The experiments started at the Wendelstein 7-X fusion device could prove the feasibility of the nuclear fusion power that has been the dream of scientists since the 1950s. German Chancellor Angela Merkel joined German scientists at the Max Planck Institute in Greifswald to assist to the experiments. According to a press release, the researchers injected hydrogen into the Wendelstein 7-X fusion device and were able to heat the plasma gas. The experiment is aimed to prove that the design is capable of being used as a power plant, even if the device will not produce yet energy from the plasma. Hans-Stephan Bosch, whose division works on the Wendelstein 7-X, explained that the device produced hydrogen plasma with a lifetime of a quarter of a second and a temperature of 80 million degrees. Until now, two different designs for fusion power plants have been tested in the world: the tokamak and the stellarator. The tokamak design is tested at the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) in France and the stellarator Wendelstein 7-X is tested in Germany. According the press release, only the tokamak part of the ITER project is able to produce plasma that supplies energy. The experiments begun Wednesday in Germany could prove that stellarator design could also produce comparable plasma confinement and heat. The Christian Science Monitor shared that scientists working on the Wendelstein 7-X will heat gas to plasma and slowly increase the time of the discharges and the temperature over the next four years. The aim is to achieve discharges lasting 30 minutes and full heating power of 20 megawatts. If the experiments will be successful, Wendelstein 7-X would show a large advantage over tokamaks because stellarators can work continuously. Before increasing the time of discharges, the initial phase of experiments will continue until mid-March. According to CBS News, David Anderson, a professor of physics at the University of Wisconsin, declared that the startup of the machine has shown impressive results and the Wendelstein 7-X is a remarkable achievement that brings the worldwide fusion closer to reality. Videos Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos. George H.W. Bush didnt seem like an asshole. And Bob Dole, he also never struck me as an asshole. As nuts as this sounds, even George W. Bush the gullible, gutless dimwit who turned a huge chunk of the world into a perpetual hell isnt 100 percent asshole (hey, compare his approach to immigration to that of the modern GOP). But Donald Trump is king of the assholes. And Ted Cruz, Ben Carson, Chris Christie and so many Republicans chasing the oval office are his royal court. This is unprecedented. This is a problem. Growing up, I never thought of the GOP leaders as rude, tasteless, ugly pricks. Instead, they seemed like my dad: Men who loved their kids and country but felt troubled by the modern, liberal world. Pearl Jam hurt their ears, The Simpsons annoyed them and dirty, dope-smoking Bill Clinton embarrassed the office of the President. Compassionate conservatism has become a punchline. But the GOP leaders my dad loved at least tilted toward inclusion. The best example of this is Ronald Reagan and George Bush debating illegal immigration in 1980. Both seem human in a way that would repulse the Republican frontrunners but Bush really digs deep calling undocumented immigrants really honorable, decent, family-loving people. But the GOP class of 2016 recoils at inclusion, civility, and thoughtfulness. Why? Because, you guessed it, they are a bunch of But let me back up. Let me define my term so you understand what makes this group so different, so dangerous. Contemporary philosopher Aaron James wrote a whole book defining and exploring assholedom. But I boil it down to this: Assholes ruin everything. You know the guy at the bar who twists every conversation into an argument then uses volume, endurance and obstinacy to dominate the argument then misinterprets his dominance as victory then slides a Jackson into the jukebox and puts Limp Bizkits Nookie on repeat? This guys an asshole. At the bar, hes annoying. In the White House, hes a monster. Ruining your evening sucks. Basing a political platform on fear mongering, scapegoating and petty grudges while running the worlds most influential nation leads to a global calamity. Trump considers most Mexican immigrants criminals and believes Muslims are guilty until proven innocent. Christie may have been dumb enough to create an epic traffic jam just to get revenge on a minor political opponent. Carson thinks Satan planted the idea of evolution in Darwins head. Cruz wants to bomb an area the size of New Jersey, and its people, until they glow in the dark. But even these massive moral and intellectual failures of the Republican front runners dont matter as much as their assholedom. How does being a massive dick beat being a bigot, warhawk and/or moron? Because assholes have no compassion, courage or flexibility. They stand for nothing beyond what they shouted two minutes ago. Creationists can have a come-to-Darwin moment. The ignorant can wise up. Racists can let love into their heart. I dont have to dig up dramatic examples like Malcolm X or George Wallace (although those are good ones). Just look at the evolution of our modern liberal icons: Wellesley Colleges Young Republicans Club elected Hillary Clinton president; Arianna Huffington supported noted-non-asshole Bob Doles 1996 presidential campaign. Often people learn, they evolve for the better. Trump, Cruz and the rest show no indication theyll change because they consider their personality flaws assets. And on some level theyre right. Recently the Atlantic wrote about why it pays to be a jerk, citing research studies demonstrating that being a bossy, impulsive, ignorant extrovert impresses people more than being smart. Basically Trump succeeds because he says he succeeds. Despite some smart thinkers best efforts to correct the Trump-ization of corporate culture (see Stanford professor Robert Suttons The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isnt), CEOs continue to thrive by the maximum often wrong, never in doubt. But thankfully politics and business are different just ask Ross Perot, Steve Forbes and Herman Cain. The business world embraces these characters in ways the general public doesnt. Few true jackasses have become political giants. That seems a little crazy so let me dial it back. Goldman Sachs, Halliburton, Koch Industries, Bank of America, Citigroup and their peers have recruited more a-holes than government has (a sad and impressive achievement). And lets not conflate being tough with being a jerk. Lyndon Johnson had a thick, thorny hide but he pioneered the Great Society and started the War on Poverty. Johnson may have been a hardass but he wasnt heartless. (Usually) people get into politics because they believe they can make a difference. (Usually) people get into business to make money. And these personality differences are clearly on display during this campaign. A perfect example the CEO/senator divide came when Islamophobes ranted at Trump and John McCain at respective town hall meetings. With a grand combination of cowardice and indifference, Trump let slide a man who remarked We have a problem in this country, and its Muslims When can we get rid of them? From there he let things escalate to spying on mosques and barring muslims for entering the United States. Back in 2008, McCain faced a similar public confrontation when a woman said, I dont trust Obama. I have read about him and hes an Arab. McCain replied, No maam, no maam. Hes a decent family man I want to be president of the United States, and I dont want Obama to be. But I have to tell you, I have to tell you, he is a decent person, and a person that you do not have to be scared as President of the United States. Trumps credo is the asshole credo: self-celebration and self-preservation at every turn. He doesnt deflate the jingoists because doing so wouldnt bring him glory. McCain has a belief system a sense of hope, respect and justice that drove him into public service. He knew showing love for Obama would be unpopular (he was booed at his own town hall after his comments). But he felt compelled to defend his adversary. Its not surprising the relatively decent candidates, the John McCains and Bob Doles of the race, have struggled. Noted inoffensive dweeb (personally, if not politically) Jeb Bush has been crushed the big, brash, awful characters in the race watch him tangle with Trump and you see he doesnt even know how to be a modern asshole. John If Im president, I am going to once and for all try to reunite Pink Floyd Kasich even has some coolness about him, but his inability to be mean, nasty and boorish has left him floundering in the polls. The message is clear: The more normal and tolerant you are, the less likely you are to win states. While the current GOP crop appears to be expanding our tolerance of intolerable behavior, recent polling data indicates the majority of America see these jokers for the who they are. Trump has climbed as a Republican candidate but not with the public at large. He remains the most unfavorably viewed candidate (Democrat or Republican, current or over the past 30 years). In a USA TODAY/Suffolk University Poll from last year, 532 respondents used negative words to describe Trump and 151 used positive ones. Among the most commonly used were polite synonyms for asshole: idiot, buffoon, narcissistic, pompous, arrogant, nuts. We should brace ourselves for some scary results in New Hampshire and the next set of victory speeches full of misogyny, xenophobia, confusion and truculent rhetoric. But we should also remember this is as civil as these bastards will ever be. Right now they actually want us to like them. If you thought the dicks on capitol hill gave Planned Parenthoods Cecile Richards a hard time, imagine Trump or Cruz or Ben I never saw a body with bullet holes that was more devastating than taking the right to arm ourselves away Carson integrating Richards, or any woman, or anyone with an opposing view. Imagine if their approach of boorish, dumb arrogance takes hold in the White House or comes to truly dominate congress. Research shows assholes fail in the long run when they ruin everything for everyone. Being a prick doesnt help you succeed if you dont deliver continued results and eventually followers turn on you. This proves what we inherently know: the GOP gang will be awful leaders. Lets hope America realizes this in time and doesnt give them the chance. Jed Gottlieb is the senior music & theater critic at the Boston Herald. Follow him on Twitter. Do not neglect hospitality, for through it some have unknowingly entertained angels. These words from Scripture remind us of when Abraham extended hospitality to three unknown visitors, and because he did so, he entertained three angels and was blessed with a son. Saint Benedict, aware of the importance of hospitality, wrote in his rule for all Benedictine monks to follow: Let all guests who arrive be received like Christ, for He is going to say, I came as a guest, and you received Me. Benedict continued, In the greeting of all guests let all humility be shown. Let the head be bowed or the whole body prostrated on the ground in adoration of Christ, who indeed is received in their persons. In the reception of the poor and of pilgrims, the greatest care and solicitude should be shown, because it is especially in them that Christ is received. Pulsar aqui para espanol This is the Christian understanding of hospitality. It is not simply about being nice since even evil-doers can be nice to each other. Christian hospitality is about recognizing Christ in the other person, especially the poor as Saint Benedict reminded his monks. Christian hospitality is to worship, adore and serve Christ as Mary did at his feet. Christian hospitality requires a generous heart. Throughout the centuries, the Church has been hospitable because it is an integral part of her mission, recognizing Christ in the needy, the sick, the hungry, the aged, the foreigner and the imprisoned. In the early Church, Romans were attracted to the Church because she took care of the most vulnerable and disenfranchised members of Roman society including the poor, widows and orphans. The 4th century Roman Emperor Julian (the Apostate, as he was known) even instituted a welfare system to prevent more conversions to Christianity. Julian wrote, these impious Galileans [Christians] not only feed their own poor, but ours also; welcoming them into their meals, they attract them, as children are attracted with cakes. The Church continues to welcome the stranger, the foreigner and the needy, and in doing so, she welcomes Christ with a generous heart. The Church has and continues to applaud every effort in society that helps the needy. Last week, the Hispanic Ministry Office of the Diocese of Savannah launched the second year of its three-year initiative with an emphasis on hospitality. During the gathering of over 250 faithful at Sacred Heart Parish in Warner Robins, Bishop Hartmayer reminded those present that our Church is a big Church with wide doors. The Church must welcome all. At this time in our diocesan history, we are called to welcome the immigrants among us, extending genuine Christian hospitality towards those who are away from their homeland. During this Year of Mercy, the Holy Door at our cathedral represents Jesus Christ who is the gate through which the sheep enter into the kingdom. We are challenged to imitate Christ as the gate, so that all Gods children, regardless of nationality, race, or ethnicity, may, through our warm hospitality, feel welcome in the Church and encounter Jesus Christ. These are my own photos, all rights reserved. Before Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or YouTube made their entry in the media market, the PatnaDaily had already registered its presence in... "We're not used to seeing growth in our check business," said Deluxe's Tracey Engelhardt, who reports a 6% to 7% increase in revenue for check orders from businesses and consumers in each of the last three quarters, driven by various factors originating from the pandemic. Lawmaker: U.S. Payment To Iran Looks Like 'Ransom' For Prisoners 02/04/16 Source: RFE/RL A powerful U.S. lawmaker is demanding that Secretary of State John Kerry explain why he paid a $1.7 billion claim settlement to Iran the same day Tehran released American prisoners last month. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce charged that the payment looked like a "de facto ransom for the release of American hostages" in a February 3 letter to Kerry. "Indeed, an Iranian Basij commander has called it as much," he said. On January 17, the department said the United States and Iran had settled a long-standing claim at the Iran-U.S. Claims Tribunal in The Hague, releasing to Tehran $400 million in funds frozen since 1981 plus $1.3 billion in interest. The White House said at the time the settlement was a better alternative than letting more interest accumulate while waiting for a legal judgment. Royce asked Kerry to provide by February 17 lists of all U.S. officials who participated in negotiations with Iran over the settlement agreement and the prisoner release. He also asked for an explanation of how the settlement's interest payment was calculated. Based on reporting by Reuters Copyright (c) 2016 RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org Former BBC Journalist, Translator Arrested In Tehran 02/04/16 By Golnaz Esfandiari, RFE/RL Iranian journalist and translator Bahman Darolshafayi, a dual Iranian-British national and former BBC journalist, has been arrested in Tehran. Authorities had not announced the reason for Darolshafayi's arrest on February 3. Bahman Darolshafayi The opposition website Kalame said Darolshafayi was arrested at his Tehran home by security forces who did not identify their affiliation. They also did not say where they were taking Darolshafayi. Sources told RFE/RL that Darolshafayi had been interrogated repeatedly by Iranian security officials in recent months. Darolshafayi lived in London but returned to Tehran about two years ago. One source said Darolshafayi's Gmail account was hacked recently. Pro-government forces in Iran have been accused in the past of hacking into the e-mail and social-media accounts of journalists and political activists to extract information that has, at times, been used in interrogations. Darolshafayi worked for about five years with the Persian service of the BBC, which has been accused of spreading lies by Iranian hard-liners. He has also been affiliated with moderate and pro-reform Iranian dailies, including Hamshahri and Sharq. In recent months, Darolshafayi had mainly been doing translation work. He also has published several books. Darolshafayi also supported the Green opposition movement that was brutally repressed in 2009. Several of his relatives were arrested in the crackdown that followed the disputed reelection of Iran's former President Mahmud Ahmadinejad. He has posted information on social-media sites about human rights abuses and the plight of political prisoners in Iran. The cover photo of his personal Facebook page is an image of Iranian opposition figure Mir Hossein Musavi, who has been under house arrest, along with his wife, university professor Zahra Rahnavard, and reformist cleric Mehdi Karrubi, since February 2011. Darolshafayi's detention is one of several recent arrests of journalists ahead of elections in February for the parliament and the Assembly of Experts -- a group that could choose Iran's next supreme leader. Other journalists have been arrested by the intelligence branch of the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). In London, The Guardian newspaper suggested that Darolshafayi's arrest could be an attempt by Iranian hard-liners to undermine an upcoming visit to London by Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. "The awkward timing of the arrest suggests that hard-liners, who dominate the judiciary and the intelligence apparatus, may be seeking to undermine Zarif and the moderate faction in control of the government as the Iranian foreign minister visits the U.K.," the British newspaper said. Iran is routinely criticized by media watchdogs for detaining and jailing journalists. Reporters Without Borders ranked Iran 173 out of 180 countries in its 2015 Press Freedom Index. Copyright (c) 2016 RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org Iranian B&Bs and inns win TripAdvisor's 2016 award 02/04/16 Source: Tehran Times TripAdvisor has released its list of the top 25 bed and breakfast and inns in the Middle East, placing Iranian House, Saraye Ameriha Boutique Hotel, and Manouchehri House in the city of Kashan as among the winners of the Travelers' Choice award in 2016. Photos: The Ameri's House in Kashan TripAdvisor offers reviews and advice on hotels, resorts, flights, vacation rentals, and travel packages to help travelers plan and book a perfect trip. Here are some of the comments and reviews on the Iranian award winning hotels: Ricardo Rodrigues from Portugal describes the Iranian house as an excellent place to spend some days in Kashan. "I was there in December and I found a great atmosphere, a beautiful place, a very good breakfast, and a helpful and friendly staff. I really recommend this place for sure." A polish user also recounts how the Iranian House is "an oasis for the senses", adding, "if you are looking for a place to rest in a soothing environment and enjoy the silence, good taste, and have a lesson in 200 years of Iranian domestic design at the same time - this is the place. Great breakfast and long hours of reading by a fireplace. This was an amazing weekend." Portuguese Catrina explains that "the traditional house is beautiful. The rooms are very well decorated: we went on winter and had the chance to experience the winter decoration: a traditional floor bed with a heater in the middle. The staff is super friendly and they make you feel like home. Very good traditional breakfast. Undoubtedly, the best place I have stayed in Iran. I would strongly recommend it to everyone." Manouchehri House in Kashan An Austrian user says that Saraye Ameriha Boutique Hotel is "something very special" going on to say that, "this is an extraordinary hotel. Do not, whatever the reason, miss the opportunity to stay here. The building is a wonder, and has been lovingly restored. Staff uniformly friendly and welcoming. Food excellent - don't miss the chicken kebab! And if you can get one of the management to show you up to the roof, even better." Manouchehri House in no different than the other two. A use from Singapore finds the hotel "sanctuary", telling that, "We stayed at the Manouchehri House for 3 exquisite days. The service was great and the vibe was exquisite. Do not miss this place if you go to Kashan. I loved the food and the attention to detail in everything. The textiles produced at their own workshops are very special. The hotel booked a private tour for us to go to the salt lake and sand dunes. It was breathtakingly beautiful and I will use them again." Video: Saraye Ameriha Boutique Hotel Another user from United Kingdom describes his "very pleasant stay" as read: "Absolutely stunning hotel with very friendly staff and stunning rooms done to perfection. There are no short cuts here. This hotel with only 9 stylishly fitted to the period it was originally built and with over $2m spent can make all the difference to your trip to this old city. Very comfortable beds with traditional local food served at the restaurant you will be amazed. Can't say enough about this hotel. Not to be missed" The reviews go on and on, on the three best bed and breakfast Iranian hotels explaining how great the stay and the hotel was. The best 2-in-1 laptop 2022: our picks of the best convertible laptops These are the best 2-in-1 laptops you can buy right now The Polywell B150L2-i7 business desktop ($799 as tested) may be small, but it's powerful enough to display information and video on two 4K UHD displays simultaneously, or help you complete content creation, financial, medical, or retail tasks quickly. The B150L2-i7 is a bit larger and less IT-friendly than the Dell Optiplex 9020 Micro( at Amazon)(Opens in a new window),but it's also faster and less expensive. A perfect fit if you have a sole proprietorship or a small business, the Polywell B150L2-i7 is our new Editors' Choice for midrange business desktops. Design and Features Measuring just 1.75 by 8 by 8 inches (HWD), the B150L2-i7 isn't much bigger than a hardcover book. It's a bit larger than the 2014 Apple Mac mini, the Dell Optiplex 9020 Micro, and the Lenovo ThinkCentre M83 Tiny. But with its black metal case with perforated vents on top, it's unobtrusive compared with more consumer-oriented small-form-factor (SFF) systems, such as the all-white Acer Revo One (RL85-UR45)($249.99 at Acer)(Opens in a new window). On the front panel, you'll find the Polywell logo, a Power button, and two USB 2.0 ports, which are better suited for connecting a mouse and keyboard than speedy external hard drives and solid-state drives (SSDs). In the back are more connectivity options, including surround-sound audio jacks, two Ethernet ports, two HDMI ports (with 4K support), a PS/2 port, six USB ports (two 2.0, four 3.0), leads for the included 802.11ac Wi-Fi antenna, and a jack for the AC adapter that's used instead of a more convenient internal power supply. The B150L2-i7's 16GB of RAM and 256GB SSD are more than enough for business tasks, particularly if you're using the system in an office where transactions are fast and furious, like a brokerage firm or doctor's office. The SSD comes free of bloatware, with only Windows 10 and hardware drivers preinstalled. The processor and motherboard aren't Intel vPro certified, which is sometimes necessary for your IT department's inventory and systems-management framework. That said, Polywell can work with you to provide drive imaging and 18-month product-cycle support for small- and medium-size projects. Both Dell and Lenovo offer better support for large-scale/enterprise projects, like rollouts of 10,000 or more units. Internal expansion room is limited in the B150L2-i7; there's only free space for one 2.5-inch hard drive or SSD, and both DIMM slots are filled. In contrast, the Dell Optiplex 9020 Micro has a free DIMM slot and is easier to pop open and upgrade without tools, but it has no room for an extra hard drive. The B150L2-i7 comes with a three-year warranty on parts, and five years on labor. Performance An Intel Core i7-6700T processor with integrated Intel HD Graphics 530 provides enough power to keep productivity up. Thus equipped, the B150L2-i7 returned a score of 3,511 points on the PCMark 8 Work Conventional test, just ahead of the Dell Optiplex 9020 Micro (3,062) and far ahead of the Lenovo ThinkCentre M83 Tiny (2,621). It was also very quick on the Handbrake (1 minute 6 seconds) and Photoshop (3:09) tests, so it's powerful enough for content creation. It was faster than the Dell Optiplex 9020 Micro and the Lenovo ThinkCentre M83 Tiny. The B150L2-i7's performance is almost as good as that of a full-blown workstation like the Lenovo ThinkStation P300 SFF( at Amazon)(Opens in a new window) (1:10 on Handbrake, 3:05 on Photoshop). Gaming-oriented 3D test results were also very strong. The B150L2-i7 scored 8,623 points on the 3DMark Cloud Gate test and 483 points on Fire Strike Extreme, and its frame rates were almost playable on the Heaven (25 frames per second, or fps) and Valley (31fps) tests. The gaming-oriented Maingear Spark did better on the majority of 3D tests, but the B150L2-i7 is certainly fast enough to run 3D displays for a digital Kiosk or trade show booth. It was a better performer on the 3D tests than the Dell Optiplex 9020 Micro and the Lenovo ThinkCentre M83 Tiny by a wide margin. Although it's not powerful enough to play games at 4K resoluton, it has enough juice to let you use two 4K HDMI monitors simultaneously for video or as an information display, like a menu board that changes throughout the day. Conclusion The Polywell B150L2-i7 is ideal for small offices where you're rolling out one or two desktop PCs at a time. It can quickly complete tasks for a creative, financial, medical, or retail business. It's also a fine choice for kiosk and trade show duties, as it can drive two HDMI displays and comes in a tiny form factor. Thus, it's our Editors' Choice for midrange business desktops. For larger rollouts, however, we still recommend the $939 Dell Optiplex 9020 Micro because of its vPro certifications, more compact case, and its ability to be deployed in larger batches. Critics say Windows mobile is (or could soon be) dead, but dont tell that to Vaio. The former Sony property thats now run as an independent company recently released its first Windows 10 phone for the Japanese market, the Vaio Phone Biz. As its name suggests, Vaio sees this mid-range phone as the perfect companion to its business-focused PCs. With Windows 10 at its core, the Phone Biz integrates with Windows 10 PCs with little set-up. The phone also supports Continuum, allowing users to switch to a PC-like experience when its connected to an external monitor. The Vaio will go on sale in Japan in April for 50,000 (about $427 at this writing), which is a good price for a mid-range smartphone. The Phone Biz features a 5.5-inch 1080p display, 16GB of onboard memory, 3GB of RAM, and a microSD slot that supports another 64GB of storage. The Phone Biz also comes with a 13MP rear-facing camera, a front-facing camera for video chat, 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 4.0. The device is powered by a dual quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 617, has a 2800 mAh battery, and is encased in an attractive aluminum chassis. The Phone Biz is a decent phone, but Vaio did make some low-end choices. The phone doesnt support NFC and comes with a standard micro USB 2.0 port at a time when many new smartphones are expected to come with a Type-C port. The story behind the story: The future for Windows phone devices is unclear at the moment after a disastrous financial quarter for Microsofts mobile devices. One potential bright spot for Windows 10 mobile could be to focus on business devices that complement PCs like the Surface, or Vaios own PCs like the Vaio Z. Tools like Continuum, seamless integration with OneDrive, and built-in Microsoft Office apps could be appealing to businesses. That said, Microsoft still has a few kinks to work out. The other day I couldnt open a CSV file, a standard spreadsheet file format, with Mobile Excel on my Lumia 950. Japan: a Windows 10 mobile hotbed The Vaio Phone Biz isnt the first non-Lumia Windows 10 phone to roll out in Japan. In late December, a company called NuAns introduced the Neo, a $300-range Windows 10 smartphone with swappable backs. There are also two other Windows 10 mobile devices from Freetel and electronics retailer Yamada Denki, as The Verge recently reported. Its not clear if the Vaio Phone Biz or a version of it will ever roll out in the U.S. Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will accept arrest by the British police if a UN panel on arbitrary detention rules against him, according to a tweet by the whistle-blowing website. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention is widely expected to announce its decision on Friday on an application by Assange over his confinement in the Ecuador embassy in London since 2012. The move late Wednesday by Assange apparently aims to bring his detention at the embassy to an end, whatever be the outcome, while also putting pressure on the relevant governments to reciprocate and abide by the decision of the UN panel, if it is favorable to him. WikiLeaks has published leaked diplomatic cables and other information that embarrassed several governments and international businesses. In 2012, Assange was granted asylum by the government of Ecuador and has since been under the protection of the countrys embassy in London. He is wanted by police in Sweden for questioning about certain allegations of sexual offenses. U.K. police have said that they would arrest Assange to meet the extradition request from Sweden if he comes out from the Ecuador embassy. Assange and his supporters fear that from Sweden, he could be transferred to the U.S. to face charges under the countrys Espionage Act. Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal, Assange wrote in the Twitter message. However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me, he added. Although the publication of the documents were politically embarrassing to the U.S. government, it was a protected act of free speech and political expression, according to the complaint to the UN Working Group. The U.S. commenced investigating Assange and WikiLeaks, and instigated a series of search and seizure and surveillance measures, which do not appear to be regulated by any meaningful due process in which Mr. Assange is able to assert his rights, it added. The Human Rights Council of the UN General Assembly in September 2013 requested states to take into account the views of the Working Group and, where necessary, to take appropriate steps to remedy the situation of persons arbitrarily deprived of their liberty. States were also asked to inform the Working Group of the steps they have taken. We will not go so far as to pronounce it a sea change in Sacramento, but we think it noteworthy that moderate Democrats are increasingly exercising their influence in the state Legislature. Two Inland lawmakers provide good examples: Riverside Assemblyman Jose Medina and San Bernardino Assemblywoman Cheryl Brown. Last year, both moderates were lobbied hard on Senate Bill 350, the so-called Clean Energy and Pollution Control Act. It proposed that California cut its gasoline use in half by 2030, while also generating half of the states electricity from solar, wind and other renewable sources. Californias powerful environmental lobby hoped that both Mr. Medina and Ms. Brown would support SB350 as written. But they refused to do so along with their fellow Assembly moderates until the proposed cut in gasoline consumption was stricken from the legislation. Not surprisingly, there were insinuations in some quarters that the two Inland lawmakers were unduly influenced by the states oil and gas industry. But we think that as unfair to Mr. Medina and Ms. Brown as suggestions that liberal Democrats who supported the draconian reductions in petroleum use proposed in SB350 were unduly swayed by the environmental lobby. Indeed, we think the Assemblys Democratic moderate caucus which reportedly holds as many as a quarter of the partys Assembly seats has good reason to oppose the mandated reduction in gasoline use. And no Democratic moderate more so than Mr. Medina, who told Press-Enterprise political reporter Jeff Horseman that many of his constituents drive farther to work, and therefore use more gas, than commuters in other parts of the state. Ms. Brown similarly provided the P-E an explanation of her opposition to Assembly Bill 880, a 2013 union-sponsored bill that would have punished large companies like Wal-Mart whose lowest-earning employees qualified for Medi-Cal. Her constituents, she said, tend to be a little different than people in affluent Bay Area communities. Indeed, had the assemblywoman not joined other Democratic moderates in defeating the so-called Wal-Mart loophole bill, many of her low-earning constituents might have found themselves legislated out of their jobs. Not surprisingly, moderates like Mr. Medina and Ms. Brown have faced pushback from their partys liberal wing, which thinks their votes against such legislation as SB350 or AB880 tantamount to betrayal. In fact, Ms. Brown is expected to face a primary challenge from Eloise Reyes, a liberal Democrat, who thinks Ms. Browns opposition to a proposed 50 percent reduction in gasoline use by 2030 makes her unworthy of another term in Sacramento. Encouragingly, the state Democratic Partys tent apparently is big enough to accommodate not only liberal lawmakers, but moderates as well. Indeed, in a pre-convention endorsement caucus last month, an overwhelming 82 percent of delegates in Ms. Browns 47th Assembly District supported her formal endorsement when the state party holds its convention later this month. We hope Mr. Medina receives a similar endorsement. LONDON British authorities warned Thursday, Feb. 4, that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange would face arrest if he leaves his diplomatic sanctuary in London regardless of an expected decision by a U.N. panel reviewing his long standoff. Assange suggested he is prepared to depart the Ecuadorean Embassy compound, but how it may play out hinges on the U.N. groups decision that could be made public on Friday. The BBC, citing sources, said the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention plans to rule in favor of Assanges claims he should be allowed to travel to Ecuador, which has offered him asylum amid fears he could eventually face U.S. charges over leaked documents. Assange who took refuge in the embassy in June 2012 said he would demand the return of his passport from British officials if his claims are backed by the panel, which has no legal authority but whose decisions often carry weight in international disputes. But if the Geneva-based group rules against him, Assange said in a statement that he would leave the embassy and accept arrest. Assange took refuge in the embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning over alleged sex crimes claims he strenuously denies. Assange says he fears that Sweden could extradite him to the United States over his involvement in releasing classified U.S. documents. In 2014, Assange filed a complaint against Britain and Sweden with the U.N. group over what he said was his arbitrary detention. Assange said he is blocked from traveling to Ecuador because he faced arrest if he steps out of the embassy. But British authorities appear to be standing firm. The British government said that Assange had avoided arrest by fleeing to the Ecuadorean Embassy and that it was under obligation to extradite him to Sweden over an outstanding rape allegation. We have been consistently clear that Mr Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the U.K. but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorean embassy, the Foreign Office said in a statement. An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European Arrest Warrant in place, so the U.K. continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Mr. Assange to Sweden, it continued. Assanges friend and restaurateur Vaughan Smith told the BBC he hopes Assange will be allowed to leave the embassy. He is quite pale and rather unhealthy and I think hes suffered horribly for challenging power, he said. Murphy reported from Washington. Daniela Deane in London contributed to this report. assange PORTLAND, Ore. The four remaining occupiers at an Oregon wildlife refuge are facing charges, according to court documents released Thursday that say more than a dozen armed activists threatened violence against federal authorities and used social media to urge others to join them. A newly unsealed indictment names 16 defendants, including the holdouts, standoff leader Ammon Bundy and other occupiers arrested last week. Also named is Kenneth Medenbach, who was arrested after being caught driving a government vehicle to a supermarket. A federal grand jury charged all with felony conspiracy, accusing them of using intimidation to prevent federal officers from doing their work at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. The holdouts have said they are not leaving without a guarantee they wont be arrested. If they stay true to their word, the indictment buries any chance they will surrender on their own. The U.S. Attorneys Office and the FBI declined comment Thursday, but the lack of movement in recent days indicates negotiators were not offering amnesty. The remaining occupiers are: David Fry, 27, of Blanchester, Ohio; Jeff Banta, 46, of Elko, Nevada; and Sean Anderson, 48, and Sandy Anderson, 47, a married couple from Riggins, Idaho. Frys father, William Fry, was disappointed that his son has been charged, saying in an email: We were hoping for a more positive outcome. He said his son is no different than those who believe our country is heading in the wrong direction. He believes it so strongly he is willing to stand up with the hope that these actions might wake the nation up and lead others to get involved to change our countrys course, the father said. William Fry said he is still hoping and praying to welcome our son home safely. The standoff began Jan. 2, with the group demanding the federal government turn public lands over to local control and free two ranchers imprisoned for setting fires. Two conspirators traveled to the sparsely populated area of southeastern Oregon last October to warn the local sheriff of extreme civil unrest if certain demands were not met, according to the indictment. Once the occupation began, the group brandished firearms to keep officials from carrying out their duties, threatened violence and intimidated locals to effectuate the goals of the conspiracy, the documents say. Defense attorneys have said at court hearings that their clients engaged in civil disobedience and are being punished for political speech. They say the only use of force during the standoff was by police, who shot and killed Arizona rancher Robert LaVoy Finicum during a Jan. 26 traffic stop. Finicums death led to protests this week by those supporting the occupation, while local residents rallied to urge the holdouts to leave, further dividing the strained community. Federal authorities fear those tensions could pop up elsewhere and have increased security at national wildlife refuges in southern Oregon, Northern California and Nevada and put the rest of the preserves nationwide on heightened alert. The additional security measures are in place at the Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge Complex, which straddles the Oregon-California border; Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in Nevada; and Modoc National Wildlife Refuge in Northern California. Preserves and other national sites run by the Fish and Wildlife Service are being extra vigilant, said Gavin Shire, the agencys chief of public affairs. Due to the evolving situation in eastern Oregon, all service stations are on alert and being advised to take appropriate caution, Shire said in a statement. Associated Press writer Dan Sewell contributed to this report from Cincinnati, Ohio. Despite his success living and working in Los Angeles as a composer/lyricist, Gregory Nabours stays close to his Riverside roots. A graduate of North High School, Riverside City College and UC Riverside, Nabours keeps returning to direct musicals staged by RCC Performance Riverside. Now, for seven performances of Big Fish, Nabours is back with a second title: musical director and conductor. The classically-trained pianist who plays multiple instruments, eventually branched into theater while in high school. Im such a natural behind the piano, I dont have to think, Nabours, 32, said in a phone interview. This is the first time Im holding the baton. Its a little intimidating. But Nabours is so hooked on the tale, score and special effects, he isnt too worried. He describes as touching the story about a traveling salesman father and his son in the Deep South trying to connect and understand and love each other. His father only relates to people through telling over-the-top stories, he said. As Edward Blooms health begins failing, his son Will, about to be married, attempts one last time to pry fact from fantasy in his dads shaggy dog past. Will doubts the truthfulness of the far-fetched stories his father tells about his escapades with a werewolf, elephants and circus performers. Will is even skeptical that Edward proposed to his mother, Sandra, is a field of daffodils. Will must choose whether to accept these flights of fancy or reject the whoppers and thus his father. Nabours calls the music and lyrics spectacular, both written by Andrew Lippa, for whom hes worked. Many of the tunes are ballads of love, including Fight the Dragons and Be a Hero, lessons given from father to son; and Time Stops, ballyhooing loves sweet surprises. Nabours star is quickly rising. His work on the intimate theater production of The Color Purple earned him the 2012 Ovation Award, the Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Award, the L.A. Weekly Award, and the NAACP Award for Best Musical Direction. He is the resident composer and founding member of Coeurage Theatre Company in L.A. Hes currently working on a musical adaptation of a popular graphic novel based on Edgar Allan Poes story, The Masque of the Red Death. But RCCs theater program is dear to his heart and remains a priority. Its one of the best for a community college, he said. And Performance Riverside, a professional equity house with a 1,600-seat theater happens to be on its campus, which is what sets Riverside apart. Contact the writer: llucas@pressenterprise.com, 951-368-9559 Soboba tribe recognized for military support program SAN JACINTO For the past six years, Four Seasons at Hemet and the Soboba Band of Luiseno Indians have provided toys, gift cards and treats to United States Marines stationed at 29 Palms A Company Electronic School. In 2015, the C Company and the Naval Hospital were included in the program, designed to thank members of the military for their service. Plaques in recognition of these efforts were presented Jan. 27 in the lobby at the Soboba Springs Country Club, where a wall is dedicated to Soboba tribal members who are veterans. Staff report SAN BERNARDINO Community members are invited to a Black History Month celebration, From Trauma to Triumph, that will take place from 8 a.m. to noon Tuesday, Feb. 9 at San Bernardino Valley College, 701 S. Mount Vernon Ave. The free event will be in the Liberal Arts Building, Room 100. There will be activities, performances, a behavioral health resource fair and presentations. Pre-registration is required. RSVP: Contact Jonathan Buffong at 909-386-8234 or at Jonathan.Buffong@dbh.sbcounty.gov. Staff report SAN BERNARDINO The Black History Foundation will present the Unsung African American Arts Exhibit from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday, Feb.6 at the National Orange Show Art Gallery, 689 S E St. Guests should enter through Gate 1. The art exhibit features artists Talona Shalay, Maurice Howard, Imani Young and others, the public debut of an art collection, live painter Demar Douglass and a childrens art class. Donations will be accepted to help deliver clean water to Flint, Mich. Information: Talona Shalay at talonashalay@gmail.com. Anne Marie Walker RIVERSIDE P.F. Changs at 3475 Tyler St. is offering a special Chinese New Year menu in support of the Boys & Girls Clubs. The restaurant will donate $1 to the club when customers order off the menu in February. Individuals who post a wish on social media with the hashtag #PFChangsWish can also have $1 donated to the Boys & Girls Clubs. Information: Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Redlands-Riverside at 888-822-6535. Anne Marie Walker REDLANDS On Friday, Feb. 12, the University of Redlands will host the annual Watchorn Lincoln Dinner featuring keynote speaker, noted historian and president emeritus of the University of Richmond in Virginia, Edward L. Ayers. Tickets are $45 for members of the Lincoln Memorial Association and $55 for non-members. The event will be in the Orton Center. The dinner, honoring the life of Americas 16th president, Abraham Lincoln, has been a fixture since 1932. Information: 909-798-7632 or lincolnshrine.org. Anne Marie Walker REDLANDS Girl Scout Troop #593 of San Gorgonio has teamed up with Clothes for the Cause, a company that collects clothes for cash, to help raise funds for the troops outdoor excursions and educational opportunities. Clothing donations will be accepted between 10 a.m. and noon Saturday, Feb. 6 at 905 Ashley Way. Anyone who cannot bring clothes at that time may contact troop leader Cindy Chapman at 909-855-5377 or cchapman@gssgc.org to make other arrangements. Anne Marie Walker Send items for possible inclusion in Community Notes to community@pressenterprise.com. Officials with the Marinello Schools of Beauty said on Wednesday its possible they may close some or all of their California campuses by the end of the week. Its not outside the realm of possibility that the schools would be forced to close in the near future, said company spokesman Joe Hixson. Asked if that could be as early as this week, Hixson said, Its possible. A former employee for the company said administrators told her the schools, including several in the Inland Empire, will close on Friday. UPDATE: Marinello campuses to start closing Thursday The 53-campus system has come under fire from the Department of Education, and federal funding was cut two months ago for 23 of its schools, including one in Moreno Valley. Renew DeMont, a former regional manager for the company, oversaw schools from Moreno Valley to San Diego. DeMont said she was laid off about a year ago. DeMont, of Riverside, said she believes the Department of Educations citing of the school for knowingly seeking federal aid for students with invalid high school diplomas are well-founded. For students who need it, Marinello offers help in getting a diploma. During her year of working for Marinello, DeMont said she observed what she considered problems with students who were earning those diplomas. They were getting their diplomas extremely rapidly, DeMont said, adding that without a high school diploma, students dont qualify for federal financial aid. Most for-profit technical colleges, such as Marinello, rely on such aid for the bulk of their funding. Nicole Standlee, 28, of Visalia, said she attended the Marinello school in that city two years ago. Standlee said she dropped out of high school as a sophomore. She said she and classmates couldnt believe how quickly they received high school diplomas. After just one week of study as a student at Marinello, Standlee said she was told she was ready to take the final exam. I literally finished it all in one week and had my high school diploma, Standlee said. They pretty much gave me all the answers to the test. It was the exit exam. Its an actual diploma. In addition to Moreno Valley, Marinello has colleges in Ontario, San Bernardino, Hemet and Murietta. Contact the writer: mmuckenfuss@pressenterprise.com or 951-368-9595 Marinello Schools of Beauty, which operates five campuses in the Inland Empire, will close all of its 53 schools Thursday and Friday, officials announced Thursday morning, Feb. 4. Schools in California, Nevada and Utah will be shuttered Thursday. Those in Kansas and Connecticut will close Friday. In Inland Southern California, Marinello has schools in Moreno Valley, Hemet, Temecula, San Bernardino and Ontario. The company blamed the closure on the fact that the Department of Education has withheld federal financial aid money from 23 of its schools for the past two months. A release from the departments Washington, D.C. office said Marinello knowingly requested federal aid for students based on invalid high school diplomas, charged students for excessive overtime and engaged in other acts of misrepresentation. Company officials have denied those allegations, but said they could not continue to operate the schools without funding. Students at Marinellos San Bernardino campus expressed surprise Thursday about the closure. Breana Nielsen, 21, of Highland was one in a periodic stream of students stopping in to pick up their belongings and their paperwork. She was with her sister and a friend, both of whom were also students. Nielsen said they started in the schools cosmetology program last September. It was a shock to everybody, Nielsen said. There are a lot of people who were close to graduation, who are having to figure out where to go from here. Nielsen said the first she heard about the schools problems was in an email the company sent out Tuesday, Feb. 2. The email, she said, told students that the company was busy submitting documents to federal authorities to clear up the problems. There were subsequent emails with updates, she said. But on Thursday morning, she received one that outlined the closure. We thought everything was fine, she said. We had no idea what was going on. This story is developing. Check back for updates. PREVIOUSLY: Department of Educations concerns well-founded, former Marinello manager says Marinello Schools of Beauty chain loses federal funding LONDON (AP) British Prime Minister David Cameron urged world leaders on Thursday to dig deep to help millions of victims of Syrias civil war even as diplomatic efforts to end the conflict stuttered and stalled. Pledges of aid at an international donors conference in London came as military bombardments in Syria intensified and tentative peace talks in Geneva were on hold. After almost five years of fighting, its pretty incredible that as we come here in London in 2016 the situation on the ground is actually worse, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told delegates from some 70 countries. The one-day meeting, held under tight security near the British Parliament, is aimed at gathering donations and agreeing on plans for economic and educational projects to help the 4.6 million Syrians who have sought refuge in neighboring countries including Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. Jordans King Abdullah said his country could not sustain unaided the burden of what he said was almost 1.3 million Syrian refugees, a fifth of Jordans population. The Jordanian figure includes all Syrians in the country, even those who came before 2011; the U.N. refugee agency says it has registered 630,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan. We are doing our best against very difficult odds, the king said, but added: We have reached our limit. Our country will continue to do what we can do to help those in need, but it cannot be at the expense of our own peoples welfare. The meeting opened hours after the latest U.N.-led bid to start peace talks in Geneva was suspended for three weeks a sign of major difficulties. The faltering peace process increases pressure on donor countries to commit long-term aid to the victims of the five-year civil war. The U.N. and regional countries say they need $9 billion in assistance for 2016 alone, as the situation in the region deteriorates, Conference co-host Britain has pledged 1.2 billion pounds ($1.75 billion) in new aid between now and 2020, and the U.S. committed $900 million to bring total U.S. humanitarian spending on the five-year war to $5.1 billion. Previous aid conferences for Syria have repeatedly fallen short. Last years, in Kuwait, raised just half its $7 billion target, forcing cuts to programs such as refugee food aid. But this years organizers which include Britain, Germany and the U.N. hope that finding jobs and schools for refugees can foster stability and keep displaced Syrians in the Middle East, slowing the chaotic migration of refugees to Europe. If ever there was a moment to take a new approach to the humanitarian crisis in Syria surely it is now, Cameron told delegates. After years of conflict we are witnessing a desperate movement of humanity as hundreds of thousands of Syrians fear they have no alternative than to put their lives in the hands of evil people-smugglers in search of a future. Aid workers warn of a lost generation of Syrians if the 700,000 children living in refugee camps but not going to school are not given an education. Education campaigner Malala Yusafzai and 17-year-old Syrian refugee Mezon al-Melihan met with Cameron and other leaders to press for $1.4 billion for education for children in Syria and refugee camps. Without education, who will bring peace? al-Melihan said. The conference also will discuss plans to create economic incentives for countries that are under the strain of housing millions of newcomers. The politicians, diplomats and aid groups also will seek ways of getting more humanitarian aid to suffering civilians inside Syria. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told an audience at Cambridge University on Wednesday that the U.N. has been able to deliver aid to much less than 5 percent of the 400,000 Syrians living in besieged villages, many of them in areas controlled by the Islamic State group. Neither the Syrian government nor rebel groups were due to attend the conference. Syrian government forces, backed by Russian airstrikes, have increased the pace of attacks on opposition forces in recent days, as the Geneva peace talks faltered. The U.N.s Ban told the conference it was deeply disturbing that the initial steps of the talks have been undermined by the continuous lack of sufficient humanitarian access, and by a sudden increase of aerial bombing and military activities within Syria. He said that the coming days should be used to get back to the table not to secure more gains on the battlefield. Russia is represented at the conference by Ambassador Alexander Yakovenko. He tweeted Wednesday that it was hard to discuss aid to Syria without its government present. Kerry blamed Syrias government and Russia for the peace talks stalling. Kerry said he spoke by telephone with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov Thursday, and the two agreed to continue discussing how to implement the cease-fire. Russias foreign ministry said Kerry and Lavrov also agreed to try to ensure the pause in the Geneva talks was a short as possible. Associated Press writer Nataliya Vasilyeva in Moscow contributed. The UC Riverside labs of Anandasankar Ray and Omar Akbari may seem far removed from the Brazilian cities where health officials fear the mosquito-borne Zika virus may be to blame for thousands of recent birth defects. But in the wake of the World Health Organization on Monday declaring Zika outbreaks in Latin America to be a global public health emergency, those entomology labs could play integral roles in thwarting the dreaded tropical virus. Ray and Akbari are leading research at the universitys world-renowned entomology department to help slow the spread of Zika. Zika has become a major issue, Akbari said. We think we can potentially combat it in this alternative way. The virus is suspected of causing 3,670 cases of abnormally small heads, or microcephaly, in Brazil. Story continues below. Mobile users, click here for an interactive graphic. Your browser does not support the iframe HTML tag. Try viewing this in a modern browser like Chrome, Safari, Firefox or Internet Explorer 9 or later. Traditional options for fighting Zika include developing vaccines or drugs to treat the symptoms, eliminating the mosquito or using repellents to stop the mosquitoes from biting. A molecular biologist, Akbari has begun a novel genetic-based approach, developing gene technologies to build Zika-resistant lab mosquitoes that can be released into the wild and mate with others to pass on resistance to the virus. Ray, director of the Center for Disease Vector Research, is building affordable, natural repellents based on smells mosquitoes dont like. They may help stop Zika and other viruses. Hes also part of a cross-disciplinary project that would use drones to set and retrieve smarter, cheaper mosquito traps that could prevent disease epidemics. STRONGER MOSQUITOES Inside Akbaris lab in UCRs Boyce Hall, an insectary is kept at a warm 80 degrees. On Tuesday, Feb. 2, Aedes aegypti mosquitoes the primary mosquito species to carry Zika perched or floated slowly inside 35 mesh and plastic cages. Cups with small amounts of water held squirming larvae or moist paper towels bearing tiny black mosquito eggs. Akbari wants to use his molecular biology skills to tackle the Zika problem from a different angle. Hes working on genetically altering mosquitoes to make them resistant to the Zika arbovirus and finding a way to spread those genes through mosquito populations. Akbari is seeking newly announced National Institutes of Health funding for his two-part project to battle Zika. I think its on everybodys radar right now, he said. Last month, he began studying the Zika virus genome, or genetic code, to determine how to break it down and prevent the virus from reproducing in the mosquito. Using existing technologies, hes also creating whats known as a gene drive system a genetically engineered tool to spread those genes into wild mosquito populations. The assistant professor of entomology is working with an emerging science, using DNA software, lab mosquitoes, specialized microscopes and glass needles for injecting DNA into mosquito eggs. He expects to have preliminary data by years end. So far, UC Irvine and Colorado State University have engineered lab mosquitoes that are resistant to dengue. Last year, a British biocompany, Oxitech, released genetically engineered male mosquitoes that are sterile in Brazil, Ray and Akbari said. Akbari said his top challenges will be determining which part of Zikas genetic code to target and what gene drive system will spread resistance to wild mosquitoes. Hell also need regulatory approval to release genetically engineered mosquitoes into the wild in Latin American countries and territories where the virus has exploded. UC Riverside entomology department Vice Chair Bill Walton said the lab mosquitoes may also be less fit than their wild cousins. They might not mate as well, live as long or produce as many eggs, so scientists may need to release large numbers. SMELLY PRODUCTS Ray, an associate entomology professor, is leading research using intelligent design to help keep Zika and dengue at bay through new repellents people in other parts of the world are more likely to use. Launching the company Sensorygen, Ray is making products based on his research that are non-toxic, effective and cheaper than those sold in the U.S., especially repellents using chemical DEET. His research has focused on how mosquitoes use their sense of smell to find humans and then fashioning natural repellents based on smells the insects dont like. Female mosquitoes, which need blood to produce eggs, can smell people 60 to 90 feet away when carbon dioxide odor molecules in human breath pass across tiny hairs, or sensilla, on their antennae and nearby organs known as maxillary palps. They fly zig-zagging to the source and dart forward upon finding the trail again. At six feet away, they pick up a few of the 700 chemicals emitted from human skin. Coming closer, they sense body temperature. Then it really becomes impossible to avoid them, Ray said. They become like guided missiles. Aedes aegypti, described by Ray as the villains carrying Zika, are especially dangerous because they love human odor, live close to people and bite throughout the day, dusk and dark. Few repellents are popular or work well. DEET repellents are costly and oily. Many people wont use DEET, a synthetic chemical developed to protect U.S. troops from malaria in World War II. Natural repellents like citronella and oil of lemon eucalyptus smell strongly and dissipate quickly. Ray is working on repellents using computer modeling that studied chemical structures of existing repellents, identified common structural elements and found them in about 100 of 12,000 naturally occurring chemicals. Ray and his team chose the safest, cheapest and best-smelling natural chemicals, or compounds, with smells shown in their lab tests to turn mosquitoes off. Theyre inexpensive and safe because theyre already made and rigorously tested as food flavorings. Theyre being used for lotion repellents that work for all mosquito species. DRONES ON DUTY? Ray and UCR computer science professor Eamonn Keogh are also designing a new mosquito trap for Project Premonition. The new-generation trapping system, begun last year with Microsoft Research and four other universities, would rely on drones to place and retrieve traps. Ray is crafting odor-based lures for the trap and will test the trap when done. Keogh is designing an infrared sensor thatll be put in traps to detect the type of mosquitoes being caught by measuring wing beats and to transmit the information. The system would help scientists use mosquitoes to watch for emerging infectious diseases that were previously unknown or exist in the blood of wildlife that is tough to monitor. A prototype could be created within a year that may help vector control officials prevent future outbreaks of Zika or new viruses. Drones may be able to start placing traps in five to 10 years. All of this has to save lives in the end, Ray said. Contact the writer: 951-368-9444 or shurt@pressenterprise.com Thank you for reading! To read this article and more, subscribe now for as little as $1.99. Rick Santorum In this photo taken Jan. 19, 2016, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum meets with voters in Greenfield, Iowa. Santorum said Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, that he is suspending his second bid for the White House. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) (Evan Vucci) WASHINGTON -- Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum ended his bid for the White House Wednesday and said he will support Florida Sen. Marco Rubio's campaign for the Republican presidential nomination. Santorum announced on Fox News Channel that he had decided, "The best way to do what I set out to do when we announced the run for president ... (is) by not furthering our campaign." He said Rubio shares his values and "is in a better position to do well in this race." He described Rubio as a "born leader" and praised his "optimistic" message. Rubio "is the new generation and someone that can bring this country together," Santorum said, adding that the 44-year-old senator is "taking the wine I've been trying to sell and putting it in new wineskins." Santorum entered the race in May as a heavy underdog in a crowded Republican field featuring more than a dozen high-profile candidates -- many of them newcomers to presidential politics. His longshot status kept him off the mainstage in all of the presidential debates, his campaign never earning the numbers to put him up against heavyweight contenders like billionaire Donald Trump, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. Santorum may have exceeded his own expectations by scoring a second-place finish in the race for the Republican presidential nomination four years ago before ultimately losing to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. He ultimately won 11 states in the GOP's 2012 primary election after an unexpected and narrow victory in the opening contest in Iowa, where he emerged as a conservative favorite after touring the state's 99 counties in a pickup truck. But he entered a more powerful and diverse 2016 field, causing his campaign to struggle. He is among the nation's most prominent social conservatives, having dedicated much of his political career to opposing same-sex marriage and abortion rights, while advocating for conservative Christian family values. homeless_map.jpg *Note: Data was unavailable for some counties. Source: Pennsylvania Department of Education. Map by Nick Malawskey There are homeless students in every county in Pennsylvania and at least 96 percent of its school districts, the state's Department of Education reports. Most of them are white. Many under the age of six. Since the Great Recession, homeless student numbers have mushroomed across the state and country to reach an all-time high, nationwide, in 2014. This new high-water mark was the result of two factors, primarily: the lingering after-effects of the economic crisis and the improved tracking of these students and, when applicable, their families. In the Commonwealth, their highest concentrations are found in cities, as might be expected, but the highest rates of student homelessness, per capita, often belong to rural counties and districts. *Note: Data was unavailable for some counties. Source: Pennsylvania Department of Education. Map by Nick Malawskey For example, McKean County, in the north-central part of the state, has around 43,000 residents and just 6,260 public school students. It claims a student homelessness rate of three percent, nearly identical to that of urban Philadelphia County, the most populous county in Pennsylvania with more than 1.5 million residents. There is a middle, too, with homeless students found, to lesser extents, in every one of Pennsylvania's 67 counties and at least 96 percent of its 500 public school districts. In order to protect confidentiality, the Department of Education does not list homeless student totals for counties and districts with fewer than 10. "Homelessness is an issue that impacts communities around the state, not just urban or very rural areas," Pennsylvania Secretary of Education, Pedro Rivera, said. States like Pennsylvania, he added, are doing a better job of identifying homeless students now through programs such as pre-kindergarten, which is partially responsible for the increase in numbers. The rise in homeless youth numbers has also followed the implementation of new procedures for identifying, reporting and assisting homeless youth who previously would have lived in the margins or in secret, rarely compelled to come forward. There are still those who fail to report their status, experts say, meaning numbers are likely higher than even state or federal officials know. In the short term, advocates say improved reporting practices are a good thing, drawing greater attention to the problem and hopefully new resources to help address it. But so far funding has been slow to keep up with the rise. As homeless student numbers grew nationwide, by as much as 100 percent between 2007 and 2014, federal funding for homeless youth programs remained almost level. Federal allocations through the McKinney-Vento Act, a federal law providing protections for homeless students and money to assist them, went from $61.8 million in 2006-2007, down to $61.7 million in 2013 and then up again slightly to $65 million in 2014. Pennsylvania's share of that money -- once the eighth largest share in the country -- see-sawed from $1.7 million in 2009-2010 to $2.5 million in 2010-2011; from $2.3 million the following year to $2.5 million the year after that; and then back to $2.3 million in 2013-2014. The fluctuations are attributed to "federal budget constraints" and budget wrangling by lawmakers. Perhaps more surprising is the lack of state funding to fall back on, with Secretary Rivera citing no existing state appropriation for "educating homeless students in Pennsylvania." Some other states, including Massachusetts, home to roughly 7,000 fewer homeless students, supplement federal allocations with state money. Pa. Gov. Tom Wolf's office confirmed that the state appropriates no money for homeless students, saying the administration is still working to restore education and human services cuts he inherited. "Gov. Wolf wants to restore funding to human service programs that have been cut in recent years ... The governor wants to ensure that at school, a child is focused on learning," press secretary Jeff Sheridan said. "Additional funding for schools and human services will help schools and communities ensure that homeless students have stability and access to vital programs that help them stay on track with their education." Rivera said the legacy of those education cuts includes "countless layoffs of professional staff including nurses and counselors, the elimination of after-school and other vital support programs, and forcing schools to enact bare-bones budgets that limited supports for all students, including homeless students." At the Harrisburg School District, much of the money used to help the more than 400 homeless or "displaced" students enrolled there comes from private sources and charities. "The cuts have not hit our displaced program as hard because we have money coming in from the Rotary Club," Saundra James-Goodrum, a school social worker and homeless liaison with the district said, name-checking one of the program's largest benefactors. There are donations from local churches and organizations as well, providing items such as clothing and toiletries to students, while federal Title I funding is used to cover budget items, including salaries for program staff. Much of their day-to-day work involves keeping the students coming to class and connected to resources. For this reason, school often transcends its educational purpose for homeless children, becoming the only lifeline linking them to food, clothing, counseling and hygiene facilities. During the snowstorm that gripped the midstate and Northeast in January, leaving dozens dead in its wake, the School District of Lancaster continued to feed more than 6,300 meals to low-income students despite being closed for the week. The LancasterOnline news site said district officials wanted to ensure the children didn't go hungry. The district was home to roughly 930 of Lancaster County's 1,650 school-age homeless youth last year, state records show. In Harrisburg, Marianne Peters, a student services supervisor with the Harrisburg School District, said there's a psychological component, too, with homeless students who are in flux often clinging to school as the last vestige of stability in their lives. This is particularly true for those of them who attended the same school before and after becoming homeless. "For many kids coming into school every day is the only stability they know," Peters said. "For all of our (homeless) students, but especially our elementary kids, knowing that when they come in in the morning that their teacher will be there, and that they have a routine they go through everyday. That is certainly something they can rely on." She added, "Once they walk out of our doors at 3:30 p.m., it may not be the same as last week." In fact, where they go at that point varies greatly -- from day to day and from child to child. Of Pennsylvania's homeless students, roughly 60 percent live "doubled" or "tripled-up," with friends or family, while an estimated 30 percent live in shelters, transitional housing or awaiting foster care placement, the Department of Education reports. An additional 6 percent lived in hotels or motels; 1 percent were unsheltered; and 1 percent were unknown. Nationwide, something like 75 percent of homeless children live "doubled-up," and 15 percent in shelters or transitional housing. Of Pennsylvania homeless students known to state officials, an estimated 30 percent were white. Additionally, 28 percent were black, 15 percent Hispanic and six percent classified as American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, Multi-Racial, or Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander. A total of 42 percent of homeless children in the state are 6 years of age or younger. "You can see generationally how this can continue if this is all you've ever known," James-Goodrum, the homeless liaison at the Harrisburg School District said. "There's a family that I worked with. The mother was homeless and now I have her kid as a homeless mom." Without funding that keeps pace with the problem, James-Goodrum said the cycle is certain to continue. "That's why you see cycles of abuse occurring and homelessness and all the other ills of society. If the programming is out there and the funding is there, people tend to do better." U.S. Courthouse The U.S. Courthouse in Harrisburg (Matt Miller, PennLive) A fired Fulton Bank employee accused of stealing $13,325 from a York County branch could face a probation sentence under a tentative plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney's Office. The deal is among the U.S. Middle District Court documents filed when Donna S. Miller, 45, of Felton, was charged with bank larceny Thursday. Her plea deal won't become final unless sanctioned by Senior Judge William W. Caldwell. According to U.S. Attorney Peter Smith, Miller stole the money from the Fulton branch on South Queen Street in York between September 2013 and November 2014. She was fired in November 2014 and has made full restitution to the bank, he said. The bank larceny charge carries a penalty of up to 10 years in prison. Miller's plea agreement doesn't specify how much probation time prosecutors will recommend for her. The deal includes a caveat that probation will only be recommended if she meets the legal qualifications for such a sentence. Miller's arrest stemmed from an investigation by the FBI. Ben Allatt Council.jpg Harrisburg Councilman Ben Allatt (at right) held up a copy of the state's financial recovery plan for the city with proposed changes and said he could not support it. (Christine Vendel) HARRISBURG- Harrisburg can't tax its way to financial recovery. That was a refrain repeated Wednesday night by frustrated Harrisburg council members after reviewing a series of proposed changes to the city's recovery plan. The state-appointed financial coordinator and his team of consultants presented possible amendments to the recovery plan originally approved by the court in 2013. The meeting Wednesday represented the second such meeting to review possible changes to the plan. Revenue estimates from the original recovery plan haven't fully panned out, leaving the city with a structural budget deficit going forward. The proposed changes were designed to help the city close its budget gap and get out of the state's Act 47 program for financially-struggling municipalities by 2018. But the proposal fell short, according to Councilman Ben Allatt, who said he would not vote to support it as is. The plan relies too heavily on raising taxes, or vague promises of state support, he said. The modified plan contained ideas that city council members supported, such as replacing outdated computers, technology and police cars, but without specific funding or resources identified. "None of it is concrete enough," said Councilman Ben Allatt. "I give you guys a major F. You can't expect us to vote on this. It's fluff. I'm sorry. It just doesn't do it." The city has long struggled with debt, he said, not because of corruption but because of a structural budget deficit. "We have an opportunity to correct it," he said. Mayor Eric Papenfuse asked why the state didn't offer more concrete financial support, such as a higher payment each year for fire protection. Under the original financial recovery plan, the state agreed to provide the city with $5 million annually for fire protection for the tax-exempt, state-owned buildings in the city. "I don't know how that calculation was made to get to $5 million, but we know now the plan used wrong projections," he said. "Harrisburg is unique in hosting the state. Ultimately, it's the largest PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) that could exist." Papenfuse referred to PILOT payments because that was one of the recommendations in the state's proposal: for the city to "aggressively" go after more PILOT payments from tax-exempt properties. If the state had to create its own fire department, with salaries, pensions and a station, the cost could be $8 million to $9 million annually, said Harrisburg Finance Director Bruce Weber. The city's Act 47 coordinator, Fred Reddig, defended the state's work in helping Harrisburg by noting the Commonwealth secured significantly more money for the city from the sale of the city's incinerator and parking assets. Reddig had wanted council members to approve amendments to the city's recovery plan as soon as this month. But council members said there were simply too many details and the stakes were too high to rush a vote. Council President Wanda Williams, a 12-year council veteran, said previous councils made mistakes when approving the sale of the city's incinerator and parking assets. "I'm going to make sure we go slowly," she said. "We need to understand what we're being asked to vote on." The modified plan advocated two things that Papenfuse had previously said were necessary for the city to succeed: the tripling of the local services tax and a change to Home Rule governance. Changing the city's governance structure through a Home Rule process would free the city from the constraints of the Third Class City Code in state law, which is "antiquated," Reddig said. Municipalities under Home Rule design their own government structure and have access to more taxing and revenue options, city officials said. But council members were wary of such an unpredictable and far-reaching change. Williams said she wanted to research Home Rule more and educate the public about it before committing to the idea. Reddig and his team took note of council members' feedback Wednesday night and asked council members to submit additional questions or concerns by Monday, so adjustments could be made to the plan. Kathleen Kane Attorney General Kathleen Kane dipped heavily into her campaign war chest to cover legal and crisis communications fees, state records show. (PennLive.com/file) This story was updated at 9:35 a.m., Thursday to fix some typographical errors. Year-end campaign finance reports from Attorney General Kathleen Kane's political committee shows that Kane the candidate was more consumed last year by the direct threats to her first-term survival than a race for a second term. Of $327,000 in expenditures reported by Kathleen Kane for Pennsylvania in 2015, nearly $300,000 of that was spent on survival-mode expenses including crisis communications help or legal defense work. The bulk of Kane's expenditures in 2015 went to: * $150,000 to the Winston & Strawn law firm, home to Kane's lead criminal defense attorney, Gerald Shargel, whose primary duty is getting Kane cleared of the charges against her. * $130,059 to Lanny Davis, the Washington-based crisis communications specialist who clients have ranged from the Clinton family to post-Sandusky Penn State. His primary duty was help Kane respond to allegations before and shortly after the charges were filed. * $19,228 to Scranton attorney Amil Minora, who has been assisting Shargel. It's not clear if the recorded expenses amount to all of Kane's legal fees, or just a portion. Shargel declined comment for this story. Pennsylvania law requires donations to political committees to be used for the purpose of "influencing the outcome of an election," but state officials have defined that broadly over the years. "She could make the argument that these expenditures are necessary to protect her viability as a candidate for office," Harrisburg attorney Scott Caulfield, who has regularly practiced in election law, said Wednesday. "Is it the best practice ethically? Maybe not," Caulfield continued. "But that's a different question than if it is legal." Kane, who was charged last year with perjury, obstruction of justice and other charges and faces a criminal trial later this year, is following a well-worn path in tapping her campaign funds for legal defense work. Former state office-holders who have done the same include former Sens. Robert Mellow, the longtime minority leader from Lackawanna County; Vince Fumo, the former minority chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee; and Jane Orie, an Allegheny County Republican. "The precedent is consistent" said Philadelphia attorney Gregory Harvey, another expert on state campaign finance and election law, "it goes back many years... and to my knowledge no one has believed it could be challenged successfully, and no one ever has." As has happened so often in her three-year tenure, Kane's circumstances may bring a fresh look. Citizen activist Gene Stilp, an outspoken Kane critic, filed a complaint Wednesday with the Pennsylvania Department of State - which regulates elections in Pennsylvania - asking for an investigation into whether her 2015 expenditures were for personal or campaign purposes. Stilp, in a release on his action, asked if Kane's donors would have contributed if they'd thought their gifts would "end up in the hands of criminal defense lawyers... or for Kane's license suspension legal battles." One Kane supporter reached for this story, however, said he wasn't concerned with the reported expenditures. Robert McGregor, a Scranton-area businessman who gave $5,000 to Kane's first committee in 2012, said he donated because of his personal friendship with Kane. "Things happen, and you have to shift your priorities," McGregor said, but the point of his donation was that he was giving that money to Kane to use as she needs. Larry Ceisler, a Philadelphia-area public relations executive with past campaign experience, said McGregor's point of view is probably not unique among Kane's donors. "You use your campaign money to further your political career, and right now that's how she has to further her political career; by steering out of these legal and perception challenges," Ceisler said. Kane did no fundraising to speak of through 2015, as the only income the Kane Committee reported was $365.90 in interest income. Kane's committee had $246,000 on hand at the start of 2016, less than all of her three declared challengers for the Democratic Party nomination, Montgomery County Commissioner Josh Shapiro, Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala and Northampton County District Attorney John Morganelli. It's an unusual position for an incumbent to be in on the eve of a statewide race. But for Kane - who is said to be working toward a run but has not yet announced her intentions for 2016 - money may not be the only thing. Political consultants close to Kane have contended this winter that the embattled attorney general's prospects will rise or fall at this point more on the outcomes of her many personal battles than how much money she has in the bank. A recent Harper poll showed Kane is the current front-runner in the Democratic primary field, though that may be owing to her sizable advantage in statewide name recognition. Ceisler, another former Kane donor, said it's true that if Kane gets some public victories like, for example, seeing the ouster of Justice J. Michael Eakin from the state Supreme Court over controversial emails Eakin shared with friends and that Kane brought to light last year, she could surge through news coverage and name recognition. The problem now, he said, is that if Kane does surge in a primary race, at the moment she has no resources to respond with if her rivals for this year's Democratic nomination start to pound her with negative ads. "Being the first female (elected as attorney general), being the only woman in the race, and being the incumbent, I don't think you can just write her off," Ceisler said. "But I think it's going to be really difficult" for Kane to survive the primary. This post is more for me as I am trying to figure out what exactly I want. If I had ever written a matrimonial ad (which I really should have, but in my 20s I hardly knew what I wanted) In a couple of weeks I will be 45 and at this time of my life this is what I would have written. Wanted, a man for Sarah. First a bit about Sarah. I am strong willed, stubborn and sarcastic to the core. I am a voracious reader and in the last year alone I read 232 books and that is not including the romance books. I have near perfect eidetic memory which means I will always remember every single thing. I like to travel and not like the once a year trip to homeland. I have really itchy feet and would go on a trip whenever(and wherever) I feel like. I like good food and spend a great deal of time and money in pursuit of culinary delights. My children are my world. I have absolutely no contact with my parents or sisters and that will never change. I am a perfectionist and a creature of habit and hate changes to the way I have organized my life. You should be intelligent. There is no way, I can live with a guy who is not highly intelligent. You should be well read. (The last time I told a guy that I am a voracious reader, he claimed he too is a voracious reader. Unfortunately our definition of voraciousness didnt match. He considered himself to be a voracious reader because he reads one book a year). You should be sarcastic, be able to get sarcasm and can say snap when it is dished out in liberal doses. I can happily say snap every time I receive sarcasm in liberal doses, because for me sarcasm has no malicious undertone. For me sarcasm is simply good wit that can cut through humbug. You should be stubborn and can argue your points sensibly and win. I really dont mind losing an argument, I, however hate people trying to argue with ridiculous points that has absolutely no merit. You should know history and must love it.I love history and I am still learning. Right now I am reading about Cambodian history and if I find something really interesting, I need you to be kind of guy who I can discuss those things, so if you dont know the capital of Cambodia or the name of the largest fresh water lake in S E Asia, we are wasting each others time. You should be good looking (as in own a pair of beautiful eyes) not fat, certainly no potbelly and must dress well. If I as a mother of three kids can still keep my figure, I dont see the reason why I should live with someone who doesnt care about his body. I certainly will not put up with someone who thinks wearing white socks with trousers is fashion! You should love good food and not necessarily eat only certain types of cuisine. I cook whatever takes my fancy, which simply means you might get Mexican breakfast, Spanish lunch and Mongolian dinner in a single day. You should love travelling, be at ease in business class or in a tent. Most importantly you should have enough money (preferably born in to money), love spending your money and living a good life.I do not live for anyone nor do care to show anyone how successful I am with the usual trappings of success. I will however spend a great deal of money on things that make me happy such as the best mattress money can buy and the most expensive bed sheet. Why this guy? He has really beautiful eyes, good looking and fit. He is exceptionally intelligent, reads more than me. He knows history better than me, knows the capital, flag, political party and leader of every single country on earth. He can argue passionately why Franco was not good for Spain ( while his father who was arrested during Francos time and I are pro Franco) and can graciously agree to disagree with both of us. He listened to my points and have agreed with me that prochoice is not always the right decision. He has very similar OCD like mine and it is a relief not having to force my values on him. He likes to travel and has been to more places (including Costa Rica, Cuba and Madagascar, three countries in my to do list) than me. He laughs with me for my quirks. (not at me). I wash apples before peeling them, but not bananas. I dont have any logical explanation to why I do things the way I do and he finds my quirks hilarious. He loves going for long walks. He is sarcastic to the core and always said that I am the only one who could get his sarcasm( I felt exactly the same with him). He is very caring and knows every little things about me. But more than anything else, we seem to have a connection that simply cant be explained.. We are so different, yet we have so much in common. In 2020, I will be 49 and my youngest would have left home. I want to retire by my 50th birthday and there are things I want to do after I retire. I want to live in S. America for a couple of years, learn Spanish and read some of the great books that are written in Spanish. I want to sail around the world for a year. After that I want to buy a house by the beach (not sure where) and then spend the rest of my life doing the things that make me really happy. Go for walks in the beach, watch the sunset, read all the books I want to and write. As such I could do all of these on my own, but it would be nicer if I did all these with that one person who can make my heart sing for joy by merely calling my name. We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form Terror Groups Eyeing Israel's Destruction from inside NGOs Two stalwarts go sleuthing: "The research suggests that antisemitism is the fuel that primes the PSC engine" 'For as long as these antisemites wrap themselves up in the Palestinian flag, too many people are willing to turn a blind eye. Only against Jews is this type of racism openly tolerated. It is flourishing in schools, colleges, universities, unions and in city councils. In fact, so rampant is the disease now, in some settings you can be ostracised if you do not partake in the frenzy yourself. Bashing Jews has becomes a trendy position for the ignorant social justice warrior. "Palestinianism" is a viral "ponzi scheme" and as it spreads, it carries antisemitism in the undergrowth.' David Collier (2017) 'This new rise in antisemitism, which I had thought long dead, was not shaven-headed white imbeciles from the far right. It was Muslims, a large chunk of it.... Suddenly I grasped that the British far left didnt want people to know about antisemitism because it pointed the finger at people they really, really liked. From that moment on, it all fell into place.... Time and again the same tropes emerged, the same sort of stuff that Streicher and Goebbels would have commended and uttered.... And from that a whole bunch of other stuff emerged: the old blood libel business (a favourite of the repulsive Jenny Tonge).... Nice, avuncular, Jeremy Corbyn, with his peace badges, happily laying a wreath at the graveside of Palestinian terrorists who murdered innocent Jewish athletes, oh, and much much more.... It is the same antisemitism, exactly the same: the obsession with Israel to the exclusion of everything else, the conspiracy theory paranoias, the derangement.... Heres the test if you cannot see the flagrant racism in the BDS movement, and if you are obsessed with the perfidy of the Middle Easts only democracy to the exclusion of all else, you are an antisemite. That means a good proportion of the Labour Party, including the leader, and almost all of Momentum: no brown shirts, no marching bands, but the same old filth, dressed in the clothes of a polytechnic geography lecturer.' Rod Liddle (2018) Pro-Israel Down Under Shalom and Welcome to my blog! I'm the little Aussie blogger who took the screenshot and broke the story of Stephen Sizer's notorious 9/11 post, and I've since broken two other stories that subsequently went viral, one Australia-wide and one, thanks to the sterling work of two other bloggers, worldwide. I remain very surprised and very honoured to have been co-winner, Best Pro-Israel Blog, Hasby Awards, 2013 Please "Like" me on Facebook; my Facebook page is here 'In a region where women are stoned, gays are hanged, Christians are persecuted, Israel ... is different.... Of the 300 million Arabs in the Middle East and North Africa, only Israel's Arab citizens enjoy real democratic rights.... Israel is not what is wrong about the Middle East. Israel is what is right about the Middle East.' Bibi Netanyahu (20 Iyar 5771; 24 May 2011) Scroll to end for more quotations Tired of anti-Balfour agitprop? Balfour and Beyond Try this for Sizer 'Before the June 1967 Six Day War, there were no such things as "settlements". Palestinians were trying to destroy and displace Israel anyhow. The core problem is not, and never was, "settlements," but the right of Israel (or any non-Muslim nation) to exist inside any borders in that part of the world. If you take a stand that is based on a lie, then that stand cannot succeed. If you try to oppose antisemitism but pretend it is the same thing as "Islamophobia," then the structure on which you have made your stand will totter and all your aspirations will fail. If you try to make a stand based on the idea that settlement construction rather than the intransigence of the Palestinians to the existence of a Jewish state is what is holding up a peace deal, then facts will keep on intruding.' Douglas Murray (31 December 2016) https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/9685/britain-little-lies BDS is Antisemitic The Bigotry & Immorality of BDS 'Islamophobia does NOT come from the same wellspring of hatred as antisemitism. Antisemitism is a true prejudice because the hatred and demonisation it promotes derive entirely from lies and a repudiation of rationality itself. Islamophobia is a false allegation of prejudice which is deployed to silence rational criticism based on actual facts about attitudes and practices within the Islamic world. [L]ethally compromised even-handedness is to misunderstand, and thus minimise, antisemitic attitudes and behaviour while shutting down legitimate and necessary discussion of the threat from the Islamic world even to demonise as Islamophobic anyone who draws attention to the extent and consequences of Muslim antisemitism.' Melanie Phillips (14 December 2016) "Selling a house to a Jew is a betrayal of Allah" Maps of Mendacity & Mischief These misleading maps were deliberately prepared to date from 1946 intentionally papering over the momentous events that had occurred between 1917 and 1945. Attempts to unravel binding precepts of international law established between 1917 and 1945 and failing to insist on their being upheld and enforced has a lot to do with the sorry situation the world finds itself in today. David Singer (2016) How They Twist the Truth! Jews have re-assumed the role of the canary in the mine and are the first to be targeted, but the world would face the same threat if Jews did not exist. Israel has been at the front lines confronting Islamic extremism but has received scant support... For Jews, the writing has been on the wall for a long time. The virulence of the antisemitic hatred closing in on Jews in Europe (and elsewhere) is horrifying... Europe is today facing a crisis as serious as the confrontation with Nazism. If Western leaders continue behaving like Chamberlain and fail to stand up to this global threat, it could usher in a new Dark Age in which the Judeo-Christian culture is subsumed by primitive barbarism. The writing is on the wall Isi Leibler (12 January 2015) Expose The Lies! There is a war of lies and deceit on the internet generating unbelievable hate by denigrating and delegitimising the legal rights conferred on the Jewish people by the League of Nations in 1922 and the United Nations in 1945. The idea that there are two narratives on the Arab-Jewish conflict is rubbish. There is only one the factual truth that details the return of the Jewish people to reconstitute the Jewish National Home in its ancient biblical, ancestral and historic homeland after 3500 years of dispersion with the unanimous endorsement of the nation states then comprising the League of Nations.... Generals cant fight a war without soldiers. Jews around the world need to join the fight or vacate the internet to the Jew-haters and their lies that repeated often enough eventually become accepted as truth. David Singer (2016) Exposing Lies The "Apartheid" Slur The division of Judea and Samaria (West Bank) into three separate areas A, B and C was agreed on by Israel and the PLO pursuant to the Oslo Accords. 95% of the West Bank Arabs live in Areas A and B and their daily lives are under the total administration and control of the PLO since the Palestinian Authority was disbanded by Abbas in January 2013. The PLO has total security control in A and shares security control in B with Israel. Israel has total administrative and security control in C. Israel is entitled to and will continue to take responsibility for the security of Jews living in the West Bank. Jews were given the legal right to settle in the West Bank under article 6 of the Mandate for Palestine and article 80 of the UN Charter. They did so for decades until they were driven out in 1947 and not able to return there until 1967. There are Arab roads only in the West Bank that Jews are not allowed to use. Jews are also forbidden from entering Area A. Selling land to Jews is forbidden by the PLO under pain of death. The PLO runs the daily lives of 95% of the West Bank Arabs and Hamas runs the daily lives of 100% of the Gazan Arabs. They have been under occupation and subjugation by these two evil groups for the last ten years and given no say in their future or any opportunity to elect others to lead them following the disastrous political decisions of their leaders over the past ten years. Hamas and the PLO do not accept the continued existence of a Jewish State and call for its disappearance. The narratives did not begin in 1948 they began in about 1917. How do you make peace with an enemy that has been obsessed with not recognising any Jewish national rights in former Palestine for the last 100 years? David Singer (2016) Telling the Truth The Jews of the Holy Land ... are surrounded by hostile states 650 times their territory and sixty times their population. Yet their last, best hope of ending two millennia of international persecution - the State of Israel - has somehow survived. When, during the Second World War, the island of Malta came through three terrible years of bombardment and destruction, it was rightly awarded the George Cross for bravery. Today, Israel should be awarded a similar decoration for defending democracy, tolerance and Western values against a murderous onslaught that has lasted twenty times as long. Andrew Roberts (historian) A voice of courage & reason He knows, y'know An Aussie demo against BDS On the left, black people are usually allowed to define whats racism; women can define sexism; Muslims are trusted to define Islamophobia. But when Jews call out something as antisemitic, leftist non-Jews feel curiously entitled to tell Jews theyre wrong, that they are exaggerating or lying or using it as a decoy tactic and to then treat them to a long lecture on what anti-Jewish racism really is. Jonathan Freedland (The Guardian, 29 April 2016) An awkward fact for some! Socialist thought was tainted from its very origins with the heavy baggage of anti-Jewish stereotypes. Robert Wistrich, From Ambivalence to Betrayal:The Left, the Jews, and Israel (2012) BDS hypocrisy! Want more? Israel is understandably obsessed with security, but its greatest security lies ultimately not in the Israeli Defence Forces, but in political warfare.... Most of the world is not deeply interested in what happens in Israel, and probably does not want to be deluged with legalistic defences of particular actions. What it wants is a clear, calm, repeated case. It is a case aimed more at public opinion than at foreign ministries about freedom, democracy, a Western way of life and the need for the whole of the free world to fight terrorism. Sometimes you hear Israelis say: It doesnt matter what we say. The whole world is against us. You can see why they say it, for they are indeed unfairly treated. But when they say it, they are uttering a self-fulfilling prophecy. If they wont say what needs saying, no one else will say it for them. Charles Moore (2010) #Je suis ISRAEL Aujourdhui, lantisemitisme est masque par lantisionisme. Il faut dire les choses comme elles sont! ["Today, antisemitism wears the mask of anti-Zionism. We must tell things as they are!"] Nicolas Sarkozy (27 May 2015) Once again the armies of the Arab nations are coordinating their military efforts to destroy Israel - whatever they say about wishing merely to regain the lost territories.... [I]f the present Arab offensive had been launched at the pre-1967 frontiers, then the Israelis would indeed have been fighting to avoid annihilation. It seems now that the Israelis were right to maintain the ceasefire lines gained in 1967, and that to do so is the only guarantee of their continued safety. Alan Sillitoe (The Times, 11 October 1973) A nuclear Iran threatens our existence Iran and ISIS are competing for the crown of militant Islam... In this deadly game of thrones, theres no place for America or for Israel, no place for Christians, Jews or Muslims who dont share the Islamist medieval creed, no rights for women, no freedom for anyone... [T]he greatest danger facing our world is the marriage of militant Islam with nuclear weapons. To defeat ISIS and let Iran get nuclear weapons would be to win the battle, but lose the war. We cant let that happen...[T]he days when the Jewish people remained passive in the face of genocidal enemies, those days are over. We are no longer scattered among the nations, powerless to defend ourselves. We restored our sovereignty in our ancient home. And the soldiers who defend our home have boundless courage. For the first time in 100 generations, we, the Jewish people, can defend ourselves....Even if Israel has to stand alone, Israel will stand. But ... I know that America stands with Israel... You stand with Israel, because you know that the story of Israel is not only the story of the Jewish people but of the human spirit that refuses again and again to succumb to historys horrors. Bibi Netanyahu (12 Adar 5775; 3 March 2015) The Jews are a peculiar people: things permitted to other nations are forbidden to the Jews. Other nations drive out thousands, even millions, of people, and there is no refugee problem.... [N]o one says a word about refugees. But in the case of Israel displaced Arabs have become eternal refugees.... Other nations - when they are defeated - survive and recover, but should Israel be defeated it would be destroyed.... [A]s it goes with Israel, so it will go with all of us. Should Israel perish the holocaust will be upon us. Eric Hoffer (1968) My archived Tuesday blogs at Elder of Ziyon , Most of the present Arab countries were given their freedom after the 1914-18 War, or after the 1939-45 War.... Yet to listen to Arab spokesmen one might think that they had been cheated ... because they have not also got Israel. Israel is only .2 per cent of the land where Arab States have been established. Surely no fair-minded man can begrudge the Jews their own promised land when it is remembered that for every 2 acres that went to make up Israel, 1,000 acres became Arab.... Why is there an Arab refugee problem? The oil-rich countries have the money. There is no shortage of land, and the Israelis have the technical knowledge to show how it could be developed and made fertile. Bring those things together and the problem could be solved. 3rd Earl of Balfour (1968) Blog Archive January 7, 2015 has already its place in the history of infamy, but also will be the date when the defenders of freedom and democracy will rise and pay tribute to those who died for their freedom and ours. Therefore, we must not forget on which side we are and who are our allies in the defense of the West and its values. Whether we admit it or not, the West is at war with an enemy who will not stop to destroy us... The State of Israel boasts a commandment that, in one of the darkest hours in the fight for liberty Winston Churchill taught: "Never give up". Israel has proven to be a key ally in the fight against Islamism and also an example of how a liberal democracy can resist the jihadist stake and thrive as a Western nation ... Not only France but also all the West should look to Israel to defeat Islamism... friendsofisraelinitiative.org [I]ts impossible to believe that an active antisemite wouldnt if only opportunistically seek out somewhere to nestle in the manifold pleats of Israel-bashing, whether in generally diffuse anti-Zionism, or in more specific Boycott and Divestment Campaigns, Israeli Apartheid Weeks, End the Occupation movements and the like....[T]ell me that not a single Jew-hater finds the activity congenial, that criticising Israel can never be an expression of Jew-hating, not even when it takes the form of accusing Israeli soldiers of harvesting organs... Howard Jacobson (The Independent, 27 May 2013) What has happened to the 800,000 Jews who lived for over 2000 years in the Arab lands ...? Where are they in Arab society today? You dare talk of racism when I can point with pride ... to the fact that it is as natural for an Arab to serve in public office in Israel as it is incongruous to think of a Jew serving in any public office in an Arab country, indeed being admitted to many of them. Chaim Herzog (6 Kislev 5736; 10 November 1975) I stand with Israel, I stand with the Jews.... I defend their right to exist, to defend themselves, to not let themselves be exterminated a second time. And, disgusted by the antisemitism of many Europeans ... I am shamed by this shame that dishonours my country and Europe. Oriana Fallaci For Western countries to side with those who question Israel's legitimacy, for them to play games in international bodies with Israel's vital security issues, for them to appease those who oppose Western values, rather than robustly to stand up in defence of those values, is not only a grave moral mistake, but a strategic error of the first magnitude. Israel is a fundamental part of the West. The West is what it is thanks to its Judeo-Christian roots. If the Jewish element of those roots is lost and Israel is lost, then we are lost too. Jose Maria Aznar Israel is, for us, a normal and a special country. A normal country, because it is just like any other democracy. A special country, because the Jewish culture, which eventually became the Judeo-Christian culture of the dignity of man, is the conceptual foundation of liberalism and democracy. This is why attacking Israel is tantamount to attacking Europe and the West. This is also why disputing Israel's legitimacy and its right to existence means questioning democracy. And this is why we are Friends of Israel. By defending Israel, we are defending ourselves. Marcello Pera Israel ... is beset today by a unique combination of threats. It must defend its people from attack while defending its very right to exist. No other nation in the world faces this dual challenge. To deny Israel's right to confront some of the world's most vicious terrorist groups in order to ensure the safety of its citizens is to corrode international norms from within ... The assault on Israel is one part of a more general assault on the West, on democracy, and on the moral and cultural heritage that grew from the fruitful interaction of Jerusalem, Athens, and Rome ... Should these efforts succeed, similar efforts will certainly be turned against other western democracies. George Weigel Apart from America itself, Israel still stands as the world's brightest model of national self-liberation based on ideals of individual responsibility and human freedom. Israel's ability to withstand Arab attempts to destroy it in one of the longest and most lop-sided wars ever fought serves as an indelible testimony to the strength of democratic culture.... We know from the past that the West paid dearly for ignoring Hitler's war against the Jews. One can only hope it will not pay as dearly for having ignored or underestimated for so long the Arab war against Israel and the Jews. Ruth Wisse The choice before us is not between victory and defeat, but between victory and annihilation. We therefore have not the slightest intention of allowing the re-creation of the conditions of vulnerability in which we found ourselves, abandoned and alone, in the summer of 1967. Diplomat Michael Comay (1970) I am duty-bound to defend freedom, culture, peaceful coexistence, the civic education of children, and all the principles that the Tablets of the Law have rendered universal. Principles which Islamic fundamentalism systematically destroys. This means that, since I am a Gentile, a journalist and a leftist, I have a triple moral commitment to Israel. Because, if Israel were to be vanquished, modernity, culture and freedom would also be crushed. Even though the world has failed to wake up to this fact, Israel's struggle is the world's struggle. Pilar Rahola About Me Daphne Anson I'm a writer/researcher, with many academic books and articles under my own name. Daphne Anson is my blogging alias. Combining the names of two ships, it's a moniker of special significance to me - I'm a naval history buff. I use an alias owing to a perceived need to keep my blogging and professional identities separate. An Aussie, I've long been interested in politics and foreign affairs, having studied International Relations in the USA and Britain for my first degree, and I also hold a doctorate. I began blogging in response to the exponential rise in antisemitism and hostility to Israel in the wake of the Mavi Marmara affair. Another reason I use an alias: http://elderofziyon.blogspot.com/2015/08/alias-two-ships-daphne-anson.html View my complete profile Followers New urgent care, family practice opens in Petoskey Bay Street Urgent Care and Family Practice opened in Petoskey in early September and has seen high demand for services ever since. Russia willing to meet with OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers - Lavrov Sergei Lavrov said that Russia is prepared to take part in a meeting with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and oil producing states outside the cartel. MUSCAT Petroleumworld.com 02 04 2016 Russia is prepared to take part in a meeting with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and oil producing states outside the cartel, should such talks take place, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday. "If at any moment consensus is achieved among all oil producing countries on the necessity of the meeting, we will, of course, be prepared to take part," Lavrov told reporters during a visit to Oman. It is unlikely that anyone understands the current state of the energy market, Lavrov said, stressing the importance of monitoring the unfolding situation and exchanging opinions. Russia is engaged in these activities alongside both OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers, he added. In recent weeks, officials from OPEC member states and non-OPEC oil producing countries have spoken of a possible meeting to address the declining oil prices, which have caused significant financial problems for some states. Market prices for crude benchmarks dropped to a 12-year low in mid-January, sliding below the historic level of $30 per barrel before a small recovery after January 20. The drop in prices has been attributed to a prolonged global oversupply and low demand, as well as the unwillingness of OPEC countries to cut their production out of fear of losing market share. With over 1.6 million TikTok followers, Catieosaurus has proven herself as one of the leading voices in living with ADHD as an adult. Justin Perlman finds out more about neurodivergence and how it relates to sex, relationships, and queer identities. Next on the To-Do List: Ikigai Many moons ago, I worked as a career counselor, first for a college and then for a nonprofit in a... 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Global Poker Index: ODwyer on Top, Kaverman Closing; Drinan Makes Top 10 February 04, 2016 Martin Harris Each week, the Global Poker Index releases a list of the top tournament poker players in the world using a formula that takes into account a players results over six half-year periods. For a look at the entire list, visit the official GPI website. Heres a look at the rankings as of February 3, 2016. GPI Player of the Year In order to calculate the Global Poker Index Player of the Year, the GPI uses a players best 13 results (in terms of GPI POY points earned) from January 1 to December 31. Early rankings for 2016 will be arriving soon perhaps starting next week but for now you can click here to read more about the various factors considered by the GPI when calculating scores for the GPI POY. Meanwhile, we move on to check out how the overall GPI rankings have changed over the last seven days. GPI 300 Top 10 Rank Player GPI Score Change 1 Steve ODwyer 4271.58 - 2 Byron Kaverman 4236.76 +2 3 Jason Mercier 4138.03 -1 4 Nick Petrangelo 4030.13 -1 5 Anthony Zinno 3953.27 - 6 Bryn Kenney 3875.03 +1 7 Fedor Holz 3872.02 -1 8 David Peters 3738.01 - 9 Stephen Chidwick 3732.39 - 10 Connor Drinan 3689.09 +6 Steve ODwyer remains the top-ranked tournament player in the world according to the GPI for a fourth-straight week after having finished fourth in the 2016 Aussie Millions $25,000 Challenge. ODwyer went on to win the $250,000 LK Boutique Challenge in Melbourne last weekend, although earned no GPI points for that event as it drew 16 total entries (or fewer than the requisite 21). ODwyers lead has gotten slimmer, however, as Byron Kaverman from whom ODwyer took over the top spot a month ago has charged up from No. 4 to No. 2 and now sits just one cash away from retaking the lead. Meanwhile Connor Drinan (pictured above) joined the top 10 for the first time in his career after moving up six spots from No. 16. Like ODwyer, Drinan cashed in a couple of super high rollers at the Aussie Millions as well, finishing fourth in the $100,000 Challenge and third in the $250K event won by ODwyer. Welcome to the GPI Top 300 Rank Player Total Score 207 Fabian Quoss 1896.07 227 Rep Porter 1832.82 281 Ka KC Wong 1707.96 293 Vyacheslav Stoyanov 1660.71 297 Pascal Hartmann 1659.89 298 Simeon Naydenov 1659.63 300 Jean-Pascal Savard 1656.18 Speaking of that Aussie Millions $100,000 Challenge, the events winner, Fabian Quoss, also tops the list as the highest-ranked of the seven newcomers to the GPI top 300 this week. That win helped Quoss jump all of the way from No. 403 to No. 207. His highest previous ranking has been No. 32 in April 2013. Of the others joining the list this week, Ka KC Wong is making his debut inside the GPI top 300, having moved from No. 471 to No. 281 after cashing three times in Melbourne including just missing the final table of the $10,600 Main Event where he finished eighth. Also joining the top 300 for the first time is Pascal Hartmann who went from No. 350 to No. 297 after picking up a cash in the Aussie Millions Main. Hartmann has been picking up cashes on the European Poker Tour and elsewhere for the last few years, but hes is also known for his many online scores (not counted in the GPI rankings). He plays as Paffchen on PokerStars where hes won both the Sunday Warm-Up and the Super Tuesday among other successes. Jean-Pascal Savard likewise debuts on the list, having moved up from No. 449 to No. 300 after running deep in the $25,000 High Roller at the 2016 PokerStars Caribbean Adventure (finishing 11th) while also cashing in the Aussie Millions Main Event. Biggest Gains Rank Player Total GPI Score Change 207 Fabian Quoss 1896.07 +196 281 Ka KC Wong 1707.96 +190 300 Jean-Pascal Savard 1656.18 +149 165 Kitty Kuo 2076.20 +130 160 Alexander Lynskey 2098.66 +116 Quoss earns the honor as biggest gainer this week (among those in the GPI top 300). Kitty Kuo also made a big move up from No. 295 to No. 165 after finishing sixth in the Aussie Millions Main Event. Biggest Drops Rank Player Total GPI Score Change 249 Joe Serock 1788.02 -58 295 David Nicholson 1663.05 -55 283 Allaksei Boika 1691.60 -50 248 Bertrand ElkY Grospellier 1788.44 -44 268 Oleksii Khoroshenin 1739.26 -39 Among players falling the furthest this week though still remaining within the top 300, Joe Serock dropped the most after going from No. 191 to No. 249. What to Expect Next Week Among the tournament action happening all over the world this week, the World Series of Poker Circuit visits the Palm Beach Kennel Club in West Palm Beach, Florida. Meanwhile on Friday and Saturday the ARIA Resort & Casino will host two more $25,000 ARIA High Roller events. Then starting next Wednesday, the European Poker Tour Dublin festival begins at the Royal Dublin Society. To view both the 2015 Player of the Year and GPI overall rankings in their entirety, visit the official GPI website. While youre at it, follow the GPI on Twitter and its Facebook page. Dontrell Stephens was on a bicycle when he was stopped by Palm Beach County Sheriff's Deputy Adams Lin. (Photo: Sun-Sentinel video screen shot) A federal jury awarded Dontrell Stephens $23.1 million Wednesday, finding that Palm Beach County Sheriff's deputy Adams Lin acted unreasonably or with excessive force when he shot and paralyzed the unarmed man during a 2013 traffic stop. Stephens, now 22, has a long road ahead to collect any money. The jury award is more than the state cap of $200,000, so the Florida Legislature must approve the final dollar amount. That process can take years. Additionally, attorneys for the Sheriff's Office indicated before the verdict that they would appeal, the Sun-Sentinel reports. Lin and both attorneys for the Sheriff's Office declined to comment after the verdict in federal court in Fort Lauderdale. But late Wednesday night, the agency released a statement that called the verdict "both shocking and disappointing." It also confirmed it planned to appeal. Sheriff's attorney Summer Barranco said Stephens did not respond to Lin's instructions after he was pulled over for a traffic infraction on his bicycle. Stephens testified that he was a "little bit" high and had marijuana in his shoe at the time of the traffic stop. When Stephens appeared to turn and pull an object from behind him, Lin had reason to believe his life was in danger, she told the jury. As Stephens lay on the ground bleeding, Lin was still searching for the gun he was sure he had seen. Then, he said he had to "flip a switch" to try to save his life. Using a medical pack from his trunk, he used a pressure dressing on Stephens' wounds. Lin said he and another deputy tried to comfort Stephens, who was calling for help. Lin testified that he would shoot again in the same circumstances. The State Attorney's Office has cleared Lin of any criminal wrongdoing in the shooting. Officer Matthew Hickey with Ajax (Photo: Facebook) A retired Marietta, OH, police officer says he cant work as a volunteer to keep his police dog Ajax. Former Officer Matthew Hickey, 57, said on Tuesday that he cant accept a compromise offered by the city that would have had Hickey working as an unpaid auxiliary officer to keep Ajax, and eventually buy the dog from the city for $1 when it is too old to work. I retired from there because of my health, Hickey said. He said he hasnt worked since July because he was recovering from neck and shoulder injuries, and that he officially retired in January. He noted that the dog, because Hickey works as its handler, hasnt been used by the police department since he last worked. Hickey said he offered to pay the city the $3,500 that he had been told the dog is worth. Marietta Law Director Paul Bertram III said the city doesnt want to separate Hickey from the dog, but also said the dog needs to be sold through a sealed bid at auction by law. Bertram couldnt be reached Tuesday night. An online campaign has raised more than $70,000 to help Hickey buy the dog. Asked if he plans to bid on Ajax, Hickey told the Columbus Dispatch, of course. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Former Sec. of State Hillary Clinton struck fear in the heart of every Republican from Paul Ryan to the Koch brothers after sounding like a president at the CNN New Hampshire town hall. Hillary Clinton praised Sen. Sanders for running a campaign about ideas instead of insults. Clinton dropped the hammer on the real progressive argument by pointing out that the litmus test that the Sanders campaign uses would mean that President Obama wouldnt be a progressive and Vice President Biden wouldnt be a progressive. On the topic of young people supporting her, Clinton said, They dont have to be for me, but they need to know that I will be for them. Anderson Cooper asked what was wrong with a political revolution, and she talked about the goal of universal care and said that she doesnt agree with Sen. Sanders that we need to start all over again. She pointed out that we are at 90% coverage, and it will be easier to get to 100% than it will be to start all over again. Former Sec. Clinton was asked about appointing Supreme Court justices. She said that she has a litmus test, and that is to appoint justices who know how the real world works. She said that the Supreme Court has a view that she fundamentally disagreed with. Clinton pointed to the gutting of the Voting Rights Act and Citizens United. Clinton continued that she is looking for people who are rooted in the real world who understand the balance of power. Clinton was asked about respectfully advancing the conversation on end of life decisions. She said that it was the first time that she had been asked that question. She said honestly that she doesnt have an easy or glib answer, but she would like to immerse herself in the issue, and said that we all need to do some thinking about this critical question. The next questioner asked former Sec. Clinton if she could promise not to expand US military involvement abroad. She honestly answered that she couldnt, but said that she would do everything she possibly could do avoid sending Americans troops abroad and expanding military action. She said no troops in Iraq or Syria, but that she couldnt honestly promise that there would never be a circumstance where she would not use the military. Clinton promised to be a very careful and deliberate decision maker because she understands whats at stake. She also promised to be open and transparent with her deliberations. On a question about every American being required to register for the Selective Service when they turn 18, Clinton suggested that every American be automatically registered to vote at age 18. She was asked what she learned from her Iraq war vote. Clinton owned her mistake. She said that Bush said that he wanted the vote to use as leverage to prevent war, but instead he used the vote to launch the invasion. Clinton was asked how she would defend herself from right-wing attacks. She said that shes had a lot of experience, and she can laugh, but it is not easy. Clinton said that she had had to learn to take criticism seriously but not personally. She said there are lessons to be learned from criticism, but it cant be taken personally. Clinton said that Republicans play for keeps. They play to destroy, and they have a history of going after people that they think they cant stop. She said that the attacks were perversely flattering. Clinton said she still believes in the vast right wing conspiracy. She said that they play for keeps and ease their minds by giving big gifts to philanthropy. She said that the right wing conspiracy is not a conspiracy anymore it out in the open, and it is going to take everybody working together to defeat them. She discussed her faith in depth and stressed how she is grateful for being a human being and part of the universe. She talked about practicing the discipline of gratitude. Later, Clinton said that Sen. Sanders target is too small. She argued that she wanted to go after all of the culprits. She said there were a lot of bad actors. She said there is a wider group that we need to go after from shadow banking to pharmaceutical companies that are undermining the economy. Clinton defended her speeches to Goldman Sachs in a way that drew laughter from the audience. Hillary Clinton may lose New Hampshire, but she is the only candidate in either field that looks, sounds, and acts like an experienced president. Republicans should be very nervous about Clinton. She delivered a dose of honesty and was well connected to the audience. She made it clear that she already has a plan for Supreme Court appointments, and is more than prepared to take on the attacks that Republicans and the right will use against her if she becomes the nominee and wins the White House. Clintons hurdle has always been the Democratic primary. She and her campaign are built to win a general election. Republicans have no candidate that is her equivalent, which is why they are spending all of their time creating distractions and scandals. Republicans have been underestimating both Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. It is impossible to believe that they would underestimate Hillary Clinton. If she wins the nomination, Clinton will be primed and ready to run over the Republican Party. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print This column readily admits to berating politicians, particularly Democratic politicians, for failing to call out the nasty Republican machinations in service to the religious right. No matter if it is attacks on women and freedom to control their own bodies, or the biblical assaults on LGBT Americans; no politician ever cites their religious origins. Cowardice drives them to cite Republicans ideological differences and not a theocratic imposition, or what Republicans claim is their religious freedom. Yesterday President Obama spoke to American Muslims in Baltimore and stunningly it was his first appearance at an American mosque. The purpose of his visit, and speech, was impressing on all Americans that it is crucial to protect the nations tradition of religious freedom. Religious freedom Republicans and evangelicals believe applies only to them and gives them authority to control government and other Americans lives. At the Islamic Society of Baltimore, the President spoke directly to his fellow Christians because although impressing on Muslim Americans that they have the same freedom of religion as Christians, only the Christian right attacks Muslims. All the while, they cling to their bible and Constitution to justify their deep-seated evangelical bigotry toward faiths other than Americanized Christianity. The President said, If were serious about freedom of religion and Im speaking now to my fellow Christians who remain the majority in this country we have to understand an attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths. And when any religious group is targeted, we all have a responsibility to speak up. And we have to reject a politics that seeks to manipulate prejudice or bias, and targets people because of religion. President Obama was talking to more than just his fellow Christians. He was talking to Republicans in Congress, state legislatures and the current crop of GOP presidential aspirants; all of whom embrace politics that incite bias against and target Muslims for political expediency. At least the President echoed this columns assertion that Americans have to start speaking up against religious bigotry or watch the nation become a Christian iteration of the Islamic State. Even though he framed it in different terms; We cant be bystanders to bigotry. Together, weve got to show that America truly protects all faiths. If that were only true. The President continued. I want to speak directly to the young people who may be listening. In our lives, we all have many identities. We are sons and daughters, and brothers and sisters. Were classmates; Cub Scout troop members. Were followers of our faith. Were citizens of our country. And today, there are voices in this world, particularly over the Internet, who are constantly claiming that you have to choose between your identities as a Muslim, for example, or an American. Do not believe them. If youre ever wondering whether you fit in here, let me say it as clearly as I can, as President of the United States: You fit in here right here. Youre right where you belong. Youre part of America, too. Youre not Muslim or American. Youre Muslim and American. The reaction from the beleaguered Muslim community was positive and, according to the Islamic Society of Baltimore President Muhammad Jameel, a new step and a new milestone in Baltimore County if not nationwide. The Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) echoed that sentiment and said The Presidents first trip to a U.S. mosque and his message promoting religious pluralism reaffirms the place of Muslims in American society. President Obama actually went farther in noting that historically, Islam has been a part of Americas fabric since colonial times. He even mentioned that Americas founding fathers, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, each had copies of the Muslim holy book, the Quran. When enshrining Freedom of Religion in our Constitution and our Bill of Rights, our founders meant what they said when they said it applied to all religions. The President should have reminded Republicans and evangelicals that Adams and Jefferson were behind the unanimous declaration to Muslims that The government of the United States is not in any sense founded on the Christian religion, but it would have been as lost on religious Republicans as his speech on religious freedom for all faiths. But at least he spoke to the problem of religious bigotry, hate, and real persecution that religious-right Republicans impose on millions of Americans as part of their religious freedom. It was most refreshing to hear the President say, Mere tolerance of different religions is not enough. Our faiths summon us to embrace our common humanity. It is likely that the President is going to have to reiterate his speech a few times and target the Republican evangelical right in particular; if for no other reason than remind them that common humanity is a legitimate thing and applies equally to atheists, Muslims, Buddhists, Heathens, Hindus, Jews and all faiths. Some may correctly argue that evangelicals lack any humanity, because if they did they would not be driven by inhumanity toward anything not Christian. Sadly, the Presidents religious freedom speech did not get the kind of media coverage being given to hate-inspired evangelical Republicans claiming their religious freedom justifies banning, interring, and deporting Muslims from American shores. But Muslims should not feel singled out by religious Republicans. Not when the same Republicans use religious freedom to single out women, gays, and other faiths for bigotry and persecution. If the Republican religious right had the capacity to understand, or embrace, the Presidents message about religious freedom for all Americans, he should be encouraged to give the same speech on national television, during a major sporting event. But that kind of speech would be as lost on many, many Americans as it was on all evangelical Republicans. It is telling how far this nation has drifted from the Founding Fathers concept of religious freedom; a concept that President Obama used as a basis for a brilliant religious freedom speech that was completely lost on religious Republicans. Facebook Twitter Pinterest Email Print Senate Democrats stood with Flint today by blocking the advancement of an energy bill after Republicans continued to drag their feet on an aid package for the water crisis in Flint, Michigan. The final vote was 46-50. Republicans finished 16 votes short of the total needed to advance the energy bill. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) called out Republicans two days ago on the Senate floor for their hypocrisy towards Flint. Reid said: Last year Texas was devastated with historic flooding, it was the federal government that stepped in to provide disaster relief for the people of Texas. Who stepped in? The federal government stepped in to help the people of Texas. Thats why I was disappointed to see the senior Senator from Texas say: While we all have sympathy for whats happened in Flint this is primarily a local and state responsibility. He didnt say that when the flooding was taking place last year. Last year as Florida was hit with extreme flooding, the Senator who finished third last night in the Iowa caucuses called for federal disaster assistance. But when it comes to the children and families of Flint, that Senator instead cautions against our action. He said he had not followed the situation closely but that: I believe the federal governments role in some of these things (is) largely limited unless it involves a federal jurisdictional issue. Senator Rubio is not alone. Republican Senators routinely rush to the floor to demand federal aid when trouble hits their backyard. Thats the right thing to do Americans help each other in times of crisis. This week, the Senate has a chance to help the families suffering through a public health crisis, I hope Republicans who have requested federal aid in the past wont turn their backs on the people of Flint. If a federal government response is necessary for natural disasters, shouldnt the federal government help respond to this man-made disaster? Michigan Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters vowed to block the bipartisan energy bill until an amendment containing aid to Flint was agreed to. Negotiators are making progress, but some Republicans like Sen. Jim Inhofe (OK) insulted Democrats by proposing that aid to Flint be paid for out of vehicle manufacturing loan program. In other words, Republicans are looking to take funding away from one key program that is key to Michigan to pay for aid to Flint. The water crisis in Flint is not a local issue. Democrats should remember the Republican reluctance to help Flint the next time a Republican demands aid for his state after a disaster. Senate Democrats are standing with Flint and are vowing to continue their blockade of the energy bill until an aid package is passed for Flint. Portfolio English Edition's premium content is available only for subscribers Learn about the hottest news of the day, along with immediate follow-up analyses and 1000's of exclusive articles with full access to the premium content. Register and apply for a 14 days free trial period. Hillary Clinton has a major problem with young voters. According to the Washington Post, Sanders won handily over Clinton in Iowa with voters under the age of 45. And voters under the age of 30 supported Sanders to the tune of 84 percent. We cant assume that young Sanders voters will support the Republican nominee over Clinton, but some of them might stay home. Moreover, its fair to suppose that Clintons problems with young voters, such the fact that many simply dont seem to trust her, apply to a large number of those who arent dead set against voting for a Republican. The age factor could become particularly acute for Clinton if the Republicans nominate Marco Rubio (age 44) or Ted Cruz (age 45). Post writers Rosalind Helderman and Scott Clement say that Rubio would be an especially challenging opponent for Clinton among young voters, and I think thats probably true. Rubio certainly is running as the candidate of a new generation in much the way John Kennedy did in 1960, and there are some similarities between this years GOP nomination battle and the campaign for the Democratic nomination in 60. Like Kennedy, Rubio, generally speaking, isnt the first choice of his Partys ideological base. In 1960, hard core liberals tended to prefer Hubert Humphrey or Adlai Stevenson, when he finally entered. (My socialist father backed Humphrey; my New Deal Democrat mother supported Stevenson). Kennedy was also seen by many as too young and inexperienced for the job, and even as little more than a rich pretty-boy. Eleanor Roosevelt, referring to Kennedys book Profiles in Courage, said that Kennedy needed to show more courage and fewer profiles. Humphrey was only 49 at this stage of the 1960 race and hadnt been in Congress for any longer than Kennedy. But his strong, courageous liberal record (e.g. on civil rights) gave him stature and credibility with the base (a term not yet used for this purpose) that Kennedy lacked. Like Cruz, Humphrey didnt seem very young. The analogy to 1960 breaks down because Humphrey did not know how to run an effective presidential campaign and he lacked the financial resources to compete with the Kennedys. Cruz seems to know more than anyone in the race about running and money isnt a problem. On the other hand, youthful good looks probably didnt matter as much in 1960 as they do now. They were an asset for Kennedy, but not unambiguously so. 56 years later, Rubios youthful good looks and his ability to connect with young voters are his not-so-secret weapon. If he makes it to the general election and faces Hillary Clinton, I think they might well be a particularly powerful one. JOHN adds: In a recent Minnesota Poll, Rubio clobbered Hillary Clinton by eight points among young voters. In Minnesota! So I think the difficulty Hillary faces in a matchup with Rubio is not just hypothetical. Well not really, but as with Damon Linkers article attacking Marco Rubio, it reads like high praise of Cruz indeed. Speaking earlier today in London, old peanut brain said that if he had to choose, he preferred Donald Trump because Trump is more malleable. Heres the report from The Mirror: If I had a choice of Republican nominees, between Cruz and Trump, I think I would choose. Trump which may surprise some of you, he told an audience in the House of Lords. The reason is, Trump has proven already that he is completely malleable. I dont think he has any fixed opinion that he would fight for. On the other hand Ted Cruz is not malleable. He has far right-wing politics, in my opinion, that would be pursued aggressively if he wins. Warmer camping weather might still be a few months away, depending on where you live. However, that's no excuse to miss out on great gear deals now! Whether you're a camping pro, or just getting started, be sure to check out the week's best camping deals. Intex Classic Downy Twin Air Mattress in BlueWalmart $7.97 with in-store pickup $4 Whether sleeping on the ground or on the floor, this Intex Classic Downy Twin Airbed Mattress is a comfortable solution. For $8, this Editors' Choice pick is great for camping or just hosting overnight guests. 5-Degree Mummy Sleeping BagBest Choice Products via eBay $29.95 with free shipping $12 If your idea of camping is no tent and just a sleeping bag under the stars, this 5-Degree Mummy Sleeping Bag is for you. At $30, this bag will keep you nice and comfortable in cooler camping conditions. It's suitable for temperatures down to 5 Fahrenheit and includes a carrying bag. REI 18-oz. Tripod MugREI Outlet $2.73 with in-store pickup $7 Some days you just need a ton of coffee and this REI 18-oz. Tripod Mug was made for those days. For $3, and available in Blue, Gold, or Green, there's no reason not to snag a few to keep on hand, just to make sure you've got plenty of caffeine for all your adventures. It's designed to fit many different surfaces with three rubber feet and is BPA-free. PricePlunge $5.99 with free shipping $1 This Delk Adventure Compact Multi-Function Tool is the only tool you'll ever need to carry. At $6, it wins out over a Swiss Army knife simply because of the added functions the knife can't compete with. This multi-tool features a knife, LED flashlight, compass, can/cap opener, wire stripper, cork screw, flat screwdriver, pliers, extension bar, screwdriver bit set, and four XLR44 batteries. Ozark Trail 22-Piece Camping Combo Set in GreyWalmart $109 with free shipping $57 If you're new to camping, this Ozark Trail 22-Piece Camping Combo Set has almost everything you need for your first trip at least on the furniture-side. (Smores ingredients not included). For $109, this set will get you off to a great start. It includes a 4-person tent, gear loft, eight tent stakes, two sleeping bags, two pillows, two foam sleeping pads, LED lantern, two dry bags, and two folding camp chairs. Yesterday President Obama visited the mosque of the Islamic Society of Baltimore to give a speech defending Islam and Muslims against their unnamed opponents. The White House has posted the text of Obamas speech. I have embedded the video below (actual time, about 45 minutes, feels like about 4 hours). Obama acknowledged the presence of Minnesotas own Rep. Keith Ellison, formerly of the Nation of Islam, and of Indiana Rep. Andre Carson, Congresss second Muslim convert. In year 15 of Americas defense against terrorists inspired by Islam, Obama reiterated the full religion of peace shtick to which we have grown accustomed. Most of the speech partook of this mythical quality. Thus the supposed Muslim contributions to American history and to the United States, and thus the ritual reference to Thomas Jeffersons Koran, which derived from our war with the barbarous pirates of Barbary. See, for example, Christopher Hitchenss Jefferson versus the Muslim pirates. Obama didnt mention the Barbary pirates, of course. He therefore didnt need to explain how they misunderstood Islam. Obama decried the inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim Americans. I wont hazard a guess on what Obama had in mind here, but Im pretty sure he wants us all to shut up. If we would prefer not to celebrate Islam, Obama invites us to keep quiet or be stigmatized as bigots. The mosque at which Obama appeared is itself illustrative of the problem of Islam in the United States. The editors of Investors Business Daily explored the mosques background in this reported editorial. I believe the mosque is part of the network of mosques affiliated with the Islamic Society of North America. ISNA is the Muslim Brotherhoods umbrella organization in the United States. Obamas appearance at the mosque was apparently cleared by the Council on American-Islamic Relations. Both ISNA and CAIR were identified as unindicted co-conspirators of the Holy Land Foundation by the Department of Justice in the successful prosecution of the HLF for supporting Hamas. Funny, Obama didnt mention any of that either. When Obama gets around to acknowledging the connection of Islam to religiously inspired terrorism, he uses the acknowledgement to invite us to shut up: Now, we do have another fact that we have to acknowledge. Even as the overwhelming majority and I repeat, the overwhelming majority of the worlds Muslims embrace Islam as a source of peace, it is undeniable that a small fraction of Muslims propagate a perverted interpretation of Islam. This is the truth. Groups like al Qaeda and ISIL, theyre not the first extremists in history to misuse Gods name. Weve seen it before, across faiths. But right now, there is a organized extremist element that draws selectively from Islamic texts, twists them in an attempt to justify their killing and their terror. They combine it with false claims that America and the West are at war with Islam. And this warped thinking that has found adherents around the world including, as we saw, tragically, in Boston and Chattanooga and San Bernardino is real. Its there. And it creates tensions and pressure that disproportionately burden the overwhelming majority of law-abiding Muslim citizens. * * * * * We shouldnt play into terrorist propaganda. And we cant suggest that Islam itself is at the root of the problem. That betrays our values. It alienates Muslim Americans. Its hurtful to those kids who are trying to go to school and are members of the Boy Scouts, and are thinking about joining our military. That kind of mindset helps our enemies. It helps our enemies recruit. It makes us all less safe. So lets be clear about that. Many more points can and should be made about the this speech. I could go on, but my patience is limited. Obama should never have risen to high office in the government of the United States. He should have enlisted to represent the Organization of the Islamic Conference in its long-standing efforts to stigmatize concerns about Islam as Islamophobia. Unlike the cause of the United States, this is one cause that Obama believes in to the core of his being. MORE PATIENT THAN I: David Harsanyi in Obamas mosque speech was a dangerous fantasy (link fixed) and Roger Simon in Obamas Islamophobia. PR-Inside.com: 2016-02-04 09:04:01 The Global Leader in Incident Response Appoints Arne Jacobsen as Country Manager to Accelerate Growth in Central Europe Resilient Systems Expands Investment and Focus on the German, Swiss, and Austrian Markets Finn Partners Oliver Fischer, +49 (0)89 89 40 85 11 ResilientSystems@FinnPartners.com Resilient Systems, the industry standard solution for incident response (IR), announced an expansion of its investment in Europe with the appointment of Arne Jacobsen as German Country Manager, focused on driving additional revenue in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Resilient is experiencing rapid global growth of more than 350 percent annually, as organisations realise the importance of having a proven Incident Response Platform (IRP). Resilient enables security teams to respond to security incidents faster and more intelligently. Improved incident response and cyber resilience are growing priorities for European organisations, especially with recent changes in the German and EU regulatory landscape. New regulations such as the Global Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Network and Information Systems Directive (NISD) require EU-wide data breach notification, while legislation on the cyber protection of critical infrastructure was passed by the upper house of German parliament in July 2015. These changes are driving organisations to invest in technology to improve their response capabilities and cyber resilience. Recent research from the Ponemon Institute showed that while 54 percent of German companies believe they have a strong degree of cyber resilience, only 21 percent actually had a fully documented cyber security incident response plan (CSIRP) in place suggesting a considerable gap in awareness and significant room for improvement. As this new research from the Ponemon Institute shows, cyber resilience is essential for German organisations to ensure compliance with regulations and protect their intellectual property, said John Bruce, CEO and Co-Founder of Resilient Systems. To minimise the impact of security incidents, organisations are required to react to increasingly complex threats in rapidly diminishing time windows. We can help German enterprises ensure they can maintain their success in the face of growing cyber security threats. Arne Jacobsen joins Resilient Systems as German Country Manager, overseeing all business operations in the region. His most recent prior position was as Managing Director, Central EMEA for Qualys, having also held sales manager and director positions at Varonis Systems and Safeboot. Organisations recognise that data breaches and cyber security incidents are a persistent threat, despite decades of investments in prevention and detection, said Paul Ayers, General Manager, EMEA at Resilient Systems. Companies are actively looking for innovative technologies to help them reduce the impact of these incidents on their business, and the Resilient platform has proven to help organisations globally meet that need. Resilient Systems has been active in Europe as 2015 saw the opening of the European headquarters in Reading and the establishment of a key regional management team, led by Paul Ayers. The Resilient Systems Incident Response Platform has been adopted by many of the worlds most trusted organisations in the U.S. and Europe including some of the worlds largest companies in the finance, technology, telecommunications, and retail industries. Stefan Strobel, CEO of Cirosec, also believes that there will be strong demand from the German market for Resilients solutions. The feedback from our customers is that they recognise gaps in their ability to comprehensively and rapidly deal with cyber security incidents, said Strobel, Resilient Systems Incident Response Platform will be a key technology for us in 2016 and beyond. About Resilient Systems Resilient Systems mission is to help organisations thrive in the face of any cyberattack or business crisis. Our award-winning Incident Response Platform (IRP) empowers security teams to analyse, respond to and mitigate incidents faster, smarter and more efficiently. Resilient is fast becoming the industry standard solution for incident response. The IRP integrates all other security technologies into a single hub and provides easy workflow customisation and process automation. Armed with Resilient, security teams can have best-in-class response capabilities. Headquartered in the US and UK, Resilient Systems has more than 100 global customers, including 30 of the Fortune 500 and partners in more than 20 countries. Learn more at www.resilientsystems.com. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/201602040051 #IncidentResponse leader @ResilientSys expands investments and focus on German, Swiss & Austrian markets The Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, on Wednesday told officials of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) that realizing the tax target of N4.957 trillion for 2016 was non-negotiable and that no room should be left for failure. The minister, who was speaking in Abuja at the 2016 annual Corporate Strategy Retreat of the FIRS, said this underlined the seriousness the federal government attached to the FIRS attainment of its 2016 revenue generation target. There is really no room for failure. Really, its non-negotiable. FIRS must deliver, because the whole nation will depend on it to fund the budget. We need the money to stabilize the economy, Mrs. Adeosun said. Apart from the professional pride of the workers, the minister pointed out that the satisfaction they were likely to derive from working for the revenue agency should inspire them to help build the nation by realizing the revenue target. Realizing the tax target is not a joke. We need everybody to do his/her beat to ensure that everybody contributes to the achievement of the target. I look forward to the excellent ideas that will improve revenue generation at the end of the retreat, she said. The minister acknowledged past efforts by the FIRS to realise its mandate, particularly since its new Chairman, Tunde Fowler, resumed duties. At the opening of the retreat on Tuesday, Mr. Fowler had announced that the FIRS has set tax target of N4.957 trillion for 2016. A breakdown of the target, the chairman explained, showed that N3.87 trillion would come from Value Added Tax and Companies Income Tax this year, about 78.42 per cent of the N4.957 trillion tax revenue targeted for 2016. The FIRS boss declared as unacceptable the tax revenue target for the year, arguing that this was not a reflection of the Services capacity. He said he was particularly not pleased with the poor level of VAT collection, pointing out that based on his experience in the administration of a tax similar to VAT at the state level, the yield should be higher and easy to collect. Mr. Fowler said that even the relatively good performance for CIT, which saw a collection of over N122 billion, was only possible with the direct supervision from his office in the last three months of 2015, without which the collection would have been less than 85 per cent. The FIRS, he announced, was collaborating with state governments, tax consultants, major audit firms, stakeholders in the federal system, including the National Assembly in pursuit of its assignment. He said the FIRS Federal Engagement and Enlightenment Tax Teams, (FEETT) was undertaking a nationwide VAT and Withholding tax monitoring and taxpayer registration exercise to sensitize the people on the need to discharge their civic responsibility as appropriate. Various speakers at the event emphasized the important role FIRS would play in providing revenue towards the realization of the federal governments plan for 2016. Present at the event were Minister of Budget and National Planning, Udoma Udo Udoma, and his Federal Capital Territory, FCT, counterpart, Muhammed Bello; Accountant General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris; Chairman, Senate Committee on Finance, John Enoh; and Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Finance, Austin Chukwurah. Representatives of key accounting and tax audit firms, namely KPMG, Ernst Young, Akintola Williams and Delloite, PEDABO, FITC Consulting, PriceWaterHouse Coopers, proferred ways the FIRS could be innovative, increase tax yield, expand tax base and encourage taxpayers to pay their taxes happily. The Zimbabwean Supreme Constitutional Court on Wednesday ruled that criminal defamation laws are unconstitutional as the laws go against the press freedom provided by the countrys constitution. The courts panel of nine judges, led by Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku, ruled that all laws assigning criminal penalties to defamation contradict guarantees of press freedom enshrined in Zimbabwes constitution, according to press reports. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), in a statement issued in New York, expressed satisfaction with the judgment, saying it is a welcome step toward safeguarding press freedom. This is an important victory for freedom of expression in Zimbabwe. The government has too often resorted to criminal defamation to muzzle independent journalists, said CPJs deputy executive director, Robert Mahoney. According to press reports, the ruling was in response to a lawsuit brought by the Zimbabwean branch of the Media Institute of Southern Africa and four journalists Nqaba Matshazi, Godwin Mangudya, Sydney Saize, and Rodger Stringer who were individually arrested on charges of defaming politicians in 2011. In a radio broadcast to celebrate Wednesdays Supreme Court judgment which held that he was validly elected governor of Akwa Ibom state, Udom Emmanuel, has asked the opposition All Progressives Congress in the state to join him in the task of bringing development to the state. I hereby call on our brothers and sisters from the other side of the political divide to close ranks and join me, in moving Akwa Ibom state to surpass superior performance and ensure development that is sustainable, impactful and expansive, Mr. Emmanuel said in the radio broadcast which was aired immediately after the Supreme Court in Abuja delivered the judgment in his favour. We dont have any other state to call ours except the great Akwa Abasi Ibom State, Mr. Emmanuel said. Governor Emmanuel added that, The other side had a right to aspire to power, even though we dont agree with their approach and mechanics. Politics should not be used as a wedge issue to divide brothers and sisters, politics should not be an instrument that creates disharmony among an otherwise homogenous people, and we should resist the impulse to stoke ethnic fire among otherwise happy brothers and sisters. As I have always stated: political foes of today may be political allies tomorrow. We should be guided by this ennobling ideal. The governor said every political contest must produce a winner and a loser. But he said that in this case, the people of Akwa Ibom state won because in their reasoning, their fortunes would be better enhanced with a PDP government continuing its solid dispensation of democratic dividends that had in the past eight and half years, had transformed our state to a destination of choice. Governor Emmanuel said he was committed to providing exemplary leadership that will inspire the people of Akwa Ibom to greatness. He called on the people to remain law abiding and shun acts that could cause public disaffection. The Supreme Court judgment reversed the earlier decision of the Court of Appeal which nullified the election of Mr. Emmanuel as governor. The judgment of the apex court brought to an end the legal battle between Mr Emmanuel of the Peoples Democratic Party and his opponent, Umana Okon Umana of the APC. Watch Video of the celebration The chairman of the governing All Progressives Congress, John Odigie-Oyegun, has denied demanding the investigation of Supreme Court judges for affirming the election victories of Akwa Ibom, Rivers and Abia State governors. The three states are led by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. A statement by the APCs national secretary, Mala Buni, said a Thursday report by Vanguard titled, Oyegun Calls for Probe of Supreme Court Judges was false. The party wishes to deny this report in the strongest terms, the statement said. As much as he expressed total astonishment over the ruling of the Supreme Court, the National Chairman of the Party, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, never called for the investigation of Supreme Court judges. Indeed, a copy of the statement issued following Chief Odigie-Oyeguns meeting with the APC delegation from Rivers State was widely circulated. At no time during the meeting or in the statement referred to did the National Chairman make such a call for the probe of Supreme Court Judges. What transpired at the meeting was correctly reported in other media outlets. Given that the author of the Vanguard report was not physically at the venue of this event, but relied on this statement, it is baffling that he gave this slant to the story, it said. The party said Mr. Odigie-Oyegun has the highest regards for the judiciary. The presidency has rejected a report on President Muhammadu Buharis fulfillment of his pre-election promises. The report by a non-governmental group, Centre for Democracy and Development, assessed the presidents scorecard after seven months in office, concluding that Mr. Buhari had achieved only one of 222 campaign promises. Mr. Buharis spokesperson, Garba Shehu, described the report as a false propaganda. Mr. Shehu said it was mischievous to attribute to the president promises he did not make during his campaign, and to hold him accountable for them. According to him, any honest advocacy for democracy should not include distortion of facts and a misrepresentation of what President Buhari had promised to deal with during the campaigns. It is misleading to invent issues to suit ones political bias and prejudice, and blame the President for not attending to those issues within ones mischievous and chimerical deadline in order to play down the significant aspects of what the President has accomplished within those seven tough months, he said. Mr. Shehu said the CDD leaders could not objectively serve the cause of democracy if they were primarily preoccupied with negativity and cynicism, and constantly looking for something to condemn rather than appreciating the areas of progress made by the president within those seven months. He argued that any group that focuses on negativity at the expense of objectivity would never see any good in the appreciable and significant progress made by the president. Mr. Shehu explained that no sincere and fair-minded Nigerian would refuse to recognise the courage of the president to take on corruption in a country where impunity was once celebrated. Within seven months, President Buhari has successfully blocked the leakages for corruption, saying as a result of these efforts, the Nigerian Customs Service has quadrupled its revenue base to incredible level within seven months, something they didnt achieve in years, Mr. Shehu said. Doesnt the president deserve credit for this and other efforts to confront the monster of corruption? On the economy, Mr. Shehu said CDD got it wrong to blame President Buhari for the falling oil prices in the world market, a challenge which has made the president lay greater emphasis and priority on economic diversification. He recalled that President Obama of the United States had inherited an economy in crisis, something he didnt bargain for, and that it would be unfair to blame Mr. Buhari for not fixing it in seven months. President Buharis experience is a double whammy because he inherited an economy in crisis on account of declining oil revenues and an economy also ravaged by incredible and large-scale corruption, he said. He is making good strides towards improving governance, by tackling corruption. To-date a good number of persons believed to have collectively stolen billions from the taxpayer have been arrested, and are facing the courts. We are working with our allies across the world from Britain and America to France and Germany to China and UAE to source, locate and repatriate misappropriated funds. So far, an escrow account has been opened for money that is being returned. This is only the start: the return of stolen funds is important, but it is just as critical to ensure those who seek to steal realise that no longer will there be such impunity in Nigeria. Only by ending belief in such licence we can wilfully institute the rule of law. He further said that while the president was receiving accolades abroad for his fight against corruption and insurgency, at home individuals were not prepared to give the successes the recognition they deserved. The latest CDD episode is a shocking reminder to their failed attempt to hold the president to one hundred promises in one hundred days which disastrously crashed on the head of the proponent, Shehu submitted. The elevation of the act to a new high of 220 promises is a knee-jerk reaction that seeks to play to the galleries and score cheap points against the president. This is a clear case of solution looking for problem. The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has suspended the operation of the Bristow Helicopters Ltds Sikorsky S-76C++ model, till further notice, a day after a chopper operated by the company crashed. The director-general of the NCAA, Muhtar Usman, announced this while briefing journalists on Thursday in Lagos. He said the suspension would enable the NCAA to carry out a full scale audit on its operations, with particular emphasis on its Sikorsky S-76C++ type. The S-76 C++ helicopter marked 5N-BQJ belonging to Bristow Helicopters, enroute Lagos from an off shore location, crashed into the Atlantic Ocean on Wednesday. All 11 people on board, including two crew members were, however, rescued alive. These decisions are without prejudice to the investigations being conducted by the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB), Mr. Usman said. As a matter of fact, it will serve to assist in the entire process. The authority will fully support AIB in the investigation. Therefore, the Regulatory Authority views with utmost seriousness the successive mishaps of Bristow Helicopters operating aircraft, Sikorsky S-76C++, on the coastal waters of Lagos. The NCAA has therefore decided to suspend the operation of the Bristow Helicopters Sikorsky S-76C++ type, till further notice, Mr. Usman, a captain, said. He recalled that on August 12, 2015, a Bristow Helicopter-operated Sikorsky S-76 series crashed around the Oworonshoki axis in Lagos. What this means is that Wednesdays incident is occurring a little over six months, after the preceding one. Therefore, as a responsible regulatory authority, it is important to stem this rapidity of occurrence and ensure that the airline carries out safe operations, Mr. Usman said. The director general explained that the suspension of operations for the impending wholesale audit was not a vote of no confidence on the airline. According to him, it is to ascertain the adequacy and propriety of the operating aircraft type, which is one of the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) all over the world. Mr. Usman reiterated that the NCAA would continue to ensure that airline operators continue to carry out safe and secure operations. The Sikorsky S-76 aircraft is an American medium-sized commercial utility helicopter manufactured by the Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation. The S-76 features twin turbo shaft engines, a four-bladed main and tail rotors, with a retractable landing gear. The Sikorskys development began in the mid 1970s with the design goal of providing a medium helicopter for corporate transportation and the oil drilling industry. The prototype first flew on March 13, 1977, while initial U.S. Federal Aviation Administration type certification was granted on Nov. 21, 1978. (NAN) The Nigeria Labour Congress, Trade Union Congress, and civil society allies say they will hold a protest on Monday against the 45 per cent increase in electricity tariffs announced by the Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission. The protest will hold Monday, February 8, in Abuja and across the nation, the labour groups announced in a statement Thursday. It is a nation-wide protest, meaning that the 36 states of the Federation including Abuja will be involved in this action, the statement signed by Ayuba Wabba, the NLC president, said. Our members have been sufficiently mobilized and are ready to go. If you are an electricity consumer and you are not happy with the bills electricity companies serve you every month, you are invited to join this protest rally. He said the Abuja rally will start at Labour House, Central Business District at 8.00am before moving to the NERC head office at Adamawa Plaza, Plot 1099, First Avenue, Off Shehu Shagari Way, Central Business District. From the NERC office, the rally will roll to the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company at Zone 4. The rally will mobilise from there to the National Assembly. The labour groups said the protest rally became necessary after all effort to make NERC shelve the idea of increase failed. Indeed, rather than see reason with Nigerians, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing has been advancing spurious argument in justification. Part of the statement reads: The reasons for this protest are obvious and include the following: The due process in the extant laws for such increment was not followed in consonance with section 76 of the Power Sector Reform Act, 2005; There has been no significant improvement in service delivery. Moreover, the fact is that most consumers are not metered in accordance with the signed privatization Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) of November 1, 2013, which stipulates that within 18 months gestation period, all consumers are to be metered; There is a subsisting Court Order dated 28th May, 2015 by Justice Mohammed Idris of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, Lagos, in the case of Toluwani Yemi-Adebiyi versus NERC & Orders, that there shall be no further increment until the determination of the substantive suit. The increment at this time negates the present biting and prevailing economic recession vis-a-vis an attempt to further impoverish the poor masses. We stakeholders, on Increment in Electricity Tariff (a broad coalition) met in Lagos on January 28, 2016 and issued a communique demanding an immediate halt of this morbid and exploitative intention failure of which would lead to: Mobilization of all Nigerians to resist the new tariff; Mass protests/picketing of all DISCOs offices across the country; Directing all consumers to reject any bill with the new tariff and other actions necessary. Earlier, Nigerians had spontaneously moved to the streets in Lagos, Benin, Kano and other cities when NERC announced this increase in the last quarter of 2015. At the level of the Congress, we had issued a communique on December 22, 2015 rejecting this tariff hike and demanding that pre-paid metres be made available free to all consumers. We noted that Distribution Companies have continued to exploit Nigerians by estimated billing system for the majority of consumers, while deliberately refusing to make available prepaid metres. We also said the challenges in the economy which have adversely reduced the purchasing power of ordinary Nigerians and slowed down businesses including manufacturing have made this increase unsustainable and unjustifiable. We reached out to core government constituencies including the Minister of Power, the leadership of the National Assembly and NERC, all in an effort to find an amicable resolution through the quality of the logic of argument and practical realities on ground which include the incontrovertible fact that even before this increment, Nigeria paid the highest tariff per kilo-watt in Africa and contiguous regions. We pay much higher than Egypt and countries with stronger economies. With the increment, this disparity will not only be substantial, it will kill Nigerians and businesses. The saddest part of it all is that there is no co-relation between the quality of service delivery and this tariff. The implementation of this tariff is an act of lawlessness because there is a subsisting restraining court order on further increases. And yet we are in a democracy. The point must also be made that the immediate past government in its twilight approved a whoppingN18.26 billion for these companies in order to boost electricity supply. Yet there is nothing to show for it. A privatised sector that continues to parasite on government with insignificant benefit to Nigerians is at best a leech on our economy and should be interrogated. We would want to make the point that this tariff increase is only intended to protect the investment of a select few and not to serve the interest of other Nigerians. In light of all of the above, this increase is illegal, unfair, unjustifiable and a further exploitation of the already exploited Nigerians. A former special adviser on political matters to ex-Vice President Namadi Sambo, Abba Dabo, on Thursday told Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court in Abuja that he was paid N25 million by the national publicity secretary of the PDP, Olisa Metuh, to create a website. The money was part of the N400 million arms purchase funds allegedly given to Mr. Metuh and his company, Destra Investment Limited by the former NSA, Sambo Dasuki. Mr. Dabo, while being led in evidence by the counsel to Economic Financial Crimes Commission, Sylvanus Tahir, told the court that he was paid the money through the second defendants company account, Destra Investment Limited. Mr. Dabo, also a former spokesperson for ex-President Shehu Shagari, was a former editor of Sunday New Nigeria and Gaskiya Ta Fi Kwabo and one time deputy national chairman of the PDP (North). According to him, the said money was for media and publicity campaign for the PDP presidential election. Explaining how the money was expended, Mr. Dabo told the court that he created a media support system and a website called WhatsApp Nigeria to run media advocacy campaign for the party. I raised a team of facilitators and young internet experts were also employed to manage the website, Mr. Dabo stated. The witness further told the court that he was shocked to hear in the media that the money given to him by Mr. Metuh was part of the funds set aside to procure arms for fighting insurgency. Therefore, I decided to return the money to the EFCC, Mr. Dabo said. Justice Abang, at the instance of counsel to the second defendant, Onyechi Ikpeazu, adjourned to February 9 for further hearing. The Supreme Court has upheld the election of Udom Emmanuel of the Peoples Democratic Party as governor of the oil-rich Akwa Ibom State. The court gave the ruling validating the April 11 governorship election on Wednesday night but did not provide reasons for its judgment. The court reversed the decision of the Court of Appeal, which nullified Mr. Udoms election. The Supreme Court ruled that Mr. Udom of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, won the lawfully cast votes in the April 11, 2015 election. Full details of the ruling would be provided on a February 15, the court said. Background The Court of Appeal sitting in Abuja had on December 18 nullified the Akwa Ibom State governorship election of April 11, removing Mr. Emmanuel, from office. Mr. Emmanuels election was challenged by the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, Umana Umana. At the election tribunal, Mr. Emmanuel of the Peoples Democratic Party, had secured partial victory, with the election cancelled only in 18 out of the states 31 local government areas. The tribunal had ordered a rerun. Mr. Emmanuel had challenged the ruling, insisting he won in all 31 LGAs. The APC candidate, Mr. Umana, also appealed against the ruling, seeking a total nullification of the election. But a five-man panel at the Court of Appeal dismissed Mr. Emmanuels argument, and cancelled the entire election. The appeal court had said the tribunal was wrong in its refusal to comply with section 179 (2) of the Constitution. The appeal court had said the tribunal was wrong in its refusal to comply with section 179 (2) of the Constitution. The court said having agreed with the evidence of principal witnesses, video evidence, and evidence from state collation agents, the tribunal should have concluded that there was no collation and that votes were merely allotted. The question is, if there was no collation, can there be said to be an election, the court asked. Indeed where there was no collation of election, there cannot be said to be an election. The tribunal was wrong in failing to nullify the entire election, the court ruled, setting aside the judgement of the tribunal in the 13 LGAs. The entire election is hereby nullified. The election that brought Mr. Udom is hereby nullified, it ruled. The appeal court then ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission to conduct fresh election within 90 days. That verdict has now been upturned by the Supreme Court, and Mr. Emmanuel can now breathe a sigh of relief. Two teenagers in Bayelsa state have been arrested by the police for attempting to rob a boutique at gun-point in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital. The Police Public Relations Officer in Bayelsa, Asinim Butswat, told PREMIUM TIMES that the two teenage robbers, Thurlbert Femi, 19, and Festus Fefegha, 18, on Wednesday, around 7:20 pm, walked into a boutique at Okaka Street, Yenagoa, and pointed a locally made pistol at the shop owner, one Sunday Anyigor and his wife. Mr. Butswat said the robbers then went ahead to select assorted wears and other valuable items in the shop, while still pointing a gun at the shop owner. The PPRO said the shop owner outsmarted the robbers, and bravely locked them inside the shop before he alerted his neighbours and the police. He didnt give detail of the encounter between the shop owners and the teenage robbers. He said the two robbers were promptly arrested and the exhibits recovered, and that the police was investigating the incident. The military task force deployed to protect oil facilities in the Niger Delta, Operation Pulo Shield, says it has arrested suspected vandals behind the recent pipeline blasts in the region. Blasts on a crude and gas pipeline at Escravos, Delta, resulted in the shut-down of Warri and Port Harcourt refineries, cutting gas supply to some power plants recently. Another pipeline blast on Agips facility on January 28 resulted in a drop by 16,000 barrels of oil equivalent of the companys 40,000 barrels daily export from Brass Oil Export Terminal of the Bayelsa coastline. According to a statement by the spokesman of Operation Pulo Shield, Isa Ado, the arrest followed a charge by the commander of the joint force, Alani Okunlola, to apprehend those behind the act. Mr. Ado, a colonel, said the suspects in custody were being interrogated to ascertain their level of involvement and to help in arresting other suspects still at large. He said surveillance patrols in the region had been intensified towards ensuring that all suspected militants behind the pipeline sabotage were brought to book. Operation Pulo Shield remains determined to track and arrest perpetrators of the recent multiple attacks and bombing of some oil pipelines and installations across the Niger Delta region. Some suspects were arrested and currently undergoing thorough preliminary investigation to ascertain their degree of involvement before handing them over to prosecuting agencies, while effort is on to track and arrest fleeing vandals. The success of the arrest was due to highly intensified patrols and cordon and search on the waterways, creeks and communities by the task force. It is in line with the directives of the commander of Operation Pulo Shield, Major-General Alani Gafar Okunlola, to apprehend those behind the criminal act, Mr. Ado stated. The statement quoted the commander of the joint force as assuring the people of Niger Delta of the task forces determination to wipe out illegal activities in the region. He also called on people to give useful information that would help the task force in its operations. He warned the perpetrators of the crime to desist from further destruction of oil facilities or face the wrath of the law. The All Progressives Congress governorship candidate in Akwa Ibom state, Umana Umana, has said that the Supreme Court judgment which held that Udom Emmanuel was validly elected as the state governor in the April 11, 2015 election calls for very serious soul-searching by our nation. Mr. Umana said in a press statement on Thursday that an indicting statement reportedly made by the Court of Appeal on the same Akwa Ibom governorship election petition shouldnt be taken lightly. Mr. Umana quoted the Court of Appeal as having said of the election of Udom Emmanuel: May this country never again experience the violence and thuggery found to have taken place in Akwa Ibom State during the Governorship elections held on 11th April 2015. He said, As law-abiding citizens we went to court to seek justice after the disputed elections, as advised by many people and election monitors, including the United States Embassy and the European Union, which had reached independent conclusions that the elections were marred by widespread irregularities. Our hope was that the judiciary would heal the wounds and provide succour for our people who were traumatised and brutalised during the elections, especially the families who lost their loved ones. But that was not to be. Mr. Umana said he was aware that Akwa Ibom people were surprised by the Supreme Court judgment, given the findings of the tribunal that evaluated the evidence and heard directly from the witnesses including the judgment of the Court of Appeal which had earlier nullified the election of Governor Emmanuel. The APC governorship candidate said although the struggle for change has suffered a setback, he said change will surely come because no one can stop the march of an idea that has been embraced by the mass of the people. Mr. Umana, who said his party fought a good fight, thanked his supporters and the people of Akwa Ibom state for their support. He asked the people to continue to pray for the peace, progress and prosperity of Akwa Ibom state and Nigeria. We trust God, who is the God of justice, to provide solace and comfort for those who could not get justice within the framework of our legal system, Mr. Umana said. Ultimately we would all be accountable to God for our actions. NORRISTOWN, Pa. A judge refused to throw out the sexual assault case against Bill Cosby on Wednesday, sweeping aside a former district attorneys claim that he granted the comedian immunity from prosecution a decade ago. Common Pleas Judge Steven ONeill issued the ruling after a hard-fought two-day hearing, saying witness credibility was a factor. He did not elaborate. In another setback for the defense, the judge also denied a request to disqualify newly elected District Attorney Kevin Steele from the case. Cosbys lawyers had accused Steele of making a political football out of Cosby during the campaign. Cosby, 78, was arrested in December and charged with drugging and violating former Temple University athletic department employee Andrea Constand at his suburban Philadelphia home in 2004. The TV star could get up to 10 years in prison if convicted. Cosby held his head in his hands after the ruling, then left the courtroom, using a cane to descend the ornate marble staircase. He waved and smiled at supporters but had no comment. His lawyers put their arms on him to comfort him. The next step is a preliminary hearing March 8 to determine whether prosecutors have enough evidence to put him on trial. The charges represented an about-face by the district attorneys office. In 2005, then-District Attorney Bruce Castor decided the case was too flawed to prosecute. But Castors successors reopened the investigation last year after Cosbys lurid, decade-old testimony from Constands civil suit was unsealed at the request of The Associated Press and after dozens of other women came forward with similar accusations that destroyed Cosbys nice-guy image as Americas Dad. Cosbys lawyers tried to get the case thrown out with help from Castor, who testified at this weeks hearing that he intended to forever close the door on prosecuting the comedian. He said he considered his decision binding on his successors. Similarly, Cosbys lawyers said they never would have let the TV star testify in the civil case if they didnt believe criminal charges were off the table. In this case, the prosecution should be stopped in its tracks, Cosby lawyer Chris Tayback argued. Really what were talking about here is honoring a commitment. Steele challenged Castors credibility and questioned whether the former DA ever made such an agreement, since it was never put in writing on a legal document and the Cosby attorney with whom Castor dealt is now dead. Steele argued that in any case, Castor had no legal authority to make such a deal. A secret agreement that allows a wealthy defendant to buy his way out of a criminal case isnt right, Steele told the judge. At one point late in the afternoon, the judge signaled which way he intended to rule. Theres no other witness to the promise, ONeill said. The rabbit is in the hat and you want me at this point to assume, Hey, the promise was made, judge. Accept that.' On the stand, Castor defended his decision not to bring charges, citing among other things Constands yearlong delay in going to police, her continued contact with Cosby, and suggestions that she and her mother might have tried to extort the comic. The former DA said he made the no-prosecution commitment in hopes of prodding Cosby to testify in Constands lawsuit without invoking his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. In the end, Cosby testified, denying he assaulted Constand but admitting among other things that he obtained quaaludes to give to women he wanted to seduce. Constand eventually settled for an undisclosed amount. While more than 50 women have accused Cosby of drugging and sexually assaulting them since the 1960s, the statute of limitations for prosecuting the comic has run out in nearly every instance. This is the only case in which he has been charged. As the case goes forward, Cosbys lawyers are expected to fight mightily to keep the deposition from being introduced at trial. Castor tried to make a comeback as DA last fall but lost to Steele in a hotly contested race, during which Steele ran ads criticizing Castor for not prosecuting Cosby when he had the chance. The tension between the two men was on display Wednesday when Steele accused Castor and the Cosby camp of engaging in revisionist history. Most of the back-and-forth in court hinged on the wording and interpretation of a 2005 press release in which Castor announced he would not prosecute Cosby. Castor found himself sparring with prosecutors over many seemingly inconsistent statements he made over the years on whether Cosby could still be charged. The judge said he struggled to find similar cases where a suspect who was never charged received a promise that he would never be prosecuted. Normally, immunity is granted after a suspect is charged because he or she can provide testimony or information to prosecutors. Meth bust in Indonesia Jakarta. In 1971, US President Richard Nixon proclaimed that "America's public enemy number one" was substance abuse, and that America therefore needed to wage a "war on drugs." More than 40 years later, the Indonesian government has declared its own war against drugs, but advocacy groups and rehabilitation service providers question the effectiveness of the policy, stressing the need for a health-based perspective instead of a punitive regime. "This 'War on drugs' is like a poster that they carry around with a lack of understanding of even what a war on drugs is. It's just easy to sell to the parliament, easy to sell to the public," says Risa Alexander, a member of the board of the Karisma Recovery Society, a nongovernmental group. "The challenge for people who work in this area, or for anyone else who is concerned, is to campaign for drug dependency to be seen as a public health issue," he told the Jakarta Globe during a recent visit to his office in Jakarta. "Somebody has to start a serious campaign to reframe the issue." Public health approach The Karisma foundation was established in 2001 as a treatment recovery center for people with drug dependencies. Karisma also runs outreach programs and family communication groups, besides providing case management for people who are infected with HIV. It argues that the regime under which the current "war on drugs" is being waged with a punitive approach is failing. Instead, the activists suggest, a more compassionate approach to the problem is needed, an approach that highlights the drug problem as a health issue, not a criminal one. "Basically we believe that drug dependency, or substance use dependency, is a public health issue," Risa says. "It doesn't mean someone is morally bad." Australian example Back in 2010, Risa facilitated a trip to Australia for Indonesian government officials, where they learned about successful drug rehabilitation programs. He still believes the outcome of that visit was positive but says there is a long way to go. "The challenge is to set up a drug court in Indonesia ... but to set up a drug court means they have to come up with a new law to run the courts. To have a separate drug court, that would be quite a challenge. It would be quite a long legislative process." Indonesian officials were, according to Risa, impressed by the effectiveness of drug courts during their visit to Sydney, the capital of New South Wales. New South Wales is home to three drug courts that commenced operations in 1999. They are specialized courts that divert offenders with drug dependency towards treatment rather than prison. These types of courts have operated in the United States since 1989 and have been trialed in the United Kingdom and Canada. The drug court of NSW is the first of its kind in Australia and has been modeled on the US drug courts. According to an Australian media report, a Sydney hospital has also adopted a model of treatment that mirrors work happening in Portugal, where drug-related harms, such as death and communicable diseases, have reduced since authorities started treating drug addiction as a health issue. "Clearly what's happening in Australia [outside Sydney] and other countries isn't working. We spend a lot of our money and effort in policing individual users and it doesn't work as a deterrent," said Australian Greens Senator Richard Di Natale, as quoted on Australia's ABC online last year. 'Criminalization doesn't work' Echoing the sentiments about addressing the drug issue from a health prospective, are members of the Brotherhood of Indonesian Drug Victims (PKNI). "Stop criminalizing drug users, because you will get nothing from criminalizing them," Suhendro Sugiharto, a PKNI program manager, said at his office in South Jakarta. "I think we should be really taking into the consideration the effectiveness of these deterrents [jail before rehabilitation and the death penalty for serious drug offenses]," he said. "Because there is no evidence from around the globe saying a drug war ever succeeded this way." PKNI represents a network of drug user organizations. It has 23 member organizations from 19 provinces and was established to tackle the concerns of people they perceive to be victims of failing drug policies. The brotherhood provides paralegal services and support to drug users, advocating for their right to access legal aid and appropriate health services, while raising awareness of issues faced by these people, such as enduring stigma, violence and discrimination. PKNI's goal is to decriminalize drug users at the level of law enforcement agencies, especially the police and the National Narcotics Agency (BNN), "This isn't a war against drugs," said Suhendro, "this is a war against people and in any war there are casualties." Hard-line approach Indonesia's struggle to curb drug abuse and trafficking was pushed into the international spotlight in recent years with the executions of convicted drug offenders, including two allegedly reformed Australian nationals. More recently, Comr. Gen. Budi Waseso, the new BNN chief, has made a name for himself making statements surrounding his plan of attack for Indonesia's "War against drugs" that are widely seen as outlandish. From his dream to set up a remote prison-island for drug offenders, surrounded by ferocious crocodiles, to more extreme suggestions, such as forcing drug dealers to consume all of their confiscated merchandise, Indonesians, as well as news audiences around the world, have reacted in seemingly equal measure of amusement and horror. But Risa says there remains wide support in Indonesia for such hard-line approaches. "Most people in Indonesia would agree that a serious crime should be punished really hard ... and often times it bothers me that we have to set really harsh ineffectual laws, to deter people from doing that again." Karisma stays in touch with other NGOs and networks of drug users and rehabilitation facilities, as well as the local police and relevant ministries. "It's important to maintain relationships with basically anyone, at any level," he said. And it is from these relationships that Risa's confidence stems, as well as his hope that BNN is moving toward positive outcomes. "When BNN officials come to people like us and many other NGOs and say: 'this is what we're doing and would you be willing to contribute?', that gives a sense of relief," he said, hinting that people should look beyond the headlines when it comes to BNN and its recent initiatives. "As much as I hate it [the current situation for drug users in Indonesia] , I do still have confidence that we'll get there." On the right track? Established in 2002, BNN took on the job of coordinating relevant government agencies to formulate a national policy of drug prevention, as well as coordinate the implementation of that policy. Formulating and implementing this policy was the agency's number one task. Fourteen years later, the struggle to deliver what was promised continues. But Diah Setia Utami, BNN's deputy of rehabilitation, says it's only a matter of time. "I have a plan to coordinate [the work of ministries and institutions] to provide the grand design of the rehabilitation program in Indonesia. Hopefully next year, 2017, this grand design, or this national system, will be ready," she told the Globe in an interview this week. Diah, a psychiatrist who has worked with drug users, their families and their communities for 18 years, says the new national program will be rooted in empathy for drug users and include programs that are tailored to the needs of individuals. It will also try to change the mindset of law enforcers. "We have to make a rehabilitation model, a plan for individuals, not generalized treatment plans. It's all dependent on the needs of the clients," she said. "We need a national program, a national guideline, every institution, every ministry, will contribute ... especially for law enforcement, they still have the mindset that drug users are criminal." But she warned that implementing these grand plans will take time. Risa from Karisma, meanwhile, suggested that a lack of unified understanding of the issue of drug use and dependency at relevant ministries, combined with manpower issues, was the biggest hurdle for implementing any decent drug policy in Indonesia. "The policies are good enough, the progress is good enough, but the manpower is not fully ready and sadly enough the Indonesian criminal justice system is as bad as it gets," he said. "So if you can read between the lines, its the whole package ... it will take a lot of work." Source: Jakarta Globe , Kelly Conway, Feb. 3 2016 TCS overall brand value has increased to to $9.4 billion in 2016.. London: India's top multinational IT company Tata Consultancy Services has been rated as the world's most powerful brand in Information Technology Services by a leading global brand valuation firm, the company said on Wednesday. Brand Finance's 2016 annual report evaluated thousands of the world's top brands to determine which are the most powerful and the most valuable. Scoring highly on a wide variety of measures such as familiarity, loyalty, staff satisfaction and corporate reputation, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) emerged as the IT services industry's most powerful brand with a score of 78.3 points - earning it an AA+ rating. "TCS' customer focus has been central to its recent success, but a closer look at our data shows strong and improving scores for brand investment and staff satisfaction too," said David Haigh, CEO, Brand Finance. "It has emerged as a dominant force in the IT services industry and is the strongest brand in the sector. Its brand power is indisputable," Haigh said. Across all industries, Disney was rated as the most powerful brand and Apple as the most valuable brand for 2016. According to the report, TCS is also the fastest growing brand within its industry over the last 6 years. The company's overall brand value has increased from $2.34 billion in 2010 (when the first evaluation of the TCS brand was conducted) to $9.4 billion in 2016. "Customer centricity lies at the heart of our organization and is a key driver for growth of the TCS brand. The efforts of our 344,000 employees - our best brand ambassadors - have helped our brand strength to be rated at the top of our industry," said N Chandrasekaran, CEO and Managing Director of TCS. For the New World Order, a world government is just the beginning. Once in place they can engage their plan to exterminate 80% of the world's population, while enabling the "elites" to live forever with the aid of advanced technology. For the first time, crusading filmmaker ALEX JONES reveals their secret plan for humanity's extermination: Operation ENDGAME. Jones chronicles the history of the global elite's bloody rise to power and reveals how they have funded dictators and financed the bloodiest warscreating order out of chaos to pave the way for the first true world empire. Watch as Jones and his team track the elusive Bilderberg Group to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III. to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III. Learn about the formation of the North America transportation control grid, which will end U.S. sovereignty forever. Discover how the practitioners of the pseudo-science eugenics have taken control of governments worldwide as a means to carry out depopulation. View the progress of the coming collapse of the United States and the formation of the North American Union. Never before has a documentary assembled all the pieces of the globalists' dark agenda. Endgame's compelling look at past atrocities committed by those attempting to steer the future delivers information that the controlling media has meticulously censored for over 60 years. It fully reveals the elite's program to dominate the earth and carry out the wicked plan in all of human history. Endgame is not conspiracy theory, it is documented fact in the elite's own words. Uber would create an easy way for people signing up to drive with the company, and availing vehicle financing services in case they do not have a car. Chennai: Taxi aggregator Uber on February 4, said it is reducing fares of hatch-backs and sedans in the city from tomorrow amid rising demand for its services. As per the revised tariff, a journey in a hatchback, costing Rs 8 per km earlier, has been revised to Rs 6 per km. Customers preferring sedan would now have to pay Rs 7 per km as against Rs 9 earlier, a company release said. The new fares will be effective from tomorrow. "We are hoping this price drop creates more accessibility to people in the city. Higher demand also means more trips for our partner drivers and increased earnings for them," Uber General Manager South and West Bhavik Rathod said. In a separate statement, the taxi aggregator said that it has signed a partnership with the Union Ministry of Labour and Employment to create micro-entrepreneurial opportunities. "This will enable people who want to drive with Uber to sign up via the National Career Service online portal, launched by the Prime Minister to connect those looking for work with career counsellors, placement organisations and employers," Uber said. Uber would create an easy way for people signing up to drive with the company, and availing vehicle financing services in case they do not have a car, it said. "It's great to partner with the government on new work opportunities that go beyond traditional employment. We are committed to helping many thousands of people become micro-entrepreneurs so they can benefit from the new flexible, independent work that on-demand platforms make possible," David Plouffe, Chief Advisor and Member, Board of Directors Uber said. The Labour and Employment Ministry has started the initiative encourage micro-entrepreneurship through technology platforms like Uber. This is aimed at offering alternatives to on-call scheduling, or zero-hour contracts used by employers to minimize their labour costs and keep workers on unpredictable schedules. "We are pleased to partner with Uber to help people across India to become micro entrepreneurs as there is tremendous need for this kind of independent, flexible work," Shankar Aggarwal, Secretary, Ministry of Labour and Employment said. Uber operates in over 361 cities in 66 countries, and its service is available in 26 Indian cities presently. VIENNA, Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Speaking at the International Dialogue Centre (KAICIID) on February 2, the Federal President of the Republic of Austria, Dr. Heinz Fischer emphasized the importance of dialogue in ensuring peaceful coexistence, which is an essential requirement for the existence of future generations. "I consider dialogue, being open to discussion, and the ability to engage respectfully with other viewpoints (even when one does not share them), to be a basic requirement for peaceful coexistence between people, communities, cultures and religions." The President was speaking on the occasion of World Interfaith Harmony Week, which is celebrated every year in the first week of February. He was joined at the event by the Secretary General of KAICIID, Faisal Bin Muaammar and the Ambassador of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan to Austria, His Excellency Ambassador Hussam Al Husseini. The KAICIID Secretary General welcomed the representatives of religious and diplomatic communities at the event: "We are governed both by policymakers and by religious leaders: for this reason, no single religion, and no single nation determines our programmes. It is my belief that dialogue is the best way to foster the mutual respect that builds peace. We are trying to help solve global challenges through dialogue. When religious leaders and national policy makers combine their efforts through dialogue, they can create positive change." The President traced the roots of several current international conflicts to the manipulation of nationalism, ideology, and power to marginalize individual rights, or the rights of the weaker sections of society. In order to bridge the mistrust, or oppression, of those of other religions and cultures or nationalities, he said, "voices of reason, signals of moderation and willingness to talk are needed." He emphasised that KAICIID exists to serve these goals. As a platform for interreligious dialogue, as a bridge builder in interreligious and intercultural dialogue, it can seek to be a cosmopolitan, open, international dialogue partner. Its work and mandate, as laid out in the establishment agreement, strengthen cooperation and mutual respect at the international level, and promote a tolerant exchange of views between religious communities. "KAICIID is the only international organization to work together on an equal footing with leaders of the five major world religions. The center has the potential, through its work, to create a better understanding between religions and thereby make an important contribution to the development and advancement of human rights," he said. In his lecture, President Fischer stressed that Austria's longstanding record of promoting dialogue between religions and cultures has been a valuable asset in recent times. The war in Syria has triggered the largest wave of refugees since World War II, and Austria has received one of the highest number of refugees per capita in Europe. As the refugee crisis makes it necessary for countries to quickly and effectively integrate large numbers of people from other religions into their own societies, the practical importance of interreligious dialogue becomes clear. "The long-term integration of these people (refugees) into our society is a major challenge. I would like to reiterate that Muslims who live in Austria can and should, be a valuable part of our society. It is possible to be a good Muslim and a good Austrian simultaneously." "The integration of refugees in Austria in the coming years will increasingly need to be part of the dialogue between religions. The inclusion of vulnerable people is a serious, societal responsibility that needs to be carefully and knowledgeably executed with a view to securing social cohesion and social peace in Austria. That (this) will also entail problems cannot be denied. But would we not make the effort, we would have far bigger problems." If refugees are to return to peaceful homes, or to integrate into new circumstances, then we must find a way to help people accept and not fear differences. In his welcoming words, the KAICIID Secretary General, Faisal Bin Muaammar described how the International Dialogue Centre works to support the integration of refugees into Austria: "If refugees are to return to peaceful homes, or to integrate into new circumstances, then we must find a way to help people accept and not fear differences. Dialogue helps us achieve this. In dialogue we recognize that we are all equals and share core values. Austrian religious communities have shown great commitment and resolve in supporting the integration of refugees here in Austria. We are trying to do our part to support these efforts, by providing religious communities the means to help more refugees." His Excellency Ambassador Hussam Al Husseini explained the origins of World Interfaith Harmony Week as a Jordanian initiative which was adopted by the UNGA and is now celebrated worldwide. He also thanked the International Dialogue Centre for its work in promoting dialogue and described Vienna as a global centre for dialogue. About KAICIID The International Dialogue Centre (KAICIID) is an intergovernmental organization that promotes dialogue to build peace in conflict areas. It does this by enhancing understanding and cooperation between people of different cultures and followers of different religions. The Centre was founded by Austria, Saudi Arabia and Spain. The Holy See is the Founding Observer. Its Board of Directors comprises prominent representatives from five major world religions (Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism). The Board designs and supervises the Centre's programs. SOURCE KAICIID HATFIELD, England, February 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Eisai enter into a new agreement with Esteve, a Spanish pharmaceutical company with a comprehensive neurology franchise, to co-promote Fycompa (perampanel) in Spain from February 2016. Eisai and Esteve will launch the new indication for the adjunctive treatment of primary generalised tonic-clonic (PGTC) seizures in adults and adolescents (12 years) with idiopathic generalised epilepsy (IGE) in Spain in early 2016. Perampanel is also indicated in Spain for the adjunctive treatment of partial onset seizures, with or without secondarily generalised seizures, in patients with epilepsy aged 12 years and older.[1] "We are pleased to further strengthen our relationship with Esteve under this new agreement to co-promote perampanel. This collaboration will ensure that we maximise access to our products for people with epilepsy [per indication] in Spain," comments Gary Hendler, President and CEO, Eisai EMEA. "The new collaboration with Eisai under the agreement to co-promote perampanel in Spain will further consolidate our presence in neurology, one of our priority areas, and allow us to continue our efforts to bring epilepsy treatments to patients who need them," says Joe Sullivan, Managing Director of Esteve Farma. Epilepsy is a common neurological condition that causes recurrent seizures in the brain.[2] It is usually diagnosed in children and people over 65 years of age, although it can affect anyone.[2] Currently, up to 22,000 people are diagnosed with epilepsy each year in Spain, of whom around one third have seizures that are not completely controlled by their anti-epileptic therapy.[3] The new agreement with Esteve in Spain demonstrates Eisai's commitment in the therapeutic area of epilepsy and further exemplifies the company's contribution to addressing the diversified needs of and increasing the benefits provided to patients and their families as shown by its human health care mission. *** ENDS *** Notes to Editors About Fycompa (perampanel) Perampanel is a highly selective, non-competitive AMPA (alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid)-type glutamate receptor antagonist. AMPA receptors, widely present in almost all excitatory neurons, transmit signals stimulated by the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate within the brain and are believed to play a role in central nervous system diseases characterised by excess neuroexcitatory signalling including epilepsy. Perampanel is indicated for the adjunctive treatment for partial onset seizures, with or without secondarily generalised seizures, in patients with epilepsy aged 12 years and older and for adjunctive treatment of primary generalised tonic-clonic seizures, in patients with idiopathic generalised epilepsy. About Epilepsy Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological conditions in the world, affecting approximately six million people in Europe, and an estimated 50 million people worldwide.[4] It is a collection of syndromes that have many possible causes but often the cause is unknown. Epilepsy is a chronic disorder of the brain that affects people of all ages. It is characterised by abnormal discharges of neuronal activity causing seizures. Seizures can vary in severity, from brief lapses of attention or jerking of muscles, to severe and prolonged convulsions. Depending on the seizure type, seizures may be limited to one part of the body, or may involve the whole body. Seizures can also vary in frequency from less than one per year, to several per day. For the majority of idiopathic generalised epilepsy patients, a primary generalised tonic-clonic (PGTC) seizure begins with or without an aura, which is followed by rigid muscle. This leads to violent muscle contraction (clonic phase) and a loss of consciousness. As this is a serious event, it is seen as a major hindrance on daily life. While the seizure generally only lasts a few minutes, the patient will often feel confused or drowsy for a short period of time before returning to normal.[5],[6] PGTC seizures can also result in risk of injury and sudden unexplained death in epilepsy (SUDEP).[7] About Eisai EMEA in Epilepsy Eisai is committed to developing and delivering highly beneficial new treatments to help improve the lives of people with epilepsy. The development of AEDs is a major strategic area for Eisai in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Russia and Oceania (EMEA). In the EMEA region, Eisai currently has four marketed treatments including: Fycompa (perampanel) Perampanel is indicated for use as a once-daily, adjunctive therapy for both primary generalised tonic-clonic seizures with idiopathic generalised epilepsy and for adjunctive treatment of partial onset seizures, with or without secondary generalised seizures, in patients with epilepsy aged 12 years or older (perampanel) Perampanel is indicated for use as a once-daily, adjunctive therapy for both primary generalised tonic-clonic seizures with idiopathic generalised epilepsy and for adjunctive treatment of partial onset seizures, with or without secondary generalised seizures, in patients with epilepsy aged 12 years or older Inovelon (rufinamide) for the adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome in patients >4 years. (Rufinamide was originally developed by Novartis) (rufinamide) for the adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome in patients >4 years. (Rufinamide was originally developed by Novartis) Zonegran (zonisamide) as monotherapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults with newly diagnosed epilepsy and as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults, adolescents and children aged six years and above. (Zonegran is under license from the originator Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma) (zonisamide) as monotherapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults with newly diagnosed epilepsy and as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults, adolescents and children aged six years and above. (Zonegran is under license from the originator Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma) Zebinix (eslicarbazepine acetate) as adjunctive therapy in adult patients with partial onset seizures, with or without secondary generalisation (Zebinix is under license from BIAL) About Eisai Co., Ltd. Eisai Co., Ltd. is a leading global research and development-based pharmaceutical company headquartered in Japan. We define our corporate mission as "giving first thought to patients and their families and to increasing the benefits health care provides," which we call our human health care (hhc) philosophy. With over 10,000 employees working across our global network of R&D facilities, manufacturing sites and marketing subsidiaries, we strive to realise our hhc philosophy by delivering innovative products in multiple therapeutic areas with high-unmet medical needs, including Oncology and Neurology. As a global pharmaceutical company, our mission extends to patients around the world through our investment and participation in partnership-based initiatives to improve access to medicines in developing and emerging countries. For more information about Eisai Co., Ltd., please visit http://www.eisai.com About Esteve Esteve is a leading pharmaceutical chemical group based in Barcelona, Spain. Since it was founded in 1929, Esteve has been firmly committed to excellence in healthcare, dedicating efforts to innovative R&D of new medicines for unmet medical needs and focusing on high science and evidence-based research. ESTEVE has a strong partnership approach to drug discovery, development and commercialisation. The company works both independently and in collaboration to bring new, differentiated best-in-class treatments to patients who need them. The company currently has a team of about 2300 professionals, and has subsidiaries and production facilities in several European countries, USA, China and Mexico. For further information, please visit http://www.esteve.com References 1. Fycompa, Summary of Product Characteristics. Available at: http://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/medicine/26951 (Accessed January 2016) 2. Epilepsy Research UK. What is Epilepsy? Factsheet. Available from URL: http://epilepsyresearch.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/1_what_is_epilepsy.pdf (Last accessed November 2015) 3. Garcia-Ramos R, et al. Neurologia. 2011; 26:548-55. http://apps.elsevier.es/watermark/ctl_servlet?_f=10&pident_articulo=90090775&pident_usuario=0&pcontactid=&pident_revista=495&ty=109&accion=L&origen=zonadelectura&web=www.elsevier.es&lan=en&fichero=495v26n09a90090775pdf001.pdf (Last accessed November 2015) 4. Pugliatti M et al. Estimating the cost of epilepsy in Europe: A review with economic modeling. Epilepsia 2007: 48(12) 2224 - 2233 5. Epilepsy Foundation. Types of seizures. Available at: http://www.epilepsy.com/learn/types-seizures . (Accessed November 2015) 6. Epilepsy Foundation. IGE Summary. Available at: http://www.epilepsy.com/information/professionals/about-epilepsy-seizures/idiopathic-generalized-epilepsies . (Accessed November 2015) 7. Smithson WH et al, Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep 2014 Dec; 14(12):502 SOURCE Eisai TAIPEI, Taiwan, Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- World-renowned financial news publication, The Wall Street Journal, invited enterprises from around the world to join its Financial Inclusion Challenge (the Challenge) to showcase their solutions to the problems of financial access for the poor. Taisys Technology (Taisys) affiliate, Shanghai F-road Commercial Services (F-road), was judged by The Wall Street Journal to have a meaningful impact on financial inclusion in Asia-Pacific. F-Road uses SIM-overlay card-based technology delivered by Taisys' technology to expand mobile banking coverage to even the most rural parts of China. It was named the winner in the technology category of the Challenge. Challenge Judge Michael Schlein commented, "F-road's focus on rural areas addresses an often overlooked issue in financial inclusion bringing financial services to lower-population areas farther away from urban centers." Szechwan farmer Wu Yulong, user of F-road's service issued by local bank said, "I can transfer, pay bills and most importantly I can now easily extend my loan to buy the fertilizers. I also now conduct transactions for all the other villagers." In a vast country like China there is often a far distance to travel to the nearest bank. Therefore, the crucial matter to financial inclusion lies with the banks to shorten the distance between customers and bank services. F-road 's easily understood and highly accessible solution, based on Taisys' patented SIMoME technology, is now applied by over 15-million users from 1,300 banks in 27 of China's 31 provinces, handling more than RMB 5 billion daily transactions. Taisys' patented SIMoME technology uses the SMS channel in a users' phone, which overcomes the issue of weak signals in most rural areas. The technology is a highly secured device that also stores cryptographic keys, algorithms and process data, so financial institutions can issue safe mobile banking solutions to customers. Country manager of International Finance Corporation Simon Andrew said, "We think this has much more potential than just China, but also a lot potential in other countries where there are a large rural populations." F-road and Taisys have set an ambitious vision for achieving universal financial access. The Financial Inclusion Challenge win proves that their effort has already begun to bear fruits and help people in need. http://www.wsj.com/public/resources/documents/financialinclusion.html For more information, please visit Taisys' website: http://www.taisys.com/index Contact: Lotus Lin +886-2-2627-0927 lotus.lin@taisys.com Related Links http://www.taisys.com SOURCE Taisys Technology RALEIGH, N.C., Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The SunTrust Center for Financial Education at Wake Technical Community College has launched the National Financial Educators Council's eVolve eLearning platform and is making the course available to student's campus wide. The proprietary eLearning platform and learning management system form the backbone of the Center for Financial Education online personal finance initiative and a piece of the Centers overall financial literacy campaign. Combining live events, financial education based contests, interactive experiences and a personal finance mobile app with online education resources - the Centers goal is to build an authentic, dynamic learning experience while providing students access to practical financial education programming. The eLearning platform and Learning Management System (LMS) are evidence-based and designed according to current educational theory and benchmarks. The learner-centered approach applies accepted educational strategies including scaffolding, simulation, project-based learning, and case studies. The Centers tools create a learner-focused interactive experience designed to be unique for each individual user. Learners construct their own understanding by completing practical real-world financial activities. As part of the digital education package, the Center is rolling out a mobile personal finance app that aligns with the online learning center. This money management application covers topics ranging from budgeting to paying for school and paying off debt. These lessons are delivered through: videos, quick tips, interactive surveys, guides and real time testing. The lead personal finance educator at the Center for Financial Education, Kim Knox, includes the eLearning Center during her presentations to create a blended learning experience for students that attend her workshops. The platforms Central Dashboard provides robust evaluation data that allows the course facilitator to set up various engagement analytics and defined milestones. The built in Learning Management System allows facilitators to customize learning pathways while the students can personalize their learning experience based on specific interests, test results, and lesson accomplishments. "The SunTrust Center for Financial Education at Wake Technical Community College was developed to financially empower students and parents alike. We want to ensure our community members have the information needed to make financial decision that are in alignment with their longer-term goals," states John Saparilas, Associate Vice President at Wake Technical Community College. The online learning center is a key part of the overall strategy to reach students and their families. The SunTrust Center for Financial Education at Wake Technical Community College enriches lives by providing quality financial education to meet the needs of a diverse, growing community. The Center is celebrating its 3rd year and has conducted over 100 live, in-person, financial education workshops. Wake Technical Community College Wake Tech is fully committed to designing a comprehensive financial education initiative for prospective students, current students, staff, and faculty. The college is dedicated to providing this holistic financial education initiative in order to increase financial literacy and allow participants to achieve financial freedom and empowerment. SunTrust Foundation Established in 2008, the SunTrust Foundation's mission is to provide monetary support to nonprofit organizations and institutions engaged in activities promoting education, health and human services, culture and art, and civic and community involvement that contribute to the social and economic development of the communities SunTrust serves. National Financial Educators Council The National Financial Educators Council is dedicated to creating a world where people are informed to make qualified financial decisions that improve their lives, the lives of their loved ones, and the lives of people they impact around the globe. The NFEC's continued expansion into EdTech is aligned with their mission to raise people's financial capabilities on a global scale. Media contact: Trevor Stoll 775.549.0213 SOURCE National Financial Educators Council Related Links http://www.financialeducatorscouncil.org WASHINGTON, Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Legislation introduced in the House would strip federal employees of their basic workplace rights and disempower the people who care for our veterans, inspect our food, and deliver our social security checks, American Federation of Government Employees National President J. David Cox Sr. today. A deceptively named bill introduced Feb. 4 in the House, dubbed the Federal Employee Rights Act, would actually strip federal employees of their basic workplace rights and disempower the people who administer vital federal programs and services, says American Federation of Government Employees National President J. David Cox Sr. Rep. Tom Price of Georgia introduced the bill, which would substantially eliminate the federal worker voice and make it much harder for federal employees to join a union. "This is yet another in a long line of systematic attacks on working-class and middle-class Americans at the local, state and federal levels," Cox said. "The sole objective of these anti-labor actions is to make it as difficult as possible for working people to join unions and to diminish basic rights and protections that all employees deserve." H.R. 4461, the Federal Employee Rights Act, introduced by House Budget Committee Chairman Tom Price of Georgia, would substantially eliminate the federal worker voice and make it much harder for federal employees to join a union. "This legislation has a very misleading title and is being introduced under the false premise that federal employees are forced to pay union dues. Only federal employees who choose to join the union pay union membership dues," Cox said. "This is just the latest in a string of venomous attacks targeting the federal workforce: stripping VA employees of their due process rights, removing civil service protections for DoD workers, doubling the period in which new employees can be fired without cause. "When you take away an employee's basic rights to representation and due process, you end up with a system in which employees are fearful of coming forward to expose waste, fraud and abuse at their worksites. These types of poisonous proposals will result in higher rates of employee turnover and make it that much harder for agencies to recruit the best and brightest employees to deliver critical programs and services that Americans rely on." The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) is the largest federal employee union, representing 670,000 workers in the federal government and the government of the District of Columbia. For the latest AFGE news and information, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160204/329963 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20131120/MM21150LOGO SOURCE American Federation of Government Employees Related Links http://www.afge.org WASHINGTON, Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Thurman Higginbotham, CFSP president of the Independent Funeral Directors Association of DC has concluded that funeral directors have no legal authority or responsibility to facilitate the death pronouncement process when requested by families to handle the remains of their loved ones that expire in their residences. The problem now is that the DC Board of Funeral Directors has been unwilling to act on this knowledge, leaving the capital's funeral directors in an impossible position. "Shopping and compensating a physician to pronounce should not be the responsibility of the funeral director," says Dr. Hari P. Close, II, CFSP, past president of the State Board of Morticians and Funeral Directors of Maryland. "It does not surprise me the medical community supports this practice. Alarmingly, this seems to be a clear violation of the FTC's Funeral Rule for the consumer. This is a service that should be on the general price list (GPL) of ALL establishments in this jurisdiction." Carlton C. Douglass, past president of the National Funeral Directors & Morticians Association and current president of the Funeral Directors & Morticians Association of Maryland agrees with Dr. Close and adds in his 43 years of funeral service he is not aware of any jurisdiction in the United States where funeral directors are responsible for facilitating death pronouncement. In the course of assisting an association member in 2013, facing a serious matter concerning a death certificate created from a residence removal, Higginbotham began by carefully reviewing the current license laws and death certificate procedures. It also reminded him of an incident that occurred when he removed an individual from a residence on emergency medical authority in years past and proceeded to a local hospital for pronouncement, then learned the individual was not deceased and was admitted to the hospital "Discovering that our license laws have no requirement for funeral directors to facilitate having remains pronounced in DC, I dug deeper," explains Higginbotham. "Months of conversation, emails and painstaking research, I found that the DC Inspector General had conducted an inspection of the DC Medical Examiner's office in 2002. That inspection identified a need to develop a death pronouncement policy; a re-inspection five years later concluded no action had been taken to develop the policy. Based on the Inspector General report and the review of the license laws it was concluded that funeral directors in DC have no legal authority or responsibility to facilitate pronouncing remains." Once the DC Board of Funeral Directors was advised of Higginbotham's findings, in 2013 it should have formulated specific guidelines for us to follow while performing this service. The board's mission is to "regulate licensed funeral directors and funeral home establishments ... to protect the health, safety and welfare of the citizens in the District of Columbia by upholding the District of Columbia Funeral Directors laws and regulations." Contact was made with the Federal Trade Commission, DC Mayor's Office, DC Attorney General and the DC IG receiving no response. Unfortunately and mysteriously the DC Board of Funeral Directors essentially agrees, but will not issue anything in writing. Working together with Higginbotham has been Billie Watson Hughes, CFSP, president of the DC Funeral Directors Association, and Daniel Harrison, past president of the Alpha Delta Chapter of the Epsilon Nu Delta Mortuary Fraternity. Dr. Roger Mitchell, is working toward compliance with the Inspector General's findings and ensuring funeral directors are excluded going forward. Media Contact: Thurman Higginbotham, CFSP, President Independent Funeral Directors Association of DC 202-957-1177 [email protected] SOURCE Independent Funeral Directors Association of DC LIMASSOL, Cyprus, Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- To investors experienced in stock market trading, an answer to a question of how a foreign exchange option differs from a binary option might perhaps be obvious. But to those who have just decided to try their hand at trading and are only orientating themselves at stock markets an explanation of how two options are different might help define their future trading strategies and determine their future trading behaviour. At the very least, an account of dissimilarities between foreign exchange and binary options might help novice traders decide which of them to choose and in which to invest their money. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160204/329687LOGO What immediately sets the two trading options apart is that in binary options, investors know beforehand how much they are going to win or lose. Even before investors start betting, the conclusion of a trade in this sense is forgone for them, even though the valence of its outcome remains at this moment undecided yet. An end result of a trade in a foreign exchange option, by contrast, is not settled in advance. Investors trading in Forex always set themselves up for a surprise, never exactly knowing how much money they would either subtract from or add to their accounts. For this reason, binary options are a safer choice: traders will not find their funds slipping out of their control. Another reason why binary options might be preferable is their simplicity. Trading in binary options is less complicated than trading in Forex. All investors need to do when betting in binary options is to predict whether their chosen asset goes up or down. As its name indicates, a binary option leaves investors only two possibilities: to press either Call, if they envisage an upward movement for their asset, or to push the Put button, if they believe that their asset is going to decline. When investors bet in Forex, they do not simply theorize about the future movement of an abstract asset and then make a bet, they actually buy one currency and sell another. In Forex market, all currencies are also marked down to the fourth decimal point. This allows investors to trade currency in micro lots and, thereby, to minimize their losses, but taking these particularities into account makes Forex trading complex in comparison to binary options. Novice traders can easily get bogged down in these details and lose interest in trading or make a mistake and lose. In binary options, traders can also close more deals during a trading session than in a foreign exchange option. Binary options leave more room for deals, because, among other variants, it has a 60 second option, which offers a contract expiration period of one minute. In other words, placing a bet in binary options might take as little time as 60 seconds. If traders choose exclusively this option during their trading session, they will, obviously, close a large number of deals (up to 40) and will win a substantial amount of money, if they trade successfully. A foreign exchange option disallows placing so many bets during a trading day. A maximum number of trades investors have a day are no more than 4. If investors are interested in more dynamic trading, binary 60 second options, then, is the faster and livelier way to trade than a Forex exchange option. Even though Forex is a favoured trading option practiced by millions of people around the globe, a binary option, which is relatively new and less popular, is still a safer and more assured way to financial independence and profitable trading. Visit OneTwoTrade on Social Media: https://www.facebook.com/onetwotrade https://twitter.com/OneTwoTrade SOURCE OneTwoTrade Related Links https://www.facebook.com/onetwotrade Visitors at an exhibition which is part of the IK 2016 event in Bengaluru on Wednesday KPN Bengaluru: To promote ease of doing business, the state government has decided to set up an Industry- Government Partnership entity to provide and promote a host of services. Announcing this at the inaugural session of Invest Karnataka-2016, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah spelled out a strong vision for the states economy. Karnataka is a $ 120 billion economy. Let us make it as $ 700 billion economy by 2035. If India aspires to grow at 9 per cent let us aspire Karnataka to grow at 10 per cent, he said, addressing the prominent industrialists and business bigwigs from around the country and the world, who have descended on the city for the three-day investors meet . The World Economic Forum has identified Karnataka among the top four innovation hubs in the world and Bengaluru has been ranked as the fourth largest global tech cluster after Silicon Valley, Boston and London. Over 400 of the biggest Fortune 500 Companies have made Karnataka their home and continue to invest in the state, he noted. Pointing out that Karnataka was home to more than 400 R&D institutions and innovation centres of global brands , he said perhaps no other region in the world could boast of such a concentration of brands. The Chief Minister revealed the state government had decided to provide 500 acres for a urea plant in North Karnataka and another 100 acres for establishing a centre of the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research Centre (NIPER) Responding to Union Minister for Fertilizers and Chemicals, Ananthkumars appeal to the state government to provide land for a urea plant in North Karnataka and for two other major institutions in the state, Mr Siddarmaiah said a decision had already been taken. The government has decided to give 500 acres in one of the four districts of Vijayapura, Bagalkota, Dharwad and Raichuru. We have already informed the Centre about this. We will provide whatever land is required to set up industrial units, he assured, announcing that another five acres had been earmarked for establishing a Research and Development centre of the Central Institute of Plastics Engineering and Technology. LINCOLNSHIRE, Ill., Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- LG Electronics USA celebrated the opening of its new Chicago Business Innovation Center, a comprehensive technology hub and educational center for LG's commercial displays and business solutions in the United States. Located within the U.S. headquarters for LG Business Solutions in Lincolnshire, Ill., the new LG Business Innovation Center is among the first in a series of innovation center openings in major cities across the globe. LG Electronics senior leadership perform the official ribbon cutting at the grand opening of the LG Electronics USA Business Innovation Center on Wednesday, February 3, 2016, in Lincolnshire, IL. From left to right: LG Electronics USA President of Parts & Service, Mr. Kyu-Moon Yu; LG Electronics USA VP of Hospitality, Michael Kosla; LG Electronics USA Head of Marketing, Commercial Displays, Garry Wicka; LG Electronics USA SVP of Commercial Displays, Kimun Paik; LG Electronics USA VP of Digital Signage, Clark Brown; Global President of Commercial Displays LG Electronics Soon Kwon; LG Electronics USA President & CEO William Cho; LG Electronics USA LG Electronics USA Senior Director of Sales Dan Smith provides media with a tour of the state-of-the-art Business Innovation Center at its grand opening on Wednesday, February 3, 2016, in Lincolnshire, IL. (Photos by Ross Dettman/AP Images for LG Electronics USA) LG Electronics USA Vice President of Hospitality Michael Kosla provides media with a tour of the state-of-the-art Business Innovation Center at its grand opening on Wednesday, February 3, 2016, in Lincolnshire, IL. (Photos by Ross Dettman/AP Images for LG Electronics USA) The new center will give business owners, integrators and contractors a chance to engage and learn about how LG's leading line of commercial solutions can contribute to an increased bottom line. As its customer base continues to grow, LG is committed to offering a state-of-the-art training center to ensure brand representatives are providing the most informed and smart solutions for business owners today. In conjunction with the facility's grand opening, LG Business Solutions launched an innovative new digital signage format, the 86-inch LG Ultra Stretch Signage display, optimized for dynamic digital content display. "The Business Innovation Center exemplifies LG's commitment to 'innovation for a better business' in the U.S. commercial market," said William Cho, president and CEO, LG Electronics USA. "In addition to showcasing LG's extensive portfolio of innovative solutions across various vertical markets including the all-new Ultra Stretch Signage display this center will provide the ideal venue in the heartland of America for LG to hold training sessions and executive briefings for current and future customers, further expanding our B2B footprint in the U.S." The LG Business Innovation Center will feature various industry zones that bring LG's commercial solutions to life in a real-life application setting. These include display solutions for Retail and Quick-Serve Restaurant (QSR), Hospitality, VIP and Healthcare zones, as well as commercial energy and air solutions. Retail & QSR Zones: Showcasing Ultra HD Signage Displays The LG Business Innovation Center will showcase large and small-format LG commercial displays that are essential for the retail space, given their ability to showcase content with superior resolution, excellent picture quality and the webOS for Signage smart platform. LG's offerings include in-demand 4K resolution for superior picture quality with In Plane Switching (IPS) technology that produces accurate and consistent colors from any viewing angle as well as seamless connectivity that can easily be customized across each business. LG's newest launch, the Ultra Stretch Signage 86BH5C, is a new 86-inch ultra-wide digital signage screen with an incredible 58:9 aspect ratio that can display dynamic content depending on the user's installation environment and can even double as digital decor. With immersive 4K Ultra HD resolution and a useful Picture-by-Picture (PBP) feature which allows the user to divide the long, rectangular screen into four parts in landscape or portrait installations empowers the integrator to customize the screen to maximize content. With the LG SuperSign media editor, integrators are able to easily edit images or video clips of original content without the need for any additional editing programs resulting in a seamless process for displaying and communicating content. For an immersive viewing experience in retail stores and banks, the Ultra Stretch Signage 86BH5C can also be valuable in airports, subways or even art galleries. In addition to the interactive features of the Ultra Stretch Signage 86BH5C, LG offers additional products with the highest resolution technology available to enhance the quality of visual communication at a never-before-seen level. The Retail Zone's flagship products include LG's largest 4K UHD digital signage display, the 98-inch class (98.0 inches measured diagonally) 98LS95A, which showcases vivid images with superior brightness and an incredible level of detail four times the resolution of 1080p Full HD displays. Also showcased is LG's all-new Direct LED Video Wall VH7B featuring an ultra-slim bezel 0.9 mm which is ideal for retail stores that require a giant-screen commercial installation that can communicate information in a clear and immersive manner. Hospitality & VIP Zones: Featuring the Latest Hotel Technologies LG's industry-leading guest-centric display solutions are nestled in the hospitality and VIP zone, which boasts a portfolio of products specifically designed for the hospitality space including commercial 4K Ultra HD hotel TVs enhanced with LG's Pro:Centric interactive TV platform and the Pro:Idiom digital rights management system. Complementing its ENERGY STAR certified in-room solutions, LG offers a range of displays suited for public spaces within the hotel such as lobbies, meeting spaces and restaurants. LG's digital signage and video wall displays offers a visually stunning communication platform that is easily installed, managed and maintained. Another highlight of the Hospitality Zone is the LG Styler, a unique clothing management system designed to steam and refresh clothing at the touch of a button, ideal for hotel suites and club lounges. Smart Healthcare Zone: Providing the Best in Healthcare Solutions The Smart Healthcare Zone features LG's interactive healthcare TVs with in-room applications for patient monitoring, wayfinding and educational information. LG develops products with the goal to streamline processes for medical practitioners and foster positive patient experience within the healthcare industry, including hospitals and medical centers, as well as long-term care and assisted living facilities. Outdoor Signage Zone: Introducing Rugged Al Fresco Displays Gracing the entrance to the LG Business Innovation Center is a prime example of unique new outdoor digital signage displays developed by the groundbreaking LG-MRI strategic alliance. These high-brightness displays based on LG's IPS (in-plane switching) technology such as the 84-inch portrait-mounted LED/LCD model in Lincolnshire are designed to withstand the harsh Chicagoland weather and provide a new level of performance and energy efficiency. Energy Solutions Zone: Demonstrating Broad Capabilities While its main focus is on commercial displays, including many ENERGY STAR certified models, the Chicago LG Business Innovation Center also showcases energy solutions for green buildings, featuring industry-leading LG technologies in commercial air conditioning, solar panels and LED lighting. Technologies on display include LG's Multi V IV variable refrigerant flow system for commercial installations, the award-winning Art Cool Gallery for residential applications and P-TAC units for the lodging industry. LG renewable energy technology is exemplified by the new high-performance Mono X NeON 2 solar modules, while LG's super-efficient 2x2 LED lighting troffers illuminate the entire facility. "Visitors to the LG Business Innovation Center will have an opportunity to experience firsthand the breadth and depth of LG's expansive business-to-business solutions," said Kimun Paik, senior vice president, business solutions, and head of LG Electronics USA's commercial display business. "LG's commercial display solutions are developed with the end-user at the forefront, and this new center will help customers see how implementing digital signage is a vital business solution and smart investment." In addition to the new Chicago LG Business Innovation Center in Lincolnshire, Ill., LG Electronics USA also just opened the Atlanta LG Business Innovation Center within its newly-expanded U.S. Air Conditioning Systems Headquarters in Alpharetta, Ga. These LG centers are the first of their kind in the United States and two of only nine such centers around the world. Other locations are in Amsterdam; London; Sao Paulo; Moscow; Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, Vietnam; and Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Each facility is primed to serve as a technology hub and cutting-edge product showcase to connect engineers, contractors, integrators and executives in all facets of LG's industry-leading technology. About LG Electronics USA Business Solutions LG Electronics USA Business Solutions serves commercial display customers in the U.S. lodging and hospitality, digital signage, systems integration, healthcare, education, government and industrial markets. Based in Lincolnshire, Ill., with its dedicated engineering and customer support team, LG Electronics USA Business Solutions delivers business-to-business technology solutions tailored to the particular needs of business environments. LG Electronics USA Inc., based in Englewood Cliffs, N.J., is the North American subsidiary of LG Electronics Inc., a $49 billion global force in consumer electronics, mobile communications, home appliances and air solutions. LG is a 2015 ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year-Sustained Excellence. For more information, please visit www.LGSolutions.com. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160203/329584 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160203/329583 Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160203/329585 SOURCE LG Electronics USA Related Links http://www.LGSolutions.com HOUSTON, Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Circular Board announced its upcoming Pitch with Purpose, a pitch competition for women entrepreneurs leading high-growth, scalable businesses that support the resolution of the world's most pressing problems, presented in partnership with United Nations Foundation, Dell and Guggenheim Partners. Pitch with Purpose makes history as the first-ever purpose-based pitch competition for women-led businesses in support of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160204/329733LOGO Applicants submit entries online (www.thecircularboard.com/pitch-with-purpose), and three finalists will be invited to present a live pitch in front of esteemed judges, funders and media at Circular Summit, to be held April 14-15, 2016, in Houston. Applications are open to any business with at least one female founder. The winning pitch will receive a comprehensive awards package designed to accelerate scalability and social impact: $10,000 from Guggenheim Partners from Guggenheim Partners Dell technology suite Admission into the Circular Board accelerator for women entrepreneurs Mentorship from Susan McPherson , founder and CEO of McPherson Strategies, Elizabeth Gore , Dell entrepreneur-in-residence and emeritus chair of the United Nations Foundation's Global Entrepreneurs Council, and Zaw Thet , managing partner of Signia Venture Partners , founder and CEO of McPherson Strategies, , Dell entrepreneur-in-residence and emeritus chair of the United Nations Foundation's Global Entrepreneurs Council, and , managing partner of Signia Venture Partners Feature on MORE Magazine digital platform Five semi-finalists will also win entry into Circular Summit with a VIP Experience to be attended by investors and featured speakers, including Rachel Roy, Alli Webb and Jane Wurwand. "Texas claims the worst record of supporting women seeking venture capital. Last year, 42 Texas startups got Series A rounds. Zero of them had female founders, and it's not for a lack of women in business. In fact, several Texas cities, like San Antonio and Houston, are considered the fastest growing for female founder-driven economic clout," cited Carolyn Rodz, CEO and founder of Circular Board and co-chair of Circular Summit. "The goal of Circular Summit and Pitch with Purpose is to initiate action around the data surrounding the global impact of women-owned businesses, and we're doing it in Texas because this is an area where the gender gap is widest." The number of women-led businesses in the United States increased by 74 percent between 2007 and 2015, a rate 1-1/2 times the national increase of other businesses, according to the OPEN State of Women-Owned Businesses report. "When you consider that women reinvest 90 percent of their income back into their communities, children and health, you begin to see that if these entrepreneurs succeed, they will help solve the world's problems," said Gore, co-chair of Circular Summit. "Forty-eight percent of female founders cite a lack of available mentors or advisers as a barrier to growth, which is why we've incorporated top-tier mentor support and introductions into highly localized networks into the Pitch with Purpose." Lack of access to capital also continues to challenge women-owned businesses. On average, women start their business with half as much capital as men ($75,000 vs. $135,000), according to the National Women's Business Council. "Guggenheim Partners recognizes entrepreneurial innovation as a key ingredient to impacting global change, and we are proud to support these women leaders through Pitch with Purpose by infusing capital to advance their goals and enable rapid growth," said Penny Zuckerwise, head of corporate social responsibility, Guggenheim Partners. "The UN Global Goals will be achieved in part by innovative leaders with bold ideas. Pitch with Purpose will bring those concepts to light, and we can in turn establish partnerships with agencies to scale those ideas," said Aaron Sherinian, chief communications and marketing officer, United Nations Foundation. Prospective Pitch with Purpose contenders can learn more about the application process at www.thecircularboard.com/pitch-with-purpose. The deadline to apply is March 14, 2016. About Circular Board: Circular Board is a collaborative accelerator for growth-oriented female entrepreneurs who lead, or aspire to build, businesses with multi-million dollar revenues. We support women in business around the world through mentorship, content, community and capital, and connect founders to the resources they need to fuel growth. For more information, visit www.thecircularboard.com. About the Co-Chairs: Carolyn Rodz Circular Board was founded by three-time entrepreneur Carolyn Rodz. She has helped raise billions of dollars of capital for innovative organizations, created a luxury retail line that sold in over 400 stores worldwide, and later launched an interactive marketing firm serving Fortune 500 enterprises and startups positioning themselves for industry leadership. Carolyn now serves as an advocate for women entrepreneurs, connecting them to sources of capital, strategic partners, and mentors to create businesses that scale. She is recognized among Entrepreneur Magazine's 2016 "Women to Watch", as a Sam Walton Emerging Entrepreneur, and Micro to Millions awardee in partnership with American Express. Carolyn is a delegate to the United Nations Foundation Global Accelerator, a member of the Dell Women's Entrepreneur Network, TEDx speaker, former student board member for the Texas A&M Mays College of Business and contributor to Fortune, Huffington Post, Entrepreneur and Time. Elizabeth Gore Elizabeth Gore is the Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Dell, where she drives initiatives that support Dell's goals around helping small and medium businesses scale and prosper to drive the world economy. Elizabeth personally advises the growth of companies such as the women's accelerator Circular Board, ride share commuting company Scoop, online and mobile fundraising platform Classy and innovative water company SOMA. She is the Emeritus Chair of the United Nations Foundation's Global Entrepreneurs Council, and previously served as the first ever Entrepreneur-in-Residence for the UN Foundation, as well as Vice President of Global Partnerships, founding strategic grassroots efforts, such as Nothing But Nets, Girl Up and [email protected] Elizabeth was named by People as one of the top 100 Extraordinary Women and is one of Fast Company's Most Creative People in Business, and has been featured on multiple media outlets, including: ABC, CBS, CNN, MSNBC, FOX Business, Fast Company, Fortune, Glamour, Entrepreneur, People, and Time. SOURCE Circular Board Related Links http://www.thecircularboard.com ELMHURST, Ill., Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Chamberlain Group, Inc. (CGI), maker of LiftMaster and Chamberlain access control brands, announced today that JoAnna Sohovich has been appointed CEO. "We are very excited about the strategic expertise JoAnna will provide our company," said Craig Duchossois, CEO of CGI parent company The Duchossois Group. "Her background and values made her the obvious fit for this position, and we are looking forward to her leadership and insight." JoAnna Sohovich, CEO of The Chamberlain Group, Inc. Sohovich has had a distinguished career at both Honeywell and Stanley Black & Decker, where she most recently served as Global President of the $1.6 billion STANLEY Engineered Fastening. Sohovich began her career as an officer in the United States Navy and holds a B.S. in Economics from the United States Naval Academy and an MBA from Santa Clara University. "JoAnna's depth of experience coupled with strong leadership capabilities make her a welcome addition to CGI," said Bob Markwart, President, LiftMaster Americas. As CEO of CGI, Sohovich will oversee the company's global operations. With a strong background in quality, Sohovich has a track record of delivering innovative products. She also has experience developing customer-centric strategies and leading teams concentrated on residential, commercial and industrial connectivity. "CGI's products are becoming more integrated into the connected lives of their users," said Sohovich, referring to the MyQ connectivity technology embedded in LiftMaster and Chamberlain products. "We will continue to drive innovation, while maintaining industry-leading quality throughout our manufacturing processes." "JoAnna is joining CGI at the perfect time," said Brad Opel, Executive Vice President, Chamberlain Americas. "Her IoT and technology experience will be an asset to our connectivity strategy." About CGI Whether it's your garage, gate or door, The Chamberlain Group, Inc. (CGI) controls and protects the biggest entryways to homes and commercial properties worldwide with its Chamberlain, LiftMaster, Merlin and Grifco brands. A leader in residential garage door openers, commercial door operators, gate access solutions and related accessories, CGI's innovative products keep families safe, secure and connected. Chamberlain Manufacturing Company was originally founded in Waterloo, Iowa in 1906. Chamberlain acquired its garage door opener business in 1968, which was the beginning of CGI as we know it today. CGI is one of the top home connectivity companies in the industry with its MyQ technology, which empowers consumers to monitor and control their garage doors and home lighting from their smartphones anytime, anywhere. For more information, visit www.Chamberlain.com or www.LiftMaster.com. Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160203/329514 Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160104/318908LOGO SOURCE The Chamberlain Group, Inc. Related Links http://www.Chamberlain.com Bengaluru: The global investors meet is not just attracting investors, but proving to be a bonanza for cab services and the hospitality industry. A source from an app-based cab aggregator informed that there has been a surge in the number of bookings and they are expecting it would continue during the period of Invest Karnataka summit. Regarding the impact of the meet on the hotel industry, Bhaskaran T., General Manager of Lalit Ashok said, These are the kind of events that bring revenue to the hotels. Big conferences will help generate revenue not only to hotels but to all allied industries. The better the business for hotels, the more employment it generates for the city. The hotel has been generally busy and full up due to many simultaneous event happening in Bengaluru. Apart from Global Investors meet, Lalit Ashok played host to International Water-loss Conference. It is heartening to have such high profile events coming to Namma Bengaluru. It not only lifts the profile of the city but also puts it firm on the global map. So from that perspective this is a great investment for the future of the city, added Bhaskaran, who feels that this year would definitely be buoyant for the hotels in the city. If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here London, Jan 30 : A British mother has been convicted of terrorism offences after fleeing Britain with her one-year-old child to join the Islamic State (IS) in Syria, Britain's West Midlands Police announced on Friday. Tareena Shakil, a 26-year-old woman from Burton-upon-Trent in England, was found guilty of being a member of IS and encouraging acts of terrorism at Birmingham Crown Court on Friday, Xinhua reported. The mother boarded a plane to Turkey in October 2014 with her young boy, where she then crossed the border into Syria and spent the next three months there, police said. "She denied joining Daesh but her membership was proven as a result of enquiries carried out by the West Midlands Counter Terrorism Unit and other agencies," West Midlands Police said in a statement. Police noted that detectives were able to show Shakil had become a member of the extremist group and was set to become a jihadi bride. A photograph uncovered by police showed her posing in Syria underneath an IS flag. She was arrested by counter-terrorism officers when she returned to Britain on February 18 in 2015 after landing at Heathrow Airport, while her son was taken into care, police said. The woman was also found guilty of sending a series of tweets before she left the Britain "encouraging the public to commit acts of terrorism", police added. From left: MP Ananth Kumar, Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari, Chief Minister Siddaramiah and Roshan Baig at the inauguration of Invest Karnataka 2016 at Bangalore Palace, in Bengaluru on Wednesday R. Samuel Bengaluru: Union transport minister, Nitin Gadkari announced on Wednesday that the state and Union governments had agreed to build an ambitious six- lane access-controlled highway between Bengaluru and Mysuru. Work on the highway could begin by the year end, he revealed, speaking at an interactive meeting organized by the Namma Bengaluru Foundation. We need to complete all the formalities at the earliest and start the work at least by the year-end. The project cost is estimated to be Rs 8,000 crore. It will be a toll road, but a service road will be built on both the sides, he explained, adding that educational and hospital clusters would be developed near the bypasses of the new highway. The minister also revealed that the National Highway 209 between Bengaluru and Dindigal would be widened at an estimated cost of `850 crores. We plan to widen the Dabaspet Hoskote road too at an estimated cost of Rs 2,000 crores and also widen the Tumukuru-Nelamangala stretch of NH 4, he said. In other plans, he said the Union government was considering a proposal to build an expressway between Bengaluru and Chennai. Traffic jams are a problem faced by all the metro cities including Bengaluru. I was personally stuck in a traffic jam in Bengaluru recently. The situation is the same in Delhi. Elevated roads, and ring roads are the solution. But the need of the hour is integration of all modes of transport, he emphasised. Requesting Union minister, Ananth Kumar and MP, Rajeev Chandrashekhar to bring a delegation to Delhi with concrete proposals for the state, he promised to hold meetings with all the ministries concerned to address them. Accusing corrupt RTO officials of misleading state transport ministers, Mr. Gadkari claimed he was not able to table the new transport policy as a result. But I am sure that this bill will be approved in the coming Budget session of parliament, he said, also promising a comprehensive policy on taxi aggregator service providers. Earlier in the day Mr. Gadkari reviewed several projects with state PWD officials. Kolkata, Jan 30 : Rejecting their bail pleas, a city court on Saturday sent three people including prime accused Sambia Sohrab to judicial custody in the sensational hit-and-run case in Kolkata in which a young IAF officer was killed on January 13. City Metropolitan Magistrate Madhumita Basu sent the trio of Sambia Sohrab, Shanu alias Shanawaz Khan and Johnny to judicial custody till February 12. The court also accepted the police plea of conducting a test identification parade of the three who were presented before the court on the expiry of their police custody. Pressing for their bail, the counsel of the accused pleaded that police have not progressed with the investigation, as such their further custodial detention was not essential. The prosecution opposed the bail, contending that the interrogation of the accused was essential for the investigation. After hearing both the parties, the court remanded them in 14 days judicial custody. Charged with murder among other sections, Sambia, son of former Rashtriya Janata Dal legislator Mohammad Sohrab, driving his car is alleged to have broken through police barricades before fatally knocking down IAF corporal Abhimanyu Gaud in the morning of January 13 on the Indira Gandhi Sarani, while the officer was supervising the Republic Day parade rehearsal. While Sambia was arrested on January 16 from the city, his friend Shanawaz Khan, was arrested from Delhi on January 18 and Johnny was nabbed on January 19. Meanwhile, police continue to hunt for Sambia's absconding brother Ambia and their father Mohammad Sohrab against whom a lookout notice was issued by a court earlier. The development comes in the wake of the administration turning down the Indian Air Force's formal request for a joint probe with the police into the incident. The IAF earlier in the week had made the proposal and also requested for a list of witnesses and all other evidence collected by police to help complete its own Court of Inquiry. But the state administration turned down the request citing that law and order was a state subject. Srinagar, Jan 30 : A Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) commander hailing from Pakistan was among three guerrillas killed in a gun battle with security forces on Saturday in Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district, police said. "Top LeT commander Abu Usama alias Zarar belonging to Pakistan occupied Kashmir was among the three militants killed by the security forces in Kupwara district today," a police official said in Srinagar. Acting on information that three LeT militants were hiding in a house in Lohar Mohalla of Dardpora (Lolab) village, personnel of the army's 28 Rashtriya Rifles and special operations group of the state police surrounded the house on Friday evening. When the security forces zeroed in on the house, the militants fired at them, triggering a gun battle. Three LeT militants, including Abu Usama, were killed in the operation. "The Pakistani militant commander was in the most wanted list of the security forces," the police official said. The house in which the guerrillas were hiding was destroyed in the gunfight. A search was launched in the area later by the security forces. Islamabad, Jan 31 : Pakistan and Afghan military commanders agreed on Saturday on better coordination and enhancing security measures at both sides of the border, officials said. Pakistan and Afghanistan have neatly 2,600 kms border, mostly porous, and the militants take advantage of the inaccessible and difficult terrain to move across the border, according to Xinhua. Pakistan has long been seeking Afghanistan's help for better border coordination to check the illegal crossings. Both sides had earlier agreed on the establishment of bilateral border coordination centres at Torkham and Chaman border points. However, the centres have not yet been set up. As the military-to-military contacts have grown in recent days, an eight-member delegation of Afghan National Army headed by Corps Commander Lieutenant General Mohammad Sharif Yaftali held talks with Pakistani counterparts in Peshawar and discussed cooperation, focusing on border coordination. The visit of Afghan National Army delegation is follow up of the Pakistan Army Chief General Raheel Sharif's visit to Afghanistan last month in which it was decided that Corps Commanders from respective sides will hold meetings for better border management. The delegates discussed matters pertaining to mutual interest and security arrangements at Pak-Afghan border, a statement from the army's Inter-Services Public Relations said. Both militaries have also established a hotline to exchange views on security matters in line with decisions taken during the army chief's visit. The Afghan military officers visit Pakistan days after a group of the Taliban in a brutal attack on a university in Pakistan massacred over 20 students, teachers and security guards. The army said a Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan commander controlled the January 20 attack from Afghanistan. The Pakistan army chief had shared details about the attack with the top Afghan leaders and the foreign forces' commander in Afghanistan. Visakhapatnam, Jan 31 : The coastal city of Visakhapatnam was on Sunday buzzing with activity with warships circling the waters and aircrafts hovering in the sky as the Indian Navy started rehearsals for the International Fleet Review (IFR) 2016 that will start on February 4. Ships and delegations from 54 countries will be participating in the first-of-its-kind military exercise to be hosted by India. The event will see the participation of 24 warships from other countries and 24 foreign naval chiefs, along with several foreign delegates. "IFR is an opportunity for the host nation to enhance mutual trust and confidence with its maritime neighbours and other like-minded nations. It is also an indication of the reciprocal trust and confidence placed in the host nation," Indian Navy spokesperson Captain D.K. Sharma said on Sunday. "Apart from showcasing our maritime prowess, IFR would also include events that will highlight d thrust on indigenisation and innovations," he said. The events would include exhibitions on Make in India, Digital India and Green India as well as cultural displays. The IFR will be held in Visakhapatnam, the headquarters of the navy's Eastern Command, during February 4-8. The IFR will see several events, including review of the fleet by President Pranab Mukherjee, who is the supreme commander of India's armed forces. New Delhi, Jan 31 : Premier Kathleen Wynne of Canada's Ontario arrived on Sunday on a six-day visit leading a 100-member business delegation in a bid boost the province's trade relations with India, the Canada-India Business Council (C-IBC) said in a statement here. "Wynne's delegation will visit four cities -- New Delhi, Chandigarh, Hyderabad and Mumbai -- and will formalize agreements and memorandums of understanding within the research, infrastructure, technology, science, health and education sectors," the statement said. "Wynne will also meet with political and cultural leaders to build new relationships, strengthen existing ones and examine areas for future cooperation," it added. Ahead of her visit, Wynne, in provincial capital Toronto, noted that she "really believes that 2016 can be a huge year for Ontario and India because of what is going on in India and the plan that Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi has put in place, the smart cities, the clean tech that is going be needed, and because of our potential here to provide capacity in all of those areas". With 700,000 Ontarians being of Indian descent, ties between the province and India are already strong," former C-IBC president Kam Rathee, who is India-born, told reporters here. "India is an important trade partner for Ontario. In 2014, total goods trade between Ontario and India was valued at almost $2 billion," he said. Bilateral ties, that had become dormant, got a big boost with Prime Minister Modi's visit to Canada last year, he added. In December last year, the first consignment of Canadian uranium was delivered in Mumbai marking the first commercial outcome the Canada-India Nuclear Co-operation Agreement that came into force in September 2013. The India-Canada bilateral trade last year in goods amounted to over $6 billion, while that in services was worth $1.6 billion. The Ontario premier began her India tour with a visit on Sunday to the Golden Temple at Amritsar. A substantial part of the Indian-origin population of the province is Sikh. Latest updates on Howdy Modi Houston Chennai, Feb 1 : Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa has sought Prime Minister Narendra Modi's intervention to secure the release of nine Indian fishermen arrested by Sri Lankan navy on January 30. In letter to Modi, Jayalalithaa said: "I urge your personal intervention to prevent the aggravation that the Sri Lankan authorities and navy are causing to our fishermen." She requested Modi to direct the external affairs ministry to take up the matter with Sri Lankan authorities urgently and secure the release of the 15 fishermen and 69 fishing boats in Sri Lankan custody. These include the nine fishermen and their two fishing boats seized on January 30. India and Sri Lanka are divided by a narrow strip of sea, and Sri Lankan authorities routinely arrest fishermen from Tamil Nadu who they say fish in the island nation's waters. Fishing boats are also seized. Hyderabad, Feb 2 : Celebrities came out to vote in the elections to Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) and appealed to urban voters to participate in the poll process. Leading Telugu actors like Balakrishna, Junior NTR, Nagarjuna and Allu Arjun cast their votes at polling centres in the posh Jubliee Hills area. Nagarjuna accompanied by his actress wife Amla cast their votes. They appealed to people to come out of their houses and exercise their franchise. "Majority of the voters are youth. They often complain that they lack amenities. They should come out and vote to elect good representatives," said Nagarjuna. To a query, Nagarjuna said his actor son Akhil's name is missing from the voters' list. Veteran actor Balakrishna, son of Telugu Desam Party (TDP) founder N.T. Rama Rao, also cast his vote at a polling booth in Jubliee Hills. Brother-in-law of TDP president and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, he is a member of Andhra Pradesh assembly. Balakrishna's daughter Brahmini, who is married to Naidu's son Lokesh, also cast her vote. She was accompanied by Lokesh and her mother-in-law Bhuvaneswari. Balakrishna's nephew and popular actor Junior NTR and his wife cast their votes. "Please be responsible citizens and vote. You can question only if you vote," Junior NTR told people. Young actor Allu Arjun too cast his vote. "Vote.. if you don't vote you don't have the right to complain," he tweeted. Movie Artists' Association (MAA) president Rajender Prasad along with family members exercised their franchise. The polling in Hyderabad is often marked by voter's apathy. The turnover was less than 45 percent in GHMC elections in 2009. The GHMC officials and state election commission conducted voter awareness programmes this time with the help of civil societies, NGOs and residents' welfare association with an aim to increase the polling by 20 percent. Kolkata, Feb 3 : The condition of veteran All India Forward Bloc leader and state party secretary Ashok Ghosh continued to be critical on Wednesday, doctors said. Ghosh, the Left Front leader in West Bengal, was rushed to a city hospital on Tuesday and put on ventilator support. Ghosh, 94, was admitted to the hospital following lower respiratory tract infection. "He continues to be on ventilator support. His condition is critical but under control," said a doctor. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Left Front chairman Biman Bose were among those who visited him to the hospital and inquired about Ghosh's health. Ghosh has been a long-time state general secretary of the party founded by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. United Nations, Feb 4 : Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed Major General Jai Shankar Menon to head the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), which monitors the Syria-Israel ceasefire in the Golan Heights. Menon succeeds Lieutenant General Purna Chandra Thapa of Nepal whose assignment ends on Sunday. Menon was Additional Director General for Equipment Management in the Indian Army. Announcing the appointment Tuesday, Ban's deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said, "Menon brings to his new position extensive command experience and knowledge of peacekeeping affairs at the national and international levels." Menon is familiar with the region having served with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) from 2007 to 2009. UNDOF was set up in 1974 to supervise the ceasefire and disengagement agreement between Israel and Syria in the area seized by Israel during the 1967 War. His appointment as UNDOF Head of Mission and Force Commander comes at a time of heightened tension with Syria engulfed in a multilateral civil war involving the government headed by President Hafez al-Assad backed by Iran and Russia; rebels supported by Saudi Arabia, Gulf countries and the West, and the Islamic State, the fundamentalist terrorist group. The Syrian side that UNDOF monitors is still under the control of the beleaguered forces loyal to al-Assad. UNDOF has 947 personnel, 789 of them blue-helmeted troops, including 190 from India. Menon's previous assignments include General Officer Commanding of an infantry division, commandant of the Regimental Training Centre, brigade commander and Military Observer with the UN Operation in Mozambique. Chennai, Feb 4 : Actress Radhika Apte has joined superstar Rajinikanth for the final schedule of upcoming Tamil gangster drama "Kabali" in Malaysia. "Important scenes between Rajinikanth and Radhika, besides some action sequences will be shot in this schedule that will go on for nearly three weeks in Malaysia," a source from the film's unit told IANS. Radhika plays Rajinikanth's wife in the film, which is being directed by Pa. Ranjith. "Kabalia, which also features Malaysian actors, is loosely based on real-life don Kabaleeshwaran. Rajinikanth plays an ageing don in the film. Slated to release in May, the film also features Dhanshikaa, Dinesh, Kalaiarasan and Ritwika in important roles. The actor plans to do 'lovey dovey' things on Valentine's Day with his beautiful wife. Mumbai: Bollywood actor Shahid Kapoor is all set to let out the romantic in him and celebrate his first Valentines Day with his lovely wife Mira. Shahid and Mira, who tied the knot last year, are one of the most loved couples in Bollywood. At a press conference, Shahid was asked his special Valentines Day plans with wife Mira, to which the actor smilingly replied, I will take my wife out and be nice to her. You are supposed to take a gift or something. I should have said that. I will be shot dead when I get back. But yes, we will do wonderful lovey dovey things on Valentines Day. Well, in the past few months, we spotted Shahid and Mira in numerous occasions. The lovebirds turned heads with their sizzling chemistry as they appeared hand-in-hand by each others side. On work front, Shahid Kapoor is currently busy shooting for his upcoming film Rangoon. Dublin, Feb 4 : Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny confirmed on Wednesday that his country will go to the polls on February 26 in order to elect a new government. Kenny said that five years ago the country was on the brink of collapse and Ireland's international reputation was "in tatters", Xinhua reported. He said that five years on there has been real progress, adding public finances were back on track, the economy was growing faster than any country in the European Union and that 135,000 people were back to work. "There is no more bailout, no more Troika and no more dead banks," he said. Irish Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Alan Kelly said voting will take place from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. local time on that day and ballot boxes will be opened the next day for vote count around the country. Philip O'Sullivan, chief economist at Investec Ireland, said Kenny's coalition government, composed of Fine Gael (the United Ireland Party) and the Labor Party, should stroll to victory. "It won a landslide majority in the 2011 election and, despite a number of defections over the past five years, still controls 60 percent of the seats in the lower house," O'Sullivan said. The coalition government has the enviable track record of presiding over the fastest growing economy in the European Union while unemployment has tumbled from 15.2 percent in early 2012 to the current 8.6 percent rate, according to the Irish economist. Canberra, Feb 4 : Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop on Thursday announced the country will contribute an additional $18 million in humanitarian aid for Iraq and Syria in coming months. The aid will be distributed between the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), World Food Programme (WFO) and Australian NGOs working in the region, Xinhua news agency reported. Bishop said the government and the opposition felt compelled to assist those suffering through the "world's worst" humanitarian crisis. "Australia's assistance will help Syrian refugees and their host communities in the region access vital resources such as food, shelter and protection," she said. "This increased contribution will support civilians affected by the world's worst humanitarian crisis." About 13 million people require urgent humanitarian assistance. A further 4.6 million Syrians are refugees in neighbouring countries. An estimated 10 million people in Iraq also require urgent humanitarian support this year. "In addition to this increased humanitarian funding, the Australian government will also deploy 10 Australian Civilian Corps specialists to Lebanon and Jordan to assist UN and NGO partners deliver education, water, sanitation, camp infrastructure, logistics and protection to Syrian refugees." Bishop said a small proportion of the aid money would also be given to the UN agencies in Iraq, as they continue to help communities destroyed by the Islamic State (IS). The Australian government will also provide an additional $3.5 million for Iraq, including $1.4 million to the UN Development Programme (UNDP) to help stabilise areas of the country liberated from the IS. Canberra, Feb 4 : Australia's Trade Minister Andrew Robb on Thursday signed the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), but rejected calls it needed an independent cost-benefit analysis. Opponents of the TPP have called for the analysis after the World Bank revealed it would only lift Australia's GDP by 0.7 percent by 2030, Xinhua news agency reported. However, Robb, who signed the agreement with counterparts from the 11 other nations, said that calls for the cost-benefit analysis were the latest attempts by the "usual suspects" to derail the agreement. "No we won't (order the analysis), because they're all the usual suspects," Robb said. "Most of the people driving that campaign have been opponents of free trade for decades. They're entitled to that view, but nothing that would come out of an inquiry would change their mind, " he said. The trade minister, who was also in charge of negotiating Australia's free trade agreement with China, praised the TPP and said it would open up opportunities for "millions" of Australians. The Trans-Pacific Partnership is a multi-national free trade agreement between Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam. Beijing, Feb 4 : Islamabad is going to set up a special force of approximately 10,000 troops to protect Chinese people and enterprises along the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a media report said on Thursday. Visiting Pakistani diplomat Syed Tariq Fatemi on Wednesday revealed the establishment of the force in reply to Beijing's security concerns over the increasing number of Chinese involved in more than 200 projects in the country, including 14,000 engineers and technicians, the China Daily reported. "We have decided to create a special force of highly trained military people who will be specially equipped and will have special organisations in concerned ministries backing them, "Fatemi, who is Pakistan's special assistant to the prime minister for foreign affairs, said. "Their task will be to provide the necessary safety and security of Chinese working in Pakistan and the Chinese companies and industries set up there." He added that the move demonstrates the Pakistani government's strong commitment and that further steps would be taken as needed. The CPEC is an ongoing, $46 billion project invested in by China that will expand Pakistan's infrastructure by linking its southwestern port city of Gwadar to China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region via a vast network of highways and railways. Chennai, Feb 4 : Superstar Rajinikanth, who is currently shooting for his film "Kabali", has lauded forthcoming Tamil drama "Visaaranai". He said it will be one of the best films in world cinema. "I have never seen a movie like 'Visaaranai' in Tamil. This will be one of the best movies in world cinema," Rajinikanth posted on his Twitter page. Inspired from real events, the film is based on a Tamil novel called "Lock Up", and deals with police brutality and abuse of power. The book was penned by M. Chandrakumar, who was an auto-rickshaw driver. The film, which is jointly produced by Vetrimaaran and Dhanush, releases in cinemas on Friday. It stars Dinesh, Samuthirakani, Kishore and Murugadoss in important roles. Directed by National Award winning filmmaker Vetrimaaran, the film had its world premiere at Venice International Film Festival last year. Washington, Feb 4 : India-born Amit Singhal, the longtime chief of Google's Internet search business, will leave the company on Feb 26 and be replaced by the head of the technology giant's artificial intelligence (AI) business. With John Giannandrea, currently a vice president of engineering, taking Singhal's place, Google is merging its research efforts with search, an indication of the priority of machine learning inside the company. Singhal, a 15-year Google veteran, was named "Google Fellow" in 2006 for his engineering work on the early search engine. In recent years, he has led the aggressive push for Google to improve its search results on mobile. "Search is stronger than ever, and will only get better in the hands of an outstanding set of senior leaders who are already running the show day-to-day," Singhal wrote in his retirement message on Google Plus. "My life has been a dream journey," he wrote. "From a little boy growing up in the Himalayas dreaming of the Star Trek computer, to an immigrant who came to the United States with two suitcases and not much else, to the person responsible for Search at Google, every turn has enriched me and made me a better person." "It fills me with pride to see what we have built in the last fifteen years. Search has transformed people's lives; over a billion people rely on us," Singhal wrote. "Our mission of empowering people with information and the impact it has had on this world cannot be overstated. When I started, who would have imagined that in a short period of fifteen years, we would tap a button, ask Google anything and get the answer. "Today, it has become second nature to us. My dream Star Trek computer is becoming a reality, and it is far better than what I ever imagined," Singhal said. Giannandrea, who joined Google in 2010, led Google's machine learning efforts, applying the technology to products such as image recognition for Google Photos search and the smart reply for Google Inbox. "Machine intelligence is crucial to our Search vision of building a truly intelligent assistant that connects our users to information and actions in the real world," Google said. (Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in) Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 04 : Congress mouthpiece Veekshanam has launched a frontal attack on the judiciary, saying in its editorial on Thursday that the dictum ceasers wife must be above suspicion should be applicable to the judiciary as well. The editorial asks why the judiciary should remain insulated from criticism when the other organs of the government such as the legislature and the executive enjoy no such immunity. The erosion of values in society has affected the domain of law as well. Criticisms arise when the judiciary deviate from their bounden duties. The public has the right to criticise the judiciary, the editorial says. The party mouthpiece points out that judges have been going out of their way to make controversial observations. Judges are breaching the bounds of their authority to comment on issues that have no bearing on the matter at hand, the editorial alleged. Whether contempt of court could be invoked against people who criticise the judiciary when they ended up bearing the brunt of such unwarranted observations needed to be examined, the article opined. Quoting former Supreme Court judge Markandey Katjus statement that the people have the right to criticise judges just as a master has the right to criticise his servant, the editorial asserts that just as the judiciary is duty bound to protect the people, the people also has the duty to protect the judiciary. The editorial comes close on the heels of the Kerala High Court admitting a petition by CPI(M) legislator V Sivankutty seeking initiation of contempt of court proceedings against Culture Minister K C Joseph on the charge that the minister scandalized the judiciary by making unsavoury remarks against a High Court judge. London, Feb 4 : Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has said he will turn himself over to the police here on Friday if a UN panel rules he has not been unlawfully detained. Australian national Assange was originally arrested in London in 2010 under a European Arrest Warrant issued by Sweden over a sexual assault claim he denies. He was granted asylum by Ecuador and entered the country's embassy in London after the British Supreme Court ruled the extradition against him could go ahead, BBC reported. In 2014 he complained to the UN that he was being "arbitrarily detained". On Twitter, Assange said he would accept a decision against him but hoped to walk free if it went in his favour. "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal." "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," he added. Last October, Scotland Yard said it would no longer station officers outside the Ecuador embassy following an operation which had cost it 12 million pounds ($17 million). But it said "a number of overt and covert tactics to arrest him" would be deployed to arrest Assange. In December 2015, Swedish officials said they were optimistic about reaching an agreement with Ecuador which could pave the way for the questioning of Assange in London. Wikileaks posted secret American government documents on the internet and Assange said he believes Washington will seek his transfer to the US if he is sent to Sweden. Greater Noida, Feb 4 : The central government will soon consider a policy to phase out old vehicles from public roads, Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari said on Thursday. "A note on scrapping of old vehicles is being put up for the Cabinet's consideration by the end of the month," Gadkari said in his address at the inauguration of Auto Expo 2016 here. On scrapping of old polluting vehicles, the minister had earlier proposed that owners could be given an incentive of up to Rs.30,000 for discarding small vehicles like cars. A ministry source here told IANS that in view of the union budget coming up later this month, Gadkari has written to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley that the budget should offer an excise rebate for new cars bought in exchange of a 15-year old car. The source said an "end of life" policy may be announced in the budget that may include a rebate of 50 percent in excise duty on new vehicles for buyers who surrender their old ones. The road ministry has also requested that accelerated depreciation of up to 50 per cent may be given to auto industry on additional investment for bringing environment-friendly vehicles. In this regard, Gadkari said that after consulting the concerned ministries, the government has taken the decision to make mandatory the Euro 6 fuel emission norms for vehicles from April 1, 2020. He said the availability of the required fuel would not be a problem, as assured by the union petroleum minister. "Invest in electric vehicles and on R&D (research and development) in battery technology," Gadkari told auto industry representatives at the gathering, exhorting them to contribute their efforts towards pollution control. Mumbai, Feb 4 : In a major embarrassment to the opposition Congress, Maharashtra Governor C.V. Rao here on Thursday accorded sanction to the CBI to prosecute former chief minister Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh Society scam. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), through its letter dated October 8, 2015, sought the governor's sanction to prosecute Chavan under Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code after "fresh incriminating material" was allegedly found against Chavan. Chavan is currently a Lok Sabha member from Maharashtra and chief of the state unit of the Congress party. CBI included a report by a two-member Commission of Inquiry, comprising Justice J.A. Patil (retd) and former chief secretary P. Subramanian, besides Bombay High Court observations in a criminal revision application filed in 2014. Accordingly, Rao granted the sanction to prosecute Chavan under Section 197 of CrPC and Sections 120-B and 420 of the Indian Penal Code in the Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society case. The Maharashtra cabinet, at a meeting last week presided over by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, recommended to the governor to accord the sanction. In its report, the commission of inquiry had indicted four former chief ministers -- Chavan, late Vilasrao Deshmukh, Sushilkumar Shinde and Shivajirao Nilangekar-Patil, also revenue minister at the relevant time -- besides several top bureaucrats and other officials for their role in the high-profile scam. The commission was set up in January 2011. However, its report and recommendations were rejected by the then Congress-Nationalist Congress Party government in December 2013. The line casually slips out. I am from Kerala. Director Raja Krishna Menon begins his answer like that. Someone wouldve asked what gave him the idea of Airlift, a film about the evacuation of Indians from Kuwait during the Iraq invasion. The Kerala connection is self-explanatory. There were so many Malayalis, half of Kerala or someone they knew. His own Kerala connection begins in Thrissur, where he was born. I moved to Bengaluru when I was a few months old. My mother - Girija Menon - had set up a small foundry there, he says. After that, Kerala became the place for summer vacations, climbing the mango trees, playing around the tulsi pond. We were always there for pooram, my granddad was quite involved. Raja has plenty to say about his grandfather, VKG Menon. He was in the first batch of the Banaras University, and fought for freedom. One time during the World War, he drove a car from Indore to Thrissur. The grandfather and his mother had greatly influenced Raja. But none of them, not even he in his wildest imagination, thought that one day he would turn to cinema. That was a freak accident after college. He had gone to the Christ College in Bengaluru which was pretty much like being in Kerala. There were a lot of Malayalis and Raja got into student politics. It was just before V.P. Singh came into power. There was a lot of student activism, looking up at Janata Dal as a possible hope for change and Mandal Commission happened. But the politics ended inside the college. Outside of it, he wanted a job, coming from a regular middle class family. One month, he spent selling yellow pages, till his conscience struck him hard. The next thing he knew, a friend in advertising had got him a job with D. Radhakrishnan, ad filmmaker and photographer, and that changed his life. The day after I joined him, he was shooting a commercial for HMT watches. I was just mesmerised by the process. That day I felt this is what I wanted to do. I found my passion. Then I moved to Mumbai. There came a string of ad films. In 2003, his first feature film Bas Yun Hi happened with Nandita Das and Purab Kohli in the lead. His second, Barah Aana, in 2009, had been with Naseeruddin Shah. Both films were critically acclaimed and somehow stayed away from mainstream cinema. I thought my first film was very mainstream and that was a mistake I made. I tried to make it for the audience, with credit cards and borrowing money from everybody we could. The biggest learning was to not make a film that didnt come from the heart. The second too, he thought was mainstream. But I was told it wasnt. I believe both those films, if I had bigger stars and a marketing budget, would be considered mainstream. Naseeruddin Shah is a huge star but he is seen as an alternate actor. When it came to Airlift, he knew the story would appeal to a larger audience. It was far more mainstream, it had Akshay Kumar. We have not gone into making the film as a mainstream film. Whats important is we managed to make a decent film without compromising on what we wanted to make. Raja has said several times the main character played by Akshay - Ranjit Katiyal - is not based on a single person, but loosely on several. One of them happens to be Sunny Mathews in Kerala. He had spoken to his son Joe Mathews but had not visited Kerala for the film. But then he had roped in an actor from Kerala - Lena. I told her, Lena, please say no to the film. I would feel terrible to put you in a small role. She said she wanted to. She did so well that Naseeruddin Shah, after watching the film, asked Raja, Who is that? She is brilliant. Kerala has the best kind of acting talent in the country, says Raja. He is a fan of Aravindans work and Srinivasans writing. He fondly recounts meeting Adoor Gopalakrishnan and is all praise for Anjali Menon. One day, he says, hell be good enough to make a Malayalam film. New York, Feb 4 : Living near cellphone towers that produce radio-frequency electromagnetic fields can amplify pain in amputees, suggests new research. "Our study provides evidence, for the first time, that subjects exposed to cellphone towers at low, regular levels can actually perceive pain," said senior study author Mario Romero-Ortega, associate professor of bioengineering at University of Texas at Dallas, US. Until this study, published online in the journal PLOS ONE, there was no scientific evidence to back up the anecdotal stories of people, who reported aberrant sensations and neuropathic pain around cellphone towers, the researchers said. "Our study also points to a specific nerve pathway that may contribute to our main finding," Romero-Ortega noted. Most of the research into the possible effects of cellphone towers on humans has been conducted on individuals with no diagnosed, pre-existing conditions. This is one of the first studies to look at the effects of electromagnetic fields (EMFs) in a nerve-injury model, Romero-Ortega said. The team hypothesised that the formation of neuromas -- inflamed peripheral nerve bundles that often form due to injury -- created an environment that may be sensitive to EMF-tissue interactions. To test this, the team randomly assigned 20 rats into two groups -- one receiving a nerve injury that simulated amputation, and the other group receiving a sham treatment. Researchers then exposed the rats to a radiofrequency electromagnetic antenna for 10 minutes, once per week for eight weeks. The antenna delivered a power density equal to that measured at 39 meters from a local cellphone tower. Researchers found that by the fourth week, 88 percent of rats in the nerve-injured group demonstrated a behavioural pain response, while only one rat in the other group exhibited pain at a single time point, and that was during the first week. "Our model found that electromagnetic fields evoked pain that is perceived before neuroma formation; subjects felt pain almost immediately," Romero-Ortega said. The researchers believe that the protein TRPV4, which is known to be a factor in heat sensitivity, could be a mediator in the pain response for these rats. Kochi, Feb 4 : BJP president Amit Shah on Thursday held meetings with top leaders of the state BJP units from Tamil Nadu and Kerala on preparations for the upcoming assembly elections. Four central ministers -- Health Minister J.P. Nadda, Power Minister Piyush Goyal, Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar and Minister of State for Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Pon Radhakrishnan -- attended the meeting. A source from the Bharatiya Janata Party told IANS that it was a meeting of the core committee of the respective state units and was meant to give "broad directions" on how to go forward for the assembly polls due in both states. Nadda is also the BJP in-charge of Kerala, where elections to the 140-seat assembly are scheduled to be held later this year. "Separate meetings were held for Tamil Nadu and Kerala and the state presidents of the BJP, former state presidents and general secretaries were present," said the source on condition of anonymity. After the meeting with Shah, RSS strongman Kummanem Rajashekeran, who was recently appointed the president of the BJP's Kerala unit, told reporters: "Our doors are always open to groups, political parties who toe our line of policies and this time we are contesting the polls to rule Kerala." Shah later addressed a party rally in Kottayam, held as part of the statewide political yatra of Rajashekeran. The BJP does not have any member in the current Kerala assembly. Panaji, Feb 4 : In light of heightened security in the state following a spate of terror scares, the Goa unit of the Congress on Thursday called for a security advisory from the Goa Police ahead of the popular Carnival festival. "The police should take members of the public in confidence and issue an advisory which need to be taken by them in these times when there are serious terror-related enquiries and the threat of IS," Congress Rajya Sabha MP Shantaram Naik told IANS. The immensely-popular Carnival is symbolic of Goa's colonial Portuguese legacy and is held every year before the holy season of Lent and is attended by the thousands by both locals and tourists. Naik's comments come at a time when Goa Police and central intelligence agencies are quizzing 44-year-old Uttarakhand native Sameer Sardana, who was picked up by the state anti-terror squad for suspicious activities at the Vasco railway station, 35 km from here. Sardanha, son of a retired major general, had converted to Islam, police officials said. He was arrested under section 41 of the Criminal Procedure Code and is being quizzed about his prolonged stay at the Vasco railway station dormitory, even as tech-expert in the state cyber cell unit have been scanning the contents of his laptop. Top police officials, including Inspector General of Police Sunil Garg, have insisted that there was "no terror link established yet". The officials, however, said police efforts to continuously quiz Sardana, were in order to eliminate "every possible doubt" about his alleged radicalisation by terror groups. Sardana's arrest is one of the several terror-scares which the state police has been coping with. On January 19, police had informed the media that the anti-terror squad of the Goa Police was investigating a postcard which had surfaced at the State Secretariat threatening Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, who is also a former Goa chief minister and Prime Minister Narendra Modi with dire consequences over their alleged "anti-beef" policies. The letter had been handed over to the Goa Police by the state administration officials and the ATS was tasked with investigating the contents of the letter for veracity. After a thorough investigation, police have concluded that the post card was a "hoax". After the receipt of the letter the Goa Police had also requested Parrikar to accept 'Z' security during his visits to Goa, to which he is entitled to as a defence minister. Kolkata, Feb 4 : Describing intolerance as a huge crisis faced by the country, eminent poet Ashok Vajpeyi on Thursday hit out at the "corporatisation" of politics, saying its sole aim now was to remain in power. Participating in the inaugural session of the Kolkata Literature Festival, Vajpeyi also expressed anguish over the suicide of Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula. "It's not just a mere question of having debate, dissent and diversity of the country at stake, rather it's a huge crisis. There can't be a democracy in which dissent, debate or dialogue is undermined, or minority -- not only of religion but of view points -- is under attack and termed as anti-national," Vajpeyi said at the session on "Intolerance in tolerant India". Among the first to return his awards protesting against intolerance, the Sahitya Akademi awardee pointed to the "character assassination" of the protesters. "When we did what we did, it was to bring the issue to the people at large because it's the people who will decide what kind of India they want. "On the social media, there has been character assassination of all of us, as if we are people with dubious characters and dubious credentials," said Vajpeyi, asserting that he will not take back his award. The former civil servant said none of those who returned the awards said the country was intolerant. "We never said the country was intolerant, rather forces of intolerance are being given certain attention. India as country and the people at large have been tolerant. "It is being made out as if we are addressing the government, but we are not. We are addressing the people. Because it's them who will decide what kind of country they want," he said. The septuagenarian also hit out at the quality of politics. "Politics has been reduced to managerial tactics on how to remain in power instead of looking towards ensuring equality and justice." Pointing to the growing violence in India, Vajpeyi said the reason was that the basic issues faced by the country remained unaddressed. "Issues like poverty, injustice, inequality, illiteracy have remained unaddressed and are now made out to be invisible. Core issues are being made out to be invisible because now smart cities are being made visible, bullet trains and internet are being made visible," he said. "In the whole debate of intolerance and tolerance, let us not forget the economical, social and cultural issues that the country is facing," he said. Expressing anguish over the death of Vemula, Vajpeyi said the core issue of discrimination continues in the country. "Vemula's suicide establishes the fact that places where knowledge must be free, where knowledge must be made available through debate dialogue and dissent, there is such discrimination. Instead of addressing that, we have ministers who are digging out stupid details to tell us that Rohith was not a Dalit," he said. "As if his mother being a Dalit is not enough, even if a scholar is not a Dalit, should he be driven to suicide like that?" said Vajpeyi, questioning why the protests were being given a political motive. "Politicians believe whatever anybody does is only inspired by some politics. Why can't people see that writers, authors and artists can function freely and autonomously?" he asked. Later, interacting with the media, the poet said it was the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) which have been labelling the protesters as anti-nationals. "There is no need to say it expressly, everybody knows that it's the BJP and the RSS which have been calling the protesters as anti-national. I was labelled as a communist but I have been at loggerheads with the communists for three decades now," he said. "We are not saying the country or the society on the whole has become intolerant, rather there are forces which enjoy support from various sections of power whether expressly or through silence, and are flourishing. "Allowing these forces to grow and to remain insensitive towards them is detrimental to the society, to democracy and the country's traditions which have been based on dissent, diversity and debate," added Vajpeyi. Kolkata, Feb 4 : Critically-ill All India Forward Bloc leader Ashok Ghosh on Thursday continued to be on ventillator support in a city hospital, doctors said. The 94-year old Ghosh, the seniormost Left Front leader in West Bengal, was on Tuesday rushed to the hospital following lower respiratory tract infection. "He remains critical and prognosis remains guarded. He continues to be on ventilation. He is conscious," said a medical bulletin issued by the hospital. Ghosh has for decades now been the secretary of the West Bengal unit of the party founded by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. London, Feb 4 : English model and television presenter Alexa Chung will be bringing her fashion sense and style to the house of Marks & Spencer by reimagining pieces from the British fashion brand's archive for a capsule collection. The style icon along with the brand's team of designers has curated a collection named Archive by Alexa. The collection, which will trace the history of the brand and narrate it with the help of clothes, will debut in select stores in India in April, read a statement. Chung is "thrilled" with this collaboration. "I have always had an affection for the brand. I am thrilled to be part of this special and unique project. There was something very touching about looking back through the British fashion and social history for which the brand is synonymous," Chung said. This project is the first of the 'M&S &' series, under which a sequence of exclusive collections in collaboration with designers, brands and fashion icons will be made. The womenswear collection has been carefully curated and handpicked by Chung and the brand's design team. Steve Rowe, executive director of general merchandise of the brand, said: "It was a hugely insightful experience allowing Alexa full access to our company archive." "The brand's history is vast and quality design has always been paramount; therefore using our expertise and classic designs and Alexa's unique eye and approach to style, our collaboration was born." With modern fabrications and a myriad colour palette, the contemporary collection will define heritage sensibility. The supporting campaign will launch in April with Chung herself taking creative ownership of the mood and direction. New Delhi, Feb 4 : A court here has rejected the anticipatory bail plea of former Delhi legislator Rambeer Shokeen, who is on the run after being accused of running a crime syndicate with alleged gangster Neeraj Bawana. Additional Sessions Judge Rakesh Pandit dismissed Shokeen's anticipatory bail plea, observing that he was harbouring other co-accused in the case and played an active role in the syndicate run by Bawana. Shokeen was declared a proclaimed offender by the court on August 26, 2015. Police, while opposing his bail plea, told the court that Shokeen was the political face of a crime syndicate involved in extortion and murder. Shokeen's defence counsel, however, told the court that there was no admissible evidence against his client in the charge sheet. The court heard the case on Wednesday, but the order was made available to the media on Thursday. Police charge-sheeted Shokeen, Bawana and eight others under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) in September 2015. The court currently is hearing arguments on framing of charges. London, Feb 4 : Former "Friends" star Matt LeBlanc has been revealed as one of the new presenters of BBC motoring show "Top Gear." LeBlanc's appointment marks the first time that the show has ever had a non-British host in its 39-year history, reports variety.com. He joins lead presenter Chris Evans on the revamped show, which is expected to return to TV screens in May, while in India it will be aired soon after that on AXN. "As a car nut and a massive fan of 'Top Gear', I'm honoured and excited to be a part of this iconic show's new chapter," LeBlanc said. Evans said of his new "Top Gear" presenter: "Matt's a lifelong fellow petrolhead and I'm thrilled he's joining 'Top Gear.' Acting out our craziest car notions on screen is a dream job and I know we'll both be debating some epic road trip ideas. We can't wait to share what we've been up to on screen later this year." LeBlanc has recently been starring in BBC-Showtime comedy "Episodes" for which he won a Golden Globe. He is already a familiar face to "Top Gear" viewers, having been a two-time guest on the show and the fastest celebrity to date around the "Top Gear" track in its reasonably priced car. LeBlanc also presented the recent standalone spin-off "Top Gear: The Races," where he led fans through some of the most memorable racing moments from the previous 22 series. Kohima, Feb 4 : The Nagaland government is ready to play any role in bringing Myanmar-based Naga insurgent group NSCN-K to re-enter a ceasefire agreement with the Indian government, Chief Minister T.R. Zeliang has said. "I am happy to learn that the NSCN-K is going to sign a ceasefire agreement with the Myanmar government," Zeliang said at a function in the Aboi town council on Wednesday. The chief minister expressed hope that the National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khaplang group will also re-enter into a ceasefire agreement with the Indian government to allow peace to prevail in the northeastern state. S.S. Khaplang, a Myanmarese Hemi Naga chieftain who heads the NSCN-K faction, abrogated the ceasefire with the Indian government on March 27, 2015, just a month before the truce was up for renewal. The group had signed a truce in 2001. After abrogating the ceasefire, Khaplang's rebels went on a killing spree, attacking Indian soldiers in Nagaland and Manipur. It even mounted the deadly ambush on a convoy of the 6 Dogra Regiment in Manipur's Chandel district on June 4, 2015, killing 18 army personnel. "Gun has not given us any solution for the past six decades. Therefore, the only way to find a permanent solution is through dialogue. The state government is ready to play any role to facilitate the ceasefire between India and NSCN-K so that dialogue can continue," the chief minister said. Stating that when the Indian government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi was committed to the early settlement of the Naga political issue, the people should grasp the opportunity and collectively work towards it without creating any imbroglio among the Nagas, Zeliang said. "Nagas will never progress and the only means to put an end to the gun culture is to find an early solution to the Naga political problem," he added. "The sooner we solve this problem, the sooner we will have permanent peace. But if we prolong, I am apprehensive that more armed groups will come up and it will create more trouble," Zeliang said. Islamabad, Feb 4 : Officials from Islamabad and Kabul met in the Pakistani garrison city of Rawalpindi on Thursday and "reiterated that terrorists on either side of the border will not be allowed to misuse their soil". It is the second visit to Pakistan by senior Afghan military officers in a week to explore ways for increased security cooperation. The Afghan Director General of Military Operations Major General Afzal Aman along with his delegation visited the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi and met his Pakistani counterpart Maj Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza at a time when military-to-military contacts have increased between the two neighbours in recent days. "During the meeting today (Thursday), issues related to bilateral security and border management came under discussion," an army statement later said. Both sides also expressed their resolve to continue the interaction for better bilateral military-to-military coordination. In another development, Afghan Intelligence chief Masoud Andarabi arrived in Islamabad for discussions with his Pakistani counterpart on information sharing and to boost security cooperation, officials said. Andarabi was scheduled to meet Lt. General Rizwan Akhtar, chief of Inter-Services Intelligence, here, an official said. The meeting was part of the quadrilateral process of Afghanistan, China, Pakistan and the US for reconciliation with Taliban. Mawra Hocane had to leave for Pakistan a day before her film Sanam Teri Kasam released because her visa has expired, according to a source. The actress will be attending her films premiere in Pakistan. They have organised 2-3 screenings there. The star cast was also to travel to Delhi for a promotional activity a day before her film was releasing but she had to cancel it. Mawra Hocane said, Yes, I am leaving a day before. I will be attending some screenings of my film in Pakistan and I hope to be back soon. Right now I am only waiting for the film to release and after that I will take up other offers. Also, I feel there is a lot of work waiting for me in Pakistan so I will quickly pick up some work there. This is the first time I have been off air so many months in Pakistan. Co-star Harshvardhan Rane will be continuing the film promotions minus the co-star. He says, I think we are going to Jaipur and a few more cities. Also I would love to go and promote my film in Hyderabad and my alma mater in Gwalior. Islamabad, Feb 4 : Troops from Sri Lanka and the Maldives troops have joined Pakistan in anti-terror military exercises in the country's northwest region, a military statement said on Thursday. The two-week long exercise was focused on counter-terrorism operations and sharing of field combat experience of the three south Asian countries' armed forces. The Pakistan military said a large number of friendly countries have requested the Pakistan Army to organise training for their troops in the state-of-the-art Counter Terrorism Training Centre in view of the successful anti-terrorism campaign codenamed "Zarb-e-Azb". So far, the Pakistan Army has conducted joint exercises with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, China and Jordan to enhance combat efficiency, the statement said. Pakistan Army chief General Raheel Sharif visited the National Counter Terrorism Training Centre (NCTC) in the town of Pabbi and witnessed the Pakistan-Sri Lanka-Maldives Trilateral Exercise "Eagle Dash-I", the statement said. General Raheel Sharif underscored that such exercises will consolidate the special relationship between the three countries' forces and help eliminate terrorism from the region. Foreign military delegates from Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and South Africa witnessed the exercise. Patna, Feb 4 : Bihar can benefit from Australia's technical know-how in disaster risk-reduction in the Kosi river basin, Bihar energy minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav said on Thursday. Australia has the technology and the experts to help the state in disaster management in Kosi river basin as well as developing the region, Yadav said at a two-day 'knowledge forum' here in the presence of Ryan Thew, first secretary, development, at the Australian High Commission in India. The Australian government is already supporting Kosi Basin Programme, an effort to generate knowledge on the frequency and magnitude of hydro-metrological induced disasters resulting from climate change events like melting of glacier and snows, land use and sedimentation. The 'knowledge forum', to be conducted over Thursday and Friday, is discussing the knowledge base generated under the Kosi Basin Programme and how it can be translated into policy and action. Yadav told Thew that there was no lack of money but what was needed most was technical help. Bihar disaster management minister Chandrashekhar echoed Yadav's views. The knowledge forum is jointly organised by the Bihar State Disaster Management Authority (BSDMA) and International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). Kosi is one of the most sediment-laden rivers in the world, making it highly prone to flooding. One of the most serious disasters in recent years occurred in August 2008 with the breaching of Kusaha embankment near the India-Nepal border resulting in flooding of five districts of north Bihar. The floods killed over 400 people, rendered nearly three million people homeless and destroyed crops spread over at least 840,000 acres of land. New Delhi, Feb 4 : The Narendra Modi government will push constitutional amendment in the coming budget session of parliament for increasing reservation for women in panchayat bodies from 33 percent to 50 percent, union minister Birender Singh said on Thursday. "Though some states had provided 50 percent reservation to women in panchayats, but through the constitutional amendment, it will be implemented in the whole country," the rural development and panchayati raj minister said while addressing a national workshop on 'Implementation of PESA Act: Issues and way forward'. Panchayati raj and tribal development ministers from 10 states attended the workshop on Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act. Singh also expressed hope that all political parties will extend support in the passage of the amendment. "Reservation for women in panchayats will facilitate more women to enter public sphere and it will empower them and strengthen country's parliamentary democracy at the grassroot level," he said. The minister said that government will bring another constitutional amendment to increase the tenure of ward reservation for women in panchayats from current five years to ten years. "The government will also bring about changes in law to reserve the ward for women for two terms of five years each from the existing single term so that they can undertake developmental activities in a continued fashion," he said. Singh said on the basis of the report of the Bhuria Committee submitted in 1995, PESA was enacted in 1996 to extend part IX of the constitution with certain modifications and exceptions to Fifth Schedule areas in 108 districts in 10 states. The senior BJP leader also made a strong pitch for the faster implementation of the act by states for the uplift of tribals, saying that they cannot wait any longer for development as they had already waited for 65 years. "Effective implementation of PESA will enhance people's participation in decision making at local level as tribal population will feel more comfortable to raise their issues and concerns in smaller gram sabhas at village level rather than at gram panchayat level," he said. Kolkata, Feb 4 : A West Bengal court on Thursday awarded death penalty to 11 people convicted of murdering a woman over a land dispute in Nadia district. The Nadia district court sentenced to death the 11 people who had shot dead Aparna Bag during her attempt to prevent them from grabbing land in Joyghata panchayat in Krishnagunge on November 23, 2014. While Bag was killed, two other women and a minor had sustained bullet injuries. The prosecution had charge-sheeted 12 people in the case, with one of them still absconding. Mumbai, Feb 4 : Indian actor Irrfan Khan has refused a part in a Steven Spielberg film because he didn't find "enough meat to explore" himself as an actor. "I felt the character did not have enough meat to explore myself as an actor. Hence, I said no... Else who wouldn't want to work with Steven Spielberg?" Irrfan said in a statement. The "Slumdog Millionaire" and "Life of Pi" actor was offered to work in a Spielberg film, which also had Hollywood actress Scarlett Johansson in it. Sharing that it is more than a dilemma for him to choose or deny films, Irrfan said: "I am at a stage in my career where I am trying my best to surprise my audience with every role and give them some. I am hoping the future holds something so path-breaking and so empowering for me as an artiste that no will not be an option." Greater Noida, Feb 4 : Contrary to what Volkswagen has claimed, Heavy Industries Minister Anant Geete on Thursday asserted that the German carmaker has admitted its cars do not comply with India's emission norms. The union minister said action will follow after a written undertaking from the company. "They have (Volkswagen) said that they do not comply. They are also giving this in writing. We will take further action after that," the minister said at Auto Expo here, after visiting the exhibits of the German automaker here. "We have already asked them to recall the vehicles. When we will get a response in writing, we will propose further action," he said. Asked for their comment on the minister's statement, Volkswagen, referring to its release dated December 3, said in an e-mail to IANS: "The company sticks to the same statement till date." As per that statement, Volkswagen cars sold in India meet the country's emission norms. Geete's comments come a day after Volkswagen apologised at the Auto Fair for the emissions fiasco but said their assessment was that the cars complied with the emission norms. Yet, it assured, it was voluntarily recalling the vehicles to win back people's trust. "Volkswagen made some big mistakes," Jurgen Stackmann, board member for passenger cars overseeing sales and marketing, said. "I'm truly sorry for that. I assure you that we are committed to set things right. We want to win back the trust in our brand." He said the company was aware of the anxiety in the minds of those who owned Volkswagen cars. "We have examined the issue very carefully under the observation of the authorities. We came to the conclusion that our cars fully comply with Indian emission standards. However, winning back the trust means more for us than just obeying the law," Stackmann added. Thus far, the company has decided to recall 323,700 vehicles of Audi, Skoda and Volkswagen brands. The German carmaker has been maintaining that its models and others sold under Skoda and Audi brands do not violate Indian emission norms. Last December, Volkswagen Group India announced a voluntary recall of all cars with EA 189 engines in India. "Volkswagen Group India will implement technical updates in accordance with the timelines presented to the authorities," it said in the statement issued on December 3. "The 2.0 litre engines will get a software update. In the 1.5 litre and 1.6 litre engines, a 'flow transformer' will be fitted in front of the air mass sensor. In addition, a software update will also be performed on these engines. The measure for the 1.2 litre engines will be announced shortly," the company said. According to Volkswagen Group India, the first solutions are expected to be implemented from the first quarter of 2016 and will be continued in a step-wise manner. However, the company did not specify the exact or approximate date on which the upgrade process would begin. New Delhi, Feb 4 : A high-level team from New Delhi, including the Tanzanian high commissioner to India, will leave for Bengaluru on Friday in connection with the assault on a Tanzanian woman in the Karnataka capital. The decision to send the team was taken at a high-level meeting convened by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj here on Thursday that was attended by Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar, Secretary (Economic Relations) Amar Sinha and other senior officials of the ministry. "A team is going to Bengaluru tomorrow which includes the high commissioner of Tanzania, who is also the dean of the African diplomatic corps," external affairs ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said at a media briefing here after the high-level meeting. "The team also includes the joint secretary (states), director (east and southern Africa) in the ministry of external affairs and the regional director of ICCR (Indian Council of Cultural Relations), which liaises with the students who come here on ICCR scholarships," he said. Five people suspected of assaulting the Tanzanian woman student were arrested early on Thursday, Bengalueu Police Commissioner N.S. Megharik said. "We have arrested the five accused after interrogating them on Wednesday night under detention in the case registered on the victim's statement in a road rage incident," Megharik told IANS in Bengaluru. The commissioner, however, did not disclose names and ages of the five accused. In a case of mistaken identity, a mob assaulted the victim suspecting her to be a friend of a Sudanese student, Mohammad Ahad, whose car ran over a woman pedestrian (Shabana Taz) injuring her fatally while driving drunk on Sunday night. "We condemn this unequivocally," Swarup said at the media briefing. "The external affairs minister, in her tweets yesterday, has also said that we are deeply pained over the shameful incident," he said. He said Sushma Swaraj immediately spoke to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and sought an official report. Secretary Sinha also spoke to Tanazanian High Commissioner John W.H. Kijazi and expressed regret at the incident. "Our Joint Secretary (States), Partha Satpathy, who happened to be in Bengaluru, liaised immediately with the state and local authorities," Swarup said. He also said that a report has been received from Bengaluru Police Commissioner Megharik. "The commissioner has assured us that stringent measures are being taken to prevent occurrence of such incidents in the future," the spokesman said, adding that "our African friends" have been assured that necessary legal action would be taken and stringent punishment would be given to those involved in the incident and that all steps would be taken for the safety and security of African students in India. There are around 5,000 African students in India. As for the team gong to Bengaluru on Friday, Swarup said that "we will extend full cooperation of the state and central governments to the investigation of this case". "The ministry and the state government will also be reaching out to African students in the state to reassure them that their security and well-being is our primary concern," he added. Srinagar, Feb 4 : A separatist guerrilla was killed on Thursday in a gunfight with the security forces in Jammu and Kashmir's Bandipora district, police said. The exchange of fire is still on in the area. "Personnel of the Rashtriya Rifles, special operations group of state police and Central Reserve Police Force today cordoned off Khosa Mohalla area in Hajin village of Bandipora district following information about presence of two militants there," a senior police officer told IANS here. "When the hiding militants were challenged, they fired at the security forces triggering an gunfight which is still going on (as of 7.30 p.m.)," he said, adding one militant has so far been killed while the other is still holed up inside a house. Hyderabad, Feb 4 : Canada's Ontario province on Thursday signed an MoU with Telangana for economic cooperation. The agreement was signed here in the presence of Ontario premier Kathleen Wynne, who is currently on a visit to India. The two states will work together to advance mutually beneficial avenues of economic co-operation, said a statement from Telangana government. Wynne said that the MoU would create opportunities to work in areas of information technology, agriculture and infrastructure. Ontario also signed agreements valued over $11.5 million with various companies and institutions in technology and higher education. These MoUs were signed at an event, where Wynne and the trade delegation accompanying her interacted with representatives of various companies. At the signing up of MoU between the two states, Telangana's Information Technology Minister K.Taraka Rama Rao that the high potential of economic cooperation between the start up state of Telangana and Ontario will be a win-win situation for both. Wynne said: "The seven agreements signed today will benefit India and Ontario for years to come, and the new MoU between Ontario and Telangana will help strengthen commercial ties across key sectors, including urban infrastructure, information and communications technology, and education." The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Hyderabad signed a research partnership agreement with Ontario-based McMaster University, which will generate opportunities to create intellectual property through innovation and to commercialize research outcomes. Astra Microwave Products Ltd and Vaughan, Ontario-based Unique Broadband Systems Ltd established a joint venture to provide broadcasting services, satellite uplinking and medical imaging products to India and other regional markets. The Nuclear Fuel Complex based in Hyderabad and Ontario-based Kinectics signed a MoU for partnership in nuclear energy. Ottawa-based Solantro and their Indian partner, Smarttrack will collaborate on the development of power electric solutions for renewable energy and micro inverters. DataWind signed a MoU with the government of Telangana to open a manufacturing base in Hyderabad which is expected to be in production within few months. New Delhi, Feb 4 : Afghanistan's Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah on Thursday said certain external forces were still supporting the Taliban in pursuit of their vested interests. He said the terror group's dream of capturing power in his country after the withdrawal of foreign troops had come to a naught. Abdullah, who held a breakfast meeting with a group of Indian and foreign journalists, said Pakistan had a role in Taliban affairs and can use its influence for the success of the quadrilateral peace talks in Afghanistan aimed at preserving its unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity. The chief executive, who held wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, said Taliban were confident of capturing powers in 2015 when the US troops left Afghanistan but failed in their mission. The Afghan security forces have gained in strength and are now capable of taking on the Taliban and other extremist groups, Abdullah said. He said factional fighting in the Taliban had caused chaos and confusion in its ranks. Hundreds of fighters have been killed in groups clashes and some of the factions have joined Daesh, the Afghan leader said. On Pakistan'a allegation that the attack on Bacha Khan University on January 20 was committed by terrorists operating from the Afghan soil, the chief executive said after Pakistan army launched a massive operation in the tribal belt of that country, scores of fighters moved into Afghanistan and are operating from areas under the control of Afghan Taliban. He said East Turkistan Movement terrorists have also taken shelter in Afghanistan along with central Asian fighters. Abdullah said India is a valued friend of Afghanistan and played a prominent role in the reconstruction of his country. "We want Indian to play more prominent and active role." He said India is already taking part in talks in Berlin regarding Afghanistan. On the attack on the Indian consulate in Mazar-i-Sharif in Afghanistan in which Pakistan army is allegedly involved, he said his country had shared information with India on the issue. "However, it is not appropriate to divulge it at this juncture when the probe is still on," Abdullah said. He said Afghanistan had acquired helicopters from India to fight the Taliban in some parts of his country. (Sheikh Manzoor is a Delhi-based freelance journalist. He can be contact at ahmedsmanzoor@gmail.com) The actor teaser his fans on Instagram before announcing the big news. (Photo: Instagram) London: Actor Vin Diesel has announced the ninth instalment of his hit action franchise 'Fast and Furious' will hit the theatres in the US on April 19, 2019. Diesel also revealed that the tenth part of the series will arrive on April 2, 2021, reported Female First. Diesel first teased the reveal on Instagram. The studio has asked me to release some very big Fast news Give me a minute though, for I am still in that Xander state of Mind, he wrote, referring to his work on XXX: The Return of Xander Cage, which marks international debut of Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone. A few hours later, Diesel followed up with another photo, writing, Xander returns. As most of you know I like to stay in character for the most part when given the opportunity to make magic. However, the studio gave me big news to share So I will share it Xander returns.... As most of you know I like to stay in character for the most part when given the opportunity to make magic. However, it was Toretto Tuesday and the studio gave me big news to share... So I will share it... A photo posted by Vin Diesel (@vindiesel) on Feb 2, 2016 at 10:23pm PST He then posted the news: Two decades, 10 films, one saga. New Delhi, Feb 4 : External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Friday will leave on a two-day visit to Sri Lanka during which she will attend a meeting of the joint commission of the two countries. "External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will be visiting Sri Lanka on February 5-6 for the ninth session of the India-Sri Lanka Joint Commission," external affairs ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said at a media briefing here on Thursday. "The meeting of the joint commission, co-chaired by the minister of external affairs of India and the minister of foreign affairs of Sri Lanka, will be held on February 5 in Colombo," he said. The India-Sri Lanka Joint Commission was established in 1992 as an effective mechanism to address matters pertaining to bilateral cooperation. Swarup said the discussions in Friday's meeting will cover the entire gamut of the relationship between the two countries. Included in these would be economic cooperation, trade, power and energy, technical and maritime cooperation, social, cultural and educational matters, science and technology, defence cooperation, health, civil aviation, tourism and people-to-people contacts. "During her visit, the external affairs minister will call on President Maithripala Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickeremesinghe, and former president Chandrika Kumaratunga," he said. Sushmna Swaraj will also inaugurate a "Rise of Digital India" exhibition on February 6 as part of "Sangam - Festival of India in Sri Lanka 2015-16". "This exhibition will showcase the phenomenal rise of the computing sector and digital technologies in India which is positively impacting the everyday lives of people," Swarup said. Replying to questions, the spokesman said that the re-framing of the Sri Lankan constitution might come up during the discussions. The issue of Indian fishermen will also be taken up. Panaji, Feb 4 : A team of NIA officials were in Goa to quiz a 44-year-old Uttarakhand resident, who was detained and subsequently arrested by the Goa Anti-Terror Squad for his suspicious activities at the Vasco railway station, Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar said on Thursday. "The person has been sent to six days in police custody and National Investigation Agency officials are in Goa to question him," Parsekar told reporters on the sidelines of the inauguration of a lifestyle event on Thursday. The chief minister, however, said nothing incriminating has been revealed by Sameer Sardanha, who is a chartered accountant by profession and has worked in multinational companies in Malaysia, Saudi Arabia and other parts of South East Asia. Goa Police and intelligence officials have been quizzing Sardanha, who was picked up by the ATS on February 2 for suspicious activities at the Vasco railway station, 35 km from Panaji. "What aroused suspicion was the fact that he visited Goa on several occasions in the last 2-3 months. Police have learnt that he does not stay with the family and travels around alone," Parsekar said. Sardanha was the son of a retired Major General based in Dehradun, Parsekar said. He was arrested under Section 41 of the Code of Criminal Procedure -- which allows arrest without an order from a magistrate and without a warrant -- and is being quizzed about his prolonged stay at the Vasco railway station dormitory, even as tech experts in the state cyber cell unit have been scanning the contents of his laptop. Police have also not ruled out the possibility of Sardanha being indoctrinated by extremist Islamist literature during his stints abroad. Officials privy to details of his interrogation said he was a recent convert to Islam. "Some of the information which he revealed during interrogation is suspicious in nature, but we have found nothing yet which is incriminating. But the agencies will continue to question him till they are satisfied," Parsekar said. Police claimed to have recovered five passports and seven mobile phones from his possession. His laptop, police say, revealed information sourced from the web about past bomb blasts in Goa. Ahmedabad, Feb 4 : A Congress leader on Thursday challenged in the Gujarat High Court a notification issued by the state government asking the police to avoid filing an FIR against public servants without verifying the facts. The notification was an attempt by the state government to protect corrupt public servants, alleged Gujarat Congress unit general secretary Indraviijaysinh Gohil, who has petitioned the high court. Issued by the home department, the notification directs the police not to hurry registering FIRs (first information reports) against public servants without verifying facts to ensure they are not framed in false cases. "Public servants, during the course of their official duty, tend to anger some individuals with their action. They in return seek to lodge FIRs with police against the public servants who have initiated some action against them," the notification states. "The state now wants to avoid such incidents as the information about the complaint or FIR becomes public. This hits the morale of public servants and tarnishes the image of the government," it adds. The department directed the police to work out and implement a system to cross-check the charges made by complainants who might have been acting out of malice. The police should lodge an FIR only if they find the complainants' claims legitimate, it said. While public servants welcomed the notification, the opposition Congress flayed it. "There are adequate safeguards for a public servant in the Criminal Procedure Code to ensure that they are not wrongly framed in frivolous complaints," Indraviijaysinh Gohil's counsel B.M. Mangukia told IANS. Even a charge sheet could not be filed against an official without inquiry, according to the notification, as though a charge sheet would not have preceded an investigation, Mangukia said. "Is the government trying to say that its own official would file a false charge sheet against a public servant, and this should be inquired into prima facie. Is it a court? Is the government a Supreme Court?" Another Congress leader, Shaktisinh Gohil said, "This notification goes against the spirit of the constitution, which treats everyone as equal. Now, the state government wants separate treatment for its officers." New Delhi, Feb 4 : Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday said that urban infrastructure sector offers Rs.73 lakh crore investment opportunity for private sector and public-private partnership (PPP) investments over the next 15 years. "Given the resource limitations of both central and state governments, private sector investments and PPPs are the chief instruments of resource mobilisation to build the much needed urban infrastructure in the country," Naidu said at an investment summit here. Naidu said that over and above the support committed by the central and state governments, ensuring basic urban infrastructure requires Rs.56 lakh crore, building 2 crore houses for urban poor needs another Rs.11 lakh crore and Rs. 6 lakh crore for building 100 smart cities. Expressing hope that private sector and PPP investments can be mobilized to address the infrastructure challenge, he said that 10 of the 20 smart cities announced last week have laid down clear road maps for mobilising PPP investments of about Rs.9,000 crore. Bringing out the gaps in urban infrastructure, the minister noted that 50 percent of urban households still do not have water connections. "These gaps hit the urban poor the most and developing urban infrastructure accordingly leads to inclusive urban growth besides enhancing productivity and quality of life," he said. Hyderabad, Feb 4 : The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid-Tropics(ICRISAT) said on Thursday it has helped develop first machine harvestable variety of chickpea in Andhra Pradesh. The global organisation, headquartered in Patancheru near here, said chickpea variety, NBeG 47, is suitable for the Andhra Pradesh's variable climate. The breeding of this taller chickpea variety means that as many as 2.25 tons of chickpea can be harvested in just 75 minutes. Done manually, the process including cutting and threshing would normally take three days. This development was demonstrated recently in a farmer's fields in Andhra Pradesh's Anantapur district showing how farmers can save time and money, said a statement by ICRISAT. The chickpea variety was developed by Veera Jayalakshmi, principal scientist (chickpea breeding) at Acharya N.G. Ranga Agricultural University in Nandyal, with support from ICRISAT, which provided the breeding material and technical support. "Currently chickpea farming in Andhra Pradesh is partially mechanized - the crop is cut manually and then fed into a threshing machine. The total mechanization of harvesting is cost effective and quicker, reducing the risk of the ripened crop's exposure to untimely rain or other extreme weather conditions," said Pooran M. Gaur, principal scientist, Chickpea Breeding at ICRISAT. Jayalakshmi said that machine harvesting is better for the health of the labourers, especially women, as handling the crop causes painful dermatitis due to its high acid content. New Delhi, Feb 4 : In a significant development in terms of its nuclear liability, India on Thursday submitted the Instrument of Ratification of the Convention on Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage, 1997, to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in Vienna. "Ambassador and Permanent Representative of India Rajiva Misra handed over the Instrument of Ratification to Acting Director General of IAEA, Juan Carlos Lentijo," the external affairs ministry said in a statement. "The convention will come into force for India 90 days from the date of deposit of the ratification instrument, i.e. May 4, 2016," it added. The submission of the instrument of ratification is the conclusive step in the addressing of issues related to civil nuclear liability in India, marked earlier by the release of frequently asked questions (FAQs) on civil nuclear liability in February 2015 and the launch of the India Nuclear Insurance Pool (INIP) in June 2015, the statement said. Kolkata, Feb 4 : The BJP's national spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi on Thursday said she would soon write to the union home ministry about the "rising violence" against women in Trinamool Congress-ruled West Bengal. "I will soon write to the union home ministry and also request our party's Mahila Morcha to pen a complaint to the National Commission for Women about the rising incidents of rape and molestation in the state," Lekhi told media persons here. She said it was a "shame" that incidents of atrocities on women were going up in the state despite the chief minister being a woman. She alleged that the Trinamool was presiding over a regime of psychological terror. "They are using terror to curb political activities of opposition parties." Lekhi also described the alleged assault on a Tanzanian woman in Bengaluru as an instance of "racial attack". She said Congress president Sonia Gandhi should have acted fast and asked Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to step down. Lekhi pooh-poohed the Karnataka government's claim that the woman was not paraded in the buff. "Denying of facts cannot change the truth. It is nothing but a case of racial discrimination," she said, wondering why women were "so unsafe" in states ruled by non-BJP parties. Bengaluru, Feb 4 : Railways Minister Suresh Prabhu on Thursday said a new joint venture will be signed with Karnataka government to create new avenues to develop railways in the state. "I had a discussion with the chief minister of Karnataka... we will soon formalise an agreement with Karnataka government that we create a new entity, a joint venture between Indian Railways and the government," he said at the closing ceremony of Invest Karnataka 2016 Global Investors Meet (GIM). The ownership of the new entity will be divided between the state government and the railways, and the agreement will be on the lines railways has done with 16 states already, he said. Prabhu said railways is creating some more lines for Karnataka which will be inaugurated soon and highlighted that the outlay in the last budget was the largest ever done for Karnataka. On the demand of suburban railway lines for Bengaluru city, he said the demand needs to be thoroughly studied to determine how to go about it. Prabhu said developing railway stations as icons in select cities is another initiative being taken up and revealed there are 400 top class railways stations in India. He pointed out that Bengaluru city railway station is operating beyond its capacity and getting crowded. "We can develop a satellite railway station, the state government should give us land," he said. At the GIM, he appealed to the private industry to actively participate in railway projects as every rupee spent on railways will reap five fold benefits. New Delhi, Feb 4 : Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday expressed deep distress over the death of soldiers in an avalanche on the Siachen glacier. A Congress statement said Gandhi saluted the soldiers who lost their lives securing the nation's boundaries in the most difficult terrain and weather conditions. "Congress president Sonia Gandhi expressed shock and deep distress on confirmation of death of 10 army men in an avalanche in Siachen," the statement said. Gandhi extended her condolences to the bereaved families and said the entire nation "stood bowed before selfless service and martyrdom of our soldiers". Ten soldiers, including a junior commissioned officer (JCO), went missing on Wednesday after an avalanche hit their patrol at 19,000 feet above sea level on the southern side of the Siachen glacier, which was once the world's highest battlefield, and which has an extremely hostile climate. A massive rescue operation was launched by the army and the air force to trace the missing personnel but an army official on Thursday said the possibility of any survivor was "remote". New Delhi, Feb 4 : Nepal Finance Minister Bishnu Poudel will visit India next week which might help in finalising the dates for the proposed visit of Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli to New Delhi, a senior government official said on Thursday. "Finance Minister of Nepal Bishnu Poudel is scheduled to visit India on February 7-8 to discuss reconstruction assistance projects," external affairs ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said at a media briefing here. "Poudel is scheduled to meet our external affairs minister (Sushma Swaraj) and our finance minister (Arun Jaitley)," he said. "We are very hopeful that after this visit, there will also be concrete discussions on the dates for Prime Minister Oli's visit." There have been wide speculations about the possibility of Oli's visit to India after over 50 people were killed in the now more than five-month-old anti-constitutional protest by Madhesis in the southern Nepali Terai. Most of the 41 transit and customs points along the southern portion of the Himalayan nation's open border with India have been besieged by the Madhesi protestors who are demanding, among other things, a redrawing of the boundaries of the provinces in Nepal as proposed in the new Constitution -- promulgated on September 20 last year -- and representation in parliament on the basis of population. Unnerved by the prolonged Madhesi agitation, the ruling major-Left coalition as also the main opposition Nepali Congress last month approved two amendments to the four-month-old Constitution partly meeting the demands of the protestors. However, the Madhesi Morcha spearheading the agitation has rejected the amendments to the statute and announced a fresh agitation programme besides calling for a broader alliance among all forces in the Terai-Madhes region. The blockade of trucks going from India to Nepal by the Madhesis along the international border has led to severe shortages of medicines and other essential supplies in the Kathmandu Valley. Swarup, however, said that now the situation has improved quite a lot. "Now, about 1,300 trucks are passing daily. The waiting is down to about 300-400 trucks," he said. The spokesman said that before this whole logjam started, about 1,500 trucks used to go daily. "Now 1,300 trucks are going and this is despite the (major border crossing points) Raxaul and Birgunj being blocked by the protestors on the Nepalese side. This tells you that the situation has normalised to a large extent," he said. Swarup said that as far as the constitutional amendments were concerned, India has welcomed those as good positive steps "and we hope that the remaining issues which the Madhesis have with the Nepalese government can also now be sorted out in a spirit of reconciliation, flexibility, compromise and dialogue". Behind every successful film, trailer, commercial or video is a successful editor who has managed to make the visual and emotional connect between scenes and characters seamless. Editors sift through hours of footage and select and prune what is pertinent to the subject and are a very important part of any visual project. Often editors are the unsung heroes whose work remains invisible as their work is not as tangible as cinematography, music, art or acting. Shah, based in Kochi, has been working as a video editor for the past 12 years having honed his talent working in national commercials, short films, documentaries, film trailers, music albums and wedding albums like the work he did for Dulquer Salmaans video wedding album. What has been a recognition of his talent is that he will be handling the editing works of three Hollywood movies Depraved, The Wake and Turvey Town. Many people would kill for an opportunity to directly work in a Hollywood project and this has been the ultimate dream come true for Shah. Shah excitedly says, Each film has a different genre and I will be working for the comedy film Turvey Town first whose director is Noel Duffy. The movie is based on the original play Comparisons by Frank Hollingsworth. Noel was highly impressed with my cuts, grading and colouring and he called me and directly posted me as the editor of this movie. Since Noel himself is an editor he understood the quality of my work and gave me the colour grading and editing works of his film. The script was sent to me and I could not believe it at first! The pre-works of the movie are almost over and the shoot will start soon. I am looking forward to this project with high expectations and excitement. Actually, I have received the storyboard of all the three films and I have time to study before starting the project in March. The only problem I initially faced was the language barrier when I spoke to them on Skype since they are Irish but now that has also been smoothened out. Shah adds, In Hollywood, it is the talent that matters and not the individual. In Mollywood, talent is sometimes not recognised but connections and money matter more. Starting off working for a studio in hometown Manjeri, Shah has now graduated to owning a studio of his own. Another project he holds dear to his heart is the editing works of four episodes of a travel show Car and Country for the Fox Channel on which he spent three months. The biggest advantage of Shahs job is that he can afford to sit in the confines of his studio at home and work on any project from across the world. Right now the world is his oyster! New Delhi, Feb 4 : The prime ministers of Finland, Lithuania and Sweden will be among the top dignitaries from across the world who will be attending the "Make in India Week" being organised by the government in Mumbai from February 13 to 18. "The confirmed list of government delegates now includes the prime ministers of Sweden, Finland and Lithuania, and prominent foreign dignitaries from a large number of countries, including Poland, Japan, Indonesia, Colombia, United Kingdom, Belgium, Mexico, Germany, and South Korea," external affairs ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said at a media briefing here on Thursday. He said that the main purpose of this event was to showcase the potential of design, innovation and sustainability of India's manufacturing sectors in the coming decades. "The week-long event will offer foreign investors and businesses unprecedented access, insights and opportunities to showcase, connect and collaborate with young Indian entrepreneurs, industry leaders, academicians and government officials at the central and state levels," he said. According to Swarup, key opportunities in sectors like auto and auto components, defence and aerospace, food processing, chemicals and petrochemicals, electronic and IT, pharmaceuticals, textiles, industrial equipment manufacturing, construction equipment, and infrastructure will be showcased through seminars and discussions among the major stakeholders. "Some of the highlights of the 'Make in India Week' would be the inauguration of the Make in India Centre at the Bandra-Kurla Complex by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, an intensive 24-hour hackathon featuring cooperation between coders, engineers, and designers for creative solutions to urban design problems, a CNN Asia business forum anchored by Farid Zakaria featuring global visionaries and leaders from the fields of finance, industry and design, and finally recognition of excellence in the world of manufacturing by instituting the Time India awards," he said. New Delhi, Feb 4 : Hong Kong on Thursday said it is keen to play a major role in helping fund the development of India's infrastructure. "Hong Kong can help finance India's infrastructure," Hong Kong Special Administrative Region's chief executive C.Y. Leung said at Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) event here. Leung said Hong Kong's position as a global financial services hub puts it in a unique position to help finance India's infrastructure requirements. He told the gathering that global players in the city in sectors like banking, finance, logistics and infrastructure "will be happy to share the experience and expertise to help you find opportunities in Hong Kong and the region". "India is a world leader in IT and I know about their ambitious expansion plans for the sector, through the 'Make in India' programme. "India is a country that has captured the attention and the imagination of the business world," Leung said, adding that bilateral trade between India and Hong Kong was growing at a healthy pace of 12 percent in 2014. The bilateral trade in 2014-15 stood at $19.17 billion. The chief executive also said that Hong Kong has forwarded a draft MoU on cultural cooperation to the Indian government and is looking forward to its signing as soon as possible. Bengaluru, Feb 4 : Women entrepreneurs must focus on scale and building a good team, said Biocon chairperson Kiran Mazumdar Shaw on Thursday. "As women, we must focus on building scale. If you don't build scale, I really believe you will be at a disadvantage. You cannot then build a credible business story," said Shaw at panel discussion 'Promoting Women Entrepreneurship' at Invest Karnataka 2016 Global Investors Meet (GIM). According to Shaw, scaling process is a daunting task without creating a good team. "A good team with critical competencies about business modeling, about finance and about marketing is a very important contributor for scaling and success," she said at the discussion attended by women entrepreneurs from across Karnataka. Shaw considers her bio-technology company Biocon as the first startup to emerge from Bengaluru and narrated the difficulties she faced while staring it. "In 1978, the bankers did not have faith in me that I being a woman am capable of setting up a business. Loans for women entrepreneurs were classified under the handicapped and backward classes category," she revealed. She thanked Karnataka State Industrial Investment and Development Corporation (KSIIDC) and Karnataka State Finance Corporation (KSFC) for coming to her aid and approving the loan. The panel discussion also hosted a sister city initiative agreement signing between Bengaluru and San Francisco. Additional Chief Secretary Ratna Prabha and Sister City Initiatives co-chair Nandini Tandon exchanged the agreement. Earlier, Women Entrepreneurs Guidance Cell (Mahila Udyamavani Cell) was launched to give a shot in the arm for women entrepreneurs. Lucknow, Feb 4 : The Uttar Pradesh government has decided to fast track its ambitious Rs. 10,000 crore project of setting up a theme park in Agra, an official said on Thursday. While reviewing the progress of the project, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Thursday set deadlines for officials to take all necessary clearances for the project that would come up on the sides of the under-construction Agra-Lucknow Expressway on a stretch of 1,000 acres. The project would be jointly developed by film actor Sanjay Khan's Kingdom Company and the Uttar Pradesh Micro-Industries Development Corporation as a joint venture. Through the project, more than 2,000 people will get direct employment and 10,000 people will get indirect employment. During the meeting, it was also informed that through the Agra theme park, domestic and international tourists, through infotainment, would be given information under one roof, in an interesting way. In the project, models of seven cities would be established and people can travel through them on mono rail. The tourists to the theme park would travel through Mohanjodaro, Patliputra era, the Ramayan era, the Mahabharta era, the Gupta era, the Mughal era and the freedom struggle of 1857 and get a peep into the historic incidents during these timelines. The project would be based on Disneyland and would also have a five-star hotel and shops selling souvenirs and other items. The theme park would also have an area named 'Swayambar', where marriage functions based on themes would be held. New Delhi, Feb 4 : Gurpreet, the Indian woman who was rescued from a refugee camp in Germany along with her eight-year-old daughter, reached New Delhi on Thursday, the external affairs ministry said. Ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said at a media briefing here that she returned on an emergency certificate as she had not gone abroad by following the normal procedure. "Our embassies and consulates issue these certificates to Indian citizens to return to to their country," he said. Gurpreet's rescue became possible after swift action was taken by the external affairs ministry after she posted a video on the internet on Tuesday in which she claimed that she was hoodwinked into going to Germany by her husband's family where she and her daughter were kept in a refugee camp. Following this, Sushma Swaraj said on Tuesday that the authorities were in touch with the father of Gurpreet, who hails from Faridabad in Haryana, and that the external affairs ministry has got the full report from the Indian embassy in Germany. "We have brought Gurpreet and her eight-year-old daughter from the refugee camp to our consulate in Frankfurt," Sushma Swaraaj tweeted on Wednesday. Visakhapatnam, Feb 4 : Ahead of the International Fleet Review, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday laid a wreath at the Naval War Memorial here to pay homage to fallen personnel. The memorial was built to commemorate the victory in the 1971 war with Pakistan. Naidu also inaugurated the Maritime Exhibition (MAREX), on the theme "Innovation, Youth and Indigenisation", in the presence of Navy chief, Admiral R.K. Dhowan. President Pranab Mukherjee will be in Visakhapatnam from February 5 to 7 where he will witness the International Fleet Review 2016 on February 6. The president, as the supreme commander of the armed forces reviews the Indian Naval Fleet once in his or her term. The last International Fleet Review was conducted in January 2001, off Mumbai with participation from 29 countries. The International Fleet Review 2016 will be done at a much larger scale than ever done before and will witness participation from 50 countries. Dimapur (Nagaland), Feb 4 : Union Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy on Thursday announced the setting up Industrial Training Institutes (ITI) of international standard in Nagaland. He also promised to set up skill development centres for the youth. "I want to assure that the NDA government would set up skill development centres or ITIs in Nagaland and other northeastern states," Rudy said at a gathering at Patkai Christian College here. He urged the Nagaland government and educational institutions to join hands with his ministry in skilling the youths by providing required infrastructure. Noting that the Skill India Mission launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi was essential for the development of the northeast, the minister said: "It is the need of the hour that we recognise the potential of the youth of the region and link it to socio-economic growth of the northeast region and the country as a whole." He asked the Federation of Industry and Commerce of North Eastern Region (FINER), which represents the industries of the northeastern states, to have its representation in all the Sector Skill Councils of his ministry so as to enable the SSCs to better understand the requirements of the northeastern states and industries of the region. Stating that his ministry was committed through its short and long-term skilling courses for the development of the region, Rudy said: "My ministry would also work with the ITIs in the northeast for their upgrading through industry linkages with the constitution of Institute Management Committees in these ITIs. "We will certainly be able to reap the demographic dividend of the region," he added. Admitting that lack of industrial activities has affected creation of job avenues in Nagaland, Chief Minister T.R. Zeliang asked the union minister to establish ITIs in all the districts of the mountainous state. "There is an urgent need for opening one model academy for skilling the youths of Nagaland and for that, the government is ready to provide the land to set up the skill academy," Zeliang said. Bhubaneswar, Feb 4 : Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday urged Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu to allocate a sizable amount of Railway Budget 2016-17 for strengthening and expanding rail infrastructure in the state. In a letter to Prabhu, Patnaik said the railway route length and rail density in Odisha is very much below than national average as also substantially lower than that in neighboring states. "In contrast, gross earnings from various stations in the state of Odisha is estimated to be in excess of Rs.14,000 crore during the year 2014-15," he said. Noting Odisha continues to be one of the most preferred destinations for investment especially in metal, mining and power sectors, he said the nature of industrial activities in the state requires a robust and well planned railway infrastructure for its sustainability. He said his government would extend all help for implementation of railway projects in the state, adding the state has already signed the state specific umbrella MoU with the railway ministry for setting up a JV company for taking up new rail projects in the state with cost sharing of 51 percent by the state government and 49 percent by Indian Railways. Though the MoU has been signed over 3 months back, the formation of company is awaiting cabinet clearance, he said, requesting this be expedited so that the new projects in the state then can be taken up through the defined route envisaged in the MoU. He said the other MoU that was signed between Coal India, Indian Railway and Odisha government for creating rail infrastructure to evacuate coal deposits of the state has been operationalised by forming a SPV company. Informing that the state has attracted Rs.8,85,000 crores in diverse sectors and a comprehensive plan has been prepared for developing deep water sea ports along its coast, he urged to extend the eastern dedicated freight corridor from Dankuni to Berhampur to ensure seamless movement of freight between the upcoming ports including the major port at Paradip. He also requested to introduce some express trains and set up new divisional headquarters at Rayagada, Jajpur-Keonjhar road and Rourkela by extending the jurisdiction of East Coast Railway. Kabul, Feb 5 : Amid ongoing militancy and government forces operations against armed militants in the northern Badakhshan and Kunduz provinces, over two dozen Taliban fighters have surrendered and 17 others have been killed over the past two days, officials said on Thursday. A total of 25 Taliban militants have given up fighting and handed over their weapons to police in the northern Badakhshan province with Faizabad as its capital 315 km northwest of Kabul over the past two days, Xinhua quoted Ahmad Nawed Frotan, spokesman for provincial government, as saying. "A total of 25 Taliban fighters under Sheikh Jamal who were active in Tishkan district over the past couple of years laid down arms and resumed normal life over the past two days," Frotan said. He also added that cleanup operations have been continuing in Tishkan and Tagab districts since mid January to kill or capture insurgents. Taliban militants who are active in parts of Badakhshan province are yet to make comment. Similarly, mounting pressure against Taliban in the northern Kunduz province have claimed the lives of 17 insurgents. Citing a provincial security official, Mohammad Masoum Safi, local media reported on Thursday that clashes between security forces and Taliban militants in Ali Abad district of restive Kunduz province on Wednesday had left 17 armed insurgents, including two senior commanders of the militants - Mawlawi Niazi and Mawlawi Abdul Hai, dead. In the meantime, Taliban confirmed in an online statement the clash in Ali Abad district, but insisted that two civilians had been killed and two others injured. Telugu actor Chiranjeevi arrived in Mumbai on Wednesday evening for a surgery that he will undergo today, at a private hospital in the city. According to reports, the actor was suffering from shoulder pain and decided to get it checked before he gets back to work next month. Chiranjeevi had been struggling with his shoulder pain for the past few months and finally decided to get it operated. The surgery is however a minor one. After the minor operation, the actor has been advised to take two weeks rest. Shooting for the stars next film, a Telugu remake of the Tamil blockbuster Kaththi, is set to hit floors in March. Chiranjeevi also has to stay fit for the upcoming wedding in the family. His daughter Srija is set to tie the knot again next month. While most experts agree that the Spanish residential property market is well into recovery, there is unlikely to be much of an increase in prices. Indeed the latest house price index from property portal Fotocasa suggests that prices are on an up and down trajectory but with no big surprise. Asking prices fell 0.8% in 2015, down from an average of 1,632 per square meter in 2014 to 1,619 per square meter as of December 2015, according to the Fotocasa index. However, Marc Stucklin, of Spanish Property Insight pointed out that last years house price decline was the smallest since the crisis began and this provides more evidence that the Spanish house price crash has come to an end. For example, a year ago prices were still falling by 5.7%, and by 10.% in 2012 and property prices while not rising overall, are increasing in certain locations. Beatriz Toribio, head of research as Fotocasa, an increase in mortgage lending is helping to boost the market at a time when prices are still relatively cheap compared to before the meltdown after the global economic crisis of 2007. The data shows prices rose the most last year in the Balearics with growth of 3.3%, followed by La Rioja up 2.4%, Madrid up 1.4% and Andalusia and Galicia both up 0.7%. We are witnessing a two speed market. Whilst there are parts of Catalonia, Madrid, and the Balearics, where prices have bottomed out, in places like Castile-La Mancha and Extremadura, there is still plenty of room to fall, explained Toribio. There are also variations within cities. In Madrid and Barcelona prices are consolidating their recovery, but on the outskirts of those cities the evolution is more unequal, added Toribio. Since the peak of the market in 2007 prices have fallen 45.2% overall. The biggest decline has been in La Rioja where prices are down 55.1% from peak, Castile-La Mancha down 52.6%, Navarre down 52.5%, Aragon down 52%, Murcia down 49.9%, and Valencia down 48.3%. Prices have fallen the least in Galicia with a decline of 31.5%, down 33.1% in the Balearics, down 36.3% in Castile and Leon and down 37.3% in the Basque Country, according to the Fotocasa data. Prices look to be more or less stable, but still slightly negative at the end of 2015, with little sign of upward pressure on the horizon, said Stucklin, who added that big regional variations exist. The Junior League of Phoenix (JLP) announced today that one of its signature community programs, Kids in the Kitchen, has been awarded a $20,000 grant from General Mills, one of the world's leading food companies. The grant will enable JLP to host a Health and Nutrition Day in the fall of 2016, which will include educational food and fitness challenges for kids and families. Current JLP programs are structured around the focus area of Building a Healthy Arizona in order to address food insecurity and the epidemic of childhood obesity. Founded by The Association of Junior Leagues International (AJLI) in 2006, Kids in the Kitchen is a hands-on initiative aimed at educating children and their families on the importance of nutrition and fitness to empower them to make healthy lifestyle choices. We are excited to plan a comprehensive day of playful learning with the help from this generous grant, said Audrey Tregaskes, chair of JLPs Kids in the Kitchen committee. We have a big job of Building a Healthy Arizona, and having this level of support enables us to reach more children and make a bigger impact. The goals for the Kids in the Kitchen program include increasing childrens awareness of nutrition in everyday foods, educating kids on how to improve the quality of food they eat, and incorporating more exercise into childrens daily routines. JLP volunteers teach the program throughout the year, which is based on four core activities about nutrition and exercise that were created in partnership with the Arizona State Universitys College of Health Solutions. In 2014-15 alone, JLP educated more than 1,200 Kids in the Kitchen participants. The JLP currently partners with the Boys and Girls Club of the East Valley, offering Kids in the Kitchen activities to third, fourth and fifth graders across more than 10 branches. To learn more about the JLP or its community programs, visit jlp.org. About The Junior League of Phoenix The Junior League of Phoenix, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization of nearly 1,000 women committed to promoting voluntarism, developing the potential of women and improving the Valley of the Sun through the effective action and leadership of trained volunteers. For more than 80 years, the JLP has invested more than $3.3 million in the community and contributes over 75,000 volunteer hours annually. Current League programs are structured around JLPs focus area of Building a Healthy Arizona. For more information about The Junior League of Phoenix, please visit jlp.org. Barely open two months, The Right Supplies (http://www.therightsupplies.net/) has already monumentally changed the way San Antonio teachers supply their classrooms. In their inaugural campaign, titled The Gift of Educational Resources, the school supplies store that caters specifically to parents and teachers gave out $600 in savings and sweepstakes prizes to deserving teachers. The winners, Melanie Wilkes and Tina Flores, are both kindergarten teachers from Indian Springs Elementary in the Comal Independent School District. We love having your wonderful store right around the corner, said Flores. The supply store has no plans to slow down. In February, they will launch their first full campaign, called Superbowl of Savings. Throughout the month, teachers, parents, homeschoolers, and daycare centers can save on all inventory in the entire store. Started by a former teacher who had a desire to help the community with educational needs; whether it was products or questions related to education materials, The Right Supplies was formed to be a resource for teachers and parentsrather than the other way around. With an extensive vetting process for all inventory, the store only sells the highest quality educational materials, classroom decor, and school supplies for PreK through 8th Grade, and at affordable prices. This allows them to stay true to their motto: Youll never go wrong with The Right Supplies. I left the classroom as an elementary school teacher last summer to open up a teacher/parent resource store to help save teachers in the Central Texas Region time and money, said The Right Supplies CEO Sheryl Moss. In addition to providing teachers with a more cost effective alternative to other sources for supplies, The Right Supplies central location on the 281N highway in North Central San Antonio can save area teachers up to an hour of driving time. Schools start in August, but school teachers cannot spend money until October or November due to their school districts fiscal year budgets, Moss added. This is the primary reason teachers use personal funds to help their students. Moss and her team are working hard to reduce the high amounts of personal money that teachers in San Antonio spend on school supplies. For those teachers, and for parents and teachers nationwide, Moss and her team have developed an easy to use online catalogue at http://shop.therightsupplies.net/. The Right Supplies, as part of its campaign, is offering 15% off all purchase orders by school districts between now and March 15. About The Right Supplies The Right Supplies mission is to provide Teachers, Parents, Homeschoolers, and Daycare Centers with highly useful resource materials and workshops. We are transforming the users experience by saving them time and money. You'll never go wrong with The Right Supplies, located at the Village at Stone Oak across from IHOP near MOOYAH. The Right Supplies 22502 US 281 N. Suite 107 San Antonio, TX 78259 http://www.therightsupplies.net/ Store Hours 9 AM to 8 PM Monday through Saturday Our business owners look to us for sound financial advice for protecting their business and their assets, said Mark Jacobs, president and CEO, Captive Alternatives. Captive Alternatives, the insurance consultancy that pioneered the Protected Captive business model, announced today the launch of Puerto Rico International Insurer Madison RE, I.I. Madison RE, I.I. was formed to provide an innovative new captive creation and management structure exclusively for CapAlt clients. Our business owners look to us for sound financial advice for protecting their business and their assets, said Mark Jacobs, president and CEO, Captive Alternatives. Establishing captives in Puerto Rico affords them the kind of security and flexibility they are looking for in a near-shore solution. It also allows us to offer clients an alternative solution, as Congress increasingly looks to change the 831 (b) captive rules. The new structure allows CapAlt to quickly and efficiently create new Protected Captives, and provides additional opportunities for larger captives. With the launch of Madison RE, I.I., CapAlt is consolidating operations of all their existing captives under management into Puerto Rico making Madison RE I.I. one of the largest insurance captive managers in the territory of Puerto Rico. CapAlt elected to form Madison RE, I.I. in Puerto Rico because of the efficient, business friendly atmosphere. Domiciled and licensed in Puerto Rico, Madison RE, I.I. is focused on serving U.S. clients seeking efficient and secure risk management solutions. "CapAlts decision to form Madison RE, I.I.s in Puerto Rico is another vote of confidence from an international company with many choices for where to locate their operations, stated Alberto Baco Bague, Secretary of Economic Development and Commerce of Puerto Rico, stated. Puerto Ricos international insurance sector is positioned to be the center of attention for external investment and a spark of innovation to our domestic human capital. About Captive Alternatives Captive Alternatives is a leading consultant helping business owners control their cost of risk through the use of captive insurance companies. CapAlts innovative business model, the Protected Captive, helps owners manage hidden risks, transfer high exposure to third parties, and financially reward themselves for effective risk management. As a result of their Protected Captive, our clients cover a wide variety of hidden exposures, and achieve all their strategic objectives both corporate and personal. CapAlt delivers custom risk management solutions through an industry-first Puerto Rico International Insurer, and manages operations from their offices in Atlanta and Puerto Rico. For more information, visit http://www.captivealternatives.com. Contact: (media only) Angela McMahon Michael Mackenzie Communications 404-543-9636 angelam(at)michealmackenzie(dot)com Pawan Kalyan is working hard to ensure that his next film Sardar Gabbar Singh keeps its April date. Directed by K.S. Ravindra (Bobby), the films unit is at present in Kerala, shooting some important scenes. After two days in Kerala, we will return to Hyderabad and continue shooting immediately till completion. I want to confirm that we are releasing the film on April 8, says Sharath Marar, producer of the film. Kajal Agarwal is the female lead. Pawan Kalyan has been working continuously, with just one days break when he came down to Hyderabad recently. His involvement in the film is not only as an actor but he is also involved in the screenplay and dialogues. So he is working very hard to complete the shoot as early as possible, says a source. Dr. Mark Meaney at the Leeds School of Business Leading UN PRME's North America Chapter is a significant opportunity to make a difference in critical areas of student learning such as business ethics, corporate social responsibility and sustainability. The Leeds School of Business at the University of Colorado, Boulder, announced that Dr. Mark Meaney, Executive Director of the Center for Education on Social Responsibility (CESR), was elected as Chair of the newly established North America Chapter of the United Nations Principles for Responsible Management Education (UN PRME) initiative. Dr. Meaney was also appointed to the UN PRME International Advisory Board. Launched at the 2007 United Nations Global Compact Leaders Summit in Geneva, the UN PRME initiative focuses on inspiring and championing responsible business management education, research and thought leadership globally. UN PRME Chapter North America is comprised of 18 Canadian and 138 US business school signatories, and is part of a collective of over 600 business schools world-wide. Key areas the North America Chapter will focus on include developing resources to foster student experiential learning in business ethics, and establishing and sharing best practices to align with UN sustainable development goals. Dr. Meaney remarked, This is a significant opportunity for a vast network of educational leaders to collaborate and make a difference in critical areas of student learning such as business ethics, corporate social responsibility, and sustainability. We have an opportunity to develop widely accepted best practices and contribute on a global scale. Dr. Meaney will be presenting at UN PRMEs 2nd North American meeting hosted in Atlanta, GA, February 4 to 6 to further establish the Chapters focus and engagement across participating schools. Dr. Meaney has over 20 years of experience and an international reputation in business ethics. He is currently the Executive Director at the University of Colorado Boulders Leeds School of Business, Center for Education on Social Responsibility, which was founded through the support of the Leeds family. Under Dr. Meaneys leadership, the Center focuses on developing socially conscious, values-driven business leaders to manage the ethical challenges of a global economy. "By partnering with SCAD to offer these unique dance performances, we're able to showcase the complexity and precision of our 100C-1 excavator." -- Jennifer Stiansen, Marketing Communications Manager for JCB North America JCB North America and the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) will be hosting two performances of Exceptional Transport: duet for a dancer and an excavator, a unique alternative dance experience featuring the award-winning JCB 100C-1 and a dancer from the acclaimed French dance company Beau Geste. There will be two 20-minute performances, the first of which will take place on Thursday, February 16, at 5 p.m. at Peachtree Christian Church, 1580 Peachtree St. NE in Atlanta, GA. The second performance will be hosted at the SCAD Museum of Arts Alex Townsend Memorial Courtyard, 601 Turner Blvd. in Savannah, GA on February 18, at 7:15 p.m. Both events are free and open to the public, presented as part of deFINE ART 2016, an annual series of lectures, exhibitions, receptions and events. Introduced to the market in 2015, the 100C-1is the largest compact excavator model JCB has introduced to date. It features an H-design undercarriage, steel body panels, a spacious operator environment and a 74-hp JCB Diesel by Kohler engine that does not require a diesel particulate filter (DPF) to meet Tier 4 Final emissions standards. Weighing in at 21,458 pounds, the 100C-1 can dig up to 15 feet deep, with a dump height of 18 feet, 7 inches and a reach at ground level of 24 feet, 5 inches. While the heavy-duty 100C-1 typically tackles digging, trenching and demolition projects, the Exceptional Transport: duet for a dance and an excavator performance uses the machine in a completely new and unusual way. The 100C-1s arm will complement that of the human arm, that takes, pushes away or gently coaxes, said choreographer Dominique Boivin. The bucket, which scrapes, drills, transports and dumps, is representative of a human hand that carries, elevates and protects. At JCB, were always looking for new opportunities to support education, including the arts in the local communities in which we operate, states Jennifer Stiansen, Marketing Communications Manager for JCB North America. By partnering with SCAD to offer these unique dance performances, were able to showcase the complexity and precision of our 100C-I excavator, while also allowing it to be viewed from an entirely new perspective. To learn more about these performances, please visit http://www.scad.edu/defineart2016. To learn more about JCBs full line of construction and agricultural equipment, please visit http://www.JCBNA.com. ABOUT JCB: JCB is a privately-owned, global company that manufactures over 300 different machines from 22 plants on four continents including the United Kingdom, India, Brazil and the United States. Equipment lines offered include: backhoe loaders, Loadall telescopic handlers, excavators, wheel loaders, articulated dump trucks, rough terrain forklifts, compact excavators, skid steer loaders, compact track loaders, compaction equipment and the unique Fastrac tractor. Adding SkuBrain to our product portfolio is an excellent complement to the Halo Supply Chain Intelligence platform. Halo, provider of self-service supply chain intelligence geared to the mid-market and with a focus primarily on manufacturing, distribution and retail, today announced the acquisition of all assets of New Zealand-based SkuBrain. SkuBrain offers Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) for supply chain planning for small to medium-sized retailers. The acquisition extends Halos reach and also bolsters Halos presence in retail. Halo will migrate all technical and marketing assets of SkuBrain into the Halo environment to create a single platform that can be scaled to the needs of companies with revenue from US$50M to US$5B. The SkuBrain software was designed specifically to handle retail demand forecasting, inventory optimization, and replenishment planning. The founders, veterans of retail industry, built SkuBrain to address the significant gap in planning capabilities, and thus competitiveness, between small and large businesses. In particular, smaller businesses need simplified tools that favor ease of use and straightforward reporting. Halos acquisition of SkuBrain comes with a portfolio of customers who will be maintained on the existing platform for the near-term. Keith Peterson, President and CEO of Halo, stated, "Adding SkuBrain to our product portfolio is an excellent complement to the Halo Supply Chain Intelligence platform. Smaller firms are often too small to leverage the enterprise capabilities of existing planning platforms. The SkuBrain team saw the gap and has filled it with a highly targeted solution. Customers can now start with a subscription-based SkuBrain solution and seamlessly transition to the Halo platform as their needs grow. We dont know of another solution in the market that makes this possible. About Halo Halo delivers self-service supply chain intelligence solutions to hundreds of enterprise customers and service provider partners in North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. Our solutions provide enterprise grade products without the drag and cost of major platforms. Halo replaces the complexity of siloed data sources and disparate applications with a single purpose platform that lets firms analyze, decide and plan faster than ever before. Halo is headquartered in San Diego, California, and can be reached via the web (http://www.halobi.com), Twitter (@Halo_BI) or email at info(at)halobi(dot)com. With an extensive background in business technology and development, Kling's leadership signifies Praecipio Consulting's increasing presence in the Atlassian ecosystem. Increasing expert staff to meet growing demands on their business, Praecipio Consulting hires Steven Kling as Principal of Development Operations. With an extensive background in business technology and development, Kling's leadership signifies Praecipio Consulting's increasing presence in the Atlassian ecosystem. "Steven Kling was a strategic hire for us," shares Praecipio Consulting partner Christopher Pepe (creator of Praecipio Consulting's existing Atlassian Marketplace offering, Secure Content). "We've stacked our dev team with the best and brightest folks to get our products to the marketplace, and Kling's vision and oversight will drive this to great success." In his first month at Praecipio Consulting, Kling and his team are already cranking out code for the company's largest marketplace release yet. "The flexibility of the Atlassian stack allows for customization and increased functionality for all teams," notes Kling. "We've determined a significant need and are working to offer a marketplace solution this spring for Confluence, JIRA, and HipChat." While the details of the current development project are under wraps at the moment, Kling is slated to debut the add-ons at several major, upcoming technology conferences this year. Prior to joining Praecipio Consulting, Kling held multiple high-level positions in various technology-centric companies and consulting firms (including his most recent role as Senior Staff Engineer at HomeAway), giving him both "big picture" strategizing abilities as well as focused, operational expertise. In addition to his technical background, Kling is also a decorated combat veteran. "Leadership carries across all industries." states Kling. "I've had the privilege of cultivating my leadership skills in both the public and private sector, and relish the challenge of applying them to create a world-class Atlassian add-on development team." With major marketplace releases already in development, and others in planning, Steven Kling expands Praecipio Consulting's portfolio of offerings for an even greater role in the Atlassian ecosystem. "We've had a reputation for years as a top Atlassian Platinum Enterprise Expert," says Pepe. "But now [with the addition of Kling], our name will be associated with increasingly innovative and highly-functional marketplace add-ons as well." About Praecipio Consulting Praecipio Consulting is an IT and business process consulting company focused on the Atlassian product suite, offering services, product licensing, training, managed services and managed hosting, and custom development across the entire Atlassian product suite. Specializing in IT processes, best practices and frameworks including ITIL and various ALM models, Praecipio Consulting provides first-class services to clients of all industries and sizes for superior, consistently delivered solutions. For more information, contact Praecipio Consulting 5918 W. Courtyard Dr. Suite 450 Austin, TX 78730 praecipio.com contact(at)praecipio(dot)com From a small family farm on the Macal River, The Lodge at Chaa Creek has grown to become one of Belize's most highly regarded eco resorts one of the things that sets Chaa Creek apart is that it grew organically and over a period of time The Lodge at Chaa Creek has a new general manager, and, in keeping with the popular Belizean eco-resorts unique history and evolution, Bryony Fleming Bradley is a member of its founding family, born and raised at Chaa Creek. In January 2016 Ms Bradley took over the GM position of the family business from her mother, Lucy Fleming, who, with husband Mick, started Chaa Creek as a small farm on the banks of Belizes Macal River in the late 1970s. The Flemings opened Chaa Creek as one of Belizes first eco resorts in 1981, just as Belize achieved independence from Great Britain. Beginning with a few one-room, thatched-roofed cabins built from materials found in the surrounding jungle, Chaa Creeks friendly, family ambience and green philosophy struck a chord with travellers, and the resort grew in leaps and bounds over the years, Ms Bradley recalled. The Lodge at Chaa Creek is now one of Belizes most well known and highly regarded eco resorts, offering a wide range of accommodations, amenities and activities that has earned it the reputation among travel industry professionals as Belizes destination within a destination. When my parents first started Chaa Creek, no one had any idea that Belize, let alone our little farm, would grow to become so popular, Ms Bradley said. Like most people in the area, we were just trying to get by and enjoy a healthy, more natural lifestyle. Little did we know that Belizes natural beauty, Maya temples, Caribbean seacoast and other attractions would appeal to so many travellers. Looking back, I guess it isnt all that surprising, she added. Both Mick and Lucy Fleming agreed that Chaa Creeks rise as a preeminent Belizean destination was the result of hard work, cooperation, passion for the environment and a splash of good luck. I think one of the things that sets Chaa Creek apart is that it grew organically and over a period of time, rather than as a corporate entity driven by a bottom line, Lucy Fleming explained, Ever since we began, Mick would always work around a tree rather than remove it, and everything; the cottages, paths that later became roads, the amenities and everything else were designed to coexist with the natural surroundings. You see the results of that today, and I think its something our guests appreciate. Ms Fleming explained that todays Chaa Creek reveals the various family members interests. I always loved the arts and crafts that reflect the local culture, and have been fortunate in being able to design and furnish each room and suite. Bryony and I would often travel to inland and highland Guatemala to find antiques and beautiful artwork that blended with Belizes own distinctive melting-pot culture. Mick and our son Piers interests are reflected in the mountain bike and horseback riding trails, canoe and furniture shops and other areas. It truly is a family effort, and people seem to respond to that. Bryony added that, Chaa Creek was my world while I was growing up, and since we were hosting guests from all over the globe it was always very lively and interesting. And without realising it, my brother and I were getting an education in hospitality and customer service at home while attending local schools. My mother, father, brother and I, along with our adopted siblings, all pulled together and supported each other in realising our individual goals and dreams, she said. When Bryony developed an interest in beauty, wellbeing and aesthetics, her family worked with her to establish the Hilltop Spa, which has since grown to become an internationally recognised, Gayots Guide-recommended full-service Spa. I was young, but knew what I wanted to do, and with my hospitality and business experience, had the confidence and support to give it a go, she said. As the Hilltop Spa grew in service and reputation, Chaa Creek was expanding, with an infinity pool, Belize Natural History Museum, Butterfly Farm, fine dining farm to table restaurant, lounge, conference centre, stables, miles of trails crisscrossing a 365 acre private nature reserve, fleet of canoes, a Maya organic farm that supplies the restaurant and Guava Limb Cafe, a Maya Medicinal Plant Trail, a growing number of tours and expeditions, and more. The beauty of a family business is that we all have something to do with every aspect of the business, so its very multidisciplinary. My husband Emil is a former police officer from the area, and hes brought along a range of skills that has enhanced our security and contributed to other parts of the business. So when my mother decided she wanted the time to pursue other interests, I was well positioned to take on the general managers duties, Bryony said. Whats does the future hold for Chaa Creek under Ms Bradleys stewardship? I dont think our guests, staff members or industry colleagues will notice any great changes, she said. Weve all been working together for so long that its become second nature to help each other out and give advice that, as with any family, is sometimes asked for and sometimes not, she smiled, But seriously, having my mother, father and brother so close does give me confidence that well continue to provide the same level of quality and service Chaa Creek has become known for. The travel and hospitality industry is very dynamic and at times volatile, which makes it challenging but also very exciting and rewarding. Being general manager of Chaa Creek and working with so many truly wonderful people is a dream job, and Im looking forward to the future in a big way, Ms Bradley said. The Lodge at Chaa Creek is a multi award winning eco resort set within a 365-acre private nature reserve along the banks of the Macal River in Belize. ENDS Our years of experience have positioned us to offer some of the highest quality solutions in the industry, backed by our staff of over 250 full-time engineers. BRISA has successfully become an industry leader in the Brazilian market and has now launched its United States division, BRISA AMERICA CORP, in Orlando, Florida. With expert implementation of industry best practices and quality execution, BRISA is expanding its specialization in software testing, embedded software development and a Power Dialer solution. With this new branch, the information technology and telecommunications company is positioning its services, products and skills to an attractive and alternative global market. Well-known for pioneering projects of embedded software, internet, e-Commerce, software testing, digital TV and e-Organization, BRISA has worked with a wide variety of clients and completed more than 20,000 successful projects in over 20 countries and in four different languages. As part of a larger growth strategy, BRISAs upper management realized it was time to take the company to the next level by establishing an international subsidiary. This expansion will not only provide revenue diversification, but will create substantial growth opportunities for both the company and our potential client base, explains Francisco Fernandes, the United States Sales Director. Our years of experience have positioned us to offer some of the highest quality solutions in the industry, backed by our staff of over 250 full-time engineers. In addition to its expertly-trained teams, BRISAs primary headquarters is strategically located to not only operate in similar time zones to the United States, but also provide competitive rates for their comprehensive services. BRISAs portfolio in the North American market will consist mainly of comprehensive, high quality software testing, first class embedded software development and the Power Dialer product (interactive voice response system). Though BRISAs United States location has only just launched, they have already gained their first customer: testing the online software of an SAT preparation company. Providing a more focused, agile, flexible and responsive service than larger global companies, BRISA is excited to expand its software testing and software development with current and future clients in this new market. If you would like to know more about BRISAs services and products, or have any questions, please contact us today at http://www.brisausa.com/contact. ----------------------------------------------- About BRISA: BRISA is a technology and telecommunications company with over 25 years of experience, focused primarily on software testing, software development, IT consulting and custom solutions. They utilize only experienced, qualified professionals and the best industry practices to bring perfection to the process. Decades of research converted to methodologies have set the basis for success with new projects. The use of industry specific certifications and standards ensures efficiency and the delivery of quality artifacts. If you would like to know more about BRISA, visit http://www.brisausa.com. ----------------------------------------------- Media Contact: Francisco Fernandes Sales Director 407-992-2327 media(at)brisausa(dot)com 7380 W Sand Lake Rd. Suite 500 Orlando, FL 32819 Manila-based creative advertising agency Montgomery Fitch + Associates recently celebrated its 5th year in the industry at the posh Borough gastropub located within the Ortigas Center business district. The precocious gathering of wine, food and song was likewise graced by key industry partners, client representatives and members of the agency's extended network. A poignant yet electric vibe pervaded the celebration, a testament to the tenacity and consistent team effort that has allowed the agency to carve out its own niche within a tough-as-nails market segment. Managing Director Louie De Leon offered as such. "Five years of business simply doesn't happen without our loyal partners and the grit of our youthful team. This night is for them." The mid-stage startup enters the year with robust expectations and its all-millenial crew firing on all cylinders as several major campaigns are prepared to commence within the year's first quarter. "We're truly blessed, and we're all hungry for more. Everyone is looking forward to bigger and bolder challenges" asserted Executive Vice-President Geraldine Samson, who coincidentally was the agency's first ever hire in Manila during its startup days. "Account volume is at an all- time high, and recent acquisitions we've made to augment our in-house production and animation capabilities are poised to increase our efficiency and productivity levels" added founding partner and CEO Luis Arcangel. Arcangel had started the agency in 2007 as a creative consultancy in Park Avenue, New York. A grind-it-out, hard-fought client list all but evaporated with the crash of 2008, and he found himself picking up the pieces in his native Philippines soon after. "I had to start from scratch. No cash, no connections, no nothing. It was full blown startup mode all over again." In the years that followed, an aggressive, throw-caution-to-the-wind mentality fueled by youth and caffeine has allowed the agency to develop its own distinctive creative signature with output spanning TV, Print, Radio, Out-Of-Home and Digital Media. Not coincidentally, their startup team of four has now expanded into nearly forty spanning multiple disciplines - all under the age of 30. De Leon screams out a rejoinder amidst a cacophony of champagne-soaked cheers, "I have so much faith with our current team, even the sky is not the limit. We've invested heavily in our future, and now that future is slowly becoming a reality." Montgomery Fitch + Associates is located at Suite 2302, F.Ortigas Jr. Ave, Ortigas Center, Pasig. For more information about the company and its services visit http://www.montgomeryfitch.com or call +63 949 45 88. PR News is thrilled to announce the finalists of its annual CSR and Nonprofit PR Awards, as well as the inaugural class of honorees for the Diversity in PR Awards. The finalists and honorees of these industry-known programs will be saluted at a Spring Awards Luncheon on March 15, 2016 from 12 to 2:30 p.m. at The National Press Club in Washington, D.C. CSR Finalists: http://www.prnewsonline.com/PR-News-CSR-Awards-Luncheon Nonprofit PR Finalists: http://www.prnewsonline.com/PR-News-Nonprofit-PR-Awards-Luncheon Diversity in PR Honorees: http://www.prnewsonline.com/PR-News-Diversity-Awards-Luncheon PR News will also salute the this year's class of inductees for the CSR Awards Hall of Fame. Among this year's list are: Colgate-Palmolive Co. Colgates Bright Smiles, Bright Futures; ESPN The V Foundation for Cancer Research; JetBlue Airways Soar With Reading; Procter & Gamble - Tide Loads of Hope; and Macys Believe Campaign. The luncheon will also feature a keynote presentation from Emily Lenzner, VP, global communications at Atlantic Media. PR News will hold a Business Leadership for Communicators Boot Camp the day before the CSR, Nonprofit PR and Diversity Awards Luncheon. At this full-day event, PR and communications professionals will learn what it takes to run a profitable agency or in-house PR department through sessions on employee relations, leadership, public speaking, and more. View the complete agenda for the boot camp here: http://www.prnewsonline.com/Business-Leadership-Boot-Camp-2016. To read more about the CSR, Nonprofit PR and Diversity Awards Luncheon and the Business Leadership Boot Camp, visit http://www.prnewsonline.com/PR-News-CSR-Awards-Luncheon. Thanks to the luncheon sponsor: 3BL Media. For registration questions about attending the awards luncheon or boot camp, contact Jessica Placencia at jessica@accessintel.com. To advertise in the program guide or to become an event sponsor, contact Lindsay Silverberg at lsilverberg@accessintel.com. PR News is a daily intellectual hub that serves the communications and marketing community at corporations, agencies and nonprofits. The PR News group focuses on honing and growing PR practitioners skills in social media, crisis management, digital PR, measurement, employee relations, media training, CSR and writing through its flagship newsletter, webinars, conferences, awards programs, workshops and guidebooks. With the launch of its weekly newsletter over 70 years ago, PR News has remained dedicated to supporting the growth of communicators all while keeping them abreast of the latest news affecting the industry. For more information, please visit http://www.prnewsonline.com. ### Celebrating 10 years in business! We have a responsibility not only to ourselves but to all of our clients and our community to help them grow and prosper as much as we do Dominion Construction Group, LLC (DCG) recently celebrated its 10th year anniversary in business. Based in Warrenton, Virginia, DCG is a commercial general contractor that has provided a wide range of construction services to clients throughout Virginia, Maryland and Washington, DC. In addition to budgeting and design/build services, DCG specializes in value engineering and expert client service throughout the duration of each building project. Since its founding in November of 2005, DCG has experienced tremendous growth by building valuable relationships with owners, architects, subcontractors, and members of their community. Led by President Phil Clark, who has 35 years of experience in the construction industry, DCG has built a reputation throughout the region as a company that truly values honesty and quality. Mr. Clark commented, We have a responsibility not only to ourselves but to all of our clients and our community to help them grow and prosper as much as we do, and truly believe that is why we have such a high rate of repeat business and clients who have been recommended from previous clients. We guide and help our project owners not only through the construction phase, but we are with them in the beginning when its just an idea and at the end when we are visiting them for their grand opening! As the exclusive Virginia builder partner for Building Gods Way, a national church architect that provides a network of kingdom building services, DCG also has a unique understanding of faith-based projects and a heart for ministry growth. DCG is committed to applying Christian principles of stewardship, relationships, and outreach on each ministry project and helping congregations be the best possible stewards of their God-given resources. After 10 successful years in business, the future is bright for DCG and the Building Gods Way program in Virginia. Currently, DCG and Building Gods Way are working with The Bridge Community Church in Warrenton, VA on their new 20,000 SF church facility with an expected start date in early March 2016. To view a portfolio of the many other churches and ministry-related projects completed by DCG, visit their web site at http://www.dcgcontractor.com/religious/. For more information, contact Anne Clark at Dominion Construction Group at 540- 428-3612 ext. 115 or anneclark(at)dcgcontractor(dot)com. Keller Williams Cupertino proudly announces the launch of Fling Yang & Associates, a personalized real estate consulting and sales practice in the Silicon Valley cities of Los Altos, Mountain View and surrounding areas. We are ecstatic that Christopher and Karen are joining forces, with our Keller Williams Cupertino Market Center as their home base, said Joseph Han, Team Leader of Keller Williams Cupertino. Independently, Christopher and Karen each boast an impressive track record of real estate contract negotiation and superior customer service delivery. We are excited that we can now offer Keller Williams Silicon Valley clients the benefit of Karens localized knowledge as a Los Altos native and Christophers national experience and exposure. They are already influential leaders and educators in our office, and will no doubt continue to be strong client advocates in the market with their local knowledge, particular brand of personalized service, and attention to detail. Christopher Fling, an accomplished leader and educator in the real estate industry, has held brokerage leadership positions around the US. As a Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist, Christopher uses his extensive negotiation and creative marketing experience to create a custom, targeted and strategic program for each home listing. Karen Yang, a Realtor, former CPA and Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist, came to real estate after a successful career in corporate tax consulting and marketing, most recently as Marketing Director at one of the California Bay Areas top CPA firms. A graduate of Los Altos High and UC Berkeley, Karens high-touch, personalized approach to selling and buying real estate uniquely positions her clients for success in a competitive, fast-paced market. Karen and I have had great respect for each others individual practices, and were confident that our complementary skills and experiences will prove a tremendous benefit to discerning clients seeking top-flight service, says Fling. Additionally, Keller Williams support of our efforts in the Los Altos and surrounding areas far surpasses that of other traditional brokers. The KW client- and agent-centric business model ensures that the needs of the client are put above the needs of a corporate brand or directive, which aligns perfectly with our core values. We know weve found the right home to help our clients find theirs. To learn more about Fling Yang & Associates or Keller Williams Realty, contact the Fling Yang & Associates offices at (650) 488-1289, christopherandkaren(at)flingyang.com or visit http://www.FlingYang.com. About Keller Williams Realty, Inc. Austin-Texas based Keller Williams Realty, Inc. is the largest real estate franchise by agent count in the world with 700 offices and 125,000 associates across the Americas, Europe, Africa and Asia. In 2015, Training Magazine named Keller Williams the No. 1 training organization across all industries in the world. Since 1983, Keller Williams has grown exponentially and continues to cultivate an agent-centric, education-based, technology-driven culture that rewards agents as stakeholders. The company also provides specialized agents in luxury homes, commercial and farm and ranch properties. For more information, visit http://www.kw.com. New Delhi: Lack of a national database on cancer in India remains a huge concern and there is an urgent need to make cancer noticeable with an electronic database, experts said on Wednesday on the eve of World Cancer Day. According Dr Sunil Kumar, Assistant Professor in Surgical Oncology at AIIMS, India doesn't have a comprehensive national picture as far as cancer burden is concerned though the disease has been found to be on the rise as per the population registry which is region specific. "Absence of National Registry leads to difficulties in formulating a nationwide policy on preventive as well as therapeutic measure to be taken to fight this menace," said Dr Kumar said. It will help ensure optimal utilisation of resources in areas with high prevalence of cancer. "A majority of cancer treatment centres are restricted to major urban areas and a vast majority of the rural population is not catered to through these centres located only in metropolis," said Dr Kumar. Having a national registry will generate the true picture of various types of cancer existing in the country, said Dr Shyam Aggarwal, Chairperson of Department of Medical Oncology at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, even as he stressed that not only diagnosis but the deaths should also be recorded. "That way, we will have data as to how many lives cancer has claimed in our country along with those getting affected." "Currently, most of the cancer registries are hospital- based and some hospitals do not even have registries. So, now when we talk about the cases going up, we are extra-collating from the hospital-based registry and thus the data is limited," said Dr Aggarwal. "Yet, even in the absence of comprehensive data, the trends indicate rising numbers. The incidence is rising faster in urban areas but the rise is also apparent in rural areas. Another worrying trend is increasing incidence in younger patients, those in their 20s and 30s," said Dr Vineet Talwar, Senior Consultant, Medical Oncology, Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute. "As compared to the West, Indians have an earlier age of presentation and to make it worse a more advanced stage of diagnosis compromising the cure rates and needing a lot more chemotherapy and radiation as the presentations are late." "Urbanisation contains several accompanying attributes such as obesity, lack of exercise, more consumption of fats, lifestyle changes and intake of alcohol. These factors tend to increase risk of cancer. Pollution is another factor of urbanisation that further encourages cancer," Dr Talwar said. Investor Management Services, LLC, a software development company offering an array of tools aimed at helping owners of commercial real estate to manage data and communicate with investors, announced Wednesday the opening of a new sales office in Chicago. IMS hired Jim Nestbitt to head the new Chicago office and lead the companys sales efforts in the Midwest. Jim has more than twenty years of sales experience, including time as an area sales manager with The Regus Group, the worlds largest provider of office space. He also was a principal at Scribcor Real Estate Services, which merged with NAI Hiffman Commercial Real Estate Services in 2003 where Jim was a vice president. Robert J. Finlay, CEO of Investor Management Services, said During his 20 years of experience, Jim has amassed an impressive track record of success. He has closed in excess of $850 million in real estate transactions as a broker, developer, investor and consultant. With Jims leadership, IMS is well positioned to bolster our customer base in the Midwest. I am confident that he will be integral to our efforts to help commercial real estate owners attract, engage and manage their investors. Investor Management Services new office is located at 10 N. Martindale Road, Suite 400, Schaumburg, IL 60173. Contact the office at 312-877-3493 or jnesbitt(at)imscre(dot)com. About Investor Management Services Investor Management Services, LLC is a member of the QuietStream Financial family of commercial real estate services and technology companies. Investor Management Services offers cutting-edge software that helps commercial real estate owners attract, engage and manage their investors and projects. The platform features investor dashboards, document management, investor communications, electronic document execution, and live customer service with more features and enhancements on the way. Learn more at http://www.investormanagementservices.com. The 25th annual California Water Policy Conference will take place on April 20-21, 2016 at the UC Davis Conference Center in Davis, California, and registration for the conference is now open. The two-day event brings together leaders from the agricultural, urban and environmental communities to discuss policy issues impacting Californias water. This years theme is Silver Anniversary, No Silver Bullet reflecting the conferences ongoing work in building bridges between agriculture, environmental and urban water interests regarding the difficult issues of managing the states water resources. Even as the El Nino condition brings rain downpours to parts of the state, years of drought have made an indelible impact on the states reservoirs, requiring continued conservation. Conference attendees will hear from the some of the states most influential leaders, including Californias water czar Felicia Marcus, chair of the California State Water Resources Control Board, and Glenda Humiston, vice president of agriculture and natural resources at the University of California. Marcus and Humiston are the opening keynote speakers on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively. The conferences closing speaker will be Dave Wegner, the recently retired staff director for the U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee on water, energy and transportation. Authors David and Janet Carle will deliver the luncheon keynote, speaking about their book, Travelling the 38th Parallel: A Water Line Around the World, which took them from Mono Lake to Turkmenistan and the Azores Islands. The conference began as a vision by environmentalist Dorothy Green to bring different perspectives to the same table. Today, the annual event is an established forum drawing participants from around the state who share concern about the states water supply and want to find collaborative solutions. Conference attendees will also be able to sign up for a bus tour and overview of new salmon recovery efforts in the Sacramento Valley after the conference closing session, organized by the conference staff and the Sacramento River Watershed Program. Registration for both days of the conference includes continental breakfast each day, lunch on Wednesday and all conference materials. Special rates for students and non-profit organizations are available. The Bridges House Homepage "Through pictures, prose, and design, Danconias creative work captures the residence of New Hampshires governor perfectly." - New Hampshire's First Gentleman Tom Hassan Danconia Media, a New Hampshire based web design and digital marketing firm, is excited to announce the launch of their latest non-profit project: a brand new website for The Bridges Houseboth a historical home and official residence of all NH sitting governors. The Bridges House also serves as the setting for many official state functions held by the Governor. New Hampshires First Gentleman Tom Hassan says that, Through pictures, prose, and design, Danconias creative work captures the residence of New Hampshires governor perfectlya place where Granite Staters can relive the past, discover history, and experience New Hampshires rich cultural heritage. The new website will assist in furthering educational effortsteaching students and citizens about this wonderful piece of local history. The fresh design also makes it easier for The Bridges House to connect and engage with donors, ensuring that this historical property is an asset for the people of New Hampshire. With increased online functionality, the public will be encouraged to visit this historic home and learn more about the political past and present of New Hampshirea state thats primary is so important to our presidential election process. The Bridges House is listed on both the New Hampshire and National Register Of Historic Places. It was clear through their impressive work that the Danconia team was helpful, driven, and committed to creating a site that promotes a piece of NH history. The Friends of Bridges House Board looks forward to our continued connection with such a talented group of web designers, says Tom Hassan. For more information, contact Rebecca Blanchette at (603) 529-8175 or rblanchette(at)danconia.com. Danconia Media is a full-service web design and marketing firm that takes a unique approach to both online and traditional campaigns. Specialties include web development, content development, search engine optimization, Internet marketing, branding, trade show design, and more. Find us online at danconia.com or call us at (603) 529-8175. ### The Association of Strategic Alliance Professionals (ASAP), the worlds leading professional association dedicated to the practice of alliance management, partnering, and collaborations, announced nine finalists in three categories for their annual Alliance Excellence Awards: Individual Alliance Excellence, Innovative Best Alliance Practice, and Alliance Program Excellence. The winners will be announced at the upcoming 2016 ASAP Global Alliance Summit, Partnering Everywhere: Expert Leadership for the Ecosystem, March 14 at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, National Harbor, Maryland, USA. The ASAP Alliance Excellence Awards highlight the best and brightest in partnering and alliance management. The significance of these awards cannot be underestimated, remarked Michael Leonetti, president and CEO of ASAP, about the unveiling of the finalists. These awards are proof in the pudding that effective leadership, a strong alliance management function, and sophisticated partnering practices pay off in successful, healthy alliances. The awards highlight the efforts, achievements, and innovations that improve strategy and productivity of partnering programs, with benefits to partnering companies bottom lines as well as to society in general. These finalists were selected because they have proven their worth as leaders in the field of alliance management. Past winners received ASAP Alliance Excellence Awards for significant strides through partnering that increased revenues, contributed to society through creative business models and problem solving, enhanced products/services/technologies, advanced the profession, etc. The contributions positively impacted many facets of businessincluding marketing, sales, R&D/joint product development, regulatory affairs, strategic sourcing and services, and the channel. All winners dovetailed in three key areas: creative, out-of-the-box thinking that evolved the art and science of alliance management; compelling and measurable results; general persistence in overcoming obstacles. Individual Alliance Excellence Award Four finalists (representing eight companies) are vying for the Individual Alliance Excellence Award, which is given to companies that have led in the planning, implementation, and results for a single alliance. The alliance may be between two companies or multiple organizations. The finalists are: AbbVie-Genentech Roche: This eight-year collaboration is based on significant trust that allows each company to lead certain clinical development independently, with oversight provided via joint governance meetings involving their research on relapsed or refractory chronic lymphocytic leukemia (R/R CLL). The shared commitment to patients and patient care drives product development, which resulted in the distribution in 2015 of venetoclax to patients as quickly as possible. The companies collaborated to gain Breakthrough Therapy Designation for the treatment of relapsed or refractory CLL, which accounts for about one-quarter of all new cases of leukemia. Cisco-Dimension Data: Cisco and Dimension Data named their alliance Better Together after successfully managing a lengthy high-tech alliance spanning the Internets birth to the Internet of Everything. The companies have co-developed and re-engineered vertical solutions, security, and managed services that are delivering desirable IT outcomes. More recently, they collaborated on a service creation strategy that allows Dimension Data to operate 17 Cisco-powered managed cloud platforms around the world. The partner solutions and services are provided in 58 countries via vendors, technology towers, consumptions models, and architectures. Record revenues for both companies are the shared fruits of this longstanding alliance. International SOS-Control Risks: When two competing companies in the travel security-related services decided to partner, the jointly owned and managed entity was nothing short of progressive. Strong governance structures and a yearlong alliance design period provided the underpinnings for the first alliance of its kind in their business sector: medical services and security consultancy. The joining of forces allows clients the convenience of accessing a package of complementary services and has shifted market perception of support and assistance to business travelers and ex-patriotsfrom mass security events, such as violent coups, to epidemics. The partnership has paid off in rapid growth, profitability, and market leadership. Panduit-General Cable: Within the past year, the partnership developed from a sell to/buy from relationship to direct sales efforts with joint channel campaigns. The companies operate as technology research partners (establishing joint intellectual property) that offer significant future value and ROI, with increased partnership revenue due to the innovation and efforts of the alliance management teams. They credit access to the ASAP community of knowledge and practices, as well as defining and applying metrics, as keys to success. Innovative Best Alliance Practice Award This years Innovative Best Alliance Practice Award will be presented to one of two companies for the use of new, individual alliance management tools or processes that have an immediate and powerful impact on the organization and/or discipline of alliance management. The tools or processes are additions to existing portfolios that address specific elements of alliance management, such as measurement, training, conflict resolution, general communication across the partner ecosystem, or similar facets of the discipline. The finalists are: National Instruments: The Alliance Partner Directory (http://ni.com/findapartner) is part of NIs partner relationship management strategy involving an innovative management tool that enables NI customers and employees to find and research the best experts to solve difficult engineering problems. The database allows customers to view vast amounts of company information, including case studies, datasheets, and ratings and reviews from the partners customer, which enhances credibility and trust. Alliance partners can manage their own profiles through a private portal. The system also tracks the number of leads, contacts, and customer information. The directory was developed in conjunction with partnering management software company Treehouse Interactive. Takeda Russia: In an effort to enhance bonding between Takada Russia and its CIS and In-Lic partners, the company created a two-day Partner Days event in 2006 that has become embedded bi-annually. The theme of the 2015 event was Traditions and Innovations, which reflects Takadas tradition of respect for cultures, traditions, and historical values. The goal of Partner Days is to assist in cooperation and communication to high-level stakeholders where all partners are invited, regardless of alliance size, which sends the message that all alliances are valued. Participants experience a mix of business and cultural activities, which has resulted in enhanced company communications, performance, and sales. Alliance Program Excellence Award The Alliance Program Excellence Award is presented to a company that exceeds expectations by consistently implementing and managing alliance portfolios and demonstrating consistent success of those alliances over time. Winners build programs on efficiency, creativity, and an integrated suite of tools, processes, professional development/alliance professional certification, and other elements. The three finalists are: Bayer: Bayer began making radical changes to the companys organizational structure about five years ago with the establishment of the Alliance Capability Enhancement Project, where more than 400 people were assigned to train staff in core alliance skills, including remote learning. The goal was to change the corporate mindset to collaborate more successfully and deliver significant joint value in partnering. Alliance management is now integrated much earlier in the deal making process, resulting in measurable improvements in launch speed; senior managers are more actively engaged in partnering and many have regular meetings with partner counterparts; team training has increased and improved alliance management techniques, including cultural and product supply workshops. Through the use of new technology, Bayer also built a virtual community of shared sites for alliances and a resource hub. Huawei Technologies: A newcomer to ASAP, Huawei has quickly grasped the value of thoughtful alliance practices by creating a Managing Alliance Relationships (MAR) process to create a partner-friendly organization across all alliance and ecosystem activities. The company launched two successful pilot programs, SAP and Accenture (HASA), which adapted new international structures that complement Chinese culture. MAR is geared to transforming Huaweis sales and service markets into an open and trusted partnership culture to expand into the enterprise market. The pilot programs have adapted into collaborative-friendly entities that work well beyond Chinas boarders and have added millions to its global pipeline so far. National Instruments: Nearly 25 years ago, National Instruments established the Alliance Partner Network to enhance partnering success through a holistic business view. The network consists of 1,000 alliance partners in over 70 countries. Membership benefits include: access to a billion-dollar ecosystem; visibility to millions of potential customers on ni.com; significant discounts on solutions tools for addressing the toughest engineering challenges, certifications, products, and training; direct engagement with NI sales and marketing organizations worldwide. NI also provides Regional Partner Managers worldwide to help members be successful. The network is known for generating and delivering solutions through educational tools and collective efforts to solve some of the most difficult engineering challenges in the world. About the 2016 ASAP Alliance Excellence Awards Award finalists in each category are selected by the ASAP Alliance Excellence Awards Committee led by committee chair, Annlouise Goodermuth, senior director, alliance management, strategy, science policy and external innovation at Sanofi. This years winners and other news from the 2016 ASAP Global Alliance Summit will be reported on the ASAP blog site http://www.strategic-alliances.org/blogpost/1143942/ASAP-Blog and via press release in March. About the 2016 ASAP Global Alliance Summit Held this year on March 1-4 at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, National Harbor, Maryland, USA, the annual ASAP Global Alliance Summit is the worlds largest gathering of alliance, partnering, and business collaboration professionals. For more information or to register for this years summit, visit http://www.asapweb.org/summit. About ASAP The Association of Strategic Alliance Professionals (ASAP) is the only professional association dedicated to elevating and promoting the profession of alliance management and partnerships. Founded in 1998, the organization provides professional development, networking and resources for cultivating the skills and toolsets needed to manage successful business partnerships. ASAPs professional certifications include the Certificate of Achievement-Alliance Management (CA-AM) and Certified Strategic Alliance Professional (CSAP). Active global members include AbbVie, Astellas, AstraZeneca, Bayer Healthcare, Capgemini, Cisco, Citrix, Covance, Dell, Eli Lilly and Company, Huawei, IBM, INC Research, JanssenPharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, KPMG, Merck, Mission Pharmacal, NetApp, Novartis, Plantronics, Sanofi, SAS, Schneider Electric, Takeda, Verizon, VMware, The Warren Company, and Xerox. A complete list of global members is available at http://www.strategic-alliances.org. # # # Stephen G. Turner, founder of Stephen G. Turner Associates, a San Francisco-based auction and appraisal consulting firm founded in 2004, has announced the launch of Turner Auctions + Appraisals, based in South San Francisco, California. Created to complement and expand the capabilities that were previously offered, the new company presents online auctions in diverse categories of personal property (http://www.turnerauctionsonline.com). In addition, the company offers a range of auction and appraisal services for buyers, sellers and collectors. Turner Auctions + Appraisals online auctions are held several times a month through leading online auction platforms. The companys online auctions feature property in diverse categories, including Fine Art Prints, Photographs & Works on Paper; Fine Art Paintings & Sculpture; Decorative Arts; Silver; Asian & Ethnic Arts; Jewelry & Timepieces; Luxury Accessories & Vintage Fashion; Vintage Posters; Automobilia; Books & Manuscripts; Toys; Coins; Militaria and more. In addition to online auctions, the company offers related personal property services, including appraisals for individuals, estate attorneys, insurance companies and museums. Prepared for all purposes, the company's appraisals conform to the stringent industry standards of USPAP (Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice). While the company's online buyers and collectors are not limited by geography, its activities for consignors and appraisals generally serve those in California and the San Francisco Bay Area. A well-known presence in the areas auction industry, Mr. Turner noted that the new company has been in the planning stages for some time. We are delighted to launch our new online auction firm, Mr. Turner said. Our company gives auction enthusiasts an engaging new venue to purchase and consign fine quality property. We invite buyers, sellers and collectors to visit our online auctions, review the schedule of upcoming events, and contact us with questions. Turner Auctions + Appraisals looks forward to working with auction and appraisal clients, both old and new, and offering exceptional new and expanded services to meet their needs. Stephen Turner is an accredited appraiser and auctioneer with over 25 years' experience with leading auction houses in California and Western Canada. With numerous appearances on TV, radio and newspapers, he is also a frequent guest speaker and charity auctioneer. Mr. Turner has often appeared in the media, including for five years as a regular featured appraiser on HGTV's "Appraise It!", and for 10 years in the San Francisco Chronicle's Sunday appraisal feature, "What's It Worth?." He is a popular guest speaker on art and antiques at seminars and appraisal events in California. Mr. Turner also has been the lead auctioneer in Northern California and Western Canada for several auction houses, and makes frequent appearances at Bay Area charity auctions. ### For more information about the company, please contact: Stephen Turner President, Turner Auctions + Appraisals 461 Littlefield Avenue South San Francisco, CA 94080 Telephone: San Francisco: 415-964-5250 Los Angeles: 310-997-0400 Toll-Free: 888-498-4450 Email: sturner(at)turnerauctionsonline.com http://www.turnerauctionsonline.com On Monday the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Electrify Africa Act, a bill that will provide access to power to millions of people in sub-Saharan Africa who currently live without reliable electricity. The bill establishes a comprehensive U.S. policy towards the development of a mix of power solutions, including renewable energy, for the expansion of reliable access to electricity in the region. This access will support poverty reduction and promote development outcomes in the areas of health, education and economic growth. The Electrify Africa Act seeks to address the massive electricity shortage in Africa, said House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA). It is a direct a response to the fact that today 600 million people living in sub-Saharan Africa - thats 70 percent of the population - do not have access to reliable electricity. Chairman Royce noted that Africa has great potential as a trading partner with the U.S. and could help to create jobs here in America. But the U.S. is not alone in its interest in trade with Africa. Just last month the Peoples Republic of China pledged $60 billion in financial support to the continent, Rep. Royce said. If the United States wants to tap into this potential consumer base we need to be aggressively building partnerships on the continent, which is what this bill does. Democratic Representative Brendan Boyle said that providing reliable electricity would help individuals in schools and work, communities in hospitals and businesses, and countries in providing stability and strength on the global stage. This legislation puts into law President Obamas 2013 Power Africa initiative, said Rep. Boyle. It seeks to create strong new partnerships among governments, banks and other private sector investors with the aim of providing first time power to 50 million people by 2020. Since 2013, The Borgen Project, a Seattle-based nonprofit that works to make poverty reduction a focus of U.S. foreign policy, held 396 meetings with members of Congress to discuss support for the Electrify Africa Act. Close to 6,400 emails were also sent to members of Congress from supporters of The Borgen Project, requesting support for this bill. "Lack of electricity is the root cause of unemployment and poverty in Africa," said Clint Borgen, president and founder of The Borgen Project. "In 2016, you can't have thriving businesses, schools and hospitals without electricity. A 2015 Congressional Budget Office analysis showed that the legislation would not present additional costs to the U.S. economy. Meighan A. Harmon, Senior Partner Being named one of the top female attorneys in Illinois is an honor, said Harmon. It is truly privilege to serve my clients and work for a firm with an unparalleled reputation. Schiller DuCanto & Fleck, LLP is proud to announce that senior partner, Meighan A. Harmon, has been selected as a Top 50 Woman Attorney in Illinois by Super Lawyers, the publications top honor for female lawyers. The nominating process by Super Lawyers Magazine invited attorneys to nominate the top lawyers they have personally observed in action, whether as opposing counsel, co-counsel, or through other firsthand observation in the courtroom. Being named one of the top female attorneys in Illinois is an honor, said Harmon. It is truly privilege to serve my clients and work for a firm with an unparalleled reputation. Meighan focuses on complex family law cases involving the distribution of multi-million dollar estates, a complicated endeavor to satisfy. In determining how to navigate the divorce, Harmon first collaborates with the client to determine an end goal. She believes divorce offers clients a unique opportunity to build a positive future for themselves, complete with financial and emotional security. Harmon provides her clients with the tools necessary to help them construct a solid path to their new lives. For her clients, divorce is often a springboard to reinventing themselves. Harmon serves on the Board of Directors of The Lilac Tree and the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers Foundation (AAML), both not for profit organizations that assist families touched by divorce. As an active member of the AAML and the International Association of Family Law, Meighan frequently writes and travels, both across the United States and internationally, to lecture on and learn about the future of family law across the world. A published author, Meighan has assisted researching and drafting the book Problems in Family Law. She also co-authors a chapter for the Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education titled Unique Employee Benefits: Stock Options, ESOPs, Etc and published articles in the Matrimonial Strategist, the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, The Family Advocate, and other publications. At 43, Meighan and her husband Frank live in Chicagos Lincoln Square neighborhood. She is an active parent at the Academy of the Sacred Heart, where their 10 year-old daughter attends school. About Schiller DuCanto & Fleck LLP Schiller DuCanto & Fleck LLP is the largest law firm in the country focusing exclusively on family law. Internationally recognized in the field of family law, its 43 lawyers have more than 700 years of combined experience and have been named as outstanding attorneys in peer ratings and publications including The Best Lawyers in America, Illinois Super Lawyers, and the Leading Lawyers Network. With three offices in the Chicagoland area, the firms large size is unique among family law firms. Using a team approach, the firms attorneys concentrate on particular practice areas within family and matrimonial law. Schiller DuCanto & Flecks talented lawyers have served the profession in many capacities including former Chief Judges of county Domestic Relations Divisions, former Justices of the Appellate Court and Judges of the Illinois Circuit Court. Its attorneys are on the faculties of several Chicago law schools and authors of numerous articles in state and national publications. Schiller DuCanto & Flecks mission is to work with clients to solve problems and achieve the best possible result, providing a wide range of services tailored to its clients unique needs. As part of their commitment to the local community, the firms lawyers give a minimum of 40 hours a year to pro bono activities. In addition, DePaul University College of Law recognized Schiller DuCanto & Fleck by naming its family law center in honor of the firm. The Schiller DuCanto & Fleck Family Law Center is the largest center in the nation at an accredited law school focused on teaching students family law. For more information about Schiller DuCanto & Fleck LLP visit http://www.sdflaw.com ### Maram, 13, a refugee from Daraa, Syria, takes the train with her family from Presevo, Serbia, to the Croatian border. photo courtesy of Mercy Corps Even a small amount of cash lets people choose how they prioritize their individual needs, in addition to offering a measure of protection. The global organization Mercy Corps has launched a new pilot program to distribute MasterCard prepaid debit cards to an estimated 5,600 eligible refugees traveling through Serbia, in partnership with the Serbian Ministry of Labor. Families will receive cards of 210 Euros, and individuals will receive cards of 70 Euros, which can be used to purchase what they need most. It is the first such program in the region to use an international payment mechanism to help the tens of thousands of refugees and migrants seeking haven in Europe. At Mercy Corps, we believe cash assistance is the most rapid, efficient and dignified manner of providing humanitarian aid, says Rebecca Thompson, Mercy Corps team leader for its refugee response in the Balkans. Even a small amount of cash lets people choose how they prioritize their individual needs, in addition to offering a measure of protection. And an important side benefit is that this kind of program infuses cash into the economy and markets of the communities that are hosting refugees. The stream of people journeying to Europe continues steadily despite the harsh winter weather, with an estimated 1,000 to 3,000 people traveling through the Balkans every day. Mercy Corps is focusing its distributions on people who are the most vulnerable: people with disabilities, the elderly, women traveling alone, those in financial need and others at particular risk. The card can be used anywhere in the world that accepts MasterCard. It comes pre-loaded with the estimated funds families would need to buy essential supplies and obtain shelter over the 72-hour period typically spent in Serbia. Although we are able to help several thousand people over the next two months, the reality is that thousands more urgently need assistance, says Thompson. To support Mercy Corps work in the Balkans and elsewhere in the world, go to mercycorps.org/donate. Destination weddings can be large and small. David & Candace Martin, had an intimate wedding at Calabash Cove in St. Lucia. Destination weddings are a growing market that hometown vendors can tap into even if the wedding is being held in another location. I am looking forward to sharing news, tips, trends and more with attendees of this amazing conference. Marilyn Cairo, Managing Partner of AskMeWeddings.com, will be a guest panelist at WeddingWire World 2016, an education-focused wedding industry event to be held in Washington, DC, February 9-11. Cairo will join a panel of experts to discuss Destination Weddings on February 11 at 11:20 am. It is a great honor to join the destination weddings panel discussion for Wedding Wires annual industry conference, says Marilyn Cairo of AskMeWeddings.com, Destination weddings are a growing market that hometown vendors can tap into even if the wedding is being held in another location. I am looking forward to sharing news, tips, trends and more with attendees of this amazing conference. WeddingWire World is a three-day educational trade event featuring top industry and business speakers. The conference is February 9-11, 2016 in Washington, DC. WeddingWire is the leading global online marketplace connecting consumers with wedding and event professionals. For more information visit http://www.weddingwireworld.com/. About AskMeInc AskMeInc is a hospitality sales and marketing company. The Miami-based firm has two divisions: AskMeWeddings and AskMeHoneymoons. The divisions develop and coordinate stress-free solutions for destination weddings, honeymoons and romance travel. With more than two-dozen romance representatives in their office, AskMeInc works with couples and travel agents to plan the perfect destination wedding. AskMeInc offers monthly webinars for travel agents and consumers, sales blitzes for hotels, and represents hotels at the top wedding shows across the USA and Canada. For more information visit http://www.AskMeInc.com or call 1-877-44-ASK ME. Exploring space is a dream for any tech enthusiast. Recently DFRobot (http://www.dfrobot.com) was contacted by Scientists from the Friedrich-Alexander-University (FAU) in Germany. Together with Deutsches Zentrum fur Luft- und Raumfahrt (The German Aerospace Center, or DLR for short), they prepare the Eu:CROPIS satellite mission for 2017/2018. And some of boards from DFRobot will be right on it. The DLR is the national center for aerospace, energy and transportation research in Germany. It engages in a wide range of research and development projects for national and international partnerships. The Eu:CROPIS mission (Euglena and Combined Regenerative Organic-Food Production in Space) is one of their projects. In this project they aim to create a symbiotic community of bacteria, tomatoes and single-celled algae using synthetic urine(!) on board a satellite that simulates the gravity of the Moon or Mars. The project will last for one year. Two greenhouses are scheduled to launch into space in 2017. Inside, waste products will be recycled to produce fertilizer for growing tomatoes. This mission will observe the greenhouses while they are in differing levels of gravity: for the first 6 months, the satellite will spin with a rotational speed creating lunar gravity inside. Then it will speed up to simulate Martian gravity and start the second experiment run. It will also aim to collect data on long-term exposure to cosmic radiation over the course of the space flight. In addition, the US space agency NASA will contribute a small independent experiment to measure the rate of photosynthesis in algae. These experiments are expected to deliver important results to help enable humankind to survive in hostile environments whether in space or here on Earth. Thanks to FAU and DLR, a small part of DFRobot is going to travel into space. DFRobot hope this project is a great success and its experiment will benefit humanity. They also hope that the development of the Maker Movement will stimulate exploration of the unknown worlds! Opensource hardware is ushering in a new era of DIY space exploration? That's true. Starting own space program has never been easier thanks to low cost software and manufacturing tools. Some people even build satellites in their garage! Two Argentinian satellites (satellite one, satellite two) recently released the framework and flight computer software for their main platform. For more information about Eu:CROPIS: http://www.dlr.de/dlr/en/desktopdefault.aspx/tabid-10212/332_read-10095/year-all/#/gallery/14438 For more information about DFRobot: http://www.dfrobot.com Charminar may be Hyderabads most popular tourist spot but a tourist, on Wednesday, alleged that security personnel at the monument refused to let her enter the terrace of the monument because she was a single lady. At 5.15 pm Japleen Pasricha, 26, a Delhi-based activist and founder of FeminismInIndia.com, bought herself a ticket at the counter and tried walking up the staircase when she was stopped by a female security guard. She asked me to show her my ticket. When she asked if I was alone, I said yes and she said I couldnt go up. When I asked her why she had said, Yahaan ek suicide hua tha, toh single ladies cant go up. Then they suggested that I go up but with a guard accompanying me all the time. I didnt accept that, and asked if single men are also not allowed. And she said, no, the rule is only for single ladies, Japleen says. After arguing with security about the absurdity of the rule, Japleen mentioned that she was a tourist. Only then (the man at the ticket counter) said okay now you can go. Its very weird, like only single, Hyderabadi women cant go up, adding that even then, she was shadowed by a security guard. After writing complaints to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and the Telangana State Tourism Development Corporation, Japleen says she also spoke to a woman from the ASI who was apologetic about the incident. She said that it wasnt an ASI rule. But because an incident had happened in the past, the local authorities might have made up the rule. But she didnt say that they would take any action. Dr Gopal Rao, a conservation assistant with the ASI confirmed to this newspaper that this wasnt a rule, but was a practice for womens safety on the staircase. Dr Gopal Rao, a conservation assistant with the ASI confirmed to this newspaper that this wasnt a rule, but was a practice for womens safety on the staircase. The staircase is narrow and only one person can enter at a time. If anyone comes from the top, there may be issues because shes alone. This is why were asking them to wait for a group to go up. Some women themselves have requested that they be accompanied, so we sometimes send a female security guard along with them. I advocate for gender equality all the time and when it (something like this) happens to you, for a few seconds youre just numb. You dont know what to do, says Japleen. Parkifi is changing the way we look at smart cities, big data, the Internet of Things (IoT), and parking operations. Cornerstone Communications, LTD was selected by Parkifi as its North American public relations and marketing strategy agency of record. Cornerstone was awarded the Parkifi contract because of its significant expertise in the technology, traffic, parking, municipality, and property management verticals. Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, Parkifi is a fast-growing technology company focused on providing their customers with real-time parking data. This real-time, spot-level data enables parking managers to run their operation more efficiently and drivers to find a parking space faster. Parkifi has their smart sensors installed across the nation and continues to see consistent growth. Parkifi is changing the way we look at smart cities, big data, the Internet of Things (IoT) and parking operations ," said Brooke Greenwald, President, Cornerstone Communications, LTD. The data and analytics Parkifi offers its customers enables them to better understand how their parking inventory is being utilized on a daily basis, as well as historically. Parkifi was founded on the premise that if technology helps solve the food delivery woes of the world, why cant it help us solve parking inefficiencies? Parkifi uses their unique sensors to detect occupancy in individual parking spaces while delivering such data, along with weather, event and other valuable data, to parking operators in real time. The sensor, equipped with Bluetooth connectivity, also communicates with users smartphones via a third party mobile app, directing them to open parking spaces. We are thrilled to be working with Cornerstone Communications, LTD, said Ryan Sullivan, CEO and Co-Founder. Our goal is to equip parking operators with tools theyve never had before, in order to grow their top line, while also creating a far better experience for drivers trying to find parking. Parkifi is more than a parking sensor company, we are changing the way cities operate. With our sensors, we can reduce city traffic and parking hassles by directing drivers to a parking space, all through our partner mobile apps on their smartphone. Our real-time dashboard provides the robust data operators need to solve the pervasive parking problems that make our cities inefficient. Were looking forward to what working with Cornerstone will mean for Parkifis national presence. About Parkifi Parkifi, a real-time parking spot occupancy platform, provides real-time occupancy data tailored for parking and property management. Parkifi installs smart sensors in individual parking spaces to monitor occupancy, average parking times, pricing optimization trends and outcomes, violations and more. For more information visit http://www.parkifi.com About Cornerstone Communications, LTD Cornerstone Communications, LTD is a public relations, marketing strategy, and integrated communications agency focusing on the technology, consumer, telecommunications, and business-to-business vertical markets. Cornerstone has extensive experience working with organizations of all sizes, from startup to Fortune 1000. For more information on Cornerstone, please contact Brooke Greenwald at brooke(at)cornerstonepr.net or visit http://www.cornerstonepr.net. Haldor's RFID tagged Sponges "The release of our new sponge tag improves the capabilities of our newly released ORLocate Sponge system" said Ilan Kadosh-Tamari, CEO of Haldor. Haldor Advanced Technologies announced today the release of a new RFID tag for its line of RFID marked sponges, gauzes, and towels. The new ORLocate Sponge Tag was designed especially for tracking sponges, towels, and additional sterile consumables. Its cylinder shape dramatically reduces the footprint compared to the token shaped tag previously used, and the new tag can easily be embedded into smaller sponges and gauzes. One of the advantages of the new ORLocate Sponge Tag is it's 20-inch detection range (suitable for bariatric surgeries), the highest detection range for any sponge tag in the market. In parallel to the release of the new ORLocate Sponge Tag, Haldor has won a key patent on a novel method and system for attaching RFID tags to disposable items such as sponges. The release of our new sponge tag improves the capabilities of our newly released ORLocate Sponge system. Haldor is constantly raising the bar in intraoperative adjunct technologies, utilizing RFID to provide best of class solutions, said Ilan Kadosh-Tamari, CEO of Haldor. Through our newest patents and the others in our portfolio, we have demonstrated industry leadership in three areas that are key to the future of perioperative workflows: Surgical Instrument Track and Trace, Retained Surgical Items (Sponges & Instruments), and Counting & Reconciliation of Sponges, added Kadosh-Tamari. Alongside the release of the new ORLocate Sponge Tag, Haldor further enhances the usability and mobility of the ORLocate Sponge System with a custom built Roll-Stand that reduces the intraoperative footprint. The new Roll-Stand includes convenient hangers for the Locator and the HoveRead and its superb stability enables to easily position it in the most convenient location in the operating room per use-case. Haldor continues to stand by its commitment to provide hospitals with a single platform for track and trace of surgical items, and with the new ORLocate Sponge Tag it is now possible to easily count and locate an array of sterile consumables. About Haldor Advanced Technologies Haldor Advanced Technologies is a privately held company that specializes in developing solutions for the healthcare industry. The company's flagship product, ORLocate, is an automated RFID based system that is designed to help hospitals improve patient safety, reduce costs, and improve operational efficiency in both the operating room and the sterile processing department. ORLocate is the only commercially available solution that monitors and tracks surgical instruments and consumables, including sponges, on an individual basis before, during, and at the conclusion of a surgical procedure. ORLocate offers an advanced solution for inventory tracking and asset and life-cycle management of surgical instruments and sponges. Headquartered in Hod-Hasharon, Israel, Haldor has offices in Europe, the Middle East, and North America alongside a network of partners in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific. We know when individuals and groups understand and utilize their unique strengths that motivation, engagement and learning can be dramatically accelerated. Mayerson Academy, in partnership with the Deer Park Community City Schools, was named a recommended awardee for the FY16 Straight A Fund from the Ohio Department of Education. Aimed at helping schools launch creative new ideas for improving education, the application "Building Strong Character to Build Strong Learners," was one of only 20 selected through a rigorous process. The $106,000 grant will support implementation of the Thriving Learning Communities with Happify program, which will introduce the science of character strengths to Deer Park Community City Schools. Thriving Learning Communities with Happify is an innovative blended learning program that applies the science of character strengths and the engagement of digital games to deliver a strengths-based learning program. Mayerson Academys exclusive partnership with the highly regarded VIA Institute on Character, an international thought leader in the field of positive psychology, creates a powerful research foundation for the program. Mayerson Academys exclusive partnership with Happify brings a proprietary, patent-pending framework to create a fully blended learning environment. Expected outcomes, which will be assessed and measured as part of the grant process, include increased student motivation, well-being and performance. This initiative addresses a growing national awareness that perhaps we have viewed learning and learners far too narrowly, said Jillian Darwish, Ed.D., President of Mayerson Academy, We know when individuals and groups understand and utilize their unique strengths that motivation, engagement and learning can be dramatically accelerated. The result is simultaneously maximizing performance, well-being, and happiness and thats why we are so passionate about this work. Mayerson Academy is breaking new ground in education reform by bringing character science to K-12 educators, students, and parents, said Neal H. Mayerson, Ph.D., Chairman of the Via Institute. We are so pleased the Academy has been awarded the very competitive and prestigious Ohio Straight A grant to advance this important work. We are so excited about the opportunity to bring this program to Deer Park, said Lynn Ochs, Senior Learning Designer for Mayerson Academy and thrilled that Ohio has joined other states in recognizing the impact social and emotional learning can have on student well being and achievement. Deer Park Schools is continuously looking for avenues to bring innovative programming to our students," said Jeff Langdon, Superintendent of Deer Park Community City Schools."We are very fortunate this innovative program will be supported with grant funding from the Ohio Department of Education. I would personally like to thank Assistant Superintendent, Jay Phillips, for leading the Deer Park team through this very competitive grant writing process. We were one of only 20 grants awarded throughout the State of Ohio. # # # For more than two decades Mayerson Academy has been deeply committed to inspiring successful outcomes for learners of all ages through creative, customized services and learning experiences. Since our beginning in 1992, the Academy has proudly partnered with Cincinnati Public Schools, the highest-performing urban district in Ohio, with whom we design, deliver and/or manage more than 600 learning opportunities for more than 3000 educators annually. Now through our online, blended or place-based experiences, we reach nearly 100 districts across the country, and have developed new programs that reach as far as Oman, South Africa, Angola and Australia! To learn more about the Straight A Fund, visit the Ohio Department of Education: http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Straight-A-Fund. CHICAGO and TORONTO WarmlyYours Radiant Heating has been awarded Best Of Houzz for Customer Satisfaction by Houzz, the leading platform for home remodeling and design. Both a pioneer and innovative leader in the radiant heating industry, WarmlyYours was chosen by the more than 16 million monthly users that comprise the Houzz community. The Best Of Houzz award is given in two categories: Customer Satisfaction and Design. Customer Satisfaction honors are determined by a variety of factors, including the number and quality of client reviews a professional received in 2015. WarmlyYours received a Best Of Houzz 2016 badge on its profile, showing the Houzz community its commitment to excellence. These badges help homeowners identify popular and top-rated home professionals in every metro area on Houzz. We really appreciate our pros, in fact, we even did a Houzz campaign just to thank them, said Julia Billen, president of WarmlyYours Radiant Heating. Houzz is considered our most effective social media platform. We are pleased to have received 8 profile badges so far and be selected as the Best of Houzz for a third time. Linnay Grosche, Social Media Manager for WarmlyYours, corresponded. We couldnt have won the Best of Houzz 2016 for Design if it werent for the Pros who collaborated on a project with us and shared the images. It was a team effort and we are incredibly grateful for support of our radiant Pros. Houzz provides homeowners with the most comprehensive view of home building, remodeling and design professionals, empowering them to find and hire the right professional to execute their vision, said Liza Hausman, vice president of community for Houzz. Were delighted to recognize WarmlyYours among our Best Of professionals for customer satisfaction as judged by our community of homeowners and design enthusiasts who are actively remodeling and decorating their homes. With Houzz, homeowners can identify not only the top-rated professionals like WarmlyYours, but also those whose work matches their own aspirations for their home. Homeowners can also evaluate professionals by contacting them directly on the Houzz platform, asking questions about their work and reviewing their responses to questions from others in the Houzz community. Follow WarmlyYours on Houzz at http://www.houzz.com/warmlyyours. About WarmlyYours Radiant Heating Since 1999, WarmlyYours Radiant Heating has offered the industrys most innovative solutions in radiant heating technology, from our flagship floor heating systems and radiant wall panels to snow melting products and towel warmers. With locations in the U.S. and Canada, WarmlyYours provides unrivaled personalized customer support from start to finish, featuring measuring and design services, 24/7 technical support, and our No Nonsense Warranty. For more information, visit: http://www.WarmlyYours.com. Media Contact: Yamna Irfan Marketing Content Writer WarmlyYours Radiant Heating P: 800-875-5285, ext. 876 yirfan(at)warmlyyours(dot)com Dr. Foad Nahai Restraining access to care will degrade the general wellness of the U.S. patient population and result in more expensive inpatient care. On Jan. 25 Kaiser Health News and the Washington Post featured an article discussing employer health insurance plans that exclude outpatient surgery from coverage. The American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities (AAAASF) sees this failure to cover outpatient surgery as a shortsighted attempt to address cost and a stark and troubling development for a number of reasons. Now entering its 36th year, AAAASF promotes the highest quality patient safety in the ambulatory surgery setting (office-based or outpatient) and rehabilitation and outpatient therapy agencies, as well as rural health clinics. AAAASF encourages legislators and regulators in all states and at the federal level to take action to roll back such plans. Based on the Jan. 25 article, the health plans in question do not discriminate between the settings for outpatient surgery. Office-based surgery settings, Ambulatory Surgery Centers and hospital outpatient departments are all subject to these exclusions, attempting to provide a viable solution for employers who can neither purchase more robust plans nor pay government penalties. However, the exclusion carries potentially serious implications for health care quality, according to AAAASF President, Dr. Foad Nahai. He said AAAASF has collected peer review and unanticipated event reports for over a decade. The resulting statistics indicate accredited outpatient settings are as safe as or safer than published hospital safety rates. With more than 20 million patient procedures in the AAAASF dataset, there are reliable statistics showing sequelae and mortality rates lower than the inpatient setting, said Nahai. In fact, CDC found on any given day about one in 25 hospital patients has at least one health care associated infection (HAI) for a total of 721,800 infections in 2011. About 75,000 patients with HAIs died while hospitalized. Given the recent emphasis on HAI and the increased exposure to illness patients face because of the hospital inpatient population, these cost saving measures may increase post-operative complications requiring more corrective treatment and expense. He added, If physicians and patients migrate back to inpatient care, the delayed treatment resulting from having to wait for the hospital OR to become available would further degrade a patients condition and force him or her to take additional time off work. Restraining access to care will degrade the general wellness of the U.S. patient population and result in more expensive inpatient care. AAAASF Executive Director, Theresa Griffin-Rossi, said, AAAASF is aware there are other issues related to physician reimbursement and the legality of such plans. Our mission, however, is patient safety. The prospect of increased patient risk and reduced patient access to timely care is disturbing enough for AAAASF to oppose health plans excluding outpatient surgery. She added, The rationale that these plans offer improved coverage for previously uninsured workers is invalid because the plans render employees ineligible to buy subsidized policies individually on their states health exchange. While small businesses certainly must find creative ways to manage the potentially devastating costs of providing coverage, doing so in a manner that reduces employee options and increases out-of-pocket expenses, is not an acceptable solution. About the AAAASF The American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities, Inc. (AAAASF) was established in 1980 to standardize and improve the quality of medical and surgical care in outpatient facilities and assure the public that patient safety is top priority in an accredited facility. More than 2,300 outpatient facilities are accredited by AAAASF, one of the largest not-for-profit accrediting organizations in the United States. Surgeons, legislators, state and national health agencies and patients acknowledge that AAAASF sets the "gold standard" for quality patient care. AAAASF programs include surgical, procedural, oral maxillofacial, international surgical and dental. AAAASF is also deemed by Medicare to accredit ambulatory surgery centers, rehabilitation and outpatient therapy agencies, as well as rural health clinics. For more information, visit http://www.aaaasf.org or Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. Imagine enrolling your ill pet in a clinical trial for free. Or getting treatment for a chronic wound without going to the doctors office. These technologies are among those being developed by the six promising startup companies that have been accepted into the second class of the University City Science Centers Digital Health Accelerator (DHA). The awardees were selected from a pool of 69 applicants via a multi-stage process which emphasized inclusion of women and minority entrepreneurs. They include: Grand Round Table, which emails primary care providers a daily summary about their scheduled patient follow-ups so they can better manage high-risk patients, keeping them out of the hospital. Graphwear Technologies, which has developed the first graphene patch which measures dehydration, glucose, and lactic acid levels, all from your sweat. InvisAlert Solutions, which uses a wearable device to help care providers monitor patients in institutional settings, improving compliance. Oncora Medical, which has a tool for planning personalized cancer radiotherapy, reduces the incidence of toxic radiation side effects in patients and improves cancer center efficiency. One Health Company, which helps to enroll ill pets in trials of cutting-edge therapies, improving their wellness and helping to develop new therapies for human medicine. Tissue Analytics, which transforms the smartphone into a platform for evaluating and measuring things like chronic wounds, burns, and skin conditions. Each DHA awardee will receive up to $50,000, professional mentorship, and networking opportunities with a variety of key healthcare stakeholders including insurers, pharmaceutical companies, hospitals and research institutions located in the Greater Philadelphia region. During the 12-month program, these early-stage healthcare companies will also receive membership to the Innovation Center @3401 (ic@3401)a partnership between the Science Center and Drexel University, in collaboration with Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania and Safeguard Scientifics. Applicants that got their start in Greater Philadelphia fared particularly well in this second DHA competition, with all companies selected for the 2016 class having some connection to the University of Pennsylvania or Drexel University. Four of the selected companies, Grand Round Table, GraphWear Technologies, Oncora Medical and Tissue Analytics, are graduates of DreamIt, which is also located at ic@3401. Of the six companies in the second DHA class, three are women or minority-owned. The DHA uses a selection panel of industry and investor professionals, including a number from outside the region, to review applications and make recommendations. Launched in 2014 by the Science Center, the DHA supports early-stage digital health companies with funding, office space, professional mentorship and introductions to key healthcare stakeholders in the Greater Philadelphia region. Funding from the U.S. Small Business Administration Growth Accelerator Fund enabled the second class of the DHA to continue to focus on minority and women-led businesses. The DHA has also received support from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvanias Department of Community and Economic Development. To date, the seven companies in the inaugural class have gone from prototype to commercialization, creating 68 new jobs, generating over $1 million in revenue, and raising almost $9 million in follow-on investment. About the Science Center The University City Science Center is a dynamic hub for innovation, and entrepreneurship and technology development in the Greater Philadelphia region. It provides business incubation, programming, lab and office facilities, and support services for entrepreneurs, start-ups, and growing and established companies. Since it was founded in 1963, graduate organizations and current residents of the University City Science Centers Port business incubators have created more than 15,000 jobs that remain in the Greater Philadelphia region today and contribute more than $9 billion to the regional economy annually. The Science Center is leveraging its history as the nations oldest and largest urban research park as it joins forces with Wexford Science + Technology, a BioMed Realty company, to expand its footprint and rebrand its physical campus as uCity Square a true mixed-use community of ingenuity. For more information about the Science Center, go to ucscreview.org. Impact Pediatric Health, the SXSW Interactive pediatric healthcare innovation pitch competition, today announced a $50,000 prize for the winner of the March 14, 2016 event. The four founding hospitals, along with Stanford Childrens Health, contributed to the prize money. Executives from companies such as HopeLab, Kleiner Perkins and PwC will also serve as judges of the 10 finalists selected to pitch their business on stage. The application for startups interested in applying has been extended to Monday, February 15, 2016. For more information or to apply to present, go to http://impactpediatrichealth.com/ Boston Childrens Hospital, Cincinnati Childrens Hospital, Texas Children's Hospital, and The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia came together to create Impact Pediatric Health, a one-of-a-kind pitch competition to help showcase, and support, the best pediatric healthcare innovations. These four childrens hospitals lead the U.S. News and World Report Best Childrens Hospitals rankings. SXSW Interactive is working with the founding hospitals on this event which is part of Startup Village, http://www.sxsw.com/interactive/startup-village, at the Hilton Downtown Austin. Executives from the four founding hospitals will serve as judges and will engage one-on-one with each of the 10 finalists during the event. These judges include: Jennifer Arnold, MD, MSc, medical director of the Pediatric Simulation Center at Texas Childrens Hospital John Brownstein, PhD, chief innovation officer, Boston Childrens Hospital Jennifer Dauer, senior vice president, Strategy & Growth, Cincinnati Childrens Hospital Patrick Fitzgerald, vice president, Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia Some of the other judges who will share feedback and vote for the Impact Pediatric Health winner include: Lynne Chou, partner, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, focused on digital health and connected devices, working alongside entrepreneurs to develop impactful technologies and therapies for improving patients lives. Jeff Gruen, MD, MBA, head of Care Delivery Transformation, Entrepreneurial Innovation and Physician Council Practices at PwC, in its Healthcare Enterprise Strategy Practice, where he is a senior industry advisor, especially in digital health innovation. Margaret Laws, president and CEO, HopeLab, which creates engaging, research-backed technologies that improve the health and well-being of kids and young adults. Tim Moran, founder, executive director, PediaWorks which strives to improve pediatric clinical outcomes by developing medical devices specifically for children. Jordan Shlain, MD, FACP, practicing primary care physician, digital health entrepreneur, and founder and chairman, HealthLoop, a physician/patient engagement platform. Shlain will also serve as co-Emcee for the event. Companies interested in being selected as one of the ten 2016 finalists may submit an application on http://impactpediatrichealth.com/ anytime from now through Monday, February 15, 2016. Startups both digital health and medical device focused on the pediatric market are encouraged to apply. Ideal candidates for the Impact Pediatric Health pitch competition are companies focused in the areas of: Health and Wellness, specifically patient safety, population health and management, prematurity, remote care, or hospital to home transitions Precision Medicine, specifically genomics, Med Tech, specifically robotics or minimally invasive surgery, 3D printing or artificial intelligence. Impact Pediatric Health showcases technologies that will deliver solutions specifically created for young patients. Startup CEOs have three minutes to pitch how their company is solving unique healthcare needs of children, from babies to teens. The Monday, March 14 stage presentation is followed by questions from the emcee and judges. A winner among the 10 finalists will be announced at the end of the event and receive a set of prizes, including $50,000.00. All participating companies will have the opportunity to meet one-on-one with the presenting pediatric hospitals. You must have a SXSW Interactive, Gold or Platinum badge to attend this March 14 event. For more information or to apply to present, go to http://impactpediatrichealth.com/ About Impact Pediatric Health: Now in its second year, Impact Pediatric Health is a one-of-a-kind pitch competition held annually at SXSW Interactive dedicated to showcasing and supporting the best pediatric healthcare innovations. Four of the largest and top ranked (according to US News and World Report) childrens hospitals in the U.S. came together to create Impact Pediatric Health. Boston Childrens Hospital, Cincinnati Childrens Hospital, Texas Children's Hospital, and The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia collaborate to help next generation pediatric healthcare companies, especially those focused on digital health and medical devices, accelerate their businesses. For more information see http://impactpediatrichealth.com/ or follow us on twitter @pediatricpitch About SXSW Interactive The 23rd annual SXSW Interactive Festival returns to Austin from Friday, March 11 through Tuesday, March 15. An incubator of cutting-edge technologies and digital creativity, the 2016 event features five days of compelling presentations and panels from the brightest minds in emerging technology, scores of exciting networking events hosted by industry leaders and an unbeatable lineup of special programs showcasing the best new websites, video games and startup ideas the community has to offer. From hands-on training to big-picture analysis of the future, SXSW Interactive has become the place to discover the technology of tomorrow today. Join us in March 2016 for the sessions, the networking, the special events, the 18th Annual SXSW Interactive Innovation Awards, SXSW Accelerator, the SXSW Gaming Expo, the SXSW Trade Show, the SX Health & MedTech Expo, SX Create, The Job Market, cross-industry conversations with attendees from SXSW Film and SXSW Music, and, most of all, the unforgettable inspirational experiences that only SXSW can deliver. SXSW Interactive 2016 is sponsored by Esurance, Mazda, Monster Energy, Capital One, Bud Light, Deloitte Digital, McDonalds, Ten-X and The Austin Chronicle. MonteCedro: Rendering of Ext Pool This community practices a philosophy of life enrichment, which means everything from apartments with high ceilings and large windows to flexible dining options, inviting outdoor spaces, and architecture that responds to the landscape. - David Hoglund Later today team members from Perkins Eastmans renowned Senior Living design studio will join Episcopal Communities & Services (ECS) for the grand opening of MonteCedro, the new luxury Life Plan Community situated on an idyllic eight-acre site in the foothills of Altadena, CA. Perkins Eastman provided design and planning services for the new community, comprising 186 apartments, 20 Assisted Living and Memory Support residences, and coordinated in-home care, as well as a host of common activity spaces and landscaped courtyards that take full advantage of the surrounding views. The community is the first of its kind to be built in Los Angeles County in over 20 years. Pasadena-based ECS offers Southern California residents a continuum of care and services through the organizations three distinct communities: The Canterbury, in Rancho Palos Verdes; The Covington, in Aliso Viejo; and now MonteCedro. MonteCedros design, services and amenities embody what it means to be a Life Plan Community, a term first introduced to the public at the 2015 LeadingAge Conference, and which has replaced CCRC (continuing care retirement community), a moniker used by nearly 2,000 senior living communities and facilities throughout the U.S. MonteCedro provides a continuum of care for residents of varying ages (65+), care needs, and expectations of lifestyle. Communities such as these, which offer a range of accommodations, dining options and the like, are focused on offering seniors the flexibility to determine the right plan for the next stages of life. Amenities include but are not limited to a fitness center, fine and casual dining venues, an outdoor heated saline pool, creative arts studio, library, salon, cocktail lounge, and movie theater. MonteCedros architectural features such as terracotta roof tiles, arcades, private balconies, wood and iron detailing, and exposed support beams all come together to evoke elements of California Mission and Spanish Colonial Revival motifs. According to David Hoglund FAIA, Perkins Eastman Principal and the projects design lead, MonteCedro truly represents the best of what the senior housing industry has to offer. This community practices a philosophy of life enrichment, which means everything from apartments with high ceilings and large windows to flexible dining options, inviting outdoor spaces, and architecture that responds to the landscape. Were quite honored to have partnered with ECS to envision and create this new life plan community. About Perkins Eastman Perkins Eastman is among the top design and architecture firms in the world. With almost 1,000 employees in 15 locations around the globe, Perkins Eastman practices at every scale of the built environment. From niche buildings to complex projects that enrich whole communities, the firms portfolio reflects a dedication to progressive and inventive design that enhances the quality of the human experience. With work in 46 states and more than 40 countries, the firms portfolio includes transportation and public infrastructure, high-end residential, commercial, hotels, retail, office buildings, corporate interiors, schools, hospitals, museums, senior living, and public sector facilities. Perkins Eastman provides award-winning design through its offices in North America (New York, NY; Boston, MA; Charlotte, NC; Chicago, IL; Dallas, TX; Los Angeles, CA; Pittsburgh, PA; San Francisco, CA; Stamford, CT; Toronto, Canada; and Washington, DC); South America (Guayaquil, Ecuador); North Africa and Middle East (Dubai, UAE); and Asia (Mumbai, India, and Shanghai, China). Images available. # # # Dennis Murphy, Jeff Belton, Dylan Sims, Moninder Singh, Gerald Moore, Ashley Holland, Kyle Holland Gilbane has worked for over three decades to build the foundation and trust with our subcontractor partners and the outcome on the ExxonMobil Project was without a doubt the result of the strength of this bond. The American Subcontractors Association (ASA) presented Gilbane Building Company with three of their highest honors at the ASA Awards Gala on Friday, January 29 in Houston, Texas. Members of the ASA nominate individuals and firms in 8 categories. The nominations are then sent back to the membership for their vote. The votes were tallied and the Top Five firms and individuals were invited to attend the yearly event to find out the winners. This year, Gilbane was honored to receive the below awards: 2015 General Contractor Safety Award Gilbane/Harvey 2015 Project Superintendent of the Year Gerald Moore, Gilbane 2015 Project of the Year over $20MM ExxonMobil Campus Project, Gilbane/Harvey It is an honor to once again be recognized by the ASA for our performance, especially as it relates to our Gilbane Cares safety program, said Dan Gilbane, Division Leader, Gilbane Southwest, We are proud of these honors as they are a reflection of our companys culture. We have been fortunate to have dedicated clients like ExxonMobil, and terrific subcontractor partners in our daily quest to ensure the highest standards are met on each project. Gilbane Building Company is always proud to be recognized for job performance, especially in regards to our culture of Safety. Our companywide safety program, Gilbane Cares was implemented in 2008 and is reflective of the companys core values, that all employees from the highest levels of management to the on-site workforce plays a critical role in ensuring safe practices. Since the Gilbane Cares program began, numerous Gilbane projects have achieved one million safe hours and one project, the ExxonMobil project honored above, achieved a record 17 million safe hours. Being recognized as the Project of the Year is always a tremendous testament to the working relationships with our strong subcontractor community, says Jim Springer, Vice President, Gilbane Building Company, Gilbane has worked for over three decades to build the foundation and trust with our subcontractor partners and the outcome on the ExxonMobil Project was without a doubt the result of the strength of this bond we have with the many great companies that we work with every day on our projects. About Gilbane Building Company Gilbane provides a full slate of construction and facilities-related services from pre-construction planning and integrated consulting capabilities to comprehensive construction management, close-out and facility management services for clients across various markets. Founded in 1873 and still a privately held, family-run company, Gilbane has more than 50 offices worldwide. For more information, visit http://www.gilbaneco.com. The Daily Pnut, the email newsletter that delivers a daily dose of important world events with a sprinkle of satire to tens of thousands of subscribers around the world, has announced that it has partnered with New York-based media startup, Slant, to provide a platform for Pnut subscribers to create, publish and be paid for their own content. The new partnership encourages Pnut subscribers to share their thoughts, reactions and views to the issues the Daily Pnut explores by submitting their own stories to Slant which will then be professionally edited and published on the Slant website. Slant, which combines user generated content with full editorial guidance, reported 3.4 million page views in January. "We are excited to partner with another forward thinking media startup like the Daily Pnut. We believe this is a win-win collaboration that will enable us to continue to bring great content and writers to our readers by tapping into the global audience that the Pnut continues to build, said Amanda Gutterman, Co-Founder & Editorial Director of Slant. The Daily Pnut, which officially launched in December, has been using an initial $300,000 in seed financing to expand its platform and grow its editorial team. Known for their satirical, bite-sized content that looks at important global issues and events, the Pnut has seen significant growth in their subscriber base over the last few months, which includes avid readers like famed-linguist Noam Chomsky and scientist Steven Pinker. Our partnership with Slant aligns perfectly with our mission to make it easier for our generation to become more informed global citizens, said Tewfik Cassis, Co-Founder and CEO of the Daily Pnut. We love sharing our thoughts on world events with our readers everyday, but this allows the conversation to work two-ways and gives our subscribers a unique opportunity to be heard. The Daily Pnut and Slant have also recently collaborated on a new series that explores a fictional dystopian world where Donald Trump wins the 2016 Presidential election called The Man in the Trump Tower. About The Daily Pnut Founded in 2015 by a Brit, American, half Greek/ half Egyptian who met at Harvard, The Daily Pnut is a satirical email newsletter that provides snackable, entertaining looks at important world events to tens of thousands of readers around the world. The Daily Pnuts mission is to make it easier for todays generation to become informed global citizens by making them look forward to reading the news instead of dreading it. http://www.dailypnut.com Bengaluru: A 21-year-old Tanzanian girl who is a second year BBA student of Acharya College had absolutely nothing to do with the car that ran over and killed a 35-year-old Hesaraghatta resident on Sunday night. Yet, while the local police stood by and watched, she was repeatedly beaten and then stripped of all her clothes and made to parade around naked. Travelling in another car, a Wagon-R, along with four others, the young woman who arrived on the scene some 30 minutes later, was however still dragged out of the car after it was surrounded and stopped by the mob. Read: Bengaluru Police files FIR in Tanzanian student assault case When a concerned bystander tried to cover her with a T-shirt, he too was beaten. When she attempted to board a bus and escape, the passengers of the bus threw her back into the arms of the mob. The four others she was travelling with were also assaulted after the mob that was angered after a car driven by a Sudanese youth ran over and killed a local resident, waylaid the second car, which the local African Association, said arrived on the scene a full 30 minutes later and was not even remotely connected to Sundays Hesaraghatta accident. Shes Tanzanian, the man who caused the accident comes from Sudan, they didnt even know each other, said Bosco Kaweesi, Legal Adviser, All African Students Union in Bengaluru. Read: Africa angry, demands justice after mob strips Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru The scared students were forced out of the car and then the car was set ablaze. The driver of the second car identified as Micah S Pundugu was beaten up black and blue by the mob who then stripped the girl student. When someone from the crowd offered her a T-Shirt to save her modesty, that man too was beaten up by the mob. She later, with her torn clothes, tried to enter a BMTC bus that had slowed down nearby, but the passengers in the bus pushed her back down on to the road, Kaweesi told DC adding, Micah recounted that people were streaming out from buses, auto-rickshaws and charging towards them, punching and kicking them. Africa angry: Demands justice The Tanzanian girl went straight to the police station to register a complaint of assault but the unsympathetic cops refused to register the case, saying they would only take her complaint if she brought in the driver who ran over the 35 year old woman. When the girl did not even know about the accident or the spot where it happened, how can she bring in the driver of the car, said Mr Bosco. The car that was being driven by a Sudanese student that mowed down a woman in Hesaraghatta on Sunday night (Photo: DC) African embassies are shocked at Sundays incident in Hesaraghatta, where a mob chased and thrashed a Sudanese student and beat up four more Tanzanians. The Tanzanian Embassy on Monday sought a detailed report on the incident from student leaders to pursue the issue diplomatically, Bosco Kaweesi, Legal Adviser, All African Students in Bengaluru told Deccan Chronicle. Read: Road rage gets a foreign face The second car that was not involved in the accident was set on fire by the mob. Five Tanzanian students, including two girls, from Acharya College were in the car. Everyone was attacked. The mob stood in front of the car, preventing it from moving forward. They were beaten up, their dresses were torn and they were humiliated by the unruly mob for no fault of theirs. The mob then set the car ablaze with all the students losing their valuable documents, like passports, ATM cards and cash. Injured students were sent out of the hospital because they could not pay the bills as their ATM cards were burnt, and they had no cash on their hands. They also could not contact their parents as their phones were robbed, Mr Bosco said. The local residents on Sunday night went hunting for houses where Africans stayed and harassed them. They stopped vehicles to check if there were any Africans inside. Our students heard that there were messages floating around that the locals were planning to attack Acharya College cottages and all the hostel accommodations in the area, which are full of Africans," he said. It was instigated by the local politicians, like it was done in the Byrathi Cross incident. The lives of African students will remain in danger until there is a collective meeting for reconciliation with the local residents, the police and the African community, he said, adding that it worked well the last time in East Bengaluru. The entire African student community is still scared and reluctant to come out. Such incidents will have repercussions in Africa and innocent Indians who are in those countries will also face trouble from native Africans, he warned. The community alleged that the police were totally inept during the entire incident. Left, Dr. Guy Harvey; Right, Sir Richard Branson Guy Harvey, Ph.D., world-renowned artist, scientist, diver, angler, conservationist and explorer, will host a Q&A with Sir Richard Branson on ocean conservation and sustainability at the third annual Cayman Alternative Investment Summit (CAIS), an authoritative platform for fresh thinking on alternative investing, at 6:10 p.m. on Friday, February 5. The summit takes place at the Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman February 4-5. The CAIS brings together leading thinkers and practitioners from different segments of the global alternatives industry to explore the challenges and opportunities their industry faces and design responses that will take it to its next level of success. Dr. Harvey and Sir Richard have collaborated on several marine conservation efforts in the past, including the Caribbean Challenge Initiative and the Guy Harvey Great Shark Race. Bransons Virgin Unite sponsored what turned out to be the winner of the inaugural Guy Harvey Great Shark Race, an innovative race created by the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation (GHOF) and the Guy Harvey Research Institute (GHRI) at Nova Southeastern University in Florida that allows businesses and individuals to sponsor sharks through the purchase of satellite tracking tags. These tags enable researchers and the public to follow the tagged fish online in near real time as they travel around the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. The race consists of two divisions: a Mako Shark Race and an Oceanic Whitetip Shark Race. The shark that covers the greatest distance in six months is named the winner. Bransons Ebenezer, a Shortfin mako shark that was six feet long when she was released and named by Ebenezer Thomas Primary School in Tortola, BVI, travelled 7,387 miles in six months to be named the Guy Harvey Great Shark Race Champion. It was tagged off of the coast of Ocean City, Md. on May 27, 2015 and travelled north along the continental shelf, going as far north as Newfoundland, and is currently swimming around the central Atlantic. Branson was attracted to the race because it raises awareness about the crucial cause of conserving sharks and informing the next generation about the wonder of sharks. The Caribbean Challenge Initiative was launched in 2008 by Sir Richard and a collection of Caribbean governments, as an effort to provide greater leadership, and to chart a new course for protecting and sustainably managing the marine and coastal environment across the Caribbean. Guy Harvey has supported this effort with custom artwork and providing scientific council to help ensure proper management. As an entrepreneur fueled by a passion for marine biology, ocean conservation has become an integral part of the Guy Harvey brand. Widely recognized today as the worlds finest marine wildlife artist, Dr. Harvey reinvests proceeds from his artwork and retail brand in an effort to understand, educate, conserve and effectively manage the world's marine fishes and their ecosystems. Through the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation and the Guy Harvey Research Institute (at Nova Southeastern University, Dr. Harvey has worked tirelessly with dedicated scientists toward the future sustainability of the ocean. About Guy Harvey: Guy Harvey is a unique blend of artist, scientist, diver, angler, conservationist and explorer, fiercely devoted to his family and his love of the sea. His childhood passion for the ocean and its living creatures not only inspired him to draw, but fueled a burning interest that prompted a formal education in marine science. Having graduated with honors in Marine Biology from Aberdeen University in Scotland in 1977, Guy returned home to Jamaica to resume his education, earning his Ph.D. from the University of the West Indies in 1984. Though he gave up a budding career as a marine biologist for that of a highly acclaimed artist, Guy has continued his relentless pursuit to unravel the mysteries of the sea, traveling the world to better understand the habits and habitats of the marine wildlife he paints. For more information, please visit http://www.guyharvey.com. The ISO 9001:2008 certification is the embodiment of our core values and reminds us of the importance of the strategic, winning partnerships we have with our customers and vendors Bittele Electronics, a leader in prototype and low volume PCB assembly, is pleased to announce the companys ISO 9001:2008 certification. We are very pleased to achieve our ISO 9001:2008 certification, said Bittele GM Ben Yang. "Its a significant accomplishment that demonstrates we are committed to quality and managing our business with the attitude of continuous improvement." Bittele worked with TUV Rheinland who thoroughly audited and reviewed Bitteles quality management system to verify compliance with the ISO 9001:2008 standard. This quality audit included a comprehensive process review, as well as writing quality procedures and taking steps to improve the quality system. Bittele's quality management team set goals and delineated corrective and preventative plans. All employees were instructed on the new or improved processes. Key employees were designated to examine and improve quality procedures. In addition, a comprehensive auditing process was completed in order to realize the certification. "The ISO 9001:2008 certification is the embodiment of our core values and reminds us of the importance of the strategic, winning partnerships we have with our customers and vendors," said Yang. "This certification supports our belief in continually improving our processes. I would like to thank all of our employees who worked with our Quality Department to achieve this monumental goal," stated Yang. About Bittele Electronics Headquartered in Toronto, Canada, Bittele Electronics specializes in turnkey PCB assembly for electronics engineers requiring prototype or minimal volume PCBs. For more information, visit http://www.7pcb.ca USF Professor Mark V. Cannice General caution on the overall venture environment from the previous quarter appeared to ease somewhat in the fourth quarter," said Mark V. Cannice, Ph.D. The Silicon Valley Venture Capitalist Confidence Index for the forth quarter of 2015, registered 3.59 on a 5 point scale (with 5 indicating high confidence and 1 indicating low confidence). This quarters index measurement rose from the previous quarters index reading of 3.39, and ended a three-quarter decline in confidence. This is the 48th consecutive quarterly survey and research report--providing unique quantitative and qualitative trend data and analysis on the confidence of Silicon Valley venture capitalists in the future high-growth entrepreneurial environment. Mark V. Cannice, Ph.D., department chair and professor of entrepreneurship and innovation with the University of San Francisco (USF) School of Management, conducts the research each quarter and authors the index report. In the new report, Professor Cannice wrote, General caution on the overall venture environment from the previous quarter appeared to ease somewhat in Q4 as a focus on the fundamentals of venture investing in disruptive firms began to unseat concern over new sources of capital that have inflated valuations in recent quarters. For example, Eric Buatois of Benhamou Global Ventures noted, Whilst there will be a major correction of the inflated valuations of Unicorns, a lot of solid companies are created and funded every week based on solid fundamentals such as customers, revenues and profits. Gerard van Hamel Platerink of Redmile Group observed, Some helpful differentiation is beginning to take place in the marketplace after a period of frothiness in some areas. However, with regard to valuations, a return to the mean appears to be in process. Venky Ganesan of Menlo Ventures predicts, The late stage venture market is due for a correction. The heady cocktail of easy money due to the fed, high burn rates, and questionable gross margins is going to give a massive hangover to a bunch of companies. Bill Reichert of Garage Technology Ventures remarked, As I said last quarter, the public markets cannot possibly absorb the current batch of unicorns at their current valuations, not to mention the thundering herd of unicorn wannabes. There will be more disappointment than celebration over the next 18 months. Still, there is plenty of room for creating real value and building great companies. We just need to adjust expectations. A reduction of non-traditional capital and a return to the basics of enterprise building should maintain stable if not accelerating growth in the entrepreneurial environment for now, Cannice wrote concluding the report. However, more recent high volatility in public financial markets will complicate the exit environment for venture-backed IPOs, at least in the short run. For the complete report, please visit https://www.usfca.edu/management/svvcci To request an interview with Mark Cannice, please contact Anne-Marie Devine Tasto at abdevine(at)usfca(dot)edu. We named the light Ra after the Egyptian god who carries the sun across the sky because carrying one of these lights is like carrying a piece of the sun with you Zyntony Inc, a manufacturer of world-class outdoor adventure products, has the spotlight shining on them again, this time thanks to its innovative ZyntonyRa strap of bright lights which is lighting up Kickstarter with over $76,000 raised early in its crowdfunding campaign. ZyntonyRa is a game-changing light for outdoor adventure enthusiasts that is designed to light up the entire area around the user, instead of just a spot in front of them. At full power, Ra puts out 800 lumens of warm, natural light. A pair of Ra's attached to the shoulder straps of a backpack generate a staggering 1600 lumens of light creating a zone of daylight. It's brighter than ten good headlamps, said Zyntony CEO Rob Urry. We named the light Ra after the Egyptian god who carries the sun across the sky because carrying one of these lights is like carrying a piece of the sun with you. Only 2 weeks into its Kickstarter campaign, ZyntonyRa has raised over $76,000 from over 700 backers around the world, who are ready to have their nights lit up by ZyntonyaRa With multiple mounting options, Ra can be attached to almost anything. The user can fix it to any ferrous (metal containing iron) object using the built in rare earth magnets. Ra can be attached to nearly any article of clothing using the accompanying magnetic backer strip. Using the D-ring strap and simple hook and loop ties, Ra can be fastened to virtually any piece of gear. Ra is powered via its micro-USB input. Zyntony makes four different sizes of battery packs allowing the flexibility to carry as much power as needed. Other features include: Waterproof High efficiency LEDs maximize run time Individual beam patterns to optimize spread and throw Flexible spring steel frame conforms to a variety of contours Over 5 times brighter than an average headlamp Specially designed to work with Zyntony Batpaks ZyntonyRa starts at only $58 on Kickstarter. For more information, and to pre-order ZyntonyRa visit: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/zyntony/ra-worlds-first-strap-light About Zyntony, Inc. Zyntony, Inc. is a technology company innovating the way we use sustainable energy in our homes and in the great outdoors. The company specializes in products that enhance your outdoor adventures. The Zyntony team is comprised of a seasoned group of high-tech industry veterans with combined product development, marketing and sales experience of over 150 years. The team collectively holds more than 40 U.S. Patents and have designed, managed, and put into production more than 400 products in high-tech industries. Light up the world with ZyntonyRa AIHM Fellowship Launches During their two-year training program, AIHM Fellows will work through complex cases together and learn from expert faculty. They will be extraordinarily well-trained in integrative, interprofessional health & medicine. Led by Founding Director, Tieraona Low Dog, MD, the Academy of Integrative Health & Medicine (AIHM) has launched the very first Interprofessional Fellowship in Integrative Health & Medicine for healthcare professionals. The inaugural AIHM Fellowship class, which filled ahead of schedule and launched this week, includes medical doctors, nurse practitioners, chiropractic physicians, dentists, doctors of osteopathic medicine, pharmacists, licensed acupuncturists and psychologists. An executive delivery program, the AIHM Fellowship allows practitioners to study part-time for two years while maintaining their professional positions. The AIHM Fellowship utilizes a virtual classroom with media-rich training, discussion groups, streamed videos and an interactive web-based curriculum. Numerous elective modules allow Fellows to customize their training in accordance with their professional interests. In addition, the program incorporates clinical immersion experiences and three in-person retreats in Portland, Oregon. Expert faculty will deliver the Fellowship coursework, overseen by Dr. Low Dog, who joined the Academy after a decade overseeing the Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine Fellowship training program. The AIHM Fellowship program will be delivered in accordance with the standards of the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) and Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through its academic partner, the Oregon Collaborative for Integrative Medicine (OCIM). The partnership with OCIM, a nonprofit organization, brings the strength of a network of interprofessional academic institutions, including National College of Natural Medicine, Oregon College of Oriental Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Pacific University and the University of Western States to the Fellowship. Upon review of the curriculum and faculty, the American Board of Integrative Medicine (ABOIM) officially approved the AIHM Fellowship in 2015. Dr. Low Dog said, The fact that this Fellowship filled to capacity within months of its announcement indicates a built-up demand for advanced, interprofessional training in integrative health and medicine. I am delighted that this inaugural class is comprised of a dynamic group of healthcare practitioners committed to broadening their depth and training in integrative health and medicine in a collaborative interprofessional environment in order to promote and restore the health of their clients, patients, families, communities and themselves. For years, I have felt their interest and demand for advanced training. Now, together, we will build a new paradigm of healthcare delivery. AIHM Fellows are the next generation of leaders in integrative medicine, said AIHM President Mimi Guarneri, MD. During their two-year training program, AIHM Fellows will work through complex cases together and learn from expert faculty. They will be extraordinarily well-trained in integrative, interprofessional medicine, empowering them to provide exemplary, coordinated care and lead healing teams in a variety of settings. Applications for the next class starting August 2016 are now being accepted. While the applications are due August 1, 2016, Associate Fellowship Director, Seroya Crouch, ND, advises individuals to apply early because applications are accepted on a rolling basis. We are already receiving excellent applications. Space is limited in order to facilitate the development of intimate and collaborative bonds amongst class members. Scholarship applications are due July 1, 2016. To apply, visit aihm.org/fellowship or contact the Fellowship team at (218) 525-5651 x 1000. About Academy of Integrative Health & Medicine (AIHM): The Academy of Integrative Health & Medicine (AIHM) is a global, interprofessional, member organization that educates and trains clinicians in integrative health and medicine to assure exemplary health care. The AIHMs training incorporates evidence-informed research, emphasizes person-centered care and embraces global healing traditions. By combining science and compassion, the AIHM is transforming health care. The core areas of focus of the Academy are Membership (Individuals, Organizations, Chapters), Education (E-Learning, Conferences, Publications) and the Interprofessional Fellowship Program under the direction of Tieraona Low Dog, MD. Learn more at aihm.org/fellowship Author Robert Boynton presents his book about North Korea's abduction program at the Korea Economic Institute of America. The story was almost too bizarre to believe foreign, evil frogmen emerging from an inky sea, snatching young couples from beaches and transporting them by boat to Pyongyang, where they were held prisoner for decades. On February 3, 2016, the Korea Economic Institute of America was proud to host Robert Boynton, director of New York Universitys Literary Reportage Concentration and author of the new book The Invitation-Only Zone: The True Story of North Koreas Abduction Project. Joining Boynton were Kathy Moon, SK-Korea Foundation Chair in Korea Studies at the Brookings Institution, and Sheila Smith, Senior Fellow for Japan Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations. Boynton introduced his book and the abduction issue, and then he sat down with Moon and Smith for a discussion of the larger implications of this project. In the decades following the Korean War, North Korea initiated a top-secret project to kidnap ordinary people from Japan, reeducate them, and turn them into international spies for the regime. In the late 1970s, dozens of Japanese disappeared without a trace from beaches, schools and sidewalks. It wasnt until 2002 that Kim Jong-il admitted they had taken thirteen people and allowed five of them to return to Japan to visit their families. Boynton became interested in this story in 2002 after seeing a photo of those five abductees in "boxy, 1950s-era suits" descending from a plane to meet their families again for the first time in decades. In the following years, Boynton spent time in Japan and South Korea conducting research about this abduction program and interviewing the abductees themselves about their ordeal and their lives in North Korea. The story was almost too bizarre to believe foreign, evil frogmen emerging from an inky sea, snatching young couples from beaches and transporting them by boat to Pyongyang, where they were held prisoner for decades. The more he dug into the project, he said, "I discovered the story was stranger than I had imagined." As fascinating as the story of these abductees is, both discussants pointed out that this story is not just about the people who were taken, but paints a larger story about the relations between North Korea and the outside world. Kathy Moon described the project as a sort of "brain-pour" - a reversal of brain drain. Kidnapping certain people from around the world, she said, was a way for North Korea to fill in gaps in talent and knowledge. She also noted that the abduction project is not an isolated phenomenon it is closely linked to North-South relations, Japan-North Korean relations, and even treatment of ethnic Koreans within Japan in the decades following WWII. "The beauty of your book is, I expected it to be just about abductees, but I learned so much more about the histories of that time in all of these societies - in Japan, in North Korea and in South Korea." Sheila Smith emphasized the importance of the abductee issue for Japanese society. For years, the Japanese public had dismissed rumors of abductions as crazy tales or conspiracy theories. But when the five abductees returned to Japanese soil in 2002, she said, "There was a waking up of Japanese popular consciousness about the behavior of the North Koreans and about the threat they posed to Japanese securityit brought it home in a much more internalized way." Please direct any inquiries to Jenna Gibson at jg(at)keia.org. The last thing a home buyer wants when making their big move is a surprise. Thats why a leader in the mortgage industry announced today its promise to help make purchasing a home even more secure. Marketplace Home Mortgage has rolled out its on-time closing guarantee, which ensures that a mortgage will close on or before the new homes closing date, or the home buyer and seller will be entitled to compensation. The last thing we want is for a client to have all their belongings in the moving truck and not be able to move into their new home, said Greg Ettinger, MHMs Chief Development Officer. This ensures that customers will feel secure in knowing Marketplace Home Mortgage is working hard so they can move into their new home on time. If Marketplace Home Mortgage misses the closing date, the customer is eligible for up to a one time $1,500 mortgage payment and the seller will be eligible to receive a $5,000 benefit. The new initiative is in keeping with MHMs mantra of raising the bar for superior customer service and reliability, said company CEO Keith White. This should reinforce to our customers and referral partners just how confident we are in our ability to close every loan on time, he said. Its really about providing our customers with peace-of-mind, knowing that when they use Marketplace, were going to guarantee that their mortgage will close on time. For more details on qualifications, click here. Marketplace Home Mortgage prides itself on making the mortgage process easy and transparent. Theres nothing more unnerving than experiencing uncertainty about whether youre going to get into your new house on time, Ettinger said. With this guarantee, were hoping to put our customers at ease knowing were looking out for them. About Marketplace Home Mortgage: Having just entered its 20th year of providing start-to-finish mortgage services to real estate professionals, builders and individual homebuyers, Marketplace Home Mortgage has built its reputation on competitive terms, and swift and accurate processing with no surprises. Each step is carried out by our experienced and highly trained staff who embrace the highest ethical standards under absolute transparency. Marketplace Home Mortgage is based in the Twin Cities of Minnesota, with offices in southwest Florida; Duluth, Minn.; Omaha, Neb.; Milwaukee, Madison, and Green Bay, Wis.; and newly opened offices in Sioux Falls, S.D. as well as Denver and West Minster, Colo. Learn more at http://marketplacehome.com, or on Facebook or Twitter. Reporters and Editors to schedule an interview with a mortgage expert in your market contact Robb Leer 612.701.0608 or robbl(at)leercommunication(dot)com. ### Brookhaven Retreat LLC, a unique residential treatment facility exclusively for women with mental health and/or substance abuse issues, congratulates Primary Therapists Marlaina Kincaid and Lana Wilcox for completing the EMDR Advanced Clinical Workshop at The Open Center in New York, Jan. 27-31, 2016. The Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) workshop and refresher course was the third in a series of three workshops. The recent session held at The Open Center in New York was facilitated by Dr. Laurel Parnell, internationally recognized clinical psychologist, author, consultant and EMDR trainer. She is the author of five books on EMDR, Attachment Focused EMDR. EMDR is a form of therapy founded by Francine Shapiro in 1987 and is most effective in treating clients suffering from the aftereffects of trauma. EMDR uses both sides of the brain simultaneously to effectively reprocess traumatic events and reduce their emotional impact. For instance, women who have experienced a traumatic event such as divorce, sexual abuse, or war, may struggle with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) marked by intense nightmares and distressing flashbacks that make them feel as though they are reliving the experience. PTSD often co-occurs with depression and substance abuse, which complicates the natural recovery process. These symptoms can be debilitating and disrupt a womans daily life, as well as hinder any therapeutic progress. Exploring relationships, places and thoughts may become too painful, causing women to hold back instead of uncovering the underlying issues, says Marlaina Kincaid, who earned her masters degree in Counseling Psychology from Capella University, is currently working on her Ph.D. in Industrial Organizational Psychology as well as licensure and credentialing as an LPC/MHSP. Kincaid has spent the last 10 years working in the mental health field with experience in residential, inpatient, and outpatient facilities providing expertise to children, adolescents and adults. Women with PTSD may feel as though their lives contain no hope. Such thoughts can lead to self-injury or suicide, making proper treatment for these painful memories critical to their safety and well-being. EMDR works quickly to ease painful memories so they cease to cause emotional stress, says Lana Wilcox, who received her Master of Science in Mental Health Counseling from the University of Tennessee and is currently a Licensed Professional Counselor and Mental Health Service Provider in the state of Tennessee. As an Individual, Family, and Group Therapist, she has more than five years of experience including residential, outpatient, intensive outpatient, community, and private sector treatment working with clients with a dual diagnoses, substance abuse, and trauma background. About Brookhaven Retreat Brookhaven Retreat is a women's treatment center nestled on a naturally beautiful 48-acre site secluded in the foothills of the Great Smoky Mountains. It has helped hundreds of women across the United States overcome depression, trauma, anxiety, substance use and a range of other behavioral health challenges. Brookhavens Founder, Jacqueline Dawes, has predicated its gender-specific treatment on healing emotional breakage for women. In this way, she has established a sanctuary and a place where women can feel safe, secure and cared for by a staff of highly trained professionals. Curly Hair Solutions is honoured to participate in this years Texture on the Runaway event hosted by Texture Media and their leading retail partner, Target. Texture on the Runway is a unique opportunity for texture brands to showcase their products to some of the world's most influential hair heavy weights (Bloggers, Vloggers, Instagrammers, etc.). The event takes place during Fashion Week in the heart of New York City, and is a chance for brands to set the stage for trends to come and connect directly with powerful social media contacts and beauty editors alike. Curly Hair Solutions will have a showcase table at the event allowing them to show not just tell the fashion world how their products work wonders on all textured hair types. From the latest trends to timeless curly hairstyles, the Curly Hair Solutions team will demonstrate how to get beautifying results from their top products. Jonathan Torch, founder of Curly Hair Solutions, and textured hair aficionado will reveal textured hair tips and tricks along with thorough product demos throughout the event. Curly Hair Solutions products making their way into the swag bags for media attendees to enjoy are the renowned Curl Keeper Original and the popular Curl Keeper Styling Cream. Both products along with the Curl Keeper Gel, Leave-in Conditioner, and Slip Detangler are now also available in Target stores throughout the U.S. Curl Keeper Original enables curlies to master those gorgeous frizz-free curls without the risk of dryness or flakiness. Performing 100% of the time in all weather conditions this award-winning product will surely be cause to blog about. The entire CHS team couldnt foresee a better way to kick off 2016 than this opportunity to connect and network with hair industry innovators from around the globe! For more information about Curly Hair Solutions full line of hair care products including the Curl Keeper collection, visit http://www.frizzoff.com. About Curly Hair Solutions: Curly Hair Solutions and Curl Keeper Styling Collection are curly hair products that perform 100% of the time, on every curly head, in all weather conditions, without the use of silicones. Our ingredients are natural, biodegradable and are not tested on animals. Our products have been perfectly pH balanced to match our environment to our bodies resulting in a healthier, shinier, and more controllable result every time. DuPage County Divorce and Family Law Attorneys By receiving these 5 honors from the Super Lawyers organization, MKFM Law as a firm demonstrates exceptional service to the legal field in the State of Illinois where only a few are eligible. For more than 60 years, the law firm of Mirabella, Kincaid, Frederick & Mirabella, LLC (MKFM Law) has served family law and divorce clients of DuPage County and the Chicagoland suburbs. For their dedication to the legal profession and clients alike, five attorneys from the firm received 2016 accolades from Super Lawyers. Partners George Frederick, Lynn Mirabella, and Henry Kass received Super Lawyers of Illinois awards. Also, associates Lindsay Stella and Megan Harris received the Rising Stars of Illinois recognition. The goal of Super Lawyers is to create a credible list of high-quality attorneys as a resource for fellow lawyers and consumers searching for legal counsel. Each year, for every state, Super Lawyers selects attorneys based on peer nominations and evaluations to be included in their exclusive rating service. Super Lawyers reviews more than 70 practice areas and includes only attorneys who have attained a high degree of peer respect and professional accomplishment. The Rising Stars selection is nearly identical to the Super Lawyers process, except to be eligible the candidates must be 40 years old or younger and in practice for ten years or less. MKFM Law partners Frederick, Mirabella, and Kass exemplify what it means to be a Super Lawyer of Illinois. George Frederick has been on the Super Lawyers list since 2014, West Suburban Livings 2013 Top Attorneys in the Western Suburbs, Chicago Magazines 2014 and 2015 Top Attorney in Illinois, and has also been recognized by the local DuPage County Bar Association in the past for pro bono work as well as a Board of Directors Award. In 2015, Lynn Mirabella received the Inspirational Woman Award from the DuPage Association of Women Lawyers for hard-working and distinguished service. Ms. Mirabella has been honored on the Super Lawyers list since 2012 as well as Top Attorneys in Illinois and Top Women Attorneys in Illinois. Henry Kass was named a Top Attorney in Illinois as published in Chicago Magazine and has been awarded numerous accolades for pro bono work and meritorious service. He has been a Super Lawyer since 2015. Similarly, associates Stella and Harris showcase their commitment to the legal field through their service and commitment to legal excellence. Lindsay Stella was elected as the Secretary of the Justinian Society of Lawyers (2015-2016) and has been a Rising Star of Illinois since 2014. The National Association of Family Law Attorneys also ranked Ms. Stella among the top ten attorneys under 40 in Illinois for 2014. Megan Harris is a CALI Award winner in Environmental Law and Interviewing, Counseling, & Fact Investigation Courses. She has been a member of the Rising Stars of Illinois list since 2015. The final Super Lawyers list each year represents only 5 percent of all legal professionals in a state, with the Rising Stars list only making up 2.5 percent of younger attorneys. By receiving these 5 honors from the Super Lawyers organization, MKFM Law as a firm demonstrates exceptional service to the legal field in the State of Illinois where only a few are eligible. About Mirabella, Kincaid, Frederick & Mirabella, LLC: MKFM Law has served DuPage County and the Northern Illinois area (including Cook, Kane, Kendall, and Will Counties) for over 60 years. Focusing on the practice areas of family law and divorce, the firm assists clients with child custody (or allocation of parental responsibility), visitation (or parenting time), child support, spousal maintenance, property and asset division, and parentage matters. MFKM Law also aids those in need with issues involving sexual harassment, employment discrimination, civil litigation, and criminal defense. For more information or to schedule an initial consultation with a skilled DuPage County family law attorney, visit http://www.mkfmlaw.com or call 630-665-7300. Evening and weekend hours are available by appointment. Bengaluru: Tricked by cyber criminals, a 30-year-old software engineer was robbed of Rs 1.2 lakh during online banking after her card got skimmed recently. The thieves made transactions in two quick successions from the victims salary account. The incident took place on February 1 when the victim, identified as Megha an employee with Infosys, was returning from her home town Kundapura along with her husband. In her police complaint Megha said that she received the withdraw message on February 1 from her debit card. As the withdrawal limit was up to Rs 60,000, the accused withdrew the amount in two quick successions within five minutes. While the first transaction was made at around 11.58 pm, the second was made at 12.02 am, thus making the withdrawals of Rs 60,000 each for two days, said the police. The police said, On January 31, Megha with her husband, who works as software engineer in TCS, were returning to Bengaluru by bus. As she was fast asleep she did not notice the two messages. Megha came to know about it early morning after arriving in Bengaluru. She then rushed to the local police station, from where she was directed to approach cyber crime police station. Bengaluru region Cyber Crime police said, We have taken up the case and investigations are on. The amount was withdrawn from her salary account in ICICI bank. We questioned Megha about using her debit card in any places for shopping or for buying online goods. But she told that she hasnt used it anywhere. We suspect Meghas debit card was skimmed. Hortau's grower support team in California. This recent investment will allow us to continue making our platform better, following our mission to deliver more value for growers. - CEO Jocelyn Boudreau Hortau, a provider of precision irrigation management systems and services since 2002, has secured $10 million in financing to fuel company growth and broaden its service offering to growers in North America. The investment is the third major round of financing in the past 20 months for Hortau, establishing itself as a proven leader in precision irrigation management for agriculture. The $10 million U.S. investment comes from a group that is led by Advantage Capital Agribusiness Partners, LP (ACAP), and joined by BDC Capital, Inc., and repeat investors Avrio Ventures LP II and Capital regional et cooperatif Desjardins. Hortau CEO Jocelyn Boudreau said the investment will allow Hortau to continue growing its operations, expanding on its success from 2015. Last year, Hortau launched a new line of ST irrigation management systems, an upgraded automation platform, and significantly upgraded its software and mobile applications. This recent investment will allow us to continue making our platform better, following our mission to deliver more value for growers, Boudreau said. Along with more direct field support, this coming year will see more ground-breaking features added to our hardware and software, such as advanced data analytics tools, powerful dashboards, responsive data reporting as well as new partnerships that will give our platform added versatility. To remain at the forefront of crop stress and irrigation management technology, Hortau will further grow its technical, grower support and R&D teams in 2016 and also expand into additional regions. Hortau has built a world-class platform in delivering best-in-class precision agriculture systems to its clients, said Aki Georgacacos, a founding partner of Avrio Capital. We are thrilled to have secured support from Advantage Capital Agribusiness Partners and BDC as we move to continue to consolidate Hortaus global leadership position in the sector. Hortaus smart irrigation management system, combined with its easy-to-use mobile software, reports to growers how crops are faring in real time before stresses such as drought or lack of aeration can have a negative impact on the crop. This proprietary, plant-centric approach helps detect plant stress using soil tension, ensuring optimal crop growth, and reducing water and energy consumption, as well as environmental impacts such as fertilizer leaching. From the beginning, Hortau has demonstrated innovation in creating solutions for water conservation and drought, all of which provide vital information to farmers, said Timothy Hassler, Principal at Advantage Capital. We are excited to kick off the New Year with this additional investment in Hortau and look forward to supporting the companys growth. Advantage Capital Agribusiness Partners, LP (ACAP) is a $154.5-million fund, licensed as a Rural Business Investment Company (RBIC) by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), focusing on businesses involved in the production, processing and supply of agricultural products. Visit Hortau.com for more information on Hortaus proprietary irrigation management systems, and simplified software and mobile apps, or contact us at (805) 545-5994, Ext: 358, or media(at)hortau(dot)com. About Advantage Capital Agribusiness Partners Advantage Capital Agribusiness Partners, LP (ACAP) is a $154.5-million fund, licensed as a Rural Business Investment Company (RBIC) by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), focusing on businesses involved in the production, processing and supply of agricultural products. It is a partnership between Advantage Capital Partners and nine Farm Credit organizations: AgCountry Farm Credit Services (Fargo, N.D.); AgStar Financial Services (Mankato, Minn.); AgriBank (St. Paul, Minn.); Capital Farm Credit (Bryan, Texas); CoBank (Denver, Colo.); Farm Credit Bank of Texas (Austin, Texas); Farm Credit Services of America (Omaha, Neb.); Farm Credit Services of Mid-America (Louisville, Ky.); and United FCS (Willmar, Minn.). Farm Credit supports rural communities and agriculture with reliable, consistent access to credit and financial services. About Avrio Capital Avrio Capital was established in 2006 to identify and invest in innovative food and agriculture companies that provide solutions to global challenges in the areas of health, wellness and sustainability. Avrio is a hands-on investor that works alongside its portfolio companies to provide the support and resources needed to transform emerging companies into successful, globally competitive enterprises. For more information, visit AvrioCapital.com. About BDC Capital, Inc. A subsidiary of BDC, BDC Capital offers a full spectrum of specialized financing and investment solutions to help Canadian entrepreneurs achieve their full growth potential. With more than $1.6 billion under management, BDC Capital takes a strategic, patient approach to nurture companies development over the long term. From venture capital to equity to growth and transition capital, our team of over 100 experienced, local professionals partner with entrepreneurs to identify and meet their needs on flexible terms. Some of the sectors in which we specialize include IT, industrial/clean/energy technology, and healthcare. For more information, please visit http://www.bdccapital.ca or follow us on Twitter at @BDC_Capital. About Capital regional et cooperatif Desjardins Desjardins (CRCD) has a real affinity for SMEs. Since its inception in 2001, CRCD, a public corporation, has actively participated in Quebecs economic development. Together with its manager, Desjardins Business Capital regional et cooperatif, CRCD has deployed innovative and unparalleled solutions in the entrepreneurial market in the form of various partnerships that now form its ecosystem. With over 100,000 shareholders and net assets of $1,593 million, CRCD is a lever of choice for cooperatives and regional SMEs seeking to achieve their full potential. As at June 30, 2015, CRCD and its ecosystem supported the growth of 388 companies, cooperatives and funds in various industries spanning all Quebec regions, while helping to create and retain 62,000 jobs. http://www.capitalregional.com About Hortau Hortau, a global leader in wireless, web-based irrigation management systems, was founded in 2002 by two agriculturally minded entrepreneurs, Dr. Jean Caron, agronomist, Ph.D in Soil Physics, and Jocelyn Boudreau, agricultural engineer, M.Sc. in Soil Physics. Hortaus patented, irrigation management solutions help growers detect plant stress, ensuring optimal crop growth while reducing water and energy use as well as eliminate environmental impacts of crop production. With U.S. operations based in San Luis Obispo, Calif., Hortau has offices, representatives and technicians throughout North America, including a Canada headquarters in Quebec. Learn more at Hortau.com. Lawline, the leader in online continuing legal education, has unveiled a unique and exclusive series of programs aimed at preparing lawyers for how the most pressing issues in the 2016 election will impact their practice this year and beyond. The Election 2016 series of one-day, monthly curricula launched on January 21. The first series focused on Social Security Law and featured four experts offering tools for dealing with the sticky legal issues involved. This included a broad-based overview of Common Problems When Applying for SSD/SSI Benefits which can now be viewed here. All events will be live webcasted nationwide and can be viewed on Lawline. With world markets in turmoil and international political pressures mounting, the evolving election landscape has already surprised most everyone; lawyers have to be ready regardless of what the voters decide. Sigalle Barness, Vice President of Programs said, In the end, the choices voters make will impact the ways in which lawyers advise their clients. Lawline Industry: 2016 Calendar of Events February 10: Environmental Law March 18: Civil Rights April 20: Marijuana & Drug Law May 13: Welfare & Poverty Law June 20: Education Law July 11: Homeland Security August 22: Womens Health & Reproductive Rights September 15: Tax Reform October 6: Family & Child Advocacy November 7: Immigration Law December 5: Gun Control About Lawline Lawline is the leading provider of online continuing legal education offering legal intelligence to attorneys in all 50 states. With over 2,000,000 CLE courses completed to date, Lawline offers timely legal content that supports attorneys throughout their practice. The company is headquartered in downtown Manhattan and has received multiple awards recognizing its superior product and service. Its success has also been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Inc., Entrepreneur, & Forbes.com. ## SecureCheck Total Security Systems On Guard So You Don't Have To Be SecureCheck LLC, a full-service security company, has moved its operations to expanded facilities that accommodate the installation of a dedicated monitoring center utilizing updated technology and system redundancy. After operating more than three years in Sugar Land, business growth demanded a larger facility that allows us to update our technology and maintain our steadfast dedication to customer service, said Jack Molho, principal of SecureCheck. The new SecureCheck facility allowed the installation of a dedicated monitoring center as well as a redundant offsite hot monitoring center that maintains communications systems, monitoring and security in the event of a disaster or power outage. SecureCheck focuses on video surveillance and analytical detection methods to prevent intrusion, theft or other losses for auto dealerships, high value and sensitive assets. The company provides design, installation, maintenance and monitoring of surveillance and stand-alone security systems, business and multifamily security systems. It specializes in securing auto dealerships, sensitive and high-value assets whether commercial, retail, residential, office, municipal or community related facilities. The new 4,000 sq. ft. facility is located at 9800 Centre Parkway in Southwest Houston. Learn More information about SecureCheck at http://www.SecureCheckNow.com or by calling 832-279-0311. About SecureCheck: SecureCheck LLC is a full-service security company providing video surveillance and analytical detection services. Locally owned and operated, the company is staffed by current and former law enforcement professionals with extensive experience in investigative services. SecureCheck is a member of the Better Business Bureau, Association of Water Board Districts, National Association of Auto Dealers and Houston Association of Auto Dealers. For more information visit http://www.SecureCheckNow.com. Texas DPS Private Security Bureau License: C 17547 Fire License: ACR-2013220 If you are new to iQ you can schedule a demo and learn more about this opportunity. PSFK iQ - Where Innovators Turn for Research. Our professional-grade research platform is designed specifically for Retail and CX leaders who want to know whats next. Whether youre staying current on trends or need a real-time research partner to help you get ahead, count on PSFK iQ to deliver the info you need to make your next move. The car that was being driven by a Sudanese student that mowed down a woman in Hesaraghatta on Sunday night (Photo: DC) Bengaluru/New Delhi: Five people have been arrested and more are being questioned after the shameful attack on a Tanzanian girl student on Sunday night in which an angry mob mistook her to be part of another group whose car had mowed down a citizen. Deccan Chronicle had exclusively reported on Wednesday that the 21-year-old Tanzanian girl, who is a second year BBA student of Acharya College, had absolutely nothing to do with the car that ran over and killed a 35-year-old Hesaraghatta resident on Sunday night. Yet, while the local police stood by and watched, she was repeatedly beaten and then stripped of all her clothes and made to parade around naked. Read: Bengaluru: Mob strips Tanzanian girl, torches her car as police watch Meanwhile, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi has sought an immediate report from the Karnataka government. "Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately," party General Secretary Digvijay Singh said in a series of tweets. Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately. digvijaya singh (@digvijaya_28) February 4, 2016 "Strongly condemn incident with Tanzanian lady in Bangalore. Police must act strongly against the culprits," Singh, who is in-charge of party affairs in Karnataka, said. Strongly condemn Incident with the Tanzanian Lady in Bangalore. Police must act strongly against the culprits. digvijaya singh (@digvijaya_28) February 4, 2016 Read: Bengaluru cops rescued drivers, left stripped Tanzanian girl to mobs mercy According to the Bangalore police, the complaint by the Tanzanian girl was filed yesterday even though incident happened on Sunday. However, the BJP held Congress answerable for the incident. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said, The kind of vandalism that happened with the girl is condemnable. It is Congress' government there. When there is even a small issue, or no issue at all, Rahul Gandhiji rakes it up and stages protests and starts giving sermons to the whole nation. Read: Tanzania issues note verbale after mob strips girl in Bengaluru "But now that such a big incident has happened so much time has passed, the Congress is sitting quietly because it is their government in the state. There is no kind of investigation. This testifies their hypocrisy. It is a condemnable incident and it obviously makes the Congress answerable, Naqvi added. Read: Tanzanian student assault: Have given factual report to EAM, says Siddaramaiah Travelling in another car -- a Wagon-R, along with four others -- the young woman had arrived on the accident scene some 30 minutes later on Sunday night. She was still dragged out of the car after it was surrounded and stopped by the mob, according to All African Students Union in Bengaluru. Read: Tanzanian girl assault in Bengaluru: Cops toned down victims complaints She was stripped by a section of the mob and pushed out of a slow-moving bus that was passing by as she tried to board it to escape, the Union's Legal Adviser Bosco Kaweesi had said. A furious Tanzania issued a note verbale to India about the reported attacks on African students in Bengaluru, requesting the Indian Government to "follow up on this matter and take necessary legal action against those involved in such attacks and to ensure the safety and security of all African students in India". Read: Africa angry, demands justice after mob strips Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru Tanzanian High Commissioner John Kijazi, in a telephonic conversation, said they want police to take strict action and arrest all culprits. On Wednesday, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had termed the incident shameful. Swaraj had spoken to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and requested him to ensure stringent punishment for the guilty. Read: Road rage gets a foreign face Hyderabad: The AP police on Wednesday issued FIRs against political leaders from the Kapu community including former Union minister M.M. Pallam Raju, former state ministers from Congress, BJP and YSR Congress, a TV channel CMD and Tollywood director-cum-actor G.V. Sudhakar Naidu for unlawful assembly. Some of them were booked for conspiracy and road blockade. Former Union minister M.M. Pallam Raju, former state minister Vatti Vasantha Kumar, MP V. Hanumantha Rao, former DCCB director Akula Ramakrishna of Congress, former state minister Kanna Lakshminarayana of the BJP, former minister Botsa Satyanarayana and Ambati Rambabu of YSRC have been named as accused in some of FIRs. No.1 News channels CMD M. Sai Sudhakar Naidu who is a Kapu and had participated in the meeting has also been named as an accused. In violence cases only Mudragada Padmanabham and some others have been named. None of the leaders of political parties figured in the FIRs. The Kapu meeting was held without permission. It amounts to unlawful assembly. Politicians and others who participated and were on the stage were made accused in one of the FIRs connected with unlawful assembly. Some politicians like Pallam Raju sat along with Mudragada during the road blockade in which some buses were damaged. So other cases were booked. Likewise others who took part in the rail blockade along with Mudragada were also booked, said a senior police official. According to sources, Mr Pallam Raju has been named in three FIRs, including for conspiracy and road blockade. Mr Kanna Lakshminarayana has been named in one case of unlawful assembly. The owner of the coconut grove where the meeting took place, Mr Raja, has also been booked. Around 27 Kapu leaders have been booked including YSRC MLA Dadisetty Raja and Jakkampadui Vijayalakshmi. Tollywood actor G.V. Sudhakar Naidu, who had earlier contested from Gajuwaka with the blessings of Chiranjeevi said, I attend Kapu meetings regularly. In my speech I said that at July 10, 1988s Kapunadu meeting at Vijayawada around 10 lakh had attended and after 28 years I am seeing such a crowd again. Then I said Jai Kapu, Jai Mudragada, Jai Vangaveeti, Jai Pawan Kalyan. Then the power was cut. People begun running on to the stage and fell on me, so I ran for cover. I took an OB van and got down at a nearby village and then took the bus. He added, No one knew the agenda of Mudragada. Even all other political leaders left the spot. Participating in a community meeting is not an offence. I havent instigated anyone. We are not anti-social elements. Mudragada Padmanabham plans hunger stir Kapunadu leader Mudragada Padmanabham reiterated on Wednesday that he would go on an indefinite hunger strike from February 5 at his house at Kirlampudi in East Godavari district along with his wife Padmavathi, demanding inclusion of Kapus in the BCs list and allocation of Rs 2,000 crore for Kapu Corporation. He told reporters on Wednesday that Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu was trying to suppress the Kapus by booking false cases. He demanded that the CM should withdraw cases against Kapu activists as the violence was engineered by the TD. He said after Kapus came on to the streets the CM had started discussions with his Kapu friends. He warned the CM not to cheat the community. Mudragada called upon Kapus not to come to Kirlampudi to express solidarity. They should express concern in their villages without creating nuisance, he said. Speaking about the violence, Mudragada said the TD was behind the incidents at Tuni on Sunday. He disclosed that there was an attempt to attack his wife Padmavathi who was staying at the guesthouse. He said miscreants made an attempt to break open doors and destroyed the overhead tank and windows. He said that till now he has not disclosed the matter. Our cars were also destroyed by anti-social elements, he added. Clearly it was an attack on my family and only the TD could have done it, Mudragada said. He apologised to the media saying that he had always held the media in high esteem. He said he had never attacked any reporters or any media person. He also offered to compensate for the cameras and other equipment destroyed during the incident if they think that Kapus were behind the incident. Talking about the BCs movement opposing reservations for Kapus by its leader R. Krishnaiah, Mudragada said that he doesnt want to make any comments against him as he doesnt belong to AP. He made it clear that Kapus were fighting for elimination of poverty and that they had never objected to any BC movements in the past. Bengaluru/New Delhi: The 21-year-old second-year BBA girl student of Acharya College, who was chased by a mob, stripped and beaten up, is still traumatised and is confined to her house. She is scared to venture out as she lives in Hesaraghatta area, where she was attacked on Sunday night. The police on Wednesday said that four people, who were part of the mob that set two cars on fire, have been arrested. Read: Bengaluru: Mob strips Tanzanian girl, torches her car as police watch The girl has spoken to her family and it will take some time for her to get out of the trauma. But she still wishes to pursue her studies at Acharya College, said Mr Bosco Kaweesi, legal adviser, All African Students Union in Bengaluru. Our students will live in peace only after a reconciliation meeting between the local residents, college authorities, police, political representatives and the African community members in Hesaraghatta. Read: Bengaluru cops rescued drivers, left stripped Tanzanian girl to mobs mercy During the earlier Byrathi Cross incident, even the home minister came to meet the victim and the African students in and around East Bengaluru have some hope of not being harmed by the local residents. But in the Hesaraghatta incident and the subsequent burning of cars, even senior police officials did not visit the spot that night or the next day. Read: Tanzania issues note verbale after mob strips girl in Bengaluru The senior officials who visited the spot on Sunday night and Monday morning were ACP Yeshwantpura Ashok Narayan and Soladevanahalli police inspector G. Praveen Babu, said Mr Kaweesi. Read: Africa angry, demands justice after mob strips Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru Meanwhile, the student leaders are collating a report from all the victims involved in the attack to submit it to the Tanzanian Embassy. The ambassador had called the student leaders on Wednesday and sought the FIR copies, he said. Read: Road rage gets a foreign face The Ingram Content Group has shifted the responsibilities of two of its senior executives: Kent Freeman and Pep Carrera. Freeman, a 33-year Ingram veteran, is leaving his post as chief operating officer of the companys VitalSource Technologies unit to move into a newly created role as chief strategy and development officer. He is being replaced at VitalSource by Carrera, who has been Ingram chief information officer. Ingram president Shawn Morin explained the change by noting that the company believes VitalSource is poised for fast growth. Peps backgrounds in product management and engineering, combined with his leadership style and innate curiosity, are the right mix to lead this fast growing part of Ingram," Morrin said. VitalSource distributes more than 500,000 books from over 750 educational publishers. Carrera joined Ingram in 2012 as chief information officer. In his new role he will relocate to VitalSources Raleigh, N.C., offices to oversee the companies worldwide operations. (Ingram also has offices in Boston and the U.K.) Freeman, in his new role, will, the company said, "be supporting Ingrams continued transformation and leading the delivery, management and incubation of Ingrams future successful strategic partnerships and products. The British School reported the threat to the police around 1pm after which a security drill was initiated. (Photo: British-school.org) New Delhi: Police swarmed the British School in Chanakyapuri's diplomatic area on Thursday and searched the premises for an hour after a threat call warned of an attack with an AK-47 rifle. "The school authorities informed us about receiving a call at around 1 PM. The caller claimed he was armed with an AK-47 and threatened to kill all students," DCP, New Delhi, Jatin Narwal said. "Several police teams were rushed to the school and its entry and exit points closed. A thorough search was conducted in classrooms, washrooms and storerooms for an hour. It turned out to be a hoax call," he said. Though no case has been registered in this regard so far, efforts are on to trace the caller and probe is underway, Narwal said. "We safely sent all the students back home after police informed us it was a hoax call and there was no threat. The campus is secure and everybody is home. All the security protocols are in place at the school," Director of the school Vanita Uppal said. In a message sent to all parents, the school authorities said, "The school was under lock-down for the last one hour. Police have given an 'all clear' and all students and staff members are safe. Students were moved out in a safe and controlled manner, after school activities are cancelled. Buses will be delayed by 10-15 minutes." Outside of a few graying political circles, the death last week of Philip J. Rock was little marked. Thats a shame because the life and service of the longest-tenured president of the Illinois Senate, a Chicago Democrat who also understood the art of compromise, should serve as a model for effective service in our politically crippled state. It is a testament to that service that leaders in both parties were lauding the statesman who died Friday. Fellow Chicago Democrats, Senate President John Cullerton, whom he mentored, and House Speaker Michael Madigan were singing his praises, joined by Republican governors and lawmakers. He was somebody who you knew wanted to get things done, he wasnt going to play games with you, former Gov. Jim Edgar told the Associated Press. He might not even like who he was working with, but he understood the responsibility to get things done. And he did them. Thats remarkable in a job that once was a bit like herding cats, with disagreements not only between parties, but among a slim Democratic majority he called a fractured, sensitive and unruly caucus the entire time I was Senate president, in his book Nobody Calls Just to Say Hello. Indeed, politics were often then, as they are now, a contact sport. Ask members of the Crazy Eights, a group of independent-minded senators, which included Rock Islands Don Wooten, whose actions eventually led to Sen. Rocks compromise elevation to president. Such mutinous behavior is exceedingly rare today, particularly in the House, which the speaker rules supreme. (Ask Chicago Democrat Rep. Ken Dunkin, who has bucked his boss more than once and may yet suffer the consequences.) The olive branches which Sen. Rock extended to Republican colleague also would seem anathema today. The respect and the treatment of the two parties was very fair, said former Sen. Laura Kent Donahue, a Quincy Republican. We worked together on the floor, we worked together in committee, and we played together afterward. Thats hard to imagine in 2016 as the budget stalemate enters its seventh month with no hope for a deal in sigh. Presumably, even areas where there appears to be potential agreement -- for example, a Cullerton-backed pension reform plan -- are nonstarters. Of course, Sen. Rock, didnt always win the day, either. Take his repeated failed efforts to shorten Illinois long, expensive and divisive campaign season. Nearly 40 years ago, he introduced legislation to move the primary from March to September. He believed it would reduce the amount of money and time spent on getting elected, decrease the drag between the primary and the general election, and allow candidates to pass petitions in warm weather rather than in the icy cold of winter. I thought my arguments were compelling, he wrote in his memoir with Ed Wojcicki, but I believe its fair to say that a majority of the Democratic organization did not wish to move the primary. Their motives were not so noble. They thought they would be better protected from the independent candidates if the competition had to go out in the worst possible weather. Though he didnt say it, in addition, as money drives politics like never before, the long slog also favors incumbents who find it far easier to raise money to defeat upstarts, with help of donations from legislative leaders to whom members will then presumably be beholden. Given how well the system works for the powerful, it seems unlikely that such a switch would fare better today than it did in Sen. Rocks time when he said opponents would throw all kinds of arguments at me, like were interfering with the Jewish holidays in September or interfering with farmers taking the crops from the field. It would be no substitute for delivering a spending plan for the current fiscal year before the next one begins, but perhaps the time is right for the leaders mourning his loss to give the celebrated statesmans good idea new life. Not only would it be a better way to honor his memory than the paralyzing politics on display in Springfield today, but perhaps it might help to forge the kind of compromises Mr. Rock specialized in, ones that would at last put our sick state on the road to recovery. While Patrick Irelan never has lived in the Quad-Cities, the metro area plays a large role in his mystery stories, and is the setting for his first novel, "The Big Drugstore." The 72-year-old author, who lives in North Liberty, Iowa, will be at the Bettendorf Public Library on Wednesday, Feb. 10, starting at 7 p.m., to read from his book, answer questions, and sign copies. "The Big Drugstore" ($19.95, paperback) was published by Ice Cube Press, North Liberty. "I just enjoy creating a plot that is very convoluted sometimes," Mr. Irelan said in an interview this week. "I give the reader clues, so the reader knows everything that Mike Scofield knows. I try to write them so ultimately the reader is fooled. He may interpret things differently than the reader." Inspired by one of his favorite mystery writers, Raymond Chandler, "this rollicking, wisecracking, crime novel is full of a wide range of characters including smart-talking, big-hearted, quick-witted, down-on-his-luck Private Detective Mike Scofield," according to the book synopsis. "The Big Drugstore" gets its title from Scofield working for the fictional Morco drug stores, to look for shoplifters. Then there's a murder committed in one of the stores. Mr. Irelan also admires the author Dashiell Hammett, and has written about Scofield in several short mystery stories since the 1990s. "I don't pretend to be as good a writer as Chandler or Hammett," he said. "One of the great things about writing somebody like Scofield, he can say whatever he wants. He says things you and I would never say to people; it wouldn't be polite." Scofield has his office in downtown Davenport, in the Forrest Block building (at 4th and Brady), which is shown on the cover and an inside page. Mr. Irelan blends real Q-C locations with fictional street names. The action goes from bridge to bridge along the Mississippi River, city to city, even a jaunt to Iowas only island town, Sabula, north of Clinton. Mr. Irelan began writing mysteries with a series of short stories in the '90s, most of which appeared in Ellery Queens Mystery Magazine and Alfred Hitchcocks Mystery Magazine. He previously had written two books of short stories and two family memoirs. The other non-mysteries have been published in several regional journals, including Kansas Quarterly, Crosscurrants, Iowa City Magazine and Wisconsin River Valley Journal. Mr. Irelan grew up on a farm in southern Iowa, Davis County. He said his father was a great storyteller and worked for railroads. "He embellished every story, made it comical," he said. Mr. Irelan has always enjoyed mysteries and humor, and tries to incorporate comic elements in his stories. He is retired from working as editor for the Division of Continuing Education at the University of Iowa, where he was on staff 20 years. The UI alum taught history at junior high and high schools in West Branch and Clinton for five years, and worked 10 years writing and doing PR for Westinghouse Electric Company in Iowa City. When Mr. Irelan was working in Clinton, he would often visit the Q-C area on weekends, and his detective travels all over the "gritty and rough" Quad-Cities in the stories. "I liked it. It is, in my estimation, a good place for a mystery story," he said of the area. "There's a large enough population, it's conceivable that people could murder each other." Mr. Irelan set his mysteries in the Q-C, rather than Clinton, because it's bigger and has more variety. He is currently working on a sequel to "The Big Drugstore," his first novel. He likes the novel format -- compared to short stories -- because "you can add all kinds of suspects, various characters, traveling, more description, more discussions," he said. One review from Foreword Reviews said: "'The Big Drugstore' is an easy read a slight feel of film-noir with the short sentences and one-liner witticism. Patrick Irelan delivers an entertaining hit that will leave you guessing until the very end." While the book was released in the fall, the Bettendorf appearance is the author's first Q-C public event. It is part of Read Local, a partnership between the Bettendorf Public Library and the Midwest Writing Center in which six recently published area authors are highlighted every year. Two men were arrested Wednesday after their vehicle crashed into two other vehicles during a pursuit by an Iowa State Patrol trooper. The chase started about noon in Davenport when the trooper tried to stop the suspect vehicle for a traffic violation, according to Iowa State Patrol Trooper Dan Loussaert. Near the intersection of North Division and 4th streets, the vehicle crashed into two other cars, and the driver and passenger proceeded to flee on foot, he said. The two men were apprehended by the Iowa State Patrol and Davenport Police. As of 2:15 p.m. Wednesday, police had not released the men's names. Trooper Loussaert said no major injuries were reported and that charges were pending. Julia L. Gutierrez of Geneva is charged with first-degree murder in the death of 53-year-old Eduardo Gutierrez of Geneva. During a hearing Wednesday before Kane County Judge Robert Morrow, Assistant State's Attorney Greg Sams said that in 2002, Gutierrez put up to 10 capsules of the sedative temazepam, plus herbal sleeping remedies, in shakes she and her husband consumed. Assistant Public Defender Julie Yetter told the judge no charges were brought because the 53-year-old Gutierrez underwent psychiatric treatment. Prosecutors say that between Jan. 26 and Jan. 28, Gutierrez mixed temazepam into a drink and gave it to her husband, killing him. Madigan says the bipartisan Education Funding Task Force will meet through the spring to craft legislation designed to ensure schools are funded equitably throughout the state. He made the announcement Tuesday. The panel will be led by House Democratic Leader Barbara Flynn Currie. Panel members will get input from educators statewide. The first meeting will be Feb. 16 at the Capitol in Springfield. The announcement comes about a week after Illinois Senate President John Cullerton said inequity in Illinois' school funding formula is the "defining crisis of our time" and an overhaul is a top priority. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources allows St. Louis-based Peabody Energy to pledge it has adequate assets to pay for the estimated $92 million needed to reclaim three southern Illinois mines once there's no coal left to extract, or if the company shuts down. The Chicago-based Environmental Law and Policy Center says that arrangement, known as self-bonding, puts taxpayers at risk should Peabody go bankrupt. Five other major coal companies have sought bankruptcy protection since 2014, and Peabody's stock price has plummeted amid tighter federal regulations and an industry shift toward natural gas, a cheaper and cleaner alternative. The company recently announced 75 job cuts at the Wildcat Hills mine in Gallatin County and its Cottage Grove site near Harrisburg. That follows another round of 250 layoffs in June that included the closing of an Evansville, Indiana, regional office and staff reductions at its corporate headquarters. "Illinois certainly has a large amount of fiscal problems right now," said Howard Learner, the environmental law center's president and executive director, referring to a state budget impasse now in its eighth month. "And Illinois taxpayers don't need to be saddled with about $100 million of mine reclamation costs if (the state) doesn't require Peabody to put up real capital instead of self-bonding." In a Monday letter to DNR director Wayne Rosenthal and the head of the agency's Mines and Minerals Department, Learner's group asked the state to "exercise its discretion" and require Peabody to purchase surety bonds from private insurers. Learner said in an Associated Press interview that the policy center will consider filing a suit if the state persists with the practice. A DNR spokesman responded that Peabody and its Illinois subsidiaries meets the state's required financial standards to self-bond, a practice the Environmental Law and Policy Center said Peabody has employed since at least 2009. The state reviews such requests annually; Peabody's audited 2015 financial statement is due next month. Peabody spokeswoman Kelley Wright reiterated that Illinois and other states that allow it to self-bond approved the financing mechanism. But self-bonding by Alpha Natural Resources, the nation's No. 4 coal producer, may saddle West Virginia and Wyoming with the very sort of big-ticket obligations being targeted in Illinois. After that company declared for bankruptcy in August, the two states only expect to recoup a combined $100 million from self-bonding obligations of more than six times that amount. ROCK ISLAND Early voting for the March 15 Illinois primary election starts today. Any voter may cast a ballot early and needs no excuse, or reason, according to state law. Voters don't have to have ID with them to vote, although it helps speed up the process, said Rock Island County Clerk Karen Kinney. She said voters will be asked to sign an application to vote early, and the election judge will check the signature against the county's voter registration records to make sure they're registered. In Rock Island County, early voters may cast a ballot at the Rock Island County Clerk's office on the first floor of the Rock Island County Office Building, 1504 3rd Ave., Rock Island. The clerk's office will be open from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday until March 4, with the exception of Feb. 12 and Feb. 15, when the office will be closed for federal holidays. From March 5, the clerk's office will be open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday to Friday and from 8 a.m. to noon on the Saturdays of March 5 and March 12. On the Sundays of March 6 and 13, the clerk's office will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Other early voting sites will be open from Feb. 29 to March 11. These will be located at Western Illinois University, 3300 River Drive, Moline; Silvis City Council Chambers, 121 11th St.; Milan Municipal Building, 405 E. 1st St., and Moline Public Library, 3210 41st St. The additional early voting sites will be open from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday, with the exception of Moline Public Library, which will be open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. For more information about early voting, or registering to vote, contact the Rock Island County Clerk's Election Department at 309-558-3571 or go to rockislandcounty.org. In Henry County, early voting will take place from today to March 14 at the Henry County Clerk's Office, 307 West Center St., Cambridge. Hours for early voting are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday to Friday. The County Clerk's Office also will be open on Saturday, March 5 and March 12, from 8 a.m to noon for early voting. The office will be closed on Feb. 15 in observance of President's Day. For more information on voting or registering to vote in Henry County, call the county clerk's office at 309-937-3575 or online at henrycty.com. In Mercer County, early voting will take place from today to March 14 at the Mercer County Clerk's office, 100 SE 3rd St., Aledo. Hours will be from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the clerk's office Monday to Friday and from 8 a.m. to noon on Saturday, March 12. More information on voting and registering to vote in Mercer County is available by calling the clerk's office at 309-582-7021 or online at mercercountyil.org. The granddaughter of John and Susanne Hauberg said she thinks they would be sad to see Rock Island sell their former home. Fay Hauberg Page, of Seattle, Wash. -- the granddaughter of John Hauberg Sr. and Susanne (Denkmann) Hauberg, and the daughter of John Hauberg Jr. -- on Wednesday said her family is "shocked and saddened" to hear the city council is considering the sale of the mansion and its related properties. The 20-room, three-story mansion was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972. But in 2009, it had become one of Rock Island's "most significant unprotected structures," according to the city's website. "I think they (her grandparents) would have felt the city should try to keep it," Ms. Hauberg Page said. "It was so much a part of their lives. "I think it would have disturbed them that a lot of people are so upset with what's happening." Her grandfather was a Moline lawyer who crusaded against gambling, prostitution and law enforcement corruption. He played a key role in the case that eventually sent local gangster John Looney to prison. An avid historian, philanthropist and civic leader, he was instrumental in the creation of Black Hawk State Historical Site in 1927 and provided most of the Native American relics in the site's Hauberg Museum dedicated in his honor. Augustana College in Rock Island houses the family's library and photo collection. He died on Sept. 13, 1955. His wife, Susanne, was the daughter of Frederick Denkmann, a wealthy Rock Island lumber mogul, and Catherine Bloedel Denkmann. She was known in Rock Island for philanthropic and civic activities too numerous to count. She died Feb. 13, 1942. The Hauberg mansion was commissioned by her mother in 1909; construction continued until 1911 with the couple married June 29, 1911, in the home's "tulip room." "He was such a strong character," Ms. Hauberg Page said of her grandfather. "He had such a long stride. He was a generous and civic-minded man." Ms. Hauberg Page said many people, not just those in Rock Island, recall ties to the house. "There are many living family members who remember playing in the house and with our Grandfather Hauberg," she said. If the city repaired the mansion, she said, it likely would generate more income. She said the home's pipe organ was fabulous, but was damaged when the roof was repaired several years ago. "I feel there are a lot of opportunities if people come forward who say they would like to help fix things, to help maintain the property, so the house could begin to regain its status," she said. Ms. Hauberg Page downplayed the title transfer stipulation allowing the city to one day sell the property. "People tend to look for what they want to look for to support their side of the argument," she said. "I think it's more important to consider the feelings and spirit of the community as a whole. "Obviously, it has created a huge uproar from people who don't want it to go." Sri City Managing Director Ravindra Sannareddy is seen with Colgate-Palmolive Chief Operating Officer Fabian T Garcia at the inauguration of its unit at Sri City in Nellore on Wednesday.(Photo -- DC). Nellore: Colgate-Palmolive (India) Ltd. inaugurated its toothbrush production unit at Sri City on Wednesday. Mr Fabian T. Garcia, Chief Operating Officer, Global Innovation & Growth, Europe/South Pacific, Colgate Palmolive, unveiled the plaque and declared the plant inaugurated signaling the start of commercial production. The unit has an annual production capacity of 220 million pieces of toothbrushes. The company proposes to expand the unit for increasing the annual production capacity to 600 million pieces. The company offers employment opportunity for 1,200 people. The Sri City unit of Colgate-Palmolive, which was built in 25 acres of land, and commissioned in a building of 16,000 sq. m area, was set up at an investment of Rs 450 crore in nineteen months. Colgate-Palmolive (India) Ltd. was incorporated in 1937 as a fully owned subsidiary of its US based parent company Colgate-Palmolive, a $17.3 billion multinational company that serves people in more than 200 countries. Colgate-Palmolive (India) is involved in the production of various kinds of consumer products in the categories of oral care, personal care, household care, surface care, and skin care products. Addressing the gathering, Mr Garcia said, I am happy to inaugurate Colgate's very first toothbrush production unit of India in Sri City. For the past eight decades Colgate has been serving India with its high quality oral care products. The strong relationship and the trust of generations of consumers, built over decades of operations in India, made Colgate as 'most trusted brand' for the past five consecutive years." Commenting on the occasion Mr Ravindranath Sannareddy said,"Colgate-Palmolive revolutionised oral care with innovative products and has emerged as 'most chosen' brand in India. We feel honoured to have Colgate-Palmolive's very first toothbrush unit in India at Sri City." Mr Issaam Bachaalani, Vice President, Colgate Palmolive India & South Asia, a host of board members and global executives of Colgate-Palmolive. Dr P. Krishnaiah, IAS (Retired), Chairman, APIIC, Mr Ravindranath Sannareddy, Managing Director, Sri City, senior executives of various industrial units in Sri City and several other invitees from the industry and business have attended the ceremony. The governor said the group, Return of Kings, offered disgusting viewpoints that werent welcome in Texas. The misogynistic and anti-gay group had planned 165 meetups in 43 countries on Saturday to rally for its pro-male cause. Seven were to be held in Texas, including Dallas and Denton. But late Wednesday, leader Daryush Valizadeh posted that the gatherings were canceled. I can no longer guarantee the safety or privacy of the men who want to attend on February 6, Valizadeh wrote. Valizadeh regularly posts articles that deride feminism and what the authors call female privilege and tyranny. In one blog post titled How to Stop Rape, Valizadeh, who says he believes in neomasculinity, calls for the legalization of rape on private property. I propose that we make the violent taking of a woman not punishable by law when done off public grounds, he wrote. On Twitter, Valizadeh has said the post was satire. His Tweet said: Ill state once again: the How To Stop Rape article was satire. Neither me or my supporters want rape to be legalized. The media is lying. Another post on his blog is titled When No Means Yes, which tells reader that, Women need to understand that men arent robots who can suddenly stop at the drop of a dime with all that testosterone pumping through their system. In a post called Women Have Reduced Themselves to Sexual Commodities, Valizadeh writes, We should view them as oil wells that can provide a commodity that healthy men need to function properly: sex. Abbott, in his statement, called the group pathetic. Ive spent much of my career protecting women from such vile and heinous acts, and it wont be any different on my watch as governor, he said. Abbott spokesman John Wittman said the governors office has received no indication that the planned events are satirical. On its website, the group says it is worried that unattractive women and their enablers are trying to stop the events from happening. The group has hidden the locations of some meetups and designed a special protocol for attendees to prevent women and non-heterosexual men from confronting those who show up. FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) A federal jury awarded $23.1 million on Wednesday to a 22-year-old black man who was unarmed when he was shot and paralyzed by a sheriff's deputy, but Florida lawmakers will have to approve any award above $200,000. The six-woman, two-man jury ruled after 3 hours of deliberation that Palm Beach County Sheriff's Sgt. Adams Lin violated Dontrell Stephens' civil rights when he shot him in September 2013. Lin, who had stopped Stephens for riding his bicycle into traffic, testified that he shot Stephens four times because he reached for his waistband with his left hand and then flashed a dark object that he thought was a small handgun. Stephens testified that he was raising his hands when Lin opened fire for no reason. Video from the dashboard camera in Lin's patrol car showed Stephens' left hand was empty and a cellphone was in his right hand. An appeal is expected and Lin's attorneys could ask Magistrate Judge Barry S. Seltzer to reduce the damages. The jury apparently rejected Lin's claim that he had made an "objectively reasonable mistake" when he shot Stephens. The jurors declined comment as they left the courthouse as did Lin and his attorneys. Lin sat stoically as the verdict was read, while Stephens wept as he was wheeled into the courtroom minutes later. He declined comment. Jack Scarola, Stephens' lead attorney, said the verdict is a victory not only for his client but for law enforcement officers who have been unfairly stigmatized by unjustified violence against young black men by a small minority of their colleagues. He said the verdict will help restore faith in the justice system among the African-American community. "This will help good police officers do their duty and be far more effective in their communities," Scarola said. The sheriff's office released a statement later Wednesday night calling the verdict both shocking and disappointing. "Based upon Mr. Stephens' actions, Sgt. Lin reasonably mistook a cell phone that Mr. Stephens held in his hand for a firearm, and fearing for his life, he shot Mr. Stephens," the statement said. "Sgt. Lin then saved Mr. Stephens life due to the fact that he had extensive medical training as a result of serving his country as a member of the U.S. Army while on deployment in Afghanistan in 2008. He did so by rendering first aid to Mr. Stephens until EMS arrived." Under Florida law, the Legislature has to approve any lawsuit payment against a government agency that exceeds $200,000. In the past, legislators have been reluctant to do that, even in non-controversial cases. For example, it took about three years for the Legislature to approve a $3.5 million settlement for a Jacksonville teenager who was paralyzed when a large branch from a city-owned tree broke off and hit him in the head, paralyzing him. The city, admitting fault, had asked for him to be paid. In another case, it took more than four years for the Legislature to approve a $10.7 million settlement for a teenager who was permanently disabled when a speeding sheriff's deputy plowed into her car. A jury had awarded her $30 million. Scarola said legislators "would not be fulfilling their sworn obligation" if they failed to approve Stephens' payment. He said they would be overriding a jury that heard all the evidence and found that a "major injustice" had been done, and condemning Stephens to a life of poverty and suffering. Stephens' attorneys had said from the beginning that they would seek more than $5 million to cover his medical treatment and future care, but they did not mention the amount they would seek for pain and suffering until closing arguments to the jury Wednesday. Attorney Darryl Lewis told jurors Stephens will have more than $6 million in medical and care expenses during his lifetime, and that he deserved at least $18 million for his pain and suffering. An expert testified that he could spend more than 50 years in his condition. The case was among several nationwide that have sparked debate about the deaths of unarmed black males following encounters with law enforcement officers. Seltzer had instructed jurors that they could consider only the specific circumstances of Stephens' shooting and no other. Lin, an Asian-American, was cleared of criminal wrongdoing by sheriff's investigators and local prosecutors and was later promoted to sergeant. Lin, 38 and a 12-year veteran of the sheriff's office, testified that he stopped Stephens for riding his bicycle into traffic and because he didn't recognize him from the neighborhood. Stephens, who admitted smoking marijuana earlier that morning and once served 90 days in jail for a felony drug conviction, had been riding to a friend's house after a trip to a convenience store. In the dashcam video, Lin speeds up his patrol car to catch Stephens as he pedals down a West Palm Beach residential street. Stephens sees Lin and turns into the parking lot of a duplex, hops off his bike and puts it down, his right hand holding his cellphone. Stephens moves behind a car and both men are now outside the camera's view. Stephens testified Lin already had his gun drawn and shot him after he raised his hands. Lin denied that, saying he only drew and fired after Stephens flashed his cellphone like it was a gun. Scarola told the jury that Lin must have already had his gun pointed at Stephens because he couldn't have seen the cellphone, perceived it as a gun, drawn his own gun and fired in the two seconds Stephens was out of view of the dashcam video. Press release submitted by Bettendorf Public Library Map of My Kingdom will be performed on Wednesday, February 24, 7 p.m. at the Bettendorf Public Library. Whos going to get the land? And what are they going to do with it? Map of My Kingdom, a play commissioned by Practical Farmers of Iowa and written by Iowas Poet Laureate Mary Swander, tackles the critical issue of land transition. In the drama, character Angela Martin, a lawyer and mediator in land transition disputes, shares stories of how farmers and landowners she has worked with over the years approached their land successions. Some families almost came to blows, struggling to resolve the sale or transfer of their land, dissolving relationships. Others found peacefully rational solutions that focused not only on the viability of the family, but also of the land. Land is the thread that binds all of the stories together. Map of My Kingdom will resonate with those who have been through or are working through challenging land transfer issues that include division of land among siblings, selling out to a neighbor, and attempts to preserve the lands integrity against urban sprawl. The drama will inspire the hesitant and the fearful to start the conversation that cannot wait. Today, a vast amount of land in the United States is owned by those over 65 years old. Some have made their wishes clear for the future of their property. Others are courting family upheaval by not planning in concrete ways. An age-old problem, evident in literature from the Bible to King Lear to Willa Cather, land transition asks hard questions: Who really owns the land? And what is the role of the steward of a property? Can fair become unfair to ones children? Map of My Kingdom is directed by Matt Foss, Acting and Theatre History professor at The University of Idaho and is performed by professional actress Cora Vander Broek who is a graduate of Northwestern College in Iowa and The School of Steppenwolf in Chicago. The play is approximately one hour followed by a talkback/post-performance discussion with Mary Swander. Mary Swander is the co-founder of AgArts, a national organization designed to imagine and promote healthy food systems through the arts. She lives in an old Amish schoolhouse where she grows all her own food. Shes a descendant of Irish immigrants who homesteaded in Iowa and handled four generations of land transition. Map of My Kingdom is sponsored by the Friends of the Bettendorf Public Library, Silos & Smokestacks, and Humanities Iowa. Brig. Gen. Ahmed Asiri told The Associated Press that Saudi Arabia has taken part in coalition airstrikes against IS since the U.S.-led campaign began in September 2014, but could now provide ground troops. The United States is scheduled to convene a meeting of defense ministers from countries fighting IS in Brussels this month. "We are determined to fight and defeat Daesh," Asiri said, using the Arabic acronym for IS. He didn't elaborate on how many troops the kingdom would send. Saudi Arabia is deeply involved in Yemen's civil war, where it is fighting Iranian-backed Shiite rebels. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries have long viewed Iran as a regional menace, and Riyadh and Tehran back opposite sides in the wars in Syria and Yemen. Asiri's announcement came shortly after Russia said it suspects Turkey of planning a military invasion of Syria. Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said Thursday in a statement that the Russian military has registered "a growing number of signs of hidden preparation of the Turkish armed forces for active actions on the territory of Syria." He said images of a checkpoint on the Turkish-Syrian border taken in late October and late January show a buildup of transportation infrastructure that could be used for moving in troops, ammunition and weapons. The announcement came a day after U.N.-led peace talks in Geneva were suspended for three weeks. The United States blames both Syria's government and Russia for stalling the peace negotiations. Syrian government troops, backed by Russian airstrikes, have increased the pace of attacks on opposition forces in recent days as the talks faltered. "We believe that the airstrikes alone are not the perfect solution," Asiri said in another interview with the Dubai-based Al-Arabiya TV. After two and a bit years with 103.1 Power FM breakfast show in Ballarat Ross Watson is pulling the plug. For Jules it means she will have her sixth co-host for Breakfast. But Ross assures her that its not her, saying: For the record there is nothing wrong with you Julesyoure a great co-host. Theres a listener party planned for this week to say farewell at Ross new workplace. He is joining Ballarat Renaut in one of his orignal trades as a mechanic. {youtube}IrO0I7aHoq0{/youtube} New Delhi: The Budget Session of Parliament will commence on February 23 that will focus largely on the financial business of the government, which will present the general budget on Feb 29. But there will be no curtailment of the session or the recess period on account of Assembly elections in five states due shortly. This was decided at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs, chaired by Home Minister Rajnath Singh. "The budget session of parliament will commence on February 23. The Rail Budget will be presented on February 25, the pre-budget economic survey on February 26 and the General budget on February 29. "The first part of Budget session will end on March 16 and the second part will be convened from April 25 to May 13," Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu told reporters after the meeting of CCPA. He said there were suggestions for curtailing the recess period due to assembly elections in five states but the government as well as political parties wanted a full session. "In 2011, the then government had decided not to refer bills to Standing Committees in the budget session when states were going to polls and there were demands to curtail the session. "But the government today decided that bills will be referred to standing committees for examination during recess period," Naidu said. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said government is hopeful that this budget session will be constructive and positive, unlike the previous two sessions when Congress and other opposition parties stalled proceedings and blocked key reform legislations. "We are hopeful that this budget session will be constructive that will take forward the country's development and that of the poor, youth and other sections. We hope no political party will stop the progress and development on these issues. We hope the Congress party will make up for the loss of the previous two sessions. "We are making attempts to talk to all so that this session functions in a proper manner. We are talking to all parties, formally and informally and our attempt is that the budget session is positive and constructive," Naqvi said. Ahead of the CCPA meeting, government convened an all-party meeting in which opposition parties demanded that the Budget Session of Parliament be not curtailed despite assembly elections in five states. "The Session's working days should not be curtailed. They should hold a complete recess to enable the Standing Committees to examine the budgetary allocations to various ministries," Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad told reporters after the meeting. JD-U leader Sharad Yadav said, "There was consensus among various parties that despite the assembly elections in a few states, the number of working days of the budget session should not be reduced. But parties left it to the government for deciding the dates of recess." CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechury said every year government should come out with a calendar of Parliament sittings so that there is no confusion. "The Election Commission will then decide the dates for elections knowing when Parliament is sitting. The Prime Minister will also know about the sittings and will remain in House and not be abroad," he said. Among the leaders who participated in the all-party meet convened by government were Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma and Deepinder Hooda of Congress, Yadav and K C Tyagi of JD-U, Ram Gopal Yadav of Samajwadi Party and Yechury of CPI-M. Naidu said the Budget session will have a total of 31 sittings spread over a duration of 81 days. Since it is the first session of the new calendar year, it will begin with the address of President Pranab Mukherjee to the joint sitting of the two Houses on February 23. CCPA decision on the schedule was also taken in view of the requirement of Lok Sabha Speaker and Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha to attend the Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference, suggestions from leaders of various parties and holidays in the month of April, he said. Earlier at the all-party meeting, Naidu said the government favoured a normal and full length session with sufficient recess in between to enable Standing Committees examine budgetary proposals and other bills. The minister said the session was to commence on February 22, a Monday, but due to Ravidas Jayanti it was decided to commence it on February 23. The crude by rail (CBR) boom that less than two years ago preoccupied the industry and generated intense regulatory scrutiny is, for all intents and purposes, over, according to a new analysis by RBN Energy. With crude prices below $30/Bbl and the price spread between U.S. domestic crude benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and international equivalent Brent trading in a very narrow range, the economics of CBR rarely make sense any more, writes RBN Director Energy Analytics Sandy Fielden in Slow Train Coming: Crude By Rail Decline Picks Up Pace. Rail shipments are down across all regions and railroads are reporting sharply lower revenues from CBR shipments. Following are a few excerpts. Historically, CBR transport dominated the early oil industry in North America, underpinning John D Rockefellers monopoly, writes Fielden. But its use declined after World War II once pipelines were built to ship larger volumes of crude over longer distances. Pipelines have been almost always preferred since then because, once built, their freight costs are generally lower than using rail or trucks. More recently, however, surging crude production from shale overwhelmed existing pipeline take-away infrastructure, leading to significant constraints and price discountingparticularly in the Midwestwhile producers waited for the buildout of new pipeline capacity that is typically a relatively slow process, taking up to three years. As a result, at the end of 2010, producers (led by innovators EOG Resources and BNSF Railway) turned to the rails to deliver crude past congested pipelines to coastal markets where netbacks (crude sales price less transport costs from the wellhead) were considerably higher. The resulting surge saw total U.S. CBR shipments (not including Canadian imports) increase from 33 million Bbl per day in January 2010 to a peak of 928 million Bbl per day in October 2014, as measured by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The growth in CBR traffic was helped by three factors. First, the railroads cooperated with the industry to develop efficient pipeline on wheels unit trains that typically involved upwards of 100 tank cars dedicated to moving crude directly between load and destination points, returning empty tank cars immediately in a round-trip pattern with priority over other traffic. Second the investment required to get crude onto the rails was small compared to pipelines, involving building a load terminal and storage and oftentimes an unload terminal with waterborne barge access that could distribute to multiple refineries. Third, rail terminals could be built out in 5-8 monthsmuch more rapidly than pipelines providing a quick solution for stranded crude. The lower investment reduced the need to secure long-term shipper commitment upfront, leaving producers comfortable committing to rail volumes for 1-2 years. Now the use of CBR is winding down, squeezed by lower differentials between inland crude prices linked to U.S. domestic benchmark WTI and coastal crudes priced to compete with international benchmark Brent. Simply put, during the period between the fall of 2010 and the end of 2015, various constraints on the free movement of domestic crude . . . resulted in WTI trading at a wide discount to Brent that reached a peak of $28/Bbl in November 2011 and averaged $18/Bbl in 2012. The gradual build-out of pipeline capacity linking stranded crude in North Dakota and other basins such as the West Texas Permian and Niobrara shale in the Rockies reduced inland congestion, allowing domestic production to reach coastal refineries for the most part by the end of 2014, bringing the WTI discount to Brent down to about $3/Bbl. Then at the end of 2015 crude oil prices crashed below $40/bbl at the same time Congress unexpectedly passed legislation to end restrictions on U.S. crude exports, opening up the potential for U.S. crude to compete openly in international markets. But although the WTI discount to Brent narrowed fairly consistently between April 2013 and November 2015, CBR movements continued to increase, not peaking until October 2014 at 928 million Bbl/day before falling 16% to 782 million Bbl/day in November 2015. There are various reasons for this lag in CBR movements when compared to narrower price differentials. Part of the issue is that until alternatives such as pipelines are built out, CBR remains the only route to market for stranded crude, even if spot market economics may not make sense. . . .Nevertheless, although the slowdown in CBR has been less dramatic than the immediate economics suggest should be the case, [and] although there will continue to be some niche markets where CBR plays an important role, the overall use of CBR will continue to decline. {For example], Union Pacific, a major CBR shipper in the western U.S. reported a 42% drop in crude shipments in fourth-quarter 2015 vs. the same period a year ago. And one business with fortunes that are closely tied to CBR has been particularly hard hit in the past year:rail tank car leasing. At the height of the CBR boom, shippers paid upwards of $2,500/month to lease scarce rail tank cars. Now lease rates have dropped to $300/month in some cases . . . amid a glut of tank cars. Some shippers who purchased more tank cars than they need now are paying $30/day to park them on unused sidings. To access the complete report, click HERE. Ex-president of Antalbank detained on suspicion of large-scale embezzlement report MOSCOW, February 4 (RAPSI) Former president of Antalbank, Magomed Muhiyev has been detained on suspicion of his involvement in embezzlement of 30 million rubles ($400,000), Kommersant newspaper reported on Thursday. According to newspaper, Muhiyev was arrested by the employees of the Interior Ministrys Economic Security and Anti-Corruption Department when he was trying to leave Russia. A court ruled to detain Muhiyev for two months; he is facing large-scale fraud charges. Investigation into the case began in December when representatives of the Russian Central Bank told the Interior Ministry about massive embezzlement of funds. According to the Central Bank, unofficial group of banks was allegedly working together in order to embezzle funds. This group allegedly involved Antalbank, Lada-Credit, Greenfieldbank, Doris-bank, Sodruzhestvo bank, Mezhregionbank, Regional bank of savings, NST-bank, Maximum bank. Top-managers of some banks are actively helping the investigation in this case. Russian tycoon Chigirinsky accuses his ex-wifes business partner of aiding fraud MOSCOW, February 4 (RAPSI) Russian tycoon Shalva Chigirinsky who has brought a legal action against his ex-wife Tatiana Panchenkova claims that her long-standing business partner Aleksander Smukler abetted and aided an alleged fraud. Chigirinsky filed a lawsuit against Panchenkova with the New York Supreme Court in June 2014 seeking to recover tens of millions of dollars of property that allegedly belonged to him or in which he had a beneficial interest and which was in his ex-wifes possession. This property includes prime New York real estate, fine art, religious icons, antiques, jewelry, and a historic library of Russian literature collected by Chigirinskiy both before and during his marriage. Panchenkova took possession of the property pursuant to an agreement with Chigirinsky that, following their divorce, the library would be preserved intact and maintained for the ultimate benefit of their children, according to court records. According to Chigirinsky, estimated value of this library was around $120 million. He claims that his ex-wife failed to return property to him as well as preserve and maintain the library as it had been agreed upon. Ms. Panchenkova has embarked on a systematic dissipation of the Collection, selling numerous items, many, on information and belief, at below market value, and unjustly enriching herself with the roceeds, according to court records. On February 1, Chigirinsky filed a second amended complaint with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York where the case had been moved listing Smukler as a co-defendant. Mr. Smukler knew about the fraud and fraudulent concealment perpetrated by Ms. Panchenkova, aided and abetted her and provided substantial assistance to her in achieving this fraud and concealment, reads the complaint. Desperate search for the survivors had been intensified with specialised teams of the Army and the Air Force with dogs carving through massive chunks of frost. (Photo: DC) Srinagar: There is now no hope of finding any survivors from an avalanche, which buried ten Army jawans including a Junior Commissioner Officer at their post in Siachen glacier area at a height of 19,600 feet in eastern Ladakh on Wednesday morning. Army has said that finding any survivors is a remote possibility now even though desperate search operations were on Thursday intensified with specialised teams of the Army and the Air Force along with sniffer dogs carving through massive chunks of frost. Specialised equipment was flown into Leh on Thursday morning to further boost the rescue efforts, said Udhampur-based defence spokesman Colonel S.D. Goswami. Reports from the Siachen base-camp said that a kilometer wide and 600 feet high wall of snow and ice bore down on the Army camp. The glaciated area presents temperatures ranging from a minimum of minus 42 degrees in the night to maximum of minus 25 degrees during the day. The rescue teams are braving adverse weather and effects of rarified atmosphere to locate and rescue survivors. However, it is with deepest of regrets that we have to state that chances of finding any survivors are now very remote, Col. Goswami said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi extended condolences to the families of the soldiers who lost their lives in the avalanche. Demise of soldiers in Siachen is very tragic. I salute the brave soldiers who gave their lives to the nation. Condolences to their families. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 4, 2016 Lt. Gen. DS Hooda, Northern Command chief, while expressing his grief on the tragic incident, said It is a tragic event and we salute the soldiers who braved all challenges to guard our frontiers and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. Jammu and Kashmir Governor, Narendra Nath Voha, also expressed shock and grief over the tragic loss of Army personnel. He spoke to Lt. Gen. Hooda to convey his heartfelt sympathy to the bereaved families and lauded the brave officers and men of the Indian Army who serve in the most difficult areas, brave all odds and even give away their lives for safeguarding national security. Earlier on Thursday, the director general military operations (DGMO) of Pakistan Army called his Indian counterpart to offer assistance in the rescue operation. The massive avalanche hit the post located in the southern side of the Siachen glacier at dawn on Wednesday. The post was being manned by the JCO and nine soldiers when the incident occurred. The Siachen Glacier is located in the eastern Karakoram range in the Himalayas, just northeast of the point NJ9842 where the Line of Control (LoC) ends. As both India and Pakistan have claim over it, the stretch of snow is dubbed as the worlds highest battlefield. As many as 869 Indian Army personnel have lost their lives on the Siachen due to climatic conditions and environmental and other factors since the Army launched Operation Meghdoot to take the control of the strategically vital glacier in 1984 till December 2015. In the recent such incident, four soldiers were killed by an avalanche in January this year. The worst, however, occurred in April 2012 when an entire Army location was swept in a massive avalanche in the area killing as many as 135 soldiers. Prior to 1984, neither India nor Pakistan had any military forces in this area. In spite of avalanches and landslides claiming lives of the soldiers routinely in the area particularly during the winter when temperatures can drop as low as minus 60 degrees Celsius, the Indian military authorities maintain that the Army will stay in the region for strategic advantages. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale Buy real estate. Find a great selection of commercial real estate, manufactured homes, timeshares and more for Sale in US and Canada. Search Real Estate , We're sorry, this article is not currently available The city of Chicago has unveiled its new Home Buyer Assistance Program as part of its return to the mortgage business. Crian's Chicago Business said that the government is starting small with only $1 million capital, but is confident that the program will immediately grow. Mayor Rahm Emanuel said this new Home Buyer Assistance Program will provide "an essential building block for vibrant communities." According to the report, homebuyers in the low- and middle-income households can enjoy a grant of as much as 5 percent of the total loan amount to help them cover the costs of down payment and closing. Looking at the current typical home selling average in Chicago of $250,000, a homebuyer can receive a grant of up to $12,000. Carole Brown, the city's chief financial officer, expects the fund to quickly grow. She added, "If it needs more seed capital, we'll put in more. But I don't think we will need to." Brown also said that the $1 million capital for the new homebuyer air program came from the old bond program. The program, which will be administered by Emanuel's Chicago Infrastructure Trust, will include a non-flipping clause. This means that the homebuyer should own the property for at least five years. Greater Englewood Community Development Corp. President Ien Fulton said, "We have a foundation for small businesses that's coming back to Englewood. So now we need to build up some kind of foundation, a support system for people that want to buy a home and come back," as reported by DNAinfo. Emanuel announced this new mortgage aid during the meeting with business leaders and members of the Chatham Business Association last Monday. Among the presents is Tiffany Hamel Johnson, the Chicago Urban League's senior vice president of strategy and community development. The city has previously launched a similar assistance program which ended in 2007. Renting out a house within or near college towns is a good investment. For the past few years, real estate rentals in these areas have yielded high especially for single-family detached homes. Home investors in areas near colleges and universities across the United States earn a big sum of profit by renting out properties, noted the National Real Estate Investor. The vice president of RealtyTrac's data firm, Daren Blomquist, said, "Many of the counties at the top of the list for strong rental yields are in college towns." The main reason for this trend is that the demand for accommodation in college towns is always high. As a result, many landlords increase rental fees every so often in these areas. At the moment, big corporations have started stepping in these locations to build sizeable housing communities for students. On the other hand, many college-goers still live in detached single-family homes outside the campus. The demand for housing in college towns has always been stable unlike those in areas far from colleges and universities, said Investopedia. Although there are housing opportunities inside the campus, it could not meet the number of students and professors who need accommodations. According to studies, there is higher profit from home rentals in locations where there are young renters. "Many towns with many young residents have strong gross annual rental yields, averaging around 10 percent, including East Lansing, Mich., Gainesville, Fla. and Athens, Ga.," Blomquist revealed. The VP of RealtyTrac for data firm, on the other hand, mentioned that the number of students is not always in direct proportion to the profit yield from rentals. For instance, in Arlington County in Virginia, more than a third of the population is comprised of young residents but the average profit from single-family houses for rent is less than four percent. Even college towns in high-priced cities suffer from a low rate of home rentals. New Delhi: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday said 'globally designated international terrorist' Hafiz Saeed continues to enjoy the freedom to indulge in their activities in Pakistan. "His claims that his various front organisations are carrying out charitable work is a fig leaf. It is not even a fig leaf I would say. They indulge in terrorist activities and terrorist financing, it should be a matter of great concern for everyone that people like Hafiz Saeed and his associates continue to enjoy the freedom to indulge in their activities," said MEA official spokesperson Vikas Swarup. Swarup also asked Islamabad to initiate action against such elements. Read: Kashmiris can carry out Pathankot style attacks for their defence: Saeed "In October, we had seen that the Government of Pakistan had banned the electronic coverage of some of these organisations including the one to which Hafiz Saeed belongs. But we are seeing now that Hafiz Saeed is making statements after statements and his rallies are being covered. So, obviously the concerned authorities need to take actions," he added. Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed had on Wednesday praised last month's terror attack at the Pathankot air force base and encouraged similar attacks against India. Saeed, who is the mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, also lauded Kashmiri militant leader Sayed Salahuddin, who heads the United Jihad Council (UJC) that has claimed responsibility for the attack. May you be a millionaire or just a random businessman, if you are worth your salt to invest a good life in Europe, you definitely can, even if you are an Asian. Johannesburg's New World Health says Europe has long been a nest for the super-rich and the Europe Wealth Report 2015 has proven so. The report shows that a European has a total wealth assets of $86,000. As per Forbes "net assets" or "wealth assets" refers to the net value of properties less liabilities. An individual's primary residences are excluded, the source added. The report also reveals that European continent has reached a total individual wealth of $51 trillion. About 3.9 million millionaires are living in Europe with $19.6 trillion combined wealth holdings. As per records in 2015, there were 127,000 multi-millionaires, also dubbed as "High Net Worth Individuals," residing in Europe alone. There were also 13 million HNWIs around the world with overall net wealth amounting to $67 trillion. Surprisingly, there were 509,000 multi-millionaires in the world then at the latter part of 2015. As of the moment, Forbes did not elaborate more on the recent total number of multi-millionaires on the planet. Meanwhile, the source expounded on who can really afford to live in London. According to Contributing Writer Rani Singh, the local multi-millionaires in Europe include all people who are currently living or working in the continent, and this includes the expats. However, this report does not include Turkey, Russia, and Commonwealth of Independent States, not even countries like Greece as they are reportedly unstable. On the other note, Forbes showcases a photo of French Actor Alain Delon's Ferrari 250 GT SWB California spider at the Paris Retromobile Car Show in 2015. Taken on Feb. 3 of last year, the photo depicts a picture of a super-rich European. Yet, who else can afford the lifestyle in London? Head of Research for New World Wealth, Andrew Amoils, reveals that Indian and Chinese millionaires are worth their salt in buying into residential properties in Europe for past a decade already. He added that London, specifically, is the hotspot for residential investments, particularly in Knightsbridge, Belgravia, Hampstead, Richmond, Geneva, Paris, and U.K. university towns like Henley, Warwick, Cambridge, Durham and Oxford. Furthermore, Amoils also relates the relationship between Europe and Asia. "Several European based wealth managers and family offices are expanding their presence in Asia, particularly in Singapore and Hong Kong. Swiss made luxury watches such as Patek Philippe, Breguet and Ulysse Nardin were big sellers in Asia between 2000 and 2013. However, demand since then has fallen due to a crackdown on corporate gifts in China," Amoils added. Georgia womens basketball coach Joni Taylor meets with media members in a crowded hall outside the teams training facility. She talks about her teams offensive issues, reiterating how important their practice sessions are in getting better. While a few awkward silences pop up in between questions, she lightens the mood by calling a reporter by the wrong name. Thank-you notes are framed on a wall at Patients' Hospital in Redding. SHARE Andreas Fuhrmann/Record Searchlight Dr. Randy Tate talks to a patient's spouse Wednesday at Patients' Hospital in Redding. The hospital ranks as one of the best. Andreas Fuhrmann/Record Searchlight Andrew Petersen of Quincy walks a hallway at Patients' Hospital in Redding, Wednesday. Petersen was at the hospital for back surgery. The hospital ranks as one of the best. By Amber Sandhu of the Redding Record Searchlight Redding's Patients' Hospital has placed second on the list of best overall patient-related hospitals, according to Becker's Infection Control & Clinical Quality. The local hospital performs only elective surgeries on patients such as cosmetic and orthopedic procedures. And because surgeries are elective, patients must be healthy and not need a lifesaving procedure such as heart surgery, in order to qualify. On Medicare's website, the 10-bed hospital has a 5-star rating and scored high on doctor-to-patient and nurse-to-patient communication, hospital staff response, pain management and patient education. "It's a really big deal for Redding," Hospital Administrator Shari Lejsek said. "We pride ourselves that our patients had a good experience." The hospital opened under the vision of Redding neurosurgeon Dr. James Tate, who wanted a facility that prioritized better patient care, cleanliness and provided patients with a better experience than they would at a regular hospital. Lejsek said they try to keep the room setting as non-clinical as possible. Each of the 10 private rooms is equipped with a bathroom, a small refrigerator, and a television with a DVD player to create a homelike setting. The wall oxygen and vacuum beside the bed are hidden behind a cabinet door. Its website states, "At Patients' Hospital, the experience is more like an overnight stay in a luxury hotel rather than an ordeal in a hospital ward." And that might have a lot to do with the food service. Patients can choose meals such as eggs Benedict for breakfast and New Orleans style prawns for dinner. Kevin Shadish, who has been the chef at the hospital for seven years, said the food the hospital serves patients is not typical "hospital food" but can be compared to something served in a restaurant. And it's not just the patient experience that puts the hospital at the top of when it comes to patient satisfaction, Lejsek said. For the 24 years Patients' Hospital has been in business, it has never hit even 1 percent on its infection rate. For patients such as Andrew Peterson, 28, of Quincy, coming in for back surgery was initially a scary experience because he hadn't been able to walk for almost a month. But after surgery with the help of the nurses and doctors, he was back on his feet. "As far as places go, it's really nice," he said. Lejsek said the hospital takes all insurances including private pay. Patients appreciate the low nurse-to-patient ratios, according to the satisfaction survey and so do the nurses. Tonya Weaver, who's been a nurse with the hospital for six years, said she finds work to be less stressful than she experienced at previous jobs. "It's a lot nicer. There are less patients, so we're able to get to know them," she said. "I didn't realize what a great place it'd be to work." Hospitals with top overall care ratings The top 10 hospitals for which 90 percent or more of patients gave an overall care rating of nine or 10 on their HCAHPS survey. Green Clinic Surgical Hospital (Ruston, Louisiana.): 96 percent of patients gave it a nine or 10 Patients Hospital of Redding: 95 percent Unity Medical and Surgical Hospital (Mishawaka, Indiana): 95 percent The Heart Hospital Baylor Denton (Texas): 95 percent Southeastern Regional Medical Center (Newman, Georgia): 94 percent Oklahoma Heart Hospital (Oklahoma City): 94 percent Cancer Treatment Centers of America (Philadelphia): 94 percent Orthopaedic Hospital of Wisconsin (Glendale): 94 percent Mayo Clinic Hospital (Phoenix, Arizona): 93 percent St. Josephs Hospital (Breese, Illinois): 93 percent Data from the Hospital Compare website and is from April 2014 through March 2015, the most recent data available. Information from Beckers Hospital Review. Co-owner Mei Chen at the popular New China Chinese restaurant in west Redding SHARE The delicious hot and sour soup at New China ($6.25) A table setting at New China restaurant Egg rolls, soup come with lunch special Kung pao prawn lunch special ($8.15) By Marc Beauchamp Its funny: I live within walking distance of the place but often overlook it the highly-rated New China Chinese restaurant on Eureka Way in west Redding. That could be because its tucked away in the southeast corner of the shopping center thats anchored by Tops Market, at the intersection of Buenaventura. If you dont know New China its worth discovering, even if that means a drive across town. Regulars rave about the Mongolian beef, sesame chicken, walnut prawns, garlic green beans and shrimp fried rice. I was at New China twice last week. Once for the delicious hot and sour soup, which especially hits the spot on a chilly winter day. The day before we came in for the cant-be-beat daily lunch special. I had the spicy kung pao prawns ($8.15) and my wife ordered the mixed vegetables ($6.95). Each came with soup, egg roll and a choice of white rice, pork fried rice or chicken chow mein. The traditional dessert an artfully sculpted orange and a fortune cookie. A nice touch. Co-owner Mei Chen, a native of Fujian in south China, recommends the pork chow fun, General Tsos chicken and the walnut prawn, the latter two on the chefs special menu. Atmosphere? Relaxing, comfortable, private, quiet, subdued lighting, cloth napkins and tablecloths. I prefer a table toward the back. Always enjoy the classical Chinese instrumental music. Lunch is probably busiest. The place is open daily and closes relatively late (10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays). New China does a lot of takeout business for folks living in the Sunset Terrace and Mary Lake neighborhoods or out Placer or toward Old Shasta. The place earns four out of five stars on Yelp.com. Awesome Chinese food, wrote Thomas T. of Brentwood recently. Loved it. Order the dinner combo. Period. End of discussion. Kelly L. of Concord said the foods as good as anything she had in San Franciscos Chinatown. In my experience over the years the vegetables are never overcooked and meats tender. The prices are reasonable and the servings generous enough to have leftovers for lunch or dinner the next day. I promise Ill be back, I heard one satisfied customer say as he headed out the door last Friday afternoon. Me too. go now New China Address: 3669 Eureka Way, Redding Phone: 246-9522 or 246-0788 Hours: Monday-Thursday 11 a.m. to 9:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday 11 a.m to 10 p.m., Sunday 12 noon to 9:30 p.m. Website: www.newchinaredding.com Owners: Mei Chen, Yang Xi Pan Established: July 2002 Sample menu items: Pot stickers $6.25 Hot and sour soup $6.25 Garlic green beans $7.55 General Tsos Chicken $9.50 Walnut prawns $14.55 Artwork by Cory Moore SHARE By Adam Mankoski Reddings Cory Moore has traveled across the US, settled in seven different states and lived in Germany and Chile. Moore returned to Redding in 2014 to attend Shasta College. Moore is one of a group of budding Shasta College artists whose work is on display in Redding. How do you see your work evolving? My current work doesn't quite have the focus I desire but in the whole of things I see myself becoming more aware of why I bother making any given piece. With practice comes confidence and that confidence is leading me and my work towards a state I am more comfortable with publicly. Describe your piece in the O Street Gallery Show. My displayed work is a foam piece titled "Shoe." It is a part of a larger installation of other works, also shoes that display the range of creativity and interpretation that can be taken from a single concept prompt. What medium(s) is/are your favorite so far? I've always been partial to drawing but after taking a class with John Harper, I've found an interest in more tactile art such as modeling and sculpture. There is something more immediately satisfying about physically molding a medium over doing a drawing or painting. The beginning and ending of a project are more definite. What has been your most challenging class so far at Shasta College? I find that the most challenging classes for me personally are not in a specific discipline but classes from a specific teacher, Susan Schimke. The art division staff at Shasta are an exceptional group of artists who happen to be teachers. Schimke is no exception. She pushes students toward more advanced subjects of conceptualization. Anyone can make a painting or a drawing but it takes purpose and thought to make a meaningful work of art. How has creating art helped you in other academic areas? Studio classes are less about busy work and more about finishing any given project by a specific deadline. You get familiar with your own work habits rather quickly. Do you see yourself creating art for a living? I have the intention of making art my career. Though, I'm currently still up in the air about what I may eventually settle into. I still have a few good years left in college so I hope to settle into my niche by the time I graduate. What are your favorite pieces in the show? Aberdeen Spade's ceramic work is some of my favorite. Aberdeen's two pieces currently on display are very uncanny, their use of mixed media to incorporate faux-fur really gives the illusion of the ceramic piece being some sort of alien creature. Their work is bizarre in a near comical way. What are your plans after Shasta College? Hopefully I will be transferring from Shasta College to attend California College of the Arts (CCA) in San Francisco. If things go right that will be happening fall of this year. Story by Adam Mankoski Artwork courtesy of Cory Moore go now See Moores work in a Shasta College student group show at the O Street Gallery, upstairs at Oregon Street Antiques, 1261 Oregon St., Redding. For more details, visit O Street Gallery on Facebook. Bengaluru: The big industrial investments are yet to be announced, but the knowledge industry and infrastructure moolah flowed in as industrialists and politicians, from CM Siddaramaiah to Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, all appeared on the same side Karnatakas side on the opening day of Invest Karnataka 2016. Reliance ADAG chairman Anil Ambani announced the setting up of an aerospace innovation and research centre at Whitefield; Adani Group boss Gautam Adani said he was putting in Rs 11,500 crore into more than tripling his Udupi power plants electricity generation capacity, setting up a 1,000 MW solar power plant and developing the Tadadi port; and Union minister Nitin Gadkari promised Rs 1 lakh crore from the Centre for roads in the state over the next two years. Mr Jaitley said the country was moving from the political model of co-operative federalism between the Centre and States towards an economic competitive federation in which states competed with each other for investments. Commending the Siddaramaiah government for holding Invest Karnataka, he said the effort should be to go beyond Bengalurus IT tag to bring large manufacturers to the state. Every rupee that is invested in Karnataka contributes to India's growth, and given Karnatakas human capital and natural resources, its growth should be at least 2-3 per cent ahead of the national GDP growth," he said. Mr Ambani said the aerospace centre, to be set up under his Reliance Defence division, would bear his father Dhirubhai Ambanis name, generate over 1,500 skilled jobs and support the Modis government plan to indigenize the defence industry. Mr Adani said the Udupi power plant would expand from 500 MW to 1,600 MW capacity and supply power to 20 million households, up from nine million currently. Jim Schultz/Record Searchlight Melvin Baldwin-Green, described Wednesday by a prosecutor as manipulative and controlling, is shown during an earlier appearance in Shasta County Superior Court. SHARE Jim Schultz/Record Searchlight Tanishia Savannah Williams is deep in thought during an earlier Shasta County Superior Court appearance. Jim Schultz/Record Searchlight Deputy District Attorney Sarah Van Slyke addresses the jury Wednesday in the trial of Melvin Baldwin-Green and Tanishia Savannah Williams. By Jim Schultz of the Redding Record Searchlight Attorneys in the sex-trafficking trial of a Redding man charged with kidnapping and pimping underage girls and young women in the North State rested their cases on Wednesday in Shasta County Superior Court after a five-week trial. Deputy District Attorney Sarah Van Slyke, who delivered her closing arguments Wednesday, likened the two defendants, Melvin Baldwin-Green and Tanishia Savannah Williams, as slave owners. "Slavery is exactly what seven young women (victims) suffered in this case," she said, adding that the two defendants looked upon them as "a commodity to be traded and sold." "This is about money," Van Slyke said about the pair's motive. "They don't care about the victims." And, she said, those women who worked as prostitutes for the pair will most likely suffer the emotional and psychological trauma they experienced for most, if not all, of their lives. In a case that grew over time, Baldwin-Green, 27, and Williams, 23, were arrested in March 2014 for allegedly abducting a 16-year-old Sacramento girl and pimping her in the North State. That girl reported to officers that she had been kidnapped and held for weeks in Redding by the pair, who allegedly pimped her in Shasta and Tehama counties before she was able to escape. Since the pair were arrested, their case has grown to include more than two dozen felonies involving six other alleged victims, including one who reportedly told detectives she was threatened with torture and death before being dumped naked in a remote area near Red Bluff in February 2013. Baldwin-Green also cut off that woman's hair before she was abandoned and told her, "This is what happens to b------ who are not loyal," Van Slyke told the jury. With several cases consolidated into one, the charges against Baldwin-Green and Williams include human trafficking of minors, pimping, robbery, kidnapping and kidnapping for ransom, child abuse and false imprisonment. Baldwin-Green is also charged with rape by force or fear and unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor. During her closing statements, Van Slyke said she viewed defendant Williams as one of Baldwin-Green's victims. But, she said, Williams then evolved into a victimizer who is culpable for her behavior. "She became a victimizer and an exploiter," she said. Shasta County Deputy Public Defender Jeremy West, who represents Baldwin-Green, and Redding defense attorney Rob Hammonds, who represents Williams, are expected to deliver their closing arguments Thursday. The jury likely will receive the case in the afternoon. Baldwin-Green remains in Shasta County Jail with his bail set at $1.04 million, while bail for Williams is $1 million. An ambulance arrives after police killed a man in a shooting at an apartment in Redding on Tuesday night. SHARE By Damon Arthur of the Redding Record Searchlight Little has changed at 273 Boulder Creek Drive, Apartment A, since a Redding man was shot and killed there Jan. 5. There are still bullet holes in the walls, doors and windows. Debris is still scattered around inside the apartment where Stephen John Bukwich lived and died. Redding police were called to the apartment early in the evening because Bukwich reportedly had been acting erratically and firing a gun. Police said after they arrived, officers attempted to get Bukwich to come out of his apartment peacefully. Apparently upset about President Obama and recent gun legislation, investigators said he went in and out of his apartment several times, yelling at officers. When he finally opened the door and pointed a handgun at officers, they opened fire and killed him. Apartment owner Sandra Downs said she doesn't fault police for opening fire on Bukwich, but she is unhappy the city is unwilling to pay for the damage done to the apartment when officers fired at Bukwich. "If they have to destroy the building to that extent they should have to pay. It's not fair," said Downs who owns the apartments where the shootings occurred. The city has agreed to pay $2,303 in damages from the police shooting caused to other units in the apartment complex, but has rejected claims for damages to the apartment Bukwich lived in, said Chris Carmona, the city's risk manager. He said Bukwich was responsible for engaging in activity that caused the police to shoot him. "To me as a taxpayer that makes sense because his actions are the ones that called for that type of response," Carmona said. He said Downs had a contract that required Bukwich to keep the apartment in good shape. She also has recourse to get money to pay for repairs from his rental deposit and from Bukwich's estate. Bukwich was receiving rental assistance from Northern Valley Catholic Social Service, and the rental contract was in the nonprofit agency's name. But Carmona said the city still isn't responsible for damages to the unit Bukwich lived in. Claims for damage that occur during police calls are common, he said. If an officer has to kick down a door when called to a domestic violence situation the suspect in the case is responsible for damages, not the city or police, Carmona said. Likewise, though, if police chase a suspect through a neighborhood and break a backyard fence, the city may pay for damages if the property owner had no relationship to the suspect, he said. Downs said one estimate of repairs on the apartment unit came in at just under $12,000, but she will likely to pay for the repairs herself. She said her insurance deductible is $5,000, but she didn't want to submit an insurance claim because it could cause her premiums to go up and make it more difficult to get insurance if the apartments are ever sold, she said. In light of the damage done to nearby apartment units from stray bullets, Downs questioned why so many shots were fired. She said there were numerous bullet holes inside the apartment and kitchen appliances were damaged from gunshots. There is also some disagreement which bullet holes were from shots fired by Buckwich and which were fired by police, she said. Investigators have not said how many shots were fired at Buckwich, but witnesses to the shooting said it was likely dozens of rounds were fired. Downs said many of the shots fired went through Bukwich's apartment and hit units to the rear of his apartment and hit other, nearby buildings. "The building is shot up. It kinda makes you nervous," Downs said. Redding police said nine officers, armed with handguns and rifles, were involved in the shooting. Shasta County sheriff's Sgt. Brian Jackson, whose office is conducting an investigation into the shooting, said Wednesday that investigators haven't determined how many shots were fired. He also declined to estimate the number of shots fired. Redding police Lt. Pete Brindley declined to comment on his department's response to the shooting that night, citing the Sheriff's Office's ongoing investigation. "I would defer to the Sheriff's Office," he said. SHARE Anthony Kaipo Nahinu Aldon C. Facey Jr. Teen sentenced in July shooting An 18-year-old Tehama County man has been sentenced to 15 years in prison in connection with the July shooting of a 15-year-old girl, the Tehama County District Attorney's Office announced Wednesday. Anthony Kaipo Nahinu turned himself in to authorities Aug. 18 after about a month on the run. Deputies have said a fight between multiple people at the city's diversion dam escalated and ended up with Nahinu firing a shot that hit the girl. Prosecutors said that Nahinu ran up behind the girl during the dispute and shot her in the back with a .22-caliber rifle. The bullet traveled through her back and liver, partially through a lung and lodged in her chest, prosecutors said. The girl survived her injuries, but initially was in critical condition, prosecutors said. Prosecutors said Nahinu and the girl had previously dated. Man sentenced for child molestation A 70-year-old Tehama County man arrested in November on suspicion of molesting two young girls has been sentenced to 21 years in prison, prosecutors said Wednesday. Aldon C. Facey Jr. was charged with lewd and lascivious acts with a minor, among other counts, after his first victim, who was 12, reported to law enforcement officials that Facey had molested her multiple times when she was between the ages of 7 and 9, prosecutors said. Another girl, who was 14 when she was interviewed by investigators, said Facey forcibly removed her bikini top when she was 8 as he attempted to convince her to go skinny dipping, prosecutors said. Police: Drug dealer arrested at home A man who allegedly sold drugs in the Hilltop Drive area was arrested after police say he arrived home while officers were searching his residence. Ou Ching Saefong, 32, of Shasta Lake, was arrested on suspicion of possessing drugs for sale and illegally possessing ammunition, said Redding police Sgt. Todd Cogle. He said officers searched Saefong's home on Yellow Pine Avenue about 7:40 p.m. Tuesday. They allegedly found methamphetamine, scales, packaging and paraphernalia, along with ammunition for a handgun at the home. While officers were searching his home, Saefong returned home and was arrested, Cogle said. They found heroin, meth and more than $1,100 in his vehicle, Cogle said. He said they discerned he had been selling drugs in the Hilltop Drive area when officers arrived to search his home. He was taken to the Shasta County Jail, Cogle said. Officers will pursue charges related to the sale of heroin, Cogle said. Arson team probes Yreka vehicle fires A Siskiyou County Arson Team is investigating whether foul play was involved in a fire that burned five vehicles and a parking structure at an apartment complex, police said. The fire was reported just after 3:20 a.m. Wednesday on Shasta Avenue in Yreka, Police Chief Brian Bowles said. Responding officers and firefighters found vehicles under a parking structure engulfed in flames. They evacuated the those inside the apartment building and were able to save it from being burned, Bowles said. No one was injured and the residents of the apartment building were let back into their homes, Bowles said. The fire remains under investigation by police and arson team members, police said. Tehama deputy locates 2-year-old Tehama County sheriff's deputies quickly found a 2-year-old who was reported missing from an area south of Cottonwood on Wednesday. The girl was found down the road from her home in the 18000 block of Bywood Drive, which juts off Bowman Road, said Phil Johnston, assistant sheriff. Her mother had reported her missing about 3:30 p.m. The first deputy who arrived found the child safe, he said. The child apparently managed to slip out the door and no neglect is suspected, he said. Reserve program needs clarification The city of Anderson's reserve police officer program is due for some changes. Police Chief Michael Johnson pulled the item from the City Council's Tuesday meeting agenda. On Wednesday, he said he wanted to clarify some items and iron out a few more details. He said he hopes to have it ready for the council's consideration by early March. DUI, license checkpoint set A DUI and driver's license checkpoint is scheduled Friday evening in Redding. Drivers can get through the checkpoint quicker if they have their license out and ready to show an officer, the Shasta County Avoid the Five DUI Task Force says. The task force doesn't announce the checkpoint's location in advance. Probation check leads to arrest A probation check on a Cottonwood man led to his arrest after authorities said they found drugs, guns and stolen property at his home. Matthew Hedges, 31, was arrested Wednesday and booked into Shasta County Jail. His arrest came after deputies, who make up part of a prison realignment team, and probation officers were sent to his home on Parkway Street for a compliance check. Hedges is a felon on probation for criminal offenses that include stolen property, the sheriff's office said. During the search, deputies found more than 5.5 pounds of crystal methamphetamine, $6,700 in cash and other materials used for drug sales, the sheriff's office said. They also reported finding a sawed-off shotgun, a semi-automatic pistol and more than 1,000 rounds of ammunition. The pistol was reported stolen to the Klamath Falls Police Department in Oregon, the sheriff's office said. The sheriff's office also said deputies found a pressure washer, chain saw and two commercial paint sprayers. The items, worth more than $3,000, were linked to thefts and burglaries reported in Redding and Palo Cedro area, the sheriff's office said. Redding poised to regulate butane The Redding City Council is eyeing new rules to restrict butane sales in an effort to prevent honey-oil lab explosions. The council on Tuesday passed the first reading of an ordinance that limits sales to 600 milliliters of high-grade butane in a single transaction per person per month. The new rules also would prohibit someone from possessing more than that amount. A vendor would be required to record the transaction and retain the record for two years. Violation would result in a misdemeanor and the city would be able to seek civil administrative remedies, according to a staff report. The ordinance will return to the council Feb. 16. If approved, the law would take effect 30 days later. The city also plans to ask Assemblyman Brian Dahle, R-Bieber, to introduce a bill in the California Legislature to regulate butane sales. Fire Chief Gerry Gray on Tuesday said his department recorded 13 honey oil lab fires from Oct. 8, 2013, to Dec. 2, 2015. Those accounted for a small portion of the 343 structure fires that Redding firefighters had to handle. Nonetheless, they are the deadliest. In those honey-oil lab fires, 17 people were injured or killed. Prompted by Mayor Missy McArthur, City Attorney Barry DeWalt said the ordinance has no way of regulating online sales. SHARE The Iowa caucus results offer welcome reassurances that while many Americans are very much in an anti-establishment mood, they have not yet declared war on sanity and decency. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz's unexpected triumph over perceived Republican front-runner Donald Trump appears to show there are limits to the appeal of Trump's toxic bluster and bigotry. Trump receiving 24 percent of the vote and helping generate record turnout is still troubling. Bombast, not ideology, is the unifying theme of his campaign positions. But in Iowa, at least, three in four Republican voters were not taken in by the New York billionaire's name-calling, demonizing and scapegoating. Cruz also ran as an anti-establishment outsider, yet polling and reporting suggest he won in Iowa for the same reasons that fellow Republicans Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum won in 2008 and 2012, respectively: because he got the largest share of religious conservatives. Trump may well still have a few surprises in store in coming weeks. But Florida Sen. Marco Rubio's late surge in Iowa seems to foreshadow a conventional GOP nomination fight in which Chamber of Commerce Republicans coalesce behind the more moderate Rubio and social conservatives line up behind Cruz (or, somewhat inexplicably, perhaps Trump). If that happens, Rubio like Mitt Romney and John McCain before him would appear to be in good shape. Cruz is whip-smart, and his college-champion debating skills serve him well. But like Trump his doom-and-gloom descriptions of America's decline stand in utter contrast to the sunniness of Ronald Reagan, the most popular Republican of our times. As for Hillary Clinton's extremely narrow victory over Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, a self-avowed socialist whose extremism has left him a fringe player in Washington, the obvious conclusion is that many Democrats are also angry with a failure of government to hold Wall Street accountable for the financial machinations that led to the Great Recession and to reverse the ever-increasing concentration of wealth among a tiny sliver of Americans. This anger on the left doesn't have the same whiff of xenophobia, but it's just as pervasive, driven by a sense of powerlessness what The New York Times columnist Anand Giridharadas called an "anxiety of impotence." Nevertheless, even if Sanders gets an expected win in next week's New Hampshire primary, he is ultimately unlikely to take the nomination. He does poorly with minority voters and older Democrats, who look fondly upon the presidency of Bill Clinton and hope for more of the same from his wife. And while political junkies may be too jaded to appreciate the sentiment, there are still millions of Americans who would be thrilled and moved by the election of our first woman president. Iowans have done their job. Now our political circus moves on to New Hampshire for another round of winnowing. Here's hoping that the Granite State is as unkind to a certain Big Apple blowhard as the Hawkeye State ultimately proved to be. This editorial originally appeared in The San Diego Union-Tribune. It has been edited. Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao on Thursday gave sanction to the Central Bureau of Investigation to prosecute former chief minister and Congress party leader Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh scam case, days after the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government in the state recommended action against the Congress leader. "Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao today gave his sanction to CBI to prosecute former Chief Minister of Maharashtra Ashok Chavan, under section 197 of CrPC, for offences under sections 120-B (conspiracy) and 420 (cheating) of IPC in the Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society case," an official in the governor's office said. On October 8, 2015, Joint Director CBI, Mumbai, had sought sanction for prosecution of Chavan under section 197 CrPC on the basis of additional or fresh material, like the report of Justice Patil Commission of Inquiry and the observations of the Bombay high court in the criminal revision application, he said. "The governor had recently sought the aid and advice of the council of ministers and was advised by the council of ministers to grant the sanction (to CBI)," he added. Chavan, a Lok Sabha member from Nanded and Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president, had to step down as chief minister after the scam surfaced in 2010. He was among the 12 persons charge sheeted by the probe agency in connection with the case. The CBI had alleged that Chavan suggested inclusion of civilian members in Adarsh Housing Society, meant for war veterans and widows of defence personnel, to secure flats for his relatives in the plush complex situated at Colaba in south Mumbai. In December 2013, the then Governor K Sankaranarayanan had refused sanction to CBI to prosecute Chavan in the Adarsh housing scam, leaving the agency with no choice but to close the case against him. The Maharashtra cabinet had recently recommended to the governor that he should grant sanction to the CBI to prosecute Chavan in the case. Chavan had then dubbed the move as "vendetta" by the BJP-led government. India on Thursday termed as matter of grave concern the activities in Pakistan of Jamat-ud-Dawah chief and internationally-designated terrorist Hafiz Saeed, a day after the Mumbai terror attack mastermind warned of more Pathankot-style attacks in the country. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup also made it clear that it was for Pakistan to rein in the JuD chief. Hafiz Saeed is globally-designated international terrorist. His claim that his many front organisations are carrying out charitable work is not even a fig leaf. He indulges in terrorist activities and terrorist financing. It should be a matter of grave concern to everyone that terrorist like Saeed and his associates continues to enjoy the freedom to indulge in their activities, Swarup said. Addressing a rally on Wednesday, Saeed had said, 800,000 Indian troops are committing genocide on Kashmiris. Dont they have a right to carry out Pathankot-style attacks for their defence?...You have only seen one attack on Pathankot. Matters could easily escalate. Asserting that it was up to Pakistan to rein in Saeed, the spokesperson also noted that Pakistan had imposed a ban last year on the media coverage of militant groups like the JuD and the Lashkar-e-Taiba but contrary to that ban, the electronic media was showing Saeeds speeches. Asked about the status of Indo-Pak foreign secretary-level talks, Swarup continued to maintain that no mutually convenient date has been agreed upon between the two countries. The national security advisors of India and Pakistan as well as the foreign secretaries are in touch with each other, he said, adding while the NSAs have been discussing the Pathankot terror attack investigation by Pakistan government, the two foreign secretaries are in touch on the issue of the dates for talks. Asked about the progress on Pathankot probe by Pakistan and if that country has sought any fresh evidence, the spokesperson did not give a direct answer and said the government was also looking at what action was being taken to bring the perpetrators of Pathankot attack to justice. The five-day-long International Fleet Review kicks off on Thursday and even though unlike its inception it is not a prelude to an incoming war it is still a sign of the nation's naval might, says Ajai Shukla. Once in each President's five-year term in office, he or she carries out a "naval fleet review", a deliberately public assembly of the entire fleet, except for warships on essential patrols. Behind the ceremonial pomp and show lies a simple strategic signal: "Here is our fleet; it is ready for war." In earlier days, fleet reviews were "a prelude to war or an explicit show of force to deter adventurism by a potential adversary", says Raghavendra Mishra of the National Maritime Foundation. Possibly the first ever fleet review was held in 1415, when British monarch, Henry V, inspected his navy before embarking on war with France. The Indian Navy, however, waves away the notion of sinister purpose behind the International Fleet Review that begins in Visakhapatnam on Thursday, and continues for five days through Monday (February 4-8). The idea of a review was perhaps conceived as a show of naval might or an inspection of readiness for battle at sea. It still has the same connotation, but assembling of warships without any belligerent intentions is now the norm in modern times, reads the IFR's official website. The Indian Navy has earlier organised ten fleet reviews since independence, with the first one in 1953. Yet, this one is only the second "international" review, featuring navies from all over the world. Like for the first international review in Mumbai in 2001, the aim behind this international review is to signal the Indian Navy's emergence as a pre-eminent power that sets the agenda in the northern Indian Ocean. Among the 54 navies taking part, there is a tacit acceptance of this regional primacy, and a shared belief that this is in the common interest. Participating this year is practically every major navy in the world, including the People's Liberation Army-Navy of China. 54 navies are participating this year, compared to 29 in 2001; and 24 foreign warships are here, exactly the same number as in 2001. During the review, 24 foreign naval chiefs are visiting Visakhapatnam, and some 4,000 foreign sailors, says the navy's spokesperson. In addition, 75 Indian warships will participate in the review. These include the navy's aircraft carriers, INS Vikramaditya and Virat, and almost all its major capital warships -- destroyers, frigates and corvettes. The Pakistan Navy is not participating. The navy spokesperson said an invitation had been sent to Islamabad through diplomatic channels, but evoked no response. The main event will be the presidential fleet review on Saturday morning. President Pranab Mukherjee will receive a ceremonial 21-gun salute and a guard of honour before boarding the Presidential Yacht. He will then review the warships, weaving between them as they remain anchored to their precisely determined spots in the sea off Visakhapatnam harbour. Each ship will have their crew on the deck in spotless white uniforms, presenting a salutation as the president passes. Along the way, the President will witness operational demonstration, including a daring display by marine commandoes, and a "steam-past" by a detachment of warships. There will also be fly-past, featuring 45 naval aircraft, including the latest carrier-borne MiG-29K strike fighters, the navy's new Boeing P8-I maritime reconnaissance aircraft and Kamov-31 helicopters. For the residents of Visakhapatnam, there will be a concert by foreign navy bands on Saturday and a city parade on Sunday along the seafront RK Beach Road. This will feature naval operational demonstrations, marching contingents from visiting navies, and cultural displays by visiting sailors. Strategy or confusion? The Tamil Nadu BJP has many reasons to feel let down by Prime Minister Modis whistlestop tour to the state on Tuesday, says R Ramasubramanian. Prime Minister Narendra Modis much anticipated Coimbatore visit on February 2 has failed to remove the electoral anxieties of the Tamil Nadu unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Prime Minister Modi, who was on a five-hour visit to Tamil Nadus most well known industrial town, inaugurated an ESI medical college cum hospital and later addressed a BJP rally. Both the BJP and the rest of the opposition had believed that the prime minister will virtually sound the poll bugle on February 2. In fact the BJP had touted in so many words that the prime ministers speech would be the grand launch of sorts of the partys election campaign. Tamil Nadu goes to the assembly polls along with West Bengal, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry in April-May this year. Though Modi played the Dalit card by referring to Rohith Vemulas death, his silence about Tamil Nadu politics was indeed the major takeaway from his visit. Modi did not mention even once the name of either the ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam or the main opposition in the state the DMK in his speech. Rather, he kept attacking the Congress as though the party is a major player in the state. Both the BJP and Congress are marginal players in the state, with the former enjoying around two per cent vote share and the latter having around four pc. At a time when the local BJP was expecting some sort of an indication from its top leader about the possible alliances, his speech could have only come as a letdown. They are absolutely clueless, and dont know what to do. In the 2014 elections the Marumalarchi DMK, Pattali Makkal Katchi and Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam and a few smaller parties were with them. Today not one of them is with them, says a senior journalist covering the BJP affairs in the state. There was wide expectation that the prime minister will, if not announce his partys poll strategy, at least mention the broad parameters of the alliances in the state. But Modi kept mum on it, and rather just glossed over the topic, which came as a disappointment after the state BJP itself had trumpeted that the PM will sound the poll bugle in Coimbatore. The only excitement in an otherwise dull moment was injected by senior BJP leader Subramanian Swamy who tweeted during Modis rally that since M Karunanidhi will not be the CM candidate this time, Stalin will take over the mantle and its time for the BJP, DMK and Vijaykanth to come together for the assembly elections. While some dismissed this as nothing more than a storm in a tea cup, others say that nothing can be ruled out in todays political scenario in the state, since both the DMK and AIADMK were once the electoral partners of the BJP. Some observers even compared this with an open call given by DMK president M Karunanidhi three weeks ago that all political parties were welcome to join him to defeat the Jayalalithaa government in the state. We have to link this too. Karunanidhi had given an open call and he did not mention words like secular parties, etc and just said all parties. Today Modi did not take the names of either the DMK or the AIADMK. On the other hand, Swami is tweeting about a possible DMK-BJP-DMDK alliance, so nothing is ruled out, says Gnani Shankaran, a senior journalist. There is a third crop of observers who view Swamis tweet to actually be aimed at disturbing Jayalalithaa and nudging her towards the BJP for an electoral tie-up in the state. The uncertainty apart, the choice of topics at Modis rally is also worrying a tiny section of the BJP who are in the know of things. Its Coimbatore, an area where dominant castes like Kongu Vellalars are asserting their supremacy over Dalits and are calling the shots. The under-current is very strong. A political outfit representing the Kongu Vellalars was a constituent of the NDA in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections but now it has jettisoned the BJP. That the prime minister choosing to talk about Dalit issues in this belt is really puzzling. Usually Modi is famous for choosing his topics as per local conditions, says a BJP leader with RSS background from the state who has now been sidelined in the party apparatus. The lack of proper inputs and lack of proper understanding on ticklish issues on the part of state BJP leaders and the prime ministers advisers are adding to the woes of the saffron party in the state, this leader further adds. Today the BJP is not only a loner in the state but also absolutely clueless about a strategy to choose potential alliance partners. In spite of enjoying a majority at the Centre, the party was not able keep its flock together. One important grouse expressed by those who jettisoned the BJP in the state was there was not even one co-ordination meeting of the NDA since Modi became the prime minister. Another important structural problem for the NDA in the state is that unlike in the 1998-99 period when it was headed by the AIADMK and in the 1999-2003 period by the DMK, this time the BJP has to deal with smaller parties like the DMDK, PMK, etc. The egos of these parties and their constant struggle to maintain their one-upmanship within the alliance has become a continuing headache. The absence of strong local leaders like Jayalalithaa or Karunanidhi to keep the flock together is forcing the BJP to directly deal with its constituents and the end result is foregone. During the Atal Bihari Vajpayee period, Tamil Nadu went to the assembly polls in 2001 May in which the BJP won four seats as part of the DMK alliance. Today its not clear whether the BJP will get even that number of seats in the elections because not only is there no credible NDA in the state, but also Modi is no Vajpayee. Image: Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Tamil Nadu BJP chief Thamizhisai Soundararajan (right) and other BJP leaders at a public meeting in Coimbatore on Tuesday. Photograph: PTI Photo. Faizabad: All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi on Thursday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should not think of sending forces to fight the ISIS as it is not India's war. "Suddenly they said that the ISIS is rampant in India. But they should know that Indian Muslims have nothing to do with ISIS. Modi ji should not think of sending forces to fight the ISIS," he said. He also lashed out at Modi for meeting his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif in Lahore. "The poor are dying, farmers are in penury here, but neither the SP nor the BJP cares about them. The way Modi ji met his counterpart in Lahore; it was as if two separated brothers are meeting after a long time," he said. "It was promised that proper retaliation would be done whenever ceasefire violation take place at the border. What have they done? Hundreds of soldiers have died but the Centre has not taken any action," he added. Owaisi also lashed out at Samajwadi Party (SP), accusing the ruling party in Uttar Pradesh of turning back on the promises made to the Muslims. "The Muslims were promised that they would be given reservation. Have you (Samajwadi Party) fulfilled your promise? You have not been able to fulfill any of the promises. Who is stopping you from doing that? You just make promises at the time of elections and then forget them," Owaisi said. He also alleged that politics in this country is being controlled by just the rich people. "All you have to do is to elect a Dalit, a poor person, and the world would respect you," he added. The 10 Army personnel, including an officer, who were buried under a mass of snow after being hit by an avalanche on Wednesday at a high-altitude post on Siachen Glacier in Jammu and Kashmir, have died. The Army and the Indian Air Force tried hard since Wednesday to rescue the soldiers -- a junior commissioned officer and nine other ranks of Madras Regiment -- after their post was hit by the avalanche at the altitude of 19,000 feet close to the Line of Control with Pakistan. Specialised teams with modern equipment, flown to Leh on Thursday morning, were also pressed into service along with sniffer dogs but all efforts to rescue them failed. Demise of soldiers in Siachen is very tragic. I salute the brave soldiers who gave their lives to the nation. Condolences to their families, Prime Minister Narendra said, confirming the fears about their fate. It is a tragic event and we salute the soldiers who braved all challenges to guard our frontiers and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty, said Lt Gen DS Hooda, Army Commander, Northern Command, in a message. Defence public relations officer based in Northern Command Colonel S D Goswami earlier said in statement in Jammu that rescue teams are braving adverse weather and effects of rarified atmosphere to locate and rescue survivors. However, it is with deepest of regrets that we have to state that chances of finding any survivors are now very remote. The glaciated area presents temperatures ranging from -42C in the night to -25C during the day. Heavy snow cutters and special equipment were used to clear and cut the ice blocks, as the Army and the IAF teams battled harsh weather conditions and difficult terrain to trace the missing soldiers. Col Goswami said blocks of snow had fallen on the post, burying it very deep. To clear the same is a very difficult task, he said earlier in the day, adding, Building on yesterdays efforts, a very large rescue team has been deployed today to reach down till the post. Pakistan had also offered help in the rescue operation which was turned down by India. Pakistans director general of military operations Major General Amir Riaz called up his Indian counterpart Lt Gen Ranbir Singh earlier in the day to offer help, Army sources said. Lt Gen Singh declined the offer, saying adequate resources have already been put in place. The sources said such calls are routine whenever any mishap happens near the border. We thanked them for the gesture but since our resources and teams are well placed and adequate, we have said that presently we dont require any help, the sources said. Jammu and Kashmir Governor N N Vohra spoke to Gen Hooda to convey his heartfelt sympathy to the bereaved families over the tragic loss of lives. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar also condoled the death of the soldiers. My heartfelt condolences to the near and dear ones of our brave soldiers who were martyred in the line of duty in the most difficult terrain of Siachen, he said in Delhi. The Minister said it is the duty of the country to take care of their families. While Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi tweeted, Very sad to know that 10 of our brave soldiers lost their lives in an avalanche in Siachen. My thoughts and prayers are with soldiers' families. Image: Rescue teams carry out operations to find soldiers who went missing after their post in Siachen was hit by a massive avalanche. Photograph: Press Information Bureau With inputs from Mukhtar Shah in Srinagar. Amidst the outrage over the alleged assault and stripping of a 21-year-old Tanzanian woman in Bengaluru, five persons have been arrested in connection with the incident but the Karnataka government on Thursday denied that she was paraded naked. As the incident on Sunday night took a serious diplomatic turn, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah told reporters at a global investors meet in Bengaluru, "Case has been registered, five of them (accused) have been arrested. Sushma Swaraj also spoke to me, I will also be sending her a report through my Chief Secretary." State Home Minister G Parameshwara refuted reports that the Tanzanian woman was paraded naked saying, "No such thing happened". It was "definitely not a race attack", he said. Voicing concern over the incident, the Union Home Ministry asked the state government to give a detailed report about the circumstances leading to the assault of the Tanzanian woman, action taken against those allegedly involved in it and steps taken for the protection of the victim. The Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car in Bengaluru. She was reportedly dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends when she reached the accident spot with the miscreants mistaking them to have caused the fatal accident though a Sudanese was involved in it, police said. Facing flak over the incident, Siddaramaiah said he has asked the police to conduct an inquiry on why a complaint was not lodged immediately. In Delhi, Tanzanian High Commissioner John W H Kijazi said he had sent a complaint to the Government and sought prompt action against those behind the "unfortunate" incident. He urged the government to reinforce security in localities where African students were staying. "We request the Government of India to ensure safety and security of our students in Bengaluru and all other places in India," he said. Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi has sought a report from the Karnataka government, according to party General Secretary Digvijay Singh, in charge of Congress affairs in the state. "Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately," Singh said in a series of tweets. But asked if the Congress high command has sought a report, Siddaramaiah said, "Why will high command seek report on everything? It is you people who are saying..." In Delhi, MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup said a team including the Tanzanian High Commissioner, who is also the Dean of the African Diplomatic Corps, will be leaving for Bengaluru on Friday. The team also includes Joint Secretary (States), Director Eastern and Southern Africa in MEA and the Regional Director of ICCR, he said, adding the Central and state governments will extend full cooperation to investigation of this case. He said all steps will be taken to ensure the safety and security of African students in the country. According to All African Students Union's Legal Adviser Bosco Kaweesi, the woman student was stripped by a section of the mob and pushed out of a slow-moving bus that was passing by as she tried to board it to escape. "It is very clear from the report (submitted by police) that no such thing (being paraded naked) happened," Parameshwara said. Noting that 12,000 foreign students are studying in Bengaluru, he said it was the duty of the government to protect them. "If the accident had not occurred, this (incident) would not have happened," he said. He said no student gave a complaint or spoke about the incident involving the Tanzanian woman for two days. Later, she had given a statement to police which had been recorded. He said the Tanzanian student, who is doing MBA, was beaten up after the car in which she was travelling with three other occupants was stopped by the mob. Parameshwara said the Sudanese student, who was identified as Mohammed Ahmed Ismail, was driving the car in a drunken state and the vehicle hit two pedestrians with the woman dying on-the-spot and her husband being injured. Ismail was also sustained injuries and was shifted to hospital. Enraged people torched the vehicle, he said. It was later that the Tanzanian woman student and three others came to a spot about a km away from the accident site, when they were surrounded by the mob, he said. The Bharatiya Janata Party trained its guns on Congress for its "hypocrisy" in not initiating action against the culprits and questioned Rahul Gandhi's "silence" over the incident that happened right under the nose of his party-run government. "Such a big incident has happened and so much time has passed, still Rahul and Congress are silent for something that has happened under the very nose of their government there. No action has been taken. This shows how much hypocrisy is there in them and how they play hypocritical politics," Union Minister and senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said. Hafiz Saeed, the mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, has praised the attack by Pakistani terrorists on an air force base in Pathankot last month and in a public speech called for more violence. Saeed, the leader of the Jaamat-ud-Dawah, addressed a rally of around 1,000 in the disputed Pakistan-occupied Kashmir region, said, 800,000 Indian troops are committing genocide on Kashmiris. Dont they have a right to carry out Pathankot style attacks for their defence? He also lauded Kashmiri terrorist leader Syed Salahuddin, who heads the United Jihad Council that claimed responsibility for the attack. You have only seen one attack on Pathankot. Matters could easily escalate. Indian officials believe the Pakistan based Jaish-e-Mohammed was behind the siege. Saeeds frequent calls for jihad against India irk New Delhi, which considers JuD -- a UN designated terror organisation -- to be no more than a front for Lashkar-e-Tayiba, the terror group blamed for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that left 166 people dead. Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday blamed Pakistan for most of the terror attacks in the country, but said India will stand by its neighbour if it takes action against terrorists operating from there. Terming the recent anti-Muslim rhetoric in the United States poll campaign as inexcusable, President Barack Obama has said the best way to fight terrorism is to show that the US does not suppress Islam. Obama waves farewell to students after his remarks at the Islamic Society of Baltimore mosque. Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters "The best way to fight terrorism is to show the US does not suppress Islam and refute lies to the contrary," Obama said in his historic address to Muslim community from a mosque in Baltimore, Maryland. In his first visit to a mosque in the US, Obama on Wednesday referred to the recent political rhetoric against Muslims in the country, where Christians are in majority, and said Americans cannot be silent bystanders to bigotry against any faith. "An attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths," Obama said as he mentioned the recent attacks against the Muslim community and also cited assaults on Sikh Americans who look like them. Americans must speak up when any group is targeted. We have to respect the fact that we have freedom of religion," Obama said. "I know that in Muslim communities across our country, this is a time of concern and, frankly, a time of some fear. Like all Americans, youre worried about the threat of terrorism, but on top of that, as Muslim-Americans, you also have another concern, and that is your entire community so often is targeted or blamed for the violent acts of the very few," the US President said. US President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the Islamic Society of Baltimore mosque in Catonsville, Maryland. Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters "Referring to the recent attacks on Muslim Americans, Obama said since 9/11, but more recently since the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, they have seen too often people conflating the horrific acts of terrorism with the beliefs of an entire faith. "And, of course, recently weve heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim-Americans that has no place in our country. No surprise, then, that threats and harassment of Muslim-Americans have surged," he said in a veiled jibe at Republican White House hopeful Donald Trump and others. During his campaign, Trump called for a ban on Muslims entering the US, triggering sharp reactions. In another apparent reference to recent political rhetoric, he opposed the idea of religious profiling. "We cant give in to profiling entire groups of people because there is no single profile of a terrorist. Engagement with Muslim Americans communities must never be a cover for surveillance," Obama said. "As we go forward, I want every Muslim American to remember that...your fellow Americans stand with you, Obama said and assured the young Muslim Americans, that, You are not Muslim or American. You are Muslim and American." US President Barack Obama (centre) holds a roundtable with Muslim American community leaders at the Islamic Society of Baltimore mosque in Catonsville, Maryland. Photograph: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters Obama also urged the Muslim community to reject extremism and terrorism. Pushing back at critics who say he should talk about Islamic terrorists. Meanwhile, two top Republican presidential aspirants -- Donald Trump and Marco Rubio -- slammed Obama for his visit to the mosque. "We have a lot of problems in this country. There are a lot of places he can go, and he chose a mosque," Trump told Fox News. At a New Hampshire townhall, Rubio -- who had an impressive performance during the Iowa Caucus this week -- said the mosque visit was yet another example of Obama dividing the country. "I'm tired of being divided against each other for political reasons like this President has done. Always pitting people against each other," Rubio alleged. He gave a speech at a mosque... basically implying that America is discriminating against Muslims. Of course theres going to be discrimination in America of every kind. But the bigger issue is radical Islam, Rubio said. However, Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders praised Obamas mosque visit. I think its very important. If this country is about anything, it is about religious freedom, religious tolerance, he told CNN. And let me be very clear. What Donald Trump and some of these other people are doing are trying to condemn the Muslim religion, trying to say that we should not have Muslims coming into this country, is totally unacceptable, attacking Mexicans; that is not what America is about, Sanders said. America is about standing together as one people, not allowing ourselves to be divided up by religion or by nationality, he said. The Council on American-Islamic Relations welcomed Obama at Islamic Society of Baltimore, where the US President rejected inexcusable political rhetoric targeting Muslims. We welcome President Obamas historic visit and applaud his remarks both rejecting anti-Muslim rhetoric and reminding our fellow Americans about Islams long history in our nation and about constitutional protections guaranteeing religious freedom, said CAIR national executive director Nihad Awad in a statement. The Islamic Society of North America thanked Obama for his commitment to combat religious bigotry. Obamas address was inspiring, but also a reminder that we must continue to engage and serve our community as way to combat Islamophobia and strengthen the fabric of our nation, said ISNA president Azhar Azeez. Julian Assange has been living in the Ecuadorian embassy in London for three-and-a-half years. Photograph: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images WikiLeaks Julian Assange says he will hand himself over to the authorities if the United Nations announces he has lost his case against arrest on Friday. In a statement on the WikiLeaks Twitter feed, Assange said he would leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London at noon local time "to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal." Assange has been holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in west London for three and a half years in a bid to avoid extradition to Sweden over rape allegations, a charge he has denied. The Australian fears he could eventually face extradition to the United States to be put on a trial over the leak of hundreds of thousands of classified military and diplomatic documents. In September 2014, he filed a complaint against Sweden and Britain to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention claiming his confinement in the embassy amounts to illegal detention. Any decision by the group would not be legally binding, but other people have reportedly been released in the past on the basis of its rulings. As gang violence worsens, more Salvadorans flee Publisher UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Publication Date 3 February 2016 Cite as UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), As gang violence worsens, more Salvadorans flee, 3 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b25ca33cd.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Repeatedly shaken down by gang members for a weekly US$30 protection payment he could barely afford, Salvadoran bus driver Javier filed a complaint with the police. A family man with two teenage daughters, he recalls waking up at 3:00 am the next day with a knot of fear in his stomach. The six block walk to work at the central bus station in San Salvador stretched to an eternity as he anticipated a violent reprisal. "When I decided to report them, they came to my workplace and shot me twice close to my eye," Javier* recalls, battling tears of anger and desperation. "I managed to get to the hospital, but when I left my job, they warned me that if I wanted to remain alive it was better to disappear immediately." The family's ordeal was not yet over. Already subjected to harassment, Javier's school-age daughter was raped by a gang member, leaving her pregnant and unable to escape their reach within El Salvador. "We had no other option but to flee. It was impossible to go to another part of the country," he says. The family is among a growing number of people of all ages who are fleeing out-of-control gang violence in El Salvador, which has become the most dangerous country in the Americas. Since a truce broke down in 2014 between the Salvadoran Government and the "maras," as the street gangs are known, violence has exploded, driving the national murder rate up to 104 per 100,000 people- the highest since the country's bloody civil war came to an end in 1992. The family is now seeking asylum in Guatemala where they live in a single room in the capital, while Javier continues to look over his shoulder ever-fearful of the maras, whose reach is international: "I don't trust anybody," he says. "I only trust God and my daughters." Their flight from danger is becoming increasingly common in El Salvador, where the gangs' criminal activities include murder, extortion, kidnap and rape, and now impact people from all walks of life. Victims range from school children and bus drivers to business owners, police officers and their families, leaving a growing number with no option but to flee, according to UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency. "Anyone can be targeted by the maras: from a school boy walking home to a family with a small business in the neighbourhood to the police officer's cousin. People's lives are pestered by homicides at every corner, fights between gangs to control territories, invisible borders that should not be crossed, rape and sexual assaults, forced recruitment, increasing extortion fees and threats," said Fernando Protti, UNHCR Regional Representative for Central America, of the still deteriorating outlook. "The situation is only getting worse. In 2015, the homicide rate outpaced the rate of killings during the country's civil war and El Salvador is now considered the most violent country in the continent," he added. According to UNHCR figures, asylum applications in Guatemala from Salvadoran nationals nearly doubled- an increase of 172 per cent - between 2013 and 2014. Salvadorans are also fleeing to other countries in the region such as the United States of America and Mexico, where the applications have quadrupled and tripled respectively since 2010. Among thousands who recently fled for their lives is businesswoman Caterina,* whose family owned a profitable neighborhood supermarket in San Salvador, which drew the attention of the maras. The gang members demanded a slice of the take, raising the amount each week until payment became untenable. "We thought about selling the market, but (the gang) wouldn't allow it because the business was successful. We had to sell our home. We got to a point where the situation was unsustainable," she said. When, after months of extortion, the family was unable to pay, the gang murdered a family member. Caterina's teenage daughter, meanwhile, was harassed by the gang who wanted her to join. When she declined, they sent photographs of the family home to scare her. Finally, the "mareros", as the gangsters are known in Spanish, went to look for her at her school. "It was at that moment that I said I couldn't take it anymore. I spoke to my husband and we decided to leave the country," Caterina says. "You couldn't visit another neighbourhood because if you were seen in a different mara's turf they'd just kill you without another thought. And if you don't pay the extortion, they kill you too. So there's no way out," she adds. She is clear about the impact of the worsening terror wrought by the gangs, who control whole swathes of El Salvador's cities, despite police presence, and whose reach extends to neighbouring countries. "It consumes us and we're invisible, screaming in silence," she says, clearly troubled by the thought of those she left behind. "Every day when you read the news you realize that the situation isn't improving and part of my family still lives there." By Francesca Fontanini in Guatemala City, Guatemala *Names have been changed for protection reasons Bosnia and Herzegovina: Almost 7,000 people still missing Publisher International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Publication Date 19 November 2015 Cite as International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Bosnia and Herzegovina: Almost 7,000 people still missing, 19 November 2015, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b25e1411.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. Twenty years after the signing of the Dayton Peace Accords, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is urging institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina to step up efforts to determine what happened to the nearly 7,000 people still unaccounted for from the conflict there. At the same time, the ICRC is calling on anyone who may have information about the locations of individual or mass graves to contact the authorities. In the two decades since the end of the war, the authorities have managed to locate nearly 15,400 missing people, mostly by exhuming and identifying mortal remains. But according to ICRC records, 6,955 people remain missing. At present, the biggest obstacle is the lack of new information about the locations of individual and mass graves. "Under international humanitarian law and human rights law, families have the right to know what happened to their missing relatives. That right needs to be upheld," said Zeljko Filipovic, head of the ICRC delegation in Sarajevo. "Twenty years have passed, and it is more important than ever to find the missing." States bear the primary responsibility for finding missing people and providing support to their families. The ICRC reminds the authorities and institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina of this obligation by engaging in dialogue with them, pursuant to the ICRC's mandate and Annex 7 of the Dayton Peace Accords. Another of the ICRC's concerns is the lack of progress on establishing a fund to provide financial support to the families, which is called for in the country's law on missing people. The ICRC follows up on the tracing process and provides support to national institutions, such as the Missing Persons Institute. It also strives to ensure that the law on missing people is fully implemented and that a legal framework is in place to ensure that families can exercise their rights across the country without discrimination. Together with its partners - particularly the Red Cross Society of Bosnia and Herzegovina and family associations - the ICRC is stepping up the psychosocial support it provides to families of missing people and is drawing attention to their needs. Philippines: Improved living conditions for inmates affected by Leyte prison fire Publisher International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Publication Date 2 December 2015 Cite as International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Philippines: Improved living conditions for inmates affected by Leyte prison fire, 2 December 2015, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b25e813e4.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. Access to clean water, sanitation and overall health and living conditions have improved for 1,800 inmates affected by the fire that struck Leyte Regional Prison two months ago. On October 8, the prison's Maximum Security Compound was completely destroyed by a fire that also claimed the lives of 10 inmates and injured several others. "Since it would take some time before a permanent structure could be rebuilt, we supported the prison authorities in taking temporary measures so the inmates may have slightly better conditions," said Woody Assaf, head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) office in Tacloban. On October 25, the ICRC installed two rub halls or relocatable tent-like structures as emergency shelters. The affected prisoners were initially moved to the Minimum Security Compound or slept outdoors after the blaze. "We continue to improve the rub halls by working on its concrete flooring. Elderly prisoners and those with ailments were prioritized to occupy the rub halls, which also helped decongest the Minimum Security Compound, where about 750 affected prisoners remain. The authorities could partly restore the segregation between compounds, which helps in prison management," said Assaf. Two 10,000-liter water tanks, distribution lines, and water points were installed by the ICRC to increase the availability of potable water in the prison, benefiting all inmates. Twenty-four new toilets are also being built for their use. Relief assistance for the prisoners, in the form of dressing kits, medicines and medical items, 2,000 hygiene kits, and 409 sleeping mats and blankets, were provided by the ICRC about a month ago, on top of other emergency items it distributed with the Philippine Red Cross (PRC) a day after the fire. Support was provided to ensure that access to basic health services was maintained. Within its confidential dialogue with the Bureau of Corrections, the ICRC shared its findings, coordinated its response plan, and will further support the authorities in January to develop a plan of action to restore optimum conditions of detention. As part of its long-term support to the detaining authorities, the ICRC will soon complete the construction of a new infirmary in Leyte Regional Prison to enhance access to, and improve the quality of, medical care for the inmates. Leyte Regional Prison is one of the places of detention being visited in the country by the ICRC, a neutral, impartial, and independent humanitarian organization, to monitor the conditions of detention and the treatment of people deprived of freedom. Syria: Humanitarian situation deteriorating as winter approaches Publisher International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Publication Date 3 December 2015 Cite as International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Syria: Humanitarian situation deteriorating as winter approaches, 3 December 2015, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b25ecf3c.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. The Director for the Near and Middle East at the International Committee of the Red Cross has warned of adeteriorating humanitarian situation in Syria as winter approaches. Hundreds of thousands of people are trying to survive with the most basic resources as temperatures fall below freezing. Nearly five years of conflict have left much of the country's infrastructure destroyed or severely damaged. "The humanitarian situation in Syria is catastrophic and deteriorating day by day. The people are facing a bitter winter ahead and they have very few resources. We need better access so that aid can be brought to the most vulnerable. The situation is nothing short of critical for many, many people," said Mr Mardini. More than 12 million Syrians, including 5 million children, are in need of immediate humanitarian assistance. More than 4 million people have fled abroad and around 8 million are displaced within the country; many have been forced to move several times. "Many of the refugees in neighbouring countries such as Jordan and Lebanon live in terrible conditions and are struggling to find warmth as temperatures fall. And they live with the uncertainty of not knowing what tomorrow will bring or even if they will ever make it back home one day," said Mr Mardini. In Syria, the ICRC has been carrying out a number of activities to try to alleviate the situation. It has started distributing winter clothes for 300,000 children between the ages of six months and nine years old. Work has been done to improve the living conditions of dozens of collective-shelters and other places where displaced people are being hosted. Since the beginning of the year, the ICRC together with the Syrian Arab Red Crescent provided food to over 7 million people. 15 millions benefited from water programs across the country. Note: A new video footage is available on www.icrcvideonewsroom.org. During the coming weeks, the ICRC will be producing a number of special reports on how Syrians are trying to cope with the winter at home and abroad. Nagorny Karabakh: ICRC submits updated list of missing persons Publisher International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Publication Date 15 December 2015 Cite as International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Nagorny Karabakh: ICRC submits updated list of missing persons, 15 December 2015, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b25f3f16c9.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. More than 20 years after the ceasefire agreement, families still do not know what happened to relatives who went missing during the Nagorny Karabakh conflict. As part of efforts to find answers, the ICRC has handed the parties to the conflict an updated list containing the names of 4,496 people registered as missing by its delegations in Baku and Yerevan and its mission in Nagorny Karabakh. The previous edition of the list dates from 2004, and since then the ICRC has worked closely with the Commissions on Prisoners of War, Hostages and Missing People and with families of missing persons, registering and following up the cases of people who disappeared during the armed conflict. Under international humanitarian law, the parties to a conflict must do all they can to clarify the fate of missing persons. The ICRC believes that the new version of the list will help the authorities to consolidate information and intensify their efforts towards this objective. As a neutral, impartial and independent humanitarian organization, the ICRC will continue to support the parties with its expertise, and by acting as a neutral intermediary between the sides. The ICRC has been active in the region since 1992, and clarifying the fate of people missing in relation to the conflict is one of the organization's priorities. See our photo gallery on the plight of people with relatives still missing following the Nagorny Karabakh conflict. appeal to the people not to fall prey to criminals in the guise of politicians who were trying to spoil the state's image: N. Chandrababu Naidu. Vijayawada: Reiterating that his party and government were committed to include the Kapu community in the BC category, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday appointed a six-member Cabinet Sub-Committee to solve problems surrounding the issue and speed up the process. He also announced that a fund of `1,000 crore would be allotted for the Kapu Corporation in the next Budget. After a day-long Cabinet meeting with all ministers present, Mr Naidu announced the decisions they had taken. Addressing a press conference, he said that the Sub-Committee, comprising ministers Y. Ramakrishnudu, Ganta Srinivasa Rao, K.E. Krishna Murthy, K. Ravindra and N. China Rajappa, would coordinate with the Justice Manjunatha Commission which is already working on the legal possibilities of the inclusion. Mr Naidu said that the Kapus inclusion would affect the existing BCs. He condemned the holding of a meeting by BCs in Vijayawada on Wednesday. He said that it was necessary for all BCs to understand the situation and realize that the government had already released `6,600 crore under the BC Sub-Plan. Mr Naidu, who pointed out that the GO issued by the Congress government had been an intention only, clarified, Without the commissions report, the Kapus' inclusion in the BC category is not possible. Even if it were done the courts would cancel it. If the percentage crosses 50, the decision needs the consent of the President of India. All procedures will be followed to ensure that their demand is met, Mr Naidu said. He appealed to the people of AP not to fall prey to criminals in the guise of politicians who were trying to spoil the state's image. Palestinian hunger striker in critical state Publisher International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Publication Date 28 January 2016 Cite as International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Palestinian hunger striker in critical state, 28 January 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b25fcc2090.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. Jerusalem: The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is seriously concerned about the situation of Mohammadadib Ahmad Soleiman Qiq, a Palestinian detained and hospitalized in Israel. ICRC delegates, including a dedicated medical doctor monitoring the detainee's health condition, have had a regular access to Mr. Qiq and are in continuous bilateral dialogue with the Israeli authorities on humanitarian issues of concern. Mr. Qiq has been on hunger strike for more than 60 days and has entered a critical stage, his life being at risk. "We encourage the patient, his representatives and the competent authorities involved to find a solution that will avoid any loss of life", said Javier Tena Rubio, a medical doctor of the ICRC. The ICRC has been in close contact with Mr Qiq's family and has transmitted greetings and news between them. Under the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, detainees have a right to be visited by their families. In light of Mr. Qiq's situation, it is paramount that his family be able to see him as a matter of urgency. Delegates of the ICRC as a neutral and independent humanitarian organization visit hunger strikers regularly in order to monitor their health condition and treatment. During their visits, ICRC staff seek to ensure that all detainees on hunger strike are fully aware of its implications, and that they are acting on their own initiative and of their own free will. The ICRC delegation in Israel and the occupied territories reminds the authorities of their obligation under International Humanitarian Law to ensure that the rights and physical and psychological integrity of detainees on hunger strike are respected. This includes the choice for the detainee to continue or abandon the hunger strike, and the provision of proper care and treatment with his or her consent. Ukraine: New cash assistance for displaced people without regular income Publisher International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Publication Date 15 September 2015 Cite as International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Ukraine: New cash assistance for displaced people without regular income, 15 September 2015, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b2608e17a.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. The ongoing conflict in Ukraine has forced many civilians to flee the areas where fighting is taking place and to seek refuge in more peaceful areas. With winter approaching, the ICRC and the Ukrainian Red Cross Society are finding novel ways to help them cope with increasing needs, one of which is through a cash assistance programme. Many displaced civilians hosted by local communities on both sides of the front line have no regular income. They rely almost solely on the support of their hosts, as well as of the local authorities and humanitarian aid agencies. "There are several thousand displaced families, many of them with children, living in the east of the country, whose income is below the minimum monthly subsistence level of 1,176 Ukrainian hryvnia per person," said Dragana Rankovic, the ICRC's economic security coordinator in Ukraine. "Already now these people hardly make ends meet. And it is very likely that they will face even more difficulties during the approaching cold season." With the aim of supporting unemployed displaced people and their dependents, the ICRC is introducing a cash assistance programme, designed in close cooperation with the Ukrainian Red Cross. The pilot phase has just started in 16 districts of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions under Ukrainian government control. It is expected to last until the end of the year. More than 4,200 beneficiaries of the programme will receive a text message from their local bank providing the banks hotline number, the amount of cash assistance they will receive and where to collect it. They will also be given a free hotline number by which to contact the ICRC if needed. Since April 2014 the ICRC has been assisting local residents and displaced people affected by the conflict in eastern Ukraine with food, household items and construction materials. It has also provided medicines and dressing material to hospitals on both sides of the front line. Iran: Giving disabled people a chance to lead a normal life Publisher International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Publication Date 2 November 2015 Cite as International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Iran: Giving disabled people a chance to lead a normal life, 2 November 2015, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b261db688.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. Joint statement International Committee of the Red Cross, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Iran Red Crescent Society, Tehran. Tehran (ICRC) - Today the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Red Crescent Society of the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRCS) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) started the second consultative meeting on ways to improve the quality of life of people with physical or mental disabilities. This three-day meeting aims to develop the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement's recommendations to help disabled people and to find practical ways to remove the barriers they face in society. "Addressing the social-participation barriers faced by disabled people is one of the duties of humanitarian organizations. Our International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement partners use their potential and expertise, mobilize resources and share knowledge to alleviate the suffering of people with special needs," said Mohammad Sh. Mohammadi Araghi, the IRCS under secretary general for international affairs and international humanitarian law. "The IRCS focuses its efforts on people with special needs who have been affected by disasters. Mitigating the risks they face in disasters is also one of our top priorities." "People with disabilities face a range of obstacles to living a normal life. They often have to deal with exclusion, stigma and marginalization," said Olivier Martin, head of the ICRC's mission in Iran. "We run various micro-economic programmes and courses to help them become more productive members of society. These include cash grants to start a small business, or training to gain new skills and find a job. But there is more to be done. That's why we've developed a Movement-wide strategic framework on disability inclusion, which will set out the strategic direction for the Movement's work in this area for the next four years." This is the second consultative meeting, with participants from 12 National Societies - Australia, Cambodia, Colombia, Cuba, Ghana, Indonesia, Iran, Norway, Somalia, Sudan, Palestine and Viet Nam - and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. The first consultative meeting was held in Tehran in 2013. Its focus was on strengthening the Movement's efforts to promote disability inclusion and adopting a resolution to that end. This second meeting seeks to build on that momentum: the resolution on promoting disability inclusion will be adopted by 186 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies at a global meeting in December. The ICRC carries out activities for disabled people directly or in association with governments and National Societies during armed conflicts and other emergencies. The ICRC also provides expertise, advice and support for National Society programmes that address the specific needs of disabled people. UN mediator suspends intra-Syrian talks for three weeks Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 3 February 2016 Cite as UN News Service, UN mediator suspends intra-Syrian talks for three weeks, 3 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b3133e40b.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. 3 February 2016 - Just two days after declaring the official start of delayed intra-Syrian talks in Geneva to end five years of bloody warfare, the United Nations mediator suspended them for three weeks today following differences between Government and opposition delegations on the priority of humanitarian issues. "I have been asking even before issuing the invitations that there is an immediate implementation of a humanitarian initiative, even before the talks start," UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura told journalists, citing such issues as lifting sieges and providing access for humanitarian aid to all the places which are The UN cannot allow simple procedural matters to actually become more important than actually the results of humanitarian situation of the Syrian people who have been waiting for us to deliver this time, not a conference, but something concrete for them.at the moment unreachable. "I was told and reassured that they were going to take place during the talks. Well, I have been hearing from the Government that they had some procedural issues before talking about humanitarian side. I have been hearing from the opposition that they are urgently feeling the need for the Syrian people." He stressed that the suspension was only "a temporary pause" and not the end or failure of the talks, noting that both sides insist they are interested in having the political process begin. He set 25 February for the next session. Mr. de Mistura has made clear from the start that he is under no illusions about the difficulties in ending a war that has killed over 250,000 people, sent over 4 million fleeing the country, displaced 6.5 million internally, and put 13.5 million people inside the country in urgent need of humanitarian aid. "There will be a lot of posturing, we know that, a lot of walk-outs and walk-ins because a bomb has fallen or because someone has done an attack, and you will see that happening," he said last week. Today he was asked how he felt. "I'm not frustrated, I'm not disappointed, I have been long enough with the UN to know that when you have a five-years war and have had so many difficult moments, you have to be determined but also realistic," he replied. "When you see things going in a certain direction, you take - we are the convener, we manage the conference, we decide when the conference producing results or not and if they don't produce results we need to go deeper, that's what we are doing," he said, dismissing the idea of holding talks just for the sake of holding talks. "The UN cannot allow simple procedural matters to actually become more important than actually the results of humanitarian situation of the Syrian people who have been waiting for us to deliver this time, not a conference, but something concrete for them." Special Envoy de Mistura (2nd left) with Ambassador Bashar Ja'afari (3rd right) of the Syrian Arab Republic during on the Intra-Syrian Geneva Talks (29 January 2016). UN Photo/Jean-Marc Ferre He was asked if the military escalation by the Syrian government and the Russian bombardment have "basically bombed your talks." "I'm not referring to military activities, I'm saying to an impossibility through military activities and other reasons for the fact that the humanitarian signals which are meant to be sent to the Syrian people - for instance lifting of the sieges, for instance the access for all the places which are at the moment unreachable - should be seen," he said. "The whole matter is, again, are we here to have another Geneva conference without any result for the Syrian people, or are we serious about what we have been saying, that while we are having a conference, talking about the future, and political future of Syria, and the new constitution, and the new elections, the Syrian people will see and expect me and they expect all of us to produce something while we are talking. "Since I am not seeing that, I have to be honest and say with myself, it is time now to have a pause only a pause and give time for this to happen." Mr. de Mistura declared the official start of the talks on Monday after meeting for two hours with the opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC) at the UN's official Geneva headquarters in the Palais des Nations. He met Government representatives yesterday. The talks between the sides are not face-to-face but indirect, involving 'close proximity diplomacy,' with the UN envoy shuttling between them in different rooms. Both Government and opposition are reported to have denied that the talks have officially started but Mr. de Mistura said today: "They are talks, and the talks have started, you can call them as you want, but they were talks, but there is more work, more work, to be done. "Not only by us, we have done our part. but by the stakeholders, who have been telling us 'go and start this initiative,' while in fact they, the Security Council and the ISSG, are now expected to address some of the issues pending, one in particular, what are these talks going to make as a difference to the Syrian people." The ISSG - the International Syria Support Group comprising the Arab League, the European Union, the United Nations, and 17 countries including the United States and Russia - laid the groundwork for the Geneva talks at a meeting in November. Senior UN humanitarian official deeply concerned at Israel's administrative detention practices Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 2 February 2016 Cite as UN News Service, Senior UN humanitarian official deeply concerned at Israel's administrative detention practices, 2 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b314aa40b.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. 2 February 2016 - A senior United Nations humanitarian official today voiced deep concern at the administrative detention of more than 525 Palestinians in Israeli jails and detention centres, including one who has been on hunger strike for over two months. "In particular, I am alarmed by the rapidly deteriorating health of Palestinian administrative detainee, Mohammed Al-Qiq, who is on hunger strike in protest against the arbitrary nature of his detention and ill-treatment," the UN Coordinator for Humanitarian Assistance and Development Aid for the occupied Palestinian territory, Robert Piper said in a statement. "After 69 days of hunger strike, Mr. Al-Qiq is in a dangerous state of health and his physicians have informed him of the possibility of irreversible damage. I reiterate the United Nations' long-standing position that all administrative detainees - Palestinian or Israeli - should be charged or released without delay. All allegations of ill-treatment must also be independently and promptly investigated." According to data from Israel Prison Service (IPS), 527 Palestinians, including one woman and five minors were held in administrative detention in IPS facilities at the end of November 2015. Just last month Mr. Piper called for an immediate end to Israeli plans to transfer Bedouin living in the Jerusalem area for a settlement expansion, long recognized as a violation of international law and an obstacle to realizing a two-state solution to the Middle East crisis. UN envoy for Syria meets with Government delegation in Geneva Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 2 February 2016 Cite as UN News Service, UN envoy for Syria meets with Government delegation in Geneva, 2 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b314f440d.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. 2 February 2016 - The United Nations Special Envoy for Syria today met with a delegation from the country's Government, one day after meeting with representatives of the opposition High Negotiation Committee (HNC), which he said had officially begun the UN-mediated intra-Syrian talks in Geneva. Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura is also expected to issue invitations to Syrian women and civil society representatives to contribute to the talks, being held in Geneva between representatives of the Syrian government and the opposition. "Both women and civil society organisations can provide vital ideas and insight to the talks by presenting the views and recommendations of important segments of Syrian society," Deputy UN Spokesperson Farhan Haq told reporters in New York. "Mr. de Mistura, heeding the call by many Syrian women to meaningfully be able to contribute to the talks and the guidance provided by Security Council eesolution 2254, has established an independent Women's Advisory Board to the Office of the UN Special Envoy for Syria," he noted. The Advisory Board will allow Syrian women to articulate their concerns and ideas covering all topics discussed during the talks, and present recommendations to the UN Special Envoy for consideration. The Board will initially be composed of a group of 12 women chosen by several Syrian women organizations through their own consultative process. Mr. de Mistura has said the Geneva meetings will start with proximity talks and are expected to last for six months, with Government and opposition delegations sitting in separate rooms and UN officials shuttling between them, with the immediate priorities being a broad ceasefire, humanitarian aid, and halting the threat posed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). As flood of child refugees and migrants into Europe soars, UN calls for enhanced protection Publisher UN News Service Publication Date 2 February 2016 Cite as UN News Service, As flood of child refugees and migrants into Europe soars, UN calls for enhanced protection, 2 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b3154740d.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. 2 February 2016 - Child protection systems across Europe are completely overwhelmed as the rate of youngsters in the flood of refugees and migrants has soared to one in three compared with one in 10 less than a year ago, the United Nations warned today, calling for strengthened steps to prevent exploitation and abuse. Although there is a great risk of trafficking, so far there has only been anecdotal evidence, UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) spokesperson Sarah Crowe told a news briefing in Geneva, giving the latest update on the situation. For the first time since the start of the crisis, the majority of those crossing from Greece into the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia at Gevgelija, nearly 60 per cent, have been children and women, she noted. Germany and Sweden have the most thorough data on the numbers of unaccompanied children who have requested asylum - 60,000 and 35,400 respectively. More and more children and women are at risk at sea and need support on land through enhanced protection, health and welfare systems, she said. Effective guardianship programs for children on the move are needed every step of the way and reports of children who are not fully accounted for in these systems are extremely worrying, she stressed. Effective guardianship programmes for children on the move are needed every step of the way. Unaccompanied children are mainly adolescents 15 to 17 years old, coming primarily from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq, Ms. Crowe said. In some countries, they are temporarily delayed, get frustrated and tend to move on, as they do not want to be detained in centres. UNICEF has no concrete evidence regarding violence experienced by children and women, Ms. Crowe said. The reunification rate for children lost in transit has been 100 per cent so far and there are no children who are definitively lost. UNICEF is waiting for a green light from the Greek Government to operate fully in Greece, since it now is only present through its national committee, focusing on advocacy and awareness-raising. RSF calls for release of photographer arrested after appeal court ruling Publisher Reporters Without Borders Publication Date 3 February 2016 Cite as Reporters Without Borders, RSF calls for release of photographer arrested after appeal court ruling, 3 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b316d5411.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) condemns a Manama appeal court decision today upholding internationally-known photographer Ahmed Al Fardan's three-month jail sentence and his arrest after the hearing to begin serving the sentence. The sentence was originally imposed nearly a year ago, on 17 February 2015, when Fardan was convicted of "trying to participate in an illegal demonstration," a charge brought against him following his arrest in December 2013. RSF regards today's appeal court decision and arrest as arbitrary and demands his immediate and unconditional release. "We also call on the Bahraini authorities to stop such practices, which are designed to intimidate independent journalists, and to free all journalists held on trumped-up charges," said Alexandra El Khazen, the head of RSF's Middle East desk. "Journalists in Bahrain are persecuted by the regime." Fardan's lawyer, Mohamed Mehdi, told RSF that his client was shocked by the appeal court's decision, especially as he recently married and has been working for the past year for Gulf Daily News, a local paper. Mehdi has decided to ask for the sentence to be commuted to community service or a fine. Fardan worked for the Nurphoto, Demotex and Sipa photo agencies when he was arrested at his home in Abu Saiba, in western Manama, at 3 a.m. on 26 December 2013 and, according to the information obtained by RSF, was beaten at the time of his arrest. He was freed two weeks later on bail of 100 dinars (245 euros) pending trial. That was not his first run-in with the authorities. He had already been arrested in a cafe in August 2013 for covering demonstrations in Manama. On that occasion, he was released after a few hours. A total of 12 professional and non-professional journalists are currently detained in Bahrain, which is ranked 163rd out of 180 countries in the 2015 Reporters Without Borders press freedom index. Radio Programme Changing Attitudes In South Sudan Publisher Institute for War and Peace Reporting Author Ilona Eveleens Publication Date 3 February 2016 Cite as Institute for War and Peace Reporting, Radio Programme Changing Attitudes In South Sudan, 3 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b318ad4.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. A weekly radio programme focusing on issues affecting women and children in South Sudan is having a real impact on people's lives, according to local reporter Nancy Tabu. Sitting in the small newsroom of the local FM station Radio Easter, in the South Sudanese town of Yei, Tabu said that she had received lots of feedback about the 20-minute magazine-format Nadhrat al-Shafafa (or "Transparent View"). "I'm often approached on the street by listeners. It's amazing how little knowledge exists about issue that affect women and children," she said. The programme is broadcast by seven partner stations, all part of the Catholic Radio Network (CRN). One of them is across the border in Sudan. Contributions come from all across South Sudan to ensure the broadcasts have a nationwide relevance, and most of the reporters are women who have been trained, mentored and supervised by IWPR. Tabu highlighted one programme about how women are usually blamed by their husbands when marriages remain childless. A doctor interviewed on Nadhrat al-Shafafa explained that the cause of infertility could lie in both women and men. "When I came home, my neighbour told me [how] he had send his wife back to her parents because their six-year marriage had remained childless. He was convinced that it was her fault," Tabu said. The radio broadcast convinced him of his mistake and the man decided to apologise to his wife. The couple was reunited and decided to see a doctor regarding their fertility issues. "I have not heard the result of the tests but it looks like their marriage is a good one again," Tabu said. Each broadcast of Nadhrat al-Shafafa is followed by a 40-minute phone-in. Most participants are men, which may reflect the fact that in socially conservative South Sudan, women often lack the money or confidence to make such calls. However, it appears that the broadcasts have had a significant impact on male listeners too. Following one broadcast about the importance of antenatal care, one caller in the town of Yei phoned in to say that he was sitting with a friend who had previously refused to pay for his wife to go to an antenatal clinic. After listening to the programme, however, he vowed that he would ensure his wife received medical care during her next pregnancy. Yei, with some 170,000 inhabitants, lies close to the border with Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Radio Easter broadcasts in English, Arabic and the local Bari language, and callers sometimes come from across the borders. After one programme about how parents routinely beat their children to discipline them, a South Sudanese woman called Grace Modi phoned in from just across the border in Uganda. She named a man living in her home village near Yei who beat his children so violently that they often needed medical treatment. "It is outrageous that no one dares to take action against the father," Modi noted. In a subsequent episode of Nadhrat al-Shafafa, the man in question called in to say that many people from his community had approached him following the broadcast. "I now understand that you can discipline children by talking to them, explaining why something is wrong. I have improved my attitude towards my children," he told the phone-in. Previous series of Nadhrat al-Shafafa were broadcast in 2012 and 2013, produced by three stations of CRN. The current series, which started in early 2015, also includes other radio stations from the network. In total, 12 female and two male reporters carry out interviews for the programme, while two female editors edit contributions and produce the packages. Nadhrat al-Shafafa is funded by the Dutch ministry of foreign affairs and the European Union. Copyright notice: Institute for War & Peace Reporting Flogged by the Islamic State Publisher Institute for War and Peace Reporting Author Mona al-Mohammad Publication Date 3 February 2016 Cite as Institute for War and Peace Reporting, Flogged by the Islamic State, 3 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b319ec4.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. My father is a devout Muslim who has visited Saudi Arabia several times to perform the Hajj and Umrah pilgrimages in the holy city of Mecca. Nevertheless, the Islamic State (IS) found reason to arrest and flog him. The incident happened on May 3, 2014. That evening my father sat in his shop chatting to my uncle and a few friends who had gathered to keep him company. The power had been off in the area all day, which meant the loudspeakers of the local mosque were not working. When the call to isha [nightfall] prayers went out, my father and his companions did not hear it. When they realised the time, they rushed to the mosque, arriving a few minutes after prayers had started. This small delay did not go unnoticed. A young neighbour who had recently joined IS accused them of neglecting their prayers and arrested them immediately. The young man knew my father well enough to know how religious he was, but still led him and his companions to the hisbah [morality police] to be punished appropriately. Later that day, after my father was released, he told us what had happened at the hisbah. When they arrived, the men were held in a small room that was so crowded they could hardly move. They were given the opportunity to perform their nightfall prayers as a group, and then were sentenced to 16 lashes each. From his complexion and accent, my father gathered that the man carrying out their sentences was Saudi Arabian. He flogged the prisoners so harshly that one elderly man screamed out the name of the prophet Mohammad in pain. This cost him dearly. "You heretic! How dare you plea to someone else but God?" shouted his punisher. The elderly man's lashes were doubled. When it was my father's turn to be flogged, the Saudi militant seemed to have grown weary, for his lashes were no longer so severe. A Tunisian militant supervising the procedure reprimanded him. "Carry out the punishments properly," he said angrily. "Whip them firmly!" His words sparked a terrible anger in my uncle who stood watching. This was the first time anyone had mistreated my father in front of him, and he could not accept it. "Leave him alone," he shouted. "Let him be!" Out of fear for my uncle, my father tried to pretend he wasn't suffering. Eventually my uncle calmed down, but it was too late. He had dared to speak up, so his lashes were doubled too. That night, when my father came home, his back was swollen and marked with stripes of blood. He was unable to sleep, not from the physical pain, but from the heartache he felt. "They humiliated us under the pretext of applying the laws of Islam, it was just terrible," he told us, "And when I heard my brother trying to intervene and help me, something inside me broke." Ever since IS took control over my city Tabaqa in early 2014, it became a prime destination for jihadists from all over the world. Tunisians, Yemenis, Egyptians, and Iraqis flocked to Syria to join IS, as well as a large number of Saudis who were appointed as ruling princes known as emirs. Immigrants also came from France, the United States, Britain, Russia, and Korea. This group mostly carried out terrorist attacks, or were stationed at checkpoints despite the fact that they spoke little or no Arabic. The IS uses an extremist interpretation of Islam to encourage violence and murder. Any person who dares to oppose them is considered an infidel or apostate. Members of the organisation believe they are applying Sharia law to restore the Muslim caliphate. Although many of them are illiterate or unable to read Arabic, they blindly carry out verdicts, arresting people and flogging them. IS applies its own unique set of rules. To ensure everyone fears them, they execute their sentences in public, usually in a main square, especially on Fridays after midday prayers. I remember hearing a rumour one Friday that an elderly man was to be flogged at the local market square. I went there in disbelief and sure enough, found a large crowd of men, women, and even children gathered to watch. Two IS members tied the man to a wooden board, and another man with a hood covering his face carried out the punishment. I was sickened by what I saw. I couldn't believe it was true. Surely I was at the cinema watching a horror movie, or perhaps I was having a nightmare. Someone needed to wake me up. The IS member dealing out the punishment must have done it many times, for he handled his whip with skill. On this occasion however, he didn't have the opportunity to complete his job. His first few lashes were so severe that the elderly man fainted, blood trickling down his back. Mona al-Mohammad is the pseudonym of a Damascus Bureau contributor from Tabaqa. The 20-year-old was forced to abandon her Arabic literature university course and flee to Idlib's countryside where she and her family are now displaced. Copyright notice: Institute for War & Peace Reporting Bengaluru: Karnataka Home Minister G. Parmeshwara on Thursday said that the brutal attack on a Tanzanian student in Bengaluru was 'not a racial attack'. "It's not a racial attack. It is just a response to the accident. Bengaluru does not have that kind of an attitude," said Parmeshwara . Deccan Chronicle had exclusively reported on Wednesday that the 21-year-old Tanzanian girl, who is a second year BBA student of Acharya College, had absolutely nothing to do with the car that ran over and killed a 35-year-old Hesaraghatta resident on Sunday night. Yet, while the local police stood by and watched, she was repeatedly beaten and then stripped of all her clothes and made to parade around naked. Read: Bengaluru: Mob strips Tanzanian girl, torches her car as police watch Five persons have been arrested in this connection. The state home minister also said that this incident would not have taken place had the Sudanese not killed somebody in the accident. "The five accused are being interrogated by the police officials. We have already informed the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) about it," said Parmeshwara. "The allegations that their clothes were torn off and they were paraded naked have not been verified as per the investigation so far," he added. Read: Bengaluru cops rescued drivers, left stripped Tanzanian girl to mobs mercy Parmeshwara also said that more arrests would be made when the people in the mob are identified and added that this matter would not be taken casually. "There are 12,000 foreign students in Bangalore itself. Their protection and their pursuit of education is our duty, especially the Home Minister. But this kind of incident should not happen," he said. Read: Tanzania issues note verbale after mob strips girl in Bengaluru Parmeshwara further said there are times when foreign students stay even after their passports get expired and, therefore, they are going to pursue such cases. Giving details about the accident, the Home Minister said that Sudan's Mohd. Ismail was driving the car under the influence of liquor and then he hit K. Sanaullah and his wife. Read: Tanzanian student assault: Have given factual report to EAM, says Siddaramaiah "The woman died on the spot. Sanaullah was injured and he was taken to the hospital. In the incident, Ismail was also injured. During this time, around three to four people gathered and set the car on fire," he said. "Near the spot, some students were coming in a car. Jamaal Ibrahim, the driver, and a Tanzanian student and others were then attacked by the mob," he added. He further said that the DGP and Commissioner went to the spot today and also spoke to the students. "The case has been transferred to the Central Crime Branch," he said. ead: Tanzanian girl assault in Bengaluru: Cops toned down victims complaints Parmeshwara also asserted that the state government would provide protection to the foreign students, but if they do anything against the law of the land then it's a different issue. Meanwhile, Karnataka Director General of Police (DGP) Om Prakash, who met the Tanzanian student as part of the investigation process on Thursday, said that the victim was not stripped and paraded. "She did not say that she was stripped and paraded. Yesterday, when she gave in writing, it was found that her top cloth was found removed, which she realised subsequently. Initially her statement could not be recorded, that is why Section 355 was in place," Prakash told the media here. Read: Africa angry, demands justice after mob strips Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru "I checked the case by going to the police station. I talked to the victim. I did not record her statement because it should be part of a detailed inquiry. In many places, the people have reacted in the similar manner. Law is same for everyone and we will take action as per the law," he added. Concerned over the incident, the Centre on Wednesday sought a report from the Karnataka government and action taken against the perpetrators of the crime. Read: Road rage gets a foreign face In a communication, the Home Ministry asked the state government to give a detailed report about the circumstances leading to the assault of the Tanzanian woman, action taken against those allegedly involved in it and steps taken for the protection of the victim. The Home Ministry also said that the report should be sent as early as possible for taking necessary action by the central government as the incident had happened involving a foreign national. Meanwhile, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju said the incident is a matter of shame and no racial discrimination will be tolerated in the country. "We will not allow racial discrimination to take place in the country. This is a matter of shame for the entire nation," the Minister of State for Home said. Rebuilding Houses and Lives in Wadi al-Dayf Publisher Institute for War and Peace Reporting Author Darin Hassan Publication Date 3 February 2016 Cite as Institute for War and Peace Reporting, Rebuilding Houses and Lives in Wadi al-Dayf, 3 February 2016, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/56b31a2d4.html [accessed 20 October 2022] Disclaimer This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. Umm Ahmad's displacement began when her home in the village of Maar Hatat was shelled and reduced to rubble. The 45-year-old widow and her seven children were forced to leave the ruins of their home and seek shelter in other villages nearby, moving from one house to another. Umm Ahmad's long and tiring journey is now over. Thanks to a project that has built her a small house just where her old one once stood, she and her family are now back where they belong. A new scheme is rebuilding hundreds of houses in Wadi al-Dayf, allowing displaced families to return. "The project is funded by Qatar Red Crescent and is managed by an organisation named Binaa," project manager Sami Abu Salah told Damascus Bureau. "It was launched on July 11, 2015, and aims to build 400 housing units to replace damaged houses in Idlib's southern countryside." Simple housing units are built to allow the displaced to come home. Photo: Darin Hassan According to Abu Salah, the project will cover 20 villages in the region. Each of these villages was chosen due to the high level of destruction suffered during battles between the government and the opposition, before the region was liberated. Each new housing unit is 50 metres square and of a standard two-room design, costing 400,000 Syrian pounds (1,250 US dollars). This is to ensure funds are distributed equally amongst all beneficiaries. Families are notified when the units are complete and ready for them to move in, upon which they also receive some basic furniture, kitchen equipment, and foodstuff. The total cost of the project is 200 million Syrian pounds, and its target completion date is July 2016, a year after its launch. However, Abu Salah hopes to complete it in half this time, to provide the region's displaced families with decent houses as soon as possible. CREATING JOBS AND HOUSES According to assistant engineer Wael al-Shahud, the beneficiaries are chosen according to their family size and the degree of damage to their house. "Priority is given to poor families with orphans, war injured, or members with special needs," said the 29-year-old. Each family submits an application to the project, which is reviewed by a special committee. The damaged houses are then surveyed. "The main aim of the project is to help people, and encourage them to come home," Shahud added. Rebuilding houses in Wadi al-Dayf has also created job opportunities for many local residents. More than 100 people are currently employed by the project, in jobs varying from construction to electricity installation and plumbing. Abu Yehya is a 42-year-old builder who works for the project, along with his three children. "All four of us had been unemployed for a very long time and were considering seeking refuge in Turkey," he said. "When we heard of this project, we visited the manager and he hired us immediately. The work is long and hard, but even though we are exhausted by the end of each day, we are happy that we all have decent jobs that put food on our table". REBUILDING VILLAGES AND LIVES Abu Muayad, a leader in Islamist rebel group Ahrar al-Sham, explained the reason for the particularly severe level of destruction in the area. After Maarat al-Numan was liberated in 2012, government troops withdrew and set up camp in al-Hamdiya and Wadi al-Dayf. "They were besieged in these two villages for almost three years, during which there were numerous heavy clashes between them and the opposition," said the 30-year-old. "Following each battle, the government retaliated by shelling nearby villages with various types of heavy machinery, causing mass devastation. This went on until December 2014, when both al-Hamdiya and Wadi al-Dayf were liberated". As the displaced began to trickle back to their villages, they found their homes in ruins. Most families could not afford to fix their houses, as both building materials and construction work were expensive. Asaad al-Amery told Damascus Bureau how hard it had been to return to a village in ruins. The extent of the destruction robbed his homecoming of all joy. "When I came back, there was nothing left. The village had been completely destroyed save for one house the troops had used as a military barracks,' said the 31-year-old. "Our memories had been buried amid debris and ruins." Amery praised the project as a blessing for the poor. By rebuilding houses for free, it is helping a large number of those who came back to nothing. One such person was Hussam al-Asaad, who told Damascus Bureau that both he and his son lost their homes during the battle over Maarat al-Numan. "Neither of us had the means to rebuild our houses," said the 50-year-old, "So I had to seek shelter in a refugee camp along with 10 family members." The ruins of al-Asaad's house have now been demolished and he is back living with his family in a new home on the site. All are very grateful that they will not have to face another winter in a camp. Ahmad Kassar, president of Maarat al-Numan's local council, told Damascus Bureau that the generosity of such projects is helping the Syrian people rebuild their lives. "The Syrian people have suffered tremendously," said the 39-year-old. "Wars kill and injure. They cause starvation and destruction. But despite the bitterness of our situation, we will not surrender. We will survive." Darin Hassan is the pseudonym of a Damascus Bureau contributor from Idlib countryside, Syria. Copyright notice: Institute for War & Peace Reporting Fire raging at the slum area near Rajiv Gandhi Park in Vijayawada on Wednesday. Vijayawada: One woman was burnt alive and two others sustained injures in a major fire mishap that gutted over 110 huts at the slum adjacent to Rajiv Gandhi Park and flower market in city on Wednesday. At around 12.30 pm, fire broke out in a house and within a few minutes it spread to all the other huts, which were homes of daily wagers. Dwellers of the slum ran out but K. Ramadevi, 60, who was unable to escape the fire, was brunt alive. Two others, including an eight-year-old girl sustained injuries. More than 10 fire tenders from across the district were put into force to bring down the fire till evening. The exact source of the fire is yet to be known. Fire and police officials suspect that fire broke out due to gas leakage or while cooking in a house. However, locals say that a live cigarette thrown on the houses by a passenger from the train passing by the slum might have raged fire. District collector Mr Babu A, VMC commissioner G. Veerapandian, DCP (L&O) Mr L.K.V. Ranga Rao and DCP (admin) Mr G.V.G. Ashok Kumar rushed to the spot. As an immediate relief, the dwellers were shifted to nearby schools. Each family would be given Rs 3,000 and 25 kilograms of rice, collector Mr Babu said. Officials fail to shift families from encroached lands It is not the first time that the slum, a home for close to a 1,000 people, got destroyed by fire. In the past two decades more than five such incidents took place destroying the slum. Despite repeated incidents and the fact that it was established in a land belonging to the railways, close to a railway track, officials of the concerned department failed to shift the families to the housing colonies meant for slum dwellers in the city. The slum is close to the railway track passing beside the Pundit Nehru Bus Station and Rajiv Gandhi flower market. It does not even have a name. Ironically, it is also very close to the office of Vijayawada Municipal Corporation. Victims lost all their houses and their belongings, including cash in the mishap. Most of them earn money through grading carrots and potatoes on daily basis. Minister P. Narayana, who visited the spot, assured that they would be given houses in the housing colony of the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation. VMC commissioner G. Veerapandian too assured the same. However, the victims said that officials and politicians made similar promises every time their houses got destroyed but nothing has materialised so far. They demanded that the government respond genuinely this time and ensure they get houses. Hafiz Saeed, alleged mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks and leader of the banned Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) group, encouraged further violence following the air base assault in Pathankot. (Photo: AFP) New Delhi: Central intelligence agencies are fully alert to 26/11 mastermind and JuD chief Hafiz Saeeds latest outburst, warning of more Pathankot-style attacks in India. New Delhi on Thursday termed Saeeds activities a matter of grave concern and, putting the onus on Islamabad, MEA spokesman Vikas Swarup made it clear it was for Pakistan to rein in the Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief. Ahead of Kashmir Solidarity Day being observed in Pakistan Friday, the banned JuD also released a video claiming Kashmir Banay Ga Pakistan (Kashmir will become Pakistan), that carries an image of Pakistan Army chief Gen. Raheel Sharif. Hafiz Saeed is a globally-designated international terrorist. His claim that his front organisations are carrying out charitable work in not even a fig leaf... He indulges in terrorist activities and terrorist financing. It should be a matter of grave concern to everyone that a terrorist like Saeed and his associates continue to enjoy the freedom to indulge in their activities, Mr Swarup said, adding that New Delhi was waiting to see what action would be taken to bring the perpetrators of the Pathankot attack to justice. He said the national security advisers of India and Pakistan as well as the foreign secretaries were in touch with each other. In his latest round of tweets on @HafeezSaeedJUD, Saeed even hailed Islamabads decision to not allow Indian actor Anupam Kher into Pakistan. The video, released by JuD ahead of Kashmir Solidarity Day, with an image of Pakistan Army chief Gen. Raheel Sharif and an Urdu caption saying Kashmir is the jugular vein of Pakistan. Video has Afzal Guru pictures The video released also carries photos and videos of Afzal Guru, hanged to death by India for his role in the 2011 Parliament attack, and Kahmiri separatist leader Masarat Alam, besides others. Intelligence sources said they are alert to threats and the latest social media propaganda launched by the JuD. The video has been created by Dawa Productions, and was posted on the Twitter page of JuD. While Pakistan has banned media coverage of JuD in November, it has claimed the organisation is not banned. In his latest provocative statements and threats, Saeed had said, while addressing a rally in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir: You have only seen one attack on Pathankot. Matters could easily escalate. He alleged that Indian troops were committing genocide on Kashmiris and added: Dont they have a right to carry out Pathankot-style attacks for their defence?. At Wednesdays rally, Saeed also lauded Kashmiri militant leader Syed Salahuddin, who heads the United Jihad Council (UJC), that claimed responsibility for the January 2 attack on the Pathankot IAF base. Last month, Saeed appeared on a private Pakistani TV channels talk show despite Pakistans ban on media coverage of militant outfits like the JuD and Lashkar-e-Tayyaba Saeed had made an appearance on a talk show on Channel 24 on January 27. He glorified his organisation's public welfare works and talked about how India and the US were pressuring the Pakistani government to take action against organisations like the JuD and Jaish-e-Mohammad, which is believed to be behind the Pathankot attack. In the past few weeks, I've changed my eating, sleeping and exercise habits. I've also changed how frequently I wear my eyeglasses. Needless to say, I've been having more headaches than usual while trying to adjust to this new "normal." I'm a firm believer that there are usually a handful of options that can be causing a headache, so medication such as aspirin or ibuprofen usually is my last resort. My husband was sweetly running down a list of what could be causing my headache with me during dinner last night, when our waitress chimed in, saying she never realized that headaches could be relieved without medication. Although headaches can have a variety of causes, here are my top three ways to relieve headaches before I reach for meds. Hydrate Dehydration is one of the biggest causes of headaches. People often do not realize that their headache is being caused by dehydration. When I feel a headache coming on, I try to think of how much water I've had during the day. If not enough, I drink more water. It may take some time and consumption before the headache subsides, but it often will be greatly reduced if that's the cause. Massage/stretch Tight and achy muscles in your back, shoulders and neck can cause headaches. Try lightly massaging your neck and shoulders (or better yet, have someone else massage them for you) and stretching those muscles to get relief. Oftentimes, I can put pressure on certain areas of my neck and trapezoids (the tops of your shoulders) and can feel a tinge of a headache. When that occurs, I keep rubbing and stretching until I feel relief. Mediation/sleep Stress and lack of sleep can cause headaches as well. Usually when I'm stressed, I become tense and don't sleep well. Take long deep breaths, inhaling and exhaling slowly, with your eyes closed. If you're at home or in a place you can sleep, nap for 30 minutes. More times than not, you'll find yourself headache-free. Note: If your headache is persistent and the methods mentioned above do not provide relief, visit your doctor. Bangkok: Voicing concern over the spreading tide of extremism, India on Thursday sought strong, coordinated action by like-minded nations to combat the menace as well as growing non-traditional threats like piracy. Addressing Thai academics, businessmen and students at the prestigious Chulalongkorn University here, Ansari also touched upon the evolving situation in the South China Sea that demands restraint from all parties. India supports collective efforts by ASEAN member states and China to conclude the code of conduct to keep peace and stability in the region, Ansari said about the South China Sea (SCS) issue in which Beijing is involved in a territorial dispute with a number of ASEAN members. China claims the SCS a major shipping lane and 90 per cent of the islands including major shipping lanes that dot it. Brunei, along with other ASEAN members like Malaysia, Philippines and Vietnam, has been also staking claims in the South China Sea. At 82 years "young," Betty Ross Thornton Crowe is going strong and has no intention of slowing down. Born and raised in Abilene, Crowe, who is known to family and friends as "Poppy," said she makes the most of each day. "My body may be telling me I'm old, but I don't let my mind believe it," said Crowe, niece of E.L. Thornton, of Abilene's historical Thornton's Department Store. "I have always been physically active and have no intention of stopping anytime soon." Crowe met her husband, John, while both were students at Abilene High School. Poppy graduated in 1952, attended Baylor University for a short time before returning to Abilene to complete her bachelor's degree in elementary education from Hardin-Simmons University in 1955. She was a member of the Six White Horse team at HSU. She and John married in 1955. "After graduating, I taught at Fannin (Elementary School) for a year, then John took an Army commission," she said. "We spent the next several years in the Army, having kids and loving life." The Crowes returned to Abilene in the early 1960s. Poppy continued raising her five children and working on her master's degree at HSU. In 1967, she accepted an opportunity to return to teaching. "I accepted a job at Cooper in an adult vocational-technical program, did that for a short time, then they hired me to teach 4th grade at Central (Elementary School)," she said. "After they closed Central, I went to Fair Park (Elementary) and from there to Austin (Elementary) where I taught for 20 years." Crowe retired from teaching in 2002 after 35 years as an educator and began her retired life. "It took a while to adjust to not teaching, but there was great joy in being able to stay home," she said. "It was a part of my life that was gone, but I never lost touch with the schools and education." Crowe became a room mother at Thomas Elementary for a class of special needs kids, did that for several years, and also volunteered at a middle school. She joined several civic groups in Abilene, including the Christian Women's Club, Abilene Woman's Club, GRQ Investment Club, Los Aficionados at The Grace Museum, HeARTS for the Arts and the Paramount Theatre Classics. "I've been told that I could strike up a conversation with a 'hole in the ground,'" she said. "It's in my nature I've never known a stranger and I like to know people's stories. It's amazing what I learn. I enjoy the company of people." Crowe's busy weekly schedule includes three workouts a week at Action Zone, numerous beauty (hair, nails and skin) appointments, and lunch nearly every day at the Abilene Country Club. "I want to live a happy life and I do not wear a watch," she said. "I am not obsessed with time, although I have to keep my calendar current to keep up with everything I do each week." Crowe said she travels six to eight times per year and combines that with keeping up with a family that now totals 45, including 16 grandchildren and 9 great grandchildren scattered from Texas to Florida. John Crowe died in 2011, but she remains committed to living life to the fullest. She said the secret to her longevity involves three things. "Stay connected to the younger generation they have youthful ideas," she said. "Don't just have two or three friends try to meet new people everywhere you go. And, don't wait for life to come to you go find it. "Remember your body may tell you that you're old, but don't let your mind believe it." Editor's Note This story is one in an occasional series we call Golden Agers. Were looking for folks past the retirement age who think retirement is for the birds. They are too busy at the gym and traveling, Facebooking and tweeting, volunteering and taking classes. If youre an active Golden Ager or know someone who is, let us know. Send an email to PublishMe@reporternews.com, drop off or mail your suggestions to Golden Agers at the Reporter-News office, 101 Cypress St., Abilene, 79601. We pay Larry the Answer the Guy a lot of money to provide answers, but don't ask him how much. He won't answer that. So we were delighted to see money well spent by his looking into Dunkin' Donuts. America may run on Dunkin' but Abilene does not. Awhile back, we were told Dunkin' was coming back to Abilene. Like we need another doughnut shop but hey, this in Dunkin's Donuts. I am not a coffee drinker but the selling point, to me, is coffee and a doughnut (or muffin, etc.). The coffee angle may be what led to the Dunkin' comeback . We used to have a Dunkin' Donuts here. In fact, Larry the AG jogged our memories by writing that we had two. One was on South 14th Street, where Church's chicken now is located. The other was just west of the Westwood Theatre and adjacent to Baskin-Robbins. It was first, opening in 1971 and managed by Don Elder, before he joined the Eagles. (Just kidding ... that was Don Felder) But no wonder we had peaceful easy feelings back then. We were eating Dunkin' Donuts, $2.19 a dozen. Both stores closed March 27, 1991, otherwise known here as The Day the Donut Died. Larry the AG learned that the potential opening of a Dunkin' location here might be, quote, the second half of 2017. WHAAAT!?! That's 18 months away. The Cowboys will be Super Bowl champions and we'll be well into President Cruz's first term. I heard remarks Tuesday from folks saying they won't be drinking coffee at that point but something much stronger if Cruz beats Bernie in the general election. The presidential race would be a lively discussion over a cup on Dunkin' coffee and one of those fluffy sugar doughnuts. Or Bavarian creme. Dunkin' is one of those items that's "imported" to Abilene. By that I mean we get a dozen while we're out of town and bring 'em home. I do, anyway. (Actually, I get two dozen so there will be a dozen when I get home). I enjoy Raising Cane's, where you get chicken fingers and fries. There is one on University in Fort Worth, and I told them once that I was taking some back to Abilene. They told me they hear a lot of customers say they're taking Canes back here. I heard the same thing at the Hallmark store in Weatherford. I told them we used to have one here but it closed. They told me customers come in all the time from Abilene. Your investment tip for the day: Cane's and Hallmark. And Dunkin'. Dunkin' may have its work cut out in Abilene. Perhaps, though, they learned from Krispy Kreme's missteps. When we lived in Canyon, we frequented Donut Stop, an Amarillo-based business started in 1947. Their signature donut was a glazed cherry top. My daughter still pines for those. You could get Krispy Kreme at Walmart and some convenience stores, and groups would sell boxes from street corners as fundraisers for scouting or their booster club. Then, a Krispy Kreme opened on Interstate 40. Lots more variety, and you could sit and watch them make the doughnuts. Now and then, one would fall from conveyor and they'd give it to me free! Life was good. Soon, however, the location closed. Donut Stop rolled 'em right out of town, or so it proudly claimed. Krispy Kreme, it was said, had overextended nationally, wasn't pushing coffee and was closing other locations. We'll never know the "hole" truth (I stole that from Larry) but probably both factors contributed to the Krispy Krash. Donut Stop was good stuff, so it wasn't like we were missing out. (I know what you're thinking: Why is this guy putting so much time into doughnuts? Because I am not the police chief and I can.) For those needin' a Dunkin', you can get them in far west Fort Worth. (Take the White Settlement exit and go west). And you can get them the next time you are in Lubbock. There are THREE locations. But of course ... Tech's chancellor is Robert Duncan. The one on 50th Street is where we stopped one dark and stormy night (it really was) before heading back to Abilene. Like the one in Fort Worth, it's a combo with Baskin-Robbins. Similar to our A&W/Long John Silver's near the mall. My wife and son got ice cream and I got doughnuts to bring home for our daughter. OK ... and me, too. You can buy ground Dunkin' coffee at the grocery store, even also packaged for your Keurig. And at H-E-B, there are teeny tiny pints of Baskin-Robbins. So it's not like we're wandering in the desert without dessert. But to have our own store, ice cream on one side and doughnuts on the other ... that's modern-day milk and honey. It also might solve the doughnut crisis at our church, where we have been running out Sunday mornings. Either that's a budget reduction thing (not enough dough) or we're gaining weight (too much dough). Twitter: @GregJaklewicz Incident reports released Wednesday by the Abilene Police Department: Forgery, 1200 block of South Willis Street, Tuesday Police said someone passed counterfeit $100 bills at United Supermarket. Burglary, 3100 block of North 3rd Street, Monday Police said someone broke into a north-side storage space unit and stole $850 in property, including a treadmill and two amps. Burglary, 1300 block of Marshall Street, Monday A woman told police someone entered her residence and stole about $3,000 in property. Criminal mischief, 5200 block of Taos Drive, Monday A woman told police someone shattered the back window of her vehicle overnight, causing $200 in damage. Police and McMurry University officials said Wednesday they are investigating an alleged assault of a male student. The McMurry student told Abilene police he was assaulted during a social club membership week, during Jan. 27-Feb. 1, according to the police report. He added he felt pain and seeks to pursue charges. In a statement released Wednesday, the school's spokesperson Gary Ellison addressed the matter: "McMurry University has become aware of a report of serious acts of hazing from one of its men's social clubs. "McMurry is committed to addressing illegal pledging activities and has initiated an investigation into the reported incident. All pledging activities for the social club have been indefinitely suspended pending the results of the investigation. "If the charges are substantiated, the university will initiate student code of conduct charges against students involved in the incident as well as impose possible sanctions against the social club." Twitter: ARN_Titus Fighting flu starts with a shot, and it's time for Texans to get one The caption underneath a photo of Nelson Wilson Sr. still amazes his son. The photo, shot near Roby in 1950, shows the elder Wilson standing in a cotton field with a large cotton sack. The caption says that one day 10 years earlier, in 1940, Wilson pulled an astonishing 1,224 pounds of cotton. His son, Nelson Wilson Jr., never came close to that amount. "I think I pulled 700 pounds one day," said Nelson Wilson Jr., but 500 was closer to the norm. The photo is one of many, along with other memorabilia, on display through February at the G.V. Daniels Recreation Center. The exhibit is in observance of Black History Month and covers everything from the Emancipation Proclamation, signed by Abraham Lincoln in 1863, to a photo of current Abilene City Councilman Anthony Williams. The exhibit is divided into categories such as sports, churches, government, education, law enforcement, and farming, where Nelson Wilson Sr. Is featured. Each category has displays of photos, information sheets, and memorabilia. One display features trailblazing black Americans such as Civil Rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, whose refusal to sit at the back of a city bus spawned the Civil Rights movement, and Thurgood Marshall, the first black justice on the U.S. Supreme Court. One exhibit that might surprise visitors is of black cowboys, including James Francies, who in 1957 organized the Prairie View Trail Riders club. The first official trail ride, from Prairie View to Houston, was held in 1958. The county judge of Waller County, where Prairie View is located, proclaimed Feb. 26, 2001, as "James Francies Jr. Day" in recognition of his achievements as a rodeo cowboy and his involvement in researching the history of black cowboys in America. A pair of well-worn chaps hang at one end of the display table. They were well worn by the time Francies received them as a gift when he was 27. Now 85, Francies still cherishes the chaps, which he said are more than 100 years old. He made a promise to the man who gave him the chaps and to this day he has kept the promise. "I told him I would keep them," Francies said. "And I still have them." The farming exhibit features the photo of Nelson Wilson Sr., who is deceased, and other blacks involved in agriculture. Nelson Wilson Jr., 78, grew up in Fisher County where his father was a sharecropper. In return for tending a farm owned by another man, Wilson Sr. kept the proceeds from a share of the crops as payment. His brothers and sisters did the same kind of work, Wilson Jr. recalled, and it became a competition among them to see who could pull the most cotton. "It was a friendly family feud," he said. Wilson said his father wanted him to be a farmer and set aside 40 acres for him to work. Whatever he made off the crops would be saved for college, Wilson recalled. Unfortunately for the younger Wilson, that came in the 1950s at the beginning of an extended drought. "I didn't get one bale on that 40 acres," Wilson said. That was the end of my farming." It also was the end of his college dreams, Instead, Wilson joined the Air Force, served in Vietnam, and retired at Dyess Air Force Base in 1977. IF YOU GO: The city of Abilene moved closer to expanding its raw water supply last week when the West Central Texas Municipal Water District purchased a pipeline system that will deliver water from Possum Kingdom Lake, the district announced. The purchase of the West Central Brazos Water Distribution System will deliver water bought by Abilene and other member cities from the largest reservoir at Possum Kingdom Lake, according to a news release. The 78-mile pipeline system contains two pump stations that deliver water from Possum Kingdom to oil companies and regional water districts. The acquisition increases the water district's pipeline miles by 70 percent and is a "key to future plans for the district," the release states. Currently, the district is working with the city on a project that would transport water from the Brazos River Authority to Abilene and potentially other cities. This pipeline is the first piece in that process by transferring water from Possum Kingdom to a "bridge" pipeline that is under construction. Upon completion, the "bridge" will connect the district's current transmission system from Hubbard Creek Reservoir. "Once all the pieces are in place, the district and the city of Abilene will have a seamless transmission network capable of moving water about 80 miles to the city's water treatment plants," the release states. The pipeline system includes a raw water intake station on the west side of Possum Kingdom Lake, several pump stations and an associated pipeline, according to the release. The other member cities in the district are Albany, Anson and Breckenridge. Twitter: BrookeCrum_ARN Hyderabad: The Telangana government has exempted Scheduled Castes students from securing stipulated marks in TOEFL, IELTS, GRE, GMAT etc., to avail its Ambedkar Overseas Vidya Nidhi scheme, which provides financial assistance to SC students for pursuing higher studies in post-graduate courses in foreign universities. A valid score in these exams would be enough to gain eligibility as per the revised norms. The government gives a grant of Rs 10 lakh to SC students to take admissions in foreign universities under the scheme. The government had issued orders in April 2015 mandating students to have a TOEFL score of 50 or IELTS score of 6.5 or GRE score of 280 or a GMAT score of 550. However, on Tuesday it issued revised orders stating that students should only have a valid score. The Congress government in undivided AP had introduced the scheme in 2013 with no stipulated marks for students. In 2015, the TS government had prescribed minimum marks after which it was observed that a large number of students, who were applying to varsities without getting the minimum scores, were getting admissions in the US. But in the I-20s issued to them, it was mentioned that these students had to take up English proficiency courses before attending classes in US colleges for which they had to pay substantial fees and also wait till they became proficient in English to commence regular courses. This was causing an additional financial burden on the candidates, who hail from below poverty line families. The minimum marks resulted in only a handful of students getting selected for the scheme. Besides, there are several other opportunities in other countries barring US, in which a valid score in these exams is enough for admissions. Such students can utilise this scheme, said welfare minister Jogu Ramanna. He said students could also secure admissions in US varsities with a valid score but they needed to undergo an English proficiency course for which they had to bear the expenses on their own. Its up to the students whether to opt for US or other countries. The government wants to encourage more and more students from SC category to pursue foreign studies, he added. Advertisement - Continue Reading Below This just in... Health authorities in East and Southeast Asian countries have issued public warnings about the Zika virus and urged people to take measures to reduce the chances of infection, as they prepare for the possible spread of the virus from other countries. Most cases of the mosquito-borne virus have occurred in Central and South America, especially Brazil where it has been linked to an increase in the number of cases of microcephaly in pregnant women, a condition where babies are born with small heads and often have neurological disorders. There is no treatment or vaccine available for the Zika virus, which is usually nonfatal and whose symptoms include headaches, muscle and joint pains, slight fevers and rashes. Most people who contract the virus do not display any symptoms. On Monday, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared Zika a global health emergency and began setting up monitoring sites in poor countries with high birth rates, amid concern that the virus could spread to Asia and Africa. The WHOs office for Southeast Asia issued a statement urging countries in the region to increase surveillance and take preventive measures against the Zika virus. Chinese health officials said last Friday that the possibility of the spread of the mosquito-borne virus was low because there were fewer mosquitoes during winter and spring, China Daily reported. Nevertheless, Chinas Center for Disease Control and Prevention said the country faced the risk that the virus could be imported from other nations and regions, and that citizens should remain alert. Hong Kong Health Minister Dr. Ko Wing-man held an interdepartmental meeting on Monday to assess the risk of an outbreak and establish prevention and control measures against infections, according to the South China Morning Post. He will hold a second such meeting on Friday to review the measures that have been taken. Health authorities in Hong Kong also are concerned about the citys understaffed and overburdened health care sector as it begins to deal with the peak of the winter flu season should a Zika outbreak occur, the report said. The island of Taiwan, which China claims as one of its provinces, has confirmed one case of the virus this year in a man who arrived there from Thailand and set off a temperature scanner at Taoyuan International Airport. Destroying breeding places Dr. Ly Sovann, spokesman for Cambodias Ministry of Health, told RFA on Monday that he wanted to urge pregnant Cambodian women returning from certain regions such as Central and South America, to have a medical checkup at the Pasteur Institute in the capital Phnom Penh, which has a Zika tracking system in place. The medical institution has isolated the Zika virus in past years, according to information on its website. The country has recorded only one case of a pregnant woman from Kampong Speu province in the South who became infected by the Zika virus in 2010, Ly Sovann said. Dengue fever, another mosquito-borne illness found in countries with tropical climates, is more common in Cambodia and other Southeast Asian countries, although its symptoms are similar to but more severe than those of the Zika virus, he said. It has the same mode of infection as does dengue fever, so if you are worried about Zika, it is likely you are worried about dengue fever, he said. Therefore, your most important job is to destroy places where mosquitoes breed. Spraying insecticides to kill mosquitoes is only a temporary preventive measure thats done whenever there is a high outbreak of a disease such as dengue fever, he said. But the most important basic prevention is that together people must clean up places and containers that can hold water such as cans and pots that can allow mosquitoes to breed, Ly Sovann said said. Cambodia has the necessary funds to fight the Zika virus in its national budget and from international donor organizations such as the World Bank and Asian Development Bank, and the United States military, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and USAID, he said. Cambodian health officials collect mosquito larvae from a container in an effort to stem an outbreak of the Zika virus in Phnom Penh, Feb. 4, 2016. AFP Monitoring tourists Vietnam is strictly monitoring tourists from countries where infections have been found, according to state media reports, although there have been no reports of the virus there. The country has set up about 20 Zika checkpoints in the North and 10 in the South, although the virus infection is difficult to detect because most people who contract it show no symptoms. Airport workers have started monitoring tourists temperature and collecting information from them about their health. Those suspected of being infected by the Zika virus are held in quarantine while they undergo medical tests. Vietnams Ministry of Health has urged hospitals to draw up plans to prevent the spread of the Zika virus. The ministry said the countrys medical facilities are able to test those suspected of infection and get the results within six hours. The WHO is working with the countrys Ministry of Health to improve its surveillance and laboratory diagnosis capacity for the virus in Vietnam as well as issuing information to the public. The ministry, in the meantime, has called a meeting of its Emergency Operating Center, to stay on top of global developments concerning the virus. Health officials in Laos are concerned about the spread of infections from tourist from countries where the prevalence of the Zika virus is high, especially Latin America. They are urging citizens to take protective measures while the Zika virus is breaking out sporadically in other countries around the world. Earlier this week, the United Stated reported the first domestically spread case of a Zika infection, and on Thursday Spain said a pregnant woman who had traveled to Colombia had been diagnosed with the virus in the first such known case in Europe. Like Cambodian health officials, Lao health authorities have suggested that people employ the same protective measures used to ward off the spread of dengue fever. The Lao Ministry of Health has advised citizens to close and conceal all containers, rinse out water vessels, put guppies in water jars so they eat any mosquito larvae, and clean up areas around houses to eliminate places where the bugs can breed. The possible spread of the Zika virus has not yet been cause for concern among health officials in Myanmar, where attention has focused on the new incoming government. Playing down the risk North Korea, which does not have a tropical climate conducive to mosquitoes, has its own health care problems and business presence in other Southeast Asia countries. Although authorities there have not yet publicly addressed the Zika virus threat, officials in the isolated country sometimes put policies in place when virus outbreaks occur in other parts of the world to ensure that infected people cannot enter. Kim Jong Un had ordered a quarantine that virtually shut off the country from outside visitors between October 2014 and March 2015 to keep out those infected with the Ebola virus. The country closed its borders to tourists and imposed a 21-day mandatory quarantine period for arrivals from abroad. While Malaysian and Singaporean health officials have warned of a high risk of spreading if the virus is introduced there, officials in Thailand, which has had only one confirmed case of the virus this year, has played down the threat posed by Zika, Reuters reported. Zika is not new in Thailand, which had its first confirmed case in 2012, and no more than five cases annually since then, Dr. Pahurat Kongmuang, a health official at the Department of Disease Control, told RFA. The country is tackling an increase in the number of cases of dengue fever as well as trying to prevent the spread of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) after a second case of the virus was detected in late January. Indonesia, which has reported a domestic case of the Zika virus, has requested the International Atomic Energy Agency help it control its mosquito population, Reuters reported. The United Nations nuclear agency has suggested using exposing laboratory-bred male mosquitoes to nuclear radiation to make their sperm sterile before releasing them into the wild to mate. Reported and translated by RFAs Khmer, Lao and Vietnamese services. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin. Laos is bracing for another potentially devastating cold snap following one in January that brought a rare snowfall to the tropical nation and was blamed for the deaths of thousands of livestock and fish, government meteorologists said on Thursday. The Lao Department of Meteorology and Hydrology predicted today that the western Houaphan and Xiengkhouang provinces and the central Xaisomboun province could see lows reaching four degrees Celsius over Feb. 5 to 8. The temperature will drop throughout the country, especially in the north and northeast, Xaysomboun and the areas of the plateaus, weather forecasting and aeronautical meteorology division chief Vanhdy Douangmala, told RFAs Lao Service. Other parts of the country will also face cold weather. Weather in the Vientiane is expected to be cloudy and cold, and a resident of the capital city told RFA that the temperature was already dropping. Laos was hit with unusually cold weather and a rare snowfall on Jan. 24-25. The temperature in Houaphan province hit 1.5 degrees Celsius and was blamed for the deaths of more than 1000 cattle. The cold was also blamed for killing three tons of fish in ponds in Xiengkhouang province. People bundle up From 24-25 January, it was so cold that people couldnt go out, the Vientiane resident said. We just stayed home and sat in front of our stove. I have never seen it freeze like this before. I had to wear three sweaters and many retail shops were closed. The Lao government is campaigning to raise funds to aid rural people suffering the cold weather and is opening bank accounts for donations, according to information from the government office. It is difficult to determine if the bitter cold set records in the secretive nation, but the average low temperature in Vientiane hovers around 16.5 degrees Celsius in January and 19 degrees in February. Cold hits Asia In Vietnam, authorities said more than 8900 cattle died during a cold snap that damaged 6000 hectares of rice paddy and more than 4600 hectares of vegetable plots. Many parts of Asia have been hit with rare cold weather which is being blamed for more than 65 deaths, and disrupted transportation, according to the Associated Press. Subfreezing temperatures in North Koreas northern provinces this month caused water main pipes to freeze and burst, cutting off tap water to local residents, sources inside the country told RFA. Meteorologists blame the intense cold on a polar vortex the large area of low pressure and cold air surrounding both of the earths poles. While the vortex always exists near the poles it tends to weaken in summer and strengthens in winter. Many times during winter in the northern hemisphere, however, the polar vortex will expand, sending cold air southward with the jet stream. (Reported by RFA's Lao Service. Translated by Ounkeo Souksavanh. Written in English by Brooks Boliek.) Tajik authorities have accused Kyrgyzstan of violating cease-fire agreements near disputed segments of their shared border after dozens of people were killed from both sides during clashes last month. Tajikistan's Border Guard Service stated on October 19 that Kyrgyz authorities are implementing "premeditated actions aimed at escalating the situation in districts close to the state border." "The provocative actions of some Kyrgyz citizens to destabilize the situation, preparation of assault points, digging of trenches, continuation of concentration of military equipment, and regular violations of the air space of the Republic of Tajikistan clearly confirm the Kyrgyz side's malign plans," the statement said. Kyrgyz authorities rejected the Tajik statement, saying it "absolutely does not correspond to the real situation." In a statement, the Kyrgyz State Border Guard Service accused the Tajiks of using a photo of Kyrgyz military trucks taken last month as they were withdrawing from the border area, and falsely portraying it as a new photo to make it look as though Kyrgyzstan was concentrating its military equipment in the border area. The statement said it was the Tajik authorities who are violating cease-fire agreements by leaving deadly mines on the disputed territories and digging trenches there. Earlier in the day, Kyrgyz Defense Minister Baktybek Bekbolotov told reporters that Bishkek had asked the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) to provide a limited contingent of troops at disputed segments of the Kyrgyz-Tajik border. "An independent mediator must stay between us, such as a limited group of CSTO troops, with the goal of maintaining a cease-fire and the withdrawal of heavy weaponry from the border. If they solve these two issues, then the political goals on the delimitation and demarcation of the Kyrgyz-Tajik border can start being discussed," Bekbolotov said. Both Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, along with Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, and Armenia, are CSTO members. Bekbolotov's statement comes two days after Kyrgyz Security Council Secretary Marat Imankulov said that Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed to provide Bishkek with archived Soviet-era maps to help solve the ongoing border dispute between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. Putin has said that there is more "true" information about borders between the former Soviet republics available in the archives in Moscow than in the republics themselves. Putin and the Kyrgyz and Tajik presidents, Sadyr Japarov and Emomali Rahmon, discussed border problems between the two Central Asian nations on October 13 in the Kazakh capital, Astana. In September, Kyrgyz and Tajik authorities accused each other of aggression after the two sides used heavy artillery and mortars in clashes near a disputed part of border. Kyrgyz officials said 63 of its citizens died in the violence, and more than 200 others were injured. Tajikistan has put its death toll at 41, but correspondents from RFE/RL's Tajik Service reported a higher number after talking to relatives and friends of the people killed during the clashes. They concluded that 81 people, about half of whom were civilians, lost their lives. Many border areas in Central Asia have been disputed since the Soviet Union's collapse in 1991. The situation is particularly complicated near the numerous exclaves in the volatile Ferghana Valley, where the borders of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan meet. Almost half of the 970-kilometer Kyrgyz-Tajik border has yet to be demarcated, leading to repeated tensions since the two countries gained independence more than three decades ago. Sumit Agrawal, who is a resident of Visakhapatnam, sent a demand draft of Rs 364 to Arvind Kejriwal (Photo: Facebook/PTI) Visakhapatnam: An engineer-turned-businessman from Visakhapatnam sent Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal a demand draft of Rs 364 and wrote an open letter requesting him to buy a pair of formal shoes with the money. Sumit Agrawal in his letter explains how he was deeply aggrieved when he found out that Arvind Kejriwal met French President Francois Hollande at the Rashtrapati Bhavan wearing sandals. Kejriwal was spotted wearing sandals at the banquet held at Rashtrapati Bhavan (Photo: PTI) You were representing the country that day at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, not staging a dharna at an Aam Aadmi Party rally at Ramlila Maidan or Jantar Mantar. Youre a grown man. Please act according to the situation & dress for the occasion, he said in his letter addressed to the Chief Minister. Agrawal decided to collect money from the public when he learnt that Kejriwal might get an invite to attend the international fleet review, which is being held in his city, Visakhapatnam. The demand draft sent to Arvind Kejriwal "Sir, I know that this is a very small amount, but it is the result of the effort of an entire Sunday afternoon of hard work. I had initiated the collection with an initial contribution of Rs 49," he said in the letter. The Vizag man asked Kejriwal to buy a nice pair of black formal shoes with the Rs 364 he had collected and said one could only imagine how embarrassed Kejriwal would be if the matter came up during a Centre-State dialogue. Azerbaijan says one of its soldiers has been killed as a result of a clash with an Armenian "sabotage" group. Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry said in a February 4 statement that Imran Mirzayev had been killed in a gunfight near the Azerbaijani-Armenian border on February 3. According to the statement, three Armenian soldiers were also killed in the clash. The Armenian Defense Ministry rejected Baku's statement, saying that "the information about the clash along the border, in which three Armenian soldiers were allegedly killed, does not correspond to reality." Baku and Yerevan have been locked in a conflict over Azerbaijan's breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh for over two decades. Armenia-backed separatists seized the mainly ethnic Armenian-populated region during a war in the early 1990s that killed some 30,000 people. International diplomatic efforts to settle the conflict have brought little progress. With reporting by Interfax Chechen Republic head Ramzan Kadyrov has elevated his long-standing feud with his Ingush counterpart, Yunus-Bek Yevkurov, to a new level by overtly siding with Ingushetia's mufti, Issa-hadji Khamkhoyev, whose resignation Yevkurov called for in late December. Yevkurov's rationale is that Khamkhoyev, whom Kadyrov previously criticized for his conspicuous absence from regional religious gatherings in Grozny, has discredited Ingushetia's Sufi-dominated Spiritual Center of Muslims (DTsM) through his confrontation in June 2015 with respected preacher Khamzat Chumakov, and his broader animosity toward Ingushetia's peaceful and law-abiding Salafi minority. Kadyrov as a staunch promoter of Chechen Sufism has long denounced Salafis as terrorists and extremists. For the past seven years, Kadyrov and Yevkurov have exchanged barbs over where the border should be drawn between their respective republics and over the Ingush authorities' apparent inability to apprehend Islamic militants who used Ingushetia as a base for operations in Chechnya. Now Kadyrov is implicitly affirming not only that he alone is qualified to define and defend "true" Islam in the North Caucasus but that Yevkurov is in the wrong in seeking to promote reconciliation between the DTsM and clerics such as Khamzat Chumakov and Issa Tsechoyev, who refuse to acknowledge the authority of that body or of Khamkhoyev personally. The forum Kadyrov chose for sending those messages was a February 2 conference in Grozny attended, according to the website Kavpolit.com, by "many thousands" of representatives of the Qadariyya and Naqshbandi Sufi brotherhoods from Chechnya, Ingushetia, and Daghestan, including Khamkhoyev. Addressing that conference, Kadyrov again equated Salafism with terrorism. He branded its representatives, including Chumakov and Tsechoyev, as "shaytans," or devils. He further claimed Tsechoyev receives funding from the Muslim Brotherhood. Kadyrov conflated the peaceful and nonviolent preachings of Chumakov, who has consistently denounced bloodshed and Islamic extremism and sought to dissuade young Ingush from "heading for the forest" to join the ranks of the Islamic insurgency, with the militant and puritanical Salafism professed by the North Caucasus insurgency and the terrorist organization Islamic State. Chumakov for his part has always rejected as artificial any differentiation between "traditional" and "nontraditional" Islam, meaning Sufism and Salafism. Second, Kadyrov argued that insofar as Salafism is tantamount to "terrorism," its proponents should not be allowed to express their views publicly. He called on the Ingush leadership not to permit Chumakov and Tsechoyev to preach, and warned that if they try more than once to do so on Chechen territory, "heads will roll." In short, Kadyrov, who in his entire political career has never quoted publicly a single sura from the Koran, appears to be setting himself up as the supreme arbiter and primary defender of "pure" Islam in the North Caucasus. The conference participants adopted a resolution denouncing Salafism for preaching terrorism and extremism. They condemned the creation of any council on religious affairs that includes even a single representative of "pseudo-Salafism" and warned that Sufi brotherhoods will disavow any of their members who agree to serve on such bodies. (Yevkurov has recently established a new board tasked with supervising many aspects of religious life that were hitherto the preserve of the DTsM.) They affirmed that dialogue between Sufis and Salafis is permissible only with the explicit intention of demonstrating to the latter the flaws in their beliefs and holding them accountable under Islamic law. The resolution adopted at the Grozny congress also categorically rejects any "innovations" in Islam. Kadyrov's wholesale reinterpretation of what constitutes "traditional" Chechen Islam encompasses not only the veneration of sacred relics and the tombs of Sufi saints but the hitherto alien concept, apparently borrowed from the Roman Catholic Church, of "holy water." One year ago, when Chumakov and Ingush oppositionist Magomed Khazbiyev were both under pressure from the Ingushetian authorities, Kadyrov welcomed them both in Grozny, where Chumakov addressed the mass meeting Kadyrov orchestrated to protest the caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad that led to the Charlie Hebdo shootings in Paris. Kadyrov is also on record, according to Ingush human rights defender Magomed Mutsolgov, as having criticized Khamkhoyev as the only Muslim leader in the North Caucasus who refuses to participate in the large-scale religious events Kadyrov organizes. Mutsolgov attributed Khamkhoyev's reluctance to do so to the latter's desire not to antagonize Yevkurov, in light of the enmity between Yevkurov and Kadyrov. Now that Yevkurov is openly seeking to remove Khamkhoyev from office for his reluctance to bury his differences with Chumakov, however, Kadyrov has demonstratively sided with Khamkhoyev against Yevkurov. Chechnya's mufti Salakh Mezhiyev was quoted by kavpolit.com as telling the Grozny conference he has tried for the past month to establish contact with Chumakov and Tsechoyev to arrange a meeting with them but that they ignored his invitations. Two Russian cosmonauts have worked outside the International Space Station on an experiment to see how various materials and biological samples fare in the harsh environment of space. A NASA television broadcast showed flight engineers Yury Malenchenko and Sergei Volkov left the station's airlock on February 3 for a 5-1/2-hour spacewalk. The cosmonauts in a ceremonial move first cast off a flash drive into space containing video from last year's 70th anniversary of Victory Day, which commemorates the former Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany. The flash drive eventually will reenter Earth's atmosphere and burn up. Working 400 kilometers above Earth, Malenchenko and Volkov made their way to the site of a seven-year-old science experiment holding plant seeds, bacterial spores, fungi and other samples. The samples were to be removed and replaced. The research is designed to test how well biological samples and various materials, such as coatings used on spacecraft, withstand the extreme temperature swings and high radiation of space. They also planned to test a new glue that might prove useful in years to come on the station's exterior. Based on reporting by Reuters and AP The European Parliament in Strasbourg has overwhelmingly adopted a resolution condemning Russia for its treatment of the Crimean Tatar population in the Ukrainian region of Crimea, which was annexed by Moscow in 2014. "I think it is fitting and adequate that this parliament comes together in a joint resolution to highlight the human rights situation in the occupied Crimean territories," MEP Reinhard Butikofer, of Germany's Green Party, told RFE/RL on February 4. "In particular, the Crimean Tatars have been persecuted from the very beginning of the Russian invasion. The resolution "strongly condemns the unprecedented levels of human rights abuses perpetuated against Crimean residents, most notably Crimean Tatars, who do not follow the imposed rule of the so-called local authorities." It also calls on Russia to grant international institutions and human rights monitors "unimpeded access" to the region. Crimean Tatars, who were deported en masse from Crimea by the Soviet authorities in 1944 and only allowed to begin returning home in the late 1980s, number about 240,000 on the Black Sea peninsula and comprise about 10 percent of its population. The overwhelming majority of Crimean Tatars have refused to recognize Russia's annexation of the region, which followed a military occupation and a referendum deemed illegitimate by 100 countries in a UN vote. Tensions have been particularly high since last autumn, when Crimean Tatar-led activists on the mainland side of the administrative line between Crimea and the rest of Ukraine blocked cargo transport to the peninsula. Unknown activists also repeatedly sabotaged power pylons supplying electricity to Crimea, causing widespread outages. Crimean Tatar activists said they were determined to draw attention to human rights violations on the peninsula and the disappearances of Crimean Tatars who they say have been abducted by Russian security forces. Under pressure from the activists, the Ukrainian government made the trade blockade official in November. In recent days, the Russia-installed authorities in Crimea have stepped up their pressure even more. In the early morning hours of February 2, men identifying themselves as officials of Russia's Federal Migration Service knocked on Elzara Abdulzhelilova's door in the Crimean city of Feodosia for a "passport check." Abdulzhelilova is the daughter of longtime Crimean Tatar national leader Mustafa Dzhemilev, a deputy in the Ukrainian parliament who Russian authorities have barred from entering Crimea for five years. She told RFE/RL that the officials wanted to take her son, Erol, away "for a talk," but that they left after her lawyers advised her by telephone that they did not have the authority to do so. "In our view, they did not have a legal basis for carrying out these actions," Nariman Dzhelyal, deputy chairman of the Crimean Tatar executive body, the Mejlis, told RFE/RL. "One of the officers reportedly said as he was leaving that they'll 'find another way' to get to the relatives of Mustafa Dzhemilev." In January, Dzhemilev's wife, Safinar, was summoned to the prosecutor's office for questioning. Dzhemilev's son, Khaiser Dzhemilev, is serving a 3 1/2 year prison term in Russia on a conviction stemming from the shooting death of a friend in 2013. Mustafa Dzhemilev maintains his son's innocence and says he is being held by Moscow "as a hostage." The same day, Crimean Tatar authorities reported "mass searches" of homes in the Dzhankoy district of Crimea. Those searches followed similar actions by police on January 28 in the Lenin district. On January 29, police raided the Islamic cultural center in Simferopol, the Crimean capital. Agents of Russia's Federal Security Service have carried out raids at the homes of several Mejlis members since the beginning of the year. On February 1, police raided the Simferopol headquarters of the company SimSitiTrans, which is owned by the father of the vice president of the World Congress of Crimean Tatars, Lenur Islyamov. Islyamov coordinated the cargo blockade against the peninsula and served as the spokesman for the activists. "This pressure has been going on now for two years," Islyamov told RFE/RL. "It is moving from a 'soft' scenario to a harsh one. Under various pretexts, they want to take away everything that I have. They understand that they can't get to me, so they are going after my weak spots." Islyamov, the owner of Crimea's Crimean Tatar-language ATR television station, has been the object of an arrest warrant in Crimea since November. ATR was forced to stop broadcasting in Crimea in April 2015. "Let them take everything they want," he added. "Let them take away all our homes and property. I don't care. We will get it back. When we are able to come back, we will get everything back. This only makes us stronger." Based on reporting by RFE/RL Brussels correspondent Rikard Jozwiak and the Crimean Desk of RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service Iran's army chief has vowed to boost the country's controversial ballistic-missile program despite facing new international sanctions. "Iran's missile capability and its missile program will become stronger," Ataollah Salehi was quoted as saying by Fars news agency on February 4. Salehi said Tehran's missile program was not a "violation of the nuclear deal," which curbed Iran's nuclear program in exchange for the lifting of international sanctions. Despite last month's easing of nuclear-related sanctions against Iran, the United States has imposed new sanctions on Tehran over its missile program. The new sanctions in January came in response to Iranian ballistic-missile tests in October and November that United Nations experts determined were in violation of a 2010 UN Security Council resolution banning Iran from launches capable of delivering nuclear weapons. Based on reporting by Reuters and Fars British Airways is the latest international airliner to announce it will resume flights to the Iranian capital, Tehran. British Airways said it will resume direct flights from London to Tehran from July, renewing links with the country after international sanctions were lifted against Tehran over its nuclear program. The British airline followed Air France-KLM in confirming its intention to restart flights to Tehran after Iran curbed its nuclear program in return for the lifting of U.S., EU, and United Nations sanctions in January. The deal has raised hopes that Iran could secure a wave of foreign investment for the country of 80 million people after President Hassan Rohani visited Europe last week. Iran is set to be an attractive market for Western aircraft makers. Tehran agreed last week to buy 118 Airbus jets worth around $27 billion. Based on reporting by Reuters and BBC A top adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is calling for closer ties with Russia, Iraq, and Venezuela on energy matters. "In the energy sector, Iran and Russia should feel no rivalry and must cooperate with each other," Ali Akbar Velayati said on a visit to Moscow February 3. "Our position is that such countries like Iran, Russia, Venezuela and Iraq...should have more contacts and consultations on the energy market." Russia has been calling for increased coordination with the OPEC oil cartel, where Iran is a top producer, including possible oil output cuts to try to break the precipitous 75 percent fall in oil prices since 2014. However, Iran's efforts to rapidly ramp up production since economic sanctions were lifted last month have been blamed for much of this year's plunge in prices. Iran has strongly resisted any efforts to cut output. Venezuela has been leading efforts in OPEC to try to curb production through consultations with Russia and other producers outside the cartel. With major producers like Russia, Iran, and Iraq pumping crude full-tilt, analysts say the global oil glut that is behind the price drop is unlikely to go away. Based on reporting by Reuters, Interfax, and TASS One of the pro-Moscow leaders of recent antigovernment protests in Moldova has made anti-U.S. remarks that appear to be aimed at tapping into east-west tensions to whip up support for early elections that could boost Kremlin influence in his country. Socialist Party chairman Igor Dodon accused Washington of pressing for the "terrible scenario" of the unification of Moldova and Romania and urged a return "home" of tiny, politically fraught Moldova "back in the U.S.S.R." through membership of the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union. Dodon and some unlikely allies are currently fighting for fresh elections that polls suggest would favor pro-Moscow forces, potentially bolstering Russia's influence in a state that borders the European Union and NATO. Street protests peaked in late January after lawmakers approved a new pro-European government led by Prime Minister Pavel Filip but have ground mostly to a halt aside from a small tent camp in the capital, Chisinau. The tensions, which included the storming of parliament by angry demonstrators, follow a year of political turbulence since revelations in late 2014 that more than $1 billion -- or around one-eighth of Moldova's gross domestic product -- disappeared from the banking system. In an interview with Russian daily Komsomolskaya Pravda on February 3, Dodon claimed that Moldovan authorities had received "carte blanche from the West to use force" in their efforts to maintain control. Dodon added that despite "hatred, and a passionate desire to overthrow the government," he and the leaders of the pro-Russian Our Party and the pro-European Dignity and Truth party leading public protests cannot reach a common position. Dodon suggested the pro-Russian protest camp is advocating patience in order to avoid provocations, while its pro-European counterparts are more impatient to force change. "Nobody wants blood, but the clock is ticking," Dodon told Komsomolskaya Pravda. He blamed the United States and its NATO ally Romania for abetting the political crisis plaguing Moldova, one of Europe's poorest countries. "Why invest [money] in tiny Moldova, why get involved in her problems and save her from starvation?" Dodon asked rhetorically, adding, "Now the Americans have another, much more terrifying project, called 'Unirea 2018'" -- Romanian for Unification 2018 -- "the merger of Moldova with Romania to mark the centenary of the Grand Unification of 1918." The U.S.S.R. incorporated the former Romanian province of Bessarabia during World War II, turning most of its territory into the Soviet republic of Moldova but also granting part to Soviet Ukraine. Both Moldova and Ukraine became independent in 1991. The topic of unification is an emotionally charged one between the two countries, which share a common history and language. Dodon warned that any Moldovan unification with Romania would trigger a regional conflict pitting Romanian and Ukrainian troops on one side against Russian troops -- currently stationed in Moldova's separatist region of Transdniester -- on the other. "This is what the United States is hoping for," Dodon said, without offering details, adding that such a "tragedy" would spread conflict well into the European Union -- with whom Moldova signed an association agreement in 2014, much to the annoyance of Moscow. Dodon said the only way back to the "fairytale times" of Soviet prosperity is through the Eurasian Economic Union, which includes Belarus, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan along with Russia. "We want to go home," Dodon said. "Back in the U.S.S.R." The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says it will release the latest installment worth $497 million of a three-year economic bailout package to Pakistan. The IMF's delegation head, Harald Finger, speaking in Dubai on February 4, said the decision was made after a review of Pakistan's economic performance from January 26 to February 4. Finger said Pakistan's economic growth rate is expected to reach 4.5 percent for the 2015-16 financial year due to lower oil prices, planned improvements in the energy supply, and investment in the China Pakistan Economic Corridor project. But Finger said Islamabad needed to carry out more reforms in the energy and taxation sectors. The IMF approved the latest installment of the loan despite Pakistan reneging on promises it made to the IMF in exchange for the loan, including privatizing its power-supply companies and missing deadlines to sell other loss-making state firms. Based on reporting by Reuters and AFP Former minister and BJP leader Kanna Lakshminarayana addresses the media on Kapu reservation at Guntur on Wednesday. (Photo: DC) Hyderabad: Telangana BC unions are strongly opposing the inclusion of Kapus in BCs and have even planned agitation programmes in AP against the move on Thursday by laying siege on all the district collectorates in AP with the help of AP BC unions. Telangana BC leaders argue that the Kapus will eat into other BC quotas and will grab most of the political opportunities if they are included in the BC list. TS BC leader and TD MLA R. Krishnaiah has announced huge public rallies with 5 lakh BCs in Vijayawada, Eluru and Rajahmundry soon. These agitation programmes will be held un-der the aegis of the National Backward Classes Welfare Association, of which Mr Krishnaiah is the president. The main objection being raised by BCs against quotas for Kapus is that BC castes are categorised into four groups, namely, A, B, C, D and stipulated quota is given in education and employment for each category to ensure justifiable quotas for all. But there is categorisation of BCs for quota in local bodies. The other objection is that the existing 25 per cent quota for BCs is not sufficient in the first place to do justice to the communities who comprise 54 per cent of the total population. Many Kapus are well off socially and economically. They have made it to the Legislative Assembly, Legislative Council, Parliament, local bodies etc. but half of the BC castes are yet to enter th-ese institutions even aft-er six decades of Indep-endence. If Kapus are included in BCs without categorising quota for local bodies, then majority of the opportunities would be grabbed by them as they are already strong politically. The BCs have started becoming MLAs and MPs in respectable numbers only recently and this will be lost if Kapus are included. We will not allow this to happen come what may, he added. Mr Krishnaiah urged the AP government not to force them to resort to such measures and not to commit another mistake to rectify one. Kapu reservations not at our cost: BCs Leaders of BC castes Joint Action Council on Wednesday demanded that Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu withdraw the proposal to provide BC reservations to the Kapu community. Leaders from 25 organisations of BC castes said if the CM went ahead with the proposal and succumbed to pressure from the Kapus, that would send a wrong signal. The BC leaders told a press conference that they would openly challenge the move and organise a meeting in Godavari district on February 25. They ridiculed YSRC chief Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy for supporting the demand for Kapu reservations. President of BC Mahajana Samiti Y. Koteswara Rao said Mr Jagan Mohan Reddy must study the Constitution before issuing statements. Mr Koteswara Rao said that if the government merged Kapu community in BC, then the interests of the existing BC list communities would be affected. They were weak and would not be in a position to compete with the Kapus in the local authority elections and the like. If indulging in violence strengthened the case of Kapus, that would set a bad precedent for others. The existing castes in the BC list are socially, economically and educationally backward but the Kapus are not like that, he said. However, if the government wanted to extend reservation facility to Kapus, it should create a new quota for them through a Constitutional amendment, without taking away the existing benefits of the BCs, he said. Leaders like Ramarao, N.V. Rao, G. Venkateswara Rao, Murthi and Rajasekhar from various castes participated in the media conference. Poland's government on February 4 opened a new investigation into the 2010 plane crash in Russia that killed President Lech Kaczynski and dozens of other state leaders. The new probe comes amid already deeply strained relations between Warsaw and Moscow. Announcing the investigation, Defense Minister Antoni Macierewicz said the original probe had been riddled with "mistakes" and "abnormalities." He said there will be 21 members of the new investigative commission, including engineers and other technical experts. There also will be four advisers from abroad. The original investigations by Poland and Russia determined that the crash near Smolensk, Russia was an accident that resulted from pilot error and bad weather. But Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the late presidents twin brother who heads the governing Law and Justice party, has suggested the crash was an assassination and has implicated Russian President Vladimir Putin. Among those killed was a huge swath of Polands political and military elite -- the first lady, the head of the central bank, military leaders, and other leading figures. Based on reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP The U.S. embassy in Prague has criticized a decision by the Czech Republic's justice minister not to extradite a Lebanese man to the United States to face weapons smuggling charges. Prague's Municipal Court on February 4 ordered the release of Ali Taan Fayad after Justice Minister Robert Pelikan refused to allow Fayad's extradition. Fayad, who also is known as Ali Amin, is wanted in the United States along with two citizens of Ivory Coast who allegedly tried to sell weapons to undercover U.S. law enforcement agents. A U.S. embassy statement on February 4 said 'We are dismayed by the Czech government's decision to release Fayad and Ivorian Khaled El Merebi. The Czech government still has to decide about the fate of the other Ivorian suspect. Czech Defense Minister Martin Stropnicky said five Czech citizens who went missing in Lebanon in July were released by their captors in exchange for a guarantee that Fayad would not be extradited. But Czech Foreign Minister Lubomir Zaoralek later denied that there was an exchange deal. The five Czech citizens were released from captivity in Lebanon and put on a Czech Air Force jet that arrived in Prague on February 4. The affair, as complicated and dramatic as a paperback thriller, drew in not only on Czech, Lebanese, and U.S. interests, but also deposed Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych and, reportedly, the Colombian guerilla group FARC. Stropnicky told reporters the five Czech citizens were returning from Lebanon "on condition that Fayad will not be extradited to the United States. The cases are linked." That prompted a blunt statement from the U.S. Embassy in Prague, which noted that Fayad and Merebi had both been charged in U.S. federal court. It said: "There is no justification for the release of these dangerous individuals, which deals a blow to the cooperative relationship of our two countries law enforcement agencies, and which will only encourage criminal gangs and terrorists around the world." In Washington, the Justice Department deferred questions to the State Department, and did not respond to requests to release the indictments against Fayad and Merabi. The State Department did not immediately respond to request for comment. Hostage Situation Fayad, a Lebanese who holds a Ukrainian passport, was wanted by U.S. authorities for conducting smuggling operations across Europe and in Colombia, according to Czech press reports that cite unnamed security officials. Washington reportedly accused Fayad and the two Ivorian suspects of planning to exchange Ukrainian weapons for cocaine from FARC. Fayad reportedly also served as a manager in Ukraine's state-controlled arms export company Ukrspecexport and prior to that as an advisor to Yanukovych, who was ousted as president of Ukraine in early 2014 when months of protests culminated in violent clashes in Kyiv. Czech authorities had looked set to extradite Fayad and his two associates to the United States. But in July, the five Czech citizens -- including a lawyer from Fayad's defense team -- went missing while visiting Lebanon. Lebanese media reported that the group was picked up in Beirut by a van driven by Fayad's half-brother, and that the van was later found abandoned near the Syrian border with no trace of its occupants. The Czech daily MF Dnes quoted unidentified officials as saying that the lawyer, Jan Svarc, was the intermediary for an offer by Lebanese intelligence officers to provide information about another Czech national who went missing in Libya last year. The Czech civil intelligence branch reportedly refused the offer, but a military affairs journalist who is believed to be close to the military intelligence branch accompanied Svarc to Beirut along with two reporters from Czech regional TV stations and an interpreter. That has led to suggestions that Fayad's supporters somehow orchestrated a hostage situation to pressure Prague. Fayad's defense team has said Svarc's trip to Beirut was not unusual and that Svarc had visited Lebanon repeatedly to secure documents for Fayad's defense. As recently as February 3, officials in Prague tried to dispel any notion that a hostage exchange might be under negotiation. "We don't make deals with terrorists. That is our long-term position, Foreign Minister Lubomir Zaoralek said. With reporting by RFE/RL's Kristyna Foltynova in Prague and AP Five men have been sentenced to prison in Russia's Urals region for being members of the banned Islamic organization Hizb ut-Tahrir. The Moscow Military Court, whose judges traveled to the city of Chelyabinsk to conduct the trial, on February 4 found all five guilty of "membership in an extremist and terrorist organization and preparations to overthrow the government." The men, all local residents, were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 5 1/2 and 17 years. The Chelyabinsk region, in Russia's southern Urals, borders Kazakhstan and Russia's mainly Muslim region of Bashkortostan. Hizb ut-Tahrir is a London-based Sunni political organization that seeks to unite all Muslim countries into an Islamic caliphate. Russia's Supreme Court banned Hizb ut-Tahrir in 2003, branding its supporters as "extremists." Based on reporting by TASS and Interfax A Russian military adviser was killed by mortar fire in Syria on February 1, the Russian Defense Ministry has said. Russia's Novaya Gazeta reported on February 4 that the adviser died in a hospital in Syria after sustaining serious wounds in a shelling of a Syrian Army training center in the province of Homs by the Islamic State (IS) militant group, citing Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov. Konashenkov told the newspaper that four Syrian Army cadets were also killed in the same mortar shelling. The ministry said the officer will be posthumously awarded a medal, but didn't identify him or specify where he died. The officer's death is the third in combat the Russian military has reported since it launched its air campaign in Syria in September. A Russian pilot whose warplane was downed by a Turkish fighter at the Syrian border was shot dead by militants as he descended by parachute on November 24. His crewmate survived and was evacuated to safety, but a Russian marine was killed in action during the rescue mission. Besides sending an unknown number of military advisers to Syria, Russia has deployed ground troops to guard the Russian air base in the coastal province of Latakia. Based on reporting by AP, Reuters, and TASS Tajik Foreign Minister Sirojiddin Aslov has said journalists from the Russian state media conglomerate Rossia Segodnya (Russia Today) have not been given permission to operate in his country. "Russia has repeatedly asked us [for accreditation], but Russia Today has not yet provided answers to some of the questions or doubts that we have," Aslov said on February 4. "Therefore the process is continuing." He did not elaborate. Rossia Segodnya has been trying to open a bureau in Dushanbe since 2014. Analysts say the Tajik government is concerned by the influence of Russian propaganda, although other state-funded Russian media do have correspondents in Tajikistan. Rossia Segodnya, established by a Kremlin decree in 2013, took over the state news agency RIA Novosti and state radio station Voice of Russia into a single media monolith helmed by controversial pro-Kremlin news anchor Dmitry Kiselyov. The media holding company is a different organization than RT, the Kremlin-funded international TV network formerly known as Russia Today, though they share the same editor in chief. * This article has been amended to clarify the name of the Russian media conglomerate Rossia Segodnya MOSCOW -- If Viktoria Schmidt is to be believed, panicked women in Germany are cowering in fear of migrants, and preparing for the worst. The girl was cleaning in the place where the migrants live," the Russian speaker, voice trembling, tells Russian state TV. "But something horrible happened. Not only did they kill her, but first they raped her. Her German husband, the Hannover resident says, only lets her leave the house if she is armed with the pepper spray she pulls from her pocket. She says she may soon be forced to flee dangerous, migrant-swamped Germany for the safety of homeland Russia. Cut to clips of masked migrants firing guns above their heads into the night air, running roughshod past police, and harassing and physically abusing women. It's a terrifying portrait of Europes migrant crisis, aired recently on Moscow's Zvezda TV in a 26-minute clip called Europe: The Paradox Of Tolerance: But who is Viktoria Schmidt? And can her story be believed? The Insider, a Moscow-based investigative website run by Editor in Chief Roman Dobrokhotov, says "no." In a story published on January 26, the publication accuses a woman named Natalya of posing as Viktoria Schmidt and of helping fabricate news for a raft of Russian state TV stations in exchange for money. The Insider posted recordings of conversations with two Russians in Hannover -- Natalya and a cameraman named Oleg Cherkasov -- to support its allegations. According to the website, it tricked Natalya into admitting to voicing false reports scripted in Moscow when it spoke to her under the guise of a Russian state TV station preparing a report on migration in Germany. In the first recording, The Insider asks Natalya: "We can write the rough text and your person will voice it, right? She replies in the affirmative: "No problem. If you want, I can voice it. I've lived here for a long time. I'm married to a German citizen. I can voice whatever you want." The woman explains that she has her own cameraman and charges around 500 euros ($550) for a video package that Russian state TV can edit as it sees fit. A photograph of Natalya that accompanies the audio recordings embedded in the text does resemble the Viktoria Schmidt who appears in the Zvezda TV documentary, although it is not clear beyond a doubt if they are the same person. But Dobrokhotov tells RFE/RL that The Insider verified Viktoria Schmidts real identity through interviews with others Russians in Hannover. He said Natalya also cited the Zvezda piece aired on January 14 as an example of her professional portfolio. I'm sure if we continued looking in different cities, we would have found these kinds of people in every German city," Dobrokhotov says. We proved that these things happen, and now we have moved on to different topics. It is unclear what death and rape Schmidt is referring to in the interview with Zvezda. She gives no clues as to when it allegedly occurred and the incident has not been widely reported in Russia. Dobrokhotov said of the claim: We didnt verify this, but it is 99 percent likely that this didnt happen. 'Political Propaganda' The Insiders allegations came one day before German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier on January 27 accused Russian media and officials of political propaganda and attempts to inflame and influence what is already a difficult debate about migration within Germany. Steinmeier made the warning after Russian state TV reported the alleged abduction and rape by migrants of a 13-year-old Russian girl in Berlin in mid-January. The allegations, fueled by claims that police were trying to hush up the victim, sparked outrage and street protests among Germany's sizable Russian minority. And Russian officials, including Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, were prompted to make calls for truth and justice and expressed the hope that the German authorities would not cover up reality for some domestic, politically correct reason. The outrage died down, particularly after a spokesman for the prosecutor in Berlin said the girl admitted upon questioning to fabricating the story, but real damage was done. The Berlin case fueled antimigrant protests in German cities attended by many in the country's Russian-speaking community. The Insider spoke to Russians in Hannover about the protests and was told by one that he received six Facebook messages written in Russian calling on him to participate. To those who ignore this, let this rape be on your conscious, read one of the messages. Dobrokhotov believes that Russian state television is targeting Germany in particular of late, having moved on after having concentrated on coverage of the bombing campaign in Syria in the last few months of 2015. "The situation has changed. Now that Russians have gotten fed up with the Syria issue and material about that has been shown less by Russian TV stations, they have switched to the subject of Europe -- about how everything there is bad," Dobrokhotov says. "The material is primarily about migrants. It is a powerful propaganda campaign when every day there are several subjects about Germany, migrants, and violence. The film Airlift is a success. I was bewildered by its attempts to suppress the truth. It seems the director, Raja Krishna Menon, has no idea as to how the Government of India works. There is a deliberate attempt to show the ministry of external affairs (MEA), ministry of civil aviation (MoCA), Air India and Indian embassies in Kuwait, Iraq and Jordan as incompetent and the government as not at all concerned about Indians in Kuwait and Iraq. The film claims that the government was prodded into discharging its responsibilities by Katyal, the hero in the film. It is obvious that, in order to ensure box-office success, director Raja Menon was prepared to forego ethical norms, and engage in disinformation. Right at the beginning, we are told Katyal is a creation of the director, based on Mathunny Mathews and H.S. Vedi, who were both based in Kuwait for many years. As joint secretary (Gulf), I have known them. As a matter of fact, the evacuation of 176,000 Indians from Kuwait is a study in teamwork: the government and the Indian community carried out the biggest evacuation by air in history. On August 2, 1990, the day of the invasion, Katyal telephones MEA from Kuwait and gets through to joint secretary Kohli who explains that as he is not the joint secretary dealing with the Gulf he would ask his colleague who deals with Kuwait to call back. Strangely enough, Katyal continues to deal with Kohli till the end. In reality, many Indians from Kuwait did get in touch with me. What is mysterious is how Katyal failed to get in touch with the correct official. Of course, there is a purpose: Kohli comes across as incompetent; he waits in the office of the minister for hours to meet him though no joint secretary has to wait for hours to see the minister. The portrayal of the minister is an exercise in disinformation: the minister tells Kohli that his is a weak coalition government and, as such, he does not want to get involved. Kohli should deal directly with MoCA. Let us look at facts. I.K. Gujral as the minister of external affairs was deeply engaged from the start. He had two concerns, a peaceful resolution of the crisis with Iraqs withdrawal from Kuwait and the safety of the Indian community. The reasoning was that if Iraq withdraws, there will be no need for evacuation. India got in touch with some NAM countries and Gujral went to the US to meet secretary of state Baker and UN secretary-general de Cuellar. It soon became clear that the US wanted a military solution and it was necessary to evacuate Indians. Gujral, accompanied by additional secretary I.P. Khosla, on their way back from US reached Amman in the second week of August. I joined them in Amman. We proceeded to Baghdad and had a meeting with President Saddam Hussein who offered to facilitate the evacuation. Any suggestion that Government of India was forced into arranging the evacuation by pressure put on it by Katyal or anybody else in Kuwait is absurd. From Baghdad we flew to Kuwait. When we landed, we were told there was an angry crowd of 3,000-4,000 Indians waiting to see Gujral. We went to them and, within four minutes, Gujral made the crowd say Bharat Mata ki Jai. Ambassador Kamal Bakshi in Baghdad fed hundreds. He was in constant touch with the community. Yet, in the film, Katyal goes to the Indian embassy in Iraq, and the ambassador is unable to attend to the issue. It is good to encourage patriotism, but is it necessary to paint the government as disengaged when the evacuation was carried out successfully? It is strange that the director never thought of contacting MEA. I asked him about all this in a TV discussion and he had no answer; in another discussion, he told me he was all praise for MEA and Air India. Why did the film give a contrary impression, I asked him? He had no answer. Right at the beginning, the director should have said that his film was a fictionalised account of the evacuation. Instead, he says, but for the character of Katyal, everything else is based on real events. The Censor Board should have consulted MEA before clearing the film. Raja Krishna Menon cannot take shelter behind patriotism or freedom of expression as he has deliberately misled the public about a matter of national importance. We all know why he did it. He's like a cartoon villain, except that he's real. He can be pretty amusing, except when he's terrifying. He's a bit of a clown and more than a bit childish, but he's also one of the most powerful men in Russia. It's pretty much impossible to ignore Ramzan Kadyrov -- and he knows it. And the rambunctious Chechen strongman seems to be getting more brazen by the day. Kadyrov was at it again this week, posting a video on Instagram showing opposition figures Mikhail Kasyanov and Vladimir Kara-Murza in the crosshairs of a sniper's rifle. This comes just weeks after he called Vladimir Putin's foes "enemies of the people" and suggested in an article in Izvestia that they be placed in a psychiatric hospital in Chechnya -- where he promised to double their injections. And, of course, he's widely believed to be behind the assassinations of investigative journalist Anna Politkovskaya, human rights activist Natalia Estimirova, and opposition leader Boris Nemtsov. There is little consensus, but a lot of speculation, about whether Kadyrov's antics indicate that he's jumped the shark or is right on message, whether he's Putin's loose cannon or the Kremlin leader's loaded pistol. And there is also little consensus about which is worse. "So, if youre worried that Ramzan is murdering with impunity and Putin cant control him, consider the alternative: What if Ramzan is murdering with impunity and Putin does control him?" the British journalist Oliver Bullough, author of the book The Last Man In Russia And The Struggle To Save A Dying Nation, wrote in The Guardian. Putin's Frankenstein Monster When Kadyrov began burning down the homes of family members of suspected Islamic militants, which is prohibited by Russian law, Putin appeared to give his protege a rare rebuke. "In Russia, everyone must obey the existing laws and nobody is considered guilty until this is proved by court," Putin said in his year-end press conference in December 2014, adding that "nobody has the right, including the head of Chechnya, to resort to extrajudicial reprisals." In the following days, Kadyrov burned down still more homes -- and wasn't reprimanded again. The incident seemed to suggest that Putin is simply unable -- or unwilling -- to control Kadyrov. Why? "I have no idea if it is fear or a man crush," Mark Galeotti, a professor at New York University and an expert on Russia's security services, said on a recent Power Vertical Podcast. The Kremlin leader does, indeed, appear to have a lot of affection for Kadyrov and has said he is like a son to him. But he also has reason to fear him. Putin has essentially made a Faustian pact with Kadyrov. He's given him a license to kill -- and torture -- as many people in Chechnya as he pleases, and has bestowed lavish federal subsidies for him to use as he wishes, as long as the restive republic remains quiet and loyal. And there is palpable fear in the Kremlin that if Kadyrov is removed, then Chechnya could again descend into chaos. But over the past year, the bargain is now being put to the test, with Kadyrov taking his act beyond Chechnya to the streets of Moscow. Putin's Willing Executioner In the days following Nemtsov's assassination in Moscow, when suspicion -- and evidence -- appeared to be pointing to Kadyrov, Putin was reportedly refusing to speak to the Chechen leader. "Orkhan Djemal, a journalist with extensive sources inside Chechnya, told me he had heard that for days Putin wouldnt take Kadyrovs calls, which caused Kadyrov to panic," Joshua Yaffa wrote in a recent article in The New Yorker. This was during that bizarre week when Putin disappeared from public view, causing a minor panic in Moscow. But apparently Putin and Kadyrov managed to kiss and make up. In fact, in the months following Nemtsov's killing, Kadyrov was given so many medals he needed a second chest to wear them all. And despite the best efforts of investigators to pin the Nemtsov hit on Kadyrov's close associates, they were rebuked. What this suggests, according to some Kremlin critics, is that Kadyrov hasn't gone rogue at all. Instead, he is Putin's willing executioner -- the leader of a death squad that can eliminate Putin's opponents with impunity, and with plausible deniability for the Kremlin. Kadyrov, after all, is crazy, right? Nobody, not even Putin, can control him. In this way, Kadyrov is Putin's own personal boogeyman. In his profile of Kadyrov in The New Yorker, Yaffa quotes Aleksei Venediktov, editor in chief of Echo Moskvy, as saying that for the Kremlin leader, Kadyrov is a way to show that "anytime he wants, like Freddy Krueger, he can put on a clawed glove, a glove covered in spikes, and use it as a weapon." The Extortionist Weeks before Kadyrov started openly threatening the Russian opposition, Putin agreed to turn over ownership of Chechenneftekhimprom, the subsidiary of the state-owned oil giant Rosneft that controls Chechnya's refining infrastructure, to the republic. But Kadyrov reportedly wants more -- specifically, the construction of a new oil refinery in his Chechnya. "It is important to follow the oil," Karen Dawisha, director of the Havighurst Center for Russian and Post-Soviet Studies at the University of Miami, Ohio, and author of the book Putin's Kleptocracy: Who Owns Russia? said on The Power Vertical Podcast. Moreover, Kadyrov's latest antics come at a time when low oil prices are forcing Russia to dramatically cut its budget -- something that could cause a lot of pain in Chechnya. And they could be a not-so-subtle hint that Kadyrov is willing and able to make trouble if his share of the pie is cut. "Things are bad, they're going to get worse, and there are going to be some very tough choices about where the money is going," Bullough said on the podcast. "And frankly, the only reason Chechnya was pacified was because they gave Kadyrov a blank slate to kill as many people as he wanted and gave him as much money as he wanted. And if suddenly the money isn't available, then we're in uncharted territory." Of course, Kadyrov the Frankenstein monster, Kadyrov the Kremlin's boogeyman and willing executioner, and Kadyrov the extortionist are not mutually exclusive. In fact, he's probably all of the above. And, according to Moscow-based political analyst Nikolai Petrov, he may have made himself an indispensable part of Russia's political system -- regardless of who is in the Kremlin. "Kadyrov has the potential to be a tsar-maker," Petrov told The New Yorker's Yaffa. "Not because he has more men at his disposal than, for example, the minister of defense, but because his men -- tens of thousands of them -- will carry out his orders without thinking twice. If the minister of defense tells his troops to storm the Kremlin, he cant be sure that all of them will actually do it. But Kadyrov can." NOTE TO READERS: Be sure to tune in to this week's Power Vertical Podcast, where I will further discuss the Kadyrov phenomenon with Mark Galeotti and Oliver Bullough. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu has accused Russia and other supporters of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime of committing "war crimes" in Syria. Speaking on February 4 at a fund-raising conference in London for Syrian war victims, Davutoglu said the root cause of the humanitarian crisis is "the war crimes committed by the Syrian regime" and by Islamic State (IS) militants. He said "those who are helping the Assad regime are committing the same war crimes. I am especially saying this today because Aleppo is under heavy attack by Russian airplanes." In Moscow, Russia's Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov responded to Davutoglu's criticism by accusing Turkey of "intensive preparations for military intrusion" into Syria. Konashenkov said Russia has registered "an increasing number of signs of the Turkish armed forces hidden preparations for active operations" within Syrian territory. A government spokesman in Ankara said later that Moscow is making claims of Turkish military preparations in order to divert attention from its "crimes." Based on reporting by AP, Reuters, AFP, and TASS The United States and France have charged Russia and the Syrian regime with stymieing peace negotiations with an unrelenting campaign to retake opposition-held territory even during the talks. Throughout two days of fitful negotiations in Geneva on February 1 and 2, Syrian ground forces backed by Russian air strikes were waging an intense campaign to retake rebel-held territory around the strategic city of Aleppo in Syria's north, and on February 3 they succeeded in cutting off the rebels' supply line from Turkey. The campaign, undeterred by the talks, was cited as the reason that the largest opposition coalition refused to fully join the negotiations, and "military activities" were also cited by United Nations Syrian envoy Staffan de Mistura as a principle reason for suspending the negotiations on February 3. French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius accused the Syrian government and its allies of "torpedoing" the peace talks and said "neither [Syrian President] Bashar al-Assad's regime nor his allies clearly want to contribute in good faith" to the negotiations. "We condemn the Syrian regime's brutal offensive with support from Russia to surround and suffocate Aleppo and its hundreds of thousands of residents," he said. U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said the Russian air strikes around Aleppo have almost exclusively targeted opposition groups represented at the peace talks rather than Islamic State or Al-Nusra militants that both sides are fighting, and thus were partly responsible for forcing a suspension of the peace talks. The air strikes have prompted reports of more civilian casualties, displacement of Syrian citizens, and the obstruction of humanitarian aid shipments, he said. "It is difficult in the extreme to see how strikes against civilian targets contribute in any way to the peace process now being explored," he said. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry late on February 3 released a statement saying the Russian air strikes and continued attacks by Syrian government forces signaled their intention to pursue a military rather than a political solution to the Syrian conflict. Kerry called on Russia and Syria to halt their bombardment of opposition-held areas, especially Aleppo, and end sieges of civilians, as required by a UN resolution, to allow the resumption of the peace negotiations. "It is past time for them to meet existing obligations and restore the international community's confidence in their intentions of supporting a peaceful resolution to the Syrian crisis," Kerry said. While UN envoy de Mistura did not specifically cite the fighting around Aleppo, a senior aide told Reuters that he suspended the negotiations until February 25 "because the organization did not want to be associated with the Russian escalation in Syria, which risks undermining the talks completely." "The stepped up air strikes gain the government ground, but also aim at humiliating the opposition on the ground and in Geneva," the aide said. Russia and Syria denied causing what is being billed as a temporary break-up of the negotiations but which could prove to be their dissolution. The head of the Syrian government delegation in Geneva, Bashar Ja'afari, blamed the break-up on "a failure of everybody except the government of the Syrian Arab Republic." He said opposition groups were preparing to walk away from the talks because they were losing the fight on the ground, and the UN moved to suspend the talks to cover up that fact. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov blamed opposition groups for demanding an end to the fighting and the delivery of humanitarian aid to besieged towns as "preconditions" to joining the talks. "Their attempts to frustrate the negotiating process under an excuse that Russia continues its military operation in Syria are absolutely unacceptable," Gatilov said, insisting that Russia was bombing only "terrorists." "We have repeatedly said that antiterrorism efforts are a matter of top priority for us and for the Syrian authorities," he said. Gatilov added that when the negotiations resume, they should include opposition groups that were excluded previously, such as the Syrian Kurds, who hold large swathes of Syrian territory in the north. Opposition groups said they would not return to the negotiations until the fighting stopped and humanitarian aid was delivered to starving residents of besieged towns. "We are waiting for the United States to stop leading from the back, and the Russians...to stop adding fuel to the fire," opposition spokeswoman Farah al-Atassi said. With reporting by AP, Reuters, dpa, and TASS A powerful U.S. lawmaker is demanding that Secretary of State John Kerry explain why he paid a $1.7 billion claim settlement to Iran the same day Tehran released American prisoners last month. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce charged that the payment looked like a "de facto ransom for the release of American hostages" in a February 3 letter to Kerry. "Indeed, an Iranian Basij commander has called it as much," he said. On January 17, the department said the United States and Iran had settled a long-standing claim at the Iran-U.S. Claims Tribunal in The Hague, releasing to Tehran $400 million in funds frozen since 1981 plus $1.3 billion in interest. The White House said at the time the settlement was a better alternative than letting more interest accumulate while waiting for a legal judgment. Royce asked Kerry to provide by February 17 lists of all U.S. officials who participated in negotiations with Iran over the settlement agreement and the prisoner release. He also asked for an explanation of how the settlement's interest payment was calculated. Based on reporting by Reuters WASHINGTON -- A senior U.S. senator has urged Secretary of State John Kerry to take action in response to "worsening corruption" in Bosnia-Herzegovina, saying it is "paralyzing" the country's European integration and "putting foreign investment at risk." In a letter to Kerry released February 4, Senator Roger Wicker, a Republican from the state of Mississippi, said "corruption in vital regulatory institutions and among high-level political officials" in Bosnia-Herzegovina is particularly concerning. Wicker, the co-chairman of the U.S. Helsinki Commission, said he was "troubled that responsible political authorities in Sarajevo tolerate the subversion of the rule of law by entrenched local interests." Sarajevo said last week that it would officially apply to join the European Union on February 15. In November, the European Commission said Bosnia-Herzegovina had considerable work to do to converge with EU norms and standards, including the fight against corruption and organized crime. Meanwhile, an EU-led monitoring body on February 4 urged Bosnia-Herzegovina to publish the results of a contested 2013 census that should be used to make voter rolls and allocate government resources. With reporting by Reuters A comic aspect of Communist politics is the insistence of the party of the red flag that its mundane political manoeuvres are always guided by lofty ideological consideration, not the least of which may be the world situation. It may be a reflection of the growing normalcy of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) that the desire of its West Bengal unit to forge an alliance with the Congress for this summers Assembly election isnt premised on mumbo-jumbo assumptions such as the crisis of global capitalism. When the West Bengal State Committee of the CPM meets on February 12/13 to discuss its electoral strategy in a state which was regarded as an unassailable red fort until five years ago, it will be guided less by ideology (or whatever remains of it) and more by the imperatives of sheer survival. The grim reality that confronts the veteran leaders in Kolkatas narrow Alimuddin Street is not appetising. First, the CPM has recognised that the existing Left Front (that includes parties such as Forward Block, Revolutionary Socialist Party and Communist Party of India) are not in a position to defeat Mamata Banerjee. At one time it appeared that the Left Front could lose its status as the principal Opposition to the Bharatiya Janata Party. But while that challenge has been averted thanks in no small measure to the BJPs own remarkable short-sightedness the CPM has been unable to mount any challenge to the Trinamul Congress. In a direct fight with the the Trinamul Congress, its defeat seems pre-ordained. Secondly, the CPM is inclined to view the 2016 Assembly election as more than a political contest. The vicious political culture of the state whose origins date back to the three decades of Left rule has left very little space for Opposition parties. Under Left rule, Mamata Banerjee and her Trinamul Congress loyalists found it extremely harrowing to operate politically; under the present dispensation, little or no room is given to the Left. Many of those who symbolised the Left at the local level before 2011 have now switched over effortlessly to the the Trinamul Congress. They have changed affiliations but maintained the same culture of muscle flexing and intolerance. Consequently, the CPM fears that a second consecutive political defeat will result in the near-total decimation of its already fragile political base. For the party in West Bengal, it is also a battle for physical survival. In a curious sort of way, the Congress is confronted by problems that are similar to those faced by the CPM. Following the slow and steady erosion of its support base, the Congress is today a sub-regional party that exists in the border districts of Murshidabad, Malda and the two Dinajpurs. In the rest of the state, not least in Kolkata, Howrah and southern Bengal, it exists as a rump made up of individuals who have fallen out with the Trinamul Congress. As long as the Congress was in power at the Centre, the local Congress maintained a nominal presence centred on its ability to secure and distribute political largesse from New Delhi. However, even that pipeline has been choked since 2014. In 2011, the Congress was the junior partner in a mahajot with the Trinamul Congress. Consequently, following the landslide victory, the Congress managed to win a sprinkling of seats in areas other than its North Bengal strongholds. Today, these are threatened by the Trinamul Congress that showed its independent clout in the 2014 Lok Sabha election. The Congress has the necessary independent standing to win handsomely in North Bengal if the Left transfers its votes. The Trinamul Congress is still a relatively new phenomenon in North Bengal, as was demonstrated by the CPM winning control of the Siliguri municipality last summer. Ms Banerjee could do with Congress support, just as the Congress could do with the Lefts votes. As a former Congress leader who broke away from the parent party in 1997 because of its lack of seriousness in confronting the Left, Ms Banerjee does not have any real ideological aversion to the parent party. She is on excellent terms with Sonia Gandhi and is fully aware of the fact that owing to its direct fight with the Left in Kerala the Congress would rather ally with the Trinamul Congress than the CPM. Indeed, if there is a real chance that the Congress-CPM entente in West Bengal will materialise, Ms Banerjee will travel an extra distance to persuade the Gandhis to revive the 2011 arrangement. She is aware that the local leadership of the Congress seeks a formal alliance with the CPM but she also knows that she can bring more to the table for the Congress in national political than the Left. The CPM Politburo that will take a final call on the subject later this month may feel that its West Bengal unit is over-doing its politics of pragmatism. But whereas Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee may be viewing the issue through the narrow prism of state politics, the state units larger conclusions correspond with the instincts and inclinations of the comrades who see themselves in the mould as Harkishan Singh Surjeet rather than Prakash Karat. Since it withdrew support from the United Progressive Alliance in 2008 and then went on to lose Kerala and West Bengal, the CPM has found itself an increasingly marginal force in national politics. In 2016, the national influence of the Left is at its lowest point since Independence. Its natural ability to punch above its weight thanks to its influence among intellectuals and in the media has also been compromised, not least by the emergence of the Aam Aadmi Party that has stolen some of its thunder. The CPM desperately needs to piggy back on either the Congress or other regional parties to regain a foothold in the national power equation. At one level Mrs Sonia Gandhi is willing to embrace a party of radical social democracy but she has her eye firmly set on a robust grand coalition that can overwhelm the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance in 2019. In that calculation, Ms Banerjee matters much more than Sitaram Yechuri. If the CPM took the Yechuri line to its logical conclusion and subsumed the party into the Congress, life would have been much easier. But for that to happen, the CPM probably needs to experience its obsolescence a little more profoundly. The Virginia House of Delegates passed a bill Thursday to make major changes to how localities negotiate public concerns with developers, with a significant amendment planned to alleviate objections by Henrico County. The bill, House Bill 770, would reform the proffer system, which allows local governments to extract cash payments from developers for public infrastructure and request architectural changes through the rezoning process. The legislation would prohibit localities from denying rezoning requests to residential developers based on unreasonable proffers. The bill, which caused concern in several of Richmonds suburban counties, passed on a 68-27 vote. Henrico, which does not use cash proffers but has vigorously defended its right to seek architectural proffers from developers to ensure high-quality housing, appears to have won a battle to get the bill changed. The patron of the legislation, Del. C. Todd Gilbert, R-Shenandoah, said on the floor Thursday that the bill would be amended before final passage to apply only to cash proffers. We are going to commit to removing the interior and exterior architectural proffer language from the bill moving forward, Gilbert said. I think that alleviates some fears. Gilbert said he had talked to Henricos representatives about the change. The beating in Bengaluru on Sunday of a college girl from Tanzania, allegedly to the extent of stripping and molesting her, by a mob intent on instant justice, is a clear case of barbaric conduct. And the slowness of the police, which got into genuine action mode days later only after a national hue and cry and external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj speaking to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, and Congress vice-chief Rahul Gandhi summoning a report from the state government run by his party. In different parts of the country, violent and mocking behaviour toward people from Africa speaks to us of the deep-seated racism that exists in India, although we complain the loudest when made victims of race prejudice in other countries. In 2013, at a university in Punjab, a student from Burundi was killed over a minor matter. In the national capital, an AAP minister, who is now in the doghouse, had hounded some members of the African community, targeting women in particular. The race prejudice also extends to those with different features, as we see unacceptable behaviour toward young men and women from northeastern India on a regular basis, in the national capital most frequently but also elsewhere. In one instance in Delhi, a youngster from the Northeast was killed in a busy shopping area when he took offence on being leered at and jeered on account of his facial features. But the mistreatment of black Africans is a matter of particular concern, as they are sometimes seen as lesser beings, and not much has changed over the years. The high commissioner of Tanzania was right to ask in a media comment whether there was any trace of humanity in the shaming Bengaluru incident, and whether it really belonged to the 21st century. All African ambassadors and high commissioners accredited to New Delhi have collectively raised questions about the disgraceful episode with the Indian government, and have urged speedy action. They have a right to expect at least this. We must ensure that the sorry episode does not degenerate into a BJP-Congress name-calling matter, the way most things have tended to do of late. The Bengaluru incident is disturbing. It is deeply societal, and also concerns the states response in the first instance at the level of the police when race-tainted incidents occur. It is true that in its self-interest India has been seeking to raise the tempo of its relations with Africa. But this is not why we should correct ourselves and say sorry. We should do all this if we wish to be seen as normal human beings, not bigoted. The inquiry into the incident must reflect an enlightened mindset. It looks like nothing was found at this location. Maybe try a search? Search for: Search A Place for All Conservatives to Speak Their Mind. This Position Is Closed to New Applicants This position is no longer open for new applications. Either the position has expired or was removed because it was filled. However, there are thousands of other great jobs to be found on Rigzone. Facebook is releasing an updated degree of separation statistic, highlighting inspiring stories about the power of friendship, and launching new products to further encourage our community to rally around their friends February 4, marks Facebooks 12th birthday. Each year Facebook recognizes this day as Friends Day and invites the world to celebrate and reflect on the importance of connecting. When people connect, powerful things happen and lives are changed. We see this on Facebook every day, whether its an exchange with an old friend that brings a smile to your face or a new connection that changes your life path, or even the world. To celebrate, Facebook is releasing an updated degree of separation statistic, highlighting inspiring stories about the power of friendship, and launching new products to further encourage our community to rally around their friends. Friends Day Videos To help the community celebrate the importance of friendship, Facebook is delivering a personalized Friends Day video to millions of people around the world. These videos stitch together special moments with their friends in a short film that can be edited and shared. People can view their video at the top of News Feed, or by clicking Watch Yours below a friends Friends Day video. Posted by Facebook on Tuesday, February 2, 2016 Telling Stories of Friendship Friends Day is also an occasion to celebrate extraordinary stories about the power of friendship. GirlCrew, a Facebook group originally created in Dublin, empowers women to find friends and organize events in their area. There are now 22,000 people in GirlCrew Facebook groups in more than 40 cities worldwide. Earlier this week, we hosted an intimate Friends Day event where 18 members of the Facebook community with incredible stories, including GirlCrew, were invited to come to our Menlo Park headquarters. Posted by Facebook on Wednesday, February 3, 2016 Best Friends and Friendship Sticker Packs To give people a fun way to show friends they care, Facebook is releasing two sticker packs called Best Friends and Friendship. These packs are now available to download for free in the Sticker Store, which can be accessed in Messenger or at facebook.com/stickers. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. Virginia Western Community College announces that it will host the Great FAFSA Fill Out on Saturday, Feb. 13, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the third floor of Webber Hall on the Virginia Western campus. Students applying for financial aid to attend college beginning with the 2016 fall term can get free information and assistance. Experienced financial aid staff from area colleges and universities will be available to answer questions and assist students in completing and submitting the Free Application for Federal Student Aid to any college or university. This event is open to current high school seniors and their parents, returning college students and adults interested in attending college. Parents of dependent students are strongly encouraged to attend with their student, as parent information and an electronic signature are required. Once the student leaves this event, he or she will have initiated the financial aid process for any college they are interested in attending. If possible, students should bring the following items to the event: Social Security number (student and parent); drivers license (if applicable); bank and investment statements; completed or estimated student and parent 2015 federal tax returns; and W-2 forms and any non-taxable income documentation received in 2015. For more information, contact the Virginia Western Financial Aid Office at (855) 874-6690. Submitted by Josh Meyer Annie Lin of Salem shares these photos and writes: "February 8, 2016 is Chinese New Year Day. 2016 is the year of the Monkey (). It is the year of the Red Fire Monkey. Do you celebrate Chinese New Year? If not, please come to celebrate Chinese New Year with me "I decorated my house indoor and outside with Chinese Fai Chun ( ). "Fai Chun is a traditional decoration that is frequently use during Chinese New Year. People put Fai Chun in the doorways to create jubilant festive atmosphere since the phrases written on it means good luck and prosperity. Customarily, Fai Chun is written by hand but owe to convenience, printed versions are mass-produced nowadays. Fai Chun is in either square or rectangular shape. It can be hung vertically or horizontally". I hung up a Red Lantern () in front of my door. ("Raise the Red Lantern" () is a 1991 film directed by Zhang Yimou and starring Gong Li.) My son, Jerry Wu and I wore the year of the monkey's red T-shirts with the monkey symbol. "I am scheduled to celebrate The Chinese New Year with performances. On Monday, February 8, 2016 at 6:00 pm at Roanoke City Library. Please come and see Tai-Chi Fan () and Tai-Chi Stick () demonstration, Calligraphy() is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a broad tip instrument, dip pen, or brush, among other writing instruments. Chinese Monkey Glove Puppetry (), is a type of opera using cloth peppets that originated during the 17th century in Quanzhou or Zhangzhou of China's Fujian province, and historically practised in the Min Nan-speaking areas such as Quanzhou, Zhangzhou, the Guangdong region of Chaoshan, and other parts of southern China. It had since established itself more firmly and contemporarily as a popular art form in Taiwan (). I bought the Monkey Glove Puppetry in Taiwan. Sun Wukong () also known as the Monkey King, is a main character in the Chinese classical novel. Journey to the West. Sun Wukong is also found in many later stories and adaptations. In the novel, he is a monkey born from a stone who acquires supernatural powers through Taoist practices. After rebelling against heaven and being imprisoned under a mountain by the Buddha, he later accompanies the monk Xuanzang on a journey to retrieve Buddhist sutras from India. "Then, CHEONGSAM() fashion show. The cheongsam is a body-hugging one-piece Chinese dress for women, also known in Mandarin Chinese as qipao, and Mandarin gown in English. Later, you will get to know about The Chinese Zodiac() () RAT,() OX, ()TIGER, () RABBIT, () DRAGON, () SNAKE, () HORSE, () GOAT, () MONKEY, () ROOSTER, () DOG () BOAR. You will also learn "Gong Xi, Gong Xi" (,) in a sing along. (Gong Xi, Gong Xi the mean is Congratulations.) "It is a free for all age and you will receive special Chinese New year gifts." Click on the slide show above to view the photos or click here for an alternate view. RICHMOND Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe suddenly knows what its like to be on the other end of a Michael Bloomberg advertising campaign. Everytown for Gun Safety, a group bankrolled by the former New York mayor, poured $2 million into TV ads last fall in a failed bid to help the governors Democratic Party take back the state Senate. On Wednesday, Everytown launched a social media campaign against McAuliffe, who last week stunned gun-safety advocates by announcing that he had struck a gun deal with Republican legislators and the National Rifle Association. It shows side-by-side photos of McAuliffe and the National Rifle Associations Wayne LaPierre. What do VA Gov. Terry McAuliffe and NRA head Wayne LaPierre have in common? one version reads. Both Gov McAuliffe and NRA Head Wayne LaPierre support allowing dangerous people to carry hidden loaded weapons in Virginia. While clearly a lower-budget affair than last falls TV blitz, Everytowns social media campaign against McAuliffe was a stunner, given how closely he worked with gun-safety groups since his 2013 campaign for governor. He narrowly won the race while bragging about his F rating from the NRA. McAuliffes spokesman, Brian Coy, said the governor stands by the gun deal as a bipartisan breakthrough in an area where compromise has been hard to come by. While others talk or attack, Governor McAuliffe has taken action to prevent gun violence, Coy said in an email. This bipartisan compromise is the first meaningful gun safety legislation in Virginia in more than 20 years, and it will save lives by keeping guns out of the hands of domestic abusers and people who cant pass background checks. This isnt about national politics, its about making Virginia safer and that is what this agreement will do plain and simple. The deal that the McAuliffe administration hammered out with GOP legislative leaders and the NRA caught gun-safety groups off guard. In December, fellow Democrat and Attorney General Mark Herring had severed reciprocity rights of gun owners in 25 states with concealed-weapons standards looser than Virginias a move that had infuriated gun-rights activists even though state law has long dictated that reciprocity be limited to states with standards on par with Virginias. The McAuliffe deal, which still needs General Assembly approval, reversed Herrings action and then some, directing him to strike reciprocity deals with every state that offers them. In that sense, the deal expands gun rights. But the deal also tightens restrictions in other areas. It would make it a felony under Virginia law for someone subject to a two-year protective order to possess a gun. Possession for such a person is already illegal under federal law. But because local police, not federal agents, respond to domestic incidents, abusers could be more likely to face charges. And because possession in such cases would be a felony, anyone convicted would lose the right to possess a firearm for life, barring subsequent restoration of civil rights through the governor. The deal also calls for putting a state trooper at every gun show to run background checks for private sellers who currently have no way to check buyers criminal histories. But those checks would remain optional. McAuliffe said the deal represents a compromise, which means neither side got all that it wanted. But all of the uproar seems to be coming from the left. As it released its social media campaign, Everytown also announced that activists would go to the governors office Thursday to deliver a petition signed by more than 3,000 Virginians opposed to the deal. McAuliffe talked up the deal Wednesday night on MSNBCs Hardball with Chris Matthews, as the host asked him to comment on Hillary Clintons presidential campaign. Matthews asked McAuliffe, a close friend of Clintons and chairman of her failed 2008 bid, how the former secretary of states strong gun-control rhetoric might play in a rural state like New Hampshire. McAuliffe answered by touting the historic agreement he had just struck on guns. If you can do it in Virginia, which is the home of the NRA, working together, we can do this anywhere, he said. People want, folks, they want their legislators to come together, to work with their governors to make them safe. RICHMOND A new initiative to cultivate regional cooperation in developing business prospects is all systems go in the House of Delegates, propelled by the Republican leadership working in close harmony with Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe. The House Appropriations Committee voted quickly and unanimously Wednesday to approve the Virginia Growth and Opportunity Act, commonly known as GO Virginia, a priority of powerful corporate interests who want to bring together educational institutions, local governments, and private industries in regional alliances to promote economic development. The committee also voted unanimously for the Virginia Collaborative Economic Development Act, a companion bill that would allow newly formed regional councils to award performance grants to projects that create jobs and capital investment in communities across the state. "I really like the concept it's very bottom up," said House Majority Leader Kirk Cox, R-Colonial Heights, who introduced House Bill 834, the principal vehicle for the initiative. His bill and House Bill 846, sponsored by Del. Tim Hugo, R-Fairfax, chairman of the House Republican Caucus, would create two funds, one administered by a new state board of legislators and business leaders and the other by regional councils. But the money to finance the initiative would come from the two-year, $109 billion budget proposed by McAuliffe, who wants $25.9 million for GO Virginia, as well as an additional $12.9 million that would come from the estimated $157 million in state budget savings by expanding Virginia's Medicaid program under the Affordable Care Act. "That's the same pot of money" for both proposed funds, House Appropriations Chairman Chris Jones, R-Suffolk, reminded the committee. Jones said in an interview the committee already has removed the proposal to expand Medicaid from the House version of the budget, so the additional money would have to come from savings elsewhere in the spending plan. "It's premature to say what is going to stay in the budget as far as economic development," he said. The swift action in the House was foreshadowed by a speech on the House floor by Cox, who promised that the regional initiative would not increase bureaucracy or raise taxes. "It brings to life real projects that have a real impact," he said. But the initiative also comes amid increasing concern on the Appropriations and Senate Finance committees about the massive increase in state spending for economic development incentives under McAuliffe and his Republican predecessor, Gov. Bob McDonnell. The Appropriations Committee received a staff report this week that estimated state spending on economic development incentives at $679 million since 2010, McDonnell's first year in office, and a 283-percent increase since 2004-2006. The GO Virginia initiative is driven by the Virginia Business Higher Education Council, a 22-year-old organization of business and higher education leaders, including Dominion CEO Thomas Farrell, Roanoke nursing home magnate Heywood Fralin, and former Landmark Communications CEO John "Dubby" Wynne, who attended the Appropriations Committee meeting Wednesday. "We're lobbying for all of [the proposed budget funds], obviously," said Mark Hubbard, a lobbyist for McGuireWoods Consulting, whose chairman, Frank Atkinson, is a member of the council. "We think it's important to have the innovation and job creation that results from the incentives." Fort Pickett in Southside Virginia will be the new home of a $416 million embassy security training facility, the Richmond Times-Dispatch has learned. The formal announcement of groundbreaking at the military base in Nottoway County is expected to come today. Virginia was chosen for the Foreign Affairs Security Training Center facility over competing sites in Georgia and West Virginia. Once completed in 2019, officials said the facility will train between 8,000 and 10,000 people a year, including members of the State Department diplomatic corps and military personnel who are assigned to protect U.S. embassies, missions and consulates around the world. Securing the training center culminates years of work, research and political navigation by the commonwealths bipartisan congressional delegation, led by Sens. Timothy M. Kaine and Mark R. Warner, D-Va., with the support of the administration of Gov. Terry McAuliffe. After years of unnecessary delays and hurdles, the brave men and women who serve in our embassies around the world many of whom call Virginia home will finally have a dedicated facility to receive the best possible security training before they embark on assignments in high-threat countries across the globe, read a joint statement issued by the senators, McAuliffe and U.S. Reps. Robert C. Bobby Scott, D-3rd; J. Randy Forbes, R-4th; Robert J. Wittman, R-1st; Gerald E. Gerry Connolly, D-11th; Robert Hurt, R-5th; Dave Brat, R-7th; Don Beyer, D-8th; and Scott Rigell, R-2nd. We are especially proud that such an important facility will be located in Virginia. As four different federal agency evaluations and an independent cost-benefit analysis made clear, only Fort Pickett meets every requirement for a consolidated Foreign Affairs Security Training Center, making it by far the best site both from a strategic and cost perspective. We are pleased that groundbreaking is finally underway in Nottoway County. Members of the Virginia delegation said they have worked together for months to fight efforts to derail construction of the site at Fort Pickett. The formal announcement is a milestone of renewal for the installation about 50 miles southwest of Richmond. The fort, constructed shortly after the U.S. entered World War II, was recommended for closure as part of the 1995 round of the Base Closure and Realignment Commission. Thousands of acres of the U.S. Army base were transferred to the state Department of Military Affairs and became headquarters for the Virginia National Guard. Kaine called the construction of the training center a security imperative. The world is changing and so are the needs to secure our personnel in these high-threat posts, said Kaine, a member of the Senate Armed Services and Foreign Relations committees. Weve got to have more security, and we owe it to our people. The project, which involves tree clearing and construction of buildings and training facilities, is expected to bring additional jobs and economic development to the area. Kaine said Fort Pickett is a huge facility that is just begging for additional use. Administration and elected officials had identified the need for a training facility back in 2011 long before the 2012 raid on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya, which resulted in the deaths of four Americans, including U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens. Reports by the General Services Administration, Office of Management and Budget, and General Accounting Office had favored selecting Fort Pickett, which carried a price tag roughly $90 million less than competing sites and was favored for its proximity to Washington and defense-related government. But Virginia advocates for the center faced some pushback from House members who wanted to steer the project to one of the competing facilities in the running. Resulting delays took months to sort out, even after Fort Pickett was identified as an optimal location and continued even after Benghazi. The thing that troubles me the most is the delay, Kaine said during a hearing last October. Im just mindful here of time passing, Kaine continued. It has been five years since the State-GSA (General Services Administration) process chose Fort Pickett as the site after a multi-year search to get to that decision. It has been three years since the attack on Benghazi, Kaine said. These are tough times for the people doing these jobs, and I think we need to move with dispatch to make sure the security we provide is as strong as it can be. (804) 649-6061 Twitter: @RTDNolan Google has started rolling out free internet services for public housing communities in the US. Mumbai: Search engine giant Google has always been known for its global philanthropic activities, which have helped several communities around the world learn and reap the benefits of modern technology. Now the California-based company, in a move to provide free high-speed internet to low-income groups, has started rolling out its Gigabit Internet Service connection to approximately 100 low-cost homes in the US. The connections are being provided under the joint partnership of Google and ConnectHomean initiative by the US Department of Housing and Development (HUD) and the White House to accelerate Internet adoption by families with school-age children in public housing communities in the US. Working side by side with the Housing Authority of Kansas, the company announced on Wednesday that it had outfitted 100 homes at the West Bluff public housing with free Google fiber connection. The Kansas housing society became the first of many to receive gigabit (1000Mbps) internet under the program. According to the company, families can now sign up to receive the services for free. In a blog post, Google Fiber vice president, Dennis Kish said: Across Kansas City, were working with local affordable housing providers to connect up to nine properties, reaching more than 1,300 families in the metro area. Looking forward, we plan to bring gigabit Internet to select affordable housing in all of our Fiber cities. Were working with local providers to identify which properties well connect across these markets, and well have more to share as we bring Google Fiber to these cities, he added. Can India expect similar benefits? In 2016, Google is planning to expand two-fold and make their services available in potential markets around the world and the company has got a lot of plans in store for India. Even though the services are only for American cities, the day is not far where the company might just introduce a similar program in India. For instance, if the companys Loon Project sees the days sunlight, it will offer affordable internet connection to millions in the country. Also, Google had announced that it will offer free high-speed Wi-Fi at 500 railway stations across the country and already a few important stations have got access to the free Wi-Fi service. Citing all these plans, there is a huge possibility that Google might announce free high-speed internet plans in India very soon. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. Sallie Gayle Spaulding, 89, passed away at 10:07 p.m. on Sunday, January 31, 2016 at the Kendal retirement community at Lexington, Va. She was born on September 14, 1926 on 54th Street in Newport News to Josiah Pitts Gayle II, and Sally Ferguson Gayle. She was preceded in death by her parents; and older brothers, Josiah, John, Edward, and Elliot.Surviving are her daughter, Kathryn Bare; and husband, Randy Bare of Buena Vista; sons, Mark S. Hubert of Lafayette, La., and E. Paul Hubert and wife, Teresa of Newport News; grandchildren, Lisa G. Head and husband, Jon of Staunton, Dana F. Rogers and husband, Scott of Lexington, Jessica H. Mershon and husband, David of San Diego, Calif., Edward J. Hubert of Great Lakes, Ill., and Melissa L. Hubert, of Newport News; and great grandson, Zachary Scott Rogers, of Lexington; numerous nieces and nephews; and by her beloved sister, Lelia G. Middleton, of Hampton.She loved the beach and would fondly recall taking the streetcar to Buckroe Beach or walking a short distance from home to play in the James River (the shipyard was much smaller in those days,). Her last trip was a short walk to the edge of the sea on Hatteras Island. Finally, confined to bed, she kept a photo of the shore nearby to remind her of her roots in this old water town.She never drove and so could often be found striding, unevenly, because of a birth injury that made her gait easy to spot, along Washington Avenue, visiting the stores and restaurants. She knew many of the storekeepers, business owners, and other workers in the businesses lining the avenue and she would spend a few moments or longer, depending on how the spirit moved her, visiting with her friends. In the early eighties as the final flickers of a once vibrant downtown area grew dimmer, Sallie moved to Buena Vista to be closer to her oldest child.In Buena Vista she would continue her habit of walking along the main street and visiting with her new friends in town. Leaving her apartment on a small hillside she would walk down into town to visit and eat lunch. The hill was much larger when it was time to return home but she would climb it anyway and get ready to do it again the next day. Making friends came easy for Sallie, she made it a point to be kind to those she met and was quick to reciprocate any kindness shown her. She had a great sense of humor and enjoyed everything from sly jokes to broad, salty yarns. Sallie never took herself too seriously and always had a positive outlook. However, she was impatient with braggarts, blowhards and people given to seriously embracing nonsense.As time passed, Sallie was no longer capable of walking much and could not live alone. When she moved to the Kendal she would use her wheelchair and again move throughout the facility visiting the library or the sunroom. Finally even this was too much and she ended up stuck in her room, the "coolest" room. Bedridden, she could no longer travel by wheelchair, so she made sure her new friends came to her. The young people who worked at the facility knew they could count on a few minutes of cheerful conversation if they stopped in her room. She loved to listen to them talk about their lives, their spouses and boyfriends, their children, their losses and victories. Sallie was not the sort to complain or endlessly discuss the aches and pains of growing old. Moreover, the aides and nurses work hard and often the rooms are kept warm for the comfort of the residents. Not Sallie. Though wrapped in multiple blankets, she would leave her window cracked on even the coldest of days for "fresh air" she claimed. Meanwhile the staff might linger a bit near that window to soak up that cool breeze and shoot the breeze with Sallie. Her mind stayed sharp, her body failed, but she kept making friends and listening to us to the end. I hope we said something intelligent.A funeral service will be conducted 2 p.m. Saturday, February 6, 2016 at Rockbridge Community Church of the Nazarene with Pastor Kris Peaden officiating. Burial will follow at Green Hill Cemetery. Family will receive friends one hour prior to the service at the church. Arrangements are being handled by Bolling, Grose, & Lotts Funeral Home and Cremation Services, Buena Vista, Va. A Google report pointed out that online search queries for the auto segment surged 40 per cent in 2015. New Delhi: Search queries for the auto segment surged 40 per cent in 2015, driven by traffic from non-metros as well as people looking for used cars, a report by Google published on Thursday said. "The overall increase combining both desktop and smartphone grew by 40 per cent in 2015. Searches were split equally with 50 per cent of all searches driven by desktop users and the rest through smartphones," Google said in a statement. Also, Bengaluru emerged as the city with maximum search queries for automobiles, closely followed by Delhi, it added. Interestingly, search interest around 'used cars' also saw a strong pickup in 2015, growing over 200 per cent compared to the previous year. Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata contributed about 35 per cent of all search results around automobiles, while the remaining 65 per cent search results emerged from smaller cities and towns. "Search interest was driven by Tier II and III cities. While 30 per cent growth in queries came from Tier II cities, 25 per cent search queries were from Tier I cities. The rest 45 per cent of search queries were from Tier III or smaller towns," it said. Based on the early data available for 2016, searches around this year's Auto Expo have almost doubled compared to the previous edition in 2014. New launches and announcements from automakers are expected to further fuel search interest over the next few weeks, Google said. In the run up to the Auto Expo (basis search trends over the last 30 days), Maruti captured the top slot in terms of search interest, followed closely by Mahindra & Mahindra. Among the showstoppers expected this year, Ford Mustang emerged as the most searched model among auto enthusiasts followed by the Audi R8, the Chevrolet Camaro, the Range Rover Evoque and the Nissan GT-R. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. CQ Roll Call ranks Kirk and Johnson respectively as the first and second most-vulnerable senators up for re-election. Both are first-term senators. Mark Kirk was one of the chief detractors [of the Iran deal] and time and time again offered sanctions that would have disrupted that diplomacy, said Ben Shnider, national political director at the liberal pro-Israel group J Street. Ron Johnson was one of the most belligerent critics of that deal. Shnider oversees JStreetPAC, which has rounded up more than $100,000 in contributions for the campaign of former Sen. Russ Feingold, who is seeking to regain his Senate seat from Johnson, who defeated him by five percentage points in 2010. Shnider said the PAC expects to bundle a similar amount of contributions for whoever wins the Illinois Senate Democratic primary, where the frontrunner is Rep. Tammy Duckworth. Samsung announced that they would be launching a new internet browser that has the ability to block ads while surfing the internet. This app was to launch on Google Play and the app was supposed to be for Samsung Galaxy users only. However, the app did not get a green signal from Google when it was being reviewed by the team. According to Google, the app by Samsung was violating the Developer Distribution Agreement. Google has disabled the app and has put it on hold. Additionally, they sent a letter to Samsungs developers at Rocketship Apps stating that they have reviewed it and it violates certain guidelines. As for now, there is no information about further development and workarounds from Samsungs team. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. DEVOTED dog owner Jordan Parton says she has been left heartbroken after burglars stole her beloved pug. Miss Partons home on Dale Road, Rawmarsh, was ransacked at some point between 11.30am and 6.20pm on Wednesday, February 3. They stole her black two-and-a-half year old pug Ozzy from his cage after breaking into the house through the back door. Miss Parton (23), said: Im absolutely heartbroken. Ozzy should be at home with me but some dirty thieve has taken him." Miss Patron said Ozzy is black with a white patch of fur on his chest. Anyone with any information should contact police on 101, quoting incident number 963 of February 3. A Pakistani madrassa was linked to radical jihadist groups and it received large amounts of money from foreign sources. (Photo: AFP) Washington: Radical Pakistani madrasas are engaged in massive trade-based money laundering to fund jihadist groups, eminent experts have told American lawmakers who expressed concerns over terror financing. Concerned over the practice, Congressman Stephen F Lynch said trade-based money laundering (TBML) involves using trade and products or commodities for value in order to divert and obscure the true nature of the illicit wealth. "Trade-based money laundering is related to terrorist finance," John Cassara, former US Intelligence Officer and Treasury Special Agent, told members of the House Financial Services Committee during a Congressional hearing. He said in one example of TBML and terrorist financing, a Pakistani madrassa was linked to radical jihadist groups and it received large amounts of money from foreign sources. "It was engaged in a side business dealing in animal hides. In order to justify the large inflow of funds, the madrassa claimed to sell a large number of hides to foreign customers at grossly inflated prices. This ruse allowed the extremists to 'legitimise' the inflow of funds which were then passed to terrorists," Cassara said. According to World Bank and IMF estimates, unofficial remittances could be well over USD 1 trillion as against the World Bank estimates that global remittances through official channels will reach USD 707 billion by 2016. Nikos Passas, professor of criminology and criminal justice at Northeastern University's College of Social Sciences and Humanities, said there are cases of terrorism finance and trade-based money laundering or other money laundering that goes through them. "In Mumbai, the attacks of Mumbai and the Indian parliament -- those cases were solved because of hawala collaboration. In Dubai, the Dubai police and D A made a big money laundering case with trade because of hawala information," Passas said in response to a question from Lynch, who is also a ranking member of the Committee. In response to another question from Congressman Andy Barr, Cassara said he believes trade-based money laundering is a major problem. "But it depends on the part of the world you're talking about. Certainly, if you're talking about South Asia, you're talking about Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Afghan Transit Trade, it's absolutely huge. Areas in Libya, Somalia, it's huge. In other areas, perhaps not as important," he said. In his remarks, Congressman Michael G Fitzpatrick said trade-based money laundering is the growth industry in terror finance. Lynch said trade-based money laundering involves using trade and products or commodities for value in order to divert and obscure the true nature of the illicit wealth. Currently, there is an ample opportunity for terrorist groups to exploit the international trade system, with low risk of being caught, he said. Congressman Robert Pittenger, said criminal enterprises have relied on this method of illicit financing for years. However, many believe that this is an emerging technique now being used by terrorist groups to finance their violent and oppressive operations, he said. "Congress should prioritise efforts to stop the flow of money and resources to terrorist organisations. We must ensure that organisations like the financial crimes enforcement network receive their resources and intelligence necessary to combat trade-based money laundering and other methods of illicit financing," he said. Shmuel Schnitzer, who recently completed his term as President of the Israel Diamond Exchange (IDE), was elected yesterday as Chairman of the Israel Diamond Institute Group of Companies (IDI). He replaces Moti Ganz, who completed three terms as Chairman of IDI. Schnitzer first served from 1998 2004 as President of the Israel Diamond Exchange and was later granted the title of Honorary President of the exchange. He also served as President of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses from 2002 2006, and later was made Honorary President of the organization. Shmuel Schnitzer served a fourth term as IDE President from 2013 2015. IDI is a non-profit, public interest company representing all institutions involved in the Israeli Diamond Industry. IDI works to advance and strengthen the Israeli industry as one of the worlds leading diamond centers, through marketing, technological innovation, rough diamond sourcing and promotion of local manufacturing. Upon being elected, Shmuel Schnitzer said I am pleased to continue to serve the Israeli Diamond Industry, especially during this period of economic challenge. However, I am certain that with the improvement in the economies of key markets, more balanced strategies on the part of the major rough diamond producers and the cooperation of the entire industry, we will see much better results in the coming year. Theodor Lisovoy, Rough&Polished, Moscow Chinas gold demand will keep expanding as investors seek safe assets and jewelry buying increases, says the China Gold Association. According to group data released on Feb 3, consumption in the country climbed 3.7 per cent to 985.9 metric tons in 2015 from a year earlier. Demand rose as prices declined and investors allocated more wealth to the safety of bullion than to other financial assets, according to the association, which represents jewellers, refiners, banks, brokerages and miners. Stock market turmoil, a weakening currency and the lowest global prices in almost six years have helped boost bullion buying in China. Swiss exports of gold to Hong Kong and the mainland jumped 87 percent in December from a month earlier, underscoring the flow of metal from west to east. Demand in Asia, which accounts for more than 60 per cent of global use, is fundamentally strong and should continue, RBC Capital Markets said this week. While consumption increased in 2015, it was well below the record 1,176.4 tons in 2013, when a 28 per cent slump in prices spurred buying. Chinese people are treating gold more as a consumption item regardless of price so demand will continue to rise steadily, said Jiang Shu, chief analyst at Shandong Gold Financial Holdings Capital Management Co., part of Shandong Gold Group, a mining company. To repeat the buying frenzy in 2013 will be hard unless theres a big move in prices, he added. Aruna Gaitonde, Editor-in-Chief of Asian Bureau, Rough & Polished The Dubai Gold and Commodities Exchange (DGCX), a leading derivatives exchange in the Middle East, has welcomed Zee Gold DMCC (a subsidiary of India's first and largest gold refinery), as broker member. Zee Gold DMCC, a subsidiary of Shirpur Gold Refinery Limited (of Essel Group) will play active role in developing Dubai Spot Gold Contract. "We are pleased to welcome Zee Gold DMCC to the DGCX community. As a key bullion industry participant, we look forward to working closely to build our recently launched Dubai Spot Gold Contract that promotes transparent Loco Dubai price discovery and facilitates physical delivery of 1 kg gold bars on a safe and well regulated, government owned exchange platform," says Gaurang Desai, Chief Executive Officer DGCX. Jeff Rhodes, CEO, Zee Gold DMCC said "This alliance with DGCX will help create a paradigm shift for the UAE bullion industry and the gold souk participants by providing them access to Loco Dubai gold prices on a federally regulated trading platform." Dubai Spot Gold Contract, launched in December last year, is the first of its kind in the Middle East. It is aimed at taking the Emirate from being a regional to a more international trading center for the precious metal. The Shirpur Gold Refinery has an installed refining capacity of 217 Metric Ton per annum of Gold and Silver. Aruna Gaitonde, Editor-in-Chief of Asian Bureau, Rough & Polished The US-led Coalition efforts against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant are making a significant impact against the terrorists, the spokesman for Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve has said. In a live video conference from Baghdad Wednesday, Col. Steve Warren told Pentagon reporters that the operations are "hurting this enemy" and ISIL is feeling the pressure. "We have decimated their ranks and shaken their leadership," he added. ISIL has increased its forced conscription throughout Iraq and Syria, indicating that "voluntary recruitment is no longer sufficient to meet their needs," Warren said. "We've hit their finances, both cash and oil. We've shrunk their so-called caliphate. We've disrupted their lines of communication," the colonel claimed. There are increased reports of desertion among the terrorists, he said, and ISIL is executing its fighters fleeing the battlefield. According to CJTF-OIR officials, three-hundred ISIL targets were destroyed or damaged in a series of air strikes from January 26 to February 1. In another positive development, along the Mara line, Syrian opposition forces liberated a Syrian village from ISIL on January 30 supported by devastating coalition air power, Warren said, adding that "Fighting along the Mara line continues with both forces conducting offensive operations." The situation in Syria is a "terrible tragedy" with immense suffering among the population from the brutality of the war, according to the Pentagon spokesman. Warren noted that the purpose of CJTF-OIR is to defeat ISIL, but the U.S. military would support humanitarian relief efforts if asked. In the meantime, Iraqi security forces continue clearance operations in the suburbs east of Ramadi, Warren said. They are currently moving from Lake Tharthar toward Fallujah. Coalition forces have supported Iraqi forces in the lower Euphrates River valley with dozens of airstrikes over the past several days, Warren said. Iraqi security forces repelled an ISIL attack near the al-Fatah Bridge, north of Beiji, over the weekend, killing more than a dozen militants. The Iraqi air force has been active in this area, conducting effective strikes against ISIL in the Makhoul Mountains. Members of the Iraqi air force have been the heroes near Beiji and Tikrit, thwarting ISIL attacks in the area, Warren said. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News : . 506 505 701 . Trump traveled the rest of the way in a small charter aircraft, a campaign spokeswoman said. (Photo: AP) Tennessee: Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's plane made an emergency landing in Nashville, Tennessee, on Wednesday because of engine trouble, officials said. The Boeing 757 was flying to Little Rock, Arkansas, from New York when it landed at Nashville International Airport. Trump traveled the rest of the way in a small charter aircraft, a campaign spokeswoman said. The Federal Aviation Administration said Trump's plane landed safely at 4:40 pm after reporting engine problems. The agency will investigated the incident, it said. Rand Paul, a US senator from Kentucky with a libertarian philosophy, pulled out of the Republican race. (Photo: AP) Henniker, New Hampshire: Campaigning for the Republican presidential nomination took a nasty turn on Wednesday with billionaire businessman Donald Trump accusing rival Ted Cruz of fraud as the field of candidates narrowed ahead of next week's New Hampshire primary. Rand Paul, a US senator from Kentucky with a libertarian philosophy, pulled out of the Republican race. Conservative Rick Santorum also exited the race on Wednesday and endorsed US Senator Marco Rubio of Florida. Both Paul and Santorum, a former senator from Pennsylvania, did poorly in Monday's Iowa caucuses, which were won by Cruz, with Trump and Rubio finishing second and third. The caucuses were the first of the state-by-state nominating contests ahead of the Nov. 8 election to replace Democratic President Barack Obama. Trump, a real estate mogul and former reality TV star, went on Twitter on Wednesday to accuse the conservative US senator from Texas of stealing his victory in Iowa. Cruz's team hit back by telling Trump to seek help for addiction to the social media site. The two men are going head-to-head for voters in New Hampshire, where Cruz's evangelical Christian credentials will not likely be as helpful as they were in Iowa. Opinion polls show Trump with a roughly 20-point lead in New Hampshire before next Tuesday's primary. As the New Hampshire race heats up, the Democratic presidential contenders will face off later on Wednesday in a town hall-style event hosted by CNN. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton narrowly beat Bernie Sanders, a US senator from Vermont, in Iowa. Trump called for the nullification of Cruz's Iowa victory or a new vote in the state. "Ted Cruz didn't win Iowa, he stole it," Trump said in a series of tweets. "That is why all of the polls were so wrong and why he got far more votes than anticipated. Bad!" "Oh that voter fraud, you know, these politicians are brutal," Trump said later at a rally in Little Rock, Arkansas. "They are a bunch of dishonest cookies, I want to tell you." Trump referred to an email that Cruz's campaign sent on Monday that implied another Republican candidate, Ben Carson, was about to drop out of the race and that his Iowa backers should be urged to vote for the Texan instead. Cruz later apologized for the email. Twitter Addiction Trump also accused Cruz's team of sending out a mailer designed to look like an official electoral document to scare Iowa voters into turning out at the caucuses. The accusations were the latest aggressive tactic from Trump, who has courted controversy with attacks on other candidates and by urging a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States and branding Mexican immigrants as criminals. Obama visited a mosque near Baltimore on Wednesday, declaring that attacks on Islam were an attack on all faiths, in a move to counter rhetoric from Trump and other Republican candidates that have alienated Muslims. The Cruz campaign said Trump's complaint was a cry for attention after the senator came from behind in the polls to win on Monday. A Cruz spokesman suggested he seek help for "Twitter addiction." "It is no surprise that Donald is throwing yet another temper-tantrum, or if you like, yet another Trumpertantrum," Cruz said. "I understand that Donald finds it very hard to lose but at the end of the day, the Iowa people spoke." Cruz won support in Iowa from much of the same conservative Christian constituency that helped Santorum to victory in the Iowa caucuses during the 2012 presidential campaign. But Santorum failed to take off in the 2016 race. He said on Fox News he was suspending his run and called Rubio a "born leader." The endorsement came as Rubio came under attack by rivals seeking to curry favor in New Hampshire. Rubio said he looked forward to teaming up with Santorum. "We want to use him as often as he's willing to work for us," Rubio said. Earlier on Wednesday, Paul became the second Republican to drop out of the race since the Iowa caucuses, after former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee. Rawlins Cross sails into the Sunrise on new album, tour around the East Coast Rawlins Cross has been on hiatus before, once for nearly a decade after a successful run during the 1990s as one of Atlantic Canadas most popular modern Celtic bands, but never one that was imposed by an outside force of nature. In the spring of ... Washington: Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton wants to set the record straight on Donald Trump: "We were not friends." "We knew each other, obviously, in New York," Clinton, a former U.S. senator from New York, said in excerpts of a People magazine interview released on Wednesday. "I knew a lot of people." Trump, the real estate billionaire whose standing as Republican front-runner was dented by a second-place finish in the Iowa caucuses on Monday, had long touted his friendship with Bill and Hillary Clinton. In a March 2012 Fox News interview, Trump praised Clinton as a "terrific woman." "I am biased because I have known her for years. I live in New York. She lives in New York. I really like her and her husband both a lot. I think she really works hard," Trump told Fox. But the Clintons, who attended Trump's 2005 wedding, were fair game on the campaign trail. In November, Trump said Hillary Clinton did not have strength or stamina to be president and called her the worst U.S. secretary of state, a post she held from 2009 to 2013. When Clinton denounced Trump last month for showing "a penchant for sexism," Trump turned the phrase against her, using it to refer to Bill Clinton's sexual scandals as president. Trump's caustic comments about Hispanics, women, Muslims and his rivals for the nomination have set much of the tone for the Republican race. Clinton has accused him of being divisive and a bully. Clinton told People she could handle Trump's barbs, but worried about the immigrants and American Muslims he targets. "I'm more concerned about the tone that is being set in the political debate this year because the last thing our country needs right now is more divisiveness, more mean-spiritedness," she said. It was not clear when the People interview, which included Clinton's daughter, Chelsea, was conducted. Clinton won the Iowa Democratic caucuses over U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders on Monday. "I really care about what he says about other people, who don't have the voice and the platform," Clinton said, referring to immigrants and American Muslims. Chelsea Clinton said she has never had a relationship with Donald Trump but remains friends with his daughter, Ivanka. "I do believe that friendship is more important than politics," she told People. "I would never hold anyone accountable for what their parents or anyone else in their family said or did." A first-of-its-kind journey along India and Pakistan border What binds the two most talked about nations - India and Pakistan together? What makes the I give my consent to Sakshi Post to be in touch with me via email for the purpose of event marketing and corporate communications. Privacy Policy Police officers walk by a mock Scud-B missile of North Korea, left, and other South Korean missiles on display at the Korea War Memorial Museum in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. South Korea warned on Wednesday of "searing" consequences if North Korea doesn't abandon plans to launch a long-range rocket that critics call a banned test of ballistic missile technology. (Photo: AP) Tokyo: North Korea may be preparing a ballistic missile launch from a base on its east coast in addition to its announced plans to fire a space rocket, Japan's public broadcaster reported Thursday. Pyongyang's announcement Tuesday of its rocket plan was greeted by a global chorus of anger and concern, with sharp criticism from South Korea, Japan and the United States, already angry over the North's fourth underground nuclear test early last month. China, which dispatched a top official to North Korea this week, echoed the international concerns while Japan has vowed to shoot down any missile that threatened its territory. Japan's NHK television, citing diplomatic sources it did not identify, reported that it has been "confirmed that a mobile launch pad in North Korea's eastern coastal area was on the move." As a ballistic missile is on the launch pad, it is possible that Pyongyang is preparing a launch there, the report added. NHK did not say whether it was a long- or short-range missile. The North said it plans to launch a rocket from its Dongchang-ri base in the country's northwest between February 8 and 25. Countries opposed to the launch and independent experts say it is nothing more than a disguised long-range ballistic missile launch aimed at helping Pyongyang to improve its capability and eventually achieve the ability to place a nuclear warhead on a rocket. Ex-officer was a churchgoer, family man. Police say he may be a serial rapist. The Allen family lived on the northwest side of Hutchinson, less than two miles from Rice Park, where several women said they were accosted. The only solution, Park argued, was to impose sanctions harsh enough "to make it realise that it will not survive unless it gives up its nuclear programme." (Photo: AP) Seoul: South Korean President Park Geun-Hye on Thursday said a planned rocket launch by North Korea could "never be tolerated," as her defence ministry vowed to shoot down any missile that threatened its territory. Pyongyang has announced it will launch a satellite-bearing rocket sometime between February 8-25, which is around the time of the birthday on February 16 of late leader Kim Jong-Il, father of current leader Kim Jong-Un. UN sanctions prohibit North Korea from any use of ballistic missile technology, and such a launch would amount to another major violation of UN Security Council resolutions following its fourth nuclear test last month. "The fact that North Korea said it will launch a long-range missile following its nuclear test is a threat to peace on the Korean peninsula and to the world, and should never be tolerated," Park said. The North insists its space programme is purely scientific in nature, but the United States and allies like South Korea say its rocket launches are aimed at developing an inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of striking the US mainland. South Korean officials routinely refer to them as "long-range missiles" rather than space rockets. The planned launch poses a dilemma for the international community, which is already struggling to find a united response to the North's January 6 nuclear test. Harsher sanctions North Korea is already subject to numerous UN sanctions over previous nuclear and rocket tests, and Park said its continued provocative behaviour showed these had been ineffective. The only solution, Park argued, was to impose sanctions harsh enough "to make it realise that it will not survive unless it gives up its nuclear programme." Russia on Thursday also expressed "grave concern" over the launch, joining a global chorus of condemnation which includes China, traditionally North Korea's chief diplomatic ally. Moscow's foreign ministry said in a statement that it had summoned the North Korean ambassador and had issued an "urgent appeal to refrain from actions that could further escalate tensions in the region". Earlier in the day, the defence ministry in Seoul said it had issued orders to destroy any missile that might stray over South Korean territory. "The military is ramping up its air defence readiness so it can intercept a missile or any debris that lands in our territory or waters," ministry spokesman Moon Sang-Gyun told reporters. Japan has issued a similar "destroy" order for any North Korean projectile that infringes on its territory. Japan's public broadcaster NHK reported Thursday that North Korea may be preparing a ballistic missile test from a base on its east coast in addition to the rocket launch. Citing diplomatic sources it did not identify, NHK reported that it has been "confirmed that a mobile launch pad in North Korea's eastern coastal area was on the move." As a ballistic missile is on the launch pad, it is possible that Pyongyang is preparing a launch there, the report added. NHK did not say whether it was a long- or short-range missile. South Korea's defence ministry said it was unable to confirm the report. WELCOME TO THE RUSSIA-AFRICA ANTI-DRUGS DIALOGUE (RAADD) WEBPAGE Russia-Africa Anti-Drugs Dialogue Conference 9 March 2016, Durban The second international Russia-Africa Anti-Drug Dialogue was held under South Africa and Russia Chairmanship at the International Convention Centre in Durban, South Africa, on 9 March 2016 in Durban (hereinafter referred to as the RAADD) co-hosted by the Russian Federation and South Africa under the auspices of the African Union. The South African Cabinet sanctioned the RAADD last year, with a sole aim of strengthening and sustaining a consolidated position in countering the world drug problem ahead of the UNGASS. All parties at the RAADD embraced the collaboration between African countries and Russia, approved of the event and fully supported the resolutions that emanated from the RAADD. All countries agreed that the illegal trafficking of illicit drugs and drug abuse had a negative socio-economic impact on BRICS member states and the health of their citizens, especially the youth, which supports the theme of the United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) of Achieving the 2019 goal a better world for tomorrows youth, which will be held in New York from 19 to 22 April 2016. All delegates agreed that the trading of illicit drugs had to be stopped and that the operational routes and means by which these illegal drugs were trafficked, had to be closed. It was also agreed that this could not be achieved by individual countries performances, but as a collective. The delegates also mentioned that support for and implementation of the National Drug Master Plan of 2013-2017. The following conference documents can be downloaded by clicking on the following links: RAADD Conference Programme The Welcoming Address by the acting National Commissioner of the South African Police Service The Purpose of Conference by the National Head of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI), Lieutenant General Ntlemeza, The address by the Director of Federal Drug Control Service of Russia, Mr Ivanov The Key Note Address by the Minister of Police of South Africa, Mr Nhleko The Durban Declaration 2016, as accepted by the Russia-Africa Anti-Drug Dialogue Conference on 9 March 2016. Any further enquiries can be submitted to the RAADDSec@saps.gov.za To all DIRCO travellers SAA amends their closure time for departing flights. Following on British Airways' earlier announcement that effective, 1 March, BA flights operated by Comair will close 45 minutes prior to departure as opposed to the previous closing time of 30 minutes, South African Airways (SAA) has now also announced similar changes to the closing times of their flights. As from 1 April 2016, all domestic SAA flights from Johannesburg, will be closing check-in gates 40 (FOURTY) minutes before departures (which is 10 minutes earlier than before). Whilst SAA advises that this is only applicable to their domestic flights on departures from Johannesburg to Durban, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth and East London, Wings Travel Management and Magic Travel would strongly advise all SAA and BA pax to consider checking in earlier on ALL domestic routes since we believe that all other carriers will soon follow suit and apply similar changes. "The reason for closing flights earlier is to allow the airline to conclude all departure procedures timeously especially those relating to baggage, so that our customers may not be inconvenienced by possibly travelling with their baggage left behind. A team of Turkish archaeologists have found an early Christian church in an ancient underground settlement near modern-day Nevsehir, the capital district of Nevsehir Province in the Central Anatolia Region of Turkey. The walls of the rock-cut cave church, according to the team, are covered by frescoes portraying Jesus Christ, the apostles, and the saints. The church was found in a large underground city that the scientists discovered in March 2015. The frescoes in this church show the rise of Jesus the Christ into the sky and the killing of the bad souls, Mr. Hasan Unver, the mayor of Nevsehir, told the Anadolu Agency and the English-language newspaper Hurriyet Daily News. We know that such frescoes have so far never been seen in any other church, he said. Only a few of the paintings have been revealed. Others will emerge when the earth is removed, added Dr. Semih Istanbulluoglu, an archaeologist at Ankara University, and his colleague Ali Aydn. There are important paintings in the front part of the church showing the crucifixion of Jesus and his ascension to heaven. There are also frescoes showing the apostles, the saints and the Old Testament prophets Moses and Elyesa. Mr. Unver added: there are exciting depictions like fish falling from the hand of Jesus Christ, him rising up into the sky, and the bad souls being killed. When the church is completely revealed, Cappadocia could become an even bigger pilgrimage center of Orthodoxy. Dr. Istanbulluoglu, Mr. Aydn and their colleagues have dated the church to the 5th century CE. Assange took refuge in the embassy building in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden. (Photo: AP) London: A United Nations panel has ruled that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has been "arbitrarily detained", the BBC reported on Thursday. No comment was immediately available from the United Nations in Geneva, where the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has been considering a request by Assange for a ruling. Assange, 44, is wanted in Sweden for questioning over allegations of rape in 2010, which he denies. He took refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy in London in June 2012 to avoid extradition. Assange said that he would leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he took refuge in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, and accept arrest on Friday if a UN panel investigating his case rules against him. "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," Assange said in a statement posted on the Wikileaks Twitter account. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me." But British police said they would arrest Assange if he leaves the embassy. "The warrant is still in place. If he leaves the embassy we will make every effort to arrest him," a spokesman for the British police said in London. A spokesman for Assange could not immediately be reached for comment. Assange fears Sweden will extradite him to the United States, where he could be put on trial over WikiLeaks' publication of classified military and diplomatic documents, one of the largest information leaks in US history. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention is considering a request for relief by Assange, who argued in a submission that his time in the embassy constituted arbitrary detention. Assange argued that he had been deprived of his fundamental liberties, including lack of access to sunlight or fresh air, adequate medical facilities, as well as legal and procedural insecurity. Assange made international headlines in early 2010 when WikiLeaks published classified US military video showing a 2007 attack by Apache helicopters that killed a dozen people in Baghdad, including two Reuters news staff. Later that year, the group released over 90,000 secret documents detailing the US-led military campaign in Afghanistan, followed by almost 400,000 internal S military reports detailing operations in Iraq. Those disclosures were followed by the release of more than 250,000 classified cables from US embassies. It would go on to add almost three million more diplomatic cables dating back to 1973. Per Samuelson, one of Assange's Swedish lawyers, said if the UN panel judged Assange's time in the embassy to be custody, he should be released immediately, even though the panel's decision is not legally binding. "It is a very important body that would be then saying that Sweden's actions are inconsistent with the European Convention on Human Rights. And it is international common practice to follow those decisions," Samuelson told Reuters. The Swedish government and prosecutor declined to comment. Lennart Jansson, the charge d'affaires at the Swedish embassy in Canberra, declined to comment on the announcement. Since Assange's confinement, WikiLeaks has continued to publish documents on topics such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, one of the world's biggest multinational trade deals, which was signed by 12 member nations on Thursday in New Zealand. Scientists at the University of Birmingham are calling on drought researchers and managers around the world to consider both human activity and natural phenomena in their battle to preserve increasingly scarce global water supplies. The experts say that severe droughts experienced recently in countries such as China, Brazil and the United States can no longer be seen as purely natural hazards. Changes to the way people use the water and the landscape contribute to extreme water shortages. The University's Water Science Research Group is leading key researchers from 13 organisations in eight countries to redefine how the world should study and tackle drought. The researchers propose broadening the definition of drought to include water shortage caused and made worse -- or sometimes improved -- by human activity. Drought research should no longer view water availability as a solely natural, climate-imposed phenomenon and water use as simply a socio-economic issue. It should, instead, more carefully consider the complex interactions between nature and society. The current California drought has severely affected the state's environment and economy. Storing water in reservoirs and extracting groundwater increase evaporation and decrease groundwater levels, making the drought worse. It demonstrates how strongly water and society are intertwined during drought periods. Europe suffered a severe drought last summer with high heat causing soils and plants to dry out helping to spread wildfires. Agricultural and hydropower production decreased, whilst rivers fell to record low levels and inland water transport shut down in some places. Water and drought policies vary across the EU and more work is needed to understand their influence on drought. advertisement University of Birmingham Water Science Lecturer Dr Anne Van Loon said: "Society is not a passive victim of drought; it responds to water shortages and these responses again influence water levels in reservoirs, aquifers and rivers. Severe droughts in human-dominated environments, as experienced in recent years in China, Brazil and the USA, cannot be seen as purely natural hazards because human activities play a role. "Managing drought effectively means we must acknowledge that human influence is as integral to drought as natural climate variability. This is why we're calling for research to explicitly consider the multidirectional relationship between natural drought processes and the role of people." Recent research has focussed on natural areas, such as the effects of climate change on drought under natural conditions. However, the validity of these studies is questionable if our world is strongly altered and managed by people. "The traditional approach to drought research -- focussing on natural phenomena -- leads to poor prediction and management of this complex interdisciplinary phenomenon. The complexity of the issue and lack of data and information make it hard, but that is no reason to pretend that the water system is completely natural and we can ignore water use by people in quantifying drought." Dr Van Loon added that in California, one of the big questions is how much rain is needed to end the drought. It was particularly important to take into account human activity, such as groundwater abstraction and water transfers, when calculating how much rain is needed. advertisement "We can see the water system as a bucket of water half-empty due to drought, which needs to be filled up to its original level," she said. "We can calculate how much rain is needed to fill up the bucket, but at the same time we are constantly taking water out of the bucket and putting water in." The water science researchers say that defining the causes of drought is crucial in deciding whether management should focus on making changes to cope with climate-induced drought (adaptation) or tackling the actions that lead to human-induced drought (mitigation). Innovative scientific methodology is needed to pull apart different causes of drought. Research should also analyse the impacts of drought on society, how society responds to water shortages and the effect of these responses on drought. Direct effects of people on drought are water abstraction, reservoir building and water transfer. Indirect effects are changes to the land surface made by people that can affect the development of drought by altering hydrological processes. These can include evaporation from land to air (evapotranspiration) and the rate at which water penetrates the soil (infiltration), as well as surface runoff and storage of water. These direct and indirect influences can be long-term (big engineering projects for reservoirs or gradual urbanisation) and short-term (more efficient irrigation methods, different crops). Short term adaptation to drought can decrease the severity of the next drought or even cause within drought changes influencing the drought end. A better understanding of how public perception of drought and strategies to tackle climate-induced factors is also needed. Large drought impact databases currently being compiled for the US and Europe, together with improved data analysis methods should help in this area. "Whilst human activity can contribute to worsening drought, society can also play its part in tackling water shortages. However, we can only begin to take positive global action against drought when evaluating the relationship between nature and people and its impact," said Dr Van Loon. The little penguin species (popularly known as little blue penguins) found in southern New Zealand is a surprisingly recent invader from Australia, according to a new study led by University of Otago researchers. Following the recent discovery that little penguins in the southern province of Otago belong to an Australian species, a team of researchers from New Zealand and the United States set out to determine when the Aussies first arrived. The Marsden and Allan Wilson Centre-funded study was carried out by Dr Stefanie Grosser as part of her PhD research, and led by Professor Jon Waters from Otago's Department of Zoology. The researchers analysed ancient DNA from the remains of over one hundred little penguins: bones dating back to pre-human times, as well specimens from archaeological deposits and museums. Dr Grosser says previous studies had concluded that the Australian species has been in New Zealand for hundreds of thousands of years. However, the new genetic study indicates that the Australian species arrived in New Zealand much more recently. "Amazingly, all of the bones older than 400 years belong to the native New Zealand species," she says. "Our results clearly show that the Australian penguin colonised Otago very recently, between 1500 and 1900 AD, apparently following the decline of the native New Zealand little penguin, which was hunted by early human settlers and introduced predators." The researchers say that while the results are exciting, the finding of wildlife extinction and replacement in the aftermath of human arrival is not a completely isolated case. "Many of New Zealand's animal species, birds in particular, have suffered at the hands of people. The really exciting thing about these findings is that they show how quickly nature can respond to human impacts," says Professor Waters. The team's findings have been published today in the international biological research journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. Researchers from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) and The Hebrew University of Jerusalem have determined that people who win a competition are more likely to cheat or act dishonestly in the future, according to a new study published online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. "We already know that some politicians and business executives will often resort to unethical means to win, for example the recent Volkswagen scandal," explains Dr. Amos Schurr, a lecturer in BGU's Guilford Glazer Faculty of Business and Management and member of the University's Decision Making and Economic Psychology Center. "Our research was focused on who is more likely to subsequently engage in unrelated unethical behaviors -- winners or losers?" The researchers found that after a competition is over, winners behave more dishonestly than losers in an unrelated subsequent task. Furthermore, the subsequent unethical behavior effect seems to depend on winning, rather than on mere success. The research group conducted five studies with students in Israel. The first two studies demonstrated that winning a competition increases the likelihood of winners to steal money from their counterparts in a subsequent unrelated task. Studies 3a and 3b demonstrated that the effect holds only when winning means performing better than others, but not when success is determined by chance or in reference to a personal goal. The last study, a post-competition survey, suggested that winners felt a sense of entitlement after besting their opponents in the initial competition, which the researchers say explains why they were more likely to cheat in the second contest. The subsequent unethical behavior effect seems to depend on winning, rather than on mere success. "These findings suggest that the way in which people measure success affects their honesty. When success is measured by social comparison, as is the case when winning a competition, dishonesty increases," Schurr explains. "When success does not involve social comparison, as is the case when meeting a set goal, defined standard or recalling a personal achievement, dishonesty decreases." The researchers concluded that, "It is difficult to overstate the importance of competition in advancing economic growth, technological progress, wealth creation, social mobility, and greater equality. At the same time, however, it is vital to recognize the role of competition in eliciting censurable conduct. "A greater tendency toward unethicality by winners is likely to impede social mobility and equality, exacerbating disparities in society rather than alleviating them. Finding ways to predict and overcome these tendencies may be a fruitful topic for the future study." Prof. Ilana Ritov of Hebrew University's School of Education and The Federmann Center for the Study of Rationality was also a researcher on this study. The research was supported by the I-CORE program of the Planning and Budgeting Committee, the Israel Science Foundation (Grant 1821/12), and by the Guilford Glazer Faculty of Business and Management, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. New research from a University of Miami (UM) Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science-led science team provides new insight into one of the world's most diverse and extensive ecosystems of living microbes. The study offers a new perspective on the growth and structure of rare, microbial reefs, called stromatolites, which are a window into the emergence and evolution of life on Earth. The international research team spent three years collecting data to map one of the few living stromatolite communities in the world, located in Shark Bay in Western Australia. The map of stromatolites produced by the scientists from an area in Shark Bay, called Hamelin Pool, revealed eight distinct "stromatolite provinces," each characterized by distinct morphological structures, many of which were previously unknown. The results altered previous growth models for Shark Bay stromatolites and documented the importance of mineral precipitation in the formation of the stromatolite framework, a feature shared with Precambrian stromatolites that date back three billion years. Stromatolites are buildups of limestone, similar to coral reefs, but formed by microbial mats. The activities of the microorganisms, particularly cyanobacteria, result in accretion of grains and precipitation of cements. Fossilized remains of stromatolites hold ancient records of early life for 75 percent of Earth's history. Stromatolite-forming microbes generated the oxygen in the atmosphere that allowed the evolution of higher organisms, including humans. "The stromatolites in Shark Bay are a spectacular living laboratory that should be the best studied microbial system in the world," said UM Rosenstiel School Professor of Marine Geosciences Pamela Reid, a co-author of the study. Despite their abundance on early Earth, stromatolites are rare in the modern world and are not well understood. Modern stomatolites, such as those in Shark Bay in Western Australia, develop in extreme, high saline environments where animal grazing and competition with organisms such as corals and seaweeds are scarce. "The time to study Shark Bay stromatolites is now as they are vulnerable to rising sea levels in the coming decades" said lead author Erica Suosaari, UM Rosenstiel School alumna and current research fellow. "Continued monitoring and detailed studies of the Shark Bay World Heritage site will be critical for management and conservation of this unique landscape, and will advance our understanding of early Earth." The new findings on morphological diversity, microbial communities, and mineral precipitation in living stromatolites in Shark Bay indicate the importance of this system as a window into early Earth, providing a basis for reconstructing ancient environments and understanding how microbial communities interacted with these environments. When you hold the keys to a hot career, don't expect a slow summer. "For this fall, we have received more than 1,000 applicants for 90 slots," says James R. Kilgore, Ph.D., PA-C, DFAAPA, director of the physician assistant program in the UAB School of Health Professions. Nationwide, universities with similar programs received approximately 23,000 applications for 6,500 openings, he says. The boom corresponds with rising demand for physician assistants (PAs) as more people obtain health insurance. Clinics and hospitals across the country are adding the position to serve growing numbers of patients, and in underserved rural areas, practices are turning to PAs to help expand access to care. As a result, new graduates in the field often have their choice of positions and job security. UAB's PA master's program also plans to expand -- with a goal of admitting 120 students by 2020 -- to help meet the need for more caregivers. Extending Opportunities PAs "really are a physician extender; we are trained in the medical model," Kilgore says. In fact, PA students share some common ground with medical students, he explains. Admission criteria are similar, as is their training, which includes didactic and clinical work in primary care, trauma, critical care, emergency medicine, and surgery, often in medical facilities throughout the region. "Many of the students entering our program could get into medical school," Kilgore says. So why don't they? "Medical school debt is about $250,000 for four years, and it's about $90,000 for two-and-a-half years for a PA degree," Kilgore says. PAs also can earn a good salary as soon as they graduate, with less of the stress and expense of running a practice. PAs see patients and assist in emergency rooms, operating rooms, and exam rooms; they work in all major specialties; and they have full prescribing rights in many states, including Alabama. They must work in a clinical setting alongside a physician, but the M.D. doesn't have to be present all the time, which could make PAs an important asset in rural and underserved areas, Kilgore says. "In Alabama, we have a significant access issue, with 62 of 67 counties either fully or partially underserved," he explains. The problem has gotten worse as struggling rural hospitals have closed over the past decade or so. In those areas, PAs can help relieve physician workload by handling common care issues or follow-up appointments, for instance. advertisement Bringing Care Back Home Convincing graduates to provide primary care in rural areas can be challenging when they have so many job options, Kilgore says. If they specialize or work in a city, then the new PAs often can make more money and sometimes have more predictable hours. UAB is focusing on a new family practice/primary care specialty option to help address that issue. Only 22 percent of the more than 600 PAs in Alabama work in primary care, so the new training program could make a significant impact, Kilgore says. He also is seeking additional physicians in small towns to act as preceptors for PA students. The faculty has been working hard to recruit rural students like Carl Frizell, who has become something of an ambassador for UAB's PA program. Back in high school in Holmes County, Miss., Frizell had never heard of PAs. In fact, he had little exposure to medical professions because care providers are scarce. "A lot of the time, we have to travel at least an hour away to get decent services," he says. Frizell was pursuing a Ph.D. at UAB when stress and anxiety over his mother's fight with cancer sent him to a UAB emergency room. There, he met a PA, Kara Caruthers, MSPAS, PA-C, who also serves on the PA program's faculty as an assistant professor. Her caring manner, coupled with his mother's advice to pursue a happy life, encouraged him to become a PA himself. Now a senior, Frizell connects with high-school students via social media and mentors UAB undergraduates to help introduce younger people to health-care careers and degrees they might not have considered. Frizell, who recently won a scholarship from the national Physician Assistant Foundation, also plans to work in rural Alabama or Mississippi when he graduates. "It has become my passion to make sure we have adequate health-care resources," he says. Clinic to Capital Efforts by PAs to improve access to health care across Alabama don't end at the clinic door. Some have taken political action to expand their roles, such as the right to prescribe scheduled medications, says Stephanie McGilvray, M.M.Sc., PA-C., assistant professor in UAB's Department of Clinical and Diagnostic Sciences, who took part through professional organizations. Recently, she became the only PA named to the Alabama Health Care Improvement Task Force, a group of 38 health leaders looking for ways to make care more accessible and more affordable. McGilvray encourages her students to get involved so that PAs have a voice when decisions are made. One who heeded her advice is Brad Cantley, a Birmingham native and 2012 graduate now working in a family care/obstetrics clinic in Sylacauga, an underserved area, and a nearby emergency room. Before enrolling in the PA program, Cantley was a firefighter and emergency medical technician; today, he is president of the Alabama Society of Physician Assistants. He credits the PA program's "exposure to a wide variety of surgical and medical training" for his success with both patients and politicians. Adding Strength Like all UAB PA faculty, McGilvray works in a clinical setting when she's not teaching. In her case, it's actually three settings: a hospital emergency room, UAB's Urgent Care Clinic, and a free clinic in Shelby County. She enjoys the opportunity to provide care alongside physicians and other health professionals, continuing to gain knowledge she can share with students. Adding strength to a health care team as a PA is a good feeling, she says. "It's wonderful to care for people and feel like you make a difference." Over sixty soil experts have gone together and provided an up to date overview of European soil threats. The extensive report, which among other things provides information on the geographical spread of eleven soil threats, also addresses what kind of effect these threats may have on soil functions and ecosystem services, and why they occur. Europe's soils are under threat. Human activity and climate change are two reasons for this, each playing a part in continuously degrading our soil. This is a problem, as soil is one of our most important natural resources, providing us with vital goods and services to sustain life. For instance, if our soil is ruined, or even worse, disappears, it will be impossible to uphold the European food production as we know it today. Although there is a large body of knowledge available on soil threats in Europe, the way soil systems function in interaction with human activities, as well as with climate change and ecosystem services, is still not fully understood. There are several reasons for this, one of which is that accumulated knowledge on soil threats has, until now, been scattered over numerous and diverse publications, rendering it difficult to approach the problems in an integrated fashion. This is no longer the case. In a new report, coordinated by researchers at the Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research, NIBIO, soil experts have collaborated in providing an extensive overview of the threats Europe is affected by. Not only have the authors defined the soil threats, they have also given descriptions of soil degradation and drivers, key indicators of the soil threat, methods to assess the soil threat, effects of the threat on other soil threats, and what kind of effect the soil threat has on soil functions. Soil threats at a European scale In Norway, erosion caused by flooding and landslides, poses a major threat. In Mediterranean countries, a too high salt content in the soil, called soil salinization, is one of the issues. advertisement Although different countries tend to encounter different soil threats, the authors of the report have attempted to see Europe's soil threats under one, rather than delve into exactly where a specific soil threat is at and how to fix it. "Previous studies show that every single country in Europe faces one soil threat or another. What we've done, isn't necessarily look at a specific area and say what is wrong there. We've rather aimed to look at Europe as a whole and define all the soil threats which pertain to our part of the world," says Dr. Jannes Stolte, Head of Department at NIBIO and main coordinator of the report. Despite this, the authors of the report have defined eleven separate soil threats in Europe. "Defining each soil threat has been important to get a full overview of the situation in Europe. In addition to this, we've asked the many experts involved to combine "their" specific soil threat with other soil threats. What we've been interested in, is to try and find interactions between the various soil threats at hand," says Dr. Stolte. Can you give an example of in what way a soil threat can influence or interact with another? "For instance, if you have increased soil erosion, or loss of top soil, you'll also see a decrease in soil biodiversity. Combine this with soil functions, a decrease in crop growth will become apparent. In our report we've tried to describe soil threats in interaction with each other, which gives us a better overview of exactly what kind of issues Europe needs to address, " Dr. Stolte explains. advertisement Forms the scientific basis for RECARE The report "Soil threats in Europe" is part of the RECARE project, which main aim is to reduce the negative impacts of predefined soil threats in Europe through various restoration methods. The project has defined 17 case study areas spread out all over Europe, from Norway up north, to Spain and Italy down south. "Our plan is to implement possible measures against all soil threats in the different study areas, to see how effective they are, what their economic impact is, what their impact on ecosystem services is and so on," says Dr. Stolte. The measures in question are not new, nor have the study areas been at random. "The case study areas in the project have been identified based on available historical data from several on-going experiments, the reason for this being that a decline in soil quality is in most cases a slow process which does not happen in an instant. As for the measures that we're implementing, these are also partly built on previous projects, in addition to new approaches, and will probably go beyond the lifetime of the project before we'll see any effect of them," Dr. Stolte says. Collaboration with stakeholders essential Due to this, stakeholder involvement is an important part of the project. "Take flooding in Norway as an example. What we've done in the RECARE project, is to give stakeholders, i.e. farmers, administrative bodies and water boards, a set of possible actions to reduce the peak flow of the flood. This way we can find out over time, in collaboration with them, which measures are the most efficient and feasible, even after the project period is over," Dr. Stolte explains. What kind of measures have you implemented in the case study area affected by flooding, and have they had any effect so far? "All our measures in this particular area aim to slow down the flow of water over agricultural land, either by means of land use, dams or retention areas. What is difficult is to quantify the effect of a certain measure, as a comparison between the different flooding events the area has encountered is impossible, due to many varying factors. What we do, and will continue doing, is to look at how efficient a certain measure is over time in one particular area. To do this modeling and close collaboration with the stakeholders is essential." Europe's eleven soil threats So which eleven soil threats is Europe affected by? In the report, the threats described are soil erosion by water and wind, decline in soil organic matter in peat and mineral soils, soil compaction, sealing, contamination, salinization, desertification, flooding and landslides, and last, decline in soil biodiversity. In addition to a chapter dedicated to each threat, the report includes a chapter on soil functions and ecosystem services, before it ends with a summary of what the overall soil state of Europe is. "The drivers of climate, policy and human activity have different levels of influence and importance for the various soil threats. For some of the threats, like water erosion of flooding and landslides, climate is the most important driver. For threats like sealing and contamination, human activities are the most important. For others, a combination of climate and human activities is the main problem," Dr. Jannes Stolte says. "In our report we've, among other things, presented updated information on the concepts and definition of the soil threats, and also what kind of influence each soil threat has on other soil threats. Despite this, there is still a large uncertainty and lack of quantitative information on, for example, the interactions between the soil threats and the influence of soil threats on soil functions and ecosystem services. Hopefully, the work which is currently being carried out in the RECARE project can help in this matter and provide us with an improved overview of existing information on soil degradation in Europe, as well as finding suitable measures and practices to prevent it." The report "Soil threats in Europe" can be found online at: http://esdac.jrc.ec.europa.eu/content/soil-threats-europe-status-methods-drivers-and-effects-ecosystem-services Similar to stem cells differentiating to make your body's tissues, the immune system's macrophages pick a life path, differentiating into macrophages that recruit resources for wound repair or macrophages that recruit resources for wound sterilization. An article in the journal Cancer Research describes the relevance of macrophages to cancer: Cancers encourage macrophages to pick the path of wound-repair, making what are called "M2" or "repair-type" macrophages. Cancers use these M2 macrophages to promote their own growth. However, researchers can now successfully flip M2 macrophages into their wound-sterilizing cousins, called "M1" or "kill-type" macrophages, which, contrary to promoting the growth of new tissue, may aid the immune system in clearing the body of cancer. The article in this careful scientific journal calls this a "breakthrough." "The basic message we're trying to convey is that turning those M2 macrophages into a more M1 phenotype has beneficial effects in promoting anti-tumor immunity," says Laurel Lenz, PhD, investigator at the University of Colorado Cancer Center, professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the CU School of Medicine, and one of the paper's authors. Previous work has shown that people with a naturally high ratio of M1 to M2 macrophages are less prone to develop cancer. And in mouse models of the disease, encouraging a high M1-to-M2 ratio can "slow or stop cancer growth," the paper writes. In fact, there are two schools of thought describing how, exactly, to change a population of M2 macrophages into a population of M1 macrophages. In the first school of thought, M2 macrophages can reverse their differentiation to become briefly more "stem-like" before being encouraged to use their second chance to pick the more beneficial M1/kill-type phenotype. In the second school of thought, as macrophages naturally die out, they could be replaced by a new population dominated by M1 macrophages. The paper describes a way to accomplish the second: In the presence of the cytokine interferon gamma, macrophages take on the M1 phenotype. "Interferon gamma has been explored as a possible therapeutic agent, but there are problems with it," Lenz says. "Interferon gamma mediates hundreds of effects and some of them aren't very comfortable." Instead, one idea is to improve the sensitivity of cells to the interferon gamma that already exists in the body. "In the right context, macrophages lose their sensitivity to interferon gamma and we want to prevent that," Lenz says. Another approach seeks to augment interferon gamma only in tumor tissue, keeping its effects localized. "The immune system's killer cells produce interferon gamma and one promising strategy is to get them to the tumor and activated in the right way," Lenz says. In fact, existing immunotherapies seek to recruit the body's killer cells, especially cytotoxic T cells, to recognize and attack tumor tissue. A byproduct of this activation is the production of interferon gamma at the tumor site, which causes macrophages to take the M1 and not M2 phenotype. "Cytotoxic T cells can directly kill tumor cells. But they also produce interferon gamma. Both are likely contributing to the anti-tumor effect," Lenz says. "By devising approaches to tune macrophages in the right way, we hope to further improve immunotherapies." A team of researchers from the Spanish National Research Council, or CISC, have found that due to the minimal amounts of interaction between human beings and large carnivores, many people are lacking in knowledge about how to behave when presented with a situation that involves interaction between the two. The number of attacks on humans in the 20th century by large carnivores like bears, coyotes, leopards and wolves, among others, number somewhere in the thousands, according to the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. Though these numbers may seem low when compared to human fatalities and injuries in other areas, many of these attacks are caused by situations that are highly avoidable, but caused by lack of knowledge. "To go running when is dark, leaving children unattended in carnivore zones, approaching a female with young, approaching wounded animal in hunting and walking with an unleashed dog along the said areas, are the main causes of the attacks," said Vincenzo Penteriani, a researcher from the Donana Biological Station. The authors of the study suggest that people be informed and educated on the risks associated with interaction with large carnivores in their habitats. Some of the rules they recommend following include avoiding being out alone in these areas at night, to not leave children unattended, and to avoid approaching these animals. "For this reason, the attacks can decrease a lot if we learn how to act when we are in nature. It is not to limit the access to public in large carnivore's areas or, as we made in the past, pursuing them, it is to coexist with them. We can't go out into the countryside as we go to the shopping center," Penteriani added. In many times, the animals attack because they feel that their young are threatened and they respond defensively. In Spain, specifically the Cantabrian Mountains where the study was conducted, brown bear attacks in the last 40 years number at 38, none of which were noted to be a result of abusive behavior from the animals, according to a news release. "All the cases can be attributed to a defensive behavior as an answer for approaching a female with young and other stress factors, like walking with an unleashed dog or that the bear were previously hurt, could cause a defensive answer", Penteriani said. The findings were published in Nature's journal Scientific Reports. Related Articles Marine Wildlife Conservation: Jon Dohlin Talks Sand Tiger Sharks, Conservation Efforts And New Exhibit Facial Expressions: Dogs View Emotions Differently, So Faces Matter For more great science stories and general news, please visit our sister site, Headlines and Global News (HNGN). Apparently female turtles have been outnumbering males. Researchers found that increasing global temperatures is creating a gender imbalance among marine turtle populations, according to a study led by Florida State University. The researchers used Brazilian loggerhead turtles to determine how rising temperatures affect the species. The team found that warmer temperatures tend to produce higher numbers of female turtles. "We're concerned we're going to have a feminization of marine turtles," Mariana Fuentes, coauthor of the study, said in a news release. "This study came from the need to understand the current sex ratio being produced at loggerhead nesting grounds to establish baseline parameters as climate change progresses and to identify beaches that produce a higher proportion of males." The researchers set about to identify beaches that produce higher numbers of male turtles in order to determine where the imbalances were taking place. The team analyzed 25 years' worth of data for 21 nesting beaches throughout coastal Brazil, which is approximately 373 miles worth of nesting areas. They found that nesting areas in northern Brazil were 94 percent females among the loggerhead species. While northern Brazil was dominated by female turtles, they found that nesting beaches in southern Brazil were producing a higher numbers of male hatchlings - 47 percent, which is necessary to maintain the population. "It's worrying that you could have an extreme skew in gender one way. Any changes in population structure can have real repercussions," Fuentes said. The researchers noted that rising temperatures affects the sex of marine turtles. Temperatures below 85.1 degrees result in more male turtles while temperatures above that yield more female turtles. The findings of this study were published in the Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology. Related Articles Little Penguins In New Zealand Are Recent Australian Invaders, Study Reveals Zika Virus: OFF! Clip-On Device Protects Against Mosquitoes That Carry Disease For more great science stories and general news, please visit our sister site, Headlines and Global News (HNGN). The plane was evacuated following an unspecified threat that put Madrid airport on high alert, airport authorities said. (Photo: AP) Madrid: Passengers on a flight to Riyadh that had been due to take off from Madrid were taken off the plane Thursday following an unspecified threat that put the airport on alert, authorities said. "Security forces and rescue services are mobilised. The plane was isolated and passengers evacuated," a spokeswoman for AENA, the group that manages airports in Spain, said. The Guardia Civil police force said they were still unclear as to what the threat against the Saudi Airlines flight was. The El Pais daily said the alert was raised by a note pinned to the interior of the plane with a knife that read: "bomb threat". The SVA 226 flight had been due to take off at 0950 GMT but the captain requested that it be evacuated after the note was found. The AENA spokeswoman, who refused to be named, said the airport was functioning normally as the plane had been taken to an isolated area where officials were checking it. FLORENCE, S.C. Florence County Sheriffs Office narcotics investigators arrested a man Wednesday night after a methamphetamine production laboratory was discovered in his home. Brandon Shawn Tedder, 25, was arrested and charged with manufacturing methamphetamine after agents from the South Carolina Department of Probation and Parole found the lab at his home at 1101 Fran Drive in Florence. According to a press release from the sheriff's office, the lab was operational and cooking when investigators arrived shortly after 7 p.m. Windy Hill firefighters and Florence County EMS responders reported to the home because the lab was highly volatile and dangerous and had to be made safe for further investigation, according to Maj. Michael Nunn. A specialized team from the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division disposed of the hazardous waste material. Tedder was arrested at the scene and will appear at a bond hearing before Florence County magistrate. According to South Carolina law, manufacturing methamphetamine is a felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison or up to a $25,000 fine, or both. Ted Cruz didnt win Iowa, he stole it. That is why all of the polls were so wrong and why he got far more votes than anticipated. Bad! Trump wrote. (Photo: AP) New York: Donald Trump went on the offensive on Wednesday, accusing Republican rival Ted Cruz of stealing victory in Iowa as he sought to burnish his standing ahead of next weeks primary voting in New Hampshire. The real estate mogul made the sensational accusations on Twitter, telling his six million followers that the first-time senator from Texas had committed fraud in the first caucus of the 2016 US presidential election. Ted Cruz didnt win Iowa, he stole it. That is why all of the polls were so wrong and why he got far more votes than anticipated. Bad! Trump wrote. He criticised Cruz for putting out a statement saying that a fellow candidate, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, was quitting the race, and accused Cruz of lying to thousands of voters about Trumps policies. Based on the fraud committed by senator Ted Cruz during the Iowa Caucus, either a new election should take place or Cruz results nullified, Trump wrote. The accusations, the latest in a long line of Trump insults aimed at his rivals, come in stark contrast to his gracious concession speech in Iowa on Monday, saying he was honored to finish second. His tally just above 24%, for second place after Cruz and just ahead of Senator Marco Rubio in the first vote after months of wall-to-wall media coverage raises serious questions about whether showmanship has a winning strategy. A second hiccup, at the New Hampshire primary next Tuesday, would spell political disaster for the billionaire. Cruz won 27.7% of the vote in the Republican caucus in Iowa, staking his claim to be the new standard bearer of the right. Rubio, whose star has risen in recent weeks, won more than 23%, anointing him as the Republican establishment candidate of choice best placed to defeat presumed Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. Iowa loser Polls put Trump firmly ahead among Republican voters in New Hampshire, but analysts warn that anything less than a win in Tuesdays primary will further damage his campaign message that he is a winner. Jeanne Zaino, a professor of political science in New York, said Trumps outburst was a strategic move designed to counter the narrative that he lost in Iowa and that his campaign is beatable. Thats a huge component of Donald Trumps campaign. Hes been campaigning saying hes a winner and all of a sudden he comes out of Iowa a loser, she said. She predicted that Trump would step up sharp attacks on Cruz and Rubio, the telegenic young senator, as the New Hampshire primary nears. Its strategic on his part and hes also trying to make sure that he takes some of the wind out of Cruz and Rubios sails as he goes into New Hampshire, where he has been leading for some time to make sure he comes out ahead in New Hampshire, she added. The Cruz insult ensured once again Wednesday that Trump headlined the media coverage of the Republican presidential election and once again saving him from spending millions on campaign advertisements. He has said really outlandish things in the past and none of them have really hurt him in the polls. So I dont think this is going to hurt him so much and hes attacking someone whose not wildly popular even in his own party, said Zaino, in reference to Cruz. Islamabad: India's new High Commissioner- designate to Pakistan Gautam H Bambawale on Thursday called on Premier Nawaz Sharif's top aide, who emphasised the envoy's crucial role in strengthening bilateral ties. Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Syed Tariq Fatemi welcomed the Indian envoy and wished him a successful and productive tenure. "He highlighted the important role of Bambawale in strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries, the Foreign Office (FO) said in a statement. No further details of the meeting were provided by the Foreign Office. Bambawale, who replaced T C A Raghavan after his retirement, arrived in the country last month and has not yet presented his credentials to the President of Pakistan which is a part of official protocol to start functioning as the High Commissioner. On his arrival, Bambawale, who was earlier India's envoy to Bhutan, had said that he was coming to Pakistan with the message of friendship and the intentions of improving bilateral relations. "We want to strengthen our relationship with Pakistan," the senior diplomat had said. Bambawale's appointment comes amid fresh strains between the two countries after the Pathankot attack, which led to postponement of the Foreign Secretary-level talks. At the center is a demand by workers to cancel a law passed last month to enable government to transform PIA into a public limited company and sell its shares with management rights. (Photo: YouTube Video Grab) Islamabad: Pakistan International Airlines has incurred an estimated loss of over USD 17 million since last week due to the country-wide strike by its employees against the planned privatisation of the ailing national flag carrier, an official said on Thursday. The protest was launched on January 26 but it turned violent on Tuesday when at least two PIA workers were shot dead in clashes with security forces outside the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi. The airline had suffered a loss of one billion Pakistani rupees till February 2. It lost another 500 million rupees between February 2 and 3 and by February 4, the cash-strapped carrier lost another estimated 300 million rupees, PIA spokesperson Danyal Gilani said. "So far, the airline has reported a loss of 1.8 billion rupees (over USD 17 million)," Gilani was quoted as saying by Dawn news. The losses are due to grounding of the entire fleet of PIA and costs due to accommodating passengers with valid tickets at hotels and arranging other airlines to transport them. Four major airports - Karachi's Jinnah International Airport, Islamabad's Benazir Bhutto International Airport, Lahore's Allama Iqbal International Airport and Peshawar's Bacha Khan International Airport - saw a huge rush of passengers due to flight cancellations. Gilani said PIA is in final stages of negotiations with Etihad Airways and Turkish Airlines to facilitate passengers booked to travel internationally. Despite losses and suffering, no headway has been made so far in resolving the issues. At the center is a demand by workers to cancel a law passed last month to enable government to transform PIA into a public limited company and sell its shares with management rights. India and Pakistan last month mutually agreed to a short deferment of Foreign Secretary-level talks after the Pathankot terror attack. (Photo: AFP) Islamabad: Pakistan on Thursday said that it is in touch with India on finalising dates for the postponed Foreign Secretary-level talks. "Both sides are in touch regarding the date of Foreign Secretary-level talks. We will let you know when it is finalised," Foreign Office spokesman Qazi Khalilullah said on Thursday during weekly briefing. The agenda of the talks will be discussed after date for the Foreign Secretary-level talks is finalised, he said. India and Pakistan last month mutually agreed to a short deferment of Foreign Secretary-level talks after the Pathankot terror attack. Talking about the visa controversy relating to actor Anupam Kher, he said High Commissioner in India spoke to the actor and offered him a visa to attend the Literature Festival to which he was invited. "However, Kher replied that he would not be able to visit Pakistan due to other commitments," the spokesman said. Responding to a question, Khalilullah said the dossiers on India's alleged involvement in fomenting terrorism in Pakistan have already been shared with the US and the UN. To another query, he said that questions about Dawood Ibrahim have been asked several times in the past and reiterated Pakistan's position that he was not present in the country. "You may be aware that Indian authorities have admitted at the Ministerial level that Dawood Ibrahim's whereabouts were not known to them," he said. Ahead of Solidarity day being observed in Pakistan on Friday to support right of self-determination of people of Kashmir, Khalilullah said, "India continues to violate the human rights of and brutalise Kashmiris in the occupied Kashmir. Pakistan has always condemned these atrocities." "Kashmir Solidarity Day, to be observed tomorrow, reminds us of the Indian atrocities and the need for Kashmir dispute to be resolved in accordance with the UN Security Council Resolutions and aspirations of the people of Kashmir," he said. Khalilullah also said the meeting of the Quadrilateral Coordination Group on Afghanistan talks was scheduled for February 6 and will be held in Islamabad as planned. He said Pakistan and Afghanistan were in touch at various levels regarding the use of Afghan soil by certain elements involved in the terrorist attack on Bacha Khan university. The spokesman said that Pakistan does not differentiate between good and bad terrorists and it was at the heart of Operation Zarb-e-Azb against militants. LANSING, MI -- Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder today signed a replacement emergency manager law that he says improves upon the version that voters rejected less than two months ago. Like its predecessor, Public Act 436 of 2012 allows the state to intervene in financially struggling municipalities and school districts. But unlike Public Act 4 of 2011, the new law allows local officials to choose between four different forms of intervention: A consent agreement, chapter 9 bankruptcy, mediation or emergency manager. "This legislation demonstrates that we clearly heard, recognized and respected the will of the voters," Snyder said in a statement announcing the signing. "It builds in local control and options while also ensuring the tools to protect communities and school districts' residents, students and taxpayers." Michigan voters repealed the state's old emergency manager law by rejecting Proposal 1 on the November ballot. Critics said the "draconian" law went too far by allowing state-appointed emergency managers to usurp local control and break collective bargaining agreements . The new law, which includes an appropriation making it immune to referendum, also allows emergency managers to break union contracts if negotiations fail, a controversial power typically reserved for municipal bankruptcy proceedings. Do we know anybody that would (not can) win the election this November? Between Trump, Cruz, Rubio, Hillary, and Sanders, no one is qualified to be president. The late-Casey Stengel, aka as the Old Perfessor in baseball, once managed the 1962 New York Mets, an expansion team that. They won 40 games and lost 120 of them. They were so bad on the field that he asked anybody within earshot, "Can anybody play this game?" So now, can anybody be president in January 2017? Speaking at a specially convened IMO assembly, Ban began by congratulating fellow countryman Lim Ki-tack on having assumed the top role at the IMO last month, quipping that there were now two Korean secretary-generals within the UN organization. But this was not the reason for his visit, he explained, rather it was to emphasise two recent landmark agreements reached by the international community - the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement on climate change. Both these agreements were important commitments and visions, representing a triumph for multilateralism at a crucial moment for the future of humankind, he said, and the maritime sector and IMO had a major role to play in their implementation. The goals outlined in the agreements need to be followed in their totality rather than individually in isolation, he added, while greater empowerment of young people and women on a global basis was also needed for the future good. Ban paid tribute to the work already carried out by the IMO in having framed the Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) for newbuildings, which he said would help achieve to a 30% reduction in emissions by 2025. He also praised the shipping industry for its humanitarian work in assisting migrants and refugees undertaking perilous journeys in unseaworthy boats, especially in the Mediterranean. Referring to the current tally of 60m displaced persons as the largest since the end of World War II, the secretary-general went on to announce that he would be convening a high-level UN meeting on the subject on 19 September. The summit would aim to find solutions, including establishing safe and legal migration pathways and addressing the conflicts and other failures that force people to risk their lives in this way, he said. ICBC, which has just opened an office in Antwerp, is expected to bring the port and related investment opportunities to the attention of Chinese investors, while Antwerps business activities will also be promoted among ICBCs customers. Our efforts are directed at strengthening the positions of both sides as part of the OBOR project, explained chief commercial officer Luc Arnouts. Antwerp is an attractive partner not only because of its location in the heart of Europe; its many overseas shipping connections make Antwerp a leading port at the western end of the modern Silk Road. Antwerp is also an important partner for china from the strategic point of view, thanks to the various collaboration agreements with ports or regions along the New Silk Road, he continued. Add to that the numerous attractive investment opportunities in our port, and the checklist that led to todays agreement is complete. Port of Antwerps trade with China rose by near 40% in 2015. Imports from China were up by more than 60%, largely a result of the double call in Antwerp by the 2M Alliance. Only in rhetoric. Watch their actions instead of their words and a different picture will appear. Republicans have signed off on amnesty for illegals more than once and have not lifted a finger to stop the flood of third worlders into our country. "The Jewish people as a whole will be its own Messiah. It will attain world domination by the dissolution of other races...and by the establishment of a world republic in which everywhere the Jews will exercise the privilege of citizenship. In this New World Order the Children of Israel...will furnish all the leaders without encountering opposition..." (Karl Marx in a letter to Baruch Levy, quoted in Review de Paris, June 1, 1928, p. 574) A final investment decision has been made, reports Dong, and contracts for the 174 turbines, each 623 ft tall, have been agreed with Siemens, which is in the process of building a new turbine manufacturing facility at the nearby port of Hull in Yorkshire The project will have a capacity of 1.2 GW - making it the worlds first offshore wind farm to exceed 1,000 MW - with electricity generation due to begin in 2019. The wind farm is expected to be fully commissioned in 2020, and will receive a fixed tariff from the UK Government for the first 15 years of production. "Hornsea Project One is a world-leading infrastructure project, said Brent Cheshire, chairman of Dong Energy UK. "To have the world's biggest ever offshore wind farm located off the Yorkshire coast is hugely significant, and highlights the vital role offshore wind will play in the UK's need for new low-carbon energy." Artist's impression of Siemens' new facility at Green Port Hull Designated Forth Warrior, the 27 m-long 2712 is one of the largest models in Damens Multi Cat range, and provides deck space for carrying equipment, 360 visibility from the deckhouse, and a shallow draught for operations close to the shore. Special equipment being installed on the vessel, which is due for June delivery, includes a DPS-1 system for use in activities such as windfarm support and a four-point mooring system for diving operations, featuring removable winches each capable of holding 320 m of wire. This is the third vessel that Briggs Marine has purchased from Damen in recent years, following delivery of Forth Jouster Multi Cat 2611, and 62 m Anchor Handler Kingdom of Fife, being used on a 100 million company contract to provide maintenance and mooring support for the UKs Royal Navy. An interesting take on the caucuses, but a little weak in understanding the big picture. What exactly does your opinion-page journalist mean by "older form of socialism"? Is he talking about utopian socialism, like Robert Owen described in A New View of Society, 1825? Is he talking about the Evolutionary Socialism of Eduard Bernstein, 1899? Or maybe Democratic Socialism espoused by Eugene Debs and Norman Thomas? Correction: No one lived through the collapse of socialism. FYI, it's still alive and well in many parts of the world, including China. What we witnessed in 1991-92 was the collapse of the Soviet police-state and it's Eastern Bloc satellites. Apparently your journalist doesn't understand the difference between Soviet Socialism and Euro-socialism. He seems to think the only way industry can be nationalized is by a violent party-led revolution. As many have pointed out for centuries, there are other means. And in the U.S. Bernie might have Euro-socialist leanings, not a bad voice to have in high office to counteract the corporate-led oligarchy that has hold of our government, but we also have this thing called the Constitution that prevents him from taking private property for any reason without just compensation. I KNOW Truman nationalized the steel and railroad industries, but 1) we were at war and could not do with a strike, and 2) he had to return control to the owners when the war was over. Bernie is a person of high ideals who can see through the Right-Wing corporate monopoly on the nation's purse-strings. We need someone in power who has a distaste for pork. But realistically, one man against the Congress, the Courts, and the mass media. How much "communizing" in 4 years--that's all he'll get--does anyone think he can actually pull off? Press Release February 4, 2016 Transcript of Kapihan sa Senado with Senate President Franklin M. Drilon On the Senate accomplishment SPFMD: Good morning to everybody. Yesterday was our last session day before we go on a campaign trail. I'm glad that I am able to maintain my perfect attendance. This 16th Congress witnessed many historic firsts. The 16th Congress witnessed one of the most ruckus cases and political storm. Never in the history of the Senate where three of its members were hailed before the court and jailed on charges of corruption: two are still in jail and one is on bail. The history of the Senate will show that it is the first time it happened. The history of the Senate showed how the chamber became the battleground of many political battles. The vice president was subjected to intense investigation. The pork barrel issue occupied our time. The Mamasapano hearing was very emotionally charged investigation. Insofar as this Congress is concerned, we can assert that one of the biggest reform achievements that we can claim is that we abolished the pork barrel even before the Supreme Court declared it as unconstitutional. That is on record. I think this is the first Congress where the senate president was invited to appear before the Blue Ribbon committee. Hinarap ko silang lahat dahil wala akong tinatago. In fact, the Ombudsman dismissed these charges as being baseless because it was based on Wikipedia and whispers. But nevertheless, hinara ko lahat iyan. All these indicated that the 16th Congress is fair and we followed the law, and that we are transparent. Also, we note that this Senate has, probably for the first time, six of its members are running for president and vice president. Notwithstanding all these controversies, the Senate was able to recover and regain the people's trust and confidence. We did not break or implode as some of our critics predicted. We heeded the people's clamor to have the pork barrel abolished. The Senate, in a number of surveys done by Pulse Asia and SWS, attained the highest ratings among the institutions. The Senate President himself, we were rated several times as among the most trusted officials. We also passed the most number of landmark laws in the recent history. By the ways, the Senate passed on third reading a total of 284 bills and of which, 116 became laws, 59 were pending for President's approval, four bicam reports are pending in the House of Representatives for ratification, seven more in the bicam being discussed. We can really show that we did our share in opening up the economy to provide better environment for investment and create jobs. Many of the laws that we passed languished in the legislative mill for years. Among these are the Philippine Competition Act, which had been pending in Congress for many years, as well as the amendment to the Cabotage law, TIMTA, the law which allowed full entry of foreign banks. We also increased the tax exemption ceiling for the 13th month from P30,000 to P82,000. We passed the law that provided full medical care for senior citizens. We also passed the SK Reform Act, which, for the first time, provided an anti-dynasty provision. We also increased the number of courts from five to seven division in order to allow the faster resolution of graft cases. By and large, we would like to assert that we have achieved much for this Congress. SPFMD: Yesterday was not a very pleasant way of closing our session. Senator Enrile invoked Section 20 and as a result, the confirmation of a number of career officials, both in the Constitutional offices and the Department of Foreign Affairs, were deferred and derailed, I have directed the Secretary of the Commission on Appointments to conduct a review of Section 20 of our rules which allows a member to move for a deferment of nomination for no reason at all. As you saw yesterday, I have asked the Secretary to study how we can amend that rules so that the Section 20 cannot be used arbitrarily in order that we can shield career government officials from politics. Yesterday, you know, the career officials in the Commission on Audit - Commissioner Isabel Agito, she's a career official, and her confirmation was derailed by the invocation of Section 20. Commissioner of Civil Service Nieves Osorio, ganoon din, and the five ambassadors who were nominated were all career ambassadors, and their careers were derailed by the invocation of Section 20, and I am saddened by that development, so I have asked the Commission on Appointments Secretary to research on how we can amend the rules so that it cannot be used arbitrarily and so that we can shield career officials from politics. Q: Sir, do you see a political motive in the invocation of Section 20? SPFMD: I don't want to ascribe any motive, you can judge for yourself. There was absolutely no reason on the merits, on merits of the appointments. There is no question on the qualifications of the career people to be confirmed to the posts that they were nominated for. Q: Sabi ni Senator Enrile, dapat daw po ipaubaya na po sa susunod na Pangulo yung pag-aappoint, idedeprive daw po yung next President. SPFMD: The next President can always recall them. If he doesn't feel that these people are not qualified, they can always be recalled. And on top of this, some of these posts have been vacant for quite a while. The one in Chile has been vacant for quite a while. Q: So was the reason not valid? SPFMD: That is why I want this studied again. This rule has been there for the last 50 years, we discovered. And therefore it is time to review it. Q: So para bang na-abuse yung paggamit ng Section 20? SPFMD: That is why we have to review it so it can not be invoked arbitrarily so that we can shield our career officials from politics. Q: Do they still have time to be confirmed when sessions resume from May to June? SPFMD: Well there is still time but you know, whether or not there will be a quorum at that point is something that we have to contend with. But having said that, I don't see how the public interest would have been harmed with their confirmation. I could not see how public interest was served by the invocation of Section 20. And by the way, in the past there were also nominations on the last days before the election, and Section 20 was not invoked. Q: Sir, the 16th Congress failed to pass the BBL, the SSL, the PPP. Are you satisfied with what you have accomplished or are you a little bit disappointed? SPFMD: Well I hope you don't highlight the negative, and that's the nature of media but we are willing to confront that. The BBL, you know, you are here everyday. If it were not for the Mamasapano incident, we would have passed it. Unfortunately, that incident intervened and at a certain point Senator Enrile availed of the period of interpellation and Senator Marcos could not be at the floor everyday, so there was a delay. But you know, the BBL is not the be-all and end-all of the peace process. The Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro is still there, and there is a roadmap that is outlined on the comprehensive agreement that the government signed. We should pursue it, we should pursue the peace process even if the BBL has been temporarily side-tracked. It can be presented again in the next Congress. The SSL IV, there are competing considerations. And what are those? The issue of unfunded pension payments to our retired military personnel. Just to refresh your memory, when we passed the 2016 budget, in the 2016 budget there is a P57.9 billion as salary increase for those in active service, including the military and the police. However, it did not include the payments to our pensioners in the armed forces and the Philippine National Police. The pension of our colleagues, of retired police and military officers, their pension is pegged on the salary of those in the active service. Meaning, if those in the active service will get an increase of say, P500 automatically this P500 is indexed to the pension payments and the pension payments will be increased. Overall according to the Department of Budget and Management this would necessitate another P19 billion in addition to the P57 billion in the GAA. Unfortunately, this was not anticipated in the GAA and therefore there was a problem because even if we pass the SSL IV, and there was indexation because of the existing law, we could not fund it, we could be giving false hopes. We could not fund the pension payments because it is not in the General Appropriations Act. My suggestion is that the President exercises his authority to grant increases in the salary because there is already authority under the General Appropriations Act. I think in the past, I think during the time of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, salary standardization were effected through executive orders. My suggestion is that the President issues an executive order which would mandate the payment of salary increases for 2016, because that is only where the appropriation is available and study how we can fund the indexation of the payments for our retired pensioners. Q: Is there an assurance from the Palace that the President will issue an executive order for the salary increase of government workers? SPFMD: Obviously I can't respond, I do not answer for the Palace. Maybe you ask your respective news organizations to raise that issue to the president. I cannot answer for the president. I am just proposing a way out of this very difficult problem. Q: Are you confident that the president will issue an executive order given that there is already a budget? SPFMD: There is an available budget, and there is an available authority under the 2016 budget. Q: With the death of the BBL in the 16th Congress, Professor Ferrer said that inaction dawn g 16th Congress ang pumatay sa BBL, and dito daw sa Senate yung absences nung sponsor at pagcha-change ng procedure yung nakadelay sa proseso. SPFMD: I would suggest to Professor Ferrer that you know, she should pursue the peace process. As I said, there is an existing Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro, and we should pursue this. The BBL is just one of the items in this Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro. Insofar as the change of procedure is concerned, Professor Ferrer, I am sorry, is misinformed. She says, "Why did we have to wait for the House?" That's what she says. Now I can show to her our legislative history which would indicate that as a matter of practice and as a matter of the interpretation of the Constitution laws pertaining to the ARMM are always considered as bills of local application which is tackled by the House first and referred to the Senate after they pass it and that is when we pass our own version. I regret that Professor Ferrer is misinformed on this, the records will show that we did not change any procedure. Q: Is the next administration required to honor the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro? Is the next administration obligated to pursue the Bangsamoro Basic Law? SPFMD: Of course not. That is the judgment call that they have to make, because there are portions there which may depend on executive action. But it is foolhardy for the next administration not to pursue the peace process, and that includes honoring the peace agreement. They may tweak it in some areas, but in general the peace process should be pursued, I would recommend that to the next president. Q: Sir isn't there fear on the part of lawmakers that violence would erupt if the BBL dies, the way violence erupted before? SPFMD: I have confidence in the maturity of our Muslim brothers that this is democracy, we have to go through a process, and maybe this failure to pass the BBL this time would provide us and allow us more maturity to reexamine everything. Q: Sabi po ng MILF indication daw ito na hindi pa ready ang Filipinos for reconciliation, yung hindi pagpapaaprub ng BBL. SPFMD: I don't think that conclusion is warranted. I do not agree. Filipinos on general are peaceful people, and I don't think that conclusion is warranted. Q: With the adjournment of the sessions, what will happen doon sa Mamasapano committee report? Hindi muna ia-approve sa plenary? SPFMD: Well it has never been presented in plenary so it remains a committee report. Q: So ano yun, useless? Pupunta sa archives? SPFMD: Well after the elections, after we adjourn on sine die, in June and if it is not acted upon, then it goes to the archives, Because it is not a Senate report, it is a committee report. It has not been calendared for debates. Q: Senator Poe said that President Aquno's liability in the Mamasapano incident is more political than legal. SPFMD: I leave it at that. Q: May deliberate attempt bang hindi ibigay yung Mamasapano report sa plenary para ma--archive lang? SPFMD: That is a matter within the prerogative of the chairman. In the Senate, it is the chairman who requests that the report be calendared. It is not the Senate leadership who determines what is calendared, given the fact that we are just 24, we would respect the author of the committee report to calendar for plenary debates any committee report. It is the call of Senator Poe when the Mamasapano report will be placed in the plenary. In fact, if you will recall, Senator Enrile initially wanted that the committee report already be calendared for debates, but Senator Poe did not want it calendared until Senator Enrile said, "Let's re-open." Q: Walang request si Senator Poe na i-calendar? SPFMD: No there is no request. Q: It is still part pa rin po ng official records naman po, kahit hindi tinackle sa plenary? SPFMD: It is part of the official records of the committee. The Senate plenary has not taken it up. Q: Kung sa archives lang bumagsak yung committee report, para bang useless yung hearings? SPFMD: Well as I said, that is the call of the chairperson of the committee who drafted the report. Because Senator Poe is the one who will defend it in the floor. Q: Pero kung nadala sa plenary, will you argue doon? SPFMD: We will debate on it, we will debate on it at the floor. That's the beauty of the system of democracy. The committee has its own conclusion, you present it at the plenary, and all senators will have the opportunity to debate on the report. Q: Can we ay na naging walang kwenta yung report? SPFMD: I just state the facts. It remains a committee report, it is not a Senate report until approved in plenary. It's just a committee report, not a Senate action. Q: Sir doon sa inquiry on the Vice President, is it a Senate report, because it has been presented in plenary? SPFMD: Senator Koko Pimentel presented his report in plenary. If we had time, we would have debated on it, but we had to take up so many other items in the last three days. Q: In the plenary but not yet approved? SPFMD: Not yet approved, he sponsored already the committee report. The Mamasapano report has not been even sponsored, it has not been even calendared for plenary debates, whereas the report by the subcommittee chaired by Senator Koko has been presented to the Senate. They were sponsored, and therefore we can process it. Q: Kapag hindi na-sponsor sa plenary, hindi kasama sa Senate records? SPFMD: It is not a Senate report. It is a committee report. Q: Paano po yung draft committee report sa MRT-3, may recommendation kasi for the appropriate offices to file charges against certain officials? SPFMD: Can I have a copy of the committee report? Because I have not seen it. It has not been filed to my knowledge. I would like to see the committee report because it has not been filed. Therefore, insofar as Senate is considered, it's not yet in existence. There is no recommendation yet that I know of. I maybe wrong but I have not been informed that there was a committee report filed. Right or wrong? I can be corrected. Q: But submitted na sa mother committee to Senator Serge Osmena... SPFMD: What was submitted there? Is there a signed report? Q: Signed by Senator Poe submitted to... SPFMD: The committee report must be signed by a majority of the members of the committee. So, it's a draft committee report. I'm not going to comment on draft committee reports. I want to see the committee report. Q: Sir, sino mag-circulate noon, 'yung mother committee? SPFMD: It must be circulated by the mother committee with the signatures of the member of the committee. As far as I recall, there was no sub-committee created. If you recall, the sub-committee on the Binay investigation, I'm just making a comparison. It must be circulated and signed by a majority of the committee members. Q: Sir, as presented by the chair of the sub-committee... SPFMD: It was sponsored by the chair of the sub-committee but the committee report itself was signed by the chairman, one of those who signed it. I saw the committee report which was filed in the Senate. Q: Sir, the draft committee report, once makakuha na ng signature ng majority, isa sa recommendation doon ay i-submit sa DOJ and Ombudsman for the determination of appropriate action for the case to be filed sa mga DOTC officials. SPFMD: I don't know. I cannot comment on that. Q: Sir yung mga transcript of Senate hearings can be used as evidence outside of the Senate like the Ombudsman? Because these are official statements. SPFMD: It can be used by subject to the rules of evidence in a judicial proceeding. Documents certainly can be used and in the past, the Ombudsman has requested for certified copies of the documents submitted. So, the answer is yes. Of course, I said subject to the rules of evidence in a judicial proceeding. Q: Sir, with all the problems, yung malfunction ng MRT, sa palagay niyo may dapat managot sa DOTC? SPFMD: I want to see the committee report. Q: Yung mga testimonies under oath, pwede gawing evidence? SPFMD: In a criminal proceeding, the resource persons who made the statement must be placed on the witness stand because the accused will have a right to confront them and cross-examine them just to repeat what he/she said in the course of the committee proceedings. Remember that in the committee hearings, they are resource persons, not witnesses. That's the difference. Q: Pero sir are you disappointed with all the mess sa MRT operation? Di ba madalas kawawa yung mga pasahero, madiskaril yung operation. SPFMD: Certainly I am concerned with the lines that I see in the MRT. Talagang we must provide solutions for this. Q: One way po ba to improve service ay mapanagot itong mga officials? SPFMD: I want to see the committee report. Q: As Vice Chairman of the Liberal Party, may we know when and how yung kick off ninyo? SPFMD: The campaign kick-off is in Roxas City. That is my information at this point. And then we will proceed to Iloilo City for the campaign kick off. But, in this election, corruption will be an issue and we are prepared to defend the record of the president as one who has kept his nose clean, and cannot be accused with any corrupt practice, in fact, I see one of the presidentiables that the president cannot be considered that the president. could not be charge of any corrupt practice. The respect that we have gained internationally and the perception of the international financial community, our sound economic fundamentals are all anchored on the anti-corruption platform of President PNoy. As I said, in this campaign the Liberal Party is prepared to defend the president in terms of the Daang Matuwid policy and we are willing to debate with anyone to defend the record of the President. Q: Are you confident that the pre-election surveys will change once mag start na ang campaign period? SPFMD: We are confident that once we are able to explain to the electorate the need to continue the anti-corruption drive of this administration, we will be able to reverse the perception. Q: Why Roxas City? SPFMD: Well, our candidate... Isn't it obvious? Q: Kaninong decision iyan? SPFMD: I don't know. I don't have any personal knowledge. I assumed this was agreed after considering all the circumstances. In 2010, we have also one of the early rallies n Tarlac. Q: Why from Roxas to Iloilo? It's on the same day? SPFMD: Yes, it's on the same day. What is the explanation? It is only two hours, kapitbahay lang. And, Region 6 is the bailiwick of the Liberal Party. Q: Bakit hindi Plaza Miranda? SPFMD: I can't answer that. Q: Yung sa issue ng narco-politics? SPFMD: Drugs is the serious problem in our country. But, if you look back every time there is an election, meron talagang allegations of drugs being used during the campaign and it is a good media copy, kaya nga narco-politics becomes a mantra during election time. But, we must be consistent in our campaign against illegal drugs. Hindi na po pwedeng kada eleksyon na lang ay merong narco-politics na sinasabi. Whether there is an election or not, we must consistently address this drug problem. I am aware that there is evidence of narco politics. Q: Why does the LP have to defend corruption against the President? SPFMD: I am saying that corruption is an issue, or will be an issue. The administration will defend itself from the attacks of the opposition on this point. Q: Why not focus on Mar? SPFMD: I am making an assessment, that corruption will be an issue. Q: On the SSL 4 SPFMD: Wala na, hindi na kaya. Unless we take it up again in May, I think it's too late. My suggestion is the President exercises his executive power to decree salary increases as it is already authorized under the General Appropriations Act (GAA) for this year. Q: So sir hindi po ba ma-aaprove yung bicam panel sa suggestion, iapprove na lang yung SSL 4 without the indexation? SPFMD: I do not know what happened there. I have no personal knowledge of the discussion in the bicam but that is my suggestion. Q: There is no reason naman ma-disappoint yung mga government employees? SPFMD: There is no reason why the government employees should be disappointed, because there is an appropriation and I am certain as we talk today, the President is carefully reviewing his options in so far as the salary increase is concerned. Q: If the EO does becomes an issue, ano po ang mangyayari doon sa P57 billion, diretso sa savings automatically, without the EO? SPFMD: Yes, that becomes the case. That will be savings. Q: Sir sa election rules, bawal daw magbigay ng salary increase 45 days before the election? SPFMD: Well, I am not aware of that but then, with the 45 days, there is still time. The General Appropriations Act (GAA) has provided for a salary increase. There is every reason to act on this. Immediately, the proposed Salary Standardization Law is a measure coming from Malacanang, so the only difference is that the proposed SSL was for four years. The proposal is an executive action only for one year while Congress would review this issue of being able to provide for our military pensioners whose monthly pension is sourced from the GAA, not from the GSIS, but from the GAA. Kailangang pag-aralan so the next Congress will now have to review this. Q: What happens to arrest orders to the alleged Binay cronies now? SPFMD: Well, at the end of this 16th Congress, that arrest order becomes moot if not executed and served. It dies a natural death. You know, with the expiration of the 16th Congress, then the arrest warrant becomes functus officio. No longer valid. OBAMA'S CONTRIBUTION TO AMERICA ? I got this article from a friend: Will it ever be possible to undo this damage? Before Obama there was virtually no outlandish presence of Islam in America. YOU DECIDE. ALL OF A SUDDEN !!! All of a sudden, Islam is taught in schools. Christianity and the bible are banned in schools. All of a sudden we must allow prayer rugs everywhere and allow for Islamic prayer in schools,airports and businesses. All of a sudden we must stop serving pork in prisons. All of a sudden we are inundated with law suits by Muslims who are offended by American culture. All of a sudden we must allow burkas to be worn everywhere even though you have no idea who is covered up under them. All of a sudden Muslims are suing employers and refusing to do their jobs if they personally deem it conflicts with Sharia Law. All of a sudden the Attorney General of the United States vows to prosecute anyone who engages in anti-Muslim speech. All of a sudden, Jihadists who engage in terrorism and openly admit they acted in the name of Islam and ISIS, are emphatically declared they are NOT Islamic by our leaders and/or their actions are determined NOT to be terrorism, but other nebulous terms like workplace violence." All of a sudden, it becomes Policy that Secular Middle East dictators that were benign or friendly to the West, must be replaced by Islamists and the Muslim Brotherhood. All of a sudden our troops are withdrawn from Iraq and the middle east, giving rise to ISIS. All of a sudden, America has reduced its nuclear stockpiles to 1950 levels, as Obamas stated goal of a nuke-free America by the time he leaves office continues uninterrupted. All of a sudden, a deal with Iran must be made at any cost, with a pathway to nuclear weapons and HUNDREDS of BILLIONS of dollars handed over to fund their programs. All of a sudden America APOLOGIZES to Muslim states and sponsors of terror worldwide for acts of aggression, war and sabotage THEY perpetrate against our soldiers. All of a sudden, the American Navy is diminished to 1917 Pre-World War I levels of only 300 ships. The Army is at pre-1940 levels. The Air Force scraps 500 planes and planned to retire the use of the A-10 Thunderbolt close air support fighter. A further draw down of another 40,000 military personnel is in progress. All of a sudden half of our aircraft carriers are recalled for maintenance by Obama rendering the Atlantic unguarded, NONE are in the Middle East. All of a sudden Obama has to empty Guantanamo Bay of captured Jihadists and let them loose in Jihad-friendly Islamic states. He demands to close the facility. All of a sudden America will negotiate with terrorists and trade FIVE Taliban commanders for a deserter and Jihad sympathizer. All of a sudden there is no money for American poor, disabled veterans, jobless Americans, hungry Americans, or displaced Americans but there is endless money for Obamas Syrian refugee resettlement programs. All of sudden there is an ammunition shortage in the USA. All of a sudden, the most important thing for Obama to do after a mass shooting by two Jihadists, is disarm American Citizens. By his fruits you will know him. Press Release February 4, 2016 EXODUS OF IPO WATERSHED FOREST GUARDS ALARMS CHIZ; WANTS GOV'T TO LOOK INTO THEIR PLIGHT Sen. Francis "Chiz" Escudero has expressed alarm over a report that all 23 forest guards at Ipo Watershed left their posts in January due to unpaid salaries equivalent to 15 months, which he said may expose one of the main sources of Metro Manila's water supply to illegal logging activities. In a report by social news network Rappler, the forest guards said they were fed up waiting for the government to pay their wages covering three months in 2013 (October-December), nine months in 2014 (February-October), and three months in 2015 (January-March). These forest guards patrol the 6,600-hectare Ipo Watershed, an area of mountain forests in Bulacan that is part of the larger Angat Watershed system, which provides 97 percent of Metro Manila's water needs. "The report is very alarming because it involves the preservation and sustainability of one of the critical sources of water supply for millions of Metro Manila residents," pointed out Escudero, who chairs the Senate Committee on Environment and Natural resources. Escudero called on concerned government agencies, particularly the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) and the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS), to look into the plight of the forest guards whose presence at the critical watershed area help deter illegal loggers. "By protecting the trees in the watershed, these forest guards help maintain or even improve our local water supply. That is why it is important that we make sure they are paid accordingly," said the leading vice-presidential candidate. Escudero has been pressing the government to hire more forest guards to increase the country's forest protection force and boost its wildlife law and anti-illegal logging enforcement efforts. He first broached the proposal during the hearing held by his committee last September in connection with the death of "Pamana," a three-year-old female Philippine eagle that was found dead inside the Mt. Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary in Davao City on August 16 last year. The veteran lawmaker said that wildlife crimes and illegal logging could be prevented if there were enough forest guards manning the country's forest protected areas. He said the problem of weak law enforcement was one of the most serious underlying causes why illegal logging and wildlife crimes are still on the rise. "One of the solutions is for the government to hire more forest guards. Increased presence of these 'eco-guards' will help curb illegal logging and wildlife crimes," Escudero said. During the hearing conducted by Escudero's panel in September last year, DENR officials said there were only a total of 2,500 forest guards nationwide, each receiving a salary of P8,500 a month. They added that the average forest protection force ratio in the country was one guard per 7,000 hectares. The ideal ratio is one guard per 2,000 hectares. Escudero said it was "highly impossible" for one forest guard to protect 7,000 hectares. "Hindi naman maaari 'yun. At maliwanag na hindi kakayaning bantayan ng isang tao ang 7,000 hectares," he said. Press Release February 4, 2016 Sen. Marcos tags admin for ignoring pleas of senior citizens over SSS pension hike Senator Ferdinand "Bongbong" R. Marcos, Jr. today lashed at the administration for ignoring the pleas of senior citizens after the House of Representatives squelched efforts to override the President's veto of the SSS (Social Security System) pension hike bill. Representatives of senior citizens groups trooped Wednesday to the administration-dominated Lower House to press lawmakers for the override but the chamber adjourned abruptly without giving proponents of the override a chance to air their proposal. "That added insult to injury. I respect the prerogative of the House leadership but I think it would have been a lot better if the proponents of the override were at least given a chance to speak out," said Marcos. "It's clear that the fate of the SSS pension hike bill was decided in accordance with the administration's position on this issue," he added. Malacanang had warned that if the P2,000 pension hike is implemented the SSS would be bankrupt by year 2027 and insisted that the veto of the proposal is necessary to prevent the collapse of the agency. Marcos backed moves in the Senate to override the veto on the SSS pension hike bill. However the move to override must come from the House of Representatives where the bill originated. He reiterated that a more competent management would save the SSS from the threat of bankruptcy. "If the management of the SSS did a better job in terms of collections, if they did a better job in terms of investments, they could afford it," Sen. Marcos explains. He noted the poor collection rate of SSS, which is below 40 percent. "No organization that only collects 35 percent of its receivables is ever going to succeed. Ask any businessman. Yung utang sayo, 35 percent lang yung nakokolekta mo, eh wala talagang mangyayari sa organization mo. Malulugi talaga iyan eventually," he added. Marcos said the government must be more compassionate on retired and elderly workers, many of whom are relying mainly on their SSS pension for their daily expenses. Press Release February 4, 2016 Pimentel seeks the establishment of a Mindanao Railways Corp. Senator Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel III today sought the establishment of a Mindanao Railways Corporation (MRC), prescribing its powers, functions and duties and proposed to allocate an authorized capital of P100 billion to hasten the development of the entire archipelago. He said the collective experience of Japan, Canada, the United States and most of Europe showed how railroad networks have spurred and sped up the national development of these highly developed nations around the world. "In these nations, railroads opened up vast land areas for human settlement and made it possible to transport tremendous number of people and huge volume of goods at the lowest cost," said Pimentel in his explanatory note in Senate Bill No. 3095 filed last January 25. He said the influx of people into areas previously unsettled, the easy mobility of the populace, and the availability of goods and services needed for civilized life resulted into higher productivity of the land and its people in those nations. "A railroad network crisscrossing Mindanao will considerably shorten the travel time between Zamboanga and my hometown, Cagayan de Oro, or Davao and Cagayan de Oro," Pimentel added. The railroad network, he said, would mean a reduction of the travel cost for the people and for the transportation cost of the goods whose end destination is the Visayas or Luzon, or beyond our northern shores, or vice versa. "We must benefit from the experience of other countries whose railway systems up to today provide people and goods the cheapest and fastest way of mass transit movement," said Pimentel, who is also the chairman of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights. The MRC would exist for a term of fifty years under government ownership, being a factor for socio-economic development and growth and as part of the national government's infrastructure program, he said. The proposed authorized capital stock of the MRC is P100 billion divided into P500 million common shares all with par value of P200 each, fully subscribed by the national government and other public institutions, of which P20 billion would be initially paid up by the government. He said the balance of not less than P2 billion would be paid from a continuing annual appropriation out of any funds of the national treasury not otherwise appropriated until the authorized capital subscribed by the government would have been paid in full. The proposed MRC would be authorized to secure loans and credits under the administration of a board of directors, headed by a chairman who would be appointed by the President. It would be exempted from the control of the Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board. Pimentel proposed to establish the main office of the MRC, which would become an attached agency of the Department of Transportation and Communication, in Cagayan de Oro City. It would be authorized to own or operate railroad trainways, subways, bus lines, trucklines, vessels and pipelines. Press Release February 4, 2016 POE PUSHES CRUCIAL MEASURE TO PIN DOWN DRUG LORDS As drug syndicates become more scheming in evading the law, Congress has begun taking steps to allow law enforcers to conduct wiretaps that will make them more effective in going after criminals. The Senate committee on public order and dangerous drugs led by Sen. Grace Poe, sponsored on February 3 Senate Bill No. 2139 under Committee Report No. 463, which seeks to exempt law enforcement agencies who are conducting illegal drug operations from the restrictions of Republic Act 4200 or the Anti-Wiretapping Act. "Drug syndicates have become more cunning and apparent in getting away with the law. We will continue to push for legislation that will help authorities prosecute illegal drug perpetrators," Poe said. "Patuloy po nating bigyang halaga ang nasisirang buhay--at ang iba pang buhay na maaapektuhan--dahil sa iligal na droga. Layunin po natin bilang mga mambabatas ang bigyang proteksyon ang ating mga mamamayan at ang mga pamilya laban sa iligal na droga," she added. This bill seeks to amend Section 3 of the Anti-Wiretapping Law, by exempting enforcement agencies who are conducting illegal drug operations from the realm of the law. "This bill, once enacted into law, will be beneficial in providing assistance to our law enforcement agencies and strengthening the government's ability to prosecute drug cases," she said. Illegal drugs persist as a problem in our country. According to the Dangerous Drugs Board, at least 1.7 million Filipinos are engaged in illicit drugs, which represents a 200,000 increase from the number of drug users two years ago. In the United States, wiretapping has been used to solve major crimes such as terrorism and drug trafficking. According to Poe, wiretapping has helped establish the flow of drugs and the structure of syndicates and how they are managed from the source to the market. Poe introduced an additional safety provision where she directed the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) that in its formulation of rules and regulations, the agency must coordinate and consult with the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency, DOJ and the National Security Council. This is to prevent abuses and for safety of individuals, especially that the proposed law affects civil liberties and the right to privacy. The heads of syndicate and financiers are not exposed during criminal activity. It is not easy to prove their participation in trade, but recorded conversations can establish their involvement, Poe added. Press Release February 4, 2016 BUSINESSES URGED TO PARTNER WITH FARMERS' COOPERATIVES TO HELP AGRI SECTOR Independent presidential candidate Sen. Grace Poe is urging businesses to support the country's impoverished agricultural sector by partnering with agricultural cooperatives through corporate farming. Poe said these partnerships will ensure a ready market for the products of agricultural communities and provide greater income for farmers. "Small farmers should be given the opportunity to directly sell their products to institutional markets that are willing to buy their produce at a reasonable price. This will provide a stable source of income for our farmers as well," Poe stressed. "With the limited investments that can be shouldered by the public sector, private sector intervention is valuable to achieve a more efficient agriculture sector," she said. The senator is the author of Senate Bill No. 2089, which seeks to develop a suitable corporate farming program that will boost public-private partnerships to enhance productivity in the agriculture sector. Businesses may allow farmers to till the company's existing landholdings, enter into a contractual arrangement with farmers to provide land and input, lease or purchase land for production, or partner with farms who are already employing corporative farming schemes. At a roundtable discussion with newspaper editors, Poe cited an example of a successful model of corporate farming, where a company directly sources its produce from farmers, while also providing them with the technology for a more efficient yield. The presidential frontrunner underscored the need for the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Trade and Industry to work together to forge partnerships between small-scale farmer organizations and commercial businesses in the country. Agricultural workers, who make up 70 percent of the country's labor force, are also among the poorest. In 2012, the highest poverty incidence was among fishermen and farmers, at 39.2 percent and 38.3 percent, respectively, the Philippine Statistics Authority said. According to the World Bank, the agriculture sector's share to the Philippine economy in 2014 only stood at 11.3 percent, way behind the industry sector at 31.4 percent and the services sector at 57.3 percent. The agriculture sector has posted less than one percent growth in the last few years. Press Release February 4, 2016 Drilon: Landmark laws cement 16th Congress legacy Senate President Franklin M. Drilon today said that the Senate of the 16th Congress left as its legacy a record of landmark measures that would pave the way for a more vibrant economy and improved delivery of basic services to the Filipino people. "The Senate rose above all challenges and I am absolutely proud to report that we passed around 284 bills on third reading, 116 of which are now enacted as new laws of the land. 59 measures are for the approval of the President, four more measures with bicameral reports are pending House ratification, while seven another bills are pending in the bicameral conference committee," Drilon said. "But more than that, the Senate of the 16th Congress passed the most number of landmark laws than any Congress in recent history," Drilon stressed. Landmark economic reforms Describing the Senate of the 16th Congress a "witness to many historic firsts," Drilon said that landmark laws that they have passed were languishing in the legislative mill for years, particularly those on improving the national economy and uplifting the livelihood of Filipinos. The Senate leader said that the 16th Congress is particularly proud of the passage of the Philippine Competition Act (RA 10667) which took more than 20 years to pass. "The law outlaws and penalizes anti-competitive agreements, abuse of dominant position, and anti-competitive mergers and acquisitions, and will help put an end to the stranglehold of monopolies to our local markets," he explained. Drilon also said that the Senate secured the passage into law of the amendments to the Cabotage Law (RA 10668), which would liberalize coastwise trading to open the market to competition and bring down cost of transportation by sea, the Tax Incentives Management and Transparency Act (10708) which would enhance transparency on tax breaks granted to the private sector, and the RA 10641 which allows foreign banks to acquire and invest up to 100% of the voting stock of a domestic bank. In addition, Drilon said that the Senate was able to push the Revised Insurance Code (RA 10607), which imposes more stringent capitalization requirements to strengthen the insurance industry, the Go Negosyo Act (10644) which promotes job generation through the development of the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and the Philippine Lemon Law (RA 10642) which strengthens consumer protection in the purchase of brand new motor vehicles. Better working conditions, public services Drilon said that the Senate has also been consistent promoting worker rights and better public services, as reflected by the passage of the law which raises tax exemption ceiling on the 13th Month Pay from P30,000 to P82,000 (RA 10653), the MARINA Law (RA 10635) which introduces major structural changes to the country's maritime regulatory system, and the law which protects seafarers against "ambulance chasers" during emergencies (RA 10706). "Still, we also passed the PAGASA Modernization Act (RA 10692) which modernizes the state weather bureau to help provide the nation with better meteorological forecasts, in tandem with the Free Mobile Alerts Act (10639), which mandates the broadcast of free mobile alerts to all mobile users during times of calamities," he also said. Improved education, health sectors Drilon then stressed that the Senate also succeeded in passing laws seeking to improve the country's educational services: "Our Filipino youth are huge winners with the package of education laws that we have worked on, such as the Iskolar ng Bayan Act (RA 10648), Ladderized Education Act (RA 10647), Open High School System (RA 10665), Open Distance Learning in Tertiary Education Act (RA 10650) and the Unified Financial Assistance System for Tertiary Education Act (RA 10687). These would provide wider access to quality education by removing barriers such as poverty, physical distance or social factors." "We also enacted a measure which provides all senior citizens with automatic Philhealth coverage (RA 10645), to help our elderly with their increasing medical expenses, and the Graphic Health Warning Act (RA 10643) which seeks to raise awareness on the ill-effects of the use of tobacco products, through graphic warnings in packages of tobacco products," Drilon added. Political, judicial reforms Drilon then said that the 16th Congress made true on its reform-oriented goals with the passage numerous political and judicial reform laws: "We were successful in passing the Sandiganbayan Reform Law (RA 10660), which would speed up the resolution of anti-graft and corruption cases in the said court, and the amendments to the Probation Law (RA 10707) which expands the benefit of probation for more eligible convicts and push for their rehabilitation." "We have also made a breakthrough with our country's first law with an anti-political dynasty provision with the passage of the Sangguniang Kabataan Reform Law (RA 10742), which prohibits relatives of local elected and appointed officials up to second level of consanguinity and relatives of national and appointed officials from sitting as SK officials.," he said. Public approval, trust restored Drilon acknowledged that the past years have not been easy for the Senate as a public institution: "The 16th Congress was hit by one of the fiercest political storms in recent history. It was the first Congress which saw three of its members were jailed for charges of corruption due to the pork barrel scam - two of them are still in jail, while the other is out on bail." "This chamber became the battleground of many political battles, and it saw witness to so many investigations and probes such as pork barrel issue, corruption charges against the Vice President and the Mamasapano incident," he added. However, Drilon said, "the Senate did not break or implode. Rather, it emerged from the crisis with a stronger resolve to give the best service possible to the nation and the Filipino people." He noted how the Senate's public ratings have bounced back. "In fact, in the last quarter of 2015, the Senate as an institution received the highest approval rating of 47% in a survey conducted by Pulse Asia," he said. "Indeed, public trust and approval to the Senate has been restored. Indeed, the only way to win the hearts and minds of our people is to work hard and fulfil our mandates, which we did," Drilon then concluded. The Senate plenary sessions are adjourned up until May 23, 2016, when Congress reconvenes as the National Board of Canvassers tasked with canvassing the votes and determining the winners for the 2016 national elections. Drilon leads launching of Senate centennial commemorative stamp Senate President Franklin Drilon, together with Philippine Postal Corporation (PHLPost) Chairman Cesar Sarino, led the unveiling of the Senate centennial commemorative stamp at the Recto-Laurel Room, Senate building in Pasay City today. Drilon thanked Sarino for helping with the Senate centennial commemorative stamp project, saying that the stamp launch was meant to reflect the Senate's glorious history. He said the Senate was marking its 100 year anniversary with the theme "Senado ng Pilipino: Isang Siglo, 1916-2016, Sandigan ng Demokrasya, Dangal ng Sambayang ng Pilipino." Secretary Oscar Yabes said the Senate has always been a staunch defender of national interest and promoter of the Filipino's well being. "We want to celebrate the Senate centennial year in a simple but meaningful way. In line with the centennial celebration, we conducted a Senate centennial series, nationwide essay contest for high school students in coordination with the DepEd, This is to raise awareness of the relevance of the Senate in our nation ," Yabes said. The Senate is celebrating its centennial year from October 2015 to October 2016 under Proclamation No. 1091 signed last August 7, 2015 by President Benigno S. Aquino III. The proclamation calls on all national government offices, government-owned or controlled corporations (GOCCs), and local government units (LGUs), to support and extend "assistance and cooperation to the Senate in the observance of its Centennial year." Measuring 40mm x 30mm, the Senate centennial stamp frame features the Philippine flag and Senate logo from 1987 to the present. It was designed by artist Luis "Junyee" E. Yee, Jr. "Truly it is an honor for PHLPost to have become part of this celebration. It is but fitting that a stamp will immortalize the achievements of this August body which now have reached its centennial year," Sarino earlier said. He said PHLPost had commissioned Amstar Co. to print 101,000 copies of the stamps, to be sold at P15 each starting February 01, 2016. The stamps and official first day cover are now available at the Post Shop, Central Post Office, Door 203, Liwasang Bonifacio in Manila and area post offices nationwide. Guests who attended the event included Mrs. Milagros Drilon, Mrs. Lourdes Pimentel, PHLPost Officer-in-Charge General Manager Joel Otarra, Dr. Ma. Serena Diokno, Yee, among others. (Apple Buenaventura) Condoleezza Rice Aides, Colin Powell Also Got Classified Info on Personal Emails State Department officials have determined that classified information was sent to the personal email accounts of former Secretary of State Colin Powell and the senior staff of former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, NBC News has learned. In an interview with NBC News, Powell challenged the conclusion, saying nothing that went to his personal account was secret. Rice did not initially respond to an interview request. In a letter to Undersecretary of State Patrick Kennedy dated Feb. 3, State Department Inspector General Steve Linick said that the State Department has determined that 12 emails examined from State's archives contained national security information now classified "Secret" or "Confidential." The letter was read to NBC News. Two of the messages were sent to Powell's personal account, and 10 were sent to personal accounts of Rice's senior aides, the letter said. None of the messages were marked classified when originally sent, and none were determined to include information from the intelligence community, Linick said in the document. Powell told NBC News he strongly disputed that the information in the messages sent to him was classified, and characterized the contents as "fairly minor." " I wish they would release them," Powell said, "so that a normal, air-breathing mammal would look at them and say, 'What's the issue?'" Powell said he has read the two messages in question, having been made aware of the letter. The messages originated with ambassadors -- one in the Philippines, the other in Europe. He said they were first circulated on unclassified State Department systems, and sent to his personal account by his assistant. "They were unclassified at the time, and they are, in my judgment, still unclassified," he said. Powell, who served as secretary from 2001 to 2005, said he used a personal email account because State's email system was slow and cumbersome. Powell is credited with modernizing State's computer infrastructure, which did not at the time allow each employee to have the internet at their desks. " State's system at the time was inadequate," he said. But, he added, "I did not use my email account for any classified matters because I had a classified computer on my desk." Linick's letter said his initial findings suggest there could be a lot more classified material in State's unclassified archives. He recommended that State take steps to find and remove it. The IG came upon the material during the course of a review of how current and past secretaries of state deal with classified material and with email. He sent 19 email messages to nine State bureaus and offices for review, and 12 were deemed to include classified material. The review was prompted by the current controversy over Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's use of a personal computer server to conduct government business while secretary of state. Linick's findings will be seen as helpful to Clinton, because they show that past secretaries of state and senior officials used personal accounts to conduct government business and occasionally allowed secrets to spill into the insecure traffic. Authorities have positively identified a BASE jumper believed to have drowned in the waters off Big Sur while trying to save a friend who parachuted off the Bixby Bridge and was lost in the ocean. The body of Finnish national Rami Kajala, 42, was found Saturday near the bridge by crews searching the area for signs of him and a 30-year-old Ventura woman who also went missing. A coroner confirmed this week that the body was Kajala. Officials have not found the body of the woman, Mary Katherine Connell, of Ventura. It took days for officials to learn they went missing while BASE jumping off of the bridge, Monterey County Sheriff Cmdr. John Thornburg said. Investigators were only able to put together the chain of events after they recovered a helmet camera from Kajala days after the incident. The video shows Connell and Kajala at the Highway 1 bridge on what appeared to be Jan. 20, Thornburg said. Connell, who went by Katie, jumped over the side of the bridge and successfully deployed her parachute, aiming for a small beach about 300 feet below. Unfortunately for her, she landed in the surf, Thornburg said. As she landed, she was overtaken by a wave. Two more waves quickly came in secession, and she disappeared from view. Thats when Kajala parachuted off the bridge and successfully landed on the beach. As he landed, he took off his parachute and put down the helmet camera, Thornburg said. We believe he went into the ocean to try to rescue her and subsequently drowned, he said. BASE jumping refers to the acronym for parachuting from buildings, antennas, spans and earth such cliffs. Thornburg said the tragic couple parked their car on a road about 30 to 50 yards from the bridge, and that the vehicle was tagged for removal by the California Highway Patrol a day after the jump. A search didnt start until Jan. 23 when the mans parachute was discovered with his helmet camera, which revealed the couple was probably loss at sea. Jenna Lyons is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: jlyons@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JennaJourno This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Two sets of bones found off Highway 20 near Willits nearly 37 years ago have been identified as the slain remains of a pair of teenage girls missing from Forestville since 1978, Mendocino County sheriffs officials said. For nearly four decades, the two cold cases the missing girls and the discovered bones remained unsolved and unconnected, waiting for technological advances to correct the mistaken belief that the bones were those of a male and a female. This week, the families of 15-year-old Kerry Graham and 14-year-old Francine Trimble joined Sheriff Thomas Allman as he announced that the remains were the missing girls. We had largely resigned ourselves to never knowing why they disappeared, said Will Walsh, Francines uncle. We suspected that maybe foul play had been involved. Were glad to know theres a definite answer to that. The identification capped a long and tangled investigation into the bones, which included two exhumations for DNA analysis. I hope you would never believe we have forgotten this case, Allman told the families during a Tuesday news conference. This case is as active as it ever has been. Kerry and Francine, inseparable friends, went missing just before Christmas in 1978 after telling family members they were headed to the mall, Allman said. They were never seen again. Nearly seven months later, two tourists driving on Highway 20 pulled over about 11 miles from Willits to stretch. One went for a walk and discovered the remains. The couple marked the spot with a soda can and contacted authorities. The remains were sent to a forensic pathologist and an anthropologist. For some reason, and I dont know why, in 1980, the remains were classified as a found male and a found female, Allman said. Both approximately age 14. The majority of the evidence was then sent to the FBI, where the case went cold for 20 years. In 2000, the bones were exhumed, with DNA collected, but the effort yielded nothing. The remains were exhumed for DNA again in 2011 as the British Broadcasting Corp. and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children investigated the cold case. Finally, two months ago, the DNA was positively linked to Kerry and Francine, Allman said. While the bones have now been identified, what happened to the girls remains an open question, Allman said. The remains yielded no clues about how the girls died, he said. Were hoping somebody out there knows something, he said. This is a senseless case, a senseless tragedy. The girls relatives said the identification brought a fresh round of grief and hope that those responsible would be found. We miss Francine, Walsh said. We regret deeply she never had a chance at a good life. Authorities are asking anyone with information to call a tip line at (707) 234-2100. Jill Tucker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: jtucker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @jilltucker Santa Clara University officials urged students Wednesday to be vaccinated after two students underwent testing for meningitis, sparking a campus-wide scare. Hospital officials confirmed that the first student, who was hospitalized Sunday, contracted the serogroup B strain of meningococcal meningitis. The second student has meningococcemia, the bloodstream infection. If not treated in time, the disease can result in infection of the brain and spinal cord lining or infection of the blood. It can also be fatal. Because of health privacy laws, county officials could not elaborate on the conditions of the two students, who were both receiving treatment Wednesday. Classes and Super Bowl 50 events in the city will not be impacted, officials said. More for you 2 Santa Clara University students have meningitis Serogroup B is a particular concern for public health officials because the vaccine that most children and teenagers receive does not protect against the strain. But two new vaccines against the serogroup, Bexsero and Trumenba, were licensed in 2014 and 2015 and will be offered for free to Santa Clara University students at clinics Thursday and Friday. The university will have 3,500 doses available, according to Deepa Arora, a university spokeswoman. All hands are on deck for that vaccination clinic, Arora said. If I could physically nag all 5,000 undergraduate students, I would. County health officials have said that it takes about two weeks for immunity to build after the vaccine and that a second dose should be administered within one month of the first. School administrators worked with the Santa Clara County Public Health Department to identify hundreds of students who may have come in close contact with the two ill undergraduates and give preventive treatment to those who need it. Meningococcal infections can lead to hearing loss, brain damage, loss of limbs or death, according to the California Department of Public Health. Symptoms are often flu-like and may involve fever, headache, stiff neck and vomiting. The disease typically spreads through prolonged or close contact via mucus or saliva, experts say. College campuses periodically see clusters or outbreaks of the disease due to students living in close proximity and because young adults are at a greater risk for meningitis. Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov The Oakland City Council voted Tuesday to pay $75,000 to settle a wrongful death claim from the families of Fletcher Jackson and John Sloan, two men who were shot dead by Oakland police in 2011 after officers got a tip that a violent gang crime was about to happen in a quiet Fruitvale neighborhood. Jackson and Sloan were killed after police stopped their car as they were driving up the 3000 block of Curran Avenue on May 18, 2011. According to a federal lawsuit filed the following year by the slain mens families, an unmarked police cruiser swerved into the mens path at about 10:30 p.m., and police Officers Ersie Joyner and Victor Garcia jumped out with their guns drawn. Jackson, Sloan and another companion, Wynn Brewer, had been the targets of a secret operation of the Oakland police and federal law enforcement, the lawsuit said. Prosecutors from the Alameda County district attorneys office said the men were part of a larger murder plot and were on their way to carry out a killing when police intervened. Police said in court filings that they had learned about the alleged plot by wiretapping the phone of another suspect, Patrick Shields, who was later charged along with Brewer with conspiracy to commit murder. They were convicted by an Alameda County jury in October 2014. But civil rights attorney John Burris, who represented Jackson and Sloan in their families case against the city, said the police used vague intelligence to justify a needless killing. The officers were intent on detaining and arresting the young men based upon vague and ambiguous information that the three young men were intending to engage in some form of violence at some later point in the future, the lawsuit said. Jackson was unarmed at the time he was shot, attempting to flee the car. He was then handcuffed and forced to sit on the curb while blood oozed from his gunshot injury, the lawsuit said. He died at the scene. Sloan emerged from the vehicle with a gun and managed to flee 20 or 30 yards before Joyner shot him in the back of the head, according to the lawsuit. In an affidavit filed in 2012 Oakland police Officer Anthony Tedesco said that Sloan had raised a gun at the police before he was shot. Rachel Swan is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: rswan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @rachelswan Tetra Images A Chicago TV cameraman in San Francisco to cover Super Bowl 50 was robbed of his camera at gunpoint, police said Wednesday. Marcus Richardson was taking scenic background pictures on Tuesday at Lombard and Hyde streets for station WBBM when he was robbed of his camera and a backpack around 9:15 p.m. by two unidentified gunmen while putting equipment back into his car. Health officials said Thursday that a third student at Santa Clara University has tested positive for a meningitis-causing bacteria, while authorities in Alameda County said an employee at Argosy University recently died from the disease in an unrelated case. All of the Santa Clara University students were hospitalized after falling ill around the same time Sunday, but knowledge of the extent of the outbreak unraveled over the next several days as laboratory test results poured in. Officials announced the first case Monday, a second one Tuesday and the third case on Thursday. We cant predict whether there will be additional cases, said Dr. Sara Cody, Santa Clara Countys public health officer. She stressed the need for afflicted students to get early treatment and for officials to locate those who had been in close contact with them. Santa Clara County Public Health Department officials said the three students were all suffering from the serogroup B form of meningococcal disease. The three cases are related, and Cody said the students were part of the same social sphere. A vaccine that most children and teenagers receive does not protect against serogroup B. It wasnt until 2014 that any vaccine was authorized in the United States to fight that particular strain, Cody said. Bacterias risks The bacteria can lead to meningitis, which involves inflammation of the lining that surrounds the brain and spinal cord. It can also result in meningococcemia, a bloodstream infection. Alameda County officials recently learned firsthand that the malady can be fatal. On Jan. 25, Argosy University officials in Alameda were informed that an employee who recently died had tested positive for bacterial meningitis. No other cases at the school were confirmed, and public health officials do not believe the employees death was linked to the Santa Clara cluster. Two of the Santa Clara University students remained hospitalized and in fair condition Thursday, and a third was discharged in good condition. Dispensing antibiotics Administrators at the South Bay university and county health officials have been working to find students who may have come into close contact with the three afflicted students when they were contagious. More than 200 such students have already been given preventive antibiotics. The university began holding free immunization clinics on Thursday and will continue on Friday. Officials at the school, which has an enrollment of more than 9,000 students, have 3,500 doses of vaccines that fight serogroup B to dole out. The clinics are solely for Santa Clara University students, and Cody emphasized that the greater community is not at an increased risk for contracting the infection. Infections can lead to hearing loss, brain damage, loss of limbs or, as seen in the Alameda case, death, according to the California Department of Public Health. The disease typically spreads through close contact via mucus or saliva. Symptoms are often flu-like and may involve fever, headache, stiff neck and vomiting. Public health officials urged those with symptoms to seek immediate medical attention. In 2014, according to the Department of Public Health, the state saw 56 cases of invasive meningococcal disease. Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov Frustrated by recent disasters blamed on lax regulatory oversight, a key state legislator called Wednesday for the breakup of the states embattled Public Utilities Commission as too big to succeed. Mike Gatto, D-Glendale (Los Angeles County), the newly appointed chairman of the Assembly Utilities and Commerce Committee, said, It is time to hit the reset button and fix the states broken regulatory system. If approved by two-thirds of both the Senate and the Assembly, the Public Utilities Reform Act would head to the ballot and voters would decide whether to force the commissions breakup by July 2018. The agency would either be broken up entirely or reconstituted under the plan. Gattos reform call comes as the commission has been blamed for lax monitoring of Pacific Gas and Electric Co. prior to the 2010 San Bruno pipeline failure that caused an explosion that killed eight people. The agency has also been accused of lax oversight before the failure of Southern California Gas Co.s Aliso Canyon gas storage field in the hills overlooking the San Fernando Valley. The state attorney generals office, meanwhile, is probing alleged backroom deals and corruption at the agency. Despite the criticism, Gov. Jerry Brown in October vetoed several bills that envisioned reforms for the troubled commission. Gatto said he was moved to act after he heard testimony about breakdowns in oversight before the October well break at the 86 billion cubic foot-capacity storage field in Aliso Canyon, which is still spewing natural gas around now-vacant homes in the Porter Ranch area of Los Angeles. After hearing about how the clear warnings of the impending Aliso Canyon gas leak were lost in the shuffle, I concluded that we need to rethink the way we regulate utilities in this state, he said. Commission officials said they have made many reforms and acknowledged that more work needs to be done. Jaxon Van Derbeken is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: jvanderbeken@sfchronicle.com This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Heavy traffic from motorists using alternate routes to avoid protesters packed along streets surrounding Super Bowl City left buses blocked in at the San Francisco Transbay Terminal for two hours Wednesday night, officials said. Folsom, Beale and Main streets all major routes buses use to enter and exit the terminal were clogged by cars escaping closed roads in the area, AC Transit spokesman Robert Lyles said. It was an unexpected event for transit officials, who had already planned for increased Super Bowl traffic. We have certainly made plans to accommodate the larger number of people ... we cant always plan for some unknown like protesters, Lyles said. Hundreds of protesters used Super Bowl 50 festivities to advocate for the homeless Wednesday, shutting down streets around the Embarcadero, which in turn diverted traffic to roads near the terminal. A bus driver said the backup started around 5:15 p.m., affecting four to five dozen AC Transit, Greyhound and Muni buses, along with other bus companies. Buses were wrapped around the block in the area around the terminal while some were stuck in the bus loop. AC Transit supervisors were on scene directing traffic to help buses exit the terminal, Lyles said. The gridlocked buses began moving around 7:10 p.m. Adam Noily came to the terminal around 5:30 p.m. to take a bus home to Berkeley but headed back to the office when he noticed the traffic. When he returned to the station, buses still werent moving, he said. Ive been taking AC Transit for three years, and Ive never seen anything like this, said Noily, an investment banker. Noily, 39, said its the first time he has noticed the Super Bowls effect on traffic. Truth be told, it hasnt impacted anything until tonight for AC Transit, anyway, he said. Jenna Lyons and Michael Cabanatuan are San Francisco Chronicle staff writers. E-mail: jlyons@sfchronicle.com, mcabanatuan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JennaJourno, @ctuan On my last visit to the local flea market I purchased a stack of San Francisco real estate records from 1956, fifty years after "the big one." Each record was slightly larger than an index card, with a picture of the property and information typed on the back. Prices ranged from $1,000 up to almost $17,000 for a parcel with 3 or 4 lots. The location listed on the cards was often an approximation, such as "adjacent to 32 Josiah Avenue." The property taxes, when listed, were always less than $100. The terms were mostly cash. Some sellers were willing to finance. One seller was open to trading for property in Half Moon Bay. The location of the properties stretched from North Beach to the Great Highway. NEW MILFORD Built in 1861, the Barton House in New Milford was the decades-long home of the popular Miss Bartons Day Care and Kindergarten as well as a bed and breakfast later on. Now the property will continue its legacy as a developer prepares to bring the site into the 21st century as Barton Commons, a 38-unit residential development. Hal Kurfehs, vice president of Coldwell Banker Commercial, Scalzo Group and broker of the deal, announced the land sale of 3.5 acres at 34 East Street in New Milford - on which the historic Barton House is located - to Dakota Partners of Waltham, Mass. Dakota Partners plans to build a four-story apartment building to be called Barton Commons. The property was sold for $1.075 million from owner Gary Romaniello of 34 East Street LLC. According to Kurfehs, the two existing buildings - formerly known as Barton House - will be demolished, while the facade of the historically prominent residence will be retained and incorporated into the design of the new apartment building. Barton Commons will include 34 one-and two-bedroom apartments, 30 of which will be designated affordable-housing units. The original Barton House will be restored and converted into four residential units. Construction will start this spring, he said. The existing two-story residence is more than 150 years old and eligible for historic designation by The National Park Service. According to the Scalzo Group, all work to the house will be consistent with National Park Service historic guidelines and will conform to the ambiance of the neighborhoods. We are pleased to offer more affordable housing options to the New Milford community, while also preserving an important piece of the towns history, said Roberto Arista, principal at Dakota Partners. With close proximity to the downtowns retail, dining and medical facilities, as well as easy access to public transportation, Barton Commons is sure to be an attractive living option of individuals and families in southwestern Connecticut. Construction is expected to finish by the end of the year, according to Scalzo Group. Reece Alvarez is a reporter with the Fairfield County Business Journal. For more of her work and that of the journal, please visit www.westfaironline.com. Wells Fargo has agreed to pay $1.2 billion to put to rest claims that it engaged in reckless lending under a Federal Housing Administration program that left a government insurance fund to clean up the mess. The San Francisco bank, the nations largest mortgage lender, has been in talks with the government since 2012 over accusations that it improperly classified some FHA loans as qualifying for federal insurance when they did not, and that it knew of the misclassification but failed to inform housing regulators about the deficiencies before filing insurance claims. Wells Fargo had been a holdout among large lenders. Citigroup, Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase previously settled similar claims. The settlement means that Wells Fargo has to reduce 2015 profit by $134 million to account for the extra legal expense. Wells Fargo said in a securities filing Wednesday that it had reached an agreement in principle with the Department of Justice and the U.S. attorneys offices for the Southern District of New York and the Northern District of California, as well as the Department of Housing and Urban Development. The claims were civil and focused on Wells Fargos lending under the FHA program from 2001 to 2010. When he filed the lawsuit in 2012, Preet Bharara, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said that Wells Fargo had engaged in a reckless trifecta of poor training, deficient loan underwriting and poor disclosure in the government-backed loan program. It was one of several lawsuits brought after the financial crisis that accused banks of shoddy lending practices. FHA-backed loans are typically made to first-time home buyers and those with lower incomes. Wells Fargo denied the claims at the time, and settlement talks have broken down before. In the filing Wednesday, Wells said that although both sides reached the agreement, There can be no assurance that the company and the federal government will agree on the final documentation of the settlement. Regulators have contended that the bank should not have received the insurance proceeds after some of the loans soured. The agreement also includes other potential civil claims relating to FHA lending for other periods, Wells Fargo said. The settlement will increase the banks expenses for last year by $200 million, forcing it to restate 2015 net income by $134 million (3 cents per share), to $22.9 billion. On the same day Richmond City Council members voted to open a new investigation into a 2014 officer-involved shooting that killed a 24-year-old man, the city announced the mans family agreed to an $850,000 settlement to end a civil rights lawsuit. The city announced Tuesday afternoon a settlement had been reached with the family of Richard Pedie Perez hours before city council members voted to launch a Police Commission Investigation to determine if Richmond Police Officer Wallace Jensen used excessive or unnecessary force when he shot Perez. The decision comes after several investigations into the September 14, 2014 shooting outside of a Richmond liquor store. The Contra Costa County District Attorneys Office opened a joint investigation into the incident with Richmond Police as a part of county protocol. The shooting went through a coroners inquest, and the city also hired independent private investigator J.P. Badel to look into the matter. File photo All investigations cleared Jensen of wrongdoing, but Vice Mayor Eduardo Martinez, along with council members Jovanka Beckles and Gayle McLaughlin, proposed another probe. McLaughlin said the main difference of the new probe is that an investigator will present the results to the commission, which is made up of civilians. For the sake of us feeling comfortable and feeling a sense of trust with our police department, having a civilian review process is important, McLaughlin said. Richmond Mayor Tom Butt, who does not see the need for a new investigation, called the shooting an anomaly while praising the departments good record. Its not like nobody has ever investigated this, Butt said Tuesday of the shooting. Its been investigated at least four times... Im really puzzled about what people want to get out of this. Julie Perez, Richards mom, was not convinced by the initial findings. She said none of the investigations were truly impartial. One of the conditions of the settlement is the city of Richmond does not have to admit fault or liability in Perezs death and forever be discharged of any claims and similar expenses, according to the settlement document. Perezs mother said the timing of the new investigation assures that even if the officer is found to be in the wrong, the city will bear no legal responsibility. The results will simply validate whether or not excessive force was used, and the commission may present recommendations for preventing similar incidents in the future. Its not a coincidence that they settled and now they want an investigation, she said. In a police account of the shooting, Jensen was conducting a security check at Uncle Sams Liquor Store, which had several police calls for service in the past and was closed a year before the shooting for alcohol-related violations. Perez was heavily intoxicated during a struggle with the officer while outside near Cutting and Carlson boulevards, then-Chief Chris Magnus said at the time of the shooting. Perez tried to grab Wallaces gun out of the holster, prompting the officer to fire three shots into his chest. But the Perez family said witness accounts of the incidents dont match the officers statement. They came out saying Pedie tried to take the officers gun nothing is showing that, including forensic evidence, Julie Perez said. Pedie was simply trying to resist the officer and walk away from the incident. In the civil rights suit filed by the Law Offices of John Burris, Perez was ordered to sit on the curb when Jensen detained him, but then he got off the curb and Jensen grabbed him. When Perez struggled to free himself of defendant Jensens constricting grasp, the officer got up, stepped back and, from a distance of five to six feet, shot Perez in the chest several times, the suit says. A YouTube video titled The Murder of Pedie Perez appears to show surveillance footage from inside the liquor store at the time of the shooting. In the video, an officer appears to fire at someone while standing at a distance, consistent with the lawsuit and witness testimony. Jenna Lyons is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: jlyons@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JennaJourno This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate A California Highway Patrol officer stabbed in the neck by a homeless man in San Franciscos Rincon Hill neighborhood remained in critical condition Wednesday after undergoing surgery, officials said. The officer, a seven-year CHP veteran who has not been identified, suffered life-threatening injuries in the attack Tuesday, which occurred near a homeless encampment along an on-ramp to Interstate 80. It took place about a mile from where Super Bowl City festivities are taking place along the Embarcadero. The San Francisco district attorneys office charged Noel Corpuz, with attempted murder, among other offenses, on Wednesday, officials said. The injured officer seemed OK after surgery but will probably remain at San Francisco General Hospital for the next few days, said Officer Albie Esparza, a San Francisco police spokesman. Hospital spokesman Brent Andrew said the officer is still listed as critical because some or all vital signs were not yet stable. The stabbing happened Tuesday morning after two CHP officers were called to the area to investigate reports of a pedestrian walking on the I-80 on-ramp near Essex Street, CHP Commander Christopher Sherry said. Officials said the suspect was not a regular at the homeless encampment and not indicative of those who live there. This type of incident just really shocks us, Sherry said Tuesday. These officers, our officers, and all of law enforcement go out and put themselves in harms way. Its a tough job. Sometimes, as we all know, things like this happen, and we just hope the best for our officer. Officers approached Corpuz around 10:05 a.m., and he suddenly attacked with a large knife, stabbing the officer in the neck and arm before running away, police said. Another officer chased Corpuz to the bottom of the on-ramp before noticing his partner was not with him and turning back to help him, Sherry said. A CHP officer made a distress call to San Francisco police requesting backup, and San Francisco Fire Department personnel took the injured officer to the hospital. Corpuz walked into a Wells Fargo Bank on Fourth Street about 15 minutes after the stabbing. When San Francisco police found him outside of the bank, authorities said, he initially resisted arrest and tried to take an officers gun from the holster. He was eventually taken into custody. A black backpack and large knife were found in the bank parking lot, police said. Corpuz is set to be arraigned at 1:30 p.m. Thursday in San Francisco. Jenna Lyons is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: jlyons@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @JennaJourno Welcome to London. Be prepared to battle some thick fog out there. I just made the jaunt into the office and I can tell you it's thick as pea soup in some spots, with visibility next to nothing in some spots.The good news is that the rain seems to be relenting and the expected flooding from yesterday's rain never seemed to develop. But the warm temperatures, rising to near 50, have created some serious fog issues. Here's the full regional traffic report. But here was my real dilemma from this morning's commute, and this one is on me. I can admit to the fact that patience is not a virtue I possess in any great amount. In other words, I have a pretty short fuse. This morning because of the fog I decided to alter my route. I took Route 352 from Westtown to Granite Run instead of my normal route taking Route 3 all the way down to Edgmont, then Providence Road over to Rose Tree Park. I didn't feel like adding fog to the morning ritual of dodging the deer on Providence Road. What I didn't count on was getting behind a potato chip truck shortly after I got onto Route 352. Obviously he was concerned about the fog as well, because he insisted on going 25 mph all the way to Lima. I'm guessing he could probably hear me ranting and grinding my teeth behind him. If you know the road, you know there is really not many spots where you can pass, even on a clear morning, let alone one where you can barely see your hand in front of your face. I thought maybe since I was right behind him he might pull over and let me go by. No dice. Eventually he took a right on Route 452 and I roared past headed for the Media Bypass. It made me a few minutes late. Was it worth all the faux outrage. No. I'll add that to the list of things I need to get a better grip on. San Francisco Police Chief Greg Suhr plans to reintroduce the contentious issue of equipping officers with stun guns at next weeks Police Commission meeting. The chief said after Wednesdays meeting that conductive energy devices better known by the name of the most popular brand, Tasers will be referenced in the new draft of the departments revised use-of-force policy that he will present next week. Though he would not provide specific details as to what he is proposing with Tasers, he has tried in the past to arm only officers trained in crisis intervention, to use on subjects in mental distress with whom officers cant reason. The revival of a stun gun plan has long been anticipated in the wake of the fatal shooting of Mario Woods, a 26-year-old man whose family said he suffered from psychiatric issues. The review of the departments policies is part of a series of reforms the city has proposed following the Dec. 2 incident. Suhr has said he believes that if the five officers who shot Woods had a Taser, Woods would not be dead. He said the officers had no choice but to resort to lethal force when less-lethal beanbag rounds and pepper spray failed to persuade Woods to drop the knife he had allegedly used in an earlier stabbing. In the days following the Dec. 2 incident, which drew public outcry after it was caught on video, showing what critics called an unnecessary killing, Commission President Suzy Loftus opened the discussion on the departments policies, setting an early February deadline for a solid proposal. On Monday, officials with the U.S. Department of Justices community-policing office announced that they would be entering into a collaborative review of San Francisco police to ensure that city officers were employing the best practices in policing. Loftus said Wednesday that she hopes to form a group of community stakeholders, similar to the working group of police officers, prosecutors and public defenders that delved into the body camera debate last year, to look into the chiefs proposal after he presents it next week. This process, she said, would allow for even more community input. She said she met with Ronald Davis, a former East Palo Alto police chief who now heads the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, and he has committed to working with the commission in developing the policy and providing experts in the issue when needed. There is an urgency for us to keep moving, but this is something we want to get right, she said. We have community members saying they want to weigh in on this. The reintroduction of a stun gun plan is sure to be met with resistance. At the commission meetings in the weeks after the Woods shooting, hundreds of community members spoke against the weapon, saying better training and compassion were needed, not a device that could be abused. Police chiefs before Suhr tried to bring stun guns to the San Francisco force and each time were rebuffed by the same argument. Mayor Ed Lee said he would support equipping the police department with Tasers. In a Jan. 6 memo, he set a Feb. 15 deadline for the commission and the department to bring to him any budget or cost concerns of the new use-of-force policies. Loftus said Wednesday that next weeks meeting will include a presentation of the departments budget. She said she believes the commission will still meet Lees deadline, though with very preliminary estimates. Any department plans to equip officers with stun guns will have to be approved by the Police Commission before the devices are introduced into the force. Vivian Ho is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: vho@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @VivianHo An interim assistant principal at a San Jose high school was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of annoying or molesting a child under 18 years of age. Police said Jose Gonzalez, 35, had an inappropriate relationship with a 17-year-old student at James Lick High School. School officials started investigating Friday allegations that Gonzalez was behaving inappropriately with students at the school and placed him on administrative leave. During the schools investigation, a student told administrators about an inappropriate encounter she had with Gonzalez in July or August of last year at his San Jose home. On Tuesday evening, police arrested Gonzalez at his residence. He was booked at Santa Clara County Main Jail. Gonzalez had worked at the school since 2008 as a student advisor in the office of attendance and student discipline, according to Chris Funk, superintendent of East Side Union High School District. Last month, Gonzalez was promoted to interim assistant principal for the school of approximately 1,400 students. Funk said Gonzalez was a credentialed employee, had been finger printed and passed background checks. Until last week, Funk said, school officials were never informed of allegations against him. Those with information about the incident are urged to contact Detective Sean Pierce of the San Jose Police Department at (408) 537-1381. Tipsters who wish to remain anonymous can call (408) 947-7867 or submit a tip on the police departments website. Officials said there may be a cash reward if information leads to a conviction. Kimberly Veklerov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: kveklerov@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @kveklerov NASA scientists say we're going to be alright. But, yeah, it could be close shave. Discovered in 2013, the 100-foot-diameter asteroid called 2013 TX68 buzzed us two years ago at a distance of 1.3 million miles. However, on March 5 the thing could zip by at a distance of 11,000 miles. The agency says that's it's best guess since it hasn't been tracking it for very long. The agency writes: Scientists at NASA's Center for NEO Studies (CNEOS) at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, have determined there is no possibility that this object could impact Earth during the flyby next month. But they have identified an extremely remote chance that this small asteroid could impact on Sep. 28, 2017, with odds of no more than 1-in-250-million. Flybys in 2046 and 2097 have an even lower probability of impact. The asteroid that blew up over Chelyabinsk, Russia, was a mere 65 feet in size. So, this one, NASA says, would make an "air burst with about twice the energy of the Chelyabinsk event" if it hits our atmosphere. Again, as Paul Chodas a manager at JPL wrote us: "Because of the short time it was seen, we can't predict precisely when the object will be closest to the Earth next month, or precisely how close it will approach our planet. "But, astronomers did track this asteroid long enough in 2013 for us to know that it *cannot* impact the Earth next month. In fact, it cannot pass any closer than about 17,000 kilometers (11,000 miles) of the Earth's surface. The odds are that it will pass much farther away than that. "The asteroid's trajectory is too uncertain to say whether or not it will be visible from North America, but we do know that the asteroid will pass the Earth above the ecliptic plane." Jake Ellison can be reached at 206-448-8334 or jakeellison@seattlepi.com. Follow Jake on Twitter at twitter.com/Jake_News. Also, swing by and *LIKE* his page on Facebook. If Google Plus is your thing, check out our science coverage here. Fourth Man Out is a coming-out tale with well-worn themes, but its blue-collar spin and appealing cast give it a charm thats hard to resist. The story opens as Adam (Evan Todd, excellent), a 24-year-old car mechanic in a working-class town, reveals to his clueless blue-collar besties that hes gay. Their well-intentioned but hapless efforts to support Adam provide comic moments made even funnier by Todds ability to be the straight man, so to speak. When Fourth Man Out keeps its gaze on the relationship between Adam and his beer-guzzling friends and particularly Adams relationship with best pal Chris (Parker Young, very good) the film breathes new life into the coming-out genre, not an easy thing to do. Sometimes, though, the film ventures into cliche territory, when Adam has a series of bad dates and run-ins with a local Christian woman. We also dont get much of a sense of our heros internal struggle; more attention is placed on the angst of Adams friend Chris. Yet this briskly edited film never fails to be entertaining, and appealing to all audiences. Director Andrew Nackman does a nice job in creating Adams working-class world in upstate New York, a world where Adam has no trouble fitting in, regardless of his sexuality. In this respect, Nackmans film has shadings of the LGBT classic Big Eden, a 2000 film about a gay man who returns to his small Montana town, where everyone readily embraces him, to the point of setting him up with a man. Back then, that easygoing acceptance in such an environment played out like a fantasy. This time around, when we see Adam come out, we for the most part believe that his far-from-urbane community would accept him with open arms. Fourth Man Out is a pleasant reminder of just how far the country has come in the past 15 years. David Lewis is a Bay Area freelance writer. Fourth Man Out Dramedy. Starring Evan Todd, Parker Young. Directed by Andrew Nackman. (Not rated. 86 minutes.) Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. This was a million-dollar idea that turned into a multimillion-dollar idea, but most of the pleasure was in the concept. Many thousands of people bought Seth Grahame-Smiths Jane Austen-zombie mashup, but how many actually read past Page 50? So the challenge of the movie version was to persuade audiences to maintain interest from beginning to end. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies almost does that. It has stretches where the energy drops out, but it never completely loses the thread, and the climax brings a reasonable level of excitement. Compared with other Jane Austen movies, it isnt much, but compared with other zombie apocalypse movies, its an intelligent, literate effort. Director Burr Steers, who also wrote the screen adaptation, understood something very important going in: The best friend he had was Jane Austen. Sending up Austen, making the original world of Pride and Prejudice into a joke, would only buy him 10 minutes of laughs. If he wanted more than a skit, he needed a serious rendering of Austens world, first as a backdrop to the zombie absurdity (as an ongoing source of humor), and second for its inherent emotional power. Accordingly, he doesnt cast Pride and Prejudice and Zombies as though he were making a Mel Brooks movie, but as though he were making a straight version of Austen. Lily James isnt a comic Elizabeth Bennet. Shed be a worthy Elizabeth Bennet in any setting. Charles Dance plays her father not as though he were in a comic zombie movie but as though this were Masterpiece Theatre, and theres nothing funny about Douglas Booth as the handsome Mr. Bingley, except that women keep having to rescue him from zombies. The only actor who suggests a hint of humor is Sam Riley as the brooding Mr. Darcy. Darcy has always had a lot on his mind, but his problems were nothing compared with those of this new Darcy incarnation, who, in addition to nurturing a forlorn affection for Elizabeth must also lead the human British forces against the zombie invasion. He looks utterly miserable, and now that we know why hes miserable, there is something subtly funny in that. As the story begins, the zombie situation is well under way. Elizabeth and her four sisters members of the semi-impoverished gentry are just as concerned as ever with finding suitable husbands. But in the meantime, they have been trained in the martial arts and have mastered a variety of weapons in case of zombie attack. Whenever they can, they try to get on with normal life, but they cant seem to go to a ball without at least one zombie showing up. For those not up on your zombie protocols, theyre dangerous adversaries in that theyre ravenous for human brains, and everyone bitten by one, after a day or two of sweats and fevers, becomes a zombie, too. This zombie latency period is particularly insidious in that it allows them to hide in plain sight and infiltrate the domains of the healthy. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies is one joke stretched a little past the breaking point, but its carried off with enough conviction that its not entirely dismissible. It has to be counted as a measure of some success that the movie still persuades us to care about Elizabeth and Mr. Darcys romantic prospects, in the midst of all the zombie madness. And we actually do worry about them (a little) when they go into battle. In fact, at one point while watching the film, I had a very embarrassing thought, which Ill reveal because its relevant. As the British Army was struggling to contain the zombie menace to London, and Elizabeth was trying to rescue her younger sister from the zombie sympathizer Mr. Wickham, I wondered, How did this story ever work without zombies? It worked just fine, but in the moment, that was hard to imagine. Mick LaSalle is The San Francisco Chronicles movie critic. E-mail: mlasalle@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @MickLaSalle Pride and Prejudice and Zombies Starring Lily James and Sam Riley. Directed by Burr Steers. (PG-13. 108 minutes.) WASHINGTON Three of the biggest freight railroads operating in the U.S. have told the government they wont meet a 2018 deadline to start using safety technology intended to prevent accidents like the deadly derailment of an Amtrak train in Philadelphia in May. Canadian National Railway, CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern say they wont be ready until 2020, according to a list provided by the Federal Railroad Administration. Four commuter railroads SunRail in Florida, Metra in Illinois, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and Trinity Railway Express in Texas also say theyll miss the deadline. The technology, called positive train control or PTC, relies on GPS, wireless radio and computers to monitor train positions and automatically slow or stop trains that are in danger of colliding, derailing due to excessive speed or about to enter track where crews are working or that is otherwise off limits. The other four other Class I freight railroads that operate in the U.S. Union Pacific, BNSF, Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern and more than a dozen commuter railroads have told the agency they will meet the 2018 deadline. Railroads were required to inform the government of their plans by last week. Amtrak, the nations only long-distance passenger carrier, began operating a version of the technology on all tracks that it owns in its Northeast corridor between Washington and Boston and in some other parts of the country in December. But most of Amtraks operations outside the Northeast take place on tracks belonging to freight railroads, making it dependent on them to install the technology. Many commuter railroads are in the same position. After a 2008 collision between a commuter train and a freight train in Chatsworth (Los Angeles County) killed 25 people, Congress passed a law requiring railroads to start using the expensive technology on all tracks that carry passenger trains or that are used to haul liquids that emit toxic gas if spilled. The deadline for the change was Dec. 31, 2015. But after it became clear nearly all railroads would miss the deadline, Congress passed another law in October extending it to Dec. 31, 2018. That law also permits the government to grant waivers through Dec. 31, 2020, to railroads that meet certain criteria. The most recent fatal and preventable crash was Amtrak 188, which derailed on May 12 in Philadelphia. Eight people were killed and more than 200 injured. WASHINGTON Campaign money from shadowy sources is back this election. More than $4 million of it channeled to outside groups helping presidential candidates has come from unknown or masked donors. Super political action committees, or super PACs, helping White House hopefuls like Marco Rubio and Hillary Clinton received big checks recently from obscure corporations or from nonprofits that dont have to disclose their donors names. A super PAC backing Rubio, a Republican senator from Florida, benefited from companies with spectral names like IGX LLC ($500,000) and TMCV #2 LLC ($90,000). A reporter traced IGX to a New York investor, and the other to an Idaho billionaire. Meanwhile, Democratic-leaning American Bridge 21st Century reported more than $1.5 million from its affiliated nonprofit, which doesnt have to name its donors. American Bridge, which said it used the money to pay for shared expenses like rent and staff, was founded by Clinton supporter David Brock. The contributions are a reminder of federal court decisions in recent years, like Citizens United, that loosened prior restrictions in campaign finance laws. That has made it difficult at times to tell whos really backing candidates and what favors or influence could be owed should they get elected. A reporter counted more than two dozen groups that each gave at least $50,000 to presidential-aligned super PACs during the last three months of 2015. At least half of those were unrecognizable names like family trusts, real estate holdings or firms that were far from household brands. Even frequent contributors whose names appear elsewhere in Federal Election Commission data donated through an alphabet soup of companies. One conservative super PAC donor, Frank VanderSloot from Idaho, gave $150,000 under his own name to Conservative Solutions PAC. Yet records indicate two companies tied to him gave an additional $175,000 to the same PAC, which has so far spent $14.8 million in ads this election. In an interview, VanderSloot confirmed he was behind the contributions but denied he was trying to hide money. Just wait until this year, VanderSloot said. Were going to send bucketloads. After 5 Connection is Fishing for Food LEBANON The After 5 Connection will meet from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 9, at Kings Coffee House, 661 S. Main St. Valerie Lancer is the leader of Fish of Lebanon. She will inspire guests to become more aware of and active in the needs of the community. Please bring a non-perishable food item. The February speaker is Tammy Ortung from Port Orchard, Washington. Tammy is a military veteran who served in Iraq. She is also a teacher and public speaker who shares her personal struggle in hope of helping other women. Cost is $8.50. For reservations or more information, contact Nancy at 541-259-1396 or nancy.pinzino@comcast.net, or contact Norma at 541-259-5672 or NJF355@peak.org. West Albany plans jazz night Feb. 11 West Albany High School invites the public to celebrate Valentines Day at the 2016 Bulldog Jazz night, set for 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 11, in the cafeteria of the high school. The evening includes an Italian-style dinner and performances by the WAHS Jazz Band. Tickets are $12 per person and are available at eventswest.ludustickets, the high school office at 11130 Queen Ave. S.W., or at the door. Proceeds benefit band programs. Registration Feb. 11 for youth swimming The Albany Community Pool will open registration for winter evening youth swim lessons for ages 3 and older at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 11. Registration is at the pool, 2150 36th Ave. S.E. Cost is $27 for six classes. All classes are taught by certified Red Cross Water Safety instructors. The 30-minute lessons are 6 to 8:05 p.m., Tuesdays and Thursdays. Sessions will be held March 1-17. For more information, call 541-967-4521 or visit http://www.cityofalbany. net/departments/ parks-and-recreation/ albany-community-pool. Linn County Commissioner Roger Nyquist raised some eyebrows in the Capitol on Tuesday, when he testified against a proposal to raise Oregons minimum wage. The minimum-wage proposal is one of the spotlight issues during this years session of the Oregon Legislature, and so it was no surprise that the Tuesday hearing packed participants into a committee room in Salem. Similarly, it came as no surprise that Nyquist, a Republican and a business owner, would be testifying against a proposal backed by Gov. Kate Brown to increase Oregons minimum wage, currently $9.25. And Nyquist hit on some of the expected points during his testimony to the Senate Committee on Workforce and General Government: Increasing Oregons minimum wage, already the second-highest in the nation, would hurt small businesses, cost jobs and hamper rural economies. But it was one of his specific arguments against the proposal that really caught the attention of at least some of the people at the hearing: Nyquist told the committee that Linn County wouldnt go along with any increase in the minimum wage if the Legislature doesnt toss in extra funding to cover the added costs. We think, based on the (Oregon) constitution, were not required to participate, and we will likely not do so, Nyquist said. Linn County commissioners outlined their case in a letter they sent to Brown last week, and it would be hard to blame Brown if she just set the letter aside for the time being, perhaps in the same pile where she placed the notice of countys intention to sue the state over management of its forestlands. But Nyquists position was buttressed at the hearing by a lawyer from the Office of Legislative Counsel the Legislatures legal staff. The lawyer said a portion of the state constitution essentially allows Linn County (or other counties as well) to opt out of a wage increase imposed by the Legislature if it doesnt pass with a three-fifths majority vote and with additional funding appropriated for local agencies. The minimum-wage bill likely will pass the Legislature, but probably not by a three-fifths majority and certainly not with the additional funding. Nyquist is rolling the dice a bit, though: This section of the constitution doesnt apply to measures passed by the voters through a ballot initiative. Recall that the Legislature is moving on the minimum-wage measure in an attempt to pre-empt two even more aggressive efforts that are being pushed for the November ballot. The governor is betting that passing a more measured minimum-wage bill will convince initiative advocates to withdraw their efforts. That seems like a long shot to us, though, considering how national unions already have contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars into a potential campaign. Nyquist, however, has said that he thinks minimum-wage foes will prevail in a statewide election and he says that statewide business interests are ready to amply fund an election war chest. So its a bit of a risk for the Linn County commissioners to play this particular constitutional card. But if it works the way Nyquist thinks it might, the county would be able to opt out of any legislative mandate on the minimum wage and then could be on the winning side if statewide voters reject attempts to boost the wage. The downside remains about the same: If a wage increase passes at the ballot box, the county would be stuck with it anyway. All in all, its a gambit that seems worth the risk. (mm) This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate State Democrats will no longer honor the memories of famous slave owners one of them also an Indian fighter in their annual fundraising dinner. The Democratic State Central Committee has voted to change the name of the traditional Jefferson Jackson Bailey Dinner to the Connecticut Democratic Progress Dinner. So gone are the names of Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson, the nations third and seventh presidents. Former state party boss John Bailey, whose daughter, Barbara B. Kennelly, was a longtime 1st District congressman before she was crushed in the 1998 gubernatorial race, is ancillary damage in the name change. But Baileys name will continue to live on in a special annual leadership award at the dinner, which raises hundreds of thousands of dollars annually and attracts hundreds to schmooze and listen to high-profile national Democrats. We live in a different society and there are sensitivities today that didnt exist in the past, said Gov. Dannel P. Malloy on Wednesday. So we pay attention and move on. The name change was the result of increasing sensitivity to the nations conflicted racial history and the Black Lives Matter movement that has succeeded in removing the Confederate battle flag from public display in the South. South Carolina recognized the need to remove the Confederate flag from its capitol, and its time for the Connecticut Democratic Party to cease honoring former slave owners and, more particularly, honoring them at an event that promotes the ideals of the Democratic Party, said Rep. Bruce Morris, D-Norwalk, chairman of the legislative Black and Puerto Rican Caucus. Connecticut Democratic Party Chairman Nick Balletto said the name change was the result of input from party leaders, officials and activists. I believe the new name reflects how Democrats, in Connecticut and around the country, have long been the party pushing for progress on just about every issue, as Republicans try to take us backwards, Balletto said in a statement. He announced a new annual award named in honor of Bailey, who was also a former Democratic National Committee chairman and died in 1975 at age 69. The award was presented during the state party meeting Wednesday night to Drew Morten, of Southbury. State Republicans were critical of the name change. Its a shame that the Democrat Party in all of their history couldnt find any heroes to honor by name, wrote J.R. Romano of Derby, the GOP state chairman. One might wonder why Ella Grasso, Connecticuts first female governor, was not worthy of the namesake. Was her election not a sign of Progress? Have the Democrats decided to wage a War on Women? The annual GOP fundraising event is called the Prescott Bush Dinner, in honor of the late banker and politician from Greenwich who served in the U.S. Senate from 1952 until 1963 and was the father of former President George H.W. Bush. We continue to wonder in amazement that Democrats have cast aside American legends like Thomas Jefferson a heroic and genuinely American icon in favor of the likes of Che Guevara and Bernie Sanders, Romano wrote. Jefferson, who drafted the U.S. Constitution and was president from 1801 until 1809, started the University of Virginia. But he was also a slave owner who did not acknowledge fathering a child with one of his slaves. Jackson, a Tennessee slave owner, was president from 1829 until 1839, after success against the British and Indian allies in the War of 1812 and against Seminole Indians in 1818. kdixon@ctpost.com; Twitter: @KenDixonCT The price on the spectacular San Francisco penthouse owned by Gurbaksh Chahal, one of the Silicon Valley's most condemned tech entrepreneurs, has dropped yet again. Unit 37B atop the Infinity at 301 Main Street was first offered at $12 million without an official listing in April 2015, according to SocketSite. When an upcoming book The Man Who Dared To Think Beyond, is the showcasing of Mithila at the global level. Vivekanand Jha Ranchi: It was in the year 2009-... This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate NEWTOWN What started as a boycott of grocery stores in the region that allow customers to carry guns in the aisles has turned into a local crusade to ban guns in all businesses in a town still recovering from the 2012 Sandy Hook school shootings. The Newtown Action Alliance, one of the nonprofits formed after the 2012 Sandy Hook shootings, is calling for a townwide ban on weapons in businesses. I would think it would be easy for the businesses to side with our community members who are going through challenging times, said Po Murray, chairwoman of the Newtown Action Alliance. It has only been three years. The towns merchants have been hearing more talk about openly carrying guns while shopping, a business leader said Thursday. While merchants are willing to hear more about concerns, they are wary of getting mixed up in a controversy that could drive customers away. Its important that our businesses try to remain neutral because we serve a broad constituency of clients, and we have to be careful about the position we take, said Tim Haas, president of the Newtown Chamber of Commerce. In Newtown, we went through a lot with the tragedy that happened, Haas said. It affected a lot of businesses. We dont need another challenge that could impact business. After the 2012 killings of 20 children and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary School, Starbucks, Whole Foods and a few other big-name companies in Connecticut announced firearms policies to restrict carrying guns in their businesses. But most businesses continued to follow Connecticut law, which allows anyone with a permit to openly carry a gun in public. That had been enough to keep the peace until January, when a woman noticed a man with a gun on his belt while the two were shopping at Caraluzzis Food Market in Bethel. The online boycott that grew from the womans correspondence with Caraluzzis owner spread to Big-Y and then reached the statewide Connecticut Food Association. The CFA pledged to craft a policy to help stores avoid the divisive gun debate. That didnt stop leading members of Connecticuts Washington delegation from urging the Connecticut Food Association president to promote a ban on openly carrying guns while shopping. The Newtown Action Alliance said this week the town was uniquely positioned to make a statement. I think Newtown can send a message to the county we dont need guns in stores, Murray said. It is proven that more guns equal more gun deaths. A leading gun-rights advocate disagreed. People are safer where law-abiding people carry firearms, said Scott Wilson, president of the Connecticut Citizens Defense League. My question is if guns are banned from stores will the Newtown Action Alliance personally guarantee the safety of individuals who are shopping? Wilson suggested while the two sides were far apart philosophically, a compromise for stores was still possible. He said the wording of any policy to reduce in-store confrontations about openly carrying guns needed to be polite, reasonable and respectful of permit holders right to carry. If the store had a policy requiring patrons to please keep their arms concealed, that is certainly a lot more palatable to gun owners, Wilson said. rryser@newstimes.com; 203-731-3342 Four stories above Eastern Market, on the corner of Russell and Winder, sits a light, open loft big enough for a good party, but cozy enough for an office. Brooklyn Outdoor, a Detroit-based outdoor advertising company that also serves LA, New York, and Chicago, has its home office here in Eastern Market. With room for a kitchen, a sitting area, two bathrooms, and a large dining table (and room for another!), this space serves as both an office for their business and a meeting place for the community. Candice Simons, a Northville native, moved back to the metro area two years ago to open up her own Brooklyn Outdoor office. She figured she was moving back for family and not much else. But when she began exploring Detroit, she found that there was so much more here than she thought. She started documenting her experiences in a blog called J'adore Detroit, where she lists art, culture, music, design, restaurants...anything people would want to see and do in the city. Through Brooklyn Outdoor and J'adore Detroit, she's started using her connections and space to help non-profits. She regularly brings people together to meet in the loft, hosting events, dinners, or meetings. She's worked extensively with Slow Roll and the American Heart Association to organize the Red Ride in April. The space features murals painted by local artists Ouizi, Michelle Tanguay, and Kobe Solomon. The wallpaper inside the bathroom and on the wall outside is by the Detroit Wallpaper Company (the Detroit-themed wallpaper can be customized with different colors). The dining table was made by Tao of Restoration and Butter Bean Antiques. It sits on castors so they can easily move it around for specific events. Brooklyn Outdoor J'adore Detroit Detroit Wallpaper Co. Tao of Restoration This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The 980 Freeway running through West Oakland is a "great gash" that was originally built to connect with a second Bay Bridge that never arrived, city planning consultant Victor Dover said Monday night at a public meeting to discuss Downtown Oakland's Specific Plan. Dover's proposal: tear down 980 and replace it with a grand boulevard for walkers, cyclists and cars. Removing 980 was one of the more radical and long-reaching ideas presented Monday as city planners and consultants presented options for the long-term development plan. The plan is wide-ranging, covering Downtown Oakland from Jack London Square in the south through Old Oakland and City Center, up to Uptown and Koreatown/Northgate. The plan addresses city issues such as affordable housing, culture and arts, social equity, small businesses, neighborhoods, and transportation. In addition, the Downtown Specific Plan links with ongoing plans for West Oakland, Lake Merritt BART (Chinatown), and Broadway Valdez. This is the first specific plan put together for Downtown Oakland. Dover, of Dover, Kohl and Partners, presented aspects of the proposed plan to the public, along with Arti Harchekar of Opticos Design Inc. of Berkeley, who are working as sub-consultants. The meeting was hosted by Oakland City Council President Lynette Gibson McElhaney (District 3) at the Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts. In their presentation, Dover and Harchekar ran through highlights of the plan for many Downtown Oakland neighborhoods: Koreatown/Northgate could see increased development along Telegraph Ave and incremental in-fill developments. One priority is preserving a community of artists and makers in "KoNo," the planners said. In the Lakeside and Gold Coast areas, constructing a range of building types, from single-family house to tower, could increase density. At City Center, 15th Street could become a shared space for cars, bikes and pedestrians, while the area west of San Pablo could see a "great piazza," or open plaza, where San Pablo, Clay, and 17th Streets meet. Plans for Jack London Square centered on creating more open spaces and better transit connections. The fate of Howard Terminal was one question, with plans for a ballpark, BART station, and open space presented. Webster Green could be turned into a linear park. The plan to replace the 980 freeway with a boulevard and new buildings would have many benefits, which the Specific Plan encourages. It would connect West Oakland and downtown. It would make space for more development without tearing down existing buildings. It would make the area much more comfortable for cyclists and pedestrians, the presenters said. The freeway represents a "huge amount of real estate that could be recovered," Dover said. Replacing an underused freeway with a bike and pedestrian-friendly boulevard is one way to "bring the streets back to the people," he said. "It might take a generation or more to replace 980," Dover said, "but what if you did?" For all the Specific Plan's transportation infrastructure, Dover said the planners have let go of the old model: thinking only of how to make it easier for cars to go faster. Instead, Dover said pedestrians, bikes, and transit riders must be the priority in "the coming era." We experience a place best on two feet or on two wheels, Dover said, not through the windshield of a car. Even transit vehicles, like buses and BART trains, are basically platforms for pedestrians, he said. "If you want a place to thrive economically, it has to be a place where people want to be," Dover said. "Those tend to be the ones designed around the needs of pedestrians." Instead of figuring out how to move cars around as quickly as possible, Dover actually wants city traffic to move at slower speeds. Slower speeds don't just benefit walkers and cyclists, Dover said, but drivers too. Driving at slower speeds is much safer, he said, and city streets have their highest capacity when cars are doing about 27 miles per hour. The Downtown Specific Plan, once it's adopted, will become a policy backbone for Oakland, Harchekar said. The plan will be discussed at public hearings and neighborhood group meetings through the fall of this year. After an environmental impact report is completedtaking roughly from August 2016 to August 2017the plan could be adopted by the City Council by the end of 2017. Neighborhood meetings on the Specific Plan will continue through 2016. For more information on the plan and local meetings, visit: Plan Downtown Oakland This article was originally published on OaklandNorth.net This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Just as you can't judge a book by its cover, you can't judge a school by its test scores. Yet for years, the California public school system's primary metric for measuring its schools has been standardized test results. Today, six school districts, including San Francisco and Oakland, took a step in a new direction by releasing a set of scores that evaluate schools on more than the results of multiple choice questions. The School Quality Improvement Index (SQII) is designed to provide a more holistic view of a school and account for academic performance as well as other factors including attendance, suspension rates and how quickly non-English speakers learn the language. The first set of scores are interesting because some schools that had low numbers under the former system known as the Academic Performance Index (API) perform higher under SQII. "Under the old system, San Francisco's Denman Middle School consistently landed among the low scorers, a 2 out of 10," Jill Tucker wrote in a story for the San Francisco Chronicle. "But on Tuesday, Denman was above average. Its overall score was 67: 46 points for academics and 21 for culture and climate. "The school's stellar attendance rate and its near perfect score for 'high school readiness' helped push it past other middle schools that have traditionally outscored it." The scores are meant to provide districts and schools with specific input on ways they can improve, and SFUSD spokesperson Gentle Blythe emphasized in an email that the "data is for action, not ranking." That said, we know local parents will be interested in taking a look at scores for San Francisco schools and above we highlight the 20 elementary schools, five middle schools and five high schools in San Francisco Unified School District with the highest scores. Find scores for all schools at coredistricts.org. Stanford University has chosen the head of New Yorks Rockefeller University a neuroscientist and former chief scientist of Genentech as its 11th president, campus officials announced Thursday. In September, Marc Tessier-Lavigne, 56, will replace outgoing President John Hennessy, who has led the renowned private research university for 16 years. My first task will be to meet with every segment of the university community and listen and learn, Tessier-Lavigne said Thursday at Stanford, where he was introduced with glowing praise by the search committee that spent six months seeking a new leader for one of the worlds premier universities. He is a coalition-builder, said Steve Denning, chairman of Stanfords board of trustees, who pointed to a $1 billion capital campaign started by Tessier-Lavigne at Rockefeller, his boundless enthusiasm and imaginative leadership. Born in Canada, Tessier-Lavigne was the first in his family to attend college. Today, he is among the highest-paid university leaders in the United States. At Rockefeller University, a graduate level science research institution, Tessier-Lavigne earned nearly $1.5 million in total compensation in 2013, according to the most recent salary survey from the Chronicle of Higher Education. He was among 32 presidents of private, nonprofit universities who earned more than $1 million that year. At Stanford, Hennessy took home $963,248 the same year, the 35th-best-compensated among the 558 university chiefs included in the salary survey released in December. We see ourselves collaborating with him, said physics Prof. Kathryn Moler, a search committee member and chairwoman of the faculty senate, who suggested that Tessier-Lavigne and faculty have much in common. We heard over and over about his ability to listen. Tessier-Lavignes prize-winning research has focused on identifying molecules that help form connections among nerve cells in the developing brain and spinal cord. He has also been an anatomy professor at UCSF and was a biology professor at Stanford in 2003 when he took a leave to join Genentech. There, he oversaw 1,400 scientists hunting for cancer drugs. He became president of Rockefeller University in 2011. Nanette Asimov is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: nasimov@sfchronicle.com This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Wednesday was like old times for Mario Testa. Bridgeports Democratic Party chairman was back in Hartford for the opening day of the legislative session beside his favorite mayor. Joe and I, we always went up, Testa said, referring to returned Mayor Joe Ganims first administration, which lasted from 1991 to 2003. The wily Testa helped orchestrate Ganims comeback last year, which included ousting two-term Mayor Bill Finch in Septembers Democratic primary. Testa said he rarely attended the General Assemblys annual kickoff with Finch. So it should not come as a surprise that when Ganim stepped foot in the state Capitol building after so many years, Testa who some consider Bridgeports shadow mayor would be beside him. Testa recently had a role in trying to undo a controversial union contract and mediating a dispute between Ganim and City Council President Thomas McCarthy, a Finch ally. There are still a lot of people that are still up there that Ive known for the past 30 years, Testa said of the Capitol. Not just for Joe, but for me, too, it was like a welcome. Really it brought some memories back. Testa said it is important not just for big city mayors, but for their party chairmen to be seen in Hartford. So what did Testa make of Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloys budget speech? Testa is skeptical the General Assembly will support the governors proposal to eliminate thousands of jobs from the state payroll as he tackles a deficit. I dont think thats gonna happen, Testa said. Testa hoped Malloy will keep a promise to not raise taxes again. If you want to attract some business and that was his goal definitely thats how you do it, said Testa, who owns two Italian restaurants. If youre going to keep on raising taxes, youre going to chase most businesspeople out of the state. Featured Post The Price of Shiny's Friendship Recently, my 9 year old Beagle/Pointer/Goat/Daemon hybrid has become increasingly obsessed with wildlife. A willful child to begin with, at ... About Me Unknown View my complete profile Five years after Joshua Davis Jr. vanished from his New Braunfels home, investigators there are appealing for his family and others to be fully truthful about the fate of the missing toddler, who they fear is dead. Were asking them to search deep into their hearts and to come forward with information that could solve this case, New Braunfels Police spokesman David Ferguson said during a press briefing Wednesday. Iowa was like a rainstorm that cleared away some of the nasty pollution clogging the air. Those last 10 polls that predicted Donald Trump would finish in first place? Wrong. The conventional wisdom about a high turnout sealing the deal for Trump proved repeat wrong. I am not a fan of the winner, Ted Cruz, but I appreciate how he used Trumps decision to skip the last debate to puncture the billionaires balloon. If theres one thing Ive learned in my years of column writing, its to have faith in voters. Sometimes they see something in a candidate I dont see. Sometimes there is a gulf between what they tell pollsters and what they do in the voting booth. The closer the election, the more sober the assessment. While I am in the Anybody-but-Trump-or-Cruz camp, I have to believe that if either Trump or Cruz wins the GOP nod, it will be because he became a more viable candidate. If neither wins the nomination (as I anticipate), it will be because GOP voters saw a brighter light probably in Marco Rubio. The Florida senators third-place showing which also beat the polls has sent a signal to supporters of Ohio Gov. John Kasich, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush: Here is your chance to nominate someone who wont tarnish the GOP brand. Having come in at sixth place behind Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul, who bowed out Wednesday Bush seems out of gas. Its inexcusable for a candidate and the super PAC that supports him to have spent some $60 million without making Iowas top tier. Its time for him to start planning his exit strategy. Kasich and Christie both put their money in New Hampshire. Only one governor can make it out alive, but neither has been able to break through. One factor, I believe, is that Kasich and Christie keep talking about themselves and their political pasts, while Rubio looks forward and spoke of his political future. As he told his supporters Monday night, We can either be greater than weve ever been or we can be a great nation in decline. Cable news channels have been obsessed with Trumps ability to draw crowds and ratings. Trump showed style in his concession speech, but he must know now that he has to offer more substance to come in first. Letting voters fill in the blanks on your position can take you only so far. Cruz understood the Iowa base, where voters werent looking for a candidate with whom they could kick back a brew. The lone ideologue act wont work in the national league. The GOP senator who has failed to win the endorsement of a single fellow Republican senator will have to learn to make friends, or fall behind. Since Trump threw his hat into the ring, the election has been about Trump and Not Trump which meant less scrutiny of the Democratic primary, which is now down to Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. Clinton has years of experience, which in her case means years of sowing distrust. She voted for the Iraq war, before she ran against it. Taylor Gipple, a young questioner at a CNN town hall, summed up Clintons challenge when he told her, Ive heard from quite a few people my age that think youre dishonest. Really, kid, its not just people your age who think that. As for Sanders, he is the Cruz of the left. A democratic socialist with no Democratic senators endorsement, and no history of passing legislation with his own personal stamp. People say Cruz is extreme; Sanders actually thinks it would help low-skilled workers and the U.S. economy to more than double the national minimum wage. Republicans know theyve got a healthy chance of getting rid of both of their general election nightmares. Democrats have no such luck. Debra J. Saunders is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. E-mail: dsaunders@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @DebraJSaunders This blog belongs to a woman with lots to say on everything under the sun. Life seems slower in Amador County. Residents greet one another on the streets of Sutter Creek; farmers in Plymouth stop into restaurants with excess produce. With a local culture steeped in the areas rich past, the county offers visitors a respite from the hustle of urban life. This time of year, crowds are minimal, temperatures are mild, stores and museums are still open, especially on weekends. Historic main streets invite exploring an eclectic mix of antiques, wine tasting and general stores. Two hours from San Francisco, many of Amador Countys small towns can be experienced in a day, if you dont mind a lot of driving. Or make it a weekend and spend the night in one of the historic hotels at either end of the route. Natalie Feulner is a freelance writer. E-mail: travel@sfchronicle.com Morning For breakfast, look no further than Kneading Dough Bakery in downtown Volcano. A passion project of grandmother Jackie Tarchala (a.k.a. Nana), the bakery sells freshly baked bread (pictured) as well as old favorites like peanut butter cookies, and new twists on classics like the grilled ham sandwich with brie and apricot chutney. Take your breakfast to go and wander the quiet town of 115 residents. East of the bakery on the northwest corner of National and Plug streets, check out the former Volcano schoolhouse-turned-private home, built in 1875. After, head two blocks north to the Volcano Community and Catholic cemetery, the final resting place of Benjamin Ross, who served as U.S. deputy surveyor for mines in the 1870s. If youre visiting mid-March through mid-April, be sure to stop by Daffodil Hill 7 acres ablaze with color and in excess of 400,000 blooms. Part of the 540-acre Daffodil Hill Ranch, the hill features more than 300 varieties of the flower. Visitors are invited to explore the grounds, which include an old barn and rustic mining equipment. McLaughlins Daffodil Hill, 18310 Rams Horn Grade, Volcano; (209) 296-7048. Kneading Dough Bakery, 16154 Main St. Volcano; (209) 296-4663. www.kneadingdoughbakery.com. Mid-morning After breakfast, head west to historic Jackson, home to the former Kennedy Gold Mine and the Amador County Museum (pictured below). The museum, in a home built in 1859 by settler Armstead C. Brown, features exhibits highlighting the areas history. Volunteer guides are knowledgeable not only about the artifacts and stories behind them but also the surrounding towns that make up Amador County. Dont miss the museums hard-rock-mining exhibit a working scale model of the Kennedy and North Star mines. After, consider a walk down Jacksons historic Main Street, stopping by the National Hotel, one of the oldest establishments in California. Have extra time? Take a surface tour of the real Kennedy Gold Mine, just outside town on Highway 49. Amador County Museum, 225 Church St., Jackson; (209) 223-6386. www.amadorcountyhistoricalsociety.org. Midday After a healthy dose of history, head north a few miles to Sutter Creek. Once a bustling city of miners, the downtown area now boasts several wine tasting rooms, antique shops and even a store filled floor to ceiling with chiming clocks. Sutter Creek resident and Visitors Center volunteer Alan Bierce recommends picking up a walking-tour map that includes history about many of the towns buildings. And make sure to visit the water-powered foundry, general stores and historic Methodist church the steeple you see from Highway 49 on the drive in. Visitors Center, 11 Randolph St., Sutter Creek; (209) 267-1344. www.suttercreek.org. Afternoon After shopping, head north about 15 minutes to Plymouth, at the mouth of the California Shenandoah Valley, a wine enthusiasts heaven. After about 5 miles along Shenandoah Road, pull into Helwig Winery. Home to Amador Countys first wine cave, the winery is well known for its Zinfandel and Barbera varieties. Father and son David and Scott Helwig spent years developing the property and Gold Rush-era-inspired outbuildings. The grounds include an amphitheater with a panoramic view of the vineyards. Helwig Winery, 11555 Shenandoah Road, Plymouth; (209) 245-5200. www.helwigwinery.com. 10:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. daily. Tasting fee: $5, waived with purchase of a bottle. Evening For dinner, head back into downtown Plymouth. The quiet main street is home to a few weathered buildings and a centrally located park. But walk into Taste Restaurant and Wine Bar, and youll forget youre in a town of just a few hundred. The menu bursts with seasonal flavor (be sure to try the mushroom cigar mushrooms rolled in phyllo dough), and the staff is well versed in local wine offerings that pair with each dish. After dinner, consider a nightcap at nearby Amador Brewing Co., making sure to try the Kit Carson pale ale, a nod to American frontiersman Christopher Houston Kit Carson. James Tensuan On the way home, pause. Take a breath and notice the rolling hills, dotted with oak trees silhouetted against the darkening sky. Taste, 9402 Main St, Plymouth; (209) 245-2463. Amador Brewing Co., 9659 Main St., Plymouth; (209) 507-1900. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate CAIRO The body of an Italian research student who disappeared in Cairo on Jan. 25, the fifth anniversary of the start of the uprising that toppled President Hosni Mubarak, has been found with evident signs of torture on the outskirts of the city, an Egyptian prosecutor said Thursday. The discovery of the student, Giulio Regeni, 28, a Ph.D. candidate at Cambridge University, was met with anger in Italy, where the Foreign Ministry summoned Egypts ambassador to press for a joint investigation. The members of a government-led trade delegation have also returned home early. Regeni arrived in Cairo in October to study Arabic and to conduct field research for his doctorate in labor movements. He disappeared Jan. 25 despite tight security in the Egyptian capital, where the authorities had sought to quell any public demonstrations connected to the fall of Mubarak. Friends said Regeni was last seen walking toward a metro station during the evening on his way to meet a friend at a downtown cafe. The search received extensive public attention in recent days, as friends appealed for information and his parents flew into Cairo. Regenis body was discovered Wednesday night in a suburb of Cairo, on the desert highway leading to Alexandria, said Ahmed Nagy, the Egyptian prosecutor in charge of the investigation. Nagy said Regenis body had been found naked from the waist down and that there were evident signs of torture all over the body, concentrated around the face and the back, including multiple stab wounds. The cause of death was not clear, he said. His body was identified by one of his roommates and was being kept at a morgue in central Cairo awaiting an autopsy, Nagy added. Dozens of Egyptians have disappeared after being taken into custody by the security forces in recent months, often without being arrested, human rights groups say, but it would be rare for a foreigner to disappear in such a manner. Friends said they could not rule out the possibility that his death was the result of a random criminal act, a botched kidnapping or Islamic militancy. In August, a militant group associated with the Islamic State beheaded Tomislav Salopek, a Croatian man, after snatching him on the outskirts of Cairo. LA HORMIGA, Colombia As Fulgenico Quenguan walked down a narrow dirt path on the farm he calls his familys future, he stumbled on a vestige of his past: a stout coca plant thriving despite years of fumigation, uprooting and neglect. These things are so stubborn, he said. If this was a food crop youd have to have an agronomist here analyzing your soil and telling you how to grow it. ... This grows anywhere. President Juan Manuel Santos met with President Obama in Washington on Thursday to celebrate 15 years since the beginning of Plan Colombia a joint initiative that aimed to bolster Colombias institutions, strengthen its military and, principally, eradicate coca, the raw material for cocaine. A decade and a half later, that push is being credited with turning the country around. Once synonymous with bloodshed and kidnappings, violence is down dramatically and the government is nearing a peace pact with the countrys largest guerrilla group, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC. Before Plan Colombia, everyone, including the United States, believed that we were on the verge of being a failed state, said former President Andres Pastrana, who started the initiative with his U.S. counterpart, Bill Clinton. Now Colombia is a viable nation, and thats thanks to Plan Colombia. The United States has pumped about $10 billion into the initiative since it was first conceived in 1999 most of it in military aid. But millions also went into carrot-and-stick approaches to eradicating coca: dusting crops with glyphosate while providing farmers with economic alternatives. The program helped Colombia cut its coca production by more than half from 2000 to 2014, but like Quenguans wild plant, the problem persists. Our success has been relative, Santos said last week. We were able to end the big cartels and weve eliminated more than 100,000 hectares (247,105 acres) of coca crops, but were still the No. 1 exporter of cocaine in the world. During Santos three-day trip to Washington, he will ask for $500 million in annual aid for the next decade about $200 million more than Colombia receives now. Colombia may be signing a peace deal with the FARC as early as March, ending the hemispheres oldest and bloodiest civil conflict. Officials said U.S. funds would bolster post-conflict efforts: clearing landmines, reintegrating demobilized guerrillas and helping the Colombian state push into isolated areas now controlled by the FARC. LONDON World leaders pledged a total of $10 billion Thursday to help millions of victims of Syrias civil war even as diplomatic efforts to end the conflict stuttered and stalled. Leaders attending an international donors conference in London committed almost $6 billion in aid for 2016, with the rest to be handed over by 2020, British Prime Minister David Cameron said. But the funding commitments came as military bombardments in Syria intensified and tentative peace talks in Geneva were on hold. After almost five years of fighting, its pretty incredible that as we come here in London in 2016 the situation on the ground is actually worse, Secretary of State John Kerry told delegates from nearly 70 countries. The one-day meeting, held under tight security near the British Parliament, was aimed at gathering donations and agreeing on plans for economic and educational projects to help the 4.6 million Syrians who have sought refuge in neighboring countries including Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. Jordans King Abdullah said his country could not sustain unaided the burden of what he said was almost 1.3 million Syrian refugees, a fifth of Jordans population. The meeting opened hours after the latest U.N.-led bid to start peace talks in Geneva was suspended for three weeks a sign of major difficulties. The faltering peace process increases pressure on donor countries to commit long-term aid to the victims of the five-year civil war. The U.N. and regional countries say they need $9 billion in assistance for 2016 alone, as the situation in the region deteriorates. Conference co-host Britain has pledged $1.75 billion in new aid between now and 2020, and the U.S. committed $900 million to bring total U.S. humanitarian spending during the war to $5.1 billion. Germany, which has taken in Europes largest share of migrants more than 1 million last year, including almost 430,000 Syrians said it would give $2.5 billion through 2018 to help Syrian refugees. This years organizers hope that finding jobs and schools for refugees can foster stability and keep displaced Syrians in the Middle East, slowing migration to Europe. The study reflects concerns and critiques that educators, lawmakers and others across New Mexico have had of the A-F grading system since the Legislature passed it into law in 2011. It also gives weight to arguments that poverty impacts learning, although the report did not address that issue. Assigning school grades has been one of the cornerstones of Gov. Susana Martinezs education-reform platform both to inform the public about school performance and to determine which schools are struggling and need additional resources. Robert Nott reports about a new legislative analysis, the state Public Education Departments A-F school grading system [that] favors more affluent schools in New Mexico , which tend to earn As and Bs, while it works against schools that have a high percentage of students who are in special-education programs, are from low-income families or are English-language learners. Those schools, the report says, often get Ds and Fs.Democratic presidential contenders Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders will face off at a hastily thrown-together town hall debate in New Hampshire on MSNBC tonight at 7 pm Mountain time. On Wednesday, they spent the day debating who is more progressive.Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump is still ahead of US Sens. Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio in New Hampshire polls, but hes looking back at his loss in Iowa and suggesting that Cruz misled caucusgoers on Tuesday when his camp sent out an untruthful notice that Ben Carson was dropping out of the race, just before people started to vote. Carson has not dropped out. Rand Paul, Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum announced they are withdrawing. Maryland Gov. Martin OMalley dropped out of the Democratic race on Tuesday night.If you havent seen it yet, youll want to check out this video of El Jefe roaming around the Southwest for over three years. The giant cat is the only known jaguar in the US after another was euthanized in 2009 after being injured. Happy Thursday, Fork followers! Santa Fe is gearing up for Mardi Gras on Tuesday, Feb. 9, and one local restaurant is in it to win it with a fine-looking four-course dinner. Feb. 8 marks the Chinese New Year, the Year of the Monkey, and Santa Fe Culinary Academy is celebrating early with a pop-up dinner in its student restaurant. Also, one local restaurant is encouraging Santa Feans to buy local with a new discount initiative aimed at local shops and restaurants. Monkey Business Chinese New Year is Feb. 8, but at 6:15 pm on Thursday, Feb. 4, Santa Fe Culinary Academy gets its Year of the Monkey groove on early with a four-course dinner in its student-run restaurant in Plaza Mercado. Celebrate with Szechuan-style egg rolls, duck consomme prepared hot and sour style, steamed pork buns and green tea ice cream with a fortune tuile (a delicate French cookie). Dinner is $45 per person (plus tax and tip), and beer and wine will be available for purchase. And do please make a reservation. Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler! If you're looking for somewhere to be on Mardi Gras for dinner, you might not have to look any further. At 6:30 pm Tuesday, Feb. 9, Loyal Hound pub and restaurant is serving up its Fat Tuesday Supper Club dinner, with beer pairings from Louisiana brewer Abita (sold separately). Chow down on baked oysters with chorizo butter, fried chicken and grits with redeye gravy, shrimp and sausage pie and paczki, a classic filled Polish doughnut. The community-seating supper is $45 per person (plus tax and tip), and reservations (471-0440) are required. Join the Rebel Alliance Dr. Field Goods Kitchen chef/owner Josh Gerwin and his manager, Tahirih Bolton, are daring you to up your buy-local game with Gerwin's newest project: the Santa Fe Buy Local Alliance. Here's how it works: Locally owned and operated businesses join the alliance, and patrons who shop or dine there get a 10 percent discount when they show their receipt to any other alliance member. The project is just getting off the ground, but member businesses already include Dr. Field Goods Kitchen, Barrio Brinery, Cheesemongers of Santa Fe, Museum Hill Cafe, Railyard Fitness and Amigo Tire & Auto. Interested in joining? Email SantaFeBuyLocalAlliance@gmail.com Week-In, Week-Out New Mexico Restaurant Week is almost here. The Santa Fe event runs Feb. 21-28. Almost 50 local restaurants are participating, from fine-dining favorites like Restaurant Martin and radish & rye to more casual joints like Jambo Cafe and Jinja Bar & Bistro. But dining out isn't the only thing to do. Special events this year include a happy-hour mezcal class at Sazon, a sake-pairing class at Shohko Cafe and more. Taos Restaurant Week runs Feb. 28- March 6, and Albuquerque Restaurant Week runs March 6-13. If you want to see what's on the menu in Santa Fe, just click on a restaurant on the Restaurant Week website. Mixx It Up Hungry? Heading to Lobo country but want to try something new? No problem. Albuquerque welcomes Mixx, a new full-service taco bar on the west side of downtown. Beer and wine are coming to the joint soon. More ABQ food news in the link. Get Outta Town, and Eat Chocolate Sick and tired of cold weather? Perhaps a trip to Silver City for the 17th Annual Chocolate Fantasia on Saturday, Feb. 6, is the ticket. The event, in which proceeds benefit programming for the Mimbres Region Arts Council, is a casual, strolling affair that encourages silly dress and dancing. $25 gets you 20 chocolates, and that isn't such a bad deal for supporting the arts. Take It to The Bridge Santa Fe Brewing Co, has undergone some tremendous transformations over the past few years, and for fans of live music, 2016 is going to be a year to keep your eyeballs peeled to the SFBC website. Renovations are underway at the old Santa Fe Sol performance space and restaurant (which SFBC owns), and owners hope to begin holding live concerts in March at the fresh venue, called The Bridge. And there will be food trucks! Beer Me, Up-High Ski Santa Fe is holding its Ski Santa Fe Brewski event at the ski area's Totemoff's mid-mountain bar on Saturday, Feb. 20. Six breweries are participating. An $18 ticket gets you a special silicone pint glass, three free samples and a free pint. Lift tickets are not required to attend this event. You can pre-purchase tickets via the Ski Santa Fe ticket office or by calling 954-3680. Tickets will also be available at the door. Waste Not, Want Not There's been a lot of talk recently about trying to combat food waste, and it's a long time coming. Some statistics put American food waste at nearly 50 percent, which doesn't really mesh with the number of hungry people living in this nation and the state of New Mexico. Want to learn more? Here's a movie about it. Santa Fe Reporter The stoush between New Zealand Honey International and the Ministry for Primary Industries over labelling has reached the Court of Appeal. New Zealand Honey is appealing a High Court ruling in November that found its trademarks, Manuka Doctor and Manuka Pharma, amount to health claims and cannot be used on the company's products. That ruling came after the MPI withdrew export approvals, blocking the firm's sales into certain markets. MPI has been cracking down on the manuka honey industry amid international criticism there is more manuka honey being sold worldwide than New Zealand actually produces, suggesting some product is bogus. With no industry-wide consensus on what constitutes manuka honey, MPI introduced an interim labelling guideline in July 2014 to give the industry clarity and protect consumers from false claims, as well as to try to improve credibility of manuka products. The regulator cancelled NZ Honey's export assurance last May, saying the company's brand names Manuka Doctor and Manuka Pharm breached food labelling standards. Appearing today in the Court of Appeal in Wellington before a panel of three judges - Justice Anthony Randerson, Justice Helen Winkelmann and Justice Mark Cooper - NZ Honey counsel Andrew Brown QC said the company disputed the High Court's ruling that the trademark Manuka Doctor amounted to a claimed health benefit. Brown said the general public were "well used to puffery" when it came to non-specific claims on the health benefits of food, and were able to form viewpoints on products without the need for protection. If there was a health claim, it had to be identifiable, he said. An identified claim had to state, suggest or imply a health effect, it must be possible to identify what that effect was, and the regulation did not cover implied, vague and general claims, such as "it's got to be good for you," he said. Appearing for MPI, Rachael Schmidt-McCleave said the context of the specific product was important in this case. There were proven benefits from the topical application of manuka honey on wounds, she said, and the public had an understanding of manuka as beneficial to health. Schmidt-McCleave said the term Manuka Doctor implied a therapeutic claim from a doctor, as it compared the services of a doctor to the benefit from the honey. She said the existing connotations around manuka honey put Manuka Doctor further along the continuum of permissable health labelling. Schmidt-McCleave said the language written into the standard governing labelling on food showed implied health claims were meant to be covered. Brown said the Manuka Doctor trademark was clarified on the label, with reference to specialists rather than physicians. Schmidt-McCleave said the clarification on Manuka Doctor bottles was in smaller type on the back of the bottle, and the average consumer may not read it. She also said the use of 'doctor' in the trademark, with no other link to the product, implied a health benefit. All three judges questioned Schmidt-McCleave on her argument as to other food health claims MPI could restrict. She told the court that a food could be described as "good", but not "good for you" if that was not scientifically proven, with MPI viewing generalised claims as "problematic." The apple industry could not use the term "an apple a day keeps the doctor away", under MPI's argument, as that would be a health claim, and the only recognised health claim for apples is around improved heart health, she said. General language, such as branding using a "healthy tick" without evidence would not be allowed under that argument, Schmidt-McCleave said, and a sign in the fruit and vegetable section of a supermarket saying "make a healthy choice" would also be banned as it is not a specific, proven claim. It would still be possible to reference health benefits from milk under this argument, as milk has recognised health benefits from calcium. The decision was reserved. BusinessDesk.co.nz Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: Air New Zealand Limited Retail Bond Offer Books Close Spark welcomes C-band spectrum allocation AIA - 2022 Annual Meeting Chair & Chief Executive Addresses MOVE Completes Purchase of Vessel for Trans-Tasman Service Heartland to purchase Challenger Bank in Australia, and provides lending growth update October 20th Morning Report VTL - Director Resignation - Reg Barrett Infratil 2022 Sydney Investor Day Rua Bioscience Confirms First International Order AIA - Auckland Airport considers retail bond offer Current and former New Zealand employees of Dick Smith are not part of the underpayment of staff annual leave, affecting entitlements worth A$2 million uncovered by the retail chains receiver, Ferrier Hodgson. Receivers began analysing Dick Smiths books since they took control of the troubled business in early January. Based on their investigations to date, they understand up to 3,200 current and former employees of the Australian business may have been underpaid their annual leave leading entitlements, potentially dating back to 2010, receiver James Stewart said in a statement. The underpayment of entitlements appears to reflect an incorrect application of the relevant award, Stewart said. The receivers have brought the issue to the attention of the Fair Work Ombudsman and the Shop Distributive and Allied Employees Association. The receivers on-going investigations include reviewing other historic entitlement calculations to confirm they have been correctly paid. Any additional Australian employee entitlements rank as priority claims ahead of the secured creditors. Dick Smith owes more than A$140 million to its banks and more than A$200 million to unsecured creditors. Almost 200 Dick Smith New Zealand staff are owed $353,000 by the company, which operated 393 stores in Australia and New Zealand. The 62 store New Zealand operation is said by the receivers to be profitable and an attractive proposition for sale. More than 40 expressions of interest had been received from potential buyers, with formal interest due last week and a shortlist now being prepared. Private equity company Anchorage Capital bought Dick Smith from Woolworths in 2011 for A$115 million before selling it for A$520 million in a sharemarket float two years later. BusinessDesk.co.nz Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: Air New Zealand Limited Retail Bond Offer Books Close Spark welcomes C-band spectrum allocation AIA - 2022 Annual Meeting Chair & Chief Executive Addresses MOVE Completes Purchase of Vessel for Trans-Tasman Service Heartland to purchase Challenger Bank in Australia, and provides lending growth update October 20th Morning Report VTL - Director Resignation - Reg Barrett Infratil 2022 Sydney Investor Day Rua Bioscience Confirms First International Order AIA - Auckland Airport considers retail bond offer Goodman Property Trust (GMT) is an externally managed listed Unit Trust that invests in high quality industrial and business space property. GMT has a substantial property offering that is focused in the main distribution centres of Auckland and Christchurch. The portfolio includes estates and stand-alone properties that provide around 1,000,000 m2 of rentable area, accommodating more than 250 customers. Some of GMTs property include Central Park, Highbrook and Millennium Centre in Auckland and Glasswork and Southpark in Christchurch with prominent customer portfolio which includes well-known companies such as Air New Zealand, New Zealand Post, Mighty River Power, Ford Motor Company and Vodafone. GMT has a corporate credit rating of "BBB" from Standard & Poor's. GMT is managed by the ASX listed Goodman Group through its subsidiary Goodman (NZ) Limited. The interests of the manager are aligned with other investors through its cornerstone unit holding in the Trust. At 31 March 2015, Goodman Group held 17.8% of the units in GMT. Sponsored by Colonial Ltd, the Trust made a public offering of 145m units in May 1999 at $1 per unit. With a market capitalisation of around $1.45 billion at 9 July 2015, GMT is one of the NZSXs largest investment entities and a constituent in the leading NZX15 index. Goodman Property Trust, New Zealand's largest listed property investor, posted a 20 percent drop in first-half profit, after the year-earlier period was boosted by a revaluation gain on its portfolio. Profit slipped to $48.4 million, or 3.8 cents per unit, in the six months ended Sept. 30, from $60.2 million, or 4.77 cents, a year earlier. Profit in the first half of last year was boosted by a $13.7 million revaluation gain on investment properties. Its first-half rental revenue slipped 4 percent $73.1 million. Goodman is selling assets to fund new development, with as much as $150 million of new projects in train for this financial year which it expects to improve earnings. It has $72.1 million of its properties contracted for sale and in the first half of the year and also announced five new development projects worth a total $72.6 million which are expected to generate $5.7 million of annual rental income and deliver valuation gains of 10-15 percent when completed. Goodman's pre-tax distributable earnings, which strip out movements in the value of its property portfolio, increased 2.9 percent to $57.1 million, or 4.64 cents per unit. It reaffirmed its full-year forecast for about 9.4 cents per unit. That's likely to boost cash distributions to unitholders to 6.65 cents per unit, from 6.45 cents last year, as indicated by the company. READ THE FULL REPORT AT http://shop.sharechat.co.nz/collections/key-fundamentals/products/goodman-property-trust-units Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: Air New Zealand Limited Retail Bond Offer Books Close Spark welcomes C-band spectrum allocation AIA - 2022 Annual Meeting Chair & Chief Executive Addresses MOVE Completes Purchase of Vessel for Trans-Tasman Service Heartland to purchase Challenger Bank in Australia, and provides lending growth update October 20th Morning Report VTL - Director Resignation - Reg Barrett Infratil 2022 Sydney Investor Day Rua Bioscience Confirms First International Order AIA - Auckland Airport considers retail bond offer Nicht Ihr Computer? Dann konnen Sie fur die Anmeldung ein Fenster zum privaten Surfen offnen. Weitere Informationen is a lifelong low-life Republican and just switched his party registration to get into Congress (where he votes with the GOP anyway). Murphy is the perfect Chuck Schumer recruit-- a slimy Schumercrat as corrupt as they come. Yesterday we looked at how he's been selling his vote for campaign cash in regard to EB-5 visas, something I thought only real low-life Republicans did. Oh... that's right; Murphya lifelong low-life Republican and just switched his party registration to get into Congress (where he votes with the GOP anyway). An investigator who's been looking into Murphy's corruption got in touch with me after we exposed his relationship with Nicholas Mastroianni. "You missed something," he said. "Take a look at what he's been up to with a crook in Boulder named Michael Smith, CEO of Freeport LNG Development, which operates a liquefied natural gas facility in Freeport, Texas." In 2014 Freeport LNG Development donated to only 2 members of Congress, Murphy and far right Texas Republican Randy Weber. This cycle Smith maxed out to Murphy already ($5,400). And gave $100,000 to his superPAC. Here's why: On June 25, 2014 Freeport LNG Development wanted passage of a Republican bill to expedit approval of natural gas export. Two mainstream conservatives who refuse to participate in Pay-to-Play schemes, Chris Gibson (R-NY) and Walter Jones (R-NC), voted against it but 200 all the rest of the Republicans voted for it. 148 Democrats voted NO , but Murphy and a pack of corrupt Democrats, primarily Blue Dogs and New Dems, voted with the GOP-- all the regular slime-buckets like Gene Green (TX), Henry Cuellar (TX), Collin Peterson (MN), Kyrsten Sinema (AZ), Steve Israel (NY), Ami Bera (CA), John Delaney (MD), Joe Garcia (FL), Filemon Vela (TX), Denny Heck (WA), Kurt Schrader (OR), Ben Ray Lujan (NM), Scott Peters (CA), Jim Cooper (TN), Sean Patrick Maloney (NY), Dan Lipinski (IL), Jim Costa (CA)-- and all the rightist Democrats who were defeated that year and are no longer in Congress. The League of Conservation Voters scored the bill as a dirty energy because it removed the Department of Energy from the approval process for liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports to most of the world. "Expanded LNG exports," they wrote at the time, "would lead to increased fracking, which is not properly regulated, pollutes our air and our water, and is connected to a number of health problems for people living nearby fracking operations. By automatically granting DOE approval for LNG exports to all 159 countries that are members of the World Trade Organization, rather than just the 20 countries with whom the U.S. has a Free Trade Agreement, H.R. 6 would eliminate the agencys ability to consider the full range of impacts these exports could have on public health and the environment." The Democrats who crossed the aisle to vote with the GOP on this were paid off, but few as handsomely as Murphy who got the big campaign contributions PLUS the $100,000 for his SuperPAC. Michael Smith and Freeport LNG Development very much want Murphy in the U.S. Senate and, like the worst of the Wall Street banksters, are willing to put up the money to help him defeat Alan Grayson. If you'd like to say NO to the banksters, the frackers, the polluters, the crooks and Patrick Murphy... there's this page In Murphy's world only rich criminal types get visas On a more positive note, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr, a national environmental champion, looked at Murphy's and Grayson's voting records and quickly endorsed Grayson for the Senate seat. Kennedy: "When Republicans in Congress tried to intimidate President Obama and Congressman Grayson into backing the Keystone Pipeline, Rep. Grayson never buckled, never blinked. Hes always stood strong in the fight to adopt smart, clean energy and protect the environmental resources which are so vital to Floridians and that states economy. Ive always admired Alans courage... No one else in this race cast the tough votes, or made the strong case against Keystone that he did. Alan is the lone, true environmental defender in this Senate race. Its a comfort to know Democrats like Alan Grayson still exist in Washington. Hes one of those who will not compromise in what they believe and fight for. We need Alan in the Senate." What an anomaly-- someone Patrick Murphy's daddy hasn't been able to buy off! This is the BlueAmerica ActBlue Senate page ... no Schumercrats anywhere near it. UPDATE: Murphy Slips... Forgets Schumer Told Him To Stop Voting With The GOP 'Til After November It's par for the course when conservative Democrats get primary challenges, they alter their voting patterns so they case pass for actual Democrats. Murphy's a good example. Before announced he was running for Congress, he was the 4th worst Democrat in the House in terms of voting against progressive initiatives. His lifetime ProgressivePunch crucial vote score is finally over 50%-- 51.70% to be precise, the 12th worst Democrat in the House (still an "F," of course). That number is significantly higher than it was last year, because this session his crucial vote score is 62.11, still atrocious for a Democrat, but only the 19th worst. He seems to watch very closely how Alan Grayson votes and then just does that. Today, however, was different. Republican Randy Hultgren's H.R.1675 came up for a vote and passed 265-159 , Murphy, along with the rest of the Wall Street-owned New Dems and Blue Dogs voted with the GOP and against the Democrats. Obviously, Grayson voted against it since it was written to weaken financial regulations and make it easier to fool investors. The bill would weaken disclosure requirements for companies that offer stock options to employees, and curb oversight and liability on promotional materials that companies use to market certain products that investors rely on. Yesterday President Obama's budget office warned that Hultgren's legislation would "pose risks to investors [and] allow financial institutions to avoid appropriate oversight." Obama said he would veto it but it's something Wall Street demanded so Murphy voted with the Republicans and his Wall Street paymasters, who are financing his Senate campaign. Among the sleazy and corrupt Democrats who crossed the aisle with Murphy to vote with the GOP on this today were many of the usual suspects: Blue Dogs Kurt Schrader (OR), Collin Peterson (MN), Kyrsten Sinema (AZ), Henry Cuellar (TX), Jim Costa (CA), Gwen Graham (FL), Brad Ashford ((NE), Jim Cooper (TN) and New Dems Kathleen Rice (NY), Filemon Vela (TX), Scott Peters (CA), Ron Kind (WI), John Delaney (MD), Jim Himes (CT), and John Carney (DE). BENGALURU: Ever wondered how much we rely on buying processed and semi-processed food items these days? Look around you, observe the chips packet on your table, the cola can in your hand, the tetra-packed juice in your fridge, and the noodles in your kitchen, they might have different names, yet they come from the house of some of the biggest brands that controls everything you buy at the grocery store. Oxfam International has come up with an infographic depicting 10 of the worlds most powerful food and beverage brands. Oxfams selection is based on the largest overall revenues globally, as well as brands position in the Forbes 2000 annual ranking. Oxfam also keeps a scorecard on the environmental impact of these brands through its nonprofit "Behind The Brands" campaign. The scorecard has 7 equally weighed themes namely, Transparency at a corporate level, Women farm workers and small-scale producers in the supply chain, Workers on farms in the supply chain, Farmers (small-scale) growing the commodities, Land - both rights and access to land and sustainable use of it, Water - both rights and access to water resources and sustainable use of it, Climate - both relating to reducing green house gas emissions and helping farmers adapt to climate change. Below is the list of brands with their %score as reported by Oxfam. Unilever, 71% The brand has scored the best on climate change, supporting small scale farmers and workers rights, and has overtaken Nestle in the no. 1 spot. Read Also: India Bucks Global Steel Output Trend in 2015; Production Rises 2.6 pct Coca-Cola to Enter Dairy Drinks Segment in India WASHINGTON: The three Mi-35 Indian multi-role helicopters donated to Afghanistan have made a big difference in the offensive against militants in the war-torn country, the outgoing commander of US forces in Afghanistan has said. The three helicopters were donated during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Kabul in December last year. "They do have three Mi-35s (sic) - really Mi-24s and Mi-35s from India. They'll have a fourth one coming in pretty soon that will add to their inventory," General John Campbell told members of the House Armed Services Committee during a Congressional hearing on Afghanistan yesterday. The Mi-35, a comprehensive upgrade of the Mi-24, is a versatile helicopter gunship with troop carrying capabilities. In January, three multi-role Mi-35 attack helicopters donated by India were inducted into the Afghan Air Force, giving the country's security forces a much-needed lethal tooth against militant groups like the Taliban. The Indian gift to Afghanistan has been hailed by the people and government of Afghanistan, and also by the US. Campbell's remarks on India's donation of attack helicopters came in response to a question from Congressman Rob Wittman who wanted to know about the capabilities of the Afghan Air Force. Campbell, who has commanded US and international forces in Afghanistan for the past 18 months, is expected to retire. Lieutenant General John Nicholson has been chosen by President Barack Obama to replace Campbell. Read Also: 10 People Whose Works Became More Famous Than Their Names U.S. Attributes Rise of China and India to Peace in Asia-Pacific AX226_62D7_9.JPG Gov. Cuomo issued a warning to New York residents about a wave of tax-season scams. (iStock) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Gov. Andrew Cuomo issued a warning to New Yorkers this week about a rampant wave of scams by crooks targeting both taxpayers and tax preparers in the state. Here are three hoaxes Cuomo highlighted in a press release: 1. Scammers posing as New York State or U.S. Treasury representatives Callers posing as state Treasury agents encourage victims to turn over their bank account information along with $250 in return for a larger sum of cash to come at a later date. To make themselves appear more convincing, the scammers provide the victim with a phone number, address, and confirmation code specific to the transaction. New Yorkers have also received calls from individuals posing as U.S. Treasury agents. Click here for a sample recording of such a scam scam, identified and provided by the governor's office. 2. Pocketing Affordable Care Act penalties Uninsured New Yorkers may face another tax scam involving penalties under the Affordable Care Act. In some cases, untrustworthy tax preparers tell clients to pay the penalties directly to them, and they keep the money. Taxpayers should never make a tax payment directly to an individual or tax preparer. Payments should be made only with a tax return or in response to a letter from the IRS. 3. Tax preparers become the targets Tax preparers also need to remain vigilant. Recent scams are targeting the preparers via phone calls demanding client information. In these cases, scammers pretend to be from the IRS in hopes of gaining usernames and passwords to taxpayer accounts. "Our administration is committed to protecting consumers from scammers who seek to prey on hardworking New Yorkers," Cuomo said in the press release. "New Yorkers need to remain vigilant, be skeptical of anyone seeking to solicit personal information, and report any suspicious activity to the appropriate authorities." Several Staten Island have contacted the Advance in recent days to report tax scams -- in some cases, from particularly aggressive crooks trying to get them to part with their hard-earned money. One Grymes Hill woman told the Advance a caller said she had 45 minutes to pay off a tax debt or she'd be arrested at her home. Another woman told the Advance a caller identified himself as an IRS arresting officer who provided a case number and claimed he would take her into custody if she didn't pay up. Here are some scams every Staten Islander should be aware of: STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Employees at the San Mateo Grocery Store in Rosebank are still shaken by an armed robbery that occurred Tuesday night. On Wednesday, Irma Garcia, the sister of the owner of the small deli on Tompkins Avenue, recounted how the robber entered the store pointing a gun and demanding money. Garcia recalled that the suspect first mistook a customer for an employee. When the customer explained that he couldn't work the register, Garcia accessed it and began handing the suspect money. According to Garcia, the robber then kicked the owner, Virgilio Garcia, to the ground. Irma Garcia added that the suspect told her not to call the police because he knew where they live. Jose Martinez, the owner's nephew, said employees are concerned for their safety. He explained that normally only two workers are at the family-run deli per shift. However, four employees will staff the deli at all times now due to the recent incident. Wednesday right-wing loon and religious nut Rick Santorum ended his presidential campaign, as expected, after finishing with basically no votes in Iowa. (Rand Paul, Mike Huckabee and Martin O'Malley also dropped out after failing dismally in Iowa. Chris Christie will likely wait until he's humiliated in New Hampshire before joining them, although not before doing his best to destroy the hated boy in the bubble .) What was interesting, at least marginally, about Santorum leaving the race was his endorsement of " a tremendously gifted young man ," Marco Rubio. That came just in time for the hard-hitting expose of Rubio in the New York, which is owned by Herr Trumpf's son-in-law, Jared Kushner (husband of Ivanka, son of Trumpf criminal crony Charles Kushner OK, so here's the haps. Like we saw Wednesday, the Kochs told Rubio he could be president if he'd show them he could effectively attack Herr. And since policy attacks-- "he's not a real conservative" and "he wants single payer"-- haven't proven to not work, it's got to be personal stuff. OK, like Coulter says, Rubio's a sweaty-- she means greasy-- little liar and he may be nervous about going mano-a-mano against Trumpf but his team has an opposition book of personal slimery to use against Trumpf. So Trumpf unleashed the son-in-law on Marco to give him a taste of what he can expect if he dares . "Marco Rubio: Poor Little Rich Boy Runs Into Real Estate Trouble" may sound innocuous enough... but the story isn't. Ken Silverstein's sub-headline is more to the point: "The Senator's three houses, various lady friends, assorted con artist pals and piles of unexplained income." When it comes to sheer brazen corruption, chicanery and dishonesty there is one candidate who stands head and shoulders above everyone else and that is the right-wing Cuban-American and Tea Party darling Senator Marco Rubio of-- naturally-- the great State of Florida. The Wizard of Oz. For example, in his autobiography, An American Son: A Memoir, Mr. Rubio describes how he allegedly grew up poor and mowed the grass and walked dogs to make a bit of spare change. Technically this may be correct, but most poor kids dont get paid by relatives heavily involved in narcotics trafficking and whose pets double as guard dogs for a drug cartel, as was the case with young Marco, a federal indictment shows. (See Mr. Rubios entire public image-- the child of poor Cuban immigrants fleeing the repression of Castros Cuba who pulled himself up by his bootstraps and even now is a simple Jose Sixpack and family man-- is less tethered to reality than. For example, in his autobiography,, Mr. Rubio describes how he allegedly grew up poor and mowed the grass and walked dogs to make a bit of spare change. Technically this may be correct, but most poor kids dont get paid by relatives heavily involved in narcotics trafficking and whose pets double as guard dogs for a drug cartel, as was the case with young Marco, a federal indictment shows. (See these articles for more on young Marcos upbringing.) But it was only after getting into politics that Mr. Rubio really started making big money-- and he made it very quickly, with the help of a few intimate companions-- especially after taking over as Florida House majority leader and whip in early 2003. In fact, his income nearly tripled during the two years-- from $122,000 to $330,000, based on financial disclosure forms-- and spiked again in 2008, which may be tied to the fact that he became Florida House speaker in November 2006. Mr. Rubio was able to cash in in spectacular fashion because Floridas preposterously flaccid political rules allow politicians to simultaneously hold public office and work as consultants to major law and lobbying firms-- much like the arrangement that recently landed Sheldon Silver in prison in New York. That means that they technically cant lobby but do it anyway and call it consulting. So, for example, when Mr. Rubio became House majority leader in 2003 he went to work for the powerhouse lobbying firm of Broad and Cassell, which is precisely the point where disclosure forms reveal a giant spike in his income. Then, when Mr. Rubio stepped down from the House in 2008 (two years before he ran and won a U.S. Senate seat) he became partner in another law/lobbying firm-- Florida Strategic Consultants-- with the wife of a notoriously corrupt Florida politician and lobbyist named Esteban Bovo, sometimes known as El Bobo. (El Bobos wife, Vivian Bovo, had been Mr. Rubios top aide in the House.) While working at the firm, Mr. Rubio scored fat contracts from Miami Childrens Hospital and Jackson Memorial Hospital. Meanwhile, El Bobo was in position to appropriate money for the hospitals as chairman of a subcommittee of the Florida House Budget Committee. It was a win-win for Mr. Rubio and the Bovo clan. Meanwhile, Mr. Rubio was making more money on two highly suspicious real estate deals. In the first, Mr. Rubio had a little help from Mark Cereceda, a chiropractor with a lengthy rap sheet. I should note here that after Dr. Cereceda lent a financial hand, Mr. Rubio flipped his position on a key issue of great import to the chiropractor. Here are the key details: In 2003, Mr. Rubio bought his first house (at 6247 14th Street SW in West Miami) for $175,000, putting zero money down. He put it up for sale in 2005 but had difficulty selling it because of a weak local real estate market. But gracias a Dios, Dr. Cerecedas mama, Nora Cereceda (now deceased), bought Mr. Rubios house in 2007 for $380,000 cash, netting Mr. Rubio a profit of about $205,000. Que suerte! Shortly after Mr. Rubio sold the house, he did a 180-degree rotation on a key insurance bill for which Dr. Cereceda had been lobbying. Whereas he had previously been an outspoken opponent of the measure-- indeed, he was described in one local press item at the time as the main holdout-- he ended up voting for the legislation, which required Florida drivers to purchase $10,000 worth of personal injury Insurance. Many of Dr. Cerecedas clients were injured drivers who paid him with insurance money. And by the way, reported cases of personal injury fraud immediately soared in Florida after the measure passed. Dr. Cereceda has a lengthy arrest record both prior to and after his mama bought Mr. Rubios house. In 2003, he was arrested on charges of Aggravated Assault With A Deadly Weapon. Two years later, he was arrested for Felony Battery and also for Disorderly Conduct, and then in 2013 he was busted for running an illegal political contribution scheme by which he ordered his employees to contribute to political campaigns in their names and then he and his relatives reimbursed them. The doctor got off light. He was sentenced to house arrest and given probation. Dr. Cereceda has been a big donor to Ana Maria Pando, a disgraced former Hialeah branch county court judge, who wrote a letter to state authorities-- on official letterhead-- asking that Dr. Cerecedas company be reinstated after it got into some legal trouble. Pando was later convicted for taking a bribe from Dr. Cereceda, who ratted her out. Now lets turn to Mr. Rubios second surprisingly profitable real estate deal. It involves his current Miami-area residence, which he bought in December 2005 for $550,000. He put only 10 percent down on the house, and took out a $495,000 mortgage. Then, just 37 days later, he took out a $135,000 home equity loan (which he initially failed to disclose on his financial disclosure form) on the property. Mr. Rubio bought the house from a shell company called Sanval Boats LLC and no one knows who controlled that entity and hence who he in fact bought it from. But we do know that Mr. Rubio got very generous terms to finance the house from Miamis U.S. Century Bank, whose CEO was a former head of the Florida Republican Party named Jim Greer, who later went to jail for money laundering. The Chairman: The Rise and Betrayal of Jim Greer has some juicy anecdotes about Mr. Rubio and David Rivera, Mr. Rubios one-time best friend and roommate as well as A book about Greer calledhas some juicy anecdotes about Mr. Rubio and David Rivera, Mr. Rubios one-time best friend and roommate as well as a noted womanizer and former Florida State House member and federal congressman . (A number of other top officials at the U.S. Century Bank were major political supporters of Mr. Rubios.) A passage from the book reads: There was an indication that Rubio had an affair, said Greer. A woman who had worked in his legislative office when he was Speaker of the House abruptly left and got a job at Florida International University as a part-time professor. Emails she had sent him through her college account had become public record. Our opposition research specialist said the emails included things like, I have to talk to you right now. I cant take this anymore. Why arent you returning my calls? To an oppositional researcher the Crist campaign had hired, it appeared there had been a close relationship between the two and that Rubio had broken it off. In any event, Mr. Rubios $135,000 home equity loan was granted only because U.S. Century Bank mysteriously reappraised its worth upwards by about one-third, to $735,000, little more than a month after he purchased the property. It looks a lot like somebodys currying favor with an important political person, one real estate analyst said of Mr. Rubios real estate dealings in a 2008 story that ran in a Miami newspaper. People off the street dont get this deal. Its worth pointing out here that Miami-Dade County assessors put the market value of the house at $503,000 in 2006, some 50 percent less than US Century Banks appraisal at the same time. The houses assessed value topped out the following year at $540,401 and last year county assessors estimated its worth at a mere $400,492, an increase from $391,443 in 2013. David Riveras former girlfriend, Ana Alliegro, is currently under house arrest for her role in a complicated campaign finance/bribery scheme allegedly masterminded by Mr. Rivera, who helped her flee to Nicaragua before she was apprehended and turned over to U.S. authorities. Mr. Rivera is under investigation in the scheme, but the case has been stalled for months, infuriating Ms. Alliegro, who has publicly denounced Mr. Rivera and said she wants him to go to prison. Im told by a few well-placed sources that Ms. Alliegro knows everything about Mr. Rubio, including the names of a number of his lady friends-- more coming on that-- but I was unable to reach her. Mr. Rubio and David Rivera met in 1992, when both worked for the campaign of Florida Congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balart, and have been bosom buddies ever since. According to a Politico story, Mr. Rivera advised and stumped for Mr. Rubio in his first campaign for the state House in 2000. Mr. Rubio repaid the favor and helped Mr. Rivera win a House seat two years later. In 2006, Mr. Rivera played a key role in getting Mr. Rubio selected as the first Cuban-American speaker of the Florida House. Anyway, Mr. Rivera is just a generally shady guy. (In 2012, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington named him one of the most corrupt members of the House.) He was investigated by Florida law enforcement authorities in 2004 over a $1 million contract he received to promote a ballot initiative pushed by a Florida gambling magnate named Alex Havenick. Mr. Havenicks family has long thrived in Floridas notoriously crooked dog track betting industry, whose roots trace back to Meyer Lanksy, Al Capones CFO. Mr. Rivera was not charged in the case. Theres a lot more about all of this below and I should probably get on to the topic of Mr. Rubios lady friends, but first (and relatedly) I need to discuss a third house that Mr. Rubio owned, or co-owned anyway, with Mr. Rivera, the former House member and skirt chaser. This house is located in Tallahassee, the state capitol, where a lot of lobbyists work, including a few who are close friends of Mr. Rubios. There is, for example, Bridget Nocco of Smith & Ballard (now known as Ballard Partners), a former top staffer in the Florida House who raised oodles of cash for Mr. Rubio when he served in the state congress and who is now known nationally as a top-tier Republican fundraiser, and who over the years has traveled with Mr. Rubio and gotten paid quite well from several of his dubious political action committees. (She did not return a phone call seeking comment.) Mr. Rubio is also extraordinarily close to another lobbyist, but this one-- Dana Hudson-- is a vegetarian, according to her Twitter feed, lives in the Washington, D.C., area, and advocates on behalf of Homeland Security. Note here that Mr. Rubio does not serve on the Senate Homeland Security Committee, but the subject is dear to him, as one can immediately discern from his official website. Based on her tweets, the perky blonde Ms. Hudson is mad for Mr. Rubio, who she talks about obsessively, and is clearly a passionate supporter of his presidential campaign. For example, on January 6, when campaign consultant and Jesus-follower Gary Marx signed on with Mr. Rubio, Ms. Hudson tweeted, @Garymarx very excited u joined #TeamMarco! Lets do this! and elect @marcorubio #POTUS. (Ms. Hudson did not return a message left at her office, nor did she reply to messages left via Twitter and Facebook. I should also note here that Ms. Alliegro, the former girlfriend of David Rivera, has suggested that Ms. Hudson traveled with her former boyfriend and knew him well.) Anyway, lets return now to the house in Tallahassee-- at 1484 Bent Willow Drive in an area called Timber Lakes-- that Mr. Rubio and Mr. Rivera co-owned and that Politico dubbed their house of horrors. When they bought it in 2005 for $135,000, they were repeatedly behind on the mortgage payments, it was almost foreclosed on at various points and they sold it last year for less than they paid for it. Also, Im not sure exactly who officially hosted or attended but there were reportedly wild parties thrown at the house. The house sold in July for just $117,000. Public records show that a woman named Tamara Hardy moved into the house in 2010 and lived there during the time Mr. Rubio and Mr. Rivera were trying to sell it. I have heard conflicting accounts about whether Ms. Hardy paid rent at the house or lived there because she was a friend of either Mr. Rubio or Mr. Rivera. I tried to reach Ms. Hardy for comment but was unsuccessful. (I should also note that I sought comment from Mr. Rubios Senate office for this story and it directed me to his presidential campaign office. It failed to reply to a long list of questions for this story.) I mentioned above a PAC and a bribe so let me turn to that story now, which actually involved a few of Mr. Rubios PACs and assorted businesses. Pay particular attention here to three key figures who were all intimate, longtime friends of Mr. Rubios: Alexander Heckler, an attorney who in 2011 was found to have set up PACs that shuffled illegal straw donations to political candidates for his clients. Heckler, a lawyer and leading Florida lobbyist as well as a Hillraiser, the term for then-Senator Hillary Clintons top fundraisers, performed legal and accounting services for the treasurer of a Rubio-affiliated PAC, but only disclosed that several years afterwards, apparently to obscure his role. Heckler is also the stepson of Franklin Sands, who for many years-- including the period when the story below took place-- was the most powerful Democrat in the Florida House. Joaquin Urquiola, the treasurer for the two Rubio-affiliated PACs who Heckler did work for, who at the same time was being questioned by federal regulators about his role at an Ecuadorian bank with Miami offices that was suspected of violating anti-money laundering laws by taking in cash from several South American drug cartels. Urquiola was an accountant and director of the bank, Pacific National Bank, and he and Pacific were in fact subsequently hit with fines for violating anti-money laundering laws and the Bank Secrecy Act. According to a 2011 story about the case in the South Florida Business Journal, the bank and its directors had previously been sanctioned for similar crimes and allowed the violations to continue for years. Bridget Nocco, the lobbyist friend of Mr. Rubios whom I mentioned above. The story begins in late 2002 when Jeanette Dousdebes, Mr. Rubios wife, incorporated a nonprofit PAC called Floridians for Conservative Leadership Committee (FCLC). She was the registered agent and only director for this short-lived entity, which the State of Florida dissolved three years later because it had failed to file an annual report. Urquiola, the executive at the bank that allowed a drug cartel to launder money, was the groups treasurer, and Heckler quietly helped him out, according to information provided to me by the National Legal and Policy Center, a Virginia-based watchdog group that provided key research for this section of the story. During its brief existence, FCLC raised $228,350, of which roughly $35,000 disappeared into thin air, according to the entitys own tax returns. Its largest donor by far was a scandal-plagued PAC called OPH ($50,000) but Democratic super-lobbyist Ron Book also gave generously. Bridget Nocco, Mr. Rubios lobbyist pal, was paid nearly $26,000 by the PAC for salary and consulting services, according to its nonprofit tax filings with the IRS. Shortly before its demise FCLC made two payments to a super PAC (which are known as 527s, based on the IRS rule that allows them) with a similar name, Floridians for Conservative Leadership in Government (FCLG). The latter was formed in 2004 with Marco Rubio as its president and registered agent, his wife as the VP and Urquiola as its treasurer. In any event, the State of Florida dissolved Mr. Rubios 527 in 2006 because-- you guessed it-- it failed to file an annual report. Many of the companies and individuals that donated to the two groups had major business interests before the Florida Legislature and the two entities had overlapping donors, such as super-lobbyist Mr. Book, and payees, such as Bridget Nocco, who netted $90,062 from the 527 for salary and consulting services. Another notable recipient of cash from Mr. Rubios 527 was a company called Servicarga, which in 2004 received $3,500, which it billed for courier services. Whats curious here is that Mr. Rubios wife owned Servicarga and that, according to IRS returns and other documents, the company stopped operating in 1997. Mr. Rubio, Urquiola and Heckler were all players in another shady deal, this one involving a nonprofit PAC called Floridians for Real Family Values Inc. It was set up by Heckler in 2006-- the year Mr. Rubio was sworn in as speaker of the Florida House. For some reason Heckler failed to disclose to Florida election authorities that Urquiola was the PACs treasurer, but he was listed as filling that role in the groups federal tax returns, which Heckler filed. Whats also odd is that the federal tax identification number Urquiola used for Floridians for Real Family Values tax return was actually the same used by the FCLG, the 527 that Mr. Rubio created and was president of, which suggests that the two entities were essentially identical. Between October 24 and November 2 of 2006, Floridians for Real Family Values raised $244,000. Also in 2006, Urquiola incorporated a company called Florida Media Productions Group Inc., which operated out of the same address as the FCLG. Florida Media Productions Group was established to work on behalf of political campaigns, but theres not much evidence that the company did any work at all. It never bothered to set up a website nor did it ever create a single TV, print or online campaign ad. The only income it ever received-- about $150,000-- came from two Hecklers controlled PACs, one being Floridians for Real Family Values. All that money was paid for consulting services, though the payments were made long after the election year was over. Most of the money raised by Floridians for Real Family Values that didnt go to Florida Media Productions Group-- about $33,000-- simply disappeared when the former was shut down. Mr.Rubio would appear to be a terrible money manager. Hes made a ton of cash in politics (and spent piles of political money on what appear to be personal items, such as a family reunion he later claimed was charged to his campaign by mistake), as a consultant, and on two real estate deals, but records show he has serious cash flow problems. All of this raises a lot of questions-- to take an obvious one: Where does all of his money go? Whatever the answers, one thing is clear. Marco Rubio has some very, very curious and disturbing political bedfellows. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- William "Bill" A. Morris Jr., 96, a WWII veteran and native Staten Islander, was presented with the Albert V. Maniscalco Community Service Award on Wednesday by Borough President James Oddo. More than 50 people gathered inside Borough Hall's conference room to pay tribute to a man known for his dedication to helping members of his community. For the last 30 years, Morris and his wife, Norcie, 94, have run the food pantry at Faith Methodist Church, at 221 Heberton Ave., Port Richmond. In addition, Morris served as a Boy Scout leader of Troop 47 for 35 years. The Albert V. Maniscalco Community Service Award, established in 1986, was named in honor of Staten Island's ninth borough president. It celebrates the civic-mindedness and energy of an individual or organization that help make Staten Island a better place. The ceremony began with a prayer by Reverend Victoria Kittoe. Then came praise for Morris by Albert V. Maniscalco's daughter and son, Linda Calarco and Dr. Albert Maniscalco, respectively. "People like Bill focus on making a difference when they can," said Calarco. "They light the candle in their communities, rather than curse the darkness." "Even as senior citizens, neither my father, nor you, ever rested," Dr. Maniscalco said to Morris. "We are so honored to have you join this group of awardees." Next Oddo thanked Morris for all he's done -- not just for his service within the community, but for sacrifice in defending this nation during wartime. "Thank you for everything you've give to Staten Island, this country, and enduring everything that you did," said Oddo. "You're receiving this award for every veteran who came back without a pat on the back." Oddo, along with members of the Maniscalco family, presented the award to Morris, and bouquets of flowers to his wife and to his daughter, Dolores. "We understand this is a team award," added Oddo. Sitting in his wheelchair, Morris thanked everyone in the audience for their attendance and recognition. "I've received quite a few awards over the years, but to me, this is the greatest I've received," he said. "This is something I didn't expect." The Advance asked Morris the message he'd like the youth of Staten Island to take from his legacy. "Do what you can to make this world a better place," he said with a smile. "There has to be a little more love in this country and in the world. "You have to forgive and forget." Everyone then made their way to the Main Hall, as musicians played "God Bless America." There Oddo unveiled the Albert V. Maniscalco Commemorative Plaque, with Morris' name inscribed as the 2015 recipient. Morris continued to voice his humble thanks to in front of family, friends, and community members. "I am so appreciative of this," added Morris. "This is truly an honor." "I have amazing parents and an amazing legacy that you all helped to honor tonight," said his daughter, who wrote a novel about her father's wartime travels with his terrier companion, entitled "The Soldier that Wagged Her Tail." "This is something we'll always remember." STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - We don't want to start a war between the boroughs here. But on the list of places in New York City that are starved for mass transit, Brooklyn and Queens don't immediately spring to mind. I mean, they are part of the city subway system, are they not? They have city buses and yellow cabs, right? Uber? So why, oh why, does Mayor Bill de Blasio think we need to build a streetcar line that would connect the two boroughs along their picturesque waterfront? At a cost of $2.5 billion? Is he kidding? It's all part of the menu of goodies that the mayor is laying out in his State of the City address. The streetcar line would cover 16 miles along the East River from Astoria to Sunset Park. De Blasio says that the multibillion-dollar cost would be offset by the expected increase in property values in the area. Yeah, and higher tax assessments for the property owners, but that's their problem. Like we said, we've got no beef with Brooklyn and Queens. We're not telling them to leave any Christmas presents under the tree. They should grab whatever City Hall offers them with both hands and hold on like grim death. But you have to wonder what put this thought in de Blasio's head. Has he been to New Orleans or San Francisco lately? Is the city surplus really that large that we can start splurging on whatever pie-in-the-sky stuff occurs to us? It's not the first time that de Blasio has had a goofy transit idea. Remember his suggestion that we build a fast ferry line in Stapleton, which is only, like, a mile from the major ferry line that the city already operates? Does he know that it's the South Shore that needs a fast ferry? But here's what really puts sand in your shorts: The North Shore of Staten Island is primed to undergo historic growth, thanks to $1 billion in private investment led by the New York Wheel and other mega-projects. Lots of tourists and new residents are expected to flood the area. We need a way to move people around. But even apart from that, the North Shore already has a problem, with commuters traveling between the St. George Ferry Terminal and points west like Mariners Harbor facing a long slog via bus. But we've always had a bit of an ace in the hole: The old North Shore rail line right of way. Of course, being Staten Islanders, we quickly disabused ourselves of the notion that we would actually get any kind of rail line built there again someday. Too expensive. And Staten Island can't have nice things. But we've been pinning our hopes on a Bus Rapid Transit line. Which means some asphalt and some striping. And a couple of buses. Certainly a lot easier than a multibillion-dollar public works project. But it took forever for us to secure money in the MTA budget so we could even begin studying the project, never mind putting shovels in the ground. City Hall had already identified Mariners Harbor as one of the city's "transit deserts," where services need to be improved. How about a streetcar line there, Mr. Mayor? Borough President James Oddo has the answer, tweeting out that the city turned down his office's request for a North Shore streetcar project in 2014. So there you have it. Staten Island's left standing at the station. Again. S. Charles Schumer honored at 48th annual legislative breakfast This week, Ms. James filed a lawsuit charging that the New York City Department of Education has failed to adequately track the needs of students with disabilities (Staff-Shot) A lot of New Yorkers have been and remain skeptical about the value of having the position of Public Advocate in city government. Critics say the post is unnecessary with five borough presidents, 51 City Council members and an army of local state lawmakers already doing the advocating for various communities and constituencies. We've been inclined to agree with that assessment in the past, but the current public advocate, Letitia James, has shown she is determined to put the lie to such cynicism by using her office effectively as a bully pulpit on behalf of people whose voices have been ignored by the mayor's office or the Council. Her latest crusade may be her most important. This week, Ms. James filed a lawsuit charging that the New York City Department of Education has failed to adequately track the needs of students with disabilities, which has resulted not only in a dearth of appropriate services for these children and their families, but also a significant loss in Medicaid subsidies to which the city should rightly be entitled. Special Education Student Information System Specifically, her lawsuit targets the DOE's Special Education Student Information System (SESIS), which was unveiled by the Bloomberg administration in 2009 and has cost the city $130 million. SESIS is designed to track the more than 200,000 students in the city's public schools with individualized education plans (IEPs). The system was intended to match eligible students with necessary services and to keep accurate records that the city can use to be reimbursed by Medicaid for providing such specialized services, such as speech therapy or inclusion classes to improve socialization. It allows the parents of a special-needs student to create a password and log in to see their child's progress, report cars, test scores, etc. But Ms. James and many parents complain that the system has been prone to frequent breakdowns since it was implemented five years ago. What's more, staffers who work with special-needs kids say that its heavy emphasis on paperwork and entering data, takes away from time these specially trained professionals should be spending on students who need all the help they can get. 'Program doesn't work' "The program doesn't work and it never has," Ms. James said in a statement. She said the failure of the SESIS system is "one of the department's worst-kept secrets," adding that it "is resulting in a lack of services for our most vulnerable children... and we're basically cheating taxpayers of rightful funding from the state and federal government." She told the New York Times, "Everyone is telling me they're aware of it and correcting it," referring to Mayor Bill de Blasio and Chancellor Carmen Farina. "But I've heard that before." Aside from shortchanging special-needs children whose parents need a reliable partner in the school system, there's also the issue of SESIS failing to track reimbursable services. "We're basically cheating taxpayers of rightful funding from the state and federal government," Ms. James said. Two years ago, city Comptroller Scott Stringer disclosed that the city had failed to recoup a total of $356 million in federal Medicaid reimbursements for special education services from 2012 to 2014. But the real outrage here is what this means for the kids and their hard-pressed families. 'Hold the city accountable' Miguel Rodriguez, president of the Staten Island Federation of PTAs, who is a also a parent of a special-needs child, said in support of Ms. James' suit, "It's always the same issues. You have the city and the DOE throwing good money after bad. In this case, you have a system (SESIS) that's five years old, and they've known about the problems since then and did nothing," he said, adding, "The children who are being hurt here are the city's most vulnerable. So yes, I'm on board with the lawsuit, if only to hold the city accountable." In a larger sense, the lawsuit could also serve to highlight the overall lack of services for special ed students, particularly in Staten Island's District 31 where schools continues to increase at a rate, that has long since outpaced DOE resources in the district. Staten Island has the highest percentage of students in the five boroughs with an IEP; according to the DOE statistics; nearly a quarter -- 24 percent -- of Staten Island students have an IEP. Staten Island needs more services across the board, especially for autistic kids, and we probably could use another special ed school, District 75. Two aging District 75 (special ed) schools here (PS 37 and PS 373) are aging fast and bursting at the seams, and other public schools all over the borough are maxed out with "annexes." The DOE has been identifying the need for regular seats and building schools in the borough, but has neglected its duty to create appropriate spaces for these kids. Special education stalwart and Community Education Council member Laura Timoney, who has a special-needs child, agrees the suit is timely and should call attention to a glaring need. "If this helps to get children the services they need in a timely manner, and hold the DOE accountable, I absolutely support the lawsuit," she said. We commend Ms. James for taking up the cause, and urge her to see it through for the sake of the most vulnerable New Yorkers. Trump.jpg Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump gestures during a campaign stop at Exeter Town Hall in Exeter, N.H., Feb. 4, 2016. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- If you can't beat 'em ... complain about 'em on Twitter. Not exactly the idiom of olde, but you have to change with the times, right? At least Donald Trump thinks so. The Republican presidential frontrunner appeared somewhat gracious on Monday night after rival Sen. Ted Cruz won the Iowa caucus. The following day Trump tweeted "My experience in Iowa was a great one. I started out with all of the experts saying I couldn't do well there and ended up in 2nd place. Nice." A silver medal is pretty good, right? But shortly thereafter he changed his mind. Why be gracious and humble when you can be childish, mean and petty? He started off with a few tweets asserting unfair treatment by the media and quickly moved on to Cruz. "Anybody who watched all of Ted Cruz's far too long, rambling, overly flamboyant speech last nite would say that was his Howard Dean moment!" the Donald posted. Then the real allegations began. "Ted Cruz didn't win Iowa, he stole it. That is why all of the polls were so wrong and why he got far more votes than anticipated. Bad!" How did Cruz steal Iowa, you ask? Let the Donald clear that up for you: "During primetime of the Iowa Caucus, Cruz put out a release that @RealBenCarson was quitting the race, and to caucus (or vote) for Cruz," he tweeted. It's true - Cruz and his team went off a tweet from a CNN reporter that Dr. Ben Carson was going to Florida for a change of clothes, a statement from Carson that itself set off a confusing frenzy of misinterpretations. Cruz took that to mean his opponent was packing up shop and heading home, done with his campaign. So Cruz tried to capitalize on it and urge Carson supporters to join his side. The State of Iowa should disqualify Ted Cruz from the most recent election on the basis that he cheated- a total fraud! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 3, 2016 "Based on the fraud committed by Senator Ted Cruz during the Iowa Caucus, either a new election should take place or Cruz results nullified," Trump tweeted. New election or Cruz results nullified? Donald, that just smells of poor sportsmanship. Cruz shot back, less so on Twitter, and more so in real life. Politico tweeted Cruz as saying, "I wake up every day and laugh at the latest thing Donald has tweeted because he's losing it." Cruz tweeted, "Yet another #Trumpertantrum... @realDonaldTrump very angry w/the people of Iowa. They actually looked at his record." Bernie is contesting #IA results. Maybe Donald should go back to IA & join the Ds. Bet they'd love #TrumpCare https://t.co/uTdU9Uv9sL Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) February 3, 2016 At a New Hampshire rally, Cruz said, "He's losing it. We need a commander in chief, not a Twitter-er in chief." We'll forgive him his faux pas of not knowing the verb for Twitter (should have said tweeter-in-chief), evidence that he doesn't spend nearly as much time as the Donald does on the social media site. The New York Times and other news outlets have noticed, and while it's not the coverage Trump was hoping for when he said, "The media has not covered my long-shot great finish in Iowa fairly. Brought in record voters and got second highest vote total in history!" it's worth mentioning. The Grey Lady wrote a cleverly headlined piece, "The Five Stages of Donald Trump's Grief Over His Loss in Iowa." Before Trump supporters rush to his aid and suggest Sen. Bernie Sanders is no better because he demanded a look at the Iowa caucus results, let's remember in that case, the results were so close, coin tosses were used in multiple cases (no one seems to know exactly how many) to decide whether he or Hillary Clinton won in a particular district. That begs a review, most reasonable people can agree. This most recent Twitter feud has shown that unlike during debates where news outlets control the conversation, where Trump claims he's treated unfairly, and journalists control the interviews where he's asked unpleasant questions, he can control the conversation in other places -- like Twitter. And get lots of press for it. Screen Shot 2016-02-04 at 9.23.46 AM.png PS 1 (Google Maps) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- About nine students and one teacher had reactions to chili powder shared by a pupil during lunch at PS 1 in Tottenville, according to school officials. EMS was called to the school at 58 Summit St. at 1:47 p.m. Wednesday on a report of an anaphylactic (allergic) reaction with two patients transported to Staten Island University Hospital in Prince's Bay, according to a spokeswoman for the FDNY/EMS. The students and teacher were seen by the school nurse. A student and a teacher then were transported to a hospital by EMS, according to a statement by Principal Grace Silberstein on the school's website. "During lunch, one of our students sprinkled chili powder on his potato chips and shared these chips with another student, who had a reaction to the chili powder," Silberstein said in the statement. "The student brought the chili powder to school in his lunchbox." The principal recommended that parents tell their children to not share their lunches. Cathy Garbie, parent coordinator for PS 1, declined to comment. Nuccitelli et al. (2012) Show that Global Warming Continues Posted on 12 October 2012 by dana1981, robert way, Rob Painting, John Cook We are very pleased to report on a new paper in press at Physics Letters A (PLA) by the Skeptical Science team and oceanography expert John Church. In typical SkS international coordination style, the paper's authors included an American (Dana Nuccitelli), a Canadian (Robert Way), a New Zealander (Rob Painting), and two Australians (John Cook and John Church). The paper is a Comment on another paper, Douglass & Knox 2012 (DK12). We originally began examining this paper in a blog post which can be viewed here. DK12 used ocean heat content (OHC) data for the upper 700 meters of oceans to draw three main conclusions: 1) that the rate of OHC increase has slowed in recent years (the very short timeframe of 2002 to 2008), 2) that this is evidence for periods of 'climate shifts', and 3) that the recent OHC data indicate that the net climate feedback is negative, which would mean that climate sensitivity (the total amount of global warming in response to a doubling of atmospheric CO2 levels, including feedbacks) is low. Our original draft blog post noted that DK12 had effectively been "pre-bunked," as several recent studies have reconciled global heat content data with top of the atmosphere (TOA) energy imbalance measurements with no evidence of a long-term slowdown in global warming. Several recent studies have also concluded that it is necessary to include data from the deep ocean in order to reconcile global heat content and the TOA energy imbalance, which DK12 failed to do. Ultimately we decided that it was worth writing up our findings and submitting them to PLA as a comment on DK12. We used pentadal (5-year average) OHC data to a depth of 2,000 metres from Levitus et al. (2012), and land, atmosphere, and ice (LAI) heating data from Church et al. (2011). Our results are shown in Figure 1. Figure 1: Land, atmosphere, and ice heating (red), 0-700 meter OHC increase (light blue), 700-2,000 meter OHC increase (dark blue). From Nuccitelli et al. (2012), and added to the SkS Climate Graphics Page. As this figure shows, there has been no significant slowing in global heat content. We quantify this result in Table 1. Table 1: Global Flux Imbalance During Selected Periods. From Nuccitelli et al. (2012). Time Period 0-700 meter OHC (W/m2) 700-2,000 meter OHC (W/m2) LAI Heating (W/m2) Net Heat Content Increase (W/m2) 1970-2008 0.21 0.063 0.082 0.030 0.025 0.0012 0.31 0.078 1980-2008 0.23 0.062 0.12 0.017 0.027 0.0019 0.37 0.068 1990-2008 0.29 0.082 0.14 0.11 0.030 0.0031 0.46 0.063 2000-2008 0.35 0.13 0.15 0.020 0.029 0.0068 0.53 0.11 2002-2008 0.44 0.17 0.26 0.039 0.036 0.0044 0.73 0.16 In fact the rate of net global heat content increase has risen. The data also show that failing to account for increases in deep OHC is a problematic omission. "We find that the OHC increase for the 700-2000 meter layer neglected by DK12 accounts for approximately 30% of the 0-2000 meter increase in recent decades." Mistaken Analysis Begets Mistaken Conclusions Thus the DK12 conclusion that ocean heating slowed from 2002 to 2008 was a result of cherrypicking both a short timeframe and only part of the global heat content data. As a result of cherrypicking noisy short-term data, DK12 argued that the apparent slowing in the rate of OHC increase was a result of a 'climate shift' in 2002. However, our Figure 1 and Table 1 illustrate that the long-term global heat content trend has risen at a steady, increasing rate over the past 4 decades. DK12 compounded their erroneous analysis by attempting to calculate the net climate feedback based solely on their estimated 2002-2008 OHC increase for the uppermost 700 meters, and only considering the CO2 and solar radiative forcings, ignoring the significant aerosol forcing, for example. As Nuccitelli et al. (2012) discusses, this attempted analysis is problematic for several reasons. "A key conclusion in DK12, that the net CO 2 feedback is negative, is also based exclusively on an analysis of data during one of their proposed climate shift periods (2002-2008) with a negative flux imbalance. However, this conclusion does not hold during the climate shift periods with a larger positive flux imbalance, and thus the conclusion is not robust. Additionally, accounting for the heating of the oceans from 700 to 2,000 meters and LAI nullifies the DK12 conclusion even during the 2002-2008 timeframe. The CO 2 feedback is effectively a constant value, and thus should not be calculated using such a short timeframe when data over a longer period are available. The DK12 feedback calculation is invalidated by focusing on noisy short-term data and failing to account for all radiative forcings at work, as well as all heat reservoirs, in particular the oceans below 700 meters." Nuccitelli et al. Show that Global Warming Continues Ultimately our paper shows that all three of the main conclusions in DK12 are faulty: the rate of OHC increase has not slowed in recent years, there is no evidence for 'climate shifts' in global heat content data, and the recent OHC data do not support the conclusion that the net climate feedback is negative or that climate sensitivity is low. Over 90% of global warming accumulates in the oceans, and there is no indication that it has slowed. I would like to conclude by once again thanking my co-authors for their work in successfully completing this paper. We at SkS appreciate that John Church was willing to join our team, that his colleague Neal White was willing to provide us with their global heat content data set, and that their colleague and fellow oceanography expert Catia Domingues was willing to review our paper and provide valuable feedback to improve the paper. The European Commission and the International Energy Agency will address the impact of the energy crisis on SMEs in an online event on 21 October. By clicking Agree, you consent to Slates Terms of Service and Privacy Policy and the use of technologies such as cookies by Slate and our partners to deliver relevant advertising on our iOS app to personalize content and perform site analytics. Please see our Privacy Policy for more information about our use of data, your rights, and how to withdraw consent. Agree Freedom is one of those deceptively vague terms that mean different things to different people. It could be ones ability to express his or her thoughts without worrying about breaking the law, or to do as one pleases without the necessity to conform to others expectations. But in the broadest sense, it means the ability to exercise ones political and civil rights, and to affect, through his or her own actions, the course of ones life, and future of his or her community. These freedoms are currently in decline, according to the recent World Freedom Report issued by Freedom House, an international organization that advocates for democracy and human rights. Of the 195 countries assessed, 86 were rated free, 59 partly free, and 50 were not free. The Report notes that the lack of democratic gains around the world was conspicuous. The one notable exception was Tunisia, which became the first Arab country to achieve the status of Free since Lebanon was gripped by civil war 40 years ago. By contrast, a troubling number of large, economically powerful, or regionally influential countries moved backward. Authoritarian governments found new and numerous ways to limit political participation and civil liberties, to quash criticism, to repress the efforts of journalists and bloggers to disseminate information and to persecute minorities demanding better treatment. Still others sought to retain power by manipulating elections and election law. And finally, many states increased or implemented surveillance, restrictions on internet communications, and curbs on personal autonomy. This includes a number of Democratic countries, which instituted a variety of restrictions, particularly on foreign nationals, due to new pressures caused by attacks from terrorist groups, and the struggle to resolve difficult issues centered on an unprecedented influx of refugees fleeing from regional conflicts, particularly the Syrian civil war. Denial of freedom by governments to citizens is, at best, a short-term solution that exacerbates the long-term problem. Repression stifles innovation and creativity. It throttles hope and ambition, thus curtailing economic prosperity and cultural rejuvenation. As President Obama told the United Nations General Assembly in September, Repression cannot forge the social cohesion for nations to succeed. Best Canadian Blog 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007 About Kate Why this blog? Until this moment I have been forced to listen while media and politicians alike have told me "what Canadians think". In all that time they never once asked. This is just the voice of an ordinary Canadian yelling back at the radio - "You don't speak for me." (goes to a private mailserver in Europe) I can't answer or use every tip, but all are appreciated! Katewerk Art Support SDA I am not a registered charity. I cannot issue tax receipts. Reconnaissance Man Economics for the Disinterested ...a fast-paced polar bear attack thriller! Want lies? Hire a regular consultant. Want truth? Hire an asshole. Weather Shop Click to inquire about rates. Dow Jones What They Say About SDA "Smalldeadanimals doesn't speak for the people of Saskatchewan" Former Sask Premier Lorne Calvert "I got so much traffic after your post my web host asked me to buy a larger traffic allowance." Dr.Ross McKitrick Holy hell, woman. When you send someone traffic, you send someone TRAFFIC. My hosting provider thought I was being DDoSed. - Sean McCormick "The New York Times link to me yesterday [...] generated one-fifth of the traffic I normally get from a link from Small Dead Animals." Kathy Shaidle "Thank you for your link. A wave of your Canadian readers came to my blog! Really impressive." Juan Giner - INNOVATION International Media Consulting Group I got links from the Weekly Standard, Hot Air and Instapundit yesterday - but SDA was running at least equal to those in visitors clicking through to my blog. Jeff Dobbs "You may be a nasty right winger, but you're not nasty all the time!" Warren Kinsella "Go back to collecting your welfare livelihood."Michael E. Zilkowsky Intelliweather Seismic Map Comments Policy Read this Best Of SDA Hide The Decline The Bottle Genie (ClimateGate links) You Might Be A Liberal Uncrossing The Line Bob Fife: Knuckledragger A Modest Proposal (NP) Settled Science Series Y2Kyoto Series SDA: Reader Occupation Survey Brett Lamb Sheltered Workshop Flakes On A Plane All Your Weather Are Belong To Us Song Of The Sled The Raise A Flag Debacle (Now on Youtube!) (.mwv Video) Abuse Ruins Life Of Girl Trudeaupiate Kleptocrat Jeans Child Labour I Concede Small Dead Feminist Protein Hoser: THK Interview The Werewolf Extinction Dear Laura (VRWC) We Wait Blogging The Oscars Jackson Converts To Islam Just Shut The HELL Up Manipulating Condi Gay Equality Rights Thank you for visiting the Daily Journal. Please purchase an Enhanced Subscription to continue reading. To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account. We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription. A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means youre helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much! There is a rising tide of religious persecution emerging worldwide and it disproportionately threatens religious minority groups. This threat touches Christians in the Middle East, Yazidis in Iraq, Bahais in Iran, Hindus in Pakistan and Bangladesh, Muslims in India, or Sunni Muslims in Shia areas or vice versa. The threat, said Special Advisor for Religious Minorities in the Near East and South and Central Asia Knox Thames, is clear and present. Terrorists and non-state actors --such as ISIL, the Nusra Front, and al Qaida - are some of the worst persecutors of religious minorities. But individual attackers have also perpetrated acts of violence against religious minorities. And unfortunately in far too many places governments continue to limit the exercise of religious freedoms. Protecting and promoting the universal right to freedom of religion is central to American foreign policy. Not only is it the right thing to do, said Special Advisor Knox, it is the smart thing to do as it plays a major role in contributing to more stable, progressive, and dynamic societies. Wherever people face religious persecution the United States is at work finding ways to help. For example, the U.S. pressures government to enact reforms so that religious minorities are able to freely practice their faith. Militarily, through airstrikes, the U.S. is providing protection for minority religions to remain in their ancestral homeland. The U.S. continues to provide humanitarian assistance to Syrians and Iraqis, including refugees and displaced populations and supports resettlement for those who cannot safely return home. The U.S. is encouraging countries in the Middle East to support through education respect for human rights and religious freedom. Governments in the region are also being urged to take steps to protect religious minorities during holy days and religious gatherings. The United States, said President Barack Obama, will continue to work with a broad coalition against those who have subjected religious minorities to unspeakable violence and persecution. . . . All people deserve the fundamental dignity of practicing their faith free from fear, intimidation, and violence. System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28: 29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948 /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612efe3d180)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f02bc0b0)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612efe3d180)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f02bc0b0)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612efe6f280)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f02bc0b0)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f02bc0b0)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612e2573a48)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f023fb00)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f023fb00)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28:
29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948 /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f034d150)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0346cd0)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f034d150)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0346cd0)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f0228f28)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0346cd0)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0346cd0)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612e25737b0)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f033eb50)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f033eb50)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28:
29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948 /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f022fcd0)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0511c88)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f022fcd0)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0511c88)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f0219c38)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0511c88)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0511c88)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612e25737b0)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f055a0a8)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f055a0a8)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28:
29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948 /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612e9542050)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0261ca8)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612e9542050)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0261ca8)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612efe2cae8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0261ca8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f0261ca8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612e2573b38)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f0255ce0)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f0255ce0)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28:
29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948 /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f01f7058)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f047e698)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f01f7058)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f047e698)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f0146800)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f047e698)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f047e698)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612e2573048)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f01f92f0)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f01f92f0)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 System error error: Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. context: ... 21: 22: 23: % foreach my $c (@categories) { 24: <%perl> 25: my $category_id = $c->get_id(); 26: my @stories = Bric::Biz::Asset::Business::Story->list ( { element_type_id=>1148, category_id=>$category_id , Order=> 'cover_date', publish_status => 't' , OrderDirection=> 'DESC' , Limit=>10 } ); 27: 28:
29: ... code stack: /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html:25 /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm:948 /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj:17 /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html:149 Can't call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25. Trace begun at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Exceptions.pm line 125 HTML::Mason::Exceptions::rethrow_exception('Can\'t call method "get_id" on an undefined value at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25.^J') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/dhandler.html line 25 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 157 HTML::Mason::Component::run_dynamic_sub('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f023a5b8)', 'main') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 948 HTML::Mason::Request::call_dynamic('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f012eee8)', 'main') called at /var/cache/mason/obj/2011159162/main/smetimes/dhandler.html.obj line 17 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f023a5b8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1302 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 955 HTML::Mason::Request::call_next('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f012eee8)') called at /usr/local/bricolage/data/burn/stage/oc_1027/smetimes/autohandler_template.html line 149 HTML::Mason::Commands::__ANON__ at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Component.pm line 135 HTML::Mason::Component::run('HTML::Mason::Component::FileBased=HASH(0x5612f01f6988)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1300 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 1292 HTML::Mason::Request::comp(undef, undef, undef) called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 481 eval {...} at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/Request.pm line 433 HTML::Mason::Request::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f012eee8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 165 HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler::exec('HTML::Mason::Request::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612f012eee8)') called at /usr/share/perl5/HTML/Mason/ApacheHandler.pm line 831 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handle_request('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler=HASH(0x5612e2573c28)', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f00daff0)') called at (eval 592) line 8 HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler::handler('HTML::Mason::ApacheHandler', 'Apache2::RequestRec=SCALAR(0x5612f00daff0)') called at -e line 0 eval {...} at -e line 0 Researchers at the country's peak science and research body will be pushed to pick up more digital skills or move on as part of a sweeping cultural change driven by former venture capitalist Larry Marshall. Just one year after taking the chief executive role at CSIRO, Mr Marshall wrote to staff on Thursday morning informing them of an organisational restructure that would affect up to 350 staff and hit hardest in climate science areas. CSIRO chief executive Larry Marshall: "The reality is some people are really resistant to change and some people embrace it." Credit:Dallas Kilponen In an interview with Fairfax Media, Mr Marshall said a "renewal" of staff was needed to pursue goals of being more innovative, more impactful and aligning more closely with industry. "Staff numbers will stay the same or go up slightly but in order to respond to the new strategy we realise that we need some people with different skills to the ones we already have," he said. Voter distrust towards the political class has become potent. It is potent in the United States, it is volatile in Europe and it is evident in Australia, where the electorate has dispatched ten major party leaders in just 12 years. Here is the roll call: Simon Crean (2003), Mark Latham (2005), Kim Beazley (2006), John Howard (2007), Brendan Nelson (2008), Malcolm Turnbull (2009), Kevin Rudd (2010), Julia Gillard (2013), Kevin Rudd again (2013) and Tony Abbott (2015). Voter revolt: A marginal figure six months ago, Bernie Sanders has fought to a stalemate with Hillary Clinton. Credit:AP Only two of those leaders, Howard and Rudd in 2013, were sacked via an election. For the rest it was death by polling numbers. Tuesday's first vote in the 2016 presidential nomination campaign, in Iowa, turned into a voter revolt. Hillary Clinton came close to humiliation. Despite her enormous advantages of high profile, experience, funding and party backing, she was fought to a stalemate by a candidate who was a marginal figure just six months ago. New arrivals under Australia's humanitarian program could face much greater scrutiny and be denied direct access to permanent residency under a swathe of radical measures being canvassed by the Turnbull government, according to a sensitive draft cabinet document obtained by Fairfax Media. The government is also subjecting the 12,000 refugees to be taken from Syria and Iraq to more stringent character, identity and security checks than European countries and changing the make-up of the intake to minimise the risk of "extremist infiltration". Prepared by Immigration Minister Peter Dutton's department, the document says the minister will bring forward the proposals in the first half of this year to "mitigate radicalisation risks" of new humanitarian arrivals. Australia's humanitarian program of 13,750 is due to rise to 16,250 in 2017/18 and 18,750 in 2018/19. Mr Dutton has declined to be drawn on the proposals or whether he supports them, telling Fairfax Media through a spokesperson: "Government departments produce draft documents for consideration all the time. This is a draft document which has not been seen by the minister or his staff - nothing more." The company had been trying to develop the CSG field at Gloucester for five years but deemed the $1 billion-plus project unviable because economic returns "were not adequate". AGL decided to surrender its petroleum exploration licence for the Gloucester region in the state's mid-North and exit its existing CSG field near Camden by 2023, announcing the moves to the stock market on Thursday. Anti-coal seam gas groups say they will target Santos in a bid to rid the state of the industry after energy giant AGL announced it would exit the controversial sector. The tumbling oil price against which gas prices are set was one reason for the project's demise, but so were rising costs after a string of mishaps and a dawning recognition that AGL would have to build a desalination plant to cope with the briny waste water produced from the CSG wells. One of the CSG wells AGL was drilling near Gloucester. Credit:Ryan Osland "At a very late stage AGL began to accept that salt was a problem," said Stuart Khan, an associate professor at the University of NSW specialising in water issues. The initial plan to use the waste water for irrigation "was not sustainable regardless of much you dilute it". Opponents of the Gloucester project has planned three days of protest in the town starting on Friday as AGL's expected decision date of February 16 neared. Those gatherings will now turn into a celebration, Julie Lyford, chair of Groundswell Gloucester, said. "People are ecstatic," Ms Lyford said, adding that the move will inspire anti-CSG protesters to shift their focus to Santos the only other company with an operating field in NSW with its proposed Pilliga project near Narrabri. More than 600,000 people are expected to visit Sydney for Lunar New Year celebrations showcasing local community and "dramatic" artistic flair. From February 6 to 21, Sydney will come alive at 80 events to ring in the new Year of the Monkey. One of the main features will be the Lunar Lantern Exhibition, where 12 animal lanterns up to eight metres tall representing each of the zodiac signs will stand at some of Sydney's iconic locations. The lanterns are the works of leading contemporary Chinese-Australian artists and were up to seven months in the making, according to the curator of Sydney's Chinese New Year Festival, Claudia Chan Shaw. A truck driver ignored a "clearly visible" road sign advising him to slow down before his petrol tanker crashed and exploded in a fireball, killing two people on Sydney's northern beaches, a jury has been told. Cootes truck driver Shane Day appeared in Sydney's Downing Centre Court on Thursday to defend multiple dangerous driving charges, after his exploded tanker claimed the lives of another driver, Peter Wem, 73, and one of his passengers Graham Holtfreter, 71. On the opening day of the trial, the jury heard Mr Day had been transporting almost 40,000 litres of petrol to 7-Eleven franchises in Sydney's north when his tanker clipped the curb of a roundabout on Mona Vale Road, struck a power pole, flipped and skidded into oncoming traffic, just after 3.30pm on October 1, 2013. Mr Day's barrister Grant Brady, SC, said the accident was "caused by a mechanical defect" and it was the trucking company, Cootes Transport, who should be blamed. A former Australian Defence Force soldier wanted by ACT police over allegations he threatened to kill a female psychologist who found him unfit for service, has been found living in NSW. Kingsley John Kraschnefski, 46, was apprehended at his home in Wollongong, south of Sydney, on Wednesday afternoon, two weeks after the ACT Magistrates Court issued a warrant for his arrest on 29 charges relating to harassing and threatening calls and text messages Kraschnefski allegedly sent to the woman's mobile phone between December 23, 2014 and March 1, 2015. Credit:Louie Douvis In Wollongong Local Court on Thursday, Magistrate Michael Stoddart granted officers from the Australian Federal Police permission to extradite Kraschnefski to Canberra to face the allegations. Police documents before the court said Kraschnefski blamed the doctor for "destroying his career, family and life" after she declared him unfit for continued service in the army following a series of consultations in 2000. The heated politics of the Joy Burch affair are set to overshadow the first Assembly sitting period, as the opposition seeks to block the dumped minister from committee positions and the deputy speakership. Chief Minister Andrew Barr accused Opposition Leader Jeremy Hanson of playing rank politics, weeks after Ms Burch quit the ministry and as police continue an investigation into her office and former chief of staff. Dumped minister Joy Burch with Chief Minister Andrew Barr. Credit:Rohan Thomson The opposition will try to use its numbers to stop Ms Burch replacing retiring backbencher Mary Porter as deputy speaker and say it is inappropriate for her to serve as deputy chair of a number of Assembly committees, including on justice and community safety committee. In response, Mr Barr said Labor would use its numbers in the full chamber to overrule the opposition's blocking tactics in committee hearings. He warned Labor might retaliate against the Liberals. Computershare appears to be reviving its credentials as a serial deal-maker, with another loan-servicing business acquired in the United States for $US71 million on Thursday, following its preferred bidder status to manage 30 billion of loans in Britain announced on Tuesday. But analysts appear to be giving it only a modest credit for the wins. Computershare chief executive Stuart Irving says the deal will give a big boost to the company's share of the loan-servicing market in the US. Credit:Patrick Scala The global share registry said the acquisition of Florida-based Capital Markets Co-operative (CMC) for $US71.2 million ($100.7 million), which it has funded with cash and existing debt facilities, will immediately add to its earnings and give a return on invested capital of about 15 per cent. The purchase includes $US44 million for the company and $US27 million for its so-called "mortgage servicing rights" on about $US54 billion of loans, which it subcontracts to other companies. While Ren's spent his career in the Chinese Communist Party's firmament, he's become a different sort of SOE leader: one who aggressively pursues overseas assets, glad-hands foreign executives and airs doubts about the efficiency of state companies. On ChemChina's 10th anniversary in 2014, he wrote in a newsletter: "For an improved version of the Chinese economy, we need an improved version of the Chinese company." China's SOEs often pay for their face-lifts with borrowed money. As of September 30, ChemChina carried total debt of 156.5 billion yuan ($US24 billion), or more than five times its cash and equivalents. The company had a negative return on assets and a net loss of 889.3 million yuan in the third quarter. So how can ChemChina pull this off? In Wednesday's announcement, the companies said financing was lined up. "The sector as a whole, it's highly leveraged," said Arthur Kroeber, managing director at Gavekal Dragonomics, a Hong Kong- based research firm. "That's bad news for the economy. But it's not really clear that the government is thinking that way. They're still thinking in terms of it's good for companies to gain access to these technologies and these distribution channels." Food security ChemChina's buying spree fits squarely with President Xi Jinping's push for SOEs to snap up companies and technology that will help China produce higher-value goods. That, the thinking goes, will build access to foreign markets as the domestic economy decelerates. The blockbuster Syngenta acquisition could benefit China in two ways. The seed technology would give better food security to a nation where corn yields are about half those of the US and the amount of arable land is declining. ChemChina also would gain a worldwide presence in insecticides and crop development. "Their acquisition strategy is not 'catching up' anymore," said Tyler Rooker, an assistant professor at the University of Nottingham in the UK who's studied ChemChina deals. "They're acquiring assets that add to their competitiveness as global multinationals." Moon flag ChemChina bills itself as China's largest chemical company, with assets of 292.3 billion yuan as of September 30 and facilities in more than 140 countries. The conglomerate refines oil, makes pesticides and animal feed, and develops products such as the radiation-resistant Chinese flag carried by the Yutu moon rover. Ren didn't show up for two scheduled interviews or respond to written questions. "This transaction will be extremely important to China and farmers," Ren said during a Wednesday press conference. "I was sent out to work the land at only 15. I am very aware of what farmers need." Even with the dealmaking, Ren's still a bit of a mystery at home. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, the president of the Beijing-based Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, Jin Liqun, said he didn't know him. Xu Jinghong, chairman of Tsinghua Holdings Co, the investment platform of China's top university, said the same. Some of those who've come across Ren consider it "odd" that he gets along so well with foreign executives, Pang said. 'Westernised' appearance "This is quite unconventional for a head of a central SOE," he said before adding, "His appearance is also a bit Westernised." In the world of state-run companies, where non-descript men wearing short-sleeved white shirts and baggy windbreakers are the norm, Ren is known to flash cuff links underneath a pinstriped sleeve. "Most of our employees are Chinese, but you can also see over the years there has been a substantial influence from foreign management," said Michael Koenig, a German and former Bayer AG executive who became CEO of a key ChemChina subsidiary in January. "Compared to what I know from other Chinese SOEs, we are more open, more international." The Syngenta deal would cap a spending binge by ChemChina that targeted domestic companies, French and Norwegian chemical makers and an Israeli agrochemicals company. ChemChina has announced more than $US15 billion of deals since 2005, excluding Syngenta, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Ren, a 58-year-old with rimless glasses, thick dark hair and a soft chin, began his ascent in an unlikely place: Gansu Province in the northwest, a poor mining region abutting the Gobi desert. Communist Party He graduated from the economics department of a local university - eventually earning a master's degree - and joined the state-run Chemical Machinery Research Institute, where he was the Communist Youth League Secretary. It was a recipe for a do-nothing bureaucrat's career in the countryside. In 1984, Ren borrowed 10,000 yuan (about $US1500 at today's rate) from the institute to start the BlueStar Chemical Cleaning Group. His first employees scrubbed tea kettles as Ren pursued the most reliable path to power in China - becoming BlueStar's Communist Party secretary, according to his biography. Speaking in a company video, Ren cited a woman named Gu Xiulian as a key ally. She would have been a formidable friend as head of the chemical industry ministry from 1989 to 1998 and a member of the Communist Party's powerful central committee for 20 years. Gu cancelled an interview and declined to answer written questions. Another offer At a 2012 Lunar New Year's celebration at ChemChina's headquarters, a 75-year-old Gu had pride of place next to Ren. Before her was a large plate of oranges - the Chinese character for the fruit resembles that for "auspicious". That seems emblematic of Ren. A ChemChina newsletter reviewed the Pirelli deal by saying, "Economists expect the merger to have a 25 per cent chance of success and a 75 per cent chance of failure." Not to worry, it continued, everything will work out. Ren may be using the same playbook with Syngenta. His initial offer of 449 Swiss francs a share, valuing the company at about $US42 billion, was rejected, according to people familiar with the negotiations. A class action against Downer EDI has avoided being derailed after the court ordered lawyers for shareholders to stump up a fraction of the security for the costs incurred by the engineering firm's defence. Lawyers for shareholders were ordered to provide $685,000 in security for the costs by Monday 5pm - about a third of the $1.9 million in costs security Downer's legal team was originally seeking. The class action has already heard Downer EDI stopped paying suppliers. Melbourne lawyer Mark Elliott who has brough the claim on behalf of shareholders said the order did not threaten the trial. "The case is not off the rails, the case is soldiering on," Mr Elliott told Fairfax Media. Yesterday I went in search of evidence of the well-known complexity of Australian tax law, finding it in the 11 volumes of the 1997 Income Tax Assessment Act. A hard copy will set you back almost $350. Running to 4695 pages, the truck that delivers these tomes could also drive through the many loopholes that complex legislation inevitably creates. What's the expression, a lawyers' picnic? It's too easy to sway the tax reform debate in Australia. Credit:Gabriele Charotte A debate on the tax system is long since due. First on the agenda is a rise in the GST, probably to 15 per cent. One can argue the merits or otherwise of a value-added tax increase but at least this is an issue of substance. What else? Murray Goulburn is in danger of missing its profit forecast from its prospectus after further erosion in global dairy prices. Australia's biggest milk processor, which won the contract to supply Coles with its home brand cheese this week, had hoped global dairy prices would recover in the second half of FY16 to keep the price it pays farmers for their milk above $6 a kilogram. Murray Goulburn managing director Gary Helou is steering the co-operative towards higher value-added products. Credit:Wayne Taylor But that looks unlikely after the GlobalDairyTrade Index shed another 7.4 per cent on Tuesday, extending its losses since October to 21 per cent. Units in Murray Goulburn's listed trust have shed 11.6 per cent in the past three days to $2.05 5 below their float price. The suspected underpayment of Dick Smith staff dates back to Woolworths' ownership of the electronics chain before the business was bought by private equity and sold to investors through a $520 million public float. The receiver of the failed electronics chain Ferrier Hodgson revealed on Thursday that 3,200 current and former staff may be owed as much as $2 million in entitlements, dating back as far as 2010 when the chain was under the control of Woolworths. According to Ferrier Hodgson partner James Stewart staff may have missed out on their full leave loading as a result of the "incorrect application of the relevant industrial award." A spokeswoman from Woolworths said the Dick Smith business was sold to Anchorage Capital in November 2012 "following a thorough due diligence process." If you've been around a while and followed the debate about "law and order" in the construction industry, you'll know it's a bit like Groundhog Day. In the film, Bill Murray's character wakes up every day doomed to relive the same events in the same order. Murray's character tries to take advantage of this time loop, but becomes increasingly depressed, committing reckless acts and attempting suicide. It's not until he uses his experience to achieve enlightenment that the time loop is broken and he finds love and fulfilment. Construction workers, like everyone else in this country, have a right to freedom of association. Credit:Peter Braig In the debate around the Australian Building and Construction Commission (ABCC) ever since Tony Abbott's opportunistic calling of the Cole Royal Commission in 2001, the same spurious arguments have been run. The ABCC, we are told, is there to combat corruption and thuggery. This completely ignores the fact that the agency has never had any jurisdiction over these matters, which are the domain of the criminal law. However, a fact like that has never prevented successive ministers and media outlets from framing this as a debate between the forces of good made up of the Coalition parties and their supporters, the property developers and constructors who are keen to root out corruption and thuggery and the union/ALP/Greens mafia who are beholden to the wicked CFMEU (Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union). You may be forgiven for thinking that those who claim the ABCC will combat thuggery and corruption cannot be mistaken or worse, lying. But former ABCC director and current Fair Work Building Commission head Nigel Hadgkiss has said that in relation to criminal law, that the agency "does not prosecute these matters". The Minister for Employment has also clearly stated that "The ABCC's role under the bill will be to regulate workplace relations". Wonderful idea, sovereignty. It conveys this reassuring sense of control; a sense that on each of our own patches, we're in charge and things happen by some exercise of our own free choice. And maybe that sense isn't an illusion. Maybe, for example, Nauru just happened to choose to open a "regional processing centre" for asylum seekers. And maybe it just happened to put an Australian government office in it. And maybe it just happened to ask the people in that office who just happen to be Australians if they could wear Australian government uniforms with the Australian coat of arms on them while they deal with the detainees in that centre. Maybe it's mere happenstance that Nauru has made visas all but impossible for journalists to obtain if they want to scrutinise these detention arrangements, in a manner eerily similar to the way the Australian government routinely denies journalists access to our own detention centres. Maybe that same happenstance accounts for the fact that the single journalist to have been the exception to this rule in the past two years is a dedicated supporter of the Australian government's asylum-seeker policies. And maybe Nauru's sudden decision to open the gates of its detention centre so its detainees could roam freely around (but not leave) Nauru had nothing whatsoever to do with the fact that the Australian government was at precisely the same time in danger of losing a case in the High Court that would bring its offshore detention regime crashing down. "I was looking through mid-century scientific vintage posters," Gorman explains. "I loved the colours and the hand-rendering of scientific drawings. From there I started thinking about where we could see these and get some more historical references." Her rocking frocks, introduced by museum manager Gordon White who coined the quip erupt with tiny glinting fragments and a floating universe of colourful precious stones. "The frocks that rock" could just be glib fashion speak if not for the science behind it. She approached Melbourne Museum which invited her into the underground geosciences archive. Of the museum's 17 million objects, a fraction are on display at any time. Gorman entered a world of science and discovery that the general public rarely sees. She also set up a fashion shoot for her Autumn catalogue. "We wanted to show the general public what the 'back of house' looked like." In the subterranean storehouse the designer also came upon a new hue, the grey-green of standard institutional lockers. Staff told her it was "museum green". "I'd never heard of that colour before!" Hailing from Warrnambool, Gorman has been a major Australian success story, her label's bold colours and signature dots and prints bulging against the stores' windows. Yet eons of natural history no doubt humbled her. At the new collection's launch, she spoke warmly of the partnership with the museum. It will include a pop-up shop of Gorman gear, and a special entry ticket deal. While three models wore the new designs at the launch, Gorman wore a rocky top herself, teamed with gold sandals and a pencil skirt. This woman knows her colours. We discuss the skirt's shade, is it burgundy or wine? "Morello," she concludes definitively. The autumn range reveals "a whole feeling of underground and overground, so there's a bit of satellite map-style printing. There are elements of nature, topography, mapping, geology. As we honed in and limited our prints the geology component became prominent." Iris and the Tiger, by Leanne Hall. Credit:Jason Steger DOMINIQUE WILSON TRANSIT LOUNGE, $29.95 Am I Cold, by Martin Kongstad. Credit:Jason Steger Dominique Wilson's delicately wrought novel begins as an intergenerational family saga and ends as a geopolitical thriller in the mould of Graham Greene. Louis, a French settler in Algeria at the end of the 19th century, slowly builds a home for himself and develops a lifelong friendship with a Berber boy, Imez. Six decades later, Algeria has thrown off the colonial yoke. Louis' granddaughter Nicolette an Australian immersed in a new career as an international photojournalist, after tragedy destroys her young family returns to the Algeria of her childhood. Much has changed. When the country's popular president dies, terrorist strife erupts, with Nicolette caught in the crossfire. That Devil's Madness is skilled and suspenseful fiction, its meticulous research worn lightly, its dual narratives handled with dexterity. Iris and the Tiger LEANNE HALL TEXT, $19.99 When 12-year-old Iris is sent to her eccentric aunt Ursula's palatial abode in Spain, she is under no illusions about why she's there. Her money-grubbing parents have tasked her with ensuring their inheritance. But Iris could never have expected what she finds at Bosque du Nubes a surrealist wonderland, where ordinary things take on a life of their own. Enchanted boots and ravenous cars feature, plus a sartorially advanced praying mantis and a painting called Iris and the Tiger that triggers a strange and slightly terrifying mystery. Iris quickly falls in love with her aunt's magical domain, and when she finds it is under threat from property developers, she abandons her ulterior motive in order to save it. Leanne Hall's charming adventure story for younger readers takes classic tropes of children's literature and gives them a surprising twist. Am I Cold Were Toronto's selectors really that upset by a tonal shift, or was it more a matter of moral revulsion? At this point, it should be said that Silva has a flagrant disregard for the very concept of spoilers; anyone who wants a surprise should stop reading now. He believes the film is disquieting because we have been invited to know and like these affectionate friends who want to make a family and, when they become murderers, we are still on their side. "It's such a manipulative film that people actually feel sorry for them and not for the victim, which is really f---ed up. The morals of the movie are purposely open and ambiguous ... I don't feel that I have a final conclusion to it." Many of the elements in Nasty Baby are drawn from Silva's own life. The performance installation was an idea he had for a dance exhibition in his native Chile (they refused it); many of his 30-something friends and contemporaries are trying to have children; even the homeless man down in the street, who first drives Freddy to distraction by firing up a leaf blower every day at 7am, is based on a similarly tidy schizophrenic who was his neighbour back in Santiago. "I remember hating him so much and sort of fantasising on my own about what it would be like to get rid of him. Nobody in the neighbourhood would really care." Even at the time, that struck him as a good idea for a movie. Playing Freddy himself was something new: Silva has played small parts in other people's films, but never a lead. And then there was the apartment. They could have afforded to shoot somewhere else, he says, but then it seemed easier to shoot in a space where he knew where every chair sat. "Practically, though, shooting there was not comfortable at all all my things were there," he said afterwards. "But I could be very detached. It becomes your set, really. The fact that you live there becomes secondary. But then you remember when everyone leaves and you go to brush your teeth and there's a body in the bathroom." Nasty Baby is now screening at ACMI. Trade Minister Andrew Robb has formally signed the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the biggest trade agreement in 20 years, despite the concerns of some community groups. He says he is now setting his sights on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership - RCEP - yet another huge trade agreement in the Asia Pacific Region which he hopes will conclude by the end of the year. The Trade Minister says once the RCEP is signed, it will combine with the TPP to create a vast trade agreement architecture like no other in the world, superseding the "noodle bowl" of bilateral trade agreements in the region and removing billions of dollars worth of red tape. He will formally present the TPP to Parliament on Tuesday next week, and that will trigger the joint-standing committee on treaties to hold public hearings on the TPP in February. According to new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics released on Thursday, 65.2 per cent of Australian students attended public schools, up from 65.1 per cent the previous year. The proportion of students in non-government schools dropped from 34.9 per cent in 2014 to 34.8 per cent. The long-running exodus from public schools to the non-government sector has halted, with the proportion of Australian students in public schools increasing for the first time in decades. In Victoria, 63 per cent of students attended public schools in 2015, up from 62.8 per cent the previous year. Save Our Schools national convenor Trevor Cobbold says results at private schools are often no better than public schools, allowing for socio-economic factors. Credit:Penny Bradfield In NSW, 65.3 per cent of students attended public schools in 2015, up from 65.1 in 2014. NSW public school enrolments grew by 1.1 per cent over the year, on par with the 1.2 per cent growth in the non-government sector. This is a shift from the long-term trend, which saw enrolments in independent and Catholic schools surge by almost 10 per cent from 2004 to 2013 while public school enrolments grew by just one per cent over the same period. Trevor Cobbold, national convenor of the public school lobby group Save our Schools, said the drift towards the non-government sector began in the late 1970s and has continued ever since. If the Abbott era was about climate change denial it seems that with the Turnbull zeitgeist it is all about climate change outsourcing. At first blush, it sounds like a joke. The head of the CSIRO, Larry Marshall, said in a letter to staff on Thursday that the government's science agency's job had been "to prove climate change". "That question has been answered," he told staff. Another week, another rumoured girlfriend for Prince Harry. This time it's 22-year-old Juliette Labelle, of Los Angeles, whom the 31-year-old royal reportedly met during his New Year's Californian vacation. According to her LinkedIn page, Labelle works as a PR assistant for Christian Dior Couture, although a source told E! News she is no longer in the role. The Sun was the first outlet to report the pairing in a story this week. The tabloid's source described Labelle as "blonde, cool and well-connected". If you're trying to get pregnant, stop drinking. And if you're sexually active and drink alcohol, it's best to use contraception. That's the advice from health experts to protect unborn children from lasting damage, as new research reveals that millions of women risk exposing their developing babies to alcohol. Drinking during pregnancy can cause foetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) lifelong physical, intellectual and behavioural disabilities with a report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) highlighting that damage can be done before women even realise they are pregnant. The report estimated 3.3 million American women risked exposing their developing baby to alcohol because they were drinking, sexually active and not using birth control. Three in four US women who intend to get pregnant do not stop drinking alcohol when they stop using birth control, according to the report. After a widespread backlash labelled its advice condescending and impractical, the CDC defended its recommendation that women abstain from drinking alcohol if they could get pregnant. The CDC's principal deputy director, Anne Schuchat, said the intention was to show that alcohol-related harm was completely preventable, not to prescribe a lifestyle or suggest women "plan their entire lives around a hypothetical baby." A dog has bitten off part of the nose of a five-year-old girl's nose at a home in Sydney's west. The girl was mauled by the dog, believed to be a bull Arab-great dane cross, in the front yard of the home on Bombala Street, Pendle Hill. Emergency services were called about 7.30pm. Most of the girl's nose was ripped off during the attack. Hundreds of people attended a protest against detention centres at the Department of Immigration in Sydney on Thursday afternoon, following the High Court's ruling that offshore detention of refugees is legal. The peaceful protest was marked by chants, such as: "Shame Turnbull, shame", "Free, free the refugees", and "Not in my name". Protesters rallied against the detention of children on Nauru in Sydney on Thursday. Credit:Nick Moir The protesters marched up to the Department of Immigration building, where they were stopped from advancing by a line of police. The court decision, declared on Wednesday, clears the way for the return of more than 250 asylum seekers to detention centres in Nauru, including 37 babies born in Australia. A vast tract of inner-Sydney nightlife has withered under a raft of damaging alcohol regulations, he writes in the essay, slamming lockout laws for what he estimates to be the loss of thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars from the local economy. Closed: DreamGirls on Darlinghurst Road in Kings Cross. Credit:Kate Geraghty "The total and utter destruction of Sydney's nightlife is almost complete," he writes, blaming what he claims to be inaccurate research and fudged figures for fear-mongering and regulatory changes. "A special little person has decided that there is a certain time at night when we are all allowed to go out, and there is a certain time that we are allowed into an establishment and a certain time that we are all supposed to be tucked into bed. Once popular hotels have closed down. Credit:Matt Barrie, Freelancer.com "It is now illegal to buy a bottle of wine after 10pm in the City of Sydney because not a single one of us is to be trusted with any level of personal responsibility. "Likewise it is now illegal to have a scotch on the rocks after midnight in the City of Sydney because someone might die. You can drink it if you put some Coca-cola in it, but you can't drink it if the Coca-cola has been mixed previously with it and it's been put in a can." NSW Premier Mike Baird. Credit:Dallas Kilponen Omitted from the zone where "fun is illegal" is, he notes, The Star casino and the new James Packer-backed Barangaroo development, where a $2 billion mega casino will open in 2020. Both are in the advantageous position of holding 24-hour liquor licences. But perhaps most scathing is his tirade against the way the Liberal government has treated its once-nightlife-loving citizens, visitors and businesses, which, he suggests, is tantamount to social manipulation. Matt Barrie posted a series of photos to show the declining vibrancy of Sydney since lockout laws were introduced. Credit:Matt Barrie, Freelancer.com "You've been tricked into thinking that you have done something wrong, in some way that you are genetically an idiot, or that somehow you have to feel responsible for a couple of random tragic, yet unrelated, events that occurred in the vague proximity of having fun," he writes, referring to the single punch deaths of Thomas Kelly and Daniel Christie, after which Sydney's nightlife laws were promptly and radically restructured. He is not alone in his views, he adds, citing Monocle editor Tyler Brulee's judgment of Sydney's drinking laws and Russell Brand's summation of Sydney's "ridiculous" rules. Award-winning Hugo's Pizza is no more. Credit:Matt Barrie, Freelancer.com But the heavy-handed regulations extend well beyond Australia's largest city's after-hours leisure and into its daytime play, too. Anti coal seam gas campaigner Helen Bender has welcomed AGL's move to wind up their CSG operations in New South Wales and Queensland but said it is only the first step of many. On Thursday, AGL announced plans to exit the troubled coal seam gas sector in New South Wales and Queensland after a review ordered by new chief executive Andrew Vesey last year. Late Hopeland farmer George Bender. AGL said there would be no change to its commercial or retail gas activities, and said it would take a $640 million after-tax impairment charge. Asset sales are likely to recoup less than $10 million. Ms Bender said the fact they were selling their CSG assets was of enormous concern. "It will be interesting to see where these assets are sold to," she said. US Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez aka AOC hit a nerve from a couple of two days ago when she tweeted that Apartheid states are not ... The Anglican Dean of Brisbane leading an extraordinary push to provide church sanctuary to asylum seekers says he is prepared to put himself between refugees and authorities to prevent them being returned to Nauru. Dr Peter Catt has declared St John's Anglican Cathedral in Brisbane's CBD as a place of sanctuary for the 267 asylum seekers the High Court of Australia ruled on Wednesday must return to detention centres on the Pacific Island. He will speak at a protest outside the Department of Immigration and Citizenship office in Brisbane on Friday. "We're prepared to lock the building and see if the authorities would go as far as breaking down the doors and I'm certainly prepared to put myself in the way and face the consequences, which are quite extreme," Dr Catt told reporters in Brisbane on Thursday. Former Queensland police minister Jack Dempsey is having another tilt at public office, running for mayor in Bundaberg a year after he was voted out of office, along with the Newman government. At least six of the 34 state MPs who lost their seats at last year's state election have put their hands up to run in local council contests next month. Former Newman government police minister Jack Dempsey hopes to be Bundaberg's next mayor. Credit:Renee Melides Mr Dempsey, who overcame a brush with breast cancer during the latter months of his ministership, said the Bundaberg field was wide open with the impending retirement of the current mayor, Mal Forman. "Mal's done a lot of good work over time," he said. A Gold Coast woman is starting a hunger strike in an attempt to stop the hundreds of sharks caught on drumlines and shark nets across Queensland's coastline every year. Conservationist Nicole McLachlan, 25, said her background in marine science and management had inspired her to act on Queensland's shark control program, which uses drumlines and shark nets at popular beaches. Nicole McLachlan recently created a documentary called 'Strike', that looks the effect of drumlines and shark nets on marine mammals. Credit:Tim Watters "I think the experiences I have had within the marine environment and what I have learnt over the years, learning about how important sharks are to an ecosystem has inspired me," Ms McLachlan said. "Sharks are facing extinction and many of these species are endangered, 90 per cent have declined from previous decades. Staff at a Brisbane hospital have been told not to let at-risk patients use showers or sinks after signs of legionella were detected in the water system. The warning to Mater Private Hospital workers comes a week and a half after a patient tested positive to the potentially deadly bacteria, sparking a rigorous testing regime. Legionnaires disease under a microscope. Queensland's chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young on Thursday said the hospital had run more than 200 tests throughout its water system but was still awaiting results. But in an email to staff on Wednesday, the hospital said testing had found some results which "suggest the presence of Legionella bacteria" in two of its main buildings, the Mater Hospital Brisbane and the Salmon Building. Testing for Zika virus will begin in Queensland's vulnerable far north amid moves to prevent an outbreak of the disease. Health Minister Cameron Dick again stressed the risk of an outbreak was low, following a roundtable meeting on Thursday with experts from around the country. Health Minister Cameron Dick and chief health officer Dr Jeannette Young speak to experts at a Zika virus roundtable in Brisbane. Credit:Jorge Branco He and Queensland's chief health officer Jeannette Young said the state was well prepared to defend against the global health emergency because of years of controlling the spread of dengue virus, another mosquito-borne disease. Pathology Queensland's Townsville laboratory will be enhanced to allow blood testing for Zika, meaning samples will no longer have to be sent to Brisbane. Open the Brazilian government's main website and you'll see mosquitoes swarming across the top banner. If you catch one with a fly swatter that appears, a link pops up to the Health Ministry's anti-Zika campaign page. The push to increase public awareness is part of the government's latest drive to involve not only government workers and the armed forces but society at large in the campaign to eradicate breeding grounds for the disease-carrying mosquito. "Killing mosquitoes isn't enough. We can't allow them to be born," reads one of the banners on the government website. Chinese medicine purchased over the counter in Australia has been found to contain the DNA of endangered species. Laboratory testing of the capsules purchased in 2012 found they contained DNA from snow leopard - and possibly tiger. Both species are listed on the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species. Snow Leopard DNA has been found in a traditional Chinese medicine, sold in Adelaide. Credit:Graham Tidy Roger Byard from Adelaide University's school of medicine said a research student purchased the traditional Chinese medicine from a shop at the Adelaide Central Market. The traditional medicine known as Jian Bu Qiang Shen Wan, which is listed with the Therapeutic Goods Administration, is said to relieve arthritis pain. It is marketed as a herbal medicine. Late last year, Google beefed up its Safe Browsing service that protects internet users from various tricks attackers use to gain access to their computers. Google has now bolstered Safe Browsing further by warning users of embedded content like ads that pretend to be from a legitimate company to get users to download dodgy unwanted software. Here's what you need to know. Safe Browsing, used by Chrome, Safari and Firefox, is now even more protective. When a webpage or person pretends to be a trusted entity and tries to get you to do something or urges you to provide private information, that is considered social engineering. As cyberattackers become smarter, they are starting to use social engineering techniques to make users install malware or superfluous software on their devices. People living in some of Melbourne's largest growth suburbs and rural Victoria are waiting longer for ambulances to arrive at emergencies under the Andrews government. And in only one of the state's 79 local government areas, Warrnambool, are ambulance response times meeting a benchmark requirement of emergency Code 1 call-outs, arriving within 15 minutes. Ambulance response times have worsened in some areas of Victoria. Credit:Dominic O'Brien Poor ambulance response times were a major issue in the 2014 state election as Labor constantly grilled the Napthine government over "a crisis" in the service. Growing demand and population growth, and distance from major hospitals, have been blamed for the extra wait times. The organisers of a protest against an international "neomasculine" organisation say they have not instructed members to bring pocket knives to protect themselves. Melbourne feminist groups plan to protest in Federation Square on Saturday night against the all-male group Return of Kings. The feminist group Mad F---ing Witches is leading the protest against Return of Kings, whose founder Daryush "Roosh" Valizadeh has most recently advocated for rape to be legalised on private property. "We will hold a peaceful event to gather and dress as witches and cast spells on them and their supporters so they'll be gone from Australia without achieving any of their sorcery," Mad F---ing Witches said in a message to supporters. I believe that the care we give can make every moment count. Compassionate care, uncompromising service and clinical excellence thats how our Hospice improves quality of life in the final stages of life. By delivering palliative care by hospice professionals, our patients can spend their remaining days in comfort and peace. Kindred at Home, a division of Kindred Healthcare Inc., is the nations leading provider of comprehensive home health, hospice, and non-medical home care services. Kindred at Home, and its affiliates, including Gentiva, delivers compassionate, high-quality care to patients and clients in their homes or places of residence, including non-medical personal assistance, skilled nursing and rehabilitation and hospice and palliative care. Our caregivers focus on each unique patient to deliver the appropriate care and emotional support to our patients and their families. We believe that every moment matters. We believe in compassionate care. Most of all, we believe in dignity and respect for each patient we serve. I believe my work is my calling. As a Hospice On-Call Registered Nurse, you will: The young Melbourne man who has admitted horrific child pornography crimes has a schizoid personality disorder, social anxiety and depression, a court heard today. Matthew Graham, 23, has admitted 13 child pornography, child abuse and "hurtcore" charges relating to an online darknet network of websites he ran from his South Morang bedroom between 2012 and 2014. An artist impression of Matthew Graham. Credit:Joe Benke Defence lawyer David Gibson told the County Court today that Graham had been abused and assaulted in the Melbourne remand centre, where he has been jailed since August 2014. He has been in solitary confinement since his plea hearing began this week. Thousands of people have marched through Melbourne demanding asylum seekers be allowed to remain in Australia and the closure of offshore detention centres. Officer workers, students, parents and grandparents converged on the steps of the State Library at the start of the evening commute in response to the High Court's ruling on Wednesday that offshore detention was legal. Thousands flooded through Melbourne in Thursday's 'Let Them Stay' rally. Credit:Wayne Taylor Many carried banners and handmade signs imploring the federal government to "Close Manus, Nauru and all detention camps." Victorian public school students receive the least government funding in the country, and the gap is widening. They may live in the "Education State", but Victorian public school students received $2253 less state and federal government funding than the national average in 2013-14. The youngest children in the class are significantly more likely to be medicated for ADHD. The Productivity Commission's report on government services, released on Thursday, shows that Victorian state schools received $13,924 in government funding per student in 2013-14, down from $13, 969 the previous year. Corrective Services minister Joe Francis has warned "tinkering" with dangerous sex offender legislation in order to keep offenders behind bars for longer could have the opposite effect. Mr Francis addressed the issue after serial rapist Warren John Ugle was granted bail in the Supreme Court on Thursday. Warren John Ugle is alleged to have twice breached his parole conditions in relation to drugs. Credit:Seven News Perth The dangerous sex offender committed a series of attacks between 1992 and 2007, including upon one victim who was 11 years old. Ugle was freed in November under a number of conditions that included having his every move tracked with a GPS tracker. The RSPCA has described an incident where a pet cat in Perth's northern suburbs was shot in the chest by a BB-gun bullet as "disgusting". The cat was injured in the Craigie area about six weeks ago. The Birman cat was shot in the chest by a suspected BB-gun. Credit:RSPCA WA Its owners originally thought it had grass seed lodged in its chest until weeks later when the cat became seriously ill. Berlin: German forces have arrested two people suspected of links to Islamic State militants preparing an attack on Berlin, police and prosecutors say. Police and special forces on Thursday raided four flats and two offices in the German capital and properties in the northern regions of North Rhine-Westphalia and Lower Saxony. The tourist attraction Checkpoint Charlie, a former crossing point between East and West Berlin, that German media say was a target for terrorists. "Specifically [the raids] concern possible plans for an attack in Germany, even more specifically in Berlin," Martin Steltner, a spokesman for Berlin prosecutors, told Reuters TV. The man detained in North-Rhine Westphalia was arrested in a shelter for refugees and arrived a short while ago in Germany claiming to be from Syria, Mr Steltner said. "The logic of Najib's situation is that he must go and keep going after these short term victories to hold things together, no matter what the longer term cost and implications may be," Dr Kessler said. If he stays on until the next election due by 2018, "he will win handsomely". Mr Najib has weathered months of attacks over the $US681 million that appeared in his private bank accounts before the 2013 general election, which UMNO won despite losing the popular vote for the first time as non-Malays deserted it. Attorney General Mohamed Apandi Ali concluded last week there was no evidence of wrongdoing and the money was a private donation, of which $US620 million was later returned. Mr Najib has also silenced critics and removed detractors, dumping his deputy in July after Muhyiddin Yassin stepped up calls for clarity on 1MDB and its investments. The government replaced the attorney general co-heading a task force probing an alleged money trail in the funding scandal. The actions of the regency council, which represents the Sultan of Kedah -- the current King under a constitutional arrangement -- also point to the growing power of the country's royalty who are regarded as the official guardians of Islam. The council took the unusual step of interviewing almost every state lawmaker to gauge support for Mahathir Mukhriz before coming to their decision. In the past, regency councils and sultans would generally just consent to recommendations for federal and state government appointments. Bangkok: Two Australians were among 32 ageing Westerners arrested and detained for 12 hours for playing bridge in Pattaya, a Thai seaside resort city renowned for its seedy nightlife. More than 40 police, soldiers and local officials disrupted the genteel afternoon session in what they portrayed as a swoop on illegal gambling. But police later conceded they found no evidence of money changing hands in the second-floor Jomtien and Pattaya Bridge Club that has been holding bridge sessions since 1994. Club organiser Jeremy Watson said on Friday that police had decided to drop all charges. Too many controversies between the supervisory board and shareholder. PHILIPSBURG:--- Leader of the Democratic Party and Chairlady of Parliament Sarah Wescot Williams did not mingle with words on Thursday when she told members of the medial that the Supervisory Board of GEBE should do the honorable thing and make their positions available to government. The DP leader who forms part of the current coalition said that the saga at GEBE has been going on way too long and government, (not only the current coalition) but other governments have not been on the same wave length with the members of the Supervisory Board. She said the company has a number of positions on the managerial board that has to be filled and in order to do such there needs to be some tranquility at the Government owned company. Asked on what grounds the Supervisory Board should tender their resignation or make their positions available, and if there are any proof wrongdoings by the members of the supervisory board or if she they believe the supervisory board members are politically affiliated? Wescot Williams said that it has more to do with the relation between governments and the supervisory board and the different sagas that took place over the past months, one being the Maduro saga. She said in her opinion because of those issues the supervisory board of directors should say its enough and thus make their positions available. Asked if the Supervisory Board had not taken the necessary actions when they found out about the mismanagement of the companys funds and did not act if they would not have been held liable? Wescot Williams said she did not want those types of details. Her main point is if there is a government owned company and there are issues between the Supervisory Board and the Shareholder, then the honorable thing to do is to forget as to who is right from wrong and move on. Wecot Williams said the issues at GEBE has been ongoing for quite some time now between members of the current coalition. She said she fully supports the statements made by government with respect with GEBE which she said is clear in terms of what needs to happen and the approach that has to be taken. She assured that as Member of Parliament that is supporting the current coalition the situation at GEBE has her undivided attention. Wescot Williams said on her way home on Wednesday she saw a number of GEBE employees outside and when she enquired what was going on she said she was informed by the workers that they were awaiting the arrival of the Prime Minister William Marlin whom they said needed to inform them of what was going on with the company they are working for, especially since some politicians has taken the issues at GEBE to create some amount of panic among the workers. One being the accusations that were levied against government that they are seeking funds from GEBE in order to destroy the company. Wescot Williams said because of the loose and unfounded statements made by certain politicians it gave the employees reason to demand answers from government, in addition to all the other issues at GEBE. She confirmed that Prime Minister did spoke to the workers in her presence. She said during that open air meeting it was clear that the workers wanted answers especially regarding the monies government requested from GEBE. It should be noted that the government of St. Maarten requested a loan of NAF20M from the water reserves monies which is fully owned by the government, this she said is separate from the funds generated from electricity. Wescot Williams said she advised government that whatever they do with regards to the financial relationship that it is done in accordance with the corporate governance principles even though they are shareholders they needed to follow certain principles and guidelines. Wescot Williams looking at ways to broaden the scope of the Constitutional Court. The chairlady of parliament said that one of the things she is looking to get done is to broaden the scope of the Constitutional Court, one being where they could intervene in matters such as disputes between the governor and government, parliament and government or even with Ministers. She said she discussed this matter with Judge Bob Wit and he felt broadening their scope of work was not a bad idea. On other matters the chairlady of Parliament said one of her intentions is to curb or properly organize the central committee meetings, in order to keep it to the point and not allow Members of Parliament to have the entire process drawn out for days or long periods. While she admitted that there is no speakers time at Central Committee meetings she believes that she could better organize it so that the process goes faster. Wescot Williams further gave an update on the St. Maarten Medical Center where Minister Emil Lee has sought to have the bidding process of the new hospital which she assured is not off the books. Delight, Delivered: BloomThat Launches Nationwide Shipping SAN FRANCISCO, CA (Marketwired) 02/03/16 BloomThat today announced the expansion to nationwide flower delivery, becoming the most blissed-out way to be thoughtful. BloomThat launched three years ago to make it simpler to send blooms and other sweet surprises, a category previously occupied by outdated options. The founders set out to build something innovative a simple site and app that made it possible to send the best stems in the world, in the moment, and a better way to make someones day, every day. The BloomThat experience encompasses on-demand San Francisco and New York City flower delivery but starting today will include next-day delivery across the continental United States. In todays connected world, were in near constant communication. Yet as casual digital interactions via text and social chats have become the everyday norm, many people crave more meaningful interactions in the moments that matter most, said David Bladow, CEO and co-founder of BloomThat. At BloomThat, we want to be the conduit to thoughtfulness, inspiring everyone now anywhere to be better to the important people in their lives. BloomThat delivers delight from the minute you log onto the site or open the app, available exclusively on the Apple . Instead of offering dozens of options, the curated selection of seasonal stems makes picking your perfect match a simple choice. The blooms are selected with integrity from a combination of local and established farms with a sole focus on finding the highest-quality, responsibly sourced stems that will last the longest time, starting at $30. BloomThats iPhone and iPad apps also accept Apple Pay, making sending blooms as simple as the touch of a finger with Touch ID no need to manually fill out lengthy account forms or repeatedly type in shipping and billing information. Once stems are ordered in the BloomThat app, it only takes 20 seconds to order up delight again. BloomThats nationwide delivery begins today, giving people plenty of time to pick the perfect bunch in time for Valentines Day. The new offering will provide next-day delivery across the continental United States, with delivery windows available Monday-Saturday from 9AM 8PM local time. On-demand will still be available in existing areas, including New York City and San Francisco flower delivery. For full details of available delivery options and costs or to make someones day right now, visit BloomThat.com or download the BloomThat app for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch on the . BloomThat is on a mission to make sending a little something a big movement. Founded in 2013 in San Francisco by friends David Bladow and Matthew Schwab, the feel-good service helps celebrate lifes major milestones and all the moments in between. With products ranging from handcrafted bouquets to other curated goods starting around $30, BloomThat is a fun and easy way to brighten anyones day. Available next-day delivery across the United States, BloomThat also offers on-demand in the San Francisco Bay Area and New York City. For more information, please visit BloomThat.com, download the iOS app, or check out instagram.com/bloomthat. Media Contact bloomthat [at] launchsquad [dot] com Nurse Practitioner / Physician Assistant-Cardiology /Family Practice Providence Medical Group is looking for a mid level providers to join our team! Providence Medical Group is multi-specialty healthcare organization with current opportunities in *Cardiology and Family Practice. Competitive Compensation / Full Benefit Package Available. CME compensation included. QUALIFICATIONS/KNOWLEDGE/SKILLS *Current registration with the Medical Licensing Board of Indiana and current certification by the National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants. *New PA/NP graduates are welcome to apply. *Requires current CPR certification. *ACLS certification is required. *Requires professional knowledge and application skills for patient diagnosis and treatment. *Requires ability to educate and counsel patients and families on medications; diseases; treatment plans; procedures; and preventive health care. *Experience obtained through an employee setting or from a clinical preceptorship; is preferred. *Requires graduation from a two to four year physician assistant or nurse practitioner training program approved by the Medical Licensing Board of Indiana Under the supervising physician provides efficient, cost- effective, quality outpatient care in accordance with established rules and regulations defining the scope of practice. Please fax resume to attention Human Resources at 812-235-2754 or E-mail resources2723@gmail.com This job listing brought to you by The Tribune Star Cue Announces Collaboration With Johnson & Johnson Innovation and Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc. to Accelerate Development of Quantitative HIV Viral Load Test for Resource Poor Settings SAN DIEGO, CA (Marketwired) 02/04/16 Cue, Inc. today announced a collaboration with Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., one of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson, (Janssen) to address a significant global health need for HIV viral load testing using Cues Lab-In-A-Box proprietary molecular diagnostics platform. The deal was facilitated by Johnson & Johnson Innovation. Today, access to HIV viral load testing in resource poor settings is limited due to cost, and the technical complexity of the instrumentation and infrastructure required. An affordable, portable, easy-to-use, and internet enabled HIV quantitative viral load test could significantly enhance access to clinically significant information. Patients with newly emerging viral load who remain on failing regimens run the risk of both disease progression and developing resistance to future treatment options. Hence, HIV viral load testing is key to optimal disease management in people living with HIV. The scale of the HIV epidemic in Africa, India, Southeast Asia, and other parts of the developing world make this a significant global health challenge to be solved through strategic coordination between diagnostics, therapy, and on-the-ground deployment. Were excited to work with Janssen, a leader in the HIV field, to accelerate the development of the HIV quantitative viral load test on Cues platform. Together we can make a big impact on this significant global health challenge by bringing simplicity, immediacy and affordability to the field of HIV viral load testing in an unprecedented way, says Cue CEO Ayub Khattak. About Cue Cue Inc. is developing a molecular diagnostics platform for portable, connected, easy-to-use detection and quantification of molecular targets with applications to consumer health and fitness, longitudinal monitoring of biomarkers for chronic disease management, and infectious disease detection in support of global health initiatives. Spark & Cannon Awarded New Transcription Contract With the Victorian Department of Health and Human Services MARKHAM, ONTARIO (Marketwired) 02/04/16 VIQ Solutions Inc. (VIQ, VIQ Solutions or the Corporation) (TSX VENTURE: VQS) is pleased to announce that Spark & Cannon, VIQs Australia-based reporting and transcription services and technology distributor, has been awarded a new transcription contract with the Department of Health and Human Services (the Department) for a period of two years, with a further one year option available. The Department is responsible for developing and delivering policies, programs and services that support and enhance the well-being of all Victorians. As part of this contract, Spark & Cannon will provide ongoing quality transcription services in a timely manner from interviews recorded and provided to Spark & Cannon electronically. Transcripts will be prepared using security cleared personnel in the Spark & Cannon Melbourne office. The awarding of this contract is further evidence of the dominance of the Spark & Cannon business as a provider of quality services to the state of Victoria, said Matthew Fowler, Managing Director of VIQ Spark & Cannon. I am extremely pleased the Department has selected Spark & Cannon based on our past performance and quality of our transcripts. We look forward to establishing an ongoing relationship with the Department based on trusted service delivery. VIQ and Spark & Cannon have a considerable pedigree with high-profile agencies like the Department of Health and Human Services where the security, privacy and confidentiality of digital data is crucial at all stages, including transcription services, said Sebastien Pare, President and CEO of VIQ Solutions. Im very pleased that Spark & Cannon have been rewarded with another multi-year contract that further demonstrates their capabilities and expertise in the Australian market and provide the Corporation with steady, recurring revenue over the next few years. For more information on what is making the news at VIQ Solutions, please visit our website at . About VIQ Solutions Inc. VIQ Solutions is the global expert in digital recording technology. With a better approach to the collection, storage and management of digital audio, video and files, we help increase efficiency, improve security and reduce costs for courts, law enforcement agencies, insurance companies, health providers, and legislatures around the world. Weve got the technology, the experience and the expertise to efficiently manage country-wide installations of hundreds of rooms, with hundreds of terabytes of data. Managing digital media evidence is what we do, and we do it better than anyone else. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Forward-looking Statements Certain statements included in this news release constitute forward-looking statements or forward-looking information under applicable securities legislation. Such forward-looking statements or information are provided for the purpose of providing information about managements current expectations and plans relating to the future. Readers are cautioned that reliance on such information may not be appropriate for other purposes. Forward-looking statements or information typically contain statements with words such as anticipate, believe, expect, plan, intend, estimate, propose, project or similar words suggesting future outcomes or statements regarding an outlook. Forward-looking statements or information in this news release include, but are not limited to, the expected duration and scope of the contract. The forward-looking statements or information contained in this news release are made as of the date hereof and the Corporation undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise unless required by applicable securities laws. The forward-looking statements or information contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. Contacts: VIQ Solutions Inc. Sebastien Pare President and Chief Executive Officer (905) 948-8266 ext. 221 Fresche Legacy Named One of Montreals Top Employers For 2016 MONTREAL, QC (Marketwired) 02/04/16 , a leading provider of IBM i application management and modernization solutions, was recognized today as one of Montreals Top Employers. This is the second year in a row that Fresche has been chosen as one of the most employee-friendly and forward-thinking companies in the region. Fresche qualified as a top employer by providing a wide variety of benefits, flexible working conditions and opportunities for growth to its employees. Montreals Top Employers program highlighted the following: At Fresche, we strive to provide programs that put our people first, further develop their strengths and help them reach their full potential. Maria Anzini, Vice President of Talent Acquisition at Fresche, commented that it was an honor to be chosen again by the program. Another year alongside some of the greatest companies in Montreal is a thrill. We work hard to ensure that Fresche is a place that continually evolves and meets employee and Customer needs. Our passion for making our Customers smile grows out of how we run the business, how we all work together as employees and our combined sense of pride. When you appreciate your employees and give them room to grow, they like where they work, and they transmit their enthusiasm to Customers. Fresche continues to be a place where people are happy to arrive in the morning. We promote idea sharing and collaboration, and we hold regular weekly all-employee meetings where everyone has a chance to contribute. Were always looking for ways to innovate; we know that growth is the key to employee satisfaction and we want to encourage it any way we can. This year we added many new customers, employees and even investors, so things are always changing and new opportunities arise almost daily. Fresche is an exciting place to be. No matter where you are in your career, if you are still enthusiastic and still have something to prove, Fresche is a place where you can make a significant contribution no matter your location. We have been chosen one of Montreals Top Employers, but our benefits and philosophy extend worldwide to all of our Fresche Legacy offices. Our diversified cultures around the world are a vital part of our success. About Montreals Top Employers ProgramNow entering its tenth year, Montreals Top Employers is an annual competition organized by the editors of Canadas Top 100 Employers. This special designation recognizes the Montreal-area employers that lead their industries in offering exceptional places to work. Employers are evaluated by the editors of Canadas Top 100 Employers using the same eight criteria as the national competition: (1) Physical Workplace; (2) Work Atmosphere & Social; (3) Health, Financial & Family Benefits; (4) Vacation & Time Off; (5) Employee Communications; (6) Performance Management; (7) Training & Skills Development; and (8) Community Involvement. Employers are compared to other organizations in their field to determine which offers the most progressive and forward-thinking programs. About Fresche Legacy Fresche Legacy specializes in helping companies achieve their business goals and outcomes by better managing, enhancing and evolving their IBM i application environments. Companies can count on us for complete management and modernization solutions, including planning and analysis, application and database modernization, onsite development and deployment, complete project management and ongoing application support. We transform traditional 5250 systems modernizing, connecting and extending them to meet todays end users expectations. Companies running RPG, COBOL, CA 2E SYNON and Java applications can rely on us for comprehensive, automated solutions that optimize IBM i systems and help take advantage of technologies such as Web, Mobile, Cloud and RPGOA on the IBM i. Our complete portfolio: For more information about our company, visit us on the web at Contacts: Fresche Legacy Christine McDowell, Marketing Director Tel: +1 514.747.7007 Cell:+1 514.220.1309 Email: Quantum Computing Firm D-Wave Systems Appoints Dan Cohrs as Chief Financial Officer BURNABY, BC (Marketwired) 02/04/16 , the worlds first quantum computing company, today announced that Dan Cohrs has joined the team as chief financial officer. Mr. Cohrs brings an extensive and diverse background to D-Wave, having served in senior positions in corporate strategy, development and finance at Marriott, Northwest Airlines, GTE, Global Crossing and most recently at Rentech, Inc. and Rentech Nitrogen Partners in Los Angeles. With experience at both start-ups and multinational corporations, Mr. Cohrs is an expert in global finance and planning, M&A, IPOs and investor relations. He has also served as a faculty member at Cornell University and Harvard University. Mr. Cohrs earned a B.S. degree in engineering from Michigan State University, and M.A. and Ph.D. degrees in economics, finance and public policy from Cornell Universitys Johnson School of Management. Dans broad expertise in finance and his tremendous success in building capital and leading corporate strategy in companies large and small makes him the ideal CFO for D-Wave, said Vern Brownell, CEO of D-Wave. Over the course of his career, Dan has raised over $25 billion of capital, successfully executed IPOs and mergers and acquisitions, and has been an outstanding executive known for his integrity and leadership. We are all pleased Dan has joined D-Wave and know he will make important contributions as we continue on this exciting journey into the future of computing. Prior to joining D-Wave, Mr. Cohrs was executive vice president and chief financial officer of Rentech, Inc. and Rentech Nitrogen Partners, where he led the IPO and refinancing of Rentech Nitrogen and executed a number of acquisitions and partnerships in the fuels technology, fibre and fertilizer businesses. Mr. Cohrs served for five years as executive vice president and chief financial officer of Global Crossing (since acquired by Level 3 Communications), where he built a worldwide finance function to support the global operations of a $5 billion company and raised over $20 billion of capital. As a visiting senior lecturer at Cornell University, Mr. Cohrs developed and taught an executive course in corporate governance at the Johnson Graduate School of Management. He previously taught corporate finance as an assistant professor at the Harvard University Graduate School of Business. What D-Wave has already achieved as the first quantum computing company is awe-inspiring, said Dan Cohrs. There are just a handful of companies in the world willing to tackle the most complex challenges, and fewer still that have succeeded. D-Wave has already demonstrated the ability to design, manufacture and sell the only scalable quantum computer ever built. I am very excited to join the team of amazing people who have accomplished this. D-Wave Systems is the first quantum computing company. Its mission is to integrate new discoveries in physics, engineering, manufacturing and computer science into breakthrough approaches to computation to help solve some of the worlds most complex challenges. The companys quantum computers are built using a novel type of superconducting processor that uses quantum mechanics to massively accelerate computation. D-Waves customers include some of the worlds most prominent organizations including Lockheed Martin and Google, whose system is hosted at NASAs Ames Research Center. With headquarters near Vancouver, Canada, D-Wave U.S. is based in Palo Alto, California. D-Wave has a blue-chip investor base including Bezos Expeditions, BDC Capital, DFJ, Goldman Sachs, Growthworks, Harris & Harris Group, In-Q-Tel, International Investment and Underwriting, and Kensington Partners Limited. For more information, visit: . Beth Sanzone 415-625-8555 dwave (at) launchsquad (dot) com Apply now The deVere and Partners (L), is currently hiring expatriates to fill a position based in our Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia office. Established in 2001 in Malaysia, we specialise in providing planning and investment advisory services for the expatriate and local community worldwide with 71 offices around the globe. We are currently looking to expand our office in Kuala Lumpur and are consequently seeking professional expatriates to join our company. This is a fantastic opportunity for candidates who wish to pursue a new career challenge or are looking to apply their already acquired skills. As a company we will provide all the training and guidance needed. We achieve this through an initial 5 day training course concluded by an examination and on-going training with our regional manager. Guidance will also be given towards completing the internationally recognized financial qualification, CISI (Chartered Institute for Securities and Investment). Job Description As an International Financial Planning Consultant, you will provide advice to our clients, based on their personal financial goals. The role is focused on building relationships with potential and existing clients and will thus involve effective communication skills, excellent information gathering capabilities and ability to effectively find the right solution for our clients needs. An essential part of the tailored financial advice that you will be offering also entails making sure that clients benefit from your regular feedback. The selected candidate must be: Successful and target driven individuals Excellent communication and client relationship skills Capability to build rapport with people from multiple nationalities, jobs & industries ? Eagerness to further or build a career in financial consultancy Capacity to adapt to a fast-paced environment and manage time effectively ? Focused approach to build business ? Ability to lead, motivate and manage ?? We offer: ?? Full training and development to achieve international qualifications (CISI) Corporate Supporters ? Access to exclusive products and rates through world leading financial institutions Defined career path ? Ongoing support and training Global opportunities ?? Requisites: Proven track record in a professional communications role ? Experience of both face to face and telephone contact with clients. A degree related to Business, Economics or Finance is required. Financial Qualifications from CISI, CII, RG146, MII or any other recognised qualification will be accepted. Apply now. Rain and snow give way to sunny skies over weekend in Michiana Parts of Michiana saw very early snowfalls earlier this week, but temperatures should rise into the 70s this weekend. Oak Creek to host outdoor 2022 World Cup watch party A partnership between Morans Pub in South Milwaukee and the city of Oak Creek will offer residents food, drinks, music and games on Nov. 25. Welcome to SwanseaOnline - your home for the best news, sports and what's on coverage of the city. Never miss a Swansea story with our daily newsletter Sign up to comment on our stories here Follow us on Facebook and Twitter | Swansea City news | Ospreys news | InYourArea An artist's illustration of Ceres based on mapping and observations from NASA's Dawn spacecraft currently orbiting the dwarf planet in the Asteroid Belt. Ceres is a dwarf planet, the only one located in the inner reaches of the solar system; the rest lie at the outer edges, in the Kuiper Belt. While it is the smallest of the known dwarf planets, it is the largest object in the asteroid belt. Unlike other rocky bodies in the asteroid belt, Ceres is an oblate spheroid, rounded with a rotational bulge around its equator. Scientists think Ceres may have an ocean and possibly an atmosphere. The recent arrival of a probe has unlocked some of the dwarf planet's secrets, but others remain hidden. [See more photos of the dwarf planet Ceres] Bright spots & lonely mountains On March 6, 2015, NASA's Dawn spacecraft became the first probe to orbit two bodies in the solar system. After leaving the asteroid Vesta, Dawn traveled to Ceres, an icy world that has tantalized scientists for years. While most asteroids are made of rock, Ceres revealed hints that it could contain water on its surface since 1991, though those hints remained unconfirmed for more than 20 years. Most of the surface is a dull gray. Spectral observations from Ceres have revealed the presence of a form of graphite known as graphitized carbon. "It hasn't evolved to proper graphite," Amanda Hendrix, a senior scientist at the Planetary Science Institute in Arizona, told Space.com. But it's close. As Dawn drew closer to the giant asteroid, a bright spot on its surface grew clearer. After observing Ceres, 130 similar spots of varying brightness were found on the planet. The surface of Ceres is generally as reflective as freshly poured asphalt, while the spots ranged from the dull sheen of concrete to the startling brightness of ice floating on Earth's oceans. The brightest region lies in the 56-mile-wide (90 kilometers) Occator Crater, which contains the most famous collections of shining spots on the surface of Ceres. Early speculation regarding the spots included the possibility of ice volcanoes on the dwarf planet. However, only a single "lonely mountain" rises from the surface. The pyramid-shaped mountain rises to an altitude of 21,120 feet (6,437 meters). The 4-mile high mountain stands solitary, with no evidence of volcanic or other geologic activity to suggest its puzzling origin. Although a study of the spots originally found signatures of hydrated magnesium sulfates, the same material that makes up Epsom salt back on Earth, further examination revealed chemical signatures of sodium carbonate. Formed from carbon, on Earth the material is often left behind as water evaporates, suggesting that the salts formed in the watery conditions beneath the crust. Most of the bright regions are associated with craters, suggesting that their formation could be related to impacts. These findings tie into earlier understanding of the formation of the dwarf planet. Ceres' features are named for agricultural spirits and gods, and were approved by the International Astronomical Union in 2015. Ceres itself was named for the Roman goddess of corn and harvests. A once-wet world Ceres may look dry and gray, but it probably held a liquid ocean in its past. Dawn used the dwarf planet's own bulk to map its gravity field. Combined with observations of the icy surfaces, the observations reveal traces of an ocean in the crust, with signs of a muddy mantle below the surface. Ceres has a density of 2.09 grams per cubic centimeter, leading scientists to conclude approximately a quarter of its weight is water. This would give the dwarf planet more fresh water than Earth contains. By comparison, Earth has a density of 5.52 grams per cubic centimeter. Before Dawn visited the dwarf planet, scientists already suspected that it could hide a liquid or frozen ocean; the visiting satellite helped dive into the secrets lurking beneath the planet's surface. Scientists think that water-ice serves as the mantle of the dwarf planet. The thin, dusty crust is thought to be composed of rock, while a rocky inner core lies at the center. Spectral observations of Ceres from Earth reveal that the surface contains iron-rich clays. Signs of carbonates have similarly been found, making Ceres one of the only bodies in the solar system known to contain these minerals, the other two being Earth and Mars. Formed by a process that involves heat and water, carbonates are considered good potential indicators of habitability. [The Search for Life on Mars (A Photo Timeline) "That was something we had not expected," Chris Russell, Dawn's principal investigator and planetary scientist at University of California, Los Angeles, told Space.com in 2016. "The carbonates are a very strong indication of the processes now that we believe took place in the interior, that makes it more Earthlike, when it can alter the chemistry inside." Salts would lower the freezing temperature of water hidden within the crust, keeping it from freezing as quickly as pure water might do. When large bodies crash into Ceres, they may scoop out a region of the crust, cutting into the icy mantle beneath to leave the ice closer to surface. When sunlight heats the outer layer, the ice could go from solid to gas through a process known as sublimation. In 2014, the European Space Agency's Herschel Space Observatory detected plumes of water vapor escaping from the dwarf planet at a rate of 13 lbs. (6 kilograms) per second. "This is the first clear-cut detection of water on Ceres and in the asteroid belt in general," Michael Kuppers of the European Space Agency, Villanueva de la Canada, Spain, told Space.com in 2014. Kuppers led the study of the vapor that appeared in Nature. But not all of the water is hidden beneath the surface. Dawn has revealed growing patches of ice and minerals related to liquid water on the tiny world. Andrea Raponi, a researcher at the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics (INAF), found a growing patch of ice on the floor of Juling Crater, scraped out near the mid-latitudes. A second team, led by Filippo Giacomo Carrozzo, also of INAF, revealed changes in the soil that they suspect are tied to carbonates. "The same process can be at work in the crater floor of Juling, providing a replenishment of water under the soil that sublimates and in part condenses on the cold wall," Raponi told Space.com. "The two works show that water is currently available on the surface of Ceres and produces geological and mineralogical changes on its surface," he said. These patches may change as the planet tilts over thousands of years. Ceres' tilt relative to its orbit changes from 2 degrees to about 20 degrees over the course of 24,500 years, a relatively short time astronomically speaking. This can cause dramatic swings in which craters can continue to hide water over long periods of time. Right now, while Ceres' tilt is near its minimum, large swaths of land around the poles don't receive direct sunlight. But 14,000 years ago, when Ceres was at its maximum tilt, those regions shrank, leaving only a handful of areas where ice could continue to hide throughout the shift. "The idea that ice could survive on Ceres for long periods of time is important as we continue to reconstruct the dwarf planet's geological history, including whether it has been giving off water vapor," said study co-author and Dawn deputy principal investigator Carol Raymond, also of JPL, in a statement. Dawn also discovered organic-rich areas on the surface and determined that they were most likely native to the dwarf planet. Data from the spacecraft suggest that the organic materials most likely were delivered to the surface from the dwarf planet's interior. "This discovery of a locally high concentration of organics is intriguing, with broad implications for the astrobiology community," said Dr. Simone Marchi, a senior research scientist at Southwest Research Institute, said in a statement. "Ceres has evidence of ammonia-bearing hydrated minerals, water ice, carbonates, salts, and now organic materials. With this new finding Dawn has shown that Ceres contains key ingredients for life." Ceres is thought to contain a thin outer layer of dust and rock over an icy layer. (Image credit: NASA/ESA/STScI) History & discovery Astronomers in the late 18th century mathematically predicted the presence of a planet between Mars and Jupiter, eagerly turning their telescopes to the region in search of the missing body. On Jan. 1, 1801, Sicilian astronomer Giuseppe Piazzi discovered what was then considered a planet, naming it Ceres for the Roman goddess. Within a decade, four new objects were discovered in the same region, all also considered planets. Nearly 50 years passed before more, smaller bodies were found scattered between Mars and Jupiter the components of the asteroid belt and Ceres was demoted to the status of an asteroid. In 2006, Ceres was promoted to the status of a dwarf planet; it did not reach full planetary status because it failed to gravitationally clear its neighborhood of debris, though it often retains its classification as an asteroid, as well. [Infographic: Dwarf Planets in the Solar System] The largest object in the asteroid belt, Ceres makes up nearly a third of its mass. Even so, it remains the smallest known dwarf planet, only 590 miles (950 km) across roughly the size of Texas. A day on Ceres lasts a little over 9 Earth-hours, while it takes 4.6 Earth-years to travel around the sun. The close proximity and low mass of Ceres have led some scientists to suggest that it could serve as a potential site for manned landings and a launching point for manned deep space missions. The source of Earth's water? Unlike most of the asteroid belt, Ceres contains a significant amount of ice. This could mean similar worlds in the early solar system could have been responsible for bringing water to Earth. Under current solar system models, Earth would have formed primarily rocky. Any water it held on its surface would have been vaporized when a large protoplanet collided with it to form the moon. For a long time, scientists thought that comets might have delivered water to the reformed Earth as they collided with its surface. However, comet-studying probes have shown that the icy rocks don't contain the right kind of water for their siblings to be responsible for those deliveries. New studies have turned to objects known as main belt asteroids, rock and icy neighbors of Ceres. "One quarter of the mass of Ceres is water, and three quarters is rock," Russell told Space.com in 2015. "If we had just a few Ceres-type bodies colliding with the Earth, we can explain where the water came from." Additional resources Follow Nola Taylor Redd at @NolaTRedd, Facebook, or Google+. Follow us at @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. I seem to be on a theme of enjoying movies based on true stories and The Finest Hours is not an exception. Chris Pine stars as Bernie Webber, a member of the Coast Guard stationed in Massachusetts. In February of 1952, a massive blizzard hits New England and the storm causes two oil tankers to break in half. Unfortunately, the Coast Guard only knows about one at first. By the time the Coast Guard learns a second tanker is sinking off the coast of Cape Cod, there are only four men available to try to rescue the men on board. These men are led by Webber. He takes a small boat and three of his men on some of the most dangerous seas the area has seen. Two of the men are rookies and the other, Richard Livesey, played by Ben Foster, doesnt have much confidence in Webber. While the Coast Guard is attempting to rescue the men on the oil tanker, the men on the sinking ship have their own harrowing tale. The men on the tanker are led by Ray Sybert, portrayed by Casey Affleck. He has to figure out a way to give his ship more time, so the 30-plus crew has time to be rescued. Both Webber and Sybert were fighting against knowing the right thing to do and convincing others to follow them so their plans would work. The director did a good job of switching the focus between the men performing the rescue and those waiting for it to come. I also liked that the director showed what it was like to be a loved one of the men who are in danger. Webbers girlfriend, Miriam, played by Holliday Grainger, is the main focus of those waiting. So many times in rescue films everyone shown is in danger, but the film never shows what it is like to be the person waiting and hoping their family member makes it home safe. This film was quite suspenseful. If I didnt know it was based on a true story, I probably would have thought the plot was ridiculous. The tale is still considered the greatest small-boat rescue in Coast Guard history. The Finest Hours is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of peril. Rating for The Finest Hours: 4 popcorns out of 5 Karl's association with Space.com goes back to 2000, when he was hired to produce interactive Flash graphics. From 2010 to 2016, Karl worked as an infographics specialist across all editorial properties of Purch (formerly known as TechMediaNetwork). Before joining Space.com, Karl spent 11 years at the New York headquarters of The Associated Press, creating news graphics for use around the world in newspapers and on the web. He has a degree in graphic design from Louisiana State University and now works as a freelance graphic designer in New York City. Artist's concept of "Planet Nine," a hypothesized world about 10 times more massive than Earth that may orbit in the far outer solar system. The bullying presence of a big, undiscovered "Planet Nine" isn't necessary to explain the strange orbits of a handful of objects in the outer reaches of the solar system, new research suggests. Last month, Konstantin Batygin and Mike Brown, both astronomers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena, proposed the existence of Planet Nine, a world perhaps 10 times more massive than Earth that orbits far beyond Pluto, completing one lap around the sun every 10,000 to 20,000 Earth years. Batygin and Brown didn't see Planet Nine; rather, they inferred its existence based on the odd orbital characteristics of six bodies in the "scattered disk" portion of the Kuiper Belt, a realm of icy bodies that lies beyond Neptune. For example, these six objects all have similar "arguments of perihelion." ['Planet Nine' Worlds Are the Most Common Ones We Know (Infographic)] Researchers say an anomaly in the orbits of distant Kuiper Belt objects points to the existence of an unknown planet orbiting the sun. Here's what we know of this potential "Planet Nine." (Image credit: by Karl Tate, Infographics artist) A body's argument of perihelion is basically the ratio of how much it pitches (wobbles forward or backward) to how much it rolls (moves left or right) as it orbits the sun, said Ann-Marie Madigan, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Berkeley. This characteristic should be random from one Kuiper Belt object (KBO) to another, she added. Imagine seeing a number of boats spread across San Francisco Bay that are all pitching and rolling in the same direction, and with the same pitch/roll ratio, Madigan said Jan. 26 during a talk at the SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Institute in Mountain View, California. "That would be really strange," Madigan said. "And so this is why it's so strange that these minor planets in the outer solar system are doing this." Therefore, something must be shaping the orbits of these far-flung bodies, the reasoning goes. Batygin and Brown believe the culprit is the hypothesized Planet Nine; their computer models suggest this undiscovered world is about 10 times more massive than Earth and orbits the sun on a highly elliptical path, coming within perhaps 200 astronomical units (AU) of the sun and getting as far away as 600 to 1,200 AU. (One AU is the average distance from Earth to the sun about 93 million miles, or 150 million kilometers. For perspective, Neptune orbits 30 AU from the sun, and Pluto never gets more than 49 AU from our star.) But Madigan and her co-author Michael McCourt of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics say there's another possible explanation. Modeling work performed by the duo suggests that the scattered-disk objects could "self-organize," pushing and pulling each other into their unusual orbits as long as there are a whole lot of them out there. ['Planet Nine': Facts About the Mysterious World (Infographic)] If the total mass of all of the minor planets in the scattered disk is roughly equivalent to the mass of Earth, the resulting orbit shaping would have occurred within about 600 million years of the solar system's birth, Madigan said during her SETI Institute talk. "So we really need that much mass in minor planets for this to happen in the solar system," she said. "If there was much less mass, this wouldn't occur [with]in the age of the solar system." Mini-Neptunes like "Planet Nine" outnumber other types of planets found by astronomers. See our full infographic here (Image credit: by Karl Tate, Infographics artist) The implication, Madigan added, is that "we should have a new Kuiper Belt that's far more massive than the current-day Kuiper Belt, at larger distances, and preferentially lifted off the plane of the major planets." Batygin and Brown considered Madigan and McCourt's "inclination instability" idea, which will be published next month in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters. But Batygin and Brown regard the prospect of Planet Nine as more probable, in large part because, they say, surveys suggest the scattered-disk region doesn't harbor nearly enough minor planets. "To this end, it is worth noting that although the primordial planetesimal disk of the solar system likely comprised tens of Earth masses, the vast majority of this material was ejected from the system by close encounters with the giant planets during, and immediately following, the transient dynamical instability that shaped the Kuiper Belt in the first place," Batygin and Brown wrote in their Planet Nine paper, which was published online last month in The Astronomical Journal. "The characteristic timescale for depletion of the primordial disk is likely to be short compared with the timescale for the onset of the inclination, calling into question whether the inclination instability could have actually proceeded in the outer solar system," they added. This astronomical debate should be settled by observations in the coming years. If Planet Nine exists, powerful instruments such as the Subaru Telescope in Hawaii should be able to spot it, Brown has said. And surveys using big ground-based scopes should also be able to determine if a massive disk of minor planets does indeed circle the sun far beyond Pluto's orbit, Madigan said. "We need more mass in the outer solar system," she said. "So it can either come from having more minor planets, and their self-gravity will do this to themselves naturally, or it could be in the form of one single massive planet a Planet Nine. So it's a really exciting time, and we're going to discover one or the other." Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com. Without a lander, the "clipper" part of the Europa mission, making multiple flybys of Jupiter's icy moon, could be ready for launch as soon as 2022. WASHINGTON Faced with a congressional mandate to add a lander to a planned mission to Jupiter's icy moon Europa, NASA is considering launching the lander separately from the main mission. In discussions Feb. 1 at a meeting of NASA's Outer Planets Assessment Group in San Antonio, Texas, agency officials said they are considering how to add a lander to a mission under development to make multiple flybys of Europa, even though the lander will weigh significantly more than the main "clipper" spacecraft. Curt Niebur, outer planets program scientist at NASA Headquarters, said at the meeting that the biggest challenge of adding the lander to the Europa mission is its mass: about 17,600 lbs. (8,000 kilograms), to accommodate the propellant needed to land the spacecraft softly on the surface. He added that estimate was "very rough" based on the limited studies of lander concepts to date. By comparison, the clipper spacecraft alone would have a mass of only about 11,000 lbs. (5,000 kg). [Europa May Harbor Simple Life-Forms (Video)] That additional mass would drive the selection of the launch vehicle, requiring the use of NASA's in-development Space Launch System megarocket. "If we co-manifest the lander and clipper, we're only on SLS," he said. "It's still a slow boat, so to speak: you'd still do inner solar system gravity assists." NASA planning for a Europa clipper alone has examined using an Atlas 5 launch and flybys to reach Europa, or an SLS launch on a direct trajectory. The SLS would be more expensive than an Atlas 5, but the direct trajectory would allow the mission to reach Europa several years sooner. Niebur said an alternative under study would be to launch the clipper spacecraft and the lander separately. "It's an option that we've been kicking around, and we need to make a decision on that preferably soon," he said. Splitting the mission into two launches could allow the clipper spacecraft to remain on a fast track. Niebur said that, given current funding trends where Congress has allocated significantly more for the mission than NASA has requested, a clipper spacecraft alone could be technically ready for launch as soon as 2022. "If you put a very capable lander on there, I think that's going to slow things down a bit," he added. "Do you put them all on the same spacecraft and launch them on the same rocket, or do you split them onto separate rockets? That's also an option we could consider." Splitting the clipper and lander spacecraft, though, could run afoul of the congressional language that is forcing NASA to consider flying the lander in the first place. The fiscal year 2016 omnibus spending bill passed in December provided NASA with $175 million for work on a Europa mission, with direction that such a mission consist of "an orbiter with a lander" and "plan for a launch no later than 2022" on an SLS. Robert Pappalardo, the Europa project scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, said there is a "strawman" schedule for accommodating a Europa lander on the planned clipper mission, although he did not disclose it at the meeting. "That said, the plan is for the clipper portion, the multiple-flyby portion, to go full steam ahead," he said. That includes holding the mission's next major review, a system requirements review, this summer regardless of any decision to add a lander. Niebur said that, separate from the discussion about a lander, NASA was examining several smaller "augmentations" to the clipper spacecraft. One example he mentioned is a cubesat-sized spacecraft that would fly through plumes of water ice ejected by Europa. Other additions to the clipper spacecraft could address studies of Europa's gravitational field. The current spacecraft design has about 550 lbs. (250 kg) of spare mass to support those or other additions to the clipper spacecraft separate from the lander. Those augmentations, he said, would not affect the primary science mission of the main spacecraft and its suite of 10 instruments NASA announced last year. "Whatever we do in terms of these enhancements, I want to stress that we are fully committed to the multiple-flyby mission," he said. "For any other decisions on enhancements, our drivers are going to be to protect the science of the multiple flyby mission." This story was provided by Space News, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry. PARIS The Luxembourg government on Feb. 3 announced it would seek to jump-start an industrial sector to mine asteroid resources in space by creating regulatory and financial incentives. The incentives include co-investment in research and development and, eventually, direct capital investment in space resource-mining companies setting up shop in Luxembourg. Announced by Vice Prime Minister Etienne Schneider, who is also the nation's economics minister, the initiative has already lured U.S.-based Deep Space Industries of Mountain View, California, to create a Luxembourg subsidiary. Schneider said other U.S. companies, including SpaceX of Hawthorne, California, and Planetary Resources of Redmond, Washington, are in talks with Luxembourg authorities regarding the Spaceresources.lu venture. [Asteroid Mining: Planetary Resources' Plan in Pictures] Luxembourg is home to satellite fleet operator SES, whose ascension from outsider-startup status in the 1980s to today's place as one of the two largest commercial fleet operators by revenue Schneider cited an example of what is possible when Luxembourg sets its mind to something. SES in the past three years has been the biggest commercial backer of SpaceX, whose stated corporate mission is the establishment of a human colony on Mars. Schneider said extracting water from asteroids to create fuel for deep-space missions is one application of space mining. Luxembourg Vice Prime Minister Etienne Schneider says Luxembourg will offer regulatory and financial incentives to space resource-mining companies. (Image credit: Luxembourg government) In an interview, Schneider said the Luxembourg government has already selected a European, an American and a Chinese national to be members of the advisory board. The Chinese and U.S. members will be arriving in the next couple of months, he said. The European is Jean-Jacques Dordain, former director-general of the 22-nation European Space Agency. In a press briefing with Schneider, Dordain said the tools that the Luxembourg government is placing at the disposal of space-mining companies means space-mining entrepreneurs "have no more excuses to go to California." Schneider cautioned that Luxembourg is not offering tax haven-type advantages. "There is no special tax treatment for these companies," he said. "Companies will be coming for the infrastructure we have here and for the R&D support we are going to give them." [Photos: Asteroids in Deep Space] R&D tax credits are available in the United States as well, and Schneider conceded that the intellectual and financial effervescence of Silicon Valley exerts a powerful pull on European engineering talent. But he said Luxembourg offers advantages that are difficult for the U.S. federal or state governments. "Our R&D system gives me the opportunity to reimburse 45 percent of the company's R&D investment," Schneider said. "It's quite attractive for international companies to do their R&D in Luxembourg. "What's more, the Luxembourg government has committed to invest in the capital of these companies as well. If we think they have an interesting project, we are committed to invest directly into their capital. "We can do this by different means: We can invest by different government investment funds we own, and also the government's investment bank. We have all these means of supporting companies and of course the Luxembourg financial industry is interested in supporting them." Schneider said the Luxembourg government in the coming months would be assembling a mid-term space budget to be presented to the ESA ministerial council, scheduled for December. As a part of that process, he said, the government will determine how much financing to set aside for the space-mining initiative. He said selecting an American, a European and a Chinese national as initial board members was no accident. Since the U.S. Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act was enacted in November, Schneider's office has sought the opinion of Chinese experts on the legalicy and commercial future of space-resource commercial exploitation. Schneider said he has been interested in asteroid resource mining since 2013 well before the U.S. Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act. The U.S. bill appeared headed for international legal protest because it endorses commercial extraction by U.S. citizens of resources from asteroids, the moon or other celestial bodies. But the International Institute of Space Law has issued a mainly favorable assessment of the legal validity of the Space Act, and senior European Union officials have as well. Schneider likened the Space Act to fishing rights in international waters the fisherman can harvest the resources without laying claim to ownership of the oceans. He stressed that it is more than just legality. Luxembourg, he said, has a non-threatening, neutral-party reputation that might serve to blunt legal protests against space mining and elicit more international participation in a collective effort. Dordain said he was approached by Schneider in July and spent the summer researching the issue to determine its feasibility. He said he concluded that all the major elements of a space-mining mission have been demonstrated by one or another of the world's space agencies, and that commercial ventures could stand on these agencies' shoulders to make a business. "Going to an asteroid done," Dordain said. "Landing on an asteroid done. Collecting samples done. Returning samples to Earth done." This story was provided by Space News, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry. Artist's illustration of NASA's Juno spacecraft at Jupiter. The probe will enter orbit around the solar system's largest planet on July 4, 2016. A NASA spacecraft now has Jupiter more squarely in its sights ahead of its July 4 arrival at the solar system's largest planet. NASA's solar-powered Juno probe performed an engine burn Wednesday (Feb. 3), consuming 1.3 pounds (0.6 kilograms) of fuel to change its speed by about 0.7 mph (1.1 km/h). Juno was roughly 51 million miles (82 million kilometers) from Jupiter when it conducted the maneuver, agency officials said. "This is the first of two trajectory adjustments that fine-tune Juno's orbit around the sun, perfecting our rendezvous with Jupiter on July 4 at 8:18 p.m. PDT [11:18 p.m. EDT; 0318 GMT on July 5]," Juno principal investigator Scott Bolton, of the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, said in a statement. The second of these engine burns is scheduled to take place on May 31, NASA officials said. The $1.1 billion Juno mission launched in August 2011. Its main goal involves mapping Jupiter's gravitational and magnetic fields in precise detail, to help scientists learn about the gas giant's structure, formation and evolution, mission team members have said. Juno will perform its science work from orbit. The nominal mission plan calls for the 4-ton spacecraft to zip around Jupiter 33 times, coming within just 3,100 miles (5,000 km) of the planet's cloud tops once every 14 days, NASA officials said. Juno carries three 30-foot-long (9 m) solar panels, which together hold a total of 18,698 individual solar cells. Such extensive light-collecting gear is necessary to power the spacecraft in the relatively dim environment around Jupiter, which orbits more than five times farther from the sun than Earth does. Last month, Juno became the farthest-flung solared-powered probe in spaceflight history. The previous record was held by the European Space Agency's comet-chasing Rosetta spacecraft, which got a maximum of 492 million miles (792 million km) from Earth in October 2012. Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com. Oct. 6 John Kurt McCullough, 51, of Spring Creek was found guilty of displaying fictitious or suspended or revoked registration, plates or title. Oct. 20 Edgar Santiago Roman-Valenzuela, 19, of Elko pleaded guilty to possession of one ounce or less of marijuana. Oct. 27 Perry Scott Goldfetter, 59, of Elko was found guilty of speeding. Nov. 18 The charge of speeding 11 to 15 miles over the limit against David Allan Green, 38, of Reno was dismissed with prejudice. Nov. 24 Sailsea S. Dixon, 39, of Elko was found guilty of speeding. Nov. 25 James Mitchel Sitkin, 60, of Oakland, California, forfeited $306 in bail on a charge of speeding 16 to 20 miles over the limit. Dec. 8 Jerry Robert Jacks, 78, of Las Vegas was found guilty of wasting game birds, animals, fish or amphibians and hunting in the wrong area or failure to validate tag properly. Dec. 15 Amy Danielle Gonzalez, 39, of Spring Creek forfeited $115 in bail on a charge of failure to obey stop sign. Dec. 16 William Joseph Shoemaker was bound over to district court on charges of burglary, attempted grand larceny of a motor vehicle and taking or driving away a vehicle without consent. After the Iowa caucus results, it looks like Hillary Clinton vs. Marco Rubio in November! They lead the betting at ElectionBettingOdds.com. This scares me. Neither candidate shows any interest in limited government. They scoff at anyone who suggests that their grand schemes do more harm than good. But big government does do more harm than good. I shouldnt single out Rubio or Clinton, or even Donald Trump. Almost everyone running for office today declares himself a leader who gets things done. Theres no modesty, little acknowledgement that so much of what government does is costly attempts to fix problems that government created at home and abroad. In the book The Fatal Conceit, Frederick Hayek wrote, The curious task of economics is to demonstrate to men how little they really know about what they imagine they can design. I wish politicians understood that. Chris Christie clearly doesnt. He wins my vote for worst presidential candidate this week because of what hes doing to New Jerseys taxpayers in the name of fixing Atlantic City. Six years ago, Christie promised to reform and rebuild Atlantic City without government money. Without government money? Good! It sounds as if the governor respects small government principles and would protect taxpayers. Nope. Christie had a few options. Washington Post reporter David Fahrenthold points out that the governor could have done nothing and let the free market drive out the weaker casinos, hope that the city government and the big casino corporations would innovate their way out of the problem. That was the small-government option. There would have been upheaval. Some bills wouldnt get paid in full. But heck, Atlantic City had been rendered fat and inefficient by casino taxes. It paid $1 million a year in pensions for long-retired city lifeguards who only ever worked four months a year, wrote Fahrenthold. Time to cut fat. Instead, Christie partnered with Democrats to embrace a big-government option. His advisers wanted to take over the entire city. Christies concession to limited government was that he took over only half mostly the fun part: all 11 casinos. Christie put them under the oversight of a state agency. He said those bureaucrats would restore Atlantic City and again vowed, You have my word that its going to be done without any government money. Dream on. The agency used eminent domain to grab properties for development. Bureaucrats spent millions on public art projects, like a statue of a nude woman holding a dead deer. Somehow that didnt inspire tourists to rush to Atlantic City. The state spent on TV ads and came up with a slogan: Do AC. It didnt help. Casinos kept going bankrupt, as did a giant unfinished hotel/casino, the Revel. Christie decided that the state should finish it. He got the legislature to promise $261 million in tax incentives and a $2 million grant. That no tax money pledge? Gone. Now taxpayers were investing. We are going to make the type of investment, said Christie, to make sure that we bring this city to a new renaissance. The renaissance never came. The Revel opened, lost money and filed for bankruptcy just one year later. Its now a 47-story hulk with 1,000 empty rooms. Its new owner considered naming it the Tower of Geniuses. That would be a good name for Obamacare, temporary farm subsidies, Alaskas bridge to nowhere and lots of other boondoggles designed by politicians. So is Christie apologetic after spending millions of taxpayer dollars on failure? No, of course not. Recently he was asked whether, in hindsight, he would have done anything differently. Nothing, Christie replied. Politicians never apologize. They charge forward. Their solution to failed government investment is more government. Last week Christie announced that the state would take over all of Atlantic City, claiming, Greater state involvement makes sense. He says the new Atlantic City will be delivered at an affordable cost to the taxpayers. Sure. And Mexico will pay for a giant wall, stimulus spending will revive the economy and arming Syrian rebels will bring peace. The arrogance of the political class is endless. Optimization Are you frustrated with a slow pc or a hard disk not performing as it should? Try SLOW-PCfighter to speed up boot time on a slow PC, or try a free scan of FULL-DISKfighter to recover space on a full disk. The latest offering is DRIVERfighter to update your driver updater. Get complete PC optimization and extend the life of your PC with these must-have software tools. In 1990, the United States led the world in metals and minerals production. This was great news for Americas manufacturers because it meant they had ready access to the copper, gold, platinum and silver needed to power everything from electronics and automobiles to solar panels and power plants. However, something troubling has happened over the past 25 years. Mineral extraction in the United States has plummeted drastically to the point where America now ranks 7th in global production. The real-world consequence of this lost mining capacity is that we now import roughly $27 billion worth of minerals every year. In fact, America is now completely import-dependent for 19 key minerals, and more than 50 percent dependent for another 24 important minerals. This is a critical issue because these are the very minerals and metals needed to create the energy infrastructure of the 21st Century. For example, in order to produce hybrid cars, we need secure, reliable supplies of zinc. Solar panels require ample amounts of both gold and silver. And wind turbines necessitate copious supplies of copper, zinc, and molybdenum. This explains why the U.S. Department of Energy has made critical minerals a national priority, especially since they contribute to a variety of new energy technologies. The real irony of our dependence on imported minerals is that the United States is already blessed with an incredibly abundant array of these same natural resources. Geologists estimate that America possesses some of the greatest mineral reserves on the planet worth an estimated $6.2 trillion. Essentially, we are sitting on top of the very raw materials needed to transform energy demands globally. And so, we urgently need to address a situation where America is often importing the very same minerals it already possesses. Specifically, whats needed to support Americas energy future is a plan to address the one key problem holding us back: Our outdated minerals mine permitting process. It currently takes anywhere from seven to 10 years for U.S. companies to navigate the permitting requirements necessary to open a new mine. In contrast, mine permitting in countries like Australia and Canada, which maintain comparable environmental standards, requires only two to three years. If the U.S. could overhaul its outdated permitting process, and expedite the opening of new mines, we could see a much-needed expansion of domestic supplies of these crucial minerals. Thankfully, the Senate is currently taking up an Energy Policy Modernization Act that includes language introduced by Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) to address the production of critical minerals. Specifically, Sen. Murkowskis legislation calls for geological surveying of critical mineral resources, and aims to reduce federal permitting delays by requiring both coordination among agencies and establishing deadlines. Passage of the Energy Policy Modernization Act would help spur minerals production throughout the United States, and help to provide the resources needed for an energy boom already underway in America. Such supplies are crucial to new energy technologies that could bring America one step closer to a true all-the-above energy policy that embraces everything from renewables and nuclear power to more conventional sources. Its past time to overhaul our outdated mine permitting process and make the United States more self-reliant in vital minerals production. SPIEGEL: Can IS in Libya still be defeated, even with an agreement? Kobler: Yes, but there isn't much time left. We are seeing it expand its sphere of influence from Sirte on the coast to the east, west and south. There are already bridgeheads and cells in the south, and if Islamic State is allowed to join forces with terrorist organizations in Niger and Chad, then it will be very, very difficult to push it back. We are already now witnessing a closing of ranks of IS with criminal groups from sub-Saharan states that are controlling the human-trafficking business, which IS plays an increasing role in. SPIEGEL: IS has recently been weakened in Syria and Iraq, which is apparently why it is shifting its activities to Libya. Is the country becoming its operations center? Kobler: It's obvious that the military pressure against IS in Iraq and Syria can lead to Libya becoming a new gathering place for terrorists. Most of the 2,000 to 3,000 fighters in Libya today are already foreigners. SPIEGEL: The US is considering conducting air strikes in Libya against Islamic state. What would that achieve? Kobler: I am not familiar with these plans. Ultimately, however, it is the Libyans who must fight against IS. As the past has shown, air strikes alone do not defeat terrorists. This is a battle for oil fields and refineries, a battle for cities and strategic positions -- and for that you need ground troops. But I see no readiness on the part of the international community for that kind of engagement. That's why a unity government as well as a strong security infrastructure needs to be built up quickly. The Libyans themselves must go into battle against IS. If they then choose to accept help from abroad, it will be a sovereign decision made by this government. But they have to take the first step. SPIEGEL: So far there have only been militias in Libya. How are they supposed to defeat a highly organized IS? Kobler: The army has to be completely rebuilt -- otherwise it can't work. Libya isn't Iraq, which has a 5,000-year military history it can look back on. There is no basis here. For 42 years, Muammar Gadhafi maintained an illusion of statehood that never existed, neither in a political nor a military sense. SPIEGEL: Germany is considering sending officials with the Bundeswehr, the country's armed forces, to provide training for Libyan security forces -- initially at facilities in Tunisia. Will that be enough? Kobler: A training mission is necessary -- and the Bundeswehr could play a crucial role here. If Germany and other countries would be ready to do that, it would certainly be good. SPIEGEL: Is it sufficient to train a few soldiers? After all, that may take years to do. Kobler: Of course it won't be enough. We have a strong tendency to always want to have a complete plan first. In that sense I'm more pragmatic. Why don't we start by training 5,000 police officers and soldiers. Then we can see how the security situation improves. Libya has a dangerous political and military vacuum that urgently needs to be filled. SPIEGEL: The fifth anniversary of the Arab Spring is upon us, which also led to an uprising in Libya in February 2011. In Germany, many now believe it was wrong then to have supported rebels with air strikes against the regime. Do you think so too? Kobler: I think it was a mistake to have left Libya alone after 2011. We got ahead of ourselves. And that is precisely why it is so important now that we not abandon the country again. We need preventative policies. This is apparent in Syria and in Iraq where we are frantically playing catch-up. If we hadn't mediated the Skhirat deal in December, then Libya would be much more deeply divided today. There's also no guarantee that it will work, but at least we have established a path. Finding a solution to this conflict is a question of political will. Those in power must put their personal power ambitions on the back burner and recognize that they are destroying their country. We must support them in this process. SPIEGEL: Do you believe such an awareness even exists? From the beginning of the revolt in 2011, there were worries that the country could disintegrate into clans and tribes because it has never had a democratic, pluralistic culture before. Kobler: I'm not so pessimistic. The tribal elders may not make decisions according to our understanding of a democracy, but they do discuss things until they reach an outcome. They have a natural inclination toward consensus, so why shouldn't we be able to apply that to the national level? Update: -- 13-Episode First Season Of New Drama Series Produced by Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Jennifer Todds Pearl Street Films with CBS Television Studios and Universal Cable Productions --NEW YORK Feb. 3, 2016 Syfy announced today it has greenlit to series INCORPORATED, a futuristic thriller from Matt Damon, Ben Affleck & Jennifer Todds Pearl Street Films, CBS Television Studios and Universal Cable Productions. The 13-episode first season of the new drama series is expected to premiere on Syfy in Fall 2016.Set in a near future where corporations have unlimited power, INCORPORATED centers around Ben Larson (Sean Teale, Reign), a young executive who conceals his true identity to infiltrate a very dangerous corporate world to save the woman he loves. But hell soon learn that hes not the only one whose secrets may have deadly consequences.In addition to Teale, the series will star Eddie Ramos (Teen Wolf), Golden Globe nominee Dennis Haysbert (24), and Emmy Award winner Julia Ormond (Mad Men).INCORPORATED is created by David & Alex Pastor (Selfless, The Last Days), who wrote and directed the pilot. Ted Humphrey (The Good Wife) will serve as executive producer/showrunner, with Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Jennifer Todd also executive producing. Pearl Street Films Margaret Chernin will serve as co-producer.The most powerful science fiction holds up a mirror to our world, said Dave Howe, President, Syfy & Chiller. INCORPORATED is exactly that type of smart, provocative series, delivering a fresh, edge of your seat thriller that challenges notions of the world we live in today. We look forward to working with the stellar teams at Pearl Street Films, CBS Television Studios and Universal Cable Productions to bring it to life for Syfy viewers this year."INCORPORATED joins a powerhouse Syfy original lineup in 2016 that includes the critically-acclaimed first seasons of THE EXPANSE and THE MAGICIANS; the April 11 premiere of HUNTERS, from The Walking Dead executive producer Gale Anne Hurd; the second season of the thriller series 12 MONKEYS, set to premiere April 18; and the Halloween anthology series CHANNEL ZERO: CANDLE COVE. Additional high profile scripted projects in development at Syfy include Aldous Huxleys classic novel BRAVE NEW WORLD from Steven Spielbergs Amblin Television, and HYPERION, with executive producer Bradley Cooper. Certain Women is a film about the intersecting lives of several women in the American West, each blazing their own imperfect trail. The story takes place in small town Montana, where a lawyer (Laura Dern) tries to diffuse a hostage situation and calm her disgruntled client (Jared Harris). A married couple (Michelle Williams and James Le Gros) starts to see cracks in their relationship after breaking ground on a new home and getting involved with an elderly man. And a female ranch hand (Lily Gladstone) forms an attachment to a young lawyer (Kristen Stewart) but the two seem to be on two totally separate pages. The movie is directed by Kelly Reichardt (Night Moves, Wendy and Lucy) and based on Maile Meloys short stories. Reichardt takes her time with the story, unfolding an unhurried, observational style. She also captures a picturesque setting that masks the lives of quiet desperation and conflicting emotion. All three intersecting stories feature people wrestling with moral ambiguity, living between isolation and intimacy. The film captures the characters missed connections. Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions purchased Certain Women last spring, right around the time the cast wrapped filming in Montana. The movie will be released in theaters March 11.SpoilerTVs Tonya Papanikolas attended the Sundance Film Festival red carpet premiere for the film, where she got a chance to talk to Kristen Stewart and other members of the cast. Dont miss her interviews below. Hello, Warriors. If recent reports are to be believed, India is building an entire nuclear city in Karnataka to produce thermonuclear weapons. Yes, you read it right, an entire city! The top secret facility poised for completion in 2017 would be the subcontinents largest military-run complex of nuclear centrifuges. Among the projects aims are to expand the governments nuclear research, to produce fuel for Indias nuclear reactors, and to help power the countrys fleet of new submarines. The secret city is located in Challakere, nearly 260km from Mysore. The facility might upgrade the country as a nuclear power and unsettle the balance of power in the region. The government has divulged little about the nuclear facility and made no public promises about how the highly enriched uranium to be produced there would be utilized. As a military facility, it is not open to international inspection and it gives India an upper hand to manufacture nukes. Download: The facility aims to give India an extra stockpile of enriched uranium fuel that could be used in new hydrogen bombs, also known as thermonuclear weapons, substantially increasing the explosive force of those in its existing nuclear arsenal. New Delhi has never published a detailed account of its nuclear arsenal, which it first developed in 1974, and there has been little public notice outside India about the construction at Challakere and its strategic implications. India already possesses between 90 and 110 nuclear weapons, as compared to Pakistans estimated stockpile of up to 120. China, which borders India to the north, has approximately 260 warheads. China and Pakistan, could see this move as a provocation and they might respond by ratcheting up their own nuclear firepower. Pakistan, in particular, considers itself a military rival, having engaged in four major conflicts with India, as well as frequent border skirmishes. Nuclear war between India and Pakistan is not as unlikely as it may come to our thinking. This so called secret came under the notice of public when The Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change approved the Mysore sites construction in October 2012 as a project of strategic importance that would cost nearly $100 million, according to a letter marked secret, from the ministry to atomic energy officials that month. The ambition was (is?) to feed new centrifuges with fuel derived from yellowcake milled uranium ore shipped from mines in the village of Jadugoda in Indias north, 1,200 miles away from the Rare Materials Plant, and to draw water from the nearby Krishna Raja Sagar dam. So, what do you think of this? A good move by India or a secret not well kept? We as Indian people need to balance our lives and be true to our Indigenous peoples culture. This is a place to balance your life with the buffalos. When we began working on this issue, it soon became apparent that our original plans to review the year would be difficult. After all, this has not been one of our finest years. Our elders found happiness, satisfaction and contentment in the deeds they so often didnt recognize as special. This certainly can be detected at tribal ceremonies, where people gather to discuss tribal affairs, or at their old Western Shoshone fandangos; where tribal dancing and music take place. The Indian dress, the rhythmic beating of the drums, the dances and family reunion is to come together and speak of their tribal tradition. Unity once was strong at one time among our Western Shoshone people, people working close together from the beginning. To this day it has been a place for hope; but time has changed for all Western Shoshone people. The Federal Government people, they have broken our sacred circle by trying to destroy our race, culture, religion and our Western Shoshone language and our way of life and about what it used to be. Today, looking back on our Indian ancestors past, honoring those who came before us who made history; people in our time. We should never forget our past Indian people, the Western Shoshones. I remember some elders saying, Have some respect for my Indian ways, my beliefs and my customs is mine. Our culture and religion of today are ours to preserve and protect from some wannabe Indians. Today there are too many wannabe Indians with no balls. But the laws of our creator should come before the law of the state. Today we need to defend our Indian way of life, our Western Shoshone peoples legacy needs to be protected. From the past up to this day, its our old Indian way of life is why we are not moving forward. While Im not afraid to stand up for my ideas, I will always be willing to compromise with people with good business plans. There is money to be made in this country just as there always has been if we go about it the right way. And now about my other first master plan, it started around 1988 and that project is still going on in Western Hills in Elko County. Coochums private buffalo enterprise, preserving a rate blood line, and hopefully wind power or solar power panels at Western Hills, it will be an economic development project for our Indian peoples future. Western Shoshone elder, Manuel Coochum, walking this fine line of our elders past, we need to be honest, trustworthy and be kind and respectful. To our fellow man, Im taking our Indian pride a few steps closer for our Indian peoples independence. People from our Indian Country north to south, this idea I am working on is going to make us self-sufficient with this spider web project. Im going to call it the spider web water project. When it starts delivering, it will look like a spider web, the water lines will be running in different directions. We the Indian people, we will be independent and self-governed, If we keep moving ourselves forward Under the Coochums Native American Research Corporation, we are going to build our Indigenous peoples national memorial wall; its honoring all of our Indian people and also their Indian nations. Today there are 567 tribal nations. And there are 400 Indian treaties in the United States. Our administration building is going be built in the same area of the Memorial wall, it will be in Elko or Boise. This wall, it needs to be built with our Indian hands. This Coochums Native American Research Corporation is a nonprofit corporation. Its going to be under 501-(3). There is a list of names that the co-founders will be working with and they will be the key-roll players. P.S. When I first brought this issue up 45 years ago on some of my past Indian elders about how to move water from North to South, they the elders said use our Indian Treaties, it will help our Indian Country and others. At that time, it was supposed to come through Canada, Idaho, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico and on to Mexico City. This was the master plan of the century. Its not a dream like Dr. Marin Luther Kings Dream. But today things can change in a different direction. This Shoshone elders master plan is still being studied. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate STAMFORD Manny Jurado is at the point where he has to seriously consider closing his business. Since the second phase of the Urban Transitway project began and nearby parking was taken away in 2013, the owner of Mannys Bakery on East Main Street estimates he is down to about half the usual traffic at his 10-year-old store. Were frustrated, Jurado said. I dont know what we can do. He and other struggling East Main Street business owners, aided by the East Side Partnership neighborhood group, have complained for years about the issue. Last summer, city officials promised to create parking spaces to replace those lost. Now, the city is saying a solution is unlikely in the near future. We have to wait until the project is finished, Libby Carlson, Mayor David Martins spokeswoman, said of the federally funded Urban Transitway. So unfortunately, that is down the road at least a year. The city took away 16 parking spaces on the section of East Main Street between Myrtle and Lockwood avenues to work on the Urban Transitway project, which will link the citys East Side to the downtown train station. The first phase, a 1-mile-long roadway from Atlantic and Elm streets, was completed in 2012. In August, a day after The Advocate inquired about the parking problem, city officials said they planned to provide off-street parking for the businesses along the stretch of road affected. Plans formulated since then would require the purchase of a lot at 925 East Main St., at the corner of Maple Avenue. The empty lot is now used by the federal government as a staging site for the transitway project. City officials have included a $1.5 million request in the capital budget for the purchase of that and another parcel a half-mile away on Elm Street. But Carlson noted the federal government would not sell the land to the city until the infrastructure improvements were completed. For now, the business owners have been given a brief respite from the parking issue. The lost spaces were temporarily returned in December when the transitway project workers started their winter hiatus. Obviously its a big relief to have the parking, said Gabriela Rivera, a sales representative at Durango Insurance Agency. Although its temporary and we understand that, its a small victory. But come spring, workers will return on-site and the spaces are expected to disappear once again. James Grunberger, chairman of the East Side Partnership, said he is urging city officials to press for the on-street parking spaces to continue to be available until the parking lot is accessible. Gov. Dannel P. Malloys annual State of the State address to the General Assembly Wednesday afternoon was tough, pragmatic and unusually conciliatory. His direction for getting Connecticut on a solid financial footing was necessarily broad; the consequences some likely dire will emerge as details are parsed out. Legislators in the weeks ahead will be debating, among other issues, whether a reduction in municipal aid will affect local taxes, whether a focus on core services will devastate other government services, whether across-the-board 5.75 percent cuts are too much, and whether the suggestion that agencies decide the line item cuts takes power away from legislators. But before taking a deep breath and pulling on the threads of the budget, let us pause and reflect on five points to like in the governors talk to the state. 1. Realistic. Connecticut state government must reset our expectations of what we can afford, how we provide services, and how we save for our priorities, Malloy said. Pre-recession economic times are not returning and so the budget cannot be built on wishful thinking. Like the states residents, the government must operate on what money there is, not what is wanted. Government will live within its means, the governor vowed, and so should have an enforceable spending cap. 2. Transparency. The governor called for the budget to be adopted early before midnight on the last day of the session as usual with plenty of time for discussion. This could help avoid padded implementers, which should be legislation to enact the budget but instead have become catch-alls for items not taken up during the session. This is wrong because proposals can become law without ever coming to a public hearing. Importantly, the governor wants state agencies budgets to be more transparent to the public with information online about how money is spent and what it accomplishes. 3. Bipartisan. Malloy called for ideas from Democrats and Republicans alike. No one party, no one leader and no one individual holds a monopoly on good ideas, he said. Minority Republicans practicly begged in the last session to be part of budget discussions. But with inclusion also comes the responsibility for compromise to get work done and then support the solutions. 4. Inclusive. A millstone for the state is the funding of pension obligations; underfunding has lowered the states financial ratings and would lead to insolvency. The governor will pull together the stakeholders state treasurer, comptroller, unions, employees and teachers to develop a plan for making the pension system sustainable. A study in the fall by the Center for Retirement Research could be a starting point. 5. Tone. Malloy sounded like a leader he talked tough, but with optimism for the future of Connecticut. He reiterated his commitment to the cornerstones of improved transportation, education and criminal justice reform. He is not cutting spending for the sake of cutting spending. This isnt a call for overzealous austerity, or a departure from Connecticuts core values, the governor said. Malloy in this speech seemed more willing to listen to others ideas from the General Assembly, local leaders and the public. He intends to conduct Town Hall meetings around the state to hear citizens concerns. Watch for those in our area, and let the governor know what you think. How nice to be able to say something good about Congress again. Before leaving Washington at the end of 2015, they passed a spending bill that had a little for everyone in it and, in the midst of it all, was a provision that made temporary improvements to the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and the Child Tax Credit permanent. Those improvements were designed to make the credits more responsive to the needs of working families living in poverty during the Great Recession, and they were temporary on the assumption that the recession would end. But seven years later it has not ended for those low on the economic ladder. And the end is still not in sight. If those broadened rules were to have ended (as was scheduled for next year) 16 million Americans, including 8 million children, would have fallen into or deeper into poverty. So thank you Congress (and our wonderful Connecticut delegation) for doing the right thing for those working families and for the economy of which they are a part. That spirit of bipartisanship can continue, even in an election year. Both President Barack Obama and House Speaker Paul Ryan support fixing a glaring gap in the EITC for workers without children. As an example, a single worker with no children earning $14,800 in 2015 qualifies for an EITC of $3 on a tax of $1,763. EITC was originally created as an incentive to work and carried the intention to offset the burden of payroll taxes, such as the increased Social Security Tax then going into effect. Instead, these workers are being taxed deeper into poverty what kind of incentive is that? STAMFORD Hundreds of students and community members attended the funeral of Evan Hyman, the Academy of Information Technology and Engineering junior who died Sunday in an apparent suicide. School buses brought students from the citys three high schools to the service, held at Sinai Temple in North Stamford on Wednesday morning. Its gut-wrenching sorrow today. Theres no other way to describe it, said Interim Superintendent of Schools James Connelly when asked about the mood at city schools Wednesday. Weve been trying in any way or shape to support the family. The attendance at Hymans funeral was matched by an outpouring of support on social media. A newly created Facebook group called Evans Cupcakes extended thanks to those who gathered at AITE to eat cupcakes and celebrate Hymans life. The celebration was a reference to Hymans 2009 bid for student president at Newfield Elementary School. At the time, the fifth-grader had just lost his father, Howard Hyman, to brain cancer. In a campaign speech, he suggested his class raise funds for the hospice center that cared for his father by selling cupcakes. He called it Cupcakes for a Cause. I think its good for all of us to remember how lucky we are to be in this world, he told The Advocate at the time. Weve got to enjoy life while it lasts. Everyone should have some sugar once in a while. Another Facebook message stated AITEs Thursday bake sale, initially intended to raise money for the junior class, will instead raise funds for brain cancer research in Hymans honor. Mike Meyer, the districts head of student support services, said his office was supporting staff at the school and district level, who had been hit hard by the loss. Connelly said Hymans death reached far beyond AITE. The whole community is very fragile at this time, very, very fragile, he said. School officials said additional mental health staff have been brought to the districts three high schools since news of Hymans death reached the district on Monday. Connelly predicted that would remain the case for several weeks. A representative for the Hyman family declined to comment Wednesday. Hyman is survived by his older brother, Casey, and his mother, Holly. ESimko-Bednarski@scni.com; 203-964-2215; stamfordadvocate.com/news WASHINGTON (AP) Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum ended his bid for the White House Wednesday and said he will support Florida Sen. Marco Rubios campaign for the Republican presidential nomination. Santorum announced on Fox News Channel that he had decided, The best way to do what I set out to do when we announced the run for president ... (is) by not furthering our campaign. He said Rubio shares his values and is in a better position to do well in this race. Santorum described Rubio as a born leader and praised his optimistic message. Self-styled Washington outsider Rand Paul dropped his struggling Republican campaign for president earlier Wednesday and is returning to the Senate to run for re-election. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee dropped out Monday. A ll the wrangling around the Prime Ministers concessions from Brussels is making the Brexit debate so dull I doubt more than 5% of the voting population cares any more. People feel like theyre being spun and taken for fools by big business in one direction threatening thousands of job losses if we leave and by the pro-Brexit media in the other banging on about our lost liberties. One FTSE chieftain with significant businesses in the UK, Europe and beyond, was almost choking on his dover sole yesterday about the whole charade. Despite being an in-er, he was furious about the scare stories from his CEO peers. Anyone running a global business, he said, knows external investors wont really care if were in or out. Likewise, no German politician will say nein next time he offers to invest in their city just because Britains not in the EU. Rather, this debate should be about what we believe is our role in the world: are we British and European, or just British? Would we be proud, or ashamed, to be the generation that undid our ties with our European neighbours? The one issue about Brexit that will affect us more than anything, he said, is hardly being mentioned: the impact on the pound. The gyrations of sterling are far more material than minute details of red tape for employers or immigration. A weak pound boosts the power of his overseas earnings when translated back home, and encourages more foreign visitors to his UK operations. But it weakens the muscle of his investment war chest for overseas expansion and increases his operating costs. A stronger pound reverses those variables. So, all he wants to know for his business is, will sterling rise or fall? Today, Goldman Sachs gives him its answer: the pound will crash as much as 20% if we leave. Net, that would be positive for my lunch companions business ironic given his personal aversion to Brexit. For smaller businesses not exporting, who tend to be more sympathetic to a Brexit, a weak pound could increase their bills and cost of raw materials. Perhaps sterling, rather than the fine points of immigrants welfare entitlements, deserves a central role in the Brexit debate. Price-cut piffle Hutchisons pledge to freeze the prices of texts, voice minutes or megabytes for five years if its Three-O2 merger gets the go-ahead should be taken with a pinch of salt. Prices are falling anyway and have done for years. The question remains, when has a reduction from four to three suppliers, requiring the reorganisation of complex infrastructure, ever been good for customers? S hell became the latest victim of the crashing oil price today, reporting an 80% slump in profits to a 13-year low. Two days after BP announced its biggest-ever annual loss, arch-rival Shell revealed that its profits tumbled to $3.8 billion (2.6 billion) last year from $19 billion in 2014. The industry has been rocked by a sustained slump in the oil price, which has plummeted from $115 a barrel in the summer of 2014 to $35.41 today. Despite the slump, Shell chief executive Ben van Beurden said he was optimistic about the future for the company after its $47 billion takeover of rival BG Group cleared the final hurdles last week. The completion of the BG transaction marks the start of a new chapter in Shell, rejuvenating the company and improving shareholder returns, van Beurden said. We are making substantial changes in the company, reorganising our upstream [production] and reducing costs and capital investment as we refocus Shell, and respond to lower oil prices, he added. Shares in Shell rallied, rising by 64p, or 5%, to 1500p, as van Beurden held the annual dividend at $1.88 for 2015 and said it is expected to be at least $1.88 per share in 2016 and promised to keep a firm handle on costs. Shells full-year profits were hit by $6.8 billion of one-off costs including writedowns relating to the declining value of its oil and gas assets and redundancies. Shell also reported fourth-quarter profits of $1.8 billion, down from $4.2 billion the year before. The companys results come two days after BP reported a $6.5 billion loss for 2015 and announced a further 3000 jobs would be cut worldwide, at its downstream refinery. BP boss Bob Dudley warned that this year is also going to be tough as he announced the loss. Shell said it completed the sale of 185 service stations across the UK to independent dealers, who will all retain the Shell brand and sell its fuels. Last week, shareholders voted through the takeover of BG by a strong majority, paving the way for the creation of Britains largest public company. The deal is expected to be completed by February 15. Not all investors are convinced of the benefits of the deal, which they argue is too expensive since the price of oil has slumped since it was struck last year. C oming as they did from a bunch of migrants who revered England, my parents were keen on novel techniques for endearing my brother and me to our adopted home. The main thing we did as a family was develop a fanatical obsession with sitcoms. In those days of VHS, every evening in the Rajan household involved watching repeats of the classics. Your columnist has seen every episode of Yes, Minister, Dads Army, Keeping up Appearances, Fawlty Towers and The Brittas Empire at least twice. My cultural hero was and is Del Boy: we got through all of Only Fools and Horses perhaps six times. Looking back, it was by watching these shows that I became accustomed to the English, learned to love them, and acquired membership of their club. What better indication, after all, that you understand a culture than when you find its jokes funny? Comedy, an invitation to laughter, offered a site of shared pleasure and meaningful exchange. It also articulated the temper of a people, in all their variety. Dads Army described the stoicism of, and nostalgia for, the war effort; Hyacinth Bucket of Keeping Up Appearances was the ultimate exemplar of middle Englands sheer narcissism and decency; Del Boy personified the pluck and vim of Londons poor. And in Desmonds, the remarkable show about a barber shop in Peckham, it showed how Britain had accepted people from all over the world. I have been watching the re-runs of this unbearably funny and humane show on London Live, the channel owned by the owners of this newspaper. Its worth it for the theme tune alone, Dont Scratch My Soca. From the long warm nights with an ocean breeze / to the damp and rain of London city / We come from the sun to live in the cold / I miss my rum, I want my coconut tree. This song, a kind of anthem to my schooldays, is deeply political. It conveys the brave ambition of the Windrush generation, as did the quiet heroism of the late Norman Beaton (Desmond himself). And it was political in a further, profound way: by successfully making the English laugh at their foibles, exhibited right in the heart of the capital city, Beatons posse showed they had integrated with their hosts. We live in a time of unprecedented flux and change. Londoners like you and me are more relaxed about this than people around the country. There is something like a national consensus about immigration levels being too high; and a desperate fear of causing offence to minorities particularly Muslims. This can be overstated. Most new arrivals revere our country, and feel deeply grateful. But in a climate of panic and fear of terror, our best tool for promoting shared values and sympathy across cultures is an ancient one laughter. A new generation of Muslim comedians such as Shazia Mirza and Humza Arshad are coming through. Adil Rays Citizen Khan on the BBC can be hilarious. And everyone knows Chris Morriss Four Lions, with the amazing Riz Ahmed, is the best and funniest English film of the past decade. I hope our Somali, Iraqi, Polish and Ghanaian new arrivals produce a comedy as funny as Desmonds. It will show them, and us, that London is doing right by its latest arrivals and vice-versa. Amol Rajan is editor of The Independent. @amolrajan. Desmonds is on London Live, weeknights at 8pm and Sundays at 2pm. T his papers hustings for the mayoral candidates at the Royal Geographical Society last night was a spirited event which showed that live encounters between the candidates, and between them and an audience, can galvanise political debate. The event was not dominated by the candidates of the two main parties, Zac Goldsmith and Sadiq Khan: all of them contributed their perspectives, including the Greens, Ukip, Respect and the newest party in the contest, the Womens Equality Party. There was, predictably, consensus about what the main issues in this election are: affordable housing, obviously; transport, equally obviously though there was notable disagreement about which party had the best chance of seeing off union disruption of plans for the 24-hour Tube. That issue is especially pertinent, given the continued possibility of a damaging Tube strike. And there were interesting differences of opinion on the EU. All the candidates declared themselves in favour of community policing, not least to combat Islamist extremism, and interestingly, clean air was a subject that exercised all of them unsurprising, given that estimates of pollution-related premature deaths in London have been put at 10,000 a year. In this context there was apparent consensus that Oxford Street should be pedestrianised. We now need to know who has got the best practical options on clean air. Another issue that plainly raised strong feelings among the audience as well as candidates was overseas investment in London property; no one had a good word to say about the practice on the part of wealthy foreigners of buying homes here, only to leave them empty. The phenomenon is hard to stomach during a housing crisis. This contest may not have the gladiatorial aspect of the Boris-Ken elections but there are good and thoughtful candidates who agree on more issues than they disagree about. Now to get Londoners out to vote for them. From Syria to Libya The Government got todays conference on aid to Syria off to a good start by announcing an increase of more than 1 billion towards the support of refugees in nearby states by 2020. The aid will fund jobs and education as well as food and will, it is hoped, help refugees remain in the region rather than making the crossing to Europe. By contrast, the Geneva talks intended to resolve the conflict that created the exodus from Syria have been suspended after two days. One problem is that the Syrian regime, backed by Russia, shows no sign of holding back on its attacks on all its opponents not just Islamic State. Yet the talks can only succeed if Russia, President Assads backer, accepts that he must ultimately step down as part of a settlement. Meanwhile, IS has shifted its operations from Syria and Iraq to other parts of the region, chiefly Libya, where the group has taken advantage of political chaos to establish a base. There is a good case for Nato to deploy troops in the country preventatively; Western governments are already committed to training Libyan troops. If IS gains more ground, the Libyan problem will be our problem too. Happy days, in song Elton John may have had some dark moments yet he says his latest, upbeat record is inspired by the contentment he now feels. His comment is a timely rebuttal to the assumption that great creativity stems only from emotional turbulence or the influence of narcotics. For the Rocket Man, the security of a happy domestic life has provoked no sacrifice of artistic brilliance no sacrifice at all. For the first time ever a song written entirely in English is to represent Spain at the Eurovision song contest after viewers of state broadcaster RTVE and a celebrity jury earlier this week picked 33-year-old Madrilena Bareis Say Yay! as this years Spanish entry. But the choice is already stirring up controversy at the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language (RAE), the institution responsible for overseeing its use. I understand that a country with a language that has few speakers would try to use a language understood by many, but this is disgraceful Bearing in mind that Spanish is a language spoken by 500 million people, presenting a song in English is surprisingly stupid, said academy member Jose Maria Merino. I understand that a country with a language that has a limited number of speakers would try to use a language understood by many, but this is disgraceful, continued the Spanish expert, who believes state broadcaster RTVE has a moral and cultural obligation to safeguard the national cultural heritage. This is not the first time that the RAE has expressed its concern over a Spanish Eurovision entry. In 2014, then-academy director Jose Manuel Blecua sent a letter to the board of RTVE to complain about the fact that part of that years song, Dancing in the Rain, sung by Ruth Lorenzo, was also in English. I dont think anyone has to alter their work for a specific competition, argued Say Yay!s author and performer Barei, AKA Barbara Reyzabal Gonzalez-Aller, to defend her decision not to rewrite her piece for the contest, which will be held on May 14 in Stockholm. The artist said she was proud of her native Spanish language, arguing that it was much richer than English. But she said she also believed that certain styles do not go with certain languages, as is the case with the funk and soul elements she uses in her tune. English version by Nick Funnell. S o in the end, it wasnt The Donald but Ted Cruz who won. Cruz, the man who claims Obamacare is the biggest job-killer in the US, who will build a wall that works on the US border, who wants to carpet- bomb Syria until sand can glow in the dark, and who has called the Roe vs Wade ruling to legalise abortion a dark anniversary. Perhaps one of Donald Trumps most unexpected achievements is to make Cruz look mainstream. Cruz comfortably won the first round of the nomination process to be the Republican Partys candidate for the presidency of the United States, the Iowa caucuses. Hes a sort of hillbilly Nigel Farage from the Right of the Tea Party. Leading the party of Abraham Lincoln. The mind boggles. I have always thought there is something oddly reassuring about the American presidential primaries. For all that US politics is dominated by money and special interests, the candidates still have to hawk themselves around the cornfields of Iowa and the coffee shops of New Hampshire, meeting individual voters, to stand a chance. Even The Donald had to schlep around the Iowa State Fair although admittedly he arrived in a helicopter with his name on it. Cruzs victory was not the only strange result that the Iowa caucuses threw up. Bernie Sanders, a 74-year-old rabble-rouser from the far Left of the Democratic Party, so much so that he has run against it as an independent candidate in the past, came within inches of beating the favourite, Hillary Clinton. Something, clearly, is afoot in American politics. Some peoples reaction on this side of the pond is to watch the US presidential race with amused detachment, safe in the knowledge that such antics could not happen in the UK. I wouldnt be so sure. British politics have become remarkably volatile and unpredictable in recent years. A short while ago no one would have predicted that the Scottish Nationalists could turn Scotland into a virtual one-party state, or that the Conservatives would so successfully use money and fear to swing anxious English voters into the blue column. Or that Ukip might top the polls in 2014s European elections and gain four million votes in the general election. When Jeremy Corbyn, once a fringe figure on the far Left of the Labour Party, entered its leadership election, his odds of winning were set by one bookmaker at 200-1. Now that he is leader, with a transformed party membership, one of the great parties of British politics looks more like a protest movement than an alternative government. The politics of identity, of us versus them, is on the rise. Them could be bankers, Islam, the establishment, Brussels, the English, the political class, immigrants or any number of other pantomime villains and scapegoats. Whoever your chosen bogeyman, a straight-talking, anti-establishment populist is railing against them and gaining traction. As the political debate becomes increasingly shrill and polarised, what is lost is moderation, compromise and reason. This febrile and unpredictable mood is on the rise, often in more extreme ways, across Europe too. On the Left, Syriza in Greece and Podemos in Spain have risen to prominence seemingly out of nowhere. On the Right, Marine Le Pens quasi-fascist Front National party came second in the French regional elections. The ugly Right-wing Law and Justice Party now runs the Polish government. The neo-Nazi Golden Dawn party now has MPs in Greece. 'The politics of fear and identity, of populists and rabble rousers, is on the rise in Britain and across Europe' Whether in the US, Europe or in a milder form here at home, the immediate reason for this tidal wave of populism is the same: people feel economically insecure their livelihoods damaged, their living standards hit by the crisis of 2008, because of a mixture of greed and incompetence from bankers, regulators and Governments and political elites appear incapable or unwilling to help. There are, of course, other reasons too violent extremism, the collapse in traditional party political allegiances, mass immigration but the toxic combination of personal economic insecurity and political impotence and incompetence is at the core of so much voter anger and disillusionment across the developed world. In this climate it is easy for populists who point the finger of blame and offer beguilingly simple solutions to rise to prominence. Without dismissing the political skills of everyone from Ted Cruz to Alex Salmond, from Donald Trump to Nigel Farage, its pretty easy to be a politician peddling grievance and division these days. Theres a ready market for the politics of fear. The much harder task is to stand up for moderation and reason. Of course, as far as America goes this could all soon feel like much ado about nothing. By Super Tuesday, the biggest day in the US primary calendar, Hillary may have streaked ahead of Sanders and a more mainstream Republican, such as Marco Rubio, may have broken the Trump-Cruz duopoly. After all, idiosyncratic Iowa Republicans chose the Cruz-lite Rick Santorum last time around, and that proved to be the high point of his campaign. But even if that happens we should not just chalk it up as some quirky American flash in the pan that has no relevance to our lives. We are not somehow immune. The politics of fear and identity, of populists and rabble rousers, is on the rise in Britain and across Europe. Liberals, moderates and anyone who believes in reason and evidence cannot afford to shrug their shoulders and just hope it goes away. Moderation is a precious thing and it needs to be fought for. O n Tuesday I saw my GP. I had only called the surgery 18 hours earlier but there was a cancellation, and I was squeezed in. After Id spoken to the doctor, I told her how grateful I was especially since critics of the NHS imply that a GP appointment is now as hard to come by as a four-leaf clover, or a packet of fruit pastilles with a fair share of yellows. She looked forlorn: No one ever thanks us anymore. Its a tough time to be a family doctor. Last month experts warned that general practice in England is on the brink of collapse. Growing demand and demography have both put pressure on services, yet funding is falling in real terms. This week, a survey of GPs found that 55 per cent felt the quality of the patient care they provide is deteriorating, while more than two-thirds think their workload is unmanageable some or all the time. Being over-stretched is starting to take a physical toll: a growing number have taken sick leave with stress-related illnesses. The sulphuric acid in this wound is that theyre also routinely bashed. General practice is an anachronism! Theyre never open when you want them to be (many have extended their hours)! Why cant you just go to the pharmacist? Its their fault that antibiotics are over-prescribed and cancer under-diagnosed (good luck discovering a tumour in a 10-minute appointment slot)! Small wonder that despite the Governments pledge to deliver 5,000 more GPs by 2020, Pulse revealed this week that applications for training have fallen by five per cent on last year. This crisis is only going to intensify. Every winter we hear about the pressure on A&E departments but one of the reasons theyre struggling is that GPs are resource-starved. In response to this, theyre calling for greater investment, a better recruitment strategy and a reduction in red tape. Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary for at least a little bit longer, would be wise to listen. GPs are cheap, delivering around 90 per cent of patient care in the NHS for less than nine per cent of its budget. And a number of treatments have largely transferred from hospitals to surgeries, including diabetes and asthma care, the monitoring of heart disease and some minor operations. The problem is that the young working person with occasional problems doesnt feel well served by them. What we dont realise is how vital they are in the co-ordination of care, especially for the elderly and the chronically ill. General practice needs defending. Ive seen hospital doctors recoil at the thought of being a GP: you are often a mop, absorbing other societal spills a lack of social care, the erosion of community creating more folk who book an appointment simply because theyre lonely. A GP sometimes has to show a saintly patience few possess. Part of what has chipped away at the esteem they are held in is that we no longer have a local doctor whos the toast of the community. Populations especially in London are too itinerant. Nonetheless, wed be wise to appreciate and thank our GPs more: wed miss them if they disappeared. Tilda reaches the parts others can only dream of Tilda Swintons new film, A Bigger Splash, makes you want to take a holiday somewhere so remote that Ralph Fiennes will never find you. Its set on an island between Sicily and Tunisia, with Fiennes playing the interloper who drags his daughter along to gatecrash the sanctuary of Swintons rock goddess Marianne (his ex), and her new boyfriend Paul. Fiennes is brilliantly ghastly as Harry a man whose voice is too loud, whose manner too brash and whos striving desperately to remain relevant as his hairline recedes. All of the main quartet strip off but the nudity feels natural, not gratuitous, as well as being equal-opportunities undressing. Mini-Fiennes makes a cameo, a nod to the fact that Harry is exactly the type whod want to prove the years hadnt withered his physique, and whod brand people prudes for being bothered by bare bottoms. Whats most wonderful about the film is that it seems to understand the complexities of sexual allure. Marianne is magnetic, without being the pouting, Wonderbra-ed sex bomb that Hollywood so fetishises. A Bigger Splash recognises what so many films fail to: that sexy is more potent when entwined with interesting. The absurd world of algorithms YouTube has decided that my main interests are getting pregnant and eating chocolate. Whenever I want to watch a video on the site, I first have to sit through either a hammy Clearblue commercial that I can recite verbatim, or that anthropo-morphising M&M ad that operates under the illusion that sentient chocolate is an appetising concept. Is this what they think 31-year-old women desire: babies and obesity? It could be worse. A friend gets reminded of her lost youth, with Asos sending her images of rainbow-print unitards, while another receives ads for Victorian bloomers. Perhaps this should be a comfort: the algorithms dont know everything about us yet. The taxman just wont go away This year I filed my tax return early just so that I could revel in smugness as I walked past those ads on the Underground warning of deadline day. So imagine my horror when a friend told me that by 2020 wed have to endure this tax torture four times a year. Last March people were celebrating the death of the tax return an easy win, it seemed, for George Osborne. It was a false hope, though. Instead, the self-employed will have to recall that Gordian password every quarter, to endure four times as long listening to HMRCs hold music, and to suffer four times as many freak-outs when they imagine HMRCs sniffer dogs at their door. As we approach the six year anniversary of Lee Alexander McQueens untimely death next week, his successor and good friend Sarah Burton reveals her strong bond with the man behind the label. Speaking to Porter magazine, Burton who was introduced to McQueen in 1996 by her Central Saint Martins tutor, Simon Ungless admitted that she felt privileged to be offered a placement at the fashion house. Although, with the brand a long way from the internationally known label it is today, her appreciation was directed more towards her contact with the designer himself than the houses reputation. I felt it was a privilege to be there. Lee had this energy and Katy [England, McQueens then stylist] did too. They worked very closely together and were just the most aweinspiring people. I was really young and shy and I think I probably didnt say anything for the first three years. Burton in McQueen Martina Hoogland Ivanow/courtesy PORTER magazine / Martina Hoogland Ivanow/courtesy PORTER magazine I was one of only a few students and because the company was so small we actually made a lot of the pieces. Lee would cut the patterns and we would make them. I remember the first week I was there, he pinned a wedding dress on a stand and then went home, asking me to finish it. I wasnt great on a sewing machine so I did the entire thing by hand. Recalling the moments after her mentor tragically took his own life in 2010, Burton said: Somebody you love has died and it was very difficult to know what decision to make or what to do for the best. Designers pick their Muse 1 /40 Designers pick their Muse Giorgio Armani Giorgio Armani with Model Karolina Kurkova Max Vadukul Alexander McQueen Creative Director Sarah Burton with Model Stella Tennant Max Vadukul Erdem Erdem Moralioglu with Model Alexa Chung Max Vadukul The Row Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen with Artist and Writer Beatrix Ost Max Vadukul Lanvin Creative Director Alber Elbaz with his design team Max Vadukul Victoria Beckham Victoria Beckham with Model Alexandra Elizabeth Max Vadukul Missoni Angela Missoni with Designers Vera and Viola Arrivabene Valenti Gonzaga Max Vadukul Valentino Creative Directors Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli with Actress Alba Rohrwacher Max Vadukul Tods Creative Director Alessandra Facchinetti with Artist Polly Morgan Max Vadukul Salvatore Ferragamo Creative Director Massimiliano Giornetti with Actress Valeria Solarino Max Vadukul Proenza Schouler Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough with Actress Chloe Sevigny Max Vadukul Michael Kors Michael Kors with Model Alessandra Ambrosio Max Vadukul Narciso Rodriguez Narciso Rodriguez with Actress Claire Danes Max Vadukul Loewe Creative Director Jonathan Anderson with Model and Musician Jamie Bochert Max Vadukul Louis Vuitton Creative Director Nicolas Ghesquiere with Actress and Singer Charlotte Gainsbourg Max Vadukul Jason Wu Jason Wu with Model Stephanie Seymour Max Vadukul Emanuel Ungaro Creative Director Fausto Puglisi with Model Coco Rocha Max Vadukul Gucci Creative Director Alessandro Michele with Model and Musician Karen Elson Max Vadukul Dolce & Gabbana Creative Directors Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana with Models Romina Mazzoni and Barbara Cassone and their children Max Vadukul Dries Van Noten Dries Van Noten with Model Hanne Gaby Odiele Max Vadukul Donna Karan Donna Karan with her daughter Gabby Karan De Felice Max Vadukul Derek Lam Derek Lam with Actress Laura Linney Max Vadukul Diane Von Furstenberg Diane Von Furstenberg with Actress Allison Williams Max Vadukul Calvin Klein Collection Womens Creative Director Francisco Costa with Artist Olympia Scarry Max Vadukul Coach Creative Director Stuart Vevers with Actress Chloe Grace Mortez Max Vadukul Carolina Herrera Carolina Herrera with Actress Gugu Mbatha-Raw Max Vadukul Christopher Kane Christopher Kane with Actress Annabelle Wallis Max Vadukul Chloe Creative Director Clare Waight Keller with her daughters Charlotte and Amelia Max Vadukul Anna Sui Anna Sui with Icon Jane Holzer Max Vadukul Dior Artistic Director Raf Simons with Models Natalie Westling, Mica Arganaraz, and Julia Nobis Max Vadukul Ive always felt part of the McQueen DNA. I loved the collections I worked on with him, the storytelling, the showmanship, all underpinned by a vision and respect for craft that was unrivaled. I think of him every day but its now important that I tell my own story through the collections I create for the house. I take that responsibility very seriously. Despite the shock and heartbreak, just one year later Burton had designed two hugely well-received mainline womenswear collections for the Alexander McQueen brand, whilst simultaneously and secretly designing the iconic dress for Catherine Middletons marriage to Prince William of Wales. The issue is out on Friday Collier Schorr/courtesy PORTER magazine / Collier Schorr/courtesy PORTER magazine This season marks the return of the British label to London Fashion Week after a 15 year absence. With its runway shows having been held in Paris since December 2000, the move marks a sentimental homecoming for a brand considered to be one of the UKs top fashion exports. McQueen is fundamentally British and London is where its based and where we all live and work, Burton admitted. There are so many different influences here art, music and then theres the fact that people dress differently, and theres a sense of energy and diversity. Theres a freedom of expression in London that makes it feel right. To see the full feature, read the all-women photography issue of Porter, on sale globally on Friday February 5. Also available as a digital edition or go to portersubscription.com L ets go for a Chinese. Weve all said it and weve all done it. But what does that really mean? Across its many regions China encompasses so many different cuisines that lumping them all together under one banner is akin to talking about European food. Below is an insight into twelve of Chinas many cuisine styles (slightly illegitimately including Taiwan), where you can find them in London, key dishes and what to expect. Also see the three colour-coded maps embedded between the text the first shows where the regions referred to sit within in China and the second shows the London restaurants which are mentioned, represented in the same colour as the region it serves food from. The third map is a zoomed-in look at Chinatown as this is where a large concentration of the restaurants are. Loading.... Sichuan Province Aside from the Cantonese style of Chinese food which has long been dominant in the UK, Sichuan has become by far the most popular region for London restaurants. The cuisine's hallmark flavour is the combination of hot chilli and numbing Sichuan peppercorns, along with a liberal use of garlic. Spicy dan dan noodles and kung pao chicken are among other well-known Sichuan dishes, though the latter will often be made particularly inauthentically. Sichuan Folk in Spitalfields and Barshu in Soho are two of Londons best and best known Sichuan restaurants. The slightly grittier Chilli Cool near Euston is also popular with expats. Hunan Province The food of Hunan has similarities to that of Sichuan, but does not tend use Sichuan peppercorns, instead opting for larger amounts of chilli to create spicier dishes. Stews, dry-wok dishes and a pork belly known as Chairman Maos Red-Braised Pork are popular menu items. The best example of Hunan cuisine in London is at Local Friends in Golders Green (a Bethnal Green sister site has now closed). It is also served at Yipin in Islington and at Ba Shan in Soho, though if you want the authentic spicing youll need to specifically ask for it when you order. Loading.... Fujian Province Fujian food is generally lighter and more subtly flavoured than other Chinese cuisines, with a stronger emphasis on letting produce speak for itself. Due to the region being both coastal and mountainous, many less common ingredients from sea and mountains are used including wild herbs, mushrooms, oysters and crab. Popular dishes include oyster and seafood omelettes and a lot of soups, such as a variation of shark-fin soup known as Buddha Jumps Over The Wall made with over 30 ingredients including abalone, dried scallops and pig's trotters (and not necessarily the offensive fin itself). The cuisine is hard to find in London bar a few dishes here and there, but New Aroma in Chinatown specialises in it. Shanghai In Shanghai city and its surrounding area, cooking involves larger amounts of wine, vinegar, soy and sugar than elsewhere sweet and sour is a typical example of its flavours. Other characteristics include a lot of seafood, a predominance of rice over noodles and lots of salted meat and preserved vegetables. Shanghainese food is served at Bright Courtyard in Marylebone. Ask the staff and they will direct you towards the most traditional dishes. Loading.... Shaanxi Province Dishes in Shaanxi tend to be both spicy and sour, similar to that of Hunan, but seasoning tends to be heavier on salt, garlic and onion. Pork and mutton are the most widely used meats, while steaming is a popular cooking method. Xian Impression in Holloway serves this cuisine, and takes its name from the provinces capital city of Xian. Liaoning Province The food of Liaoning is highly regarded across China and very different to other regional cuisines thanks to a strong influence from cuisines in particular Japanese, Korean and Russian. It can be characterised by strong flavours, saltiness and oiliness. Popular dishes include hot pot, fried vermicelli, dumplings and bear paw (usually actually a substitute rather than the real thing!). Top Taste near Bethnal Green serves Liaoning dishes as part of its menu. Xinjiang Province The Xinjiang province borders Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India, and is home to many ethnic groups including ethnic groups including the Uyghur, Han, Kazakhs, Tajiks, Hui, Kyrgyz, and Mongols. As such the cusine includes many different influences. Typical dishes include kebabs, roasted fish, lengmen noodles topped with stir-fried meat and vegetables and polu, a form of pilaf rice. Mutton is the most-used meat, and because much of the population is Muslim much of the food is halal. Visit Silk Road in Camberwell for a taste of Xinjiang cooking in London. Shaung Shaung - New Chinese Hotpot Restaurant in London.mp4 Guangzhou Province The food from Guangzhou is easiest to find in London as this is from where Cantonese cooking hails. If a restaurant fails to specify what region the food it serves comes from, its probably from here. This will also be what is being referred to if something is described as Hong Kong style. Some of the regions most common dishes include sweet and sour pork, wonton noodles, chow mein, congee, char siu and roast duck as well as dim sum. Good places to eat traditional Cantonese food include Royal China Club on Baker Street, Phoenix Palace in Marylebone and Dragon Castle in Elephant and Castle. For roast duck, Gold Mine in Bayswater and Four Seasons restaurants in Chinatown and Bayswater are especially good. Of higher-end venues, Hakkasan serves a modern take on Cantonese, while Yauatcha specialises in dim sum and tea. Class act: Beijing duck at Min Jiang Beijing Better known as Peking cuisine, the food of Beijing and its surrounding area takes influences from the whole country. By far its most famous dish is peking duck. For the best peking duck in London visit sky-high Min Jiang in Kensington, or try less pricey Royal Dragon in Chinatown where you can also partake in karaoke. Xizang Province (Tibet) The Chinese autonomous region of Tibet has a cuisine far removed from most of China, though Sichuan food is increasingly popular there. Flatbreads, dumplings, steamed buns and stir-fried meat (usually yak, goat or mutton) are among the staples, with steamed buns called momos among the most famous. There is only one fully Tibetan restaurant in London Kailash Momo in Woolwich. You'll also find Tibetan influences at the excellent Madame D's in Spitalfields. Taiwan It might not be part of the Peoples Republic of China, but the food of Taiwan officially titled The Republic of China is extremely closely linked to that of its neighbour, and regular features on the menu of so-called Chinese restaurants. Steamed buns known as bao are the most popular and best known Taiwanese dish, while noodle soups and pancakes are also prevalent. Another famous export is the drink yung marc, better known as bubble tea. Leongs Legends in Chinatown serves a mix of Taiwanese and Cantonese dishes, while Xu in Soho delves into the most traditional intricacies of the cuisine and sister restaurant Bao leads the way in the bun department. Confusingly, Hunan in Pimlico also serves mainly Taiwanese food. A ctor Ralph Fiennes travelled to the Oslo home of Henrik Ibsen in an attempt to understand the obsessive nature of the giant of world drama. Speaking after the first night of David Hares adaptation of The Master Builder at The Old Vic, Fiennes, who plays the lead in the Ibsen classic, said he had wanted to get a sense of the man and the city where the play is set. He plays Halvard Solness, a builder obsessed with holding his business, marriage and himself together in the face of more youthful rivals. The character is often regarded as one of Ibsens most autobiographical creations. Fiennes said the apartment, which was home to the Norwegian playwright for more than a decade until his death in 1906, had been left exactly as it was when he died. You feel this very middle-class order, very tight, its not bohemian. Its a sense of someone very controlled and holding their discipline. I think he was very meticulous. This part is thought to be a self-portrait, in his obsessive holding down of other people, in a sense of where you have arrived at in society and his career. I think he liked success. The plays mix of realism and symbolism has confused critics and audiences since it was first staged in 1893. Following last nights performance Fiennes headed to the after-party with co-stars including Sarah Snook and Linda Emond. Lesley Manville and Natascha McElhone were among the guests. He said he had wanted to play Solness a man suffering almost terminal guilt after seeing a Royal Shakespeare Company version about 20 years ago. He added: What comes into the writing is this poetic quality. The template shifts and people think theyre watching a Hedda Gabler or A Dolls House, and suddenly people start talking about castles in the air and it becomes something else. Fiennes stars in Shakespeares Antony and Cleopatra at the National Theatre in 2018, and he and Hare are working on a biopic of ballet dancer Rudolf Nureyev. The Master Builder is at the Old Vic until March 19 (0844 871 7628) Buy tickets for The Master Builder with Going Out Tickets Follow Going Out on Facebook and on Twitter @ESgoingout F or Sophie Dahl, it was love at first sight. I saw the amber eyes, gangling legs and ridiculously noble profile and that was it. Shes not talking about her husband Jamie Cullum. Shes talking about her dog Jojo, a one-year-old mongrel she adopted after spotting her on the website of the Wild at Heart Foundation. Jojo had been found weeks earlier, starving, on the Greek island of Lesvos. Something about her drew me in and, six weeks and much administration later, I went to pick her up from Heathrow with a bag of crispy bacon in my pocket. I loved her instantaneously. Based in Battersea, the foundation was set up last year by Nikki Tibbles and Nadine Kayser. As founder of the chic Wild at Heart boutiques in Westbourne Grove, Belgravia and within Liberty, florist Nikki knows a thing or two about romance she has helped the path of true love run smoothly for more than a decade. So its fitting that shes now using her profile and famous connections to raise awareness of the plight of the loves of her own life rescue dogs. The intention is to fund and support animal welfare projects all over the world, particularly to help reduce the worlds estimated 600m stray dogs, and to match-make abandoned and abused dogs from across Europe with loving owners in the UK. As well as Dahl, several of Nikkis celebrity friends, including Sara MacDonald and Noel Gallagher, and hairdressing maestro Josh Wood, have taken on dogs from abroad. Wood says hes completely smitten with Gandhi, a Romanian street dog he saw online. Were not sure what he is we thought lurcher, Jack Russell cross but hes grown to the size of an Irish wolfhound, he jokes. Not that it matters. It was love at first sight and now I cant imagine a more loving, laid-back pet. Getting Tommy was one of the best decisions weve ever made he is the gift that keeps on giving, agrees MacDonald. Noel and our cat Boots are probably rolling their eyes at this, but he really has become an integral part of the family. The kids love walking him, so they are getting lots of fresh air and exercise. Nikki herself has always been obsessed with dogs. As a child, my parents would send me to sleep in my own bed, but in the morning theyd always find me downstairs tucked in with the dogs, she says. As an adult, she found she couldnt travel anywhere without falling in love with at least one stray. She now has five: Reuben, a ridgeback cross from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home; Lenny, whod been thrown down a well aged six months and rescued from Spain; Smith, whod spent three years of his life locked in a cage; Tia, a little black hunting dog who was found caught in a trap and as a result has no tail; and Ronnie, whom Nikki adopted from Romania. Dogs you should follow on Instagram 1 /16 Dogs you should follow on Instagram Dogs of Instagram Pumpkin the poodle @ps.ny Alamy Stock Photo Marnie the Shih Tzu @marniethedog Image Source / Alamy Stock Photo Maru the Shiba Inu @marutaro Alamy Stock Photo Manny the French bulldog @manny_the_frenchie Menswear Dog the Shiba Inu @mensweardog Digby the griffon @digbyvanwinkle Champ the golden retriever @thatgoldendog Bruno the dachshund @brunotheminidachshund Alamy Stock Photo Maple the border collie/golden retriever/Sheltie mix @acoustictrench Alamy Stock Photo Tuna the chiweenie @tunameltsmyheart Taco the Portuguese water dog @tacothecitydog Nikkis adopt, dont shop mantra is persuasive after one conversation you wonder why any of us would ever buy a designer schnoodle. Long-term behavioural problems are not an issue, she says. There are plenty of pedigree dogs that are so in-bred and have no end of problems. In my experience rescue dogs are simply grateful to be loved and looked after. The foundation offers puppy training. Dahl admits the first three months were challenging Jojo was used to living in a pack and had not been socialised around children but says that after a great deal of humour, training, commitment and adoration on both sides she is now an indelible part of our family. The Wild at Heart Foundations website features pages of dogs saved from Greece, Cyprus, Romania, Bosnia and the UK, all seeking new homes. Be warned, youll fall hard. For more information on adopting a dog or to make a donation, visit wildatheartfoundation.com T he body of a missing Cambridge University student has been found with signs of torture including multiple stab wounds and cigarette burns, officials announced today. Giulio Regeni was found dead on the outskirts of Cairo after going missing in the Egyptian capital ten days ago. The 28-year-old Italian disappeared after leaving his home in the upmarket Duqqi district of Giza to meet a friend. Prosecutor Ahmed Nagi, who is leading the investigation into the case, said the cause of death was still under investigation but said all of his body, including his face had bruises, cuts from stabbings and burns from cigarettes. He said it appeared to have been a slow death. Local sources suggested his body was also partially burned. Mr Regeni, who was a PhD student at the Department of Politics and International Studies at the University of Cambridge, was a visiting scholar at the American University in Cairo. Italys Foreign Ministry said it has urgently summoned the Egyptian ambassador over the death of the student, seeking maximum cooperation in the investigation. The Italian government has asked the Egyptian authorities to make every effort to ascertain the truth...and immediately launch a joint investigation with the participation of Italian experts, The statement also requested that Mr Regenis body be returned to Italy as soon as possible. Mr Regeni had been living in Cairo since September to pursue a doctoral thesis on the Egyptian economy. Originally from Fiumicello, near Udine in Italys north-east, Mr Regeni was described in Italian reports as a passionate and gifted student of Middle East studies. When he initially went missing on 25 January, the fifth anniversary of the Arab spring, there were suspicions that he could have been caught up in a police raid against demonstrators. A group of men who kidnapped, tortured and blackmailed a man have been sent to prison for more than 70 years. The thugs stabbed their victim with kitchen knives, beat him with an iron bar, and burned his flesh with heated metal forks. The gang snatched their victim, a man in his 30s, from a barber's shop in west London on June 18 last year. Four of the men; Darren Vassell aka 'Biggs', Derek Johnston, Jamal McLaughlin and Carlton Rodney said the victim owed them money and bundled him into a van - the beginning of an ordeal that was to last three days. The man was driven around the area for several hours, while the men threatened to kill him unless he handed over 2,500 to 'Biggs'. The man was eventually taken to a house in St Lukes Close in Uxbridge where his hands were bound together with electrical wires. It was here that Darren Vassell, together with his brother, Marvin Vassell, Johnston, and another man, Aaron Ellis began a sadistic and sustained assault. The victim was repeatedly hit around the head and body with an iron bar, and a computer monitor was thrown at his head. Ellis heated a metal fork on a gas hob before repeatedly burning the victim's legs, while the brothers took turns stabbing and hacking at the victim with kitchen knives, flaying skin from his arms. The force used was so overwhelming that it snapped the blade of a breadknife, which was later recovered from the scene. The kidnap was captured by a CCTV camera from a nearby convenience store, and on the morning of June 20, acting on intelligence gathered by the Human Trafficking and Kidnap Unit, armed officers from the Met's Specialist Firearms Command stormed the house and freed the victim. The man was taken to hospital by the London Ambulance Service for treatment to his injuries before being discharged several days later. He is still recovering from his ordeal. The Vassell brothers were arrested that day, while Johnston was detained the day after, and Ellis on June 24. McLaughlin and Rodney were later tracked down by police and arrested in August. Detective Sergeant Tim Mustoe, from the Met's Organised Crime Command, said: "These men subjected their victim to a violent and sadistic torture over a sustained period. "I hope today's sentences bring the victim some solace and reassure the public that the Met will relentlessly pursue those who commit crime." The six men were sentenced at the Old Bailey on Thursday, and were jailed for a total of more than 70 years. Four of the men, including the two brothers, pleaded guilty in October 2015. Darren Vassell, 35, admitted to kidnap, blackmail, two counts of false imprisonment and causing grievous bodily harm, and was sentenced to a total of 18 years imprisonment. His brother, Marvin Vassell, 40, pleaded guilty to blackmail, false imprisonment and causing grievous bodily harm, and was jailed for a total of 13 years and six months. Derek Johnston, 40, pleaded guilty to kidnap, blackmail, two counts of false imprisonment and causing grievous bodily harm, and was ordered to spend 21 years in prison. Aaron Ellis, 22, admitted to false imprisonment and causing grievous bodily harm, and was jailed for a total of nine years. The other men were found guilty on January 25 after a trial. Jamal McLaughlin, 34, was found guilty of kidnap, blackmail, false imprisonment, and received six years in prison. Carlton Rodney, 50, was found guilty of blackmail and sentenced to a total of four years. He was found not guilty of kidnap and false imprisonment. A law student who took on two men after her laptop was snatched in the library of a top London law school, said today: I was determined to get justice. Greta Hedley-Miller, 22, gave chase after her 1,300 MacBook Pro was taken at BPP Universitys campus in Stamford Street, Waterloo. One of the suspects barged past her but she held on to the other by the throat as a group of students came to help and others lined the entrance to stop him escaping. Miss Hedley-Miller said: The adrenaline kicked in Get the laptop back, dont be a shrinking violet. I was just determined to get justice. Its about standing up to these people. Ms Hedley-Miller's Macbook laptop These guys knew what they were doing. Its got all my work and all my pictures from my travels on it. When we reviewed the CCTV footage, the security guard was jumping up and down saying, We got them finally. The student, who is studying for a graduate diploma in commercial law, left her computer in the library for a few minutes to buy a coffee on Tuesday afternoon. As she returned, she walked past the suspects, catching the eye of one, who quickly looked away. Miss Hedley-Miller, of Kilburn, said: He turned and caught eyes with his accomplice. It was the sudden eye-flicker then looking to the floor. I just got a feeling it was very strange behaviour. The men left but had to take a longer route out of the library which does not require a security code. The student intercepted them in the entrance hall and demanded her laptop back. She said: I stood in front of them with my arms stretched wide open. They started panicking and pushed me. I was standing my ground. There was just me and these two big guys. I was trying to stop them getting out. One of them barged into my shoulder and sprinted away. She then began to grapple with the remaining suspect and there was a massive scene about 50 people milling around in the lobby watching. Miss Hedley-Miller, who has a first-class classics degree from Exeter University, asked for the numbers of all the students who helped her and plans to take them for a beer to say thank you. A college source said: These guys probably tailgated students and went in behind them so they did not have to put the door code security number in. Our student was very brave and so were the staff who helped restrain the man. A spokesman for BPP University said it was aware of the incident. A Met spokesman said: A 33-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of theft of a laptop and remains in custody. Anyone with information should call Lambeth police via 101, or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. Socialist secretary general Pedro Sanchez (c) during a party meeting. ULY MARTIN Socialist leader Pedro Sanchez began a round of talks on Wednesday with parties that he hopes will support his bid to become Spains next prime minister. Although the PSOE chief has expressed a willingness to reach out to the left and to the right in order to build the largest possible alliance, he will not be seeking support from his main rival, the conservative Popular Party (PP). To negotiate with the PP would be to forgive it, said Socialist organization secretary Cesar Luena, alluding to the raft of corruption cases affecting the conservatives. Nor will Sanchez turn to groups that support regional independence, such as Democracia i Llibertad and ERC in Catalonia, or Bildu in the Basque Country. High-ranking Socialist officials had expressed misgivings at the concessions that might have to be made in exchange for their allegiance. He will, however, try to meet them all to explain why their support will not be necessary. Extra time Following the official nomination from the king to try to form a goverment on Tuesday, Sanchez asked the speaker of Congress for an extra month to build enough political support to ensure he gets voted in. The PP and Podemos on Wednesday unsuccessfully tried to cut this period down to two weeks, but the decision is up to the speaker, the Socialist Patxi Lopez, who said he will award Sanchez three to four weeks. The PP, which won the December 20 election with 123 seats but lost its congressional majority and has been unable to muster enough support to get Mariano Rajoy reinstated, is hoping that Sanchez will fail in his bid to create an alternative governing alliance. This, they feel, would force the Socialists into a grand coalition with the PP. Meanwhile, the anti-austerity Podemos is hoping for a three-way coalition between the PSOE, themselves and the small United Left group, rather than the broader alliance that Sanchez seeks. The first parties in line for a face-to-face meeting with Sanchez throughout the remainder of this week were Canaries Coalition, New Canaries, United Left-Popular Unity, Compromis, Ciudadanos, Podemos and the Basque Nationalist Party. Off to a good start This is off to a good start, said Sanchez at 8pm on Wednesday, after meeting with the first four. Political forces are grateful that the situation is unblocked, and everyone agrees that an enormous opportunity has opened up to create a progressive, reform government in Spain. Cayo Lara, of United Left, came out of the meeting with a warning to those who oppose the creation of a broad progressive alliance. Whoever puts sticks in the wheels to prevent a government of progress will lose credibility before the public opinion, said Lara, noting that Spain has a vital need to get a working government after more than a month since elections were held. Sanchez is scheduled to meet Ciudadanos leader Albert Rivera on Thursday and Podemos chief Pablo Iglesias on Friday. The latter has said that Sanchez has to make a choice between both emerging forces, as he will not enter into a coalition that includes Ciudadanos. Whether Sanchez finally reaches a deal with Podemos remains something of a mystery. The Socialist federal committee ruled on December 28 that the party may not ally itself with groups that support separatist causes or the right to decide. Podemos campaigned on Catalonias right to a self-rule referendum, although it has said little on the matter in recent weeks. Next week the Socialist nominee will try to meet acting prime minister Mariano Rajoy for reasons of protocol, rather than to ask anything of him. I respect the PP because I respect the more than seven million Spaniards who voted for it, said Sanchez on Wednesday. If he becomes the next head of government, Sanchez will only seek the PPs cooperation on matters of state such as the anti-terrorist fight, rather than day-to-day legislation. English version by Susana Urra. A manhunt is underway after an east London businessman was shot dead during an attempted robbery at his warehouse. Akhtar Javeed, from West Ham, was fatally wounded in the street following a shooting at his soft drinks company Direct Source 3 Ltd in Birmingham last night. The 56-year-old died in hospital shortly after police were called to the scene in the Digbeth area of the city at around 6.40pm. Syed Abbas, 30, who lives at Mr Javeeds London property, said the Pakistan-born businessmans wife and children had the news broken to them yesterday evening. Mr Abbas said: "Within 15 minutes of finding out his whole family went to Birmingham. They were crying and very upset." According to reports, Mr Javeed's wife, two young children and grown up daughter lived in the two rooms at the front of property in West Ham. Mr Abbas said: "He used to work five days a week in Birmingham and he would come here at the weekend. "He was a very nice man - it has come as a big shock." Forensics officers at the scene Joe Giddens/PA Wire / Joe Giddens/PA Wire Two masked men, who are believed to have used a getaway vehicle, are still being hunted by West Midlands Police. Superintendent Andy Parsons said: "On officers' arrival, which was within minutes, they found the injured party, a businessman in his 50s, with a gunshot wound in the street. "Officers and paramedics gave immediate first aid to assist Mr Javeed, who was rushed immediately to hospital where further medical assistance was provided. "Tragically, however, Mr Javeed was pronounced dead a short time later. Our thoughts are with the family." He added: It's early stages of the investigation but at this moment in time we believe this was a targeted attack at Mr Javeed's premises and the purpose of that attack was a robbery. "There were a number of staff members in the premises at the time. We are working with them this morning both in terms of trying to understand what they can offer in terms of evidence but also offering support because, as you can imagine, it was a hugely traumatic incident. Additional reporting by the Press Association. A pregnant woman was fighting for life in hospital today after being found with her dead husband suffering from stab wounds in the flat they shared above a pub popular with Tottenham Hotspur fans. The Bill Nicholson pub, a few hundred yards from White Hart Lane stadium, was sealed off last night as police and forensic teams began an investigation into the tragedy. Scotland Yard said it was treating the incident as a murder inquiry and forensic teams were examining the scene in an attempt to find out what happened. The couple are both thought to have suffered stab wounds and police are not thought to be looking for anyone else. A forensic officer at the scene where a man died and a woman was left fighting for life Nigel Howard / Nigel Howard Police and paramedics were called to the address in Northumberland Park at 11.30am yesterday after the flats landlord broke down the door fearing for the well-being of the couple, both in their 30s. It is thought the man may have lain dead for up to two days. His wife, who neighbours said was six-months pregnant, was alive with life-threatening injuries. She was today in a critical but stable condition in hospital. Neighbours said the couple, originally from Bulgaria, had lived in the flat since 2007. Suleyman Kardez, 20, shopkeeper at Tottenham Food and Wine, told the Standard: They were our customers. They were very nice. After work the husband would come here and sit and have a chat. Police remove the body from the pub Nigel Howard / Nigel Howard They were married and she was pregnant. I think also they had two children back in Bulgaria. The husband told me she was pregnant, and he seemed happy about it. But he had been complaining about living here and wanted to move back to Bulgaria. He said hed booked a ticket back on Monday. I think he was planning to send his wife to be with the children so he could work here and find a better house to bring them all back. Its very sad. Last night the pub, named after the legendary 1960s Spurs manager, was cordoned off with police tape. Forensic officers were seen carrying out bags of clothes before the mans body was removed on a stretcher and driven away in a private ambulance. One regular said: Its a real community pub and were all very shocked and sad. Dogan Karkas, 20, a kebab shop owner, said: I heard that someone had been dead and someone else had been injured in the same house for the past two days. I heard it was a stabbing. I saw all the forensics and police and wanted to find out what had been going on. The pub hit the headlines last summer when former Hollyoaks and EastEnders star Danniella Westbrook, who is currently in the Celebrity Big Brother House, was seen behind the bar pulling pints for fans. A Met spokesman said: The identities of the man and woman are yet to be established. A post-mortem examination for the man will be scheduled in due course. Enquiries continue. There have been no arrests at this stage. Anyone with information is asked to call police via 101 or to remain anonymous, call Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. D etectives investigating the killing of a drugs baron shot dead on the driveway of his home say he was murdered because of his criminal past. Father-of-three Redwan El-Ghaidouni, 38, was the victim of a lone assassin as he sat in his Audi car outside his 600,000 house in Vine Lane, Uxbridge, a year ago this week. Today his father spoke for the first time of his loss as police confirmed that El-Ghaidounis past as a major drug dealer was a motive in the killing. Muckta El-Ghaidouni, 76, told the Standard: He is my son this time last year his children had a father. His loss has left a huge hole in the hearts of all his family. I would appeal to people to help the police to find out who did this to my son. Victim: Redwan El-Ghaidouni, 38, was shot dead in his driveway / Metropolitan Police Service Morocco-born El-Ghaidouni was shot eight times through the window of his car by a hooded man on February 3 last year. He fled down an alleyway and CCTV footage shows him going past nearby houses. Detective Chief Inspector Noel McHugh, who is leading the inquiry, said: We have made significant progress and we believe we now understand the motive for this murder but we need someone to provide us with information to identify the gunman. I would remind people of the 50,000 reward for anyone who can provide information that leads to the prosecution of those who carried out Redwans murder. Call 020 8785 8099 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. T his is the moment a group of men cross a street to launch a vicious attack on two men in broad daylight. The footage shows a group of four men walking over to confront the duo before one throws a punch knocking his victim straight to ground. Then the group unleash a number of punches at the other man and kick him when he is also on the floor. Police in Lincolnshire released the CCTV footage today in an appeal for information about the assault which took place in Boston at around 2pm on Wednesday, January 2. A shop front was damaged during the incident, police said. Anyone who recognises the parties involved should call police on 101 A suspect from the original Stephen Lawrence murder inquiry is being hunted by police investigating an alleged multi-million pound drug deal. Jamie Acourt, 39, is alleged to be part of a drug dealing gang with connections to the capital and the north east who sold large amounts of cannabis. A Scotland Yard spokesman said Acourt, from Bexley, south east London, was wanted "in connection with an investigation, namely, conspiracy to supply drugs". Acourt has always maintained his innocence over the killing of the 18-year-old who was stabbed to death in 1993 in Eltham, south-east London. In 2012 Gary Dobson and David Norris were convicted of the murder and jailed for life. Acourt has always maintained his innocence over the killing of 18-year-old Lawrence. This page is being updated A woman has been given a suspended prison sentence after she was caught red handed dealing cocaine in the Square Mile. Jenny Ullah, 34, from the Isle of Dogs, was sentenced at the Old Bailey on Monday after she pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply cocaine in the City of London. Last July, she was arrested after 11 wraps of cocaine were found when she was stopped in her Ford Fiesta by officers in Sun Street. Police had seen her selling drugs from her car. As well as cocaine, cash and several mobile phones were also discovered inside her vehicle. Text messages on the phones revealed contact between her and customers. She was sentenced to 16 months in prison, suspended for two years. Detective Constable Brendan Kennedy said: "Due to the weight of evidence and being caught red handed, Ullah had no choice but to plead guilty to supplying cocaine. The City of London attracts many people to its thriving night time economy but we do not tolerate the sale and use of drugs." S chools in the capital could lose out on 260 million a year the equivalent of 6,253 full-time teachers under new Government funding plans, it was claimed today The biggest cuts would fall on inner-city boroughs such as Tower Hamlets, Hackney, Newham and Greenwich some of which could see their budgets slashed by more than 14 per cent. The figures come from London Councils, the body which represents all local authorities in the capital, which has predicted how a new funding formula could hit schools. Labour mayoral candidate Sadiq Khan warned the cuts could spell catastrophe for schools and urged ministers to publish their plans now. Chancellor George Osborne promised a new national rate of funding per pupil last year but Education Secretary Nicky Morgan has yet to publish a consultation into the shake-up. This is expected to mean less money for London schools because they currently receive some of the highest amounts for each child, reflecting higher educational needs in areas of deep poverty. Department for Education figures show the average grant per pupil is currently 4,612 a year. In London, however, it is 781 higher at 5,393. Mr Khan said: A great state school education gave me the opportunity to fulfil my potential when I was growing up. But the level of cuts being predicted for Londons schools puts that at risk for the next generation of Londoners. Schools in London improved rapidly under the last Labour government, but cuts on this scale will put that progress at risk. The Government needs to come clean immediately about the full scale of their plans to cut schools funding for London otherwise they risk concerns that they are holding detail back until after the mayoral election. London Councils used the DfEs fair funding formula, which this year provided 390 million to 69 boroughs based on eight separate criteria, to predict how the wider national settlement would work. Councillor Peter John, London Councils schools spokesman, said: There are unique cost pressures of educating children in London. Schools and councils in our city have spent money wisely in the past to raise the performance of all of our children and need to be trusted to continue this work without having their budgets slashed. A DfE spokesperson said: This speculation is irresponsible and unfair to schools and parents, as the proposed funding formula has not yet been published. It is impossible to make these calculations until a formula has been consulted on and agreed and all areas including London councils will be encouraged to take part. We are committed to making funding fairer to address the historic unfairness in the system but areas with the highest need will still attract the most funding. Pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds will attract significant extra funding to their schools under the national funding formula, so areas such as London will still attract significantly more than the national average. The spokesperson added: The introduction of a national funding formula will mean that every child, no matter where they live in the country will be funded according to need. The estimates do not include separate pupil premium, high needs or early years payments. A Muslim school in Croydon has scrapped a controversial free mixing policy after it was accused of suspending a teenage boy for chatting to a female pupil. The Islamic Al-Khair school was at the centre of a row last month after reports a child was sanctioned for breaching a behaviour policy that banned all communication between boys and girls. It prompted an intervention by the schools watchdog Ofsted, whose chief inspector Michael Wilshaw wrote to Education Secretary Nicky Morgan to defend the private secondary. He said the action taken by the school was proportionate and appropriate and followed a series of lesser sanctions which had failed to change the boys behaviour. He wrote: Inspectors established that the exclusion followed a series of lesser sanctions which proved unsuccessful in deterring this boy from behaving in a totally inappropriate and intimidatory manner which left a female pupil feeling exceptionally uncomfortable and vulnerable. The school, on Cherry Orchard Road, has an Islamic ethos and at secondary level boys and girls are split over two sites. In his letter Mr Wilshaw concluded this had no negative impact on pupils education. But the schools chief added he was uncomfortable with a policy adopted by the school that appeared to restrict the free mixing of boys and girls. He said it seemed to be inconsistent with the practice observed on the ground by inspectors. Al-Khair Secondary Headteacher Aisha Chaudhry said the policy had only been intended to tackle harrassment, adding that following the Ofsted intervention the school had chosen to completely remove it to prevent future "misinterpretation". Mrs Chaudhry said: "We are one of the best performing schools in the country and to suggest we don't treat the sexes equally is deeply offensive. We have never and would never ban harmless communication between members of the opposite sex. The clause related only to harassment. Our actions were to protect the girl who, as Sir Michael Wilshaw concluded, was left feeling exceptionally uncomfortable and vulnerable. We couldn't believe anyone would try to interpret our behaviour policy in this way. It is very sad that anyone would think that way so as a result we have removed the policy relating to free mixing completely. T he chances of dying from cancer in the UK have fallen by 10 per cent in the last decade but the number of cases is still going up. New Cancer Research analysis found 284 out of every 100,000 people in the UK died from cancer in 2013. It equates to roughly 162,000 people. In 2003 the same figure was 312 in every 100,000. The drop is largely due to improvements in the detection, diagnosis and treatment of cancer. A breakdown of the sexes shows men's death rates have fallen by 12 per cent over the period, while the drop among women is eight per cent. This equates to around 85,000 men and 77,000 women dying from cancer each year in the UK. Cancers of the lung, bowel, breast and prostate account for almost half (46 per cent) of all cancer deaths in the UK. These four cancers saw an 11per cent drop in death rates for the period studied. But some cancers - such as liver and pancreatic - have seen a rise in the rates of people dying, by 60 per cent over the last 10 years for liver cancer and by 8 per cent for pancreatic cancer. Experts have predicted that, mostly due to the fact people are living longer, one in two people in the UK will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives. Sir Harpal Kumar, Cancer Research UK's chief executive, said: "Today on World Cancer Day it's important to remember that even though the death rates are falling, the overall number of people dying from cancer is expected to increase. This is because the population is growing and more of us are living longer. "Too many people are still being diagnosed with and dying from cancer, not just here in the UK but around the world. Additional reporting by PA T he number of people taking their own lives in London has gone up with one borough seeing a 60% increase, figures published today show. Statistics for 2014, the most recent available, showed there were 552 deaths registered as suicides in the capital that year, an increase of 36 on 2013. Croydon borough had the most suicides in London with 36 in 2014, a 60% rise on the previous year, while in Barnet the number doubled from 16 to 32. By contrast, only four people took their own lives in Kingston-upon-Thames in the same period. And the number of London women killing themselves was also slightly up on the year before, rising 6% to 128 according to the Office for National Statistics. That increase has been reflected nationally, with 113 more women committing suicide than the previous 12 months making 2014 the worst year for female deaths since 2005. Although the rate for men showed a slight decrease across the country, London still saw 29 more deaths than 2013, and charity Samaritans warned males were three times more likely to kill themselves than females. Overall, London has the lowest suicide rate in the UK at 7.8 per 100,000 people, although Samaritans warned the capitals figures were skewed because of its diversity. Jacqui Morrissey, Head of External Affairs at Samaritans, told the Standard: London is a unique part of the country with huge disparities in socioeconomic backgrounds even from street to street, so talking generally about London in this context may not be helpful. What would be helpful and what Samaritans is calling for, is for every area in the country, including each borough in London, to have an effective suicide prevention plan. This means, in practice, local authorities working with all agencies, NHS, the police, schools and prisons to understand who is high risk and formulating a localised plan to help and support them. In this way Samaritans hopes to achieve their vision of fewer people dying by suicide. For confidential support on mental health call the Samaritans on 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org or attend a local Samaritans branch. A man fills up his car with gas in Caracas. REUTERS More information Venezuela compra por primera vez petroleo a Estados Unidos Venezuela, one of the biggest oil-producing nations in the world with nearly 300 billion barrels of proven reserves, has begun importing crude oil to help its staggering economy. State-owned Petroleos de Venezuela (Pdsva) last month purchased 550,000 barrels of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) one of the benchmark crudes on the global market through its Citgo Petroleum affiliate in the United States. The deal was made with the goal of using it to dilute Venezuela heavy crude on the Caribbean island of Curacao, where Pdvsa operates a refinery, Reuters reported. Venezuelan crude fetches less on the global petroleum markets because it is very heavy and takes additional refining before it can be sold for consumer use. The deal was made with the goal of using it to dilute Venezuela heavy crude in Curacao This is the first time in the 100-year history of Venezuelas active petroleum industry that the country has been forced to import crude from abroad. In 2014, the impact of erratic business practices and lack of investment pushed Pdvsa to embark on new strategies, including opening offices in Algeria, Nigeria and Angola. At the same time, Venezuela also began purchasing gasoline and other fuel products from the United States to meet domestic demand. It was not until last December that the US government lifted a 40-year ban to allow the export of crude from the United States to other countries. A surge in US production over the past decade, driven in part by shale drilling in Texas and North Dakota, led to oil industry and policy makers to push for the lifting of the ban, which was set in place by President Gerald Ford during the energy crisis in the mid-1970s. For more than a decade, the Caracas government under the late Hugo Chavez and now headed by his handpicked predecessor Nicolas Maduro has accused Washington of orchestrating conspiracies to overthrow the Bolivian revolutionary socialist movement implanted by Chavez. Caracas blames the Obama administration for manipulating the global energy markets in a concealed effort to ruin the economies of Venezuela and its allies, such as Russia, which also relies heavily on oil sales. The Obama administration lifted a 40-year ban last month to allow the export of crude from the US to other countries The Venezuelan government does not issue official production figures, but analysts believe that the country produces 2.7 million barrels of oil a day a much lower figure than the five million Chavez predicted his country would be producing by this date. The majority of Venezuelas production consists of medium and heavy crude. The Orinoco Petroleum Belt, located in the southeast of the country, contains one of the biggest proven oil reserves in the world. For many years, transnational companies have been interested in investing in drilling operations; some have already begun joint operations with Pdvsa at a number of wells. But the crudes coming from these reserves are heavy and extra-heavy, which make them more costly to refine and resell on the world market. Production costs for Venezuelan heavy crude is about $18 a barrel, but Pdvsa also markets diluted blends, which can be sold at around $15 a barrel, Reuters reported. While President Maduro has blamed his countrys economic woes on plummeting world oil prices claiming that Venezuela has lost 80% of its revenue the nations oil production has been steadily dropping in recent years. At the same time, an estimated 600,000 barrels a day are destined for the Chinese market to help pay off loans the Beijing government granted to Venezuelas allies under special terms. English version by Martin Delfin. A driver in his 80s who stopped to help a motorist broken down on a busy dual carriageway was killed after being struck by a third car. The elderly Good Samaritan pulled up behind the womans stricken Ford Fiesta in the eastbound lane at Colney Hatch on the North Circular at 10.40am on Wednesday. A black VW Passatt crashed into the back of his red Hyundai, which ricocheted on into the Fiesta. Despite efforts of paramedics to resuscitate him, the man was pronounced dead at the scene. The woman in the Fiesta was rushed to hospital where she was today being treated for serious injuries. The female driver the Passatt was arrested on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving and serious injury by dangerous driving. The elderly victim has not yet been formally identified. A post-mortem examination will take place today. Any witnesses are asked to call the north Serious Collision Investigation Unit on 0208 991 9555. T he family of a newly qualified English teacher believed to have died from carbon monoxide poisoning in China today said more should be done to protect travellers. Londoner Francesca Dingley, 22, died four days after moving into her apartment in Chengdu, apparently because of a faulty gas appliance. Ahead of an inquest into her death today at Barnet coroners court, her father Mark Dingley said the tragedy had been wholly avoidable. He said: Her life was tragically cut short by carbon monoxide poisoning, as the result of an incorrectly installed gas appliance. A simple carbon monoxide detector, costing less than 10, could have prevented this. As parents, we urge you to insist that your child does not travel abroad without one of these detectors. Get your child to take personal responsibility for their own safety. We dont want any other parent to suffer as we have suffered for the past 12 months, and are continuing to suffer. We think of our darling girl every day, but if this tragic occurrence raises awareness of the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning and prevents another tragedy of this kind, then her death will not have been in vain. Ms Dingley, from Enfield, died last February. She was on a gap year after graduating from Bristol in 2014. She was employed by Education First (EF), one of the worlds largest education providers, to teach English as a foreign language. An EF spokesman said the firm had provided extensive support to her family and had taken steps following an immediate independent investigation to ensure the tragedy could not be repeated. He said the company deeply regret this tragic situation, adding: Francescas tragic passing has been felt deeply throughout our organisation ... The safety and well-being of our teachers is paramount. Ms Dingley arrived in China last January and completed a weeks training course before moving into a new apartment with a fellow English teacher. Her father said the women were housed in an apartment rented off a private landlord and claimed the gas boiler had not been tested for carbon monoxide. He said: When I questioned the extent and evidence of testing, it was confirmed to me that testing of equipment was merely to see if it worked, not whether it was actually safe to use. If a qualified gas engineer, or in fact anybody with experience of gas appliances, had merely looked at the flue they would have immediately known that it was not safe. T he number of young Londoners owning their own home has plummeted by almost 34,000 in the last five years amid soaring house prices, figures revealed today. The figures compiled by the House of Commons Library for Labour suggest across England the number of under-35s owning homes has fallen by 280,000 since 2010. Shadow housing minister John Healey said: London is bearing the brunt of the cost of housing crisis, and young Londoners have been hit especially hard, with a big drop in the number owning a home since 2010. What used to be a natural part of growing up is becoming a luxury for those on the highest salaries, or whose parents have the deepest pockets. The new data shows 33,505 fewer London households headed by under-35s owning their home in 2015 compared to 2010, a 13 per cent drop. In the same period the number of households headed by homeowners over the age of 35 fell by just 2.5 per cent. It means only 26 per cent of households headed by under-35 in London own their home, compared to 56 per cent of those headed by over-35s. There was a six per cent drop in home-owning under-35s who had professional jobs, while the drop in working class home-owning under-35 was ten per cent. Only one in seven young working class households in London now owns a home, the figures show. A government spokesman said: We want to ensure that anyone who works hard and aspires to own their own home has the opportunity to do so and in the last year alone we have already seen a 25 per cent increase in the number of new homes built. Our initiatives like Help to Buy have helped nearly 270,000 people to buy a home of their own since 2010 and we are delivering 200,000 new starter homes, which will offer a 20 per cent discount to first-time buyers. @JoeWatts_ A self-proclaimed "pick-up artist" who was due to hold two events in London this weekend has cancelled the meetings citing safety fears. Daryush Valizadeh, who blogs under the name RooshV, was due to hold an international meet-up day on Saturday but his proposals sparked outrage around the world. The 36-year-old blogger, who once wrote a post calling for rape to be legalised, faced huge backlash after details of his events for his followers were announced, with tens of thousands of people signing petitions to stop the meetings from happening. Meet-ups were planned for two locations in London, as well as cities across the UK, United States and Australia. But in a post on Wednesday, RooshV said the meetings had been called off because the safety or privacy of men due to attend could not be guaranteed. The post added: While I cant stop men who want to continue meeting in private groups, there will be no official Return Of Kings meetups. The listing page has been scrubbed of all locations. I apologize to all the supporters who are let down by my decision. Earlier on Wednesday, the blogger said he had removed the locations of the meet-ups from his website after hearing dozens of protests had been organised at the meeting points. RooshV said: This this meet-up was never intended as a confrontation with unattractive women and their enablers, Im moving to save as many of these meetups as I can before Saturday so that men can still meet in private away from a loud, obnoxious, dishonest, and potentially violent mob. D oes Jeremy Corbyn have a scheduling problem? First he declined to attend a meeting of the Privy Council he was holidaying in Scotland but managed it on a second attempt and now hes rejected an even more hallowed invitation: a chance to be honoured at the annual Oldie of the Year Awards. The ceremony took place at Simpsons-in-the-Strand on Tuesday, with Timothy West, Prunella Scales and Germaine Greer among those honoured for their contributions to, well, being old. But according to the Oldie magazines editor, Alexander Chancellor, the Labour leader didnt fancy accepting such an esteemed plaudit. It has become rare for anyone to turn down an Oldie award, Chancellor writes in this weeks Spectator, but we got no response from Jeremy Corbyn when we sought to honour him for his astonishing victory in the Labour leadership election. Perhaps he felt that, at 66, he wasnt old enough to qualify; or perhaps he feared that acceptance of the award would expose him to mockery. On the other hand, he may just have felt he was too busy. The Londoner understands that reshuffles, allotments and feeding El Gato take up a lot of time, but Chancellor points out that other highly respected figures still see it as an honour. Busy he certainly is, Chancellor concedes. But hardly busier than Aung San Suu Kyi, who on Monday inaugurated Burmas first move towards democracy when she led members of her National League for Democracy into the Burmese parliament to take their seats. Yet none of this prevented the 70-year-old Nobel Prize-winner from accepting an Oldie award as Democrat of the Year. She must be better at multi-tasking. *** To the Fleming Collection in Mayfair, for an exhibition of works by Joseph Crawhall from Glasgows Burrell Museum. Permanent Secretary to the Treasury Sir Nicholas Macpherson was among the guests what are his plans when he retires in April after 10 years in the hot seat? Im going on a very long holiday but it wont be to Barbados because I cant afford it. The gold-plated pension cant have been as much as we have all been led to believe, then. To Leave or Leave.EU is the question ... How bizarre that a Spectator article today called Fighting over the crumbs, by James Forsyth, fails to mention prolific Eurosceptic Dominic Cummings, who is among the founding members of Vote Leave, as opposed to the Leave.EU campaign. Forsyth says: There are plenty of political figures involved in the Out campaign but too many seem more interested in squabbling among themselves than in taking the fight to the In campaign. He namechecks all sorts but not Cummings, who resigned from the Vote Leave board after in-fighting within the organisation. Cynics may wonder if Cummings isnt named in the article because hes married to Spectator deputy editor Mary Wakefield. Toasting Finch's pre-BAFTA bash The Londoner loves a good party and a good book, so a good book about a good party was right up our Soho street. Last night businessman Charles Finch launched The Night Before Bafta, a collection of photographs and anecdotes about his annual pre-ceremony dinner, with a party at Maison Assouline. Guests included journalists Mariella Frostrup and Rachel Johnson, above, models Yasmin Le Bon and Laura Bailey, and actress Daisy Lewis, right. Finch was clearly training his party-throwing successor: his nine-year-old daughter Oona was on guest list duty. Start them young! Tears as French oignons lose the i Ground-breaking news from across the Channel, as the French reveal plans to drop circumflexes and hyphens in several words and to remove i from oignon. Those who know their orthographic alliums will now have the option to write about ognons, in a bid to simplify the language. From September it will be compulsory in France to teach the new spellings in schools, as part an overhaul of 2,400 words. But will French restaurants be in the soup over their classic starter of soupe a ... lognon? A sous chef from restaurant chain Aubaine told us: If the French decide they dont want to keep the i in onion then as were a French brasserie we would change it in accordance. Meanwhile, the Lycee Francais in South Kensington wouldnt comment before speaking to the French Embassy. Theres no i in team either, you know ... Asterix translator Anthea Bell, meanwhile, emails in shock: Are the French seriously proposing to take the i out of the first syllable of oignon? Usually they are ultra-conservative, unlike us, the English, who are always trying to reform English spelling one Sir Thomas Smith, writing in Latin in the reign of Elizabeth I, already proposed to do so but it never works. Makes you wonder whether the French know their onions; they have a similar phrase of their own, occupe-toi de tes oignons = mind your own business. *** Where is the true seat of power? The Londoner usually visits The Wolseley to look for political bigwigs but we were split last night when two factions went elsewhere. Boris Johnson dined at The Ivy, while US Secretary of State John Kerry went to fish favourite Scotts in Mayfair with Philip Hammond. An excellent choice if the Foreign Secretary wanted to impress but who paid the bill? Second coming of cheesus Cheese-fanciers rejoice: 2016 could be the year Parmesan custard is returned to the masses. Rowley Leigh left thousands cheesed off when he closed beloved Bayswater restaurant Le Cafe Anglais, home to the best-selling dish. But Leigh is making a comeback. In October we spotted him in chefs whites at Soho House in Dean Street. Thats fine for the flat white-swilling, MacBook-hammering members but hard cheese for the average savoury custard-loving Joe. Fear not: now Leigh is taking charge of Soho Houses new Italian-French restaurant, Cafe Monico on Shaftesbury Avenue, accessible to anyone who can brave the group-discount musical crowd. Prepare your Instagram feed for the cheesy custard deluge. Delay of the day to Lord Lucan, whose obituary emblazons the front page of todays Times with two, simple words: At last. S adiq Khan came under attack from Left-winger George Galloway today for stabbing Jeremy Corbyn in the back in a bid to win votes. The maverick politician criticised Labours mayoral candidate, accusing him of supporting his leader like the rope supports the hanging man. At the Evening Standards first mayoral hustings, the pair clashed over housing, transport and extremism, with Mr Galloway accusing the Tooting MP of making London less safe by supporting foreign wars. It came after Mr Khan issued a stark warning to Mr Corbyn to start talking to those people who disagree with you, as the Labour leader would not be able to change lives without winning elections. Sadiq Khan clashed with George Galloway last night Nigel Howard / Nigel Howard The row was sparked after each of the candidates who also included Tory Zac Goldsmith, Liberal Democrat Caroline Pidgeon, Green Sian Berry, Ukips Peter Whittle and the Womens Equality Partys Sophie Walker were asked to talk about their party leader. Mr Khan, who nominated Mr Corbyn but did not vote for him, has gone to great lengths to distance himself from the Labour leader, who is regarded by some as an electoral liability. He told the audience: The job of a politician is to appeal to everyone, not just to your own tribe. One of my criticisms of the leadership of the Labour party is that we are talking to ourselves. You dont change peoples lives by losing elections and you dont change peoples lives by talking to yourself. But Respect candidate Mr Galloway countered: Sadiq supports Corbyn like the rope supports the hanging man. He has never voted against a Labour leader in his entire time in Parliament. Zac Goldsmith said he wants to tackle the problem of Londoners being priced out of their city Nigel Howard / Nigel Howard He boasts that hes the least rebellious of politicians and yet since the day and hour Jeremy Corbyn was elected leader he has stabbed him in the back. Richmond Park MP Mr Goldsmith weighed in, describing Mr Khan as too partisan to work with the Government to be able to protect Londons police. He told the audience: The first line in the job description of a mayor is holding government to account but also getting a good deal from government. My record as a working MP shows that I can and I will. Mr Galloway said Britains involvement in conflicts in the Middle East and Islamophobia at home were the biggest multipliers of extremism. But Mr Khan, a Muslim, said responsibility for terrorist attacks lay with the terrorists alone and that the vast majority of British extremists were radicalised at home. He told a woman in the audience who called for mosques to be shut down to prevent extremism that her remarks were extremely offensive. Mr Goldsmith strongly backed Mr Khans words but admitted the Governments counter-extremism strategy had failed to find the balance. Housing, the key issue of the campaign, also dominated the debate. Ms Walker said she would give first dibs on housing to victims of domestic abuse. Ms Pidgeon, who has said City Hall should set up its own housing company, said the next Mayor should continue the Olympic precept on council tax to pay for a huge increase in affordable house-building. Mr Whittle called for a golden age of social housing with Londoners getting priority over new homes, while Ms Berry, who rents, said: There will be an infinite demand for our homes if youre not controlling who buys them. They will be snapped up by investors and then they will still be charging us the same amount. The candidates' views Sadiq Khan, Labour London is the greatest city in the world but we are at a crossroads. Londoners are being priced out of London. Unless we act now it could be too late. We need a Mayor with the experience, with the vision and with the values to change track. We need a Mayor thats going to fix the housing crisis, to make sure there are genuinely affordable homes being built, with first dibs for Londoners. To build a modern transport system London can afford and to make London healthier and safer and to support businesses to grow. Zac Goldsmith, Conservative London over the past eight years has boomed under Boris Johnson. We are back on the map as the most important city on earth and we excel in almost every field of human endeavour. But we have problems in London. A very significant number of Londoners now feel they have effectively been priced out of their own city. Im standing as Mayor to protect that success story but to make it work for Londoners across the board. My action plan for London is more housing, better transport, safer streets and to clean up the environment. Caroline Pidgeon, Liberal Democrats Im putting myself forward to be Mayor not because I want to be something, but so I can do something. Ive campaigned hard for Londoners to save the local police on our streets, to improve the quality of air we breathe, and to upgrade public transport in every corner of our capital. Ive been a campaigner on housing for decades. Im pressing for more affordable homes across the capital. I have costed plans of 200,000 more homes in London both to rent and buy, help on childcare and targeted fare reductions, including half-price fares before 7.30am. Sian Berry, Green party I want London to succeed, but how it succeeds is important. The concentration of wealth in so few hands isnt good for our city. We need to build a more resilient economy and help smaller enterprises. We need town centres that are pleasant and thriving across London. We need more council housing and new planning rules to ensure we get truly affordable homes from private developers. Our revolutionary flat travel fares will bring everyones journey to work down to the same cost. We will reduce fares zones and abolish them completely by 2025. George Galloway, Respect I want to talk about the elephant in the room the overwhelming possibility of a Paris-style terrorist attack on London. I am in the best position to work to prevent it and to work to respond to it. Police will have the weapons they need to defend us and if terrorists come to harm us then our police will shoot them lawfully dead. Im tough on terrorism but tough on the causes of terrorism too. We need a real Prevent strategy that stops our young people being lured onto the rocks of extremism, separatism and violence. Sophie Walker, Womens Equality Party Im running for Mayor as a member of Britains fastest-growing, newest political party, because I want to make London better for everyone by making London better for women. I think equality is the big issue which can transform London. Anyone you vote for as Mayor is going to do good stuff on housing, transport and policing I can do a great job on that, and Ill also do it in a way which makes London better for everyone. I believe any politician who is serious about running this city needs to have a policy which works for Londons women too. Peter Whittle, Ukip Im sure youre told that London isnt Ukip and Ukip isnt London, but nothing could be further from the truth. Were starting out here as the third-largest party in terms of votes. When I look around I see a massive housing crisis, I see huge strain on social services and on educational places. We need to look at the supply and demand side of the equation. Londons ongoing immigration is too high, we need a controlled and ethical immigration policy for the future of London. I also see a successful and extremely exciting future for London outside of the EU. S adiq Khan and Zac Goldsmith both committed to the pedestrianisation of Oxford Street in order to cut pollution and congestion. They made their promises during last nights Evening Standard mayoral hustings after a question from the New West End Company, which runs a Business Improvement District to improve the area around Oxford Street, Regent Street and Bond Street. Mr Khan told the audience: From Marble Arch to Tottenham Road, you could have squares and boulevards and make it really appealing for people. Crossrail will help with that. A productive Oxford Street does a huge amount of benefit for the rest of London. Mr Goldsmith said: I sense from talking to businesses, residents and the council who have been historically resistant to the idea of attacking Oxford street there is an appetite for something radical. So I think we can and should, and I have committed to pedestrianise Oxford Street and I have committed to working with the councils and TfL to ensure the buses then dont have to use the residential streets around Oxford Street. Liberal Democrat candidate Caroline Pidgeon also committed to banning vehicles from Oxford Street and added that Sunday opening hours for shops should be relaxed. A 2014 study by David Carslaw, an air quality scientist at Kings College London, showed Oxford Street had the worst levels of nitrogen dioxide air pollution in the world. In 2015, pollution in Oxford Street breached the legal EU limit for the whole year after just four days. D avid Cameron today urged world leaders to seize the moment now to save Syrian refugees who have been forced to flee the terror of Islamic State and the countrys civil war. At the opening of a donors summit in London, the Prime Minister called for nations around the globe to pour millions more into supporting Syrians now struggling to survive in refugee camps in neighbouring countries. The world was witnessing a desperate movement of humanity which it needed to respond to with greater generosity. Hundreds of thousands of Syrians were having to put their lives in the hands of evil people smugglers as they sought a future away from the bloodshed, fear and hopelessness tearing their country apart. Thousands of them, including many children had drowned seeking to make the treacherous journey across the Mediterranean. If ever there was a moment to take a new approach to the humanitarian crisis in Syria surely it is now, Mr Cameron urged. But he warned of a critical shortfall in life-saving aid that was holding back the humanitarian effort in countries such as Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. More than 30 world leaders including German Chancellor Angela Merkel and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon flew in for the summit. Queen Rania of Jordan, Qatari first lady Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser al-Missned, Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai, who was shot by the Taliban aged 15 for her campaigning, as well as Syrian refugee Muzoon Almellehan were also attending. Britain has led calls for the response to the refugee crisis to focus on more help to encourage Syrians to stay in neighbouring countries rather than risk their lives on journeys to the EU. International Development Secretary Justine Greening this morning unveiled plans for all Syrian refugee children and those from host communities to be in education by the end of the 2016/2017 school year. The UK will double its spending on education in Lebanon to 40 million per year for the next four years and increase spending on education in Jordan to 20 million a year over the next four years. The UK has pledged an additional 1.2 billion to support refugees fleeing Syrias civil war, taking its total to more than 2 billion. More than 70 countries were represented at the summit. The UN is appealing for 5.4 billion to fund aid operations for the 13.5 million people displaced by the fighting. D avid Cameron has announced that world leaders have pledged more than 7 billion to tackle the Syrian refugee crisis at an international donor conference in London. 4.1 billion has been promised for this year, and a further 3.4 billion will be handed over by 2020, Mr Cameron said. Britain is donating an extra 510 million, taking the total funding from the UK to 2.3 billion. Countries neighbouring Syria have also agreed to educate refugee children to ensure there is no "lost generation", Mr Cameron said. Pledges of aid at the conference came as military bombardments in Syria intensified and tentative peace talks in Geneva were on hold. Plight: Syrians fleeing advancing pro-government forces wait near the Syrian-Turkish border / Reuters / Ammar Abdullah "After almost five years of fighting, it's pretty incredible that as we come here in London in 2016 the situation on the ground is actually worse," U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told delegates from some 70 countries. The one-day meeting, held under tight security near Westminster, aimed at gathering donations and agreeing on plans for economic and educational projects to help the 4.6 million Syrians who have sought refuge in neighboring countries including Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. Jordan's King Abdullah said his country could not sustain unaided the burden of what he said was almost 1.3 million Syrian refugees, a fifth of Jordan's population. "We are doing our best against very difficult odds," the king said, but added: "We have reached our limit." "Our country will continue to do what we can do to help those in need, but it cannot be at the expense of our own people's welfare." The meeting opened hours after the latest U.N.-led bid to start peace talks in Geneva was suspended for three weeks - a sign of major difficulties. The U.N. and regional countries have said they need more than 6billion in assistance for 2016 alone, as the situation in the region continues to deteriorate. The UK has pledged 1.2 billion in new aid between now and 2020, and the U.S. committed more than 600 million, which will bring total U.S. humanitarian spending on the five-year war to 3.5 billion. Germany, which has taken in Europe's largest share of migrants - more than 1 million last year, including almost 430,000 Syrians - said it would give 1.75 billion between now and 2018 to help Syrian refugees. Previous aid conferences for Syria have repeatedly fallen short. Last year's, in Kuwait, raised just half its 4.7 billion target, forcing cuts to programmes such as refugee food aid. However, this year's organizers - Britain, Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the U.N. - are hoping for a better outcome. "If ever there was a moment to take a new approach to the humanitarian crisis in Syria surely it is now," Cameron told delegates. W ikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has said he will hand himself over to police for arrest on Friday if the UN rules that he has not been unlawfully detained. The Metropolitan Police have said they will make "every effort" to arrest Mr Assange should he leave the Ecuadorian Embassy in London where he has been for more than three years. He is wanted for questioning in Sweden over an allegation of sexual assault, which he has always denied, and is fighting against extradition. Mr Assange was granted political asylum by the South American nation and has remained in their embassy since breaking police bail in 2012. He has previously claimed that if he goes to Sweden he will be handed over to US authorities who have an espionage case against him and want to question him over the activities of WikiLeaks. However in a statement published by the activist group early on Thursday, Mr Assange said he expected to be able to walk free if the British and Swedish authorities fail to receive UN approval for extradition. He said: "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me." The statement was signed: "Julian Assange, Embassy of Ecuador, London." The 44-year-old Australian was arrested under a European Arrest Warrant in 2010 to answer "serious criminal allegations" in Sweden and after a legal battle his extradition was granted by the Supreme Court in May 2012. Mr Assange was subject to arrest under British law when he failed to surrender for transfer to Sweden on June 29 2012 after entering the Ecuadorian embassy. The building in Knightsbridge is a short distance from Harrods department store and was put under round the clock supervision by Scotland Yard until October, when they removed their officers. The building remained under covert surveillance. A Met spokesman said: "The operation to arrest Julian Assange does however continue and should he leave the Embassy the MPS will make every effort to arrest him. In September 2014 Mr Assange filed a complaint against Swedish and the UK authorities which has been considered by a group of legal experts for the UN who are expected to deliver their findings on Friday. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has made previous rulings on whether imprisonment or detention is lawful, although the group does not have any direct bearing on British and Swedish authorities. If the working group finds Mr Assange's detention to be unlawful the UN is expected to call on the UK and Sweden to let him go free. The campaigner and former hacker has offered to be interviewed by Swedish prosecutors, while the Ecuadorian president, Rafael Correa, said their questions could also be put by Ecuadorean officials. Marianne Ny, the Swedish prosecutor handling the case, was believed to be considering a request to allow embassy officials to question their guest. Pedro Sanchez's Socialist Party would perform less well if a new election were held in Spain. Uly Martin If a fresh general election were held tomorrow, the conservative Popular Party (PP) would win again, a new poll by the Center for Sociological Research (CIS) shows. The survey has acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy down as the winner with 28.7% of the vote, practically identical to what he obtained at the inconclusive December 20 election. The picture painted by this new survey is that Spains political scenario would remain largely unchanged But a new vote would hurt the Socialist Party (PSOE), which came in second with 22.1% in December but would fall back to 20.5% in a hypothetical new election. Meanwhile, anti-austerity party Podemos and its regional allies share of the vote would reach 21.9%, up from 20.66% on December 20. The other emerging party, Ciudadanos, would fall back slightly from 13.9% to 13.3%. People voting at the December 20 general election. S. Sanchez Ultimately, the picture that emerges from this new voting intention survey is that Spains political scenario would remain largely unchanged, forcing parties to negotiate in order to reach governing coalitions or at least ensure enough support for a candidate to get voted in as prime minister and form a minority government. The poll was conducted in early January, just as Congress was electing its new speaker and governing board. Political leaders had not yet met with King Felipe VI as part of the protocol ahead of the investiture session, and Socialist leader Pedro Sanchez had not been asked by the monarch to bid for the post. Nor had news erupted about the new corruption case affecting the PP in the Valencia region. The survey has an error margin of 2%. English version by Susana Urra. L ord Bramall today made a scathing attack on Scotland Yard, saying detectives left him to clear his own name after he was wrongly accused of child sex offences. He called on the Met to review the way it handles claims of historical sex abuse and said officers did not thoroughly investigate the absurd allegations. In damning comments, the former armed forces chief, 92, condemned police for failing to speak to witnesses who cast doubt on the claims made 10 months earlier by an alleged abuse victim called Nick. The D-Day landings veteran was told by the Met last month that he would face no further action in connection with allegations he was part of a VIP paedophile ring. Today he said: I just dont see how any level-headed policeman could have believed one word of it without corroboration, which he did not bother to get. It was I who had to prove that I couldnt have done it. He said police told him he was alleged to have abused an under-age male 40 years ago and said he was also accused of taking part in sex parties on Remembrance Sunday. He said in a BBC interview to be broadcast on Radio 4s The Report tonight: If it had not been so serious I felt like roaring with laughter. Hardly when a man is a Field Marshal is he likely to choose Remembrance Sunday for a sex party. He recalled a detective asked him if he could swim. I said, Yes, I can swim, and I saw his face light up they were almost half-way to a sex pool party. The ex-armed forces chief said officers raided his home last March while he was having breakfast with his terminally ill wife, who has since died. Scotland Yard launched Operation Midland after hearing claims made by Nick, an alleged male victim of child abuse. Lord Bramall, who has asked the Met for an apology, said police told him the claims by Nick included allegations that he had supervised the torture of boys at a number of different locations. Nick is at the centre of extraordinary claims that three boys were murdered by senior figures, including politicians, in a VIP paedophile gang operating around Westminster in the 1970s and 1980s. Among those he said were involved in the gang were former prime minister Edward Heath, ex-home secretary Lord Brittan and the former Tory MP Harvey Proctor, who denies any wrongdoing. At the time, Lord Bramall was firstly Chief of the General Staff then Chief of the Defence Staff from 1982 when he was made a Field Marshal, the militarys highest rank, until 1985. The Met Yard has faced increasing calls to issue a full apology to Lord Bramall and his family over criticism and claims of a botched investigation. It is still insisting publicly that the Midland inquiry is continuing but there are increasing reports that the probe is to be wound up, with mounting doubts over the credibility of the sole witness. Today Lord Macdonald, QC, an ex-director of public prosecutions, criticised the new police stance of we believe the victim, saying it could lead to miscarriages of justice. He said police had got the balance wrong and officers risked being manipulated by fantasists. He told Radio 4s Today programme: The worst miscarriages of justice I have seen have resulted from blinkered investigations in which police have believed a theory at the start of the case and gone on to try to prove that theory. We need the police to conduct impartial, objective and professional investigations. His comments came as Met Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe was due to meet the widow of the former home secretary Lord Brittan in weeks to tell her that claims against child abuse against her late husband were unfounded. He will discuss the forces failure to inform Lord Brittan before his death he had been cleared of a rape allegation by a woman. The force launched the Midland inquiry at a time when police were under pressure to pursue historical allegations having missed the opportunity to bring charges against Jimmy Savile, Britains most prolific sex offender, on several occasions. Today Scotland Yard said it would not comment on the new criticism from Lord Bramall and in a statement last month refused to apologise for its handling of the investigation. Assistant Commissioner Patricia Gallan said: For a person to have their innocence publicly called into question must be appalling so I have every sympathy with Lord Bramall and his late wife and regret the distress they endured in this investigation. P rince Harry has thanked four wounded British soldiers who have created history by becoming the first all-amputee team to row across an ocean. Row2Recovery, made up of Cayle Royce, Paddy Gallagher, Nigel Rogoff and Lee Spencer, docked in Antiguas English Harbour just after 4pm on Thursday at the end of their 3,000-mile journey from the Canary Islands. The foursome, who have three legs between them, battled crippling storms and serious injury to complete the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge in 46 days. At one point during the challenge one member broke his prosthetic leg. Achievement: From left to right: Paddy Gallagher, Nigel Rogoff, Cayle Royce and Lee Spencer / PA Prince Harry congratulated the team on their achievement via a video call and said their amazing determination proved there is life after injury. The Endeavour Fund, set up by the by The Royal Foundation for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry to support wounded and sick servicemen and women, is one beneficiary from the teams fundraising. Team skipper Cayle Royce, who lost both legs when he was injured by a bomb in Afghanistan, said: "We are so proud to be the first all-amputee team to row an ocean and extremely humbled by the support we have received. "We are very proud to be able to support injured servicemen and women everywhere through the Endeavour Fund, Help for Heroes and Blesma. "Although totally exhausted, we are ready to celebrate the fact we have just conquered 3,000 miles in the world's toughest ocean rowing race. "There is life beyond injury - that's our message, we hope it's out there." W aitrose regulars have threatened to boycott a store over its move to ditch china plates and replace them with paper ones. Customers of a branch of the supermarket in Chichester, West Sussex, have reportedly complained to management in what has been dubbed the most middle class row ever. Coffees in the store's cafe are also now dispensed in paper cups, and customers are made to sit on wipe-clean wooden chairs instead of luxurious sofas. It comes after a Costa franchise moved out of the branch and Waitrose turned it into their own cafe. One regular female customer told the Chichester Observer: "If you go into Waitrose you expect to be able to drink a cup of coffee from a real cup. You get that in Sainsburys in Chichester. "You see them using paper plates and cups and you wonder what else theyre cutting back on." Another was reported as saying: "We enjoy coming here. Were not annoyed about using paper plates, but we are a little disappointed that they dont provide proper cups." Others have branded the dispute the most middle class row ever. The row spilled on to Twitter after the story broke. Mike Wingert posted: "The lack of China plates and cups at your Chichester store is appalling. Has Waitrose been bought out by McDonald's? Yuk...." Waitrose replied: "Hi Mike, thanks for your comments. I'll let the relevant team know of your feedback." Of all the cities where people would cause an uproar over how Waitrose serves coffee, it had to be Chichester! https://t.co/oyoZDOrKRl James Turner (@James_Turner22) February 3, 2016 A Waitrose spokesman said: "The feedback of our customers is hugely important to us and the comments we have received will help shape any future plan." A group of 12 elderly British bridge players were arrested in Thailand during a gambling crackdown. More than 50 Thai police officers and army volunteers stormed the expat meeting in a rented apartment above a bar in Pattaya on Monday night. The group had only been playing for points rather than money but 32 foreigners were still arrested for gambling, Pattaya police superintendent Colonel Suthat Pumphanmuang told the AFP news agency. All British nationals were freed after paying a 5,000 baht (96) bail after 12 hours in custody after being accused of gambling. Police said those arrested included 12 British nationals, three Norwegians, three Swedes, two Australians, a German, a Dane, a Canadian, a New Zealander and a Dutch and Irish national. The other nationalities were not made public. A British Embassy spokesman said told Sky News that officials were in contact with local authorities "following the arrest of several British nationals". Thai newspaper Pattaya One reported the group were arrested under a section of the 1935 Playing Cards Act, which states that an individual is not allowed to possess more than 120 playing cards at any one time. A statement on the website of the Jomtien and Pattaya Bridge Club said it was temporarily closed "whilst we get a licence to have cards on the premises". The resort city of Pattaya is a popular vacation spot for gangsters all over the world and is notorious for gambling and prostitution. Since seizing power in 2014, Thai Junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha has vowed to crackdown on corruption and criminal networks, both foreign and domestic. Members of the public have been encouraged to inform officials of alleged abuses or crimes. T he mother of a London-trained artist who was shot dead 15 years ago in Kenya spoke of her hopes for justice today as an inquest into his death finally opened. Victim Tonio Trzebinski, 41, was killed with a single shot to the chest as he drove into the driveway of his mistresss house in upmarket Nairobi suburb Karen in October 2001. Police said his death was a car-jacking gone wrong but no one has been brought to justice. Mr Trzebinski, who trained at Slade art school, was part of a high-flying set in Nairobi known for their wild parties, drugs, alcohol and affairs. He had a volatile marriage to German-born fashion designer wife Anna, with whom he had two children, but had been having an affair with professional hunter Natasha Illum-Berg. A month before his death his wife learned of his affair and they had a violent row, after which she flew to Texas for therapy. His mother Errol, 79, today told an inquest in Nairobi how in the weeks leading up to his death he appeared frightened. She went on: He became very fearful and kept saying, Whatever you do dont tell anyone my where- abouts. It was very strange. He was frightened of something, of somebody. At the hearing Mr Trzebinskis death was compared with the notorious unsolved 1941 murder of Lord Erroll. The British peer and philanderer was shot dead in his car less than a mile from the spot where Mr Trzebinski was killed. His story inspired the 1988 film White Mischief. A year before Mr Trzebinskis death his mother published a book about Lord Errolls murder. She has never accepted the police car-jacking theory insisting that her son was murdered by a hired assassin and todays inquest follows years of campaigning by her. Outside court she said: I want this to come to trial. I feel elated that we may be able to put the people who did this behind bars. I want them to pay. The magistrate set four days in April to hear from more than 30 witnesses. G erman police today launched raids on homes, offices and two refugee shelters in the hunt for four suspected Islamist militants. Some 450 officers took part in the operation to track down the suspected Algerian jihadists including one linked to an Islamic State training camp. The raids were carried out to prevent severe acts of violence, according to police. Experts say Germany is at high risk of a terror attack because of its support for military operations against IS in Iraq and Syria. At the centre of the operation was Berlin, where police swooped on four apartments and two businesses. Apartments in the heavily immigrant areas of Kreuzberg, Tempelhof and Berlin-Mitte were ransacked in the hunt for clues tying the suspects to IS. Police also searched asylum seeker centres in Hanover and Attendorn in the Sauerland region. Computers, mobile phones and records were seized during the early-morning raids. A police spokesman said the Algerians were being sought for their suspected links with IS terrorists in Syria. Three others, a woman and two men for whom there were existing arrest warrants, were taken into custody. One of the arrested men in Berlin had registered his address as an asylum seekers residence. One of the suspects is wanted by the Algerian authorities for belonging to IS. They claim he trained at a terror camp in Syria. Critics have long argued that Chancellor Angela Merkels open-door policy towards refugees could allow terrorists to enter Germany posing as refugees. Before we can draw more conclusions, we have to wait for the investigation of the public prosecutors office and the evaluation of the seized objects, said Berlins interior senator, Frank Henkel. We have still every reason to be vigilant and careful. Almost 1.1 million asylum seekers came to Germany last year. Meanwhile, police were out in force in Cologne today as the annual street Carnival kicked off, weeks after a string of robberies and sexual assaults on women in the city on New Years Eve, mostly carried out by foreigners. The carnival began with the traditional Weiberfastnacht festivities - when women symbolically take charge of the city. The New Years Eve crimes, carried out at Colognes main railway station, prompted a nationwide uproar, the resignation of the citys police chief and a heated debate about integration. Authorities say they are going ahead with the five-day festivities, but police numbers have been doubled to prevent similar attacks. A pregnant Spanish woman has been diagnosed with the Zika virus in what is thought to be one of the first case of its kind in Europe. Health officials said the woman had become infected after she returned from Colombia, and is one of seven confirmed cases in the country. Zika, which is spreading through the Americas, Caribbean, Pacific and parts of Africa, has been linked to babies being born with brain defects. In a statement, the Health Ministry said the pregnant woman was under supervision in the north east region of Catalonia. It added she was in a good condition but did not give any details on the condition of her unborn child. Officials said the number of cases diagnosed so far are within expectations, and there is no risk of the virus spreading throughout the country. Two more patients have been diagnosed in Catalonia, two in Castile and Leon, one in Murcia and another in Madrid. The World Health Organisation has declared an international emergency over the virus and its link to birth defects, with fears as many as four million people could be infected this year. Yesterday the NHS said people who had travelled to countries affected by the Zika outbreak had been barred from giving blood for a month after they returned home. S ubway riders in New York will be woken up by police if they fall asleep to combat a spike in transit crime. The citys police commissioner said that officers will give passengers a nudge if they are dozing to stop them becoming victims of pickpockets or sexual assault. Bill Bratton said that 50 per cent of transit crimes targeted sleeping riders and added: Subways are not for sleeping. Mr Bratton and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio stood next to each other at a joint press conference as they sought to explain the 32.9 per cent increase in transit crime since the start of the year. Overall crime is down 0.2 per cent but the rise in violence on the subways and buses has left commuters scared. At least 10 people have been slashed or stabbed in knife attacks since the start of the year compared to five over the same period in 2015. The incidents include 37-year-old Stephen Brathwaite who allegedly sliced a rider across the chin on Monday in Brooklyn after throwing hot coffee onto his back and shouting: Wanna fight? A 71-year-old woman was slashed in the face and one man with a machete attacked a woman after shouting: I will chop you up on this train! in front of horrified riders. At the crime statistics press conference Mr de Blasio tried to reassure the public that the city was safe. Addressing the media he said: Im going to ask all of you to report this very squarely. These are individual incidents. There is not a pattern here. Mr Bratton added: We dont have somebody moving around the subway system randomly slashing multiple victims. The commissioner said that sleeping passengers accounted for half of the seven crimes a day on the subway and were more of an issue that knife attacks. He mentioned the 1967 Petula Clark song Dont Sleep on the Subway and said that officers would be cracking down on people who had nodded off. He said: I know a whole lot of people are tired, they work very hard, but our officers are going to be instructed to start waking people up. You might miss your stop if youre sleeping, you might lose your wallet or your iPhone, you might be the subject of a sexual assault. So why put yourself at that risk? Even though well increase our patrols I want to encourage in this area, give us some help if you will. Mr Bratton said that one of the reasons for the rise in knife attacks - which were mostly fights between riders - was because the subway was so busy. He said: Tempers are short when you cant get on a subway car. Its actually fascinating that six million people a day ride, and its actually as safe as it is. The MTA is considering an initiative whereby career criminals could be banned from riding the subway. Mr Bratton said that those with dozens of arrests could be barred from all MTA property to stop them victimising New Yorkers but how it would be enforced had to be worked out. Earlier in the day Mr de Blasio launched a new initiative to clean up New York under which pavements will be scrubbed and litter baskets will be emptied more quickly. The mayor said that graffiti will also be targeted in an effort to make the city more livable. B ryan Cranston plans to recreate his Broadway turn as President Lyndon B Johnson in the West End. The actor won a Tony award for his performance in All The Way, which chronicles LBJs struggle to pass a civil rights bill in America in 1964. Cranston, whose latest film Trumbo is released tomorrow, told the Standard he was hoping to revive the role in London. I do want to do that soon but it will be a couple of years, he said. There are certain things going on before then. But Ive never acted in the West End and Im looking forward to it. The actor, 59, is nominated for an Oscar for his role in Trumbo, in which he plays screenwriter Dalton Trumbo. He is best known for his role as Walter White, a chemistry teacher turned meth dealer, in HBOs television drama Breaking Bad. He said he fell in love with West End theatre while shooting crime movie The Infiltrator in London last year. Among the shows Cranston said he enjoyed were the Young Vics acclaimed revival of Arthur Millers A View From The Bridge starring Mark Strong, and Claire van Kampens Farinelli And The King, starring Mark Rylance. Cranston said of Rylance: I have an actor crush on him! Watching him on stage was amazing. All The Way, by Robert Schenkkan, also features portrayals of Dr Martin Luther King and former FBI director J Edgar Hoover. Cranston won a Tony award for best actor and the show won a Tony for best play. Cranston is nominated for best actor at both the Oscars and the Baftas for his performance as Trumbo, who was blacklisted in Hollywood in the Forties and jailed for his communist links. Dame Helen Mirren co-stars as gossip columnist Hedda Hopper. D ue to the current situation with Syrian refugees, Keeping Up with the Khans arrives during a controversial time for politics and global affairs. Coming from the makers of Benefits Street and Immigration Street, the series was filmed across 15 months in Page Hall, Sheffield and follows the lives of new migrants to Britain. Starting with refugees, viewers will additionally be introduced to Roma migrants and Pakistani and White British communities in consecutive episodes. Page Hall used to house a mainly white working class community. During the 60s and 70s, migrants from the Pakistani controlled area of Kashmir arrived and prospered there with the ownership of properties, shops, and restaurants. When 1,500 Roma migrants from Slovakia arrive in Page Hall, their aim is to match or outdo the established Pakistani community. Hence, the desire to keep up with the Khans. Some of the white residents and already settled immigrants welcome these new arrivals and admire their willingness to pursue a better life. The other viewpoint can be summated by white resident Berts opinion that migrants are coming because theres an easy life for them. Landlord Steve agrees: If I were them, Id be straight over here. Wouldnt you? Much like the issue of immigration itself, Keeping Up with the Khans is bound to polarise its viewers from the outset. Haider from Lebanon, who fled to seek asylum, finds it difficult to locate the UK on a world map. Best TV dramas 2016 1 /38 Best TV dramas 2016 The Missing The addictive and twisty second series of the BBC's crime anthology series BBC/New Pictures/Robert Viglasky Dark Angel Joanne Froggatt stared as Victorian mass murderer Mary Ann Cotton in this ITV drama ITV Close to the Enemy Stephen Poliakoff's post-war drama thriller BBC/Little Island Pictures Ordinary Lies The BBC anthology drama returns with more twisted tales BBC/Red Productions/Adrian Rogers The Night Of Riz Ahmed stars in HBO's critically acclaimed crime mini-series HBO Cold Feet The classic ITV comedy-drama returns - and it's just as good as it ever was ITV Victoria ITV have given Poldark some stiff competition with this period drama about a young Queen Victoria ITV Poldark The BBC's hit drama returns with more brooding, and less naked scything BBC/Robert Viglasky One of Us The BBC kept everyone guessing with this claustrophobic four-part whodunit Ripper Street The fan-favourite Victorian police drama returned for Series 4 BBC/Tiger Aspect 2016/Bernard Walsh The Secret Agent Toby Jones led the cast in the BBC's Joseph Conrad adaptation BBC/World Productions/Mark Mainz/Matt Burlem The Living and the Dead The BBC's gothic romance debuted in full on iPlayer BBC Preacher AMC's adaptation of Garth Ennis' cult comic book is available week-by-week on Amazon Prime Amazon / AMC Versailles A raunchy royal romp around the court of King Louis XIV, spicing up Wednesdays on BBC Two Canal +/ BBC Locked Up The Spanish prison drama came to the UK thanks to Channel 4's Walter Presents series Channel 4 / Global Series Peaky Blinders The Birmingham-set gangster thriller was more popular than ever in its third series BBC/Caryn Mandabach Productions Ltd/Tiger Aspect/Robert Viglasky The A Word The BBC gave us a nuanced and emotional take on autism BBC/Fifty Fathoms Marcella Anna Friel stars in ITV's British take on the Scandi-noir thriller ITV Grantchester James Norton is back as the crime-solving vicar ITV / Lovely Day Stag The comedy-thriller from the team behind The Wrong Mans is both hilarious and chilling BBC/Des Willie/Hal Shinnie/Matt Burlem Vinyl Martin Scorsese and Mick Jagger present a glossy drama about the Seventies music industry HBO American Crime Story: The People vs OJ Simpson Cuba Gooding Jr leads an all-star cast in a dramatic re-telling of the 'trial of century' BBC/Fox Happy Valley Sarah Lancashire returned as Sgt Catherine Cawood for a second series of the gritty crime thriller BBC/Red Productions/Ben Blackall The X Files Mulder and Scully return for a brand new set of mysteries War and Peace The BBC's epic adaptation of the Russian literary classic BBC/Mitch Jenkins Call the Midwife The BBC period drama moved into the Sixties for Series 5 BBC/Neal Street Productions/Sophie Mutevelian Dickensian Charles Dickens' most famous characters collide in this historical soap BBC Jericho ITV's British western set in the wilds of Yorkshire Silent Witness The hugely popular detective drama returns for a 19th series Channel 4, 9pm More information El temor al zika amenaza con disparar el aborto clandestino en America The global public health emergency declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) over the Zika virus and its relation to microcephaly has pushed some countries in Latin America to advise women against getting pregnant. But in a region where sexual education programs are practically non-existent and around 24 million women do not have access to modern birth control methods, the WHO fears that the warnings may fall on deaf ears. The Zika virus is rapidly spreading in a region where abortions are often illegal. Only six Latin American countries allow the procedure in the case of fetal deformities, and seven countries do not even permit terminations if the mother is in danger. Health experts also fear that doubts over the risks of Zika, together with the lack of options women have when deciding about their pregnancies could lead to a rise in the number of clandestine abortions. The Zika virus is rapidly spreading in a region where abortions are in many places illegal According to a study conducted by the Guttmacher Institute, which researches sexual issues, an estimated 56% of pregnancies in the region are not planned. The figures were based on numbers from the UN Population Fund (UNPFA), which also found that 33% of Haitian women of fertile age and with a stable partner have trouble obtaining contraceptives, such as condoms and birth control pills. In Guatemala, the figure is 17% while in Argentina it is 15%. The barriers are not just economic, but also social-cultural in a region that also suffers high numbers of sexual violence cases. NGO offers free abortion pills The NGO Women on Web has offered to send free pills that induce abortions to pregnant women who are infected with the Zika virus and do not want to have their babies. The pills will be delivered to countries where terminations are illegal. Women who are less than nine weeks pregnant can ask through the internet for a doctors evaluation with the NGO. But before receiving the pills, they must send in the results of their diagnoses to show they are infected with the virus. Rebecca Gomperts, one of the founders of the organization who believes providing the pills will stop women from seeking illegal abortions, said anti-abortion laws did not stop terminations from taking place in a country. All they do is put womens health and lives at risk, she said. Women who live in extreme poverty and in rural areas are most at risk because of the lack of information they have about the Zika virus and their limited access to contraceptives, says Giselle Carino, assistant director of the International Planned Parenthood Federation. They are also more in danger of contracting Zika, which is transmitted through the Aedes aegyptis mosquito, which also carries dengue fever and chikungunya. The mosquitoes breed in areas with poor sanitary facilities and where standing water, which accumulates in places such as old tires and empty containers, is prevalent. For the moment, Ecuador, Colombia, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Honduras, Jamaica, Panama and the US territory of Puerto Rico have all asked women to try to avoid getting pregnant for up to almost two years in some extreme cases a warning that is not only insufficient but also extremely unrealistic. What they are doing is placing the entire burden on women, says Carino. Health authorities in these countries have still not introduced specific pregnancy prevention programs as recommended by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). The Zika crisis has once again put reproductive rights violations in America in the spotlight, says Monica Roa, vice president of NGO Womens Link Worldwide. Not only are there no contraceptives available and no access to abortion, but lack of information, attention and prenatal controls have also become danger signs. Women who live in extreme poverty and in rural areas are most at risk because of the lack of information they have about the Zika virus On top of that, determining if an unborn baby has microcephaly which causes cranial defects and could lead to growth development problems is also difficult, requiring an ultrasound scan at the very least. Brazil, the country hit hardest by the Zika virus, has close to 4,000 suspected microcephaly cases. Womens and reproductive rights organizations have called on the Brazilian government to relax abortion laws Once there is a diagnosis and with all the information at hand, it should be up to the women to decide whether they should continue with their pregnancy, says pre-natal diagnosis expert Pilar Martinez-Ten. Mexico, Belize and Panama allow abortions if the fetus is malformed; in Brazil, women are permitted to undergo the procedure if anencephaly the absence of major portions of the brain and skull during development is detected. In other countries, such as Argentina, abortions are allowed if a doctor decides that the pregnancy poses a health or psychological risk to the mother. Abortion is legal in Puerto Rico, which is subject to US federal law. The Zika crisis has once again put reproductive rights violations in America in the spotlight The procedure is completely banned in Dominican Republic, Chile, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua and Surinam. The Zika virus has been detected in all these countries. Experience has taught us that despite the legal restrictions, when there is an unwanted pregnancy, especially among girls, and there are no other options, they end up finding unsafe ways to abort, which puts their health and lives at risk, says Gillian Kane, an advisor with IPAS, an organization that works to prevent unsafe abortions. English version by Martin Delfin. The Emeryville commons, from the residents' perspective Gary Schaub, 79, passed away peacefully on Sunday, Jan. 31, 2016, at Heritage Estates, after a short battle with cancer. Per his wishes, cremation has taken place. A memorial service in his honor will be held on Saturday, Feb. 6, at Grace Chapel in Scottsbluff at 10:30 a.m. with Pastor Jeremy Skaggs officiating. Military honors will be provided by the United States Navy. Gary requested that memorials be given to Plymouth Congregational Church in Scottsbluff and to Alcoholics Anonymous. Online condolences may be made by visiting www.jollffefuneralhome.com. Gary was born on Jan. 20, 1937 to Jacob and Ruth Schaub, at Gentry Clinic in Gering, Nebraska. He was the oldest of three sons. He began elementary school in Scottsbluff where he met Sandra Kuxhausen (Reichert) in kindergarten. Little did they know that they would marry nearly seventy years later. He attended three years at Consumption Catholic Academy in Chadron, Nebraska, before returning to the area to graduate from Minatare High School in 1955. After graduation, Gary enlisted in the Navy and was a flight engineer until he was injured in a plane crash and honorably discharged in 1958. Gary had strong work ethics and was very successful throughout his lifetime. He began working hard as a young boy with his step-father on the family farm. As an adult, he worked at the Kern County Land Company with his good friend, John Carr, and helped build several feedlots in neighboring states. Later he went to work for Dr. Milton Green and helped develop a prescription molasses supplement that is still used today. Next, he started and operated Garys Restaurant and Lounge in Minatare, Nebraska, for five years. After selling his restaurant, he opened and operated Garys Cleaning and Restoration for thirty years. During that time, he also began investing in real estate and owned Garys Rentals. He eventually expanded into commercial real estate rentals and storage units. He renamed his business CommShops of Scottsbluff and operated it until the time of his death. In addition to work, Gary believed in enjoying life to the fullest. He loved boating and fishing and spent many days catching walleye at Lake Minatare, and enjoyed angling for salmon in other parts of the country. Gary enjoyed traveling the world and experiencing everything life had to offer. On July 3, 2010, Gary married the love of his life, Sandra Reichert, and began living the best years of his life. Gary and Sandy became snowbirds and spent the winter months RV-ing across the southern states. In the spring and summer months, they enjoyed entertaining family and friends, gardening, boating, fishing, and spending time in their backyard oasis. Gary loved his flowers and beautiful coy ponds and fountains. In the fall months, Garys passion for the Nebraska Cornhuskers was shared with many. He created his famous Husker Room filled with Husker memorabilia to showcase his beloved team, but more importantly to share with family, friends, and strangers. He loved entertaining on game days and the crowds were always there cheering, laughing, and creating bonds of friendship. Gary was proud of his many accomplishments, but one of the things he was most proud of was his 32 years of sobriety, and connection with Alcoholics Anonymous. He was a member of the Minatare Volunteer Fire Department and a lifetime member of the Elks Club in Scottsbluff, where he played many games of cards with friends. Throughout his life, Gary left his mark on the world and in the hearts of everyone he met. He was a loving son, brother, husband, father, grandfather, and friend. Gary will be missed by many. His infectious smile, sense of humor, kind heart, and generosity were shared with all. He believed in helping those in need and always had a story to share and advice to give. He truly lived by one of his favorite mottos, Life is too short to drink cheap whiskey! He was preceded in death by his parents, Jacob Schaub and Ruth Schaub-Brackman; and youngest brother, Tim Schaub. Gary is survived by his wife, Sandra L. Schaub of Scottsbluff; son and daughter-in-law, Terry and Amanda Schaub, of Scottsbluff; daughter and son-in-law, Melody and Todd Lehmann of Prosper, Texas; brother and sister-in-law, Kenton and Kathy Schaub of Minatare; stepchildren, Fred (Nancy Allen) Reichert and Terry Reichert of Scottsbluff, Tamera and Bob Wiegel of Mitchell; grandchildren, Austin Schaub, Parys Schaub, Corbin DeWitt, Hannah Cavanaugh, Connor Cavanaugh, Regan Lehmann, Peyton Lehmann, Cassie Wiegel, Bobby Wiegel, David Wiegel, Tierney Reichert, Tiffany and Andy Muhr, Kourtland Reichert; great-grandchildren, Kaidyn Patterson, Kaleb Patterson, Taylor Muhr, Jackson Muhr; and numerous nephews and nieces. Most people dont understand how technology works. Many dont want to learn. They are happy knowing they can turn on a machine and it works. When its your job to know how these things work, you need to learn about it before making any important decisions on the matter, especially when it affects millions of Americans. In 2011, Joshua Kopstein wrote Dear Congress, Its No Longer OK To Not Know How The Internet Works in Motherboard. He told Congress there was a time when it was cute they didnt understand the basics of the Internet, but since they were now tackling the topic of how the Internet works, it was no longer okay to make light of their ignorance. While I dont expect members of Congress to know how to set up a DNS server, they do need to understand the basics. Many Americans cannot drive a 5-speed, but they can describe how the process works. Kopstein wrote, ...for some committee members, the issue did not stop at mere ignorance. Rather, it seemed there was in many cases an outright refusal to understand what is undoubtedly a complex issue dealing with highly-sensitive technologies. Congress uses the Im not a nerd stance or demands bills be moved ahead without any understanding of how, or if, their bill will break the Internet. Nothing has changed since Kopstein wrote his article. Technological ignorance remains on both sides of the political aisle. In January 2015, the FCC raised minimum speeds for broadband internet from 4 megabits per second (Mbps) download/1Mbps upload to 25Mbps/3Mbps to keep pace with customer use. Internet Service Providers (ISPs) were not happy with the decision. In a letter dated Jan. 21, Republican Senators Steve Daines (Montana), Roger Wicker (Mississippi), Roy Blunt (Missouri.), Deb Fischer (Nebraska), Ron Johnson (Wisconsin) and Cory Gardner (Colorado) wrote a letter to the FCC. In part, it said 25 Mbps is too high because applications dont require it. Looking at the market for broadband applications, we are aware of few applications that require download speeds of 25 Mbps. Netflix, for example, recommends a download speed of 5 Mbps to receive high-definition streaming video, and Amazon recommends a speed of 3.5 Mbps. The senators failed to mention that one Netflix Ultra HD stream can take all 25 Mbps. The senators said they are concerned that this arbitrary 25/3 Mbps benchmark fails to accurately capture what most Americans consider broadband, and the use of this benchmark discourages broadband providers from offering speeds at or above the benchmark. These are talking points from major ISPs that consistently tell its customers they dont need anything faster. The major ISPs do something similar every time the FCC tries to regulate them. According to Ars Technica, in the net neutrality hearings last year, republicans in Congress repeated the ISP mantra that Net neutrality rules and Title II common carrier regulation were supposed to derail investment in the broadband industry. What happened instead was ISPs like Comcast posted earnings that showed its capital expenditures actually increased by 11 percent, The Verge wrote. The actual speed you receive is another problem. Internet speed in the U.S. is measured in up to amounts. According to the Wall Street Journals Is Your Internet Connection Slower Than Advertised? the majority of ISPs provide up to 23 percent slower than advertised speeds. That advertised 25 Mbps is often as low as 15 Mbps. The senators also fail to realize there is often one connection in a home, but many devices connected. A family does not simply stream one Netflix show and tell the family they cant do anything else online until that show is over. Add another person in the house gaming at the same time and a third person is going to start experiencing problems. Would these same senators be happy to share a 25 Mbps connection in the senate building? How about we limit their speeds to the 5 Mbps they think is enough and let them have the typical American experience. Congress simply doesnt understand the technology they are regulating and it appears they are happy to speak one side, the ISPs. Fischer has been on the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee since 2013 and was on the Transportation and Telecommunications Committee from 2009-2012, serving as its chair from 2011-2012, yet in all that time, she has never bothered to learn how the Internet works. According to Open Secrets, Fischer has received a total of $86,150 in telecommunications contributions from six ISPs; $20,000 from Deutsche Telekom (T-mobile); $15,250 from Comcast; $15,000 from AT&T; $13,750 from Cox Enterprises; $13,000 from Verizon; $9,150 from CenturyLink. Its not funny to be ignorant, particularly when your job requires you to have certain knowledge to make well-informed decisions for millions of people. If you are going to be making laws about Internet speeds, encryption, net neutrality and the like, then you should take the time to understand what youre talking about. While you may have heard about the research and development (R&D) tax incentive the Australian Governments tax incentive to encourage innovation you may be unsure how to apply for the incentive, or... This page may have been moved, deleted, or is otherwise unavailable. To help you find what you are looking for: Enter Search Term(s): Still cant find what youre looking for? Send us a message using our contact us form. To report a broken link or other problems with the website, please include the URL. Thank you for visiting state.gov. SUBSCRIBERS OF UCOMS ALL TIME BEST OFFER TO ENJOY ADDITIONAL BENEFITS Armenia-Azerbaijan: EU sets up monitoring capacity along the international borders PACE co-rapporteurs on Armenia concerned by reports of alleged war crimes or inhuman treatment perpetrated by Azerbaijans armed forces There is still 35% gender pay gap: Sona Ghazaryan Global Finance Names Ameriabank the Safest Bank in Armenia Mikayel and Karen Vardanyans provided 136 million AMD support for the overhaul of the Myasnikyan statue, which was in unsafe state of disrepair Believe me, as a representative of a country which uses the Schengen system very often, it is quite important. Vardanyan I really look forward to having answers from the Azerbaijani side for these alleged gross human rights violations: Secretary General I call on Armenian and Azerbaijani parliamentarians to use this Assembly as an agora of opportunities President Tiny Kox UCOMS SPECIAL OFFER OF THE UNLIMITED INTERNET IS NOW TERMLESS There is no place for the death penalty in a State that respects human rights: PACE General Rapporteur EU and CoE call on two Member States that have not yet acceded to this Protocol Armenia and Azerbaijan to do so without delay An urgent debate requested on "The military hostilities between Armenia and Azerbaijan". UCOM AND PES-PES CONTINUE COOPERATION WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF EDUCATIONAL PROJECT The statement of the meeting between Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Aliyev, President Macron and President Michel of October 6, 2022 Largest Corporate Bond Program at the Securities Market of Armenia Completed Successfully Google Ad The statement of the Defender on the video of the execution of Armenian PoWs by the Azerbaijani armed forces LEVEL UP ONLY FOR STUDENTS: UCOM OFFERS X2 AND X3 MORE INTERNET STATEMENT BY SECRETARY ANTONY J. BLINKEN This criminal act is another proof that the Armenophobia policy. Tatoyan Nikol Pashinyan, Nancy Pelosi discuss a number of issues related to the Armenian-American agenda and regional developments Delegation by Nancy Pelosi Accompanied by Alen Simonyan Visits Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi Arrives in Yerevan Armenian Revytech, global technology leader SAP and financial services software specialist SAP Fioneer sign a cooperation agreement With 120 million drams donated by Mikael Vardanyan, the defenders of the homeland will be treated in a new building OSCE Chairman-in-Office and OSCE Secretary General call for immediate cessation of hostilities along Armenia-Azerbaijan border Statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Artsakh USA Embassy Message for U.S. Citizens ANCA Issues National Call to Action to Stop Taxpayer Funding of Aliyevs Aggression Countries & Areas Search for country or area A Afghanistan Albania Algeria Andorra Angola Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Azerbaijan B Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Brazil Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burma Burundi C Cabo Verde Cambodia Cameroon Canada Central African Republic Chad Chile China Colombia Comoros Costa Rica Cote dIvoire Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czechia D Democratic Republic of the Congo Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic E Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Eswatini Ethiopia F Fiji Finland France G Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Greece Grenada Guatemala Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana H Haiti Holy See Honduras Hungary I Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Israel Italy J Jamaica Japan Jordan K Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kosovo Kuwait Kyrgyzstan L Laos Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg M Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Mauritania Mauritius Mexico Micronesia Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Morocco Mozambique N Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria North Korea North Macedonia Norway O Oman P Pakistan Palau Palestinian Territories Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Q Qatar R Republic of the Congo Romania Russia Rwanda S Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Samoa San Marino Sao Tome and Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Korea South Sudan Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Sweden Switzerland Syria T Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand Timor-Leste Togo Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Tuvalu U Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom Uruguay Uzbekistan V Vanuatu Venezuela Vietnam Y Yemen Z Zambia Zimbabwe Galust Sahakyan discusses PACE anti-Armenian resolutions with Ambassador On February 4, the Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia Galust Sahakyan received Ms Judith Margaret Farnworth, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Welcoming the guest, the Speaker of the National Assembly underlined that during the recent years, activation of bilateral political contacts had been recorded between Armenia and Great Britain, and the cooperation between the two countries had considerably risen, documenting the current level of the political dialogue and trade-economic relations, nevertheless, it is still insufficient. Galust Sahakyan has expressed conviction that there are no real obstacles for the activation of the Armenian-British relations, and Armenia is concerned about expanding the economic, trade and cultural relations with Great Britain. Galust Sahakyan in his turn has noted that he would do his utmost for the progress of the Armenian-British inter-parliamentary cooperation. The Speaker of the National Assembly touched upon the two Resolutions on Nagorno Karabakh during the Winter Session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) which, by his assessment, were distorting the reality and inhibiting the peaceful negotiation process over the Karabakh problem, misleading the international community. The Head of the parliament has noted that the Resolution Escalation of Violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and the Other Occupied Territories of Azerbaijan authored by the former British MP Robert Walter, was not adopted by voting due to PACE MPs, who voted for justice. That Resolution contained serious danger, as it was an inadmissible attempt by Azerbaijan and its co-thinkers to move the settlement of the Karabakh problem to parallel platforms, said Mr Sahakyan. The Speaker of parliament has noted that Armenia continues remaining adherent to the negotiating process going on under the auspice of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs, which observes the internationally recognized only platform of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict settlement. Thanking Galust Sahakyan for the reception Ambassador Ms Judith Margaret Farnworth also emphasized the development of the bilateral relations in the educational, trade-economic, cultural and other spheres. In terms of deepening of the Armenian-British cooperation, the Ambassador assessed the bilateral visits of the delegation at different levels between the parliaments of Armenia and Great Britain. In the course of the meeting the sides touched upon the process of the Constitutional reforms. The Ambassador welcomed the decision of the authorities of the Republic of Armenia to turn into parliamentary system. Regarding Robert Walters anti-Armenian report Ms Judith Margaret Farnworth has noted that the individuals report does not reflect the policy of the government and has added that Great Britain is for the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh problem. Thursday, 04 February 2016 15:38:57 (GMT+3) | Istanbul Prices in the local Turkish merchant bar market have declined week on week amid the ongoing weakness of demand. In the local Turkish market, merchant bar prices depending on size, thickness and region are at the following levels: Equal Angle Prices: Region Prices (TRY/mt) Price change (TRY/mt) 27.01.2016 Denizli Region (30-100 mm) 1,150-1,170 ($397-403/mt) 20 Karabuk Region (30-100mm) 1,080-1,090 ($372-376/mt) 10 Iskenderun Region (30-100 mm) 1,030-1,050 ($355-362/mt) 35 Izmir Region (30-100 mm) 1,120-1,140 ($386-393/mt) 20 Flat Bar Prices: Region Prices (TRY/mt) Price change (TRY/mt) 27.01.2016 Denizli Region (30-100 mm) 1,180-1,200 ($407-414/mt) 20 Karabuk Region (30-100mm) 1,110-1,120 ($383-386/mt) 10 Iskenderun Region (30-100 mm) 1,060-1,080 ($366-372/mt) 35 Izmir Region (30-100 mm) 1,150-1,170 ($397-403/mt) 20 NPI-NPU Prices: Region Prices (TRY/mt) Price change (TRY/mt) 27.01.2016 Denizli Region (30-100 mm) 1,150-1,170 ($397-403/mt) 20 Karabuk Region (30-100 mm) 1,080-1,090 ($372-376/mt) 10 Iskenderun Region (30-100 mm) 1,030-1,050 ($355-362/mt) 35 Izmir Region (30-50 mm) 1,120-1,140 ($386-393/mt) 20 All prices are ex-works, on actual weight basis, for February shipment and excluding VAT. It should be considered that offers below the prices ranges in question may be available, depending on the buyer and on the method of payment. $1 = TRY 2.90 Romania has become the main trading partner of the Republic of Moldova, but the wish is that it should be also the main source of investment in Moldova's businesses, the Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Moldova (CCIRM), Valeriu Lazar told the Moldovan-Romanian Business Forum held within the national exhibition "Made in Moldova." "Romania's experience, which went through the process of association and accession to the European Union, can be extremely useful both to the authorities as well as to the entrepreneurs in Moldova. In the spirit of the excellent partnership between the chamber systems of Moldova and Romania, we have tried to offer together a new platform for dialogue between the businesses in both countries in order to provide opportunities to expand bilateral business," Lazar was quoted as saying by a CCIRM release, sent on Thursday to AGERPRES.On the occasion of the said Business Forum, the Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Romania (CCIR), Mihai Daraban voiced his willingness to provide support to Moldovan enterprises through the entire business infrastructure held by CCIR.According to Mihai Daraban, bilateral trade volume 10 months into 2015 exceeded 1.035 billion dollars, whilst Moldova's exports for the first time exceeded 400 million dollars. At the same time, Mihai Daraban pointed out that Moldovan enterprises are very active in Romania, as over 4,000 companies with Moldovan capital are registered, which have a subscribed capital of over 34 million dollars.Moldova's Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Economy Octavian Calmac said that the Chisinau Government's priority is to restore confidence of the business environment and development partners through determined reforms to make up for the delays in recent years.Romanian Ambassador to Moldova Marius Lazurca said that bilateral trade reached a high degree of maturity, being diversified and with high added value. The official noted that the economies of the two countries increased in a synchronized manner and in 2014 bilateral trade volume quadrupled compared to 2009. AGERPRES Lawmaker suggests setting road tax (video) The Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) parliamentary faction lawmaker Hakob Hakobyan urges the NA colleagues not to consider the fact of taking out credit as something negative, In its essence credit is a prospect of development. Otherwise, what shall we leave to our generations? When they say that we will leave a 5 billion debt to our generations. No, we shall leave Armenia with renovated roads, which we will use today and our generations- tomorrow, he highlighted. The lawmaker thinks that after 5 years 5 billion dollars will have less value, After 20 years, when our generations begin to pay 5 billion debt, it wont be 5 billion, it will be approximately 3.8 billion. Mr. Hakobyan also suggests setting road tax, and the money collected from it will be used for reconstruction and construction of roads. There is road tax in many countries; those, who have cars, pay that tax. If we follow this principle, the tax will increase. In 1980s there were about 200.000 cars in the country, now there are about 700.000. HHK lawmaker summed up his speech with these words, Never be afraid of taking out credits, fight for using them in a right way! Otherwise we wont leave anything to our generations. Sharmazanov on not cooperating with BHK: It is BHK-2 (video) The cooperation of the Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) with the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) is not only for today. The NA Vice President Eduard Sharmazanov says, Our cooperation with Dashnaktsutyun, supposes, the expected cooperation, if there is any cooperation, first of all supposes long-term cooperation having ideological basis. Let only elections in 2017 show everyone their place, Maybe the Republican Party will become an opposition, if the people dont vote for us. Buy why does the Republican Party cooperate with Dashnaktsutyun, which gained 5 percent votes in 2012, and not with the Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK), which gained 30 percent votes? It is another BHK, it is BHK-2, it was one party with Gagik Tsarukyan, and another party without Gagik Tsarukyan. BHK faction member Mikael Melkumyan agrees it isnt 2012, besides after the events in February of last year, when Gagik Tsarukyan left the BHK, the situation changed, Now you dont have charismatic leader, now we have influence, but pretend that nothing has changed and we have the same chance, of course, no. Maybe for the same reason the Republican Party isnt interested in the BHK anymore. It is controversial, who is interested and who isnt, replies Mikeal Melkumyan. Mikael Melkumyan knows that today the BHK has rating and will surely enter into parliament in 2017; he can say how votes are distributed in Armenia, 30 percent out of 100 takes money, another 30 percent listens to the village headman, another 20 percent is administrative resource. By the way, the BHK lawmaker refrained from saying whether Dashnaktsutyun will benefit from the cooperation with the Republican Party or will lose. Updated at 5 p.m. WASHINGTON Former drug executive Martin Shkreli smirked and brushed off questions about drug prices then tweeted that lawmakers were imbeciles on Thursday, when he appeared at a congressional hearing against his will. Shkreli, 32, sparked outrage last year among patients, medical societies and Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton after his company, Turing Pharmaceuticals, raised the price of the drug Daraprim by more than 5,000 percent to $750 a pill. The lifesaving medicine, used to treat a parasitic infection, once sold for $1 a pill and has been on the market for more than 60 years. At a hearing of the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Shkreli repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which says no person shall be compelled in any criminal case "to be a witness against himself." Wearing a sport jacket and collared shirt rather than his usual T-shirt, he responded to questions by laughing, twirling a pencil and yawning. Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz, a Utah Republican, asked Shkreli what he would tell a single, pregnant woman with AIDS who needed Daraprim to survive, and whether he thought he had done anything wrong. Shkreli declined to answer. "I intend to follow the advice of my counsel, not yours," said Shkreli after Rep. Trey Gowdy, R-S.C., suggested he could answer questions that were unrelated to pending fraud charges against him. After the hearing, Shkreli's lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, attributed his client's behavior to "nervous energy." Later, though, Shkreli wrote on Twitter: "Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government." U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings, who learned about the tweet while Turing Chief Commercial Officer Nancy Retzlaff was testifying, pounded his fist on the dais. The Maryland Democrat then shouted about an internal Turing document in which a staffer joked about the price increase. "You all spent all of your time strategizing about how to hide your price increase ... and coming up with stupid jokes while other people were sitting there trying to figure out how they were going to survive," Cummings said. Shkreli was arrested in December and charged with running his investment funds and companies almost like a Ponzi scheme. He has pleaded not guilty to the fraud charges, which are not related to the pricing of Daraprim. He also stepped down from Turing and was fired from KaloBios Pharmaceuticals Inc. Cummings pleaded with Shkreli to reconsider his views about drug pricing: "You can go down as the poster boy for greedy drug company executives, or you can change the system." At one point, Brafman asked to address the committee, but Chaffetz said no. Shkreli was even asked about his purchase of a limited-edition Wu-Tang Clan hip-hop album for $2 million. "Is that the name of the album? The name of the group?" Gowdy asked. After Shkreli again invoked the Fifth Amendment, Gowdy added: "I am stunned that a conversation about an album he purchased could possibly subject him to incrimination." Shkreli was allowed to leave early after he repeated he would not answer questions. 'SUCH CONTEMPT' Representative John Mica, R-Fla., said he would consider asking fellow lawmakers to hold Shkreli in contempt for his behavior. "I don't think I've ever seen the committee treated with such contempt," Mica said. Brafman said Shkreli would have liked to discuss drug pricing but had no choice, given the criminal charges against him. Shkreli's tweet did not amount to waiving his right against self-incrimination, experts said. "The First Amendment protects Mr. Shkreli's right to post his opinion on Twitter that the Congress is populated by 'imbeciles.' This is classic political free speech," said lawyer Paul Callan. Also at the hearing, Valeant Pharmaceuticals Inc. interim CEO Howard Schiller put forward a conciliatory face, testifying that his company had changed its business and pricing tactics. "Where we have made mistakes, we are listening and changing," Schiller said during opening remarks. "In a number of cases, we have been too aggressive" about price increases. Valeant shares rose more than 5 percent during the hearing. Retzlaff testified that Turing acquired Daraprim because it was "priced far below its market value" and is committed to investing revenue into new treatments. The Federal Trade Commission and the New York attorney general are investigating Turing for possible antitrust violations. Updated at 7:50 p.m. with closing prices Hasbro and Mattel have held talks about merging two of the worlds biggest toymakers, according to people familiar with the matter, in a deal that would bring together the owner of the My Little Pony and Furby brands with Barbie and Hot Wheels. Hasbro approached Mattel about a potential transaction late last year, and the companies have held on-and-off-again talks about a deal, the people said, asking not to be identified because the situation isnt public. Details of how a transaction might be structured couldnt immediately be learned. The talks may not lead to a deal, the people said. Representatives for Hasbro and Mattel declined to comment. Mattel shares rose 1.7 percent to close at $32.29. Hasbro rose 1.2 percent to $75.90. Mattel Chief Executive Chris Sinclair is leading a charge to revive the El Segundo, Calif.-based companys Barbie business, after losing market share in recent years to Europes biggest toymaker, Lego, as well as Hasbros reinvigorated My Little Pony brand. Shares surged the most in almost seven years Tuesday after holiday results topped analysts estimates, even as gross sales fell. Hasbro is scheduled to report full-year earnings on Feb. 8, with revenue forecast to increase to about $4.4 billion from $4.3 billion in 2014, according to the average estimate of 12 analysts, compiled by Bloomberg. The Pawtucket, R.I.-based company holds the toy license for Star Wars: The Force Awakens a hit in theaters over the holiday season and said in October that sales were off to a strong start. Revenue at Mattel is set to take another hit this year as the licensing rights to Disneys lucrative Frozen and Princess brands shift to Hasbro. Last week, the company showed Barbie dolls with a wider array of options, including shorter and curvier versions.This is not the first time a combination has been talked about. Two decades ago almost to the day Mattel withdrew a $5.2 billion offer for Hasbro, citing an intolerable climate created by its competitors use of the media and politicians to fight the proposed takeover. Back then, Hasbro resisted the deal in what Mattel described as a scorched earth campaign to stop it. Should a deal succeed this time round, it would bring together Mattels strength in the girls category and Hasbros dominance over the boys toy aisle, while making the combined company a stronger competitor to Denmarks Lego, which has been growing faster than either of its U.S. rivals. A merger might not face that many antitrust hurdles because the U.S. toy industry is very fragmented, according to Jaime Katz, an analyst at Morningstar Inc. If combined, the companies would have probably about one quarter of the market in the U.S., she said. However, one hurdle to consider would be merging cultures and headquarters on opposite coasts, Katz said. Trade ministers from the United States and 11 other Pacific Rim nations formally signed the largest regional trade deal in history on Thursday in New Zealand, but the fate of one of President Barack Obama's signature economic projects remained fraught on Capitol Hill. At a ceremony in Auckland, New Zealand, the ministers hailed the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) as a landmark achievement that will bolster trade and investment between nations that make up nearly 40 percent of the world's gross domestic product. U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman represented the Obama administration. In a statement, Obama called the TPP "a new type of trade deal that puts American workers first. Put simply, TPP will bolster our leadership abroad and support good jobs at home." The signing took place three months after Obama notified Congress of his administration's intent to sign the accord, satisfying a 90-day public review period required by lawmakers. The next step is for the White House to send implementing legislation to Congress for a vote on final ratification. But after more than six years of negotiations, this final hurdle could be the most difficult for the Obama administration. Republican leaders have cautioned that a vote before the November elections could spell doom for the TPP at a time when many Americans remain uncertain about their economic prospects and leading presidential candidates in both parties have denounced the deal as harmful to U.S. workers. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said a vote should be delayed until the lame duck session of Congress at the end of the year. Such a delay could spell trouble for a pact that required difficult compromises from a dozen nations, each with political uncertainties of its own, and administration officials have said they hope lawmakers would vote by this summer. "No one should be under any illusions that, because the TPP is being signed today, an up or down vote on the agreement is imminent," Sen. Orrin G. Hatch, R-Utah, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, said in a floor speech. "If history has taught us anything, it's that this process can, and often does, take a very long time to complete. In fact, it's not an exaggeration or even all that remarkable to say that it can take years to get an agreement through Congress after it is signed." The administration had hoped that fast-track trade powers approved by Congress after a fierce debate last spring would smooth the path for the TPP. Obama discussed the trade deal with McConnell and House Speaker Paul D. Ryan, R-Wis., at a meeting at the White House this week, but no timetable for a vote was agreed upon. "I'm confident at the end of the day because of the strong benefits to the U.S. economy that members of Congress will see the benefits for their constituents and have the necessary bipartisan support to be approved," Froman said. A recent analysis from a pro-trade think tank said the accord would boost U.S. exports and wages, but it also found that 50,000 jobs per year could transition from low-wage, traditional manufacturing to high-tech industries and service sectors. The deal has been endorsed by big business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers, but most Democrats have opposed it. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said this week that the TPP "is about letting multinational corporations rig the rules on everything from patent protection to food safety standards to benefit themselves." Obama has touted the TPP, which aims to lower trade barriers on goods and services and establish new international commerce regulations, as a key component of his economic agenda and a hedge on China's growing clout in the Asia Pacific. The other TPP nations are: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. This month, Obama will underscore the accord's importance when he welcomes the leaders of 10 Southeast Asian nations including five countries involved in the TPP at Sunnylands retreat in Southern California. Ahead of the signing ceremony at the SkyCity Convention Centre in downtown Auckland, Froman and his counterparts met to provide updates on their respective domestic ratification processes. The location for the ceremony was chosen because New Zealand was the nation that first proposed a four-nation regional trade deal in the mid-2000s that ultimately evolved into the TPP. Outside the meeting, hundreds of protesters gathered to denounce the deal. In Washington, a group of House Democrats, labor union officials and environmentalists distributed to lawmakers an online petition against the pact purportedly signed by 1 million people in the United States and worldwide. "This agreement is toxic, and the American people are not buying it," AFL-CIO President Richard L. Trumka said at a news conference on Capitol Hill. "To all those on the ballot in 2016, we have a simple message: Either you're with us or you're against us." JEFFERSON COUNTY Officials in Jefferson County say a man stole a truck and crashed it, stole another truck and crashed it, tried to steal another vehicle but ran off, and stole another truck with a trailer and crashed into a car, causing both vehicles to run off the road and into trees. When police finally caught up with the man, he told them, I (messed) up. He also told them he had taken 90 Xanax, an anti-anxiety drug. The man, John M. Cullen Jr., of Cuba, Mo., was arrested after the last crash and faces several felony charges. The incident started late Sunday night, Cullen's 39th birthday. According to court documents, a Missouri state trooper first discovered an abandoned Chevrolet Silverado crashed into a tree on Bryan Road at Highway 61. It was a Missouri Department of Transportation truck and had been missing from a shed in Festus. A couple hours later, the same trooper was dispatched to a crashed Dodge Dakota on southbound Interstate 55, south of Crystal City. The truck had traveled into the center median and destroyed 21 cable median barrier posts. Again no one was with the truck. The owner lived in Festus, and said his St. Pius X High School hat and jumper cables were missing from the truck. At about 1 a.m. Monday morning, police were dispatched to a vehicle theft in progress in the 3500 block of Phyllis Road in Festus, a short distance from the interstate crash. The homeowner said he saw a man run away from his house toward the interstate, dropping several items before he ran, including the St. Pius hat and jumper cables. Shortly before 5 a.m., a white Dodge Ram with a flatbed trailer hauling a Bobcat was reported missing from the 12700 block of Waggoner Road, not far from Phyllis Road. Within ten minutes, a crash involving the truck and trailer was reported on Highway 61 north of Danby Road. Police said as the truck went south on 61, it went completely into the northbound lane and hit a DeSoto woman driving north. The impact caused each vehicle to go off the road and hit trees. The woman suffered a cut on her head, a chest contusion and fractured toes. Police found blood in the truck cab but no driver. A deputy found Cullen hiding in a ditch about 100 yards from the crash scene. He had a cut over his eye. He admitted to stealing the truck involved in the crash, and had trouble staying awake while talking, police said. He admitted to stealing several trucks, and when a trooper asked him if he struck any other vehicles during the last crash, Cullen said. I might have. I hope they are all right. Cullen was being held in the Jefferson County Jail on a $75,000 cash-only bail. ST. LOUIS For years, parents in the city have demanded more access to gifted education. Four times as many children apply as there are spots available at the citys two gifted magnet elementary schools. Children must win a lottery even to be considered. Then they must earn a qualifying score on an intelligence test. The location of the two schools about a mile from each other in south St. Louis add to a perception of exclusivity. Superintendent Kelvin Adams says its time for change. I think some people would question if its as diverse as it needs to be, he said of the districts gifted program, which is increasingly composed of white children from middle- to upper-middle-class homes. Adams told several hundred parents Tuesday at a forum at Kennard Classical Junior Academy that he would like to open a third gifted elementary school next fall, north of Delmar Boulevard. Several sites are under consideration. He wants to be more aggressive in identifying gifted children, particularly those who come from immigrant, low-income and minority families and are the least likely to be evaluated for gifted services. And he also wants more children to be included in the gifted category, by categorizing those in the 90th percentile of intelligence and above as gifted and talented, rather than just those at and above the 95th percentile. This would require a state waiver. Adams stopped short of saying his wish list is a formal recommendation. He wants parent advisory groups to give him direction in what theyd like to see. And then hed take it from there. I need parent feedback so I can move in the direction that makes sense, he said. In the gym at Kennard, parents were eager to get answers from Adams on issues ranging from curriculum to district resources to whether a second gifted middle school should open. McKinley Leadership Academy, the gifted middle school, has room for more students, he told them. By fall, all teachers at gifted schools which also include Mallinckrodt School of Gifted Education will be certified in gifted instruction. The district has funded their course work. Adams told parents at a similar forum at Carr Lane Middle School that the district was reconsidering the way it teaches students at gifted schools, by providing differentiated instruction thats more complex and based on individual student needs, rather than just teaching third-graders the fourth-grade material, for example. We are not satisfied with just acceleration, he said. A CHANGE OF FOCUS In previous years, most of Adams attention went to bringing up the lowest-performing schools in the district. Nearly all of his targeted schools have shown significant gains over one or two years as measured by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Now Adams has turned part of his focus to the districts shining stars the gifted schools, and the programs that serve the brightest children in the city. Adams concern centers on equity. To be sure, the gifted magnet schools have educated scores of black children over the years, under the direction of black teachers and principals. They regularly catapult students of all ethnicities and income levels into top middle and high schools in the district and beyond. But in 2009, court-mandated desegregation requirements expired that reserved 60 percent of seats at magnet schools for black students, give or take 5 percent. As a result, enrollment at Kennard, for instance, increasingly looks less like the district it sits in, with a shrinking black student body and an increasingly white one. Kennards black enrollment has dropped to 30 percent, from 54 percent in 2006, according to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Its white enrollment has grown to 58 percent from 39 percent during that same time. One parent at Carr Lane Middle School asked Adams if opening a gifted school in a predominately black part of the city would only exacerbate the problem. Are we going to have a system that creates more segregation, with mostly white children in the two existing gifted schools? he asked. I think people believe that happens right now, Adams said. SPOTTING TALENT Missouri defines gifted as those children who exhibit precocious development of mental capacity and learning potential who arent well-served in regular classrooms. Theyre usually the brightest students, who can feel disconnected with school if its not challenging them. They are identified through IQ tests, standardized test performance and other evaluations. The outcomes can be skewed by race and socioeconomics, which has some state education officials discussing better ways to spot student talent. Adams and district officials have said they suspect a number of barriers are keeping low-income and minority parents from having their children tested. One is the location of Kennard and Mallinckrodt, in neighborhoods that are racially mixed but historically white. Another is the testing process. The districts one evaluator can test up to five students a day, and most of those tests are conducted downtown at district headquarters. Adams wants to hire a second evaluator to increase the amount of testing being done at schools, so that transportation and parent work schedules arent an obstacle. This year, 1,358 children in St. Louis Public Schools have been identified as gifted. Most are in the three elementary and middle schools that serve gifted children exclusively. Others are in 27 district schools where a teacher pulls them from class at least once a week for special instruction. Twenty-six children are at schools where no gifted education is offered. And there could be hundreds of children who are gifted and not receiving services because theyve not been identified, district officials say. We really dont know how many, said Kipp Warr, director of gifted and talented education. Our sneaking suspicion is there are a number of parents on the north side who think Kennard or Mallinckrodt are not for them because theyre so far away. Its a legitimate concern, said Victoria Carthen, whose granddaughter, McKenzie Money, 13, was identified as gifted while at Columbia Elementary School in the early grades. Carthen had her granddaughter remain at Columbia, rather than transfer her to a gifted elementary school across town. McKenzie is now a ninth-grader at McKinley High School. Shes the sort of student who was restless in traditional classrooms, and still needs more despite being two grades ahead of her peers. Ive been asking, would someone please tell me what else is available for this kid? Carthen said. Two more federal disaster-assistance offices are opening Thursday in the metro area to help people whose homes and businesses were damaged by the flooding in December. The new locations are the West Alton Community Center and Jefferson Barracks (Park) Visitors Center, 345 North Road in south St. Louis County. Centers opened last week at Arnold City Hall and the Tri-County Senior Center in Pacific. Operating them are the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Small Business Administration, along with the American Red Cross, which helped coordinate preliminary assessments after the Dec. 30-31 flood crests. Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon said FEMA has received applications from about 2,350 households in 33 counties, including the metro area except the city of St. Louis. He said FEMA had distributed $6.4 million in grants to some applicants. Record rainfall of eight or more inches over three days after Christmas pushed the Meramec and Bourbeuse rivers to record heights, the Big River to a near-record crest and the Missouri and Mississippi rivers to within seven feet of levels during the Great Flood of 1993. The most damage was along the lower Meramec River, which rose as much as 4.4 feet above the former record flood of December 1982. The Red Cross reported 339 dwellings destroyed in Jefferson, Franklin, St. Louis and St. Charles counties, and 1,031 with at least minor damage. About half were in Jefferson County. The Red Cross said 400 more dwellings had at least minor damage in the 29 other Missouri counties on President Barack Obamas Jan. 21 disaster declaration making federal aid available to individuals. Illinois Emergency Management Agency inspectors are working in 19 counties, including Madison and St. Clair, to determine whether the state is eligible for federal help. A spokeswoman said the agency had until Feb. 12 to decide. Nixons update said almost all flood debris had been cleared from the metro area, including 4,214 tons of demolition material, and 23,000 household appliances and electronic items. Curbside pickup will end Feb. 15. FEMA spokesman John Mills said the four help centers were open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, and then 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Feb. 13, and continuing as needed except Sundays. FEMA provides grants and the Small Business Administration offers loans to households and businesses with losses not covered by insurance. People in Missouri have until March 21 to apply. Missouri is waiting to hear whether the federal government will help pay for $41 million in damage to public works, such as roads, and costs of flood-fighting in 39 counties, including the city of St. Louis. Prominent activist DeRay Mckesson filed to run in the Baltimore mayoral race before the deadline Wednesday night. The field of 28 includes 13 Democrats, four Republicans, three Green Party members and a Libertarian. Mckesson, a civil rights activist and formerly a Minneapolis school administrator, was among the highest-profile protesters during the unrest in Ferguson following the fatal police shooting of Michael Brown. The crowded Democratic field means a candidate could win the April 26 primary with only a small fraction of the vote. In deep blue Baltimore, the Democratic primary has long determined the winner of the mayor's race. Leading candidates include former Mayor Sheila Dixon, State Sen. Catherine E. Pugh, City Councilmen Carl Stokes and Nick J. Mosby, lawyer Elizabeth Embry and businessman David L. Warnock. Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake is not seeking reelection. Recent polls have showed Dixon leading the Democratic primary, followed by Pugh and Stokes. Wednesday was also the deadline to file for Congress. Candidates to succeed retiring Sen. Barbara A. Mikulski include Democratic Reps. Chris Van Hollen and Donna F. Edwards and Republicans Kathy Szeliga, Richard J. Douglas, Chrys Kefalas and Anthony Seda. In the Baltimore mayor's race, other Democrats running include engineer Calvin Allen Young III, former bank operations manager Patrick Gutierrez, Baltimore police Sgt. Gersham Cupid, author Mack Clifton, former United Parcel Service manager Cindy Walsh and nurse Wilton Wilson. Republican candidates are Armand F. Girard, a retired math teacher; Chancellor Torbit, the brother of a slain police officer; Brian Charles Vaeth, a former city firefighter; and Alan Walden, a former WBAL radio anchor. The Green Party will hold a primary election between community activist Joshua Harris, Army veteran Emanuel McCray and U.S. Marine David Marriott. Candidates have until Friday to withdraw from the ballot. Citizens have until Feb. 12 to challenge the residency of any of the candidates. The general election is Nov. 8. There are 369,000 registered voters in Baltimore, including 288,000 Democrats, 47,000 unaffiliated voters and 30,000 Republicans. There are about 1,200 Libertarians and 1,100 Greens. Statewide, there are about 3.8 million registered voters, including two million Democrats, 972,000 Republicans, and 694,000 unaffiliated voters. LONDON MARKET CLOSE: Investors cheer as Truss chased out of No 10 Thursday, October 20, 2022 - 17:12 The FTSE 100 moved into the green on Wednesday afternoon, with sterling also rising, as investors in the UK were buoyed by Liz Truss calling an end to her disastrous six-week tenure. Truss has announced her resignation after a chaotic 44 days in office during which she lost the confidence of Tory members of Parliament and the public and oversaw economic turbulence. She is set to become the shortest serving prime minister in history after she battled an open revolt from Conservatives demanding her departure. Speaking from a lectern in Downing Street, Truss said she had told the King she was resigning as the leader of the Conservative Party as she recognised she "cannot deliver the mandate" which Tory members gave her little over six weeks ago. "To use a phrase that has no doubt been exhausted in the past few weeks, markets don Wellesbourne Airfield The two were among the 19 that were approved by one of three committees at the time the land supply target was met on 22nd December, but have yet to be confirmed to the applicant by letter. Six councillors tonight voted in favour of endorsing the approval of the homes in Stratford with one councillor abstaining, and the Tiddington development was unanimously endorsed. Speaking ahead of the meeting, Emma Scott, one of the campaigners for STOP, which has opposed the Tiddington development, said: Much has changed since the original decision. The five-year supply is only one aspect that the planning committee should be considering. Last year Gallagher the same developers for this application secured planning permission, after an appeal, to build 270 houses on the edge of Tiddington at Arden Heath. She said Tiddington had already grown by 44 houses and brownfield sites more suitable for development were available. It is highly likely most, if not all, of the decisions made on each of the other 17 applications in question will also be endorsed by councillors. Among then is the first 400 of what could eventually be as many as 3,500 homes on Long Marston Airfield, which will be put back before the specially-created cross-border planning committee on 17th February. The others will be put on the agendas of the west area planning committee on 24th February or the east area committee the following day. The council must submit the results of the reassessment process to the core strategy inspector, Peter Drew, by the end of February. A spokeswoman for the council said a very short report would go to the committee for each returned item reminding councillors of the reasons why they were approved, but said the applications would not be opened up to speakers because the consultation and speaking elements were concluded when the item was first heard. But she added: In the event that the committee is not prepared to endorse as recommended then they can take a vote to have the matter re-presented in full to a later meeting, but clearly this will then miss the inspectors deadline. The applications to be reassessed are: Leys Field, Oxhill 15 homes Kineton Road Gaydon 15 homes Campden Road Shipston 95 homes Marton Road Farm Long Itchington 58 homes Southam Road, Kineton 17 homes Rear of 42 Avon Crescent, Stratford 41 homes Banbury Road Ettington 14 homes Main Road, Lower Quinton 30 homes Home Farm, Lower Tysoe 1 home Falkland Place, Temple Herdewyke 59 homes Oak Road Tiddington 60 homes 21 Waterloo Crescent, Bidford 10 homes Manders Croft Southam 51 homes Long Marston Airfield 400 homes Land adjacent to Tokoloshe, Welford 5 homes Salvation Army Hall, Stratford 5 homes Trinity Way/Yeats Road, Stratford 12 homes Stratford Road Tredington 29 homes Falkland Place, Temple Herdewyke 94 homes Wellesbourne Airfield A number of police officers were at the scene on Thursday accompanied by forensics experts. Jonathan Grixti, who lives in the house opposite, said: I went out at about 9pm last night and that is when I saw the police car. We were a bit worried when we saw that and later on there was a forensics van so we knew whatever had happened wasnt good. Afterwards a policeman came around to ask us if wed seen anything. When he came around I asked him what was going on, but he said he couldnt give us any information. There has been a police car out there all night and we were told that there would be a few police coming and going over the next few days. A fellow neighbour added: "Im not that shocked really, Ive lived here since 1997 for my sins, and theres been a few incidents here, but weve never had anything like this. I didnt see anything, I did hear noises and a dog barking last night but I just went back to sleep. There are always quite a few people coming and going from the houses around here. The deceased has not been formerly identified but next of kin have been informed. MORE TO FOLLOW Inter-American Development Bank President Luis Alberto Moreno (L) and Allianz Chief Economic Advisor Mohamed El-Erian during the Bretton Woods Committee annual meeting at World Bank headquarters in Washington in this May 21, 2014 file photo. REUTERS/Jonat By Jennifer Ablan NEW YORK (Reuters) - Mohamed El-Erian, the chief economic adviser at Allianz SE , said on Thursday that with volatility rising, the markets effectively have served as front-runners to the Federal Reserve in tightening global financial conditions. "I doubt we will see the four rate hikes signaled a few weeks ago by Fed officials," El-Erian said. "Two hikes are likely, if not less." William Dudley, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, said on Wednesday that financial conditions have tightened considerably in the weeks since the Fed raised rates. He added that policymakers will take that into consideration if the phenomenon persists. So far this year, the benchmark Standard & Poor's 500 Index is down 6.31 percent. "The Fed signaled that it is now hostage to international developments and markets," El-Erian said regarding the Federal Open Market Committee's latest statement in January. "The Fed signaled that the outlook was so uncertain, or to use (former) chairman (Ben) Bernanke's phrase, 'so unusually uncertain,' that it wasn't in a position to comment on the balance of risk. That's quite a big signal coming from the central bank." El-Erian said the Fed could possibly opt for no hikes this year. About the Bank of Japan's surprising move to negative rates, El-Erian said: "Over the longer-term, financial markets will again question whether central banks are the only game in town." (Reporting by Jennifer Ablan; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Matthew Lewis) WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia is willing to send ground troops to Syria to fight Islamic State if the U.S.-led coalition agrees, the Associated Press reported on Thursday, citing the Saudi military spokesman. Asked about the report at a briefing, State Department spokesman John Kirby said the coalition is generally supportive of having partners contribute more in the fight against Islamic State but he had not seen the reported Saudi proposal. "I would not want to comment specifically on this until we've had a chance to review it," he said. (Reporting by Doina Chiacu) By Lawrence Delevingne NEW YORK (Reuters) - Standard Pacific Capital, the stock-focused hedge fund firm led by Doug Dillard and Raj Venkatesan, is shutting down, according to a letter sent to investors seen by Reuters. "After 21 rewarding years, Standard Pacific Capital has decided to return capital to investors across all of our strategies," the letter said. "It has recently become clear to both of us that sometimes there is a logical conclusion to even a good thing. We decided that now is that time for Standard Pacific." The San Francisco-based firm, which manages between $300 million and $400 million, once controlled more than $5 billion at its peak in 2004. Standard Pacific also consults on several hundred million dollars in assets for other parties, including an association of Japanese pensions. Standard Pacific's main Global fund produced annualized returns since its start in 1995 of more than 9 percent versus a benchmark global stock return of 6 percent, according to the letter. The fund gained approximately 4 percent in 2015, a year when many stock-focused hedge funds lost money. It also gained in 2008, a rarity. Dillard said in a telephone interview that he and Venkatesan planned to initially invest their own money using a so-called family office structure and then decide what they will do next in the investment industry. It's been a good run," Dillard said, adding that "we're excited for the next chapter in our lives." (Reporting by Lawrence Delevingne; Editing by Nick Zieminski and Andrew Hay) New drone video showcases the vast range of equipment to be sold at the February 15 19 auction ORLANDO, FL, Feb. 4, 2016 CNW/ - It's not often you see 10,000+ equipment items and trucks for sale in one place. Yellow, green, red and chrome as far as the eye can seeand it's all available to the highest bidders. (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160204/329830) Ritchie Bros.' 200-acre Orlando auction site is packed with equipment and trucks from every major brand, including Caterpillar, Volvo, John Deere, Komatsu, Terex, Grove, JLG, Kenworth, Peterbilt, Freightliner and International. Every item will be sold without minimum bids or reserve prices from February 15 19, 2016. To see a new drone video of the equipment selection, visit rbauction.com/Orlando. "Ritchie Bros. offers buyers the best selection of used equipment and trucks in the world," said Terry Dolan, President (USA & Latin America), Ritchie Bros. "You'll find all the top brands at our Orlando auction, including hundreds of unused and late model, low hour items. And it's all available to view and inspect before you buy." Equipment highlights include: 425+ excavators 395+ compactors 215+ loaders 150 dozers 75+ articulated dump trucks 55+ motor graders 30 rock trucks 115+ cranes 570+ boom and scissor lifts 105 telescopic handlers 450+ truck tractors 390+ trailers 115+ mechanics trucks 2,125+ attachments, and much more Anyone can bid in person at the auction site, online in real time at rbauction.com, and by proxy. Up to 100% financing is available, with no payments for 90 days (limited time offer, subject to terms and conditions). Low-cost warranties are available to purchase on select equipment and trucks that have been pre-approved through an independent inspection. See rbauction.com/Orlando for the most up-to-date list of equipment. You can also flip through the late-edition brochure showcasing 2,000+ items added since the main brochure printed last week. Additional equipment in Tampa Bay & Panama being sold in OrlandoIn addition to the 200-acres of equipment at its site, Ritchie Bros. will also sell a large selection of equipment located in Panama City, Panama and the foreign trade zone at Port Tampa Bay during the Orlando auction. Visit rbauction.com/Orlando for more info. Luxury investment property in the Bahamas to be sold by unreserved auction Three multi-unit apartment complexes with 35 total units, along with a neighbouring buildable lot, will be sold as a single lot in this unreserved auctionno minimum bids or reserve prices. For more information about this rare investment opportunity, visit rbauction.com/realestate. About Ritchie Bros.Established in 1958, Ritchie Bros. (NYSE and TSX: RBA) is the world's largest seller of used equipment for the construction, transportation, agriculture, material handling, energy, mining, forestry, marine and other industries. Ritchie Bros. TM solutions make it easy for the world's builders to buy and sell equipment with confidence, including live unreserved public auctions with on-site and online bidding (rbauction.com), the EquipmentOneTM secure online marketplace (EquipmentOne.com), a professional corporate asset management program, and a range of value-added services, including equipment financing for customers through Ritchie Bros. Financial Services (rbauction.com/financing). Ritchie Bros. has operations in 19 countries, including 44 auction sites worldwide. Learn more at RitchieBros.com. Photos and video for embedding in media stories are available at rbauction.com/media. SOURCE Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers NEW YORK, NY -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- Krux, the market-leading provider of cloud-based data infrastructure, announced today the launch of Krux Link. Link is a connections platform serving as a natural data-as-a-service complement to Krux's core software platform. The Link service gives marketers the opportunity to find the people they care about across the large, virtual trust network Krux has built via the widespread global adoption of its data infrastructure. Scores of companies are participating in Link, including leaders like A&E, Edmunds.com, Tribune, ConAgra Brands, L'Oreal, and Annalect, a division of Omnicom Media Group. Krux Link does away with the long, complicated value chain needed to put people data to work today. Link streamlines and simplifies by creating direct connections between data owners and data buyers. Further, Link provides cost savings of 50% or more to all parties with a transparent, flat-fee facilitation model, in stark contrast to the revenue sharing arrangements and complex multi-step pricing approaches employed by others. "For too long, we have lived in a world where the exchanges and marketplaces have behaved as market principals themselves, introducing costs and complexity that technology can solve. We listened to our customers' frustration with the status quo, specifically the too-many-hands-in-the-cookie-jar problem," said Tom Chavez, Krux co-founder and CEO. "With Link, Krux provides a large, virtual trust network where data owners and data buyers can connect directly, efficiently, and without fear of hidden costs." Krux Link provides a unique peer-to-peer environment for companies that want to share data on times, terms, and conditions of their own choosing. As a participant-driven market, Krux Link offers its adopters a trusted, secure mechanism for policy-managed data transport, and, through its very design, eliminates worries about data quality, ownership, or provenance. "Edmunds.com is excited to partner with Krux in offering access to our data via Krux Link," said Paddy Hannon, chief technology officer at Edmunds.com. "We see our participation in the program as a natural step in the evolution of an increasingly data-centric strategy, and by launching this initiative with Krux, we have the peace of mind that all data transactions will be among trusted parties and conducted in a transparent and secure fashion." "As a first-mover with Krux Link, OMG gains unique access to compelling, premium data to deliver more valuable insights and more effective campaigns for our advertisers," stated Steve Katelman, EVP Global Strategic Partnerships, Annalect, a division of Omnicom Media Group. "Further, the Link partnership enables deeper and more efficient data and media activation with publishers." Link offers data across hundreds of distinct audience categories sourced from data owners globally. Link helps data owners, such as media companies, establish new data-driven revenue streams. By taking advantage of Link's secure, policy-managed environment, data owners can make their first party audience assets available to pre-approved buyers. Data owners can establish terms and timing for all transactions and always have control over how their data will be used and by whom. At the same time, Link offers data buyers access to premium consumer data at significant scale and at lower cost and lower operational burden. For buyers and sellers, Krux charges only a fully transparent CPM-based facilitation fee, regardless of transaction type or deal size. "As I speak with players across the market, they are hungry for efficient, effective data activation. Marketers and media companies want simplicity and transparency when putting data to work to inform their advertising, social engagements, email marketing, and content delivery," stated Michael Moreau, Krux chief solutions officer and general manager of Link. "Krux is answering their call to 'just handle it,' providing a complexity management layer to ensure seamless market connections. Krux Link will power no limits data activation across every consumer touch point and all delivery channels, serving as a catalyst for countless new and innovative consumer experiences." About Krux Krux helps companies worldwide deliver more valuable, more personalized marketing, media, and commerce experiences. Krux's cloud-based data platform (DMP) operates in real time, unifying people data from all screens and sources into a single view of the individual; analysing the data to understand each individual's preferences; and activating the data across any delivery channel. Monthly, Krux interacts with 3 billion browsers and devices, serves over 20 billion page views, and processes nearly 2 billion CRM records. Founded in 2010, Krux is a venture-backed company headquartered in San Francisco with ten offices across five continents. Krux clients include companies like Kellogg, ConAgra, Jet Blue, Mondelez, Time Warner, Meredith, Peugeot-PSA, and Ticketmaster, with enterprises achieving a 10x return or higher on their investment. To learn more, visit www.krux.com, and follow Krux on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Source: Krux OSLO, Norway--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Regulatory News Panoro Energy ASA (OSE ticker: "PEN" the Company or Panoro), the independent E&P company with assets in Nigeria and Gabon, is pleased to provide the following update for the Aje field operations in Nigeria. The final works on the floating production, storage and offloading vessel (the FPSO) have been completed, and the vessel has now left Singapore. The vessel is expected to arrive in Nigeria mid-March 2016, following a brief stop in Cape Town. All key equipment related to the field development has been delivered to Nigeria. Anchor handling operations in the field started in January and will continue until mid-February. The construction vessel has commenced operations and will install the subsea equipment including the manifold and flowlines during February. Once the FPSO arrives in Nigeria it will be hooked-up to the mooring system and risers and a short test of the production systems will be conducted. Panoros Chief Executive Officer, John Hamilton, said: We are excited to be approaching first oil at Aje, offshore Nigeria. Significant operational and contractual progress has been made on the final phase of field development. With the drilling phase now concluded, the installation work and the arrival of the FPSO are the main remaining work streams. The field is expected to be producing by the end of March 2016. About Panoro Panoro Energy ASA is an independent E&P company based in London and listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange with ticker PEN. The Company holds high quality exploration and development assets in West Africa, namely the Dussafu License offshore southern Gabon and OML 113 offshore western Nigeria. Both assets have discoveries with approved Field Development Plans. In addition to discovered hydrocarbon resources and reserves, both assets also hold significant exploration potential. For more information, please visit the Companys website at www.panoroenergy.com. This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160203006687/en/ For Panoro: John Hamilton, +44 (0) 203 405 1061 Chief Executive Officer [email protected] Source: Panoro Energy ASA BOUCHERVILLE, QC -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- Sandoz Canada Inc., a Novartis company, continues to expand its cancer medication portfolio with the recent launch of PrOxaliplatin Injection, which is given along with other medicines to treat advanced colon cancer. PrOxaliplatin Injection is a generic equivalent to PrEloxatin*. It belongs to a group of medicines called antineoplastics that helps inhibit the replication process of cancer cells. "This latest product launch demonstrates that Sandoz Canada is becoming an important player in the field of generic cancer medications," says Michel Robidoux, President and General Manager of Sandoz Canada. In combination with infusional 5-fluorouracil/leucovorin (5-FU/LV), PrOxaliplatin Injection is indicated for adjuvant treatment of patients with stage III (Dukes' C) colon cancer after a complete resection of the primary tumour. In addition, it is also indicated for the treatment of patients with metastatic colorectal cancer. Each vial contains 100 mg, 150 mg or 200 mg of oxaliplatin as a sterile, preservative free, aqueous solution at a concentration of 5 mg/mL. The launch of PrOxaliplatin Injection is an integral part of our overall strategy for addressing global access challenges that combines our broad portfolio of off-patent, added value medicines with novel services and corporate responsibility programs to improve access to medicines, medical information and medical capacity building. The company's other cancer drugs include methotrexate, cisplatin, topotecan, gemcitabine, paclitaxel, doxorubicin, etoposide, letrozole, anastrozole, 5-FU, and other related products such as ondansetron and zoledronic acid-Z. *Eloxatin is a registered trademark of Sanofi. Disclaimer The foregoing release contains forward-looking statements that can be identified by terminology such as "new", or similar expressions, or by express or implied discussions regarding potential new indications or labeling for Sandoz PrOxaliplatin Injection or regarding potential future revenues from Sandoz PrOxaliplatin Injection. You should not place undue reliance on these statements. Such forward-looking statements reflect the current views of management regarding future events, and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results with Sandoz PrOxaliplatin Injection to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such statements. There can be no guarantee that Sandoz PrOxaliplatin Injection will achieve any particular levels of revenue in the future. In particular, management's expectations regarding Sandoz PrOxaliplatin Injection could be affected by, among other things, new clinical data or additional analysis of existing data, unexpected regulatory actions or delays or government regulation generally; uncertainties regarding actual or potential legal proceedings, including, among others, intellectual property disputes or other legal efforts to prevent or limit Sandoz from selling Sandoz PrOxaliplatin Injection, and the uncertain outcome of any such litigation; the particular prescribing preferences of physicians and patients; competition in general; government, industry and general public pricing pressures; unexpected manufacturing difficulties or delays; the impact that the foregoing factors could have on the values attributed to the Novartis Group's assets and liabilities as recorded in the Group's consolidated balance sheet, and other risks and factors referred to in Novartis AG's current Form 20-F on file with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. Sandoz is providing the information in this press release as of this date and does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements contained in this press release as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. About Sandoz Sandoz, a Novartis company, is a global leader in generic pharmaceuticals and biosimilars, driving sustainable access to high-quality healthcare. Sandoz supplies a broad range of affordable, primarily off-patent products to patients and customers around the globe. The Sandoz portfolio comprises approximately 1,100 molecules, which accounted for 2015 sales of USD 9.2 billion. Sandoz is headquartered in Holzkirchen, in Germany's Greater Munich area. The company holds leading global positions in biosimilars as well as in generic anti-infectives, ophthalmics and transplantation medicines. For further information: Sandoz Canada Annick Lambert +1 450 641 4903 ext. 2964 [email protected] Global CommunicationsChris Lewis+49 8024 476 [email protected] Source: Sandoz Canada CINCINNATI, Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- United Dairy Farmers (UDF), the 76-year old family-owned ice cream and convenience store chain headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, is looking to add at least 50 new jobs to the community of Franklin, Ohio, in mid-February, with immediate employment available for the new location at 2585 State Route 122, Franklin, Ohio 45005. A Job Fair will be held this Saturday, February 6 at Prescott Fuels, 1226 State Route 122, Lebanon, Ohio 45036 from 8:00AM 5:00PM for all interested in joining the team at UDF. Company employees will be on hand to personally walk interested individuals through the application process and conduct interviews. Full and part-time positions are immediately available with starting pay ranging from $9.00 - $13.25 per hour dependent upon position. As an added perk, applicant attendees are invited to enjoy a FREE scoop of United Dairy Farmers Ice Cream while attending the Job Fair. "We recognize the connection UDF has with each neighborhood as we're often a more-than-once-a-day stop in our customer's busy lives. Therefore, our connection to the community begins and ends with the relationships that develop between our employees and our customers. We're excited to hire our new employees for the Franklin store and invite all who are interested to join us at this Saturday's Job Fair Event," said Bill Bales, Zone Manager of Dayton Stores for UDF. About United Dairy FarmersFamily-owned United Dairy Farmers is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio and operates more than 178 local UDF dairy stores throughout Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana. The company was founded in 1940 as an innovative retail concept for the times a local dairy store with cash-and-carry products offered at a value to its loyal customers. Today, United Dairy Farmers continues to manufacture its quality ice cream, under both the United Dairy Farmers and Homemade Brand names, in its original Norwood, Ohio dairy plant. Its customer loyalty program U-Drive Fuel Rewards continues the tradition of creating everyday value for customers. To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/udf-positions-immediately-available-for-new-franklin-ohio-location-300215595.html SOURCE United Dairy Farmers A new Honda Accord Tourer car is displayed during the second media day of the 78th Geneva Car Show at the Palexpo in Geneva March 5, 2008. REUTERS/Arnd Wiegmann By David Shepardson and Bernie Woodall WASHINGTON/DETROIT (Reuters) - Continental Automotive Systems said on Thursday it supplied potentially defective air bag control units to 5 million vehicles used by Honda, Fiat Chrysler, Mercedes-Benz, and three other manufacturers built over a five-year period worldwide, widening an air bag safety crisis.Continental Automotive, a unit of Germany-based Continental AG (NYSE: CONG), told the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that electronic systems built from 2006 through 2010 and used in 5 million vehicles may fail and air bags may not deploy in a crash or may inadvertently deploy without warning. Continental spokeswoman Mary Arraf said the recall involved between 1.5 million and 2 million vehicles in the United States. Honda Motor Co <7267.T>(NYSE: HMC) said it is recalling 341,000 Accord models from 2008-2010 to replace control units linked to failures in Continental systems. At least two injuries are attributed to the defect. Honda said it has received 1,575 warranty claims, 83 field reports and two confirmed injuries related to the defect. It also said there have been 74 injury allegations related to airbags that did not deploy but those are not confirmed. In one case, a parent in Belleview, Florida, filed a complaint that their son was injured driving their 2008 Accord last March after running into a concrete block wall at about 50 mph (80 kph) and the airbags failed to deploy, according to NHTSA records. Honda told its dealers that replacement parts are in very short supply and can only be ordered for vehicles with crash damage or with airbag issues. Honda will not have enough parts for replacement for all vehicles until autumn. Fiat Chrysler (NYSE: FCAU) said it is recalling 112,000 U.S. vehicles for the same issue, including the 2009 Dodge Journey, 2008-2009 Dodge Grand Caravan and Chrysler Town and Country and 2009 Volkswagen Routan that it had assembled for the German automaker. Fiat Chrysler has reports of as many as 25 inadvertent air bag deployments. Continental told the NHTSA the callback would also involve vehicles built by Volvo Trucks North America and Mazda Motor Corp <7261.T>. Mazda was aware of Continental's recall and investigating and VW did not know how many Chrysler-built Routan minivans are involved, according to company spokespeople. The other manufacturers could not be reached immediately. AIR BAG CRISIS This is the latest large-scale U.S. recall related to air bag problems. To date, 14 automakers have recalled about 25 million vehicles for air bag inflators made by Takata Corp <7312.T> that could rupture, emitting potentially deadly metal fragments. They are linked to 10 deaths and more than 100 injuries. NHTSA said tens of millions of other vehicles with Takata airbags will likely need to be recalled eventually. Earlier this week, Toyota Motor Corp <7203.T> said it was recalling 320,000 2003-2006 U.S. vehicles because of improper programming that could allow them to deploy when not necessary. Regulators have increased their attention after General Motors Co (NYSE: GM) delayed the recall of 2.6 million older Cobalt and other cars in 2014 linked to at least 124 deaths and 275 injuries for faulty ignition switches that prevented air bags from deploying in some serious crashes. The latest Continental recall developed over years. Continental said in documents filed with U.S. regulators it received a control unit from Daimler in January 2008 after a vehicle owner complained the air bag warning light had illuminated. An investigation found a problem with the control unit that led to a design change in a semiconductor in 2008. Continental said it built 3 million units from 2006 until the design change and 2 million after it that are covered by the recall. It did not receive any complaints after another change was made at the end of 2010 and completed in 2011. NHTSA opened an investigation in August after a complaint of a crash in a 2008 Accord in which the air bags did not deploy. In October, Daimler's Mercedes-Benz USA unit recalled 126,000 C-Class 2008-2009 models and certain 2010 GLK-Class vehicles to address the issue. (Reporting by David Shepardson in Washington and Bernie Woodall in Detroit; Editing by Susan Heavey, Jeffrey Benkoe and Marguerita Choy) BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazil wants to liberalize trade in vehicles and auto parts with Argentina and Mexico, Trade Minister Armando Monteiro told Reuters on Thursday, in a major shift away from protectionism. "Our auto industry is very competitive and will benefit from those deals," Monteiro said in a short interview. "We need to move in the direction of free trade." President Dilma Rousseff's government is moving to bolster trade to ease the pains of local manufacturers and take advantage of a weakening Brazilian real that has made Brazilian products more competitive abroad. Monteiro, the former head of a powerful trade group who will travel next week to Mexico and Argentina, has been under pressure from local auto producers who are struggling in Brazil's recession. The minister said the government's priority is to rework a bilateral auto deal with Argentina that expires in late June and advance talks to expand overall trade with Mexico. He added that the auto trade liberalization with Argentina could be gradual. Despite being major partners of the South American trading bloc Mercosur, the two countries have automobile trade quotas. A Brazilian government source told Reuters earlier on Thursday that Argentina's new center-right President Mauricio Macri has signaled he is willing to free auto trade as part of his drive to overhaul the economy. The same official involved in negotiations with both countries said Mexico needs to limit the imports of used vehicles from the United States before Brazil can fully liberalize trade. Importing cars from its northern neighbor curbs Mexican demand for Brazilian cars, the source said. Brazil was until recently one of the world's five biggest auto markets, and it remains a major base of operations for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV , Volkswagen AG , General Motors Co (NYSE: GM) and Ford Motor Co (NYSE: F). (Reporting by Alonso Soto; Editing by Cynthia Osterman) A protester sets up a barricade during a protest against Burundi President Pierre Nkurunziza in Bujumbura, Burundi, May 22, 2015. REUTERS/Goran Tomasevic/Files By Michelle Nichols and Louis Charbonneau UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - A confidential report to the United Nations Security Council accuses Rwanda of recruiting and training Burundian refugees with the goal of ousting Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza. The report by experts who monitor sanctions on Democratic Republic of Congo, which was seen by Reuters on Wednesday, contained the strongest testimony yet that Rwanda is meddling in Burundi affairs and comes amid fears that worsening political violence could escalate into mass atrocities. The report cites accounts from several rebel fighters, who told the sanctions monitors the training was done in a forest camp in Rwanda. Nkurunziza's re-election for a third term last year sparked the country's crisis and raised concerns that there could be a bloody ethnic conflict in a region where memories of Rwanda's 1994 genocide are still fresh. The experts said in the report that they had spoken with 18 Burundian combatants in eastern Congo's South Kivu province. "They all told the group that they had been recruited in the Mahama Refugee Camp in eastern Rwanda in May and June 2015 and were given two months of military training by instructors, who included Rwandan military personnel," according to the report. The Burundian combatants, which included six children, told the U.N. experts they were trained in military tactics, use of assault rifles and machine guns, grenades, anti-personnel and anti-tank mines, mortars and rocket-propelled grenades. They said there were at least four companies of 100 recruits each being trained in a forest camp while they were there. "They were transported around Rwanda in the back of military trucks, often with Rwandan military escort," the U.N. experts wrote. "They reported that their ultimate goal was to remove Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza from power." Burundi and Rwanda have the same ethnic mix, about 85 percent Hutus and 15 percent Tutsis. A 12-year civil war in Burundi, which ended in 2005, pitted a Tutsi-led army against Hutu rebel groups. Rwandan U.N. Ambassador Eugene Gasana dismissed the accusations against Kigali contained in the report and told Reuters, "This further undermines the credibility of the Group of Experts, which seems to have extended its own mandate, but apparently investigating Burundi." The U.N. report did not say why the Burundian fighters had crossed into Congo. But Russia's Deputy U.N. Ambassador Petr Iliichev said last month that there had been reports of Burundian rebels trying to recruit more fighters in Congo. "The Burundian combatants showed the group fake DRC identification cards that had been produced for them in Rwanda, so they could avoid suspicion while in the DRC," the report said. Burundi accused Rwanda in December of supporting a rebel group that was recruiting Burundian refugees on Rwandan soil, but Rwandan President Paul Kagame dismissed the allegations as "childish." The accusations by Burundi were prompted by the charity Refugees International, which said in a December report it was "deeply concerned" by claims of Burundian refugees in Rwanda that they were being recruited by "non-state armed groups". The U.N. Security Council traveled to Burundi in late January, its second visit to the country in less than 10 months. The United Nations has estimated the death toll at 439 people but has said it could be higher. More than 240,000 people have fled abroad and the country's economy is in crisis. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power said during the visit to Burundi that the 15-member council had expressed concern about the allegations of external interference. (Reporting by Michelle Nichols and Louis Charbonneau; Editing by Toni Reinhold) An aircraft belonging to Daallo Airlines is parked at the Aden Abdulle international airport after making an emergency landing following a bomb explosion inside the plane in Somalia's capital Mogadishu, February 3, 2016. REUTERS/Feisal Omar By Abdi Sheikh and Mark Hosenball MOGADISHU/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Investigators suspect the Al Shabaab militant group was behind a likely bomb blast that forced an Airbus A321 into an emergency landing this week in the Somali capital of Mogadishu, U.S. government sources said Wednesday. One U.S. government source said investigators believe the Islamic militant group Al Shabaab perpetrated the attack. However, officials said that there had been no claim of responsibility for the attack. One man was killed by the blast on Tuesday on the Daallo Airlines plane, officials said. Local authorities north of Mogadishu said the body of a man, believed to have been sucked out through the hole in the fuselage made by the blast, was found in their area. Two U.S. government sources said on Wednesday that initial forensic testing had detected possible traces of the explosive TNT on the aircraft. But one official cautioned that such tests have a high false-positive rate, and further tests are under way. U.S. government sources said, however, that as the investigation has proceeded, investigators are increasingly convinced that some kind of bomb did explode on the plane. There was no immediate comment from Al Shabaab, a Somali Islamist group that has waged an insurgency against the Western-backed Somalia government. It has carried out regular attacks on officials, government offices and civilian sites. Daallo Airlines, which did not refer to a blast, said on its website that the "incident" that caused a hole in the fuselage happened 15 minutes into the flight. "Pilots managed to land the aircraft back (in) Mogadishu Airport safely and without any further incident. All passengers, except one, disembarked safely," it said, adding there was an investigation into "the cause of one missing passenger." Two passengers were taken to the hospital with minor injuries, it added. "The investigation goes on," Somali civil aviation director Abdiwahid Omar said on the state radio website. Local authorities said the body of a passenger was found in the Balcad area, about 30 km (19 miles) north of Mogadishu. A police officer at Mogadishu airport said the body of the 55-year-old man was being brought to the capital. "He dropped when the explosion occurred in the plane," the officer said. Daallo Airlines, the national carrier of the tiny Horn of Africa country of Djibouti, had previously said the plane had 74 passengers on board. Mohamed Hussein, an agent for Daallo, told Reuters on Tuesday that a "fire had erupted" on the flight. Images showed the plane with a hole in the fuselage over one wing. A source familiar with the investigation said flammable objects are not usually put in that place in an aircraft. Some reports suggested an oxygen bottle might have been involved, but safety experts say such bottles usually catch fire rather than explode. Photographs did not show significant damage to overhead panels where such bottles are usually kept. Experts have praised the actions of the crew in landing the plane with so few casualties. Daallo flies to several destinations in the Horn of Africa and the Middle East, according to its website. (Additional reporting by Warren Strobel in Washington and Tim Hepher in Paris; Writing by Edmund Blair; Editing by Mark Heinrich, Bernard Orr) BANGUI (Reuters) - The U.N. peacekeeping mission for Central African Republic said on Thursday it has identified seven new cases of sexual abuse by its troops including women and girls Human Rights Watch (HRW) says were raped or gang raped. The latest cases, which involved at least five children, come on top of more than 20 allegations of sexual abuse and exploitation by U.N. peacekeepers in the country last year. Troops from France and Georgia involved in restoring order to the turbulent former French colony since a 2013 spike in inter-communal violence are also accused of sexually abusing children. "(I) will not rest until these heinous acts are uncovered, perpetrators are punished, and incidents cease," said MINUSCA head Parfait Onanga-Anyanga during a visit to Bambari in the country's center, where the latest alleged abuses took place. The mission's previous head, Babacar Gaye, resigned amid sexual abuse allegations by peacekeepers last August. Human Rights Watch accuses soldiers from Congo Republic and Democratic Republic of Congo of raping or sexually exploiting eight women and girls between October and December 2015 near Bambari airport. The victims were among the nearly 1 million Central African Republicans displaced during three years of violence between Christian and Muslim militias and were at the time living in a nearby temporary camp, HRW added. A 14-year-old girl said that last November two armed peacekeepers dragged her into a patch of tall grass where one restrained her arms as the other raped her. A woman said that three soldiers at the Republic of Congo base gang raped her when she visited in search of food or money. "They were armed. They said if I resisted they would kill me. They took me one by one," she told Human Rights Watch. PUNISHING SOLDIERS MINUSCA, which has conducted its own initial probe into the incidents, said it has confined 120 soldiers from the Republic of Congo to barracks and will repatriate them once an investigation is complete. It was not immediately clear if they would be replaced. Plans are already underway for the withdrawal of Democratic Republic of Congo's peacekeeping contingent from the 11,000-strong force after they failed an internal assessment. Spokesmen for the country's army and government were not immediately available for comment on Thursday. Troops from Congo Republic have in the past been accused of involvement in up to 18 alleged enforced disappearances in the country and have not yet been sanctioned. Congo Republic, whose President Denis Sassou Nguesso has acted as a mediator in the Central African conflict, issued a statement on Thursday saying the government would launch an investigation into the new rape allegations. Under the current system, the U.N. can investigate crimes and send peacekeepers home but has no power to prosecute individuals. Anneke Van Woudenberg, HRW's Deputy Africa Director, told Reuters fundamental changes to agreements with troop-contributing countries were necessary to improve accountability. "The U.N. should be able to step in. Peacekeepers are getting away with rape and killings," she said. (Additional reporting by Christian Brice Elion in Brazzaville and Aaron Ross in Kinshasa; Writing by Emma Farge; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg and Dominic Evans) An aerial view shows the Pagasa (Hope) Island, part of the disputed Spratly group of islands, in the South China Sea located off the coast of western Philippines July 20, 2011. REUTERS/Rolex Dela Pena/Pool By Karen Lema MANILA (Reuters) - The United States is open to the possibility of joint naval patrols with the Philippines in the South China Sea, a U.S. diplomat said on Wednesday, stressing it would continue to exercise "freedom of navigation" in the disputed waters. China claims most of the South China Sea, through which more than $5 trillion of world trade is shipped every year. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan have rival claims. A U.S. Navy destroyer sailed within 12 nautical miles of an island claimed by China in the South China Sea on Saturday to counter efforts to limit freedom of navigation, the Pentagon said, prompting an angry reaction from Beijing. Manila has asked the U.S. to patrol the area together after China began test flights from Fiery Cross Reef, one of three artificial islands where Beijing has built airfields. "We do discuss that principle (joint patrols) with the Philippines and so I am not discarding that possibility," U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg told reporters. "But we are not going to make announcements about that beforehand because it is our view that we have every right under international law to exercise freedom of navigation in the South China Sea and we will continue to do so." The Philippine has challenged Beijing before the arbitration court in The Hague, a case Beijing has not recognized. Foreign and defense ministers from the United States and the Philippines met in Washington last month for the second time in more than three years to discuss trade and security, focusing on the South China Sea. The United States has no South China Sea claim and says it takes no sides, though it has been highly critical of China's assertiveness. It carried out a navy patrol near areas claimed by China, Taiwan, Vietnam and the Philippines in October. (Reporting by Karen Lema; Editing by Nick Macfie) White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest speaks during a briefing at the White House in Washington December 2, 2015. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas CATONSVILLE, Md. (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama will continue to be updated on the risks of the spread of Islamic State to Libya, and the United States will take action in the North African country to counter that threat if necessary, the White House said on Wednesday. "If there is a need for the United States to take unilateral action to protect the American people, the president won't hesitate to do that," White House spokesman Josh Earnest told reporters. Earnest declined to comment on whether Obama had made any decisions on the possibility of sending ground troops into Libya, but said the president has "demonstrated a willingness to take decisive action," even in Libya. Islamic State forces have attacked Libya's oil infrastructure and established a foothold in the city of Sirte, exploiting a power vacuum in the country where two rival governments have been battling for supremacy. Libya's two warring administrations are expected to form a unity government. Earnest said the United States would support the unity government on a range of national security measures, but it was too early to say what form that assistance would take. "The more that we can bolster the capacity of the national unity government to govern that country, the better off we will be," he said. (Reporting by Roberta Rampton; Editing by Mohammad Zargham and Richard Chang) FORM 6-K U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Washington, D.C. 20549 REPORT OF FOREIGN PRIVATE ISSUER PURSUANT TO RULE 13a-16 OR 15d-16 OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 dated February 4, 2015 BRASILAGRO COMPANHIA BRASILEIRA DE PROPRIEDADES AGRICOLAS (Exact Name as Specified in its Charter) BrasilAgro Brazilian Agricultural Real Estate Company U (Translation of Registrants Name) 1309 Av. Brigadeiro Faria Lima, 5th floor, Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo 01452-002, Brazil U (Address of principal executive offices) Julio Cesar de Toledo Piza Neto, Chief Executive Officer and Investor Relations Officer, Tel. +55 11 3035 5350, Fax +55 11 3035 5366, [email protected] 1309 Av. Brigadeiro Faria Lima, 5 th floor Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo 01452-002, Brazil U ( Name, Telephone, E-mail and/or Facsimile number and Address of Company Contact Person) Indicate by check mark whether the registrant files or will file annual reports under cover Form 20-F or Form 40-F. Form 20-F x Form 40-F o Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(1): U Indicate by check mark if the registrant is submitting the Form 6-K in paper as permitted by Regulation S-T Rule 101(b)(7): U Indicate by check mark whether by furnishing the information contained in this Form, the registrant is also thereby furnishing the information to the Commission pursuant to Rule 12g3-2(b) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Yes o No x If Yes is marked, indicate below the file number assigned to the registrant in connection with Rule 12g3-2(b): Not applicable. Earnings Release For the quarter ended December 31, 2015 Sao Paulo, February 03, 2016 BrasilAgro (BM&FBOVESPA: AGRO3) (NYSE: LND), the Brazilian leader in acquiring, developing and selling rural properties that offer high potential for price appreciation in Brazil, announces its consolidated results for the quarter ended December 31, 2015. The consolidated quarterly information is prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Highlights Net Revenue of R$100.0 million in 6M16. Net Income of R$45.8 million in 6M16. Adjusted EBITDA of R$18.3 million in 6M16. Supply of 1.0 million tons of sugarcane during 2015 calendar year. Message from Management We ended the first half of the 2015/2016 harvest year ("6M16") with Net Income of R$45.8 million, Adjusted EBITDA of R$18.3 million and Net Revenue of R$100.0 million, reflecting the sale of 49,500 tons of grains (soybean and corn) and 745,000 tons of sugarcane in the period and a financial result of R$64.7 million. Regarding operating activities, we concluded the planting of approximately 42,000 hectares of properties in Brazil divided among soybean, sorghum, sugarcane and pasture. In addition, we are finalizing the planting of corn and brachiaria (cover crop) in more than 9,000 hectares, amounting to a total area of 51,000 hectares in the 15/16 harvest. In Paraguay, we planted 8,600 hectares, divided among soybean, corn and brachiaria (cover crop) and 2,500 hectares of pasture, amounting to a total area of 11,200 hectares in the 15/16 harvest. 6M16 was also marked by the end of the 6th year supply of sugarcane, with 1.0 million tons, in a harvested area of 11,000 hectares and yield of 96.01ton/ha with a net margin of R$ 1,900 per hectare. In December 2015, we held the BrasilAgro Day, an event that brought together more than 60 investors and was attended by all the directors. The sectors outlook for the coming harvests and our plans for the next years were discussed at the event. Despite the challenging period in the macroeconomic environment, we are well positioned to seize opportunities in the sector and achieve a position of even greater prominence in Brazils agricultural sector. 2 | Release 2Q16 Operating Performance Development of Area We are going through the transformation process of approximately 6,000 hectares in Brazil and Paraguay. Property Portfolio On the date of this release, the Companys property portfolio consisted of 253,342 hectares across five Brazilian states and Paraguay, as shown in the table below: Farms Location Aquisition Date Project Total Area Arable Area ha ha 1 Fazenda Jatoba 100%Owned Barreiras/BA Mar / 07 Graos e Algodao 31,606 23,680 2 Fazenda Alto Taquari 100%Owned Alto Taquari/MT Ago / 07 Cana-de-acucar 5,395 3,666 3 Fazenda Araucaria 100%Owned Mineiros/GO Abr / 07 Cana-de-acucar 8,124 5,982 4 Fazenda Chaparral 100%Owned Correntina/BA Nov / 07 Graos e Algodao 37,182 26,498 5 Fazenda Nova Buriti 100%Owned Januaria/MG Dez / 07 Floresta 24,211 19,004 6 Fazenda Preferencia 100%Owned Barreiras/BA Set / 08 Graos e Pasto 17,799 14,229 7 Fazenda Parceria II Leasing Ribeiro Goncalves/PI Nov / 13 1 Graos 7,455 7,455 8 Fazenda Parceria III Leasing Alto Taquari/MT Mai / 15 2 Cana-de-acucar 4,263 4,263 9 Cresca 50%Owned Boqueron/Paraguai Dez / 13 3 Graos e Pasto 117,307 58,654 Total 253,342 163,431 1- BrasilAgro entered into an agricultural exploration partnership in the Parceria II Farm for up to 11 harvests. involving up to 10,000 hectares. 2- BrasilAgro entered into an agricultural exploration partnership in the Parceria III Farm potentially up to March 31, 2026. 3- Total property area, BrasilAgro has a 50% equity interest in Cresca S.A. Agricultural Operations The table below shows the breakdown of planted area by farm: Planted Area Sugarcane Soybean Corn Pasture Other Total Jatoba Farm 8,762 1,925 1,823 12,510 Alto Taquari Farm 3,190 3,190 Araucaria Farm 4,020 4,020 Chaparral Farm 10,121 14,294 Preferencia Farm 6,566 6,566 Partnership II Farm 4,928 7,400 Partnership III Farm 3,093 3,093 Total 15/16 10,303 23,811 1,925 6,566 1,823 51,073 Grains We planted 23,811 hectares of soybeans, 1,004 hectares of sorghum and are finalizing the planting of 4,397 hectares of corn at the Jatoba, Chaparral and Parceria II Farms. 3 | Release 2Q16 We reduced by 7,400 hectares the area initially estimated for soybean crop (31,203 hectares) due to the drought during the planting period, approximately 2,400 hectares of this area will be planted with corn and 4,990 hectares with cover crops (brachiaria). The graphs below show the rainfall in the region: Sugarcane During 2Q16, we ended the 6th year supply of sugarcane, delivering 1.0 million tons. The Alto Taquari, Araucaria and Parceria III Farms are planted with 10,303 hectares of sugarcane. The chart below shows the sugarcane results: January 1 to December 31 Sugarcane harvest year results 2014 2015 Tons harvested 723,593 1,032,956 Hectares harvested 7,141 10,759 TCH - Harvested Tons per Hectares 101.33 96.01 Pasture The Preferencia Farm has 6,566 hectares of pasture, which are leased to third parties for cattle raising. 4 | Release 2Q16 Financial Performance The consolidated financial statements were prepared and are being presented in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) issued by the International Accounting Standards Board. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA EBITDA (R$ thousand) 2Q16 2Q15 Change 6M16 6M15 Change Gross Profit 9,500 1,472 545.4% 22,031 9,426 133.7% Selling expenses (269) 477 n.a. (895) (371) 141.2% General and administrative expenses (6,820) (6,336) 7.6% (13,911) (13,412) 3.7% Other operating income/expenses, net 1,270 (4,237) n.a. 1,185 (5,580) n.a. Depreciation and amortization 5,005 2,719 84.1% 10,998 9,337 17.8% EBITDA 8,686 (5,905) n.a. 19,408 (600) n.a. Adjusted EBITDA (R$ thousand) 2Q16 2Q15 Change 6M16 6M15 Change Gross Profit 9,500 1,472 545.4% 22,031 9,426 133.7% Elimination of gains on biological assets (grains and sugarcane planted) 2,432 3,271 -25.7% 4,719 (180) n.a. Selling expenses (269) 477 n.a. (895) (371) 141.2% General and administrative expenses (6,820) (6,336) 7.6% (13,911) (13,412) 3.7% Other operating income/expenses, net 1,270 (4,237) n.a. 1,185 (5,580) n.a. Derivatives Results - - n.a. (1,748) 2,219 n.a. Adjusted Depreciations 1 2,752 2,821 -2.4% 8,539 6,826 25.1% EBITDA Cresca 2 (973) (637) 52.7% (1,649) 3,360 n.a. Adjusted EBITDA 7,892 (3,169) n.a. 18,272 2,288 698.6% 1- Adjusted Depreciation includes depreciation of harvested grains and sugarcane. 2- Considers 50% of Crescas EBITDA. EBITDA is calculated as gross profit adjusted by general, administrative, and selling expenses, other operating revenue and depreciation expenses. Adjusted EBITDA was calculated by excluding biological assets in progress (sugarcane and grains) and adjusting for the harvests derivative results and depreciation expenses, including depreciation of fixed assets of the farms and administrative installations, developed areas and permanent crops. 5 | Release 2Q16 Income Statement Net Revenue from the Sale of Agricultural Products Net Revenue (R$ thousand) 2Q16 2Q15 Change 6M16 6M15 Change Total 26,544 21,253 24.9% 88,119 71,962 22.5% Soybean 2,097 2,370 -11.5% 18,556 19,616 -5.4% Corn 452 5,274 -91.4% 9,999 12,217 -18.2% Sugarcane 22,650 12,297 84.2% 57,048 37,615 51.7% Leasing 322 112 186.9% 848 430 97.4% Services 84 125 -32.7% 318 262 21.7% Others 940 1,073 -12.4% 1,350 1,823 -26.0% Tons 2Q16 2Q15 Change 6M16 6M15 Change Total 233,622 232,122 0.6% 795,108 650,933 22.1% Soybean 1,224 3,478 -64.8% 18,352 22,179 -17.3% Corn 1,122 17,241 -93.5% 31,074 40,190 -22.7% Sugarcane 231,259 211,321 9.4% 744,903 588,432 26.6% Others 17 82 -79.2% 779 132 n.a In 2Q16, net revenue from sales totaled R$26.5 million, an increase of 24.9% over the same period in the previous year. Soybean revenue fell by 5.4% in 6M16 compared to the previous year, from R$19.6 million, from the sale of 22,200 tons at R$884.42 per ton, to R$18.5 million, from the sale of 18,400 tons at R$1,011.15 per ton. Corn revenue fell by 18.2% in 6M16 compared to the previous year, from R$12.2 million, from the sale of 40,200 tons at R$303.98 per ton, to R$9.9 million from the sale of 31,000 tons at R$321.76 per ton. Sugarcane revenue increased by 51.7% in 6M16 compared to the previous year, from R$37.6 million, from the sale of 588,400 tons at R$63.92 per ton, to R$57.0 million from the sale of 745,000 tons at R$76.58 per ton. The increase in the per-ton sugarcane price was due to the 2% increase in the amount of TRS (total recoverable sugar) per ton harvested, from 138.46 kg/ton in 6M15, to 141.71 kg/ton in 6M16. Leasing revenue in 6M16 totaling R$848,000 came from the leasing to third parties of areas in the Preferencia and Jatoba (terminated in July 2015), net of taxes and PIS and Cofins on inter-company leasing. Revenue from services of R$318,000 in 6M16 came from an advisory services provision agreement related to the development of land owned by Cresca. Gains or Losses of Agricultural Products and Biological Assets Biological Assets and Agricultural Products (R$ thousand) Gain / Loss in Soybean 15/16 Corn(1) 15/16 Corn(2) 14/15 Sugarcane 12/31/2015 Gain and loss on agricultural products - 245 12,964 13,209 Gain and loss on biological assets 2,509 209 (255) (4,464) (2,001) Change on biological assets fair value 2,509 209 (10) 8,501 11,208 (1) Crop (2) Second Crop. Gains or losses from the variation in the fair value of agricultural products are determined by the difference between their harvested volume at market value (net of selling expenses and taxes) and the production costs incurred (direct and indirect costs, leasing and depreciation). Harvested agricultural products are measured at their value at the time of harvest considering the market price of the area of each farm. 6 | Release 2Q16 Agrocultural Products (R$ thousand) Corn (crop) 15/16 Sugarcane Gain / Loss in 12/31/15 Area (hectares) 1,787 8,440 10,227 Prodution (Tons) 7,127 791,185 798,312 Productivity (Ton./ha) 3.99 93.74 78.06 Fair value (R$) 1,985 53,982 55,967 Cost of Production (R$) (1,740) (41,018) (42,758) Gain and loss on agricultural products (R$) 245 12,964 13,209 Biological assets correspond to agricultural products in formation (not yet harvested), measured at the net present value of the expected cash flow from these products. The calculation of fair value considers the best estimates in relation to sales prices, discount rates, direct and indirect costs, leasing, yields and selling expenses. Gains or losses from the variation in the fair value of biological assets are determined by the difference between their fair value and their book value. Book value includes investments and costs effectively incurred until the moment of appraisal, as well as write-offs arising from the harvesting of the agricultural products. Since sugarcane crops consist of various harvest cycles, changes in the assumptions regarding these factors may affect the recognized fair value of the biological assets. The table below shows the results of the sugarcane harvest: Year ended in June 30, 2015 Crop 2014 Crop 2015 Total Net Revenues 38,876 14,049 52,925 Cost of sales (37,378) (15,421) (52,799) Gain (loss) of agriculture products 5,146 3,183 8,329 Profit 6,645 1,811 8,455 Tons harvest 588,432 241,771 830,203 Year ended in December 31, 2015 Crop 2014 Crop 2015 Total Net Revenues 57,048 57,048 Cost of sales (51,081) (51,081) Gain (loss) of agriculture products 12,964 12,964 Profit - 18,931 18,931 Tons harvest 791,185 791,185 Impairment A provision to adjust inventories at the net realized value of agricultural products is constituted when the fair value of the inventory is higher than the realized value. The realization value is the sales price estimated during the normal course of business less estimated selling expenses. On December 31, 2015, the amount recognized corresponded to a reversal of R$770,000, due to the period increase in the market price of corn. 7 | Release 2Q16 Cost of Goods Sold (R$ thousand) 2Q16 2Q15 Change 6M16 6M15 Change Total of cost of goods sold (23,369) (21,848) 7.0% (78,066) (70,403) 10.9% Soybean (1,021) (2,532) -59.7% (15,713) (19,481) -19.3% Corn (182) (4,612) -96.1% (8,929) (11,030) -19.0% Sugarcane (20,759) (13,207) 57.2% (51,081) (37,439) 36.4% Leasing (902) (1,027) -12.2% (1,729) (1,888) -8.4% Others (505) (471) 7.4% (614) (566) 8.6% In 6M16, the cost of goods sold (COGS) came to R$78.0 million. Due to the fair value adjustments of agricultural products, period changes in costs are directly linked to the market price of commodities at the time of harvest. In 6M16, total soybean COGS decreased by 19.3% year-over-year, from R$19.4 million, from the sale of 22,200 tons at R$878.34 per ton, to R$15.7 million from the sale of 18,400 tons at R$856.22 per ton. Total corn COGS moved down by 19.0% in 6M16 over the previous year, from R$11.0 million, from the sale of 40,200 tons at R$274.45 per ton, to R$8.9 million from the sale of 31,000 tons at R$287.34 per ton. Total sugarcane COGS increased by 36.4% in 6M16 over the previous year, from R$37.4 million, from the sale of 588,400 tons at R$63.62 per ton, to R$51.0 million from the sale of 745,000 tons at R$68.57 per ton. Selling Expenses (R$ thousand) 2Q16 2Q15 Change 6M16 6M15 Change Selling expenses (269) 477 n.a. (895) (371) 140.9% Freight - (50) -100.0% (25) (195) -87.0% Storage and Processing (264) (338) -21.9% (827) (714) 15.8% Others (5) 866 n.a. (42) 538 n.a. In the six months period ended on December 31, 2015, selling expenses totaled R$895,000, an increase of 141.6% over the previous year. The variation in other selling expenses is mainly related to the reversal of the provision of soybean sales onerous contracts recorded in 6M15, amounting to R$579,000. General and Administrative Expenses (R$ thousand) 2Q16 2Q15 Change 6M16 6M15 Change General and administrative expenses (6,820) (6,336) 7.6% (13,911) (13,412) 3.7% Depreciations and amortizations (196) (335) -41.5% (409) (671) -39.0% Personnel expenses (4,008) (3,354) 19.5% (9,021) (7,755) 16.3% Expenses with services provider (941) (1,540) -38.9% (1,372) (2,454) -44.1% Leases and Rents (126) (129) -2.3% (364) (361) 0.8% Others expenses (1,549) (978) 58.4% (2,745) (2,171) 26.4% In 6M16, general and administrative expenses grew by 3.7% over the same period in the previous year, from R$13.4 million to R$13.9 million. The increase of 16.3% in personnel expenses resulted from the payment of the difference between actual bonus payments and the amount provisioned, and higher expenses with health care, which was adjusted in October 2015. 8 | Release 2Q16 The reduction of 44.1% in expenses from services provided was mainly due to the renegotiation of service provision contracts. Other expenses primarily refer to expenses with travel, telephone, building maintenance and systems, among others. Other Operating Income / Expenses (R$ thousand) 2Q16 2Q15 Change 6M16 6M15 Change Other operating income/expenses 1,270 (4,237) n.a. 1,185 (5,580) n.a. Gain/Loss on sale of fixed assets 114 (261) n.a. 99 (1,059) n.a. Provisions for lawsuits (133) (2,084) -93.6% (1,173) (2,633) -55.4% Alto Taquari Farm 1,239 - n.a. 2,277 - n.a. Others 50 (1,892) n.a. (18) (1,889) -99.0% In 6M16, we recognized other operating income of R$1.2 million, mainly referring to the discount obtained in the balance payable of the Alto Taquari Farm the amount of R$2.3 million. In 2Q16, the reversal of the provision for expenses related to the environmental regularization process of the Alto Taquari Farm was held, estimated at approximately R$1.2 million, which had been provisioned in the first quarter. In 6M15, we recognized other operating expenses of R$5.6 million. This amount is mainly due to: (i) the dissolution regarding the agricultural partnership contract in Bahia (ended in June 2014); (ii) the partial write-off of intangible assets from the sale of 24,624 hectares related to the Cresca land and exploration rights contract and (iii) the provision for losses on income tax compensatory credits regarding the 2009 calendar year. Financial Result (R$ thousand) 2Q16 2Q15 Change 6M16 6M15 Change Interest (i) (1,156) (1,929) -40.1% (2,346) (4,905) -52.2% Monetary variations (ii) (18) (705) -97.4% (684) (1,393) -50.9% Foreign exchange variations on liabilities (iii) (906) 2,311 n.a. 11,132 2,369 369.9% Unwind of present value adjustment (iv) (839) 6,782 n.a. 4,597 5,562 -17.3% Results with derivatives (v) (2,249) 3,193 n.a. 36,803 10,683 244.5% Other financial income / expenses (vi) 6,347 714 788.9% 15,181 3,691 311.3% Total 1,179 10,366 -88.6% 64,683 16,007 304.1% The consolidated financial result is composed of the following items: (i) interest on financing; (ii) the impact of the monetary variation on the amount payable from the acquisition of the Alto Taquari and Nova Buriti Farms; (iii) the impact of the U.S. dollar exchange variation on the offshore account and Crescas receivables, (iv) the present value of Cremaq, Araucaria and Sao Pedro Farms sales receivables, fixed in soybean bags; (v) the result from hedge operations; and (vi) bank fees and expenses and returns on cash investments with the FIM Guardian fund and Banco Itau. Monetary variations refer to the amount payable for the acquisition of the Nova Buriti Farm, which is adjusted by the IGPM general market price index. Foreign exchange variations refer to margin deposits as collateral for derivative transactions with offshore brokerage houses and Crescas receivables. The reduction in the gain (loss) line was mainly due to the impact of the adjustment to fair value of receivables from farms denominated in soybean. 9 | Release 2Q16 The derivatives result mainly reflects the impact of the exchange variation on cash, which was partially dollarized in order to maintain purchasing power in regard to inputs, investments and new acquisitions, which have a positive correlation with the U.S. currency. Derivative Operations Our risk policy primarily aims to hedge the companys cash flow. In this context, we are concerned not only with the main components of our revenue, but also the main components of our production costs. We therefore monitor on a daily basis: a) the international prices of the main agricultural commodities produced by the company, usually expressed in U.S. dollars; b) the base premium, i.e. the difference between the international and domestic commodity price; c) exchange rates; and d) the prices of the main components such as freight, fertilizers and chemicals, that can significantly impact costs. The points analyzed when deciding on the price and margin hedging strategy and tools are listed below: Estimated gross margin based on the current price scenario. Standard deviation from the estimated gross margin for different pricing strategy scenarios. Analysis of the estimated gross margin in stress scenarios for different hedge strategies. Comparison between current estimates and the Companys budget. Comparison of the estimated gross margin and the historical average. Market expectations and trends. Tax aspects. Hedge Position on January 29, 2016. Crop Soybean FX Volume 1 %de hedge 2 Price (USD/bu.) Volume ('000) %de hedge 3 BRL/USD 15/16 75,123 ton 52.87% 9.37 U$ 22,150 61.95% 4.01 1- Net production volume estimated + receivables from farm sales. 2- Percentage of volume in tons of soybean locked in. 3- Percentage of expected revenue in USD. 10 | Release 2Q16 Balance Sheet Cash and Cash Equivalents Cash and Cash equivalents 12/31/2015 06/30/2015 Change Cash and Cash equivalents 119,443 75,620 58.0% Cash and Banks 10,230 12,560 -18.6% Repurchase agreements 94,666 26,302 259.9% Bank deposit certificates 14,547 36,758 -60.4% Markable securities 66,674 273,258 -75.6% Not exclusive investment funds quotas 19,195 69,300 -72.3% Restricted financial investments 47,479 203,958 -76.7% Total 186,117 348,878 -46.7% The Company ended the period with a cash position of R$186.1 million, down 46.7% compared to June 30, 2015. This reduction is mainly due to the payment of R$80.6 million in dividends, the payment of the Alto Taquari Farm totaling R$27.4 million, the amortization of loans and financing amounting to R$49.5 million and tax payment totaling R$17.9 million. Securities refer to investments in the exclusive FIM GUARDIAM investment fund, managed by BTG Pactual. Indebtedness The table below shows our short and long-term loans and financing position on June 30, 2015 and December 31, 2015. Expiration Loans and Financing (R$ thousand) (Position in Annual Interest Tax - % 12/31/2015 6/30/2015 Change 12/31/2015) Short term Financiamento de Custeio Agricola Jul-16 7,51 to 15,12 2,429 25,595 -90.5% TJLP + 3,45 and 4,45 / SELIC + 3,45 / Pre 4,00 to Financiamento Projeto Bahia Dec-16 12,287 9,469 29.8% 8,50 Capital de Giro Sep-15 1,6905 + Monetary Var. / CDI 83,48 - 9,898 -100.0% Financiamento de Maquinas e Equipamentos Nov-16 TJLP + 5,50 to 8,70 462 943 -51.0% Financiamento de cana-de-acucar Aug - 16 TJLP + 3,00 to 4,00 14 1,620 -99.1% Arrendamento Financeiro Canavial - Parceria III Nov - 16 6.92% 2,990 3,375 -11.4% 18,182 50,900 -64.3% Long term Financiamento de cana Feb - 20 TJLP + 3,00 to 4,40 1,745 1,716 1.7% Financiamento de Maquinas e Equipamentos Nov-16 TJLP + 5,50 to 8,70 - 113 -100.0% TJLP + 3,45 and 4,45 / SELIC + 3,45 / Pre 4,00 to Financiamento Projeto Bahia Oct-20 46,055 53,149 -13.3% 8,50 Arrendamento Financeiro Canavial - Parceria III Nov-18 6.92% 2,446 4,201 -41.8% 50,246 59,179 -15.1% Total 68,428 110,079 -37.8% The bulk of the Companys debt is denominated in Reais and its characteristics and conditions are defined in agreements with government development banks, which transfer the loans either directly or indirectly. On June 30 and December 31, 2015, the balance of loans and financing was R$110.0 million and R$68.4 million, respectively. The reduction is due to amortizations totaling R$49.5 million. 11 | Release 2Q16 On September 17, 2015 the title deed of the Alto Taquari Farm was executed, triggering full payment of the property on the same date. On December 31, 2015, the balance of accounts payable on acquisitions was R$21.0 million and refer to the amount payable for the acquisition of the Nova Buriti Farm, which is adjusted by the IGPM general market price index. Acquisitions payable (R$ thousand) 12/31/2015 06/30/2015 Change Alto Taquari Farm - 29,023 -100.0% Nova Buriti Farm 21,007 19,817 6.0% Total 21,007 48,840 -57.0% Properties for Investment The fundamental pillars of the Companys business strategy are the acquisition, development, exploration and sale of rural properties suitable for agricultural activities. The Company acquires rural properties with significant potential for generating value, subsequently holding the assets and carrying out profitable agricultural activities on them. Once we acquire our rural properties, we begin to implement high-value-added crops and to transform these rural properties by investing in infrastructure and technology, while also entering into lease agreements with third parties. In line with our strategy, when we deem a rural property has reached its optimal value, we sell it to capture the capital gains. The rural properties acquired by the Company are booked at their acquisition cost, which does not exceed their realized net value, and are recognized under Non-Current Assets. Properties for investment are evaluated at their historical cost, plus investments in buildings, improvements and the clearing of new areas, less accrued depreciation, in accordance with the same criteria detailed for fixed assets. Farm Acquisition value Buildings and improvements Opening area Construction in progress Properties for Investment Initial Balance 202,447 13,084 61,745 11,071 288,347 In June 30, 2015 Acquisitions 1,912 4 25 3,425 5,366 Reductions - - - (12) (12) (-) Depreciation/ Amortization - (348) (5,271) - (5,619) In December 31, 2015 204,359 12,740 56,499 14,484 288,082 On December 31, 2015, we recorded R$1.9 million in properties value related to expenses and taxes payment with the transfer of the title deed of the Alto Taquari Farm and R$3.4 million in ongoing construction work, which are expenses, with opening area and construction of the silo in Bahia. Cresca will be booked as a joint venture and therefore recognized as an investment and its result as equity income. 12 | Release 2Q16 CAPEX Opening Area The table below shows the breakdown of investments made in our properties: (R$ thousand) 2Q16 2Q15 Change 6M16 6M15 Change Maintenance 740 1,764 -58.0% 740 2,407 -69.2% Opening 709 3,922 -81.9% 594 13,185 -95.5% Total 1,449 5,686 -74.5% 1,335 15,591 -91.4% Depreciation Opening Area The table below shows the breakdown of the depreciation of opening area: (R$ thousand) 2Q16 2Q15 Change 6M16 6M15 Change Maintenance (503) (510) -1.5% (1,011) (1,093) -7.6% Opening (2,131) (2,605) -18.2% (4,260) (5,149) -17.3% Total (2,633) (3,116) -15.5% (5,271) (6,242) -15.6% 13 | Release 2Q16 Cresca S.A. - Paraguay Operating Performance Cresca has a total area of 117,307 hectares, 58,654 of which arable. BrasilAgro retains a 50% share of Crescas capital and is responsible for all the operational management of the property through a Management Fee contract. The property has 2,700 hectares under development and during the second quarter we planted 8.677 hectares, which represents 62% of the budgeted area for the 15/16 harvest year. Grains We planted 6,014 hectares of soybean, 1,759 hectares of corn and 904 hectares of cover crops (brachiaria). Cattle We began the year with 1,697 head of cattle, distributed through 1,070 hectares of active pasture. Today, we have an area of 2,570 hectares and 2,008 head of cattle. 14 | Release 2Q16 Financial Performance Financial Statements - R$ thousand 12/31/2015 12/31/2014 Revenues from grains 3,550 277 Revenues from sugarcane 3,317 2,964 Revenues from leasing 124 41 Revenues from farm sale 14 32,892 Net Sales Revenue 7,005 36,175 Change in fair value of biological assets and agricultural products 6,113 3,497 Impairment 493 49 Net Revenue 13,612 39,721 Cost of agricultural products sale (8,124) (3,317) Cost of production of grains (6,503) (4,837) Cost of farm sale (9) (21,241) Others (82) (72) Gross Profit (loss) (1,106) 10,254 Selling expenses (615) (1,189) General and administrative expenses (1,300) (1,365) Depreciations and amortizations (36) (31) Personnel expenses (572) (776) Expenses with services provider 1 (609) (503) Leases and Rents (49) (34) Others expenses (34) (21) Other operating income/expenses, net (24) (5) Financial result (5,245) (4,208) Financial income (1,297) 84 Financial expenses (3,948) (4,292) Profit (loss) before income and social contribution taxes (8,291) 3,487 Income and social contribution taxes - (1,104) Profit (loss) for the period (8,291) 2,383 BrasilAgro Interest 50% 50% BrasilAgro results (4,145) 1,192 Write-off of Companys fair value due to disposal of farm in Cresca - (3,437) Amortization of fair value adjustment on the acquisition date (shareholders loans) 207 164 BrasilAgro results - Equity pick up (3,938) (2,082) 15 | Release 2Q16 Balance Sheet (R$ thousand) Cresca Write - Off BrasilAgro Assets Current assets Cash and Cash equivalents 2,196 - 2,196 Trade accounts receivable 18,880 - 18,880 Inventories 5,561 - 5,561 Biologial assets 8,303 - 8,303 Recoverable taxes 4,283 - 4,283 Derivative financial instruments - - - Transactions with related parties - - - Other assets - 266 266 39,223 266 39,489 Non-current assets Trade accounts receivable - - - Investment properties 209,297 105,800 315,097 Transactions with related parties - - - Other assets - - Investments in unquoted equity instruments - - - Property, plant and euipment 1,467 - 1,467 Intagible assets - 210,765 105,800 316,564 Total assets 249,988 106,066 356,053 Liabilities and Equity Current liabilities Trade accounts payable 5,546 - 5,546 Loans and financing - - - Labor obligations 153 - 153 Taxes payable - - Dividends payable - - Derivative financial instruments - - Accounts payable for acquisitions - - Transactions with related parties 96,699 - 96,699 Onerous contract - - - Advances from customers - - - - - 102,398 - 102,398 Non-current liabilities Loans and financing - - - Taxes payable - 7,572 7,572 Transactions with related parties 2,300 1,155 3,455 Provision for legal claims - - - Other liabilities - - - 2,300 8,727 11,027 Total equity 145,291 97,439 242,730 Total liabilities and equity 249,989 106,166 356,155 BrasilAgro Interest 50% BrasilAgro Investment 121,365 The Company records as an investment its 50% interest in Cresca S.A. totaling R$121.4 million. 16 | Release 2Q16 Corporate Governance BrasilAgro Day On December 15, the BrasilAgro Day was held, in which market topics were discussed, with the presence of an expert in the sector and the Company's plans for the coming years. The event was attended by all of the Companys directors, as well as over 60 participants, including investors, shareholders, market analysts and other market professionals. Sustainability Report On December 22, the Company released its second Sustainability Report, which includes information regarding the 2014/2015 harvest year, which covers the period from July 1, 2014 to June 30, 2015. The Report follows the guidelines of the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI), a global, multi-sector and optional standard that provides guidance to companies worldwide through indicators and principles so that critical information to sustainable business development is reported. 17 | Release 2Q16 Capital Market Share Performance On February 03, 2016, BrasilAgros shares (AGRO3) were quoted at R$9.19, giving a market cap of R$535,1 million, while its ADRs (LND) were quoted at US$2.31. 18 | Release 2Q16 Definitions 2013/2014 Harvest year fiscal year begun on July 1, 2013 and ended June 30, 2014. 2Q15 quarter ended December 31, 2015. 2014/2015 Harvest year fiscal year begun in July 1, 2014 and ended June 30, 2015. 2Q16 quarter ended December 31, 2016. 2015/2016 Harvest year fiscal year begun on July 1, 2015 and ending June 30, 2016. Disclaimer The statements contained in this document related to the prospects for BrasilAgros businesses, projected operating and financial income and growth are merely projections, and as such are based exclusively on managements expectations. These expectations depend materially on market conditions, the performance of the Brazilian economy, the industry and international markets, and are therefore subject to change without prior notice. 19 | Release 2Q16 Income Statement (R$ thousand) 2Q 16 2Q15 Change 6M16 6M15 Change Revenues from grains 2,731 8,527 -68.0% 30,571 34,285 -10.8% Revenues from sugarcane 23,439 12,842 82.5% 58,724 38,844 51.2% Revenues from leasing 296 571 -48.2% 1,545 957 61.4% Other revenues 1,166 1,548 -24.7% 2,379 2,726 -12.7% Deductions from gross revenue (1,088) (2,235) -51.3% (5,100) (4,850) 5.2% Net SalesRevenue 26,544 21,253 24.9% 88,119 71,962 22.5% Change in fair value of biological assets and agricultural products 6,324 1,871 238.0% 11,208 9,645 16.2% Impairment - 195 -100.0% 770 (1,778) n.a. Net Revenue 32,868 23,319 40.9% 100,097 79,829 25.4% Cost of agricultural products sale (23,368) (21,847) 7.0% (78,066) (70,403) 10.9% GrossProfit 9,500 1,472 545.4% 22,031 9,426 133.7% Selling expenses (269) 477 n.a. (895) (371) 141.2% General and administrative expenses (6,820) (6,336) 7.6% (13,911) (13,412) 3.7% Depreciations and amortizations (196) (335) -41.5% (409) (671) -39.0% Personnel expenses (4,008) (3,354) 19.5% (9,021) (7,755) 16.3% Expenses with services provider (941) (1,540) -38.9% (1,372) (2,454) -44.1% Leases and Rents (126) (129) -2.3% (364) (361) 0.8% Others expenses (1,549) (978) 58.4% (2,745) (2,171) 26.4% O ther operating income/expenses, net 1,270 (4,237) n.a. 1,185 (5,580) n.a. Financial result 1,179 10,366 -88.6% 64,683 16,007 304.1% Financial income 18,879 19,973 -5.5% 99,781 50,643 97.0% Interest on Financial Investments 9,447 1,851 410.4% 20,698 5,074 307.9% Interest on assets 1,363 1,260 8.2% 2,561 2,551 0.4% Foreign exchange variations on liabilities 1,730 3,275 -47.2% 15,496 6,761 129.2% Unwind of present value adjustment 1,658 7,933 -79.1% 10,261 20,163 -49.1% Realized results with derivatives 120 2,780 -95.7% 38,716 10,189 280.0% Unrealized results with derivatives 4,561 2,874 58.7% 12,049 5,905 104.0% Financial expenses (17,700) (9,607) 84.2% (35,098) (34,636) 1.3% Expanses on Financial Investments (2,917) - n.a. (5,107) - n.a. Bank charges (183) (1,137) -83.9% (410) (1,383) -70.4% Interest on liabilities (2,519) (3,189) -21.0% (4,907) (7,456) -34.2% Monetary variations (18) (705) -97.4% (684) (1,393) -50.9% Foreign exchange variations on liabilities (2,636) (964) 173.4% (4,364) (4,392) -0.6% Unwind of present value adjustment (2,497) (1,151) 116.9% (5,664) (14,601) -61.2% Realized results with derivatives (5,282) (259) 1939.4% (5,939) (841) 606.2% Unrealized results with derivatives (1,648) (2,202) -25.2% (8,023) (4,570) 75.6% Equity pick up (2,191) (1,279) 71.3% (3,938) (2,082) 89.1% Profit (loss) before income and social contribution taxes 2,669 463 476.5% 69,155 3,988 1634.1% Income and social contribution taxes (1,343) 717 n.a. (23,352) (1,226) 1804.7% Profit (loss) for the period 1,326 1,180 12.4% 45,803 2,762 1558.3% Outstanding sharesat the end of the period 58,226,600 58,422,400 58,226,600 58,422,400 Basic earnings(loss) per share - R$ 0.02 0.02 12.8% 0.79 0.05 1563.9% 20 | Release 2Q16 Balance Sheet - Asset Assets(R$ thousand) 12/31/2015 06/30/2015 Change Current assets Cash and Cash equivalents 119,443 75,620 58.0% Markable securities 66,674 273,258 -75.6% Trade accounts receivable 43,661 46,028 -5.1% Inventories 27,680 32,225 -14.1% Biologial assets 36,511 1,624 2148.2% Recoverable taxes 6,609 5,412 22.1% Derivative financial instruments 22,632 13,498 67.7% Transactions with related parties 1,281 856 49.6% Other assets 720 316 127.8% 325,211 448,837 -27.5% Non-current assets Biological assets 21,521 29,245 -26.4% Markable securities 11,653 1,468 693.8% Recoverable taxes 27,766 24,602 12.9% Diferred taxes 32,745 43,137 -24.1% Derivative financial instruments - 408 -100.0% Trade accounts receivable 13,477 22,802 -40.9% Investment properties 288,082 288,347 -0.1% Transactions with related parties 51,317 39,060 31.4% Other assets 6,147 5,811 5.8% Investments in unquoted equity instruments 121,365 99,729 21.7% Property, plant and euipment 10,248 10,602 -3.3% Intagible assets 3,507 3,792 -7.5% 587,828 569,003 3.3% Total assets 913,039 1,017,840 -10.3% 21 | Release 2Q16 Balance Sheet - Liabilities Liabilities(R$ thousand) 12/31/2015 06/30/2015 Change Current liabilities Trade accounts payable 21,475 5,545 287.3% Loans and financing 18,182 50,900 -64.3% Labor obligations 3,361 11,215 -70.0% Taxes payable 5,381 23,377 -77.0% Dividends payable 88 40,358 -99.8% Derivative financial instruments 6,521 5,655 15.3% Accounts payable for acquisitions 21,007 48,840 -57.0% Transactions with related parties 506 480 5.4% Advances from customers 53 8,147 -99.3% Other liabilities 5,238 4,504 16.3% 81,812 199,021 -58.9% Non-current liabilities Loans and financing 50,246 59,179 -15.1% Taxes payable 900 1,508 -40.3% Derivative financial instruments - 1,670 -100.0% Provision for legal claims 4,857 3,684 31.8% Other liabilities 401 672 -40.3% 56,404 66,713 -15.5% Total liabilities 138,216 265,734 -48.0% Equity Capital 584,224 584,224 0.0% Capital reserves 1,771 2,349 -24.6% Treasury shares (7,973) (224) 3459.4% Profits reserves 89,156 89,156 0.0% Proposed additional dividends - 40,333 -100.0% Equity variation adjustment 61,842 36,268 70.5% Accumulated losses 45,803 - n.a. Total equity 774,823 752,106 3.0% Total liabilitiesand equity 913,039 1,017,840 -10.3% 22 | Release 2Q16 Cash Flow (R$ thousand) 6M16 6M15 Change Profit (loss) for the period 45,803 2,762 1558.3% Adjustmentsto reconcile net income Depreciation and amortization 10,998 9,337 17.8% Grantingof stock options - 82 -100.0% Residual value of fixed assets 41 1,407 -97.1% Patrimonial Equivalence 12 253 -95.3% Equity Pickup 3,938 2,082 89.1% Gain (loss) unrealized results with derivatives (4,026) (1,335) 201.6% Exchange rate, monetary and financial charges unrealized (23,693) (1,145) 1969.3% (Gain) on remeasurement of receivables from sale of farms (4,597) (5,562) -17.3% Provision of income and social contribution - 966 -100.0% Income and social contribution taxes 10,392 260 3896.9% Fair value of biological assets and agricultural products and depletion of harvest (11,208) (9,645) 16.2% Reversal of impairment of agricultural products after harvest (770) 1,778 n.a. Allowance for doubtful accounts - 47 -100.0% Onerous contracts - (579) -100.0% Provisions for lawsuits 1,173 2,653 -55.8% (2,277) - n.a. 25,786 3,361 667.2% Change in operating working capital Trade accounts receivable 10,894 22,613 -51.8% Inventories 7,094 61,909 -88.5% Biological Assets (21,618) (87,736) -75.4% Recoverable Taxes (4,989) (1,656) 201.3% Derivative Transactions (3,239) 5,200 n.a. Other assets (741) (759) -2.4% Suppliers 15,946 6,000 165.8% Related parties (755) (35,747) -97.9% Taxes payable (9,744) (275) 3443.3% Paid income tax and social contribution (8,860) (1,699) 421.5% Labor obligations (7,854) (5,264) 49.2% Advance from customers (7,520) (12,391) -39.3% Other obligations (271) (230) 17.8% Net Cash generated by (used in) operating activities (5,871) (46,674) -87.4% CASH FLOW OF INVEST MENT ACT IVIT IES Additions to immobilized and intangible (897) (1,097) -18.2% Additions to property for investments (5,366) (22,064) -75.7% Redemption of (investment in) marketable securities 212,870 8,755 2331.4% Increase in investments and participations - (13,483) -100.0% Amount received from the sale of farm 5,505 10,897 -49.5% Net cash (invested in) operating activities 212,112 (16,992) n.a. CASH FLOW OF FINANCING ACT IVITIES Payment of farm purchase (27,395) - n.a. Loans and financing 3,393 61,191 -94.5% Interest from Loans and Financing (4,808) (7,187) -33.1% Payment of loans and financing (44,678) (55,200) -19.1% Treasury shares (10,423) - n.a. Receivables from exercise of stock options 2,096 - n.a. Dividends paid (80,603) - n.a. Generated (provided) net cash by financing activities (162,418) (1,196) 13480.1% Increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents 43,823 (64,862) n.a. Cash and cash equivalents at the beginningof the year 75,620 86,745 -12.8% Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year 119,443 21,883 445.8% 43,823 (64,862) n.a. 23 | Release 2Q16 Weigths and Measures used in Agriculture Pesos e medidas usados na agricultura 1 tonelada 1.000 kg 1 kg 2,20462 libras 1 libra 0,45359 kg 1 acre 0,40469 hectares 1 acre 0,1840 alqueire 1 hectare (ha) 2,47105 acres 1 hectare (ha) 10.000 m 1 alqueire 5,4363 acres Soja 1 bushel de soja 60 libras 27,2155 kg 1 saca de soja 60 kg 2,20462 bushels 1 bushel/acre 67,25 kg/ha 1,00 US$/bushel 2,3621 US$/saca Milho 1 bushel de milho 56 libras 25,4012 kg 1 saca de milho 60 kg 2,36210 bushels 1 bushel/acre 62,77 kg/ha 1,00 US$/bushel 2,3621 US$/saca Algodao 1 fardo 480 libras 217,72 kg 1 arroba 14,68 kg Cana-de-acucar ATR - Acucar Total Recuperavel No arrests were made during the large-scale, vocal protests against the TPPA signing in Auckland's CBD, despite protestors jumping in front of cars and blocking traffic, police said. A 10,000-strong crowd marched through Auckland's streets on Thursday as 12 ministers from across the world met at SkyCity to sign the international trade agreement. Superintendent Richard Chambers was the operation commander for the several hundred-strong police team. 1 of 17 CHRIS MCKEEN/FAIRFAX NZ Protesters, with a variety of signs, gathered at Aotea Square on Thursday morning. 2 of 17 CHRIS MCKEEN/FAIRFAX NZ A demonstrator outside the Auckland Town Hall. 3 of 17 CHRIS MCKEEN/FAIRFAX NZ Protesters came in all manner of dress. 4 of 17 LAWRENCE SMITH/FAIRFAX NZ A protester and police officer come eye-to-eye outside SkyCity. 5 of 17 CHRIS MCKEEN/FAIRFAX NZ A woman burns incense outside SkyCity. 6 of 17 CHRIS MCKEEN/FAIRFAX NZ Protesters and police got up close and personal. 7 of 17 CHRIS MCKEEN/FAIRFAX NZ Protesters outside SkyCity. 8 of 17 LAWRENCE SMITH/FAIRFAX NZ A masked protester stands in front of a police line at SkyCity. 9 of 17 LAWRENCE SMITH/FAIRFAX NZ A protester outside SkyCity. 10 of 17 LAWRENCE SMITH/FAIRFAX NZ There was plenty of vocal opposition to the TPP signing. 11 of 17 JASON DORDAY/FAIRFAX NZ Meanwhile, inside SkyCity trade ministers posed after the signing of the TPPA. 12 of 17 LAWRENCE SMITH/FAIRFAX NZ Broadcaster John Campbell at work. 13 of 17 LAWRENCE SMITH/FAIRFAX NZ Protesters march through the Auckland CBD. 14 of 17 LAWRENCE SMITH/FAIRFAX NZ Former MP Sue Bradford was among the estimated 10,000 protesters. 15 of 17 LAWRENCE SMITH/FAIRFAX NZ Protesters, many waving Maori sovereignty flags, made their way down to Britomart. 16 of 17 LAWRENCE SMITH/FAIRFAX NZ An estimated 10,000 turned out to march in opposition to the TPPA signing. 17 of 17 LAWRENCE SMITH/FAIRFAX NZ Police and protesters outside SkyCity. Chambers said police were well prepared for the day and that widespread traffic disruption was not a surprise. READ MORE: * TPPA signing: Live coverage from Auckland as trade deal signed * Protest groups call for peaceful opposition at Auckland signing * Sovereignty won't be traded away, says Key * Government confirms TPPA trade deal signing in New Zealand * Quiz: The TPPA, how much do you really know? BROOKE BATH / FAIRFAX NZ Superintendent Richard Chambers of Auckland City Police discusses the TPPA protests. It had been a "successful" day for police, he said: "The fact that we didn't have arrests at this point is one successful factor for us." However, he was disappointed protestors chose to put themselves at harm and disrupt traffic. "They put themselves at risk, they compromised their safety, they compromised the safety of innocent people. Protesters block the intersection of Fanshawe Street and Beaumont Street in Auckland. "There were attempts to run in front of vehicles, there were attempts to get onto the motorway, and I'm disappointed in those people for that behaviour. "That has disrupted the flow of traffic and people going about their lawful business in the city today," he said. Anti-TPPA protesters had cleared most of Auckland's streets by the time the city's workforce prepared for the journey home. JOSH FAGAN/FAIRFAX NZ Protesters set up a bamboo tower on Albert Street and Victoria Street intersection. Earlier, protesters blocked several of the city's key roads but Auckland Transport tweeted at about 3pm that most of the protesters had dispersed and that traffic was as "close to normal in inner-city as possible at this time". "The intersection of Queen Street and Victoria Street remained blocked at 3pm. A large contingent of protesters remained outside the SkyCity convention centre on Federal Street, where the agreement was signed." Protesters clutched flags, placards, drums and speakers, shouted chants and blocked off entire city blocks. SAM BOYER/FAIRFAX MEDIA Protesters have blocked motorway exits in Auckland as police warn motorists about people jumping in front of cars. The demonstrations were loud and passionate and intent on being noticed. And while the bulk of attendees were peaceful and happy to stick to the streets already cordoned off, others made their own blockades. "Closing down central Auckland is a pretty f****** epic way of sending a message," one woman from protest group Real Choice shouted through her megaphone. AUCKLAND TRANSPORT Streets in central Auckland were getting heavily congested. Police warned Auckland motorists to expect delays in the central city and watch out for people jumping in front of cars. The group had initially plotted to blockade the entrance to the SkyCity convention centre, but instead turned their attention to closing major streets and motorways. They had "taken" eight intersections by midday including a shortlived attempt at blocking access to the Auckland Harbour Bridge onramp at Fanshawe St, group spokeswoman Lizzie Sullivan, 26, said. JOSH FAGAN/FAIRFAX NZ Protesters face police at Sky City in Auckland. She said she wasn't willing want to disclose the strategy or tactics they used but said a lot of planning had gone into the day to "make a stand". "We just feel we've had to do this as a way to get a message across." She said they were trying to set up a TPPA-free zone in the city. JOHN ANTHONY/FAIRFAX NZ The scene inside SkyCity as trade ministers from 12 nations prepare to sign the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement. And she defended the traffic disruption as a "small inconvenience" that "people had been warned about". Meanwhile, Peter Vosper made himself conspicuous by climbing a dangerously high tee-pee-styled stand made of bamboo poles. He scaled the shaky structure at midday at the intersection of Albert St and Wellesley St while his friends held the poles in place. It was one of two "tripod" structures set up and Voster said he was willing to sit up there all day, or until someone came to replace him. Other ground-level protesters made sure they were noticed by singing, repeatedly chanting and occasionally shouting swear words. Some set up base all day at the convention centre entrance while most eventually merged into the large swell of crowd that marched down Queen St and held speeches at Britomart. The crowd later returned to SkyCity, dwindling to around 70 by 4pm. SkyCity is trying to freeze the assets of a former employee. The father of a Waikato woman who is alleged to have stolen millions from Diocesan School for Girls and SkyCity has appeared in court to protest the freezing of his assets. SkyCity appeared at the High Court at Auckland on Thursday in an attempt to claw back millions from their former finance executive Tessa Fiona Grant, whom it alleges stole $1.2m during her eight year employment. The alleged offending was only uncovered when SkyCity launched an investigation following recent publicity about Grant's theft of $800,000 from Hamilton's Diocesan School for Girls. MARK TAYLOR/FAIRFAX NZ Tessa Grant defrauded Waikato Dio of approx $400,000 in money and now SkyCity is chasing her for millions. SkyCity successfully applied for an interim freezing order a week ago, on January 29, but that order expired on Thursday. READ MORE: *SkyCity chases $1.2m from disgraced ex-boss *SkyCity silent on former finance executive's fraud *Manager pleads guilty to stealing $800k from Waikato Diocesan School for Girls SkyCity was back in court on Thursday morning asking for it to be renewed after investigations by receivers revealed a suggestion that Tessa Grant had transferred assets to her father's company in a bid to hide them. REBEKAH PARSONS-KING/FAIRFAX NZ Tessa Grant pleaded guilty to defrauding Waikato Dio school - spending the money on a lavish lifestyle. Lawyers for SkyCity said after Diocesan applied for freezing orders on Grant's assets last year, she had transferred property to her father, John Grant, who knew about the pending criminal charges against her. However John Grant's lawyer, Jeff Ussher, said the SkyCity allegations came as a surprise to him, and that he was simply a supportive father who had tried to help his daughter following her Diocesan offending. All of John Grant's assets including his company Boston Six had been frozen, aside from a $500 a week living allowance, which "at first blush appears draconian," Justice Matthew Muir said on Thursday. However he agreed to extend the interim orders freezing the assets for another week, after hearing submissions from SkyCity lawyer Jacqueline Lethbridge who said there was a chance that other assets, some not as easy to spot such as jewellery, may yet have been found to have been transferred. Ussher said it was "something of a leap" to suggest Grant had known about the alleged SkyCity theft when the assets, including a horse float, were transferred to him. "Why would he go to all of that trouble to sort his daughter out if there was another $1m-something waiting in the wings? He wouldn't waste his time or put his reputation on the line for that," Ussher said. "He's a reputable businessman, there's no suspicion he's been caught up in anything fraudulent...He does have rights." Justice Muir agreed that a precautionary step should be taken to secure the assets for another week, when the matter would be back before the court by way of John Grant supplying an affidavit about the assets of his daughter's that he may hold. That affidavit may prove that the transference of the other assets was "innocuous," Justice Muir said. "In extending the orders that I do today, I emphasise that these are interim orders made on incomplete evidence. The position of Mr Grant may ultimately be fully exonerated on affidavit evidence." SkyCity chief executive Nigel Morrison said on Wednesday that an internal review had uncovered financial irregularities, saying Grant "appears to have been responsible for a number of unexplained transactions during her time with SkyCity". Grant worked for SkyCity Hamilton from 2006 until 2014. More recently she admitted stealing nearly $800,000 from Waikato Diocesan School for Girls, after working there for more than a year as a commercial manager. She left in September last year and in January she pleaded guilty to seven fraud-related charges totalling $795,000. The court heard that she had spent the funds on a lavish equine lifestyle, splashing out on horses, land, international travel for a horse, and a $40,000 ring. For that offending she will be sentenced in March. When visited at her home on Wednesday Grant said she knew nothing about SkyCity applying for freezing orders and denied any wrongdoing. The freezing order seeks to essentially stop Grant from spending or transferring her money and assets, as well as those of her father John Grant and his business Boston Six; Elizabeth Brown who is the co-owner of Grant's racehorse; and J T Equine NZ Ltd, a company owned by Grant. SkyCity's lawyer Jacqueline Lethbridge said Grant's alleged offending had been uncovered following publicity about her theft of the Waikato school's funds. "It is fairly unusual circumstances where there has been a significant fraud that has been committed, then full reparation is made, and as a result of publicity about that it transpires there was an almost identical fraud where it appears the funds from the second fraud appeared to have been paid in reparation for the first fraud," she said. Neither Tessa Grant or John Grant were in court for the hearing. The All Blacks' haka is well known world-wide, but there is still plenty we don't know about its early days. As New Zealand Rugby Museum staff prepared a Waitangi Day presentation about the All Blacks' history with the haka, they found several questions over its use still remain a mystery. Museum director Stephen Berg said details about the haka on early tours were limited and they were still unable to pin down when the haka was performed with actions for the first time. "It is worth exploring it because it is part of our culture and it goes hand in hand with rugby," he said. Unknown All Blacks perform the haka before playing New South Wales at Athletic Park, Wellington on September 15, 1923. NZ won 38-11. Newspaper clippings from New Zealand's first representative team to travel overseas to Australia in 1884 mention the team's "war cry". Berg said the team would shout "Ake ake ake kia kaha", meaning forever and ever be strong, but it was not a haka. He likened the use of the chant as similar to the players finishing a huddle with "Go New Zealand". The first record of the Ka Mate haka being performed was not until the Originals' 1905 tour. "There was no record of them doing the haka until game 15 of the 35 games," Berg said. "It was Ka Mate, but there were no actions. They would gather together in a group and at the end, they waved their arms in the air." The use of the haka as a song rather than the more traditional performance was common on tours, Berg said. "The earlier teams, after a game, used to sing Ka Mate," Berg said. "That tradition of singing songs was hugely strong, everyone sang. "In this period, there was no TV, so live performances were the way people experienced things. People wanted to hear exciting different things, so the New Zealanders going over knew the English would want to see a bit of New Zealand culture. "A lot of the early hakas were done facing the crowd. It was a performance for the crowd." The next time the All Blacks travelled to the United Kingdom in 1924, known as the Invincibles' tour, Ka Mate was replaced with a specially-written haka. "The team had two or three Maori players, the key guys being George Nepia and Lui Paewai," Berg said. "There were a group of supporters as well who travelled over as well. One of them was Frank Acheson who was judge of the Native Land Court." Acheson and Wiremu Rangi were credited with writing the team's haka during the six-week voyage. But the haka, which started Kia whaka ngawari au ia hau (Let us prepare ourselves for the fray), was short lived. By the time the All Blacks left for their next major tour to South Africa in 1924, the team went back to using Ka Mate. And Ka Mate's use was inconsistent. "There is really no pattern [to when they used it]," Berg said. "Sometimes they did it, sometimes they didn't. "The next time the All Blacks toured in 1935-36... they did not even perform the haka at all. It was not until they got to Canada on their second-to-last day on the way home that they did do it from the records we can find." The haka was not performed with regularity and full ferocity until Buck Shelford and Hika Reid led the charge in 1987. The All Blacks debuted Kapo o Pango in 2005 to use as well as Ka Mate. Berg will be at the New Zealand Rugby Museum on Waitangi Day at 11am to talk visitors through a brief history of the All Blacks' use of the haka. The 1924 All Blacks' haka Leader: Kia whaka ngawari au ia hau Team: I au E Hei Leader: Ko niu Tireni o haruru Team: Au au aue ha hei Leader: Ko niu Tireni e haruru Team: Au au aue ha hai Leader: A haha Team: Katu te ihi i hi Katu te wanawana Kirunga te rangi E tu iho nei Leader: Tena ipoua O Rongo Ingarangi Hauana ite ao e Team: A haha Hora hia mai o mahi kia hau Hora hia mai o Tiima Kia hau Omahi aku mahi me hui Leader: Nga mahi tinihanga me kiki Team: Au au hei Leader: A haha Team: Ka mutu nga mahi haramai Ki Tireni Au au aue ha Translation Leader: Let us prepare ourselves for the fray. Team: We are ready. Leader: The New Zealand storm is about to break. Team: The sound of breaking. Leader: The New Zealand storm waxes fiercer Team: The height of the storm Leader: Now then Team: We shall stand as children of the sun We shall climb to the heavens in exultation of spirit We shall attain the Zenith The power. The power Leader: Remain alert The strength of England is known throughout the world Team: Now then Let us see what England can do Bring forth your strong teams Let us combine in friendly rivalry Leader: Anything unsportsmanlike together we shall kick aside Team: The strength of the kick Leader: Now then Team: After the battles are over come to New Zealand. It is ended. More than 600 students started their first day at Rototuna Junior High School with a powhiri. It's not quite school as most know it at Rototuna Junior High, since no bells signal the start, intervals or end of the day. But with so much else to get used to at the brand new school, it was the last thing to concern the nervous and excited 634 foundation students. And the powhiri to start the first day was just the opening act. CHRISTEL YARDLEY/FAIRFAX NZ Hundreds of foundation pupils head to Rototuna Junior High School to start their 2016 school year. A year has passed between the ground-breaking for the Year 7-10 school and students' first day. READ MORE: * Rototuna Junior High School almost ready to welcome first students * Work begins on new Rototuna Junior High School * New high school plans out for tender * New schools for Hamilton CHRISTEL YARDLEY/FAIRFAX NZ Gregory Irvine, 10, was excited about a new way of learning. Along with the large learning spaces and team teaching, one of the differences will be the lack of a bell to mark out periods. "It's about them making sure they're in the right place at the right time, just like they will have to once they move on beyond secondary school," principal Fraser Hill said. The junior high was far from the first to try the tactic, he said, as he remembered it from a school he'd worked in a dozen years ago. CHRISTEL YARDLEY/FAIRFAX NZ Proud to be foundation pupils are, from left, Tyra-Jade Lee, 12, Kaitlyn Jade Winn, 13, Kate Diane Bennett, 12, Onyu Shin, 11, Edelweiss Weaver, 13, and Caitlin Willix-Payne, 13. And it hadn't seemed to faze Rototuna Junior High students - yet, anyway. "Everyone ended up back in their learning space on time after our first break, so we've passed the first test," Hill said. Before the powhiri, Caitlin Willix-Payne, 13, and her friends were balancing excitement and nerves. CHRISTEL YARDLEY/FAIRFAX NZ It was good to have students after seven months as Rototuna Junior High School principal, Fraser Hill said. "It's cool to be a foundation pupil," she said. She and her friends hadn't been at schools with an open layout before, so the new school would mean a new way of learning. That also appealed to 10-year-old Gregory Irvine. "I'm excited about the new way of learning and I'm nervous about coming to a new school." Speaking during the powhiri, Hill said it was good to finally have young people in the school. "It seems a little bit strange, but for about the last seven months, I've been working as the principal of Rototuna Junior High School and we haven't had any students. It didn't quite seem right," he said. The school also has 58 staff members who were looking forward to getting students ready for "whatever faces them" when they leave school. "We will do our best to create opportunities for you, but it is up to you not only to take those opportunities to create your own ones for yourself as well," he told students. Kate McMorran was at the powhiri for son Ben's first day and said the environment is a "complete contrast" with what she remembers of high school. "It's amazing - huge open space with all the newest technology," she said. And Hamilton East MP David Bennett said it is great to see the school open. "There're 634 new students making their way into a new school in northeast Hamilton which has been long looked forward to. A strong community presence here today shows that there is a real desire and need for a school in the area," he said. The neighbouring Rototuna Senior High School is under construction and due to open in 2017. Derek Lugton prefers the alternative flag as it can't be mistaken for the Australian flag, like the current one can. Derek Lugton's support for the alternative New Zealand flag is obvious most places he goes. The Matamata man is flying it on a flag pole on his Piakoiti Rd property, on his car and is even thinking of printing it on shirts. Between March 3 and March 24 2016, New Zealanders will get to vote in the final binding referendum on the future of the New Zealand flag. He said the silver fern, like the one on the alternative flag, represents New Zealanders all over the world. Lugton was "taken back" by the RSA's comments that soldiers fought under the current flag. He has visited world war graves in Tunisia, North Africa and Flanders Field where the New Zealand soldiers' graves all had silver ferns on them. "My father certainly fought under the flag but all his mates who died in the war are represented by a silver fern on their headstones." He said when sport stars wrap themselves in the country's current flag you can't tell if it is a New Zealand or Australian flag. "It would be lovely to have a flag that gives us a separate identity to Australia." The national supporter said politics didn't come into his support of the flag. "I know there has been a little bit of ill feeling because people think it is a John Key project but I disagree with that. I think it is a New Zealand project." He said in 20 to 40 years time people will say who is John Key? He also knew that the $26 million flag referendum put some people's "hackles up" but said that was "a drop in the ocean" in his estimation of the $400 million lost in benefit fraud annually. He also thought selling products under the silver fern, "which is unique to New Zealand", will provide the country more leverage. The Lugton's car, which is festooned with the alternative flag, is a conversation starter wherever they go. The golfer suggested to some his Matamata Golf Club mates that they should get shirts with the alternative flag printed on it. "12 of the 20 people present signed up for it." What are your thoughts on flag referendum? Are you a Matamata resident flying the current flag to show your support for it? Email abby.brown@fairfaxmedia.co.nz. The Matamata Chronicle asked people on the street what their preferred flag was, why and would they vote for it in the next referendum. An Opunake man received 180 hours communty work for his role at a party brawl last weekend. A drunken Taranaki man punched his former employer in the head after being called a "n***** slave" at a party and then went to his house hours later and threatened him. After his outburst on the morning of Monday, February 1, Clinton Thomas Kawana threw a large plastic sign through the front window of the man's home. The following day Kawana found himself before the Hawera District Court, where he pleaded guilty to charges of wilful damage, common assault and speaking threateningly. Kawana had been working for the victim in Opunake over the summer, but turned on him when he objected to comments made during an end-of-season party. Defence counsel Jo Woodcock said Kawana "was called a N***** Slave, that was why he was there, to do the cleaning up. This racial slur upset him." Police prosecutor Steve Hickey saidboth the victim and defendant were intoxicated when the row broke out at 2am. "A verbal altercation developed between them after an alleged derogatory comment was made by the victim to the defendant. The altercation became physical with the defendant punching the victim to the side of his head. The defendant was escorted from the address by a family member." Hickey said the Kawana returned to the victim's address at 9.15am where a verbal confrontation developed. Kawana made threats to the victim to return with associates to "smash him over". Upset, the defendant then threw a large plastic sign through the front window and was later arrested by police as he walked back to his own home. In explanation Kawana said: "He shouldn't have said what he did. There was no need for the racial comments that he made". The court heard that during the inital fracas, Kawana had also been on the receiving end of violence. Hickey said police were investigating the events and it was likely further charges would be laid. "It looks as though some summary justice was dealt out and the defendant has been on the very negative receiving end of that, which is not mitigating but should be taken into account." Woodcock said the defendant had been out of trouble since 2008 when his partner died and he took on responsibility for their child. "He used to be the kind of person in the cells every weekend - since 2008 he's made changes and wants to be a good example to his child." A cloud of palm kernel extract (PKE) blows off the Yangtze Pioneer during unloading at Primeport Timaru in mid-November. PrimePort Timaru does not believe the health of Timaru residents was put at risk when a plume of palm kernel extract blew off a ship during unloading in November. South Canterbury farmers Jeremy Talbot and Tom Henderson, who both ardently support banning palm kernel extract (PKE) as a supplementary feed option for New Zealand cows, say the spores travelled as far as Stafford St in a gusty north-easterly wind in mid-November. Stevedores are required to wear breathing apparatus during the unloading process and Talbot said breathing the dust in was "extremely hazardous". MYTCHALL BRANSGROVE/FAIRFAX NZ Insect larvae were found on board the PKE-carrying Glorious Sawara by MPI while it was docked in Timaru's port in early January. It was susceptible to mould mycotoxins and bacteria, he said. "It's like breathing in a cold; you might only be standing there for two minutes but you've got it. READ MORE: Greenpeace says Fonterra stance on PKE undermined by report JOHN BISSET/FAIRFAX NZ MPI biosecurity inspectors discovered insect larvae on some hatches of Malaysian PKE-carrying ship Nona Bulker during a routine inspection in Timaru in mid-January. "Plus it's coated with hexane as part of its fumigation for larvae, which is worse than nail polish remover." Henderson, said he got back to his car on The Terrace after the photos were taken to find it coated with "spores". "It was blowing an absolute gale; it was extreme conditions and they should not have been operating at all. "Having seen what happened and what has happened since, with insect larvae being found on two ships in port, I think we need to be having a country-wide discussion about whether we should just pull the pin altogether on PKE. "I just don't think it's worth the massive risks we are taking at the moment." PKE NOW MORE SUSCEPTIBLE TO WIND SUPPLIED PrimePort chief exective Phil Melhopt said there had been no repeat of the November issues. Federated Farmers South Canterbury president Mark Adams said he hoped the port would review its processes for unloading PKE in the wake of the incident. "My understanding is that ... PKE is actually lighter than it ever used to be and more susceptible to wind and I would expect the port to review their processes as a result of that. "From a purely business point of view, having it blowing in the wind simply isn't profitable." Adams said PKE had been a saviour for beef farmers during dry conditions in South Canterbury but he had always been suspicious about the risks of importing it. "In the port's case you can have the best practices in the world in place and still have a bad hair day, and what it sounds like is that they just got it wrong that day. "If it happens again you have really got to start questioning it." 'THE VOLUMES LOST ARE MINOR' PrimePort Timaru chief executive Phil Melhopt said the Yangtze Pioneer was in port from November 16 to 19 and 10,500 tonne of PKE was unloaded off it. "Discharge was stopped on several occasions in response to the variable wind," Melhopt said. "Discharge must cease at 15 knots (28kmh). It was gusting SSE and NNE." There was no reason to believe dust from the PKE cloud had spread as far as Stafford St and it was unlikely there was a public health risk, Melhopt said. "The volumes lost are minor. Following this vessel discharge we have worked closely with stevedores to ensure they are following our discharge protocols. "We have weather conditions available on our website that show wind speed and direction. Since this vessel we have had three more vessels that have discharged a combined 51,000 tonnes. "We haven't seen a repeat of the November issues." There were no plans to cease unloading of PKE at PrimePort Timaru because it was an important import for the region's farmers, Melhopt said. INITIALLY REPORTED AS OIL SPILL Environment Canterbury monitoring and compliance manager Marty Mortiaux said ECan visited the ship after an initial report of an oil spill. "No dust was seen discharging at that time operations had ceased. "The alleged oil plume was identified as palm kernel and any effect on water quality was deemed minor. The port was reminded of the consent requirements and the matter closed." Mortiaux said PrimePort Timaru's resource consent required it to provide a management plan for the control of dust using best practicable options. Unloading of PKE had to cease when wind speed went above 20 knots (37kmh) or the port would be in breach of its consent. There were health and nuisance effects from continued exposure to dust from palm kernels, Mortiaux said. DUST CLOUDS A PROBLEM Maritime Union communications officer Victor Billet said none of the unionised stevedores at Timaru's port were fond of handling PKE. "It's annoying and it's potentially dangerous but part of the job for port workers is to handle potentially toxic cargo. "At the moment it's a major import cargo so we just have to make the most of it. If there's any suggestion that our workers are being harmed by it while wearing protective gear we would want PKE unloading to stop immediately." Billet said PKE could form clouds like the ones spotted in Timaru without much wind. "Clouds are obviously a problem. I understand Lyttelton trialled a vapour mist system to dampen down the clouds without much success, so it doesn't sound like there's an easy solution." An MPI spokesman said it considered dust from PKE shipments to be a very low biosecurity risk. PKE underwent two separate heat treatments at up to 140 degrees Celsius, as well as fumigation and inspection before it could be unloaded in NZ, he said. The Church of the Good Shepherd is one of Mackenzie's biggest tourist attractions. Mackenzie mayor Claire Barlow says the district's stretched tourism infrastructure needs taxpayer funding. Tourism minister John Key says infrastructure struggles in Mackenzie caused by "booming" tourism can in part be alleviated by encouraging tourists to come during shoulder seasons. But whether mayor Claire Barlow's call for taxpayer funding to help cope with swelling numbers of non-ratepaying visitors will be heeded remains unanswered. Parking struggles in all three Mackenzie towns, Tekapo public toilet troubles, freedom camping at Tekapo's Hamilton Dr, ripped up dirt roads near Lake Benmore, big demand for water in Twizel and skyrocketing rubbish collection levels have all been on the Mackenzie District Council's radar over the summer break. MYTCHALL BRANSGROVE/FAIRFAX NZ Mackenzie District Mayor Claire Barlow says tourism is an industry local governments did not get any direct revenue from. Hotels in Tekapo have been booked out months in advance for February's Chinese New Year, with the Canterbury Mayoral Forum shuffling tourists away from the Mackenzie Basin due to a lack of space. READ MORE: Call for more Government help Barlow, whose stance is backed by Local Government New Zealand, said a swelling number of visitors to the region was creating "huge challenges" for the Mackenzie District Council to maintain reliable existing infrastructure and build new. "What's become clear is that tourism is an industry local governments don't actually get any direct revenue from," Barlow said. "I believe central government and local government need to work on funding our tourism infrastructure from more of a national basis. "We spend money at national level promoting New Zealand as a place to come to but no funds come local government's way to support us when they arrive." A spokeswoman for tourism minister John Key said the money the government earned from tourism meant it could invest more in public services such as education, health and infrastructure if needed. International visitors spent an estimated $9.4 billion in New Zealand in the year to September 2015 and by all accounts the industry was "booming", Key's spokeswoman said. "The Government is aware that this success is putting some pressure on infrastructure and we are working to address that." Tourism New Zealand was now focused on encouraging tourists to travel to New Zealand during shoulder seasons, and to more regional destinations, to ensure the benefits of tourism were spread throughout the year and across the country, Key's spokeswoman said. Voice of America's Somali-language website published photos showing a large hole in the aircraft's fuselage close to the right wing. A man has died after being sucked out of a jet following an explosion that made a hole in the fuselage and forced the plane to make an emergency landing, officials say. Passengers heard a loud bang and a fire broke out on board, leaving a gaping hole in the side of the Airbus A321 airliner. Two other people were slightly injured in the blast. The remaining 74 passengers and crew of the flight were evacuated after the plane made a safe landing in Mogadishu on Tuesday afternoon, Somali aviation official Ali Mohamoud said. Mohamed Hassan, a police officer in nearby Balad town, said residents had found a body of an old man who they believed had fallen from the Airbus A321. READ MORE: Flight makes emergency landing in Somalia capital after fire Local authorities in the Balcad area, about 30 kilometres north of Mogadishu, confirmed the body was found in the area. A police officer at Mogadishu airport said, "The dead body of the passenger is being transported to Mogadishu." The officer said that the man was about 55 years old. "He dropped when the explosion occurred in the plane," he said. The Daallo Airlines plane was en route to Djibouti in the Horn of Africa when it was forced to land minutes after taking off from Mogadishu airport, Mohamoud said. One of the plane's passengers Mohamed Ali said that they heard a bang before flames opened a gaping hole in the plane's side. "I don't know if it was a bomb or an electric shock, but we heard a bang inside the plane," he said. There was no immediate explanation of the explosion from the airline or Somali government officials. Daallo Airlines said on its Facebook page on Tuesday that the plane, operated by Hermes Airlines, "experienced an incident" that forced it to return. Investigators believe a bomb likely caused explosion aboard the plane, according to US government sources. "Daallo airline was en route to Djibouti but it landed shortly after it took off. A fire exploded and two passengers were slightly wounded," Mohamed Hussein, an agent for Daallo Airlines, the operator of the flight, said. Aviation website www.airlive.net said the explosion occurred on flight D3159. Daallo flies to several destinations in the Horn of Africa and the Middle East, its website showed. A source familiar with the investigation said flammable objects are not usually put in that place in an aircraft, though some reports suggested an oxygen bottle may have been involved. However, safety experts say oxygen bottles usually catch fire rather than exploding. Photographs did not show significant damage to overhead panels where such bottles are usually kept. Experts have praised the actions of the crew in landing the plane. Somalia faces an insurgency perpetrated by the Somali Islamic extremist group al-Shabab, which is responsible for many deadly attacks across the nation. - AP, Reuters Hi Everyone, The Himalaya Drug Company, Indias leading Herbal Health and Personal Care Company today announced the launch of a cleft lip initiative Muskaan in association with Smile Train India, an international NGO dedicated to spreading awareness on cleft deformities and providing free corrective surgeries for the under-privileged. As part of the initiative, Himalaya Lip Care will enable a minimum of 100 cleft surgeries through Smile Train India through the first year of this partnership. So far, 55 cleft surgeries have already been completed. A contribution of Rs. 2 from the purchase of every Himalaya Lip Care product will be made towards the cause. While its just the beginning, Himalayas aim is to ensure children in need of cleft surgeries get access to treatment at the earliest, and at a tender age when healing is faster. Mr Rajesh Krishnamurthy, Business Head-Consumer Products, The Himalaya Drug Company commented on the initiative, We are extremely happy to associate with Smile Train India for this initiative. They have the operational excellence and network of skilled doctors to carry out the surgeries and have shown genuine empathy towards the cause. As a leading brand in the Lip Care category, one of the core brand objectives for Himalaya Lip Care is to ensure Healthy and Nourished lips for ALL. But it just doesnt end here. We understand lips are conduit to expression of ones emotions and confidence, a cleft condition hinders both. As a leading brand, we have taken this initiative to support the patients suffering from cleft-lip and help make a difference in their lives. The treatment of cleft is hampered more due to the economic and perception constraints thus the need to provide access to free surgeries and spread awareness becomes more pressing. The launch of Muskaan and association with Smile Train is aimed at meeting these. he further added. To put the issue under the spotlight, the company has shot and unveiled a beautiful film on the life transformation journey of Jyothi from Darbur Village, Chikkaballapur, Bengaluru who had been living with cleft for 14 years. The film brings alive the emotions and aspirations of the girl born with a cleft lip and palate as she undergoes a cleft lip surgery that gives her, her first real smile and leaves her with the promise of a better life. The renowned composer Karan has crafted the music and Sona Mahapatra has lent her soulful voice to the background score. The track has been composed by lyricist Amit that captures this real story sublimely. At the event, Ms Mamtaa Carrol, Smile Trains Vice President and Regional Director for South Asia said, Its hard to imagine not being able to smile, but over ten lakh children in India live with untreated clefts. This birth defect also impairs eating, speaking and breathing and can lead to a life filled with shame and social isolation for the children and their families. In the last 16 years, we have helped provide new smiles and second chances in life to over 4,50,000 children in India and are excited that Himalaya has joined us in this journey of transforming lives. We are sure that the film on Jyothi will help raise awareness about clefts and its life-impacting treatment. Support from corporates like Himalaya is a critical aspect of our work. It not only helps us continue and sustain our work but enables us to extend it, add greater value to it and spread awareness on a far greater scale. We look forward to a long and mutually fulfilling partnership with Himalaya whichll add value to both the organizations as well as our common constituency of cleft patients. she added. Rahul Bharti, Creative Director, Roadrunner the video production house, commented on the film, The brief given to us emphasised on bringing alive the difference that a simple corrective cleft surgery can make in the life of a cleft patient. Simple things that we take for granted like smiling to express happiness, socializing with friends and wearing makeup to look as well as feel good, was a big challenge for this young girl and this is something we discovered in our first meeting with Jyothi. While it is impossible for a 3 minute film to do justice to her everyday challenges, we have tried to capture a glimpse of her experience and aspirations. Sona Mohapatra, the singer also present at the launch event commented, This cause is extremely close to my heart thus singing the track was emotionally overwhelming. Everyone has a right to smile and I would like to encourage all of you to spread awareness on this initiative Muskaan. About The Himalaya Drug Company Seeped in a legacy of researching nature, Himalaya has successfully been able to harness the science of Ayurveda through cutting-edge research to become a brand that is safe, gentle and trustworthy. Visit: www.himalayawellness.com In 1930, a young visionary by the name of Mr. M. Manal foresaw the benefits of herbal remedies while riding through the forests of Burma. After diligently researching the science of the traditional field of Ayurveda, he decided to dedicate his life creating products that would improve millions of lives across the world. Today, with a history spanning more than eight decades in herbal research, Himalaya has positioned itself as a brand that cares about not only enriching peoples lives but also the environment. With their head to heel range of products Himalaya aims to provide a holistic solution to everyday ailments that affect our bodies.Seeped in a legacy of researching nature, Himalaya has successfully been able to harness the science of Ayurveda through cutting-edge research to become a brand that is safe, gentle and trustworthy. About Smile Train India Smile Train India is an international childrens charity with a sustainable approach to a single, solvable problem: cleft lip and palate. In India, over 35,000 children are born with clefts every year and over 10 lakh children with unrepaired clefts live in shame, but more importantly, have difficulty eating, breathing and speaking. Cleft repair surgery is simple, and the transformation is immediate. Since the year 2000, Smile Trains sustainable model provides training and funding to empower local doctors and hospitals across India to provide 100%-free cleft repair surgery and comprehensive cleft care in their own communities. This teach a man to fish strategy has enabled Smile Train India to provide over 4,50,000 free surgeries through a network of 170 partner hospitals .To learn more about how Smile Train Indias sustainable approach has both an immediate and long-term impact, please visit smiletrainindia.org Till next time....Keep it STYLISH By Nature !! Join Me on A Tauranga Lotto player will be going into the long weekend with a smile on their face after winning Strike Four. The winning ticket, which was sold at Cambridge Heights Foodmarket, means the player is now $200,000 richer. The Bay of Plenty has broken the $500,000 ceiling in average asking price, with Waikato, Wellington, Canterbury and Central Otago also reaching new record highs. A number of regions across the country experienced new record highs in average asking price in January, though this was off the back of a record low in inventory and a decline in new listings, according to data from Realestate.co.nz. Bay of Plentys kiwifruit and avocado industries should significantly benefit from todays signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement through the reduction of tariffs in key markets including Japan. While thousands took to the streets to protest against todays signing, primary industry bodies applauded it, saying its good for the country. Firefighters were called to the spill at a Hydroponics vegetable growers on Middlebrook Drive about 4pm. Kevin says the drum was being unloaded at the growers when it fell, spilt and splashed a worker. More than half the contents were lost. One worker, I think the guy that was unloading actually, got a bit of a splash of acid on his leg, says Kevin. He received decontamination and first aid at the scene. He was transported to the medical centre for a check-up but he was okay. Firefighters wearing splash suits soaked up the spill off the concrete floor using absorbent material. Then we neutralised the acid left on the floor that we couldnt soak up with a soda ash, which will be disposed of by a company that does that sort of stuff. The spill was virtually across the road from the new Katikati Fire Station, which was used as the operations base. After ensuring everyone was out and everyone was safe, the local brigade waited for the Greerton hazmat unit - which contains the splash suits and other gear required for dealing with a chemical spill. Firefighters left the scene around 8pm. Bay of Plenty MP Todd Muller welcomes the formal signing of the TPP in Auckland, heralding it as a milestone for the country and a lightning rod of opportunity for local Bay businesses. Our city has been built on the belief that our success depends on someone else, often thousands of miles away, valuing what we produce and manufacture. From Wednesday 10 February, Police will be offering a new service at the Karori Community Centre. Between 10am and 1pm each Wednesday, Police will be on site at the community centre to meet with the residents of Karori, says Wellington City Area Commander, Inspector Chris Bensemann. Over the years, fewer and fewer people have been using the office located up in Marsden Village. The community told us that they wanted to see more of a Police presence on the street and less time sitting behind a desk, so for that reason, we will no longer be based in the office, but will be available at the kiosk. The new kiosk means we are located in the heart of Karori and can take policing to the people of Karori, rather than expecting them to come to us, says Mr Bensemann. This is consistent with Polices objectives of providing a service that is more street than station, which means our staff being more visible out in the community, rather than being stuck in an office. Advances in mobile technology have also freed up our staff to provide a more responsive service. A community team comprising one sergeant and four constables will take turns manning the new kiosk. While the change is about making us more readily accessible than before, our service isnt just confined to the kiosk. We will still be maintaining a visible presence in the community at other times, while services such as the Crime Reporting Line allows people to give us information over the phone about crime in their community, so they dont necessarily need to leave their home or take time off from work to come and see us. In Wellington city and its suburbs, including Karori, that line is (04) 381 2000 but of course in an emergency, people should still always call 111 and we will respond as quickly as we can, Mr Bensemann says. The former Marsden Village office is not owned by Police and the lease will end shortly. I would like to especially thank to the community volunteers who gave up so much of their time to provide services at the Marsden Village office. Their contribution to helping people in the community to be safe and feel safe is truly appreciated. A well-established Neighbourhood Support Group and Community Patrol in Karori will continue their work in the area. Anyone who is interested in joining one of the two groups, or would like further information, can contact the Johnsonville Community Policing Centre on (04) 381 2000. Source: New Zealand Police. Two former rivals, Zespri and Turners & Growers have today signed a Memorandum of Understanding, confirming their intention to work together in future. Zespri Chairman Peter McBride and T&G Global Chairman Professor Klaus Josef Lutz signed the MOU early this morning NZ time at the fruit industry trade show Fruit Logistica in Berlin. Mardi Gras, also known as Fat Tuesday, has been celebrated throughout southern parts of the U.S. for many years, particularly in New Orleans. What started as a Christian holiday is now a widely recognized occasion that features many festive traditions, such as colorful beads and a lot of good food. Try these classic Mardi Gras dishes to celebrate the exciting day this year. 1. Chicken-Andouille Gumbo Want to enjoy Mardi Gras with a truly Southern meal? Chicken-andouille gumbo is the perfect dish to bring to a Mardi Gras party or to simply enjoy with your friends or family in honor of the festive event. Ingredients 1 lb. andouille sausage, cut into 1/4-inch thick slices 1/2 cup peanut oil 3/4 cup all-purpose flour 1 large onion, coarsely chopped 1 red bell pepper, coarsely chopped 1 cup thinly sliced celery 2 garlic cloves, minced 2 tsp. Cajun seasoning 1/8 tsp. ground red pepper (optional) 1 (48-oz.) container chicken broth 2 lbs. skinned and boned chicken breasts Directions To start, cook the sausage in a large skillet over medium heat for 7 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove the sausage from the pan and pat dry with a paper towel. In a Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add the flour gradually and cook, whisking often. After 18-20 minutes, or until flour is caramel-colored, reduce heat to low and continue cooking. Whisk constantly for about 2 minutes, until the mixture is the color of milk chocolate and the texture is smooth. Increase the heat to medium and stir in onion. Add the next four ingredients and ground red pepper, if preferred. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Gradually pour in the chicken broth, followed by the sausage and chicken. Turn up heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring occasionally for about 1 hour and 40 minutes, or until chicken is thoroughly cooked. Shred the chicken into large pieces with two forks. Place the roasted potatoes in serving bowls and spoon gumbo over potatoes before serving. 2. Traditional Southern Jambalaya Jambalaya is a classic Mardi Gras rice dish that's known for being packed with protein and a variety of rich flavors. Ingredients 1 Tbsp. olive oil 1/2 lb. smoked sausage, cut into 1/4-inch thick slices 1 large onion, chopped 1 cup chopped green bell pepper 1 cup chopped celery Salt to taste 1/2 tsp. Cajun seasoning, or to taste 1 cup uncooked white rice 1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes with juice 1 Tbsp. minced garlic 2 cups chicken broth 3 bay leaves 1/4 tsp. dried thyme leaves 1 lb. peeled and deveined medium shrimp (30-40 per lb.) Directions Heat the oil in a Dutch oven or in a large pot over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook for 2 minutes before stirring in the bell pepper, celery and onion. Season with Cajun seasoning and salt. Cook and stir for 6-8 minutes, or until vegetables are soft. Add the rice until the vegetable mixture is evenly coated. Pour in the chicken broth, tomatoes with juice, thyme and bay leaves. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 20 minutes covered. Stir in the shrimp and cook for another 10 minutes uncovered, until the shrimp turn pink and are no longer translucent in the center. Remove from the heat and let mixture stand for 5 minutes. Discard bay leaves and serve. 3. Muffuletas Muffuletas are tasty Italian sandwiches that have become popular in the South. The unique combination of meats and tangy hint of olive make it a delicious treat for Mardi Gras. Ingredients 1/4 cup red wine vinegar 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced 1 tsp. dried oregano 1/3 cup olive oil 10 large pitted green olives, chopped 1/3 cup kalamata olives, pitted and chopped 1/4 cup chopped roasted red bell peppers Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 (1 lb.) round bread loaf (about 7 in. in diameter and 3 in. high) 4 oz. thinly sliced ham 4 oz. thinly sliced mortadella 4 oz. thinly sliced salami 4 oz. sliced provolone 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced 1 1/2 oz. arugula leaves Directions Put the first three ingredients into a large bowl and whisk together. Gradually add the oil and stir in the roasted peppers and olives. Season with salt, pepper and vinaigrette to taste. Cut the top inch of the bread loaf and set aside. Hollow out the bottom and top halves of the bread. Then, spread the roasted pepper and olive mixture over the bottom and cut side of the bread top. Layer the cheeses and meats in the bread bottom and top with onions and arugula. Spread the rest of the roasted pepper and olive mix on top of the sandwich and cover with the bread top. If you want the sandwich chilled, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in refrigerator for one day, or cut into wedges and serve immediately. When an annual institution has been going on long enough, not even crises like a worldwide pandemic could keep it down permanently. This i... CORTLAND, N.Y. -- A Cortland nursing home worker was accused by state authorities of physically abusing a female patient at Crown Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation. Noelle Otto, 28, a certified nurse aide, was arraigned Wednesday in Cortland City Court on charges of falsifying business records, endangering the welfare of an incompetent or physically disabled person, and willful violation of health laws, state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced. "Nursing home residents are among New York's most vulnerable citizens, and they deserve to be treated with the utmost respect and compassion by those responsible for their care. For a patient to be abused by someone whose job it is to ensure their well-being is disgraceful," Schneiderman said. The incident occurred Dec. 5, 2014, at Crown Center, a nursing home at 28 Kellogg Road in Cortland. Otto was accused of covering the patient's mouth, slapping her arms and legs, and slamming her arms against the bedside table. Otto then allegedly made a false statement to the facility about the incident. Otto pleaded not guilty to the charges and was released on her own recognizance. Judge Elizabeth Burns scheduled a pretrial hearing for March 2, 2016. Contact Mike McAndrew anytime | email | Twitter | 315-470-3016 RooshV.JPG (screenshot from Twitter) SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Officially, a men's rights group that has promoted "legal rape" cancelled the day of worldwide meetings it had planned for Saturday. Nathaniel Farrington, of Syracuse, still thinks the neo-masculine group might show up at the city's Columbus Circle for the previously scheduled meeting. So Farrington and friends plan to hold a protest in Columbus Circle -- just in case. "I consider myself an ally to women," Farrington said. "This is my community, and I want people to feel safe and happy in my community." Farrington said he was appalled when he learned the Return of Kings group planned to meet in Syracuse. He wasn't alone. People across the world planned protests when they learned Return of Kings planned to hold 165 meetings in 43 countries. The group's leader, Daryush "Roosh" Valizadeh, decided to cancel the events -- citing safety concerns. "I can no longer guarantee the safety or privacy of the men who want to attend on February 6, especially since most of the meetups can not be made private in time," Valizadeh wrote on his website. "While I can't stop men who want to continue meeting in private groups, there will be no official Return Of Kings meetups. The listing page has been scrubbed of all locations. I apologize to all the supporters who are let down by my decision." Valizadeh argued in a 2015 blog post that rape culture could be stopped by making "rape legal if done on private property. I propose that we make the violent taking of a woman not punishable by law when done off public grounds." He later called the post a "satirical thought experiment." Farrington called Return of Kings "absolutely awful." He and his friend plan to meet up in Columbus Circle at 7:30 p.m. Saturday to protest the group and reassure women that they should feel safe in Syracuse. Farrington invited the public to join. He said anyone with questions can email him at nathanielfarrington@gmail.com. purdy_2.JPG A screen shot of Alex Purdy's video: Why I left My Sorority. (screenshot) Syracuse, N.Y. -- Alex Purdy was on the "Today" show this morning, talking about her blunt video on all that's wrong with sorority culture. The Syracuse University student posted a video called "Why I left my sorority" on YouTube Jan. 27. It's been watched more than 50,000 times since then. Related story: Syracuse University student quits sorority and bashes culture of cruelty In the video, Purdy said she quit her sorority last semester and decided that she wanted to speak out against the disturbing culture that she encountered: Women were told to dress "more slutty" to attract men at formals. Older sorority sisters shamed pledges because of their bodies. On the "Today" show, Purdy told the interviewer that she wanted to call attention to a problem that is rampant in the Greek system. "It's about opening up the conversation," she said. Not everyone around the Today show table shared Purdy's view of sororities. "I'm Tri Delt," Hoda Kotb said as the segment concluded."I think there are good and bad sororities out there." Kotb said her experience was good. The "Today" show contacted Syracuse University, which provided a statement saying the school's goal is to provide a safe Greek life experience. Purdy is a senior public relations major at Syracuse University. She has not named the sorority she belonged to, saying she's more interested in changing the sorority culture. She's asking people to share her video and help her mission using the hashtag #sororityrevamp. Marnie Eisenstadt writes about life and culture in Central New York. Contact her anytime: email | twitter | 315-470-2246. hr2.jpg An ad for failed insurer Health Republic. (Health Republic) SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Sen. David Valesky, D-Oneida, wants the state to create a special fund to protect consumers and medical providers in the event another health insurer goes belly-up like Health Republic of New York did late last year. Valesky has introduced a bill that would set up a guaranty fund, financed by a temporary one-time assessment on the state's health insurers, to reimburse doctors and hospitals if a health plan goes out of business. Health insurers would be barred from passing along the cost of the assessment to policyholders. State and federal regulators ordered financially-troubled Health Republic to shut down in November, forcing about 200,000 customers to quickly enroll in other health plans. The shutdown left doctors, hospitals and other providers holding the bag for an estimated $200 million in unpaid claims. Valesky said New York is the only state that does not protect consumers and providers when insurers fold. While hospital trade groups and the state Medical Society support the proposal, the insurance industry adamantly opposes it. Leslie Moran, senior vice president of the New York Health Plan Association, said the guaranty fund would add another tax on top of an estimated $5 billion in health care taxes already collected by the state. If state regulators had monitored Health Republic's finances more closely and given it sufficient rate increases, the failure might not have happened, she said. Health Republic debuted in 2014 and captured the biggest share of business on the state's health insurance exchange created by the federal Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. Experts say it went broke because its premiums were too low and it did not receive as much as expected in federal payments to protect it from heavy losses. "Physicians and other healthcare stakeholders should not bear the losses associated with the demise of this company," said Dr. Joseph Maldonado, president of the state Medical Society. Moran suggested New York use some of the $550 million it received in a settlement with major tobacco companies to address health insurance failures. Valesky said New York is the only state without a guaranty fund. Contact James T. Mulder anytime: Email | Twitter | 315-470-2245 SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Two Republicans were considering challenging Sen. Michael Nozzolio to a GOP primary election this year because he voted against fellow Upstate Sen. John DeFrancisco for Senate majority leader, according to a state assemblyman. Assemblyman Bill Nojay, R-Pittsford, said he was recruiting Republicans to run against Nozzolio because Nozzolio cost Upstate New York political muscle by backing Sen. John Flanagan of Long Island for Senate majority leader last year. "The worst thing of all was he put a knife in the back of John DeFrancisco. He voted for this Long Island liberal (Flanagan) who is probably Cuomo's biggest ally in Albany," Nojay said of Nozzolio. Nozzolio, R-Fayette, who is one of Central New York's longest-serving state lawmakers, announced Tuesday he would not run for re-election this year because he will undergo open heart surgery. Sen. Michael Nozzolio Nozzolio indicated in a statement that a potential primary challenge did not prompt his decision to step aside at the end of his term. "For over thirty years, I have been honored by the faith and trust voters have shown by re-electing me to office each term with 70% or more of the vote," Nozzolio wrote in an email to syracuse.com. "I am confident that if I physically had been able to run this fall, I would have been re-elected yet again, by those who know how hard I work each and every day on their behalf." "My decision to not seek re-election is based solely on my health, the recommendations of my doctors, and my need for major surgery. This was not a decision made lightly, but one made to best serve the wonderful constituents I have been grateful to represent in the New York State Senate," Nozzolio wrote. Nozzolio, 64, was first elected to the Senate in 1992 and served 10 years in the Assembly before that. He has been showered with praise by Republican officials in his 54th Senate District since Tuesday. "Our region has been blessed to have him as our representative and our advocate in Albany," said Assemblyman Robert Oaks, R-Macedon, who is also chair of the Wayne County Republican Committee. "He's been a tireless advocate for all of the communitiues and towns. He's been a champion for the school districts," said Ontario County Republican Committee Chairman Doug Finch. "He's certainly going to be missed." Nojay voiced nothing but scorn for Nozzolio, who was one of six Upstate senators who in May voted for Flanagan for Senate majority leader over DeFrancisco, a Republican from Syracuse. Assemblyman Bill Nojay Nojay said Nozzolio's vote on the Senate leadership was his most important vote as a senator because the majority leader controls what legislation gets voted upon and committee assignments. He questioned whether Nozzolio represented his constituents well. In a ranking of 63 senators, Nozzolio was rated by the New York State Conservative Party as tied for 10th-most conservative senator. Nojay, rated as the most conservative member of the state Assembly, criticized Nozzolio for not trying to defund implementation of the NY Safe Act, a tough gun control measure, and for not visibly supporting Republican gubernatorial candidate Rob Astorino in 2014. He said two Republicans he wouldn't name - an elected official and a political activist - were considering challenging Nozzolio to a primary. "He knew we were coming (after him)," Nojay said of Nozzolio. Contact Mike McAndrew anytime | email | Twitter | 315-470-3016 phillips.JPG A photo from the 1960s: In the back is Muriel Barclay de Tolly. In the front row is her son Paul, daughter Wanda, Alejandro Del Valle and daughter Joanne; in the back row from left is her son Michael Barclay and next to him is Sergio and Xavier Del Valle. (Provided photo) Joanne Barclay Phillips, who lived in Fayetteville during the '60s and attended Immaculate Conception School, decided to submit a story about her mom to Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg in honor of Friend's Day. Zuckerberg, chairman and CEO of Facebook, selected Phillips' story and shared it on his Facebook page Monday. So far, her story has been shared more than 2,300 times and has nearly 112,000 likes. 'It's magical,'' said Phillips, who now lives in Jamestown, R.I. Since Monday, she's been flooded with comments and Facebook friend requests - too many to even respond to, she says. Here is Mark Zuckerberg's post: On Thursday were celebrating Friends Day, a moment to celebrate the friendships that have made a difference in our... Posted by Mark Zuckerberg on Monday, February 1, 2016 Phillips, who is celebrating her 58th birthday today, said her family lived in Fayetteville during the early 1960s, moving to Rhode Island in 1967. Her dad worked for General Electric and then took a job with Raytheon. Phillips said she shared the post about her mother, Muriel, who is now 85, because she wanted others to see what an amazing person her mom is - and always has been. "I was in a sentimental mood about my mom, and I was thinking about how she always has done so much for everybody. I wanted to put it out there and tell people what a good person she is,'' Phillips said. She posted her story to Zuckerberg's page and was surprised when she got a phone call from a Facebook executive asking to share her tale on the Facebook CEO's page. "I was amazed,'' she said. "He interviewed me for 45 minutes. To have all these shares and likes..wow,'' she said. Phillips, an obstetrical nurse, said she was 7 years old when the priest at Immaculate Conception Church in Fayetteville asked her mom if she could take in three boys whose mother had died. "They came for dinner on a Sunday, and then they moved in,'' Phillips recalled. "Xavier, the oldest, lived with us for three years and his two brothers for about a year. Then they went to Mexico to live with their father." Phillips said the family lost touch with the three boys through the years. When Phillips' mom, Muriel Barclay de Tolly, decided to take a trip to Mexico several years ago, she said she wished she could see the boys again. That was Phillips' cue to search on Facebook for them. "I found Xavier within an hour, and I knew it was him because his picture looked just like him,'' she said. "I contacted him and he and my mom got together in Mexico and spent three days together." Since then, Phillips, her siblings and her mom all chat with the De Valle boys via Facebook. Phillips' said her mom also took in children from Spain for several months after they moved to Rhode Island. "She always opened our home to people,'' she said. Facebook is great for helping make those connections, Phillips said. "I lost two friends to cancer recently, and it's just nice that people can express their feelings on Facebook when you might not talk to them otherwise,'' she said. 2016-02-04-mm-Hochul.JPG New York Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul visits with the syracuse.com editorial board on Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. She talked about the proposed merger of Syracuse and Onondaga County governments, New York's minimum wage, and other topics. (Mike McAndrew | mmcandrew@syracuse.com) SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul is no stranger to Syracuse. She got her bachelor's degree from Syracuse University and has fond memories of working as a student at Varsity Pizza. "Every time I'm in town I stop at the Varsity, pick up a couple slices. It's fun to be back," Hochul said Thursday, during a brief meeting with the syracuse.com editorial board. Hochul said she and her boss, Gov. Andrew Cuomo, support efforts to merge Syracuse and Onondaga County governments to cut costs and save taxpayers money. But she said neither she nor Cuomo plan to visit Syracuse anytime soon to urge residents to approve consolidating the governments. "We want to hear form the local residents. This is really their destiny. It's not something we can impose or it will not be accepted. We understand that," Hochul said. Consensus, a civic group funded by the state, has recommended a merger, without providing a blueprint for what a combined metropolitan government would look like. The recommendation could lead to votes by Syracuse Common Council and the Onondaga County Legislature, and then a public referendum. Hochul said that when she was a Hamburg town official in western New York for 14 years, she supported the merger of the town and village of Hamburg's police departments. "We would have absorbed every member of the village police department into the town. Nobody would lose a job. But there was still resistance. We demonstrated there would have been a 17 percent decrease in village taxes from day 1," she recalled. "We put it to the voters. The voters said no." "I'm a believer," she said of government consolidations, "but I also know the voters have to be behind it." Hochul said the potential for a merger of Syracuse and Onondaga County governments is a main reason why Central New York won a $500 million award in Cuomo's Upstate Revitalization Initiative. She also noted that Cuomo put $70 million in his proposed state budget to pay for incentives to persuade local governments to consolidate services. Hochul on minimum wage Hochul was probably paid minimum wage when she was a Varsity Pizza waitress. She said she also earned minimum wage making chicken wings and pizzas in the Buffalo area when she was young, before she became a lawyer and was elected to Congress. While in Syracuse, the lt. governor vigorously defended Cuomo's proposal to gradually increase the state's minimum wage to $15 an hour, despite opposition from most of the state's business groups and the New York Farm Bureau. "We've had a series of minimum wage increases," Hochul said. "Jobs actually increased during those times." "It's going to put money in the hands of 2.3 million people...It's an opportunity to elevate people out of poverty," Hochul said, noting that 50 percent of Syracuse's children are living in poverty. "That's a good thing." She said there are single moms in New York working full time who are earning $18,000. "That's below the poverty level. There should be some sense that that's a disgraceful situation in a state like new York," she said. As to complaints that it will hurt Upstate businesses, Hochul said, "This will also be a jolt to the economy when more people have income in their hands to spend in places like Syracuse. This will help the retailers and the people who sell cars. And the people who are doing rentals. And these little businesses downtown. Think about people having more money in their pockets that will be recirculated in the economy." She said New York taxpayers are subsidizing fast food restaurants by providing their workers with about $700 million in welfare and other state assistance because their wages are so low. That state support will decline rapidly if the minimum wage is increased. She said the governor is committed to his minimum wage proposal, despite opposition from Senate Republicans. "Obviously there will be disagreements on the impact of this. But the governor is going full speed ahead," she said. "We want to have these discussions as we enter the budget phase with the Senate Republicans and the Assembly Democrats. Time will tell what the actual outcome is." Money for Syracuse's leaky pipes? Cuomo said last February that Syracuse should fix its own leaky water pipes and not expect the state to pay for that. Hochul pointed out that Cuomo's proposed budget includes $22 billion for Upstate's infrastructure. "That is why you'll see record numbers of state investment in infrastructure in Upstate New York. The largest infusion of money for infrastructure since the Erie Canal, which if it was built today would be $7 billion. The governor has proposed $22 billion in infrastructure improvements, some of it targeted for water and sewer lines. He has a very broad approach to finding different ways to invest in infrastructure in Upstate New York, and giving relief to counties." So will New York pay to fix Syracuse's water system? "I'm not going to sit here and say the state is going to absorb that cost," Hochul said. "But I will tell you the governor has put on the table proposals to assist. We need to look at the proposals individually. I'm not in a position to commit to one individual community's needs at this time. But there's more money out there for it than there had been, so the opportunity is there." Contact Mike McAndrew anytime | email | Twitter | 315-470-3016 MaryEllen Elia New York State Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia visited the editorial board of the Syracuse Media Group on Wednesday. (Michael Greenlar | mgreenlar@syracuse.com) SYRACUSE, N.Y. - New York state Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia addressed questions we had earlier solicited from a student, teacher and professor for an editorial board meeting at Syracuse Media Group today. Here are the questions and the commissioner's answers: Ben Testani, 18, senior at Fayetteville-Manlius High School and president of the student government. QUESTION: How would you explain to colleges that my younger brother has taken a completely different trigonometry exam than the one I took only two years ago? Testani took the Regents exam for trigonometry, "which everyone says is much easier than the Common Core exam." He worries the Common Core test scores won't accurately reflect students' grasp of the subject. ANSWER: The expectation is that by raising the standards the tests will be harder. The State Education Department has been working with the State University of New York and City University of New York on transcripts to make clear the assessments for those subjects were for either the Common Core test or for the prior exams. They're making recommendations on how to be part of the transcripts. And Common Core standards are also familiar at admissions offices at college and universities across the country. Marcia Burrell, professor and chair of the Curriculum and Instruction Department at State University of New York College at Oswego. QUESTION: Whenever we create and improve our programs, it has to go to the state Education Department and State University of New York. We have submitted new programs that have been in the pipeline for 18 months or longer. After receiving memos on plans for improving the timeline for the approval, where are we with the implementation plan for that process for new programs and revised programs? ANSWER: Elia has been working with Chancellor of the State University of New York Nancy Zimpher to speed up the process. She acknowledged there has been "slack" in moving forward in the past. In response, the process has been changed. At one point, SUNY also had a preliminary process for submitting applications and that also has been changed. In 2015, there were 2,200 applications for new or revised programs from colleges and in 2014, 1,700 were received. Efforts are being made to streamline the process through SUNY and the State Education Department. The commissioner said approval may be delayed because an application is incomplete, failing to be "responsive to the requirements Regents have regarding resources being placed in the program." Kevin Dorsey, music teacher at Seymour Dual Language Academy for 18 1/2 years. Seymour is currently in receivership because the state has designated it a "struggling" school, one of 18 in the Syracuse City School District. QUESTION: In December, the Board of Regents suspended the use of student scores on state tests in teacher evaluations for any personnel decisions until 2019-2020. For schools in receivership, the Community Engagement Team (CET) at Seymour Dual Language Academy, had to pick multiple data measures to show progress and some were picked by the state. Several of these measures had to be based on progress on the state tests. How is this fair to schools in receivership? ANSWER: "The assessment is only 20 percent of their whole growth score and whether or not they're getting off the persistently struggling list. If it's more than that it's because the school itself chose it to be more than that... The persistently struggling schools got on this list long before we had Common Core assessments that were used. So it's not like this one year is giving us a false read. We're giving the same assessments. We're getting information on how well the students are doing or not. And we're seeing some of the shifts that they would have made hopefully and what's happening at their schools." SIMPSON Murder defendant O.J. Simpson grimaces as he tries on one of the leather gloves prosecutors say he wore the night his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman were murdered, during the Simpson double-murder trial Thursday, June 15, 1995, in Los Angeles. O.J. Simpson's prosecutors rested Thursday, July 6, 1995 after five months and 58 witnesses in a legal drama that transfixed the nation with a tale of a football hero turned murderer. (Sam Mircovich/ Pool via AP) Cameras are rarely allowed in New York courtrooms even though the law permits it. Thanks, O.J. Simpson. Simpson's 1995 murder trial is back in the cultural conversation with Tuesday's premiere of the FX miniseries, "The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story.'' Simpson, a Heisman Trophy winner and star running back for the Buffalo Bills, was accused of stabbing to death his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ron Goldman, at her Los Angeles condominium. Simpson's trial dominated the news in a way that hadn't happened before and hasn't happened since. The proceedings were televised wall to wall on CNN, the only 24-hour cable news network at the time. It made media stars of prosecutor Marcia Clark, Judge Lance Ito and Simpson's "Dream Team'' of lawyers, led by Robert Shapiro, Johnnie Cochran and Robert Kardashian (yes, that Kardashian). The case sparked endless water cooler conversations and percolated into pop culture. At the end of the eight-month trial, a jury acquitted Simpson of murder. A misguided backlash against cameras in the courtroom followed. The circus atmosphere outside Judge Ito's courtroom wasn't the fault of the cameras inside it. While the media outside chewed on issues of race, celebrity, domestic violence and police procedure, the cameras inside provided a view of the proceedings unfiltered by lawyers or journalists. Americans with the time to watch it were able to judge the evidence and the arguments for themselves. Whether you agreed or disagreed with the verdict, the trial's openness gave the jury's decision a legitimacy it would not have had otherwise. In New York state, the rules allow cameras in courtrooms "to the fullest extent permissible by law.'' But it's up to the judge to decide on a case-by-case basis. Too few judges say yes to cameras. The courts are the only branch of our government that operates largely out of the public eye. Journalists, as the eyes and ears of the public, are sometimes present. But they can't be everywhere. Criminal defense lawyers almost always object to the presence of cameras based on fears the outcomes of their clients' cases will be prejudiced. New York's decade-long experiment with cameras in the courtroom showed those concerns could be addressed and balanced with the public's right to know. Jonathan Lippman, who recently retired as New York's chief judge, believes cameras should be allowed in courtrooms unless there's a good reason to ban them. As yet another step toward transparency in our government, we agree. commercials.jpg Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton appear in political advertisements. (syracuse.com) The Des Moines Register issued an editorial criticizing the Democratic Party's handling of the Iowa caucus. The editorial laments unprepared and disorganized staffers who inaccurately counted results and ran caucus sites across the state. "Once again the world is laughing at Iowa," the editorial said. "Late-night comedians and social media mavens are having a field day with jokes about missing caucusgoers and coin flips. That's fine. We can take ribbing over our quirky process. But what we can't stomach is even the whiff of impropriety or error." The editorial calls for an audit of the caucus and requests the Democratic Party break protocol and release individual voter totals. "Two-tenths of 1 percent separated Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton. A caucus should not be confused with an election, but it's worth noting that much larger margins trigger automatic recounts in other states." The Des Moines Register reports Bernie Sanders' team has already found discrepancies in a caucus that featured overcrowded sites and coin flips. Advance Digital's Andrew Maclean put together a video evaluating whether issues candidates advertise about are accurate and important. In the video, Maclean pieces together political advertisements from Marco Rubio, Donald Trump, Ted Cruz, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders on terrorism, health care, the glass ceiling and the Mexican border. Rick Santorum endorsed Marco Rubio after dropping out of the 2016 presidential race. During an appearance on MSNBC, Santorum was asked which of Rubio's accomplishments make the Florida senator stand out. One problem: Santorum couldn't name any. Santorum explained between the "gridlocked" congress and Rubio's campaign that "pulling people together" is an accomplishment. Hosts pressed Santorum for a more specific answer, but the former Pennsylvania senator couldn't deliver one. Watch the full video below: More buzz: >> How to watch tonight's Democratic debate (syracuse.com) >> Carson wants Cruz to pay for Iowa (POLITICO) >> #HillarySoProgressive calls out her record (Vox) >> Rubio picks up steam following Iowa (WaPo) >> Bush tells his haters to 'take a chill pill' (TPM) It is not a bad thing for us, that the route known as the Goldene Strae or the Golden Road as we will get to know it- has escaped the attention of so many. It has been spared being overrun by hordes of tourists and as you will discover the Hillary Clinton, Anderson Cooper Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, right, stands to answer a question from the audience alongside host Anderson Cooper during a Democratic primary town hall sponsored by CNN, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, in Derry, N.H. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) (John Minchillo) WASHINGTON, D.C. - Who do you think won the Democratic presidential town hall forum on Wednesday night? Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders made their closing arguments to New Hampshire voters Wednesday night during a town hall meeting broadcast live by CNN from Derry, N.H. Clinton and Sanders took turns answering questions for two hours from the audience and CNN moderator Anderson Cooper. After Clinton squeaked by Sanders in the Iowa caucus this week, the two now have their sights on the New Hampshire primary election Tuesday - the first state in the nation to cast ballots in the 2016 presidential election. The candidates appeared separately on stage and did not have a chance to question each other. But in a series of questions from the audience, Clinton and Sanders tried to appeal to undecided voters. Clinton made it clear that she and Sanders have very different ideas about what to do with the Affordable Care Act or Obamacare. Clinton said she wants to build and improve on the existing law. Sanders said he wants to switch to a system of universal health care, removing private insurance companies from the system. "I know what it's like to go up against the status quo and special interests," Clinton said referring to her previous work on health care reform. But Clinton added she doesn't believe it's worth scrapping Obamacare and re-starting a "contentious national debate." Sanders continued to make the case that he best represents progressive values in the campaign. Sanders said Clinton is not a progressive, citing her vote as a New York senator to go to war in Iraq and her support for international trade pacts. In the end, who do you think emerged as the winner of the town hall forum? Please vote in the poll above, and share your comments below. The online reader poll is not statistically representative of eligible primary voters. Contact Mark Weiner anytime: Email | Twitter | Facebook | 571-970-3751 Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton The Democratic presidential campaigns of Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders reached an agreement in principle on Saturday to hold another presidential debate next week in New Hampshire and three more later this spring. (Mic Smith | The Associated Press) After finishing in second place in Iowa, Donald Trump is now calling foul on Ted Cruz's victory. Trump fired off a series of tweets accusing Cruz of fraudulent activities for telling voters Ben Carson dropped out of the race. Ted Cruz didn't win Iowa, he stole it. That is why all of the polls were so wrong and why he got far more votes than anticipated. Bad! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 3, 2016 During primetime of the Iowa Caucus, Cruz put out a release that @RealBenCarson was quitting the race, and to caucus (or vote) for Cruz. Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 3, 2016 Many people voted for Cruz over Carson because of this Cruz fraud. Also, Cruz sent out a VOTER VIOLATION certificate to thousands of voters. Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 3, 2016 Based on the fraud committed by Senator Ted Cruz during the Iowa Caucus, either a new election should take place or Cruz results nullified. Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 3, 2016 According to the Washington Post, Cruz's antics did not change the outcome of the race as the margin between Cruz and Trump was too large. Carson also saw an increase in support than his polling suggested despite Cruz's email suggesting Carson was dropping out of the race. Trump did admit skipping the last GOP debate before the Iowa caucus may have contributed to his defeat. Cruz's campaign laughed off Trump's accusations. "Reality just hit the reality star -- he lost Iowa and now nobody is talking about him, so he's popping off on Twitter," Cruz communications director Rick Tyler told Politico. "There are support groups for Twitter addiction, perhaps he should find his local chapter." Bernie Sanders is finally get his wish: More debates. Hillary Clinton and Sanders will square off four more times. The first will take place Thursday night in New Hampshire. Debates in Flint, Michigan in March, Pennsylvania in April and California in May will follow. Sanders and former candidate Martin O'Malley have long lobbied for more debates, arguing the limited debate schedule favored Clinton. Sanders told Wolf Blitzer that he also wanted a New York City debate, but Clinton would not agree to that location. Things got awkward for Jeb Bush at a rally in New Hampshire. After stumping about his qualifications and integrity, Bush had to ask his audience for applause according to MSNBC. The audience reacts with laughter and applause to Bush's request for enthusiasm. After a poor showing in Iowa where Bush and his super-PAC essentially paid $2,800 per vote, he's polling better in New Hampshire. Of the major polls, Bush is as high as second and as low as sixth, averaging 9.8 percent of the vote. More Buzz: >> Sanders is ahead by 33 points in one NH poll (The Hill) >> Rick Santorum is dropping out (CNN) >> Rubio selling shirts featuring his 'handsome' looks (Verge) >> Carson implies Ted Cruz is un-Christian (Washington Times) >> Rand Paul drops out (AP) Bernie-Hillary.jpg Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton will debate in New Hampshire. (The Associated Press) MSNBC will hold a Democratic primary debate tonight, Thursday, February 4 at the University of New Hampshire in Durham, N.H. The two remaining Democratic primary candidates, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, will take the stage at 9pm ET. Clinton scraped a narrow win over Sanders earlier this week in the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses. Poor performance in the caucuses prompted the only other Democratic candidate, former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley, to drop from the race. The debate will air live on MSNBC. In Syracuse: Time Warner Cable: Channels 38, 203 Verizon FiOS: Channels 103, 603 DirecTV: Channel 356 Dish Network: 209 New Visions: 175 The primary debate will also be available to live stream on both MSNBC.com and NBCNews.com, and mobile users can stream the debate on NBCNews apps for iTunes and Android. Real-time reactions and analysis can also be found on decision2016.nbcnews.com, and Twitter users can follow #DemDebate for the latest updates. MSNBC's Chuck Todd and Rachel Maddow will be moderating the debate. The event marks an opportunity for the candidates to meet face to face and debate the issues ahead of the New Hampshire primaries on February 9. The latest polls show Sanders with a strong lead over Clinton among New Hampshire primary voters, according to Real Clear Politics, in some cases by more than 30 percentage points. Clinton and Sanders are scheduled to debate again on February 11, but the remaining Republican candidates will face off in a debate before that on Saturday, February 6. 2016-02-03-mjg-Elia4.JPG New York State Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia vists the editorial board of the Syracuse Media Group on Wednesday February 3, 2016. (Michael Greenlar | mgreenlar@syracuse.com) SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- MaryEllen Elia, tapped seven months ago to lead New York's education department, now finds herself wedged between a federal mandate to test students and a groundswell of parents in this state who refuse to let their kids take the tests. Elia, along with other heads of state education departments that saw a high number of "opt-outs" last spring, received a letter in December from the federal education department. It was a reminder that the federal government could withhold funding for disadvantaged students from states with less than 95 percent participation on exams. Last year, 20 percent of New York students refused to take state tests, aligned to the Common Core standards for higher achievement. Asked what would happen if that many or more opted out again this year, Elia said she has no idea. "I will tell you it was a very strong letter," Elia said. "I've read those before and this one was one of the most strongly-worded letters I've seen. I don't know what the end result is going to be." Elia, who supports high standards but has been critical of their implementation, said it has been the first priority of her job to address issues with the Common Core, as well as the curriculum, assessments and teachers evaluations that went along with it. The education department conducted surveys and held forums to elicit feedback. Gov. Andrew Cuomo commissioned a task force to make recommendations on how to better the process. Elia said she is directing the education department to follow those recommendations. Elia said she hopes the changes that the education department has made or said it will make convince educators of the value and legitimacy of state tests. Elia said she does not believe parents will have confidence in the tests unless they hear support for the tests from the teachers and administrators at their children's schools. "We are working hard at SED to get the word out: These are the things we've changed already. This is the plan we have. Please make sure you work with your parents and teachers in your community to talk about those things and to address the issue of opt-outs from a perspective of what we are losing out on if we don't have assessments in place for students." Elia said that state testing is an important way for educators to identify achievement gaps, training needs and other issues. She said she thinks the federal Education Department's letter should be taken seriously, and it's one more motivation in her effort to win over parents and educators on the benefits of testing. "We'll see," Elia said. "I do think that we'll have more people that will be part of our assessment program." Reporter Julie McMahon covers public education and Syracuse city schools. She can be reached anytime: Email | Twitter | 315-412-1992 2016-02-03-mjg-Elia1.JPG New York State Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia vists the editorial board of the Syracuse Media Group on Wednesday February 3, 2016. (Michael Greenlar | mgreenlar@syracuse.com) SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Problems with discipline and struggling students aren't unique to urban school districts, but they are exacerbated by economic disparities, said New York State Education Commissioner Mary Ellen Elia. In an editorial board meeting with Syracuse.com Wednesday, during which Common Core testing and the opt-out movement were discussed, Elia also addressed issues plaguing large city schools in New York state. Receivership Twenty schools across New York, including Grant Middle School in Syracuse, were designated as "persistently struggling," last year, meaning their students scored in the bottom 5 percent on state tests for several years. Elia said she expects to see some of those schools move off the list based on preliminary data from state assessments. The schools have until the end of the school year to show "demonstrable improvement." Another 144 schools statewide are deemed "struggling," and have a total of two years to improve. For those that remain on the list it's a matter of months before they could be turned over to a state-appointed receiver. Elia said the State Education Department will look at more than just test scores to measure progress. "I think it's appropriate that we don't have it all be driven by numbers ... I have experience in turning around schools and it doesn't happen overnight, but it has to be a steady increase in supports and performance of kids," Elia said. Suspensions Changes to disciplinary procedures in the Syracuse City School District have caused tensions. Syracuse, like many urban school districts, is moving away from "zero tolerance" policies, that rely heavily on out-of-school suspensions, toward "restorative justice" practices for keeping students in the educational setting. "Kids can't learn if they aren't in school," Elia said. She said she supports restorative justice as an alternative, and also believes that kids have to be held accountable for their actions. Elia said the best way to improve behaviors is to work with families. She has proposed creating an Office of Community and Family Involvement within the State Education Department that would focus on engaging with parents. That office could also share best practices and strategies among districts statewide. Here were some of her other recommendations: Train all school staff on multiple strategies for dealing with disruptive or violent behavior. Give students with emotional disabilities more one-on-one instruction. Rethink how classrooms are set up in order to accommodate different needs. Create separate places within schools for students to work through behavioral issues. Consider different types of consequences, like work details or required study sessions, instead of suspensions. City superintendents In the last few months, two large Upstate New York cities parted ways with their superintendents. Rochester and Albany superintendents both stepped down due to philosophical differences with their boards of education. In Syracuse, Superintendent Sharon Contreras has faced opposition from the teachers union. Turnover in leadership is an unfortunate reality of the job, Elia said. The average superintendent has a tenure of three years, she said. She encouraged patience. "Urban districts are difficult districts to run," she said. "If you think about education and the time it takes to make change, that kind of time is generally much more than three years. Once a new person comes in, they start again on their agenda... It can be extremely disruptive in an urban district when, if anything, you need consistency and strong leadership over time." Reporter Julie McMahon covers public education and Syracuse city schools. She can be reached anytime: Email | Twitter | 315-412-1992 A 96-year-old woman saw her long lost daughter for the first time in 82 years in a tearful reunion at the Binghamton Airport. Lena Pierce reunites with Betty Morrell, originally named Eva May. Lena Pierce gave birth to Betty Morrell in a hospital in Utica on February 11, 1933 when Pierce was just 13 years old, according to ABC News. She named her daughter Eva May, but the girl was taken from Pierce by the State of New York six months later due to her status as a ward of the state. Eva May was adopted by a Long Island family, and grew up as an only child named Betty Morrell, but she always yearned for brothers and sisters. "I had imaginary sisters, and I had imaginary brothers," Morrell told CBS News. "And, I had them all named and I would talk to them at night." When a neighborhood boy told Morrell she was adopted, she asked her adopted mother about her biological mother. She was told that her mother had died when she was a baby. Morrell didn't look for any biological relatives for years, until her adopted parents died when she was in her 20s. Morrell's aunt accidentally let slip that her name was originally Eva and that she was born in Utica. In 1966, Morrell began a 50 year search for her biological mother. "I know I was loved and had a wonderful family. There was that missing link. It just kept driving me," she explained to ABC News. Morrell managed to find a record of the birth of Eva May in Utica, but hit dead ends with adoption agencies because her adoption was closed. She put her search aside, raised a family on Long Island, and moved to Florida 24 years ago. One of her grandchildren, Kimberly Miccio, felt a connection to Morrell's search for her biological mother because her own mother was also adopted. She restarted the search for her biological grandmother when she was just 12 years old, and continued for 20 years, until, in September of 2015, she made contact with a distant relative of Lena Pierce's via ancestry.com. That relative got Miccio in touch with Millie Hawk, one of Pierce's seven other children. Hawk immediately went and told Pierce that they had found Eva May. "She broke down and started crying," Hawk told ABC News. "I've got a mother! And I've got a sister!" Morrell, now 82, recalled saying when she found out Miccio had found her biological family. "We had such a connection," Morrell said, describing the first time she called Pierce at her Pennsylvania assisted living home. "It was just everything I ever hoped for." Pierce told Morrell that she "never stopped thinking about her... 'Eva May.'" She tried to locate her too, but ran into similar dead ends. "She was growing up, and I was growing old," Pierce told WBNG-TV. Then, in January, mother and daughter were reunited at last when they met at Binghamton airport. "It was amazing. Both of them were crying," Miccio said. "It's an experience that not many get at my age or my mother's age," Morrell said. "It's the best thing that's happened to me." Morrell and Hawk have become close in the weeks since they met. They call each other almost every day, and while Morrell sometimes has to remind Pierce that she is Eva May, she said she's grateful she reunited with her mother and family after so long. Watch the WBNG-TV video report below. SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- "Here is a dramatic and tragic story of devotion and sacrifice on the part of a faithful public servant -- devotion and sacrifice so great that death was the result." So begins a Syracuse Herald column about First Assistant Chief Charles A. Boynton, one of nine Syracuse firefighters who lost their lives in the Collins Block fire. The Feb. 3, 1939 fire remains the single deadliest fire in the department's history. Firefighters were first called to the Collins building, 225 E. Genesee St., around 2 a.m. They were cleaning up and preparing to leave the building when, around 4 a.m., the roof of the cellar collapsed. The eight men fell to the cellar, pinned underneath tons of bricks and debris. Click the headlines to read the full newspaper stories. (App users CLICK HERE) Rescuing the trapped men, a task fueled by the sounds of moans and voices of the still-alive firefighters, continued until 10 a.m. when the front wall fell into Genesee Street and the side walls collapsed into the cellar. Chief Edward E. Gieselman spoke following the second collapse. "Since the falling of the rest of the walls, all possible hope has been abandoned. The men are dead." The following eight firefighters died at the scene: Acting Chief Thomas Dugan, of 313 Bryant Ave. Lt. David Lavine, of 259 Leon St. Engine 16 Lt. Albert G. Young, of 127 Kuhl Ave. Engine 2 Lt. Ray E. Bauder, of 128 Melbourne Ave. Engine 3 Firefighter James E. Diamond, of 611 Ulster St. Engine 1 Firefighter John W. Agan, of 325 Stafford Ave. Engine 1 Firefighter Frank Kerlin, of 219 Rider Ave. Truck 6 Firefighter M. Gregory "Mike" Dixon, of 550 Tennyson Ave. Engine 3. Despite freezing temperatures, more than 10,000 people pushed tight against barriers in the street and onlookers watched from neighboring windows as firefighters, family members, volunteers and workers from the Department of Public Works, the Civilian Conservation Corps and Works Progress Administration began the search for the firefighters' bodies. About 45 members from the American Legion were on hand to aid in the search and provide donuts and hot coffee as crews worked deep into the early morning of Feb. 4. Four of the firefighters killed and one of the injured were members of American Legion Post 41. The families of the victims held an all-day vigil in a nearby firehouse until around midnight on Feb. 3, when, without hope of finding their loved ones alive, went home. All left except for Rosemary Dugan, the daughter of Thomas Dugan, who stayed on a cot and mourned for about 24 hours until she left around 3 a.m. on Feb. 4. The names of the nine firefighters that lost their lives in the Collins Block fire on Feb. 3, 1939 were remembered along with others that had died in the service of their jobs in a ceremony Fayette Firefighters Park in Syracuse. Nov. 3, 2015. Dennis Nett | dnett@syracuse.com It took until Feb. 5 for workers to find the firefighters' bodies in the rubble. A fund established by the Syracuse Herald raised more than $34,000 for the victims' families, the equivalent of more than $579,000 today. Mayor Rolland D. Marvin, who was on vacation in Florida at the time, hurried back to Syracuse as Police Chief William Rapp and District Attorney Donald Mawhinney opened their investigation of the fire. At first, the investigation centered around the Keep restaurant, the only tenant in the building at the time. Police investigated tensions between the restaurant's owner, Ada Keep and labor union officials and whether the tensions led to the fire being intentionally set. The Syracuse Herald reported at the time that Glenn Keep, Ada Keep's husband and president of the Syracuse Typographical Union, had interfered with restaurant employees trying to unionize. The investigation, which also involved four experts from the New York City Fire Department, determined the fire was accidentally started by defective heating equipment. On Feb. 6, Charles A. Boynton suffered a heart attack in his bathtub at home and died. A doctor attributed his death to exertion, excitement, shock and long hours of work since the Collins Block fire. Fire department physician Dr. George Wright told the Syracuse Herald that Boynton had heart problems for about a year, including a heart attack about three weeks before the fire. Despite his health, Boynton kept himself on active duty. Boynton was on the third floor of the Collins building, only inches away from where the cellar ceiling collapsed and the firefighters fell. He tried to reach for Lavine, but the lieutenant was out of reach. A snippet from a Feb. 7, 1939 column on Boynton's death reads as followed: "Men and woman of imagination, who can conjure up in their minds the picture of this experienced fire-fighter with his faltering health fighting to get his men out alive after the Collins Block had collapsed, then struggling for days to reach them, finally dying of an overworked, broken heart, may get just a glimpse of what heroism, devotion and self-sacrifice really mean." In February 1939, the Scranton (Pennsylvania) Fire Department presented the Syracuse Fire Department with two carved anthracite tablets, one in honor of Boynton, the other in honor of the other eight firefighters who died. In October 1939, the city erected a monument in Fayette Park in honor of the nine fallen firefighters. The park, which also houses the Phillip Eckel Memorial and the Hamilton White Monument, both dedicated to fallen Syracuse firefighters, was later renamed Fayette Firefighter's Memorial Park. The Syracuse Fire Department holds a memorial service at the park each year on Feb. 3 to honor the 45 Syracuse firefighters who have died in the line of duty in the department's history. This feature is a part of CNY Nostalgia, a section on syracuse.com. Send your ideas and curiosities to Jacob Pucci: Email | Twitter | 315-766-6747 Frank Auerbach finds his subjects within his own neighborhood in northern London. Since 1954, hes worked in the same studio in the English capitals Camden Town area. "This part of London is my world", said the painter, who fled Germany as a child on the eve of the Second World War. Ive been wandering around these streets for so long that Ive become attached to them and as fond of them as people are to their pets." His comparison is typical of someone who doesnt require grand gestures. He famously takes just one day off per year, and is someone interested in showing the defiant, inescapable presence of everyday objects in his art. For people with imagination, they are often quite surprising, he told Catherine Lampert, his biographer, portrait model and curator. The streets in Berlins Western district of Wilmersdorf though have become insignificant to the 84-year-old. Even though that is where Frank Auerbach lived as a child. His cousin, the late literature critic Marcel Reich-Ranicki, lived a few houses down from Auerbach on Guntzelstrasse and occasionally babysat little Frank in the evenings. Unlike the painter, Marcel Reich-Ranicki returned to visit his childhood house and neighborhood after the Holocaust. In April 1939, 8-year-old Frank was forced to flee the Nazis. With the help of Iris Origo, a wealthy writer who made great efforts to rescue refugee children, Frank Auerbachs parents managed to send him to London. Both sets of the boys parents were later murdered by the Nazis. Today, small memorials to them are set into the sidewalks in front of their homes. In total, 23 such commemorations, known as Stolpersteine, or stumbling blocks, are in front of Frank Auerbachs childhood apartment building. According to the districts Stolperstein initiative, 13,200 Jews from the Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf area were deported and murdered by the Nazis between 1939 and 1945. In all of Berlin, 55,000 perished. Frank Auerbach as a child, drawing, Berlin, c. 1935. Copyright Julia Auerbach Frank Auerbach has suppressed his past. He lost touch with his parents during the war and he never tried to find out how they got along in Berlin until they were sent to their deaths. I think I did this thing which psychiatrists for very good professional reasons frown on: I am in total denial, Frank Auerbach told the Evening Standard in 2009. Its worked very well for me. To be quite honest I came to England and went to a marvelous school, and it truly was a happy time. Theres just never been a point in my life where I felt I wish I had parents. Just moments after the his arrival at Bunce Court, a boarding school in Kent where Jewish refugees were teaching, he felt strangely liberated. Frank Auerbach remembers his Berlin childhood only in fragments. Like when his mother feared that her son might have been poisoned after accepting a candy from a stranger in the park. Or taking joyrides with his family on Berlins newly opened highway, a memory that resurfaced for him in 2013 after Catherine Lampert mentioned attending a Kraftwerk concert in the city, referring to the German bands song Autobahn. Stolpersteine in memory of Frank Auerbach's parents Charlotte and Max Auerbach who were killed by the Nazis. These stones are laid in front of Guntzelstrae 49 in Berlin's Wilmersdorf district, where Frank and his parents lived in the 1930s. Markus Hesselmann Catherine Lampert, an art historian, has been visiting the artist in his studio biweekly for years, posing for portraits and chatting about art. These meetings led to her recent publication, Frank Auerbach: Speaking and Painting, a series of essays in which she details his career. She discusses his interest in art, first sparked by his dedicated teachers at boarding school, as well as his major exhibitions in London, Venice, New York and Hamburg. She also writes about his loyalty to the select few people who have posed for him for decades, herself included. The book also includes passages about Frank Auerbachs friendship and artistic partnership with painter Lucian Freud, another native Berliner who fled the Nazis. It seems that Frank Auerbachs hometown has suppressed him as well. In Berlin, only art experts recognize his name. And that's while hes been hailed Britains greatest living painter by The Times in London, where a major retrospective of his work is on display at the Tate Britain. To this day Mr. Auerbachs work has never been exhibited in his hometown, though Catherine Lampert curated a show in the western German city of Bonn. Udo Kittelmann, the director of the National Gallery in Berlin, is determined to change that. Having an Auerbach exhibition is a personal dream of mine, said Udo Kittelmann, adding that he looks forward to realizing this goal. The impetus came from a reader of Berlins Tagesspiegel newspaper. A son of our city and world renowned painter, brought to safety in Britain from the Nazis via Kindertransport, has yet to arrive again, Claudius Lotter wrote in a letter to the editor. He was referring to both the organized rescue of predominantly Jewish children during the months before the outbreak of World War II, as well as Berlins political obligation to one of its native sons. Frank Auerbach with his cousin Marcel Reich-Ranicki and Andrew Ranicki, Marcel's son. Copyright Andrew Ranicki Frank Auerbach brushes off questions about the possibility of a retrospective in Berlin and what it might mean to him, according to Catherine Lampert. I dont want too many exhibitions, she quoted him as saying. Udo Kittelmann emphasized that the retrospective wouldnt be biographical but rather focus on the unique quality of the painters work. So far, however, an agreement the National Gallery in Berlin and the Tate hasnt been possible due to the recent closing of Berlins New National Gallery, where an Auerbach exhibition would have to take place. Furthermore, Mr. Kittelmann said his museum has been focused on refurbishing and presenting its own large selection of works. Back in Frank Auerbachs childhood Berlin neighborhood, however, there are some for whom the memory of the celebrated painter is still alive. Among them is Johannes Grutzke, a Berlin artist who lives and works in the building where Frank Auerbachs cousin once lived. When Johannes Grutzkes neighbors traveled to London for the Auerbach opening at the Tate, he gave them a catalogue of his works to pass along to the British painter and included a personal dedication. Frank Auerbach thanked him profusely and said he was very impressed with the ability and energy and adventurous enterprise of the work. He underlined the word very, Johannes Grutzke said with a laugh. Frank Auerbach did not, however, react to Johannes Grutzkes pointing out that studio was only a few doors down from where he once lived. Catherine Lampert: Frank Auerbach. Speaking and Painting. Thames & Hudson Frank Auerbach told The Times in 1998 that he avoided all the gnawing at the past, although he has been aware of what had happened all his life. And as luck would have it I found myself in the situation of being the 'innocent party'", Frank Auerbach said. "If I had not been Jewish who knows what I would have done or felt. I was also lucky to be young enough not to come with a lot of emotional baggage." When the writer W.G. Sebald depicted Frank Auerbach as "Max Aurach" in the German version of his book "The Emigrants" the painter did not approve of a literary portrait that he felt was misleading. Why was that? Catherine Lampert conveys this answer from the painter: "Frank Auerbach thought that the story totally misunderstood the relation of the artist's personality and biography to the creation of art, and it was totally lacking in humour." So how would Frank Auerbach react if an exhibition in his hometown was finally on? Would he be happy about it? In the end, he would, Catherine Lampert said after thinking it over for quite a while. And Jake Auerbach, the painter's son, a filmmaker, added: "I was very impressed by the enthusiasm and commitment shown by the museum in Bonn. I was also aware that the show was described on a few occasions as a 'return'. I suppose that in those terms a show in Berlin could more accurately be described as such." Still, his father would be unlikely to come to Berlin, Jake Auerbach said. The son himself, however, said he would gladly attend such an event. Empfohlener redaktioneller Inhalt An dieser Stelle finden Sie einen von unseren Redakteuren ausgewahlten, externen Inhalt, der den Artikel fur Sie mit zusatzlichen Informationen anreichert. Sie konnen sich hier den externen Inhalt mit einem Klick anzeigen lassen oder wieder ausblenden. Externen Inhalt anzeigen Ich bin damit einverstanden, dass mir der externe Inhalt angezeigt wird. Damit konnen personenbezogene Daten an Drittplattformen ubermittelt werden. Mehr Informationen dazu erhalten Sie in den Datenschutz-Einstellungen. Diese finden Sie ganz unten auf unserer Seite im Footer, sodass Sie Ihre Einstellungen jederzeit verwalten oder widerrufen konnen. Translated into English by Handelsblatt Global Edition where this English version appeared first. The original, more extended German version can be found here. There is a curator's talk by Catherine Lampert on Frank Auerbach on Friday 5 February 2016 at Tate Britain. You can find more details here. Follow Markus Hesselmann on Twitter Empfohlener redaktioneller Inhalt An dieser Stelle finden Sie einen von unseren Redakteuren ausgewahlten, externen Inhalt, der den Artikel fur Sie mit zusatzlichen Informationen anreichert. Sie konnen sich hier den externen Inhalt mit einem Klick anzeigen lassen oder wieder ausblenden. Externen Inhalt anzeigen Ich bin damit einverstanden, dass mir der externe Inhalt angezeigt wird. Damit konnen personenbezogene Daten an Drittplattformen ubermittelt werden. Mehr Informationen dazu erhalten Sie in den Datenschutz-Einstellungen. Diese finden Sie ganz unten auf unserer Seite im Footer, sodass Sie Ihre Einstellungen jederzeit verwalten oder widerrufen konnen. Zur Startseite Tomas Pascual-juan, 30, 2200 block of Holland Street, Port St. Lucie; cruelty toward child abuse without great bodily harm. Christopher Cirrincione, 57, 200 block of Fernleaf Trail, Port St. Lucie; out-of-county warrant, Martin County, battery, great bodily harm. Shawn Zapata, 41, 900 block of Forrest Park Drive, Stuart; out-of-county warrant, Martin County, court order to revoke bond, new arrests, soliciting, sale or delivery of cocaine, unlawful use of a two-way communications device, dealing in stolen property, conduct enterprise through pattern racketeering act, battery. Roger Runyon, 68, Lake City; fraud impersonation unlawful use of police badge. Craig Robinson, 42, 3900 block of Avenue P, Fort Pierce; possession of cocaine. David Oliver, 32, 1600 block of Laurel Leaf Lane, Fort Pierce; possession of marijuana over 20 grams; producing marijuana. Crystal Galentine, 34, 200 block of Airview Avenue, Port St. Lucie; warrant for violation of probation, possession of cocaine. Chad Webb, 29, Lakeland; warrant for court order to revoke bond, new arrest, possession of marijuana. Taryn Williams, 48, 1700 block of Hondo Avenue, Port St. Lucie; warrant for grand theft. Patrecea Thompkins, 22, 700 block of 23rd Street, Fort Pierce; warrant for court order to revoke bond, possession of hydrocodone. Robert Szika, 40, 600 block of Nichols Terrace, Port St. Lucie; warrant for possession of a synthetic narcotic (Flakka) with intent to sell, manufacture or deliver. Michael Ewing, 37, 400 block of Thornhill Drive, Port St. Lucie; warrant for violation of probation, DUI, driving while license suspended. Angel Ortiz, 19, 1700 block of Via Rossa, Port St. Lucie; destroying, tampering with or fabricating evidence. Shanay Durant, 19, 1500 block of Avenue H, Fort Pierce; aggravated battery offender knew/should have known victim was pregnant. Vanessa Jones, 30, 1700 block of Grand Club Boulevard, Fort Pierce; aggravated battery with a deadly weapon. Fernand Phillius, 30, 1000 block of Colonial Road, Fort Pierce; readmit, DUI. Will 5,000 people rally to protest this year's Lake Okeechobee discharges the way they did in 2013? It's hard to say. Advocates for the St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon are just now getting their battle plans together. And while there's concern complacency may have set in since the "Lost Summer" 2 1/2 years ago, there also are factors that may make this year's water advocacy even larger than before but maybe more behind-the-scenes than before. "I think that the anger that we saw in 2013 will not only be matched but exceeded," said Kenny Hinkle, a member of the River Warriors activist group. The Aug. 3, 2013, rally that drew more than 5,000 people to the St. Lucie Lock and Dam to protest Lake Okeechobee discharges into the St. Lucie Estuary was the highlight of the advocacy movement that year. Turnout at protests dwindled after that: About 2,500 people spelled out "Save Our River" on Martin County beaches Aug. 11. On Sept. 1, about 2,000 attended Riverstock in Jensen Beach; and about 500 trekked to Clewiston for the Sugarland Rally. About 800 spanned the Stuart Causeway for the Sept. 28 "Hands Across the Lagoon." But the response to the 2013 discharges created a large core group of people who have stayed active, said Nyla Pipes, director of One Florida Foundation. That core group has continued to go to meetings of the South Florida Water Management District board and the Water Resource Advisory Committee to advocate for the river and the lagoon, Pipes said, and will form the backbone of this year's response to the discharges. As for people who attended a rally or two in 2013, "it could go either way," Pipes said. "Some people are going to be frustrated and think the efforts to stop the discharges in 2013 didn't matter. They may drop out. Others know that it's a long-term problem that's going to take long-term solutions. They may feel reinvigorated." Snowbird factor The snowbird factor also could be important. The 2013 discharges started in May, after most of the Treasure Coast's winter residents had returned north. This year's discharges started Jan. 31, in the height of high season. "As long as it keeps raining like predicted, the snowbirds and tourists will experience these toxic discharges, and they will be furious," Hinkle said. Snowbirds may take part in anti-discharge activities this spring; but more importantly, Pipes said, they'll take the cause home with them. "They could put pressure on the senators and representatives from their home states to fund projects to save the Everglades and Florida's estuaries," she said. Election year factor Another difference from 2013: 2016 is an election year. "A lot of river advocates will be working with politicians to try to convince them to go to bat for us," said Darrell Brand, a member of the Rivers Coalition leadership team. "We'll be looking to see which will show themselves to be true river advocates. ... There will be a lot going on behind the scenes besides going to rallies." From 15 to 20 people gathered at a quickly organized event on the Roosevelt Bridge in Stuart on Jan. 29 to protest the corps' announcement that discharges were about to start. (In fact, the Lake O water started flowing toward the St. Lucie River the next afternoon.) Hinkle hinted at "big things from the River Warriors" and bullsugar.org, a website and advocacy group, but gave no specifics. The first large-scale stop-the-discharges event will be the annual Blessing of the Fleet on Feb. 20 in the North Fork of the St. Lucie River near Stuart. The theme of the event, "Demand Clean Water to Save Our River," was chosen well before the discharges started. "We really want to show that people have solidarity in supporting the river," said Brand, an event organizer in his role as commodore of the Palm Cove Yacht Club in Palm City. "We'll have four clergy members to bless boats as they pass. They'll also need to do a lot of blessing and say a lot of prayers for the river." 45th annual St. Lucie River Blessing of the Fleet When: Feb. 20 Where: North Fork of St. Lucie River off Palm City Open to: Private and commercial, powerboats and sailboats Times: Boats assemble at noon, start at 12:30 p.m. Assembly site: North of Marker G7 Cost: Free Theme: Demand Clean Water to Save Our River Contact: Joel Sena, 772-233-2419; Darrell Brand, 772-631-0937 VERO BEACH Strong support for Elite Airways flights from Vero Beach Regional Airport has prompted an additional cross-state destination and the possibility for more. Beginning Feb. 27, Elite will add twice-a-week round trips from Vero Beach to Naples. The 30-minute flight to Naples Municipal Airport will leave at 3:30 p.m. Sundays and Thursdays and return to Vero Beach at 7:45 a.m. on those same days. Fares begin at $59 each way. The flights are part of a new jet service for round-trip flights from Naples to Newark Liberty International Airport, via Vero. Flights leave Naples at 7:45 a.m. Sundays and Thursdays, with return flights from Newark leaving at 12:15 p.m. Elite announced the Naples flights Wednesday. Elite returned commercial passenger service to Vero Beach in December after an almost 20-year hiatus, offering nonstop flights to Newark twice a week. Elite has said continuation of the flights depends on community support. The airline announced Wednesday the flights would continue at least through the end of the summer, said Elite spokeswoman Becky Crisafulli. Elite officials declined to release passenger totals since the airline began serving Vero Beach on Dec. 4. "The demand has been very strong," Crisafulli said. Based on initial flight reservations and demand, Elite officials are discussing adding more routes and destinations from Vero Beach, Crisafulli said. But nothing has been announced, she said. City officials hailed Wednesday's announcement as positive. "That is outstanding," said City Manager Jim O'Connor. "We have a one-year agreement with Elite. I think they are doing everything they can to honor that commitment," said Airport Director Eric Menger. "It should work out well." The city invested about $350,000 from the airport fund to upgrade the terminal to federal Transportation Security Administration standards, Menger said. Included were a $15,000 aluminum loading bridge for wheelchair passengers and vending machines and chairs for passengers waiting areas, Menger said. The airport terminal should be able to accommodate the additional flight and influx of passengers without immediate renovations, Menger said. But that could change in the future if more flights and destinations are added, he said. Some minor changes will be made. Vero-Newark flights will depart at 9 a.m. instead of at 8:30 a.m., Menger said. TALLAHASSEE As the Legislature wrestles with the idea of allowing Floridians to openly carry handguns in public, the state Supreme Court is set to hear arguments over a claim that state law prohibiting such open display violates the U.S. Constitution. The gun rights group Florida Carry is challenging a 2012 St. Lucie County Court decision that found Fort Pierce resident Dale Norman guilty of openly carrying a handgun as he walked down a street. Eric Friday, the group's lawyer, argued in briefs filed with the top court that the state's concealed weapon permit program violates the U.S. Constitution's Second Amendment because it's too restrictive. "One way or another, there's going to be a right to carry openly in Florida," Florida Carry Executive Director Sean Caranna said. "We're certain Mr. Norman will be vindicated and his conviction will be overturned." The St. Lucie judge fined Norman $300 and withheld his adjudication. The office of Attorney General Pam Bondi argues the Second Amendment and the Florida Constitution allow the Legislature to pass laws that regulate the concealed permit program to protect lives and personal property. Meanwhile, legislators are considering changing the law to allow openly carrying weapons. While the House passed the bill, Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Miguel Diaz de la Portilla, R-Miami, has said he will block it unless it is weakened to limit the proposal to only allowing accidental exposure of a concealed gun. Bill sponsor Don Gaetz, R-Niceville said he will kill the bill if Diaz de la Portilla requires the change. The showdown left Senate President Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando, to wonder if Gaetz's bill would face the same trouble as a proposal by Sen. Greg Evers, R-Baker, to allow concealed weapon permit holders to carry a handgun on a college campus, which Diaz de la Portilla already has blocked. "I would say both of those guns bills are in trouble," Gardiner said. "It's not my intent to pull those bills out of committee and the committee chairs make those decisions, so I would say yeah, they're in trouble." The high court is scheduled to hear arguments in the case in late March, after the Legislature wraps up this year's session. The focus of the high court argument between Florida Carry and Bondi's office is a ruling by the state Fourth Circuit Court of Appeal that upheld Norman's St. Lucie court decision and defined the state's concealed permit law as a right, which bucks previous decisions that called it a privilege. With that ruling, Florida Carry believes regulations such as fees and government-supervised training that applicants must go through to receive a concealed weapon permit are unfair. "When you're dealing with a fundamental right, the government bears the burden of proving its regulation is narrowly tailored, which means they use a minimal approach," Caranna said. Bondi's office wrote in its response to Florida Carry's brief that the appellate court correctly defined the carrying of a concealed weapon as a right, but the Legislature is still allowed to regulate it. The national gun violence prevention group Everytown for Gun Safety submitted an informational brief Monday that outlined the country's long-standing ban on openly carrying weapons in public, which stretches across the Atlantic Ocean to 14th Century England. Tallahassee attorney Glenn Burhans said the right to bear arms is not absolute. "In the last decade, the United States Supreme Court has twice affirmed that the Second Amendment is not unlimited in scope, and both the United States and Florida Constitutions permit the State's regulation of firearms," Burhans said. "The Florida law at issue does not impinge upon the right to keep and bear arms and, in fact, Florida's 'shall issue' license scheme is more permissive than many other states." Treasure Coast Newspapers, Naples Daily News and Tampa Tribune journalists are in Tallahassee reporting throughout the legislative session in a collaborative capital bureau. Looking for fun things to do this weekend? Here are our Top 5 events events So far, sanity has prevailed in at least one chamber of the Florida Legislature. We wish we could say the same for the other. On Wednesday, the Florida House voted overwhelmingly for House Bill 4001, which would allow concealed-carry permit holders to carry firearms on public colleges and university campuses. This, despite a chorus of opposition from college presidents, faculty, student groups and many law enforcement officials. A separate open-carry proposal also passed in the House and would allow 1.4 million Florida concealed weapons permit holders to openly carry their weapons statewide. The House vote starkly contrasted with a decision two weeks ago by Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Sen. Miguel Diaz de la Portilla, R-Miami, not to hear the Senate version of the bill. So far, Diaz de la Portilla is holding his ground. As a result of the House vote, increased pressure may be on the Senate to take up the companion bill. We sincerely hope that does not happen. Treasure Coast Newspapers' Editorial Board remains convinced that college campuses are not the place for guns. While the bill sponsors claim the measure would enhance public safety, we agree with a broad coalition of educators who abhor the idea. MORE | Keep concealed weapons off college campuses Indian River State College President Edwin Massey has said the bill is a risky move because it would put guns in an already high-stress environment. Massey noted state college students are typically older than age 21 and, thus, eligible for concealed weapons permits. He also pointed out most state colleges lack armed police forces. Upgrading security statewide could cost at least $74 million, Massey argued. U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., and other congressional Democrats sent a letter to Senate President Andy Gardiner, R-Orlando, and House Speaker Steve Crisafulli, R-Merritt Island, urging them to kill the campus carry legislation. "Increasing the number of guns on college campuses is simply not the answer," the letter stated. We wholeheartedly agree. A similar proposal was killed in committee during last year's legislative session, despite strong support from the National Rifle Association and other gun rights organizations. Lawmakers would be wise to kill it again this year. It is so easy to blame the rain for the polluted water now flowing from Lake Okeechobee into the St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon. After all, an average 9.18 inches fell across South Florida in January, making it the wettest month in the region since record-keeping began in 1932. El Nino is back and all that water needs to go somewhere. So blame the rain. Or not. The truth is, the rain wouldn't be the culprit in this recurring environmental disaster if our elected and appointed officials had been serious about funding and facilitating projects to move water south of the lake. MORE | House, Senate again budget Amendment 1 money for operating expenses Proposal still uses Amendment 1 money for routine expenses Check which Treasure Coast lawmakers bills progressed in week 3 of session Instead, they've delayed action, diverted funds and given deference to polluters. Even now, as communities east and west of Lake Okeechobee prepare for the destruction of their waterways, state lawmakers continue ignoring the original intent of Amendment 1. That constitutional amendment, approved in November 2014 by a resounding 75 percent of Florida voters, was supposed to set aside one-third of "documentary stamp" taxes on real estate transactions over 20 years to preserve land and water. Voters eagerly anticipated an annual investment of about $750 million "to acquire, restore, improve and manage conservation lands, including wetlands and forests; fish and wildlife habitat; lands protecting water resources and drinking water sources, including the Everglades, and the water quality of rivers, lakes, and streams." The amendment didn't call for raising taxes. It merely called for the state to spend about 1 percent of its massive $77 billion budget each year for clean water and land preservation. But Florida lawmakers had different ideas. Of the $740 million appropriated in 2015 from Amendment 1, legislators earmarked $192 million to general operating expenses. Less than 12 percent of money earmarked by the amendment $88.7 million went to land acquisition. And lawmakers are up to their same shenanigans this year. Budget proposals released by the state House and Senate show about $200 million from Amendment 1 going into salaries, benefits, insurance costs and vehicle purchases. We seriously doubt voters thought their support of the amendment would translate into a $7 million expenditure for administrative and executive salaries at the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, or $2.5 million for salaries at the historic resources division of the Florida Department of State. But both are proposed in the Senate budget plan. Another legislative proposal House Bill 1075 would divert Amendment 1 funds for the purchase of pumps and pipes for water supply projects. At seemingly every turn, lawmakers move farther and farther away from the original intent of Amendment 1: land acquisition and water preservation. Water supply projects are different from water preservation projects. One of the few bright spots in the Legislature is a bill filed by Rep. Gayle Harrell, R-Stuart, that would require 25 percent or $200 million to be allocated through Amendment 1 for Everglades and Lake Okeechobee restoration, including projects that directly benefit the lagoon. The bill has support from Republican House Speaker Steve Crisafulli and Gov. Rick Scott, as well as presumptive House Speaker Joe Negron, R-Stuart. Still, $200 million falls far short of the $750 million lawmakers have at their disposal each year with respect to Amendment 1 funds. On Jan. 30, discharges from Lake Okeechobee began flowing through the Port Mayaca Dam and into the St. Lucie River at a rate of about 291 million gallons a day. Three days earlier, the South Florida Water Management District began pumping water out of farmland and communities south of the lake. Where did it go? Back into Lake Okeechobee. This process, known as "back-pumping," continued for four days at a rate of slightly more than 1 billion gallons a day. Then, on Thursday, the corps announced it would be maximizing discharges releasing "as much water as practical" from the lake into the river beginning Friday. All this water contaminated with pollutants that will foul our waterways is heading our way. Meanwhile, water management officials are acting like they've done all they can. Kevin Powers, vice chair of the South Florida Water Management District Governing Board, released a statement Friday defending the agency's actions. "Faced with this record-setting rainfall, water managers are working to provide flood control while minimizing harm to natural areas such as the St. Lucie Estuary. However, options are limited with water storage areas already full," Powers wrote. Options are limited because leaders, including Powers, have failed to take bold action. Corps officials said the discharges could last "for weeks, if not months." Blame the rain? That's one explanation. NURSING SHORTAGE: A new report by the Florida Center for Nursing reveals the state is facing a 'nursing shortage tsunami.' We need an additional 12,493 registered nurses, the report states, to combat vacancy rates at Florida hospitals that have soared 30 percent since 2013. The need stems from adoption of the Affordable Care Act in 2103, which extended health insurance coverage to millions of Americans. The vacancies tend to be in hard-to-fill areas such as critical care units and emergency rooms. The shortage is exacerbated because Florida is one of the fastest-growing states in the country and our population is steadily aging. With 17 percent of residents over age 65, we are the nation's 'oldest' state; a trend that's likely to increase as more baby boomers retire. Hospitals scurrying to plug the holes could require more overtime from existing staff, use more contract nurses or even hire nurses with associate degrees instead of bachelor's degrees. Nationally, the nonprofit arts industry generated $135.2 billion in total economic activity and supported 4.1 million full-time equivalent jobs, resulting in $22.3 billion in federal, state and local government revenue, according to Americans for the Arts' most recent national study in 2010. Locally, the nonprofit arts sector generated $16.5 million, according to a study conducted in 2008. It's time to update those numbers, and I am excited to announce the Arts Council of Martin County has joined Americans for the Arts' latest economic impact study. Our participation in this important research project, called, Arts & Economic Prosperity 5, will allow us to quantify the economic impact of the arts and culture industry in Martin County. In June 2017, we'll receive a final report that tells us just how many jobs and how much money arts and culture generates in our local economy. The research study is the fifth over the past 20 years to measure the impact of arts spending on local jobs, income paid to local residents and revenue generated to local and state governments. The 2008 results from Martin County will be a benchmark to compare where we are today. As one of nearly 300 study partners across all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia, the Arts Council of Martin County will collect detailed financial data about our local nonprofit arts and culture organizations covering an array of disciplines such as theater and dance companies, museums and galleries, concerts, orchestras, lectures and literary efforts. All across South Florida and the Treasure Coast, our counterparts will be collecting the same information from their audiences and organizations. One aspect of the study is to collect surveys from attendees at arts events using a short, anonymous questionnaire that asks how much money they spent on items such as meals, parking and transportation and retail shopping, specifically as a result of attending the event. Our previous studies have showed the average attendee spends $15.29 beyond the cost of admission at each event. 'Leaders who care about community and economic vitality can feel good about choosing to invest in the arts. Nationally as well as locally, the arts mean business,' said Robert L. Lynch, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts. Volunteers will be asking for participation in this study, so I ask you in advance to be open to it. The data-collection element is important to our final results and the determination of impact. The results will support our case with legislators and other community leaders about the vitally important role the arts play in our community's economy. The opportunity to participate in Arts & Economic Prosperity 5 is yet one more chance for us to pull together facts and figures to demonstrate that the vibrancy of our arts and cultural community is something to be proud of and a vital element of our overall economic vitality. So please join me, in support this effort and be generous when approached to share your short story. Nancy Turrell is executive director of the Arts Council of Martin County. PROVIDED PHOTO The chef puts on a happy face! SHARE PROVIDED PHOTO From left, are students Colin Czaja, Cameron Deem and Sydney Laliberte PROVIDED PHOTO Shrimp and basil couscous with spinach PROVIDED PHOTO Eggs Benedict PROVIDED PHOTO A sample provided ... By Provided To The Courier Newsweekly The Pre-Culinary Academy at Jupiter Middle School of Technology is now in its third year. Starting next year, the Academy will be offered as a Choice option to incoming students. Since its inception, the students have far surpassed the expectations of Chef Gregory Launel, who has been in the food industry for more than 17 years now, with experience working at the Ritz-Carlton, Old School Bread Company and Ken Rose Catering, among many others. Working with the middle-school level is amazing, because these students have a genuine excitement and desire to prepare some amazing food, Launel says. Eating right and eating well are challenges that many adults face today, being able to impact 11- to 14-year-olds in the choices that they make food wise now, will have a huge benefit for them in the future. TRY ONE BITE Though they are not forced to eat everything that is made, students must at least try one bite. And doing so, they begin to establish a palate and redefine what tastes good. In past three years, the Academy has presented multiple displays of talent in their Open House buffets, staff lunches, fundraisers and end of year labs. They have also successfully catered a District lunch at the Fulton-Holland building on Forest Hill. March 1, with the help of the Technology Academy and the Music Academy, the students in the Culinary program are putting together an event to raise money for Autism Speaks. None of this would be possible, though, without the generous support of the parents and administration of Jupiter Middle School. That is, as well as Whole Foods and Vinny Trupia, executive chef at Guanabana's, in Jupiter. FIRST OFFICIAL EIGHTH GRADE ACADEMY The Pre-Culinary Academy began three years ago at Jupiter Middle School of Technology. It is now preparing to graduate its first official eighth grade academy with 35 students. The Academy is almost 150-strong, ranging from sixth to eighth grade. Over the past few years, the program has partnered with Guanabana's and Whole Foods. This has allowed the students to truly focus on the fundamentals of cooking and healthy eating. NEXT YEAR As of next year, the Academy will be a Choice option for the Palm Beach County School District. Chef Launel has been in the culinary industry for over 15 years, moving here in 2002 to attend Culinary school at Lincoln Culinary. Since then, he has worked for the Riz-Carlton, Old School Bread Company, Panera Bread, Ken-Rose Catering, and spent four years working in Frankfurt, Germany. Seeing the excitement and passion in the students is truly what motivates and inspires me to do what I do. March 1st, we will be hosting a pasta night prepared by the students to benefit Autism Speaks. There's always something cooking here! Indian River and St. Lucie County students who will attend the University of Florida as undergraduates this fall are invited to apply for a $1,500 scholarship from the Treasure Coast Gator Club. Scholarship applications must be submitted online at www.tcgatorclub.com no later than midnight on March 11. Last year, the Treasure Coast Gator Club awarded $1,500 scholarships to 19 local students, including current UF undergraduates and incoming Freshman and Juniors, said Michael-Brianne Pressley, Scholarship Committee Chair. 'Our scholarship program is unique because all students pursuing an undergraduate degree from UF, not just incoming freshman, are eligible' Pressley said. 'The scholarships are for one year only, but are renewable. Students are encouraged to reapply each year until they graduate.' To be eligible, a student must be a resident of St. Lucie or Indian River County, be a graduating high school senior or transfer student who has received an acceptance letter to attend UF, or be a current UF undergraduate. Funds for the scholarship are provided through fundraising events such as the Treasure Coast Gator Toast, an annual dinner which will be held this year on May 3rd at the Moorings in Vero Beach. Additional funds come from the Bryan Schirard Memorial Fund, the Arthur and Marian Block Endowment Fund, the Hardee Family Foundation, and other individuals who choose to name a scholarship in honor or memory of a loved one, such as the Clint S. Malone Memorial Scholarship. For more information, visit the www.tcgatorclub.com or email info@tcgatorclub.com. ADVISORIES A strong cold front will move across the Treasure Coast tonight. Showers and isolated lightning storms ahead of it are forecast to arrive this afternoon and evening. Heavy downpours are the main threats. There's a moderate threat of rip currents. A small craft advisory will be in effect from 10 p.m. Thursday until 4 a.m. Saturday . TODAY'S FORECAST While today is another warm one, a strong cold front is on its way, bringing strong winds and rain. The front will move into east-central Florida late Thursday and move south across the Treasure Coast tonight. Showers and isolated lightning storms moving ahead of it are expected to arrive this afternoon and evening. There's a 20 percent chance of showers after 1 p.m. It'll be partly sunny, with a high near 83. Winds are out of the south-southeast at 15 to 20 mph. Winds could gust as high as 25 mph. Tonight, showers are likely and a thunderstorm is possible before 1 a.m., followed by a chance of showers. It'll be mostly cloudy, with a low around 56. South wind 10 to 15 mph becoming northwest after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 20 mph. The chance of precipitation is 60 percent. Keep an eye on conditions with our live weather radar. Sunrise was at 7:06 a.m. Sunset is at 6:05 p.m. EXTENDED FORECAST Source: National Weather Service Record high for Feb. 4: 85 in 1982; Record low: 30 in 1970 High Low Rain chance Wind Humidity Thursday 81 58 20% 14 mph 71% Friday 63 57 20% 19 mph 60% Saturday 69 51 20% 8 mph 63% Sunday 61 43 20% 20 mph 64% Monday 65 51 0% 14 mph 54% Tuesday 61 46 0% 17 mph 62% Wednesday 58 42 0% 18 mph 55% Friday: A 20 percent chance of showers before 10am. Partly sunny, with a steady temperature around 58. Windy, with a north northwest wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Friday Night: A 20 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 56. Northeast wind 5 to 10 mph. Saturday: A 30 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 74. North northeast wind 5 to 10 mph becoming east in the afternoon. Saturday Night: Showers likely. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 51. Windy, with a west northwest wind 5 to 15 mph increasing to 15 to 25 mph after midnight. Winds could gust as high as 35 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%. Sunday: A 20 percent chance of showers before 1pm. Mostly sunny, with a high near 63. Windy, with a northwest wind around 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. Sunday Night: Mostly clear, with a low around 45. Northwest wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Monday: Sunny, with a high near 65. West wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Monday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 50. Windy, with a west southwest wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Tuesday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 63. West wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph. Tuesday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 48. Windy, with a west wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph. Wednesday: A 20 percent chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 62. West northwest wind around 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. TODAY'S TIDE FORECAST Source: National Weather Service Sebastian Inlet Bridge High tides: 4:17 a.m. and 4:23 p.m. Low tides: 10:27 a.m. and 10:47 p.m. Fort Pierce Inlet, South Jetty High tides: 4:34 a.m. and 4:40 p.m. Low tides: 10:33 a.m. and 10:53 p.m. MARINE FORECAST Source: National Weather Service Small craft advisory will be in effect from 10 p.m. Thursday until 4 a.m. Saturday. Showers and isolated storms this afternoon and evening over inland lakes may produce wind gusts in excess of 35 knots. Fast offshore-moving showers and isolated storms may produce strong wind gusts over coastal waters later today. Small craft should exercise caution due to gusty southerly winds of 15 to 20 knots over offshore waters with seas building to 5 feet. Winds will become northwest behind the cold front and increase to 20 to 25 knots with frequent higher gusts. Seas will gradually build to 7 to 19 feet over the Gulf Stream and offshore waters by early Friday. Today: South winds 10 to 15 knots. Seas 3 to 4 feet with a dominant period 6 seconds. A moderate chop on the intracoastal waters. Slight chance of showers. Tonight: Southwest winds 15 to 20 knots becoming northwest 20 to 25 knots and gusty after midnight. Seas building to 4 to 6 feet with a dominant period 7 seconds. Rough on the intracoastal waters. Offshore moving showers likely and a slight chance of thunderstorms in the evening...then chance of showers after midnight. Friday: North winds 20 to 25 knots and gusty. Seas 6 to 9 feet with a dominant period 7 seconds. Rough on the intracoastal waters. Slight chance of showers in the morning. Friday Night: Northeast winds 15 to 20 knots diminishing to 10 to 15 knots after midnight. Seas 6 to 9 feet. Choppy on the intracoastal waters. Slight chance of showers. Saturday: East winds 5 to 10 knots. Seas 4 to 6 feet. A light chop on the intracoastal waters. Chance of showers. Saturday Night: North winds 10 to 15 knots becoming northwest 20 to 25 knots after midnight. Seas 5 to 7 feet. Showers likely. Sunday: Northwest winds 20 to 25 knots diminishing to 15 to 20 knots in the afternoon. Seas 6 to 8 feet. Slight chance of showers. Sunday Night: Northwest winds 15 to 20 knots diminishing to 10 to 15 knots after midnight. Seas 6 to 8 feet. Monday: Northwest winds 10 to 15 knots becoming west 15 to 20 knots in the afternoon. Seas 4 to 6 feet. S2!!! Senior - BHPian Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Mumbai Posts: 1,897 Thanked: 9,871 Times Honda Motorcycles @ Auto Expo 2016 Big shoutout to Tushar for shooting these pictures & his coverage of the Auto Expo. Thanks for sharing, man! Honda's big launch is the Navi - cross breed of a scooter and a motorcyle. It has been priced at Rs. 39,500 (ex-showroom Delhi): Powered by a 109.19cc 4-stroke, air cooled petrol engine producing 8 BHP (@ 7000 rpm) and 8.96 Nm (@ 5500 rpm), mated to an automatic transmission: A lot of parts on the Navi are shared with its stable mates: As an example to the above point, its wheels are from the Activa: A corona ring like the BMWs: Even though it's a budget 2-wheeler, Honda have done their best to make it appealing. Notice the faux carbon fibre around the fuel tank: Tushar says that it does bear an uncanny resemblance to the MSX Grom 125: It's is available in 5 colour options Patriot Red, Hopper Green, Shasta White, Sparky Orange and Black: Also, on display were some accessorized models. Just to show how easy this bike is to customize: This one looks like an off-road concept: A street concept: A tourer concept: Inspired by the KTM Duke anyone? Another pre-production Navi concept was on display: Creativity gone wild. Here are some murals courtesy Navi body parts: Honda's big launch is the- cross breed of a scooter and a motorcyle. It has been priced at Rs. 39,500 (ex-showroom Delhi):Powered by a 109.19cc 4-stroke, air cooled petrol engine producing 8 BHP (@ 7000 rpm) and 8.96 Nm (@ 5500 rpm), mated to an automatic transmission:A lot of parts on the Navi are shared with its stable mates:As an example to the above point, its wheels are from the Activa:A corona ring like the BMWs:Even though it's a budget 2-wheeler, Honda have done their best to make it appealing. Notice the faux carbon fibre around the fuel tank:Tushar says that it does bear an uncanny resemblance to the MSX Grom 125:It's is available in 5 colour options Patriot Red, Hopper Green, Shasta White, Sparky Orange and Black:Also, on display were some accessorized models. Just to show how easy this bike is to customize:This one looks like an off-road concept:A street concept:A tourer concept:Inspired by the KTM Duke anyone?Another pre-production Navi concept was on display:Creativity gone wild. Here are some murals courtesy Navi body parts: Last edited by S2!!! : 4th February 2016 at 21:24 . Samsung earlier this week added support for ad blocking via its new content blocker extension API. What that means is third-party developers can now create apps that, when installed, block ads when using Samsung Internet Browser, the company's own mobile web browser. As you can imagine, third-party developers jumped at the opportunity and have since published ad-blocking apps on Google Play. Google, however, isn't terribly thrilled with this development and is reportedly pulling such apps from its mobile store. One of those yanked apps is Adblock Fast from startup Rocketship Apps. The app shot up the free charts in the Productivity category, amassing more than 50,000 installs and a 4.25 star rating this week before being pulled. Rocketship Apps CEO Brian Kennish told TechCrunch that Google said the app was removed for violating "Section 4.4" of the Android Developer Distribution Agreement. That section states that developers aren't allowed to publish apps that interfere with the operation of other services or apps. In this case, Samsung has granted developers permission to block apps in its mobile browser but that apparently doesn't matter to Google. Of course, that's not surprising considering the bulk of Google's revenue comes from its advertising business. Interestingly enough, similar ad blockers like Crystal for Samsung Internet and Adblock Plus (Samsung Browser) are still available on Google Play. It's unclear if they will remain live or if Google simply hasn't got around to pulling them down yet. Lead image via AP The PC market may be sluggish at the moment, but for Lenovo it's just starting to pick up, due in part to its 2014 acquisition of Motorola from Google. In this quarter alone, the company garnered an impressive $300 million in profits despite sales being eight percent lower than last year, according to a press release. Thankfully, ownership over Motorola gave Lenovo the boost it needed to finally put an end to its losses in the mobile phone business. Back when it originally purchased Motorola, Lenovo promised to "make the Motorola business profitable in four to six quarters." This news demonstrates Lenovo's commitment to actually delivering on its promises, or at least its profiency in favorable chance. Earnestly enough, Lenovo has apparently pulled the right strings with Motorola's device sales as well, with the soon-to-be Lenovo Moto devices rising 25 percent over their previous quarter. Though it notoriously pre-installed adware on its laptops around this time last year, Lenovo somehow managed to power through, bumping its PC market share to 21.6 percent, in contempt of the PC business as a whole dropping an entire 10.9 percent. As expected, China, Lenovo's native country, is responsible for a sizable portion of the sales boost, where the computer company shines at a massive 40 percent market share. It's worth noting, however, that although Lenovo is seeing profit gains, its sales are actually diminishing -- in both the PC and mobile spaces, though this seems to be the case with every PC maker right now (yes, even Apple). Nevertheless, the Beijing-based company has found ways to cut down massively on its expenses -- like $1.5 billion massive. And, at the same time, Lenovo has even found growth in other areas, like in its server business, where it's expected to bring home $5 billion this year. Regardless of where it's coming from, executives at Lenovo are likely bouncing off the walls, or however corporate suits express enthusiasm, from their return to the black after breaking a chain of 24 profitable periods just last quarter. Most women who are planning to get pregnant should avoid and stop drinking alcohol as soon as they stopped using birth control, public health officials say. A new released report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says that about 3.3 million women of reproductive age are at risk of having developing babies exposed to alcohol because they stopped the use of birth control and at the same time, continued drinking alcohol. It is widely-known that alcohol consumption during pregnancy may cause birth defects and developmental disabilities in babies. For moms, it may increase the risk of other pregnancy problems such as miscarriage, prematurity and stillbirth. Disabilities associated with alcohol consumption during pregnancy are termed as fetal alcohol disorders (FASDs). "Alcohol can permanently harm a developing baby before a woman knows she is pregnant," Dr. Anne Schuchat, CDC Principal Deputy Director, said. She said that about 50 percent of pregnancies in the country are unplanned. So, most women do not know that they are pregnant in the first few weeks of pregnancy and they might still be drinking. CDC researchers analyzed data from 2011 to 2013 by the National Survey of Family Growth. The data generated national prevalence estimates of the risk of an alcohol-exposed pregnancy for more than 4,300 women aged 15 to 44 years old in the United States. The researchers considered women to be at risk if in the past month, they stopped using birth control methods, the women and their partners are not sterile and they engaged in sexual intercourse. They found that 7.3 percent of the U.S. women population who are of reproductive age, were at risk of having developing babies exposed to alcohol and its effects. In a related report by CDC in September 2015, 10.2 percent of pregnant women in the country reported drinking alcohol in the past month and a third of pregnant women (3.1 percent) reported binge drinking, which means drinking four or more glasses of alcoholic beverages on one occasion. Public health officials urge health care providers to properly assess the drinking habits of pregnant women during routine consultations. Doctors are also urged to advise their pregnant patients to avert or stop drinking alcohol during pregnancy to prevent detrimental health effects on their babies. Photo: Daniel Lobo | Flickr 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute (MPI) in Germany have developed a new way to harness the power of nuclear fusion as part of their effort to find safer and cleaner sources of energy. In an experiment set to be carried out at the institute's Greifswald facility on Wednesday, scientists will attempt to superheat a small amount of hydrogen using a special device until the gas becomes plasma, creating conditions similar to the sun's interior. Their goal is to utilize substantial amounts of energy expected to be produced through this nuclear fusion. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is known to have a doctor's degree in physics, is set to attend the event. Harnessing Energy From Nuclear Fusion With carbon emissions becoming increasingly problematic for national governments to deal with, nuclear fusion advocates believe that the technology would provide a cleaner alternative to fossil fuels and conventional reactors that depend on nuclear fission. However, they admit that it may take a few decades before nuclear fusion can reach its full potential. Several developed countries and entities, including China, Japan, Russia, the United States and the European Union, have begun construction of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) in France. It will serve as the center for the largest magnetic confinement plasma physics experiment in the world. The ITER's design features the use of a doughnut-shaped device known as a tokamak that would trap plasma energy long enough to allow fusion reaction to take place. It builds on a concept devised by Soviet physicists during the 1950s. The MPI project is dedicated to creating new technology that would rival the stellarator plasma device, which was invented by theoretical physicist Lyman Spitzer. While it uses a doughnut-shape design similar to the tokamak, Spitzer's stellarator makes use of magnetic coils in order to achieve a similar effect. Thomas Klinger, one of the researchers involved in the project, said that their version of the stellarator would be able to store plasma for longer periods. He added that even though is more difficult to build a stellarator, it is considerably calmer and easier to use than other similar devices. The device, which has been given the name Wendelstein 7-X stellarator, cost 400 million (about $437 million) to make. During a test in December, the researchers used the stellarator to heat helium. Aside from being easier to heat, the gas also "cleaned" tiny dirt particles that were left behind in the device while it was being built. Despite receiving criticism from opponents of nuclear fusion, Germany has continued to fund the development of the technology. It has cost the government approximately 1.06 billion ($1.16 billion) over the past 20 years. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The lure of BlackBerry devices, aside from their uber comfortable QWERTY keyboards, stems from the level of security they provide. With BlackBerry switching over to the Android ecosystem with its latest Priv, the Canadian company now makes the most secure Android handset on the market. BlackBerry boasts on-the-dot monthly security patches for the Priv. On the first day of February, the company started delivering the Android's monthly security updates to unlocked Privs around the world. Unfortunately, BlackBerry has found itself in a bit of a PR mess before just releasing its timely Priv patches. Reports of Dutch police breaking BlackBerry's encryption security measures spread online, prompting the company to release a statement. "If such an information recovery did happen, access to this information from a BlackBerry device could be due to factors unrelated to how the BlackBerry device was designed," the company said. According to the BBC, the Netherlands Forensic Institute (NFI) allegedly successfully decrypted messages on a BlackBerry device. What specific BlackBerry device was supposedly cracked was not revealed, however. That being said, BlackBerry does point out third-party applications and user behavior could lead to such an occurrence. In fact, modified units called PGP BlackBerrys are sold by third parties. These after-market BlackBerrys are said to add an extra layer of encryption to communications on the devices. If it was indeed a modified BlackBerry that was decrypted, then that's out of BlackBerry's hands. In this case though, it's BlackBerry's word versus a law enforcement agency's testimony. As long as owners use a BlackBerry as it was intended straight out of the box and don't tinker with the Priv (or any other BlackBerry device for that matter), maybe government agencies won't be able to find any cracks to break into. Photo: Maurizio Pesce | Flickr 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Yammer is back into the limelight, with Microsoft rolling out the social networking service to all its eligible Office 365 Business clients. The service is scheduled to reach its end users in three waves, the first of which will target customers with a business subscription who have fewer than 150 licenses. Of course, one should be for Yammer. The next wave of Yammer will start on March 1 and will bring the social networking service to bigger entities that own fewer than 5,000 licenses. Organizations that benefit from an education subscription will not be covered by the second Yammer wave. The final wave begins on April 1 and addresses the entities that have education subscriptions. That is when the rest of Office 365 Business customers will get their hands on Yammer. Microsoft aims to see all Office 365 users integrate Yammer's potential into the Office 365 app launcher. This would allow people who use Yammer to begin conversations from within Video Portal, Office 365, SharePoint and soon, Skype Broadcast and Delve. The three-phase rollout is the first step into turning Yammer from a separate software product into a naturally-embedded part of Microsoft's business instruments. Microsoft purchased Yammer in 2012 for $1.2 billion, but the company was discreet about its development. Speculation loomed about the destiny of the pricey corporate purchase, but Microsoft's announcement throws some light on the matter. Figures show that at the time of the purchase, about 200,000 businesses were using Yammer. Now, the number exceeds 500,000, showing that the adoption rate was rather low for the social networking service. During the first half of 2016, Yammer will be packed into the Office 365 Groups service. This allows customers to turn Yammer conversations into Skype calls, schedule and arrange meetings using Outlook calendar, share files in OneDrive and update task lists in Planner. As all these activities will be available from inside Yammer's groups, the service could give a serious boost to users' productivity. It should be noted that Yammer has some serious competition to face. Slack is the first example that comes to mind, and Microsoft noticed the potential. That is why the company implemented Skype integration in January 2016, allowing users to start off a Skype call from within Slack. A similar attempt to mix social media and business tools came from Facebook, which revealed Facebook at Work last year. The software will purportedly be available this year. Because of Microsoft's focused efforts to integrate Yammer into its Office 365 for business customers, enterprise environment could be the perfect place for Yammer to spread its wings. Microsoft says that Yammer will be set to launch in the default mode, but adds that admins will have the possibility to shut it off, should they desire to. "If you are not ready to fully adopt Yammer in your organization, you can un-assign Yammer licenses for those who should not access Yammer from Office 365," the company's official blog reads. The integration of social networking services into traditional productivity tools such as Office 365 triggers another question. Does Yammer stand a chance in its competition with the basic email, a tool that does not show its age, despite having been here forever? 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Google relies on advertising to push its search engine business forward, but sometimes its practices are less than honorable. Four current and former students from the University of California, Berkeley pressed charges against Google in a federal suit. The legal action was filed in San Jose, California, and the plaintiffs say that Google scanned their educational Gmail accounts. The allegation is that the university-provided Gmail accounts were thoroughly analyzed by Google, which gathered analytics data based on the information it found. The legal action points out that the breach of confidentiality happened between November 2010 and March 2014. In April 2014, Google said that it would stop scanning accounts affiliated with Google Apps for Education. The recently started class-action lawsuit, "Corley et al v. Google," shows that invasion of privacy was Google's modus operandi nationwide. Students from other universities, such as Yale University and San Diego State University, joined the plaintiff ranks. This means that tens of millions of current and former students across the country could join the list of plaintiffs. The suit argues that Google was in direct violation of the Electronic Communications Privacy Act. Furthermore, the approximated 30 million plaintiffs should receive "statutory damages" worth $10,000 each. For more information about the class-action lawsuit, visit its official webpage. Ray Gallo is the lawyer who represents the students in their action against Google. In the civil complaint, he explains the turn of events. "Google has refused to delete previously-collected data and has refused to promise not to use previously-collected data for advertising purposes," Gallo's complaint reads. It is not the only legal action that Gallo is involved in. In another case, he pleads on behalf of non-Gmail users who sent emails to Gmail users. In that particular complaint, Gallo aims to convince the court that Google should not scan or analyze data from users of other email services. This case, known as "Matera v. Google," is pending a verdict from Judge Lucy Koh. Google refused to make any official comments on the recent legal actions that were declared against it. How far do you believe the search engine's snooping should go? Tell us all about it in the comments section below. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Luxembourg announced on Wednesday its plans to become a big player in the space mining industry. The European country aims to mine minerals from asteroids, as part of its quest to be a hub for exploration and use of space resources. The government aims to create access to space mineral resources that have not been explored yet, while ensuring that there will be no damage, says Etienne Schneider, the country's deputy prime minister and minister of the economy. The first thing Luxembourg is eyeing to do is research. "Our aim is to carry out research in this area, which at a later stage can lead to more concrete activities in space," says Schneider. Legal Regulatory Steps Luxembourg plans to create a legal and regulatory framework that will address the issues of future ownership of minerals obtained from space such as asteroids. Luxembourg is the first nation in Europe to express a plan of developing a formal legal framework. Such plan guarantees the confidence of private space sectors in determining their rights to ownership. The government will develop the framework in accordance with the international law. It is also willing to collaborate with other nations to create a possible multilateral framework. Economic Growth The country will also spend money on research and development projects and look into possible direct capital investments in firms that work on this industry. For this reason, the government is all out in enhancing a brand new space industry in Luxembourg. Such industry will provide remarkable access to minerals that can be used on Earth and beyond. The objective is to boost economic growth while exploring space. The funds for this project will be part of the national space budget, which will most likely be released in December 2016. Former ESA director general Jean-Jacques Dordain says this project is a testament to Europeans being indeed risk takers and innovative. He adds that although the mission is futuristic, its basis is solid. Luxembourg has already made its presence known in other related industries. The satellite operator SES was built in the country three decades ago and is now a significant global contributor to the field. Photo : Day Donaldson | Flickr 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Aside from pregnancy, travel warnings, and frequent fumigation in areas to kill virus-spreading mosquitoes, a program in El Salvador is also turning to another cost-effective technique to prevent the spread of other mosquito-born diseases like dengue: fish. El Salvador is one of the countries that reported a spike in Zika cases. When the links between the Zika virus and babies born with microcephaly in Brazil and other Latin American countries became a concern, they were one of the nations to issue warnings to women to delay pregnancy until 2018 as a precaution. The sambo fish (sometimes called zambo fish) are being distributed by volunteers in restaurants, schools, and other areas that keep open barrels and other structures used for collecting water where mosquitoes are likely to lay their eggs. The fish eat the larvae of the mosquitoes and stop them from developing into breeding adults that spread the virus. A volunteer group in La Libertad in El Salvador has been distributing fish in San Diego village as a control project to prevent the breeding of mosquitoes that transmit Zika as well as dengue and chikungunya. According to Marielos Sosa, one of the Health Workers on the project, the fish had been used in the village from 2012 to 2015 and they had zero cases of dengue during that period. The community also had no cases of chikungunya and so far no cases of Zika either. Sosa credits the fish distribution program for keeping the community of San Diego village virus-free despite that fact that 5,000 cases of Zika were reported in El Salvador between 2015 and 2016. On Wednesday, Eduardo Espinosa, the country's vice minister of health, acknowledged that the biological effort of such programs have been used by the government as an additional measure to curb the spread of the disease. The Salvadoran government has put in place measures for vector control, including water treatment, the use of window screens, and fogging and area sprays. Biological control mechanisms include mosquito-eating fish in home water tanks. These have been successful, building on the premise that the central effort should be to mobilize the whole society against the Zika-carrying mosquito, he wrote in a letter. It is to be noted that the sambo fish are not placed in natural waterways where they could impact the natural eco-balance. They are placed in open barrels and water tanks which are common in El Salvador and are prime breeding grounds for mosquitoes. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The Takata airbag crisis is not yet over, as Honda has just expanded its recall order for vehicles equipped with potentially fatal airbags by the Japanese supplier. The latest recall action by Honda, which involves 2.23 million vehicles, shows the lingering effects of Takata's mistake in the car company that is most affected by it. In November of last year, Honda released a statement that noted the discontinuation of the usage of Takata-made airbags in its vehicles. The decision came as the supplier was found to be guilty of misinterpreting and manipulating test data. Tests and testimonies revealed that the inflaters of the Takata airbags could potentially rupture upon the impact of the vehicle, sending shrapnel flying inside the cabin. Takata utilized ammonium nitrate within the inflaters to create a small explosion that rapidly inflates the airbag when the vehicles crashes. However, because the chemical has the risk of degrading as time passes due to exposure to humidity and heat, the inflaters can explode with too much force to blow apart the metal canister that is supposed to contain the explosion. No less than eight people have died due to the defective airbags, with over 100 suffering injuries in related incidents. However, despite the separation of Honda from Takata, the long partnership between the two companies continue to present headaches for the car manufacturer. Honda, by itself, has now recalled about 8 million vehicles across the United States, which represents about a third of the overall total of the associated recalls of around 24 million vehicles. The new recall order involves vehicles with older model years of 2005, but also includes vehicles that have been launched as recently as those with 2015 and 2016 model years. The defect was first noticed in 2004, when the airbag of a 2002 Honda Accord ruptured. The companies, however, deemed the incident an anomaly and decided not to inform safety regulators. It was not until 2008 when Honda issued the first recall order covering the defect, and only for a total of about 4,000 vehicles. Owners of vehicles involved in the recall order will be able to have their inflaters replaced. For instances when the replacements are not yet available, dealers have been told to provide loaner cars for free while waiting for the parts to arrive. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Astronomers have come a long way since the hunt for signs of life on Mars began decades ago. From detecting liquid water to testing fungi on Mars-like conditions, the pieces of this vast Martian puzzle have yet to be completed. Now, photos showing strange cauliflower-shaped structures on the red planet may or may not be the clue that scientists are waiting for. The Key To Finding Life On Mars Around eight years ago, NASA's Spirit rover found deposits of opaline silica inside the Gusev crater on Mars. The news is remarkable only because the silica's shape and outer layers are strange: the outer layers reveal tiny nodules similar to the heads of cauliflowers, seemingly sprouting from the red soil. Scientists are uncertain how the strange shapes, aptly called micro-digitate silica portrustions, formed. The Spirit rover detected the silica protrusions near the "Home Plate" region of Mars' Gusev crater. Geologists believe that geysers or hot springs may have once scorched the surface of the red planet in this area. Previous studies conducted by Arizona State University astronomers Jack Farmer and Steven Ruff in the Chilean desert suggest that the silica might have been created by microbes. Incidentally, some researchers claim that the Chilean desert resembles the type of soil found in Mars. At the American Geophysical meeting in December last year, the pair of Arizona State U astronomers presented the case that the silica hypothesis is our best shot for identifying evidence of past life on the red planet. If this is indeed true, the Martian cauliflower structures could become the biggest discovery ever made in astronomy. Proving The Biology Of Opaline Silica Another evidence that could support the hypothesis is the fact that experts have previously found cauliflower-like structures in Wyoming and New Zealand, both also linked to microbes. Unfortunately, the biology of the Martian silica is difficult to prove because the object is millions of miles away from Earth. Kurt Konhauser, Geobiology journal editor-in-chief, doesn't think there is any way to test where Martian microbes may be found using modern Earth instruments. "Having worked on modern hot springs, I have seen all forms of structures that look biological but are not," said Konhauser. "Because it looks biological doesn't mean it is." Farmer and Ruff aren't concluding their hypothesis yet. What they're saying is that perhaps these growths are mineral greetings from ancient aliens and that investigation must be done. Although the Spirit rover has stopped roaming around Mars, NASA said a new rover called Mars 2020 is expected to launch to the red planet in the coming years to gather samples and eventually return them to Earth. Meanwhile, Farmer and Ruff will continue their Mars studies here on Earth. The two will investigate the landscape at El Tatio in the Atacama Desert, another terrain which they say resembles early Mars, in order to find whether organisms are linked to the formation of silica. Since the silica found in Wyoming and New Zealand was sculpted by microbes, it was possible that this was the case at El Tatio. If the results of the duo's studies are positive, then the chain of their logic-loop will become smaller, bringing us one step closer to unraveling the Martian puzzle. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A 10-year-old boy who developed narcolepsy from swine flu vaccine won 120,000 (nearly $175,000) in damages after a six-year legal bout. In 2010, Josh Hadfield received a Pandemrix vaccine and in three weeks developed narcolepsy, a condition that made him fall asleep almost every five minutes regardless of activity. Apart from making him fall asleep even during meal times, physical activities such as walking or swimming, narcolepsy also caused him to have seizures when he laughs. At first, the government didn't want to settle via the Vaccine Damage Payments Scheme, indicating that Josh was not "severely disabled." The mother, 45-year-old Caroline Hadfield, fought fervently for years and finally won the legal battle. "It's a huge relief and it will help secure Josh's future. It's just a shame we had to jump through this amount of hoops to get this far," said Caroline. During the 2009-2010 swine flu pandemic in the UK, Pandemrix was the most popular vaccine used. Nearly a million British children aged six months to 5 years old were given the vaccine. Josh also received GlaxoSmithKline's H1N1 influenza vaccine in 2009 that triggered his narcolepsy. He also suffered a condition called cataplexy that affected his muscle control. His condition and medication contributed to his massive weight gain. His mother said that prior the vaccination, 4-year-old Josh was healthy and energetic. Two weeks post-vaccination, Caroline noticed that the boy was getting more and more tired. Three weeks later, Josh was sleeping for up to 19 hours a day. Soon, Josh started having troubles when walking. Several studies linked the Pandemrix vaccine to narcolepsy in young children across Sweden, Finland and Ireland. Findings revealed that the injection increased narcolepsy risk by tenfold, placing Pandemrix off service. Suzanne Williams, the family's lawyer, said they had to convince the court that Josh was 60 percent disabled or more. Based on Josh's current symptoms, the court concluded that the boy was 72 percent disabled. Caroline said Josh's condition already showed improvement. The boy is starting to cope but he still sleeps up to two times while in school. Caroline added that Josh had to work harder due to missed lessons. Now in his Year Six, Josh is scheduled to take his SATS this year. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The horror film "The Witch," written and directed by Robert Eggers, has been lauded during the 2015 Sundance Festival and hailed as one of the most terrifying films by the media. Now the horror film has a new fan-base in The Satanic Temple, as proven by an official statement from its national spokesperson, Jex Blackmore. In fact, The Satanic Temple is such a fan of the terrifying film that it will launch premiere screenings of "The Witch" in four cities: New York, Los Angeles and Austin on Feb. 10, 12 and 16, respectively, and Detroit, which doesn't have a screening date yet. To show The Satanic Temple's support for Eggers' film, it also launched a website especially for the film where interested people can identify themselves as a witch by signing up. "The Witch examines theocratic patriarchy in microcosm, documenting the pathology of a religious hysteria that is still influential in politics today," Blackmore writes. "While the patriarchy makes witches of only the most socially vulnerable members of society, Eggers' film refuses to construct a victim narrative. Instead it features a declaration of feminine independence that both provokes puritanical America and inspires a tradition of spiritual transgression," she adds. Blackmore's written explanation on why "The Witch" is a film that people should watch may not register to some so watch her explain it in less than two minutes below. Just to clarify, The Satanic Temple advocates practical common sense and justice guided by the human conscience and rejects tyrannical authority. When the group talks "Satan," they don't mean the supernatural being, the Archangel of Light called Lucifer, who led a rebellion against God mere seconds after creation. They don't conjure up images of a fearsome, cleft-footed, horned creature laughing maniacally as it throws souls in the eternal fires of hell either. What they consider as "Satan" is the human tendency to rebel against norms and injustices and that part in the human spirit that refuses to be silenced. "Satan is symbolic of the Eternal Rebel in opposition to arbitrary authority, forever defending personal sovereignty even in the face of insurmountable odds. Satan is an icon for the unbowed will of the unsilenced inquirer," the site explains. The group's symbol of choice may be questionable for many, but its mission is sensible. Watch the official trailer of "The Witch" below.   2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. What would you do if you let your dogs out one day and they led you to a 9-foot-long green anaconda? Real-estate agent Leisa Remsberg, a resident of Florida and a native of Melbourne, screamed for her dogs and immediately dialed 911. Her dogs, a shih tzu named Gizmo and a half-shih tzu, half-poodle named Teddy, dashed to the side yard and apparently sniffed out a large, shiny dark anaconda. Remsberg said she didn't know what it was at first, because it was so big, but then the snake tilted its head and stared at the dogs. "It raised its head up like it ... like snapping at them ... like lurching at them to make them back off. I started screaming for the dogs right away," said Remsberg. Teddy was smart enough to run back to the house, but Gizmo was curious and remained. That was when she called 911. At that point, Remsberg said she still didn't know what kind of snake it was. She said she recalled screaming to the phone, "There's just this huge, huge snake!" Remsberg's neighbor thought the snake was a python. The man brought out a shovel to hold the snake down until officers arrived. He placed the snake inside a container covered with a lid. To keep the snake trapped, he placed a piece of concrete on top of the lid. He then took the snake to his yard. Brevard County Animal Services secured the snake, and handed the situation over to Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Greg Workman, spokesperson for the commission, said wildlife officers are trying to determine where the snake originated. They also did not find any legally required microchip on the snake. "Basically, it wasn't there legally. They're a top predator. They get huge. They can really decimate an area," said Workman. The 9-foot-long anaconda is the second to pop up in Brevard County in the past few months. The first one was also 9 feet long, and was discovered to be lurking around in November last year. Green anacondas are often found in South America. These animals can grow to more than 500 pounds, and 20 feet in length. The snake poses a risk to wildlife in Florida. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. While the Iowa caucuses are over, it seems as though there is plenty of Iowa-related drama still to come. The Wall Street Journal reports that the Republican Party of Iowa's website has exposed as many as two million people's names, phone numbers, addresses, birthdates and voter records due to a security flaw. It's important to note that voters of all parties were affected by the breach, not just Republicans, and that voter records do not expose who a person voted for, just that they voted. Of course, all the other information that was left out is still problematic. An attendee of the Iowa caucuses noticed the flaw before telling the Wall Street Journal. In response to the report, the Iowa GOP pulled the database from the website, however, it is possible that the data was already downloaded by someone else. Usually, voter records are available as public information for a fee of somewhere between $1,500 and $1,800, however, laws say that the records can only be used for political reasons. To find the records, a person simply looks at the source code for the location directory of the caucus. Basically, anyone with a Web browser could have looked at the database. 2022 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Augmented reality will soon transform how constituents interact with their government and how California's public-sector workforce does its job, says a leading expert on smart cities. Dr. Gregory Curtin, founder and CEO of Civic Resource Group, said during remarks Wednesday at the Government Transformation conference in Sacramento that augmented reality software and devices are on the market now in products like HoloLens and Magic Leap, and there are already "profound" use cases for AR in the public sector. Augmented reality is about bringing together powerful data, information and content and displaying it over real-world objects and the actual world we live in, through smartphones and wearable devices, Curtin said. Augmented reality will utilize the growing network of Internet of Things there are 6.4 billion connected things in 2016 to offer integrated, seamless solutions to citizens, Curtin said. Imagine a citizen being able to visualize in the real world where a government plans to build a new bridge, road or transit station, Curtin said. Furthermore, research has shown that augmented reality can lead to 30 percent productivity gains for workers because manuals, expert advice, maps and diagrams are put directly into a person's peripheral vision. "Imagine an augmented world where our mobile workers our workforce, our California workforce can efficiently and safely serve wherever, whenever and however they chose and need to," Curtin said. Matt Williams Matt Williams was Managing Editor of Techwire from June 2014 through May 2017. See More Stories by Matt Williams Build your own army of Arduino cockroaches for under $30 Have you taken a look at the armies of the world? It must have cost a fortune to build them right? Did you have an ambitious plan to build your own private army but always discarded the idea because it was far too expensive. Fear not, because your dream will come true thanks to a $30 Arduino Micro board. So what exactly are you going to use it on? On cockroaches of course. Yes, that is correct, you can build your own private cockroach army and it will only set you back worth $30 of components. So how does it work? It is actually pretty simple. By stimulating a cockroachs antenna with variable frequencies (for mimicking neural signals) you can actually convince the cockroach that they have to move in whatever direction you see fit. This will result in a remote controlled cockroach army. https://youtu.be/8i_Ozp_n_YM In order to complete the setup, it requires a mini backpack that contains an Arduino Micro wired into the cockroach. Although some minor surgery will be required on the insect, you will obviously not have to possess the same skills as a surgeon in order to complete the process. However, there is one drawback that might limit you; keep in mind that cockroaches are able to re-grow their broken limbs as well as their antennae, meaning that they will realize that they are being controlled sooner or later. There is a video given below showing you how this is possible. After watching the video, did you ever want to build your own private cockroach army? Let us know the answer. Source: YouTube Securing a place for a child at a good local primary school, can be one of the biggest concerns parents face. With reports frequently highlighting the shortage of school places, and supersize classes of 30 or more on the rise, it's little wonder that even future parents consider catchment areas when house hunting. All too often, parents can find themselves priced out of the areas surrounding the best state primary schools, while in the independent sector, some prep and pre-prep schools have waiting lists 'from birth'. It could be easy for parents to assume that if they don't have a plan mapped out for any future children, then they will be condemning them to a life lacking opportunity. But is this really the case? In the first of a new series, we put your questions to the education professionals, who will provide their expert answers to your queries. This week, we look at a common concern dealt with by The Good Schools Guide Advisory Service about planning a child's education. Question: Should we map out our son's education? "We are expecting our first baby in June. Friends are telling us that we will need to register him at schools we like practically on the day he is born. Is this true? Is it possible to map out a route through schooling from 0-18? Is it necessary and is it sensible? We live in London which seems incredibly pressurised but we don't want him to miss out on any vital opportunities through any slowness on our part." Arturo Murillo swindled the Bolivian state in 2019, when the U.S.-backed regime was trying to repress workers, farmers, and students. | Read More YINCHUAN, Feb. 3, 2016 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (2nd R) has dumplings with senior citizens at a nursing home in Guyuan, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Feb. 1, 2016. Li had an inspection tour in Ningxia on Feb. 1 and Feb. 2 and sent his early lunar New Year greetings to local people. (Xinhua/Pang Xinglei) YINCHUAN, Feb. 3 (Xinhua) -- Premier Li Keqianghas urged efforts to upgrade traditional industries and make them more competitive through technological innovation. Li made the comments during an inspection tour to northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region on Monday and Tuesday, where he visited a reservoir construction site, mosque, nursing home and local business. While inspecting a foundry and a 3D printing workshop, Li said there is still ample room to transform traditional industries by applying "revolutionary new technologies." China can find the best technological solution for upgrading traditional sectors by gathering talent and learning from other countries, the premier said. Li called for a more open platform to facilitate enterprises and scientific research institutions in an effort to encourage innovation, which will accelerate the transformation of traditional industries. He also demanded more effort to promote poverty reduction, improve people's livelihood and strengthen national unity. Aided by the "Smart Ningxia" cloud platform, Li sent his early lunar New Year greetings to local people. 6 1 [ Editor: Fanhua ] MP Asked EC To Suspend Baalyya As MLA Balayya has been landed in unexpected controversy for participating in GHMC election. Its known that the Hindupuram MLA casted his vote for GHMC elections in Hyderabad on Tuesday. Congress leader and Former Karimanagar MP Ponnam Prabhakar took strong objection to Balakrishna casting his vote. Ponnam complained against Balayya for voting in GHMC being a MLA from other star. Ponnam demanded that the actor turned turned politician should be disqualified from Assembly as he was not a voter from the state. Ponnam speaking to media said that according to section 5(C) of Representation of people Act 1951 states that a politician should have vote right in particular state to compete in the elections.As Balayya is not having vote in Andhra he should be suspended from AP assembly; Observed the Ex-MP. He said he lodged a complaint with Election commission regarding the same. 'Nandamuri Balakrishna is an MLA from Andhra Pradesh assembly. Still he cast his vote in a polling both from Jubilee Hills area. As per rule, he is not supposed to do this. After the division of the state, he has forfeited his voting right in Telangana, as he is the member of the Andhra Pradesh Assembly. As per 'the representation of the public act', Balakrishna had violated the provisions of representation of people act. He should be disqualified from the Andhra Pradesh Assembly'' Said Ponnam. Surprisngly just few months ago the same leader shocked the political sets of both the Telugu states by demanding actor Balakrishna be made the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh. Ponnam adressing media on issue of the controversial renaming of domestic terminal of Shamsabad airport after NT Rama Rao said that if Chandrababu respects late NTR he should replace himse with Balayya as the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh. News Posted: 4 February, 2016 Machine harvestable chickpea variety boon for AP Hyderabad, Feb 4 (INN): Imagine 2.25 tons of chickpea variety harvested in just 75 minutes! The process (including cutting and threshing) would normally take three long days. This is made possible due to the breeding of a taller chickpea variety that is able to be harvested by standard machinery. The chickpea variety, NBeG 47, is the first machine harvestable variety released in Andhra Pradesh suitable for the state's variable climate. This development was demonstrated recently in a farmer's fields in Andhra Pradesh's Anantapur district showing how farmers can save time and money. The chickpea variety planted in farmer B Rameswar Reddy's field was developed by Dr Veera Jayalakshmi, Principal Scientist (Chickpea Breeding) at Acharya NG Ranga Agricultural University in Nandyal, with support from the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid-Tropics (ICRISAT). The breeding material for developing this variety and technical support was provided by ICRISAT. 'Currently chickpea farming in Andhra Pradesh is partially mechanized ' the crop is cut manually and then fed into a threshing machine. The total mechanization of harvesting is cost effective and quicker, reducing the risk of the ripened crop's exposure to untimely rain or other extreme weather conditions,' says Dr Pooran M. Gaur, Principal Scientist, Chickpea Breeding at ICRISAT. Dr Jayalakshmi says the farmer will keep a portion of seeds for his next crop and make available this new variety to other interested farmers in the region. She adds that machine harvesting is better for the health of the laborers, especially women, as handling the crop causes painful dermatitis due to its high acid content. This innovative variety was developed to address the issue of labor shortage on farms and reduce drudgery, especially for women laborers. The yield of this new variety, 2.25 tons per ha, is on par and in some conditions better than the existing ruling variety JG 11 (1.75 to 2.5 tons per ha), provided the prescribed plant spacing is followed. Other traits such as disease and drought tolerance are also on par with the JG 11 variety. Dr Y Padmalatha, Associate Director of Research, Regional Agricultural Research Station, Nandyal, says that while scientists come up with innovations for better farming practices, policy makers need to provide much needed support to price pulses like chickpea so farmers get consistent market value for their crops. The demonstration of the variety was recently held at Vennapusapalli village of Andhra Pradesh, where local community leaders and farmers from other villages learned about the new variety. More research efforts are underway to develop machine harvestable chickpea varieties suited for other parts of India like Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka. Dr Jayalakshmi says the variety was derived from a cross between an ICRISAT line ICCV 2 and a local line PDG 84-16 and NBeG 47 and grows to a height of 60 cm under prevalent conditions in southern India. Like paddy or wheat, it is amenable to mechanical harvesting. The new variety was developed through a project titled Developing chickpea varieties suitable for machine harvesting and tolerant to herbicides funded by the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation, National Food Security Mission, Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India. News Posted: 4 February, 2016 South Korean President Park Geun-hye said on Thursday that she will not tolerate a launch by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) of long-range ballistic missile. "North Korea (DPRK)'s announcement of long-range missile launch plan, after conducing nuclear test, is an act to threaten peace of the Korean peninsula and the world that will never be tolerated," Park said in a statement read by Kim Sung-Woo, senior presidential press secretary. Park's statement came as Pyongyang informed international organizations Tuesday of its plan to put what it called a Kwangmyongsong earth observation satellite into orbit between Feb. 8 and 25. The rocket launch declaration was made about a month after the DPRK's claim on Jan. 6 that it had tested its first H-bomb, the fourth in total of its nuclear detonations. The DPRK blasted off the three-stage Unha-3 rocket to deliver the Kwangmyongsong-3 satellite into orbit in Dec. 2012, two months before staging its third nuclear test. It was the first successful launch of a satellite into orbit by the DPRK. Park said that the DPRK's repeated acts of conducting provocations and raising tensions aimed to threaten South Korean people and maximize their fears, stressing the need for cooperation with the international community. The DPRK's announcement of rocket launch plan, despite the ongoing discussions on new UN sanctions, reflected a fact that Pyongyang is never scared of UN restrictions at all, Park said. The president noted that the only way to stop the DPRK's misjudgment is to tighten UN sanctions and make the DPRK recognize that it cannot survive unless the country gives up its nuclear program. [ Editor: Fanhua ] Heads up to prevent injury from falls Morning walks in my neighborhood are one of the most enjoyable parts of my day. I love the coolness of daybreak and the special sightings of the stag and two does that frequent our open space. I also enjoy my walk because each day at... Signs that point to the best time for retirement Ive been thinking a lot about retirement lately. One of our amazing staff members, who has been with Senior Concerns for the last 13 years, retired last month. It just doesnt seem real. I always thought of Dana as young. Certainly not the person to... Rethinking the mandatory retirement age How old is too old for working at a job? Last week a news story hit my inbox and it really got me to thinking about age and retirement. The article noted that Target Corp. abandoned its mandatory retirement age of 65 for its CEO,... Tips to promoting a healthy nights sleep for children Question: Help, please. My daughter is almost 2 years old and has been an easy child to put into her own bed. Yet in the past few weeks she is purposefully stretching out the bedtime routine longer and longer. She wants more: more stories, more... Woolworths non-executive director and merchant banker Scott Perkins has stepped down from the board of Woolworths' home improvement joint venture as the retailer's exit from the $45 billion sector draws nearer. According to documents filed with the corporate regulator, Mr Perkins, a former head of corporate finance for Deutsche Bank, resigned from the board of Hydrox Holdings on Wednesday. Walking away: a Woolworths non-executive director has quit the board of its hardware joint venture as Woolworths prepares to sell or wind up the Masters business. Credit:Chris Hopkins He was replaced by two Woolworths executives, group counsel Rod Bordignon and chief strategy director James Goth, in what Woolworths described as an administrative change in advance of Hydrox becoming a 100 per cent Woolworths owned business. In late December, former Woolworths chief financial officer Tom Pockett resigned from the Hydrox board and was replaced by Woolworths chief legal officer and company secretary Richard Dammery. Fears of job cuts in CSIRO's key climate research division have been realised. Credit:CSIRO "That question has been answered, and the new question is what do we do about it, and how can we find solutions for the climate we will be living with?" Australia, with its already variable climate, has seen average temperatures rise about 1 degree over the past century. Heatwaves are also increasing in intensity and frequency, as are the number of high fire danger days, according to research by the CSIRO and the Bureau of Meteorology. Understanding how bushfires and other perils will change with global warming will be undermined by the cuts, scientists say. Credit:NASA Scientists last year expressed bemusement when told that revenue needed to be sought in all parts of the organisation. One researcher wondered then how basic research such as tracking the changes of salinity levels between Indonesia and Fremantle - one gauge used to track circulation and other ocean shifts - might be used to generate income. Dr Marshall indicated some people might be able to find new skills for priority areas. It's a catastrophic reduction in our capacity to assess present and future climate change Andy Pitman, UNSW "Our people are innovative and many can reinvent themselves to learn these new areas," he said. "We will need new people with new skills to help us navigate this new future." Arm's length? The cuts were not the Turnbull government's doing, but were "an operational decision of the CSIRO", a spokesman for Science Minister Christopher Pyne said. "After an extensive review, the management of the CSIRO have stated the need to reorganise the organisation to better fulfil its mission as outlined in its strategic plan." While the government may be trying to distance itself from the CSIRO move against its climate division, one of the Coalition's most outspoken climate-change deniers, Dennis Jensen took to Twitter to support the move: Opposition leader Bill Shorten said Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull should "hang his head in shame". "The only people cheering this decision from Malcolm Turnbull will be the far-right of the Liberal Party who are calling the shots," Mr Shorten said. "Malcolm Turnbull is happy to use the CSIRO for a photo-op but his cuts are vandalising a great Australian institution," he said. "Under the Liberals Australia's pollution levels are going up, and Malcolm Turnbull's answer is to sack the experts who are working to cut pollution and find the innovations in renewable energy that will help create the jobs of the future in Australia," he said. A senior scientist also questioned the government's claim that the CSIRO was acting independently. "Our biggest customer is the government - they have to approve all this," the scientist said. Data gathering hit The overall cuts come from a staff of 4832 full-time positions, a CSIRO spokesman said. "Hopefully the net result will be stable in about two years [as new staff are recruited for the CSIRO priority areas]," he said. It is understood just 30 staff will be left in the Oceans and Atmosphere unit and they will not be working on climate issues related to basic data gathering. "This staggering attack on climate science is an act of political vandalism, pure and simple, and if the government doesn't back down on this it's ordinary Australians who will ultimately pay the price," Nadine Flood, national secretary of the Community and Public Sector Union, said.. Remaining climate staff will focus on mitigation - cutting greenhouse gas emissions - and adaptation to warming impacts rather than gathering basic science. 'Shock and horror' Another senior scientist, aware of the planned announcement, said staff would be shocked by the news that basic climate science, including much of the monitoring of changes in the southern hemisphere, would be slashed. "There'll be disappointment, anger," he said, adding that Australia's counterparts would also respond "with shock and horror". Doubts also remain over the CSIRO's ongoing role as co-ordinator of the new National Environmental Science Program, which falls under Environment Minister Greg Hunt's office. Some 16 full-time staff from CSIRO will be assigned to the program, which was set up to house remaining climate science and other environmental science divisions that had suffered deep cuts during the Abbott government. It is understood IMOS - the Integrated Marine Observing System - will be maintained with "some remnants" of climate work remaining in Hobart, one scientist said. The scientist said the cuts to climate research were part of a pattern of environmental science cutbacks across many fields in Australia. 'Jaw-dropping' Andy Pitman, director of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Climate System Science at the University of NSW, said the scale of the cuts was "jaw-droppingly shocking". "It's a catastrophic reduction in our capacity to assess present and future climate change," Professor Pitman said. "It will leave us vulnerable to future climate change and unable to take advantage of any positives that result." The impact will extend not just to the science being conducted in and around Australia but also to the ability of the country to retain and attract scientists, he said. "They will focus on North American and European problems [when they go], not Australia's," Professor Pitman said. That sentiment was one being shared on social media: The cuts had "the potential to devastate climate science in Australia", Todd Lane, president of the Australian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society, said. "Not only does CSIRO play a key role in climate monitoring, it underpins all of the climate modelling activity in Australia," Associate Professor Lane said. "If that is cut significantly, it will set us back at least a decade and will undermine our ability to predict future climate risk." Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has begun talking up the problems with raising the GST in a sign his appetite for an increase could be waning. In a radio interview on Friday, the Prime Minister spent a good deal of time listing the pitfalls and drawbacks of raising the GST to 15 per cent. If the government was to raise the consumption tax to provide income tax relief it would also need to increase pensions, craft a complicated compensation program and make sure the country was getting a "a growth dividend that justifies the trouble and expense", he said. She's the gun-toting, gay marriage-opposing Victorian Nationals senator who wants two ABC board members to be based in the regions. But Bridget McKenzie's home is in the leafy inner Melbourne suburb of Elwood, with the register of senators' interests revealing the senator purchased a property in Elwood in November 2014. All guns blazing: Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen And in fact, a spokesman for the senator - a fierce public advocate for regional Australia who is regularly described as Bendigo-based - confirmed she had never lived in the former Victorian gold rush town, despite her office being situated there. First elected in August 2010, Senator McKenzie stays in a hotel when she visits Bendigo and, according to her spokesman, she has been looking for a flat to buy in Bendigo but "at this time the only full-time residence is Elwood". We've all been there. It's late in the work day and your boss is waxing lyrical about something that's important but tedious. On top of that, your colleagues won't stop pestering you about your job so, overcome with fatigue, you nod off right there in your seat. Completely understandable. So we can hardly blame Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss for doing exactly that in question time on Thursday afternoon. The 67-year-old Infrastructure Minister and leader of the Nationals, currently the subject of fevered speculation regarding his future, dozed off while Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull was answering a question on the ABC's coverage of the National Broadband Network. Melbourne's Anglican churches say they cannot offer sanctuary to asylum seekers facing immediate deportation to Nauru because they are not equipped to provide accommodation. It puts the Melbourne Anglican diocese at great odds with its counterparts around the rest of the country, who are willing to face police raids and possible charges to shield asylum seekers. Anglican and Uniting churches and cathedrals in Brisbane and Sydney have taken the extraordinary step of offering sanctuary to 267 asylum seekers, including 37 babies, in the wake of a High Court verdict, which upheld the legality of the government's offshore processing regime. Calvin Klein's joyful pictures of mother and daughter Lisa Bonet (48) and Zoe Kravitz (27), all full of beachy abandon, also offer a broader outlook of generation fashion. And in Paris, Giorgio Armani launched a range of everyday luxury classics called the New Normal with Yasmin Le Bon (51), Nadja Auermann (44), Stella Tennant (45) and Eva Herzigova (42). Armani says the collection reflects a "desire to dress women in their daily lives. It offers garments that maintain the values of elegance and dignity, and at the same time a reflection of modernity." In his latest spring/summer campaign, Rousteing has reunited three of the original "supers" - Cindy Crawford (49), Naomi Campbell (45) and Claudia Schiffer (45). Premiering the campaign on his Instagram feed (where else?), he said the trio had made him "love fashion yesterday, made me love fashion today [and you] are going to make me love fashion in the future". The selfie-satisfied, Kardashian cheerleader, Olivier Rousteing, may not seem an obvious champion of the everywoman. But in his own not-so-subtle way, the creative director of Balmain is emerging at the forefront of a refreshing movement to reflect and cater to a wider demographic in fashion - the 40somethings. Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford and Claudia Schiffer. Credit:Olivier Rousteing A collection of grown-up garments shown on grown-up women should be a no-brainer. But, as we all know, that hasn't always been the case. Until very recently, the average age of a model in super-expensive clothes was around 18. Then, last year, it was 80-plus, with Saint Laurent and Celine featuring Joni Mitchell and Joan Didion respectively in their campaigns. This was an interesting idea that undoubtedly helped expand the concept of what is cool and who looks great, as well as aligning the labels with zeitgeist heroes, but it was also yet another example of fashion's obsession with extremes. This shift feels more measured. Ruth Chapman, co-founder of Matchesfashion.com, says that the demographic of 40- and 50-year-olds is "the woman we always consider first. She's the one who spends the most money on fashion and is most engaged with luxury designer fashion. Social media has been really useful in changing concepts of what and how people want fashion to be seen. If we're going to be spending a lot of money on something, we don't want to see it on somebody who's 17; there's no correlation between the product and the girl wearing it. Social media has changed the concept of what it means to be beautiful. Long gone is that idea that woman become invisible at a certain age." While we should be careful to attribute every shift and shake to something that happened on Instagram, what the platform has done is allow women of any age, any size, any look to create their own highly tuned and receptive audiences. Most interestingly, when the audience is put in control, the scope for who can be seen as a model widens. Some of the most popular so-called "street-style stars" on Instagram, are definitely not in the conventional "model" mode. The likes of Eva Chen (aged 35; 528,000 followers), Anna Dello Russo (53; 1 million), Net-A-Porter.com's Sarah Rutson (44K), Natalie Massenet (50; 142K), Giovanna Battaglia (36; 449K), Ines de la Fressange (58; 106K) and Caroline de Maigret (40; 385K) have gained their fans based on their style (crucially) and personality. They are not the passive blank canvases that models so often represent, but authors of their own extremely successful careers. Not before time, brands have begun courting them, and they're not simply using these women as clothes horses, but starting to shape collections around them. Canberra's Uniting Church congregations would welcome refugees seeking sanctuary from deportation to Manus Island or Nauru as a result of Wednesday's High Court ruling "with open doors, open hearts, and open tables", church leaders said on Thursday. "It's called civil disobedience and churches have been doing it for a long time," the Reverend Anne Ryan of the Tuggeranong Uniting Church at Erindale said. From left, the Reverend Chris Lickley, Vanessa Crimmins, the Reverend Anne Ryan and the Reverend Mark Faulkner at St Margaret's in Watson. Credit:Jay Cronan While Canberra's Catholic, Anglican and Presbyterian communities are still deciding if they would accept requests for sanctuary, their leaders are sympathetic to the plight of almost 270 men, women and children now in limbo following the High Court's decision to uphold the legitimacy of offshore processing. The Anglican Dean of Brisbane, the Reverend Dr Peter Catt, responded by offering sanctuary at St. John's Cathedral on Thursday. Other Anglican churches and Uniting churches in Brisbane, Melbourne and Perth, where all of the affected individuals are living, quickly followed suit. Canberrans paid the highest costs in the country for long-day childcare last year while the staff caring for children were the least qualified. According to the latest findings from the Productivity Commission's Report on Government Services 2016, Canberra families paid an average of $493 a week for long-day care in 2015, compared with a national average of $400. Queensland families paid an average of just $363 while the second-most expensive rate was in NSW at $425 a week still $3536 a year cheaper than the ACT. Childcare costs have been escalating nationally, with the median weekly cost for 50 hours of government-approved long-day care increasing in real terms to $400 in 2015 from $381 in 2014 and $310 in 2010. While ACT families paid more than 20 per cent above the average costs, the report found that the ACT had the lowest proportion of qualified staff. Investigators say the death of a man at a Kambah home last month was not suspicious. Police will prepare a report for the coroner after the man was found dead and a woman seriously injured at the home in Everard Place on January 20. ACT Policing say the circumstances of a man's death in Everard Place, Kambah in January were not suspicious. Credit:Karleen Minney The incident sent shockwaves through the tiny cul de sac in Canberra's south about two weeks ago. Two men accused of robbing taxi drivers at knife point have been sentenced to prison. Albert Barker, 35, and Howard Hall, 28, robbed two drivers in December 2014 and January 2015. They attempted to rob a third but a police car turned up instead of the taxi, the court was told. The court was told the offenders' modus operandi was similar in each incident. A woman booked a taxi late at night or early in the morning. Once at the pick up point, Hall and Barker got into the taxi and threatened the driver with a knife while demanding cash. They were arrested during a third attempt in January 2015 and refused bail. Both pleaded guilty in October to all three offences. Virgin Australia has posted an eight-fold rise in underlying profit before tax in the first half to $81.5 million, as a result of ongoing fare increases in the domestic market and better conditions in the international market. On a bottom-line basis, Virgin reported a $62.5 million profit in the first half, up from a $47.8 million loss in the same period the previous year. It did not reveal how much the lower fuel price had contributed to the result, but the carrier has previously flagged relatively lesser benefits from the oil price fall than rival Qantas. Virgin Australia chief executive John Borghetti says the carrier's international business has continued to improve. Credit:Ben Rushton Virgin will not unveil its detailed half-year financial figures until February 11, but it provided information on its December quarter results on Thursday because large shareholder Singapore Airlines is obliged to disclose its share of Virgin's earnings each quarter. Virgin reported an underlying profit before tax of $73 million in the December quarter, up 32.2 per cent from the previous year, in what is typically the strongest quarter of the year for the airline. The champagne corks might be popping now, but AGL's adventures with coal seam gas were all but over last year when new boss, Andy Vesey, announced a "comprehensive review" of its troubled operations soon after Valentine's Day. The review was announced barely a week after Vesey started at AGL, and was a not a hard one given the insignificance of CSG to the company's core business and its painfully public profile. Illustration John Shakespeare Another energy boss started this week, and boy is he facing different circumstances. As CBD reported, Santos welcomed Kevin Gallagher aboard on Monday, and he literally had conservation groups like Lock The Gate, Knitting Nannas Against Gas, and the Wilderness Society, on his doorstep from the get-go. Almost overshadowed by the environmental reverberations around AGL Energy's decision to walk away from the Gloucester coal seam gas project is the message the utility is sending about its changed outlook for the east coast gas market. Gone is the rhetoric of two or three years ago from then CEO Michael Fraser of the absolute necessity for AGL to develop its own gas sources, both at Gloucester and elsewhere to protect against a looming shortage driven by the emergence of the Queensland LNG industry. Two years ago, AGL was predicting gas shortages in NSW as early as this coming winter. AGL has beefed up its contracted gas supplies through a major contract it signed last year with the Esso/BHP Billiton gas venture in the Gippsland Basin. Gloucester was held up as critical for NSW to reduce its dependence on other states for gas, and help preserve jobs in manufacturing: the project would provide more than 15 per cent of the state's gas needs by about 2018. It would also strengthen AGL's hand in negotiations with suppliers on long-term purchase contracts. The language is different now, showing a more relaxed view on the likely availability of gas during the coming years, and an outlook for prices that, while still heading higher, is much softer than when oil was trading north of $US100 a barrel. CEO Andy Vesey pointed to a "rebalancing" of load on the commercial side, with lower demand from industrial customers in NSW. Also, the relative economics between Gloucester gas and gas bought on the market has shifted: the balance has tipped to the latter, after pilot gas flows fell 20 per cent short of the level seen as justifying the $1 billion investment required. AGL has also already beefed up its contracted gas supplies through a major contract it signed last year with the Esso/BHP Billiton gas venture in the Gippsland Basin. Others also no longer see an urgent need for NSW to develop its CSG resources. On the analysis of Citigroup's energy team, coal seam gas in NSW is not needed by the market until the mid-2020s. Analyst Dale Koenders says the sharp weakening in global LNG markets means he no longer expects the three Queensland LNG projects will strive to produce beyond their capacity and contracted sales during the next few years, meaning that a mooted shortage in feed gas supplies would not eventuate. At the same time, better-than-expected flows from CSG wells feeding the plants has resulted in some production having to be shut in until the plants fully ramp up. Koenders puts the volume of excess gas in Queensland and the Cooper Basin awaiting the start-up of the last two LNG trains at Gladstone at 700 to 1200 terajoules a day. Not all analysts see the east coast market as being so comfortably off, with many still expecting particular tightness for the next few years as the LNG plants ramp up, almost tripling the call on local gas sources. Manufacturers, too, are as worried as ever over a scarcity of long-term supplies and would much rather see Gloucester developed, even if it accounts for only a fraction of total supplies. On EnergyQuest's numbers the Gloucester venture would have supplied about 20 petajoules a year, compared with demand of about 1900 PJ a year once the LNG plants are fully operational. You might expect neighbourhoods with a combined income of more than $1 billion to be exclusive havens of the super-rich. But it turns out Sydney has 41 of them. Mosman, on the city's lower north shore, has Australia's highest combined neighbourhood income a cool $2.71 billion in 2012-13. Not far behind was Double Bay-Bellevue Hill with collective earnings of $2.46 billion. Port Jackson is ringed by billion-dollar neighbourhoods but new local area income figures show that club is not confined to the harbour-front. A swag of localities in the eastern suburbs, north shore and northern beaches were represented along with several water-front suburbs in Sydney's south including Cronulla and Caringbah-Lilli Pilli. Who will want to live in an apartment overlooking Northbourne Avenue over the next 20 years? I well remember driving along Northbourne Avenue with my family in the raging heat of January in the late 1960s and being blown into the Rex Hotel by the hot northerly winds. Then, there was little in the way of trees, but it wasn't a wind tunnel of tall buildings either. An artist's impression of the park to be developed as the first stage of the ACT government's City to the Lake development at West Basin. Credit:ACT government When the trees are cut down, their thick canopy no longer a shady wind break, and the avenue becomes a construction site, there will be nothing to absorb the pollution and noise from six lanes of traffic, a tram and its visual pollution of overhead wires and, as every building less than 10 stories high will be pulled down to construct taller buildings, a construction site it will remain, even after the tram glides by. Along Mugga Way during the past 10 years I have watched the replacement Eucalyptus mannifera still struggling to grow past the spindly stage and Mugga Way is a nature haven by comparison with the tall building fate of Northbourne Avenue. For now we will have only proximity talks, with the various parties entering into discussion with de Mistura but not among themselves. And the focus of discussion, at least initially, will not be the settlement of the conflict but three more immediate objectives: a possible ceasefire; release of prisoners; and humanitarian aid to the worst-hit areas. Secondly, despite ongoing disagreements about who should be represented and threatened walkouts, the UN Special Envoy, Staffan de Mistura, has managed to get most of the relevant parties to agree to come to Geneva. Smoke rises after three bombs exploded in Sayyda Zeinab, a predominantly Shiite Muslim suburb of the Syrian capital. The triple bombing claimed by the extremist Islamic State group killed at least 45 people on Sunday, overshadowing an already shaky start to what are meant to be indirect Syria peace talks. Credit:Uncredited The last three months have seen two positive developments. First, last November the key international players, including the United States and Russia, agreed on the need for a nationwide ceasefire in Syria. More ambitiously, they envisaged a transitional authority to be created within six months of the launch of the Geneva talks, and UN-monitored elections to be held within 18 months. Significantly, the future of the Assad regime is not on the agenda, and just as well. For too long many of the protagonists global powers, regional players and warring parties have used arguments about the legitimacy or otherwise of the regime to conceal their own interests in the conflict. Their strategic competition, including military intervention and the flow of arms, money and oil, helps to explain the scale and brutality of the war. Russia's support for the Syrian government reflects a desire to maintain its strategic toehold in Syria. Importantly it wants to be treated as a key player in the Middle East, whose interests and priorities others cannot afford to ignore. Iran is concerned to thwart Saudi Arabia's regional ambitions, and in particular its support, both direct and indirect, for Sunni extremism. More broadly Iran wants to be accepted as a major regional player. Hezbollah supports Assad for fear that another government in Syria would work to weaken its military position in Lebanon. More immediately it wants to secure its supply lines that run from Iran via Syrian territory. For the United States the primary goal, generally shared by its allies, has been to maintain Western dominance in the Middle East and prevent Russia from re-establishing a significant presence. Regionally, US policy has sought to limit Iran's influence while maintaining the Saudi connection which it deems vital to its strategic and economic priorities. To this end it has been prepared to turn a blind eye to the oppressive character of the Saudi regime and its known support for Islamist movements, not least in Syria. Let's be impudent for a moment and ponder what is the point of the Turnbull government? When that brash question was asked of the previous Abbott iteration, at roughly the same stage in its term, Coalition MPs were miffed. Yet it wasn't so long before they were asking it themselves. And we know where that led them. The Turnbull administration, installed in extremis because Abbott's narrative had ceased to exist, is sailing along altogether more agreeably. However the manner in which a deliberately ill-defined GST-slash-broader tax reform debate has been let loose on the public has insiders wondering if the government really knows as much about where it is going as it would have us believe. As with the Abbott government in early 2014, there is no panic in Coalition ranks, no existential level crisis, but the backbench fear is that the leadership might fritter away its hard-recovered goodwill on a plan so diabolically unpopular that it will be dropped before the election anyway. Once, when asked to name the best thing about sailing alone on his yacht in the Pacific Ocean, Jonathan Deerson replied: "Not having anyone who can tell me what to do." An odd response, perhaps, from a man who was very successful in all the normal pursuits of life a loving family, academic success, interesting and good jobs, travel around the world. What he was conveying was his need for autonomy and authenticity he wanted to complete a life-goal of adventure, not tied to others' wishes or to the endless demands every society makes on its members. He wanted to travel to faraway places in ways and at times dictated only by him, by his boat's preparedness, and ultimately by the authority of the wind and the waves. Jonathan was the eldest of three children. He was raised in his early years by his mother Hermia in the Blue Mountains near Sydney while his father Norman was fighting in the war. When he was seven the family moved to Melbourne Jonathan had severe asthma, and Melbourne's climate was recommended. Both parents were professional violinists, and Jonathan deeply loved listening to music Bach and Chopin were his favourites but he was drawn towards the sciences, and trained as an electrical engineer at Swinburne Tech. He gained a State Electricity Commission cadetship while studying, and began work as an SEC engineer. His professional destiny seemed assured but there was a restless and deep-seated need for adventure. After completing his cadetship he hitchhiked to Brisbane and worked a year at the Queensland Electricity Commission before obtaining a further year's cadetship in 1965 with ASEA in Sweden. More adventuring at the end of the year he and some mates drove an old van from London to Israel to work for several months on a kibbutz. Back in London, broke and jobless, he applied for a technical writing job on contract to Phillips in Eindhoven, Holland, and spent the next three years there writing technical books and notes. He met and married Marianne, and the twins Naomi and Alexandra were born. It's the catchcry of therapists treating overstressed, overstimulated people the world over: "live in the moment". But what if you had no other choice but to live in the now? After a serious car accident, Japanese didgeridoo player Goma turned to painting as a means of therapy. Credit:Simon O'Dwyer That's the situation Goma, the artist born Hiroki Morimoto, found himself in six years ago when a car crash left him with brain damage and anterograde amnesia, making it difficult for him to form new memories after the accident or recall much of the past. "It's very complicated talking about memory because I can't recognise by myself if the memories are there or if they disappear," says Goma, who was born in Osaka and is now based in Tokyo. Some call them romances. I prefer overdressed weepy vehicles for lazy plots and easy sentiment. Even worse, most of have made a lot of money, proving that you can fool some of the people all of the time. The casting is classier than the actual films (Ryan Gosling in The Notebook, for example, or Paul Newman and Robin Wright in Message in a Bottle). Nicholas Sparks. A name that makes publishers and film critics go weak at the knees, but for different reasons. His books sell millions; ten of them have already been filmed (The Notebook, Nights in Rodanthe, Dear John). The 11th is like the others: maudlin, manipulative and nauseating in its folksy wholesomeness. Mind you, the actors have to be strong for Sparks characters. They or someone they love will die in every film. Various forms of cancer are popular, as are road accidents, drownings, major storms that hit the coast of North Carolina where most of the books are set, and Alzheimer's disease. The Choice has most of these but it adds cute dogs and puppies and some lovely shots of the birdlife along the beautiful stretch of coast near Wilmington so there's that. Palmer plays the vivacious and feisty American medical student Gabby Holland. The spectacularly gorgeous Australian actress Teresa Palmer plays Gabby Holland, vivacious and feisty American medical student who rents a beautiful house on one of the inlets near the beach, right on the water. She's cramming for exams while working at the local hospital alongside her sweetheart, Dr Ryan McCarthy (Tom Welling). We know something is wrong from the kick-off, as the prologue has another guy walking into the hospital carrying a bunch of flowers. His voice-over is about a really hard decision he has to make. It's only scene one and he is thinking about turning off someone's life support? Seven years earlier, handsome southern charmer Travis Parker (Benjamin Walker) notices his pretty new neighbour. He lives in a classic white clapboard house of the sort required for a Sparks movie. They meet when she storms over to object to his loud music. She's just realised her dog is pregnant and his big old dog is always rambling around the neighbourhood unsupervised. Gabby tells him off, amazed at his smugness, but we can tell ... The first half is like an infomercial for American courting in a time of prosperity. Travis may be a small-town vet but he has a large fishing boat and a cool motorbike. Naturally he drives an old beaten up pick-up truck, because that indicates soulfulness. Gabby can see he's a loner and ladies' man but she can't look away, even though she's supposed to marry the other guy. As Dylan said, you don't need a weatherman to see which way the wind is blowing. Play School plans to feature a child with two fathers in a popular segment which profiles different types of blended families. Executive producer of the beloved preschool show, Jan Stradling, confirmed the program would feature an adopted family, an extended family, a blended family, an Indigenous nuclear family and a family with two dads in its Through the Windows segment to be screened later this year. Brenna Harding with mums Vicki Harding, and Jackie Braw. Credit:Brendan Esposito Play School producers had over the past few days carried out "low-key research", she said, reaching out to community groups, pre-schools and primary schools for family groups to take part. MIDSUMMA FESTIVAL THE SEAGULL Anton Chekhov, Black Apple Theatre Northcote Town Hall Until February 7 Cheyney Caddy's version of The Seagull begins with video clips of young Russian queers being beaten and humiliated by police and homophobic vigilantes; what follows casts Rebecca Riggs in the central role of Konstantin, the thwarted young writer who resents his, or in this case her, famous actress mother Arkadina and her lover, the successful older writer Trigorin. The cast of Black Apple Theatre's The Seagull. This gives a lesbian/bisexual colouring to the central love intrigue Medvedenko loves Masha who loves Kostya who loves the young actress Nina who loves Trigorin. Adding to the frustrations of Chekhov's originals is the idea that this is a society where same-sex love cannot thrive: even if The Seagull's milieu is bohemian, we are to remember the brutal opening images. Masha will end up with Medvedenko because it's easier to conform, and Kostya's death is no longer only a failed artist's suicide, but a gay suicide. With its alienation effects of modern costuming and mannerism, animations (Christie Widiarto) and musicians on stage, it's a stimulating, subversive production. It's not camped up, exactly, but it tends towards the broad, and does suggest contemporary Australia as much as Putin's Russia. The federal government's flagship childcare reforms are so difficult to understand, some parents may give up and pull their children out of care, a Senate inquiry has heard. The warning comes as a survey of parents found about 10 per cent would not meet the Coalition's new work test to qualify for childcare subsidies. The government's childcare changes will see two childcare payments replaced with one and childcare subsidies vary based on the number of hours parents work. Credit:Peter Braig The Senate's education committee is currently reviewing the Coalition's childcare reforms, which were introduced to the lower house late last year but have not been put to a vote. The so-called "jobs for families package", will replace two childcare payments with one and see childcare subsidies vary, based on how much parents earn and how many hours they work. The movement is being led by the Anglican Dean of Brisbane, Dr Peter Catt, who has declared his St John's Anglican Cathedral a place of sanctuary. Ten Anglican churches and cathedrals have invoked the ancient Christian tradition to offer protection to the 267 people - including 37 babies - facing imminent transfer to Nauru after the High Court on Wednesday upheld the legality of the government's offshore processing regime. Australian church officials offering sanctuary to asylum seekers have no legal basis for their actions and could face criminal sanctions. Legal experts said the image of fugitives seeking sanctuary in churches and abbeys has been popularised in literature and film but it is "more myth than legal reality" in modern times. The Anglican Dean of Brisbane, Dr Peter Catt, at St John's Anglican Cathedral. Credit:Glenn Hunt But University of Sydney professor Mary Crock, an expert on refugee law, said that, at a political and symbolic level, it was a "really powerful gesture" and she hoped the churches would follow through with their offer. "The law can't help any more. We're down to getting out on the streets and using Twitter and modern media. We have to stand up," Professor Crock said. "This gesture really highlights the gulf that has opened between the law in Australia and morality. We're just a country that is a human rights wasteland. Sadly, it is pointless to go to the High Court." Another of Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's investments is under scrutiny, with revelations he has a financial stake in the global parent company of the scandal-plagued 7-Eleven empire. Fairfax Media can reveal Mr Turnbull has shares in two international investment funds that invest in Japanese conglomerate Seven & I Holdings. Seven & I's major subsidiary is Seven-Eleven Japan, which is the parent company of 7-Eleven in the United States. The US company in turn licences the billionaire Withers and Barlow family, who own Australia's scandal-plagued stores. As a Senate committee prepares to probe the wages exploitation scandal on Friday, Labor has claimed the investment raises concerns Mr Turnbull must address. "He has not uttered a single word of support for these workers and people have been legitimately asking why?" said Lisa Chesters, the chair of Labor's Fair Work Caucus Committee. An international hacking gang who claim to be behind some of the hoax bomb threats at Australian schools claim they are about to attack again. On every school day since Friday, dozens of schools across the country have been evacuated after receiving similar computerised phone messages warning of a device on school grounds. A group calling themselves Evacuation Squad have claimed responsibility for some of the attacks, and say they are just about to launch more. However, they also claim some attacks in Australia have been the work of copycats. Dressed as any Australian three-year-old might be, Alan Kurdi's lifeless body lay face down on a Turkish beach, saltwater lapping around his dark head. The image of the Syrian refugee, taken in the resort town of Bodrum on September 2 last year, was a raw and unscripted message of the grim realities of Syrian bloodshed: innocent children are losing their lives as they try to escape the horrors of war. A paramilitary police officer carries the lifeless body of Alan Kurdi. The infant's death sparked an outpouring of goodwill in Australia and beyond. Credit:AP But it was also the single trigger that set a chain of global change in sequence. In Australia, that meant a major shift in how we donate to those affected by war. "Children have been dying in Syria for the last five years, we're now into the sixth year," World Vision Australia chief executive officer Tim Costello told Fairfax Media. Jamie Gao wanted to be a gangster and climb the hierarchy, his long-time friend has told the murder trial of his alleged killers. On Thursday, Wayne Cai told the NSW Supreme Court that Mr Gao, 20, had decided both studying and a "nine-to-five" office job were not for him. Victim: Jamie Gao. Credit:Facebook Mr Cai said Mr Gao told him he "wanted to do what BJ and Lok were doing". The central Queensland town Alpha, known for its stunning town murals, is about to receive 42 parts of a new community hospital, to be delivered on the back of trucks. From Monday, 37 separate truckloads will make the 10-hour journey from a factory in Toowoomba, where the 42 modules were built, to Alpha, a small town about four hours west of Rockhampton. One of the murals created by Alpha locals to brighten the town after the 1990 floods. Credit:Gaye Schneider/Facebook Once delivered, the modules will be installed on-site, fitted out and commissioned, expected to be completed by June. The new Alpha community hospital and associated staff accommodation will service about 400 residents and will employ locals, including concrete supplier Brown Dog concreting, which will provide the equivalent of more than 120 trucks of concrete to the project. Communication. It's the lesson Annastacia Palaszczuk, who came to power by promising to consult and communicate, said she learnt after one of her MPs threatened to quit. Speaking to the American Chamber of Commerce (Queensland) on Thursday, Ms Palaszczuk said the rough start to the year, which has since seen the LNP take over as preferred party in the polls, had a silver lining. Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk: sometimes her punch lines land, sometimes they miss. Credit:Bradley Kanaris "It's about making sure that everyone realises that being part of a team that's delivering is much more important than going back to the past. "The polls will go up and down, everyone knows that, but the people who are going to judge at the end of the day are the Queensland people on election day. A signage company has been fined $250,000 for its role in the Swanston Street wall collapse that killed three pedestrians in Melbourne. Aussie Signs, contracted by building giant Grocon to attach an advertising hoarding to the wall, had pleaded guilty in the County Court to a charge of failing to ensure people were not exposed to risk. Firemen and workers dig through the debris after the wall collapse in March 2013. Credit:Ken Irwin The company had subcontracted the work to another firm, but had provided the materials and oversaw construction and installation of the hoarding 18 months before the triple fatality in 2013. Teenage siblings Alexander and Bridget Jones, of Melbourne, and Frenchwoman Marie-Faith Fiawoo, 33, were killed when a 15-metre section of the freestanding wall and attached advertising hoarding were pulled down in strong winds. Melbourne's coffee queues are the new frontline in etiquette school, with some cafes banning customers from ordering their caffeine hit while using their mobile phone. But it's not cafes in the hipster belt banning the technological appendage. Cafe 655 in the industrial chic part of West Melbourne has taken a stand, putting up a sign in January. Craig Pearce and Jessie Familetti placed a sign on the counter to ban mobile phones. Credit:Simon Schluter The red sign that says "Please do not use mobile phones in this area" and features a phone crossed out costs $7.25 at Bunnings and is cheaper than shipping out customers to a finishing school in Switzerland Husband-and-wife cafe owners Craig Pearce and Jessie Familetti grew tired of customers gesticulating "coffee, coffee" while yapping on their phone, holding up the queue and spreading documents on the counter like it was their own desk. According to the British tabloid the Sun , the 85-year-old is set to be questioned by police about fresh sex allegations dating back 30 years ago. In June 2014, the "boy from Bassendean" was convicted of 12 charges of indecent assault against young girls, one as young as seven or eight, and sentenced to six years behind bars . Serial paedophile Rolf Harris is set to face new sexual allegations from five women. "The new complainants are not believed to have been underage when they allege the assaults took place," the Sun claims. A source told the Sun "this is a setback in Rolf's bid for freedom." "He was recently telling close associates and family how he felt he could be out this year or next. "These five new complainants have come forward since he was sentenced and although he feels he can prove them to be false it means he's not focused on putting together an appeal on his existing sentence. "The fresh allegations are all related to historic offences. All five women came forward after he was sentenced." Catonsville, Maryland: US President Barack Obama has made his first visit to a US mosque in an effort to allay the fears of Americans accustomed to pop culture portrayals of Muslims as terrorists, and to reassure Muslim American youth about their place in the nation. Mr Obama, declaring that attacks on Islam were an attack on all religions, decried the "inexcusable political rhetoric" against Muslims from Donald Trump and other Republican presidential candidates. "We have to understand that an attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths," he said at the mosque on the outskirts of Baltimore. He said the mosque had received threats twice in the past year. Washington: Syria's army and its Russian and Iranian allies are closing in on rebel strongholds in the country's north in an advance that has already derailed peace talks and may also unleash a new wave of refugees into Europe. The military forces of President Bashar al-Assad, supported by Russian air power and Iran-backed Hezbollah militants, are only about three kilometres away from Aleppo, once the country's most populous city, Rami Abdulrahman, head of the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said by phone. Their breakthrough threatens to cut off the rebel forces there from supply lines to Turkey. The United Nations on Wednesday suspended its long-awaited peace conference in Geneva just days after it began, as opposition groups called for international pressure to halt the government advance. For leaders gathered at a separate meeting in London to discuss aid to Syria, the intensification of fighting is ominous because it could add to the mass exodus of refugees that is already destabilising several European countries. Though police last year ended their 24/7 visible guard outside the embassy, they have covert surveillance in case he tries to leave. Assange says he fears the Sweden extradition would be followed by extradition to the US to face espionage charges over his work with WikiLeaks. The Geneva-based UN group was due to publish the findings of its investigation on Friday evening, Australian time. It made its decision several weeks ago and informed the countries involved in the case, including Britain and Sweden. On Thursday the BBC reported the decision was in Assange's favour. Fairfax Media, publisher of this website, also understands this is the case. Sweden's foreign ministry confirmed it to the New York Times. A spokeswoman added "we note that the Working Group's view differs from that of the Swedish authorities", and the office of the country's director of public prosecutions said their stance would not change as a result of the decision. Earlier on Thursday Assange tweeted that "should the UN announce that I have lost my case I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest". However, if the decision was in his favour "I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me", he said. On Wednesday Assange's lawyer Melinda Taylor told Fairfax Media that Assange's physical departure from the embassy would depend on the British government promising him safe passage to Ecuador. "[There remains] the risk of potential extradition to the United States, where he is likely to be subjected to persecution or cruel and inhumane treatment due to his whistleblowing activities," she said. Assange's lawyers had argued that their client's apparent freedom to walk out of the embassy at any time was "completely illusory" because of the prospect of his immediate arrest. In their legal submission to the Working Group they said Assange had been deprived of "fundamental liberties", because Britain had denied him the benefit of Ecuador's grant of asylum in 2012. "He has no access to fresh air or sunlight, his communications are restricted and often interfered with, he does not have access to adequate medical facilities, he is subjected to a continuous and pervasive form of round-the-clock surveillance, and he resides in a constant state of legal and procedural insecurity," the submission said. "If he continues to remain in the Ecuadorian Embassy, he risks irreparably damaging his health. If, however, he leaves at any juncture, he must against his consent renounce his fundamental right to asylum, and expose himself to the prospect of unfair proceedings and physical and mental mistreatment in the United States of America. "The only way for Mr Assange to enjoy his right to asylum is to be in detention. This is not a legally acceptable choice." A spokeswoman from Britain's Foreign Office said they would "not pre-empt any opinions from the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention". "We have been consistently clear that Mr Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the UK but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorean embassy," she said. "An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European Arrest Warrant in place, so the UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Mr Assange to Sweden." The five members of the UN group who made the decision include one Australian legal expert Leigh Toomey. The group has made previous rulings on illegal detention which were followed by their release, such as Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar. However, in 2014 it called for the release of former Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi, who is still in jail. The 61st Annual Drama Desk Awards, presented by TheaterMania, will be presented on Sunday, June 5. The ceremony will take place at 8pm at Town Hall. Joey Parnes Productions will produce and manage the show, which will be written by Bill Rosenfield and directed by Transport Group's Jack Cummings III. Nominations for this year's Drama Desks will be announced at 10am on Thursday, April 28, at Feinstein's/54 Below, and will be streamed live on TheaterMania.com. This year's nominating committee is made up of Drama Desk chair David Barbour, Peter Filichia, David Finkle, Sandy MacDonald, Andy Propst, Diane Snyder, Douglas Strassler, and Drama Desk president Charles Wright. "For almost 61 years, the Drama Desk has been honoring professional achievement at all levels of New York theater," said Wright. "Every spring, the Drama Desk Awards ceremony offers an occasion to celebrate outstanding work in what is unquestionably the most vibrant theater community in our country and perhaps the world." TheaterMania is presenting the awards ceremony for the fifth consecutive year. TheaterMania CEO Gretchen Shugart serves as managing executive producer along with executive producers Robert R. Blume and David S. Stone, in association with Renee McCurry. "TheaterMania is pleased to again present the prestigious Drama Desk Awards at Town Hall," Shugart said. "Audience members and webcast viewers around the globe are in for a treat as the awards show celebrates the diversity, creativity, and talent that New York City theater offers." The Drama Desk Awards are the only major New York City theater honors for which productions on Broadway, off-Broadway, and off-off-Broadway compete in the same categories. Theater people recall the moment vividly: Mark Rylance wins the 2008 Best Actor Tony for his performance in Boeing-Boeing, makes his way to the stage, looks out at the audience, bewildered, and launches into a hilariously unexpected speech in which he describes what makes up the proper attire for particular occasions. Three years later, Rylance won the 2011 Best Actor Tony for his performance in Jerusalem; this time, he launches into another unusual monologue, about how to properly walk through a wall. Those speeches were actually prose poems, written by a largely unfamiliar author named Louis Jenkins. Rylance discovered Jenkins' work in a collection called The Rag and Bone Shop of the Heart. "Brad Whitford and I used to read them and laugh about them," says Rylance. At the same time, he started to think of how these very particular, very Midwestern poems, could be shaped into a play. That's how Nice Fish, a work about two Minnesota ice fishermen searching for answers to life's big questions, was born. Coauthored with Jenkins and directed by Rylance's wife, Claire Van Kampen, the work premiered in 2013 at the Guthrie Theater, and is about to finish up a run at American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The show is now on its way to St. Ann's Warehouse, where it begins performances February 14. It's a busy time for Rylance. While developing the work for A.R.T., he was nominated for an Oscar for his performance as Soviet intelligence officer Rudolf Abel in Steven Spielberg's film Bridge of Spies. Also in the pipeline is the forthcoming release of Spielberg's screen adaptation of Roald Dahl's beloved story The BFG (in which Rylance plays the title role), as well as a potential New York transfer of his most recent West End production, Farinelli and the King. But all that is par for the course. Mark Rylance as Ron in the American Repertory Theater production of Nice Fish, a play he wrote with Louis Jenkins. ( Evgenia Eliseeva) How did you first see a play in Louis Jenkins' poems? I didn't see a play in them at first. I saw them as having something that was humorous and surprising. They started in very mundane details of some situation, usually a Midwestern situation, and then, he would spin on a word or an image, and the poem would transcend into something else, something surreal. I guess they had a liberating quality in them, a very imaginative quality in them that wasn't disconnected from reality. That's what attracted me to them. I started to use them if I was asked to speak at a birthday party. What really surprised me was that people thought I was just speaking my own thoughts. People didn't realize they were written down. I think even when I used them at the Tony Awards, some people thought it was just me speaking my own thoughts. And so I realized they had a soliloquy-type quality that they could fit in a play. Jenkins himself is in your cast. What is it like to hear him speak his own words? It's like having the Creator enter the play. He's like God; he created all our thoughts. He plays a character called Wayne, kind of an Old Man Winter character. It's a real help to hear the author speak what he's written, the way he intones it and the rhythm he gives it. It's [also] always quite nice to work with someone who's not a highly trained professional actor. When you delivered his poems as two of your Tony speeches, were they cognizant choices, or did you pick them out of your repertoire on the spot? No, I chose those two. Those two were very particular to the occasion and had meaning to me. It took some nerve, I'll tell you. When I got up [I] saw how many people were out there and how serious they all looked. [laughs] I knew that it would be unexpected and therefore the audience wouldn't be guarded. So their minds should be quite open to hearing something strange. It was an interesting theatrical experiment, I suppose. Mark Rylance as Rudolf Abel and Tom Hanks as James B. Donovan in the 2015 Steven Spielberg film Bridge of Spies. You're going through Hollywood's award season now for your performance in Bridge of Spies. How is it compared with Tonys season? It takes a lot more work. There are a lot more tickets to sell and many, many more writers and journalists all over the world, with the Spielberg film, who want to have a word with you. Our interview would be concluded by now, because [the journalist] would have someone else waiting on the line. People in filmI don't think theater people are quite the same. People in film forget that there's anything else going on in the world, because they have to focus so intensely on it. Whereas the theater is always pretty close to a street. Somewhere nearby there's a fire exit into the street. Your next major film is a live-action, 3-D adaptation of Roald Dahl's great young adult book The BFG. Isn't it a wonderful book? It's such a lovely book. And dear Melissa Mathison, who has passed away since, did a marvelous, very faithful job on the book. The trip to Dream Country, and going through the palace, and the whole relationship between the BFG and Sophie is, from what I've experienced, true to the book. Do you have any updates you can share about a potential New York engagement of Farinelli and the King, now that you've completed two acclaimed runs of the play in London? Yes. I believe [producer] Sonia Friedman is very keen to do that. We're talking about 2017. I don't think a theater's been decided. We're waiting that long because the wonderful Iestyn Davies, who's one of the three countertenors required to sing the part of the castrato Farinelli, is booked up that far ahead. He created the role and we want him to be part of it. As for now, there's Nice Fish at the brand-new St. Ann's. We're all thrilled to come to the new St. Ann's. I've been in it during construction because I'm a friend of [artistic director] Susan [Feldman], and a kind of patron of that theater as well as an artist who plays there. They've really worked hard to keep the marvelous spirit and dynamics of the original in this old Tobacco Warehouse. We're very proud to be going there. Decadent red loveseats ornament the dimly lit lobby of the Minetta Lane Theatre. Incense wafts overhead, simultaneously conjuring the atmosphere of a church and a brothel. Company XIV, which is this season occupying this debauched cathedral, certainly knows how to make a strong first impression. Holding us in thrall to their delightfully idiosyncratic vision is another matter. This is especially true of the rococo burlesque troupe's take on Snow White: An arresting overture gives way to long passages of confusion as the show sags under the weight of its own lofty ambitions. A fixture of the Brooklyn performance scene for years, Company XIV is best known for its annual holiday spectacular, Nutcracker Rouge. That show takes the skeleton of the Tchaikovsky ballet and decorates it with circus tricks and burlesque choreographed to pop, jazz, and baroque music all of which take precedence over the thin plot. While it creates something of a theatrical tummy ache, it is not particularly out-of-step with the source material (Tchaikovsky never cared much for story). In producing Snow White, Company XIV and its auteur, Austin McCormick (who conceived, choreographed, and directed both shows), take on a well-known story with a far more robust beginning, middle, and end. It doesn't hold up as well under the variety-hour treatment. Laura Careless plays the evil Queen in Company XIV's Snow White. ( Mark Shelby Perry) McCormick and crew seem to take the dramaturgy of Snow White very seriously in the beginning, drawing heavily from the original German fairy tale (which also works better for their Weimar cabaret aesthetic): Die Konigin (a deliciously wicked Laura Careless) is a beautiful queen waited on by four footmen silenced by bejeweled ball gags. These Koniglicher Hofstaat bear four magical mirrors through which the queen confirms that she is the fairest of them all. One day, the mirror answers that Schneewittchen (the compact and powerful Hilly Bodin) is fairer than the queen. The queen initiates a plot to destroy the young upstart, who narrowly escapes death time and again thanks to her trusty crew of dwarves. The strikingly beautiful Lea Helle narratesin German. She occasionally throws in an English word or phrase, creating the disorienting feeling of landing in a foreign land, desperately clinging to any recognizable markers. These monologues are likely to fly over the heads of those who don't speak German. No matter what language they choose to employ, however, one would prefer Company XIV to show us the story rather than tell us. Undeniably, McCormick gives us plenty of stimulating things to see and hear (although it is not obvious how all of it serves the tale): Schneewittchen does a sensual ballet. Mexican skeletons perform flamenco to Britney Spears' "Toxic" (operatically delivered in Marcy Richardson's shimmering soprano). The ensemble illustrates the song "A Corset Can Do a Lot for a Lady" with mannequins. In one particularly beautiful passage, a Renaissance dance underscores aerial tricks. Lighting designer Jeanette Oi-Suk Yew manages to illuminate this moment as if by candlelight, giving us the feeling of seeing a traveling circus in the Elizabethan court. Unfortunately, the lighting is rarely this perfect. Yew keeps everything alluringly dark, making it awfully hard to see the performers' bedroom eyes. This is further complicated by the use of projections and live video (also by Yew), which are executed well, but overly utilized to no clear benefit. As a result, much of McCormick's staging is lost to the shadows. So are Zane Pihlstrom's habitually creative sets and costumes. The set emphasizes the artifice of theatricality, showcasing an exposed backstage (the actors stretch and get into makeup as we take our seats). The staging occurs in and around an added proscenium, buttressed on one side by a spiral staircase. The number of looks Pihlstrom is able to create is truly breathtaking: powdered wigs, fishnet stockings, fetish gear, and gold embroidered justaucorps come together in a seamless melange. The Prince (Courtney Giannone) rescues Snow White (Hilly Bodin) from her cellophane tomb. ( Mark Shelby Perry) One wishes that the other elements of McCormick's vision had such cohesion. His work is clearly informed by art and culture transcending time and nationality, much of it the best of the best. Yet under the director's unfocused staging, Schubert lieder vie for attention with circus tricks. We're never quite sure where to look, and key moments of the story are inevitably lost (or narrated in German). It becomes far too easy to allow one's mind to wander away from the cacophony of it all. This Snow White is not the fairest of them all, but that is not to say that Company XIV's heady brew can never work. With the right amount of directorial framing and a judicious execution of elements, the troupe can surely apply its sensory feast to more rigorous storytelling, keeping us riveted until the very end. Daytona 500 Party Sunday, February 21 to Benefit Animal Care Council AARONS AND BUDWEISER CONTINUE ANIMAL CARE COUNCIL SUPPORT Endicott NY, February 3, 2016; Two of auto racing's most recognized sponsors top the list of supporters for the 7TH ANNUAL DAYTONA 500 ACTION & AUCTION scheduled for February 21st at the Elks Lodge in Kirkwood. Aarons, America's most recognized rent-to-own company, and Budweiser, the official beer of race fans everywhere, have sponsored all seven Daytona 500 parties, which support the efforts of the Animal Care Council and their Washington Avenue shelter. Two giant screens provided by Aarons will be among the seven televisions showing the WICZ Fox 40 broadcast of The Great American Race plus action from a variety of local speedways. Budweiser is the unanimous beverage of choice, and local distributor Rocco J Testani Inc is supporting the benefit with a variety of donations. The all afternoon buffet will include a variety of pizza, meatballs, sausage, salads, desserts, and other goodies with coffee & soda included. Legal beverages will be available at the cash bar, and beer lovers can purchase a Budweiser beer wristband for $10.00 and enjoy iced cold Bud from noon until 4 PM. A huge selection of auction items and racing memorabilia will be on display, with silent and Chinese auctions taking place throughout the afternoon. Live auctions will be limited to avoid interruption of the racing action. Advance tickets are $15.00 and are available at: 07 Racing Collectibles, 3125 E Main St, Endwell; Doug's Speed Shop, 498 Court St, Binghamton; Elks Lodge, 1309 US Rt 11, Kirkwood, French's Auto Parts, 472 Court St, Binghamton; Trackside Products, 419 Airport Rd, Endicott, Kathy's Dog Grooming, 95 Bevier St, Binghamton, the Skylark Diner, 248 Vestal Parkway E, Vestal, and at the Animal Care Council shelter, 131 Washington Ave, Endicott. Tickets will also be available at the door... Adults:$18.00 Ages 5-14 $5.00 4 & under free. Because of the ongoing need for cat food at their shelter, the Animal Care Council is inviting everyone to bring an extra donation of cat food for their furry feline friends. The Kirkwood Elks Lodge is located on US Route 11 just south of Binghamton. Take I-81 to exit 1 (Kirkwood) then Route 11 North appx 1.5 miles on right. A map to the location is available at www.TheRaceReport.TV. The Animal Care Council is a registered 501(c) organization which receives no government funding and does not euthanize animals for population control. Please visit our shelter at 131 Washington Avenue, Endicott. Find us on the web at www.animalcarecouncil.org and friend us on Facebook at www.facebook/animalcarecouncil. If you have any items you would like to donate to the auction, please contact: Cyndi French - President, A.C.C. cfrench178@yahoo.com 607-343-0508 Dr Gary A.J. George, ggeorge133@gmail.com 607-723-7548 Please join us for the start of the 2016 racing season and enjoy a great day of racing, food, and fun for this worthwhile cause. Thank you for your support! Citroen Turns Up The Volume On SpaceTourer HYPHEN Concept Vehicle PARIS - February 4, 2016: Coinciding with the launch of the SpaceTourer, CITROEN is joining forces with French pop group HYPHEN HYPHEN to unveil a bright, vibrant 4x4 concept: the SpaceTourer HYPHEN. Bursting with optimism and energy, amplifying the character of the production version, the SpaceTourer HYPHEN concept will be at the top of CITROEN's playlist at the Geneva Motor Show! The CITROEN SpaceTourer HYPHEN has bright, breezy, go-anywhere looks, opening the way for unlimited travel. As its name suggests, it creates a link between families and tribes, MPVs and SUVs, cities and wide open spaces On board, anything becomes possible. Every tribe and every clan can step on board and enjoy an adventure without limits. So it was only natural for CITROEN to join forces with pop group HYPHEN HYPHEN as part of its communication. A lively young group from Nice, nominated for the 2016 French music awards, HYPHEN HYPEN is becoming a key actor on the electronic pop scene. According to Arnaud Belloni, Director of Marketing and Communication: CITROEN has always known how to innovate, to be a pioneer and to spot talent. After meeting HYPHEN HYPHEN, the idea for a partnership came about naturally. This vibrant, offbeat group has a real graphic and musical signature. This may be a communication campaign, but one that comes straight from the heart! It's also a way for us to pool our values of optimism, sharing and creativity. Boasting all the features of the standard version, the Citroen SpaceTourer Hyphen concept vehicle offers: - a SUPERCHARGED DESIGN, protective and welcoming. It turns up the volume with an adventurous, rugged, bright color scheme that celebrates freedom and functionality. - an INVIGORATING INTERIOR, welcoming and comfortable for every clan. It immerses passengers in a casual, colorful atmosphere in which everyone enjoys VIP treatment. - ENHANCED MOBILITY that beckons you to travel in ultimate comfort. It provides even greater freedom in the form of a 4x4 drivetrain developed by Automobiles Dangel. It stands ready for action, at the frontier of the land of true off-road vehicles, and confirms its ability to get to the hardest-to-reach places. For Dogs, its Trick and Treat Its almost Halloween, a great time to teach your dog a trick and give him a treat. Most trainers are fans of trick training. Its not as silly as it... Muzzle is not a bad word If you see a dog in a muzzle, you immediately think the dog is aggressive. Right? Well, this is not always true. Unfortunately, seeing a dog in a muzzle carries... Natural gas has been leaking from Southern California Gas Companys Aliso Canyon storage facility since last October, closing schools and forcing thousands of Porter Ranch residents to relocate. Now, Los Angeles County prosecutors say the company took too long to notify the proper authorities. A criminal complaint filed Tuesday by LA County District Attorney Jackie Lacey alleges that SoCalGas not only illegally discharged air contaminants but also failed to immediately report the release of this hazardous material to some agencies, in violation of health and safety laws. The complaint alleges that, between October 23rd and 26th of 2015, SoCalGas failed, upon discovery, to immediately report a release or threatened release of hazardous materialto the California Emergency Management Agency and to the unified program agency. It also charges the company with failing to notify the health hazardous materials division of the forester and fire warden. In total, the utility faces four misdemeanor chargesthe first criminal charges to emerge out of this months-long environmental crisis, which has been declared a state of emergency by California Governor Jerry Brown and drawn the attention of environmental activist Erin Brockovich. While we recognize that neither the criminal charges nor the civil lawsuits will offer the residents of Los Angeles County a complete solution, it is important that Southern California Gas Co. be held responsible for its criminal actions, DA Lacey said in a statement. A spokesperson for SoCalGas told The Daily Beast, We have just been notified of this filing and we are still reviewing it. We have been working with regulatory agencies to mitigate the odors associated with the natural gas leak and to abate the gas leak as quickly as safety allows. We will defend ourselves vigorously through the judicial process. Its not just odors that Porter Ranch residents are worried about. As the Los Angeles Times notes, residents have reported experiencing headaches, nausea, nosebleeds, and dizziness as a result of the methane leak, which was first reported to regulators over 100 days ago. The newspaper has been collecting stories of symptoms from residents who lived near the leak. I cant sleep, my throat hurts, my nose bleeds, said Maritza Mendizabal, who has lived in Porter Ranch since 1970. I cough, my nose is congested. I wake up with bad headaches. My 8-month-old daughter had a rash on her back and neck, my husband was violently vomiting, [and] I had a sore throat and mild headaches, said Laura Zolonz, who bought her first family home in Porter Ranch. The leak also contains small amounts of the carcinogen benzene; however, a report from the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA) found that [n]early all measured benzene concentrations in the Porter Ranch community during the leak are similar to background levels generally found in the Los Angeles area. A preliminary assessment from the South Coast Air Quality Management District (AQMD) came to a similar conclusion in mid-January. But cancer scare aside, the air pollution regulatory agency still had plenty of allegations left to level at SoCalGas in its own late January civil suit, which claimed that the leak is an ongoing public nuisance and that it has contributed to global warming by emitting billions of cubic feet of methane into the atmosphere. If the AQMD suit is successful, SoCalGas could be fined up to $250,000 per day of the leak. That dollar amount would come on top of any potential penalties resulting from the many other civil lawsuits that have been filed against the utility, including one announced on Tuesday by California Attorney General Kamala Harris. The criminal charges now facing SoCalGas carry a penalty of up to $1,000 per day for air pollution violations, and $25,000 for each day that it failed to notify the California Office of Emergency Services, the DAs office said. SoCalGas first discovered the leak on October 23rd but it took over two months to locate the precise site in an 8,700-foot well. In its official timeline, the utility claims that it alerted officials of various LA County and state agencies, including AQMD, the day they discovered the leak. But prosecutors believe SoCalGas took until October 26th, three days later, to inform other agencies that also should have been immediately notified. The relevant portion of Californias Health and Safety Code states that any release or threatened release of a hazardous material should be immediately report[ed] to the unified program agency. LA Countys laws on hazardous materials mandating a similar degree of urgency, requiring the forester and fire wardens hazardous materials division to be notified of a release [a]s soon as it is discovered. The gas leak is still ongoing but the well from which it emanates could be sealed by late February. But the District Attorney wants to make sure this doesnt happen again. Said DA Lacey, I believe we can best serve our community using the sanctions available through a criminal conviction to prevent similar public health threats in the future. The father of a 20-year-old who was hit and killed by a distracted driver days before he was supposed to go home for Christmas vacation is working to get a simple message out put the phones down. Austin Ardman, a student at Blinn College, died after being hit by a driver who told police she had looked down to check her phone just before the accident. Police said Ardman was jogging on the shoulder of Harvey Road near Veterans Park around 10 p.m. in early December when he was hit. Neal Ardman, Austins 56-year-old father, said texting and driving has become an epidemic, and in a town with tens of thousands of student residents, something needs to be done. You tell me what important message some college student has that was worth my sons life, Ardman said. Theres not one thing in [the drivers] life, my life or your life thats pressing enough to kill someone. Ardman said its time for legislation that restricts texting and driving. Texas law restricts drivers with learners permits and drivers under 18 years old from using cellphones while behind the wheel. Many Texas cities, including Bryan and College Station, restrict drivers from using cellphones in school zones. There is no statewide law that prohibits texting while driving. Some cities have ordinances prohibiting it, but none in Brazos County or the surrounding counties, according to the Texas Department of Transportation. The city of Austin became the first in Texas in 2009 to enact a ban on texting while driving. How many more kids do we have to kill? Ardman said. We have open container laws in this country. ... We should have the same laws for a cellphone. Some vehicles with built-in navigation systems or other wireless capabilities restrict their use while the vehicle is in motion. Ardman said there should be similar features on a cellphone. The technology exists, and he said phone and vehicle manufacturers should be required to make texting while driving as impossible as they can practically make it. Austin Ardman had a zest and love for life, his father said. He was looking forward to graduating school, and one day getting married and starting his own family. He had sent a text message to his roommates before the accident telling them how great the weather was and that they should have come with him. He was happy, Ardman said. He loved everything about his life. No charges have been filed yet against the driver, a 21-year-old Texas A&M student. The Brazos County District Attorneys Office said the investigation is ongoing and wouldnt comment on specifics. Ardman said its time for more people to start raising awareness of the dangers of texting while driving. Every day there are accidents and fatalities that are directly related to the use of cellphones, Ardman said. If something doesnt change soon, he said, more bright, young children are going to be hurt. I text all the time, its a wonderful way to communicate just not while youre driving, he said. Put down these phones. Nov. 2, 1967 - Jan. 31, 2016 James "Craig" Hatley, born November 2, 1967, in Arlington, Texas, died after a six month battle against thyroid cancer. A Memorial Service is set for 6 p.m. Saturday, February 6, at Park Springs Bible Church, 5515 Park Springs Blvd., Arlington, TX 76017. Craig graduated from Martin High School and had been in the Construction Management program at Texas A & M. He was a skilled carpenter and enjoyed building and remodeling homes and cabinet work. Craig attended Park Springs Bible Church. Survivors include his wife Sarah; sons, Dillan (14) and Matthew (11); and daughter, Audrey (22 months); parents, James and Helen Hatley; grandmother, Flo Hatley; brother, Barry, Jason and wife Ginger and their daughter, Claire; numerous aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews and many friends. December 14, 1939 - January 30, 2016 Larry Fain Smith, P.E. 78, of Plano died on January 30, 2016. He was born December 14, 1939, in Texarkana, Texas. After high school in Austin, he graduated in 1961 from Texas A&M with a B.S. in Civil Engineering. As a Professional Engineer, he was associated with several businesses in Plano over the last 40 years. He was an unparalleled Pioneer of Slab on Grade Post-Tension concrete construction, a patented inventor, teacher, and leader who developed unique products and engineering technologies in concrete applications in residential and apartment foundation construction. A founding member of the Post-Tension Institute Committee, Larry co-authored the first Residential Post-Tension Slab on Grade Manual and gave numerous Slab on Grade and Post-Tensioned Slab seminars all over the World. He was an Eagle Scout, loyal Aggie Cadet, First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army, and a proud American. Larry loved the sunset on the ocean from the back of his boat. He was preceded in death by his wife of 47 years, Carolyn Rae Fleming; parents, S.T. Smith and Gertrude Alberta Fain; and aunt, Evelyn Fain. His loving daughter, Adria Rae Smith, and brother-in-law, James Howard Fleming, survive him. A Memorial service will be held on Saturday, February 6, at 10:00 A.M. at Turrentine-Jackson-Morrow Funeral Home in Allen, TX. http://www.turrentinejacksonmorrow.com/component/tjmremembrancenter/larry-smith-p-e-ret-51596 The family wishes to thank the caregivers at Avalon Memory Care and Silverado Plano Memory Care Unit for their compassionate care. In lieu of flowers, a memorial scholarship has been established in Larry's name at Texas A&M University. Donations may be sent to The Association of Former Students at 505 George Bush Dr. College Station, TX 77840. Please have family and friends write "Larry Fain Smith '61" in the memo line or in a letter attached to the donation. Gifts can also be made online using the following website: https://www.aggienetwork.com/give/memorialgiving/. To convey condolences or to sign an online registry, please visit www.tjmfuneral.com. Trade Ministers from twelve Pacific countries will sign the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) in New Zealand today, signaling the end of a protracted seven-year negotiation process. But ratification by national parliaments remains far from guaranteed as opposition to the undemocratic agreement continues to build. The countries signing on to TPP account for 40% of global GDP. The deal is not just about import tariffs, but a range of issues that will affect access to health, the energy we use and our governments' abilities to regulate in the public interest. For example the New Zealand Prime Minister John Key admitted that the TPP would increase the price of medicine. For many countries this means a choice between life and death for their citizens. The agreement was negotiated in complete secrecy. Trade ministers will continue this undemocratic tradition by signing the deal in an expensive hotel far from public view, even before most parliaments have had a chance to properly discuss it. Yet massive street protests will provide leaders with a noisy reminder that the TPP faces a strong public backlash and difficult ratification battles in national parliaments. According to recent Ipsos polling fewer than one in five Americans believe Congress should pass the deal. Resistance is growing across the Pacific Things have not gone smoothly for what President Obama calls "the biggest trade deal of the 21st century" since it was agreed in October last year. The US could prove to be where TPP faces its biggest challenge. Without American support the whole thing could collapse. 2016 is a presidential election year, making a controversial trade deal very difficult to pass, especially given that leading presidential candidates, Clinton, Trump and Sanders all oppose it. Furthermore, in Congress there is resolute opposition to the TPP from the vast majority of Democrats and a growing number of Republicans. The situation is such that Inside Trade notes "the TPP itself may be a lame duck". The people of Canada have elected a new Liberal government, who has demanded a comprehensive analysis of the impacts of the TPP. Who can blame them? One new study by Tuff University estimates the country will lose 58,000 jobs because of the deal - and that's just Canada's share of the 771,000 jobs TPP will kill in the 10 years after it comes into force. There is also growing public opposition in other TPP countries. Recently in Malaysia over 15,000 people took to the streets to denounce the deal, New Zealand's major opposition party has called for the deal to be renegotiated and a legal suit has been launched by Japanese citizens. Almost 5 million Mexican farmers have been displaced with inflation-adjusted wages in Mexico barely above the level of 1980; US food prices have risen 67% since NAFTA took effect and two-thirds of displaced manufacturing workers in the US have been forced to take work with reduced wages; and Canadians suffered drastic cuts in government benefits while their environmental laws were reversed in the wake of corporate challenges. Rosy reports rest on ideology, not real world The Peterson Institute is at it again, first claiming the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) will result in gains of US$1.9 trillion, and in a new report once again making extravagant claims even if scaled back. In its latest report, the Institute claims there will be no net job losses, while annual income in the US would increase by $131 billion. These sorts of predictions are routine, and not the product of any single corporate organization. How is it that, all actual experience to the contrary, these sorts of calculations are presented with a straight face? The political economist Martin Hart-Landsberg, in his book Capitalist Globalization: Consequences, Resistance, and Alternatives, writes that economic models that presume wondrous benefits from 'free trade' agreements assume, inter alia: There are only two inputs, capital and labor, which are able to move instantaneously but never cross national borders. Total aggregate expenditures in each economy will be sufficient, and automatically adjust, to ensure full use of all resources. Flexible exchange rates will prevent lowered tariffs from causing changes in trade balances. Thanks to these starting points, Professor Hart-Landsberg writes, "this kind of modeling assumes a world in which liberalization cannot, by assumption, cause or worsen unemployment, capital flight or trade imbalances. Thanks to these assumptions, if a country drops its trade restrictions, market forces will quickly and effortlessly lead capital and labor to shift into new, more productive uses. "And since trade always remains in balance, this restructuring will generate a dollar's worth of new exports for every dollar of new imports. Given these assumptions, it is no wonder that mainstream economic studies always produce results supporting ratification of free trade agreements." Given the strong biases in favor of 'free trade' agreements, all the more skeptical of the TPP we may be when we see the tiny gains forecast by the World Bank. Vietnam is expected to see the biggest boost among the 12 TPP countries, according to the World Bank forecast - a 10% gain in gross domestic product cumulative through 2030. In other words, less than one percent per year. As a TechDirt summation of this report noted: "So according to the World Bank's figures, the US will gain an extra 0.04% GDP per year on average, as a result of TPP; Australia an extra 0.07% annually, and Canada a boost of 0.12% per year." If this is the best that promoters of corporate hegemony can come up with for the TPP, its likely effect will surely be dismal. The vanishing 'gains' Jane Kelsey, a New Zealand law professor who has long sounded the alarm on the TPP, notes that even the slightly larger gain forecast for that country would actually constitute a statistical blip that may or may not actually exist. She writes: "[The] National [government]'s glitzy new 'TPP fact' page is bad wine repackaged in new bottles. Here's a few facts they don't tell you. The projected economic gains of 0.9% of GDP by 2030 are within their own margin of error, even before costs are factored in and disregarding unrealistic modelling." A more balanced investigation conducted by Tufts University researchers Jeronim Capaldo and Alex Izurieta led to the conclusion that the TPP, if enacted, would result in the loss of three-quarters of a million jobs through 2025, including 448,000 jobs to be lost in the US alone. Canada, Mexico, Japan and Australia would each suffer jobs losses in the tens of thousands. The Tufts report concludes: "The TPP would lead to higher inequality, with a lower labor share of national income. We expect competitive pressures on labor incomes, combined with employment losses, to push labor shares of national income further down, redistributing income from labor to capital in all countries. In the USA, this would exacerbate a multi-decade trend." Working people in the 11 other TPP countries would get to experience the stagnant wages and declining living standards that United Statesians have been treated to during the past three decades. More than 330,000 manufacturing jobs are expected to be lost in the US alone if TPP is passed, according to a separate calculation by the United Steelworkers, and Unifor estimates that 20,000 Canadian jobs in auto manufacturing alone are at risk. If no gain, there will be pain for you Underlying all this further tilting of the scales already heavily weighted toward corporate money and power is the 'investor-state dispute settlement' provision, whereby multi-national corporations can sue governments to overturn laws and regulations they don't like under the excuse that measures to protect safety, health or the environment constitute a 'taking' of their expected profits - not even actual profits. The secret tribunal that will hear corporate complaints (the same as the one used under NAFTA) must assume the corporation's claim is true under some circumstances. Canada, because it has higher standards than do the US or Mexico, is most frequently sued under NAFTA, although the Canadian pipeline company TransCanada has committed the latest outrage, suing the US government for $15 billion because the Obama administration declined to permit the Keystone XL pipeline. TransCanada is suing for $15 billion even though it has spent $2.4 billion on the pipeline. Although the governments of the 12 TPP countries are 'signing' the agreement today, that is a formality: The deal must still be approved by legislatures and implementing legal changes enacted. The TPP would enter into force 60 days after all 12 signatories ratify it or, if that doesn't happen within two years, in April 2018 if at least six of the 12 countries accounting for 85% of the combined gross domestic product of the original signatories have ratified the agreement. That 85% can't be reached without the US or Japan, effectively giving those countries a veto and thus placing extra responsibility on opponents in both those countries. It also can't be reached if Canada, Australia and Mexico each fail to ratify, so opponents there can also stop it. The TPP, even more so that previous deals, has very little to do with trade and much to do with solidifying corporate control over life, arguably the most significant erosion of what is left of formal democracy yet. Regardless of where you live, the TPP can be defeated if we continue to organize. And once the TPP is sent to the trash heap, it will be time to go on the offensive to roll back existing trade pacts. Pete Dolack is an activist, writer, poet and photographer, and writes on Systemic Disorder. His forthcoming book 'It's Not Over: Lessons from the Socialist Experiment', a study of attempts to create societies on a basis other than capitalism, will be published by Zero Books in February 2016. This article was originally published on Systemic Disorder. Also on The Ecologist: 'Never mind today's signing charade: TPP is heading for the rocks' by Sam Cossar-Gilbert. A new paper published this week in Environmental Sciences Europe confirms there has been a dramatic increase in the total volume of glyphosate applied to crops across the world. Over 70% of the total volume of glyphosate sprayed world-wide over the last 40 years (1974 to 2014) has been sprayed in just the last 10 years. The paper, 'Trends in glyphosate herbicide' use in the United States and globally, by Charles M. Benbrook, reveals that globally, glyphosate use has risen almost 15-fold since so-called 'Roundup Ready' genetically modified (GM), glyphosate-tolerant crops were introduced in 1996. Peter Melchett, policy director at the Soil Association said: "This research reveals that Monsanto's glyphosate is now the most heavily used weed-killer in history, and use is sky-rocketing - nearly 75% of all glyphosate ever sprayed on crops was used in the last 10 years. This huge increase in chemical spraying is what we can expect if GM crops are ever grown in England." After the introduction of 'Roundup ready' crops, genetically modified to survive glyphosate applications, the US has seen a steady increase in the reliance on the herbicide. Whilst GM has been touted by producers as reducing the need for pesticide use, the opposite, has in fact been true. Herbicide resistant and tolerant 'superweeds' have evolved, causing farmers to spray even more in an attempt to combat the weeds, causing an ever evolving 'arms race' between weeds and pesticides. With this increasing resistance, the next generation of genetically modified crops will have to withstand being sprayed with a cocktail of stronger herbicides. However this will only cause increasing damage to the environment, ecosystems and human health. Glyphosate: a perfect storm of problems The Soil Association also revealed glyphosate is one of the three pesticides regularly found in routine testing of British bread - appearing in up to 30% of samples tested by the Defra committee on Pesticide Residues in Food (PRiF) in recent years. A recent analysis found that 85% of tested products from Warburtons - a well known bread company tested positive for the chemical. Serious doubts have been cast over the claimed 'safety' of glyphosate. In a US study, three out of ten women tested positive for Glyphosate in breast milk at levels around 1,000 times higher than allowed in drinking water. SHARE Krista Kaye Graupner By Gleaner Staff An Evansville woman accused of embezzling close to $265,000 from a Henderson law firm was sentenced to 27 months in prison Tuesday during a hearing in U.S. District Court in Owensboro. After her stint in prison, Krista Kaye Graupner, 45, the former office manager for King, Deep and Branaman, will be on three years supervised release and has been ordered to pay full restitution, which is $264,867.84, according to the U.S. attorney's office. Graupner pleaded guilty in October to three federal counts of wire fraud. Authorities said Graupner embezzled the money between June of 2012 and December of 2014. "As office manager, Graupner had access to King, Deep and Branaman's bank accounts and was authorized to write checks and initiate payments out of these accounts," a news release said. During her guilty plea, Graupner "admitted to paying her own personal bills using KDB's funds," officials said. In October 2014, Graupner began wiring money from Henderson to various individuals in South Africa who were part of the scheme, the U.S. attorney's office said. "Graupner admitted that she would write checks, either for cash or to herself, drawn upon King, Deep and Branaman accounts and then use the cash from the KDB checks to wire the money via Western Union to individuals in South Africa," according to a news release. Authorities said Graupner made approximately 200 wire transfers from October 2014 through December 2014. SHARE The following information is based on public records from local and area law enforcement agencies and/or court systems: A Henderson County grand jury on Tuesday indicted 38 people, dismissed two cases, dismissed charges in other cases, referred charges to the next session of the grand jury and remanded charges back to district court. Dismissed Those whose cases were dismissed, their ages and addresses (where available) and charges are as follows: Marcus T. Quarles, 30, Hopkinsville, first-degree sexual abuse. Kevin B. Smith, 48, address unavailable, first-degree possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of marijuana. Indicted Those who were indicted are scheduled for arraignment on Feb. 9. Their names, addresses (where available) and charges are as follows: Jeffrey D. Hodges, 25, Owensboro, theft under $10,000. Danielle M. Walker, 30, 1400 block of Woodland Drive, five counts of theft of an identity, one count of fraudulent use of a credit card under $10,000, and three counts of fraudulent use of a credit card under $500. Varek K. Morris, 18, Morganfield, two counts of theft of a controlled substance less than $10,000 and/or complicity and one count of second-degree burglary and/or complicity. Isaiah D. Johnson, 18, Waverly, second-degree burglary and/or complicity and theft of a controlled substance and/or complicity, and theft under $10,000 and/or complicity. Two counts of theft of a controlled substance under $500 were remanded to district court. Elizabeth Heath, 52, 1600 block of South Main Street, three counts of first-degree arson. Justin W. Ralph, 22, address unavailable, first-degree burglary, theft under $10,000 and second-degree criminal trespass. Ronald Simmonds, 24, address unavailable, trafficking in a controlled substance within 1,000 feet of a school and first-degree possession of a controlled substance. William T. Overton, 50, 1400 block of Wilson Drive, second-degree assault and being a first-degree persistent felony offender. Marcus T. Hall, 29, address unavailable, first-degree robbery, being a felon in possession of a handgun and being a second-degree persistent felony offender. Timothy R. Barron, 26, 100 block of Rankin, first-degree wanton endangerment, first-degree criminal mischief and theft of a firearm. Evan M. Pund, 28, Evansville, theft of less than $10,000. A charge of theft under $500, amended from theft under $10,000 was remanded back to district court. Paul A. Shoff Jr., 32, 2000 block of U.S. 41-North, fraudulent use of a credit card under $10,000, theft under $10,000 second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, receiving stolen property more than $500, but less than $10,000 and being a first-degree persistent felony offender. Heather Montgomery, 29, Peewee Valley, Kentucky, second-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, fraudulent use of a credit card under $10,000 and receiving stolen property under $500. World F. McGuire, 23, 1700 block of South Main Street, first-degree fleeing/evading police, driving under the influence, second-degree fleeing/evading police, third-degree criminal trespass, failure to signal, failure to produce insurance cards and being a second-degree persistent felony offender. Charges of reckless driving and third-degree burglary were dismissed. Jordan T. Buckman, 19, 1400 block of Arrow Way, speeding, driving under the influence, trafficking in marijuana, less than 8 ounces (enhanced), third-degree trafficking in a controlled substance (enhanced), possession of drug paraphernalia (enhanced) and possession of a defaced firearm. Gazarr M. Dudley, 25, Owensboro, speeding, possession of an open alcoholic container in a motor vehicle, first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance and/or complicity, possession of marijuana and/or complicity, possession of drug paraphernalia and/or complicity, license to be in possession and driving under the influence. Synthia L. Boone, 20, Hawesville, Ky., first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance and/or complicity, possession of drug paraphernalia and/or complicity and possession of marijuana and/or complicity. William T. Billings, 34, address unavailable, theft of a motor vehicle registration plate/decal and being a first-degree persistent felony offender. Thomas H. Throgmorton, 19, Corydon, first-degree criminal mischief and/or complicity and first-degree wanton endangerment and/or complicity. William Hill, 21, address unavailable, first-degree criminal mischief and/or complicity, complicity to first-degree wanton endangerment, and possession of destructive/booby trap device. Nelson E. Detalente III, 25, Evansville, first-degree fleeing/evading police, two counts of first-degree wanton endangerment, one count of first-degree possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, operating on a suspended/revoked license and being a second-degree persistent felony offender. Douglas K. Burke, 54, Waverly, first-degree possession of a controlled substance, possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and tampering with physical evidence. Joshua Powell, 25, 100 block of West Grant Street, fourth-degree assault (domestic violence, third offense in five years) and operating on a suspended/revoked license. Haley S. Gentry, 24, 700 block of O'Grady Street, first-degree wanton endangerment. Hannah R. Gerber, 26, Greenwood, Ind., first-degree possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. Archie D. Turner, 50, 1200 block of Handy Avenue, driving on a suspended/revoked license, failure to maintain required insurance and first-degree possession of a controlled substance. Richard Brown, 33, 600 block of Sixth Street, possession of marijuana, first-degree possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, second-degree fleeing/evading police (on foot) and third-degree criminal mischief. Jarrett L. Smith, 39, 1900 block of Brenda Drive, second-degree burglary. J.T. Higgins, 21, Sebree, first-degree robbery and/or complicity. Patrick C. Conley, 40, Sebree, first-degree robbery and/or complicity, being a felon in possession of a firearm and being a first-degree persistent felony offender. Jayme L. Driesbach, 20, Sebree, first-degree robbery and/or complicity. Christopher Williams, 26, Owensboro, second-degree burglary, theft of a controlled substance under $10,000, violation of a Kentucky EPO, fourth-degree assault and being a first-degree persistent felony offender. Charges of third-degree terroristic threatening and falsely reporting an incident were dismissed. Jamal W. Debow, 29, Louisville, no or expired registration plates, operating on a suspended license, failure of owner to maintain required insurance (second or more offense), failure to notify address change to the Department of Transportation, possession of marijuana and first-degree possession of a controlled substance. Malcolm L. Billings, 38, 900 block of Washington Street, disregarding a railroad crossing flasher lights, driving under the influence, possession of marijuana, first-degree possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, operating on a revoked/suspended license, failure to maintain required insurance, having more than one operator's license, theft of identity and being a first-degree persistent felony offender. Adam L. Overfield, 40, Hartford, Ky., first-degree sodomy and third-degree sodomy. Juan J. Gamboa, 35, address unavailable, first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance and/or complicity, third-degree possession of a controlled substance and/or complicity, possession of drug paraphernalia and/or complicity and being a first-degree persistent felony offender. Tara Wright, 35, first block of Hoover Court, first-degree trafficking in a controlled substance and/or complicity, third-degree possession of a controlled substance and/or complicity, possession of drug paraphernalia and/or complicity and being a second-degree persistent felony offender. Remanded Those whose charges were remanded back to district court are as follows: Clint Rhodes, 25, Evansville, theft under $500. Charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm, third-degree trafficking in a controlled substance, trafficking in a controlled substance within 1,000 feet of a school, possession of drug paraphernalia, first-degree possession of a controlled substance and being a fugitive from another state were dismissed. Justin M. Rider, 25, Evansville, theft under $500, amended from theft under $10,000. Michael E. Bellew, 44, Evansville, second-degree fleeing/evading police, amended from first-degree, driving on a suspended/revoked license, disregarding a stop sign and one headlight. Referred Those whose charges were referred to the next session of the grand jury are as follows: Holli A. Vignone, 34, 900 block of Pebble Creek Drive, disregarding a stop sign, failure to stop at the railroad crossings, first-degree possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and driving under the influence. EDITOR'S NOTE: Those charged with crimes are considered innocent until they are found guilty in a court of law. Every effort is made by this newspaper to report the final disposition of each case. In the event we fail to do so, a call to our newsroom, 827-2000, will prompt a background check on those cases and, if necessary, a published report on the final disposition. SHARE Steven Freeman By Gleaner Staff A Morganfield man has been charged with murder after a crash Wednesday night in Union County left a teen dead. The Kentucky State Police said Steven Freeman, 22, Morganfield, was driving a Mitsubishi car near the U.S. 60 Bypass and Kentucky 2091 around 8 p.m. when he struck 17-year-old Damon W. Collins of Morganfield, who was riding a bicycle. Police said after striking Collins, Freeman drove to a nearby parking lot, where a passenger in his vehicle flagged down authorities, according to Union County Sheriff's Deputy Kyle Dame. During the investigation, the passenger in Freeman's vehicle told authorities that they'd hit someone, Dame said. Collins, who was a senior at Union County High School, was flown from the scene to St. Mary's Medical Center in Evansville where he died of his injuries. Freeman was charged with murder, driving on a suspended license and operating a motor vehicle under the influence. He is being held without bond in the Union County Detention Center. Officials with the Union County School District said they have made counselors available to faculty and students to assist them with processing and grieving the loss. "As a district, it's a tragic loss and an emotional time for his family and our students," said Steve Carter, assistant superintendent of districtwide services. "Our crisis response team met with faculty (Thursday morning) to prepare them to handle the students" with their grief, questions and general reactions to Collins' death. "This was a shock," Carter said. "We know that the days ahead are going to be difficult, but we know that by being there for each other, we will get through this time." Witnesses begin testifying in West Burlington pool shooting trial Testimony began on Wednesday in the trial of the man accused of attempted murder after a shooting at the West Burlington Swimming Pool in June. NORWALK -- Eagle Hill Southport School (EHSS) is a proud and honored recipient of a William Randolph Hearst Foundation (Hearst) grant, announced the school's Headmaster Benjamin N. Powers. EHSS received the generous $50,000 grant from Hearst specifically for its ongoing Community Lecture Series (CLS). The grant will allow EHSS to continue to provide lectures by experts in the field of learning differences (LD), including researchers, practitioners and adults with LDs to its families and the broader community free of charge. "Our vision aligns with Hearst from an education and quality-of-life perspective. We see a world where people with language-based learning differences and ADHD are embraced for their abilities, talents, and -- most crucially -- their potential," said Powers. "Developing our lecture series is to serve a community beyond our school walls, providing positive LD role models and hear stories of achievement." The Hearst Foundations are national philanthropic resources for organizations and institutions working in the fields of Education, Health, Culture and Social Service. Its goal is to ensure that people of all backgrounds have the opportunity to build healthy, productive and inspiring lives. The charitable goals of the Foundations reflect the philanthropic interests of William Randolph Hearst. "Upon learning more about the Eagle Hill Southport School, meeting the leaders, witnessing the faculty in action, and most importantly, watching the students engage in learning and each other, you realize the importance of a school like this one," says George Irish, eastern director of The Hearst Foundations. "The grant support allows the CLS program to reach a greater number of families who would benefit from hearing compelling stories of success or learning strategies to help support their children, especially for families who cannot afford a specialized school or after-school services for their child." The Community Lecture Series features the following guest lectures and topics for the remainder of the 2015-16 academic year. All lectures will be held at 7 p.m. at the Eagle Hill Southport School, 214 Main St. Registration is required for each event at Eventbrite.com and can be found by searching "EHSS Community Lectures." All lectures are free and open to the public. Tuesday, March 1 -- Internet Safety: More than "This is What's Out There!" How to keep your kids safe on the Internet. Presented by Scott Driscoll, Founder of Internet Safety Concepts, former Police Officer, and Author. Thursday, March 10 -- On the Waterbed: The Impact of Learning Disabilities on the Family Presented by Rick Lavoie, Expert in the field of Leaning Disabilities, Educator, and Author Thursday, May 12 -- Topic to be announced. Dean Bragonier, founder and executive, Dyslexic of Noticeability -- Since its inception in 1985, EHSS is dedicated to creating an environment for students with language-based learning differences and ADHD that recognizes individual strengths, promotes independent thinking, develops self-esteem and self-advocacy, and supports a successful transition for continued academic achievement. In our coeducational elementary, middle, and summer school programs, students can safely take risks and are championed by a faculty that is student-focused and uses research and evidence-based approaches. In the last 31 years, EHSS has grown from serving 20 students to 110, aged 6 to 14. Visit www.eaglehillsouthport.org to learn more about EHSS. One Game and Parks commissioner called the reported punishment for two Broadwater men who killed 25 antelope in November terribly inadequate and almost an insult. It was a travesty, a western Nebraska hunter wrote to The World-Herald. He called for the removal of the judge involved. The reaction was to reports that Taylor Mueller, 24, and Brent Hoerler, 21, had been sentenced to 18 months probation and fined $950 each for the killing of the bucks, does and fawns in a western Nebraska field near Broadwater in November. But there was more to the story. Additional penalties were imposed after Mueller and Hoerler were found guilty of hunting without a permit, hunting in a closed season and wanton waste. They also had been charged with harassment of game and hunting with an artificial light. Beyond what was reported in an initial account, the men also will have to pay liquidated damages of $6,000 each as well as court costs of $528 each, and both will lose their ability to fish, hunt and trap for three years, the maximum amount allowed by law. The firearms used in the shooting of the animals have been confiscated and will be destroyed. Liquidated damages are the payment to the state of Nebraska for the illegally killed wildlife. They are established by state law. Even that punishment was not enough for some. But Morrill County Attorney Travis Rodak said he hadnt expected jail time to be part of the punishment. Taking away their right to own a firearm was not an option because of the type of charges, he said. The charges were not felonies. All were Class 3 and 2 misdemeanors, similar to disturbing the peace or being a minor in possession of alcohol. Hoerler spent about a month in jail after tips led to charges against the two. Mueller was able to post bond right away. Rodak said both cooperated with officials and expressed remorse for their actions. When reached by phone, Mueller said he didnt want to answer questions about what happened. When asked if hed learned from the incident, he said, Definitely. Neither person had a significant criminal record, Rodak said. I think if people want to see better penalties for these type of things they need to talk to their senator about making this a higher-level offense, he said. Tim McCoy, the deputy director for the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, said the pair could have faced liquidated damages of $29,000. The fine for one antelope was $5,000 because it had a horn that measured 14 inches or longer. The others were $1,000 apiece. I can tell you you always hope that what theyll do is charge them for the full liquidated damages, he said. In this case, that would have been a huge amount. Its still, I think, pretty significant fines. I sure hope as other people see the full extent of the impact they understand this was taken seriously. It was a shocking case, McCoy said, and rare in terms of the number of animals involved. The Nebraska Wildlife Crime Stoppers paid out a $2,000 reward for the tip that helped lead to the conviction of the two men. The number to call to report wildlife violations is 1-800-742-7627. Contact the writer: 402-444-1034, marjie.ducey@owh.com Nola parents watch Austin best younger brother Aaron in Padres win Austin Nola, with one swing of the bat off his brother Aaron, led San Diego to an 8-5 victory over Philadelphia with his family in the stands. Spies, Traitors and Saboteurs: Fear and Freedom in America, a special exhibition from the International Spy Museum, opened Feb.6 and runs through May 8 at the Missouri History Museum in Forest Park. This 6,000 square-foot exhibit provides a historic perspective on acts of terror that have taken place on American soil. Spies, Traitors and Saboteurs reveals nine major events and periods in U.S. history when Americans were threated by enemies within its borders. It depicts who the government and public responded, illustrates the corresponding evolution of U.S. counterintelligence and homeland security efforts and examines the challenge of securing the nation without compromising the civil liberties upon which it was founded. Aug. 24, 1814 - The City of Washington Captured and the While House Burned. During the War of 1812, the city of Washington was captured and the White House, the U.S. Capitol and other major buildings were torched by British troops aided with information provided by a few Americans. July 30, 1916 - Manhattan Hit by Massive Explosions in New York Harbor. German secret agents, aided by American collaborators, blew up a munitions depot in New York Harbor, showering Manhattan and the Statute of Liberty with shrapnel and debris. Acts of German sabotage on American soil like this contributed to America's entry into World War I and inspired the passage of the 1918 Espionage Act still in effect today and the growth of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. June 2, 1919 - Anarchist Bombs Target American Leaders. When the home of Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer was bomb by an anarchist and plots for more bombings were revealed, both the public and the government clamored for tighter law enforcement and more restrictive legislation for immigrants, resulting in the roundups, deportations and public outrage associated with the now infamous Palmer Raids. Aug. 8, 1925 - 30,000 Ku Klux Klan Members Parade Down Pennsylvania Avenue. The nation's oldest hate group, the Ku Klux Klan, has risen three times in the nation's history. Each time, the group changed, evolving from small vigilante circles to huge violent organizations. They began inflicting terror on former slaves after the Civil War and grew into a politically powerful organization of 4 million that expanded its targets to include immigrants, Jews and Catholics in the 1920s. In the 1960s, they began attacking African Americans and civil rights workers. Today, a diminished Klan is only one among many white supremacist groups. Dec. 7, 1941 - American Helps Japanese Pilot Terrorize Hawaiian Island After Pearl harbor. A Japanese pilot returning from the Pearl Harbor attack crash-landed on the Hawaiian Island of Nihau, and with support of a Japanese-American, took hostages and terrorized the community. The incident, little remembered today, perpetuated fears about Japanese Americans. Fears that ultimately led to the unprecedented incarceration of thousands. April, 1945 - The Kremlin Launches One of the First Cold War Attacks Against the U.S. Near the end of World War II, the Kremlin harshly condemned American Communists for softening their commitment to a worldwide communist revolution. The Communist Party of the United States snapped to action, ousting its moderate leader and re-establishing itself as a highly militant and subversive organization, fueling America's fears that American Communists would become Stalin's tool to overthrow the U.S. government. March 1, 1971 - Radical Group Explodes Bomb in the U.S. Capitol. Protests over the war in Vietnam and civil rights turned violent during the "days of rage" and extremist groups, such as the Weather Underground and Black Liberation Army, took action. April 19, 1995 - Massive Bomb Destroys Federal Building in Oklahoma City. The Oklahoma City bombing, the deadliest act of terrorism on U.S. soil in the 20th century, awakened Americans to threats posed by domestic extremists, especially the virulently anti-government right-wing groups. Beyond Sept. 11th - Terrorism Today. In the aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, initiatives by the U.S. government to root out terrorist elements in the country have irrevocably changed the lives of Americans. Spies, Traitors and Saboteurs supports these stories with historic photographs, themed environments, interactive displays, film, artifacts and video. Exhibit highlights include: A timeline that traces over 80 acts of terror that have taken place in the U.S. from 1776 to today, including the Revolutionary War plot to kidnap George Washington, the vents of Bloody Kansas prior to the Civil War, John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry, the 1960s church bombings in the South and the attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001. APL Badge and ID Card (1917) - Carried by operatives of the American Protective League who spied on their fellow Americans on behalf of the U.S. Justice Department during World War I. Anarchist Globe Bomb (circa 1886) - Presented evidence in the trial of the men tried in connection with Chicago Haymarket riot (replica). Ritual Klan Red Robe (circa 1965) - Worn by the Klan "Kladd," the elected officer who presided over the secret rituals and ceremonies of the Ku Klux Klan. Klan "business cards" - Ominous warnings to innocent American families that their every move was being watched. Weather Underground Video Presentation - Featuring an exclusive interview with ex-Weather Underground member Bernadine Dohrn, filmed for the exhibition. Fragments of Planes that hit the World Trade Center - Recovered following the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, and used as evidence by the FBI in their ensuing investigation. Under Siege - A powerful eight-minute film exploring the terrorist threat today, initiatives by the U.S. government to root out terrorists elements in the U.S., the balance between civil liberties and national security, and the impact on the daily lives of Americans. It features a range of interviews with leading thinkers including Daniel Pipes, Director of the Middle East Forum; Akbar S. Ahmed, the Ibn Khaldun Chair of Islamic Studies and Professor of International Relations at American University in Washington, D.C.,; Steven Emerson, terrorist expert and investigator and Morris Dees, co-founder and Chief Trial Counsel of the Southern Poverty Law Center. Visitor Polling Station - This unique computer interactive provides visitors the opportunity to express their own opinions on questions raised in the exhibition about how the nation has responded to the historical events presented. The questions were developed in consultation with the Gallup Organization and additional historical questions can enable visitors to see how Americans responded to similar questions posed by the Gallup Poll at that time in history. Spies, Traitors and Saboteurs: Fear and Freedom in America is a creation of the International Spy Museum. It will be on display at the Missouri History Museum through May 8. Admission is free. For more information, visit www.mohistory.org. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Tassia Sipahutar (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 Twelve companies are set to open new logistics centers (PLB) in various economic sectors that aim to ease goods procurement and reduce dwelling time at ports. Customs and excise director general Heru Pambudi said the 12 companies were expected to open PLBs as soon as late February, as most of the requirements had been met. 'The logistics centers will make it easier for businesses to procure goods. They will be able to save time and money as well because the goods will be stored domestically,' he said recently. Data from the customs and excise directorate general said that the logistics centers' operational scope ranged from automotive industry support ' such as the one to be represented by PT Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indonesia (TMMIN) in Karawang, West Java province ' to personal care and home care industry support, to be represented by PT Agility International in Cikarang, also in West Java. Oil and gas and mining industries attract the highest number of companies, with four firms. They are PT Petrosea and PT Pelabuhan Penajam Banua Taka with their centers in Balikpapan, East Kalimantan province, PT Cipta Krida Bahari in Cakung, Jakarta, and PT Dahana in Subang, West Java province. Ten other companies were in the process of applying for permits to establish the centers, the data said. Heru previously said that 25 applicants had expressed interest in PLBs, mostly multinational firms. As previously reported, the government has included the establishment of the logistics centers in its economic policy packages that, as a whole, are expected to improve the business climate and attract foreign investment. The PLBs are backed by Finance Ministerial Regulation No. 272/PMK.04/2015. The regulation stipulates that goods coming into the centers from outside Indonesia will see their import duty deferred and excise and import tax waived. 'With the PLBs, businesses can examine goods first and only pay off those expenses when they're certain of the quality and take the goods out of the logistics centers.' Kukuh Sumardono Basuki, the directorate general's customs facility director, said that dwelling time at seaports could be reduced significantly once the goods were centralized at the PLBs. Average dwelling time amounted to 5.7 days in December, according to data from the customs and excise directorate general, and the government expects the PLBs to bring the figure down to an average 4.3 days. Contacted separately, TMMIN vice president director Warih Andang Tjahjono confirmed the company's plan to establish a PLB in Karawang. He said that it hoped to begin operating the logistics center this year, adding that such a center was needed in the automotive sector. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 Jakarta Governor Basuki 'Ahok' Tjahaja Purnama has said that he will disclose more evidence in his testimony during a court hearing on Thursday to help police name more suspects in a graft case surrounding the procurement of uninterruptable power supply (UPS) units. Ahok will give testimony against Alex Usman, a suspect in the case and the former infrastructure division head at the West Jakarta Education Office. 'I want my testimony to strengthen prosecutors' indictment. I think another suspect will be named in this case,' Ahok said as quoted by kompas.com. Ahok said he would provide a chronology of events in the case, including the inclusion of the UPS procurement in the revised 2014 city budget, although it was initially not in the General Policy for City Budget Priorities and the Tentative Budget Platform (KUA-PPAS). Ahok did not name possible suspects, but he previously said that he was cheated by his former subordinates ' former Jakarta city secretary Saefullah and former education agency head Lasro Marbun ' who told him that they did not know about the UPS procurement. 'Only after [a recent] court hearing], I realized that the former education agency head and city secretary knew about the case,' Ahok said. City Council deputy speaker Abraham 'Lulung' Lunggana has called on the court to compare Ahok's testimony with that of Saefullah and Lasro.. Two Jakarta civil servants are standing trial in the case, Alex and Zaenal Soleman, the former head of the Central Jakarta Education Office. In November, the National Police also named Fahmi Zulfikar, a Hanura Party councillor and member of the council's Commission E overseeing people's welfare, and M. Firmansyah, a Democratic Party councillor during the 2009 to 2014 period, suspects in the case. The case relates to UPS procurement in the revised 2014 city budget at a price of Rp 6 billion (US$433,839) per unit for each schools with a total budget of Rp 300 billion. (call/bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Gregory Katz (The Jakarta Post) London Thu, February 4, 2016 WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says he will accept arrest by British police if a UN working group investigating his claims decides that the three years he has spent inside the Ecuadorean Embassy doesn't amount to illegal detention. Writing on WikiLeaks' Twitter account, Assange said if the UN panel finds he has lost his case against the United Kingdom and Sweden then he will turn himself in to police at noon on Friday. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," Assange added. British police said Thursday that nothing has changed regarding Assange's situation and that police will still seek to arrest him if he leaves the Ecuadorean Embassy. The UN panel based in Geneva doesn't have any binding authority to impose its findings on the British or Swedish judicial authorities, which have been involved in years of legal wrangling involving Assange. Its decision could, however, influence how aggressively Swedish prosecutors pursue Assange for questioning about allegations of sexual misconduct. Karin Rosander, a spokeswoman for Swedish prosecutors, told The Associated Press on Thursday that "we have no comment now. We are waiting for the report." Assange voluntarily took refuge in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London to avoid extradition to Sweden where two women have accused him of sexual assault. He has said his main legal concern is a possible indictment against him in the US on charges related to WikiLeaks' release of government cables. He has expressed the fear that British and Swedish authorities plan to send him to the US to face charges against him there. British police guarded the Ecuadorean Embassy for several years but removed the round-the-clock security cordon in October. Police said they would still seek to arrest Assange if he leaves the embassy because of a valid arrest warrant. Police said both overt and covert means would be used to keep track of Assange. ___ Jan M. Olsen contributed to this report from Copenhagen, Denmark. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Nashua, New Hampshire Thu, February 4, 2016 Hillary Clinton tried to turn a narrow victory in Iowa into a bit of momentum for her battered Democratic campaign, and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz sought to lock in his spot at the top of the Republican field as the presidential candidates packed up Tuesday and sped to New Hampshire. The contenders arrived in the northeastern state and quickly scattered for a blitz of campaign rallies and television interviews. Some sought to capitalize on the results of the leadoff Iowa caucuses, while others looked to put the best face on poor showings as they settled in for the Feb. 9 New Hampshire primary -- the second in the state-by-state nominating contests to decide who will be each party's candidate for president in November. Clinton celebrated her narrow win in Iowa and said she expected a tough fight in New Hampshire, noting she'll be campaigning in the "backyard" of Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, where he has been running strong for weeks. Rallying supporters in Nashua, Clinton cast herself as the At a Sanders celebrated his stronger-than-expected showing in Iowa, landing at dawn in Bow and addressing a hardy group of supporters who met him. He said the results proved he was a viable candidate. "We're in this for the long haul," he told reporters as his plane flew through the night to New Hampshire. Indeed, the once-unthinkably-small margin the former first lady, senator and secretary of state held over the self-declared democratic socialist suggested the Democratic contest is headed toward a protracted fight between the party's pragmatic and progressive wings. Clinton defeated Sanders by less than three-tenths of 1 percent, the closest in Iowa Democratic caucus history, the state party said. Sanders said his campaign was still reviewing the results and did not concede. On the Republican side, businessman Donald Trump is looking to rebound after a second-place finish in Iowa that marked a humbling blow to the boastful real estate mogul. Still, he has been leading the polls in New Hampshire. Cruz's win provided a twist worthy of the topsy-turvy race. The Texas senator proved to be beloved by evangelicals, even if maligned by many others in his party, and adept at mounting a powerful grass-roots operation. Coming in a close third, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio was catapulted to the top of the heap of establishment candidates vying to be the party's preferred alternative to Trump or Cruz. For Republicans, the pivot to New Hampshire meant the still-crowded cast of candidates has turned toward a less religious and mostly undecided electorate. New Hampshire has historically favored more moderate candidates than Iowa, and more than 40 percent of the state's voters are not registered in any political party, giving them the power to choose which party's' primary to vote in. Polls show well over half of Republican voters have yet to make up their minds. That may be good news for Cruz, who is hoping to avoid the conservatives' Iowa curse. Unlike past candidates who found love in Iowa but fizzled fast, Cruz argued Tuesday that his campaign has staying power, resources and broad appeal. Both Cruz and Rubio also had an eye on South Carolina which is the first state in the South to hold a primary. Rubio's campaign announced the endorsement of South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, the only African-American Republican in the Senate. And then there is Trump, who may be the candidate most in need of a comeback after Iowa. Despite stealing the spotlight and driving the debate for months, he appears to have been out-organized by Cruz in Iowa. On Tuesday, Trump blamed the media for dismissing his "longshot, great finish." "Because I was told I could not do well in Iowa, I spent very little there ' a fraction of Cruz & Rubio. Came in a strong second. Great honor," Trump tweeted. Rubio's advisers cast the Republican race as a three-man contest ' an attempt to box out the other contenders vying for support among mainstream Republicans. That won't be easy. Ohio Gov. John Kasich, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie on Tuesday stormed into New Hampshire with packed campaign schedules. All three are hoping the state will breathe life into their flagging campaigns. ___ Associated Press writers Ken Thomas, Kathleen Ronayne, Steve Peoples in New Hampshire, and Bill Barrow in South Carolina contributed to this report. (**) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Liza Yosephine (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 Following on Hillary Clinton's win at the Iowa caucuses on Tuesday, the former US secretary of state is currently the front-runner for the Democratic Party's nominee as presidential candidate, which could provide consistency in that country's relationship with Indonesia, an expert has said. Casimir A. Yost, an international relations expert from Georgetown University, and former foreign policy adviser in the US Senate, is optimistic about Clinton's run for office as the first female president of the US. "With Hillary Clinton I think you're going to see broad continuity with Obama," Yost told thejakartapost.com on Wednesday. Referring to US President Barack Obama's experience of living in Jakarta during his childhood, Yost said Obama had a particular love and affection for Indonesia and the Indonesian people. In the case of Clinton, there would be a cohesive extension of current American foreign policies including great interest in Indonesia and the Southeast Asia region, he further said. According to Yost, Clinton is the candidate most knowledgeable about Indonesia and Southeast Asia, mainly crediting her experience as secretary of state as the reason. As for the Republican Party candidates, Yost pointed to Cuban-Americans Ted Cruz, on the conservative side, who came out as winner in the Republican Iowa caucuses, and also Marco Rubio, more of a centrist, as the ones to watch. Yost said the election was still at a very early stage and with voting in caucuses going on until July before the general election campaign itself, changes were bound to happen along the way Economic concerns Citing the results of an NBC/WSJ poll taken in September last year where 62 percent of respondents said the nation was heading in the wrong direction, Yost said a major contributing factor to the pessimism was rooted in economic inequality in the country, where too much wealth was concentrated in 1 percent of the US population. As with the previous two elections, the economy would continue to be a major issue of concern with voters, he added. Yost said such concerns would also affect Asia as there was a direct link between economic growth in the US and the rest of the world. "What happens to the US economy will be important for Asia's economy, but also, what happens in Asia will be important to the US economy," he said. Four countries in Asia were attempting major economic reforms, Yost continued, namely Japan, China, India and Indonesia, which in total represented 40 percent of the world's population. "There is absolutely no question in the United States across the range of candidates about the importance of economic relationships with Asia ['] but also specifically the importance of relations with ASEAN," Yost said. In an acknowledgement of this, he continued, the next US president would most likely visit the region within the first year in office. (ebf)(+) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Indra Budiari (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 A building in Jl. Pejagalan Raya, West Jakarta, that is estimated to have been built between 1880 and 1920 to accommodate merchants from outside the city, is desperately in need of restoration. The dilapidated building, now used by state junior high school SMPN 32, is on the list of Jakarta's cultural heritage buildings, which are required to be preserved. However, the school has waited for years to get the renovation. Saifudin Basri, the school's deputy principal, said the old building located inside the school compound had held the cultural heritage status for years, but the city had done nothing to alleviate its increasingly decrepit condition. 'A lot of people from the city administration have visited the building, but there is never any follow-up afterwards,' he told The Jakarta Post. 'I am worried it could pose a danger to our students.' Situated next to the school yard, the two-storey heritage site used to be a hotel called Kho Pu Tjien, run by a Chinese family during the 19th century. As the building is located near a river, it was the perfect place for travelling merchants to stay while their ships were docked nearby. The city's official website jakarta.go.id record state that in 1920 other buildings, which now house SMPN 32, were built near the hotel utilizing a totally different mode of construction. The other buildings are not included in the heritage list. In 1950 the entire site became part of the school facility. However, nowadays the building gives no impression of heritage splendor, and the Chinese-style roof has been crying for attention for some years. The first floor is the school's mushola (prayer room), but the upstairs area is too dangerous to be used for any kind of activity. Ascending to the second floor, visitors will see something akin to an unused warehouse with dusty chairs and tables scattered around the room, while the wooden floor between rooms is rickety, forcing anyone walking on it to be extra careful. Saifudin said that few years back some of the teachers and their families lived on the building's second floor, but as major renovations ' that did not include the heritage site ' took place in 2010, the teachers were asked to find another place to stay. 'There were around 15 families there who maintained the building. Now, it has become worse as no one lives there anymore,' Saifudin continued. He said he hoped that the city administration would give immediate attention to the building as the upcoming rainy season 'might make the roof collapse any time.' 'It could also be turned into a new classroom for the students, we need more of them here,' he said. The school has more than 800 students that are divided into morning and afternoon classes. Febriyanti Suryaningsih, executive director at the Indonesia Architecture Documentation Center (PDA), who has visited the site, said she agreed that revitalization must be carried out immediately. She said with the historical background, the building was a valuable asset for the school, where students could learn about history of Jakarta firsthand. According to her, the swallow's tail of the roof indicated that the building was owned by a very respectful family in an earlier era. 'However, I understand that a public school cannot receive funding assistance from a private party, so it depends on the city administration's willingness to restore the site,' she said over the phone. Contacted separately, Jakarta Cultural and Tourism Agency head Catur Laswanto said he had yet to receive any report about the condition of SMPN 32. He said revitalization of cultural heritage sites was subject to governor approval after receiving a recommendation from an independent team. The Cultural Heritage Expert Team would visit the heritage site as soon as the site owner or operator, in this case the school principal, made an official rehabilitation request, he added. 'The independent team will consider if the site needs to be revitalized or not. Afterwards they will submit their recommendation to the governor,' he said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 The Financial Services Authority (OJK) has signed an agreement with the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry to boost the development of new-renewable energy across the country. In the memorandum of understanding, the OJK has committed to gradually endorsing financial services firms, such as insurers and pension funds, to invest at least Rp 1 trillion (US$72.4 million) in the new-renewable energy sector. 'We will prepare at least Rp 1 trillion for the first phase, but we will increase this to Rp 3 trillion in the following years,' OJK chairman Muliaman D. Hadad said after the agreement at the OJK's headquarters. OJK deputy commissioner for non-banking supervision Dumoly F. Pardede said the investment in the new-renewable energy sector would be in the form of a limited participation mutual fund (RDPT) managed by asset management companies. The RDPT is a mutual fund product designed to gather funds to be used to finance projects in the real sector, such as housing, road construction and infrastructure. Dumoly said at least three state-owned insurance firms, namely Asabri, Jiwasraya and Jamkrindo, had already committed to taking part in the investment, and he expected pension funds to join soon as well. For the first phase, Dumoly said the funds would be used to finance the construction of solar-powered electricity generators in a number of regions, such as Jakarta and Kalimantan, which could generate at least 100 megawatts (MW) of power. 'We are aiming to increase to 500 MW in the future if the first phase is successful. Afterward, we can invite foreign investors to join,' he said. Also on Wednesday, Energy Minister Sudirman Said said the agreement was part of the ministry's efforts to meet the government's new-renewable energy target of 23 percent of power generation in the next 10 years, from 6.8 percent currently. 'In order to develop new-renewable energy and its conservation, we need investment of around Rp 1.3 quadrillion to Rp 1.6 quadrillion by 2025,' Sudirman said, adding that the government only had an average of Rp 2 trillion allocated per year in the state budget for the sector. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Thu, February 4, 2016 The 2009 Health Law clearly bans the sale of human organs for any reason. Those found guilty of the practice can be sentenced to a maximum 10 years behind bars and a fine of Rp 1 billion (US$72.6 million). Culprits can also face charges of human trafficking. However, as with any type of coveted contraband, heavy punishment has not eradicated the black market for human organs, given the high demand for donations. Police have arrested three men in Bandung on charges of harvesting and selling kidneys to hospitals and one in Bengkulu for attempting to sell his kidney. The first three men also allegedly swindled donors by promising them a few hundred million for each kidney, but giving them only 70 million rupiah each after they underwent the surgery. Police said donors were unaware that medical treatment was needed for three months after donating a kidney, and that the 'down payment' would barely cover it. Health Minister Nila Djuwita Anfasa Moeloek said she had formed a special team to check on donors and police were investigating three hospitals in Bandung and Jakarta. But we are left, of course, with the thriving black market, with people on social media still offering kidneys or bone marrow. Some come with price tags of a few hundred million to Rp 900 million while others simply cite financial needs, such as 'I need money fast to pay debts.' Sellers state their age and blood type and claim to be healthy and drug-free. Minister Nila said that some 150,000 kidneys were currently needed for people with chronic kidney failure. The government needs to look at advanced countries where the organ trade is widespread despite being illegal, as well as in Iran, where its government regulates the trade in organs, paying part of the price to screened sellers, with recipients and charities paying the rest of the funds. Foreign experts study the Iranian model to seek solutions to the long waiting list for organs from living or recently deceased donors, resulting in what many see as preventable deaths, contributed to by the lack of legal compensation for donors. Ethical questions abound; religious figures say organs should be donated, not sold. Worries about regulating the trade also center on fears that focusing on transactions would eventually sidestep the necessary strict screening of donors before and after transplants. However, such regulation would at least reduce the criminal human organ brokers and traffickers. Organ sellers who seem to live healthy with fewer financial worries will surely attract others to consider doing the same ' the neighbors of one man arrested in Bandung claimed to have sold a kidney each and said that dozens of others had done the same, reports said. The prospect of people lining up to sell kidneys, livers and other organs is certainly embarrassing to any government that claims to be doing its best to alleviate poverty. Even with legal donations, donors' health is reportedly often neglected. But merely going after organ brokers and harvesters has not stopped the trade, as trading one's kidney to deal with mounting debts is just a click away. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Raras Cahyafitri and Tassia Sipahutar (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said has handed the final say on the fate of the gas-rich Masela block development to President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo, following Japanese oil and gas contractor Inpex's recent call for the government to make a quick decision to end prolonged controversy over the megaproject. 'For now, I'm indifferent because we have presented all technical and economical aspects [to the President]. One thing that is yet to be clear is the wisdom of the President, so we are waiting for his wisdom,' Sudirman said on Wednesday. Currently, the approval of such plans of development (POD) for oil and gas block development is under the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry's authority. However, the huge potential of Masela and divisive arguments on its development have drawn widespread attention. Inpex and its Dutch partner Shell proposed last year to develop a floating liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant in the Arafura Sea. The controversy began late last year after Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Rizal Ramli criticized the offshore plan. Rizal claimed that the plant, touted to become one of the world's biggest LNG facilities, would leave the community's economy behind and instead proposed a new idea for an onshore plant. The debate put the development of the project in limbo as any change could result in the contractors dropping their initial plans and returning to square one. Inpex has called on the government to make a quick and clear decision regarding the project. On Wednesday, representatives from Inpex reportedly visited the presidential office. However, no details were immediately available regarding the meeting. Inpex, the operator of the block, has continued to assert that an offshore plant would be the most appropriate. 'We investors believe that our revised plan of development proposed to the government is the best option for Masela based on years of studies and various economic, technological, environmental and sociocultural aspects and an opportunity to be the catalyst of development in the eastern part of Indonesia,' said Usman Slamet, Inpex's senior manager of communication and relations. Both the offshore and onshore schemes have pluses and minuses. The offshore plan, according to figures from the Upstream Oil and Gas Regulatory Special Task Force (SKKMigas), would result in greater revenue, which could be used to develop other potential projects in the eastern regions. However, it would absorb less employment. On the other hand, an onshore scheme is expected to absorb more workers, particularly local engineers, as the country has the experience required for onshore LNG plant development. However, the scheme would provide less income for the country and the production period would be two years shorter. The acquisition of land on either Aru or Tanimbar island, which are easily accessible from Masela, is also expected to challenge the project. Despite the high-level controversy, Sudirman said that for the Maluku community, the debate was not an issue. 'I'm grateful to hear from the Maluku governor that Maluku people do not consider the onshore or offshore debate to be important as the most significant thing is the best benefit for the local community,' Sudirman added. Separately, the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry's oil and gas director general IGN Wiratmaja Puja said the offshore scheme could also boost the shipyard industry with the need for a complete vessel. 'Although the main buoy of the floating vessel can only be made in China or South Korea, all of the country's shipyard capacity, such as PAL in Surabaya and McDermott in Batam, will be absorbed to support the vessel,' he said. 'The national pipe manufacturer could support the onshore scheme. The steel industry will also be benefited,' Wiratmaja added. Inpex and Shell submitted the Masela POD in 2010 under a scheme for an offshore LNG plant. However, the discovery of larger resources led contractors to adjust up the capacity of the floating LNG plant to 7.5 million tons per year from 2.5 million tons. The company submitted last year a revision of the plan of development under the new capacity. Under the onshore scheme, up to 600 kilometers of pipes must be installed to connect the gas block to Aru Island. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Khoirul Amin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 The government will issue a new regulation soon that will allow foreign investors to hold 100 percent ownership of large geothermal power plants, a senior official has said. Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) head Franky Sibarani said in Jakarta on Wednesday that allowing wholly foreign ownership of large geothermal power plants would be part of the government's program to boost investment in clean energy in Southeast Asia's largest economy. He said the new investment regulation on foreign ownership would apply to geothermal plants with a capacity of 10 megawatts or higher. For plants with a capacity of less than 10 MW, foreign ownership will be capped at 67 percent. 'It has been agreed by the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry,' he said, adding that the proposal had been recently discussed as part of a review of the 'negative investment list' (DNI), which covers sectors in which restrictions on foreign investment apply. According to the current DNI regulation, Presidential Decree No. 39/2014, the development of geothermal power plants with a capacity of less than 10 MW is closed to foreign ownership. Currently foreign investors may own up to 95 percent of plants with greater than 10 MW capacity. The government is aiming to increase the use of renewable energy from 6 percent in 2014 to at least 23 percent by 2025 and at least 31 percent in 2050. In the power sector generally Franky said the government also planned to allow up to 49 percent foreign investment in high- and extra high-voltage power installation services, while medium- and low-voltage power installation would remain closed to foreign investors. Currently all power installation services must be fully owned by local investors. Other business sectors that may be fully opened to foreign investment are e-commerce and medicine ingredient manufacturing. Franky previously announced that the government was likely to raise or eliminate the caps on foreign ownership of film distribution, film production houses and cinema operators. He stated on Wednesday that while the revised figures were not official yet, they had been agreed by the relevant ministries. The government is now reviewing the DNI and it expects to complete the revision by next month. The revision of the DNI is aimed at boosting foreign investment to propel the country's economic growth and achieve a 7 percent growth rate as promised by President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo during his election campaign. Azhar Lubis, BKPM deputy director for investment monitoring and implementation, said the BKPM was actively making investment procedures more efficient. He said the investment climate in the country had been well-maintained and that it saw a surge in investment commitment of Rp 206 trillion (US$14.9 billion) in January alone. 'Principal permits or commitment investments surged by 119 percent to Rp 206 trillion this year from Rp 94 trillion in January last year,' he told reporters. Franky said that regulatory reforms, such as three-hour investment licensing, had also attracted more investment to the country. The newly launched three-hour licensing was used by seven foreign companies with total planned investments worth Rp 31.8 trillion or 15 percent of total investment commitments in January, according to BKPM data. The seven companies are from Singapore, China, the UK and Malaysia, with investments ranging from power plants to waste management. _________________________________________________ To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 or subscription@thejakartapost.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Bagus BT Saragih (The Jakarta Post) London Thu, February 4, 2016 Indonesia and the UK will continue to pursue a more robust relationship, with the latter putting a greater focus on Southeast Asia following the implementation of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC), outgoing Indonesian Ambassador to the UK and the Republic of Ireland, Teuku Mohammad Hamzah Thayeb, said recently. Hamzah, whose tenure ended on Wednesday, expressed optimism on the future of Jakarta-London bilateral relations despite challenges commonly faced by traditional partners aiming to boost trade and investment. 'The UK has mentioned that it is shifting to Asia as the trend is going there. For London, Asia does not only mean China and India, but also Southeast Asia. And Southeast Asia is Indonesia,' the ambassador told The Jakarta Post during a farewell at his London residence last week. Over 1,000 Indonesians residing in the UK attended the event. They were greeted with Indonesian food such as nasi goreng (fried rice), bakso (meatball soup) and satay, which are rarely found in the country. Hamzah, whose father Teuku Mohammad Hadi Thayeb was also the ambassador to the UK and the Republic of Ireland from 1990 to 1993, acknowledged that Indonesia still fell below Singapore and Malaysia in terms of trade with the UK. 'The AEC has big potential. That we still have many domestic issues that we urgently need to address is also true. But that does not put the potential out of our reach. I am optimistic because, under our new government, numerous improvements and reforms are on the way. We are doing it,' he said. As Jakarta-London relations have existed since 1949, the two countries could have difficultly finding room to grow in terms of trade and investment. 'Naturally, there could be not much left but that does not make us do nothing,' Hamzah said. Data from the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) showed that the UK was the seventh-largest foreign investor in Indonesia in the first half of last year, with investments worth US$424.93 million. Two-way trade in the January-November period of 2015 stood at $2.13 billion, representing an 8.62 percent decrease compared to the same period in 2014. But the 63-year-old diplomat insisted on staying optimistic. 'Like President [Joko] 'Jokowi' [Widodo] has repeatedly said, mind-set reform is key. And I pretty much agree with this. Let's be honest, of all the issues our economic and industrial sectors are facing are mostly about mind-set.' Aside from economic links, Hamzah added, the two countries had common interests and shared values, especially in democracy, as well as promoting tolerance and interfaith dialogue. Promoting people-to-people diplomacy has also been conducted through cooperations between universities. The UK is home to about 2,500 Indonesian students. Hamzah said their presence was beneficial in promoting Indonesia in the country. 'I always told [the students] about the motto 'engage and embrace' because they are also agents of Indonesia. That is why the Indonesian Embassy always supports activities held by the PPI [Indonesian Students Association],' he said. Hamzah is slated to be replaced by Rizal Sukma, formerly the executive director of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) and Jokowi's foreign affairs adviser. When asked if he had any unfinished business that he would like Rizal to accomplish, Hamzah spontaneously answered: 'cuisine!' Food diplomacy? 'Why not?' he said. Hamzah explained that many British people were impressed by Indonesian foods at events organized by the embassy. 'But yet, the number of Indonesian restaurants in the UK is very limited, unlike Thai [restaurants],' he said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Tama Salim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 The Golkar Party has taken another major step forward in healing its internal rift after the leaders of the two rival camps agreed to restore the rights of party members who were dismissed throughout the entire course of the conflict. Aburizal Bakrie, the chairman of Golkar as elected in the 2009 national congress in Riau, said that he would honor the recent decree issued by the Law and Human Rights Ministry, which reinstated the leadership roster from the Riau congress to allow the party to host a new congress that would settle the leadership dispute. Among the points brought up in the recent decree, the government ordered Golkar to restore the rights of members who had been dismissed by Aburizal for insubordination during a previous attempt to host a congress in Bali in 2014. 'The ministerial decree clearly states the names [of executives from the old roster], and we will retain those names, even at the regional branch level,' Aburizal said after a meeting with rival Agung Laksono at the private residence of Vice President Jusuf Kalla in Central Jakarta, on Wednesday. Agung, who resumed his position as Aburizal's deputy following the issuance of the ministerial decree, was among those dismissed for opposing several of Aburizal's political decisions in the lead-up to the 2014 national congress. Other executives who had been shown the door were Priyo Budi Santoso, Zainudin Amali, Agun Gunanjar Sudarsa, Leo Nababan and Yorrys Raweyai. Eager to block Aburizal's claim to the chairmanship, Agung and his supporters had banded together to form a new management roster, which was legitimized at a national congress in Jakarta in November 2014, before being annulled at the end of 2015 by a ministerial decree honoring a Supreme Court ruling from October. At least 18 senior Golkar politicians were dismissed as a result of the prolonged infighting, which had been brewing since the party failed to secure victory in the 2014 legislative elections. Tensions flared after the incumbent chairman threw support behind Prabowo Subianto of the Gerindra Party in the presidential election, resulting in the party's ouster from the ruling circle for the first time in its 50-year history. As returning deputy chairman of the party, Agung said that the source of conflict surrounding the dismissal of members had been resolved and their rights restored. 'From the very beginning ' even before today, we agreed not to continue the practice [of dismissals]. Whoever was wronged will be rehabilitated,' Agung said on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Kalla, who has been working as a mediator in the conflict, revealed that the party was open to the possibility of amending its statutes and bylaws in the hopes of preventing future conflict. 'Let's just say the party statutes and rules will undergo relevant changes in order to promote unity in Golkar and avoid future conflicts like this,' Kalla said after the meeting. 'We'll improve the system within Golkar [to ensure] a democratic national congress,' he added. In the meeting, Kalla personally asked the two camps not to include what he deemed as 'problematic' individuals as organizing members of the party's upcoming congress, an apparent swipe at former executives Nurdin Halid and Yorrys Raweyai. 'He wants figures who are amenable and accommodating to all,' Agung said. Separately, political analyst Gun Gun Heryanto said the current roster of Golkar executives would do well to restore the rights of its dismissed members to ensure the future of the party. ___________________________________ To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 or subscription@thejakartapost.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Nurul Fitri Ramadhani (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 The government is being urged to accelerate its IT-based education system migration to improve the competitiveness of future generations. Founder of youth group Gerak Cepat (Quick Movement) Chaerany Putri said that the government had been slow in implementing a digital-based education system, leaving it far behind other neighboring countries, including Malaysia and Singapore. 'The government should be more aggressive in improving digital-based learning by, for example, incorporating it in the national curriculum and providing better infrastructure,' Chaerany said, adding that the country's education system should no longer focus on textbooks and shift faster to online learning using digital equipment. Unfortunately, she said the government was still dealing with the revision of the national curriculum that has left teachers, students and parents confused. 'It's actually not difficult to implement an IT-based education system because most youths are digital natives,' she said. She cited data showing that 88.1 millions Indonesians were internet users, but most of them used it for social media and messaging, with very few using it for learning purposes. Microsoft Indonesia corporate affairs director Ruben Hattari said that the government's e-learning policies were well implemented, proven by high internet penetration in schools and the implementation of computer-based text (CBT). The Culture and Education Ministry tested a computer-based national exam in 862 out of 79,399 schools nationwide last year to prevent cheating. It also produced e-books available for download on tablet computers to be distributed to all 208,000 schools in the country, mostly to the country's disadvantaged regions, as an attempt to make learning more interactive and accessible for students and teachers nationwide. However, Ruben said that more needed to be done as internet was not available in remote areas, not to mention teachers' lack of digital literacy. Ruben further said that the government should also improve teachers' skills. 'They should know how to operate the equipment and direct their students and children to use the internet for positive aims,' Ruben said, adding that nowadays many children and teenagers tended to misuse the internet. Ari Santoso, an official from the ministry's Information and Communications Technology Center (Pustekkom) said that the government had achieved many breakthroughs to improve the digital-based education system, through applications and policies. However, he acknowledged that the government needed to provide better infrastructure and facilities. The ministry's data shows that 77 percent of schools across the country are connected to the internet, meaning that 48,543 schools are still without internet. 'We need a large budget to connect all schools to the internet. The public should not rely on the central government because it is also the responsibility of regional administrations,' Ari said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ayomi Amindoni (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 In an effort increase the competitiveness of East Java, the government has decided to cut tolls to cross the Suramadu Bridge, which links Surabaya and Madura Island in East Java, by more than 50 percent, an official says. A single-crossing for sedans, SUVs, vans and pickup trucks currently costs Rp 30,000 (US$2.19), while a single crossing for large trucks and containers costs Rp 60,000 and Rp 90,000, respectively. "The President wants the tolls to be lowered by more than 50 percent," Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung in Jakarta on Wednesday. East Java Governor Soekarwo welcomed the central government's decision, stressing that lowering bridge tolls would support the competitiveness of commodities, particularly from Madura Island. "Because of the high bridge tolls, commodities from Madura are less competitive,' he explained, adding that the main purpose of Suramadu Bridge was to boost the economy and improve people's welfare in Madura. (bbn)(+) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ina Parlina and Nurul Fitri Ramadhani (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 Although there have been no recent cases of the Zika virus in the country following the recent WHO emergency status alert over the dengue-like Zika virus, President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo instructed on Wednesday relevant officials to prepare joint efforts to prevent the virus from spreading in the country. Jokowi summoned a number of relevant ministers for a limited Cabinet meeting on Wednesday, during which he ordered them to take a number of measures, including early detection steps, public campaigns to raise awareness on the importance on eliminating mosquito breeding grounds and quick response once the virus was detected in the country. 'We should alert our citizens who plan on visiting countries where the Zika virus has been detected; [we need] to also monitor the entry points [across the country],' Jokowi said. Following the meeting, Coordinating Human Development and Culture Minister Puan Maharani issued a statement saying that the government was prepared to deal with the spread of the virus, dismissing an earlier claim made by a Health Ministry official that the government was unable to take anticipatory measures since Zika was difficult to detect and had similar symptoms to those of other mosquito-borne viruses. '[We] also urge people to not panic and, at the same time, maintain hygiene and sanitation, and to take measures to prevent potential areas, [for example] puddles, sewers and toilets, from becoming the breeding grounds of the mosquito,' Puan said, adding that the government would also call on all schools to partake in the campaign. 'We indeed hope for participation from all elements of the public,' she said. Health Minister Nila Moeloek said the government would impose a travel advisory for Indonesian citizens who wanted to visit South American countries and other Zika-endemic areas. 'They should be careful, particularly women who are pregnant in their first trimester,' she said. According to Nila, one suspected case in Jambi last year had been declared under control. The Eijkman Institute for Molecular Biology warned in a recent report that the virus had been spreading for some time. A Zika infection was found among 103 dengue specimens that the institute took during an outbreak in Jambi between December 2014 and April 2015. Indonesia has a history of Zika infections dating back to 1981. According to several studies, Zika was found in Indonesia in 1981 and in 2005, said the Health Ministry recently. The travel advisory would contain prevention guidelines in the countries prone to the virus, said Oscar Primadi, head of the Health Ministry's communications and public services division. Earlier, WHO urged countries in Southeast Asia to strengthen surveillance and take preventive measures against the Zika virus, which is strongly suspected to have a causal relation with clusters of microcephaly and other neurological abnormalities. 'The Aedes aegypti mosquito, responsible for its spread, is found in many areas and there is no evidence of immunity to the Zika virus in many populations of the region,' WHO Southeast Asia regional director Poonam Khetrapal Singhs said in a statement. The WHO has recommended that countries build capacity in their laboratories to detect the virus and strengthen surveillance of fevers and rashes, neurological syndromes and birth defects. Countries should intensify their vector control program and prepare health services for managing the Zika virus. _________________________________________ To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 or subscription@thejakartapost.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Nurul Fitri Ramadhani (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 Following a debate over possible hazards from an electrical capacitive cancer therapy (ECCT) apparatus popularly known as a cancer jacket, the Research, Technology and Higher Education Ministry, the Health Ministry and the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) have told its inventor to limit its use. Although the decision was not an outright ban, the Center for Tomography Research Laboratory (CTECH Labs) Edwar Technology, where neuroscientist Warsito Purwo Taruno invented the device, can no longer accept new patients. The government gave the freedom to around 3,200 patients who have been undergoing therapy with the device to decide whether they would continue their treatment. The Health Ministry's Research and Development Center acting chairwoman Tritarayati said on Wednesday that the device had failed to pass safety tests as regulated by the 2010 Health Ministry Regulation on distribution and marketing licenses for medical devices. The tests also showed that the device did not have significant benefits for patients. The ECCT device provides cancer therapy in the form of clothing that spreads electrostatic waves through the body to hamper the growth of cancer cells. The device has a maximum voltage of 15, considered a harmless level. Warsito invented the device in 2009 after patenting in 2005 his electrical capacitance volume tomography (ECVT) technology, which allows electrostatic waves to detect fast-moving particles and is intended to reveal the condition of the brain, thus detecting cancer, Alzheimer's or epilepsy. Tritarayati said the research on ECCT would continue until the completion of preclinical trials, with the supervision and financial assistance of both ministries. If it passes preclinical trials, the device will go on to clinical trials at a teaching hospital, such as Cipto Mangunkusumo General Hospital (RSCM) in Jakarta or Hasan Sadikin General Hospital (RSHS) in Bandung West Java. She said the decision was a compromise to show appreciation for homegrown innovators but at the same time promote compliance with rules and regulations. Both ministries also agreed to set up a consortium to help Warsito accelerate the research. The use of the ECCT sparked controversy last year after the Indonesian Society of Surgical Oncology claimed the device had not been clinically trialled in Indonesian hospitals. The Health Ministry then froze Warsito's patient services in December 2015. The Research, Technology and Higher Education Ministry's directorate general for research and development reinforcement, Muhammad Dimyati, said he supported Warsito as well as other inventors and innovators in making breakthroughs but warned that not all research led to success. 'We also have to consider the importance of complying with rules and regulations in the medical field before introducing new devices or methods, particularly for major diseases such as cancer,' Dimyati said. Warsito praised the ministry's decision to help him develop the ECCT research, but acknowledged that it was difficult to meet requirements because the country lacked basic standards for medical inventions. Warsito said he only wanted to help people suffering from cancer and fulfill the country's increasing demand for medical innovations. Dita Dewi Prabaningrum, 51, one of Warsito's patients, who was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer in 2011, said Warsito's device had worked wonders for her, adding that she had initially been told the likelihood of her cancer being terminal was 80 percent. 'After having electrical jacket therapy for four months, it became 40 percent. Earlier last year, he said it was 38 percent,' she said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 The government is discussing the best ways to help members of the Fajar Nusantara Movement (Gafatar), which has been declared heretical by the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), to return back to normal society, a minister has said. 'We want them to live normally, return back to society,' Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung said as quoted by kompas.com at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Wednesday. President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo will soon hold a meeting with relevant ministers to discuss the impact of the relocation of Gafatar members. The meeting is scheduled to be held in the middle of February. Meanwhile, Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Syaifuddin said Gafatar members should be protected from any kind of discrimination and violence. Despite an MUI fatwa that declared Gafatar a heretical organization, the minister said the government would continue to protect and help rehabilitate Gafatar members. 'A religious belief should be built with an emphatic approach so it can hold on to the main principles of religious teaching that are not considered heretical by all Indonesian people,' said Lukman. In its fatwa issued on Wednesday, the MUI declared Gafatar to be a heretical organization and its followers to be murtad (apostates). 'Those who have believed in Gafatar's views and religious teachings are apostates. They must repent and ask God for forgiveness and immediately return back to Islamic teachings,' MUI chairman Ma'ruf Amin said as quoted by Antara in a press conference in Jakarta. He said Gafatar was proven to have mixed up, or syncretized, three religions, namely Islam, Christianity and Judaism; thus, the MUI declared Gafatar to be heretical. Ma'ruf said the MUI came to such a decision through a long and thorough examination. The council observed that Gafatar stemmed from a religious organization created by Ahmad Mussadeq, namely Al Qiyadah Al Islamiyah, which then transformed into a new group called Komunitas Millah Abraham (Komar). Ma'ruf said Mussadeq was the key figure in Gafatar as he was the spiritual leader of the organization. In 2007, the MUI declared Al Qiyadah Al Islamiyah to be a heretical organization and accused Mussadeq of committing blasphemy in his claim that he was the successor of Prophet Muhammad. (mas/ebf)(+) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Dylan Amirio (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 Smartphone-based transportation order app Grab is looking to zoom ahead of the competition on the streets of Indonesia with a 50 percent market share in the motorcycle taxi (ojek) segment by the end of the year, through expansion into other cities outside Greater Jakarta. The GrabBike ojek app service is likely to expand into at least five cities by the end of 2016, Grab Indonesia managing director Ridzki Kramadibrata said. Grab, which has recently rebranded itself from its former name GrabTaxi, is currently still assessing which cities are suitable for the introduction of the GrabBike service. By focusing on the ojek segment, Ridzki said he believed that Grab's other car-based services would also benefit from the expansion. 'In Indonesia, Grab has seen significant growth rates over the past year alone, for one. As we are in line to secure our place as the Indonesian land-transport hailing app of choice, we feel that this goal we have set can be achieved' he told reporters at Grab's official rebranding event in Jakarta on Wednesday. Currently, the GrabBike service is only available in the Greater Jakarta area, while it's other services including GrabCar and GrabTaxi are available in other cities. GrabCar is available in Denpasar and Jakarta while GrabTaxi is available in Surabaya, Jakarta, Padang and Bandung. Ridzki noted that Indonesia, as the Malaysian-born app's largest market, greatly contributed to its overall Southeast Asian growth numbers between 2014 and 2015. Along with other markets such as Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam, the app's GrabBike service grew by 75 percent while its GrabCar service grew by 35 percent within that period in the region. GrabBike only entered the Indonesian market in May 2015. Around 11 million app downloads have been recorded for Grab, with a active user base of 1.5 million orders per day in the region. Having recently rebranded itself, Grab Indonesia country director of marketing Kiki Rizki explained that the company's numerous changes were in line its ambition to further its operations in the transport sector. Some notable changes to Grab include the addition of new features such as GrabWork and GrabPay. GrabWork, explains Kiki, will help users using hire professional or business services to automatically record travel expenses so that they can be noted for office reimbursement purposes. Meanwhile, GrabPay is the app's 'effort to introduce an e-payment scheme in the mobile transport sector' that would allow its users to select any method of payment for the service. Other features, such as live driver tracking, were also upgraded. 'Aside from the new features, we have improved our user-experience services to make it easier and more personalized for users. By making it more personalized, we will be able to become the safest land transport app in the country,' Kiki said. Grab had been named GrabTaxi since its inception in 2011 until the rebranding, and is currently operating in 28 cities across six Southeast Asian nations. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 Jakarta's procurement agency has blacklisted 114 contractors, who are no longer allowed to cooperate with the city administration. Jakarta Goods and Services Procurement Agency (BPPBJ) head Blessmiyanda said the contractors were blacklisted because they had made mistakes in bidding for tenders or in carrying out construction projects. 'The mistakes, among others, were questionable bidding documents, or their construction work not being in line with the documents they submitted,' Blessmiyanda said as quoted by beritajakarta.com. He explained that blacklisted contractors would be automatically disqualified if they participated in bidding with the agency and could no longer work with the city administration. 'In the future, we will limit bidding only to credible contractors. All tender participants must show their credibility in order to cooperate with the Jakarta administration,' he said. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 The Attorney General's Office (AGO) has arrested Rio Reynaldo, one of four prisoners who escaped from a prison van in November 2015 near an Islamic boarding school in Pandeglang, Banten. AGO spokesman Amir Yanto said Wednesday that a team of prosecutors would interrogate Rio to glean information about the other three escapees. He added that the manhunt would continue until all the fugitives were arrested. 'We are still looking for the other three. We will do anything to arrest them,' Amir said as quoted by kompas.com. The incident took place on Nov. 30 at 8:30 p.m. after a van left the North Jakarta District Court carrying 25 prisoners who were undergoing trial. The prisoners, escorted by three police officers and seven AGO officials, were headed to a detention center. As the van traveled along Jl. Bekasi in East Jakarta, one prisoner shouted for help, saying one of his fellow inmates had collapsed. After the van pulled over, an officer opened the back door to check on the situation. However, a prisoner identified as Nurhasan tossed chili into the officer's eyes and fled the scene along with four other people: Hengki Sutejo, Darman, Rio and Desi Sagita. The police arrested Nurhasan a few hours after the incident. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Erika Anindita (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 The House of Representatives legislative body (Baleg) is set to hold a meeting with the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) on Thursday, to hear the anti-graft body's views on the amendments to the 2002 KPK Law currently being deliberated by the House. "We will have a meeting tomorrow [Thursday] with the KPK," Baleg's deputy chairman Firman Subagyo confirmed on Wednesday. House members supporting the amendment of the 2002 KPK Law submitted a new draft revision, which is slightly different from the initial draft, on Monday. Four points highlighted in the draft revision include wire-tapping, the setting up of a KPK monitoring council, rules on KPK investigators and the authority to issue investigation termination warrants (SP3). On wiretapping, the House has suggested that the anti-graft body must get permission from its monitoring council before conducting such surveillance. Baleg chairman Supratman Andi Agtas said on Monday that the House's decision to invite the KPK to attend a hearing on the amendments to the law was aimed at collecting more comprehensive materials for deliberation. "The KPK's opinions will be accommodated as long as they are related to the authority the commission needs to have," Supratman said on Monday. It is reported that the KPK will be represented only by its deputy chairman at Thursday's meeting. "That's true. Our deputy chairman will represent the KPK executives in the meeting with the House's legislative body," KPK commissioner Saut Situmorang told thejakartapost.com on Thursday. The meeting is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. (ebf)(+) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Thu, February 4, 2016 'A misty glimpse of East Java' Words and Photos Agung Parameswara Walking across the vast stretch of sand of Mt. Bromo and looking across to the stunning view of nearby volcano Mount Semeru is sure to be a memorable moment. Mt. Bromo is one of the most active volcanoes in Indonesia and is currently spewing sulfurous ash over the eastern part of Java, hence visitors have been warned to stay away due the imminent risk of eruption. Many prefer to climb the mountain before dawn so they can enjoy the majestic sunrise from the summit. Between 7 a.m. and 8 a.m., the nearby hills are blanketed in chilly fog, making for a surreal view. Standing 2,329 meters above sea level, Mt. Bromo is located on the border of Lumajang, Pasuruan, Malang and Probolinggo regencies in East Java. Home to the indigenous Hindu Tengger people, the volcano is rich in legends and history. One story claims that the Tengger people are descendants of Princess Roro Anteng and her husband Joko Seger. The couple was once childless and prayed to the gods of the mountain to ask for children. The gods bestowed 25 children on the couple, but required them to sacrifice their 25th child, Kesuma, by throwing the child into the crater. Nowadays, the human sacrifice ritual has been replaced with sacrificial animals, fruit and vegetables in an annual ceremony called Yadnya Kasada. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Ayomi Amindoni (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 Mass layoffs announced at companies such as Ford Indonesia, Chevron Indonesia and Japanese electronics giants Panasonic and Toshiba constitute a flashing yellow warning light from Indonesia's investment climate, a lawmaker has said. Chairman of House of Representatives Commission VI overseeing industry and state-owned enterprises, Achmad Hafisz Tohir, urged the government to immediately implement stimulus packages aimed at improving the investment climate. Hafisz said industry relocations were behind the massive layoffs, sending a signal that Indonesia was considered a less-attractive country in which to do business and earn profits, especially because of high tariffs, taxes and logistical costs. "As a result, our imported goods are so expensive that investors may think twice before investing and doing business [here]. The layoffs have worsened our investment climate. However, the yellow light is only approaching orange, not shifting to red, yet. The government still has a chance to fix the situation," Hafisz said at the House complex in Jakarta on Thursday. At the same event Trade Minister Thomas Lembong admitted the lack of infrastructure has affected investment and business. "Excessive regulation, prolonged licensing processes and poor infrastructure has reduced our competitiveness," he said. Thomas, however, argued the relocation of two Japanese electronics giants was due to Japan's shifting focus from home appliances to other goods such as optic censors and drones. At the same time, however, Korea's electronic-appliance industry is on the rise. "The Japanese electronics industry is being hit by fierce competition from electronics from Korea," he told the reporters. Meanwhile, Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung clarified the reports of the layoffs, saying the two Japanese electronics manufacturers were not shutting down their operations, only relocating. "Yesterday I spoke with their respective managements. In essence, they are not shutting down business, but they are downsizing to reduce production capacity and relocate plants. It has been reported to President Jokowi," Pramono told reporters at the State Palace. He also dismissed allegations that the Japanese were 'taking revenge' after Indonesia chose China for the high-speed train project. "The value of Panasonic and Toshiba investment in Indonesia alone equal to the high-speed train project. Thus, it is impossible if the business is shut just because of revenge for failure in cooperation in the project," he said. Earlier, Confideration of Indonesian Workers Unions (KSPI) stated more companies planned to lay off workers in the near future, following the laying off up to 2,500 workers at Panasonic Lighting Indonesia and Toshiba Consumer Products Indonesia. (ags)(+) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Thu, February 4, 2016 Feb. 2, 2016 As the rainy season nears its peak, the Jakarta city administration has begun preparing for flooding by readying water pumps, including mobile appliances, to secure a number of flood-prone areas in the capital. 'We've prepared 69 mobile water pumps and we have put them in five areas in Jakarta, especially in the areas that are prone to floods,' Water Management Agency head Teguh Hendrawan told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday. The areas that are being given particular attention include Grogol in West Jakarta, Pesanggrahan in South Jakarta and Cawang in East Jakarta. Your comments: I wonder if the vile corrupt politicians against Jakarta Governor Basuki 'Ahok' Tjahaja Punama will be happy if Ahok manages to overcome flooding in Jakarta. Politically, floods are a crucial issue to generate support, especially from Jakarta society. Considering the bad morals of most politicians, will the opponents of Ahok let it happen? Hartono I see that there is still tons of garbage piling up along the waterways. In truth, the city, and for that matter, the country, has been run by a bunch of lazy bozos who couldn't care less about the infrastructure and other problems within the country. This is just another example of extreme disinterest in anything that does not bring a quick profit to the officials involved. Charles Jarret As an extra backup, they could hire 20,000 to 30,000 workers with buckets. Randomthought I am sorry to say so, but it does not really look like they are installing anything, but rather demolishing some leftover pillars of demolished houses. Gordon Freeman Governor Pak Ahok, You should make sure state-owned PT PLN does not shut off the electricity supply to the pumps during heavy rain like they did the first time. Siang Malam I completely agree with this statement: 'Preparing for flooding is not only the work of the city administration. Jakarta residents need to participate in preventing annual flooding.' Jakarta residents often complain about the lack of flood mitigation efforts committed by the city administration. But in reality, they also cause the flood by throwing waste and plastic trash into the rivers, causing an even more complicated situation when the rainy season comes. Simba1991 It looks like they are being knocked down. Not installed. Bamboowilly Make sure that no Jakarta legislative council cronies can sabotage them like last time. Deddy K. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 Dita Aditia, who reported her boss, Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) lawmaker Masinton Pasaribu, to the police for allegedly punching her in the eye, cried on Thursday after undergoing police questioning about the case. When emerging from the police office, she declined to comment and rushed straight to her car. Her accompanying lawyer also declined to comment. Dita visited the Legal Aid Foundation of Indonesian Women's Association for Justice (LBH Apik) office on Monday and the National Commission on Violence against Women (Komnas Perempuan) to seek support. The LBH Apik on Wednesday reported the case to House of Representatives' ethic council and requested the council look into the matter involving the lawmaker. After leaving the LBH APIK office on Monday, Dita explained her experience by claiming that Masinton hit her twice when she was traveling with him in his car from a cafA in Central Jakarta on Jan. 21. Masinton has denied the allegation, saying the bruise on Dita's face was unintentionally caused by the driver of the vehicle. Dita claims she was alone in the vehicle with Masinton. Police said previously that Dita would be questioned about the chronology of the alleged incident. (bbn) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Haeril Halim, Ina Parlina and Tama Salim (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 The Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) issued a fatwa on Wednesday that declared the Fajar Nusantara Movement (Gafatar) a heretical movement and has called on the authorities to ban hundreds of its members across the country from organizing activities that could lead to the resurgence of the organization in the future. MUI said that although Gafatar was disbanded last year, if its members were permitted to resume their organizational activities after being evacuated from Mempawah regency in West Kalimantan, they could disseminate its 'heretical teachings' to garner support for its long-term goal of building a caliphate in the country. MUI chairman Ma'ruf Amin said the council was moved to issue Wednesday's fatwa in response to concerns about the existence of Gafatar in a number of regions, especially in Mempawah, the putative capital of Gafatar's caliphate, which could pose a threat to the country and Islam. 'We have valid evidence collected from a number of regions to support the fatwa. Some local MUI branches have already issued similar edicts.' Ma'ruf claimed Gafatar was an aberration from mainstream Islam as it attempted to combine the teachings of Islam, Christianity and Judaism, and its members had declared Ahmad Mussadeq, the founder of the banned Al-Qiyadah al-Islamiyah organization, a prophet. One of Islam's basic tenets is that Muhammad was and will remain the last Prophet. 'Gafatar is the reincarnation, or the metamorphosis, of Al-Qiyadah, which was declared heretical by the MUI in the past,' he said. The MUI said many Gafatar members were ordinary members who only joined for its social activities, but many could be deemed as firebrands and the government-sanctioned council would work with the government to help 'purify' hundreds of Gafatar members through rehabilitation programs. Ma'ruf also called on the public to be vigilant. 'We call on ordinary followers to divorce themselves from any Gafatar-related activities. We urge the public to report to local MUI offices if they find indications of the dissemination of deviant teachings in the future,' he said. Hundreds of people left their homes to join the group's community in Mempawah, but were displaced after a mob ransacked and razed their community on Jan. 19, and have now been returned to their respective hometowns. According to MUI, Gafatar had six steps to building a caliphate in Indonesia starting from the Sirran or silent period, Jahran or acknowledgment period, Hijrah or migration, Qital or war, Futuh or victory, with the last being Khilafah or caliphate. Ma'ruf said Gafatar had reached the third step of Hijrah. 'We'll never tolerate such a mission because for MUI it is the unitary state of the Republic of Indonesia [NKRI] to which we have made our commitment.' The National Police are investigating the allegations that Gafatar sought to build a caliphate in Indonesia, while the Attorney General's Office (AGO) is mulling whether to ban Gafatar as an organization. Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna H. Laoly said the fatwa was something the government would consider when deliberating the next steps in the situation. '[Even though] Gafatar is not a legal entity registered with the ministry, if the MUI has issued the fatwa, I think that is something the government will need to pay attention to and consider,' he said. Religious Affairs Minister Lukman Hakim Saifuddin said the fatwa could serve as guidance for people to decide their stance on Gafatar. 'We hope that they, particularly religious mass organizations and religious leaders, will help create an initiative to reintegrate and nurture [Gafatar members],' he added. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 The House of Representatives decided on Monday to once again step up its investigation into an alleged conspiracy involving an attempt to negotiate the extension of PT Freeport Indonesia's contract in which former speaker Setya Novanto is implicated. House Commission III overseeing legal affairs, human rights and security has formed a committee to support an ongoing probe by the Attorney General's Office (AGO) into the Golkar Party politician and into businessman Reza Chalid. Both have been recorded proposing to former Freeport Indonesia president director Maroef Sjamsoeddin that the company gives shares to President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla to secure the contract deal. Commission III head Benny K. Harman of the Democratic Party said that Attorney General Muhammad Prasetyo is 'not courageous enough' to unveil the case as the AGO has yet to act on Setya and Reza, who have been skipping its summonses. 'There should be a forced summons after someone hasn't answered three times. Now what? [The AGO does not] dare to act on Setya, let alone on Reza Chalid,' he said on Wednesday. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Hans Nicholas Jong and Ina Parlina (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 Norway has expressed dissatisfaction about the lack of progress Indonesia has made in its Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) projects. In 2010, Norway agreed to give up to US$1 billion to Indonesia to fund forest-related emissions reduction programs in the country. Norwegian Climate and Environment Minister Vidar Helgesen said on Wednesday that he acknowledged that the Indonesian government had made substantial progress in planning the programs, but added that no visible output was evident as of today. 'Six years into the partnership, we are now impatient to see more results on the ground,' he said during his visit to Jakarta to meet his counterpart, Siti Nurbaya Bakar. Helgesen said that the lack of progress in the actual implementation of the REDD+ in Indonesia was clear to see. 'We are very satisfied with the dialogue we have had [and] with the groundwork that has been put in place but I don't think anyone can be satisfied when we see the fires last year, when we see continued deforestation [and] when we see continued peat conversion,' he said. However, Helgesen expressed Norway's appreciation for President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo's commitment following the forest and peatland fires last year, which destroyed more than 2 million hectares of land, and were deemed by some as one of the worst ecological disasters in human history. Helgesen especially praised Jokowi's commitment to implement a moratorium on permits to clear peatland as well as the establishment of the Peatland Restoration Agency (BRG), tasked with restoring as many as 2 million hectares of peatland destroyed by decades of mismanaged oil palm plantations. 'And it's [also] a critical step for Indonesia's economy, for the people of Indonesia, [and] for the climate of the world. And, therefore also a significant step for the partnership between Indonesia and Norway,' he told a press conference after a meeting with the President at the State Palace. That said, Helgesen believed that it was still too early to declare the policy a success. '[Indonesia has implemented] the partial moratorium, which is good, but it's not possible at this stage to declare success because deforestation is continuing. We all know what happened to the peatland last year,' he said. In a meeting he deemed as very constructive, Helgesen also said that Norway told Jakarta that it would continue and reinforce their long-standing and important partnership. One form the support will come in will be a US$50 million financial assistance package from Norway to the BRG in 2016. According to BRG head Nazir Foead, the $50 million is a part of the $1 billion commitment made by Norway back in 2010. 'The $50 million for the BRG in 2016 is a part of the Letter of Intent with Norway in the second phase [of the project],' he said on Wednesday. The total amount of funds that Norway aims to distribute in the second phase of the agreement is $140 million. The Indonesia-Norway REDD+ cooperation is divided into three phases; the first being the preparation stage, the second the transformation stage and the last the contributions-for-verified emission reductions, in which Norway will deliver $800 million dependant on Indonesia reducing its emissions caused by deforestation. The third phase was supposed to begin in 2014. However, the Indonesian government has not completed the second phase yet as it still does not have a comprehensive Integrated Measurement, Reporting and Verification (MRV) system, which is mandated by the agreement as well as the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). 'Of all the things that we discussed with Ibu Siti today, it is critical to make progress on the MRV and we'll be working on that starting next week, putting our teams together to complete that process,' Helgesen said. Presidential spokesman Johan Budi said Norway's commitment reflected the trust of other countries in Indonesia's efforts to protect peatland. 'We must act seriously in managing forests and peatland, especially in the future,' Johan added. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 The Free Papua Movement (OPM) has denied that hundreds of rounds of ammunition, firearms and explosives confiscated by police during a raid on Wednesday night belonged to the organization, and have accused the authorities of staging the arms find. OPM spokesman Saul J. Bomay said the OPM did not have the funds to purchase such an amount of weaponry. "The raid was set up by the security forces to increase tension in Papua ," he told kompas.com on Thursday. Officers from the Papua Police and Jayapura Police raided two houses in Pos VII and Doyo Baru in Sentani in Jayapura regency on Wednesday at 7:20 p.m. The owners of the properties have been identified as Werius Enumbi, 32, Dorce Enumbi, 48, and Simson Tabun, 31. They are currently being questioned at Jayapura Police precinct. In the raids police seized 241 rounds of ammunition, two firearms and a replica gun, four pipe-bombs, a flag of the West Papua National Committee, a laptop and a mobile phone, kompas.com reported. OPM secretary general Anthon Tabuni claimed that the Indonesian Military (TNI) had staged many incidents purportedly involving the OPM, citing 10 Puncak Jaya residents described as OPM members who were reported to have surrendered to authorities last week. Local media reported earlier this month that 10 former members of the OPM/National Liberation Army surrendered to the authorities and had requested amnesty from the government because they had grown weary of fighting. Jayapura Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Sondang Siagian said the raids were a follow-up to case of illegal firearms possession by a college student named Roberth Sambon on Feb. 2. (rin)(+) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Raras Cahyafitri (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 Pertamina will buy crude oil from several oil contractors operating in the country in a bid to secure the national energy supply, with the state oil company now negotiating a lower price. Under an existing production sharing contract (PSC) scheme, the output from oil fields is divided between the government and the companies operating the fields. The government is usually entitled to 85 percent of oil output and operators are entitled to the remaining 15 percent. The operators are free to deliver their oil production anywhere, either to the spot market or to their affiliated refinery networks worldwide. Pertamina is considering buying the oil operators' portions for domestic use. Pertamina president director Dwi Soetjipto said on Tuesday that the company was currently in price negotiations with a number of oil and gas companies that hold significant stakes in crude production in the country. 'As long as the price is lower than the price we have to pay for imports, we will purchase the crude. We are expecting to secure deals within this first quarter,' Dwi said. He said, however, that negotiations would take time because the oil companies would first have to settle earlier contracts with buyers. The plan to buy from the oil contractors is part of Pertamina's efforts to reduce huge imports of the commodity and its related products, which has hurt the country's trade balance. Most oil companies working in the country only run production businesses while the trading of the commodity is handled by their parent firms' trading arms, which run businesses overseas, such as in Singapore. Therefore, if Pertamina wants to buy their oil shares, it has to settle the issue with Singapore-based trading arms, meaning that the product will be seen as an imported commodity. Such imports are subject to 3 percent tax. The Upstream Oil and Gas Regulatory Special Task Force (SKKMigas) earlier made an appeal to the Finance Ministry to waive the 3 percent tax. However, Finance Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro rejected the appeal, saying such an exemption would not be prudent. Indonesia produces around 800,000 barrels of oil per day (bopd) but the country's demand is equal to 1.6 million barrels per day. Therefore, the country, which recently reactivated its membership in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), depends on imports. Meanwhile, Pertamina inked on Tuesday contracts to import liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes with France's Total SA. Under the deal, Total will purchase Pertamina's contracted Corpus Christi LNG at between 0.4 million to 1 million tons per year starting from 2020. In return, Total will supply LNG cargoes to Pertamina of the same volume from the French's firm assets. Total has not revealed which of its fields will supply Pertamina in the exchange. The deal will last for 15 years. 'These agreements allow the group to further expand its longstanding cooperation with Pertamina and to enhance both companies' LNG portfolios. Strengthening our presence in Asia, in particular through innovative relationships with new LNG buyers such as Pertamina, is an important part of our strategy,' Total's president for gas Laurent Vivier said in a written statement. Pertamina and Corpus Christi Liquefaction LLC reached a deal in 2013 and 2014 for the sale and purchase of 1.52 million tons per year of LNG. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Agnes Anya (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 Taking responsibility for road accidents has been a difficult issue for motorists in the capital due to threats from irritated bystanders at the scene of accidents. Khairul Darwonto, 28, for example, said that he once wanted to run away after he hit a motorcyclist with his car on a road in West Jakarta. He added that he did not want to avoid taking responsibility, but he feared he would be beaten by several men approaching with angry looks. 'They urged me to get out of the car by banging on the hood. In that moment, I could not think clearly and I thought that running away would save my life,' Khairul said. 'However, I realized I shouldn't run away. I had to help the victim.' Khairul said that he eventually rushed the victim, who had injuries to her right arm and leg, to the nearest hospital in his car after he talked to the angry men with a calm yet convincing voice. He asked the men to calm down and give him some space and time because he wanted to take her to the hospital. Khairul admitted that such a heated situation tended to discourage motorists from taking responsibility when they were involved in road accidents. 'Knowing you have hurt someone in an accident already makes you anxious. Angry witnesses only make it worse,' Khairul added. He hoped that people in the capital should learn how to deal with accidents wisely, instead of making the situation worse. Motorists' fear of dealing with road accidents has partly contributed to an increase in hit-and-run cases in the last two years, according to head of law enforcement of the Jakarta Police's traffic division Adj. Sr. Comr. Budiyanto. The Jakarta Police recently reported that of 6,231 cases of road accidents last year, 1,806, 29 percent, were hit-and-runs. The number of hit-and-run cases in 2015 was 16 percent higher than the figure for 2014, when 1,514 hit-and-run cases were reported. Budiyanto said that of the 1,806 hit-and-run cases last year, 167 people died, 714 suffered major injuries and 1,013 incurred minor injuries. Budiyanto said that many hit-and-run perpetrators sought to evade responsibility because they did not want to deal with the police and receive penalties. However, Budiyanto added that the police also acknowledged that some ran away because they were afraid of being beaten by an angry mob. He went on to suggest that motorists try to remain calm when they are involved in an accident so that they will be able to act appropriately if they are in a heated situation involving an angry mob. He urged motorists not to flee after being involved in accidents as doing so could incur punishments of three years behind bars or a maximum fine of Rp 75 million (US$5,446) in accordance with Article 231 Paragraph 1a, b, and c of Law No. 22/2009 on traffic and road transportation. Budiyanto said that in the case of a motorist hitting someone, he or she should not only bring any victims to the nearest hospital, but should also report the incident to the police. He told The Jakarta Post that he once helped a motorist who was being chased by an angry mob. The motorist ran to a police station where Budiyanto was working. The motorist explained that he was about to help the victim but witnesses had attacked him. Budiyanto said that he and some other police officers then tried to calm the angry men by giving them details about the incident. 'For safety reasons, we suggest motorists find the nearest police station if they find themselves in such a situation,' Budiyanto said. 'Please, tell the police what happened so that the officers can help.' _____________________________________ Traffic accidents 2015 Total accidents: 6,231 Hit and run: 1,806 (29%) 2014 Total accidents: 7,119 Hit and run: 1,514 (21%) 2013 Total accidents: 5,991 Hit and run: 1,579 (26%) _____________________________________________ To receive comprehensive and earlier access to The Jakarta Post print edition, please subscribe to our epaper through iOS' iTunes, Android's Google Play, Blackberry World or Microsoft's Windows Store. Subscription includes free daily editions of The Nation, The Star Malaysia, the Philippine Daily Inquirer and Asia News. For print subscription, please contact our call center at (+6221) 5360014 or subscription@thejakartapost.com Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Jakarta Thu, February 4, 2016 As hospitals in Jakarta and the surrounding cities fill up with dengue fever patients amid intensifying rain, residents of Greater Jakarta have been urged to clean up their environment to eliminate mosquito breeding places. Jakarta Governor Basuki 'Ahok' Tjahaja Purnama called on residents of the capital, including those in luxurious houses, to allow health officers to ensure that their properties were free from mosquito larvae. 'I have received reports that dengue fever cases in plush residences were increasing because rich people are reluctant to allow health officers to carry out surveillance. Mosquitoes breed not only in dirty water, but also in clean water,' Ahok stressed as reported by kompas.com. The dengue fever virus is carried by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which also happens to be the host of the Zika virus currently hitting many Latin American countries. Fighting the diseases must start from cutting the life circle of the mosquitoes by preventing the insects from laying their eggs, which could occur in bathtubs or swimming pools, but also in any barrels, drums, jars, pots or buckets storing rainwater. The Health Ministry has called on all stakeholders to join efforts in eliminating possible breeding spots and conducting fogging to kill mosquitoes and their larvae. According to Jakarta Health Agency data, the number of dengue fever cases has increased during this rainy season. As of Dec. 31, the number of registered dengue patients reached 611, compared to 443 cases in the previous year. Similarly, in Tangerang regency, the occurrence of dengue is particularly high this rainy season. 'The number of dengue patients from January up to today [Thursday] reached 355,' said Tangerang Health Agency head Naniek Isnaini on Thursday, adding that that was about twice as many cases as last year. Meanwhile, in East Jakarta, the number of dengue patients amounted to 157 in January, compared to 76 cases registered in the same month last year. 'Since early January, the number of dengue patients is on the rise,' said East Jakarta Health office head Irwan Kurniawan. (bbn)(+) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Apriadi Gunawan (The Jakarta Post) Medan Thu, February 4, 2016 The North Sumatra Natural Resources Conservation Agency (BKSDA) expressed pessimism on Wednesday that two-year prison sentences given by a court to three tiger pelt sellers would help to decrease similar crimes. The agency's protection, preservation and mapping section head Joko Iswanto said the sentences were too lenient. He expected the panel of judges to sentence the three defendants to the maximum penalty of five years to have a deterrent effect on others. 'With the two-year sentences I am pessimistic that it will affect the government's efforts to control the illegal trade of Sumatran tiger skins,' Joko told The Jakarta Post. He said that, based on the cases his office had handled, no perpetrators had been sentenced to the maximum. In a previous case in Medan in 2012, the perpetrator was sentenced to only a year in prison. Joko said the government needed to revise the punishment for perpetrators cited in Law No. 5/1990 on natural resources and ecosystem conservation so it carried a minimum penalty of five years in prison. 'I am sure that if the minimum penalty for the illegal trade of rare animals was five years, the activity [...] would decrease because the perpetrators would be afraid [of the possible penalties],' Joko said. He added that the trade of Sumatran tiger pelts remained strong in North Sumatra. Joko said perpetrators operated in subdistricts close to Mount Leuser National Park (TNGL), while buyers were based in Medan. The Medan District Court on Tuesday sentenced Gunawan Kacaribu, 24, M. Said Ali Raden Gusnoh, 39, and Suroyo, 30, to two years in prison each and fined them Rp 10 million (US$714) for trading Sumatran tiger skins. All three hail from Langkat regency, North Sumatra. The sentences were more lenient than those demanded by prosecutors, who sought two-and-a-half years' imprisonment and Rp 10 million fines for each of the defendants. Judge Marsudin Nainggolan said the panel of judges did not find anything to mitigate the criminal elements in the case. The defendants obtained a tiger skin from Eka Sembiring for Rp 1.5 million. Each contributed Rp 500,000 to buy the product from Eka, who trapped the animal in the border area of TNGL. After buying the pelt, Marsudin said, the three planned to sell it to buyer Rian, who had ordered it by phone, for Rp 7 million. The three were arrested by forest rangers at a hotel in Binjai on Sept. 14, 2015. The rangers also seized a tiger skin as evidence. Responding to the verdicts, the three defendants said they accepted their punishment. The prosecutors also accepted the sentences. Meanwhile in Bengkalis regency, Riau, a female wild Sumatran elephant was found dead by locals not far from a housing complex in Balai Raja subdistrict, Pinggir district, on Wednesday at about 6 a.m. Nature Lovers Association (Hipam) Duri-Riau chairman Zulhusni Syukri said that after checking the animal, Hipam workers found no indication of violence on the body of the adult elephant. 'All parts of its body were intact,' Zulhusni said. Separately, BKSDA Duri's Region III section head Haluanto Ginting said veterinarians and investigators had been sent to investigate the elephant's cause of death. 'A necropsy has to be done. We will have its internal organs examined at the laboratory,' said Haluanto, indicating the possibility that the elephant may have been poisoned. He expressed hope that locals would act wisely when dealing with wild elephants to prevent deaths. Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin Hyung-Jin Kim (The Jakarta Post) Seoul, South Korea Thu, February 4, 2016 South Korea said Thursday it has detected preparations by rival North Korea to fire a long-range rocket and warned that Seoul will shoot down any rocket parts flying over South Korean territory. North Korea told international organizations Tuesday that it will launch an observation satellite aboard a rocket between Feb. 8 and 25. South Korea, the United States and others call the plans a cover for a banned test of a missile that could strike the U.S. mainland. The launch announcement follows an outpouring of global condemnation over the North's fourth nuclear test on Jan. 6. Seoul and Washington have also denounced the rocket launch plan, but if North Korea's past patterns are any clue, angry warnings probably won't dissuade a coming launch. South Korean defense officials said Thursday that the North is pushing ahead with the launch plans at its Tongchang-ri launch site on its west coast. They refused to provide details because they said they involve confidential intelligence on the North. Recent commercial satellite images showed an increased number of vehicles at North Korea's Sohae launch station on Feb. 1, compared to a week earlier. This suggests that the North is preparing for a space launch in coming weeks, according to 38 North, a North Korea-focused website run by the U.S-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. However, the website said it was impossible to tell from the satellite imagery whether a space launch vehicle was present. South Korean and US officials said a launch would threaten regional security and violate UN Security Council resolutions that ban the North from engaging in any nuclear and ballistic activities. Diplomats at the UN Security Council have already pledged to pursue fresh sanctions on North Korea over its recent nuclear test. South Korea's president on Thursday called for strong UN sanctions that will make North Korea realize it cannot survive if it does not abandon its weapons programs. There are questions, however, over whether any sanctions will force real change in the North because China, the North's last major ally and a veto-wielding U.N. Security Council member, is reluctant to join in any harsh punishment against the North. Beijing on Wednesday urged restraint over North Korea's announcement of its launch plans, and expressed skepticism over the U.S. calls for tough new sanctions. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, a former South Korean foreign minister, said the announcement "will further aggravate the profound concerns that the international community already has in the wake of the recent nuclear test," a spokesman said. In South Korea and Japan, there are fears about falling debris, although nothing landed in their territories during the North's most recent launches. Seoul officials estimated the first stage of the rocket would fall off the west coast of South Korea, more debris would land near the South's Jeju Island, and the second stage would land off the Philippines' east coast. Moon Sang Gyun, a spokesman at Seoul's Defense Ministry, said Thursday that South Korea would fire missiles to intercept any fragments of the North's rocket if they threaten to fall on its territories. Seoul issued similar plans before the North's previous rocket launches in recent years. North Korea has spent decades trying to develop operational nuclear weapons along with missiles capable of striking the mainland United States. North Korea's last long-range rocket launch, in December 2012, was seen as having successfully put the country's first satellite into orbit after a string of failures. Each new rocket launch improves North Korea's missile technology, which is crucial for its goal of developing a nuclear-armed missile capable of hitting the U.S. mainland. North Korea, an autocracy run by the same family since 1948, is estimated to have a handful of crude nuclear devices and an impressive array of short- and medium-range missiles, but it closely guards details about its nuclear and missile programs. This means there is considerable debate about whether it can produce nuclear bombs small enough to place on a missile, or missiles that can reliably deliver their bombs to faraway targets. ___ Associated Press writer Kim Tong-hyung in Seoul contributed to this report. (**) Share this article Whatsapp Facebook Twitter Linkedin The Jakarta Post Thu, February 4, 2016 WORDS AND PHOTOS ANGGARA MAHENDRA The Honda C70, famously known as the Super Cub, is one of the most loved and best-selling models ever produced by the Japanese motorcycle giant. So iconic is the model that more than 50 years after the first C70 came off the assembly line, it still has a huge cultist following across the globe. In Indonesia, the C70 enthusiasts, grouped in several associations and with a Facebook group boasting 70,000 members, fondly call the model by many monikers, ranging from seven ceblok (ceblok is the slank word for zero), cetul (an acronym for C tujuh puluh), to pitung (from the Javanese word for seven). In Bali, the umbrella organization for C70 enthusiasts and owners is proudly called Bebek Lingsir Bali, literally 'Bali's Elderly Ducks', clearly inspired by the locals' old grouping of motorcycle models into motor muani for 'macho' sport and street motorcycles and motor bebek (duck) for the more feminine-looking C70 and all its variants and wanna-bes produced by other manufacturers. Last Sunday, Bebek Lingsir Bali celebrated its first anniversary at a waterpark in Sidembunut, Bangli. It was a jolly affair that saw hundreds of local C70 lovers meet and swap stories with C70 riders from Lombok, Banyuwangi, Lamongan and Malang. Being a motorcycle event, the highlight was obviously the pre- and post-gathering joint ride. Unlike a joint ride for sport or muscle bikes, in which speed is the key parameter, the C70 ride was all about leisure and enjoyment. The C70 is a small displacement motorcycle and was never designed to be a speed demon. 'It's never been about speed, we ride the C70 because we enjoy the comfort it provides and the opportunity it offers to enjoy the scenery,' one enthusiast said. Were four days away from Super Bowl Sunday, as well as Lunar New Year Eve. But theres another big event on the Lower East Side Sunday: a key meeting of the citys Democratic Party to choose former Assemblyman Sheldon Silvers successor. There are several developments to pass along today regarding the battle for the 65th Assembly District seat. First, Community Board 3 Chairperson Gigi Li kicked off her campaign last night with a fundraiser at Silk Road Cafe on Mott Street. She picked up the endorsement of City Council member Margaret Chin and support from a range of community activists. They included Wellington Chen of the Chinatown Partnership, former CB3 member John Leo and Alysha Lewis-Coleman, another CB3 leader and tenant activist. In brief remarks, Li emphasized her local roots (years spent in Chinese school on Mott Street and at IS 131). She listed a number of priorities, including expanded social services in general, more programs for seniors, better quality schools and a renewed focus on maintaining and building affordable housing. Li is director of the Neighborhood Family Services Coalition and is the first Asian to head Community Board 3. I have the experience and the dedication to deliver for the district, said Li. She highlighted her past advocacy for after school programs and for government aid in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Last summer, Li withdrew her candidacy for district leader after failing to collect enough signatures to earn a spot on the ballot. She was accused by the incumbent, Jenifer Rajkumar, of fraudulently obtaining signatures. Rajkumar is one of several other candidates now vying for Silvers former Assembly seat. Last night, Council member Chin reportedly acknowledged the controversy, but said shes convinced Li has the dedication and experience to represent Lower Manhattan in Albany. Today another candidate, Yuh-Line Niou, secured a significant endorsement, that of former New York City Comptroller John Liu. While Lius mayoral bid was derailed by a campaign finance controversy, he remains a popular figure in Chinatown. Niou is currently chief of staff for Assemblyman Ron Kim of Flushing. In a statement, Liu said, Yuh-Lines commitment to public service, her passion as a community advocate, her national experience along with her extensive knowledge of the workings of state government make (her) the voice lower Manhattan needs in Albany. This afternoon, Niou paid a visit to the Chinese Chamber of Commerce, a more than 100-year-old civic organization located within the Confucius Plaza complex on the Bowery. She was accompanied by Virginia Kee, founder of the United Democratic Organization (UDO). The Chinatown-based political club is offering important support to Niou, a fairly new resident of the Financial District. Jenny Low, a district leader, was also at the candidates side during todays meet-and-greet. The Chamber of Commerce does not endorse candidates for public office, but its standard practice for office-seekers to appear before the organization as a gesture of respect. Speaking before a small group of local reporters, Niou said shes running to utilize the experience gained in 15 years of public service. No candidate competing for the seat, she argued, can match her Albany know-how. There were more campaign developments today. In a statement, candidate John Bal withdrew from the race, saying, I can no longer participate in a blatantly undemocratic process to replace former Assemblyman Silver. It is unfortunate that other candidates are not troubled by the lack of democratic process. On Saturday, Governor Cuomo called a special election to fill the Assembly seat, which Silver was forced to vacate after being found guilty on federal corruption charges. On Sunday, 186 members of the Democratic County Committee will chose the partys nominee. That person will run in a general election April 19. Committee members are tied to four local political clubs. Its a disappointment that Gov. Cuomo called for a Special Election, which strongly favors political clubs and excludes community participation, said Bal. Finally, we have a few more details about Sundays County Committee meeting. A Democratic Party spokesperson confirms the members will gather at 2 p.m. at the Manny Cantor Center, located at 197 East Broadway. Theyll be asked to fill out a first ballot with their pick. Votes will continue to take place until one candidate garners a majority of the committee (50% plus 1). One other note: the votes are weighted, meaning that not every committee member has the same influence over the final result. Not everyone is pleased with the timing of Sundays meeting. In Chinatown today, District Leader Jenny Low noted that Sunday is not only the Super Bowl but an important evening for Chinese families. Its the start of Lunar New Year celebrations. The County Committee was forced to call a meeting within 7 days of Cuomos declaration. Dragging people out to vote on this day, she said, creates an unfortunate and frustrating situation for the community. In addition to Gigi Li, Yuh-Line Niou and Jenifer Rajkumar, other candidates for the Assembly seat include Don Lee, Paul Newell and Alice Cancel. The winner of the April special election will face re-election later this year during the regularly scheduled September primary. All of the candidates have indicated theyre committed to soldiering on even if theyre not chosen by the County committee this coming weekend. Sundays meeting is open to the public. UPDATE 8:30 p.m. In a story published this evening, the New York Post alleges that Yuh-Line Niou could be ineligible to run for the Assembly seat. An election lawyer for rival candidate Jenifer Rajkumar told the tabloid, This is a real issue. Niou doesnt meet the (five year) residency requirement. The attorney, Sarah Steiner, added, Well challenge her eligibility if shes nominated by the Democratic Party. Referencing unnamed sources, the Post, reported that Niou came to New York from Seattle in 2010 to pursue a masters degree through a National Urban Fellowship at Baruch College and lived briefly on Staten Island. The fellowship reportedly required her to be in Washington, D.C. some of the time. Sources told the newspaper that Niou did not establish a continuous residence in New York until December 2011. Martin Connor, Nious lawyer, said in response to the story, This is bull. Shes got plenty of documents showing that she lived in New York and meets the five year residency requirement. The large debt burden of companies is one of the key factors hindering the resumption of crediting in the country, Governor of the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) Valeriya Gontareva has said. "We have a reason the large debt of business on credits. At present, the ratio between the debt and operating profit in all sectors, apart from agriculture and mining industry, is 5%," she said at a meeting of the profile parliamentary committee in Kyiv on Wednesday. Gontareva said that the low ratio is evidence that operating profit of borrowers is not enough to cover credit rates. "If in mining and metal sector the ratio between the debt and EBITDA was three or four times, this was normal [with attraction of new credits]. For retail companies the ratio could be five times. If today it reaches 20 times, how a bank can issue a new credit to a company? To have it 30 or what?" she said. She said that Ukrainian enterprises need some time to restructure their debts to banks. "Clients also should have time to restructure their debts, as we gave three years to banks to increase their capital. Banks have time to settle the issue with their clients," Gontareva said. The National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) has facilitated the requirements for the comprehensive analysis and verification of information on financial transactions and their participants to buy foreign currency to send it abroad, the regulator has reported on its website. According to the report, the NBU sent letter No. 25-0005/8349 to banks. From now on the requirements for the comprehensive analysis do not apply to transactions under contracts signed by residents with international companies from the Forbes Global 2000 list and payments between Ukrainian entities and foreign entities under international agreements signed by Ukraine. The requirements also do not apply to transactions carried out to pay on liabilities in the sum not exceeding UAH 150,000 per transaction. The NBU also permitted banks to form one conclusion per contract and not to verify each transaction under the contract. The availability of contracts foreseeing supply of works or services to the customs territory of other countries was removed from the indicators of suspicious financial transactions. However, the supply of products to the customs territory of other countries is still among these indicators. With several efficient appointments in key government positions it will be possible to break Ukraine's corruption system without a new revolution, Ukraine's Economic Development and Trade Minister Aivaras Abromavicius said after announcing on Wednesday his decision to resign over the impossibility of conducting reforms under current circumstances. "There is no need for revolutions. A few people who really want to break everything and change everything, to appoint [them] to very responsible positions," the minister told Interfax. So far it has proved impossible to end lawlessness not only in state companies but in the courts and prosecution offices as well, he said. "Look at the State Fiscal Service. The simplest requirement is: if you export, you pay the VAT on time and in full, no kickbacks. But it still continues," the minister said. The problem lies not only in parliamentarian Ihor Kononenko who is just one of the actors in the current system, he said. The minister said that when he joined the government he was expecting problems with "red directors" and former Party of Regions members, but a big surprise was that some of the new politicians "started getting into state companies." Abromavicius said he hopes his tough announcement of resignation will serve as a cold shower for the country's leaders so that Ukraine can continue moving further towards becoming a democracy. In his view, nothing has changed fundamentally. "We are either two steps away from breakthrough or two steps away from failure. Some of the future government appointments will have a very, very strong effect on where we are moving further to," said Abromavicius, calling for the technocratic ministers to remain in government. Commenting on his relations with Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk, the minister described them as "pure business." "I don't have any sufficient access to him," he said. Abromavicius said he had discussed with Yatseniuk replacing the top management at Electrotyazhmash and United Mining and Chemical Company "where everything is supplied through middleman firms." He said that late last December he asked the government to sack United Mining and Chemical Company chief Ruslan Zhurylo. One of top priorities of NAB not to allow reduction of value of state-owned companies One of the top-priority tasks of the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NAB) is not to allow the reduction of the value of state-owned enterprises in the privatization process and stop money laundering, NAB Director Artem Sytnyk said at a meeting with a delegation of the heads of parliaments of Northern Europe and Baltic states in Kyiv. "Why do we pay large attention to corruption at state-run enterprises? Due to privatization. Now state funds are being removed via offshore and blank check companies and the value of state-run enterprises for their privatization is reduced. Our task is to stop this," Sytnyk said. He said that the audit is to be conducted to reveal possible violation of law during the privatization of state-run enterprises after the completion of the privatization process. He said that the loss of state-owned enterprises in Ukraine is gradually falling, and the situation in combating corruption is evidence of this. "Public attention is fixed on the operation of state-run enterprises, including the attention of civil society and media. There are many journalists' materials that give grounds for further investigations by the NAB," Sytnyk said. The Ukrainian army has reported an attack on the closed Zaitseve checkpoint in the Horlivka suburb, which is situated on the contact line in the conflict zone. The army said the attack happened after Kyiv closed the checkpoint on February 3, because of shelling incidents. The militants "fired over 150 mines from 120mm and 82mm mortars banned by the Minsk agreements" on the positions of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in the towns of Zaitseve, and Mayorsk, in the early hours of February 4, the army operation press center wrote on Facebook. It said that similar activity had been observed in other areas, including Kominternove, in the Mariupol sector, and Triokhizbenka, in the Luhansk region. The Zaitseve checkpoint was closed on February 3, in accordance with the decision of the Ukrainian army operation staff. Captain of diver slashing speedboat charged PHUKET: The captain of the speedboat that struck and severely injured two Russian divers in Koh Phi Phi's Maya Bay yesterday (Feb 3) has been charged Krabi Police have confirmed. crimemarinetransport By Matt Pond Thursday 4 February 2016, 05:57PM Sergei Dmitriev, 30, whose right leg was nearly severed entirely by the speedboat propeller has since had it amputated and been taken to Bangkok for further treatment. Photo: Krabi Tourist Rescue Centre Meanwhile, the victim whose leg was nearly sliced completely through has since had it amputated and been flown to Bangkok for further treatment. Pol Col Sompong Tiparpakul, chief of Muang Krabi Police Station confirmed that Adisorn Benmamud, 27, has initially been charged with careless driving causing injury. However, additional charges could be added if it is found that he and the boat do not have proper licences. Sergei Dmitriev, 30, and Dmitry Kuryanov, 48, were struck by the propeller of the speedboat Sunsan 2 when they resurfaced from their dive at Maya Bay at about 10:30am, said Nitiphat Mongkolpradit of the Krabi Tourist Rescue Centre. (See story here) Mr Dimitriev had his right leg cut off from the knee down, and all toes on his left foot were also severed in the accident. The Russian embassy today (Feb 4) sent a chartered flight with medical personnel on board to transport Mr Dmitriev from Bangkok Phuket Hospital to Vejthani Hospital in Bangkok for further treatment. He was reported to remain in a critical condition. Mr Kuryanov suffered three major lacerations and a fractured bone in his right calf. He remained in Krabi hospital. Benmamud told police that he had more than 30 passengers on board the Sunsan 2 yesterday and that when he came to the entrance to Nang Bay he felt that he had hit something so reverse the boat. He noticed the oxygen tank floating to the surface then saw blood and the two injured divers so contacted local officials for help. He insisted that the area is the route that boats use to travel in and out of Maya Bay and that it is not usually an area where people swim, police have said. Additional reporting Eakkapop Thongtub and Bangkok Post. New Year glow for Chinas lantern capital CHINA: Carefully steadying the gleaming red lantern between her knees, a worker applied the Chinese character for wealth in golden glitter one of the millions that will illuminate the forthcoming Lunar New Year. cultureChinese By AFP Thursday 4 February 2016, 05:05PM Workers make red lanterns at a factory in the village of Tuntou, in Hebei province southwest of Beijing, for the up coming Lunar New Year celebrations on Feb 8. Photo: AFP A high wooden arch at the entrance to the snowy village of Tuntou, in Hebei province southwest of Beijing, proclaims it the lantern capital of the Peoples Republic. Bai Liwei, the villages Communist Party leader, said prouldly: 80 to 90 per cent of the lanterns used in China come from here. For the past two months, the town has been churning out the pumpkin-shaped lamps in preparation for the biggest holiday of the year in the worlds most populous country. Known as the Spring Festival in China, the holiday, which falls on February 8 on this occasion, compares in importance to Christmas in the West, and marks a time when for far-flung family members return home for merriment and meals according to tradition, they must be back by midnight on the eve of the new year. Tuntou village has specialised in artisanal lantern-making for nearly 40 years. It is not the site of enormous factories, instead the industry is driven by a number of private workshops in which families concentrate on the production of a single lantern element their spindly metal frames, the exterior skin of fabric or silk, the decorative inscriptions. At the back of one assembly unit, high piles of nearly completed lanterns awaited processing, while workers wielded wooden canes to lift others high off the ground to dangle delicately from the ceiling. The colour red symbolises luck and happiness in Chinese culture, and the lanterns are omnipresent throughout towns and countryside, trotted out at most important occasions: marriages, business openings, and most of all the Lunar New Year, which generally falls in late January or early to mid February. Outside of the peak holiday season, we also receive special requests: giant models, for example, or orders to decorate the Forbidden City in Beijing, explained Bai. Tens of millions of lanterns are produced each year and all or almost all of them are sold. A portion is exported to Southeast Asia, the US or Japan. Its become an economic pillar for the village. Traditionally, positive Chinese characters such as happiness, peace, and family are painted on their sides. But in recent years their inscriptions have become increasingly political. The majority of these lanterns are decorated with one of the twelve socialist core values promoted by President Xi Jinping, said Bai. In Chinese homes across the country, this new year will be ushered in by concepts including democracy, freedom, equality, rule of law, and patriotism. Pattaya cops bust 32 elderly foreigners for playing bridge CHONBURI: A group elderly foreigners were arrested and fined B5,000 each for playing bridge in Pattaya. crimepolice By Bangkok Post Thursday 4 February 2016, 04:09PM Police said those arrested included 12 British nationals, three Norwegians, three Swedes, two Australians, a German, a Dane, a Canadian, a New Zealander and a Dutch and Irish national. Local police and Bang Lamung district officials raided a Pattaya & Jomtien Bridge Club meeting above a restaurant off Thapprya Road in the resort city yesterday (Feb 3), taking into custody 32 people, mostly British nationals, and holding them until 3am. Pattaya police chief Sukthat Pumpunmuang said today (Feb 4) that the raid was sparked by a member of the public complaining to the governments anti-corruption centre. It was initiated by district officials, local media said, not by Pattaya police. The chairman of the bridge club is arguing that they were not gambling [for money], Pol Col Sukthat said. Local media today reported that police later acknowledged that no money was involved in the bridge games, but that the arrests were made because the meeting violated Section 8 of the Playing Cards Act of 1935 which prohibits the possession of more than 120 playing cards at one time. The decks of cards used reportedly also lacked official government seals. Pol Col Sukthat added that all but one of those arrested were freed on B5,000 bail after 12 hours in custody. The final person was unable to pay bail and remains in jail. Police said those arrested included 12 British nationals, three Norwegians, three Swedes, two Australians, a German, a Dane, a Canadian, a New Zealander and a Dutch and Irish national. The other nationalities were not made public. A British embassy spokesman said officials were in contact with local authorities following the arrest of several British nationals. The bridge club is a venue popular with elderly foreign players that advertises publicly and meets three times a week above a restaurant. It has been in operation since 1994. Local media said this afternoon that police have deferred further legal action, pending more investigation, and that a representative of the Contract Bridge League of Thailand was travelling to Pattaya to educate police on the rules of bridge, specifically that it is played for points, not money. Read original story here. Phuket health officials on alert for Mers, Zika PHUKET: Despite not a single case reported on the island, health officials are on alert to prevent any possible outbreak of the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Mers) or the strains of the Zika virus in Phuket, Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada announced yesterday (Feb 3). healthtourism By The Phuket News Thursday 4 February 2016, 12:58PM Phuket Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada told the press that health officials were on alert to prevent Mers and Zika outbreaks. Photo: PR Dept The Public Health Ministry issued a warning to all provinces to be aware of the possibility of a Mers outbreak following a 71-year-old Omani man being confirmed as infected with Mers arriving in Thailand on January 23, he said. Regardless, the Phuket Provincial Health Office (PPHO) ramped up health security measures at the airport and hotlines have been set up so people can report any instances of people believed to be carrying or infected with either of the two infectious diseases, he said. Dr Krit Sakulpat of the PPHO explained added, Phuket health officials are keeping an eye on arrivals at the airport, piers and main bus terminal. Any people arriving from risk countries who within 14 days develop any flu-like symptoms, such as fever, cough, running nose or sore throat, must see doctor right away. A total of 31 people in Phuket had been checked for possible Mers infections, but all were found to be clear of the disease, he added. However, if you know you are at risk, please wear a mask and report yourself to health officials by calling 1669 or 1422, Dr Krit said. Likewise, any people who suspect they may be carrying the Zika virus are urged to report themselves, PPHO Chief Dr Buncha Kakhawng told The Phuket News yesterday. The Zika virus is not a serious situation in Phuket, but we are keeping an eye on arrivals from Latin America, he said. The incubation period is four to seven days, during which infected persons will develop a fever, rashes, joint pain and conjunctivitis, similar to dengue fever. The virus is suspected to be especially dangerous to pregnant women, he added. It can affect the fetus and cause brain shrinkage or death, Dr Bancha said. Any persons concerned that they may contacted the virus were urged to present themselves at the nearest government hospital in Patong, Thalang or Phuket Town for diagnosis, he added. Additional reporting by Tanyaluk Sakoot Phuket's Nui Beach club still open, despite heat from Navy PHUKET: The Nui Bay Member Club, raided three times by the Royal Thai Navy and with one building demolished because it stood on the sand at Nui Beach, remains open to trade while the Phuket Provincial Office reviews its appeal. Thursday 4 February 2016, 04:18PM Nui Beach Member Club is now promoting itself on Facebook as 'Nui beach', still open for business. Photo: Facebook / About Rawai Nui Beach Member Club is now promoting itself on Facebook as 'Nui beach', still open for business. Photo: Facebook / About Rawai Nui Beach Member Club is now promoting itself on Facebook as 'Nui beach', still open for business. Photo: Facebook / About Rawai Nui Beach Member Club is now promoting itself on Facebook as 'Nui beach', still open for business. Photo: Facebook / About Rawai The club remaining open flies in the face of demolition orders issued last year, giving the owner seven days to demolish the clubs buildings by July 15, 2015. (See story here.) Yet the club posted promotional material complete with photos on Facebook on Monday (Feb 1), saying, The restaurant, massage, diving, snorkeling, kayaking, fly boarding, donut boating; all this awaits you on this bay. The entry fee is 350 baht and children under 12 enter free. (See here.) Lt Sompop Kamkhana of the Royal Thai Navy, who led the raids last year, told The Phuket News this week that he was aware that the club was still open. The owner of the business filed an appeal, claiming that due legal process was not observed (in issuing the demolition notices), he said. The case is under review by the Phuket Provincial Office, he added. As requested, I filed the evidence supporting the decision to demolish the building on January 21. We are still waiting to hear the results (of the appeal), which we should receive by early March. Lt Sompop remained confident that the club will be brought under the law. After all the illegal buildings are demolished, we will resolve the problem of them charging an entrance fee, too. We have already sent a request to the Agricultural Land Reform Office to build a public path to the beach for everyone to use freely. Asked why no public path to the beach already exists, he answered, I have no idea. I have asked many people, but nobody knows. Nui Bay Member Club has a long, notorious history among many previous visitors, including many claims by foreign visitors of threats and intimidation by staff members there. In the initial raid, when Navy security personnel, police and senior provincial officials arrived at the site in February last year, officers arrested Jakkapong Sawadtawee, 30, a member of staff at the club who tried to flee in his car. (See story here.) Navy men chased him down in their own car and forced him to stop. In his car they found a Glock 9mm semi-automatic pistol and the equipment for smoking crystal meth. (See story here.) That raid followed complaints from local people that staff of the Nui Bay Member Club had barred them from walking to the beach unless they paid a fee, and had fired shots to threaten them. Regime clamps down on foreign journos BANGKOK: Concerned over its international image, the ruling junta has tightened its rules on foreign media working in Thailand, prompting the denial of work permits for some foreign journalists. politicsmilitary By Bangkok Post Thursday 4 February 2016, 09:28AM Thai and foreign media set their camera to record the announcement of the draft constitution at the parliament yesterday (Feb 3). (Photo by Seksan Rojjanametakun) The move comes amid new attempts by the regime to buttress its image abroad. Foreign correspondents and activists voiced concerns about the juntas restrictions on the press corp yesterday (Feb 3), after a foreign cartoonist who worked as a freelancer for The Nation newspaper for 16 years reported his work permit extension was denied on Tuesday (Feb 2). Although his case can be resolved, it has become more difficult for foreign journalists to renew their media accreditation since the 2014 coup, said Jonathan Head, president of the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand (FCCT) and a BBC correspondent. Freelancers are more vulnerable than established media outlet employees, he said. Theres a lot more scrutiny now, he said, adding many journalists who underwent an interview to obtain their work permit for the first time have described the process as often unpleasant and hostile. The interview is tougher, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) officials asking the applicants for their opinions on the junta and the monarchy, and the required documentation is more stringent, he said. More journalists are being told they are not eligible for a media visa and have to apply for a business visa instead, which is harder to obtain. At least five journalists have been refused media visas since 2014, he added. The decision may seem arbitrary in some cases because the MFA usually does not provide explanations as to why they have been denied, Mr Head said. He said that for a small number of journalists, the issue has clearly been their news coverage of Thailand, which was perceived as too negative. It is a matter of concern for the FCCT that the content of a journalists reporting is being used as part of the criteria as to whether they are granted a media visa, he added. Media freedom activist Subhatra Bhumiprabhas, known as Stephff, compared Thailands current press freedom situation to Myanmars at the height of its dictatorship. The Myanmar junta had denied work permits for foreign journalists or banned them from entering the country due to their critical reporting on the regime. It is not surprising the government would deny foreign correspondents their work permits, she said. The government is trying to limit the extent of negative reports and control its image outside the country. Cyril Payen, a France 24 reporter based in Thailand for 15 years, said there is added pressure on foreign media since the coup. Compared to other Asean nations, Thailand is a hub for journalists covering the region, largely due to its media freedom. However, he feels that this is no longer the case. When the junta keeps repeating that foreign journalists do not understand Thailand and cause political rifts, it is putting strain on our work, Mr Payen said. According to Mr Head, MFA guidelines and criteria for work permit applications will be made public next week. He was told the criteria are not primarily connected to politics but about balanced reporting. We are pleased that the ministry is now discussing the matter with us and hope these criteria will not be too restrictive, he said. He said some work by freelancers and leisure writers is no longer considered daily mainstream journalism by the authorities, which was a concern. MFA spokesman Sek Wannamethee said yesterday the ministry has taken note of concerns raised by foreign journalists. Read original story here. The law enforcement agencies have detained Serhiy Korsunsky, who in spring 2014 with leader of Luhansk terrorists Valeriy Bolotov staged a seizure of Luhansk Regional State Administration, a press service of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said on Twitter. "Korsunsky was arrested," reads its report posted on Wednesday. In a telephone linkup with 112 TV Channel SBU staff head Oleksandr Tkachuk said that Korsunsky was arrested in Poltava region. He is accused of the crime under Article 258, Part 3 (setting up of the terrorist group or terrorist organization) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine that foresees 8-12 years of imprisonment. As reported, Ukrainian MP from People's Front and member of the Interior Ministry's staff Anton Heraschenko addresses to the SBU and the National Police demanding to put on wanted list and arrest Korsunsky. A report of the European Parliament's Need Assessment Mission on recommendations for Ukraine's Verkhovna Rada reforming will be made public in late February, mission's head Pat Cox said. "This is the last visit of the Assessment Mission. Now we plan to finish the work over our report and to present it in the end of this month [in February]," Cox said during a joint press briefing with Verkhovna Rada Chairman Volodymyr Groysman in Kyiv on Thursday. He added that for the period of the mission's work, which has been lasting for several months, he had over 100 meetings with Ukrainian parliamentarians and a leadership of Verkhovna Rada. Cox expressed satisfaction with a high level of support of the mission's work by the leaders of the parliamentary factions. "I think in this sphere speaker and all factions work together for the sake of Ukrainian future," the EP mission's leader stressed. According to Cox, "we have been listening a lot and learned a lot" during these meetings. Cox expressed a confidence that European experience may be applied in Ukraine, namely in the work of the Ukrainian parliament. Besides, he thanked the parliament's staff leadership for a fruitful work under the reforms. Ukrainian Economic Development and Trade Minister Aivaras Abromavicius' possible resignation is a sign that the country is drifting toward a political crisis, says Ukrainian Verkhovna Rada Chairman Volodymyr Groysman. "As it concerns [Abromavicius'] resignation, it's obvious to everyone that we are entering a serious political crisis," Groysman said at a joint news briefing with Pat Cox, who leads a European Parliament mission assessing the need for the Verkhovna Rada's reform, at a news briefing in Kyiv on Thursday. "Members of political parties should resolve this crisis together with the president, in order to stabilize the situation and show the people, absolutely, clearly, how we are going to live tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow," Groysman said. He, once again, called for "updating the coalition agreement as a clear action plan, rather than a purely formal document." The coalition agreement should show how business is going to develop in Ukraine, what wages the people will have, and what the national currency's exchange rate will be, Groysman said. "I think this is what all Ukrainians would like to understand," he said. The government should be renewed, in order to attain the goals formulated in the coalition agreement, and it should include people capable of resolving problems which facing the country, he said. "As the Verkhovna Rada chairman, I stress that I will hold consultations with all political forces so as to find the right plan to overcome the situation in which we have found ourselves today," he said. Groysman called for putting an end to any discord, and give those willing to pursue reform a chance to work. As for Abromavicius's accusations aimed at Ihor Kononenko, first deputy head of the Petro Poroshenko Bloc parliamentary faction, the speaker suggested that the National Anti-Corruption Bureau should provide an answer to them. "What is there to comment on? I believe the National Anti-Corruption Bureau should provide an answer absolutely publicly, clearly, and quickly," he said. He warned, however, that one should be able to answer for the accusations addressed to Kononenko. Abromavicius announced at a news briefing on February 3, that he had decided to resign because of a lack of support for, and active opposition to, the reforms pursued by his team. Kononenko described Abromavicius' statement as "emotional" and as an attempt to shift responsibility for setbacks in the Economic Development and Trade Ministry's work on someone else. He dismissed the minister's accusations and explained them by plans of the government's rearrangement. President Petro Poroshenko said after meeting with Abromavicius that he had tried to persuade him not to resign and that the minister was still undecided. South Dakota high school football playoffs scores and schedule: Oct. 20 The South Dakota high school football playoffs start tonight with the Class 11B and 9-man teams facing off in the first round. During a meeting with ambassadors of the G7 countries, Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko, Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk and Parliament Speaker Volodymyr Groysman have assured that they will make joint efforts to carry out reforms in the country. "The president, the prime minister and the speaker have assured us that they will work together and unite efforts to hold the reform in the country," Japanese Ambassador to Ukraine Shigeki Sumi told reporters in Kyiv on Thursday after the diplomats' meeting with the country's leadership. The Ukrainian State Border Guard Service reiterated that it would be inappropriate to re-open the Zaitseve checkpoint, located at the division point, before the attacks stop and the situation stabilizes. "One cannot talk about opening before the situation stabilizes. The operation of the Zaitseve checkpoint has been suspended indefinitely, until the situation stabilizes," Oleh Slobodian, press officer for the head of the Ukrainian Border Guard service, said at a briefing in Kyiv on Thursday. He warned that "if the same tendency continues on other tracks for citizens who go through checkpoints, if threats to their life and health arise, then, of course, decisions may be made to close the checkpoints on other tracks." Slobodian said the opening of new checkpoints on the division line has been discussed, and has not been taken off the agenda. "Border guards issue recommendations on the most expedient tracks and how it's better to arrange them within their terms of reference. However, decisions are still made by military-civilian administrations and the headquarters of the anti-terrorist operation," he said. He said the main factor that now constraints the process is the intensification of the pro-Russian units in eastern Ukraine. According to earlier reports, the Zaitseve checkpoint suspended operations at the decision of the headquarters of the special operation of the Ukrainian military, on February 3. A retired York Regional Police officer, charged in connection with the sexual assault of four minors over a 40-year stretch, worked closely with children for more than 10 years as part of the community services department. A component of 65-year-old Donald Clarks role involved interaction with children while working in community outreach from 1985 to 1995, according to York Regional Police spokesman Andy Pattenden. In the course of his duties, Clark would not have routinely been alone with children, but Pattenden said there were moments where Clark could have been alone with kids, such as an officer locating a missing child. Clark was charged in November 2015 in connection with the sexual assault of a child on Oct. 30. At that time, he was fired from his position as a part-time York police fleet assistant. On Wednesday, York police announced that three more alleged victims have come forward to accuse the retired officer of sexual assault. Following an investigation, he has been now been charged with two historical sexual assaults occurring between 1967 and 1970, and a third in 1996. All three victims were younger than 16 when the alleged offences occurred, according to a police statement. Under the headline Children love new policeman, constable Donald Clark was pictured in the Star on Nov. 18, 1986, in a story about a new police traffic safety robot that was dedicated to the safety of children. York police were not able to say if Clark ever entered classrooms to control the robot. On Sept. 28, 1989, a sergeant named Don Clark from YRP was quoted in the Star saying If your child is missing, you dont want to wait until 5 oclock. Within 10 minutes of me knowing it, your neighbors are going to know. The story concerned a telephone program that would inform people when crimes are committed in their neighbourhood. The Star reported in June 1993 that a sergeant Don Clark said he had been with the Values, Influences and Peers (VIP) program since day one. The VIP program aimed to teach Grade 6 students how to deal with peer pressure and be themselves. It ran for three months every year since 1983, with police officers visiting the class six or seven times, according to a Star article by reporter Patty Winsa. York police did not immediately respond to a request from the Star to confirm if Clark visited classrooms regularly from 1983 on. A sergeant named Don Clark was also quoted in the Star on Jan. 27, 1994, in a story about an anti-drug message from YRP and the Newmarket Royals aimed at children aged 16 and younger. In a statement released Wednesday, YRP chief Eric Jolliffe said the organization will not tolerate any behaviour that victimizes the most vulnerable members of our community, our children. He added that every person, regardless of their employment, shall be held accountable for their actions. The police are encouraging potential victims to come forward and stressed that there is no statute of limitations for sexual offences. Therefore, it does not matter how long ago an incident occurred. Anyone with information is asked to call the Special Victims Unit on 1-866-876-5423, ext. 7075. To leave a message anonymously, contact Crime Stoppers on 1-800-222-TIPS, visit the secure tip website, or text 274637 starting with the word York. SHARE: Every Canadian leader who visits India plans a pilgrimage to Amritsars Golden Temple, the spiritual centre of Sikhdom. Kathleen Wynne is the latest Canadian politician to perform the ritual, though not the first to skirt controversy. Wynne made front-page news in India this week for being the pro-gay premier on the temples doorstep. Rival newspapers trumpeted news of a potential snub by the temples leadership, by virtue of her support for (and participation in) the Canadian rite and human right of gay marriage. As the Stars Robert Benzie reported from Amritsar, Wynnes visit provided a brief feeding frenzy for Indias hyper-competitive daily newspapers, which normally pay little heed to a visiting provincial politician. The Hindustan Times headline proclaimed, Pro-gay Ontario premier runs into an ethical wall in Punjab, which they helpfully spelled out for readers. Reason: Wynne, a lesbian, is a supporter of same-sex marriages, a practice opposed by the . . . highest temporal seat of the Sikhs. The latest Sikh kerfuffle echoes the controversy surrounding Paul Martins planned visit to Amritsar in 2005, when the Golden Temples leadership issued a stern warning about his flirtation with the legalization of gay marriage. Back then, Giani Joginder Singh Vedanti, the worlds highest Sikh authority, made an impassioned appeal to Indo-Canadian politicians accompanying our then-prime minister. The basic duty of Sikh MPs in Canada should be to support laws that stop this kind of practice (homosexuality) because there are thousands of Sikhs living in Canada to ensure that Sikhs do not fall prey to this practice, Vedanti told me during a 2005 interview in his private study overlooking the temple precincts. Nobody would support such a person having such dirty thoughts in their mind because it is against the Sikh religion and the Sikh code of conduct and totally against the laws of nature. Any politician who disobeyed his directive risked the wrath of all Sikhs, he continued: Most of the Sikh community would resent them, and the majority of the Sikh population living in Canada would boycott them. As it happened, Martin cancelled his Amritsar stopover at the last minute not to avoid a confrontation over the so-called laws of nature, but to offer comfort over the recent tsunami that had devastated Asian coastlines. Our prime minister met instead with his Indian counterpart, Manmohan Singh (a turban-wearing Sikh). And in the aftermath, various Liberal MPs have come and gone from politics and come back again, notwithstanding the warnings from afar. But one little-known Conservative MP, Patrick Brown a young (bachelor) backbencher did vote against gay marriage in Parliament. Again last year, Brown won the leadership of Ontarios opposition Progressive Conservatives by pandering to opponents of gay marriage, playing to their fears about a relatively straightforward update to the provincial sex-ed curriculum (years behind what bedrock Tory Alberta was teaching in its schools). Having captured the leadership, Brown has since scaled back his public flirtation with social conservatives. Reorienting his views on sexual orientation to keep up with the times, the PC leader issued a statement this week declaring, unequivocally: There is no place for homophobia anywhere, regardless if it is in Amritsar or Toronto. As for Wynne, her visit to the Golden Temple proved anti-climactic. Despite the media speculation, she received the traditional gift of a siropa robe of honour though the deed was done, diplomatically, in the basement (as opposed to the sanctum sanctorum, minimizing any awkwardness for the temples current leadership, who remained publicly coy on precisely how and by whom the honour was bestowed). Lest anyone be too judgmental of the public coyness of Golden Temple officials and their subsequent circumlocutions about Wynnes circumambulations one must concede that homophobia is nothing new, whether in the West or the East. Coincidentally, Indias Supreme Court is now revisiting antiquated laws on homosexuality inherited (and imported) from British colonial rule. Canada phased out discrimination against gay marriage only in 2005, and American states are just now catching up. The lesson for politicians making the pilgrimage to Punjab is that it can sometimes be a delicate dance. You may walk into trouble, as Wynne nearly did, or you may wrong-foot yourself, as Brown might have (until his recent circumspection on sexual orientation). Good for Wynne for standing her ground, without trampling on local sensitivities. Good for Brown for belatedly standing up against homophobia, after previously stooping to the level of local homophobes and gay-baiters who hyperbolized the sex-ed update. Lessons learned, one hopes, all around. Read more about: SHARE: When a police officer is charged with a criminal offence, in most cases he or she is suspended from duty. That is as it should be. Recent calls to suspend such officers without pay, however, may be misguided. Firing someone because he or she has been charged with a criminal offence violates the presumption of innocence and should be illegal, not simply civilly actionable. The presumption must protect ones right to make a living. Having your liberty until your innocence can be confirmed in a trial isnt worth much if you lose your home and cannot put food on the table in the interim. Still, it is the nature of some jobs that they cannot be continued to be performed by someone facing many types of criminal charges. The people served by such employees need to be absolutely certain that the employees characters are above disrepute. Police officers, of course, are such employees. But police officers are also uniquely vulnerable to being the subject of a wide range of false criminal complaints precisely because of their work. They police many individuals of questionable character, who are not above making false complaints. They do a job where they are much more likely to work in situations where their conduct will be subject to criminal investigation. If they stand to lose their incomes if they are simply charged with an offence, they will shy away from precisely the individuals who need to be policed and the situations where policing is needed. But what about the police officers who are found guilty of the offences with which they are charged? What about those officers who it is fairly determined wrongly benefitted from a presumption of innocence in terms of their character? What about those officers who if their trials could have taken place the day after being charged would have been dismissed as officers the very next day? Critics point to the case of Toronto police officer James Forcillo, who was convicted of attempted murder last month in the death of Sammy Yatim, and who continues to be paid while he fights the verdict. In response to this and a host of other recent cases, there has been a widespread call to change the legislation requiring automatically paying such officers properly suspended from active duty. There has been a particular suggestion to give their chiefs the discretion whether or not to continue to pay them. It would make a mockery of the presumption of innocence to empower anyone with such discretion. Its a presumption that can be taken away only after a fair trial. The prospect of such discretion being employed arbitrarily is too real for it ever to rival the fairness of a properly conducted trial. Police officers should know they have nothing to fear in terms of losing their livelihoods if they behave legally because their livelihoods will be protected by their right to a fair trial, not by being on the good side of their boss or dependent on having a boss who has the courage not to sacrifice them because of improperly informed public pressure. There is a much better way to ensure that police officers who are convicted of offences that disentitle them to be officers arent paid by the taxpayer long after committing their crimes. Their salaries should continue to be paid until their trials, but into an interest-bearing trust account that they can only access upon their acquittals. If they are convicted of offences that lead to their dismissal as officers, the money in trust is forfeited. In short, the guilty would stop being remunerated. The province should loan any officer interest-free whatever they wish out of this trust account taking proper security against the repayment of the loan so the police officers livings are not impaired. In this way innocent officers will not miss a beat in their remuneration while the guilty ones will not benefit from our desire to protect the innocent. The police are always claiming the problems with the current state of policing are the result of only a few bad apples. It would be wrong to try to address this problem by punishing many presumed and actually innocent police officers because of a relatively small number of guilty ones. Reid Rusonik is a Toronto criminal defence lawyer and managing partner of Rusonik, OConnor, Robbins, Ross, Gorham & Angelini, LLP. SHARE: Few people are mourning the disappearance of online comment sections in major media outlets. CBC recently removed public feedback for all stories involving indigenous people; the Toronto Sun and the Star have done away with the feature altogether. Gone is the fear of scrolling down too far in an online story, and taking in the hateful filth of mostly anonymous provocateurs that had become so common. As a bonus, cash-strapped media outlets who kill comment forums no longer have to pay staff to police them. Everybody wins, right? But beware: the block function doesnt transpose so easily into our live, face-to-face encounters. Its tempting to ignore the hatred and discrimination we hear at work, in transit, at the dinner table. But while its not always safe or advisable to confront such oppression head on, we need to find ways to challenge it. The instinct behind the closing of comments sections is perfectly understandable, but looking away from the worst in our culture is generally not a path to progress, and can leave vulnerable people at the mercy of the haters. Ontarios Liberal government, for instance, should be applauded for its work to establish a clear definition of sexual violence and harassment for the first time. The governments provocative Its Never OK ad campaign against sexual violence has earned lots of attention; a set of proposed legal changes also deserve public consideration. We know, for example, that employers in Ontario regularly encounter sexual harassment in the workplace, and often choose to ignore it. In 2005, Marc Daniel killed 36-year-old Lori Dupont, a woman who worked with him at Hotel-Dieu Grace Hospital in Windsor, Ontario. Hospital officials knew that Daniel was harassing Dupont, but never disciplined him. The physician was the furthest thing from an anonymous cyber-troll, but the hospital didnt act on his abuse, even after it escalated. Daniel ultimately stabbed Dupont to death, then took his own life. Crimes like this one have prompted the provincial government to compel employers to recognize harassment as a manifestation of violence, not simply a nuisance or social blunder. Harassment doesnt have to escalate this far to do lasting damage, and its extremely common in our workplaces. About 28 per cent of respondents to a recent government survey said theyve experienced unwanted sexual advances or sexually charged talk on the job. Women are particularly vulnerable, especially racialized, queer, and gender-nonconforming women, who face additional attacks and hatred simply for being who they are. But womens experiences are routinely dismissed or devalued, as Duponts were. This discourages women from reporting harassment, and prevents employers from recognizing the serious damage done by oppressive language. We often distinguish between behaviour on the internet and events that occur in real life. If someone chooses to spout hatred online rather than in person, their action is no less serious, or hurtful, or violent. Many see online vitriol as mere fantasy, rather than a barometer of feelings people hold but may not publicly own. In a recent and widely publicized court case, local artist Gregory Alan Elliott was acquitted of charges of criminal harassment against two Toronto women. The judge ruled that Elliott's behaviour was not criminal, but acknowledged that some of his online communications with the women were obscene and homophobic. (SEE UPDATE BELOW) Public news of the verdict coincided with a river of violent and malicious commentary against women on social media. Elliotts accusers, and those who merely shared news of the verdict, were called bitch, slut, bully, authoritarian, threatened with rape and death, and scolded for identifying with feminism. Journalist Lauren Strapagiel, who received hundreds of these vile messages, described the barrage as emotionally exhausting, and, tellingly, the price you pay for being a woman on the internet. Strapagiel added that her mother had contacted her with concern after reading the abuse. To her, theres no difference between whats happening in my Twitter feed, and what could be happening offline. Its dangerous to dismiss oppression anywhere, including the rampant misogyny, homophobia, transphobia and racism that can dominate internet forums. It may be pragmatic for media outlets to eliminate it from their pages, but it endures in the hearts of hateful people. As we move to limit the impact of oppression online, lets not fool ourselves that we can shun it without consequence in the many places we find it. Desmond Cole is a Toronto-based journalist. His column appears every Thursday. Correction - February 10, 2016: This article was edited from a previous version that misstated how Ontario court justice Brent Knazan characterized Gregory Alan Elliott's online communications with the women. Update - March 10, 2016: Ontario court justice Brent Knazan who initially described a tweet by Gregory Alan Elliott as homophobic amended his ruling on March 4, 2016 to say the tweet should never have been attributed to him. See follow-up story. SHARE: The sides in the conflict in eastern Ukraine have not pulled all heavy weapons back from the contact line, Deputy Chief Monitor of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) to Ukraine Alexander Hug has said. The sides' inability to withdraw weapons is obvious, and monitoring results show that information on weapons withdrawal does not coincide with the actual state of affairs, by around 30% on both sides, he said at a press briefing in Kyiv on Thursday. The arrest of four senior Toronto Police Service officers for perjury and obstruction of justice last week is a significant first step in holding accountable officers who have been found to have lied in court. It is a rarity in Canada for officers to be charged with perjury even though the problem, as revealed by the Stars 2012 Police Who Lie series, is systemic and not a bad apples phenomenon. Indeed, as far back as 1994, the famous Mollen Commission investigating police corruption in New York City observed [t]he practice of police falsification is so common that it has spawned its own word: testilying. The conduct of the Toronto officers arrested was brought to light in Justice Ed Morgans decision in R v Tran. Justice Morgan was satisfied that the police planted evidence and lied about their involvement in order to ensure that their conduct survived constitutional scrutiny. This is not the first time that a trial judge has found that the police lied, tailored, deliberately fabricated or concocted their evidence at trial. Indeed, in a recent article I document 12 cases in Ontario from 2011-2013. Moreover, in 2014-15, there are, in addition to R v Tran, five other cases of police testilying that have received media attention. In a number of these cases, the impugned officer was a repeat offender. It is an extraordinary thing for a judiciary that has traditionally been deferential to the police to make such bold and disturbing findings. What is particularly troubling is that the overwhelming majority of these cases involve black or racialized accused. In these cases, the police had no reasonable grounds for either the detention or search and were likely relying on stereotypical assumptions or racial profiling as the basis for their suspicions. Once again those most vulnerable to police misconduct face yet another manifestation of unequal treatment a greater police willingness to lie to secure a conviction. While, as noted by the Mollen Commission, officers may lie because they believe it necessary to ensure that drugs or guns dont get excluded because of unconstitutional conduct, the harm caused is tremendous. Not only is public trust significantly eroded but it will be very difficult for the Crown to secure convictions in any future cases involving officers who have been identified by the judiciary as liars. In addition, there is a very real danger that lying and obstructing justice will extend beyond cases where hard evidence is found to weak circumstantial-evidence cases leading to wrongful convictions. What additional steps need to be taken? I have six suggestions. First, Toronto Police Chief Mark Saunders needs to broaden the scope of his special investigative task force to include all cases over the last five years where judges have made findings of misconduct against officers. If he refuses, Yasir Naqvi, Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services, needs to call a public inquiry to identify the scope of the problem and the necessary responses. Second, the Attorney General of Ontario needs to conduct a review of the policy implemented in 2012 requiring Crown Attorneys to report cases involving judicial findings of lying or concoction. Third, since many of the cases involve federal drug prosecutions, the federal minister of justice needs to implement a similar protocol for the Department of Justice. Both of these protocols need to include obligations on Crowns to vet cases involving officers who have been flagged and ensure adequate disclosure to the defence. Fourth, prosecutors need to ensure that the defence has full disclosure of relevant police evidence involving officers interaction with the accused including, for example, copies of dispatch calls or other communications and computer generated or searched information. Fifth, there needs to be a zero-tolerance policy initiated that would call for the dismissal of any officer found guilty in disciplinary or criminal proceedings of lying in court or obstructing justice. And finally, our courts need to overrule a dated precedent that prevents defence counsel from cross-examining police officers on prior judicial findings of testilying so they can be taken into account in assessing the officers credibility. Chief Saunders promise to rebuild trust and to probe the arrested officers past cases was a bold and courageous first step in bringing accountability to police who lie and attempt to obstruct justice. Lets not lose this rare opportunity to address the problem in a meaningful manner. David M. Tanovich is a professor in the faculty of law at the University of Windsor. SHARE: Re: Anti-Semitism or just anti-Israel, Letter Jan. 28 Anti-Semitism or just anti-Israel, Letter Jan. 28 This letter claimed that worldwide anti-Semitism is caused (in part at least) due to Israels policies vis-a-vis the Palestinians. The Ottawa Protocols definition of anti-Semitism affirms that efforts are anti-Semitic when holding Jews collectively responsible for actions of the State of Israel. As well, the U.S. State Departments definition of anti-Semitism states that acts are anti-Semitic when one accuses Jews as a people of being responsible for real or imagined wrongdoing committed by a single Jewish person or group, the state of Israel, or even for acts committed by non-Jews. Theres an important line separating legitimate opinion that enhances the public discourse, from what we view as hateful rhetoric that interferes with constructive dialogue. From our perspective, this letter was not worthy of publication. Mike Fegelman, executive director, HonestReporting Canada SHARE: Xi highlights new development concepts in old revolutionary base areas tour NANCHANG, Feb. 3 -- Chinese President Xi Jinpinghas called for a change in local government development concepts on a visit to east China's Jiangxi Province. Xi made the remarks during a three-day tour of the revolutionary base areas, which took him to Ji'an, Jinggangshan and Nanchang, just days ahead of Spring Festival, Chinese New Year. Chinese leaders traditionally visit ordinary people in both urban and rural areas ahead of the holiday. He asked officials to uphold and implement the newly identified development concepts -- innovation, coordination, green development, opening up and sharing, as well as to deliver structural reform on the supply side and industrial upgrades. He also urged local governments to protect the environment and strike a balance between economic growth and conservation. During his trip, Xi visited villages, businesses, schools, community groups as well as revolutionary base museums in Jiangxi, extending holiday greetings to all Chinese citizens. He also met with senior military officers stationed in the province, two days after the People's Liberation Army(PLA) was regrouped into five theater commands. A 100ft-wide asteroid, first spotted when it flew by Earth two years ago, is set to make its return and this time it could get incredibly close. The whale-sized space rock may skim past Earth at just 11,000 miles (17,000 km), which is around 21 times closer to Earth than the moon. But Nasa admits this estimate may be widely inaccurate, and the asteroid may also pass Earth as far out as 9 million miles (14 million km). In both scenarios, the space agency says the asteroid, dubbed 2013 TX68, poses no threat to Earth. A small asteroid, first spotted when it flew by Earth two years ago, is set to make its return and this time it will get even closer. This graphic indicates the possible locations asteroid 2013 TX68 will be in at the time of its closest approach to Earth during its safe fly-by of our planet on March 5 'The variation in possible closest approach distances is due to the wide range of possible trajectories for this object, since it was tracked for only a short time after discovery,' Nasa explained. Scientists have identified an extremely remote chance that this small asteroid could impact on September 28, 2017, with odds of no more than 1-in-250-million. Flybys in 2046 and 2097 have an even lower probability of impact. 'The possibilities of collision on any of the three future flyby dates are far too small to be of any real concern,' said Paul Chodas, manager of CNEOS. 'I fully expect any future observations to reduce the probability even more.' Scientists at Nasa's Center for NEO Studies (CNEOS) in California, say 'there is no possibility that this object could impact Earth during the flyby next month.' But they have identified an extremely remote chance that this small asteroid (stock image pictured) could impact on Septmeber 28, 2017, with odds of 1-in-250-million Asteroid 2013 TX68 is estimated to be about 100ft (30 meters) in diameter. By comparison, the asteroid that broke up in the atmosphere over Chelyabinsk, Russia, three years ago was approximately 65 feet (20 meters) wide. If an asteroid the size of 2013 TX68 were to enter Earth's atmosphere, it would likely produce an air burst with about twice the energy of the Chelyabinsk event. The asteroid was discovered by the Nasa-funded Catalina Sky Survey on October 6, 2013, as it approached Earth on the night-time side. After three days of tracking, the asteroid passed into the daytime sky and could no longer be seen. Because it was not tracked for very long, scientists cannot predict its precise orbit around the sun, but they do know that it cannot impact Earth during its flyby next month. 'This asteroid's orbit is quite uncertain, and it will be hard to predict where to look for it,' said Chodas. 'There is a chance that the asteroid will be picked up by our asteroid search telescopes when it safely flies past us next month, providing us with data to more precisely define its orbit around the sun.' In September, Paul Chodas, manager of Nasa's Near-Earth Object office at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, said: 'There is no existing evidence that an asteroid or any other celestial object is on a trajectory that will impact Earth. 'In fact, not a single one of the known objects has any credible chance of hitting our planet over the next century. Nasa tracks around 12,992 near-Earth objects which have been discovered orbiting within our solar system close to our own orbit. It estimates around 1,607 are classified as Potentially Hazardous Asteroids. Dutch police puzzling over how to remove drones that pose a public safety threat are testing a way to get the job done by using trained eagles. Its a low-tech solution to a high-tech problem, said Dennis Janus, spokesman for the Dutch national police. The idea arose because amateur use of drones has boomed and police have begun to worry about unlicensed ones flying into off-limit areas around airports or over public events. Possible solutions the police have studied include shooting nets at the offending drones, remotely hacking them to seize their controls, or taking them out with birds of prey. People sometimes think its a hoax, but it has been very effective so far, Janus said. Demonstrating the technique in a video released by police, a four-propeller drone hovers in the middle of a warehouse, colored lights flashing. Released by her keeper, a white-tailed eagle glides straight toward the drone, clutches it easily in her talons and drags it to the ground. Sjoerd Hoogendoorn from Guard From Above, a company that is working with police to develop the concept, said the birds must be trained to recognize the drones as prey. They are rewarded with a piece of meat after each successful foray. Their talons are strong and tough enough to seize most consumer-grade drones without injury from the blades, he said. These birds are used to meeting resistance from animals they hunt in the wild, and they dont seem to have much trouble with the drones, he said. The potential impact on the birds welfare is being tested by an external scientific research institute. The real problem we have is that they destroy a lot of drones, Hoogendoorn said. Another unknown factor is how the birds will fare in crowded situations, he said. Police are expected to make a decision by the end of the year on whether to move ahead with using the eagles. Dai Chengxin (R2), a Chinese students in Harvard, takes part in a rugby match. (File photo) Chinese living in the U.S. are questioning the latest college admission reform initiated by Harvard. Affected by former education discrimination against Chinese in America, including Affirmative action and Senate Constitutional Amendment No. 5, Chinese living in the U.S. worried that they will be discriminated by the education reform under which responsibilities to people and communities are more valued than academic performance. Chinese and even Asian people attach more importance to exams. When it comes to social activities, these students are constrained to music-related ones, said Li Fu, a professor from the Portland State University. Zhong Ming, who already has two children, said that large numbers of Chinese parents save money to give their children better education. However, it is much more difficult for Chinese to receive good education in America, not to mention that they can enter the mainstream society. As for reason about this reform, some Chinese hold the view that due to low enrollment rate of native students, famous universities in the U.S. want to find a way to diversify students backgrounds. Li pointed out that the reform itself is not discrimination-oriented. Universities and colleges should pay more attention to students' responsibility for others and their communities rather than simply value their achievements during admission process, a report by Harvard says. The report, entitled Turning the Tide: Inspiring Concern for Others and the Common Good Through College Admissions by the Harvard Graduate School of Education, takes a major step in trying to change the college admissions process to make it more humane, less super-human. More than 80 stakeholders from first-tier colleges and universities, including admissions officers (like Harvards), deans, professors and high school counselors have endorsed the proposal. Yale University will be adding an essay question on next years application that asks applicants "to reflect on engagement with and contribution to their family, community and/or the public good." A staff member in charge of student admission from Massachusetts Institute of Technology said that students spend too much time on exams and "we do not want those who only want to be enrolled in a prestigious school." A publicity video of one of China's leading carriers Xiamen Airlines made its debut at the landmark Times Square in New York City on Feb. 1, one week before the Chinese Lunar New Year. The Xiamen-based carrier will promote its brand on Thomson Reuters's large screens overlooking the Times Square during the coming weeks to celebrate 2016 Chinese New Year. The short video, therefore, extends the best wishes to all the friends and Chinese people around the world. Times Square, also known as the "Crossroads of the World", is a major commercial intersection in New York City. It is one of the world's busiest pedestrian intersections and the world's most visited tourist attractions, drawing an estimated 40 million visitors annually. With the slogan "New horizons with Xiamen Air", the airline seeks to expand its presence in North Asia, and continues to launch international routes from Xiamen and Fuzhou to Seattle, Vancouver and New York in 2016. Editors' Pick: Originally published Feb. 4. "Charles and David are two of the greatest Americans ever," says Daniel Garza. The former White House official under George W. Bush and the U.S.-born son of Mexican farm workers was talking about the Koch brothers, the billionaire conservatives who are nearly halfway to spending $900 million to influence the 2016 election cycle. They're also his employers. Garza is executive director of the LIBRE Initiative, a non-profit aimed to win Latino support for limited government and "free markets." It's an uphill battle. In 2012, Latinos overwhelming supported Barack Obama, helping secure his victory over Republican nominee Mitt Romney in a number of swing states. All told, Obama won 71% of Latino voters compared to Romney's 27%, according to Public Opinion Strategies, a polling group based in Alexandria, Va. On the other hand, Ronald Reagan, the Republican president today's conservatives most admire was known to have says that "Latinos are Republican. They just don't know it yet." LIBRE hopes to help them find their Republican side. As Garza explains it, there's no reason Latinos are pre-destined to prefer growth in government programs over growth and opportunities in the private sector. "This is all about influencing what direction America's going to take: centralized power in D.C., or the power of the individual," he told TheStreet in a January interview at a Latino voter conference. LIBRE, the Spanish word for free, is one of many groups the Koch Brothers help to fund to push issues and candidates that favor cuts in government spending, lower taxes for corporations and laws that limit the ability of labor unions to raise money and bargain collectively. As a non-profit, LIBRE received nearly $10 million from the Koch's Freedom Partners Chamber of Commerce in 2013 and 2014, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Typical of other groups that receive Koch funding, LIBRE is organized as a trust, with Garza as a trustee. Because of its non-profit status, Garza is quick to say that LIBRE won't endorse a particular candidate though he does acknowledge that LIBRE's work is more likely to benefit Republicans than Democrats. "We feel the best system is free markets, less regulation, less taxes, where people can reinvest their money," Garza says. "So, if you hear that and you accept it, and you're able to single out the candidate who most aligns with what you've been led to believe, or you believe now, or what has been confirmed by what you've heard from LIBRE, that's a real success." Immigration For many Latinos, immigration is a key issue, and LIBRE has a position that is somewhat divergent from what many of the leading Republican candidates are proposing. LIBRE embraces a "market-based" libertarian approach, arguing that the country's 11 million undocumented immigrants need "a path to citizenship," per Garza. Those in the country illegally, he says, are already integrated into society through their work or family. For them to better contribute to the economy, a legal status would allow the undocumented to open a bank account, get a driver's license and pay taxes. "That could bring people out of the shadows so that they can continue to contribute to the economy, have their children go to school without angst or uncertainty," Garza says. Owing to Republican opposition to any legislation that sounds like legalization, Garza says LIBRE would accept a "work-visa bill" that gives undocumented immigrants the ability to remain in the country legally, and the freedom to travel to and from their home country back to the U.S. But LIBRE's comparatively moderate position on immigration is often at odds with positions from conservatives that have strained Republicans' outreach to Latinos. Even LIBRE's national spokeswoman Rachel Campos Duffy has appeared on Fox News charging that undocumented immigrants committing voter fraud could affect election outcomes. She also alleged that the Obama administration, rather than the world's highest murder rates, fueled the surge of Central American immigrants seeking enter into the U.S. LIBRE's Candidate While it cannot officially support one candidate, there is a presidential hopeful that the group does not favor. Garza doesn't like Bernie Sanders. The Vermont senator's call to address income inequality through government action is the antithesis of what the country needs, he says. Same goes for breaking-up big banks, raising capital gains taxes and such actions as limiting the ability of pharmaceutical companies to raise drug prices. "Nothing puts more fear into us than someone like a Bernie Sanders who espouses Socialist, big government, collectivist views," Garza says, using a term, "collectivist," that the John Birch Society used in the 1950s and 1960s "to conflate liberals and Communists." The Koch brothers' father Fred was an early leader of the group. "We're telling Latinos, you should have the same fear we have of having a collectivist society that has failed in Venezuela," he says. (Rather than Venezuela, Sanders most often cites Sweden, Denmark and Norway when explaining his proposals to expand the role of government.) In line with most Republicans, Garza says LIBRE opposes the Affordable Care Act "because it empowers government officials to make decisions over our lives," and criticizes proposals to raise the minimum wage as burdensome for employers. LIBRE also supports deep cuts in welfare and housing assistance programs as failing to incentivize the poor to work. LIBRE's Other Objective Koch critics contend that the brothers' network of political organizations is much less interested in empowering individuals than empowering corporations and the very wealthy. The brothers' closely-held energy conglomerate Koch Industries has long opposed environmental and workplace regulations. Its also been the subject of numerous investigations and lawsuits around pollution as well as allegations of stealing oil from federal and Indian lands. For the Kochs, LIBRE fits into a larger effort by the brothers to improve its public image, according to Jane Mayer, author of Dark Money: The Hidden History of the Billionaires Behind the Rise of the Radical Right. Writing recently in The New Yorker, Mayer details how the Kochs have hired public relations experts to raise their profile on issues such as prison and sentencing reform, leading to meetings between their representatives and Obama administration officials. Garza is unapologetic in defense of his employers. "Look, you have two people who are champions of individual freedom and who want to uphold the Constitution and preserve a strong America," he says. "For the Left to demonize them is a cop-out. It's intellectually lazy. Let's talk about the issues, let's have a debate about policies and ideas." "I fully embrace our association with Charles and David, and admire the hell out of them," he added. Garza helped found LIBRE in 2011 after unsuccessfully running for the Republican nomination for a congressional seat in south Texas held by Democrat Ruben Hinojosa. Garza doesn't expect Latinos to suddenly shift overnight to support libertarians and conservatives but he says LIBRE's advertising efforts, community events and speaking engagements are aimed at convincing Latinos that there are alternatives to liberal policy-making. LIBRE maintains a staff over 50 people with offices in at least eight states. This article, originally published at 4:50 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, has been updated with comment from JPMorgan and video. Legend has it that guitarist Brian May's inspiration for the first hit from Queen's 1989 album was a catchphrase of a British soap opera star: "I want it all. I want it now." Nearly 30 years later, he and the actress, EastEnders star Anita Dobson, are married. And the Billboard Hot 100 hit still lurks in the digital libraries of apps like Spotify and iTunes, its title mirroring listeners' expectations of what they should be able to do with their mobile devices -- particularly in terms of banking. That attitude, combined with the higher profitability of digital services compared with traditional branches, is prompting banks to upgrade their mobile offerings while letting them close local offices. Bank of America (BAC) , Citigroup (C) and JPMorgan Chase (JPM) all reported reducing the number of branches they operate in 2015, for a combined decline of 10% over three years. At the same time, their mobile customer base has surged: Users increased 13% to 18.7 million at Bank of America in the last three months of the year, according to data from the Charlotte, N.C.-based company. Checks that Bank of America customers deposit via smartphones and tablets now represent 15% of total deposits, CFO Paul Donofrio said on a January earnings call. "We expect technology adoption by customers to continue to be a cornerstone of not only improved customer satisfaction but also efficiency gains and operating leverage," Donofrio said. Recent research from management consultant Bain & Co. indicates those projections are well-founded: Visits to a U.S. bank branch are twice as likely to annoy customers as handling transactions on a mobile device, the firm found. "The banks have generally got their heads around saying, 'Boy these routine transactions we should take out of the branches because it's not a good experience for the customers and it's high cost for us,'" Gerard du Toit, a Bain partner who co-authored the report, said in a telephone interview. In just the past three years, JPMorgan, Wells Fargo and Bank of America have expanded their mobile customer base by a collective 71%, to 57.7 million, with JPMorgan's 84% growth leading the way. The New York-based company's 23 million mobile customers is the biggest tally among the major U.S. banks, and it's expanding at about 20% a year, CFO Marianne Lake said in January. Fully 90% of the transactions that once required a JPMorgan teller can now be handled via a mobile device, Gordon Smith, head of consumer and community banking, said during a presentation Tuesday. Last year, about 65% of new customers used those mobile capabilities within six months of opening an account, up from 53% in 2014, he said. The economics are simple: du Toit estimated that each teller transaction costs $2 to $3, compared with a dime for the same service at an ATM and just a few cents via a mobile device. Mobile devices are helping with customer retention as well: People who use their bank's smartphone app frequently are 40% less likely to switch banks than those who do so only rarely, according to the study. It's based on a survey of nearly 115,000 bank customers worldwide from July through September. Source: "Customer Behavior and Loyalty in Retail Banking," Bain & Co. The next step in a transition to electronics that began with the introduction of ATMs in the late 20th century is moving sales of higher-priced bank services to mobile devices, du Toit said. That transition has already begun in the U.S., but the more complex the product, the less likely mobile customers are to buy it on their devices, the study showed. New checking and savings accounts made up more than 60% of mobile sales in 2015, while new credit cards accounted for more than 20%. Investment accounts, loans and mortgages combined were less than 19%, the study showed. That's a pattern that Wells Fargo (WFC) , the largest U.S. mortgage lender, is taking advantage of. It's the only one of the big U.S. banks that hasn't aggressively closed branches, using brick-and-mortar sites to introduce checking- and savings-account holders to more lucrative options like mortgages and auto loans. For each of the past five years, the San Francisco-based company has maintained a network of about 6,000 branches, said Kristopher Dahl, a spokesman. "Our stores and store team members remain central to our strategy of providing excellent service to meet our customers' financial needs, and we continue to invest in modern technology to improve the store experience," he said in an e-mail. Exclusive Look Inside: You see Jim Cramer on TV. Now, see where he invests his money and why Bank of America and Wells Fargo arecore holdings of his multi-million dollar portfolio. Learn more now. Such improvements, from ATMS that let customers pay bills and withdraw cash in any denomination they want at Chase branches to machines with video-chat capability at Bank of America sites, will combine with improvements in mobile banking to further reshape the U.S. banking landscape, Bain predicts. One model is the Netherlands, which has seen the largest increase worldwide in customers' mobile volume. The rate of branch visits there is about a quarter of that in the U.S., and more than half of all sales, including complex products like mortgages, are made digitally, Bain found. While borrowers still talk with bank personnel, they do so by video chat, which allows banks to use a smaller number of loan specialists to communicate with customers across wide geographic regions rather than staffing individual sites, he said. ABN Amro, one of the largest Dutch mortgage lenders, has been able to close about 75% of its branches because "as they digitized all these things including sales, the customers really weren't coming into the branches anymore and they just didn't need them," du Toit said. Not only does that show how U.S. banks can benefit from continuing to expand mobile services, Bain's study indicates it's what customers want. When Bain analyzed responses to the question of what consumers expect to be able to do with their banks via mobile devices, "there were three words that really popped," du Toit said. "The three words were: anything, everything and now. That's what they expect, that's where it's going, that's what's going to happen. Once you can do anything and everything now, why would you go to a branch?" With Spring Festival fast approaching, South Korea's travel agencies have launched a series of events to attract Chinese tourists, including sending red envelopes through WeChat, a popular social media platform in China, Beijing Times reports on Wednesday. The Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) announced on Feb. 1 that it will send WeChat red envelopes to Chinese travelers before Feb. 20 and they can receive the "lucky money" by watching a tourism video featuring South Korean star Lee MinHo. The luckiest ones can receive up to 200 yuan. During the Spring Festival holiday between Feb. 5 and Feb. 11, the KTO will also hold activities to welcome foreign tourists. It is expected that Chinese tourists will pay around 156,000 trips to South Korea during Chinese New Year, up 18 percent from the same period the previous year. (File Photo) Besides South Korea, Japan has also prepared to welcome Chinese consumers over Spring Festival. Japanese official data show that from Feb. 5 to Feb. 14, the average daily number of entry-exit passengers via Kansai International Airport will reach 54,900, setting a record high. And among them, over 60 percent are from South Korea, Chinese mainland and Taiwan. Foreign tourists spent a total of 167.7 billion yuan in Japan in 2015, a 70 percent increase on 2014, of which Chinese tourists spent some 79.2 billion yuan, making up 40 percent. The per-capita consumption of Chinese travelers reached 16,000 yuan, much higher than that of other foreign tourists average of 5,590 yuan. Starboard Value is looking to agitate for changes at Marvell Technology Group (MRVL) , and Jeffrey Smith's hedge fund has a number of cards it can put on the table to extract value from the struggling chipmaker. Starboard Value revealed Wednesday it has a 6.7% stake in Sunnyvale, Calif.-based Marvell Technology Group and disclosed its plan to engage in discussions with the semiconductor manufacturer about a wide range of issues, including board structure, operations and capitalization, among other issues. The activist also said it has retained three industry experts -- Rick Hill, Oleg Khaykin and Jeff McCreary -- as advisers. "To me, it's a classic Starboard campaign," said an industry source who asked for anonymity, adding that Marvell has long been trying to address performance and governance issues. The source said Starboard could look to fix up Marvell and sell it, explaining that such a scenario makes sense and may be more realistic than slimming down the Hamilton, Bermuda-based semiconductor company, which has had its fair amount of woes of late. The chipmaker disclosed in September it was conducting an investigation of accounting and internal control matters, then said the following month that its accounting firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers, resigned. Also in September, Marvell said it would exit out of its mobile platform business, which generates about $122 million in revenue and approximately $13 million in gross profit. In addition, last year the company was involved in litigation with Carnegie-Mellon University over patents for hard-disk drive chips. The federal Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the higher education institution in August, but cut the award against Marvell. The chipmaker has been looking for a CFO since May. Derek Bork, a partner at Thompson Hine who advises on activism situations, observed Marvell has "just about every problem that an activist could find at a company." Still, he underscored the fact that Starboard started accumulating its position after Marvell's problems were made public and that there may be opportunity in the company's distressed condition. "My guess would be that they're going to go to the company with a proposal for a balance sheet restructuring that would probably include an equity investment," Bork added. While Marvell has struggled on multiple fronts, it has upside potential, said Daniel Amir, managing director of equity research at Ladenburg Thalmann. "All the issues -- audit investigation and various compliance issues -- have definitely been hovering over the story," Amir said. "We do think that if, at some point, that gets solved and if you just focus on the business, you get to $12 [per share] if you do a sum-of-the-parts analysis." Marvell shares currently trade at $9.28, giving the company a $4.8 billion market capitalization. Marvell could get a higher price if the business was sold in pieces, Amir explained, acknowledging that there is synergy among segments. "I think one of the challenges with selling the company is the high level of control from management," Amir said. "It's not typical of a company that size." MKM Partners analyst Ian Ing agreed, explaining that Marvell has started to take steps in the right direction, particularly its decision to exit the mobile handset business. "That was the most broken part of the story," Ing said, adding that proposing a top-notch CFO could be among Starboard's first priorities. Starboard could also look to push for improved margins through divesting divisions, said Stifel Nicolaus analyst Kevin Cassidy. "Marvell has a lot of different products that they can sell off in different pieces," Cassidy explained. Starboard launched a campaign at chipmaker Integrated Silicon Solution (ISSI) by teaming with Oliver Press Partners in December 2014. Sources observed then that the activist could push eventually push for a sale. Then, about four months later, ISSI agreed to a sale to a consortium of Chinese private equity firms known as Uphill. The transaction invited a rival bid from Cypress Semiconductor (CY) that led to an intense, two-month bidding war between the PE consortium and Cypress. Starboard closely monitored the bidding war, voicing its opposition to a marriage between Uphill and ISSI. ISSI ended up with Uphill for a final price that was nearly $120 million higher than Cypress' and Starboard didn't engage further. Officials with Marvell declined to comment while those with Starboard did not return requests for comment Wednesday. Today's oversupply of oil is presenting a catch-22 for the long-suffering energy patch, and that's bad news for the weakest players, epitomized by offshore drilling services giant Transocean (RIG) . The combination of a global oil glut, flagging energy demand and plummeting oil prices is crushing rig counts, explaining why Transocean is part of a group of distressed and "Stressed Out" stocks that TheStreet will be monitoring through these choppy markets. U.S. crude prices now hover at $31 a barrel, about 71% lower than their highs in midsummer 2014. Some analysts warn that oil prices could fall as low as the $20 range, which would be the death knell for a host of overleveraged companies in the energy patch. The sheikhdom that started this mess, Saudi Arabia, is now trying to step back from its disastrous price war and reduce output to bolster prices. However, events have spiraled beyond the OPEC leader's control. Strategists at Goldman Sachs recently declared it was "highly unlikely" Saudi Arabia could succeed in convincing major players such as Russia to reduce output, saying higher prices would simply bring dormant production back on line, which in turn would depress prices again. The highly cyclical drilling services sector has been particularly hard hit. According to the latest Baker Hughes rig count data, the U.S. crude oil-rig count has fallen by 41 rigs so far in 2016. Meanwhile, the U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates that U.S. crude oil production could fall by 116,000 barrels per day this month. Not surprisingly, the benchmark iShares US Oil Equipment & Services (IEZ) exchange-traded fund is down 7.4% year to date and 31% over the past year. Transocean's stock is down 19% year to date and 43% over the past year. RIG data by YCharts All oil-service companies have taken it on the chin, but Transocean is in the worst shape because of its massive debt and deteriorating cash flow. With a market cap of $3.4 billion and a far-flung global presence, Switzerland-based Transocean uses internal cash flows and capital markets to finance new build rig campaigns. A major problem for the company is that it primarily offers deepwater and harsh environment drilling services, two areas that were booming when oil prices were high, but which are now getting drastically cut back as oil prices drop. As beleaguered exploration and production giants such as Chevron and Exxon Mobil reduce their offshore budgets, the riskier and more expensive offshore sources of energy -- i.e., those that are the farthest from land -- are first on the chopping block, in favor of closer to shore prospects that are cheaper. During the glory days when oil was trading from $80 to $100 a barrel, Transocean overexpanded and is now leveraged to unsustainable levels. As new rig contracts in 2016 continue to dwindle, so will revenue for drillers. Those with the weakest balance sheets will suffer the most stress. According to Transocean's latest operating results, the company's cash from operating activities weakened in the third quarter of 2015 compared with the same quarter a year ago. During this period, the company's operating cash flow decreased 26.5% to $648 million. And the company's new debt is on the rise. In the third quarter, Transocean's net debt-to-EBITDA ratio was 6.4, or 32% lower compared to the previous year's third quarter. Net debt is total debt less cash and marketable securities. Transocean is scheduled to report fourth-quarter and full-year earnings on Feb. 24. On average, analysts expect the company to report earnings per share of 71 cents, down from 95 cents a year before. On average, analysts also expect the company's revenue to fall a sizable 24% in 2015. Transocean stock now has 22 underperform or sell recommendations from Wall Street analysts. There are only 4 buy or strong buy recommendations and 11 holds As energy prices continue to gyrate and fall, the news will only get worse for Transocean. For more articles on distressed stocks to avoid, read Real Money's "Stressed Out" stocks coverage. You can find more information on the index here. As we've just explained, debt-laden Transocean is a terrible place for your money. For a complete list of the world's most dangerous stocks, download our free report. Using a little-known financial "health test," the stocks on this list are a failure in every category. Click here now to make sure you don't make the mistake of owning one. John Persinos is editorial manager and investment analyst at Investing Daily. At the time of publication, the author held no positions in the stocks mentioned. China released the first batch of photos taken by its most sophisticated Earth observation satellite to date, Gaofen-4 on Wednesday. The images released by the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense (SASTIND) cover an area of 400 km by 400 km, including 17 photos with ground resolution of 50 meters for the visible light camera and 400 meters for the infrared one. This photos cover Beijing, the Flaming Mountains in Xinjiang, Namtso in Tibet, Dunhuang in Gansu, Mount Qomolangma, the Yellow and Pearl River deltas, Danjiangkou in Hubei, Xiaolangdi on the Yellow River and parts of Australia . Among them, three images of Beijing are 50-meter multispectral and panchromatic, six of the images of the parts of Australia suffering large fires are 400-meter medium wave infrared images and the other eight are 50-meter multispectral ones. The satellite was launched on Dec. 29, 2015 and entered a geostationary orbit on Jan. 4, 2016. Gaofen-4 has received and dealt with 8.3 terabytes of data, covering 26.2 million square kilometers, including 8.52 million square kilometers in China and 17.69 million square kilometers overseas by Jan. 31, 2016. The test and evaluation work of the satellite will be finished during mid-March and the end of May this year and then the satellite will be put into formal operation, according to Tong Xudong, chief designer of the Gaofen project at SASTIND. As a person who has covered the global auto industry for decades, Toyota's (TM) decision to throw in the towel with its Scion "youth" brand after 17 years -- and untold hundreds of millions of dollars of investment -- comes as little surprise. Adults only rarely decipher what young people want. In fact, when adults openly declare a soft drink, garment, song or vehicle as a creation for the young -- it's probably already doomed to fail. Young people, by definition, rebel at being told what to like, never mind what to buy. Marketers have tried to figure out Yuppies. (I was one.) Then Gen-Xers, and on to Y and Z. And, now, millennials. One big trouble with trying to figure out what millennials want to drive is that the premise of the question is wrong: Many don't want a car at all. Which is not to say they don't want to ride or to drive now and then. Car-sharing services like Zipcar and ride-hailing services like Uber are proving that young urban dwellers increasingly prefer to avoid the expense and hassle of ownership. My San Francisco-based son initially considered owning a vehicle and elected to rely on bicycle, skateboard, Uber and Getaround car-sharing for transportation. The vehicle non-ownership phenomenon looks to be more than a flash in the pan: A study published in January by the University of Michigan shows a sharp decline in the number of young adults in the U.S. aged 20 to 24 holding drivers licenses. Automakers are paying attention. Ford (F) , at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, last month announced a series of car-sharing pilots and initiatives to learn more about the future of "mobility" and what that will mean for automobile companies. The carmakers obviously seek a major share of the mobility business, not a diminished role as mere supplier of vehicles for the future sellers of transportation services. General Motors (GM) invested $500 million in Lyft, a ride-hailing service, and bought the assets of failed service Sidecar in an effort to accelerate its knowledge and expertise. GM's own mobility brand, Maven, will allow customers to rent GM vehicles for short periods of time, initially in New York and Ann Arbor, Mich. "GM is at the forefront of redefining the future of personal mobility," said Dan Ammann, GM president, in a statement. German carmakers all are involved in various forms of carsharing. Toyota, perhaps tellingly, so far has announced only one small, relatively insignificant car-sharing pilot in Okinawa, aimed primarily at tourists. The Japanese automaker and global No. 1 in sales is investing heavily in artificial intelligence, a pre-cursor of driverless vehicles, which one day could be owned by third-parties and heavily reduce personal ownership of automobiles. Toyota's Scion soon will be a dim, unlamented memory, like so many other automotive brands of yesteryear, from Oldsmobile to Mercury. Youth, by contrast, will remain as inscrutable and maddeningly unpredictable as ever. Doron Levin is the host of "In the Driver Seat," broadcast on SiriusXM Insight 121, Saturday at noon, encore Sunday at 9 a.m. This article is commentary by an independent contributor. At the time of publication, the author held no positions in the stocks mentioned. A three Michelin-starred restaurant chef Benoit Violier, 44, was found dead with a rifle by his side at home in the southwestern Swiss city of Lausanne on Jan. 31, 2016. The police ruled out the possibility of murder. Violier ran de l'Hotel de Ville in Crissier, Switzerland, which is named the best of 1,000 top eateries across 48 countries ranked by France's La Liste. Violier, hence, can be called the worlds best chef. This was not the first time a Michelin-starred restaurant chef commits suicide. News stories about Michelin star chefs suicide were reported in 2007 and 2013 too. According to the statistics of France Ministry of Health, 13 percent of Michelin star chefs are addicted to drugs, 27 percent of them tend to have excessive drinking. Different from those leisurely and celebrated chefs we see in romantic movies, real Michelin star chefs are under great metal stress all the time. Chefs of Michelin-starred restaurant have to pass tests to be ranked with three stars, two stars, and one star, and the ranking of the restaurant they own will also go with their stars. For the French Michelin chef evaluating system, apart from the taste of the food, the art value of the delicacy and innovation of the chef are all important factors for the ranking. No restaurant can keep its Michelin stars with fixed delicacies. If a Michelin restaurant does not change its menu for a long time, its stars could be taken away; the title of Michelin-starred restaurant could even be deprived. On the same day when Violier shot himself, a three Michelin-starred restaurant in France degraded to two stars because of lack of innovation in its dishes, and the prices of dishes in the restaurant have to drop accordingly. Chefs of Michelin-starred restaurant have always been worrying about the sudden visit by inspectors which might lead to the degradation of their business. Violier's tragedy is not the first case among Michelin chefs, but hopefully it could be the last for the industry. Aurora Gregory has an interesting way to celebrate Valentine's Day. Gregory, a senior communications counsel at Aurora Gregory Consulting in Monrovia, Calif., a suburb of Los Angeles, uses a strict spending cap on the most romantic day of the year. "When my husband, Ken, and I were first married, we established The Great Valentine's Day Challenge," Gregory says. "It works like this - each person can do whatever he or she would like for the other person, but can spend no more than $20, including the cost of a card." Gregory says the goal in establishing a spending cap was to keep celebrating Valentine's Day light and fun, while still acknowledging the holiday. "Over the years, we've each bought gifts, made gifts, some silly and some serious and romantic," she adds. "One year, we spent the money on tickets to the Valentine's dinner event put on by our church - tickets were only $20 a person." Merging a budget cap with creativity, helps, too. "My favorite Valentine gift was when my husband was in the grocery store and walked past the floral department," Gregory says. "He took a picture of a single rose in a vase and texted it to me wishing me a happy Valentine's Day - I thought it was hilarious, and I loved it." While Valentine's Day is a little over a week away, not everyone is thinking like Gregory and her husband. For Cupid fans, it's a dichotomy - there's no better day to show your affection for a loved one - but there can be a big price to pay for all that adoration. When we say "big price," we're not fooling around. According to the most recent American Express Spending and Savings Tracker, the average Valentine's Day spender will shell out around $212 for the holiday. That includes $72 for gifts (down from $115 in 2015) and another $70 for dining out (down from $103 in 2015.) Weekend getaways can really add to the holiday tab. Traveling couples will spend $329 on weekend trips around Valentine's Day and will spend $108, on average, to see a show or a concert. And, if you decide to pop the question to your lover, you can expect to pay $2,731, on average, for a decent ring, Amex reports. For men, the reality is you really don't have to spend a ton of money on your honey, at least in most cases. A new study from Vennli reports that women are 17% more likely to emphasize practicality when giving a Valentine's Day gift, and women who will receive a gift this Valentine's Day view thoughtful and sentimental gifts as a wonderful experience. That, once again, is where creativity comes into play. You don't need to spend a lot to have it mean a lot on and around February 14, experts say. Case in point - try giving a loved one her (or his) own massage, says Beck Robertson, a freelance copywriter and romance book author. "You can gift your partner a gorgeous scented oil with a handwritten note, promising them a sexy Valentine's massage with the gift," Robertson says. "Pick up cheap, inexpensive oil blends from most drugstores, or, if you prefer the handmade touch, you can even make up your own." Or, take your significant other on a walking tour that ends in a surprise picnic. "They'll be bowled over," Robertson adds. "To plan it, handpick a selection of the most interesting spots in your town or city or choose a few places to tour that have special significance to you and your partner. Finish the trip somewhere scenic where you can both picnic, maybe at a romantic park, by a lake or at the top of an impressive monument or building." Kendal Perez, a savings expert with CouponSherpa.com, advises the love-struck to take full advantage of the calendar for this year's Valentine's Day. "Since Valentine's Day falls on a Sunday this year, typically delivery gifts including flowers will likely arrive Saturday or Monday," Perez says. "Most online florist companies offer savings for early-bird deliveries, and since you're arrangement can't arrive on the day of, you may as well take advantage of these savings." On Coupon Sherpa, you can grab a 25% discount on a Wednesday delivery through TheBouqs.com, and you'll score free shipping and no service charge if you arrange a delivery on February 11 and February 12 through 1-800-Flowers. Gifting the day after Valentine's Day can also result in big savings, since stores will mark down Valentine's Day goodies by 50% and won't charge a Valentine's Day tax on bouquets, Perez adds. "Acknowledge Valentine's Day with plans like breakfast in bed or a matinee, but hold off on tangible gifts until Monday," Perez says. "My husband always waits until February 15 to buy me flowers and typically spends $15 or less." The moral of this romantic story? You just don't have to spend a lot of money to show someone you care. "Because Valentine's day is such an emotional holiday most people find themselves overspending in an effort to prove to their significant other that they care for them," notes Ash Exantus, financial empowerment coach at BankMobile in New York City. "We all know that money can't buy love -- or shouldn't -- but if you are trying to keep your spending under control, one thing you should do is set a budget ahead of time. Have an open dialogue with your loved one and let them know what limits you are setting." Sage advice indeed for one of the most romantic days of the year, or Hallmark-manufactured days, depending on how you look at it. Either way, a spending cap like Aurora Gregory's seems like a great idea. Montreal, CA (H4T1V6) Today Cloudy and damp with rain early...then becoming partly cloudy. Low around 40F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 90%.. Tonight Cloudy and damp with rain early...then becoming partly cloudy. Low around 40F. Winds SW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 90%. remaining of Thank you for reading! On your next view you will be asked to log in to your subscriber account or create an account and subscribepurchase a subscription to continue reading. A demonstrator holds a banner outside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, where Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is staying, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says he will accept arrest by British police if a U.N. working group investigating his claims decides that the three years he has spent inside the Ecuadorean Embassy doesn't amount to illegal detention. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth) Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., center, is joined by Sen. Cory Gardner R-Colo., left, as Republicans wrap up a meeting during work on the energy reform bill, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, on Capitol Hill in Washington. Democrats want to attach a federal aid package to the bipartisan energy bill to help the Flint, Mich., health crises caused by corroded lead pipes. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) Syrian opposition chief Riad Hijab, right, standing next to High Negotiations Committee (HNC) spokesman Salem al-Meslet, left, as they attend a press conference after Syrian peace talks, at the President Wilson hotel in Geneva, Switzerland, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. U.N. Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura announced Wednesday there would be a "temporary pause" in the indirect peace talks between the government and opposition, saying the process will resume Feb. 25. (Martial Trezzini/Keystone via AP) (File photo) The Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) has been signed by ministers from its 12 member nations in New Zealand on Feb. 4, 2016, according to China's Ministry of Commerce. An official in charge of international affairs at the ministry said that China has noted the signing of the TPP in Auckland. The official said that the TPP covers a large range of fields and China is evaluating the trade deal. Gao Hucheng, China's commerce minister, mentioned China's attitude towards the organization in an interview with state media on Oct. 8, 2015, which was posted on the ministry's website. "China hopes that the TPP and other free trade arrangements in the region will boost each other and contribute to trade, investment and economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region," Gao said in the interview. Recover your password. A password will be e-mailed to you. After news reports about attack on Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru emerged, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj reacted saying she was deeply pained over the shameful incident. In a series of tweets, condemning the incident, Sushma said that she has also asked the Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to ensure the safety and security of foreign students in Bengaluru. We are deeply pained over the shameful incident with a Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru, she tweeted. I spoke to the Chief Minister Karnataka. He informed me that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested, she added. I have asked the Chief Minister to ensure safety and security of all foreign students and stringent punishment for the guilty. The High Commission of Tanzania, meanwhile, has dashed off a Note Verbale to the External Affairs Ministry about the reported attack, requesting it to take necessary legal action against the guilty. The sources said the Joint Secretary in MEA's East and Southern Africa Division has spoken to the High Commissioner of Tanzania and expressed regret over the the unfortunate incident. The Joint Secretary told the Tanzanian High Commissioner that the Ministry is in regular touch with the authorities in Bangalore and that the state authorities have said they are seized of the matter and have taken action to prevent recurrence of such incidents. The Tanzanian victim was summoned to police station to record statement following the news reports of the attack. While recording her statement she also alleged that the mob stripped off her top and forced to walk the streets half-naked. The victim, a 21-year-old business management student of Acharya College, has also alleged that the by-standers who tried to help her were also beaten up by the mob. The victim has further stated that she boarded a bus to escape her attackers. However, passengers in the bus pushed her out and into the mob. The incident is said to be the mistaken case of identity. A few hours before the Tanzanian student was attacked, a woman, Sabeen Taj, was run over by a car driven by Sudanese student in Hessarghatta, Bengaluru north. A group of Tanzanian students, who arrived at the accident spot in a different car, in which the victim was also travelling, later in the day were targeted by a angry mob. The victim has alleged that she was assaulted, stripped and paraded by a mob on night of January 31. The car in which the students were travelling was also set alight by the mob. The legal adviser for the All African Students Union in Bengaluru, Bosco Kaweesi said police were of no help when they were approached with the complaint. He also alleged that initially police refused to take the complaint from the victim. The woman's statement had been recorded by the Deputy Commissioner of Police and a case of assault on the woman has been filed. The police are trying to identify the people involved in the attack and arrest them. Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi on Thursday sought a report from the Karnataka government explaining the attack on a Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru. Congress party General Secretary Digvijay Singh said Rahul has asked the government to send a report on the incident immediately. "Strongly condemn incident with Tanzanian lady in Bangalore. Police must act strongly against the culprits," tweeted Singh, who is also in-charge of party affairs in Karnataka. "Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately," said Singh. READ: Tanzanian student attack: 'Pained' Sushma Swaraj calls Siddaramaiah So far, five suspects have been arrested by police in connection with the assault on 21-year-old girl. In a case of mistaken identity, the Tanzanian girl was attacked on Sunday suspecting her to be a friend of a Sudanese student, Mohammad Ahad, who ran over a local resident, Shabana Taz in Hessarghatta, Bengaluru north. Ahad was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident, which killed Shabana. He is now in police custody. "Arrest of the accused has been made on the basis of eye witnesses' account and from the video footage from closed circuit television cameras (CCTV) in the area. We will produce them in a local court for custody and further interrogation," said Bengaluru Police Commissioner N.S. Megharik. Denying reports in a section of media that the victim was stripped and paraded, Megharik said in his statement that she was only assaulted and molested in which her T-shirt was torn off. "Though the car mishap was 30 minutes before the victim reached the spot in the other car, the mob thought she was Ahad's friend and assaulted her," deputy police commissioner T.R. Suresh told reporters on Wednesday night. The victim, a business management student of Acharya College, has also alleged that the bystanders who tried to help her were also beaten up by the mob. The victim also said when she boarded a slow-moving bus to escape her attackers, passengers in the bus pushed her out and into the mob. The victim has alleged that she was assaulted, stripped off her T-shirt and paraded half-naked in streets by a mob on night of January 31. The car in which the victim and her friends were travelling was also set alight by the mob. The legal adviser for the All African Students Union in Bengaluru, Bosco Kaweesi said police were of no help when they were approached with the complaint. He also alleged that initially police refused to take the complaint from the victim. The case is being closely followed by the Ministry of External Affairs and the High Commission of Tanzania. (With inputs from IANS) China, Cambodia agree to support each other on "core interests" BEIJING, Feb. 4 -- China and Cambodia agreed on Thursday to support each other on issues concerning their respective "core and major interests." The consensus was reached in Beijing during the third meeting of the China-Cambodia Inter-Governmental Coordination Committee, co-chaired by Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi and Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Hor Namhong. The two countries will continue high-level contacts, strengthen their strategic communication and coordination on international and regional affairs, said an official press release. Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin told journalists after the meeting that both sides agreed to continue promotion for a proper settlement of the South China Seaissue. Liu reaffirmed that the issue should be addressed through a "dual-track" approach -- disputes should be resolved peacefully through negotiation between the parties directly concerned, and China and ASEANcountries should work together to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea. China and ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) countries should jointly safeguard the freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, according to Liu. He said China stands ready to work with Cambodia and other Southeast Asian countries to safeguard regional peace and stability. The two sides also agreed to cooperate in trade, investment, infrastructure, agriculture and other economic fields so as to achieve common development, according to the press release. They also reached consensus on enhancing people-to-people exchanges and security cooperation. The first meeting of the China-Cambodia Inter-governmental Coordination Committee was co-chaired by Yang and Hor Namhong, also Cambodia's foreign minister, in Beijing in January 2014. The second meeting was held in Phnom Penh in December 2014. Acknowledging that across the US it is a time of concern and fear for Muslims, US President Barack Obama on Wednesday reiterated his commitment to "freedom of religion" and asked his countrymen to show that America truly protects all faiths. "The best way to fight terrorism is to show the US does not suppress Islam and refute lies to the contrary," Obama said in his historic address to Muslim community from a mosque in Baltimore, Maryland. In his first visit to a mosque inside the US, Obama referred to the recent political rhetoric against Muslims in the country, where Christians are in majority, and said that the Americans cannot be silent bystanders to bigotry against any faith. "I know that in Muslim communities across our country this is a time of concern and, frankly, a time of some fear. Like all Americans, you're worried about the threat of terrorism, but on top of that, as Muslim-Americans, you also have another concern, and that is your entire community so often is targeted or blamed for the violent acts of the very few," Obama said in his address to the Muslim American community. "An attack on one's faith is an attack on all our faiths," Obama said as he mentioned recent attacks against Muslim community and also cited those of Sikh-Americans who looks like them. Americans must speak up when any group is targeted, he added. "We have to respect the fact that we have freedom of religion," he said. At the same time, the US President asked the Muslim community to reject extremism and terrorism. Pushing back at critics who say he should talk about "Islamic terrorists", he said that, "We shouldn't play into terrorist propaganda." "As we protect our country from terrorism, we should not reinforce the ideas and the rhetoric of terrorists themselves," Obama said, adding that groups like Islamic State militant group are desperate for legitimacy. "We must never give them that legitimacy," he said. In an apparent reference to recent political rhetoric, he opposed the idea of religious profiling. "Engagement with Muslim Americans communities must never be a cover for surveillance," he added. "As we go forward, I want every Muslim American to remember that...your fellow Americans stand with you," Obama said and assured the young Muslim Americans: "You are not Muslim or American. You are Muslim and American." Muslim political leaders "have to push back on the lie" that the West represses Muslims, Obama told the Muslim community leaders. "This is not a clash of civilisations between the West and Islam," he said and asked American-Muslims to show they're faithful to Islam and also part of a pluralistic society in the US. Obama called for "global pressure" to end the fights between Muslim sects that produces so much bloodshed. "We are one American family. We will rise and fall together," Obama said as he concluded his 45-minute speech on the outskirts of the US Capital. In his first-ever visit to a US mosque as the president, Obama told Muslim-Americans that US will be their partner to help them promote pluralism and peace. Many Americans only hear about Muslims and Islam from the news after an act of terrorism or in distorted media portrayals in TV or film, all of which gives this hugely distorted impression, Obama said. Referring to recent attacks on Muslim Americans, Obama said since 9/11, but more recently since the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, they have seen too often people conflating the horrific acts of terrorism with the beliefs of an entire faith. "And, of course, recently we've heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim-Americans that has no place in our country. No surprise, then, that threats and harassment of Muslim-Americans have surged," he said. "Here at this mosque twice last year, threats were made against your children. Around the country, women wearing the hijab, just like Saba, have been targeted. We've seen children bullied. We've seen mosques vandalized. Sikh-Americans and others who are perceived to be Muslims have been targeted as well," Obama said. Obama said for more than 1,000 years, people have been drawn to Islam's message of peace. "Like so many faiths, Islam is rooted in a commitment to compassion and mercy and justice and charity. Whoever wants to enter paradise, the Prophet Muhammad taught, let him treat people the way he would love to be treated. ..The world's 1.6 billion Muslims are as diverse as humanity itself," he said. Citing the contribution of Muslim-Americans to the US, he said that keep the country safe. "Muslim Americans are some of the most resilient and patriotic Americans you'll ever meet," he said. "This is the truth. Groups like Al Qaeda and ISIL, they're not the first extremists in history to misuse God's name. We've seen it before across faiths. But right now, there is an organised extremist element that draws selectively from Islamic text, twist them in an attempt to justify their killing and their terror," he said. Obama said it is a false claims that America and the West are at war with Islam. "And this warped thinking that has found adherence around the world, including as we saw in Boston, Chattanooga and San Bernardino, is real. It's there. And it creates tensions and pressure that disproportionately burden the overwhelming majority of law-abiding Muslim citizens," he said. Obama said that when any religious group is targeted, all have a responsibility to speak up and have to reject politics that seeks to manipulate prejudice or bias and targets people because of religion. "We've got to make sure the hate crimes are punished and that the civil rights of all Americans are upheld," he said. "We have to be consistent in condemning hateful rhetoric and violence against everyone, and that includes against Muslims here in the United States of America," he said. "None of us can be silent, we can't be bystanders to bigotry. And together, we've got to show that America truly protects all faiths," he said. Obama said the notion that America's at war with Islam ignores the fact that the world's religions are a part of who they are. "We're can't be at war with any other religion because the world's religions are a part of the very fabric of the United States, our national character," he said. Muslims also across the globe, he underscored, has a responsibility to reject extremist ideologies that are trying to penetrate within Muslim communities. "Across the Islamic world, influential voices should consistently speak out with an affirmative vision of their faith," he said. "We are one American family. We will rise and fall together," Obama said. As a child, Amitava Das learnt through history text book pages that Subhas Chandra Bose was a nationalist who had become a rebel to free India. As he grew up, he was eager to know more about the enigmatic iconabout his passion and ideology, and what he could have emerged as, had he returned to India. That was missing in the text books, as they were replete with Bose raising the Indian National Army and joining hands with Adolf Hitler to free India. To me he was like a hero, like James Bond, who travelled from one country to another to free India. That was magical, says Das, an author and publisher of a children's magazine in Kolkata. We had no information about his personality. We were not taught Netaji like we were about [Mahatma] Gandhi and [Jawaharlal] Nehru. Das feels academic history throws little light on Bose, except about his rebellion and mysterious disappearance. While the official version is that he died in an air crash in Taipei, Taiwan, on August 18, 1945, there is a plethora of conspiracy theories on his 'disappearance', including one that he had returned to India and lived incognito as 'Gumnami Baba' in Faizabad, Uttar Pradesh. Now, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi has declassified 100 Netaji files, and has promised to release more25 files every monthdoes Das see a new chapter of political history opening up? No, he says. He believes the declassification is just a political drama. Though I am interested to know how Netaji died and who were behind his death, the revelations wont make any impact on me and others in the younger generation. That is, even if Jawaharlal Nehru had a hand in Netaji's disappearance, says Das, who is in his late thirties. Neither Modi nor [West Bengal Chief Minister] Mamata Banerjee [who had declassified 64 files last year] would benefit out of it, says Das. Nehru once was the most hated political figure in West Bengal. He was seen as a villain who did in Bose. Kolkata, for instance, has very few Nehru statues, unlike his descendants Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, who are worshiped by Congressmen. There is just one Nehru statue amidst a bush in Kolkata's Park Street. Not many Congressmen, besides the second chief minister of West Bengal, Bidhan Chandra Roy, who erected the statue at Park Street, dared to worship Nehru. They feared political isolation. Things, however, have changed. The Bengali youth are not obsessed with the Nehru-Bose rift anymore. Actually, many of us came to know about Netaji when we became adults, says Muhammad Shahnawaz, who teaches English at a tutorial in Kolkata. I knew him not as a freedom fighter, but a nationalist extremist. My students are least bothered about what the Netaji files would be revealing. We would not sprinkle black ink on Nehru's portrait even if any damning revelations against him comes out. Times have changed, so have peoples priorities. Shahnawaz, however, wonders why Bose was kept hidden from several generations. Everyone is doing politics over his death now. Why none tried to tell us about his life? he asks. Seven decades have passed since Bose's 'disappearance'. But, people like Shahnawaz still believe he was a leader independent India missed. Many of us visited the Netaji Research Bureau in Kolkata as we grew up. Had he been alive he would never have kept issues plaguing the nation pending. Just imagine how in a short time he raised an army and attacked the British! We needed such a prime minister, said Shahnawaz. It is this sense of reverence that Modi is trying to exploit. Appropriating Bose is, in fact, a coup of sorts, with assembly elections coming up in West Bengal, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and the northeast. Modi & Co. have managed to capitalise on the divide in the Bose family over his disappearance. The family had so far been backing the Congress (which believes in air crash theory) or the leftist Forward Bloc (which suspects foul play in Bose's disappearance). But after the releasing of files, a large part of the family has been Modi-fied. Chandra Kumar Bose, grandnephew of Bose, joined the BJP a day after Modi initiated the declassification process on January 23, the 119th birth anniversary of the legend. Soon after getting re-elected as the BJP's national president, Amit Shah held a rally in West Bengal. And he handed over a party flag to Chandra Bose, who waved it with a broad smile. I am proud to be part of the BJP. This is the first government since independence that is trying to unravel the mystery of Netajis death. Thus, I have decided to join the prime ministers attempt to establish good governance in the country, says Chandra Bose, in an exclusive interview with THE WEEK. The Modi government, he says, is set to rewrite Indian history since 1857. The prime minister has told me that he would constitute a committee to take a re-look at our history since India's first war of independence, says Chandra Bose. Many sidelined freedom fighters would find a place in history books. Netaji certainly would find more space. I will be part of the committee. Would Bose have accepted his joining the BJP? There are hot-heads in all the political parties of India. I can assure you that the prime minister is not a communal man. I had many discussions with him over the past one year, says Chandra Bose. Happy family: Members of the Bose family at the Parliament House | PTI Modi clearly is desperate for a firm footing in West Bengal. He had been sending feelers to the Bose family ever since he became prime minister. He, apparently, spoke to every prominent member of the Bose family, including Trinamool Congress MP Sugata Bose. An internal study had found that the BJP was facing an image crisis in West Bengal. Hence, over the past two years, the party has been trying for a makeover by inducting people from the civil society. And now comes the trump card: Bose. Roping in the larger part of the family, which disbelieved the air crash theory, was not a cakewalk. Modi met the family members several timesin Delhi and Kolkataand wooed them into the BJP fold. But the image-conscious family treaded cautiously. The family members asked Modi to do something that would justify their support to him. Yes, the prime minister first approached me to join the BJP. But I was not prepared for that, as I was part of left politics then, says Chandra Bose. Then, I requested him to release all the classified documents with the PMO, National Archives and with home ministry. I requested him to deliver on KGB files by taking up the issue with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He did that. He also promised he would ask foreign governments concerned to release files on Netaji. All files with the British archives in London will be released soon. He accepted my pleas, and I accepted his. Chandra Bose seems charmed by Modi. He, in fact, says he had never even imagined joining the BJP, but Modi made him change his mind. Trust me, I have never seen such a dedicated prime minister who could act on unravelling the mystery of Netajis disappearance. We are proud of him, he says, adding that many more in the family have become Modi fans. Chandra Bose's cousin Sugata, however, does not share the enthusiasm. When asked about the political churning in the family, he smiles and says, I prefer not to comment. Senior BJP leaders, too, refuse to comment on the connect between Modi and the Bose family. How would I know what was transpired between the prime minister and them? asks Dilip Ghosh, president of the BJPs West Bengal unit. The prime minister or our party president have not discussed the subject with us, says a national leader. But we are happy that we have got members of the Bose family backing us. Forward Bloc secretary Ashok Ghosh, 94the only living Indian politician who has met Boseis upset with the family aligning with the BJP. I could not leave the party, as I know the legendary leader, says Ghosh, who has been the party's secretary for 65 years. His family member [Chandra Kumar Bose] joined the BJP because they did not inculcate Boses ideology. They remained just family members. Congress leaders, meanwhile, feel Modi sought to strike two birds with one stoneto tarnish the image of Nehru and the Congress, and to boost the BJP's prospects in West Bengal. The prime minister and the BJP aim to defame Nehru by declassifying the files, says Congress Rajya Sabha MP Pradip Bhattacharya. It is very unfortunate, but they would not find anything [against Nehru] even if they go abroad and try to unearth things. Bhattacharya suspects an understanding between Mamata and Modi to polarise West Bengal in the name of Netaji. He, after all, is the biggest icon in Bengal and would remain so, he says. Mamata had declassified Netaji files with the state about six months ago, when she had been cornered over her alleged role in the Saradha scam. How could India never reveal the secret? How could the past governments of India hide it from the public eye? It is shameful, said Mamata, soon after Modi's declassification move. And that has put an end to rumours about Mamata warming up to the Congress. Didi asked us to support the BJP governments decision on Netaji files, says a Trinamool Congress leader. Sources say Mamata is miffed over the Congress cosying up with the left in West Bengal. Both Mamata and Modi have told their party men to make Bose an election issue. Yes, we will take up this issue, says Chandra Bose. We have no problem if Mamata also takes it up. But Modis act is courageous, as government after government had dilly-dallied saying declassification of files would affect India's relations with foreign countries. Even the CPI(M) had no choice but to praise Modi's move. I welcome it, says the party's central committee member Gautam Deb. The government should release all the files related to Netaji. I will not go into the debate whether Nehru was involved or not [in Bose's disappearance]. The government should reveal all documents it possesses before the countrymen. That will happen in the coming days, assures Chandra Bose. There is no question of Modi cherry-picking, he says. The prime minister told me: 'I have not seen a single file. Nor would I study anyone in the near future. I am only interested in letting people know the inside story'. Chinese President Xi Jinping (R, front), also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, talks with villagers while visiting revolutionary site in Jinggangshan, east China's Jiangxi Province, Feb. 2, 2016. Xi extended holiday greetings to all Chinese citizens and military personnel during a three-day tour in Jiangxi from Feb. 1 to 3. (Xinhua/Lan Hongguang) NANCHANG, Feb. 3 -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for a change in local government development concepts on a visit to east China's Jiangxi Province. Xi, also General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, made the remarks during a three-day tour of the revolutionary base areas from Monday to Wednesday, which took him to Ji'an, Jinggangshan and Nanchang, just days ahead of Spring Festival, or the Chinese Lunar New Year. Chinese leaders traditionally visit ordinary people in both urban and rural areas ahead of the holiday. Xi visited Gansu Province and Beijing in 2013, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and northwest China's Shaanxi Province in 2015. He asked officials to uphold and implement the newly identified development concepts -- innovation, coordination, green development, opening up and sharing, as well as to deliver structural reform on the supply side and industrial upgrades. He also urged local governments to protect the environment and strike a balance between economic growth and conservation. During his trip, Xi visited villages, businesses, schools, community groups as well as revolutionary base museums in Jiangxi, extending holiday greetings to all Chinese citizens. He also met with senior military officers stationed in the province, two days after the People's Liberation Army (PLA) was regrouped into five theater commands. NEW DEVELOPMENT CONCEPTS Development concepts, which must be adjusted to the changing environment and conditions of development, should guide the development mode and practices, Xi said during his tour in Jiangxi. Xi called on leading cadres at all levels to apply the new development concepts when pushing forward supply-side structural reform, boosting strong and emerging industries at the same time, upgrading traditional industries as well as developing modern service industries. Initiatives should be taken to the upgrade of industrial structure by closing down backward production facilities and focusing more resources on new industries, Xi said. Xi urged Jiangxi to make reforms, innovation and entrepreneurship engines for its development as the country's economy has entered a "new normal" featuring slower growth. During his trip, Xi visited Jiangzhong Medicine Valley, which is affiliated with Jiangxi-based Chinese pharmaceutical firm Jiangzhong Group, hailing its effort on developing new products and strict attention to the quality of raw materials as well as products. "Chinese medicine is a treasure of the Chinese nation. Therefore it is our duty to better protect it and tap its potential," Xi said, adding that all pharmaceutical enterprises must contribute to the health of Chinese people with quality products. While visiting the National Engineering Technology Research Center for LED on Si Substrate under Nanchang University, Xi stressed the key role of higher learning institutes in technological innovation and talent training. "Higher learning institutes must innovate their talent development schemes and teaching methods to cultivate more qualified personnel for the the country's development," said Xi. Highlighting green development in the new concepts, Xi stressed environmental protection in Jiangxi's economic growth. "Jiangxi is a place boasting beautiful scenery. So it is a must to protect its ecological environment, which is the most important asset of Jiangxi," Xi said. Meanwhile, he called for improving people's livelihood as "sharing" is one of the five new concepts in development. Xi called for continued effort in upgrading public services and ensuring everyone can share in services. POVERTY ALLEVIATION During his trip to Shenshan Village, a poverty-stricken village in Jinggangshan City, Xi met with villagers and the village party chief to learn about the progress that has been made in poverty relief through "precision" measures. While visiting the house of Zuo Xiufa, offspring of a revolutionary martyr, Xi was glad to see that Zuo has shaken off poverty by using local bamboo resources to start his own processing business. "Endeavors of poverty alleviation must be carried out in a precise manner, with different measures rolled out targeting different characteristics of different people and households," said Xi. "The CPC serves Chinese people wholeheartedly. We are committed to supporting development of the old revolutionary base areas and making your life better day by day. Not a single family living in poverty is to be left behind on our path to combating poverty," Xi told the Shenshan villagers. JINGGANGSHAN SPIRIT During his stay in Jinggangshan, the President honored revolutionary martyrs and presented them with flower baskets in Jinggangshan Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery. Xi also visited former residences of late Chinese leader Mao Zedong and Zhu De. "The Chinese nation is a nation that worships heroes, makes heroes and has numerous heroes in its history. The spirit of heroes still exists in the age of peace. We must uphold the spirit of heroes, who sacrificed their lives for the Party, the country as well as the Chinese people," Xi said when meeting with offspring of martyrs and moral models. Xi stressed that Jinggangshan is regarded as the cradle of the Chinese Communist revolution and the Jinggangshan Spirit is the greatest legacy that the city's history has passed on to today's generation. "We must carry forward the Jinggangshan Spirit in modern context," said Xi, calling on every and each Party member and leading official to take ideals and faith as a source of guidance in their daily work. Party members and leading officials should never lose the traditional virtues of frugality and honesty and must strive to better serve the people, added Xi. MILITARY LOYALTY Xi, also chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), met with senior officers at local military units, urging the country's armed forces to follow the CPC. Xi extended greetings to all military personnel in Jiangxi on behalf of the CPC Central Committee and the CMC. Stressing the commitment to build a strong army, Xi called on all military units to promote political faithfulness, reforms and rule of law among China's armed forces. Education and guidance should be enhanced to promote servicemen's awareness to listen to the Party and follow the commands of the CPC Central Committee and the CMC, Xi said, underlining the province's revolutionary tradition in forging the soldiers' spirit. Also, the CMC chairman told the military to better support poverty reduction in the province's less-developed areas and advance the civil-military integration. The People's Liberation Army was regrouped into five theater commands on Monday. Xi presented military flags to top officers of the five theater commands at the inauguration ceremony on Monday morning, urging construction of a joint battle command system that is "absolutely loyal, resourceful in fighting, efficient in commanding, courageous and capable of winning wars." BDE: Following two infant deaths in Bnei Brak RL in recent days, two additional cases are reported in Eretz Yisrael on Thursday morning, 25 Shevat. In the first case, a 6-month-old was found lifeless in his crib on Shaagas Aryeh Street in Modiin Illit. The child was pronounced dead on the scene after CPR and life-saving measures were unsuccessful. A short time later, at about 6:00AM, EMS was summoned to Yitzchak Tunic Street in Yerushalayim. Ichud Hatzalah began CPR and the child was transported to a hospital in a MDA paramedic ambulance as CPR and advanced life support continued. Unfortunately, in this case as well, CPR and live-saving efforts were unsuccessful and a 3-month-old infant was pronounced dead in the hospital. Professor Shimon Reif of Hadassah Medical Center spoke with Mordechai Lavi of Kol Chai Radio on Thursday morning, 25 Shevat. He explains that there is no known explanation for crib death to date and actually, despite what appears to be an increase in cases of late, statistically, there are fewer cases today than in the past. However, he adds that while the medical community lacks an explanation, there are steps to be taken to reduce instances including a firm mattress, not to warm the home too much, not to place the infant to sleep on his stomach and not to have the infant sleeping in bed next to mom. He explains these are risk factors that have been developed by studying the cases of sudden death. Prof. Reif adds there are studies that indicate sleeping on ones stomach leads to a deeper sleep but in this case, this is not the reason for the child not to be placed on his stomach. The doctor adds that another contributory factor is the second hand smoke in the home of adults, admitting that despite the risk factors, the medical community does not know the reason for SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). The doctor concludes the cases occur more often with boys than girls. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) The battle to prevent moving the IDFs Jewish Consciousness Unit from the IDF Rabbinate to the Manpower Branch has all be waned and the move, which was ordered by IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-General Gadi Eizenkott, is viewed as inevitable. However, chareidi lawmakers are not throwing up their hands and they are picking up the gauntlet after dati leumi lawmakers have thrown in the towel. To date, objections to the move were heard from the military rabbinate and dati leumi legislators, while the chareidim have remained silent. Galei Tzahal (Army Radio) reports that during the last cabinet meeting, the chareidi ministers raised the issue and they are working to prevent it from happening. The Galei Tzahal reports that Aryeh Deri, Yaakov Litzman and Moshe Gafne are going to meet with Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon to discuss the matter. Galei Tzahal reports that a senior official explains the chareidim view this as a change in the religious status quo and they are unwilling to accept it. Interestingly, the chareidim are now seeking to prevent the move, which their dati leumi counterparts have thrown up their hands in despair. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) Gazan sources on Wednesday morning 24 Shevat report that another tunnel has collapsed and at least two people have been killed and an unspecified number of others have been injured. this is the second such report in the past two weeks, with the last being in northern Gaza when a tunnel collapsed, killing at least seven people. Among the dead in the latest tunnel collapse is a relative of a senior Hamas official, the reports from Gaza add. Gaza border community residents and leaders insist Hamas continues working to rehabilitate its terror tunnel network that the IDF reports it destroyed in Operation Protective Edge. Anyone in the area of these communities at night can easily hear drilling and at times, feel vibrations, lending credibility to their concerns. However, Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon explains that to date, nothing has been found to substantiate the claims that new tunnels are being constructed. 0404 News reports that a military source confirms Hamas is digging tunnels without any doubt but for now, there is no evidence these tunnels have crossed the border. If one travels to the Gaza border today one will see dozens of Israeli drills operating, digging holes 25-30 meters down in the hope of finding tunnels. To date nothing has been found or at least not reported. Experts explain the drilling is not easy for one must land in exactly the correct spot over a tunnel and this is most unlikely. Gaza officials explain that the farmers know more than the so-called military experts, explaining they come to their fields in the morning and see land shifts including a drop of centimeters from the night to the next day. They insist this is proof of the ongoing work under the ground despite denials from the IDF and government officials. Gaza residents are questioning the denial and wish to understand why once again Israel is permitting Hamas to build an underground network to use to attack in the next round of warfare. Residents point out that just as Egypt can detonate terror tunnels on the Rafiach side of the border, Israel must do the same at this side of the border. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) Hillary Clinton emerged from Iowa with a razor-thin victory over Bernie Sanders and a new round of nervous second-guessing from supporters. Topping the list of concerns is Clintons staggering disadvantage with young voters, a crucial Democratic constituency that overwhelmingly sided with Sanders. Clinton supporters are also worried that the campaign is still struggling with a muddled message, a problem that plagued her not only in the opening months of this campaign but also in her failed 2008 White House bid. But this time the Democratic hand-wringing is balanced by something more positive: cautious optimism that she has an organization that might overcome her weaknesses. Momentum was with Sanders, said Mo Elleithee, a former Clinton campaign aide. The organization kicked in, and she got scrappy. While Clintons voter-targeting and get-out-the-vote efforts may have put her over the top in Iowa barely the campaign underperformed by its own expectations. In the hours before the caucuses began, aides privately told supporters they expected her to win by about five points. The final tally put Clinton ahead by less than three-tenths of 1 percent. It wasnt much, but it may have been enough to hold off potential upheavals within the campaign. For weeks, some Clinton allies and former staffers have floated the idea of demoting campaign manager Robby Mook, the architect of the ground operation in Iowa and beyond. But several Democrats close to the campaign said Tuesday that Mooks standing was solid, in part because of the Iowa outcome. The Democrats insisted on anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss internal campaign dyanmics. Even with a win in hand, big challenges await Clinton as the race moves to New Hampshire, where Sanders has led preference polls for months. While Clintons campaign insists he has home field advantage given that hes from neighboring Vermont, its Clinton and her husband, former President Bill Clinton, who have deep political roots in the state. Clinton allies are more confident shell thrive when the race turns to states like South Carolina and Nevada, where black and Hispanic voters are more plentiful. But theyre deeply concerned about her struggles with young people, a key part of the coalition that propelled Barack Obama to the White House and a coalition Clinton hopes to replicate in a general election. More than 8 in 10 caucus-goers under the age of 30 came to support Sanders, as did nearly 6 in 10 of those between 30 and 44, according to a survey conducted for The Associated Press and the television networks by Edison Research. Thats unprecedented, said Paul Begala, a longtime Clinton ally who advises a super PAC backing her candidacy. She cannot be president without the enthusiastic support of those Sanders voters. Clinton conceded in an interview with CNN that she is going to have some work to do to reach out to young voters. Allies pinned at least some of her problems with young voters on a muddled message. Sanders has resonated with his call for a political revolution to fix an economy he calls rigged for the wealthy. Brad Anderson, an Iowa political consultant who supports Clinton, said Sanders supporters had a noticeably easier time conveying their message to undecided voters. I think there was something . to Sanders message that inspires the base, Anderson said. Campaigning in New Hampshire on Tuesday, Clinton largely stuck to the message she used during the last days in Iowa, casting herself as a liberal who can accomplish change an implicit suggestion that Sanders proposals are unrealistic. But her husband hinted a more aggressive approach toward Sanders may be coming. We should talk about what the honest differences are: first, on what they want to do and how they want to pay for it; and secondly, whos the best to do it, the former president said. Some Democrats warned the candidate against overcorrecting. Swerving off her lane, changing messages or tone would be a mistake, said Dan Pfeiffer, a longtime Obama adviser. He pointed to March 15 contests in Florida, Ohio and Illinois as a test of whether Clinton will either put this away, or sign up for a 2008-style slog. (AP) Donald Trump made a late play for evangelical voters in Iowas Republican presidential caucus, but he ultimately couldnt wrest the group away from winner Ted Cruz, according to entrance polls taken at the start of Mondays caucuses. The polls, conducted for national media including The Associated Press, also suggest that late-deciding Iowans trended toward Cruz and third-place finisher Marco Rubio, who almost nipped Trump for a surprise second. And perhaps the most perilous indicator for Trump: He got just one out of 20 votes among caucus attendees who said their top priority was a candidate who shares their values. The Iowa results dont necessarily point to an eventual nominee: Just twice in 40 years has the GOP caucus winner gone on to the claim the nomination in campaigns with no incumbent Republican president. But the details behind Cruzs victory and Rubios climb raise new questions about Trumps turnout operation and his ability to turn his cobonsistently front-running poll numbers into actual votes; and that increases pressure on Trump to deliver a victory next Tuesday in New Hampshire or risk damaging his strategy of campaigning as the inevitable nominee at the head of a fractured field. Trump showed little concern Tuesday. Because I was told I could not do well in Iowa, I spent very little there a fraction of Cruz & Rubio. Brought in record voters and got second highest vote total in history, he wrote on Twitter. Indeed, thats true. But it glosses over some important details that Trump must avoid if he hopes to maintain his strength through what could become a lengthy slog of primaries and caucuses. Sixty-four percent of Republican caucus participants in Iowa identified as born-again Christians. Cruz eclipsed Trump 34 percent to 22 percent among that group. Cruz also finished well ahead of Trump among caucus-goers who identified as very conservative. And, potentially worrisome for Trump, Rubio came close 33 percent for Trump to 27 percent for Rubio among those who consider themselves moderate or liberal. The potential good news for Trump: He outpaced Cruz by more than a 2-to-1 margin among caucus-goers who said they wanted an outsider in the Oval Office. Yet Cruz and Rubio both senators buried the billionaire businessman among voters who say they prefer political experience: 39 percent for Rubio, 35 percent for Cruz, 3 percent for Trump. Yet those two pools of voters each made up about the same proportion of the Iowa GOP electorate, making the results a net loss for Trump. Among the 45 percent of caucus-goers who said they decided who to support in just the final week, 29 percent supported Rubio, 27 percent supported Cruz and just 14 percent supported Trump. Among the 36 percent of Iowa caucus-goers who were contacted by someone asking them to come out to support their candidate, Cruz had a 31 percent to 23 percent advantage over Trump. Those numbers together suggest Trump must improve both in delivering his identified supporters and in swaying undecided voters. Continued inability to do that indicates that Rubio and Cruz have considerably more room to grow their support as the race continues. A potential avenue for Trump success could be in attracting new voters. Forty-five percent of caucus-goers said they were attending their first caucus, and they appeared more likely to support Trump than Cruz, 30 percent to 23 percent. But among previous caucus participants, Cruz held a 32 percent to 19 percent advantage. Cruz has celebrated the results as an affirmation of his turnout operation and his contention that the GOP electorate wants a true conservative as its nominee. The Rubio campaign, meanwhile, told its supporters in a Tuesday memo to pay attention to the choice of caucus-goers who prioritize picking someone who can win in November. That was about a fifth of Mondays caucus crowd; Rubio attracted 44 percent of them to Trumps 24 percent and Cruzs 22 percent. Among Democrats, the stark divide was generational in Hillary Clintons narrow victory over Bernie Sanders. Eight-four percent of Democratic participants under 30 supported Sanders, as did 58 percent of those between 30 and 44. But 58 percent of those between 45 and 64 and 69 percent of those 65 and older came out to support Clinton. But Clinton won 58 percent of non-white participants, while just 34 percent supported Sanders. They accounted for just 1 in 10 caucus attendees, and white voters also dominate New Hampshire. But that split could loom large as the race heads to Nevada and South Carolina, where Latinos and African-Americans hold considerable influence. The survey was conducted for AP and the television networks by Edison Research as voters arrived at 40 randomly selected sites for Democratic and Republican caucuses in Iowa. The survey includes preliminary results from interviews with 1,660 Democratic caucus-goers and 1,794 Republican caucus-goers. The survey had a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 4 percentage points for both Democrats and Republicans, with higher margins of error for subgroups. (AP) [PHOTOS BY SHUKI LERER JDN IN EXTENDED ARTICLE] The flash visit of the Satmar Rebbe of Williamsburg Shlita brought a great deal of chareidi media attention as the rebbe attended a family simcha as well as distributing NIS millions for his Shekel Tahor program, assisting mosdos that do not accept funding from any state institution. The rebbe spoke out against Israels chareidi leadership, those who backed the new draft law that compels some chareidim to serve in the military or a state-approved national service program. The event at which the rebbe made his comments was hosted by Gavaad Eida Chareidis HaGaon HaRav Yitzchok Tuvia Weiss Shlita, Eida Chareidis Ravaad HaGaon HaRav Moshe Sternbuch Shlita, and the Toldos Aharon Rebbe Shlita. The rebbe began on a positive note, praising school principals and administrators who are moser nefesh to remain afloat without taking state aid. He then spoke in a pained voice about the ongoing wave of Palestinian terror attacks, of the loss, the bereaved families and the widows and orphans RL. The rebbe added that clearly, state officials havent a clue how to react because there is no way to react against HKBH and we cannot shed the yolk of galus from ourselves but we will have to just wait for Moshiach. During his address the rebbe broached the new draft law and the induction of chareidim into the IDF. He cried that while everyone is so concerned with sharing in protecting the nation, there is a need for protection for neshomos being pulled into the IDF. He spoke of the , the spiritual gate crashers, who wish to destroy everything without from inside and out. These same terrorists exist among the vineyards of the chareidi leadership, whom have crashed all the boundaries including the self-imposed boundaries and have become a part in parcel of the shmad administration which only wants to uproot Torah and Mitzvos from their roots. Particularly the draft law, which targets thousands of bnei torah annually. The rebbe then shifted his attack against roshei yeshivos who backed the bill, stating the same indictment applies to them, those who supported it, Those very same people the Ribono Shel Olam placed in charge of the neshomos of the talmidim. The rebbe stated all of these chareidi leaders and roshei yeshiva who permitted this to pass, approving it and signing it, can never say we did not know, when the destruction follows. The rebbe pointed out how the Brisker Rov spoke out in 1948 against accepting state funds. This is not bitul torah in the sense that time is wasted but bitul torah in the sense they are uprooting the entire torah the rebbe added. It is clear as day that all the concessions the chareidi representatives made were simply to receive money and budgets, and if they did not accept the funding, there would not have been a draft law the Rebbe added. The rebbe pointed out the difficulty now with the Education Ministry trying to effect change in chareidi schools is all due to accepting state money and for no other reason as the ministry continues to insist the schools include English and math. The rebbe lamented how far the chareidim have gone simply to receive money. He pointed out that the non-religious have learned that in the chareidi camp, its just a matter of how much till they give in. The rebbe spoke of a school principal from Jerusalem who visited him a week earlier, explaining for many years his school accepted funding from the state and today, he has been cut off for he refuses to accept children who families have internet at home. The parents took the principal to court and the court ruled the school must accept the children who come from homes with internet or forfeit all state funding. The rebbe explained this is just one small example of how they will control all the mosdos, simply because they have become reliant on the money. From Yerushalayim the rebbe left for London for what is being billed a historic visit. He is expected to meet with major askanim who will be giving large sums as they continue supporting the rebbe and his hashkafa and not accepting any funding from the Israeli government. It is reported that the fact the rebbe was detained in Ben-Gurion Airport by authorities upon landing will only serve to increase the amount supporters will be giving to the cause. Photo Essay: Photos Of Kabolas Ponim In Eretz Yisroel For Satmar Rebbe of Williamsburg (Photos by Shuki Lerer JDN) Photo Essay: Satmar Rebbe of Williamsburg On A Short Visit To Eretz Yisroel (Photos by Shuki Lerer JDN) (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) An Ashkelon court convicted a city resident who made a bogus call to the emergency police 100 dispatcher, Israels equivalent of 911. What made this case significant in the eyes of the court was the timing, just four days after the bodies of the Gush Etzion kedoshim HYD were found. The defendant told the dispatcher I have been abducted and then the line went dead. Justice Tzion Nachmias showed no mercy on the defendant, whom he states acted irresponsibly and his actions cannot pass without stern punishment. The court explained that the emergency dispatcher operates 24/7, and according to the Israel Police website, deals with 8.5 million calls for assistance annually. The court rejected the defenses motion not to blemish the young mans record with a conviction, stating a conviction will not impair the rehabilitation of the defendant in any way. The court added If there is a reason that a conviction will compromise his ability to continue at his present job, he can then take classes as he explained he wishes to do and find another job in the future. I cannot refrain from convicting him without significantly impacting my judgement in other cases, the court added. Defense counsel pointed out that generally, in such cases, a criminal indictment is not handed down, citing his clients friend, who was in the vehicle when police called back and he hung up when he realized it was police, is not being charged. However, in this case, the court remained determined to convict and punish the defendant. The court sentenced the defendant to 180 hours of community service in an Ashkelon community center to assist the supervisor. In addition, the defendant must sign agreeing he will forfeit NIS 10,000 if at any time in the next three years he repeats the offense. Repeating it will result in the loss of the money and an automatic 100 days imprisonment. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) A vet cuts nylon cord which had caused a wound on the right leg of the monkey king. [Photo/Weibo.com] The story of the injured wild monkey in Southwest China which went viral online has had a happy ending. The primate, spotted at the Mount Emei scenic spot at the weekend, was found, treated and on Thursday released back into the wild to the relief of Internet users. Vets removed a nylon cord in a wound on the right leg of the injured 12-year-old, and cleaned, disinfected and bound the wound, after Mount Emei staff found and anesthetized the monkey on Wednesday. Collecting the knocked out monkey wasn't easy as staff had to throw food to distract the attention of around 40 other animals following their leader or "monkey king". Staff spent 10 hours in a temperature of minus 10 degrees Celsius to locate the monkey on Tuesday, because sleeping pills they had managed to get it to ingest a day earlier had not achieved the desired effect. They spent a day tracking the injured animal on Sunday after a photo had been posted on China's Twitter-like Sina Weibo the previous afternoon. The photo, seemingly depicting the primate showing its wound to a passerby and seeking help, tugged at many Internet users' heart strings. After being released, the monkey king appeared reluctant to leave the vets who had helped it, looking back repeatedly as it headed home. Internet users expressed their concerns on social media, as a hot topic with the hashtag #Monkey in Mount Emei asks a passerby for help# which had been read more than 11 million times by late Wednesday night, with most comments saying that the monkey is so lovely, please help it. "People are more and more concerned with wildlife protection due to a strengthening ecological environment protection," Chen Yong, a professor from the School of Journalism and Communication at China West Normal University told Huaxi Metropolis Daily in response to being asked why an ordinary monkey had become an online hit. "The Year of the Monkey also contributed to the huge response," Chen added. The monkey's wound is dressed. [Photo/Weibo.com] Once against EMS responders in Eretz Yisrael were summoned to a home in which an infant found not breathing in her crib RL. This was the second such call within two days in Bnei Brak. EMS was summoned to Emek Yazriel Street in Bnei Brak on Wednesday morning, 24 Shevat for a 1-year-old girl child found not breathing in her crib. Hatzalah responders began CPR, backed up by MDA paramedics who implemented advanced life support. However, at some point they realized there was nothing to be done and the child was pronounced dead in the home. Ichud Hatzalah EMT Yoni Bashari explained the child was in cardiac arrest when he arrived on the scene. Hatzalah EMT Yisrael Suisa explains that despite the CPR accompanied with advanced life support measures, the child did not respond. In a case earlier in the week, on Monday, 22 Shevat, a four-month-old girl was found in cardiac arrest with a diaper on her face to keep her warm. Police first suspected possible neglect but the baby sitter was cleared and the permit for burial was issued in a timely fashion. The incident occurred on Bal HaTanya Street, in the home of the babysitter. These cases join a long list of recent tragedies that have occurred in Eretz Yisrael. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) Hadassah Hospitals Spokesmans Office on Thursday morning 25 Shevat reports that the wounded border policewoman, who was seriously injured in the Shar Shechem attack is moderate/stable condition, conscious and alert. The second border policewoman in that attack died of her massive injuries. The levaya for Hadar Cohen HYD, 19, will take place today, Thursday, 25 Shevat, at noon in the Yahud military cemetery. (YWN Israel Desk, Jerusalem) Dear Avraham Fried, I grew up listening and singing your music in our shabbos table and in all of our happy occasions. And as a kid in Jerusalem, I also remember going to Gan Soccer with the family to one of your concerts. I am today not religious. But to this day I listen and I am inspired by your powerful, spiritual, and soul touching music. I am so spiritually connected to your music that I am tempted to play it on shabbos. I get disappointed that the only available music I have on shabbos is the meaningless non-jewish stuff. But I wanted to let you know that I have kept your request dear to me and I will not, even at gun point, play your music on shabbos. Today, during my darkest and happiest moments, I will tune in to your music for inspiration and hope. Your music is a kidnle to my long lost Jewish soul and it is keeping me alive, both physically and spiritually. My life would simply be meaningless without it. So before you go to bed at night or the next time youre having a rough day, keep in mind that your music is quite literally touching my soul and giving me tremendous hope. To an anonymous Jew: Thank you for writing one of the most powerful letters That I have ever received in my 36 years of singing. If I would respond to all the details of the letter it would take a very long time. So I just want to say this: I would love to meet you one day and hear your story face to face. It was the Rebbe who told me 36 years ago when I was releasing the CD No Jew Will Be Left Behind, to print the words: please do not play on Shabbos and Yom Tov. Perhaps he saw you and the struggle you will have with Yiddishkeit and asked me to print those words so this can be your own unique way of remembering that its Shabbos by not playing my music. A Rebbe can see things way ahead of its time! For someone who calls himself not religious, your soul however seems to be on fire! Youre so in touch with your spirituality. How lucky I am that thru my music I have a part in keeping that spark alive. Stay tuned as a new cd is coming soon IYH. I say to you, Chazak Chazak! Please keep in touch. Abraham. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) [COMMUNICATED CONTENT] Historic Crowd Funding Campaign Be A Part of Saving Orlando Torah Academy From Losing Its Building!! The first ever of its kind crowd funding campaign kicks into high gear to help this essential school buy its building by March 15 and avoid the risk of losing its home and closing down. Torah Umesorah and Eastern Union join forces to create the vehicle so that Klal Yisroel can help Orlando Torah Academy continue doing their chashuva work for the Jewish community of Orlando. Crowd funding is all the rage these days, but it has never before been used to help a yeshiva buy its building and secure its future. UNTIL TODAY. Historically, if a yeshiva needed a loan for their building, they would go to a bank, or to a small group of wealthy people who would lend the yeshiva the money at agreed upon terms. A different way to borrow money is by crowd funding, where tens, hundreds or thousands of people combine small amounts to form one big loan. Prior to 2010, the Jewish children of Orlando had no local choice but to attend public school, as there was no Jewish day school. That all changed when Rabbi Yehuda Schepansky and Rabbi Avraham Wachsman, two young, idealistic Musmachim of Yeshiva Chofetz Chaim, moved to Orlando with their families to found Orlando Torah Academy and lay the foundation for a Torah community. They were just 28 and 32 years old, respectively, when they embarked on their mission. six short years ago, OTA opened its doors with just 12 children enrolled. Today, OTA, a member of Torah Umesorahs vast network of Jewish day schools, has grown to almost 60 students with a bright future for continued growth ahead. OTA rents space within an office building, and students come from homes spanning the spectrum of Jewish backgrounds and traditions. The future seemed promising, until OTA-and with it the very cornerstone of the community-found itself facing a seemingly insurmountable challenge. The landlord of the building OTA occupies was about to go into contract to sell it to a company that wanted to occupy the whole building, and therefore would not have renewed the schools lease. The Rabbis successfully convinced the owner to sell the building to them instead, at the same price of $1.8 million. Although the building is worth that amount, OTA has only been given until March 15th to raise the entire $1.8 million needed to purchase the building. Although we didnt have an exact plan when we went into contract, we felt that we didnt have a choice but to proceed, said Rabbi Schepansky. We need this building to continue the work we started, and we know that as long as we do our hishtadlus, the Ribbono Shel Olam will take care of the rest. Yitzchok Rowe runs Hatzalah in Queens, NY and owns a business in Orlando. He spends time in the community twice a month. This is a challenge far beyond the capabilities of Orlandos small Jewish community, and the responsibility now rests on the shoulders of all of Klal Yisroel, he says. R Rowe continues: Rabbis Wachsman and Schepansky have not just built a yeshiva in the midbar of Orlando; they are saving lives and rejuvenating yiddishkeit! Layer upon layer of hashgacha pratis led to Rabbis Wachsman and Schepansky meeting Ira Zlotowitz, President of Eastern Union, a national commercial mortgage brokerage. This past Shabbos, Ira and his family were guests of their warm and vibrant Orlando community. My wife and I were blown away by what these two dynamic leaders accomplished and what the community is doing, said Ira Zlotowitz. We were inspired and knew that if others heard their story they would be inspired too. This past Motzei Shabbos they launched a crowd funding campaign called 40 for $40k. Duvy Perkowski of Duvys Media has created a user-friendly and secure crowd-funding platform and website, pro-bono, and an LLC has been created to act as the vehicle for this campaign. Crowd Lending OTA, LLC will be run by Rabbi Zvi Bloom, Executive Director of Torah Umesorah, Ira Zlotowitz, President of Eastern Union Funding, David Goldis, a tax accountant based in Ft. Lauderdale, and Yitzchok Rowe, CEO of BSD Health Care Consultants and head of Hatzalah in Queens. As the name of the campaign suggests, OTA is looking for 40 ambassadors to commit to lend $40k. But in order to make the campaign as successful as possible and as easy as possible for many people to participate in this great mitzvah, any loan $1,200 or above will be accepted and appreciated. The ambassadors will each commit to lending the balance remaining by the March 15th deadline, up to $40k per ambassador. It was truly amazing that within minutes after Shabbos all the pieces came together, and by Sunday night almost $300k in new loans had been pledged, said Rabbi Wachsman. In the previous 6 weeks all we had was $275k in total donations for the building. None of us are embarking on this worthy campaign to make a profit; we are confident that this is an endeavor that will be blessed by Hakadosh Baruch Hu and that our profits will manifest themselves in the neshamos of the Jewish children of Orlando, says Ira Zlotowitz. Jeffrey Zwick, a prominent commercial real estate transactional attorney in NY, will be creating, pro-bono, all of the legal documents to ensure that anyone that wants to be part of this historic crowd funding event will be protected. This endeavor will be handled in the most professional manner, says David Goldis, President of CG Accounting Corp, a Ft. Lauderdale, FL based tax accounting and consulting firm. It will prove to be a win-win for everyone involved. These are Hashems children, just like the children of New York, New Jersey, Chicago or Yerushalayim. Klal Yisroel cant turn away and say its not our town. The call must be answered today! says Rabbi Zvi Bloom. Torah Umesorah is proud to be part of this crowd funding initiative. To donate, lend or become one of the 40 ambassadors, click HERE. Ford has revealed plans to trim its workforce in Europe under plans to save the carmaker $200million a year. The manufacturer announced on Wednesday that it's launching a voluntary redundancy programme in an attempt to improve business efficiency, potentially affecting hundreds of jobs among its 13,000 employees in the UK. And it's not just the workforce that's being streamlined the manufacturer said it will also 'eliminate less vehicles over time' while it will focus on a raft of new SUVs and add to the performance car line-up as well as the Vignale luxury brand. More SUVs are planned for the future along with performance 'ST' versions of some other cars in the range Ford Europe returned to profit in 2015 for the first time in four years. However, the carmaker said mounting regulatory costs had forced its hand to further improve efficiency outside the US. The majority of the jobs will go in the UK and Germany, where the bulk of the European workforce is based, largely impacting sales, administration and marketing roles. Ford employs around 53,000 staff in Europe a quarter of these being UK based. Jim Farley, head of the car maker's European business, said: 'We are creating a far more lean and efficient business that can deliver healthy returns and earn future investment. 'Our job is to make our vehicles as efficiently as possible, spending every dollar in a way that serves customers' needs and desires, and creating a truly sustainable, customer-focused business.' This could have an impact for employees at the headquarters and research and development centre in Essex as well as some marketing staff based in offices in Dagenham in east London and Bridgend in Wales. Many of the existing staff will recall a similar move that took place just four years ago when the brand announced a programme of redundancies across Europe. Around 1,000 jobs were axed in 2012 as a result. Mr Farley said the recent return to profit was a 'good first step', with Ford Europe last month posting a $259 million (179 million) surplus for its European arm - a $850 million (591 million) improvement on 2014. But he added the group is 'taking the necessary actions to create a vibrant business that's solidly profitable in both good times and down cycles'. Less is more: Ford plans to reduce its European workforce while at the same time launch a new series of cars it hopes will boost profits The Edge is the first step to strengthen Ford's grasp on the SUV sector There will be an overhaul of the cars being offered in Europe as part of the wider plans too. Though seemingly a little late to the party, Ford has taken account of the SUV boom and expects to unveil two new models it intends to sell alongside the Kuga, Ecosport and newly released Edge. But while SUVs are booming, MPV sales are dwindling this could see the B-Max and C-Max availability given a rethink for the European market. And the US car firm will also look to bolster the Vignale luxury name. Currently, just the Mondeo Vignale has reached production, though an S-Max Vignale is expected along with other models. Souped-up examples of the SUV and crossover range are also on the cards, with more 'ST' versions looking to support the new Focus RS and Mustang muscle car. China is "seriously concerned" about the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's (DPRK) plan to launch a satellite later this month, a Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Wednesday. Spokesperson Lu Kang told a daily press briefing that Beijing hopes Pyongyang will exercise restraint on the issue and deal with it prudently so as to avoid possible escalation of tension. The DPRK is entitled to peaceful use of outer space, yet this right is restricted by resolutions by the United Nations Security Council, Lu said. China will continue to communicate with all parties concerned to safeguard peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, he said. It is a shared responsibility of all parties concerned to maintain peace on the peninsula, and regional stability is in the interests of all sides, the spokesperson said. A UN spokesperson said on Tuesday that three UN organizations have been informed that the DPRK plans to launch an earth-observation satellite between Feb. 8 and 25. When asked whether the DPRK's announcement of a satellite launch plan is "an unmistakable slap" in face to China, as stated by US Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Russel, the senior US diplomat for East Asia, Lu pointed at the United States. "It is only in the years when the six-party talks have stalled and certain countries' create an outcry for constant pressure and sanctions that the DPRK has done nuclear tests once and again," Lu said. "In this sense, the DPRK did slap some countries in the face. As for whose face the DPRK slaps, the country itself knows it well in its heart," he said. Lu said US State Secretary John Kerry also made it clear during his visit to China last week that sanctions are not an end, while the key is to resolve the issue. As the chair of the six-party talks, which also include the United States, the Republic of Korea, Russia and Japan, China has made unremitting effort to promote the denuclearization on the Peninsula and push forward parties concerned to achieve the Sept.19, 2005 Joint Statement and the Feb. 13, 2007 Agreement. In a joint statement on Sept. 19, the DPRK said it is committed to abandoning "all nuclear weapons" and "existing nuclear programs" and returning, at an early date, to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) safeguards. In the Feb. 13 Agreement, the DPRK agreed on the first step toward the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. "Yet regrettably, the agreements have not been implemented for several reasons, which are known to all and are not caused by China," Lu said. "We hope countries concerned can solve the Korean Peninsular nuclear issue via negotiation. We do not want to see any escalation of tension. But if some countries insist on doing so, we are not able to stop them," Lu said. He said as a close neighbor of the DPRK, China will never allow chaos or war to break out on the Peninsula. "We will also never allow any country to reach its private goals within the framework of the denuclearization of the Peninsula," Lu said. China firmly adheres to solving the denuclearization of the Peninsula via dialogue, he reaffirmed. As for Chinese chief nuclear envoy Wu Dawei's visit to the DPRK, Lu confirmed that Wu is currently in Pyongyang to exchange views with the DPRK, but he declined to give details of the visit. >>>Related: White House condemns DPRK's satellite launch plan, urging swift int'l response The White House on Tuesday condemned the new satellite launch plan of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), urging a swift response of the international community to what it called "another irresponsible provocation." S. Korea warns harsh price against DPRK's satellite launch South Korea on Wednesday warned a harsh price against possible launch of long-range ballistic missile by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) following Pyongyang's notification of its plan to launch a satellite into orbit. Japan urges DPRK to refrain from satellite launch, calls plans threat to national security Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abeon Wednesday strongly urged the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to refrain from its planned satellite launch, stating that Japan believes the DPRK is planning to test a long-range ballistic missile. Britain's biggest bank has been accused of running its branches with a skeleton staff after announcing more than 1,700 job cuts. Lloyds yesterday delivered the grim message that around 1,000 of the 1,755 roles being axed would be frontline staff such as cashiers, managers and customer advisers. The remainder will be from behind the scenes, with IT and administrative workers among those affected. The state-backed lender which includes Bank of Scotland and Halifax also revealed it has accelerated its controversial branch closure programme. In October it earmarked 150 branches for closure, but yesterday it said a further 29 would be shuttered. The latest job losses are part of the 9,000 cuts already announced. Lloyds said the changes are necessary because more customers are banking online and on phones rather than visiting branches. The banking group (down 1.25p at 60.69p) has shed around 47,000 jobs since the financial crisis, when it was bailed out following its doomed takeover of Halifax Bank of Scotland. The latest cull has infuriated trade unions and consumer campaigners who argue the drive to cut branches and reduce the number of staff in those which remain is detrimental to customers. Mark Brown, general secretary of Lloyds Trade Union, said: This is a kick in the teeth for staff and customers. Members in branches are telling us that they are operating with skeleton staff numbers already and thats seriously affecting the service they provide customers. Todays announcement is only going to make that worse. A Lloyds spokesman said: The way customers do their banking has changed significantly. We have seen an increase in those choosing to use mobile and internet banking rather than our branch network. Daniel Godfrey speaks in calm and measured tones that give little clue to the row that engulfed him last autumn, when he was ousted acrimoniously from his role as head of Britains leading asset management body. He was ejected from his 533,000 a year post as chief executive of the Investment Association in October in a boardroom coup, after he found himself at loggerheads with two of the biggest and most powerful fund managers in the land. M&G and Schroders, who between them manage many billions of pension savers cash, disliked what they saw as Godfreys aggressive reforms. Boardroom coup: Daniel Godfrey was ejected from his post as chief executive of the Investment Association His agenda included more transparency on fees and charges for customer and a brake on excessive executive pay. All perfectly reasonable, a saver might think but it was enough to rub the funds groups up the wrong way, and they threatened to quit the Investment Association. Godfrey was told by his chairman, Helena Morrissey, that board directors had voted unanimously for him to go. His departure and presumably a rowing back from his reforms might not be in the best interests of consumers, but given that M&G and Schroders between them account for about 5pc of Investment Associations revenues, their threats were hard to ignore. Godfrey remains tactful on the subject, saying: Inevitably, it is somewhat of a crisis if two of your biggest members indicate they are going to leave. Neither has ever spoken publicly, but one would assume that some of the concern over the direction of travel of the association was a view that there was too much focus on reform around consumer-facing issues and not enough focus on promoting the industry. In my view, they are not mutually exclusive. My strategy was based on the premise that the best way for the association to serve the long-term interests of the industry is to do whatever it takes to help them serve the long-term interests of clients. It was during his three years as the head of the association that Godfrey, an industry veteran with three decades of experience, pushed for a statement of principles where fund management groups signed up, in effect, to a code of conduct. Again, given that the asset management industry has come in for harsh criticism in recent months, with the Institute of Directors warning that it could be the source of the next big corporate scandal, most savers would not consider that to be outrageous. Some fund groups, however, thought it was adding yet more bureaucracy and regulation on to their plate. The statement of principles appeared to be the cause celebre, says Godfrey. I heard things like, Daniel is more like a regulator than our representative, and He is turning the association into the provisional wing of [City regulator] the FCA, or, He is not promoting the industry enough. But I have always thought you have to put yourself beyond reproach, then you promote yourself, because no one will believe what you say unless you match it with action. Another trigger point for tension appears to have been high pay within the fund management industry, where top players, including bosses at M&G and Schroders, receive multi-million-pound rewards. This has led some critics, including the Institute of Directors, to fear that fund managers lack the credibility to challenge firms over excessive remuneration as they are supposed to do as leading shareholders because of the high-pay culture within their own organisations. One of the more recent things I did was set up a very small independent working group to put forward radical proposals on executive pay, says Godfrey. I was at a celebration of corporate governance at a lunch, and I probably shouldnt have said this, but I said, If you look at the thinking, the effort and the hours spent on executive pay by investors, the media, and politicians, the net result has been that pay is now hugely more complicated and has gone up dramatically. My kids would call that an epic fail. There was a rather uncomfortable reaction. I felt I had farted at the wedding. I realised that what we can do, as investors, is to demand a radical simplification. If you simplify it, you have a better chance of knowing they are only going to be paid big bucks if they have done really well over the long term. I was told the project had created waves within some of the membership. There was a feeling this was a subject in which the association should not be meddling. Godfrey is now working on a number of projects, including advising a start-up financial technology business called Moneybox. A working day, he says, now varies hugely because he is doing different things. He often holds business meetings over a breakfast at the Regency Cafe in Pimlico, near where he lives in Central London with wife Frederiki. It is a 1970s original, he says. They used it as the cafe in the gangster film Layer Cake. His thoughts clearly are still very much on how the fund management industry can improve. It has suffered by being very disconnected from the end client. There are so many intermediaries involved, he says. But it should be quite simple. As a client, you pay an agent to be a better version of you, with skill, experience and expertise. You agree a fee, and that is it from their point of view, they should then see themselves as the champion of the client and act in the clients interests. He appears doubtful the fund management industry will come under greater pressure to reform. This is despite the fact individuals are being asked to take more responsibility for their own pension savings, so fund managers will have an even more important role in society in the future. The likelihood of a stepping up of pressure has decreased. At least for now, he says. Despite the strife at the Investment Association, it is obvious he still lives and breathes the industry. I was never doing the job just to keep the job. I was doing it for the industry and our customers. I can reflect and think there were things I could have done better or differently, but I had become a lightning rod. Anything I did would have been seen as Daniel being too revolutionary. Maybe the association will get more done now I am gone. I just hope it can stick to the mission. Landscape of downtown Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. (File photo) Malaysia has scrapped the visa requirement for Chinese tourists starting from March. The measure aims to revive the country's tourist industry and build up the economy. Li Zhongping, head of GTC Travel Group, says the new policy is the right move. "All the people in the industry are dreaming about waiving the visa. We hope this announcement is final and really can help boom the inbound tourism for Malaysia, to bring a lot of China tourists to help the local economy." Over the past year, the Malaysian government has also taken a series of measures to attract more Chinese tourists to the country, including waiving visa fees and introducing an e-visa scheme for visitors from China. The measures are aimed at reversing a slide in the number of Chinese tourists to the country since Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 disappeared in March 2014 with 154 Chinese passengers on board. However, Hamzah Rahmat, head of the Malaysian Association of Tour and Travel Agents, says some of these previous measures may not have been properly implemented. "The government officials from the other ministries other than the Ministry of Tourism and Culture, they really need to understand what tourism is all about and what tourism brings to the country, especially the economy of the country." Rahmat adds that he hopes the visa-free measure will be made permanent to turn Malaysia into a favorite destination for Chinese tourists. The rollover accident happened in Guzhu town, Zijin county of southeast China's Guangdong province on Feb 2, 2016. (Photo/Guangzhou Daily) A car turned over into farmland because the driver was playing a game involving sending red envelopes while driving. A netizen shared an account of the accident that happened in Guzhu town, Zijin county of south China's Guangdong province on Feb 2, 2016 in a WeChat circle. Three people were injured in the accident according to local residents. The driver suffered fractured lower legs and two passengers suffered skin traumas. All are suffering from shock. "The driver was playing a game of sending red envelopes in WeChat when he was driving the car. He was so excited to see the prompt message saying 'Congratulations to you, 2.5 yuan is deposited in your wallet'. He did not notice the road conditions and the car suddenly crashed into the edge of raised farmland. Packages in the truck were scattered across the ground, we were all injured in the accident," one passenger told the local netizens. The photo shows the car turned over by the meter-tall farmland. (Photo/Guangzhou Daily) MBABANE An alarming development related to the much talked about Zika virus has been noted by US health experts who have suggested that the virus could be sexually transmitted. This new development could pose yet another challenge to many countries as they still battle to win the fight against HIV/AIDS, another sexually transmitted disease. According to Reuters, the first known case of Zika virus transmission in the United States was reported in Texas on Tuesday by local health officials, who said it was likely contracted through sexual intercourse and not a mosquito bite, a day after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared an international public health emergency. spreading The virus, linked to severe birth defects in thousands of babies in Brazil, is spreading rapidly in the Americas, and WHO officials on Tuesday expressed concern that it could hit Africa and Asia as well. Zika had been thought to be spread by the bite of mosquitoes of the Aedes genus, so sexual contact as a mode of transmission would be a potentially alarming development. The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed that it was the first US Zika case in someone who had not travelled abroad in the current outbreak, said CDC director Dr Tom Frieden on Twitter. After this case, the CDC advised men to consider using condoms after travelling to areas with the Zika virus. Pregnant women should avoid contact with semen from men exposed to the virus. Reuters reported that the Dallas County Department of health said, on Twitter, the person was infected through sexual contact with someone who had travelled to Venezuela. The person infected did not travel to the South American country, county health officials said. HIV activist Hannie Dlamini said it was clear that We are experiencing an increase of sexually transmitted viruses, meaning people should be more careful. He said the only way to avoid contracting the virus was to abstain. I dont often tell people to use a condom, we know that hardly happens, so my best advice is abstinence, he said. Previously, international health officials had noted one US case of possible person-to-person sexual transmission. But the Pan American Health Organisation said more evidence was needed to confirm sexual contact as a means of Zika transmission. The medical literature also has one case in which the virus was detected in semen. The virus has been reported in more than 30 countries and linked to microcephaly, in which babies have abnormally small heads and improperly developed brains. MANZINI Lomcebo Dlamini has resigned as the Director of the Swaziland Coalition of Concerned Civil Organisations (SCCCO) after serving a two-month notice. A visit by this publication to the organisations offices, based at CARITAS, revealed that Dlamini left the organisation after working as the director for a year. She took over after the former SCCCO Director, Musa Hlophe, left office in 2014. Although Dlamini is said to have stopped working at the end of January, the company car was only returned to the organisation on Tuesday. Lomalanga Nxumalo, who is the Finance and Administration Officer, confirmed that Dlamini had since left the organisation for greener pastures. She said, currently, the organisation was going through an audit and the Board had appointed an acting director. The position is being advertised as we speak, and as soon as a suitable individual has been identified, the position will be filled, Nxumalo said. She, however, refused to go into details concerning Dlaminis resignation and she referred all questions to the Board. SCCCO Chairman of the Board Bishop A Mnisi, during an interview yesterday, also confirmed that Dlamini resigned and had since left SCCCO after serving a two-month notice. Mnisi explained that this happened after Dlamini approached the Board last year, November 13, and informed them of her decision to leave the organisation after being employed for a year as director. Since she occupied a senior position, we requested that she serves notice for two months. Her notice ended at the end of January, the bishop explained. At the moment we have appointed Lomalanga Nxumalo as the acting Director. The bishop further confirmed that the company vehicle was only returned on Tuesday, adding that this may have been caused by the fact that Dlamini, while hired as director, was allowed to keep the vehicle. Mnisi further wished her well in all her future endeavours. Civil servants shouting viva as they were being addressed by SWADNU President Bheki Mamba near the Mbabane Bus Rank during their march yesterday. (Pics: Sibusiso Zwane) MBABANE Civil servants have demanded that the Prime Minister (PM) Sibusiso Dlamini, should instruct the government negotiation team (GNT) to release the salary review report by Friday. This is contained in a petition which was prepared by public sector unions leaders, with the intention to deliver it to the PM yesterday. However, the delivery of the petition was postponed after the leaders, who were accompanied by about 300 members, were told that the PM was not in his office. This was after the public sector unions leaders successfully led their members to deliver a petition to the Ministry of Public Service, where it was received by Principal Secretary Evart Madlopha. In the petition, which was intended for the PM, the public sector unions said they had collectively noted that the last meeting which was held on October 21, 2015, in which the GNT committed itself to release the salary review report on October 25, 2015, the commitment was never fulfilled. Timelines We would like to remind the GNT that they compiled and presented the timelines for the salary review without any pressure from us. Both parties agreed to all the timelines presented by the GNT except for the implementation date of the exercise, reads part of the petition. The public sector unions leaders said following the GNTs unilateral postponement of their meetings indefinitely, they did extensive consultations with their members to get the salary review report. As workers representatives we are concerned that government is hell-bent on destroying the country as public sector workers are getting angry and we are trying very hard to control their anger. The GNT should be prepared for any consequence that will be the result of failure to release the report up to today, reads part of the petition, which was, however, not delivered because the PM was said to be out of his office. HAWANE It will take government 50 working days to de-silt the Hawane Dam at a cost of under E10 million. This was revealed by Prime Minister Sibusiso Barnabas Dlamini and officers from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Energy when the former toured the Hawane Dam yesterday. Sindi Mthimkhulu, who is the Senior Water Engineer in the ministry, informed the PM that a team of 32 people was needed on site for the next two months in order to ensure that the project was completed. She further stated that they needed five excavators and 10 trucks in order to ensure that the job was completed during the said period. Initially government had estimated that the de-silting would cost about E30 million if private contractors were utilised, but after a government task team, which included the Swaziland Water Services Corporation (SWSC), was assembled and resources pooled together they hoped that the project would be about E3 million, although in his remarks the PM said it would be under E10 million. The de-silting involves the removal of the soil from the dam and the digging will be one metre long (deep) to ensure that once the rains fall more water is collected, which will increase the dams capacity by 20 per cent more. The dam was a pretty shallow one and when it was in its normal capacity it would have a water supply that would be enough for three months supply during normal weather patterns, said Mthimkhulu. She said ordinarily, a dam should be able to supply water or have enough water for a period that would last between six to eight months. As she continued to brief the PM on the project, Mthimkhulu said a bulk of the money would be used for fuel because the heavy machinery took about 6 000 litres of fuel and they had already put in place a budget of about E2 million for the fuel. She added that they would use one of the fuel service providers as government bowsers would go and fill up at the fuel stations and return to the site to fuel the heavy plant machinery so that the work would continue uninterrupted. We hope that those working on the site will start work as early as 7am until 6pm and food will be delivered to them for tea time and lunch, Mthimkhulu said. The PM was further informed that a water tanker would also be provided on site and that fencing and security was a necessity to ensure that the government property was not destroyed. We are also grateful to the Ministry of Health which has provided us with toilets and the Swaziland Environment Authority (SEA), which has ensured that environmental standards are met. Rufous-backed buntings, a rare bird species, left their traces again at Miyun Reservoir in Beijing after more than 70 years. The number of these plain-looking birds is estimated to be less than 1,000 worldwide, and it is one of the rarest bird species in the world. The Rufous-backed bunting, featured with maroon spots on its abdomen, was listed as an endangered species by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in 2010. It was last seen in Beijing in 1941 by local birders in the Summer Palace, not to be seen again until 2015. The picture of this bird was taken by a university student named Xing Chao in Beijing , who is also a member of a local university birdwatching society. Based on recent observations and recordings, a population of 10 to 15 Rufous-backed buntings are estimated to be living at Miyun Reservoir, said Guan Xiangyu, a member of Beijing Bird Watching Society. According to investigations into the species, Guan found that the main habitats for them are shrubland and grassland, and habitat destruction may be the reason for the reducing number of this species. Rufous-backed buntings mainly live in the south of Kazakhstan and the border regions between Russia and North Korea where there has been no recent observation data. In China, they are principally found in Inner Mongolia and the northeast. Guan said the rufous-backed buntings are probably overwintering in Beijing due to hard foraging on the snow covered of the northeast. While Zhang Zhengwang, professor at Beijing Normal University, holds that the birds' presence in Beijing is temporary. But it means their habitat is expanding, and it needs further observation to determine whether they will stay, which depends on environment, availability of food and little human interference, he added. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams By Merle Exit Queens is gearing up for 2016s second New Years celebration as the Lunar New Year kicks off 15 days of festivities Feb. 8 An important holiday across Southeast and Eastern Asia, Lunar New Year is celebrated by the Chinese, Taiwanese, Vietnamese, Japanese, Koreans and Malaysians. Id like to wish everyone a happy Year of the Monkey, Councilman Peter Koo (D-Flushing) said. This is our first Lunar New Year following the creation of the official school holiday so we expect this years celebration to be bigger than ever. As the calendar turns a page, celebrants offer gong hei fat choi or wishes of good luck to friends and family. It is also customary to hand out red envelopes of cash. Red is used because it represents luck. The highlight of each celebration is the Lunar New Year Parade in downtown Flushing. Incorporating dozens of decorated floats, giant dragon figures on poles manipulated by dancers, marching bands and politicians, this years parade is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 13, starting at 11 a.m. at Union Street and 37th Avenue. The holiday is also a time for family reunions with special cakes made of rice flour and brown sugar that are prepared to share for the celebration. You can find those sweets at Tai Pan Bakery at 37-25 Main St. Traditional dumplings are part of the holiday meals as well. A few of the restaurants are now featuring the soup dumplings that Joes Shanghai made famous. Once again Flushing Town Hall, 137-35 Northern Blvd., will serve as the unofficial Lunar New Year headquarters for the borough with performances, exhibitions and the return of a traditional holiday bazaar. On Feb. 12, Han Chung Eun and his band Starlight Forest bring a fusion of Korean, Nordic, Celtic and American roots to the performance venue. After the success of last years holiday bazaar, Flushing Town Hall brings the centuries-old tradition of the Lunar New Year temple fairs back for a second go-round Feb. 20. A family-friendly event, the bazaar includes performances, martial arts demonstrations, crafts and food. Because of last years sold-out event, there will be two sessions of the bazaar this year, one at 11 a.m. and the second at 2 p.m. Other Flushing Town Hall events include a calligraphy workshop Feb. 21, a performance by Chinese jazz vocalist Annie Chen Feb. 26 and a monkey mask craft and dance workshop Feb. 28. Over at the Kupferberg Center for the Arts at Queens College, the Nai-Ni Chen Dance Co. featuring acrobatic dancers with colorful costumes and musicians playing ancient melodies present a holiday concert Feb. 24 and Feb. 25. The Lunar New Year is a time for families to come together, often from across the world, to celebrate and spend time with one another, Koo said. Here in Flushing, we embrace our good fortunes and look forward to the coming year with a renewed energy and optimism. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams By Rory Lancman Mayor Mike Bloomberg was in Bermuda when the blizzard of 2010 bore down on New York City, burying forgotten Queens residents under a blanket of snow. But whats Mayor Bill de Blasios excuse? Nothing quite tests a New York City mayors mettle like a blizzard. A raging snowstorm has the unique ability to pierce through a mayors lofty rhetoric or grand vision of government. The snow either gets plowed out of the way or it doesnt; the rest is just commentary. A snowstorm got Lindsay. A snowstorm got Bloomberg. And a snowstorm just got de Blasio. Unfortunately, in all three cases that meant it really got my constituents. Late Sunday night, a full 24 hours after Winter Storm Jonas spit out its last snowflake on New York City, I toured streets throughout the neighborhoods in my central/eastern Queens district. Too many hadnt yet been introduced to a snowplow, or had a fleeting acquaintance so long past that it left no remaining impression. Our streets were blanketed in snow and people were trapped in their homes, unable to get to school, work or doctors appointments. In a truly cruel technological twist, the citys online, real-time snowplow tracker, PlowNYC, showed many streets as having been recently plowed when clearly they hadnt been plowed at all. Really, what inspires greater confidence in your government than standing atop a snow mound in the middle of an unplowed street and looking at a city app telling you that the street was plowed a few hours ago? This is just one manifestation of the citys failure to fulfil one of its most basic responsibilities, but in the investigatory hearing to come (and boy does there need to be an investigatory hearing), we need to explore if PlowNYCs detached optimism was as much cause as symptom. For example, was the city relying on PlowNYCs flawed data to make decisions about where to deploy resources, diverting snowplows from streets that it mistakenly believed were already plowed? Another problem seems to be a lack of front loading snowplows for our narrower streets. Residents all over my district looked around like British infantrymen wondering where was the R.A.F. in the Battle of Dunkirk, asking themselves where are the front loaders? But, unlike the unfairly maligned Royal Air Force, it seems our front loaders were really missing in action. Is this the result of an over-reliance on outside contractors? The bottom line: the city knows how to remember Queens in a snowstorm when it wants to. My constituents want to know why during the blizzard just past, this city administration chose to forget. Rory Lancman (D-Hillcrest) represents Council District 24 in the New York City Council. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams By Sadef Ali Kully Dozens of community members, along with civic leaders spoke Tueaday during a hearing at the citys Board of Standards & Appeal in opposition to the slated construction of a house of worship in Flushing. The citys Board of Standards & Appeals has schcduled a second hearing in April. On Saturday, the same residents, civic leaders and state Sen. Tony Avella (D-Bayside), rallied to protest the conversion of a property at 46-05 Parsons Blvd. in Flushing into a mosque that would serve an estimated 500 worshippers. The triangular, 4,773- square-foot lot has been the source of controversy over the past year because the propertys owners, Masjid-e-Noor, submitted a request to allow for the mandated floor area ratio (the total square feet of a building divided by the total square feet of the lot where the building is located) to be 1.045 instead of the required 0.5 for a building in an R2 district. The request also asks that yard and parking requirements be waived. Community Board 7 tabled a vote on whether to approve the construction of the mosque in January 2015 and then rejected the application in April. The January board meeting was an intense debate where cultural differences between the East and West were on display. The cultural clash was noticeable during the meeting despite the fact that everyone insisted that they were not against having a mosque but rather where they wanted it to be put. Despite opposition to the proposal to change the mandated zoning regulations from Community Board 7 and Borough President Melinda Katz, the Masjid-e-Noor group has decided to take the issue to the Board of Standards and Appeals Tuesday for a hearing. There are a lot of problems hereits a strange lot, its like a slice of pie. Its totally against zoning, the size is two times the permitted size and the height is two times the height permitted, Tyler Cassel, who sits on the Zoning and Land Use Committee for Community Board 7, said. Civic leaders from the Kissena Park Civic Association, Broadway Flushing Homeowners Association and Auburndale Improvement Association, along with other community leaders, said they had offered Masjid-e-Noor other property options in the vicinity, including a currently empty Mormon church which would meet all of their needs. Despite our effort to have a dialogue with them, they are going ahead. Community Board 7 had voted against it. The Queens Borough president has voted against it, Avella said. We want to work with the property owners. If they were to pick a lot capable of accommodating their congregation, I would do everything in my power to expedite the process so they could have a house of worship for their own. Many community members said the issue was not that the proposed building would be a mosque but that the building was too large for the pie-shaped lot, and the mosque group was asking the community to overlook many zoning regulations. The proposal submitted to the citys Board of Standards and Appeals said the two-floor mosque would have a prayer area on each floor to accommodate 400-plus parishioners, while on the weekends the mosque would be used to teach the Quran to roughly 100 students. In July, Emily Simons, attorney for the Masjid-e-Noor group, told members of Community Board 7 that her clients would not be able to meet the accommodations requested by the community. The following question comes to mind: Did the previous owner of the property inform the new owners that any new building put up there would come into question if it did not conform to the location?, Beverly McDermott, president of Kissena Park Civic Association, said. Rally attendees, including Muslim community members, emphasized that the opposition against the mosque had nothing to do with religion but rather was a building and zoning issue. This is not an infringement on a religious group, said one community member. We want to help them, not fight them. This has nothing to do with Islamophobia, Mazeda Uddin, a Muslim community activist, said. This is about working together with the community they will be in. Everyone needs to work together. Avella said he expects many of the rally attendees will be also speaking at the Board of Standards and Appeals April hearing, which is to be held near City Hall. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams By Gabriel Rom A spokesman for Councilman Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park) says that his office is not putting too much into reports that the Queens GOP is pushing him to run for Mayor. This isnt something we havent heard before, and its not in our plans, quite honestly, said Robbie Schwach, a legislative aide and spokesman for Ulrich. We are focused on serving constituents in this district. The New York Post reported Tuesday that Queens Republican Chairman Bob Turner, state GOP head Ed Cox and 2013 Republican mayoral nominee Joe Lhota have all encouraged Ulrich to run against Mayor Bill de Blasio. Schwach, though, said that Ulrich isnt looking that far ahead. If this adds cache to the office so that we can increase our services to our constituents, then its all the more positive, he said. Ulrich, one of only three Republicans in the city council, and Queens only member of the GOP, would face a difficult political climb, as Democrats hold a super majority in city government and a 6-to1 voter-registration advantage. Nevertheless, Robert Holden, President of Juniper Valley Civic Association, was bullish on Ulrichs future prospects. The city needs him. Queens certainly needs him, and Middle Village desperately needs him, Holden said. I remember when Councilman Tom Ognibene introduced me to Eric when he was 18 and Tom said this young man will one day be mayor. Working with Eric Ulrich over the years I found out quickly that Tom may have underestimated Eric why not governor? Ulrich began his political career as an aide to Ognibene in Middle Village. Holden and Ulrich worked closely together at the time, and the two worked on building the Howard Beach civic association. Holden then volunteered for Ulrich on his district leader and city council campaigns. Im a Democrat and Ive seen firsthand how he works so well with both parties. Hes a moderate Republican and the smartest and most mature beyond his years young man Ive ever met, he added. Ulrich, who served as the minority whip of the Republican delegation in the Council, was elected in a special election in 2009 and then re-elected later that year. In 2013 Ulrich defeated Democratic challenger Lew Simon. His campaign was backed by Republican mayoral candidate Joe Lhota. Ulrich has spent much of his time in the Council focusing on veteran affairs, good governance policies and helping to rebuild the battered Far Rockaway peninsula after Hurricane Sandy. Airport development adding to economy, jobs in the region Pittsburgh may always be known as the Steel City, but a wave of new industries are popping up near its airport to redefine business in the region. Times Record News File Photo The downtown storefronts and sidewalks in Nocona felt more like New Orleans than small-town Texas during the fifth annual Mardi Gras parade in February of 2015. SHARE Times Record News File Photo A group throws beads from the top of a float during the 2015 Mardi Gras parade in downtown Nocona. By Barbara Green Mardi Gras Nocona Style comes to Montague County this weekend with three-days of Texas-style celebration Thursday through Saturday. The Nocona Chamber of Commerce is coordinating its biggest festival of the year, which is expected to draw 5,000-plus for its big Saturday Mardi Gras Parade. Randy Duckworth, executive director of the Nocona Chamber, said there are about 120 floats pre-registered for Saturday's parade. Registration is $30 this week and $50 on the day of the parade. The fee includes two tickets to the gumbo meal after the parade. The chamber also is offering VIP punch cards for $40 that will get guests into all paid events. Activities get underway on Thursday with the Lucky Paws Dog Parade at 5:30 p.m. downtown. Check-in will be at 4:30 p.m. in Mardi Gras headquarters at 213 Clay Street. The parade will begin at the downtown park. A fish fry will follow at 6:30 p.m. at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post No. 8558 for $10. Live music will begin at 8 p.m. Pet people are invited to present their pets in Mardi Gras-style costumes and take part in the parade. Prizes will be awarded. On Friday at 6 p.m. there will be a decorated ATV parade. Check-in will start at 5 p.m. at the VFW. Registration is $10. After the parade there will be a crawfish boil and hot dogs served at Mardi Gras headquarters for $25. Live music will follow at 8 p.m. at the VFW. Saturday morning begins early with a pancake breakfast at the VFW for $5. At 10 a.m. vendors and activities will begin in the downtown area. The Nocona Band Boosters will present the first "Band on the Run" 5K Fun Run/Walk at First United Methodist Church. At 11 a.m. the Kid's Parade will roll through downtown. Children will walk, pull wagons or ride tricycles in this parade. There is no fee. The mega-Mardi Gras Parade rolls through downtown at 3:30 p.m. Saturday It is expected there will be nearly 150 entries. Parade line-up begins at Nocona High School. Check-in will take place from 1 to 3 p.m. At 5:30 p.m. gumbo and hot dogs will be served at headquarters for $10 for adults, $5 for kids and free for pre-school. Live music will be at the VFW at 7 p.m. Call the chamber at 825-3526 for information on registration for any of the events. CHRISTOPHER WALKER/TIMES RECORD NEWS Emergency medical responders prepare to transport an assault victim to the hospital Thursday afternoon from the Wayfarer motel in the 600 block of Central Freeway. Police discovered the assault as they investigated a rash of stolen vehicles and credit cards. SHARE CHRISTOPHER WALKER/TIMES RECORD NEWS A Wichita Falls police officer detains a woman Thursday afternoon at the Wayfarer motel located in the 600 block of Central Freeway. The woman was one of two people detained in connection with a police investigation into stolen vehicles and credit cards. Related Coverage WFPD urging public to not leave cars running unattended By Patrick Johnston A chain of events Thursday morning involving vehicle thefts and stolen debit or credit cards had Wichita Falls police chasing suspects around the city. WFPD Public Information Officer Tim Johnson said at least four to five units were involved in the case for most of the day until three suspects were found in the Wayfarer Motel around noon. An officer drove through the motel parking lot looking for the reportedly stolen vehicles while on his way back to his patrol area, Johnson said. The officer noticed a Nissan Altima and Ford F-150 matching the descriptions of vehicles stolen in the past 36 hours, Johnson said. He said a records check revealed the vehicles to be stolen and the plates on the F-150 had been stolen from a different vehicle. While searching the area, officers heard a disturbance in one of the rooms, Johnson said. A WFPD officer said they found someone "choked, beaten and naked." A man and a woman from that room were taken to the hospital with unknown injuries. They, as well as a second man, are being considered suspects in the vehicle thefts, Johnson said. Johnson said the trio is also being investigated as possibly involved in the fraudulent use of stolen debit or credit cards at various gas stations and businesses around Wichita Falls earlier in the day. The Criminal Investigation Division and the Financial Crimes and Crimes Against Persons units responded to the Wayfarer Motel after the trio were detained, Johnson said. Johnson said a stolen Hyundai Elantra connected to the case was recovered in the Clinics of North Texas parking lot earlier in the day. Frank SHARE Estes By Christopher Collins of the Times Record News If it came down to it, Wichita Falls-area state legislators likely would try to stamp out a bill legalizing the recreational use of marijuana in Texas. State Sen. Craig Estes and Rep. James Frank told the Times Record News they would have had reservations OK'ing a cannabis proposal that passed a committee vote but failed to make it to the House floor in the last legislative session. The proposal, House Bill 2165, would have allowed the possession and delivery of marijuana by September 2015. "I likely would have voted no on it," Frank said. "I think basically law enforcement in history has repeatedly told us it'd be bad for society." Estes said he considers marijuana "an addictive gateway drug" and that legislators should approach future proposals "with extreme caution." Though HB 2165 never made it to the House floor for a vote, the Republican-sponsored bill passed 5-2 in the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee, winning the vote of one other Republican along with the bill's sponsor. Colorado, Oregon, Alaska and Washington have legalized recreational marijuana decisions which fly in the face of federal law. Other states have legalized the use of marijuana for legitimate medical purposes. Chief among arguments to legalize the drug for recreational use is a potential tax boon. In the last fiscal year, Colorado raised $70 million in tax revenue, double that of alcohol taxes, according to a Time magazine article. Colorado marijuana sales were taxed at 28 percent in 2015. Though Frank cautioned the public against having an "over-criminalization of marijuana," he also said he doesn't find the sales tax argument for cannabis to be a compelling one, calling it "myopic." "I think that point can be made for virtually any vice out there," Frank said. "Looking at tax revenue on whether something should be legal is a very dangerous road to walk down and I think often it doesn't take into consideration the other public costs associated with rampant marijuana use. You could use that same argument for a complete legalization of gambling or prostitution." HB 2165 failed in the last legislative session, but Frank suspects a similar proposal will surface in the next one. "There's 6,000 bills filed (per session), so I'm sure someone will file it," he said. SHARE Former president Bill Clinton is quoted as saying, "Mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of, but stigma and bias shame us all." There is a program available for any and all members of the community to receive called Mental Health First Aid. This curriculum addresses the topic of mental health stigma by educating those who may have little to no knowledge of mental health issues including helping someone in crisis situations. The way to dispel misunderstanding is to become educated on how to assist those who may be experiencing a situation where support and understanding may lessen the severity of the experience. Coming together as a community to help those who feel alone in their suffering with unconditional regard and a nonjudgmental attitude will bridge the gap between ignorance and understanding. Helen Farabee Centers has personnel trained in providing this training for any group interested in increasing awareness of metal health situations and how to help those in emotional distress. One of the common misconceptions is that mental disorders signify weakness or is evidence of a personality flaw. The uneducated who haven't personally been affected by mental illness or known someone who has, think that they should just choose to be happy. Another misconception is that those with mental disorders are violent. The actual statistic is that more than a quarter of those suffering emotional distress will become victims of a violent crime. That is 11 times higher than the general population. The President's Freedom Commission Report established the definition of recovery as a process, by which people are able to live, work, learn and fully participate in their communities. Unfortunately those with mental disorders and other traits that put them in a minority are marginalized by society. Understanding breeds hope, and hope brings progress. As a society, we need to move forward well-informed and without the negative connotations associated with the population of individuals who experience mental health issues. It is a more common occurrence than you may think. In the U.S., 1 in 4 will experience a diagnosable mental health condition at some point in their life. This may not be a permanent condition, but, in the moment it can be overwhelming. Mental Health First Aid is a training that offers practical instruction to help someone in need of encouragement during such a situation. Two members of my personal staff are trained in providing this course for any group in the community that feels they may benefit from it. I believe everyone would benefit from it. My staff, having experienced mental illness personally, provides added insight into the subject with firsthand knowledge and experience. Rhonda Saenz and Andrea Gomez have life experience that makes the greatest teacher. They know how to explain things in a way that reflects this unique perspective. This training may be arranged by calling Rhonda during business hours at her Helen Farabee Centers office on Broad Street. Her number is 940-397-3362. She would be glad to help with every stage of the planning and implementation of this valuable tool. With education comes understanding. I encourage anyone interested to contact her. Be well, my friends. SHARE North Korea's nuclear extortion drama, the repeated threat of nuclear attack followed by demands for food and financial aid, has exhausted South Korean and Japanese diplomatic patience. Last year, Japan indicated that North Korea should expect more than expressions of anger the next time it put a ballistic missile on a launchpad in preparation for a test. Pyongyang's threat theater often starts with erecting a missile and announcing a test flight. Alternatively, Act 1 begins with a nuclear test. North Korea allegedly conducted a nuclear test on January 6. Weapon range and reliability play a role Tokyo's and Seoul's loss of patience. As Pyongyang's missile and nuclear warhead technologies improve, the threat to East Asia becomes more immediate. The threat also extends beyond East Asia. The U.S. is considering deploying land-based anti-missile systems in Hawaii (Aegis Ashore). In March 2013, North Korea revealed that Austin, Texas (where South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co. has a manufacturing facility) is on its target list. North Korea can't hit Texas yet. For Japan, the next time arrived last week when North Korea announced a missile launch. Major Japanese media reported that Defense Minister Gen Nakatani ordered Japan's military to be prepared "to destroy any missile fired by North Korea that threatens the country." This is a message where the messenger matters. For years, Nakatani has argued that Japan must be able to strike enemy military assets pre-emptively when they threaten imminent attack on Japan. He vigorously advocated changing the Japanese constitution to permit offensive action by Japanese military forces. Last year, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe succeeded in making those changes. However, when asked to confirm Nakatani's statement, the defense ministry demurred, arguing confirmation would reveal strategy. A spokeswoman told AFP " ... we are taking all possible measures to respond (to a missile launch) by collecting information and coordinating with countries concerned." Wiggle room. Diplomats love it. Fuzziness can provide space for compromise agreement. But doubt in an enemy's mind has military utility, and Nakatani is a leader who would create it and exploit it. Where would Japan's destruction of a threatening North Korean missile take place? "Fired," suggests Japan would respond post-launch when the missile is on a track to hit Japanese territory. However, nothing Nakatani said was confirmed or denied. And remember what I said about the messenger. Say "missile defense." The first thought is in-flight interception. Japan has previously warned it will intercept North Korean missiles. Japan and the U.S. have anti-missile capable Aegis warships. South Korea is deploying upgraded U.S.-made Patriot PAC-3 anti-missile missiles. Last week, Japan positioned a Patriot PAC-3 launcher in downtown Tokyo, where everyone can see it. However, destroying a missile on the launchpad is also missile defense. Offensive missile defense may be an oxymoron, but it is an option. A pre-emptive attack is an act of war. However, repeatedly placing a missile on a pad and threatening to nuke Seoul and Tokyo invites war. A pre-emptive attack by Japan or South Korea or even the U.S. -- on a North Korean launch site has always been a possibility. But once again, consider the messenger. Has Nakatani introduced the possibility without making it explicit? How would China react? A North Korean attack or an attack to forestall a North Korean attack could ignite a devastating war. Even though they are major trading partners, China and Japan have serious territorial disputes. Nakatani takes a very hard line in those disputes. Fair bet this wider war would at a minimum kill several hundred thousand people. Beijing knows a big war would harm its economy and perhaps erase a decade of growth. An East Asian war could beggar the global economy. Shanghai, Seoul and Tokyo create a lot of value and do a lot of business. To China's credit, since 2006, it is increasingly quick to criticize North Korean threat and aggression. Japan's loss of patience should tell China that the time has arrived for pre-emptive, coercive diplomacy to permanently change the behavior North Korea's murderous regime. Austin Bay is a commentator on National Public Radio's "Morning Edition," covering foreign affairs but often addressing issues in Texas that have a national interest. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Albany The father of Kenneth White is facing a whole new set of Family Court-related allegations away from Albany County. But the man whose 5-year-old son was killed in 2014 by his cousin is not ready to give up his parental rights over his two young daughters just yet. Jayson White was expected to surrender his rights over Kenneth's sisters, ages 5 and 6, during his appearance Thursday in Albany County Family Court. Instead, his attorney, Leah Casey, asked Judge Gerard Maney to grant White time to consider the decision. "Your honor, my client is struggling with the decision about whether to surrender his parental rights," Casey told the judge. She said it was a decision White would "only do in the best interests of the children and he is struggling with the enormity of that decision." Maney agreed and White is scheduled back in Family Court on Feb. 25 with his decision. "It's a hard decision, guys. It's not something you do overnight," White told reporters following the court appearance. "My girls have been through a lot and I'm there to make sure they are in a safe, suitable home." In court, the judge said he understood there are child protective proceedings against White in Massachusetts. Casey acknowledged the charges but did not specify the details. The judge revealed White also faces two Family Court neglect petitions dealing with children in his household who are not his children and filed Dec. 11 in Montgomery County. One petition alleges White neglected two children, ages 3 and 12. The other alleges he neglected two children, ages 10 and 6. Casey told the judge White expects the petitions to be dismissed or resolved in his favor. The judge said, based on the petitions, a temporary order of protection was filed against White requiring he stay away from the children, their home and school and refrain from any communication with them. Asked about the allegations, White told reporters, "They're all false." James Green, a county attorney representing the Albany County Division of Children, Youth and Families, which has foster custody of White's two daughters, said he did not oppose the three-week wait as long the decision was made Feb. 25. James McSparron, a law guardian for the girls, did not oppose the adjournment. The judge noted, under the law, hearings over the permanent living situation for a child can be adjourned up to 30 days. White said one of the reasons he is hesitant to surrender his rights is that their mother, his estranged wife Christine White, still wants custody. "That shouldn't go through and that's why I'm debating to keep this going because my girls belong in a safe home and it's not with the mother," he said. "Christine White does not belong with those kids. Not Brenda either." He was referring to Brenda VanAlstyne, the sister of his estranged wife, who previously had custody over the children but has since been found in Family Court to have caused them neglect and abuse and is not allowed to see them. Brenda VanAlstyne's daughter, Tiffany VanAlstyne, strangled Kenneth on Dec. 18, 2014, and dumped the still-breathing boy in the snow across the street from their Knox trailer. Tiffany VanAlstyne, who confessed to the slaying, is serving 18 years to life in prison. Christine White supported Tiffany VanAlstyne at her sentencing and even lauded her child-caring skills. Jayson White said he thought his estranged wife's support for her niece was "unbelievable, to be honest with you." He said of the sentence: "18 years to life is nothing. She should have got a lot more." Last year, Jayson and Christine White both admitted to allegations of neglect. When a reporter asked White if he was a fit father, he said, "I'm going through a real difficult time right now but I'm all right." rgavin@timesunion.com 518-434-2403 @RobertGavinTU In addition to Albany, voters in two other Capital Region school districts go to the polls Tuesday. In Troy, two propositions are on the ballot: to sell School 1 and to pave a parking lot. School 1 on 2920 Fifth Ave. in the city's North Central neighborhood would be sold for $315,000 to Redburn Development Companies if voters approve. The proceeds would be used for building improvements throughout the district. Redburn Development has proposed a $1.8 million project to turn the building into 28 apartments. The district had conducted classes in the building. It also housed district headquarters. Those operations were moved to School 12 in South Troy. The district also wants to spend $124,100 to build a parking lot on the site of the former Zak House at 1728 Tibbits Ave. The building, which has been demolished, once housed district administrative offices. The site is near School 14. After state aid is applied, the construction project is expected to cost the district $16,000. Voting is 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. at School 2, School 12, School 14, School 16, School 18 and Carroll Hill School. In Scotia-Glenville, polls are open 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the high school gym. The district seeks to buy 7.3 acres on Sacandaga Road next to the high school, the site of the former Wayside Hardware and two homes. The asking price of $999,000 includes demolition of the old hardware store and all buildings on the land. The district has no current plan for using the land, according to the district's website. Taxes would rise by 3.6 cents per $1,000 assessed value. The bill for a home assessed at $160,000 would rise by $5.76 a year, the school said. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The sacrifice of four military chaplains, including one from Schenectady, will be commemorated at 2 p.m. Saturday at The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor in New Windsor, Orange County. The chaplains, all first lieutenants, gave their life vests to other men after a German submarine sank the USAT Dorchester, a troop ship, Feb. 3, 1943, off the coast of Greenland. Saturday's presentation will include a 35-minute film that chronicles the chaplains and the event that took their lives. The program will conclude with a candle-lighting ceremony. One chaplain, 1st Lt. Clark Vandersall Poling, was pastor of the First Reformed Church of Schenectady before he enlisted. The other chaplains were George L. Fox, Alexander D. Goode and John P. Washington. Admission is free but seating is limited. Call (845) 561-1765 for reservations. Poling was born Aug. 7, 1910, in Columbus, Ohio, to Susan and the Rev. Daniel A. Poling, an evangelical minister and World War I military chaplain. He graduated from Yale Divinity School in 1936 and was ordained in the Reformed Church in America. He was assigned to the First Church of Christ, New London, Conn., and then as pastor of the First Reformed Church in Schenectady. He married the former Elizabeth Jung and they had two children, Clark Jr. and Susan Elizabeth. Poling began his duty as an Army chaplain in Mississippi and in 1942 transferred to Camp Myles, Taunton, Mass. He attended Chaplains School at Harvard University where he met the three other chaplains. A torpedo struck the troop ship after midnight and the vessel rapidly sank. Just before the last lifeboat was filled and launched, the chaplains organized the frightened troops, prayed with them, helped some find lifeboats and distributed life vests, including their own. Witnesses said they saw the chaplains standing on the deck, linking arms and praying as the ship sank. Of the 902 troops, seamen and civilians aboard, 230 survived. The chaplains were posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and Purple Heart. The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor is owned and operated by the Palisades Interstate Park Commission and the state Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation. Stories of all recipients are at the hall, located at 374 Temple Hill Road, Vails Gate, and at thepurpleheart.com. For information, call (845) 561-1765. Return from Gitmo After a 10-month deployment to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, 20 New York Army National Guard soldiers were greeted Jan. 27 by their loved ones at Albany International Airport. Approximately 50 soldiers of the 42nd Infantry Division, which is based in Troy, deployed in April. They served as members of the headquarters element for Joint Task Force Guantanamo, and provided administrative support. The troops conducted demobilization tasks at Fort Bliss, Texas, before returning home individually. Agent Orange support The American Legion Family will have a ziti and meatball dinner from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 13, at the American Legion Post at 275 Grooms Road, Halfmoon, for veterans affected by Agent Orange and their children. Tickets cost $8 at the door and $7 in advance, $4 for children younger than 7. For information, call 371-4463. New airman Air Force Airman Omar A. Essa of Clifton Park graduated from basic military training at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, San Antonio. News of your troops and units can be sent to Duty Calls, Terry Brown, Times Union, Box 15000, Albany, NY 12212 or brownt@timesunion.com. Washington President Barack Obama reached out to Muslims in the United States on Wednesday in an impassioned speech, embracing them as part of "one American family," implicitly criticizing the Republican presidential candidates and warning citizens not to be "bystanders to bigotry.'' In a visit to the Islamic Society of Baltimore, his first to a mosque in the United States as president, Obama recited phrases from the Quran and he praised U.S. Muslims as a crucial part of America's history and vital to the nation's future. "If we're serious about freedom of religion and I'm talking to my fellow Christians who are the majority in this country we have to understand that an attack on one faith is an attack on all faiths," he said. Although Obama never mentioned Republican presidential candidates like Donald Trump and Ben Carson, the targets of his remarks were clear. "We have to reject a politics that seeks to manipulate bigotry," Obama said. Citing Thomas Jefferson and John Adams, who he said had had their own copies of the Quran, Obama reminded his audience that Muslims had been a part of the United States since its founding. "So this is not a new thing," he said. "Generations of Muslim Americans helped to build our nation." But he said that too many Americans only heard about Islam after terrorist attacks, and that this must change. "Our television shows should have some Muslim characters that are unrelated to national security," he said. "It's not that hard to do. There was a time when there was no black people on television." Obama said that anyone who suggested that the United States was at war with Islam not only legitimized such groups as the Islamic State but also played into their hands. "That kind of mindset helps our enemies," he said. "It helps our enemies recruit. It makes us all less safe." For Obama, the remarks were an implicit admission of how little progress has been made since he opened his presidency with a 2009 speech he delivered in Cairo that sought to reach out to the world's Muslims by calling for a "a sustained effort to listen to each other, to learn from each other, to respect one another, and to seek common ground." Seven years after the Cairo address, which the White House titled "A New Beginning," Obama is nearing the end of his presidency at a time when respect and common ground have often been overtaken by suspicion and angry political rhetoric. It is the result Obama said in Cairo that he feared the most: that the world would remain "bound by the past," doomed never to move past historic divisions and mistrust. On Wednesday, Obama urged Americans to look inward to examine the roots of those divisions, and to seek ways to transcend the fear and suspicion. Concerns about Muslims and Syrian refugees in the United States grew after terrorist attacks in Paris in November claimed the lives of 130 people and after a mass shooting by a husband-and-wife team in San Bernardino, Calif., in December killed 14 people and seriously wounded 22. Since then, attacks on American Muslims and mosques have spiked, according to the Council on American-Islamic Relations. At a meeting at the White House last month, prominent Muslim Americans pleaded with senior administration officials to have the president visit a mosque in the hopes of stemming such attacks. On Wednesday, the president said, " Islam has always been a part of America." To young Muslims, he said: "You fit in here, right here. You're right where you belong. You're part of America, too. You aren't Muslim or American. You are Muslim and American." Obama took office pledging to repair the image of the United States among the world's 1.5 billion Muslims, that he felt had been tarnished by the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. In a speech before the Turkish Parliament in April 2009, he expressed "our deep appreciation for the Islamic faith." After years of abusing and selling drugs, being homeless and even smuggling cocaine from the Caribbean, it was the attempted theft of laptops that brought Randall Horton to prison. "My friends and family had been trying to help me for 15 or 20 years," said Horton, "but I wouldn't listen, and now I was on my way to jail." Today, Horton is a professor at New Haven College, a poet who has published two well-respected collections, and author of the new memoir "Hook" (Augury Books, 195 pages, $18). The book describes his dramatic recovery from being an incarcerated felon to earning a Ph.D. in English at the University at Albany, where he'll appear on Feb. 16 as part of the New York State Writers Institute's Visiting Writers Series. It also dramatizes the importance of literature and writing and how it helped save his life. Horton began to write while behind bars in Maryland. "I had been in a program called Jail Addiction Services," he said, "and they had us write essays about why we became an addict and how we hurt people along the way. It was like therapy, and the writing helped me express my feelings." Years earlier, he had been an economics major at Howard University in Washington, but he had never been a big reader. "I began reading a lot in prison, though, fiction, nonfiction, and I even began to read poetry." More Information If you go What: Poetry reading by Horton, above, and Jacqueline Jones LaMon When: Seminar 4:15 p.m., reading 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 16 Where: Seminar in the Standish Room of the Science Library at the University at Albany; reading at the University Art Museum, Fine Arts Building. Note: Free; open to public See More Collapse He read a Washington Post interview with poet and scholar E. Ethelbert Miller and soon realized they both had been at Howard University at the same time. "I read his poetry and then wrote to him trying to understand what this writing life was like. He wrote back, and soon we were corresponding and sending poems back and forth." Upon release from jail he devoted his life to academia and poetry, but he always knew he would one day have to write his memoir. "It was hard to revisit my past," said Horton, "and I needed some distance before I could write honestly about my life. A big part of my recovery was to write honestly, despite the pain and embarrassment about the awful stuff I had done." The most difficult section of the book for Horton was when he wrote about his dad coming to a court hearing and pleading for Horton to be released after serving just two and a half years. "My dad completely broke down and said, 'Give me back my boy. His life is worth saving.' My dad cried right there in front of everyone in that courtroom filled full with strangers, and I don't think I ever quite understood how much he loved me till I saw that. It wasn't scripted. It came from his heart." The judge was impressed and agreed to suspend Horton's sentence. He would not be going back to jail. "Both my parents were educated," he said. "They were always searching for the answer of what went wrong with me. They often wondered what they did wrong, but it wasn't anything they did wrong. They gave me everything I ever needed. It was just me. This wrong path I took as a young person was what I had to go through, and I'm grateful I survived it." Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. Life really began for Horton once he got clean. "I'm enjoying every day now. I guess, in some way, I'm kind of thankful for those times because I appreciate this time so much. Everything is new and exciting." Horton writes poetry and essays on subjects such as race and addiction and what it's like to be incarcerated. He enjoys teaching at New Haven College, but when given the opportunity, he will always speak to young people in prison or in danger of going to prison. "Our prison system is a mess in this country," said Horton. As he writes in his book, "More than sixty percent of the people in prison are now racial or ethnic minorities. For black males in their 30s, one in every 10 is in prison or jail on any given day." Horton is frustrated with the revolving door of jail in this country, where inmates who are released often end up back in jail within a year. "We need to look at more alternative ways to educate and help these people so when they get out they have a skill which can lead to a job. Most prisoners have no support when they get out, and it's real easy to fall back into the system." He knows he was one of the lucky ones. "I had a mentor like Ethelbert Miller, and I had a family that supported me. I had help in learning how to be self-sufficient." Albany Mayor Kathy Sheehan's top City Hall aide was paid $7,300 for political work by her campaign last year while remaining on the city payroll, according to financial disclosures with the state Board of Elections. The payments to Matthew Peter, Sheehan's former campaign manager and current chief of staff, were made in three installments in July, September and December on top of his $75,000 salary city salary, records show. Sheehan said the arrangement is necessary to balance the significant political demands of her job that cannot be subsidized by city taxpayers. But critics contend it poses a conflict of interest to have a top staffer paid with money donated in part by companies, lawyers and engineering firms doing business with the city. Albany's employee ethics code is silent on the issue, offering only a general admonition against private employment that "creates a conflict with or impairs the proper discharge of ... official duties." Good government advocates say the situation highlights the need for active local ethics boards to referee issues like campaign employment. Albany's ethics committee, however, hasn't been active in recent memory. Sheehan said Peter's campaign wages, which totaled $7,337.35, were compensation for political work that was, by legal necessity, separate from his City Hall job. That work, she said, included preparing invitation lists for fundraisers, coordinating speaking invitations and solicitations of support from other candidates and gathering petition signatures on behalf of Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign, for which she is a delegate. "I don't want there to be any accusation that work that Matt is doing that could be perceived as political could be perceived as being done on city time with city dollars," Sheehan said, calling the amount of work associated with actual fundraising "relatively small." "It turns what is already a demanding, full-time job to an even fuller job," the mayor said. "I think it's a good practice to compensate people for that rather than it appear that it's a condition of their employment." The pay is not based on a percentage of the money raised, Sheehan said, adding that paying him from the campaign is more transparent than obscuring the transaction through a consulting firm or limited liability company. But to the extent that Peter serves as a gatekeeper to Sheehan, critics say his dual roles raise questions. "The mayor's chief of staff certainly should not be soliciting campaign contributions from vendors that conduct business with the city," said 15th Ward Councilman Frank Commisso Jr. "It is another example of why confidence in government has been so diminished," Commisso said, "and the mayor should have known better than to stumble her way onto this ethical minefield." Sheehan, a first-term Democrat up for re-election in 2017, raised about $66,000 last year. Common Council President Carolyn McLaughlin said the city ethics code should ban such dual employment. "It doesn't look good," said McLaughlin, who is also chairwoman of the Albany County Democratic Committee. "How can they be a city employee and doing campaign work at the same time? There's something wrong with that." In the state Legislature, it's common for legislative staffers to use time off accrued during the legislative session to volunteer on campaigns over the summer. Less often, they join the campaign payroll. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. Locally, Ralph Signoracci was paid last year to consult on Cohoes Mayor Shawn Morse's campaign while continuing to work as a top aide to Morse in the County Legislature. Signoracci, who is now Morse's executive assistant in City Hall, said he did campaign work after hours, on weekends or by taking earned time off. "As long as you're doing your work from 9-5, anything you do after that, are you able to get other compensation?" said Signoracci, who is also a county legislator. "Yes, in my opinion." U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand's chief of staff, Jess Fassler, has also worked simultaneously for her campaign and Senate office, federal campaign disclosures show. Gillibrand spokesman Marc Brumer said Fassler keeps the political and government work separate and that when they conflict, he takes time off. Mark Davies, the former executive director of New York City's Conflicts of Interest Board, said few municipalities restrict the political activity of their employees though New York City does bar some high-level appointees from holding party offices and fundraising for city elected officials. "As a general rule, there's no prohibition unless the local ethics code has a 'two-hats provision,'" Davies said. "It's not necessarily a problem as long as it's completely separate." The whole point of local ethics boards is to offer employees guidance on issues like dual employment, said Blair Horner, legislative director for the New York Public Interest Research Group. "The normal practice," Horner said, "would be to get an opinion from them to call balls and strikes on this kind of situation." jcarleo-evangelist@timesunion.com 518-454-5445 @JCEvangelist_TU Albany New state lobbying filings raise questions about the level of coordination between a powerful state lawmaker, his influential political consultant and a billionaire who has placed a $1 billion bet against the stock price of Herbalife, a multinational nutritional sales company. In October, a spokeswoman for state Sen. Jeff Klein told the Times Union that Klein's campaign consultant, Luis Miranda, had nothing to do with Klein's governmental office launching a major effort targeting Herbalife. On Oct. 27, the Bronx lawmaker and leader of the five-member Independent Democratic Conference held a press conference With New York City Public Advocate Tish James announcing the results of an investigation into Herbalife, which Klein and others contend is a pyramid scheme. The senator proposed legislation targeting multi-level marketing entities that followed Herbalife's model. Not mentioned was the fact that Miranda, the longtime political consultant for Klein and other politicians involved in the press event, was also working for William Ackman, an activist investor whose hedge fund, Pershing Square Capital Management, has "shorted" Herbalife stock a position that will reap significant rewards if its value plunges. Questioned by the Times Union about the potential conflicts posed by Miranda's dual roles in October, a Klein spokeswoman said Miranda had nothing to do with Klein's efforts, and urged Herbalife to stop spreading "conspiracy theories." Lobbying records released in the months since the press conference, however, show that on Oct. 15 12 days before the press conference Miranda was retained to lobby state officials on Pershing Square's legislative agenda. To date, the only item on that agenda appears to be Klein's proposed anti-Herbalife bill. And when Miranda's firm, the MirRam group, submitted a subsequent December disclosure about the purpose of its lobbying work, the description was taken nearly verbatim from a Klein press release distributed after the Oct. 27 news conference. "The records on this matter speak by themselves," said Javier Gomez, a MirRam spokesman. He declined further comment, saying the company does not discuss its clients. The war between Ackman and Herbalife has been going on for more than three years. The investor maintains the company is a pyramid scheme that targets Hispanic immigrants; Pershing Square has bet $1 billion its stock will tank. Herbalife has consistently defended its business practices. The New York Times reported in 2014 that as part of the massive public relations campaign against Herbalife, Ackman had hired Miranda, whose firm has deep ties in Latino communities in upper Manhattan and the Bronx. He had not registered as a lobbyist in New York for the company until signing on to push legislation on Oct. 15, according to a lobbying contract. (Technically, MirRam is lobbying for Pershing through Global Strategy Group, an intermediary firm that's also worked for Pershing.) Miranda, who according to Pershing had been doing "community relations" for the hedge fund, began in October to lobby the state Senate and Assembly; it would ultimately specify that its lobbying efforts concerned Klein's bill. Klein and MirRam representatives declined to say this week whether Klein was among those lobbied by Miranda. During the same period, however, a Pershing official reported lobbying the lawmaker on "legislative initiatives related to consumer protection and pyramid schemes." The frequent overlap between the interests of politicians, political consultants who double as lobbyists, and their lobbying clients has drawn attention from good-government groups in recent years. In fact, state Sen. David Valesky a member of Klein's conference has pushed a bill that would ban the practice. Klein and MirRam have a longtime political relationship. In the last half of 2015, Klein's campaign fund paid MirRam more than $70,000. In the hours following Klein and James' press conference, Herbalife's stock slid by 2.5 percent. Two days later, the Times Union wrote an article questioning the fact that Klein, James and Queens City Councilwoman Julissa Ferreras-Copeland who blasted Herbalife in a press release all have deep ties to the MirRam Group. All have used the firm for their campaigns. In a follow-up statement on Tuesday, Klein's spokeswoman, Candice Giove, declined to address how the lobbying records squared with her assertion that MirRam had nothing to do with Klein's Herbalife efforts. "Sen. Klein picked up the torch on behalf of the immigrant community that was targeted by Herbalife's get-rich-quick scheme," Giove said. "He will continue to hold forums and meet with individuals who lost their life savings through Herbalife's pyramid scheme." MirRam has used its political relationships before: In 2014, the Daily News reported that the firm's principals prodded its political clients including New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Manhattan state Sen. Adriano Espaillat and Ferreras-Copeland to send letters to the Federal Trade Commission slamming Herbalife. The Federal Trade Commission ended up launching an investigation into the company. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. In her statement, Giove pointed out that Herbalife has retained the Parkside Group, a prominent New York City campaign and lobbying firm that does extensive consulting work for members of the state Senate's mainline Democrat conference. Klein's faction broke away in 2011, and has allied itself with the Republican majority. "It has recently come to our attention that the mouthpiece for this unsavory company is the Parkside Group, which has made millions running campaigns for the Senate Democratic Conference," said Giove. "I hope this does not prevent the Democratic Conference that overwhelmingly represents immigrant communities throughout the state from standing up and speaking out against Herbalife's predatory tactics." "It is common practice to respond to a perceived criticism by trying to discredit the messenger," said Parkside Group partner Evan Stavisky. "Sometimes, however, you can mistakenly believe someone is responsible for a story. The truth is that nobody at the Parkside Group has ever pitched any story on Sen. Klein, Herbalife and the MirRam Group and we are not responsible for the Times Union's coverage of this issue." (Indeed, the Times Union's coverage emerged from its own research, and was not pitched by anyone at Parkside.) "We respect Sen. Klein and the fact that he has a different position than our client, and we have known the principals at the MirRam Group for many years and respect them as well," said Stavisky. Relations are currently fragile between the Klein's conference and the mainline Senate Democrats, who hope to partner with the IDC to form a Democratic majority after the 2016 elections. The feud between the two sets of Democrats has been driven in part by negative articles that have appeared about Klein, coverage that some in the IDC attribute to forces aligned with the Senate Democrats Parkside included. Klein's office, in partnership with James and the progressive New York City nonprofit advocacy group Make The Road, conducted last year's undercover investigation into Herbalife. They said the investigation found that thousands of New Yorkers including many Hispanic immigrants "were targets of a pyramid scheme disguised as a direct marketing opportunity" and "sold countless lies about the health benefits of Herbalife products." Make the Road was at one point paid $10,000 by Pershing Square, but later returned the money amid questions over a potential conflict of interest. In the probe, Klein's office said it examined 56 complaints about Herbalife filed with the Office of the New York State Attorney General and the Federal Trade Commission. Together, these victims reported financial losses totaling $950,000. A Pershing Square spokesman declined comment on Tuesday. cbragg@timesunion.com (518) 454-5619 @cbragg1 This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Albany Hardcore smokers were fuming when the state Office of General Services erected signs in the Empire State Plaza's underground parking garage warning of fines for those caught smoking there. But Albany County, which was supposed to enforce the ban, said no one has ever been fined since the stern warnings went up and there's a reason for that. "It's not technically an indoor area," county spokeswoman Mary Rozak said of the garages, where thousands of state employees agency workers, staff aides and lawmakers park their cars. The large free-standing warning signs near elevator entrances have been up for at least six months, although there have long been generic "No Smoking' signs in the garage. They warn potential parking garage puffers that "Enforcement officers of the Albany County Health Department can assess a penalty of up to $1,000 for each violation of the NYS Clean Indoor Air Act." That law, which dates to the late 1980s and was updated 13 years ago, bans smoking in public indoor locations including workplaces. But the garages, with multiple sizeable entry and exit areas, aren't viewed as indoor spaces, according to the county health department. (Anyone who has walked through the garage on a windy day would understand.) Moreover, such fines are supposed to be levied not against smokers but against the owners of establishments where the illicit smoking occurs, explained Rozak. For example, if someone lights up in an office building or restaurant, the fine would go to the owner of the building or proprietor of the restaurant the parties responsible for making sure people aren't smoking in their buildings. So does that mean Albany County's Health Department could fine the state Office of General Services, which oversees the Empire State Plaza, for violations of the smoking ban? That's basically a moot point. Not only have there been no fines, but Rozak said they've also had no complaints about nicotine fiends lighting up in the parking garage, or anywhere else for that matter. "We get very few complaints," Rozak said, referring to people calling about smoking anywhere in the county. The state Office of General Services, when asked about the signs by a reporter, said they would be changing them shortly. "We have restricted smoking in the parking garages since 2003 and recently learned that the county does not consider our parking garages to be indoor areas so we will be adjusting our signs accordingly," OGS spokeswoman Heather Groll said in an email Wednesday. "That does not change the fact that smoking is not allowed in the parking garages as part of our policy," she added. "We have had an excellent response to the signs that went up several years ago, and for the most part people have stopped smoking in the garages." Julie Hart, government relations director for the American Cancer Society's Cancer Action Network, agreed that few people are complaining about indoor smokers these days. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. "We don't hear a lot about (violations of the ban) now because it's so widely accepted," Hart said. Regardless of whether it is enforced, smokers rights advocates viewed the signs as an example of overreach. "That's ridiculous," Audrey Silk, founder of Citizens Lobbying Against Smokers Harassment, said when told of the signs. Her group has mounted a legal challenge against a ban on smoking in public parks. The parking garage signs aren't the only effort to crack down on smokers. Over the summer, OGS also posted large signs outside the Capitol building telling people they couldn't smoke within 25 feet of the building. The state also, according to published reports, hired a guard to enforce the rule. Groll at the time said OGS wanted to avoid having people exposed to second hand smoke, and that some ground-floor offices had their windows open, exposing them to the tobacco fumes. rkarlin@timesunion.com 518-454-5758 @RickKarlinTU THE ISSUE: The governor's budget proposal benefits affluent districts over poorer ones. THE STAKES: Must this be a zero-sum game for a state rich in surpluses? More Information To comment: tuletters@timesunion.com or at http://blog.timesunion.com/opinion See More Collapse What is the bigger problem in New York state: unaffordable school property taxes for middle class homeowners, or inadequate funding for low-wealth school districts? Or is that even the right question? It's certainly the question Gov. Andrew Cuomo seems to be forcing lawmakers to confront in the upcoming state budget. And the governor has essentially answered it with his own budget proposal, siding, more or less, with suburban homeowners. Mr. Cuomo proposes $2.1 billion more in school aid over the next two years, including $991 million this year. Much of that would go toward ending the Gap Elimination Adjustment, a budgetary device created after the 2008 recession, which let the state siphon off $4.8 billion in school aid. With the Legislature's full cooperation, Mr. Cuomo has used the GEA to balance state budgets, all the while telling school districts to be more disciplined with their finances. Unlike the state, though, schools have no one to hand off their fiscal problems to, except property owners, who are somewhat protected by the tax cap Mr. Cuomo pushed through in 2011. So many districts struggle to balance the books, and dozens, the state comptroller's office has found, are fiscally stressed, even as the state wonders what to do with surpluses. At the same time, the state has been moving slowly on what's known as Foundation Aid, whose formulas were supposed to help resolve the state's pattern of historically underfunding poorer districts, especially in urban and rural areas. Sign up for The Knick Get the latest news and features with our afternoon newsletter. Generally speaking, ending the GEA would benefit better-off districts; boosting Foundation Aid, on the other hand, would help poorer ones. The Republican-controlled Senate, whose suburban and upstate base includes more of those relatively affluent districts, likes the governor's proposal; the Assembly, controlled by a more urban Democratic majority, is likely to view it otherwise. But properly funding schools should not be about taking political sides. The state should stop balancing its budget on the backs of schools. The GEA is about as blatant a gimmick as it gets. It should be eliminated. At the same time, the state cannot continue underfunding Foundation Aid and, in turn, high-need districts. It has already lost one lawsuit, the Campaign for Fiscal Equity case, on this issue, and it is likely only a matter of time before it loses another pending one brought by small city districts. What's the solution? Enter state Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia, who calls for $2.4 billion more in state aid this coming school year. She wants to end the GEA now, and in one year, not two, and add $1.3 billion in Foundation Aid, compared with Mr. Cuomo's $266 million. She's right, or at least more in the ballpark than the governor. The state has both maintained the GEA and stalled on Foundation Aid long enough. How New York addresses both these issues in a meaningful way is the real question lawmakers need to ask, and answer, this year. Here's how much your natural gas bill will go up this winter Volunteer walks in honor of her husband Thousand Oaks resident Joan Hull will be among those participating in this years Conejo Valley Walk to End Alzheimers at 9 a.m. Sat., Oct. 22 at the Westlake Promenade. Hull... Overpass could get protective fencing A substantial safety upgrade for the areas most notorious overpass is finally getting some Caltrans considerationbut dont expect changes any time soon. At the Sept. 21 Moorpark City Council meeting,... Early detection is the best way to survive breast cancer Every October, we celebrate those men and women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. But what is breast cancer and how can it be diagnosed and managed? There are... Google Pixel 7 features coming to Pixel 6 heres what to expect Google has announced that the Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro are getting some of the Pixel 7s new features, and older Pixel phones are even getting a few updates. Here's what we know so far. Another year, another Byron Bay Bluesfest, right? Not quite. This years Bluesfest is unlike any other to come before it. In addition to having what is undoubtedly the biggest and best lineup of 2016 so far (including new additions Eagles of Death Metal), its the start of a new phase for Bluesfest. 2016 will go down as a very important year for Australias favourite blues, roots, and rock festival, as it takes a big and bold step into putting on more contemporary acts, best exemplified in their controversial booking of hip-hop star Kendrick Lamar. But if you havent yet bought your Bluesfest 2016 tickets, we suggest you dont wait much longer. Weve even gone ahead and compiled the eight main reasons why you should already be holding your tickets like theyre your precious baby. 1. The Lineup Is Huge Ive got the best festival Australia has ever seen Its certainly the best this year, festival director Peter Noble told us last year and really, it would be hard to disagree with him. The lineup for Bluesfest 2016 might be the festivals biggest yet. Organisers have catered for everyone, whether youre into old-school blues, rock, and roots music with the likes of Brian Wilson and The Original Blues Brothers Band, or your tastes hew more contemporary, with Kendrick Lamar, The National, and more. 2. Youre Supporting An Important Local Festival In Australia were at a time where theres less and less festivals happening, more festivals are finding it difficult to survive, Noble also told us when we spoke to him just before the new year and again, weve gotta hand it to him, hes right. With festivals new and old alike shutting down seemingly every month and with no one immune to the hard times faced by the music industry, its more important than ever to get out there and show your support for one of Australias best and longest-running music festivals. 3. Its An Opportunity To Discover New Music In addition to the instantly recognisable headline acts and the iconic legends peppering the lineup, Bluesfest has always prided itself on curating a quality supporting cast, handing opportunities to up and coming blues, roots, and rock artists. If you go our Facebook page thats where we put up a lot of our emerging artists, says Noble. If you have a look at the calibre of the artists we post, these are acts that are not known in Australia but once they play Bluesfest theyre going to be more than just an unknown, theyre going to have fans. 4. Watch A Bluesfest Revolution Unfold When we spoke to Peter Noble early last year, we asked him what his plans for the future of Bluesfest are. He put it very simply: moving it into a more contemporary direction, whilst making sure to retain all the classic Bluesfest fans. It seems that 2016 is the year that Bluesfest are making their great big push into becoming known for booking the best contemporary acts. Attending Bluesfest 2016 will give you a sneak peek of what to expect from every future Bluesfest from here on out. 5. Exclusives, Exclusives, Exclusives Fancy yourself a fan of The National? How about reggae legends UB40? Joe Bonamassa? Well then youre going to have to go ahead and get yourself a ticket to Bluesfest 2016, because its the only place youre gonna see these acts in Australia. 6. Boomerang Festival, A Festival Within A Festival Rhoda Roberts and I put on Boomerang around 12 or 13 and we realised that one the event just blew people away, Noble recounted for us. Just that thing where the white fellas can hang out with the black fellas, we can all dig each other, get to know each other a it better. You know what thats called? Reconciliation, and its not happening enough. In 2016, Boomerang Festival will be presented as part of Bluesfest, giving punters a chance to experience some of the best Indigenous artists Australia has to offer. 7. The Programming Is Ridiculous Alright, we know the lineup for Bluesfest is absolutely huge, but what good is a big lineup if theres just clashes all over the place and you dont get to experience all of your favourite acts. Bluesfest has taken care of that. DAngelo is not touring with Kendrick, said Noble, what I wanted was Kendrick, DAngelo to play on the same stage at the same night because I reckon you cant beat that. When you are a festival director trying to put on the best you can I cant top that. With Bluesfest we care about the experience the punters have and we care about when they walk in the door that very first band is going to be a knockout. Not only do you get to experience great performances, but you walk away with legendary nights you wont forget. 8. Flexibility Cant make it to the entire festival? Or maybe youre only interested in seeing a few of the acts on the lineup? No worries, because Bluesfest is incredibly flexible, offering all sorts of packages to cater to your needs, so you can pop down for just one or two days of the festival if you feel like it. Byron Bay Bluesfest 2016 Thursday, 24th March Monday, 28th March 2016 Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm NSW Ticketsand info: Byron Bay Bluesfest Weekend At The Wonk is Australias newest mini-festival, set to take over The Wonky Donkey in Forrest, Victoria this March, with a lineup topped by The Smith Street Band and Jeff Rosenstock and a big supporting cast. A stack friends will be showing up for the inaugural Weekend At The Wonk, including The Hard Aches, Antarctigo Vespucci direct from the US, The Sugarcanes, Camp Cope, and Worm, wholl be making the normally quiet town of Forrest very loud indeed. Situated in the Otway Ranges, Forrest played host to The Smith Street Band and Jeff Rosenstock when they showed up nearly two years ago to record an album together, putting curious local townsfolk through a cacophonous few months. The jewel in the crown of Forrest is the Wonky Donky hotel, a must-see attraction for any locals passing through made all the more so when Jeff and The Smith Street Band were in town, with Jeff, Will Wagner, and Georgia Maq collaborating on an acoustic live set. Forrest holds a special place in the history of The Smith Street Band, with the acoustic collab followed by a few beers around a bonfire, a moment that would be immortalised on the front cover for the bands Forrest recordings, which you may know as Throw Me In The River. Meanwhile, Weekend at the Wonk promises to be a night of camping and music amongst friends in one of the most beautiful places on earth. Tickets are on sale 9am Monday, 8th February. Check below for details. Weekend At The Wonk Tickets on sale 9am Monday, 8th February The Smith Street Band Jeff Rosenstock (USA) The Hard Aches Antarctigo Vespucci (USA) The Sugarcanes Camp Cope Worm Saturday, 5th March 2016 The Wonky Donkey, Forrest VIC Tickets: Oztix THAT'S RIGHT!!! FORMER KANSAS CITY CHARLES WHEELER COULD SOON ENTER THE ALREADY CROWDED RACE FOR GOVERNOR!!! is pushing 90-years-old and he's still mulling over his options for political office.After a veryand some of histhis longtime Kansas City political stalwart isn't giving up the fight.To wit . . .Credit where it's due, the guy still gets around and has been talking about his upcoming run for Governor with local community leaders and other old school gatherings filled with the last remaining people who still vote.This might be all fun and games until Democratic Party strategists consider his name recognition and contacts to longtime campaigners. Like it or not, thewill be forced to take this one seriously amid scarce resources for the upcoming campaign.Developing . . . Tourexpi, turizm haberleri, Reiseburos, tourism news, noticias de turismo, Tourismus Nachrichten, , travel tourism news, international tourism news, Urlaub, urlaub in der turkei, , holidays in Turkey, , global tourism news, dunya turizm, dunya turizm haberleri, Seyahat Acentas, This site is best viewed with Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0+, at a minimum screen resolution of 1024 x 768. Indonesian construction company Wijaya Karya (Wika) has signed a strategic partnership agreement with Jeddah-based construction firm Adil Makkah Contracting Corporation to launch its operations in Saudi Arabia, said a report. As per the deal, the Indonesian state-controlled company aims to pump investments worth millions of dollars into the Saudi market, reported the Saudi Gazette. The agreement was signed by Bimo Prasetyo, the division manager of Overseas Department of Wika, and Adil Abdul Munief Makki, the CEO of Adil Makkah Contracting Corporation (Amco), at a ceremony held in Jeddah, stated the report. As part of the agreement, three projects worth SR30 million ($8 million) will be implemented in Jeddah this year. These include construction of an administrative building, a commercial centre, and villa duplex, said Makki, who is also director of hospitality committee and member of tourism committee at JCCI. Siddik Siregar, the general manager of the Overseas Department of Wika, said the Indonesian firm was happy to enter the Saudi market through a strategic partnership with Amco. Wika had obtained in 2015 the foreign investor licence from the Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (Sagia). This is part of our strategy to have strong presence in the Gulf and other Arab countries. Ever since the companys decision for expansion abroad in 2007, the company has entered the markets of the UAE, Algeria, Libya, in addition to Myanmar, Malaysia, Brunei and East Timor, he added. Bimo Prasetyo said the company expects signing of agreements amounting to more than $200 million during the current year in the kingdom. There are several projects costing over $40 million under study and these include construction of residential and commercial projects, he said. Established in 1960, PT Wijaya Karya is the largest construction company in Indonesia, with a staff of more than 22,000, and the companys stake in the countrys construction and contracting market exceeds 35 per cent. The World Health Organization voiced concern on Wednesday over the reported sexual transmission of the Zika virus in Texas amid worries that such infections could make battling it even tougher. There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika. The virus, spreading quickly across the Americas, is usually transmitted by mosquitoes, but Dallas County reported on Tuesday that the first known case contracted in the United States was a person infected after having sex with someone who had returned from Venezuela. The WHO declared a global health emergency on Monday, citing a "strongly suspected" causal relationship between Zika infection in pregnancy and microcephaly, a condition marked by abnormally small head size that can cause permanent brain damage in newborns. Health ministers from across South America gathered in Uruguay's capital, Montevideo, to discuss the public health emergency and how the region could coordinate its fight against the outbreak. Sexual transmission could add a new dimension to the threat Zika poses, but WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl stressed that "almost a 100 percent of the cases" are transmitted by the bite of a mosquito. "This reported case in the U.S. of course raises concerns," Hartl said at the U.N. agency's headquarters in Geneva. "This needs to be further investigated to understand the conditions and how often or likely sexual transmission is." But he said that for the WHO "the most important thing to do is to control people's exposure to mosquitoes." The WHO estimates as many as 4 million people could become infected in the Americas. Hartl called the Texas case only the second worldwide linked to sexual transmission, referring to media reports about a case of an American man who returned from Senegal in 2008 and is suspected of having infected his wife. The medical literature also has a case in which the virus was detected in semen. "If you swap enough bodily fluid, most viruses can probably be sexually transmitted to some extent," said Ben Neuman, a virologist at Britain's University of Reading. Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a public health emergency in four counties with travel-related cases of the Zika virus, and ordered state officials to increase mosquito control efforts in some of the southeastern U.S. state's most heavily populated locales including Miami and Tampa. Scott directed state officials to pay special attention to mosquito spraying in residential areas. In addition, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which has urged pregnant women to consider delaying travel to locations with ongoing Zika transmissions, added Jamaica and Tonga to its travel alert. Despite already being on the CDC's travel alert, Mexico's health ministry downplayed Zika's threat to tourism on Wednesday, saying its 34 confirmed cases are far from tourist areas while conceding it was "inevitable" the virus would spread. The WHO said at least 26 countries in the Americas have a Zika outbreak, and countries such as Ireland, Australia and Canada have reported cases of travelers testing positive for the virus after visiting an infected area. Late on Tuesday, the Brazilian health ministry said the number suspected microcephaly cases that may be linked to the virus had increased to 4,074 as of Jan. 30, from 3,718 a week earlier. Researchers have identified evidence of Zika infections in 17 of these cases, either in the baby or in the mother, but have not confirmed that Zika can cause microcephaly. WARNING FOR EUROPE The WHO warned member states in Europe on Wednesday that the risk of the virus spreading into the region increases with the onset of spring and summer. "Now is the time for countries to prepare themselves to reduce the risk to their populations," said the WHO's Europe chief, Zsuzsanna Jakab. "Every European country in which Aedes mosquitoes are present can be at risk for the spread of Zika virus disease." The Pan American Health Organization, the WHO's arm for the Americas, said it needed an estimated $8.5 million to help countries in the region respond to the Zika threat. Brazilian Health Minister Marcelo Castro said U.S. experts will travel to Brazil next week to start work on the development of a Zika vaccine and come up with a timetable for the effort. A number of drug developers and universities are attempting to produce a vaccine. Experts have said a vaccine is months or even years away. Japan's leading drugmaker Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd said it has created a team to investigate how it might help make a vaccine, a day after France's Sanofi SA said it would launch a Zika vaccine program. Pfizer Inc, Johnson and Johnson and Merck & Co Inc said they were evaluating their technologies or existing vaccines for their potential to combat Zika. Indian biotechnology company Bharat Biotech said it was working on two possible vaccines. The rising number of cases has stirred concern ahead of the Olympic Games in August in Rio de Janeiro when Brazil's second largest city will host tens of thousands of athletes and tourists from around the world. Reuters Gulfood, an annual food and hospitality trade platform, has set its own new record by confirming its largest country and pavilion line-up to date for this year's event. It will run from February 21 to 25 at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC). The show will feature 117 pavilions five more than last year with first-time group participation from Russia, Costa Rica, Belarus, Mauritius and New Zealand, the Oceania nation returning after a six-year break, said a statement. Trixie LohMirmand, senior vice president, Exhibitions and Events Management, DWTC, said: The sheer scale of the pavilions and their extensive membership lives up to our promise of delivering more taste, more trends and more trade. The range of new products and services on offer is as diverse as the geographic spread of pavilion participants the perfect combination to yield fresh business opportunities for professionals operating throughout the entire international food industry and hospitality supply chain. Italy will operate the events largest pavilion with more than 190 companies occupying a 3,956-sq-m national pavilion, while a few Italian producers will go-it-alone with specialised stands. At Gulfood, Italy will focus on ultra-high-end product offerings from fresh fruits and vegetables, to dairy mainly cheese pulses, dried and canned foods, dried and frozen foods, grocery products, olive oils and vinegar, juices, sweets and snacks. The pavilion will also host several specialist manufacturers of hospitality equipment and coffee and gelato machinery. The UAE is the Italian food industrys fastest growing market, said LohMirmand. Italian food product sales to the emirates have grown steadily rising 31.1 per cent in 2012, a further 39.5 per cent in 2013 and again by nine per cent in 2014 to reach 241.3 million ($263.1 million)," she said. "In Q1 of 2015 exports climbed a further 23.6 per cent. Without doubt, the euro fluctuation against the dollar and dirham has significantly assisted Eurozone exports and Italy in particular has reaped the benefits," she added. Meanwhile, Turkey will also be out in force at Gulfood 2016 with 103 exhibitors marketing beverages and beverage equipment, finished food and beverage products, food service hospitality and restaurant and cafe equipment. Over the past few years, Turkey has made significant inroads into the UAEs food and beverage, hospitality and mass grocery retail sector, said LohMirmand. Turkish produce is now familiar on supermarkets shelves, while a plethora of Turkish cuisine and hospitality outlets - adding to the high-profile entrance of the countrys Rixos hotels group to the region - are open and performing. The Turkish chamber of commerce has made no secret of its members ambitions to ensure food exports to the UAE climb to $250 million this year. Although this represents a 20 per cent jump on 2014 levels, a strong Gulfood push is expected to play a role in meeting those aims. The Netherlands will again have a strong presence at Gulfood with the Holland Pavilion organised by the Netherlands Council for Trade Promotion (NCH) a Gulfood stalwart having exhibited every year since 1995 housing 54 companies across the dairy, deep-frozen, fresh vegetables, fresh/deep-frozen meat, conserves, traders, oils, sauces, grocery, fine food and drinks sector. The council is looking to grow Dutch food exports to the UAE - currently worth $360 million a year. With the global food industry eyeing Africa as the next major investment opportunity, Kenya is boosting its Gulfood presence with a pavilion 48 per cent larger than last year that will focus largely on tea and coffee produce, while Egypt is weighing in with 125 companies covering a multi-commodity profile including freshly frozen fruit and vegetables, confectionery, dairy and dates. Back for its third Gulfood promotion, the small Eastern European state of Moldova is looking to expand its export reach for a wide range of agricultural and processed food products that currently account for 40 per cent of the countrys GDP. - TradeArabia News Service Egypts Al-Bustaniya Agricultural Development plans to invest EGP25 million ($3.19 million) to support development of the company and increase exports by 20 per cent for the current season, a report said. The exports of vegetables and paper products amounted to 9,000 tonnes last year, and were mainly to the European and Asian markets, Hisham El-Meligy, chairman of Al-Bustaniya, was quoted as saying in a Daily News Egypt report. He said that the Agriculture Export Council received a list of fruit and vegetable varieties, which Turkey used to export to Russia. The council is studying varieties suggested for import from Egypt instead. This comes against the backdrop of Moscows decision to ban exports from Turkey after the latter shot down a Russian warplane on its border with Syria in November, said the report. Meligy noted that Egypt cannot export all of the items Russia used to receive from Turkey, especially since certain agricultural crops require specific transport conditions, particularly highly-perishable crops. He added that Egypt is currently considering the possibility of cultivating a tomato variety that can endure 12 days in transit in preparation to export the tomatoes to Russia. He said that Turkeys close proximity to Russia was one of the most important reasons Moscow depended on Ankaras products before the most recent bout of political tension. Meligy further said that Al-Bustaniya seeks to increase the volume of production per acre of strawberry crops, especially as Egypt is distinguished for its strawberry exports. Agricultural crops differ from other export commodities in that it is important to ensure that markets are available to absorb production, he said. Crops cultivated for export have certain specifications that pertain to the circumstances of the markets they are exported to, he concluded. Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) plans to invest more than $10 billion in three key hydrocarbon projects, a report said. The three ventures include the Rabab Harweel Integrated Project (RHIP), the Yibal Khuff integrated oil and gas facility, and the Budour integrated project, all of which are on track for implementation, PDO managing director Raoul Restucci, was quoted as saying in the Oman Observer report. These are very large investments, which will probably total in excess of $10 billion over the next 5-10 years, he said. Work on the power plant at RHIB, including the foundations and the wells, is very advanced, he noted. As many as 12 Local Community Contractors (LCC) companies are working to prepare the site. There is good progress overall, good integration, and good safety; we will deliver on target, he added. At Harweel, PDO aims to harness part of Rababs sour gas to inject as miscible gas to produce oil from Harweels sour oil reservoirs, the report said, adding that at Budour, plans for the first-ever use of water injection in a sour oil field were being reviewed. General Electric said on Sunday it had signed an agreement to invest $600 million in Italy in research and development projects in the oil and gas sector over the next five years. GE Oil & Gas said the money would be spent on developing a facility to build turbines and compressors in the central region of Tuscany. The project, dubbed "Galileo", will increase GE Oil & Gas volumes in Italy by 50 per cent and boost revenue by $1.7 billion over the five years. "GE has been operating in Italy for about 100 years and today's operation confirms our strong commitment to invest and grow our business in the country," said GE Chairman and CEO Jeff Immelt. Immelt was present at a signing ceremony with, among others, Italy's Industry Minister, Federica Guidi. According to a document seen by Reuters, GE will invest $400 million in Galileo while the remaining $200 million will be public funding. In the statement, GE said another agreement had been signed in previous weeks by aviation unit Avio Aero to invest 200 million ($218.1 million). That brings the overall investment programme to more than $800 million, it said. GE said its Oil & Gas division had also signed on Sunday an agreement with Italy's SACE, a state-owned export credit insurance agency. It said SACE could provide assistance of up to $6 billion over the period 2016-2018 to support its exports to areas such as Latin America, North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East and Asia. - Reuters A large number of Omani public and private sector chief executives convened together at a meeting in Muscat, hosted by Oman Air, to look for ways to improve business methods and policies and encourage further investment in Oman. Oman Airs chief executive officer Paul Gregorowitsch, who opened the event and welcomed the guests, went on to encourage delegates to address the challenges currently facing the nation, its economy and its business sector. He further expressed the hope that delegates would establish a unified and positive vision that both addressed the aspirations of all parties and maintained a focus on quality. Following the meeting, Gregorowitsch said: Oman and, indeed, the entire GCC region - currently faces significant economic challenges. The key to overcoming those challenges is a strong and productive partnership between the countrys public and private sectors. By working together, learning from each others experiences and drawing on the vast amount of expertise available within each sector, we can make an important contribution to ensuring that the Omani economy remains strong and resilient. The findings that we jointly arrived at during the discussion, together with those developed by working groups which will meet following this meeting, will be presented to high ranking Government officials. We hope that our contribution assists Omans regulatory authorities in developing their policies and deciding on future action, he said. TradeArabia News Service The year 2015 ended on a high note for Movenpick Hotels & Resorts, with new properties signed across the Middle East and Africa, Asia Pacific and Europe, expanding its portfolio by 15 per cent. The Swiss hospitality firm, which currently operates 83 hotels worldwide, accelerated its expansion plans during the course of the year, opening four new hotels in strategic locations across the Middle and South East Asia; one in Saudi Arabia, one in Turkey and two in Thailand. The hospitality firm opened its first property in the Saudi capital and its 10th in the kingdom, the 438-key Movenpick Hotel Riyadh; debuted in two new locations in Thailand with the 297-key Movenpick Hotel Sukhumvit 15 Bangkok and the 262-room Movenpick Siam Hotel Pattaya, taking its portfolio in the country to five properties strong; and launched its fourth hotel in Turkey, the 136-room Istanbul Golden Horn With another 26 properties under negotiation that will bring an additional 7,272 keys to market, MHR is cementing its status as one of the most dynamic players in the upscale segment. 2015 was a very successful year for us with the 12 new hotels signed consolidating our position in several strategic locations that we have earmarked for expansion, said Jean Gabriel Peres, CEO of Movenpick Hotels & Resorts. It marked the start of an unprecedented period of growth, with our portfolio set to increase by almost 50 per cent until 2020, and we look to build on this momentum with exciting projects in key markets, working towards our ultimate goal of 130 properties (open and signed) by 2020. The regional breakdown MHRs 2015 expansion strategy saw the firm build on its cluster strategy in South-East Asia, where it signed five new properties totalling 1,826 keys across Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam and the Philippines, taking its future total portfolio in the region to 16 properties. The five new builds include Vietnams first-ever integrated destination resort located on Phu Quoc an island tipped to become the regions next great holiday hotspot. The 330-key Movenpick Resort Phu Quoc will open in 2017, as will the 400-key Movenpick Resort Cam Ranh Bay in Vietnams popular Nha Trang district. Deals to manage Movenpick Resort Boracay in the Philippines, Movenpick Hotel Kota Bharu in Kelantan, Malaysia, and Movenpick Sukhumvit 15 Bangkok, Thailand, were also inked in 2015. We are ramping up our cluster strategy for South-East Asias leading markets" said Andrew Langdon, appointed by Movenpick to the newly created role of senior vice president Asia, charged with driving this development plan forward. In the Middle East, MHR secured three properties spanning 972 keys. It consolidated its position in Saudi Arabia with high-profile property deals in Riyadh and Jeddah respectively, while in Pakistan, the firm signed an agreement to operate the 361-key Movenpick Hotel Centaurus Islamabad, which is set to open in 2018. MHR also penned deals for three properties in Africa, one of the worlds fastest-growing regions for hotel development, adding 1,030 keys to the mix. The new hotels, two of which are located in affluent areas of Nairobi and Abuja in Nigeria and the other, the Movenpick Hotel & Palais des Congres, Marrakech the groups third property in Morocco will take its Africa portfolio to 26 properties. The hotels in Nairobi and Marrakech are planned to open already in 2016. In Europe, where MHR is a dominant player, the company added the 260-key Movenpick Stuttgart Airport II to its rapidly expanding portfolio of upscale hotels. By rigorously accelerating our development plans in 2015, strengthening our position in both established and emerging markets, we have created a solid pipeline and laid the foundations for further growth, said Peres. TradeArabia News Service You can opt out of certain types of cookies (e.g. those used in social media sharing) by choosing "I do not accept". The website will still largely function well, but with slightly less functionality in places. To manage your cookie preferences in future, visit the "Cookie Statement" link at the bottom of any page. Travel Troll uses the resources of Travmedia extensively.Travmedia provides journalists with the latest breaking press releases from travel companies and organisations worldwide, together with access to images, company profiles and archive releases, PR contacts, online research tools and much more.For travel companies, organisations and PR agencies, TravMedia offers the complete communications channel to the key media in your region or throughout the world. 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Clients can claim 100% refund of the service fee in the event they are not satisfied with the firm's services. About Nam Thang Travel Co., LTD: Visa-Vietnam.org is a renowned travel agent offering Vietnam visa for travellers upon arrival at the airport. They provide hassle free application process with special discounts, affordability and easy accessibility. ### Please contact the person or company listed above for information regarding the content of this press release. TravPR.com are not the issuers of this press release and are not responsible for the accuracy of the content. Share Release : CONTACT INFORMATION Name: Ta Hoai Nam Company: Nam Thang Travel Co., LTD Phone: 84966569956 Email: visavietor@gmail.com Web: PRESS RELEASE TAGS When you visit the site, Dotdash Meredith and its partners may store or retrieve information on your browser, mostly in the form of cookies. Cookies collect information about your preferences and your devices and are used to make the site work as you expect it to, to understand how you interact with the site, and to show advertisements that are targeted to your interests. You can find out more about our use, change your default settings, and withdraw your consent at any time with effect for the future by visiting Cookies Settings, which can also be found in the footer of the site. Amritsar, February 3 Leader of the Opposition in the Municipal Corporation, Raj Kanwal Preet Pal Singh Lucky, has demanded that Mayor should call an emergency House meeting to affix the responsibility of senior town planner and other officials concerned of the municipal town planning wing, with whose connivance illegal buildings had mushroomed in the city. A petition is pending with the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which has already expressed its dissatisfaction over the attitude of local Municipal Corporation authorities. The High Court minced no words to express that except for paying lip service, no action was taken against illegal hotels and shopkeepers in the vicinity of the Golden Temple. As many as 70 illgal hotels have come up around the holy shrine. Lucky said if Mayor Bakshi Ram Arora was feeling helpless to initiate action , he should call an emergency meeting of the House and ask officials of the municipal town planning, who had failed to perform their duties. He should also bring it before that House, who owned these hotels and whose was giving political patronage to them, added Lucky. TNS Auckland, February 4 The US-led Trans-Pacific Partnership, one of the biggest trade deals in history, was signed in New Zealand today as protesters demonstrated over fears for jobs and sovereignty. The ambitious deal, promising the elimination of nearly all tariffs among the 12 member nations, aims to break down trade and investment barriers between countries accounting for about 40% of the global economy. While New Zealand Prime Minister John Key and US Trade Representative Mike Froman lauded the pact at the ceremonial signing in Auckland, thousands of protesters blocked roads outside. Today is a significant day, not only for New Zealand but for the other 11 countries in the Trans-Pacific Partnership, Key said. However, protesters argue it will cost jobs and impact on sovereignty in Asia-Pacific states. Australias Trade Minister Andrew Robb said the TPP would see the elimination of 98% of tariffs among the 12 states. Although the signing marks the end of the negotiating process, members still have two years to get the deal approved at home before it becomes legally binding. We will encourage all countries to complete their domestic ratification processes as quickly as possible, Key said. TPP will provide much better access for goods and services to more than 800 million people across the TPP countries, which make up 36% of global GDP. The agreement was signed by Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam. Other countries have already signalled an interest in joining TPP, Key said. And this could lead to even greater regional economic integration. In a joint statement, ministers representing the 12 countries said the TPP will set a new standard for trade and investment in one of the worlds fastest growing and most dynamic regions. Our goal is to enhance shared prosperity, create jobs and promote sustainable economic development for all of our nations. Froman had earlier warned against any delay in endorsing the deal. After five years of negotiation, signing the TPP is an important milestone in our efforts to set high-standard rules of the road in the Asia-Pacific region and more generally, and to deliver an agreement that will benefit American workers, farmers and businesses, he said. AFP Jalandhar, February 4 The Punjab State Suwidha Employees Union today submitted a memorandum to Additional Deputy Commissioner (General), Jalandhar, regarding a protest to be held in front of the office of Director Governance and Reforms Department in Chandigarh on February 5 and 6. They would be protesting to get their services regularised. Union president Rajiv Gupta said it has been around 10 to 11 years since the Suwidha Centre employees have been working at meager salaries, yet their services have not been regularised. He said the government has been opening Sewa Kenders to provide more facilities to the people that would be a part of the Suwidha Centres. The government has been planning the give caretaking responsibilities to a private company that has enhanced the resentment among the employees.TNS S. Subramanian In an earlier piece in these columns I had highlighted many genuine concerns which a responsible student of India's population problems would acknowledge and address. There are potential benefits and potential burdens associated with the country's demographics which cry out to be dealt with. An indicative list of issues would include facilitating a magnitude and pattern of growth that draws on and feeds into the country's demographic dividend; combating neo-natal and maternal mortality; stabilising population growth; feeding a hungry nation and mitigating the worst manifestations of stunting and wasting; transforming rural-urban migration from a phenomenon induced by agrarian distress to one induced by industrial progress; addressing the worrying problem of growing gender imbalance, as reflected in a deteriorating population sex-ratio; dealing with morbidity and disability; and, in the widest and most inclusive sense, promoting the quality and productivity of human capital by furthering the causes of access to education, sanitation, energy and good health. We are speaking here of opportunities and challenges which demand to be addressed with urgency, vision and planning. If what we need is constructive vision, what we seem to have, instead, is destructive fission. The ideological fount of the ruling dispensation at the Centre, the RSS has been at it again: its dubious treatment of the subject of 'religious demography' has in recent times been once more in the news (not that this preoccupation is ever dormant with the country's Hindutva forces for any length of time). In October 2015 the RSS passed a resolution at its national executive meet in Jharkhand, in which it is observed that "the share of population of religions of Bharatiya origin has slipped from 88% to 83.5% between the 1951-2011 censuses while the Muslim population has increased from 9.8% to 14.23% in the intervening period"; that "the Muslim population growth rate has been higher than the national average in (the) border states of Assam, West Bengal and Bihar indicating unabated infiltration from Bangladesh"; that there has been "unnatural growth of (the) Christian population in many districts of the country indicat(ing) targeted religious conversion activity by some vested interests". While the scientific and secular lay communities interpret India's 'demographic imbalance' in terms of a skewed female-to-male ratio (especially at birth), the majoritarian religious orthodoxy interprets that same phenomenon in terms of the dystopias of population swamping by religious minorities, threatening cross-border incursions and infiltrations, and sinister acts of religious conversion (terms which take no account of the fact that in a steady state the Muslim population in the Indian Union should stabilise at around 14 per cent). Such readings of demography are natural bed-fellows of a general climate of intolerance, aggression and violent insularity in which the suspected storage of beef in one's house is met with being beaten to death; provocative signals of temple-building on a disputed religious site are broadcast; and those who find such acts objectionable are certified as being anti-national or seditionary or worse and invited to emigrate to Pakistan or Saudi Arabia. These sorts of responses to population dynamics are on all fours with racist and ethnic interpretations of population change that one would typically associate with white supremacists and right-wing Zionists. The assertion of a hierarchy among humans, on the basis of classificatory schema of population according to race or caste or religion or gender or ethnicity, is as old as the hills. A more 'modern' tendency has been the effort to impart the status of 'scientific validity' to such divisive demographics. The sciences that have most often been tapped and compromised are those of biology and statistics. Pseudo-disciplines such as 'phrenology' have flourished in this atmosphere of disingenuousness. Stephen Jay Gold, the late distinguished evolutionary biologist from Harvard, has done much to demolish such demographic myths. Of somewhat humorous (or at least tragic) interest in this connection, from an Indian point of view, is a book published in the first decade of the new millennium on "The Religious Demography of India" by researchers from the Centre for Policy Studies in Chennai. The book solemnly promises (that is to say threatens) the reader with the forecast that by the year 2061 the proportion of 'Indian religionists' in the combined population of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh ('Akhand Bharat'?) will be down to 50 per cent. This interesting prognostication has been made on the basis of a 'scientific' exploitation of the statistical technique called 'regression analysis', involving, more specifically, the employment of what is called a 'third-order polynomial equation.' What chance does the benighted lay public have against the power and authority and mystique wielded by a third-order polynomial equation? Is one not obliged to take such demographic projections seriously? Fortunately not. For those with a little knowledge of statistics and demography, this sort of impressive jargon-mongering cannot succeed in concealing the fact that it reflects rather trivial (and therefore rather serious) nonsense. Indeed, a fellow-scholar (D Jayaraj) and I have extrapolated the methodology and calculations of the authors of "Religious Demography of India" to estimate when the Hindu population in Akhand Bharat will become extinct. As nearly accurately as we can tell, the appointed day of doom should be December 26th 2063. (We admit to some uncertainty, though, on the precise hour of the clock when this disaster will strike.) Scenarios of this nature are constructed around certain outlandish beliefs. (I was shocked and dismayed to discover, in the course of a social evening in California some years ago, that such beliefs are embraced as 'scientific facts' by upper-caste members of the Indian diaspora employed as IT professionals, electronics engineers, and software specialists.) Amongst these beliefs are the 'stylised facts' of a menacing order of excess fecundity amongst the minority communities in India, fed by such practices as polygamy. As it happens, indiscriminate proliferation wrought by each man marrying four women would suggest a bizarre sex-ratio of 4,000 females for every 1,000 males in this community (when the biological norm ordained by nature is roughly one female for every male). What is more, and simply as a matter of fact which is upheld by the Census of India, the incidence of polygamy amongst Hindus and Jains is not lower than amongst Muslims. Nor is the general fertility rate systematically higher for all minority communities than it is for the majority community. Again, as it happens, fertility is lower for Christians than for Hindus, and lower for Hindus than for Muslims. Amongst Hindus, fertility rates amongst the Scheduled Castes and Tribes are comparable to Muslim fertility rates. The reason is not hard to find. Demographers have for long known that fertility declines with development. A good part of the reason why Muslim fertility rates (which, far from incidentally, have been declining over time) are somewhat higher than those of some other communities is that the Muslim community is also relatively more deprived (as the Sachar Committee Report has so eloquently testified). As in other aspects of social and economic life, it is a profound pity that what ought to be genuine population concerns for India are being diverted, by prejudice and mis-diagnosis, to bogus and divisive concerns. The writer is a retired Professor of Economics Ravi Krishnan Khajuria Tribune News Service Jammu, February 4 At the Siachen Glacier, the highest battlefield in the world, hostile weather, icy terrain, sub-zero temperature, low oxygen and high-altitude sickness form a lethal mix, taking a heavy toll on men in olive green than any conflict with Indias arch-rival Pakistan. Also read: All 10 Siachen soldiers dead Pakistan has the same story of losing more men to the weather vagaries than skirmishes between the two countries. As per statistics, 869 soldiers have lost their lives since April 1984 when India initiated Operation Meghdoot, airdropping its men to pre-empt a move by Pakistan to occupy the strategic heights. With 10 more Army men falling to an avalanche, the death toll has now gone up to 879 since 1984. The Army and the Air Force have been running against time to trace and rescue survivors, if any, among the 10 soldiers who went missing after an avalanche wiped out an Army camp at a height of 19,600 feet on Wednesday morning. On Siachens significance to India and what makes it a dangerous place, Northern Commands defence spokesperson Col SD Goswami said: Siachens terrain, its strategic location and geographical importance have given it a paramount place in the annals of history. The soldiers deployed on the glacier endure the worst weather conditions throughout the year. At times, the troops have to unavoidably take up defences in the areas around steep slopes and crevices, which might send tonnes of snow and rubble crumbling down without any warning and completely obliterate the camps, communication lines, bury personnel and everything else. In such unstable conditions on the glacier, the terrain, climate or altitude can take its toll on anything. However, Colonel Goswami added that with rhythm in his steps, faith to serve the nation and prayers on his lips, a soldier goes on his way up to the glacier. An Army source said that since 1984, the Army had lost 869 of its men at the 76-km Siachen Glacier. A majority of them have died of hostile weather conditions such as avalanches, landslides and floods and in some cases due to the high-altitude sickness, he added. Indian and Pakistan have been pitted against each other at the Siachen since 1984. Loss of appetite, frostbite and high-altitude pulmonary edema (watery fluid collecting in the cavities or tissues of the body) are some of the diseases to which our men are exposed. There were instances in the past when some of our men contracted Monges disease that causes loss of high-altitude tolerance after prolonged exposure, characterised by extreme polycythemia (abnormally increased concentration of haemoglobin in the blood), exaggerated hypoxaemia (abnormally low level of oxygen in the blood) and reduced mental and physical capacity, relieved by descent, he said. A defence official said both India and Pakistan had lost more men to hostile weather than conflicts between the two sides on the glacial heights. Since 2003, guns have been silent on the 110-km Actual Ground Position Line after India and Pakistan inked a ceasefire in November that year, he added. However, a senior Army officer said the past conflicts with Pakistan and China, growing proximity between China and Pakistan via the Karakoram Pass and trust deficit with Pakistan, made strategic Siachen Glacier indispensable to India and it could not afford to withdraw its troops On an average, India spends Rs 5 crore a day for replenishing supplies to its men at the Siachen. India controls about two-thirds of the glacier, besides commanding two of the three passes while Pakistan occupies the Gyong La Pass, which overlooks the Shyok and the Nubra river valleys and Indias access to the glacier from Leh district in Ladakh. Indian soldiers currently hold the strategic Saltoro Ridge which overlooks Pakistani positions. At 5,472 meters above sea level, the Siachen Glacier is located in the Karakoram mountain range, which has some of the highest peaks in the world. The northern mountains of the glacier mark the watershed between Central Asia and the Indian subcontinent. Bereft of vegetation, the glacier is one of the worlds most inhospitable regions, where the temperature plunges to - 40C. New Delhi: India on Thursday ratified the Convention of Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage, marking an important step in addressing matters related to civil nuclear liabilities. The move will help establish a worldwide liability regime of enhanced compensation for nuclear damages. Indias Ambassador and Permanent Representative in Vienna, Austria, Rajiva Misra, handed over the Instrument of Ratification to Acting Director General of nuclear watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Juan Carlos Lentijo, official sources said. The convention will come into force for India on May 4, 90 days from the date of deposit of the ratification instrument. Clauses under the Civil Liability Nuclear Damage Act were major impediments in the progress of building reactors with the US in India. In 2014, India had ratified the Additional Protocols of the IAEA, a move that put its reactors under international safeguards. PTI Dinesh Kumar in Bangkok Expressing concern over the spreading tide of extremism and terrorism, Vice-President Mohammad Hamid Ansari on Thursday said such threats required strong cooperation among like-minded nations. He said the need for maintaining safety of sea lanes, which was critical for maritime trade and commerce, maritime security and access to marine resources, continued to assume greater significance as countries in the ASEAN region strived for greater economic integration. Expanding on the issue, which came for special mention in his speech on India, Thailand and ASEAN: Contours of a Rejuvenated Relationship delivered to academics at Chulalongkorn University here, Ansari said, Non-traditional threats such as piracy, smuggling, trans-national crimes and drug trafficking are on the rise and pose a challenge for our countries and require strong and determined coordinated action. There was a need, he added, to protect all trade routes and sea lanes of communication from both traditional and non-traditional threats and all countries using these international waters must act with responsibility and restraint. Ansari, who is himself a former diplomat, had a word of advice on tension in the South China Sea. The evolving situation in the South China Sea demands restraint from all parties. We support collective efforts by ASEAN member states and China to conclude the code of conduct to keep peace and stability in the region, he said. Emphasising on the importance of Indias relations with ASEAN, Ansari announced a slew of measures India was taking to deepen relations with this region. These include enhancing the ASEAN-India Science and Technology Development Fund from the current $1 million to $5 million in near future, setting up of an ASEAN-India innovation platform to facilitate commercialisation of low-cost technologies, collaborative research and development projects, implementation of a $21.53-million project on establishment of a tracking and data reception station and data processing facility for ASEAN at Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam, upgrading the station at Biak (Indonesia) and training ASEAN personnel in space science and technology at Dehradun. Stating that connectivity with ASEAN in all its dimensions (physical, institutional and people-to-people) continued to be a strategic priority for India, Ansari said special efforts were being made to develop a coherent strategy, particularly for linking ASEAN and North-East India. This means that in some years Indians and residents of ASEAN nations would be able to drive all the way to Vietnam through Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and Cambodia in the east and Singapore via Myanmar, Thailand and Malaysia in the south east. Negotiations on the India-Myanmar-Thailand Motor Vehicles Agreement and the ASEAN-India Maritime Transport Cooperation Agreement have already been finalised, while the ASEAN-India Civil Aviation Task Force is expected to oversee optimisation of air connectivity. Ansari said despite rapid growth of the Indian and Thai economies, bilateral trade and investment remained modest. Bengaluru/New Delhi, February 4 Amidst the outrage over the alleged assault and stripping of a 21-year-old Tanzanian woman here, five persons have been arrested in connection with the incident, but the Karnataka Government today denied that the woman was paraded naked. As the incident on Sunday night took a serious diplomatic turn, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah told reporters at a global investors meet in Bengaluru, The case has been registered, five of them (accused) have been arrested. Sushma Swaraj also spoke to me. I will also be sending her a report through my Chief Secretary. State Home Minister G Parameshwara refuted reports that the Tanzanian woman was paraded naked saying, No such thing happened. It was definitely not a racial attack, he said. Voicing concern over the incident, the Union Home Ministry asked the state government to send a detailed report about the circumstances leading to the assault on the Tanzanian woman, action taken against those allegedly involved in it and the steps taken for the protection of the victim. The Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of mistaken identity after a woman was mowed down by a car here. She was reportedly dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends when she reached the accident spot with the miscreants mistaking them to have caused the fatal accident though a Sudanese was involved in it, the police said. Facing flak over the incident, Siddaramaiah said he had asked the police to conduct an inquiry as to why a complaint was not lodged immediately. In Delhi, Tanzanian High Commissioner John W H Kijazi said he had sent a complaint to the government and sought prompt action against those behind the unfortunate incident. He urged the government to reinforce security in localities where African students were staying. "We request the Government of India to ensure safety and security of our students in Bengaluru and all other places in India," he said. PTI Chandigarh, February 3 Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, who was admitted to PGIMER for treatment of chest congestion and fever, was today discharged from the hospital after having made a remarkable recovery. Badal, who was admitted to the hospital on January 22, was discharged this morning following remarkable recovery from chest infection, a spokesperson of the Chief Minister's office said. A team of doctors, having examined him thoroughly, decided to discharge him from the hospital as the infection in his chest has almost cleared and was fine now, he said. However, the doctors advised Badal to refrain from vigorous travelling and exposure to intense cold. The doctors have also advised him to take rest and maintain restriction over the entry of visitors calling on him to inquire about his well being as a precautionary measure. Badal had taken ill when he was on a visit to Nawanshahr and was shifted to PGIMER from a hospital there on January 22. PTI Tribune News Service Mussoorie, February 4 The Uttarkashi district administration held an anti-polythene bag drive in the town today. The drive was held under the leadership of Additional District Magistrate Ashok Kumar and Deputy District Magistrate Raj Kumar Pandey at the bus stand and polythene bags were confiscated. Distributors of carry bags were warned not to sell polythene bags to retailers or they would face punitive action. The team also destroyed thermocol, polythene bags and other items confiscated from shops at the main market at Hanuman Chowk. Officials said the drive that started on February 1 would continue in near future and traders violating the ban would be penalised. District Disaster Response Force officer Devendar Singh Patwal, coordinator from NGO Sudha Vivek Sharma, Bhatwadi Tehsildar Mukesh Chandra Ramola, and the Uttarkashi police station officer BP Kukreti were part of the drive. Meanwhile, residents of Landour Bazaar held a candlelight march for the reconstruction of clock tower at Mussoorie today. They also held a signature campaign in support of their demand. Later a delegation of residents and traders led by local trader Anant Pal Singh submitted a memorandum addressed to the President of India through the Mussoorie SDM demanding reconstruction of the clock tower. Anant Pal said they were holding a symbolic agitation for a just cause and if their demand was not met they would launch an indefinite fast. Some residents said people should think of doing kar sewa (service) for the construction of the clock tower if the government and the local Municipal Council did not do it. Other protesters said the Municipal Council had demolished the clock tower hence it was its duty to reconstruct it. London, February 4 A UN panel has ruled that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been arbitrarily detained in the UK, a media report said here today. Britain, however, has made it clear that if Assange leaves the Ecuadorian embassy in London he will be arrested, as the country is under no legal obligation to follow the panels decision. No official announcement has yet been made by the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in Geneva but BBC Radio 4 reported that it understands the decision has been made in Assanges favour. The UN panel has been considering a request by Assange for a ruling. It is due to announce its findings tomorrow. Assange, 44, was granted political asylum by Ecuador, which has housed him since 2012 at its central London embassy. The whistleblower has said he is willing to surrender to the British police if the UN panel finds that the three years he was holed up inside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London does not amount to illegal detention. In 2014, he had complained to the UN that he was being arbitrarily detained as he could not leave the embassy without being arrested by the British police. The Australian national is wanted for questioning in Sweden over sex assault allegations against two women, which he denies. WikiLeaks, founded by Assange in 2006, released 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and 250,000 diplomatic cables enraging the United States. Assange fears being extradited to the US to be quizzed over the activities of WikiLeaks if he travels to Sweden. The UN group does not have any formal influence over the British and Swedish authorities and the UK Foreign Office said it still had an obligation to extradite Assange. British Prime Minister David Camerons spokesman said on Thursday that if WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange leaves the Ecuadorian embassy in London he will be arrested. The spokesman said that any decision by a United Nations panel that is examining Assanges appeal would not be legally binding and that an arrest warrant for Assange would be put into effect if he left the embassy. Britain said on Thursday that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange had avoided arrest by fleeing to the Ecuadorian embassy and that it was under obligation to extradite him to Sweden over an outstanding rape allegation. Agencies Stockholm/London, February 4 Swedens Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that a United Nations panel had ruled that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange had been arbitrarily detained. Their working group has made the judgment that Assange has been arbitrarily detained in contravention of international commitments, a spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry said. The comment confirms a report by the BBC earlier on Thursday. Assange, 44, took refuge in Ecuadors Embassy in London in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden. Swedish prosecutors want to question him over allegations, which he denies, that he committed rape in 2010. Meanwhile, Britain today said it will arrest Assange if he leaves the Ecuadorean Embassy. An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European arrest warrant in place, so the UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Assange to Sweden, a UK government spokesperson said. Earlier in the day, Assange said he will turn himself over to the British police tomorrow if a UN panel rules he has not been arbitrarily detained, after spending years in the Ecuadoran embassy in London. Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal, he said in a statement today. However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me. The Australian WikiLeaks founder fears he could eventually face extradition to the US to be put on a trial over the leak of hundreds of thousands of classified military and diplomatic documents. In September 2014, he filed a complaint against Sweden and Britain to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention claiming his confinement in the embassy amounts to illegal detention. Any decision by the group would not be legally binding, but other people have reportedly been released in the past on the basis of its rulings. Agencies Terming the recent anti-Muslim rhetoric in the US poll campaign as inexcusable, President Barack Obama has said the best way to fight terrorism is to show that the US does not suppress Islam In his first visit to a mosque in the US, Obama on Wednesday referred to the recent political rhetoric against Muslims in the country, and said Americans cannot be silent bystanders to bigotry against any faith WASHINGTON Responsibility for the nations air traffic control operations would shift from the government to a private, nonprofit corporation under legislation introduced Wednesday as part of an overhaul of how Washington oversees the aviation system. The measure extends for six years the authority of the Federal Aviation Administration and continues its role as the regulator of aviation safety, including the safety of air traffic operations. But the FAA would lose responsibility for day-to-day air traffic operations and the transition from a radar-based traffic control system to one based on satellite technology. A board representing aviation system users would govern the new, federally chartered air traffic control corporation. The bill would complete the transfer of air traffic operations, hundreds of facilities and about 38,000 workers to the new corporation within three years. Rep. Bill Shuster, the bills chief sponsor, said it was a transformational solution and greatly needed because modernization of the air traffic system is taking too long and costing too much. Without an overhaul, the system wont be able to keep up with growing air traffic demands and congestion will increase, said Shuster, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Shuster, R-Pa., told reporters that he also wants to revamp how air traffic operations are financed, eliminating most airline ticket taxes in favor of a fee-based system. The proposal envisions charging commercial operators airlines, air cargo companies, charter plane, air taxi services and others for the services they use. Private pilots and noncommercial aircraft operators would continue the same fuel and other taxes as before rather than service fees. But the bill doesnt specify how the tax and fee structure would be changed because decisions on taxes are up to the House Ways and Means Committee; Shuster is working with that committee, a spokesman said. Its unclear if this would ultimately result in lower airfares since airlines would presumably pass along the cost of the new fees to their customers, but the hope is that privatizing air traffic control will produce greater efficiency and reduce the overall cost of the system, according to Republican committee aides. The aides briefed reporters on the condition that they not be named because they werent authorized to speak publicly. Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., the senior Democrat on the committee, said Democrats strongly oppose the privatization plan, although theyre happy with most of the rest of the bill. This privatization proposal gives a private corporation the power to tax the American public to pay for safe operations, and it hands over a public asset worth billions of dollars to a private corporation for free, DeFazio said. The corporation would effectively become a monopoly that picks winners and losers and decides routes, schedules, and slots based on profit margins, he said. Airlines, the lobbying muscle behind the bill, have long said the fairest way to pay for the air traffic system is to have all aircraft operators pay fees for the services they use, such as controller-directed takeoffs and landings and government weather reports. Most other aircraft operators oppose a fee system, which they say would shift a greater share of paying for the air traffic system away from airlines and onto them. The model for Shusters proposal is Canada, which shifted its air traffic operations to a nonprofit corporation about a decade ago. In the U.S., private contractors who provide air traffic control services at small airports generally have lower costs than at FAA facilities because they hire fewer personnel and pay lower salaries. The FAA has worked on its NextGen modernization program for more than a decade and says much progress has been made. Lawmakers and airlines say they have yet to see significant benefits from the billions of dollars spent on modernization and are deeply frustrated. Shuster and Rep. Frank LoBiondo, R-N.J., the aviation subcommittee chairman and the bills co-sponsor, gained an influential ally Wednesday when the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, which represents about 14,000 air traffic controllers, announced its support for the bill. OKLAHOMA CITY Oklahomans for Modern Laws on Wednesday filed paperwork indicating it will seek a vote of the people to let grocery and convenience stores sell cold, strong beer and wine. The paperwork was filed with the Oklahoma Secretary of State. The measure must withstand a protest period. If it clears such a period, supporters of State Question 783 would have 90 days to collect 123,725 signatures. The action comes as lawmakers attempt to craft a proposed constitutional amendment and change laws to allow grocery and convenience stores to sell cold, strong beer and wine. Brian Howe, director of Oklahomans for Modern Laws, said if approved by voters, the measure also would allow the direct shipment of wine. In addition, the measure could result in additional outlets for craft beer sellers, Howe said. Senate Appropriations Chairman Clark Jolley, R-Edmond, said he thinks Oklahomans for Modern Laws filed the petition because of concerns the Legislature will not get the job done and they would be left with nothing. Jolley said he doesnt view the petition as being in competition with efforts in the Legislature because both are trying to accomplish the same thing. What we are working on is a rewrite of our alcohol laws, Jolley said. Last year, Sen. Stephanie Bice, R-Oklahoma City, filed a measure to allow liquor stores to sell cold, strong beer. She later modified it, hoping it would spark a discussion process that would lead to an overhaul of the states liquor laws, which many consider antiquated. Bice and Jolley said in a release Wednesday that the legislative process is the best path to changing the laws. Bice is the principal author of Senate Bill 383, while Jolley is principal author of Senate Joint Resolution 68. Oklahomas alcohol laws are complex and impact a range of areas involving a variety of businesses, Bice said. In order to be successful in modernizing our laws, all those entities must be a part of the discussions so that we ultimately bring forward measures that will be comprehensive, thorough, and enable us to bring this modernization to fruition. Thats why the legislative process were utilizing gives the greatest chance for success, and we are actively continuing to develop our proposals, both constitutionally and statutorily. Bice recently told a gathering of craft beer enthusiasts that she was confident something will get done this session. OKLAHOMA CITY House Minority Leader Scott Inman said Thursday that there is no chance that Oklahoma teachers will see a pay raise out of the current legislative session. However, Senate President Pro Tem Brian Bingman insists that the governor, House and Senate remain committed to finding more money for teachers. Gov. Mary Fallin in her State of the State address on Monday championed a $3,000 pay raise for teachers. Other measures on pay raises have also been filed. The state expects to have at least $900.8 million less to allocate in crafting the fiscal year 2017 budget. To close the hole, Fallin has suggested the review of sales tax exemptions, an increase in the cigarette tax and applying the sales tax to services, among other things. Meanwhile, the state is facing a teacher shortage. Inman, D-Del City, said tax increases would require a supermajority in both houses of the Legislature, which is unlikely to happen. I dont think it (a pay raise proposal) is false hope, because I think the teachers of Oklahoma are smart enough to look right through this veiled political attempt to win votes in an election year, Inman said during his weekly press availability at the Capitol. The states budget problems are the result of a dramatic drop in energy prices, tax cuts and other factors. When oil was selling at a much higher price and teachers were lobbying for help at Capitol rallies, the GOP-controlled Legislature did not offer a pay raise but instead cut education budgets, Inman said. As soon as they lose two Republican seats to Democrats in the House and Senate, they realize that people, regardless of party affiliation, are now frustrated with their fiscal mismanagement of the public schools, Inman said. The election is 10 months away, and now they have all come to Jesus on the issue, and they want to at least throw that out there as a potential so they can at least go home this election cycle and say, I know the pay raise didnt happen, but we tried. Democrats recently won two special elections following vacancies in formerly Republican-held seats. Inman said he thinks teachers will hold Republicans accountable in November. I firmly believe that, he said. Inman said teachers ought to be concerned that lawmakers will reduce their benefits. Bingman, R-Sapulpa, was asked about Inmans comments. Certainly that is a goal. We have to address the pay situation, and there are many alternatives out there, and I cant sit here today and say at the end of the day what we are going to have or what that pay plan is, Bingman said. The governor is committed. Certainly the House and the Senate are trying to come up with a plan. The most pressing issue lawmakers need to address is the budget, Bingman said. We have a serious situation with our budget that needs to be the ultimate concern in the Legislature, Bingman said. He was asked if the election year could have something to do with the proposals. You know, maybe so, Bingman said. Always, you know in an election year, there are always politics in everything we do. I am not going to deny that. But in reality, lets look at the difference in the pay, and for somebody graduating from college, where are they going to go? Pay is certainly going to be part of it. OKLAHOMA CITY Gov. Mary Fallin on Wednesday told hundreds gathered in the House chamber and gallery that she has signed every piece of anti-abortion legislation that has come to her desk. Some of those measures have been overturned by the courts. Supporters of ending legal abortion gathered at the Capitol to deliver roses symbolizing life to lawmakers. The 25th annual Rose Day Pro-Life Rally drew all ages and faiths. Organizers included the Baptist General Convention of Oklahoma, Catholic Charities and Oklahomans for Life. Those gathered carried roses of every color. Our offices are looking beautiful signs of life, Fallin said. Oklahoma is the most anti-abortion state in the nation, she said. Another anti-abortion group passed out dead roses to symbolize the 6,000 babies lost to abortion last year and to encourage lawmakers to do more to end the practice. The dead rose distribution was sponsored by Oklahomans United for Life and the Oklahoma Conservative Political Action Committee. John Michener is director of the former and president of the latter. A card attached to the dead roses said the strategy of delivering vibrant roses to legislative offices is not working. There is bloodguilt on the Oklahoma Capitol, it said. But the good news is you have the power to cleanse it this session by stopping abortion in Oklahoma. Legally, you can. Morally, you must. A 1973 landmark U.S. Supreme Court case, Roe v. Wade, legalized abortion but set up a framework for state regulation of the procedure. Anthony Jordan, executive director of the Baptist General Convention, called the ruling a day that lives in infamy. Since then, 58 million unborn children have been ripped from the womb and thrown in a medical waste bag, he said. That is not medical waste, he said. That is an unborn child. Jordan recounted the progress that opponents of legal abortion have made at the Capitol over the years, thanking supporters for speaking for the unborn child. Our message is that the state of Oklahoma prefers child birth over abortion and wants everyone in our state to be aware of this life-affirming fact, said Tony Lauinger, chairman of Oklahomans for Life. He said the Legislature has been extremely supportive of defending innocent human life, adding that his organization will continue working with lawmakers in a positive way for the defense of human life. OKAY A rural school district in Wagoner County has taken up arms in an effort to deter school violence. Okay Public Schools erected four signs on campus this week, warning visitors bent on breaking the law that they might want to think otherwise. Having a sign in your front yard saying this is a gun-free zone just tells the idiots, Come on in, because we cant defend ourselves, Superintendent Charles McMahan said Wednesday in a telephone interview. (Okays) sign might be enough to send somebody down the road looking for some other soft target. If thats what it does, its helping our school district out. The signs, reading Please be aware that certain staff members at Okay Public Schools can be legally armed and may use whatever force is necessary to protect our students, are a follow-up to a school gun policy approved by the school board in August, McMahan said. The policy states that administrators who meet criteria set out by the state and school board may bring to campus a gun concealed on their person or kept in a locked box, the superintendent said. Okay established its policy after Oklahoma House Bill 2014 was signed into law in May. That legislation created the Special Reserve School Resource Officer Act, allowing certain people to carry handguns on public school property. Being a small, rural school, weve always been trying to figure out whats best for our kids security-wise, McMahan said. He said the requirements in Okays policy exceed those of the state, which require anyone who carries a handgun on school property to have a concealed-carry license and be certified by the Council on Law Enforcement Education and Training. Okay is about 48 miles southeast of Tulsa. The school district has a kindergarten-through-12th-grade enrollment of about 420 students. McMahan, who declined to say whether he carried or had access to a gun on campus, estimated that fewer than 5 percent of district employees are armed. Were trying to do everything possible for the safety of our kids, he said. Weve tried to think out every detail. Im not saying we have. If we see something else that needs to be adjusted, well go through and rewrite the policy and have the board approve it. PRYOR A grant from the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education will allow Rogers State University in Pryor to play host to two aerospace-themed academies this summer. AeroCamp Summer Academy is designed to challenge students from the eighth to 11th grade to learn about science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) concepts by working hands-on with aerospace-related devices. The regents 2016 Summer Academies Program provided an $18,000 grant for the camps, which will allow them to be free for participating students. RSU-Pryor will hold two five-day academies on June 6-10 and July 11-15 in collaboration with area high schools and industries within the MidAmerica Industrial Park, such as Google, Cherokee Nation Aerospace Industries and Tulsa Life Flight. For more information, is available by calling the RSU-Pryor campus at 918-825-6117 or email RSU-Pryor Director Sherry Alexander at salexander@rsu.edu. Today in Oklahoma, earthquake activity has become as reliable as the sunrise. The rate of increase of measurable tremors (greater than 2.5 magnitude) is almost exponential over the last three years. At meetings and in town halls, citizens are crying out for a solution or a resolution. Homeowners are angry. Lawyers are filing suits. Politicians are starting to look around. The Oklahoma Corporation Commission is regulating well disposal rates. Some oil companies are responding, some are not. The quakes keep coming. There is a fundamental question being raised by a lot of citizens and some public officials: Why cant the Oklahoma oil exploration and production companies solve the problem? The answer is pretty simple. Fundamentally, they do not know how to do it, and more candidly they really cannot be expected to solve this problem, given the way these companies are structured today. As an engineer, consultant and professor, I have been experienced worldwide in the industry for more than 50 years. One should remember what these exploration and production companies are. They are operators: operate is what they do. They are designed to function in a rigid and well-worn cookie-cutter format, which has been successfully developed over decades in the oil and gas industry. They have an established internal hierarchy. There is no learning curve in transferring from one company to the another. They usually work in a specific exploration area. Some even only work in specific oil and gas formations in the state. They very rarely stray outside of their areas of interest. They raise funds, get seismic data, by buying or paying someone to do it for them, get acreage, they drill, log, complete (stimulate) and produce oil, gas and water, dispose, sell and profit, sometimes; all usually within the regulatory parameters set up by the Oil and Gas Commission and within the environmental limits specified statewide. Most of the exploration and production tasks needed by the company are performed by outside service companies under the general direction of the operator who has full responsibility and liability except in cases of gross negligence. These companies have no staff in-house or consultants that are on call to resolve earthquake problems. Like the famous words in the Ghostbuster movie: Who are you going to call? Those who are expecting the oil companies to solve the current earthquake problem are looking through the wrong end of the telescope. The earthquake problem is technically complex, potentially dangerous, political and far reaching. Oklahoma exploration and production companies solve their own day-to-day problems and very little else is in their job description, particularly earthquakes. Earthquake problem solutions need the intellectual ability and technical expertise usually found on experienced teams in the major technology centers of large integrated oil companies and world renowned institutions. The Oklahoma companies have no dedicated technology centers and no such expertise on which to call. Further, these renowned major technology centers have no reason whatsoever to expend their budgetary assets to solve our Oklahoma problem. This does not mean the problem cannot be solved. There are options. Not long ago, a similar public problem existed in oil well fracking processes across the country. There was a major brouhaha over the perception that fracking by oil and gas companies, was creating dangerous natural gas surface leakages across the country from fracking operations. We all remember the burning faucets, the colorful ubiquitous YouTube videos. There were town hall meetings, citizens rallying, online discussions, all similar to the current state of uproar over earthquakes. In that case, a talented group of six investigators addressed the problem. None were from operator companies. With talent, dedication, perseverance and leading edge technical analysis, they proved conclusively in a scientifically robust manner that the gas at the surface was NOT the gas produced during fracking operations. The public was reassured, the demonstrations stopped, so did the online forums. Case closed. We can learn from this analogy. Henry Crichlow P.E, is a retired university engineering professor and petroleum consultant in Norman. Seven isnt commenting over reports a radio interview with Molly star Sam Johnson did not go ahead at Adelaide radio station FIVEaa. FIVEaas Program Director Craig Munn told News Corp We thought it would be best to save the interview for another day. The article notes there was a launch for the miniseries in Adelaide the night before and quotes showbiz reporter Peter Ford, Those at the radio station were concerned by the weird behaviour & disappointed he couldnt proceed with planned interview. As the shows title star, Johnson has been working the interview trail hard for the Seven drama ahead of Sundays premiere. EXCLUSIVE: Interview with SBS Head of Network Programming Peter Andrews. Deep Water drama on gay hate crimes drama on gay hate crimes Innovative programming moves Heston Blumenthal in Melbourne Australia back in Eurovision DNA Nation and Hanson documentaries and Hanson documentaries Discussions continue on RocKwiz and Struggle Street. Peter Andrews is keen to emphasise 2016 is a year of Innovation in Programming for SBS. Hot on the heels of launching SBS Food Network, SBS is pursuing innovative ideas -in both commissions and technology- for its content. Our audience can watch a programme on SBS but also go deeper online, watch additional episodes through SBS On Demand and there might be additional storytelling in terms of VR immersive experiences for our audience, accompanied with our programming. Andrews says SBS is in early stages or rolling out Virtual Reality since Google cardboard and Samsung offer the ability to use mobile phones for VR. But there are also other approaches to innovation including playout. We might offer a binge of something before we play it in a linear way on SBS. Its a show by show scenario, and it has to match the editorial. Its not one-size-fits-all. We were so thrilled with how The Family Law resonated and was able to get a bit of clear air Focussing on more traditional areas, Andrews says SBS is hoping to build on the momentum of January where it premiered a number of seasons including The Family Law, The Bridge, The Missing, The Returned and Food Safari Fire, while other networks held back premium content. We were so thrilled with how The Family Law resonated and was able to get a bit of clear air with everything thats going on at the moment, he says. Its a very distinctive piece of comedy and were so proud of it. Thursdays nights are quite definitive of SBS. Food Safari Fire, which we launched in mid-January continues and off the back of that The Bridge continues as part of the foreign drama we offer our audience. We also just launched Tony Robinsons Wild West on Wednesdays which has really popped for us. Demonstrating further his notion of Innovation in Programming is Deep Water -where one topic becomes a multiplatform event in October. Its a 4 part drama series, a feature documentary and there will be unique web content to accompany the series. Its an incredible story of gay hate murders in Sydney in the late 80s and early 90s. We are in casting discussions right now so were looking forward to some pretty exciting announcements soon. Were now on the map in terms of Australian Drama. If you look at The Principal last year, it was very SBS in terms of the stories we want to tell and we were so proud of it. While Deep Water is inspired by events of the 1980s/90s, the drama series will have a contemporary setting. We want to broaden it out and a contemporary setting may allow less barriers for the audience. Its a really important story to tell, so you want to tell it to as many people as possible. In March is Inside Hestons World as the renowned chef relocates his famed Fat Duck restaurant -including 50 staff, all cutlery, crockery- to Melbourne. To have that access and be able to look at a military operation of moving a restaurant including the staff and logistics- but also a real sense of what makes Heston tick, is a unique experience. For an Australian broadcaster to have that amount of access to Heston and film the emotion and drama and challenges of this feat is great fly on the wall television. Foodie favourites return to SBS including a new series of Gourmet Farmer with Matthew Evans. Our viewers say they want to see more Poh, more Maeve, more Adam (Liaw) and Matthew so we are delivering on that, he continues. Destination Flavour Scandinavia is gorgeous on screen. Ive seen most of the episodes now and Adam in Scandinavia is completely immersed in a region that is famous for its food and so celebratory. The launch of the Food Network in November has worked well for us in terms of bringing a new audience to our portfolio. SBS is renowned for its local Documentaries and Factuals. Who Do You Think You Are? is back for its 8th season (no names are revealed as yet), while DNA Nation sees Julia Zemiro, Ian Thorpe and Ernie Dingo trace their origins through genetics. So how do the two shows differ? The scientific approach to DNA Nation is what defines it from other shows. Its great storytelling but it isnt hard science as a barrier to entry. Its accessible with Julia, Ian and Ernie, Andrews explains. Its a cross-genre mix. It provoked debate which is what SBS is all about. First Contact is back in November with Ray Martin returning as host. We were so proud of how the first series resonated as content that defines SBS and our purpose. The second season will explore Aboriginal Australia through the eyes of well-known Australians. Discussions continue on any future for Go Back to Where You Came From, along with recent hit series Struggle Street. Struggle Street we were obviously thrilled with how the audience engaged in the series. It gave a voice to many Australians living on the fringes. It provoked debate which is what SBS is all about. We need to provoke debate so that the conversation continues, he suggests. We havent made a final decision regarding a second series. Also bound to attract comment is feature documentary Hanson: The Years that Shook Australia. Love her or hate her you cant discount her influence on race relations in Australia. 20 years after entry into Australian politics I think it continues to be an important topic worth exploring, says Andrews. Its told with a fairly straight arrow, from a perspective of Back in the 90s and her rise and fall. So its a documentary that will tell the story and reveal some interesting areas our audience may not be aware of. Other docos coming include more of Shaun Micallef Stairway to Heaven, Strictly Jewish: The Secret World Of Adass Israel, Indian Wedding Race, Vietnam: The War That Made Australia, Caged and Norfolk Island: The Lost Tribe. We also want to be seen as the home of the worlds best drama in the Free to Air landscape, Andrews declares. Vikings has 2 seasons (February and November), Bosch is back for S2, Tutankhamen with Sam Neill will air later this year plus more of Masters of Sex, Rectify and upcoming drama The Last Panthers with Samantha Morton and John Hurt. David Bowie who sadly passed recorded an original track for the opening credits The Last Panthers is a 6 part event that will play April / May commissioned from SKY and Canal Plus. Its a well-researched, riveting international drama. It is English language and French, inspired by real events. David Bowie who sadly passed recorded an original track for the opening credits as one of his last recordings in conjunction with Black Star, he says. Its a strong, distinctive piece of TV for Q2. It wouldnt be an SBS year without Eurovision in May. Excitingly, Australia is returning, this time to compete in Semi-Final 2. We are back on the world stage once again and we will be announcing some news soon. Thanks to an invitation fro the EBU again, Australia is represented in Eurovision. Its another area that will be layered across platforms, so you will be able to watch the show, celebrate the performances, get into the finals and involve yourself in other areas on our portfolio. What news on Zemiros other vehicle, the long-running RocKwiz? We are having some positive discussions, but we cant announce anything yet. Well be announcing soon one way or another. But were very positive. Insight and Dateline both resume this month. They will roll on for the whole year, bar a couple of pre-emptions. They are very important current affairs tentpoles for Tuesday nights. And with the US election due, SBS has international documentary Barack Obama: Inside his Presidency plus yet to be revealed plans for the Australian federal election. Not just from the traditional news and current affairs reporting, but from a documentary point of view, he notes. SBS2 highlights for the year include The Feed, UnREAL, Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras, Tropfest, If You Are the One (Australian specials), Top Knot Detective while NITV will feature The Point with Stan Grant, Living Black, Awaken, The Marngrook Footy Show and League Nation Live. Acclaimed Irish-Canadian drama Vikings is back on SBS later this month. Season 4 is a 20-part series to be aired in 210 episodes in 2016. Part one begins on Wednesday 24 February at 8.30pm and continues every Wednesday at 9.30pm. The second part of the series will conclude later in 2016. Fill up a stein to toast the return of the Nordic warriors. With an insatiable appetite for brutal warfare, unrestrained passion, fierce alliances and ruthless betrayals, the Vikings have sailed back to local shores, ready to pillage and conquer Australian television screens yet again. Sailing in from the US, Vikings returns with a brand new season to be aired in two parts during 2016. Part one begins Wednesday 24 February at 8.30pm on SBS and continues every Wednesday at 9.30pm. The second part of the series will conclude later in the year. Australias own Travis Fimmel (The Beast, Baytown Outlaws) continues to lead the stellar cast as Ragnar Lothbrok, the restless, fearless warrior and family man who longs to discover and triumph over new lands across the seas. Alongside Travis is fellow Australian, former model Alyssa Sutherland (The Devil Wears Prada, Arbitrage) who stars as Ragnars wife Aslaug. In season four, Ragnars son Bjorn (Alexander Ludwig Lone Survivor, Hunger Games) is now a full grown man who is ready to take charge of his fathers Viking empire. The heir-apparent of King Ragnar Lothbrok will have a very active role in the Vikings raids and pillaging. He will also be forced to make hard decisions including disowning his own uncle Rollo (Clive Standen Camelot, Doctor Who). The gripping family saga of Ragnar, Rollo, Bjorn and Lagertha (Katheryn Winnick Love and Other Drugs, Stand Up Guys) continues as alliances and loyal friendships are questioned, faith is catechised and relationships are strained. Vikings tells the extraordinary tales of the lives and epic adventures of these warriors and portrays life in the Dark Ages, a world ruled by raiders and explorers, through the eyes of Viking society. Season four will introduce King Harold Finehair (Peter Franzen A Summer by the River, Ambush) and his chaotic younger brother Halfdan the Black (Jasper Paakkonen Bad Boys, Frozen Land) to challenge Ragnar and exotic slave Yidu (Dianne Doan Disneys Descendants) to captivate him. Vikings was created and written by premier internationally renowned historical storyteller Michael Hirst (Academy-Award winning Elizabeth, Emmy, Golden Globe nominated The Tudors). Vikings has been a huge international triumph with the first series being the number one cable series in the US in 2013 and the subsequent series being ratings success stories for the HISTORY channel in the US in 2014. 8:30pm Wednesday 24 February on SBS. Hi, my name is Scott C. Waring and I wrote a few books and am currently a ESL School Owner in Taiwan. I have had my own UFO sighting up close and personal, but that's how it works right? A non believer becomes a believer when they experience their first sighting. You witnessed it, your perceptual field changes, so now you need to share it. I created this site to help the UFO community get a little bit organized. I noticed that there was a lot of chaos when searching for UFO sighting reports, so I hope this site helps. I wanted to support those eyewitnesses who have tried to tell others about what they have seen, yet were laughed at by even closest of friends. More and more each day the governments of the world leak bits and pieces of UFO information to the public. They have a trickle down theory in hopes of slowly getting citizens use to the idea that we are not alone in universe and never have been. The truth is being leaked drop by drop until one day we look around and find ourselves neck high in it. The discovery of alien species in existence is the most monumental scientific event in human history, suppression of that information is a crime against humanity. About me: I live in Taiwan. I OWN MY OWN ENGLISH SCHOOL, AND ONCE HAD 5 SCHOOLS. Am Former USAF at SAC base (flight line). Age: 42 Educ: BA in Elem ed. Masters in Counseling ed. I had two UFO sightings, (30+bus size orbs) in military and in 2012 personally saw the UFO over Taipei 101 building on New Years Day (and recored it). facebook like button Tweet tweet button for twitter Published February 4, 2016 Monroe, La. The University of Louisiana Monroe held a check presentation on Thursday to publicly acknowledge a $60,000 donation from IberiaBank. The donation went toward the establishment of the IberiaBank Endowed Professorship of Distinction for recruiting and retaining faculty in the ULM College of Business and Social Sciences. The press conference was held in conjunction with ULMs 2016 first quarter Foundation board meetings on the 7th floor of the Library Conference Center. I just cant say enough about how much we appreciate IberiaBank for making this happen because an investment in our faculty is an investment in our students and the continued success of our college, said Dr. Ronald Berry, Dean of the College of Business and Social Science, at the press conference on Thursday. Berry noted that his college was part of 1% of colleges of business and social sciences in the world that maintained accreditation from the AACSB-Internationalthe premier business accrediting agency in the world-wide. He also expressed that the donation came at a good time amid potential budget cuts. According to Dr. Nick J. Bruno, ULM president, Programs like endowed professorships and chairs do so much to help recruit and retain the very best faculty. Like Berry, Bruno also indicated that, despite the gloom and doom of budget issues in higher education, ULM has chosen to grow, to improve, and to look to the future. This is IberiaBanks first endowed professorship, which came to fruition under the leadership of Malcolm Maddox, Senior VP Commercial Lending Manager for IberiaBank. Maddox has been a long-time supporter of ULM. In fact, this is the second endowed professorship at ULM that he has been a part of. In his previous role as regional chair with Hibernia Bank (now Capitol One), he influenced the banks decision to invest $60,000 to establish the Capital One Endowed Professorship in Mathematics. Maddox funded the first two installments of IberiaBanks donation while he was Market President; the pledge was concluded in the budget year of Greg Kahmann, Northeast Louisiana Market President, who presented the check alongside Maddox. We are spread across about six states, [comprised of] about 20 billion in size, said Maddox. I will tell you that there is a lot of competition within our bank as far as what we do with our money for community purposes. We are proud that we are able to do something for our university hereand it is our university. Maddox and Kahmann presented the check to Dr. Bruno, Dr. Berry, and Anne Lockhart and Susan Chappell of the ULM Foundation. For more information about the College of Business and Social Sciences, visit ulm.edu/cbss. UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi visits the Norwegian Refugee Council's Livelihoods Programme in Hitsats refugee camp, Ethiopia. UNHCR/P.Wiggers SHIRE, Ethiopia, Feb 2 (UNHCR) - Improving conditions for refugees in camps and expanding programmes for legal pathways outside Ethiopia were both key to reducing the numbers who attempt perilous journeys to reach safety, Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, said as he met Eritreans who fled to Ethiopia. After Syrians, Afghans, and Iraqis, Eritreans were the fourth most common group of refugees trying to cross the Mediterranean to Europe in 2015. On his first trip to Africa as High Commissioner, Grandi visited Hitsats camp, one of four hosting Eritreans in Ethiopia's northern highlands. The refugees there told Grandi that their mostly young population would not fall prey to smugglers and human traffickers if, after fleeing from their homes, they found more reasons beyond simple security to stay in the refugee settlements in Ethiopia. Education and promises of productive life elsewhere were the priorities, they said. Their experience is matched by millions of other people fleeing conflict and persecution who find themselves initially sheltered in locations where the lack of opportunity often drives them to leave again in search of a future. "We will do our best to create opportunities here and to improve resettlement placements and other legal ways of migration so that refugees will not expose themselves to danger," Grandi said during his visit to Hitsats. "Your points are well taken and please rest assured that I will do my best to call attention to your situation so we can mobilise more resources and improve the living conditions in the camps." Ethiopia looks after 734,000 mostly South Sudanese, Somali, and Eritrean refugees, more than any other country in Africa. Some 155,000 of them are Eritrean, and many report fleeing home out of fear. Hagos*, who is 26 and arrived in Hitsats in 2014, said he was forced to serve in the Eritrean army for seven years, much longer than the national service to which he initially thought he was committed. "I would not object to the mandatory national service if the government respected the 18-month term limit," said Hagos. Instead, he was paid a pittance, could not leave, and added: "As if this was not injustice enough, the commanders violate our rights every day, hence my decision to flee." Hagos said he hid during the day and walked only under cover of darkness during the 10 days it took him to reach Ethiopia. He found safety at Hitsats, but said life still carried challenges. "I completed 12th grade at school before joining the army and here there is no way I could continue my education," he said, adding a plea for better opportunities for continued education, or vocational training, at the camp. He is not alone in requesting the chance to continue schooling. Of the nearly 38,000 refugees living in the four camps near the town of Shire here, three quarters are aged under 25, and many of those are teenagers and children. One 16-year-old, Kidan*, described how she fled on her own from Eritrea in 2014 but decided after only a few months in Ethiopia to find a smuggler - called a 'pilot' here - to take her to Europe. "Frustrated by the difficulties of life in Hitsats, I contacted a pilot and travelled on foot for many days and nights before we got to the border with Sudan, hungry and thirsty," she said. After crossing through her homeland and making it close to its border with Sudan, Eritrean guards caught and detained her for several days. The authorities eventually released her, but made her mother sign a guarantee that she would pay 90,000 nafka, the equivalent of several thousand dollars, if her daughter fled again. Nonetheless, life at home was so difficult that Kidan again made the journey to Ethiopia, with her mother and siblings soon following her out of fear that the authorities would track them down, demand the money, and likely imprison them when they could not pay. Recent surveys in the six refugee camps hosting Eritreans in Ethiopia found that 82,000 were no longer present in the camps and were so far unaccounted for. It is expected that few would have tried voluntarily to return to Eritrea. Some may be in other parts of Ethiopia, while the rest may have joined the ranks of those trying to reach Europe. UNHCR is working with the Ethiopian government's refugee agency, the Administration for Refugee and Returnee Affairs, or ARRA, to track down these individuals. Better schooling, more vocational training, and the promise of resettlement would stop those refugees and others like Kidan and Hagos from attempting these dangerous journeys, Grandi was told during his visit. He was accompanied by Ayalew Aweke, the Deputy Director of ARRA, Valentin Tapsoba, the Director of UNHCR's Africa Bureau, and Clementine Nkweta-Salami, the UNHCR Representative in Ethiopia. Grandi's visit to Ethiopia was his first to Africa since taking office as High Commissioner at the start of 2016. Earlier, he attended the 26th African Union Summit in the capital, Addis Ababa, and met with Ethiopia's Prime Minister, Hailemariam Desalegn, whom he thanked for the country's ongoing welcome to people fleeing hardship across the region. "Notwithstanding its current challenges related to the severe drought affecting certain parts of the country, Ethiopia continues to maintain an open door policy and is hosting the largest refugee population in Africa today," Grandi said. By Kisut Gebre Egziabher in Shire, Ethiopia * Names have been changed for security and protection UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi addresses the London Syria conference. UNHCR LONDON, United Kingdom, Feb 4 (UNHCR) - Donor and host countries raised today more than US$6 billion and pledged continued support, protection and opportunities for more than 22.5 million people in need of humanitarian assistance both inside Syria and across the region in 2016. In addition, over US$5 billion has been pledged for humanitarian and development programmes until 2020. Co-hosted by the United Kingdom, Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the UN, the pledging conference mobilised important new and record funding for humanitarian and development needs for Syrians and neighbouring communities hosting them since 2011. Five years of brutal war in Syria have forced half of the Syrian population out of their homes, with over 4.5 million becoming refugees, most in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt. Although focusing on humanitarian needs across the region, the two-day conference in London loudly underscored the urgency of ending the Syrian conflict and finding a political solution. In his opening remarks, UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon encouraged a change in the narrative around the Syrian crisis. "With our solidarity and generosity, we can bring true hope to the people of Syria," he said. The Secretary General also stressed the need for a change of approach and multi-year commitments. European countries made particularly strong pledges to support Syrians and their neighbours. German Chancellor Angela Merkel said it was important "to show that this can be a day of hope" as her government pledged US$1.3 billion in 2016 alone - the largest pledge of the conference - and announced a similar aid package for 2017, aimed at supporting food, shelter, education, investments and job creation for Syrian refugees and the communities hosting them. Echoing Merkel's sentiments and announcing a US$278 million aid package in 2016, the Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg urged particular attention to the needs of Syrian women and girls. The UK Prime Minister David Cameron stressed that it was a moment to take visionary new approaches to ease the suffering of Syrian people and create opportunities, investments and jobs for Syrian refugees and their hosts, adding that the UK was doubling its 2016 aid contribution to more than US$730 million in order to address the immediate humanitarian and development needs. Other important pledges include the one by the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, who promised US$1.2 billion on behalf of the EU for 2016 needs and another US$1.39 in multi-year commitment. The United States of America, represented by the Secretary of State, John Kerry, also nearly doubled its contribution from last year and pledged US$925 million. Kuwait, a steady financial supporter of humanitarian needs in the region and the host of the three previous pledging conferences for Syria, again contributed generously by pledging US$100 million for 2016 and another US$200 million in multi-year support. UAE and Saudi Arabia pledged US$137 million and US$200 million respectively. Leaders of Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey - King Abdullah II, Prime Ministers Tammam Salam and Ahmet Davutoglu - spoke passionately about the suffering of more than 4.5 million Syrian refugees in their countries and the humanitarian, economic and social challenges their countries have endured over the past five years. Concerned about the impact of the conflict in neighbouring Syria, and the safety and wellbeing of both their citizens and Syrian refugees in their countries, they urged prompt implementation of the pledges. They also stressed the sensitivities of the shift from handouts for Syrian refugees to their self-reliance through education, investments and job creation, which equally must improve and advance the livelihoods of the communities which accepted such unprecedented numbers of refugees. Speaking at the London Syria Conference, UN Refugee Agency chief Filippo Grandi called for a significant increase in funding pledges to aid Syrian refugees, who are becoming more vulnerable as the Syrian war drags on. Thanking donors who provided more than US$7 billion since 2012 in successive conferences, Grandi stressed that a "significant increase in pledges is needed to offer much-needed stability, opportunities and hope" to refugees and the countries hosting them, at least 10 per cent of whom are estimated to be particularly vulnerable. "We want to ensure that refugee rights are upheld everywhere and that they have access to shelter, food and healthcare. This must continue. But we also want to create opportunities for education and livelihoods. This is what refugees want desperately," Grandi told world leaders attending the conference. "Funding gaps in the past have meant gaps in our ability to respond. They have left too many host communities overwhelmed. Too many refugees in desperate need have fallen through the cracks and, as we speak, many are moving to the shores of Europe," he added. Calling the conference "visionary," Grandi said it would also prepare refugees for their eventual return to Syria, which he said was of "crucial importance." "The parties to the conflict have so far over and over again eluded their responsibility to stop the war. This is tragic. While efforts to bring peace continue, we must not fail in our responsibility to help and protect the victims. Today we have that opportunity." UNHCR is organizing a high level meeting on resettlement and other legal pathways for Syrian refugees in Geneva on March 30. Grandi invited all governments present at the London conference to support that event. Wrapping up the two day event the UN Secretary General called the conference a "great success." "Never has the UN raised so much in a single day for a single cause," said the Secretary General, thanking all participants, in particular the countries sheltering Syrian refugees and the co-hosts of the conference. By Andrej Mahecic in London, United Kingdom Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Anvar Mammadov - Trend: The depositors of Bank of Azerbaijan OJSC, which went bankrupt, have received compensation in the amount of over 12 million manats (AZN) within five days, the message of the Azerbaijani Deposit Insurance Fund said (ADIF). The official exchange rate on February 4 is 1.5858 AZN/USD. Payments are made in the branches of Azerbaijan's Muganbank and Rabitabank, which were appointed agent banks. Accepting applications of the insured depositors of Bank of Azerbaijan has started since January 29, 2016, and the payment of compensation is made since the same day. The size of the insured deposits in this bank is 24.2 million manats. The fund returns up to 30,000 manats for each insured deposit. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Anvar Mammadov - Trend: Azerbaijani Texnikabank, the license of which was revoked by the Central Bank of Azerbaijan, has no plans to merge with other banks, Chairman of the bank's Supervisory Board Etibar Aliyev told Trend Feb. 4. The Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) revoked the license of Texnikabank OJSC Feb. 2. This decision was made because the total capital of the bank didn't correspond to the CBA minimum requirement of 50 million manats. The total capital adequacy ratio amounted to three percent [the CBA minimum requirement is 10 percent]. The bank couldn't fulfill its obligations to creditors and didn't manage its current activity prudentially. Temporary administrator was appointed at the bank since Feb. 2. Aliyev said that the bank is not going to litigate the decision of the central bank regarding the revocation of the license. "After revocation of license, the bank has two ways: to litigate the decision of the central bank or to accept it," he said. "It was only last week when I was asked about the bank's actions in the case of revocation of the license, and I said I don't believe that the Central Bank of Azerbaijan will do it, but if that happens, I won't litigate the central bank's decision. I would like to add that Texnikabank is not going to consolidate with other banks." At the same time, Aliyev noted that the bank doesn't agree with the decision of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan, although did accept it. "The bank was functioning normally, and we had all the possibilities to ensure the creditors' claims," said the head of the bank's Supervisory Board. "I consider it wrong to revoke the bank's license, which is not encumbered by obligations, but I respect and accept that decision." He went on to add that the decision to revoke the bank's license shouldn't affect activities of its subsidiaries - Alfa Insurance company and Kapital Menecment OJSC, which has a license for broker, dealer and underwriting activity. The bank is a wholly shareholder of the both companies, he said. "Both companies continue their activities," Aliyev said. "At the moment they continue to function, and it is too early to speak of any changes." He added that the bank has all the necessary funds to fulfill the claims of creditors. "The insured portion of bank deposits will be returned by the Azerbaijan Deposit Insurance Fund (ADIF)," Aliyev said. "Regarding other commitments, they will be covered through the bank's assets. But this process may take some time, since, in accordance with the law, there should be the court's decision and a liquidator should be determined." Currently, some 36 banks have banking activity licenses in Azerbaijan. The CBA has revoked the licenses of six banks since early 2016 [Bank of Azerbaijan, Gence Bank, United Credit Bank, Atra Bank, Caucasian Development Bank and Texnikabank]. Texnikabank has been operating in Azerbaijan since 1994 (previously - Rashadbank). Until now, the bank's shareholders comprised of Beaufort Investissements S.A investment company [head office is located in Luxembourg] with interest of 78.4421 percent, while 21.5579 percent belonged to physical entities. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 Trend: Georgia's Energy Minister Kakha Kaladze met with the president of Azerbaijani state oil firm SOCAR Rovnag Abdullayev as part of his visit to Azerbaijan. The parties discussed cooperation, perspectives of the development of the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC), as well as the progress on the South Caucasus Pipeline's construction in the territory of Georgia, SOCAR said in a message Feb. 4. "The problems with the supply of Azerbaijani gas to Georgia and ways of solving them also were discussed during the meeting. The parties agreed to continue regular meetings and negotiations," added SOCAR. One of the Virginia Tech students charged in the murder of Nicole Lovell, 13, admitted to committing the crime when talking to federal investigators. Natalie Keepers, a 19-year-old engineering student at Virginia Tech, appeared at a bail hearing in Blacksburg, Va., The Associated Press reported. Charged with being an accessory to first-degree murder before and after the fact, as well as improper disposal of a body, Keepers was denied bail. During the hearing, Montgomery County Commonwealth Attorney Mary Pettitt stated Keepers not only admitted to being part of the plot to kill Lovell, but told investigators where to find the girl's body and key pieces of evidence, ABC News reported. Pettitt said Keepers told the FBI where a blanket Lovell had at the time of her abduction was. Pettitt also revealed how Keepers told investigators she and David Eisenhauer, an 18-year-old engineering student at Virginia Tech, bought a shovel and cleaning supplies together while Lovell was dead in his car. Lovell first went missing from her home in Blacksburg last Wednesday and her body was found in North Carolina the following Saturday. Eisenhauer was arrested that day and Keepers the day after. Police initially charged Keepers with improper disposal and accessory after the fact before upgrading her charges Tuesday. It was at that Tuesday news conference where Pettitt revealed "preliminary tests" indicated Lovell died from being stabbed. Though police still seem to think Eisenhauer fatally stabbed Lovell after meeting her online, the accessory before the fact charge for Keepers means both face a maximum sentence of life in prison. Keepers' relationship with Eisenhauer still remains a mystery. They had similar areas of study at Virginia Tech and went to high schools in neighboring towns in Maryland, but did not appear to know each other then. Keepers' father testified Thursday and said his daughter had an appendectomy in the fall and it was Eisenhauer who took her to the hospital, The AP reported. Keepers' father also testified that his daughter suffers from anxiety and has self-mutilated since the eighth grade. UW-Casper Open House Will Answer Questions for Potential Students The University of Wyoming at Casper will host an open house Thursday, Feb. 18, from 3:30-6 p.m. on the fourth floor of the Casper College Student Union/University of Wyoming at Casper Building. The informational event will offer individuals the opportunity to meet UW-Casper faculty and staff, including financial aid and scholarship experts; discover degree options; learn about Transfer Advance; and enter to win a door prize. UW-Casper, UW's branch campus and a division of the Outreach School, offers 18 bachelors degrees, and is the only location in the state where students can major in technical education or medical laboratory sciences. Through on-site, online and state-of-the-art audio/video conference technologies, UW-Casper also delivers 13 masters degrees, six doctorate degrees, endorsements and certificates. With 20 full-time, on-site faculty members and a full-service office to handle admissions, financial aid, registration and advising questions, students benefit from a smaller learning environment where they get to know their instructors and staff. Operating in Casper since 1976, UW-Casper has more than 3,200 alumni, many of whom still reside and work in Natrona County. Admissions representatives and academic advisers will be available to discuss the degrees offered, says manager of student advising Rosalind Grenfell. Come enjoy some refreshments, and learn more about the University of Wyoming at Casper! For more information, call UW-Casper at (307) 268-2713. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 Trend: Azerbaijani Armed Forces have eliminated three members of the Armenian subversive group on the Azerbaijani-Armenian state border, the Defense Ministry of Azerbaijan said Feb. 4. A soldier of Azerbaijani Armed Forces Imran Mirzoyev was killed Feb. 3 at 17:50 (GMT + 4 hours) in the result of enemy sabotage on the Azerbaijani-Armenian state border, the ministry said. Azerbaijani Defense Ministry expresses its deep condolences to relatives and friends of the deceased. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 Trend: The relations between Australia and Azerbaijan develop dynamically, and the two countries have perspectives for cooperation in different spheres, James Martin Larsen, Australia's ambassador to Turkey and Azerbaijan said. He made remarks in Ankara during the meeting with Azerbaijan-Australia working group on Interparliamentary relations, headed by Khanlar Fatiyev, the member of the Azerbaijani parliament. The working group, in its short period of existence, was able to do a great job on giving information about Azerbaijan to colleagues from Australia, noted the ambassador. The relations between Azerbaijan and Australia have undergone significant qualitative changes in recent years, Fatiyev noted. "Today Azerbaijan is known well enough in Australia at the level of parliament and government. In particular, in her recent speech, Australian Foreign Minister Julia Bishop said that Canberra recognizes Azerbaijan's territorial integrity, and also called to liberate occupied territories," Fatiyev said. The other important factor is that the issue on releasing Azerbaijani hostages held by Armenia also was raised in the Australian parliament. During the meeting Fatiyev noted that today Azerbaijan's relations with Australia are also interesting from an economic point of view. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev speaking about the diversification of the economy noted that agriculture will provide the country's non-oil exports, population with work, as well as food security. "In its light, to study the Australian experience, in which this area is one of the main spheres, would be very useful," said Fatiyev. The issues on trade and economic cooperation, relations in the social and humanitarian spheres, as well as issues on extending interparliamentary relations were also discussed during the meeting. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 Trend: Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev met Croatian counterpart Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic as part of the "Supporting Syria and the Region" conference in London Feb. 4. The sides expressed gratification with the development of bilateral relations between the two countries. The mutual interest was expressed for the further development of economic cooperation, the implementation of energy, transport and infrastructure projects. President Aliyev spoke about the current work on the implementation of the Silk Road and the Southern Gas Corridor projects. During the conversation, the views on the mutual agreement in the implementation of joint projects were exchanged. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 Trend: In case if positive results are obtained from 3D seismological survey of the shallow waters around the Absheron Peninsula in the Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea, BP will be able to choose up to four sites for drilling operations, Greg Riley, BP Azerbaijan vice-president for exploration and development, told reporters Feb. 4. Riley said that the contract area has been divided into several zones, in which seismic surveys will be held. Riley explained that if there are more promising areas, those which will not be chosen for drilling, will be transferred to SOCAR, as this is the usual international practice for large areas. He went on to say that according to the contract, the seismic survey phase takes 30 months from the date of the treaty ratification. At the same time Riley expressed hope that new technologies will allow to speed up the work. The contract for the geological exploration and development of promising structures in the shallow waters of the Absheron peninsula was signed in December 2014 between the Azerbaijani State Oil Company (SOCAR) and BP and ratified in April 2015. The territory covered by the agreement, extends along the Absheron Peninsula's southern part and covers an area of about 1900 square kilometers. In this area the sea depth is about 25 meters, and the depth of the bedding of the potentially productive strata - 3000-5000 meters. Some 50 percent of the share by the agreement belongs to BP, 50 percent to State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR). BP is the project's technical operator. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 Trend: On 3 February 2016 the Embassy of Sweden, the Committee for Refugee and IDP Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan, TeliaSonera/Azercell and Ali & Nino Publishing launched a joint social project. The project launch took place in the Masazir IDP Settlement. The joint project encompasses all regions of Azerbaijan and will provide each of the country's 610 refugee and IDP schools with nine books by the Swedish author Astrid Lindgren in entirely new translations into the Azeri language. The project will help Azerbaijani children from refugee and IDP families to develop a desire for reading. As the books will be commercially available through the Ali & Nino bookstores, the project will also strengthen access to quality children's literature in the Azerbaijani language on a general level. With its strong Swedish dimension, the project will raise awareness in Sweden of the situation of the Azerbaijani IDPs. The intercultural ties between Azerbaijan and Sweden will be strengthened through follow-on activities of mutual benefit, such as discussions between Swedish and Azerbaijani experts on child literature. Theatre performances based on Astrid Lindgren plays are under discussion with i.a. the State Theatre for Young Spectators, which assisted the IDP School in staging some short performances from Astrid Lindgren books at the launch event of the book project. Meanwhile, the Swedish Embassy will assist in bringing the Azerbaijani children's literature to a broader audience - for instance by introducing Azerbaijani organizations as nominating bodies for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, the most prestigious international children's literature award. Azercell Telecom LLC was founded in 1996 and since the first years sustains a leading position in the market. Azercell introduced number of technological innovations in Azerbaijan: GSM technology, advance payment mobile services, M2M,MobilBank, GPRS/EDGE (mobile internet), 24/7 Customer Care, full-time operating Azercell Express offices, mobile e-service "ASAN imza" (ASAN signature) and others. With 48,2% share of Azerbaijan's mobile market Azercell's network covers 99,8% of the country's population. In 2013, the number of Azercell's subscribers reached 4,5 million people. In 2011 Azercell deployed 3G and in 2012 the fourth generation network - LTE in Azerbaijan. The Company is the leader of Azerbaijan's mobile communication industry and the biggest investor in the non-oil sector. Azercell is a part of TeliaSonera Group of Companies serving 186 million subscribers in 17 countries worldwide with 27,000 employees. Amazon plans to open up to 400 physical bookstores. The expansion seems to be contradictory with the fact that the startup is the one attributed for the declining physical booksellers. In November, Amazon has started the plan by the opening of a bookstore in Seattle, its home city, as Reuters mentioned. Sandeep Mathrani, chief executive of General Growth Properties Inc (GGP.N), said, "You've got Amazon opening brick-and-mortar bookstores and their goal is to open, as I understand, 300 to 400 bookstores." The statement was made on Tuesday while replying to a question from analyst after its earnings report. Mathrani described this plan the same as what Warby Parker or men's dress retailer Bonobos had done in the past by opening physical stores after they made it online. 20 years ago, Amazon began the business as a book retailer. And now, it has expanded into selling more products, from fresh groceries to TV programming. It also has altered the publishing industry through the Kindle, its famous e-reader. The Seattle Amazon's bookstore provides the chosen books based on the website's ratings. There is also an area for customers to test-drive Amazon's Kindle, Fire TV and different gadgets at the storefront. Any action taken by Amazon will threaten its rivals, including Barnes and Noble Inc (BKS.N). The bookstore chain is the biggest in the U.S. with its 640 bookstores across the country. However, on Tuesday, its share has dropped at least 5 percent. The Wall Street Journal said that Amazon would need years to choose locations areas, obtain leasing agreements, and employ staffs if it happened to open hundreds of stores. Buyers will be able to look through books before they purchase them, something they cannot do with the online stores. One of Amazon's superiorities is its vast online inventory. However, it still cannot fulfill the need to immediately shop at the mall, eventhough Amazon has made some efforts through one-hour deliveries in approximately 20 cities and same-day drop-offs. Besides opening a bookstore in Seattle, Amazon had started physical outlets for its footwear division; Zappos and Quidsi. Meanwhile, CNET stated that it was not clear where Mathrani got that figure, because Amazon and GGP refused to respond. Amazon's e-commerce rises at a double-digit pace. More and more people choose to shop from Amazon because it is so easy, cheap, and convenient, resulting to smaller number of people going to the malls. It can be seen from the sales during the holiday season. Retail sales increased for 7.9 percent, while e-commerce hiked up to 20 percent. If it is true, then Amazon will follow Apple that opened its first Apple Store in 2001, and Microsoft, which already opens more than 100 physical stores in North America. As heroin and opioid drugs continue to cause more deaths than car accidents in the US, President Obama took proactive measures by way of seeking an additional $1.1 billion to fund the treatment of the addicts. The Obama administration announced this Tuesday that this dedicated fund will also be included for the next two years to fight this issue that has now turned into a full-fledged epidemic. This additional amount would add to the already huge $400 million budget set aside for battling drug abuse, which in itself is $100 higher than previous year's spending. The director of National Drug Control Policy evidently supports this move and said, "This president has made clear that addressing this opioid epidemic is a priority for him, and this budget reflects this," and his action "underscores the urgency of additional action that we need to take," according to CNBC. Drug overdoses have now reached unprecedented levels, and the latest data shows that opioids, which basically translate to prescription pain-killers and heroin, have led to 28,648 fatalities in 2014. The White House sympathizes with the families for their loss. They feel that "prescription drug abuse and heroin abuse have taken a heartbreaking toll on too many Americans and their families while straining resources of law enforcement and treatment programs." As stated in The Columbian, most of the money from the new fund - $920 million - would go to cooperative agreements with states to provide easy access for the opioid patients to medication-assisted treatments. The distribution of this fund among the states would depend on the severity of the epidemic. New Hampshire had been the most affected state, and, as per Independent, its governor Maggie Hassan was seen applauding the proposal in her statement, "The heroin and opioid crisis is the most urgent public health and public safety challenge facing New Hampshire, and combating this crisis requires us all to work together at the state, federal and local levels every single day. Our law enforcement community and public health experts across the state have made it clear that we cannot arrest our way out of this crisis, and I am encouraged by the President's recognition that states need additional support from our federal partners to support prevention, treatment and recovery programs." Additionally, $50 million would be channelized via National Health Service Corps to expand medical services at around 700 treatment facilities. Another $30 million would be rightly set aside for evaluating these drug treatment programs that offer the remedial services. Not content with just this action plan, the president has asked the Department of Justice and the Department of Health and Human Services for $500 million, which is $90 million higher than 2014 numbers. This fund will focus on increasing the medical-assisted treatments for addicts, expanding overdose prevention plans, and improving access to the emergency antidote, naloxone, which reverses the overdose. The departments will extend these facilities to rural areas as well where drug overdoses have become rampant. It would also ensure that medical practitioners and assistants can easily prescribe buprenorphine, an addiction treatment approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Ningbo Joyson, a Chinese producer of industrial and automotive electronics equipment, has signed a definitive deal to acquire US-based airbag maker Key Safety Systems, KSS. As per the terms of the pact, Joyson will purchase the outstanding shares of Key Safety for a value at about US$920 million, which is payable in cash. The transaction has been approved by the companies' Board of Directors. Joyson said that the acquisition, which is expected to end in the first six-month of 2016, is subject to regular closing conditions, regulatory approvals and filings. Joyson noted that the US air bag maker will operate as a separate group firm and maintain its Michigan headquarters. In addition, present CEO Mr Jason Luo will continue to lead Key Safety Systems. According to KSS shareholders, Joyson is a strategic investor which will enable KSS to reach new heights. KSS shareholders include the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Crestview Partners and funds managed by FountainVest. Jason Luo said that KSS is very much pleased to team with Joyson. Partnership with Crestview and FountainVest has widened the air maker's addressable market and enabled it to achieve best-in-sector 20 percent revenue CAGR. KSS hope that the merger with Joyson will further accelerate its business and fasten its future growth. KSS will remain committed to its customers and aim to better serve their requirements, Jason Luo added. According to Jeff Wang, Founder and Chairman of Joyson, the acquisition of KSS mark its entry into the automotive safety market and offers the chance to save lives. "This is well aligned with the Joyson strategy of being a trusted global partner to the world's best automakers while earning respect as a high growth company," Jeff Wang added. Bloomberg said that KSS competes with its rival Takata to provide steering wheels and seat belts and also improving its independent driving technology like parking systems and collision avoidance. KSS has been widening its production of inflators and air bags following Takata's recall of defective air bags. In an email statement to CRAIN'S DETROIT BUSINESS, Jason Luo said that the agreement represents KSS' efforts to become a public firm. Key Safety was created in 2003 when Carlyle Group purchased bankrupt assets of Breed Technologies. Recently, Ningbo Joyson and its subsidiary Preh Holding took over 50 percent of the TechniSat Automotive unit from TechniSat Digital GmbH. Joyson said that TechniSat Automotive will be operated in the Automotive Electronics unit along with Preh Gmbh. The take-over deal is subject to approvals by authorities. The parties have agreed not to reveal details of the deal. Joyson said that the net value of both the transaction reaches US$1.1 billion. According to PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) and National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) report, Charlottesville is the place where startups and venture capital increase the most. In 5 years, from 2010-2015 tech startups backed up by venture capital have increased by 55% yearly. The report was released Wednesday last week, based on data from Thomson Reuters. According to press release from NVCA the report is compiled by analyzing the capital deployed to 3,662 companies located in 133 Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSA) in 2015. NVCA President and CEO Bobby Franklin revealed that people should not have to lived in either San Francisco, New York or Boston to receive venture capital funding for their business,. Furthermore, CEO Franklin said, "There are pockets of innovation all across the United States, and as long as you have a groundbreaking idea with high-growth potential you are well positioned to attract venture capital funding to help grow your business," San Fransisco-Oakland-Freemont is still the top area for venture capital investment, with 797 companies attracting $21.0 billion in 2015. Followed by New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island ith 416 startups attracting $7.0 billion. However, Charlottesville had a huge potential for high tech startups. Charlottesville is a home of University of Virginia, a well-known research university founded by U.S. president, Thomas Jefferson in 1819. As a research university, the University of Virginia has a long tradition of research which affected tech startups in Charlottesville. The report showed that Charlottesville experienced the greatest growth of venture capital at 55.2%. Charlottesville, as reported by News Plex, is the fastest-growing venture capital ecosystem in the United States. Within 5 years, venture funding in Charlottesville increased from $250,000 in 2010 to $27.7 million in 2015. NVCA acknowledge University of Virginia (UVa) as a driving force behind the rapid growth. As 6 of 9 leading companies have worked directly with the University of Virginia Licensing and Venture Group to start and grow a company that will bring university research in the commercial market. Those nine leading companies in Charlottesville were primary recipients of $27.7 million investments. Executive Director of the Licensing and Venture Group in University of Virginia Michael Straightiff said to UVa Today, "Venture capital investment is predicated on the seed capital that these companies receive in order to launch and grow. Often these companies raise angel capital, grant funding and state investment. Our Seed Fund is intended to be a complement to these resources to grow companies that will commercialize UVA technologies and opportunities more expeditiously." As the NVCA report showed, Charlottesville is the fastest growing startup ecosystem since 2010. With a 55% annual increase in venture capital funding in five years, University of Virginia played a very important role as one of the oldest research university in United States. Takata Corp, engaged in making air bags at the center of a global consumer safety crisis, will present its restructuring plan to automakers in May. The restructuring plan may cover the sharing of recall costs. Takata Corp hopes to finalize an agreement with automobile majors by May. Pressure has been mounting on Takata over air bag crisis as several automobile companies started recalling millions of vehicles equipped with defective airbags. Takata Corp is also involving a third-party panel helping it formulate the restructuring plan. However, Takata's spokesperson, Toyohiro Hishikawa says he's not aware of the schedule and restructuring plan. Takata is hoping that once agreement with automakers is finalized then it'll give more clarity on recall costs. Bloomberg reports that in several accidents, a number of car owners of several automobile companies were affected by the air bag crisis causing deaths. Arriving on final agreement on recall costs would also give clarity on liabilities for Takata in cases pertaining to air bag crisis. For instance, Honda Motor Co was affected by such air bag crisis resulting in 11 deaths. It involved recalling of over 20 million vehicles in the US. About 14 automakers recalled 28 million airbag inflators so far. The metal casing used in airbags is propellant. The millions of cars have defective inflators made by Takata, said two senators, who urged the Obama government to further expand airbag recalls. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut and Edward Markey of Massachusetts, both Democrats, wrote a letter to Obama Administration. The Democrats senators further called for recalling every Takata airbag that has propellant that contains a compound called ammonium nitrate. This can degrade over a time and become unstable, they said in the letter, as reported by The New York Times. The letter follows the death of Joel Knight. Knight was killed in a car crash in December 2015. Knight was driving his 2006 Ford Ranger and after hitting a stray cow in South Carolina, the airbag ruptured spraying metal debris into his throat. Similarly ten deaths and over 100 injuries have been reported linked to the defective airbags. Reuters reports that Takata recalled airbag inflators in 5.1 million US vehicles. The US Auto Safety Regulators on Tuesday said that Takata Corp declared 5.1 million US vehicles have defective airbags. The company also disclosed the 11th death that could be linked with defective airbag. Ford Motor Co has announced a recall. So far nine deaths were reported in the US due to defective airbag made by Takata. Honda, BMW, Volkswagen, Audi, Daimler Mercedes Benz, Mazda Motor and Saab Ab were in the list of auto companies, which announced recalling the vehicles with defective Takata air bags. Takata is feeling the heat as automakers approach the eight-year mark. Honda owns 1.2 percent stake in Takata. Honda first recalled vehicles with air bag inflators. Because, these air bags were deployed with too much force and also results in spraying metal and plastic shards at drivers and passengers. The renowned pharmaceutical company Sanofi Pasteur has committed to develop vaccine for Zika virus infection after World Health Organization (WHO) declared a global emergency on the possibility of explosive spread of the infection across America. There is no treatment or vaccination developed against Zika virus by far. The French-based pharmaceutical company is the first of its kind to develop the first ever licensed vaccine shot for Dengue last year in Brazil, according to The Charlotte Observer. The Dengue vaccine was developed by Sanofi Pasteur after years of rigorous efforts and it might take over three years or more for the company to come up with a potent vaccine against Zika virus infection. The Zika virus is transmitted by mosquito species Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus. The infection that is similar to Dengue is reported to cause severe birth defects in children if pregnant woman contract the virus. Dr Nicholas Jackson from Sanofi Pasteur noted that the company will use their experience acquired from vaccines developed against yellow fever, dengue and Japanese encephalitis. He also added that the company needs to speed up the process in order to develop a vaccine for the disease in three to five years at the least. "It's very difficult to predict a reliable timeline ... given that we're learning so much about the disease and what we need to do," said Jackson, reported TVNZ. "Collaboration is absolutely essential to understand this frightening disease," he added while talking about the discussion the company had with the Brazilian authorities and WHO. It is also reported that the clinical trials for the Zika virus vaccine would be much different from the traditional one since it involves child-bearing woman, whom the company would never put at risk for any trial. The vaccine would allegedly be provided for all people while greater importance would be given to adolescent girls that haven't started involving in sexual relationships. Vaccinating the adolescent girls will help preventing them from giving birth to defective babies. Meanwhile the first known case of Zika virus in the United States, reported in Texas, is alleged to have contracted the infection through sexual contact and not from a mosquito bite. "Case details are being evaluated, but the possibility of sexual transmission from an infected person to a non-infected person is likely in this case," noted The Texas Department of State Health Services in a statement following a detailed assessment of the case, reported Yahoo News. The report came just hours after WHO declared emergency after the particular Zika Virus case which was isolated in Texas. However, the WHO's declaration on the issue has lead Sanofi Pasteur involve full-fledged in developing vaccine against Zika virus, which is undoubtedly a threat for the society. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Elena Kosolapova - Trend: A decision about the introduction of EU-Turkey visa-free regime is political, hence there is not guarantee of its happening in 2016, Amanda Paul, the analyst at the European Policy Centre (EPC), said. "Unfortunately giving visa liberalisation to Turkey will probably not be a popular issue with public opinion in Europe particularly at a time when the EU is dealing with the biggest migration crisis since the end of the second world war," she told Trend. She said that Turkey not meeting certain criteria in order to obtain visa liberalisation could also be an issue. The expert recalled that Turkey was actually promised a visa free regime decades ago when it signed its Association Agreement with the EU in 1963. She said that it has been a thorn in relations between Turkey and EU for a long time. "Turkey has seen many countries, including from Central and Eastern Europe, but more recently from the Western Balkans receive visa liberalisation while Turks have still had to line up outside embassy's," she said. "Hence it was crucial that the EU delivered on its commitment." The expert recalled that the negotiations for a visa free regime began in 2013 but they have been speeded up in light of the Syrian refugee crisis and the key role Turkey has in helping control the flow of migrants to Europe. "October 2016 was mentioned as possible date for visa liberalisation which is good news although it will be dependent on Turkey fulfilling all criteria," she said. Earlier, President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker said that the EU may introduce a visa-free regime with Turkey in the autumn of 2016, assuming Ankara implements all the necessary requirements. Earlier, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said that the first report will be published in March as part of the visa liberalization. Turkey will start implementing the readmission agreement in June 2016. Currently, Turkey is hosting more than two million Syrian refugees on its territory. The Syrian refugee camps in the country accommodate about 300,000 people. The rest of them are spread across the provinces and cities of Turkey. In Istanbul alone, there are currently 40,000 refugees from Syria. Ankara has so far spent $8 billion to upkeep the Syrian refugees. --- Follow the author on Twitter:@E_Kosolapova Google has disclosed quarterly profit forecast and earning details for the fourth quarter (Q4) of the last year, on Monday. Financials on the Q4 suggest, Google's parent company, Alphabet Inc. has surpassed Apple as the most valuable company around the globe. The search engine provider has made a profit of $4.9billion (3.4billion) during the Q4 compared to $4.7 billion a year ago. With this earning, Alphabet is now worth around $568 billion, compared to Apple's $535 billion, reports BBC. This is for the first time; Google has disclosed the profitability of its search engine and other online businesses. At the same time, the Mountain Viewer has represented a scenario of spending on ambitious technology projects such as self-driving cars, reports Reuters. Luxembourg is the first European country to express its intention to go out into space and exploit the asteroids for minerals and metals. Of course, this endeavor will not be possible without some strong supporters, which is why the country has roped in Google founder, Larry Page. As Business Insider points out, Luxembourg has already left its mark in this field, with the establishment of SES, one of the largest satellite operators in the world, some 30 years ago. Two private US companies had helped Luxembourg's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Economy, Etienne Schneider, set up the satellite operator; these were Planetary Resources, founded by Page, and Deep Space Industries, an establishment with a goal to send tourists to space. It had taken Schneider almost two years to convince these companies to get on board with his mission. Its current goal now is to build a space industry, SpaceResources.lu, which will house a legal framework, mapping out the rights of the private operators who extract minerals from outer space. Luxembourg is keen to join hands with the US and European commercial collaborators to breathe life into this seemingly futuristic plan. The country is ready to invest in all the necessary research and development projects, as well as provide financial backing to companies associated with the plan. The opportunities seem huge. The minerals that are scarce in the Earth are found aplenty in these mineral-rich near-Earth objects or NEOs which are mainly concentrated between Earth and Mars. Asteroids house metals and minerals that are much richer in their make than those found in our planet. Unearthing them and bringing back to earth could trigger huge costs but, in the long run, reap even bigger benefits. Jean-Jacques Dordain, Director General of the European Space Agency, told Financial Times that he believes "at the end there could be a market worth trillions." He had also stated, "I am convinced there is great scientific and economic potential in Luxembourg's vision." Even though the idea seems far-fetched, he says the basic technology and logistics are present. "We know how to get to asteroids, how to drill into them and how to get samples back to Earth." The Luxembourg government announced on Tuesday that the national space budget will now allocate some amount to fund the SpaceResources.lu initiative that aims to stimulate the economic growth on Earth and expand the horizons of space exploration. The Financial Post reveals the goals for the new project as stated by the deputy prime minister. "Our aim is to open access to a wealth of previously unexplored mineral resources on lifeless rocks hurling through space, without damaging natural habitats. We will support the long-term economic development of new, innovative activities in the space and satellite industries as a key high-tech sector for Luxembourg. At first, our aim is to carry out research in this area, which at a later stage can lead to more concrete activities in space." This could mean an extremely profitable venture for establishments like NASA as well, which plans to get an asteroid to orbit around the Moon in order for its astronauts to access it and bring back mineral samples by 2025. NASA is confident that the minerals and metals cooled on the crust of these asteroids could "be used in developing the space structures and in generating the rocket fuel that will be required to explore and colonize our solar system in the twenty-first century." SHARE Contributed Photo/David Baker Colonel Melkett (David Newcomer) gets too close to spinster Miss Furnival (Nancy Jane Smeets). Black Comedy runs through Feb. 14 at the Ojai Arts Center. THEATER Ventura County "Dark Heart of Poe": Through the works and letters of celebrated American author Edgar Allan Poe, audiences will experience the loves and losses that made up his tragic life. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays, Feb. 12-14, Simi Valley Cultural Arts Center, 3050 E. Los Angeles Ave., Simi Valley. $20 general admission, $15 seniors and military, $10 students and teachers. 583-7900; simi-arts.org. "Oliver!": In Lionel Bart's musical adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel, orphaned Oliver Twist goes from mistreatment in the London workhouses to falling in with a gang of pickpockets before finding a home. The High Street Arts Center production features Broadway hits like "Consider Yourself," "Food, Glorious Food" and "Where is Love." 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays, Feb. 5 through March 6, 45 E. High St., Moorpark. $25 general admission, $23 seniors, students, teachers and military, $12 children 12 and under. 529-8700; highstreetartscenter.com. "The Other Place": Santa Paula Theater Center will kick off its 2016 season with this Pulitzer Prize-nominated drama about a respected neurologist as she unravels a 10-year-old personal mystery. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. Sundays, Feb. 5 through March 13, 125 South 7th St., Santa Paula. $20 general admission, $18 seniors and students. 525-4645; santapaulatheatercenter.org. "Tuesdays with Morrie": Camarillo Skyway Playhouse presents the stage adaptation of Mitch Albom's autobiographical story about time spent with his former college professor 16 years after graduating. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays, Feb. 5 through March 6, 330 Skyway Drive, Camarillo. $20 general admission, $15 seniors, students and military, $10 children. 388-5716; skywayplayhouse.org. "Black Comedy": Ojai ACT presents Peter Shaffer's one-act farce in which the lighting scheme is reversed and the play opens with a darkened stage. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays, through Feb. 14, Art Center Theater, 113 S. Montgomery St., Ojai. $15 general admission, $12 seniors, students and Art Center members. 640-8797; ojaiact.org. "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum": Cabrillo Music Theatre presents the Sondheim musical comedy in the Scherr Forum. Guests who wear a toga to any performance can have their photo taken with the cast after the show. Through Feb. 14, Civic Arts Plaza, 2100 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks. Ticketmaster, 800-745-3000 or ticketmaster.com. Information: 449-2787. One-Act Play Festival: The Elite Theatre Company presents its Seventh Annual One-Act Play Festival, this year featuring "Dallas Week," "Not Anymore," "The Rhetorical Triangle," "Stay Tuned" and "I'm Getting Along Well in the Dark." The plays are a compilation of the winners of the 2015 One-Act Play Writing Competition. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays, through Feb. 7, 2731 S. Victoria Ave., Oxnard. $15. 483-5118; elitetheatre.org. "See Rock City": Rubicon Theatre Company presents the second production in Arlene Hutton's Nibroc Trilogy. Set in the 1940s in Corbin, Kentucky, the play is a portrait of a young couple trying to find their footing in a world on the brink of great change. Through Feb. 14, 1006 E. Main St., Ventura. $25-$54. 667-2900; rubicontheatre.org. CLASSES Ventura County African drumming class: Malik Sow, an African master drummer from Senegal, and Solo Soro, from Ivory Coast, lead a weekly class in West African drumming from 7:30-9 p.m. Mondays at Lightning Ridge Screen Printing, 4435 McGrath St., Ventura. Cost is $20 per class and a drum can be rented for $5. For information or to arrange a drum rental, call 650-7455. COMEDY Ventura County Paula Poundstone: The Emmy Award-winning comedian and author will perform her stand-up act. 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. March 5, Scherr Forum Theatre, Civic Arts Plaza, 2100 E. Thousand Oaks Blvd., Thousand Oaks. $34-$39. Ticketmaster, 800-745-3000 or ticketmaster.com. Information: 449-2787. SHARE Contributed Photo White Orchids, mixed media on board, by Sherry Loehr. Natural beauty Sherry Loehr exhibit in Santa Paula The Santa Paula Art Museum will showcase Sherry Loehr's exquisite paintings in the Ojai artist's solo show, "Nature Inspired: The Paintings of Sherry Loehr," which will open Saturday and run through June 12. The exhibition will premiere with a reception Saturday from 4-6 p.m. Admission is $10 for museum members and $15 for the general public. The exhibition features paintings by the award-winning artist, who defines her style as contemporary realism with an Asian flavor. The tranquility of Loehr's compositions reflects her admiration for the simplicity of traditional Asian art and culture. Her subjects, such as birds, flowers, fruits, and plants, are inspired by nature and painted with an incredibly disciplined, Old Masters approach to still life. Her use of bold color and imaginative backgrounds lends her work a contemporary feel. "The experience of viewing Loehr's work is perhaps best described as a meditation," said museum Executive Director Jennifer Heighton. While looking at her elegant paintings, viewers experience a moment of peace and a sense of awe. "White Orchids," mixed media on board from the collection of the artist, is shown here. A Free Family Day will take place Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. Families can participate in a variety of art activities, which will start at 1 p.m., and view the newest student art show. Guests also will be able to tour current exhibitions, Loehr's show and the "De Colores Art Show: Campesinas," which illustrates the unique experience of campesinas (female farmworkers) in California and Ventura County. Admission is free for everyone on Free Family Day. Regular hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesdays through Saturdays, and noon to 4 p.m. Sundays at 117 North 10th St. in downtown Santa Paula. Regular admission is $4 for adults, $3 for seniors, and is free for museum members and students. For more information, call 525-5554. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO/COUNTY OF VENTURA This photograph shows an entrance to the Ventura County Medical Examiners Office in Ventura. By Kathleen Wilson and Cheri Carlson The District Attorney's Office has called for legislative hearings to clarify laws governing autopsies in the wake of a monthslong probe into exams performed by an unlicensed assistant in the Ventura County Medical Examiner's Office. District Attorney Greg Totten said there was insufficient evidence to file criminal charges based on current California law, which he termed "wholly deficient." Prosecutors found five cases four men and one woman in which an investigator with no medical license conducted postmortem exams. The Star earlier reported that four of those exams were conducted while then-Chief Medical Examiner Jon Smith was on vacation in May 2015. "The practices going on here were highly inappropriate," Totten said Wednesday, when his office released a 50-page report detailing the results of the investigation. "Loved ones of decedents should have the right to expect an autopsy is going to be performed by a licensed medical professional, rather than an unlicensed, uncertified individual who lacks any formal training." Rose Banuelos, of Oxnard, whose brother was identified in the report as one of the men the assistant examined, said Wednesday that she believed criminal charges were warranted. "What they did to my brother's body, that is ridiculous," she said after briefly reading the report. "My brother or anybody else shouldn't have gone through what they did." Prosecutors issued the report seven months after serving a search warrant and seizing documents at the examiner's office in Ventura. Smith, 44, and Armando Chavez, 41, the assistant who trained on the job over his 19 years in the office, were placed on administrative leave by county officials within the next couple days. Smith was terminated effective at the end of August, but Chavez has remained on the payroll pending the conclusion of the DA's investigation. As a top manager, Smith could be dismissed without cause. Chavez has strong job protections as a regular public employee. NO MEDICAL TRAINING A call from a whistleblower prompted the DA's probe into what prosecutors called "serious allegations" of practicing medicine without a license and fraud. The investigation found evidence of the following: At the direction of Smith, Chavez, a supervising medical examiner investigator, conducted postmortem procedures on four men and one woman without being licensed to do so. Smith signed documents written in a way that gave the impression that he had supervised postmortem procedures on three of them, despite not having been physically present when those procedures were performed. Chavez had not attended medical school, was not licensed to practice medicine in any state, and was not a licensed forensic pathologist or certified as a pathologists' assistant. Smith also worked for three public and private agencies while being employed as a full-time medical examiner for Ventura County. Smith received letters from the Louisiana Board of Medical Examiners and the Oregon Medical Board regarding allegations he was performing autopsies without being licensed in those states. The DA's Office found no evidence to suggest Smith had violated any California laws as a result. Smith's attorney, Mark Pachowicz, didn't return calls seeking comment on the report Wednesday. He previously told The Star that his client went beyond the call of duty by monitoring employees' actions while he was on vacation. "We are of the opinion there is absolutely nothing illegal or inappropriate about how he conducted the business," Pachowicz said. Chavez's attorney, Steven Welch, said the DA's decision not to file criminal charges was appropriate. He declined to comment on whether Chavez will try to return to his job. UNCLEAR STANDARD The Star began investigating the medical examiner's office in June, after Smith was relieved of his duties and placed on leave. In public records obtained by The Star, the vacationing Smith was listed as the pathologist on exams for four men. The exams were conducted during a two-week period in May when Smith was in Florida and abroad. Emails exchanged between Smith and staff members show he directed Chavez to perform procedures on the men's bodies. For two men, he instructed staff by email to cut open their abdomens to take samples from internal organs. The DA's Office consulted with Dr. Frank Sheridan, chief medical examiner for San Bernardino County. He said cutting open an abdomen, collecting samples from internal organs or looking for a primary source of cancer all of which apparently were performed in these cases could constitute the practice of medicine. That opinion was consistent with standards of the National Association of Medical Examiners, as well as opinions of the California, Louisiana and Oregon medical boards. Smith and Chavez, however, said that because Chavez was not trying to determine cause of death, but only collecting samples, his actions do not constitute performing an autopsy, the DA's report states. Smith said he is not aware of any law that says a doctor or forensic pathologist must be present when a technician is collecting samples, the report said. Without a clear standard in state law, the evidence failed to show beyond a reasonable doubt that the two men conspired to or practiced medicine without a license or in any way mutilated human remains, prosecutors said. The report generally clears Smith of violating laws related to his work for outside agencies, saying there was insufficient evidence to prove that he defrauded the county. He performed 170 postmortem exams for Santa Barbara County from 2011-15, but it appeared that he could do so without exceeding the time his boss found acceptable, the report said. Janice Maurizi, chief assistant to Totten who oversaw the inquiry, said she was concerned by the impact on families as well as the time Smith was spending on outside duties. "The most disturbing thing to me was imagining what it would be like for loved ones who are now finding out how carelessly their loved ones were treated during this somber procedure," she said. "The fact that our medical examiner was on vacation on a cruise and directing unskilled, untrained people to perform autopsies, that is disturbing. It is disturbing that we have a highly compensated employee who was dividing his time among so many responsibilities." 'IT WAS WRONG' Hipolito Paul Valdez was 61 when he died suddenly on May 9, 2015. He had been living in Oxnard with his sister, Banuelos, for a few months before his death. His death was classified as natural and caused by possible complications of cancer. Now, she doesn't know what to think. The exam should have been performed by a licensed medical examiner, she said. "It should never happen to anyone like this," said Banuelos, who was notified Wednesday that her brother was part of the investigation. This was a family member, a loved one, she said, in a shaky voice. "This was wrong. It was wrong." The district attorney recommended that the state Legislature hold hearings to clarify the legal standards related to autopsies. The report said a broad group of interests, including coroners, prosecutors and professional organizations should come to the table. County Executive Officer Mike Powers said he supported that approach. Powers said the report confirmed many of the findings discovered in a management inquiry and that operational changes had already been made. County officials expect a physician to determine in person when exams need to be done, perform the procedures and directly supervise assistants. That was the practice both before and after Smith's tenure, officials said, but it was not specifically addressed in written policies. Newly appointed Chief Medical Examiner Ann Bucholtz corrected that omission in a policy that took effect recently. The policy says postmortem exams to determine cause of death are the practice of medicine and should only be performed by a California-licensed physician with training in forensic pathology. Maurizi said the District Attorney's Office had already reached out to the state medical board to determine next steps. "It is going to take a pretty thorough analysis," she said. (Click on the photo below to see an interactive timeline.) FILE PHOTO John Crombach, former chief of Oxnard police and a former Ventura County assistant sheriff, was named interim chief of the Santa Barbara Police Department. SHARE By Staff Reports John Crombach, an ex-Oxnard police chief and former Ventura County assistant sheriff, has been named interim chief of the Santa Barbara Police Department, officials said. City Administrator Paul Casey appointed Crombach while a nationwide search for a permanent chief is still underway. Crombach said he does not intend to apply for the permanent position. Crombach worked with the Oxnard Police Department for 20 years, where he helped establish the California Cities Gang Network and a citizens academy and implemented a new training program. He served as a Ventura County assistant sheriff until retiring in March 2014. In Santa Barbara, he will oversee 200 sworn and civilian staff and an annual department budget of $42 million, officials said. Crombach received a bachelor's degree from the University of La Verne and a master's in public administration from CSU Northridge. He will take over the interim position shortly after the retirement this month of current Police Chief Cam Sanchez. Officials estimate a permanent replacement will be appointed in July. JUAN CARLO/THE STAR Nurses from the Ventura County Medical Center and other county-run facilities picket Tuesday in front of the Ventura County Government Center in Ventura. SHARE JUAN CARLO/THE STAR Kevin Braver, an intensive care nurse Ventura County Medical Center, said hospital staffing issues affect patient care. JUAN CARLO/THE STAR Joan Muran, a nurse at Ventura County Medical Center, pickets with about 100 other nurses in Ventura on Tuesday. JUAN CARLO/THE STAR Nurses from Ventura County-run hospitals and facilities said noncompetitive wages are pushing nurses to other employers. JUAN CARLO/THE STAR Michele Mueller, a nurse at Ventura County Medical Center, said nurses are worried about patient safety. By Tom Kisken of the Ventura County Star Leaders of a nurses union at Ventura County Medical Center say noncompetitive wages spawned high infection rates and other patient safety issues by pushing experienced nurses to private hospitals. They cited Medicare fines over infections and other injuries acquired by patients after being admitted. The nurses are set to meet with county administrators Friday as part of a bargaining process that followed temporary raises. Staff shortages that temporarily closed two operating rooms heaped more responsibilities on remaining nurses and compromised measures like making sure bedridden patients are regularly moved, nurses said. "We want to be able to hire experienced nurses and retain them," said Lorraine Sandoval, an emergency room nurse who claimed more than three dozen nurses at VCMC, in Ventura, and its sister facility, Santa Paula Hospital, left over two years. "We don't want to sound like greedy nurses. We want to keep our nurses." Kim Milstien, CEO of the two county hospitals, defended patient safety performance, characterizing some of the criticism as a byproduct of negotiations. But she expressed concern over the departure rate of more experienced nurses. Ongoing bargaining sessions are aimed at making wages competitive with rates paid by other hospitals, Milstien said, asserting the talks are an "extraordinary" step because a contract is already in place. The county and employees represented by the California Nurses Association agreed to a contract that took effect in 2014 and included the first across-the-board raises for nurses since 2008. Last year, county officials acknowledged the wages were no longer competitive and gave temporary increases. The raises included $20-an-hour for surgical nurses and $8-an-hour hikes in the emergency room and intensive care units. Nurses in other units and in other county health facilities received 6 percent increases. The temporary raises for many of the nurses expire on Feb. 21. The ongoing negotiations, involving not only the hospitals but registered nurses across the county health care agency, are designed to bring permanent increases. Both sides said progress was made in a bargaining session on Monday. Nurses said the county is still offering raises lower than the temporary increases and much less than what private hospitals pay. County officials said their offers are comparable to the temporary raises when all compensation is tallied, including pensions and money given to nurses for certifications earned and level of education. "We really want to give the nurses a competitive pay situation," said Shawn Atin, assistant county executive officer, noting there's a limit to what will be paid. "Some of the (nurses) proposals are for pay packets that are over and above the market." Nurses picketing in front of the Ventura County Government Center on Tuesday said the base wage for an experienced nurse in some hospital units was about $37 an hour before the temporary raises. Marilou Velasco, picketing with a sign that said "RNs Demand Safe Staffing," works in a general care unit at VCMC. She said some nurses have been paid $10 to $15 an hour less than they could make elsewhere. "I'm updating my resume," she said. Sandoval said about 76 nurses work in emergency rooms at VCMC and Santa Paula Hospital, including per diem nurses used to fill staffing gaps. She said 40 nurses have left over two years. Milstien said the rate of nursing turnover across the county's Health Care Agency is about 10 percent and is less than regional averages. She said she is particularly concerned about turnover among emergency room and surgical nurses. "We seem to be losing nurses that are more experienced ... to our neighboring hospitals," she said. Nurses said the departures mean the hospitals rely on less experienced nurses and temporary staffing. They said care is compromised. "If you don't have enough staff on the floor, patient care will suffer," said Kevin Braver, an ICU nurse. Milstien reacted by pointing to state mandates on ratios for the number of nurses caring for patients. She said the hospitals meet the mandates, designed to protect patient care. In December, federal officials announced VCMC and county-run Santa Paula Hospital would lose 1 percent of its annual Medicare funding because data from 2013 and 2014 showed hospital-acquired conditions, including certain infections, rose above federal standards. Nurses also cited a $50,000 fine announced last week by the California Department of Public Health regarding a 2014 suicide in the VCMC's psychiatric unit. Investigators said the patient was not adequately searched and committed suicide with a cord brought from outside the hospital. They pointed too at an investigation concluded in 2014 by the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health. Investigators found a violation at Santa Paula Hospital over patient handling, saying policies did not include sufficient teams trained to lift patients out of beds. Nurses said the violations reflect the staffing issues. "We're concerned about patient safety," said Michele Mueller, chief nurse representative for union members. Care hasn't been compromised, said Milstien. She cited a 17 percent reduction in bloodstream infections linked to central line IVs over a year. Changes have been made in patient lifting and in search policies for psychiatric patients. "It wasn't a lack of staff that didn't search the patients," Milstien said of the suicide. "It was a lack of policy that was corrected immediately." County officials said more negotiating sessions are set for Friday and Monday. Milstien said the fact that county officials decided to go to the bargaining table despite an existing contract shows their commitment. Some of the nurses picketing this week said the results of the talks will determine whether they stay or go. "Just about everyone I talk to is updating their resumes," said Velasco. RICHARD QUINN/SPECIAL TO THE STAR Boat and business owners listen to Ventura Harbormaster John Higgins as he presents plans for dredging the mouth of the harbor. SHARE RICHARD QUINN/SPECIAL TO THE STAR Ventura Harbormaster John Higgins discusses plans for removing sand from the mouth of Ventura Harbor. RICHARD QUINN/SPECIAL TO THE STAR Ventura Harbor Patrol Officer Ryan Sutherland (center) talks about plans for dredging the Ventura Harbor mouth during Wednesdays meeting with boat and business owners from the harbor. RICHARD QUINN/SPECIAL TO THE STAR Kevin McGowan, manager of the Ventura County Sheriffs Office of Emergency Services, addresses boat owners and business owners at Wednesday nights meeting. RICHARD QUINN/SPECIAL TO THE STAR Brian Pendleton, business operations manager for the Ventura Port District (center) addresses boat and business owners Wednesday night. By Megan Diskin of the Ventura County Star If weather allows it, the Ventura Harbor entrance could reopen by next weekend if dredging can be done, Harbormaster John Higgins said Wednesday night. He made the statement during a meeting in the Ventura Marina Mobile Home Park auditorium to provide an update on the closure of the treacherously sand-clogged entrance. About 75 local business owners and commercial fishermen came to the meeting, where they could learn how to mitigate financial losses blamed on the closure. The harbor's entrance, which usually is about 300 feet wide, was closed Jan. 22 due to strong currents and sand deposits that altered its depth. The entrance normally is 35 to 40 feet deep, but the sand buildup has reduced it to about 13 feet, Higgins said. Big waves, strong currents and El Nino storms caused the harbor's sand trap to overflow and start releasing sand, Higgins said. "Over the past 60 days, about a year's worth of sand has come in our entrance," Higgins said. Within 72 hours, about two-thirds of the harbor entrance was lost on the north side, he said. A cross-current that runs along the entrance of the harbor has grown particularly dangerous. That danger increases during periods of high surf, Higgins said. The closure was the first of its kind since the early 1980s. Authorities have been escorting some commercial ships in and out of the harbor when conditions allow, but recreational vessels have been turned away. Dredging equipment is expected to arrive Friday morning, he said, and work on moving the sand could start Monday. The harbor then could reopen by the following Saturday, he said. But another period of high surf is expected Thursday, and that could hold up the process. Wednesday's meeting drew many whose livelihoods rely on the harbor being open. Kevin McGowan, manager of the Ventura County Sheriff's Office of Emergency Services, urged business owners and fishermen to fill out a form focusing on economic injury due to the closure. He said if five or more of them fill out the form and the county agency sends them to state officials and the U.S. Small Business Administration, both agencies will perform an economic injury impact assessment, McGowan said. If the situation at the Ventura Harbor is declared a disaster, the business owners will be eligible for a low-interest loan of up to $2 million from the federal agency to help mitigate financial losses, McGowan said. "That's basically what we have going for us now as far as federal assistance goes," he said. Jerry Morgan, a commercial squid fisherman, filled out one of those forms. Morgan, 38, who splits his time fishing in Alaska and Ventura, said he and his crew have collected unemployment benefits, but that the money doesn't do much to help pay the rent at the harbor. "It's a risky business," he said of his profession. That's because there may be squid out in the ocean or there may not. But the hindrances at the harbor are especially difficult because his gut tells him it's a good time to be fishing. "I think there's some out there," Morgan said. SHARE CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Michael Bresnak has been charged with killing Jeffrey Korber, who was found inside a Ventura storage freezer in 2013. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO Jeffrey Korber, 60, of Laguna Beach, was found dead in a Ventura storage unit in June 2013. Police believe he was killed in 2011 and stored in a freezer. By John Scheibe of the Ventura County Star A Ventura County Superior Court judge agreed Wednesday to hold a hearing next week on whether the county's former chief medical examiner can be forced to testify in the trial of a Ventura man charged with killing his mother's boyfriend and storing the body in a freezer. Attorney Mark Pachowicz told Judge Gilbert Romero on Wednesday that his client, Dr. Jon Smith, should not be forced to testify in the trial of Michael Bresnak, 52, of Ventura. Smith was dismissed last year from the Ventura County Medical Examiner's Office after the District Attorney's Office began investigating it. Prosecutors said they had received information that staff members were performing unauthorized postmortem procedures. Records showed Smith relied on partial autopsies to determine the cause of death in some cases. He also was accused of directing unqualified personnel to conduct some autopsies while he was vacationing thousands of miles away. The district attorney coincidentally issued a report Wednesday criticizing some of the medical examiner's policies and procedures but saying they did not warrant criminal charges. It was unclear exactly why the defense wants Smith to testify in the Bresnak case. And Pachowicz declined to comment Wednesday on why he advised Smith against testifying. Bresnak was arrested in August 2013 on suspicion of killing his mother's boyfriend, Jeffrey Korber, 60, of Laguna Beach. Prosecutors said Korber had an "on-again-off-again" relationship with Bresnak's mother, who was not charged in the case. Korber's family had reported him missing in June 2011 after he failed to contact relatives for three months. Ventura police found Korber's body two years later wrapped in black plastic and duct tape and stuffed inside a freezer at a Ventura storage facility. Dusty Kawai, Bresnak's attorney, asked the judge if a hearing on pretrial motions could be held Tuesday. Romero agreed. Romero also scheduled a hearing for 9 a.m. Monday on whether Smith should be forced to testify in the case. SHARE On a hot July day in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, a Latina business owner addressed a crowd at an event billed "Happy Hour with Hillary," urging them to caucus for Clinton. "I don't want to wake up on Feb. 2 and wonder if there's more I could have done," she said to the casually dressed crowd of mostly older people, with a smattering of college-age students. Did she wake up satisfied? Clinton came out later that July day and thanked the audience, including those who had yet to make up their minds, inviting them to join her team. "It's not about right, left, up, down. It's about the future instead of the past," she said. "Republicans still believe in trickle-down economics. We have been trickled on enough." Clinton was at her best that day relaxed, punchy and un-programmed. "This campaign has to be about making it very clear who's right and who's wrong," she insisted. Right was paid family leave, clean renewable energy and early childhood education. It was refinanced student loans and a more peaceful, cooperative world. Wrong was young people not getting the opportunities for education and employment the previous generation had. "We have got to have a movement, so when we win in November 2016, we'll be prepared to win with confidence and optimism," Clinton declared, adopting a line from Bernie Sanders. Just over a year ago, when Sanders was contemplating running, he wasn't even sure which party it would be with. The longest-serving independent in Congress was being urged by the Green Party to run as an independent. In an interview with me back then, he shared his concerns: Neither of the two major parties was held in very high esteem by Americans, Sanders said. "The Democratic Party has not been seen as a champion of working families." But running outside of the two-party system required building a political infrastructure in 50 states, which would interrupt his ability to get out and talk to people. Either way, he insisted he'd get in the race only if he determined the country was ready for a grass roots revolution, to change a corrupt campaign finance system, eliminate child poverty and address the uneven distribution of wealth, among other things. Among those who heard him was Clinton. She sharpened her attacks on systemic inequality. Regardless of the final Iowa caucus count, Monday was a victory for Clinton and for Sanders, and for the issue of inequality he has focused attention on. It was also a victory for his campaign, financed without corporate money and only small donations. Not long ago, it would have seemed unthinkable that a self-described 74-year-old socialist could come within striking distance of someone with her experience and standing. It would also have been unimaginable for more than 40 percent of Iowa Democrats polled to describe themselves as socialists. In the Democratic caucus of Des Moines' precinct 47, which I sat in on, Sanders beat Clinton by a single vote out of 167. Each got three delegates. Sanders picked up six of Martin O'Malley's seven supporters but only after Sanders' and Clinton's backers made their cases and answered substantive policy questions. But what made it such a joyous affair was the raw enthusiasm that permeated the standing-room-only crowd, challenging the idea of voter apathy. People came well-informed, from a range of ages and incomes, races and occupations. Despite the heat and shortage of chairs, and the crush of international media, opposing sides laughed and joked together. Rachel Busson, 32, who was voting in her second caucuses, cast her ballot for Barack Obama in 2008. "I liked Hillary, but I liked Obama just a little bit more," she said. But this year, she thinks Clinton has the more concrete plans, especially on capping prescription drug prices. Busson works with people with special needs, to whom, she says that makes a big difference. Rene Chavez, 18, was casting his first caucus vote for Sanders. "He's more appealing to younger people," he said. "He doesn't seem as corporate as other people." Many people I've spoken to recently have agonized over the choice between Clinton and Sanders. She's best qualified, some argued, but he has the more inspiring vision. She's more realistic about how to get things done and pay for them, and it's time for a female president; he's pure and un-corruptible. "Hillary Clinton's been committed to the Democratic Party all her life," declared a Clinton supporter at the caucus. "Let's take corporations out of politics," said a Sanders organizer. "Martin O'Malley will make America great again," bellowed one of the former Maryland governor's supporters, drawing laughter by appropriating Donald Trump's line. Agonizing as the choice may have been for some, the process is a victory for democracy. There were real choices, and people were taking them seriously enough to listen, research, consider the alternatives and turn out to vote. Rekha Basu is a columnist for the Des Moines Register. Email her at rbasu@dmreg.com. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Dalga Khatinoglu - Trend: Six members of the OPEC have agreed to hold an urgent meeting, Shana news agency reported Feb. 4. After a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, Venezuela's oil minister Eulogio del Pino said that Russia also support an urgent meeting between OPEC members to cut production level to push the prices up. Venezuela's oil minister has started a round of trips to major oil producers to convince them to decrease production level in order to raise the prices. He met with his Russian counterpart Alexander Novak on Monday and after Iran, Eulogio del Pino will visit Saudi Arabia and Qatar. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the global oil production reached 96.31 mbpd, while demand was 94.47 mbpd in 2015. Huge amount of oil glut has pushed the prices down, from $108 in the first half of 2014 to the current $35. Eulogio del Pino said that Iran, Oman and Iraq are among OPEC members who have willingness to hold OPEC's urgent meeting. He also called on the other non-OPEC producers on cutting the oil output and supporting prices. It is not clear whether Saudi Arabia and Qatar who are strongly against losing their shares in oil markets would agree to cut their production or not, but the possibility is high, is case major non-OPEC members cut their production level. Before, Shana reported that Iran is against holding OPEC's urgent meeting until the members and non-OPEC oil producers reach an agreement to decline production. Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh says the country would increase the oil production level by 0.5 mb/d in 1H16 and the same amount in 2H16. Shana says it seems the global oil production should decrease by 1.5 mb/d to eliminate the glut in near future and support the prices. Alexander Novak, Russian energy minister, said Jan. 28 that the planned OPEC meeting in February with representatives of other oil-producing countries could discuss reduction of oil production by each producer country by five percent, but a general agreement is needed for that. "Approximately these parameters were voiced - to cut the production for each country by five percent," Novak told reporters responding to a question about whether Saudi Arabia offered Russia to cut production by five percent. The latest OPEC monthly report, released Jan. 18, indicates that the cartel has decreased oil production by 210,000 barrels per day in December, month-to-month to 32.182 mbpd. In 2016, the demand for OPEC crude is forecasted at 31.6 mbpd, some 1.7 mbpd higher than the previous year. OPEC will hold an ordinary meeting June 2. SHARE Re: your Feb. 2 article, Docs enter debate on pot: The article documents the confusion caused in part by the differences in federal, state, county and city laws regarding the use of marijuana. The debate in California basically centers around two issues: the use of marijuana for medical use and the use of marijuana for recreational use. The current regulations regarding the use of marijuana for medical purposes are a farce and need to be corrected to be consistent with the use of any other mind-altering drug for medical purposes. Specifically, the medically beneficial ingredients of marijuana can be used if they are prescribed by a licensed physician and dispensed by a licensed pharmacy. The recreational use of this drug is quite another matter. I personally have witnessed the recreational use of marijuana destroy the lives of some relatives, friends and others. The destruction came in many forms: divorce, loss of jobs, loss of friends, loss of ambition, criminal acts, etc. The two effects that bothered me the most were the permanent loss of IQ points for frequent teenage users and the fact that the addictive rate for teenagers is 17 percent. The use of this drug should be discouraged to the extent possible and certainly not approved for recreational use. Some of the doctors who supported the recreational use of this drug did so on the premise that it already was being used to a certain extent, but the legalization would generate tax income that could be used for beneficial purposes. It is debatable if the revenue would offset the economic costs and the misery caused by the increased use of this drug. As an example, the use of alcohol causes about 88,000 deaths and more than $224 billion in damages per year in the United States. Do we really need to encourage and legalize yet another "harmless" drug for our society? Al Knuth, Camarillo If you missed todays welcome ceremony for Twisted Vegas, the new anchor show at Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino, then you lost out on what is being called the most extravagant welcome event to hit Vegas since Shania Twain shut down the Strip with her mighty stampede of horses (Pictured: French celebrity Alex Goude and Twisted Vegas cast members Photo credit: Denise Truscello / WireImage). Featuring the U.S. debut of one of Frances most famous faces multi-talented funny man Alex Goude todays event showed the cast arriving in style at Westgates porte cochere. Anxiety in the crowd crescendoed as a U-Haul driven by Twisteds version of Celine Dion pulled up to the red carpet. Out of seemingly nowhere, a miniature Elvis popped out of the passenger side door, too short to be seen above the dashboard as the U-Haul approached. Then madness ensued. Once Celine and Elvis opened the truck, a gaggle of some of the most strangely impressive performers in town unloaded onto the carpet. Celine led the casts grand entrance with a rendition of her hit single I Drove All Night, (it did appear as though she had been driving all night) before being abruptly stopped by Rob Kunkle and Tim Cook, Westgates Executive Vice President & General Manager and Head of Security respectively. Following a slight miscommunication (Hey, you cant be here with your U-Haul, were waiting for our new show to arrive!), Rob and Tim realized this was indeed the cast of Twisted Vegas. It was a grown French mans American dream come true, said Goude. Closing out the event, the full cast performed Viva Las Vegas. A few cheers were allegedly heard from the crowd. Or was that just the sound of taxi drivers honking because they blocked access to the taxi line? Furthermore, attendees at this mornings Welcome Ceremony were treated to a six-foot long table adorned with French croissants and coffee. Following the event, guests were invited inside the mythological Elvis Presley Theater for a short preview of the show, and everyone left completely twisted. Happy, but very twisted. Madonna is having a huge party and everyones invited. The Madonna 2012 World begins May 29, 2012 in Tel Aviv, Israel. The shows will include arenas, stadiums and special outdoor sights including the Plains of Abraham in Quebec and a return visit to South America as well as Australia where she has not performed in 20 years. The first of 28 North American shows is scheduled for August 28 in Philadelphia and includes a September 6 show in NYs Yankee Stadium and now two performances at Las Vegass MGM Grand October 13 (Sold Out) and October 14. Tickets for Madonnas second Las Vegas show will go on sale Monday, March 5th at 10 AM. Tickets will be available at LiveNation.com, Ticketmaster.com, at select Ticketmaster retail outlets, plus via Charge-By-Phone (800.745.3000). Miss New York , Mallory Hytes Hagan was crowned Miss America 2013 Saturday night at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. The final night of the 2013 Miss America Competition was broadcast live on ABC (Photo: Scott Harrison/ RETNA/ www.harrisonphotos.com). Photo: Scott Harrison/ RETNA/ www.harrisonphotos.com. Mallorys triumphant walk across the stage was just the beginning of a journey that will take her to every corner of the country during her year of service as Miss America 2013. She will travel approximately 20,000 miles each month speaking to audiences about her platform Stop it Now-Child Sexual Abuse and acting as the official National Goodwill Ambassador for Childrens Miracle Network Hospitals. Childrens Miracle Network Hospitals, a non-profit organization dedicated to saving and improving the lives of children by raising funds for childrens hospitals, is the national platform partner of the Miss America Organization. Photo: Scott Harrison/ RETNA/ www.harrisonphotos.com. In addition, Miss America 2013 will be the official spokesperson for Amway, Joseph Ribkoff Inc. and Catalina Swimwear. Photo: Scott Harrison/ RETNA/ www.harrisonphotos.com. Mallory is a student at The Fashion Institute of Technology. During her year as Miss America she will serve as spokesperson for Education and focus on STEM (Science, Technology, Education and Mathematics) this year as she travels to Washington, DC to work with the Department of Education. Photo: Scott Harrison/ RETNA/ www.harrisonphotos.com. Along with the title of Miss America 2013, Mallory won a $50,000 scholarship provided by Amway to continue her education. For the talent portion of the competition, Mallory performed a Tap Dance to Get Up by James Brown. Photo: Scott Harrison/ RETNA/ www.harrisonphotos.com. The first runner-up was Miss South Carolina, Ali Rogers who earned a $25,000 Amway scholarship. Her talent performance was Piano and her personal platform is Make a Difference. Photo: Scott Harrison/ RETNA/ www.harrisonphotos.com. Second runner-up honors and a $20,000 Amway scholarship were awarded to Miss Oklahoma, Alicia Clifton. Her talent was Tap Dance, and her personal platform is Tap Into Lifelong Volunteerism. Photo: Scott Harrison/ RETNA/ www.harrisonphotos.com. Miss Montana, Alexis Wineman was the winner of ABCs Americas Choice, an online competition where viewers were given the opportunity to vote for their favorite Miss America contestant. The announcement was made at the beginning of the Miss America broadcast and she became the 15th Finalist to compete in the live finale. Photo: Scott Harrison/ RETNA/ www.harrisonphotos.com. Miss Washington, Mandy Schendel was the winner of the Judges Choice, an on-air, surprise opportunity for the Judges to jointly select an additional contestant to compete among the finalists. Photo: Scott Harrison/ RETNA/ www.harrisonphotos.com. As it is only a few days before Tet, or Vietnams Lunar New Year, which officially begins on February 8, a large number of overseas Vietnamese are flying home to celebrate the countrys biggest holiday with their family. Some 15,000-17,000 people complete the immigration procedure to enter Ho Chi Minh City via Tan Son Nhat on a daily basis, a 15 percent increase against the norm. The problem is many overseas Vietnamese will not be greeted at the airport by only one or two family members, but half a dozen. One person will have six or seven people waiting for them so it is inevitable that the airport is overcrowded, an airport official was quoted by newswire VnExpress as saying. The international terminal is capable of handling 10 million passengers a year, and the domestic one, 13 million. But Tan Son Nhat easily exceeded its design capacity in 2015, serving more than 26.5 million passengers. The official, who wished not to be named, said that while there are no official statistics on the number of overseas Vietnamese returning home via Tan Son Nhat, those who come to welcome their family member home are to blame for the overcrowding witnessed last weekend. Those people are not only from Ho Chi Minh City, but also provinces in the Mekong Delta, he told VnExpress. They arrive at the airport hours before the flights of their family members are due, and they fill the waiting space in front of the international arrivals terminal. This means that the waiting space is overcrowded, which does not affect other sections, such as check-in counters or baggage security, he underlined. Those who come to wait for their family members do not want to queue, and all tend to jump the line whenever they can, according to the official. Some do not even know when the flights they are waiting for would arrive, and they simply ignore the announcements made via loudspeakers, he said. They would not take a seat, but stand so that there was no space for passengers to walk out of the arrivals hall. Nguyen Huy Thanh, who traveled more than 150km from the southern province of Ben Tre to the airport to wait for his family members, said it is unacceptable to see an international airport that is so crowded. Why dont they install more waiting chairs? he was quoted as saying by VnExpress. But the request for more chairs was deemed unacceptable by the airport official. The arrivals hall is designed for people to leave immediately upon getting off their planes, so it is unnecessary to have numerous chairs there, he said, adding it is a common practice in all international airports. When one arriving passenger is awaited by a dozen others, no airport on earth can handle such a situation, he said. It is however impossible for the airport to ban people from waiting for their beloved, the official admitted. We can only hope that they will behave more appropriately, he said. But we cannot do anything if the people keep coming en masse. Vietnamese Government has authorised Industry and Trade Minister Vu Huy Hoang to sign the TPP agreement in New Zealand in February 4. - Photo daily-sun.com The government has authorised the industry and trade minister to sign the agreement. Required procedures would be completed by the foreign affairs ministry, the resolution said. The signing of the TPP is slated for February 4 in New Zealand. The TPP negotiations started in 2005 and concluded in late October last year. The 12 members of the agreement are Australia, Brunei, Canada and Chile, besides Japan, Malaysia, Mexico and New Zealand, as well as Peru, Singapore, the United States and Viet Nam. Once it takes effect, the agreement will establish a free trade zone that represents nearly 40 per cent of the global GDP. Viet Nam was expected to benefit the maximum from the pact, especially in the trade of goods, investment and services, Minister of Industry and Trade Vu Huy Hoang said during an insightful interview with the Vietnam News Agency. He, however, said this depended on how the country would work to take advantage of the TPP and deal with any possible challenges. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Aygun Badalova - Trend: The implementation of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline project is in the interests of both Turkey and Russia, Agnia Grigas energy and political risk expert, nonresident Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council, the author of new book "Beyond Crimea: The New Russian Empire", believes. "Turkey's energy consumption is rising and Russia provides more than half of Turkey's gas imports. Thus, naturally there is interest in Ankara to continue discussions for Turkish Stream gas pipeline project that offers a direct route for gas from Russia to Turkey," Grigas told Trend. This week Turkish Deputy Chief of Mission to the United States Tugay Tuncer told Sputnik that Turkey is willing to hold discussions with Russia to solidify plans for the Turkish Stream gas pipeline. "We see this [Turkish Stream] as a commercial deal. If the Russians want to talk, we can come and we can talk," Tuncer said. Under perfect circumstances, Russia would also like to see Turkish Stream project implemented, according to Grigas. "Turkey is the second largest European market for Russian gas exports and its needs are increasing while the demand for Russian gas in other European markets is slowing if not outright declining," Grigas said. In 2014, Turkey was the second largest importer of Russian gas after Germany - Ankara purchased 27.3 billion cubic meters of gas from Russian Gazprom. Moreover, Grigas said, Russia is determined to reduce flows of gas via pipelines through Ukraine and thus wants to pursue projects like Nord Stream II and Turkish Stream. However, financially, times are tough for Russia and implementing the Turkish Stream project will be difficult, according to Grigas. "Moscow's pointing to the recent tensions with Ankara as the main reason for slowing down the Turkish Stream project is perhaps just a way of saving face when the costs of currently implementing it would be difficult for Russia to bear," Grigas said. The Turkish Stream project, which envisaged the construction of a gas pipeline from Russia to Turkey through the Black Sea, had been put on hold by Russia on Dec. 3, 2015. The negotiations on the project's imlementation have been stopped following the deterioration of the Russian-Turkish relations after Turkish Air Force jets shot down the Russian SU-24 bomber when it entered Turkish airspace Nov. 24. In December 2015, Russian President Vladimir Putin said the project will be implemented in case Turkey obtains guarantees from Brussels. Speaking about the possibility for improvement of the Russia-Turkey relations, Grigas said that in the recent past, Turkey and Russia have been friends only out of necessity due to their common energy interests. "Russia has also been trying to win over Turkey due to its strategic geographic role in energy transit in relation to Europe, the Black Sea and the Caspian regions," she said. "At the same time, distrust between the two countries goes back hundreds of years and they have competing interests in Syria and the Middle East," she added. While relations between Ankara and Moscow may improve there will always be underlying tensions and distrust, Grigas believes. The Ministry of Health organized an online conference to issue a warning about a potential pandemic during the Tet holiday. The conference was attended by representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Transport, the Ministry of National Defense, and international organizations. Cautions as well as methods of prevention for the possible breakout of the mosquito-borne Zika virus were given during the meeting. Four patients suffering severe cases of Streptococcus suis, a disease capable of transmitting to humans from pigs, have been admitted to the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases since January 1, said Nguyen Trung Cap, a doctor from the infirmary. The patients were infected with the illness after eating food made from pig products, according to the doctor. Nguyen Van Kinh, director of the National Hospital of Tropical Diseases, expressed his concern during the meeting over the probable spread of Streptococcus suis during the Lunar New Year holiday. People in northern Vietnam have the habit of cooking and eating food made from pig parts, especially its blood, as they think the pork is clean and free of disease, Kinh explained. However, the Streptococcus suis bacteria can be present in every swine, he added. The director also warned that pneumonia and bronchitis, both caused by the Hantavirus, could turn into epidemics as several people have been diagnosed with the diseases recently. People can be also susceptible to many types of avian influenza during the holiday as chickens of unknown origin are still being smuggled into Vietnam. Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien warned of the potential for disease, adding that influenza patients have always been recorded during previous Tet holidays. Regarding the diseases caused by the Zika virus, Kinh said that any effort to prevent its spread could face several difficulties as patients can be contagious during the incubation period of 12 days. In addition, about 80 percent of the people affected by the virus do not show any symptoms, he added. The primary challenge for Vietnam is to figure out a way to swiftly identify if a person is affected by the virus, in order to provide the patient with prompt treatment and necessary isolation, said Kato, a representative from the Vietnamese office of the World Health Organization (WHO). The Pasteur Institute in Ho Chi Minh City is expected to receive a new test sample on Wednesday that can spot patients of the disease within six to eight hours, according to Phan Trong Lan, head of the institute. He said that employees from the institute will learn from the experience of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as well as establishing 10 locations in Ho Chi Minh City and 20 others in Hanoi for the diagnosis of the ailment. Zika is a disease caused by the Zika virus that is spread to people primarily through the bite of an infected mosquito of the Aedes species, with common symptoms being fever, rash, joint pain, and conjunctivitis (red eyes), according to the CDC. The virus, linked to severe birth defects in thousands of babies in Brazil, is spreading rapidly in the Americas, and WHO officials on Tuesday expressed concern that it could hit Africa and Asia as well,Reuters reported. Photo by Associated Press A supporter of presidential candidate Jovenel Moise of the PHTK political party, chants slogans during a march Tuesday in Port-au-Prince to demand elections be reinstated. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Elena Kosolapova - Trend: On February 2, 2016 the English Commercial Court in the High Court of Justice in London found in favor of the government of Kazakhstan by dismissing a claim brought by Mongolian company Erdenet Mining Corporation against the government of Kazakhstan, the Kazakh Ministry of Justice said. "Erdenet brought a claim in relation to a debt allegedly owed to Erdenet by "Balkhashmys" JSC under contracts entered into force in 1995 and 1996," said the ministry. "Despite the fact that "Balkhashmys" JSC was a private legal entity which was liquidated in 1999, Erdenet argued that the government of Kazakhstan was liable for the alleged "Balkhashmys" debt." In December 2014, Erdenet sued the government of Kazakhstan in the English Commercial Court claiming that the government of Kazakhstan agreed to the jurisdiction of the English courts during a series of discussions between Kazakhstan and Mongolia. The government of Kazakhstan challenged the jurisdiction of the English courts. On February 2, 2016, the English Commercial Court found in favor of the government of Kazakhstan that it had no jurisdiction to hear Erdenet's claim. The Judge said that the government of Kazakhstan "had the much better of the argument" that no jurisdiction agreement had been reached between the parties and that it was "inherently unlikely" that such an agreement had been reached. The Court ordered Erdenet to pay 200,000 pounds (1.45 pounds = $1) for the government of Kazakhstan's legal costs and Erdenet's application for leave to appeal was rejected by the Judge on the ground that there were "insufficient prospects of success on appeal". --- Follow the author on Twitter: @E_Kosolapova Civil society groups and the victim of an apparently random shooting in Phnom Penh last month have called on authorities to investigate the case and arrest the perpetrator. Vann Sophea, who makes a living collecting scrap metal on the citys streets, was shot in the back on the night of Dec. 15, 2015, close to the sewage canal in Boeung Trabek district. The shooter, who ran from the scene, has not yet been identified, other than by the fact that they were driving a white Lexus SUV. After he was shot, Sophea lost consciousness. It was the police who took him to the Khmer-Soviet Friendship Hospital, where the bullet wound on his torso was operated on. But there appears to have been no investigation conducted into the case by police, who have declined to comment. I want the authorities to find justice for me, Sophea told VOA Khmer. I didnt do anything wrong. I didnt violate anything. I didnt even know that I was shot. He added that security guards nearby would have seen what happened, and security cameras would have recorded footage that would assist an investigation. Sophea said that he did not dare to file a complaint to the police or at court because he has very little money. I havent heard anything since the shooting, he added. Sophea made about 15,000 riel a day from collecting and selling scrap metal, a job he has been doing for 18 years in order to feed his family. Since the shooting, however, Sophea has been unable to lift heavy objects due to his bullet wounds. The doctors said that after the operation, I would not be able to do hard labor. Thus, I cant lift anything heavy. If I do hard labor, it could put my life at risk. Meoung Sokkheoun, who lives next-door to Sophea, said the authorities should arrest the perpetrator as a deterrent. If found, the person should be tried as a warning to others, he said. We should all drop this shooting-spree attitude. Am Sam Ath, technical coordinator for local rights group Licadho, said the government was responsible for finding the perpetrator regardless of whether the victim filed a complaint. The inaction of authorities in the case showed that a culture of impunity existed in Cambodia, he said. The shooting is a homicide attempt, Am Sam Ath added. Once receiving the news, prosecutors and justice officials should take action seeking the perpetrator and bring the person to trial with or without a complaint filed by the victim. Malaria infections in Cambodia and the Greater Mekong sub-region fell overall in 2015, according to health officials. But the continuing spread of drug-resistant parasites that cause the disease remains a major concern for local and international health authorities. Statistics from last year show how successes in battling malaria in Cambodia are being undermined by a continued failure to contain resistance to the drug artemisinin, which was once considered an anti-malaria wonder drug. Resistance to the drug was first discovered in western Cambodia in the former Khmer Rouge territory of Pailin in 2006. Huy Rekol, director at the Ministry of Healths National Center for Malaria Control, told VOA Khmer that Cambodia recorded 51,200 cases of malaria last year, which represents a 9 percent drop in the previous year. He said just 10 people died from the disease in the year, compared with 18 deaths in 2014. However, drug resistance has now expanded into provinces in the north and northeast of the country, he said, explaining that artemisinin-resistant forms of a malaria-causing parasite had now been found in Stung Treng, Ratanakkiri, and Mondulkiri provinces. Based on our studies from 2013, we found that the drug resistance was occurring only in six provinces. But now its expanded to another three provinces, so its totally in nine provinces now, Huy Rekol said. The migration of people around the country for work was spreading drug resistance, which develops when patients infected with malaria-causing parasites are given incorrect doses or do not complete their course of anti-malarial drugs, he said. A World Health Organization (WHO) update published in September noted that a combination of artemisinin and a partner drug was being used successfully to cure patients in the region found to have drug-resistant forms of the malaria-causing parasite Plasmodium falciparum. But this approach, known as Artemisinin-based combination therapy, has started to fail in Cambodia. Scientists believe mutations are taking place within a protein known as Kelch 13, or K13, and that those mutations are getting faster. Therefore, the Cambodian government and its partners must shuffle between different combinations of drugs every five years, Huy Rekol said. Now, the development of the parasite is very fast, Huy Rekol said. This means, we should be more careful, as the parasite is developing very fast if we keep using the same medicine for more than five years. As an example of how resistance can make a drug useless within just a few years, Siv Sovannaroth, technical bureau chief at the National Center for Malaria Control, said that combination drugs used since 2008 were now increasingly failing. A combination using the drug DHA Piperaquine was initially only failing to cure malaria in 10 percent of cases, he said. Since late 2014, however, it has been failing in 30 percent of cases. Another drug, Artesunate mefloquinepreviously used from 2008 in combination with artemisininwas reintroduced in late 2015, but only after delays caused by paperwork and slow ordering, Siv Sovannaroth said. The failure to stop the spread of drug resistance in Cambodia is a global concern, with experts warning of a major disaster if mutations spread to sub-Saharan Africa, where malaria can be fatal in about 90 percent of cases. But simply reshuffling the drugs may never completely contain the problem, Siv Sovannaroth said. The general assumption nowadays is that containment of the artemisinin resistance is impossible, because resistance not only spreads, but also emerges on its own [through mutations], he said. Therefore, the only way to eliminate drug resistance is to eliminate malaria. The WHO has adopted a policy to eliminate malaria entirely from the countries in the Greater Mekong sub-region by 2030, and has pledged $3 billion for Cambodia, Thailand and Laos to that end. The Cambodian government itself launched a five-year action plan on malaria last week, announcing that it would spend about $142 million. Huy Rekol said his department was seeking for its work half of the entire budget of the action plan, which is part of a 25-year plan signed by Prime Minister Hun Sen in 2011. First, we focus on the medical diagnosis and curing malaria. Secondly, prevention of spreading agents by using mosquito nets or preventing the infection from one mosquito to another, he said, adding that the government was also working to eradicate counterfeit anti-malaria drugs, improve its monitoring systems and educate local communities about malaria. Cambodian Foreign Minister Hor Namhong is in China this week for official talks aimed at strengthening trade and security ties. Hor Namhong told reporters before his departure both sides want to see trade between them increased to $5 billion in 2017, including increased imports by China of Cambodian rubber, cassava powder, pepper and sugar. China also aims to boost the livelihood of Cambodians living in remote areas and provide scholarships for Cambodian university students. Hor Namhong also dismissed reports that he was visiting China in response to last weeks talks with US Secretary of State John Kerry. I told him that Cambodia was Chinas friend, Hor Namhong said. Everyone knows that. But Cambodia also wants to be close with the US. Hor Namhong told reporters Cambodia remains neutral on regional issues like the South China Sea. While Cambodia has a strategic relationship with China, Prime Minister Hun Sen is also seeking closer ties to Japan, he said. Chak Sopheap, head of the Cambodian Center for Human Rights, welcomed the governments attempts at diplomacy with the US and China. Improved relations with the US will not hurt Cambodia, she told VOA Khmer. The US wants to strengthen human rights and democracy in Cambodia, and thats a good thing, she said. Things are going to be better when Cambodia tries to improve human rights and democratic values, she said. Aid from China comes without overt conditions, but Chinese investments are deeply embedded throughout Cambodia. We should examine that clearly, she said. There are no conditions concerning human rights or democracy, as with other nations, such as the EU and the US. We still see other relations, such as their coming in to invest, something that is hidden. This point, we should also take into account. Kerry made clear the US position on human rights, freedoms and good governance, she said. After talks with Hun Sen and Hor Namhong last week, Kerry said progress in those areas was critical to a fuller bilateral relationship with the US. In discussions with civil society organizations, he reiterated the same, Chak Sopheap said. Large multinational corporations should be accountable for all the workers in their supply chains, a global trade union has argued, in a new report alleging that exploitation has become the dominant business model in global trade. The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) said that 166 million workers make up a hidden workforce, meaning that they are employed indirectly in supply chains and subject to labor abuses but earn trillions of dollars for big companies. Some of those workers are in Cambodia, where low wages are the major attraction to businesses. Labor advocates in the country say that while working conditions have in general been improving, new legislation threatens to weakened the few safeguards that are in place. ITUC studied 50 major companiesincluding Nestle, Coca-cola, General Electric and Walmartand found that only 6 percent of workers in their supply chains were directly employed. The fifty companies had combined revenues of US$3.4 trillion. Their cash reserves alone would represent $5,000 extra in wages each year for the hidden workforce, the report said. The model of production is based on exploitation, Sharan Burrow, the ITUCs general secretary told VOA Khmer in a recent interview. Transparency was lacking in the multiple layers of contractors and subcontractors employed by major companies, she said, which meant companies were escaping proper scrutiny and regulation. When there are no safe, secure, regulatory environments that provide fundamental rights, then companies arent absolved from their responsibilities, Burrow insisted. ITUC urged big companies to comply with the U.N.s Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights, and to ensure supply chain transparency, safe and secure work, a living wage and collective bargaining rights for all workers. The situation for workers is made worse in countries like Cambodia because of domestic regulatory systems are weak thanks to an unwillingness among governments to hold large companies accountable, said Burrow. They dont legislate for those protections often because theyre cowed by the demands of big businesses who want cheap labor, she said, adding that, ideally, companies would be held to the standards of regulations in their home markets. If the governments where multinationals are headquartered were to legislate to mandate due diligence, then we could prosecute companies across borders. Cambodian workers have some hard-won rights and a minimum wage, but government action is threatening their freedom of association, said Ath Thorn, president of the Cambodian Labor Confederation. If you compare the working conditions of workers today to a decade ago, its making slow progress, but its better, he said, going on to cite the poor working conditions that led more than 1,800 workers to faint in factories in 2015. A draft Union Law is currently under discussion that could place restrictions on labor organizers, he said. The draft law tends to limit on the scope of our work, and also interferes with our internal work. For example, there is a requirement for unions to file financial reports to relevant institutions, said Ath Thorn. Factory owners argue that the law is necessary to prevent radical unions from holding strikes that are not supported by the majority of workers. We asked that the law ensure 20 per cent of workers in a factory have to be represented by the union, and that shall reflect fair representation of workers, said Kaing Monika, deputy secretary general of Garment Manufacturers Association in Cambodia. He added that factory owners and the association were not against workers rights to strike, as long as the decision is made democratically, and with due process. We want to see unions hold a democratic meeting among their members to ensure that everyone can vote for or against a public strike, said Kaing Monika, adding that unions should also be transparent with their financial matters, as is common practice in developed countries. World leaders meeting in London have pledged $10 billion in humanitarian relief, jobs and education to people fleeing the war in Syria. Optimism over the outcome of the conference, however, has been overshadowed by intense fighting around the rebel-held city of Aleppo. Arriving at the Syria Donors conference Thursday, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry implored the world to act fast. "If people are reduced to eating grass and leaves and killing stray animals in order to survive on a day-to-day basis, that is something that should tear at the conscience of all civilized people and we all have a responsibility to respond to it," he said. The response was better than many had hoped for - $10 billion were pledged for 2016, and a further $5 billion in the years up to 2020. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon hailed the achievement. Never has the international community raised so much money on a single day for a single crisis, he said. The money will help provide millions with life-saving care and give refugees access to education and jobs. The Amar Foundation, an aid agency, provides schooling and health care across the region. Its chair, Emma Nicholson, welcomed the pledges but said world leaders must keep their promises. Last year, [only] 35 percent of the pledges were forthcoming. And of course theres always not just forthcoming expenditure, theres the handing over of the funding, and on top of that is the actual expenditure of the money," she said. "So at the very far end of the line, those children waiting for education in Syria and the region, they still are waiting. Syrias neighbors pledged to open their economies to provide more jobs for refugees - aided by $40 billion in loans and the opening of European markets. The optimism in London was overshadowed by the breakdown of talks between Syrias warring parties in Geneva. A surge in fighting has extinguished any fading hopes of a cease-fire. Syrian President Bashar al-Assads forces, backed by Russian air support and Hezbollah fighters, have cut off the rebels supply route into Aleppo. Turkey says around 70,000 refugees are fleeing toward its border. Moscow has accused Turkey of preparing for a ground incursion to prevent Aleppo from falling into government hands. There was no immediate response from Ankara. The senior U.S. military commander in Afghanistan told Congress on Thursday that training for Afghan forces would be severely constrained if the number of American troops there was cut to 5,500, as President Barack Obama has proposed. Obama is planning to cut the number of American forces in Afghanistan from the current 9,800 troops to the 5,500 figure by the end of 2016. But Army General John Campbell told the Senate Armed Services Committee that would mean that "very little" additional training of Afghan soldiers would be possible. Campbell, who is expected to retire soon, said, "I want to keep 9,800 as long as I can before I drop down to 5,500." But he said he was prepared to reduce the U.S. deployment "as I am ordered." Congressional critics of Obama's military operations against Taliban fighters in Afghanistan say reduced U.S. troop levels there will undermine the lengthy American effort that started shortly after the 2001 al-Qaida terrorist attacks in the U.S. that killed nearly 3,000 people. Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona, who lost the 2008 presidential election to Obama, said a reduced force would not be able to carry out its dual mission of training Afghans and conducting counterterrorism missions. "This smaller American force will inevitably be forced to shoulder a higher level of risk to themselves, to their mission and to the national security of the United States,'' McCain said. Initially, Obama said he would cut the U.S. deployment to 5,500 by the end of last year, but as that time neared and insurgent attacks in Afghanistan forced a reassessment, he reversed course and pushed the deadline to the end of 2016. Obama has named Army Lieutentant General John Nicholson to replace Campbell; confirmation of his appointment is pending in the Senate. Nicholson has promised a further review of U.S. troop levels once his command takes effect. The Syrian civil war appears to have entered a new and perilous phase for rebels battling to oust President Bashar al-Assad. Government forces, backed by Shi'ite militiamen from Lebanon and Iran, pressed an offensive Wednesday in northern Syria after breaking a three-year-siege on two towns 30 kilometers northwest of Aleppo, the countrys one-time commercial capital. In what one rebel commander described to VOA as the most furious fighting in northern Syria in the past five years, government forces managed to lift not only the insurgents' siege of the Shiite towns of Nubul and Zahraa, but, in the past 24 hours, seized nearby villages, severing the Aleppo rebels main supply line to Turkey. The rebels' plight worsened as nighttime approached Thursday. A rebel source told VOA there were more than 100 regime airstrikes on the villages of Rytian, Hayan, Hyritan, and Byanon. Some opposition media outlets denied the main supply route had been cut, but rebel commanders contacted by VOA either confirmed the regimes claim or avoided answering. 'Another Madaya' The government's offensive, coordinated with round-the-clock Russian airstrikes that, this week, knocked out the last remaining big hospital in the rebel-controlled half of the city, marks not only one of the worst battlefield reversals for the rebels in the long insurgency against President Assad, but opens up the prospect for the rebels of opposition-held areas in Aleppo being subject to a prolonged government siege. In the last three days, Aleppo has witnessed a very furious attack. The regime has used heavy weaponry and everybody who is witnessing the battle has said it was the worst in the past five years, according to Zakaria Malahefji, the political officer of the 3,000-member Fastaqim Kama Umirt, a brigade aligned with the rebel alliance Jaish al-Mujahideen (Army of Holy Warriors). In an email message to VOA, he said, It is obvious the regime wants to besiege Aleppo. Other rebel commanders agreed, saying the regimes objective is to starve out the rebel-held portion of Aleppo, much as the regime did with another key city for the insurgents, Homs. Malahefji warned that a full-scale siege of opposition-held districts in Aleppo would look like another Madaya, the town northwest of Damascus which has been encircled by Assad's forces for the last seven months, prompting an international outcry. But Aleppo is a bigger city and the humanitarian disaster would be bigger, Malahefji added. Western and Gulf-backed rebels in Aleppo still have a longer and more difficult supply line west of the city running through the neighboring province of Idlib to Turkey, but it is also under threat now. Syrian government forces along with allied militiamen from the Lebanese Shiite movement Hezbollah and Iranian Revolutionary Guardsmen are pressing fierce attacks on insurgents in Idlib as well, say rebel commanders. The pro-regime forces have encircled the rebel quarters in Aleppo from the south, east and north, said Rami Abdel Rahman, director of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitoring group that relies on a network of activists for its information. The regime forces have done in three days in Aleppo what they had failed to do in three years, thanks mainly to Russian support, he added. Rebels appealing for more aid Senior rebel commanders arent disguising the gravity of their position in the Aleppo countryside. It seems there will be a decisive battle in the North, said Ahmed al-Seoud, the commander of Division 13, a militia that has received aid from the United States and other Western countries including TOW anti-tank missiles. He said rebel militias were reinforcing as best they could. We are sending everything we can, al-Seoud said. One Islamist rebel militia, Harakat Nour al-Din al-Zenki, warned late Wednesday that it doesnt have sufficient supplies to feed its 4,000 fighters. A rebel fighter, Mohammed Abu Islam, struck a defiant note to VOA, saying that insurgents were fighting back. There are ongoing clashes; we are fighting with great nobility, he added. He confirmed the main supply line to rebel-held areas in Aleppo had been cut. "The city of Aleppo is isolated right now from the north countryside," said Abu Islam. "The situation on the ground is very, very sad and desperate," he added. He said Islamic State militants are seeking to exploit the regime's advances and have renewed shelling of the insurgent held towns of Mare'a and Tel- Rifa'at, close to the border with Turkey. Just before the government broke the nearly three-year-long siege overnight Tuesday on Nubul and Zahraa, moderate and Islamist rebel militias appealed for assistance from Jabhat al-Nusra, al-Qaidas affiliate in Syria, which dispatched nearly 800 fighters in a 200-vehicle convoy from Idlib to try to shore up resistance. They are now battling to halt the regimes offensive on the village of Ratyan, 13 kilometers from Zahraa. Bombardment around Aleppo The governments advance came after an unprecedented bombardment by government forces and intense airstrikes from Russian warplanes. According to the Syrian Observatory, more than 320 Russian airstrikes were launched in the Aleppo area in the first three days of this week. Malahefji put the number higher at 340 airstrikes. Photographs posted online from the Aleppo countryside showed pro-government forces using advanced Russian-made T-90 tanks that are equipped with defensive systems able to counter U.S.-supplied TOW missiles. The regimes advance, the most significant since September, when Russia started its military intervention in Syria, has dimmed the chances of United Nations-backed peace talks, that began this week, being resumed after U.N. special envoy Staffan de Mistura paused them on Tuesday. The envoy was forced to announce a halt after Syrian opposition delegates pulled out of meetings in Geneva because of the Russian bombardment around Aleppo. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stressed the Kremlin would not stop airstrikes until we really defeat terrorist organizations. Like the Syrian government, Moscow describes all militias battling to topple Assad as terrorists. The offensive in northern Syria was condemned Wednesday by France, whose foreign minister, Laurent Fabius, accused Damascus and Moscow of torpedoing the tentative peace talks in Geneva. Rebel leaders told VOA there is little chance of endorsing a resumption of talks later in February while the battle rages in the Aleppo countryside. Assad wont stop killing, said Malahefji. That will only happen, he said, if he is beaten militarily. We need Western support with heavy weapons that can stop the massacres, he added. He appealed for the U.S. to lift its embargo on Syrian rebels being supplied with hand-held anti-aircraft missiles -- an embargo Western and Gulf allies have observed. The rebels have been appealing for years for such missiles but Washington has declined, fearing that any anti-aircraft missiles given to moderate or Islamist militias will be shared with jihadists and could be used by them to shoot down commercial airliners in the region. This prohibition is inhumane and unethical... the regimes airstrikes are causing massacres every day, Malahefji said. Assads forces have been trying to encircle rebel-held areas in the city of Aleppo for more than a year and to cut their lines of supply from Turkey. The pro-Assad forces have come close to doing so several times, but a series of offenses aimed at surrounding the rebels were repelled, often at the last minute, or quickly reversed. A crucial crossroad at Handarat, less than 10 kilometers north of Aleppo, which controls the al-Castello road into the city, is key but regime forces have failed to capture it in the past. The regime now claims to have done so. The fighting has spurred thousands of civilians to flee north of Aleppo to seek refuge in the Kurdish border city of Afrin. Aid agencies have warned many more will follow. The United Nations under-secretary general for humanitarian affairs, Stephen OBrien, told Britains Independent newspaper Wednesday that there would be grave consequences, if Aleppo is besieged by regime forces. What is happening in Syria is bad enough without something like that happening in Aleppo; but, if the situation there gets worse we will have a large population at risk and we would need to get immediate access for road convoys to provide the necessary humanitarian assistance he said. Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, Feb. 4 By Huseyn Hasanov- Trend: Prospects of cooperation between Turkmenistan and Austria in the sphere of economy and energy were discussed during a meeting in the Turkmen foreign ministry with a delegation led by the Second President of Austrian National Council Karlheinz Kopf, the Turkmen ministry said. In addition, the sides discussed participation of Austrian companies in the construction of transport infrastructure facilities in Turkmenistan. Positive dynamics of bilateral trade was also stressed at the talks. In this context, particular importance was given to the role of the joint intergovernmental Turkmen-Austrian commission, the message said. Turkmenistan is one of the promising partners in the sphere of energy security for Austria and EU. The project for construction of a gas pipeline through the bottom of the Caspian Sea to the Azerbaijani coast is one of the possible options for delivering Turkmen gas to this market. Bulk purchasing of Turkmen textile is another sphere in which Vienna has shown interest. This industry continues developing in Turkmenistan as a result of the increase in domestic processing of cultivated cotton. Moreover, Austria is interested in creating partnership with Turkmenistan in the sphere of processing agricultural products and food production. Construction, health care and tourism are also among the priorities of partnership between Austria and Turkmenistan. Australia is resisting mounting international pressure not to deport child asylum-seekers, with a minister warning Thursday that allowing them to stay could attract more refugees to come by boat. Australia's three-year-old policy of paying the tiny Pacific nation of Nauru to accommodate asylum-seekers who attempt to reach Australian shores by boat survived a challenge in the High Court on Wednesday. The test case ruling means 267 asylum-seekers, most of whom came from Nauru to Australia for medical treatment or to support a family member who needed treatment, face potential deportation back to Nauru. Child asylum-seekers Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said that asylum-seekers, including children, would be returned to Nauru once their medical needs had been met. "We have to be compassionate on one hand, but we have to be realistic about the threat from people smugglers," Dutton told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio. "We're acting in the best interests not only of these children, but children that would follow them." The government has all but stopped the trafficking of asylum-seekers from the Middle East and Asia in rickety Indonesian fishing boats during the past two years by refusing to allow new arrivals to ever settle in Australia. The government argues that the policy has saved lives because asylum-seekers were no longer drowning at sea during long and treacherous voyages from Indonesian ports. Human rights agencies have called for the asylum-seekers to be allowed to stay, with most focus on the 54 children and 37 Australian-born babies among them. Several churches around Australia have declared themselves places of sanctuary for asylum-seekers facing deportation, a symbolic gesture that carries no legal consequences for authorities. U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Rupert Colville said amendments legislated by the government last year to safeguard its deal with Nauru against the High Court challenge "significantly contravenes the letter and spirit of international human rights law." Primary consideration The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child reminded Australia that under the terms of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the best interests of the asylum-seeker children should be a primary consideration in deciding whether to deport them. The Australian Human Rights Commission, a government-funded independent agency, reported that a medical team that had examined children held an immigration detention center in the Australian city of Darwin found that many had been severely traumatized by their experiences on Nauru. The government said this week it was investigating a doctor's report that a 5-year-old boy currently in Australia had been raped on Nauru. The United Nations is reporting new cases of alleged sexual abuse and exploitation by U.N. peacekeepers in the Central African Republic. The U.N. mission in the C.A.R., MINUSCA, said it has identified seven new possible victims in the town of Bambari. According to a statement Thursday, U.N. investigators believe at least five of the victims were minors. The mission said the soldiers implicated in the cases are from the Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo, and says that both countries' governments have been asked to launch their own investigations. The U.N. was informed of the alleged abuse by Human Rights Watch, which said separately on Thursday that the incidents happened between October and December 2015. The rights group quoted an 18-year-old woman and 14-year-old girl as saying that peacekeepers ambushed them, dragged them into the grass, and gang raped them near the Bambari airport. It said other females were raped or exchanged sex for food and money. Last year, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon fired the head of the 12,000-strong MINUSCA force over a mounting number of rape and sexual exploitation cases. The latest allegations bring the number of sexual abuse cases involving U.N. peacekeepers and international troops in the Central African Republic to 33. The head of MINUSCA, Parfair Onanga-Anyanga, traveled to Bambari Thursday and expressed renewed outrage at the troop's behavior. "Sexual abuses and exploitation is a serious breach of the U.N. regulations and a human rights violation, a double crime that affects the vulnerable women and children you were sent here to protect," he said. MINUSCA said due to the gravity of the allegations, 120 Republic of Congo soldiers who were deployed to Bambari between September and December will be sent home after an ongoing investigation. It said the soldiers are currently confined to barracks. Human Rights Watch reported a total of eight new possible cases to the MINUSCA. The U.N. mission said one of the cases was previously reported and is already under investigation. Authorities in China are proclaiming a healthy job market, with the nations official unemployment rate last year standing at 4.2 percent. But some analysts are questioning the official unemployment statistics, arguing that the slowdown of the worlds second-largest economy has already, and will continue to, put pressure on its lopsided job market over the next few years. Chinas top economic planner told a press briefing on Wednesday that the unemployment rate last year for urban workers stood at 4.2 percent a figure that has consistently averaged between 4 percent and 4.3 percent for the past decade. Unemployment rate Last years unemployment rate was still below the governments 4.5 percent target, Xu Xiaoshi, chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, told reporters at the briefing. Although an investigation into 31 Chinese cities found the actual unemployment rate stood at 5.1 percent, Xu brushed off concerns over the nations unemployment predicament. As you can see, unemployment in China has rarely triggered any social conflict or even posed instability on the society. Almost none in recent years, Xu said, adding that the number of newly registered businesses reached 4.43 million last year. He said those businesses have created millions of new jobs. The official, however, admitted the governments attempts to curb overcapacity will increase unemployment in provinces such as Shanzi, Heilongjiang and Hebei, which have high outputs of steel and coal. In addition, the commission set the nation's economic growth projection range at 6.5 to 7 percent for 2016. According to a Caixin News report, the commission aims to cut excess production capacity of crude steel by 100 to 150 million tons over the next five years, citing an anonymous source. Official data has shown that steel factories churned out 800 million tons of crude steel last year, or a 71 percent utilization rate, the report added. Biggest economic woes That means nearly 20 percent of the steel sectors workforce may be eventually laid off. Already, gradual layoffs have been observed in the traditional heavy industries, said Jeff Crothall, spokesman of Hong Kong-based China Labor Bulletin. There is tremendous pressure on unemployment, particularly, in manufacturing, mining and old industries like iron and steel. A lot of people are being paid off in those areas, he said. It will be a question of how China balances its development and economic restructuring as new jobs have also been created in new industries such as service and information technology sectors, although some of them remain low-pay and low-skilled jobs, the labor activist added. With the steel and coal sectors having been the countrys biggest employers -- with workforce of 5.8 million and 3.3 million employees, respectively He Qinglian, a U.S.-based Chinese author and economist, argued that bankruptcies in these two industries will inevitably lead to massive unemployment. Calling unemployment Chinas biggest economic woe, she said she expects the number of steel companies to drop to 300, from the current 2,460, as the price of steel has declined to $0.14 per pound cheaper than cabbage while half of the countrys coal mines have shut down or suspended production. Also, the rise in labor costs has seriously threatened Chinas niche as the world factory as companies have moved to countries in Southeast Asia. More than 4,000 companies in Dongguan of Guangdong province alone are said to have shut down last year, although the official data puts the figure at one-tenth of that, she argued. Both Crothall and He called the official unemployment data seriously distorted, although its hard to gauge if the actual unemployment rate has exceeded the alarming 7 percent level as many have argued. Economic restructuring Cao Heping, professor of economics at Peking University, said the fact that the nations massive self-employed agricultural sector has been excluded in the calculation leads to the unemployment datas distortion. But he disagreed that unemployment will pose a serious challenge ahead for the local economy, which is going through its restructuring phase. He argued that the service sector, which now accounts for 51 percent of the Chinese economy, will continue its growth momentum and release more job opportunities to offset the losses of manufacturing jobs. The service sector absorbs a much bigger workforce population than that of the manufacturing sector. Therefore, the future employment problem will relatively ease, Cao said. As a result of a more cautious outlook, companies in China will be more conservative about adding new workers this year, said Arthur Wang, managing director of Robert Walters China. But the recruitment consultant added that he still expects to see a stable stream of replacement positions as companies look to upskill their teams and top quality professionals are still highly sought after. That, however, means professionals who under perform or do not have the required skills will be edged out, Wang said, expecting the recruitment market in China to mature with stable hiring and salary levels. Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos was meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama at the White House Thursday, seeking more American aid to help his country rebuild as it nears a peace agreement with left-wing guerrillas it has been fighting for a half-century. Santos said his government hopes to sign the peace accord with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known as FARC, by March 23. But he says Bogota also needs more U.S. financial assistance to rebuild roads, schools and health facilities ravaged by the fighting, as well as for reparations, mine clearance and other programs. Washington, which for 15 years has aided Bogota's fight against FARC in what it calls "Plan Colombia," is promising more aid to help implement the peace agreement but hasn't divulged how much until its 2017 spending plan is released next week. In addition, Santos wants the U.S. to remove FARC from its list of terrorist organizations and suspend drug arrest warrants against guerrilla commanders, many of whom have been participating in the peace accord negotiations in Cuba. "Any effort by the United States to allow us to apply transitional justice, for example, by suspending the arrest warrants, would help us tremendously," Santos said as left Colombia for Washington. The special U.S. envoy to the peace talks, Bernard Aronson, said Washington would consider removing FARC's terrorist designation once the group has renounced violence, given up its weapons and ended any attacks on Americans and U.S. interests in Colombia. "How it will end or what the timetable would be would be based on the conditions inside of Colombia," Aronson said. Mark Feierstein, the U.S. National Security Council's director of Western Hemisphere Affairs, said the Santos visit to Washington "recognizes one of the premier foreign policy successes for the United States," the impending end to Latin America's longest-running armed conflict that has claimed the lives of 225,000 people over the last 50 years. Plan Colombia, aimed at supporting Bogota's fight against drug cartels and FARC rebels, has been supported by a succession of U.S. presidents, including a Democrat, Bill Clinton, his Republican successor, George W. Bush, and then Obama, another Democrat. Authorities in Cologne, Germany, said Thursday that the annual Womens Street Carnival had begun peacefully. The carnival, which precedes the Christian observance of Lent and runs until Ash Wednesday on February 10, starts with the traditional "Weiberfastnacht" festivities, a day when women symbolically take charge of the city. The carnival also includes street parties, song and dance, and alcohol consumption by costumed revelers. Organizers have urged them to report any harassment to security personnel. Police have doubled the number of officers on hand compared with last year to more than 2,000. They were on alert to prevent a repeat of a shocking string of sexual assaults during New Year's celebrations. Hundreds of women in Cologne were groped and robbed by a mob of mostly North African and Arab men as the city rang in 2016. Around 1,000 complaints have been filed over the crime spree, which has ignited an intense debate about Germany's ability to integrate the 1.1 million asylum seekers it took in last year. In preparation for the carnival, police coordinated closely with their federal counterparts, fire and rescue units and others. Closed-circuit television cameras were installed and bans were imposed on known petty thieves, including suspected pickpockets who took part in the crime spree on New Year's Eve. A "security point" for women was set up, staffed by social workers and psychologists, and the local judicial system geared up to accelerate the processing of offenders during the festivities. IS suspects arrested Elsewhere, police arrested at least two Algerians suspected of having links to Islamic State. Police made the arrests in the capital, Berlin, and at a refugee home in the western town of Attendorn. The arrests were part of an investigation of four people, two of whom were not detained. A Berlin police spokesman, Stefan Redlich, said the four men were suspected of being connected to Islamic State and at least one of them was sought by Algerian authorities on suspicion of being an Islamic State member and receiving training in Syria. The men were suspected of planning an attack "threatening the security of the state," according to police. Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton face off Thursday in a Democratic presidential debate in New Hampshire, just days ahead of that state's crucial primary election. Sanders has nearly a 16-point lead over Clinton in the northeastern state, according to an average of polls by RealClearPolitics. But Clinton is looking to reduce that gap following her razor-thin victory over Sanders in this week's Iowa caucus. Since the first-in-the-nation Iowa nominating contest, Sanders and Clinton have become increasingly testy as they argue over who better represents the future of the progressive movement in America. Progressive standards At a town hall-style event Wednesday in New Hampshire, Sanders questioned the former secretary of state's liberal credentials over such issues as regulating Wall Street, campaign finance reform and her vote authorizing the 2003 invasion of Iraq when she was a U.S. senator representing New York state. "I do not know any progressive who has a super PAC and takes $15 million from Wall Street," Sanders told the audience at the CNN-hosted event, following up on a day filled with back-and-forth sparring between the two campaigns on Twitter. Clinton said her opponent has "set himself up to be the gatekeeper on who is a progressive," and that under his standards, neither President Barack Obama or Vice President Joe Biden fall under that category. She defended her record of fighting for such causes as health care. The two candidates appeared separately on Wednesday's forum. Thursday's debate in Durham, New Hampshire will be their first one-on-one debate, after ex-Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley dropped out of the race following a disappointing third-place finish in Iowa. Trump attacks On the Republican side, billionaire real estate mogul Donald Trump accused Texas Senator Ted Cruz of using underhanded tactics to win the Monday's vote in Iowa. Trump, who finished second in Iowa, wrote a Twitter message alleging that Cruz, a conservative firebrand, "didn't win Iowa, he stole it. That is why all of the polls were so wrong and why he got far more votes than anticipated. Bad!" The 69-year-old Trump, who was competing in his first election, attacked Cruz for putting out a statement, which he later retracted and apologized for, suggesting that another candidate, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson, was leaving the race and that his supporters should instead vote for Cruz. Trump also accused Cruz of lying about Trump's policies and of sending some Iowa voters a mailing designed to look like an official document that accused them of a "voter violation." The mailers gave the recipients a failing grade for not voting in past elections and said they could rectify it by voting for Cruz in Monday's caucuses. Trump called for either a new election in Iowa or nullifying Cruz's win. Neither is likely to happen and Cruz's campaign treated Trump's broadside with amusement. 'Reality just hit' "Reality just hit the reality star - he lost Iowa and now nobody is talking about him, so he's popping off on Twitter," a Cruz spokesman said. "There are support groups for Twitter addiction. Perhaps he should find his local chapter." Other candidates While the small state of New Hampshire is rural, like much of Iowa, analysts say its Republican electorate is much less religious than the group of voters that helped give Cruz a 28-to-24 percent margin over Trump in Iowa. Another conservative, Florida Senator Marco Rubio, finished a close third with 23 percent in Iowa and is looking to move higher in the New Hampshire voting. Rubio said he would seek to win over voters who supported Kentucky Senator Rand Paul, who dropped out of the race Wednesday. Pre-election voter surveys in New Hampshire show Trump with a commanding lead over his Republican challengers, but the polling was conducted before the Iowa vote debunked any thought that Trump would sweep to the nomination with wins in state-after-state party elections. Several Republican candidates, all calling themselves conservatives but minus some of the harsher rhetoric employed by Cruz, are looking to New Hampshire to revive their campaigns after poor showings in the farm state of Iowa. Ohio Governor John Kasich, endorsed by The New York Times for the Republican nomination, has campaigned for weeks in New Hampshire and has pulled to second place behind Trump in some voter surveys in the state. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said he intends to campaign hard in the state in the coming days, and he leveled new attacks on Trump and Rubio as unqualified to be president. Former Florida governor Jeb Bush, the son and brother of U.S. presidents, has made numerous political stops in New Hampshire and is looking to breathe new life into his well-funded, but stumbling, campaign. He is bringing his mother, former first lady Barbara Bush, now 90 years old, to New Hampshire to campaign for him. Republicans are set to hold a debate on Saturday. In the tiny coastal Philippine town of Bahile in Palawan province, fishermen drop off the nights catch with the local fish distributor. On the one main road that bisects the town, fish sorters load plastic tubs with the catch while children play on the shore during the sunny late morning. But the idyllic scene is set against a back drop of tension and conflict brewing off shore in the South China Sea. US troops Here and elsewhere in the Philippines, some who will be directly affected by a recent Supreme Court decision clearing the way for more U.S. troop visits are having mixed reactions. The increased rotations come at a time when the Philippines is trying to build up its military in the face of growing maritime assertiveness from China. Nicolas Ellis, a local fisherman, has been living here for more than 25 years and he said he likes this quiet life. Besides, he said, tensions between neighboring countries over who claims what in the South China Sea have not touched this small town. For decades scores of small fishing boats from Bahile have passed a naval station along the way to Ulugan Bay, less than a kilometer away. But in the past year or two, Ellis said, going to Ulugan has been nerve-wracking. The Philippines two Hamilton-class cutters that were converted into its largest warships patrol the countrys South China Sea shores and dock near a planned outpost in Oyster Bay, inside Ulugan. Affects fishermen Ellis said it happens about once a month and small boats cannot get near. They should give us a passageway, he said. Of course if the ship suddenly shines a light on you, you feel like, Why are you doing this? We are not bad people. We havent done anything wrong. But military activity in the area is expected to increase. In the next year, the Philippines is acquiring a third cutter and a research ship, both from the United States. And, under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement approved by the Supreme Court last month, more U.S. troops will visit and house equipment at local bases, including the one planned in Oyster Bay. The Philippine military has said the United States needs easy access to materiel used during times of disaster, especially in a country battered by an average of 20 typhoons per year. The U.S. has talked about the need to be here in broader terms, stating the agreement allows the ability to provide rapid humanitarian assistance and supports the Philippines military modernization program. Deterrent to China But analysts have said having the U.S. military around also serves as a deterrent to Chinas increasing assertion of its claim to practically the entire South China Sea. Apart from the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam also have competing claims in the resource-rich sea. In the past two years, China has built up contested outcroppings in the sea turning them into artificial islands. And in recent months the United States has carried out freedom of navigation rotations getting within 12 nautical miles (22 kilometers) of some of the contested outcroppings. Subic Bay, about 900 kilometers northeast of Bahile, is also anticipating the additional rotations. The fast-growing international port, where a projected 120,000 containers docked in 2015, has seen its use triple in the past three years, and that trend is expected to continue. Subic, which once housed a massive U.S. navy base, is still a regular stop for U.S. ships and submarines. Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority Chairman Roberto Garcia said those visits can contribute up to $500 million per stop to the local economy. Garcia said there is room for the Philippine warships, while Subic Bay airport, which is largely unutilized, will be a staging ground for military jets. He did not specify whether those would be only for Philippine jets or whether American military aircraft would also be using the space there. I could lease it out for large amounts of money, but, well, for me, whats important is the national security of the country. So Im willing to forego that, he said. But in Bahile, fishermen like Nicolas Ellis said keeping their quiet life is more important than the money that comes with big ships and more troops. The body of a missing Italian graduate student has been found on the outskirts of the Egyptian capital, Cairo, after his disappearance in late January. Italy's Foreign Ministry says Giulio Regeni's body was found Wednesday in a Cairo suburb along the road that leads to the city of Alexandria. He was covered with burns and other wounds, indicating he may have been tortured. Egyptian prosecutor Ahmed Nagi, who leads the investigation team in the case, said the cause of Regenis death was still being probed, adding that all of his body, including his face had bruises, cuts from stabbings and burns from cigarettes. Nagi said that appeared to have been a slow death. The Ministry summoned the Egyptian ambassador to Rome to demand "maximum cooperation" in the investigation. Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said Thursday Italy wanted a joint investigation with Egypt to establish the truth about Regeni's death. Speaking to national broadcaster RAI ((Radiotelevisione italiana)) on the sidelines of a Syria donors conference in London, Gentiloni said Italy had "firmly asked to collaborate in the investigation for the truth to fully emerge." Gentiloni said he had conveyed Italys demand earlier Thursday to his Egyptian counterpart, Sameh Shoukry. "We owe this in particular to the family that has been stricken in an irreparable way but which at least demands to know the truth," Gentiloni said. The 28-year-old Regeni was a graduate student at Britain's Cambridge University, and was in Egypt gathering research for his doctoral thesis. Authorities say he was going to meet a friend in downtown Cairo when he disappeared January 25, the fifth anniversary of the Arab Spring uprising that ousted longtime dictator Hosni Mubarak. Latin American health ministers agreed Wednesday on a public information campaign and boosted the number of medical workers to fight the mosquito-borne Zika virus, which poses the greatest threat to pregnant women. The 14 officials including Brazilian Health Minister Marcelo Castro, whose country has been hit hardest by the virus held emergency talks Wednesday in Montevideo, Uruguay. Castro said regional leaders need to "exchange information, make alliances, and discuss what coordinated action we can take to control this epidemic." Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has said her government will spare no expense in fighting the mosquito that experts say carries the virus. "My entire government is working on fighting this emergency, Rousseff said this week. There will be no lack of funding. ... We will partner up with the U.S. government, with President [Barack] Obama ... in order to develop as quickly as possible a vaccine for the Zika virus." A worrisome development intensified concerns this week when health officials in Dallas County, Texas, reported what appears to be the first Zika case in the U.S. transmitted through sexual contact. The patient apparently was infected after having sex with an ill individual who returned from a country where the virus is present. It was later reported on Twitter that the infected traveler had recently been to Venezuela. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention the top federal public health agency confirmed the Texas case. Florida Health Emergency in 4 Counties Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a public health emergency in four counties with travel-related cases of the Zika virus on Wednesday, and ordered state officials to increase mosquito control efforts in some of the most populous parts of the state. "Although Florida's current nine Zika cases were travel-related, we have to ensure Florida is prepared and stays ahead of the spread of the Zika virus in our state," Scott said in a statement. The counties are Miami-Dade in south Florida, Hillsborough in the Tampa Bay region, Lee County in southwest Florida and Santa Rosa County in the Florida Panhandle. Scott directed state officials to pay special attention to mosquito spraying in residential areas in those counties. Florida is the third most populous state in the United States. Quick action needed World Health Organization expert Anthony Costello spoke Wednesday of the need for quick action against Zika, which has the potential to spread far beyond the Americas. "We know that the mosquitoes that carry the Zika virus ... are present through most of Africa, parts of southern Europe, and many parts of Asia, particularly South Asia," he said. There is currently no treatment for Zika, but a number of global pharmaceutical houses are rapidly working on a vaccine. The Zika virus causes no symptoms in 80 percent of people bitten by the Aedes mosquito. Other people infected develop a mild rash. However, the virus is a threat to pregnant women. The WHO says the virus is strongly suspected to cause microcephaly a disease that causes babies to be born with abnormally small heads. Brazil has reported nearly 4,000 suspected cases of microcephaly since October, but experts are puzzled as to why microcephaly is nearly non-existent in other Latin countries where the virus is present. WATCH: Experts fear worst is yet to come Some information in this report from Reuters. The Zika virus rarely causes problems for the people who get it. Eighty percent don't show any symptoms, others might have a rash or a slight fever. The disease seems insignificant, but it also seems to be having a devastating effect on babies whose mothers are infected with the virus. The Zika virus erupted in Brazil last May, and now more than 4,000 babies born there are suspected of having microcephaly, an abnormally small head. The link between Zika and microcephaly has not been proven, but the World Health Organization says that until scientists come up with a better explanation, they believe the Zika virus is the cause. CDC information The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the condition is unusual that between two and 12 babies out of every 10,000 live births in the U.S. have microcephaly. The CDC website shows an image of a baby with a small head. The dashes show how big a normal baby's head should be. The CDC says microcephaly can occur when a baby's brain doesn't develop properly during pregnancy or has stopped growing after birth. Degrees of disease Babies with this disorder can have a range of other problems, depending on the severity of the condition. Microcephaly has been linked to problems with speech, standing and walking, balance, hearing and vision. But, in a Skype interview, Dr. Edward McCabe from the March of Dimes said it doesn't always have devastating consequences. "Ten to 15 percent of American babies with microcephaly are completely normal, he said. The concern is how these babies are going to develop as they get older." The key is to get the babies properly evaluated by the appropriate professionals. "That will usually include a neurologist to see what their assessment is, what they conclude caused this microcephaly, doing an ultrasound of the brain, doing an MRI of the head, but the important thing is to follow the baby clinically, and it doesn't hurt to have early intervention," McCabe said. Intervention might include physical or speech therapy. McCabe also said not every baby will have the same outcome. "Our knowledge of microcephaly prior to the Zika virus association is that there is a spectrum that stretches from normal, even high intelligence, through the spectrum in terms of developmental delay," he said. Unknowns frustrating Not much is known about Zika, including when it is most likely to cause a fetal brain to stop developing, assuming that is true. But doctors suspect the most dangerous time for a woman to acquire the Zika virus is in the first trimester of pregnancy. "From a developmental perspective, the first three months of a pregnancy is when the brain is most actively developing its structure, and what will be important to later function," McCabe said. Like other scientists, McCabe is frustrated by the lack of scientific information available on the Zika virus and its link to microcephaly. "We need more data," he said. Until more is known, doctors are telling pregnant women not to travel to regions that have the Zika virus. Pregnant women in South and Central America and the Caribbean, and those who may become pregnant, are told to wear long-sleeved shirts, long pants and hats, and use an insect repellent with DEET on any uncovered skin. And that, in itself, is concerning. The CDC says DEET is safe for pregnant women to use, but it cautions against spraying clothes. "You don't want the prolonged exposure of having DEET on your clothing, McCabe said, so by wearing the long-sleeved shirts, long pants, the hat, you are decreasing the area of your skin that needs to be exposed to DEET and, therefore, decreasing your exposure." Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Khalid Kazimov - Trend: Iran's economic affairs and finance minister announced that Renault and Iran's SAIPA automaker will sign a contract during current month. Iran's current month, Bahman, will end on Feb. 22. During an interview with Japanese Nikkei, Minister Ali Tayebnia said that Iran offers significant opportunities for automakers. Iran can also serve as an export base to neighboring countries in Central Asia and other areas, Tayebnia said on Feb. 4. French automakers are rushing to strike major deals, with Peugeot planning to form a 50-50 joint production venture with Iran Khodro, an Iranian automaker. Renault is expected to forge a similar alliance with SAIPA, another Iranian carmaker, "maybe this month," Tayebnia said. He also called on Toyota Motor and other Japanese automakers to actively invest in Iran and transfer their technology. Tayebnia said he wants to see Japanese automakers invest in Iran as much as, or more than their French rivals. Venezuela's murder rate fell last year to 58 per 100,000 inhabitants, the government said on Tuesday, but the violence-racked nation remains one of the world's most dangerous. "This indicator is extremely worrying because it confirms we have a grave problem of violent crime," the state's chief prosecutor Luisa Ortega told parliament, giving the figure. Though that figure was an improvement on the official murder rate of 62 per 100,000 in 2014, violent crime remains an all-pervasive worry for Venezuela's 29 million people, especially in poor slums run by gangs and rife with guns. Numerous state security plans and disarmament drives in recent years have failed to curb violence in Venezuela where easy access to arms, police participation in crime, and high levels of impunity have allowed delinquency to flourish. Only Honduras has a worse murder rate than Venezuela, according to the United Nations. Local rights groups say Venezuela's murder rate is higher than the official statistics, with one monitoring organization putting it at 90 per 100,000 people in 2015. Pyongyangs defiant pursuit of nuclear weapons is forcing countries in northeast Asia to either support crippling sanctions or ultimately recognize North Korea as a nuclear state. North Korea's most recent perceived provocation came Tuesday when it announced a plan to launch an "Earth observation satellite" sometime February 8-25. Pyongyang maintains the rocket launch is part of its peaceful space program, but it has been widely denounced as a hostile pretense intended to circumvent a United Nations ban imposed on North Korea's nuclear and ballistic-missile programs. Washington, Seoul and Tokyo have warned Pyongyang that it will face significant consequences if it goes forward with the planned launch. South Koreas hard line In South Korea virtually all talk of peaceful engagement with the North ceased and exchanges were canceled after North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test on January 6. This weeks there are reports that Seoul will consider closing the Kaesong Industrial Complex if Pyongyang follows through with its planned rocket launch. The jointly run Kaesong project, which employs over 50,000 North Koreans, is the last surviving inter-Korean development program. Virtually all other inter-Korean ties and assistance programs were severed in 2010 after South Korea accused the North of sinking a navy warship and killing 46 sailors. President Park Geun-hyes strong support for harsh international sanctions against the Kim Jong Un government has bolstered South Koreas relationship with the United States. But at the same time, it seems to have strained South Koreas previously growing ties and friendship with China. (Chinese President) Xi Jinping has chosen not to communicate in a meaningful fashion with the government of the Republic of Korea, or with President Park Geun-hye, who he has closely cultivated over a period of time, said Jonathan Pollack, an East Asia policy analyst with the Brookings Institution in Washington. Chinas predicament China seems to be caught between opposing North Koreas nuclear program and supporting its ally. Beijing has been reluctant to support harsh sanctions and has called on all sides to resume international negotiations to work out a deal to dismantle the Norths nuclear weapons program in exchange for economic assistance and security guarantees. However, Pyongyangs hard-line position, that its nuclear weapons program is necessary for national defense and non-negotiable, leaves little room for a Beijing-engineered compromise. By not supporting strong punitive measures, critics say, China is basically condoning North Koreas behavior. By simply returning to the table, not really doing anything or imposing any consequences, real consequence on North Korea, then you have acquiesced and accepted them under that status, said Daniel Pinkston, a lecturer in international relations with Troy University in Seoul. There is also concern that U.S. or U.N. sanctions imposed on Pyongyang could actually inflict more collateral damage on China, because North Korea is already so isolated and economically dependent on its neighbor for fuel, trade and assistance. Proposed restrictions on border trade as well as third parties that do business with North Korea could disproportionately target Chinese companies and banks. The more immediate implication is whether or not as a consequence of North Koreas actions, the United States in collaboration with the ROK and prospectively with Japan, undertake strategic activities, security activities in Northeast Asia that impinge on China, even if theyre not intended to address China, Pollack said. More active role North Koreas increasing nuclear capability continues to be a key justification for Prime Minister Shinzo Abes efforts to push for a more assertive military role in the region and to justify easing restrictions placed upon its military by the countrys post World War Two pacifist constitution. If we have a consistent demonstration of success in an intermediate range ballistic missile, this will clearly raise the threshold, I think, for Tokyo in thinking about what needs to happen in terms of extended deterrent, said Sheila Smith, a regional analyst at the Council on Foreign Relations. After the recent North Korean nuclear test, Tokyo reaffirmed its strong alliance with Washington and its support for strong international sanctions. In anticipation of a North missile launch, Japan has also put its ballistic-missile defense units on alert, including Aegis destroyers in the Sea of Japan and Patriot missile batteries onshore. U.S. President Barack Obama says religious faith can help people overcome their fears and embrace their "common humanity." "Faith is the great cure for fear," Obama told the annual National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, a day after he visited an American mosque for the first time in his presidency. Obama said his own Christian faith has given him strength to overcome common everyday fears, such as for the safety of his daughter Malia as she leaves the White House later this year and heads to college, but also for the fears he has faced as president in sending the country's troops into overseas military operations. He said fear can lead people to "lash out at those who are different" and lead to desperation and cynicism. But Obama said he has drawn strength from "good people of all faiths who do the Lord's work every day. I pray that our differences are ultimately bridged, that the God in all of us brings us together." Obama was appearing at the prayer breakfast for the eighth and final time, with his presidency ending next January. WATCH: Obama speaks at National Prayer Breakfast Support for US Muslims In Baltimore a day earlier, Obama told Muslims at the Islamic Society of Baltimore, "We are one American family." The president thanked Muslim Americans for helping make the country strong, but acknowledged what he said is a "hugely distorted" negative view they have had to endure with the rise of terrorism-related violence by Islamist extremists. Obama said that after the terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California late last year, some people have conflated "terrorism with the beliefs of an entire faith. The American leader attacked anti-Muslim rhetoric by some U.S. political figures. Of course recently, weve heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim Americans. It has no place in our country, Obama said. The president has criticized remarks by Republican presidential candidates Donald Trump, Ted Cruz and others in recent months. Trump called for all Muslims to be barred from entering the country for a period of time, and Cruz suggested that the United States resettle only Christian Syrian refugees. More than two dozen U.S. governors also have signaled they will try to block Syrian refugees from settling in their states. Critics of the Obama administrations plan to resettle immigrants from Syria and Iraq argue that they pose a greater security threat. President Barack Obamas visit to a U.S. mosque Wednesday sent a strong message of support to American Muslims and, according to one scholar, continued a long tradition of U.S. presidents defending religious freedom. For much of Obamas presidency, now in its eighth year, Muslim community leaders have urged him to visit a mosque in the United States, just as he has overseas. His stop at the Islamic Society of Baltimore, "as overdue as it is, is symbolically quite important," Omid Safi, director of the Duke Islamic Studies Center in North Carolina, said in an email to VOA. "In an age where [Republican] presidential candidates are talking about national registries for Muslims, of shutting down mosques and banning Muslim refugees," Safi continued, the presidents visit "is a simple but powerful affirmation of the fact that American Muslims are a part of the mosaic of American society. Hopefully, it will serve as a reminder of the need to affirm the full rights of all of us, regardless of faith and ethnicity." Gary Scott Smith, historian and author of the 2015 book "Religion in the Oval Office," said he thinks the mosque visit was "a good move on [Obama's] part and shows some solidarity with Muslims to speak out on religious freedom." Religious defender in chief Smith described the role of U.S. president as "our interpreter in chief, our spiritual leader in some ways," defending the nations founding principles of religious liberty and tolerance. "Thats happened throughout our history." "In the absence of a national church and therefore someone to function as the Archbishop of Canterbury or the pope we often look to the president not only as a national spokesperson" but also as "a religious spokesperson on important civil matters," said Smith, history department chairman at Grove City College in western Pennsylvania. Often, those civil matters involve tragedy, such as the terrorist plane attacks of September 11, 2001, or a radicalized couples mass shooting attack in San Bernardino, California in December. Muslim extremists have been blamed in those incidents and others and after each, Muslim American communities have reported experiencing hate crimes and bias. Obama, in public comments, has resisted using the phrase "radical Islam." He explained his avoidance of the term at a conference last February, saying, "We are not at war with Islam. We are at war with people who have perverted Islam." Obama has described himself as a Christian of deep faith, one who, through his upbringing in Hawaii and Indonesia, also has been exposed to Eastern and Muslim influences. Yet some persist in wrongly identifying him as Muslim, insinuating hes somehow un-American and, by extension, that other U.S. practitioners of the faith are, too. A CNN/ORC poll last year showed 29 percent of Americans and 43 percent of Republicans believe the president is a Muslim. A new Pew Research Center poll shows 49 percent of Americans believe "at least 'some' U.S. Muslims are anti-American, including 11 percent who say 'most' or 'almost all'" fit that category. The United States has an estimated 3.3 million Muslims, representing roughly 1 percent of the U.S. population, according to Pew. But because Muslims have the nations highest fertility rate, by 2050 they could become the nations second most-populous faith group after Christianity. The new Pew poll shows half of Americans want the next president to refrain from criticizing Islam as a whole. But another 40 percent of Americans want blunt, tough talk about Islamist extremists. That percentage rises to two-thirds (65 percent) of Republicans and those leaning toward the GOP. Another new survey, conducted by the Council on American-Islamic Relations, shows American Muslims favor Democrats in upcoming presidential primary elections. A history of complaints Historian Smith pointed out that Muslims arent the only faith group to feel besieged at times. "Weve had all kinds of religious groups saying their rights have been impinged upon," he said, noting that, for decades, theres been "this perception that Christianity is being pushed out of the public square. ... Its not just Muslims who are concerned about their freedom to worship." Even the countrys first chief executive, George Washington, felt compelled to send "letters to various groups, including Jews, basically promising them that, as long as he was president, they were free to worship God as they chose," Smith said. But, especially since the 20th century, "theres been this trend toward ecumenicism," Smith added, citing presidents such as John F. Kennedy, a Catholic, and Jimmy Carter, a Southern Baptist, deliberately avoiding any show of favoritism. " Weve gotten more inclusive over time as weve had more religious communities in the United States." Correction: Grove City College is in western Pennsylvania, not in Philadelphia, as initially reported. WATCH: Visiting Mosque, Obama Condemns Violence Against Muslim Americans A senior Obama administration official told lawmakers on Capitol Hill Wednesday that accepting Syrian refugees into the United States actually increases U.S. security. In a clash with House Republicans at a Wednesday hearing over accepting Iraqi and Syrian refugees, U.S. Citizenship and Immigrations Services Director Leon Rodriguez delivered a strong defense of the Syrian Resettlement program. Rodriguez said he believes it boosts U.S national security to offer shelter to victims of Islamic State terror because it destroys the groups narrative that the West is against Islam. Several Republican members of the House Homeland Security Committee had expressed security concerns, saying their states do not want to admit refugees from war zones in the Middle East who have not been vetted. Republican Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul cited recent arrests and the mass shooting in San Bernardino in December: Just last month, the FBI arrested two Iraqis in the United States on terror-related charges. Both were inspired by ISIS, one had traveled to Syria, and both had entered our country as refugees. In December, two ISIS fanatics in San Bernardino launched a heinous attack that left 14 dead and 22 wounded. One of these terrorists came into the United States already radicalized on a fiance visa. Officials from the Department of Homeland Security explained that refugees admitted into the U.S. from Iraq and Syria face a thorough screening process that takes an average of 18-24 months. The officials said about 2,000 Syrians have been admitted to the U.S. since the brutal conflict in Syria began. Thirty Syrians were denied acceptance outright and several hundred are on hold pending further investigation. Social Media Several Republican lawmakers at the hearing asked if, in the aftermath of the recent San Bernardino, California attacks, the Department of Homeland Security is now monitoring the social media accounts of those applying for refugee status. Rodriguez explained: At this point, with respect to the Syrian refugee stream, we are reviewing social media in those cases where there are existing flags of concern. We are building as quickly as we can to build to a point where we would in fact be screening the entire body of Syrian refugee applicants. Several Democratic committee members asked if the Department of Homeland Security had the resources it needs to conduct comprehensive screenings. The DHS officials at the hearing said the department has the funding to hire more linguists and other staff members if needed. McCaul led a push late last year to pass the SAFE Act in the House of Representatives. The act virtually halts the resettlement of Iraqi and Syrian refugees by adding additional layers of security to the process. Senate Democrats were able to block a similar bill in the Senate last month, threatening to force Republicans to vote on an amendment containing the proposal by Republican candidate Donald Trump to bar all Muslims from entering the United States. President Barack Obama has said he would veto any attempt to block Syrian and Iraqi refugees. Afghanistans spy chief visited Pakistan Thursday for bilateral talks with his Pakistani counterparts on building mutual trust for effective intelligence sharing and counterterrorism cooperation. Intelligence sources told VOA that Masoud Andarabi, the head National Directorate of Security (NDS), met with Lt. General Rizwan Akhtar, the Director General of Inter Services Intelligence (ISI). The Pakistani side said it presented evidence to show fugitive Pakistani militants are using Afghan soil to attack Pakistan. Bacha Khan University attack Islamabad alleges the deadly January 20 Bacha Khan University attack in the northwestern town of Charsada was planned and directed from the eastern Afghan border region. At least 21 people, mostly students, were killed and all four attackers were shot dead in a firefight with security forces. Pakistani officials, citing phone intercepts and interrogation from detained suspected facilitators, said the carnage was masterminded by Khalifa Umer Mansoor, commander of a splinter Pakistani Taliban faction, who is allegedly sheltering on the Afghan side of the border. There was no immediate reaction from Afghan authorities, though Kabul has already denied charges its soil is being used the plan attacks against Pakistan. Mistrust and suspicions Mutual terror allegations, years of mistrust and suspicions have marred bilateral relations and prevented Pakistan and Afghanistan from establishing closer security ties to fight terrorism. Separately, a high-level Afghan military delegation visited Pakistani army headquarters in Rawalpindi for talks on security and border management issues. The crucial military and intelligence chiefs talks happened ahead of Saturdays meeting in Islamabad of senior diplomats from Afghanistan, Pakistan, the United States and China to promote Afghan peace and reconciliation efforts. Afghan peace talks The four-way contact group has held two meetings since early January and has been tasked with laying the ground for resurrecting direct peace talks between the Afghan government and Taliban representatives to end hostilities in Afghanistan. The insurgent group, which is allegedly using sanctuaries in Pakistan, has not yet indicated whether it supports the four-way official peace process, or intends to come to the table for negotiations with Kabul. Afghan and U.S. officials insist Pakistan, particularly its spy agency, ISI, can influence the insurgents to push them to the negotiating table. Pakistani officials, however, deny suggestions they control the affairs of the Taliban, insisting Islamabad can only use its "limited influence" with the Afghan insurgency to persuade it to come to the peace talks. A Pakistani Islamist leader accused of masterminding the 2008 Mumbai attacks that killed more than 160 people has threatened that India faces a wave of violence unless it stops military oppression of the people in the disputed Kashmir region. Hafiz Saeed, the founder of Lashkar e-Tayyiba (LeT), which India blames for the Mumbai carnage, issued the warning while addressing a gathering in Muzaffarabad, the capital of the Pakistani administered portion of Kashmir. He again told New Delhi to withdraw its 700,000-member army from the Himalayan region or face consequences. If you [India] continue with your policy of trying to crush Kashmirs independence struggle with your military might, then listen to me, this problem will not stay within Sri Nagar. It has already reached Pathankot. It will go further, warned Saeed. An attack on an Indian airbase in Pathankot last month left seven Indian soldiers dead. New Delhi claims the attackers came from Pakistan. Pakistani authorities swiftly promised to help India investigate the violence but has since insisted India needs to provide more evidence for the investigation to move forward. The gathering Saeed addressed was organized ahead of the so-called Friday's Kashmir Day", which Pakistan celebrates annually to express solidarity with Kashmiris fighting Indian rule. The United States also accuses the Pakistani cleric of being behind the Mumbai attacks and announced a bounty of $10 million for information leading to his arrest. Saeed participated in the planning of the 4-day-long terrorist assault on Mumbai in November 2008 that left 166 people dead, including six U.S. citizens, according to a U.S. State Department press release from 2012 announcing the reward. The United Nations Security Council added Saeed to the list of individuals subject to international sanctions after the attacks on Mumbai. Pakistan has detained and put on trial several suspected members of LeT in connection with the Mumbai attacks and insists India has not provided enough evidence linking Saeed with the incident. A senior Pakistan foreign ministry official, when contacted by VOA, refused to comment on Saeeds threatening statement. Saeeds statement comes at a time when relations between India and Pakistan are once again uncertain. Earlier, months of tension and strong rhetoric against each other had given way to hopes for an improvement after a surprise visit by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the wedding of Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharifs granddaughters wedding in December. The visit was to be followed up by a meeting between the foreign secretaries of the two countries. However, that meeting was postponed following the Pathankot attack. Saeed currently heads an Islamist charity called Jamaat ud Dawa and its sister foundation Falah e-Insaniyat. But the United States claims that these are new faces of LeT and has designated both of them as terrorist organizations. Hundreds more American troops are serving in Iraq than previously acknowledged by the Pentagon, U.S. officials said Wednesday. The Pentagon had said there were 3,550 U.S. forces on the ground in Iraq to train and equip local security forces in the fight against Islamic State. But the Defense Department has now increased that number to 3,870 troops. Baghdad-based U.S. military spokesman Colonel Steve Warren went even further Wednesday, saying it was "fair to say" that there are hundreds more troops than even that figure, arguing that it is part of the natural rotation of incoming and outgoing forces. The troop presence is small compared with the figure from the height of the Iraq War, when the United States had nearly 160,000 in-country troops during the "surge." But the Iraq War officially ended at the end of 2011 and the United States pulled its combat troops from the country. When President Barack Obama in 2014 launched airstrikes against Islamic State jihadists in Iraq and Syria, he said there would be no American boots on the ground. Military officials have gotten around that pledge by stressing the U.S. forces are not present in a combat role. A new survey revealed a sharp difference between Democrats and Republicans on how the next president of the United States should discuss Islamic extremism. The Pew Research Center study found 65 percent of Republicans, or those who lean Republican, want President Barack Obama's successor to speak bluntly about Islamic extremism, even if the statements are critical of Islam as a whole. However, 70 percent of Democrats, or those who lean Democratic, think the next president should speak more carefully. Overall though, half of all Americans want the next president not to denounce Islam as a whole when talking about Islamic extremism. The survey, which was conducted last month, also found that nearly half of those asked believe that some Muslim citizens hold anti-American attitudes, including 11 percent who believe that "most" or "almost all" U.S. Muslims are anti-American. Previous study A previous survey, conducted in December by the Pew Research Center, found nearly half of Americans think Islam is more likely than other religions to encourage violence, with a similar number saying they are "very concerned" about the rise of Islamic extremism in the U.S. But the current survey by Pew finds that nearly two-thirds of Americans believe the bigger problem is that religion is being used by violent people to justify their actions. Obama visited an Islamic mosque in Baltimore Wednesday, where he acknowledged the hugely distorted negative view Muslim-Americans have had to endure with the rise of terrorism-related violence by Islamist extremists. A corruption crisis unfolding in Moldova has given a boost to Russia-leaning political parties, say analysts, even as the country remains on a pro-Europe path. Protesters in January stormed the parliament building in the capital, Chisinau, and demanded new elections after the closed-door, midnight inauguration of Pavel Filip, the third prime minister in the past year. The pro-European coalition is connected to Moldovas most powerful oligarch, Vladimir Plahotniuc, who is accused of running the country through bribes and intimidation. Moldovas president, Nicolae Timofti, publicly accused Plahotniuc of pressuring him and his family in an attempt to be nominated prime minister. From the very beginning, from the times when this so-called pro-European coalition was created, Mr. Plahotniuc exercised control on [the] general prosecutor, [and on the] anti-corruption center, says program director at the Institute for Public Policy in Chisinau, Oazu Nantoi. Mr. Plahotniuc has a number of docile judges. He is the owner of media holdings, he says. So, Mr. Plahotniuc has a very strong tool for small Moldova... to manipulate public opinion and to use first of all justice in [his] own interest, concludes Nantoi. Anti-corruption not anti-EU The political establishment has been shaken since a 2014 corruption scandal in which $1 billion, nearly 13 percent of GDP, disappeared from banks in Moldova, one of Europe's poorest countries. The embezzlement came to light just before Moldova signed a landmark association agreement with the European Union, along with Georgia and Ukraine. The missing funds led to a financial crisis, street protests and the arrest in September of former prime minister Vlad Filat. His successor lost a vote of confidence. Political analysts say the pro-European coalitions tainted reputation has led to a shift that could see Russia-leaning parties gain power; but, it is corruption, not a European future, that Moldovas public is moving against, says Carnegie Endowment visiting scholar Balazs Jarabik. The country is leaning toward Europe. That's a fact by any polls, he says. He adds, There's nobody [who] wants a Putin rule in Moldova. That's what the protest is about, right? We shouldn't have an oligarch, a shady oligarch, in the government telling us how to live. Moldovan banks have also been flagged for Russian money laundering. It is suspected that as much as $20 billion, more than double Moldovas annual GDP, went through Moldovan banks between 2010 and 2014. Even if Russia-leaning parties eventually gain power in Moldova, says Jarabik, they are not likely to try to undo the association agreement with the European Union. I don't see a sweeping Russian support for making such a U-turn, he says. Also, the Ukrainian case is showing the Moldovans [that] U-turns may have heavy casualties, literally. Moldova similar to Ukraine An ongoing protest camp in Chisinau, and rumors of Russian funding, have raised reverse comparisons with Ukraine's 2013-2014 Maidan uprising that led to the ouster of a Russia-backed president. Political analysts say there are similarities with Ukraines uprising, although violence seems less likely in Moldova as both the protesters and government are showing restraint. Both movements, however, were against corruption and oligarchy and punctuated by locally broadcast Russian state media propaganda demonizing the EU. Moldova also has a separatist region of Russian-speakers in Trans-Dniester, which broke away in 1990, with Russian troops and the desire to join Russia. I think Russia could do much more harm if Russia would like to, says Jarabik. I think it's much more in the case of Moldova, particularly after Ukraine, that Russia is kind of much more restrained than using its potential soft power and other tools. He adds, I think we kind of see a similar reaction from the West. Both the European Union as well as the U.S. government are much more restrained when it comes to statement(s) on what is happening now. So, I think the Ukrainian crisis is clearly making the geopolitical actors much more careful when it comes to a very small country. While Ukraines population is about 17 percent ethnic Russian, Moldovas is much less at about 6 percent. And while political divisions in Ukraine were stark, in Moldova, both pro-EU and pro-Russian opposition have teamed up to demand new elections. Nantoi says although the unity is "fragile," it will only last until elections, the positive precedent has been set that the target is Moldovas corrupt politicians. Corruption is the most dangerous phenomenon in the case of Moldova, says Nantoi, not Putin's Russia. Preeclampsia is a mysterious disease, experts say, striking up to 60 percent of pregnant women globally. It is marked by high blood pressure and the presence of protein in the urine. Untreated, preeclampsia can progress to eclampsia, which can cause seizures and lead to comas. Eclampsia causes 13 percent of maternal deaths around the world. The only treatment is pre-term delivery, but doing so puts the newborn at high risk of death. Premature birth also increases the chances of learning disabilities and cerebral palsy in the baby. The condition can only be diagnosed after a physician assesses all the symptoms. Researchers, however, have developed a simple urine test that can tell doctors in three minutes whether a pregnant woman has developed preeclampsia. How it works Kara Rood of Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center in Columbus led the study, in which a drop of the pregnant woman's urine is placed on a piece of paper that contains a red dye called Congo red. The test detects proteins in the urine that have an abnormal shape in women with preeclampsia, according to Rood. "When we discovered this, what we were able to do is look at other diseases that have this misfolded protein, such as Alzheimer's [disease], Rood said. Then we were able to add Congo red dye that is a dye that pathologists actually use to diagnose Alzheimer's after somebody has died. And we added that to the urine of pregnant women with preeclampsia, and it actually attaches these proteins in the misfolded, abnormal ones." Effectiveness, benefits The test was 89 percent effective in detecting the condition in a clinical trial of 343 women at Ohio State who were suspected of having preeclampsia. Since early delivery is the only treatment for preeclampsia, Rood said knowing the mother's status could save the life of the baby by extending the pregnancy. "Where preeclampsia is progressive, sometimes you can get a little more time out of the pregnancy if you have the ability to monitor the mom and the baby closely," she said. Rood presented the findings Feb. 4 at a meeting of the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia. The researchers have partnered with a company to develop the test for general use in the hope of getting it to obstetricians in the next few years. Human rights groups are calling on Cameroon to improve the conditions at its poor and chronically overcrowded prisons. Rights advocates say inadequate sanitation, food, water, as well as torture are rife in the prisons. Penda Emmanuel, 26, jailed in Cameroon's Yoko prison for four years, says he was handed a seven-year sentence for aggravated theft and attempted murder. Emmanuel said he was detained in a Yaounde prison for two years before being transferred to Yoko. "No, it is not good because in Yoko, first of all, there is no food. People are living, but with hunting [a select group are prisoners who are at the end of their sentences go hunting with prison guards for food, then share with fellow prison mates], all those type of things," he said. "That means if you are in the prison of Yoko you will suffer too much." Pem Clement, who has also been serving a life sentence for murder, says lack of food and drinkable water, torture, and inhumane treatment provoked a prison break less than 10 years ago, when he was brought to Yoko prison. Clement says the government called for troops from the capital, Yaounde, before a reign of terror and massacres was reduced. He says people were asked not to go out after 6:00 pm and helicopters flew above to shoot at prisoners who were hiding in the bushes and had been raping women. Many of them were killed he says, adding that he does not know how many could have escaped. Beyond maximum capacity Cameroon's 78 prisons are built for a maximum capacity of 16,000 inmates. They now host 30,000 people with a majority of them still awaiting trial. Some of the prisons, like the Kondengui prison in Yaounde, were constructed to hold only 500 inmates. Today it holds more than 2,000 inmates. Che Mutta Divine, chairperson of Cameroon's National Commission on Human Rights and Freedoms, says her group is calling on the government to respect the rights of the prisoners by meeting their basic needs and giving them access to a fair trial. "You can not be denying what is commonly known and where evidence is available," she said. "Rather, accept that violations are going [on], find the root causes and see how you can eradicate [them] to see that that is not happening again." Yoko prison registrar Mepui David says there have been efforts to improve conditions at the facility. He says the prison population has fallen from 3,000 inmates two years ago to less than 100 today. According to David the government has done a lot to improve living conditions in his prison, but they still face an acute water shortage. He refutes allegations that his prison has swelled from the arrest and detention of suspected Boko Haram terrorists who have been attacking northern Cameroon, Nigeria and Chad in an effort to create an Islamist state. Amnesty International reported in September 2015 that prisons in Cameroon were receiving a large number of Boko Haram suspects. It said the Maroua prison near Cameroon's border with Nigeria, which was constructed to hold less than 500 inmates, was nearly half filled with Boko Haram suspects. The report also found that 1,300 prisoners were housed without proper hygiene and health care. Cameroon has denied the accusations. A Russian military adviser in Syria has reportedly been killed by mortar fire blamed on Islamic State. The Russian defense ministry said Wednesday the unidentified officer was fatally wounded Monday while "carrying out tasks of helping the Syrian army familiarize itself with new weapons." The ministry did not indicate exactly where the incident took place, but said it would posthumously award the officer a medal. The officer is the third Russian to be killed in Syria since Moscow sent in military advisers and launched airstrikes against Islamic State and others it calls "terrorists." The United States and other Western governments accuse Russia of mainly targeting opponents of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and say the air campaign is actually intended to prop up the leader's government. Nearly two years have passed since the disappearance of MH370, the Malaysia Airlines flight that vanished on its way from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people on board. A U.S. firm, Phoenix International, will rejoin the search next week aboard a Chinese vessel, which will join three Dutch ships in scouring the Indian Ocean. The underwater search will take place in the southern Indian Ocean, off the west coast of Australia. Phoenix International's side scan sonar, which can create an image of large areas of the sea floor, will be towed from the Chinese Rescue Ship Dong Hai Jiu 101. Experts say the Phoenix Synthetic Aperture Sonar is more accurate than the traditional 75 kHz side sonars that were previously used. According to Phoenix officials, the SAS provides a "higher degree of resolution," especially at the outer ranges of sonar. It also allows 24-hour access to instant data with less need for battery replacement. "We fully understand and appreciate the magnitude of this effort, and we look forward to assisting the ATSB [Australian Transport Safety Bureau] in finding MH370 and bringing closure to those impacted by this tragic event," said Mike Kutzleb, President of Phoenix. Phoenix has assisted in the search before; it was first contracted three months after the plane disappeared. Unusual discoveries MH370 is thought to have gone down in some of the most remote ocean stretches in the world. Numerous underwater searches have failed to locate debris on areas of the ocean floor that are yet unmapped and up to 6,000 meters deep. The area is fraught with unforeseen danger. An Australian search report mentions "underwater mountains, crevasses, ridges and 2,000-meter sheer cliffs." Last month, an underwater sonar device, called a towfish, slammed into a 2,200-meter high mud volcano. The cable snapped and the towfish along with 4,500 meters of cable plummeted to the ocean floor. Experts say it is possible to recover the equipment at a later date. Over the course of the search, two previously unknown shipwrecks have been found. In January 2016, sonar photos revealed a strange object. The Shipwreck Galleries of the Western Australian Museum determined the object was a ship made of steel or iron from the turn of the 19th century. Last May, debris was located from the wreck of another ship. The largest object in the shape of a box was about six meters. Crash's cause, best guess Without any substantial debris to study, the Australian Defense Science and Technology Group (DST) says the most likely cause of the plane crash was a right engine flame-out, followed by a left engine flame-out. The analysis took into account the amount of fuel loaded in Kuala Lumpur and the amount used in each engine before the plane's final transmission. Flame-outs occur when a jet fuel in a tank is depleted. The report continues, "It is estimated that the left engine could have continued to run for up to 15 minutes after the right engine flamed out." The only confirmed wreckage of Flight 370 to be recovered was a flaperon that washed up on Reunion Island in July of last year. Last month, a large portion of plane wreckage was found off the coast of Thailand, igniting speculation that it could be from MH370. But Malaysian investigators said the debris was not from the same type of Boeing 777 as the mysteriously missing aircraft. Completing the search The complete search area is 120,000 square kilometers off the west coast of Australia. Recent commitments by the People's Republic of China to provide funding and equipment, coupled with Malaysia's ongoing financial contributions, will ensure the thorough completion of the remaining 45,000 square kilometers of the search area," according to a statement from Australian officials leading the search effort. Investigators say they will end all search efforts in June 2016. Serbia is demanding clarification from Turkey after pro-government media outlets reported that a rented Serbian sniper fighting for the Kurdish PKK rebels had been killed by Turkish security teams. The Serbian news agency Tanjug and other media said the Serbian ambassador to Turkey had gone to the Turkish Foreign Ministry and that the Turkish ambassador to Serbia had been summoned to the Serbian Foreign Ministry. Serbian media could not confirm the Turkish reports of the sniper. The Turkish government has offered no confirmation of the alleged incident. Most of the reports in the Turkish media about rented Serbian snipers were attributed to intelligence units, without any names or affiliations. Most mainstream Turkish media did not report the story. The staunchly pro-government daily Yeni Safak reported that a Serbian sniper hired by the PKK had been captured in the border town of Cizre in southeastern Turkey. Another pro-government daily, Vatan, reported that one Serbian sniper had been killed by Turkish forces and another had been caught in that PKK stronghold. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said only that foreign snipers who were fighting for the PKK in Turkeys Kurdish cities had been killed. Turkish Interior Minister Efkan Ala later called the stories of Serbian snipers speculation and baseless. We do not disclose information about their nationalities, he said. Longtime tension The reports are stirring old tensions. The Balkans were under Turkish control for about 500 years during the Ottoman Empire, and brutal wars ensued after independence. That history has long undermined relations between Turkey and Serbia. Serbia took offense in 2013 when then-Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed solidarity with the former Serbian province of Kosovo, which gained its independence in 2008. Three years earlier, a pro-Turkish government newspaper said the PKK was using Serbian snipers to try to kill Turkish generals. The newspaper also claimed Serbian snipers killed 250 Bosnians during the Balkan wars. But in recent years, Belgrade and Ankara have tried to keep good relations. Serbian authorities said that if reports of a Serbian sniper in the PKK were true, they wanted to help Turkey curb the practice. The embassy expects to be officially informed about the case by the Turkish side, so the relevant Turkish and Serbian institutions can work together on its clarification in the aim of the fight against terrorism," the Serbian Embassy said in a statement. But Ali Akel, a journalist-commentator from Turkey, told VOA the Turkish reports were less about Serbia and more about discrediting the PKK and demonstrating its violent ways. The sniper reports came as Turkey is facing blistering international criticism of its violent crackdown against Kurdish rebels and predominately Kurdish towns in southeastern Turkey. Sometimes the foreign fighters are Armenians, sometimes as in this case they happen to be Serbians or uncircumcised non-Muslims, Akel said. It is done for spreading fabricated information. It is a sort of psychological war. Sierra Leone released 55 people from quarantine Wednesday after declaring them Ebola free. The dozens of people were quarantined last month after two new cases of the virus were confirmed. Sidi Yahya Tunis, spokesperson for public health emergency operations in the Sierra Leone ministry of health, said those release had been declared Ebola free by the World Health Organization. Tunis said the Sierra Leone people should be reassured that no matter what, the country now has the means to control any new cases of the Ebola virus. These are people that were mainly close relatives to the index case. A good number of them also were involved with washing of the body and also taking part in the burial and funeral process of the index case," he said. Incubation period Tunis said the people had been in quarantine for the past 21 days and had completed their 21-day incubation period. He said health officials want to contact a number of people, perhaps about 50 from the northern town of Kambia, for testing because they are considered as high risk. While we discharged quite a huge number of close relatives and people who were involved with the funeral of the index case, we also have quite a good number of relatives and people she shared apartment with when she visited Kambia District. So, these people we are still searching for because we want to be sure that we have eliminated every risk that is still out there, Tunis said. He said while Sierra Leone is not rejoicing for this somewhat temporary victory, it at the same wants to reassure the people that it now has the means to control any new cases of the Ebola virus. This was not really about celebration. This was more about reassuring the people that no matter what the situation is, at least now we have what it takes to contain and control incidences of EVD [Ebola virus disease] in our country, and this was a classic example, Tunis said. South Africa's opposition Democratic Alliance party says its case against President Jacob Zuma's private house upgrade will proceed next week as originally planned, despite the president's offer to pay back some of the public funds used for the upgrade. South Africa's public prosecutor, Thuli Madonsela, ruled in 2014 that Zuma benefited from the security upgrade of his house in Nkandla, which cost the public $23 million. The changes made to the home include a visitors center, swimming pool, helipad and cattle enclosure. Zuma was directed to pay back a reasonable amount of the upgrade, which Madonsela said should be determined by the treasury with assistance from the police. In a letter, Zuma proposed to refund some of the funds, but challenged who determines that amount. Local media quoted a statement from his office as saying, "To achieve an end to the drawn-out dispute in a manner that meets the public protector's recommendations and is beyond political reproach, the president proposes that the determination of the amount he is to pay should be independently and impartially determined. Given the objection by one of the parties to the involvement of SAPS [South African Police Service], as the public protector herself had required, the auditor general and minister of finance be requested by the court, through appropriate designees, to conduct the exercise directed by the public protector." Accountability, vindication Parliamentarian Jordan Lewis says his party the Democratic Alliance as well as civil society groups and South Africans who demanded accountability have been vindicated. "It's a reflection of the profound political pressure that the president finds himself under at the beginning of 2016, Lewis said. He knows that the pressure on him is absolutely mounting and that he has got to do something to reposition himself more positively with the voters. So, after five years of trying to avoid any accountability of the huge multimillion-rand [local currency] upgrade to his house, he has finally admitted some accountability to pay back some of that money." Arguments at the Constitutional Court on Tuesday will focus on the supremacy and the validity of the public protector's report and on forcing the president to comply with that report, Lewis said. "He has left his party in a very embarrassing position, he added, because they have been defending him for years and have been holding the line. They are now left with the egg on their face." Who decides? Lewis says the party will not be deterred in seeking proper legal redress regarding the upgrade. Lewis says it is unacceptable for Zuma not to abide by the report specifying who determines the payment amount. "There is an important legal principle at stake here, Lewis said. The legal principle is that three years ago, there was an official investigation by the public protector and the public protector found that he did unduly benefit and that he should be made to pay back some of the money. "Even now in his settlement letter, still he will not use the determination made by the public protector. His offer is that the auditor general should determine how much he must pay back. We are not happy with that. The public protector's ruling must stand and we are going to court to enforce that ruling." Ecuador celebrated the return of 567 pieces of art and archaeological objects, from Spain and Argentina on Wednesday. Argentina returned 438 primarily ceramic works while Spain returned 71 colonial pieces and an assortment of 58 other works. Culture Minister Guillaume Long lauded the return of the objects and said the pieces were recovered thanks to the work of the Committee Against Illicit Property Trafficking, created two years ago. "In these two years, we've recovered almost 15,000 pieces. I think we're one of the countries at a global level that most recovers robbed heritage assets. The work that has been done is very important. Last year, we had very significant repatriations, especially from Europe. Europe in which-- we must say-- a great part of the auction platforms for these heritage goods," he said. According to local media reports, it took as long as 16 years from the time some of the objects were found, to return them to Ecuador. The Cultural Attache of the Embassy of Spain said he was proud of the international cooperation that had led to the return of the objects, which have a value he called 'incalculable.' 'Value of heritage objects' "That Ecuador has recovered this important patrimony from Spain is something we are very proud of. People tend to assign an economic value to heritage objects but that is a mistake because the value of heritage objects is incalculable to the degree that they contain an inheritance and a continuity of our historic past," he said. Argentina's ambassador to Ecuador, Alberto Alvarez, vowed to continue cooperating to combat trafficking. "I want to underscore that my country will not quit in the fight against all kinds of illegal traffic, particularly heritage objects," he said. Authorities believe, that for the last four decades, Ecuador has been targeted by smugglers of cultural property, especially in the field of archaeology. The pieces recovered, belong to ancient Ecuadorian cultures such as Valdivia, Chorrera, Machalilla, Jama Coaque, Guangala, Bahia, La Tolita, Milagro, Quevedo, Cuasmal, Mantena, Capuli and Inca. Some of the pieces, including paintings by distinguished artists, will be displayed at national museums and others will be kept in storage, local media reported. A multicolored rainbow made of thread, towering mountains built entirely from index cards, and pink walls decorated with thousands of preserved insects those are among the nine, giant-sized exhibits at the historic Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington that have been drawing record crowds, thanks to social media. Curator-in-charge Nicholas Bell said hes never seen anything like the reaction to the WONDER collection. In our wildest dreams, when we were closed for renovations and planning this show, we never could have anticipated the response that we've received in the last two months, he said during his interview with VOA in a packed showroom. Historic building Following a two-year renovation, the museum invited nine leading contemporary artists to each select a room in the Renwick and create an installation inspired by that space. It was a perfect way to reopen the building, said Bell, while celebrating the historic building itself, which was the first purpose-built art museum in the United States. As visitors enter the exhibit's first gallery, they are immediately greeted by a whole mountain range made out of hundreds of thousands of index cards a painstaking creation by New York artist Tara Donovan. In an adjoining room, Gabriel Dawe has strung from floor to ceiling a rainbow out of 60 miles of cotton thread, using every color in the visible spectrum. Visitors enjoyed posing with and taking pictures of it to share with others on social media. There is also a whole village that artist Patrick Dougherty has woven out of willow sticks, with windows that visitors can peer through and doors they can walk through. And that's just the first floor of WONDER. As visitors climb the grand staircase in the middle of the building, they will see an enormous light sculpture by artist Leo Villareal that is blinking with 23,000 LEDs on a randomized algorithm so they're changing all the time. In the vast salon, visitors can relax under a massive and colorful knotted net sculpture that's almost 100 feet long that artist Janet Echelman created to represent the tsunami that hit Japan in 2011. Patterns from insects One of the most popular attractions is the room by Jennifer Angus, who has created vivid patterns on the wall using 5,000 dried and preserved insects from Southeast Asia. Even the pink walls are dyed from cochineal, which is insect-based dye. The dead insects didn't seem to bother 5-year-old Lucie Swift-Morgan, who was busy looking through some drawers in an antique cabinet in the middle of the room. Each drawer contains different scenes and is filled with dried insects and other interesting objects. There is also a labyrinth made out of discarded tire rubber by artist Chakaia Booker, and artist Maya Lin used fiberglass marble to re-create the Chesapeake Bay Estuary, which runs all across the floor of the gallery and up the walls to the ceiling. Finally, there is artist John Grade's creation: He found a 150-year-old hemlock tree in Washington state it's the same age as the Renwick building made a cast of it, and then re-created it out of a half-million hand-carved blocks of cedar. Graphic artist David Smith, visiting from Texas, said he was impressed by the "immense attention to detail" shown by the artist. When you just look at it, you're overwhelmed with the image, but when you learn more and more about the pieces, you really appreciate the artists thinking behind it and then the work that went into it," he said. Photos to share His son, Josh Smith, said he learned of the exhibit on Instagram. "I saw these beautiful pictures of the rainbow and the dead bugs, and I figured when my parents arrive, it would be a cool thing for them to see in D.C. And he planned to share the pictures he took, on Instagram. As soon as we go have happy hour, I'll probably post a whole bunch of stuff and see who gets mad because they weren't here! he said with a smile. Kian Khanjani and Dominique Hetu also learned about the exhibit on Instagram. I haven't seen anything like this before," said Khanjani. "We saw six or seven exhibits here, and this I can say is my number one, he added, referring to the decorated walls of the insect room. I really like the lights, the hanging chandelier," said his friend Hetu. "I like how pretty much every room is using something that you wouldn't normally expect it to be artwork. And that, said Bell, is what the exhibit is all about. One of the real challenges for working in any museum is understanding how best to engage visitors of all ages," he said. "And I was elated to see one of our recent reviewers say that this was a show for everyone from 9 to 90. Visitors of all ages, eager to experience WONDER, and share it with the world. Tunisia says it is lifting a nationwide nighttime curfew declared last month amid the worst social unrest since the countrys 2011 revolution. The 8:00 pm to 5:00 am curfew was established January 22, prompted by sometimes violent demonstrations against unemployment across the nation. With a youth unemployment rate of nearly 30 percent, protests worsened following the death of an unemployed man in the central town of Kasserine. The young man, who was denied a government job, climbed an electric transmission tower and was electrocuted during a January 16 protest. Demonstrations in the town then spread to other regions, including the capital Tunis, where stores and a bank were burned and looted. Tunisias Interior Ministry says security has improved since protests erupted. In light of the improvement in the security situation, the Interior Ministry stated, it was decided that from Thursday ... the curfew on all Tunisian territory will be lifted." The recent curfew came just after another nighttime curfew had been imposed when a bus bombing in Tunis killed 12 presidential guards. After the November 24 suicide attack claimed by Islamic State militants, the government also declared a nationwide state of emergency. The curfew lasted until December, but the state of emergency remains in place. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 5 By Farhad Daneshvar - Trend: Austria's Raiffeisen Bank International (RBI), plans to become a leading bank in Iran following the removal of international sanctions against Tehran over its nuclear program, an official with the RBI told Trend. "Raiffeisen Bank International aims at being the leading bank when it comes to Iranian business again," RBI corporate spokeswoman Ingrid Krenn-Ditz said. "We are looking to support our corporate clients with non-sanctioned trade related banking business," she added. She further denied that the company aims to establish a branch in Iran adding that opening a representative office is on agenda. "We are not aiming at opening a branch in Iran - but rather a representative office supporting our multinational and corporate customers exporting to or operating in Iran," she said. "It is further not planned to offer retail banking in Iran. As Iran was excluded from the international markets for many years, we see huge potential to catch up with the international development," the spokesperson added. RBI representative also said that her bank is preparing negotiations and talks with relevant Iranian authorities at the moment. However, she refused to provide further details. Since March 2012, as part of measures taken in a bid to intensify the sanctions on Tehran due to its nuclear program, several restrictions have been imposed against Iran's banking system, which had a catastrophic impact on Iran's economy. In a joint statement on Jan. 16, the EU High Representative Federica Mogherini and Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif announced the implementation of the JCPOA, aka nuclear deal, and the removal of economic sanctions on Iran. According to the statement, EU confirmed that legal framework, providing for lifting of its nuclear-related economic and financial sanctions, is effective. Following the implementation statement, the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT) announced that those banks that are de-listed by the Implementing Regulation will now automatically be able to reconnect to SWIFT. There are a growing numbers of Turkish nationalists fighting with Syrian Turkmen, as Syrian forces backed by Russian airpower step up their operations against the Turkish minority. Growing numbers of Turkmen are now seeking refuge in Turkey to escape the fighting. Last week, thousands of Turkish nationalists turned out for the funeral of a senior member of Turkeys National Action Party or MHP, who was killed fighting with Syrian Turkmen. Political consultant Atilla Yesilada says growing numbers of nationalist Turks are being drawn to the conflict. "The way the Assad armies and Russians are treating Turkmen is nationalizing the problem. Its the Pan Turkish issue, MHP thinks whether Turks live in Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan or Syria, they belong to the same homeland so they go to the defense of homeland, they go to the defense of their kinsman. They fought in Bosnia as well," said Yesilada. Since Syrian Turkmen forces killed a Russian pilot shot down by Turkish jets in November, military operations by the Syrian regime forces backed by Russian airpower has intensified. But Political columnist Kadri Gursel of Al Monitor website, says the Turkmen are key part of Ankaras efforts to overthrow Syrian regime of President Bashar Al Assad. "Sunni Turkmen were Ankaras natural allies in a strategy to topple the regime. They have armed and organized Sunni Turkmen battalions, baptized to the names Ottoman Sultans, which were famous for their Ottoman Islamism, Sunnis. They have created a perception which, all Turkmen were the allies of Ankara. Turkmen will be the biggest losers of this Syria policy," said Gursel. Thousands of Syrian Turkmen are fleeing to Turkey in the face of a series of victories by Syrian regime forces. The Russian foreign ministry in a statement Thursday claimed it had detected secret preparations by Turkish forces to intervene into Syria. But political columnist Gursel says the risks of such an intervention makes it unlikely. "If they decided to invade Syria, to defend Turkmen, Ankara will be bogged down into a quagmire, with no exit strategy. And they will be not only one adversary there. There are Kurds, there are Syrians, there are Russians, even Iranians, and also ISIS. I think it is not a defendable position," he said. But observers says the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is famed for doubling down in high risk confrontations, especially after investing so much political capital supporting the Turkmen, whose defeat could ultimately symbolize a wider failed Syrian policy. A high-profile court case involving events that led to the Gaza war in 2014 has concluded in Israel; but not without controversy. A Jerusalem court sentenced two Israeli teenagers to long prison terms for murdering a Palestinian youth, an incident that Israeli officials described as "Jewish terrorism." One Israeli got life in prison and the other 21 years, while a third suspect is still awaiting a verdict pending psychological examinations. The assailants burned 16-year-old Mohammed Abu Khdeir alive in Jerusalem in July 2014; it was revenge for the abduction and murder of three Israeli teens by gunmen from the Palestinian militant group Hamas. Six days later, war erupted between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip and lasted for 50 days. The slain Palestinian teenagers father, Hussein Abu Khdeir, said the 21-year sentence is too soft and both suspects should spend the rest of their lives in prison. He pointed to a double standard.I want the same law for Arabs as for Jews, he told reporters. Abu Khdeir said a Palestinian who kills an Israeli would be sentenced to life in prison and his family home would be destroyed. Yet Israel, he said, is not demolishing the homes of the Jewish assailants. Israeli State Prosecutor Ori Korb sees things differently. Korb said the punishment is fitting for a barbaric act of moral depravity. He said the message is that in the State of Israel, such shocking crimes will not be tolerated. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has pledged nearly $1 billion in new U.S. aid for Syrian refugees at an international donors conference and is calling for the Syrian government and Russia to halt attacks on rebel-held areas in order to let humanitarian aid through. The conference opened Thursday in London with donor nations exceeding their goal of $9 billion. British Prime Minister David Cameron said pledges had surpassed $10 billion by the end of the day. Britain, along with Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the United Nations, are hosting the Syria Donors Conference, the fourth to be held. Kerry called this a critical engagement, saying Syrias political and humanitarian crisis is a moral imperative. He said the United States is providing an additional $601 million in assistance to the Syrian people, plus $290 million in development aid specifically for education to refugee children in Jordan and Lebanon. The $10 billion figure is more than double the $4.5 pledged last year, reflecting the urgency the migrant crisis has caused among Western governments. The amount pledged aims to support people in Syria as well as in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey, neighbor countries that are strained by the exodus of refugees fleeing the fighting. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Anne Richard discussed the agenda ahead of the conference with VOA. This year there are more ambitious goals, which are to do more to educate children, to get jobs for the refugees, to bring development resources to bear, to help people get to safety not just in the region, but beyond as well. Prime Minister Cameron said there is a critical shortfall in life-saving aid that he said is holding back the international communitys humanitarian efforts. If ever there was a moment to take a new approach to the humanitarian crisis in Syria, surely it is now, he said. WATCH: Related TV report by Henry Ridgwell: Migrant crisis That urgency is fueled by a migrant crisis that saw 1 million people, largely from Syria, move into western Europe in 2015. Projections are the numbers will swell to 4 million this year. Overwhelmed, some European countries have announced measures to reduce the number of asylum seekers and are now focusing on containing the flow of refugees. After years of conflict, we are witnessing a desperate movement of humanity as hundreds of thousands of Syrians fear they have no alternative to put their lives in the hands of evil people smugglers in search of a future," Cameron said. Geneva peace talk suspended The troubled peace process overshadowed the conference and lent more urgency to the need to address the conflict at its root. The meeting got under way hours after fragile peace talks in Geneva were suspended amid protests by the opposition over the Syrian government's escalating Russian-backed offensive against rebels around the city of Aleppo, where a human rights monitoring group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said 40,000 people fled this week alone. U.N. special envoy Staffan de Mistura issued a statement late Wednesday saying indirect talks would be temporarily paused until February 25, but could resume sooner. The opposition is represented by the Saudi-backed High Negotiations Committee, which joined the talks only after U.S. and U.N. officials convinced them that their preliminary demands would be addressed. The group has demanded an end to airstrikes on civilians by the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Russia, as well as a lifting of sieges that are blocking the flow of humanitarian aid to rebel-held areas. It also wants the government to release thousands of detainees. In London Thursday, Kerry called on both the Syrian government and Russia to halt attacks on opposition-held areas to permit the delivery of humanitarian aid. The U.S. official said he looks forward to talks resuming later this month. After meeting with British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond on the sidelines of the donors conference, Kerry told reporters he held what he described as a robust discussion with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the need to implement a cease-fire and allow for humanitarian shipments. It could not be more clear. That is an obligation that is not tied to talks. It is an obligation accepted by all parties in the United Nations resolution. Russia voted for that, Russia has a responsibility, as do all parties, to live up to it, said Kerry. A U.N. watchdog committee says many African countries are not living up to their obligation under the 1990 Convention of the Rights of the Child. It says harmful cultural traditions, as well as other forms of human rights abuses continue to be widely practiced throughout Africa. The U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child, which monitors implementation of the Convention, has just completed its latest three-week session in Geneva. The 18 independent experts have examined the records of 14 states, including five African countries: Benin, Kenya, Senegal, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The committee found harmful practices such as female genital mutilation and child marriage are still being practiced in the countries examined. And, in the case of Kenya, the experts expressed concern about beading of girls, a form of sexual enslavement within families that often leads to rape. Albino children The independent experts condemned the killings and trafficking of albino children for body parts in Kenya, some of which is committed by the family members. But the experts note this horrific practice goes on in 16 African countries. Committee Chair Benyam Mezmur tells VOA albinism often is linked to political elections because it is thought the body parts of children with this condition bring good luck. For instance, during the elections in Kenya, there have been incidences where [in] some of the countries in the region, the number of attacks have actually gone up," said Mezmur. "The instances of local elections and national elections in a neighboring country have had a negative impact on the rise of attacks and the rise of killings in another neighboring country. Mezmur says attacks against albinos are not an issue that can be addressed by one country. He says it requires a coordinated response. Voodoo convents The committee singled out an initiation ceremony in the West African country of Benin for particular rebuke. Mezmur says children, especially girls, are taken away from their families and sequestered in so-called voodoo convents. In these instances, their access to education, their access to contact with their family, their access to health and so forth is almost close to non-existence. Certainly, there are instances of ill-treatment, but also sexual abuse that actually goes on in these convents, said Mezmur. The committee is calling on the government of Benin to remove children from voodoo convents and provide psychological, social and financial assistance to help them recover from their traumatizing experiences. The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has raised concerns about Palestinian journalist Mohammed Al-Qeeq, who has been on a hunger strike for more than two months in an Israeli jail. Al-Qeeq is protesting being held without trial or specific charges. His health has deteriorated so much that Israeli authorities decided to force feed him. Israel's Supreme Court is scheduled to rule Thursday on whether to release the 33-year old journalist. Detention law Al-Qeeq is held under Israel's administrative detention law, which allows the state to hold prisoners without trial, for security reasons. On Wednesday, James Heenan, head of the United Nations human rights agency, condemned that law. "Mr. Al-Qeeq is complaining about issues of the legality of detention and conditions of detention, particularly administrative detention in Israel. The International human rights community, particularly the Human Rights Committee has maintained that that form of detention should be ceased," Heenan said. "The detention is based often on vague grounds on secret evidence. It can be prolonged indefinitely and for these reasons the United Nations Human Rights Committee has called for Israel to end this system of administrative detention," he added. The journalist from Ramallah, who is married and the father of two children, went on a hunger strike four days after his November 21 arrest, and is reportedly very ill. Israeli authorities have transferred him to a hospital where reports say he has been fed intravenously, contrary to his wishes. 'Could not talk...or hear' "A short while ago, the lawyer told us that Mohammed is in a dangerous condition and getting worse every day. He is losing the feeling in some parts of his body. Today, Mohammed could not talk at all or hear. He even did not recognize his lawyer," Hamam Al-Qeeq, the journalist's brother, said Wednesday. Israel is holding about 600 Palestinians under the administrative detention law, which is usually applied to people suspected of inciting violence or planning terror attacks. The number of detainees has grown in recent months after Palestinians began a campaign of stabbings and car attacks on Israeli soldiers and civilians. The use of the decades-old policy of detention without formal charges has drawn international criticism. Allegations that Rwanda has been recruiting and training Burundian rebels on its territory with the goal of ousting Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza resurfaced Thursday in a confidential U.N. report. A group of experts monitoring U.N. sanctions implementation in the Democratic Republic of Congo said it had interviewed 18 Burundian fighters in DRCs South Kivu Province. They all told the experts that they had been recruited in the Mahama Refugee Camp in eastern Rwanda in May and June 2015, and were given two months of military training by instructors who included Rwandan military personnel, according to the U.N. experts. Their findings were first reported by Reuters. Allegations The report, seen by VOA, quoted the fighters as saying they trained at a camp in the Rwandan forest and were instructed on the use of grenades, anti-personnel and anti-tank mines, mortars and rocket propelled grenades. They said they were transported around Rwanda in the back of military trucks, often with Rwandan military escort. They told the monitors that at least four companies of 100 recruits each were being trained at the camp when they were there. Six of the 18 fighters were minors or child soldiers under international definitions. They said the instructors were aware of their youth. The fighters told the monitors that they crossed the Rusizi River in small groups at night from Rwanda into the DRC, carrying fake Congolese identification cards. The monitors said the fighters told them their ultimate goal was to remove Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza from power. Burundi has been mired in a sometimes violent political crisis since April of last year, when Nkurunziza sought and won what is widely seen as an unconstitutional third term. Observers fear the violence which has killed at least 439 people and caused 230,000 more to flee the country could tip into another civil war or worse, in the ethnically mixed Hutu-Tutsi nation. Arms Smuggling The U.N. experts also reported Congos arrest of six individuals in October and November of last year on suspicion of arms smuggling in Goma, North Kivu Province. The perpetrators are Rwandan or Congolese nationals and were caught at the Congolese-Rwandan border post with the weapons, the report says. Burundis president has accused Rwanda of interfering in his country. Late last month, he told a visiting U.N. Security Council delegation that the threat is not from within Burundi it comes from outside. The Rwandan government must be told to stop. The Rwandan government has dismissed the U.N. panels findings as unfounded. Rwandas Ambassador to Brussels Olivier Nduhungirehe, who is vocal on social media, tweeted: Mass graves, sexual terrorism, torture, extrajudicial killings, hate speech; and @BurundiGov wants to convince us that it's #Rwandas fault! At the Security Council Thursday morning, Russias Deputy Envoy Petr Iliichev told reporters the allegations are troubling and the council would have to look at the report. Asked if there should be a message sent to Rwanda, he said there is a framework agreement in which the countries agreed not to interfere in each others internal affairs and support negative elements. You signed, you agreed, you pledged, and now you have to fulfill your pledges, he said. Looking for a job is hard enough, but imagine doing so at mid-career in the age of technology. Should you contact someone on social media? How do you navigate an online employment site? Suja Joseph tries to answer these questions during a re-employment workshop at the Columbia Workforce Center, outside Washington. "The goal here is to have them informed about what it is like now to look for a job," Joseph said. "What are applicant tracker systems? How is it like when you apply for jobs online versus when you go and meet an employer?" Joseph, a workforce trainer at the center since 2010, said she has seen a difference in prospects for the unemployed in just the last few years. People are not taking as long to find work, and when they do, they are staying employed. "Some of our job seekers come in and say, Hey, when I came in, I wasnt hearing back, but right now employers are coming to me, and they find that to be empowering," Joseph said. Seven years ago, President Barack Obama took office in the midst of a recession. The unemployment rate hit 10 percent in October 2009 as the U.S. housing market toppled and the banking industry followed suit. Back to work Since then, the U.S. unemployment rate has fallen by half, to 5 percent in December 2015, with more than 13 million private sector jobs created since February 2010 economic data the president has not hesitated to cite as he closes out his time in office. "The United States of America, right now, has the strongest, most durable economy in the world. Were doing so much better than other folks are doing. The American economy right now is 10 percent bigger than it was at its peak, before the financial crisis. In Europe, it hasnt gotten back to where it was back in 2007-2008," Obama told a cheering crowd in Detroit, Michigan, as he marked the resurgence of the U.S. auto industry during a January 20 speech. Baltimore-based economist Anirban Basu does not disagree with the numbers. "Yes, the economy is growing; yes, we are adding jobs. The labor market data have been good. There is some indication that wages are going to grow this year, not just because of increases in the minimum wages, but because of normal economic forces," Basu said. But the CEO of economic consulting firm Sage Policy Group said that beneath those numbers lies a mixed picture, one that could mean an uncertain 2017 for the American economy. "We just have too much productive capacity and not enough demand, and one of the reasons for that is the global economy remains so weak," Basu said. "Coming into the new year, we have received a lot of bad news about the Chinese economy. There are geopolitical events that have made the markets jittery." Seeking stability The uncertainty is shared by college students Heza Mulinzi, Frederick Torrence and Denell Hammond, who are working together in Rockville, Maryland, to launch a clothing line. "We have always been creative. That was something that was always in the back of my mind: What am I going to find that I am good at that I can find a way to make it lucrative?" Hammond said. Despite an improving job market, the longtime friends are turning to entrepreneurship to ensure financial stability after they receive their undergraduate degrees. "We started this to have a company where, when we graduate, that not only do we have a piece of paper but we have an established company, and we dont have to worry about student loans," Torrence said. And for Mulinzi, seeing his mom struggle after being laid off because of an injury was enough to drive him toward starting his own business and gaining financial independence after graduation. "Seeing my mom go from job to job, working so hard, but not getting the proper rights that she deserves" gave him the motivation to seek self-employment, he said: "I believe you should be able to work by yourself and be independently stable and be able to support yourself and your family." At the urging of an American contingent, Syrian Kurds are expanding an airbase on farmland in northeast Syria that could be used for military purposes, according to Kurdish and U.S. officials. Known as Abu Hajar airport, the airbase is located in the Rmelan area of northern Syria, and is controlled by the Kurdish People's Defense Units and the Syrian Democratic Forces. Neither has an air force. A team of Americans pitched the idea to Syrian Democratic Forces to extend the runway, a defense official told VOA on the condition of anonymity. The official Wednesday said the airfield is being extended from 700 meters to 1,300 meters. The extension would be long enough to allow C-130 transport planes to land on the strip and potentially supply those fighting Islamic State forces in the area. We need runways over there. Our guys said, Hey, it might not be a bad idea to extend this runway, the official said. The official added that while Americans did suggest the runway extension, there are no Americans physically helping with the airfield improvement. Airbase use Talal Silo, a spokesman for the Syria Democratic Forces, told VOA the airbase previously was used to carry agricultural products in the region and is now being expanded for humanitarian and, possibly, military use. This does not mean it is a military base, he said. We will use it to receive humanitarian and reconstruction aid. Still, Silo told VOA that using the airbase for military purposes by the U.S. is a possibility because we are a strategic partner to the U.S. This is a normal thing to happen as a part of our strategic partnership with the U.S, Silo said. In the past, we received three airdrops of ammunition from the Americans. In the future, we may come to an agreement with the U.S. to use the airbase for aircrafts. We will not oppose that. Two U.S officials denied any U.S. military involvement in the planning or extending of the airfield, but refused to confirm or deny reports of CIA involvement. Not "US defense effort' Another U.S. official cautioned that the airfield expansion is not a U.S. defense effort. "The U.S. military has not taken control of any airfield in Syria and press reports to the contrary are incorrect, Colonel Pat Ryder, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command, which overseas military operations in Iraq and Syria, told VOA in a statement. That being said, U.S. forces in Syria are consistently looking for ways to increase efficiency for logistics and personnel recovery support." Still, the Kurdish military spokesman Silo said American military experts will soon come to train Kurdish forces. These experts will need a lot of equipment that can be sent via planes, he said. Imagery and eyewitness accounts in Syria and Iraq have appeared to support increased involvement by the United States. Showed construction According to the global intelligence company Stratfor, low-resolution satellite imagery, taken December 28 and released last month, showed construction to extend the runway. A VOA reporter who visited the airbase over the weekend found that it is heavily protected by walls and forces belonging to Kurdish Protection Units and Syrian Democratic Forces. No journalists are allowed to enter the area. The airfield is 120 kilometers from the Qamishli airport a civilian airport controlled by the Syrian government that is reported being used by Russian military aircraft flying missions in support of the regime. No Russian presence There was no evidence of a Russian military presence at Qamishli airport when VOA visited, but Fesla Yusif, deputy leader of the National Council of Syrian Kurds, confirmed the presence of Russian forces there. Yusif said he is troubled by what appears to be an increasing U.S. and Russian footprint in northern Syria, which largely has been free of fighting or an IS presence during Syria's civil war. Syria is in a very bad and uncertain situation, Yusif said. International powers have increased their presence in the country without a clear strategy." U.S. gun traders are setting up new websites to arrange deals after Facebook barred private gun sales on its platform. With gun rights and safety registering as a hot-button issue on the U.S. presidential campaign trail after several mass shootings last year, Facebook said last Friday it would no longer allow users to arrange private gun sales via the site. Reaction was swift among some Facebook gun trader groups, hundreds of which are based in the United States. Some of them immediately began advertising other gun-dealing websites. In a chat room outside Facebook on the Firearms Enthusiasts Club website, users complained their gun-trading groups had been deleted from Facebook and urged others to spread the word about their site. "I just lost Cheap Guns Minnesota which had close to 18,000 members," said a user by the name of "The Guard Dog." "So PLEASE spread the word about this site to every group in EVERY state." The administrator of the Facebook group Central Florida Gun Talk changed its name to Central Florida on Monday and directed the group's 2,055 members to another site outside Facebook set up quickly in response to the ban. Another Facebook user posted that the gun community had "grown dependent on Facebook" and the ban "will backfire" by forcing gun traders to unmonitored sites where users share less information about themselves. Facebook users contacted directly by Reuters did not respond to requests for comment. Facebook enforcement Monika Bickert, Facebook's head of global policy management, said in an interview that gun group administrators were notified of the new policy ahead of its enforcement. "We have to spend a lot of time thinking through new policies," she said, noting that 80 percent of Facebook's 1.6 billion users reside outside the United States and Canada. Bickert said Facebook will rely solely on user reports when deciding which posts, groups and accounts to delete or restrict. The company gets about a million user reports a day, she said. Bickert said Facebook's community operations team decides whether to remove reported content including terrorist activity, cyber-bullying and nudity, in addition to private gun sales. The team works in offices around the world and has subject-matter experts fluent in dozens of languages, Bickert said. But it is challenged sometimes by having "a very limited picture." "The context in the actual post may be unclear, she said. It may be hard to tell what they are expressing; we aren't seeing what they're saying offline." The gun policy change came as Facebook pushes further into e-commerce and underscores social media firms' challenges in managing content to weed out violent extremists, criminals and other bad actors without being too restrictive of free speech. The National Rifle Association declined to comment. Given Facebook's and Instagram's popularity, "it's really significant for them to say, 'not on our platform,'" said Erika Soto Lamb, a spokeswoman for the Michael Bloomberg-backed Everytown for Gun Safety. Licensed gun dealers are still able to advertise firearms on Facebook that lead to sales off the network. A former U.S. business executive, who abruptly raised the price of a life-saving drug by more than 5,000 percent, refused to answer questions when he appeared before Congress on Thursday. Martin Shkreli's appearance before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform was a chance for lawmakers to sound off on the case, which drew widespread criticism. But the 32-year-old, who received a subpoena to appear before the hearing, said he was exercising his Fifth Amendment right against incriminating himself. While he didn't speak at the hearing, he took to Twitter to criticize the lawmakers who were questioning him. Before stepping down as CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals, Shkreli raised the price of Daraprim, a drug used by patients with AIDS and certain types of cancer, from $13.50 to $700 a pill. Shkreli has defended the price hike as legal, saying he was just trying to maximize profits for investors. U.S. political leaders in both parties have criticized the move, calling it an example of "price-gouging." Separately, Shkreli faces criminal charges of securities fraud related to his leadership role at two other companies: hedge fund MSMB Capital Management and biopharmaceutical firm Retrophin. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Umid Niayesh- Trend: While Iranian officials have expressed interest for reviving Tehran's economic ties with the US, there are obstacles that prevent it from happening, Daniel Serwer, a conflict management professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and director of its Conflict Management Program believes. In particular, as Serwer told Trend, there are issues with presence of US businessmen and investors in Iran. "There are three big obstacles: continuing US sanctions levied for other than nuclear reasons, lack of diplomatic ties between the US and Iran, and American distrust of the Iranian courts and political system. You would have to be a brave investor to run that gauntlet," Serwer said. Serwer, while responding to a question about the idea of Iran's cooperation with the entire West, excluding the US, which is supported by local conservatives, said as the US is maintaining more sanctions against Iran, unrelated to the nuclear field, so it is natural that the co-op with the EU will move ahead faster. "The EU also has a much stronger interest in Iranian energy resources," Serwer, a former US diplomat said. Further commenting about the possibility for the EU to gradually replace Tehran's traditional allies,China and Russia- in post-sanctions period, the analyst said that China is a major customer for Iran's energy resources and a major supplier as well, while Russia is far less important. "There are many areas in which Iranians will prefer the EU technology and investment over Russian competitors," Serwer underlined. While responding to the question whether developing the Iran-EU ties also may lead to improving political ties with the US, he said Washington will handle its own political ties with Iran. "It is hesitant because of Iranian subversion in the Gulf states, human rights abuses and threats against Israel. The EU appears less reluctant," he said. Speaking about the possibility of the US to deal with Iran economically, putting aside the human rights issue, Serwer said that he doubts the US will do that, while the EU will be less exigent. Follow the author on Twitter: @UmidNiayesh A U.S. defense official says there has been a decrease in the number of Islamic State fighters in Iraq and Syria, while numbers of IS militants in Libya have increased. The U.S. now estimates there are between 19,000 and 25,000 IS militants in Iraq and Syria, the official told VOA Tuesday, slightly lower that previous estimates of 20,000-31,500 fighters in the area. The numbers, however, do suggest that the Islamic State has been able to replenish its ranks, despite the heavy losses. Defense officials say airstrikes have decreased the terror groups strength and hindered its movement capabilities. Thousands have been killed by the bombings and hundreds more have died from fighting on the ground. At the White House, Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the drop in the number of IS fighters in Iraq and Syria is a testament to opposition fighters and aggressive U.S.-led coalition action. In Libya, a defense official confirmed the number of Islamic State fighters has risen to about 5,000, as VOA has previously reported . Earlier U.S. estimates had put the number at between 2,000 and 3,000. Earnest said the U.S. is aware IS wants to exploit weaknesses in Libya and well as Afghanistan. Admiral Michael Franken, U.S. Africa Command's Deputy for Military Operations, warned VOA in December that Sirte, Libya, had become the "divided nucleus" to Raqqa, Syria, the so-called caliphate's headquarters. VOA National Security correspondent Jeff Seldin and White House correspondent Mary Alice Salinas contributed to this report A battle over emergency aid to an American town with contaminated drinking water delayed Senate action on a major overhaul of the U.S. energy sector that could reduce Europe's dependence on natural gas from Russia and U.S. dependence on strategic minerals from China. On Thursday, Senate Democrats, joined by a handful of Republicans, prevented the chamber from advancing Congress' first comprehensive attempt in nearly a decade to address America's future energy needs. Consideration of the bill will resume next week. At issue is federal assistance to Flint, Michigan, where toxic levels of lead in the drinking water have sickened thousands of children and forced 100,000 residents to rely on bottled water. Exposure to lead can cause irreversible mental and physical problems in children. The state's U.S. senators, both Democrats, sought hundreds of millions of federal dollars to help Flint fix and replace old pipes. When unable to reach an agreement with majority Republicans on a formula for the aid package, they led a successful effort to block votes on the energy bill, which Majority Leader Mitch McConnell had hoped to pass by week's end. "Flint needs the support of all levels of government to overhaul its damaged water infrastructure and help the children of Flint, who will be dealing with the health effects of lead exposure for decades to come," said Michigan Senator Gary Peters. "We are asking you to care and see these children [of Flint] like you see your own children," said Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow. "To hold them with as much value as you would children in your own family and in the states that you represent." Bipartisan support for bill The energy bill has significant bipartisan support a rarity for major legislation on Capitol Hill. It seeks to reduce America's carbon emissions for electricity and protect the nation's power grid from cyber-attack. The legislation also would liberalize liquefied natural gas exports and encourage domestic mining of so-called rare earth minerals, which are used in everything from advanced weapons systems to smartphones. "You will like it [the bill] if you are an American interested in producing more energy," McConnell said. "You will like it if you are an American interested in paying less for energy. You will like it if you are an American interested in saving energy. "We know that Russia is the dominant supplier of natural gas to Western Europe," McConnell continued, asserting that more U.S. natural gas exports would "weaken Russia's strategic stronghold, while boosting our domestic economy." Republican Senator John Cornyn lamented delays in getting to a final vote on the bill, and accused Michigan's senators of seeking a federal blank check for Flint's water woes. "The fact of the matter is, the state of Michigan and the city of Flint don't yet know what they need to do to fix the problem, or how much it will cost," Cornyn said. "This is about trying to embarrass Republicans and portray us as having no compassion for the poor people of Flint, which is exactly the opposite of true." Peters said he supports the energy bill and hopes it passes, but not before the Senate takes action to assist his constituents in Flint. Although the U.S. and other world powers have sharply criticized North Korea for conducting a fourth nuclear test and announcing plans to launch an observation satellite, there is wide disagreement over what steps should be taken to curb Pyongyangs nuclear and ballistic missile ambitions. The U.S. Congress moved to impose additional sanctions on North Korea after it said it had carried out a successful test of a hydrogen bomb, last month. The House of Representatives passed a bill designed to make it more difficult for Pyongyang to get the hard currency that it needs for its nuclear weapons program. The Senate is considering a measure that would enhance U.S. penalties on North Korea. But analysts say sanctions alone are no game-changer when it comes to efforts to curb what world powers view as North Koreas provocative actions. I dont think anyone in the United States government believes that the mere imposition of heightened sanctions will in some measure automatically get North Korea to alter its behavior, said Jonathan Pollack, an East Asia policy analyst at a Wednesday forum at the Brookings Institution. But he said the penalties could raise the costs to Pyongyang for the action that it has undertaken. Satellite launch North Korea may have further heightened U.S. concerns when it announced, on Tuesday, plans to launch an earth observation satellite between February 8 and 25. The North Korean government says it has a sovereign right to pursue a space program but the U.S. and other world powers fear the launch would be an attempt by Pyongyang to covertly advance its long-range ballistic missile program, a move that would violate U.N. resolutions. Daniel Russel, the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, said the U.S. is closely following reports of North Koreas planned launch, which he said would be an egregious violation of international obligations. Analyst Katherine Moon said a new approach is needed to get North Korean leader Kim Jong Uns attention. North Korea is trying new things, different things. I feel like we are the ones, outside of North Korea, that are responding with the same things, said Moon, the South Korea-Korea Foundation chair at the Brookings Institution. Moon said there has been little change in how the U.S. responds to North Korea because there is a lack of a clear policy about what to do with North Korea. Whatever we have been saying, it has not been working, said Moon. Yet, we wont admit that it is not working and move on to something different." China Could Be Key As U.S. lawmakers consider new sanctions on North Korea, a similar effort is underway at the U.N., where the U.S. and other permanent members of the Security Council are pressing a seemingly reluctant China to endorse tough penalties against Pyongyang. The sense of silence from China on this issue is really quite extraordinary, said Pollack. China, North Koreas economic lifeblood, has said it is committed to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula but believes the best way to achieve this is through consultations and negotiations. Sanctions are not an end in themselves, said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, last week, during a news conference with Secretary of State John Kerry. Wang warned that any new resolutions, against North Korea, should not provoke new tension that could destabilize the region. China may continue to show reluctance in imposing any harsh penalties on North Korea, said Moon. Unless North Koreas actions threaten Chinese territory its peoples health, political stability, my belief is China will not act, she said. In the end, the U.S. and other world powers may have few new options to consider as they weigh their response to the provocations. We are moving out of our comfort zone of currently existing efforts to deter action by the north, said Sheila Smith, a regional analyst at the Council on Foreign Relations. Pretty soon, the alliances really do have to come to grips with the fact that they are going to have to deal with a very different Pyongyang if we allow it to go much further, she said. A woman who says she tipped off authorities to the whereabouts of Paris attacks ringleader Abdelhamid Abaaoud has given chilling details about his plans and complained about inadequate police protection. The woman was identified only as Sonia in her interview, broadcast by Frances RMC radio and BFMTV. Sonia said she was a friend of Hasna Ait Boulahcen, the cousin of Islamist Abdelhamid Abaaoud. Abaaoud is considered a leading figure in the November 13 terrorist attacks in Paris that killed 130 people. Her voice altered to hide her identity, Sonia describes how Boulahcen received a call from Belgium, instructing her to pick up someone outside Paris and to call out the code 1010 when she got there. A man emerged from the bushes. It was Abaaoud. She said Abaaoud acknowledged his involvement in the attacks. The cafe terraces was me," he said of the string of shootings outside Paris bars and restaurants. Abaaoud also outlined plans for future attacks in the area. He said he had entered France without a visa with scores of other foreigners from Syria. Abaaoud and his cousin were killed during a police shootout a few days later. Sonia says her emergency call to police tipped them off. She also complained about her current police protection, saying she felt abandoned and cut off from friends and family, one of the reasons she reached out to the media. The Paris prosecutor's office said it is investigating whether broadcasting her interview may have breached secrecy laws. A key lawyer and rights activist, Patrick Baudouin, has criticized Frances witness protection program as inadequate. The World Health Organization on Thursday advised officials not to accept blood donations from people who had recently returned from countries affected by the Zika virus. The mosquito-borne virus is most prevalent in Latin America, particularly Brazil, and poses its greatest danger to pregnant women. "With the risk of incidence of new infections of Zika virus in many countries ... it is estimated as an appropriate precautionary measure to defer donors who return from areas with Zika virus outbreaks," the WHO told the French news agency AFP. Doctors suspect the Zika virus is linked to a rare neurological condition called microcephaly, which causes babies to be born with abnormally small heads. Brazil has reported more than 4,000 microcephaly cases since October. But experts are puzzled about why it is nearly nonexistent in other Latin American countries where the Zika virus is present. Spain confirmed the virus Thursday in a pregnant woman who had recently traveled to Colombia. It was the first known pregnancy-related Zika case in Europe. The woman was among seven people who showed symptoms of Zika after visiting affected countries, the Health Ministry said, adding that she was under medical treatment in the northeastern region of Catalonia. Colombia's National Health Institute said last week that the country had recorded 20,297 cases of Zika infection, including 2,116 in pregnant women. In a statement released January 30, the institute recommended that couples delay pregnancy for six to eight months. There is currently no treatment for Zika. But a number of global pharmaceutical houses are rapidly working on a vaccine. In the face of the recent increase in cases, the presidents of the United States and Brazil have agreed on the importance of collaborative efforts to combat the spread of the Zika virus. Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff said Thursday that the two countries were working together to develop a vaccine for the Zika virus, but warned it might take some time. Meanwhile, officials in Panama said they were focusing their fight against Zika on the mosquito that carries the virus. Experts told AFP they were looking at releasing millions of genetically modified male Aedes mosquitoes who would mate with the females and result in offspring that die at the larval stage. Panama carried out such an experiment near Panama City in 2014, nearly wiping out a town's entire mosquito population. The code has been copied to your clipboard. The World Bank says Zimbabwe's economy is expected to grow by 1.5 percent in 2016 with consumer prices remaining deflationary due to global and local constraints on its recovery. Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa projected in his 2016 national budget that the economy will grow by 2, 7 percent this year up from 1, 5 percent in 2015. In its first edition of a local report titled Zimbabwe Economic Update, focusing on Changing Growth Patterns, Improving Health Outcomes, the bank said, Coming on the heels of a severe drought in 2015, the outlook for 2016 remains difficult and growth is projected to remain around 1.5 percent. The bank noted that growth has slowed sharply since 2012 as the impact of dollarization ran its course, and the economys vulnerability to climate and terms of trade shocks resurfaced. The global economy is slowing, commodity prices remain depressed, terms of trade with Zimbabwes main trading partner are deteriorating, and the impact of the El Nino on agriculture, water and power sectors is already being felt. The World Bank said to raise growth from its current medium term trend of 2-3 percent, Zimbabwe will need to correct key macroeconomic balances. Recent growth has been largely driven by consumption, and both public and private investment have fallen since 2011. Capital flows, including external borrowing and asset sales, are sustaining consumption growth by financing an unsustainably high current account deficit. It further said without exchange rate policy, tackling todays current account deficit and low investment ratios will require real improvements in productivity and adjustments in public spending, both of which take time but also have a more durable impact on competitiveness. These headwinds and the brunt of the economic corrections, both domestic and global, will likely be most deeply felt by poor households. In Zimbabwe, without substantial improvements in the allocation and efficiency of public spending, the recovery could well be regressive increasing inequality rather than further dampening it. The Zimbabwe Economic Update (ZEU) showcases how the introduction of results-based financing for rural clinics has helped to significantly improve maternal and child health care outcomes in Zimbabwe. According to the World Bank, this innovation, which channels resources to clinics based on quality and quantity measure of care, has not only helped to lower the reliance on user fees that caused many poor households to forego medication attention, but also improved the share of women who achieve the recommended four pre-natal visits as well as other key services during pregnancy. So far the program has 4.5 million beneficiaries in rural and low income urban areas. World Bank Zimbabwe senior economist, Johannes Hederschee, said in an exclusive interview that prospects for growth are constrained in Harare. The ZEU 2015 recognizes that Zimbabwes economy made a strong recovery during 2009-14 following dollarization and stabilization measures. The fundamentals for this recovery are still strong, but the headwinds are increasing. Traditional sectors agriculture, mining and industry are facing key challenges and in the process of structural transformation, the services sector has continued to growth strongly, building on Zimbabwes key competitive advantage its educated population. Some organizations representing civil servants have expressed skepticism over reports that the government will pay outstanding 2015 bonuses starting this month up to May this year. In a statement, the Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe viewed the move as a major victory against the government, which it had given up to the middle of this month to pay the bonuses or face industrial action. This is welcome progress but we still wait for actual dates to be pronounced and the use of proper channels in communicating this government position, read the statement. But Takavafira Zhou, president of the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe, said there was nothing to celebrate as they were entitled to the bonuses. Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa was quoted by the state-controlled Herald newspaper as saying that soldiers will get bonuses this month, followed by members of the police force, prison services and the health sector. Teachers are expected to be paid bonuses in April with the rest of the civil servants getting share in May. The Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe's concerns were echoed by Cecilia Alexander, president of the Public Service Association, who said they were not sure whether to celebrate or not because the government has not officially presented any bonus payment plans to state workers. We are just reading it from the newspapers, just like anybody. We feel that the government should use proper channels to communicate with us. Alexander said. She said there is the tripartite negotiating forum, the National Joint Negotiating Council, where the government can officially present them with such issues instead of rushing to the media first. Zimbabwes opposition parties have since independence in 1980 been accused of failing to craft a formidable front to wrestle power from President Robert Mugabes ruling Zanu PF party, which has ruled the country for more than 35 years. Some critics argue that the parties are too ideologically fragmented to challenge Zanu PF, currently facing an internal strife that is threatening to tear it into factions one allegedly led by Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, and another said to be sympathetic to First Lady Grace Mugabe, and calling itself Generation 40 or G40. The factions are fighting over the succession of 91-year old President Mugabe, who has already been handpicked by his party for the 2018 presidential poll. He will be 94 when he contests that election. The big question is: Are Zimbabwes opposition parties watching the Zanu PF succession wars while the country is almost crumbling? For perspective, Studio 7 reached George Mkwananzi, deputy spokesperson of the Peoples Democratic Party, and Gibson Moyo, Bulawayo regional coordinator of the National Constitutional Assembly. Mkwananzi says some opposition parties are not watching political conflicts in Zanu PF as they are busy attempting to entice ruling party members to join them. Zimbabwes central bank governor, John Mangudya, on Thursday blamed the sustained decline of the countrys economy on illicit cash flows, saying more than a billion dollars was externalized last year. Presenting his 2016 Monetary Policy, Mangudya said some $684 million was exported to foreign accounts by individuals while companies externalized $1.2 billion. Mr. Mangudya recommended the resuscitation of an economic crimes court to deal with all financial transgressions. Bank statistics show that during the period January to December 2015, a total of US$684 million was remitted outside Zimbabwe or externalized by individuals under the auspices of free funds for various dubious and unwarranted purposes. This rampant export of liquidity is not sustainable In addition, US$1.2 billion export sales proceeds were externalized by firms. Circulating this liquidity within the national economy has a great multiplier effect and has a positive contribution to boosting aggregate demand. To plug the leakages, Mr. Mangudya said, citizens with offshore accounts holding more than $10,000 should now report them to the central bank. Each person, subject to the jurisdiction of the Zimbabwean financial system, having an interest in or has authority over one or more financial accounts or securities or investments in a foreign country should report, through normal banking channels, to RBZ if the aggregate value of such accounts or securities at any point in a calendar year exceeds US$10,000. Going forward, any offshore investments would require prior bank approval, he said. Mangudya also said starting Friday, customers should give their banks at least a days notice for cash withdrawals amounting to more than $10,000. Despite the measures, economic analyst Masimba Kuchera told VOA as long as people have no confidence in Zimbabwes future and the safety of their accounts, they will continue holding funds in their foreign accounts. With lessons learned from the Zimbabwe dollar, people are now wary of banking locally, lest they lose their funds, Kuchera said, adding that "as long as the uncertainty remains, cash leakages will continue. But another commentator, analyst Prosper Chitambara called the policy sound. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Khalid Kazimov - Trend: Iranian Armed Forces' Chief of Staff Major General Hassan Firouzabadi has accused the US of organizing conspiracy against the commander of the elite Qods force, Major General Qassem Soleimani. "The US is after attacking Maj-Gen Soleimani," Tasnim news agency quoted Firouzabadi as saying. Firuzabadi further added that several measures have been taken to protect Soleimani. Back in November, rebel Syrian groups claimed that they targeted a car with Soleimani inside, using two missiles near Aleppo, however Iranians later dismissed the reports. According to some media reports the elite Qods force is in charge of the IRGC's operations beyond Iranian borders and it had a considerable role in fighting against the IS terrorist group (ISIL, ISIS or Daesh). Soleimani achieved almost a celebrity-like status among Iranian, Iraqi and Syrian Shia Muslims on social media. Many social media pages dedicated to the general have been publishing photos and videos of him on the battlefields in Syria and Iraq. Meanwhile, reportedly the Syrian army has recently made advances after launching massive operations backed by the Russian Air Force, IRGC and Lebanon's Hezbollah against the armed opposition groups. A UN Security Council resolution on Dec. 18 approved a draft resolution on peace process in Syria. According to the resolution, Syrian government and opposition groups should attend peace talks to find a solution for putting an end to the crisis. However just a few days after launching the talks, the UN suspended peace talks suggesting that they will resume since Feb. 25. Syrian sides keep blaming each other for the collapse of the talks. Over 250,000 people have died and at least 11 million have been displaced in Syria, since the crisis broke out in 2011. Jack Lemmon in The Apartment. Matthew Weiners Mad Men draws inspiration from many cinematic sources, ranging from The Best of Everything and The Americanization of Emily to La Notte and Carnal Knowledge. Im spotlighting four of my favorites this weekend at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco, as part of a miniature film festival titled Mad Men Weekend. (For dates and showtimes, click here.) I wrote and narrated four video essays, presented below, about the films on the schedule: Sweet Smell of Success (1957), The Apartment (1960), Seconds (1966), and Swimmer (1968). (The latter was cut by Nelson Carvajal, while Serena Bramble put together the rest.) Ill be at each screening, signing copies of my Mad Men book, and because I like to overcomplicate everything, performing the narration of each video live. This will, I hope, add another layer of interest to the proceedings. Even if audiences could not care less what I have to say about these films, they will at least have the modest excitement of seeing if I can get through the whole thing without messing up. Friday, February 5 Sweet Smell of Success (1957) Id hate to take a bite out of you, Sidney, powerful New York gossip columnist J.J. Hunsecker (Burt Lancaster) tells toadying press agent Sidney Falco (Tony Curtis) in Sweet Smell of Success. Youre a cookie full of arsenic. Many of the scandals, power plays, and rivalries on Mad Men echo scenes from Success, in particular any confrontation between Don Draper or Roger Sterling (John Slattery) and their ambitious and sometimes treacherous underling, Pete Campbell (Vincent Kartheiser). Alexander MacKendrick, a veteran of Ealing Studio comedies, directed most of the film on location in New York after sundown, which made it one of the more expensive films released by United Artists in the 1950s; it was a box-office flop that badly damaged the stars boutique production company, Hecht-Hill-Lancaster, but it made a deep impact on several generations of movie buffs, and its reputation continues to grow. Based on Ernest Lehmans novella, and adapted by Lehman and playwright Clifford Odets (who supplied many of the more corrosive and baroque insults), Sweet Smell of Success is one of the ultimate New York night films, and a study in power. Weiner and his writers had it in the backs of their minds throughout the shows run. The dialogues bowstring snap and the storys fascination with how images can be shaped or shattered are very Mad Men. Ditto the films vision of New York as, to quote Bert Cooper, a marvelous machine filled with a mesh of levers and gears and springs, like a fine watch, wound tight, always ticking. Saturday, February 6 The Apartment (1960) Directed by Billy Wilder from a script by Wilder and I.A.L. Diamond, this groundbreaking comedy-drama about the power dynamics in the Manhattan offices of an insurance company is still startling and moving, thanks mainly to its grasp of just how cruel and deluded people can be when sex, love, and approval are at stake. Jack Lemmon plays C.C. Bud Baxter, an office drone who lets executives use his apartment for extramarital dalliances; Fred MacMurray is Jeff Sheldrake, a top boss who promises to promote Bud in exchange for the exclusive use of his flat; Shirley MacLaine is Fran Kubelik, who becomes the latest of Sheldrakes conquests, with disastrous results. The film is filled with situations familiar to Mad Men fans, including an office Christmas party that becomes an emotional disaster area, the use of Broadway show tickets to curry favor, and the institutionalized practice of treating female office workers as playthings or prizes. Edie Adams co-stars as a secretary whose last name is Olsen. The film holds the distinction of being the first work of preexisting popular culture to serve as an anchor for a whole episode of Mad Men, season ones The Long Weekend, in which Joan sees herself in Wilders movie and is so shaken that she puts the brakes on her relationship with the married Roger. The Swimmer (1968) Frank Perry directed this suburban drama; his wife, screenwriter Eleanor Perry, adapted the original 1964 short story by John Cheever, about a man named Ned Merrill (Burt Lancaster) who acts out his midlife crisis like so: returning home from a cocktail party by swimming through every pool in his neighborhood, believing that together they form a river back to his house. Essentially a depressive 1960s Connecticut cousin of The Odyssey, this film and Cheevers original short story were cited often by TV critics writing about Mad Men, especially in conjunction with season fours The Summer Man, in which Don Draper tries to pull himself out of an alcoholic tailspin through a regimen of journal writing and swimming laps at the YMCA pool. But the film resonates with the series in more general ways. Like much of Mad Men, The Swimmer is concerned with upper-middle-class East Coast suburbanites who fancy themselves sophisticated but who seem dissatisfied and depressed, and whose misadventures with sex and alcohol make messes of their home lives. Also like Mad Men, its tone is at once realistic and curiously dreamlike, and the characters specific actions could be interpreted as metaphors if the viewer chose to go that route. Sunday, February 7 Seconds (1966) See if this sounds familiar: A New York executive with a beautiful home and a beautiful wife and a regular routine that includes taking the train into Grand Central Terminal decides one day that hes had enough of his supposedly perfect life, adopts a new identity, and goes off to California to become somebody else. Thats not too far from Don Drapers story on Mad Men (though with a lot more complications and a Dickensian backstory), but this film from director John Frankenheimer (The Manchurian Candidate) and screenwriter Lewis John Carlino adds a Twilight Zone atmosphere and dashes of science-fiction allegory. The hero, initially played by John Randolph, gets plastic surgery that gives him Rock Hudsons face, plus a new career as an up-and-coming gallery artist, and the people who hook him up are part of a bizarre, Amway-like organization based around referrals. Shot in monochrome and occasionally fish-eye by James Wong Howe (who also shot Sweet Smell of Success), Seconds is one of the oddest studio films of the 1960s, and one of the most haunting. Hes back! Photo: Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images While we await word on the future of Sookie, another important figure in Rory Gilmores life is back in the picture: Matt Czuchry has signed on to reprise his role of Logan Huntzberger in Netflixs Gilmore Girls revival, TV Line reports. Congrats, Team Logan youre one step closer to winning back Rorys heart! Because, as Amy Sherman-Palladino recently noted, the revival wont completely ignore the events of season seven (and neither should you), which means Logans rejected marriage proposal will be a not-so-distant memory. Unfortunately for Logan, Sherman-Palladino also says she plans on picking the show up with Rory dating like any young woman with that face would be, which means there will be lots of competition (especially if Jess and Dean also return). Then again, what if Logan has moved on from Rory and is now a big-shot lawyer in California (where he was last headed), sort of like his Good Wife character? What are the odds. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif says a political approach through intra-Syrian dialogue is the only solution to the crisis in Syria. "From the beginning of the crisis in Syria we have maintained that a political resolution through inter-Syrian talks is the only way out," Zarif said while addressing a donor conference on Syria in London on Thursday, Press TV reported. "We have also underlined that outside actors should facilitate such dialog and not seek to dictate its parameters or outcome," he added. Zarif also called for UN-brokered Syrian peace talks to resume after they were suspended on Wednesday. "We hope that the pause in the Geneva talks is only temporary," he said. The top Iranian diplomat said that during three rounds of international talks on Syria last year, Tehran "insisted on the imperative of an immediate ceasefire. We continue to do so." Zarif also said the "extent of humanitarian catastrophe" in Syria required still more to be done. He highlighted Iran's aid for internally displaced Syrians, saying Tehran has been regularly providing basic necessities to people there. "Iran has focused on providing aid to these internally displaced Syrians," said Zarif. The minister estimated Iran's humanitarian aid at $2.5 billion so far through sending ambulances, tents, blankets and basic necessities. Zarif further reiterated the Islamic Republic's "readiness to engage in all efforts to bring an immediate ceasefire and to collaborate in humanitarian endeavors to alleviate the sufferings of the Syrian people." World leaders and officials have gathered in London to attend the conference aimed at raising $9 billion for Syria. The conference is expected to broach Syria's humanitarian needs and discuss options for ending the country's five-year conflict. On the sidelines of the conference, Zarif met with a number of foreign dignitaries including United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, British Prime Minister David Cameron, Jordan's King Abdullah and Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. Tens of thousands of people have seen the paintings and drawings of Waco artist Stanley Miller, but the show that opens Friday at Papillon Antiques represents his first public exhibition in Waco in 40 years. Miller, a former commercial artist with Word Inc., WRS and Raytheon, will display around three dozen paintings and drawings in the two-month-long exhibit. Its the largest display of his work since a 1976 exhibition at the Waco Regional Airport and a rare public one, though many have seen him sketching people at Barnes & Noble Booksellers. Its my coming-out show, said the 75-year-old artist, and as such, its populated with his favorite subject: faces and figures. I love to draw people. Millers art is part of a Mardi Gras-themed First Friday event at Papillon Antiques that will also include a wine tasting led by The Wine Shoppes David Mayfield and a program of New Orleans jazz by the Horton Duo. Miller will be at the First Friday opening reception. Miller left his native Abilene to study art at Art Center College in Los Angeles in 1960, but became disillusioned with illustration and left after three years, returning to Abilene, where he studied painting at McMurry College. In 1969, he and his bride, Paula, moved to Waco, drawn by a job offer from Word Inc. president Jarrell McCracken to work as an in-house freelance artist with Faith at Work magazine and other Word products. Those products included book and album covers for the Christian publishing and recording giant. In Millers nearly 20 years with the company, his path crossed those of more than a few celebrities, including Anita Bryant, Amy Grant, country performers Roy Clark and Ray Price, Dale Evans, classical guitarist Christopher Parkening and Christian author Keith Miller. I got to meet some interesting people, the artist noted. After Word, Miller moved on to other Waco-based corporate employers such as WRS Group, where he did medical illustration, and Raytheon. In 1998, he left to pursue fulltime painting, building up a clientele through private commissions, many for his portrait work and figure painting. Cut back business As hes grown older, hes cut back on the business end of his painting to follow his own interests. Im 75 now and I dont have the stamina or eyesight I used to, he said. Many of the pieces in his Papillon Antiques exhibit are in his favorite medium, an opaque watercolor called gouache (pronounced GWASH). It doesnt take as long as acrylic or oil paints, yet allows stronger color and bolder lines than translucent watercolor. Theres little more power to it. Its bolder, more free in the stroke, he said. The combination of speed, color and intensity dovetails with Millers fondness for sketching. I work fairly fast. Theres something about capturing the energy and spirit of the moment that becomes very powerful for the viewer, he said. Millers portraits and high-quality painting have made him a favorite among some art collectors in Waco and beyond, but Miller generally has eschewed the limelight for a quieter pursuit of his passion. Art is not No. 1 in my life, he said. Faith is, then family, friends and then art. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Khalid Kazimov - Trend: An Iranian army commander has said that the country will strengthen its missile program despite the UN resolutions. "The country's missiles program will be more precise and strengthen," Mehr news agency quoted the Iranian army's chief commander, Maj-Gen Ataollah Salehi, as saying. Saying that the country's missiles program is not considered as a threat against its neighboring countries and friends, the commander added that the program is aimed at increasing Iran's deterrent capacity against the enemies. He further added that the Islamic Republic does not consider itself bound by the UN resolutions urging the country to restrict its missiles program. Paragraph 3 of Annex B of resolution 2231 (2015) adopted by the UN Security Council on 20 July 2015 endorsing the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA/nuclear deal) , calls upon Iran not to undertake any activity related to ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering nuclear weapons, including launches using such ballistic missile technology. Last October, Iran test fired its latest "long-range" missile dubbed Emad which triggered a negative reaction from the West. Following the test-fire several Western sources claimed that Tehran violated the UN Security Council resolution by test-firing Emad missile, suggesting it is capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. A former longtime H-E-B employee was convicted Wednesday of sexually abusing a young family member at his Robinson home. Jurors in Wacos 54th State District court deliberated just more than two hours before finding Michael Scott Edrington guilty of two counts of indecency with a child by contact. The punishment phase begins Thursday morning. The 56-year-old Edrington, former manager of the H-E-B in Bellmead, faces from two to 20 years in prison on each count. After Edrington was convicted, Judge Matt Johnson found Edringtons bond insufficient and ordered him jailed. The girl, who was 6 at the time, testified Tuesday that Edrington sexually abused her on numerous occasions in 2013 while she was visiting his Robinson home. After resting their case Wednesday morning, prosecutors Gabrielle Massey and Hilary LaBorde abandoned the first count of the indictment, which charged Edrington with continuous sexual abuse of a child. Continuous sexual abuse of a child alleges two or more incidents of abuse that occurred over more than a 30-day period and carries a minimum of 25 years in prison and a maximum life term with no possibility of parole. The girl testified that Edrington abused her multiple times but was unsure about the dates of the abuse and over what period of time they occurred. That prompted the prosecutors to dismiss the charge before defense attorneys Thomas West and Seth Sutton had a chance to ask the judge to dismiss the count because it was not supported by the evidence. Sutton argued in summations that prosecutors were forced to dismiss the count because the girl changed her story and that equates to reasonable doubt. Edrington denied the allegations and testified that he had no idea why the girl would accuse him of abusing her. A host of defense witnesses, including two of Edringtons sisters and his brother, testified that Edrington has a good reputation and that they were all shocked, like he said he was, at the allegations. Additional staff training on a federal homelessness law brought the number of identified homeless students at Waco Independent School District up by almost 50 percent in one year. Waco ISD reports show the number of homeless students identified in the 2014-15 school year was 907, which increased by 49.7 percent, or 451 students, to 1,358 by the beginning of the 2015-16 school year. Total student enrollment for Waco ISD has been about 15,000 for the past three years. The sharp spike in homeless students this school year brings the number within 100 of the 1,267 homeless students counted two years ago. Officials likely undercounted the population last year, leading to the drop recorded in 2014-15, Waco ISD homeless liaison Cheryl Pooler said. When the numbers radically dropped, Pooler said she decided to host additional training for administration and staff to help connect homeless families to social services the district can provide. My belief is that this years numbers are more accurate, Pooler said. I think there were students last year who were homeless who were never properly identified. The McKinneyVento Homeless Assistance Act of 1987 defines homelessness for students as children or teenagers who are sharing housing or living in motels, shelters, campgrounds or cars because of economic hardship or similar reasons. The drop last year shocked me, because I knew nothing had changed in our community, Pooler said. There wasnt an onslaught of good-paying jobs that just all of the sudden came up. Theres not a huge amount of safe, affordable housing that suddenly became available to families. Nothing had changed in the community, except that number. The increase in homeless students adds pressure to school services because the district sends buses to wherever the students are staying, along with providing breakfast, lunch, uniforms and school supplies. So far, the district has provided uniforms for 530 students through donations from a local church. Each uniform costs about $21, bringing the amount donated to students to about $11,130. I cannot tell you how helpful those wonderful people are. Because when youre providing uniforms to as many students as we have, thats a lot. Its more than the district could ever provide for. Financially, the money just isnt there, Pooler said. Homeless students also drive up the mobility rate in the district because parents have the option of enrolling their children in any school they choose. Pooler said she tries her best to keep the students at their school of origin the campus where they started the school year by sending buses to wherever they are staying. But if the parents decide to enroll them at a school closer to their new location, the district cant stop them, Pooler said. Rick Hartley, assistant superintendent of middle schools, said the district sends a bus to pick up seven students who moved out of the district after this school year started. Most of them are living in motels or apartments, and, Hartley said, he can expect about half of them to switch locations at least once a year. The district didnt have available Wednesday the number of homeless students in the district receiving transportation. A student is considered mobile who spends less than 83 percent of the year enrolled at one campus, according to state reports. Superintendent Bonny Cain said 26.9 percent of the districts students were considered mobile in the 2013-14 school year, 10 percent higher than the state average of 16.9 percent of students. We make sure that our students have what they need to start school. Dressed in uniform, with their school supplies and just ready to learn, Pooler said. Its about leveling the playing ground so that our kids start off ready to go. Four years ago, representatives from the largest state police association stood outside the McLennan County Courthouse and endorsed Parnell McNamara for sheriff. On Wednesday, that scene was re-created as Combined Law Enforcement Associations of Texas representatives again put their support behind McNamara, who is looking to win a second term as sheriff. McNamara faces Waco police Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton and Pastor Willie Tompkins in the March 1 Republican primary. Early voting starts Feb. 16, and a runoff election is set for May 24, if needed. Swanton has picked up an endorsement from the Waco Police Association, which represents officers and retirees of the Waco Police Department. Swanton said it was huge to pick up the endorsement of the largest commissioned police department in McLennan County. He said he is proud to receive the groups backing, because it doesnt present that to just anyone. They absolutely endorse who they think is best, Swanton said. He said it means a lot to have his peers support him, his experience, his leadership and what he can provide for the county. Swanton also said he has met with representatives of other organizations that plan to announce their endorsements soon. Tompkins said he has not received any endorsements. In addition to CLEATs endorsement, McNamara, who is a CLEAT member, has received four other endorsements, from the Waco Association of Realtors, Waco Goodfellows, the Bellmead Police Department and the Sheriffs Law Enforcement Association of McLennan County. CLEAT Executive Director Charley Wilkison said he doesnt think there is anybody better than McNamara to be the countys sheriff. Wilkison said the organization doesnt make endorsements for every county in the state. He said it follows the lead of local endorsements, which in this case came after the Sheriffs Law Enforcement Association of McLennan County endorsed McNamara. CLEAT serves as advocates for law enforcement from the moment an officer is sworn in to the end, Wilkison said. The organization provides legal representation, lobbying efforts and political action on the local, state and national level, he said. Standing alongside the Cavalier Crusaders for Parnell a group of dogs dressed in his campaign swag McNamara said this was a huge endorsement. When I was with the U.S. marshals, I put in almost 33 years. The government hired me, but the people hired me as sheriff, McNamara said. I take that to heart every day. I will never forget that. McNamara said he thinks he has led the department in making real strides in law enforcement during the past three years. Were going to keep the heat turned up and the hammer down on the criminals, he said. You can count on that. Police are investigating after a 29-year-old woman was found dead in a vehicle parked in front of a house at 1917 N. 15th St. on Thursday afternoon. Officers were called to the house at about 12:45 p.m. and found a black Ford Explorer parked in front with the dead woman sitting in the drivers seat, Waco police Sgt. W. Patrick Swanton said. The woman was slumped over the middle console when officers arrived, but no trauma was found on the body. There are no obvious signs of foul play, Swanton said, adding that special crimes and crime scene investigators were also called to the home. We are working this as a questionable death. Officers were able to identify the woman in the vehicle as a large crowd of spectators gathered around the neighborhood. The womans second cousin, Donald Childress, said another family member who was watching the womans two kids asked him and his mother to go check on the woman as she hasnt been heard from in a few days. She hadnt come to pick her kids up for like two days, but she works at night and doesnt get off until 11 p.m., Childress said. I got out of the car, going to the door and I looked over at the car and I (saw) her leaning over. Childress said he walked to the drivers side of the SUV and knocked on the window. He said he saw something questionable, and the woman did not respond. She only had one leg in her pants, and her blouse was ripped, he said. She didnt look to be breathing. Childress said he and his mother drove back to a family members home to call police. Swanton said the body will be taken to Dallas for an autopsy. The investigation is ongoing. No matter how things play out with the fast-spreading Zika virus, people are likely to end up angry at public health authorities. Its possible the situation will become worse than expected, both worldwide and in the United States, where some spread cant be ruled out. Zika may be blamed for some U.S. cases of microcephaly the birth deformity tentatively linked to the outbreak in Brazil. If that happens, health officials will be slammed for downplaying danger, as they were during the 2014 Ebola crisis. Or the epidemic may turn out to be smaller than expected and may never spread within the United States. In that case, the public will accuse the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and World Health Organization of scaremongering and overreaction, as happened following two fizzled flu outbreaks, bird flu in 2004 and H1N9 in 2009. It will be easy in hindsight to pinpoint how the authorities got it wrong, but for the time being they are doing one thing right. In their attempts to impart an appropriate level of concern, both the CDC and WHO are being straightforward with the public about how little is known. They are doing a much better job leveling with people about uncertainties concerning Zika than they did during the Ebola outbreak, said Peter Sandman, a risk communication consultant who has advised public health officials on everything from vaccines to GMO crops to climate change. Threats tend to generate both danger and outrage. In the Ebola outbreak, the danger to the average American was small, Sandman said, but the outrage wasnt. That was because the disease spread to a few people in hospitals after assurances that the public health system could contain it. Zika is unpredictable. The mosquito-borne virus was discovered in Africa in 1947 and, till 2014, it had never been detected in the Americas. It was considered a silent or mild infection not associated with any severe health complications until 2015, when doctors in Brazil started to report an alarming increase in the incidence of a microcephaly a birth defect characterized by a small head and incomplete brain development. Scientists cant be certain the birth defects are caused by the Zika virus. They cant put a number on the risk faced by a pregnant woman who is exposed. Equally murky is the strength of circumstantial evidence that Zika infection can lead to a temporary but dangerous form of paralysis known as Guillain-Barre syndrome. Sandman, working with his wife, Jody Lanard, evaluated the current Zika warnings and found that public health authorities have neither been too alarmist nor too calm. They are trying to arouse appropriate fear about a potentially cataclysmic pregnancy outcome, they wrote in an e-mail. WHO has estimated that between 3 million and 4 million people could become infected worldwide a range that experts found reasonable, though there is no indication how this will translate into birth defects or other health problems. This week, WHO officials are debating whether to declare an international emergency a designation used only three times in the past. While theres nothing binding in such a declaration, its likely to step up the sense of urgency. Sandman and Lanard argue that such a global declaration would be reasonable, given that in an uncertain situation its better to err on the side of caution than to underreact. CDCs message has been more reassuring since its mission is to focus on the United States. There have been a few cases here, acquired in other countries, but no evidence the disease has spread within the 50 states. Its possible that Zika could advance in the United States since the mosquito species responsible for transmitting the disease lives there. But how do you convey a theoretical risk? Sandman and Lanard say CDC got the tone about right in telebriefings Jan. 28 and Jan. 29. Officials warned of the possibility of limited outbreaks in the U.S. while explaining that this prediction was based primarily on experience with similar mosquito- borne viruses dengue and chikungunya that did not become U.S. epidemics. Some critics in the popular press are accusing the CDC of underplaying the problem. Last week, an opinion article in the New York Post accused it of brushing off the Zika virus. The piece scolded the agency for not putting more effort into mosquito eradication. Unbelievably, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says it has no intention of helping communities in the United States eradicate mosquitoes, even though its immersed in the same fight against mosquito-borne disease in other countries across the globe. Eradicating mosquitoes is not that easy. While some have suggested a reintroduction of the banned insecticide DDT, University of Minnesota epidemiologist Michael Osterholm says thats a red herring. There are other insecticides, he said, and while spraying makes for dramatic TV footage, real mosquito control depends primarily on the unglamorous job of cleaning up old tires and plastic trash where water collects and mosquitoes breed. The species spreading the disease in Latin America, he said, thrives in cluttered urban areas. Some scientists are exploring the release of genetically modified mosquitoes designed to introduce fatal genes into the existing population. Others say the most practical long-term solution is a vaccine. Philip Russell, a virologist who oversaw Ebola and other emerging disease research for the Army, said that effective vaccines have been made against similar viruses. Zika wouldnt present the kinds of technical hurdles that have held up vaccines for HIV and malaria. How fast such a vaccine could be produced and tested, he said, would depend on money and determination. If the Zika crisis fizzles, hindsight bias might lead people to criticize health authorities for urging pregnant women not to travel to affected areas, and for funneling money into improving mosquito control and vaccine development. But these are the right actions given whats currently known. Russell said the typical pattern for this type of outbreak is a peak and then a decline. But without a vaccine, he added, its not going away. Faye Flam writes about science, mathematics and medicine. She has been a staff writer for Science magazine and a columnist for the Philadelphia Inquirer. She is author of The Score: How the Quest for Sex Has Shaped the Modern Man. There are few things a president can do that a successor cannot reverse. One presidents war is often followed by the next presidents withdrawal. One presidents new social program frequently gives way to a new presidents budget cuts. The one exception to this cyclical dynamic is the appointment of Supreme Court justices, where the justices have life tenure. Each president leaves a permanent mark on the law and public policy. This should be, and will be, a major topic of discussion in the current election. Voters should pay attention. When the country is deeply divided on controversial policy issues, as it is today, the Supreme Court becomes the place where stalemated issues get resolved. This was true for efforts to expand social programs during the New Deal, to protect civil rights during the Cold War and even to settle a contested election in 2000. Today, the justices will play a central role in defining health care, marriage, privacy, affirmative action and other contested policy issues of our time. They will not do this with a single decision, but with a series of rulings and opinions that frame law and public discussion. The current Supreme Court is populated with aging justices, four of whom are older than 75 and five of whom have served on the court for more than 20 years each. The oldest justices include two conservatives, Antonin Scalia (79) and Anthony Kennedy (79), and two liberals, Ruth Bader Ginsburg (82) and Stephen Breyer (77). Following the pattern of the past three presidents, whoever wins the White House should have the opportunity to appoint at least two replacements for current justices who retire in the coming years. There is a good chance that at least one conservative and one liberal will retire, giving the new president the opportunity to re-balance the court by appointing two justices of the same political persuasion. We all know that the modern confirmation process involves intensive scrutiny of a potential nominees background and persistent efforts to predict likely ruling preferences. Becoming a Supreme Court justice involves appealing to a presidents policy positions and then separating from them when questioned by senators from the other party. Public claims to objectivity and private biases go hand in hand. But for all the scrutiny, the process remains unpredictable. Many justices even those with extensive judicial experience change their views when they join the Supreme Court. They have reached the zenith of their careers, they are expected to act as philosopher-kings, and they have life tenure. These conditions encourage self-reflection and independence as never before in a judges career. Many past presidents were frustrated when the justices they appointed had a change of heart. President Dwight Eisenhower, for example, appointed former California Gov. Earl Warren as chief justice of the Supreme Court in 1953. Eisenhower expected that Warren, a fellow Republican, would use the courts rulings to restrain the federal government, reduce regulations and broaden the free enterprise system. Warren shifted radically, becoming a proponent of active government, regulation of public behavior and an expansive social welfare state, including major civil rights milestones. Eisenhower famously lamented that appointing Warren to the Supreme Court was his greatest mistake. Eisenhowers successors would make similar statements about their appointees. Most recently, Chief Justice John Roberts, appointed by President George W. Bush, infuriated fellow Republicans with his support for the legality of the Affordable Care Act. This background is vital for voters because it shows how important and unpredictable presidential choices truly are for the Supreme Court. The next president will reshape our daily lives through his or her judicial appointments, but the president will not control specific rulings. Voters should look for presidential candidates who will appoint Supreme Court justices committed to their core values of fairness and integrity. We cannot predict what the new justices will do, but we can expect appointees to reflect the biases of their initial presidential patrons. The Democrat or Republican who wins the White House in 2016 will create a new Supreme Court that furthers the general preferences of that presidential party. The stakes for the Supreme Court in this presidential election are especially high, and partisan. Jeremi Suri holds the Mack Brown Distinguished Chair for Leadership in Global Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author and editor of numerous books, including Libertys Surest Guardian: American Nation-Building From the Founders to Obama. This column represents the first from a new service of such columns written by faculty members at UT. Texas Perspectives offers just that more Texas-centric columns from experts in their fields, similar to contributions from faculty at Baylor University and McLennan Community College. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Umid Niayesh - Trend: Iran and the United States have many areas to cooperate, believes Edward Haley, a US international affairs expert. "Tehran and Washington share similar objectives in many areas, such as opposing ISIS (aka IS, ISIL), helping Iraq become a viable, stable country, improving the environment and reducing global warming, and cooperating on these and other issues makes perfect sense," Haley, a W.M. Keck Foundation Professor of International Strategic Studies (emeritus) at Claremont McKenna College, told Trend Feb. 4. At the same time, Haley believes Iran's following the doctrine of "the West minus the US", which is supported by local conservatives in the Islamic Republic, would not be in favor of Tehran. The doctrine of "the West minus the US" is an old policy followed, by many states, notably China and the Soviet Union during the Cold War, he said. In the early 1990s, Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei put forward a doctrine known as "the West minus the United States". The doctrine, which envisages Iran's cooperation with the entire West excluding the US, has since then been followed by all Iranian administrations. Khamenei even banned any talks with the US beyond Iran's nuclear issue. Haley added that the mentioned doctrine works well, but there are many reasons why Iran might choose not to follow that course, including: the US offers goods and ideas that are difficult, if not impossible, to find elsewhere; it makes little sense to have no connection to the world's largest economy; and the two parties' have similar objectives, as it was mentioned above. The expert further touched upon the EU's opportunities in Iranian market following the removal of the sanctions, as Iran's nuclear deal with world powers came into force Jan. 16. "One would expect the EU to seek market advantage after the removal of the sanctions, especially if the US is prevented by existing statutes, Iranian laws, and a Republican Congress or a new Republican president from trading and investing in Iran," he said. Saying the EU and the US imposed severe sanctions on Iran in just about every area of economic life during the nuclear stand-off, Haley added the EU was less restrictive regarding foreign investment, and now that UN sanctions have been lifted, it may pursue Iranian trade and investment opportunities. He further remarked that the Iranian economy is not huge - it is dwarfed by that of France, for example, which has a smaller population - and that should be kept in mind. Responding to the question whether developing the Iran-EU economic ties also may lead to improving political relations, he said economic ties are not so much causes as symptoms in relations among states, which are driven by calculations of national interest in the broadest sense. "Improving political ties between the EU and Iran could be accompanied by increases in trade and investment, provided that Iran changes its domestic laws to facilitate foreign investment and trade," Haley explained. "Iran ranks well down in the middle of the pack internationally with regard to competitiveness, for example, and the international community follows suit." Another issue that Iran has been battling for a long time is the human rights, which is a sensitive issue for the West. According to Haley, it is possible that human rights issues between Iran and the rest of the world will be treated as "either-or," that is Iran must follow international standards of human rights or be denied trade and investment and much more. Anticipating a return of 299,200 adult spring chinook salmon, fishery managers from Washington and Oregon set this years initial fishing season to run through April 9 on the lower Columbia River. In addition, representatives from the two states agreed to close the winter sturgeon retention fishery in the Bonneville Pool effective Feb. 8 and approved a six-hour recreational smelt season Feb. 6 on the Cowlitz River. Here are the major provisions of those agreements: Spring chinook: From March 1 through April 9, anglers fishing downriver from Bonneville Dam may retain one marked, hatchery-reared adult spring chinook as part of their daily catch limit. The fishery will be open to both boat and bank anglers upriver to Beacon Rock, and for bank anglers only from there upriver to the fishing boundary just below the dam. The sport fishery will close in all areas of the lower Columbia River on two Tuesdays March 29 and April 5 to accommodate potential commercial fisheries. Upstream of Bonneville Dam, anglers may retain one hatchery-reared adult spring chinook per day from March 16 through May 6 between the Tower Island powerlines and the Washington/Oregon state line. Bank anglers using hand-casted gear (no boats) can also fish from Bonneville Dam upriver to the Tower Island powerlines during that time. Barbless hooks are required to fish for spring chinook in the Columbia River and anglers must release any salmon or steelhead not visibly marked as a hatchery fish by a clipped adipose fin. Sturgeon: The recreational sturgeon retention fishery between Bonneville Dam and The Dalles Dam will close Feb. 8. By that time, fishery managers expect that anglers will have reeled in 140 sturgeon from those waters, leaving 185 available for a one-or-two day fishery in summer. Catch-and-release fishing remains an option until then. Smelt: As in the past two years, fishery managers approved a limited fishery for smelt on the Cowlitz River to help gather data on the species abundance. Recreational smelt dipping will be restricted to the hours of 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 6. The limit per person is 10 pounds about one-quarter of a five-gallon bucket. Smelt dipping is not allowed from boats. To support the data-collection effort, the two states also approved a limited gillnet fishery for smelt in February on the lower Columbia River. The areas smelt population was listed as threatened under the federal Endangered Species Act in 2010, but runs have shown some signs of improvement since then. Fishing rules reflecting these actions are available on the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlifes (WDFW) website at https://fortress.wa.gov/dfw/erules/efishrules/ Fishing for spring chinook is currently open on a daily basis from Buoy 10 near the mouth of the Columbia River upstream to the Interstate 5 Bridge, although the bulk of the run doesnt arrive until mid-March when the new fishing rules will be in effect. Catch guidelines approved for the popular fishery will allow anglers fishing below Bonneville Dam to catch approximately 9,100 hatchery-raised springers before an updated run forecast is completed in late April or early May. Another 1,000 adult upriver chinook are reserved for anglers fishing upriver from Bonneville Dam to the Washington/Oregon state line, 17 miles above McNary Dam. Additional fish have also been reserved for the Snake River sport fishery. After banner spring chinook returns in each of the past two years, the projected run of 299,200 adult fish for 2016 is still slightly above the recent 10-year average, said Ron Roler, WDFW Columbia River policy manager. However, while this years projected run of upriver fish is down by about 100,000 fish from last year, he said returns to some tributaries notably the Cowlitz and Kalama rivers show an increase this year. Salmon returns rise and fall from year to year, especially during the kind of cyclical ocean changes were seeing right now, Roler said. Even so, if this run comes in as projected, it will still be the ninth-largest return in more than 25 years. Were expecting plenty of fish to support a great fishing season. As in previous years, Washington and Oregon will manage the fishery with a 30 percent buffer on the upriver chinook forecast until the results of the in-season run update are known. Well continue to take a conservative approach in managing the fishery, Roler said. If the fish return at or above expectations, we will look toward providing additional days of fishing on the river later in the spring. Staffan de Mistura decided to postpone the intra-Syrian talks in Geneva until February 25 on Wednesday, as many preparatory issues, including humanitarian aid access to besieged areas in Syria, remained unresolved. "De Mistura announced it [the pause in the talks], it was his decision and how he sees the future course of the talks is his responsibility," Gatilov said, adding that the envoy was "appointed specifically to mediate the talks and it is up to him to determine the following course of action in that direction." Gatilov also said that de Mistura must determine the future course of intra-Syrian talks. The UN envoy said in a Wednesday statement that negotiations were postponed because of a lack of progress in the discussions dedicated to the resolution of humanitarian issues in Syria. Last week, the highly-anticipated talks on Syrian reconciliation mediated by the United Nations began in Geneva in line with the December UN Security Council resolution on Syrian settlement that ruled to bring the entire spectrum of political groups in the crisis-torn country to the negotiating table. "Of course, we regret the fact that UN special envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura was forced to make a decision on the suspension of negotiations as a result of the position taken at today's meeting by the [opposition] delegation from Riyadh." The pause in intra-Syrian peace talks will affect discussions within the framework of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) planned for February 11, Gennady Gatilov said. "I think that what happened today will naturally affect the discussion that will take place on February 11 in Munich within the framework of the International Syria Support Group," Gatilov said, adding that he hoped that ISSG participants "will speak in favor of the continuation of the negotiation process and nobody will put up any obstacles." The International Syria Support Group (ISSG), an international format aiming to resolve the Syrian crisis, was formed in November shortly after the beginning of the Syria peace talks in Vienna. The format currently involves Russia, the Arab League countries, the European Union and some of its member states, China, Iran, Turkey, the United Nations and the United States. According to the Russian deputy foreign minister, Russia and the United States maintain regular contact, including between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry, on the Syrian issue. The UN Security Council adopted a resolution on December 18 on settling the Syrian conflict. It reaffirmed the goals of the previous Vienna deals to bring the entire spectrum of political groups in the crisis-torn country to the negotiating table. President Barack Obama's first visit to a US mosque contradicted the "toxic political rhetoric being aimed at American Muslims," Robert McCaw, of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, told Radio Sputnik's Brian Becker. During a visit to the Islamic Society of Baltimore on Wednesday, Obama thanked Muslim Americans for their contribution to the country and reaffirmed the importance of religious freedom to the American way of life. "Let me say as clearly as I can as president of the United States: you fit right here," Obama told the audience. "You're right where you belong. You're part of America too. You're not Muslim or American. You're Muslim and American." The president condemned anti-Muslim rhetoric, such as proposals by Republican presidential candidates to prohibit Muslims from entering the United States and calls to subject American mosques to government surveillance. In an interview with Radio Sputnik's "Loud & Clear," McCaw said Obama's visit was "something that communicates from the administration to the American public that yes, Muslims are our neighbors, they contribute to this nation, they are one of us." Despite receiving invitations from Muslim-American organizations throughout his presidency, Obama waited until his final year in office to visit a US mosque. In contrast, President George W. Bush visited a mosque days after the 9/11 attacks, stressing that the US government was "not at war with Muslims." Obama's first visit to a US mosque was long overdue, according to McCaw, who said the president has "definitely been timid in approaching the Muslim community publicly." Rumors about Obama being a crypto-Muslim - he identifies as Christian - have persisted since his first presidential run in 2008, McCaw noted. While his administration conducts outreach programs within the Muslim American community, Obama has kept his distance, McCaw said. "I think the president's own timidness in engaging with the Muslim community has done a fair deal of damage itself," he said. PRESS RELEASE Dallas February 3, 2016 The Commemorative Air Force (CAF) Red Tail Squadron, Americas tribute to the Tuskegee Airmen, confirms that Wednesday morning, February 3, their P-51C Mustang Tuskegee Airmen was involved in a gear-up landing at Dallas Executive Airport (DEA). The aircraft was landing back at DEA, the national headquarters of the CAF, for a special event in honor of Black History Month in the Dallas area. Piloting the aircraft was CAF Red Tail Squadron Leader Bill Shepard. He sustained no injuries as a result of the gear-up landing. No injuries were reported on the ground. Dallas-area first responders were on the scene. Earlier today, the CAF Red Tail Squadrons P-51C experienced a gear-up landing at Dallas Executive Airport, said Stephan C. Brown, president and CEO of the CAF. Pilot and Squadron Leader Bill Shepard was uninjured. The aircraft sustained substantial damage, but we will start the restoration process shortly. As with the Tuskegee Airmen she honors, this airplane will Rise Above to Triumph Over Adversity and fly again. We appreciate the many messages of concern received today. Special events for Black History Month will continue as scheduled. About the CAF Red Tail Squadron The CAF Red Tail Squadron is a volunteer-driven non-profit organization dedicated to educating audiences across the country about the history and legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen, Americas first black military pilots and their support personnel. RISE ABOVE Red Tail, their three-fold outreach program, includes a fully restored WWII-era P-51C Mustang, the signature aircraft of the Tuskegee Airmen; the RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit 53 mobile theater featuring the original panoramic film Rise Above; and resource materials for teachers and youth leaders. Each year, they embark on a nine-month cross-country tour that includes appearances at air shows, schools, museums and community events. The groups Six Guiding Principles Aim High, Believe In Yourself, Use Your Brain, Be Ready To Go, Never Quit and Expect to Win serve as the foundation for their outreach programs and are based on the experiences and successes of the Tuskegee Airmen. The CAF Red Tail Squadron is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization part of the Commemorative Air Force (CAF). Learn more at www.redtail.org. Sailors from Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit (MDSU) 1 Company 1-5, embarked USNS Safeguard (T-ARS-50) and began an 80-day mission Jan. 31 to document World War II aircraft crash sites in waters around Papua New Guinea. The Navy divers and Safeguards crew of civilian mariners are conducting dive operations using a side-scan sonar system to gather information for a potential excavation of a B-24 Liberator that crashed off the coast of Kawa Island. Additionally, the MDSU team is using their capabilities to search for remains of U.S. airmen at a separate Grumman TBF Avenger crash site in the area. The operations are in support of the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA). The sites are very remote and access to the dive sites is challenging, said Lt. Mark Snyder, MDSU 1 Company 1-5 officer in charge. A dive and salvage platform like Safeguard provides us the capability to access sites like these.Snyder said his team must be self sufficient because of the austere location of the diving sites. It took Safeguard more than a week to arrive on station in waters near Papua New Guinea. Once on station, the diving crews used rigid-hulled inflatable boats (RHIB) to access the crash sites. We had to rely heavily on our small boats (RHIB) for access to the sites, Snyder said. My team had to be very proficient in operating and maintaining our RHIBs in order to make the 30-mile round trips from the ship to the dive sites. We were operating in an area with small, acre-sized islands and reefs. Its a very unique location that many people do not get to see.Snyder said the remote location of the dive sites gave his team a greater appreciation for the vast scope of Pacific operations during WWII and the enormous sacrifices made by U.S. service members and their families.These types of missions are about supporting fallen/missing service members and their families and maintaining the precedence that the U.S. is committed to bringing everyone home, said Snyder. DPAA is a Department of Defense organization dedicated to providing the fullest possible accounting for missing U.S. service personnel to their families and the nation.Our divers are working hard and appreciate the opportunity to put their small boat and diving skills to use in such a unique environment, Snyder said. It is also very rewarding to know that our work could result in the repatriation of a lost service members remains.Safeguard is a forward-deployed diving and salvage ship and is part of U.S. 7th Fleet, Task Force 73 (CTF 73). CTF 73 conducts advanced planning, organizes resources, and directly supports the execution of maritime exercises and operations, such as the CARAT exercise series with Bangladesh, Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Timor-Leste; the Naval Engagement Activity (NEA) with Vietnam, and the multi-lateral Southeast Asia Cooperation and Training (SEACAT) with Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore and Thailand. For more news from Commander, Task Force 73, visit www.navy.mil/local/ctf73/. By Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Micah P. Blechner, CTF 73 Public Affairs Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 Trend: The Syrian conflict can be resolved after a new government is formed in Syria, UK Prime Minister David Cameron said Feb. 4. Cameron was delivering speech at the donor conference titled "Supporting Syria and the Region" in London. Cameron said that the long-term solution to the Syrian conflict can be achieved only through political transition to a new government, which will lead the whole nation. In his turn, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed concern about the lack of humanitarian access, intensifying bombing of Syria and military activity. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev is also among the participants of the conference. The president is taking part in the conference upon an invitation of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, UK Prime Minister David Cameron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg and Emir of Kuwait Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. Residents in Canberra's inner-southern suburbs earn up to $30,000 more than those in Belconnen and Tuggeranong on average each year, a national report says. But the capital remained Australia's most equitable city in 2012-13, with the richest one per cent of wage earners claiming just 6.4 per cent of all income, the lowest rate in the country. In Forrest, which remains Canberra's most-affluent suburb with a median income of $78,024 a year, the top one per cent of wage earners claimed just 11 per cent of the suburb's overall income. Canberra's chief doctor has issued a public safety warning after the discovery of deadly death cap mushrooms in several locations this week. The wild mushrooms are normally spotted during Autumn months although a deluge of rain and cooler temperatures has led to early sightings in the capital. The sighting of death cap mushrooms in Canberra has the government worried. Independent botanist Richard Windsor said he had noticed death cap mushrooms in Glebe and Commonwealth Parks as early as mid-January close to children's play equipment There have been a number of poisonings including four fatalities associated with death cap mushrooms in Canberra since 2000. Canberra's greyhound racing community will come under additional scrutiny as the RSPCA launches a campaign to ban the sport indefinitely. The group has called on the ACT government and newly installed Racing and Gaming Minister Mick Gentleman to show leadership, rather than waiting for other governments to introduce a ban. Greyhounds competing at the Canberra Greyhound Racing Club. Credit:Melissa Adams RSPCA chief executive Tammy Ven Dange said evidence presented to a special commission of inquiry into NSW greyhound racing found up to 17,000 greyhounds were killed each year. Last year, an ABC Four Corners investigation showed footage of piglets, rabbits and possums being mauled and used as live bait for greyhounds to increase their performance on the track. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 Trend: Syrian conflict has no military solution, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said at the 'Supporting Syria and the Region' conference, which kicked off in London Feb. 4, RIA Novosti news agency reported. There is no military solution; only a political dialogue will save the Syrians, he added. Ban Ki-moon further expressed concern that the talks on the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) are undermined by the lack of humanitarian access and by increasing bombings of Syria. He also urged to put pressure on all the sides of the Syrian conflict in order to bring them back to negotiations with each other. Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev is taking part in the conference at an invitation of the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, UK Prime Minister David Cameron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg and Emir of Kuwait Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. Bill Jordanou is one of the alleged architects of the elaborate scam. Credit:Joe Armao A CBA spokeswoman declined to make any comment while the matter was before court. Australia's biggest lender also refused to explain why it failed to alert police of fraud allegations involving Mr Jordanou and Mr Zaia until 2011, despite being aware of them in February 2007. Accountant Robert Zaia. At least two mobile lenders, employed by CBA to visit clients at their home or place of work (and whom Fairfax has decided not to name), were involved in the alleged fraud but were never charged with any offences. Several other bank employees processed dozens of loan applications, which were supported by allegedly forged documents. One of the mobile lenders died suddenly from a brain aneurysm in 2007, while the other is expected to testify against Mr Jordanou and Mr Zaia in court next year. In an email on August 11 2010, one of the mobile lenders was asked by Mr Jordanou to provide the undrawn balances and monthly loan repayments of eight CBA customers. Professional poker player, Bill Jordanou. Allegedly forged documents were provided and CBA staff arranged for funds to be transferred between accounts in an apparent bid to avoid detection by customers or bank security. A bank employee warned Mr Jordanou that one client was in arrears and said: "I don't want to do a mock application for him, as it may automatically place him in a lower category and therefore be declined on the spot." The payment of secret commissions to mobile lenders appears to have been confirmed during a recorded interview between Mr Zaia and a lawyer on November 23, 2011. "Yeah he was our contact, he would come into our office ... and he would get paid a commission on the side which is undisclosed," Mr Zaia said to a solicitor at Frenkel Partners. Two sources linked to Zaia Arthur & Associates told Fairfax Media that both men spent significant amounts of time at the accountant's Scoresby office and received secret payments. The sources said one of them was also given overseas flights, televisions and alcohol during his decade-long association with Mr Jordanou and Mr Zaia. One of the CBA lending managers lived in a Narre Warren South home that was later transferred into the name of Mr Jordanou's wife, Sue Jordanou. Mr Jordanou was a pallbearer at his funeral in 2007. Mildura plasterer Jim Barker and wife Debbie were the first to raise the alarm when two unauthorised withdrawals totalling $26,000 were made from Ms Barker's account. The couple also reported to the CBA's fraud investigation unit that a document that stated Mr Barker was paid an annual salary of $343,000 had been forged with the complicity of bank staff to obtain a loan of $1.5 million. Mildura plasterer Jim Barker and his wife Debbie were the first to raise the alarm - in 2007. Credit:Louise Donges/Sunraysia Daily At the time, Mr Barker earned about $80,000 and was unable to service the loan CBA assessment analyst Andrew Rutherford confirmed their suspicions in an email in May 2007. "From my initial review of this matter the original loan document ... contains a false statement of employment." "I am now pursuing the fraud matter of the loan documents, and have requested they report the matter to Scoresby police and present the bank with statutory declarations with their version of events," Mr Rutherford said in the 2007 email. But the CBA did not contact police until 2011. While the bank agreed to refund $26,000 for the unauthorised withdrawals, the Barkers were eventually forced to sell their 38 hectare property after the CBA refused to accept the loan documents had also been forged. Despite a recent claim to be the nation's most "ethical bank", the CBA has rejected requests for compensation and pursued legal action to repossess homes from at least four other customers who claimed their loans were acquired with allegedly fraudulent documents linked Zaia Arthur & Associates. These latest allegations come as CBA remains under scrutiny from the corporate regulator and Commonwealth government over serious misconduct inside its financial planning division from 2003 to 2012 that put the retirement savings of thousands of customers at risk. Several CBA financial planners have been banned from practising by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission for providing inappropriate advice, overcharging on commissions and fees, and in some cases, allegedly committing acts of fraud. CBA recently revealed its review has found more than 1 in 10 files are "missing" for customers who have applied to have their records, accounts and investments reviewed as part of its compensation scheme. Energy utility AGL expects gas prices to rise more slowly after the oil price slump as it grapples with a decline in demand from industrial users. It made the disclosure when it outlined plans to abandon all gas exploration and production as it baulked at the $1 billion development of a controversial gas resource in NSW because of poor prospective returns, denying the decision was the result of community concerns. AGL expects gas prices to continue rising, but at a slower rate. Credit:Bloomberg "This decision represents a definitive end to the supply of part of our gas portfolio," chief executive Andy Vesey said, opting instead to source additional gas from Bass Strait, which analysts warned could increase the exposure of gas markets in eastern Australia to future supply disruptions. The decision has resulted in a $795 million pre-tax charge with the largest single asset write-down of $375 million against Moranbah and a further $208 million against Silver Springs. Both projects are in Queensland. The Queensland government has hosed down suggestions it is about to approve a mining lease for Adani's Carmichael project, with Mines Minister Anthony Lynham warning there was still a long road to go. The $16.5 billion Galilee Basin project received an Environmental Authority from the government on Tuesday, outraging environmental activists who saw the approval as a betrayal of Labor's promise to protect the Great Barrier Reef and the environment. Queensland Mines Minister has poured cold water on the suggestion Adani's Galilee Basin coal mine will receive approval soon after an EA was issued this week. Credit:Ryan Stuart But the news was welcomed by the resources sector, which saw it as knocking down one more hurdle towards breaking ground. The state opposition called for Dr Lynham and the government to issue Adani with a mining lease "immediately" following the issuing of the EA. The discussion paper, marked "in confidence", has been circulated to state governments for discussion ahead of a planned Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting in March. The leak of the paper came as new figures showed government spending on vocational education and training (VET) had slumped by 12 per cent over the past year. Under the controversial proposal, revealed by Fairfax Media on Wednesday , TAFE fees would be deregulated and TAFEs would receive the same levels of funding as private colleges in a bid to increase competition in the sector. Victorian Skills and Training Minister Steve Herbert says handing the TAFE system to Canberra is 'not an attractive proposition'. Credit:Lucy Di Paolo State governments have condemned the Turnbull government's bid to take over responsibility for funding TAFE, saying the federal government instead needs to focus on repairing its scandal-plagued vocational loans scheme. The states would have to agree to transfer responsibility for funding vocational education and training (VET) for the Commonwealth takeover to proceed. The NSW and Victorian skills ministers both said they had no confidence the federal government was ready to take over the VET sector given the problems engulfing its HECS-style loans scheme, VET FEE-HELP. The scheme has blown out in cost and been beset by dodgy providers enrolling vulnerable students into courses they are unlikely to complete. The Tasmanian government has previously ruled out backing a federal takeover of VET. NSW Skills Minister John Barilaro said: "VET FEE-HELP is a clear example of the federal government interfering in the VET sector and causing a lot of pain for taxpayers and students. "I want the federal government to focus on fixing VET FEE-HELP first then we can talk about a uniform national system." Mr Barilaro was surprised by the "aggressiveness" of the free-market approach outlined in the leaked paper. The deregulation of the TAFE sector in Victoria had been disastrous, he said, whereas the NSW government still controls fees and course places. This allows the state to focus on local skills shortages. Mr Barilaro said a national vocational system made sense but that "NSW TAFEs are not ready to compete with the private sector - they need to be much more innovative and nimble". The leader of controversial men's advocacy group Return of Kings has cancelled a string of public meetings planned for several Australian cities after a wave of public anger directed towards his "neomasculinist" views. In a message to followers on his website on Wednesday, Daryush "Roosh" Valizadeh cancelled "all official Return of Kings meetups". "I can no longer guarantee the safety or privacy of the men who want to attend on February 6, especially since most of the meetups can not be made private in time," he wrote. An alleged cannabis-growing operation has been busted on a remote fire trail north-east of Canberra. Cannabis plants, leaves and thousands of cannabis seeds were seized during a raid on a house on the Guineacor Fire Trail at Bannaby, north of Goulburn, last Thursday, NSW police said. A man will now face drug and firearm charges in Goulburn Local Court after he was caught growing cannabis on his Bannaby property. Credit:Rohan Thomson Police said they also found a single-barrel shotgun and two rifles when they executed a search warrant on the property. A 39-year-old Albion Park man will face a string of drug and firearm offences when he appears before Goulburn Local Court next month. Seven people have died in little more than a month at a small far north Queensland aged-care facility under investigation for the deadly outbreak of a flu-like illness. In late January, authorities confirmed four elderly patients at the Herberton Hospital on the Atherton Tableland had died after contracting the respiratory illness human metapneumovirus (hMPV). Herberton Hospital, near Cairns, where four patients died after a virus outbreak last week. Credit:Queensland Health On Wednesday, Cairns Hospital and Health Service chief executive Julie Hartley-Jones announced seven patients had died at the 36-bed facility this year but said it appeared "not all of these" were caused by the virus. "One of those who died tested positive to the virus, while several others displayed symptoms consistent with the virus," she said in a statement. An elderly Baldivis couple are "dumbstruck" Rockingham council has told them to pull down their flag pole because the pensioners didn't get planning approval. Val and Bill Ashman put up the flag pole at their home three years ago and proudly raised the Australian flag every day without any problems. Val and Will Ashman have been told to tear down their flag pole. Credit:Today Tonight Prior to moving to the southern suburbs, the couple had a flag pole at their Westminster property for 17 years without a single complaint. Ms Ashman told Radio 6PR on Thursday morning she was deeply upset when a letter arrived from Rockingham council telling her the flag pole was illegal. Dublin: Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny has set parliamentary elections for February 26, kicking off campaigning for what promises to be a tight contest dominated by a fractious debate over the country's strong economic recovery. Kenny's conservative Fine Gael party is ahead in the polls but short of a majority, even with the support of current junior coalition partner Labour. Irish Taoiseach Enda Kenny has called an election for February 26. Credit:PA If they fail to close that gap, a less stable outcome beckons, with a minority government, a larger coalition including independent deputies or fresh elections all possible. Announcing a ballot he hopes will make him his party's first two-time prime minister, Kenny appealed to voters to give his government the credit for the turnaround it has overseen. Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Tanju Bilgic said Wednesday that the Turkish ambassador to the Vatican, Mehmet Pacaci would return to duty, Anadolu Agency reported. "It has been decided that our ambassador to the Vatican, Mehmet Pacaci, who has been in Ankara since the religious ceremony held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican on April 12, 2015, will return to duty", Bilgic said. The political tension between the Vatican and Turkey came after Pope Francis's remarks during the ceremony for Armenians on April 12, 2015 as the Pope called the killing of Armenians in 1915 a "genocide". That day, Pacaci was recalled by Turkey after the Pope's remarks. The Vatican Press Office stated Wednesday that it acknowledged Turkey's "repeated commitment" to open archives to historians and researchers in order to shed light on the 1915 events. The 1915 events occurred during World War I when a part of the Armenian population living in the Ottoman Empire sided with the invading Russians and revolted. The relocation of Armenians by the Ottomans in eastern Anatolia following the revolts resulted in numerous casualties. Turkey does not dispute that there were casualties on both sides, but rejects calling the events "genocide". Instead, it calls for a joint commission of historians to be established and archives to be opened in order to study and uncover what happened between the Ottoman Empire and its Armenian citizens. Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend: An ad hoc commission has been created in Turkey for preparation of a new constitution for the country. The commission is comprised of representatives of ruling party and oppositional ones, the Turkish news channel TRT Haber reported Feb. 4. Chairman of Turkey's Grand National Assembly, Ismail Kahraman, addressing the new commission members on Feb. 4, said "the country has long been in need of a new democratic constitution." He said the current constitution doesn't allow making any changes in a number of laws. Earlier, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said the current constitution is the main obstacle to Turkey's development. He noted that over the past 14 years, the government has held many reforms for the country's development, but the constitution in force doesn't meet the interests of modern Turkey and its people. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Elena Kosolapova - Trend: Turkey will continue rendering assistance to Syrian refugees, Prime Minister of Turkey Ahmet Davutoglu said, speaking at the 'Supporting Syria and the Region' conference in London, the Turkish TRT Haber TV channel reported Feb. 4. The 'Supporting Syria and the Region' conference kicked off in London Feb. 4. Davutoglu said that Turkey treated the Syrian crisis as a humanitarian one from the very first day. "Turkey is a country which received the most refugees in the world," said the prime minister. "There is no city in Turkey without Syrian refugees." Currently, Turkey is hosting more than two million Syrian refugees on its territory. The Syrian refugee camps in the country accommodate about 300,000 people. The rest of them are spread across the provinces and cities of Turkey. In Istanbul alone, there are currently 40,000 refugees from Syria. Ankara has so far spent $8 billion to upkeep the Syrian refugees. Davutoglu also noted that today every Syrian has an equal right with the Turks to enter Turkish universities. "We will continue to help Syrian refugees," he said. He said that another 10,000 refugees are now on the border with Turkey, intending to get to the country, and it is connected with military operations in the Syrian city of Aleppo. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @E_Kosolapova Baku, Azerbaijan, Feb. 4 By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend: Iran and Russia are involved in civilian deaths in Syria, the Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said, TRT Haber TV channel reported Feb. 4. Russia's military actions in Syria have aggravated the problem in that country, said Davutoglu. He also noted that Russia's air forces mostly bomb opposition's positions, rather than the positions of the militants of the "Islamic State" terrorist organization (IS, ISIL, ISIS, or Daesh). Russia by supporting the Syrian regime commits ethnic cleansing in Syria, including in Aleppo, according to Davutoglu. He also said international community doesn't make any efforts to stop the crisis in Syria. Currently, there are still 10,000 refugees at the border, who intend to enter Turkey, and this is due to the military actions in the Syrian city of Aleppo, according to him. Turkey hosts over two million Syrian refugees on its territory. The Syrian refugee camps in the country accommodate about 300,000 people. In Istanbul alone, there are currently 40,000 refugees from Syria. Ankara has so far spent $8 billion to upkeep the Syrian refugees. --- Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu Retail sales of consumer goods in Beijing have exceeded 1 trillion yuan ($152 billion) in 2015, up 7.3 percent year on year, making Beijing China's biggest shopping city. (Photo : REUTERS) Beijing has retained its rank as China's biggest shopping city in 2015, as online shopping fever continued to lift retail sales and push more old brands to open online stores, the Xinhua News Agency reported. Advertisement A report by Beijing Statistics Bureau showed that retail sales of consumer goods in the Chinese capital exceeded 1 trillion yuan ($152 billion) in 2015, up 7.3 percent year on year. The report said that it is the eighth straight year that the capital has led Chinese cities in terms of consumer spending. According to the report, about 82.6 percent of sales may be attributed to online sales as many traditional stores, including 13 of Beijing's 77 "time-honored brands" from snack stores to shoes sellers, have moved their goods and shifted to sell online. In 2015, the city, with a population of 21 million people, has recorded 1.86 trillion yuan in total consumption, which marked a yearly rise of 8.7 percent. Consumption has contributed over 70 percent to Beijing's GDP growth. The Ministry of Commerce said earlier this month that retail sales of consumer goods, a key indicator of consumption, increased by about 10.7 percent year on year in China last year, which contributed to a 66.4-percent rise in the country's GDP. The ministry said it expects consumption to remain a strong force driving economic growth this year as the effects of supply-side reform start to pay off. A study conducted by euromonitoring.com in 2013 showed that services accounted for 77 percent of Beijing's total gross value added (GVA) as its economy is transitioning toward a higher reliance on services. Combined with better educational attainment of the city's workforce, this has helped boost Beijing's productivity level, which was 136 percent higher than the rest of the country in 2013, the study showed. The study added that the higher productivity levels in the city reflect the household income, which is higher compared to other cities in China. Beijing has a lower average household size, 2.4 versus 3.1 in the rest of the country in 2013, and the labor force participation rate is 66 percent against 84 percent in the rest of the country in the same year. As a result, Beijing's average household disposable income exceeded the average for the rest of China by 61 percent. Chinese President Xi Jinping (center) urged non-Communist Party of China parties to contribute more valuable advice for the country's development. (Photo : Twitter) As he extended Chinese New Year greetings to non-Communist Party groups, Chinese President Xi Jinping also urged these groups to contribute more to achieving the nation's goals for this year. Xi made the call during a gathering in Beijing on Friday. He said that all of the work and effort put in by the various non-Communist Party-affiliated organizations to provide suggestions for the improvement of governance was well appreciated. Xi added that the ideas coming from them have proved valuable for their work, Xinhua reported. Advertisement The Chinese leader then called on the groups to further contribute to meeting the goals outlined in the 13th Five-Year Plan for 2016-2020. He said that non-communist groups and personalities can act as think tanks who could provide valuable advice in dealing with difficult issues in areas like economic reform and development. Xi also encouraged the groups to give democratic supervision to guarantee the success of the various reform measures. Continuous dialogue between the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the groups, he said, is an important aspect of a consultative democracy that suits Chinese needs. According to Xi, China has made great leaps under the leadership of the CPC, overcoming many challenges and improving national strength and being able to exert influence on the international scene. He stressed that the whole nation needs to come together to continue the developmental path laid down by the party and move forward. Xi earlier delivered a similar message to military veterans during a concert for them, the Global Times reported. The president also serves as chairman of the Central Military Commission. By West Kentucky Star Staff Jan. 29, 2016 | 06:20 PM | PADUCAH, KY A man who was being sought by police for his alleged involvement in a meth lab explosion is now in jail.The McCracken County Sheriff's Department says 25-year-old Kenneth Wayne Corbit II turned himself in at their department at 1:00 pm Wednesday.He was taken to McCracken County Regional Jail. He faces charges of 3rd degree burglary, 1st degree criminal mischief and manufacturing methamphetamine. Police are looking for a suspect they say was involved in a meth lab explosion Wednesday evening.At 5:21 pm Wednesday, McCracken County dispatch received a report of a house fire at an abandoned mobile home in the 5500 block of Harris Road. Callers told dispatchers there was a naked man, later identified as 25-year-old Kenneth Wayne Corbit II, laying outside the home.Concord Fire Department and McCracken County Sheriffs Deputies responded to the scene and began working to put out the fire. Corbit was taken to a local hospital for treatment. Deputies said the fire had burned Corbit's clothes off.Detectives said they later learned that Corbit had been making meth inside the home when there was an explosion, causing the trailer to catch fire. They also learned that Corbit was homeless and had recently been reported missing from Jonesboro, Arkansas. There were reportedly other suspects involved in the operation who fled immediately after the explosion.Deputies said a local hospital failed to notify them as requested and released Corbit Friday afternoon. He is wanted on charges of 3rd degree burglary, 1st degree criminal mischief and manufacturing methamphetamine.Police are asking anyone who knows where Corbit might be to contact their local law enforcement agency. By West Kentucky Star Staff Feb. 04, 2016 | 01:24 PM | PADUCAH, KY McCracken County Sheriffs deputies arrested a Paducah couple Tuesday night on several gun and drug charges following a vehicle pursuit. The McCracken County Sheriffs Department got a call from someone alleging that a suspicious vehicle was possibly involved in illegal drug activity. A deputy saw the vehicle near the intersection of North 16th and Martin Luther King Boulevard, and attempted to stop the driver for a traffic infraction. The driver, later identified as 29-year-old Anthony Nance Jr. of Paducah, fled the scene and was able to elude deputies. Deputies said Nance later rear-ended another vehicle at the intersection H.C. Mathis and North 8th Street, but he fled again before they arrived. At around 7:39 pm, a deputy saw Nance pull into a motel on Hinkleville Road. He attempted to stop the vehicle, but Nance reportedly fled again. The deputy pursued Nance onto James Sanders Boulevard where Nance eventually lost control of the vehicle near Pecan Drive. Nance fled on foot, but was arrested after a short chase. Deputies seized $1245 from Nance that they say were proceeds from illegal drug sales. A front seat passenger in Nance's vehicle, 33-year-old Lindsay Clapp, was detained for questioning but later released. Deputies and Paducah police officers searched the vehicle, and said they found a loaded .40 caliber handgun that had been reported stolen. They also recovered cocaine, marijuana, xanax, adderall, ecstasy, diazepam, synthetic marjiuana and drug paraphernalia. While deputies waited at Nance's and Clapp's motel room for a search warrant, they spoke with a man who they say admitted that Clapp had contacted him and asked him to go to the room and remove a handgun. During a search of the room detectives reportedly seized another handgun and other items of drug paraphernalia. Detectives arrested Clapp Wednesday and charged her with possession of a handgun by a convicted felon, possession of a synthetic drug and attempted tampering with physical evidence. Clapp was recently released from prison after she was convicted of felony hindering apprehension in 2012 for helping Donald Fowler, her boyfriend at the time, flee Paducah after a fatal shooting. Fowler was later convicted of murder, and is currently serving at 30-year sentence. Nance is charged with fleeing or evading police, firearm enhanced trafficking in cocaine 2nd or subsequent offense, firearm enhanced trafficking in a 2nd degree controlled substance-adderall, firearm enhanced trafficking in a 3rd degree controlled substance-xanax, firearm enhanced trafficking in marijuana 2nd or greater offense, possession of a 1st degree controlled substance-ecstacy, possession of handgun by a convicted felon- two counts, receiving stolen property-firearm and possession of drug paraphernalia. Nance was on felony parole at the time of his arrest and has four prior convictions for trafficking in cocaine. Advertisement By West Kentucky Star Staff Feb. 03, 2016 | WESTERN KENTUCKY; SOUTHERN ILLINOIS By West Kentucky Star Staff Feb. 03, 2016 | 05:40 PM | WESTERN KENTUCKY; SOUTHERN ILLINOIS State Police in Illinois and Kentucky have announced their plans for traffic patrols over the Super Bowl weekend. Illinois State Police say Troopers will be strictly enforcing violations that typically contribute to traffic fatalities: speeding, DUI, distracted driving and seat belt violations. Last year they ticketed 1,850 drivers over the Super Bowl weekend, with 105 DUIs. "DUI's are responsible for nearly one-third of all fatal crashes in Illinois. A single DUI can cost thousands of dollars, suspension of driving privileges, potential jail time, or worse, cause the death of another motorist," said ISP Colonel Tad Williams. "Plan ahead to arrive home safe this Super Bowl weekend by designating a driver or catching a cab. Everyone wins when we all make it home safe." Kentucky State Police Post 1 will be saturating areas that are typically "problem areas" for traffic violations, and will also be setting up road safety checkpoints. They will check for licensing, registration and insurance, and address any vehicle or driver safety issues that they see. Their intent is to provide a high visibility, public safety service that promotes safety and provides a deterrent for those who might violate traffic laws. For a list of Post 1 road check locations, visit http://www.kentuckystatepolice.org/posts/press/post1_checkpoints.html. Both agencies urge drivers to make this Super Bowl Sunday one to remember, not one to regret. By The Associated Press By The Associated Press Feb. 03, 2016 | 05:37 PM | SPRINGFIELD, IL Illinois is continuing to approve patients to use medical marijuana, with about 400 more approval letters sent in January. The Illinois Department of Public Health announced Wednesday it has approved 4,400 patients for the pilot program. That includes 32 children. The pace of approvals is about the same as December. Marijuana industry players are watching the numbers closely as they push for more outreach to doctors, who have been reluctant to approve patients. Qualifying patients pay an annual fee of $100 for a marijuana card and need a doctor's written certification. The health department said about 5,700 people have submitted complete applications, including those approved, those pending and 635 denials. A report with county-by-county figures and other data was posted Wednesday on the department's website. Rita Redmond was a true lady who felt that every pupil had something to gift to the world Loading... Cancer is the leveller of today: rich or poor, brain or brawn, you can't hide from the big C. In Margaret Edson's Pulitzer Prize-winning Wit, it is one of the foremost authorities on poet John Donne who has been struck. She's a brainiac, used to lording it over her ill-prepared students, whose knowledge of the English writer knows no bounds. But when faced with ovarian cancer and its invasive treatment, even this formidable bulldozer of a woman is reduced to a shadow. Julie Hesmondhalgh's Vivian Bearing is prickly and direct, a total ball-breaking tutor - the kind to make even the most assured of pupils crumple on the classroom floor. And her approach to her cancer is not much different. Determined to survive, determined to trample it into oblivion with the strength of her will and her mind, Bearing signs up to be a chemo guinea pig: she will undertake eight rounds at full dosage. Raz Shaw's excellent production is staged in-the-round, on a revolving stage that adds pace and energy to the many flashbacks. Set mainly in the hospital rooms that quickly become Vivian's home, we jump back and forward in time to learn about her past, her work and the way Donne's poetry infuses everything she does. Donne's poetry is also woven within the lines of the play: in Vivian's lessons with her students and in quotes that appear projected onto the stage. The play is exceptionally poignant in places (this is cancer, after all) but its barbed one liners have a sweet, sorrowful irony to them that will undoubtedly make you laugh out loud. It's a heartbreaking piece about dying, but it is also about living, too. Vivian's has been a half-life: wrapped up in her studies, refusing to compromise, she has achieved incredible success in her career. But while she is in hospital she is visited by no-one save for her old professor, who happens to drop by unexpectedly. She finds friendship and comfort with a young nurse, who doesn't read Donne, but nevertheless understands a poetry in the everyday. Hesmondhalgh, bald-headed and wearing nothing but a hospital gown, is a joy to watch as she dives headlong into such a meaty, well-written part. It is unbearably moving as she is slowly worn down by cancer, and chemo, becoming as vulnerable as one could possibly be. A superb performance. Wit runs at the Royal Exchange, Manchester until February 13. One of the un-lauded aspects of the magnificent revival of Ma Rainey's Black Bottom at the National is the sound design by Paul Arditti which matches, seamlessly, the "playing" of the onstage blues and jazz quartet with a backing track. But this technical miracle struck me as an exception to the norm these days. Towards the end of last year I grumbled about micro-phoned actors in straight plays (Waste at the National, the Chichester Chekhovs), the membrane of artificial noise you get in many musicals not just me, but Matthew Parris, a Times columnist, went public on the grating loudness of Guys and Dolls at the Savoy and the lack of pure acoustic sound germane to opera and tiny fringe spaces. Voicing the virtues of the voice led to immediate sonic feedback from two of our leading sound designers, Paul Groothuis (Guys and Dolls and those Chekhovs, this week's Rabbit Hole at Hampstead, more or less in-house at the National between 1984 and 2001) and John Leonard (Waste, Hand To God in the West End this week and recipient of a distinguished career award soon at the US wing of the Institute of Theatre Technology). The sound budget for Disney's upcoming Aladdin in the West End is 1.8m Before I faced the music (amplified) with these titans, I popped into the north London HQ of Autograph, one of several sound specialist firms in the UK, co-founded in 1972 by Andrew Bruce and listened up to managing director Terry Jardine. Bruce, he says, along with Martin Levan, was the first credited sound designer on musicals such as Cats, Starlight Express, Les Miserables and Phantom. Sound design is now everywhere, poised in impact and audience awareness between lighting and video. There used to be rifle mikes, ranged like the old footlights, along the front of the stage; now, a cast of thirty, in Les Mis or Chekhov, will be radio-miked at a cost of 3,500 per (fore)head. The sound budget for Disney's upcoming Aladdin in the West End is 1.8m Sharon D. Clarke in Ma Rainey's Black Bottom JOHAN PERSSON Why? "We can't go back," says Jardine. After film, television and ear-music, people expect a different quality of sound. They like "louder," and Groothuis weighs in with the demystification argument about old actors being totally audible; they weren't he said, and he went out of his way to talk to a few before they died. He's not saying who. John Leonard, whose sound for Richard Eyre's award-wining Ghosts at the Almeida was a key element in the play's symphonic tapestry he is working with Eyre again, and Lesley Manville, on the Bristol Old Vic's new Long Day's Journey Into Night says that too many actors can't project; Groothuis suggests the problem is compounded by the fact that a "different kind of acting" is required in new plays and classics alike. Waste's difficult acoustics in the Lyttelton were in part caused by Hildegard Bechtler's set of sliding panels; there was no "box" to keep the sound on the stage. Some actors still don't like being miked, admits Paul before a technical run-through at Hampstead, but no-one demurred when it first happened in Trevor Nunn's first NT production, Ian McKellen in Ibsen's An Enemy of the People in 1991: "Ian's the opposite of an inaudible actor, but we wanted to create a sound world for his big speeches, and we wanted the crowd to be heard to make proper noises." Even in the best designed theatres, you hear less well at the side of the stalls, or in the circles. So it's a democratic corrective even if occasionally the actor misjudges the sound level at which he should speak while miked. And the days of thunder sheets in King Lear or coconut shells in the wings for horses hooves are long gone, sound effects and music "mixed" into the overall sound, and often adjusted each night by an operator on the sound board. These guys are wizards, it turns out; every single night, every single audience, as Terry declares, is different. In the non-commercial theatre we are attuned to such soundscape masterpieces as Simon McBurney's The Encounter, an epic journey to the heart of the Amazonian jungle on your individual headsets, coming to the Barbican this month; or Sound&Fury's sound-around Kursk, underwater in a doomed Russian submarine; or Adam Cork's brilliant mix of dialogue, sound and vernacular lyrics in London Road at the National. But the battleground here is in the world of straight plays and musicals. Sound designers are often told to "make it louder" by their producers. That's what audiences, especially Americans, now want. And older producers might be going deaf, I suppose. The availability of the technology has made it more difficult to resist the flight from vocal unadorned nakedness in our theatre. It seems that we are going to depend on the skill and the taste of our leading sound designers even more as time goes by. Known as The Georg, the part-restaurant, part-showroom is housed in a hutong in Beijing. (Photo : Metropolis Magazine) Georg Jensen, a Danish silverware creator, has brought to Chinese shores a Danish fine-dining experience unlike any other, according to an article written by Mike Peters for China Daily. Known as The Georg, the part-restaurant, part-showroom is housed in a hutong (courtyard) in Beijing, between the Back Lake (Houhai) and the Forbidden Palace. Advertisement Still in soft-opening mode, The Georg has already received praise from various critics, both local and international. Beijinger magazine, in a review, wrote, "None of Beijing's independent fine-dining establishments could hold a candle to TRB until The Georg crept quietly into being at the end of last year." Peters attests The Georg's apparent early success to two things: finesse and an appreciation of the Danish silverware Georg Jensen is most known for. The brand has been a renowned silver craft house for approximately 110 years, and Chinese tourists crowd its showroom in Copenhagen. David Chu, Georg Jensen's chief creative officer, only felt it natural to build the company's first Chinese showroom and first restaurant that can "capture the DNA and the feel of Copenhagen." Peter Bundgaard Rutzou, a renowned Danish architect, worked on The Georg and created a warm dining room. Meanwhile, in the kitchens, Chef Talib Hudda leads an army of chefs to create New Nordic masterpieces a little akin to that of restaurants like Noma. Diners are also encouraged to abandon the traditional course style of fine dining. With every dish costing at 130 yuan or $20, guests can mix and match to their heart's content. A chef's special can also be put together. For 450 yuan, diners get a special selection of dishes. Wine pairing is also available for 450 yuan. As for the food, Peters wrote in his article that the dining experience was superb. Color and texture blended perfectly well, and the dishes were made with carefully chosen ingredients, both locally sourced and imported. The presentation of the dishes was in stark contrast to an almost Spartan menu that consists of items like "grilled parsnip - squid - black garlic" or "baked black halibut - malt - potato," making the dining experience a pleasant surprise. To top the elegant and sumptuous dining experience, diners can head upstairs to the Jensen gallery and admire the works of the century-old brand. Margaret Atwood Margaret Atwood has been sharing the power of the written word since publication of her first novel, The Edible Woman, in 1969. She has crafted more than 50 volumes of fiction, non-fiction, poetry and childrens literature. The critically acclaimed television version of her 1985 novel The Handmaids Tale earned 54 Emmy nominations and 15 awards. The series has been renewed for a fifth season. The dystopian works follow-up novel, The Testaments, sold out its initial half-million copy run, requiring two additional printings in just over a week and breaking first-day sales records for Penguin Random House titles that year. Jason Schneiderman Jason Schneiderman is the author of four books of poems, most recently Hold Me Tight (Red Hen, 2020). He edited the anthology Queer: A Reader for Writers (Oxford University Press, 2016). His poems and essays have appeared in numerous journals and anthologies. Schneiderman is a longstanding co-host of the podcast Painted Bride Quarterly Slush Pile. His awards include the Shestack Award and a Fulbright Fellowship. He is an associate professor of English at the Borough of Manhattan Community College and teaches in the MFA Program for Writers at Warren Wilson College. Richard Boada Richard Boada is author of three poetry collections: We Find Each Other in the Darkness (Texas Review Press), The Error of Nostalgia (Texas Review Press), and Archipelago Sinking (Finishing Line Press). He has been a finalist for the Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters Poetry Book Prize and is a recipient of a Mississippi Arts Commission Poetry Fellowship. His poems appear in the Southern Poetry Anthology, Urban Voices: 51 Poets/51 Poems, Crab Orchard Review, Rhino, Third Coast and the North American Review among others. He teaches for the West Virginia Wesleyan College Low Residency MFA Program and Lane College. Howard Norman Lannan Award winner Howard Norman is a novelist, memoirist, and childrens author. His works include the memoir I Hate To Leave This Beautiful Place and the novel The Ghost Clause. His books have been translated into fourteen languages and awarded the Harold Morton Landon Prize in Translation from the Academy of American Poets. Poupeh Missaghi Poupeh Missaghi is a writer, educator, translator of Persian and the Iran editor-at-large for Asymptotejournal.com. Her works of nonfiction, fiction and translations have appeared in numerous journals and she has several books of translation published in Iran. Zach Linge Zach Linges poems appear in AGNI, Best New Poets 2020, New England Review, Poetry and elsewhere. Their second refereed article was published in a special issue of African American Review on the works of Percival Everett. Alice Sola Kim Alice Sola Kims writing has appeared in publications such as The Cut, Tin House, McSweeneys, Lightspeed, and The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2017. She has received grants and fellowships from the Elizabeth George Foundation, the MacDowell Colony and Bread Loaf Writers Conference, and won a 2016 Whiting Award. Dave Eggers Dave Eggers is a Pulitzer Prize finalist and author of multiple books, including Your Fathers, Where Are They? And the Prophets, Do They Live Forever?, The Circle, A Hologram for the King and A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. Alex Burns Alex Burns is the founding artistic director of Quintessence Theatre Group an ensemble theater dedicated to the performance and adaptation of epic works of classic literature and drama in Philadelphia. Ben Lerner Ben Lerner wrote three books of poetry (The Lichtenberg Figures, Angle of Yaw and Mean Free Path), two novels (Leaving the Atocha Station and 10:04) and several collaborations with artists (including Blossom, with Thomas Demand). He has received fellowships from the Fulbright, Guggenheim and MacArthur foundations, among other awards. Jean McGarry Jean McGarry's professional experience includes author, newspaper reporter, translator and university professor. McGarrys stories have appeared in The Yale Review, Southwest Review and The New Yorker, among others. Valeria Luiselli Valeria Luiselli won the LA Times Book Prize for Fiction 2016. Her works have appeared in 14 languages and multiple publications, including The New Yorker, Asymptote, McSweeney and Granta. Henry Veggian Henry Veggian is a Senior Lecturer in American Literature at the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill. His work has appeared in boundary 2, Modern Fiction Studies, American Studies, Reader and Quaderni d'Italianistica. Rivka Galchen Huugjilt's case is considered as one of the most notorious instances of judicial injustice in China. (Photo : Getty Images) China has penalized a total of 27 officials for the wrongful conviction and execution of a man 20 years ago, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported. The case of then 18-year-old Huugjilt, who was executed after being declared guilty of raping and murdering a woman in a public toilet, is considered as one of the most infamous judicial injustice in the country. Advertisement One of the blacklisted officials responsible for the conviction was Feng Zhiming, who was suspected of job-related crimes, the statement from the officials of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region said. Feng, who previously served as the deputy chief of the Xincheng District branch of the public security bureau of Hohhot, the region's capital, is also subject to further investigation, the report added. He may face criminal charges if found guilty. The official statement further noted that the other 26 officials were levied with administrative penalties. These include record of demerit and admonitions, among others. Moreover, the blacklist shows the involvement of 11 former police officers assigned at the Hohhot's public security bureau and at its Xincheng District branch in the wrongful conviction. Among those on the list is the former chief of the bureau, Wang Zhi. Also listed are seven former officials with Hohhot's people's procuratorate including its former head, Wen Da; five former officials from the higher people's court of the said autonomous region; and three more from the intermediate people's court in the regional capital. In 2005, Huugjilt's conviction was first called into question after a serial rapist confessed to the court about the crime. Back in 2014, the court said in a statement: "The Inner Mongolia Higher People's Court finds Huugjilt's original guilty verdict . . . not consistent with the facts and there is insufficient evidence. Huugjilt is found not guilty." The judicial injustice's victim's tearful parents were granted with 30,000 yuan as an expression of the court's sympathy. Last year, Zhao Zhihong, the real convict, was given death penalty. Meanwhile, Ms. Shang, the mother of Huugjilt, expressed outrage as only one person would face criminal investigation for his son's wrongful conviction. "These people don't even have the courage to admit their mistakes and recognize their wrongdoing," she remarked in an interview with the Global Times, "How can they handle legal cases impartially in the future?" Shang further said. "I'm not asking everyone to be punished. I'm just seeking justice," she shared in one television interview. Last year, the government has stepped up its efforts to intensify its campaign of pressuring prosecutors to carry out the law justly. In China, only GM cotton and papaya are allowed to be commercially cultivated. (Photo : Getty Images) Government officials from numerous Northeast China cities pledged to crack down on sales of genetically modified (GM) grains, strengthening their commitment to levy necessary punishments on violators, the Global Times reported. Advertisement The news came after reports have surfaced that GM corns are being grown in the area last year. Currently, China only allows the cultivation of GM cotton and papaya. Earlier last month, the central administration on agriculture released a documentary showing its vow to step up GM research and supervision. According to Han Jun, chief of the office for the central leading group on agricultural work, local officials must examine and approve GM seeds before entering the market. Jilin Province's agricultural law enforcement team has also issued a notice about GM corn seeds, pointing out that officials have "zero tolerance" for illegally produced GM seeds. The seeds administration of Liaoning Province also published a letter addressed to farmers and seeds enterprises emphasizing that GM crops are not allowed. The letter further warned them that offenders may even face criminal charges. For the rampancy of reports on GM crop cultivation in the area, Liaoning agricultural authorities promised to look into the case. A senior seed industry insider previously shared that "only some small companies in Northeast China dealt with illegal GM seeds which were deliberately sent to them by some transnational corporations." The government is also focusing on boosting control in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, and Gansu and Hainan Provinces--the main seed production bases in the country. Such move is seen to be crucial in preventing the spread of GM seeds nationwide. Meanwhile, the industry insider also shared that part of China's reason of not commercializing GM seeds is the monopoly on patents held by multinational seed corporations. Should the government lift the ban on GM commercialization, these firms could charge fees. The corporations' products include herbicide- and insect-resistant genes. According to research, illegal trading in GM rice has been found in the provinces of Hubei and Hunan as early as 2005. Since 2010, agricultural officers have been investigating but seldom do they release results. There were also some reports that the investigations have already been trivialized as some officials and seed firms have already formed a benefit chain in some areas. To achieve moderate prosperity, said Xi, old revolutionary bases must change with the tides and move simultaneously, adding that no one should drop out. (Photo : Getty Images) Before the Spring Festival, President Xi Jinping headed to Jinggangshan in Jiangxi Province for poverty alleviation projects, according to a report by China Daily. His three-day itinerary also included trips to Ji'an and Nanchang, the capital of Jiangxi Province. Advertisement According to Xi, efforts to alleviate poverty must be precise and "spot on" to address the issue's primary causes. "Measures and work to alleviate and eliminate poverty must be precise. Policies should be made according to the (needs of) households and individuals," said Xi as he visited homes in Shenshan village on Tuesday, Feb. 2. Almost 90 years ago, Jinggangshan was the home of the first rural base established by China's revolutionary forces. It's not the first time Xi went to the city, as he made trips to Jinggangshan in 2006 and 2008. In the reports, 13 out of 54 households in Shenshan are still experiencing poverty. Among the households Xi visited was the home of Zuo Xiufa, a local who runs a bamboo arts-and-crafts business. In his visit, Xi applauded the family's spirit and encouraged them to continue their business. To achieve moderate prosperity, said Xi, old revolutionary bases must change with the tides and move simultaneously, adding that "no one should drop out." After visiting homes, Xi addressed the public to deliver good tidings and greetings for the Year of the Monkey. He also met with local provincial officials to discuss upgrades on industrial structure. Upgrading and optimizing industrial structure in the region can pave the way for the development of new and emerging industries, as well as modern service sectors. Additionally, production capacity will be more efficient, with more resources available to help newer industries. "Poverty alleviation will be the most important of the top priorities in the next five years, otherwise expected moderate prosperity nationwide will be a blank check, or an empty promise," said Zhu Lijia, a professor of public management at the China National School of Administration, in an interview with China Daily. Aside from precise policies, the government must also introduce categorized reform measures that are already streamlined before being announced to the public, said Zhu. Policies prioritizing groups should also shift their focus to individuals. Opinion Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 03/02/2016 (2451 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Its shaping up to be one of the most talked-about sexual assault trials of this decade. Disgraced broadcaster Jian Ghomeshi began his trial on four counts of sexual assault and one count of choking this week in Toronto. #ghomeshi is trending. Anne Kingston from Macleans magazine is live tweeting it. Chatelaine magazine is writing about it. Excerpts are top copy on Toronto news sites. Its hard to miss. Ghomeshis lifeline in all this is Marie Henein, described in Toronto Life as the smartest, toughest, most sought-after defence lawyer in the city. The fact that shes a woman defending a man on charges of sexual violence cant be ignored. Her mere presence suggests Ghomeshi is not to be feared by women. She normalizes him and makes him look safe. This is part and parcel of the job of the defence. As Henein learned early in her legal career, she is the face of her client. In society, sexual assault remains mired in common myths and stereotypes. These include the belief that women lie or exaggerate their claims about sexual assault; that sexual assault is about mixed romantic messages that confuse men into believing that consent has occurred; that nice guys dont rape (and only crazy men do); and that what women wear or how they act is a determinant for sexual attacks. Frank Gunn / THE CANADIAN PRESS Jian Ghomeshi leaves a Toronto courthouse with his lawyer Marie Henein (right) after the first day of his trial on Monday. A womans credibility and reputation is as much on trial in sexual assault cases as the defendants. No lawyer asks a car owner why he parked his car on a dark street. No lawyer queries a home owner about the strength of his deadbolts. There is no back and forth in the courtroom about whether an assault victim drank too much and consented to the attack. However, thats not the case in sexual assault crimes. In sexual assault cases, it is not abnormal for the defence lawyers to play into societys beliefs of those stereotypes and to engage in whack a complainant strategies. This phrase entered the lexicon following a how to session at a professional continuing-education workshop for lawyers that outlined how to wear down sexual assault complainants. According to University of Windsor law professor David Tanovich, lawyers in the session were told to whack the complainant hard at the preliminary inquiry and youve got to attack the complainant with all youve got so that he or she will say, Im not coming back in front of 12 good citizens to repeat this bullshit story that Ive just told the judge. Well-known and prominent defence lawyers have used this technique. Defence lawyer Edward Greenspan, who died in 2014, made a reputation for himself by virulently attacking the credibility of women who made complaints of sexual assault and domestic violence. Henein articled under Greenspan who, according to Toronto Life, would describe her as the toughest person in the office. He was her mentor. She worked alongside Greenspan in representing Gerald Regan and their work resulted in an acquittal for the former Nova Scotia premier on nine counts of sexual assault. While Heneins toughness and ability to whack a complainant may win her cases, there are many within the legal profession concerned about the ethics behind these tactics in sexual assault cases. Tanovich is one. He suggests that sexual assault is arguably the only offence where defence lawyers are socialized and taught by their peers and mentors that the clients best defence is to have a lawyer who is prepared to act like Rambo. Frankly, those defence tactics have worked well. Sexual assault crimes remain under-reported because women are afraid that they wont be believed by police and then are concerned about the treatment theyll face in the courtroom. It is estimated that less than 10 per cent of all sexual assault cases are reported. Once an assault is reported, attrition further whittles away at the numbers. According to Holly Johnson, a University of Ottawa criminologist, of the 15,200 sexual assaults actually reported to police, only 13,200 will be recorded as a crime, from there only 5,544 will result in charges, only 2,824 will be prosecuted and just 1,519 will be convicted. Sexual assault remains the most under-reported and under-prosecuted offence. Tanovich suggests there are more ethical ways that lawyers can defend their clients without whacking the complainant and continuing the myths and stereotypes about sexual assault. He writes: The fundamental question all defence counsel should ask is whether their conduct (e.g. cross-examination or submissions to the trier of fact) is grounded in stereotypes about sexual assault. If it is, it violates their ethical obligation to not discriminate. At its base is the need to ensure that women who complain about sexual violence are treated fairly in the court. Indeed, in one survey, women suggested they would be more likely to come forward and report sexual violence if they had a sense that they would receive justice. Lets hope Tanovich and his colleagues can work with their law societies in pushing for more ethical treatment of women in sexual assault trials. Maybe a little less whacking will become the norm. Maybe a bit more justice can be done. Shannon Sampert is the Free Press perspectives and politics editor. shannon.sampert@freepress.mb.ca Twitter: @paulysigh Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 03/02/2016 (2451 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Two of the big guns have bolstered their retail arsenal in the last week, and one has also launched an aggressive new marketing initiative as the grocery war heats up in Winnipeg. Not only did Walmart and Sobeys each open another big-box store in the city late last week, Sobeys also launched an aggressive new marketing initiative aimed at luring more shoppers to its Sobeys and Safeway outlets with the promise of more choice, better quality and lower prices. Our customers have told us what matters most is better, fresh produce, and thats why were investing in improving assortment, enhancing quality and providing more expertise and food knowledge all at affordable prices, said Scott Chollak, vice-president of operations for Sobeys. Our customers have told us what matters most is better, fresh produce Scott Chollak of Sobeys One local marketing expert predicts the new Sobeys initiative will force other grocery retailers to also revise their battle plans to protect their market share. It means that everybody now has to up their game and make sure theyre listening to their customers, Kelley Main, head of the University of Manitobas marketing department, said in an interview. Its not necessarily about having the best prices on everything and it doesnt necessarily make sense for everyone to jump on the produce bandwagon, Main added. I think they are going to respond in different ways ways they have control over and ways they think will best resonate with the customers that are the most important to them. Ruth Bonneville / Winnipeg Free Press Sobeys is aggressively marketing its promise of better selection and quality with lower prices. Walmart traditionally targets price-sensitive consumers and one-stop shoppers by offering everyday low prices and a broad selection of goods under one roof. Thats why its new supercentre that opened last Thursday in the Southdale Shopping Centre not only carries things such as home electronics, home decor and apparel, it also boasts a full line of groceries, a full-service pharmacy, a photo centre and a medical clinic. Sobeys, on the other hand, tends to zero in on the grocery shopper. Main noted the new Sobeys Extra store that opened last Friday at 2850 Pembina Hwy. features things such as a broader selection of grocery items, lower prices on some fresh fruits and vegetables, better-quality meats and added support services things such as a cheese ambassador and a well-being counsellor. So thats a focus on services alongside products, she added. She said its difficult to predict how other industry players will respond. Some may expand their product selection, and others may opt to lower their prices. But whatever they do, consumers should benefit, she added. The new Sobeys initiative applies to all of its Sobeys and Safeway outlets in Western Canada, and includes an aggressive advertising campaign with newspaper, radio, television and digital ads featuring celebrity chef and better-food advocate Jamie Oliver. Superstore, which gobbled up Shoppers Drug Marts in a $12.4-billion deal in 2013, appears to have transformed the drugstores into mini-groceterias, featuring their private-label Presidents Choice products. And No Frills, a franchised Superstore offshoot, has also opened a handful of stores in the city. Keri Scobie, Sobeys manager of communications for Western Canada, said in an interview the retail grocery market in Western Canada remains highly competitive. And it promises to get even more competitive as Vancouver-based Save on Foods expands eastward with the opening of 40 new stores over the next three to five years in Manitoba and Saskatchewan. That includes three Winnipeg outlets scheduled to open this fall in the Northgate Shopping Centre on McPhillips Street, St. James Street and in the Bridgwater Forest townsite. So youre always looking for ways to provide your customers with the things they want, Scobie added. She said internal customer surveys have shown what Sobeys and Safeway customers most want are higher-quality meat and produce and lower everyday prices. So with that in mind, the retailer is now offering Sterling Silver AAA beef, which has been aged for 21 days, at all of its Sobeys and Safeway outlets in Western Canada. That includes the 23 Safeway and 18 Sobeys stores in Manitoba. Its also lowered prices for a variety of is produce items. For example, organic bananas that were $1.19 per pound are now 89 cents per pound. And cauliflower that was $4.99 a pound is now $3.99. You can never say that you can lock into that price, Scobie added, but what were committed to is offering lower prices every day. Prof. Sylvain Charlebois, a food-policy expert with the University of Guelph, said the plunge in the value of the Canadian dollar has driven up the cost of imported fresh produce. That has prompted many shoppers to seek out more affordable alternatives, such as canned or frozen fruits and vegetables, which has taken a big bite out of sales of fresh items. Charlebois believes reduced consumption, not increased competition, is what is prompting retailers to lower produce prices. I think theyre also just concerned that at some point Canadians will feel grocers are gouging consumers, (although) I dont think thats the case. He and Main also noted there are cellphone apps on the market that make it easier for consumers to comparison-shop for the best deals. Thats why more retailers are offering daily or weekly specials, Charlebois said. I think youre going to see a marketplace that will increasingly become more specials-driven, he added. murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 03/02/2016 (2451 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. OTTAWA Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett says her department will look into the cases of about 1,000 residential school students who have been disqualified for compensation by a technicality. The minister made the commitment Wednesday in the House of Commons after the federal Liberal government came under fire during question period. We have learned that 1,000 victims of sexual and physical abuse from the residential schools had their cases thrown out on a flimsy legal technicality, which is that children who were abused in institutions run by the government are not, somehow, eligible for compensation by the government, NDP indigenous affairs critic Charlie Angus said in question period. This travesty was conjured up in the Department of Justice. The issue centres on an administrative split created when the federal government took over the operation of some residential schools and left other institutions in the control of religious leaders. It is estimated about 1,000 students who attended the federally operated institutions were found ineligible for compensation because of the split. Bennett said she will have officials review the issue. I have asked my department to look into this, and we are going to look into it in a very serious manner right now, she told the Commons. Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus commitment to restore the relationship with Canadas Aboriginal Peoples is a double-edged sword for residential school survivors, Angus said later in an interview. It does give the impression to Canadians that this dark chapter is over, he said. If those positive words are not matched by a change in the operating culture of government, then the survivors are continuing to be denied their basic right to restitution for the horrific crimes they endured. The government does not need to study the administrative split, Angus added. They need to say for those people who were denied justice that they will get justice, he said. Thats how you make things right. Thats how we move on and thats how Canadians know that this chapter is closed. It is the federal government who failed the children and the federal government needs to explain why theyre continuing to fail, Angus noted. Residential schools operated in Canada from the 1870s until 1996. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 03/02/2016 (2451 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. ESQUIMALT, B.C. Two members of a Canadian warship have been charged with drug offences in Japan, the navy says. The charges follow a port visit to Tokyo by HMCS Winnipeg, a Halifax-class frigate with a crew of about 250 personnel. The navy said in a news release that police detained two military members and a civilian employee on Monday for the alleged use of a controlled substance. DAN LETT / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS HMCS Winnipeg at sunset in the Gulf of Aden. Police released one of the military members but have charged the other two with use of a controlled substance, the navy said. Rear-Admiral Gilles Couturier, commander of Maritime Forces Pacific, called the allegations troubling. While it is too early to speak to the specifics of any actions or investigations at this point, I can state definitively that our response will be based on facts and will serve to remind and reassure all who serve in the (Royal Canadian Navy) that unacceptable behaviour, whatever its nature, has no place within our ranks, he said in a statement. The Canadian Armed Forces has a zero-tolerance policy for the possession and use of illicit drugs. The navy said it will work with Canadian consular officials and Japanese authorities and will support the individuals who are being held in custody, and their families at home. HMCS Winnipeg deployed from Esquimalt, B.C., on June 15, 2015. It participated in Operation Caribbe, a multinational campaign against drug trafficking in the Caribbean and the eastern Pacific Ocean, before joining NATO forces in the Mediterranean Sea as part of Operation Reassurance. HMCS Winnipeg was replaced in the latter operation by HMCS Fredericton, which deployed from Halifax on Jan. 5. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 03/02/2016 (2451 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Winnipegs electoral ward boundaries are likely to be redrawn before the next civic election. EPC instructed the public service Wednesday to establish a ward boundaries commission for 2017, which would use the population figures from the 2016 census to redraw the boundaries in time for the 2018 civic election. Coun. Brian Mayes said a boundary commission review is necessary to try to bring greater population balance among the citys 15 civic wards. According to the 2011 census, the citys four largest wards by population are located in the south end of the city: St. Boniface, St. Vital, South Winnipeg-St. Norbert, and River Heights-Fort Garry. The citys population increased by almost 38,000 people between 2006 and 2011, with most of that growth concentrated in the south and the northwest quadrants. The singled largest population growth occurred in Old Kildonan, followed by South Winnipeg-St. Norbert and St. Boniface. Two wards saw population declines during that time frame: Charleswood-Tuxedo-Whyte Ridge and North Kildonan. Weve reached the stage now where (South Winnipeg-St. Norbert) and mine as well (St. Vital), we are the equivalent of an entire provincial riding bigger than some of the smaller wards, Mayes said. Talk of a ward boundary review in 2013 never came to pass but a council committee that year did recommend a review in 2017, using the most recent census data. aldo.santin@freepress.mb.ca Disparity within Winnipegs borders COUNCIL WARDS POPULATION IN 2011 CHANGE SINCE 2006 St. Boniface 54,194 up 5,034 since 2006 St. Norbert 53,544 up 5,894 St. Vital 52,340 up 2,260 River Heights-Fort Garry 51,653 up 3,188 Old Kildonan 49,096 up 7,806 Daniel McIntyre 45,542 up 1,547 Fort Rouge-East Fort Garry 45,510 up 360 Elmwood-East Kildonan 43,396 up 1,801 Point Douglas 42,571 up 2,791 Mynarski 42,145 up 2,345 Charleswood-Tuxedo 41,819 down 361 Transcona 36,849 up 3,939 North Kildonan 36,451 down 179 St. James-Brooklands 36,009 up 969 St. Charles 31,915 up 485 Source: City Clerks department A tourist looks at a flower in China's International Horticulture Exhibition in Kunming, capital of southwest Yunnan Province. (Photo : Reuters) In an effort to protect tourists from con artists and other criminals, five new police units have been formed in Yunnan Province in Southwest China, as reported by China Daily. The new units are tasked to provide security cover in key tourist towns like Dali, Kunming and Lijiang. They will also be processing complaints from the public regarding fraud, unlicensed guides and ticket scalpers. Advertisement The local government hopes that the effort will bring order to the chaotic tourism market of the province. The addition of the police units is a possible reaction to the release of a short video that went viral on social media, showing a tour guide in Xishuangbanna complaining about the lack of spending in known tourist areas. The unknown woman in the video called nearby tourists "miserly," saying they should be ashamed for not spending more money and threatening to prevent their departure if they exposed her behavior. Wen Shuqiong, the deputy director of Yunnan Tourism Development and Reform Commission, said that Yunnan implemented several measures "to protect tourists' rights in the past year, such as limiting shopping time to under 90 minutes per day." Forced shopping was actually one of the reasons why China's first tourist police unit was put up in Sanya, Hainan, which is another city notorious for overpriced food and rude tour guides. To date, tourist police in Sanya have investigated 81 public security cases. They have also detained 86 people and detected a criminal case. "Tourist police have the right to enforce the law. The process of dealing with tourists' complaints has been streamlined and those who want to make illegal profits by setting traps for unsuspecting tourists have been effectively frightened off," said Yue Jin, Sanya' vice mayor. Li Jinzao, director of the China National Tourism Administration, spoke about the importance of protecting tourists before they become victims. "Many places in China have invested huge amounts of money into marketing and advertising to attract tourists," said Li. "This is important, but a scandal could ruin all the good effort that has been put in, especially if the local tourism market is not orderly." Li also said that the local government must adjust its management policies to better protect tourists. "We used to focus on scenic spots. However, tourists do not stay in one spot forever. In order to regulate the tourism market, the local government needs to get out of this 'scenic spot' way of thinking and regulate the whole city's public order," said Li. However, when investigators looked into his status last month, they learned he had not been at his last registered address in Minnesota City for more than six months, but that he had taken up residence in Elgin, Minn. They also learned he had been working at a Rochester auto dealership for more than a year, although his registration still showed him to be unemployed. They also discovered that he had three vehicles registered in his name, although none of them had been reported to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension as he was required to do. Sisters Leo Tracy and Dominic Mahl came to Winona in 1894 to found a college with $4.28, a horse and a mortgage. In the years 1860 to 1900, close to 300 colleges and universities sprang up across the U.S. Some of these were state-sponsored public universities, but many were founded by the Catholic Church. For the Sisters of Saint Francis, the fledgling city of Winona seemed a likely prospect. In 1884, Mother Alexia Hoell of Milwaukee bought 11 acres along Wabasha Street and immediately began construction of St. Mary Hall. In December 1885, St. Marys Academy, a girls boarding school, opened. The Academy was never able to support itself, and after two years of constant financial strain, the school closed and was sold to Archbishop Joseph Ireland for a $29,000 mortgage. The building switched functions during the summer of 1888, when the Sisters of St Joseph from St. Paul established a hospital. Winona proved to be too healthy for the facility, and business shut down several years later. In 1894, the building was sold again for $29,000, this time to Rochesters Academy of Our Lady of Lourdes and the Sisters of Saint Francis. Sister Leo and Sister Dominic arrived in Winona later that year with their horse, Jim. Sister Leo had $3.53 in her pocket, Sister Dominic a whopping 75 cents. They shared a new mortgage, and there were expensive renovations to make, but the Winona Seminary opened yet that September to 59 students. During the first year, $15 a month covered tuition, room and board, lessons, and instructions in needlepoint. Students were taught to act and dress in a manner of simple elegance, and the Sisters proclaimed that the work of the seminary was to give an education that would produce young women of the highest culture. The inaugural year was a defiant success after the previous line of failed ventures, and the school began to flourish. The second year boasted an enrollment of 86 students, and it continued to increase every year. By 1903 the academic department had expanded to include classes in science, English and classics. Departments in art and expression, physical culture, and household economy had been added, as well as a music conservatory. The school had enjoyed such success that its leaders were able to make the last payment on the mortgage by 1905. In 1907, the seminary extended an invitation to Mary A. Molloy, the first woman to graduate from Cornell University, to come to Winona and help prepare the Franciscan sisters to instruct on a college level. The same afternoon she received another invitation to study Gaelic in Ireland, but when September rolled around, she packed her bags for Winona and after only one year with the school was made assistant principal. The coming years brought the complete transformation from a girls boarding school to a womens college. In 1911, Molloy assumed the role of the schools first dean and Sister Leo, now known as Mother Leo, became the schools first president in time to award the schools first bachelor of arts degree. In 1912, Bishop Patrick Heffron, who at the time was busy making plans for his own mens college, asked Molloy and the sisters what they planned on naming their new school. The name St. Marys had seemed like a natural choice since most of the college lay in St. Marys Hall, but Heffron was set on having the name for his school. The sisters next considered naming the school in honor of Teresa of Avila, and the name College of Saint Teresa was formally adopted. Also that year, the halls of St. Teresa and St. Cecilia were finished and dedicated. The campus continued to expand over the next decade. In 1920, a nursing program was added, and Lourdes Hall, Alverna Hall, and the basilica-style St. Mary of the Angels Chapel were built. Molloy joined the order of her peers and became a Franciscan nun under the name of Sister Aloysius, and in 1928, she was named the schools second president. That year also brought the debut of an education program. Sister Aloysius continued her presidency until 1946. She died in 1954. The College of Saint Teresa was formally accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education. Enrollment continued to rise between 1965 and 1967, at one point reaching a peak of 1,350 students. The Mary A. Molloy library was opened in 1967, but the golden days were coming to an end. In the wake of Vatican II, thousands of nuns left their orders. The loss of the religious order on the college faculty required hiring lay professors at considerably higher salaries than required by sisters vowed to poverty. Enrollment declined, as the prospect of four years of college without men had a diminished appeal for a generation on the front lines of the sexual revolution. As the 1980s came around, people began to speculate that the foundering all-women college had fallen behind the times. In 1986, the school responded by officially allowing men, but it was too little, too late. A merger with Saint Marys College also failed. In 1988, the college announced that it was facing its last year. In spring 1989, the last commencement ceremony was held on St. Mikes field. This story first appeared Aug. 19, 2001. A major topic of conversation for the upcoming 2016 Legislative session will be a bonding bill. The Legislature operates in two-year cycles, or a biennium. Generally the first year is when the two-year state budget is set, which we did in 2015, and the second year is when there is a bonding or capital improvements bill. The process of crafting a bonding bill is a lengthy one, and includes the following: members of the House and Senate Capital Investment Committees will make visits to projects throughout the state (several visits have already been made) and listen to public testimony, the governor makes his recommendations (he has already done so this year), the House and Senate each make recommendations by eventually passing a bonding bill in each chamber, the differences in the respective House and Senate bills are reconciled in a Conference Committee and a Conference Committee report is generated with the projects agreed to by the Conference Committee. The Conference Committee report then goes back to the House and Senate for a vote on final passage. The state constitution requires a three-fifths majority, otherwise known as a super majority, to pass a bonding bill in each chamber. This equals 81 votes in the House and 41 votes in the Senate. If the bonding bill passes both chambers, it then goes to the governor for his approval or veto. The governor has the option to sign the entire bill into law, veto the entire bill, or line-item veto individual projects. In order for a project to be eligible for funding in a bonding bill, it must meet certain requirements. Projects must be publically owned and used for public purposes, and they must be fixed assets or projects that are capital in nature, meaning funds must be designated for infrastructure projects and not ongoing operational expenses. Bonding requests are usually submitted by state agencies and departments, public colleges and universities, and local governments. Projects that have been funded in past years include new and renovated buildings at public higher education institutions; health and safety improvements at hospitals and prisons; infrastructure improvements such as roads, bridges, transit, water and sewer systems, parks, trails, airports, and even new or upgraded civic centers. Once a bonding bill is passed, the state borrows money through the sale of low-interest bonds, which are then paid back at a fixed rate over a certain period of time, generally 20 years. The bonds are guaranteed through the credit of the state of Minnesota. Most of the debt service on outstanding bonds is paid for through the states general fund. Based on debt guidelines set by Minnesota Management and Budget (MMB), the state has a current capacity to take on additional debt of about $1 billion, which would be a very sizable bonding bill. However, this is just the maximum capacity and certainly not a required amount. By the time the Legislature convenes on March 8, there will likely be about $4 billion of bonding requests, so the members of the House and Senate Capital Investment Committees certainly have our work cut out for us. Obviously its not possible to fund all of the requests, so we really have to prioritize the projects and focus on absolute needs throughout the state. The Iowa caucuses represented some of the worst in politics, such as big money substituting for big ideas, negative advertising saying more about the advertiser than the target and media concentration on the polls, the polls, the polls. But Gov. Jeb Bushs campaign and super PAC money did not work, the ads regularly crucifying Sen. Marco Rubio did not work and the polls were wrong, wrong, wrong. Its also the case that Donald Trumps buffoonery did not carry him to victory, which is not to say there was nothing bad that worked. Look, for instance, at Vermonts 74-year-old socialist senator, Bernie Sanders. He won on the Democratic side even though he lost by four-tenths of a percentage point. He gained electoral credibility because the outcome was in effect a tie with Hillary Clinton, whose primary and general election victories were once considered as inevitable as a sunrise. Theres a distance to go, things should ultimately look better for her, but in Iowa it seemed more like her sun was setting. Her problems included moral malfunctions tracing back to her days in Arkansas. She has never let up. The lies mount, the disgraces mount, the classified email revelations mount. Will she be indicted? Probably not, but the threats there alongside such advantages as a hustling machine and her experience as a first lady, a senator and a secretary of state. Of course, she never achieved much and her policy proposals are partly stumbles contrived to match opinion polls even when they contradict positions she once embraced. So Sanders did have the advantage of straightforward honesty. He is also a fanatical hate-monger. With anger written all over him, he would have you believe that evil creatures on Wall Street rule the country and is asking his willing supporters to exchange their freedom for freebies. He would turn half of whats best about America upside down and lead us into a financial crisis that just could tower above the Great Depression. His intellectual supporters defend him by saying he could never achieve all his eerie promises. Thats the best they can do? Its still a hallelujah moment that Trump lost despite vulgarized marketing savvy appealing largely to people truly up against it. He has been clever in the way he has simplistically overstated his otherwise thoughtless positions but then outdid himself. He skipped a debate because he didnt want to face a tough questioner, Megyn Kelley of Fox News, and Sen. Ted Cruz got off a good line: How was Trump going to deal with Vladimir Putin if he could not deal with her? Trump did give a gracious, surprisingly humble concession speech. Cruz was the official GOP winner, partly, observers say, because he did the hard work of organizing get-out-the-vote squads. Another part was religious preachments that seemed more like strenuous efforts to win votes than simple statements of what he believed. That might strike some as a misuse of faith, but he did do particularly well in garnering support from evangelical Christians. One of the best things about him in Iowa was the way he stood up against the unjustified ethanol mandate beneficial to vast numbers in the state. While Trump gave it a supposedly politically profitable kiss, Cruz explained he was against all energy subsidies. The unofficial GOP winner was Rubio. He came in a close third after second-place Trump. Its still not quite a three-man race as some are saying, but Mike Huckabee has already suspended his effort and others could join him after New Hampshire. Rubio seems likely to get many of those who would vote for them. His election-night speech was impressive saying the nation is facing a referendum on whether we are going to do our part in uplifting our greatness or watch it decline. His appeal to those hit hard by economic and other changes was optimistic and positive, many steps above the phony, the unworkable and the hateful. Sauk County prosecutors, law enforcement and victim advocates will team up to ensure best practices are used in sexual assault investigations. Thats thanks to a $400,000 grant that Sauk County received from the U.S. Department of Justices Office of Violence Against Women. If theres not a team approach, the chances of going all the way to prosecution (with a sexual assault case) are very slim, said Julie Fisher, Associate Director of the Baraboo-based Hope House of South Central Wisconsin. The grant will fund salary and benefits for a nearly full-time position within the Sauk County District Attorneys Office, a full-time investigator with the Lake Delton Police Department, and a half-time advocate at Hope House through 2017. The employees will form a team that will undergo training in the area of sexual assault investigation and victim services. They will then offer training sessions to their peers in other local agencies. Sexual assault is a very tricky thing to prosecute because of the way a person is victimized, Fischer said. So it takes a team of people working together to make it happen in a way that the victim is supported, law enforcement is able to get the information they need, and the investigators are passing the evidence on to prosecutors. The grant is intended to allow prosecutors, law enforcement officers and advocates to attend training seminars on best practices. It also seeks to improve relationships between agencies, victim advocacy and the timeliness and effectiveness of the process from reporting to prosecution. Lake Delton Police Department Det. Shawn Posewitz said the grant will help his department deal with an unusually difficult sexual assault caseload. Because of the high tourism traffic, many times the sexual assaults that take place in Lake Delton involve people from outside the community. Posewitz said he often drives to other states to interview witnesses. His position will be funded by the grant, and the police department will hire another employee to fill his former role. The additional prosecutor within the Sauk County District Attorneys Office will focus solely on sexual assault cases. Posewitz said it will be important for the team to help other agencies utilize best practices during sexual assault investigations, which can be tricky to handle. You have to see the signs of what the victim is going through and tweak the interview process based on that, he said. You dont want to retraumatize the victim. Sauk County is one of seven communities that received a portion of the $2.7 million in funding intended to improve how the justice system handles sexual assault cases. The county will serve as a pilot site along with the Jefferson County Commission in Birmingham, Alabama; the City of Los Angeles; the Cobb County Board of Commissioners in Marietta, Georgia; the city and county of Honolulu; the New Hampshire Department of Justice; and the Cherokee Nation in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. In announcing the grants, U.S. Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch called sexual and domestic violence a heinous crime, inflicting physical and emotional trauma that can linger for years, with grave consequences for survivors and their loved ones; for neighborhoods and communities and for our country as a whole. The Reel Inn in Necedah was rocking on Saturday night for a good cause. Habitat for Humanity of Adams and Juneau County held a benefit concert, meat and cheese raffle, and a 50/50 raffle to support the construction of two new homes in both counties. The houses, built for local, low-income families, are already being constructed and will be completed this spring. Saturdays event featured four bands, Chasing Duncan, The Deeps, Oh My Love, and Shades of Blues. Sam Spotts, who is completing a year of service for Habitat for Humanity as an Americorps Vista, said the goal of Saturdays event was to raise $1,000 and the benefit surpassed that goal with $1,262. We want to be more engaged with the community and do more events like this because this is just a fun way for us to engage the community and raise awareness for our organization and raise funds, Spotts said. Habitat for Humanity of Adams and Juneau County has 19 partner families and many of them attended Saturdays fundraiser. This is also a way to thank them and have them come out, Spotts said. Saturdays event was the first local benefit for Habitat for Humanity of its kind. With the success of Saturdays benefit, Spotts is hoping to have a meat, cheese and music fundraiser at least once a year, if not more often. The event also featured raffles for gifts certificates and bottles of wine from local wineries. I used to do events like this in Madison when I was going to school there, so something like this is easy for me to put together. The biggest challenge was sourcing all the meat, but it all came through in the end and I think we had about 100 items to raffle, Spotts said. This is a great venue in Juneau County and in my mind, I would like to do this on a monthly basis. It doesnt just have to be for Habitat, it could be for different organizations and a good way to raise money, but that will require a little more leg work and other non-profits to come out of the woodwork because a lot of planning went into this and we managed to pull this together in about a month. Saturdays first band, Chasing Duncan, is an acoustic duo from Tomah. Shades of Blues played covers and originals, while The Deeps, a Madison-based band, offered a surf rock sound. Electric pop group Oh My Love, also from Madison, ended the night. Its an eclectic mix of music and thats kind of what we were going for, Spotts said. I played in a band in Madison for five years and I got to know quite a few bands. I think this area needs something like this; it allows these bands to expand their outreach and it gives people around here a chance to hear new music and get out and have a good time. This year, Habitat for Humanity is completing a house on Grant Street in Mauston, along with a home in Adams. Spotts said construction for the Mauston home is about halfway done, while the house in Adams is nearly complete. In spring, there will be a lot of landscaping and once those houses are completed, in early summer, were hoping for the application process to open for 2017, Spotts said. Were trying to speed up the process and its really working out. This is a great way for us to fund raise because houses are expensive and anything we can do to raise money for the organization, I am game to try it. Mauston also has a Habitat for Humanity Restore that supports the organization. I encourage people to donate to our restore, Spotts said. If you have an old couch that you would like to give away for a good purpose, please do so. We do not give away homes, its quite a stringent process that working families have to go through to get a house. The families that move into these homes are local, working families that pay their taxes. Sometimes people just need a leg up to help them get out of the grips of poverty and thats what we do. Habitat has formed strong relationships with both Mauston and Adams-Friendship high schools, allowing students to get an opportunity to build houses and help local families. Central Wisconsin is a poorer part of the state and its harder to see poverty in rural areas, Spotts said. But, any way we can help them out, we will. For more information, go to the Mauston restore website at maustonrestore.com or find them on Facebook by searching Mauston Habitat Restore. Planning nutrient management prior to harvest Harvest is always a fast-paced season for growers, that's why it is important to meet nutrient management goals prior to harvest. The establishment of the special troops also reiterates Islamabads commitment in protecting the China-Pakistan corridor. (Photo : Getty Images) Syed Tariq Fatemi, a visiting senior Pakistani diplomat, announced on Wednesday, Feb. 3, that Islamabad will help protect the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor by setting up a special force of 10,000 troops, according to a report by China Daily. Advertisement The move, according to Fatemi, is an answer toward China's security concerns over the increasing number of Chinese people involved in projects in the country. According to China Daily, there are about 14,000 engineers and technicians involved in over 200 projects in Pakistan. "We have decided to create a special force of highly trained military people who will be specially equipped and will have special organizations in concerned ministries backing them," said Fatemi, who acts as the special assistant to Pakistan's prime minister of foreign affairs. "Their task will be to provide the necessary safety and security of Chinese working in Pakistan and the Chinese companies and industries set up there," Fatemi added. The establishment of the special troops also reiterates Islamabad's commitment in protecting the China-Pakistan corridor, said Fatemi. Consultations with China will be regularly held to address problems in a timely manner. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor or CPEC is a $46-billion project that aims to expand Pakistan's infrastructure by linking China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region with Pakistan's Gwadar, a port city. The two cities will be linked by a series of highways and railways. Fatemi also cleared up that there is little controversy in Pakistan regarding the different routes of the CPEC. Earlier this year, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif also addressed such concerns by meeting with different parties. According to various Chinese sources, political parties in Pakistan were having disputes on whether the focus should be shifted to the construction of the eastern or the western route. A consensus has been reached, however, settling with the construction of the western route on a priority basis. "Of course, all political parties want to push their agenda, all political leaders have their ideas, but everyone was fully supportive of this project at the end of the meeting and everyone was deeply appreciative of China's assistance in undertaking this massive transformation, which, according to experts, is going to bring about a win-win situation for nearly six billion people in the region," said Fatemi. In Chinese courts, death sentence with reprieve means that if the convicted person commits no crime for two years, it is commuted to life imprisonment. (Photo : Getty Images) A man was released from prison on Monday after spending 21 years incarcerated in Hainan Province in South China for a homicide and arson he did not commit, as reported by the Global Times. The High People's Court of Zhejiang Province was tasked with reviewing the case. The court said on Monday that the charges against Chen Man, now 53 years old, cannot be upheld because of insufficient evidence in the case. Advertisement Wang Wanqiong, Chen's lawyer, said that Chen holds the record for the longest jail term for a wrongful conviction known in China. In Nov. 1994, Chen was sentenced to the death penalty with two-year reprieve for "killing a man and setting his house on fire to cover up the crime." In Chinese courts, "death sentence with reprieve" means that if the convicted person commits no further crime during the two-year period directly after his sentence, it is commuted to life imprisonment. The sentence is more often used than the actual death penalty as a way to give a person life imprisonment and communicate the gravity of the crime at the same time. Chen told the Global Times on Monday via phone interview that he was happy about the court's decision. He also plans to start an online business. "I am eager to start a new life and take good care of my parents, who are in their 80's," said Chen. Wang said that Chen would apply for state compensation. "The compensation would be around 3 million yuan ($456,000) based on Chen's mental and physical suffering," said Wang. Zhejiang's Higher People's Court reopened Chen's case in Dec. 2015 after it was instructed by the Supreme People's Court (SPC). On Monday, the Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) said in a statement that the original conviction, which said that Chen was guilty of intentional homicide and arson, does not make sense given existing evidence. "I think the result of Chen's case inspires me and many other lawyers. It shows that the SPC and the SPP are actively addressing and rectifying the mistakes," said Wang. "It also shows the progress made by China's judicial system in protecting suspects' rights and the effort made by China to reduce the number of wrongful convictions." China News on Women Sorry, the page you requested was not found. If you're having trouble locating a destination on Womenofchina.cn, try visiting the Womenofchina Home page China is set to implement strict fuel standards for ships docked in Chinese ports to curb marine pollution that affect cities along the rivers and seas. (Photo : REUTERS) Chinese authorities have finalized plans to set up strict fuel standards for large ships in an effort to slash marine emissions, the Ministry of Transport announced on Monday, Feb. 1, as reported by China Daily. Advertisement Li Qingping, a senior official at the ministry's Maritime Safety Administration, told a news conference in Beijing that once the rules are implemented, oxysulfide emissions from ships will be reduced by 65 percent and particulate emissions by 30 percent by 2020, as compared with current emissions. According to the report, China's Pearl River and Yangtze River deltas and the Bohai Sea area have been established as emission control zones where the plan will first be implemented. Eleven ports in the zones, which include the ports in Shanghai and Tianjin, will also become key ports under stricter monitoring. Li said that starting April 1, ships will be required to use fuel with sulphur content lower than or equal to 0.5 percent during their berth in core ports in the Yangtze River delta control zone, adding that from Jan. 1 next year, ships in all core ports must follow the same standard. The reported added that the rule will be expanded to include all ports in the three control zones beginning on Jan. 1, 2018. Also, starting on Jan. 1, 2019, all ships will have to follow the rule once they enter control zones. Li added that the government will introduce stricter rules on marine emissions, including reducing the standard of sulphur content to 0.1 percent and expanding the control zone by Dec. 31, 2019. He said foreign ships will have to follow the rule, as the ministry is working on an English-language document on the policy. "There are enormous health and environmental consequences that come from marine emissions, affecting both port cities and inland areas. The regulation will lead to significant air quality improvements throughout the country," Li said. According to data released by the ministry, marine emissions account for about 8 to 10 percent of Shanghai's PM2.5, which is airborne particulate matter that can penetrate the lungs and harm people. The Ministry of Environmental Protection said that in 2013, marine oxysulfide emissions accounted for 8.4 percent of total oxysulfide emissions, while oxynitride emissions accounted for 11.3 percent of the total. The ministry said that marine pollution has greatly affected port cities, as well as other cities along rivers. Data from the Ministry of Transport in 2013 showed that China has more than 170,000 transport ships, with net deadweight of 240 million metric tons. The 4th regional workshop series on Harmonization to support the operation and new build of NPPs including SMRs took place on 18-20 May 2022 in Lyon, France. READ MORE > Home Bargains to Open in Former Tesco Store This article is old - Published: Friday, Feb 5th, 2016 A popular discount store is set to set up shop in a former Wrexham supermarket. Discount shop Home Bargains is to move into the former Tesco Supermarket on Dodds Lane, Gwersyllt early this spring. The company, which opened its first store 30 years ago now employs more than 16,000 staff across 370 stores. Last January Tesco announced the Gwersyllt store was to close following a review of the companys stores nationwide. The store was one of 43 unprofitable stores and closed in April 2015. Locally there have been rumours for several months that Home Bargains were planning on occupying the former Tesco store on Dodds Lane in Gwersyllt with a Tesco spokesperson confirming to Wrexham.com in November that the company still owned the building and were in advanced discussions about bringing the site back into use. Rumours that the store will be occupied by Home Bargains appear to have been confirmed yesterday by a planning application submitted by the company to install new signage on the Dodds Lane unit. Work has also been ongoing in the store for several months. A number of managerial and supervisor roles have also been advertised for the store. Within the planning application submitted to Wrexham Council that the Home Bargains advertisement will be on display from March 2016 March 2021. Much of the exterior of the building will remain the same, however new railings and window graphics will be added along with the frontage being painted grey. It is anticipated the new store will open in the next few months. Australias High Court, the countrys supreme court, yesterday upheld the indefinite detention of asylum seekers on remote Pacific islands. By sanctifying the legality of Australias offshore camps on Nauru and Papua New Guineas Manus Island, the judges set a new global benchmark for the incarceration of men, women and children in conditions that medical professionals have condemned as amounting to torture. After months of deliberation, the judges rejected a challenge by a then pregnant Bangladeshi woman who was transferred from Nauru to Australia for medical treatment in 2014. As an immediate result of the ruling, 267 refugees in similar situationssuffering serious trauma and health problems or having given birth to babiesface being transported back to Nauru, including a five-year-old boy who was allegedly raped there. But the implications of the decision are broader, clearing the way for the rendering of refugees, and potentially others, to be detained indefinitely, without trial, by overseas governments at Canberras behest. Once again, the legal and political establishment in Australia, which was the first country to detain all asylum seekers indefinitely, has established a precedent for the ever-harsher treatment of refugees by governments internationally, in violation of fundamental legal and democratic rights. For months, doctors, nurses, aid workers and other former detention camp personnel have denounced the inhuman regimes on Nauru and Manus Island, documenting the catastrophic impact of indefinite detention on the mental health of detainees. They have done so in defiance of laws introduced by the Liberal-National government, with the Labor Partys full support, threatening them with up to two years jail for exposing the brutal treatment of the refugees. Nevertheless, by six votes to one, the judges sanctioned this system of offshore processing, which was reimposed by Australias previous Labor government in 2012. The majority also rubberstamped legislation pushed through parliament last June by the Liberal-National government, also with Labors backing, to retrospectively legalise the detention arrangements after the High Court challenge was already underway. Speaking in parliament, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull immediately welcomed the ruling as validating, legally and constitutionally, the governments entire border protection framework of repelling refugee boats and rendering for offshore detention any asylum seeker who managed to reach Australias shores. Our borders are secure. The line has to be drawn somewhere and it is drawn at our border, he declared, underscoring his commitment to maintain the full anti-refugee regime adopted by the predecessor he ousted, Tony Abbott. Conscious of the hostility, not only among health professionals but broad layers of the population, to the cruel treatment of refugees, Immigration Minister Peter Dutton claimed he would take a compassionate approach to the ruling and not send children into harms way. Regardless of whether the government exempts some of the most obviously traumatised and vulnerable detainees from being removed back to Nauru, hundreds of people, including children, will remain in the hellish conditions on Nauru and Manus. More fundamentally, the green light has been given for Australian governments to maintain such detention camps outside the country, financed, controlled and staffed by Australian employees while theoretically under the jurisdiction of an overseas government. The High Court judges refused to even consider whether the indefinite detention, under lucrative contractual agreements with Australia, infringed Naurus constitution. With only one dissenter, the judges based their decisions on last Junes bipartisan retrospective amendment to the Migration Act, the explicit purpose of which was to strip detainees of any legal right to challenge their inhuman treatment. Backdated to 2012, the amendment, now enshrined as section 198AHA of the Act, gave the government sweeping powers to take, or cause to be taken, any action in relation to regional processing. In parliament last June, speakers emphasised that these powers included restraint over the liberty of detainees, regardless of whether the imprisonment was legal in the country hosting the detention facility. Labor leader Bill Shorten not only endorsed this quashing of refugees legal rights. He declared that Labors support, at then-Prime Minister Abbotts specific request, would mark a new turning point in parliament based on a common commitment to the security of this country. Given this record, Labors response to yesterdays ruling was obviously duplicitous. Deputy party leader Tanya Plibersek insisted that a Labor government would treat Naurus detainees better. This only underlined Labors continued backing for the offshore camps that it reopened in 2012with the deliberate intention of making the fate of detainees as harsh as possible. When Julia Gillard, then prime minister, announced the recommencement of the Pacific solution in mid-2012, she emphasised that those consigned to Nauru and Manus Island would languish there for many years, precisely in order to deter any refugees from seeking to land in Australia. Labors shadow immigration minister Richard Marles yesterday criticised the government for not securing third-country resettlement options for the Nauru and Manus detainees. He decried the failure of the governments efforts to strike viable detention deals with Cambodia, the Philippines and Kyrgyzstan. In office, Labor sought to dump refugees in equally impoverished countries, notably East Timor and Malaysia. The Greens were no less hypocritical. Party leader Richard Di Natale called on Turnbull as a test of his prime ministership to halt further deportations to Nauru. Turnbull had made clear that his prime ministership rested on maintaining the border protection regime, which the Greens also fundamentally support. It was the Greens who gave the last Labor government the parliamentary numbers to remain in office as it reopened the Nauru and Manus camps. In their judgments, members of the High Courts majority went beyond the 2012 Migration Act amendment. They indicated that offshore detention could be constitutionally valid under the vague executive power of the government, without specific legislation, based on the legal fiction that the imprisonment was undertaken by a foreign government. Australias constitution has no bill of rights, but the High Court has previously ruled that punitive detention would be illegal, unless ordered by a court. Over the past decade, the court has rubberstamped indefinite detention within Australia, as long as it was reasonable necessary for processing asylum applications or deporting rejected applicants. But the majority judges said these constraints may not apply to offshore detention, paving the way for wider use of overseas incarceration. Todays editorial in Murdochs Australian provided an insight into the ruthless logic, and global implications, of the High Court ruling. The newspaper hailed the verdict as welcome and reassuring because it underpinned the border protection regime. According to the newspaper, Europe is showing us the alternative patha social, economic and humanitarian disaster. In other words, the doors of the nation-state system should be shut completely to the millions of refugees fleeing the disastrous conditions created by endless wars by the US and its allies, notably Australia, in the Middle East. The victims of war and destitution should be universally detained and deported, regardless of their essential democratic right to seek asylum. This statement will be distributed at a demonstration of teachers being held today in Chicago, Illinois. More than three years after the Chicago Teachers Union (CTU) shut down a strike on terms dictated by Mayor Rahm Emanuel, teachers are once again facing a pitched battle against both big business parties and the CTU itself. At stake is not only the jobs and working conditions of teachers, but the very future of public educationin Chicago and throughout the country. Earlier this week, the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) announced plans for $100 million in budget cuts, including a threat to lay off 1,000 teachers and other school employees and end contributions to the teachers pension fund. Their demand: that teachers accept a new contract deal imposing steep increases in pension contributions and opening the way for the further privatization of public schools in the city. In opposing this attack, teachers can win mass support in the working class as a whole. However, to carry out a struggle it is necessary for teachers to understand who are their friends and who are their enemies. The CTU is now posturing as an opponent of the dealthe very same deal that CTU President Karen Lewis called last week a serious offer. Lewis earlier hailed the rotten agreement worked out behind closed doors, claiming that the basic frameworks calls for economic concessions in exchange for enforceable protections of education quality and job security. Now Lewis says that it is an act of war. The maneuvering of Lewis, Vice President Jesse Sharkey and the rest of the CTU leadership is aimed at providing themselves with cover after their secret negotiations with Emanuel and the CPS were exposed. The CTUwhich has left teachers to work without a new contract since Junehad intended to organize a vote of the bargaining committee before any details were released to teachers, then pressure teachers to accept it. However, aspects of the agreement were leaked to the media and publicized on social media, quickly provoking immense anger. Concerned about the possibility of a rebellion if it backed the deal, the bargaining committee voted against the agreement, and Lewis and Sharkey modified their line. Teachers must be on guard, however: the CTU, in collaboration with the Emanuel administration, is preparing a new line of attack. In a Tuesday interview on Chicago Tonight, Sharkeya member of the pseudo-left International Socialist Organizationmade the unions position very clear. Referring directly to the most provocative element of the rejected offer, the citys demand that teachers shoulder all of their own pension contributions, Sharkey said, Everything is on the table. While they scheme with CPS and the Emanuel administration, the CTU is determined to prevent teachers from drawing the conclusion that in the fight to defend their interests and the institution of public education, they are engaged in struggle against the Democratic Party and the Obama administration, backed by the entire political establishment and the corporate elite in whose interests it serves. In the more than seven years since the economic crash of 2008, the ruling class has overseen a vast redistribution of wealth. The richest 20 individuals in the country now control more assets than the bottom half of the population, or 152 million people. Trillions are allocated to finance bank bailouts and fund the Pentagon war machine, while basic social services are under relentless assault. Anything that does not contribute to corporate profits or fuel Wall Street speculation is on the chopping block, and public education is a prime target. Since coming to office, the Obama administration has intensified the assault on public education carried out by his predecessor, pushing for increased testing, an attack on teachers and the transformation of public schools into for-profit charter operations. Emanuel, his one-time chief of staff, is implementing this policy in Chicago. The unions, including the American Federation of Teacherswith which the CTU is affiliatedhave collaborated in this attack. Far from representing teachers, the AFT and CTU have worked with the Democrats in imposing pro-corporate education reform, only seeking to ensure that the unions have a seat at the table and a portion of the spoils. In 2012, the CTU isolated the strike by teachers and prevented the enormous opposition from coming into confrontation with Emanuel and the Obama administration. Following the defeat of that strike, Emanuel advanced the attack on schools, closing 50 elementary schools and laying off more than 1,000 teachers. In return, a CTU-affiliated union was given access to organize lower-paid teachers at one of the citys largest charter school operations. A real struggle to defend public education must begin with an understanding that teachers face in the CTU an enemy no less bitter than Emanuel or Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner. Teachers in Chicago can take a lesson from the Detroit teachers, who last month engaged in a round of sickouts in opposition to the disastrous state of public education in the city. These actions were taken independently of the Detroit Federation of Teachers, which is no less beholden to the interests of the ruling class and a political alliance with the Democrats than their counterparts in Chicago. While Chicago teachers have many determined foes, they have even more powerful allies. These include teachers throughout the country who are facing the same attack, as well as all sections of the working class who have an interest in expanding access to public education, fully funding schools and opposing the dictates of the corporate-financial elite for continual wage and benefit cuts. In Chicago, the Emanuel administration is deeply despised, overseeing unprecedented social inequality and a ruthlessly murderous police force. There is growing anger and opposition throughout the United States. Moreover, the conditions in the United States are replicated in country after country around the world. To mobilize this opposition, teachers require their own organizations. The Socialist Equality Party calls for rank-and-file teachers to form fighting committees, independent of the CTU. A first task of such a committee would be to issue an appeal to the workers of Chicago for a common struggle in defense of public education. The formation of such organizations is a critical and necessary step in mobilizing the entire working class in a fight against an economic system based on exploitation, poverty and war: capitalism. New York Citys homeless shelter population has totaled over 58,000 in recent months, a near-record figure. Officials responsible for dealing with the crisis say that another 3,000 are living on the streets, but this figure is widely considered to be seriously underestimated. Many of those who are homeless avoid going to city shelters, even in the cold winter months. This winter has been unusually warmuntil a cold spell arrived with more than two feet of snow on January 23. A few days later the deaths of two men were reported, victims of fires in abandoned buildings in two different Bronx neighborhoods. In the Tremont section of the central Bronx, a fire in a derelict aging wood-frame house on Crotona Avenue near E. 178th Street blazed out of control at about 2 a.m. on the morning of January 26. The Daily News reported that police said a victim, later identified as 64-year-old David Gonzalez, was burned beyond recognition. Gonzalez had been living in the building for several years and was well known and liked in the neighborhood. Three other squatters in the abandoned house were able to escape the fire. Authorities said that it had been caused by extension cords using electricity from other sources and stretched dangerously throughout the building. The Tremont neighborhood is predominately populated by immigrants, with a large number of Latino residents and a high rate of unemployment, poverty and substandard housing. The tragic Happy Land fire of 1990, in which 87 people died in an unlicensed social club, took place only a few city blocks away from the latest fire on Crotona Avenue. According to a more detailed report in the New York Times, the fire in the Tremont section was followed by another in an abandoned building, this time on West Kingsbridge Road, several miles away. The victim in this case has not been identified. Officials said the blaze was caused by an open flame. Squatters and vacant houses have always been an issue, Michael Parrella of the Fire Department told the Times. They present many different dangers to the public and of course to anyone desperate enough to put themselves in that situation. Accidents are relatively common. Another Fire Department spokesman added that cold weather increased the dangers. When you use multiple extension cords and they power multiple appliances, it can be very dangerous. The fire deaths highlight the social devastation that is widespread in the city, especially in the outer boroughs, even as high rise luxury apartments are sprouting up on a weekly basis in Manhattan, only a few miles away. Workers in the neighborhood described living conditions in the Bronx to a World Socialist Web Site reporting team . Manuel Done, a childcare provider who lives in the area, explained, I just came home one day, and my mother told me the house had burned down. This kind of thing has been going on for years in this area. We also had a car fire recently, but there is still a lack of acknowledgment about the situation here. Another house down the street was just allowed to rot until it collapsed. This situation should be raising a lot of red flags. We know that they are trying to get higher income people to live in the South Bronx. Everything is being run for the rich. If we dont come together this kind of situation will just keep getting overlooked. I grew up around the Bronx, said Nadine Coleman, whose auto mechanic shop is located just a few doors down the street. In the 1980s the Bronx was burning. Landlords wanted to get out. Now there is gentrification going on--maybe not right here, but in Hunts Point and some other areas. Rents will skyrocket. People used to run to the Bronx for cheaper rent. Now its no can do. A 78-year-old man who lives in the nearby public housing projects told the WSWS, I knew the man who lived in that house. I considered him a friend. I think he collected SSI for disability. There is another vacant house on the corner but not the same owner. There was no electricity so for light I think he ran a wire into the house for light. I am a retired mechanic and I can tell you if the wire was not hooked up right it could cause a fire. Cheryl moved from the Caribbean two months ago to an apartment a couple of blocks from the site of the latest fire. Look at that house now. Now they decide to board it up. Before people, like that poor man who died, could just go in, but it was not safe. Homeless people do not go into the shelters because they are not safe. These tragedies will continue to happen because when they do not have electricity they use lanterns or candles. The economy is getting worse. The housing situation is not fair. My husband and I could not get a space in the lottery for an affordable apartment even though we met all the requirements. A recent Fire Department document reported 25 accidental and 38 deliberately set fires in vacant buildings in New York City in 2014. Nationally, seven percent of all fires are in vacant buildings, and these cause about 60 deaths and 225 injuries annually. New York City had 2,545 serious fires in 2015, and 27,403 structural fires. The combination of the housing crisis, unsafe and inadequate shelters for the homeless, and cold weather is likely to result in more deaths like the ones last week in the Bronx. Only a week before, a resident of the East Harlem shelter in Manhattan was fatally stabbed in the neck by his roommate. The homeless also regularly report thefts of what few personal belongings they have inside the shelters. Mental illness is a problem among some of the homeless, but the vast majority, including those who suffer from emotional problems and illness, are only looking for a roof over their heads and a way to afford their own apartments. The shelter system offers almost no services, however, and little safety either. The neighbors in the Tremont area have sympathy for the homeless, and many recognize that they face similar dangers. As one neighborhood resident told the Times, The squatter houses arent a bother at all. Who could blame them for trying when the shelters are so terrible? The administration of liberal Democratic mayor Bill de Blasio, however, has nothing more than bland reassurance and empty words to offer the homeless, as well as the one-fifth to one-quarter of the citys population which subsists below the poverty line. A spokesman for the mayor said, Were cognizant both of the safety and quality-of-life issues of the tenants of these places. Through any number of existing initiatives, we hope to reach people to serve them in such a way as to get them into decent, safe housing. The existing initiatives do not include a massive program of jobs and decent wages, or a housing-construction plan to provide affordable shelter for all. These can only be achieved through the independent political struggle of the working class based on a socialist program. On Wednesday, the US House Committee on Oversight and Reform held a public hearing on the political crisis stemming from the widespread lead contamination in the city of Flint, Michigan. The committee brought before it scientists involved in the exposure of the crisis and residents who had been affected by the contamination, as well as officials representing state and federal regulators that had sought to suppress evidence of the health disaster. The hearing was the first held at the federal level on the expanding crisis in Flint. In the audience were dozens of Flint, Detroit and Washington, DC residents who attended to express their opposition to the actions of local, state and federal authorities. Are we living in 2016 or is it the 1930s and 1940s? an attendee from Washington, DC told the World Socialist Web Site. Congressional officials, clearly overwhelmed by the expression of popular anger nationally, sought to contain the enormous social opposition by falsely presenting themselves as outraged bystanders to the corruption and criminality at every level of government. Not in attendance at the hearing were Republican Michigan Governor Rick Snyder, who the committee declined to question, and former Flint Emergency Manager Darnell Earley, a Democratic appointee of Snyder who oversaw Flints mounting water crisis from 2006 to 2013. Earley, who recently announced his resignation as Detroit Public Schools emergency manager, was denounced continuously by House officials. Committee Chair Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) said that on Tuesday he issued a subpoena to have Earley appear before the panel, and that he was now ordering US Marshals to hunt [Earley] down in order to serve him with the summons. While the hearing went on in Washington, DC, Flint Mayor Karen Weaver called for the removal of lead piping from more than 13,500 of the citys water lines, saying the city was morally obligated to act. When asked by reporters where the funding for such an endeavor would come from, Weaver failed to provide an answer, stating, [W]e must remove and replace lead pipes immediately, and we want to start with the high risk homes of kids under six and pregnant women. Widespread lead contamination in Flint first came to light last year, within one year after the city detached itself from the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (DWSD) in 2014. Flint began drawing contaminated water from the nearby Flint River, which corroded the citys pipes and caused lead to leach into the water supply, exposing tens of thousands to the neurotoxin. Rather than taking measures to reduce the danger posed to residents of the city, public officials at the local, state and federal levels suppressed evidence of the toxicity of Flints water by downplaying the significance of tests done on water from the region and intimidating whistleblowers in environmental agencies. Invited to speak at the hearing Wednesday was city resident LeeAnn Walters, who referred to her home as ground zero in the crisis. Since the city began drawing water from the Flint River, one of Walters children has become underweight and another has developed a speech impediment. She referred to a friends 15-year-old who has developed acute liver disease. Walters pointed to the national implications of the crisis, citing a report that only 10 states throughout the US were in accordance with the requirements of the Lead and Copper Rule, a key component of the Safe Drinking Water Act. Walters also cited a number of states that had water testing protocols identical to those of Michigan. Walters referred to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 5 regulator Miguel Del Toral, who was not permitted to testify at the hearing. Del Toral conducted tests of Walters water and sought to raise warnings to both the EPA and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ). According to a memo introduced at the hearing, numerous tests conducted by Del Toral found lead particles in Walters water far exceeding the EPA limit of 15 parts per billion (ppb), with one test finding a level as high as 397 ppb. The lead results were especially alarming given that the samples were collected using sampling procedures which minimize the capture of lead, the memo states. Walters said that the level of toxicity in her tap water was near the official threshold for hazardous waste. Despite this, we were still told the water was safe, she said. Del Toral was stonewalled when he sought to pass this information to higher-ups in July 2015. He gave Walters a copy of the report, and Walters passed the information on to the ACLU. At this point, Del Toral was silenced by an ethics officer and prevented from communicating with any Flint residents. Walters recalled in her testimony that MDEQ official Liane Shekter-Smith bragged to her about the fact that Del Toral had been handled. In testimony introduced to the panel, Virginia Tech civil engineering Professor Marc Edwards stated, How is it possible that the system designed to protect Americas children from the best known neurotoxin [lead] in their drinking water, has betrayed us? The answer? Institutional Scientific Misconduct perpetrated by the US Centers for Disease Control [CDC], US Environmental Protection Agency [EPA], primacy agencies and water utilities. Continuing, Edwards stated, [T]he very agencies paid to protect us not only failed to do so, but also revealed their callous indifference to the plight of our most vulnerable. Edwards testimony cites five falsified studies on the safety of drinking water produced by the two agencies dating from 2004 until the present. A 2010 report by the CDC is referred to as an Orwellian rewrite of history that claimed the conclusion of their 2004 report, [sic] was the exact opposite of what they actually wrote. At the local level, MDEQ officials regularly lied to cover up the lack of anti-corrosion treatment administered to the citys water as it switched from the DWSD to the Flint River. They had no plan to protect people, said Edwards. Following this, Flint registered four National Primary Drinking Water Regulation violations in 2014 alone. Attempts to seek help at the local level were stonewalled, as MDEQ officials sought to blame the lead contamination on individual Flint residents. Numerous House Democrats sought to present the causes of the lead poisoning in racial terms. The common denominator is that the people affected by these policies are low income, and predominantly people of color, said Stacey Plaskett, Democratic Representative of the Virgin Islands. Plaskett said the anti-democratic emergency manager law passed by Snyder in 2012 allowed the state of Michigan to impose overseers on cities like Flint. The assertion that lead poisoning is primarily a racial issue, which was made as Plaskett sat face-to-face with Walters, who is white, was particularly absurd. Assiduously avoided was any mention of the connection between the crisis in Flint and the bankruptcy in Detroit. The effort to privatize Detroits utilities was a primary motivation for removing Flint from the DWSD. Instead, Democratic and Republican officials took turns shifting blame along partisan lines while making demagogic and empty gestures of contrition to the residents of Flint. This is not supposed to happen, this is America! exclaimed Chaffetz. The mutual finger-pointing and hand-wringing of the rival factions in Congress is aimed at obscuring the fact that the crisis in Flint is a political crime for which both big business parties, from Democratic President Barack Obama down to Republican Governor Rick Snyder and local officials, are complicit. The World Socialist Web Site spoke to autoworkers in the US and Canada about the record profits announced by General Motors and other Detroit-based automakers. Workers pointed to the contrast between the celebrations in corporate boardrooms and the real life experiences of workers, who have suffered from the criminal actions of GM and the other auto companies. In particular workers pointed to the recent scandal over defective ignition switches in GM vehicles tied to scores of fatal crashes and the lead poisoning crisis in Flint, Michigana former center of GM manufacturing left in ruins after the company abandoned the city. Chris White, a retired GM worker at the Oshawa, Ontario plant, told the WSWS, GM is making obscene profits and handing out huge salaries to executives while saying wages are too high. When Mexico becomes too expensive they go somewhere else where it is even cheaper. Meanwhile, you have kids here coming out of college flipping burgers. GM kept the defective ignition switches in their cars hidden from the public. They were guilty of not fixing that defect when it was first discovered. Now they are discussing the same thing for airbags. I keep a close watch on all those things. Here in Canada GM is saying they will not put a new product into the Oshawa plant until after the contract negotiations later this year. That is blackmail. He remarked on the situation with lead poisoning of the water supply in Flint, Michigan, where GM once employed 80,000 workers. After closing the plants it left behind toxic industrial sites all over the city. I remember when GM was closing plants in Michigan. It could happen here as well. This facility once had 20,000 workers and now it is down to 2,500. They have been downsizing and downsizing. The tax implications for the city for GM moving out would be quite substantial. It has taken a big effort to clean up the land after it has been used for industrial purposes. Workers are often not informed of the hazardous materials used in manufacturing. Canada is still the largest exporter of asbestos in the world. Most of it goes to Third World countries. Corporate greed and capitalism is the way of the world. GM will do anything for profits and stockholders. GM in Canada never had a bankruptcy, but they took benefits from the retirees just the same. He remarked on the recent US contract negotiations. It seems like the unions have marched us 100 years backwards. When you start paying union leaders like company executives they start thinking like executives. They went from two tiers to three or four tiers. It is against all union principles. GT, a GM skilled trades worker from Indiana, debunked the much-touted $11,000 profit sharing check that workers are set to receive. It looks good until you examine it more closely. If we had not given up cost of living increases all these years our pay would now be $45 an hour. I work 2,500 hours a year. That comes to $25,000 extra. It sure beats out $11,000, even after taxes. If you tally up overtime pay on top of that it comes to more like $32,000. Profit sharing is another scheme between the UAW and GM to screw us and make sure that the company and the union both keep their share. The UAW is more a liaison with management to make sure management does okay. UAW President Dennis Williams is making more than $300,000 a year. He wants to protect that. He has nothing in common with me. He spoke on the lead poisoning crisis in the former GM center of Flint. The same thing happened in Anderson, Indiana, where I am from. They used to have 30,000 employees in the city and now they have none. They made huge profits and dumped the workers. They misused people and the environment and then walked away. On December 1, 2015, Dougal McNeil, a leading member of the New Zealand branch of the pseudo-left International Socialist Organisation, gave a 15-minute interview to Radio New Zealand glorifying Harry Holland, who led the Labour Party from its founding in 1916 until his death in 1933. McNeil, a lecturer in literature at Victoria University of Wellington, described Holland as a revolutionary who retained throughout his life an absolute commitment to a vision of socialism as something anti-capitalist. He asserted that until some unspecified point during the 1920s, the [Labour] MPs, the party structure was really subordinate to this goal of an end to capitalist society. [1] The ISO is not alone in painting the early Labour Party as socialist. Joe Carolan, leader of the Auckland-based Socialist Aotearoa (SA), declared at the groups 2013 conference: We are part of [a] heritage on the left in New Zealand ... The early fighters of the Labour Party were socialists. Such statements are common among pro-Labour columnists, academics and historians. The pseudo-lefts claim that Labour was once a socialist party is a blatant falsification of history that reveals their anti-socialist, middle-class politics. Its purpose is to justify support for what is today one of the two main parties of big business and militarism, by encouraging the illusion that the Labour Party, or a section of it, can return to its socialist roots. During the 2014 election both the ISO and SA campaigned on behalf of the Maori nationalist Mana Party and its ally the Internet Party, which hoped to enter parliament in support of Labour. The ISO championed then-Labour leader David Cunliffe as a left-wing figure, seeking to cover up his support for austerity and war. In his radio segment, McNeil made no criticism of the Labour Partys present policies or those of any previous Labour governments. He did not attempt to explain, for instance, why a party supposedly founded on a socialist program sent thousands of New Zealand troops to fight and die in World War II after being elected to office in 1935. Instead, he praised Hollands early trade union activities and read out samples of his verse. Holland arrived in New Zealand from Australia and gained prominence as a trade unionist and journalist during the 1912 Waihi miners strike and the national strike wave of 1913-1914, during which he was imprisoned for sedition. The 1913 strike, which began among waterside workers and was part of an international upsurge of the working class before World War I, was led into a dead-end by the United Federation of Labour (UFL). The union bureaucracy had not wanted the strike and made repeated attempts to shut it down through its negotiations with the government and employers. The Labour Party was formed in July 1916 by the UFL, the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the United Labour Party (ULP). The SDP, in which Holland was a leading figure, had been founded three years earlier as the political arm of the UFL. The larger Liberal Party had gone into coalition with the right-wing Reform Party government after the outbreak of war, so Labour became the official parliamentary opposition. Labours immediate aim was to contain the antiwar movement that had emerged in the working class and ensure that the country continued to supply troops to the imperialist slaughter in the Middle East and Europe. The Labour Partys founders were steeped in reactionary nationalism, committed to imperialism and the defence of the profit system. They supported the New Zealand bourgeoisies decision to join World War I, as a junior partner in the British Empire, in order to enrich itself and to seize colonies in the Pacific. McNeil told Radio NZ that Holland certainly supported the antiwar effort. This is completely false. The outbreak of war stripped away the anti-militarist veneer that Holland and a few other radicals had cultivated by opposing compulsory military training. Holland made common cause with the open pro-imperialists in the workers movement such as Daniel Sullivan, SDP member and president of the UFL in 1914, who took a prominent part in recruiting drives. James McCombs, an SDP parliamentarian who became the first Labour Party president, spoke at almost every possible recruiting meeting week after week. [2] Alfred Hindmarsh, a ULP member who led the Labour Party in parliament from 1916 to 1918, did not oppose the war; indeed, he had been a supporter of compulsory military training and conscription. [3] During 1915, amid reports of thousands of New Zealand troops being killed in the Gallipoli campaign, the SDP sought to divert the growing working-class opposition to war into limited protests against conscription, while still supporting the war itself. The Labour Party took the same position. Holland promoted this line as editor of the Maoriland Worker, the weekly newspaper of the UFL and SDP (later the Labour Party). His September 1, 1915, editorial stated: [I]f every man in New Zealand who declares himself favourable to war is permitted to go to warand he certainly should be permitted to gothere will be no shortage of men whatever and no need to even talk of Conscription. [4] Two weeks later, the newspaper published an open letter to Prime Minister William Massey by national UFL secretary Hiram Hunter. He warned that conscription would create serious dissention at the time of the greatest crisis in the history of the Empire, just the time when all parties should be at amity with each other. The letter, which Holland endorsed in an accompanying editorial, spelled out the patriotic position of the labour aristocracy: During the currency of the present war those people who have been most strenuously opposed to militarism in every shape and form have preserved a dignified neutrality. They adopted this course because they did not want to cause any embarrassment whilst the war lasted, believing that the Empire was in a supreme struggle to uphold the principles of Democracy. [5] The NZ Labour leaders were part of the same privileged layer represented by the parties of the Second International in Europe, which supported their own national bourgeoisie in the war. Across the Tasman, the Australian Labor Party won the 1914 election pledging, in the words of Andrew Fisher who became prime minister, to defend the British Empire to the last man and the last shilling. Fisher visited New Zealand in December 1914 and early 1915 for talks with the government and the SDP. He was warmly received by a committee representing every industrial and political organisation of Labour in Wellington, which included Holland. Committee chairman F. McKenzie, amidst much applause, read a speech welcoming Fisher which stated: We are pleased to know that our soldiers will fight side by side with our Australian comrades in defence of our democratic institutions. [6] Analysing the Second Internationals historic betrayal of socialism in World War I, Lenin determined that a socialist revolution could be led only by a revolutionary party that made a complete organisational severance from all class-collaborationist, national opportunist tendencies. He wrote: The epoch of imperialism cannot permit the existence, in a single party, of the revolutionary proletariats vanguard and the semi-petty-bourgeois aristocracy of the working class, who enjoy morsels of the privileges of their own nations Great-Power status. [7] The Bolshevik Party, which led the Russian Revolution, was built in the struggle against the traitors of the Second International. Holland feigned sympathy for the Bolsheviks amid the international wave of support for the Russian Revolution after the war. However, contrary to claims by McNeil and others, he opposed the Bolsheviks internationalist perspective of world revolution. In 1920, Holland wrote to the New Zealand Marxian Association that the Social Revolution [in New Zealand] will achieve itself and be achieved through evolutionary processesin other words, through parliamentary reforms under capitalism. Holland shared the nationalism and xenophobia that is still used by Labour and the trade union bureaucracy to divide the working class. McNeil did not mention that after World War I the Labour Partylike its counterpart in Australiacampaigned for severe restrictions on Asian immigration to avoid an intermingling of the races detrimental to all (as a report to Labours 1920 conference put it). Labour supported legislation in 1920 designed to exclude Chinese immigrants, known unofficially as a White New Zealand policy, which remained in place under successive Labour and conservative governments for more than 50 years. The Marxian Associationwhich became the New Zealand Communist Party in 1921wrote that Holland led a party whose character is the same as that of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, the Labor Parties of England and Australia, the American Federation of Labor and all the opportunist parties and organisations which, throughout the world, have proved themselves a snare and a delusion to the working class. [8] In an article published in December in the Journal of New Zealand Studies, the ISOs McNeil rejected this criticism of Holland and Labour. He declared that the study of Hollands life helps to undo some of the mental divisions that have calcified and hardened in our own analysis, between Second and Third International thinking, say, between sentiment and ideas, between revolutionary ambition and reformist settlement. [9] In other words, through its embrace of Holland, the ISO hopes to rehabilitate the reformists who lined up behind the ruling class in the World War I. Hollands co-founders of the Labour Party, Michael Joseph Savage and Peter Fraser, led it to electoral victory in 1935. They implemented social reforms in order to prevent a revolutionary upsurge of the working class against capitalism during the Great Depression, then took the country into the second imperialist world war. There is an objective class logic behind the ISOs positions and the fact that they are promoted by the state-owned broadcaster and one of the countrys main academic journals. The ISO feels an affinity with the Labour Party founders because it represents the interests of affluent, middle class layersincluding union bureaucrats, academics and careerists in the Labour, Green and Mana partieswho seek to improve their own position within capitalism and are organically hostile to any revolutionary movement of the working class. McNeils silence on the early Labour Partys anti-Chinese racism is not accidental. Like Labour, the ISO is a profoundly nationalist organisation. From 2011 to 2014, the group was affiliated with the Maori nationalist Mana Party and falsely promoted its race-based identity politics as progressive. In fact the Mana Party represents indigenous capitalists and is particularly hostile to foreigners. Mana has joined Labour and the right-wing NZ First Party in repeatedly attacking Chinese immigrants, scapegoating them for the countrys housing shortage and other social problems. Internationally, the ISO supports the operations of US imperialism and the financial elite. The organisation painted the US-backed, Al Qaeda-linked rebels seeking to bring about regime-change in Syria as leaders of a revolution. The ISO backed the Syriza government in Greecewhich betrayed its promises to oppose austerity and worked hand-in-glove with the EU and the banks to drive the Greek working class even deeper into poverty. Amid the greatest crisis of capitalism since the 1930s Great Depression, and the increasingly reckless resort to war by US imperialism and its allies, the betrayals of social democracy 100 years ago have a burning contemporary relevance. New Zealand is going through five years of government-sponsored centenary commemorations of World War I, including the publication of pro-war books and multi-million dollar museum exhibitions. The purpose is to condition the population, especially young people, to support US-led wars in the Middle East, and Washingtons build-up to war against Russia and China. Under conditions where there is mass opposition to war and hostility toward all the establishment parties, the ISO has stepped forward to drum up support for Labour and its allies and to block the emergence of a genuine antiwar movement. By falsifying history it aims to prevent the working class and youth from drawing the most vital lesson from the carnage of World War I: that another global conflagration can only be prevented by the strategy of world socialist revolution, uniting workers internationally in a fight to put an end to the profit system, which is the source of war. As Lenin explained, the essential precondition is the building of a revolutionary party to provide workers with the necessary leadership and perspective and to break them from the influence of the political establishment, above all the Labour Party and its pseudo-left apologists. References: [1] McNeils interview is available here: http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/nights/audio/201781023/left-thinking [2] The Necessary But Not Sufficient Condition: Christchurch Labour and Working-Class Culture, Libby Plumridge, New Zealand Journal of History, 1985 [3] Dictionary of New Zealand Biography, Volume 3, 1996: http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/3h28/hindmarsh-alfred-humphrey [4] Maoriland Worker, September 1, 1915, page 4 [5] Maoriland Worker, September 15, 1915, page 4 [6] Maoriland Worker, January 13, 1915, page 4 [7] V. I. Lenin, The Collapse of the Second International, 1915. Part 9: https://www.marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1915/csi/ix.htm [8] New Zealand Marxian Association, Moses Baritz vs. H. E. Holland, 1920, page 14 [9] Labouring Feeling: Harry Hollands Political Emotions, Dougal McNeil, Journal of New Zealand Studies, No 21, 2015 Representatives of 12 countries will meet in New Zealand today for the formal signing of the US-led Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement. The TPP, negotiated in secret over 10 years, will create a US-dominated economic bloc that will dictate terms of investment and trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region. The deal is the economic front of Washingtons pivot to Asia strategy, which aims to isolate China, roll back its economic influence and reduce it to semi-colonial status. In his belligerent January 12 State of the Union address, President Barack Obama declared: With the TPP, China does not set the rules in that region; we do. TPP negotiations have proceeded alongside preparations for war against China, which are now far advanced. The US has systematically built-up its military assets in Asia, strengthened alliances with Japan, Australia and other countries, and staged a series of reckless provocations against China in the South China Sea. The selection of New Zealand to host the signing is a reflection of how deeply it has been integrated into the Obama administrations dangerous anti-China pivot. The National Party government has lined up with Washington despite New Zealands strong economic ties with China, its second largest trading partner after Australia. In an interview with Radio NZ on February 1, Trade Minister Todd McClay said it would be disastrous for New Zealand to not join the TPP, which he pointedly declared was better than the free trade agreement signed with China in 2008. The New Zealand Heralds business columnist Brian Fallow wrote on January 29 that the TPP was not an exercise in free trade but a preferential trade agreement encompassing more than a third of global GDP, 40 percent of New Zealands goods exports and 47 percent of its services exports. Fallow pointed to the dilemma faced by New Zealand capitalists: [I]f the brutal reality is that we live in a world where the big boys call the shots, which big boy do we want to set the rules for international commerce in the Asia-Pacificthe United States or China? Those are the terms in which President Barack Obama has framed the issue. The entire political establishment has committed to New Zealands integration into Washingtons war plans as a means to secure support for its own imperialist interests in the Pacific. The TPP has attracted widespread public opposition because it will hand more power to multinational corporations. It will strengthen patent protections for drug companies, driving up prices, and allow investors and global corporations to sue governments if they pass laws that cut into profits. Workers correctly fear that the TPP will lead to more attacks on jobs, wages and living standards in the name of global competitiveness. Thousands have attended protest rallies against the deal throughout the country. There are divisions over the TPP in New Zealands political establishment. In late January the main opposition Labour Party joined the Greens, the right-wing populist New Zealand First, the Council of Trade Unions and the Maori nationalist Mana and Maori Parties, in announcing that it opposed the TPP. There is nothing progressive, however, in the position of Labour and its allies, which have organised anti-TPP protests under the nationalist slogan Its Our Future. They represent layers of big business and the upper middle class that would struggle to compete against increased foreign investment and favour protectionist policies. Sections of the corporate media agree that the TPP lacks sufficient benefits for New Zealand exporters, including the dairy industry. A Dominion Post editorial on February 1 noted that the TPP leaves in place large protections for our most significant competitors and doesnt match the governments fervent talk. The same opposition parties fully support New Zealands alliance with US imperialism and have remained completely silent on the role of the TPP in the US pivot and war preparations against China. Successive governments, Labour and National, have strengthened military and intelligence ties with the US. New Zealand now takes part in regular military exercises with American forces and spies on China on behalf of the US National Security Agency. NZ First, Labour and Mana have sought to whip up hostility toward Chinese investors and immigrants, blaming them for the soaring cost of housing and other aspects of the social crisis. One of Labours main objections to the TPP is that it would prevent a future government from banning foreigners from buying houses. This chauvinist, anti-Chinese campaignwhich dovetails with Washingtons false accusations of Chinese expansionism in Asia and the Pacificaims to create the political climate for US war plans. In a statement on January 29 outlining Labours objections to the TPP, leader Andrew Little said it undermines our democracy and our sovereignty. It prevents future governments passing laws in the best interests of New Zealanders, under the threat of being sued by overseas corporations. In reality, Labour represents the interests of the rich and seeks to renegotiate the TPP to secure a better deal for them. The party supports the National governments austerity measuresincluding an increase in consumption tax, corporate tax cuts, and attacks on social serviceswhich have forced the working class to shoulder the burden of the economic crisis and dramatically increased social inequality. Both Labour and National have attacked democratic rights, including by joining the US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and strengthening New Zealands spy agencies, in defiance of mass opposition. In December, Labour indicated it supports sending elite SAS troops to Obamas renewed war in Iraq and Syria. The Its Our Future campaign promotes the lie that New Zealand capitalists are essentially benign and their interests identical with those of the working class. NZ First MP Fletcher Tabuteau told a public meeting in Auckland on January 26 that the TPP would undermine New Zealand business, including some of our larger New Zealand firms, leading to job cuts. In fact, local businesses are just as ruthless as their foreign counterparts. Dairy giant Fonterra, fishing company Sealord, telecommunications provider Spark, New Zealand Post and mining company Solid Energyto name just a fewhave sacked thousands of workers in recent years, with the assistance of the trade union bureaucracy. Maori Party co-leader Marama Fox absurdly told the meeting she supported those at the bottom of [the] ladder who would be affected by the TPP. Her party is a partner in the National-led government and supports its attacks on the working class, Maori and non-Maori alike. The Maori Party speaks for tribal-based businesses that control $40 billion in assets and fear that the TPP will cut across their close relationship with the government. The working class can only oppose the drive to war and the unrelenting attacks on its living standards in a struggle against the entire political establishment. It must reject all forms of nationalism and anti-immigrant chauvinism, which serves to divide workers and strengthen the ruling class. Workers and youth must build a unified movement throughout Asia and internationally to abolish the capitalist system, with its irrational division of the world into competing nation states, which is the source of war and exploitation. This historically outmoded system must be replaced with a planned socialist world economy, to meet the pressing needs of the overwhelming majority of humanity, not feed the profits of a wealthy few. Government security forces fatally shot two striking Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) workers Tuesday, after failing to break up a demonstration with baton charges, water cannon and tear gas. The shooting occurred outside of the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, where the strikers were campaigning against the impending privatisation of the state-owned airline. Mounted by local police and the paramilitary Karachi Rangers, Tuesdays brutal assault left at least 12 others strikers injured, several of them critically, including three with gunshot wounds. Workers responded to the attack by expanding the strike across the country. On Wednesday, PIA was forced to announce it was suspending all international and domestic flights indefinitely. You cannot take away our bread and butter, a PIA striker in Islamabad told the Financial Times. We will fight till our last blood. There are reports a third striker may have been killed by the security forces in the attack on the Karachi protest. Yesterday, as the government deployed more security forces at the countrys airports, the Joint Action Committee that is coordinating the strike announced four of its members have been missing since Tuesday night. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his Muslim League government are determined to break the strike, including through the murder of unarmed workers, so as to demonstrate their commitment to an International Monetary Fund (IMF) dictated privatization program. PIA is at the top of the list of state enterprises targeted for privatization as a condition for a 2013 US $6.64 billion IMF bailout package. Following Tuesdays shooting, Sharif vowed to fire workers who joined the strike en masse and to jail them for up to a year. He also said PIA employees who broke ranks with their fellow workers and cross picket lines will be rewarded. The mass mobilization of police and Pakistan Rangers against the strike is a stark warning to the working class. The Rangers have been deployed in Karachi, Pakistans largest city and the commercial hub, for more than two years in a purported anti-terrorism operation. This operation has been directed increasingly openly against opponents of the government and military. Tuesdays attack on the PIA strikers underscores that the true aim of the governments war on terror is to strengthen the coercive forces of the state against the working class. With the murder of the PIA workers provoking outrage across Pakistan, the police and Rangers issued hasty denials that they had opened fire with live bullets at Tuesdays protest, claiming that they had used only rubber bullets. These claims are simply not credible. Both the police and Rangers are notorious for their gross violations of human rights, including abductions, torture and extra-judicial killings or summary executions. Published videos and photos from Tuesdays demonstration document the brutality of the police and paramilitaries, including their use of tear gas, water cannon, and baton charges. The security forces also set upon three journalists from prominent media houses who were covering the protest. Immediately after the attack, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan rushed to the defence of the security forces. Branding the strike unlawful, he went on to praise the attackers claiming that they risk their lives while saving people and maintaining peace. Police have denied shootings. Rangers have denied firing shots. Then who used firearms? asked Khan. Without a shred of evidence he claimed the situation showed some among PIA protesters must have fired the bullets. Such lies are intended to cover-up the governments own role, and at the highest levels, in ordering the brutal suppression of Tuesdays walkout. On Monday evening, Sharif had invoked the Essential Services Act banning the anti-privatization strike set to begin the following day and providing a legal pretext for its violent repression . Earlier Monday, workers had rejected a phony last-minute government announcement that the PIA privatization was being postponed for six months. While the central government has continued to issue a tirade of threats against the strikers, the PIA chairman has resigned and the Pakistan People Partys-led provincial government in Sind, where Karachi is located, has announced compensation for the dead and injured. Sind Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah claimed he would take up the workers grievances with the government. But speaking to reporters following a meeting with a delegation from the PIA Joint Action Committee he did little to disguise his support for the crushing of the strike, calling the workers protest not good for our country, its reputation and its economy. He went on to praise Sharif as kind and declared himself confident that the prime minister would redress any genuine worker grievances. The Sharif government has pledged to the IMF that it will privatize PIA and three other state-run enterprises by June and another six by the end of the year. These include high-profile targets such as Pakistan Steel Mills and the power distribution companies belonging to the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) whose privatization have been long delayed due to worker resistance. The significance of the PIA strike has been noted in the international media. Analysts, reported the London-based Financial Times, say the outcome of PIAs strike will set the tone for moves to privatise other SOEs [state-owned enterprises]. The privatisations are only one among many drastic economic reforms dictated by the IMF. Since 2013 the budget deficit has been brought down from 8.4 to 5.4 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) by imposing brutal cuts in power subsidies, increasing taxes, and other austerity measures. The IMF is now pressing for a 27 percent cut in the governments development budget. The impact on the working people and the poor has been devastating. Not a week passes by without sections of the working class, ranging from teachers to municipal and health care workers, taking to the streets or striking to demand the government pay them back wages. It is in this context of mounting social opposition that the government was forced in recent years to push its privatisation program to the backburner. However, workers were well aware that the government was plotting to bring the privatization program forward and that any sell off to private investors, whether domestic or foreign, will be accompanied by a major attack on jobs and wages. They are also aware that privatization will result in cuts to vital public services. In their anti-privatisation campaign, WAPDA workers frequently point to the Karachi Electric Supply Company, which after privatization slashed power generation capacity, thereby denying an essential utility to rural communities in order to increase its profit margins. In October the IMF acknowledged the political obstacles and legal challenges the government faces in implementing the reforms it is demanding. However, it has already complained that the loan targets are overdue. In December the government annulled a law barring the PIA being owned privately, via an emergency order, and tabled a bill to the same effect in the parliament this month. Sharif, the scion of a family of industrialists, entered politics as a protege of the dictator General Zia-ul Haq. Exploiting popular anger with the previous PPP government over its imposition of IMF restructuring, support for the US counter-insurgency war in Afghanistan, and complicity in US drone strikes in Pakistan, Sharif came to power promising pro-investor reforms. Under US pressure to do more in support of the Afghan War, his government ordered the military to occupy North Waziristan and has ceded it ever more power over security and foreign affairs. As around the world, the capitalist elite has used the war on terror to justify sweeping attacks on democratic rights and to build up an apparatus of repression whose real target is the working class. In addition to deploying paramilitaries armed with special powers in Karachi, the Sharif government, following the December 2014 Peshawar school terrorist atrocity, gave the military sweeping new powers including the right to try civilians in military courts. A December Reuters report said that of the 100,000 arrested under the new terror laws, just 2,000 had any connection with the Pakistan Taliban and other insurgent groups. In Karachi the PPP, MQM and other establishment parties have complained that their activists are being targeted by the army counter-terrorism operation. As Mondays criminalization of the impending PIA strike and Tuesdays murderous attack demonstrate, Pakistans government and craven capitalist elite are turning to repressive laws, the security forces, and bloody violence to suppress workers opposition to the social incendiary dictates of the IMF. Spains King Felipe VI has asked Socialist Party (PSOE) leader Pedro Sanchez to form a government and try to resolve the political stalemate following last Decembers inconclusive election. Last week, the European Commission also made its concerns known about the economic consequences of the failure to form a Spanish government, saying it could slow down the agenda of reforms and trigger a loss of confidence and a decline in market sentiment. The election result shattered Spains decades-old two-party system and produced a hung parliament, in which no party has the required 176 seats for a majority government. The ruling Popular Party (PP) slumped to 123 seats, the PSOE had its worst ever result with 90 seats, as did the Stalinist-led United Left (IU), which was reduced to just two deputies. Podemos and the right-wing Citizens, both new parties that had not contested a national election before, gained 69 seats and 40 seats respectively. Various regional nationalist parties won 25 seats. Sanchez was asked to form a government after outgoing PP Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said he had been unable to get the necessary support for a majority in Congress. He explained that a coalition government between the PP, PSOE and Citizens would have been preferable but claimed the PSOE had refused to take part in dialogue. He made it clear he was not stepping down as caretaker PM in the hope that Sanchez fails. For his part, Sanchez declared that he wanted a government of change, one that is progressive and that will introduce reforms. He said Rajoy should abandon hope of reaching a power-sharing agreement, and we arent going to back him. The Kings offer to Sanchez offers no clear way out of political deadlock and could prove to be a poisoned chalice for the PSOE itself. It is bitterly divided over whether to attempt to form an alliance with the Podemos party, an ally of the pro-austerity Syriza government in Greece, or an openly right-wing government with the PP and Citizens. If Sanchez is unable to form a government, new elections will have to be called that polls suggest could result in the PSOE being displaced by Podemos as Spains second party. Neither PSOE strategy would offer anything to the working class except continued attacks on its social and democratic rights. Sanchez represents a section of the bourgeoisie that is looking to bring in younger, fresher faces to continue with austerity in Spain, as Syriza has in Greece and the Left Bloc in Portugal. To that end, Sanchez is attempting to form an alliance with Podemos, which is eagerly offering its services, having dropped a key demand to which the PSOE objectedan independence referendum in Catalonia. Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias has put pressure on Sanchez pointing out that his party won 20.7 percent of the popular vote (5,189,463) in the election, just short of the PSOEs 22 percent (5,530,779). Polls indicate that a majority of PSOE supporters prefer a pact with Podemos rather than the PP. Iglesias has called on Sanchez to take the post of prime minister, appoint him deputy prime minister and give Podemos half the ministries in a coalition government. At last weekends meeting of the PSOEs federal committee, Sanchezs overtures to Podemos were supported by some regional government leaders installed after last Mays regional elections, thanks to Podemos support. Francina Armengol, PSOE Prime Minister of the Balearic Islands regional coalition government that includes Podemos, the IU and Greens, told the meeting that there was nothing to fear from these parties. Aware of the PSOE memberships opposition to any deal with the PP, Sanchez called for members to be given a vote on any agreement with other parties and that the federal committee should take their views into account before making a final decision. Any agreement that we get will have all possible guarantees so it will be subject to the federal committees approval as well as a consultation to the members, Sanchez said. However, most of the regional Prime Ministers led by Susana Diaz, the prime minister of Andalusia, which has the largest PSOE membership, opposed Sanchez: On December 20, the Socialist Party did not make history. It got the worse result in its history. Its true that the political map has changed, but we did not manage to beat a party responsible for the biggest inequality gap between citizens and surely the most serious corruption cases we have known in this country. If the Popular Party beat us at the election in those circumstances, we were not on the right path. The prime minister of Asturias, Javier Fernandez, warned that Podemos is Someone who is proposing a mutiny, a grassroots mutiny against the leadership. Someone who is attacking us not for what we do but for what we are. Such remarks echoed those of former PSOE Prime Minister Felipe Gonzalez, who remains the leading figure in the PSOE. Interviewed by El Pa i s last Sunday, Gonzalez condemned an alliance with Podemos claiming it would liquidate our democratic framework of coexistence, and while theyre at it, liquidate the Socialists as well. Gonzalez acknowledged the breakdown of the political system built by the Spanish ruling class since the transition from the fascist rule of Francisco Franco, nearly 40 years ago: For some time now, the system born out of the Transition and the 1978 Constitution has been showing signs of wearthe system needs reform and regeneration. But existing attitudes based on either doing nothing [the PP] or on liquidating the entire system [Podemos] are giving us very little leeway for the kinds of reforms that are increasingly necessary. Gonzalezs presentation of Podemos as an insurgent force seeking to liquidate the political system and the PSOE leadership is absurd. Podemos is seeking only to give a mild left cover to continued austerity and support for war, as the Syriza government has done in Greece, where Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has liquidated neither the capitalist state nor the Pasok social democrats. Rather, Gonzalez is seeking to falsely build up Podemos revolutionary credentials in order to justify orienting the PSOE towards an alliance with the bourgeois right. Gonzalez said he was opposed to a grand coalition between the PP, PSOE and Citizens because it would put a squeeze on the PSOE that would benefit Podemos. He cynically suggested the PSOE should make a pact with Citizens to pass the reforms that we need and called on the PP not to block in Congressthat is, hiding a direct alliance between the PSOE and the PP behind the facade of a minority PSOE-Citizens government. To put pressure on Sanchez to negotiate such a deal, the federal committee agreed to stage a leadership election on May 8, just two years after the last one. A United Nations arbitrator suspended international negotiations over the war in Syria on Wednesday. New talks have been scheduled to begin in three weeks. According to UN Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura, the cancellation of the talks was immediately prompted by the advance of Russian-backed Syrian government forces into key areas surrounding the city of Aleppo, breaking a three-year-old rebel siege of two Shia villages and cutting a supply line for the US-backed Islamist militias from Turkey. Mistura said that the continuing fighting on the ground and the lack of progress after two days of talks had convinced him of the need for preparatory work by the stakeholders. Im not prepared to have talks for the sake of talks, de Mistura said. The official purpose of the now-suspended talks was to reach terms for an end to the war and for a political transition process that would install a new and US-approved leadership in power. The prospect of any settlement appears increasingly distant as fighting continues to escalate on the ground. Russias deployment of advanced fighter planes has, in fact, enabled the government to win a series of successes against the US-backed rebel militias, including the seizure of strategic areas in central and northern provinces. The anti-Assad forces have been rolled back along several fronts through joint military actions involving Russian air forces and military advisors, in support of government ground forces and pro-Assad militias as well as Hezbollah fighters from neighboring Lebanon. The Obama administration strategy of relying on proxy militias, composed of fighters who are essentially mercenaries, has left the Syrian revolution vulnerable to the government offensive waged with close air support from Russian planes over the past four months. The cancellation of the talks has produced a redoubled chorus of demands for Assads removal and bitter denunciations against Russian involvement. How can you ... enter negotiations when you have unprecedented military pressure? an unnamed senior Western diplomat told Reuters. The Russians and regime want to push the opposition out of Geneva, he said. According to the narrative advanced by the corporate media, Russias military campaign is the main obstacle to a political deal that could end the war. In reality, it is the unswerving determination of the US and European ruling elites to remove Assad, a close ally of Russia, that is fueling a dynamic that leads squarely toward further escalation in Syria and direct confrontation between the major powers. Throughout the peace process, the US and NATO have continued to escalate their military and covert operations in Syria, deploying Special Operations troops, building up conventional forces and war planes in neighboring Turkey and Jordan, and increasing their support for an array of Al Qaeda-linked and mercenary militias, including the same forces that are directly targeted by Russias air war. Russias moves in Syria, essentially defensive in nature, are calculated to improve the bargaining position of Russias ruling oligarchy and its state apparatus in relation to imperialism. Moscow cannot accept the removal of such a critical ally, and has already signaled its own commitment to greater military support for Damascus. A postwar Syria that is completely dominated by the US and NATO would deny Russia access to its strategic naval base on the Mediterranean, a strategic objective of Washington as it seeks the military encirclement and ultimate dismemberment of the Russian Federation. Nonetheless, Moscow has already signaled its readiness to press forward with its operations, responding to the false start in Geneva by insisting that it will continue its offensive. Russias top diplomat said Wednesday that the campaign will proceed until it has defeated the al Nusra Front, Al Qaedas Syrian affiliate, which is one of the largest armed groups challenging the Syrian government and one of the main beneficiaries of the arms and funding funneled in by the US and its regional allies, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar. Russian strikes will not cease until we really defeat terrorist organizations like Jabhat al-Nusra, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. I dont see why these air strikes should be stopped. US Army General Sean MacFarland told the media on Monday that ISIS is beginning to demonstrate conventional warfare capabilities in places like Syria, Iraq and Yemen, and has become really more of a conventional force. In response, the US military is preparing to assist the Iraqi state to conduct larger and more sophisticated war operations, involving the full complement of modern heavy weaponry. We have shifted from a pure counterinsurgency focus and are now preparing the [Iraqi government forces] to conduct combined arms operations, MacFarland said, speaking from Iraq. The ability to integrate infantry, armor, artillery, air power, engineers and other assets on the battlefield, provides the Iraqis with a decisive advantage over a static enemy dug in behind complex obstacle belts, he said. Ed Wenz has been involved with lead since his son became poisoned eight years ago. In 2008, the state of Michigan approached him to begin teaching lead abatement contractors and lead risk assessors. It was two years before he agreed to accept the job and set up a company. Today, he writes specifications for remediation of environmental contamination of different kinds so that contractors can bid projects and their work can be inspected. Although intimately familiar with the struggles of families hit by its effects, Wenz was shocked and deeply moved by the comments of victims last week at the Flint Institute of Arts. He expressed a growing sense of disbelief and deep frustration as reports of the responses by various agencies at different levels of government emerged. We arranged to speak with him after the event. This is his statement: In my thinking, there were too many layers that missed this. We have to fix this problem, period. The built-up layer of calcification was completely eroded. They can inject polymer coating so that lead could never leach in. My customer at DuPont does this and they are working with highly acidic water. A lot of the waste lines have been deteriorated. Does anybody think about the waste distribution system? The waste distribution system has cracks. The hubs are leaking. Everything that has gone down the drain is in one way or another going through that system. In other words, the lead contaminated water is leaking into the ground, contaminating the groundwater in the area and the underground aquifer. In Washington, D.C., different neighborhoods were affected by different lead levels of contamination [referring to the 2001-2004 lead-in-water crisis]. The water wasnt moving as much in some places, and so a sediment would build up in the dead leg of the system. That sediment had more concentrated contamination. I believe the government messed up. Is this the new Chernobyl? Will everybody have to move? I was working for the city of Pontiac when the emergency manager came in and cut that city government to shreds. They stole their pensions and got rid of the building department and the department of public works. Today they are saying that the pipes can be relined with calcification and be safe. There is no way that those pipes will be safe. It would take 10 to 15 years before you could safely drink that water. They must be lined with an impervious polymer or ripped out and replaced. When water leaves the treatment plan it is crystal-clear. Federal law requires that a polyphosphate additive be added at that point. But in Flint, they failed to put that in. That is a violation of federal law. In fact, they added extra chlorine because of pollutants in the river water. This combination of acidic water and extra chlorine stripped the calcified layer from the inside of the pipes exposing the water to lead contamination. The acidic content or lower pH stripped the interior of the pipes as if it were sandblasting off the calcified buildup. You cant see lead in water. It is clear. The state and the city were saying all along that before testing the water you have to first flush the pipe for five minutes. That instruction is a violation of federal law. On the contrary, the water must sit in the pipes for six hours. Usually, tests are taken at 6 a.m., before the water in the house has been used at all. The test draw should be a full liter, not the 125 mL, which is the size of a Dixie cup, which the state and the city were calling for. Did they not know? Or were they deliberately falsifying the procedure? There are only two possibilities here: (1) They were incompetent, or (2) It was rigged. This is so much bigger than simply a matter that someone has bad water. When I heard that Andy Dillon was involved in the decision to switch the water source to the Flint River, I said follow the money trail. You have to connect all the puzzle pieces. Decisions that they were making under the emergency manager did not make any sense for the city financially. For example, they got rid of the Department of Public Works and lost all the state and federal payments for the roads. It was costing them more money, but they did it anyway. A 12-inch water main can have as much as an inch and a half of calcified buildup around the interior. That reduces it down to 9 inches in diameter. When that layer is stripped away, you have reduced the structural integrity of the pipe. Now, there is a hidden disaster waiting to happen. And nobody has saved any money to fix major water main breaks. Great technology does exist. You can put a bladder of an elasto-polymer inside a sewer line or a water main and cover 200 to 400 feet at a time. It will harden into an impervious liner. The problem with providing homeowners with filters is that you dont know when its going to plug up. The lead and chemical makeup of the water might cause the filter to fill up in a week. Then it will let the lead and chemicals pass through. I could organize 1,000 guys in a week and set them up with a program to systematically check the water and change the filters. You will never get the work done with one guy or the way they are approaching it now. Dating back to the time they switched city water to the Flint River, the city could monitor the water pressure. They had to choose not to put the inhibitor in the water. Those practices had to have been reviewed at the state level. I find it hard to believe that it was just incompetence at each link in the chain. Nobody at the state Department of Environmental Quality [at the time] has stepped down. It is positively mind-blowing that it took so long for the Department of Environmental Quality to believe what the homeowners were telling them. There are multiple levels of oversight: the federal EPA [Environmental Protection Agency], the state DEQ [Department of Environmental Quality], the city water department. Yet it takes a nurse and a scientist from a distant university to say that you have a problem. On the other side of the question, if they made a financial decision to force Detroit into bankruptcy, they started a chain reaction that just got worse and worse. All the time the DEQ reviewed what was going on. Thats the problem. It is a matter of public health, infrastructure and the poisoning of citizens. If it comes out that the decision was made in order to force Detroit into bankruptcy, isnt that basically rigging the books? Lets screw somebody so that we can take their money. I dont understand why. LEON Co., FL (WTXL) - A Rickards High School teacher has been arrested for battery against four students, according to deputies. The Leon County Sheriff's Office says William Cullen was arrested after warrants were issued for his arrest on Tuesday. Deputies say the 29-year-old teacher inappropriately touched a Rickards student. "The student alleged that while getting 'one on one' help from Cullen, he touched the student's thigh and buttocks area," said deputies. While deputies were investigating this incident, they say three other students came forward and said the teacher also touched them. Cullen turned himself into the Leon County Jail after four arrest warrants were issued for his arrest, said deputies. Leon County Schools says Cullen is on administrative leave pending an investigation into the allegations. The district says Cullen has been employed at the school as a math teacher since 2013. The next round of tripartite talks on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam will kick off in Khartoum next week Egyptian Minister of Irrigation Hossam Moghazi announced on Wednesday that ministry experts in the national tripartite committee on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam would conclude their reports about the French firms technical offers later this week. The Egyptian experts will issue a report on the technical offers from French firms BRL and Artelia on studies of the dam and its impact on both Egypt and Sudan. The offers involve two assessment studies: a risk assessment of the effects of the dam on the water flowing to Egypt and Sudan, and another study that addresses environmental concerns. The minister added in press statements that the Egyptian delegation would head to Khartoum next Saturday to start the 10th round of talks between Egypt, Sudan, and Ethiopia. The three-day round of talks will run from Sunday until Tuesday. Although Egypt has repeatedly expressed concern over the dam's possible effect on the country, Ethiopia insists it will not negatively affect Egypt's share of Nile water. Search Keywords: Short link: The Lebanese army said its troops killed six Islamist militants and arrested 16 others near the Syrian border on Wednesday, in its largest operation against the Islamic State group. The soldiers launched the raid, in which local IS group chief Anas Zaarour was killed, at dawn in the Arsal region of eastern Lebanon, a military spokesman said. A "most wanted" militant, Ahmad Noun, was among those arrested. "It was our largest operation against Daesh... in terms of size and the number of people killed and captured," the spokesman told AFP, using an Arabic acronym for IS. The army said in a statement that its "lightning" raid was launched on the basis of information that the Islamist militants were planning attacks on military posts and to kidnap civilians in Arsal. In August 2014, the army clashed with Islamist militants of IS and Al-Nusra Front, Al-Qaeda's affiliate in Syria, in the Arsal region, with militants kidnapping 30 Lebanese soldiers and policemen as they withdrew back along the border. After long and arduous negotiations, 16 of the kidnapped men were released at the start of December in exchange for Islamist prisoners held in Lebanese jail. The jihadists executed four of their hostages while a fifth died of wounds he suffered in the initial Arsal clashes, leaving nine members of Lebanon's security forces still in their hands. Both the Lebanese army and the Shia militant group Hezbollah has since 2014 carried out attacks in the Bekaa region of eastern Lebanon on Syria-based Islamist militants. Search Keywords: Short link: WASHINGTON - A powerful US lawmaker on Wednesday demanded Secretary of State John Kerry provide an explanation of a $1.7 billion claim settlement paid to Iran just as Tehran released American prisoners last month. Republican Ed Royce, chairman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, wrote that the timing of the settlement and the administration's failure to brief Congress "has led some to express concern that the payment represents a de facto 'ransom' for the release of American hostages." Royce asked Kerry to provide by Feb. 17 information including lists of all US officials who participated in negotiations with Iran over the settlement agreement, the prisoner release and the nuclear agreement announced in July. He also asked for legal analyses of the dispute, a timeline of negotiations over the dispute and an explanation of how the interest payment in the settlement was calculated, among other information. Mere hours after the terror attack at the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem on Wednesday, which claimed the life of a Border Policewoman, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met with families of terrorists in Ramallah. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The attack in Jerusalem on Wednesday was one of the most serious attacks in the current wave of violence, when three terrorists used guns and knives and were equipped with explosives as well. Border Policewoman Hadar Cohen, 19, was killed in the attack while a fellow Border Policewoman and a young man were wounded. The three terrorists were shot dead at the scene by security forces. Abbas welcomed in his office the families of 11 terrorists from the Jerusalem area who committed attacks, some very grave, over the past four months and whose bodies are still held by Israel. Abbas meets with families of terrorists in Ramallah X Among them was the family of Baha Aliyan from Jabel Mukaber in East Jerusalem , who committed a combined stabbing and shooting attack in October on a bus in East Talpiot, murdering three Israelis - Haviv Haim, 78, and Alon Govberg, 51, and Richard Lakin, 76. Another family was that of Alaa Abu Jamal , also of Jabel Mukaber, who committed a combined vehicular and stabbing attack in Jerusalem on the same day as the East Talpiot attack. After ramming into his victims with his vehicle, he exited the car with a butcher knife and attacked them, murdering Rabbi Yeshayahu Krishevsky, 60. Abu Jamal is related to the two terrorists who committed the terrorist attack at the Har Nof synagogue in November 2014 - cousins Ghassan and Uday Abu Jamal. The families demanded Abbas to act to return the bodies. He told them that the Palestinian Authority was making great efforts to have Israel release the bodies. Abbas meets with families of terrorists in Ramallah. The Palestinian president stressed in the meeting that the families have a right to bury their sons, whom he referred to as "shahids" (martyrs), and criticized what he called the exhausting conditions Israel sets in what he said was an effort to sabotage the release of the bodies for burial. The families also bemoaned the home demolition done by Israel, after some of their homes have already been demolished or sealed off by the IDF. Terrorist Baha Aliyan's father said Abbas could not promise them that the PA will rebuild their homes, as the area is under Israeli control, but promised to monitor the situation. The Palestinian Authority did not try to hide the meeting, and the official Palestinian news agency reported on it. This is the second time during the current series of terror attacks that Abbas has been caught supporting terrorists. The last time was when he held a photo of child terrorist Ahmed Manasra, who committed a terror attack in Pisgat Ze'ev, and claimed the 13-year-old had been executed - despite the fact the teen was alive and being treated at the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem. December 20, 2015, was a cold night in the village of Duma. The sky was clear of clouds, but the cold, around 5 degrees Celsius, was bone-chilling. Around 2am, the quiet night was interrupted by the roar of engines - a convoy of Shin Bet, police and IDF vehicles was making its way into the village, and the dogs awoke and started barking. The residents woke up in a fright and peeked outside to see who was raiding Duma in the dead of night. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter One of the residents pulled out his cellphone and filmed Amiram Ben-Uliel leaving one of those vehicles. The young man was taking in the cold night air. Twenty days have passed since he was arrested, and he spent most of his time in stifling interrogation rooms, under constant pressure in an effort to make him talk, and get a confession out of him of the heinous murder of the Dawabsheh family Ben-Uliel managed to go 17 days without saying a word, until he was branded a "ticking bomb" by the Shin Bet interrogators, who received special permission from attorney-general Yehuda Weinsten to use "special interrogation methods" on him, the formal codename for torture. Amiram Ben Uliel After three days of intensive interrogation, during which he claims to have suffered serious violence at the hands of the Shin Bet interrogators, Ben-Uliel has confessed to throwing a Molotov cocktail into the home of the Dawabsheh family on the night of July 31, 2015, which caused the death of baby Ali and his parents, Saad and Reham, and wounded his brother, four-year-old Ahmad. This confession, which he later recanted, led him and the interrogators to Duma that night, to recount the murder outside the burned-down Dawabsheh residence. The reconstruction of the murder began in the car. The three interrogators and Ben-Uliel were looking around, trying to see if the area was safe for them to go outside. Ben-Uliel was hesitant. Several minutes earlier, when one of the interrogators was repeating the details out loud as part of the reconstruction, he gave short answers. The charred remains of the Dawabsheh family home (Photo: Mohammed Shinawi) The interrogator wanted to hear from Ben-Uliel about the reconstruction, but he stuck to his evasive answers. Interrogator: "Where are we going, Amiram?" Ben-Uliel: "Ah... I don't know. Where are we going? I don't have a clue where we're going." Interrogator: "What we talked about, Amiram. Nothing has changed." Ben-Uliel: "I don't know... in Duma." Interrogator: "To the village of Duma?" (Silence) Interrogator: "What are you going to show us in the village of Duma?" Ben-Uliel: "Ah... houses." Interrogator: "Houses?" Ben-Uliel: "Yes." Interrogator: "And what happened to these houses?" Ben-Uliel: "They were set on fire." The interrogator was content with these answers, explained the conditions of the reconstruction to Ben-Uliel and asked him to sign a declaration that said he was doing the reconstruction of his own free will. "Don't make me," Ben-Uliel urged him. As they sat in the car, the interrogator says into the recorder: "The time is ten minutes to two, we entered the village." He then asks Ben-Uliel, "Look, tell me where you start identifying the area, okay?" The defendant's answers cannot be heard, and after a short silence he asks his interrogators, "Can we walk?" His interrogators ask him whether he can better identify the place on foot, and he responds "Uh... maybe. It'd be easier than seeing from inside the car." The interrogators are conflicted. There's a large military force securing the area, but most of the conversation with Ben-Uliel is done inside the car, in order to not draw attention. They end up deciding to go outside anyway. Palestinian footage reportedly of Amiram Ben-Uliel recounting the crime X The confession Ben-Uliel gave and the reconstruction at the scene of the murder eventually led to the indictment against him in early January. He was charged with the murder of three members of the Dawabsheh family and the attempted murder of Ahmad Dawabsheh, charges that he now denies. The evidence against him includes thousands of documents and protocols of interrogations conducted at the police's Nationalistically-Motivated Crime Unit at the Judea and Samaria District, as well as memos on Shin Bet interrogations. He was interrogated around the clock - day and night. The interrogators worked in shifts, came and went, and he alone remained in the room, at times handcuffed to his chair, exhausted from the series of questions and the intensive efforts to make him talk. There were days he slept for only an hour or two, and days in which he was allowed to sleep for four hours. Only a fraction of investigative materials The lawyers representing Ben-Uliel and the other defendants have received 4,500 documents from the investigation so far. Along with the documents, they received some 100 discs with security camera photos from the night of the arson. The large investigation team covered a massive area, from the Hizma checkpoint in northeastern Jerusalem to the Gitit Checkpoint in the Jordan Valley, and through the Tapuach Junction in the Samaria region of the West Bank. They went through every camera - IDF cameras, settlements' cameras, cameras of Palestinian villages, and private security cameras of homes in Duma. The lawyers in the case, including Itamar Ben-Gvir, claim that the material they received so far was only a small portion of the evidence they still need to receive. They say they received no documentation yet about the days of the interrogation in which Ben-Uliel claimed to have been tortured, torture they say led to his confession. Attorney Itamar Ben-Gvir at court (Photo: EPA) If such documentation exists, it's doubtful they'll receive it. So the story of the murder suspect's investigation remains incomplete. "An initial inspection of the investigation's material reveals a grave picture of an aggressive interrogation," claimed Attorney Adi Keidar, who represents some of the defendants. "We believe the full picture will be revealed later on." Ben-Gvir also denied that Ben-Uliel was guilty. "Those who read the protocols will discover that he (Ben-Uliel) is doing this reconstruction not out of his free will, and doesn't know the area." The reconstruction that was obtained by Yedioth Ahronoth is only partial. It's missing the part in which Ben-Uliel is filmed and documented recounting the crime and providing, according to investigators, hidden details about the scene of the crime and the arson itself that only the person who committed the crime could know - among them the shards of glass from the green bottle used as a Motolov cocktail, or the fact he tripped while fleeing the village - which was spotted by one of the neighbors. The rebellious hilltop youth Ben-Uliel may have started the reconstruction with hesitation, but continued it with his head held high. He did not seem afraid at the Palestinian village. Moments before leading the investigators into the yard of the Dawabsheh home, one of the interrogators told him to put on a hat, and tuck in his unruly peyot. Curious residents are already looking through the windows and the interrogators are concerned the sight of the settler recounting the murder can spark a riot. "I don't want you to stand out here," the interrogator tells Ben-Uliel. "I want to stand out," he responds decisively. "You want to stand out? In what way?" the interrogator asks. "Just kidding, I don't know..." Ben-Uliel responds, amused. "What, am I ashamed of something?" One of the minors who murdered 16-year-old Mohammed Abu Khdeir in 2014 was sentenced to life in prison on Thursday, while another, believed to have had a lesser role in the crime, was sentenced to 21 years imprisonment. The two, both 16 years old now, also received a NIS 30,000 fine each. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The State Attorney and the Abu Khdeir family demanded they both be given life, but their attorneys claimed that they were influenced by the main perpetrator, Yosef Ben David. The court determined that Ben David committed the crime, but his conviction is pending a psychiatric evaluation. Main perpetrator Yosef Ben David, left, and the victim, Mohammed Abu Khdeir (Photo: Ohad Zwigenberg) When the sentencing was read out in court, Abu Khdeir's mother started shouting that "the court has failed." Hussein Abu Khdeir, the murdered teenager's father, said the family intends to appeal the more lenient punishment given to the teenager who only got 21 years in prison. Soha Abu Khdeir, the victim's mother (Photo: AFP) "We don't accept the sentencing of one of the teenagers," the victim's father said. "We will go to the Supreme Court. We haven't slept since yesterday, waiting for the verdict. Where's the main perpetrator? What's going on with him? He's responsible for it." He also said the family demanded the homes of the killers be demolished. "Less than this won't be enough. When a 14 year old murders a Jew, he's given life in prison, but if there's no apartheid and racism, he needs to both get life and have his home demolished," Hussein Abu Khdeir added. Hussein Abu Khdeir, the victim's father (Photo: Eli Mendelbaum) The State Attorney said that "the verdict expresses the severity of the offenses the minors committed - the murder of an innocent teenager around their own age, whose life was cruelly cut short, and the attempted abduction of another child. The heinous murder was done of ideological motives. Abu Khdeir was murdered solely because he was an Arab." "The sentence imposed on the defendants reflects what we asked for and the barbaric and atrocious act," said Uri Korev, the state prosecutor. He said the murder marked a "moral nadir." Attorney Avi Himi, who represents the minor sentenced to 21 years, said the murder conviction was "legally wrong and not free of doubts, in my opinion," and noted he intends to appeal the sentence. "My client's head is down, and he understands the serious and horrendous incident should have never happened. He can't contain his regret, and the remorse he expresses is genuine." The two minors were 14 when they snatched Palestinian teen Mohammed Abu Khdeir from an East Jerusalem neighborhood in July 2014, driving him to a Jerusalem forest where he was burned to death. The murder was carried out in revenge for the abduction and killing earlier that summer of three Israeli teens by Palestinians said by Israel to have been Hamas operatives. In response to the abduction, Israel rounded up Hamas members in the West Bank, sparking a barrage of rocket fire from the Gaza Strip. Days after the Abu Khdeir murder, Israel began airstrikes in Gaza in an attempt to quell the rockets, resulting in a 50-day war. One of the teenagers is also accused with the attempted kidnapping of Moussa Zalum, seven years old at the time, from Beit Hanina, and the State Attorney has asked that an additional imprisonment sentence on top of the life sentence. Two months ago, the court determined that the teenagers did commit the crimes attributed to them. A group of 14 Holocaust survivors from Hungary have filed a class action lawsuit in the US against the Hungarian government and its national train company for their cooperation with the Nazis, their complicity in deporting over half a million Jews in the Holocaust and the massive confiscation of their property. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Hungary is the only state that has not yet reached a compensation settlement with Holocaust survivors or their heirs. The Hungarian government also has never been prosecuted for collaboration with the Nazis. The lawsuit has been filed in a federal court in Washington DC by the Holocaust survivors, six of them from Israel, the others living in the US, Canada and Australia. At first the court rejected the lawsuit on the grounds that the 1947 peace treaty between the Allies and Hungary gives it immunity from these lawsuits. However the plaintiffs did not give up and filed an appeal to a federal court of appeals, and in the previous week it completely overturned the previous interpretation given in the lower court, and sent the lawsuit back to the federal courts. March of Life leaving from Hungary to Auschwitz (Photo:Yossi Zeliger) Concurrently, another group of Holocaust survivors from Hungary filed a lawsuit against the national train company and the banks of Hungary in a federal court in Chicago, but it was rejected. After two appeals, they were told to file the appeal in Hungary. Ceremony commemorating 68 years of the liberation of Mauthausen concentration camp, Austria (Photo credit: AFP) The lawsuit in Washington was filed by the Israeli-American lawyer Marc Zell. "We did not establish a sum, but in actuality it will amount to billons of dollars. This is basically a class action lawsuit. If we win, a fund under the court's supervision with a mechanism that will inform every Holocaust survivor and their families will be established, and then the court will make sure the money is distributed according to a formula that it will determine," he said. "This is a large and important lawsuit that arrives 71 years after the war. A relatively large amount of Hungarian Holocaust survivors and their descendents live in Israel," Zell said, who himself is a distant relative of a Hungarian Holocaust survivor. "There were attempts in the past to get reparations from Nazi criminals in Hungary, but this case is unique because this is the first time the Hungarian government is being sued. Usually the Nazi crimes occurred in areas where there was no independent regime, such as Poland. There, the Nazis established their own regime and they are the ones who committed the crimes, as well as Poles who cooperated with them," he added. The railroad tracks leading to Auschwitz (Photo credit: AFP) "Hungary had an independent government. They were anti-Semitic from the start," Zell continued. "In our lawsuit we also mentioned the Hungarians' activities in 1941 - before the big deportation. They expelled 20,000 Jews from Hungary proper into the hands of the Nazis, and all of them were shot to death in Ukraine. They initiated this, without the Germans asking them to do it. The Hungarians wanted to get rid of the Jews. In 1944, the remaining Jews were deported by the Hungarians to Auschwitz and Mauthausen in trains, and basically they were sent to their deaths. " He argues that the Hungarian national railway company maintains all records of all the Jews deported to Auschwitz. "They even sent every Jew a bill for the train, the transport expenses of himself, his belongings and his family to Auschwitz or Mauthausen. We are suing the train which sent more than six million Jews to their death," he said. 'Whomever is to blame has to pay the price' The US has a law that gives foreign states sovereign immunity from claims. "Usually it is impossible to sue a government. But the US in some cases it is possible to sue a foreign government or governmental company, but only if the government expropriated property against international law," said Zell. "So we can sue for the confiscation of personal property of the victims, but ironically we cannot sue for the death and physical and psychological suffering that they went through. Our chances are now better because the claim was confirmed by the Federal Court of Appeals, but now we go back to the District Court to continue the trial." Archive photo (Photo credit: AFP) When asked why the lawsuit was filed in the US specifically, Zell replied: "Because the US has a law that gives the option for individuals to file a claim for damage caused to them by a foreign government or a foreign government's company. We took advantage of the law for the benefit of Holocaust survivors. About 15 years ago there were two survivors who were trying to get compensation in Hungary, but one received the ridiculous sum of $500 and other was completely rejected because he used his Hebrew name instead of his Hungarian name - and because of this the courts claimed that the person was not the same man." One of the plaintiffs is Ze'ev (Tibi) Ram, 85, from Kibbutz Afikim. Ze'ev is a Hungarian Holocaust survivor who grew up during the war and worked at Auschwitz and in the labor camp in Silesia, he took part in the death march and survived Bergen-Belsen as well. He lost his family in the Holocaust, and after he came to Israel he participated in most of Israel's wars. "I grew up in a nationalist-Hungarian, a secular Jew. I saw Hungary as the homeland and what happened was disappointing," he said, and explained that "justice should be done. Whomever is to blame has to pay the price." BEIRUT - Countries where Syrian refugees seek asylum should end harsh policies on registration, deportation and education that violate fundamental rights, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Thursday as donors met in London. These refugees should not be sent back to their war-torn country, refugee registration requirements should be made less restrictive and access to education should be made easier for Syrian children, HRW said in a report. "This conference needs to set a new agenda on Syrian refugees, making respecting their fundamental rights the top priority," Bill Frelick, HRW refugee program director, said of the one-day donors conference in London. "Host countries in which refugees make up as much as a quarter of the population need vastly more donor assistance, but that money won't help Syrians who are being pushed back or driven to destitution by harsh policies." The terror attack at the Damascus Gate symbolizes officially, symbolically and mostly painfully the transition of the terror wave from attacks by individuals to organized attacks. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter It's true, there is no organizational infrastructure - it looks like Hamas and Islamic Jihad are not involved. Maybe there is a distant relationship between the attackers' families to Fatah. What exists is a virtual infrastructure: Alongside the incitement and the feelings of revenge, what connects them is Facebook. The commander of the Binyamin Brigade, Col. Israel Shomer, is convinced that "the Facebook movement" is the one that's leading the activities in the West Bank - not Fatah or Hamas. That is also how these events should be handled: One of the attackers wrote a month ago to his friend who carried out an attack and was killed in the Jalame checkpoint: "Your people are coming with gunfire, "hinting about following in his footsteps. Bodies of the terrorists after the terror attack in the Damascus Gate, Jerusalem (Photo credit: AFP) The internet is full of similar posts, and the defense establishment, despite Intelligence Unit 8200 and the Shin Bet's technological capabilities, can't find every person that posts something like that online. However, this time, unlike in the past, it would've been logical to expect that during the month that has passed since then, that attacker would have appeared on someone's radar. Another question: Why was the soldier Hadar Cohen, who only a month and a half ago started her military service in the Border Police, stationed in one of the most sensitive and dangerous locations? The investigation reveals that this was a terror cell of three friends who made their way from Qabatiya to Jerusalem. They decided to attack at the entrance to the Damascus Gate, but the belief is that they planned to attack something more substantial - perhaps a large group of Jews. Only the vigilance of the Border Policewomen stopped a more serious attack Hadar Cohen, the Border Police officer who was killed in the terror attack at the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem The terrorists traveled a long way, and it is not clear if they traveled with the rifles and explosives or if they were picked up in Jerusalem by accomplices. But those who know the situation on the ground are not surprised - not by their easy access to weapons or the ease with which they infiltrated Israel. We've seen this modus operandi before, in the Beit Horon attack, where the two terrorists were equipped with improvised explosives and had a clear target on their minds, while trying to carry out an attack in the heart of the settlements in an attempt to imitate previous attacks. The geographic aspect also can't be ignored: In past attacks, the terrorists decided to target the area where they lived, but the three terrorists on Wednesday, just like the member of the Palestinian security forces who carried out the shooting attack at the Focus roadblock near Ramallah arrived from far away - the three terrorists from Jenin and the Palestinian officer from Tulkarem. The terrorist who carried out the attack in Gush Etzion also came from Jenin, and so did the terrorist who did the vehicular attack in Tapuah Junction was from Qabatiya. As of Wednesday night, the IDF estimates are that the wave of violence will last a long time. Some in the military say it could last a year, and that is why the IDF is preparing itself with heightened alert for what is termed "increased field security" in order to protect its forces. The IDF and the Shin Bet have not found an operational solution, and this has to be said honestly: There is no solution on the horizon. This fact needs to concern us more than the Gaza terror tunnels threatening the communities on the Gaza border, at least the defense establishment is working on a solution - one that will take a long time and a lot of money to implement. But regarding the tunnels the direction is at least positive. The terror wave, on the other hand, there is one vector, and it is negative. German police conducted raids and arrested two suspects on Thursday in an investigation of four Algerian men who are suspected of planning an attack in Germany and having ties to Islamic State. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The arrests were made in Berlin and at a refugee home in the western town of Attendorn, Berlin police spokesman Stefan Redlich said. They were based on existing warrants in other cases. The other two suspects, one of whom was at a refugee home in the central city of Hannover, weren't arrested. One of the arrested suspects, in Berlin. (Photo: EPA) Authorities suspect that the four men had contacts with ISIS and say that one of them - the man arrested in Attendorn - is sought by Algerian authorities for belonging to the extremist group. He is believed to have received military training in Syria. His wife is also wanted by Algerian authorities and was arrested, though she isn't a suspect in the German case, Berlin prosecutors' spokesperson Martin Steltner said. Redlich said the probe started in December and there was no specific trigger for staging the raids on Thursday, noting that searches in multiple locations require preparation. Investigators seized computers, cellphones and other material. "We hope for further information from the evaluation of the evidence as to whether this plan existed, how far along it was and how concrete, with what target," Redlich said. Steltner said the suspicion is that an attack in Berlin was planned. Police in Berlin. (Photo: AP) The men arrested on Thursday have used aliases, claiming to be Syrian and French, Redlich said. Steltner said the suspects had been in Germany for varying lengths of time, from late last year in the case of the man arrested in Attendorn to as much as 15 years. Germany so far has been spared mass-casualty attacks by Islamic extremists such as the Nov. 13 Paris attacks but security officials say it is also a target. Related Italy urges Egypt to resolve missing student mystery An Italian student from Britain's Cambridge University who went missing last week in Cairo is likely dead, the Italian foreign ministry said on Wednesday, adding that it was still waiting for official confirmation from Egyptian authorities. Giulio Regeni, 28, disappeared on Jan. 25, the five-year anniversary of the 2011 uprising that ended Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule, his friends and the Italian foreign ministry said. Tensions were high in Egypt in the run-up to the anniversary, with police detaining activists and warning against protests. No significant protests took place. "The Italian government had learnt of the probable tragic end to this affair," the foreign ministry said in a statement issued in Rome. While the government was awaiting confirmation of what has happened, Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni had expressed his deep condolences to Regeni's family, the statement added. The foreign ministry did not give any indication of how the 28-year-old student might have died or whether his body had been found. Italian news agency Ansa said his body had been found in a ditch in a Cairo suburb but gave no further information. A friend of Regeni said he disappeared after leaving his home in an upper middle class area to meet a friend downtown. Last year, Islamic State group militants kidnapped a Croatian man from the outskirts of Cairo and later beheaded him, but such incidents are rare and there was heavy police presence in downtown Cairo when Regeni went missing. Search Keywords: Short link: Donor nations pledged on Thursday to give billions of dollars in aid to Syrians as world leaders gathered for a conference to tackle the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with Turkey reporting a new exodus of tens of thousands fleeing air strikes. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter With Syria's five-year-old civil war raging and another attempt at peace negotiations called off in Geneva after just a few days, the London conference aims to address the needs of some 6 million people displaced within Syria and more than 4 million refugees in other countries. Underlining the desperate situation on the ground in Syria, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told the meeting that tens of thousands of Syrians were on the move towards his country to escape aerial bombardments on the city of Aleppo. Aleppo,Syria. Tens of thousands fleeing. (Photo: Reuters) "Sixty to seventy thousand people in the camps in north Aleppo are moving towards Turkey. My mind is not now in London, but on our border - how to relocate these new people coming from Syria?" he said. "Three hundred thousand people living in Aleppo are ready to move towards Turkey." Turkey is already hosting more than 2.5 million Syrian refugees. Jordan and Lebanon are the other countries bearing the brunt of the Syrian refugee exodus. "Looking into the eyes of my people, and seeing the hardship and distress they carry, I must tell you we have reached our limit," said Jordan's King Abdullah. Several speakers also made the point that while the situation of refugees was bad, that of Syrians trapped inside the country enduring bombardments, sieges and, in some places, starvation was far worse. "With people reduced to eating grass and leaves and killing stray animals in order to survive on a day-to-day basis, that is something that should tear at the conscience of all civilized people and we all have a responsibility to respond to it," US Secretary of State John Kerry told the conference. United Nations agencies are appealing for $7.73 billion to cope with the Syrian emergency this year, and countries in the region are asking for an additional $1.2 billion. Conference co-hosts Britain, Norway and Germany were the first to announce their pledges, followed by the United States, the European Union, Japan and other nations. Britain and Norway promised an extra $1.76 billion and $1.17 billion respectively by 2020, while Germany said it would give $2.57 billion by 2018. The United States said its contribution this fiscal year would be $890 million. Kerry and Lavrov. Spoken about the situation. (Photo: AFP) "Speak to us please" The almost five-year-old conflict has killed an estimated 250,000 people and stoked the spread of Islamist militancy across the Middle East and North Africa. For European nations, improving the humanitarian situation in Syria and neighboring countries is crucial to reducing incentives for Syrians to travel to Europe, where a large refugee influx has put many countries under severe strain. A UN envoy halted his attempts to conduct Syrian peace talks on Wednesday after the Syrian army, backed by Russian air strikes, advanced against rebel forces north of Aleppo, choking opposition supply lines from Turkey to the city. Kerry told the conference he had spoken to his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov about the situation. "We have agreed that we are engaged in a discussion about how to implement the ceasefire specifically as well as some immediate, possible confidence-building steps to deliver humanitarian assistance," he said. US and Russian support for opposing sides in the war, which has drawn in regional states and enabled the spread of Islamic State insurgents, means a local conflict has become an increasingly fraught global standoff. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. "The coming days should be used to get back to the table." (Photo: AFP) UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the first steps in the Geneva peace talks had been undermined by a lack of sufficient humanitarian access and by a sudden increase in aerial bombing and military activity on the ground. "The coming days should be used to get back to the table, not to secure more gains on the battlefield," he said. The conference will focus particularly on the need to provide an education for displaced Syrian children and job opportunities for adults, reflecting growing recognition that the fallout from the Syrian war will be very long-term. Some Syrian civil society activists at the conference expressed concerns that donor nations were intensely focused on refugees because that was the aspect of the crisis affecting them, but were not doing enough for those inside Syria. Rouba Mhaissen, founder of Syrian aid group SAWA, deplored that she was one of the only Syrian speakers at the event. "Speak to us, please. Don't only speak only about us. Don't speak only in our names," Mhaissen said. "How many people in this room today are Syrian? Can I see a show of hands, please? One other person. Two other people. That's great," she added. Hundreds on Thursday attended the funeral of Hadar Cohen, the 19-year-old Border Policewoman killed in a terror attack at the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem on Wednesday. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The funeral, held at the military cemetery of Yehud, was attended by her fellow Border Policewoman Ravit Mirilashvili, who was seriously wounded in the attack, as well as Police Chief Roni Alsheich, and Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan. Hadars father Ofer recited the Kaddish prayer and then eulogized her: My beloved daughter, you were more beloved to me than anything. How am I supposed to separate from you now? Hadar Cohen's parents at the funeral (Photo: Motti Kimchi) "Everyone says you were a hero, a true heroine, and that you saved a lot of people with your body and soul, but no one really knows you my Hadari, your warmth. I have four words to say to you: I'm proud of you. Proud of you and I salute you. Rest in peace, May your soul be entwined in life," he concluded. Ofer Cohen eulogizing his daughter Hadar (Photo: Motti Kimchi) Her sister Mor tearfully eulogized her: My dear Hadari. Our dear, you have become cherished by the entire nation of Israel. Im writing to you in tears of blood, of deep pain and shock. I cant believe it, my beloved Hadar. Mor Cohen eulogizing her sister (Photo: Motti Kimchi) Police Chief Roni Alsheich began his eulogy with a recital of Natan Altermans poem The Silver Platter then added, Hadar, two of her friends and another young man thwarted a major attack in the capitalIf they hadnt engaged the terrorists a catastrophic planned attack would have taken place, which brings Jerusalem back to very dark days. Border Policewoman Hadar Cohen, killed in a terror attack in Jerusalem Wednesday Earlier Thursday morning, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Border Policewoman Ravit Mirilashvili and the IDF soldier who was wounded in a terrorist attack in Beit El several days ago at Hadassah Mt. Scopus Hospital. Netanyahu said that he just visited with the Border Policewoman who along with her comrades acted with heroism and resourcefulness. Together with their commander, they prevented a much greater disaster. I was impressed by her courage, tenacity and steadfastness, and of her family. Of course, we all grieve over the death of Hadar Cohen, a genuine hero. We all embrace her family. "We are in a very major effort against terrorism. Kabatiya is cordoned off. The IDF and the Shin Bet are carrying out widespread arrests. We have revoked very many permits to work in Israel and the Attorney General informed me yesterday that he has slated several more terrorists' homes to be sealed and demolished. This is only part of our efforts to fight this terrorism, and we will defeat it. It will take time; this is a protracted struggle. Islamic terrorism is inundating the world and inciting millions in many countries, from Jakarta to Africa to California. We are part of this turmoil, it is not skipping over us, and we are fighting it with great strength and will continue to do so," he added. Prime Minister told the wounded Border Policewoman and soldier: "Your reactions and your resourcefulness prevented terrible disasters. The entire Israeli people embrace you and hope that you will recover quickly." Ravit Mirilashvili told the Prime Minister how the incident unfolded, including the action taken by the Border Police and her involvement. She said, "We are here to protect civilians. This is what we were drafted for and this is why we are here. I have no doubt that Hadar knew this and acted in this light. I understood that Hadar saved my life." Is Bruce Springsteen on his way to Israel? All signs point to the rock legend coming to Tel Aviv at the end of July. There's no signed contract yet, but according to music industry insiders the Yarkon Park has already been booked for an end-of-July 2016 date. At this point, only one performance is in the works. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Israeli optimism about The Boss arriving in the Holy Land has its roots in promises Springsteen gave senior Israeli producers in the past, saying that if he goes on a European tour, Israel will be one of his stops. Bruce Springsteen. On his way to Tel Aviv? (Photo: AFP) At the moment, Springsteen is set to perform in Lisbon, Portugal, as well as the Italian cities of Rome and Milan. Next in line, according to music industry professionals, is Tel Aviv. Fans should keep their enthusiasm in check for the time being, however, since neither Springsteen nor his representatives have given any official confirmation of the rumors. A day before Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met the families of terrorists in his Ramallah office, three Knesset members of the Joint Arab List met terrorists' family members, among them those who have perpetrated deadly attacks as part of the current terror wave. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The three MKs in question are Haneen Zoabi, Jamal Zahalka, and Basel Ghattas. Among the relatives of what the MK's called "shaheeds" (martyrs) was the father of Baha Aliyan, the terrorist who murdered three in a combined stabbing and shooting attack on a Jerusalem bus, along with his collaborator Bilal Ranem. Aliyan's father said in a video that the meeting was "warm and productive." According to him, "The Palestinian Knesset member brothers listened to the suffering and pain of the shaheed's families, whose bodies are held in Israel." MKs Zoabi, Ghattas, and Zahalka at the controversial meeting. According to the terrorist's father, "The Knesset members' hearts were open and they listened to every word we said. They emphasized that they would make every effort to return the bodies by pressuring the government in the Knesset and conducting talks with the security and diplomatic officials in the Israeli government. It was settled that we would continue to meet in order to keep track of the matter in the near future." The three MKs who came to the meeting were from the Balad faction, even though all of the Joint Arab List's MKs were invited. The Balad faction said in response that "the MKs met with the families who asked to release their sons' bodies for burial. The request has been forwarded to the Public Security Minister and he is dealing with it." Yisrael Beiteinu Chairman MK Avigdor Lieberman said of the meeting, "There is no longer any need for proof that the Joint Arab List's MKs in general, and the Balad faction in particular, are representatives of terror organizations in the Knesset. The meeting of all of Balad's Knesset members with the families of terrorists who murdered Jews is just a reminder for those who still need one, in the government and law enforcement system, that we need to remove these terrorists as fast as possible from the Israeli Knesset, and preferably from the State of Israel." Education Minister Bennett. "I am calling out to the Arab public: You are better than this." (Photo: Motti Kimchi) Minister of Education Naftali Bennett also spoke of the meeting. "This is a black stain that will be recorded in the chronicles of the state," he said in a speech at Bar Ilan University, "I am calling out to the Arab public: You are better than this. Cast these people out. We need to be a unified state, and there is not unity if Knesset members go and meet our enemies and killers." Moran Azulay, Shahar Chai, and Telem Yahav contributed to this report. The OECD's economic survey of Israel belongs to the old genre of recycled news. Its fame is short lived, lasting only for a single day of bleak headlines. Do we really need Angel Gurria to tell us about the burden of the cost of living, the unbearable housing prices, the extremely long work hours and the contaminated air that we breathe? Hey! We are the ones living here. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The report published in the beginning of the week wasn't any different than the previous reports. Data heavy, almost indigestible, a light bump to the wing of the ritual news cycle: A terror attack and a fierce comment of the Prime Minister, an act of incitement and a mumbled denouncement of the Prime Minister, and the coincidental storm in a teacup. And amidst all that chatter, I am asking you to take another look at one chart in the cumbersome report. Please bear with me. This chart describes the illness of Israel's housing market since 2003. It is strikingly fascinating to see what happened to property prices since 2009, the year in which Benjamin Netanyahu took office, and never left. Property prices in Europe plunged a little in the last seven years; in the US they remained unchanged, the OECD average rose a bit, while in Netanyahu's land we see a sharp, insane, almost inconceivable jump of some 60 percent. Talking about percentages could sometimes be constrained to an abstract discourse, so let's talk money. A young couple has to hand out an additional NIS 600,000 for buying an ordinary apartment in order to cover the gap between the price of such property in 2009 and its current price. In other words, the couple's income should have increased by NIS 1,000,000, before taxes, in that period. Prime Minister Netanyahu. Chronic helplessness. (Photo: Kobi Gideon, GPO) Some may be lucky enough to have their salary rise by a seven figure margin, but real wages in Israel have been practically frozen in the past seven years. Newspapers have been writing about the soaring housing prices for years, finance ministers came and went; housing (or building) ministers repeatedly changed their titles. But the Prime Minister is still the same Prime Minister since 2009. He was the first to not recognize the crisis. All throughout 2011, when charts were frivolously running wild, when hundreds of thousands of angry young adults took to the streets to set up tents, when it was crystal clear who is responsible for the crisis and whose duty it is to solve it, Netanyahu kept on doing what he does best: making promises with no intention of delivering, communicating in fierce or mumbled comments, depending on the mood. Simply put, he had done nothing at all. The chronic helplessness of the worst Prime Minister in Israel's history is neither new nor surprising. So is the attempt of focusing on the housing fiasco. What is stunning is the weird apathy with which we accept Netanyahu's incompetence, as if it were a force majeure. As housing prices rise, so does the Israeli people's despair. (Photo: Yaron Brener) In the last seven years, Netanyahu, in his own bare incompetent hands, made hundreds of thousands of young couples (and their parents) give up hope on buying a reasonably priced house, and demolished the economic fundamentals of Israel's middle class. Other politicians in his position lost their seat for much smaller failures, here, there and everywhere. So why is Netanyahu still the Prime Minister? Another, somewhat strange, report by the OECD measured the wellbeing of Israel's citizens. If there are any happy Israelis, they must have inherited an apartment or won the lottery. It seems like the rest submissively accept their fate, as there is no hope for a change on the horizon. If that is the case, then the chart above not only describes Israel's crazy surge in housing prices, but also the despair of Israelis who live in Netanyahu's land. Nebraska has a rich and powerful history of answering the call to serve. For nearly 150 years, our state has witnessed this bravery in each of Americas wars. The past decade is no different. Time and again, the men and women of Nebraska have risen to defend our precious freedom in Iraq, Afghanistan, and across the globe. This year marks the 15th anniversary of the horrific terrorist attacks on American soil. These events changed our lives forever. Nebraskans stepped up, ready to fight. Those serving in uniform, be it active duty, the National Guard, or reserves, knew they would likely wind up on the battlefield at some point in the future. Many young Nebraskans enlisted after high school. Reserve Officers Training Corps units in Nebraska had no problem filling their ranks, and applications for military academy nominations poured in at record numbers. We should all be thankful to these Nebraskans for answering the call and standing up to defend freedom around the world. To honor this generation of Nebraskas heroes, I recently began a new initiative on the floor of the U.S. Senate. My focus will be on those who lost their lives in combat. Each of our fallen Nebraskans has a special story. According to the Nebraska Department of Veterans Affairs, there are 77 Nebraskans who lost their lives to combat-related incidents in Iraq and Afghanistan. Telling their stories keeps their service and sacrifice alive in our hearts. These tales also remind us of the principles so many Americans fought and died for. I began this new initiative by honoring Sergeant Josh Ford of Pender, Nebraska. Joshua A. Ford was killed in Iraq on July 31, 2006. His parents, relatives, and high school classmates look back lovingly on the boy who quickly grew to be a courageous soldier. As a young teenager, Josh was described as a couch potato who liked video games, painting, and watching horror movies. But deep inside, there grew a strong desire to serve his country in military uniform. He joined the Nebraska Army National Guard between his junior and senior year at Pender High School in 2003. That same year, he began basic training at Fort Jackson. He was just 17 years old, and it was a tough transition. Joshs parents, along with his classmates and friends, noticed how dramatically Josh had changed when he returned from basic training. A year later, after graduating from Pender High School, Josh attended the Armys heavy-vehicle driver school at Fort Leonard Wood. He was assigned to the 189th Transportation Company, Detachment #1, in Wayne, Nebraska. A senior sergeant remembers that Josh grew up from a kid to [a] soldier, almost overnight. In the early evening of July 31, 2006, near An Numaniyah, Iraq, the heat was unbearable, but it was typical for summer in Iraq. Specialist Ford and his battle buddy, Specialist Ben Marksmeier, were part of a 189th convoy that was driving through an area they had patrolled many times. Out of nowhere, a blast from an improvised explosive device obliterated their vehicle. Specialist Marksmeier was seriously injured, but Specialist Ford died at the scene. For his service to his country, Specialist Josh Ford earned the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, and Combat Action Badge. He was also promoted posthumously to the rank of sergeant. Our nation and all Nebraskans are forever indebted to his service and sacrifice. Sergeant Josh Ford is a hero, and I was truly honored to tell his story, lest we forget his life and the freedom he fought to defend. Throughout this year and beyond, I plan to pay tribute to more of these brave Nebraska heroes. Our nation must know of their sacrifice and the honor they brought to our state. Thank you for participating in the democratic process. I look forward to visiting with you again next week. Airport security officials prevented Gamal Eid from boarding an Athens-bound flight Thursday morning after his name allegedly appeared on a no-fly list Prominent Egyptian activist and lawyer Gamal Eid has said that security officials prevented him from travelling from Cairo to Athens early Thursday morning amid what he describes as a campaign against rights campaigners critical of authorities. "A late decision was issued. Ive been prevented from travelling and Im returning from the airport! What a law-respecting country, Eid, director of the Arabic Network for Human Rights, wrote on Facebook early Thursday. Eid was barred from leaving on a dawn flight bound to Athens after his name was found on a no-fly list, airport officials told Aswat Masriya news website. Eid said that he was not provided with a reason for the ban by the airport authorities. The officials said that the ban comes from a decision by the country's top prosecutor on the grounds that Eid is involved in an ongoing trial. "His luggage was discharged off the plane and he was allowed to leave," one of the officials said. Eid was not immediately available to comment. He wrote two days ago that he expects a looming wave of "fabrication or scrambling to raise charges against rights campaigners who continue to criticise repression." Eid added Thursday that if he was a supporter of President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi, he would have been handled differently. Earlier this week, airport forces barred researcher and political activist Atef Botros from entering Egypt from Germany and deported him after he was questioned. In June 2015, Egyptian rights activist Mohamed Lotfy, executive director of local NGO the Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms (ECRF), had his passport confiscated and was prevented from travelling to Germany. He was due to speak at a parliament roundtable there on the human rights situation in Egypt on the same day that El-Sisi was to begin an official visit to Germany. Search Keywords: Short link: Egypt summoned the Italian ambassador on Thursday to express condolences and discuss latest developments, the ambassador arrived at the morgue later on in the afternoon Conflicting media reports and narratives are surrounding the mysterious death of an Italian citizen whose lifeless body was found dumped along a highway in Egypt's Giza governorate on late Wednesday. According to the Italian foreign ministry and his friends, Giulio Regeni, 28, disappeared on Jan. 25, the five-year anniversary of the 2011 revolution, after leaving his home in Dokki, an upper middle class area in Cairo, to meet a friend downtown. Days before his body was discovered, Regeni's disappearance was widely circulated by many social media users on both Facebook and Twitter questioning his whereabouts with a trending hashtag Where is Giulio Regeni? Egypt's prosecution said in official statements that there were cigarette burns and signs of torture on Regeni's body, while Reuters quoted Ahmed Nagy, a senior prosecutor in Giza Province, who said that there were also signs of beatings and cuts to the ears. Regenis body was found half-naked and eventually identified by his roommate. The body is currently in Cairo's Zinhom morgue. The deputy head of investigations at Giza's police department told several local media outlets that Regeni's death might have occurred as a result of a traffic accident, adding that there is no criminal suspicion in the incident. Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met with his Italian counterpart Paolo Gentiloni in Geneva to discuss the causes behind the incident. The two ministers agreed to work together to determine the cause of the students death. The Italian government has summoned the Egyptian ambassador to demand maximum cooperation in a probe into what happened, as Italy's foreign ministry issued a statement earlier on Thursday saying that it "expects its own experts to be involved in the investigation." The Italian ambassador to Egypt went to the morgue Thursday afternoon. Italy's Minister of Economic Development Federica Guidi reportedly withdrew late Wednesday from talks with Egyptian officials in a protest of the incident. Regeni is a Cambridge University PhD student who was conducting research in Egypt on trade unions after the 2011 uprising. Reuters published additional details of the Italian citizen, which showed that he spoke four languages and had won several scholarships. Cambridge University issued a statement on Thursday expressing its "condolences" and "deep sadness" over Regeni's death. Ahram Online spoke to one of Regeni's Egyptian friends, who preferred to remain unnamed, who indicated that he received several emails and phone calls from Regeni asking for contacts of labor rights activists so that he could interview them for his research. The friend said the Regeni vowed that he would not go out for any interviews or fieldwork until after the January 25 anniversary. "Then, on the morning of January 25, Regeni texted me asking me if there were any plans for a birthday celebration for one of our friends. Then I never heard from him again," his friend told Ahram Online. "I was summoned by security officials after Regeni's disappearance. Their questions were focused on the purpose of his visit and studies. There were also some questions about his personal affiliation," he added. Maha Mahfouz Abdel Rahman was his PhD supervisor in Cambridge, and Rabab El-Mahdi was his supervisor in Cairo. El-Mahdi said in a Facebook statement "I will not supervise foreign students anymore. I can't face his parents." Search Keywords: Short link: Following an ASIC investigation, Nicholas James Ellis, of Valentine in New South Wales, appeared before the Downing Centre Local Court yesterday charged with 23 criminal counts, including 12 counts of making false and misleading statements, nine counts of fraudulently misappropriating money, one count of fraud and one count of obtaining a financial benefit by deception. ASIC alleges that Ellis used his financial planning business 2020 Financial Solutions Pty Ltd, to advise a number of clients to open SMSFs. ASIC then alleges that between March 2009 and June 2010 Ellis made false and misleading statements to his clients in relation to a property investment opportunity in a hotel at Tura on the New South Wales south coast. ASIC claims Ellis used those statements as a means to raise funds from the SMSFs, and alleges he misappropriated $857,000 from investors. ASIC alleges Ellis used more than $250,000 from the funds to pay out investors from a previous failed investment scheme he had run. It is also alleged Ellis put the misappropriated funds towards the purchase of a home worth more than $3 million. Ellis is scheduled to appear in court again on 22 March. In 2013, ASIC banned Ellis from providing financial services advice due to dishonest conduct and misleading or deceptive conduct. The Global and United States Hydrobike Market Report has been published by QY Research recently. Hydrobike Market Analysis and Insights This report focuses on... It is no secret that the Earth's fossil fuel reserves are on its last legs. According to sobering statistics, the annual global consumption of crude oil clocks in at 11 billion tonnes. At that rate the reserves are expected to run out in less than a century - in 2052 to be exact. Thankfully there have been efforts to tap into alternative energy sources to salvage the remaining fossil fuel the planet has left. In fact, just recently German scientists have announced a new study that might be the solution to Earth's energy crisis. Mere hours ago, scientists from the Max Planck Institute in Greifswald, Germany switched on the Wendelstein 7-X Stellarator for a nuclear fission experiment. The groundbreaking event was attended and participated by German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, who has a doctorate in physics. The experiment aims to heat small amounts of hydrogen to a very hot gas called plasma that is akin to the substance found in the sun. It is expected that the device would reach a whopping 100 million degrees Celsius. Advertisement Though it might take more research to make nuclear fission a viable energy source, the experiment is the first step into understanding how the sun can produce massive amounts of energy. Scientists are hopeful that the results of the experiment would lead to a fossil fuel alternative. Physicists from the world over have since gushed about the promise of the nuclear fission experiment. According to David Anderson, a professor of physics from the University of Wisconsin, the task the experiment undertook is difficult however he is very excited to learn about the results. "This is usually a difficult and arduous process. The speed with which W7-X became operational is a testament to the care and quality of the fabrication of the device and makes a very positive statement about the stellarator concept itself. W7-X is a truly remarkable achievement and the worldwide fusion community looks forward to many exciting results" explained Anderson in an interview with The Guardian. Bed bugs have been the bane of anyone who had to live in populated city areas. While these insects are not known to spread any fatal disease, being bitten by one is cumbersome and it takes a toll on a person's day. Because of the widespread bed bug infestation, scientists have taken it upon themselves to study possible solutions to inconvenient bed bugs. However, recently these researchers have come across a startling discovery. According to entomologists from the U.S. bed bugs have developed a stronger resistance to neonicotinoids - one of the last insecticides known to be effective in killing the bugs. Professor Stephen Doggett, a bed bug expert based in Australia, has since spoken out about what he thinks the reason for the bed bugs development. Doggett suggests that when a species develop a resistance to a certain insecticide, they also develop a resistance towards the entire class the particular insecticide belongs to. "There's not form of resistance, there's multiple forms of resistance. When we get one form of resistance particularly the metabolic form that confers resistance to a whole range of insecticide classes" explained the Professor. Advertisement Professor Doggett has since presented possible solutions to curb the bed bug pandemic. The professor suggests non-chemical means to kill these pests. "We need proper pest control, we need the appropriate use of non-chemical means and some of these inorganic compounds, like silicas, to be used widely." Elsewhere, geneticists from New York have mapped out the genome of bed bugs in the city and according to their research the DNA of these pests can be traced through the subway system. Christopher Mason, a scientist involved in the project, have since explained the trend of bed bug pandemic can be traced through the subway line. In Manhattan, subway lines from north to south not east to west which explains bed bugs from the Upper East Side and Upper West Side have more differences in genome. He is hopeful that his research would cater to developing better insecticides or blood thinners. Sign up to get the latest news delivered to your inbox every week! Researchers observed that mice that received a special compound to remove dead cells lived 35 percent longer than normal mice. Researchers have been studying senescence in mice and came up with a compound that helped to lengthen the life span of the mice by 35 percent. Senescence of cells is a process in which cells grow larger and then normal diploid cells stop to divide. In cell culture, cells can reach a maximum of 50 cell divisions before senescence. Advertisement In our body, dead cells are removed by regeneration of new cells. However, as we age the immune system of the body slows down in the process of wiping out dead cells and building up of new cells. The dead cells in return can damage the cells that lie in proximity with it and can lead to various age-related diseases. Researchers have found a compound that can induce the removal of dead cells in mice and promote a lengthier and healthier life. A translational research is necessary to show the efficacy of the compound in humans, whose success can be a breakthrough in providing better health to human. The compound can clear senescent cells and it can potentially delay tumor formation and preserve organ function for a longer period of time. This finding can be auspicious for cancer research. Dr Darren Baker, molecular microbiologist at Mayo clinic and first author of the study, is certain about the propitious implications of the compound on human, according to The Telegraph. "The advantage of targeting senescent cells is that clearance of just 60-70 percent can have significant therapeutic effects," Dr Baker said. Prof Ilaria Bellantuono, Professor of Musculoskeletal Ageing in University of Sheffield, expressed her doubts about the research stating that it is far from being a solution to ageing as there are other aspects such as mobility which cannot be improved and that the study is conducted in mice and not human. The study was published in the journal Nature. Stiri pe aceeasi tema - The National Institute of Public Health informs that, between 3 - 9 September, 43.4pct of the COVID-19 cases were recorded in Bucharest and in the counties of Cluj, Timis, Brasov and Bihor, told Agerpres. Fii la curent cu cele mai noi stiri. Urmareste stiripesurse.ro pe Facebook - The National Institute of Public Health informs that, in the week of September 26 - October 2, 40.3% of the cases of COVID-19 were registered in Bucharest and in the counties of Cluj, Timis, Brasov and Bihor, told Agerpres. Fii la curent cu cele mai noi stiri. Urmareste stiripesurse.ro - The National Institute of Public Health informs that, over September 19 - 25, 38pct of the COVID-19 cases were recorded in Bucharest, Cluj, Timis, Iasi and Bihor. Fii la curent cu cele mai noi stiri. Urmareste stiripesurse.ro pe Facebook stiripesurse.ro Help your friends - The National Institute of Public Health informs that, in the week of September 5 - 11, 35.5pct of the COVID-19 cases were recorded in Bucharest, Cluj, Timis, Iasi and Brasov. Fii la curent cu cele mai noi stiri. Urmareste stiripesurse.ro pe Facebook stiripesurse.ro Help - The Polish Film Festival, Vistula Film Festival, which promotes Polish culture in over 40 cities in 24 countries, invites Romanians to its first edition in Romania, September 22-25, at the Village Museum Cinema in Bucharest. Fii la curent cu cele mai noi stiri. Urmareste stiripesurse.ro - Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca on Romanian Language Day on Wednesday sent a message of appreciation for all those who constantly contribute to the Romanian language dissemination, preservation, perpetuation and evolution, mentioning that he is grateful to those preserving the national identity beyond - The National Institute of Public Health (INSP) informs that, in the week of July 25-31, 39.7% of the cases of the COVID-19 in Romania were recorded in Bucharest and also in the Cluj, Constanta, Prahova and Timis counties. Fii la curent cu cele mai noi stiri. Urmareste stiripesurse.ro - Health Minister Alexandru Rafila said on Wednesday that in the last 24 hours a little over 9,000 new cases of COVID-19 infection were recorded in Romania, noting that a stabilisation of growth in the sixth pandemic wave is likely at the beginning of the next week. Fii la curent cu cele mai Sputnik news agency said that the deal would include four Superjet passenger aircrafts to Egypt to transport tourists Russia is currently in talks with Egypt to supply the country's state-owned EgyptAir with 40 commercial jets as part of a deal with Sukhoi Civil Aircraft, Russian Industry and Trade minister Denis Manturov said on Wednesday. "We are negotiating (with EgyptAir) the possibility of supplying up to 40 SSJ-100 aircraft," Manturov said in comments carried by TASS news agency. Russias United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) earlier planned to provide EgyptAir with 12 SSJ-100 jets with an option for 12 more aircrafts as part of a trade-in deal. A trade-in option for 15 Embraer-170 jets was also discussed with the Egyptian airline. Manturov described the deal, also reported by official news agency MENA, as a "big ambitious project" which will ensure a boost his country's production capacities for the near future. The Russian official's remarks on the multi-million dollar deal comes after Egypt and Russia signed a memorandum of understanding on Tuesday for the purchase of the jets. Russia's state-owned Sputnik news agency said earlier this week that the Tuesday deal would include the supply of four Superjet passenger aircrafts to Egypt to transport tourists, with the option of six additional aircrafts. Moscow halted all flights to Egypt, a popular destination for Russian tourists, after a Russian airplane crash in Sinai on 31 October killed all 224 people on board. Russia and other western governments say a bomb brought down the flight. Egypt, however, said it has not found any evidence of foul play. Militants affiliated with the Islamic State group say they had smuggled an explosive hidden in a soft drink can aboard. Speaking after Tuesday's signing, Egypt's Civil Aviation Minister Hossam Kamal said he "expect[s] the resumption of Russian flights in the first half of the year." Kamal said that the first batch of the aircrafts will be used domestically before carrying Russian tourists. Search Keywords: Short link: The article/blog entry below from the JTA reminds me of the arguments about Lenin's Jewish ancestry. Now that we can look at the records, we know that Leni... 11 years ago The true, the made up, the borrowed... "We should always remember that the danger to societies from security services is not that they will spontaneously decide to embrace [Stasi style] mustache twirling and jackboots to bear us bodily into dark places, but that the slowly shifting foundation of policy will make it such that mustaches and jackboots are discovered to prove an operational advantage toward a necessary purpose. ~ Edward Snowden "America: just a nation of two hundred million used car salesmen with all the money we need to buy guns and no qualms about killing anybody else in the world who tries to make us uncomfortable." ~ Hunter S. Thompson "Let me issue and control a nation's money and I care not who writes the laws." ~ Mayer Rothschild "News is what somebody does not want you to print. All the rest is advertising." ~ LACUNA "What matters in journalism isn't politics, which are as universal and inescapable as breathing. What matters -- along with a fundamentally adversarial attitude toward government, without which "journalism" is simply public relations -- is integrity, transparency, evidence, coherence, and principle. These are the principles on which we should evaluate the quality of journalism, and their absence is why some journalists are so desperate to get you to focus on something else." ~ Barry Eisler "There is no inverse relationship between freedom and security. Less of one does not lead to more of the other. People with no rights are not safe from terrorist attack." ~ Molly Ivins "The brain of our species is, as we know, made up largely of potassium, phosphorus, propaganda, and politics, with the result that how not to understand what should be clearer is becoming easier and easier for all of us." ~ James Thurber "The highest patriotism is not a blind acceptance of official policy, but a love of one's country deep enough to call her to a higher plane....When you hold up your arm and swear to uphold the Constitution, you dont say, 'Except in wartime.'" -- George McGovern "Ill believe that corporations are people when Texas executes one." ~ Bill Moyers The 10 were arrested in a security sweep that also saw 27 Saudis, two Yemenis and a Jordanian detained Saudi authorities arrested 10 Egyptians over terrorism related charges in a security raid that took place in the last five days, a Saudi newspaper reported Thursday. The newspaper said that security officials arrested 40 suspects, including 27 Saudis, 10 Egyptians, two Yemenis and a Jordanian. Some media outlets reported last week that Saudi Arabia, which is a member of an international military coalition against the Islamic State group, arrested 55 suspects on charges of association with extremists and radical groups. In Early 2016, Saudi authorities executed 47 people convicted of adopting the radical "takfiri" ideology, joining "terrorist organisations" and pursuing various "criminal plots". The execution list included prominent Shia cleric Nimr Al-Nimr who supported anti-government protests that broke out in 2011 in the Sunni-ruled kingdom's east, where the Shia minority complains of marginalisation. The list also included Sunnis convicted of involvement in deadly 2003 and 2004 Al-Qaeda attacks in that killed Saudis and foreigners in the kingdom. In 2015, Saudi Arabia executed 153 people convicted of various crimes, including drug-trafficking. Authorities in the kingdom set up specialised courts in 2011 to try dozens of Saudis and foreigners accused of belonging to Al-Qaeda, or of participating in the wave of attacks that swept the country from 2003. Search Keywords: Short link: New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday announced a loan of Rs 551 crore for payment of salaries to agitating workers of two municipal corporations, but failed to end the strike. The agitating MCD staff refused to call off their strike even as the mayors of the north and east Delhi municipal corporations said they will accept the loan extended by the AAP government as a grant only. The mayors of north and east Delhi said they will accept Rs 551 crore as a "grant" only because Delhi government is yet to pay Rs 3,000 crore to the municipal corporations under the Third Delhi Finance Commission. Employees of Delhi's three civic bodies - North Delhi Municipal Corporation, South Delhi Municipal Corporation and East Delhi Municipal Corporation - have been protesting the non-payment of salaries for the past few months, and directing their ire at both the Delhi and central governments for the last eight days. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief also announced that the North Delhi Municipal Corporation will also be paid Rs 142 crore against the stamp duty bill Delhi BJP has accused the AAP government of trying to take "advantage" of the employees' strike by extending loan instead of providing funds to municipal corporations. New Delhi: Days after Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula committed suicide in Hyderabad, a group of students of the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC) in Delhi posted `derogatory remarks` against Dalit and tribal students on social media. The IIMC has formed a committee to probe allegations of "casteist" remarks against students belonging to the SC and ST community and has asked for a report within three weeks. The committee was set up after a group of students, including those from SC and ST community, approached authorities alleging that "ill will" and "hatred" against them was being spread by some of their peers after they protested over Vemula's suicide. In letters to the Social Justice Ministry and the Tribal Ministry, 17 students have complained against certain social media posts that first appeared on January 18. The students subsequently threatened legal recourse stating that due to the "prevailing tension" they are not able to focus on studies. Anurag Mishra, IIMC OSD, refused to comment when asked about the allegations. However, a faculty member said that a five-member committee, including representatives from the students' side, was formed this week in a meeting where "both the grieving parties were heard out". It has been given three weeks time to submit a report on the issue. The IIMC, run by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, will hold its annual convocation on February 5. When contacted, one of the students who has been complained against, said that "personal revenge" was being taken against him "misusing" constitutional protection granted to SC and ST community people. "I have apologised for the post although initially I was not ready to do so. In the region where I come from, words I used in the post are not regarded offensive at all. A propaganda has been unleashed against me," the student said. The complainant students have told the authorities that "comments are being passed and remarks made loud" when they pass through the corridors in the college and hostels since they raised the matter. "In the campus there is an air of worry...We hereby expect proactive action by our able faculties to ensure harmony and amicability on campus as assured," they wrote. "We would beg to request a slot in the academic timetable to be allocated for sensitising of all the students by experts in the field of Caste/Tribe reality and affirmative action, to promote amicability and inclusivity on campus," they added. Last month, a group of students had organised a protest meet inside the campus over the suicide of Hyderabad University Dalit student Rohith Vemula. (With PTI inputs) New Delhi: With municipal workers refusing to end the strike after Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government announced a loan of Rs 551 crore for payment of salaries, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Thursday, would meet Lt Governor Najeeb Jung and Mayors. Besides meeting Jung, Sisodia said, he was also trying to seek appointment with the Home Minister and Urban Development Minister. MCD strike continues despite govt released Rs 693cr for salaries. I'm meeting emp. unions, Mayors, LG today. Trying to meet HM & UD Min also Manish Sisodia (@msisodia) February 4, 2016 Kejriwal on Wednesday announced a loan of Rs 551 crore for payment of salaries to agitating workers of two municipal corporations, but failed to end the strike. The agitating MCD staff refused to call off their strike even as the mayors of the north and east Delhi municipal corporations said they will accept the loan extended by the AAP government as a grant only. The mayors of north and east Delhi said they will accept Rs 551 crore as a "grant" only because Delhi government is yet to pay Rs 3,000 crore to the municipal corporations under the Third Delhi Finance Commission. Employees of Delhi's three civic bodies - North Delhi Municipal Corporation, South Delhi Municipal Corporation and East Delhi Municipal Corporation - have been protesting the non-payment of salaries for the past few months, and directing their ire at both the Delhi and central governments for the last eight days. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief also announced that the North Delhi Municipal Corporation will also be paid Rs 142 crore against the stamp duty bill. Madrid: Spain said on Thursday that a pregnant woman who had returned from Colombia had been diagnosed with the Zika virus, in the first such known European case. "One of the patients diagnosed in (the northeastern region of) Catalonia is a pregnant woman, who showed symptoms after having travelled to Colombia," the health ministry announced, adding she is one of seven cases in Spain and all are in good condition. News of the mosquito-borne virus, thought to cause birth defects, first emerged in Brazil last year, and health authorities have warned the disease could infect up to four million people in the Americas and spread worldwide. The fever starts with a mosquito bite and normally causes little more than a fever and rash. But since October, Brazil has reported 404 confirmed cases of microcephaly where the baby's head is abnormally small -- up from 147 in 2014 -- plus 3,670 suspected cases. The timing has fuelled strong suspicions that Zika is causing the birth defect. The virus has also been linked to a potentially paralysing nerve disorder called Guillain-Barre syndrome in some patients. Spain's health ministry nevertheless sought to ease concerns, pointing out that all seven patients had caught the disease abroad. "Up to now, the diagnosed cases of Zika virus in Spain... don't risk spreading the virus in our country as they are imported cases," it said. Delhi: Ten Army personnel were buried under a mass of snow after their post was hit by an avalanche on Wednesday at the altitude of 19,000 feet close to the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir. They were presumed dead on Thursday after Army and IAF tried hard to rescue the soldiers - a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) and nine other ranks of Madras Regiment - and failed. Following are some facts about Siachen, world's highest battle field and the difficult conditions that our soldiers work in. - The Siachen glacier is the highest battleground on the earth and the minimum temperature in the region can dip to -50 Degree Celsius or -140 Degree Fahrenheit in winters. - It is located in the eastern Karakoram range in the Himalaya Mountains where the Line of Control between India and Pakistan ends. It is said to be the longest glacier in the Karakoram and second-longest in the world's non-polar areas. - Deployment of a soldier in Siachen is permitted by the Indian Army for a maximum period of three months and in the high-risk areas of the glacier such as Bana Post, the limit is said to be of 30 days. - The Army unit which is deployed in this difficult terrain is rotated after every six months. - Bone-chilling winds is said to whip the landscape and sun can burn the skin. It is also said that combined with thin air and sub-zero temperatures, it can induce acute depression. - In 1984, India launched Operation Meghdoot, a military operation that gave India control over all of the Siachen Glacier, including its tributaries. - Between 1984 and 1999, frequent skirmishes took place between India and Pakistan. - In December 2015, Indian Union Minister of State for Defence Rao Inderjit Singh had said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha that a total of 869 Army personnel have lost their lives on the Siachen glacier due to climatic conditions and environmental and other factors till date since the Army launched Operation Meghdoot in 1984. - He had also said then that the government had spent over Rs 7,500 crore for procurement of clothing and mountaineering equipment for soldiers posted in high-altitude areas. - Aside from the Indian and Pakistani military presence, the glacier region is unpopulated. The nearest civilian settlement is the village of Warshi, 10 miles downstream from the Indian base camp. - The region is also extremely remote, with limited road connectivity. On the Indian side, roads go only as far as the military base camp at Dzingrulma. The Indian Army has developed various means to reach the Siachen region, including the Manali-Leh-Khardung La-Siachen route. - India has categorically stated that India will not pull its army from Siachen until the 110-km long AGPL is first authenticated, delineated and then demarcated. - Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh became the first Indian PM to visit the area, during which he called for a peaceful resolution of the problem. The then President of Pakistan Asif Ali Zardari also visited the area during 2012 with Pakistan Army Chief General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani. - Civilians are usually not allowed to go beyond Panamik, a small village in the Nubra Valley. New Delhi: A former vice chief of the Indian Army has hit out at the top armed forces brass for turning this year's 'Beating the Retreat' ceremony into a Bollywood tamasha. Writing for a web portal called thecitizen.in, Lt Gen Vijay Oberoi described this year's ceremony as an absurd spectacle which was reduced to a tamasha of sorts. Lt Gen Oberoi, who had lost one of his legs during the Indo-Pak War of 1965, said in the article titled Sirs, I am Disillusioned and Devastated that our bandsmen, besides playing martial music, are also adept at playing symphonies (both western and Indian), but there is a place and occasion to play them. By all accounts, a Beating of Retreat ceremony is not one of them! We may in future years witness dances to showcase our wide variety of dance forms, or God forbid gyrations by the Bollywood nautanki crowd and rappers to liven up the staid proceedings! he added. Hitting out at the three armed forces chief, Lt Gen Oberoi wrote, You, the custodians of all things military and the wisest amongst us all (that is why you are the Chiefs of our fine military), have unfortunately set a deplorable precedence by the manner the sacred, ceremonial and military pageantry Beating of Retreat this year was conducted. He also slammed the absence of veterans from this year's Republic Day parade and wrote, For the first time since I took part in the parade, as a cadet from the National Defence Academy (NDA) in 1959 I think, I was shocked to see no participation by the veterans, who have sacrificed their lives and limbs for the nation. Are they of no consequence? Are they spent forces (khali Kartoos), as far as the nation is concerned. Let me rub it in, because you as Chiefs of both serving personnel and veterans agreed to have a shoddy cardboard tableau marked OROP, trying to show the false magnanimity of this self-serving government, which having gone back on its word to sanction OROP in its totality and parliamentary approved definition, has reneged at the behest of those darling blue-eyed boys, also known as the bureaucrats. The full article: "Sirs, I Am Disillusioned And Devastated" Lt Gen Vijay Oberoi Thursday, February 04,2016 Dear Chiefs, Since the evening of 29 Jan 2016, I have been fighting an inner battle on whether to share my dismay and disappointment with the three worthy Chiefs of the armed forces of our country, the same armed forces that have not just brought glory to the nation since our independence, but have secured the nation from both external and internal threats. After a great deal of introspection and soul-searching, I have come to the conclusion that I must apprise you of my misgivings, which incidentally are shared by the majority of my brother and sister officers, both serving and retired. Let me commence with the absurd spectacle of 29 Jan 2016, when a solemn ceremony Beating of Retreat was reduced to a tamasha of sorts, for want of a better word!. You, the custodians of all things military and the wisest amongst us all (that is why you are the Chiefs of our fine military), have unfortunately set a deplorable precedence by the manner the sacred, ceremonial and military pageantry Beating of Retreat this year was conducted. I need not remind you worthies that traditions are the core of the Indian Military and flouting them on account of pressures/ requests from political and other bosses amount to letting down the troops whom you lead and who are always ready to even sacrifice their lives at your orders, but please do note that they will do so only if the orders are legitimate and legal and not to please your bosses or others. It would be churlish of me to remind you of why the Beating of Retreat Ceremony is performed and what the traditions and sequencing are that must be observed; I am quite sure that your staff dealing with the subject would have done so, or would do so when this epistle of mine appears in the public domain. Suffice to highlight only three of the wrongs (or shall I call them blunders) that manifested themselves in this years ceremony. Firstly, our bandsmen, besides playing martial music, are also adept at playing symphonies (both western and Indian), but there is a place and occasion to play them. By all accounts, a Beating of Retreat ceremony is not one of them! I do hope we do not add more colour to it in future on account of directions from the higher ups and ask them to wear dhotis and kurtas to add authenticity to the proceedings! Secondly, while some of our bandsmen, particularly drummers do get into the spirit of the moment and start swaying, if not gyrating, as they play, but is it forced on those poor boys or they do so automatically, as the spirit moves them? It was really distressing to see some of the drummers, specially from the Naval Band, breaking out into some sort of a bhangra or akin to it , either in their enthusiasm or to impress their Chief! Maybe, the proximity to Bollywood may have inspired them! At this rate, we may in future years witness dances to showcase our wide variety of dance forms, or God forbid gyrations by the Bollywood nautanki crowd and rappers to liven up the staid proceedings! Thirdly, I was quite shocked to see police bands amidst the military bands during the ceremony. I have no idea why you forgot or you agreed to these police bands taking part in this highly exclusive military spectacle. I have nothing against the police, but the way they are being permitted to participate in military ceremonies spells another doom for the Indian Military. I am all for egalitarianism, but the line must get drawn at the appropriate place. I or my comrades cannot draw such a line; it is only you who can do so. I do hope that you will do that, unless you have reached so far in the Yes Sir, Three Bags Full Sir syndrome that you feel you have no choice but to conform! Let us move on then, for having stuck my neck out already, I might as well go the whole hog. Since we have been talking about ceremonials and pageantry associated with the month of January, let me draw your attention to the Republic Day Parade, which is so meticulously organized by Headquarters Delhi Area, but somewhere the plot is lost when the netas and the bureaucrats gather all the praise and the sweat, energy and time spent on such a major military event is usurped by them. Hallelujah, why has the military become so subservient? For the first time since I took part in the parade, as a cadet from the National Defence Academy (NDA) in 1959 I think, I was shocked to see no participation by the veterans, who have sacrificed their lives and limbs for the nation. Are they of no consequence? Are they spent forces (khali Kartoos), as far as the nation is concerned. Let me rub it in, because you as Chiefs of both serving personnel and veterans agreed to have a shoddy cardboard tableau marked OROP, trying to show the false magnanimity of this self-serving government, which having gone back on its word to sanction OROP in its totality and parliamentary approved definition, has reneged at the behest of those darling blue-eyed boys, also known as the bureaucrats. Do you think the people of India will go along with such a fraud! You may be fully committed to your bosses, but why have you become such Ji Hazoors that you have now forgotten even your comrades in arms, who incidentally were at least partly responsible for assisting you to reach the present high appointments you hold! Three more small points, as I have already vented most of my ire. I fail to understand why it is our valiant jawans who are press-ganged into laying mats on the Rajpath so that the government (read the Prime Minister) can showcase mass yoga to the world. What do the huge armies of civil servants do? While it is good to showcase women power in the military, it is wrong for lady officers to be made to carry rifles in the squads while participating in the Republic Day Parades. Since we do not have women enrolled as the rank and file so far, let lady officers lead squads of their regimental/corps contingents, as male officers do. My last point relates to a group photograph taken at the At Home of the Army Chief that has gone viral on the e-mail circuit and on the social media that shows the three Chiefs subordinated to the back seat, during their own At Home, while the netas, both present and past are reposed on comfortable chairs in the front row. Have the armed forces been reduced to such a state on their own function? See, how the mighty have fallen! Hallelujah and Jai Ho simultaneously!!! Let me end this epistle on an optimistic note by conveying my best wishes to you Sirs. I do hope you will reflect on what an old soldier feels and perhaps carry out at least some of the suggested changes so that our sacred military traditions are preserved and not sacrificed at the altar of expediency. Hopefully, your legacy would not be repeated in future by your successors. Jai Hind! Visakhapatnam: The International Fleet Review (IFR), being hosted by the Indian Navy and the Government of India, officially kicked off at Visakhapatnam with wreath laying on Thursday. The main event of IFR 2016 will be held on Saturday when President Pranab Mukherjee, Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces, will review the International Fleet. On Thursday, the ocean along the country's eastern coast was buzzing with activity as ships lined up and friendly naval contingents from around the world arrived for the country's second International Fleet Review. With the theme "United through Oceans", the IFR will see participation of around 50 Navies, 90 ships, including 24 warships, and over 70 aircraft. Ships of the Indian Coast Guard and mercantile marine would also take part. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the gathering on Sunday. The list of participating navies includes the United States of America, China, the United Kingdom, Australia, France, Canada, Russia, South Africa, Japan, South Korea, Peru, Chile, Colombia and Brazil. Here are some enthralling pictures from the final rehearsal held on Thursday. Be ready to be wowed! Indian aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya is seen during the final rehearsal of International Fleet Review in Visakhapatnam on Thursday. INS Vikramaditya is a modified Kiev-class aircraft carrier which entered into service with the Indian Navy in 2013. Indian aircraft carrier INS Viraat (right) is seen during the final rehearsal of International Fleet Review in Visakhapatnam. INS Viraat is a Centaur-class aircraft carrier in service with the Indian Navy and is the oldest aircraft carrier in service in the world. Indian sailors take off their hats to salute as the Indian presidential yacht passes them during the final rehearsal of International Fleet Review in Visakhapatnam. British sailors salute as the Indian presidential yacht passes them during the final rehearsal of International Fleet Review in Visakhapatnam on Thursday. Indian warships are seen during the final rehearsal of the International Fleet Review in Visakhapatnam. Indian warships are seen during the final rehearsal of the International Fleet Review in Visakhapatnam. Indian Chief of Naval Staff Robin K Dhowan salutes sailors during the final rehearsal of the International Fleet Review in Visakhapatnam on Thursday. Indian sailors on aircraft carrier INS Viraat salute as Indian president's yacht moves past them during the final rehearsal of International Fleet Review in Visakhapatnam. Indian naval commandos show their prowess during the final rehearsal of International Fleet Review in Visakhapatnam. An Indian Navy helicopter shows a rescue operation during the final rehearsal of International Fleet Review in Visakhapatnam. #IFR2016 IFR finally gets underway. After wreath laying, CM inaugurates the MAREX & IFR Village pic.twitter.com/v2fxfA2rfr Captain DK Sharma (@CaptDKS) February 4, 2016 #IFR2016 Hon'ble CM of Andhra Pradesh inaugurating the Maritime Exhibition at Andhra University grounds pic.twitter.com/YP6Gc6GniA Captain DK Sharma (@CaptDKS) February 4, 2016 .@USAndIndia welcomes USS ANTIETAM as it enters Vizag, India for #IFR2016. Good luck! pic.twitter.com/gnFZpFJS4v U.S. Embassy India (@USAndIndia) February 4, 2016 #PresidentMukherjee to witness the International Fleet Review on February 6 https://t.co/TIAce3T6ta pic.twitter.com/7e8k1k7k7W PIB India (@PIB_India) February 4, 2016 Warm welcome to everyone joining us for International Fleet Review in Visakhapatnam. https://t.co/M1IqjjPztZ pic.twitter.com/g9cuY4R5Z5 Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 4, 2016 Jaipur: India on Wednesday blamed Pakistan for most of the terror attacks in the country but said it would stand by the neighbour if it takes action against terrorists operating from there. Home Minister Rajnath Singh also said if Pakistan takes concrete action against terrorists on its territory it will not only improve bilateral relations but also bring peace and stability in the South Asian region. "Most of the terror attacks in India emanate from Pakistan and it will have to show some sincerity and take concrete steps to rein in the various terror groups operating against India from its soil. "The government of India will stand by Pakistan if it takes decisive action against terrorists and their organisations," he said addressing the second edition of counter-terrorism conference organised by the India Foundation in collaboration with the government of Rajasthan. The Home Minister said for India, Mumbai (26/11) and Pathankot terror attacks have signified a "tectonic shift". The Mumbai terror attack in 2008 brought terror across the seas to country's economic capital, causing a large number of casualties among the innocent civilian population. "Likewise, in the recent attack on Pathankot air base, there was a conscious effort to target sensitive assets of the country and also cause large-scale casualties, thus taking the dynamics of terror attack in India a notch higher," he said. Mr Singh said the challenge of terrorism gets compounded when certain states use it as an instrument of their foreign policy. "They make perverse distinction between 'good' and 'bad' terrorists. When the states begin covertly raising and indoctrinating bands of youth and equipping them with lethal weapons and weapon systems of mass destruction to promote their geo-political agenda, the magnitude of threat amplifies many times. It makes the task of defeating terrorism much more difficult," he said. The Home Minister said so long as some countries continue using terrorists as instruments to promote their geo-political agenda, the fight against terrorism will lack due resolve. "The world must accept the reality without any loss of time that there is no 'good' terrorist," he said. Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar while addressing the conference said India was in touch with Pakistan after the Pathankot attack and dialogue between the two countries on the terror assault would continue. "Since Pathankot attack happened, we have been in touch with Pakistan. We have been in touch at my level and the NSA level because only by remaining in touch, we can expect them to progress on the basis of information which we have provided to them," Mr Jaishankar told the Counter Terrorism Conference. Referring to the terror attack on Pathankot air base, the Home Minister said after the incident the government is reviewing its counter-terrorism strategy. "We are now formulating an effective strategy which would help in protecting our country from such terror attacks in future. "We are fully equipped and prepared to deal with cross-border terrorism or any kind of terrorism. We are working on a National Security Strategy aiming to achieve seamless coordination between all the agencies," he said. Mr Singh complimented the security forces and intelligence agencies for successfully preventing any major damage to the air force assets, with "minimum casualties". "Security forces also ensured that there were no casualties to families including trainees from friendly foreign countries. For such a brave act they deserve the highest accolades. "I can say this with conviction as terror attacks in the past on air bases of other countries such as Pakistan and Sri Lanka had led to major damages to their air assets including large number of casualties," he said. The Home Minister said proper assimilation, analysis and timely sharing of intelligence inputs hold key to any successful strategy against terrorism. "The government is increasing its capabilities in this area as well. We are also stepping up vigil at our international borders and strengthening our border infrastructure to ensure fool proof security in the border areas," he said. Mr Singh said terrorism is a "hydra-headed monster" fed by a massive supply of funds through different routes and there is a need to put a plug on the flow of funds to curb terrorism. "Drug trafficking, hawala transactions and supply of counterfeit currency are some of the known sources of terror funding. It is a big challenge to cut the supply lines of terrorist organisations and their activities. "There has to be a global strategy and better coordination among like-minded nations against terrorism, if we want to disrupt the supply of funds for terror activities," he said. The Home Minister said due to the ever increasing threat of terrorism in India, the country's National Security Strategy is now aiming at creating an environment which provides full opportunity for unhindered growth and development to every section of the society. "We are also looking forward to creating appropriate legal and structural frameworks to fight against the menace of terrorism. We want to ensure that all terror-related cases are thoroughly investigated and followed up properly and regularly in the courts. "Our guiding principle while handling terror-related cases should be 'Koi Begunaah Fanse Nahi, Aur Koi Gunahgaar Bache Nahi' (No innocent should be punished and no guilty escapes," he said. Mr Singh said government solicits and appeals for full cooperation on issues pertaining to national security from opposition too because there is a need to rise above partisan politics on issues of national importance. "Lack of consensus on matters like national security will adversely affect the country's national interest," he said. The Home Minister said the country is full of diversity with multi-lingual, multi-religious and multi-ethnic society. "These conditions are actively utilised by anti-national elements and other enemies to foment trouble in our country. To counter such threats we need to undertake sound preventive and responsive security measures," he said. From traditional forms of terrorism, we are now witnessing cyber terrorism, narco terrorism and bio-terrorism. Use of dirty bombs also cannot be ruled out. Modern weapons, technology, and communications are being used by terror groups to enhance their lethality and impact, he said. "Terrorism is seeking to destabilise the geo-political order in several parts of the world. It is doing so in pursuit of an insane interpretation of faith and philosophy that is violently anarchic and allergic to diversity which is the essence of humanity and its habitat," he said. Mr Singh said he firmly believes that terrorism is a byproduct of a perverse mind and this perversion has no love for human beings or the humanity. "Terrorism has no religion because religions do not allow crimes against humanity. Simply put, terrorism is a crime against humanity," he said. The Home Minister said even though the world acknowledges the threat of terrorism, there is no consensus even on the definition of terrorism. "The UN has adopted numerous resolutions to fight terrorism. All these resolutions amply show the resolve of the world. Sanctions stipulated by UN Security Council resolutions are often rendered ineffective by vested interests of some countries in the absence of a consensus definition of terrorism," he said. Visakhapatnam: The Eastern Naval Command is all geared up to host the International Fleet Review (IFR) in Bay of Bengal off Visakhpatnam coast which begins on Thursday, a mega event that will witness participation from nearly 50 countries. The Ministry of Defence also posted a tweet in this regard. Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command (ENC) Vice Admiral Satish Soni said the command is fully prepared to conduct the four-day event with participation of foreign and Indian ships and foreign chief of the naval staffs from various countries. Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command (ENC) Vice Admiral Satish Soni said the command is fully prepared to conduct the four-day event with participation of foreign and Indian ships and foreign chief of the naval staffs from various countries. Talking to reporters on Board INS Sumitra after the rehearsal of the IFR on Tuesday, the Vice Admiral said 50 countries have already confirmed their participation and 90 ships, including 24 warships from foreign countries and 24 foreign naval chiefs will take part in the Fleet review. He said 70 to 75 helicopters of various types, including hawk jet fighters, will exhibit their talent and demonstrate in the Bay of Bengal. Supreme Commander of the armed forces, President Pranab Mukherjee will embark on Presidential yacht, INS Sumitra after inspecting the guard of honour which will be presented by 150 naval personnel on IFR on February 6. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Manohar Parikar, Andhra Pradesh Governor ESL Narasimham, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Union Cabinet ministers, state Cabinet ministers and chief ministers of more than 10 states, all chiefs of armed forces, Chief of naval staffs, retired chief of staffs and a host of delegates across the country will also take part in the fleet review. Soni said the VIPs would review the fleet of participating Indian and foreign ships which will be anchored in six columns and the naval personnel standing on anchored ships on both the sides of Sumitra would salute the President in the traditional manner. He said the Indian Navy is organising the event for the first time in the east coast here and second time in the country. The first IFR was organised in Mumbai in 2001. During the rehearsals on Wednesday, the helicopters of Indian Navy, coast guard exhibited their talent including the rescue demonstrations by the naval personnel form a Chetak helicopters that thrilled the audiences. The main idea of conducting the IFR is to unite the navies through ocean - the main theme of the Navy, Soni said, adding that the exercise would strengthen the friendship between friendly countries. Vice Admiral Soni inspected the arrangements being made at the beach road. The galleries on beach road accommodate 20,000 spectators and the beach sands 1.5 lakhs people. According to a statement issued by the ENS, evening of February 7 will witness the operational demonstration followed by the International City Parade which would include marching contingents and bands from the Army, Navy and Air Force and Coast Guard. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the gathering and also release a book on the maritime heritage of India. Chief Minister Naidu on Thursday would lead citizens in paying homage to the martyrs of the 1971 war at the War Memorial in a solemn wreath laying ceremony at RK Beach. He will also inaugurate a maritime exhibition tomorrow, one of the biggest events of its kind which will showcase various entrepreneurs in the maritime domain. On February 7, a two-day international maritime conference would be inaugurated by Defence Minister Parikkar on the theme 'Partnering together for a secure maritime future', the statement said. The activities of IFR will conclude on the evening of February 8 with a joint international band concert at the naval officers institute followed by a closing ceremony. City Police Commissioner Amit Garg told reporters on Monday that elaborate security arrangements have been made with 15,000-strong police force deployed at event venues. Police have prohibited all non-governmental agencies, organisations and individuals launching Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) or drones in the city from January 27 to February 9. New Delhi: The Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday condemned the attack on a Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru and said that all steps will be taken to ensure safety of African students in the country. The ministry said that the incident should be seen as an isolated one and stringent punishment will be given to the perpetrators. We will take all steps to ensure the safety and security of African students in India, MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup said, adding We have assured our African friends that necessary legal action will be taken. Condemning the incident, the MEA spokesperson said that his ministry will extend full co-operation in the investigation. Meanwhile, a Central team along with the High Commissioner of Tanzania is expected to visit Bengaluru on Friday to get a first-hand information on the incident. Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju said that his ministry has not been briefed officially yet and has not seen details of the report. We should be very sensitive towards any kind of racial discrimination because we were victims of it, Rijiju said. The Bengaluru Police have arrested five people suspected of assaulting the Tanzanian woman. The arrests were made on the basis of witnesses accounts and video footage from closed circuit television cameras (CCTV) in the area. In a case of mistaken identity, an angry mob on Sunday night assaulted Lina Martin, 21, suspecting her to be a friend of a Sudanese student whose car ran over a woman pedestrian. Mohammad Ahad Ismail, 20, in a case of drunken driving fatally ran his car over Shabana Taz, 35, and injured her husband K. Sanaullah. Ismail, an MBA student, was arrested for drunken driving and causing Shabana's death. The mob attacked him before police came and rescued him on Sunday night. Angry at Shabana`s death in the mishap caused by a Sudanese, another violent mob mistakenly targetted Lina and burnt her WagonR car in which she was with three male friends and passing through the area, assuming her to be Ismail's friend. In her statement, Lina denied being stripped or paraded naked but said she was assaulted and molested by the mob when her T-shirt got torn off in the melee. New Delhi: Director General of Military Operations Lt Gen Ranbir Singh Thursday declined his Pakistani counterpart's offer for help in rescuing Indian soldiers buried under snow after an avalanche hit their post in Siachen Glacier, saying necessary resources have already been put in place. Army sources said Pakistan's DGMO Maj Gen Amir Riaz called up earlier in the day and offered help. They said such calls are routine whenever any incident happens near the border. "During the conversation, he offered Pakistani help which was declined for now saying that enough resources have been put in place," the sources said. Incidentally, the offer of help came over 30 hours after the incident. Ten soldiers of an army post, located at an altitude of 19,600 feet, were hit by a massive avalanche in the early hours yesterday. Rescue operations by specialized teams of the army and the air force continued for the second day today amid fears that they may be dead. "It is a tragic event and we salute the soldiers who braved all challenges to guard our frontiers and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty," Lt Gen D S Hooda, Army Commander, Northern Command, said. Snow cutters and specialised equipment were flown into Leh to further boost the rescue efforts. The glaciated area experiences temperatures ranging from a minimum of minus 42 degrees in the night to maximum of minus 25 degrees during the day. Rescue teams are braving adverse weather and effects of rarified atmosphere to locate and rescue survivors. "However, it is with deepest of regrets that we have to state that chances of finding any survivors are now very remote," an Army statement had said. Dehradun: Samir Sardana, a 44-year-old man and a native of Dehradun, has been arrested from Goa on suspicion of having links with terrorist outfits, it emerged on Thursday. The man in question is a son of Major General and a Doon School alumni, according to reports. The police have claimed that Sardana is a Hindu who practices Islam. He is presently in custody of the Anti-terrorist Squad (ATS) of Goa Police. Sardana was picked up from Vasco Railway Station after railway authorities noted something suspicious about his activities. The arrested person booked a dormitory room online from his laptop for three consecutive times in the last week. After he was arrested, his suspected links with the dreaded terror outfit Islamic State also came to the fore. Sardana is a chartered accountant by profession and has been associated with several MNCs like Accenture, and had worked in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Saudi Arabia. When the police arrested the Dehradun-based youth, he was carrying a laptop, five passports and four mobile phones. Speaking to 'Times Of India', Goa DGP TN Mohan said the officials are yet to find anything concrete to link him with any terror outfit. However, ATS sources have revealed that the officials have come across some letter and emails of Sardana, "which are to be decoded and which indicate that he had collected information of previous bomb blasts in the country". He was arrested under Section 41 of Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC). Delhi: Ten soldiers buried in an avalanche at the Siachen Glacier in the remote Himalayas are presumed to be dead, as per reports on Thursday. The soldiers were on duty at an Army post on a glacier at an altitude of 5,900 metres (19,600 feet) when it was hit by a massive avalanche early Wednesday. Those martyred are a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) and nine other ranks of Madras Regiment. Their post was close to the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan. The glaciated area presents temperatures ranging from a minimum of minus 42 degrees Celsius in the night to maximum of minus 25 degrees C during the day. Prime Minister Narendra Modi called the death of the soldiers tragic and tweeted the following - "Demise of soldiers in Siachen is very tragic. I salute the brave soldiers who gave their lives to the nation. Condolences to their families." Demise of soldiers in Siachen is very tragic. I salute the brave soldiers who gave their lives to the nation. Condolences to their families. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 4, 2016 On the other hand Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said, "My heartfelt condolences to near and dear ones of our brave soldiers who were martyred in line of duty at Siachen," as per ANI. He added, "It is our duty to take care of their families." And Lt Gen DS Hooda, Army Commander, Northern Command, said in a message, "It is a tragic event and we salute the soldiers who braved all challenges to guard our frontiers and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty," as per PTI. Massive effort had been launched by the Army and IAF since yesterday to rescue the soldiers. Specialised teams with modern equipment, flown to Leh this morning, were also pressed into service along with sniffer dogs. Heavy snow cutters and special equipment were used to clear and cut the ice blocks. However, Defence PRO based in Northern Command Col SD Goswami had said earlier said that hopes of finding them was very remote. "Operation by specialised teams of Army and Air Force in Siachen to rescue soldiers hit by avalanche have entered day two. Specialised equipment was flown in to Leh today morning to further boost the rescue efforts. With deepest regret we have to state that chances of finding any survivors are very remote," he had said. Col Goswami had added that blocks of snow had fallen on the post, burying it very deep. Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul also paid tributes to the soldiers. Congress President Smt Sonia Gandhi has expressed shock & deep distress on the confirmation of death of 10 Army Men in avalanche in Siachen INC India (@INCIndia) February 4, 2016 Saluting the memory of the Jawans who lost their lives securing our National boundaries in most difficult terrain and weather conditions... INC India (@INCIndia) February 4, 2016 ...She extended her condolences to aggrieved families &said the entire Nation stood bowed before selfless service &martyrdom of our soldiers INC India (@INCIndia) February 4, 2016 Very sad to know that 10 of our brave soldiers lost their lives in an avalanche in Siachen. My thoughts &prayers are with their families Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) February 4, 2016 (With Agency inputs) Kochi: Two Union Ministers were stranded for two hours at the Kochi international airport on Thursday after the Jet Airways flight on which they were scheduled to travel to Mumbai could not take off on time due to "non-availability" of pilot, sources said tonight. Union Ministers Prakash Javadekar and Piyush Goyal were later flown to Delhi and Mumbai respectively by other flights. Jet Airways flight 9W 404 which was scheduled to depart for Mumbai at 1620 hours could not take off because the airlines could not get a pilot to operate the aircraft. Repeated calls and text messages sent to Jet Airways' spokesperson did not yield any response. Goyal and Javadekar, who were scheduled to travel to Mumbai, left by other flights. While Environment and Forests Minister Javadekar boarded a flight to Delhi, Power Minister Goyal went to Mumbai. This is the second time in last two days when a Jet Airways flight has been delayed due to non-availability of pilot as on Wednesday its Toronto-bound flight from Delhi via Brussels was grounded for nine hours for the same reason. The airline had claimed that Toronto-flight was initially delayed due to some "technical" reasons and later because of the restrictions on pilots' flying timings. Delhi: Pakistan said on Thursday that underworld don and India's most wanted Dawood Ibrahim was not in their country. Pakistan also said that Indian authorities had admitted that whereabouts of the mafia don was unknown. Dawood is said to be the mastermind of 1993 Mumbai serial blasts. Meanwhile, as per reports on February 02 Dawood is the only 'Indian national' on a newly updated list of financial sanctions by the UK that also includes Sikh terror groups. Dawood, against whom an international arrest warrant has been issued, appears on the UK Treasury department's 'Consolidated List of Financial Sanctions Targets in the UK' updated on January 27 with four recorded addresses in Pakistan - all in Karachi, as per PTI. 'Dawood Ibrahim Kaskar' is recorded to have lived at: House No 37, 30th Street - defence, Housing Authority, Karachi, Pakistan; House no. 29, Margalla Road, F 6/2 Street no. 22, Karachi, Pakistan; Noorabad, Karachi, Pakistan (Palatial bungalow in the hilly area); and White House, Near Saudi Mosque, Clifton, Karachi, Pakistan. The Mumbai-born gangster's nationality is listed as 'Indian', with a recorded Indian passport which was subsequently revoked by the government of India and then goes on to list a string of Indian and Pakistani passports acquired by him and misused. (With Agency inputs) Bengaluru: The Karnataka government on Thursday said that it was seriously probing the brutal assault on a Tanzanian student while assuring full safety of foreign students staying in the state capital. Addressing a press conference, G Parmeshwara, Karnataka Home Minister said, ''We are taking this case very seriously,'' adding, ''There are 12,000 foreign students in Bengaluru, their protection is our foremost duty. These kind of incidents should not happen.'' Explaining the sequence of events that led to the brutal assault on the African student, Parmeshwara said, ''Had the Sudanese man not killed someone in the accident maybe this incident would not have happened.'' A man called Sanaullah and his wife were hit by a car driven by a Sudanese national identified as Mohd Ismail, who was under influence of liquor. The woman died on the spot after which an infuriated mob set the car on fire and went on rampage, he informed. Rejecting allegations of laxity on part of local police, Parmeshwara said, ''The cops registered the case at that time itself.'' "We have formed special teams to trap the culprits and render justice to the victim who declined to file complaint against the accused fearing attack again,'' he stated. Some more arrests are going to be made depending on enquiry. The case has been transferred to Central Crime Branch for investigation, he added. However, he maintained that it was not a racist attack, saying ''this is just a response to an accident. Bengaluru doesn't have such kind of attitude.'' "The allegations that her clothes were torn off and they were paraded naked have not been verified as per the investigation so far," he added. The DGP and Commissioner also went to spot today and spoke to affected students and assured all help to them, he informed. Parmeshwara further stressed that there are times when foreign students stay even after their passports get expired and, therefore, they are going to pursue such cases. The Home Ministry also sought a detailed report from the Karnataka government on the incident. Five suspects have been arrested by police in this connection and they are being interrogated. We have duly apprised the MEA about the progress in the case, Parmeshwara said. Meanwhile, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi today asked the Karnataka government to explain the incident and send the report immediately. The BJP today dubbed the reaction of Rahul Gandhi on Tanzanian student assault as a 'political stunt', saying that the former is seeking report from Karnataka Chief Minister only after seeing media reports on the issue. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had yesterday condemned the attack on the Tanzanian student and asked for stringent punishment for the guilty. The Tanzanian student was beaten and then stripped by a group of locals in Bengaluru after they assumed she was part of an incident in which a Sudanese man had run over a local woman. The incident took place on Hesaraghatta Road in Bengaluru on Saturday night after a Sudanese national ran his car over a 35-year-old woman resulting in on the spot death of the woman. The Tanzanian student was travelling in another car, a Wagon-R, along with four others. The young woman, who arrived on the spot around 30 minutes later, was dragged out of the car and paraded naked after being stripped by the mob. The victim told the police in her complaint that when she tried to get on a bus in order to escape the assault, people on the bus pushed her back towards the mob. Earlier, the local residents set fire to two cars belonging to the African students, who studied in local colleges in Ganapathinagar on Hesaraghatta Road. With PTI inputs New Delhi: High Commissioner of Tanzania in India, John WH Kijazi, on Thursday said that the authorities in his country have written to the Indian government, demanding strict action against those who allegedly attacked and molested a Tanzanian woman in Bengaluru following a road accident. Kijazi added that the Indian government has said that it is in touch with the Jakarta government and has assured action. Meanwhile, the Bengaluru police have arrested five people in this regard. On Wednesday, city police commissioner NS Megharik had told reporters: "We have registered a case of riot and arson against the accused on victim's statement in which she reported of being assaulted in a mistaken identity by a mob on the outskirts of the city." Denying reports in a section of media that the victim was also molested, Megharik said the African woman had admitted being only assaulted by a frenzied mob after her three male friends deserted her at Soladevanahalli where the car in which they were travelling was burnt. "The incident occurred because the mob mistook the victim's car being involved in a road mishap on same night (January 31) when a 20-year-old drunken Sudanese national (Mohammed Ahad Ismai) ran over a woman fatally. We arrested him after he was rescued from a raging mob," Megharik said. The victim's friends told police that on Sunday the furious mob had pulled them out of their car, assaulted them and molested her in which her clothes were torn. A senior Egyptian prosecutor has ordered a probe into the collapse of parts of a bridge in the governorate of Sohag, in Upper Egypt. Parts of the newly-constructed University Bridge crumbled on Wednesday, leaving no casualties. Photos and videos circulated online showed a gaping cavity and huge cracks extending some 60 metres along the bridge. Top administrative prosecutor Sameh Kamal ordered on Thursday an investigation into the incident, a prosecution statement said. The bridge was built early last year under the supervision of the country's development and housing authority. The provincial governor has referred the company that carried out the construction work to prosecutors for questioning. Egypt is notorious for its poorly maintained roads and inadequate traffic safety standards that have largely contributed to near daily road crashes that claim thousands of lives every year. The bridge was built to provide a link to the new headquarters of Sohag University. Ten students were killed in November 2014 when a van carrying them to the university fell into a sluiceway. The university administration had suspended studying at the new location following the accident until officials ensure the safety of the surrounding roads. Search Keywords: Short link: Thiruvananthapuram: The CPI-M on Thursday said a cooperative-sector Kerala Bank will be established if the party is voted to power in the assembly polls later this year. Communist Party of India-Marxist politburo member Pinarayi Vijayan, who is on a state- wide yatra ahead of the polls, told IANS that the new bank will be constituted if the Left wins. "The new bank would be in the cooperative sector. It is being worked out in a manner so that there is there no need for fresh capital. With this, we propose to revamp the existing three-tier cooperative banking structure," said Vijayan. Kerala State Cooperative Bank was started under the Travancore Cooperative Societies Regulation Act by the then maharaja in 1914. In 1943, it was transformed into Travancore Central Cooperative Bank. The bank was positioned to the level of State Cooperative Bank in 1956 where from it was christened as The Kerala State Cooperative Bank Ltd. "With the new Kerala Bank, we want to ensure that the present state cooperative bank takes over all the district and primary cooperative banks." Today there are 954 cooperative bank branches in the three-tier system which has a deposit base of close to Rs.50,000 crore. Kottayam: Slamming the Congress and CPI-M led fronts, which had ruled Kerala alternatively, BJP President Amit Shah on Thursday alleged that both had followed vote bank politics with "violence and corruption" being the hallmark of their tenure. "While the world over, Communism has been wiped out, Congress has been rooted out from most of the states. These two parties cannot help Kerala," Shah said adding only a BJP government will help people of the state. "After two months, Kerala will decide which party should rule the state for the next 5 years and under whose leadership. I have full faith that Keralites want a change of governance this time," Shah said, addressing a well-attended rally here. Congress-led UDF and CPI-M-led LDF which ruled all these years did not do any good for the state, he said. While violence was the hallmark of LDF rule, corruption and violence was rampant under congress dispensation, Shah alleged. "When UDF goes, LDF comes and while LDF goes, UDF comes... If the Left comes, then there is violence, under Congress corruption and violence are rampant. "Only if BJP government comes, rule of law will prevail," Shah said at the meeting to mark the entry of 'Vimochana Yatra' by party's state president Kummanam Rajeskeharan to the central Travancore district of Kottayam. Attacking UDF and LDF governments for "following vote bank politics and appeasement policy" during their tenure, he said this had led to a situation wherein majority of the people were denied justice. "If BJP comes to power, there will be justice for all. I assure people that if BJP comes to power. Everyone will be treated alike," he said. During 10 years of rule by Congress-led UPA governments, there was corruption of Rs 12 lakh crore, he alleged. Hitting out at the Congress, Shah said the party under the leadership of Indira Gandhi had coined the slogan 'Garibi Hatao' in 1975. "Today even after 40 years, Rahul Gandhi is talking about 'Garibi Hatao'," he said. The Congress-led UDF government in the state was neck-deep in corruption, he alleged. "If I start counting the number of corruption cases - Travancore Titanium, Solar case, PWD corruption, Nurses recruiting scam etc, it will take four days for this public meeting to end," he said. Islamabad: Indian actor Anupam Kher being denied a Pakistani visa is "reflective of the byzantine and thoroughly nebulous visa regime that exists between India and Pakistan", a leading daily said on Thursday. An editorial "Indo-Pak visa regime" in Dawn said that while there are differing accounts of why exactly Bollywood actor Anupam Kher was not issued a Pakistani visa, one thing is clear: "The episode is reflective of the byzantine and thoroughly nebulous visa regime that exists between India and Pakistan". The actor, who was supposed to attend the Karachi Literature Festival, which kicks off on Friday, says he was denied a visa as Pakistan`s interior ministry did not issue a no-objection certificate. However, Pakistan`s high commissioner in New Delhi says Kher never submitted a visa application, while a KLF organiser claims they were told "not to apply" for the Indian actor`s visa. "Of course, many high-profile individuals from both countries have been denied visas or censured for using undesignated ports of entry," said the daily. It observed that if this is the state of affairs public figures face, "it can be well imagined what the common Indian or Pakistani has to go through when applying to visit the `other side`. The fact is that miles of red tape have been put up by both bureaucracies to consciously discourage people from putting in a visa application". A 2012 agreement governs the visa regime between India and Pakistan. "But despite its promises, this arrangement is anything but liberal." "India requires Pakistanis applying for a visitors` visa to submit a `sponsorship certificate`, in which their Indian host promises to vouch for their `good conduct` while in India. Also, for the vast majority of visitors with police reporting visas, the exercise can be a nightmare, with people often shaken down for bribes over minor technical issues," it added. The editorial went on to say that visa processing, which is supposed to take a little over a month, can take much longer, throwing travel plans off kilter. "If there is to be peace in the subcontinent fostered by people-to-people contacts, and if the dream of a connected South Asia is ever to be realised, these mediaeval rules need to be changed and the visa regime must be truly liberalised. Presently, divided families as well as ordinary people who desire to visit the other country are suffering, much to the delight of hard-line lobbies on both sides. "Whenever dialogue is resumed between Islamabad and New Delhi - and we hope this occurs soon - a more humane visa regime should be on top of the agenda." Lucknow: All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi will hold his first rally in Uttar Pradesh's Faizabad ahead of the February 13 Bikapur bypoll. The AIMIM leader, who is also Hyderabad MP, is likely to take on th ruling Samajwadi Party government in the state for neglecting the poor and downtrodden. The party, which is planning to stake a huge claim in the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls of 2017, will attempt to create a Dalit-Muslim vote bank. Significantly, this is the first time Owaisi has been given permission to hold a rally in UP. My focus will be on Samajwadi Party which has betrayed both Dalits and Muslims, the AIMIM chief said. Owaisis party had made its agenda clear when it declared Pradeep Kumar Kori, a Dalit, as its Bikapur candidate for the upcoming bypolls. Attacking SP and the BJP, he said, ''The Samajwadi Party gave riots to Muslims and is now silent on the death of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula (of Hyderabad University) and other Dalit issues, while the BJP claims itself to be the champion of Dalits just because it organises programmes and praises Dr Ambedkar. Lucknow: All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi attacked the ruling Samajwadi Party and the BJP for ignoring 'Muslims and the downtrodden' in Uttar Pradesh during his first rally in the state. Coming down heavily on the ruling party, the AIMIM chief said, ''The poor are dying, farmers are in penury here, but neither the SP nor BJP cares about them.'' Owaisi also criticised SP for not fulfilling its promise of providing reservation to poor Muslims in UP. Shifting his focus to dreaded terrorist outfit Islamic State, the AIMIM leader said that he and his party has nothing to do with ISIS. ''We condemn ISIS. We have no connection whatsoever with ISIS,'' Owaisi said. However, he also warned Prime Minister Narendra Modi not to join international community's war against the ISIS. ''Modiji should not think of sending forces to fight ISIS. That is not our war,'' Owaisi said while addressing his supporters in the Faizabad district of UP. Condemning PM Modi's recent Lahore visit, he said, ''The way PM met his counterpart in Lahore it was as if two separated brothers are meeting.'' This was his first rally in Uttar Pradesh's Faizabad ahead of the February 13 Bikapur bypoll. The AIMIM, which is planning to stake a huge claim in the Uttar Pradesh assembly polls of 2017, is willing to create a Dalit-Muslim vote bank. My focus will be on Samajwadi Party which has betrayed both Dalits and Muslims, the AIMIM chief had said earlier. Owaisis party had made its agenda clear when it declared Pradeep Kumar Kori, a Dalit, as its Bikapur candidate for the upcoming bypolls here. United Nations: Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed Major General Jai Shankar Menon to head the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), which monitors the Syria-Israel ceasefire in the Golan Heights. Menon succeeds Lieutenant General Purna Chandra Thapa of Nepal whose assignment ends on Sunday. Menon was Additional Director General for Equipment Management in the Indian Army. Announcing the appointment Tuesday, Ban's deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said, "Menon brings to his new position extensive command experience and knowledge of peacekeeping affairs at the national and international levels." Menon is familiar with the region having served with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) from 2007 to 2009. UNDOF was set up in 1974 to supervise the ceasefire and disengagement agreement between Israel and Syria in the area seized by Israel during the 1967 War. His appointment as UNDOF Head of Mission and Force Commander comes at a time of heightened tension with Syria engulfed in a multilateral civil war involving the government headed by President Hafez al-Assad backed by Iran and Russia; rebels supported by Saudi Arabia, Gulf countries and the West, and the Islamic State, the fundamentalist terrorist group. The Syrian side that UNDOF monitors is still under the control of the beleaguered forces loyal to al-Assad. UNDOF has 947 personnel, 789 of them blue-helmeted troops, including 190 from India. Menon's previous assignments include General Officer Commanding of an infantry division, commandant of the Regimental Training Centre, brigade commander and Military Observer with the UN Operation in Mozambique. Washington: US President Barack Obama on Wednesday slammed anti-Muslim rhetoric and appealed for tolerance for millions of Muslims in the country during his first visit to a US mosque as president. "We have heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim-Americans that has no place anywhere in our country," Xinhua quoted Obama`s address at the Islamic Society of Baltimore, Maryland on Wednesday. "You have seen too often people conflating the horrific acts of terrorism with the beliefs of an entire faith," he said, adding that the anti-Muslim rhetoric started since 9/11 attacks but more recently since the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California. "We have seen children bullied, we have seen mosques vandalised," said Obama. "That`s not who we are." Though Obama did not specifically name anyone who, in his words, resorted to "inexcusable" anti-Muslim rhetoric in the political sphere, White House spokesman Josh Earnest on Tuesday took a clear jab at some Republicans who he said with "an alarming willingness" tried to "marginalise law-abiding, patriotic Muslim Americans." "It is just offensive to a lot of Americans who recognise that those kinds of cynical political tactics run directly contrary to the values ... in this country," Earnest said at Tuesday`s briefing. London: Donor nations pledged on Thursday to give billions of dollars in aid to Syrians as world leaders gathered for a conference to tackle the world`s worst humanitarian crisis, with Turkey reporting a new exodus of tens of thousands fleeing air strikes. With Syria`s five-year-old civil war raging and another attempt at peace negotiations called off in Geneva after just a few days, the London conference aims to address the needs of some 6 million people displaced within Syria and more than 4 million refugees in other countries. Underlining the desperate situation on the ground in Syria, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told the meeting that tens of thousands of Syrians were on the move towards his country to escape aerial bombardments on the city of Aleppo. "Sixty to seventy thousand people in the camps in north Aleppo are moving towards Turkey. My mind is not now in London, but on our border - how to relocate these new people coming from Syria?" he said. "Three hundred thousand people living in Aleppo are ready to move towards Turkey." Turkey is already hosting more than 2.5 million Syrian refugees. Jordan and Lebanon are the other countries bearing the brunt of the Syrian refugee exodus. "Looking into the eyes of my people, and seeing the hardship and distress they carry, I must tell you we have reached our limit," said Jordan`s King Abdullah. Several speakers also made the point that while the situation of refugees was bad, that of Syrians trapped inside the country enduring bombardments, sieges and, in some places, starvation was far worse. "With people reduced to eating grass and leaves and killing stray animals in order to survive on a day-to-day basis, that is something that should tear at the conscience of all civilized people and we all have a responsibility to respond to it," U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told the conference. United Nations agencies are appealing for $7.73 billion to cope with the Syrian emergency this year, and countries in the region are asking for an additional $1.2 billion. Conference co-hosts Britain, Norway and Germany were the first to announce their pledges, followed by the United States, the European Union, Japan and other nations. Britain and Norway promised an extra $1.76 billion and $1.17 billion respectively by 2020, while Germany said it would give $2.57 billion by 2018. The United States said its contribution this fiscal year would be $890 million. "SPEAK TO US PLEASE" The almost five-year-old conflict has killed an estimated 250,000 people and stoked the spread of Islamist militancy across the Middle East and North Africa. For European nations, improving the humanitarian situation in Syria and neighbouring countries is crucial to reducing incentives for Syrians to travel to Europe, where a large refugee influx has put many countries under severe strain. A U.N. envoy halted his attempts to conduct Syrian peace talks on Wednesday after the Syrian army, backed by Russian air strikes, advanced against rebel forces north of Aleppo, choking opposition supply lines from Turkey to the city. Kerry told the conference he had spoken to his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov about the situation. "We have agreed that we are engaged in a discussion about how to implement the ceasefire specifically as well as some immediate, possible confidence-building steps to deliver humanitarian assistance," he said. U.S. and Russian support for opposing sides in the war, which has drawn in regional states and enabled the spread of Islamic State insurgents, means a local conflict has become an increasingly fraught global standoff. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the first steps in the Geneva peace talks had been undermined by a lack of sufficient humanitarian access and by a sudden increase in aerial bombing and military activity on the ground. "The coming days should be used to get back to the table, not to secure more gains on the battlefield," he said. The conference will focus particularly on the need to provide an education for displaced Syrian children and job opportunities for adults, reflecting growing recognition that the fallout from the Syrian war will be very long-term. Some Syrian civil society activists at the conference expressed concerns that donor nations were intensely focused on refugees because that was the aspect of the crisis affecting them, but were not doing enough for those inside Syria. Rouba Mhaissen, founder of Syrian aid group SAWA, deplored that she was one of the only Syrian speakers at the event. "Speak to us, please. Don`t only speak only about us. Don`t speak only in our names," Mhaissen said. "How many people in this room today are Syrian? Can I see a show of hands, please? One other person. Two other people. That`s great," she added. BRASILIA: Authorities in Brazil, where a Zika outbreak has been linked to severe birth defects, on Thursday disclosed two cases of transmission tied to blood transfusions, adding to concerns over the spread of the virus. The virus, spreading quickly across Latin America and the Caribbean, is usually transmitted by the bite of a mosquito. Marcelo Addas Carvalho, the doctor who is the director of the blood center at the University of Campinas near Sao Paulo, said genetic testing confirmed that a man who received a blood transfusion using blood donated by another man infected with Zika in March 2015 became infected with the virus, although he did not develop symptoms. Carvalho said another man, who had suffered gunshot wounds, also became infected with Zika after receiving multiple blood transfusions that included blood donated by an infected person in April 2015. Carvalho said that infection probably was caused by the transfusion but genetic tests have not yet been conducted to confirm it. He said it was very unlikely the infection was caused by a mosquito bite because the patient was in a hospital intensive care unit for three months. The patient later died from his gunshot wounds and not the Zika infection, health officials and Carvalho said. "Transmission of the virus through blood transfusion is very rare and not an important factor in the epidemic. Governments and society in general should focus on eliminating the mosquito, which is the main form of transmission," Carvalho said. The Brazil cases, along with a reported case of sexual transmission of the virus in Texas add a new dimension to efforts to limit Zika`s spread. The cases have emerged at an awkward time because Rio de Janeiro is preparing to host the Olympic Games in August when tens of thousands of athletes and tourists were expected to visit Brazil`s second largest city. Brazil is investigating more than 4,000 suspected cases of microcephaly, a condition in which infants are born with abnormally small heads and can suffer developmental problems, that may be linked to the outbreak. Scientists have begun to study whether Zika infection in pregnancy can cause microcephaly. The World Health Organization, citing strong suspicions of a link between the two and the spike in cases in Brazil, declared a global health emergency on Monday. Sexual contact and blood transfusions as modes of transmission of the virus have been matters of concern for experts since the beginning of the outbreak, said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious diseases expert at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee. But Schaffner questioned whether either will lead to widespread transmission of Zika. "A little bit of transmission? Sure," Schaffner said. "But the main engine of transmission that has led this virus to be spread widely throughout Central and South America and the Caribbean is, of course, the mosquito." Procedures for blood donations have been tightened in the countries including Brazil to protect blood supplies from Zika. U.S. health officials are still working on national guidelines. Following word of the Texas case on Tuesday, U.S. health officials urged the use of condoms to prevent spreading sexually transmitted infections. Brazil said it was reinforcing instructions to blood banks that people infected with Zika or dengue not be permitted to donate blood for 30 days after full recovery from the active stage of Zika infection. The American Red Cross has urged prospective donors who have visited Zika outbreak zones to wait at least 28 days before giving blood, but said the risk of transmitting the virus through blood donations was "extremely" low in the continental United States. It asked donors who give blood and subsequently develop symptoms consistent with Zika within 14 days to notify the Red Cross so the product can be quarantined. In the Texas case, a person in Dallas became infected with Zika after having sex with another person who had traveled in Venezuela, where the virus is circulating. Dallas County health officials said on Thursday both those people have fully recovered from the virus. Schaffner said uncertainties remain about sexual transmission of the virus, including how long a person might be able to transmit it or whether an infected person must have had symptomatic Zika in order to be able to transmit Zika through sex. Most infected people do not develop any symptoms. While health authorities have not provided such details, Schaffner said he suspected a man transmitted Zika to a woman. "We don`t know whether it can move from a woman to a man. We assume also that if a man can transmit it to a woman, that a man could also transmit it to another man," Schaffner said. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo on Thursday expanded his state`s free Zika testing to include all pregnant women who have traveled to countries where people have been infected. Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a public health emergency on Wednesday in four counties with travel-related cases of the Zika virus. Scott extended his order to a fifth county on Thursday. He has also ordered increased mosquito control efforts in some of the southeastern state`s most heavily populated locales including Miami and Tampa. London: Britain and Norway pledged on Thursday to spend an additional USD 2.9 billion in aid for Syrians by 2020, seeking to build momentum for a donor conference that the United Nations hopes will raise more than USD 7 billion for this year alone. With Syria`s five-year-old civil war raging and UN-mediated peace talks in Geneva halted after just a few days amid acrimony between government and opposition negotiators, the one-day London conference will try to tackle dire humanitarian needs. The war has killed an estimated 250,000 people and driven millions from their homes, with 6 million Syrians displaced within the country and more than 4 million others having left for Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and beyond. UN agencies are appealing for USD 7.73 billion to cope with the disaster this year, with a further $1.2 billion needed to fund national response plans by countries in the region. For European nations, improving the humanitarian situation in Syria and neighbouring countries is seen as critical to reduce incentives for Syrians to travel to Europe, where a huge refugee crisis has put many countries under severe strain. "We can provide the sense of hope needed to stop people thinking they have no option but to risk their lives on a dangerous journey to Europe," British Prime Minister David Cameron said in a statement, announcing a new pledge of GBP 1.2 billion (USD 1.75 billion). UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon called for a strong show of solidarity at the conference, which will be attended by dozens of heads of state and government and ministers, as well as numerous humanitarian organisations. Ban said in a speech on Wednesday that Syrians were being victimised several times over: at home, where life was impossible, by people smugglers during their journeys, and by harsh treatment upon arrival in countries of sanctuary. "Ghosts of past crises" "Razor-wire fences, the confiscation of assets, and the vilification of people seeking safety all summon up ghosts of past crises -- the lessons of which we are meant to have learned already," Ban told an audience at Cambridge University. He was referring to measures adopted by some European countries, including Denmark, which has passed a new law allowing border guards to seize assets from asylum seekers to help pay for their stay. "If we fail to take decisive action now, the situation for civilians and Syrias neighbouring countries will only get worse, and this will affect the whole of the international community," Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg said in a statement announcing Thursday`s pledge. Norway`s pledge of $1.17 billion over the next four years outstrips any allocation it has before made for a humanitarian crisis of this kind, the statement added. Some Syrian civil society groups attending the London event have expressed concerns that the international community was focused on the plight of refugees, to the detriment of those trapped in desperate circumstances within Syria itself. "Of course those (refugees) need assistance, but there are more than 6 million IDPs (internally displaced persons) inside Syria, living besieged, living under shelling and bombing," said Raed Saleh, head of the White Helmets, a group of about 2,800 Syrian volunteers who carry out search and rescue after attacks. After UN envoy Staffan de Mistura put the Geneva talks on hold late on Wednesday, he said he would travel to the London conference as the plight of Syrian refugees would provide an incentive to restart negotiations. The conference will focus particularly on the need to provide an education for displaced Syrian children and job opportunities for adults, reflecting growing recognition that the fallout from the Syrian war will be very long-term. The doctors have held a week-long strike after two of them were reportedly assaulted by a group of low-ranking policemen last week Egypt's top prosecutor ordered on Thursday the immediate re-opening of Matariya Hospital so medical care can resume after its doctors launched a strike over an reported assault by a group of policemen last week. Prosecutor-General Nabil Sadek launched an investigation into the closure of the hospital to take legal action against those responsible for the suspension of this public service. According to a statement issued by the prosecutor-general's office, the closure of the hospital and the suspension of medical service for citizens are considered a "crime" that is punishable by law and is against the Egyptian constitution. The doctors started the strike last week after two of their colleagues were reportedly assaulted by a group of low-ranking policemen. The doctors stated that they would strike until legal action was taken against the policemen involved in the incident Egypt's Doctors Syndicate fully supported the doctors' actions. Search Keywords: Short link: UNITED NATIONS: A confidential report to the United Nations Security Council accuses Rwanda of recruiting and training Burundian refugees with the goal of ousting Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza. The report by experts who monitor sanctions on Democratic Republic of Congo, which was seen by Reuters on Wednesday, contained the strongest testimony yet that Rwanda is meddling in Burundi affairs and comes amid fears that worsening political violence could escalate into mass atrocities. The report cites accounts from several rebel fighters, who told the sanctions monitors the training was done in a forest camp in Rwanda. Nkurunziza`s re-election for a third term last year sparked the country`s crisis and raised concerns that there could be a bloody ethnic conflict in a region where memories of Rwanda`s 1994 genocide are still fresh. The experts said in the report that they had spoken with 18 Burundian combatants in eastern Congo`s South Kivu province. "They all told the group that they had been recruited in the Mahama Refugee Camp in eastern Rwanda in May and June 2015 and were given two months of military training by instructors, who included Rwandan military personnel," according to the report. The Burundian combatants, which included six children, told the U.N. experts they were trained in military tactics, use of assault rifles and machine guns, grenades, anti-personnel and anti-tank mines, mortars and rocket-propelled grenades. They said there were at least four companies of 100 recruits each being trained in a forest camp while they were there. "They were transported around Rwanda in the back of military trucks, often with Rwandan military escort," the U.N. experts wrote. "They reported that their ultimate goal was to remove Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza from power." Burundi and Rwanda have the same ethnic mix, about 85 percent Hutus and 15 percent Tutsis. A 12-year civil war in Burundi, which ended in 2005, pitted a Tutsi-led army against Hutu rebel groups. Rwandan U.N. Ambassador Eugene Gasana dismissed the accusations against Kigali contained in the report and told Reuters, "This further undermines the credibility of the Group of Experts, which seems to have extended its own mandate, but apparently investigating Burundi." The U.N. report did not say why the Burundian fighters had crossed into Congo. But Russia`s Deputy U.N. Ambassador Petr Iliichev said last month that there had been reports of Burundian rebels trying to recruit more fighters in Congo. "The Burundian combatants showed the group fake DRC identification cards that had been produced for them in Rwanda, so they could avoid suspicion while in the DRC," the report said. Burundi accused Rwanda in December of supporting a rebel group that was recruiting Burundian refugees on Rwandan soil, but Rwandan President Paul Kagame dismissed the allegations as "childish." The accusations by Burundi were prompted by the charity Refugees International, which said in a December report it was "deeply concerned" by claims of Burundian refugees in Rwanda that they were being recruited by "non-state armed groups". The U.N. Security Council travelled to Burundi in late January, its second visit to the country in less than 10 months. The United Nations has estimated the death toll at 439 people but has said it could be higher. More than 240,000 people have fled abroad and the country`s economy is in crisis. U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power said during the visit to Burundi that the 15-member council had expressed concern about the allegations of external interference. Bogota: Colombia`s second-largest insurgency snatched a military intelligence official overnight from a power plant in the northwest, army sources and authorities said Wednesday. "The ELN (National Liberation Army) has in its hands aircraftsman Jair de Jesus Billar Ortiz," an army statement said. Billar Ortiz was captured hours earlier when ELN forces attacked the power plant in Segovia, northwest of Medellin. The government demanded that Billar Ortiz be kept safe and be returned immediately. The ELN, founded in 1964 and influenced by the Cuban revolution, since January 2014 has been in preliminary talks for a peace process with the Colombian government. Its process has been far behind that of the country`s largest rebel force, the FARC. While the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia has held a unilateral ceasefire since July, the ELN has been pressing its offensives. The ELN is believed to have about 1,500 fighters as compared to the FARC`s 7,000. Oslo: Donald Trump, Greek islanders helping desperate migrants, Angela Merkel and the pope -- some may seem more likely than others but all are understood to be in the running for the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize. Nominations for the award, won last year by four Tunisian groups that led the country's transition to democracy, must be posted to Norway by February 1 at the latest. And as usual, the names of the nominees are a tightly-guarded secret -- or at least most of them are. Those who nominate candidates can reveal the name of the person they've proposed. An online petition had on Monday picked up some 630,000 signatures calling for the Nobel to go the residents of Greek islands on the front line of Europe's migrant crisis, who have come to the aid of refugees turning up on their shores after perilous sea journeys from neighbouring Turkey. The nomination, proposed by a group of university professors, faces a size problem: the prize can be shared by a maximum of three laureates. Greek scientists have resolved the problem by putting three names forward: an octogenarian, a fisherman from Lesbos and the Hollywood actress-activist Susan Sarandon, who was the first high-profile celebrity to visit the island to raise awareness about the issue. South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who won the 1984 Peace Prize, has backed three nominations, including one involving Greece's Good Samaritans called the Aegean Solidarity Movement. "Just imagine 900,000 visitors in desperate need arriving at the door of your reasonably modest establishment. Hungry, exhausted and in a state of acute emotional distress... They don't speak the same language as you or ascribe to the same cultural or religious beliefs. What do you do? You open the door. Incredible!" Tutu wrote on his foundation's website. The two other nominations receiving his blessing were the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, and a trio that includes Pope Francis, hailed by the Anglican archbishop for "consciousness about the ecological necessity to curb human consumptiveness and greed." Prize to a 'traitor'? In an entirely different field, US Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump has also been nominated for the prize, according to Nobel watcher Kristian Berg Harpviken, the director of the Peace Research Institute of Oslo. According to a copy of the nomination letter Harpviken said he had received, brash tycoon Trump -- who has attracted international condemnation by calling for a ban on Muslims entering the United States -- deserves the prize for "his vigorous peace through strength ideology, used as a threat weapon of deterrence against radical Islam, ISIS, nuclear Iran and Communist China". Thousands of people around the world are allowed to make nominations for the Peace Prize, including members of parliament and government ministers, former laureates and some university professors. The Nobel Institute accepts all valid nominations, so having one's name on the list is not to be taken as a sign of approval. The five members of the panel that selects the laureate are also allowed to put forward their own nominations when they hold their first meeting on February 29. Harpviken said he believed Edward Snowden, the American who exposed mass surveillance by the US National Security Agency, could be a winner this year. "Snowden's leaks led to a good number of reforms in US practice and US legislation, which make it harder to still argue that he is a traitor to his country," Harpviken told AFP. After a breakthrough on the Iran nuclear standoff, negotiators Ernest Moniz of the US and Ali Akbar Salehi of Iran are also among Harpviken's favourites, as well as Colombian peace negotiators President Juan Manuel Santos and rebel leader Timoleon Jimenez. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who was one of the favourites last year when the prize went to Tunisia's National Dialogue Quartet, is also in the running again this year. The same goes for Congolese gynaecologist Denis Mukwege, who has spent a quarter of a century treating thousands of women brutalised by rape and sexual violence in war-torn eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Nadia Murad, a Yazidi abducted by IS fighters in August 2014 from her village in Iraq and held for three months as a sex slave is also in the running. Finally, 118 Italian MPs have nominated the Afghan Cycling Federation women's team, hailing the bicycle as environmental, economic and democratic. The winner of the 2016 Nobel Peace Prize will be announced in early October. UNITED NATIONS: United Nations Syria peace mediator Staffan de Mistura suspended peace talks between the government and rebels due to the Russian military escalation, which is aimed at humiliating the opposition, a senior U.N. official said on Wednesday. "I think the special envoy decided to suspend the talks because the organization did not want to be associated with the Russian escalation in Syria, which risks undermining the talks completely," the official told Reuters on condition of anonymity. De Mistura halted until Feb. 25 his attempts to conduct Syrian peace talks after the army, backed by Russian air strikes, advanced against rebel forces north of Aleppo on Wednesday, choking opposition supply lines from Turkey to the city. Florida: Florida's supreme court on Thursday overturned the conviction of a Spaniard sentenced to death for a triple murder in 1994, and ordered a retrial. The court said there was "simply no excuse for the numerous deficiencies and failures" of Pablo Ibar`s defense attorney. "Accordingly, we reverse the trial court`s denial of post-conviction relief and remand for a new trial," it said. Ibar, 43, has spent the past 22 years behind bars, 15 of them on death row, for the murder of a nightclub owner and two women he had brought home with him. The case had been closely followed in Spain, where it was taken up as a cause by anti-death penalty activists. Washington: Hillary Clinton laid into her Democratic challenger on Wednesday, accusing Bernie Sanders of trying unfairly to hog a progressive mantle but admitted she had work to do to win over young voters. "I`m a progressive that likes to get things done," she told a town hall meeting in Derry, New Hampshire where she is fighting against Sanders` dominance in local polls ahead of next week`s state primary. "I was somewhat amused today to hear Senator Sanders set himself up as the gatekeeper for the definition of what`s progressive," she said the event moderated by television news network CNN. "I don`t think it helps for the senator to be making those kind of comparisons because clearly we all share a lot of the same hopes and aspirations for our country," she added. A relaxed and confident former secretary of state answered questions from voters after clinching the narrowest win in Iowa caucus history with 49.8 percent of the vote compared to 49.6 percent for Sanders. Disconcerting for Clinton in the first vote of the lengthy 2016 campaign, was Sanders`s crushing victory among Democratic voters aged 17 to 29, who gave him 84 percent of their vote. "That`s amazing," she said when asked by CNN correspondent Anderson Cooper about Sanders` majority support among young people in Iowa. "I accept the fact that I have work to do to convey what I stand for, what I`ve accomplished, what I want to do for young people in our country," she said. "They don`t have to be for me, I`m going to be for them," she said to warm applause. Her 74-year-old challenger told the town hall that he respected Clinton for her "long and distinguished career" but insisted: "I think there are issues where she just is not progressive." "That`s just not progressive," he said, saying Clinton had taken $15 million from Wall Street, voted for the 2003 Iraq war and supported trade policies with China that had cost American jobs. "You can`t be a moderate and a progressive, they are different," he said. The self-declared democratic socialist has ignited a passionate following among voters with his call to improve income inequality. Dublin: Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny confirmed on Wednesday that his country will go to the polls on February 26 in order to elect a new government. Kenny said that five years ago the country was on the brink of collapse and Ireland`s international reputation was "in tatters", Xinhua reported. He said that five years on there has been real progress, adding public finances were back on track, the economy was growing faster than any country in the European Union and that 135,000 people were back to work. "There is no more bailout, no more Troika and no more dead banks," he said. Irish Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, Alan Kelly said voting will take place from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. local time on that day and ballot boxes will be opened the next day for vote count around the country. Philip O`Sullivan, chief economist at Investec Ireland, said Kenny`s coalition government, composed of Fine Gael (the United Ireland Party) and the Labor Party, should stroll to victory. "It won a landslide majority in the 2011 election and, despite a number of defections over the past five years, still controls 60 percent of the seats in the lower house," O`Sullivan said. The coalition government has the enviable track record of presiding over the fastest growing economy in the European Union while unemployment has tumbled from 15.2 percent in early 2012 to the current 8.6 percent rate, according to the Irish economist. Moscow: Russia on Thursday accused Turkey of actively preparing to invade Syria, saying it had spotted troops and military equipment on the border with the war-torn country. "We have serious grounds to suspect Turkey is in intensive preparations for an armed invasion of the territory of a sovereign state -- the Syrian Arab Republic," the defence ministry said in a statement. Ties between Moscow, which supports the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and Ankara, which is a staunch backer of the opposition, have been in tatters since Turkey shot down a Russian bomber on the Syrian border in November. Moscow`s claims came as Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, speaking at an international aid conference for Syria in London, implicitly accused Russia of "war crimes" in the country. Ankara said earlier Thursday that it had refused to allow a Russian reconnaissance plane to overfly its territory near Syria because of a disagreement over the flight plan. Russia said Turkey had not given Moscow any clear explanation for the decision. "We consider these Turkish actions to be a dangerous precedent and an attempt to conceal illegal military activities at the Syrian border," the defence ministry said. "Moreover, we are recording more and more signs of covert preparations by the Turkish armed forces for active action on Syrian territory," it said, adding that Russia has ramped up reconnaissance in the Middle East. "So if someone in Ankara believes that the cancellation of the flight by Russian monitors would allow (them) to hide something then this is unprofessional." The defence ministry, citing reconnaissance data, said Turkey had recently expanded a parking lot for heavy-duty trucks on the border as well two smaller parking lots in rebel-controlled Syria. "Such sites are used to secure a quick movement of military columns containing ammunition and weapons to a theatre of operations as well as a fast transfer and evacuation of personnel," it said. Moscow said it had recorded plenty of such examples at the Syrian-Turkish border "including the presence of troops and military equipment". Russia also said it was surprised that representatives of Pentagon, NATO and human rights organisations in Syria did not issue any reaction. The Turkish foreign ministry declined to immediately comment on the Russian claim. UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura announced Wednesday the suspension of peace talks to end Syria`s civil war as the West accused Moscow of seeking a military solution to the war and refusing to halt its strikes. Following a request from Assad, Moscow launched a bombing campaign in Syria in September, saying it needed to target jihadists like the Islamic State group before they cross into Russia. The Syrian opposition has been outraged at Moscow`s determination to press ahead with its bombing campaign during peace talks and accused Russia of targeting civilians. Jerusalem: The Israeli Army blockaded a village in the northern West Bank on Thursday that it said was home to Palestinian assailants who carried out a deadly attack in Jerusalem, officials said. Three men from Qabatiya, near Jenin, on Wednesday attacked police with guns and knives outside Jerusalem`s Old City, killing a female officer and wounding another before being shot dead. They were found to be in possession of explosive devices, police said. Following the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with top security officials, who decided to bolster forces in the northern West Bank, carrying out arrests and imposing a blockade on Qabatiya, an official told AFP on condition of anonymity. The attack was described in Israeli media as an "escalation" after more than four months of Palestinian knife, gun and car-ramming attacks. "There`s no doubt that the intention of a terrorist cell with such an arsenal of weapons was to carry out a mass attack," Israel police commissioner Roni Alsheich said on Wednesday. The wave of violence since October has killed 26 Israelis, as well as an American and an Eritrean, according to an AFP count. At the same time, 164 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces, most while carrying out attacks but others during clashes and demonstrations. London: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said he will turn himself over to British police on Friday if a UN panel rules he has not been arbitrarily detained, after spending years in the Ecuadorian embassy in London. "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," he said in a statement on Thursday. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me." Assange has been holed up in the Ecuadoran embassy in west London for more than three years in a bid to avoid extradition to Sweden over rape allegations, a charge he has denied. The Australian WikiLeaks founder fears he could eventually face extradition to the United States to be put on a trial over the leak of hundreds of thousands of classified military and diplomatic documents. In September 2014, he filed a complaint against Sweden and Britain to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention claiming his confinement in the embassy amounts to illegal detention. Any decision by the group would not be legally binding, but other people have reportedly been released in the past on the basis of its rulings. The Congolese PM met with his Egyptian counterpart and Egypt's parliament speaker Congolese Prime Minister Augustin Matata Ponyo has announced his country's support for Egypt's position in the ongoing dispute over Ethiopias controversial Grand Renaissance Dam, which Addis Ababa is building on a tributary to the River Nile. "We have declared our position before regarding the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and we always support Egypt," Ponyo said at a press conference with his Egyptian counterpart Sherif Ismail on Thursday during a visit to Cairo. Ismail, in return, expressed Egypt's support for Congos construction of the Grand Inga Dam on the Congo River. The Democratic Republic of the Congo is one of Africas Nile Basin countries. Despite Egypts concerns over the dam's impact on its share of Nile water, the country's main source of fresh water, Ethiopia insists it would not negatively affect Egypt negatively. Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia have been holding talks over the dam, and are waiting for independent technical reports to determine how the dam might impact upstream countries The Congolese PM and his Egyptian counterpart discussed bilateral cooperation between the two countries. The two officials signed a number of economic development protocols of cooperation. Ponyo also visited Egypts House of Representatives and met with its speaker Ali Abdel-Al. Search Keywords: Short link: Aden: Two suspected US drone strikes killed 12 Islamist militants overnight in southern Yemen, residents said on Thursday, including a top al Qaeda commander who may have been the new leader of Islamic State in Yemen. One strike killed six men in a car travelling in al Rawda city in Shabwa province, a remote desert area where al Qaeda militants are believed to be operating. The province has been targeted by drone strikes this year. Another attack hit militants in their car in the coastal Abyan province, killing six occupants including Jalal Baleedi, a powerful field commander who is suspected of leading al Qaeda attacks on the Yemeni state. As fighting in the country has intensified amid nine months of civil war and a military intervention by Gulf Arab states, Baleedi is believed to have recently defected from Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and become the chief of Islamic State`s Yemen branch. AQAP has taken advantage of the war pitting Houthi militiamen against forces loyal to Saudi-backed President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to grab territory and operate more openly. The group has claimed credit for several thwarted attacks on U.S.-bound airliners as well as the deadly assault on the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in January 2015. But AQAP, seen as the deadliest branch of al Qaeda in the world, has faced ideological competition from Islamic State, which has siphoned off recruits as it has launched spectacular attacks against Shi`ite Muslim mosques and government targets. The United States has kept up a drone campaign against the militants, adding to near-daily air strikes by a Saudi-led Gulf Arab coalition, which intervened in the war last March to rout the Iran-backed Houthis and restore Hadi`s government. Suspected US drone strikes, which normally use Hellfire missiles, have killed some of AQAP`s top leaders, including its chief Nasser al-Wuhayshi last June. Pyongyang: North Korea leader Kim Jong-Un has presided over a top-level meeting to discuss corruption and abuses of power by ruling party officials, state media said on Thursday. In an unusual acknowledgement of systemic problems within the Worker`s Party of Korea (WKP), the meeting identified a series of issues that needed urgent attention, the North`s official KCNA news agency said. "It criticised mainly the practices of seeking privileges, misuse of authority, abuse of power and bureaucratism manifested in the party," it said. Solutions for "overcoming" such challenges were put forward, the agency said, without elaborating. The meeting brought together members of the WKP`s central committee and those of another senior party committee that deals with military affairs. Kim opened the meeting and made a closing address, KCNA said. Corruption is believed to be endemic to nearly every stratum of North Korean society, where bribes are often required for everything from career advancement to access to basic foods and medicine. Last year, North Korea was ranked bottom -- with Somalia -- in the annual Corruption Perception Index compiled by Transparency International, which described the North`s showing as "predictably disastrous." The North Korean media offers little coverage of corruption as a general issue, only raising it in individual cases, such as the 2013 purge of Kim`s powerful uncle Jang Song-Thaek. Jang was vilified as a corrupt, drug-taking womaniser bent on building his own faction in the ruling party. Mogadishu: One passenger is missing after a blast on a commercial airliner that ripped a hole in its fuselage shortly after take-off from Somalia`s capital, the airline said Thursday. "All passengers except one disembarked safely after aircraft landed at the airport," Daallo Airlines said in a statement. "Investigations are underway to ascertain the cause of one missing passenger." Aviation experts and the pilot who landed the plane safely in Mogadishu after the explosion on Tuesday have said they fear the blast was a bomb. There has been no official confirmation of the cause of the explosion. It was not clear if the missing passenger had been on the plane and was potentially blown up in the blast -- or sucked out through the ragged hole ripped in the metal -- or if there was some miscounting with the list of those on board. Photographs showed a large hole -- about a metre in diameter -- just above the engines on the right wing, with streaks of soot on the plane. "Two passengers have been reported to have suffered minor injuries and they were taken to the hospital for treatment," Daallo added. The airline operates flights across Somalia and the wider Horn of Africa and Gulf region. Somalia`s government has said the blast was believed to be caused by a problem with air pressure. "The flight was approximately 15 minutes in the air when the incident happened which caused a hole in the fuselage," Daallo added.The airline said the "incident is currently being investigated" by the Civil Aviation Authority in Mogadishu, as well as a technical team from the aircraft`s owners and its manufacturers, Airbus. Daallo, which said the aircraft affected was owned by Greece`s Hermes Airlines, insisted they take "security and safety of its passengers very seriously," and had been flying across the region for the past 25 years. The Serbian pilot has said he thought the blast had been due to an explosive device, according to reports in the Serbian newspaper Blic on Wednesday. Pilot Vladimir Vodopivec, 64, told a friend he thought it was "a bomb," without giving more details. Vodopivec added that the blast did not damage the navigation systems, and while cabin pressure was lost, he was able to guide the plane back safely to land at Mogadishu airport. Aviation safety expert Xavier Tytelman said Wednesday he had compared images of the blast with photographs of previous explosions, and it had all the appearances of a bomb. It was not caused by any issue of pressurisation, he said, for the blast ripped the metal outwards. Video footage taken after the blast showed people having moved to the back of the plane with emergency oxygen masks dangling down as wind rushed around the main cabin. Mogadishu airport is heavily fortified and adjoins the capital`s main base of the African Union mission to Somalia, the 22,000-strong force backing the government in the battle against Al-Qaeda-affiliated Shebab insurgents. The insurgents have lost ground since being routed from Mogadishu in 2011 but continue to stage regular shooting and suicide attacks. They have launched mortar attacks on the airport compound in the past. They have made no claim of carrying out a bomb attack on the plane. California: The leader of an armed standoff at a federal wildlife refuge in Oregon has been indicted along with several of his followers, including the four still holed up at the site, authorities said Thursday. Ammon Bundy, who was among 12 people arrested last week in relation to the takeover of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, faces charges of intimidation or threats and conspiring to impede federal officials from performing their duties through the use of force. The siege at the refuge began on January 2 when Bundy and some 30 armed followers, most of them from other states, took over the refuge to protest federal land policies. Among the occupiers was Jon Ritzheimer, an Arizona man who gained notoriety for organizing anti-Islam demonstrations and LaVoy Finicum, who acted as spokesman for the group and was killed by police after he drove out of the refuge and tried to run a roadblock. Among the four still at the refuge and refusing to surrender is David Fry, who has vowed to stand his ground. "If they (the FBI) want to turn it into another Tiananmen Square, then they can," he told the online radio station The Watchman News, urging Americans "to rise up in number." "There are going to be consequences," he added. London: Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the notorious terrorist who orchestrated the Paris massacre, boasted about how easy it was for ISIS terrorists to move freely across Europe by mingling with migrants. This was reportedly revealed by the woman who helped catch him. She said that Abaaoud had a bobble hat on his head, orange trainers and a bomber jacket. And he spoke about the attacks as if he had been shopping. He was happy. That was it. Sonia met him two days after the attacks, on an industrial estate in Aubervilliers, a northern suburb of Paris, where people from Romania set up shanty towns, the MailOnline reported. Abaaoud, a Belgian-Moroccan, said around 90 jihadists - including some from Britian - had returned from Syria using false papers and were ready to spread further carnage. Sonia alterted the security agents that Abaaoud moved to a flat in the suburb of St-Denis. Abaaoud was killed during the police raid on November 18 along with another ISIS operative. Sonia has since gone into hiding and changed her identify, the report said. Warsaw: The Polish government`s jet which crashed in 2010 in western Russia, killing the president along with a large number of high-ranking officials had "disintegrated" mid-air, Polish defence minister said on Thursday. Speaking at a ceremony to announce a relaunch of an official investigation into the crash, Antoni Macierewicz appeared to contradict the previous inquiry`s findings that pilot error had led to the tragedy. "(The state investigation committee) has ... had the full record of events with respect to the activity of the plane`s instruments, from the start to the plane`s disintegration mid-air, more or less 15-18 metres above the ground," Macierewicz said. Damascus: Syrian government forces and pro-regime fighters entered two Shiite villages on Thursday that had been under rebel siege, after advancing in a key offensive around second city Aleppo. Syria`s state news agency SANA reported "mass celebrations in the streets of Nubol and Zahraa welcoming Army troops and celebrating the breaking of the siege." The Al-Manar television station of Lebanese militia Hezbollah broadcast what it said was exclusive footage of Syrian government and allied fighters entering the villages. The channel showed crowds embracing soldiers and militiamen, who fired into the air as they arrived. Fighters and residents waved the Syrian flag and the yellow Hezbollah flag, and some chanted pro-regime slogans, including "God, Syria, Bashar and nothing else," in reference to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The two villages had been besieged by rebels since 2012, and reaching them had long been a goal of the government, which has also sought to sever key rebel supply routes into Aleppo. Once Syria`s economic powerhouse, Aleppo city has been divided between government control in the west and rebel control in the east since shortly after fighting there began in mid-2012. The government offensive that began this week, backed by heavy Russian air strikes, has severed the last rebel supply route from opposition-held Aleppo to the Turkish border. Rebels in the city are now surrounded from the south, east, and north, with only a single opening in the northwest that leads to the neighbouring opposition-held province of Idlib. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said at least 64 regime troops had died during the government advance, which began on Monday. It added that more than 100 rebel fighters have been killed in fighting and Russian air strikes that accompanied the advance. Russia, a staunch Assad ally, began an air campaign in support of Damascus in late September, saying it was targeting the Islamic State group and other "terrorists." More than 260,000 people have been killed in Syria since the conflict began with anti-government protests in March 2011. Damascus: Tens of thousands of Syrians were reported to have fled their homes on Thursday as regime troops pressed a major Russian-backed offensive around second city Aleppo. Turkey`s Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, speaking at a donors conference in London, said up to 70,000 people were headed towards his country to escape the fighting. Both Davutoglu and activists said 300,000 people were isolated in Aleppo after the rebels` main supply route from Turkey was severed by regime forces backed by Russian warplanes. "The situation in the north countryside of Aleppo is catastrophic," said Maamoun al-Khateeb, an activist and journalist from nearby Marea village. "Civilians are now besieged from three sides and have just one road to the Turkish territories," he said, explaining that regime forces threatened from the south, Islamic State (IS) group jihadists from the east and Kurdish fighters from the west. The donors conference saw more than $10 billion pledged to help ease the plight of Syrians affected by the nearly five-year war, just hours after the collapse of UN-sponsored peace talks in Geneva. Western nations accused Syria`s regime of torpedoing the talks with its military offensive, and Washington demanded Moscow halt its bombing campaign in support of President Bashar al-Assad. The growing offensive around Aleppo this week overshadowed peace and aid efforts, as regime forces sought to build on a series of important gains since Russia launched air strikes in September. Aleppo city, Syria`s former economic powerhouse, has been divided between opposition control in the east and regime control in the west since mid-2012. The rebels` main supply line to Turkey was severed on Wednesday when regime troops broke an opposition siege of two Shiite towns, Nubol and Zahraa, on the route to the border. Regime forces entered the two towns on Thursday to the cheers of residents, who chanted pro-government slogans and showered the fighters with rice. But elsewhere in the region the advance prompted tens of thousands to flee for fear of being caught up in the fighting.Davutoglu said 60,000 to 70,000 people were "moving towards Turkey" and 10,000 were "waiting at the door" on the border because of air strikes and attacks around Aleppo. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said nearly 40,000 people in Aleppo province had fled their homes, with many massing at the border. Observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman said the regime was now likely to target the Aleppo rebels` last remaining supply route, through the neighbouring opposition-held Idlib province. "The regime has managed to achieve in 72 hours what it failed to for the last three years," he said. A high-ranking Syrian government official described the Aleppo advances as important, but said the regime had even more ambitious goals. "The next objectives are to close the borders with Turkey to prevent the arrival of troops and weapons, then taking Aleppo province, then Idlib province, and finally Idlib city," he told AFP. The offensive has been backed by a wave of Russian air raids, including strikes on Thursday that killed at least 21 civilians, including three children, according to the Observatory. In London for the donors conference, US Secretary of State John Kerry said he had warned Moscow to stop bombing the Syrian opposition, in a "robust" phone call with Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov. Opposition delegates cited continued regime attacks as the key obstacle to this week`s peace efforts, which struggled from the beginning. The opposition arrived late and refused to begin even indirect talks without the implementation of UN Security Council resolutions on the lifting of sieges and protection of civilians.UN envoy Staffan de Mistura said on Wednesday the talks had been suspended but insisted the process had not failed, saying he hoped to resume on February 25. The UN Security Council said it would meet on Friday for consultations with De Mistura on the breakdown. Top diplomats from countries involved in trying to resolve the conflict are also set to meet again on February 11, but tensions inside the group remain strong. Moscow on Thursday accused Ankara, a key backer of opposition to Assad, of actively preparing to invade Syria, saying it had spotted troops and military equipment on the border. It came just hours after Davutoglu accused Assad`s supporters of "committing the same war crimes" as the regime. Meanwhile Saudi Arabia, another backer of Assad`s opponents, said it was ready to join any ground operation in the US-led coalition against IS in Syria. "If there is any willingness in the coalition to go in the ground operation, we will contribute positively in that," Brigadier General Ahmed al-Assiri told AFP. More than 260,000 people have died in Syria`s conflict and more than half the country`s population have been forced from their homes, including over four million who fled abroad. Most Syrian refugees have fled to neighbouring countries, including Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey, but hundreds of thousands have also headed to Europe this year. Marine Corps Air Station Miramar: US Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Wednesday the US military was keeping a vigilant eye on North Koreas missile and nuclear programs, and was continually expanding its defenses against a possible missile attack by Pyongyang. Carter said the United States was on track to expand the number of ground-based missile interceptors in Alaska and Hawaii to 44 from 30, and improve their quality, but no further interceptor expansion was planned for now. Asked if Washington was looking to add more interceptors to those already planned, Carter told reporters: "At the moment, no. That calculus stands... The plan has not changed." North Korea told UN agencies on Tuesday it plans to launch a satellite as early as next week, a move that could advance the country`s long-range missile technology after its fourth nuclear test on January 06. News of the planned launch drew fresh US calls for tougher UN sanctions already under discussion in response to North Korea`s nuclear test last month. Carter said the United States remained concerned about North Korea`s development of intercontinental ballistic missiles and nuclear weapons, and was investing heavily to continue to improve US defenses against a possible attack. The defense secretary spoke with reporters after a visit to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in California, where he vowed to increase funding for servicing aging aircraft and accelerate purchases of new planes to ensure higher readiness rates. Carter said US Marines and other military forces stood ready to "fight tonight" on the Korean peninsula, part of a strategy aimed at deterring North Korea from ever launching an attack on the United States. He said the US military was also working hard to improve the quality and reliability of the existing ground-based interceptors in the United States. The US Missile Defense Agency last week conducted a successful test of the ground-based US missile defense system managed by Boeing Co and a redesigned "kill vehicle" or warhead built by Raytheon Co. A senior Boeing official said it would test additional improvements to the system later this year during a first test of the system`s ability to intercept an intercontinental ballistic missile, or ICBM. The United States has been developing the USD 41 billion weapons system to defeat the long ranges and high velocities of an ICBM like those being developed by North Korea and Iran. It previously tested and intercepted dummy missiles that simulated short and medium-range ballistic missiles. London: A United Nations panel has ruled that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has been "arbitrarily detained", the BBC reported on Thursday. No comment was immediately available from the United Nations in Geneva, where the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has been considering a request by Assange for a ruling. Writing on Wikileaks' Twitter account Wednesday night, Assange said if the U.N. finds he has lost his case against the United Kingdom and Sweden then he will turn himself into police at noon on Friday. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," Assange added. Assange, 44, is wanted in Sweden for questioning over allegations of rape in 2010, which he denies. He took refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy in London in June 2012 to avoid extradition.Wikileaks founder Julian Assange says he will accept arrest by British police if a U.N. working group on arbitrary detention decides that the three years he has spent holed up in the Ecuadorean Embassy does not amount to illegal detention. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Italian Prime Minister, "Matteo Renzi" spoke by phone this afternoon, the Egyptian presidency said. The President expressed his sincere condolences to the Italian Prime Minister and to the Government and the people of Italy on the death of the Italian citizen, "Giulio Regeni," who passed away in Egypt recently. President Sisi has also expressed his deep condolences to the family and friends of Mr. Regeni. President El Sisi stressed that the Egyptian competent authorities attach the outmost attention to investigating the incident, and that the Egyptian Ministry of Interior is instructed to continue its efforts ,in cooperation with the Public Prosecution, so as to unravel the mystery surrounding the incident and follow up on all the circumstances surrounding it. The President stressed that the Italian side will find the necessary cooperation by the Egyptian competent authorities in this regard. The Italian Prime Minister expressed his gratitude to the president on his deep condolences. Mr. Renzi lauded the positive spirit of cooperation that the Egyptian side shows in dealing with the incident, noting that this position reflects the friendly relations that bind the two countries and their peoples. The two sides confirm, during the phone call, the need to enhance and further develop economic cooperation. They reviewed the positive results of the important meetings held by the Italian business delegation, headed by the Italian minister of economic development during her recent visit to Egypt, which demonstrated the huge prospects of economic cooperation between the two countries. They stressed their commitment to work together against terrorism, and to confront extremism and violence as well as to prevent the proliferation of the terrorist groups in several countries in the region. They highlighted the importance of stepping up efforts to consolidate the stability and security of the Middle East and the Mediterranean, particularly in Libya. Both sides reassured the importance of forming the National unity government, as an important stepping-stone towards establishing a new Libya. Search Keywords: Short link: London: World leaders pledged over $10 billion (9.0 billion euros) Thursday to help conflict-hit Syrians at a London conference overshadowed by the breakdown of peace talks in Geneva. The European Union, Germany, Britain and the United States were among the biggest donors to provide food, education and job opportunities for Syrians in their homeland and neighbouring countries where they have fled. But hopes that the package could make a major difference inside Syria were weighed down by the suspension Wednesday of peace talks in Geneva until February 25. That came as Syrian President Bashar al-Assad`s forces, supported by Russian air strikes, stepped up their offensive near the major northern city of Aleppo, forcing nearly 40,000 civilians to flee. "Today`s achievements are not a solution to the crisis -- we still need to see a political transition," British Prime Minister David Cameron said as the conference wrapped up. "But with today`s commitments... our message to the people of Syria and the region is clear -- we will stand with you and support you for as long as it takes". Other steps agreed included the creation of an estimated 1.1 million jobs for Syrian refugees and those living in neighbouring countries by 2018. The conference also committed to getting 1.7 million children into education by the end of 2016/17. The $10 billion was split between just over half the amount which will be given out this year and the rest which was committed for 2017-20. Despite the pledges, the mood among many leaders was bleak, reflecting frustration at the halt Wednesday of the so-called proximity talks in Geneva which were seen as the best hope for peace since the conflict erupted in March 2011. "After five years of fighting, it`s pretty incredible that as we come here in London, the situation on the ground is actually worse, not better," US Secretary of State John Kerry said. "If people are reduced to eating grass and leaves and killing stray animals in order to survive, that`s something that should tear at the conscience of all civilised people," he added. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu accused the Assad regime of using a "middle centuries war strategy of starvation" against civilians near Aleppo. Among the biggest donors were the EU and its member states, which pledged more than three billion euros this year. Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose open-door policy for refugees has proved deeply controversial in Germany, offered 2.3 billion euros ($2.6 billion) by 2018. "What we can do by providing some funds for you is one element to help people not to have to embark on these very dangerous journeys that would take them to Europe," Merkel said. Britain announced 1.2 billion (1.6 million euros, $1.74 billion) and the United States $890 million. Cameron, who was co-hosting the conference, said a "new approach" was needed to address "one of the worst humanitarian crises of our time". His government, which has agreed to take 20,000 Syrian refugees by 2020, argues that those displaced are best helped close to home and wants to support neighbouring countries in doing so. Around 4.6 million Syrians have fled to nearby countries -- Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt -- while hundreds of thousands have gone to Europe. Jordan`s King Abdullah II said that one in five people living in his country was now a refugee and that it had "reached our limit". Among those drumming up donations was Pakistani Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, who called for $1.4 billion of donations to help educate children inside Syria and in refugee camps. Representatives of Syrian charities attending the event noted that many more colleagues had been unable to make it as they had not been granted visas. During one session, Rouba Mhaissen, founder of Sawa For Development And Aid, asked how many Syrians were in the room -- and only two people put their hands up. Fadi Hallisso, co-founder of Basmeh and Zeitooneh (Smile and Olive) which works with refugees in Turkey and Lebanon, stressed the importance of protecting Syrians as a priority. "We are at the beginning of the right track but we have to watch to see that countries are committing to what they have pledged," he told AFP. He added that he was "not over-optimistic either because what is the point of constructing a school if it is bombarded?" Russia military special forces With current force deployments, Russia could steamroll NATO forces in the Baltic states. In the most dire scenario for NATO, Moscow would be able to conquer all the way to Estonia's capital Tallinn in 36 hours, according to a new report from the think tank RAND Corp. The report, which attempted to answer the questions of what would happen should Russia invade the NATO-member Baltic states and what could be done to prevent such a scenario, paints an incredibly bleak picture of NATO's ability to defend its members most exposed to Russia. Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia are between Russia, Russia's principle ally, Belarus, the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, and the Baltic Sea. The three nations with the exception of a sliver of Lithuania lack any shared borders with fellow NATO nations. russia map baltic This lack of a border, combined with the ongoing drawdown of NATO forces relative to Russia's revanchist militarism, places the three countries at substantial risk from Russian adventurism. The RAND report, between summer 2014 and spring 2015, simulated a series of war games with military and nonmilitary experts in order to understand what would happen during a Russian invasion. As current NATO force structures stand in Europe, RAND found that the military organization "cannot successfully defend the territory of its most exposed members." In the best-case scenarios for NATO, Russia was prevented from reaching the outskirts of the Latvian or Estonian capitals for 60 hours. In the more dire scenarios, Russian forces were able to make it to the capitals in only 36 hours. nato v. russia This report from RAND echoes similar concerns of Gen. Petr Pavel, current chairman of the NATO Military Committee. On May 27, 2015, Pavel warned that Moscow would be able to conquer the three Baltic States within two days despite their NATO membership. Pavel believed this would be largely possible because of NATO's relatively slow-moving command structure. Story continues "On the one hand, one of [NATO's] disadvantages is its complex process of decision making. It is because NATO has 28 members who have to reach consensus on all conclusions," Pavel told Czech news site CTK. He continued: "From the technical point of view, if I consider how many forces Russia is able to deploy in the Baltics, the size of the Baltic countries, and the density of forces on their territories, the Baltics could really be occupied in a couple of days." NATO US baltic russia Russia's ability to conquer the Baltics is because of the Kremlin's ongoing push to modernize its military in addition to a general decline in NATO's ability to defend itself. Whereas Russia has undertaken massive pushes to modernize its fleet, with the possible outcome of denying NATO access to the Baltic Sea, and update its air force to deny the US air superiority, NATO military spending has largely fallen. As Foreign Policy notes, the US Army has pulled two heavily armored divisions out of Germany and maintains only two in Europe at this point. And in 2015, only five NATO nations met the minimum defense-spending limit that the organization urges its members to meet. But RAND notes that simple steps would change the calculus to enough of a degree as to prevent Russia's conquest of the Baltics. By deploying about seven brigades in Europe, NATO could ensure that it would have enough firepower to at least dissuade a Russian offensive. Here is the full report: NOW WATCH: The US Navy's last line of defense is this ultimate gun More From Business Insider A giant suitcase for Louis Vuitton is on display outside a Louis Vuitton store in Shanghai, August 2, 2010. The world's top luxury brands like Burberry and Coach are pouring funds into China's multi-billion dollar luxury market, wresting control of their brands from Chinese partners as they swoop back in a market set to become the world's No.1. Picture taken August 2, 2010. Dom Perignon, Christian Dior, Bulgari, TAG Heuer, De Beers, and Louis Vuittonthe most valuable luxury-goods brand in the worldall live under a single banner: LVMH. This French luxury company owns a whopping 70 brands, several among the worlds most prestigious. No wonder, then, that its considered a bellwether for high-end spending. With an economic slowdown hitting China, whose citizens account for more than 30% of luxury spending globally, LVMH might be expected to worry. But according to CEO Bernard Arnault, its still optimistic. Analysts underestimate the Chinese economy, Arnault said on Feb. 2, after LVMH reported very strong full-year earnings for 2015. The fundamentals are good. Household spending is still increasing, and thats important to us. LVMH said revenue climbed 16% to about 35.7 billion ($39.1 billion) for 2015, bolstered by good performance across categories and especially in its largest division, fashion and leather goods. That doesnt mean LVMH has been immune to Chinas economic problems. The company acknowledged last quarter that Chinas stock market plunge in August hurt its sales some. While sales grew nicely in 2015 in the US, Europe, and Japan, sales in Asiamostly meaning Chinawere down. Bain Consulting estimates the entire countrys luxury market shrank 2% for the year, hurt by economic trouble and an ongoing crackdown on corruption that has put a crimp in officials buying and giving expensive gifts. Arnault made clear that he was thinking years ahead. You have to be optimistic in the long term and pessimistic in the short term. That allows you to prepare for the worst, he said (paywall). Looking farther out, many analysts do believe Chinas spending on high-end goods will grow with the emergence of a sizable middle class in the country. Arnault also expressed confidence in Hong Kong, which has been one of the most challenging environments for luxury, as tourism from the mainland slows. The downturn there is cyclical, he said and pointed to Hong Kong as one of the high points in Asia and one of the drivers of our growth. Not only is LVMH not closing shops there, its renovating its Louis Vuitton flagship. Story continues LVMH has the benefit of a strong roster of brands to support it, including Louis Vuitton, which has been consistently excellent under the creative direction of Nicolas Ghesquiere. Not every luxury company is performing as well. But LVMHs strategy in China wont be to forge blindly ahead. Rather, as Arnault emphasized, it will remain flexible. It will close stores when it makes sense to do so, but then it will also open new ones. Sign up for the Quartz Daily Brief, our free daily newsletter with the worlds most important and interesting news. More stories from Quartz: [Luxembourg is the first country in Europe to stake out rights for the mining of so-called near-Earth objects such as asteroids, according to officials/AFP Photo] The tiny European country of Luxembourg has announced an ambitious economic plan: it wants to begin mining in space. Our aim is to open access to a wealth of previously unexplored mineral resources on lifeless rocks hurling through space, without damaging natural habitats, Etienne Schneider, the countrys economic minister, said in a statement released online. The country plans on partnering with two space development agencies, Planetary Resources and Deep Space Industries, to extract metals, such as iron, gold and platinum from asteroids. Mining some asteroids apparently can have huge payoffs. Mic.com reported that one steroid held so much platinum it was worth more than the entire GDP of the United Kingdom. Luxembourg isnt the only country looking forward to their space game. U.S. President Barack Obama signed an Asteroid Resource Property Rights law and Japan launched its own asteroid mining project in 2015. By Allison Lampert MONTREAL (Reuters) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged on Tuesday to require that environmental reviews of oil pipelines and LNG export projects consider greenhouse gas effects, and said it was not his role to be a cheerleader for such projects. The Liberal government said the new rules would be rolled out within days, and that they would take into account not just the greenhouse gas emissions from a proposed pipeline or liquefied natural gas terminal but also its "upstream" effects, meaning the impact of oil and gas production. Trudeau did not make clear how much weight would be applied to the emissions. U.S. President Barack Obama rejected TransCanada Corp's Keystone XL pipeline from Canada last year, citing the effect it could have on climate change. "The federal role is to put into place a process by which TransCanada and any other company could demonstrate that their projects are in the public interest and could have public support," Trudeau told reporters after meeting Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre, who opposes TransCanada's Energy East pipeline. Energy East would carry 1.1 million barrels of crude oil from Alberta and Saskatchewan across numerous provinces to refineries and export terminals in eastern Canada. "What we are going to roll out very soon, as we promised in our election campaign, is to establish a clear process which will consider all the greenhouse gas emissions tied to a project, which will build on the work already done." The Liberals have pledged to strengthen Canada's environmental process and have been working on a transition plan for projects currently under review to ensure they adhere to a higher standard without having to return to square one. The new rules would apply to major pipeline and LNG projects like TransCanada's Energy East, Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain expansion and the Petronas-led Pacific NorthWest LNG export terminal. Projects with existing environmental certificates and pipelines regulated on a provincial level would not be impacted. Ali Hounsell, spokeswoman for the $5.4 billion Trans Mountain project, said it was too soon to comment on the impact of the new rules but added the company would be eyeing changes to timing. "When you look at additional process, the key issue for us is timeline," she said. "A small delay in timeline can result in a longer delay on the other end." TransCanada said it is prepared to work with government to ensure the "safe and environmentally sound" transport of resources to market. Trudeau has promised the new process would give the various levels of government, scientists and indigenous people the opportunity to take part in decision-making. (Additional reporting by Julie Gordon in Vancouver, Randall Palmer and Leah Schnurr in Ottawa; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli and James Dalgleish) By Matthew Smith LA LOCHE, Saskatchewan (Reuters) - Residents of the remote Canadian town of La Loche, having softened frozen cemetery ground with bonfires, prepared to bury their loved ones as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau arrived on Friday at the site of Canada's worst mass shooting in a decade. Trudeau's visit comes a week after a shooter killed four people and wounded seven at a home and high school, and a day before funerals were to begin in the aboriginal Saskatchewan town. "It was an extremely touching visit for me," Trudeau said, in a soft voice choked with emotion. "We met an extraordinarily resilient community of people here in La Loche." The prime minister laid flowers at a makeshift memorial in snow outside the school, and met privately with family members of victims. Trudeau, elected in October, has pledged to repair relations with Canada's 1.4 million aboriginals, who make up 5 percent of the population but are disproportionately victims of violent crime and incarceration. A 17-year-old boy has been charged in the shootings. Local media said the teen had been taunted about his large ears, and during the shootings spared students who had been kind to him. Two brothers, a teacher and teaching assistant were killed. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, in Quebec City for meetings, offered Canada his country's prayers. "But we also take heart from the knowledge that Canadians are a very brave and resilient people. No gunman can change that and we are very proud to have you as friends." La Loche's population of 2,600 is about 90 percent Metis and Dene, and the Dene language is widely spoken in addition to English. The shooting has sparked debate about how to improve life in communities like La Loche, where the legacy of colonization and an abusive residential school system have fueled high rates of suicide, addiction, and unemployment, despite nearby oil and mining projects. Asked by reporters about aid for La Loche and communities like it, Trudeau said he came to listen and had brought several cabinet ministers to see the needs firsthand. Trudeau's first budget is expected in March or April. "It's a big tragic situation right now and it takes this kind of a thing to open our eyes," said Gilbert Benjamin, a relative of one shooting victim. "We've been crying for so many years. We are struggling, we need help and nobody seems to look at it." (Reporting by Andrea Hopkins in Toronto; Additional reporting by Rod Nickel in Winnipeg and Lesley Wroughton in Quebec City; Editing by Bill Trott and Sandra Maler) France has destroyed an ISIS training camp in a joint raid with coalition partners, the defence ministry said Thursday. The air raid took place on Monday, around 60 kilometres northeast of Aleppo, a rebel-held town in northern Syria. "It allowed us to destroy an important site serving as a training camp and weapons store for Daesh (the Arabic acronym for ISIS)," the ministry said in a statement. The ministry did not provide evidence that a training camp was targeted, and provided no information on casualties. Around 20 planes took part in the raid, including French Rafale fighters. One of the French SCALP missiles used in the strikes had a technical fault that caused it to crash-land in a field, the statement added. Some 20 countries taking part in the campaign against ISIS vowed on Wednesday to intensify their attacks against the jihadist group. Washington says it has carried out nearly 10,000 air strikes against the group in Iraq and Syria. Search Keywords: Short link: By Diane Bartz WASHINGTON (Reuters) - State-owned China National Chemical Corp [CNNCC.UL], which plans to buy Swiss seeds and pesticide maker Syngenta, will promptly start preparations for what could be a lengthy U.S. national security review, as the House Agriculture Committee chairman said he would monitor the deal. Representative Michael Conaway, a Texas Republican who chairs the Agriculture Committee, is aware of the deal and "will be closely monitoring this as it develops," a committee spokeswoman said in an emailed statement to Reuters. The $43 billion deal, which was announced on Wednesday as a way for China to better feed its 1.4 billion people, would face scrutiny from a U.S. government panel that reviews foreign acquisitions to establish whether they will harm national security. Last month, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS, stunned markets by blocking the $3.3 billion sale of Dutch company Philips' lighting unit to a consortium of Asian buyers. Syngenta, which generates nearly a quarter of its revenue from North America, is the biggest seller of pesticides in North America and also a key player in seeds. Its U.S. headquarters are in North Carolina. It has other facilities in the state, as well a presence in California, Delaware, Iowa and Minnesota, among others. Davor Pisk, Syngenta's chief operating officer, said the company performs no classified work for the U.S. government and none of its U.S. facilities appear to be near sensitive U.S. government facilities. Still, the company plans to file promptly to CFIUS, which comprises representatives from 16 U.S. agencies including Treasury, Homeland Security and Defense. "As is best practice in foreign acquisitions involving U.S. businesses, the parties will make a voluntary filing with CFIUS, even though no obvious national security concerns were identified during due diligence," Pisk said in an emailed statement. Story continues SENSITIVE STUFF One person familiar with the deal added that if issues cropped up, the companies were prepared to take steps to address potential problems. In past cases, mitigation has required asset sales. Philips was not allowed to disclose the nature of the concerns raised by CFIUS last month. But the involvement of Chinese firms in the consortium and the fact that the unit produced semiconductors - an industry the U.S. considers part of its critical infrastructure - may have played a role. CFIUS's national security concerns tend to focus on military contracting, high-tech assets, communications networks, as well as facilities which may have no apparent security issues but are near sensitive U.S. military bases. In 2012, CFIUS stopped a small Chinese company, Ralls Corp, from buying a wind farm in Oregon because the farm was near a training site used to test unmanned drones. Michael Wessel, a member of the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission which was created to monitor China for Congress, said he expected CFIUS would take a hard look at the ChemChina deal for Syngenta. "This is a $43 billion firm, I do not believe we are talking about basic nitrogen-based fertilizers but some very high value products," he said. "This should be subject to strict scrutiny." The vast majority of deals that CFIUS looks at are approved, while a few are changed to address national security concerns raised by the inter-agency commission. CFIUS looked at 480 transactions between 2009 and 2013 and investigated 193 of them. An unknown number were withdrawn by companies during the review process and scrapped and one was formally rejected, according to a CFIUS annual report to Congress issued in 2015. (Editing by Soyoung Kim, Matthew Lewis and Lincoln Feast) By Chen Aizhu and Freya Berry BEIJING/LONDON (Reuters) - A frenetic year of negotiations and setbacks preceded China National Chemical Corp's (ChemChina) blockbuster $43 billion bid for Swiss seeds and pesticides giant Syngenta . But state-owned ChemChina boss Ren Jianxin's dream of snapping up either Syngenta or its U.S. rival Dow Chemical Co goes back much further - to just after his firm was officially established in 2004. "We've been following Syngenta from shortly after the group was founded, scouting for co-operation projects and joint venture opportunities," said one veteran ChemChina staff member. "To ChemChina, Syngenta and Dow were goddesses that we hoped one day we could win." For more than a decade, such aspirations were unaffordable for ChemChina and unappealing for Syngenta. Ren spent those years though developing a strong relationship with Mike Mack who, until last October, was Syngenta's chief executive. Ren's canny relationship-building came into its own a year ago, when the Swiss firm found itself the subject of hostile bids from U.S. rival Monsanto . "When it became clear that Syngenta was under attack from Monsanto, ChemChina called them up and asked if they should play the white knight," said one adviser on the deal. ChemChina mandated HSBC to work with them on a possible approach and while Syngenta was rebuffing Monsanto, it was drawing up ideas with its Chinese counterpart on what they could do together. At the time, the state-owned Chinese giant could not match Monsanto's financial fire power, but its collegial relationship with Syngenta left it in a strong position for later negotiations. "ChemChina had reached out. They understood their proposal then was not commensurate with Monsanto's," said one source who worked on the deal from Syngenta's side. THE FRIENDLY SUITOR Last August Syngenta spurned Monsanto's final offer for the company, which had valued it at $47 billion, prompting the U.S. firm to walk away, citing a lack of "constructive engagement" from the Swiss firm. Syngenta said Monsanto was trying to buy it on the cheap, but the rejection angered investors, especially when the company's subsequent third quarter earnings came in shy of expectations. So two months after the final Monsanto rejection, Ren's ally Mack left the company. By then consolidation between Syngenta's rivals Dow and DuPont coupled with a slump in grain prices meant the board felt it had little choice but to push on negotiations with its friendly Chinese suitor. "Discussions intensified at the time the Dow-DuPont merger surfaced, because that effectively took two players out of the market," said the adviser. Bankers and company executives shuttled between meetings in Basel, Beijing and London, with Gordon Dyal, Goldman Sachs' former head of M&A, advising Syngenta through his one-man Dyalco outfit. For several months, discussions were focused on a complex two-stage takeover that would involve ChemChina buying 70 percent of Syngenta up front, and the remaining 30 percent further down the line, according to the adviser on the deal. That "proved too difficult to pull off from technical execution to regulatory approval" the adviser said, prompting discussions to move on to a pure all-in cash $43 billion deal. "Towards end of the year, they indicated a value to us that we thought we could work with. The key issue for us is that we were never going to reach an agreement unless funding was certain and confirmed," said the Syngenta-side source on the deal. A source with knowledge of the deal said on Wednesday that ChemChina had secured 100 percent of its funding requirements. "That's what they achieved through the month of January; what clinched the deal ultimately was the ability to confirm to us that funding was in place. We had some discussions on price but the key was that the money was good," the Syngenta-side source said. (Additional reporting by Arno Schuetze in Frankfurt; writing by Rachel Armstrong; editing by Philippa Fletcher) Egyptian security forces are searching for an Italian student from Cambridge University who has gone missing in Cairo. Giulio Regeni, 28, disappeared on 25 January, the five-year anniversary of Egypt's 2011 uprising that led to the end of president Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule. Amr Assad, a friend of Mr Regeni, said the student disappeared after leaving his home to meet another friend in the city. "He wanted to visit for a friend's birthday. He sent me a text message about that. When I called him back his phone was off," said Mr Assad. "The next day ... I knew from another friend who was waiting for him in the street that he never arrived. His phone was off since." The Italian embassy said it was working closely with the Egyptian authorities to locate Mr Regeni, who was studying Egypt's trade unions in Cairo as part of his Cambridge doctorate. A copy of Mr Regeni's CV, provided by another friend, indicated he spoke four languages and had won several scholarships. :: Egypt: What's Changed Since The Uprising? Friends of the missing student have launched a campaign to raise awareness of his disappearance using the hashtag #whereisgiulio. Malek Adly, a lawyer following Mr Regeni's case, said it was unclear if there was a political motive for his disappearance. "We have a precedent. There was a Croatian citizen who was kidnapped and slaughtered." he said. He added: "We also have precedents where Egyptian security captures people and they disappear." Islamic State militants kidnapped a Croatian man from the outskirts of Cairo last year and later beheaded him. Human rights groups say Egyptians are often beaten and detained by police on little evidence. Scores have disappeared since 2013 when the country was thrown into turmoil by violent clashes between activists and police. By Anthony Esposito SANTIAGO (Reuters) - Chile health authorities on Tuesday identified the first three cases of Zika virus on the mainland but said the people were infected while traveling abroad and did not present a risk to the general population. A 28-year-old man was infected while traveling in Colombia, a 28-year-old man contracted the virus in Venezuela and a 35-year-old man got the virus in Brazil. The health ministry said there is no danger of the virus spreading on mainland Chile. Zika is an infection linked to thousands of birth defects in Brazil that is spreading through Latin America and the Caribbean by mosquitoes. "Despite the confirmation of these cases, this is not a health risk for the population, since continental Chile does not have the mosquito that transmits the disease," acting Health Minister Gisela Alarcon told reporters on Tuesday. Chile's Easter Island, some 3,700 km (2,300 miles) from the mainland, does have the mosquito that carries the disease and had 173 Zika cases in 2014. All the Zika cases on Easter Island were "mild" and no pregnant women presented any complications due to the infection, Chilean health authorities said. The World Health Organization has said the virus, linked to severe birth defects in Brazil, has been spreading rapidly in the Americas and could infect 4 million people. It said it had launched a global response unit to fight the mosquito-borne virus, which is spreading rapidly in Latin America. Africa and Asia are also seen as being vulnerable. (Reporting by Anthony Esposito; Editing by Jonathan Oatis and Lisa Shumaker) The governor of Florida has declared a health emergency in four counties due to the Zika virus. At least nine cases of the mosquito-bourne illness have been detected in Florida. Health officials there believe all of the cases are from people who contracted the virus while travelling to affected countries. Governor Rick Scott signed the emergency order on Wednesday, covering Miami-Dade, Lee, Hillsborough and Santa Rosa counties, where the cases of infection were detected. The order authorised the state's agriculture department to boost the use of mosquito spray in those counties, primarily in residential areas. "Although Florida's current nine Zika cases were travel-related, we have to ensure Florida is prepared and stays ahead of the spread of the Zika virus in our state," Gov Scott said in a statement. The move comes a day after health officials in Texas announced that a Zika patient in Dallas acquired the virus through sexual contact - raising fresh fears about the disease, which has been linked to birth defects. Meanwhile, health officials in Florida's neighbouring state of Georgia confirmed its first Zika case on Wednesday. That individual contracted the disease after travelling to Columbia in January, and has since made a full recovery, officials said. :: Zika Virus: Will It Spread And Can We Stop It? US health officials said last week that 31 people in the US have been diagnosed with Zika in the past year. All of the infections are thought to have originated through travel to Latin America. The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that the virus is "spreading explosively" in the Americas. The group also warned people in Europe to prepare now for the potential spread of the virus during the spring and summer as temperatures rise. Zika, which is considered to be primarily spread by mosquitoes, has been linked to a steep increase in the number of babies born with microcephaly, which causes abnormally small heads and brains. Story continues Cases have so far been reported in 36 countries and territories, with Brazil among the worst affected. The US has issued a travel alert to 30 destinations, mostly in Latin America and the Caribbean. Jamaica and Tonga in the South Pacific were added to the list on Wednesday. Health officials have advised pregnant women to avoid travel to affected areas. Rumble This video shows the incredible behaviour of a caring mother elephant on high alert, quickly stopping her adorable baby which was curiously straying away from her towards a vehicle full of safari tourists. Going on safari in the Kruger National Park is a life changing experience. Driving around multiple tarred roads, slowly scanning a massive area of wilderness is all part of the thrill. You never know what will be around the next corner or what animal will suddenly appear from the bush onto the road. Its an exciting experience and one of the must-see animals for most tourists are elephants. Not only are they the largest land mammals on our planet and fairly intimidating, elephants are also one of the most intelligent and emotionally intelligent animals that roam this planet. Seeing these giants in the wild is always a sight to remember. The video shows an incredible moment filmed in the Kruger National Park when a safari vehicle full of tourists found a large elephant cow and her adorable calf next to the road. The safari vehicle stopped and it looked like the mother elephant and her baby wanted to cross the road. The baby elephant was the cutest thing alive in the wild right at that moment. While the elephant cow remained focussed on crossing the road, her baby took notice of the safari vehicle and curiously started straying away from its mother towards the vehicle. The caring mother elephant immediately went into high alert and quickly took her trunk and stopped her baby from going any closer to the safari vehicle. The mother elephant gently used her trunk to guide her baby back and into the right direction. It was incredible to see how quickly the elephant cow became protective over her baby. The elephant calf listened to its mother and in a well-behaved manner, walking on the opposite side of its mother, continued to focus and follow its mother as it should. This is crucial for the survival of the calf in the wild. The gestation period of an elephant is twenty-two months, so it is very understandable that an elephant calf is seen as a huge investment and there will always be a mother around, ready to protect her calf from any potential danger. Even though the tourists were not a direct threat, the mother elephant knows all to well that there are humans that still pose a danger for them in the wild. The mother of such a small calf is definitely not something to mess with at all and its best never to get too close to a mother and her calf. CAIRO (Reuters) - An Italian student from Britain's Cambridge University who went missing last week in Cairo is likely dead, the Italian foreign ministry said on Wednesday. It said that it was still waiting for official confirmation from Egyptian authorities about the fate of Giulio Regeni, 28, who disappeared on Jan. 25, the five-year anniversary of the 2011 uprising that ended Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule. Tensions were high in Egypt in the run-up to the anniversary, with police detaining activists and warning people not to demonstrate. No significant protests took place. "The Italian government had learnt of the probable tragic end to this affair," the foreign ministry said in a statement issued in Rome. Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni had expressed his deep condolences to Regeni's family, the statement said. An Egyptian security source said the interior ministry would not comment on the case until the conclusion of its investigation. The Italian foreign ministry did not give any indication of how the student might have died or whether his body had been found. Italian news agency Ansa said his body had been found in a ditch in a Cairo suburb but gave no further information. A friend of Regeni said he disappeared after leaving his home in an upper middle class area to meet a friend downtown. Last year, Islamic State militants kidnapped a Croatian man from the outskirts of Cairo and later beheaded him, but such incidents are rare and there was heavy police presence in downtown Cairo when Regeni went missing. (Reporting by Ahmed Aboulenein; Additional reporting by Antonella Cinelli and Crispian Balmer in Rome; editing by Grant McCool) More than two years after a train carrying oil tankers derailed and exploded in the centre of Lac-Megantic, Que., two out of three residents still show signs of moderate to severe post-traumatic stress. Those findings come from the second study looking at the state of health of people in the region, compiled by the public health authority and released today. The July 6, 2013, incident levelled the city's core and killed 47 people. "Very little improvement, and even a deterioration, was seen in health status compared to what was seen a year after the tragedy," said Dr. Melissa Genereux, director of public health for Quebec's Estrie region. In total, 1,600 people from Lac-Megantic and the greater region participated in the latest study looking at the overall health of the population. The results showed that health and psychological problems were greater among the residents of Lac-Megantic, even those without a direct connection to the victims, compared to others in the region. The study also showed that anxiety issues are two times higher in the city compared to others in the region and that the number of people in Lac-Megantic who consulted psychologists or social workers dropped by half since 2014. Other findings include: - One person out of six in Lac-Megantic reported an increase in alcohol consumption the past two years, an increase two times higher than the rest of the region. - Thirteen per cent of the Lac-Megantic residents surveyed said they do not feel safe in their neighbourhood. In the rest of the region, only two per cent of respondents answered the same. Fears persist Andre Lachapelle, co-founder of the local coalition of citizens and associations for railway safety, said he is not surprised by the report's findings. "No matter what they're carrying, people are afraid to see trains passing through Megantic," he said. "People will feel good when they get a commitment from the government that they will do a bypass track around town." Story continues Transport Minister Marc Garneau confirmed Sunday that trains passing through the town of Lac-Megantic, won't carry crude oil until next year. Officials with the regional health authority said they will continue to work with the population of Lac-Megantic to address the lingering effects of trauma and its consequences. "Because this tragedy is without precedent, we will adjust the services we offer to ensure the welfare of this community," said Carole Fillion, deputy director for social programs and rehabilitation with the regional health authority. The disaster orphaned 27 children, left 160 people homeless and damaged 44 buildings beyond repair. A Quebec coroner ruled in October 2014 that the deaths in Lac-Megantic were violent and avoidable. Residents, community groups and elected officials will gather in March for a "collective reflection day" to adjust the plan for clinical and community services. On Saturday, the city inaugurated of its Reconstruction Office in the downtown area and received a commitment of $1.9 million over the next three years from the federal government help the town rebuild. Syrian government forces and pro-regime fighters entered two Shiite villages on Thursday that had been under rebel siege, after advancing in a key offensive around second city Aleppo. Syria's state news agency SANA reported "mass celebrations in the streets of Nubol and Zahraa welcoming army troops and celebrating the breaking of the siege." The Al-Manar television station of Lebanese militia Hezbollah broadcast what it said was exclusive footage of Syrian government and allied fighters entering the villages. The channel showed crowds embracing soldiers and militiamen, who fired into the air as they arrived. Fighters and residents waved the Syrian flag and the yellow Hezbollah flag, and some chanted pro-regime slogans, including "God, Syria, Bashar and nothing else," in reference to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The two villages had been besieged by rebels since 2012, and reaching them had long been a goal of the government, which has also sought to sever key rebel supply routes into Aleppo. Once Syria's economic powerhouse, Aleppo city has been divided between government control in the west and rebel control in the east since shortly after fighting there began in mid-2012. The government offensive that began this week, backed by heavy Russian air strikes, has severed the last rebel supply route from opposition-held Aleppo to the Turkish border. Rebels in the city are now surrounded from the south, east, and north, with only a single opening in the northwest that leads to the neighbouring opposition-held province of Idlib. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based monitor, said at least 64 regime troops had died during the government advance, which began on Monday. It added that more than 100 rebel fighters have been killed in fighting and Russian air strikes that accompanied the advance. Russia, a staunch Assad ally, began an air campaign in support of Damascus in late September, saying it was targeting ISIS group and other "terrorists." More than 260,000 people have been killed in Syria since the conflict began with anti-government protests in March 2011. Search Keywords: Short link: Mobile Crisis workers in Regina have given their union a strike mandate. The union says its members are worried about working alone because it puts them in dangerous situations. In a statement, the union says there is a seven-hour window on weekdays when only one worker is on shift, and they want at least two people staffing the unit at all times to ensure safety for themselves and people who are vulnerable. Regina Mobile Crisis Services provides a range of programs, from child protection and domestic abuse emergency intervention, to gambling counselling. "As a result of working alone, crisis workers are experiencing mental exhaustion, ethical dilemmas, safety concerns, dropped calls and delays in providing services putting client safety at risk," said the union release. In response, the board of directors said the unit is stretched for funding, and it has to make difficult scheduling decisions. "It's based on what kinds of calls we get at what time of the day and all of those kinds of things go into these decisions," said Grant Nicurity, board chairman of Mobile Crisis Services. "So they're not easy decisions to make, but you make them as best you can within the resources you have." Mobile Crisis said the non-profit organization is running a $50,000 deficit and is asking its contributors for more money. By James Mackenzie and Mirwais Harooni KABUL (Reuters) - Coalition aircraft struck Islamic State's new radio station in the eastern Afghan province of Nangarhar late on Monday, part of NATO's escalating campaign to stop the ultra-radical Islamist movement taking root in the country. Attaullah Khogyani, spokesman for the Nangarhar provincial governor, said the overnight raid also involved Afghan ground forces and destroyed an Islamic State broadcaster in Achin district, killing 29 militants including eight working on the radio and online operation. The emergence of fighters loyal to Islamic State has introduced a dangerous new element to Afghanistan's long-running civil conflict, with the group violently challenging the much larger Afghan Taliban movement in pockets of the country. NATO's Resolute Support mission in Kabul, which is led by the U.S. military, confirmed that American forces carried out two counter-terrorism air strikes in Achin district, but declined to provide further details. Whether the raid succeeds in silencing the transmissions, which have recently increased from an hour a day to 90 minutes, and are now broadcast in Dari as well as the Pashto language, remains to be seen. But it reflects intensifying efforts by U.S. forces in the fight against Islamic State, known widely by its derogative Arabic name Daesh, since a special order gave U.S. forces broader authority to strike at IS fighters. "We have increased the pressure, the U.S. has increased the pressure against Daesh in the past few weeks," said Brigadier General Wilson Shoffner, Deputy Chief of Staff for Communications and NATO's top spokesman in Afghanistan. U.S. officials generally provide only bare details of counter-terrorism operations, but the military has confirmed a series of drone strikes in Nangarhar over recent weeks. According to the Afghan interior ministry, Afghan and international forces have conducted nearly 20 joint operations against Islamic State in Nangarhar over the past month. "We use airpower of our own and of international forces, which is crucial in defeating Daesh," said Nangarhar police chief Fazel Ahmad Sherzad. NO SINGLE ISLAMIC STATE LEADER Established mainly in Nangarhar, a province which borders the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan, Islamic State has raised its profile in Afghanistan over the past year. General John Campbell, the American commander of international forces in Afghanistan, said in December that the movement was believed to command no more than 1,000-3,000 fighters in the country. Shoffner added: "What we don't see is Daesh in Iraq or Syria having the ability to control operations here in Afghanistan. We also don't see any one Daesh leader in Afghanistan able to control operations in more than one part of the country at a time." But he said it had the potential to become a more serious threat if left unchecked. Combining radical ideology with gruesome tactics including beheadings and at least one instance in which prisoners were killed by being blown up with explosives, it has established a reputation for extreme ferocity and attracted former members of the Afghan Taliban. Over the past year it has grown in strength, challenging its larger Islamist rival for control of lucrative smuggling routes as well as dominance of the insurgency. That has complicated the search for peace in Afghanistan by fragmenting forces who are fighting the Western-backed government, which, along with the United States, wants to bring the Taliban to the negotiating table. One senior Western official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the potential for Islamic State to radicalize young people who have known nothing but war was a much greater threat than the absolute size of its forces. The raid on the radio station appears to have been aimed at eliminating an increasingly influential propaganda tool, which had targeted growing ranks of unemployed young men in the region. Shoffner said that despite its efforts at propaganda and recruitment, there were doubts about whether Islamic State would succeed in communicating its radical message to the traditional tribal culture of Afghanistan. But he added: "We want to see Daesh contained and not become any more powerful than they currently are." (Additional reporting by Josh Smith and Hamid Shalizi in Kabul and Rafiq Shirzad in Jalalabad; Editing by Mike Collett-White) By Roberta Rampton WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama wants to boost U.S. aid to Colombia to help remove landmines and implement the government's peace accord with a leftist rebel group, the White House said on Tuesday. Obama would discuss the plan with Colombian President Juan Manual Santos during a White House visit on Thursday, and invite U.S. lawmakers to participate in two events aimed at showing support for the potential deal that would end Latin America's longest war. The fight between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) has killed more than 220,000 people and displaced millions more since it began in 1964. Three previous attempts at a peace accord failed. After almost four years of talks, an elusive peace deal may finally be in sight, said Bernard Aronson, the U.S. envoy to the negotiations. "I think there's a real prospect for success and signing of a peace accord this year, hopefully within the first half of this year," Aronson told reporters on a conference call. Under the deal, FARC rebels would disarm, and the government would need to expand health and education services into areas of the country that had been controlled by the group - two areas where expanded U.S. financial aid could help, said Mark Feierstein, a senior director at the White House National Security Council. "One of the biggest challenges will be to demobilize the FARC and ensure their reintegration into society as constructive members," Feierstein said. Feierstein declined to comment on how much additional aid Obama would propose. The United States has long been a donor to Colombia, providing almost $10 billion in aid between 2000 and 2015 through a program called Plan Colombia, according to the Congressional Research Service. Colombia's government on Tuesday warned the country's second-largest rebel group, the National Liberation Army (ELN), that time is running out to begin peace negotiations to end five decades of war. Any ELN talks would be independent of those with the FARC. On Thursday, Santos meets with Vice President Joe Biden and a group of U.S. senators at Biden's residence to talk about the peace process and the future of U.S. support for Colombia, before later meeting Obama in the Oval Office. Obama and Santos were also expected to discuss ways the two countries can work together to fight the Zika virus, Feierstein said. (Reporting by Roberta Rampton; Editing by Mohammad Zargham and Grant McCool) The owners of the Vaughan daycare where a two-year-old girl died were found guilty Thursday of breaking provincial law in what the Crown called the worst run child-care centre that government inspectors had ever seen. Ruslan Panfilova, 47, his wife Olena Panfilova, 50, and her daughter Karyna Rabadanova, 26, were found guilty of operating an illegal child-care centre by a justice of the peace in a Newmarket court. Eva Ravikovich died in July 2013 at the daycare the trio ran in two adjoining houses on Yellowood Circle in Vaughan. Testimony revealed that on the day the little girl died, there were 27 other children and 14 dogs at the daycare, and just three adults supervising. Officials found "filthy" cribs with holes in them, dirty diapers in the kitchen and fermenting food in the fridge. - Photos reveal conditions inside daycare where toddler died Eight months before the girl's death, education ministry officials warned the owners they had to get a licence to continue operating, but did not shut the daycare down until after she died. The Crown is seeking jail sentences for the trio in the range of three to six months. Crown lawyer Abel Fok called the family's conduct "egregious and unacceptable" and said the daycare was the worst that ministry officials had ever seen. Defence lawyer Joseph Forget asked for no jail time, and a fine of $10,000 to $20,000. The maximum sentence for the offence is one year in jail. The maximum fine is $2,000 a day, and with the daycare operating illegally for 126 days after the ministry warning, the fine could be as high as $252,000. Court heard the family declared annual revenues from the daycare of about $200,000 and has since has sold the two adjacent houses they were using for the business. The mother of a child at the daycare, Christina Kouydlai, testified during the sentencing hearing that she pulled her daughter in January 2013 after discovering Olena Panfilova drunk. Story continues Rabadanova and Olena Panfilova were about an hour late for their court date and were not in the courtroom to hear the guilty verdict, although Ruslan Panfilova was there. The justice of the peace deferred sentencing to a later date The two women are also facing criminal charges of obstructing police and destroying evidence in an ongoing investigation. The Education Ministry fired two child-care inspectors after it emerged officials failed to investigate complaints against the daycare before the little girl died. Immediately after her death, a York Region health inspector found spoiled food in the daycare fridge, some of which tested positive for listeria. Ravikovich's parents are suing the Panfilovas and the province. Poland has scrapped a $3bn (2bn) deal to buy 50 Airbus helicopters and will instead purchase just a handful of aircraft from the European company, it has been reported. The decision, reported by Poland's Rzeczpospolita newspaper, could strain relations with France, where the aircraft are made and the performance of the manufacturing sector and wider economy have been sluggish. It (Other OTC: ITGL - news) could also hold back a military programme that was accelerated over the Ukraine crisis by Poland's previous government. Poland had agreed a provisional deal with Airbus for 50 EC-725 Caracal multi-purpose helicopters before elections in October won by the eurosceptic Law and Justice party. It has repeatedly said it would rather see the deal awarded to a producer manufacturing locally. America's Sikorsky and Italy's AgustaWestland both have facilities in Poland. Buying Sikorsky aircraft could help curry favour with Washington as Poland seeks a greater NATO presence to shore up its eastern border. Airbus has proposed a so-called "offset programme" that would source work on its helicopters in Poland, but foreign minister Witold Waszczykowski has described that as "leftovers" with those aircraft mostly being built in France. The French defence ministry has now agreed Poland will only buy "several" helicopters from Airbus, Rzeczpospolita reported, quoting a Polish defence ministry source. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov had agreed on the need to discuss how to implement a ceasefire in Syria during a call between the two men on Thursday. Speaking at the start of a Syrian donor conference in London, Kerry said he had spoken to the Russian foreign minister who also agreed on the need to find a way to get humanitarian access for both parties. "I had a conversation this morning with Foreign Minister Lavrov. We discussed, and he agreed that we need to discuss, how to implement the ceasefire and also how to get (humanitarian) access by both parties," Kerry told reporters. Kerry also said Russia had a responsibility to live up to the United Nations commitment to provide humanitarian access and cease attacks on Syrian civilians. Search Keywords: Short link: David Cameron is to pledge an extra 1.2bn of UK aid to tackle the Syrian refugee crisis as he co-hosts a major international conference in London. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US Secretary of State John Kerry will be among leaders from 70 countries aiming to ease the plight of refugees and create job opportunities. The conference received Royal backing when Prince Charles, who told Sky News in November that climate change may have been one of the causes of Syria's civil war, joined the Prime Minister at a reception at Lancaster House. Also attending the conference will be UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, the Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and representatives of Russia and China. :: Summit Aims To Head Off Refugee Crisis Mark Two The Prime Minister will also take the opportunity to discuss his EU reform plan with European leaders attending, including EU Council President Donald Tusk, Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel, Greek Premier Alexis Tsipras and Slovakia's Robert Fico. Mr Cameron's announcement of another 1.2bn over the next four years will more than double Britain's aid so far, taking the UK's total investment in Syria to more than 2.3bn. "With hundreds of thousands of people risking their lives crossing the Aegean or the Balkans, now is the time to take a new approach to the humanitarian disaster in Syria," said Mr Cameron. "Today's pledge of more than 2.3bn in UK aid sets the standard for the international community - more money is needed to tackle this crisis and it is needed now. "But the conference I am hosting today is about more than just money. Our new approach of using fundraising to build stability, create jobs and provide education can have a transformational effect in the region - and create a future model for humanitarian relief. "And we can provide the sense of hope needed to stop people thinking they have no option but to risk their lives on a dangerous journey to Europe." Story continues The Government says a 2015 pledge of 255m in aid for Syria is being doubled to 510m for 2016, recognising the immediacy of the crisis. The UK's 1.12bn investment so far has included supplying: :: 20 million food rations :: Clean water to 1.6 million people :: 2.5 million medical consultations :: 4.6 million relief packages :: Help with sanitation and hygiene to 7.2 million people. The conference, called Supporting Syria and the Region, is being co-hosted by the UK, alongside Germany, which has taken hundreds of thousands of refugees, Norway, Kuwait and the United Nations. It will aim to raise billions of dollars in international aid, with the current United Nation appeal standing at more than $7bn (4.8bn). It will also aim to build economic opportunities, creating jobs for refugees from Syria in neighbouring countries. And it will seek to put all refugee children in education by 2017. The conference will be divided into four sessions: humanitarian protection, jobs and economic opportunities, inside Syria, at which Mr Cameron will speak, and education. According to the British Government, the conference will aim to make lives better for those still remaining in Syria, by funding food, shelter and healthcare, and rebuilding health facilities. The conference is also expected to send out a strong joint message reinforcing the importance of humanitarian rights in Syria. And it is set to stress that siege is not an acceptable tactic of war, that all people must have access to humanitarian support and that all sides must respect humanitarian law. For the main Syrian opposition group, spokesman Salem Al Melset welcomed the conference, but said: "If the international community is serious about addressing the root causes of the Syrian conflict and reaching a political solution in Geneva, then it must get serious about protecting Syrian civilians and enforcing UN Security Council Resolution 2254. "Action, not aid, will stop this crisis. "Syrians need concrete action from our friends to stop the indiscriminate bombardment, which is the primary killer of civilians and driver of refugees. "We need action to break the sieges across Syria, including feasible options such as airdrops as called for by the UN Humanitarian Chief Stephen O'Brien. "We need action by our friends to demand the release of thousands of Syrian detainees unlawfully held by the Assad regime." UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon told the meeting: "The situation is not sustainable. We cannot go on like this. There is no military solution. Only political dialogue will rescue the Syrian people from their intolerable suffering," An alibi witness for a convicted murderer who featured in the radio podcast Serial has testified that a former prosecutor misled her about the importance of her testimony. Asia McClain, now known as Asia Chapman, gave evidence on Wednesday during a hearing for Adnan Syed, who was convicted of murder and is seeking a new trial in the case featured in the podcast. Ms Chapman has said she saw Syed in a library within the time prosecutors claim he was killing his high school girlfriend, Hae Min Lee, in 1999. She told the court she was never contacted by Syed's lawyer to testify at his trial. Years after Syed was convicted she said his lawyer visited her at her home and left a business card as he worked on an appeal. She called then-prosecutor Kevin Urick who told her that Syed "killed that girl" and convinced her during a 34-minute conversation that testifying would be "a waste of my time", the court heard. She said: "I walked away feeling like (the defence) was trying to manipulate the court to get him in front of a judge." Ms Chapman said Urick later testified at Syed's first post-conviction hearing that his phone call with her lasted just five minutes and that she told him her affidavit was false. She said: "He said I told him everything I said in the affidavit was not true, that I wrote the affidavit because I was pressured. "All of this was news to me. I was in shock. I was angry that I had allowed my thoughts and opinions to be represented by a third party." After learning of Mr Urick's testimony, Ms Chapman said she requested her phone records and verified that their conversation lasted 34 minutes. During the hearing on Wednesday, Syed's lawyer Justin Brown told Judge Martin Welch that previous defence attorney Cristina Gutierrez made a mistake by failing to call the alibi witness. But Maryland Deputy Attorney General Thiru Vignarajah said there were reasons to think the witness might be unreliable. Story continues He said: "There were all sorts of reasons that this was not a reliable witness, and perhaps a risky witness." But Mr Brown said the decision was linked to personal problems suffered by Ms Gutierrez, who was later disbarred in connection with other cases. Syed was present in court, dressed in blue prison garb and with his hands shackled. The case had been closed for years when producer Sarah Koenig, a former Baltimore Sun reporter, began examining it in the Serial podcast in 2014. The podcast raised questions about the fairness of the trial and uncovered evidence that helped prompt a Maryland appeals court to grant a hearing on the possibility of a new trial. KIMBERLEY, South Africa (Reuters) - James Taylor put aside his disappointing Test form to produce a run-a-ball century as England crushed South Africa A by 163 runs in a warm-up game at the Diamond Oval on Saturday. Taylor smashed eight fours and a six in his 116 off the same number of deliveries as England posted a formidable 368 for seven in their 50 overs having won the toss and elected to bat. The home side never looked like reaching that target and were all out for 205 from 30.5 overs. The magnificent Taylor was ably supported by a cameo from Jonny Bairstow (58 from 30 balls), a remarkable innings that included no fours but six massive sixes from the Yorshireman. Chris Jordan also weighed in with a lively unbeaten 33 from 14 balls, while captain Eoin Morgan scored 41 at a run-a-ball. South Africa A managed to score at a rapid rate but lost wickets at regular intervals, with Theunis de Bruyn (73 not out) providing some lone resistance. There were three wickets each for Reece Topley (3-38), Jordan (3-48) and Adil Rashid (3-55). The most economical of the England bowlers was David Willey, who returned figures of 1-23 in his five overs. The first of five One-Day Internationals against South Africa will be played in Bloemfontein on Wednesday. (Editing by Martyn Herman) By Rod Nickel WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - Canada's top aboriginal chief wants more action from new Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to alleviate crippling poverty and poor living conditions among the country's indigenous community, saying: "Words are easy." Perry Bellegarde, national chief of the Assembly of First Nations, the main political group representing the country's aboriginal people, said he would put pressure on Trudeau to deliver on election promises to his community. "It's a travesty that this quality of life persists in this great, rich country called Canada," Bellegarde said in an interview on Monday after a shooting spree in a remote aboriginal town last week. "Everyone's focused on La Loche now, saying this is not acceptable in 2016." A gunman shot 11 people, killing four, at a school and home in La Loche, Saskatchewan, an impoverished northern community with high rates of suicide, addiction and unemployment. A 17-year-old youth made his first court appearance on Monday, facing four counts of first-degree murder, seven counts of attempted murder and unauthorized possession of a firearm. He remains in custody. "Words are easy to say ... there has to be these investments now to get us to the same starting line as everyone else," Bellegarde said. "We've got 10, 12, 13 people living in a two-bedroom house. That affects everything." Bellegarde, who voted for the first time in the October election that vaulted Trudeau to power, said he believed the new prime minister "gets it," referring to the need to improve living standards. Less than half of Canada's aboriginal people, also known as First Nations, have typically voted in elections because many do not recognize the government's sovereignty. But anger over disproportionately high rates of violence against indigenous women, dire living conditions as well as resource development and environmental issues, prompted Bellegarde to publicly urge aboriginal people to cast ballots last year. PLEDGED HELP Trudeau, the Liberal Party leader, took power last year promising to tackle high levels of poverty, crime, bad housing and poor health among aboriginal residents who make up 4 percent of the country's population of 36 million. In December, Trudeau promised a new "nation-to-nation relationship with First Nations peoples" and an inquiry into the high rates of missing and murdered aboriginal women. The prime minister, 44, was speaking after a report found the forcible separation of aboriginal children from their families amounted to cultural genocide. Friday's school shooting occurred in La Loche which, with the neighboring Clearwater River Dene Indian reserve, embodies the dire prospects for Canada's aboriginal people. "We are living in Third World Conditions," said Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations Chief Bobby Cameron. "The mold in our homes, the cold that comes through the walls ... something's going to give." Trudeau, who plans to run deficits to stimulate Canada's struggling economy, called Bellegarde on Friday to express condolences about the shooting. The national chief urged Trudeau to demonstrate support by increasing aboriginal spending in his first budget, expected in March or April. Trudeau responded by saying it was a priority for him to repair Ottawa's strained relationship with aboriginal residents, Bellegarde said. Bellegarde said he wanted more spending on health, training, preserving languages, policing and infrastructure, such as housing, water treatment and recreation centers. Infrastructure Minister Amarjeet Sohi said on Monday he had a mandate to deal with infrastructure that is lacking in aboriginal communities, such as clean drinking water, adequate housing and proper wastewater systems. As part of our plan for the new money, we are going to be fulfilling the commitments we made in order to make sure that our First Nations have the right infrastructure that the rest of Canadians take for granted, he said, declining to say how much money the government would spend. (Additional reporting by David Ljunggren in Ottawa; Editing by Peter Cooney) By Jeffrey Dastin NEW YORK (Reuters) - Major U.S. airlines United , Delta and American and Europe's Lufthansa and Air France are offering to re-assign certain flight crew concerned about contracting the Zika virus from routes to affected countries. The previously unreported policies by the U.S. airlines show how the mosquito-borne virus, linked to thousands of birth defects in Brazil, looms as an issue not just for airline passengers but for flight attendants and pilots as well. In an internal memo on Jan. 28, seen by Reuters, United said expectant flight attendants as well as those seeking to become pregnant could switch routes to avoid Zika-affected regions without repercussions. The airline has similar options available for pilots, Charles Hobart, spokesman for parent United Continental Holdings Inc, told Reuters on Wednesday. Delta Air Lines Inc has also let flight attendants and pilots switch assignments since Jan. 17, and American Airlines Group Inc has encouraged crew to tell their managers of concerns in order to opt out of flights to Zika-hit areas, spokesmen for the companies said. "A small number of crew members have swapped trips to date," Delta's Morgan Durrant said. "We have immediate concern about our members' health," said Sara Nelson, international president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA, when asked for comment on United's memo. "This issue is changing at a fairly rapid pace, (and) it's important that those updates are ongoing," she said, adding that airlines appeared to be responding faster to employee concerns than they did during past outbreaks, such as the spread of Ebola in 2014. In Europe, safety rules require that pilots and cabin crew are switched to ground jobs when they are pregnant. Major long-haul carriers Lufthansa and Air France also said they already offered crew members with any reservations about flying to a particular destination the chance to change a shift. Air France said it had offered that flexibility during the Ebola outbreak. A spokeswoman for Lufthansa said on Thursday that so far only a few crew members had switched routes because of fears over Zika. BABYMOONERS Airlines and hotel chains have said it is too early to tell if the Zika epidemic is affecting bookings. However, several are offering pregnant women and in some cases all passengers a refund or a change of itinerary. Travel agents say "babymooners" - parents-to-be taking last-hurrah vacations - have backed out of trips and changed itineraries. Concern about Zika has been magnified in recent days by a reported case of sexual transmission in Texas as well as a global health emergency declared by the World Health Organization. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has urged pregnant women to consider delaying travel to locations hit by Zika, for which there is no treatment or vaccine. "The safety of our employees and customers is paramount, and we are providing this option because it's the right thing to do," Hobart said. United, the second-largest U.S. airline by capacity, declined to address whether it was concerned about crew shortages resulting from the Jan. 28 notice. The carrier has some 20,000 flight attendants worldwide. The memo said flight attendants can drop their re-assigned trips, without pay, if United is able to find replacements for them. (Reporting By Jeffrey Dastin in New York; Additional reporting by Victoria Bryan in Berlin; Editing by Bernard Orr and Alexander Smith) By Samia Nakhoul BAGHDAD (Reuters) - The U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State aims this year to recapture Iraqs second city Mosul, working with Iraqi government forces, and drive the jihadis out of Raqqa, their stronghold in northeast Syria, Arab and Western officials say. If it succeeds, the coalition will have struck a crippling blow against Islamic State's self-proclaimed caliphate in Iraq and Syria. The strategy is to regain territory at the heart of ISs cross-border state, take both its "capitals", and destroy the confidence of its fighters that it can expand as a Sunni caliphate and magnet for jihadis, according to these Arab and Western officials, few of whom were willing to speak on the record on a matter of such strategic sensitivity. The plan is to hit them in Raqqa in Syria and in Iraq at Mosul, to crush their capitals, said an Iraqi official with knowledge of the strategy. I think there is some speed and urgency by the coalition, by the U.S. administration and by us to end this year with the regaining of control over all territory. Iraqi officials say 2016 will witness the elimination of Daesh (IS) and the Americans have the same idea get the job finished, then they can withdraw and (President Barack) Obama will have a legacy, said a diplomat in Baghdad, emphasizing the Iraqi part of the operation. The day Mosul is liberated, Daesh will be defeated. The war against jihadi insurgents in this turbulent region has had its twists and turns but there is a palpable sense in Baghdad that the tide has turned against IS. TWIN-PRONGED ANTI-IS STRATEGY In the year after the jihadis summer 2014 surge back into Iraq from the bases they managed to build amid the chaos of Syrias civil war, IS momentum as a rapid, flexible and brutal military force seemed unstoppable. But in the past nine months IS has lost swathes of territory and strategic towns. In Iraq it was driven out of Tikrit and Sinjar in the north, the oil refinery town of Baiji in central Iraq, and Ramadi west of Baghdad in Anbar province, the heart of insurgency after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam. In northern Syria, U.S.-allied Kurdish militia of the Peoples Protection Units (YPG) have taken vital territory and border crossings below the frontier with Turkey, after breaking a long IS siege at Kobani and later taking Tel Abyad, north of Raqqa and a key supply line for the jihadi capital. Daesh are losing their ability to hold onto territory in Iraq and to stage the kind of complex attacks that allow them to hold the towns they seized, said a U.S. official, adding that the recapture of Mosul would start in 2016. Lieutenant-General Sean MacFarland, Baghdad-based head of the U.S.-led coalition, emphasized to a group of reporters last month the twin-pronged approach to operations against IS in Iraq, in conjunction with something we might have going on over in Syria about the same time (and) see if we can put pressure on the enemy in two places at once and create a dilemma. Hisham al-Hashemi, an Iraqi expert on IS who advises the Iraqi government on the group, points out that as a result of last years setbacks out of seven strategic roads between Iraq and Syria they (IS) now have one; they cannot move with ease and Turkey has tightened the noose on them. IS is under pressure across many other fronts apart from its ability to deploy. The collapse in oil prices has dented its revenue from oil smuggled, now through a less permeable Turkish border, from captured Syrian and Iraqi fields. COVERT OPERATIONS Coalition air strikes recently incinerated a stockpile of cash from looting and kidnapping, taxation and extortion, forcing IS to cut wages. It is losing top cadres. More than 100 mid-level to senior leaders have been killed since May, according to coalition spokesman Colonel Steve Warren, who says that works out to an average of one every two days. The place where they were holding huge cash reserves was targeted and destroyed, the diplomat told Reuters. Daesh will be defeated in Iraq. It is not a question of if but when, added another senior Western diplomat in Iraq. A top Iraqi official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Mosul operation would require delicate collaboration between the U.S. air force, the Iraqi army, local Sunni tribal forces, and Peshmerga fighters from the self-governing Kurdistan Regional Government east of the city. Most likely, coalition special forces will be embedded with the Iraqi forces and the Peshmerga will close on Mosul from the north and east. In Syria, he said, the likely combination would involve coalition air strikes with special forces and U.S.-led covert missions operating alongside mainly Kurdish fighters of the YPG and other Syrian rebels. They have some special forces on the ground in Syria in Hasaka, on the outskirts of Raqqa with the rebels, the Iraqi official said. An airstrip at Hasaka is being prepared by the United States for this purpose. The official warned, however, of the need for coordination with Russia, which brought its air force to Syria last September to shore up the Iran-backed rule of President Bashar al-Assad, and is using an airstrip in Qamishli further north, but focusing most of its fire on mainstream and other Islamist rebels rather than IS. This competition between the two superpowers is really very, very dangerous, he said. There must be coordination (around) the complex operations that will take place. LIBYA, NEW IS DESTINATION Yet even in the unlikely event that all these plans go like clockwork, that alone would not put an end to IS. The group, IS experts say, has become expert at defensive warfare, and is spreading its tentacles from Europe to North Africa. Inside the recaptured city of Ramadi the Iraqi army found a warren of underground tunnels the jihadi forces used for shelter, mobility and escape. Mosul, a far bigger city with one million people and a river on one side, is heavily defended and tunneled, with berms, trenches and hidden bombs. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the IS caliph still based near Mosul, has already begun to anticipate tactical reverses. Arab and Western security sources say he has recently sent several hundred of his top lieutenants to Libya, to consolidate the existing IS bridgehead there amid the chaos of a splintering country, and to offset diminishing revenue in Syria and Iraq by creaming off Libyan oil resources. Coalition dependence on Kurdish forces in both northern Syria and Iraq, and the Iraqi armys reliance on Iran-backed Shiite militia up until the reconquest of Ramadi by regular forces, were and are being exploited by IS as a means to rally Sunni Arab grievances. Battlefield success will count for little, officials and diplomats say, without political reconciliation and power-sharing to heal the wounds opened in the ethno-sectarian bloodletting that followed the overthrow of Saddam's minority Sunni Arab rule in 2003. AFTER MOSUL? Islamic State, whose forerunner first emerged as a Sunni reaction to the U.S. installation of Shi'ite majority rule in Iraq, twisted the sectarian knife in the country. But after the fall of Mosul, then prime minister Nouri al-Maliki, leader of the Shiite Islamist Dawa party, who had alienated the Sunnis by tearing up a power-sharing pact with them and the Kurds, was pushed aside. He was replaced by a more conciliatory Dawa leader, Haider al-Abadi. Most observers give Abadi credit for trying to be more inclusive by negotiating oil revenue sharing with the Kurdistan Regional Government, proposing a National Guard, under which the different sects and ethnic groups would police their areas, and setting out a vision of a decentralized, federal Iraq. Yet distrust of the Dawa is now so engrained it extends to Abadi. The problem among the Shiites, especially in Dawa, is that there is a deep anti-Sunni feeling, said one Iraqi leader. But fear of a return to the Sunni domination of the Saddam era is widespread too, and fanned by IS. The National Guard law is rejected by the Shiites because the Sunnis will then have their own army and this will threaten the Shiite population even if they are dominant now, said the Baghdad-based diplomat. The Shiites fear the return of Sunni power. Yet Abadi has shown signs of independence, from his party and its Iranian patrons. Baghdad is abuzz with the story of how the prime minister recently ejected Major General Qassem Soleimani from a national security council meeting. The Iranian Revolutionary Guard commander had until recently been photographed often on the frontlines in Iraq and Syria. The critical question, however, is whether Abadi can build up the army and regular security forces enough to establish control over Shiite militias under the sway of Tehran, accused by Sunnis of human rights abuses when they spearheaded the attacks on Baiji, Tikrit and Diyala last year. Even if Mosul works, Abadi will still have to move quickly to provide things his corrupt predecessors were unwilling or unable to give to Iraqi citizens in general and disgruntled Sunnis and Kurds in particular. (Addtional reporting by Maher Chmaytelli and Stephen Kalin; editing by Janet McBride) Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia), said a bomb scare that grounded its Riyadh-bound flight from Madrid on Thursday was a false alarm. "It's just another hoax that all airlines are subjected to," a Saudia spokesman told Reuters when asked about the incident. "It's false but we must do all the necessary precautionary formalities." Saudia's flight SVA 226 returned to Madrid's Barajas airport after an alert was raised over a bomb threat, the Interior Minister Jose Fernandez Diaz said. A general alarm was raised at Spanish international airport Barajas with all passengers and crew evacuated from the plane and Saudia's aircraft isolated at the airport. Search Keywords: Short link: By Wiktor Szary WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland's new government relaunched an inquiry on Thursday into the death of President Lech Kaczynski in a plane crash in Russia in 2010, a move likely to strain Warsaw's relations with its former overlord, already fragile over the Ukraine crisis. An inquiry by the previous government returned a verdict of pilot error but the winner of Poland's October election, the Law and Justice (PiS) party led by Kaczynski's twin brother Jaroslaw, says an onboard explosion could have caused the crash. Speaking at a ceremony to announce the decision, Defence Minister Antoni Macierewicz also hinted at an explosion as a possible cause, saying the plane had "disintegrated" metres above the ground before crashing. "There is no doubt that these circumstances are not only a sufficient reason, but one that makes it compulsory to reexamine this tragedy," Macierewicz said. Though the PiS has never accused Russia of orchestrating the president's death it has said the Kremlin benefited from the crash, which also killed the central bank chief, top army brass and several lawmakers, triggering a period of political turmoil. PiS officials have also accused Moscow of prolonging its own investigation and withholding evidence, including the black box flight recorders and wreckage from the plane. Russia has kept the wreckage for nearly six years and says it cannot returned until its own criminal probe is concluded. Commenting on Poland's decision to relaunch the probe, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said: "I hope that this is not linked to politics. This hope is a faint one, but it still exists." Separately, the Polish prosecutors said on Thursday Russia had refused to help them bring charges against two Russian air traffic controllers involved in guiding the presidential aircraft. Poland has been one of the most outspoken critics of Russian policy toward a pro-Russian separatist rebellion in eastern Ukraine, joining Western allies in accusing Moscow of supplying help to the insurrection - something the Kremlin denies. REOPENING WOUNDS The crash took place near Smolensk, western Russia, close to the place where Stalinist secret police forces shot some of the 22,000 Polish officers and intellectuals they executed in 1940. For decades, Moscow blamed Nazi Germany for the mass executions. The massacre is an enduring symbol for Poland of its suffering at Soviet hands, and president Lech Kaczynski had been flying in to commemorate it. While the crash initially united Poles in grief, it has since given rise to bitter domestic political divisions. The late president's twin brother has repeatedly accused then prime minister Donald Tusk, now head of the European Council, of being indirectly responsible for the crash through negligence. The previous state probe produced no evidence of that. But earlier this year, a Polish court refused to dismiss outright a case against Tusk's former chief of staff and two of his aides, brought to court by some of the victims' relatives. (Additional reporting by Anna Koper in Warsaw, Denis Dyomkin and Lidia Kelly in Moscow; Editing by Jon Boyle and Dominic Evans) DALLAS, Feb. 4, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ResponsiveEd's alternative accountability campuses known as Premier High Schools are among the highest performing credit recovery schools in Texas, according to a ranking recently released by the Texas Education Agency (TEA). On the list of 145 alternative accountability charter school, 6 of the top 10 and 15 of the top 25 best schools are Premier campuses The ranking is based on student performance on the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) tests taken in 2015. At the top of the list is ResponsiveEd's Premier High School in Austin, where students achieved a 93% pass rate. The average pass rate for charter schools and traditional public schools in Texas is 77%. Rosalinda Gonzalez, Executive Director of Academics for Premier High Schools, attributes the program's success to the schools' constant dedication to at-risk students. "Many of our Premier High Schools have been successful because we do not lose focus on these students who often fall through the cracks in the big public high schools. Our high schools are small by design. Students know that we are focused on their academic needs and that we will encourage and support them as they earn that elusive high school diploma. At every campus, our directors, teachers and staff are continually helping the students reach their goals," she said. Since launching its first 15 high schools in 1999, ResponsiveEd's Premier district has grown to 33 campuses across Texas. It is the second largest alternative accountability charter school district in the state with 3,591 students enrolled. Jennifer Kasapi, campus director at Premier High School of Austin, credits her students' success to the culture of trust and collaboration the staff have created. She finds that many students who come to the school have struggled in the past because they learned to avoid attracting a teacher's attention. The individualized nature of the Premier High School program prevents this from happening and allows them to fill in the gaps in their education. "We work as a team from day one to identify learning gaps and place our students in remediation programs. In the beginning it can be a struggle. Eventually you build trust with the students and their families. A big part of this trust is consistency and constantly checking up on the students. Staff meet with students individually to discuss their current academic level, create an individualized plan and track results. Once students and families notice the change in their academic abilities, they are motivated to reach their academic potential," said Ms. Kasapi. At Premier High School of Abilene, campus director Sue Pond says their students' success is due to well-prepared and dedicated teachers who teach the curriculum rather than teaching to the test. "On our campus, the teachers take a personal interest in each student to know where they are academically and what their strengths and weaknesses are. Because we teach the curriculum, our students are prepared academically and they also meet the demands of state testing," said Ms. Pond. In the Rio Grande Valley, five of ResponsiveEd's Premier High Schools ranked in the top 25. Students served at these schools are 97% economically disadvantaged and 68% Limited English Proficient (LEP). The sixth Rio Grande Valley campus, a CTE center in Edinburg, opened in October. Their students took the STAAR tests in December 2015 and are awaiting results. Alma Prado, campus director at Premier High School of San Juan, the top performing Rio Grande Valley Premier, attributes their success to the school's dedication to character development and knowing their students through careful monitoring of academic and assessment data. "Our school focuses on the development of character traits that enable students to make better decisions that impact their overall academic learning. We see our students being transformed into better students and citizens. Additionally, the staff members work diligently on a daily basis to review and analyze student data. Daily student conferencing and monitoring are vital to our students' success," said Ms. Prado. The top 25 alternative accountability charter schools ranked by STAAR pass rates: Gateway High School (93%) Premier High School of Austin (93%) Premier High School of Abilene (91%) Premier High School of Granbury (89%) Calvin Nelms High School (88%) Premier High School of Richardson (87%) Katherine Anne Porter School (86%) Premier High School of San Juan (86%) Premier High School of Huntsville (86%) Academy of Careers and Technologies (84%) Premier High School of Brownsville (84%) Premier High School of North Austin (83%) San Antonio School for Inquiry and Creativity (83%) Premier High School of Mission (82%) Premier High School of Lubbock (82%) Premier High School of New Braunfels (82%) Premier High School of Palmview (81%) Dan Chadwick Campus (79%) Premier High School of El Paso (79%) Premier High School of Pharr (79%) Premier High School of Del Rio (78%) Huston Academy (74%) Paso Del Norte Academy-Vista Del (72%) Paso Del Norte Academy-Mesa Charter (72%) Meadowland Charter School (72%) A photo accompanying this release is available at: http://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/prs/?pkgid=38793 GATLINBURG, Tenn., Feb. 4, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sugarlands Distilling Company, crafters of award-winning spirits in East Tennessee, has announced the 2016 MoonShare Year of Giving Grant recipients. After one month of public voting, twelve nonprofit organizations from across the U.S. have been chosen to receive $5,000 each from Sugarlands Distilling Company to help further their charitable missions. In addition to the monetary award, each of the 12 organizations will be assigned a "Month to Shine" where their efforts will be highlighted on Sugarlands Distilling Company's website and social media platforms. View the full list of recipients here. "It's an honor to have so many great organizations apply for the program, and I am thrilled by the outpouring of public support they each received," said Courtney DeLaura, director of the MoonShare program. "Our company likes to pay homage to the people who inhabited these mountains long before us. Giving back and lending a helping hand was important to them then, and it is important to us today." Sugarlands Distilling Company made 2015 its first annual "Year of Giving" by launching MoonShare, a nationwide giveback component of the East Tennessee distillery that helps nonprofit organizations positively influence their communities through MoonShare grants, fundraisers, and donations. The mission of the Year of Giving is to provide monetary donations to 12 elected nonprofits, one each month. The company will give away $60,000 in grant funds to nonprofits across the U.S. in 2016, in addition to other charitable projects. Sugarlands Distilling Company is a producer of craft quality moonshine and whiskey and is also a popular attraction in downtown Gatlinburg, Tennessee. Inside the distillery, guests can taste free samples of authentic Sugarlands Shine, take a behind-the-scenes tour of the production, and purchase a variety of moonshine flavors, mountain merchandise, and apparel. To enhance their experience, guests can enjoy live music, Appalachian storytelling, and book outdoor adventure tours in the Sugarlands, an area of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park historically referred to as "moonshiners' paradise." The company is East Tennessee-owned, with a focus on bettering the local community through a variety of events and charitable giving. Sugarlands Shine is currently available for purchase in FL, AL, MS, SC, NC, TN, KY, IN, IL, WV, MD, NY, CT, MI, VA, MN and TX. Prime Minister David Cameron announced Thursday that a Syria donors' conference in London had raised over $10 billion (9.0 billion euros) for humanitarian aid. "Today's achievements are not a solution to the crisis -- we still need to see a political transition," he said at the conference. "But with today's commitments... our message to the people of Syria and the region is clear -- we will stand with you and support you for as long as it takes". World leaders pledged billions of dollars Thursday to help conflict-hit Syrians, at a London conference overshadowed by the collapse of peace talks in Geneva. The European Union, Germany, Britain and the United States were among those making major donations to areas including food aid, education and allowing Syrians displaced from their homeland to find work. But hopes that the package could make a major difference inside Syria were weighed down by the suspension Wednesday of peace talks in Geneva until February 25. The decision came as Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces, supported by Russian air strikes, stepped up their offensive near the major northern city of Aleppo, forcing nearly 40,000 civilians to flee. Neighbouring countries including Jordan and Lebanon told the conference of their struggle to deal with the influx of millions of Syrians and urged nations at the conference to do more to help them. The mood among many leaders was bleak, reflecting frustration at the halt Wednesday of the so-called proximity talks in Geneva which were seen as the best hope for peace since the conflict erupted in March 2011. *The story was edited by Ahram Online. Search Keywords: Short link: As of August 26th, 2021 Yahoo India will no longer be publishing content. Your Yahoo Account Mail and Search experiences will not be affected in any way and will operate as usual. We thank you for your support and readership. For more information on Yahoo India, please visit the FAQ A Saudi military spokesman says the kingdom is ready to send ground troops to Syria to fight Islamic State (ISIS) group provided coalition leaders agree during an upcoming meeting in Brussels. Brig. Gen. Ahmed Asiri told The Associated Press on Thursday that Saudi Arabia has taken part in coalition airstrikes against ISIS since the US-led campaign began in September 2014, but would now provide ground troops. The United States is scheduled to convene a meeting of defense ministers from countries fighting ISIS in Brussels this month. "We are determined to fight and defeat Daesh," Asiri said, using the Arabic acronym for ISIS. He didn't elaborate on how many troops the kingdom would send. Saudi Arabia is deeply involved in Yemen's civil war, where it is fighting Iranian-backed Shia rebels. Asked about the report at a briefing, US State Department spokesman John Kirby said the coalition is generally supportive of having partners contribute more in the fight against ISIS but he had not seen the reported Saudi proposal. "I would not want to comment specifically on this until we've had a chance to review it," he said. Search Keywords: Short link: Donor nations pledged on Thursday to give $11 billion in aid to Syrians by 2020 as world leaders tried to tackle the world's worst humanitarian crisis, while Turkey reported a new exodus of tens of thousands fleeing air strikes. With Syria's five-year-old civil war raging and another attempt at peace negotiations called off in Geneva after just a few days, a donor conference in London sought to address the needs of some 6 million people displaced within Syria and more than 4 million refugees in other countries. Underlining the desperate situation on the ground in Syria, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told the meeting that up to 70,000 Syrians were on the move towards his country to escape aerial bombardments on the city of Aleppo. Davutoglu accused Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces, backed by foreign fighters and Russian air strikes, of seeking to do the same to Aleppo as they did to the besieged town of Madaya, where dozens have starved to death. "What they want to do in Aleppo today is exactly what they did in Madaya before, a siege of starvation," he told a news conference at the end of the event. Turkey is already hosting more than 2.5 million Syrian refugees. Jordan and Lebanon are the other countries bearing the brunt of the Syrian refugee exodus. British Prime Minister David Cameron said donors had pledged a total of $6 billion for Syrians for 2016, and a further $5 billion to be spent by 2020, describing the total as the largest amount ever raised in a single day for a humanitarian crisis. UN agencies are appealing for $7.73 billion for this year, with governments of countries in the region asking for an additional $1.2 billion for their national response plans. "We have combined a renewed effort to address the shortfall in humanitarian funding with a new approach to provide the education and jobs that will bolster stability in the region," Cameron said. Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey, where a significant share of the money pledged will be spent, committed to ensuring all refugee children in their countries would have access to education, and to opening up their economies so adult refugees could work. "Eating Grass" Such measures are seen as crucial by European countries keen to improve living conditions for refugees in the region so they are less likely to travel to Europe. A million migrants and refugees from Syria and other countries in the Middle East, Africa and Asia arrived on the continent last year, triggering a huge political crisis in the European Union. Cameron said the international community would help the three main refugee host countries to meet their commitments on jobs and education, including with $40 billion of loans from financial institutions and the opening up of European markets. "As a result there will be over 1 million new jobs in the region for refugees and residents alike," he said. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is under intense pressure at home after a massive influx of refugees last year, said the EU would consider trade preferences for the host countries. The almost five-year-old conflict has killed an estimated 250,000 people and stoked the spread of Islamist militancy across the Middle East and North Africa. "With people reduced to eating grass and leaves and killing stray animals in order to survive on a day-to-day basis, that is something that should tear at the conscience of all civilized people and we all have a responsibility to respond to it," US Secretary of State John Kerry told the conference. A UN envoy halted his attempts to conduct Syrian peace talks on Wednesday after the Syrian army, backed by Russian air strikes, advanced against rebel forces north of Aleppo, choking opposition supply lines from Turkey to the city. Kerry told the conference he had spoken to his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov about the situation. "We have agreed that we are engaged in a discussion about how to implement the ceasefire specifically as well as some immediate, possible confidence-building steps to deliver humanitarian assistance," he said. In one of several blunt attacks on Russia during the day, Davutoglu said those supporting Assad's forces were committing war crimes and called on the United States to adopt a more decisive stance against Moscow. Russia said it had serious grounds to suspect Turkey was preparing a military incursion in Syria, an accusation dismissed by a senior Turkish official as Russia trying to divert attention away from its own crimes in the country. Meanwhile, Saudi military spokesman Brig. Gen. Ahmed Asiri told The Associated Press that the Saudi kingdom is ready to send ground troops to Syria to fight the Islamic State group provided coalition leaders agree during an upcoming meeting in Brussels. The UN Security Council will meet Friday for consultations with UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura on the breakdown in Syrian peace talks, AFP reported Thursday. Search Keywords: Short link: A United Nations panel has ruled that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has been "arbitrarily detained", the BBC reported on Thursday. No comment was immediately available from the United Nations in Geneva, where the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has been considering a request by Assange for a ruling. Assange, 44, is wanted in Sweden for questioning over allegations of rape in 2010, which he denies. He took refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy in London in June 2012 to avoid extradition. Search Keywords: Short link: A UN panel examining Julian Assange's alleged rape case has found his self-imposed confinement in the Ecuadorian embassy in London amounts to illegal detention, the Swedish foreign ministry said Thursday. The WikiLeaks founder, who has been holed up at the embassy since June 2012 to avoid arrest, said he expects the British police to call off their attempts to detain him if the panel rules in his favour when it publishes its report on Friday. But Sweden's prosecution authority said the ruling had no impact on its investigation into a 2010 rape allegation against him, and Britain said it would have to arrest him as long as a European warrant for his arrest remained in vigour. WikiLeaks filed a complaint against Sweden and Britain to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UNWGAD) in September 2014, claiming his confinement in the embassy amounted to illegal detention. The Swedish foreign ministry said the government had received a copy of the panel's conclusions. "We can only note that the working panel has come to another conclusion than Swedish judicial authorities," a ministry spokeswoman told AFP. Rulings by the UN group are not legally binding, although the Justice for Assange support group claimed its rulings have influenced the release of prominent figures including Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi and Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian, who was held by Iran for 18 months. Assange's Swedish lawyer Per Samuelsson told AFP that his client met the definition of someone being illegally detained, even though he himself chose to seek refuge in the embassy. "The European Convention on Human Rights doesn't define detention as sitting in a cell, it sees it an infringement of one's freedom" if a person's movements are limited due to the risk of arrest. "The European Convention has a wider definition," he said. Samuelsson said he expected Swedish prosecutor Marianne Ny to ask a court to withdraw the arrest warrant. "Marianne Ny would have to have my client released immediately," he said. But the Swedish prosecution authority said Thursday the panel's ruling "has no formal significance for the ongoing investigation under Swedish law." Prosecutors are keen to make headway in the case that has been deadlocked for nearly five years by questioning Assange. The Australian has denied the allegations. Assange sought refuge in the embassy in June 2012 to avoid arrest and extradition to Sweden, amid fears he could eventually be extradited to the United States to be tried over the leak of hundreds of thousands of classified military and diplomatic documents by his anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks. "Should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," Assange said in a statement on Thursday prior to the Swedish confirmation of the panel's ruling. The 44-year-old Australian said that if the UN group were to rule against him, "I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal." The British government said it was under an obligation to arrest him in both eventualities. "An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European arrest warrant in place, so the UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Mr Assange to Sweden," a government spokesman said. "We have been consistently clear that Mr Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the UK but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorian embassy." "Hopefully, the British and Swedish authorities will allow him freedom," Vaughan Smith, a friend and supporter of Assange, told AFP. "He has a miserable existence, so of course he wants to get out," he said. Ecuador has granted him asylum, but he has faced immediate arrest if he steps onto British soil and for years police have been posted around the clock outside its doors at a cost of millions of pounds. In October last year, British police ended the 24-hour guard outside the embassy in west London but said they would strengthen a "covert plan" to prevent his departure. Assange founded WikiLeaks in 2006, and its activities -- including the release of 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and 250,000 diplomatic cables -- have infuriated the United States. The main source of the leaks, US Army soldier Chelsea Manning, was sentenced to 35 years in prison for breaches of the Espionage Act. WikiLeaks has said Sweden's handling of its founder's case has left a "black stain" on the country's human rights record. In its submission to the UN panel it said "the only protection he has... is to stay in the confines of the embassy; the only way for Mr Assange to enjoy his right to asylum is to be in detention. "This is not a legally acceptable choice," it added, according to a file posted on the website justice4assange.com. Search Keywords: Short link: Three films will not be allowed to be screened in the arthouse cinema Zawyas first Short Film Festival, by order of Egypt's censorship board. According to Zawya, the three banned films will remain in the festival competition, though audiences will not have a chance to watch them. The three short films are Prayer Time by Marwan Iman, Tashkeel by Muhammad Mustapha, and The Antichrist by Hady Bassiouny. Though the reasons for banning the films are not declared, obscene language and religious considerations could be behind the decision, according to commentators. Prayer Time and The Antichrist both deal with the issue of atheism. The third film, Tashkeel, portrays "Mahragan music" a kind of folk music. The four-day festival is due to start today, Thursday, at Cinema Karim, Downtown Cairo. Twenty four Egyptian short films are competing for the festival's three awards: best film, the jury prize, and best director. The jury of the festival includes director Hala Khalil, Wael Mandour, and Nadin Khan. For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture Search Keywords: Short link: You Come From Faraway, a film in the making, recounts the story of Najati Sidki, a Palestinian journalist and communist who fought in the Spanish Civil War for universal social justice I am an Arab volunteer. I came to defend freedom on the front in Madrid, to defend Damascus in Guadalajara, Jerusalem in Cordoba, Baghdad in Toledo, Cairo in Cadiz and Tetuan in Burgos. So reads the daughter of Najati Sidki, who was a Palestinian journalist and former secretary of the Palestine Communist Party, from her fathers memoirs, written in Arabic, in which he recounted his experience as a volunteer in the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939). Sidki was among thousands of international volunteers who came from Iraq, Morocco, Lebanon, Palestine, Egypt and Algeria to fight on the side of the Republicans against General Francisco Franco and his fascist forces. The scene described above is from the trailer of You Come From Faraway, a documentary film in the making by award-winning Egyptian filmmaker Amal Ramsis, whose repertoire includes the films Only Dreams (2005), Life (2008), Forbidden (2011) and The Trace of the Butterfly (2014). You Come From Faraway unearths an unexplored history by telling the story of Sidki who, like his Arab companions, believed in the universality of their struggle for social justice and democracy and thus left their countries on the eve of the Spanish Civil War to fight alongside Italian comrades. Some of these Arab volunteers died in the course of the war. Others disappeared, while some were able to return to their countries after the war. Around 50 percent of the film, which is produced by Necati Sonmez and supported by Screen Institute in Beirut, is complete. In an attempt to finish the film soon, Ramsis started an Indiegogo crowd-funding campaign, which she hopes could help the team raise the missing amount in the film's budget and reach the post-production phase in 2016. On finding a story In 2004, while studying film in Madrid, Ramsis stumbled upon an article that revealed the participation of Arabs in the Spanish Civil War, published in a Spanish magazine called La Commite de Solidaridad con la Causa Arabe (The Committee of Solidarity with the Arab Cause). It was much of a discovery, as even the Spanish themselves dont seem to know that Arabs had volunteered to fight in the Spanish Civil War, Ramsis told Ahram Online. In fact, Arabs participation as international volunteers in the Spanish Civil War has been obscured, with our knowledge of the Arabs role in this war largely limited to how Moroccan troops were brought into Spain (as Morocco was colonised by Spain at the time) to fight alongside Francos forces against the Republicans. Hoping there was a story to uncover, Ramsis commenced a search for the writer who had written this magazine article. His name was Salvador Bufaroll and he told Ramsis he discovered the Arabs participation in the Spanish Civil War while undertaking research in Moscow. He spoke of how he would sent letters to people whose names he found during his research, to check if hed receive any replies, and hence confirm they were all real-life characters. I told him I was interested in researching the subject and he supported me by passing on all documents he had, Ramsis explained. Between that meeting with Bufaroll in 2004 and up until 2007, Ramsis delved into historical research on the topic, with the help of the Granada-based Fundacion Euroarabe (The Euro-Arab Foundation), which offered Ramsis a research residency. During this three-year research period, Ramsis read a lot about the Spanish Civil War, and met with other people to know more about this specific historical juncture, all the time trying to locate an Arab family who had been connected to the war, to create an intimate portrait of them and their aspirations for social justice and political freedom. Theres a difference between making a documentary about the Spanish Civil War and between finding a specific human story that you could base that documentary on. So while the historical information was available, I was interested in finding Arabs who had lived this war, and had written about it in some way, Ramsis said. In 2007, while still in Madrid, Ramsis found her story when she came across a Spanish translation of a memoir by Najati Sidki, a Palestinian communist who traveled to Spain in 1936 and volunteered to fight against Franco. In the fragment of the book that had been translated by Professor Nieves Paradela, Sidki recounted his experience as a volunteer in the war after 40 years of silence. Ramsis immediately got in touch with Paradela, who informed Ramsis she had been in contact with one of Sidkis two daughters, rendering Sidkis family an important find, since some of its members were still alive and thus could be approached, which was not the case with many of other families of Arab men who had volunteered to join the Spanish Civil War, Ramsis explained. Ramsis soon traveled to meet Sidkis younger daughter who lives in Greece, and was introduced to the full story of Najati Sidki's family. In 2015, Ramsis also traveled to Moscow where she met with Sidkis eldest daughter, Dawlat. I came to know how Sidki had lost Dawlat, who was born three years before the beginning of the Spanish Civil War, during the course of his participation in this war. For the next 25 years, the daughter lived in Moscow, separated from her family before all Sidki family members reunited in Beirut decades later, Ramsis explained. The Sidki family had lived through important moments in modern history, beginning with the Spanish Civil War and the 1948 Nakba, to the Lebanese Civil War, and earlier World War II, which Dawlat had witnessed during her stay in Russia. To Ramsis, this only suggested how this familys story encapsulates our regions history as a whole. Renegotiating essentialist readings of the Arab But besides exhibiting a historiographical debate, by showing that Arabs had taken part in Europes struggles for democracy, You Come From Faraway also shows how 20th century politically-active Arabs believed in the universality of their social struggle. The Spanish Civil War exhibited a very obvious struggle between fascism, on the one hand, and democracy, on the other hand, as opposed to other wars in modern history where this dichotomy was not as apparent, explains Ramsis, who is also the founder and director of the Cairo International Womens Film Festival. Believing in their shared destinies, and viewing their struggle in a manner that transcended borders and nationalities, thousands of international volunteers thus left to Spain, confident that if this battle for democracy triumphed in Spain, it would also garner similar gains across other European countries, she adds. The story constitutes a vivid rebuttal of a long-standing stereotype towards the Arab as being incapable of being active, or involved politically. As Ramsis puts it, the discovery that Arabs had participated in the Spanish Civil War suggests that not only did we as Arabs play a crucial role in important [political] movements in Europes modern history, but that this role is also a reflection of our own political activity during the 1930s and 1940s, beginning with the type of problems we were concerned about and how we had a secular struggle against colonialism, which comprised many leftist parties and movements that championed social justice and democracy. For example, despite having traveled to Spain to fight on the side of the republicans, Najati Sidki could still see that the republicans struggle lacked an important element because it did not see the decolonisation of Morocco (which was colonised by Spain at the time) as one step towards the ultimate success of their battle for social justice, Ramsis adds. That Sidki and his comrades were politically aware and could see this relationship between decolonisation, on the one hand, and crippling fascism in Europe, on the other, challenges the current view of Arabs as submerged in a Sunni-Shia divide or in sectarianism, and renegotiates the misconception that the Arab world "was never home to strong political parties and movements that advocated social justice and democracy in other countries. Moreover, the film suggests how borders were a symbol of solidarity in the 1930s-1940s, as opposed to now, where they have become walls against refugees. In Spain, Arabs were joined by Italians running away from Mussolini and Germans escaping Nazism, [both groups of whom] saw the Spanish Civil War as being an integral part of their political struggle, Ramsis says. Today, however, borders are open from the West towards East, but not vice versa. Refugees or illegal immigrants remain unwanted at European borders. For Ramsis, the Syrian refugees question, for example, "was immediately politicised, with the concern being how to set refugee intake quotas for Turkey, Lebanon and other countries. It is being portrayed more like beggary, while no one seems to be interested in examining the historical context that bore this conflict and how some Western countries played a role in initiating these wars, which have produced todays refugees. Since the films inception in 2004, the film project was being realised through individual efforts specifically through Ramsis and her husband. But, as Ramsis explains, no film can find its way to the silver screen through individual efforts only. Ramsis applied for production grants and received support from Beirut Film Institute, but struggled to receive other grants. The problem is that todays film market prefers mainstream approaches. Films must serve this need to stereotype Arabs, as either refugees or terrorists, without any space for different depictions of the Arab, explains Ramsis. You Come From Faraway is not interested in such victimisation of the Arab, and as such was not attractive enough for available film funds. With filming still to be done in Lebanon, Moscow and Spain, the film crew recently launched their Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign, which Ramsis says embodies our own battle against the current film market and its obsession with mainstream cinema. People who contribute to our campaign are helping us carry this battle, which in itself is part of a larger battle over our own history and collective memory, she adds. For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture Search Keywords: Short link: (Beijing) China National Chemical Corp. has secured a US$ 50 billion line of credit from a group of banks so that it can buy the Swiss agrochemicals company Syngenta AG, a person close to the deal says. ChemChina said on February 3 it reached a deal to purchase the pesticide and seed company for US$ 43 billion. The state-owned company said the transaction includes a special dividend of 5 Swiss francs per share to be paid immediately and an extra dividend of 11 Swiss francs to shareholders in May. The line of credit, which involves both domestic and foreign banks, is necessary because the Swiss government requires the deal to be completed in cash, the source close to the transaction said. ChemChina's president, Ren Jianxin, will take over as chairman of Syngenta, the Chinese company said. The company vowed it would not make changes to Syngenta's daily operations and management. Syngenta will be independently run from its current headquarters in the Swiss city of Basilea, ChemChina said, and Syngenta's chairman, Michel Demare, will serve as deputy chairman and independent director. The acquisition is subject to anti-trust reviews by authorities in countries where both companies have operations, including the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). The source close to the deal said he is confident CFIUS, an inter-agency body headed by U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew, will not object. Syngenta's CEO, Davor Pisk, said in an earlier interview with Caixin, that the prospects of an anti-trust review were important in choosing a buyers, and the company picked ChemChina is because there was little overlap in their markets. Syngenta said in a statement on February 3 that the deal will help it expand in emerging markets such as China where it sees great potential. Pisk was quoted as saying that company plans to grow in the nation like it has elsewhere. Syngenta reported US$ 11.4 billion worth of pesticide sales in 2014, equal to one-fifth of the global market. Its share price rose by 2.7 percent to 403 Swiss francs on February 3. This is lower than the 480 Swiss francs per share that ChemChina agreed to pay. Syngenta turned down an offer from the U.S. seed company Monsanto Company last year because of what Pisk said were "differences they could not reconcile over Syngenta's capitalization." (Rewritten by Li Rongde) In 1997, a little known brand suddenly shot to the attention of the world's perfume market. One of many that take their name from a fashion designer, it was not to begin with in the top tier, up there with Chanel and Christian Dior. But it took less than a decade for that to change. Lolita Lempicka is now among the world's most prominent perfume brands, coming in third or fourth place in market share in France. What makes that success even more remarkable is that the brand was created not by one of the big French fashion houses but by a local subsidiary of Korea's leading cosmetics company Amore Pacific. Thanks to rigorous localization strategy, not many customers know that Lolita Lempicka has its roots in the Far East. Amore Pacific made a disastrous debut in France with its skincare products in 1988. The No. 1 in Korea since its foundation in 1945, it looked as though the firm would find it impossible to make inroads into what remains the world's most sophisticated cosmetics market. The tag "Made in Korea" put customers off, with its suggestion of a far-flung frontier in the beauty market. But perhaps auspiciously, the first Korean brand in France was called SOON. Air strikes have destroyed a radio station run by Islamic State jihadists in eastern Afghanistan, officials said Wednesday, two months after the group took to the airwaves in a sign of their growing reach. The Pashto-language "Voice of the Caliphate" beamed IS propaganda in irregular nightly broadcasts from an undisclosed location in Nangarhar province bordering Pakistan. The Afghan defence ministry said the programme was broadcast from a moving vehicle and air strikes on Monday destroyed the transmission equipment hidden in the basement of a house in volatile Achin district. "The radio programme has not been heard since Tuesday," Achin district governor Haji Ghalib told AFP. "It was very demoralising for our troops and it is welcome news that it has been destroyed." The group, which controls territory across Syria and Iraq, has made alarming inroads in Nangarhar, as the country grapples with a resurgent Taliban insurgency. In recent months Afghan forces backed by US drones launched a scorched earth offensive to beat back IS in Nangarhar, where the group's rein of terror has displaced thousands of people. The defence ministry said Monday's strikes were carried out by the Afghan air force with the support of NATO troops. But some media reports said US forces conducted the strikes. The NATO mission in Afghanistan said two American "counter-terrorism strikes" were carried out late Monday in Achin, without elaborating. Mumtaz Sadat, a 28-year-old former Afghan soldier in Nangarhar, said the radio, which aired bombastic anti-government propaganda, sowed fear among local residents. "It was psychological warfare," he said. President Ashraf Ghani recently vowed to "bury" the Islamic State group's affiliate in Afghanistan, while voicing alarm over their growing reach. The jihadists have managed to attract disaffected Taliban fighters increasingly lured by the group's signature brutality. Story continues The White House last month gave the US military legal authority to target the group's fighters in Afghanistan, the first such authorisation for military action against the group outside Iraq and Syria The US State Department has formally designated the group's affiliate in Afghanistan and Pakistan -- which calls itself "Khorasan Province" -- as a terrorist organisation. The name Khorasan refers to a historic region which includes parts of modern-day Afghanistan, Pakistan and neighbouring countries. France's government is calling for a three-month extension of the state of emergency that has been declared after Nov. 13 deadly attacks in Paris. The measure proposed Wednesday in a Cabinet meeting now requires parliament's approval. The state of emergency has already been extended once and was scheduled to end on Feb. 26. It expands police powers to carry out arrests and searches and allows authorities to forbid the movement of persons and vehicles at specific times and places. In a written statement, President Francois Hollande said a three-month extension was justified by the need to face the "terrorist threat.'' Another government bill also presented Wednesday would extend police powers. It would allow officers to use their weapons to "neutralize someone who has just committed one or several murders and is likely to repeat these crimes.'' Currently, self-defense is the only legal justification for shooting someone. The proposed change would, for instance, permit police to shoot a gunman who has fired at civilians and is likely to do it again in a very short period of time. The proposals would also make it easier for police to carry out raids at night, and searches of luggage and vehicles near "sensitive'' sites and buildings. ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - Sunni Muslim Arab fighters backed by Kurdish forces and U.S.-led air strikes retook a village in northern Iraq on Wednesday in an example of effective military cooperation on the ground between them against Islamic State insurgents. The offensive in the Makhmour district south of Erbil began early on Wednesday, resulting in the recapture of Kudila - part of a series of planned operations to clear Islamic State from the area, Kurdish and Arab commanders said. Kurdish forces have driven the ultra-hardline Sunni militants back in northern Iraq, but have been reluctant to push further into predominantly Arab territory for fear of being seen as an occupying force by inhabitants and provoking a backlash. Local Sunni Arabs have been training in the Makhmour area as part of the Hashid Shaabi or Popular Mobilization Force, a coalition of mainly Shi'ite Muslim militias in which Iraqi Prime Minister Abadi would like to include Sunni groups. "In coordination with the (Kurdish) peshmerga and supported by coalition planes they have a plan to clear and liberate all the areas that the terrorists seized," said peshmerga commander Qader Qader. "These attacks will continue". Speaking via phone from Kudila with the sound of heavy machine gun fire in the background, one peshmerga said Islamic State had deployed three suicide car bombs to fend off the assault and at least eight militants had been killed. Sheikh Faris al-Sabaawi, one of the three commanders of the Hashid Shaabi force in the area, said he could see militants' body parts scattered around the village, which was used to launch rockets on Makhmour. The Hashid Shaabi retook another village in the area in coordination with the peshmerga several days ago. "We work as one team," Sabaawi said. The Hashid Shaabi will advance toward the Islamic State stronghold of Qayara, around 10 km (6 miles) further west, Sabaawi said. This ultimately would increase the pressure on Islamic State-held Mosul, northern Iraq's largest city, which the peshmerga have partly surrounded. The U.S.-led coalition fighting Islamic State aims to recapture Mosul this year, working with Iraqi government forces, and drive the jihadis out of Raqqa, their stronghold in northeast Syria, Arab and Western officials say. Iraqi Defense Minister Khaled al-Obeidi has said the Mosul operation will be launched in the first half of 2016. (Reporting by Isabel Coles; Editing by Mark Heinrich) Washington (AFP) - An armed US Predator drone crashed in Turkey on Wednesday after apparently suffering some kind of mechanical failure, military officials said. Captain Lauren Ott of the US Air Force's Europe command said the drone went down in an unpopulated area of southern Turkey at around 1:40 am local time (2340 GMT). "The aircraft was armed, but US military and Turkish officials were able to gain positive control over the ordnance and the crash site," she said. "The initial assessment is that the aircraft experienced mechanical failure, but a more in depth investigation will be conducted to determine the exact cause." The unmanned plane had been based in Turkey's Incirlik air base. US forces have been using the geographically key facility to launch drone and warplane strikes on Islamic State targets in northern Syria and Iraq. The incident comes after the Air Force in October lost control of two armed Predator drones in separate incidents in Turkey and Iraq. The Predators were both carrying air-to-surface Hellfire missiles when they crashed, but these were safely recovered along with the aircraft. Initial military accounts blamed one of the crashes on a lost link and the other on mechanical failure. Predator drones are primarily used for reconnaissance and intelligence-gathering, but can also be armed and carry out air strikes. London (AFP) - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said he could leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London on Friday pending an opinion by a UN panel on his alleged rape case -- but Britain said it would have to arrest him. Assange, who is wanted for extradition on a rape accusation in Sweden and has lived in the embassy since June 2012, said he expected to be treated as a free man if the panel rules in his favour. In September 2014, Assange filed a complaint against Sweden and Britain to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, claiming his confinement in the embassy amounted to illegal detention. "Should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," he said in a statement on Thursday. If the UN group rules against him he said "I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," he added. The British government said it was under an obligation to arrest him in both eventualities. "An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European arrest warrant in place, so the UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Mr Assange to Sweden," a government spokesman said. "We have been consistently clear that Mr Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the UK but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorian embassy." - 'A miserable existence' - The BBC reported that the UN panel would find in Assange's favour, in what would be a non-binding decision, although WikiLeaks sent a tweet saying it was awaiting "official confirmation". "Hopefully, the British and Swedish authorities will allow him freedom," Vaughan Smith, a friend and supporter of Assange, told AFP. "He has a miserable existence, so of course he wants to get out," he said. Story continues The BBC report said the panel took its decision in December and had already informed both the Swedish and British governments. The 44-year-old has been holed up in the embassy in west London since June 2012 in a bid to avoid extradition to Sweden over rape allegations, charges he has denied. Ecuador has granted him asylum, but he has faced immediate arrest if he steps onto British soil and for years police have been posted around the clock outside its doors at a cost of millions of pounds. In October last year, British police ended the 24-hour guard outside the embassy in Knightsbridge in west London but said they would strengthen a "covert plan" to prevent his departure. Separately, the Australian fears he could eventually face extradition to the United States to be put on a trial over the leak of hundreds of thousands of classified military and diplomatic documents by his anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks. Assange founded WikiLeaks in 2006, and its activities -- including the release of 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and 250,000 diplomatic cables -- have infuriated the United States. The main source of the leaks, US Army soldier Chelsea Manning, was sentenced to 35 years in prison for breaches of the Espionage Act. - 'Black stain' - WikiLeaks has said Sweden's handling of its founder's case has left a "black stain" on the country's human rights record. In its submission to the UN panel it said "the only protection he has... is to stay in the confines of the embassy; the only way for Mr Assange to enjoy his right to asylum is to be in detention. "This is not a legally acceptable choice," it added, according to a file posted on the website justice4assange.com. Although any decision by the UN group would not be legally binding, Justice for Assange claims its rulings influenced the release from detention of prominent figures including Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi and Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian, who was held by Iran for 18 months. A divisive figure, Assange has likened his confinement in the embassy, where he lives in a small room divided into an office and a living area, to living on a space station. [Kurdish fighters from the Peoples Protection Units (YPG) stand near the Tishrin dam, after they captured it on Saturday from Islamic State militants, south of Kobani, Syria December 27, 2015/REUTERS/Rodi Said] SYDNEY (Reuters) - A Canadian who said he fought alongside Kurdish forces against Islamic State in Syria has been detained while trying to enter Australia and told he will be deported, his father said on Wednesday. Richard Somerville said his son Robert, a Canadian veteran who previously fought in Afghanistan, was detained at Brisbane airport on Tuesday after he told immigration officials he had spent seven months fighting alongside the Syrian Kurdish militant group YPG last year. I havent seen my son in 20 years, Richard Somerville, who lives in Queensland, told Reuters. I was absolutely shocked when he called to say he was being detained." Australian Border Force and Immigration Department officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment. "The basis for the visa cancellation is at this stage unclear, Somervilles Melbourne-based lawyer, Jessie Smith, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. It may have political undertones and could be contestable." Australia introduced sweeping security reforms in 2014 over concern at the number of its citizens heading to Iraq and Syria to fight. About 110 Australians are estimated to be involved in the conflict. It is illegal for Australian citizens to support any armed group in Syria and fighters face life in prison upon return. The Syrian Kurds have established control over wide areas of northern Syria since the country erupted into civil war in 2011, and the YPG has become a major partner in the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State. Several foreigners, including Europeans and Americans, have joined the YPG but their numbers are dwarfed by foreign jihadist recruits to the other side. Kurds in Syria and Iraq are backed by a U.S.-led coalition, including Australia, which has been bombing Islamic State in both countries. (Reporting by Jarni Blakkarly. Editing by Jane Wardell and Nick Macfie) BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraqi security forces have begun building a concrete wall surrounding the capital Baghdad in a bid to prevent attacks by Islamic State militants, a military statement said on Wednesday. Islamic State, the ultra hardline group that seized vast swathes of territory north and west of Baghdad, claimed several attacks in recent months in the Iraqi capital. The last one, on Jan. 11, targeted a shopping mall and killed at least 18 people, according to police sources. The planned security barrier will surround the city from all sides, said Baghdad Operations Command's head Lieutenant-General Abdul Ameer al-Shammari, in a statement published on the defense ministry's website. The preparatory work on the wall started on Monday, he said. "The security barrier around Baghdad will prevent terrorists from infiltrating the capital or smuggling explosives and car bombs to target innocent civilians," he said. Construction will start in the area of al-Subaihat, around 30 km (20 miles) to the west of Baghdad, so as to isolate it from Falluja, a long-time bastion of Sunni Muslim jihadists now under control of Islamic State. Many districts in the Iraqi capital are now surrounded by concrete fences dating back to the strife that pitted Sunnis and Shi'ites about a decade ago. Some of these concrete walls will be dismantled in the districts that are no longer deemed under threat, and used in the new wall around Baghdad, along with surveillance camera and explosives detection devices, Shammari said. The walls and barriers around the so-called Green Zone are expected to remain. Created by the U.S.-led coalition that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003, this heavily fortified zone now houses the government, parliament and many embassies including those of the U.S. and Britain. (Reporting by Saif Hameed; Writing by Ahmed Rasheed) Baghdad (AFP) - Iraqi Kurdish leader Massud Barzani has declared that the "time has come" for the country's Kurds to hold a referendum on statehood, a move likely to raise tensions with Baghdad. But even if the various political challenges to independence are resolved, the major economic problems the region faces due to low oil prices are another bar to Kurdish independence. "The time has come and the conditions are now suitable for the people to make a decision through a referendum on their future," Barzani said in a statement released Wednesday. "This referendum would not necessarily lead to (an) immediate declaration of statehood, but rather to know the will and opinion of the people of Kurdistan about their future," said Barzani, who has remained in power despite the expiration of his term as president. Barzani, who has made similar calls in the past, did not specify when the vote would take place. Asked about the timing of the referendum, Ali Awni, a leader in Barzani's Kurdistan Democratic Party, said that "today is better than tomorrow," but did not give a specific date. Awni said the Kurds have gained international sympathy from fighting the Islamic State jihadist group, and that now "we must show the world the will of our people (for) independence and the right of self-determination." A US official said in response to Barzani's declaration that the issue was "an internal Iraqi matter". "The United States continues to support an Iraq that is federal, democratic, pluralistic, and unified," the official told AFP. Iraq's Kurds are a key US partner in the war against IS and have been some of the most effective forces fighting the jihadists. But both the referendum on independence -- which Iraq's federal government opposes -- and the issue of which areas it covers will raise tensions between the autonomous Kurdish region and Baghdad, potentially complicating anti-IS efforts. Story continues The region officially includes three provinces, but Kurdish forces now hold parts of four more over which the federal government wants to maintain control. - Economic challenges - Federal forces fled positions in various northern areas in the summer of 2014 when facing an offensive by IS, allowing Kurdish forces to gain or solidify control over areas claimed by both them and Baghdad. Oil-rich Kirkuk province, which is mostly held by Kurdish peshmerga forces, will be a particular point of contention due to the wealth of natural resources there. Turkey's assent would also be essential for moves toward Kurdish statehood to proceed, as Ankara is a key economic partner of Iraqi Kurdistan, both in terms of oil exports and other trade and investments. Barzani has a close relationship with the Turkish government. But Ankara is also battling the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) rebel group, and Turkey fears that having a Kurdish state on its southern border, or even moving toward one, could increase calls for similar action within its own territory. Iran and Syria, which also have substantial Kurdish populations, would potentially oppose the establishment of a Kurdish state for similar reasons. And while there is broad support for the idea of independence in Iraqi Kurdistan, the sharp divisions among the various Kurdish political parties would pose a significant challenge to the formation and successful administration of a state. Iraqi Kurdistan has been independently exporting oil via Turkey from four northern provinces since a deal between it and Baghdad on oil and revenue sharing collapsed last year. And like Baghdad, Kurdistan is facing a financial crisis due to plunging oil prices, on which they rely for the vast majority of government funds. Salaries for some Kurdish government employees have fallen several months in arrears, and some have gone on strike to protest unpaid wages. With immediate independence not a practical option, Barzani's call could be an attempt to draw attention away from the problems the region is facing or to aid him politically. "There is no on-the-ground justification for a referendum now," said Kirk Sowell, a Jordan-based political risk analyst who is the publisher of Inside Iraqi Politics. "You don't form a state when you are in the middle of an economic collapse," he said. ERBIL, Iraq (Reuters) - Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region should hold a non-binding referendum on independence, its president said on Tuesday, despite the numerous crises it is facing. Massoud Barzani has previously called for a referendum but set no timetable for a proposed vote. The chaos created by Islamic State's occupation of swathes of Iraq and Syria has given Kurds a chance to further their long-held dream of independence. But the region is currently struggling to avert an economic collapse. "The time has come and the situation is now suitable for the Kurdish people to make a decision through a referendum on their fate," Barzani said in a statement on his website. "That referendum does not mean proclaiming statehood, but rather to know the will and opinion of the Kurdish people about independence and for the Kurdish political leadership to execute the will of the people at the appropriate time and conditions." In recent years Iraq's Kurds have sought to maximize their autonomy, building their own pipeline to Turkey and exporting oil independently as relations with the federal government in Baghdad frayed over power and revenue sharing. The global slump in oil prices however has compounded existing economic problems, bringing the region to the point of insolvency. Regional powers have historically opposed Kurdish aspirations for independence, especially neighboring states with large Kurdish minorities of their own. The United States also says it wants the Kurds to remain part of Iraq. "If the people of Kurdistan are waiting for someone else to present the right of self-determination as a gift, independence will never be obtained. That right exists and the people of Kurdistan must demand it and put it into motion," Barzani said. Some view such calls for independence as an attempt to divert attention from internal issues and rally Kurds behind Barzani, whose mandate as president expired last year, but remains in office. "The same way that Scotland, Catalonia and Quebec and other places have the right to express their opinions about their destiny, Kurdistan too has the right, and it's non-negotiable". (Reporting by Isabel Coles; Editing by Hugh Lawson) Cairo (AFP) - An Italian student who disappeared in Cairo last week has been found dead and appears to have been tortured, officials said Thursday, prompting furious demands from Rome for the speedy arrest of his killers. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi phoned Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to demand that Giulio Regeni's body be immediately repatriated and Italian experts be given access to the investigation into his death. "We have to find those responsible for this horrible crime and bring them to justice," Renzi was quoted as telling Sisi. Italy also summoned Cairo's ambassador in Rome to express its "bewilderment over the tragic death" of Regeni, 28. The Cambridge University PhD student's half-naked body was found in a roadside ditch on the outskirts of Cairo early on Wednesday, public prosecutor Hossam Nassar told AFP. He had gone missing on January 25 while on his way to meet a friend. "This is a murder," Nassar said. Ahmed Negi, the prosecutor in charge of the investigation, said the body showed clear signs of violence. "There are bruises and injuries on the body, especially on the face and back. The body was naked from the waist down," Negi said. "So far we are considering this to be a criminal act, but we are waiting for the forensic report and the police investigation to be complete." An initial prosecution report seen by an AFP reporter said that the injuries included apparent cigarette-burn marks near the eyes and on the feet. - 'Truth must come out' - Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said Italy needed to be involved in the investigation "because we want the truth to come out, every last bit of it". "We owe that much to a family that has been stricken in an irreparable way and, at the very least, has the right to know the truth." The foreign ministry said the Egyptian ambassador, Amr Mostafa Kamal Helmy, had given assurances that the Egyptian authorities would do their utmost to find those responsible for what he termed a "criminal act". Story continues In reaction to the news, Italy's Economic Development Minister Federica Guidi, who was in Cairo when Regeni's body was discovered, cancelled the final day of a trade mission involving around 60 Italian companies. She had hours earlier urged Sisi to intervene personally in the investigation into Regeni's disappearance, underlining the potential for the case to disrupt normally close ties between Rome and Cairo. Renzi was the first Western leader to receive former army chief Sisi after his 2013 overthrow of Islamist predecessor Mohamed Morsi. Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry met Gentiloni in London and the two "agreed to increase cooperation and coordination between the Egyptian and Italian sides to determine the cause of the death," Shoukry's ministry said in a statement. Regeni, whose studies included Arabic and Arab literature, was from Fiumicello near Udine in northeastern Italy. He was in Cairo doing research for his doctoral thesis on trade unions in Egypt and was last seen when he left his home with the intention of travelling by metro to meet a friend in the city centre. Cairo was almost deserted on January 25, as Egyptian authorities had clamped down across the capital on what was the fifth anniversary of the Arab Spring uprising that ended longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak's 30-year reign. Cambridge mourned the loss of its student. "We're deeply saddened to hear of the death of Giulio Regeni. Our thoughts are with his family and friends," the renowned university said on Twitter. U.S. special troops and rangers have recently arrived in South Korea to participate in upcoming joint drills, the U.S. Forces Korea said Wednesday. The 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) and the 75th Ranger Regiment were previously involved in controversial assassinations in Iraq and Afghanistan. They are also trained to eliminate weapons of mass destruction. It is unusual for the USFK to announce the arrival of special forces, and the move was probably prompted by North Korea's recent nuclear test and announcement of an imminent rocket launch. Mexico City (AFP) - Mexican-American actress Kate del Castillo is seeking an injunction to block any attempts to arrest her over an investigation into her links to drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman. Del Castillo has been in the spotlight since it was revealed that she arranged a meeting between Guzman and US actor Sean Penn in October, six months before the Sinaloa drug cartel leader's capture. The attorney general's office has called on her to testify as a witness while it investigates whether Guzman invested any money in her tequila brand, "Honor del Castillo." The judicial council disclosed on Wednesday that the actress filed a petition in a Mexico City court last week to prevent any potential arrest. A judge has yet to rule on it. Attorney General Arely Gomez told reporters that it was Del Castillo's "absolute right" to seek an injunction and that her office "respects the presumption of innocence." Guzman, who tunneled his way out of prison in July, was recaptured on January 8. Del Castillo has vowed to tell her side of the story, but she has yet to do so. The 43-year-old star of "La reina del sur," a show in which she portrayed a drug lord, lives in Los Angeles. Miami (AFP) - Children who suffer from severe malnutrition are routinely given antibiotics as part of their medical treatment, but a study Wednesday found the practice offered no boost to their nutritional recovery. Therefore, the authors of the research say the World Health Organization should reconsider its 1999 guidelines, especially given mounting concerns about the overuse of antibiotics and the rise of superbugs across the globe. "Our results from Niger were surprising, as they challenge the current WHO recommendations and a recent well-conducted trial from Malawi," said lead author Sheila Isanaka, assistant professor of nutrition at Harvard University. "It's an exciting step forward though, as we hope that this new evidence will motivate a deeper review of current recommendations and the evidence on which they are based." The study in Niger involved nearly 2,400 children, aged six months to five years, who were suffering severe acute malnutrition. The children were randomly assigned to receive amoxicillin as part of their treatment, or a placebo. Researchers defined recovery as regaining appetite and displaying a weight-for-height score that met a previously established WHO scale by the end of eight weeks, as part of a program to give the children better nutrition and medical care. Overall, 64 percent of the children in the study recovered. There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups: among the children who received amoxicillin, 66 percent recovered, while 63 percent recovered in the placebo group. Those who took the antibiotic recovered a bit faster -- in 28 days on average, compared to 30 in the placebo group. A total of 13 children died -- seven in the amoxicillin group and six in the placebo group. "This finding challenges the view that routine antibiotic therapy is always necessary or beneficial," said the study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Story continues Eliminating routine antibiotic use could make treating malnutrition simpler and cheaper, and also encourage "responsible antibiotic stewardship," said the study. Severe acute malnutrition affects about 34 million children under age five worldwide. The WHO's recommendations that all such children be given antibiotics to reduce the risk of death came in 1999, when there were as many as five times fewer children affected globally compared to today, and before concerns about antibiotic overuse were widespread, the study authors said. The Niger study was funded by Medecins sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders). A previous randomized trial in Malawi found that amoxicillin significantly reduced the risk of treatment failure (by 24 percent) and death (by 36 percent), when compared to a placebo. However, that study did not assess children with HIV separately from children without the virus and "it was not possible to confirm a benefit among children without HIV infection," said the New England Journal of Medicine report. Most of the children in the Niger study did not have HIV. Washington (AFP) - Seven years into his presidency, Barack Obama will make his first trip to an American mosque on Wednesday, offering a high-profile rebuttal of harsh Republican election-year rhetoric against Muslims. Obama, whose grandfather converted to Islam, will make the short trip to the Islamic Society of Baltimore mosque, where he will meet community leaders and deliver remarks. He has visited mosques in Malaysia, Indonesia and Egypt as president, but has yet to visit one of America's 2,000-plus places of Islamic worship. In 2009, a freshly elected Obama traveled to Cairo to call for a "new beginning" with the Muslim world. Much of Obama's foreign policy agenda has focused on improving ties with Muslim nations, from making a nuclear deal with Iran to ending wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. But the effort has been stymied by continued confrontation with jihadist groups and military strikes in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Pakistan, Somalia, Syria and Yemen. His latest effort to ease interfaith relations comes as a shrill election debate has sullied America's image abroad and jihadist attacks in San Bernardino and Philadelphia threatened to shatter post-9/11 religious solidarity at home. Six days after the 2001 attacks in New York and Washington, then president George W. Bush visited the Islamic Center of Washington, declaring "Islam is peace." Today, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has wooed conservative voters by demanding a ban on Muslim immigrants, while frontrunner Ted Cruz has advocated Christian-only admissions and championed "Judeo-Christian values." "We're seeing all this right wing anti-Muslim hate. It's the perfect time for him to come," said Riham Osman of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, an advocacy group. - Law-abiding Americans - The White House is keen to offer an image of America that stresses the country's secular tradition and contrasts with Republicans' "divisive rhetoric." Story continues White House spokesman Josh Earnest said Obama will "affirm the important role that Muslim Americans play in our society" and argue that "law-abiding Americans should be able to worship God in the manner that they see fit." "And they shouldn't be subject to ridicule or targeting by anybody, let alone somebody who aspires to leading the country," Earnest added. "We have seen an alarming willingness on the part of some Republicans to try to marginalize law-abiding, patriotic Muslim Americans, and it is offensive." Obama is also likely to restate his case that organizations like the Islamic State group pervert Islam and do not represent the vast majority of Muslims. The United States is home to around 3.3 million Muslims. Around 81 Muslim-Americans were involved in violent extremist plots in 2015, according to the Triangle Center on Terrorism and Homeland Security. But Obama is expected to call on Muslim leaders to help tackle radicalization. "We know that there are extremist organizations like ISIL that are seeking to use social media to radicalize vulnerable members of the population," said Earnest. "Certainly the leaders in the Muslim community have a strong interest in preventing that from happening." That does not sit so well with members of the Muslim community. "I know national security will come up in the speech just because of the climate of today," said Osman. "I wish he wouldn't." "It does upset me a little bit that it is his first time coming to visit a mosque, and there will be kids there who have grown up in this post 9/11 era and their faith is constantly linked to national security and extremism." Paris (AFP) - By declaring a surge of microcephaly cases in Latin America to be a "public health emergency of international concern", the World Health Organization has sought to boost research into a little-understood condition. There have been three previous such declarations in the UN agency's history: for polio, the H1N1 "swine" flu epidemic, and most recently, West Africa's Ebola outbreak. Here are some of the key questions about the move. - What is a "public health emergency of international concern"? - An "extraordinary event" which could spread across borders and may require a coordinated international response, according to the WHO website. This means an outbreak that is "serious, sudden, unusual or unexpected", and could spread internationally. - How is it decided? - An emergency committee of disease experts advise the WHO director general, who makes the decision. - What action does it unlock? - This varies from case to case. This time, the aim was to aid research into the potential link between the rise in cases of microcephaly and other neurological disorders and an outbreak of the Zika virus, according to WHO official Monika Gehner. It seeks to promote research into vaccines and diagnostic tools, and to standardise data collection to allow easy comparison between countries. "This should also expedite political will and funding to rapidly scale up WHOs and the international communitys initial, acute response to the current outbreaks," said Gehner. - When has this happened before? - June 11, 2009: The WHO raised the pandemic alert for H1N1, lifting it just over a year later. Uncovered in Mexico and the United States, the outbreak was not as deadly as first thought and vaccines were made within months. Swine flu killed about 18,500 people in 214 countries, but the world had been bracing for far worse, and governments were left with millions of unused vaccine doses. The strain is one of many types of flu which circulate every winter and kill thousands of people, mainly the weak and elderly. Story continues May 5, 2014: The reemergence of polio, a crippling and potentially fatal disease that mainly affects children under the age of five. The disease had been all but eradicated due to a aggressive vaccine campaign, but remained endemic in Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan, where vaccinators have been attacked by Islamists and tribal leaders. The emergency was declared after cases of cross-border transmission were detected -- from Pakistan to Afghanistan, Syria to Iraq and Cameroon to Equatorial Guinea. The virus spreads through contact with the stool of an infected person, or droplets from a sneeze or cough. August 8, 2014: The WHO declared Ebola a "public health emergency of international concern" -- nearly a year after the first case was recorded in Guinea, becoming the worst outbreak since the virus was first identified in 1976. The outbreak infected almost 29,000 people and killed more than 11,300, mainly in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. The virus spreads through contact with the body fluids of infected people or animals. Having admitted it was slow to respond to the Ebola outbreak, the WHO is under pressure to act quickly with Zika -- even though its suspected link to microcephaly, which can have many potential causes, has not yet been proven. By David Alexander and Andrea Shalal WASHINGTON/NAVAL AIR WEAPONS STATION CHINA LAKE, Calif. (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Tuesday the Pentagon would seek a $582.7 billion defense budget next year and reshape spending priorities to reflect a new strategic environment marked by Russian assertiveness and the rise of Islamic State. Carter, speaking to the Economic Club of Washington, said the funding request was in line with last year's congressional budget deal, with a clear focus on five big challenges facing the U.S. military: Russia, China, North Korea, Iran and Islamic State. "Today's security environment is dramatically different than the one we've been engaged with for the last 25 years and it requires new ways of thinking and new ways of acting," he said. Carter's remarks came a week ahead of the formal rollout of the administration's budget for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1, providing a preview of what remains by far the largest military budget in the world. He told reporters during a visit to a California naval base that the budget plan focused on higher-end weapons spending to maintain the U.S. military's competitive edge over countries like Russia and China, which are expanding their militaries. The proposal drew immediate fire from Republicans, who railed against President Barack Obama's failure to request more funding to defeat Islamic State. Carter told reporters the administration had budgeted $7.5 billion for an accelerated fight against the militant group, 50 percent more than this year, and would seek further war funding later if needed. He said the United States has used so many smart bombs and laser-guided rockets against the militants in Iraq and Syria that it is running low on the weapons and needs to invest $1.8 billion for 45,000 more. EUROPEAN TRAINING Carter said the Pentagon would ask for $3.4 billion to boost military training and exercises aimed at reassuring European countries concerned about Russia, which seized Ukraine's Crimean peninsula in 2014 and has worried NATO allies with its strategic bomber flights. Obama said in a statement the request, a four-fold increase from last year's $789 million, would enable the United States to strengthen the U.S. military posture in Europe. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg called the move a "clear sign" of the U.S. commitment to European security. Carter also voiced concern about China's military intentions. Beijing has been rapidly developing missiles and other weapons that could force the U.S. military to operate farther from shore in the case of a conflict. "Key to our approach is being able to deter our most advanced competitors," he said. "We must have - and be seen to have - the ability to impose unacceptable costs on an advanced aggressor." To build upon the U.S. military's technological superiority, Carter said the Defense Department planned to invest $71.4 billion next year in research and development, much of it aimed at boosting strategic capabilities. The military has been developing drone aircraft and boats that are capable of swarming an adversary, preventing it from threatening U.S. warships and jets. He said the Pentagon also would spend $8.1 billion on undersea warfare in fiscal 2017 and more than $40 billion in the next five years. Carter later flew to Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake in California to get updates on new high-end weapons being developed and tested there, including precision Long Range Anti-Ship Missiles built by Lockheed Martin Corp . He said the department would spend nearly $1 billion over the next five years to buy the new missiles. The Pentagon also plans to spend about $2 billion over the next five years to buy more Raytheon Co Tomahawk missiles and upgrade their capabilities, bringing the U.S. inventory of the missiles to above 4,000, Carter said. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal at Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, Calif.; David Alexander and Roberta Rampton in Washington; and Robin Emmott in Brussels; Editing by Bill Trott and Andrew Hay) Last week, after reading Kevin Drums endorsement of Hillary Clinton at Mother Jones, I wondered why a progressive would assign so little import to her hawkish foreign policy instinctsand why her rival, Senator Bernie Sanders, gets so little credit for his prescient opposition to the Iraq War, his aversion to interventionism, and the longer odds against him starting a ruinous war of choice. Many Hillary Clinton endorsers should grapple with the same question. There is no issue bigger than war and peace. The stakes are as high as the $6 trillion that the Iraq War cost, the 4,500 American soldiers it killed, the part it played in the rise of ISIS, and the ISIS fighters who filled the power vacuum in Libya. Going forward, Hillary Clinton wants the United States to pursue regime change in another Middle Eastern country. Bernie Sanders does not. Both their records and their plans for the future are hugely different. Recommended: The 2016 Presidential Cheat Sheet: Rand Paul and Rick Santorum Drop Out Yet Clinton endorsers treat these differences as if they are unimportant. A comparison is instructive. Heres The Nations well-argued case for Bernie Sanders: On foreign policy, Clinton is certainly seasoned, but her experience hasnt prevented her from getting things wrong. Clinton now says that her 2002 vote to authorize George W. Bushs invasion of Iraq was a mistake, but she apparently learned little from it. Clinton was a leading advocate for overthrowing Moammar El-Gadhafi in Libya, leaving behind a failed state that provides ISIS with an alternative base. She supported calls for the United States to help oust Bashar al-Assad in Syria, an approach that has added fuel to a horrific civil war. She now advocates a confrontation with Russia in Syria by calling for a no-fly zone. Her support for President Obamas nuclear agreement with Iran was marred by an explicit rejection of better relations with that country and bellicose pledges to provide Israel with more arms. If elected, Clinton will be another war president at a time when America desperately needs peace. Sanderss approach is different and better. The senator hasnt talked as much as we would like about global challenges and opportunities, and we urge him to focus more on foreign policy. But what he has said (and done) inspires confidence. An opponent of the Iraq War from the start, he criticizes the notion of regime change and the presumption that America alone must police the world. He rejects a new Cold War with Russia. He supports the nuclear-weapons agreement with Iran, and he would devote new energy to dismantling nuclear arsenals and pursuing nonproliferation. He has long been an advocate for normalizing relations with Cuba and for reviving a good-neighbor policy in the hemisphere. Story continues Compare that to the New York Times endorsement of Hillary Clinton. The newspaper did not ignore foreign affairs. It praised some of Clintons work as secretary of state. But it spent just two sentences on issues pertaining to her war record: Mrs. Clinton can be more hawkish on the use of military power than Mr. Obama, as shown by her current call for a no-fly zone in Syria and her earlier support for arming and training Syrian rebels. We are not convinced that a no-fly zone is the right approach in Syria, but we have no doubt that Mrs. Clinton would use American military power effectively and with infinitely more care and wisdom than any of the leading Republican contenders. Neither Iraq nor Libya were even mentioned. And even though its endorsement was aimed at the Democratic race, the Times only averred that Clinton would be more careful and wise than leading Republicans, but failed to draw a care and wisdom comparison with Sanders. Its hard to imagine a more conspicuous evasion of a hugely relevant contrast. Recommended: This Is Reagan's Party That evasion is all the more dubious given that a Clinton or Sanders administration would be severely constrained by Congress in its domestic-policy agenda yet comparatively free to act in the realm of foreign affairs. Indeed, either president would frequently have the option to act without telling the public. And Clinton takes a broad view of executive power while showing disdain for transparency. Nonetheless, the New York Times is hardly alone in writing as if this hugely consequential realm where presidents have extraordinary power isnt worth dwelling on. The merest gesture toward it is often treated as sufficient. Joan Walshs endorsement of Hillary Clinton, for The Nation, spends more time analyzing an arguably condescending question the candidate got at a townhall meeting than her interventionist impulses. The lengthy pieces entire discussion of foreign policy: Im supporting Clinton, joyfully and without apologies. Thats not the same as without reservations; I continue to wonder whether shell be more hawkish on foreign policy than is advised in these dangerous times. Im concerned that shes too close to Wall Street; I really wish she hadnt given those six-figure talks to Goldman Sachs. But I genuinely believe shell make the best president. How can an endorser wonder whether the candidate theyre supporting will initiate another dumb war, note that reservation, but say no more on the subject? Being unadvisedly hawkish in a dangerous geopolitical time doesnt sound like a minor flaw! The answer, I think, is that all of Clintons endorsers operate in a political culture where it is normal to underestimate the costs of bygone foreign-policy mistakes, to misperceive where presidents are likely to make their most consequential decisions, and to underweight the potential downsides of foreign-policy actions. Recommended: The Impossibility of Rand Paul's Candidacy Consider that foreign-policy isnt even mentioned in some endorsements. In Salon, Amanda Marcotte published her reasons for supporting Hillary Clinton. Neither foreign affairs nor national-security policy are mentioned once. She praises Sanderss domestic agenda, but argues that he will never be able to get it through Congress: The problem is that Sanders is actually in this to win it now, and that is where I get off the train. Not that I think hed be a failure as president the job is mostly about appointing judges and filling bureaucracies with the right people, all of which Im sure he is capable of handling but because Clinton is just better equipped for it. The presidency is an executive office. Clintons more pragmatic approach to politics means shes more suited to that work, which is about executing the existing law in ways that best get you closer to liberal goals. The job isnt about passing single-payer healthcare. Its about running the health and human services department. Sanders has failed to persuade me that he really, truly gets the difference, and so I cant, in good conscience, support nominating him over Clinton. My other concern about the Sanders campaign is that its focus on impossible goals might backfire. Effecting change is not about making really big promises and posturing about how youre more socialist than thou. Its about organizing, lobbying, working with others and, yes, compromising. Its about running for and winning offices on the local and state level. That analysis elides the fact that acting as commander-in-chief is a rather large part of being president. And it casts Hillary Clinton as the pragmatist who is less likely to focus on impossible goals that might backfirethis despite her bet that the U.S. military could bring Iraq from regime change to democracy, the spectacular backfire of her Libya invasion, and her conviction that the U.S. can pursue a political revolution in Syria and fight ISIS simultaneously, despite Russian opposition. Shouldnt every Clinton endorser at least grapple with the plausibility of those goals and the likely consequences should her hawkishness backfire again? Comparing their foreign-policy records, Sanders is the pragmatist, while Clinton is the only one who has repeatedly watched long-shot initiatives wreak havoc. Of course, a neoconservative or a liberal interventionist might protest that I am wrong; that the senators who favored the Iraq War cast the right vote given what they knew; that the Libya intervention was necessary; that America should ignore Vladamir Putin and oust Bashar al-Assad while fighting ISIS; and that U.S. drone strikes kill more terrorists than they create, not vice-versa. Those Democrats should absolutely vote for Hillary Clinton. What confounds me is an election cycle where even liberals and progressives who are disdainful of the Iraq War, hostile to the military-industrial complex, dubious of the drone wars efficacy and morality, ideologically committed to transparent government, and allergic to neoconservatism are championing Clinton. If they did so on the grounds of electability, like Dana Milbank, Id understand their logic. What vexes me are substantive endorsements by non-hawk Clinton supporters who proceed as if war just doesnt rank very high among substantive issues. Thats exactly backwards. I disagree vehemently with a lot of Bernie Sanderss beliefs. Id rather have seen Rand Paul elected president. Better yet, Id love to reanimate Friedrich Hayek and stick him in the Oval Office (birth certificate be damned). But Ill vote for Sanders over Marco Rubio, or Chris Christie, or Jeb Bush, because those men are much more likely to start a dumb war of choice that costs billions and needlessly kills tens of thousands. With that in mind, I ask Clinton endorsers (like the Times, Drum, Walsh, and Marcotte): Am I assigning too much weight to foreign policy, or are you assigning too little? Read more from The Atlantic: This article was originally published on The Atlantic. DOT Ready to Celebrate 50th Birthday Six of his predecessors joined U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx on Feb. 3 at a ceremony kicking off celebrations of DOT's 50th year. He explained that DOT soon will have a video of the ceremony online and asked readers to visit DOT's 50th Anniversary website, which includes documents about the department's creation. U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx was joined on stage Feb. 3 by six prior secretaries during a celebration of DOT's 50th anniversary. One of them was the first person to occupy the position -- Alan Boyd. Foxx took note of the occasion's importance in a post on the agency's blog: "When President Lyndon Baines Johnson prepared to name his first U.S. Secretary of Transportation, he knew it would take a creative and intelligent leader to stand up the new Department of Transportation. And he knew that then-Under Secretary of Commerce Alan Boyd was the right man for the job," he wrote. "Since then, 16 other men and women have taken the Oath of Office for that position, and they have continued down the path that Secretary Boyd blazed. It's a path toward greater safety and mobility, paved by listening to a diverse array of stakeholders from the public, private, and non-profit sectors -- and made a lot easier by the professionals at DOT who serve the American people faithfully day in and day out. Today, we were fortunate to have seven of them -- including me -- on the stage for the kickoff ceremony of our year-long 50th Anniversary celebration, and I can't thank them enough for joining us. We also were joined by Lynda Johnson Robb -- daughter of President Johnson -- and Deputy Postmaster Ronald Stroman, and I thank them, too!" Foxx explained that DOT soon will have a video of the ceremony online. He also asked readers to visit DOT's 50th Anniversary website, which includes documents about the department's creation. Chief Chinese nuclear negotiator Wu Dawei arrived in Pyongyang on Tuesday without realizing that North Korea was going to announce a plan to launch a space rocket, a high-level source in Beijing said Wednesday. "Wu wouldn't have wanted to hear the news while he was in Pyongyang," the source said. The North in January conducted a nuclear test without notifying Beijing beforehand, in another sign of deep fissures in their alliance. But China seems to have decided to swallow its anger, at least publicly. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang expressed "grave concern" over the North's announcement and called for restraint from "all sides." But he added Wu was only in Pyongyang for the purpose of "exchanging views with the North Korea side over the current situation of the Korean Peninsula." He said China "cannot stop" the North from attempting to launch a rocket. "China will engage in contact and coordination with each related side, and play a constructive role in maintaining the peace and stability of the peninsula and this region," Lu said. The formulaic response makes it seem unlikely that Beijing would back much tougher international sanctions against the North, even supposing there was room for them. New Show Spotlights Work of NTSB's Alaska 'Go Team' NIOSH has reported that, from 1990 through 2009, aviation crashes in Alaska killed 149 pilots, resulting in a very high annual pilot fatality rate of 287 per 100,000 pilots. In November 2014, the National Transportation Safety Board concluded an investigation of the March 30, 2013, crash of an Alaska Department of Public Safety helicopter, finding that it was caused by the pilot's decision to continue flying into deteriorating weather conditions and also stemmed from the department's "punitive culture and inadequate safety management." The crash occurred as DPS personnel were on a mission to rescue a stranded snowmobiler near Talkeetna, Alaska. The pilot, another state trooper, and the snowmobiler died in the crash. NTSB found that the pilot's "exceptionally high motivation to complete search and rescue missions" increased his risk tolerance and adversely affected his decision making. "These brave few take great risks to save those in harm's way,'' NTSB then-Acting Chairman Christopher A. Hart said at the time. "There needs to be a safety net for them, as well." NIOSH reported last year that there were 568 commuter and air taxi crashes in Alaska between 1990 and 2009, representing 35 percent of all such crashes in the United States (1,615 crashes total) during that period, and that the Alaskan crashes represented 20 percent of the total U.S. fatal crashes with 20 percent of the fatalities during the period. "Alaska is uniquely dependent upon air transportation. Commuter and air taxi operators serve as the main link to much of Alaska, transporting people, cargo, and mail to more than 250 villages located off of the road system," according to NIOSH's web page about commercial aviation in the state. It said from 1990 through 2009, aviation crashes in Alaska killed 149 pilots (a number that does not include military pilots), an average of eight per year from a commercial pilot workforce of about 2,600resulting in an annual pilot fatality rate of 287 per 100,000 pilots. The fatality rate has dropped since 2009 but still remains much higher than the mortality rate for all U.S. workers, NIOSH reported. Now, the Smithsonian Channel is about to debut a new series about NTSB investigations of air crashes in Alaska. The channel's "Alaska Aircraft Investigations" six-episode series will premiere on Sunday, March 13, at 9 p.m. Eastern time. It will show five members of NTSB's Alaska "go team" at work as they investigate some of the more than 125 crashes that occur in the state every year, according to Smithsonian Channel. The five members of the team include Clint Johnson, chief of the NTSB Alaska regional office in Anchorage. 4 Part-time Side Gigs in Singapore that Offer Flexible Hours There are jobs aplenty in Singapore. Weve had an enviably low unemployment rate since forever, and its deliciously easy to job hop, whether youre doing it because your salary is moving slower than a broken down MRT train or because your boss gave you the stink-eye one too many times. Oh no, its fairly easy to find a job in Singapore so long as youre not too picky. The hard part is landing a gig that lets you work on your own time. Maybe your day job isnt paying you enough and you need a side job to keep you afloat. Maybe youre a uni student whos got to attend classes in the day. Unless youre prepared to work in F&B, your options are limited, as many part-time roles in Singapore still require their employees to come in at fixed hours. Here are four part-time gigs you can do whenever you want, and that can be a helpful supplement to your income. Private tutor or music teacher Thanks to the legions of kiasu parents all over the island, being a private tutor is one of the easiest part-time gigs to land, and also one of the highest paying. Just call up a bunch of tuition agencies and within a month youll be poring over assessment books with some exhausted, bespectacled kid. You can also pick only kids who live close to your placetravelling 2 hours by bus and MRT to get to a 1.5 hour lesson isnt exactly an efficient use of time. If you had the good fortune of not only being forced to learn to play a musical instrument when you were a kid but actually managing to master it, music teaching is often more lucrative and way less tiring than giving tuition. You also have a higher chance of convincing the kid to travel to your place instead of having it go the other way around. Need help getting started? Check out this article elsewhere on MoneySmart about kickstarting your tuition teaching career. Uber driver Becoming a taxi driver is like the middle aged Singaporeans backup plan when he realises his career hasnt panned out the way he was hoping it would. So its unsurprisingly that more and more Singaporeans are becoming UberX drivers in their spare time. Unlike taxi drivers, you wont need to go for training. Story continues The main things you need to do in preparation are to register yourself as a sole proprietor and limo driver with ACRA on their Bizfile website. If youre planning to use your own car, you need to register it as a commercial vehicle with LTA, and buy commercial car insurance. Youll then have to make a trip to the Uber office. If you have the time to make multiple trips in order to recoup the rental cost, you can rent a car for the purposes of being an Uber driver. Youll obviously need to drive more than if you were using your own car in order to recoup the rental cost. Some people share the cost of renting a car with their friends. If one of you can drive during office hours and another is free in the night, you can get more hours out of that vehicle. The great thing about being an Uber driver is that you can earn some spare cash literally any time of day. If youre out with your friends at 3am on a Friday night, nothings stopping you from taking a few bookings before driving home. Heres what you need to know to become an Uber driver elsewhere on MoneySmart. Freelance service provider A friend of mine who works full-time recently started painting walls in peoples homes on weekends. He texted a few contacts, banged out a post or two on Facebook and within a few days had landed his first assignment from a bunch of Singaporeans who needed to give their living room a new coat of paint but were too lazy to do it themselves and hadnt gotten around to hiring someone to do it for them. Another friend works as a freelance computer technician whenever hes not at his day job in retail. Ive also met a jetsetter who helps rich tai tais in Singapore buy limited edition designer bags in Europe for a commission. And everybodys Facebook feed is already flooded with the pictures of amateur photographers whove managed to land themselves wedding photography gigs. You might not become the main man, but many couples hire reserve photographers, often students or amateurs, just in case the actual photographer gets hit by a car on the way to the wedding or gets his memory card stolen. Thanks to social media and Whatsapp, its super easy to sell almost any service you can think of. A good way to get started is to volunteer to help someone do something you have the skills to dohelp them tidy up their resume, sew them a shirt or build them a website. Then get them to refer you to other people, which theyll be happy to do since you were nice enough to help them for free. Real estate or insurance agent If youre absolutely certain you want to take on a side gig for the long-term, and this isnt just about saving a lump sum of cash so you give your car an ah beng tribal design, then you might want to consider becoming a real estate or insurance agent. Its going to take a bit scratch that, make it a lot, of effort at the startyoull likely be working nights and weekends for the rest of the year. But if you manage to push through, your side gig could eventually end up being so lucrative that youre able to quit your day job. Lots of people get into real estate or insurance only to fail and quit when they realise they cant survive on oxygen alone after a few months without an income, but youve got the advantage of having a day job to keep you afloat. Many people get a head start selling insurance part-time during their university days, and then go on to become full-time agents when they graduate. It wont be easy at the startyoull need to take the RES/REA course and pass the exams to be able to work as a property agent, and sit the Singapore College of Insurance exams to become an insurance agent. But if you arent the type to give up easily and you actually rather enjoy meeting and selling to people, this is one way to give your income a long-term boost. Hear a property agents opinion on whether his job can be done part-time elsewhere on MoneySmart. What other part-time jobs offer flexible hours? Tell us in the comments! The post 4 Part-time Side Gigs in Singapore that Offer Flexible Hours appeared first on the MoneySmart blog. MoneySmart.sg helps you maximize your money. Like us on Facebook to keep up to date with our latest news and articles. Compare and shop for the best deals on Loans, Insurance and Credit Cards on our site now! More From MoneySmart Home Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam during his dialogue session with ERA agents. The government has a rough idea as to when to revise the cooling measures, but that doesn't mean that we announce it, said Home Affairs and Law Minister K. Shanmugam. Speaking to over 2,000 property agents at an ERA Realty conference on Wednesday (3 Jan), the minister said such a decision would be made by the National Development and Finance Ministers when they assess the risks to be less or manageable. He was responding to questions on when the Additional Buyers Stamp Duty (ABSD) would be removed. He explained that the measures were put in place by the government to protect Singaporeans, and they have managed to avert the disaster of an overheated property market. He noted that while some people are worried that the property market could go the other way, the government will ensure this doesnt happen. We cannot have a healthy economy if the property market has crashed. So its not in anybodys interest to see it crash. First introduced in December 2011, the ABSD was revised upwards in January 2013 to rein in Singapores escalating residential property prices. Singaporeans are required to pay an ABSD of seven percent for a second property, and 10 percent for a third and subsequent property. However, foreigners are required to pay an ABSD of 15 percent for their first and subsequent property purchases. Eugene Lim, Key Executive Officer at ERA Realty, believes that the government is watching the market closely and will tweak the measures in due time. The question is when, and many analysts have tried to set a target of how much prices will come down before the government removes the measures, but I do not think that is the case. The government is concerned about Singaporeans over-leveraging themselves as there are many potential buyers waiting on the sidelines. Right now, were not sure how quickly prices will rebound if one of the measures is removed, and I think that is the litmus test for the government. They dont want to remove something and cause prices to rebound, derailing the measures. Story continues They are looking at market stability rather than a target price. When the time comes, they will make the decision to reverse the measures, which will be a quick and easy process. Romesh Navaratnarajah, Senior Editor at PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact him about this or other stories email romesh@propertyguru.com.sg More from PropertyGuru: JTC to launch tender for Tuas South reserve list site How do stock market losses affect property? JLL makes new hire Singapore still 2nd for economic freedom Singapore Airlines (SIA) said Thursday its third quarter net profit surged 36 percent from the previous year, thanks largely to lower fuel expenses. Oil prices plunged to 12-year lows in January and analysts say they will remain depressed at least for the rest of 2016 due to a supply glut and weak demand. Proceeds from the sale and leaseback of some aircraft also boosted profits, the airline said in a filing with the Singapore Exchange. Net profit in the three months to December was Sg$275 million ($196 million), up from Sg$202.6 million during the same period last year. The airline benefited from lower group expenditure, largely due to a 24 percent drop in fuel expenses. The gain however was partially offset by losses totalling Sg$149 million due to hedging and the local currency's decline against the US dollar, SIA said. One analyst noted that while profits appear robust, it was driven mainly by lower fuel expenses and gains from the disposal of aircraft. "You need to take the numbers with a pinch salt because they don't quite reflect that the company has not done very well," said Shukor Yusof, founder of Endau Analytics, a Malaysia-based aviation consultancy. "All things considered, the outlook remains challenging. Fuel prices are unlikely to stay at this low levels forever," Shukor told AFP. "We're also concerned over the pace of the economic recovery in the US. The outlook for the EU remains cloudy and there are also concerns about China that will affect the rest of the Asia Pacific economies." The airline, which is facing tough competition from its peers and from budget carriers, added that travel demand will remain "volatile, affected by economic forces and external events". "On the competitive front, expansion of other full-service airlines as well as low-cost carriers, particularly in Southeast Asia, will continue to exert pressure on loads and yields," SIA said. The airline's shares dipped 0.92 percent to close at Sg$10.82 before the results were released, bucking a marginal rise in the Straits Times Index. The decline in tourist spending, growth of online retail, and more Singaporeans shopping overseas led to slower retail sales growth in Singapore during the past three years, with island-wide retail rents dropping four percent last year, revealed a JLL report. In 2014, around 1.44 million Singapore residents shopped online, up 30 percent from 2012, according to the InfoComm Development Authority (IDA) as cited by JLL in a press release dated 4 February. The significant increase came from shoppers above 35 years old, as those using portable devices to access the internet from this group soared 50 percent in two years. Aside from movie and airline tickets, Singapore residents are increasingly purchasing footwear, clothing, groceries and household and electronic goods online, showed a JLL study on the impact of multi-channel retail on Singapore retail space demand. The number of shoppers buying computer equipment and groceries soared by around 70 percent over the last two years. Meanwhile, Accentures retail strategy consulting group Javelin expects the Internet to influence 75 percent of non-supermarket chain store sales by 2020, an increase from 2010s 44 percent. JLL noted that these trends have played out to some extent in Singapore. In pro-actively managed suburban malls, for instance, food and beverage, fashion, beauty and health trades have taken up more space in the last seven years, while department stores, supermarkets and houseware shops have reduced in size. And while overall retail sales did not grow last year, tenant sales in well managed suburban malls grew by two to five percent year-on-year, with gifts and toys posting the strongest growth. Looking ahead, Regina Lim, JLL national director of advisory & research for Capital Markets, expect to see more Singapore residents using multiple channels to shop in the next three years. Online purchases of non-experiential goods such as groceries, household and electronic goods are likely to grow exponentially. Suburban malls may cut back on space for these trades while increasing the allocation to clothing/footwear, health/beauty, F&B and gifts and toys, she said. Story continues Well-managed suburban malls could do well in 2016, gaining market share in a challenging market. By proactively managing the tenant mix and attracting more higher-priced brands, suburban retail mall rents could remain healthy and grow. Nikki De Guzman, Editor at CommercialGuru, wrote this story. To contact her about this or other stories emailnikki@propertyguru.com.sg More from PropertyGuru: Govt wont let property market crash: Shanmugam JTC to launch tender for Tuas South reserve list site How do stock market losses affect property? JLL makes new hire Turkey on Thursday said that it had refused to allow a Russian reconnaissance plane to overfly its territory near Syria, citing a disagreement over the flight plan, as relations between the two countries hit a post-Cold War low. The Turkish foreign ministry's statement came a day after Russia accused Turkey of breaching the Open Skies treaty by refusing the plane access. "An agreement could not be reached on the itinerary for the reconnaissance flight requested by the Russian Federation for 2-5 February 2016," the ministry said. Moscow had said Wednesday that the Russian plane's flight plan had been transmitted to the Turkish army in advance but authorisation was refused with Ankara. The 2002 Open Skies treaty, signed by over 30 nations including Russia, Turkey, the EU and the US, establishes a programme of unarmed aerial surveillance flights giving all participants the ability to gather information about military forces and activities of concern to them. Its aim is to boost mutual understanding and confidence. In an apparent bid to downplay the significance of the latest incident, the Turkish foreign ministry said Thursday it had allowed Russia to conduct a reconnaissance flight in December after Moscow changed the itinerary as requested by Ankara. - 'Out of the question' - The latest salvo in an ongoing dispute between the two countries came some three months after Turkey shot down in November a Russian fighter jet on the Syrian border, sparking a war of words with Moscow which insisted its plane had not violated Turkish airspace. Omer Celik, spokesman for Turkey's ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), said the Russian plane had been refused access for security reasons. Under the Open Skies treaty, host countries have a say about reconnaissance planes' flight plans, he added. "But the flight plan requested (by Russia) was a horizontal route along the Syrian border, which also extends up to Hatay," he added. He was referring to a Turkish province on the Syrian border that is in the same area over which the Russian plane was shot down in November. Story continues "Of course, it is out of the question right now to allow this due to security problems," Celik said. "We have a fresh crisis with Russia," he said, as he cast doubt on whether the the reconnaissance flight might actually have a military mission across the border in Syria. Russia launched a massive air campaign in September against rebels fighting to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a long-time Moscow ally who Turkey bitterly opposes. Turkey has also voiced concern about Russian air raids in northern Syria because of the Turkmen minority in the area, a Turkic-speaking people who have had an uneasy relationship with Assad's regime. Ankara on Saturday accused Moscow of a new violation of its airspace by a Russian Su-34 plane, a claim that Moscow dismissed as "baseless propaganda." In a fine balancing act, Bulgaria seeks to benefit from a spat between Turkey and Russia to revive weakened economic ties with Moscow -- its main gas supplier -- without offending Ankara, an important ally in the migrant crisis. In a sign of thawing relations, Sofia last week hosted a meeting of the Bulgarian-Russian economic cooperation committee -- the first since the 2014 failure of the South Stream pipeline project. The multi-billion-dollar plan had aimed to deliver Russian gas to Europe via the Black Sea and the Balkans while bypassing conflict-ridden Ukraine. But EU and NATO member Bulgaria, under pressure from both Brussels and Washington, ended up suspending the deal. Reacting to the snub, Russia redrew plans to transport its gas via a new undersea pipeline called TurkStream. But these too were shelved after the downing of a Russian warplane by a Turkish fighter jet on the Syrian border in November. Bulgaria -- the only bloc member to get almost all of its natural gas from Russia via Ukraine -- has now seized upon the row to propose yet another deal: building a depot that could channel Russia's gas to Europe via Bulgaria. "We presented Moscow our project for building a new gas distribution centre that we are also coordinating with the European Commission," Bulgarian Energy Minister Temenuzhka Petkova said last Thursday at the end of the bilateral talks. Russia cautiously welcomed the proposal. "What keeps us from being too optimistic at this stage is the fact that we are still awaiting the sorting-out of a series of technical questions with the European Commission," Deputy Justice Minister Sergei Gerasimov said after last week's bilateral meeting. - 'Incredible pressure' - In the short term, a rapprochement with Moscow could also help fuel Bulgaria's fledgling tourism industry. Last summer, its Black Sea resorts were hit by a steep drop in Russian visitor numbers as the ruble slid along with oil prices. Gerasimov last week touched on the possibility of "diverting Russian tourists from Turkey" to Bulgaria. Sofia, meanwhile, promised to ease its visa regime for Russians. But Bulgaria is walking on thin ice as it seeks to also maintain good relations with Turkey. Sofia notably counts on its southeastern neighbour to prevent an influx of migrants through their shared 275-kilometre (170-mile) porous land border. "Regarding the downing of the Russian plane by Turkey (...) we showed that we are a loyal member of the EU and NATO," Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov said in early January. However, he also admitted to being subjected to "incredible pressure" by both sides. "Now that the two titans have clashed, they want us to say whether we are pro-Russian or pro-Turkish. We are neither pro-Russian nor pro-Turkish. We want to be loyal neighbours," he said. - Putin 'loves us' - During its 45 years of communist rule, Sofia was Moscow's staunchest ally and surveys indicate that many Bulgarians continue to feel strongly pro-Russian. A poll conducted last March showed that 61 percent of participants maintained a positive attitude towards Russia, even at the height of the Crimean annexation crisis. Experts point out that this "Russophile stereotype" was cultivated long before communism, finding its roots in Russia's liberation of Bulgaria from five centuries of Ottoman domination in 1878. Moscow, meanwhile, has also been sending friendly signals in Bulgaria's direction. Russian President Vladimir Putin included in his 2016 calendar a picture with his Bulgarian shepherd dog Buffy, received as a present from Borisov. "Well, he loves us," said Borisov, grinning, as he commented recently on the photo. By Tom Esslemont LONDON (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Humanitarian access to northwestern Syria could be cut off unless Russia halts its aerial bombardment of routes supplying hundreds of thousands of people with food and water, aid workers warned ahead of an international donor conference on Thursday. The alarm was sounded by an international aid agency, exclusively to the Thomson Reuters Foundation, as a Syrian government offensive, backed by heavy Russian air strikes, threatened to cut rebel supply lines from Turkey into the northern city of Aleppo earlier this week. As the fighting raged, efforts were being made by the United Nations in Geneva to get the warring sides to negotiate an end to the conflict that has killed 250,000 people, driven a wave of refugees and empowered Islamic State militants. But with opposition and government representatives refusing to meet each other, aid agencies said it was vital the issue of humanitarian access and Russia's airstrikes be discussed by government and aid officials at the London funding conference. European governments and EU institutions in Brussels are seeking to respond to a call by Britain, Germany and Norway, which are hosting the gathering, along with the United Nations and Kuwait, to double humanitarian aid to the region. U.N. agencies are appealing for a total of $7.73 billion to cope with Syria's needs this year, with a further $1.2 billion required by regional governments for their own plans to deal with the impact of Syria's conflict. Civilians in the governorate of Aleppo and in the neighbouring province, Idlib, holding out in what is left of their homes, schools, shops and bakeries, rely on humanitarian aid brought in through two designated crossing points from Turkey. Idlib has been controlled by opposition forces since 2015, while Aleppo is split between government and rebel-controlled areas. The aid agency said the two crossing points, Bab al-Hawa and Bab al-Salam, were controlled by opposition forces on the Syrian side of the border. In an internal report, the aid agency said the Russian air force was still targeting the rebel groups behind frontlines in what might be part of a Syrian government strategy aimed at wresting control of the crossing points from the opposition. "This would constitute a significant victory for the Syrian government as it would essentially cut opposition-held territory off from Turkey," the aid agency said in the report seen by the Thomson Reuters Foundation. The charity, which has been working in Syria since the war began five years ago, also said the current level of aerial bombardment was making the route too dangerous for humanitarian convoys and complicating life for civilians. CHILDREN STAY HOME FROM SCHOOL Russia began airstrikes in September, tilting the war in President Bashar al-Assad's favour, after major setbacks earlier in 2015 brought rebel groups close to the coastal heartland of his Alawite sect. "Parents are keeping children home from school because the schools are targets. Multiple markets have been hit pushing up the price of goods," said a spokeswoman for the aid agency on condition she and her organisation were not identified. The Russian Defence Ministry did not respond immediately to request for comment, but it has repeatedly said its air force targets a range of militants in Syria, not just Islamic State, although it insists it focuses on IS. Russia's air force carried out 468 sorties in Syria last week, hitting more than 1,300 "terrorist" targets, Russian news agencies quoted Russia's Defence Ministry as saying on Monday. The Defence Ministry also delivered more than 200 tonnes of humanitarian aid to the besieged Syrian town of Deir al-Zor in January, agencies quoted it as saying. Nearly three million people received food aid brought across the border from Turkey in December 2015, the United Nations Office of the Coordinator for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said. The U.N. World Food Programme said the airstrikes had delayed the movement of its convoys across the border from Turkey, while some NGOs said their staff were reluctant to make the journey because of the insecurity. "The targeting of trucks is endangering the cross-border missions and increasing the difficulties reaching people in need in northern Syria," said Fadi Hakim, coordinator of a network of Syrian non-governmental organisations (NGOs) operating across the Turkey-Syria border. Some NGOs have already closed their offices near border areas as they feel it is too dangerous for their staff, he said. (Reporting By Tom Esslemont, additional reporting by Tatiana Ustinova in Moscow, Editing by Ros Russell; Please credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, womens rights, corruption and climate change. Visit news.trust.org) DUBAI (Reuters) - A Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen regrets civilian deaths, which it says are unintentional, and is improving its targeting mechanisms with Western help, the alliance said on Sunday. The coalition "greatly regrets civilian casualties in Yemen", it said in a statement posted by Saudi Arabia's mission to the United Nations on its Twitter page. A U.N. report seen by Reuters on Wednesday said the Saudi-led coalition has targeted civilians in Yemen, documenting 119 sorties it said related to violations of international humanitarian law. "The Arab coalition announces the formation of a high-level independent committee ... to evaluate the events, identification and targeting mechanisms and developing them," the Saudi mission's statement said. In March, the Saudi-led alliance began a military campaign in Yemen to prevent Houthi fighters, whom it sees as a proxy for Iran, from taking complete control of Yemen after seizing much of the north. The Houthis deny any backing from Tehran and accuse the coalition of launching a war of aggression. Around 6,000 people, about half of them civilians according to the United Nations, have been killed in fighting and air strikes since the intervention began. In a news conference in Riyadh on Sunday, Saudi coalition spokesman Brigadier General Ahmed Asseri acknowledged mistakes in air operations in Yemen, but mostly defended the alliance's record while noting that its Western allies were helping to improve their performance. "Experts from the United States ... (will) work on extensive reports and develop operating mechanisms, together with the British side," Asseri said, adding that the advisers held a workshop in recent days at the coalition headquarters. Asseri said the coalition was responsible for the bombing of a Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) hospital in northern Yemen on October 27 which it had denied at the time, explaining to reporters that planes had targeted Houthi fighters near the facility. (Reporting By Noah Browning and Ali Abdelaty; Editing by Dominic Evans) Talks aimed at securing peace in Syria were suspended Wednesday as President Bashar al-Assad's regime secured a major battlefield victory against rebels and his ally Russia vowed no-let up in air strikes. The United States and France condemned the Russian bombing around Syria's second city of Aleppo, with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius accusing the government and its backers of "torpedoing the peace efforts". After failing over several days to get peace negotiations off the ground in Geneva, UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura announced a suspension of the talks. "I have indicated from the first day I won't talk for the sake of talking," he told reporters. "I therefore have taken the decision to bring a temporary pause (until February 25). It is not the end or the failure of the talks," he added, saying "more work" was needed, including from outside powers embroiled in the complex conflict. Backed by external powers embroiled in Syria's war, the negotiations are seeking to end a conflict that has killed more than 260,000 people and fuelled the meteoric rise of the extremist Islamic State group. But the main opposition umbrella group, the High Negotiations Committee (HNC), said it would not return to Geneva until its the regime alleviates the dire humanitarian situation on the ground in Syria. The UN announcement came as Syrian troops, helped by days of Russian air sorties, cut the last supply route linking rebels in Aleppo to the Turkish border. Syria's pre-war commercial capital has been divided between loyalists in the west and rebels in the east since fighting erupted in the northern city in mid-2012. Assad's forces, aided by Lebanon's Iranian-backed Hezbollah and other militias, encircled Aleppo from the west, south and east, and have advanced from the north since last week. - Supply route cut - On Wednesday, the army broke a three-year rebel siege of two government-held villages and took control of parts of the supply route, a Syrian military source told AFP. The offensive is one of several the government has launched since Russia threw its military might behind Assad, adding to support from Iran, on September 30. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday he saw no reason for the air strikes to stop until the "terrorists" are defeated. "The regime forces have done in three days in Aleppo what they had failed to do in three years, thanks mainly to Russian support," said Rami Abdel Rahman of Britain-based monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Since the conflict began in March 2011, more than half of Syria's population have fled their homes, many of them heading to Europe. The UN said last month some 487,000 people were living under siege, among 4.6 million people in so-called "hard-to-reach" areas. De Mistura's brief is to coax both sides into six months of indirect "proximity talks" envisioned under a November roadmap proposed by outside powers, but problems beset the Geneva gathering from the outset. The HNC arrived several days late, and reluctantly, insisting on immediate steps to allow aid to get through to besieged cities, a halt to the bombardment of civilians and the release of thousands prisoners. Riad Hijab, HNC chief coordinator, said late Wednesday the group "will not return until the humanitarian demands are met or (we) see something on the ground". "The whole world sees who is making the negotiations fail, who is bombing civilians and starving people to death," Hijab told reporters, adding the Russian-backed advances showed the government was not genuinely interested in peace talks. - 'Asphyxiate Aleppo' - The US State Department said the Russian air strikes were harming attempts to secure peace. "It is difficult in the extreme to see how strikes against civilian targets contribute in any way to the peace process now being explored," said State Department spokesman John Kirby. France's Fabius in a statement condemned "the brutal offensive by the Syrian regime, with the support of Russia, to encircle and asphyxiate Aleppo". He said France supported de Mistura's decision to halt the talks to which neither "Assad's regime nor its supporters apparently want to contribute in good faith, thereby torpedoing the peace efforts". World leaders will take stock of the suspended Geneva talks when they gather in London on Thursday for a donor conference to help Syrians and neighbouring countries affected by the crisis. The Syrian government delegation in Geneva, meanwhile, complained that the Saudi-backed HNC was disorganised, had not named its negotiators and contained individuals it considered "terrorists". One such figure is Mohammed Alloush, a leading member of Islamist rebel group the Army of Islam and nominally the HNC's chief negotiator, who arrived in Geneva late on Monday. Bashar al-Jaafari, chief government negotiator, blamed the suspension on opposition "preconditions" and said de Mistura announced the break only because the HNC was about to leave. LS Cable and System will supply cable harnesses for electric vehicles to Beijing Automotive Industry Holding, the company said Wednesday. A cable harness is an assembly of cables which transmit signals or electrical power. BAIC is China's fourth largest carmaker. It plans to develop 14 eco-friendly models by next year. The component will be used in the EV 200, which is scheduled to be released in August. LS Cable said this is its first direct supply deal with a carmaker and it hopes for more. The human gut is a complex and amazing system, and the more we learn about it, the more amazed we are. It turns out Quick and Easy Certificates Ordering a vital certificate through our secure online ordering service is quick and easy. We also provide expert assistance and thorough review of all pertinent information to ensure compliance with government rules and regulations resulting in you receiving your certificate without additional delays. USVitalRecords.org prides ourselves on exceptional customer service and expertise to make the process of obtaining your vital record quick and easy. We know exactly where, how and what to submit in order to obtain that vital record or certificate without error, minimizing the chance that your application will be rejected. Three Hills Capital Partners has soared past 1bn for the final close of its fourth flagship fund, almost doubling the total it collected for its predecessor vehicle. French niche perfume house Atelier Cologne, established by Sylvie Ganter and Christophe Cervasel in 2010, will release a new perfume called "Encens Jinhae" in March. The scent is named for the city of Jinhae in South Gyeongsang Province, which is famous for its cherry blossom, a main ingredient. "Visiting Korea, a trendsetter in Asia, is always impressive. I came to love Korean culture and people thanks to the many friends I made there," Cervasel told the Chosun Ilbo in an e-mail interview last week. A year ago Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie were in Gozo shooting their film By the Sea, a trip billed as their "working honeymoon" after their wedding in August. The Jolie-Pitts were pictured in the press both filming - scenes were shot in stunning Mgarr ix-Xini Bay - but also touring the island in a private yacht or vintage convertible during filming breaks - in Xahgra Square and Sannat. It was a great advert for the beautiful attractions such as the Azure Window and the UNESCO listed Ggantija Temples - and tourism on the island "boomed" this summer according to locals. The film was released in the UK in late 2015 but if you've fallen in love with the small island of Gozo on the big screen how about a holiday home there? Here's a quick guide. Quick facts about Gozo * Gozo is 6km west of Malta, with Comino in between * It is 67m2, inhabited by 37,000 Gozitans. * Its capital is Rabat, also known as Victoria. * With no airport, it is reached by ferry from Malta. * The Azure Window (limestone arch) appeared in Game of Thrones * Property closing costs are 4.5-7per cent. Why (else) is interest high in Gozo? Apart from the Brangelina effect, people are heading there who had formerly considered Egypt, Tunisia and Turkey, according to agents. "Gozo is a very safe, secure location that offers the great climate and beaches for northern Europeans," says Frank Salt's Marie Grech. But why choose Gozo over Malta? Whilst it's definitely more laidback, sleepy even, the landscape is more diverse and the atmosphere of the less-populated villages makes it easier to integrate, say Gozitans. What is the property market doing? Stable for the past five years, a surplus of stock has dried up and now there's a "big shortage" in the highly popular 300,000 to 400,000 price band. For that you can get a two- to five-bed home, depending on location, views and land. Farmhouses and traditional "houses of character" are popular. Where to buy? The holiday resorts of Xlendi and Marsalforn offer the best choice of apartments - expect to pay 90,000 to 150,000, or seafront at 300,000 - whilst the larger towns of Xaghra, Qala and Nadur are suit full-time residents. Sannat - and Chawdex (lovely houses) are becoming quite popular too, according to Frank Salt. In the west San Lorenz, Gharb and Ghasri are popular with foreign buyers. browse property in malta When a school is threatened, the protocol is to treat the threat, then determine its credibility. Despite the location or extenuating circumstances surrounding a threat, there is no easy answer for school administrators who must quickly determine how to respond under pressure. A Los Angeles School Police officer checks-in with officials at the LAUSD Gardena Garage where the fleet of school buses from around the district are parked while law enforcement investigates a threat against the district Dec. 15, 2015. Mark Boster | Los Angeles Times | Getty Images School principals must make fast decisions about the safety of their students while considering the likelihood of a hoax. Administrators have had to make those fast decisions in recent weeks in Massachusetts, New Jersey, Delaware, Virginia, Kentucky and Maryland, to name a few. As hoaxes become an almost daily occurrence in the U.S., this possibility makes it all the more difficult to assess a threat's reality. "I would certainly say that in the recent past there have been an increase of threats," said Ray Kelly, former NYPD commissioner and vice chairman of K2 Intelligence. Though it seems there is nothing to lose by evacuating a school and being safe, there are significant costs associated with the growing number of school closures. In fact, the price tag can be staggering. The Los Angeles Unified School District's (LAUSD) closure last month received significant attention when, upon receiving an electronic bomb threat, it closed more than 900 campuses and 187 public charter schools. According to officials, the decision made by the nation's second-largest school district kept approximately 640,000 students out of school, costing the district at least $29 million. Part of these expenses can be attributed to California law penalties, such as loss of instructional minutes and loss of average daily attendance, but a large portion came from the Los Angeles Police Department in traffic safety and overtime costs. LAUSD Superintendent Ramon Cortines stated that schools were inspected following the threat, a move that also incurred a large cost based on the number of schools in Los Angeles. Although a generalized threat is less likely to occur, the lack of specificity often calls for a protracted search, according to Kelly. After a vague, anonymous school tip was received by the Louisville, Kentucky, Metro Police Department, the Jefferson County (Missouri) Public School System (JCPS) sent parents a note alerting them to the threat. The district was also apprised of the situation through email and an alert system that sends text messages to phones. Made on a Wednesday afternoon in early January, the threat was against unspecified educational institutions on Friday so parents were given the option of deciding whether to send children to school on that day. That Friday, all of the 155 JCPS schools operated on level three security, which meant that outside doors were closed at all times, hallway traffic was minimized, and outdoor activities were canceled. However, only 45.5 percent of the approximate 101,000 JCPS students attended classes. Normal attendance is 93.6 percent. "We spoke with police, and it was a nonspecific threat that was made, but we wanted to be transparent by communicating with parents directly," said Allison Martin, JCPS' communications chief. "My children were in school. I knew they were safe and that the precautions were appropriate." Across the country, schools receive federal funding based on the number of days schools are open. JCPS did not lose federal attendance reimbursement dollars because of low attendance that day as they are allowed to throw out their five lowest days of attendance. They did lose $175,000 from school lunch federal reimbursement, according to Martin. "The actual out-of-pocket expenses are difficult to identify as they vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction," said Kelly. watch now Since violent crimes know no geographical boundaries, threats can also be made across different states thanks to the use of the Internet, which at times fosters these types of incidents. Earlier this month, a series of "robo-call" bomb threats were made to more than 13 schools in Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. There were no bombs discovered but schools were evacuated for several hours. One week after the wave of these robo-calls, at least a dozen schools across eastern Massachusetts also received bomb threats made by phone including automated phone calls that were determined to be unfounded. "Despite the fact that this was a widespread issue, we take these threats very seriously," Kathleen Bodie, superintendent of Arlington Public Schools in Massachusetts, said in a statement. "Given the police presence and investigation, and out of an abundance of caution, we decided it would be in our best interests to release students, faculty and staff for the day." Even if a school closes for a few hours, students and staff are forced to stand outside in the cold while law enforcement officials conduct a sweep of the building. Source: ATF Nashville Field Division The Credit Union National Association (CUNA) fully supports the proposed field-of-membership (FOM) modifications from the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), but believes the agency can go even further under its legal authority to provide regulatory relief. CUNA filed its comment letter on the proposal Wednesday, ahead of the Feb. 8 deadline. CUNA strongly supports this modernization effort and encourages the NCUA board to quickly adopt all of the proposed changes along with our additional suggestions, which will make NCUAs proposal even more robust, the letter reads. We applaud NCUA for recognizing the stagnant nature of the agencys FOM requirements when compared to some innovative state charters. The changes are needed because credit unions and CUNA are concerned that the federal charter is falling behind many state charters, thus it has become a barrier to the flexibility needed to operate dynamic and efficient cooperative financial institutions. At the recent COP21 climate conference in Paris, delegates reached an agreement that plans to limit global warming to well below two degrees Celsius. This stems from the fact that scientists and politicians now agree: the global average temperature must rise by no more than two degrees if we are to prevent serious, irreversible damage to humans and the environment. However, this climate target is abstract and invites misunderstanding, says Sonia Seneviratne, Professor of Land-Climate Dynamics at ETH Zurich. According to Seneviratne, many people will interpret two degrees globally as two degrees of warming in their region and, accordingly, will not be proactive enough about reducing CO 2 emissions in their countries. The problem is that, according to various climate models, the temperature will rise more sharply over land than over oceans. The big question is therefore how a maximum of two degrees global warming will affect individual regions of the world. First quantitative treatment A team of climate researchers from Switzerland, Australia and the UK led by Seneviratne has now addressed this question. For the first time, the scientists have calculated the levels of extreme and average temperatures, as well as of heavy precipitation, that will occur in individual regions if the average global rise in temperature is taken as a reference. Recently published in Nature as a Perspective, this study constitutes one of the first quantitative treatments of this issue. Several qualitative examinations have already been carried out on the relationships. This study was supported by Seneviratnes ERC Consolidator Grant project DROUGHT-HEAT. The research team based their calculations on several existing climate scenarios, as well as on the assumed and effective development in atmospheric CO 2 concentration. New graphical depictions were a key result of the calculations. They show at a glance how average temperatures respond to the overall quantity of CO 2 emitted and in relation to average global warming in major geographical regions. Four model regions tested The depictions are easy to interpret: the graphical representation is like a type of ruler on which the envisaged target value such as the global two-degree target can be set; a linked warming value can then be identified in the corresponding region. The scientists tested their new model using four examples: the Mediterranean, the USA, Brazil and the Arctic. For each of these regions, the researchers computed a separate graphical representation. TUCSON, Ariz., February 3, 2016 Conservation CATalyst and the Center for Biological Diversity released new video today of the only known wild jaguar currently in the United States. Captured on remote sensor cameras in the Santa Rita Mountains just outside Tucson, the dramatic footage provides a glimpse of the secretive life of one of natures most majestic and charismatic creatures. This is the first ever publicly released video of the jaguar, and it comes at a critical point in this cats conservation. The camera project is part of ongoing efforts to monitor mountain ranges in southeastern Arizona for endangered jaguar and ocelot. Chris Bugbee, a biologist with Conservation CATalyst, has been collecting data on the Santa Rita jaguar for the past three years (formerly through the University of Arizona).Studying these elusive cats anywhere is extremely difficult, but following the only known individual in the U.S. is especially challenging, said Bugbee. We use our specially trained scat detection dog and spent three years tracking in rugged mountains, collecting data and refining camera sites; these videos represent the peak of our efforts.These glimpses into his behavior offer the keys to unlocking the mysteries of these cryptic cats said Aletris Neils, executive director of Conservation CATalyst. We are able to determine he is an adult male jaguar, currently in prime condition. Every new piece of information is important for conserving northern jaguars and we look forward to building upon on these data so that we can collectively make better decisions on how to manage these fascinating and endangered cats.Jaguars have always occurred in Arizona and yet we know so little about them in the northern portion of their range. Arizona should be poised to harbor and protect both jaguars and ocelots as they continue to disperse out from Sonora, said Bugbee.Just knowing that this amazing cat is right out there, just 25 miles from downtown Tucson, is a big thrill, said Randy Serraglio, conservation advocate with the Center. El Jefe has been living more or less in our backyard for more than three years now. Its our job to make sure that his home is protected and he can get what he needs to survive.El Jefe, as he has come to be known in Tucson, has been photographed repeatedly by remote sensor cameras in the Santa Ritas over the past few years. He is the only verified jaguar in the United States since Macho B was euthanized as a result of capture-related injuries in March 2009. Jaguars are solitary cats that only tolerate each other for reproduction, said Neils.But a huge conflict is brewing that threatens to destroy El Jefes home. A Canadian mining company is pushing to develop a massive open-pit copper mine right in the middle of the big cats territory. The mile-wide open pit and 800-foot-high piles of toxic mine waste would permanently destroy thousands of acres of occupied, federally protected jaguar habitat where this jaguar lives.Clearly, the Santa Rita Mountains are a vital part of this cats home range, said Bugbee. This jaguar has been photographed in every month of the year in these mountains there are more than 100 detections of him in the Santa Ritas since 2013 how could anyone argue the importance of these mountains?The Rosemont Mine would destroy El Jefes home and severely hamstring recovery of jaguars in the United States, said Serraglio. At ground zero for the mine is the intersection of three major wildlife corridors that are essential for jaguars moving back into the U.S. to reclaim lost territory. The Santa Rita Mountains are critically important to jaguar recovery in this country, and they must be protected.Conservation CATalyst and Center experts are available for interviews and field trips to the area.BackgroundIn October the rare cat was named El Jefe, which means the boss in Spanish, after a vote by Tucson school kids and others. The Tucson-based Center for Biological Diversity has been working for decades to save jaguars in the United States, with the hope that El Jefe will soon be joined by more jaguars that wander up from Mexico. In 2014 the Center secured more than 750,000 acres of federally protected critical habitat for U.S. jaguar recovery.Jaguars the third-largest cats in the world after tigers and lions once lived throughout the American Southwest, with historical reports on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon, the mountains of Southern California and as far east as Louisiana. Jaguars disappeared from their U.S. range over the past 150 years, primarily due to habitat loss and historic government predator control programs intended to protect the livestock industry. The last verified female jaguar in the country was shot by a hunter in 1963 in Arizonas Mogollon Rim.This research builds upon a three-year project (2012- 2015) from the University of Arizona surveying jaguars and ocelots throughout southern Arizona and New Mexico.Video credit: Conservation CATalyst and Center for Biological Diversity.The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 990,000 members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.Conservation CATalyst is a Tucson-based nonprofit organization specializing in conducting scientific research on cats that are in conflict with people.Center for Biological Diversity Endangered Coho Salmon 'Swim' Across the Marin County Civic Center Marin County Board of Supervisors Called on Enact Great Protections for Endangered Fish For Immediate Release Virtual Banner Hanging Projection Highlighting Marins Endangered Coho Salmon Illuminated the Civic Center & Called on Supervisors to Act Joanna NasarCommunications DirectorTurtle Island Restoration NetworkCell: (415) 488-7711Joanna@SeaTurtles.Org San Rafael, Calif. (Feb. 4, 2016) On Feb. 3 Turtle Island Restoration Networks Salmon Protection And Watershed Network (SPAWN) (savemarinscoho.org) and the SF Projection Department (https://www.facebook.com/SanFranciscoProjectionDepartment/ ) projected images and video of endangered coho salmon on the Marin County Civic Center in San Rafael, California. "Were putting the spotlight on our endangered coho salmon, and were hoping to inspire our community and our supervisors to safeguard these fish once and for all, said Todd Steiner, executive director of Turtle Island Restoration Network and SPAWN. "If we fail to act now, all we will have left is images." The projection designed to encourage the Marin County Board of Supervisors to follow voters and environmentalists requests for a stronger streamside ordinance to protect salmon begun with beautiful videos of Marins coho salmon spawning, jumping waterfalls and swimming underwater. Next, the activists hung a virtually projected banner calling on the Marin County Board of Supervisors to enact salmon-friendly policies, and finally the show ended by flashing thousands of faces of Marin citizens personalized holding signs saying 'I demand protection for coho salmon.' "Our virtual high-tech banner-hanging allowed us to get our message across while assuring there would be no damage to the historic Civic Center or unnecessary danger to activists," said Steiner, who remarked it perfectly fit Marins sensibilities to protect wildlife, human life and cultural assets. The Marin County Civic Center, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, is a national- and state-designated historic landmark. The Center was his last major design project before his death and the only government project of his design. The buildings unique architecture provided a stunning backdrop for the projected salmon to swim across, and inspire change. The large-scale projection was programmed to coincide with the Marin County Board of Supervisors upcoming meetings and talks around the streamside ordinance. Videos and images of the projection for media use are available here. Turtle Islands SPAWN program works protect endangered coho salmon focuses on protecting salmon and restoring their critical creekside habitat, and advocating for salmon-friendly policies. ###Turtle Island Restoration Network works to mobilize people and communities around the world to protect marine wildlife, the oceans and the inland waterways that sustain them. Join us on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. SeaTurtles.Org Breaking News: First Auditions For The Santa Anita Track Announcer Position by Kirby C. Grimes Multiple sources have confirmed that Craig Evans will be auditioning in two weeks time for the open track announcers position at Santa Anita. Evans, who is the lead race caller for the Singapore Turf Club, represents the first international applicant to audition. A native of Perth, Australia, he has been calling races at Kranji Racecourse since 2007. Well known for articulate and exciting race calls with typical Australian panache, he is widely known as an excellent race caller. An unknown quantity in the United States, his talents will be on display for the racing public to hear in mid-February. A second Australian race caller, Victoria Shaw, will be calling races at Santa Anita on April 2nd. Shaw made her race calling debut in 1998 at Hanging Rock Park in Victoria. Since that time she has been a regular fixture on the picnic track circuit in Victoria. As Australias only female race caller, her appearance in April would represent her North American debut. The search process to replace Trevor Denman is quickly heating up. These are just the first, of what will be many, internationally based race callers auditioning for the position. The next few months should bring more clarity to the situation. Related Links: Follow Kirby C. Grimes Replacing A Legend: The Next Santa Anita Track Announcer 12:46pm: Right-hander Yoervis Medina, himself just designated, will go to the Phils in the deal, the team announced. Since he was already outrighted from Pittsburghs 40-man, he wont require an immediate roster spot with the Phillies. 10:31am: Biddle is headed to the Pirates, Jim Salisbury of CSNPhilly.com tweets. 10:20am: The Phillies have reached a deal to trade southpaw Jesse Biddle to an unidentified club, Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer reports (Twitter link). The former top prospect had recently been designated for assignment. Since he was in DFA limbo, Biddle was destined to land elsewhere unless he went unclaimed on waivers. Clearly, with a trade being reached, there was sufficient interest that a claim was inevitable anyway. Once a consensus top-100 prospect league-wide, Biddle showed plenty of upside to go with some command issues while rising through the system. Still just 24, Biddle is set to miss the coming year after undergoing Tommy John surgery last fall. But he had fallen off track even before the elbow issue cropped up. Since a promising 2013 at the Double-A level in which he posted a 3.64 ERA with 10.0 K/9 against 5.3 BB/9, Biddles strikeout numbers have fallen even while hes continued to issue too many free passes. Clearly, though, theres still enough talent to bet on that multiple other organizations were willing to commit a 40-man spot to the lefty at least for the time being. - Pro-Biafra militants who hijacked ship have released it - The hijackers are reportedly still holding on to the crew members - The Greek-owned vessel is being guarded by Benin Republic navy A ship reportedly hijacked by pro-Biafra militants has been released although members of the crew are still being held hostage. A group of supposedly former militants hijacked a ship off the Bakassi Peninsula coastline and threatened to blow it up along with its foreign crew if Nnamdi Kanu is not released. The arrest and continued detention of the director of Radio Biafra has sparked protests in some parts of the country with the hijacking of the Greek-owned vessel being the latest attempt to get the government to release him. READ ALSO: Army ready to combat pro-Biafra militants According to Washington Post, Dirk Steffen, maritime security director of Denmark-based risk intelligence told Association Press that the ship sailed to Cotonou after the hijackers disembarked and took with them the captain, chief engineer, third engineer, the electrician and a fitter. However, Commodore Kabir Aliyu, Nigerian navy director of information, told Daily Trust that the ship and crew had been freed. Via a text message, he said the name of the ship is MT LEON DIAS (9279927). An oil tanker [sic], the ship is presently in Benin waters . . . off Cotonou Port and she is under the watch of the Benin Republic navy. Brigadier General Rabe Abubakar, defence spokesperson also confirmed that the vessel was being guarded by Benin Republic navy. The Indigenous People Of Biafra and The Movement for the Actualisation of a Sovereign State Of Biafra have both denied involvement in the hijacking of the ship. The Nigerian military had also threatened to treat the agitators as criminals and that the Nigerian navy was on the trail of the hijackers. Source: Legit.ng - A 3-year-old girl has been killed in Cameroon - There are speculation that she was murdered by ritualists Reports suggests that a 3-year-old girl in Cameroon has been murdered for ritual purpose. She was kidnapped a few days ago, by suspected ritualists who dismembered and dumped her her remains in a bush within the area. A video emerged showing her devastated family who could not hold back their tears even as a large crowd of people gathered around the corpse. Below are some screenshots gotten from the video. The photos of the 3-year-old whose name was withheld, have been deemed too graphic for publication. A mammoth crowd around the corpse The victim's parents were unconsoleable at the sight of the murder girl. READ ALSO: Outrageous: You Wont Believe What This Man Did To Pregnant Woman May her soul rest in peace. Source: Legit.ng - Olisa Metuh gave me 25million for PDP publicity, witness reveals - The witness, Abba Doro said they commissioned writers to write and be paid to promote the government - He said he gave EFCC the money when he realised it was part of the arms deal fund Abba Dabo, former special adviser on political matters to Namadi Sambo, the former vice president, has disclosed how Olisa Metuh paid him 25million for the purpose of publicity for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), The Cable reports. Dabo, who is the seventh witness to testify against Metuh, the spokesman of the PDP, said the money was given to him five days after the presidential nomination convention to fight criticisms against former president, Goodluck Jonathan in the traditional and social media. Abba Dabo reveals how Metuh gave him 25million He said: On December 16, 2014, Metuh paid N25m through Destra Investment Limited account into my personal account for purposes of publicity for the PDP. When it became obvious that former president Goodluck Jonathan will run for office, government officials and party leaders started to meet to review the achievements of the government and prepare for the elections. According to him, it was found out during the course of the meeting that the PDP was getting negative publicity. READ ALSO: DasukiGate: See how Metuh arrived court this morning after his release (photo) On my part, we set up a media support group and registered it as Media Support System to do media work for the party. We commissioned writers to write and be paid to promote the government. We called it rapid response team, which was successful. It was its success that led to more meetings with Metuh. Social media was becoming more stringent in the criticism of the PDP, the witness said. Dabo explained that they set up a team of facilitators and young IT enthusiasts to run a website called, Whats up Naija which they could not register because the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) wanted it to be Whats up Nigeria. He stated that the money was returned to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) when he realised it was part of the $2.1billion funds meant for arms purchase but was allegedly diverted for other purposes by Sambo Dasuki, former national security adviser (NSA). Because the money was linked to the controversial arms deal, I decided to return it. On my own accord, I decided the best way out of this rigmarole was to pay back the money. I paid it back to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Dabo said. READ ALSO: Metuhs torn statement allegedly implicated GEJ Metuh is facing a seven-count charge of money laundering. The anti-graft agency is accusing Metuh of collecting the sum of N400m from the former national security adviser, Col Sambo Dasuki, who is at the centre of the arms deal scam. Since the commencement of his trials, the prosecution led by Sylvanus Tahir has produced six witnesses who have all testified about the roles they played in the alleged transfer of funds from the former NSA to Destra Investiments Limited, a company owned by the embattled PDP spokesman. Metuh who met his bail condition was released i Source: Legit.ng - President Muhammadu Buhari has sent a delegation to Maiduguri - The delegation was led by the Secretary to the Government of Federation Mr. Lawal Babachir - The officials visited Dalori village, where over 100 adults and children were killed during Boko Haram bomb attack Following the killings of over 100 adults and children in Dalori village, Borno state, last week President Muhammadu Buhari has sent a delegation of officials to Maiduguri. The officials came to condole with the residents of the area and assess the level of damage caused by Boko Haram terrorists. READ ALSO: Nigerian army rescues 500 people from Boko Haram (photos) The Borno State Deputy Governor, Usman Mamman Durkwa, met the powerful delegation at the Maiduguri International Airport. The Secretary to the Government of Federation Mr. Lawal Babachir, led the delegation in company of three cabinet ministers during their visit to Dalori village. READ ALSO: Senate meets with Service Chiefs to review North-east zone operations He said: "I am here with three other Ministers on directives of Mr. President Buhari, who is in Europe, to come and condole the people of Borno over the unfortunate incident here. [We have come] to see the level of damage for ourselves with a view to address the hardship that people suffer from. The Federal Government will address these problems." Besides, the delegation visited the victims of the attack treated at University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital and State Specialist Hospital Maiduguri and paid a courtesy visit to Government House in Maiduguri. READ ALSO: Buhari tries to distract Nigerians - Lazarus Obinna According to various reports, the small village was completely destroyed during the attack, which lasted more than four hours. The terrorists escaped with all the foodstuffs. Source: Legit.ng Nigerian comedian Francis Agoda more popularly referred to as I Go Dye has revealed that he once turned down an offer to go abroad for studies. In an exclusive chat with Punch, the comedian said he once had an opportunity to go study Structural Engineering at the University of New York but he turned it down. READ ALSO: Music star talks new music and plans to go into acting He joked about it saying he probably could have died if he had followed that path. He said: I probably could have died by now if I decided to become a Structural Engineer. He shed some light on his past saying he was once part of the Junior Engineering Technical Society which helped him express himself in aspects of creativity. In those early years, as young as 12, he claimed he used the chance the engineering group gave him to build little gadgets and machines like a radio transmitter, a hovercraft, a mini helicopter and a battery table fan among other things. These ingenuity helped him secure a scholarship to travel abroad in 1992, a move he refused to pursue. But the entertainer said he chose comedy over a formal education because of the fulfillment he draws from it. He said: Academic pursuit depends on personal interest. I am still acquiring knowledge on a daily basis. There is no limit to educational quest. The truth of the matter is that life is a choice. Until you do things you love, you cannot really be happy. Those things I built at the time are still part of my life today. But I chose comedy because that is where my love lies. I started building things at the young age of about 12. At a point, I was no longer really comfortable with that path of life. He also talked about leaving the village to the city in search of greener pastures and how to better the lives of his family members. This was the point where he took up comedy and developed the craft. He said: When I left the village and came to the city, I imagined how to make life easier for my people. At a point, I realised that my heart was in comedy and decided to tow that path. When I declined that scholarship, I had started becoming interested in having an impact on the lives of people. When I left the village, and got to the city, Comedy became a platform through which I could give hope to people. I am happy with the choice I made. READ ALSO: Top comedian dares Nigerian entertainers I have now spent 20 years on stage. I was first featured on A Night of a Thousand Laugh in 2000 and I started doing variety shows when I was in Class Three in the secondary school. People only know you when you become successful. They dont really know the roads you passed through until you tell stories like this. Source: Legit.ng Dealerships in Orange and Green zones have been given permission to operate while complying with strictest safety measures The nationwide lockdown, that has been in effect since mid March to arrest the spread of COVID-19, has been lifted in areas of Orange and Green zones. Auto plants, dealerships and service workshops falling within these areas have resumed operations but need to follow strict guidelines in terms of safety and sanitization as per Government of India orders. Honda Motorcycles & Scooters India (HMSI) has announced that sales of their popular scooters and motorcycles like Activa 6G, Activa 125, Dio, Dream, CB Shine, etc have now restarted. In addition to this, the company has released a detailed Dealership Operations Resumption Manual along with a YouTube video highlighting precautions to be followed. This is to ensure both the customers and workers safety during this pandemic. The workshops are to be thoroughly sanitized and each of the workers will have to wear a mask and carry sanitizers at all times. Thermal scanning will be done for all workers entering the workshop while all tools and equipment will be sanitized on a regular basis both before and after use. Social distancing will be followed in all areas which will be a rule even in the customer lounge. Service appointments should be booked in advance so as to avoid overcrowding at the service workshops and all payments should be made digitally via digital wallet or online payments. Below is the Honda video message. Along with restarting dealer operations in India HMSI is also working alongside to support the fight against COVID-19 in India. The company has actively donated towards the PM CARES relief fund and has distributed free food packets, sanitizers, face masks and essential items to those in need. Last month, the company had hiked prices of the BS6 Activa 6G and Activa 125 and has now also announced a hike in price of the 2020 Honda Dio which was launched a few months ago. This price hike is by Rs.542 and Rs.552 and now carries a price tag of Rs.60,542 for the standard model while the top end Dio Deluxe is now priced at Rs.63,892. With this price hike, the company has made its entire BS6 scooter portfolio costlier than before. Honda Dio is a sporty scooter which has brought in good sales for the company. In its BS6 format, new cosmetic changes have been introduced with LED position lamps, new tail light and body graphics. It also receives a split grab rail at the rear, copper toned wheels and more floorboard space due to a longer wheelbase. It is powered by a 110cc engine that offers 8 bhp power and 9 Nm torque. It also gets fuel injection system for better power delivery. She had nothing - but now she has a name: Kejora. When palm oil farmers discovered an infant orangutan, they took her and chained her to a door. Dodo Shows Foster Diaries Guy Falls In Love With His Little Meatball Of A Foster Dog At only a year and a half old, she's spent six months of her life like that - terrified, malnourished and in chains. The Borneo Orangutan Survival (BOS) Foundation - an organization that works to rehabilitate orangutans who have lost everything because palm oil farms have ravaged their natural habitat in Indonesia - came to the rescue of this baby. "The worker who was caring for her said he found her in a small forest area behind the nursery," the organization wrote on their website. "We know that an orangutan mother would never leave her baby alone, and we have no doubt that her mother must have been killed." Even though Kejora has only been with the BOS Foundation for a few days, she's already showing signs of improvement.The organization wrote on Facebook Thursday that her "appetite has been good and her belly looks fuller now." Facebook/BOS Foundation This browser does not support the video tag. Facebook/BOS Foundation The organization added that the "trauma that we previously saw etched on her tiny face has dissipated ... We can never replace her mother, but we do promise to do our utmost in providing her with all the love, care and support she will need over the coming months and years." Facebook/BOS Foundation No brain. No eyes. No face. This creature performs just three simple functions: eat, shit and reproduce. Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute Sound familiar? It should. The intake of nutrients, the excretion of waste and reproduction are among the defining characteristics of life. What makes this animal different from most others on Earth is that the asexual creature performs each of these tasks through only one hole. The extremely simple organism is known as the "purple sock" or, scientifically speaking, the Xenoturbella churro, "named for its resemblance to the popular fried-dough pastry." Dodo Shows Foster Diaries Scared Pittie Gets So Happy When He Meets This Guy And His Pack Of Dogs Scientists recently discovered that much of life on Earth could be descendants of this sock-like creature. While it's certainly not the oldest animal on Earth, scientists involved in the study found out that the Xenotubella genus, of which the "purple sock" is a member, dates back much farther than most animals on Earth today, and has now been placed "near the base of the evolutionary tree of animals." The recent discovery solves a decades-old mystery dating back to the 1960s when scientists first found the Xenotubella in the oceans off the coast of Sweden. Back then, they wondered where to place the strangely simple creature on the evolutionary map. Scripps Institution of Oceanography One tap on your smartphone can get you a pack of toilet paper on Amazon.com or an app download on iTunes. Increasingly, it can also get you a job. Snagajob, an Arlington-based technology company with 65 million users, has built a multimillion-dollar business helping job-seekers find and apply for low-wage, hourly work on their phones. Last year, it introduced a one-click feature that allows users to apply for dozens of openings in a matter of minutes. Now, armed with a $100 million investment from three firms, the company plans to continue building up its free mobile app, which processed close to 25 million applications for retail, restaurant and hotel jobs in 2015. We want people to find an hourly job in minutes, said Peter Harrison, the companys chief executive. Thats always been the idea, but now we are going to double down on our strategy. Specifically, he says that means improving upon the app, which allows users to create a quick profile, upload a video of themselves and take a personality quiz before submitting their applications for openings. Nearly 70 percent of the companys traffic now comes from its app, up from 15 percent two years ago. The recent round of funding, announced Thursday, was led by Rho Acceleration, a New York-based investment firm, with contributions from NewSpring Capital in Radnor, Pa. The ultimate goal, Harrison says, is to create a one-stop shop where people can find jobs, manage their schedules, clock in and out of work, and get paid using the mobile app. We really want to be a part of that whole life cycle, he said. Snagajob, which was founded by an attorney in Richmond in 2000, has grown rapidly in recent years, adding 1 million new members every month. The company has 300 employees split between its Richmond and Arlington offices, and executives say that revenue has doubled since 2013, though they declined to provide specific numbers. An uneven economic recovery that favored the creation of low-wage jobs over higher-paid positions has helped the companys bottom line, as has the proliferation of companies such as Uber, Instacart and Postmates, which allow workers to pick up piecemeal hourly work. More and more workers are mixing and matching one shift here, five shifts there which means employers are having to hire a bigger pool of people, Harrison said, adding that the company makes money by charging employers to post on its site. About 50 million applications were submitted through Snagajob last year, with about half of those from its mobile app but investors say that there is still room to grow. This is still a relatively underserved market, said Habib Kairouz, a managing partner at Rho Acceleration. Its amazing how many businesses are still using newspaper ads and walk-ins to find hourly workers. There are about 1 million postings on the site at any given time, Harrison said. A recent search for Washington-area openings turned up more nearly 10,000 jobs, about half of them full-time. They ranged from openings for a meat cutter at a Harris Teeter store in Southeast Washington to a personal shopper for the American Girl store in Tysons Corner. Other jobs included housekeeping positions at Marriott, a job in the beauty department at Kohls in Silver Spring and a part-time delivery driver for Rent-A-Center. Job sites such as Monster.com and Indeed.com have long allowed users to send off resumes with the click of a button. Where Snagajob differs, Harrison says, is that it focuses exclusively on hourly workers and their needs. For example, the first thing you see when you log into our app is, What days of the week and times of day are you available? he said. Other sites are not going to ask you that theyre more concerned with salaried jobs and bulky resumes with 10 or 15 years of experience. At District Taco, executives are increasingly using Snagajob to find and vet candidates. Its 50-50 half old-fashioned paper applicants, half online, said Onye Agu, senior regional manager for the Arlington-based company. Agu said that he has hired a few employees through Snagajob since he signed up six months ago. Mostly, though, he relies on the app to give him a quick primer on applicants math and reading level, problem-solving skills, personality tests before he calls them in for an interview. It does help with getting to know people before you meet them, Agu said. By the time they come in for an interview, we can have more of a conversation than just asking basic questions. But other local employers said that Snagajobs touch-and-apply approach makes applying for a job perhaps too easy. One-click apply, to me, is just the worst, said the owner of a local quick-service restaurant who spoke on the condition of anonymity in order to avoid upsetting the current business relationship. Its a massive waste of time to have to sift through all of these applications from people who couldnt care less about the job. In the four months since he signed up, he has yet to hire anybody through Snagajob. A few weeks ago, though, he did bring on couple of new employees. We did it the old-fashioned way, he said. Word-of-mouth and walk-ins who filled out a paper application. If youve ever had to notarize something you know that the process can be really annoying. You usually have to drive to a bank or office to meet a certified notary and watch them sign and stamp your form. Notarize, an early-stage start-up working out of incubator 1776s new Crystal City office, says it has an app that can replace that trip using a phones video call service. The company launched its product Thursday morning, fueled by $2.4 million from venture capitalists. Because its just now publicly launching its product, the company has no customers yet and hence no revenue. But there are 24 notaries already signed up to work as independent contractors. Due to regulations, all the notaries will have to be based in Virginia, chief executive Pat Kinsel says, but customers can call in from any state. Notaries will be paid per call and do not qualify as employees, much like Uber and Lyft drivers. Kinsel says thats because most of the notaries already have other jobs, and are just trying to supplement their income. But Janet Bradsher, a certified notary who has signed up to use the app, says she wants to make it a full-time gig. She currently does some accounting services during the day and works as a notary part-time, getting her work from websites like Snapdocs.com. These websites coordinate business for so-called mobile notaries, that meet customers at an agreed-upon location rather than working out of a store-front. She says working through Notarizes app will allow her to spend more time at home caring for her mother, who lives with her at her house in Hampton, Va., rather having to drive around to meet clients all the time. Anything I can do to be available for her and still help people is a win-win for me all round, said Bradsher. Plus it means she doesnt have to meet customers in sketchy locations, something she says happens all the time with her in-person work. One gentleman I refused to do business with because he wanted to meet in a strip club, and Im not comfortable doing that, Bradsher said. And there are some places that women should never go by themselves and I cant always take someone with me. Notarizing a single document takes just a few minutes and costs $25 through the app, roughly competitive with the rest of the industry. Kinsel wouldnt say how much of each transaction his company plans to take, but said it will be between a quarter and a half (closer to half, he says) of what the customer pays. Weve got profitable economics from day one, Kinsel said in an interview. Right now the platform only works on iPhone and specifically targets individual consumers. But Kinsel says he is getting interest from companies, which often have to regularly notarize scores of documents, so he is working on an enterprise model for businesses. Before starting Notarize, Kinsel was a partner at Polaris, the venture fund that led Notarizes initial funding round. Polaris has also funded alcohol delivery start-up Drizly, of which Kinsel is a board member. Kinsel worked at Microsoft before founding Spindle, an app that was bought by Twitter. Former General Services Administration chief Dan Tangherlini and Facebook engineering executive Andrew Bosworth are close advisors to the company, Kinsel says. President Obama, accompanied by Jeff Zients, director of the White House National Economic Council, speaks in the Rose Garden at the White House in 2013. (J. David Ake/AP) The Obama administration unveiled a $5.5 billion proposal to create summer and first-time jobs for youths over four years and a $2 billion scheme to create apprenticeships over five years, the latest in a series of ideas that will be included in the federal budget plan next week. The proposals part of a $12.5 billion package of new spending over five years includes $3 billion to train people to lure firms to the United States from abroad or to keep them from leaving. The administration also plans to ask Congress to approve $2 billion in competitive grants that would be jointly administered by the Labor and Education Departments. The budget, especially in a presidents eighth year, is often more of an aspirational document than a real-life tax and spending plan, but President Obama has vowed to search for additional common ground with Congress during his final year in office. Last year, Obama put forward a similar proposal, asking for just $3 billion. Congress, however, did not provide any of those funds. Jeff Zients, director of the White House National Economic Council, said that 1 in 7 young people ages 16 to 24 are neither in school nor in the workforce. He said that people who endure a spell of unemployment between the ages of 16 and 24 earn $400,000 less over their careers than those who do not. Moreover, he said: Having a first job is not just about the paycheck; its about pride, confidence and self-esteem. Young people from across Massachusetts march through the Boston Common to the Statehouse in Boston, on Feb. 20, to press for more funding for youth summer jobs programs. (Elise Amendola/AP) He said the presidents proposals would help more than a million young people land a first job and gain valuable experience, skills and recommendations. And he said that over the lifetimes of these youths, the government would save money that would otherwise be spent on welfare and criminal justice. First jobs have the incredible power to set young people on a path to productivity and success, and away from bad outcomes in their lives, said acting education secretary John B. King. King said summer opportunities diverted youths from criminal activity. He cited a study of Chicagos One Summer program that linked the program to a 43 percent reduction in violent-crime arrests. The University of Chicago Crime Lab study said that students who were randomly assigned to participate in the program had 43 percent fewer violent-crime arrests over 16 months, compared with students in a control group. The study included 1,634 teens at 13 high schools. They were, on average, C students and 20 percent had already been arrested. Yet during the Obama and George W. Bush administrations, the problem of jobless youths has grown more severe. Kind said there has been a 40 percent decline in summer jobs for youth in the past 12 years. That translates into 3 million fewer young people getting opportunities annually, he said, adding that estimates show that 46 percent of young people who applied for summer jobs were turned down. Steam rises before sunset at the Arcelor Mittal Minorca Mine in Virginia, Minn. When the areas mines run full tilt, they employ about 4,000 and produce nearly 40 million tons of iron pellets annually. Jan. 18, 2016 Steam rises before sunset at the Arcelor Mittal Minorca Mine in Virginia, Minn. When the areas mines run full tilt, they employ about 4,000 and produce nearly 40 million tons of iron pellets annually. Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post As global demand for resources plummets, ore mines here are idle, and 2,000 workers are out of jobs. As global demand for resources plummets, ore mines here are idle, and 2,000 workers are out of jobs. As global demand for resources plummets, ore mines here are idle, and 2,000 workers are out of jobs. The railroad tracks that connect the 50-year-old iron mine here to the rest of America are hidden by a blanket of snow. On a normal day, a train would be plowing through the snow every three hours, carrying thousands of tons of iron ore destined to be melted into the steel frame of a car or the beams of a skyscraper. But nothing has been normal in this region for nearly a year, when the mines began shutting down, victims of a global plunge in the price of natural resources that is upending the world economic order. Brazil is in recession. Australia is struggling to pay its debts. South Africas currency is plummeting. And here in Americas Iron Range, the snow on the railroad tracks lies smooth and undisturbed. Over the last 30 years, the bad times last longer and the good times are shorter, said state lawmaker Tom Anzelc, whose House district includes the region. This particular time is the worst I have ever seen. The source of the turbulence is China, where famously breakneck growth is coming to an end and no one is sure how painful that will be. The country that had helped power the world economy for years is now sowing fear across international financial markets. Dan Hill, center, has coffee with his father, Dennis Hill, right, and father-in-law, Bill Lewis, left, as Dans son, Jacob, hangs out last month in Hibbing, Minn. Dan Hill has been out of work since August. (Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post) In the United States, Chinas hand is most obviously felt on Wall Street, which booked the worst start to a year in its history. But the countrys influence is also reshaping many corners of the U.S. economy: Soybean farmers in the Midwest are worried that demand from their best customer could begin to wane. Home buyers in California are competing with Chinese investors stowing their money in real estate far from Beijing. Factory workers in central Illinois are bracing for massive layoffs amid plunging sales at Caterpillar, which manufactures heavy machinery and is one of the regions largest employers. Whether these pockets of distress can tip the rest of the country back into recession remains an open question. But in this region, the worst-case scenario is already a reality. Three of the six iron ore mines here have been idled, forcing roughly 2,000 workers out of a job. Unemployment in Itasca County, in the heart of the range, has shot up to 8 percent over the past year. Many miners will run out of health and unemployment insurance this month. Booms and busts are part of the circle of life here in these frozen northlands, but never before has the cycle started half a world away. And never before have the residents here felt so helpless to stop it. Were wounded, said Dan Hill, 35, a miner who was laid off six months ago. And you cant stitch us up. *** The Iron Range used to be an economic island. Workers excavated iron ore in craggy open pits along this two-billion-year-old ridge that cuts across northeastern Minnesota. Then they crushed, cleaned, heated and separated the rocks to make taconite pellets that are rich in iron and small as buckshot. The pellets are the regions signature innovation its creator is celebrated in an annual festival here designed for maximum efficiency in the blast furnaces of U.S. steel mills. The biggest steelmakers also owned some of the mines and their processing plants, creating a closed circle of supply and demand. Then the Chinese tsunami hit. From 2001 to 2011, the international price of iron ore skyrocketed from just about $13 a ton to nearly $200 a ton amid surging demand from developing countries. While America grappled with a severe financial crisis, China in particular was booming. Apartments, factories, railways and roads its appetite seemed endless. And feeding it required massive quantities of natural resources. They were, for lack of a better word, hoovering up every last bit of iron they could get their hands on, said Jorge M. Beristain, an analyst at Deutsche Bank. On the range, mining companies were able to command higher prices even if their ore never left U.S. borders, Beristain said. Government data shows that American mines ramped up exports to about 20 percent of production to take advantage of the higher prices. Companies such as Cliffs Natural Resources, where Hill used to work, invested heavily in foreign mines from Canada to Australia. A third-generation miner, Hill was worried that the towns here would not be able to rely on iron forever, so he studied aviation maintenance at a nearby community college. Knowledge and skills were replacing machines and labor as currency of the economy at least, that was the conventional wisdom. But when the recession hit and Hill lost his aviation job in 2009, it was the mines that were hiring. When the mines run full tilt, they employ about 4,000 workers and produce nearly 40 million tons of iron pellets. The mostly union jobs paid premium for overtime and came with full health-care coverage and a pension. It was enough to ensconce the region in Americas middle class for decades, and Chinas rise seemed to guarantee that would continue for another generation. Hill began putting down roots. He and his wife, Heather, and their two children, Riley and Anna, moved into their house a year after Hill began working in the mines. Their third child, Jacob, was born in 2014. Hill drew up plans to put a screened-in porch on the back of the house, maybe even with a hot tub. But then China slammed on the brakes. Behind Hills house, there are still only cement posts. You cant ride a wave forever, he said. Thats the easiest way I can say it. *** Hill saw the layoffs coming. Taconite pellets began piling up last spring on the docks on Lake Superior. Hill could see the iron mountain from the interstate in Duluth. One resident estimated that it reached 20 stories high. All the miners knew what such a vast backlog meant for their jobs. The pink slips took effect Aug. 21. Right now, the docks arent empty, Hill said. They need to be empty for us to be making pellets. The simple reason the pellets werent moving is that Chinas building boom had gone bust. A vaunted $350 million bridge to North Korea sits unfinished. Empty ghost cities are filled with apartment buildings, shopping centers, even libraries but no people. The price of natural resources such as iron ore has plunged as China lost its appetite. The declines are dampening growth in countries like Australia, Brazil and Zambia that rode Beijings coattails to new prosperity, creating a vicious cycle of weak economies and weak prices. Cliffs Natural Resources has been hit particularly hard, losing billions of dollars. The international price of iron ore has fallen back down to below $40 a ton less than it costs Cliffs to mine it. Its like a bad virus, Cliffs chief executive Lourenco Goncalves told the Sydney Morning Herald last year. But perhaps even more pernicious are the indirect ways that the global marketplace is wreaking havoc on the Iron Range. Chinas state-controlled steel mills didnt slow down even when its economy did, as government officials kept the plants running to boost growth. The overproduction has created a worldwide glut of steel. In the mid-1990s, China manufactured just 93 million tons. Last year, it produced more than eight times that amount, though officials have said they plan to taper off this year. Much of the excess supply has ended up on U.S. shores, with the nation importing a record amount of cheap steel from overseas. That has forced American steel companies to idle their mills and lay off thousands of workers. Trade lawsuits against China are winding their way through international courts. That type of overcapacity is going to wreak economic turmoil, said Scott Paul, head of the Alliance for American Manufacturing. The longer it takes to address it, the more painful its going to be for everybody. At the end of the line is the Iron Range. With the blast furnaces turned off at U.S. steel mills, theres little demand for the taconite pellets that are the crux of the local economy. One of the first mines to shut down was Keewatin Taconite, which has been idle for more than nine months. United Taconite, where Hill was working, followed in August. In December, Cliffs closed its other mine in the region, Northshore. The official head count of 2,000 unemployed doesnt include the larger ecosystem of contractors, suppliers and local businesses that depend on the mines. Hills wife is working fewer shifts as a nurse at the local hospital as residents draw out their medical appointments. At Blombergs gas station, early morning business has dried up because miners are no longer driving to work. And after 93 years, local grocery store Falkowskis is locking up. To be the one to have to make the choice to close the doors, that was extremely painful, owner Mike Jarvi said. But at some point you just have to face up to the reality that this isnt going to turn around quickly enough to keep going. Late last month, Cliffs management said United Taconite would remain shut down until spring but reopen later this year. Hill is dubious. He has tried checking manifests for ships coming through Los Angeles, San Diego and Seattle to figure out how much steel is coming onshore but had little luck. Any fix more stringent enforcement of tariffs or resolution of the trade cases could take years. At night, after their kids are tucked into their bunk beds, Hill and his wife debate what it would take for the U.S. government to stop the shipments. If they really wanted to turn those boats [of Chinese steel] around, they got a steering wheel on em, Hill said. His wife agreed: If we are the most powerful nation in the world, why are you killing an industry? *** Inside Hills wallet are the tattered papers that were supposed to be his passport to the global economy. Theres a laminated card proving that he completed four years of training to become a millwright journeyman, qualifying him to work on any factory floor. His certification in aviation maintenance took two years. His latest entry is his Class A truck drivers license, which he earned after 30 hours behind the wheel and two weeks of classes at the local community college after he was laid off from the mines. How much more diversification can we get? he said. After the mines shut down, Hill searched for jobs across the range, hoping to land work before his health benefits expire this month. But his options were slim, and the chances of finding pay and benefits comparable to what he earned at United Taconite were even more remote. Theres a paper mill in the north thats suffering from the same global forces that have felled the mining industry. The large corporate call center pays much worse hourly wages. One of Hills friends from the mine took a job at Erbert Gerberts sandwich shop. Hill eventually found work as a plane mechanic about an hour away in Duluth. Its less money, and he is scheduled to work every weekend this year. But it was one of the few places that offered health care and Hill and his wife are expecting another baby. On a recent morning, Hill drove his red Ford truck over the quiet railroad tracks near the mine where he used to work. Hes not allowed onto the property while its shut down, but he hopped out of the car to dig in the snow for forgotten taconite pellets, dislodged from the rail cars as they rumbled back and forth from the mine. The temperature was below zero, but Hill took off his gloves and cupped the pellets in his bare hands. Boy, that feels good, he said. They left behind a dusty residue taconite black, locals call it. Hill wiped his hands with his gloves, but taconite black is tough. It never comes entirely off. Devils Backbone Brewing's 2016 Adventure Park sampler includes collaborations with five other breweries, including Surly and Wicked Weed, plus Devils Backbones own award-winning Vienna Lager. (Photo by Heidi Crandall/Courtesy of Devils Backbone Brewing Company) It was too hard to pick just one beer this week, so here are five of them. The occasion is the release of Devils Backbones second annual Adventure Pack Collaboration Sampler. Instead of just repackaging a couple of best-sellers and re-creating limited-release beers from its Roseland, Va., brewpub, Devils Backbone worked with five other breweries to create new beers featured in this 12-pack. (There are two bottles of each beer, and another pair of Devils Backbones award-winning Vienna Lager.) Last years Adventure Pack featured collaborations with Ninkasi, Coronado and Fat Heads, but this year, head brewer Jason Oliver wanted to expand the program. Collaborations are the chance to do something special, to do something you dont usually do, he explains. Theres no shortage of really cool brewers to work with, and its a great chance to work with some old friends. What makes it especially interesting for beer drinkers in Virginia, Maryland and the District is the ones Oliver chose: Surly (Minneapolis), Sun King (Indianapolis), Wicked Weed (Asheville, N.C.), NoDa (Charlotte) and Thunder Road (Melbourne, Australia). None of those breweries has a large distribution footprint none of their products are regularly found in the D.C. area and Oliver says the Adventure Pack allows beer drinkers to sample beers from breweries that theyve heard about. For the most part, the beers live up to the breweries reputations. Before the brewers meet, Oliver says, I ask them, Is there anything you want to brew but havent had the opportunity to? Is there anything slipping through the cracks? At the same time, he says, its a way to take something theyre known for and put a new spin on it. Sun Kings year-round offerings include a cream ale called Sunlight, which won a gold medal at the 2015 Great American Beer Festival. To make Another State of Kind, Oliver says, we took a cream ale and combined it with an Imperial IPA, making a Frankenstein with dank hop character and a smooth, creamy body. Thunder Road has developed a style called Pacific Ale with fruity Australian hops, but we just supersized it for the American market, Oliver says. Double the hops and double the ABV, or alcohol by volume. Oliver describes the project as something of a working vacation for the brewers. They took turns coming to the Devils Backbone brewery in Lexington, Va., and they all overlapped by a day: When one got here, the brewer before them would be hanging out for an extra day, he says. Its a communal process: not just hanging out with me, but hanging out with other brewers, building relationships. It was two weeks of exhaustive fun. Devils Backbone Adventure Pack Collaboration Sampler. dbbrewingcompany.com. $16.99-$17.99 for 12 bottles. Dear Amy: My youngest grandson, Jamie, is 3 years old. He and his family live out of state, so we see him only two or three times a year. Jamie wears jeans and T-shirts mostly, but his parents have let his hair grow to below shoulder length. People see him and say, What a cute little girl. His hair is thick, blond and wavy, so Jamie does look like a cute girl. Jamie gets upset when people think hes a girl. His parents tell him that people think anyone with long hair is a girl. His mom wants to save his curls because his hair really is beautiful. I suggested that his mom cut a lock of hair to save and then get him a boys haircut at the barber shop. With all the talk of transgender kiddies, this could be rough on little Jamie. Being a kid and fitting in is hard enough, but I dont think they care if Jamie is different. Should I butt out or should I go to bat for sweet Jamie? Loving Grandmom Loving Grandmom: Jamies parents shouldnt care if he is different. And in this day and age, you would have to ask yourself, Different from what? There is no one way to be. If this child doesnt like his hair long, I suggest his parents hide the scissors, because there isnt a 3 or 4 year old in the world who hasnt enjoyed giving him/herself that first lopsided haircut. Youve already expressed yourself. Now you should stay out of it. Dear Amy: A few weeks ago I met a wonderful, divorced father of two. We were on the same flight back to our home state after spending the Thanksgiving holiday with our parents, who happen to live a few miles apart. The connection was very brief but instant from when our eyes met. We exchanged numbers and never stopped speaking or seeing each other for a month. I sensed something was amiss as he was not in contact as much. We met for coffee, and he informed me that an ex-girlfriend had texted him. He said he was torn and confused and did not feel comfortable dating more than one person. He said they had not seen each other or spoken in two years. She ended the relationship because she was going through a divorce and the timing was less than ideal. I was not okay being in limbo (nor was he suggesting that I should be). He continued to reach out, saying he was sick to his stomach, missed speaking, but still did not have answers as to whether it was me or her. Against my hearts will, I told him Id be removing myself from the situation. It has now been two weeks of silence. I truly felt, and still do, that he was the one. Ive waited 33 years for that kind of connection. Am I naive to cling onto hope that hell return after a month or two of exploring things with the ex? How likely would it be for him to reignite his relationship with his ex after two years of silence? Waiting Waiting: You should not spend one more precious moment trying to second guess or predict this mans chances with his ex. You knew him for a few weeks. Your relationship with him never really got off the ground. Relationships sputter for all sorts of reasons and despite what this man told you, you really do not know what happened between him and his ex, or between the two of you. He might be a romantic wunderkind who rushes headlong into relationships and then gets cold feet and withdraws. Or it is possible that every single thing he told you is true. Do not cling to hope if you can help it. Lick your wounds, read Mary Oliver poetry, take long walks and know that if its meant to be, it will be. You are doing the right thing. Thwarted romance makes philosophers and poets out of all of us. Dear Amy: I agree with your strong caution to Challenged Boss, the boss who was being sexually propositioned by a very young employee, who wanted to exchange sexual favors for the boss to rehire another employee. In addition to your caution that this boss should investigate other possible wrongdoing from this unethical pair, he should also consider that he is ripe to be set up for a sexual harassment lawsuit. Also a Boss Also a Boss: Oh, yes. Thank you. Amys column appears seven days a week at www.washingtonpost.com/advice. Write to Amy Dickinson at askamy@tribpub.com or Ask Amy, Chicago Tribune, TT500, 435 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60611. Donald Trump spars with Univision reporter Jorge Ramos. (REUTERS/Ben Brewer) Only a few minutes into a hastily scheduled press conference in a high-school weight room here, Donald Trump is already on the attack. Against a reporter, of course. In 1999, you said you were pro-choice in all respects, NBC newsman Peter Alexander starts to ask Trump about a long-ago Meet the Press interview. Trump doesnt wait for the question. Read the full statement! he shoots back. You didnt read the full statement. What did I say? Read the full statement! The sharp retort seems to catch Alexander off guard, but he soon regroups, pointing out that Trumps full comment in 1999 included the mild caveat that he was uncomfortable with the concept of abortion. But Trump senses an opening. Why didnt you say that when you asked the question before, that I hate the concept of abortion? he asks Alexander. Do you apologize? Do you apologize for not reading my words? When Alexander responds that he was merely reading Trumps words back to him, Trump scowls. Do you apologize? he demands. No? . . . Okay, forget you. Just forget you. What was remarkable about the exchange was how unremarkable it was. When you cover Trump on a regular basis, say reporters who do, the beatdowns are part of the job. Its one of the signature things about Trump, one of the many ways hes broken the rules of presidential politics. No leading presidential candidate perhaps ever has been as dismissive, belittling or as downright hostile to the people who follow him on the campaign trail as Trump. [Candidates agree: News media have done them wrong] Trumps penchant for insulting people and organizations that displease him is well known, of course. Less remarked upon, however, has been the special contempt that Trump pours out for the women who chronicle his campaign. His targets arent limited to Fox News host Megyn Kelly, whom Trump has publicly called a bimbo, dopey and so average in every way in his long-running (and largely one-sided) feud. The list of female journalists and commentators whove been verbally roughed up by Trump include Associated Press reporter Jill Colvin (one of the truly bad reporters); New York Times reporters Amy Chozick and Maggie Haberman (third-rate reporters); CNN pundits S.E. Cupp and Ana Navarro (two of the dumbest people in politics); Huffington Post founder Arianna Huffington (liberal clown); Forbes writer Clare OConnor (dummy); MSNBC reporter Kasie Hunt (poor and purposely inaccurate reporting); CNN host Alisyn Camerota (disaster); Washington Post blogger Jennifer Rubin (one of the dumber bloggers); NPRs Cokie Roberts (kooky); NBC News reporter Katy Tur (Dishonest!); and CNN reporter Sara Murray (absolutely terrible). One female reporter said Trumps denunciations of journalists makes his rallies feel scary, with an undercurrent of menace among his supporters. Another said the hostile tweets she gets from Trump supporters tend to mirror the language Trump uses in smearing women. Donald Trump speaks during a campaign event at the Roundhouse Gymnasium in Marshalltown, Iowa. (Mary Altaffer/Associated Press) Trump greets guests in Marshalltown. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images) Even in a place as placid and generally friendly as Iowa, it can be a bit unsettling for anyone to cover Trump. When security personnel ordered reporters to wait outside in the cold because of a brief mix-up before one of Trumps appearances here last week, the gaggle of journalists drew a few catcalls from the hundreds of supporters who had lined up to get into the event. Let em freeze, someone called from the line. The crowd laughed. This is mild, even inconsequential, compared with what other journalists have experienced while reporting on Trump. [Thanks to Trump, fringe news enters the mainstream] Sopan Deb, a videographer and digital journalist for CBS News, tweeted that he was asked by a Trump supporter if I was taking pictures for ISIS as he recorded a rally in Reno, Nev., last month. When Deb, who is of South Asian heritage, looked surprised at the question, the man said, Yeah, Im talking to you, and repeated the accusation multiple times. I told him, politely, I was with CBS and that what he said was inappropriate, wrote Deb. He said, This is America. . . . Be glad that youre here. I have a couple guesses what he meant by that. The best part is that the man an apparent Vietnam vet started filming me with his cell as if he really thought I was filming for ISIS. Added Deb, This isnt first time this has happened. At last months rally in Vegas, [a] man came up to me to [say] Go back to Iraq! Ive never been! Trumps slams and slights seem to draw few complaints from the media pack, at least not in public. Several reporters approached for this story during a few days in Iowa were critical of Trumps treatment of them, but kept their comments off the record, meaning they could not be quoted. Others declined to speak at all, saying they werent permitted to do so without authorization from their employers. The no-commenters included Tur, Murray, Fox Newss Carl Cameron, McClatchys Lesley Clark, Reuterss Steve Holland, the Des Moines Registers Jennifer Jacobs, NPRs Mara Liasson and Trip Gabriel of the New York Times. Alexander, the NBC reporter, still seemed to be smarting from his run-in with Trump a few minutes after the press conference here concluded, but he was cautious in his comments. The bottom line is, I asked a valid question, he said. Its a question his opponents have been raising. Were choosing the next president of the United States. He can answer a question. Silence may be the best policy when it comes to Trump; journalists whove written or spoken critically about him have received swift payback. Reporters for the Huffington Post, Buzzfeed and Fusion TV network have been banned from his events at various times. Univisions Jorge Ramos and Gabriel of the New York Times have been ejected during his events. Reporters for the Des Moines Register, the largest newspaper in the first caucus state, were banned by Trump after its editorial board called for him to drop out of the race in July (the editorials headline: Trump should pull the plug on his bloviating side show). The ban made little sense on its face; news reporters have no control over their newspapers opinion pages, and vice versa. Nevertheless, it didnt stop the Register from covering Trump. Its reporters simply secured general-entry tickets and sat among his supporters, not in the pen. At every opportunity, hes said what a lousy paper we are, said Jason Noble, one of the Registers political reporters, who waited in line for two hours to report on a Trump event in Pella, Iowa, last month. The question is, what kind of precedent does this set for future presidential campaigns? If you can slash and burn your way to the nomination, does that send a message to future candidates? Trump, of course, has been criticized for many things, but his ad hominem attacks on journalists have not been sufficiently rebutted, wrote columnist Eric Boehlert of the liberal watchdog group Media Matters last month. On and on the bullying goes and the pushback remains minimal, he wrote. . . . Wheres the indignation over the constant press intimidation? Where are the outraged editorials? Where are the endless, handwringing TV panel debates about what Trumps hatred of the press really means; what it tells us about his possible character flaws, and his would-be presidency? Asked about this, Lynn Sweet, a veteran political reporter and columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times, offers a longer view. My heart goes out to reporters when I hear them being singled out, Sweet said last week, standing in the media room at a Trump event in Des Moines. However, just as we say running for president puts you in the big leagues, its also true for the reporters. Just as we say the politicians have to have thick skins, my guess is the reporters do, too. Montgomery County named Jack R. Smith, Marylands interim state superintendent of schools, as its schools chief Thursday, ending a year-long search for a leader to take over the 156,000-student system. Board of Education members voted unanimously to hire Smith, 58, as superintendent of the district, the states largest. It faces challenges posed by surging enrollment, budget shortfalls and increasing numbers of children who live in poverty. Smith, whose formal hiring is contingent on the negotiation of a four-year contract, would step into the top job a year after former superintendent Joshua P. Starr resigned amid reports of diminished board support. Smith on Thursday described himself as a true believer in public education. I certainly am excited, nervous, humbled and very much looking forward to this opportunity and this effort to work on behalf of all of the children, he said after the vote, speaking before an audience of educators, parents, students and reporters. Board members voiced confidence that Smith would take the high-performing and increasingly diverse system to the next l e vel. His whole wealth of knowledge as a curriculum director, principal, teacher state level, local I think he just brings a lot to the table, said the board president, Michael A. Durso. Hes an academician. Hes going to be focused on the classroom. I really believe that. Smiths appointment ends a year of uncertainty and a search that even Durso described as a long, tortuous and interesting journey. The board never publicly disclosed the reasons for its loss of confidence in Starr, but officials close to the matter cited concerns about insufficient progress in narrowing the achievement gap, a lack of a coherent vision for school principals and a personality that could be dismissive. A first effort to find Starrs successor last spring did not produce a new schools chief. Over the year, the board ultimately considered the applications and credentials of more than 70 candidates nationally, and in recent months, it conducted 11 interviews with candidates with diverse backgrounds in medium and large school systems, officials said. Smith became Marylands interim state superintendent in September after the departure of Lillian M. Lowery, who took a nonprofit education job in Ohio. Smith previously was the states chief academic officer, a job he started in 2013 after more than a decade in Calvert Countys school system, which has 15,600 students. For seven years, he was superintendent of the Southern Maryland countys system. He was Marylands Superintendent of the Year for 2013. Smith left Calvert in 2013 with a year remaining on his second four-year contract. In a letter to the school community, he spoke of spending time with a new grandson and some potential opportunities . . . that look intriguing. Calvert school leaders credited him at the time with leadership in improving state models for evaluating teachers and principals and increasing the number of Calvert students involved in Advanced Placement courses and other rigorous programs. They also praised his efforts to modernize career and technology education programs and create new science, technology, engineering and math programs. But many teachers were dismayed that Smith left with contract-provided financial benefits while their raises were not being funded, said Debbie Russ, former president of the county teachers union. They were just floored, she said. People are still divided about Jack. Earlier in his career, Smith was a teacher and a principal, working in Washington state, Japan and Thailand. Smith is self-effacing, easygoing and dedicated, said Stephen Guthrie, superintendent of schools in Carroll County and a former president of the Public School Superintendents Association of Maryland. He is one of the most knowledgeable people in instruction and pedagogy that I know, Guthrie said. In his remarks Thursday, Smith said he would get to know the community in coming weeks and did not expect to come in and take everything apart. Still, he said, I wont wait months or years to start talking about what needs to happen on behalf of children and students. He cited data showing that graduation rates vary widely across Montgomerys 25 high schools and suggested that was an area to address. State Sen. Paul G. Pinsky (D-Prince Georges), vice chairman of the Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee, said Smith has worked well with policymakers since Lowerys departure, making strong efforts to collaborate. He brings a knowledge of the state and how it works, and I think he is respected across the state, and I think that will help Montgomery County, Pinsky said. The Montgomery boards vote ends a national search that started in February 2015 and failed to produce a new leader after its first wave of interviews. The boards preferred candidate last spring Andrew Houlihan, chief academic officer in Houstons school system abruptly withdrew from consideration. Houlihan, then 36, said the job was not the right fit for me, my family or the system as a whole. His decision came three days after his name was announced and as some in Montgomery questioned whether he was seasoned enough for the superintendents post. The countys school board then suspended the search and asked the interim superintendent, Larry A. Bowers, to stay in place for an extra school year. Bowers will retire this summer. The boards search for a more permanent superintendent resumed this school year, and in January, board members said they were pleased with the pool of applicants and voiced optimism that a candidate would be selected as early as March. Montgomery school officials did not release names of the superintendent candidates or finalists. But the finalists included Jack Smith and Marty K. Smith, chief of staff for Fairfax Countys public school system, according to three people with knowledge of the selection process. Marty Smith works under Fairfax Superintendent Karen Garza in the largest school system in Virginia. He was previously an assistant superintendent in Fairfax, overseeing 22 schools in Herndon, Langley and McLean, according to biographical material posted online when he applied for a superintendent position in Illinois. As word began to circulate Thursday about the boards expected choice, some were disappointed that the next superintendent would not reflect the increasing diversity of the school system. Smith is the systems third white male superintendent in a row, following Starr and Jerry Weast. I think its time that people be a little more bold with their leadership choices, said Joseph Hawkins, a longtime activist on education issues in Montgomery. Our leaders should reflect the new demographics, he said. Durso, the school board president, said that diversity in leadership was an important factor and remains an important factor, but we felt we made the best choice. Ovetta Wiggins and Magda Jean-Louis contributed to this report. The leader of a high-performing Maryland high school that lost two recent graduates in an alcohol-related crash voiced sadness and frustration this week that a spring-break trip organized by parents appeared to condone teen drinking. Our community has suffered tremendous losses, and I am disappointed that anyone would imply that drinking by our students who are not yet of legal drinking age is acceptable even if it may be allowed in a different country, Kimberly Boldon, acting principal of Rockvilles Thomas S. Wootton High School, wrote in a letter dated Tuesday. [Read the letter from Wootton High Schools principal] Boldon said in an interview Wednesday that she wrote the letter after seeing a detailed document about a spring-break trip to Riviera Maya, Mexico, along the Caribbean coastline. The document, obtained by The Washington Post and first reported by WUSA9, mentions Mexicos legal drinking age of 18 and asks that those who choose to drink alcohol agree to do so responsibly and in accordance with applicable law. While it asks for participants agreement not to bring or attempt to buy illegal drugs, it advises that steps be taken in advance to discuss the importance of drinking and acting responsibly (including watching out for friends). In Boldons letter, she emphasized the spring-break trip is not school-sponsored and wrote of a collective responsibility to keep students safe and to set boundaries. Allowing underage drinking here or in another country is irresponsible, dangerous and places our students in harms way, she said. Her message comes as another sign of clashing views about teen drinking with some parents urging a strong stance against it and others allowing alcohol with certain conditions. Boldon urged clarity and consistency. There is a firm line in the sand on this issue, she said. This has to stop. The Mexico trip document lists the organizers as Gayle Strauss and Tracie Saltzman. [See the Mexico document] Tracie Saltzman is the wife of Kenneth Saltzman, the North Potomac father who was issued two criminal citations for allowing underage drinking at his home the night of a crash in June that claimed the lives of two members of Woottons Class of 2015: Calvin Li and Alex Murk. The driver, Samuel Ellis, also a 2015 Wootton graduate, is scheduled for trial in April. Tracie Saltzman said in an email to The Post that the trip mostly involves families, not students on their own. The few attending without their parents are going with families that are responsible for them, she wrote. We do not condone drinking under the age of 21 and included Mexicos 18-year-old drinking age in order to make families aware of the different law. She said that she and her daughter are the only members of her family going on the trip. Kenneth Saltzman, who pleaded guilty last year to the two citations for the house party, was ordered to pay $5,000, the maximum fine. Strauss did not respond Wednesday to a request for comment. [Report: Teens said parent allowed parties on a regular basis] In the Wootton letter, Boldon says she has become quite fond of the students and parents in the class of 2016, noting that as an administrator she was assigned to the group when they arrived as freshmen and that she has watched them mature and grow. If students do go on the trip, she said, it is my hope that parents accompanying them will ensure that our students are held to the same high standards of conduct we expect of them here. Boldons letter came three months after the longtime principal at Walt Whitman High School, Alan Goodwin, sent a letter to parents asking them to refrain from hosting underage drinking parties. His subject line: Please Stop! [This must stop: Principal implores parents not to host teen drinking parties] Boldon said the issue is widely felt. We are all grappling with and struggling with underage drinking, and parents participation in that, she said. The A-A-A Women For Choice, a crisis pregnancy center in Manassas, Va., tries to persuade women not to have abortions. It opened next to the Amethyst Health Center for Women, an abortion provider, 24 years ago. (Petula Dvorak/The Washington Post) Pat Lohmans most powerful weapon in her long war on abortion has been deception. Its a tactic she has embraced for nearly three decades to disrupt one of Northern Virginias few abortion clinics. Lohman operates her Manassas crisis pregnancy center right next door. Same brick building, same sign, same generic office decor. The abortion clinic, Amethyst Health Center for Women, was on the right. The pregnancy center, AAA Women for Choice, is on the left. Confused women seeking abortions would wind up in Lohmans place, where she threw all she had at them pamphlets, pleas, prayers, promises of help, used baby gear, bloody imagery, God to change their minds. Deceptive? People say were deceptive? Okay, Lohman told me. But what the other guys are doing? Thats deceptive, too. Those girls have no idea what abortion really is. When I hear pro-choice, that is a deception. And this country has forgotten about God. The Amethyst Health Center for Women, an abortion provider in Manassas, closed in the fall. The practice was purchased by abortion opponents. (Petula Dvorak/The Washington Post) Heres the part thats really astonishing. Several months ago, the abortion provider retired and the Amethyst Health Center closed. Thats when Lohman, 69, and her supporters swooped in, orchestrating their grandest deception yet. Nothing indicates that the abortion clinic is closed except a locked door. The clinics Google ads still pop up, and the phone number still works. When women dial the closed abortion clinic, the call is forwarded straight to the pregnancy center. Everything remains in place to lure women to the clinic and hope they try the door, figure they made a mistake, then go right next door to the carefully named AAA Women for Choice. How did Lohman pull it off? [A clinics landlord turns the tables on anti-abortion protesters] I talked to the doctor who ran the abortion clinic for 27 years, first with her husband, then alone after he died. Shes a 76-year-old widow with an National Rifle Association sticker on the clinic window and a gun shes had ready for decades after being threatened by abortion protesters at her home. She doesnt want to be in the news anymore and asked that I not use her name. But when we talked, she told me that she sold her practice when she retired. She never met the new owners, only the lawyers who said they represented a group of medical office investors. The investors also bought a dialysis office in the same, unremarkable medical office park, they told her. Just five minutes after signing the final papers at closing, the doctor called her office to check her messages. Triple-A Women for Choice, a voice answered. The doctor thought she made a mistake and redialed. Triple-A Women for Choice, the voice said again. Whoever bought her practice had the phones forwarded to the pregnancy center within minutes of the sale, before the lawyers even had a chance to close their briefcases. The retired doctor said she doesnt believe an outright fraud happened. She said it was an omission of information. If I were 20 years younger, I wouldnt have retired, and this wouldnt have happened, she told me. But I am tired. And right now, I dont want to stir things up. [Planned Parenthood deserves to be supported, not attacked] According to property records, the new owners bought the place for $360,000 on Sept. 29, 2015. It now belongs to BVM Foundation the Indiana-based Blessed Virgin Mary Foundation. Calls to BVM Foundation and its listed officers were not returned. Yes, they are forwarding calls to us, Lohman acknowledged. She pointed at the empty Amethyst office, which used to serve about 1,200 women annually: They want to get a doctor in there who believes like we do. Abortion opponents have been using some of these tactics for years, as Planned Parenthood could tell you. Abortion clinics across the country are shadowed by crisis pregnancy centers. But buying a clinic is new, said Alena Yarmosky, who is with NARAL Pro-Choice Virginia. When women call, they are asked lots of intimate, personal, medical questions, she said. And because the center isnt a real health-care provider, none of that [information] is confidential. NARAL workers made calls to the center, and in the recordings you hear the counselors answer the phone and simply explain that were taking calls for them when the caller asks for Amethyst. And then there is a long dance to get the woman to come in for a counseling session. What happens when women do make the appointment or walk into Lohmans office, with its signs advertising free pregnancy tests? The counselors there give women a generic over-the-counter test and lead them into an exam room. While waiting (way too long) for the results, Lohman launches into her routine. There is a questionnaire asking women intimate details about their sex lives. The counselors at the pregnancy center told me they hear some awful things. Its shocking. The STDs. The number of partners, how many young people, said Susan Hays, the counselor on duty when I visited. We had an 11-year-old girl come in with her parents. They thought she was pregnant, Lohman said. Turns out she wasnt. But we gave them all the information. Did they consider reporting a sexually active 11-year-old to authorities? Oh no, we dont do that. Were not doctors, so we dont have to, Lohman said. They tell women that condoms can be porous and unreliable. They tell women theyll have a hard time getting pregnant again after an abortion. They tell women that abortion and birth control can cause cancer, a link unconfirmed by medical research. Talk about objectifying women. How about doping her up with steroids? Hays asked. Then comes the video. Its a bloody, graphic, disturbing (and some say inaccurate) depiction of an abortion. Heres our response form. I would say 99 percent of the women who see it say they would recommend it to others, Lohman said, after she questioned me about my family, my stand on abortion rights, my views on religion. Do women ever get angry when they realize they went to the wrong office? Oh yeah, they get angry, theres yelling at us sometimes. But they just dont want to hear the truth, Lohman said. But we are the ones telling the truth. Well, not quite. Twitter: @petulad When Craig J. Zucker walked to the podium of the Maryland Senate chamber on Thursday, he was still Del. Craig J. Zucker (D-Montgomery). His resignation from the House of Delegates became effective the moment he was sworn in as a state senator to replace former senator Karen S. Montgomery (D-Montgomery). Im looking forward to doing the work of the state Senate and being an asset to my colleagues and my constituents, Zucker said. Zucker said no one could replace Montgomery, who served District 14 in the General Assembly for 13 years. Montgomery resigned last month. [Longtime state lawmaker from Montgomery resigns] Del. Craig J. Zucker was sworn in as a state senator. (Craig Zucker) She was one of a kind, Zucker said. And she will leave a legacy that will be hard to follow but I hope to see where her footprints are and follow the way. Zuckers arrival in the Senate means that for the first time since the General Assembly convened last month, the Senate will have 47 senators, a full chamber. It also sets the stage for the Senate to vote on an override of Gov. Larry Hogans veto of a bill that would allow felons who are on parole and probation to vote. Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert) postponed a vote on the override last month because it likely would not have the 29 votes for approval. Montgomery voted for the original bill. Miller wanted her replacement in place before taking up the override. Zucker will have the unusual opportunity to vote twice on the same override as a delegate and as a senator. Miller said an opinion from the Attorney Generals Office said the vote would be constitutional. Zucker, who served in the House for five years, was a member of the House Appropriations Committee and served as chairman of the Health and Human Resources Subcommittee. He was an establishment favorite to take Montgomerys seat and was approved last month by the Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee by a 25-2 vote. [Montgomery Democrats nominate Del. Zucker to fill empty Senate seat] Zucker said he did not have a comment on the time it took for his nomination to get final approval from Hogan (R). The governor had 15 days to sign off on the nomination. The deadline was Friday. Im just honored that I was confirmed and that its a privilege being here, and I look forward getting to work, Zucker said. This story has been updated. Police in Alexandria said they have arrested a second man in connection with a homicide in December. Boris Rosa Castro, 19, of Fairfax City has been charged with murder in the death of Eduardo David Chandias Almendarez, 22, who was found dead Dec. 4 in Four Mile Run Park. On Tuesday, police said, an off-duty Fairfax City police officer noticed Castro as the officer was headed to work. He remembered that Castro was wanted by authorities in connection with the Alexandria homicide. The officer called on-duty law enforcement and Castro was detained, according to Alexandria police. Almendarezs death is believed to have gang ties, police have said. Authorities in the region said some recent brutal killings have raised their concerns about a new wave of violence by members of the notorious MS-13 gang. [In brutal killings, officials see attempt by MS-13 to rebuild] Almendarez was reported missing and was last seen in the park Nov. 28. A search-and-rescue team found his body in the park days later. The medical examiners office said Almendarez died of cuts to the head, neck and extremities. Police also have charged Edwin Alexander Guerrero Umana, 18, of Arlington in the death of Almendarez. A federal appeals court on Thursday cast doubt on the legality of Marylands 2013 ban on semiautomatic high-capacity assault weapons that passed after the mass shootings at a Newtown, Conn., elementary school. The 2-to-1 decision by a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit sends the gun-control law back to a lower court for review, but allows the existing ban to remain in place. Chief Judge William B. Traxler Jr., writing for the majority, found that the Maryland law significantly burdens the exercise of the right to arm oneself at home and should have been analyzed using a more stringent legal standard. [Read the full 4th Circuit opinion and dissent here] The law bans more than 45 types of assault weapons in addition to high-capacity magazines that hold more than 10 rounds of ammunition. Proponents said such weapons are disproportionately used in acts of mass violence and rarely for self-defense. A federal law banning assault weapons expired in 2004, but six other states, including California, Massachusetts and New York, have similar bans. The Maryland law was challenged by a group of gun-store owners and individuals who said the prohibited firearms are not military weapons and are used for lawful purposes such as self-defense, target practice and hunting. Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh (D), who helped pass the law as a state senator, said Thursday that the court majority got it wrong. I think its just common sense that the Second Amendment does not give people a right to own military-style assault weapons, he said. In a strongly worded dissent, Judge Robert B. King wrote: Lets be real: The assault weapons banned by Marylands [law] are exceptionally lethal weapons of war and as such, he said, not necessarily protected by the Second Amendment. King, a Bill Clinton appointee, noted that the panels ruling is at odds with several other federal appellate courts that have considered similar bans, including the D.C. Circuit. In 2011, the D.C. Circuit upheld the citys prohibition on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. To put it mildly, it troubles me that, by imprudently and unnecessarily breaking from our sister courts of appeals . . . we are impeding Marylands and others reasonable efforts to prevent the next Newtown, King wrote, listing other sites of recent mass shootings that concluded with San Bernardino, Calif. [Supreme Court wont review laws banning assault weapons] Traxler, also a Clinton appointee, and Judge G. Steven Agee, an appointee of George W. Bush, acknowledged in their opinion the split with the other courts, saying, We are not a rubber stamp. In an unusually pointed response to King, the judges also chastised their colleague for seeming to infer that we will bear some responsibility for future mass shootings. In our view inferences of this nature have no place in judicial opinions and we will not respond beyond noting this. Specifically, the courts opinion Thursday directs U.S. District Judge Catherine C. Blake, who sits in Baltimore, to apply a strict standard of legal review when considering the governments interest in protecting public safety. Chris Cox, the executive director of the National Rifle Associations Institute for Legislative Action, said in a statement Thursday that the highest level of judicial scrutiny should apply when governments try to restrict our Second Amendment freedoms. Gov. Larry Hogan (R) also opposed the ban when it passed the Maryland legislature, but has said he now accepts it as state law. Hogans spokesman declined to comment Thursday. Frosh said the state would either ask for a rehearing of the case by the full 4th Circuit or seek review from the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court has so far declined to take up the question of whether cities and states can prohibit these types of weapons after its landmark 2008 decision that declared an individual right to keep a firearm in the home. Staff writer Ovetta Wiggins contributed to this report. A longtime computer scientist at the National Institutes of Health was sentenced to six years in prison Wednesday for repeatedly slamming a hammer into his roommates skull after learning that his dog while under the care of the roommate had been killed by a car. The fact that you would to use your lawyers word explode over something like this is pretty incredible, Montgomery County Circuit Court Judge David A. Boynton told Timothy Oliver, 69, of Rockville. People lose family members, people lose dogs, every day. But they dont hit people with hammers. Oliver, wearing civilian clothes and with a shock of blond, curly hair, showed little emotion, then took a seat to read the terms of the sentence given to him. His violent outburst 18 months ago, which left the victim with permanent hearing loss and a titanium plate in her head, seemed a dramatic departure from how Oliver had led his life, at least according to letters of support given to Boynton before Wednesdays hearing. Until the assault, Oliver had worked as a computer scientist at NIH, the prestigious research institution in Bethesda. He practiced Transcendental Meditation, taught free computer programming classes in the inner city and volunteered with anti-hunger organizations. This dog, Teddy, was fatally struck by a car. (Courtesy of Rebecca Nitkin) Your Honor, former colleague John Knight wrote, Tim has lived an idealistic, non-violent life of service up to and since the incident. Knight wrote movingly about Olivers widowed mother, who suffers from progressing glaucoma, is nearly deaf and is visited at her home every day by her only son, where they share a sandwich for lunch and spend the afternoon shopping, running errands or going to her medical appointments. They get home in time for the evening news, Knight wrote. In handing down his sentence, Boynton said he was recognizing Olivers previous kind acts and lack of a criminal record, saying the prison term otherwise probably would have been longer. But the judge stressed how violent and senseless the act was. You hit her in the head with a hammer over an accident, Boynton told Oliver. You obviously have some pretty serious issues in terms of your ability to control your conduct. Last year, Oliver pleaded guilty to felony assault in the case, as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors to drop an attempted murder charge. Earlier: Oliver pleads guilty in hammer attack In court Wednesday, prosecutor Sherri Koch described what happened. On the night of Aug. 4, 2014, Olivers roommate called him and said his dog, Teddy, had been hit by a car. He met her at a veterinary clinic, where Teddy was pronounced dead. Oliver brought Teddys body home. After the roommate also returned to the apartment, Oliver attacked her. She was then dragged, by the defendant, covered with blood, in a sleeping bag, and dragged out of the apartment, Koch said, adding that he put her cat out, as well. And he left her there to die. A neighbor later saw her outside and called 911, Koch said. Olivers attorney, Rebecca Nitkin, said the victim was not asleep at the time of the attack and that in a letter to the judge, the victim said she did not want Oliver to be incarcerated. He doesnt know what to do with his mother, the victim wrote, and he isnt the kind of person who is comfortable with people. He is very private and values contact with only a couple of close friends. Before handing down his sentence, Boynton asked Oliver if he had anything to say. I have no statement to make, Oliver said. Okay, Boynton said. Are you sure? I feel horrible about the whole thing, Oliver said. I wish it had never happened. I cant imagine doing something like that. But it happened, and thats about all I can say. Two Virginia Tech students are charged in the death of a seventh grade girl. Here is what you need to know about the investigation. (Claritza Jimenez/The Washington Post) Two Virginia Tech students are charged in the death of a seventh grade girl. Here is what you need to know about the investigation. (Claritza Jimenez/The Washington Post) Update: Student charged in Blacksburg teens killing is in court A friend of the 13-year-old girl who was abducted and killed here last week said she found out that the girl was having an inappropriate relationship with an adult man and reported it to a school official in the weeks before Nicole Lovell disappeared. Kari Cook, 13, said Nicole posted a photo to Facebook of a man who appeared to be older than 18. She said Nicole also posted screenshots of Facebook messages she was exchanging with a man who was over the age of 18, according to his Facebook profile. The messages suggested that they were dating. Kari said she did not know if the man in the photo was the same man her classmate was exchanging messages with. When Kari learned that the man was over 18, she became deeply worried about the situation and contacted a school resource officer at Blacksburg Middle School, she said. She was talking to him about how they were a cute couple, Kari said, recalling the text conversations that Nicole shared on Facebook. I was really scared. The online name she passed along to the officer was not that of David Eisenhauer, 18, of Columbia, Md., a Virginia Tech freshman who has been charged with first-degree murder in Nicoles death. And it is unclear whether the man in the photos and conversations was Eisenhauer. 1 of 6 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad Investigation into death and abduction of teen girl by 2 Virginia Tech students View Photos The engineering students were charged in connection with the slaying of 13-year-old Nicole Lovell, who disappeared Jan. 27 from her home in Blacksburg, Va. Caption The engineering students were charged in connection with the slaying of 13-year-old Nicole Lovell, who disappeared Jan. 27 from her home in Blacksburg, Va. Feb. 2, 2016 Tammy Weeks, mother of 13-year-old Nicole Lovell, cries as she speaks to reporters in Blacksburg, Va. Weeks says her daughter fought health problems all her life and had dreams of singing on "American Idol." Allen G. Breed/AP Wait 1 second to continue. [Near Virginia Tech, a 13-year-olds online fantasies turn fatal] Nicole disappeared from her home the night of Jan. 27 her bedroom window was left partially open after she apparently sneaked out and her body was found in North Carolina days later. Authorities have said she was fatally stabbed. Two law enforcement officials familiar with the investigation said that Eisenhauer and Nicole had sexual contact before her disappearance and that he lured her out of her home to kill her. An attorney for Eisenhauer has declined to comment on the case, and Eisenhauer told police I believe the truth can set me free, according to court documents. Lt. Mike Albert, a spokesman for Blacksburg police, said School Resource Officer Mark Haynie had no information about Nicoles disappearance when she went missing and added that if her classmate had relayed concerns about her, he would have acted on it through the appropriate channels. Albert said no student expressed concern to Haynie about Nicole having a relationship with an older man. Officials with the Montgomery County School District in Virginia declined to comment on Karis account, but spokeswoman Brenda Drake said all of our schools are very mindful of the need to focus on Internet safety. Police declined to discuss the nature of the relationship between Eisenhauer and Nicole, and they have not indicated a possible motive for the slaying. Police arrested Eisenhauer and a second Virginia Tech freshman, Natalie Keepers, 19, over the weekend in connection with Nicoles death. Authorities allege that Keepers helped Eisenhauer before and after the killing, aiding in the disposal of Nicoles body, which was discovered Saturday about two hours from Blacksburg in Surry County, N.C. Reports that Nicole might have met Eisenhauer online raised concerns that young people could be lured into dangerous situations well beyond their age and control. An official with the popular instant messaging service Kik revealed Wednesday that information gleaned from the app helped lead law enforcement officers to Eisenhauer and Keepers in connection with the slaying. A tribute to 13-year-old Nicole Lovell at Blacksburg Middle School in Virginia, where she was a student. (Courtesy of Montgomery County Public Schools) FBI officials made multiple emergency requests for Kik account information as authorities mounted a massive search for the middle-school student, according to the company. Company officials declined to disclose what information was released but said it makes such disclosures when there is an imminent threat of death, loss of security or physical harm to a person. [The two Va. Tech students who have been charged in the death] A neighbor of Nicoles in Blacksburg told the Associated Press that on the day the girl disappeared, Nicole showed the neighbors daughters a picture of someone named David along with threads of conversations with him on Kik. Nicole reportedly told the girls that she was going to sneak out of her house that night to meet him. Authorities have declined to comment on the veracity of that account. Kari, Nicoles friend, said there were signs that Nicole was troubled before she disappeared. Kari had attended school with Nicole since kindergarten, but the two drifted apart at Blacksburg Middle School because they no longer had class together. Kari said Nicole was bubbly in elementary school but had become more subdued in middle school because she was being bullied. Kari said she noticed posts about the older teen on Nicoles Facebook page in mid-December. Kari said she commented on one, writing that the teen Nicole was dating looked suspiciously older. She said she left seventh period, her reading class, to talk to Haynie in January. She said she found him in a hallway and told him that she believed Nicole was dating a man in his 20s and that there was evidence of it on Facebook. She then wrote the mans name on a piece of paper and gave it to the officer. She said the mans name was not Eisenhauer. Kari said the officer told her that he would talk with Nicole. Albert said no one made such a warning to the officer about Nicole dating an adult. Blacksburg police released no new information about the case Wednesday, and a bond hearing for Keepers in the Montgomery County, Va., courts was delayed until Thursday morning. Kik disclosed its role in the case as it and other social media sites have come under scrutiny since the Blacksburg teens death. Kik says it has more than 275 million users and that 40 percent of U.S. teens use the app. But its popularity has also led to one of its main criticisms, as law enforcement and child advocates decry cases involving child predators who found victims through the app. Users, who can chat one-on-one or in groups, dont have to provide verified personal information and dont have to be friends with another user to strike up a conversation, which experts say make children using Kik vulnerable to predators posing as young people. It is the dark web of social networking its where anybody can be anything, said Bob Lotter, the founder and chief executive of My Mobile Watchdog, which offers a service that lets parents track what their children are doing on mobile devices. Kik strives to provide a safe environment, said a spokesman, Rod McLeod.User safety is extremely important to Kik, McLeod wrote in an email. Weve built unique safety features right into the app, allowing people to block, filter, or report inappropriate behavior. We are also actively involved in a broader societal effort to educate parents, kids, and law enforcement about online trust and safety. JuRiese Colon, executive director of outreach for the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, said her group has seen an increase of cases involving child predators on messaging apps. Overall, she said, the group received 4.4 million tips about child pornography, luring, molestation, trafficking and other types of abuse online in 2015 a vast increase from the 1.1 million reports the year before. T. Rees Shapiro in Blacksburg and Laura Vozzella in Richmond contributed to this report. Jouvenal reported from Washington. Authorities said the fire, which destroyed this historic Loudoun County home, was caused by flammable vapors. (Loudoun County Department of Fire, Rescue & Emergency Management) An accidental fire destroyed a Loudoun County house that was built from the late 1700s to early 1800s, officials said Wednesday. The Loudoun County Fire Marshals Office announced that the Monday night blaze, which damaged the historic, two-story home, was caused by flammable vapors that were ignited by an electrical source, according to a press release. No further details were available, said Laura Rinehart, a firefighter and department spokeswoman. [Fire damages Loudoun County house said to be from the late 1700s] The release said the home, nestled in the 18000 block of Lincoln Road near Purcellville, is a total loss. Authorities estimate that the fire caused $304,000 in damages. Rinehart said fire officials received a call about the blaze around 9:30 p.m. Monday and it took nearly 90 minutes to extinguish. No one was living inside the house at the time of the fire, Rinehart said. In the release, fire officials reminded residents to avoid smoking around gasoline or other flammable liquids as well and to not use them as cleaning solvents. The release also said do not pour gasoline or other flammable liquids down the sink or into a storm drain. They should be stored in approved containers and in a detached garage or outside storage area. Jose Reyes Alfaro, who is serving seven life sentences for three counts of capital murder and has a history of mental illness, is listed as a witness in an upcoming capital murder trial in Prince William County, Va. (Manassas City Police Department) When a Virginia man faces a possible death sentence in a murder trial later this year, his fate may rest on the testimony of four jailhouse informants, two of whom were initially found mentally incompetent to stand trial in their own cases. The case of Joaquin S. Rams could soon become part of a growing national backlash over the governments use of testimony from snitches inmates who offer information against other inmates in exchange for lighter sentences or other benefits to obtain convictions, sparked by a significant number of wrongful convictions attributed to false informant testimony. The issue erupted last year in Orange County, Calif., when a capital case against an admitted mass-murderer, and numerous other murder cases, stalled because of the discovery of a snitch tank: a ring of county jail informants, closely managed by jail deputies, dedicated to testifying against fellow inmates. A judge ordered the county district attorney off the case, and the prosecution of a man accused of killing eight people in 2011 has been delayed indefinitely. And in Washington last year, a judge ordered a new trial for the man accused of killing federal intern Chandra Levy in 2001 after defense attorneys successfully challenged the history and credibility of a key jailhouse informant in the 2010 trial. The use of informants is not new, nor are the challenges to their credibility. But informants role in recent wrongful convictions and high-profile cases is causing lawmakers nationwide to look at regulating their use. Jamal A. Thompson, who was arrested on charges of prostituting a teenage runaway in Manassas, Va., is listed as a jailhouse informant set to testify against Joaquin S. Rams in a capital murder trial. (Prince William County Police Department) In Texas, the revelation of false testimony by a snitch against a man who was later executed led to the introduction of legislation to ban informant testimony in death penalty cases. In Illinois, the law requires courts to hold reliability hearings before a jailhouse informant can testify. A similar proposed law in North Carolina failed last year. In Washington state, the legislature is considering a bill requiring judges to weigh informants incentivized credibility before trial. And several high-profile murder cases in the Tidewater area of Virginia took drastic turns in recent years when jailhouse snitches were found to be unreliable. In Ramss case, in Prince William County, Va., one of the informants, who pleaded guilty to the murders of three people in Manassas, Va., in 2011, reported frequent hallucinations and said he knew the whereabouts of Osama bin Laden. Another was diagnosed as a malingerer who was purposely lying to evade trial. In arguing to exclude the informants from the Rams trial, defense attorney Joni C. Robin argued that such testimony was inherently unreliable, that it involves witnesses who categorically are more willing to lie or perjure themselves than other categories of witnesses. [From 2013: The death of Prince McLeod Rams, a 4-part series)] Calls for safeguards The Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern Universitys law school found in 2005 that of the 111 people sentenced to death since the 1970s and later exonerated, snitch testimony was involved in 45.9 percent of the cases. That makes snitches the leading cause of wrongful convictions in U.S. capital cases, the report concluded. Defense attorneys and academics have long called on states to initiate safeguards so that jail cell information is either recorded or corroborated, but only Illinois has written anything into law. There have been multiple snitch scandals in multiple places, said Brandon Garrett, a University of Virginia law professor who studies wrongful convictions. Since more states are looking at wrongful convictions, its becoming part of the conversation. Joaquin S. Rams has been charged with murdering his 15-month-old son, and prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Fellow inmates in the Prince William County, Va., jail are set to testify against him. (Manassas City Police Department) Informants present dilemmas to both sides of a criminal case. For prosecutors, they must decide whether to believe that one inmate confessed crucial information to the informant, what the informants history is, whether to wire the informant for recorded conversation with the target and what they are willing to trade for the information. For the defense, attorneys must try to refute a typically unrecorded conversation, investigate the background of the informant and then convince a jury that sworn testimony is a lie. Officials with two national prosecutors groups said they would tread very carefully with jailhouse informants. David LaBahn, president of the Association of Prosecuting Attorneys and a former deputy prosecutor in California, said prosecutors have to be able to specifically articulate the reason youre using an informant and making a deal. And judges must exercise court oversight before that testimony is admitted. Can you corroborate it, or did they just pick up the newspaper? But prosecutors dont necessarily favor laws that regulate informant use. Josh Marquis, a county prosecutor in Oregon who is with the National District Attorneys Association, said: I think jurors are very discerning. We dont believe its appropriate for Congress or state legislatures to take away from juries what weight to give evidence. Defense attorneys strongly disagree. Jurors believe jailhouse informants, said Doug Ramseur, a Virginia capital public defender. They think criminals are not that smart and they sit around and brag about their crimes. Prince William Commonwealths Attorney Paul B. Ebert, the chief prosecutor in the county for 47 years, said it was amazing to me that these people [defendants] will talk [to informants], despite their counsels advice not to. Informants do have very valuable information at times. Asked how his office corroborates an informants claims, he said, Many times they will know things that only the defendant would know. Ebert acknowledged having to cut deals with convicts but added, Ive often told juries, Sometimes you have to pet a skunk to catch another one. Ebert declined to discuss the pending Rams capital case, in which the defendant is accused of drowning his 15-month-old son in his Manassas home in 2012 to collect more than $500,000 in life insurance. Ramss attorneys argued in one motion that investigators sought out and elicited the testimony of at least two jailhouse snitches after Virginias chief medical examiner reversed the initial autopsy finding of drowning and ruled that the childs cause of death couldnt be determined. [Va. medical examiner reverses ruling to no known cause of death in Prince Rams case] Potential witnesses In October, prosecutors disclosed four jail informants who may testify against Rams. The most notable was Jose Reyes Alfaro, who in February 2011 fatally shot three people and nearly killed a fourth during a rampage in Manassas. In 2011 and 2012, a judge found Reyes Alfaro incompetent to stand trial. A psychologist wrote in 2012 that Reyes Alfaros reporting of past events, actions and relationships give me pause to question his ability to distinguish memories from fantasy. Reyes Alfaro was later sent to Central State Hospital, administered psychiatric drugs and treatment, and found to be restored to sanity in 2013, although a psychiatrist noted that Reyes Alfaro described a number of far-fetched ideas about his past such as being a member of an elite paramilitary force and claiming to know the existence of Osama bin Laden in Venezuela. Reyes Alfaro also has previously falsely incriminated other individuals, Robin, the defense attorney, argued in November, leading to the arrest of those other individuals, who were later released. He pleaded guilty in 2014 to three counts of capital murder and received seven life sentences. In exchange for Reyes Alfaros testimony, prosecutors said they asked the state Department of Corrections to move him away from Wallens Ridge State Prison, which houses many of the states most serious offenders. Prosecutors also want to use Jamal A. Thompson, an Oakland, Calif., man arrested on charges of prostituting a 15-year-old runaway girl at a Manassas hotel, against Rams. Thompson also was initially found incompetent to stand trial, but when he was sent to Central State, doctors there found him to be engaged in volitional malingering . . . intentional feigning or exaggeration of psychiatric, cognitive or physical symptoms for secondary gain, such as . . . to avoid prosecution. Prince William prosecutors also listed Gavin Simms, who had multiple convictions for theft, as a witness and said he received no considerations for his testimony. But when one of Ramss attorneys attended Simmss sentencing several weeks later, court records show, they found that prosecutors had agreed to dismiss nine felony theft charges and recommend a sentence of 18 months. He faced up to four years in prison. The prosecutors also said they may call Aric A. Smith, who pleaded guilty to randomly shooting and killing retired ATF agent Gregory Holley as he walked his dog in Woodbridge, Va., in 2013. Ramss attorneys asked Prince William Circuit Court Judge Craig D. Johnston to hold a reliability hearing to determine whether the four informants could testify, similar to a Daubert hearing held in civil cases to rule whether scientific evidence is admissible. Johnston declined. Theres no Virginia case that I know of that authorizes such, the judge said. I understand the defenses frustration. . . . But that said, thats the way we do business in criminal cases, rightly or wrongly. Ramss attorneys declined to comment on the case. The trial was scheduled to begin this week but was postponed at the defenses request. Rams, 43, has maintained his innocence in the death of his son, Prince McLeod Rams. Three other people who were in the house when the boy fell unconscious say that Rams did not kill him. A snitch factory Before another capital murder trial, Ramseur was the attorney for Christopher Artis in a Suffolk, Va., case in 2012. Ramseur listened to jailhouse phone recordings because he had been warned that the Western Tidewater Regional Jail in Suffolk was a snitch factory. He said he found there was a network of guys trying to corroborate stories so they could get on a capital case and reduce their own case. I heard a guy call his mother and instruct her on how to look at my clients file. At trial, he said four informants were clearly on tape admitting they were lying to get their sentence reduced. Prosecutors quickly agreed to a mid-trial plea deal for second-degree murder and 10 years for Artis. In Virginia Beach, the 2010 slaying of a Norfolk police officer remains unsolved after prosecutors in 2014 dropped all charges against two men because they found jailhouse witnesses had lied. Prosecutors in the District last year acquiesced in the high-profile Chandra Levy case, in which Ingmar Guandique was convicted largely on the testimony of jailhouse informant Armando Morales. Morales testified that Guandique confessed the slaying to him. But Morales, a convicted drug dealer and gang member, lied when asked whether he had cooperated with authorities in other cases, and Guandiques attorneys claim the confession testimony was also false. Last May, the U.S. attorneys office dropped its opposition to Guandiques demand for a new trial. Now, we understand the full scope of just how problematic criminal informants can be, said Alexandra Natapoff, a professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles. The rules permit precisely this result. Weak discovery rules, unfettered prosecutorial discretion and payments to criminals. What did we think would happen? Its time to ask why the American criminal justice system permits these practices to exist. An earlier version of this article stated that Armando Morales, the chief informant in the Chandra Levy trial, was accused of lying about testifying in other cases. He was accused of lying about his cooperation with law enforcement. Tammy Weeks, mother of 13-year-old Nicole Lovell, cries as she speaks to reporters in Blacksburg, Va. Weeks says her daughter fought health problems all her life and had dreams of singing on "American Idol." Feb. 2, 2016 Tammy Weeks, mother of 13-year-old Nicole Lovell, cries as she speaks to reporters in Blacksburg, Va. Weeks says her daughter fought health problems all her life and had dreams of singing on "American Idol." Allen G. Breed/AP The engineering students were charged in connection with the slaying of 13-year-old Nicole Lovell, who disappeared Jan. 27 from her home in Blacksburg, Va. The engineering students were charged in connection with the slaying of 13-year-old Nicole Lovell, who disappeared Jan. 27 from her home in Blacksburg, Va. The engineering students were charged in connection with the slaying of 13-year-old Nicole Lovell, who disappeared Jan. 27 from her home in Blacksburg, Va. Investigation into the death and abduction of teen girl by 2 Virginia Tech students Investigation into the death and abduction of teen girl by 2 Virginia Tech students A Virginia Tech freshman helped plot the killing of a 13-year-old Blacksburg, Va., girl because she was excited to be part of something secretive, helping a classmate pick a spot for the slaying, buying a shovel and ultimately disposing of Nicole Lovells body, a prosecutor said Thursday. Montgomery County, Va., Commonwealths Attorney Mary Pettitt said that Natalie Keepers, 19, was intimately involved in the plot, laying out the allegations during a hearing at which a judge denied Keeperss bond request. To be involved in the homicide of someone she didnt know at all is just astonishing, Pettitt said. Keepers is accused of helping David Eisenhauer, 18, abduct and kill Nicole, a girl who had been bullied in middle school and had survived cancer and a liver transplant. The girl disappeared on Jan. 27, sparking a major search before her body was found over the weekend in North Carolina. Eisenhauer has been charged with abduction and first-degree murder in Nicoles death. [A 13-year-olds online fantasies turn fatal] Two Virginia Tech students are charged in the death of a seventh grade girl. Here is what you need to know about the investigation. (Claritza Jimenez/The Washington Post) Thursdays hearing provided many new details about the slaying, but a central mystery remains: Why would two seemingly successful and bright college students hatch a plot to kill a middle-schooler? Pettitt offered no motive in court, but two law enforcement officials have told The Washington Post that Eisenhauer had an inappropriate relationship with Nicole and lured her out of her home to kill her. Keeperss lawyers did not directly address the charges against her at the bond hearing, saying they want the opportunity to prepare a strong defense and explain some of it. Eisenhauer, of Columbia, Md. and Keepers, of Laurel, Md., were close friends at Virginia Tech, having both come from nearby high schools. He was a standout runner and she had dreams of working for NASA. It was Eisenhauer who took Keepers to the hospital when she had appendicitis in the fall. She was in counseling at the university and suffered from depression and panic attacks, according to testimony Thursday. Pettitt said the plot to kill Nicole slowly and carefully evolved in January. The two engineering students hashed out nearly every aspect, even discussing it once at a cookout. Pettitt said the pair purchased cleaning supplies and a shovel and settled on a final plan: Eisenhauer would slit Nicoles throat in a remote area outside Blacksburg. The plan unfolded in late January. Nicole reportedly told a neighbors children on the day she disappeared she was going to sneak out that night to meet someone named David and showed the girls messages from him on the messaging app Kik; authorities have said the girl and the college freshman met online. Tammy Weeks, Nicoles mother, said this week she found a nightstand propped against her daughters bedroom door and a window ajar. In this 2015 photo provided by Tammy Weeks, her daughter, Nicole Lovell, flashes a peace sign in Blacksburg, Va. (Tammy Weeks/AP) Pettitt said Nicole, carrying a blanket printed with characters from the Minions movie, apparently climbed out the window. Prosecutors had said previously that Nicole probably was killed the day she disappeared. [Prosecutors say teen was stabbed to death] After the girl vanished, Pettitt said investigators immediately dug deep into Nicoles history on social media, where she had laid bare her heartbreak and anguish over boys and, according to her mother, sought solace from the taunting and bullying she endured in the real world. In one instance, a friend previously told The Post she became so worried about Nicoles apparent relationship with an adult that she reported the situation to a school resource officer at Blacksburg Middle School. Blacksburg police said they never received the information. [Friend says she warned school about Nicole Lovells relationship with adult] During the hearing, Pettitt said investigators discovered that Nicole had been corresponding with Eisenhauer, exchanging their last missive at about 12:40 a.m. on the day she disappeared. In his first interview with police, Eisenhauer admitted that he saw the middle-schooler shortly before she vanished, Pettitt said, but he said he had just driven to her apartment complex and that the girl had come over to his car to give him a side hug, and that he had left. Keepers told police that Eisenhauer said he had killed the middle-schooler. She told police that she helped load Nicoles body into the trunk of Eisenhauers Lexus and then helped him remove the body from the car in a remote area just across the Virginia line in North Carolina. Keeperss attorneys painted her as a bookish and quiet teen with strong academic prospects. Keepers also testified during the hearing that she, like Nicole, faced problems in school. She told the judge she started cutting herself and contemplated suicide. Keepers has two brothers and a sister. In eighth grade, I was dealing with a lot of bullying issues so I started cutting myself, Keepers said, seated before the judge in an orange jumpsuit with her hands shackled. She wore glasses and spoke softly. Thats when she went to the Christian Counseling Center in Maryland and learned better coping techniques, like singing and drawing, Keepers said. But even after middle school, she continued to cut herself. At Virginia Tech, where she started in the fall, she was in counseling and took medication for depression and anxiety. Keepers said she made a pact with a friend last year, pledging that if they could both go a whole year without cutting themselves, they would get a tattoo of a semicolon. It was intended to symbolize that she wanted to continue her life, instead of putting an end to my story. That was my promise to my parents, my friends, to God, Keepers said. Ive learned how to love myself and how to take care of myself. She celebrated the milestone by getting the tattoo. Tim Keepers, Natalies father, testified on her behalf in requesting bond. He told the judge that his daughter had never been in any trouble and described her as being part of a pretty close, very strong Christian family. He said Keepers wants to become an aerospace engineer like her father. She wanted to follow in my footsteps, Keepers said, breaking down into tears. Natalie Keepers has been charged with accessory before the fact to first-degree murder, accessory after the fact and concealing a body. The most serious charge carries a maximum sentence of life in prison. A bond hearing has not been scheduled for Eisenhauer and his attorney did not respond to a request for comment about the allegations against him. According to court documents, Eisenhauer is said to have told investigators: I believe the truth can set me free. Jouvenal reported from Washington. In this Jan. 14, 2013 photo, then-New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg speaks at a gun violence summit at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore. (Patrick Semansky/AP) RICHMOND Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) suddenly knows what its like to be on the other end of a Michael Bloomberg advertising campaign. Everytown for Gun Safety, a group bankrolled by the former New York mayor, poured $2 million into TV ads last fall in a failed bid to help McAuliffes party take back the state Senate. On Wednesday, Everytown launched a social media campaign against McAuliffe, who last week stunned gun-safety advocates by announcing that he had struck a gun deal with Republican legislators and the National Rifle Association. It shows side-by-side photos of McAuliffe and the National Rifle Associations Wayne LaPierre. What do VA Gov. Terry McAuliffe and NRA head Wayne LaPierre have in common? one version reads. Both Gov McAuliffe and NRA Head Wayne LaPierre support allowing dangerous people to carry hidden loaded weapons in Virginia. While clearly a lower-budget affair than last falls TV blitz, Everytowns social media campaign against McAuliffe was a stunner, given how closely he worked with gun-safety groups since his 2013 campaign for governor. He narrowly won the race while bragging about his F rating from the NRA. McAuliffes spokesman, Brian Coy, said the governor stands by the gun deal as a bipartisan breakthrough in an area where compromise has been hard to come by. While others talk or attack, Governor McAuliffe has taken action to prevent gun violence, Coy said in an email. This bipartisan compromise is the first meaningful gun safety legislation in Virginia in more than 20 years, and it will save lives by keeping guns out of the hands of domestic abusers and people who cant pass background checks. This isnt about national politics, its about making Virginia safer and that is what this agreement will do plain and simple. The deal that the McAuliffe administration hammered out with GOP legislative leaders and the NRA caught gun-safety groups off guard. In December, Attorney General Mark R. Herring (D) had severed reciprocity rights of gun owners in 25 states with concealed-weapons standards looser than Virginias a move that had infuriated gun-rights activists even though state law has long dictated that reciprocity be limited to states with standards on par with Virginias. The McAuliffe deal, which still needs General Assembly approval, reversed Herrings action and then some, directing him to strike reciprocity deals with every state that offers them. In that sense, the deal expands gun rights. But the deal also tightens restrictions in other areas. It would make it a felony under Virginia law for someone subject to a two-year protective order to possess a gun. Possession for such a person is already illegal under federal law. But because local police, not federal agents, respond to domestic incidents, abusers could be more likely to face charges. And because possession in such cases would be a felony, anyone convicted would lose the right to possess a firearm for life, barring subsequent restoration of civil rights through the governor. The deal also calls for putting a state trooper at every gun show to run background checks for private sellers who currently have no way to check buyers criminal histories. But those checks would remain optional. McAuliffe said the deal represents a compromise, which means neither side got all that it wanted. But all of the uproar seems to be coming from the left. As it released its social-media campaign, Everytown also announced that activists would go to the governors office Thursday to deliver a petition signed by more than 3,000 Virginians opposed to the deal. McAuliffe talked up the deal Wednesday night on MSNBCs Hardball with Chris Matthews, as the host asked him to comment on Hillary Clintons presidential campaign. Matthews asked McAuliffe, a close friend of Clintons and chairman of her failed 2008 bid, how the former secretary of states strong gun-control rhetoric might play in a rural state like New Hampshire. McAuliffe answered by touting the historic agreement he had just struck on guns. If you can do it Virginia, which is the home of the NRA, working together, we can do this anywhere, he said. People want, folks, they want their legislators to come together, to work with their governors to make them safe. State Sen. Bryce Reeves (R-Spotsylvania), center, gestures as Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, right, and Virginia Sec. of Public safety, Brian Moran listen during a media conference at the Capitol. (Steve Helber/AP) The Virginia Senate on Thursday approved the first piece of a gun deal hashed out between Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) and Republicans, a measure that greatly expands the right to carry concealed handguns. Passage, which came without debate and without support from 13 of the Senates 19 Democrats, elicited the first public criticism of the deal from Attorney General Mark R. Herring (D). The attorney general was not involved in negotiating the deal, which reversed a gun-control victory that he had pulled off in December. We can make real progress to remove guns from the hands of domestic abusers, but it should not need to come at the price of dangerous or irresponsible people carrying concealed handguns in Virginia, Herring said in an email sent to The Washington Post through his spokesman. The urgent work of reducing gun violence must continue. The bill was the first and most controversial piece of an agreement that the McAuliffe administration quietly negotiated in recent weeks with a Republican state senator and the National Rifle Association. The broader deal calls for strengthening some gun laws in exchange for the expanded right to carry concealed weapons. But gun-control advocates, who were left out of the negotiations, continued to press the governor to scuttle it. After Thursdays vote, grass-roots activists delivered thousands of petition signatures to the governors office. Former New York mayor Michael R. Bloomberg (I), whose gun-safety group bankrolled $2 million in TV ads for McAuliffe allies in state Senate races last fall, launched a biting social-media campaign against the governor. Nonetheless, the measure moved forward. This legislation is . . . simply doing the right thing by law-abiding Virginians, said Sen. Bryce E. Reeves (R-Spotsylvania), who sponsored the bill and led negotiations with the administration. McAuliffe, who has said the agreement as a whole will make Virginians safer, continued to cast the deal as a win for all Virginians. The Governors top priority is making our communities safer, and this compromise will do just that by taking guns away from domestic abusers and significantly expanding background checks at gun shows, McAuliffes spokesman, Brian Coy, said in an email. The concealed-carry bill, which passed 27 to 13, would reverse action by Herring to sever reciprocity rights of gun owners in 25 states with concealed-weapons standards looser than Virginias. [Gun-control advocates decry McAuliffes gift to the gun lobby ] The bill, which is expected to pass by an even wider margin in the GOP-dominated House, directs the attorney general to reach reciprocity agreements with any state that offers them. That represents a substantial expansion of conceal-carry rights for out-of-state gun owners traveling to Virginia and Virginians who travel out of state. Current law allows for reciprocity only with states with standards on a par with Virginias. Before Herrings action, Virginia had concealed-carry reciprocity with 30 states. After the measure is enacted, it could be 48 states and the District. (Vermont doesnt have a permitting process for concealed carry.) Gun-control advocates said that policy is dangerous, pointing to states such as North Dakota, which issues permits to people convicted of stalking, and Alabama, which lacks any training requirements, according to Bloombergs group, Everytown for Gun Safety. Other pieces in the package meant to tighten restrictions will come before the General Assembly in the form of separate bills. [Five things that (kind of) explain Gov. Terry McAuliffes gun deal with the GOP and NRA] One bill would make it a felony for someone subject to a two-year protective order to possess a gun. Possession for such a person is illegal under federal law. But because local police, not federal agents, respond to domestic incidents, abusers could more likely face charges. And because possession would be a felony, anyone convicted would lose the right to carry a firearm for life. Another bill calls for putting a state trooper at every gun show to run background checks for private sellers who want to ensure their customers are not barred from buying. But those checks would remain optional. A few hours after the Senate vote, a small group of activists arrived at the Capitol Square tower that houses McAuliffes office. A staffer was dispatched to the front door to accept the 3,000 signatures from Andy Parker, the father of Alison Parker, a Roanoke TV reporter shot on live television along with cameraman Adam Ward in August. The NRA and their local minions are the only ones that are celebrating, Parker said. A day earlier, Everytown launched ads against McAuliffe on Twitter and Facebook featuring side-by-side photos of the governor and the National Rifle Associations Wayne LaPierre. What do VA Gov. Terry McAuliffe and NRA head Wayne LaPierre have in common? read one ad. Both Gov McAuliffe and NRA Head Wayne LaPierre support allowing dangerous people to carry hidden loaded weapons in Virginia. While clearly a lower-budget affair than last falls Senate blitz, Everytowns campaign against McAuliffe was a stunner, given how closely he worked with gun-safety groups since his 2013 campaign for governor. He won the race while bragging about his F rating from the NRA. This isnt about national politics, Coy said when asked about the Bloomberg ads. Its about making Virginia safer, and that is what this agreement will do plain and simple. But later Wednesday, McAuliffe talked up his historic agreement on MSNBCs Hardball with Chris Matthews. The host asked McAuliffe, who was chairman of Hillary Clintons 2008 presidential campaign, how her strong rhetoric against the NRA might play in a rural state like New Hampshire. If you can do it Virginia, which is the home of the NRA, working together, McAuliffe said, we can do this anywhere. An oily spill or runoff of unknown size shimmered along the Virginia side of the Potomac River on Thursday as at least six government agencies scrambled to determine its source, size and composition. The sheen, which the U.S. Park Police said extended from Gravelly Point, just north of Reagan National Airport, to Jones Point, just north of the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, could be seen in part from the ground, but the Park Police and U.S. Coast Guard launched helicopters to survey the extent and source of the contamination. Coast Guard Petty Officer David Marin said personnel on those flights identified the oil as coming from an outfall at Roaches Run, a tidal pond that leads directly into the Potomac just north of the airport and between the George Washington Memorial Parkway and a railroad line. Booms were placed to capture the oil and stop its spread, Marin said. Ten soiled Canada geese were captured and taken in by a bird-rescue organization for cleaning. Were not prepared to name any responsible party because there are so many variables, said Julia Robey Christian of the Districts Department of Energy and Environment, as she stood near the containment booms that had been placed in the small-boat launch inlet at Gravelly Point. There is not any elevated reason for concern as to public health, if this is mineral oil, because thats nontoxic. The concentration of whats in the river is also dissipated. Authorities had not determined the composition of the contaminant or named it, but Christian and others said it could be runoff from streets and parking lots. Although some officials pointed to Dominion Power, which had a 13,000-gallon spill at its Crystal City substation Jan. 24, Dominion spokesman Rob Richardson said there is no evidence that the oil in the river involved the utility. Richardson said Dominion is cooperating with all the agencies looking into it. The river was a turbid brown Thursday, full of mud and in some cases tree branches washed downriver by rain and snowmelt. The District of Columbia owns the riverbed, but the Virginia shoreline is overseen by the Park Service, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority, Arlington County and the city of Alexandria. The Coast Guard took control of the scene and tapped into a federal oil-spill-liability trust fund to pay for the services of contractors and responders, at least until a source of the oil has been determined. Each agency heard reports of the spill or runoff at different times in the past few days. Christian said her department has been hearing reports about oil spills for several days in various spots in the river. The Potomac Riverkeeper Network began alerting supporters to the oil Wednesday afternoon, and Virginia state Del. Mark Levine (D-Alexandria), who heard about the contamination from a constituent, began calling agencies Wednesday night, he said in a Facebook posting. Donald Trump may have come in second in the Iowa caucuses, but the presidential candidate scored a victory in Virginia on Thursday when the state Board of Elections formalized the state GOPs plans to scrap the loyalty pledge. The board repealed the partys earlier decision to have voters who want to participate in the March 1 GOP presidential primary sign a statement affirming they were Republicans. Elections officials say the party bowed to pressure from Trump and voters upset by the pledge; the party says it objected to the wording of the statement. Trump put the issue on the national radar in December when he publicly rebuked the state Republican Party on Twitter for making what he called a suicidal mistake in requiring the pledge. Some feared the pledge could have put off voters disenchanted with party politics who are attracted to Trumps unorthodox candidacy. Activists responded, calling on the party to rescind the pledge in blog posts, letters and an unsuccessful federal lawsuit. On Saturday, the state party held a special meeting, where the governing board reversed its earlier decision to institute the pledge, and unanimously called for its repeal. [Drop of loyalty pledge may have come too late for some voters] The party blamed the Board of Elections and Attorney General Mark R. Herring (D) for reformatting the form voters would have been asked to sign. The form put forth by the state changed the description of the pledge initially offered by the Republican Party. But Virginia Elections Commissioner Edgardo Cortes on Thursday blasted the state GOP and said the reversal was a result of voter backlash. Its really frustrating for me to hear you all not accepting responsibility that your decision was to move forward with requiring the statement, Cortes said. Now because you see that voters are unhappy with it and you have gotten bad publicity, you have chosen to rescind it and suggest its because of some action on our part. John Findlay, executive director of the state Republican Party, said the party decided to rescind the pledge because some of the language differed from what was first submitted to the state. I really wish the changes that we asked to be made were implemented, he said. He added that its unlikely the party would revert to its earlier position and again require the pledge: I think that the likelihood of that is exceedingly small, as in 0.00 percent. Findlay said the party will not reimburse the state for what elections officials said was $62,000 in printing costs and 150 hours of work by the attorney generals office. The pledge approved by the party was written on a full sheet of paper with GOP letterhead. The one the state produced took up a half sheet of paper and edited the description of the law that says the party can condition primary voting on a statement of affiliation. Both versions said: My signature below indicates that I am a Republican. Clara Belle Wheeler, the only Republican member on the three-member Board of Elections, said most Republicans were unaware of any issue with the forms. The reason they voted to repeal this is because they thought that it was not a good idea to do it to begin with and they came to that meeting to request that it be rescinded because of the inconvenience and perceived confusion that it might cause, she said. [Trumps objections to Va. voter pledge stirred divisions in state GOP] Donald F. McGahn II, an attorney representing the Trump campaign, expressed support for rescinding the pledge. What Ive heard so far today is, with all due respect, a blame game, said McGahn, who is a former chairman of the Federal Election Commission. In the eyes of the public, we dont care. We dont care if its the state partys fault, if its the Board of Electionss fault. We want to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to vote who wants to vote. State officials said they will spread the word about the repeal, but noted that some absentee voters have already returned ballots with the completed pledges. According to the Board of Elections, 5,720 absentee ballot applications were requested, and 1,316 have been returned. The vast majority of the applications came from Fairfax County. In response, the general registrar, Cameron Glenn Sasnett, said the county will notify voters by email when possible and spread the word through the county communications office. From the onset, voters were concerned, he said. TEXAS Antiabortion activist turns herself in An antiabortion activist who was indicted in connection with an undercover video project targeting Planned Parenthood turned herself in to Texas authorities on Wednesday, her attorney said. Sandra Merritt, one of two activists charged with tampering with government documents to create fake drivers licenses, posted her $2,000 bond immediately and was released. She has been offered probation, her attorney said. David Daleiden, the main activist behind the videos, plans to turn himself over to authorities Thursday morning, his attorneys have said. He faces an additional misdemeanor charge related to the purchase of human tissue. The indictments stem from an undercover operation masterminded by Daleiden, who spent nearly three years posing as a worker for a company that provides fetal tissue left over from abortions to researchers for scientific experiments. Planned Parenthood has emphatically denied wrongdoing. Sandhya Somashekhar FLORIDA Jury awards millions to man shot by officer A federal jury awarded $23.1 million on Wednesday to a 22-year-old black man who was unarmed when he was shot and paralyzed by a sheriffs deputy, but Florida lawmakers will have to approve any award above $200,000. The six-woman, two-man jury ruled after 3 1 / 2 hours of deliberation that Palm Beach County Sheriffs Sgt. Adams Lin violated Dontrell Stephenss civil rights when he shot him in September 2013. Lin, who had stopped Stephens for riding his bicycle into traffic, testified that he shot Stephens four times because he reached for his waistband with his left hand and then flashed a dark object that he thought was a small handgun. Stephens testified that he was raising his hands when Lin opened fire for no reason. Video from the dashboard camera in Lins patrol car showed Stephenss left hand was empty and a cellphone was in his right hand. Associated Press KANSAS Man pleads guilty to Islamic State plotting A 21-year-old Kansas man pleaded guilty Wednesday to plotting a suicide car bombing at a U.S. Army base in support of the Islamic State. John T. Booker Jr., of Topeka, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Topeka to one count of attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction and one count of attempted destruction of government property by fire or explosion, prosecutors said. Booker was arrested in April and admitted that he intended to kill personnel at Fort Riley military base in Manhattan, Kan., in support of the Islamic State, prosecutors said. The two sides have agreed that Booker, who faced a possible life sentence, will be sentenced to 30 years in federal prison, prosecutors said. Reuters Georgia executes oldest death row inmate: Georgia executed the states oldest death row inmate early Wednesday for the killing of a convenience store manager during a robbery decades ago. Brandon Astor Jones, 72, was pronounced dead at 12:46 a.m. Wednesday after an injection of barbiturate pentobarbital. He was convicted in the 1979 shooting death of suburban Atlanta store manager Roger Tackett. Boston mobsters girlfriend pleads guilty: The woman who spent 16 years on the run with Boston mobster James Whitey Bulger pleaded guilty Wednesday to a criminal contempt charge for refusing to testify before a grand jury investigating whether other people helped him as a fugitive. Catherine Greig, 64, entered her plea in U.S. District Court in Boston without having any agreement or sentencing recommendation from prosecutors. Greig is already serving an eight-year prison term for helping Bulger while he was on the lam. From news services KOREAN PENINSULA South warns North not to launch rocket South Korea warned on Wednesday of searing consequences if North Korea doesnt abandon plans to launch a long-range rocket that critics call a banned test of ballistic missile technology. The Souths rhetoric about harsh consequences comes less than a month after the Norths defiant fourth nuclear test and as diplomats at the United Nations work on strong new sanctions against Pyongyang. North Korea on Tuesday informed international organizations of its plans to launch an Earth observation satellite on a rocket between Feb. 8 and 25, and if the Norths past patterns are any clue, angry warnings by its neighbors and Washington probably wont dissuade a launch. The launch declaration follows North Koreas disputed claim on Jan. 6 to have tested a hydrogen bomb, the countrys fourth nuclear test. South Korean and U.S. officials said the launch would threaten regional security and violate U.N. Security Council resolutions that ban the North from engaging in any ballistic activities. We warn that if North Korea proceeds with a long-range missile launch, the international society will ensure that the North pays searing consequence, senior South Korean presidential official Cho Tae-yong said. Associated Press Iraq Protective wall being built around Baghdad Iraq said Wednesday that it has begun building a wall and a trench around Baghdad to try to prevent militant attacks and reduce the large number of checkpoints inside the city. The Interior Ministrys spokesman, police Brig. Gen. Saad Maan, said that work began this week on a 65-mile stretch of the wall and trench on the northern and northwestern approaches of the capital. The wall will be 10 feet high and partly made up of concrete barriers already in use across much of the capital, he said. He declined to specify the measurements of the trench. Since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, Baghdad has seen near-daily bombings, mainly targeting security forces and the countrys Shiite majority. The Islamic State group and its predecessors have been blamed for most of those attacks. Associated Press Aruba American accused of assaulting cabbie, 70 An American real estate worker has been arrested on suspicion of beating, running over and threatening to rape a 70-year-old taxi driver in the Caribbean island of Aruba. Police said Patrick Maxwell, 30, of Austin, is charged with attempted rape and aggravated assault. A Public Prosecution spokeswoman said Maxwell would be held without bond until a court hearing Tuesday. Authorities said Maxwell was in Aruba with work colleagues. Police said he hailed a cab from a nightclub to his hotel in Oranjestad late Saturday when he asked driver Grace Angela to stop at a pharmacy. Police said Maxwell refused to get out of the cab and started shouting and hitting Angela in the face as he threatened to rape her. Authorities said the driver got out of the cab and Maxwell continued to hit her until he got into the taxi and fled, running over Angelas torso and leg. Angela suffered seven broken ribs, a broken nose and leg wounds, authorities said. Associated Press E.U. urges unity rule for Libya: The European Union is urging Libyas factions to support a broad-based unity government. Dutch Foreign Minister Bert Koenders said the E.U. hopes Libyan decision-makers will realize that there is no alternative to a unity government. Koenders, whose country currently chairs E.U. meetings, said that the alternative is simply chaos. Libya has been split between two rival governments since 2014. Burmas upper house names chairman: Burmas new upper house of parliament chose Mahn Win Khaing Than, 63, an ally of Aung San Suu Kyi, to serve as its chairman. He is a member of the Karen ethnic minority and a grandson of a cabinet minister assassinated alongside Suu Kyis father in 1947. Suu Kyis National League for Democracy party gained a dominant majority in both houses in November. From news services It is tragic that unaccompanied children who are fleeing extreme violence in Central America are vulnerable to human trafficking in the United States [Migrant teens were forced into farm work, front page, Jan. 27]. Perhaps even more tragic is that the root causes of this surge of children flowing across the U.S.-Mexico border violence, corruption, poverty and a climate of impunity remain unchanged and largely ignored by policymakers. U.S. government action to tighten border control and its financial support for Mexicos efforts to detain and return refugees before they reach our southwestern border are forcing fleeing children and families to follow even more treacherous routes to the United States. Too often, they are detained, trafficked or, worse, forced to return to a home rife with violence. This humanitarian crisis shows no signs of abating. The number of children crossing the U.S.-Mexico border is on the rise: In October and November, 10,500 unaccompanied children crossed into the United States. It is time U.S. policymakers employ an approach that addresses the root causes of this forced migration, one that upholds the core American value of humanitarian leadership. Melysa Sperber, Washington The writer is director of the Alliance to End Slavery and Trafficking. Cubans stand along the Malecon, the avenue that runs along the sea wall at the northern shore of Havana, during Secretary of State John F. Kerry's remarks for the raising of the U.S. flag over the newly reopened embassy there Aug. 14. (Pablo Martinez Monsivais/Associated Press) Regarding the Feb. 1 editorial Failure in Cuba: I made two trips to Cuba last year and spent a lot of time in people-to-people situations. Why is the United States in the position of insisting on a sea change in Cuba? I saw people of all ages using smartphones and laptops. People seem to have enough money to pay for wireless Internet. Only the government has the resources to build the necessary infrastructure for Internet, television and radio, so please stop excoriating it for the control it has over the media. If the state did not control the economy, especially tourism, there would be chaos. There are privately owned restaurants, bed-and-breakfasts, farms and taxis. The government encourages these private enterprises. Cubas education system surpasses those of many countries, including the United States. Education is mandatory through ninth grade and is free for all Cubans through the university level. The poverty level is lower in Cuba than in other Latin American countries. Cuban doctors are among the best in the world and were the first foreign doctors to join the fight against Ebola in Africa. Barbara R. Carter, Baltimore The editorial suggesting that President Obamas Cuban initiative is a failure was as puzzling in its timing as it was flawed in its arguments. The United States did all it could to isolate Cuba for 50 years, yet little changed. Now, a year after Mr. Obama opened the door to reengagement with Cuba, the editorial board called the effort a failure because we have yet to see a democratic revolution. Give me a break. Give it time. Only recently have basic business transactions been allowed, and the United States still has legal sanctions in place that limit the involvement U.S. citizens and businesses can have with Cuba. Are there recent developments that mean we should declare rapprochement a failure? If there are, I wish the editorial board would have referenced them. If there are not, a less impatient group of editors would give a complex dynamic time to work. After all, the proponents of Cuban isolation were given more than a half-century. Richard Lempert, Arlington President Barack Obama (L) is embraced by Vice President Joe Biden before signing the Affordable Health Care for America Act during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House March 23, 2010 in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/GETTY IMAGES) Newt Gingrich, a Republican, was speaker of the House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. Tom Daschle, a Democrat, was Senate majority leader from 2001 to 2003. They are co-chairs of the Bipartisan Policy Centers Insurance Coverage Initiative. Last month, majorities in Congress voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act. Not surprisingly, President Obama vetoed the repeal bill, and the Republican Congress was unable to override the presidents veto. As former leaders in Congress, we have a message for both sides in this debate: Its time to give the states a chance. This doesnt mean that conservatives and Republicans have to give up the fight to reduce the regulations and taxes in the law. It also doesnt mean that progressives and Democrats have to stop defending protections for the underinsured and uninsured. Instead, its time to look to a provision of the Affordable Care Act Section 1332 that can achieve what both sides earnestly wish for: providing more Americans with access to more affordable, flexible, patient-centered health care. Since we share these goals, we prepared a report with the Bipartisan Policy Center by working out our differences and seeking common ground. The process was at times grueling, but that made it all the more rewarding to be able to develop collaborative, bipartisan recommendations. We wanted to offer a way past the impasse over the Affordable Care Act without either of us having to sacrifice our core principles. Section 1332 of the Affordable Care Act creates a process for generating State Innovation Waivers the result of a bipartisan agreement between Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and then-Sen. Bob Bennett (R-Utah). As a result, both sides have the ability to explore ways to serve taxpayers and patients better by rewarding innovative, localized and effective systems of care delivery while maintaining critical protections. Beginning in 2017, the provision allows states to opt out of the Affordable Care Act requirements, so long as certain conditions or guardrails are adhered to. These guardrails require states to offer coverage that is at least as comprehensive as the ACAs essential health benefits package; that is at least as affordable; that insures at least a comparable number of residents; and that maintains federal deficit neutrality. So long as those conditions are satisfied, the waiver provision is intended to give states a great deal of flexibility. Namely, states can waive certain provisions of the law, including those relating to the individual and employer mandates, provided they demonstrate that a comparable number of residents would receive coverage. However, some provisions, such as requiring the coverage of those with preexisting conditions, cannot be waived. Unfortunately, the administration didnt promulgate its interpretation of Section 1332 until December. Consequently, in the absence of earlier guidance, states have been slow to act on this opportunity to experiment, innovate and transform their health-care systems within this framework. And the recent federal guidance may further delay the use of this provision should states perceive it as not providing sufficient flexibility. To correct this, we encourage the Obama administration to convene the nations governors to advise it on future Section 1332 rule-making. Collaboration between the states and the Department of Health and Human Services would ensure the implementation of a regulatory framework that can help states realize their full potential as laboratories of innovation. While we support the administrations decision to interpret the requirement to permit deficit neutrality over the length of the waiver, we would encourage it to go a step further. The administration should allow states to combine related funding streams (such as from Medicaid and tax credits) into any comprehensive waiver program put forth. Together, these recommendations would maximize state flexibility and ensure that upfront costs are invested wisely by the states. This, and other efforts to improve our health-care system, will require bipartisan consensus and action from Congress and the administration. Despite the talk of dysfunction in Washington and the heated rhetoric of another campaign cycle, we believe its essential that this opportunity not be missed. Our proposal represents a step toward bipartisan health-care reform. More important, it offers a glimmer of hope that pressing concerns can be addressed thoughtfully and substantively by this and the next generation of leaders in Washington. IT HAS been eight years since the start of the Great Recession, and six years since the passage of Dodd-Frank, the landmark bill designed to protect the U.S. financial system from another disastrous buildup of risk. Yet the largest banks the globally systemically important banks, or G-SIBs are still huge. The top six G-SIBs in the United States held $9.7 trillion in assets last year, up from $7.2 trillion in 2006, according to Bloomberg News. Thats 63 percent of all bank assets. And so its natural to hear, on the campaign trail and elsewhere, that they are still too big to fail, i.e., so gigantic that market participants, believing the government ultimately stands behind them, fund the institutions more cheaply than the risks on their books warrant. Worse, the argument goes, this is a self-fulfilling prophecy; despite Dodd-Franks regulations, a bailout would indeed be necessary in a crisis. The only solution is to break them up, says Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), among others. The problem with this view is that it is oversimplified. First, some banks JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo got bigger partly because they absorbed failing competitors during the crisis, at Washingtons urging. Three of the top six, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, are somewhat smaller than they used to be. Second, there has been real change under Dodd-Frank; under heavy pressure from the Federal Reserve and other regulators, all of the big six are far better capitalized that is, able to cope with a crisis using their own resources than they were before Dodd-Frank. In fact, the top banks face a stiff additonal capital demand from the Federal Reserve in 2017 thats already forcing the biggest firm, JPMorgan Chase , to plan further shrinkage. Last years Federal Reserve stress test found that the top 31 banks, not just the biggest half-dozen, could withstand a global recession akin to the 2008 one without a federal bailout. Last month, Standard & Poors, the credit rating agency, downgraded the bonds of the eight biggest banks, raising their cost of borrowing to reflect S&Ps view that their access to extraordinary support from government is uncertain. In other words, they are no longer too big to fail. Obviously, S&Ps opinion isnt definitive, because even with our recent experience of a global panic, no one can anticipate the psychological atmosphere of the next big crisis, which might indeed prompt the government to save a failing bank. Nevertheless, speaking about the banks as though nothing has changed is not only wrong, but may also distract from a more relevant issue: The post-Dodd-Frank crackdown on banks has caused riskier activity to migrate into the unregulated shadow sector consisting of hedge funds, private equity and the like. At the moment, such firms are financing a minor renaissance in no-doc mortgages, according to the Wall Street Journal. Former secretary of state Hillary Clintons financial reform plan focuses on that, whereas Mr. Sanders mainly cries break em up. Ms. Clintons approach is better targeted, if not more crowd-pleasing. "Today, I will end where I began, ready and willing to fight for the cause of Liberty," Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said in a statement Feb. 3, announcing he is ending his presidential campaign ahead of the New Hampshire primary. (Sarah Parnass/The Washington Post) "Today, I will end where I began, ready and willing to fight for the cause of Liberty," Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said in a statement Feb. 3, announcing he is ending his presidential campaign ahead of the New Hampshire primary. (Sarah Parnass/The Washington Post) American presidential politics will not be having a libertarian moment after all. Sixteen months after Time magazine branded Republican Sen. Rand Paul (Ky.) The Most Interesting Man in Politics, Paul has suspended his campaign for the White House due to lack of interest. Paul got a mere 4.5 percent of the vote in the Iowa caucuses, underperforming his dad Ron Pauls 2012 result by 17 points. At the time he quit, Rand Paul was polling at about 2 percent in New Hampshire, the Live Free or Die state that was once thought to be receptive to his message. What went wrong? The Paul phenomenon was always overblown. The theory, believed or at least entertained by a surprisingly large number of people, was that young voters and minorities could be attracted to the GOP by Pauls heterodox policy mix free-market economics, drug-war relaxation, defense budget shrinkage and international nonintervention. But this was hype, for three reasons: First, much of Pauls agenda could just as easily be offered by Democrats, and was. Second, as a messenger, the dour Paul managed to make freedom seem like it would be no fun. Third, and most fundamentally, the American people, including many if not most GOP primary voters, do not really want small government. Or, to be more precise, their expressed concerns imply demand for greater government action, not less. In the Pew Research Centers annual January survey of public concerns, only three issues both registered as top priorities among at least 50 percent of the public and increased their share of the responses over last year. Those three issues were defending the country from terrorism, reducing crime and dealing with the issue of immigration. Forty-nine percent cited strengthening the military, up eight points since the start of President Obamas second term. Of course, Republicans were much more likely than Democrats to emphasize each of these issues; 87 percent of them cited fighting terrorism as a top priority, while only 32 percent cited Pauls signature issue, criminal justice reform. The era of Islamic State-organized or -inspired massacres in Paris and San Bernardino, Calif., was not a propitious period for a candidate who expressed some sympathy for National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden and grandstanded on the Senate floor against the unlikely threat of domestic drone strikes. Nor was Pauls soft-on-drugs stance perfectly in tune with the times. Legalization of marijuana may be gaining acceptance, but heroin and opioid addiction are causing middle-class angst across the nation. Polls show drug abuse is the top concern of voters in New Hampshire. Yes, many agree with Paul that drug addiction treatment is a more appropriate response than law enforcement, but they may not trust an anti-government guy to organize and pay for it. In New Hampshire, 39 percent of Republicans and 50 percent of independents (who can vote in the GOP primary) said government should spend more to combat heroin. If anything, the country may be experiencing a surge in big-government sentiment, with a vaguely authoritarian accent. Paul himself spotted this; his finest moments in the campaign came when he called out Donald Trumps dictatorial tendencies. Anti-establishment primary voters in both parties say theyre angry at government, but part of the reason theyre angry at it, apparently, is that its not using its muscle to protect them against various malefactors illegal immigrants and terrorists for Republicans; Wall Street crooks and fossil-fuel companies for Democrats. The only thing Trump and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) agree on, meanwhile, is that Social Security should be sacrosanct. Come to think of it, the young people of Iowa flocked to the Berns socialist banner, not Rands libertarian one. What remains of libertarianism? Not nothing, perhaps. Less punitive attitudes toward drug use and even crime seem to have taken root, and Paul can plausibly claim to have helped make them mainstream. More important, the publics demand for government action coexists with near-record-low levels of trust in Washington: just 19 percent, according to the latest Pew Research Center survey. At its worst, as in the more paranoid ruminations of Paul pere, libertarianism has given skepticism about the state a bad name. At its best, however the school choice movement, for example libertarianism reminds us of the spontaneous wisdom of markets and the limits of bureaucratic competence. If Americans expect more from government but dont trust it to deliver, one way to square that circle could be to apply more market-based thinking to how government carries out its various functions. We may never get rid of big government, but we might subject it to structural reforms that incorporate libertarian ideas. At the very least, it would be interesting. Read more from Charles Lanes archive, follow him on Twitter or subscribe to his updates on Facebook. Ever since Donald Trump rode his white-hot rhetoric on immigration to the top of the Republican presidential field, one question has lingered: When voters went to, you know, vote, would they have second thoughts about supporting the Donald? The early returns suggest that the answer is yes. In the run-up to Mondays Iowa caucuses, polling including the almost-always-right survey conducted by Ann Selzer for the Des Moines Register and Bloomberg Politics suggested that Trump was poised to win. It didnt turn out that way. Instead Ted Cruz, the senator from Texas whom Trump had systematically worked to savage in the final weeks before the caucuses, rolled to victory on the strength of his grass-roots turnout organization. Trump held on for second, but barely, as establishment favorite Marco Rubio nipped at his heels. Trump, unused to losing, gave a brief and remarkably low-key speech Monday night after it became clear that he had come up short. Twenty-four hours later, however, he was back to his old self, swearing and threatening his way through a speech in New Hampshire. By Wednesday night, he was insisting that Cruz illegally stole Iowa and calling for a do-over, though there was no evidence to support his case. The lone bright spot of the week for Trump was that favorite crutch of his: polling. Surveys conducted after the Iowa caucuses showed him maintaining a 20-point-plus lead over all comers in advance of New Hampshires primary Tuesday. Of course, the Iowa polls showed Trump winning, too. Donald Trump, for not realizing that polling = voting, you had the worst week in Washington. Congrats, or something. Each week, Chris Cillizza awards the worst week in Washington to an inhabitant of Planet Beltway who stands out for all the wrong reasons. You can check out previous winners or email Cillizza with candidates. You can also read more from Outlook and follow our updates on Facebook and Twitter. "Today, I will end where I began, ready and willing to fight for the cause of Liberty," Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said in a statement Feb. 3, announcing he is ending his presidential campaign ahead of the New Hampshire primary. (Sarah Parnass/The Washington Post) "Today, I will end where I began, ready and willing to fight for the cause of Liberty," Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) said in a statement Feb. 3, announcing he is ending his presidential campaign ahead of the New Hampshire primary. (Sarah Parnass/The Washington Post) Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky and former senator Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania both suspended their 2016 presidential bids Wednesday, victims of a raucous and volatile Republican race in which both struggled to gain traction. The two joined former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee in deciding to quit the GOP race this week after disappointing finishes in Mondays Iowa caucuses, which were won by Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas. Santorum was the runner-up to Mitt Romney during his first presidential bid in 2012, but he faced stiff competition this time for the support of religious conservatives who formed his base then. He formally announced his decision Wednesday evening on Fox News Channel and endorsed Sen. Marco Rubio (Fla.) as his preferred Republican nominee, calling Rubio a tremendously gifted young man. He is just the new generation and someone that can bring this country together not just moderates and conservatives but young and old, Santorum said. For his part, Paul was unable to expand the libertarian base that his father, Ron Paul, had built into a powerful national coalition. Paul came under sharp attack from Cruz and others for advocating a non-interventionist foreign policy at a time when many Republicans want stronger military action against the Islamic State. Its been an incredible honor to run a principled campaign for the White House, Paul said in a statement. Today, I will end where I began, ready and willing to fight for the cause of Liberty. Four years ago, Santorum vaulted from relative obscurity and a crushing reelection loss in his home state to win Iowa and 10 other states, only to fade into obscurity again after Romney clinched the GOP nomination. Santorum looked to build on his winning 2012 approach, making nearly 300 stops and visiting each of Iowas 99 counties over the course of his latest campaign. But in the caucuses earlier this week, he received fewer votes than any candidate except former Virginia governor Jim Gilmore, who did not actively campaign in the state at all. Santorum was one of a wave of deeply conservative contenders who believed that after losing two straight presidential elections behind more moderate nominees, GOP voters would turn to a candidate unflinching in ideology who can excite the partys base. But Ben Carson, Cruz and others occupied the political space that Santorum hoped to again call his own, drawing fervent backing from Christian activists, foreign-policy hawks and populist conservatives. This time, Santorums campaign also lacked many of the advantages that had helped fuel his 2012 insurgency including most of the consultants who engineered it but who worked for rival campaigns this time. Santorum has for decades put his large family, including severely disabled daughter Bella, at the heart of his political life. At his campaign launch this spring near Pittsburgh, he appeared onstage alongside his wife, Karen, and most of their seven children. He drew notice for speaking passionately about the need for the Republican Party to address the economic concerns of blue-collar workers. He called for an increase in the minimum wage and criticized his party for focusing more on the needs of small-business owners than on issues affecting the people those businesses employ. How are we going to win if 90 percent of Americans dont think we care at all? he asked at a fall debate. He spent months traveling to each of Iowas 99 counties. It wasnt enough: His support stayed mired in the low single digits in the state in 2015 and kept him off the main debate stage in the run-up to the first votes of the primary season. In his closing remarks at his final debate in Iowa last month, Santorum made one last plea to Iowans, pointing to the 700 speeches and town-hall stops he had made in the state over the course of both of his presidential campaigns. Heres what Im asking you to do, he said. Youre good people. You know good leaders. Lead. Pick the right person, not what the polls say. . . . Pick the leader you know is best for this country. Paul, a first-time candidate for national office, found it tough to persuade supporters of his father a former congressman from Texas who twice sought the Republican presidential nomination to back him with enthusiasm. Although popular among libertarians, purists questioned whether Paul was too mainstream. The 53-year-old ophthalmologist was elected to the Senate in 2010 as part of the GOPs tea party contingent. He will return to his work in the chamber and to his Senate reelection campaign, where he remains a top target of Democrats as they try to retake the majority this year. In his statement, Paul expressed confidence that his campaign, while unsuccessful, offered Republicans an alternative by giving attention to issues he thinks are crucial to attracting minorities and young people to the party. Across the country thousands upon thousands of young people flocked to our message of limited government, privacy, criminal justice reform and a reasonable foreign policy, he said. Pauls method of campaigning echoed that of his father. He favored small gatherings where he could make lengthy speeches and preferred orations that cited 18th-century French political philosopher Montesquieu. While he was accessible, he did not relish banter with reporters or the glad-handing demands of the campaign. But his ambitions were grand. Two years ago, he became the first Republican to assemble a network in all 50 states as a precursor to a presidential run a sign that he was looking to build a campaign that wasnt as ad hoc as his fathers. Magazine covers proclaimed Paul to be one of the partys brightest and most interesting voices a hemp-wearing, curly-haired maverick who could, in his words, spread the Republican message to voters with tattoos and without tattoos. Sean Sullivan contributed to this report. President Obama made his first visit to a U.S. mosque as president on Wednesday and sought to repair the increasingly frayed relationship between American Muslims and their fellow citizens. Obamas remarks came at a time of growing fear and division in the country, a climate that in recent months has unnerved many American Muslims and surprised senior White House officials. The president often sounded like a concerned parent, worried for the country he leads as it prepares to replace him in a presidential election marked by inflammatory and anti-Islamic rhetoric. Here at this mosque, twice last year, threats were made against your children, Obama said at the Islamic Society of Baltimore. Around the country, women wearing the hijab . . . have been targeted. Weve seen children bullied. Weve seen mosques vandalized. The presidents appearance at the simple house of worship, less than 50 miles from the White House, was also extraordinary for its contrast to a stirring address delivered in the first months of his presidency. Then, a younger Obama, speaking in Cairo, appealed to more than 1 billion Muslims worldwide for a new beginning with the United States. President Obama delivers remarks Wednesday at the Islamic Society of Baltimore. (Jonathan Ernst/Reuters) In that speech, Obama spoke of terrorism, colonialism, the U.S. invasion of Iraq and the long, damaging Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He suggested that his unique background as the first black president and son of a Muslim father could help bridge the divide between Islam and the West. Nearly seven years later in Baltimore, Obamas aims were far more modest. In a spare and simple speech, Obama spoke of the fears of Muslim parents and children who worry they will be targeted because of their faith. He recounted a letter from a 13-year-old girl who wrote to him that she was scared and a mother who said her heart cries every night thinking about how our daughter might be treated at school. He described the worries of children who feared that they might be rounded up and forced out of the country. Obamas speech took on the tone of a history or civics lesson at times as he sought to allay the fears of those who do not know any Muslims or who say that Muslims are less patriotic than other Americans. A recent study by the Pew Research Center found that roughly half of the public says that at least some Muslims are anti-American. About 11 percent said that most or almost all U.S. Muslims are anti-American, according to Pew. Many of these Americans reacted with fear and anger to the recent terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, Calif., and have flocked to support Republican presidential candidates seeking to bar Syrian refugees from entering the United States. The most prominent of those candidates, Donald Trump, has suggested a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States. Without mentioning Trump, Obama often seemed to be speaking directly to the working-class white voters who have flocked to his message. The president described Muslim children who took part in the Cub Scouts and their parents who served as police officers, firefighters and soldiers. In one notable moment, he sought to describe the inside of the mosque where he was standing. Think of your own church, or synagogue, or temple, and a mosque like this will be very familiar, he said. This is where families come to worship and express their love for God and each other. President Obama greets attendees in an overflow room after speaking at the Islamic Society of Baltimore. (Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images) Obama has labored for much of his presidency to move the United States off a war footing abroad and keep the threat of terrorism in perspective at home. The domestic reaction to the Paris and San Bernardino attacks caught much of the White House, including the president, off guard and has prompted some serious West Wing soul-searching. White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough, speaking recently to an audience at The Washington Post, lamented the ability of groups such as the Islamic State and al-Qaeda to transmit unbelievably hateful propaganda onto the phone of any individual on the face of the earth, making a distant threat very personal and very close. The challenge for the White House has been to counter those hateful messages that drive recruits to extremist groups but also stir fear on the home front. After the attacks on a French satirical newspaper in January 2015 up until then the deadliest terrorist assault in modern memory in Paris the Obama administration rushed to organize an oft-delayed conference at the White House on countering violent extremism. Muslim leaders from around the United States and the world flew into Washington for days of panel discussions and planning that produced few major new initiatives. Since then, White House officials have admitted that they have struggled to blunt the appeal of Islamic State propaganda to a small but dangerous population of disaffected Muslims worldwide. This is the area where, in my view, Ive failed the president most dramatically, said McDonough, who has been one of Obamas most trusted foreign policy advisers. And we are bound and determined to leave the next president a much more effective infrastructure to confront that stuff. Republicans have responded with promises to step up U.S. airstrikes on terrorist groups in Iraq and Syria and raise barriers at home to refugees seeking shelter from the chaos. They have blasted Obama for refusing to describe the terrorist threat as emanating primarily from Islamic extremists. Obama on Wednesday defended his position, insisting that those plotting attacks on the United States and its allies were betraying their faith. Groups like ISIL are desperate for legitimacy, he said, using an acronym for the Islamic State. They try to portray themselves as religious leaders and holy warriors who speak for Islam. I refuse to give them legitimacy. Instead, he called on Muslim leaders to reject extremism and pressed Americans to resist presidential campaign rhetoric that cast Islam as being at the root of Americas terrorism problem. That betrays our values. It alienates Muslim Americans. Its hurtful to those kids who are trying to go to school and are members of the Boy Scouts, and are thinking about joining our military, he said. That kind of mind-set helps our enemies. It helps our enemies recruit. It makes us all less safe. So lets be clear about that. The presidents speech, though, wasnt really about the terrorist threat abroad, but rather the dangers to American values on the home front. He was speaking to American Muslims and a growing number of Americans who seemed unnerved by the Islamic faith. Throughout Wednesdays speech, there were many distinct echoes of Obamas 2009 Cairo address. He quoted some of the same Koranic passages: Whoever kills an innocent, it is as if he has killed all mankind. In both speeches, he noted that two of Americas Founding Fathers Thomas Jefferson and John Adams each owned copies of the Koran. The 2009 speech in Cairo was one that Obama had hoped would begin to change the world. Change cannot happen overnight, Obama said then. No single speech can eradicate years of mistrust. . . . But I am convinced that in order to move forward, we must say openly the things we hold in our hearts, and that too often are said only behind closed doors. In Baltimore on Wednesday, Obamas focus was on helping American Muslims feel safer and more at home in their own country. If youre ever wondering whether you fit in here, let me say it as clearly as I can, as president of the United States: You fit in here right here, Obama told the audience in the mosque. Youre right where you belong. Youre part of America, too. Hillary Clinton is seen aboard the campaign bus in Cleveland on the third day of a bus tour through Pennsylvania and Ohio. July 31, 2016 Hillary Clinton is seen aboard the campaign bus in Cleveland on the third day of a bus tour through Pennsylvania and Ohio. Melina Mara/The Washington Post The former secretary of state, senator and first lady is the Democratic nominee for president. Former secretary of state Hillary Clinton campaigns in key states in her quest to become the Democratic nominee for president. Former secretary of state Hillary Clinton campaigns in key states in her quest to become the Democratic nominee for president. Even as Hillary Clinton has stepped up her rhetorical assault on Wall Street, her campaign and allied super PACs have continued to rake in millions from the financial sector, a sign of her deep and lasting relationships with banking and investment titans. Through the end of December, donors at hedge funds, banks, insurance companies and other financial services firms had given at least $21.4 million to support Clintons 2016 presidential run more than 10 percent of the $157.8 million contributed to back her bid, according to an analysis of Federal Election Commission filings by The Washington Post. The contributions helped Clinton reach a fundraising milestone: By the end of 2015, she had brought in more money from the financial sector during her four federal campaigns than her husband did during his quarter-century political career. In all, donors from Wall Street and other financial services firms have given $44.1 million to support Hillary Clintons campaigns and allied super PACs, compared with $39.7 million in backing that former president Bill Clinton received from the industry, according to campaign finance records dating back to 1974 that have been compiled by The Post. Nearly half of the financialsector donations made to support Hillary Clintons current presidential run have come from just two wealthy financiers: billionaire investor George Soros, who gave $7 million last year to the pro-Clinton super PAC Priorities USA Action, and hedge-fund manager S. Donald Sussman, who gave the group $2.5 million. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton tells LennyLetter.com creator Lena Dunham what she would do as president to prevent economic abuses on Wall Street. (LennyLetter.com) Most of their money was donated in December as Clinton was taking an increasingly tough stance toward the industry in an effort to blunt the populist appeal of her opponent, Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont. I believe strongly that we need to make sure that Wall Street never wrecks Main Street again, she declared at a campaign stop in West Des Moines, Iowa, on Jan. 24, adding: No bank is too big to fail, and no executive is too powerful to jail. [Inside the Clinton donor network] Clintons success at raising millions from major Wall Street players even as she blasts some of their most lucrative practices shows how she continues to benefit from relationships she and her husband forged over decades. Many of those supporting her now have been involved with the Clintons since 1992, when a network of young bankers and investors mobilized to raise money for Bill Clintons first White House run, including some who went on to serve in his administration. I feel like I know her well enough to know that she is a very rational and practical and smart person, said Sussman, who helped Bill Clinton in 1992 and has since hosted fundraisers for both Clintons at his Connecticut home. And in fact, it will help the industry if there is more transparency, more enforcement of regulations even perhaps stronger regulations so that the investor public has confidence in the markets. As Sanders has put her on the defensive about her Wall Street contributions, Clinton has responded that the campaign money does not influence her approach to regulating the financial industry. Anybody who knows me, who thinks they can influence me, name anything theyve influenced me on. Just name one thing, Clinton said Wednesday night at a televised CNN forum in New Hampshire. Im out here every day saying, Im going to shut them down; Im going after them. Clinton points to her proposals to rein in the sector such as a new risk fee on large financial institutions and increased penalties for financial crimes as evidence that she cannot be swayed. She believes that the measure of our success must be defined by how much incomes rise for hard-working families, not just CEOs and money managers, said campaign spokesman Josh Schwerin. The hundreds of thousands of people who have supported Hillarys campaign know thats what shes fighting for. On the trail, Clinton regularly cites the support she has from Wall Street reform advocates such as former Massachusetts congressman Barney Frank, who co-authored the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. Frank said in an interview that he was not concerned that Clinton would be beholden to Wall Street because of the industrys donations, noting that he also has taken contributions from banks. The plan she has put forward is tougher and better than Sanderss, Frank said. Even for people who dont want to trust her integrity and I do if she is president of the United States and she has taken strong public positions on these things . . . her ability to back down in favor of a campaign contribution is nonexistent. Still, Clintons deep ties to the financial sector have emerged as one of her biggest obstacles as Sanders casts her as a friend of the big banks. Most progressives that I know dont raise millions of dollars from Wall Street, he tweeted Wednesday. Only about $75,000 of the $75 million Sanders has raised for his 2016 campaign has come from donors in the finance sector, according to data from the Center for Responsive Politics. Earlier in the campaign, Clinton tried to explain her connections to the industry in part by noting that she represented Wall Street as a U.S. senator from New York. In one debate in November, she appeared to suggest that campaign donations she received from financial services firms came in response to her support for New York City after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. As Sanderss excoriations of Wall Street have helped him gain traction, the former secretary of state has sought to ramp up her own rhetoric, matching his tone of outrage and indignation. [Bernie Sanderss campaign brings in jaw-dropping $20 million in January] Im really proud of my plan, that it is driving the Republicans and Wall Street crazy, Clinton said in Dover, N.H., on Wednesday, adding: They know that I know how to stop them from ever hurting us again. Clinton has called out specific companies such as Pfizer and Johnson Controls for conducting corporate inversions a merger with a foreign counterpart for tax benefits. On the tax code, they call that an inversion; I call it a perversion, she said Wednesday. And Im going to go right after that! At the same time, however, Clinton continues to collect money from financiers who are benefiting from some of the deals she decries. Among those who have raised at least $100,000 for her campaign is Blair Effron, a founding partner of Centerview Partners, a boutique investment firm that played a role in the Pfizer and Johnson Controls inversion negotiations. A Centerview spokesman declined to comment. In December, Effron attended a joint fundraiser for Clintons campaign and the Democratic National Committee held at the Manhattan home of Blackstone Group President Hamilton Tony James and his wife, as first reported by the Wall Street Journal. The featured guest was legendary investor Warren Buffett, and attendees included Byron Wien, a vice chairman at Blackstone; Wesley Edens, co-founder of Fortress Investment Group; and Cliff Robbins, chief executive of Blue Harbour Group. Clintons reliance on such figures for financial support alarms some on the left, who are already wary of the ties she and her husband have to Robert Rubin, the former Goldman Sachs cochairman who became Bill Clintons treasury secretary. Hillary Clintons tougher rhetoric and regulatory proposals are commendable, said Jeff Hauser, who leads the Revolving Door Project, a foundation-funded effort that has joined Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) in calling for presidential candidates to commit to appointing independent regulators at the Treasury Department and other agencies. But, Hauser said, she has to decide whether she wants to fully commit or have one foot on the reform wing of the Democratic Party and another on the Wall Street wing. [From dead broke to multimillionaires] Clinton scooped up Wall Street donations during her first Senate run in 2000, turning to Rubin and investment banker Roger Altman, who served in her husbands administration, to introduce her to key players. Since that first race, the financial sector has been among the top industries that have supported her, a Post analysis found last year. Along with the $44.1 million the industry has donated to back her campaigns, she personally earned more than $3.7 million for delivering paid speeches to banks and other financial services firms since leaving the State Department in 2013, personal financial disclosures show. Those payments have dogged her on the campaign trail. During the CNN forum Wednesday night, Clinton struggled to explain why she accepted $675,000 from Goldman Sachs to deliver three speeches to the bank. Thats what they offered, she told moderator Anderson Cooper, adding: Theyre not giving me very much money now, I can tell you that much. Fine with me. With the $21.4 million that Wall Street has given for her current White House bid, Clinton is on track to quickly exceed the nearly $23 million that she raised in her three previous campaigns combined from the PACs and employees of banks, hedge funds, securities firms and insurance companies, according to the latest Post analysis. Thats in part because this is the first time Clinton is running in the era of super PACs, which can accept unlimited donations from individuals and corporations. So far, financial-sector donors have given $17.4 million to her allied super PACs, the analysis found. But Clinton is also leaning on Wall Street to help finance her campaign directly as she tries to stay ahead of Sanderss robust online fundraising operation, which brought in more than $20 million in January. Last week, Sanders jabbed at Clinton for attending a fundraiser in Philadelphia at the office of investment firm Franklin Square Capital Partners days before the Iowa caucuses. The event included a special acoustic performance for donors by Jon Bon Jovi. A spokeswoman for the firm declined to comment. Meanwhile, two other finance industry fundraisers that were set to take place before the New Hampshire primary have been rescheduled for later dates. The campaign declined to say why. Clinton was originally supposed to attend an event in Boston on Friday, organized by Jeannie and Jonathan Lavine, the managing partner of Sankaty Advisors, an affiliate of Bain Capital, according to details obtained by the Sunlight Foundations Political Party Time. The fundraiser has been rescheduled for a later date that the campaign would not reveal. In addition, a New York fundraiser billed as a Conversation With Hillary, co-hosted by Matt Mallow, chief legal officer for the asset-management firm BlackRock, originally scheduled for Jan. 28 has been moved to Feb. 16. The next day, Bill Clinton will headline a fundraiser in New York hosted by real estate investor Bal Das and Valerie Demont, a lawyer who heads the U.S.-India practice at Pepper Hamilton, specializing in international mergers and acquisitions. Das said he has not been troubled that Hillary Clinton now goes after Wall Street regularly on the campaign trail. Her points are very fair, said Das, who was also a top fundraiser for her 2008 presidential bid. She is not saying anything that someone deeply involved in the financial services sector would disagree with. She is spot on, pragmatic, with a deep understanding of how this all does come together. Alice Crites and Rosalind S. Helderman in Washington; Abby Phillip in Dover, N.H.; and John Wagner in Keene, N.H., contributed to this report. Hillary Clinton has two large tasks to accomplish in the days ahead. The first and most immediate is to narrow the gap in New Hampshire with Sen. Bernie Sanders, who has long led the polls here. The second is to sharpen and elevate a message still built more on resume and determination than on vision and inspiration. The first could prove to be easier than the second, but the second could be the more important to her candidacy in the long run. Clinton arrived in New Hampshire after her slender victory in Iowa as the underdog to the Vermont senator in next Tuesdays primary. At a rally at the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Derry on Wednesday morning, Clinton sought to set expectations low by making clear to everyone that she is running from behind. Things are so bleak here, she said, that there were political pundits who were opining that I should have just skipped New Hampshire. The idea that she might skip or even significantly play down New Hampshire is fanciful. She is, after all, the dominant politician in the Democratic Party after President Obama and the front-runner for her partys nomination. She now has a tougher fight than most people expected when the campaign began last year, but front-runners dont have the luxury of skipping states such as New Hampshire, particularly ones named Clinton. New Hampshire has been good to the Clintons for a quarter-century. It is the state that made Bill Clinton the comeback kid after a second-place finish salvaged his candidacy when it was engulfed by scandal in 1992. New Hampshire kept Hillary Clinton alive politically in 2008 by giving her a victory after she had run third behind Obama and John Edwards in Iowa. The Clintons love the Granite State. No one who knows either Hillary or Bill Clinton could imagine them giving anything other than an all-out effort here, no matter what the polls have shown. So she begins the final push here behind, though by how much wont be known until the post-Iowa polls begin to drop. As such, lowering expectations and then managing to keep the race as close as possible are part of the strategy for leaving New Hampshire for more hospitable states with some claim of success. [Army of Clinton staffers leave Brooklyn headquarters to aid in New Hampshire] Much can change in a week here, given the predilection of many voters to remain open to changing their minds until they go to cast their ballot. Unlike eight years ago, when the she had only four full days to campaign after the Iowa caucuses, Clinton will have had eight days to turn things around. She will flood the state this weekend with friends from Arkansas, with staffers from the headquarters, with old pals and ex-Clinton administration staffers from Washington and elsewhere, all tasked with converting undecided voters. New Hampshire Democrat Terry Shumaker, one of the Clintons most loyal advisers here, was in the media area at Clintons event in Derry on Wednesday recalling how quickly fortunes can change. At one point, he exclaimed, Today is the first day of the third legendary Clinton comeback in New Hampshire. He wasnt predicting victory but only expressing the fight-to-the-finish mentality of the Clintons. The odds of overtaking Sanders are long. Sanders has the advantage of being a neighbor in a state where, as Clinton put it Wednesday, voters tend to be neighborly by generally awarding nearby politicians with primary victories. Neighborliness isnt the only obstacle for Clinton. As long as she is the clear favorite for the nomination, some voters here might feel they have the freedom to reward Sanders, who has captured their imaginations, without fearing they are doing any serious damage to the candidate they still think will become the Democratic nominee. Clinton began the fight back Wednesday by trying to set the terms of the debate between now and Tuesday. Its Senator Sanders and myself in the arena, she said. And I want to keep it on the issues. I want to keep it on the contrast between us, our experience, our records, our ideas and the results we that have gotten and can get. For voters captured by Sanderss progressive message, Clinton asked voters to look at her record, claiming she has a consistent champion of progressive causes and issues throughout her career. She said Sanders had delivered kind of a low blow by claiming she was a progressive only some of the time. The argument she hopes will slow Sanders in New Hampshire is to point to a record of getting things done, even if in smaller steps, that he cant match. She said her record is rooted in a commitment to real progress, not just to tossing out big ideas. If its about our records, hey, Im going to win in a landslide, she said. [Sanders reaps financial haul after Iowa, say aides] But campaigns are not just about records and resume. They are about the hopes and aspiration of the voters, not just what each candidate has accomplished. On that score, Clinton is in need of marrying the best of her experience with a message of hope and aspiration that connects more directly with people. Clinton is a politician who thinks that big changes often come slowly and in smaller steps. To listen to Clinton in the closing days of the Iowa campaign was to listen to a political candidate delivering a stump speech that seemed to be a variation on a presidential State of the Union address, with a lengthy string of individual policy proposals. But that is hardly an inspirational or aspirational message in the heat of a political campaign. Its often said that politicians campaign in poetry and govern in prose. Clinton is a politician who campaigns as she would govern. She makes a virtue of her determination to grind out progress day by day. Her message differs from that of either Sanders or Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who found an audience in Iowa with a positive and uplifting closing speech. Their messages are more aspirational, said David Axelrod, the Democratic strategist. Hers is more prosaic. Its rooted in the reality of American politics right now, which is that progress is hard-fought and hard-won. That is true and authentically who she is, and what she is saying is, I am better suited to deliver progress in the real world. But that is a hard message to deliver in an aspiring way. This is the dilemma Clinton has faced from the very beginning. She is who she is, and any attempt to remake her carries as many or more risks as possible rewards. She believes she is the right person for these times. For her committed loyalists, that is more than enough. But a message built on explaining how difficult it can be to get things done is not one likely to excite and energize those looking for something more. Republican presidential candidate John Kasich exits his bus outside a VFW post in Raymond, N.H, on Wednesday. The town hall was Kasich's 94th New Hampshire event. (John Tully for the Washington Post) John Kasich arrives at campaign events with a large electronic sign that ticks off the increasing national debt in milliseconds. He does not care for the overtly religious tone of some of his Republican presidential rivals, saying that he does not want to combine God and politics, because Im not comfortable doing it. And while most of his rivals hurl insults at one another, Kasich repeatedly refuses to directly attack. In a GOP presidential campaign dominated by anger over illegal immigration, distrust of establishment leaders, and aggressive courtship of evangelicals, the Ohio governor is trying to turn Tuesdays New Hampshire primary into a test of whether his party has room for a throwback brand of Republicanism. More than any of his GOP rivals, Kasich has bet everything on a strong finish here. He opted not to compete in the Iowa caucuses, which were heavily influenced by religious conservatives, and tells New Hampshire voters that he will drop out if he does poorly here. John Kasich, who has bet everything on Tuesdays primary in New Hampshire, addresses voters at an event at the Raymond VFW post. (John Tully for the Washington Post) As he travels the state, Kasich is emphasizing fiscal policy and other issues that have long been important to Republicans but have not animated the party base in recent elections. He boasts his centrist credentials, embracing his decision in Ohio to accept more Medicaid funds as part of President Obamas health-care law. [How Republican John Kasich spurned the party line on part of Obamacare] I guess sometimes when you talk about caring for people, sometimes it is not a tone weve heard in the Republican Party for quite a while, he said in an interview with The Washington Post on his campaign bus. Kasichs approach is an echo of what George W. Bush once called compassionate conservatism, with the Ohio governor arguing that the party cannot foment only anger and resentment. The governors style was apparent this week during an appearance at a VFW hall, when a questioner all but invited him to attack Donald Trump by inquiring about the Republican presidential front-runners treatment of people with disabilities. Kasich declined the opportunity. Then Kasich choked up, on the verge of tears. He motioned for the questioner to stand, reaching out his arms and embracing her in an unexpected hug. He struggled to regain his voice. The battle continues in New Hampshire as candidates fight tooth and nail to take home the state. The Posts David Weigel walks through what it will take to win the New Hampshire primary. (Dalton Bennett/The Washington Post) Asked later what prompted his emotional moment, Kasich said he was thinking about children with disabilities who need extra care, an issue he said he has seen firsthand many times as governor. Its easy to run over the weak, he said at a town-hall meeting in Durham. Im not going to do it. Kasich is convinced that he has struck political gold by carving out a niche in the crowded GOP field. Trump has drawn large crowds to his rallies, bashing rivals. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) is seeking to capitalize on his Iowa caucus victory, leaning heavily on evangelical support. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), former Florida governor Jeb Bush and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie are fighting for the GOP establishment vote. Kasich likes to say he is in his own lane. Asked in the interview what that means, he said he is an inside-outside player. Although Kasich has been a House Budget Committee chairman and is a governor, he said in the interview that Ive never been in the establishment. Im not anti-establishment, but I can work with the establishment. He boasts of collaborating with liberal Democrats to pass legislation. He says he believes humans contribute to global warming. He is in favor of government support for those with disabilities. Kasich summed up his view this way: It is a twist and turn and a different definition of what is conservative and what it means to be a Republican. He boasts of endorsements from the Boston Globe, the New York Times and a number of New Hampshire newspapers, rejecting suggestions that support from left-leaning and moderate editorialists could backfire. He cites polls that show him in second place, or statistically tied for that standing, behind Trump. An average of recent New Hampshire polls, as analyzed by The Post, found that Trump leads with 35 percent, followed by three candidates who are statistically tied because of the margin of error: Cruz at 12 percent, Rubio at 11 percent and Kasich with 10 percent. As he travels the state, Kasich shows allegiance to a classic New Hampshire strategy of interacting with smaller audiences. His stop at the VFW post on Wednesday was his 94th town-hall meeting in the state. He is a happy wonk on the hustings, traveling with a handful of aides in a campaign bus fit for a rock star and stocked with plenty of snacks. Wearing a Kasich-themed fleece, he walks up to voters like a talk-show host and leans close to them when they ask questions. He veers between preachiness and corny jokes. Wherever he goes, Kasich often seems to feel as though he is being goaded into attacking his opponents. At a Wednesday breakfast with reporters, he was given the perfect opportunity to win the morning, as the saying goes. Television cameras rolled at an event sponsored by Bloomberg Politics as he was pressed to go after his opponents. Reporters pounced when he said that I dont go out and try to win a vote by using God. I think that cheapens God. Whom was he talking about? He wouldnt say. Why dont you figure it out? Kasich responded. Youre a smart guy. Did he agree with Christies assessment of Rubio as being a boy in a bubble? Pass. Still, Kasich sometimes does try to have it both ways. He lamented that a dark and negative message is coming from Cruz and Trump. You figure it out. Im not here to attack other candidates today. Im sorry; Im just not doing it. Never mind that it sounds as though he may have done just that by casting his opponents as being on the dark side. Moreover, a pro-Kasich super PAC, New Day for America, has attacked opponents such as Trump. That prompted rare attention from the real estate mogul, who tweeted, I want to do negative ads on John Kasich, but he is so irrelevant to the race that I dont want to waste my money. Kasich, who doesnt control the super PAC, insists that he is walking on the sunny side, declaring that Im not all that doctrinaire. Interviews with voters at his events found that many are drawn to him by the perception that he is a moderate. Fred Hochgraf, 83, a retiree from Durham, described himself as a moderate Rockefeller Republican but said the party had walked away from him long ago. This is the first breath of fresh air Ive had, he said after listening to Kasich. Similarly, Darlene Graczyk, a retiree from Atkinson, said she is definitely moderate and is considering voting for Kasich. Kasich is betting his campaign on a strong showing in New Hampshire, which has a much smaller percentage of evangelicals than Iowa does and has a history supporting independent-minded candidates. If he is trounced here, Kasich said in the interview, he will head with no regrets back to Ohio, where he does, after all, have a job as governor and a family that includes 16-year-old twin daughters. So, he is asked, what is the definition of trounced? Well all know if Im trounced, he said. Its at the bottom. Trade ministers from the United States and 11 other Pacific Rim nations formally signed the largest regional trade deal in history on Thursday in New Zealand, but the fate of one of President Obamas signature economic projects remained fraught on Capitol Hill. At a ceremony in Auckland, the ministers hailed the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) as a landmark achievement that will bolster trade and investment between nations that make up nearly 40 percent of the worlds gross domestic product. U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman represented the Obama administration. In a statement, Obama called the TPP a new type of trade deal that puts American workers first. . . . Put simply, TPP will bolster our leadership abroad and support good jobs at home. The signing took place three months after Obama notified Congress of his administrations intent to sign the accord, satisfying a 90-day public review period required by lawmakers. The next step is for the White House to send implementing legislation to Congress for a vote on final ratification. But after more than six years of negotiations, this final hurdle could be the most difficult for the Obama administration. Republican leaders have cautioned that a vote before the November elections could spell doom for the TPP at a time when many Americans remain uncertain about their economic prospects and leading presidential candidates in both parties have denounced the deal as harmful to U.S. workers. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said a vote should be delayed until the lame duck session of Congress at the end of the year. Such a delay could spell trouble for a pact that required difficult compromises from a dozen nations, each with political uncertainties of its own, and administration officials have said they hope lawmakers would vote by this summer. No one should be under any illusions that, because the TPP is being signed today, an up or down vote on the agreement is imminent, Sen. Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah), chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, said in a floor speech. If history has taught us anything, its that this process can, and often does, take a very long time to complete. In fact, its not an exaggeration or even all that remarkable to say that it can take years to get an agreement through Congress after it is signed. The administration had hoped that fast-track trade powers approved by Congress after a fierce debate last spring would smooth the path for the TPP. Obama discussed the trade deal with McConnell and House Speaker Paul D. Ryan (R-Wis.) at a meeting at the White House this week, but no timetable for a vote was agreed upon. Im confident at the end of the day because of the strong benefits to the U.S. economy that members of Congress will see the benefits for their constituents and have the necessary bipartisan support to be approved, Froman said. A recent analysis from a pro-trade think tank said the accord would boost U.S. exports and wages, but it also found that 50,000 jobs per year could transition from low-wage, traditional manufacturing to high-tech industries and service sectors. The deal has been endorsed by big business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers, but most Democrats have opposed it. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said this week that the TPP is about letting multinational corporations rig the rules on everything from patent protection to food safety standards . . . to benefit themselves. Obama has touted the TPP, which aims to lower trade barriers on goods and services and establish new international commerce regulations, as a key component of his economic agenda and a hedge on Chinas growing clout in the Asia Pacific. The other TPP nations are: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. This month, Obama will underscore the accords importance when he welcomes the leaders of 10 Southeast Asian nations including five countries involved in the TPP at Sunnylands retreat in Southern California. Ahead of the signing ceremony at the SkyCity Convention Centre in downtown Auckland, Froman and his counterparts met to provide updates on their respective domestic ratification processes. The location for the ceremony was chosen because New Zealand was the nation that first proposed a four-nation regional trade deal in the mid-2000s that ultimately evolved into the TPP. Outside the meeting, hundreds of protesters gathered to denounce the deal. In Washington, a group of House Democrats, labor union officials and environmentalists distributed to lawmakers an online petition against the pact purportedly signed by 1 million people in the United States and worldwide. This agreement is toxic, and the American people are not buying it, AFL-CIO President Richard L. Trumka said at a news conference on Capitol Hill. To all those on the ballot in 2016, we have a simple message: Either youre with us or youre against us. Investigators have discovered a string of new cases in which U.N. peacekeepers allegedly sexually abused or exploited women and girls in the Central African Republic, widening a scandal that has sent shock waves through the United Nations and threatens to undermine one of its most crucial missions. On Thursday, the United Nations reported seven new alleged victims as it responded to a Human Rights Watch report about the scandal that was released the same day. The victims were as young as 14, according to the report, which said several were raped. As in several previous cases, the abuses reportedly occurred in one of the countrys poorest and most vulnerable communities: a camp for families displaced by the countrys civil war, now entering its fourth year. The top U.N. official in the Central African Republic, Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, called the alleged abuses a double crime that affects the vulnerable women and children you were sent here to protect. Onanga-Anyanga announced that he would dismiss a contingent of 120 troops from Congo Republic, also known as Congo-Brazzaville, whose members were allegedly responsible for some of the most recent abuses. The troops will be confined to their barracks until they depart the country. Since the U.N. mission in the Central African Republic was launched in 2014, it has been plagued by dozens of reports of sexual violence. There have been allegations of more than 40 cases of sexual abuse perpetrated by U.N. employees in the country in the past 13 months alone, according to U.N. data. In an interview, Onanga-Anyanga said more cases were likely to be uncovered as U.N. investigators continue their work. Im afraid we might just be seeing the tip of the iceberg, he said. [U.N.: Some peacekeepers paid 13-year-olds for sex] The women and girls interviewed by Human Rights Watch said the peacekeepers responsible were from Congo Republic and Congo, the separate country formerly known as Zaire. Several victims said that the level of desperation in the displacement camps had led them to exchange sex for food or money. Others said they were raped at gunpoint. The alleged abuses occurred in the town of Bambari, in the center of the country, from this past October to December. In a country where armed groups routinely prey on civilians, peacekeepers should be protectors, not predators, said Hillary Margolis, a womens rights researcher at Human Rights Watch. The men were dressed in their military uniforms and had their guns, one 14-year-old victim told Human Rights Watch. I walked by and suddenly one of them grabbed me by my arms and the other one ripped off my clothes. They pulled me into the tall grass, and one held my arms while the other one pinned down my legs and raped me. At least some of the troops accused of the recent abuses had received U.N.-mandated training on sexual-abuse-related issues before their deployment part of the organizations attempt to curb the problem. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon recently called such abuses a cancer in our system. [Pope brings message of peace to a war zone] In January, The Washington Post reported that four peacekeepers had allegedly paid girls as young as 13 as little as 50 cents in exchange for sex in a different camp for the internally displaced in Central African Republic. Last week, the United Nations announced that European troops had raped two girls and paid two others for sex all four of them ages 14 to 16. The series of abuses allegedly carried out by international troops began in 2013 and early 2014, when as many as 14 troops from France, Chad and Equatorial Guinea allegedly raped and sodomized six boys ages 9 to 15. Now, U.N. officials face the challenge of mediating a vicious civil war while also policing their own ranks. The mission includes about 11,000 peacekeepers and costs about $600 million per year. We are conducting patrols on our own people, which has never been done before, said a senior U.N. official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal security measures. One of the problems, the official said, is that the U.N. mission had been accepting troops from the African Union who either were not aware of or were not concerned about U.N. values. You cant just take African Union troops, put a blue helmet on them and assume their mind-set will change overnight, he said, referring to the color of U.N. peacekeepers helmets. Last year, a U.N. report by a panel that included former Canadian Supreme Court justice Marie Deschamps said that U.N. staff in Bangui, the Central African Republics capital, had turned a blind eye to the criminal actions of individual troops. The previous U.N. special representative there, retired Gen. Babacar Gaye of Senegal, was fired in August over his teams handling of the abuse allegations. Read more The hospital at the center of a Muslim-Christian war in Africa Christian-Muslim marriages are the latest casualty of strife in Central African Republic The Central African Republics complex war, explained in the journey of a Muslim baby She was Time magazines Person of the Year, a compassionate leader who opened Germanys door to more than a million desperate migrants. Frau Nein became Frau Nice. There was even talk of a Nobel Peace Prize. But German Chancellor Angela Merkel is suffering a harsh reversal of fortune, confronting a political backlash that is isolating her both at home and across Europe. As Merkel is pushed into a corner on migrant policy, political pundits are sounding a once-unthinkable alarm, warning that her job may be at risk if she does not quickly change course. I dont think there is any question anymore, said Werner J. Patzelt, a political analyst at Technical University Dresden. Angela Merkel is really in trouble. [Germany springs to action over hate speech against migrants] For Merkel, the bad news just keeps getting worse. In the aftermath of attacks in Cologne on New Years Eve in which asylum-seekers allegedly assaulted dozens of German women a new poll found that 40 percent of respondents now want her to resign. Rebel lawmakers in her ruling coalition are openly criticizing her. The head of the Christian Social Union in Bavaria formerly a staunch ally is even threatening to sue the government if it does not curb the influx. A new German poll says 81 percent of those asked think the government mishandled the refugee crisis and Merkels approval rating has fallen to 46 percent, the lowest since August, 2011. Known for ruling by opinion poll, Merkel has seemed to backtrack on aspects of her open-door policy in recent days insisting, for instance, that most people seeking refuge in Germany should go back home after peace comes to countries such as Syria and Iraq. Her cabinet on Wednesday backed new measures aimed at delaying refugees from bringing in close relatives for 2 years and declaring three North African countries as safe, making it far harder for asylum seekers from those countries to win refugee status But she is still mostly sticking to her guns and refusing to close Germanys doors. It is presenting a chancellor who first came to power when George W. Bush was still the U.S. president with one of the toughest choices of her decade-long tenure: whether to keep holding up the banner of humanitarianism or to be politically expedient. Merkel has become a prisoner of her own politics, said Jurgen Falter, a political scientist at Mainz University. He added, I think the likelihood is about 60 percent that her policies dont work out and she throws in the towel. It is an unusually tight spot for the Iron Chancellor, a woman who rose to be the de facto leader of Europe by driving hard bargains on rescues for bankrupt Greece. In the process, she elevated Germany to the zenith of its post-World War II power. But the refugee crisis has damaged her profoundly, underscoring the high price of compassion in a risk-averse world. A nation whose World War II past made it fully aware of the dangers of xenophobia, modern Germany was leading by example in the 21st century, becoming a beacon of hope for desperate foreigners fleeing war and poverty. Merkel staked her job on upholding what she likes to call European values in effect, that the progressive people of wealthy Europe should not turn their backs on the human right to sanctuary for Syrians, Iraqis and others. [For better or worse, a refugee assembly line in Germany.] But she has run into serious stumbling blocks. The attacks in Cologne did not help her cause, nor did the November massacre in Paris that occurred after militants entered Europe disguised as migrants. Additionally, a large percentage of the new comers, it turns out, were not really escaping war at all but seeking to leverage German kindness to build lives away from places such as North Africa, the Balkans and Pakistan. She also erred by effectively promising her countrymen something that she has thus far been unable to deliver: A pledge that other nations in Europe would take in more migrants and start to share Germanys burden. Instead of pitching in, countries across Europe are barring their doors. A voluntary European program to legally resettle refugees has failed, with nations mostly refusing to accept newcomers from the Middle East and elsewhere. In fact, both publicly and privately, European politicians long opposed to welcoming refugees are reveling in the schadenfreude of Merkels comeuppance. Last week, Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka announced that a bloc of anti-refugee nations also including Hungary, Poland and Slovakia would hold their own meeting ahead of a key E.U. summit in February to discuss alternative solutions to the crisis. Suggesting Berlin has gone too soft, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico scoffed that migrants have become a protected species in Germany. [More European nations are barring their doors to migrants] Meanwhile, the EU finally approved a key $3 billion deal on Wednesday in which Turkey would crack down on the human traffickers ferrying thousands of migrants to Europe via Greece every week. But Turkish demands for more money raises questions about how quickly change may happen on the ground. Add it all together, and Merkel is in a precarious spot. If she sticks to her principles, it means Germany stands virtually alone in Europe as a haven for migrants. That is a burden that the Germans initially welcoming to the waves of refugees are increasingly reluctant to shoulder. Yet Merkel also can take stock in a few things going in her favor. Wolfgang Schauble, her famously strict finance minister, has been floated by some as a possible successor. But insiders say he may be reluctant to steal the job from Merkel and is not obviously angling for the post. And given her still formidable influence, any move by her critics for a no-confidence vote in Parliament remains an uphill battle for now. However, if her Christian Democrats score a resounding defeat in the March local elections, the pressure on Merkel to change course or step aside could grow to a clamor. But the question then would be whether Merkel is willing to go as far as closing German borders something that could put a nail in the coffin of the open-border policies once hailed as the single largest accomplishment of the European Union. She is extremely worried about the state of the public mood, but she also sees a bigger picture, said Stefan Kornelius, foreign editor of the Suddeutsche Zeitung. It feels like she is fighting for the European soul. Stephanie Kirchner in Berlin and Karla Adam in London contributed to this report. Read more Fear and paranoia lead Finns to form vigilante groups that protect women from asylum seekers German chancellor pledges crackdown on criminal asylum seekers European countries agree to strict new steps to secure borders Today's coverage from Post correspondents around the world From left, Secretary of State John Kerry, British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond and French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius meet with European and Middle Eastern foreign ministers on the sidelines of a Syria donors conference in central London Thursday. (Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images) Saudi Arabia said Thursday that it is ready to send ground troops into Syria to fight the Islamic State as part of the U.S.-led coalition. The kingdom is ready to participate in any ground operations that the coalition may agree to carry out in Syria, a Saudi military spokesman, Brig. Gen. Ahmed Asiri, said in a news conference in Riyadh. It was unclear how many troops, or under what circumstances, the Saudis would commit to a ground force. The United Arab Emirates, also a member of the anti-Islamic State coalition, made a similar offer late last year. While some U.S. critics of the Obama administrations policy in Syria have called for organizing a Sunni Arab force in the region, U.S. officials have said there are no current plans to set up such a force. The Saudi announcement came as pressure increased on international stakeholders in Syrias separate, civil conflict to push for a cease-fire that would allow Syrians to shift their attention away from fighting each other and focus on the Islamic State. Since this weeks suspension of United Nations-led talks in Geneva between the government of President Bashar al-Assad and opposition fighters, the Obama administration has grown increasingly critical of Russian airstrikes on behalf of Assads forces. U.S. officials have charged that opposition forces, which Russia says include terrorists, have borne the brunt of those attacks. The stakeholder group is due to meet in Munich on Feb. 11. [Cut off by conflict: Syrians face starvation] Failure to substantively begin the peace negotiations came as international humanitarian groups called on world powers to start putting Syrians first, and your own interests second, as Peter Maurer, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, put it at a conference in London to address the humanitarian catastrophe in Syria. While the front lines have hardly moved over the last years, the civilian populations suffering has surged, Maurer said. Millions of Syrians have been displaced in their own country or sent fleeing abroad as refugees, and many lack food and medicine in towns and cities besieged by the fighting. Addressing the conference earlier in the day, Secretary of State John F. Kerry said the United States would send more than $900 million in additional humanitarian and development aid to Syria and to neighbors burdened with a refugee crush that could take years to ease. As part of a sum that is likely to swell as the year goes on, the $600 million would go to the United Nations and other agencies for emergency food, shelter and health care in Syria and neighboring countries, Kerry said, where millions of refugees have fled. Much of the rest would help provide schooling for refugee children in Jordan and Lebanon. About a quarter of all U.S. humanitarian aid last year was tied to the Syrian war, which grew out of anti-government protests in 2011. According to State Department calculations, the latest donation brings U.S. total funding to $5.1 billion, the largest of any country by far. [Kerrys appeal: Let aid through to Syrians] The conference on Syrian aid efforts the first since refugees began spreading across Europe last year was overshadowed by the sudden suspension of the Geneva peace talks, which seemed to offer the best hope of bringing an end to the Syrian civil war. In a speech to diplomats from 79 countries attending the conference, Kerry characterized the stumble in the talks as a temporary recess. U.N. officials have said they hope to reconvene on Feb. 25. In remarks to reporters, Kerry said Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has agreed we need to discuss how to implement a cease-fire and get the Syrian government and the opposition to allow humanitarian access. We will, I am confident, find a way to move forward, said Kerry, standing alongside British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond. [Syrian peace talks hit roadblock even before they really begin] Hammond said the diplomats at the donor conference are all very keen to keep the momentum going in the talks, and he suggested that there is no better option on the table. We recognize its difficult for the regime to be at the table talking to the opposition, he said. Its difficult for the opposition to talk to the regime when their people at home are being killed through bombing and other forms of attack. But we have to continue this process. Its the only way to get a solution to the disaster that is engulfing Syria. Three previous pledging conferences, all held in Kuwait, have raised about half of what was sought for Syria and its burdened neighbors. This fourth conference has drawn several European countries as hosts, and delegates appear to be more resigned to the long road ahead. King Abdullah II of Jordan, which has more than 1 million Syrian refugees, said his country is at a boiling point, as a quarter of Jordans budget goes to refugees who need education, health care and social services. Sooner or later, I think the dam is going to burst, he said. DeYoung reported from Washington. Read more Kerry warns of Islamic State expansion in Libya U.S. official recalls the devastation he saw on secret trip to Syria China backs U.N. move to denounce North Korea over nuclear test Today's coverage from Post correspondents around the world On a hot, steamy evening 15 years ago, Bill Clinton donned a sombrero, ignored his nervous presidential security detail and joyfully danced his way through cheering crowds in the 16th- century central plaza of Cartagena, Colombias graceful Caribbean city. Leading a congressional delegation that included the Republican House speaker, J. Dennis Hastert, and Joe Biden, then the senior Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Clinton had just formalized a deal to provide Colombia with $1.3 billion in aid. It was the first contribution to what was to be a major effort to stop the massive flow of Colombian cocaine into the United States. Three administrations and $10 billion later, what is known as Plan Colombia is widely considered one of the most successful U.S. assistance efforts in history. As it morphed into a counterterrorism program and came to include democracy development and trade deals it is one of the few major foreign policy initiatives in decades that has maintained strong bipartisan support. Today, Colombia is on the verge of signing a historic peace deal with leftist guerrillas that will end a half-century of internal war. Despite the falling price of oil, its biggest export, the Colombian economy is one of the most robust in Latin America, and the country is a prime destination for U.S. and global investors. Once on the verge of becoming a failed state, it has made significant strides on virtually every development indicator. The only thing that hasnt changed is Colombias position as the worlds No. 1 exporter of cocaine. After dipping down for several years, both cultivation of coca, the raw material of cocaine, and production of the drug have seen sharp increases in the past three years. [Colombia is preparing for peace. So are its drug traffickers.] Drug trafficking is on the agenda Thursday when President Obama meets at the White House with Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos. But for the most part, the visit will largely be one of celebration, marking the 15th anniversary of Plan Colombia. For Obama, it is an addition to his list of recent foreign policy triumphs, along with the Iran nuclear deal, trade promotion agreements and the diplomatic opening to Cuba, as he nears the end of his presidency. Although he didnt start it, Obama has nurtured the program and pushed for its continuance. Santos, in remarks Wednesday, said, Ive come here to say thank you, to the American people, to the American government, for helping Colombia go through a difficult time. And, he noted, to ask for more help to consolidate gains and secure the upcoming peace. The White House said this week that its fiscal 2017 budget request will include an increase for Colombia over about $300 million this year. This request will demonstrate our intention to help Colombia successfully implement its peace agreement, said Mark Feierstein, National Security Council senior director for Western Hemisphere affairs. Although U.S. officials declined to provide a figure, Santos is looking to add at least $200 million, with growth options for years to come. Among the more costly items on his agenda are a rural development program to move coca cultivators into other crops and resettle more than 6 million Colombians who have been displaced by the war, a figure making Colombias number of internally displaced persons among the highest in the world. The government also hopes to extend its coverage of security and services to vast areas of the country where its presence has been marginal at best. Not everyone, both here and in Colombia, is happy about Santoss plans, especially the deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, known by its Spanish acronym as the FARC. The agreement, negotiated in Cuba over the past two years, is scheduled to be signed March 23, although Santos said that date may not be exact. Some Republicans have questioned what they see as impunity for guerrilla leaders responsible for years of human rights atrocities, kidnappings including of U.S. citizens and deep involvement in drug trafficking. After a meeting with Santos on Wednesday, the House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman, Rep. Edward R. Royce (R-Calif.), said, It is critical that the Santos government stand firm and build upon our hard-fought gains to combat illegal drug trafficking and disrupt terror networks. Retired Gen. Barry R. McCaffrey, the Clinton-era U.S. drug czar who helped formulate Plan Colombia, said in a statement that he is concerned that the pending Colombian deal . . . could maintain or increase cocaine and heroin production, ease transit restrictions and enforcement, keep enormous profits for the FARC, worsen the heroin crisis in our country, threaten the security of Colombia, and increase U.S. drug abuse. [Colombia is again the worlds largest coca producer.] Criminal trafficking networks, many of them long allied with the FARC, are positioning themselves to take over the drug business once the guerrillas, many of whom are expected to join them, formally exit the scene. Among Democrats and human rights organizations, there is concern that the deal also offers impunity for the Colombian military and paramilitary figures who committed their own atrocities in the 50-year guerrilla war some of it with U.S. advice and assistance. The failure to ensure proper accountability and punishment would undermine efforts for a sustainable peace in Colombia by perpetuating the countrys cycles of impunity, Jose Miguel Vivanco, Americas director of Human Rights Watch, said in a statement. If Obama is seriously committed to promoting peace in Colombia, he should call on Santos to ensure meaningful accountability for atrocities. Parts of the agreement already concluded call for those accused of atrocities and other illegal acts beyond the bounds of accepted warfare to be judged by a special peace tribunal, which can sentence them to up to eight years of special conditions that would not include prison. Still to be negotiated are agreements on disarming and demobilizing what are believed to be about 6,000 guerrilla fighters; at one time, the group was estimated to be 10,000-strong. In an interview last weekend with Colombias Semana magazine, the chief guerrilla negotiator, known by his nom de guerre of Timochenko, said, We are going to leave weapons to one side and join the political struggle, including participation in future elections. In an appearance Wednesday at the Wilson Center, Santos gave an eloquent defense of compromise. From a human rights perspective, the worst thing you can have in a country is a war, and were stopping the war, he said. Transition has a price . . . but I think that the cost that justice is paying is minimal compared to the benefits from the human rights perspective. Thats why we think this is a good deal. For its part, the administration has voiced strong support for the agreement and accepted a number of Santos initiatives with which it has been less than pleased. Last year, he ordered a stop to the aerial fumigation of drug crops, a keystone of the U.S. anti-narcotics effort, and said that Colombia would no longer extradite indicted Colombians most of them charged with drug trafficking to the United States. Although the indictments are largely sealed, extradition requests for as many as 80 Colombians are believed to be pending. Both of those decisions, the NSCs Feierstein said, are Santoss right as president of a sovereign nation to make. Wikileaks founder Julian Assange giving a thumbs up in August 2012 prior to delivering a statement on the balcony inside the Ecuador Embassy in London. (Kerim Okten/EPA) A U.N. panel views WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange as being arbitrarily detained by fleeing to diplomatic sanctuary to escape arrest, a Swedish statement said Thursday before a potential confrontation in the long standoff in London. Such a decision by the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on Friday could set in motion a heightened duel between British authorities and Assange, who has been holed up in Ecuadors embassy in London since 2012. British officials say Assange faces arrest and extradition to Sweden if he leaves the diplomatic compound regardless of the declarations from the U.N. group, which has no legal authority but whose decisions often carry weight in international disputes. Assange, meanwhile, vowed Thursday to demand the return of his passport from British officials if backed by the U.N. panel. In Sweden which seeks to question Assange on alleged sex crimes the Foreign Ministry said the upcoming report by the U.N. group will say Assange has been arbitrarily detained in violation of international pacts. The statement said Swedish officials have reviewed the U.N. document, which is expected to be released Friday in Geneva. Assange claims he should be allowed to travel to Ecuador, which has offered him asylum amid fears he could eventually face U.S. charges over leaked documents, including classified State Department cables. [Assange has hinted before of leaving embassy] Assange took refuge in the embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning over allegations that include rape accusations he strenuously denies. Assange says he fears that Sweden could extradite him to the United States for his involvement in releasing classified U.S. documents. In 2014, Assange filed a complaint against Britain and Sweden with the U.N. group over what he said was his arbitrary detention. Assange said he is blocked from traveling to Ecuador because he faces arrest if he steps out of the embassy. But British authorities appear to be standing firm. The British government said that Assange avoided arrest by fleeing to the Ecuadoran Embassy and that it was obligated to extradite him to Sweden. We have been consistently clear that Mr. Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the U.K. but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorean embassy, the Foreign Office said in a statement. An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European Arrest Warrant in place, so the U.K. continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Mr. Assange to Sweden, it continued. brian.murphy@washpost.com Murphy reported from Washington. Daniela Deane in London contributed to this report. Read more: Today's coverage from Post correspondents around the world New members of the Afghan National Army march during their graduation ceremony at the Afghan Military Academy in Kabul on Jan. 24. (Rahmat Gul/AP) The Afghan army, struggling to defeat a resilient Taliban, has begun enlisting men as old as 40 to replenish a force thinned by casualties, defections and attrition. The decision to raise the age limit for recruits to 40 from 35 was quietly made last month in response to pressure from the U.S.-led coalition, said Brig. Gen. Dawlat Waziri, chief spokesman for the Afghan Defense Ministry. There was concern among our international friends, and also among Afghans, that we would not be able fulfill recruitment targets that we have for the new year, Waziri said. The strength of the Afghan National Army has been a long-standing concern for the U.S.-led coalition in Afghanistan, but the forces shortcomings came into sharper focus last year. Despite more than $35 billion in U.S. support over the past 15 years, the Afghan army struggled to repel a major Taliban offensive this past fall into Kunduz, a commercial hub in northern Afghanistan, taking days to regain control. [Afghan forces undertake bid to regain key city seized by Taliban] The Taliban also made gains in several northern and eastern provinces last year, heightening concerns that the Afghan army is stretched too thin to defend the country against the radical Islamist groups persistent insurgency, as well as efforts by the Islamic State to gain a foothold. In a report to Congress last week, John F. Sopko, the special inspector general for Afghanistan reconstruction, said that Afghan forces control only 70 percent of the country and that the Taliban now controls more territory than at any point since 2001, when it was ousted from power in Kabul after five years of brutal rule. Many analysts believe the Afghan army suffered a record number of casualties last year, although it has not released specific figures. Col. Michael T. Lawhorn, director of public affairs for the U.S.-led coalition, said Afghan forces suffered a 28 percent increase in casualties in 2015. Lawhorn said Gen. John F. Campbell, commander of coalition forces in Afghanistan, has been urging the Afghan army to change how it recruits and deploys its soldiers. While pushing army commanders to simplify the recruitment process, Campbell has also advised them to shift soldiers from checkpoints into more-mobile infantry units. The army also has to be large enough that it can more easily cycle soldiers between combat and leave time, Lawhorn said. What has happened the last couple years is some of these units have been in battle the entire time, Lawhorn said. So this winter, what we are trying to do is rebuild, reequip and re-man. Waziri said Afghan military commanders hope about 5 to 10 percent of recruits will come from the 35-to-40 age bracket. The Afghan army has a targeted strength of 195,000 soldiers, but it has consistently failed to meet its recruitment goals. In his report to Congress, Sopko said the force currently claims about 170,000 soldiers. But that figure may be inflated, he cautioned. Last month, an Associated Press investigation found that official Afghan army enlistment numbers probably include thousands of ghost soldiers who do not regularly report for duty or who have retired, defected to the Taliban or been killed. With the move to accept recruits up to age 40, it appears as if the Afghan military will have one of the worlds least restrictive age requirements for military service. Neighboring Pakistan, for example, generally does not accept infantry recruits older than 23, according to military officials in that country. India generally does not accept infantry recruits over 24. But in recent years, the U.S. military has loosened some of its age requirements for enlistment. Two years ago, the Air Force raised its maximum age from 27 to 39, according to the Stars and Stripes newspaper. The Armys enlistment age is capped at 35 and the Marine Corps at 28, barring an official waiver. Sayed Salahuddin contributed to this report. Read more: Commando-style assault on Afghan jail frees scores of Taliban inmates Today's coverage from Post correspondents around the world Relatives of Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdeir, who was killed in 2014, hold posters bearing his portrait outside the Jerusalem district court on Thursday. (Ahmad Gharabli/AFP/Getty Images) A Jerusalem court handed out lengthy prison sentences Thursday to two Israeli youths found guilty of kidnapping and brutally murdering a Palestinian teenager in a revenge attack during the summer of 2014. The Israeli teens, both minors, were not identified. One was sentenced to life in prison and the other to a 21-year term for their roles in abducting Mohammed Abu Khdeir, 16, from outside his family home in East Jerusalem and burning him alive in a nearby forest. A few days before the murder, which took place in the run-up to the 2014 Gaza war, the bodies of three Israeli Yeshiva students were found in a field near Hebron in the West Bank. They had been kidnapped and murdered by two Palestinians affiliated with Hamas. [Violence widens as Israeli troops, Palestinians clash in east Jerusalem] The two teens sentenced Thursday, now ages 17 and 16, and their ringleader, Yosef Haim Ben-David, 31, admitted during the police investigation that Abu Khdeirs murder was a revenge attack. Ben-David, who is claiming an insanity plea, is likely to be sentenced next week. All three were found guilty in November of murdering Abu Khdeir. The 17-year-old was given a 25-year maximum life sentence with another three years added for his role. The younger teen received 21 years, with the court ruling that he was not directly involved in the murder, even though he took part in the events leading up to it. Each of the teens will also be required to pay the Abu Khdeir family $7,700 in compensation. [Israel steps up home demolitions to punish Palestinian attackers] This is a mild sentence. All three of them participated in burning Mohammed; all three put flammable fluid in his mouth that led to his death. And yet one of them only gets 21 years? He should have also been given a life sentence, Hussein Abu Khdeir, Mohammeds father, said after the sentencing was passed down. All we want to do is try to prevent another Mohammed from being burnt to death, he said. This sentence should have sent a clear message, but it is too mild and it will not stop other radicals from carrying out another attack like this. Hussein Abu Khdeir said that he would fight the sentencing and request that the homes of his sons murderers be destroyed, as happens to Palestinians who carry out attacks against Israelis. Sufian Taha contributed to this report. A General Motors skilled trades worker was killed Tuesday in a fall at the General Motors Defiance, Ohio Casting Operations facility. The worker has been identified as 50-year-old Terry Bodenbender. According to the Defiance County Sheriffs office, Bodenbender, an electrician, suffered a fatal fall around 1:02 p.m. The plant was last inspected by the federal Occupational Safety and Heath Administration (OSHA) last June. The company received two minor citations at the time. The plant employs 1,026 hourly workers and builds cylinder blocks, cylinder heads and crankshafts for V-6 and V-8 engines. It has been in operation since 1948. As of this writing, few facts are available. According to OSHA, Bodenbender was performing maintenance on an overhead crane at the time of the tragedy. He apparently fell 25-30 feet into a pit below, suffering fatal injuries. OSHA says it is conducting an investigation, but no further details are being released. Bodenbender is survived by two children: son Austin and daughter Sydney. The funeral is set for Friday. The death of Bodenbender follows a rash of recent deaths at auto factories. It has been just one month since the death of a contract worker at a Honda plant in Ohio and another death at the Ford Chicago Assembly plant. Just before Christmas David Scott Ford, a contract worker, was killed on the assembly line at the GM Fairfax, Kansas facility. In the wake of the Defiance tragedy, GM only offered perfunctory condolences. The United Auto Workers has made no official statement on the incident. A General Motors skilled trades workers from Indiana, who wished to remain anonymous, spoke to the WSWS about the death. Skilled trades work definitely has more safety issues. That is one of the reasons that GM is going with contractors. If a contractor gets killed, it is not GMs fault. With contractors, all GM has to do is show a couple of safety videos. The contractor is supposed to be responsible for safety issues, but they tend to take shortcuts. If the worker was on an overhead crane he should have been tethered. Then, if he fell, he would have been left dangling. All you have to do is forget one little item. That is why if you are working 30 feet in the air you are supposed to have a ground man. They are supposed to check on each other to make sure they are wearing a harness. GM has been downsizing and downsizing all the time. Skilled trades workers are on the clock six days a week, 12 hours a day. There is pressure to get things done. He spoke about the cross training of skilled trades classifications being pushed by GM and the UAW as part of its drive to eliminate the jobs of skilled trades workers. First implemented under terms of the 2011 UAW-GM contract, the cross training program is designed to further erase the distinction between skilled trades classifications. People I know who have been crossed trained say it is a joke. I used to teach apprentices for skilled trades. In every class I taught I developed a curriculum. There are no classes designed for cross training purposes. You are basically learning as you work on the job. He said it was not in GMs best self-interest to be open and forthcoming about the circumstances of deaths and serious injuries on the job. They have to report some information to the government, but the rest they keep to themselves. It is not good advertising for them to say, Look, we are killing employees.' The UAW is not going to put out that information either. The death of Bodenbender recalls the death of Fiat Chrysler skilled tradesman Donald Megge, aged 53. He was crushed to death May 5, 2015 in an accident at the wastewater treatment facility at the Jefferson North Assembly Plant in Detroit. Megge was a millwright and a wastewater treatment plant operator with many years of experience. While the UAW and Fiat Chrysler claimed to be investigating the tragedy, no further information has been forthcoming. Megge was apparently working alone at the time of the accidenta dangerous practice sanctioned by the UAW to help cut costs. GM is counting on its servants in OSHA and the UAW to cover up the circumstances of the latest autoworker death in Ohio. The national committee on health and safety, run jointly by the UAW and GM, makes a mockery of any adversarial relationship between the union and management. Workers can expect no serious probe of the circumstances of the death of Bodenbender from that quarter, any more than from OSHA. Brandon Astor Jones was executed at Georgia Diagnostic Prison in Jackson early Wednesday morning. He was the first person put to death in the state in 2016 and, at 72 years old, Georgias oldest death row inmate. Jones execution had been scheduled for 7 p.m. Tuesday, but the condemned inmate waited for four hours for a ruling from the US Supreme Court on his appeal for a stay. The high court rejected the request at about 11 p.m. According to a report from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, it took more than an hour for prison authorities to prepare Jones for his lethal injection. According to a media witness, it appeared they had to insert an IV into his groin area, which is the protocol if prison personnel cannot find accessible veins in the inmates arms. Jones appeared to fight death, AJC reported. He closed his eyes within a minute of the warden leaving the execution chamber, but 6 minutes later his eyes popped open and he looked at a clock on the wall. He then appeared to look at the man who prosecuted him in 1979, former Cobb County District Attorney Tom Charron, who was sitting in the front row of the witness area. Jones was pronounced dead at 12:46 a.m. The State Board of Pardons and Paroles turned down Jones request to commute his sentence to life in prison Monday night. The ruling came just moments after he lost a request for a stay from the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to delay his execution to allow a full panel of 11 judges, not just a panel of three that usually decides such cases, to hear his appeal. Jones was challenging the Georgia law that keeps secret the name of the pharmacist who makes the pentobarbital to be used in his execution. Although a majority of the appeals court judges rejected his request for a stay, five of them sharply criticized the secrecy law. Today Brandon Jones will be executed, possibly in violation of the Constitution, Judge Robin Rosenbaum wrote in one of the dissenting opinions. He may also be cruelly and unusually punished in the process. But if he is, we will not know until its too lateif ever. The appellate court ruled last week that Jones did not have standing to revisit his claims that he had bad legal representation. Jones was convicted for the murder of Roger Tackett, a 29-year-old convenience store manager, during a robbery in Cobb County in 1979. On June 17 of that year, a police officer driving a stranded motorist to use a pay phone outside the store noticed that the lights were on inside after normal hours and a car with an open drivers side door was parked out front. After hearing gunshots, the officer entered the store and found Jones and his friend Van Roosevelt Solomon inside. According to the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Tackett was shot five times. Jones and Solomon were taken into custody. Both men denied firing the fatal shot. They were both convicted and sentenced to death. Solomon was executed by electric chair in February 1985. Jones, however, was granted a new sentencing hearing by a federal judge in 1989 because jurors had violated protocol by bringing a bible into the deliberation room. Jones was resentenced to death in 1997. Jones lingered on death row for nearly four decades. His lawyers argued before the Board of Pardons and Paroles: He is profoundly remorseful for his actions. If spared, Mr. Jones can continue to serve as a mentor and grandfather to his many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Jones attorneys also argued it was Solomon, not Jones, who fired the fatal shot, writing, Jones stood by in utter shock as the bullets seem to ricochet all around them in the crowded space. His lawyers also said that the death penalty is so infrequently imposed for robbery-murders that the practice has fallen into complete extinction. Psychologists described Jones as exhibiting a lifelong pattern of behavior consistent with childhood-onset bipolar disorder, the Death Penalty Information Center reports. He also showed signs of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) rooted in physical, sexual, and emotional trauma from persistent childhood abuse at home and in a state reformatory where he was sent as a teenager. Stephen Bright, president of the Southern Center for Human Rights, told the Intercept : We have this very strange situation now in which these people sentenced to death a long time agoand who managed to get through all the stages of revieware now being executed. Bright said the defendants in these zombie cases almost certainly would not be sentenced to death if tried today. There are at least four other prisoners on Georgias death row who have exhausted their regular state and federal appeals. On Monday, a Houston County, Georgia, judge signed an execution warrant for former sailor Travis Hitton for the murder of a fellow shipmate. Last year Georgia executed five people, the largest number of executions carried out in the state over a 12-month period since 1987. This included the execution of Kelly Gissendaner, the first woman put to death in the state in 70 years. Germanys economics minister Sigmar Gabriel (Social Democratic Party, SPD) visited the Polish capital Warsaw for talks over the weekend. German-Polish relations have deteriorated dramatically recently after the right-wing, conservative Law and Justice Party (PiS) government came to power in Poland and rapidly carried out a constitutional coup while orienting closely on foreign policy issues to the United States. Gabriel sought to iron out the differences between Germany and Poland during his visit to Warsaw. Gabriels main discussions were with Polish finance minister and deputy prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki, a well-known banker and finance manager who is well-connected and liked by Western governments. Gabriel noted the importance of good German-Polish relations and said that Germany must embrace Poland. There was no peace, love and harmony between Berlin and Warsaw, but both countries should remain close partners. This was also underscored by his Polish counterpart Morawiecki. One of the most significant points of dispute between Berlin and Warsaw is the Nord Stream pipeline, which has been supplying gas from Russia to Germany across the Baltic Sea since 2011. Western European governments and Russian state firm Gazprom are now planning to further expand Nord Stream. The companies involved in this include the British-Dutch Royal Dutch Shell, Frances Engie, Austrias OMV and two German firms, E.On and the BASF-subsidiary Wintershall. In a letter to the European Union (EU) Commission, several Eastern European countries, including Poland, strongly protested against the plan. Polish foreign minister Witold Waszczykowski declared in an interview with the Berliner Zeitung in December that the Polish government was shocked by the project. We werent born yesterday. We know that is powerful Russia on one side and powerful corporations on the German side make state policy. In an interview with the Gazeta Polska Codziennie in November, Polish energy minister Krzysztof Tchorzewski declared that from the standpoint of Polands economic and political security, the pipeline represented a hostile act. With his visit to Warsaw, Gabriel sought to soften his tone on Nord Stream without calling the project into question. He said it was entirely clear that Germany and Poland had different political views on the subject. In particular, the view of the Russian partner was different. He noted once again that Germany saw the pipeline as purely an economic project. At the same time, Gabriel acknowledged that Polands concerns were understandable. For the first time, he laid down conditions for the realisation of the pipeline: he demanded that the transit of Russian gas across Ukraine continue after 2019, which is the planned date for the completion of Nord Stream II, and the supply of gas to Eastern Europe be achieved through the Russian Jamal pipeline. With his statements in Warsaw, Gabriel sought to backpedal somewhat and signal a willingness on the part of the German government to reach a limited compromise. Germanys economy minister has emerged as one of the leading promoters of the project in the grand coalition over recent months. In his highly controversial visit to Moscow in autumn 2015, Gabriel declared that the implementation of the pipeline within the EU had to remain under the control of German authorities. Only in this way was it possible to avoid outside interference, referring to interference by the EU. EU member state Italy, alongside Eastern European states, oppose the project. Gabriel is also opposed to any intervention in the pipeline project by the United States. One week prior to Gabriels visit, foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier travelled to Warsaw in an attempt to improve tense relations. He urged that in the future, difficult bilateral issues should not be discussed in public but confidentially. Two main reasons are behind the attempts of leading government ministers and SPD officials to dampen the extremely tense relations with Poland. Firstly, the rapid deterioration of German-Polish relations, which as late as 2014 had been praised as an historic achievement, has provoked deep concern within sections of Germanys ruling elite. After sharp attacks on Poland in the German press, the EU introduced a process against the Polish government under which Polish laws will be reviewed. The so-called rule of law mechanism, introduced only in 2014, could result in the countrys right to vote within the EU being withdrawn. Serious fears exist within sections of the German bourgeoisie, however, that the conflict with Poland could lead to the breakup of the crisis-ridden EU. In addition, Poland is Germanys most important economic partner in Eastern Europe. Secondly, more fundamental conflicts with the United States are behind the tensions with the Polish government. The US has been attempting to weaken Russias position in Europes energy market for years. To this end, American companies and the US government are supporting the promotion and consumption of shale gas and liquefied gas in the Eastern European countries, which with the exception of Ukraine rely on Russia for between 80 and 90 percent of their gas. At the same time, the United States backs pipelines like TANAP-TAP, which is to supply gas from the Caspian Sea region to Europe. The undermining of Russias position in the European energy market is a central part of the policy of economically and politically encircling Russia and supporting regimes in Eastern Europe which back the US war drive against Moscow. Russias budget is dependent to a considerable extent on revenues from energy exports, and Europe is by far its most important sales market. Currently, Europe obtains roughly 30 percent of its gas imports from Russia. Around half of this is still transported through Ukraine. Since the opening of Nord Stream I, the first Russian pipeline to bypass Belarus and Ukraine, the transportation of gas across Ukraine has dropped precipitously. If Nord Stream II goes into operation, the Ukrainian state could lose a further $2 billion annually. Following the Eastern European states letter of protest to the EU Commission, American politicians and think tanks have gone on the offensive in recent weeks against the project. The Polish and US governments fear that the pipeline will not only strengthen Russia in Europe, but also serve as a starting point for an alliance between Russia and Germany. US Vice President Joseph Biden discussed the pipeline with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in January during his visit to Kiev. Poroshenko subsequently declared that both sides were united in their criticism of the Nord Stream project. The Ukrainian government has since laid a complaint before the EUs energy committee against the pipeline. Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatzenyuk said Ukraine was calling upon the EU Commission to launch an investigation and stop this anti-European, anti-Ukrainian, anti-Slovakian and anti-Polish project. In a comment entitled Germany, stop the Nord Stream II project, Judy Dempsey of the Carnegie Europe Foundation warned that the pipeline would make Germany more reliant on Russian energy supplies and strengthen Gazproms position in the European market. She went on to write, Above all, Nord Stream II would prevent the development of a united EU policy towards Russia, which Merkel was able to establish during the Ukraine crisis. Nonetheless, she is not prepared to stop a pipeline which would undermine this united policy. Members of the German government and leaders of the major political parties are currently seeking to outdo each other in proposing and adopting stricter measures to deter and repress refugees. Last Friday, leaders of the grand coalition parties adopted the so-called Asylum Package II and thereby introduced a drastic curtailing of the right to asylum. At a state party congress of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania on Saturday, Chancellor Angela Merkel declared that refugees from countries affected by civil war would have to return home after the end of those conflicts. This would affect the overwhelming majority of the close to 1 million refugees who sought protection in Germany last year. They are thus only being temporarily toleratedwith all the implications that has for their accommodation, legal rights and employment and education opportunities. After a short timeMerkel suggested three yearsthey would have to leave the country. At the same time, Hannelore Kraft (Social Democratic Party, SPD), the minister-president of the most populous German state, North Rhine-Westphalia, demanded the reintroduction of district residency requirements for asylum applications. As a result, even if they lived in Germany for years, refugees could neither leave the district to which they had been assigned nor freely seek employment. The Chief of Staff of the Federal Chancellery and Federal Minister for Special Affairs, Peter Altmaier (CDU), a highly influential figure, made clear that the German government was seeking to deport immigrants convicted of criminal offences and asylum seekers to so-called third countries like Turkey and Greece if deportation to their country of origin is not possible. We are negotiating with Turkey and other countries about accepting such refugees, Altmaier told Bild am Sonntag. The government evidently accepts that refugees convicted of offences in Germany will be held in prisons in Greece or Turkey, where they are threatened with serious mistreatment. The list of countries deemed safe countries of origin is being expanded on a daily basis. Alongside Morocco, Tunisia and Algeria, Turkey and Afghanistan are now being defined as safe, allowing the government to reject asylum seekers from those nations and immediately deport those affected. In all these countries, turbulent conditions prevail and authoritarian regimes hold onto power through trampling on human rights and police-state measures. On Tuesday, German interior minister Thomas de Maiziere was in Kabul negotiating with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and his responsible minister for the repatriation of refugees from Germany. The interior ministers trip took place under the tightest security. De Maiziere himself was equipped with a bulletproof vest and helmet upon his arrival at Kabul airport and looked like a storm trooper in Star Wars. During the negotiations, a suicide bomber blew himself up just kilometres away, killing 20 and injuring dozens more. However, none of this deterred de Maiziere from declaring Afghanistan a generally safe country on his return, and brutally insisting that Afghan refugees should be kicked out of Germany. The interior minister said that, after all, attacks took place elsewhere in the world, and policy could not be based on such difficulties. In addition, there were enough domestic flight alternatives within Afghanistan. This is contradicted, however, not just by the seven bomb attacks registered in Kabul already this year, which also impacted the German army. Afghanistans minister for refugees has described 31 of the countrys 34 provinces as unsafe. The capital Kabul was among the three safe provinces. In 2015, 31,382 Afghans submitted asylum applications in Germany. Around 80 percent received a positive responsea figure that rose to 86 percent in the third quarter. This means that even the decision-makers at the federal office for migration and refugees, who are by no means timid about turning down applications, assume that people are at risk in Afghanistan. Ignoring this, the government is intensifying its practice of deportation. Christian Social Union (CSU) leader Horst Seehofer named a wide range of states that should be classified as safe, including Armenia, Bangladesh, Benin, Gambia, Georgia, India, Mali, Moldova, Mongolia, Nicaragua and Ukraine. The SPD has taken over the role of chief demagogue within the government. SPD minister of labour and social affairs, Andrea Nahles, a former left, has denounced foreigners unwilling to integrate into German society who are supposedly living better than native Germans claiming Hartz IV social welfare. She announced major cuts to welfare for refugees. The strict regulations for Hartz IV claimants would be imposed on asylum seekers and asylum seekers welfare, she said. Nahles wrote in a guest column in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Those who come here, seek protection and want to start a new life must stick to our rules and values. She went on, Whoever claims assistance, must use all of his ability and labour powerand, like everyone else by the wayhis own wealth. Whoever does not do that will not receive ongoing support here. There was no right to support without effort. As with British Prime Minister David Cameron, Nahles targeted immigrants from other European Union (EU) countries. All EU citizens have the absolute right to live where they want within the EU, she wrote. But they must stand on their own two feetas the vast majority of EU citizens do hereand not be dependent from the outset on social welfare. The municipalities cannot provide unlimited support to EU foreigners without means. Nahles conclusion was to join the CSU in its demand for the slashing of social welfare for those allegedly refusing to integrate. Those who indicated their unwillingness to integrate will have their welfare cut. In my opinion, this should also be connected to the completion of language courses and sticking to the basic rules of our society. In fact, language and integration courses are not available for the vast majority of refugees, or the latter have to wait months before finding a place. Nahles foul contribution exposes the racist character of the current refugee debate. The extent to which the SPD is promoting racist positions was recently shown in Essen, in the Ruhr region. There, the district party organisation allowed placards to be printed for a demonstration that proclaimed, in the style of the neo-Nazi National Democratic Party of Germany (NPD), Enough is enough! Integration has limits. Such slogans and demands are encouraging right-wing extremist forces. Violent acts against refugees are spreading. Last year alone, the police recorded over 1,000 attacks on refugees and their accommodations. Last Friday, unknown assailants threw a hand grenade at a refugee centre in Villingen-Schwenningen, which luckily did not explode. These right-wing forces then serve as a pretext for strengthening the police, intelligence agencies and the army. At the beginning of the week, the Seeheimer Circle, an alliance of the SPD right wing, which includes party chairman Sigmar Gabriel, foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and parliamentary leader Thomas Oppermann, called for thousands of additional personnel and hundreds of millions of euros to strengthen domestic security. In addition, the German army should also be able to deploy domestically, the group said. As in the 1930s, the ruling elite is promoting chauvinism and anti-immigrant sentiments to channel social discontent in a right-wing direction, strengthen the state and create a movement that can be turned against the entire working class. Florida has declared the virus a public health emergency. (Photo: Corbis) Floridas governor has issued a public health emergency in four of the states counties after nine residents who had traveled to the Caribbean and Latin America were diagnosed with the Zika virus. Although Floridas current nine Zika cases were travel-related, we have to ensure Florida is prepared and stays ahead of the spread of the Zika virus in our state, Gov. Rick Scott said in a statement released Wednesday. Our Department of Health will continue to be in constant communication with all county health offices, hospitals and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). We know that we must be prepared for the worst even as we hope for the best. Miami-Dade, Hillsborough, Lee, and Santa Rosa counties are affected by the public health emergency declaration. Related: Is This Mosquito Repellent Your Best Protection Against Zika Virus? Zika virus, a mosquito-borne illness that has been linked to brain damage in newborns, has increasingly become a global health concern. In early February, the World Health Organization called the rapid spread of the virus a global health emergency. Zika first made international headlines in January after it was linked to the nearly 4,000 babies who were born in Brazil in the past year with unusually small heads, an incurable condition known as microcephaly. Zika is spreading rapidly throughout the Americas and the Caribbean and is expected to reach the United States by late spring or early summer. The World Health Organization recently predicted that the virus will spread to all but two countries in South America, Central America, and North America (including the U.S.), and officials in Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, Ecuador, and Jamaica are urging women to hold off on having children. Related: Zika Virus Transmitted in the U.S. The CDC is also urging pregnant women and those who are trying to become pregnant to avoid traveling to any regions affected by the virus. Story continues While Floridas public health emergency declaration sounds alarming, board-certified infectious-disease specialist Amesh A. Adalja, MD, an assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, tells Yahoo Health that its actually a good thing. Heres why: It allows enhanced action to be taken in the four counties under the emergency and focused attention to diminish the population of Aedes mosquitoes, which carry the disease. It also allows the counties to communicate directly with the CDC for help, instead of going through the state department of health. This will really allow them to make decisions on the ground, Adalja says. Related: Zika Virus Declared Global Health Emergency But why is it being done? Adalja says its a preventive measure because Florida has seen cases of dengue fever and the chikungunya virus, which are spread similarly to the Zika virus. The concern with infected returning travelers is that the Aedes mosquito could bite them and pass the virus to others, causing what infectious disease doctors call local transmission. If there are less mosquitoes to bite returning travelers, youre less likely to see local transmission in Florida, Adalja says. Right now, the potential risk of infection for people in and traveling to Florida pregnant women included is the same as it is in any other part of the country, Adalja says, although there is potential for the virus to spread in the state because of its large Aedes mosquito population. Adalja calls the news reassuring, adding that Floridas mosquito control is considered the best in the nation. Pregnant women with travel plans to Florida dont have anything to worry about right now, Adalja says, but they should keep a close eye on the news to see if local transmissions occur in the state. If that happens, they may want to reconsider their plans. More on the Zika virus on Yahoo Health: Is the Zika Virus Contagious? Zika Virus Symptoms: What Are They? Do Pregnant Women in the U.S. Need to Worry About Zika Virus? What to Know About the Zika Virus If Youre Trying to Get Pregnant U.S. Issues Treatment Guidelines for Infants Exposed to Zika 10 Essential Facts About the Zika Virus What Happens When Countries Without Abortion Advise Against Pregnancy? Can Brazil Zika-Proof in Time for the Olympics? Concerns Grow as Zika Virus Spreads Lets keep in touch! Follow Yahoo Health on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. Photo: Corbis A new report published in the New England Journal of Medicine shows evidence of what womens reproductive rights advocates have been warning about for years: When Texas defunded Planned Parenthood, births by low-income mothers increased, many of which were covered by Medicaid. After Texas cut government funding for Planned Parenthood affiliates in 2013, researchers saw a steady decrease in the amount of effective, long-term birth control prescriptions that were filled. It also saw a steady increase in the number of births by women who had previously received birth control through the organization. Our analyses suggest that the exclusion of Planned Parenthood affiliates from the Texas Womens Health Program had an adverse effect on low-income women in Texas by reducing the provision of highly effective methods of contraception, interrupting contraceptive continuation, and increasing the rate of childbirth covered by Medicaid, write the authors of the report, who are from the University of Texas, The Planned Parenthood centers served roughly 60 percent of the states low-income women. Texass decision to cut any funding to the centers meant that women who relied on effective measures of birth control (such as IUDs) from the organization were no longer able to access or afford them. The number of women using IUDs dropped by 35.5 percent in two years, and the number of women who continued to get the Depo-Provera birth control shot fell by 21 percent over two years in counties in which centers were shuttered. The report is speculative and doesnt show a causal relationship between Planned Parenthood defunding and a rise in low-income births, but it does reflect an important trend in reproductive rights. When Planned Parenthood centers are defunded or closed, its often the neediest who take the greatest hit. As much as opponents want to believe that women have a variety of other, nonabortion-providing places to turn for health care, thats rarely the case. Women who use Planned Parenthoods services are often left without anywhere to turn, as reflected in the rise in births. Not only does this cost women their reproductive independence and futures the Medicaid-assisted births and government assistance needed to raise children born to low-income families adds up to serious costs. This is the second time Texass Planned Parenthood organizations have been in the news recently a Texas grand jury made waves with a ruling on the series of anti-Planned Parenthood videos that claimed to show the organization selling fetal tissue. The grand jury found no wrongdoing on Planned Parenthoods part, but rather indicted the filmmakers. Read This Next: David Daleiden and Sandra Merritt Indictment Doesnt Undo Planned Parenthood Video Damage A 5-year-old girls innocent romp on the monkey bars at her school playground ended in unfathomable tragedy on Monday, when she died after a freak accident. Andrea Tyrah Debruhl, a Georgia kindergartner (pictured above), was playing on the bars during school hours when she slipped and accidentally asphyxiated herself, police told WSBTV. An autopsy confirmed the cause of death. But while the coroner said its been ruled an accident, the investigation is not yet over, as detectives will now try to determine how Debruhl got into the position that killed her. VIDEO: How Furniture Can Kill Kids and How You Can Prevent It According to the Newton County Theme School district, in Covington, 10 teachers and paraprofessionals were on the playground, supervising students at the time. Now counselors have been put in place at the school to help anyone who needs support handling the trauma. Debruhls school. (Photo: Fox 5) Deaths associated with playground equipment are rare, according to statistics from the Consumer Product Safety Commission, with 40 recorded between 2001 and 2008. The average age was 6. Of those deaths, 27 were the result of hangings or other asphyxiations, as with Debruhl, and seven were the result of head or neck injuries. Nonfatal incidents were more common, as, during that same timespan, an average of 218,850 preschool and elementary kids annually headed to the ER for playground-equipment related injuries. STORY: Miraculous Photos of Devastating Crash Show How Car Seats Save Lives A vigil was held Wednesday night at a local Methodist church, with more than 100 people, including children, in attendance. A scene from Debruhls memorial. (Photo: Fox 5) She leaves a rich legacy behind, a legacy of love, a legacy that the community came together on her behalf, Gwendolyn Green, who attended the service, told WSBTV. I am so full at this very moment. My heart goes out to the family. Another supporter at the vigil, Marshall Atha, said, They need prayer. They need love. They need friendship, and its just constant gods love is what they need. I could only imagine in a time of loss like this. It just breaks my heart. Story continues Top photo: Debruhl family Please follow @YahooParenting on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. Have an interesting story to share about your family? Email us at YParenting (at) Yahoo.com. When Army medic Sgt. Thai Lee was serving in Afghanistan in 2014, he suffered a lower-body injury during an explosion that he feared had forever ruined his ability to father children. But thanks to an advance in fertility medicine, Thai, like many other wounded warriors, has had his hope renewed. Story: The Secret Im Tempted to Keep From My Kids About Their Conception Thai, pictured above with his wife, faced a slew of setbacks after being caught in an explosion a stroke and a neck wound that partially paralyzed the left side of his body, a hit to the stomach that left him without part of his intestines, a severe cut to his penis, and the loss of one testicle and the crushing of another. Story: Striking Photo of Breastfeeding Soldiers Stirs Debate Immediately after the blast, when hed asked a friend to take a look at his boys, the friend had told him, Sorry, man, youre not going to be able to have kids. And it was that idea, aside from all his injuries, that hurt him the most. Thai Lee (Photo: Facebook) All the guys coming back from deployment started having kids. I felt so left out, Thai, 29, an agricultural genetics researcher, told NBC News in a special report. And I felt like I had disappointed my wife. Indeed, Nkao Ger Lee, 28, his wife of eight years, had a hard time dealing with the new reality. Ive always wanted kids, she said. Id lost 15 pounds while he was gone to get ready to start trying. The two had planned to buy a house back home in Grimes, Iowa, and to raise a family there after his duty was complete. Luckily, while recovering from his injuries at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., a urologist informed Thai about a cutting-edge fertility treatment that could maybe help him become a dad after all. It involved retrieving sperm from his seminal vesicle, where it sits before ejaculation, to be frozen until the couple was ready to try for a baby. The happy couple. (Photo: Facebook) Story continues Thai agreed, and so, guided by ultrasound, a doctor used a long, thin needle to draw out nearly a half teaspoon of semen, which contained an estimated 40,000 to 6.4 million sperm just enough for several cycles of in vitro fertilization. (For comparison, according to NBC News, a normal sample contains 20 million to 200 million sperm.) So far, only Thai and five other patients have tried the approach, which has been available since 2012. But its showing promise for men, especially wounded servicemen, who have no other options: More than 1,300 U.S. service members in Afghanistan and Iraq suffered genital injuries between 2003 and 2014, according to the Department of Defense Trauma Registry, the majority from improvised explosive devices in Afghanistan. Those blasts go up and injure more of the pelvis region and cause more limb loss and penile and groin injuries, Walter Reed urologist Col. Robert Dean, Thais doctor and a male infertility specialist who developed the technique, told NBC. Sometimes, men would come back with no testicles. That means theyll never have another chance to make sperm again. A recent Facebook post by Nkao Ger shared her babys due date with a cute family-shoes photo. (Photo: Facebook) And as medical advances have made it more possible for young men to survive such blasts, the fertility damage has become more apparent. You have 19-year-olds with no legs, and thats hard enough for them to deal with psychologically, Davendra Sharma, a urologist who worked for the U.K. Royal Air Force, told NBC. Then they learn theyve lost the ability to have biological kids and may have erectile problems. Another fast-advancing treatment, according to a recent New York Times article, is that of penis transplants with the organ coming from a deceased donor and expected to have sensation as well as urinary and sexual function within a matter of months. Doctors from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore are preparing to perform their first such transplant within the year. As for Thais recovery, he had four surgeries to his stomach, neck, and groin, plus the implantation of prosthetic testicles. He still has ankle and hand issues and takes daily medication to control seizures. But he was buoyed by hope when he and Nkao Ger began IVF a year ago, using his wifes eggs, with the aid of their fertility doctor, Navy Lt. Dr. Mae Healy. Healy said the biggest issue with this technique is that it can be difficult to extract enough high-quality sperm. And meanwhile, the military is now starting to encourage some men to freeze their sperm before deploying, said Dean. Luckily, Nkao Ger became pregnant on the second try and is scheduled to give birth in April and has a second frozen embryo ready and waiting, though the Lees are not sure if theyll be able to afford more IVF treatment, which costs an average of $12,400. Still, they are thrilled theyve come this far. I cant wait to be a dad, said Thai. When she got pregnant, I finally felt complete. Top photo: Facebook Please follow @YahooParenting on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. Have an interesting story to share about your family? Email us at YParenting (at) Yahoo.com. Hillary Clinton has a simple explanation for why she accepted $675,000 from Goldman Sachs to give three speeches after she was secretary of state. Thats what they offered, Clinton said during CNNs town hall event in Derry, N.H., on Wednesday. You know, every secretary of state that I know has done that. The Democratic frontrunner was asked by moderator Anderson Cooper if taking such a large payment from a Wall Street bank in 2013 was an error in judgment considering she knew shed be running for president in 2016. Well, I didnt know, Clinton insisted. To be honest, I wasnt I wasnt committed to running. I didnt know whether I would or not. You didnt think you were going to run for president again? Cooper asked. I didnt, she replied. You know, when I was secretary of state, several times I said, You know, I think Im done. And you know, so many people came to me, started talking to me. The circumstances, the concerns I had about the Republicans taking back the White House, because I think they wrecked what we achieved in the 1990s with 23 million new jobs and incomes going up for everybody. I did not want to see that happen again. I want to defend President Obamas accomplishments and the progress weve made. I want to go further. Clinton dismissed Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders assertion that her campaign is funded by Wall Street as evidenced by the $15 million in big-money interests raised by her Priorities USA super-PAC in the second half of 2015. Anybody who knows me who thinks that they can influence me, name anything theyve influenced me on, Clinton said. Just name one thing. Im out here every day saying Im going to shut them down, Im going after them. Im going to jail them if they should be jailed. Im going to break them up. She added: I mean, theyre not giving me very much money now. I can tell you that much. So just to be clear, thats not something you regret those three speeches, that money? Cooper asked. Story continues No, I dont, Clinton said. Because, you know, I dont feel that I paid any price for it, and I am very clear about what I will do, and theyre on notice. Earlier Wednesday, Goldman Sachs Chairman and CEO Lloyd Blankfein said Sanders attacks on the billionaire class have the potential to be a dangerous moment. Not just for Wall Street, not just for the people who are particularly targeted, but for anybody who is a little bit out of line, Blankfein said on CNBCs Squawk Box. Its a liability to say, Im going to compromise; Im going to get one millimeter off the extreme position I have. And if you do, you have to backtrack and swear to people that youll never compromise. Its just incredible. Its a moment in history. But Blankfein, who endorsed Clinton for president in 2008, refused to say who he is supporting this time around. I dont want to help or hurt anybody by giving them an endorsement, he said. Santorum smiles during a campaign stop at shooting range in Boone, Iowa, on Saturday. (Photo: Chris Carlson/AP) Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum is dropping out of the race for the White House, he confirmed via a statement in which he threw his support behind Marco Rubio. So thankful & grateful for your support. Just not our year. So today please join me in supporting @marcorubio, he posted on Twitter on Wednesday evening. After a dismal performance in the Iowa caucus receiving only 1 percent of the vote, resulting in zero delegates there had been speculation that Santorum might withdraw his candidacy for the Republican nod. His campaign struggled to find its footing within the overcrowded GOP field especially with media-savvy real estate mogul Donald Trump and breakout contender Texas Sen. Ted Cruz vying for the top spot. Rubio solidified his credentials among conservatives with a third-place finish in Iowa. He garnered 23 percent of the vote, just one percentage point behind Trump. A Santorum aide had told the Washington Post earlier Wednesday that he was scheduled to make two major announcements on Fox News. He is expected to discuss the end of his campaign and which of his rivals earned his endorsement. Santorum was also a candidate for the GOPs presidential nomination in 2012. He won Iowa with 24.6 percent of the vote but ultimately lost the partys nomination to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. Earlier Wednesday, libertarian-minded Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul also announced that he was suspending his presidential bid. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee withdrew his candidacy Monday night. An explosion ripped a hole through the fuselage of Daallo Airlines Flight D3159 just minutes after takeoff. (Photo: AP) Its like something out of a horror movie: A passenger caught fire and was sucked out of a hole in the side of an airplane at 14,000 feet. Hassan Mohamed Nur, a survivor on that Daallo Airlines Flight D3159 from Mogadishu to Djibouti, told the Daily Mail: I saw the passenger, a man in his early 60s, get sucked out of the plane. There was a huge bang. A big hole appeared in the side of the jet and the elderly passenger disappeared through it. One minute he was sat in his seat; the next he was gone. Hed been sucked out of the plane. People were screaming. We all thought we were going to die. Nur also reported that the man caught fire before he was sucked from his seat, and eerily, the burned body of an elderly man was found in Balad, 18 miles from Mogadishu. Its uncertain whether this was the same man. Related: This Is What Severe Turbulence Looks Like Inside a Plane The Airbus 321 took off from Mogadishu airport on its way to Djibouti, and within five minutes, a blast ripped a hole in the fuselage measuring 6 feet by 3 feet. Officials do not yet know the cause of the explosion, though the aircrafts pilot was quoted as saying, I think it was a bomb. Luckily, the flight controls were not damaged so I could return and land at the airport. A passenger reported that an elderly man was torn from his seat and sucked out the hole in the side of the aircraft. (Photo: Awale Kullane via AP) Apart from the elderly man who fell from the plane, only one other passenger was injured a Finnish man who is reported to be in stable condition. Related: Passengers and Crew Fall Ill in Mystery Airline Emergency Landing Seventy-four passengers we on board, including Awale Kullane, Somalias deputy ambassador to the U.N. He said on Facebook that he heard a loud noise and couldnt see anything but smoke for a few seconds. He also posted a video taken minutes after the explosion, as passengers sat terrified, some with oxygen masks on but it has since been removed from his page. Story continues Somalia is dealing with an insurgency by the Somali Islamic extremist group al-Shabaab, which has been responsible for many deadly attacks over the years. Related: Airport Insecurity: The 10 Most Terrifying Airport Security Fails Follow Yahoo Travel on Facebook,Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. The three accused filed a petition challenging their 12-day custody and said they were being subjected to third-degree torture. #stocks-summary Seoul shares down for 2nd day on rate hike woes South Korean stocks retreated for a second straight session Thursday, as investor sentiment worsened on concerns about aggressive rate hikes. The Korean won fell against the U.S. d... Three ways In the bleak midwinter, with rain on rain in this part of the world, here's a photograph to remind us of last summer... Eat your heart out, Imelda Marcos... And they're only the shoes you can see. There's a whole lot of additional walk in closet there that's not in shot. For example, what's behind the island? Yep, this wardrobe has its very own island. If you can tear your eyes away from the array of footwear (Christian Louboutin, Giuseppe Zanotti, Manolo Blahnik, they're all there...), you many be wondering why said island is currently sporting an image of Anna Wintour as a deity, she captioned the image: "@ashleylongshoreart has blessed me with the Saint of Fashion, to watch over my style choices... ALWAYS. No pressure." There is mounting speculation that Dublin City Council planners and designers are set to propose an even more 'radical' vision for College Green than that which was proposed last year. With works still ongoing with the Luas Cross City project, it seems the changes to the layout of the historic area will deviate from the original vision shown in the image below. New plans are expected to be shown to councillors in the next two weeks and it's expected it will cause controversy amongst various shareholders. The new plans are thought to be derived from the argument that College Green should return to its former glory as a place to visit and linger in rather than simply function as a place to transit through. It is thought the new plans would include a ban on private cars in that area as well as the construction of a new piazza in front of the Bank of Ireland. It is also thought that the ban may extend to buses though no final decision has been made on this point yet. Via The Irish Times A loose remake of 1969s The Swimming Pool, A Bigger Splash is director Luca Guadagninos follow up to the critically lauded (but overrated) I Am Love. Unpredictable and occasionally involving drama is less than the sum of its parts. Tilda Swinton is Marianne Lane, a legendary rock star who has retreated to Pantelleria, a small island off Sicily, to recuperate from a throat operation that has rendered her speechless. Shes there with boyfriend Paul (Schoenaerts), a documentary maker who doesnt take too kindly to the rude intrusion of Ralph Fiennes brash Harry, Mariannes former producer and lover. With him is Penelope (Johnson), a watchful siren whom Harry has just discovered is his daughter, although there is some doubt over his parentage. As Marianne and Harry contemplate rekindling the old flame and Penelope gives Paul the glad eye over the rim of her shades, a simmering sexual tension distrust builds And this is the soup that A Bigger Splash dives into. An exploration of jealousy and attraction, the story can at times feel like it has no direction. It ambles along, content to just hang out in the company of these four self-serving characters as they lounge about the pool and eat food and down daiquiris over candlelight and chat about their careers and their futures. Sounds monotonous and pretentious but Fiennes motormouth party lover keeps the energy levels up, and one is always aware of the tension underneath the pleasantries and the anticipation of when Guadagnino is going to shake things up, which he does in an unexpected fashion. And theres something to be said about the scenery, which these scenes play out in front of. Yorick Le Sauxs cinematography will do wonders for the islands tourism with the camera sweeping over grand landscapes of olive trees, through picturesque side streets, and settling on restaurants jutting out of mountainsides. Gorgeous stuff. But its all a giant so what. Hampered by a lack of dialogue Marianne remains a mystery despite Guadagninos awkward flashbacks, and Harry is a cartoon figure. Johnson doesnt look like shes convinced herself she can pull this off. The only character of real note is Paul, but Schoenaerts is asked to do little more than grumble and hunch. Pretty but empty. Radiohead fans, start raiding your piggybanks. No, Thom Yorke and co. haven't announced an Irish gig (yet), but handwritten lyrics to 'Airbag' - a song from their 1997 album 'OK Computer' - are going up for auction. The lyrics, written in Yorke's scrawl, are on the inside cover of the a copy of William Blake's 'Songs of Innocence & Experience'. It's being auctioned for charity in London next month, and is expected to fetch 800 - 1200 (1000 - 1500). Radiohead are expected to release the follow-up to 2011's 'The King of Limbs' in the coming months, having announced a series of European festival dates in the summer. Via NME On February 21st, viewers across America who have NBC on their boxes will see the closest thing to a 'Friends' reunion we're ever going to get - despite Matthew Perry not being able to make it. As previously reported, the cast of Friends - along with other long running TV staples, such as Taxi, Mike and Molly, Will and Grace, Fraiser, Cheers, and The Big Bang Theory - all gathered to pay tribute to legendary director James Burrows. Needless to say, the Friends segment is what most people want to see, with host Andy Cohen asking such questions as: "Did you all sign contracts saying that you wouldn't sleep with each other?" Surprisingly, it would seem David Scwhimmer is the dedicated spokesperson of the group - or rather he's the scapegoat Lisa Kudrow leaps on when the rest of the cast pause to consider an appropriate answer... Poor Ross. As for why Matthew Perry couldn't make it, he's doing a play by the name of The End of Longing in London. Speaking on the Graham Norton show, he said of the upcoming NBC show: "It's not the reunion everyone is hoping for. They are celebrating Jim Burrows, who was a director of Friends... The other five are going to be on this special and I am going to introduce them from London. I'm doing the play here so I can't be there." Via People / HNGN.com Haitong in high spirits for growth Updated: 2016-01-22 09:41 By Cecily Liu(China Daily Africa) Luiz Luna Vaz's 19-year career at Portuguese bank Banco Espirito Santo experienced a dramatic change in 2015 when the bank's investment banking arm was acquired by Chinese securities company Haitong. The new changes brought great opportunities for Luna Vaz, who was appointed to head Banco Espirito Santo's UK subsidiary in 2010, and has since become chairman of Haitong Bank UK. Sitting in the company's grand offices with its 120 employees inside the London Stock Exchange building, Luna Vaz sets out his ambitious plans for Haitong UK, which is to compete head to head with the UK operations of Japan's Nomura, Jefferies from the US, Canada's RBC and Australia's Macquarie. Luiz Luna Vaz, chairman of Haitong Bank UK, says the bank should grow to become the bank of choice for Chinese companies in London. Cecily Liu / China Daily He says one factor that made all those banks so big in London is their history. As investment banks with an established presence in their home markets, they became the bank of choice for their home clients as they expanded to London. For Haitong to grow to their level of competitiveness, it should become the bank of choice for Chinese firms in London. Haitong Bank, the name created for Banco Espirito Santo's investment division after the acquisition, offers four major categories of services -investment banking, capital markets, structured finance and asset management. The new division is a fully owned subsidiary of Shanghai-based Haitong Securities, founded in 1988, which has become one of China's largest securities companies. "In the UK, you have to be good at something. You cannot be average at everything. Here, you compete with the best players in the world. And the best clients in the world require the best thing," says Luna Vaz. "We have the opportunity to present ourselves as the leading Chinese broker - that's something that sells. We are repositioning ourselves as the China go-to firm. Before, that was not possible. Now, if anyone wants to hear about China, we want them to think of us." Haitong's European expansion fits into the trend of a new wave of Chinese financial firms gaining a foothold in Europe on the back of the continent's financial crisis. Anbang Insurance Group has been buying Dutch and Belgian insurance and banking assets. The Industrial and Commercial Bank of China also bought a majority stake in Standard Bank's London-based trading and markets business last year. Haitong's acquisition, for 379 million euros ($412 million), was well timed. In May 2014, the major shareholder of Banco Espirito Santo was disclosed to be in "serious financial condition" and accounting "irregularities" were found after an external audit was ordered by the Bank of Portugal. The government of Portugal and Portugal's biggest bank, Caixa Geral de Depositos, refused assistance to the group. Longtime CEO Ricardo Salgado resigned in July 2014 under pressure from the Bank of Portugal. The Portuguese government then took Banco Espirito Santo into its own hands and separated its toxic assets from its nontoxic assets. Nontoxic assets were divided into commercial banking and investment banking operations. Selling off the investment banking operations to Haitong generated revenue for the commercial arm to operate, and also allowed the assets to fit into Haitong's rapidly expanding overseas activities. "The profile of the investment bank assets fitted perfectly into the international strategy of Haitong," Luna Vaz says. Banco Espirito Santo's investment banking activities were already rather international, covering areas including Portugal, the UK, Poland, Brazil, India and the US state of New York, and all these footholds were transferred to Haitong in the acquisition. The bank's existing licenses to operate across those financial markets also were transferred to Haitong, which is a more efficient and quicker way for Haitong to gain licenses rather than applying for them itself. Already some of Haitong Bank's activities are taking on a Chinese flavor. Its research reports, for example, have added information on how sectors would perform based on influence from the Chinese economy and sector performance. Its staff members are also selling to clients English translations for Chinese stock analysis reports that Haitong has produced in China. (China Daily Africa Weekly 01/22/2016 page30) Cuba's Castro pays historic visit to France Updated: 2016-02-02 09:29 (Xinhua) French President Francois Hollande (L) welcomes his Cuban counterpart Raul Castro at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, Feb 1, 2016. Cuban President Raul Castro on Monday paid a historic state visit to France, the first ever by a Cuban leader in two decades, with a view to reinforce bilateral ties, increase trade links, and discuss debt relief. [Photo/Xinhua] PARIS - Cuban President Raul Castro on Monday paid a historic state visit to France, the first ever by a Cuban leader in two decades, with a view to reinforce bilateral ties, increase trade links, and discuss debt relief. The two-day visit reflects Cuba's "friendship and high esteem," the French president's office said in a press release. At the Elysee Palace, French President Francois Hollande rolled out the red carpet for the Cuban leader, who is seeking to bolster Havana's connections with the West after being isolated for decades. During a one-hour talk, both leaders are to discuss ways to inject dynamism into a bilateral economic partnership via tourism and transport, in addition to development accords. Besides, they are to sign an agreement to write off $8.5 billion of Cuba's $11.9-billion debt, to convert it into financing for development projects expected to help Havana quicken its growth. France's sales to Cuba totalled 131 million euros ($142.8 million) for January to November 2015, down from 157 million euros in 2014, figures which, according to Mathias Fekl, junior minister in charge of foreign trade and tourism, were "not in line with our ambitions." In December 2014, the United States and Cuba decided to restore their diplomatic ties, which had been severed for 54 years. The European Union also said, led by France, the Netherlands and Spain, that it was interested in resuming ties with the Caribbean island. Several months after, Hollande flew to Havana in a move to further bolster relations and open new business opportunities in Cuba and neighboring Latin American countries. France's economic presence in Cuba is mainly in the hotel industry, construction, telecommunications, energy and banking. Some 60 French firms already operate in Cuba, according to official figures. EU reform proposals show 'real progress': British PM Updated: 2016-02-03 09:36 (Xinhua) Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron speaks to factory staff at the Siemens plant in Chippenham, southern England, February 2, 2016.[Photo/Agencies] LONDON - British Prime Minister David Cameron said on Tuesday that the draft European Union (EU) reform proposals released by European Council President Donald Tusk have showed real progress in all four areas where Britain needs change but there's more work to do. Cameron made the remarks on twitter soon after EU reform proposals had been released. He later said in an interview with the BBC that the draft text delivers "substantial change" in Britain's relationship with the EU. He said there are "important things" still to be worked on, with "more detail to be nailed down" over the coming days. He also acknowledged there is a negotiation with the rest of Europe in the offering but he said "real progress" has been made in his four main negotiating objectives. The proposals released by Tusk will allow for an "emergency brake" on benefits for migrant workers to be imposed immediately after Britain votes in favor of remaining in the union. Speaking at Siemens UK headquarters in Wiltshire, Cameron said: "Britain is better off, more secure, more prosperous, better chance of success for all our families and all our people inside this reformed European Union" if it can secure and improve EU reform proposals. "We are never going to sign up to an ever-closer union, we are going to make sure we maintain our independence as a country and I think we will be able to argue the best of both worlds," he added. British Home Secretary Theresa May, who has held a tough stance toward EU immigrants, said the proposals addressed key concerns of Britain about the "abuse" of EU free movement principles and the use of EU law to prevent the deportation of foreign criminals. "It is encouraging that the commission has agreed with the UK that we should take action to address these two issues," she said in a statement. "So we have made progress and negotiations continue ahead of the February council. As the Prime Minister has said, more work needs to be done, but this is a basis for a deal," she noted. May's remarks have been seen as a boost for Cameron's campaign to let Britain stay in "a reformed EU." British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond also hailed the proposals as "a major step forward." "UK has taken major step forward on EU reform and crossed lines we were told were uncrossable," he tweeted. Abbott Posts 4Q15 Results: Expected Earnings, Missed Revenues (Continued from Prior Part) Established Pharmaceuticals segment sales Abbott Laboratories (ABT) reported ~$0.89 billion of revenues through the companys Established Pharmaceuticals segment. The segment contributed ~17.1% to the companys total revenues of ~$5.2 billion in 4Q15. These sales figures represent about a 10.9% YoY (year-over-year) increase in 4Q15 on an operational basis. But the negative foreign exchange impact of ~14.9% led to the reported decline in revenues of ~4%. The Established Pharmaceuticals segment operates across emerging markets entirely and is mainly a consumer-oriented segment. Key growth drivers During 4Q15 and for fiscal 2015, operational sales for the Established Pharmaceuticals segment grew in double digits driven by a strong growth in emerging market sales. Abbott Laboratories accelerated its locally relevant portfolio expansion across emerging markets and entered into a number of commercial initiatives to improve sales growth and market penetration. In 2015, Abbott made some key acquisitions that contributed significantly to the growth of the company. These acquisitions included CFR Pharmaceuticals in Latin America and Veropharm in Russia. They have helped the company position itself as one of the top branded generic companies in both markets. Abbotts revenues are being driven by various local product acquisitions and internal development programs in the segment. These helped improve the productivity of new product launches in 2015 compared to the previous year. Growth of the Established Pharmaceuticals segment was also impacted by the economic challenges in Venezuela. But operational efficiency and strong management strategies continue to drive strong growth in the segment. Investors seeking diversified exposure to Abbott Laboratories can invest in the iShares U.S. Healthcare ETF (IYH). IYH accounts for approximately 2.1%, 4%, 0.87%, and 0.75% of Abbott Laboratories, Medtronic (MDT), Boston Scientific (BSX), and Baxter (BAX), respectively. Story continues Continue to Next Part Browse this series on Market Realist: An Airbus A380 is seen on the production line at Airbus headquarters in Toulouse, in this January 13, 2011 file photo. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer/Files By Tim Hepher and Nadia Saleem PARIS/DUBAI (Reuters) - An economic battle is likely for dominance of the skies over the Gulf after Iran decided to invest $27 billion in an airline fleet capable of taking on the region's supercarriers. By ordering dozens of long-distance European jets last month after the lifting of sanctions, Iran is positioning Tehran as a potential long-term transit point between East and West to rival regional hubs such as Dubai, air officials and analysts say. The move is underscored by Tehran's choice of Airbus A380, which is the world's largest jetliner and is used by other Gulf carriers, and sends a political warning to Iran's neighbours not to ignore the Islamic Republic's emergence from isolation. "Certainly this is our historical position: we have always been a center for communications in the region," Transport Minister Abbas Akhouni said in an interview. The investment also points to a strategy to take part in the globalization of the transport industry alongside Gulf rivals, even though the social and economic challenges of building a world-class hub are formidable for Iran. "We used to be a very important airline in the region and globally, so of course we want to play our role fully once again," Iranair Chairman Farhad Parvaresh told Reuters. Iran signed a deal for 118 Airbus jets, and contracts to expand the main Tehran airport, during a visit to Europe by President Hassan Rouhani, less than two weeks after sanctions were lifted in exchange for curbs on Iran's atomic program. Not all the planes are expected to go to Iranair, but Tehran says it will give the flag carrier priority. Nor will Iran's hub ambitions bear fruit any time soon, as its airlines must focus first on rebuilding a busy domestic network and catering for inbound tourism and business traffic. "The A380s don't arrive for another five years," Parvaresh said in an interview. "Before then we need to watch closely the expansion of Imam Khomeini (Tehran International) airport." Story continues OUTSIDERS EYE IRAN'S MARKET Arab Gulf carriers dominate long-haul travel thanks to smart, efficient hubs and a strategic position that places two thirds of the world's population within an optimal 4-8 hours' flying time from Dubai, home to regional heavyweight Emirates. The only serious regional competitor to Gulf carriers for now is Turkish Airlines. But the variety of short- and long-haul jets acquired by Iran suggests it wants a share of the spoils in the future. "(Iranair's) obvious intention is to become part of the network operation that the Gulf carriers have operated so effectively," said Peter Harbison, chairman of airline thinktank CAPA, which held an aviation meeting in Tehran last month. "Iran is very well geographically positioned ... We are obviously looking a few years out to get to that stage, but it is really where they need to be in 10 years time." Even before then, it faces a contest to serve its own market as foreign carriers will be eyeing opportunities in the country of 80 million. The International Air Transport Association (IATA), a trade association, has predicted Iran's market will more than treble from 12 million passengers a year now, mostly domestic flyers, to 44 million by 2034. "While the airlines here (in Iran) are rebuilding their capacity, the regional carriers ... are looking to suck traffic out over the Gulf airports," Dick Forsberg, strategy chief at aircraft lessor Avolon, said during the CAPA Iran Aviation Summit. "It is going to be very hard for the airlines here to recover that leakage in the short- and perhaps even medium-term." Already 28 foreign carriers serve Iran and more are likely to arrive, says CAPA. "We are not afraid of competition," Parvaresh said. "We have good relations with most other carriers and there is no problem. I think Iranians for example will want to mainly fly with Iranair." PLAYING "CATCH-UP" Parvaresh said Iranair would start flights to Toronto, home to an estimated 50,000 Canadian Iranians. It is also widely expected to seek alliances to help it grow. Gulf carriers Emirates and Qatar Airways declined comment on Iran. Abu Dhabi's Etihad said it always welcomed competition. A Gulf industry executive said it was too early to gauge Tehran's plans, but added "Iran is a new market for everyone; there is enough demand". Iran would need huge investment and an improved political climate to catch up with deep-pocketed Gulf rivals that are "25-30 years ahead," he said. With traffic of 6 million passengers a year, Tehran's airport is dwarfed by Dubai's 78 million. Iran plans to boost capacity to 45 million on the way to a target of 70 million. Any attempt by Iranair to mimic the hub-based business model of Gulf carriers could add a fourth big connecting airport to the three already operating: two in the United Arab Emirates and one in Qatar. "When you have such an early-mover advantage as the (Arab Gulf carriers), there's so much learning that it is extremely difficult to catch up. It's not just about hardware and infrastructure but also about developing the skill, the management layer to operate competitively," said a Dubai-based aviation analyst who asked not to be named. Some experts have already questioned whether the region can sustain three hubs close together, especially in the event of a downturn, but Gulf airlines say traffic remains buoyant. RULES ON ALCOHOL, WOMEN COVERING HEAD Even so, other political and economic questions remain over Iran's bid to divert international traffic across the Gulf. These include the impact of low prices on Iran's ambitious airport construction plans, uncertainty over wary ties with the West and questions over how flexible its establishment will be in implementing strict Islamic rules on passengers in transit. Iran does not serve alcohol and women are obliged to respect customs requiring them to cover heads and bodies when entering the country's airspace on Iranian aircraft. In a sign that buying more planes and implementing flexible rules will not be easy, some Iranian hardliners have criticized the Airbus deal for diverting cash from bigger priorities. Much also depends on how Iran regulates the new traffic as the government negotiates new bilateral air traffic accords. "They don't want to fall in the trap that Air India got into," said CAPA's Harbison, referring to an influx of foreign capacity before the local champion was ready to compete. "If you have a liberal bilateral strategy and a liberal investment strategy in national airlines, then getting to a stage where there is something of a threat to the operations of Gulf carriers is quite feasible in say a decade." (Additional reporting by Parisa Hafezi, Editing by Timothy Heritage) al shabaab In September of 2012, Somali and African Union troops moved against Kismayo, the last major city in the country still under the control of al Shabaab, Somalia's al Qaeda franchise. As the offensive approached, Shabaab beat a tactical retreat into the country's hinterlands, ending a period in which the jihadist group controlled substantial territory and represented the country's most powerful political and social force. It's been nearly three-and-a-half years since the African Union force hastened the end of al Shabaab 's state-building project. But the group made a canny strategic decision, contracting into defensible territory, consolidating its safe haven, and evolving into a deadly and resilient insurgency. Shabaab lost much of its land, but helped ensure its ability to kill on a massive scale for years to come. Shabaab's success calls into question whether the ISIS threat will be contained even if the group loses its strongholds in Mosul, in Iraq, and Raqqa, in Syria. Like ISIS, al Shabaab was a significant territorial power squaring off against a multinational military force purpose-built to dismantle it. And like ISIS, Al Shabaab has an external attack infrastructure, proven battlefield capabilities, and trans-national influence and reach. Over the past month, al Shabaab has demonstrated its endurance, even despite territorial losses, infighting, and the death of key leadership. Three incidents show just how threatening the group still is. Together, they represent an ominous precedent for the future of organizations like ISIS. KDF Story continues On January 15th, al Shabaab overran a Kenyan military base in el-Ade, in southwestern Somalia, killing as many as 60 soldiers. The Kenyan military pulled out of el-Ade 11 days later, effectively ceding the territory to the jihadists. The attack exposed alarming weaknesses within the African Union military mission, which has succeeded in removing al Shabaab from Mogadishu and restoring the country's internationally recognized government. Shabaab delivered an apparent battlefield defeat to a western-backed conventional military, entering the Kenyan Defense Forces base through a frontal assault and then killing scores of soldiers during the ensuring firefight. The aftermath of the assault is equally significant. Kenya ceded territory that could be considered vital to the country's national security. El-Ade isn't far from the Kenyan border, and the country has been the site of deadly al Shabaab atrocities in recent years, including the September 2013 Westgate Mall attack in Nairobi, in which 67 people were killed; and the April 2015 massacre of 147 students at Garissa University, in eastern Kenya. That Kenya pulled out of a place like el-Ade calls into question the state of the African Union mission and suggests that al Shabaab is still formidable on the battlefield. Shabaab grapic Just a few days later, on January 22nd, Shabaab gunmen stormed a beachside restaurant in Mogadishu, killing as many as 20 people. Unlike the el-Ade attack, the Lido Beach assault was focused on a soft civilian target, and one with particular resonance for citizens of the Somali capital: the beach is one of the city's few remaining leisure spots. Al Shabaab is also infamously hostile to most forms of beach recreation, bombing beachside restaurants and banning soccer when it ruled over the city. Mogadishu has been a frequent target of al Shabaab attacks. But it's also seen its economy expand since Shabaab lost control of the city in 2011, thanks in part to the 2012 return of the Somali government and Somali diaspora investment. The Lido Beach attack showed that al Shabaab can kill still dozens of people in the city's equivalent of Central Park. Somlia hole plane Finally, on Tuesday, an apparent bomb blew a hole in the side of a Somali passenger jet traveling between Mogadishu and Djibouti, killing one passenger and forcing the plane to make an emergency landing in the Somali capital. On Wednesday, Reuters reported that investigators believe al Shabaab is responsible for the blast. Sneaking a bomb aboard a commercial airliner is a difficult feat just about anywhere in the world and the Mogadishu airport zone is a heavily guarded area. The airport is considered one of the few places in the city that foreign dignitaries can safely visit. It also encompasses offices and residential areas that are physically walled off from the surrounding city, a veritable "green zone" whose tenants include Bancroft, a US-owned security contractor. Al Shabaab didn't just bomb a commercial plane. It might also have managed to smuggle an explosive device inside the most heavily guarded location in the entire country. If Shabaab was responsible for the suspected bomb attack, it would mark the first instance of the group detonating a bomb onboard a passenger plane. Like the other two attacks, it would be a gruesome sign of the group's resilience and of its increasing danger years after the height of its territorial power. Reuters contributed to this report. NOW WATCH: The US Navy's last line of defense is this ultimate gun More From Business Insider (updates with details of talks, background) By Daniel Bases NEW YORK, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Sovereign debt settlement talks between the government of Argentina and holdout bondholders stemming from an historic default in 2002 made further progress on Wednesday, the court appointed mediator, Daniel Pollack, said in a statement. "Some progress was made today. Discussions will continue tomorrow," Pollack said. Thursday's discussions between Argentine Finance Secretary Luis Caputo and various holdout investors would mark the fourth straight day of meetings between the two sides in the dispute. In the U.S. courts there are $9 billion worth of claims against Argentina that remain to be settled, Pollack said in a statement at the start of this round of talks on Monday. Caputo, a former bond trader with Deutsche Bank, sits at the negotiating table with a market mindset that is different from the previous government's chief negotiator, former Economy Minister Axel Kicillof, an economist and academic. One source familiar with the discussions in New York said the talks could extend potentially through to Friday. A second source familiar with the talks characterized the discussions as "intense and highly complex" given different investor groups are now involved rather than just the main holdouts led by Elliott Management and Aurelius Capital Management. In November 2014, Pollack was given authority by presiding U.S. District Judge Thomas Griesa to grant other holdout investors a seat at the negotiating table. Argentina appears to be working systematically to settle with those various holdout groups. On Tuesday, Finance Minister Alfonso Prat-Gay, an ex-banker with JPMorgan Chase & Co, announced a settlement with Italian creditors who hold unpaid sovereign debt. Argentina will pay them $1.35 billion in cash. That represents a payment of 150 percent on the $900 million principal value of the defaulted bonds. Any deal the administration of newly elected President Mauricio Macri reaches with holdout bondholders is subject to approval in Argentina's congress where Macri does not hold a majority. Story continues While in New York Caputo has said on several occasions that he sees progress and has met with several different holdout investors. Press reports on Wednesday indicate he reiterated that talks remain informal and in confidence. However, it is still unclear whether or not Argentina has signed a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) that Elliott and Aurelius demanded. The government has insisted that they have to operate with open and transparent discussions. The second source familiar with the negotiations says the government has not signed the NDA. (Reporting By Daniel Bases; Editing by Andrew Hay) VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA/COAST SALISH TERRITORY--(Marketwired - Feb 4, 2016) - The BC Government and Service Employees' Union (BCGEU) signed a Solidarity Accord today, affirming its support of the Save the Fraser Declaration, an Indigenous law signed by representatives of well over 100 First Nations banning tar sands transport through their territories. The addition of the 65,000 member union (about a third of whom work in direct government service) to a growing alliance of tar sands pipeline opponents, puts additional pressure on the BC government as it prepares to respond to a recent Supreme Court ruling requiring it to make a decision on Northern Gateway and to consult First Nations before doing so. "We agree with the recent ruling of the BC Supreme Court that the Province has not met its duty to consult First Nations on Enbridge's Northern Gateway," said Paul Finch, Treasurer of the BC Government and Service Employees' Union. "Provincial decision-making on Northern Gateway is an issue that impacts BCGEU members, and we believe deeply that staunch opposition from First Nations cannot be ignored by governments in dealing with these types of proposals. We are proud to support the Save the Fraser Declaration, which demonstrates the resolve of First Nations in refusing consent for Northern Gateway." The Solidarity Accord, which has also been signed by other labour unions such as Unifor and the BC Teachers' Federation, as well as business, environmental and community groups, was spearheaded by the Yinka Dene Alliance, whose members' territories represent 25% of the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline route. "We have never wavered from upholding our own laws and our conclusion that the risks are too great to allow Enbridge's Northern Gateway and similar tar sands projects to cross our territories," said Chief Stanley Thomas of Saik'uz First Nation. "It has been heartening to see how strongly we are supported by people throughout Canada," said Nak'azdli Chief Fred Sam. "To have the BC Government and Service Employees' Union standing alongside us is a welcome reminder of that." Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, President of the Union of BC Indian Chiefs, stated: "BCGEU's endorsement of the Save the Fraser Declaration is indicative that more and more Canadians are committing to respect the laws and authority of First Nations and their efforts to protect the environment, fisheries and the health and safety of all BC communities from Enbridge's Northern Gateway and other tar sands projects. Premier Clark and Prime Minister Trudeau be advised: the proposed Enbridge Northern Gateway is dead, dead, dead. We call on you to stand with us, and to work with us to come up with alternatives for real change." By Adam Jourdan SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Yum Brands Inc (YUM.N), the home of KFC and Pizza Hut, is falling behind rival McDonald's Corp (MCD.N) as the pair battle to revive flagging sales in China - a headache for Yum as it looks to spin off operations in its biggest market. A Reuters analysis of same-store sales data suggests McDonald's is recovering faster in China than larger rival Yum as both seek to bounce back from a slew of food safety scandals dating back to 2012. McDonald's said last week fourth-quarter same-store sales in China rose 4 percent, a second straight quarter of growth. On Wednesday, Yum said its same-store sales, reflecting underlying growth, also returned to growth in the second half - but more slowly, leaving annual China sales falling for the first time. Researchers and consumers said there's no simple answer to explain why McDonald's is faring better than Yum. A weaker economy and strengthening local rivals are among a complex cocktail of issues both firms must deal with in future strategy, including Yum's China spinoff, due later this year. Yum is still the largest fast food chain in China, but McDonald's has one in-built advantage: the country's diners remain particularly sensitive about chicken products, which were at the heart of the scandal in 2012. "Hearing all the rumors about chickens, I now very rarely go to KFC or eat McDonald's chicken wings." said Yang Luo, 26, a sales manager in Shanghai. "Hamburgers are okay, though." Yum's 0.4 percent sales drop in 2015 in China, after two years of flatline growth, underlines how managers have struggled to repair its reputation. Chinese diners once flocked to its outlets - as well as to McDonald's - helping drive revenue growth of nearly 30 percent each year between 2006 and 2012. "After the food scares erupted, me and my family didn't go for a long time to these fast food chains," said Zhao Ruoqing, 24, a student in the western Chinese city of Chengdu. "I'm not sure I totally trust either chain yet, but I now go to McDonald's when I'm in a rush because I prefer the atmosphere," said Zhao, adding he liked that the chain had maintained a more authentic American feel. Story continues 'SILVER BULLET' The Reuters analysis of same-store sales data suggests McDonald's is now outpacing Yum in efforts to restore sales to the level they were at before food safety crises. Same-store sales data reflects organic growth rather than that driven by new stores. The analysis, using same-store sales growth data to roughly track growth since a starting point in 2011, suggests Yum's sales are below 80 percent of the level they were then. McDonald's sales, meanwhile, are back to above 95 percent of that level. McDonald's officials in China didn't respond to requests for comment, while Yum China officials weren't immediately available for comment. "The scandals have stuck to KFC much more than McDonald's in consumers' minds," said James Roy, Shanghai-based associate principal at China Market Research Group. The problem for Yum as it looks to revive its growth momentum is there is no single factor behind its China malaise, a senior Yum executive told Reuters. That makes life complicated as Yum readies to split off its China business with a view to a separate listing, either in Hong Kong or the United States. "Everyone is looking for a silver bullet," the executive said, asking not to be named as he wasn't authorized to speak to the media. "All factors contribute - it's a complex market." (Additional reporting by Engen Tham; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell) (Adds details on truck makers) By Alonso Soto and Alberto Alerigi Jr. BRASILIA/SAO PAULO, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Brazil's trade minister called for unrestricted auto trade with Mexico and Argentina on Thursday, after data showed the local automotive sector had its worst January in a dozen years. In a brief interview with Reuters, Trade Minister Armando Monteiro said he would propose free trade in vehicles and auto parts when he travels next week to Mexico and Argentina. That means scrapping quotas imposed in recent years when sharp currency swings heightened trade tensions between Mexico's export-oriented auto industry and the more protectionist members of South American trading bloc Mercosur. For Brazil, a chance to ramp up exports could bring some relief amid a crisis that has thrown one in six auto workers out of a job over the past two years, as tight credit and a deepening recession strangles domestic demand for vehicles. Production of cars and trucks in Brazil dropped 29.3 percent in January from a year earlier, national automakers' association Anfavea reported earlier on Thursday. It was the lowest output to start the year since 2003. January sales fell 38.8 percent from January 2015 to the lowest monthly total in nearly nine years. Compared with December, output edged up 1.6 percent and sales tumbled 31.8 percent. A third of the industry's nearly 130,000 workers are on some kind of furlough, as automakers struggle to cut capacity without resorting to more costly layoffs. "Several companies are offering furloughs, paid leave and longer stoppage times around the Carnival holiday to try and protect jobs. But clearly we have excess workers," said Anfavea President Luiz Moan. Despite those efforts, inventories have climbed to nearly 50 days of sales, making it likely that automakers will further trim production in coming months, he said. Last week, General Motors Co began firing about 800 workers at a Sao Paulo factory. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV halted work at its Betim plant for 20 days, starting at the end of January. Story continues Truck makers are even worse off, with nearly 60 percent unused capacity, Anfavea officials said. Brazil was until recently one of the world's five biggest auto markets, and it remains a major base of operations for FCA, GM, Volkswagen AG and Ford Motor Co. According to Anfavea data, FCA remained Brazil's top seller of cars and light trucks in January with about 28,200 new vehicles. GM held its lead over VW, with about 27,100 sales, ahead of its German rival's roughly 20,700 new registrations. (Reporting by Alonso Soto and Alberto Alerigi Jr; Writing and additional reporting by Brad Haynes; editing by W Simon and Chizu Nomiyama) (Corrects size of deposit reserve to 1.6 million ounces, not 1,603 ounces, in third paragraph) ULAN BATOR, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Canada's Centerra Gold Inc has been given the go-ahead from Mongolia's lawmakers to mine the Gatsuurt Gold deposit after a five-year delay, as the resource-rich country looks to bolster its economic activity and gold reserves. Mongolia's once-booming economy has taken a steep slide, with the Asian Development Bank estimating growth in 2015 at less than 3 percent compared with 17.5 percent in 2011. Mongolia hopes to rake in greater revenue this year and stimulate growth by green lighting projects such as Gatsuurt, despite a backlash from some citizens. The parliament passed a bill granting the country 34 percent ownership of the mine with 1.6 million ounces of probable gold reserves, a government website says. Centerra, which also owns the Boroo mine in Mongolia, will hold the remaining 66 percent of equity. With the parliament's approval, the government can now negotiate the final conditions for mining with Centerra. Approval comes a year after legislators rejected the first deal proposed with a smaller stake holding for the government in return for larger royalty fees. It also follows an agreement signed last May to relaunch an expansion project at Mongolia's Oyu Tolgoi copper mine, owned by Rio Tinto with a price tag of $4-6 billion. Centerra has been waiting since 2010 for a decision from the government on whether it could go ahead after a law banned mining at certain areas near forests and water sources, including the Gatsuurt deposit. In December 2014, Gatsuurt was included in a list of strategic deposits that is exempt from the restrictions but requires government ownership. The deposit has attracted opposition from environmentalists and conservationists concerned about sites where historical artefacts have been discovered at the Noyon Uul mountain, located seven km away from where Centerra plans to mine. Story continues The government led by Prime Minister Chimed Saikhanbileg ramped up efforts to reach a deal when artisanal miners began mining the area for themselves illegally. The legislation establishes special protected areas that includes Noyon Uul where mining will not be permitted. A spokesperson from the mining ministry could not confirm that the specially protected areas did not include Gatsuurt, but said that would be the likely result. (Reporting by Terrence Edwards; Editing by Sue-Lin Wong and David Evans) (Adds details, comments from Centerra spokesman, updates stock price, paragraphs 4-5, 13) By Terrence Edwards ULAN BATOR, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Canada's Centerra Gold Inc has received the go-ahead from lawmakers in Mongolia to mine the Gatsuurt deposit after a five-year delay, as that resource-rich country looks to bolster its economic activity and gold reserves. Mongolia's once-booming economy has taken a steep slide, with the Asian Development Bank estimating 2015 growth at less than 3 percent compared with 17.5 percent in 2011. Mongolia hopes to boost revenue and stimulate growth by advancing projects such as Gatsuurt, despite some backlash. The parliament passed a bill on Thursday granting the country 34 percent ownership of the Gatsuurt project, with 1.6 million ounces of probable gold reserves, a government website said. Centerra, which also owns the Boroo mine in Mongolia, will hold the remaining 66 percent. The government can now negotiate final conditions for mining with Toronto-based Centerra, whose stock closed nearly 0.5 percent higher. "In October, as we announced, we agreed with the government on a 3 percent special royalty in place of the state 34 percent ownership," said Centerra spokesman John Pearson. "This (bill) just gives the goverment the authorization to put this in place." Developing Gatsuurt will require "very modest" initial capital investment, said Centerra Chief Executive Scott Perry, because the project will use a mill and other infrastructure at Centerra's existing Boroo mine, which is 55 kilometres (34 miles) away. Approval comes a year after legislators rejected the first deal, which proposed a smaller government stake in return for larger royalty fees. It also follows an agreement signed last May to relaunch an expansion project at Mongolia's $4-6 billion Oyu Tolgoi copper mine, owned by Rio Tinto . Centerra has been waiting since 2010 for a decision from the government on whether it could proceed, after a law banned mining at certain areas near forests and water sources, including Gatsuurt. Story continues In December 2014, Gatsuurt was included in a list of strategic deposits exempt from the restrictions, but requiring government ownership. Environmentalists and conservationists oppose the development, concerned about historical artefacts discovered in neighbouring sites at the Noyon Uul mountain. The government ramped up efforts to reach a deal when artisanal miners began mining the area illegally. Separately, on Thursday, a Kyrgyz representative on Centerra's board said Kyrgyzstan may sue the company over its plans to issue additional shares, which will dilute the Central Asian nation's stake slightly. Equity issues are routine business transactions, said Pearson, who declined to comment further. (With additional reporting by Susan Taylor in Toronto; Editing by Sue-Lin Wong, David Evans and David Gregorio) TORONTO, ON--(Marketwired - February 04, 2016) - Centerra Gold Inc. (CG.TO) announced that the Mongolian Parliament has passed a resolution setting the state ownership interest in the Gatsuurt Project at 34% and authorizing the government to complete negotiations with Centerra on the terms of such ownership. In October 2015, the Company and the Government agreed to a 3% special royalty in place of the state 34% ownership interest in the project (such royalty being in addition to the existing Mongolian mineral royalty and tax regime). Based on our discussions with the Government, Centerra understands that the resolution is a mandate to the Government to implement such agreement between Centerra and the Government. Scott Perry, Centerra's Chief Executive Officer stated, "The parliamentary resolution is a very important next step in advancing the Gatsuurt Project. The Gatsuurt Project represents an exciting opportunity to use Centerra's existing Boroo mill and other infrastructure to develop the 1.6 million ounce Gatsuurt deposit with very modest initial capital investment. The Company will now focus on finalizing the investment agreements with the Government of Mongolia. We look forward to developing Gatsuurt so we can continue to operate in Mongolia for many more years to come." The Company expects to proceed with negotiating definitive agreements (including a deposit development agreement and an investment agreement) with the Mongolian Government. Following the successful completion of such agreements, the Company will undertake economic and technical studies to update the existing studies on the project, which were completed and published in May 2006. As part of such work, the Company will undertake a program of exploration drilling, aimed at substantially expanding the Gatsuurt oxide resource, and additional hydrogeological drilling. Following completion of definitive agreements the Company expects to provide an update on the timeline for completion of such studies and drilling and for the start of project development. Story continues The Gatsuurt Project is located approximately 55 kilometres by road from the Company's Boroo mine and is expected to be developed in accordance with applicable Mongolian environmental regulations and international standards, consistent with the standards adopted by the Boroo mine. The Gatsuurt Project's estimated mineral reserves as at December 31, 2014 were 17.1 million tonnes at an average grade of 2.9 grams of gold per tonne containing 1.6 million ounces of gold using a cut-off grade of 1.4 grams per tonne. Mineral reserves have been estimated based on a gold price of US$1,300 per ounce. For further information, please refer to Centerra's 2014 Annual Information Form dated March 31, 2015. The Company plans to mine the ore at Gatsuurt and truck it approximately 55 kilometres to the existing Boroo mill to be processed. The current Gatsuurt plan is to process approximately 3.6 million tonnes of CIP ore (oxides) with an average grade of 2.86 grams of gold per tonne through the existing Boroo facility in the first two and a half operating years of the Gatsuurt Project. During this time, a BIOX facility is planned to be added to the existing Boroo facility to be used for processing the remaining sulfide ores totaling approximately 13.5 million tonnes with an average grade of 2.92 grams of gold per tonne. Qualified Person The reserve and resource information and related scientific and technical information in this news release were prepared in accordance with the standards of the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum and National Instrument 43-101 and were prepared, reviewed, verified and compiled by Centerra's geological and mining staff under the supervision of Gordon Reid, Professional Engineer and Centerra's Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer, who is the qualified person for the purpose of NI 43-101. Further information concerning the Gatsuurt deposit, including key assumptions, parameters and methods used to estimate mineral resources and reserves, as well as legal, political, environmental and others risks are described in Centerra's 2014 Annual Information Form dated March 31, 2015 and the Technical Report on the Gatsuurt Gold Project, Northern Mongolia prepared for Centerra Gold Inc. dated May 9, 2006, each of which have been filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-looking Information Information contained in this news release which is not a statement of historical facts, may be "forward-looking information" for the purposes of Canadian securities laws. Such forward-looking information involves risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results, performance, prospects and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward looking information. The words "intends", "continue", "may", "will", and similar expressions identify forward-looking information. These forward looking statements relate to, among other things, negotiation of agreements and receipt of required permits, regulatory approvals and regulatory commissioning; reserve and resource estimates; plans for the future development of the Gatsuurt Project; estimates of future production, mining haulage and processing; and the Company's future operations in Mongolia. Forward-looking information is necessarily based upon a number of estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by Centerra, are inherently subject to significant political, business, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies. Such factors include, among other things: political and regulatory risks in Mongolia; resource nationalism; the impact of changes in, or more aggressive enforcement of; laws, regulations and government practices in Mongolia; the sensitivity of the Centerra's business to global financial conditions, including the future price of gold; the potential for imprecision in the estimation of mineral reserves and resources; the Company's ability to obtain all the required approvals, permits and regulatory commissioning for the Gatsuurt Project from the Mongolian Government; the ability of the Company to negotiate a deposit development agreement and an investment agreement, ore haulage and BIOX agreements and other agreements necessary for the Gatsuurt Project; the ability of the Company to complete and obtain positive results from exploration drilling, hydrogeological drilling and other works at the Gatsuurt site, the Company's ability to carry out economic and technical studies in a timely manner and that the results of such studies are positive; the impact of continued scrutiny of Mongolian regulatory authorities on the Company's operations in Mongolia; risks related to operational matters, including the ability of the Company to construct the necessary mining and processing infrastructure for the Gatsuurt Project; and such other factors as described under the heading "Risk Factors" in Centerra's most recently filed annual information form available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. There can be no assurances that forward-looking information and statements will prove to be accurate, as many factors and future events, both known and unknown could cause actual results, performance or achievements to vary or differ materially, from the results, performance or achievements that are or may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements contained herein or incorporated by reference. Accordingly, all such factors should be considered carefully when making decisions with respect to Centerra, and prospective investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is as of February 4, 2016. Centerra assumes no obligation to update or revise forward-looking information to reflect changes in assumptions, changes in circumstances or any other events affecting such forward-looking information, except as required by applicable law. About Centerra Centerra is a Canadian-based gold mining company focused on operating, developing, exploring and acquiring gold properties in Asia, North America and other markets worldwide. Centerra is the largest Western-based gold producer in Central Asia. Centerra's shares trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) under the symbol CG. The Company is headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Additional information on Centerra is available on the Company's web site at www.centerragold.com and at SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Attachment Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/2/4/11G081482/4-Gastuurt-Approval-Final-f85f4542bdf3ad13a10e02d60b833107.pdf By Ludwig Burger BASEL, Switzerland (Reuters) - China made its boldest overseas takeover move when state-owned ChemChina agreed a $43 billion bid for Swiss seeds and pesticides group Syngenta on Wednesday, aiming to improve domestic food production. The largest ever foreign purchase by a Chinese firm, announced by both companies, will accelerate a shake-up in global agrochemicals and marks a setback for U.S. firm Monsanto, which failed to buy Syngenta last year. China, the world's largest agricultural market, is looking to secure food supply for its population. Syngenta's portfolio of top-tier chemicals and patent-protected seeds will represent a major upgrade of its potential output. "Only around 10 percent of Chinese farmland is efficient. This is more than just a company buying another. This is a government attempting to address a real problem," a source close to the deal told Reuters. Years of intensive farming combined with overuse of chemicals has degraded land and poisoned water supplies, leaving China vulnerable to crop shortages. The deal fits into Beijing's plans to modernise agriculture over the next five years. "I was sent to the countyside at the age of 15, so I'm very familiar with what farmers need when they work the land. The Chinese have relied mainly on traditional ways of farming. We want to spread Syngentas integrated solution among smallholder farmers," ChemChina Chairman Ren Jianxin told a media briefing. With growth slowing at home, Chinese companies are increasingly looking abroad for deals that can boost their business and help them diversify. If completed, ChemChina's Syngenta purchase would be more than double CNOOC's $17.7 billion buy of Canadian energy company Nexen in 2012. ChemChina last year bought Italian tyre maker Pirelli and last month said it would buy German industrial machinery maker KraussMaffei Group for some $1 billion. Shares in Syngenta rose on news of the deal, but at around 412 Swiss francs, were some way below the agreed offer price of $465 per share, equivalent to 480 francs, reflecting market concerns that the deal could yet stumble over regulatory hurdles and limited expectations of a counter-offer. Story continues "Syngenta has never been valued so highly. Over the last few years the company has failed to demonstrate it can generate reasonable earnings on its own," Patrick Huber, a fund manager at Mirabaud Asset Management told Reuters. "We will definitely tender our shares at the offered price. I can't imagine another bidder making a higher offer," Huber said, adding that although U.S. regulators may not block the deal, they could delay it. REGULATORY ISSUES Syngenta CEO John Ramsay, who described the ChemChina offer as "very appropriate and attractive", said he saw no major barriers and noted that ChemChina -- short for China National Chemical Corp -- had secure financing in place. A source with knowledge of the deal said the funding would come from a range of Chinese players, as well as HSBC and China CITIC Bank International. "I think the overall regulatory approvals will not be very challenging," Ramsay told Reuters, adding he expected antitrust regulators to acknowledge the limited overlap. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), whose mandate is U.S. national security, would not pose a major hurdle, Ramsay said. Swiss regulators said their conditions were largely met by the terms of the deal, although they want Swiss retail investors to receive the ChemChina offer in Swiss francs and warnings to be given on foreign exchange risks. Syngenta's board would still have to consider any rival offers, Ramsay said, although there are tough financial penalty clauses for both parties if they fail to deliver on the deal. In a hint of what may be in store for the enlarged group, Syngenta's chairman said ChemChina will be on the lookout for more deals as China strives to improve its food supply. "ChemChina has a very ambitious vision of the industry in the future. Obviously it is very interested in securing food supply for 1.5 billion people and as a result knows that only technology can get them there," Michel Demare said. Syngenta is already the largest supplier of crop chemicals, excluding seeds, in China with a 6 percent share of a fragmented market, the group's chief operating officer Davor Pisk said. DOWN ON THE FARM Beijing is seeking to cut reliance on food imports amid limited farm land, a growing population and higher meat consumption. China's combined consumption of pork, beef and poultry has grown by an average 1.7 million tonnes a year for the past decade, placing further stress on feed grain supplies. Meanwhile, a global glut of corn and soybeans has depressed grain prices for the past three years, prompting U.S. farmers to reduce spending on everything from equipment to seeds and pesticides. The cutbacks, along with pressure from investors to bolster profits, have sent many of the world's largest agricultural companies scrambling to cut deals. DuPont and Dow Chemical Co agreed in December on an all-stock merger valued at $130 billion in a first step towards breaking up into three separate businesses, a move that was seen as a trigger for further consolidation. Syngenta was advised by Dyalco, the one-man business of former Goldman Sachs M&A head Gordon Dyal, alongside JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs and UBS while HSBC and China CITIC Bank International advised ChemChina. (1 Swiss franc = $0.9824) (Additional reporting by Michael Shields, Freya Berry, Lisa Jucca, Lawrence White, Elzio Barreto, Aizhu Chen, Oliver Hirt and Gavin Maguire) Venezuela, Nigeria, Russia and other countries that heavily rely on oil revenues are getting more desperate as crude prices languish, said Daniel Yergin, a leading expert international politics, energy and economics. "This day of reckoning is here," he warned on Thursday. But a production-cut deal among OPEC countries and the Russians appears unlikely in the near term, Yergin told CNBC's " Squawk Box ." He said the Gulf producers don't seem interested. "I was on a panel with the chairman of Saudi Aramco a couple weeks ago and he said we don't want to cut to make room for others," namely Iran, which re-entered the market after years of sanctions were lifted last month. To cope with depressed oil prices, which could be exacerbated by new Iranian supply, there have been recent rumblings that Saudi Aramco, the state-owned oil giant, may sell at least part of its operations in an initial public offering. Meanwhile, Russia is looking to sell stakes in some of the nation's largest companies to deal with a crippling recession, largely due to lower oil revenue, which according to Yergin makes up about half the budget. "That's a bell that shows you that this day of reckoning is here, as countries try to figure and their budget[s], try to pull themselves out of what are turning into deep recessions," he said. As the U.S. emerges as a major oil player, America could become the "inadvertent swing producer," the vice chairman of consultancy group IHS said. If crude prices stay low, U.S. output could decline further and help rebalance the market in the second half of the year, he said, predicting a per-barrel range of $40 to $50 by the end of 2016. On the other hand, he added: "You will see activity increase as prices go up. [But] these big, long projects that are being postponed or canceled, they'll be much slower to coming back." Earlier this week , oilman Boone Pickens said on "Squawk Box" he believes U.S. crude has already hit bottom at just above $26 per barrel. And based on history after a floor is set, he said oil prices should double within 12 months. Story continues CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story mischaracterized which countries Daniel Yergin said are getting more desperate as crude prices languish. More From CNBC Crude Oil News: Syrian Peace Talks Suspended, Can Black Gold Gain? (Continued from Prior Part) Russian diplomacy Russias economy depends on crude oil and natural gas exports. Iran is Russias ally. Its hitting its own markets in Asia and Europe. If OPEC is ready to cut the production, it will benefit from higher crude oil prices. It could also protect its market share from Iran. Since the secondary sanctions on Iran have been lifted, Iranian oil will find its route to European and Asian markets. China (FXI) was importing oil from Iran during the sanctions. Now, it can increase its dependence more on Iranian energy exports. China decided to expand its trade with Iran by $600 billion over the next decade. China is an important market for Russian energy exports. The Iranian presidents recent trip to European countries raises a question about the future of Russian energy exports to the continent. Europe imports crude and a significant portion of its natural gas requirement from Russia (ERUS). Gazprom PAO operates with an 85% production mix in natural gas. Europe is an important market for it. Iran has the highest proved natural gas reserves. Gazprom PAO (OGZPY), Lukoil (LUKOY), and Tatneft (OAOFY) represent the large-cap Russian ADRs (American depositary receipts) in the oil and gas sector. The above graph shows the performance of the Russian financial market compared to crude oil prices. In the next part, well discuss the moving averages and analysts estimate for upstream companies. Continue to Next Part Browse this series on Market Realist: A red traffic light is seen next to the headquarters of Germany's Deutsche Bank in Frankfurt, Germany, January 26, 2016. REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach By Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) - Deutsche Bank AG must face a U.S. lawsuit seeking to hold it liable for causing $3.1 billion of investor losses by failing to properly monitor 10 trusts backed by toxic residential mortgages, a federal judge ruled on Wednesday. U.S. District Judge Alison Nathan in Manhattan said Belgium's Royal Park Investments SA/NV may pursue claims that the trustee Deutsche Bank National Trust Co ignored "widespread" deficiencies in how the underlying loans were underwritten and serviced, and failed to require that bad loans be repurchased. Royal Park, which is seeking class-action status on behalf of other investors, said Deutsche Bank breached its fiduciary duties in part out of fear it might lose business or prompt retaliation over the German bank's own problem loans. "Plaintiff's allegations of high default rates, large economic losses, and widespread investigation into RMBS securitization allow the court to draw the reasonable inference that defendant had actual knowledge" of defective loans, the judge wrote. Nathan dismissed some secondary claims. In its June 2014 complaint, Royal Park said its own securities had become "completely worthless." The 10 trusts date from 2006 and 2007. Deutsche Bank spokeswoman Oksana Poltavets declined to comment. Royal Park's lawyers did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Bond issuers appoint trustees to ensure that payments are funneled to investors, and handle back-office work after securities are sold. Many investors have in recent years sued trustees, as well as lenders and underwriters, over losses on badly underwritten mortgages. The case is Royal Park Investments SA/NV v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Co, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 14-04394. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Marguerita Choy) donald trump Real-estate mogul Donald Trump found a creative way on Wednesday to reframe his Obamacare back and forth with Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas). During a Wednesday-night speech in Little Rock, Arkansas, Trump claimed his leading presidential-primary rival was responsible for the Affordable Care Act's key provisions twice being upheld by the Supreme Court. "If it weren't for Ted Cruz he's the one that got Justice Roberts onto the United States Supreme Court. He pushed him. He approved him," Trump said. "And Justice Roberts approved Obamacare twice when it should have been rejected," he added. "His vote got it over the top. Ted Cruz did that. Ted Cruz gave us Obamacare, believe me." Trump overstated Cruz's role in Roberts' appointment to the high court in 2005. Cruz, who was Texas' solicitor general at the time, repeatedly praised Roberts' credentials. Cruz wouldn't enter the Senate, which debates and approves Supreme Court nominees, until 2013. Trump blasted Cruz on the issue after accusing him of lying about Trump's own support for President Barack Obama's signature healthcare legislation. "These guys are bad. I mean, they are bad," Trump said of Cruz. "And then he'll get up and he'll talk about his relationship with God, his relationship with the Bible, his relationship with all sorts of things, and then he'll say, 'Donald Trump loves Obamacare.'" He added: "Now everybody in this room knows I've been opposed to it so strongly. It would have been dead if we had a different justice on the United States Supreme Court [who was] put there by him." Cruz and at least one of his super PACs frequently highlight Trump's past support for a left-leaning universal-healthcare policy, though Trump vows to repeal Obamacare if elected. Indeed, Cruz's campaign spokesman responded to Trump's charge by telling The Associated Press: "Trump's claim is ridiculous, especially considering that he has advocated and supported a single-payer healthcare system along with many other social-liberal policies." Story continues donald trump rally Trump has launched an escalating series of attacks against Cruz since Monday, when the senator beat him in the Iowa caucuses despite his lead in the polls ahead of the vote. Cruz responded by saying Trump couldn't handle defeat and was becoming unhinged. Trump repeatedly latched onto a new argument on Wednesday to claim that he should actually be declared the winner of Iowa. On the night of the Iowa caucuses, Cruz's campaign distributed a CNN report on retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson's seemingly unusual plan to fly home to Florida early and rest instead of moving on directly to the next primary states. As a result, some Cruz supporters and other political observers speculated that Carson was about to drop out. Carson issued a statement denying the rumors and would later accuse Cruz of "dirty tricks." Cruz apologized for his campaign not also distributing Carson's denial. Trump raged on Twitter throughout the day on Wednesday and accused Cruz of "illegally" stealing the Iowa results. Trump called for the unprecedented step of either a do-over vote or for Cruz's results to be nullified. ted cruz Early Thursday morning, Trump again suggested that his second-place showing in Iowa should be moved up to first place. "Ted Cruz should be immediately disqualified in Iowa, with each candidate moving up one notch," he tweeted. Trump has attacked Cruz on a host of other issues, including a provocative Cruz campaign mailer that warned some potential caucus-goers of a "voter violation." The mailer gave its recipients and their neighbors a fake grade based on their supposed record of showing up to vote. In another Thursday-morning tweet, Trump suggested that the mailer was a possible felony: This is the Cruz voter violation certificate sent to everyone, a misdemeanor at minimum. pic.twitter.com/tMav17UGkf Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 4, 2016 Cruz's mailer was embracing a trick of political psychology: According to at least one study, people were more likely to vote when informed about the public nature of their voting histories. Another presidential candidate, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida), also released a "report card" mailer, though Rubio's was less heavy-handed than Cruz's. Trump has also not stopped blasting Cruz for being born in Canada. "The people of this country are great, if you want to know the truth. The people of our country are great. And we don't need a president who was born in Canada, do we agree?" Trump asked his supporters Wednesday night. Cruz was born in Canada to an American mother, and most legal experts believe he meets the Constitution's requirement that presidents be "natural born" citizens. But Trump frequently warns that if Cruz becomes the GOP nominee, Democrats would sue and potentially disqualify him from the presidency. "That is a real problem," Trump said at his Arkansas rally. "All you need to do is give somebody a little bit of a thing called 'the nomination.' Within about 24 hours, the Democrats are going to be suing, and they could very well win based on a lot of constitutional law and a lot of lawyers." He added: "You know, you shouldn't be running for president if you're not allowed to serve, OK?" NOW WATCH: Watch Cruz attack Trumps Twitter tirade: 'Hes losing it' More From Business Insider Sergei Karpukhin | Reuters. Talks between major oil producers about freezing output shows how painful cheap oil is becoming, but it is not likely to bring an end to the world oil glut anytime soon. Squeezed by falling oil prices, Russia is talking about privatizing its major companies to close its budget shortfall. Nigeria is seeking a World Bank loan to cover its $11 billion budget gap. Even Saudi Arabia has been drawing down reserves and discussing selling a stake in its national oil company Saudi Aramco. There's no doubt the oil producing nations and energy companies are feeling the pain of a 75 percent drop in oil prices in the past 1 years. Now their actions are being viewed as the early signs capitulation is coming. Oil prices have been volatile for weeks but especially in recent sessions. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were slightly lower, just above $32 barrels Thursday. But oil moved several percent intraday, after rising 8 percent Wednesday and 5-plus percent moves lower Monday and Tuesday. In the past week, a number of Russian oil officials have said they would talk to OPEC about a production deal, and the oil minister of cash-strapped Venezuela has been traveling from producing nation to producing nation, calling for a meeting between OPEC and non-OPEC countries. Saudi Arabia has said it would only cut back if all producers do, and Iran has said it will not cut back until it restores its exports In the private sector, the pain is being felt from the smallest producing companies to the largest. ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) stunned Wall Street on Thursday when it became the first big oil company to slash its dividend. It cut its quarterly payout by two-thirds and shaved another 17 percent from its capital spending plan after reporting a $3.5 billion loss. BP (London Stock Exchange: BP.-GB) earlier this week announced a loss of $6.5 billion in 2015, its largest ever annual loss. Shale drillers are also suffering. Last week, Continental Resources (NYSE: CLR) said its output would fall by about 10 percent this year and it joined others in cutting its capital budget. "That is capitulation. I know now that all companies are in capitulation. Nobody's pretending anymore," said Oppenheimer energy analyst Fadel Gheit. Story continues Read More Day of reckoning for oil producers: Yergin Conoco's dividend cut was a big deal for the industry and sends a strong message for a sector that has treated its ability to pay dividends as sacrosanct. "These companies were supposed to be cash cows that guaranteed income flow. You're not going to be getting it. The whole model is being upended," said John Kilduff, a partner with Again Capital. "The dividend is at risk for most companies," Gheit said. "Even if oil prices go to $40 or $50, it's not going to save the dividends." Gheit said he expects to see more bankruptcies and mergers, as companies struggle to survive a long stretch of weak prices. All of this talk, however, is not reducing the amount of oil on world markets, with the U.S. continuing to show strong buildups in inventories and an unrelenting production level of about 9.2 million barrels a day. It's also not alone as Saudi Arabia continues to produce at high levels. Russia, in fact, pumped 10.88 million barrels a day last month the most since the fall of the Soviet Union. Even Iraq has upped production, reaching an output level of 4 million barrels a day last month. "I think we're now into the desperation zone," said IHS Vice Chairman Dan Yergin. "What you saw coming down the road is now here, countries not only running out of money but running out of resilience. Virtually every country now is saying we really have to reform. We don't have the succor of high oil prices." All this pain among producers may be nearing a threshold where a real capitulation will not be far behind and oil can bottom because supplies will stop increasing. But even if oil prices are beginning to bottom, it is expected to be a long slow process, and prices are expected to remain at low levels for a long while. "All this chatter tells you we've reached a pain threshold these guys can no longer handle," said Peter Boockvar, market analyst at Lindsey Group. Venezuela, a country that has already seen a government ousted because of economic hardship, has been trying to spark talks between OPEC and non-OPEC nations in an effort to stanch the bleeding. Qatar is cutting back on spending after seeing its first shortfall in 15 years, and Kuwait, Abu Dhabi and Oman have all cut back on power subsidies. Africa's producers are suffering more, with the continent's second largest producer, Angola, introducing austerity measures as it copes with a shortfall in oil revenues. What Saudi Arabia does will ultimately be the key. It drove the change in OPEC policy to market-based pricing in late 2014 in order to maintain its market share. As a low-cost producer and biggest OPEC exporter, it has previously used production cuts to influence the market, but it has said it will not reduce its output if the cutback is not shared with OPEC and non-OPEC producers. But like other producers, Saudi Arabia needs a high price per barrel to meet its budget requirements, an estimated $70 per barrel more than current market prices. "The Saudi plan is working. There's a lot of damage being wrought in the U.S. exploration and production sector. This is why you're not going to get a deal in the short term. The Saudis are going in for the kill," said Kilduff. The U.S. industry, made up of dozens of independent oil companies, would not be willing or able to go along with a plan to cut back, so the only way to slow shale is with low prices. "Saudi Arabia has an objective, and their objective has not been met. They have to bring shale production down significantly, not by a half million, but by a million barrels a day. Yes, it's coming down but not as fast as predicted," said Gheit. U.S production peaked at 9.6 million barrels a day last spring, but it has held steady at about 9.2 million or 9.3 million since. "I always thought the first quarter was going to be the bottom. We are waiting to see that. The trend in U.S. shale, that is the key. If it looks like that is going down faster, that will be the bottom. The longer oil stays low, around $30 or lower, then the quicker we get to a bottom," said Chris Weafer, senior partner with Macro-Advisory. Weafer said the market also needs a realistic view of how much oil Iran will be able to export, now that sanctions have been lifted. Citigroup energy analysts, in fact, said they believe it's likely oil prices have reached their lows, but they expect oil to stay in a low range between the upper $20s and mid to upper $30s for months more, before finally turning higher in the second half of the year. One part of their thesis is that Iran is not being as aggressive as expected in returning crude to market. It has promised an immediate 500,000 barrels a day, then another 500,000 later in the year. "We're seeing some of these signs of stress among producing companies and producing countries, and that has all sorts of effects on supply, but mostly to pull it back," said Citigroup energy analyst Eric Lee. "I think the key message we're trying to say here is it is still likely (the oil price is) going to zigzag around," said Lee. He said oil could trade lower than current levels but he believes it's likely to hold in a new range with a floor of around $27 per barrel for Brent and $26 for WTI. "We're close to a floor," said Lee, noting it now depends on how much pain producers can take. "At the same time financial market positioning was very, very short, very stretched when we got down to $27. We see, as these shorts cover, we pull back to these levels," he said. "Positioning seems to suggest these levels are a little more neutral." Lee said the range for WTI could be between the $26 low and the mid to upper $30s per barrel. By the second half of the year, oil could then start to turn higher, depending on the amount of production cut from the U.S. That will also be determined by how many oil sector companies need to file for bankruptcy and whether bank financing is pulled back when oil companies are reviewed in the spring. Read More Top traders buys energy stocks Lee added that the turning point for producers will depend on their individual breaking points. "The tricky part is trying to say when is the breaking point and when does that filter through to supply declines. Really for the petrol states it's a little bit different in that if prices stay at this kind of level and can start to improve a little bit then most of the oil exporters' production is 'in the money,' just not the government budgets," Lee said. "If you're in that range where government oil revenues are challenged but the oil production is viable in itself, then you're caught in this quandary. You may try to stimulate as much production as possible to generate as much cash as possible." Lee said an example would be Russia. "Let's say the Russian government's fiscal health is in trouble but the companies, especially with the ruble depreciation, are profitable. Then the government may look at more heavily taxing those companies, and it may put a drag on production," he said. Russia, as the world's largest oil producer, is a wild card, but Weafer said it is unlikely to agree to any deal with OPEC to cut back production despite a willingness of officials there to hold talks. He said taxes for the Russian industry are possible, and the government is looking to cut spending as well as sell stakes in its major companies. Read More Russia and the Saudis: The 10 million barrel game of bluff "It's real and it's something the president (Vladimir Putin) will give strong support to because for him, he needs the deficit to be contained so they don't burn through their reserves and become more vulnerable. There is no intention to sell to the public listed market because they don't believe they'll get the valuation. They want to sell to strategic buyers," he said, adding likely buyers are either Chinese or Indian companies. Russian oil giant "Rosneft is at the top of the list," said Weafer, adding a 15 percent stake could be sold. "It's going to come down to horse trading. The thing is both sides have both an advantage and a disadvantage. The Russian disadvantage is very clear. They need the money. They are in a weak position. On the other hand, India and China are very keen to boost their long-term energy supplies and there's no place else to get it. While Russia's position is weak, it's not as weak as it appears." Gheit, too, said it's likely oil has bottomed but it should only reach into the $40s later in the year. "It's going to be a tug of war. There will be no smooth sailing up or down. Oil prices are dictated by fundamentals, geopolitics and by currencies," he said. More From CNBC BRUSSELS, Feb 4 (Reuters) - European Commission forecasts for Portugal are based on a draft budget submitted by Lisbon on January 22 and do not reflect the latest discussions with the Portuguese government on changes, Economic Commissioner Pierre Moscovici said on Thursday. Under power granted during the sovereign debt crisis, the Commission has to check draft euro zone budget plans if they are in line with EU laws. Portugal sent in a draft that fell well short of its obligations under EU rules and the Commission gave it until Friday to agree on changes that would make it compliant. Portugal was supposed to cuts its headline deficit to 2.5 percent already last year, but instead ended up with a 4.2 percent gap. Without policy changes, it will not bring its deficit below 3 percent this year either and its structural deficit is rising sharply, rather than falling as it should, Commission forecasts showed on Thursday. (Reporting By Jan Strupczewski) NASHVILLE, TN--(Marketwired - Feb 4, 2016) - First Colombia Gold Corp. (OTC PINK: FCGD) announced today that it has reached an agreement to purchase a full service car wash located in Bluffton, South Carolina. The car wash location has a current appraisal valuing the property at $860,000 and is currently doing $500,000 in annual revenue. The company has made growth in the retail space a key focus of its growth strategy and has put a lot of focus on the convenience store and car wash sectors. The company's CEO, Jason Castenir, stated, "When we launched our master plan to retool this company and bring it back into a profitable enterprise, we really put in place three areas of emphasis. We wanted to focus on the commercial fuel markets through our terminal locations and grow our fuel resale business, we wanted to have a strong retail presence through convenience store, truck stop and car wash facilities and we wanted to develop our quick serve restaurant business and utilize that brand within the convenience stores locations. This car wash we are announcing today is a very high quality acquisition and a tremendous business that we were able to put in place. This equates to more than $40,000 per month in revenue for our company with great profit margins already in place." The company also reiterated its commitment to complete the 11 convenience store acquisition and plans to update the market in the coming weeks on the specific dates for that closing. Mr. Castenir added, "We are very excited about the revenue possibilities through these acquisitions and fully expect our revenue to increase substantially." Disclaimer This release contains forward-looking statements that are based on beliefs of First Colombia Gold Corp. management and reflect First Colombia Gold Corp.'s current expectations as contemplated under section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. When we use in this release the words "estimate," "project," "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "expect," "plan," "predict," "may," "should," "will," "can," the negative of these words, or such other variations thereon, or comparable terminology, are all intended to identify forward looking statements. Such statements reflect the current views of First Colombia Gold Corp. with respect to future events based on currently available information and are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to, risks and uncertainties pertaining to development of mining properties, changes in economic conditions and other risks, uncertainties and factors, which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievement expressed or implied by such forward looking statements to differ materially from the forward looking statements. The information contained in this press release is historical in nature, has not been updated, and is current only to the date shown in this press release. This information may no longer be accurate and therefore you should not rely on the information contained in this press release. To the extent permitted by law, First Colombia Gold Corp. and its employees, agents and consultants exclude all liability for any loss or damage arising from the use of, or reliance on, any such information, whether or not caused by any negligent act or omission. This press release incorporates by reference the Company's filings with the SEC including 10K, 10Q, 8K reports and other filings. Investors are encouraged to review all filings. There is no assurance First Colombia Gold Corp. will identify projects of merit or if it will have sufficient financing to implement its business plan. There is no assurance that the Company's due diligence on the potential acquisition of oil and gas assets will be favorable nor that definitive terms can be negotiated. Information in this release includes representations from the private companies referred to which has not been independently verified by the company. A downturn in oil prices would affect the potential profitability of the proposed acquisition negatively. An image taken from jihadist media outlet Wilayat Trablus and provided courtesy of the US-based monitoring agency SITE Intelligence Group on June 9, 2015 allegedly shows Islamic State group fighters running in Sirte (AFP Photo/) (SITE Intelligence Group/AFP/File) Washington (AFP) - Islamic State fighters have streamed into Libya in recent months, a US official said Thursday, heightening fears that the extremists are gaining ground and influence in the north African country. About 5,000 IS jihadists are now in Libya, the defense official said, approximately double earlier estimates, while the number of IS extremists in Iraq and Syria has dropped. The updated tallies comes as the adminstration of President Barack Obama faces growing calls for the US military to step up action against the IS group in Libya, where the jihadists have already seized the city of Sirte and an adjoining length of Mediterranean coastline. NATO defense ministers are meeting in Brussels next week to evaluate the ongoing US-led coalition campaign against the IS group and to discuss ways of redoubling efforts. The United States now believes there to be between 19,000 and 25,000 IS fighters in Iraq and Syria -- the group's so-called "caliphate" -- down from a previous count of 20,000-33,000. But there are growing fears about the fate of Libya, which has been in chaos since the NATO-backed ouster of longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011. IS fighters have capitalized on the disarray and spread the group's influence into the north African nation, establishing a stronghold in Sirte, Kadhafi's hometown. Life in the city, which IS fighters seized in June, now resembles that of other towns flying the jihadists' signature black flag. Witnesses have described public executions and say women are no longer allowed outside without a male guardian. Reluctant to see its 18-month air campaign against the IS group in Iraq and Syria spread to a third country, the United States has repeatedly stressed the importance of finding cooperative local partners to help fight the IS group in Libya. Washington has also pushed international allies -- especially former colonial power Italy -- to take the lead in any coalition operations there. Story continues And administration officials say any actions in Libya must be carried out in the context of a functioning government. - Ease of travel to Libya - The decrease of IS fighters in Iraq and Syria is due to successes in the ongoing US-led air campaign and the relative ease of traveling to Libya from north African countries, the US official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. It's a "combination of battlefield deaths, desertions, internal disciplinary actions, recruiting shortfalls and difficulties that foreign fighters face traveling into Syria," the official said. White House spokesman Josh Earnest confirmed the latest tally for Iraq and Syria, based on a new intelligence assessment. Islamic State fighters "continue to be a substantial threat, but the potential numbers have declined," he said. "That's a testament to the efforts of our partners on the ground who are taking the fight to ISIL on the ground," he added, using an alternative acronym for the IS group. While Obama is not considering opening "a new front" against the IS group in Libya, Earnest said the United States is ready to intervene if necessary. "We're going to continue to watch how the threat in Libya evolves and we're going to continue to be prepared to take action," he said. The United States has already taken some limited steps in Libya. In November, it launched an air strike killing top IS leader Abu Nabil, an Iraqi also known as Wissam Najm Abd Zayd al-Zubaydi. And in December the Pentagon acknowledged that a group of US special operations troops who traveled to Libya to "foster relationships" was kicked out of the conflict-torn country soon after arriving. SAO PAULO, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Gerdau SA, the largest steelmaker in the Americas, and JFE Steel Corp have agreed to produce heavy slabs in Brazil, a venture that will allow them to cater for clients in the region and reduce Brazilian imports of the product. Under terms of the agreement, which was unveiled in a Thursday securities filing, JFE Steel will assist Gerdau in the production of heavy slabs from a plant in Ouro Branco, in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. Production of the first generation of thickness gauge is expected by July, the filing added. (Reporting by Guillermo Parra-Bernal; Editing by Mark Potter) RTX24XJO German Chancellor Angela Merkel's "open-door" asylum policy to people from across the Middle East and North Africa is being scaled back after roughly 1.1 million refugees and migrants entered Germany in 2015. The new rules come as Chancellor Angela Merkel's approval rating hit its lowest point since 2011. The rules also come after mass New Year's Eve sexual attacks on women in Cologne involving many men of Middle Eastern or North African origin. On Wednesday, the German cabinet approved a plan that excluded three North African nations from its asylum list Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, The New York Times reports. The countries are now designated as safe states, and those who came to Germany from the countries now face deportation. Those three countries are also the countries of origin for many of the men who were found to have committed the Cologne assaults. The current political schism in Germany, and the recently announced shift on asylum, is the direct fallout of the New Year's Eve attacks in Cologne. That night, a group of more than 1,000 men of North African and Middle Eastern descent allegedly broke up into smaller groups and robbed and sexually attacked women around the main train station in Cologne, with more than 650 police reports alleging crimes spanning robbery to sexual molestation and rape being filed in the three weeks that followed. Among other new rules, the cabinet approved a two-year ban on family reunifications and a measure that requires asylum seekers to pay a fee from their government-provided stipends to cover the price of integration courses. Cologne protest These moves must now be approved by the German Parliament, where they are likely to pass, according to The New York Times. The package comes after Merkel announced last weekend that her government expects Syrian and Iraqi refugees to go home once the Syrian war is over and ISIS is defeated. Merkel has become a prisoner of her own politics, Jurgen Falter, a political scientist at Mainz University, told The Washington Post. I think the likelihood is about 60 percent that her policies dont work out and she throws in the towel. Story continues A recent German poll showed that 81% of respondents don't have faith in their government's handling of the refugee crisis. The same poll found that 46% approve of Merkel, which is down an astonishing 12 points from just a month ago and is her lowest rating since the Eurozone economic crisis of 2011. I dont think there is any question anymore, Werner J. Patzelt, a political analyst at Technical University Dresden, told the Post. Angela Merkel is really in trouble." NOW WATCH: A Harvard Law professor explains why he thinks Ted Cruz is ineligible to run for president More From Business Insider The Asia unit of The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. GS was publicly censured by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) in Hong Kong for failing to comply with the citys acquisition code while serving as a financial advisor to OCBC Wing Hang Bank Limited in 2013. The issue dates back to Nov 8, 2013, when Wing Hang had verbally appointed Goldman to advise it on a takeover offer from Singapore-based Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. Notably, the investment banking team at Goldmans Asia unit failed to immediately notify this advisory engagement to the companys global compliance control room. The control room was informed about such engagement two months later on Jan 6, 2014. Based on Hong Kongs takeover code, Goldman was required to disclose its dealings in Wing Hangs securities since the date of such appointment. Moreover, such codes impose restrictions on Goldmans ability to issue and distribute research reports related to Wing Hang. However, given the time lag, Goldman executed 111 trades in Wing Hangs securities without making the requisite disclosures. Moreover, 26 of such trades were executed without prior consent. Further, the company reportedly issued 4 research notes on Wing Hang during that period of time. According to the SFC, The breaches suggest a significant breakdown in the compliance policies and procedures of Goldman Sachs in relation to takeovers in Hong Kong. The regulator further stated that Goldmans "conduct fell far short of the standards expected." Based on sources, the issue was highlighted after Goldman conducted an internal review plan; following which, the company reported the matter to the SFC. Per SFC findings, no personal trading by Goldmans staff was recorded during the said time frame. While no legal fines or penalties have been reportedly levied upon Goldman, massive compliance failure such as this triggered negative investor sentiment toward the companys stock. Notably, Goldmans shares hit a 52-week low of $150.15, and ended Tuesdays session down nearly 5%. However, the overall market sentiment was also weak during the session. Goldman currently holds a Zacks Rank #4 (Sell). Better-ranked stocks to consider in the broader finance sector include Evercore Partners Inc. EVR, KCG Holdings, Inc. KCG and SVB Financial Group SIVB. All these stocks carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >> Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report SVB FINL GP (SIVB): Free Stock Analysis Report GOLDMAN SACHS (GS): Free Stock Analysis Report KCG HOLDINGS (KCG): Free Stock Analysis Report EVERCORE PARTNR (EVR): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research An Indian scientist holds a genetically modified (GM) rapeseed crop under trial in New Delhi February 13, 2015. Picture taken February 13, 2015. REUTERS/Anindito Mukherjee/Files By Krishna N. Das and Mayank Bhardwaj NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Officials may decide on Friday whether to allow what could be India's first genetically modified (GM) food crop, mustard, spurred by food security concerns and as China makes a big bet on the technology with a $43 billion bid for seed firm Syngenta. Permitting GM food crops is a big call for a country that spends tens of billions of dollars importing edible oils and other food items every year. Farmers are stuck with old technology, yields are at a fraction of global levels, cultivable land is shrinking and weather patterns have become less predictable. Two straight droughts for the first time in three decades have made India a net importer of some food products for the first time in years. If a commercial launch of GM mustard is allowed, it could pave the way for other food crops such as corn varieties developed by Monsanto, in one of the world's biggest farm markets. "I see this as a test case and I am hopeful," said Deepak Pental, the lead scientist who used government grants to conduct tests on the oilseed crop over the past decade. "How can we keep on running so scared when there is so much need for improving agricultural production?" But even winning the panel's approval is no guarantee that the GM crop would be introduced. Political and public opposition to lab-altered food remains strong amid fears they could compromise food safety and biodiversity. There is also suspicion among farmers that their introduction would give foreign seed suppliers too much control. "Why is the government imposing its decision on farmers on an unsafe and unproven technology, despite the availability of good varieties of mustard in our country?" Manish Sisodia, Delhi's deputy chief minister, told Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a letter this week. "We pray to you not to compromise our agriculture, citizens' health and the environment under pressure from a handful of foreign companies." Story continues PRESSURE BUILDING? Friday's meeting, the third held to evaluate field trial data on GM mustard, is an indication of how serious Modi's government is about pushing technology to lift food production after an impasse under the previous government halted research on transgenic crops. A member of the GM approval committee comprising government and independent experts said they had already discussed the mustard in the past two meetings this year, and the next gathering would be crucial to deciding its future. He declined to be named and did not give more details. Ashok Gulati, a farm economist who advised the last government, said that China's takeover of Swiss GM seed developer Syngenta should push the government into taking quick action. "It should come as ... a wakeup call for India, which has to feed more than a billion mouths," said Gulati. "India now doesn't have the luxury to sit on the issue of GM. It just needs to take this bold and decisive step." India placed a moratorium on GM aubergine in 2010, fearing the effect on food safety and biodiversity. Field trials of other GM crops were not formally halted, but the regulatory system was brought to a deadlock after that. However, Modi, who was istrumental in making Gujarat state the leading user of GM cotton in India when he was chief minister, cleared several field trials soon after taking office in New Delhi in 2014. Some grassroots groups associated with Modi's nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party have opposed GM crops because of the reliance on seeds patented by multinationals like Monsanto, DuPont, Dow Chemical and Syngenta. But New Delhi-based Pental said the mustard variety was developed by Indian scientists, and local firms could easily supply farmers with cheap seeds. TESTS REVEAL NO PROBLEMS The government's chief scientific adviser, R. Chidambaram, has also asked Modi for a quick decision on the issue. A senior environment ministry official, who is a member of the GM approval committee, had said earlier that studies found no ill effects from GM foods. Pental's mustard makes use of three genes already incorporated in rapeseed hybrids in Canada, the United States and Australia and extensive biosafety tests have revealed no cause for concern, according to a copy of the field trial report submitted to the government and seen by Reuters. Additionally, oil derived from its seeds does not contain proteins linked to the three genes used, Pental said. The mustard's yield is up to 38 percent higher than normal varieties, which would help Modi slash an annual bill for vegetable oil imports of more than $10 billion. A farm ministry official said they were keen to roll out any innovation that can help farmers produce more, as long as concerns of human and soil health are addressed. (Editing by Mike Collett-White) JAKARTA, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Indonesia's rubber exports are expected to fall by at least 8 percent to 2.4 million tonnes in 2016 from 2.6 million tonnes a year ago, the Indonesian Rubber Association said on Thursday. Association chairman Moenarji said exports would decline by at least the 238,000 tonnes that was agreed as Indonesia's contribution under an Agreed Export Tonnage Scheme (AETS) announced with Thailand and Malaysia on Thursday. "It will definitely decline because people have been cutting (rubber) trees down," he said, adding that his team were monitoring the biological condition of rubber trees. "El Nino is also not over yet," Moenarji added, referring to the weather pattern that has been linked to serious crop damage. (Reporting by Bernadette Christina Munthe; Writing by Fergus Jensen; Editing by Richard Pullin) An Israeli soldier checks the vehicles of Palestinians on their way out of the West Bank village of Ein Sinya, northern Ramallah on February 1, 2016 (AFP Photo/Abbas Momani) (AFP) Jerusalem (AFP) - Israel said Thursday it has laid charges against a policeman accused of sending details to extremists of a Jewish woman who was riding in a car with Palestinian men. The justice ministry filed charges Wednesday against border police officer Matan Amichai, who in December 2014 stopped a car in a routine check near the Palestinian neighbourhood of Silwan in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem. "In the vehicle were two Silwan residents and two young Jewish women," the ministry said in a statement on Thursday. "The accused, who was on duty there at the time, took the identity card of one of the young women and photographed it with his mobile phone." Israeli ID cards carry, among other details, the holder's picture, address and marital status. The statement said Amichai sent the image to the head of Lehava, an extremist rightwing Israeli group, and to former parliament member Michael Ben-Ari, a follower of late anti-Arab rabbi Meir Kahane. In a message accompanying the picture, sent to Lehava's Benzi Gopstein, he said the two women went on a trip with the men to the Red Sea resort of Eilat. "Here is the ID of one of the girls, please do something," the statement quoted him as writing. "I wanted to cry," he allegedly wrote to Ben-Ari. Amichai was charged with invasion of privacy and abuse of his authority. No trial date was set. In August 2014 Lehava activists staged a rally where racist slogans, including "Death to Arabs!", were shouted at the wedding near Tel Aviv of a Muslim man and Jewish woman. Gopstein was questioned by police last year after he condoned torching churches in Israel, in accordance with a mediaeval Jewish commandment to destroy places of idol-worship. GettyImages 496219468 Civil-rights activist DeRay Mckesson has been protesting police violence against African-Americans and other people of color since the shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown at the hands of Ferguson, Missouri, police in August 2014. In the 18 months since that event, Mckesson has become a full-time activist, working within the loosely organized Black Lives Matter movement, helping formulate its related police-reform campaign known as Campaign Zero, and traveling across the country to protest and support those working in support of those efforts. Mckesson is now formally jumping into politics. On Wednesday, Mckesson announced that he has filed to run for the mayor of Baltimore. A native of the city, Mckesson will run in the Democratic primary. "I am running to be the 50th Mayor of Baltimore in order to usher our city into an era where the government is accountable to its people and is aggressively innovative in how it identifies and solves its problems. We can build a Baltimore where more and more people want to live and work, and where everyone can thrive," Mckesson said in a statement posted on Medium. Filing deadline surprise: @deray files to run for mayor of Baltimore pic.twitter.com/J1ABRGjSau Luke Broadwater (@lukebroadwater) February 4, 2016 The Democratic primary is especially important in Baltimore because the city historically votes Democratic for mayor. The last Republican mayor of Baltimore was in 1967. Mckesson entered the race at the last possible moment, filing his paperwork just minutes before Wednesday's 9 p.m. filing deadline. The Democratic primary field includes Mckesson, former mayor Sheila Dixon, City Councilman Nick J. Mosby (whose wife is Marilyn Mosby, the state's attorney currently trying to prosecute the police officers involved in the death of Freddie Gray), businessman David L. Warnock, and nine others. Story continues A recent poll in the Baltimore Sun has shown Dixon leading the polls with 27% of polled voters. That survey was released before Mckesson's entry. It is not clear what impact he will have on the race. Mckesson has never held elected office. His background is primarily in school administration and teaching. He has previously served as an administrator for Minneapolis and Baltimore City public schools and as a teacher for Teach for America. During the course of his activism, Mckesson has become a huge figure on social media, amassing a following of nearly 300,000 followers on Twitter. In a statement released on Medium, Mckesson seemed to indicate that this nontraditional background was key to candidacy. "I have come to realize that the traditional pathway to politics, and the traditional politicians who follow these well-worn paths, will not lead us to the transformational change our city needs," the statement reads. The Washington Post's Wesley Lowery has the inside scoop on how Mckesson made the decision to run, which was not final even hours before filing. Check it out here. NOW WATCH: Watch Tina Fey take on Sarah Palin's Trump endorsement speech on SNL More From Business Insider This year is off to one of the worst starts in the history of the Dow Industrials, and investors are increasingly concerned about wealth preservation in these turbulent times. Yet, a turnaround is inevitable, and investors are pondering the possibility of wading back into the market. The questions, as always, are what do I buy and when do I buy it? Kevin Mahn, chief investment officer at Hennion and Walsh Asset Management, believes that the current chaos in the markets ought to reinforce the belief that asset allocation and diversification are crucial to long-term performance. Diversification is key "Over the last six years, we've been in a tremendous secular bull market run. And some investors have forgotten about the advantages of having a well-diversified portfolio. Even as we look at this very difficult start to the year, we saw certain areas in the market that performed better than others," says Mahn. Source: Yahoo Finance, TradeStation Currently in 2016, the telecom and tech sectors are among the least dirty shirts in the laundry basket, each slightly outperforming the S&P 500, which is down nearly -8% this year (not shown). However, utilities are the only major sector in the green, posting just over a 6% return in 2016. "On the fixed income side, we've seen areas such as investment-grade municipal bonds and preferred securities perform well too," says Mahn. He continues, "It's not just picking between which U.S. large-cap stocks are going to perform this year, it's about building a well-diversified portfolio. And now more than ever, that's very important." Increasing implied correlation among stocks has made stock picking more difficult than usual recently. Crude contagion It's no secret that the plunge in the price of crude has led not only the energy sector down, but has also led to general market contagion, driving down prices in global risk markets. Source: Yahoo Finance, TradeStation Yet, some larger energy stocks pay sizable dividends and will likely withstand the current credit crunch. Of his most recent energy market allocations, Mahn says, "We were very fortunate last week ... We came out with a new energy-based strategy with Miller Howard Investing that focuses on opportunities that we see in the North American energy supply chain." Story continues Mahn says that oil will eventually decouple from stocks when oil prices finally bottom. However, he believes the bigger opportunity is in natural gas. "Right now we're the Saudi Arabia of natural gas production, and we're the largest producer of oil and natural gas in the world," says Mahn. "So if you look at the opportunities that persist right now in the energy sector, we think there are some very attractive opportunitiesas long as you don't stick to the commodity oil itself," he says. Source: Yahoo Financial, TradeStation Specific industry groups within the energy sector may offer additional opportunities for diversification. "I think a nice blend would be between upstream and midstream companiesthe midstream we always refer to as the toll-takersthose that store and transport the oil or natural gas. They do well regardless of the price of oil," says Mahn. Although the drop in oil price is hitting fracking companies hard, they also produce 54% of domestic natural gas in the U.S., according to Mahn. "Natural gas demand is increasing worldwide. So, the frackers can still perform with oil prices low, but they can't perform well with oil prices low for too much longer," says Mahn. Fracking is a highly capital intensive business. Accordingly, if preternaturally low crude oil prices persist throughout 2016, many will be forced to file for bankruptcy protection or otherwise sell assets. However, that does not necessarily mean all investors in these types of enterprises will lose their money, as secured bond holders typically receive some of the money back during bankruptcy proceedings. In addition, buyouts of unprofitable fracking companies may become common. Mahn says, "The newer fracking companies ... have taken out a lot of debt to be able to actually start drilling and find those opportunities. But not all companies have, so there is going to be a consolidation ... But those that survive this downturn are going to come out very plentiful in the end." Diversification in the face of continued volatility Though Mahn believes a stronger U.S. Dollar will continue to provide opportunities domestically, he stresses that geographic diversification is critical as well. "2016 is going to be the year where the baton is going to be officially passed from domestic markets to international markets in terms of total return potential. We like Europe more than Japan right now," he says. Mahn doesn't expect the current volatility to go away any time soon, but that belief simply requires a different investment strategy. Much of the current market uncertainty is created by unease over the Federal Reserve's rate raising schedule. Source: Yahoo Finance, TradeStation "This volatility isn't going away. It's reigning supreme," says Mahn. "You need to build into your portfolio areas that have performed well when the Fed has embarked upon a gradual tighteningsuch as the energy sector, such as the utility sector, such as investment grade bonds. All of those are areas that you can build into a diversified portfolio," says Mahn. BHP Billiton's South32 spin-off said the dire outlook for commodity prices after recent plunges meant it expected to book $1.7 billion in pre-tax, non-cash charges (AFP Photo/William West) (AFP/File) Mining giant BHP Billiton's South32 spin-off Thursday announced $1.7 billion in asset writedowns and said it would axe hundreds of jobs at a South African facility and slash costs and production as commodity prices dive. Miners across the world have seen their bottom lines sag as prices for key metals tumble, with even the bigger players slashing costs to maintain profit levels. "We are... not immune to external influences and the significant change in the outlook for commodity prices," South32 chief executive Graham Kerr said in a statement. Perth-headquartered South32, which operates assets including aluminium, coal, nickel, manganese, silver, lead and zinc after it was hived off from BHP into an independent firm last year, is due to report earnings on February 25. It said the dire outlook for commodity prices after recent plunges meant it expected to book $1.7 billion in pre-tax, non-cash charges. It will also cut 620 positions and reduce production in its South Africa manganese division, while annual capital spending will be slashed by 80 percent to $7 million for the 2017 financial year. In addition, Australian job cuts were expected to be announced later this month. "We are not in unfamiliar territory," Fat Prophets resources analyst David Lennox told AFP. "It's going to be a terrible reporting season for resources companies across the globe... certainly net profits are going to be well and truly knocked around, revenue will be well and truly knocked around," he said. Shares in South32 jumped 12.11 percent in midday trade to Aus$1.06 however, with mining companies boosted by the sharp fall in the greenback over concerns about the US economic outlook. OSLO, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Norway's $810-billion sovereign wealth fund, the world's largest, said on Thursday it would raise its focus on global human rights to ensure that companies it invests in follow ethical standards. "We're publishing our expectations for how companies manage human rights," the fund said in a statement. "Norges Bank Investment Management, as a financial investor, expects companies to respect human rights, and address human rights issues in their business practices." The fund's ethical rules prevent it from investing in companies that produce nuclear weapons, anti-personnel landmines, cluster bombs or tobacco, among other criteria. Child labour and slave labour are also among the factors that can lead to exclusion from the portfolio. (Reporting by Camilla Knudsen, writing by Terje Solsvik, editing by Gwladys Fouche) BERLIN, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Germany registered 91,671 migrants in January, less than half November's level, officials said on Thursday with pressure mounting on Chancellor Angela Merkel to deliver on her pledge to reduce the influx. Support for Merkel has fallen sharply due to her open-door refugee policy, with a poll on Wednesday showing 81 percent of people think her government does not have the situation under control. An Interior Ministry statement on the latest migrant tally gave no explanation for the notable drop in migrant arrivals, but it said previously that a downward trend seen since late last year was due mainly to freezing winter weather. Germany has also reimposed spot controls on border points with Austria used by incoming migrants and is seeking to speed up deportations of those not qualifying for asylum. Merkel has said the number of migrants entering Germany will fall after 1.1 million people arrived last year - the final destination for the vast majority who reached the European continent in 2015. Public unease has grown since a slew of sexual assaults on women in Cologne at New Year which police say were carried out largely by young men of Arab and North African appearance. The interior ministry said 91,671 people registered on the EASY system in January, more than double the number in the same month a year ago, although this was more than a third down from December and less than half of November's total. Among last month's total, some 35,822 were from Syria and about 18,000 from both Iraq and Afghanistan. The EASY system records people in reception centres and then distributes them around the country based on each state's population and tax revenues. Registration on this system is separate from officially applying for asylum. The official number of asylum applications rose to 52,103 in January, about double the level in the same month last year and a 7.9 percent rise from December, said the ministry. Some 1,623 people from Morocco were entered on the EASY system and the top-selling Bild daily cited government sources saying a basic agreement had been reached with North African countries about returning rejected asylum seekers there. (Reporting by Madeline Chambers; Editing by Mark Heinrich) broccoli Broccoli is one of America's favorite vegetables, which is great for our health but only if we prepare it right. A common method of preparation is boiling. This process is notorious for leeching water-soluble vitamins, like Vitamin C and B, from vegetables, including broccoli. But there's more to this story that researchers have only just begun to discover. It turns out, the nutritional damage from boiling goes deeper than just water-soluble vitamins: It hinders the body's ability to absorb a class of compounds called glucosinolates, which a growing body of scientific research suggests could play a role in reducing the risk of lung and colorectal cancer. Broccoli, supplements, and boiling thai curry dinner In a 2011 paper, researchers compared the level of certain cancer-fighting glucosinolates in humans who ate broccoli versus those who took broccoli supplements, made from broccoli sprout extract. They discovered that the vegetable contains a key protein that helps our bodies break glucosinolates down for absorption while supplements lack this protein. The result was that subjects who took supplements had up to eight times fewer glucosinolates in their blood and urine than those who ate the vegetable. Moreover, the lead researcher of the study said that intensive cooking, like boiling, severely reduces the level of this enzyme in broccoli, so you get about as much nutrition from boiled broccoli as you do from broccoli supplements, which isn't much. Luckily, there is a way to combat the disadvantages of boiling: Preserve the boiling water for later consumption. Broccoli water (but there's a better way) broccoli Broccoli water isn't a new concept. In fact, the 1999 Harvard Medical School Family Health Guide suggested that you store broccoli water to later use in soups, sauces, or even gravy, LiveStrong reported. One concern with broccoli water, however, is pesticides. In addition to leeching nutrients from broccoli, boiling water can also absorb pesticides that farmers use to avoid rot, weeds, and insects during the growing process. One way to avoid pesticides is to buy organic. Story continues However, if you want to avoid the extra cost of organic produce, just steam your broccoli instead, said Guy Crosby, who teaches a food science course at Harvard School of Public Health and is the editor for America's Test Kitchen. Get the most out of your broccoli by steaming it broccoli Crosby called preserving broccoli water from non-organic broccoli a "balancing act": "If you're concerned about the level of pesticides some of them are water soluble and will be separated out in the cooking water, which would offset consuming the cooking water for the nutrients that are leeched out, so it's a balancing act," Crosby told Business Insider. The bottom line: Ditch the acrobatics and just steam your vegetables. It will benefit you in the long run. In a paper published last November, Crosby and his colleague at Harvard, Adriana D.T. Fabbri, reviewed the literature on how different cooking methods affected the nutritional value of certain legumes and vegetables, including broccoli. They reported that: "The total content of glucosinolates of fresh broccoli increased by steaming methods," the two stated in their paper adding that "Steam cooking: best procedure to preserve and enhance nutritional quality of fresh broccoli." There you have it: If you want to get the most out of your broccoli, just steam it. NOW WATCH: We tried jackfruit the huge tree fruit that supposedly tastes like pulled pork More From Business Insider China internet Cyberattacks on American targets are an emerging national-security threat and an issue for US foreign policy. But for all the dangers of state-backed, politically motivated hacking, profit-motivated cybercriminals are a more frequent and perhaps much greater hazard for the majority of people. North Korea may be able to hobble a major movie studio, and the Chinese government has frequently stolen information on US defense hardware. But individuals are much softer targets than governments or major corporations. And every individual has access to information ranging from medical data to bank-account numbers to online passwords to basic biographical information off which enterprising hackers can profit. Flashpoint, a private intelligence firm that researches online criminal networks, released Thursday its annual report on "highlights and trends in the deep and dark web." The report, which was provided to Business Insider, gives a sense of how online criminality evolved in 2015. The firm, which provides proprietary intelligence on dark-web activity, gathered some jarring data about the ease and apparent banality of contemporary online criminal enterprises. For example, Flashpoint found one online marketplace on which cybercriminals were selling hacking victims' birth dates for as little as $3, for use in verifying fraudulent Google Wallet accounts. The Flashpoint report portrays an online criminal community that's becoming increasingly transnational. And with the help of growing foreign connections, dark web users in a country that's been at the forefront of politically motivated hacking are starting to make a splash on the criminal scene as well. Flashpoint's experts have "observed increasing signs indicating the maturing and internationalization of the Chinese cybercrime underground," the report said. Screen Shot 2016 01 28 at 12.02.22 PM Story continues As the report explained, Chinese cyber criminals have typically transacted through on "one-on-one engagements negotiated via private messages or instant messenger applications." But over the past year, they've shown signs of moving on to web forums and established networks that don't depend on this degree of personal contact. And, according to Flashpoint, these forums are usually "within the Russian underground." Russia is considered to be the global leader in for-profit hacking, with Russian cyber crime representing an estimated $2 billion industry in 2014, according to "Flashpoint has noted an uptick in Chinese-speaking actors operating on international, yet Russian-run, cybercrime forums such as Lampeduza, Crdclub, and Infraud," the report said. Chinese cybercriminals also appear to be learning from the example of Russian-based networks and establishing web forums within China, for specific use by Chinese cybercriminals. "Taking a page from the Russian model, some Chinese cybercriminals have established native Chinese communities or shops of their own," the report noted. Though these networks' users are typically limited to China, they include two sizable online shops dedicated to trading in stolen personal information and facilitating illicit purchases. Xi Jinping The fact that Chinese for-profit hackers are becoming more like Russia's in their behavior and practices has some alarming implications. China has a population of over 1.3 billion, some 649 million of whom are web users making for a sizable pool of current and future cybercriminals. As it is, China is already one of the world's most prolific and dangerous hacking nations. At the same time, Russian dark web networks are a partial reflection of the country's existing criminal culture, which exists in a context of widespread official corruption and close ties between organized crime and the state. The environment for enterprising cyber criminals isn't quite as friendly in China, a more thoroughly oppressive state with strict web controls and a leader in President Xi Jinping, who's made a far-reaching anti-corruption push one of his top priorities. Xi also made a point of meeting with Silicon Valley tech-industry leaders during a September 2015 trip to the US, a sign of how highly Beijing values some of its business relationships in the US. Giving a free reign to cybercriminals as Russia arguably has would go against a number of Xi's apparent priorities. As the Flashpoint report said: "So-called 'internet purification operations' conducted by the Chinese authorities ... will limit the growth of native sites." NOW WATCH: Rare color film shows what it was like in the Marines during WWII More From Business Insider russian nuke nuclear weapons Russia has been steadily modernizing its military in an effort to offset years of military collapse following the end of the Cold War. And, while the majority of the modernization is fairly standard, one particular instance of the Kremlin's push is indeed concerning. Desiring to close the gap between itself and NATO, Russia has elevated the use of nonstrategic nuclear weapons in its military strategy. This elevation, "risks lowering the nuclear threshold," Brookings Institution senior fellow Steven Pifer writes for The National Interest. "And once a nuclear weaponany nuclear weaponis used, the possibility of catastrophic escalation would increase dramatically," Pifer continues. Pifer notes that the core concern is Russia's development of low yield nuclear weapons. These weapons are key to Moscow's developing strategy of "de-escalation." The strategy, in short, states that Russia would respond to any conventional war which challenges its statehood with some number of limited and strategic nuclear strikes. According to The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, de-escalation was first formulated in Russia as a response to the conventional military power that the US displayed during its campaigns against the Serbs in Kosovo. And, although the threat of Russia's de-escalation strategy is defensive, "such a threat also must be credible. To that end, all large-scale military exercises that Russia conducted beginning in 2000 featured simulations of limited nuclear strikes," The Bulletin writes. Russia Nuclear Jets Guam The doctrine only applies to other nuclear armed nations, especially as it was formulated in response to the US's overwhelming conventional military strength. The broader problem with de-escalation and the lowering of the nuclear threshold, however, is the relative gray area in which such weapons may be used and what Russia sees as an existential threat to its statehood. Story continues As Pifer notes, the combination of Russia's de-escalation doctrine, the modernization of low yield nuclear weapons, and Putin's myriad references to potential use of nuclear forces indicates that Russia "could envisage use of those weapons in wider circumstances." NOW WATCH: The US Navy's last line of defense is this ultimate gun More From Business Insider Obama and Putin The US will devote a substantial portion of its defense spending to building up its military presence in Eastern Europe in an effort to deter Russian aggression in the region, Obama administration officials told The New York Times. Countries belonging to the NATO alliance in Central and Eastern Europe will apparently receive heavy weaponry, tanks, and other equipment from the US, which quadrupled its budget from $789 million to more than $3.4 billion for military spending in Europe through 2017. "This is a really big deal, and the Russians are going to have a cow," Evelyn N. Farkas, the Pentagon's top policy official on Russia and Ukraine until October, told The Times on Tuesday. "It's a huge sign of commitment to deterring Russia, and to strengthening our alliance and our partnership with countries like Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia." The move comes four months after Russia launched an air campaign in Syria to prop up embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in a move widely seen as an attempt by Russian President Vladimir Putin to secure and expand Russia's influence in the Middle East. Russia's presence in Syria, however, has "undermined" virtually everything the West is trying to accomplish there and beyond, British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said in an interview with Reuters from a refugee camp in Jordan on Monday. That includes the US's attempts to bolster "moderate" Syrian rebel groups, which have been targeted by Russian airstrikes, and the US-led anti-ISIS coalition's attempts to wipe out the Islamic State in Syria, which has largely been spared the brunt of Russia's punishing air campaign. As such, the new funding being allocated to fortify Eastern Europe against Russian aggression "is not a response to something that happened last Tuesday," a senior administration official told The Times. "This is a longer-term response to a changed security environment in Europe. This reflects a new situation, where Russia has become a more difficult actor," the official added. Story continues Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (centre R), U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry (C) and foreign ministers attend a meeting in Vienna, Austria, November 14, 2015. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger Russia is unlikely to react kindly to an expanded NATO military presence along its western flank. In an interview with the German daily newspaper Bild in January, Putin asserted that Russia's tensions with the West largely resulted from NATO's eastward expansion after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Putin said: Of course every state has the right to organize its security the way it deems appropriate. But the states that were already in NATO, the member states, could also have followed their own interests and abstained from an expansion to the east. He added: "NATO and the USA wanted a complete victory over the Soviet Union. They wanted to sit on the throne in Europe alone." Incidentally, Russia is now trying to dethrone NATO and position itself as an alternative to US influence in the Middle East, as evidenced by its alliance with Iran, Syria, and Iraq under the guise of fighting ISIS. Putin Abadi "Russia is of course trying to leverage the entire intervention [in Syria] as a way to lap up as much real estate in the Middle East as possible," Tony Badran, a research fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, told Business Insider in September. "It's classic Putin." In pushing himself to the forefront of an "anti-ISIS coalition" and creating a distraction from Ukraine, Putin has tried to coerce the US into accepting and potentially embracing Russia's role in the conflict. But Obama's new funding plan to bolster NATO's presence in Eastern Europe shows that his administration is trying to put a damper on Putin's plans to dislodge the West from the Middle East entirely by reasserting the US's role in the region. From The Times: Administration officials said the new investments were not just about deterring Russia. The weapons and equipment could also be deployed along NATO's southern flank, where they could help in the fight against the Islamic State or in dealing with the influx of migrants from Syria. Another anonymous administration official speaking to The Times put it bluntly: "This is a message that we see what they're capable of, and what their political leadership is willing to do." NOW WATCH: How a struggling Soviet spy became the most powerful man in Russia More From Business Insider * Hon Hai offered to invest around 700 bln yen -source * State-backed fund was previously seen as preferred choice * Sharp shares up 14 pct (Recasts, adds details of offer and state of talks) By Taro Fuse and Makiko Yamazaki TOKYO, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Struggling electronics maker Sharp Corp has decided to give Taiwan's Foxconn preferred negotiating rights in takeover talks, choosing its more generous offer over a rescue plan from a Japanese state-backed fund, sources with knowledge of the decision said. Foxconn, known formally as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co , offered to invest around 700 billion yen ($5.9 billion) in Sharp, more than double the amount of investment proposed by the fund, one source said. Shares in Sharp were 14 percent higher in afternoon trade after the news, giving the company a market value of over 270 billion yen ($2.3 billion). A takeover by Hon Hai, which assembles various electronics products such as smartphones and television sets for Apple , Sony Corp and many other major international companies, would vastly expand sales channels for Sharp's liquid crystal display panels. The decision comes after months of uncertainty over the fate of the company, whose display panel business has continued to suffer massive losses despite two major bailouts by its banks in the last four years. A Sharp executive plans to go to Taiwan on Friday to negotiate the deal, which the company hopes to finalise by the end of February, one source said. The sources declined to be identified as they were not authorised to speak with the media. Sharp said no final decision had been made but declined to elaborate. It is due to brief on earnings later in the day. Foxconn declined to comment. The state-backed fund, the Innovation Network Corp of Japan (INCJ), had been seen as the preferred choice of some government officials who were anxious to keep jobs and technology in Japan. It had aimed to rescue Sharp by merging Sharp's LCD business with that of rival Japan Display's. Story continues But many in the industry doubted such "old-school" government intervention could help Sharp survive increasingly fierce competition from South Korean and Chinese rivals. Sources had also said board members were worried that Chinese regulators would not approve an LCD merger with Japan Display. But the sources also said there was some caution among some Sharp board members over whether a final deal could be reached. One source said the board wanted to keep the option of turning to INCJ in case a deal with Foxconn is not reached. ANOTHER 100 YEARS Foxconn's CEO Terry Gou already owns a 37.6 percent stake in Sharp's most advanced LCD plant in Sakai, near Osaka, and is credited with the plant's turnaround. Throughout talks so far, Gou had sought to reassure Japanese officials he was serious about turning around the century-old company. "We don't want to destroy this company. We want to keep this company for another 100 years," Gou told reporters on Sunday. "Working together with us is the right decision." Taiwan's local media last year reported him saying that he was confident of making Sharp profitable in three years if he was allowed to take over the company. Analysts said the deal will give Foxconn control of one of the world's most advanced display manufacturing sites. The screen is one of the most expensive components in smartphones. "Hon Hai's vast network of clients can help absorb Sharp's LCD panel output," said Teruo Asamoto, professor at Kyushu Sangyo University, said. "Hon Hai, for its part, can consolidate its position as a contract manufacturer by taking in Sharp's display technology." Sharp and Foxconn signed an agreement in March 2012 to form a capital and strategic partnership. Those talks collapsed after Sharp's share price plunged in the face of larger-than-expected losses, although Gou personally took a stake in the Sakai plant. ($1 = 117.9400 yen) (Reporting by Taro Fuse and Makiko Yamazaki; Additional reporting by JR Wu in TAIPEI; Writing by Ritsuko Ando; Editing by Edwina Gibbs) TOKYO, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Sharp Corp board members are set to accept an offer by Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry Co, rejecting a rescue plan by a Japanese state-backed fund, broadcaster NHK reported. The decision comes after months of uncertainty over the fate of the company, whose display panel business has continued to suffer massive losses despite two major bailouts by its banks in the last four years. Hon Hai, also known as Foxconn and one of Apple Inc's key iPhone assemblers, offered more than 600 billion yen ($5 billion) for Sharp, double the amount of investment proposed by a state-backed fund, sources have told Reuters. ($1 = 118.0300 yen) (Reporting by Makiko Yamazaki and Chang-Ran Kim; Editing by Edwina Gibbs) By Karolin Schaps and Ron Bousso LONDON (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell, Europe's largest oil company, reported its lowest annual income in over a decade on Thursday and said it would take further steps to cut costs to cope with weak oil prices if needed. Shell, whose shareholders last week approved its takeover of rival BG Group, said 2015 income fell 87 percent to $1.94 billion, in line with analysts' estimates, as its oil and gas production unit took a big hit from slumping oil prices. Shares in Shell, which offer a dividend yield of above 8 percent, were trading up 6.4 percent at 5.36 a.m. ET, outperforming the European oil and gas company index which was up 3.4 percent. "Most divisions came in towards the top end of management's guidance range, which we view as positive," said Biraj Borkhataria, equity analyst at RBC Capital Markets. Shell's earnings are the latest demonstration of how badly oil producers are suffering from a 75 percent fall in oil prices since mid-2014. The world's largest oil company, ExxonMobil, this week reported its smallest quarterly profit in more than a decade, while BP's 2015 loss was its biggest ever. Norway's Statoil said on Thursday it would cut 2016 capital expenditure (capex) by $1.7 billion year on year, while U.S. producer ConocoPhilips reduced its quarterly dividend. "Shell will take further impactful decisions to manage through the oil price downturn, should conditions warrant that," Chief Executive Ben van Beurden said in a statement. Shell maintained its annual dividend payment of $1.88 per share. Shell is reducing investment, cutting nearly 10,000 jobs and selling assets to cope with the downturn. The CEO told reporters he believed oil prices had reached, or were near, the bottom of the cycle, pointing to growing demand. In order to lower spending, Shell has scrapped multi-billion pound projects over the past year, including a controversial exploration project in the Alaskan Arctic Sea, the Bab sour gas field in Abu Dhabi and Carmon Creek oil sands project in Canada. The company approved only four new projects last year and investment decisions are expected to remain scarce in 2016. This strategy has started to drag down Shell's reserve replacement ratio, a metric used to reflect new reserves added relative to the amount produced, which was negative in 2015 for the first time in around 12 years. "While we're not entirely comfortable with a negative number, it's not the most important thing today," Shell Chief Financial Officer Simon Henry told reporters. He said the additions of BG's reserves once the takeover completes would help. Shell maintained its $33 billion combined Shell-BG capital expenditure budget for 2016. Capital spending fell to $28.9 billion in 2015, down $8.4 billion year on year. Shell's fourth-quarter current cost of supplies (CCS)earnings excluding identified items, its preferred way of measuring profits, fell 44 percent to $1.83 billion. Its downstream business benefited from lower fuel prices, contributing a profit of $1.5 billion in the fourth quarter. Shell sold $5.5 billion worth of assets in 2015, it said. (Editing by Jason Neely and Elaine Hardcastle) An unloaded Twitter website is seen on a phone without an internet connection, in front of a displayed ISIS flag in this photo illustration in Zenica, Bosnia and Herzegovina, February 3, 2016. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic By Matt Smith DUBAI (Reuters) - Iraq is trying to persuade satellite firms to halt Internet services in areas under Islamic State's rule, seeking to deal a major blow to the group's potent propaganda machine which relies heavily on social media to inspire its followers to wage jihad. Social media apps like Twitter and Telegram are scrambling to limit Islamic State's cyber-activities. So far that has proven to be a cat-and-mouse-game, with the group re-emerging through other accounts with videos showing beheadings and extolling the virtues of living in a caliphate. For Iraq then, the key is to stop the militant group from accessing the web at all - a feat, which if achieved, could sever a significant part of a propaganda campaign that has inspired deadly attacks in the West. Mobile networks are largely inoperable in the Islamic State-held swathes of Iraq, areas which also have little fixed-line broadband infrastructure. Militants instead use satellite dishes to connect to the web, or illicit microwave dishes that hook them into broadband networks in government-held areas, three telecoms industry sources told Reuters. There are many challenges for the Iraqi authorities: within the satellite Internet industry, no one assumes responsibility for identifying and vetting end users, the territory under Islamic State's often shifts, and a complex web of middlemen makes it tough to pinpoint who is selling militants Internet capacity. The group has control over or operates in parts of western Iraq and northern and central Syria which have a population of up to 5 million people, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies, most of them in Iraq. To connect to the web via a satellite, all that is required is a V-sat terminal - a small dish receiver and a modem - and an Internet subscription. Islamic State uses "the V-sat system to access the Internet in areas it controls," an Iraqi communications ministry official told Reuters. "What's still difficult for us is controlling V-sat receivers which connect directly to satellites providing Internet services that cover Iraq." Story continues In the IS-held northern city of Mosul, V-sat units can be bought for about $2,000-$3,000 at a sprawling electronics market near the university. The official said Iraq was in talks with satellite companies covering Iraq to halt Internet services to IS-controlled areas, adding that he had received "positive signals" from them, but "the process is complicated and needs more time and procedures." Abu Dhabi state-owned Yahsat, both a satellite owner and provider of end-user connectivity through its consumer broadband brand YahClick, is the only company so far to cooperate with the ministry's request, the official said. Highlighting the complicated task, Reuters traced an IP address of an Islamic State fighter in Raqqa, the group's de facto capital in Syria, which showed he was accessing the Internet using YahClick. Yahsat would not directly comment on whether Islamic State had used its services, but said it complied with all laws and regulations. It has no official presence in Syria. The company, among the biggest providers of satellite Internet in Iraq, relies on local agents to sell YahClick; three are listed on its website for Iraq, but other companies also sell the brand there. "Anybody can become a reseller. It's very informal and wholesalers probably want to keep it that way," said the second industry source, who like the others declined to be named because they are not authorised to speak publicly. WHO IS RESPONSIBLE? Satellites owners such as Britain's Avanti, France's Eutelsat and Yahsat cover most of the Middle East. These sell capacity to other companies, such as Abu Dhabi's Wafa Technical Systems and Britain's Bentley Walker, which then use this capacity to sell services and equipment to businesses and consumers. Like Yahsat, these firms rely on in-country partners to distribute and sell their products. "In common with all satellite operators, Avanti does not maintain identity or accurate location detail on end user customers," a company spokesman said, adding the firm complied with all laws and regulations where it operates. V-sat units, which are potentially portable, transmit their location and so should be traceable. But no one in the industry seems willing to take on the responsibility to vet users. Wafa and rival Bentley Walker, who buy satellite capacity and sell V-sat units, say they are unaware of who is ultimately using their services. Wafa, which has about 2,500 V-sat units in Iraq, said in online adverts it could deliver to any Iraqi city including Mosul. "The re-sellers are the people who know the clients and where the end users are located," said Kamal Arjundas, assistant director at the company. Customers of Bentley Walker can still use its services even if the V-sat unit is in an area beyond state control, said sales manager Neil Denyer. As of July last year, the firm said its service covered over 1,500 sites in northern Iraq. The company says it is Europe's largest re-seller of satellite Internet equipment. It sells its own FreedomSat brand and those of other companies such as YahClick. Denyer declined to identify the company's Iraqi partners, citing political and commercial concerns, and later did not respond when asked whether Islamic State could be using his company's products and services. Wafa's Arjundas also declined to identify its Iraqi partners and did not respond when asked about the militant group. 'TWO HOPS TO MOSUL' Even if Iraq cuts off Islamic State from satellite Internet, the group can remain online through illegal networks set up by businessmen in towns such as Kirkuk, Arbil and Duhok. These entrepreneurs buy data capacity from fixed broadband providers, passing through many middlemen first. They connect this to microwave dishes, which have a range of about 40 kilometres to eventually reach end users in IS-controlled areas, said the three industry sources. "It's two hops via microwave dishes to Mosul," said the third industry source. "Their activities have very little chance of being detected. If you can buy a certain amount of capacity for $100 in Arbil and sell it on for $500, it's good business." Baghdad and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) that rules over an autonomous area of northern Iraq have banned the sale of Internet capacity that could end up in Islamic State hands, but it is hard to enforce. There are many microwave dishes pointing in all directions in Iraq. The vast networks that mostly provide Internet connectivity to civilian homes and businesses make it difficult to establish who is using them. "If you close one (of the businesses) down, they reappear under another disguise in a matter of days. They're very difficult to identify," said the first industry source. "It would take enormous resources, knowledge and competency which Baghdad or the KRG don't have," said the third source. A moral quandary is whether IS-held areas should be denied Internet access thereby cutting off civilians living there, said Rafaello Pantucci, of Britain's Royal United Services Institute think-tank. Some have used the Internet to relate the abuses they have suffered. "Would cutting off such communications have a major impact in disrupting and degrading Islamic State's operations, or would it mostly just make the lives of people living under Islamic State even more difficult?" (Additional reporting by Ahmed Rasheed and Stephen Kalin in Baghdad and Eric Auchard; Editing by William Maclean, Yara Bayoumy and Pravin Char) BRUSSELS, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Spain has to reduce its deficit this year to comply with European Union budgetary rules, the EU's Economics Commissioner Pierre Moscovici said on Thursday. Asked about the Spanish budget, Moscovici said that in order to stay in line with the rules, the deadline had to be respected. Spain was required to bring its deficit below 3 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) in 2016, but the Commission's latest forecasts released on Thursday show that Spain's deficit will be at 3.6 percent this year. Moscovici added that the obligation to abide by the deadline falls on whichever government will be elected in Spain after the consultations following the December elections. (Reporting by Jan Strupczewski, Francesco Guarascio; editing by Philip Blenkinsop) (Adds comments from Sanchez on meetings, Brexit position) By Sarah White MADRID, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Spain's Socialists on Wednesday kicked off long-awaited talks on forming a coalition government, a task seen as impossible unless several political parties drop some conditions. After meeting small leftist and regional parties on Wednesday, Socialist chief Pedro Sanchez is due to meet the liberal Ciudadanos on Thursday and anti-austerity Podemos on Friday. Sanchez told a news conference he would also seek a meeting next week with the conservative People's Party (PP) - the party which won the most seats in an inconclusive December election but, like its rivals, fell far short of a majority. "The feeling I got from the round of talks I've had with different parties is that this is starting well," Sanchez said after talks with former communists United Left as well as parties from Valencia and the Canary Islands. The election result has plunged Spain into its most fraught political situation in decades, threatening to bring in a period of instability just as its recovers from a long economic crisis. Worn down by years of belt-tightening and angered by high-level corruption cases, Spaniards turned away from traditional forces and backed newer parties such as Podemos in December. Despite Sanchez's upbeat assessment, a new election may eventually be called if parties remain at loggerheads. Given the fragmentation of parliament, the Socialists would need the backing of at least three parties to achieve a simple majority of seats while several others would have to abstain. Not only do those parties have different - and sometimes opposed - economic manifestos but they also disagree on fundamental issues such as whether to organise an independence referendum in Catalonia. That leaves Sanchez with a difficult path to tread as he tries to keep his own party behind him. He stressed on Wednesday that he would tell pro-secession parties from Catalonia that he opposed their independence drive. Story continues He is also not planning to ask the PP for support in trying to form a government. But Sanchez sought to reinforce his credentials as a consensus leader by calling for parties to agree on how Spain should respond to a European Union reform package aimed at keeping Britain in the bloc. "We're going to ask (acting) Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy to appear in parliament to seek a common position," Sanchez said. Rajoy had been pushing for the PP to lead a "grand coalition" of parties such as the Socialists and Ciudadanos, though he passed on his chance to try to form a government first, saying he lacked support. Sanchez, who has said he needs at least a month before seeking a confidence vote in parliament, has appointed a six-strong team to handle the negotiations. These will focus on four areas - creating jobs, tackling social inequalities, restoring faith in Spain's institutions and giving it a new constitution to better accommodate Catalonia. If he fails, other potential candidates would have a maximum of two months to try to form an alternative majority. After that, a new national election would have to be called. (Reporting by Julien Toyer, Blanca Rodriguez and Rodrigo de Miguel, Writing by Sarah White, Editing by Angus MacSwan) Gas prices fluctuate wildly in the United States. Many factors can cause price swings, from seasonal conditions, global market trends, an announcement from a nations oil industry, to the development of a new extraction technology. Taxes are perhaps the least volatile aspect of gasoline prices, yet gas taxes vary between U.S. regions and largely account for the price differences between states. 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the combined state and average local gas taxes per gallon in each state from estimates provided by the American Petroleum Institute (API). Pennsylvania leads the nation with a gas tax of 50.4 cents per gallon. In Alaska, the average gallon of gas is taxed at just 12.3 cents, the lowest in the nation. ALSO READ: The Tallest Building in Every State Michael Green, a spokesman for the American Automobile Association (AAA), explained that beyond the federal fuel tax, which is levied uniformly across the nation, states have free reign to determine how they will fund transportation projects within their states." Green added, "It often comes down to local and state politics. For this reason, taxes vary considerably across the country. In the states with the highest gas taxes, the price of gasoline tends to be high even when taxes are excluded from the overall cost, while the opposite tends to be true in low gas tax states. This is largely due to the proximity of oil refineries. In the Southeast, for example, where state governments levy low taxes on gas and drivers pay low gas prices, there is an abundant supply of oil. Texas and Louisiana are home to 27 and 19 petroleum refineries, respectively -- the most and second most nationwide. Such states are also subject to fewer supplementary costs associated with the fuel, such as transportation costs or price spikes brought on by local supply shortages. To fund roads and other transportation infrastructure, states with numerous oil refineries can often extract tax revenue from the production side of petroleum and spare consumers at the pump by charging relatively low retail gas taxes. Story continues For states in the Northeast, by contrast, most fuel arrives by pipeline from the U.S. Gulf Coast. The transportation costs add to the overall price of gasoline. In addition, since many of these states do not have any refineries, there is also no opportunity to tax fuel at the production stage. Northeastern states, therefore, may levy relatively high gas taxes in order to make up for the lack of other sources of revenue. ALSO READ: The Most Republican County in Every State The federal gas tax is 18.4 cents per gallon and has remained unchanged since 1993. For the most part, revenues from gasoline sales are reinvested in transportation infrastructure. According to Green, however, States do not receive enough money from the federal government for transportation, and have enacted state fuel taxes as a means to supplement their funding needs. Almost all state gas tax rates match or exceed the federal tax rate, and in some cases double it. Gas taxes are also largely determined by local politics, which often parallels the general attitudes towards taxation within a given state. Often the highest taxes are in the Northeast and West Coast, whereas the lowest taxes are in the Southeast and the Central United States, Green said. New York, California, and Connecticut -- states with traditionally high income and real estate taxes -- also have among the highest gas tax rates. Like the federal gas tax, state gas taxes rarely change -- and when they do, the changes are relatively modest. In the 15 years ending in 2014, 21 states made no changes whatsoever to their tax rates. Over the same period, only five states increased the rate by more than 5 cents per gallon. Gas taxes, and the overall price of gas, can impact driving behavior. In six of the 10 states with the costliest gas, vehicle miles traveled per capita are also among the 10 lowest in the country. While driving behavior varies with transportation costs across states, Americans as a whole are driving more. Since the 1970s, the amount of miles the average American traveled has increased from an estimated 5,556 a year to 9,659 miles last year -- the highest vehicle miles traveled per capita in history. ALSO READ: The Poorest County in Each State To identify the states with the highest and lowest gas taxes, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed state and average local gas taxes from the American Petroleum Institute (API). Average gas prices as of January 29, 2016 for each state came from AAAs Daily Fuel Gauge Report. The number of operating oil refineries in each state came from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). We also reviewed average annual vehicle miles travelled in each state from the Federal Highway Administration (FHA). The number of licensed drivers in each state also came from the FHA. All data are as of the most recent period available. These are the states with the lowest gas taxes. 10. Louisiana > Effective gas tax: 20.0 cents > Gas price: $1.63 (10th lowest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 19 (2nd highest) > Number of licensed drivers: 3,278,143 (25th highest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 10,325 (23rd highest) 9. Texas > Effective gas tax: 20.0 cents > Gas price: $1.60 (6th lowest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 27 (the highest) > Number of licensed drivers: 15,447,273 (2nd highest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 9,245 (16th lowest) 8. Arizona > Effective gas tax: 19.0 cents > Gas price: $1.83 (19th highest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 0 (tied-20th lowest) > Number of licensed drivers: 4,791,450 (14th highest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 9,143 (15th lowest) 7. New Mexico > Effective gas tax: 18.9 cents > Gas price: $1.74 (22nd lowest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 2 (tied-17th highest) > Number of licensed drivers: 1,456,500 (15th lowest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 12,030 (6th highest) 6. Mississippi > Effective gas tax: 18.8 cents > Gas price: $1.62 (9th lowest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 3 (tied-13th highest) > Number of licensed drivers: 1,968,907 (18th lowest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 12,957 (4th highest) 5. Missouri > Effective gas tax: 17.3 cents > Gas price: $1.54 (2nd lowest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 0 (tied-20th lowest) > Number of licensed drivers: 4,280,438 (18th highest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 11,492 (9th highest) 4. Oklahoma > Effective gas tax: 17.0 cents > Gas price: $1.52 (the lowest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 5 (tied-5th highest) > Number of licensed drivers: 2,418,307 (22nd lowest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 12,465 (5th highest) 3. South Carolina > Effective gas tax: 16.8 cents > Gas price: $1.61 (7th lowest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 0 (tied-20th lowest) > Number of licensed drivers: 3,536,404 (23rd highest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 10,259 (24th highest) 2. New Jersey > Effective gas tax: 14.5 cents > Gas price: $1.70 (18th lowest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 3 (tied-13th highest) > Number of licensed drivers: 6,081,386 (11th highest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 8,375 (8th lowest) 1. Alaska > Effective gas tax: 12.3 cents > Gas price: $2.45 (3rd highest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 5 (tied-5th highest) > Number of licensed drivers: 528,873 (3rd lowest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 6,595 (the lowest) These are the states with the highest gas taxes. 10. Rhode Island > Effective gas tax: 34.0 cents > Gas price: $1.92 (13th highest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 0 (tied-20th lowest) > Number of licensed drivers: 749,232 (7th lowest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 7,394 (4th lowest) 9. West Virginia > Effective gas tax: 34.6 cents > Gas price: $1.84 (18th highest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 1 (tied-25th highest) > Number of licensed drivers: 1,177,136 (13th lowest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 10,372 (20th highest) 8. North Carolina > Effective gas tax: 35.3 cents > Gas price: $1.80 (23rd highest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 0 (tied-20th lowest) > Number of licensed drivers: 6,822,902 (9th highest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 10,684 (16th highest) 7. Florida > Effective gas tax: 36.6 cents > Gas price: $1.84 (17th highest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 0 (tied-20th lowest) > Number of licensed drivers: 13,670,441 (3rd highest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 9,855 (23rd lowest) 6. Connecticut > Effective gas tax: 37.5 cents > Gas price: $1.99 (10th highest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 0 (tied-20th lowest) > Number of licensed drivers: 2,534,090 (23rd lowest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 8,604 (12th lowest) 5. California > Effective gas tax: 40.6 cents > Gas price: $2.60 (2nd highest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 18 (3rd highest) > Number of licensed drivers: 24,390,236 (the highest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 8,597 (11th lowest) 4. Hawaii > Effective gas tax: 42.4 cents > Gas price: $2.63 (the highest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 2 (tied-17th highest) > Number of licensed drivers: 915,033 (9th lowest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 7,193 (3rd lowest) 3. New York > Effective gas tax: 42.6 cents > Gas price: $2.08 (6th highest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 0 (tied-20th lowest) > Number of licensed drivers: 11,210,783 (4th highest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 6,602 (2nd lowest) 2. Washington > Effective gas tax: 44.5 cents > Gas price: $2.18 (5th highest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 5 (tied-5th highest) > Number of licensed drivers: 5,301,630 (13th highest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 8,207 (7th lowest) 1. Pennsylvania > Effective gas tax: 50.4 cents > Gas price: $2.00 (9th highest) > Number of petroleum refineries: 4 (tied-9th highest) > Number of licensed drivers: 8,896,590 (5th highest) > Annual vehicle miles travelled per capita: 7,721 (5th lowest) Related Articles By David Ljunggren OTTAWA, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Statistics Canada said on Thursday it planned to temporarily delay the publication of economic data from media lock-ups because of recent delays in updating the federal agency's website. Statscan, which releases data precisely at 8:30 a.m. EST (1330 GMT), said starting Friday Feb. 5, for the time being it would not open communications channels from the media lock-up until the daily release had been published on the website. Statscan announced similar plans in 2012 but backed down after Reuters and other news organizations who report on the data to financial clients complained it would be disruptive. Many banks and trading organizations use sophisticated programs that can execute trades in less than a second after data are released. Gabrielle Beaudoin, director general of the communications division at Statscan, said the agency had a duty to publish information for all users at the same time. In recent weeks, the release had hit the website a few seconds late, she said. "Our mandate is not to support the financial markets. Our mandate is to produce quality information for Canadians ... we have to be equitable to everyone in Canada," she said in a phone interview. Beaudoin said that once the technical problems had been solved, Statscan would resume the practice of releasing information from the media lock-up at 8:30 am. All communications are turned off in the lock-ups, where reporters are given the information an hour ahead of time so they can prepare their reports. A Statscan official opens the communications lines at the end of the lock-up. Statscan is due to release employment and trade data on Friday. (Editing by Jeffrey Hodgson) Thailand's Pattaya has long had a reputation for being a haven both for foreign criminals and retirees (AFP Photo/Nicolas Asfouri) A vow by Thailand's junta to rid the country of foreign criminals has netted an unlikely group of outlaws -- elderly bridge players. Police and military volunteers raided a bridge club on Wednesday in Pattaya, a resort town renowned for its go-go bars and links with organised crime, arresting 32 foreigners, most of them British. "There were 32 people, all of them foreigners arrested for gambling on Wednesday night," Colonel Suthat Pumphanmuang, Pattaya police superintendent, told AFP Thursday, saying the raid was sparked by a member of the public complaining to the junta's anti-corruption centre. Almost all forms of gambling apart from the lottery and bets on some animal fighting are outlawed in Thailand, though underground betting is rampant. "The chairman of the bridge club is arguing that they were not gambling (for money)," Suthat said. He added that all but one of those arrested were freed on a 5,000 baht ($140) bail after 12 hours in custody. The final person was unable to pay bail and remains in jail. Police said those arrested included 12 British nationals, three Norwegians, three Swedes, two Australians, a German, a Dane, a Canadian, a New Zealander and one Dutch and one Irish national. The other nationalities were not made public. A British Embassy spokesman said officials were in contact with local authorities "following the arrest of several British nationals". Jomtien and Pattaya Bridge Club, the target of the raid, is a venue popular with elderly foreign players that advertises publicly and meets three times a week above a restaurant. Video of the raid posted by local media outlets showed groups of largely elderly foreigners gathered around tables holding playing cards looking confused by the sudden police interest. At one point officers pose for media pictures by a cabinet holding multiple packs of playing cards. The accused were later seen being walked to the back of a police van, one of them with the help of a walking stick. Story continues Pattaya One, a local English language newspaper, said the club had been operating bridge nights since 1994. Since seizing power in 2014, Thai junta chief Prayut Chan-O-Cha has vowed to crack down on a raft of social ills including corruption and criminal networks, both foreign and domestic. He has set up a corruption centre where members of the public can inform officials of alleged abuses or crimes. The Immigration Bureau recently rolled out a new slogan: "Good guys in, bad guys out". Pattaya has long had a reputation for being a haven both for foreign criminals and retirees. In late November, an Australian former Hells Angels member was abducted from his apartment in broad daylight by foreign rivals. He was later found murdered and buried in a shallow grave outside the city. * Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia say move to address glut * Benchmark Asian rubber prices rise 2-3 pct on news * Rubber prices hit 2008-09 lows in January (Adds comments from farmers, traders; details throughout) By Bernadette Christina Munthe and Aukkarapon Niyomyat JAKARTA/BANGKOK, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Asia's top rubber producers have agreed to cut exports by 615,000 tonnes for six months from March, moving to lift prices that have tumbled amid excess supply to their lowest since the global financial crisis. Farmers and traders were not impressed, however, saying the cuts - which account for nearly 6 percent of global natural rubber output - were too small to have a lasting impact. Previous efforts by Asian producers to curb exports have given only fleeting support to prices, unable to counteract a chronic glut and a slowdown in top rubber importer China. Still, benchmark rubber futures in Singapore and Japan rallied 2-3 percent on the news, having last month sunk to their lowest levels since end-2008 to early 2009. Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, which produce nearly 70 percent of the world's natural rubber, said in a joint statement on Thursday their move would address a decline in rubber prices that has had "a direct effect on the income of rubber smallholders in our three countries." Thailand will cut exports by 324,000 tonnes, Indonesia by 238,740 tonnes and Malaysia by 52,260 tonnes, according to the International Tripartite Rubber Council (ITRC), which groups the three producers. "The three countries' ministers believe that cutting exports and boosting domestic use of rubber will drive up prices and fix the price slump, making prices fair for rubber farmers," Thailand's agriculture ministry said in a statement. Farmers in Thailand, the world's biggest rubber producer and exporter, said the volume cut was "too little". "In order for export cuts to have any impact on global prices the cut has to be at least 1 million tonnes," Saksarit Sriprasart, a leader of smallholder rubber farmers in Thailand's southern Trang province, told Reuters. Story continues CUT OUTPUT, NOT EXPORTS Thai rubber farmers have threatened protests and demanded help as they are battered by low prices, prompting the state to launch intervention measures. Previous efforts to curb supply, though, have lifted prices only temporarily. In 2014, the ITRC members also agreed to export cuts, and before that, they collectively cut shipments by 300,000 tonnes in 2012-13, or 3 percent of 2012 global output. Instead of reducing exports, rubber producers should cut production as "a better strategy moving forward," said a rubber trader in Kuala Lumpur. On Thursday, besides cutting exports, the three countries also agreed to increase domestic consumption of rubber, including for road and railway construction. "We are optimistic with joint implementation of these measures, rubber price will recover and continue to be fair and remunerative to all smallholders and other stakeholders in the natural rubber industry," the ITRC said in the statement. In Vietnam, another major rubber grower, farmers have limited annual output to 1 million tonnes from 1.1 million-1.2 million tonnes in response to falling prices, said an industry official there. ($1 = 35.5900 baht) (Reporting by Bernadette Christina Munthe in JAKARTA and Aukkarapon Niyomyat in BANGKOK; Additional reporting by Panarat Thepgumpanat, Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Patpicha Tanakasempipat in BANGKOK, Michael Taylor and Fergus Jensen in JAKARTA, Emily Chow in KUALA LUMPUR and Ho Binh Minh in HANOI; Writing by Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Manolo Serapio Jr.; Editing by Tom Hogue) * Parliament Speaker calls for government reshuffle * Minister had accused presidential ally of corruption * Scandal could delay IMF aid: lawmaker (Recasts with emergency cabinet meeting) By Pavel Polityuk and Natalia Zinets KIEV, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Three Ukrainian cabinet members who had previously tendered their resignations will now remain in their posts, the government announced on Thursday, a show of unity a day after the abrupt exit of a key minister. Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk held an emergency cabinet meeting that looked to repair the damage from the departure of Economy Minister Aivaras Abromavicius, which had been seen as a major blow to Ukraine's fight against corruption. Abromavicius quit saying he would not become a "puppet" for corrupt vested interests, and accused a close ally of President Petro Poroshenko of trying to siphon off state funds. The move has highlighted deep divisions within the ruling coalition and prompted Ukraine's western backers to warn that the country is reneging on the reform promises it made in exchange for billions of dollars in financial aid. Yatseniuk said the government was determined not to stray from its reform drive. "Our principle is one for all and all for one. We came as a united team and we will work as a united, team," he said. "We demand ... an end to blackmail, political pressure (and) under-the-table dealings for positions of ministers, their deputies or the heads of state companies," he said. The health, agriculture and infrastructure ministers, who had also previously tendered their resignations, said they would continue to work in the cabinet provided they would be allowed to pass reform initiatives without political interference. However Abromavicius, whom Ukraine's international supporters championed as a key reformer, does not appear to have reversed his decision. Television footage of the meeting showed an empty chair next to Finance Minister Natalia Yaresko, where the economy minister would normally sit. Story continues His resignation, followed by several of his deputies, has raised concerns among local politicians that Kiev's relations with its Western backers could sour, threatening vital loan aid. AID MONEY Parliamentary Speaker Volodymyr Groysman earlier said Ukraine was entering a "deep political crisis" and called for a government reshuffle. The episode has shone an uncomfortable spotlight on Ukraine's efforts to tackle corruption, which the government pledged to do when it came to power after the Maidan protests in the winter of 2013/2014. "What happened is a catastrophe for the whole country," Leonid Yemets, a lawmaker with People's Front that belongs to Yatseniuk, told Reuters. "Think about it: how can we now talk with out partners in the West, with our donors, after the minister comes out and says that the deputy head of the president's faction is corrupt. Who will want to speak with us after this?" Abromavicius accused Ihor Kononenko, an ally of Poroshenko, of lobbying to get his people appointed as heads of state companies, culminating in an attempt to appoint one of his people as Abromavicius's deputy. Kononenko denied the accusations as "completely absurd", and said Abromavicius was trying to shift blame for his own failures in running the ministry. Ukraine relies on aid money from its Western backers, including the International Monetary Fund, the United States and the European Union, to stay afloat. Its economy shrunk by more than 10 percent last year, dragged down by its war against pro-Russian separatists, who have taken control over a swathe of the country's eastern industrial heartland. The government is hoping the IMF will soon decide to disburse a third tranche of loans - worth $1.7 billion - which has been delayed since October. "The consequences of (the economy minister's) announcement are hard to predict, but it's clear that they are very negative," said a lawmaker from Poroshenko's faction, who declined to be named. "It could lead to the postponement of the IMF tranche." (Writing by Matthias Williams and Alessandra Prentice; Additional reporting by Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Toby Chopra) HOUSTON, TX / ACCESSWIRE / February 4, 2016 / Valmie Resources Inc (VMRI) announces it has dispatched a team to view an in-flight demonstration prepared by Inbright, an international drone hardware and software development company. Inbright is organizing a live exhibition of its multirotor drone platform; its camera and imager equipped drones, and customized ground control technology. The trip is part of a coordinated effort as the companies lay groundwork for merging their technologies. Valmie's team will confer with Inbright's company leaders to discuss strategies for addressing future opportunities in the commercial drone space. Valmie is exploring licensing its technologies and solutions, and integrating Inbright's specialized unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV's) and dedicated platforms for a range of commercial uses. Valmie recently signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with Inbright and is investigating the company's technology to finalize its Autonomous Intelligence for Mobile Devices, or AIMD platform, a powerful and feature-rich modular platform for enhancing the connection between UAV's and other smart systems. "As we look toward formalizing our corporate relationship, we are working closely with Inbright's leadership to refine and enhance the commercial value of this versatile drone platform," said President and CEO of Valmie Resources, Gerald B. Hammack, noting that Valmie is uniquely positioned through this international experience to meet consumer needs in a number of areas when the regulations governing drone use in the U.S. are established. "This new drone platform will be a catalyst for our business and allow for future expansion to meet the growing demand in the commercial drone space." The LOI with Inbright is reflective of Valmie's exploration of unique teaming scenarios in Mexico's less restrictive environment to allow the company to develop and perfect its drone technology more rapidly. About Inbright Inbright is a research and development company that achieves high level, customized solutions using innovative software, hardware and drones to help businesses solve technological challenges. Inbright builds drone platforms that perform inspections, data analysis and surveillance across a variety of industries. Inbright's capabilities include building custom apps and minimum viable product (MVP) development. Story continues Inbright investigates and evaluates businesses' technological challenges and finds creative methodologies to solve them. Once the ideas are fully researched, Inbright moves on to develop prototypes, culminating in high impact, full stack solutions. Inbright offers highly skilled teams in the areas of hardware and instrumentation; artificial intelligence and movement; computer vision; mapping and data acquisition; and user interface/experience. For further information visit http://www.inbrightcorp.com/. About Valmie Resources (VMRI) Valmie Resources is a U.S. company actively pursuing opportunities for the commercialization of leading edge products and services in the rapidly expanding technology industry. Valmie seeks concepts with valid business models positioned to make a significant impact within the four key "megasectors" of technology: software, hardware, networking and semiconductors. Valmie brings operating talent, tools and leadership to emerging companies in these sectors, promoting industry awareness and developing economically sustainable partnerships while increasing shareholder value. For further information visit http://valmie.com. Forward-Looking Statements Certain information provided in this press release constitutes forward-looking statements. The words "anticipate," "expect," "project," "estimate," "forecast" and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. The reader is cautioned that assumptions used in the preparation of such information, although considered reasonable at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect. Actual results achieved during the forecast period will vary from the information provided herein as a result of numerous known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors. You can find a discussion of those risks and uncertainties in our EDGAR securities filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such factors include, but are not limited to: general economic, market and business conditions; fluctuations in the technology market; the results of product development and the result of our efforts to develop strategic relationships, partnerships and potential acquisitions that are in line with our business model; outcome of partnership negotiations; the uncertainty of market estimates; changes in environmental and other regulations; risks associated with retail operations; and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. There is no representation by Valmie Resources that actual results achieved during the forecast period will be the same in whole or in part as those forecast. Except as may be required by applicable securities laws, Valmie Resources assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements made herein or otherwise, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Contact Valmie Resources, Inc. Gerald B. Hammack, President and CEO info@valmie.com 713-595-6675 SOURCE: Valmie Resources, Inc. Branding for Vodafone is seen on the exterior of a shop in London, Britain, September 10, 2015. REUTERS/Toby Melville By Paul Sandle LONDON (Reuters) - Mobile phone company Vodafone (VOD.L) delivered its sixth consecutive quarter of underlying revenue growth on Thursday, as Germany and Italy led an improvement in Europe, its biggest regional business. The world's second largest mobile operator met expectations with a 1.4 percent rise in underlying revenue in its third quarter ended Dec. 31, saying it was helped by a more stable pricing environment and growing demand for data traffic. Vodafone also said it was on track to deliver full-year earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of between 11.7 billion and 12 billion pounds, which compares with a reported EBITDA of 11.92 billion pounds last year and the average of analysts' forecasts of 11.6 billion pounds. "Although in-line (with forecasts) at the headline level, we see these (third-quarter) results as a positive given improvements in Germany and Italy and the likelihood that the pressures in India will pass," Citi analyst Simon Weeden said. Under 'Project Spring', Vodafone has committed to spending 19 billion pounds on building 4G high-speed networks in Europe and fast 3G networks in emerging markets, while also buying up fixed-line networks in markets where consumers are increasingly opting for bundles of pay-TV and telecoms services. The company said on Thursday it was still making "steady progress" towards returning to underlying revenue growth in Europe - the decline slowed to 0.6 percent in the last quarter, from 1 percent in the second quarter - but some analysts want a harder push into converged services. Last year it was in talks with pay-TV cable group Liberty Global (LBTYA.O) about a tie-up or exchange of assets that could have covered as many as seven European markets, but they failed to reach agreement on a deal. On Tuesday Vodafone said talks had resumed, but this time were limited to the idea of creating a joint venture in the Netherlands. Chief Executive Vittorio Colao declined to say more on Thursday, or if similar joint ventures made sense elsewhere. Story continues "Every market is different," he said. "We are very pragmatic, we do whatever it takes to give better services and have better returns." In its emerging markets division, which contribute about a third of revenue, Vodafone said underlying revenue rose 6.5 percent, thanks to strong performances in South Africa, Turkey and Egypt. "The market that slightly disappointed us this quarter is India, where we have slowed down," Colao said. "There has been quite a bit of pressure on voice (and) there has been quite some pressure on data, but we had a very good quarter in terms of net additions," he said after reporting revenue growth in India slowed to 2.3 percent in the third quarter from 5.6 percent in the second. Meanwhile Vodafone said adverse moves in exchange rates in both Europe and its emerging markets proved a headwind for the group's overall revenue performance, knocking reported revenues down by 7.9 percentage points in the last quarter. Vodafone is due to switch to reporting in euros in its next financial year, as more than half of all its revenue now comes from euro zone markets. (Editing by Kate Holton, Greg Mahlich) Nigeria hopes IMF loans can help to quell protests. The 19-month plunge in oil prices has already confounded analysts and cost the global energy sector hundreds of thousands of jobs. Now its forcing international banks to decide whether to bail out at least two oil-producing countries, both rated among the most corrupt in the world. Azerbaijan has begun negotiations for a combined $4 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank, while Nigeria has requested $3.5 billion from the World Bank and the African Development Bank. The two requests were made just days apart in the last week of January. Economists believe that Venezuela is also at risk of defaulting on its international loans, but because of political reasonsmainly the anti-American stance of its leadershipit is not likely to seek such a multilateral bailout. Saudi Arabia, with some $630 billion of financial reserves, isnt at risk of default, nor listed among the most corrupt nations, but the IMF is still telling the kingdom that it is urgent to reform its fiscal system. In Transparency Internationals 2015 Corruption Index, released Jan. 27, Nigeria ranked 136th out of 168 countries, with No. 1 being the cleanest and 168 the most corrupt. Azerbaijan was 119th. Venezuela is worse than both of them, according to the index, where it ranks 158th. Saudi Arabia is only 48th. Sarah Chayes of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a Washington think tank, told Quartz that international loans to countries with high corruption are often captured by the ruling networks, and become the property of the folks with political power. The result is that the bailout ends up reinforcing them, while leaving the population with a burden of debt, she said. The answer, she said, is to tie any loans to specific infrastructure projects, and not general reforms, and to ensure strong oversight of the spending. Story continues Chayes also differentiated between Nigeria and Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan, she said, is becoming politically more problematic, with autocratic president Ilham Aliyev further entrenching his power. Aliyevs kleptocratic network rules unchallenged, Chayes said. In Nigeria meanwhile, Muhammadu Buhari, the new president elected last March to replace Goodluck Jonathan, has proceeded to start cleaning up the corruption-riddled state oil company, Chayes said. So Nigeria is a country that is at least ostensibly addressing the corruption problem, she said. A bailout in this case could be carefully tailored to reinforce the incentive structure for doing so. Richard Kauzlarich, a former US ambassador to Azerbaijan, said that as part of any bailout, Azerbaijan should have to agree to privatize state-owned companies and banks, among other steps. He told Quartz that he fears that, to divert the attention of his possibly disaffected population, president Aliyev might start a new war with neighboring Armenia, with which Azerbaijan has held a truce since 1994. Sign up for the Quartz Daily Brief, our free daily newsletter with the worlds most important and interesting news. More stories from Quartz: New York City car accident lawyers offer legal assistance for victims involved in car accidents as drivers or as pedestrians NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / February 4, 2016 / CarAccidentCases.com is pleased to announce that they are currently offering assistance for anyone who has recently been involved in a car accident or a pedestrian accident in New York City. Victims can quickly connect with New York car accident lawyers for the purpose of getting legal advice or starting an accident case. Pedestrian accident attorneys are also available to discuss car accident claims and compensation. Car accidents are a regular occurrence in New York City. Each year, thousands of pedestrians are injured in New York City pedestrian accidents, and some of those pedestrians even lose their lives. For those who survive, medical bills can total into the thousands, not to mention the loss of quality of life those victims are experiencing. Car accident victims often aren't sure where to turn to get information about the steps they should take when they're in a car accident in New York City. They may be unsure about whose fault the accident was, or they may worry that they will not be compensated for their claim, and so they do nothing. It is important to understand the steps that should be taken in the event of a car accident, and more information on this topic is available in the CarAccidentCases.com articles. In the same way, pedestrian car accident victims are also hesitant to file a claim because they are unsure of their rights as victims. Many times, they are confused about what steps they should be taking, and they don't realize that they too can be compensated for their injuries. More information on this topic is available in the CarAccidentCases.com article, I was Hit by a Car While Walking. What do I do? Advice from a New York Pedestrian Lawyer. Victims of car accidents or pedestrian accidents often ask a variety of questions when contemplating what they should do about filing claims. These include: Story continues - How do I file a car accident claim? - Do I have to pay for a New York car accident attorney out of pocket? - Do you have to get immediate medical attention after you're in a car accident? These and other questions can be answered by visiting the blog at CarAccidentCases.com. For those seeking the help of a New York City car accident lawyer, help is available. A car accident claim can be filed for a settlement to cover medical bills, money lost in wages, pain and suffering, and so much more. Media Contact Information: CarAccidentCases.com offers advice and legal referrals to anyone who has been involved in a car accident. They can be reached at Phone: (516) 582-4367 SOURCE: CarAccidentCases.com via Submit Press Release 123 For Immediate Release Chicago, IL February 04, 2016 Zacks.com announces the list of stocks featured in the Analyst Blog. Every day the Zacks Equity Research analysts discuss the latest news and events impacting stocks and the financial markets. Stocks recently featured in the blog include theAirlines Group Inc. (AAL), JetBlue Airways Corp. (JBLU), Delta Air Lines (DAL), Alaska Air Group Inc. (ALK) and United Continental Holdings ( UAL). Today, Zacks is promoting its ''Buy'' stock recommendations. Get #1Stock of the Day pick for free. Here are highlights from Wednesdays Analyst Blog: Airline Stock Roundup: Earnings Beats for American (AAL), JetBlue (JBLU) As the fourth-quarter 2015 earnings season in the airline industry moves toward its final phase, the past week saw earnings beats at major carriers like American Airlines Group Inc. (AAL) and JetBlue Airways Corp. ( JBLU), once again on the back of weak oil prices. However, the past week brought in some disappointment for carriers as well. Fears looming large owing to the outbreak of the mosquito-borne Zika virus compelled several carriers to offer fliers (particularly pregnant women) refunds or options to reschedule their travel to Zika-affected areas at a later date. Traffic-related news also flowed in with Delta Air Lines (DAL) and Alaska Air Group Inc. (ALK) revealing their respective January numbers. A valuable metric load factor (% of seats filled by passengers) saw different fates at the two carriers, going up at Delta and down at Alaska Air Group. However, all was not rosy at Delta as passenger revenue per available seat miles (PRASM) a key measure of unit revenue continued its downward journey in January. Read the last Airline Stock Roundup for Jan 27, 2016 . Recap of the Past Weeks Most Important Stories 1. American Airlines earnings per share (on an adjusted basis) came in at $2.0 in the final quarter of 2015, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 4 cents. Results were aided by low fuel costs. American Airlines, which does not hedge fuel costs, expects savings of approximately $2 billion in 2016 due to low fuel costs. Story continues Fuel price (on a consolidated basis) for 2016 is projected in the range of $1.20 to $1.25 per gallon. The same is expected in the band of $1.15 to $1.20 in the first quarter. Pre-tax margin (on an adjusted basis) is projected in the range of 12% and 14% in the first quarter of 2016 (read more: American Airlines Tops Q4 Earnings, PRASM Woes Persist ). 2.Low-cost carrier JetBlue Airways earnings (excluding special items) of 56 cents per share beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 51 cents. Earnings improved substantially from the year-ago figure of 26 cents. Results were aided by low fuel costs. Operating revenues came in at $1,594 million, edging past the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1,571 million (read more: JetBlue Q4 Earnings & Revenues Beat Estimates ). 3. The spread of the Zika virus in more than 20 countries, particularly in South and Central America, has set off alarm bells causing many carriers like United Continental Holdings (UAL) to offer rescheduling/refunds for tickets purchased for travel to areas where the virus is now wreaking havoc (read more: Airlines Feel the Pinch of Zika Fears: More Trouble Ahead? ). 4. Alaska Air Group, the parent company of Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air, posted a significant rise in air traffic for Jan 2016. Revenue passenger miles (RPMs) a measure of air traffic improved 10.4% on a 12.4% capacity expansion. Load factor decreased to 79.1% from 80.5% in Jan 2015 as capacity expansion outpaced the increase in traffic. 5. Delta Air Lines revealed a 3.7% increase in RPMs for January while capacity improved 1.1%. Load factor increased to 81.3% from 79.2% in Jan 2015 as capacity expansion was outpaced by the increase in traffic. However, Delta witnessed a 3% drop in PRASM in the month, mainly due to foreign exchange woes. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report >> About Zacks Equity Research Zacks Equity Research provides the best of quantitative and qualitative analysis to help investors know what stocks to buy and which to sell for the long-term. Continuous coverage is provided for a universe of 1,150 publicly traded stocks. Our analysts are organized by industry which gives them keen insights to developments that affect company profits and stock performance. Recommendations and target prices are six-month time horizons. Zacks "Profit from the Pros" e-mail newsletter provides highlights of the latest analysis from Zacks Equity Research. Subscribe to this free newsletter today. Find out What is happening in the stock market today on zacks.com. Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report AMER AIRLINES (AAL): Free Stock Analysis Report JETBLUE AIRWAYS (JBLU): Free Stock Analysis Report DELTA AIR LINES (DAL): Free Stock Analysis Report ALASKA AIR GRP (ALK): Free Stock Analysis Report UNITED CONT HLD (UAL): Free Stock Analysis Report To read this article on Zacks.com click here. Zacks Investment Research (Adds details) LUSAKA, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Zambia has resumed issuing new mining licences, and granting renewal and transfer of rights which it had suspended in August last year, its mines minister said on Thursday. Under the new rules, the government has increased the area of exploration for mining investors, raising the possibility of finding meaningful deposits and justifying larger capital investment, mines minister Christopher Yaluma said. The new regulations had also increased the period of exploration to 10 years from a renewable period of two years, giving investors ample time to search for deposits, he said. "In view of this development, I wish to declare the resumption of the issuance, renewal and transfer of mining rights and non-mining rights with effect from Monday," Yaluma told a media briefing in the capital Lusaka. Yaluma said the new regulations would also encourage the development of local communities in areas surrounding the mining areas with anticipated larger capital investment. (Reporting by Chris Mfula; Editing by James Macharia) 2000 - 2022 24 .- . focus-news.net, () . 24 . 24 . . 24 . We value your privacy. Focus Taiwan (CNA) uses tracking technologies to provide better reading experiences, but it also respects readers' privacy. Click here to find out more about Focus Taiwan's privacy policy. When you close this window, it means you agree with this policy. Forgot your Password? By logging into your account, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy , and to the use of cookies as described therein. If Montreal doesn't want a pipeline, Montreal can be moved. This goes for anywhere and anyone who thinks they can stop industry, sh-t bears be damned. A man who literally lives on a gold mine has been ordered by a Quebec judge to leave his home. Ken Masse's childhood house is the last obstacle standing in the way of a multibillion-dollar mining project in the town of Malartic, in Quebec's Abitibi-Temiscamingue region. A Superior Court judge awarded Osisko Mining Corp. possession of Masse's home after the company requested an emergency court decision. In a ruling presented Tuesday, Judge Robert Dufresne wrote that Masse's house is preventing key preparation work for the mining project from moving forward. Masse had been scheduled to appear in court next month to fight a government expropriation order. He has been representing his mother, Mary Elizabeth Wilczynski, who owns the home. The former Malartic municipal councillor says he turned down a $350,000 offer from Osisko for his $14,000 house. According to court documents, the family had been seeking $1 million from the mining company. Now they will receive compensation, determined by a provincial tribunal, in exchange for the home. Masse was the lone holdout from a relocation project that saw Osisko buy out 204 of 205 homeowners in his neighbourhood, which sits on top of one of Canada's largest gold reserves. Many of the houses were moved to another part of town, while others were destroyed. Masse's ramshackle house, which family members only live in part time, sits alone in a vast wasteland of rock and sand as the mining project closes around it. Mining company pleased A spokeswoman for Osisko says the company had been trying to reach a deal with Masse and Wilczynski for the last three years. "It's unfortunate for both sides to end up in court, in front of a judge, to solve the problem," Helene Thibault said Wednesday from Malartic, about 550 kilometres northwest of Montreal. "But we are satisfied with the judgment." Masse has said his fight wasn't about money, but about protecting his personal property rights and preserving his neighbourhood from a massive open-pit mine. He also had plans to launch a class-action suit against Osisko and the Quebec government seeking more than $200 million, to be divided between himself and his former neighbours. The court decision says Masse could be forced off the property as early as Monday morning if he refuses to leave. The Canadian Press Man may have fallen from plane after explosionAbdi Guled and Dusan Stojanovic, The Associated PressFirst posted: Wednesday, February 03, 2016 12:31 PM EST | Updated: Wednesday, February 03, 2016 03:02 PM ESTMOGADISHU, Somalia -- An explosion that blew a hole in a jetliner shortly after takeoff and left one man missing was believed to have been caused by a bomb, the pilot said Wednesday, describing how the crew calmed frightened passengers as smoke enveloped the cabin before he brought the plane back to Mogadishu's airport for an emergency landing.Residents of Balad, a town 30 kilometres (about 18 miles) north of Mogadishu, found the body of a man who might have been blown out of the Airbus 321 in Tuesday's blast, said police officer Mohamed Hassan.Abdiwahid Omar, the director of Somalia's civil aviation authority, told state-run Radio Mogadishu that authorities were not sure if the body was the missing passenger.Government officials also said no evidence had been found so far of a criminal act.Mohammed Ibrahim Yassin, CEO of Daallo Airlines, did not rule out that a bomb planted on the aircraft was responsible."At this stage, everything is possible. We cannot rule out anything at this stage," Yassin told The Associated Press.No group claimed responsibility for the blast. Somalia faces an insurgency from the Islamic extremist group al-Shabab, which has carried out many deadly attacks across the nation.Capt. Vlatko Vodopivec, the pilot, said he and others were told the explosion was caused by a bomb."It was my first bomb; I hope it will be the last," Vodopivec told the AP by phone from Mogadishu. He said the blast happened when the plane was at around 11,000 feet (3,350 metres) and still climbing to its cruising altitude of 30,000 feet."It would have been much worse if we were higher," he added.Had the blast occurred at a higher altitude, it could have led to explosive decompression on the plane, which might have caused more severe structural damage, and would have forced a more rapid descent because of limited supplies of oxygen to the passengers.Daallo Airlines said all passengers except one got off the plane safely. It previously said the plane, which was headed to Djibouti in the Horn of Africa, carried 74 passengers.Yassin acknowledged that signs pointed to the possibility a passenger was sucked from the plane at the time of the blast."Maybe one person fell out of the hole. But nothing is sure," he said from Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where the airline has its commercial offices.Cellphone video taken during the flight showed passengers, some wearing oxygen masks, sitting toward the back of the jet, with empty seats in the front of the cabin near the hole in the fuselage. A loud sound of rushing air could be heard on the video, which was shot by Awale Kullane, Somalia's deputy ambassador to the United Nations.The passengers bunched in the back appeared calm. A child wearing an oxygen mask sat quietly, partially covered by a blanket. Near the hole, oxygen masks dangled and swayed from overhead compartments."When we heard a loud bang, the co-pilot went back to the cabin to inspect the damage, and I took over the commands as the procedure demands," the Serbian pilot told AP, adding that the engines and hydraulics functioned normally so he had no problem flying the aircraft back to Mogadishu."Smoke came into the cockpit, but it was mostly concentrated in the back of the aircraft," he said by phone. "The stewardesses did a great job calming down the passengers and following the emergency procedure."The flight crew included an Italian co-pilot, with two flight attendants from Greece, two from Kenya and one from Bosnia, he said.Kullane said in a social media post that he "heard a loud noise and couldn't see anything but smoke for a few seconds." When visibility returned, he realized "a chunk" of the plane was missing."I think for the first few seconds and minutes ... I was terrified and most people were terrified," he said. "Of course, we give credit to the pilot who landed that plane."Daallo Airlines said in a statement posted on Facebook that the Airbus A321 was operated by Hermes Airlines, based in Athens, Greece.Hermes' main business is leasing planes to other carriers that are staffed and serviced by its crew to other carriers. Its fleet includes four A321s, one Airbus A320 and one Boeing 737, according to its website.Investigators from Somalia and Greece are conducting the inquiry, Yassin said. Daallo will continue to operate while the investigation is carried out, he added.On Dec. 11, 1994, a bomb on a Philippine Airlines jet with 293 people aboard blew a 2-foot (0.61-meter) hole in the floor leading to the cargo hold, but the pilot was able to make a safe emergency landing. One passenger was killed and 10 others were injured on the Manila-to-Japan flight.The plane was flying at about 33,000 feet (10,058 metres) when the blast occurred, and it landed about an hour later on Okinawa in southern Japan.Ramzi Yousef, who was sentenced to life in prison for the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center in New York, was convicted in the bombing of the Philippine Airlines flight. While most students encompassing the Fremont Public School District likely think they just got two free days of school off, in reality, the 14 hours and 40 minutes of school that students missed this week is already accounted for. The term snow day is really a bit of a misnomer, said Superintendent Mark Shepard. In all states, Nebraska included, students are required to spend an allotted amount of hours not days in the classroom. Shepard said that all elementary, middle school and high school students far exceed the number of hours needed to fulfill the state standard for completing a full school year. Although the hours are exceeded, making the decision to let students have the day off because of adverse weather conditions is not something that Shepard takes lightly. If too many days are taken off because of weather, hours must be made up, he said, which leads to some tough decision making. Essentially, it comes down to either making time up at the end of the day, or the beginning of the day. Ten years ago, the district was forced to add 10 minutes to the end of each school day to make up for time lost because of poor weather. They added 10 minutes on at the end of the day that year, and now that time is something that is built into the regular schedule, he said. Many factors ultimately go into deciding whether to call school off or not, Shepard said. First and foremost, he said that district leaders keep a close eye on the National Weather Service. In years past, not as much emphasis was placed on keeping an eye on the forecast it changed so frequently, however, heightened technology now makes the National Weather Service very reliable, he said. They were very accurate with their predication for the weather we would receive, Shepard said. For 48 hours they said we would get between 10-12 inches of snow, and that was pretty much the range we ended up with. Shepard said the consistency of the forecast led to the decision to call off Tuesdays school day early Monday afternoon. Calling off school Monday allowed for our students and teachers to talk with one another and get a plan in place for what they needed to get done, and for what they would need to catch up on when they came back, Shepard said. It also allowed for parents to plan accordingly. Another factor that goes into the decision is evaluating how difficult snow cleanup will be. Shepard said that the district is in constant communication with the city and snow removal contractors to see what their plan of attack is. It is important to also stay in contact with other nearby districts to see how they are handling the situation. Ultimately, Shepard said not holding school when conditions are bad is a safety issue. We can have as many as 4,700 students traveling throughout the district during a 30-minute window each morning, he said. When the weather is bad, and you take that out of the equation, it keeps our staff, students and community safer as a whole. One day you wash up on the beach, wet and naked. Another day you wash back out. In between, the scenery changes constantly. Zika virus has spread to more than 20 countries in the Americas. Today, Spain has confirmed that a pregnant woman has been diagnosed with the Zika virus - the first such case in Europe. The World Health Organization (WHO) has voiced its concern over reports that a case of the Zika virus contracted in the US state of Texas was transmitted sexually. As the outbreak quickly spreads across the Americas, the unprecedented and explosive outbreak of the mosquito-borne disease is causing fear in the affected regions. Scientists are concerned that the tiger mosquito, which is rife in Spain, could infect hundreds of thousands of people with the Zika virus. The UK's National Travel Health Network and Centre says pregnant women should reconsider their travel plans, and that any traveler should seek advice from a health professional before departing. And it adds that pregnant women who have to travel should take "scrupulous" measures to avoid being bitten by mosquitoes. The World Health Organisation said the risk of an outbreak would increase in the spring and summer as temperatures rise. Millions of British holidaymakers visit Spain each year, particularly in the summer holidays when mosquitoes are most numerable. Therefore UK is at high risk and Spain may have disruptions in tourism this summer. Meanwhile, in six months Olympic Games will open in Rio, Brazil. Brazil is facing an epidemic and the rapid spread of Zika has raised concerns among the Rio Olympic organising committee. The committee stressed there is no risk to the athletes or spectators except pregnant women. It believes the August weather will reduce cases of the virus. The committee pointed out it has not seen any evidence of people cancelling travel to the Olympics. But airlines are starting to offer refunds or date changes to pregnant women who plan to go to any of the affected countries. It appears there has been no impact to date on the tourist trade in Brazil where the epidemic began in May 2015. "As the Prophets saw, as the Apostles taught, as the Church has received, as the Teachers express in dogma, as the inhabited world understands together with them, as grace illumines, as the truth makes clear, as error has been banished, as wisdom makes bold to declare, as Christ has assured, so we think, so we speak, so we preach, honouring Christ our true God, and his Saints, in words, in writings, in thoughts, in sacrifices, in churches, in icons, worshipping and revering the One as God and Lord, and honouring them because of their common Lord as those who are close to him and serve him, and making to them relative veneration. This is the faith of the Apostles; this is the faith of the Fathers; this is the faith of the Orthodox; this faith makes fast the inhabited world." Excerpt from the Synodikon of the Sunday of Orthodoxy (http://www.anastasis.org.uk/synodikon.htm) By the Grace of God, here are presented a few true stories of the Saints, sayings of the Holy Fathers, sacred icons, and many other things so that, maybe in a small way, we may remind ourselves that (though we might not be ready to accept it)I must say that I am not a part of the clergy, so I hope to primarily put forth quotations from the Gospel, Saints and Holy Fathers, and not my own opinions. But if you see my own words or opinions, keep in mind that they are my opinions or comments and they have little weight, as opposed to the quotations from Christ, the Saints and the Fathers which do.I ask forgiveness if in this site any of my passions are acting, hindering the Grace of the Holy Spirit because of my sins. I apologize for any errors of mine, mistakes, problems with translations, etc. due to my ignorance and conceit. If anyone notices any mistakes or can suggest a better translation, please let me know. I try to post all of my sources. Please also let me know if I am violating any copyrights or other laws, and I will do my best to comply. There's an excellent review of this series from the Guardian, and it says some of what I'm going to say, but I think it's too kind. One of these days we... 1 year ago "Even if I dont sell my games domestically, I still want to make games that are culturally somehow South African." - Raheel Hassim, a student in South Africa's first-ever game design program Polygon today has an in-depth look at the state of the South African video game industry, which is still in its youth but looks to be expanding thanks to a new crop of developers studying at Witwatersrand University in Johannesburg. The students want to represent the country's unique culture in their games; "I want to make games that are culturally resonant here," student developer Lucky Nkosi told Polygon. These feelings run up against conventional wisdom in the country, however: "Theres this feeling that theres no truly South African market. Youll find a popular myth that you cant sell local," game design lecturer Hanli Geyser told Polygon. The full feature is a great read and offers a view of distinct and quickly evolving game scene. It also coincidentally serves as a great companion to our feature, published just yesterday, about overall African game development. MASON CITY State Rep. Josh Byrnes, R-Osage, announced Wednesday he will not seek re-election this year to the Iowa House. The three-term legislator represents House District 51 which includes Worth, Mitchell, Howard and a portion of Winneshiek counties. Byrnes, 41, made the announcement on his Facebook page. It has been a rewarding experience and I am a better person for having served, he said. He said he has tried to bring common sense and moderation to issues and to give his constituents a voice in Des Moines. He said he is most proud of his efforts to fix Iowas aging infrastructure, to reduce taxes and to enact education reforms. Byrnes was one of the architects of the 10-cent increase in the states gas and diesel fuel tax to boost funding for roads and bridges. The experiences encountered and the relationships I have built can never be erased. It is my hope that the voters of House District 51 will continue to elect moderate candidates to represent them in Des Moines, he said. Byrnes recently made another career decision. He is leaving his position as Industrial Division chairman at North Iowa Area Community College to become general manager of Osage Municipal Utilities. MASON CITY Morgan Lupkes, 14, and her sister, Mackenzy, 11, woke up to a problem on Wednesday morning. There was an aqua blue 17.5-foot-long stegosaurus snow sculpture in their front yard. It was supposed to be green. The siblings and their younger sister, Mollie, built the dinosaur in their East State Street yard on Tuesday with the help of their neighbors and parents. Mackenzy still couldnt believe they actually went through with it. We usually say were gonna make something and then we never actually make it, she said, as her sister sprayed a fresh coat of emerald food coloring near the spikes. Its just an idea. This year is a little different and we actually made it. It was green when they went to bed on Tuesday, but bright blue when they woke up on Wednesday. It was blue green dye so it faded to blue overnight, Morgan explained. Aspiring snow artists across Mason City had a lot to work with in the 10 inches of wet, heavy snow dumped on the city during Tuesdays blizzard. The snowfall broke a daily record for Feb. 2. The previous record of 6.3 inches was set on Feb. 2, 2004, according to the National Weather Service. Much of North Iowa got a minimum of 6-7 inches of snow. Some areas, including much of Wright County, reported more than 11 inches. The heavy snow and high winds caused school cancelations across the region Tuesday and Wednesday. Many also planned late starts on Thursday. In Mason City, Morgan and Mackenzy and their younger sister, Mollie, along with neighbor Corwin Lodge, put their creativity to work with help from their parents. First they built two snowmen, but had to come up with something else after Mackenzy and a friend knocked them down. The settled on a stegosaurus because the girls mother, Carol McCutcheon, made one back when Morgan was a little girl. Its the only thing I know how to build, McCutcheon joked. Budding artists should have at least a few days to channel all that heavy, sticky snow into some unique yard art before the temperature drops early next week. The National Weather Service forecast calls for highs in the mid-to-upper 20s through Saturday. Sunday is supposed to be even warmer with a high near 34. English Finnish Sponda Plc Financial Statements Bulletin 4 February 2016 at 8:30 Sponda Plc Financial Statements Bulletin 1 January 31 December 2015 JANUARYDECEMBER 2015 IN BRIEF (compared with 1 January 31 December 2014) Total revenue was EUR 230.5 (246.7) million. The decline was mainly due to properties sold in 2014. Net operating income was EUR 165.7 (176.0) million. Operating profit was EUR 178.1 (151.7) million. This includes a fair value change of EUR 23.2 (-0.2) million. Cash flow from operations per share was EUR 0.36 (0.37). The fair value of the investment properties amounted to EUR 3,101.7 (3,142.1) million. Net assets per share totalled EUR 5.26 (4.65). The economic occupancy rate was 87.7% (87.0%). The Board proposes to the Annual General Meeting that a dividend of EUR 0.19 per share be paid. After the reporting period, Sponda announced the acquisition of six properties from the Helsinki CBD. OCTOBERDECEMBER 2015 IN BRIEF (compared with 1 October 31 December 2014) Total revenue was EUR 57.2 (57.3) million. Net operating income was EUR 41.3 (40.4) million. Operating profit was EUR 47.8 (32.9) million. This includes a fair value change of EUR 10.3 (1.6) million. Cash flow from operations per share was EUR 0.07 (0.09). KEY FIGURES 10-12/2015 10-12/2014 1-12/2015 1-12/2014 Total revenue, M 57.2 57.3 230.5 246.7 Net operating income, M 41.3 40.4 165.7 176.0 Operating profit, M 47.8 32.9 178.1 151.7 Earnings per share, 0.55 0.04 0.78 0.24 Cash flow from operations per share, 0.07 0.09 0.36 0.37 Equity per share, 5.26 4.65 Equity ratio, % 46.2 41.0 Interest cover ratio 3.5 3.3 KEY FIGURES ACCORDING TO EPRA BEST PRACTICES RECOMMENDATIONS 10-12/2015 10-12/2014 1-12/2015 1-12/2014 EPRA Earnings, M 153.3 23.2 232.0 101.6 EPRA Earnings per share, 0.54 0.08 0.82 0.36 Company adjusted EPRA Earnings, M 16.1 26.6 98.6 108.7 Company adjusted EPRA Earnings per share, 0.06 0.09 0.35 0.38 EPRA NAV/share, 5.60 5.45 EPRA NNNAV/share, 5.15 4.49 EPRA Net Initial Yield (NIY), % 5.62 5.18 EPRA topped-up NIY, % 5.63 5.19 EPRA Vacancy rate, % 12.26 12.96 EPRA Cost Ratio (including direct vacancy costs), % 17.68 17.26 EPRA Cost Ratio (excluding direct vacancy costs), % 12.90 11.96 PRESIDENT AND CEO KARI INKINEN The rental market in Finland was challenging in 2015, with the market occupancy rate of office premises, in particular, declining. Spondas core business in the Office Properties and Shopping Centres segments, however, remained stable and outperformed the market. The result and economic occupancy rate of the core business were significantly better than those of the other segments. We made progress in strategic divestments and investments in line with our targets, which substantially lowered the risk profile of Spondas property portfolio. In Russia, we sold two properties in summer 2015 at their fair value, EUR 39 million, in spite of the markets instability. In Finland, we continued to implement our strategy by selling Spondas approximately 38% holding in Certeum Oy and our properties located in Vuosaari harbour, for a total of approximately EUR 290 million. Both transactions were completed in late 2015 and they represent a significant step in the implementation of our strategy. Also positive was the fact that the transactions were made either at fair value or at a profit. Spondas property development projects progressed on schedule. We completed our office property project in Ilmala in late 2015. The tenant moved in in December 2015 and the property is fully leased. Spondas development margin on the project was significantly above its target level, which is 15% of the invested amount. Sponda currently has one active property development project underway, namely the Ratina shopping centre in Tampere. The project is progressing according to plan, as is the pre-letting of the property. The property will be completed in spring 2018. Sponda will continue to implement its strategy in 2016 by selling properties and reinvesting the proceeds from the sales. Investments will be directed to property development projects and property acquisitions in Spondas key strategic areas in Helsinki and Tampere. After the reporting period Sponda announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire six properties from the Helsinki CBD. These properties fit perfectly to our strategy and to our property portfolio. DEFERRED TAX LIABILITIES As a consequence of dissolving an unnecessary sub-group, originating from a portfolio transaction in 2006, and from changes in the acquisition cost of shares, the amount of deferred taxes changed significantly. The reduction in deferred taxes, caused by dissolving the sub-group and recognised in the financial statements, for the year 2015 was approximately EUR 129 million. The change was discussed in the interim report published on 3 November 2015. BUSINESS CONDITIONS FINLAND A forecast by the Finnish Ministry of Finance in December 2015 predicted that Finlands GDP would grow by 0.2% in 2015. The most significant factor contributing to the growth of the domestic economy is the favourable development of private and public consumption. The GDP growth forecast for 2016 is 1.2%, attributable to consumption growth as well as private investments. According to KTI Property Information, the property transaction volume for the final quarter of 2015 was EUR 1.33 billion, and the full-year volume was EUR 5.46 billion. This means that the transaction volume in 2015 was the second-highest ever in Finland. The annual transaction volume of property transactions was higher only in 2007. International investment demand remained strong in 2015, with international investors accounting for 34% of the transaction volume. The construction of new office properties has picked up slightly compared to 2014, but remains at a fairly low level. According to Catella, some 86,000 m2 of new office space was completed in the office premises market in the Helsinki metropolitan area by the end of 2015, which is more than 50% higher than in 2014. The vacancy rate of office premises in the Helsinki metropolitan area declined slightly in the second half of the year in spite of the weak economic climate. According to Catella, the average vacancy rate stood at 13.3% at the end of the year. OPERATIONS AND PROPERTY ASSETS 1 JANUARY 31 DECEMBER 2015 At the end of 2015, an external consultant assessed the values of Spondas investment properties in Finland (Catella Property Oy) and in Russia (CB Richard Ellis). The change in fair value of the investment properties in 2015 was EUR 23.2 (-3.9) million for the full year and EUR 10.3 (1.5) million for OctoberDecember. The value of Spondas properties in Finland developed favourably primarily due to a decrease in yield requirements, especially with regard to central business district properties. Another factor contributing to the increase in fair value was the development margin of property development after the Ilmala office project was completed. The negative change in the fair value of properties in Russia was attributable to changes in market rents. Valuation gains/losses on fair value assessment M 10-12/15 10-12/14 1-12/15 1-12/14 Changes in yield requirements (Finland) 7.0 12.4 39.2 15.7 Changes in yield requirements (Russia) 0.0 -10.0 -7.4 -10.0 Development gains on property development projects 15.7 3.5 25.4 5.5 Modernisation investments -10.2 -14.3 -37.8 -42.0 Change in market rents and maintenance costs (Finland) 9.8 13.8 30.2 40.3 Change in market rents and maintenance costs (Russia) -12.5 -4.2 -26.8 -19.3 Change in currency exchange rates 0.5 0.2 0.3 5.9 Investment properties, total 10.3 1.5 23.2 -3.9 Real estate funds 0.0 0.1 0.0 -1.8 Realised share of real estate fund profits 0.0 0.0 0.0 5.5 Group, total 10.3 1.6 23.2 -0.2 Sponda defined the fair values of its investment properties at the end of 2015 in accordance with the companys established accounting principles. At the end of 2015, Catella Property Oy assessed the fair values of Spondas investment properties in Finland and CB Richard Ellis in Russia. A higher than usual level of uncertainty is related to the valuation due to the economic situation in Russia, sanctions and strong fluctuations in the rate of the rouble. Especially the lack of comparable sales, changes to lease agreements agreed upon with tenants and the rouble becoming increasingly common as the contract currency have increased uncertainty. RENTAL OPERATIONS Sponda calculates the growth in net rental yield for its properties according to EPRA Best Practices Recommendations by using a like-for-like net rental growth formula based on a comparable property portfolio owned by the company for two years. Like-for-like net rental growth was 3.3% (-3.0%) for office premises, 1.3% (3.2%) for shopping centres, 27.8% (-11.3%) for logistics premises and -4.3% (-10.7%) for properties in Russia. All of Spondas lease agreements in Finland are tied to the cost of living index. The economic occupancy rates by type of property and geographical area were as follows: Type of property 31.12.2015 30.9.2015 30.6.2015 31.3.2015 31.12.2014 Office properties, % 88.2 88.0 88.1 87.9 88.5 Shopping Centres 91.3 90.6 89.8 90.3 91.2 Logistics, % 68.3 67.8 68.6 68.5 64.9 Russia, % 84.6 82.3 84.5 90.1 90.4 Total property portfolio, % 87.7 86.2 86.3 86.8 87.0 Geographical area 31.12.2015 30.9.2015 30.6.2015 31.3.2015 31.12.2014 Helsinki business district, % 90.1 89.3 88.3 88.2 89.3 Helsinki Metropolitan Area, % 85.7 83.5 83.7 83.6 83.1 Turku, Tampere, Oulu, % 90.8 91.1 92.3 92.9 93.2 Russia, % 84.6 82.3 84.5 90.1 90.4 Total property portfolio, % 87.7 86.2 86.3 86.8 87.0 DIVESTMENTS AND INVESTMENTS Divestments M 1.10.- 31.12.2015 1.10.- 31.12.2014 1.1.- 31.12.2015 1.1.- 31.12.2014 Properties sold Selling price 101.2 5.1 157.6 237.2 Profit/loss on sale* -2.9 0.0 -4.3 0.6 Balance sheet value 104.1 5.1 161.9 236.6 *) Includes transaction costs Investments M 1.10.- 31.12.2015 1.10.- 31.12.2014 1.1.- 31.12.2015 1.1.- 31.12.2014 Properties acquired -4.7 0.0 -4.7 -65.0 Maintenance investments -10.2 -14.3 -37.8 -42.0 Property development investments -25.5 -9.1 -65.2 -22.0 RISKS AND UNCERTAINTY FACTORS IN THE NEAR FUTURE Sponda estimates that the risks and uncertainty factors in the current financial year are primarily related to the development of the Finnish and Russian economies. In Russia, these risks are related to the decline of tenants solvency and a decrease in the economic occupancy rate. The depreciation of the Russian rouble may cause tenant insolvency and a decrease in property values. The operations in Russia present a foreign exchange risk to Sponda. Changes in exchange rates may cause exchange rate losses that have a negative impact on the companys financial result. The uncertain situation in the Russian market may slow down the sale of Spondas properties in Russia in 2016. The weak development of the Finnish economy may cause a decline in net operating income and tenant insolvency. For Spondas property development projects, the key risk is related to the degree of success in leasing premises. PROSPECTS FOR 2016 Sponda provides prospects for 2016 with regard to the development of the companys net operating income and adjusted EPRA Earnings. The prospects do not include the effect of the acquisition of six properties on Spondas result. Net operating income Sponda estimates that the net operating income for 2016 will amount to EUR 152-168 million. The estimate is based on the companys view of property acquisitions and divestments to be completed and the development of rental operations during the year. Adjusted EPRA Earnings Sponda estimates that company adjusted EPRA Earnings in 2016 will amount to EUR 82-98 million. This outlook is based on the development of net operating income and the companys estimate of the development of financial expenses. EVENTS AFTER THE PERIOD In its meeting held on 25 January 2016, the Shareholders Nomination Board of Sponda Plc has decided to give proposal to the Annual General Meeting to be held on 21 March 2016 for the number of members of the Board of Directors, for the members of the Board and the remuneration of the Board. The proposals of the Nomination Board can be found from the Stock Exchange Release dated 25.1.2016. In February 2016, Sponda signed a purchase agreement for acquiring Ab Mercator Oy that holds six properties in the centre of Helsinki and Ab Forum Capita Oy, that manages those properties from Forum Fastighets Kb and Foreningen Konstsamfundet r.f. The properties are located in the Forum block in Helsinki CBD. Total, debt-free purchase price is approximately EUR 576 million. Estimated net operating income after the first year is approximately 4.9%. Purchase price is subject to customary balance sheet and other adjustments. Closing of the transaction is by 29th February 2016. Sponda will finance the transaction with cash and with approximately EUR 300 million bridge loan. Sponda is planning to organize a rights issue in order to maintain current capital structure and equity ratio level. More details on the transaction can be found from the Stock Exchange Release dated 4.2.2016. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING AND DIVIDEND The Board of Directors of Sponda Plc is convening the Annual General Meeting on 21 March 2016 and proposes to the Annual General Meeting that a dividend of EUR 0.19 per share be paid. 4 February 2016 Sponda Plc Board of Directors Additional information: Kari Inkinen, President and CEO, tel. +358 20 431 3311 or +358 400 402 653, Pia Arrhenius, SVP, Corporate Planning and IR, tel. +358 20 431 3454 or +358 40 527 4462, Niklas Nylander, CFO, tel. +358 20 431 3318 or +358 40 754 5961. Distribution: NASDAQ OMX Helsinki Media www.sponda.fi SAN DIEGO, Feb. 04, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ciclofilin Pharmaceuticals Inc. ("Ciclofilin" or the "Company"), a privately held biotech, announced today that Dr. Nikolai Naoumov, a world-renowned clinician-scientist in the field of hepatology, will join the companys Scientific Advisory Board (SAB). Ciclofilins SAB was established in 2015 to guide the companys drug development program for its lead drug candidate, CPI-431-32, for the treatment of Hepatitis B Virus ("HBV") infection and liver disease. Nikolai V. Naoumov, MD, PhD, FRCP, FRCPath, FAASLD, is Global Head, Therapeutic Area Hepatology and Transplantation at Novartis Pharma, based in Basel, Switzerland. In addition to his work at Novartis Global Headquarters in Basel, Dr. Naoumov is also Honorary Professor of Hepatology, University College London and Honorary Scientific Advisor to the Foundation for Liver Research in the UK. Before joining Novartis in 2007, Dr. Naoumov was Professor of Hepatology at University College London and Consultant Hepatologist at University College London Hospitals. His work elucidated the relationship between replication, mutations, protein expression of hepatitis viruses and virus-specific immunity in the pathogenesis of liver damage caused by hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), cytomegalovirus (CMV), hepatitis Delta virus (HDV) and TT-virus. During his academic career as clinician-scientist, Dr. Naoumov has been involved in the development of many of the new treatments for Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C, initially at the Institute of Liver Studies, Kings College Hospital, London and subsequently at the Institute of Hepatology, University College London. Dr. Naoumov has more than 200 publications in the fields of liver immunology, treatment of viral hepatitis and liver transplantation. He is Fellow of both the Royal College of Physicians (London) and the Royal College of Pathologists in the UK, and a member of the Association of Physicians of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. He was elected in the first class of Fellows of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). Dr. Naoumovs extensive experience in hepatology will complement to an already seasoned SAB, composed of world-class scientists and clinicians that include Dr. Philippe Gallay, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Immunology and Microbial Science at the Scripps Research Institute, San Diego, CA, USA; Dr. Tarek Hassanein, M.D., FACP, FACG, AGAF, FAASLD, Professor of Medicine, UCSD School of Medicine, Director of Outreach Services, UCSD Center for Transplantation, Director, Southern California GI & Liver Centers, Medical Director, Southern California Research Center, USA; Mr. Timothy Schroeder, Chief Executive Officer, CTI Clinical Trial & Consulting, Cincinnati, OH, USA; and Dr. Keith Anderson, Ph.D., SVP, Technical Operations ProNAi, Vancouver, BC, Canada. We are very pleased to announce the addition of Dr. Naoumov to Ciclofilins SAB," commented Dr. Robert Foster, Ciclofilin's CEO. "Dr. Naoumov is highly regarded for his work in the field of hepatology and has researched the roles of cyclophilins in a number of indications, including the role of cyclophilins in viral infections. In particular, much of Dr. Naoumovs research is based on cyclosporine derived analogs and their impact on human health and disease, which is very relevant to our own research. Overall, we are confident that our SAB is well poised to bring our lead molecule, CPI-431-32, through all stages of non-clinical and clinical development." About Ciclofilin: Ciclofilin is a privately held life sciences company based in San Diego, California, with R&D facilities in Edmonton, Canada. The company's lead drug candidate, CPI-431-32, is being developed as a treatment for chronic HBV infection. CPI-431-32 interferes with the ability of the HBV to infect cells, propagate, and cause disease primarily by preventing HBV interaction with host cell cyclophilins. CPI-431-32 also demonstrates anti-fibrotic activity in the liver, and may offer clinical benefits to patients in addition to anti-HBV activity. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements, including with respect to the potential of our lead drug CPI-431-32 for the treatment of HBV. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this press release are forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the significance of our preclinical results and potential applications of our compound for the treatment of HBV patients. Statements that are not historical facts are based on our management's current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about our business and the industry in which we operate and our management's beliefs and assumptions. The statements contained in this release are not guarantees of future performance and involve certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions, which are difficult to predict. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed in such forward-looking statements. These statements speak only as of the date of this release, and are subject to a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Ciclofilin undertakes no obligation to update or revise these statements, except as required by applicable law. ATLANTA, Feb. 04, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Americold (www.americold.com), the global leader in temperature-controlled supply chain solutions, announced today that Fred Boehler, formerly the companys President & Chief Operating Officer, has been appointed to the role of President & Chief Executive Officer effective immediately. Mr. Boehler has also been appointed to Americolds Board of Trustees. Mr. Boehler was previously appointed President & Chief Operating Officer when Jeffrey M. Gault, now Chairman of the Americold Board of Trustees, retired from the Americold CEO position in March of 2014. A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/1fa9a040-7d02-4331-add0-3b5d7b53fa2f This appointment is recognition of Freds achievements in improving the business during his first three years at Americold, while also ensuring the continuity of Americolds strategies for growing the business and developing innovative, customer-centric temperature-controlled supply chain solutions. Prior to joining Americold, Fred served as Senior Vice President of Supply Chain with SUPERVALU, Inc., a leading grocery retailer and wholesaler supplying more than 4,300 stores. Prior to SUPERVALU, Inc., he was Senior Vice President Logistics & Purchasing at Borders Group, Inc. He holds a Bachelor's Degree in Management Science and Operations from Wright State University and a Masters in International Business from Northern Illinois University. Mr. Gault commented, Fred Boehler has been instrumental in Americolds progress as the temperature-controlled supply chain solutions industry leader. His promotion reflects the confidence the Americold Board has in him, the expertise the industry acknowledges him for, and his leadership that the 11,000 Americold associates are guided by. Fred has done a great job as Americolds top executive since March 2014. The Board is excited for what lies ahead for the company under Freds continued leadership. For the last few years, weve been focused on improving our business, commented Mr. Boehler. First and foremost, weve brought industry-leading talent to Americold to execute on our Mission to be the global provider of choice for temperature-controlled infrastructure and supply chain solutions through our innovation, experience, and people. With our superior talent, weve driven significant operations improvements with the implementation of the Americold Operating System, providing optimal supply chain solutions and uniform standards of excellence to serve our customers. About Americold Americold is the global leader in temperature-controlled warehousing and logistics to the food industry, offering the most comprehensive warehousing, transportation and logistics solutions in the world. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, Americold owns and operates over 175 temperature-controlled warehouses, with 1 billion cubic feet of storage, in the United States, Australia, New Zealand, China, Argentina and Canada. Americolds facilities are an integral component of the supply chain connecting food producers, processors, distributors, and retailers to consumers. Americold serves more than 3,000 customers and employs 11,000 associates worldwide. More information about Americold is at www.americold.com. Re: In contrast to the ongoing trade imbalances with China and Japan, the [ #permalink CasperMonday wrote: In contrast to the ongoing trade imbalances with China and Japan, the United States trade deficit with Mexico declined by $500 million as a result of record exports to that country. (A) In contrast to the ongoing trade imbalances with China and Japan, the United States trade deficit with Mexico declined by $500 million as a result of record exports to that country. (B) In contrast to ongoing trade imbalances with China and Japan, the United States sold record exports to Mexico, reducing its trade deficit by $500 million. (C) When compared with ongoing trade imbalances with China and Japan, the United States sold record exports to Mexico, reducing their trade deficit by $500 million. (D) Compared with ongoing trade imbalances with China and Japan, the United States sold record exports to Mexico, reducing the trade deficit by $500 million. (E) Compared to the ongoing trade imbalances with China and Japan, the United States record exports to Mexico caused a $500 million decline in trade deficit with that country. Meaning is crucial to solving this problem: Concepts tested here: Meaning + Comparison A: Correct. B: C: at the time when D: E: Hence, A is the best answer choice. Dear Friends,Here is a detailed explanation to this question-Understanding the intended meaning is key to solving this question; the intended meaning of this sentence is that unlike the ongoing trade imbalances with China and Japan, the United States trade deficit with Mexico declined by $500 million as a result of record exports to Mexico. A comparison must always be made between similar things. when is only used to refer to a point in time.This answer choice avoids the pronoun error seen in Option C, as it uses no pronouns. Further, Option A uses the phrase "In contrast to ongoing trade imbalances with China and Japan", conveying the intended meaning - that unlike the ongoing trade imbalances with China and Japan, the United States trade deficit with Mexico declined by $500 million as a result of record exports to Mexico. Additionally, Option A correctly compares "trade imbalances with China and Japan" with "trade deficit with Mexico".This answer choice incorrectly compares "trade imbalances with China and Japan" to "the United States"; please remember, a comparison must always be made between similar things.This answer choice incorrectly refers to the singular noun "the United States" with the plural noun "their". Further, Option C alters the meaning of the sentence through the phrase "When compared with ongoing trade imbalances with China and Japan"; the use of "When" incorrectly implies that the United States sold record exports to Mexicoit was compared with ongoing trade imbalances with China and Japan; the intended meaning is that unlike the ongoing trade imbalances with China and Japan, the United States trade deficit with Mexico declined by $500 million as a result of record exports to Mexico; please remember, "when" is only uses to refer to a point in time. Additionally, Option E incorrectly compares "trade imbalances with China and Japan" to "the United States"; please remember, a comparison must always be made between similar things.This answer choice incorrectly compares "trade imbalances with China and Japan" to "the United States"; please remember, a comparison must always be made between similar things.This answer choice incorrectly compares "trade imbalances with China and Japan" to "the United States record exports"; please remember, a comparison must always be made between similar things.All the best!Team_________________ themange wrote: I am very interested in INSEAD as the program location and student body very much align with my interests. I am white American male, and would love to be able to work and live abroad in the future. I have some concerns that perhaps you would be able to speak to. As much as the school touts international placement it seems like those numbers may be skewed based on how international the student body is. As an English speaking American what job opportunities would I really have outside of say England? I would like to work in management consulting, anywhere in Europe, Asia or Africa would be amazing especially if I had the opportunity to move around, but from researching it seems firms only hire native speakers of the language where offices are located, understandably. (I understand the language requirement and do speak Spanish and Arabic, but there is no way I would be working in a professional context in either of those languages) Watch our explainer video to learn how it works Get a current MBA to help you prepare your application http://www.admithour.com/ Signature Read More Fair question. I think it's more of a relative comparison. Compared to most b-schools, arguably all, INSEAD has the most number of nationalities coming to INSEAD, and perhaps more importantly, going to different geographies. You're correct that most (not all) European jobs will require local language, but things are much more flexible in Asia, Africa and Middle East (in my opinion). Another important aspect is that the INSEAD network is spread very, very well across the globe, so getting that first conversation - the "foot in the door" - can get relatively easier. I can't commit whether everyone who wants to "go international" does that, but I know many people switch geographies and have a very international career. Hope this helps._________________ The Gorilla Radio archive can be found at: www.Gorilla-Radio.com. G-Radio is dedicated to social justice, the environment, community, and providing a forum for people and issues not covered in State and Corporate media. Gorilla Radio airs live Thursdays between 11-12 noon Pacific Time. Airing in Victoria at 101.9FM, and featured on the internet at: http://cfuv.ca and www.pacificfreepress.com. And check out Pacific Free Press on Twitter @Paciffreepress About a year ago, I accompanied my then-roommate to Marie's Crisis on a Friday night. It was, for a musical theater nerd like myself, something of a religious experiencea room full of people as equally enthusiastic about Rodgers & Hammerstein as myself. Piano bars might not be as hip as they were back in the days of Rick's Cafe, but they're a heck of a lot of fun, and this city's got a few that haven't quite been picked clean by the tourists. Here are our favorites, and leave yours in the comments. Via Yelp MARIE'S CRISIS: This West Village gay bar might be my (straight and female) former roommate's favorite bar in the world, since it's rare to find a spot in the city where it's socially acceptable to belt the Les Miserables soundtrack. For decades, Marie's Crisis has been a prime sport for musical theater performers and non-professional enthusiasts alike to warm up their pipes, with skilled pianists drawing from a seemingly endless catalog of Broadway shows. Cheap drinks and showtunes aside, the bar itself is practically a work of art, sitting on the site at which Common Sense (and The American Crisis) author Thomas Paine died in 1809. Tip your pianist, please. Marie's Crisis is located at 59 Grove Street between Bleecker Street and 7th Avenue South in the West Village (212-243-9323). Via Yelp THE DUPLEX: Like Marie's Crisis, you're bound to belt out a few Broadway numbers at this West Village spot, but the venerable songbook boasts everything from Top 40 hits to classic rock to Madonna. Music goes on at 9 p.m. nightly, with pianists and performers culled from a rotating list of staff members, and though the space is small, the energy is explosive no matter what night of the week you show up. Sondheim fans are in for a treat on Friday nights, when the composer's music is heavily favored. The bi-level space also boasts a full bar and theater, if comedy and cabaret is your thing. The Duplex is located at 61 Christopher Street between Waverly Place and 4th Street in the West Village (212-255-5438, theduplex.com) (Victoria Jacob) MANHATTAN INN: It's ironic that our one pick outside of Manhattan happens to have the borough's name right in its title, but it is what it is. Manhattan Inn boasts a slew of musical performers, but you can usually catch a pianist on weeknights, which is excellent for anyone who likes to hear some tinkling ivory while savoring $8 drinks. The bad news is, this isn't a singalong spot, though if you get toasted enough no one will kill you if you try to scat during an extended brunch jazz performance. But perhaps they should? Manhattan Inn is located at 632 Manhattan Avenue between Nassau and Bedford Avenues in Greenpoint, Brooklyn (718-383-0885, themanhattaninn.com). Via Yelp BRANDY'S PIANO BAR: Brandy's was my first piano bar, back when I was TOTALLY OF AGE YES SURE I WAS LEGAL OKAY COOL. If you're looking for a night of Broadway hits, search elsewhere, since Brandy's is all about classic rock and pop music. They take requests, which is unusual in piano bars in this town, though they also occasionally have a two drink minimum, which is slightly less fun. Still, a night at Brandy's is a night of drunkenly crooning "Rocket Man," which is well-worth $9 for a gin & tonic, yes indeed. At the very least, Brandy's is an overlooked gem among the frat bars and Irish pubs on the Upper East Side, providing some escape even if you don't care for piano music. Brandy's is located at 235 East 84th Street between 2nd and 3rd Avenues on the Upper East Side (212-744-4949, brandyspianobar.com). Via Yelp MEZZROW JAZZ CLUB: Having opened in the summer of 2014, the Mezzrow is a relatively new addition to the buffet of classic basement Greenwich Jazz Bars, but with its intimate Prohibition-style decor and steady stream of musicians, it's managed to become become a main course. A sexily backlit 1923 Steinway piano ties together a room dotted with small tables, perfect for a third (orless recommended, per experiencereally accelerated first) date. As is the case with most standard jazz bars, there is both a cover and a drink minimum. (Sarah Edwards) Mezzrow Jazz Club is located at 163 West 10th Street between 7th Avenue South and Waverly Place in the West Village (929-273-2422, mezzrow.com). Via Foursquare UNCLE CHARLIE'S: Despite the flashy website boasting a barrel-chested musician and the claim that it's the "only full-time gay jazz bar located in Midtown-East", Uncle Charlie's rewards with more than just location and washboard abs. It also features a lively rolodex of weekly events, a piano lounge, and that mythical Midtown feature, an outdoor patio. The website may be loud, but the bar itself has a more relaxed neighborhood feel, with friendly bartenders Tyler and Manny slinging drinks on the regular. Wander in after work for a generous happy hour that lasts until 9 p.m., and you'll be belting out showtunes by 10. (Sarah Edwards) Uncle Charlie's is located at 139 East 45th Street between Lexington and 3rd Avenues in Midtown East (646-476-9532, unclecharliesnyc.com). Hillary Clinton is having trouble proving she's hipper than the 75-year-old dude who's threatening to snatch the Democratic nomination away from her, so it makes sense that she's trying to drum up cash in the Land The Youths BuiltBill Clinton is hosting a fundraiser for her at Brooklyn Bowl this month, a place that is both Youngish and Coolish but probably won't kill those dumb Bernie vs. Hillary memes that have been floating around the Internet of late. According to hip, young news source CNN, Bill's heading to "Brooklyn Bowl, a bowling alley in the trendy Williamsburg neighborhood," on February 17th, as part of a wild three-fundraiser crawl in the city. Though Hillary has been racking up cash since announcing her run, she fell behind Bernie Sanders in January, and now the Clintons are hard at work trying to appeal to all the millennials who are otherwise Feeling The Bern. Not that the Clintons are strangers to Kings County. Hillary's campaign headquarters are actually in BrooklynDowntown Brooklyn, to be exactand they famously visited Roberta's in Bushwick one time. In fact, the Clintons once went so far as to suggest the Democratic National Convention be held in Brooklyn, which thankfully never came to pass. Sorry, Philadelphia, the fun is all yours! Brooklyn Bowl is sort of cool. Questlove DJs there. But if you don't want to pay $250 to meet Bill, the even-hipper-still House of Yes in Bushwick is throwing a $30 party for Sanders this Friday. Last fall, the rape victim who claims that two Special Victims Unit officers made highly inappropriate sexual advances toward her during their investigation sued the city and the NYPD. The 25-year-old woman is seeking $3 million after Lt. Adam Lamboy and Officer Lucasz Skorzewski, both formerly of the Manhattan Special Victims Division, exhibited "gross and repugnant dereliction" of duty in handling her case. But the city says it's not responsible for the two officers because they didn't represent the NYPD when the misconduct allegedly happened...even though they were reportedly investigating on behalf of the NYPD at the time. Lamboy and Skorzewski were not acting under the color of state law because (the victim) does not allege sufficient facts to find plausibly that they invoked the authority of the NYPD when they engaged in conduct prohibited by the NYPD, city lawyers wrote, claiming that the two men went rogue when they flew out to Seattle to interview the woman (who had relocated from NYC after her rape) about the case. They added that she has not plausibly pled that the city failed to train and supervise the pair, and argued that the NYPD isn't responsible to teach officers about sexual assault. The NYPD does not have an obligation to train officers not to commit sexual assault because it is an obvious criminal act, the city wrote. To recap: the victim was attending college in NYC when she was raped by a man in his Union Square apartment in January 2013. Six months later, then detective-in-training Skorzewski traveled to interview her in Seattle with his then-boss, Lamboy. After having lunch with Skorzewski, at the time a 31-year-old married father-of-two, the officer introduced her to Lamboy, who invited her out for drinks. "Looking back, it was totally naive of me to join them, she previously told the Daily News. "But I was like, 'This is really cool.' I really looked up to them." She recalled that Skorzewski wasn't sure whether it was proper for her to come with them, but Lamboy insisted. "I was going through this all alone. My family didn't know," she said. "It felt good that they were being so nice." At the end of the night of drinking, they also insisted she come back to their hotel room because she was drunk: "No, no, you'll be safe with us. Come back to our hotel, you can crash with us," they allegedly said. At some point the next morning, she says Skorzewski climbed in bed with her and said he wanted to kiss her: "He was insistent on feeling me up...He tried to work his way up my pants, I pushed his hand away," she said. In addition, Skorzewski allegedly told her at some point, "You're my favorite victim." After this encounter, the woman says Skorzewski called her almost daily from New York for a month and was "like a big brother figure." He stopped calling her or returning her calls, and he allegedly became angry when she confronted him about it; he also never followed up about her rape case again. The victim noted, "I think what he did was bad enough that he shouldnt be a cop." Skorzewski was demoted from detective, docked 30 vacation days and suspended for 10 days without pay after pleading guilty to departmental charges of prohibited conduct during the investigation. He then filed a $2 million defamation suit against the woman for damaging his "good name and reputation." The woman has stood by her statements: "After a fact-finding peer review, the NYPD disciplined both police officers with lost rank and/or suspension," said her attorney Christopher Galiardo. "Its clear that trained police officers from a sex crime unit, while investigating a potential sex crime, should not take the victim out with them on a drinking binge." Prosecutors have hit a Staten Island man with hate crime charges for allegedly taking part in mugging a teen born without arms. Vincent Popalardo, 20, was arraigned yesterday on 12 assault and robbery charges stemming from the November 30th attack on Carlos Simon, 18, outside a Port Richmond shopping plaza. Richmond County district attorneys claim Popalardo and two teenagers singled out Simon because of his condition. "All crimes are unacceptable, but those committed against an individual because of his or her disability are particularly despicable," Staten Island DA Michael McMahon said in a statement. Simon, a freshman at the College of Staten Island, told the Staten Island Advance that he was waiting outside a Dunkin' Donuts when a group of teenagers approached and made comments about his physique. One, a girl, asked for money, and when he refused, four others came over and surrounded him, he said. His cellphone was reportedly sitting on a ledge outside the donut shop and, as he was immobilized, Popalardo allegedly grabbed it and ran. Simon said he tried to walk away but the others, after pretending to help him chase the phone thief, surrounded him again and went through his pockets. "I kind of maneuvered and pushed them off me as much as I could," he told the paper. "They tried to drop me on my back, but it's a good thing I have strong legs." Simon eventually broke free and found refuge in the Dunkin' Donuts. Cops arrested Popalardo last month in Erie, Pennsylvania, and the authorities extradited him to Staten Island. Police arrested a 13-year-old boy and a 15-year-old girl back in mid-December and charged them with robbery as juveniles. Popalardo faces more serious trouble: 10 felony and two misdemeanor charges, including two felony robbery as a hate crime charges that carry as many as 25 years in prison each, four counts that carry 15-year maximums, and three that carry 7-year maximums. Popalardo pleaded not guilty at his court appearance yesterday. A judge set his bail at $50,000, which his lawyer, noting that Popalardo is unemployed, said was "50 times as much as Mr. Popalardo is able to raise." An African-American NYPD cop who sued the city over his 2010 beating and false arrest by a crowd of other officers at his Queens home was awarded $15.1 million in damages yesterday. "I feel vindicated," Larry Jackson told the Daily News after the verdict. "Just like they say, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger." Jackson was off-duty at around 1:40 a.m., winding down a barbecue for his daughter's birthday, when he said a man broke a bottle in the street in front of his house. He and his girlfriend confronted the man and told him they didn't "want any trouble." Then Jackson realized that he he had a gun tucked in his waistband, according to the lawsuit, and a crowd of 15-20 strange men appeared on the block, some armed with sticks and bats. His girlfriend, Charlene Strong, ran inside and called 911, while Jackson talked the group into leaving. The first two cops who responded from Jamaica's 113th Precinct arrived after the crowd had cleared out, and allegedly ignored Strong and Jackson's statements that Jackson was a fellow officer. The sounds of a fight inside Jackson's house prompted one cop, John Czulada, to run inside, and when Jackson followed, he says the cop told him to "back the fuck up." Jackson's plea, "Dude, it's my house, and I'm a police officer too," was met with a baton to the throat by Czulada. From there, a crowd of as many as 70 officers convened on the house as a growing number of cops took shots at Jackson with batons and fists, one placed him in a chokehold, others arrested three partygoers, and finally, officers piled onto him in the street, ignoring his complaint that he was having trouble breathing, and pepper-spraying him. At one point in the melee, Jackson says he and the officer who choked him fell on top of his 82-year-old grandmother. "Yeah, you motherfucking dirtbag," Czulada purportedly said as Jackson lay handcuffed. "If you are really a cop, where's your ID?" When an officer fished out the ID from Jackson's pocket, officers scattered, according to the suit. Jackson was still arrested, ultimately held in custody for 20 hours, and treated for a fractured hand, before being freed without charges. He says that throughout the police riot at his house, no supervising officers intervened, and that despite initial interviews with the NYPD's Internal Affairs Bureau and Queens district attorneys, no investigators ever followed up and no cop involved was disciplined. Jackson remains on the force. A version of his lawsuit filed in 2013 stated that his right hand is still stiff from being broken, and that he would likely never be able to return to full duty, but he has since regained that status, according to his lawyer. At trial, police denied hitting Jackson with batons or handcuffing him, and said he never identified himself as a cop. Czulada said he punched Jackson, 6-foot-3 and 300 pounds, in the face because he felt threatened by him, according to the Daily News. Of the 13 officers named in the suit, jurors found 4 cops directly involved in beating him, and 3 in falsely arresting him, but agreed that 8 were liable for failing to stop the beatdown, and that 12 were liable for damages. In the lawsuit, Jackson's lawyers claimed that the botched response, which allowed the gunman to go free, was the result of the city's "long history of discriminating against its African-American male police officers" and its 2008 elimination of "Confrontational Situations" training. Several of the responding officers, including Czulada and the other initial responder, were white men, according to the suit. The lack of subsequent accountability showed "an outrageous and systematic pattern of civil rights violations, oppression, bad faith and cover-up," the lawyers wrote. "They would treat a dog better than they treated Jackson," Jackson's lawyer and former cop Eric Sanders told the New York Times. "Ive never seen anything like this and Ive been around law enforcement a long time. It's disgraceful what they did." City lawyers argued that Jackson was drunk and resisted arrest, and should consider himself lucky the NYPD didn't pursue charges. Jurors rejected those claims. "I think sometimes the cops treat everybody like perpetrators," juror Joni Marcinek told the News. The city's Law Department called the damages "exorbitant" and told reporters that it could yet challenge the outcome, and that the verdict is not final. Plans to build a 16-mile streetcar line connecting Astoria, Queens to Sunset Park, Brooklyn will be announced by Mayor de Blasio at his State of the City speech tonight, the NY Times reports. The light rail proposal, which first leaked in the beginning of January, would cost an estimated $2.5 billion dollars to build out, and would run mostly near the East River, potentially dipping into downtown Brooklyn and Brooklyn Heights. Here's the route that's under consideration: This route closely resembles the proposal leaked last month by the nonprofit group called Friends of the Brooklyn Queens Connector, whose members reportedly include Helena Durst of the Durst Organization, Jed Walentas of developer Two Trees and investor Fred Wilson of Union Square Ventures. Walentas's Two Trees owns much of DUMBO, as well as projects in downtown Brooklyn, and is also betting big on an enormous mixed-use development at the old Domino Sugar refinery on the East River in Williamsburg. All of those areas would be well-served by the proposed light rail route. According to the Times, the de Blasio administration believes the light rail systems $2.5 billion cost "can be offset by tax revenue siphoned from an expected rise in property values along the route." The streetcars would travel an estimated 12 miles per hour, meaning a trip between Greenpoint and Dumbo in Brooklyn lasting around 27 minutes, which the Times reports is "less than current routes on buses and subways." Some of the route would put the streetcars in their own dedicated lane, separate from vehicular traffic. And the cost of the ride would be about the same as the subway fare, the Daily News reports. De Blasio's proposal would not need approval from the state-controlled MTA, which allows the mayor to avoid an ongoing obstructionist feud with his nemesis Governor Andrew Cuomo. But the project would still be subject to a lengthy community review, and the Times sources say construction would not begin before 2019, pending local approval, with service starting some time after 2024. Still, if the proposal starts to seem like its' going to be a reality, it will easily boost potential rents and property values at developments like Domino, which isn't expected to be fully complete for decades. "The old transportation system was a hub-and-spoke approach, where people went into Manhattan for work and came back out, Alicia Glen, the deputy mayor for housing and economic development, told the Times. This is about mapping transit to the future of New York. De Blasio's State of the City address is at 7 p.m. tonight at the Lehman Center for the Performing Arts in the Bronx. It will be streamed live here, but we have an exclusive sneak preview of what's in store: Two women were arrested on Tuesday after being accused of committing "fortune telling fraud" in Times Square. A psychic and her daughter-in-law told an undercover operative working for a private investigator that she was plagued with a curseand would need to pay them $1,000 to remove it. NYC psychics range from the friendly palm reader to high-level operators who can con people out of $200,000 and even well over $700,000. In this incident, private eye Bob Nygaard got involved because his clienta "Manhattan corporate executive" forked over $55,000 to the psychic after her husband left her for another woman. Nygaard arranged for an operative to visit Tammy Vlado, who was calling herself "Psychic Gina," and her daughter-in-law Pam Ulfie. He explained, "Vlado and Ufie attempted to con the undercover operative into believing that she was being plagued by 'a curse' and 'negativity' and they attempted to elicit $1,000 from the operative in order to remove the alleged 'curse/negativity.' Vlado and Ufie claimed that they needed to burn ten 'platinum candles' as part of the alleged 'curse/negativity' removal work." The operative paid $45 for psychic readings and $400 to start the process of removing the curse. Nygaard then filed reports against the con women, who allegedly violated New York State Penal Law section 165.35 (Fortunetelling). The cops and Manhattan DA's office agreed, and the women were surrendered to the police. Vlado's tactics have been exposed in Crime Watch Daily videos (she paid the executive with the cheating husband back): Vlado has been accused of other psychic-related scams in Manhattan. Psychics who have been prosecuted have admitted it's all lies. A 37-year-old woman is recovering from a suspected needle attack in a Midtown subway station that took place Wednesday night. The victim felt a sharp puncture in her right shoulder as a man bumped into her near the turnstiles of the 49th Street and Seventh Avenue N/R station. The incident took place at 7 p.m. last night. After returning home, the woman sought treatment at Queens Mount Sinai Hospital, and the Daily News reports that doctors found her wound to be consistent with that of a needle attack. It was not clear, however, whether or not the puncture was caused by a syringe. According to Fox NY, police are seeking a white male suspect in his 40s. The incident is the latest in an upsurge in subway violence involving sharp objects. There have already been ten reported slashing attacks on MTA trains in 2016. Still, Mayor de Blasio has stressed "These are individual incidents. There is not a pattern here." Grace Lutheran Church exists to proclaim Christ crucified and all the truths of God's Word in the Kenai-Soldotna area. Please feel free to contact Pastor Guenther for more information or some spiritual counsel from God's Word. To listen to these sermons or subscribe to the podcast, visit our webpage: www.GraceLutheranKenai.com and check out the resources there! Thanks for reading! God's blessings! In Him, Pastor Guenther In February 2012 I made a crazy, but what turned out to be, awesome decions: quit my job and move to Korea. After two years I wrapped up my life there and moved on to travel the world. That was another two year stint before guess what, returning to Korea! So here I am, back in Kimchiland with lots to say... Greenie going for a run along the tow path News VIDEO: Sheikh Sultan inspects progress of 'Hanging Gardens' project Sheikh Sultan was briefed on the plans for the remaining stages in the implementation of the project, which extends over an area of one and a half million square feet, listening to the progress of work and the most important completed and remaining stages. Al-Akhbar , Iraq MEMRI Fadel Boula Does terror truly have no religion? This slogan ["The Islamic State has nothing to do with Islam"] is uttered regarding terror, as though [terror] reflects a picture that is completely unrelated to its perpetrators' religious affiliation, and as though there are no religious goals or values behind it, but only a state of insanity that causes those afflicted with it to run amok, unaware of what they are doing or what [they seek] to achieve by their actions [actions] that disgust not only human beings but [even] the beasts of the jungle. The terror that is shaking the world today is not a natural disaster like a tornado, a thunderstorm or an earthquake, and it is not perpetrated by savage tribes. It is perpetrated by people who enlist [because they are] inspired by a religious ideology. [These people] advocate enforcing and spreading [this ideology as a set of] dogmatic principles that must be imposed by the force of the sword, and which [mandate] killing, expulsion and destruction wherever they go. Since its inception, this movement of terror has espoused a Salafi ideology that champions religious extremism, and brainwashed people of all ages have rallied around its flag, [people who were] trained to kill themselves and kill others in order to attain martyrdom. The journalist Fadel Boula, resident of Iraq, asks aloud the question on everyone's mind:We know this is on everyone's mind because everyone is so quick to disavow any link between terror and Islam, but Boula then surprises by undertaking to answer his own question without self-deceit:Boula's initial approach already notes thethat the terrorism supported by millions of people is either like unto a natural disaster or merely the work of primitive tribes:The Islamic State's motivation is religious, and that religious ideology is the Sunni version of Salafi Islam:Boula continues, but he has already made his point, as noted on, " Special Dispatch 6288 " (February 1, 2016). We can add that not only is Salafi Islam like this, so is the Iranian version of Shia Islam that undergirds the theocratic state in Iran, but I don't know if Boula wentsince he was writing this piece for the pro-Iranian Iraqi newspaper. . . Labels: Religious Studies, Theocracy 1. To believe in the existence and providence of G-d. 2. Not to believe that there are any other gods. 3. To believe that G-d is an absolute unity. 4. To love G-d. 5. To fear G-d. 6. To guard oneself from foreign thoughts. Parody and commentary on the exclusion of an Intelligent Design advocacy group from General Conference. Closed to the NRA The slogan of the United Methodist Church (UMC) is Open Hearts, Open Minds, Open Doors. But UMC officials are now under fire for being closed-minded and intolerant after they banned the National Rifle Association from sponsoring an information table at the denominations upcoming General Conference in May. The National Rifle Association opposes any form of gun control and some Methodist members believe having guns is a God-given right. Preventing United Methodist leaders from even hearing about how unfettered gun access doesnt lead to mass killings isnt open-minded. Its intolerant and exclusionary to the alternative reality we live in, said Lerve MaGurns, Jr, Executing Vice President of the NRA. Maybe United Methodist officials should change their slogan to Closed Hearts, Closed Minds, Closed Doors. As a private organization, the UMC has the right to exclude us as an exhibitor. But UMC officials embrace of censorship undermines their own professed commitment to open doors and open minds. As a United Methodist, Im disheartened and appalled, said MaGurns. Methodist officials who are trying to stop advocacy for gun ranges at churches certainly dont speak for me or for many other United Methodists in the pews. The NRA is calling on those who think the United Methodist Church should live up to its slogan of encouraging open minds and open doors to contact the UMCs Commission on the General Conference, the group that made the decision banning the NRA. Urge the Commission to live up to their churchs slogan and be truly open-minded about how we can get more guns in the hands of children and white supremacists, said MaGurns. The National Rifle Association is a non-profit, non-partisan educational and research organization with supporters around the United States. Its advocacy programs oppose the work of scientists and scholars who are researching evidence that gun violence is the product of purposeful design rather than eh, stuff happens. The above is a parody The above is a parody of this article in Evolution News alleging that the United Methodist Church is intolerant by excluding an advocacy group for Intelligent Design from the United Methodist General Conference, held May 10-20 in Portland, Oregon. See recent UMNS coverage here. Its a parody because it would be reasonable to anyone that the UMC would not allow the NRA to have a booth at General Conference. Our Social Principles call upon Methodists to: Support federal legislation in the US Congress to regulate the importation, manufacturing, sale, and possession of guns and ammunition by the general public. Such legislation should include provisions for the registration and licensing of gun purchasers and owners, appropriate background investigation and waiting periods prior to gun purchase, and regulation of subsequent sale Theres more. But from that line alone, it is clear that the secular NRAs expressed purpose is not in line with our Social Principles, and thus should not be allowed to have a booth at General Conference. Im not aware of any arguments made to the contrary. But This Is Reality The manufactured controversy being parodied comes about as a result of this being the first General Conference that will allow a curated list of outside (non-Methodist) vendors to have booths to share resources for local churches. They denied the application of the Discovery Institute, an advocacy group for Intelligent Design, to be a vendor there, and the Institute responded by email-flooding everyone and their evolution-domesticated dog. The denial was based partly on the UMCs Social Principles which oppose Intelligent Design. Heather Hahn has more details in the UMNS report. To the point, theres been three erroneous arguments opposing this decision to deny the Discovery Institutes application, summarized as: Home Depot and Staples advocate for same-gender marriage, not supported by our Social Principles, and they are allowed to be there. Rebuttal: The expressed purpose of Home Depot and Staples is not marriage advocacy: they sell office and home supplies. Their booth will be customized to the needs of the local church, as most of us shop there or at stores like them for local church needs. However, the Discovery Institutes expressed purpose is to promote Intelligent Design and attempt to discredit Evolution. Therefore, it is in a different category than Home Depot and Staples, regardless of their stances on social issues. But does Reconciling Ministries have a booth? Arent they opposed to parts of the Social Principles? Rebuttal: Reconciling Ministries is a United Methodist affiliated advocacy group dedicated to the full inclusion of LGBTQ persons in the life of the church. So while they do have as their expressed purpose a change in the Social Principles, they are also a Methodist-exclusive group, so they dont fall into the same category as the Discovery Institute. Im unaware if LifeWatch, a UM group opposed to abortion, has a booth, but they would be in the same category as RMN. The Discovery Institute doesnt advocate for schools teaching ID, so they dont violate the Social Principles. (example) Rebuttal 1: ID is incompatible with Methodist teaching. Among our many statements is this: We preclude science from making authoritative claims about theological issues and theology from making authoritative claims about scientific issues. We find that sciences descriptions of cosmological, geological, and biological evolution are not in conflict with theology. Since Intelligent Design is a theological approach making authoritative claims about scientific issues, it is incompatible with Christian teaching in United Methodism. Among our many statements is this: We preclude science from making authoritative claims about theological issues and theology from making authoritative claims about scientific issues. We find that sciences descriptions of cosmological, geological, and biological evolution are not in conflict with theology. Since Intelligent Design is a theological approach making authoritative claims about scientific issues, it is incompatible with Christian teaching in United Methodism. Rebuttal 2: Actually, the Discovery Institute is about teaching in the schools, as based on its own materials. They claim that they do not want it required to be taught, but they do want it able to be taught. Its an important legal distinction, but not a practical one. While there are myriad issues with Intelligent Design, it appears this decision was based on policy and discernment of the groups intent, not about specifically censoring a non-Methodist advocacy organization, which it has been framed as for publicity purposes. An applaudable decision The decision by General Conference leadership to open the vendors floor to non-Methodist groups is a new one. While I have my own misgivings about such a decision, Im sure this experience will shape General Conference policy in the future without my opinions. But this decision by the General Commission on General Conference to deny the application of a non-Methodist advocacy group is sound by reasons above. I applaud the UMC for seeing through the rhetoric around the Discovery Institute and being fair in its policy. The Discovery Institute is, of course, welcome to be outside holding signs of intelligently formed life. Well wait and see what the debate over Intelligent Design looks like at General Conference in May. Thoughts? St. Peters Hospital has formed a search committee to seek a replacement for outgoing President and CEO Nate Olson -- and perhaps a whole lot more. The 10-member Leadership Transition Committee, founded at a hospital board meeting last week, is comprised of appointees from both inside and outside the hospital, including six-term Montana legislator Mary Caferro. A statement released Tuesday promises it will not be a traditional search committee, but one that seeks to "investigate existing management models" with an eye toward ensuring the nonprofit hospital is equipped to navigate the significant change underway in the healthcare industry. That could mean taking on an outside contractor to manage the hospital, or even ditching the standalone CEO position altogether. Olson couldn't dismiss either of those options. Nor could he rule out the possibility that part or all of St. Peter's could change hands in the course of those management changes. He did say St. Peter's would operate under an acting CEO during what Olson expects will be a months-long hunt for his replacement. He also said the hospital was doing fine financially, "and very strong every other way you look at it." Members of the recruiting committee are expected to give hospital board members an update on alternative management models as soon as next month, but have offered no timeline for naming Olson's successor. A hospital spokeswoman said board members had not yet discussed what kind of CEO candidate they might look to hire. Olson announced his exit in December, just months after a well-publicized dustup over nurse training and staffing levels in the hospitals Womens and Childrens unit. A press release announcing the move said he was leaving to pursue a "new leadership opportunity" closer to his family in Colorado. The move came only weeks ahead of a growing controversy surrounding the rumored departure of Dr. Thomas Weiner, a longtime oncologist at the hospital's Cancer Treatment Center. Some nurses and patients fear St. Peters administrators are actively seeking to replace Weiner, an effort they say amounts to retaliation over the oncologists opposition to past decisions made in the hospitals board room. Olson vehemently denied any push to remove or replace Weiner. He declined further comment on the doctor's job performance, beyond noting both he and the board were happy with the cancer treatment center -- where he said the hospital will eventually have to add additional health care providers. Hospital spokeswoman Katy Peterson said issues surrounding the oncology center were not raised at last weeks hospital board meeting, though she said the cancer wing remains one of the hospitals key service lines. While not discussed specifically at last night's board meeting, the future of St. Peter's Cancer Treatment Center and Oncology Services is discussed and planned here at St. Peter's on an operational level on a regular basis, and progress reports on current initiatives are provided to the board, Peterson said. The hospital boards Leadership Transition Committee held its first meeting Jan. 29. During the second day of testimony in the James George Stiffler deliberate homicide trial, prosecutors continued to attempt to poke holes in the defendant's version of the events surrounding the fatal shooting at his home. Meanwhile, Stiffler's attorneys proceeded to question the professionalism of the investigation, including how reports were taken and interviews were conducted. The Lewis and Clark County Attorney's Office called witnesses who introduced evidence that will be vital in the coming days of the trial. The shooting death occurred in May 2013, but charges were not filed until April 2015 after a forensic expert hired by the state determined Henry Thomas Johnson, 37, was shot while climbing out of a window. That expert, William Schneck, of Microvision Northwest Forensic Consulting, is expected to take the stand later this week. In his report, Schneck used investigative materials and his own footwork to make his determination that Johnson was shot in the back while exiting a window of Stiffler's Canyon Ferry Road home. Stiffler, who was 66 years old at the time of the shooting, has not denied killing Johnson with a 9mm handgun on May 22, 2013. He has contended he fired the deadly shot in another room of the home just after he was threatened by Johnson. His attorneys told jurors their client had no choice but to shoot the alleged intruder and that Johnson brought his death upon himself by trying to burglarize the home. Testimony on Wednesday in Helena district court reiterated information released by the prosecution in the initial charging documents. Witnesses from the State Crime Lab said the gun was fired from at least four feet away from Johnson, noting the lack of gunshot residue. The bullet found in Stiffler's driveway contained DNA matching Johnson's. A medical examiner testified Tuesday that the bullet struck the back of Johnson's eighth rib, went through his left lung and exited through the breastbone. According to testimony, the initial investigation seemed to go along with Stiffler's account of the events that afternoon. When detectives tried to clarify any inconsistencies about a week after the shooting, Stiffler -- through his attorney at the time -- said he did not remember. "It become evident later that the evidence didn't match up," Lewis and Clark County Sheriff Leo Dutton testified. Dutton, who was acquainted with Stiffler, said he reached out to Stiffler after the shooting as a friend. Dutton testified he felt his training in critical incident stress management, such as officer-involved shootings, could be beneficial. "It wasn't investigation. It was because I cared for his mental health," he said. He went to Stiffler's home the day following the shooting. "Eyes were red. He hadn't slept much that night. He was sick. His eyes were watery," Dutton said. "It's an expected condition." Dutton said his intent was not to talk about the shooting itself, but that the topic came up when the two were discussing nightmares Stiffler experienced related to the shooting. "He felt like the gentleman was coming after him. And he had to shoot," the sheriff said, adding that at the time that account was consistent with the known evidence. Testimony will continue Thursday morning. The court has set aside two weeks for the trial. Peter C. Formaz, age 73, of Oceanside, California and formally of Helena, Montana, passed away unexpectedly on Tuesday, January 26, 2016 at the VA Hospital in San Diego, California due to complications from pneumonia and heart disease, despite extraordinary efforts to save his life. Pete was born on February 7, 1942 to Conrad and Marjorie Formaz in Detroit, Michigan. He grew up in the small town of Medina, Ohio and upon his graduation from high school in June of 1960, he joined the United States Marine Corps. He was extremely proud of his military service as a Marine, and held the rank of Gunnery Sergeant upon his honorable discharge in August of 1969. His service included his admirable position as a Drill Instructor at Parris Island, S.C. and two grueling tours in Vietnam with Third Force Recon Company. After being discharged, Pete joined the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department where he worked for over ten years. During this time he met his first wife, Kathleen Moran, and they had three children together: Peter, Jennifer and Amy. Unfortunately during these years, Pete struggled with alcoholism but thankfully found sobriety in Sunset Beach, California in April of 1981. Pete moved to Missoula, Montana during the summer of 1985, where he met the love of his life, Lorraine Behr, in an A.A. meeting at the K.C. Hall. They were married in July of 1986 and have had many awesome adventures together, up until the day he passed. One of these adventures was their move to Kodiak, Alaska in the fall of 1988. It was there that their beautiful daughter, Lauren, was born on November 7, 1990 in the midst of a huge storm with hurricane force winds. Never to turn down an adventure, Pete and Lorraine have lived in various places including Sandpoint, Idaho, the Flathead Indian Reservation in Polson, Montana, and Helena, Montana where they had resided for the past 21 years. Pete proudly worked as a Licensed Addictions Counselor and helped many people to achieve sobriety. He earned his degree in Chemical Dependency Counseling in May of 2000 and he obtained his B.A. degree in Counseling Psychology from the University of Great Falls in May of 2003. During his career as a Licensed Addictions Counselor, he earned numerous awards, held numerous state and national leadership positions, and advocated strongly for the rights of veterans struggling with PTSD and substance abuse issues. In October of 2015, Pete and Lorraine relocated to Oceanside, California to be closer to their daughter, Lauren. They spent his last three months enjoying each others company overlooking the beach at the Oceanside Pier. Pete was a sober member of A.A. for the past 34 years, and relished the opportunity to share his experience, strength, and hope with others. He enjoyed crafting Native American flutes and drumming with his Native American friends. He was an avid reader, highly intelligent, articulate, and afraid of NOTHING. He was our hero! Pete is survived by his wife, Lorraine and daughter, Lauren of Oceanside, California as well as his three children from his previous marriage; son Peter and grandson Logan in Orange County, California; daughter Jennifer and her husband Alex and three grandchildren, Elliot, Oliver, and Isabel of Seattle, Washington; and daughter Amy and granddaughters Kalin and Benae, who reside in Phoenix, Arizona. He is also survived by his dearly beloved German shepherd companion dog, Lilli, French bulldog, Stella Bella, and Persian kitty, Athena. Pete has many friends and family who will miss his dry sense of humor, his boldness, and his no-nonsense attitude, and he will always be remembered as a cast iron marshmallow! He truly was Lorraine and Laurens hero. A community gathering in celebration of Petes life is tentatively being scheduled for Saturday, April 9th in Helena, Montana at a time and location yet to be decided. Plans for this gathering are still being finalized and will be announced in the IR and elsewhere at a future date. Harold Eugene Buck Juedeman, retired USAF Brigadier General, farmer, and rancher, died on February 1, 2016, at Peace Hospice in Great Falls after a two-month battle with acute leukemia. His family will receive friends at a visitation Sunday, February 7, 2016 in the Rose Room Chapel at Croxford Funeral Home from 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM. His funeral services will be held on Monday, February 8, 2016 at 11:00 AM at St. Pauls United Methodist Church, 512 Logan St. in Helena. Burial with full military honors will follow immediately at Montana State Veterans Cemetery- Fort Harrison. Buck was born May 11, 1931 at his familys home in the country near Bristow, OK where he lived until his family moved to Shafter, CA in 1935 during the Great Depression and dustbowl days. His family lived in California for two years before returning to Oklahoma via a brief time in Montana where his Uncle Rudy tried to convince them to stay. In 1945 his family finally moved from Oklahoma to Montana, settling near the small farming community of Geraldine. Buck attended Geraldine High School, graduating in 1948 and attended Montana State College in Bozeman before enlisting in the Marine Corps in 1951. Buck attended Marine Corps boot camp at Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego, CA and served as an enlisted combat radar repairman before being accepted to the Naval Cadet pilot training program in Pensacola, Florida. At the completion of carrier qualification and pilot training in September 1953, Buck was awarded honor graduate and received his Wings of Gold as a Naval Aviator and commission as a 2nd Lieutenant in the Marine Corps. He then went on to fly a combat tour in AD-1 Skyraiders in Korea from February 1954 to February 1955. After the war, Buck served as an instructor in Kingsville, Texas before leaving active duty in 1956 and joining the Marine Corps reserves flying out of both Buckley AFB in Colorado and Fairchild AFB in Spokane, WA. In 1959, Buck joined the Montana Air National Guard in Great Falls, where he eventually flew the F-89, F-102 and F-106 aircraft. In 1957, he married Delores Fairbanks of Geraldine. He continued to farm with his father George and brother Wiley as they operated the Juedeman Grain Company while still flying with the MANG. He and Delores built a home on the farm in the Graceville area, northeast of Geraldine, and welcomed sons Mark, Ward, and Kevin. Buck was very involved in the community, including working with the Geraldine Community United Methodist Church to build their new sanctuary. In 1968, Buck and family moved to Great Falls, and he volunteered for a combat tour in Vietnam flying the F-102. In 1968 and during that combat tour, Buck was seriously injured in an aircraft mishap in Udorn, Thailand and returned to the States for a lengthy, but full, recovery. He returned to full flight status and went on to lead a team to win the coveted William Tell trophy in 1976, serve as the commander of the 186th Fighter Interceptor Squadron and the Chief of Staff for the Montana Air National Guard. He retired as a Brigadier General in 1986 after 35 years of cumulative military service. In 1970, Buck and Delores purchased a beautiful operational cattle ranch north of Craig, bordering the Missouri River. He raised black Angus cattle, wheat, barley and alfalfa. Daughter Corry completed the family when she was born in 1972. In the early 70s, Buck and his sons were the first in the local area to install center pivot irrigation systems. He continued to stay at the forefront of technology, installing one of the first wind turbines in the area in 2006. After retirement from the Guard, Buck wholeheartedly took up running, completing both a 50 mile and a 100K (62 mile) run as well as numerous Icebreaker races, in which he often placed among the top in his age group. He stayed actively involved in ranch operations with son Kevin to the very end. Buck is survived by his wife of over 58 years, Delores (Fairbanks) Juedeman, his children Mark Juedeman and his spouse Kathy, Ward Juedeman, Kevin Juedeman and Corry (Juedeman) Prestidge and her spouse Todd; his sisters Clarene Dysart and Rhoene Manley, and his brother Wiley and his spouse JoAlice. He was also a much loved Grandpa to ten grandchildren, and favorite Uncle Buck to numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his father George Juedeman, his mother Clarice Juedeman and his sister Georgene (Juedeman) Byrd. In lieu of flowers and to honor close family members with the dreaded disease, the family requests donations be made in his name to the Alzheimers Foundation of America at http://www.alzfdn.org/ContributetoAFA/makeadonation.html or 322 Eighth Ave., 7th fl., New York, NY 10001. His entire family would like to thank the outstanding doctors, nurses, nursing assistants and volunteers at Benefis Hospital, Sletten Cancer Institute, and Peace Hospice for their respectful, skilled, and loving treatment of our husband, father and brother. A two-vehicle accident involving three non-life-threatening injuries blocked the intersection of Lincoln Road and Applegate Drive Wednesday morning. The accident occurred when a vehicle traveling north on Applegate failed to yield at the stop sign at the intersection with Lincoln Road. The vehicle, a Pontiac Grand Am, collided with a pickup truck traveling east, according to Montana Highway Patrol Trooper Brandon Uhl. Two people were transported to St. Peter's hospital by ambulance while a third went to the hospital in a private vehicle, Uhl said. A citation is likely but had not been issued pending an investigation, he said. Neither speed nor alcohol appears to be a factor, but that remains under investigation, Uhl said. Stephen Maly, vice-president of WorldMontana, continues beating the drums to bring Syrian refugees to Montana (Refugee resettlement in Montana revisited, IR, Jan. 17). He should know better. People familiar with U.S. refugee-resettlement programs do know better. One central fact these people know is that refugee resettlement has become a business big business. Instead of sacrificial charity undertaken by compassionate souls, resettlement now involves high-dollar collaboration between the U.S. government and nine national non-governmental organizations, including Lutheran Immigrant and Refugee Services, Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society and International Rescue Committee. Far from being donation-driven religious or civic charities, such organizations are dominantly federal contractors, running their refugee operations primarily often above 90 percent with government largesse. As refugee-policy expert Don Barnett wrote recently in the Washington Times, six-figure executive salaries are the norm at the roughly 350 organizations affiliated with the nine major contractors. There are additional hundreds of supporting NGOs most started and staffed by refugees and recent immigrants soaking up grants from every agency of government except NASA. A regional example is Colorados Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountains, which covers refugee resettlement in Montana. According to their annual reports, refugee services consumed about $5.1 million of their 2013 fiscal years $13.4-million budget. Meanwhile, about $10.9 million of their $14.1 million revenue for that period came from government grants and contracts. According to their 2013 IRS tax return, the actual benefits both cash and in-kind bestowed by LFSRM upon the 1,362 refugees (and asylees) they served amounted to $2 million. This implies that $3.1 million went for refugee-program overhead, including the $122,595 total compensation to program vice president James Horan. Its unclear from the news reports about Malys refugees proposal whether WorldMontana, with its modest annual budgets of about $125,000, has ambitions to jump on this taxpayer-funded gravy train. Montanans dubious about Malys ambitions have additional reasons for skepticism. An important aspect of these programs in cities nationwide is that, once theyve agreed to accept a few refugees, the cities officials lose their say in the process, despite a legal requirement that the State Departments resettlement bureaucrats consult regularly with state and local authorities about the targeted cities capabilities. Then their cities get inundated with needy people. In 2013, for example, Domenic Sarno, the Democratic mayor of Springfield, Massachusetts, wrote to the State Department asking for cessation of the influx of refugees being dumped that word is appropriate on his city of 155,000 by three resettlement contractors. Interviewed by the local newspaper, Sarno explained, We have done more than our fair share. Its not fair to the refugees or Springfield. I have to draw the line. The number of refugee children who have little to no English language skills has overwhelmed the very limited interpretation capabilities of our public schools, and funding that was intended for use in assisting existing pupils. But nearly a year later, Mayor Sarno was still pleading for that moratorium. Its similar in Amarillo, Texas, so burdened with Mideast refugees that the mayor and a city commissioner are struggling to halt further resettlement there. News reporting says that the city of about 200,000 currently fields 911 calls in 42 different languages. And echoing the Massachusetts mayor, Mayor Paul Harpole said, We have 660 (refugee) kids who dont speak English, and the U.S. Department of Education says they have to be at grade level within one year. Its a ludicrous requirement they dont even know how to use the bathroom. Then theres the point that Syrian refugees are nearly 100 percent Muslims. A marker of Malys naivete or ignorance is his assertion that fruitful coexistence (between Muslims and Christians) is as old as our republic. He has things exactly backwards: In 1786, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams met in London with Tripolis ambassador to ask why the Barbary pirates were plundering U.S. merchant ships in the Mediterranean and enslaving the ships passengers and crews, as the young American nation had done the Barbary states no harm. Replied the ambassador, as reported by Jefferson, It was written in their Koran, that all nations which had not acknowledged the Prophet were sinners, whom it was the right and duty of the faithful to plunder and enslave; and that every Mussulman who was slain in this warfare was sure to go to paradise. Thus Jefferson and Adams were confronted by what contemporary Europeans knew: Islam is the Wests historic, mortal enemy. Consistent with this, in his diary for July 24, 1805, when the Corps of Discovery was near present-day Townsend, Meriwether Lewis wrote, matter-of-factly, "Our trio of pests still invade and obstruct us on all occasions, these are the Musquetoes eye knats and prickley pears, equal to any three curses that ever poor Egypt laiboured under, except the Mahometan yoke." And in The River War (1899), Winston Churchill noted, "No stronger retrograde force exists in the world. Far from being moribund, Mohammedanism is a militant and proselytizing faith. It has already spread throughout Central Africa, raising fearless warriors at every step; and were it not that Christianity is sheltered in the strong arms of science the civilization of modern Europe might fall." For a few Westerners, memories remain fresh: Serbian-born historian Serge Trifkovic recounted to me growing up in a society with a vivid collective recall of the centuries of Muslim rule in the Balkans, summarizing that Islam is a totalitarian ideology incompatible with the fundamental values of the West and all other civilized societies, India, China, and Japan included. Thus Montanans who acquaint themselves with the abundant facts and accessible history will likely oppose WorldMontanas attempt to resettle Syrian refugees here. Scott Walker(WICHITA, Kan.) -- One dad's photo of his baby's swollen toe is sparking conversation among parents across the Internet. Scott Walker, 32, of Wichita, Kansas, told ABC News that he posted a picture of his infant daughter's foot after finding a strand of hair wrapped tightly around one of her toes. "I was pretty freaked out," Walker said. "I was lucky to have my wife Jessica there because she handles these situations like a pro. It's never fun to see your child in pain, but for something like a hair tourniquet, it was a different feeling than the other [injuries] your kid may go through. It was something I've never seen before, so that helplessness kind of sunk in." Walker said it was the afternoon of Jan. 21 when his daughter, Molly, 5 months, was crying uncontrollably. "Molly was screaming, crying and we just went through the normal checklist of feeding, changing, pacifier," Walker recalled. "We noticed her right sock was wet and her left sock was dry. Her foot was sweating. Once we removed the sock, we immediately saw her toe was swollen." Walker said a hair tourniquet was attached to Molly's foot, causing it to swell up. Walker's wife Jessica, who works as a registered nurse, was present during the incident and used a magnify glass and a pair of tweezers to carefully remove the hair from her daughter's toe. "The sooner you can find it the better chances you have to keep your kid from being injured or having to go through surgery or anything," Walker said. "I've been researching non-stop." In an effort to raise awareness of hair tourniquets, Walker shared a photo on Facebook of Molly's toe 45 minutes after the hair was removed. In two weeks, the post was shared over 24,000 times. Dr. Lolita McDavid, medical director of Child Protection and Advocacy at UH Rainbow Babies & Childrens Hospital in Cleveland, told ABC News that hair tourniquets, or acute digital ischemia, are "pretty rare" occurrences. "You see on it on toes more than on fingers because a lot of parents have long hair and the baby will pull on the hair," she said. "A lot of hair tourniquets that you see on feet my be strings from socks. "When you see a baby and the baby may be truly inconsolable, you may want to undress them to see if there's something constricting that's really upsetting to the baby." She continued: "What can happen is you can cut of the blood supply...so you could end up losing that toe. What parents can do is if they have it, try to take something very small and break it, but if it's been there for a while and there's swelling around it, you'll want to head to to the emergency room, where somebody can actually get it off." Walker said Molly's toe healed in less than a week. Copyright 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. A Montana ice cream maker said hes considering getting milk from Idaho instead of in-state dairies because of costs hed have to pay under proposed increased fees. Wilcoxson's Ice Cream President Matt Schaeffer said his company has never had to pay fees on milk it uses from within the state. Now theyre trying to tell us were going to charge $17,400 a year out of the blue, he said Thursday during a hearing in Helena. When that happened, it kind of woke me up a little bit and we started looking around. Each month dairies -- farms that produce raw milk -- are charged about 15 cents per hundred pounds of milk produced, with a minimum charge of $50 and a maximum of $1,050. Under current rules, processors such as plants that make yogurt and cheese, are not charged. Neither are large plants. Under new proposed rules, that rate nearly doubles to 27 cents per hundred pounds of milk, and the minimum fee jumps to $225 a month and the maximum is $950. Processors would pay a minimum of $725 a month and a maximum of $2,850. The increase in fees is to make up for a projected shortfall in the Department of Livestock budget. Even with objections to the proposed fees from producers and processors, on Thursday the Economic Affairs Interim Committee of the Montana Legislature decided to lift its objections to the rule, with the understanding that the Board of Livestock will change whats being proposed based on feedback it heard at town halls around the state. The vote was 6-2, with Rep. Vince Ricci, R-Laurel, and Sen. Gordon Vance, R-Belgrade, objecting. The board will have to hold public hearings on any changes it makes to the rule, giving dairies and the public the opportunity to comment on the next iteration. The board will also appear before the interim committee again. George Harris, administrator of the Department of Livestock, said the part of the department that tests milk and does inspections is facing a budget shortfall, partly because there are declining number of dairies in the state, meaning fewer people are paying inspection and testing fees. He said other factors are at play -- the lab has been understaffed and needs more employees -- but he didnt have exact numbers on what is causing the shortfall. John Scully, vice chair of the Board of Livestock, said that based on comments from dairy producers and processors, the department knows the numbers in the proposed rule will have to change, though hes not sure how. Weve asked folks to provide alternatives, he said, noting the board still needs to review all the comments it has received. Previously the Board of Milk Control was in charge of the fee and just charged producers. But in a cleanup of the language of state statutes a few years ago, a change gave that task to the Board of Livestock. The statute previously included the language that allows for assessing a fee on processors, though that hasn't happened in the past. Its just a whoops, Scully said. Producers and processors have opposed the rule. Schaeffer said Wilcoxsons is the last ice cream producer in the state and does $5 million a year in business. He said milk from Idaho already costs $4 less per hundred pounds than milk from Montana. Hes traveling to that state next week to talk to dairies there. He said if he starts getting his milk from Idaho, itll create a million-pound surplus in the state. Wilcoxson's makes ice cream at plants in Billings and Livingston, employing 25 people. I dont actually want to use out-of-state milk, but with this additional fee theyre trying to impose on it, its huge, he said. If my hand is forced I will look elsewhere and that includes moving production out of state. Several decades ago milk producers starting paying fees to help fund the lab that tests milk for bacteria and other problems and for inspections. Schaeffer said that money used to come from the states general fund and he feels thats where the funding should come from now. Doug Kamerman of Dairyland Farms near Manhattan said he would have gotten hit twice by the new fee, once at his 700-head dairy and again at the Dairygold co-op hes a part of. He said that testing is a public health and safety issue and should be paid for out of the general fund. Lark Gilmer, who owns Poor Orphan Creamery in Sheridan, makes sheeps milk cheese and buys milk from the dairy at the state prison to produce cows milk cheese during the off-season. She said shes the smallest producer in the state said the rule not only creates an economic issue, but a philosophical one. If you allow this rule with this fee increase to go through you will discourage people from actually going small and small actually employes a lot of people in the community. It also supports the community, she said. Kim Ashmore said she plans to put in a sheep dairy in Helena, but wont if new fees are too high. She said shes invested a lot of money and already has livestock but is holding off on building infrastructure. If this proposal goes through, we wont even open the doors, he said. Rep. Ricci said he objected to lifting the objection to the rule because he didnt see any harm leaving it in place. We have the word of Scully and the board that they will proceed with something different, he said. What are you out if you leave the objection on the table? Scully wasn't opposed to maintaining the objection. Administrative rules are filed with the Secretary of States office to be published, which is when they take effect. The last day this rule could be filed with the Secretary of State is June 27, with the rule being published July 8. Lifting the objection will allow this rule to be published by July without needed further approval from the committee. LAKESIDE -- A young woman who moved to Flathead County last year is saying she was in the back seat of the pickup truck driven by LaVoy Finicum when Finicum was shot by state police in Oregon last month during the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. Authorities have refused to confirm or deny whether Victoria Sharp, 18, was a passenger in Finicums truck. Sharp told CNN that Finicum was not acting aggressively when he was killed. The Lakeside woman said she was seated in the back seat of Finicums white truck between Ryan Bundy and Shawna Cox when Finicum drove into a snowbank while trying to evade a roadblock. Finicum was killed after exiting the truck. Video shows him apparently reaching inside his coat twice before an officer fired. In the CNN interview, Sharp says she only sees Finicum trying to keep his balance in the snow. He had his hands up, Sharp told CNN correspondent Kyung Lah. He was shouting that if they were going to shoot, then just shoot him. I remember him saying that if they shoot him, its an innocent mans blood on their hands. Lah shows Sharp the FBI video during the interview, but Sharp insists she doesnt see Finicum reaching for what could be a weapon. Authorities said they found a loaded gun in Finicums pocket. Sharp, who is originally from Kansas, apparently met her family in Oregon to sing Christian songs and provide moral support to the armed protesters. Her Facebook page says she is a hostess at Tamarack Brewing Co. in Lakeside. A woman who answered the phone there Wednesday said Sharp was not there, and that she was not at liberty to give out any information about her. Sharps Facebook friends include several members of the Bundy family, including Ryan Bundy, who was wounded during the arrest. Ryans brother Ammon, who was in a different vehicle, was the acknowledged leader of the occupation. According to the Topeka Capitol-Journal, Sharp is from Auburn, a small town southwest of Topeka. A story by Angela Deines quotes a local minister as saying the Sharp family is active in a lot of things. Theyre very patriotic and have very high standards. Theyre very musical. A woman identified as Sharps mother, Odalis, says on a YouTube posting that she brought her children to Oregon: Were here to sing for the Lord. This is a worthwhile cause and we just hope to make a difference. We just hope to be able to bless the hearts of the people through the songs. Another YouTube posting -- which is not the CNN interview -- is a 12 1/2-minute video that identifies Victoria Sharp as the speaker. In it, she says law enforcement fired at least 120 shots altogether at the truck after Finicum was killed. Thats when Ryan Bundy was wounded, the woman says. A Montana man, Ryan Payne of Anaconda, was in the truck, and one of those arrested. What is being proposed? City Manager Tim Gleason has proposed adding a tax of five cents per gallon on unleaded gasoline and one cent per gallon on diesel fuel. This would apply to both retail and bulk sales. Money from the tax, estimated at $300,000 per penny, would be allocated for road repairs. Some council members have also asked for a sunset provision, which would end the tax after a period of time unless a future council extended it. When will they decide? Mayor Julie Moore Wolfe said its likely that an ordinance would come before the Decatur City Council at its next meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 16. Why tax diesel less? The state motor fuel tax for diesel, 21.5 cents per gallon, is 2.5 cents higher than the 19 cents per gallon on unleaded gas. Gleason said the city was taking the different into account when proposing a lower amount for the the local diesel tax. Doesnt the city already get motor fuel tax money from the state to do road repairs? Yes. But the city is getting less of it as people drive more efficient cars and Decaturs population declines. Also, because the citys financial position hasnt been great, some of that motor fuel tax money has been used to buy salt. Last year, the city got about $1.8 million total in state motor fuel tax. Didnt the city used to do road work regularly? Yes. Before the recession, the city spent about $4 million every year on street projects. In 2009, financial pressures led the city to take about $2 million that had been set aside for capital projects and put it toward higher pension costs and other general fund needs. For every year that the city cant do as many repairs, the roads get worse and cost more to fix. Also, the price of asphalt doubled between 2005 and 2013. How do we know they will use this money for roads? Gleason has said he wants to create a special line item in the budget for this money, and use a website to track projects that it funds. Also, every project that costs more than $20,000 will come before the council for a vote. Wont this just cause people to buy their gas elsewhere? Maybe. Gleason said the city has talked to other communities about what happened when they added a local motor fuel tax (and many other Central Illinois cities have). "Part of our research and even past research that staff has done shows that - and this is not an absolute - but shows that surrounding communities around a community that has adopted a local motor fuel tax, you will in fact see a dip," Gleason told the council. "But generally, that recovers at six to nine months, and those outlying communities will adopt the same pricing as the community that adopted the local motor fuel tax." Havent they been talking about this forever? Basically. There were specific study sessions devoted to a gas tax in June 2014 and February and March 2015, and it has come up several times during discussions of city finances over the past four years or so. Gas is a very sensitive purchase. It's not an easy vote. Council members have expressed frustration and reluctance every time they talk about it, even as they acknowledge the necessity of good roads for safety, quality of life and economic development reasons. Yet another example of our escalating nanny-state mentality appeared in the Jan. 28 opinion page under the headline, "Snow removal extends to sidewalks." Editors, in the progressive guise of public safety, promote a neighborhood ordinance to mandate snow removal from sidewalks. Quoting, "The issue is that it's unsafe because pedestrians have to make a choice" to navigate through snow. Translation: Please, nanny state, relieve us the headache of having to decide for ourselves this obviously life-threatening public safety issue. Waxing philosophical, the editors opine, "We readily admit that ideally an ordinance wouldn't be necessary." The operative word is "ideally." Nanny-state translation: Shame on you, if you weren't so stupid and lazy, a neighborhood ordinance wouldn't be necessary to protect you from yourself. Grow up, children. To enhance legitimate public safely, why not provide opinion page advocacy for revising neighborhood ordinances, thus allowing residents freedom to choose eco-friendly landscaping on our own private property? Why not call for an ordinance to permit, even promote, a resident's voluntary participation in serving a higher environmental purpose? Indeed, editors, why remain silent to a nanny-state mandate that only reinforces our anachronistic cultural addiction to grass lawns which inevitably degrade life-sustaining ecosystems we all depend for public safety? Probably the easiest and best plan for a concerned resident to help resuscitate Mother Nature's life-sustaining ecosystems is to stop maintaining monoculture grass lawn. Continued destruction of natural biodiversity via lawn mower and lawn chemicals is a fool's quest toward ecological disaster. Considering planet Earth's increasingly negative environmental indicators, are we so selfish that we will trade our children and grandchildren's future for the supposed instant gratification of grass lawns? Don Carmichael Decatur PEORIA Geoff Mathes was losing his sight. Tina Mathes was losing hope. Tina, Geoff's wife, had read about a drug that halted the effects of multiple sclerosis (MS), but it wasn't on the market yet. As the years went by, the drug began to seem like a fairy tale. But that changed last week. After waiting for years for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to approve it, and after a battle with Geoff's insurance company, Geoff, 34, began treatments at OSF Saint Francis Infusion Center in Peoria with a medication called Lemtrada. Studies have shown that 87 percent of MS patients who have taken Lemtrada see no more progression in the disease, with 65 percent experiencing no relapses and 29 percent experiencing sustained reduction in their disabilities. MS is an autoimmune disorder in which the insulating covers of nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord are damaged. Lesions are formed, causing a variety of symptoms. Geoff thought he just had a smudge on his glasses on June 3, 2008. He was at Grain Systems Inc. (GSI) in Assumption, where he works. "I went to the bathroom, washed my glasses off and washed my eyes, but it didn't help," said Geoff, who also lives in Assumption. "I called my wife and she said maybe I should get it checked out." Geoff was eventually diagnosed with MS. His treatment started with Betaseron injections every other day for 4 years, but he had a dizzy spell at work and began suffering from shooting pains that went from the back of his head and into his eyes, causing his physician, Dr. Rana Mahmood in Decatur, to change his medication to Tecfidera. The Tecfidera caused bad side effects "It made me feel like I was burning up," Geoff said so he switched to Aubagio. But nothing seemed to stop the MS. "It just kept progressing," said Mahmood's nurse, LPN Lindsay Nein. "He tried injectables, orals, infusions nothing helped. He was still developing lesions." Geoff, the father of four children, is legally blind at this point. He has peripheral vision out of his right eye, but no central vision. He can see out of his left eye, but not well it fluctuates between 20/80 and 20/100. He's also struggled with his equilibrium and joint pain. As Geoff's vision worsened, Tina became more frustrated. "They can't predict what the MS is going to do, so basically you wait and see what it's going to do next," Tina said. "I was not OK with that." Tina began doing her own research, and in a conversation with Geoff's MS One to One nurse heard about a "drug in the making that would put MS in remission, like cancer." "That gave us hope there's eventually going to be something," Tina said. "Every year I kept checking into it, and hoping maybe someday that drug would come out. But as he kept getting worse and worse, and we hadn't heard anymore, I kind of started losing hope." On Dec. 1, 2014, Alemtuzumab (under the trade name Lemtrada) was first used to treat MS in patients in the U.S. who hadn't responded well to two or more previous medications. As word spread that the FDA had approved it, and as Geoff's condition worsened, Nein began to wonder if Geoff may be a candidate. Eventually, she called Tina. "She told me the FDA had just approved this drug that I might want to look into, and she started telling me about it," Tina said. "As she was explaining it, I got chills. I said, 'Oh my gosh, that's the drug. It's actually finally here. That's the drug we've been waiting for. It's the miracle drug.'" But there's a major difference in wanting Lemtrada and actually getting it. Doctors must be trained to prescribe it, and Mahmood is the only doctor in Decatur who is certified he and Nein went through the protocol because of Geoff's case. The next challenge was finding a place to have Lemtrada administered. Hospitals in Decatur, Springfield and Bloomington haven't approved the drug for use at their hospitals, and patients in Champaign have to be affiliated with Christie Clinic. But the Saint Francis Infusion Center had already treated two other patients with Lemtrada through Dr. Dennis Garwacki, whom Geoff had visited for a second opinion on the advice of Mahmood. "I received a phone call asking if we were willing to treat him," said Saint Francis Infusion Center Manager Amy Mueller. "There were some complications because his doctor was outside our local area, but we pursued it. We first got the call in December, and late January was the soonest we could make it happen." Treatment begins with five straight days of intravenous infusions, then ends with three more days a year later. Friday was Geoff's fifth day of treatment he stayed in Peoria for the week and spent from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day at the Saint Francis Infusion Center with an IV in his arm. Geoff had hoped to start the treatment nearly a month earlier, but getting $538,000 of treatment approved by his health insurance proved even more complicated than finding a place to have it administered. It became a battle between the insurance company and the drug plan on who should pay. Tina spent an entire day on the phone with the insurance company Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Minnesota and Nein spent a total of 15 hours on the phone over the course of two days. Mueller also spent several hours on the phone, as did an advocate from the MS One to One program and a representative from the GSI corporate office. "We fought and we fought one time you hear this story and 10 minutes later another," Tina said. "There were times I was nearly in tears and ready to give up. But my heart told me we had to do this." Mueller said Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Minnesota actually had to rewrite its policy specifically for Geoff's case. "It went all the way to the top," Mueller said. Administering the Lemtrada turned out to be the easy part. Geoff's side effects were mild during treatment thyroid issues are common, but Mahmood premedicated him in an attempt to reduce them. Garwacki said Geoff could start noticing improvement in the next few months. The process which led to Geoff getting Lemtrada hasn't just helped him. Nein said seven other patients in Minnesota have now been approved for the drug, and there are three more in Decatur Nein is currently trying to get approved. "Geoff's case paved the way," Nein said. "It was all worth it." Tina said the Matheses just feel fortunate there were people in the medical community who cared enough to make what at times felt like the impossible happen. "I was on the phone with Amy and she said to me, 'I've never met you and I've never met your husband, but after hearing your story, I'm so moved that I'm going to do whatever it takes to make sure he has a good future,'" Tina said. "I could never repay everyone for everything they've done." CHARLESTON -- As Illinois moves into its eighth month without a budget, Eastern Illinois University will be enacting an estimated 200 layoffs to non-instructional employees -- as well as furloughing all administrative and professional staff additionally in March to make it through the spring semester. These layoffs, along with cash flow reserves and budget cuts and freezes enacted last week, will be used to push Eastern financially through the semester considering no appropriations from the state have been given out to higher education. In related news, in reaction to the budget concerns started at the state level, a group of Charleston community members and Eastern students and staff are organizing a rally Friday to push for change in Springfield to get Eastern funded. In regard to the layoffs, 30-day notices will be sent out to those employees either late this week or early next week, EIU President David Glassman said Tuesday as he spoke to the Faculty Senate. This will start the normal "bumping" process associated with the layoffs such as in the fall, when employees with higher seniority who get a layoff notice can instead "bump" those with less seniority. Depending on when and if a state budget is passed or appropriations are released to Eastern before the March date for layoffs, some, if not all, of those layoffs could be rescinded and the employees recalled. Glassman said cuts will be made in a way to ensure spring graduation can still happen. While the university will run through spring, uncertainty still lingers in regard to what will happen over the summer and in the fall. Glassman said he along with Paul McCann, interim vice president for business affairs, have started looking into if continuing operations during the summer will be possible, relying on tuition alone as income. Eastern is in a similar boat with its fall semester. If funds do not come in from the state by the July, August and September time frame, Eastern will not be able to afford expenses for the semester. This is also dependent on tuition and federal funding, though, officials said. Otherwise, Glassman said it is too soon to clearly identify what will happen in the summer and the fall, but he said he is optimistic funding will come in from the state before then. To garner more attention from Springfield, a "Fund EIU" rally will take place at 4 p.m. Friday in the Library Quad on campus. Kate Klipp, rally organizer, said students will be "talking about why we all love EIU, and the necessity for the state to live up to its commitment toward appropriations." Blitz said state representatives and senators were invited to attend. Blitz said it will take more than a rally to get a state budget passed, but it is a necessary step to put more political pressure on the state. He said there is clearly not enough now to get lawmakers to finalize a bill. Manvel Sargsyan Director, the Armenian Center for National and International Studies (ACNIS), Partner expert, the Armenian Institute of International and Security Affairs (AIISA). Sharpening international policy of war on terror is becoming a conundrum for more and more states of the world. Slump in oil prices, flows of migrants, tendencies in internal fragmentation, rise of military confrontation have aligned anxieties of both developed countries and those back away from leading edge of civilization processes. In likewise cases its becoming quite senseless the ubiquitous diktat on state-building by democratic principles and with requirements of human rights protection. None of authoritarian regimes can understand what is required from them. While in convulsions they are tuned to the West, initiate coalitions and alliances, and problems only accumulate though. It so happened, that international policy of war on terror has been projected over Armenia in the form of intensified demands on democratization and fight against corruption by the West. Changes in Russian policies on issues of strategic importance for ArmeniaGenocide and settlement of Karabakh conflictbecame another projection of it. These changes were initiated by Russian-Turkish confrontation reflected in Russias new Middle Eastern policy. Besides, signing of a new association agreement with the European Union is offered to and taking measures to decrease tension in Nagorno-Karabakh contact line is required from Armenia. Exactly within these international tendencies its noteworthy to scrutinize Armenias concerns and political-legal conditions and assess its capabilities to meet new challenges of the era of international policy of war on terror. Particularly, its important to reveal whether Armenias political elite is able to understand essence of current requirements and proposals to it. Analysis for configuration of world leading powers interests goes beyond the scope of our research. However, one aspect is worth touching upon to extract the logic of their interrelations in Armenia. There is enough evidence to argue, that in contemporary world the imperative of legal regulation for political actors and their interrelations is becoming more substantial factor in the universal system of interests of Western leading powers. Nature of a strategic threat has changed in contemporary world. If until the 21st century threat to national security and territorial losses were perceived as strategic ones, currently such are threats to state and financial stability of the world. Leading powers direct their potential towards neutralization of threats to their political and financial stability. And increasing impact of these new interests more and more pushes to the loss of significance of traditional international principles and institutes of previous decades. Military force loses its authority to solve avalanche-like problems. Political, financial and technological processes are obtaining more carcinogenic character, destroying the base of any stability. Sharpening of diktat against authoritarian states is becoming clear within the above described logic. In particular, nature of requirements and terms to Armenia is also becoming understandable. Hence, its worth comprehending, whether Armenia is ready to realize this at state level and especially, to shape genuine domestic and foreign policies. Armenias present-day political condition cant be called a unique one, but it drastically differs from other countries of post-Soviet space. Although Armenia has passed whole way like other countries, an unprecedented process of overcoming authoritarianism in its classic sense was recorded only in Armenia. From early 2000s authority of sacral nation-wide ideas came to lose their mobilization potential in Armenia, opening gates of domestic policy for legal ideas. Emerged on the power struggle level, topics of constitution, legal order and rule of law have complicated position of the ruling elite that lost a powerful manipulation lever on social consciousness. As a result of more criminalization of political life and strengthening of illegality and arbitrariness in the country, anti-criminal turned into a key opposition paradigm. Under likewise political agenda by opposition, authorities could stake on administrative oppression and hard power. Ideological platform in the authorities political arsenal has quite weakened. They have staked only on oppositions disorganization. Until now the major political function of the society formation of power through electionsdoesnt find its mechanisms of implementation. Privileges of the situation remained in hands of authorities that borrowed legal ideas from the opposition. Under the protection of constitutional order slogan the ruling elite shielded itself from protest of nihilistically tuned citizens. Political parties, supporting such actions by the authorities, formed a power camp organized and functioning on the basis of power-sharing accord (for the first time accord on ruling coalition was negotiated after the 2003 parliamentary elections). Representative and executive offices were distributed among members of power camp. For the first time contractual system of power was formed in the country, that ignored constitutional election mechanism as a source for power. This is the difference of democratic transition of Armenias political system from other post-Soviet countries. Opposition ceased to be a factor predetermining political developments in Armenia. Since then, economic and socio-political life of Armenia came to be regulated via normative acts of shadow coalition accord. Moreover, mechanism of nomenclature opposition was introduced in political life, by that, opening doors before political parties for a new activity. Power camp works on itself, and accordingly, pursuing its own interests. Authorities conduct a policy of suppressing individual and social initiatives. Described anti-constitutional political system per se was legalized through amendments to the countrys Constitutions 6 December 2015. Perspectives to form a public administration system through elections have practically been nullified. Main resource to keep political dominance is sought in foreign policy issues and interrelations. To sum up key issues, containing the countrys total potential and diminishing its role in international affairs, the following picture can be drawn: Armenias political-legal model is distorted due to legal unsettlement of its relations with Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. Neither separation of rights and obligation between the two in Armenias legal system nor NKR full integration into Armenias legal framework occur; Almost complete merging of power and big business, monopolization of economy, lack of independent judiciary and free elections limit chances for development of economy and democratic institutions. Possibilities to attract Armenian Diaspora resources in strengthening of statehood are narrowed as well; Considerable amount of Armenias fettering treaties with its strategic allyRussia, impossibility to impact on Russias policies are barriers for diversification of countrys policy and economy. Providing of security for Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh more and more encounters with hard-to-solve and insoluble situations. Armenia unwillingly becomes a part of Russian policy of war on terror. It can be rather confidently stressed, that under current conditions the strategic issue of Armenian society remains reviewing political and legal model and establishing constitutional order in the country. Not a single society can exercise its vital functions unless it shapes borders and principles of organization of the community. Such a task is quite harmonious with ongoing trends of world development. Though talking to the world with Armenias present-day quality is complicated. Manvel Sargsyan Improving Security Policy Debates in Armenia programme (NED) The Armenian Institute of International and Security Affairs (AIISA) The Legend..... but should danger ever come, then Holger Danske will rouse himself, and the table will burst asunder as he draws out his beard. Then he will come forth in his strength, and strike a blow that shall sound in all the countries of the world. - Hans Christian Andersen An Assembly bill would change how fish farming, known as aquaculture, is regulated by the state, moving it into the same regulatory category as traditional farms. Share your opinion on this topic by sending a letter to the editor to tctvoice@madison.com. Include your full name, hometown and phone number. Your name and town will be published. The phone number is for verification purposes only. Please keep your letter to 250 words or less. State Debate: State has obligation to educate citizens about new voter ID law, argues the Racine Journal Times When confronted by police, two Baraboo residents accused of committing an armed robbery claimed they were the victims of a crime. Jeremy W. Filocha, 20, and Laython W. Fowler, 19, were arrested shortly after the Mauston Family Dollar was robbed Jan. 14. A witness at the scene told police one of the men had a gun during the incident, though it was not clear whether the weapon was used to threaten anyone. Another witness reported seeing the suspects flee into a Mauston residence. According to the criminal complaint, when police knocked on the door of the residence, Fowler opened the door. He told police he had been jumped by three people at McDonalds. He claimed the pair came to their friends apartment to escape. Filocha then came downstairs wearing a red hoodie an article of clothing witnesses told police one of the Family Dollar robbers wore. Filocha also said the two were jumped, but he claimed it was by two people. He described the people who jumped him as black males. The resident of the apartment was home and told police Filocha and Fowler had run into the apartment and placed a bunch of stuff in the living room shortly before police arrived. He said they also pulled money out of their pockets when they came into the apartment. When police looked at Filocha and Fowlers items they found a change of clothes and a pistol. They also found footprints in the snow between the residence and Family Dollar. During separate interviews, police said both men admitted they committed the robbery and that their story about getting jumped was false. In court Jan. 15, both men were given a $7,500 cash bond. If convicted of armed robbery, each faces up to $100,000 in fines and 40 years in prison. They remain in Juneau County Jail and are due in Juneau County Court again Feb. 10 for an initial appearance. Hancock Fabrics plans to close its store at Westgate Mall on Madisons West Side. The fabric and sewing supply retailer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Tuesday, seeking to reorganize for the second time in nine years. The Madison store has been open since September 1993, according to company spokeswoman Brenda Adrian. Senior Vice President Dennis Lyons, in a court document, said Hancock wants to close at least 70 money-losing stores among the 250-plus stores it operates in 37 states, leaving it with a smaller, more profitable core group of stores. The company, based in Baldwyn, Mississippi, made the filing Tuesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware, saying that revenues for the holiday retail season were $8 million below expectations, that its burdened by high debt costs and that its borrowing limit has been cut. We believe the restructuring is a positive step for the future of the company and we are committed to providing our customers quality fabrics and crafting essentials, both online and in stores, CEO Steve Morgan said in a statement. Hancock says it owes about $110 million to banks and vendors. The company said in its bankruptcy petition that it has between $100 million and $500 million in assets. It has arranged bridge financing during bankruptcy from a group of lenders led by Wells Fargo & Co. Those banks have claims on Hancocks assets to secure nearly $80 million in pre-existing loans. The company said its seeking a buyer for remaining stores, with a bid deadline of March 9. Lyons said Hancock is optimistic that debtholders or another buyer will submit a bid. However, Lyons said the company has a backup bid from the same liquidation firm hired to close other stores if no one seeks to keep running the remaining 185 or so stores. Hancock said it sought pre-bankruptcy bids among 69 potential buyers late last year, but no one made an offer, citing the companys poor operating results and debt. Lyons said that among other problems, the company was hit by a $4 million increase in employee retirement plan costs in 2014. The companys revenues fell by 5 percent last year to $269 million, and Hancock said it will post a loss for the 12-month period ended Jan. 31, blaming in part a difficult retail environment. Hancock said it has about 4,500 employees. Of those, about 4,150 work in stores, while others work at the companys headquarters and distribution warehouse in Baldwyn. Adrian said going-out-of-business sales are expected to begin as early as next week and the Madison stores actual closing date depends on when inventory is sold. Bob Van Enkenvoort of the State Journal contributed to this article. Think bourbon is hot? Its got nothing on baijiu. Yet chances are good you havent even heard of baijiu, the high proof, pungent, spicy, savory, sweet traditional liquor of China. It packs a fiery punch. It also happens to be the worlds best-selling liquor by volume, a drink with a pedigree stretching back centuries, and was poured to toast the warming of U.S.-Sino relations during President Richard Nixons historic 1972 visit. Now, producers are making diplomatic overtures to an entirely new audience the U.S. craft cocktail scene. We feel that it has incredible potential, says Yuan Liu, senior vice president of business development for Los Angeles-based CNS Imports, the largest importer/distributor of baijiu in the United States. Baijiu is sorghum-based, though it also can contain wheat, rice and corn. An its not a uniform product; its a class of spirits with many categories. Think whiskey with its range from smoky Scotch to mellow bourbon. But unlike whiskey, which is fermented in a liquid state, baijiu is more or less dry fermented inside in-ground pits. It then is steam distilled several times in goose-neck stills, aged in massive terra cotta vessels, then finally blended. It generally is bottled at around 100 or 120 proof (well above the typical 80 proof for vodka, gin, etc.) and is classed by aroma, such as light, rice, strong and sauce labels which arent all that helpful to Westerners. Typical reactions from first-timers are that it smells and tastes like blue cheese, mushroom or soy sauce not the most alluring descriptors. This is not a spirit you can just pour into a martini glass and enjoy, says New York bartender Orson Salicetti. But introduced more gently as part of a cocktail? That can work, says Salicetti, co-founder of the Lumos bar, which focuses on the Chinese spirit and has a menu of more than 60 baijiu cocktails. Salicetti was introduced to baijiu by his architect partner Qifan Li and realized baijiu would be a great way to stand out in a city awash with specialty bars. A popular option at Lumos is the sesame colada, which includes caramelized pineapple juice, white sesame paste and agave syrup. Theres also the goji baijiu punch, consisting of goji-infused HKB baijiu, mezcal, pink grapefruit juice, lime juice, agave syrup and orange bitters. Lumos carries a full range of baijiu, including the No. 1 brand, Kweichow Moutai, recognizable by its distinctive packaging of a white bottle with a red and gold label. Other major players include Wu Liang Ye and Shui Jing Fang. A newer brand is HKB, designed with cocktails in mind and bottled at a relatively mild 86 proof. There also is a U.S.-produced baijiu, from Vinn, a distillery just south of Portland, Oregon. Most of the $23 billion baijiu market stays in China, though theres been growing interest in exporting. Most of the baijiu imported to the United States goes to Chinese restaurants and shops. But about two years ago, CNS Imports decided to expand their reach. We looked at each other and said, Why arent we introducing this category of spirits to people outside the Chinese community? said Liu. Theyve moved slowly, introducing the spirit to bartenders and learning, from experience, to work with rather than hide the unique flavors. Instead of trying to mask the spirit and make it into something it isnt, like vodka, theyre essentially creating and building a cocktail around the spirit, says Liu. Clearly, theres a push to raise the profile of baijiu in the West. Whether it will be successful is another story. Baijiu has an exotic appeal which is both a weakness and a strength, says Jim Boyce, who blogs about Beijing nightlife at beijingboyce.com. Baiju is such a novelty and thats going to be its challenge, going from Yes, I tried it once and its interesting, to something people buy regularly or even stock at home. Chinese traditionalists wouldnt dream of drinking baijiu anything but neat and in very small glasses, which is how Kathy Fang serves it at her familys FANG restaurant in San Franciscos bustling SOMA district. Meant to go with food, baijiu pairs well with savory bites, such as Fangs fried pork confit eggrolls. Its been a hit with tech workers who tend to be open to new tastes, says Fang. If you tell them its really strong like moonshine theyre even more like, Oh, I want to try, says Fang. Chris Rickert | Wisconsin State Journal Urban affairs, investigations, consumer help ("SOS") Follow Chris Rickert | Wisconsin State Journal Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today Just because there arent taxpayer dollars to advertise the full roll-out this year of the states unnecessary voter ID law doesnt mean there arent political dollars that could accomplish the same thing. The same concerns about electoral integrity that drove Republicans to pass the photo ID requirement should compel them to spend money making sure the integrity of this years elections arent unduly harmed because voters dont know about the requirement or dont have photo IDs. Even better, back in the real world, Democrats have major cause for coughing up some cash: They believe their voters are more likely to lack the IDs and wherewithal for getting them that the new law requires. There wouldnt be anything illegal about either party or either partys candidates spending campaign dollars to run ads letting voters know about photo ID, according to Government Accountability Board spokesman Reid Magney. They could even pay for transportation to get people to the DMV to get their drivers licenses or state ID, or for programs to help the most needy get the documents they need to get IDs. And boy oh boy, could they pay. The Republican Party of Wisconsin, for example, raised more than $1.9 million last year and had about $647,000 left in the bank as of Jan. 15, according to its latest semiannual campaign finance report. The state Democratic party raised about $563,000 and had $376,000 in the bank. The Republican Assembly and Senate campaign committees raised about $808,763 and had about $637,054 left over. Comparable numbers for the Dems were $718,158 and $376,924, respectively. Then theres donor darling Gov. Scott Walker, whose gubernatorial campaign raised $6.4 million last year. For just a few hundred to a few thousand bucks, politicians could run an ad in, ahem, this very newspaper to alert voters to the photo ID requirement. Thats money spent at least as well as the $350 the state Republican party paid to Vegas Karaoke last year (for meeting expenses). Republicans obviously have the greater moral obligation to let voters know about photo ID because they passed the 2011 law (its been mostly held up in court), and they control state government and get to decide whether to set state money aside to educate voters about photo ID. But morality is optional in politics, and given scant evidence of anyone committing the kind of voter fraud that a photo ID would deter, cynics contend that Republicans have no incentive for letting folks know about the new law because its really about disenfranchising Democratic voters. State Republican campaign officials did not respond when I asked whether they would spend campaign dollars to publicize voter ID suggesting that deep down, they concede the cynics point. State Democratic Party spokesman Brandon Weathersby, however, said making sure people know what they need to vote ... will be a large part of our efforts to get out the vote this year, although he didnt yet have a figure on how much the party would spend. But any amount spent on something other than misleading ads for candidates is money well spent. Less than 24 hours after he allegedly shot a former co-worker to death outside a Far East Side grocery store and minutes after exchanging gunfire with a police officer, Christopher T. OKroley was arrested Wednesday by police who found him hiding inside a dumpster, authorities said. The Dane County Medical Examiners Office identified the victim Wednesday night as Caroline E. Nosal, 24, of Stoughton, whom co-workers described as a bookworm who was a friend of OKroley, 26. His arrest came Wednesday afternoon after he was spotted outside Babies R Us, 2161 Zeier Road, by a woman who recognized him from media reports and immediately called 911 to report the information to police. Kudos to that citizen for putting us in place, Madison police spokesman Joel DeSpain said. Its tragic that there was more gunfire (after the sighting) but at least for this homicide victims family, there is at least some sense of justice, that someone is ... in custody. Police said the fatal shooting occurred at about 8 p.m. Tuesday in the parking lot at Metro Market, 6010 Cottage Grove Road, a grocery store in the Grandview Commons subdivision. Nosal was walking to her car after finishing her shift in the produce department when she was shot. Police said she was taken to a hospital but did not survive. Police have not given a motive for the shooting but said OKroley and Nosal knew each other. DeSpain confirmed OKroley was no longer a Metro Market employee when Nosal was shot on Tuesday. He said he couldnt confirm whether OKroley had been fired. Cassidy Lippold, another employee of Metro Market, said OKroley and Nosal were very good friends. Meagan Zellmer, a cashier at Metro Market, said Nosal had worked at the store for perhaps eight months to a year. Nosals Facebook page said she was a 2009 graduate of Sun Prairie High School and had studied archaeology at Madison Area Technical College. Whenever you saw her walking around the store, she was always with a book in her hand and a smile on her face, Zellmer said. She was so incredibly kind and funny and wherever she went she always made people feel good. We were not close friends, but it was always so comfortable talking to her, Zellmer added. Everyone loves her and our family at Metro Market will not be the same without her. She is a beautiful soul and will never be forgotten. Dramatic events Police said OKroley was captured in a dumpster behind Marshalls at about 1:35 p.m. Wednesday. The arrest occurred 10 to 15 minutes after OKroley, who was outside and on foot, fired a gun at least once at the first officer to arrive on the scene near Marshalls, 2117 Zeier Road, in East Towne Plaza. The female officer, a 15-year veteran whom police did not identify Wednesday, returned fire with at least one shot, DeSpain said. No one was hit by any of the rounds, DeSpain said, but officers heard the shooting play out over their radios. It shook everybody within the department, he said. After the exchange of gunfire, OKroley who had only two minor traffic citations on his record before Wednesday ran 50 to 60 yards behind Marshalls and hid in the dumpster where he was found, police said. A window also shattered at Home Depot, 2425 East Springs Drive, perhaps after being hit by one of the bullets, DeSpain said. The store is at least 1,500 feet from the shooting scene but DeSpain said it was in the trajectory of the bullet or bullets OKroley fired. A gas line also may have been hit by one of the bullets. At 1:45 p.m., police reported a limited evacuation of Marshalls and some other stores due to a strong gas smell between Marshalls and Babies R Us, possibly tied to one or more bullets hitting a gas main in the area. The Madison Fire Department investigated the possible gas leak with Madison Gas & Electric, which turned off the gas and determined the area to be safe at 2:25 p.m., MFD spokeswoman Cynthia Schuster said. Missing for hours The investigation into the shooting was continuing on Wednesday, including the angle of whether anyone had helped OKroley escape the crime scene Tuesday night. You have to wonder: Did he do all of this unassisted? Madison Police Chief Mike Koval said. And if not, who is giving him shelter (overnight), how did he get whisked away from the area of the crime scene so quickly? Koval expressed gratitude to the woman who helped police find OKroley, saying the real-time tip may have saved officers untold hours or days on the investigation. In an urban setting, you can be invisible in plain sight, Koval said. In the minutes before OKroley was apprehended, many stores in the area, including those at nearby East Towne Mall, were in lockdown. Before OKroley was found, Madison police warned the public that he should be considered armed and dangerous, and asked anyone who saw him to call 911 immediately. His VW Jetta was found unoccupied Wednesday on Galileo Drive about a mile from the crime scene and he was last known to be in the Grandview Commons subdivision around 10 p.m. Tuesday night. Officers searched several locations Wednesday morning, including OKroleys residence, a duplex at 814 N. Thompson Drive about 3 miles from the store. Police used a drone to do an aerial search of a wooded area near where his car was found, and a search by mounted horse patrol also was ordered by Koval. Metro Market closed after the shooting Tuesday night, reopening Wednesday morning with grief counselors on hand to help employees cope, store officials said. The entire Roundys and Metro Market families remain saddened by the loss of our colleague. She was a part of the Roundys and Metro Market families for about three years, James Hyland of Roundys/Metro Market said in a statement released Wednesday morning, adding the company would have no further comment. The shooting was the first killing of the year in Dane County. Madison.com reporter Bill Novak contributed to this report. Many a weekend night, Memorial High School senior Julianne Griepp can be found sketching on her computer drawing tablet at 2 or 3 in the morning, leading her parents, they said, to constantly yell, Julianne, go to bed! Thursday, that devotion to her art paid off. At a surprise presentation at her school, Griepp was announced as the Wisconsin finalist in a national design contest sponsored by Google. The 17-year-old had no idea the honor was coming. Principal Jay Affeldt retrieved her from a morning English class and ushered her to the schools theater, where her family, representatives from the technology company, and about 100 fellow art students yelled Surprise! Griepp later said she almost fainted. The contest she excelled at is called Doodle 4 Google. It asked students to redesign the Google logo using the theme What makes me ... me. All K-12 students in the U.S. were eligible to enter, and about 100,000 did. Google judges picked 53 finalists one from each state, plus three from U.S. territories. Griepps design is all about nature her love for it, the stories it inspires in her, and how it influences her artwork. As Wisconsins finalist, she now has a chance to become the national winner, to be announced March 21. The public will help choose the winner. Voting begins Friday at google.com/doodle4google. The winner will receive a $30,000 college scholarship, and his or her school will receive a $50,000 grant for technology upgrades. The winning design will be featured on Googles homepage for one day. Google money already was flowing through Memorial on Thursday. Everyone in attendance got a Google T-shirt, Griepp was handed a Google Nexus 7 tablet, and the schools art department got a $2,500 donation. Geof Herman, the art departments chairman and one of five art teachers at the school, said the money will be used to buy 24 drawing tablets for the computer art lab. He said Griepp is easily one of the most impressive art students at the school, though very modest and unassuming. Youd think someone with her talent would be running the show, but shes always open to new ideas and shes always asking others for suggestions, he said. Griepp said she started drawing as a child and plans to make art her career. A National Merit Scholarship semifinalist, she has taken eight art classes at Memorial and helped co-found the schools animation club. She can often be found at Memorial on Saturdays during what the school calls open studio time. This isnt a specialty art school, yet Ive been able to spend a lot of time in the art department around some really amazing teachers, Griepp said. She has applied to art schools for college. The applications and portfolios were due Monday, before she could have known of this latest honor. However, her parents, Milton and Mary Beth Griepp, said they were alerted to their daughters win several weeks ago. Unbeknownst to her, they slipped the honor into her application packets. A judge has dismissed Adams Outdoor Advertisings $740,000 lawsuit against Madison that claimed the Cannonball bike path bridge over the Beltline blocks a billboard from being seen by eastbound traffic. Dane County Circuit Judge Richard Niess on Wednesday rejected Adams claim that blocking the view was an unlawful taking of private property, the city announced Thursday. Its what we expected was going to happen, assistant city attorney Doran Viste said. The project for the Cannonball bridge was legal. There was no taking involved. The courts ruling reinforces established law that there is no right to a view, city attorney Michael May said in a memo to city policy makers. Adams real estate manager Jason Saari said he could not comment because top management was out of the country on Thursday. Adams owns most of the roughly 130 billboards in the city, including a two-sided sign on a small parcel at 2002 W. Beltline. The lawsuit, filed in September 2014, claimed the city never consulted the business when it was planning the pedestrian bridge, that workers trespassed on its property during bridge construction, and that the completed bridge blocks the sign from eastbound traffic. The $4 million bridge and adjoining path are part of the larger $6 million to $8 million Cannonball Path project which will extend from the Military Ridge State Trail to Fish Hatchery Road being built by the cities of Madison and Fitchburg and the state departments of Natural Resources and Transportation. Construction on the bridge just east of Todd Drive started in the summer of 2013, but during initial work it was unclear how the finished structure might affect the sign or property, Adams eight-page lawsuit said. After installation of bridge spans in late August that year, Adams contended the west-facing, 672-square-foot panel was 100 percent obstructed and the value of the sign and property substantially devalued. The lawsuit was filed as the city mulled an ordinance eventually approved by the City Council that now lets companies under limited circumstances remove existing signs, bank the square footage, and put up a new replacement elsewhere. The ordinance, passed in mid-2015, makes it easier to move billboards in the way of redevelopment and reduce the potential for costly litigation while keeping the overall square footage of billboards in check and protecting neighborhoods. Under the ordinance, new billboards would not be allowed in historic or urban design districts or on landmark buildings but could be placed in certain commercial and employment areas. Adams billboard near the bicycle bridge would not be eligible for the program unless a redevelopment of that property required removal of the sign, city zoning administrator Matt Tucker said. Assembly leaders Thursday echoed Gov. Scott Walkers statement that the Legislature should limit new spending to $20 million in the spring session. Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, said he agreed upon the amount in meetings with Walker. He said his top priorities are a college affordability package, which costs $8 million, and bills addressing mental health and Alzheimers and dementia issues, which cost $4.2 million. Even if you added all those together its still significantly less than $20 million, so I think well be fine, Vos said. Rep. John Nygren, R-Marinette, co-chairman of the Legislatures budget committee, said the limit shouldnt hamper top legislative priorities because there are pots of money besides the states general fund that could be used to help stay within that goal. Theres money out there, youve just got to go find it, Nygren said before the Joint Finance Committee took up a handful of Alzheimers/dementia and drug treatment bills. To illustrate the point, the committee unanimously passed Nygrens bill to provide $4 million in grants during the two-year budget cycle that ends June 30, 2017, for drug treatment alternative and diversion programs. But the committee also amended it so that the $4 million will come from a pot of money that counties pay to the Department of Health Services for mental health institutions, rather than from the general fund. Democrats voted for the bill, but also railed against Republicans for putting the state in a position where it doesnt have the funding for other issues, such as addressing problems at the Lincoln Hills youth prison or helping college graduates refinance their student loan debt. We cant ignore the elephant in the room that the state doesnt have any money, said Rep. Gordon Hintz, D-Oshkosh. The Legislatures budget committee has signed off on five bills to help people cope with Alzheimers disease and dementia. The bills would lay out $50,000 to purchase licenses for a virtual dementia tour; $50,000 in additional funding annually for Alzheimers research at UW-Madison; and $1 million in additional money annually for the states Alzheimers family and caregiver support program. They also would devote $1.37 million in ongoing funding to support four more dementia care specialists spread across small counties and a state specialist trainer; and an additional $250,000 for state grants for training local crisis teams to help dementia sufferers. The nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau is projecting the state will end the current biennium with $135 million. State law requires a $65 million cushion, so lawmakers only have about $70 million for new spending or foregone tax revenue. Walker said Wednesday that limiting new spending will put the state in a better starting position for the next budget so it can devote more money to K-12 education. The last state budget included about $200 million more money for K-12 schools, but cut $250 million from the University of Wisconsin System. Earlier this week, Senate Majority Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, told the Wisconsin Counties Association that this next state budget is going to be just as rough as this past one, according to Wisconsin Public Radio. The economy is not going to continue to soar, its going to lag, Fitzgerald said. And as a result of that thats what I lose sleep over. Because those are very difficult decisions. An Assembly committee Thursday abruptly scrapped a vote on a proposal to reduce the amount of money public school districts can raise to offset the loss of state aid for taxpayer-funded private school vouchers. The decision by Assembly Education Committee chairman Rep. Jeremy Thiesfeldt, R-Fond du Lac, came less than an hour before a scheduled 1 p.m. vote and hours after the Wisconsin State Journal began asking questions about the proposal. School officials also mobilized against the idea Thursday. It could result in a $22 million loss in taxing authority for public schools, according to a Wisconsin Association of School Boards memo to members. Committee clerk Hariah Hutkowski said Thursdays vote was canceled in order to work out logistics and concerns. It could be rescheduled for next week, he said. The idea was introduced Wednesday by Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, as an amendment to another voucher bill. It would change the existing voucher funding system, which Vos proposed and was implemented for the first time this year after lawmakers revamped the system and removed the programs enrollment cap in the 2015-17 budget. The state voucher system is paid for by reducing state aid to school districts about $16.1 million this year. Lawmakers allow districts to make up that money and more, a total of $21.4 million by raising taxes. This year schools raised nearly $20 million to offset the loss of state aid because of the voucher program. Now Vos wants to limit that amount of money. Vos characterized the funding formula passed in the budget as a misdrafting that resulted in high property tax hikes in some districts. He pointed to Racine as an example, where the district used all of its levy authority, about $5.6 million, according to the Legislative Fiscal Bureau. Of that amount, about $3.3 million of the new revenue would be wiped out by Voss amendment, according to the school boards association. Department of Public Instruction spokesman Tom McCarthy said lawmakers passed specific budget language outlining how the calculations would work. This is what the Legislature and Joint Finance Committee voted on and passed into law, he said. Vos spokeswoman Kit Beyer said the proposal would make the voucher program funding process more in line with the states open enrollment program. When students enroll in another school district through open enrollment, most of the states funding for that student goes with the student to their new school district. That students home district is still able to count that student in their revenue limit calculation, however, allowing the home district to keep some state aid to pay for operational expenses. Beyer said the new proposal limits school districts ability to raise property taxes for a student they are not actually educating, who would be in the choice program. WASB lobbyist Dan Rossmiller said public school districts revenue would be reduced by about $4,000 per student each year resulting in multi-million dollar revenue losses for school districts with higher numbers of voucher students living in the district. An analysis showed school districts revenue limit authority would be reduced by $22 million, affecting 142 school districts, according to WASB. Rossmiller said the idea behind the new funding structure included in the 2015-17 state budget was to ensure school districts who lose state aid to pay for school vouchers are able to recoup that money. The new proposal will hurt public schools, he said. The proposal was introduced as an amendment to a bill that had already had a public hearing and just a day before a scheduled committee vote. Madison School District superintendent Jennifer Cheatham took issue with the quick turnaround. You are now being asked to vote on these amendments today, with no chance for the public to understand or for school districts to weigh in on the harmful impact of what you are voting on, Cheatham wrote in a Feb. 4 letter to lawmakers. Rather than thoughtful consideration of what is best for schools in our state and the children that attend them, these are rushed amendments with no clear intent besides harming public schools. Under the current funding formula, school districts lose $7,214 in aid for each K-8 student and $7,860 for high school students enrolling in private voucher schools. Districts are allowed to levy to cover the loss. A spokeswoman for Gov. Scott Walker did not respond to a request for comment. Myranda Tanck, spokeswoman for Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, said Fitzgerald was not available for comment on Thursday. A group of church friends just held a town hall meeting in Brunswick, Georgia. Their purpose is embodied in their name: Justice For Caroline Small. Chances are, youve never heard of her. She was a waitress, a mother of two girls, and a woman with mental health issues who was in and out of drug treatment programs for much of her life until she was killed by police in June of 2010. Her death was every bit as outrageous as those of Oscar Grant, Eric Garner, Walter Scott, Freddie Gray and Tamir Rice, but has received only a fraction of the attention. Indeed, unless you live in Georgia or North Florida, you probably dont know her story. And you should. As told in news reports and a dash cam video, it goes like this: A police officer responds to a call of a woman doing drugs in a parking lot. When he tells her to shut off the car, she takes off instead. A 4 mile, low-speed chase ensues. It ends when a police car bumps her vehicle, spinning it to a stop. With one police car sitting nose to nose, another on her passenger side, a utility pole behind her, a ditch on her left and all four tires gone, Small has nowhere to go. Still, she shifts into reverse and then forward, banging uselessly against the utility pole and the patrol car. Police yell at her to get out. Instead, she tries again back against the pole, forward, bumping the car. And Sgt. Corey Sasser and Officer Todd Simpson open fire, tattooing her windshield with .45 caliber rounds. Afterward, they discuss their marksmanship. I hit her right in the face ... right on the bridge of the nose, says Sasser. Simpson waves off a former EMT who approaches to render aid. Shes dead. I shot her in the head. Her head exploded. Small actually died seven days later. Sasser and Simpson were cleared of wrongdoing by a grand jury and by internal affairs. A civil suit was dismissed. Justice for Caroline Small was formed last year after the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and a local ABC News affiliate investigated the shooting and found that police, seeking to protect their own, interfered with a supposedly independent probe, while the district attorney deferred to them at every step, essentially paving the way for the grand jury to clear the two officers. Perhaps most damning: the investigation concludes police tampered with the crime scene and manufactured misleading evidence. Grand jurors were led to believe Small had room to maneuver her car and could have run the officers down. The dash cam video search it online for yourself proves the unarmed woman was hemmed in and posed no immediate threat. So Justice for Caroline Small is calling for a new investigation of the shooting and a probe of the police department itself. In a nation that has come to think of the police shooting of unarmed people and the protests thereof as a black thing, they are an anomaly. Visit JusticeForCaroline.com and you will find, as one told an Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter, old-time, white, middle-class people. As such, they provide a wordless yet eloquent reminder that, although African-Americans bear the brunt of our unwillingness to demand accountability for police misbehavior, unchecked power ultimately has no racial loyalties. The refusal to understand that is a dangerous luxury none of us can afford. As a member named Kay Allen told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, this shooting of a 35-year-old white woman changes in some ways the way that you view the police and just thinking they are there to protect you. And its kind of like, Well, maybe not. Maybe theres another side to things that we dont always know about. It is the kind of dawning realization that often precedes enlightenment. And in that sense, Justice For Caroline Small might be a small step toward justice for us all. If you attend a Republican presidential event on the campaign trail, you may come to wonder if you made a wrong turn and ended up in church. If you are not a believer an evangelical Christian believer, that is you may feel ever so slightly unwelcome. The deity-centric approach is working for Ted Cruz, who began his victory speech in Des Moines Monday by pointing heavenward, pursing his lips and uttering an especially unctuous line: To God be the glory. Among all the glorious wonders that his Creator has wrought, delivering slightly more than a quarter of the vote in an Iowa caucus has to fall pretty far down the list. You would think the Almighty would be powerful enough to produce a comfortable majority, or even a unanimous vote. Cruz finished first on the strength of his appeal to evangelicals, who made up two-thirds of all caucus-goers. His success was not entirely the work of the Big Guy Upstairs. During the campaign, Cruz has done everything but run ads identifying him as The Official Candidate of the Son of God. He launched his campaign at Jerry Falwells Liberty University, where he celebrated the transformative love of Jesus Christ. During the campaign, he has missed no chance to quote the Bible and hoist the cross. Ben Carson said he would not accept a Muslim as president, but Cruz goes even further. Any president who doesnt begin every day on his knees isnt fit to be commander-in-chief of this nation, he thundered. That rules out atheists, agnostics, non-Christians and any faithful churchgoer who feels perfectly capable of praying while seated. At one event, the Texas senator urged his audience to pray every day as follows: Father God, please, continue this awakening. ... Awaken the body of Christ, that we might pull back from the abyss. With his trademark gift for hilarity, he said the job of a military chaplain is to be insensitive to atheists. If this political gig doesnt work out, hell do fine as a televangelist. Though Cruz is the most overbearing candidate in his religiosity, his general theme is not unusual. Marco Rubio explained why his faith will play a large role in how he will govern: Because in the end, my goal is not simply to live on this Earth for 80 years but to live an eternity with my creator. He put out a video of a town hall encounter he had with a man identifying himself as an atheist. The senator insisted he would respect the guys right to disbelieve while somehow managing to make it sound as though he posed a threat to Rubios religious freedom. The ad could have been titled: St. Mario vanquishes the infidel. Mike Huckabee is a former Southern Baptist minister whose announcement speech last summer recalled the good old days when students were taught the Lords Prayer in public school. He also insisted that its liberal enemies are on the verge of criminalizing Christianity. The contenders often frame their sectarian appeals as promises to protect religious liberty. But when they talk about threats to religious liberty, they arent thinking about municipalities blocking the construction of mosques or a Jewish student being forced to listen to Christian prayers at public school events. Christian religious liberty, expansively defined, is their sole concern. About the only consolation for non-Christians in this campaign a very small one is the popularity of Donald Trump, despite his impious lifestyle and obvious indifference to religion. But even Trump made the obligatory pilgrimage to Liberty University and touted his endorsement by President Jerry Falwell Jr. The problem is not that politicians invoke faith to bond with audiences, attest to their good character and explain their motivations in public life. Even Hillary Clinton has been known to do that. So has Barack Obama. But they dont use it as a club against those whose beliefs are different. Republicans often convey the impression that God is their exclusive property and that everyone else doesnt belong. But treating Christianity as a de facto requirement for office amounts to making nonbelievers second-class citizens. It suggests that Christian candidates owe nonbelievers no logical rationale for the policies they champion. The Constitution, which Cruz and his rivals claim to revere, forbids any religious test for office and makes no claim to fulfill the word of God. Somebody ought to take the hint. South Korea ranks 121 out of 140 countries in labor-market flexibility, according to the World Economic Forum. As in Japan, South Korean workers expect lifetime employment, annual pay hikes and seniority-based promotion when they join a company. So its progress that Seouls Labor Ministry adopted guidelines last week making it easier for companies to fire poor performers and revise employment rules. Employers heretofore couldnt fire subpar workers for anything short of a disciplinary violation. The guidelines also free companies from securing majority approval from employees before amending employment rules, as long as the revision is reasonable according to various standards. Officials also want to accelerate the adoption of a wage peak system that allows reduced wages to workers nearing retirement. Seoul hopes the system will lessen payroll costs as the retirement age rises to 60 this year, and encourage the hiring of younger workers. President Park Geun-hye has made labor reform a priority to reinvigorate the economy. GDP growth has dipped to 2.6 percent, its slowest in three years. Youth joblessness is at a 16-year high, and Korean exports are growing slower than at any time since the financial crisis. Park brokered a landmark agreement with business leaders and one of two major labor unions in September, offering a revision in five labor laws. But the bills have been stalled since December after the opposition party refused to vote ahead of Aprils legislative elections. Parks implementation of the new guidelines shows her determination to press ahead. The guidelines arent legally binding but will be used by ministry officials to supervise labor and management relations. The Federation of Korean Trade Unions, which backed out of Parks negotiations, says the new guidelines violate labor laws. But the guidelines will remain effective until a court rules on the labor challenge, which could take years. Contrast this to rival Japan, where workers waste time in boredom rooms because they cant be fired. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe promised labor reform but abandoned a bill on merit pay to pass a controversial national security law. Seoul has already surpassed Tokyo in embracing free trade. Agreements with the European Union and the United States have been in effect since 2012. Koreas unions are still loud, but their political clout is waning. Union membership is down by about half from its peak in 1989 due to the increase in nonregular and small-firm employees. Parks conservative Saenuri Party is expected to maintain its legislative majority in Aprils elections, so union influence is likely to decline farther. ... More flexible labor policies would raise productivity and wages at home, as well as make Korean goods more competitive in global markets. Its in the best interest of workers if labor leaders return to the negotiating table with Park. Youd think Donald Trump, with all his bragging about business experience, would have learned this simple lesson by now: Show up for your job interview. Trump arrogantly skipped the final Republican presidential debate before the Iowa caucuses, snubbing voters who wanted to see all of the GOP contenders on stage, making their last and best cases for support. Trump had been leading in the polls. But when the actual votes were counted Monday night, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas finished first in the GOP caucuses, with Trump in a virtual tie for second with U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida. Trump is famous for telling contestants on a reality television show Youre fired! Thats his catchphrase. But it was Iowa that downsized Trump on Monday night. And a big reason he lost a solid lead was he didnt show up in Des Moines on Thursday night for the Fox News-Google debate among Republicans. His lame excuse was alleged mistreatment by Fox moderator Megyn Kelly in the first GOP debate. Kelly had questioned Trump about his record of insulting women, a fair line of inquiry. Running against the media has been a popular political strategy this election cycle. But Trump dodging the final Iowa debate exposed an overconfident candidate growing tired of having to mix it up for votes. More important, Trumps absence robbed voters of a last chance to assess all of the Republican candidates in the same place, as they discussed and displayed their policy and personality differences. Iowans, who enjoy hosting the first contest in the long presidential nominating process, expect personal attention and commitment from anyone serious about earning their delegates. Trump didnt deliver, jetting in for big rallies while avoiding more intimate and unpredictable settings, including Thursdays debate. A Fox News poll of people entering the GOP caucuses Monday night suggested half of those who waited until the final days to settle on a candidate favored Rubio or Cruz. Trump swayed only 14 percent of caucus-goers who decided late in the process, according to Fox. On the Democratic side, it was presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton who didnt want a lot of debates until, that is, longshot challenger Bernie Sanders surged, nearly besting her in Iowa. The two plan to debate tonight at 8 at the University of New Hampshire in Durham. (MSNBC will broadcast the debate on cable television and at MSNBC.com). As much as political campaigns have changed, with more money and sophisticated social media strategies, formal debates are as important as ever. And if candidates dont show up for these very basic exercises in democracy, they shouldnt expect to win. Baraboo area residents will see dramatic changes in highways over the next few years, and will have a chance to say what one highway should look like. Highway 12, the main north-south route through the west side of Baraboo, will undergo a makeover in 2018, after the massive Baraboo bypass project is completed in 2017. The Wisconsin Department of Transportation will host a public involvement meeting on Feb. 16 to discuss preliminary design concepts for what will be the old Highway 12. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. at the Sauk County West Square Building, 505 Broadway Street in Baraboo. The makeover will stretch from Terrytown Road north of the city to Highway 159 south of the city. The project includes pavement repair and resurfacing, curb ramps, curb and gutter, storm sewer inlets, deck resurfacing and railing replacement on the bridge over the Baraboo River, and the reconstruction of the somewhat confusing intersection with Highway 159. The north part of the $200 million Baraboo bypass was completed in 2011 and runs from I-90/94 south to the west edges of the city. Construction on the south section began in 2015 and runs from the completed part south to Ski Hi Road. DOT representatives will be at the Feb. 16 meeting to show maps and alternate renderings of what can be done with the 12/159 intersection. For area residents wanting more information about the project, contact DOT project manager Greg Brecka, 608-245-2671, or email Greg at gregory.brecka@dot.wi.gov. To be a princess--spoiled and adored! Few real princesses have enjoyed such a life. The real princesses have been lost in our love of fairytales. Princess Palace explores their lives and loves, adventures and tragedies. Lets celebrate and commiserate with these most (un?)fortunate of women. Cyprus PIO: Turkish Cypriot and Turkish Media Review, 16-02-03 Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at TURKISH CYPRIOT AND TURKISH MEDIA REVIEW No. 22/16 03.02.2016 [A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS [01] Colak met with the Qatari Minister of Education [02] Ozersay: People and the HP will not support a solution without guarantees [03] Ozyigit: "We are in favor of the current guarantorship system" [04] Turkish daily reveals CHP's report on its positions on the Cyprus problem; CHP estimates that the solution is not behind the door [05] The immovable property prices in the occupied area of Cyprus increase with the activity in the negotiating process [06] A delegation from the occupation regime to visit Ankara next week to finalize the deal on the water management [07] Parties and organizations expressed support to Afrika newspaper after the recent attack [08] Survey shows that Ozersay's HP is the first party in the occupied area of Cyprus and that "cautious optimism" exists on the Cyprus problem [09] The number of deaths in the occupied area of Cyprus from H1N1 virus has reached to 4; "No risk from Zika virus", said the so-called minister [10] Row between the government and HDP over stranded Cizre civilians escalated; statements by Demirtas [11] Turkish academic and a journalist face jail for 'terror propaganda' and for "insulting Erdogan" [12] Bozkir due to Paris and Brussels for official contacts [A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS [01] Colak met with the Qatari Minister of Education Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper (03.02.16) reports that Emine Colak, self-styled foreign minister of the breakaway regime in the occupied area of Cyprus who is illegally visiting Doha, the capital city of Qatar, met yesterday with the Qatari Minister of Education and Higher Education, Mohammed Abdul Wahed Ali al-Hammadi at the Qatari Ministry of Education. According to a statement issued by the "information department" of Colak's "ministry", she briefed her interlocutor on the higher education sector in the occupied area of the Republic of Cyprus and told him that they desire to develop cooperation between the "two countries" and see more students from Qatar in the occupied area of Cyprus. Colak alleged that the illegal universities in the occupied area of Cyprus offer education at international levels and are internationally accredited. Minister Al-Hammadi expressed his satisfaction with Colak's visit and said that cooperation between the universities of the "two countries" would be very useful. (I/Ts.) [02] Ozersay: People and the HP will not support a solution without guarantees Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris Postasi newspaper (03.02.16) reports that Kudret Ozersay, leader of the newly established People's Party (HP), has said that at the meetings they have with the people during their tours in various villages in the occupied area of the Republic of Cyprus they see that the guarantees is the most sensitive issue for the people. Alleging that the Turkish Cypriot side does not talk enough on the guarantees, Ozersay argued: "Insecurity increases in the people because from the very beginning a statement was made by our side saying that this is not a taboo for us and because the Greek Cypriot press continuously bombs this issue. The way of balancing this is not by saying 'do not pay attention to the Greek Cypriot press but to us'. What we see in all areas we go, in all villages is the following: People's concern on security continues. The Treaty of Guarantees is one of the issues on which people is the most sensitive. The sensitivity on this issue does not change depending on age, area, income level, party origin. People are generally sensitive. We as the People's Party are stressing on the one hand the established UN parameters and on the other the need for the solution being digested by both peoples. When you look at the history of the negotiations, you see that the guarantees have been turned into a UN parameter. Of course, the way of exactly how this will continue is an issue of the negotiations. And this will be made with the participation of the guarantors. However, the feeling I have acquired from the visits I paid to the villages is that people will not support a solution which will not have a Treaty of Guarantees. [?]" Ozersay said that perhaps not many problems were created since the partial lifting of the restriction on the freedom of movement and the opening of the crossing points in 2003, but alleged that the feeling exists in the people that the attacks against Turkish Cypriots who cross over to the government-controlled area of the Republic and causing damages to their vehicles have started in a systematic manner. He claimed that the guarantees have become a UN parameter because a Treaty of Guarantees is included in all the UN solution plans which have been submitted until today. "It is out of the question for the People's Party to support a solution which will not be satisfying the people", he argued and added that in the program of HP reference is made to the UN parameters and to a solution accepted by both "peoples". (I/Ts.) [03] Ozyigit: "We are in favor of the current guarantorship system" Under the above title, Turkish Cypriot daily Haberal Kibrisli (03.02.16) reports that Cemal Ozyigit, chairman of the Social Democracy Party (TDP), in exclusive statements to the paper, said, inter alia, that they are in favor of the continuation of the current system of guarantees in Cyprus until after the two communities overpass the confidence crisis and added that they disagree with the participation of other NATO countries in a new guarantee system under the umbrella of NATO. "We do not want America or other countries to come", said Ozyigit. Stating that TDP support the continuation of the current guarantorship system until the two sides regain their trust, Ozyigit added that the main goal should be the demilitarization of the island which would include the British bases as well. Underlining that their hopes for the solution of the Cyprus problem increase every passing day, Ozyigit said that the approaches of the Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci at the negotiating table reflect the will of the Turkish Cypriots. (?) (AK) [04] Turkish daily reveals CHP's report on its positions on the Cyprus problem; CHP estimates that the solution is not behind the door Turkish Cypriot daily Star Kibris newspaper (03.02.16) publishes an editorial under the title: "CHP's interest on the negotiation process" and writes that the delegation from CHP's foreign relations committee, which held currently in the occupied area of the Republic of Cyprus a series of contacts, prepared a report and submitted it to the Republican People's Party leader, Kemal Kilicdaroglu. The delegation met with the so-called prime minister Omer Kalyoncu, the former Turkish Cypriot leaders Mehmet Ali Talat and Dervis Eroglu and the leaders of the Turkish Cypriot political parties. The chairman of the committee, Ozturk Yilmaz, who was leading the delegation, explained that they visited Cyprus at a crucial period where the Cyprus negotiation process is in progress, in order to support, as he said, the Turkish Cypriots in their effort to find a viable solution. In the report prepared, the delegations' head Yilmaz indicated that "the solution is not behind the door". The report said also that there is a serious difference of opinion between the "government" and the opposition parties in the "TRNC", while at the same time it criticized the AKP government for not informing the opposition in Turkey for the process. In his statements Yilmaz said that "they are not in favor of a solution at any price" and referred to the criteria they put for the solution: "The solution should absolutely be based on the political equality of the two sectors. The features of the two founding states should not be eroded. In a real sense, a viable solution would be possible only with the establishment of two founding states. Turkey's and Turkish Cypriot's fundamental rights and interests should be guaranteed. And the most important is the continuation of Turkey's effective guarantees", the report said. The editorial underlines that this is the position of CHP on the solution of the Cyprus problem and adds that in fact, CHP supports the "establishment of a structure composed by two sovereign founding states". (?) (AK) [05] The immovable property prices in the occupied area of Cyprus increase with the activity in the negotiating process Turkish Cypriot daily Detay newspaper (03.02.16) reports that Hasan Sungur, chairman of the Turkish Cypriot Real Estate Agents' Union (KTEB) has said that the price value of the properties will increase in a possible solution of the Cyprus problem and argued that regardless of what the result of the negotiations will be the "TRNC", as he described the breakaway regime in the occupied area of Cyprus, must support the "title deeds" it gives. In statements to the paper, Sungur noted that because of the process for finding a solution to the Cyprus problem, a "serious increase" in the price of what he called as "property with a Turkish title deed" was observed recently. He said that the price of the plots of land in occupied Keryneia has increased to 200-250 thousand pounds sterling per donum [Translator's note: A land measure of around 1000 square meters] and added that for plots which are on the main road this price reaches millions of pounds. He argued that uncertainty exists in the community and that the "people" are not satisfactorily informed as regards the negotiations. Pointing out that they know the Greek Cypriot members of the Property Committee, he noted that they are not informed about the names of the Turkish Cypriot members. Sungur argued that even he was panicked when he heard some statements made by the chairman of the Republican Turkish Party (CTP), Mehmet Ali Talat, who had allegedly said that "if you are an investor and you possess many Greek Cypriot properties, a part of these properties will be taken away from you". Sungur noted that at a meeting they had with the Turkish Cypriot negotiator, Ozdil Nami they found out that the above statement was not reflecting the reality. Expressing appreciation about Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci's stance, he claimed that the "government" should be involved in the solution process and brief the people in order to avoid panic. Referring to the "laws" of the regime, he claimed that they do not offer motives to the foreign investors and alleged that "we are sending away the contribution which the foreign investors will bring to the country". (I/Ts.) [06] A delegation from the occupation regime to visit Ankara next week to finalize the deal on the water management Turkish Cypriot daily Havadis newspaper (03.02.16) under the title: "Deputies due to Ankara", reports that a delegation of so-called deputies, composed by self-styled minister of finance, Birikim Ozgur, so-called minister of agriculture, Erkut Sahali and so-called minister of economy Sunat Atun, are set to visit Ankara next week in order to carry out contacts with Turkish officials to speed up the process on the issue of the water management. According to the paper, the draft proposal sent last week to Ankara by so-called prime minister Omer Kalyoncu which included the "sensitivities and positions of both parties CTP and UBP towards the water management", was met positively by Ankara. Thus, the delegation will be travelling to Ankara by the beginning of next week in order to finalize the deal on the water transfer project, writes the paper. The delegation will meet with Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister, Responsible for Cyprus affairs, Tugrul Turkes and the Turkish Minister of Forestry and Water Affairs, Veysel Eroglu. Meanwhile, according to illegal Bayrak television (03.02.16), Kalyoncu confirmed to illegal Bayrak that they had received an official invitation from Ankara to meet, after the draft they sent had been reviewed. (AK) [07] Parties and organizations expressed support to Afrika newspaper after the recent attack Turkish Cypriot daily Afrika newspaper (03.02.16) reports that many reactions and support have been expressed by Turkish Cypriot political parties and organizations regarding the recent attack held the day before yesterday against the newspaper when an unknown person left a bag with a corpse of a dog which was still bleeding at Afrika's door. Statements supporting Afrika and condemning the attack were, inter alia, issued by the Journalists' Association, the Press Workers Trade Union (Basin-Sen) the Teachers' Trade Union (KTOS), the Social Democracy Party (TDP) and the United Cyprus Party (BKP). Meanwhile, writing in his column in Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper (03.02.16), columnist Serhat Incirli explains why he will vote "yes" to a possible solution to the Cyprus problem and refers to the attack against Afrika. Criticizing the system which exists in the occupied area of Cyprus and giving examples to justify his views, Incirli argues that Afrika's publisher Sener Levent and his colleagues will never find out who put that dead dog in front of their door, "just like they have not found out who had put bombs" to their newspaper in the past. He adds the following: "[?] What is the relation? It is because the aim of Levent and his colleagues or some handful of persons who think like them is to get rid of this 'false system'. The problem of the rest of us is the continuation of this 'false system'. Could I make myself clear? Have you understood better now why the Cyprus problem should be solved? Have we understood? If the Cyprus problem is solved, this 'false system', this 'fake order of things' will end. The reason of saying 'no' is only the gain from the false system. Did you say that Morfou should not be given? My souls, the property should be returned to its owner, whoever this owner is. And this must happen now, immediately. It is enough for us to be included into the 'legal system'. Let us get rid of this 'false' and 'fake' system. That is, when a referendum comes, it is definitely 'yes'". (I/Ts.) [08] Survey shows that Ozersay's HP is the first party in the occupied area of Cyprus and that "cautious optimism" exists on the Cyprus problem Turkish Cypriot daily Kibris newspaper (03.02.16) reports that the Center for Migration Identity and Rights Studies (CMIRS) has repeated a survey which it conducts every three months to measure the Turkish Cypriots' political-social security, individual self-confidence, happiness, ability to influence politics and perception for being able to influence the Cyprus problem. The telephone survey was conducted in January 2016 with the participation of 500 persons. Mine Yucel, director of the CMIRS, has said that the People's Party (HP) established by Kudret Ozersay and the intensive negotiations for finding a solution to the Cyprus problem have made the community feeling that it exerts higher influence on politics and the Cyprus problem. Having 5 as the highest score, the [average] influence which the Turkish Cypriots think that they have on certain issues is the following: environment 3.48, human rights 3.33, health 3.15, the Cyprus problem 2.70, economy 2.64 and politics 2.53. Yucel said that this development caused a "cautious optimism" on the issue of politics and the possibility of a solution to the Cyprus problem. She noted that nearly 80% of the community exhibited a wish for a solution to the Cyprus problem, but only 41% are optimistic that a solution could be reached. As regards the way they will vote in a possible referendum, Yucel said that the tendency is clear in the community as the great majority says that they will study the agreement and decide accordingly. Asked for which party they will vote in case of "elections" next Sunday, the participants in the survey replied as follows: National Unity Party (UBP) 12.63%, Republican Turkish Party (CTP) 10.49%, Democratic Party (DP) 0.86%, Social Democracy Party (TDP) 2.78%, New Cyprus Party (YKP) 0.43%, United Cyprus Party (BKP) 0.21%, People's Party (HP) 22.7%, mixed votes 7.92% and undecided 13.28%. Moreover, 28.69% of the participants said that they would not vote. (I/Ts.) [09] The number of deaths in the occupied area of Cyprus from H1N1 virus has reached to 4; "No risk from Zika virus", said the so-called minister Turkish Cypriot daily Yeni Duzen newspaper (03.02.16) under the title: "The H1N1 facts in north Cyprus: "71 incidents and 4 deaths", reports that Dr. Omer Gur, "undersecretary" of the so-called ministry of health stated that 71 cases were diagnosed in the occupied area of Cyprus with the symptoms of the H1N1 virus, also known as "swine flu" while the number of deaths has reached to 4. Gur said that 53% of the tests made until so far at the "state hospital" were positive while the 47% of the cases were diagnosed with other type of illnesses. Gur stated further that three people who were diagnosed with the H1N1 virus are at the intensive care unit. He, however, called for calm and not panic, adding that they have everything under control. Gur said that according to experts the virus will continue to exist until March. Meanwhile, Turkish Cypriot daily Haberal Kibrisli (03.02.16) reports that so-called minister of health, Salih Izbul commenting on the Zika virus infection which caused alarm in the free areas of the Republic of Cyprus, said that "north Cyprus" is not under risk from the Zika virus. He added that the "experts" were informed towards the virus, that they will take measures and alleged that they are in full cooperation with the World Health Organization. (AK) [10] Row between the government and HDP over stranded Cizre civilians escalated; statements by Demirtas According to Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (03.02.16), the ongoing dispute between the Turkish government and the Kurdish-problem-focused Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) has shown no sign of slowing down, with the former categorically dismissing the latter's charges over lack of medical services provided to 28 civilians stranded in the basement of a building in the Cizre district of southeastern S?rnak province as "speculation." Ambulances have been sent to the venue various times but came under fire in each attempt, Interior Minister Efkan Ala told reporters on Februrary 2. Meanwhile, the HDP has said that seven of the trapped civilians have already died. "They couldn't go because of shots fired and holes and barricades dug by terrorists," Ala said, referring to alleged militants of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). "A fiction has been made to bring the fight against terror to a halt while it is about reaching success," he said. Earlier that day in Parliament, HDP co-leader Selahattin Demirtas warned about probable impacts of ongoing military operations against PKK militants, which he says has been victimizing civilians, while also appealing to people to raise their voice about plight of the 28 civilians. "If we have been lying about the basement floor in Cizre, then proving this lie would take only a minute. Why are you preventing access to the building?" Demirtas asked at a parliamentary group meeting of his party. "I want to call on my Turkish siblings. What is going on at the moment is not for the good of Turkish people. Each human losing his life is ours. They are able to do this because you remain silent. There is no Turkish-Kurdish conflict. There is a war declared by the AKP [the ruling Justice and Development Party] against Kurds here and in Rojava," Demirtas said. "Each house that the AKP state has destroyed in Sur and each apartment that it has bombed in Cizre is leading to emotional breakdowns in Izmir and Istanbul too", Demirtas added. [11] Turkish academic and a journalist face jail for 'terror propaganda' and for "insulting Erdogan" Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (02.02.16) reported that an academic at Ankara University's Faculty of Political Science, faces seven years in jail for "terror propaganda" over an exam question asking students to compare two writings by Abdullah Ocalan, the jailed leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). In the final exam of his course titled: "Political life and institutions in Turkey," Assistant Professor Doctor Resat Bar?s Unlu asked students to compare a 1978 leaflet by Ocalan with a more recent piece from 2012 in terms of its implications for Turkey's Kurdish question. "Compare Abdullah Ocalan's 1978 leaflet 'The Manifesto of the Path of the Kurdistan Revolution' with his 2012 piece entitled 'Democratic Modernity as the Construction of Local System in the Middle East' with regard to their stances on concepts and phenomena such as colonialism, the nation-state, revolutionary violence and democracy," Unlu asked in the question. He asked his students to consider this comparison in terms of global and local changes since 1978, as well as transformations undergone by the Kurdish movement and in Kurdish society. However, the indictment against Unlu claims his question was an attempt to "legitimize" Ocalan's ideas and amounted to "terror propaganda." Posing a question about Ocalan aimed at "legitimizing his opinions and imprinting on minds that he is a political leader," the indictment said, adding that this was both "terror propaganda and a compliment to the head of the illegal organization who is serving a life sentence." The dean's office at Ankara University's prestigious Political Science Faculty has sent its academic judgment to the court, stressing the importance of academic autonomy and freedom of expression. The office reportedly reminded the court that academics focusing on the issue had used Ocalan's writings numerous times. The prosecutor in the case is demanding seven years in jail for Unlu, whose trial will be held at Ankara's Second Criminal Court for Serious Crimes on February 3. Meanwhile, Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (03.02.16) reports that an Istanbul prosecutor has demanded that daily Cumhuriyet's columnist Ozgur Mumcu to be sentenced to four years and eight months in jail for "insulting" Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Mumcu is being tried over an op-ed published on May 18, 2015 titled: "Tyrant and a coward," in which he blasted Erdogan's criticism of Hatice Comert, the mother of Gezi protest victim Abdullah Comert. "It is well-known that tyrants are always fearful. They are so fearful that they would even file a complaint against someone like Abdullah Comert's mother," the piece read. During the first hearing of the case on February 2 at Istanbul's Caglayan Courthouse, Mumcu denied that the article included any kind of insult. "The piece is a critical text referring to [President Erdogan] complaint against the mother of Abdullah Comert after her statements following his death. This article was written following Erdogan's complaint, which had been widely reported in the media," Mumcu said at the trial. "As a columnist, I used my right to criticize. I'm a lawyer and professor myself. The testimonies and annexes that we have presented to court include samples of European Court of Human Rights [ECHR] rulings and also domestic laws. Therefore, I do not accept the accusations," he added. Hatice Ozay, the lawyer of Erdogan, defended the President's case, saying Mumcu described him in the column as "a tyrant who oppresses his people, treating them without mercy." [12] Bozkir due to Paris and Brussels for official contacts Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (02.02.16) reported that Turkey's EU Minister and Chief Negotiator Volkan Bozk?r, flew to France on February 2 to hold official meetings in Paris and Brussels between February 3-5. A statement by the EU Ministry said that Bozkir is scheduled to meet with French Secretary of State for European Affairs Harlem Desir at a working lunch on February 3. Bozkir will also meet members and chiefs of France's Foreign Affairs Ministry and the EU Commission. He will also give deliver a speech and address French Deputies. Following his day-time meeting on Feb. 3, Bozk?r will join French businessmen at a dinner hosted by Turkey's Ambassador to France, Hakk? Akil, while Desir is also expected to be in attendance. After his visit to Paris, Bozk?r is scheduled to visit Brussels to meet with the European Commissioner for Euro and Social Dialogue Valdis Dombrovskis and the European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development Neven Mimica. Bozk?r will also meet with Turkish citizens living in Belgium at a meeting organized by the Belgian branch of the Union of European Turkish Democrats (UETD). Bozk?r's official meetings in Paris and Brussels come at a time when the EU is reading to give Turkey 3 billion euro in order to reduce the influx of refugees to Europe and help Turkey to better cope with the 2.5 million Syrian migrants in its country. TURKISH AFFAIRS SECTION http://www.moi.gov.cy/pio (AK/ AM) Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-02-04 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at CONTENTS [01] Farmers to close Tempi Valley for 12 hours on Wed. [02] Large number of refugees wait at Greece-Fyrom crossing point [01] Farmers to close Tempi Valley for 12 hours on Wed. Protesting farmers will close the Athens-Thessaloniki motorway at Tempi Valley in northern Greece from 10.00 (local) until 22.00 on Thursday, as they escalate their protests against the government's proposed pension and social security reforms. On Thursday, when a general strike has been called by Greece's two biggest unions, ADEDY and GSEE, farmers will probably remain open to allow citizens who want to participate in the strikes to travel. [02] Large number of refugees wait at Greece-Fyrom crossing point A large number of refugees have gathered at Idomeni on Thursday waiting to cross to Fyrom. According to the police, there are around 2,500 refugees at the camp while 4,500 have already disembarked from the 90 buses that have stopped at a gas station at Polykastro. The congestion is the result of Fyrom authorities delay to accelerate the procedure as well as to the Seamen Federation strike that did not allow the transport of refugees from the Aegean islands to Pireaus. A total of 1,600 refugess have crossed the buffer zone over the last 24 hours. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article The movie Thank You, Dad by Hrach Keshishyan tells a story of an American-Armenian girl, named Virgy. Although, she had hardly ever see... Secretary of State Jesse White said Dunkin - who received a $500,000 donation from Illinois Opportunity Project earlier this week - said Dunkin didn't represent his constituents. Dunkin's absence during a vote last spring successfully blocked House Speaker Mike Madigan 's attempt to override Governor Rauner's veto, setting Dunkin up to be alienated by Madigan and his Democratic colleagues. CHICAGO - Illinois Democrat leaders condemned incumbent State Rep. Ken Dunkin (D-Chicago) Thursday and endorsed instead his challenger Juliana Stratton . In an unusual political strategy, Capitol sources say the Republican governor's operatives are encouraging pro-Turnaround Agenda groups to write checks supporting Democrat Dunkin's re-election. Along with Secretary White, Chicago Teacher Union president Karen Lewis and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle endorsed Dunkin's challenger in the March 15th Democrat primary. Although the installation of Smart Meters by ComEd has already been completed in some areas of Illinois - despite protests from concerned citizens - a recent news account alerted Lake County residents that they have been targeted next for Smart Meter installation. ComEd is investing $1 billion across its system to replace traditional analog meters with digital meters, which are said to be able to help lower bills and provide other benefits. The change is publicized as part of an ongoing $2.6 billion system upgrade to improve reliability. To date, ComEd has installed nearly 1.9 million Smart Meters and plans to have installed about four million Smart Meters on all homes and business in its territory by the end of 2018. An article published in the Daily Herald on January 29, 2016, stated how Libertyville, IL, is in the next round of communities in Lake County to have standard analog meters replaced by "smart" devices. Quoted in the article was David Doherty, director of the Smart Meter transformation for ComEd, who explained how "Smart Meters collect energy usage information that can be read remotely, allowing the company to determine and react to power outages more quickly. The meters also will send a signal when a customer loses power." According to company literature that is distributed by ComEd to community leaders in advance of Smart Meter installation: "Smart Meters will provide consumers benefits from the new technology, allowing consumers to access their power usage online so habits can be altered, as needed, to better manage their energy consumption. Smart Meters will likewise provide access to optional pricing programs, such as switching use to times when it costs less to produce." Spin vs Truth The above benefits most likely sound entirely logical to Illinoisans, especially when coupled with this canned statement frequently made by Smart Meter installers when questioned by home owners about the need for a Smart Meter: Smart Meters will eliminate the need for meter readers. But Beware, Illinoisans! What you are receiving from ComEd is spin instead of facts. It was in July of last year when I took the CUBFacts Smart Meter information (Citizen Utility Board) propaganda sheet with its ComEd supplied facts to the woodshed for its inaccurate information. In my article, "Beware of Propaganda to Quell Inconvenient Truths About Smart Meters", the CUBFacts Smart Meter Information sheet was evaluated for misleading statements and edited accordingly. What is in bold was taken directly from CUBFacts, followed each time by my explanation of what really is true! It is important to your family's health security and privacy to say NO to a Smart Meter installation when you are accordingly notified. Take the op-out delay that is being offered. Realize that the opt-out choice is not a permanent one and that Smart Meter installation is just being delayed until 2018 with no opportunity to oppose installation after that. Other states offer a permanent opt-out to their utility customers. ComEd customers in Illinois do not have that option. ComEd Lobbyist Contrived No-opt out Law As to the history of the law that makes Wireless Smart Meters mandatory in Illinois: ComEd lobbyists wrote the law; it was passed by the General Assembly against vehement and persistent opposition from the Attorney General, AARP, and informed citizens aware of the risks. ComEd spent 16 million dollars convincing the General Assembly to over-ride Governor Quinns Veto. When elected, Governor Rauner then signed another bill favoring ComEd over the rights of citizens to have a choice. It is tragic for consumers that Chicagos powerful and politically-connected ComEd was able to convince the General Assembly to pass a law that could potentially threaten homes, harm lives, adversely impact nature, invade privacy, and, in a broader scope, undermine the states security by making the electric grid more vulnerable to cyber-attack. Doesnt every ComEd customer deserve the right to have a choice to opt-out permanently in the face of the real and present dangers that having a Smart Meter on the side of their house or business could engender? It is unjust and un-American to force Wireless Smart Meters on every home without alerting residents to the many risks and offering them a choice. Reasons to Reject Smart Meters 1. Health and Environment Smart Meters are installed in a Mesh Network which relays data from one house to another and eventually on to a collector unit, which is an additional wireless network that sends the data back to the utility. ComEd says that Radio Frequency (RF) emissions only take place 4 times a day every 6 hours. That may be true for one households data measurements. However, Smart Meters also send and receive network management messages every few seconds around the clock. In a California Court the utility admitted that a Smart Meter emits from10 to 190,000 bursts a day. Each burst is sending RF/microwave radiation into the home and throughout the neighborhood. The power level of each burst is about 1,000 milliwatts, making Smart Meters one of the most powerful RF radiators in a community. What this means to ComEd Customers?: that a Class 2B Carcinogen (the category for wireless RF emissions, by the International Agency for Research on Cancer IARC of the World Health Organization) is being mandated on ALL homes in the ComEd service territory. Even worse, there is NO PERMANENT OPT-OUT OPTION AVAILABLE. People who have already had their Smart Meter installed are complaining of headaches, ringing in the ears, rashes, nausea, insomnia, chest pressure, heart palpitations, nose bleeds, and weakness, etc. There is a potential threat to those with medical implants and weakened immune systems. The well-being of pets is also of concern. Studies that have been done on wildlife, trees, plants, and bees show that they will also suffer from the RF/microwave emissions blanketing the state. Breaking news on January, 29, 2016: the Pennsylvania Utility Commission is allowing a hearing to go forward of a nurse who says Smart Meter made her sick. What makes this so interesting is that PECO is an Exelon Company, like ComEd. 2. Privacy Invasion -- Without your consent, the computer inside the Smart Meter collects private energy behavior patterns that will be available to government agencies and could be at some point be for sale to marketers. A hacker or thief could use this data to know whether or not the home is occupied and if high-end electronics are in the home. 3. Hacking and Cyber-Security - Vulnerabilities in wireless data transmission can pose national security risks to the electric grid. A former CIA Director calls the Smart Grid really, really STUPID. ComEd will be installing 4,000,000 access points to the Internet; every private home and business in their service territory. 4. Higher Bills - Smart Meters monitor usage 24/7 as a means of instituting Time-of-Use pricing. Due to escalating charges for peak time usage, bills can double, or worse. Time-of-Use pricing boosts ComEd profits while penalizing those who need lower electric rates the moststay-at-home moms, the elderly, the unemployed, and those with disabilities. Anyone who is unable to change their behavior, such as washing dishes and doing laundry at off-peak hours, will not benefit from having a Smart Meter. 5. Appliances: RF Radiation and Privacy Invasion - New appliances come with mandated wireless RF transmitters that emit RF signals to the wireless Smart Meter around-the-clock. Manufacturers can also keep track of information about their appliances for future marketing through the wireless transmissions. Because the Smart Appliance Services are provided through wireless networks and the Internet, communications could be intercepted by others. 6. Lack of Control - The utility owns and maintains 100% control over computer hardware and software upgrades inside Smart Meters. With Demand Response, a utility company can selectively turn on/off appliances or an entire household. 7. Loss of Property and Safety - There has been hundreds of reports of electrical fires caused by arching and sparking within the Smart Meter. Homes with older wiring may be more susceptible to the risk of fire. Corix, the company ComEd is using for installation gives their employees, who have no prior electrical experience, two weeks of classroom instruction and one week of field work. In California, more than a 100 GE Smart Meters (manufacturer ComEd selected) have exploded right on homes due to a power surge. And, Smart Meters have been known to fry electronics. Should you still have doubts about the dangers posed by Smart Meters, this website deserves careful study. Under the name of SkyVision Solutions, this site (www.smartgridawareness.org) is dedicated to raising public awareness about the costs and risks associated with smart grid systems as well as the potential hazards related to Radio Frequency Radiation emissions from Smart Meters. Here is the link to my https://youtu.be/aoodNMI3nzc appearance on a local Comcast TV cable show talking about the dangers posed by Smart Meters, with a warning about cell phones. Both wireless devices produce electromagnetic radiation. There is mounting evidence that that RF-EMF radiation is carcinogenic. The fact that exposure to our population is increasing at an exponential rate, the potential consequences are catastrophic. Action Required 1) Call the ComEd Smart Meter installation line (866) 368-8326 and request a DELAY if a Smart Meter has not already been installed. If one has been installed, call and have it be replaced with a non-transmitting meter. 2) Contact Governor Bruce Rauner and your elected Illinois General Assembly legislators. Insist the Utility Modernization law be amended and the ICC ruling requiring mandatory compliance be changed. Demand a PERMANENT TRUE OPT-OUT, NOT JUST A DELAY! ALL WIRELESS DEVICES, INCLUDING CELL PHONES, ARE VOLUNTARY AND CAN BE TURNED OFF WHEN NOT IN USE. SMART METERS ARE MANDATORY AND ARE ON 24/7, FOREVER. Today Illinois is known as a very business-unfriendly state, and as a result, businesses are leaving Illinois and taking their jobs with them, said Tryon. With the loss of almost 20,000 manufacturing jobs over the last 18 months alone, I will continue to vote at every opportunity to strengthen Illinois job creation efforts. CRYSTAL LAKE - State Representative Mike Tryon (R-Crystal Lake) was recognized this week by the Illinois Technology & Manufacturing Association (TMA) for pro-manufacturing and pro-business votes he took in the House of Representatives in 2015, and he's proud of it. Scoring nearly perfect on TMA's rating system, Tryon was among the most dependable votes for bettering Illinois' environment for manufacturing and business industries. Overall, TMA found only 42% of the State Representatives and 39% of the Senators tallied a score of 75% or higher. Representative Mike Tryon is one of those rare legislators who truly realizes the importance of employment opportunity, said TMA President Steven Rauschenberger. Representative Tryons voting record proves that he supports middle class opportunities for families in Illinois. He will be missed when he retires later this year. Tryon said that during his 11 and a half years in the House of Representatives, supporting economic development and job growth has always been an important element of his legislative agenda. TMA's scorecard can be viewed on Illinois Review HERE. An enthusiastic crowd watched a big screen television and cheered each time Cruz was shown in the lead, which was most of the evening. The party was attended by Cook County Review Commissioner Dan Patlak, Jill Dolan from the Republican Women of Park Ridge, Blair Garber from the IL GOP State Central Committee, and Bradley Wulfsohn from the North Shore Tea Party. There was also a large contingent from Walsh Freedom, a grass roots group associated with radio host Joe Walsh. Many people stopped in throughout the evening. The Chicago area participated in the Iowa Caucus last Monday night by having a Ted Cruz Watch Party. It was held at the Diplomat West Banquet Hall in Elmhurst, Illinois. The event was hosted by Steve Orlando, Steve Balich, and Yvonne Bolton - all delegates for Cruz on the March 15th GOP primary ballot in their respective congressional districts. Chicago radio host Dan Proft was one of several speakers. Nick Kammer from the Cruz campaign talked about the Illinois effort. Chicago GOP chairman Chris Cleveland also spoke. Cleveland is on the Ted Cruz for Illinois campaign committee and attended Princeton with Senator Cruz. He remarked, "Ted Cruz would be a great guy to have a beer with, in fact I did on several occasions in college." He also went on to explain that what you see from Cruz on the campaign train is what he feels and believes. The Illinois primary is Tuesday March 15, 2016. Ted Cruz is expected to do well here. I'm predicting him to win Illinois and the Republican presidential nomination. I guess its time to kill the suspense.Actually this trip was planned and booked first then the Nepal trip was added to it, one of the reasons being this is a special place which I have been longing to visit, and the purpose of the trip coincided with a special event I wanted to witness. Secondly, there are not many flights there and Kathmandu is one of them with the cheapest flights.Obvious enough?Yea it is Bhutan! I'm sure some might think how exotic this is and some might have no clue where this place is, most people would have heard about this place to be the 'Happiest place on earth'. Bhutan is nested between South of China (Tibet) and the North-east of India, with close proximity to Nepal and Bangladesh. This country seems to be pretty mysterious and it is not easy getting in because except for a few countries, most nationalities would require a visa and guided tour to visit Bhutan. Druk Air , the national carrier of Bhutan.I could remember then Druk Air was the only airline to fly into Bhutan, which was more of a monopoly player and airfare seemed to be more expensive then, but now with Bhutan Airlines to join in the competition, fares seem to be more reasonable now.Druk Air has flights from Singapore Changi Airport which can be ridiculously expensive (which I prefer to use the amount to fly to Europe), so if you don't mind transiting then Kathmandu is a very good option because there can be cheap flights to Kathmandu as well, or another alternative is Bangkok. Most flights depart from India which can be quite tricky especially those who need an Indian visa because you need to clear the immigration and check-in at the counters.Boarding the plane. Wow they do have pretty stewardess.And okay I'm not going to be biased, there's also something for the female readers out there.Not too bad steward also right?First impression: they kinda look like Koreans with darker complexion.I was quite surprised the flight was full, with mostly Caucasians on the plane. The plane took off on time and I was already counting down for the plane to land.Last look of Kathmandu.Kathmandu and Paro is actually not very far.The distance is about 400 kilometers and the approximate flight time is about an hour. Since the flight was so short, I was not expecting them to serve some proper Bhutanese cuisine for me to experience before landing.I still got some snacks.Had a small portion of egg sandwich, a small pie, packet of roasted nuts and a glass of apple juice. Didn't take long to finish and the serving was just right since I had so much for breakfast. The moment the cabin crew came to collect the garbage, the pilot was already making announcement to prepare the plane for landing.Could see the Paro valley, and right in the centre, a dzong.One of the highlights before landing is that one should always be prepared for it. It is essential to know that Paro Airport has been known to be one of the most difficult airport to land with one of the scariest runways in the world. I shan't elaborate more as there are many articles about it, you can read it here with videos as well. One can see how close the plane is to the houses and how sharp the manoeuvres are. In the later entries I will show a place which is the best spot to view planes landing should you be there at the right time.Finally landed in Paro Airport! No aerobridges or shuttle buses. Walk!The moment I got out from the plane and I took a deep breath in and I could immediately feel how fresh the air was. I walked quickly into the main terminal hoping I could clear immigration quickly and can't wait to start the trip!Clearing immigration.It is very important here to have all the documents ready. Upon confirmation of the trip, the travel agency should process your visa before you arrive and send you the documents prior to travel. All the documents needs to be printed out if not you might not be able to get through immigration. They would even want to know the details of the number of days visiting and the entire itinerary with the hotels that you will be staying.Luckily getting this special stamp on the passport was a breeze for me.And oh I didn't forget, before leaving the airport:I still needed to collect my luggage.One thing I observed: There are almost pictures of the king and queen everywhere. I believe the people respect the country and the kingdom and love the Royal Family.So I finally got my luggage and headed out to the arrivals and I saw the locals waiting for people to arrive.Local men in their traditional and national dress, gho.Actually these people are the tour guides waiting for their customers. I could see one holding my name on a piece of paper and I walked towards him. We shook hands and he gave me another khata, he introduced me to the driver and carried my luggage up to the car and off we departed from the airport.The airport entrance.And right past the airport entrance, I finally saw the welcoming sign:Land of Thunder Dragon. Sounds so powerful.There is a long story how the name came about, but I am good at summarizing so the dragon is the national symbol of Bhutan so they call their country Druk Yul which means 'Land of dragons', and the Bhutanese leaders are called Druk Gyalpo, which means 'Thunder Dragon Kings'. Combining them together gets the name of the Land of the Thunder Dragon.Passing another archway with a portrait of the king and queen.Hmm you must be wondering why is is taking so long to reach since we are already in Paro? The itinerary for this trip starts in the capital of Bhutan Thimphu and it is about an hour's journey from Paro. Though it might be a ride, but I thoroughly enjoyed it with the scenery. I asked for the windows to be wound down so I could breathe the fresh air.So calm and peaceful with scenery of the mountains, rivers and the fields...The locals selling their produce in the streets.And time passed by so quickly and before I knew it, I already reached the destination:The archway told me so.Finally got to see how the capital city looks like. As I have expected, the houses are not very high as the government has height restrictions to buildings in the country. Houses there look pretty nice and only locals can buy property in Bhutan.Residential area in Thimphu.OK I can't wait to find out what's in store so we will wait for the next entry to start Bhutan proper! Peter Yang Justin Bieber's comeback shows no signs of stopping. He's now only the 12th artist ever to replace himself at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Justin's hit, "Love Yourself," co-written by Ed Sheeran, has replaced his previous chart-topper "Sorry" at #1. The last person to do that was fellow Canadian The Weeknd, whose "The Hills" replaced "Can't Feel My Face" about four months ago. The other artists who've accomplished this: Taylor Swift, The Beatles, Boyz II Men, Puff Daddy, Ja Rule, Nelly, Outkast, Usher, T.I. and The Black Eyed Peas. "Love Yourself" is the third #1 from Justin's album Purpose, following "Sorry" and "What Do You Mean." He's the first artist to have three #1s from an album since Taylor Swift did it with her disc 1989. But he's the first male artist to do it since Justin Timberlake racked up "SexyBack," "My Love" and "What Goes Around...Comes Around" ten years ago. "Love Yourself" marks Ed Sheeran's first trip to #1 on the Hot 100 in any way -- artist, writer or producer. The closest he ever got was #2, with "Thinking Out Loud." Copyright 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. WHO has predicted that around four million people may be infected with the Zika virus in America. First infected case of Zika virus recorded in the US: Important facts By India Today Web Desk: With summer approaching, the threat of a Zika epidemic looms across the world. As per the reports, Zika may also lead to: Microcephaly: a birth defect leading to a small head and underdeveloped brain. Guillain-Barre: a condition in which progressive paralysis sets in. The Zika virus was first identified in Uganda in 1947. Around 3,893 microcephaly cases were suspected in Brazil in 2015. advertisement Officials confirm 1st case of Zika virus in a South Korean man who travelled to Brazil (last updated on March 22, 2016) The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention said that the 43-year-old man travelled to Brazil between mid-February and early March. The World Health Organization considers the virus a global emergency. Also, isolated Zika infections have been reported in a handful of Asian countries. Google announces a 1 million dollar grant to UNICEF and other resources to help fight the Zika virus A volunteer team of Google engineers, designers, and data scientists is helping UNICEF build a platform to process data from different sources (i.e. weather and travel patterns) in order to visualise potential outbreaks. "Our 1 million dollar grant will be used by UNICEF to raise widespread awareness, reduce mosquito populations, support the development of diagnostics and vaccines and work with communities and governments to prevent Zika transmission," announced Google on its official blog. 14 new cases of Zika Virus may be sexually transmitted: CDC The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and state health departments are investigating cases, in which someone caught the virus without travelling to the affected zones, as per the news reports. Two more cases of Zika Virus likely transmitted via sexual intercourse As per WHO, sexual transmission of Zika virus has been described in 2 cases and the presence of the Zika virus in semen in another additional case. Health officials, on February 23, announced that they are investigating 14 new US cases of possible sexual transmission of the Zika virus. The virus was confirmed to be in blood samples from two women, according to doctors from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As per the reports, the women had not recently travelled to places where the virus is widely circulating, but they'd had sex with male partners who had recently returned from such travel and had Zika symptoms. All about Zika in 90 seconds. Are you at risk? Find out at http://www.newsflicks.com/story/zika-the-new-stingPosted by Newsflicks on Monday, 15 February 2016 WHO predicted that around four million people may be infected with Zika virus in America: The World Health Organisation (WHO) has issued the Pre-qualification of Medicines Programme (PQP) certification to Chennai-based Green Signal Bio Pharma. The pharmaceutical company got the certification to manufacture a Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) vaccine, with which, it became the only Indian company to get PQP certification from WHO. The World Health Organisation (WHO) recently declared an international public health emergency over the explosive spread of the Zika virus. This is the fourth time that the organisation has made such a declaration, the previous one being for Ebola. How to identify Zika virus attack: India is vulnerable to Zika virus outbreak as the species of mosquito, Aedes aegypti, which carries the virus, is found across the country. It's the same mosquito that carries the viruses of Dengue and Chikungunya. advertisement Hyderabad based lab claims breakthrough achievement in developing world's first Zika vaccine Bharat Biotech, a Hyderabad-based vaccines and bio-therapeutic manufacturer, on February 3, claimed to have achieved a breakthrough in developing a vaccine to fight the dreaded mosquito-borne Zika virus. The two candidate vaccines are in an advanced stage of development and could be ready soon after pre-clinical studies are concluded in the next five months. "We have two candidate vaccines in development. One of them is an inactivated vaccine that has reached the stage of pre-clinical testing in animals," Krishna Ella, CMD, Bharat Biotech said. advertisement The inactivated vaccine, which consists of the disease-causing microbe which is killed with chemicals, radiation or heat, is a more stable and safer vaccine compared to the vaccines using live microbes. The other vaccine, known as Recombinant DNA vaccine, is based on the technology of using an attenuated virus or bacterium to introduce microbial DNA to the cells of the body. As per a WHO report, Zika is now present in 23 countries and Brazil, the hardest-hit country, has reported around 3,530 cases of the devastating birth defect, called microcephaly in 2015, that are strongly suspected to be related to Zika. WHO declares Zika virus outbreak as International Emergency After an emergency meeting by the World Health Organisation (WHO), headed by its Director-General Margaret Chan in Geneva, Switzerland, the organisation has declared an international public health emergency over the explosive spread of the mosquito-borne Zika virus. Considering the underscoring seriousness of the outbreak, WHO has predicted that around four million people may be infected with Zika virus in the Americas (South and North America). The organisation has declared an international public health emergency for the fourth time. A once rare mosquito-borne virus called Zika was recently found to be spreading rapidly through the American continent. advertisement First case: The first case of the Zika virus was reportedly confirmed in Texas, USA in January 2016 in a traveller returning from Latin America. The health officials in the US have been alarmed about a possible link between the virus and a birth defect called microcephaly that causes babies to be born with abnormally small heads and potential developmental problems. Here are some important facts about the Zika virus and the fever: A member of the genus Flavivirus, Zika virus is responsible for causing Zika fever. The virus is transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes The illness is like a mild form of dengue fever and usually lasts from four to seven days. The sickness is treated only with bed-rest and cannot be prevented by drugs or vaccines In 2014, the virus spread eastward across the Pacific to French Polynesia, then to Easter Island and in 2015, to South America, Central America and the Caribbean. It is now considered a pandemic On January 15, 2016, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a travel alert advising pregnant women to consider postponing travel to the following countries and territories: Brazil, Colombia, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Suriname, Venezuela and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, because of the 'growing evidence of a link between Zika and microcephaly'. Sensing the emergency, the Government of India has issued detailed guidelines on how to tackle the outbreak of Zika virus. The guidelines were authorised by the Union Health Ministry. Although no cases of Zika attack has been reported from India, the guidelines have been issued as a precautionary measure. The guidelines are as follows: 1. All citizens, especially pregnant women, must refrain from travelling to the affected countries. 2. All international airports and ports will display signage showing information on the disease. Quarantine facilities will also be set up at all major entry points to the country. 3. All travellers must report to the customs for medical check up if they are returning from the affected countries and suffering from illness. 4. All travellers who are already in the affected countries should strictly follow protective measures, especially during the day to prevent mosquito bite. 5. Rapid Response Teams (RRT), comprising a microbiologist, an epidemiologist and a medical specialist, have been set up at central and state surveillance units. 6. The government-run Integrated Disease Surveillance Programme (IDSP) will track reports of acute febrile illness through its community and hospital-based data collection system. It will investigate such cases occurring to people who have recently been to the affected countries. 7. Delhi-based National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has been identified to be the nodal agency for investigation of Zika virus outbreak in the country. WATCH: Zika virus: What you need to know Interested in General Knowledge and Current Affairs? Click here to stay informed and know what is happening around the world with our G.K. and Current Affairs section. --- ENDS --- Heavy snow cutters and major equipment has been put into use to clear and cut the ice blocks in the rescue operations to trace the missing personnel who are feared buried under the avalanche, the Army said today. By India Today Web Desk: Heavy snow cutters and major equipment has been put into use to clear and cut the ice blocks in the rescue operations to trace the missing personnel who are feared buried under the avalanche, the Army said today. According to a Army official, "Clearing snow a difficult task. Building on yesterday's efforts, large rescue team deployed today." Ten soldiers, including a junior commissioned officer (JCO), went missing after an avalanche hit their patrol at 19,000 feet above the sea level in southern side of the Siachen Glacier early Wednesday. advertisement "A massive rescue operation has been started by the army and the Air Force to trace the missing personnel who are feared buried under the avalanche," the official added. Siachin Glacier is the world's highest battlefield which the brave hearts of the Indian Army guard despite extremely hostile climate. The winter temperatures often drops to minus 50 degrees Celsius in the region. --- ENDS --- 2008 Mumbai attack mastermind praised the Pathankot air base attack last month. Banned Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) group chief, Hafiz Saeed, warned of further escalation following the air base assault in Pathankot that left seven soldiers dead. By India Today Web Desk: 2008 Mumbai attack mastermind has praised the last month's Pathankot air base attack. Banned Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) group chief, Hafiz Saeed, warned of further escalation following the air base assault in Pathankot that left seven soldiers dead. "You have only seen one attack on Pathankot. Matters could easily escalate," he said. Addressing a rally in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir region, Saeed said, "800,000 Indian troops are committing genocide on Kashmiris. Don't they have a right to carry out Pathankot style attacks for their defence?" advertisement Raking up the Kashmir issue, Saeed said, "Give Kashmir its rights and god willing then every issues will be resolved. Our only aim is freedom for Kashmir." He also advised Prime Minister Narendra Modi to realise what the Kashmiris want. He said, "Modi should also realise what Kashmiris want. Why is he suppressing them by the force of his Army. It is quite natural that when something is suppressed, then repercussions are felt from various directions. They manifest sometimes from here (Pakistan) and sometimes from there (India). India has already handed over the evidence to Saeed's involvement in the terror attack to Pakistan. Despite that Saeed continues to roam free in Pakistan. --- ENDS --- The Maharashtra governor today gave sanction to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to prosecute former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh scam case. By India Today Web Desk: The Maharashtra governor today gave sanction to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to prosecute former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh scam case. Soon after the decision, speaking exclusively to India Today, former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan said that this is clear vindictive politics by BJP government. Questioning the governor's decision, the former Maharashtra chief minister said, "The issue is still pending in Supreme Court, how can they can do this?" advertisement Maharashtra governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao gave his sanction to the CBI to prosecute Chavan under section 197 of CrPC, for offences under Section 120-B and 420 of IPC in the Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society case. The CBI had requested Maharashtra governor to give permission to prosecute Chavan in the scam that resulted in the Congress leader's resignation as chief Minister in 2010. The governor had alo sought the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers and it was on their advice that the decision was taken. Chavan was among the 13 people chargesheeted by the CBI in the Adarsh scam in July 2012. What holds next for Ashok Chavan Ashok Chavan has already appealed in the Supreme Court against the high court order refusing to discharge him from Adarsh case. It is likely that he will appeal in the Supreme Court and may challenge the procedure of governor approving to prosecute him. The trial in the CBI court can only begin after Ashok Chavan's petition in the Supreme Court is over. No chances of his arrest as CBI has already done the investigation and has filed chargesheet against him and 12 more accused. All other accused in the case are on bail at this point. --- ENDS --- Rekindling the intolerance debate, veteran Hindi poet Ashok Vajpeyi said that people must decide what kind of India they want. Rekindling the intolerance debate, veteran Hindi poet Ashok Vajpeyi said that people must decide what kind of India they want. Vajpeyi said, "It is a huge crisis. There can't be a democracy where dissent and debate is undermined. Where minority of opinion is attacked and is termed as anti-national. Today if I say anything against the government then I become anti-national. As if the government and the nation are one. People must decide what kind of India they want. The word intolerance is wrong, rather word the accommodate is better. On social media our characters were assassinated. This is part of the exercise of intolerance. They kept thinking we were addressing the government which was not. We were addressing the people." advertisement He said, "Injustice is invisible, inequality is invisible because smart cities are visible." Vajpeyi added, "In some ways we have always been intolerant. Like the caste system. But now these voices are being heard. The voices of the marginalised are being heard. This unnerves those who are in power." On Dalit student Rohith Vemula suicide at Hyderabad University Vemula's suicide happened in a places where knowledge must be free, where there is discrimination, and now important ministers are coming out to say he was not a Dalit, as if it is right to kill him if he is a Dalit. --- ENDS --- China's airline pilots have been warned to steer clear of prostitutes, gambling and drink ahead of this year's Lunar New Year holiday. Pilots have been warned to steer clear of prostitutes, gambling and drink By Reuters: China's airline pilots have been warned to steer clear of prostitutes, gambling and drink ahead of this year's Lunar New Year holiday, part of a campaign to strengthen the country's air safety record. China has experienced few crashes since the early 2000s, the result of stricter safety rules, better training and a relatively young fleet of mainly Western-made aircraft. advertisement Praising Chinese pilots for flying 8.46 million hours last year, the China Airline Pilots' Association noted in an open letter that "very few" pilots were selfish or hedonistic. The association did say, however, that some pilots were involved with prostitutes, gambling, drunk-driving and smuggling. Such behaviour "severely challenges legal and moral bottom lines", it said without naming any pilots. The open letter was published on an Chinese aviation website late on Wednesday. The publication comes just ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday when millions travel to their home provinces or overseas and is intended to make sure that pilots maintain their adherence to safety, industry observers said. "Safety is everything in China," said Joe Tymczyszyn, former executive director for the U.S.-China Aviation Cooperation Program. "If there is any small deviation in safety, there is strict, strong punishment." Officials at the pilots' association could not immediately be reached for comment. --- ENDS --- Popular Kannada film comedian, Bullet Prakash has sought police protection on the grounds that he received multiple death threats from superstar Darshan's family. By Mail Today: Popular Kannada film comedian Bullet Prakash has sought police protection on the grounds that he received multiple death threats from superstar Darshan's family. In his complaint to the police, Prakash accused Darshan's brother Dinakar Toogudeepa for giving him death threats in front of his daughter. "My daughter is witness to this death threat. He (Dinakar) can stoop to any level. I need police security, as I am being hounded by his (Darshan) followers to withdraw the complaint against the star's family," said Prakash. advertisement Bullet Prakash and Darshan are close friends and have acted in several hit movies together. Recently, when Bullet Prakash announced his plans to produce a movie with Darshan in the lead role it did not go down well with Dinakar, who asked Prakash to refrain from making any statement. "However, when his statements converted into threats, I couldn't withstand them. Hence I approached the police," Prakash added. In 2011, Darshan was in jail for allegedly assaulting his wife and causing her harm. The couple patched up later. --- ENDS --- The police have booked cases against 23 more people in connection with the communal clash in Surathkal in the sensitive Dakshina Kannada district. By Aravind Gowda: The police have booked cases against 23 more people in connection with the communal clash in Surathkal in the sensitive Dakshina Kannada district of Karnataka. The police have already arrested 5 people in connection with the clash that took place on Monday night. Though the exact reason for the communal clash is not known, the police blame a chain of incidents, including, a dispute over a selection of site to build a mosque. Subsequently, an elderly couple on their way home was brutally attacked by mob belonging to a different community. advertisement The police claimed to have restored normalcy in the region, which is prone to communal clashes. However, now with cases booked against 23 more people, a section of the local residents staged demonstration in front of the police station alleging that the cops were targeting innocent people. --- ENDS --- Even as the protesting MCD staff refused to call of their strike after the mayors of the north and east Delhi municipal corporations agreed to accept the loan extended by the AAP government, the Supreme Court today declined to intervene in the matter. By India Today Web Desk: Even as the protesting MCD staff refused to call of their strike after the mayors of the north and east Delhi municipal corporations agreed to accept the loan extended by the AAP government, the Supreme Court today declined to entertain a plea seeking direction to three civic bodies in the capital to take steps to resolve the strike by their employees that has resulted garbage piling up in the city. advertisement Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia today will meet Lt Governor Najeeb Jung and Mayors of different corporations to resolve the issue. The Supreme Court however came down hard on the petition. Dismissing the plea as withdraw, Chief Justice Thakur told the petitioner's counsel: "Why do you file such petitions. Go to the high court." Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal yesterday accused the ruling BJP of provoking the sanitation workers in the national capital to strike. Speaking to reporters in Bengaluru, Kejriwal claimed that the Narendra Modi government "wants to impose President's Rule in Delhi just like Arunachal Pradesh." Also read: Netas bicker, you suffer: MCD doctors to move high court to urge Centre to step in Delhi: Civic workers block NH 24, throw traffic out of gear --- ENDS --- Even as the Delhi government has gone after private schools seeking their safety report, it has turned a blind eye to over 200 government-run schools, which are in a dilapidated condition and may invite tragedy. The Delhi government may have sought a safety report from private schools in the city, but has turned a blind eye to pathetic condition of the government-run schools. Many have cracks on the walls. By Astha Saxena: Even as the Delhi government has gone after private schools seeking their safety report, it has turned a blind eye to over 200 government-run schools, which are in a dilapidated condition and may invite tragedy. Students are made to sit inside buildings, where walls have developed cracks and there is seepage through them. Some of these schools have 2,000-3,000 students. advertisement Students live in fear at the Government Girls Senior Secondary School in Shahbad Dairy. The building's condition is extremely poor and despite several letters to the Public Works Department and the Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation Ltd (DSIIDC), no action has been taken so far. "Why are they so alarmed about the safety of students now? We have been asking them to improve the condition of the schools. By only asking us to have a security check will not ensure safety of the students. One should think about the overall safety mechanism," a Delhi government education officer told Mail Today. The school has 33 classrooms with 49 sections and more than 7,500 students come to study in two shifts -morning and afternoon. On July 16, three students suffered electric shocks while sitting in a classroom with cracked walls, leaky roofs and flooded floors. Between March 2015 and August 2015, the school has written at least 20 letters to various government agencies, including the education department, the PWD and the DSIIDC. The Delhi government has decided to set up 50 'model' schools, which would be at par with private schools, in the Capital. However, the present condition of government-run schools needs more attention. "Nothing is being done at the grass-roots level. Large numbers of schools are in a bad shape and we are extremely concerned about the safety of the students. The department should start taking the matter seriously," Ajay Vir Singh, general secretary, Government School Teachers' Association told Mail Today. In 2015, a report by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) painted a pathetic picture of Delhi's schools. The report said that almost 720 of the 1,000-odd schools in the Capital under the government sector lacked clean drinking water and toilet facilities. Security was found to be lax and teachers were in short supply. The Delhi government's education department on Monday directed all the city schools to immediately carry out an inspection of their premises to ensure there were no safety hazards. The move comes in the wake of recent deaths of two students by drowning in septic and water tanks on the school premises. Teaching staff are in short supply at many of these schools. More than 5,000 students are enrolled at one such school in trans Yamuna area. "We don't have enough teachers. It is impossible to keep a check on each and every student. The department should immediately fill vacant posts," a senior teacher from the Department of Education told Mail Today. advertisement Watch video here: Also read: REVEALED: Divyansh's school diary shows Ryan International School's negligence --- ENDS --- Samsung Electronics also reiterated its commitment to Make for India while also pitching in for product innovation. By Saurabh Singh: South Korean tech company Samsung on Thursday unveiled a new line of SUHD TVs along with a plethora of smart appliances including a 5-in-1 convertible refrigerator, AddWash washing machines, Hotblast microwave ovens and more at its annual Southwest Asia Forum 2016 event in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. At the same time, Samsung Electronics also reiterated its commitment to Make for India while also pitching in for product innovation. advertisement "Samsung is committed to providing progressive and meaningful innovation that makes everyday living better for our discerning consumers. While Make for India will continue to be a strong focus area for Samsung Southwest Asia, we will be introducing path breaking innovations across our various categories of products through the year. Our goal is to augment consumer experience while also fortifying our leadership position in the Indian market," HC Hong, president and CEO, Southwest Asia, Samsung Electronics said. The company showcased a number of products at the Forum 2016. Let's take a brief look at them one by one. Samsung India unveiled its spectacular new line of SUHD TVs which offer unparalleled picture quality with Quantum dot display, state of the art design with the world's first bezel-less curved design and a new easy and integrated Smart TV experience powered by Tizen OS, ushering in a new decade of global TV leadership Samsung's newly announced KS9000 SUHD TV is being touted by the company as the world's first ever bezel-less curved design television. It has "sought to eliminate all unnecessary elements, even removing screws from the rear of the TV, while its 360 design offers "an unparalleled viewing experience to consumers", the company said. Further, Samsung's 2016 SUHD TVs incorporate something called as quantum dot display technology that provides true-to-life picture, it added. These offer high dynamic range (HDR) experience, with 1,000 nit brightness so there is higher contrast between light and dark images. Meanwhile, an in-house Ultra Black technology helps reduce glare. The KS9000 and all of Samsung's SUHD TVs run Tizen OS out-of-the-box and come with Smart Control remote. Moving on, Samsung's new smart convertible 5-in-1 refrigerator comes with Twin Cooling Plus technology and offers five different modes: Normal, Extra Shopping, Vacation, Seasonal, and Home Alone Mode, each with their own energy efficiency narratives. The company also launched a digital inverter compressor and smart connect inverter in its Direct Cool Single Door range. Meanwhile, Samsung's newly announced air conditioner range comes with in-built stabiliser feature that can handle voltage fluctuations from 146V to 290V without requiring an external stabiliser. These offer "faster cooling by up to 43% while using up to 68% less energy as compared to conventional air conditioners," claims the company. advertisement Samsung's also introduced a range of washing machines along with the W7000K Hot Blast smart oven at the event. At the same time, the company took the wraps off its refreshed Galaxy A5 and Galaxy A7 smartphones for 2016. Both the phones sport Samsung' new-found metal and glass design and have been priced at Rs 29,400 and Rs 33,400. The phones will be available for buy starting from February 15 from Snapdeal and other offline channels. "Continuing the Galaxy A legacy in India, the Galaxy A7 (2016) and the Galaxy A5 (2016) come with a stunning glass and metal design and flagship like features such as enhanced camera, long lasting battery space with fast charging capability and a powerful octa-core processor that can tackle heavy usage," Manu Sharma, director, mobiles business, Samsung India Electronics said. Disclosure: Samsung sponsored the writer's travel and hotel expenses for the launch event in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. --- ENDS --- A French woman residing in Gurgaon has started going around town, taking photo portraits of common Delhiites, making them pose with masks and X-ray films of a pair of lungs. By Baishali Adak: Concerns over the Capital's toxic air have now made their way into Delhi's art and popular culture. Interestingly, a French woman residing in Gurgaon has started going around town, taking photo portraits of common Delhiites, making them pose with masks and X-ray films of a pair of lungs. Over 50 such portraits she has created feature: bicycle-mounted milkmen, domestic maids, schoolgoing boys, pregnant women and elderly persons. They stand against varied backgrounds like traffic on the highway, construction sites and trash dumps. All are seen wearing protective face masks and holding the X-ray films against their chest. advertisement Lenswoman Melanie Dornier says this 'Humans of New York-esque' photo campaign reflects the ill-effects of air pollution and that "it makes no distinction between a corporate honcho and a villager" or "the middle-class, poor and rich". Melanie, who comes from Besanon, a picturesque town in eastern France, is a professional photographer. She has widely published in The Sunday Times magazine (UK), Geo Ado (France), Le Monde Histoire (France) etc. The resident of DLF Phase V, Gurgaon, told Mail Today: "It was in September last year when I was approached for this photo shoot. My neighbour Namita Gupta, founder of a company called Airveda, asked me to take some pictures for educational and awareness purposes on Delhi's air pollution." The 30-year-old initially clicked asthma patients and students in some Gurgaon hospitals and schools. "That's when the idea struck me to turn it into a larger photo campaign. So, I would request street-sweepers, fruit sellers, traffic cops and even kids to wear a mask and hold the Xray film, and capture them on reel." Now, she says, she wants to turn it into a global photo campaign, "I want to take it to China, the US and even my home town in France." Lenswoman Melanie Dornier says the 'Humans of New York-esque' photo campaign reflects the ill-effects of air pollution. Namita of Airveda, which manufactures air quality monitors, says: "While scientific data aggregation on air quality in Delhi and NCR is critical, we also need human narratives like this. One can understand this as the pictorial warnings on cigarette packs. Everyone knows that smoking nicotine is bad, but till the time you show them a grotesque alarming visual, nobody gets the hang of it." Melanie says, like many expats, she could have moved out of the Delhi-Gurgaon area. "My husband and I arrived here in August 2013. Having lived in countryside France and knowing what clean air is like, we could have caught the first flight out. However, I love photographing Asia and its facets too much. At the same time, my two daughters, aged 2 and 3 each, are growing up here. I had to do something to give them a bright future and clean environment," she said. More artworks on Delhi's air pollution are coming up. A Spanish artist from the city, Lucas Munoz, is showcasing a public art project called 'Delhi Lung.' It shows a white muslin cloth that resembles human lungs and was installed at 'Publica' art gallery at Bikaner for 30 days. The experiment is to see what it looks like after surviving a month in Delhi's polluted air. "It will be like an imprint," Lucas was quoted as saying by the website careforair.org. The piece will now tour to Habitat, then Emporio, and finally, Instituto Cervantes. advertisement A similar art installation, featuring a mannequin with a mask, and cars on his body, created by artist Shahid Parvez, was also seen at the India Art Fair, careforair.org said. Watch video here: --- ENDS --- The government will push amendments for increasing 50 per cent the reservation for women in panchayats in the upcoming Budget session of Parliament even as it is mulling whether to extend the ward reservation for women candidates to two terms from the current one term. By Press Trust of India: The government will push amendments for increasing 50 per cent the reservation for women in panchayats in the upcoming Budget session of Parliament even as it is mulling whether to extend the ward reservation for women candidates to two terms from the current one term. At the inaugural session of a two-day national workshop on Implementation of PESA Act: Issues and way forward, Union Minister Birender Singh said the government is likely to push the amendments in the Budget session, which begins February 23. advertisement "At present, a ward is reserved for women candidates in panchayat polls for five years. We are planning to increase that to two terms (10 years) so that a woman candidate is enthused to do public work and strengthen her leadership as well," Singh said. Talking about the proposed constitutional amendment to increase womens reservation in panchayat polls to 50 per cent, he said, "We hope to bring the amendment during the upcoming Budget session." The Rural Development, Drinking Water and Sanitation Minister said the move is unlikely to be opposed by any political party. In line with the 73rd Amendment of the Constitution, Panchayati Raj institutions currently have 33 per cent of all seats reserved for women. The minister also said the government is mulling a reduction in the age limit for offering pension to widows. Currently, widows aged above 40 are eligible for pension. Singh, however, refused to specify the details of the plan, saying it is at a "nascent stage". Meanwhile, Singh made a strong pitch for the implementation of the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996, by states for the uplift of tribals, saying that adivasis "cannot wait any longer" for development. He also lauded tribal communities in India for sticking to their values and culture, which he added, was the reason that imperialist forces could not "eradicate" them as had happened in other parts of the world. Union Minister of State for Panchayati Raj Nihal Chand said the workshop was the first initiative in nearly 20 years towards the implementation of the Act. Panchayati Raj and Tribal Development ministers from 10 states are attending the workshop. Also Read: Union Budget to be presented on February 29, Budget Session from February 23 to May 13 --- ENDS --- Explore beyond the forts and palaces in Jaipur, as the Pink City will host a travel photography festival for the first time. By Samonway Duttagupta: Delhiites' favourite weekend getaway Jaipur has something new for the travellers to explore. For the first time, the Pink City will be hosting the Travel Photo Jaipur -- A festival on wanderlust. Produced by Orange Cat Productions in partnership with Rajasthan Tourism, it will be an open-air travel photography festival showcasing the best series of travel photographs that were taken by some of the most eminent international travel photographers, over a period of certain period of time. advertisement Starting February 5, the festival will be on till February 14, and will "offer a curated selection of international photography inspired by the notion of journeys and visions as an outsider," according to the official website. The participating photographers include Serena Chopra from India, Anna Fox from the UK, Catherine Balet from France, and Xiaoxiao Xu from China, among others. The travel photographs will be printed on large formats and put on display at different public places across the city, including the Hawa Mahal Complex, The Albert Hall Museum, and Jaipur railway station, among others. The website further reveals that these exhibitions will be complemented by "exciting programme of events that will transform the Pink City into a platform for showcasing and contemplating photography." Also watch: These videos showcase the most unique travel experiences from Rajasthan You can download the detailed programme brochure here . For more details, visit traveljaipur.com --- ENDS --- Wikileaks founder Julian Assange will leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he took refuge in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden. By Reuters: Wikileaks founder Julian Assange will leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he took refuge in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, on Friday and accept arrest if a UN panel investigating his case rules against him, he said in a statement on Thursday posted on the Wikileaks Twitter account. Assange took refuge in the embassy building in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning over allegations of sexual assault and rape against two women in 2010. The Australian denies the accusations. advertisement Also read: Julian Assange inspires new character in latest Asterix comic --- ENDS --- Kim Kardashian's Valentine's Day gift guide could put you and your partner in the mood for "adult stuff". By India Today Web Desk: If you are looking forward to getting kinky between the sheets this Valentine's Day, Kim Kardashian's gift guide could be of some help. Also read: Kim Kardashian just launched her own emojis and they're exactly what you'd expect The Keeping Up with the Kardashians star took to her website in a post titled Behind Closed Doors and shared a list of Valentine's Day gifts that could make the evening (or the day) special. advertisement Ranging from as low as USD 5 to USD 10,000, Kim Kardashian's sexy gift guide may make you wonder about the on-goings of the Kardashian-West bedroom. The reality TV star recommends sex toys, riding crop, handcuffs (very Fifty shades of Grey) and a stripper pole, among other things. Also read: Kim Kardashian and Kanye West offered 2 million dollars for releasing baby's first pictures Kim also included a special kind of massage candle, edible body paint, blindfolds and luxurious body oils in her list. For those willing to splurge, the entrepreneur recommends champagne worth USD 10,000, while people who are on a budget can pick from a collection of steamy coupons, priced at USD 5. Whatever the list maybe, one can only hope Kim and Kanye's personal collection of special toys is completely out of their little children's reach. --- ENDS --- One more terrorist is suspected to be hiding in a residential area there, sources said. An alert and vigilant Armys jawan in Bandipora. By India Today Web Desk: At least 2 LeT terrorists were on Thursday killed during fierce gunbattle in Bandipora district in Jammu and Kashmir. One more terrorist is suspected to be hiding in a residential area there, sources said. The gunbattle between the security forces and terrorists is on in Hajan area of the district in North Jammu and Kashmir since around 9 am. advertisement Army jawans have cordoned off the area and conducting search operations. ALSO READ: 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed praises Pathankot air base attack, warns of escalation IS had plans to target crucial defence bases in Maharashtra, Goa --- ENDS --- A majority of Americans believe that the next US President should be careful and not criticize Islam as a whole when speaking about Islamic extremists. By Press Trust of India: A majority of Americans believe that the next US President should be careful and not criticize Islam as a whole when speaking about Islamic extremists. The latest Pew survey stated that 70 per cent of the Democrats and independents who lean towards the Democratic party want the next President to refrain from speaking bluntly about Islamic extremism and criticizing Islam as a whole. advertisement However, 65 percent of the Republicans and those who lean towards the Republican party preferred blunt talks over the Islamic extremists even if it is critical of Islam in general. The survey also pointed out that a lot of Americans believe that a substantial segment of the US Muslim population is anti-American. According to the report, while 42 percent of the adults said that 'just a few' or 'none' of the US Muslims are anti-American, 49 per cent of the public believe that 'some' of the them to be anti- American. Out of this 49 percent, 11 percent considers 'most' or 'almost all' and 14 percent "about half" of the US Muslim population to be anti-American. The survey noted that while many Americans were concerned about Islamic extremism, most people think that the problem with violence committed in the name of religion has more to do with the people than with the religion. The survey also noted that 68 per cent Americans believe the bigger problem is that some violent people use religion to justify their actions compared to 22 percent who hold the religion responsible for promoting violence. When those who considered religious teachings to be the biggest problem were asked to specify which religion is more problematic, Islam received the majority of the responses. --- ENDS --- The MCD employees' unions claimed the loan of Rs 693 crore will be insufficient to clear their salary and dues till January this year. By Rakesh Ranjan: Seeking to woo the agitating workforce of the municipal corporations in Delhi, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced a bailout package of Rs 693 crore on Wednesday. Kejriwal did not offer any permanent solution to the mess but assured workers that the AAP government would extend all monetary support for the next one year after which the three civic bodies will go to polls in 2017. He claimed that the AAP would win all three corporations and the situation would improve thereafter. advertisement Municipality workers, however, refused to call off their strike after the announcement, saying the loan granted by the Delhi government was no solution to the crisis. Instead, it will put an additional burden on the cash-strapped municipal corporations, they said. "We do not want any loan. We want a permanent solution for timely payment of our salaries and other dues as well as unification of the three municipal corporations. Till these demands are met, we will continue our agitation. We do not want to go on strike again after two months seeking salary," said AP Khan, general secretary of the Forum of MCD engineers. According to MCD officials, a one-time grant was no solution to the ongoing crisis. The annual revenue collection for three municipal corporations is Rs 5,975 crore but they end up spending Rs 6,240 crore only on salary of their employees and there is a deficit of Rs 265 crore annually. Apart from this, corporations have to meet their expenses on education, health and other sectors. While North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) spends Rs 2,640 crore on salary, the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) and East Delhi Municipal Corporation (EDMC) spend Rs 2,460 crore and Rs 1,240 crore respectively. The MCD employees' unions claimed the loan of Rs 693 crore will be insufficient to clear their salary and dues till January this year. While the North MCD requires Rs 650 crore for clearing dues, the EDMC needs Rs 500 crore for the same. "The Delhi Government has only granted Rs 314 crore for North and Rs 237 crore for the East Delhi corporation. There has to be a permanent solution to this crisis," said Rajesh Mishra, president of United Front of Municipal Corporation Employees. The mayors of the East and North Delhi Municipal Corporations said they will accept Rs 551 crore as a grant only because Delhi government is yet to pay Rs 3,000 crore to the municipal corporations under recommendations of the Third Delhi Finance Commission report. "The loan being extended is blackmail by Delhi government because East Delhi Municipal Corporation is not able to pay any interest. We will take it as a grant since we have not been paid as per the recommendations of the Third Delhi Finance Commission," said East Delhi Mayor Harshdeep Malhotra. North Delhi Mayor Ravindra Gupta attacked Kejriwal for alleging financial bungling by the BJP-ruled MCDs. "Payment of salaries of employees is our first priority. We will treat the loan offered by the government as a grant because it has failed to settle our dues," he said. advertisement Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said the loan of Rs 551 crore to two civic bodies for paying salaries to their staff will result in deferment of several educational projects, including construction of new classrooms. He said the fund will be diverted from the education department. Sisodia, who also holds education and finance portfolios, said the government will divert the money from the capital expenditure of the education department, adding that due to this, they will have to defer some of infrastructure projects to the next financial year. Earlier, Kejriwal, who is in Bangalore for treatment, lashed out at the BJP for driving the civic bodies bankrupt. He alleged that the BJP was instigating the striking employees and trying to prepare grounds for imposition of President's Rule in the national Capital. Exuding confidence about winning next year's municipal polls, Kejriwal said the situation in the MCDs is such that they should be dissolved and fresh elections be held immediately. "There is a major salary scam in MCDs. Money has been stolen. House tax revenue, toll tax revenue, advertising revenue, electricity tax - everything has been stolen. It is a classic case of financial mismanagement," Kejriwal alleged. advertisement On request of MCD doctors seeking transfer of their services to the Delhi Government, Kejriwal said he has asked Sisodia to examine the legal possibility of doing this. Watch video here: Also read: Arvind Kejriwal on MCD strike: Modi govt wants President's Rule in Delhi MCD strike forces top officials to take stairs in 28-storey Civic Centre --- ENDS --- P A Inamdar, President of the society that runs the college reportedly threatened and shouted at the parents and later got them evicted. By India Today Web Desk: Three days after the Murud tragedy, in which 14 students of a Pune college were washed into the sea while on a picnic at Murud Janjira beach in Maharashtra's Raigad district, mourning parents of the students were abused and forcefully evicted from the college campus because they complained of negligence on part of the institution. advertisement The students, aged between 18 and 21 years, were part of a group of 126 who were on a picnic from the computer science section of the Abeda Inamdar Senior college, Pune. President of the society that runs the college reportedly threatened and shouted at the parents and later got them evicted. "We went to meet the president. When we were talking to him he told us to mind our tone. He also told us to get out of the room," said a victim's mother. When India Today reporter confronted PA Inamdar over the issue, he remained defiant and refused to apologise for his shocking behaviour. "Actually, parents are innocent. There are people who are pressuring them for certain demands. This is what it is. How can they talk at that particular time something in respect of money and something in respect of job and in respect of all these things," Inamdar said. As outrage picked, the Maharashtra government intervened and promised to look into the matter. Speaking on the issue, Maharashtra School Education Minister Vinod Tawde told India Today Television, "Management has to deal with the matter softly. And if they are not doing that, the Education Department has to look into the matter. I am surely looking into it." When questioned, the college could have handled the situation in a better way, vice-principal Abeda Inamdar said the parents provoked the college chief despite our assurance that the institution will help the parents, students and teaching staff in every possible manner. "The tragic incident happened on February 1, since we have done everything possible to help the parents, students and teaching staff. In the condolence meeting the parents provoked the college chief accompanied by some other people. We understand the feelings of the parents and we also understand their anguish. We will help them in every possible manner," Abeda said. P A Inamdar said parents tried to blackmail him Shakeela Hussain, mother of one of the victims, said the college hasn't extended a helping hand to the mourning parents yet. Pointing her fingers at the lackadaisical attitude of the college authority and teaching staff who accompanied the students to the beach, Shakeela said the teachers could have prohibited them from entering the sea. advertisement "We went to the spot and collected the dead bodies of our kids ourselves. Nobody even informed us about the tragedy on phone, We came to know about the incident from the media," Shakeela said. BJP leader Shaina NC described the incident as a "matter of empathy and emotion." "Maharashtra government will take necessary steps. The education minister on your show has said so and the education department will question Inamdar College. It is the prerogative of the teachers, if they are going in large groups, to completely watch what could be in eventuality of an unfortunate situation like this. The villagers were saying it is high tide and dangerous but the teachers couldn't control the students," Shaina said. ALSO READ: Murud tragedy: Bombay HC pulls up govt for failing to secure beaches 14 Pune students drown in Murud beach tragedy --- ENDS --- By Charu Thakur : When you are just one film old and are venturing into mainstream cinema for the first time, chances are bleak that as versatile an actor, as polished a performer as Shabana Azmi would give her nod for your film. And this exact apprehension made director Ram Madhvani take some time to approach Azmi to play a pivotal role in his upcoming film Neerja. advertisement ALSO READ: Watch Sonam Kapoor bring alive the incredible story of Neerja Bhanot in the trailer ALSO READ: Sonam Kapoor plays the fearless Neerja Bhanot ALSO READ: Sonam Kapoor pays tribute to Neerja Bhanot, visits her school on Republic Day After two years of intense research and a year spent on writing the script, Madhvani was sure that he wanted Azmi to play the role of Neerja Bhanot's mother Rama Bhanot in the biopic. "Since it is a mother-daughter story, I had Shabanaji in my mind while writing the script of the film. I have known her for a while. But you are very scared to ask her to do a film - because she is Shabana Azmi. So you send her the script to read and if she likes it, she comes and meets you and has a conversation on how we plan to take it forward. Because as a director, it is my job to have a vision and pass it on, " says Madhvani. Madhvani, an adman by profession and a filmmaker by choice, is glad that he could rope in Azmi to play the part in his much-anticipated film. Neerja is the story of an ordinary girl who displayed extraordinary courage during trying times. The biopic tells the story of a 22-year-old girl who gave up her own life trying to save the lives of hijacked passengers on the PanAm flight 73 to New York. 29 years after the incident, Madhvani and Sonam Kapoor have decided to bring alive the incredible story of Neerja Bhanot on 70mm. Neerja, posthumously, became the youngest recipient of India's highest civilian award for bravery, the Ashok Chakra, while Pakistan also bestowed the prestigious Tamgha-e-Insaaniyat Award on her for showing incredible human kindness during the hijack. In addition to these, Bhanot was also awarded by the US government for her exemplary courage. Sonam Kapoor and Shabana Azmi in a still from Neerja More than a biopic, Madhvani calls Neerja a mother-daughter story and says that there couldn't have been a better actor than Shabana to play the role of Rama on screen. "Neerja is an emotional drama. I had met Rama Bhanot and she came and blessed us while we were shooting for the film. We have very emotional memories of her. When I met her in Chandigarh, I knew that the film will also have to be inspirational and motivational. How she overcame the untimely death of her young daughter and what we should learn from her and how we should be inspired and motivated by her. Because eventually, it is very difficult for a mother to overcome the death of her young daughter. So the film is also about this mother and what she goes through," adds the filmmaker. advertisement Madhvani, who has known Shabana in his personal capacity, was quite stunned to see the 65-year-old's professionalism on the sets of the film. "Even though I was daunted and scared, when she came on board, she just gave herself in. She was there on time, she was there for every workshop that we did. Shabanaji is a thorough professional. Before every shot, when you put on your headphones, you could almost hear Shabanaji rehearsing her lines. She is always thoroughly prepared. But the way she will make it sound, it is as if it is effortless, but then it comes with a lot of preparation," says the Let's Talk director. advertisement Madhvani further reveals that Shabana gave herself completely to the film and even her personal problems couldn't stop her from giving her best shot. "I remember when her mother was in Breach Candy Hospital and Ameeta (Madhvani's wife) and I went to meet her and see how she was doing. Her mother was in the ICU and we met Shabanaji downstairs in the canteen of the hospital. We were meant to shoot a very difficult scene two days later, and I was stressed as to how we would shoot the scene since her mother was in the hospital. And while I was thinking this, all of a sudden, she asked me, 'Ram have you got the script?' She slept the whole night outside in the waiting room. She's not been home, and sitting the canteen, she asked me to give her the script. And then she started rehearsing and going through the lines, in front of us, in the canteen. It was incredible to see her like that. I am privileged that Shabana ji gave herself to the film and the process this way and had that trust in the film and me. So with all this, all the fears and anxiousness to direct Shabanaji was gone. I am very happy that she said a yes to the film," says Ram. advertisement Neerja, which is based on a real-life incident, is set to hit the screens on February 19. --- ENDS --- Pakistani terrorists who attacked the Pathankot Air Force base infiltrated from across the border carrying heavy ammunition from Bamial in Punjab, National Investigation Agency's (NIA) probe suggests. So far the NIA has not found any leads suggesting that terrorists availed help from insiders to get weapons and believe that they carried ammunition from across the border. By Abhishek Bhalla : Pakistani terrorists who attacked the Pathankot Air Force base infiltrated from across the border carrying heavy ammunition from Bamial in Punjab, National Investigation Agency's (NIA) probe suggests. Earlier investigators were working on leads that weapons were smuggled in separately and also the possibility of insiders providing the ammunition consignment to the terrorists after they infiltrated. Probing the possibility of 'inside help' to the terrorists NIA will examine officials from the Indian Air Force to get new leads in the investigation, sources said. However, so far there has been no concrete lead indicating that the slain terrorists, who launched the attack on January 2, got help from someone inside the airbase. While it is believed six terrorists were part of the fidayeen team but bodies of only four were found after the operation. The mystery over the two missing terrorists has also not been solved as the investigators are still unsure how many terrorists attacked the airbase. advertisement Seven security personnel were killed and several others were injured when six militants, suspected to owe allegiance to Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammad, stormed the airbase. Senior Punjab Police officer Salwinder Singh has been grilled by NIA sleuths and undergone a lie detector test. Sources said if the need arises, Salwinder can be called for questioning later, but at this point of time it seems there is nothing against him. The searches at various places including his office, residence and native place in Amritsar did not result in the recovery of incriminating documents. Singh, currently posted as Assistant Commandant of 75th Punjab Armed Police, had claimed he was kidnapped by suspected JeM terrorists hours before they attacked the airbase in the wee hours of January 2. Some alleged inconsistencies in Singh's statements had prompted NIA to subject him to intensive questioning. NIA officials say he has still not been given a clean chit but there is nothing concrete to indicate his involvement as of now. Singh was under the NIA scanner following suspicions that he was part of the drug racket being run in the districts of Pathankot and Gurudaspur, sources said. Watch: Also read: Pathankot attack: Pakistan's flip-flop exposed again, no FIR registered yet India will stand by Pakistan if it takes action against terrorists: Rajnath Singh Akshay Kumar paid an impromptu visit to Sonam Kapoor, Shabana Azmi and Ram Madhvani during the promotions of Neerja, leaving the team pleasantly surprised. By India Today Web Desk: Sonam Kapoor is all geared up for the release of her next film, Neerja. From promotional events to song launches, the actor is making sure Neerja is right at the top of her list of priorities right now. ALSO READ: Was scared to ask Shabana Azmi to work in Neerja, says Ram Madhvani ALSO READ: A staggering Rs 3 crore for research for Sonam Kapoor's Neerja advertisement PHOTOS: Neerja Bhanot, India's Hijack Heroine, was part of these commercials Along with Shabana Azmi, who plays her mother in Neerja, and director Ram Madhvani, Sonam has been all around Mumbai, taking the tale of Neerja Bhanot to people. It was during the promotions at a suburban studio in the Maharashtra capital that Sonam and the Neerja team received a pleasant surprise. It was Akshay Kumar who dropped in to say hi to Sonam, Shabana and Ram. The Airlift actor was in the vicinity for some work. In his brief interaction with the Neerja team, Kumar wished them good luck. Sonam Kapoor. Photo: Yogen Shah Sonam Kapoor. Photo: Yogen Shah Last month, it was Akshay's Airlift that brought on celluloid a true tale of heroism, courage and patriotism. The actor, whose Airlift touched the hearts of Indians all across the planet, was heard saying that he looked forward to watching Neerja. This film, after all, is a tribute to another hero who laid down her life for the safety of others. Based on the story of Neerja Bhanot, who sacrificed her life while saving passengers from terrorists onboard the hijacked Pan Am Flight 73 on September 5, 1986, the film is slated for a February 19 release. --- ENDS --- National Conference and separatists are on the same page in opposing a move of Jammu & Kashmir Police to collect data about geographical location, religious, sectarian and political affiliation of the population. By Naseer Ganai: National Conference and separatists are on the same page in opposing a move of Jammu & Kashmir Police to collect data about geographical location, religious, sectarian and political affiliation of the population terming it as an attempt to "divide Kashmir on sectarian basis". "There is no precedence to collect such data and details. Such data will have negative implications and this dangerous stereotyping of people should stop", NC spokesman Junaid Azim Mattu said. He said collecting data about people on the basis of sectarian and political affiliation has nothing to do with security of the state and the government should explain why it is doing this "dangerous exercise" in Kashmir region. advertisement The sources said after Kashmir specific survey Jammu and Kashmir Police is planning to provide ten-digit family identification number to every house. The sources said the survey also asks about 'ONG coordinates' to get latitudinal and longitudinal location of the house. Kashmir Police Chief SJM Gilani was not available for comment in spite of repeated calls. However, he recently told reporters that police want to update its database to ensure better security plans and curb crimes and the survey is part of the exercise. Police argues that it has lost data during September 2014 floods in Srinagar and other districts and exercise is part of to collect date about people. Police have said those who were not willing to provide sect wise details were free to do so. But defence of police in support of the survey has failed to wade off apprehensions. Hard-line Hurriyat Conference leader Syed Ali Geelani alleged that survey is monitored by the Army in villages and towns. While as moderate separatist leader Mirwaiz Umar Farooq said the police argument that the profiling was done to arrest crime rate was beyond logic and understanding. "We see a deeper intrigue into it. We want that police should reveal why they are doing it. We have always maintained sectarian differences should be downplayed but the police and the government now is playing up sectarian differences by doing this survey", Mirwaiz said. "We will oppose the survey", Mirwaiz said. --- ENDS --- Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif, post break-up, are giving us all a lesson in averting a clash of exes. By India Today Web Desk: Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif's break-up has dominated Bollywood-lovers' discussions ever since it happened. From the day the news broke, to today, when the internet is busy keeping a tab on pretty much every movement of the exes, it's been quite a month for both Kapoor and Kaif. ALSO READ: After break-up with Ranbir Kapoor, Katrina Kaif says love is very important to her advertisement ALSO READ: Ranbir and Katrina were at the same place, at the same time. Then this happened Over the last three weeks, while Katrina has spoken to the media on several occasions, thanks to the promotions of her upcoming film Fitoor, Ranbir has more or less kept to himself. Last month, at Umang, the Annual Mumbai Police Show, Ranbir and Katrina had nearly crossed paths, but the clash was averted. The ongoing India Auto Expo in Greater Noida had both Ranbir and Katrina in attendance on Wednesday (February 3). Ranbir gifted the cameras some moments to cherish by clicking selfies with Pawan Munjal, the chairman, managing director and CEO of Hero MotoCorp. Katrina Kaif at the India Auto Expo 2016. Photo: AP On her part, Katrina was radiant in her black dress, posing next to the 'built in India' Jaguar XE. The venue of the India Auto Expo was among the factors that helped Katrina and Ranbir keep away from each other. The India Expo Mart in Greater Noida, spread over 58 acres, had the Jaguar and Hero MotoCorp areas diametrically opposite to each other. And in addition to the physical space between them, Ranbir and Katrina were separated by numerous visitors who turned up at the event. Katrina was also at a college in Noida yesterday, along with her Fitoor co-star Aditya Roy Kapur. --- ENDS --- Russia's Defense Ministry says a Russian military adviser has been killed by mortar fire in Syria. By AP: Russia's Defense Ministry says a Russian military adviser has been killed by mortar fire in Syria. The ministry said in a statement that the officer was fatally wounded Monday by mortar shelling from the Islamic State group. Today's statement, carried by Russian news agencies, said the officer was helping train the Syrian military in using Russian weapons. It didn't identify the officer or specify where he died. advertisement The officer's death is the third combat casualty the Russian military has suffered since it launched its air campaign in Syria four months ago. A Russian pilot whose warplane was downed by a Turkish fighter at the Syrian border was shot dead by militants as he descended by parachute. His crewmate survived, but a Russian marine was killed during the rescue mission. Also read: More than 3,000 Syrians fled to Turkey in three days as pro-Assad forces advance --- ENDS --- An Army post located at an altitude of 19, 600 feet in Siachen was buried in snow in the early hours of February 3. By India Today Web Desk: The 10 soldiers, including a JCO, who were buried in snow after an avalanche hit their post in Siachen on Wednesday are dead, the Army said today. "It is a tragic event and we salute the soldiers who braved all challenges to guard our frontiers and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty," Lieutenant General DS Hooda, Army Commander, Northern Command, said. advertisement "I salute the brave soldiers who gave their lives to the nation," Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted. Demise of soldiers in Siachen is very tragic. I salute the brave soldiers who gave their lives to the nation. Condolences to their families. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 4, 2016 Rescue efforts to locate the 10 soldiers of the Madras Regiment, who went missing after their post located at an altitude of 19, 600 feet was buried in snow in the early hours of February 3, continued for the second day today. Congress President Smt Sonia Gandhi has expressed shock & deep distress on the confirmation of death of 10 Army Men in avalanche in Siachen INC India (@INCIndia) February 4, 2016 Operations by specialized teams of the Army and the Air Force were launched on Wednesday, but there was no success in locating the post or the men. Rescue teams are braving adverse weather and effects of rarefied atmosphere to locate and rescue survivors in Siachen. Rescue teams are braving adverse weather and effects of rarefied atmosphere to locate and rescue survivors in Siachen. Special equipment was flown in to Leh today morning to further boost the rescue efforts. The glaciated area presents temperatures ranging from a minimum of minus 42 degrees in the night to maximum of minus 25 degrees during the day. Rescue teams braved adverse weather and effects of rarefied atmosphere to locate and rescue survivors. India says no to Pakistan's help The Indian Army has turned down an offer from Pakistan to help in the rescue operation in Siachen. India told Pakistan that it is well equipped to handle the situation on its own. Earlier, Pakistan Army Director General Military Operations (DGMO) called his Indian counterpart earlier today and offered assistance in the rescue operation currently underway in Siachen. "Pakistan DGMO called his Indian counterpart and offered help for rescue of Indian soldiers who came under snow avalanche in Northern Areas," a statement released by Pakistan's Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) said. Siachen - World's highest battle field The Siachen glacier is the highest battleground on the earth. The minimum temperature in the region can dip to -50 Degree Celsius or -140 Degree Fahrenheit in winters. Both India and Pakistan have maintained their military presence in the region since 1984. According to Indian Army's data, 8000 jawans have been killed in Siachen so far. Ironically, most of the soldiers have died due to extreme weather conditions in the region. advertisement The Indian Army permits deployment of a soldier in Siachen for a maximum period of three months. In high-risk areas of the glacier such as Bana Post this limit is of 30 days. The army unit deployed in the region is rotated after every six months. Also Read: Four soldiers killed in avalanche in Ladakh --- ENDS --- By Siddhartha Rai: In a massive image makeover drive against the Opposition-sponsored label of being "anti-farmer", the Narendra Modi government is all set to organise mega farmers' rallies in four states, including poll-bound Uttar Pradesh (UP). The four rallies, named as "Kisan Maha Sammelans", are slated to be organised in Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Odisha and UP starting February 18. The kernel of the rallies would be the much touted "Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana" or the newly-launched crop insurance scheme. advertisement The Modi government had increasingly come under fire from the Opposition, mainly the Congress, over issues directly affecting farmers such as the newly-proposed Land Acquisition Bill. It was being felt even within the BJP of late that while the government tried to firefight, the Opposition benches had been successful in painting the regime as anti-farmer and anti-poor. To reverse what has come to be seen as Modi government's loss in the perception war with the Congress, the Prime Minister would be addressing mega-congregations of farmers in Madhya Pradesh on February 18 at Sihor; another at Odisha on February 21 at Bargarh; third in Karnataka on February 27; and the last one in UP, most probably at Bareilly. According to party's national general secretary Arun Singh, this is just the first round of such rallies as these are most likely to be emulated in other consequential states too. Singh also added that the thinking behind the move was to present the achievements of the government and welfare measures initiated specifically for farmers in a targeted manner. "So far we have presented our achievements and our revolutionary welfare initiatives in a clubbed manner. Now we want to go to the farmers to tell them and only them as to what we have done for them exclusively. The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana is our latest offering for farmers. Now that their crops are insured at an extremely nominal premium of 1.5 per cent for Rabi and 2 per cent for Kharif seasons, they will no more be forced to commit suicide," Singh told Mail Today. Also read: Who will rescue drought-hit Bundelkhand's starving farmers? --- ENDS --- The United Nations estimates that roughly 2.3 million refugees are under the age of 17 and most of them lack proper educational facilities. By India Today Web Desk: As part of the Vision not Victim project the International Rescue Committee recently sent photographer Meredith Hutchison to meet with young girls in two refugee camps in Jordan to ask them about their dreams and aspirations. With this project the IRC aims to draw the attention on the adverse affect the Syrian civil war and refugee crisis has had on women and young girls in particular. advertisement "Syrian girls living in Jordan have experienced the trauma of their country's civil war, the loss of loved ones and their homes and the struggle to survive in a new country. They also face a disproportionate amount of harassment and exploitation." The program provides these children the support they need to build their future. Every program ends in a photo shoot and the girls are given the right to direct the photo shoot, just the way they want it to be.The also keep a copy of the photo as a reminder of their future aspirations. Here are a few photos with them striking a pose as their future selves: Future Astronaut "Ever since we studied the solar system in primary school, I have wanted to be an astronaut. I would imagine myself up in the sky discovering new things. I love being an astronaut because it lets me see the world from a new angle." says 12-year-old Haja Future Surgeon "I treat many patients, but the patient I care most about - the one that drove me to be a doctor - is my father, who has lots of medical issues. To be able to help my father, this makes me feel strong, powerful, and capable." says 11-year-old Fatima Future Architect Future Doctor "Easing someone's pain is the most rewarding aspect of my job. To be able to give them relief and make them smile - this is what I love most." says 13- year-old Rama Future Pilot "I love planes. Even before I had ever been on a plane, I knew I wanted to be a pilot. Flying is adventurous and exciting." says 10-year-old Amani Future Teacher "In this image, it is the early morning and I am waiting in my classroom for my students to arrive. I teach younger children to read and write Arabic. I am a very compassionate and kind person, and so a perfect teacher. I am strict, but I go out of my way to gently help those students who are having difficulties." says Fatima, 12 Future Photographer advertisement "Since I was a young girl, I loved taking people's photographs. I loved going to different events and documenting what was happening-both the good and bad. Now, as a professional photographer, I use my images to inspire hope in others - to encourage love and understanding." says 12-year-old Muntaha To know more about their stories watch the video below: --- ENDS --- Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi today has sought a report from the Karnataka government on the incident of a Tanzanian woman student being beaten up and stripped by a mob in Bengaluru. By India Today Web Desk: Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi today has sought a report from the Karnataka government on the incident of a Tanzanian woman student being beaten up and stripped by a mob in Bengaluru. "Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately," party General Secretary Digvijay Singh said in a series of tweets. "Strongly condemn incident with Tanzanian lady in Bangalore. Police must act strongly against the culprits," Singh, who is in-charge of party affairs in Karnataka, said. advertisement Meanwhile, 5 people have been arrested in connection to the case. "5 people have been arrested, action will also be taken against officials found to be negligent," Karnataka CM said. The Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car in the city. The 21-year-old Tanzanian, who is doing her Bachelor of Business Management course, was dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends on Sunday night. The car was stopped by the mob shortly after they reached the accident spot on Sunday night, according to All African Students Union in Bengaluru. She was stripped by a section of the mob and pushed out of a slow-moving bus that was passing by as she tried to board it to escape,?the Union's Legal Adviser Bosco Kaweesi had said. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had termed the incident as shameful. Swaraj had spoken to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and requested him to ensure stringent punishment to the guilty. Swaraj said Siddaramaiah informed her that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested. Official sources in New Delhi had said the High Commission of Tanzania has sent a Note Verbale to the External Affairs Ministry about the reported attack, requesting it to take necessary legal action against the guilty. According to the Bangalore police, the complaint by the Tanzanian girl was filed yesterday even though incident happened on Sunday. --- ENDS --- While Karnataka's Home Minister G Parmeshwara today refused to call it a racist incident, it certainly raises a critical question before us - are we racist in our attitude or it is an unwarranted conclusion? By India Today Web Desk: A 21-year-old Tanzanian woman was dragged out of her car, stripped and assaulted by a mob in Bengaluru on Sunday night. Moments before her car was was stopped, a Sudanese driver had run over a woman in the area. People protesting against this accident turned on the Tanzanian student, who is pursuing her MBA, when she reached the spot. advertisement Karnataka's Home Minister G Parmeshwara today claimed that the woman was neither stripped nor paraded naked. While Parmeshwara refused to call it a racist incident, it certainly raises a critical question before us - are we racist in our attitude or it is an unwarranted conclusion? Big questions: Is racism ingrained in the Indian psyche? African woman's assault a blot on India's image? Will this sour our relations with Tanzania? Is this racial profiling or an 'isolated' case? Is Indian society colour conscious and racist? Colour consciousness an internal problem? Is a legislation needed on colour consciousness? Is it all boiling down to politics yet again? Is MEA's action a step in the right direction? Will foreigners ever feel safe after such cases? Speaking on the show To The Point with Karan Thapar, noted actor Nandita Das said racism runs across class, region in the country. "If this is not racism then what is it? It is very, very distrubing. We are sometimes worried about the image of the country. We are asking wrong questions, we really need to look beneath ourselves and ask where are we actually going," Das said. Responding to a question about Indian celebrities like Shahrukh Khan, John Abraham endorsing fairness creams, Das said, "I don't think any of us should tell others what they should be doing. It is something that you have to ask yourself. Our obsession with fairness has gone beyond the choice of looking good, it is associated with success, it is associated with self esteem and self worth. Every advertisement tells you that if you are not fair, you are not good enough." Mohammed Nahbill of African Studies Association of India (ASA) said Africans don't consider Indians as racist. "There is a Sanskrit saying - Atithi Devo Bhava (the guest is like a god). We believe that all Indians treat us in a a right way but since that incident happened, our views have started to change. We are changing our perception. The woman who was assaulted is still in trauma," he said. Social activist Yogendra Yadav backed Nandita Das, saying," It is not a question of dark or fair, there is a racial question involved. There is also colonial prejudice. Then there are local stereotypes about African students in the last 10-15 years. So, unfortunately we are witnessing all these layers of prejudices and the end result is what we witnessed." advertisement Financial Times journalist Victor Mallet, who has lived in India for three years, pointed out that India was a large country like America and China and there are a number of people who are not familiar with anything other whether its white or black. "There are some institutional form of discrimination which are quite strange. For example, if it is Kashmir or Andaman Islands a white man is picked up and asked to register. This is done entirely on racial profiling. If you are an American and look Indian, you not asked any questions," Mallet said. "These kind of incidents happen because people are totally unfamiliar with the outside world," he added while referring to Bengaluru incident. ALSO READ: Tanzanian student assault case: 5 arrested, Rahul Gandhi seeks report from Karnataka government --- ENDS --- BBC Radio 4 reported that it understands the decision has been made in Assange's favour. By Press Trust of India: A UN panel has ruled that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been "arbitrarily detained" in the UK, a media report said today. No official announcement has yet been made by the United Nations' Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in Geneva but BBC Radio 4 reported that it understands the decision has been made in Assange's favour. advertisement The UN panel has been considering a request by Assange for a ruling. It is due to announce its findings tomorrow. Assange, 44, was granted political asylum by Ecuador, which has housed him since 2012 at its central London embassy. The whistleblower has said he is willing to surrender to British police if the UN panel finds that the three years he was holed up inside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London does not amount to illegal detention. In 2014, he had complained to the UN that he was being "arbitrarily detained" as he could not leave the embassy without being arrested by the British police. The Australian national is wanted for questioning in Sweden over sexual assault charges by two women. WikiLeaks, founded by Assange in 2006, released 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and 250,000 diplomatic cables enraging the United States. The UN group does not have any formal influence over the British and Swedish authorities and the UK Foreign Office said it still had an obligation to extradite Assange to the US. Also read: Julian Assange will leave Ecuador embassy, accept arrest if loses UN case: Wikileaks --- ENDS --- The Budget Session of Parliament is likely to commence on February 23. While the first part of the session will be held from February 23 to March 16, the second will be from April 25 to May 13. By India Today Web Desk: Parliament's Budget Session is likely to commence on February 23. While the first part of the session will be held from February 23 to March 16, the second will be from April 25 to May 13. The Rail Budget will be tabled on February 25, followed by the Economic Survey on February 26. The General Budget will be presented by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on February 29. advertisement President Pranab Mukherjee will address the joint session of Parliament on February 23. Also read: Rahul Gandhi in battle mode for Budget Session Congress' conditional support of GST not fair, says Venkaiah Naidu --- ENDS --- Iran must reform its laws that allows girls as young as nine to be executed for crimes or forced into sexual relations with older husbands, a United Nations watchdog said on Thursday. By Reuters: Iran must reform its laws that allows girls as young as nine to be executed for crimes or forced into sexual relations with older husbands, a United Nations watchdog said on Thursday. Iran continues to execute children and youth who committed a crime while under 18 years of age, in violation of international standards, the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child said, after its 18 independent experts reviewed Iran and 13 other countries. advertisement "The age of criminal responsibility in Iran is discriminatory, it is lower and lower for girls, that is to say 9 lunar years while for boys it is 15. At nine a girl can marry, even if the law sets the age at 13," said Hynd Ayoubi Idrissi, a panel member. Nine lunar years in the Iranian calendar is equivalent to 8 years and nine months, a UN spokeswoman said. The age for boys having criminal responsibility is 15, but the age for girls at 9 is "extremely low", Idrissi said. The experts deplored that Iran "allows sexual intercourse with girls as young as 9 lunar years and that other forms of sexual abuse of even young children is not criminalised". They called for the age of sexual consent to be raised to 16. "The Committee is seriously concerned about the reports of increasing numbers of girls at the age of 10 years or younger who are subjected to child and forced marriages to much older men." Girls suffered discrimination in the family, in the criminal justice system, in property rights, and elsewhere, while a legal obligation for girls to be subject to male guard6ianship is "incompatible" Tehran's treaty obligations, the panel said. Iran made "positive progress" last year with a new Criminal Procedure Code that introduced juvenile courts, but nevertheless there were very serious concerns, the panel's chairman Benyam Mezmur told a news briefing. "The age of criminal responsibility is very low and there are instances where the death penalty can apply for persons below the age of 18 or for offences they committed while below the age of 18," Mezmur said. There were no figures for the number of executions of children or juvenile offenders, nor those imprisoned, due to secrecy surrounding the cases, he added. --- ENDS --- The Vatican is disputing a US film studio's claim that the pope is making his movie debut, saying no scenes were shot for the venture and that the pope isn't an actor. Pope Francis celebrates a mass for nuns and priest, in St. Peter's Basilica, at the Vatican on February 2, 2016. By AP: The Vatican is disputing a US film studio's claim that the pope is making his movie debut, saying no scenes were shot for the venture and that the pope isn't an actor. Los Angeles-based AMBI Pictures headlined its press release: "Film Will Mark First Ever Big Screen Participation Role for the Leader of the Worldwide Catholic Church." Monsignor Dario Vigano, the head of the Vatican's communications operation, acknowledged that he couldn't exclude that the filmmakers got hold of some clips of the pope. But in comments broadcast on Vatican Radio on Tuesday, Vigano disputed the press release claiming that Francis would "play himself" in the film "Beyond the Sun". advertisement He said: "The pope is not an actor." AMBI described the film as "a family adventure story where children from different cultures emulate the apostles while searching for Jesus in the world around them." AMBI Pictures has produced a handful of releases, including Barry Levinson's "The Humbling", with Al Pacino, and an upcoming John Steinbeck adaptation by James Franco. In November, it drew headlines when it said it would remake Christopher Nolan's "Memento." The company said "Beyond the Sun" initiated with Francis asking the filmmakers to make a movie for children that communicates Jesus's message. The press release was accompanied by photos of the pope with the filmmakers. The Vatican works hard to control the pope's image, enforcing tough copyright restrictions on all visual media, and Vigano's reaction to the announcement was a clear sign that the Vatican didn't appreciate the hype. But Francis has been known to go his own way on several occasions, allowing friends to shoot video of him to convey messages to private gatherings: He delivered such a message to the Argentine Jewish community and to a gathering of American Pentecostals. Vigano's comment that he couldn't exclude that the filmmakers had some footage of the pope suggested that they might have secured some video of him in the privacy of his hotel reception rooms. The organizers said all profits from the film will go to two Argentina-based charities that help at-risk children and young adults. A spokesman for AMBI declined to comment Tuesday. --- ENDS --- "Do I have the right to express my dissent? And if do, then do I become an anti-national?" asked the veteran actor-Director. Veteran filmmaker Amol Palekar today spoke about the recent intolerance debate saying that people have stopped accepting a differing point of view. Speaking on the sidelines of the Kolkata Literature Festival, Palekar said, "We have stopped being receptive to any other point of view. If I can't have a view different from you, then it's not a dialogue, it's a soliloquy. Dialogue means different points of view." advertisement "Just because I don't agree with you doesn't mean I have the right to shut you up," added Palekar. Asked about the silence of a section of the intellectual community over actor Anupam Kher being denied a visa by Pakistan , Palekar said he was against such attempts to shut anyone's voice. "I've always condemned any such attempt to shut one's voice. If a play is banned, if a film is stopped, I've always condemned that," added the veteran actor. Standing by those who have returned awards in protest against 'rising intolerance', Palekar asked, "What's so problematic about it? If an artist feels he can convey his protest by returning his award then let be it." "Do I have the right to express my dissent? And if do, then do I become an anti-national?" asked the veteran actor-Director. Palekar reiterated, "If I've done it with the previous government and I've the right to express myself on the present government as well. I expect this freedom to be given to everyone in this country." Also read: Anupam Kher, Shashi Tharoor fight intolerance war on Twitter Never said India intolerant, I was born here and will die here: Aamir Khan --- ENDS --- He is the man, who for the last 15 years, has kept Google the best damn search engine in the world. By Javed Anwer: Last night Amit Singhal announced that he was retiring from Google. Amit Singhal who? Well, those who keep an eye on Google know him fairly well. Although, he is not as well-known as Larry Page, Sergey Brin, and of late Sundar Pichai, he is probably the single-most important person inside Google. The reason why he is such a big deal in Google is because he runs the company's core search operations. This means, if you use Google Search, whether on the web or on mobile, you use the ideas and features implemented, maintained and conceived by Singhal's team. He is the man, who for the last 15 years, has kept Google the best damn search engine in the world. Singhal's official designation at Google is senior vice president and Google Fellow. The Fellow is particularly noteworthy because this is the tittle Google gives only to its most distinguished engineers. advertisement Want to know more about him? Here you go: 1- Amit Singhal is so important to Google that when he retired last night, Danny Sullivan, a long-time Google watcher and founder of Search Engine Blog, compared it to Jony Ive leaving Apple. Now we all know how important Jony Ive is for Apple. 2- Amit Singhal was born in Jhansi. He still visits his family, friends and relatives in India. 3- According to Singhal, he spent "most of my boyhood in the foothills of the Himalayas". 4- Singhal finished his BS in computer sciences from IIT Roorkee in 1989. He then went to the US. 5- In the US, Singhal studied computer science at University of Minnesota before completing his PhD in computer science from Cornell University. 6- At Cornell, Singhal studied with Prof Gerard Salton. Singhal describes him as "one of the founders of the field of IR (information retrieval). 7- Singhal worked at AT&T's Bell Labs before he was persuaded to join Google by his friend Krishna Bharat. He joined Google in 2000. Incidentally, Bharat was the person behind Google News. 8- Singhal famously re-wrote the original Google algorithm that was created earlier by Larry Page. He reportedly changed it completely to suit the existing challenges. This apparently impressed Larry Page so much that Singhal was put in charge of Google's secret sauce -- its search algorithm -- and was tasked to keep it fresh and relevant. 9- Singhal is a big fan of Star Trek universe and wants to build technologies, such as virtual assistant that understands voice commands, used in the USS Enterprise. 10- When mobile phones started becoming popular, Singhal conceived and developed the idea of "search without searching". This formed the core of Google Now, a feature on Android phones that provides information to users even before they search for it. A woman whose phone tip-off allowed police to corner and kill the ringleader of the Nov. 13 assault on Paris has spoken for the first time of his plans for a follow-up attack and how he bragged about entering France with 90 others from Syria. By Reuters: A woman whose phone tip-off allowed police to corner and kill the ringleader of the Nov. 13 assault on Paris has spoken for the first time of his plans for a follow-up attack and how he bragged about entering France with 90 others from Syria. The woman, in hiding and under police protection, contacted a French radio station to complain of what she deems insufficient support from the public authorities, and she also talked of the events that led police to Islamist militant Abdelhamid Abaaoud. advertisement Abaaoud died when elite police laid siege to his hideout flat in Saint Denis north of Paris on Nov. 18, days after the Islamic State-claimed attacks in which he and a large group of militants killed 130 people in and near the French capital. The woman said she was present when her friend was contacted to find a hideout for Abaaoud, and then met Abaaoud himself. "I said to him: 'but you have killed innocent people'. He says to me, 'no they are not innocent, you should look at what's going on in Syria'," the woman, whose identity was hidden, said in the interview for RMC radio and television news channel BFM. The woman met Abaaoud because she was a friend of his cousin, Hasna Ait Boulahcen, who died alongside Abaaoud in the police raid. The Nov. 13 attacks were claimed by Islamic State, the group that controls swathes of Syria and Iraq and whose positions are being bombed by French jets. The woman said she learned from Abaaoud himself and further conversations with his cousin of his plans to imminently launch new attacks on a creche, police station and shopping mall in the La Defense business district on the western edge of Paris. She says that made her decide to call a special hot line. "She tells me that it's for Thursday and I say to myself I'm going to stop them," the woman said, referring to the moment when her friend Ait Boulahecen told her the precise attack date. Hours later, police laid siege to the flat where Abaaoud was holed up with cousin Ait Boulhacen and a third person who took part with Abaaoud in the Nov. 13 attacks, another Belgian or Moroccan descent, Chakib Akrouh. The Paris prosecutor's office said it was investigating a potential breach of secrecy laws in response to the interview broadcast on Thursday. Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said her media exposure could put her in danger. The woman complained of having no social life, no job and no psychological support more than two months after the attacks, and said she still had no new identity papers to match the false name she was now obliged to use. advertisement Speaking of Abaaoud's lack of remorse and determination to kill more people, the woman said: "He's proud of himself. He tells it as if he'd gone shopping and found a pack of cut-price washing powder. He's happy." She said he also told her of how he and 90 others - Syrians, Iraqis, Germans, French and Britons - entered the country from Syria without any official papers ahead of the attacks. "France is zero," she said he told her. Also read: Paris attacks: President Hollande says Islamic State killed 127 --- ENDS --- From the famous Oscar selfie to Pope to Obama to PM Modi - selfie is the new rage, the new 'cool quotient', the new addiction. By India Today Web Desk: From the high and mighty to the common man, everyone just loves clicking selfies - be it with their favourite stars, best friends, families, holidays, adventures, gym session, food, parties and everything possible that can be captured in one click. From the famous Oscar selfie to Pope to Obama to PM Modi - selfie is the new rage, the new 'cool quotient', the new addiction. advertisement A perfect selfie with pouts or grins then finds itself on social networking site facing the tough litmus test on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or Whatsapp. But is this selfie addiction bordering on mental disorder? At least, the statistics suggest so. Otherwise nothing explains the recent infamous selfie deaths across the globe shockingly - half of them in India. The big question is - with the rapid pace of digital evolution, has the selfie craze moved on to a next dangerous level? According to a report in the Washington Post, most number of selfie deaths in the world occurred in India. Of at least 27 "selfie related" deaths around the world last year, about half occurred in India. The social media fad is turning into a dangerous trend in the country. Selfitis - The new epidemic? Selfitis is defined as obsessive-compulsive desire to take photos of self. Selfies become a way to make up for lack of self-esteem. Borderline selfities: Clicking at least three selfies, not posting on social media. Acute selfitis: Clicking at least three selfies and posting them on social media. Chronic selfitis: Clicking at least six selfies, posting on social media. What doctors say? "Wanting to look good continuously is an obsession. And wanting to look good and show it to others is also an obsession" psychologist Dr. Harish Shetty told India Today TV. Psychiatrist Dr. Jitendra Nagpal added," It is almost like taking drugs and committing suicide. People seem to be in rush to glorify their image without thinking about the rationality and safety behind it." Dr. Sandeep Vohra, psychiatrist at Apollo Hospital, said that people tend to communicate to the world their status through posting selfies on the social media repeatedly. "Many times, while taking selfies, the human brain concentrates on what is happening infront of you and it is oblivious to the fact that what are the dangers around you. this happens because your brain concentrates too much on how you look." advertisement Psychologists say that selfie obsession is often related to past bullying and low self-esteem and in the long run the obsession to snap selfies can lead to an unhealthy professional life, family relations and marital conflicts. India has highest number of selfie deaths On February 1, 16-year-old Dinesh Kumar had gone to Chennai's Vandalur Zoological Park with his friends. But a fun day out turned fatal for Dinesh when he decided to take a selfie next to a speeding train. Dinesh and his friend were walking along the tracks near Vandalur station, when Dinesh thought of clicking a selfie with a speeding train that was passing by. As Dinesh went closer to the tracks, trying to snap a selfie, the speeding train hit him and smashed down his body. Dinesh is only the latest victim of the killer selfie, losing his life over something that has become a craze among the youth. Dinesh is only the latest victim of the killer selfie, losing his life over something that has become a craze among the youth. Two days after Dinesh lost his life, another woman fell off a train while taking a selfie. The Brahmaputra Mail was speeding over the Yamuna river, when the women fell off. Fellow passengers pulled the chain and rescued the woman, who miraculously survived. In Mumbai, three young girls were swept out into the Arabian Sea while taking selfies in Bandstand in Bandra. A man who jumped in to save them, also died. 18-year-old Tarannum Ansari had gone to Bandstand with two of her classmates, for a picnic. She and her friends were standing on the edge of a rocky patch around 50 meters inside the Bandra Fort clicking selfies. Ansari slipped while she was clicking a selfie along with two friends. Tarannum's death prompted the Mumbai police to identify 16 "no-selfie zones" across the city. Last year too, two boys from Visakhapatnam died while taking selfie at the Sariya waterfalls. The boys who had gone for a picnic with their friends were sitting on a rock near the waterfalls and trying to click a selfie, when they accidentally slipped and fell into surging waters. In November, two students died in Gujarat after slipping on the bank of the Narmada canal while trying to take a selfie. In January 2015, three students died while attempting to take a selfie close to a speeding train while they were on their way to Agra. In January 2015, three students died while attempting to take a selfie close to a speeding train while they were on their way to Agra. In Nagpur, seven youth drowned in a lake in March, while attempting to take a selfie. Their boat tipped over when all of them stood up to pose for the picture. In Tamil Nadu, an engineering student died while taking selfies with his friends at the Kolli Hills. The rock on which he was standing cracked and gave way, plunging him to a 60-feet drop. advertisement --- ENDS --- advertisement We need to remember that, psychopaths and other personality disordered individuals really have no choice but to be what they are; they are like forces of nature. But normal human beings DO have a choice as to whether they will accept abuse or not. By accepting abuse, they give power to the psychopaths to abuse others so it is not just a matter of self-preservation; it is a matter of making sure that our children have a future. It seems that, in a world where the people cannot or will not, rise up against psychopathy in power, the Cosmos will do it for them, and take them out as well for their silence and their weakness. The bottom line is, nobody and no event is going to save anyone. It is only human beings, individually and collectively, who have the power to BE salvation. Laura Knight-Jadczyk Investigative reporting from the inner city to Wall Street to the United Nations This is the blogspot version InnerCityPress.com Insurance Back Understand the innovations of the European Payment Market at the 3rd Annual European Payments Forum The 3rd Annual European Payments Forum is an event dedicated to the future challenges that the players activating on the Financial Services domain must overcome, as well as the most efficient solutions to do it. Renowned speakers from all over the world have already announced their presence at the Forum. Among these, we mention Michiel VAN DOEVEREN, Senior Policy Advisor, DNB, Matthias SCHMUDDE, Regional Treasurer, ALSTOM, Lola Hernandez, Researcher and Policy analyst Payments Systems Policy Department, DNB, Ugo BECHIS, E-Payment & SEPA Advisor, UBI Banca and many others. On the first day of the 3rd Annual European Payments Forum, the topics discussed will include aspects such as innovations in retail payments, PSD2, FinTech Innovation and the blockchain technology. The second day of the event will concentrate on subjects such as AML/CFT, payment card fraud, consumers payment behavior, as well as payment factories. The two day event will take place between 3 and 4th of March 2016 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. XPRIMM Publications support the Forum as Media Partner. More details about the complete program and the registration procedure are available here Author: Oana RACATEJ on 04.02.2016 Archive Comment this article 0 comments Atention! "Comment" and "E-mail" are mandatory Name: If you are logged on and you do not fill in your name, will be used the name that you used when you registered If you are not logged on, your name will appear preceded by '(Anonymous)'. For authentication, click here If you are logged on and you do not fill in your name, will be used the name that you used when you registered E-mail: Comment: < 10.000 car. Fill in the code from the image: The Ukrainian parliament has ratified an agreement signed Ukrainian and Japanese governments on the Second Development Policy Loan (DPL II) to carry out economic reforms. A total of 267 MPs backed bill No. 0080 on Thursday. Earlier the lawmakers discussed the bill, although they failed to endorse it. As reported, the Japanese government decided to provide the Second Development Policy Loan in the amount of $300 million via co-financing in the World Bank's Second Development Policy Loan Project. The loan is provided via the Japanese Agency for International Cooperation (JICA) to support the Ukrainian government in its reform program. The agreement was signed on December 4, 2015. Fall in Ukrnafta's production will continue in 2016 despite 2.6-time rise in investment PJSC Ukrnafta, the largest oil company in Ukraine, plans in 2016 to increase investment to UAH 1.3 billion from UAH 500 million last year, which will allow to slow down the decline in production, Ukrnafta Board Chairman Mark Rollins has said. "The planned level of investment will not allow to stabilize production, however the fall will slow down," he told journalists in Kyiv. Rollins added that initially the company planned an investment program for 2016 in the amount of UAH 2.5 billion, but it had to revise downwards because of the fall in oil prices in the world market. According to the company head, Ukrnafta this year will drill three wells (production is scheduled for 2016), as well as renovate the capacity for repairs of electric pump equipment. As reported, Ukrnafta is the largest oil extracting company in the country. Naftogaz Ukrainy owns a 50% plus one share stake in Ukrnafta, a group of companies associated with the shareholders of PrivatBank holds about 42% of the shares. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko believes that Aivaras Abromavicius must remain in the post of the Minister of Economic Development and Trade. "I have met and talked to Aivaras Abromavicius. [...] Aivaras confirmed that he enjoyed my full support of his reform initiatives during all his time in the government, both directly and through the National Reform Council. On my part, such support is also guaranteed in future. I believe that Aivaras must remain the minister and go on with reforms. He's gone to think it over," Poroshenko wrote on his Facebook page late on Wednesday. Ukraine's National Anti-corruption Bureau (NABU) must investigate the facts aired by the minister on Wednesday, Poroshenko said. "Ihor Kononenko has contacted the NABU and said that he is ready to cooperate with it. The administration of this state agency revealed this. The sooner society gets answers to the questions raised, the better," Poroshenko explained. The President recalled that earlier he personally invited Abromavicius to work in the team of Ukrainian reformers and then granted him Ukrainian citizenship and addressed the Petro Poroshenko Bloc faction in the Verkhovna Rada with the proposal to promote him to the post of the economic development minister. According to earlier reports, Abromavicius told a briefing conference in Kyiv on Wednesday that he had decided to resign amid the lack of support and due to the intense resistance to the reforms pursued by his team. Deputy Economic Development and Trade Ministers of Ukraine Yulia Klymenko, Maksym Nefyodov and Natalia Mykolska, who is also Trade Representative of Ukraine, have said that they plan to resign following Minister Aivaras Abromavicuis. "I get many questions, and I want to confirm: yes, I'm resigning jointly with the minister I fully support each word of the minister not because I'm his deputy, but because I'm a responsible citizen and patriot of Ukraine. This is absolutely thoughtful and pragmatic decision. This is not a flight from the battle field, as there was never any battle, but its permanent imitation in which we were deliberately engaged," Klymenko wrote on her Facebook page. Klymenko said that in 10 months in the ministry the Abromavicuis' team has started many reforms which are underway and which cannot be halted. "This is the reform of administrative services and a wide range of reforms that we call deregulation, the public oversight and supervision reform, various programs to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) and many other reforms. The Ukrainian business and citizens really need them. We will further actively support these reforms as activists and we would not allow any corrupted person to stop them," she said. Nefyodov wrote on his Facebook page that he had big plans on the post, but obstacles that he sees would not allow him to realize the plans. "Now to continue working as it is means "death by a thousand cuts." That does not help much, many efforts that could be used for reforms with more profits were burnt," he wrote. Mykolska wrote on her Facebook page that she came to the team of technocrats, and the minister chose her for the post only for professional and moral characters. "My main task was to become an advocate of business of Ukrainian exporters. We fulfilled it jointly with the whole team in the ministry formed by Abromavicuis," she wrote. She also said that she is to finish all top-priority projects in the ministry. According to earlier reports, Abromavicius told a briefing conference in Kyiv on Wednesday that he had decided to resign amid the lack of support and due to the intense resistance to the reforms pursued by his team. Ukrainian authorities fully supports reforms for which the Economic Development and Trade Ministry of Ukraine is responsible, presidential representative at the Cabinet of Ministers Oleksandr Danyliuk has said. "I've talked to key partner IFIs [international financial institutions]. The main message is that the reforms for which the Economic Development and Trade Ministry is responsible will be continued. They are all reflected in programme documents and are fully backed by Ukrainian authorities," he wrote on his Facebook page. Danyliuk also said that the splash caused by a statement of Economic Development and Trade Minister Aivaras Abromavicius is swelling and affects the country's image and its internal stability. He said that Abromavicius feeling the pressure regarding staff appointments should have used his veto right. According to earlier reports, Abromavicius told a briefing conference in Kyiv on Wednesday that he had decided to resign amid the lack of support and due to the intense resistance to the reforms pursued by his team. U.S. to continue training of Ukrainian military to learn their experience of participation of hybrid war Chief of the General Staff and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Viktor Muzhenko and Commander of the U.S. Army in Europe Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges during the working meeting in Kyiv have discussed ingoing developments in the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) zone and a perspective of further training of the Ukrainian military men. As a press service of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported, Muzhenko informed the U.S. party about the situation in the ATO zone and thanked for the support, which U.S. provides to the Ukrainian Army in producing modern Armed Forces. "In the frames of the strategic dialogue Ukrainian party stressed an importance to set up an overwhelming system for training the troops. The final aim of the course for preparation involving U.S. instructors are the trainings of the Ukrainian personnel, which in future will be sent to the education centers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine," reads the report. For its part, the U.S. delegation stressed an importance to continue a course training inviting foreign instructors. Moreover, the U.S. has said it finds important to obtain a Ukrainian experience of taking part in the hybrid war. Over 3.2 million people with flu and acute respiratory illnesses have been registered in Ukraine since the beginning of the epidemiological season (between September 28, 2015 and February 2, 2016) and 192 deaths have been registered, the Health Ministry press service reported on Thursday. "According to operative information, over 3.2 million people with flu and acute respiratory illnesses have been registered since the beginning of the epidemiological season (28.09.2015 - 02.02.2016) in Ukraine, 8.3% of the population have been ill [...] According to operative information, 192 deaths from flu, which have been confirmed by lab tests, have been registered since the beginning of the epidemiological season, including three children under the age of 17 and one death of a pregnant woman. The atypical type A flu virus has been identified in 22 people, the Type B virus has been identified in two people and the Type H1N1 (pdm09) flu virus has been identified in 152 people," the Health Ministry reported. The most lethal cases have been registered in the Odesa region (34), Vinnytsia and Cherkasy regions (13 each), the Zaporizhia region (12), Rivne region and Kyiv (11 each). In the fourth week of 2016, the flu rate exceeded the epidemiological thresholds in 19 regions and Kyiv, and in 11 of them they were exceeded by more than 50%. The flu rate in the 2015-2016 epidemiological season is 41.4% higher than the similar level of the past epidemiological season. The Health Ministry also said only one-third of the people who died had sought timely medical assistance. A study of the deaths showed that none of the victims had had flu shots. A guide to the best and sometimes off the beaten track historical ruins around Ireland and how to get there. What You Can't Discuss: This is a partial list of taboo topics within progressive-left venues around the Arab-Israel conflict. You cannot discuss this material because it undermines the "Palestinian narrative" of perpetual victimhood. This narrative is a club used by the Arab and Muslim enemies of Israel, along with their western progressive allies, to delegitimize that country in preparation for its eventual dissolution. 1) The centuries of Jewish dhimmitude under the boot of Islamic imperialism. 2) The recent construction of Palestinian identity, its connection to Soviet Cold War politics, and how this is an Arab people with a Roman name that refers to Greeks. 3) Arab and Palestinian Koranically-based racism as the fundamental source of the conflict. 4) The ways in which contemporary progressive anti-Zionism serves as a cloak for gross anti-Semitism. 5) The Palestinian theft and appropriation of Jewish history. 6) "Pallywood." 7) The historical connections between the Nazis, the Muslim Brotherhood, and the Palestinian national movement. 8) The perpetual refusal of the Palestinian-Arabs to accept a state for themselves in peace next to the Jewish one. 9) The progressive portrayal of terrorists as those fighting a righteous war of "resistance." 10) The Arab-Palestinian indoctrination of children with Jew hatred. 11) Human rights violations against women, children, and Gay people in the Muslim Middle East. 12) The fact that violent Jihadis call themselves "Jihadis" and claim to love death above life. This is only a partial list, so please let us know the many more that we are missing. [February 03, 2016] Fitch Affirms Little Elm ISD, TX at 'AA-'; Outlook Stable Fitch Ratings has affirmed the rating on the following Little Elm Independent School District, Texas obligations at 'AA-': --$127.9 million unlimited tax (ULT) bonds; --$4.4 million maintenance tax notes. The Rating Outlook is Stable. SECURITY The bonds are payable from an unlimited property tax levy of the district, and also carry the Texas PSF bond guarantee (for more information on the Texas PSF see 'Fitch Affirms Texas PSF Rating at 'AAA'; Outlook Stable', dated Sept. 4, 2014). The maintenance tax notes are payable from a limited (operating) ad valorem tax pledge levied against all taxable property within the district, which cannot exceed $1.17 per $100 taxable assessed valuation (TAV). KEY RATING DRIVERS STRONG REGIONAL ECONOMY; RAPID GROWTH: The district benefits from its proximity to the larger and diverse Dallas Fort-Worth metropolitan statistical area (MSA). Rapid population growth within the district is of some concern, but wealth levels are above average and county unemployment is low. POSITIVE TAX PERFORMANCE: TAV has rebounded strongly due primarily to increased levels of residential construction since the recession. STRONG AND STABLE FINANCES: Positive financial performance enabled by management's conservative budgeting practices and annual enrollment growth has allowed the district to maintain its solid financial position. Liquidity and reserve levels remain high. HIGH DEBT LEVELS: Debt levels are high due to ongoing capital needs associated with rapid enrollment growth. Amortization of principal is slow reflecting the use of capital appreciation bonds (CABs). Carrying costs are moderate given state support for the district's debt and pension plan. TAX RATE SWAP: The voter-approved tax ratification election (TRE) in September 2015 alleviated pressure on the debt service tax rate to remain at or below the state required $0.50 per $100 TAV. The district is using the additional $0.13 to lower the debt service tax rate, thus providing the district with margin to address capital needs. NO RATING DIFFERENTIAL: Fitch does not distinguish between the unlimited and limited tax ratings due to the district's significant financial flexibility. RATING SENSITIVITIES HEALTHY FINANCIAL PROFILE: The district's history of maintaining solid reserves while addressing operating and capital needs indicates continued rating stability. CREDIT PROFILE GROWING SUBURBAN COMMUNITY ON (News - Alert) LAKE LEWISVILLE Little Elm ISD is located about 30 miles north of Dallas in the broader Dallas-Fort Worth MSA in Denton County. Portions of the district and the city of Little Elm are favorably located along developable land near Lake Lewisville. Population gains since 2000 have been rapid. Income and wealth levels generally exceed state and national averages; the county's 2014 median household income of $74,200 was about 40% higher than the state and U.S. NORTHERN EXPANSION OF DFW MSA The ongoing expansion of the MSA produced accelerated growth in Denton County with the district recording double-digit annual gains in TAV for over a decade until fiscal 2010. Recessionary pressures led to moderating TAV trends that quickly rebounded, averaging almost 10% annual growth since fiscal 2012. Certified values for fiscal 2016 show another year of strong growth at 13% due primarily to new residential properties, bringing the tax base to $2.7 billion. Fitch believes management's expectations of additional TAV growth over the near term due to the ongoing development of high-end residential properties appear reasonable. In tandem with TAV, district enrollment (which presently totals about 7,000 students) also experienced rapid growth over the past decade, but has since moderated to a more manageable pace. Enrollment growth averaged a healthy 2.6% over fiscal years 2009-2015 and comparable 3% - 5% annual increases are projected in the near- to mid-term. In addition to participating in the larger MSA employment base, the Denton County economy continues to experience growth. Major employment sectors include higher education, healthcare, manufacturing, and retail trade. County unemployment rates remain below state and national averages; as of November 2015, the rate stood at 3.5%, compared to the state (4.2%) and U.S. (5.0%). TAX RATE SWAP The district's maintenance & operation (M&O) tax rate increased to the maximum rate of $1.17 per $100 of TAV in fiscal 2016 following a voter-approved transfer of $0.13 from the debt service fund, lowering the I&S rate to $0.37 per $100 TAV. The tax rate swap provides the district with approximately $1 million in additional state aid for operations, which flows to the general fund balance each fiscal year for subsequent transfer to the debt service fund. Fitch views the tax rate structure as unconventional, but notes a number of Texas school districts have instituted similar swaps and also recognizes the debt service tax rate could be raised without voter authorization to repay outstanding debt or reversed if needed. STRONG FINANCIAL PROFILE The district maintains a strong financial profile and significant financial flexibility despite operating pressures associated with enrollment growth. Conservative budgeting practices have enabled actual year-end results that typically outperform budgeted expectations. The district's fiscal 2014 and 2015 year-end financial positions were solid, adding $3 million and $1.6 million to fund balance, respectively. Unrestricted general fund reserves totaled $23.2 million or 43.6% of spending at fiscal 2015 year-end, which remained well above the district's adopted fund balance policy requiring an unrestricted balance equal to a prudent 24% of spending. Liquidity remained strong with fiscal 2015 cash and investments at $27.5 million or over six months of the year's operating expenditures. The fiscal 2016 $61 million operating budget was adopted with a slight deficit ($584,000) and reflects an increase of nearly 15% from the prior year, largely bolstered by the TRE. Management reports year-to-date operations comparable to budget with enrollment trends slightly ahead. HIGH DEBT RATIOS The district's debt levels remain high but have moderated in recent years. Debt ratios include currently accreted interest from outstanding CABs, which minimize near-term tax rate impacts and shift debt burden to future taxpayers. The overall debt ratio totals a high 9.4% of market value or $8,065 per capita once overlapping debt is considered. Amortization is slow with 26% retired in 10 years. Annual debt service is projected to remain fairly level at about $11 million throughout most of the amortization schedule (MADS occurs in fiscal 2017 at $11.5 million). The district plans to issue the remaining $21 million in ULT bond authorization this spring for renovations at the high school. The district is currently conducting a facilities study that will determine the amount and timing of additional bond issuance and will be contingent upon tax base and enrollment growth. LIMITED PENSION/OPEB OBLIGATIONS The district participates in the Texas Teachers Retirement System (TRS), a cost-sharing multiple employer defined benefit plan. The state assumes the vast majority of Texas school districts' net pension liabilities and the corresponding employer contributions. However, like all Texas school districts, it is vulnerable to future policy changes by the state as evidenced by a relatively modest 1.5% of salary contribution requirement effective fiscal 2015. Legislative changes in 2013 increased the state's annual contributions, although it remains to be seen whether this improves TRS's ratio of assets to liabilities over time. Under GASB 68, the district reports its share of the TRS net pension liability (NPL) at $6.8 million, with fiduciary assets covering 83.25% of total pension liabilities at the plan's 8% investment rate assumption (approximately 75% based on a more conservative 7% investment rate assumption). The NPL represents less than 3/10ths of 1% of the district's fiscal 2015 market value. Carrying costs for debt service, pension and OPEB are moderate at 19% of fiscal 2015 governmental spending, although composed almost entirely of debt service. TEXAS SCHOOL FUNDING LITIGATION A Texas district judge ruled in August 2014 that the state's school finance system is unconstitutional. The ruling, which was in response to a consolidation of six lawsuits representing 75% of Texas school children and was the second such ruling in the past two years, found the system inefficient, inequitable, and underfunded. The judge also ruled that local school property taxes are effectively a statewide property tax due to lack of local discretion and therefore are unconstitutional. The Texas attorney general has appealed the judge's latest ruling to the state supreme court. If the state school finance system is ultimately found unconstitutional, the legislature would likely follow with changes intended to restore its constitutionality. Fitch would consider any changes that include additional funding for schools and more local discretion over tax rates to be a credit positive. Additional information is available at 'www.fitchratings.com'. Fitch recently published an exposure draft of state and local government tax-supported criteria (Exposure Draft: U.S. Tax-Supported Rating Criteria, dated Sept. 10, 2015). The draft includes a number of proposed revisions to existing criteria. If applied in the proposed form, Fitch estimates the revised criteria would result in changes to less than 10% of existing tax-supported ratings. Fitch expects that final criteria will be approved and published by the end of the first quarter of 2016. Once approved, the criteria will be applied immediately to any new issue and surveillance rating review. Fitch anticipates the criteria to be applied to all ratings that fall under the criteria within a 12-month period from the final approval date. In addition to the sources of information identified in Fitch's applicable criteria specified below, this action was informed by information from Lumesis and the Municipal Advisory Council of Texas. Applicable Criteria Exposure Draft: U.S. Tax-Supported Rating Criteria (pub. 10 Sep 2015) https://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=869942 Tax-Supported Rating Criteria (pub. 14 Aug 2012) https://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=686015 U.S. Local Government Tax-Supported Rating Criteria (pub. 14 Aug 2012) https://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/reports/report_frame.cfm?rpt_id=685314 Additional Disclosures Dodd-Frank Rating Information Disclosure Form https://www.fitchratings.com/creditdesk/press_releases/content/ridf_frame.cfm?pr_id=998981 Solicitation Status https://www.fitchratings.com/gws/en/disclosure/solicitation?pr_id=998981 Endorsement Policy https://www.fitchratings.com/jsp/creditdesk/PolicyRegulation.faces?context=2&detail=31 ALL FITCH CREDIT RATINGS ARE SUBJECT TO CERTAIN LIMITATIONS AND DISCLAIMERS. PLEASE READ THESE LIMITATIONS AND DISCLAIMERS BY FOLLOWING THIS LINK: HTTP://FITCHRATINGS.COM/UNDERSTANDINGCREDITRATINGS. IN ADDITION, RATING DEFINITIONS AND THE TERMS OF USE OF SUCH RATINGS ARE AVAILABLE ON THE AGENCY'S PUBLIC WEBSITE 'WWW.FITCHRATINGS.COM'. PUBLISHED RATINGS, CRITERIA AND METHODOLOGIES ARE AVAILABLE FROM THIS SITE AT ALL TIMES. FITCH'S CODE OF CONDUCT, CONFIDENTIALITY, CONFLICTS OF INTEREST, AFFILIATE FIREWALL, COMPLIANCE AND OTHER RELEVANT POLICIES AND PROCEDURES ARE ALSO AVAILABLE FROM THE 'CODE OF CONDUCT' SECTION OF THIS SITE. FITCH MAY HAVE PROVIDED ANOTHER PERMISSIBLE SERVICE TO THE RATED ENTITY OR ITS RELATED THIRD PARTIES. DETAILS OF THIS SERVICE FOR RATINGS FOR WHICH THE LEAD ANALYST IS BASED IN AN EU-REGISTERED ENTITY CAN BE FOUND ON THE ENTITY SUMMARY PAGE FOR THIS ISSUER ON THE FITCH WEBSITE. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160203006408/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 03, 2016] ProfNet Experts Available on Ted Cruz, Voting Technology, Zika Virus, More NEW YORK, Feb. 3, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Below are experts from the ProfNet network that are available to discuss timely issues in your coverage area. You can also submit a query to the hundreds of thousands of experts in our network it's easy and free! Just fill out the query form to get started: http://prn.to/alertswire. EXPERT ALERTS Ted Cruz Not Eligible to Serve as President Voting Machine Technology Modern Investigative Technology Crucial in Government Investigations Aliens, History, Religion and 'The X-Files' Zika Virus The Zika Virus and Its Spread MEDIA JOBS Sports Editor Albert Lea Tribune (MN) Deputy Metro Editor Hartford Courant (CT) County Government Reporter Daytona Beach News-Journal (FL) OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES Broadcast Journalists and Social Media: The Rules of Engagement 6 Ways to Localize 2016 Presidential Campaign Coverage for Your Audience Journalist Spotlight: Alex Kasprak , BuzzFeed EXPERT ALERTS: Ted Cruz Not Eligible to Serve as President Therese Cingranelli Adjunct Lecturer Binghamton University There is renewed debate regarding the eligibility of U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz -- born in Canada to an American mother and a Cuban father -- to serve as president of the United States. Cruz has cited the U.S. Naturalization Law of March 26, 1790, and the Naturalization Act of 1795 as the basis of his claim that he is eligible to run for and serve as president. According to Cingranelli, Cruz's case is weak, since only natural-born citizens of the United States can serve as president: "Cruz was born in Canada, but our neighboring country to the north is not a territory, military base, or embassy of the United States. Before he could become president, a new law would have to be enacted. Until that happens, Cruz may run for president. He just can't serve as president." Website: www.binghamton.edu Contact: John Brhel, [email protected] Voting Machine Technology Suzanne Mello-Stark, Ph.D. Computer Science Faculty Worcester Polytechnic Institute "Each election, voters rely on machines from proprietary vendors to carry out democracy. We cast our vote and walk away with little to no evidence that our vote has been counted. In my opinion, this is an exciting problem that has yet to be solved." Based in Worcester, Mass., Mello-Stark is available to discuss voting machine technology; voting machine vulnerability; election auditing (forensics); digital and cyber security of voting machines and their data; public trust in elections; voting security and privacy; trends in and concerns with new and old voting technology; cybersecurity training; and the CyberCorps: Scholarship for Service program. Mello-Stark has served as a technical advisor to various election board. Website: www.wpi.edu Contact: Alison Duffy, [email protected] Modern Investigative Technology Crucial in Government Investigations Thomas D. Coogan Associate Dean for Forensics, Director of the Stevenson University for Forensic Excellence, Department Chair and Professor of Forensic Studies Stevenson University, School of Graduate and Professional Studies "The explosion of email and mobile device communications has resulted in today's internal government investigations requiring careful planning and aggressive utilization of investigative technology. Whether it's a congressional oversight committee looking into how a former secretary of state handled sensitive email, or an inspector genera auditing or investigating if a government contracting officer took a bribe, today's internal government investigators need to have the technical and analytical skills to find the incriminating needle in a haystack of electronic communications. Common frauds against the government, such as contractors who overcharge for their goods or services or grantees who misappropriate taxpayer dollars, involve massive amounts of data. The only effective way to conduct a timely and effective internal investigation is to know how to use modern investigative technology." Baltimore , Coogan has more than 25 years of experience in law enforcement (various Federal Offices of Inspector General, U.S. Secret Service), as a federal judicial law clerk, law associate ( Venable and Whiteford Taylor ), U.S. Department of Justice, and in various agency positions (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, U.S. Postal Service, and Legal Services Corporation). He has testified at congressional hearings on various topics, and has contributed articles to the Journal of Public Inquiry, Fraud Magazine and other publications. He received his law degree and master's in forensic science from Antioch College , and a bachelor's from Hamilton College , then attended the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center and U.S. Secret Service Academy. He is licensed to practice law in New Hampshire , Maryland and the District of Columbia . He is a frequent presenter at educational events and symposiums, and is comfortable with live or taped interviews, video and photography. He can discuss white-collar crime, fraud and embezzlement, as well as internal government investigations. He can also provide legal perspective on congressional investigations or involvement in cases or investigations through inspector general offices or other law enforcement agencies. Bio: http://www.stevenson.edu/graduate-professional-studies/graduate-programs/business-technology-management/ Contact: Kristi Betz , [email protected] Aliens, History, Religion and 'The X-Files' Joseph Packer Assistant Professor Central Michigan University "Most people think that it's important one way or another whether alien life exists. If there is no alien life, we have a special place in the universe. We have a purpose. It's a component of some major religions, like Scientology. Mormonism has a big component about aliens. Raelism, which is a big UFO-based religion primarily based in Europe, is another example. There also are connections with Nazism in the early UFO movement that few people know about." Packer, communication faculty member and author of "Alien Life and Human Purpose: A Rhetorical Examination Through History," is available to speak about the way major historical figures connect their arguments for the absence of alien life, or "unity," to their philosophical, religious, and ethical agendas -- giving a unique, historical perspective to the scenes you might see during this season's "The X-Files." Website: https://www.cmich.edu/news/ Contact: Rachel Esterline Perkins, [email protected] Zika Virus Thomas Voss, Ph.D. Executive Director, Discovery Biology, and Senior Director, Infectious Disease Research SRI Biosciences "Recent recognition of the potential role of Zika infection in microcephaly among babies born to mothers that had Zika infection highlights the need for more intensive focus on 'special populations' that may be particularly vulnerable to negative outcomes from emerging infectious diseases, such as those with underlying disease or special health status such as pregnancy. The rapid expansion of Zika virus-infected mosquitos, and the frequent travel of people and products into and out of endemic areas, significantly heightens the need for increased surveillance, diagnostics and vaccines for Zika and other, related viruses to protect these special populations." Dr. Voss is a world-renowned thought leader in infectious disease research, and has deep expertise in virology, immunology, biodefense, and vaccine and antiviral development. His team at SRI Biosciences has already begun directing their expertise and unique tools toward the evaluation of treatments, vaccines, and diagnostics against Zika virus. From 1998 to 2005, Dr. Voss served as vice president of the Homeland Security and Emerging Infectious Disease Division at Southern Research Institute. His postdoctoral training in viral pathogenesis was completed in the Special Pathogens Branch of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. He can discuss the process involved in identifying diagnostics, vaccines and treatments when starting with an emerging threat such as Zika, including what resources are required, what are the steps, and what timeline we can expect. ProfNet Profile: http://www.profnetconnect.com/thomasvoss Contact: Michele Parisi, [email protected] The Zika Virus and Its Spread Rik Heller Chairman and Founder Freshloc Technologies and Wello Inc. "Fever screening is a more important capability than ever in times like these. In addition, humidity monitoring could make a difference." Heller can discuss the Zika virus and its spread, including how hospitals and public food services can prevent infectious disease, and how temperature monitoring helped prevent the spread of Ebola virus in Dallas. ProfNet Profile: http://www.profnetconnect.com/rikheller Contact: Jeannie Lewis, [email protected] MEDIA JOBS: Following are links to job listings for staff and freelance writers, editors and producers. You can view these and more job listings on our Job Board: https://prnmedia.prnewswire.com/community/jobs/ Sports Editor Albert Lea Tribune (MN) Deputy Metro Editor Hartford Courant (CT) County Government Reporter Daytona Beach News-Journal (FL) OTHER NEWS & RESOURCES: Following are links to other news and resources we think you might find useful. If you have an item you think other reporters would be interested in and would like us to include in a future alert, please drop us a line. BROADCAST JOURNALISTS AND SOCIAL MEDIA: THE RULES OF ENGAGEMENT. Anchors, reporters, producers and photographers in television newsrooms across the country increasingly rely on social media in rather innovative ways to engage with viewers and gather elements for stories. We recently hosted a Twitter Q&A with Emmy Award-winning anchor Michelle Li of WISC-TV, the CBS affiliate in Madison, Wisc . Li shared her insight on how broadcasters use the tools on the job and offered tips on using social media platforms: http://prn.to/1lWAkD5 of WISC-TV, the CBS affiliate in . Li shared her insight on how broadcasters use the tools on the job and offered tips on using social media platforms: http://prn.to/1lWAkD5 6 WAYS TO LOCALIZE 2016 PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN COVERAGE FOR YOUR AUDIENCE. It's an all too common tale for today's media. Newsrooms are changing. Technology is being pushed to the forefront. All the while budgets are tightening. So for those covering the 2016 election, finding the funds to send front-line staff may be out of the question especially for smaller news organizations. But just because you're not on the campaign trail doesn't mean you don't have an interesting story to tell. If anything, telling the untold stories of your community may be the most distinctive and most relevant to your audience. Here are six ways to give your audience smart and meaningful coverage from your home seat: http://prn.to/20vGsli JOURNALIST SPOTLIGHT: ALEX KASPRAK , BUZZFEED. For this month's Journalist Spotlight feature, we caught up with Alex Kasprak , a science writer with BuzzFeed, who gave us some insight into his daily work life: http://prn.to/1K7afwI PROFNET is an exclusive service of PR Newswire. Logo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20150604/220954 To view the original version on PR Newswire, visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/profnet-experts-available-on-ted-cruz-voting-technology-zika-virus-more-300214742.html SOURCE ProfNet [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] [February 04, 2016] Digitalization of CGI's utility solutions portfolio transforms clients' decision-making capability and workforce productivity Stock Market Symbols GIB.A (TSX) GIB (NYSE) www.cgi.com/newsroom Digital enhancements recognized at the 2015 Innovations Awards MONTREAL, Feb. 4, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - CGI (TSX: GIB.A) (NYSE: GIB) today announced new digital enhancements to its next-generation Pragma utility portfolio of solutions. The new digital features enable intelligent automation of critical processes in the outage management life cycle to improve decision support, while providing field technicians with leading-edge mobile tools for increasing workforce productivity and customer satisfaction. The Pragma solutions portfolio now includes PragmaCAD, PragmaFIELD, PragmaLINE and PragmaScout. "Network outages can be very challenging for utilities providers," said David Hotte, Vice-President for CGI's Utility Solutions. "Clients need advanced digital solutions to support cross-functional workflowsfrom the collection of outage data to communications to and from the field. Providing an ccurate flow of information and real-time updates helps them better manage and improve outage and restoration response as well as overall workforce performance. Through our end-to-end digital solutions set, we help clients digitize their environment to address evolving customer and mobile workforce demands." The new PragmaFIELD solution is a sophisticated mobility platform developed with the latest HTML5 technologies. Integrated with CGI's PragmaCAD enterprise mobile workforce management solution, PragmaFIELD supports seamless, web-enabled mobilityanytime, anywhere. The solution delivers the device-agnostic flexibility required for today's "bring your own device" (BYOD) environment. To meet growing utility customer demands for improved service reliability and customer service expectations, CGI's PragmaLINE outage and network management solution features was redesigned with an intuitive user interface to put the power of anytime, anywhere information into the hands of customers with current, interactive service/outage data. PragmaSCOUT, CGI's new mobile damage assessment application, delivers on-the-ground situational assessments of storm-impacted areas so utilities providers can respond more quickly to power issues. CGI's new Pragma portfolio features are the result of a four-year research and development program conducted in partnership with the Computer Research Institute of Montreal (CRIM), an effort recognized at the 2015 Innovation Awards Gala late last year in Montreal where CGI won top honours in the Technological Partnership category. The event was sponsored by the Association for the Development of Research and Innovation in Quebec (ADRIQ), an organization supporting innovation and commercial success resulting from technological collaborations. About CGI Founded in 1976, CGI Group Inc. is the fifth largest independent information technology and business process services firm in the world. Approximately 65,000 professionals serve thousands of global clients from offices and delivery centers across the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific, leveraging a comprehensive portfolio of services including high-end business and IT consulting, systems integration, application development and maintenance, infrastructure management as well as 150 IP-based services and solutions. With annual revenue in excess of C$10 billion and an order backlog exceeding C$20 billion, CGI shares are listed on the TSX (GIB.A) and the NYSE (GIB). Website: www.cgi.com. SOURCE CGI Group Inc. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] Altman Vilandrie & Company Promotes Kate Rodriguez to Principal Altman Vilandrie & Company, a strategy consulting firm focused on the communications, media and related technology sectors, recently promoted Kate Rodriguez to principal. Rodriguez, who joined Altman Vilandrie & Company in 2010, advises the firm's Telecommunications, Media and Technology (TMT) sector and private equity clients on a range of business and marketing strategy issues. She is based at the firm's San Francisco office. This Smart News Release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160204005924/en/ Altman Vilandrie & Company has promoted Kate Rodriguez to principal (Photo: Business Wire) "Kate has done exemplary work over the past five years and will make a great addition to our leadership team," said Altman Vilandrie & Company COO Steve Conway. "Kate's strategic approach and strong analytics have helped our clients meet their objectives in a variety of areas, including growth strategy, go-to-market planning, and M&A." During recent client engagements, Rodriguez provided marketing strategy and optimization for a telecom operator, advised a fiber provider on network deployment planning, and developed a customer segmentation strategy for a cloud services and data center company. In addition, she advises private equity firms on investment opportunities in the data center, cloud, M2M, and fiber industries. Rodriguez earned a B.A. from Stanford University and a M.B.A. in Finance from the University of Texas at Austin, where she was a presidential scholar. Before graduate school, she worked for several years at Accenture (News - Alert). About Altman Vilandrie & Company Altman Vilandrie & Company is a strategy consulting group that focuses on the telecom, media, technology and investor sectors. The company's consultants are experienced in strategy, marketing, finance, M&A, technology, regulatory and operations disciplines. Based in Boston, with offices in New York City and San Francisco, Altman Vilandrie & Company enables clients to seize new opportunities, navigate mounting challenges, improve business performance, and increase investor value within complex and converging industries. Ninety percent of the boutique firm's operator clients are large- to mid-cap companies including service providers, technology and software developers, and media companies. Altman Vilandrie & Company's financial clients include many of the largest and most prominent investors in the telecom, media and technology markets. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160204005924/en/ Ventings from a guy with an unhealthy interest in budgets, policy, the dismal science, life in the Upper Midwest, and brilliant beverages. Coles County sheriff Vehicles driven by Jaryd L. Webster of West Union and Jean A. Evans, 225 S. Franklin Drive, Charleston, were involved in an accident at the intersection of Westfield Road and County Road 2250E at 5:40 a.m. Jan. 7. Webster, 23, was cited for failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident. -- -- -- The vehicle driven by Ronald Van Ness, 59, 309 Washington St., Lerna, hit a sign on a Paradise Township Road at 8:20 a.m. Jan. 16. Van Ness was cited for driving under the influence of alcohol and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident. -- -- -- The vehicle driven by Melvin M. Norton, 46, of Kansas hit a building and a sign at intersection of Illinois Route 16 and Illinois Street in Ashmore at 6:10 p.m. Jan. 21. Norton was cited for improper lane use and operating an uninsured vehicle. -- -- -- Vehicles driven by Nathan L. Maroon of Neoga and Aaron L. Taylor, 1438 E. County Road 750N, Mattoon, were involved in an accident at the intersection of County Roads 200E and 750N at 3:34 p.m. Jan. 25. Maroon, 16, was cited for disregarding a traffic control device. Charleston fire Firefighters responded to a fire alarm set off by burnt food at 11:34 p.m. Friday at Lawson Hall. Charleston police Vehicles driven by Alyeshia Bradley of Chicago and Eric Olszewski of Mattoon were involved in an accident at 3:04 p.m. Jan. 27 at the intersection of the 1600 block alley between Seventh Street and Ninth Street and Grant Avenue. Bradley was cited for failing to yield at a private road or drive. -- -- -- Vehicles driven by Creighton Scott of Mattoon and Thomas White, 918 C St., were involved in an accident at 12 p.m. Friday at the intersection of Lincoln Avenue and Second Street. Scott was cited for following too closely. Eastern Illinois University Police Coraima Vazquez-Arreola, 19, of Berwyn was arrested at 7 p.m. Jan 28 at 12 W. Lincoln Ave. She was charged with DUI-drugs and released at 10:53 p.m. after posting 10 percent of a $1,000 bond. Mattoon fire Firefighters responded at 2:45 p.m. Wednesday to a report of smoke inside a residence at 3308 Western Ave. Material was found to be smoldering on top of a water heater, but there was no fire or damage to the residence. They were on scene for approximately an hour. News Story not available This story has been published on: 2022-10-20. To contact the author, please use the contact details within the article. This story is no longer available on our site. Stephen Maturen/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson said he thinks Ted Cruz's campaign's "dirty tricks" may have affected the outcome of the Iowa caucuses. "I think it did, yes," he said Wednesday at a news conference at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. "I was getting a lot of intelligence from a lot of different places saying I was going to do extraordinarily well. And I do think it affected that." During the caucuses on Monday night, a few of Cruz's campaign staff had forwarded a CNN report in an email to Iowa precinct captains saying that Carson was "taking time off" from campaigning and "making a big announcement next week." The email also encouraged to "inform any Carson caucus goers of this news and urge them to caucus for Cruz." Its clear that there were people who tried to take advantage of a situation, who tried to distort information," Carson said. "Sen. Cruz told me that he was not aware of that when I talked to him, and that he did not agree with that kind of thing. Well wait and see what he does to demonstrate that. Cruz said in an interview with Fox News on Tuesday: "That was a mistake on our part and, as I said, my respect and admiration for Ben could not be higher. Carson finished a distant fourth in Mondays Iowa Caucuses, garnering 9 percent of the vote and finishing behind Ted Cruz, Donald Trump and Marco Rubio. We would like to say how disappointed we are in the dirty tricks that were played in tonights campaign," Carson's campaign Manager Barry Bennett said Monday night. "To have campaigns come out and send emails to their caucus speakers and suggest that Dr. Carson is doing anything but staying in this race is low in American politics and we are very sorry to see that have happened. The former neurosurgeon would not directly answer whether he think Cruz should fire the staffers that started the rumors. "If he's in total agreement with it, then he doesn't have to make any changes," Carson said Wednesday. But Carson brought up his own campaign staff shakeup: When I discovered that there were things in my campaign that I couldnt agree with after really doing an investigation. I made changes and I think thats what a good leader does. If there are things that are going on that you dont agree with, you have to make changes. Fellow GOP candidate Donald Trump also jumped into the fray on Twitter. Many people voted for Cruz over Carson because of this Cruz fraud, Trump tweeted. Also, Cruz sent out a VOTER VIOLATION certificate to thousands of voters. The real estate mogul argued for a new election or for the Texas senator's results to be nullified. Carson noted Wednesday that that he started his campaign as a "reluctant warrior" but pledged to continue as a presidential candidate. "I will continue to be a voice," Carson said. Copyright 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. MATTOON -- Additional theatrical performances at the train depot and a third mural downtown are in the works for 2016. These projects were discussed when Mattoon Arts Council Chairwoman Beth Heldebrandt presented an annual report during the Mattoon City Council meeting Tuesday evening. The council also approved the plans and specifications for constructing the new Heritage Park downtown. Heldebrandt said the Charleston Alley Theatre brought theatrical performances to the depot's newly opened Lone Elm Room for the first time with productions of "A Lion in Winter" and "Dracula in 2015. The theater plans to perform a Shakespearean play there from May 5-8. The Arts Council also has held annual quilt shows and holiday art sales, workshops, live music, and other events in the Lone Elm Room. "Our Lone Elm Room at the depot has been quite a success story for us. We have events going on in there all the time," Heldebrandt said. She added that the room is also regularly reserved by groups other than the Arts Council as well. Tourism Director Angelia Burgett said the Mattoon High School Drama Club will hold one-act plays on Friday and Saturday in the Lone Elm Room. She said this will be the first time that an MHS group has held an event there. Burgett said she also is excited about the Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra holding a workshop on March 1 in the Lone Elm Room while this group is in the area for a performance at the Eastern Illinois University Doudna Fine Arts Center. Heldebrandt said the Arts Council also helps with events outside of the depot, such as the Mattoon Public Library's summer movie showings at Lytle Park and the "Lunch & Music" series that Sound Source Music co-sponsors in Progress Square downtown. In addition, Heldebrandt said the Arts Council also offers a full day of art-related activities downtown every summer during the Artworks festival. "We really feel like we are making the depot and the downtown area a destination for the city," Heldebrandt said. The Arts Council also has assisted with efforts to place two murals on walls downtown in recent years. Burgett said the wall to the east of the depot will provide the surface for the planned third mural later this year, with the help of $50,000 in grant funding from the Lumpkin Family Foundation. Other actions taken by the council Tuesday included: Approving the plans and specifications for the construction of the new Heritage Park this year at the southwest corner of Broadway Avenue and 17th Street. The construction will be funded with a $500,000 grant from the Lumpkin Family Foundation. Awarding bids for the 2016 general street maintenance program to Howell Asphalt Co. for hot mix asphalt for $78 per ton and cold mix asphalt for $68 per ton, CCI Redi-Mix for PC concrete for $98 per cubic yard, and Tuscola Builders, Inc. for CA-6 aggregate for $13.70 per ton. Honoring retiring Assistant Street Superintendent Stan Kenton for his more than 36 years of service with the city. Forget the old wisdom that opines that kids think they know everything when they're 18 ... that age could be 9 now. At a recent family gathering, my just-turned-9-year-old niece Grace came in the house -- there was snow on the ground but it was warm enough for the kids to play outside -- to talk to my 10-year-old nephew Tyler's mom. "Tyler keeps throwing snowballs at me," Grace complained. "Were you outside?" Tyler's mom inquired. "Yes," Grace said. "Then he's going to throw snowballs at you," his mom advised. (I wonder if this could be a genetic trait?) With a little huff as she walked away, Grace complained, "Why couldn't you have raised a better son?!" I laughed out loud. A 9-year-old telling an adult that they could have better raised a child is just too funny. I didn't bother to tell Grace that at 10, Tyler isn't "raised" just yet. And I didn't see for sure, but I think she went right back outside and the snowballs kept flying from both sides. Besides, in my family, when it comes to the rough-and-tumble play, the girls give as good as they get. That fits with a little news snippet I saw this week. Top U.S. military generals told senators on Tuesday, according to the Associated Press, that they think women should have to register for the draft. They also noted it will take up to three years to fully integrate women into all combat jobs, the AP reported. Well. The government isn't known for its speediness, now, is it? Absolutely women should have to register for the draft, just as men do. Equality is just that -- equality. Now don't get me wrong -- of course there are differences between genders, and pleasant and complementary ones at that, obviously. Women don't physiologically have the same makeup as men. Women and men, by and large, don't think in the same processes. But that doesn't mean women shouldn't be just as responsible when it comes to defending our country. It's only right that standards won't be lowered to allow women into more grueling jobs, as military leaders have repeatedly said will not happen. And it's only common sense that they've warned that inherent physical differences and different injury rates between men and women will impact how the integration proceeds, as the AP reported. But it's time for women to be allowed the opportunity to step up. No, not every women should be allowed in any job in the military, or allowed into the military at all. Some people just don't have the physical or mental attributes demanded of soldiers, sailors or Marines. But that's true of men as well. Of course, I've never been in the military. Maybe that makes it easy for me to say that integration makes sense. It just seems fair and sensible to me. I wouldn't blame a trained combat soldier who happens to be a man for being wary of having just any woman -- or just any man, for that matter -- have his back out in the field. But women will have to pay their dues, do the work, show they can make it -- or they won't be sent out into the field in the first place. At least, they shouldn't. The AP story noted that political leaders so far have been reluctant to require registration for the selective service at age 18 for women, as it is for men. Yet the military chiefs favor the idea. Politics shouldn't be the first decider here: Equality should be. After that, as far as where women are placed in service, readiness and being suitable for duty obviously should be key. That's actually the way it works now, isn't it? Every 18-year-old male American registers for the draft. If a draft were to occur, however, not every single one of those men would be accepted for active duty. Some might have a disease that makes them ineligible. Some just might not have the physique, and perhaps no amount of basic training would change that. Apply the same standards to women, and there you go. Gosh, it sure is simple when I'm writing about it in a little newspaper column. Turnabout is fair play, though, boys and girls. Let's dive right into another controversial topic: Fathers should have equal say in the birth and raising of children, too. No one should have the option for an abortion, in my opinion. That's another can of worms. But a woman shouldn't have more say than a man when pregnancy occurs. It takes both of them to create the child -- not 1/4 of a man's sperm and 3/4 of a woman's egg. It's one of each, and there's no substitute. I know, I know -- there's always the old "it's a woman's body" argument. That's crap, if you ask me -- which you didn't. I say, once an egg is fertilized -- and we know, because we have this thing called "science," that, left uninterrupted, that fertilized egg will soon be a baby -- it is the woman's responsibility to carry the child to term. It's the man's responsibility to support this as well. I won't get into the whole what-if-the-woman's-life-was-in-danger, or what if it was a rape, etc., kinds of arguments. That's not the point I'm trying to make. A child is the equal responsibility of the father and the mother. It's not fair to try to cut men out of the equation or give them less of a say in that child's life. Of course, there are plenty of men who walk away. Many a single mother, then, is left to care for a youngster on her own. But sometimes the reverse happens. Sometimes a good father is trying to do what's right and can't get equal treatment when it comes to control over a child's raising. Equality is equality. Some women want into the military in the interest of equality, or just because being in the service is what they want to do. Fair enough. Most fathers want equal say over their children, as mothers have. Again, that's just fair. Separate but equal is not equal, as everyone should have learned long ago. Women have much to offer the military that perhaps is lacking in a male-dominated endeavor. At the least, many women have much to contribute right alongside their male counterparts in the service. Good dads are needed by their children and by mothers, too. Females may nourish babies in the womb and give birth, but good fathers are equally responsible for that child. Then again, this entire column is moot. I've never been in the military, so my opinion doesn't count. I don't have children, so I'm not allowed an opinion there, either. I guess women who are just as invested in America as men are don't need any say in serving in the military. Fathers who happen to not physically carry a child aren't entitled to their opinion on abortion, either, right? Oh heck. Who has all the answers? Maybe I'll find a few 9-year-olds and ask them. They oughta know. Job Description For over 70 years, Plan International unites and inspires people around the globe to transform the world and make positive lasting changes in childrens lives through the active involvement of children, and working at the grassroots with no religious, political or governmental affiliation. Plan International is looking for Country ECCD Coordinator to play a vital role in our mission to achieve lasting improvements in the quality of life of deprived children in developing countries. .Working with the team, the post holder is responsible to take lead in technically managing all ECCD projects and contributing technical expertise towards acquiring new ECCD resources in order to achieve set strategic directions in PIEs CSP. She/he supports the team at the Program Areas (PAs) in planning, implementation, partnership management and reporting of the projects Our vision is of a world in which all children realise their full potential in societies that respect peoples rights and dignity. Working with us, you will be entitled to a wide range of employee benefits, such as Monthly Transportation Allowance, Monthly Pension & PF Contribution of 15% of basic salary, Annual Medical Allowance, 24 hours GPA Insurance and others. Plan also provides a number of capacity development opportunities to its employees including Talent Management Programme. To be successful, you need to have BA/M.A in Psychology, Education or any related discipline and 2 years of work experience for MSc and 5 years of experience for BSc with considerable experience in managing Education projects Closing date: Feb 17, 2016 Your rating: none Rating: 0 0 votes How to Apply The closing date for the application is Feb 17, 2016. Qualified candidates should submit the application form found with this linkhttp://docs.ethiojobs.net/Plan_Int_Application_Form.docx through www.Ethiojobs.net We only short list those applicants who send the complete application form. We do not accept CVs and other supporting documents at this stage Please note: in order to apply for this role you must be able to demonstrate your eligibility to work in Ethiopia. Thank you in advance for your interest in this position. Please note that only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted by Plan for follow-up. More information about Plan can be found on http:// plan-international.org Child Protection Policy: References will be taken and background and anti-terrorism checks will be carried out for the successful candidate in conformity with Plans Child Protection Policy. 11 total views, 11 today Thursday, February 04, 2016 On The Econ Beat: Santa Fe Cracks Some On Tax Cuts, Reader React On APS Election And Natural Gas Crash Still Here (State Senator John Arthur Smith, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee) who three years ago sponsored a sweeping tax-cut package pushed by Gov. Martinez has introduced legislation to delay key parts of the package, including scheduled reductions in the states corporate income tax. (Smith) said that he introduced Senate Bill 252 as a backup in case the states revenue picture takes another turn for the worse. With oil prices crashing, gross receipts tax revenue down year over year and the highest unemployment rate in the USA, New Mexico seems within a hair's breadth of plunging into another recession, if it's not already there. ABQ might actually benefit from some of this as folks scurry to the larger cities to escape the economic dead end in rural areas. But it's no bed of roses around here. The Brookings Institution economists--who belong to our list of "No Bullshit Economists"--report that their Metro Monitor But don't fret. House Speaker Don Tripp and Majority Leader Gentry are going to give us a teen curfew and a "three strikes and you're out" law to deal with this. Geez, fellas, how can we thank you? FLAT TO DOWN ABQ voters sucked it up and approved that big APS bond and mill levy this week as well as a bond for CNM that will raise property taxes. In light of In Albuquerque, home prices, including distressed sales, increased by 0.6 percent in December 2015 compared with December 2014. On a month-over-month basis, home prices, including distressed sales, decreased by 0.4 percent in December 2015 compared with November 2015. Speaking of that APS election and our coverage, reader Ken Tabish writes: Joe, As a retired APS employee and a voting community member of the APS Capital Master Plan Committee, I just wanted to says thanks for laying it out about the Albuquerque business organizations and their lack of support for APS/CNM Bond Election. It was spot on! A good education (and I know APS has work to do) is the bedrock of a strong economy and an opportunity builder for a middle class. This election was about students, educators and communities in which those schools reside. There is a great need in APS to renovate and restore old buildings, provide equity educational environments for all students, to comply with federally mandated requirements and to improve the technology, health, and security of our students. And former ABQ City Councilor and onetime mayoral candidate Pete Dinelli also weighed in: Joe: Once again you reported the tragic truth when you said "The absence of the city's major business groups in promoting the APS bond issues to improve the schools for kids was notable and depressing. The Albuquerque Chamber of Commerce, the Economic Forum and NAIOP were no where on this critical vote. It is as if they resent the city they purport to represent.: You could have said the same of the Albuquerque Journal about the community it sells papers to. Now you have the Mayor of Albuquerque advocating that the legislature essentially lower Albuquerque's minimum wage, even after voters increased it with a 71% voter approval a few years ago. Mayor Berry is also advocating using the PERA pension fund to bail him out on solving APD's recruitment and retention of sworn police officers. It as if our own Mayor resents people struggling to make a living in the economy he has done absolutely nothing to turn around. THE GAS CRASH Futures prices for natural gas could drop to levels not seen in more than two decades as resilient production levels, hefty U.S. inventories and weaker demand combine to pull prices down to $1.50 or lower. The population of San Juan County has been shrinking since 2010. The economy in the Farmington area remains undiversified and its destiny hitched to the wild roller coaster ride of oil and natural gas prices. THE BOTTOM LINES From NM US Sen. Tom Udall: Senator Udall invites New Mexico college students interested in gaining legislative or press relations experience to apply for summer internships in his Washington, D.C., office. To apply for an internship, please visit here. The upcoming summer internship session will last from May 31-July 15. Applications must be submitted by March 15. This is the home of New Mexico politics. Interested in reaching New Mexico's most informed audience? Advertise here. c)NM POLITICS WITH JOE MONAHAN 2016 The Alligators of La Politica around here are not prone to waving their arms and yelling "I told you so." After all, their job is to get it right. But we admit hearing a few gloating whispers as Santa Fe finally began to throw in the towel on its ill-advised corporate income tax cut that's contributing to the treasury being starved:With oil prices crashing, gross receipts tax revenue down year over year and the highest unemployment rate in the USA, New Mexico seems within a hair's breadth of plunging into another recession, if it's not already there.ABQ might actually benefit from some of this as folks scurry to the larger cities to escape the economic dead end in rural areas. But it's no bed of roses around here. The Brookings Institution economists--who belong to our list of "No Bullshit Economists"--report that their Metro Monitor ranks the ABQ metro 99th out of 100 metro areas in the USA for economic growth from 2009 through 2014.But don't fret. House Speaker Don Tripp and Majority Leader Gentry are going to give us a teen curfew and a "three strikes and you're out" law to deal with this. Geez, fellas, how can we thank you?ABQ voters sucked it up and approved that big APS bond and mill levy this week as well as a bond for CNM that will raise property taxes. In light of this news , voters deserve an extra round of applause:Speaking of that APS election and our coverage, reader Ken Tabish writes:And former ABQ City Councilor and onetime mayoral candidate Pete Dinelli also weighed in: We hear much about the crash in oil prices and how that is hampering the state budget, but don't forget natural gas which is also a mighty contributor to state revenues and a key industry in the hard hit Four Corners. Gas is in an epic bear market that may have further to go The population of San Juan County has been shrinking since 2010. The economy in the Farmington area remains undiversified and its destiny hitched to the wild roller coaster ride of oil and natural gas prices.From NM US Sen. Tom Udall:This is the home of New Mexico politics. E-mail your news and comments. (jmonahan@ix.netcom.com) please donate...it helps me write more gooder! NioCorp Developments Ltd. has announced plans to host a town hall meeting for southeast Nebraska residents to provide an update on the Company's superalloy materials project in Elk Creek. The meeting be held March 16 at 6 p.m. at the Elk Creek Fire Hall. Mark Smith, NioCorp executive chairman and CEO, and Scott Honan, president of Elk Creek Resources Corp., will provide an update on the project and answer questions from area residents. A buffet-style dinner will be provided. Those interested in attending can sign up at bit.ly/20IMOxL, or by contacting NioCorp by phone at 720-639-4647 or by email at RSVP@niocorp.com. NioCorp hopes to build a mine and extract niobium, scandium, titanium and other rare minerals at the site about 70 miles southeast of Lincoln. An incident involving Cambridge High School students, doughnuts and alleged intimidation has led a Nebraska state senator to attempt to broaden the state's hazing law. The bill (LB710), introduced by Sen. Dan Hughes of Venango, grew out of a case in which Cambridge upperclassmen reportedly hazed younger students during a wrestling camp at Hastings College. The older boys placed doughnuts on their genitals and made the younger boys eat the doughnuts while others watched, according to multiple sources. Hughes said similar incidents have occurred both in the state and around the country. It seems hazing incidents are growing in number, he said, although that's hard to document, because young people don't like to testify against, or "rat out," their friends. Nebraska's hazing law now applies to postsecondary organizations, such as fraternities and sororities, and does not include sexually related incidents in the definition of hazing. Hughes said Adams County Attorney Donna Fegler Daiss told him she did not feel Nebraska law allowed her to prosecute the Cambridge case, and so she did not. "That's why I decided we'd take a look at the law and try to expand it to give law enforcement an opportunity to prosecute to make hazing incidents a civil case for high school-age students, or for younger students," he said. The current law says hazing activities include whipping, branding, forced and prolonged calisthenics, prolonged exposure to the elements, forced consumption of food, drinks, drugs or harmful substances, sleep deprivation or brutal treatment. With the bill, activities would broaden to include sexual penetration, exposing one's genitals in order to intimidate or alarm another person, or lewd fondling or caressing of another person. In the Cambridge incident, students were disciplined by the school. Hughes said his intent is to protect kids rather than to punish them. Virginia Moon, representing the Nebraska Council of School Administrators, said schools see the horrible effects of hazing and cyberbullying that goes on in schools, or off grounds. Sometimes situations meant to be funny or harmless turn dangerous, or cause humiliation some students never really recover from in their high school careers, she said. School personnel are torn or confused about what they can or cannot do to intervene, because the law does not apply to younger students. Bobby Truhe, attorney with KSB School Law, also said schools struggle to deal with incidents of hazing, which can include such activities as forcing students to eat hot peppers, chug water until they throw up, strip naked and dance against each other, or "goose" each other. The questions schools consider are whether they have the authority to impose consequences on those students and whether the incidents should be reported to law enforcement. Hughes said the Cambridge Public Schools superintendent, who was to be his star witness at Thursday's hearing, could not testify because the school district is being sued by parents of one of the students disciplined in the alleged hazing incident. The other boy accepted the school's sanction, he said. The lawsuit, filed in Furnas County District Court, says the teen "engaged in immature conduct" and the event wasn't school-sponsored. The parents are asking the court to make the school district take the expulsion off the student's record and to not bring any more sanctions against him. The court documents said, at no time did the student engage in public indecency, assaultive, threatening or coercive behavior nor sexual contact as defined by law." No one showed up at the hearing to oppose the bill or testify in a neutral position. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission hasn't raised the cap on fees in years for a number of its licenses, permits and stamps. Omaha Sen. John McCollister told the Natural Resources Committee Wednesday his bill (LB745) would allow the commission to adjust fees in 48 categories of user fees, which supply 87 percent of commission income. Most of those caps for hunting and fishing have been in place since 2003. And many fees haven't been raised since 2008-2010, he said. Game and Parks Commission Director Jim Douglas said revenue hasn't kept pace with maintaining a three-month operating balance in fish and wildlife and all the activities that serve Nebraskans. "The commission isn't looking at increasing the overall authority for us to spend dollars by any great amount. We need some additional dollars even to spend the current authority that we have on the fish and game side," Douglas said. Game and Parks is looking to do a major pheasant initiative in the state. And it's being asked each year to partner with Natural Resource Districts on new reservoir systems, such as Lake Wanahoo, north of Wahoo, Dakota Countys Pigeon/Jones Creek Watershed, and Prairie Queen Recreation Area near LaVista. On the parks side, he said, the commission needs money for operations, like maintaining 8,000 picnic tables, 6,000 grills and 350 miles of gravel roads inside the parks. Some of 545 boat ramps need repair. Two conservation officer positions are going unfilled, and Nebraska already has the lowest number of officers among neighboring states, he said. Douglas said in the past few years, the commission identified $44 million in deferred maintenance needs in the park system, and the Legislature appropriated $17.5 million toward that. Additional funding bills were passed to bring the total to $30 million -- $14 million short of the need. "People want more services, and parks are filled up constantly," he told the committee. The park system has a $750 million economic impact. Add hunting, fishing and wildlife viewing, the impact rises to $2.4 billion, said Commissioner Rex Fisher. Of the top 10 tourist attractions in the state, more than half are state parks and recreation areas, with 23 million visits annually. Fisher said it's clear the Legislature wants the commission to maintain its reliance on a user pay system. "If the Legislature raises the caps, it will not automatically raise permit fees. It will allow the commission to do so," he said. "I can tell you our board will not take raising fees lightly." Any proposal to raise fees would be done in a public meeting, with a hearing for public testimony prior to any action, he said. Conservation and wildlife groups testified in favor of the bill. No one opposed the bill. Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers testified in a neutral position, giving a cordial warning to the committee that the bill amended sections of state law that surround the section regulating the ability of the commission to set hunting seasons for mountain lions. It may be, he said, that the committee would once again kill the bill he has reintroduced that would take away the ability of the commission to set hunting seasons for mountain lions. "I don't believe in attacking from ambush. There's a difference between ambush and surprise. But I don't even want anybody to be surprised," Chambers said. He pointed out he was "very serious" about wanting to protect mountain lions. "I just want to let the committee members know that when you send Sen. McCollister's bill out, you're giving me a vehicle for what I intend to do, but that won't be my only vehicle," he said. Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers promised Thursday to talk for 12 hours, on three rounds of debate if necessary, against a bill that would change who could be compensated when injured in a high-speed police chase. Sen. Dan Watermeier of Syracuse introduced the bill (LB188) because, he said, the term "innocent third party" needs to be clarified to determine liability of law enforcement agencies for injuries to passengers in fleeing vehicles. Current law stems from a Chambers bill passed in the 1980s, when police pursuits were creating property damage and endangering people walking and driving down the street. Since then the number of police pursuits has decreased significantly, Watermeier said, and Nebraska is the only state that imposes strict liability on law enforcement for police pursuits, even when the injury is caused by the driver being pursued. Law enforcement can be liable even if it is not negligent in the pursuit and follows a given agency's policy to the letter, Watermeier said. In the absence of a clear definition, he said, the courts have defined an "innocent third party" as any person who has not promoted, provoked or persuaded the driver to engage in a flight from law enforcement. In various cases, it has included a passenger who had spent the evening with the driver at a bar until the driver was visibly drunk. It also included a motorcycle passenger who had an opportunity to get off when the bike slowed down or stopped, Watermeier said, and even a passenger who was drinking from an open container in the car and had a meth pipe. For the senator, a clearer definition would include limited circumstances for liability, excluding, for example, a passenger engaged in any illegal activity that would in itself cause an arrest or a passenger who is in a vehicle without coercion when he or she knows the driver has been drinking alcohol or taking drugs. A committee amendment would exclude a passenger as an innocent third party if he or she has engaged in conduct amounting to a felony while in the vehicle fleeing authorities or before getting into it. Several senators argued that that last part of the amendment could apply to a person who committed a felony years earlier. "This is insane," Chambers said. Debate on the bill is expected to resume Friday. A judge has rejected a plea from a killer who argued he should get a new trial because his body metabolizes Zoloft more slowly than most, making him more likely to suffer a homicidal side effect of the drug when he strangled his girlfriend in Lincoln in 2002. Both Randall Robbins and the girlfriend were 17 at the time. Now 31, Randall had used Nebraska's DNA Testing Act to argue he should be released from prison, given a new trial or re-sentenced because of what pharmacogenetic testing showed about his genetic makeup. His attorney, Rob Kortus of the Nebraska Commission of Public Advocacy, contended that Robbins likely would not have pleaded to second-degree murder and would have sought an unintentional manslaughter charge instead or gone to trial had he known. But in a Jan. 28 order, Lancaster County Judge Steven Burns said Robbins wasnt entitled to a new trial. There is certainly nothing in this record to suggest he was experiencing a side effect of Zoloft when he killed Brittany Eurek, the judge wrote. He said Robbins became enraged and grabbed Eurek around her throat and squeezed on June 1, 2002. After she passed out, he took a belt from a drawer, looped it around her neck and held it tight for about five minutes, then dragged her to the top of the stairs and left the apartment where he lived with his mother, according to the order. Robbins pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and is serving 40 to 60 years at Tecumseh State Correctional Institution. Burns said Robbins had a history of physical aggression when he wasnt on Zoloft. And while he had been taking Zoloft daily before the crime, he hadn't taken it on the day of the homicide and originally wondered whether not taking the drug had caused him to be more agitated. In 2011, Robbins requested DNA testing but didn't disclose why. The request was denied but came up again in a motion for post-conviction relief. This time, he specifically sought DNA Drug Reaction Profile Testing to determine if he was a poor metabolizer of Zoloft, as some 10 percent of people are. Last year, the testing placed him in a below-average category, meaning more of the drug works its way to the brain, making him more susceptible to side effects. In 2004, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration adopted a "black box" warning that Zoloft and other antidepressants can lead to increased risk of suicidal thinking and behavior in children, teens and young adults. Dr. Daniel Hilleman, who testified at a hearing in Robbins case, said most adverse reactions were suicide attempts, but there were some homicides. Only more recently has research been done on using pharmacogenetics testing to determine medication dosages based on a persons ability to metabolize a particular drug, Burns said in his order. And Dr. Walter Duffy testified it was not a bulls-eye. Burns said neither of the doctors could make a causal connection between Robbins being an intermediate metabolizer of Zoloft and the homicide. Even if they could prove he was experiencing a side effect of Zoloft when he committed the homicide, the judge said, there is no evidence to suggest that side effect was of such a nature to materially impact the defendants ability to form the requisite intent" or result in a finding he unintentionally killed her. The theory is not supported by the evidence, Burns said. Simply put, the court cannot conclude that the DNA testing and the black box label evidence probably would have resulted in a different result." Kortus said Robbins likely will appeal. Former bank executive Gil Lundstrom shouldn't have to spend the rest of his life in prison, his attorneys say in asking for a sentence below federal guidelines. In court filings Wednesday, Chicago attorney Daniel Collins wrote that the 74-year-old former CEO of TierOne Bank led an exemplary life up and until the offense conduct in this case. He is a loving husband, father and grandfather and has dedicated a large portion of his life to various charitable organizations in his community, Collins wrote. And, he argued, Lundstrom has no criminal history and no realistic risk of recidivism. Lundstroms health has deteriorated, Collins said, and hes under the care of a number of physicians for ailments including vision loss in his left eye, arthritis and coronary artery disease. On Nov. 6, at the end of a three-week trial, a federal jury found Lundstrom guilty of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and falsify bank entries, of three counts of wire fraud, of securities fraud and of six counts of falsifying bank records. He was acquitted of a single wire fraud count involving a news release about the planned sale of branches to Great Western Bank. Lundstrom led TierOne Bank for more than a decade before it was closed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. on June 4, 2010, and sold to Great Western. Its failure was the largest in history of a Nebraska-based bank. After his conviction, a federal magistrate gave Lundstrom permission to spend 2 months at a family vacation home in Florida before his Feb. 24 sentencing. A presentence investigation report recommends a total offense level of 47, which corresponds to a sentence of life in prison in the federal system. Assuming good health, a sentence of 10 years will effectively consume the rest of his life, defense attorney Collins wrote. "As the Chief Executive Officer of TierOne Bank, Mr. Lundstrom and other executives at TierOne were faced with the incredible task of trying to manage a deteriorating bank in the midst of loan defaults by a significant number of borrowers during the financial crisis. Unlike many securities fraud cases, he wrote, Lundstrom's case was not about personal gain or greed. "Instead, the case is about a man who, along with several other former directors, executives and managers made bad decisions with respect to the management of a bank. Collins argues that Lundstrom was motivated to save the bank from collapsing and that hes already been punished through embarrassment and a tarnished reputation. Both Mr. Lundstrom and his wife have felt the effects of this negative publicity in the community, he wrote, asking the court to consider a sentence of probation and home confinement rather than prison. City crews finished plowing residential streets Thursday morning, and the parking ban on the odd-numbered sides of residential streets was lifted. Because crews finished earlier than expected, there was some lag time between the ban being lifted and enforcement stopping. According to the mayor's office, if you received a ticket between 9 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Thursday for parking illegally during a residential parking ban, you will receive a letter on how to get your ticket dismissed. About 90 workers remained on the streets Thursday cleaning up residual snow and applying material to slopes and intersections. Drivers might see some slick spots because of refreezing. Since Tuesday, Lincoln police have issued more than 500 citations to residents who didn't comply with parking bans. Forty vehicles were towed between 2 a.m. and 9 a.m. Thursday, police said. Citation fees are $35 for those parked in residential areas and $50 for those parked on arterial and bus routes. Public Works began focusing Thursday morning on snow removal in Lincoln's eight snow removal districts. In those areas, snow is plowed into windrows, loaded into trucks and hauled out of the area. The snow removal district parking ban ran from midnight to 7 a.m. Friday, then again from midnight to 7 a.m. Saturday. Parking is prohibited on both sides of the streets in the snow removal districts. They include streets downtown and in the Haymarket, University Place, Havelock, Bethany, College View, 11th and G, 17th and Washington and 25th and Sumner areas. To assist downtown residents during snow removal district parking bans, free overnight parking is offered at Center Park Garage, 1100 N St. To reduce citations and the number of vehicles towed downtown, the service will be offered from 10 p.m. to 7 a.m. when the city is under a snow removal district parking ban. For the Friday ban, the service begins at 10 p.m. Thursday. Customers will be charged the posted rate for any time beyond those hours. Vehicles that remain in the garage past 10 a.m. will be charged for the entire time the vehicle was in the facility. Maps of the districts can be found at lincoln.ne.gov, keyword snow. As crews continued clearing Lincolns neighborhood streets Wednesday evening, crews in Grand Island began digging through drifts that have shut down the city. The winter storm that dropped just 6 inches on Nebraskas capital Tuesday dumped 17 inches on the central Nebraska city of 50,000 people about 90 miles west. Our Wal-Mart's even closed, said resident Chloe Aguilar, a Grand Island tow-truck driver stuck in her home. Since 3 a.m. Tuesday, Aguilars business of Island Towing and Recovery has been inundated with calls, she said. Shes sent her five drivers on at least 75 calls in the two-day span about triple a regular snowy or icy day. This has been crazy, Aguilar said. Weve pulled some people out, and theyd go one or two blocks, and they get stuck again. Wednesday afternoon, Aguilar was dispatching calls from her house because the streets outside her home were impassible. Outside of Grand Island, Interstate 80 reopened Wednesday afternoon. Tuesdays storm had forced the closure of a stretch spanning from Lincoln to North Platte. The Nebraska State Patrol said no fatal crashes occurred in the state Wednesday. Car crashes in Lincoln had jumped to 35, as of Wednesday evening, after police responded to just 20 the day before. Schools and many businesses had closed for the day Tuesday. Material spreaders continued to patrol arterial streets, re-plow and apply deicer, as plows began working on clearing the opposite sides of residential streets. The city banned parking along both sides of street in areas including the downtown, the Haymarket, University Place, Havelock and College View, among others as crews worked to remove snow. Police had cracked down on more than 250 parking ban violators by Wednesday morning. Classes for the public school districts nearly 40,000 students resume Thursday after two consecutive snow days. School officials on Wednesday cited concern about driving conditions on sidestreets in particular as the reason for a last minute-cancellation. Forecasts call for sunny skies and 31 degrees in Lincoln on Thursday, according to the National Weather Service in Valley. In Grand Island, classes were canceled for a third consecutive day, meaning Aguilars six children will spend another day at home. The single mother said she was getting tired and the kids stir crazy. Grand Island Mayor Jeremy Jensen took to Facebook urging Grand Island citizens to remain patient because crews would eventually get the city dug out. For Aguilar and many Grand Island residents, staying put was the only option. Theyre home," she said. "But they cant get nowhere else." Miles was born with lots of hair, like his big brother. His mom loved his little chin and his sweet nose. She could picture him as a curly-headed toddler like Owen, who was nearly 2. He was a gorgeous little boy, Dana Ludvik says. On the outside, you wouldnt know there was anything wrong with his heart. Miles was born on Feb. 17, 2014. Two open-heart surgeries couldnt save him, and he died six days later. His dad remembers the day Dana came home from her fourth ultrasound, the day a specialist told her: Your baby has a hole in its heart. The day the world changed, Greg Ludvik says. Last year, Dana and Greg launched Shoes for Miles as a way to honor the memory of their baby and as a way to spread the word about congenital heart defects like his. One in 110 babies, says Dana. The most common birth defect, sometimes easy to fix, sometimes fatal. She remembers what that same fetal specialist said before Miles was born: His condition is not compatible with life She remembers thinking: Just say it. All along I felt he could die, Dana says. I wanted somebody to say it could happen, so I could prepare. Dana works in marketing at the University of Nebraska. The practical part of the Shoes for Miles campaign came easy to her -- designing a flier and making a Facebook page and getting the word out. The emotional part was the hard part. Shoes for Miles collected 2,327 pairs of shoes in two weeks last February, and Dana and Greg and their friends and families spent a long evening tying the laces together and packing them in big plastic garbage bags to donate to Soles4Souls. This year, theyre a bit busier so theyre scaling back, Dana says. This year, they have baby Iris, a 5-month-old with curly hair and a wide toothless grin whose name means rainbow, something they found out later, a bit of beautiful serendipity. Theyll only collect shoes for toddlers and kids this year, donating them to refugee children in Lincoln through Lutheran Family Services. They picked February again because it is the month of their babys birth and the month of Valentines Day and the month designated for awareness of congenital heart defects. Most people hear those words and think about adults and heart disease, Dana says, and that makes sense. But I wanted to bring attention to kids. Let people know that, hey, some babies come into the world with heart problems, and how do we bring them into the conversation? Although there was nothing she could have done to prevent Miles condition, there are questions parents can ask to be sure a heart problem doesnt go undetected during pregnancy, Dana says. And signs to look for after the baby is born. Many parents are blindsided to learn that their babys heart is not working properly in the hospital after giving birth -- or worse -- after theyve gone home. Danas own first pregnancy was blissfully worry-free. Owen was born with a midwife attending and thats what they expected with baby No. 2, too. And at first, everything seemed fine. But looking back, there were hints. The need for more scans -- we just cant quite see the babys heart -- and then the reality at 25 weeks, the day the technician fell silent as she moved the wand over Danas belly. More tests followed, and meetings with heart surgeons, and a tour of Childrens Hospital in Omaha, where Miles would have his surgery. His heart had complex structural defects, and although his surgeon held out hope during Danas pregnancy, Miles was born five weeks early, with problems more serious than doctors had anticipated. At home, theres a photo in the living room, a 6-pound, 12-ounce newborn, eyes shut tight, lying on a blanket covered in baby footprints. A friend used Photoshop to remove the tubes and wires taped to his little body and erase the open incision in his chest. Miles spent his short life in the pediatric intensive care unit, hooked up to machines and monitors, poked and prodded. He had so much stacked against him ... but he hung on through two open-heart surgeries, Dana says. I wanted so badly to change places with him, to scoop him up and take the pain away. It was the middle of the night when the nurses came to get her from a room near the PICU where she slept. Dana called Greg to come from Lincoln, where he was home taking care of Owen. They got to hold their baby in their arms for the first and last time. That spring, they planted a tree in the front yard in memory of their brave boy. They plan to take a photo of his curly-headed siblings, Owen and Iris, in front of the sapling each year, a measure of their growth next to a living memorial to their brother. Sunday is the first day of Shoes for Miles 2016. A cause that is dear -- and healing -- to his parents broken hearts. For more than 30 years the city has placed restrictions on movie theater size as a way to maintain a vibrant downtown. But Lincoln City Councilman Roy Christensen believes its time to lift those restrictions, which allow no more than six screens in a movie complex outside of downtown. The limitation was part of a gentlemans agreement when the 14-screen Grand Cinema was built in downtown Lincoln in 2004, said Christensen. The $15 million redevelopment project at 1100 P St. included $3.25 million in city help, primarily tax increment financing. The Douglas Theatre Co. (acquired by Marcus Corp. in 2008) agreed to build the downtown multi-screen complex after plans by a San Francisco developer fell through. People thought it would be a good idea to protect that investment, said Christensen. The TIF bond has been paid off, and the city expects to pay off other city obligations related to that project this year. "And at this point I believe the city has grown enough in population and geography, especially growth in downtown, that the need to protect the Grand Theater is passed," Christensen said. The restrictive theater policy, perhaps the only one in the nation, is found in two documents -- the citys Comprehensive Plan and in city ordinance. So the city would have to change both. That will mean taking a Comprehensive Plan change to the Lincoln-Lancaster County Planning Commission and an ordinance change to the City Council, he said. The citys theater policy not only bans large movie complexes outside of downtown but also allows new screens only in the six major shopping centers. That restriction prohibits development of small theaters, which are becoming a trend, Christensen said. Around the country people are creating coffee houses or art house theaters with one or two screens. These theaters generally show something other than first-run movies and are more likely neighborhood theaters, with maybe art movies, he said. Christensen said he can see these kinds of small developments in older central neighborhoods or redevelopment areas like the South Haymarket. One cannot predict what the next innovation might be, said Christensen. And when a city controls the free market, it may lose opportunities that go to other communities, he said. Christensen is working on proposals that will allow these small theaters to open and end the six-screen limitation on complexes outside of downtown. He said hes heard that AMC, one of the nations largest theater chains, wont even consider Lincoln until the restrictions are gone. AMC did not immediately return a call seeking comment. Even with the ban lifted, its not likely a developer will bring a 24-plex movie theater to Lincoln. The coffee house concept is much more likely, he said. The citys restrictive theater policy has been the subject of debate several times since the Grand Cinema opened. A majority of the council agreed with the six-screen limitation in votes in 2005 and 2006, saying it helped keep the downtown viable and it provided the city with smaller neighborhood theaters, rather than just a couple of megaplex theaters. Much has been written recently regarding charter schools. To be clear: charter schools are public schools, open to all students, accountable to the public, and authorized by the state. Charter schools do not cost taxpayers more. Rather, funding follows the student. While many parents in Nebraska enjoy some ability to choose among existing schools, high performing public options are often at capacity. Parents of means enjoy the opportunity to then choose among private school options. Low income parents, however, are left with fewer options and, far too often, their only options are low performing schools. Frequently, this results in a childs zip code determining the quality of education she receives. Despite increased spending and good intentions, student outcomes in Nebraska have failed to keep pace with the average rate of improvement in other states. Meanwhile, the achievement gap between white and minority children in Nebraska has grown and is now among the largest in the nation. Charter schools are one example of a reform that has proven to benefit students, and under-served students in particular. The highest performing charter schools in the country are not only closing the achievement gap, but reversing it. Given their positive outcomes, the charter school movement is growing. After twenty five years, charter schools are working for more than two million children in America, doubling the number of students served over the past decade. Forty three states and the District of Columbia have passed charter school legislation. No charter school law has been repealed and weak laws, like that in Ohio, have been reformed. In 2015, students attending charter schools in Arizona performed as well as all students in the state of Massachusetts (the highest performing state in the country) on the National Assessment for Educational Progress (NAEP). As a laggard in the charter school movement, Nebraska can benefit from best practices and high quality implementation from the start. The thousands of families being served by charter schools across the country have proven the need for more high quality school choices for their children. The results of urban charter schools, in particular, speak to this need: on average, students attending urban charter schools gain an additional 40 days of learning in math each year and an additional 28 days of learning in reading each year compared to their traditional school peers. Children in Nebraska, and particularly the children attending schools with a combined math and reading proficiency of less than 20%, deserve these options. Great schools for all children, regardless of race or income, whether they be public charter schools or traditional schools, is pro-every student, not anti-public school. As a state, we should band together and support the highest quality educational options possible for every student. For most, great traditional public schools will fill this need. For many, charter schools would offer a needed, high quality option immediately. For all, charter schools will raise expectations for children, regardless of race or income. When I became Bishop of Lincoln in 2012, I undertook a systematic review of the safe-environment and child-protection policies and procedures governing the Church in southern Nebraska. To assist me, I asked our independent Review Board, a group of experts in criminal justice, psychology, and education, to recommend enhancements to our background checks and training programs. The Diocese of Lincoln is fully compliant with the child protection laws of Nebraska, and the child protection policies of the Catholic Church. Last autumn, I announced that our diocese would begin undergoing annual independent audits of our compliance with child protection policies. And this week, the Diocese of Lincoln will announce the appointment of a full-time safe environment coordinator to assist in child-protection education and coordination across southern Nebraska. Parents can be confident that the Diocese of Lincoln is committed to ensuring the safety of their children and families. In December of 2015, I announced that Bishop Robert Finn, the former bishop of Kansas City, Missouri, would serve as the chaplain to a community of religious sisters, his long-time friends, in the Diocese of Lincoln. In 2012, Bishop Finn was convicted of a misdemeanor for failing to report a priest in possession of child pornography. Because of serious acts of negligence under his leadership, Bishop Finn faced serious penalties. He faced a criminal court, and served the sentence he was given. He resigned his leadership position in the Church. He also accepted responsibility for his actions, and he has expressed sincere regret to those whom his negligence may have harmed. Justice required serious consequences, and justice was served. There is a point, however, when demands for justice can become something much less worthy, and far less worthwhile. I invited Bishop Finn to Lincoln because he desires to spend his retirement serving the Church. He does not have a position of authority, administration, or oversight. He has a purely religious role, in an appropriate adult setting, which he has undertaken in humility. He is not paid by the Diocese of Lincoln; his role of chaplain provides him only room and board. Bishop Finn has not ever been accused of sexual abuse of children. His ministry as chaplain does not represent an issue for anyones safety. The anger of former abuse victims or their relatives is understandable. Their pain is real, and the Church has an on-going duty to help them heal. But those who have acknowledged and paid the penalty for past actions, who seek to serve in humility, and who pose no on-going danger to anyone, have a right not be harassed and disparaged once justice is served. To do otherwise is not justice; it is malice. And it is not worthy of our community. The critics of Bishop Finn have been invited to meet with the Diocese of Lincoln, and they have refused. That is their choice. The life and ministry of Jesus remind me that justice and mercy are not opposed to each other. Bishop Finn, like all of us sinners, will be shown both. The Church in Lincoln is committed to serving and protecting our people. We will do that without further punishing those who have already met the demands of justice. Serving Nebraskans is my top priority. Every day, I work to find common-sense solutions to the many issues facing our citizens. As your senator, I have used my position on the Senates Commerce Committee to advance bipartisan policies that help expand broadband access to all Nebraskans. Thats why I would like to respond to a recent letter to the editor suggesting otherwise. This week, a Nebraskan posed questions regarding a letter I sent with five of my colleagues to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler ("Senators not working for constituents," Feb. 1). We reached out due to serious concerns over plans to change the definition of broadband. Many of the reports on our letter were misleading and suggested we were calling for limits on broadband speeds. To the contrary, our letter noted how this new FCC definition would, in fact, result in limiting speeds and could create additional regulations for businesses that offer broadband service. Raising a family in Cherry County, Nebraska has given me a unique perspective on this issue and the challenges facing our rural communities. As such, I have worked closely with my colleagues to introduce legislation to close the connectivity gap between urban and rural America. For example, I teamed up with Senator Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota last year to introduce a bill directing the FCC to make unused spectrum available to small, rural phone companies. I also cosponsored a bill with Senator John Thune of South Dakota to allow rural health care facilities to seek FCC funding for broadband. Broadband is the future, and both rural and urban America deserve access to this important technology. Aging infrastructure in our urban areas must also be updated. These markets have thrived with minimal government involvement. The companies that offer these critical services should not be discouraged through inconsistent rules and artificial standards. Senator Deb Fischer, Washington D.C. A judge has found a Nebraska prison policy that prevented two prison inmates from marrying by video to be "constitutionally flawed" and issued an order blocking prison officials from enforcing it. But an attorney for Paul Gillpatrick and Niccole Wetherell said Wednesday, "It's not over because they haven't been married yet." Mike Gooch said he expects to contact the Nebraska Attorney General's office soon to ask them to schedule the wedding. But the state is likely to appeal and request a stay. When asked late in the afternoon about Lancaster County District Judge Robert Otte's decision this week, a spokeswoman for the Attorney General's office had no comment. In 2014, the American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska sued the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services, the prison director and the wardens of the prisons where Gillpatrick and Wetherell are housed on behalf of the couple, who by then had been engaged for more than two years. They met through a mutual friend before they were in prison. According to prison records, Gillpatrick, 43, is serving a 55- to 90-year sentence at the Nebraska State Penitentiary for a second-degree murder conviction in Douglas County. Wetherell, 35, is at the Nebraska Correctional Center for Women in York, serving a life sentence for first-degree murder out of Sarpy County. Prison policy allows inmates to marry unless a warden finds it presents a threat to security or order at the institution or to public safety. But when Gillpatrick and Wetherell each filled out the necessary forms, the prison denied their requests. By policy, the prison will not take inmates from one prison to another for a wedding ceremony, which led to the lawsuit. Filed with the ACLU's help, the lawsuit says prison policy was preventing them from marrying, a right that is fundamentally protected by the U.S. Constitution. In the suit, Gillpatrick and Wetherell asked the judge to declare the policy unconstitutional and require the prison to make necessary accommodations. Their attorneys originally asked for them either to be brought to the same prison or for their wedding to be conducted by Skype or a similar web-based app that allows video teleconferencing. By November, when the case came up for consideration, they had narrowed the issue down to whether they could be married by video. The prison still said no, citing a state statute that requires the couple to "solemnly declare in the presence of the magistrate or minister and the attending witnesses, that they take each other as husband and wife" and least two other witnesses be present at the ceremony. Assistant Attorney General Kyle Citta took the position that the law mandates their physical presence. He argued the state wasn't in the business of allowing inmates to waste the state's time and resources going through "charade solemnizations" that don't comply with state law. In Tuesday's order, Otte said he wasn't convinced there was a legitimate government interest to be protected. Significantly, he said, the state did not argue that the marriage would present a threat to security or order of the institution or public safety, or that current technology couldn't be used to carry out the ceremony, or that it would be any difficulty for prison staff to arrange for the space and time for a marriage ceremony. Otte said the prison also didn't suggest an alternative that would allow them to marry. "Further, the court wonders whether a state agency would be making the same argument if the betrothed included a serviceman overseas and a local bride willing to tie the knot by videoconference," he said. The judge said the prison relied only upon its own interpretation of a statute about weddings, which aren't under its direct purview, "to set a policy that flies in the face of the plaintiffs' constitutional rights." Danielle Conrad, executive director of ACLU of Nebraska, said the decision affirms the group's longstanding position of fighting for the constitutional rights of all, including those incarcerated. "Nebraskans in our prisons still have fundamental rights, including the right to marry. It is time the state respect these rights for our clients and refocuses its attention and resources on long overdue and badly needed systemic reforms within our current crisis riddled prison system," she said. OGALLALA -- A western Nebraska man sentenced to up to 60 years in prison for kidnapping and sexually assaulting an Ogallala teenager is appealing his sentence. Jade Cleveland, 21, of Keystone, argues in an appeal filed last week that his sentence was excessive. Cleveland was sentenced last month after pleading guilty to the charges. Prosecutors said he abducted a 17-year-old girl from her home at knifepoint and raped her in rural Keith County in October 2010. Cleveland's attorney, Robert Lindemeier, said there was no question his client is guilty. But, he says, Cleveland sought out a plea to spare the victim a trial and to show remorse. RACINE A Sturtevant resident was ordered Wednesday to successfully complete Alcohol and Drug Treatment Court for his role in robbing a man after he repeatedly was bashed in the head with a brick. Joshua J. Krisky, 32, and Marcus Lamont Jackson, 27, of Milwaukee were charged in 2012 after a man accused them of attacking him with the concrete brick before stealing his iPhone and iPad. The man told police Jackson repeatedly hit him with the brick and that he was robbed sometime after 2 a.m. on Nov. 20, 2012, according to their criminal complaints. The attack occurred after the trio were out drinking at a Racine bar, the man told investigators. During his plea and sentencing Wednesday, Krisky pleaded no contest to misdemeanor theft, which was downgraded from a felony count of being a party to the crime of armed robbery. He also pleaded no contest to two bail jumping counts in an unrelated case. A no-contest plea means Krisky doesnt admit to the allegations, but does not dispute prosecutors ability to prove them in court. Racine County Circuit Judge Gerald Ptacek ordered Krisky to successfully complete drug court and repay the man $3,235.22. Ptacek ordered him to serve 18 months on probation. He sentenced Krisky to 18 months in the Racine County Jail but stayed that term, meaning it wont kick in unless he violates probation. Ptacek also sentenced Krisky to another 270 days in jail, but granted him credit for time served, and the rest of that sentence was stayed. Jackson was sentenced in February 2014 to five years in prison plus nine years on extended supervision. He pleaded no contest to the charge of being a party to the crime of armed robbery. Police were called at about 4:38 a.m. that day to the 1600 block of Franklin Street, where an officer found the victim bleeding and staggering, according to the pairs criminal complaints. The man told police that Jackson dropped a concrete brick on his head three to five times before swiping the devices and fleeing with Krisky, the complaints stated. RACINE An Illinois man faces felony theft charges after allegedly stealing computers and televisions from the Walmart Superstore in Burlington. Tevaris Gwinn, 21, of Waukegan, Ill., appeared in Racine County Circuit Court Wednesday to face two felony counts of retail theft and a misdemeanor count of marijuana possession. If convicted on the two felony counts, Gwinn could face three years in prison. According to the criminal complaint, Gwinn attempted to take two 48-inch screen televisions from Wal-Mart, 1901 Milwaukee Ave., at 6:20 p.m. Tuesday. Burlington police found Gwinn in the store parking lot and found him with three grams of marijuana, the complaint said. Police reviewed security footage from the store and found Gwinn had tried to take two laptop computers from the store Sunday night, the complaint said. Gwinn was in Racine County Jail Wednesday, records showed. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for Feb. 17. RACINE COUNTY A Mount Pleasant K-9 assisted in the capture of a fleeing reckless driver Monday. Brutus, the K-9 on duty at the time, was called to the Town of Norway to assist Norway officers and sheriffs deputies in locating a reckless driver. The driver had fled on foot during a traffic stop, and it is against department policy to chase fleeing suspects, according to Racine County Sheriffs Lt. Steve Sikora. Sikora said the man was driving recklessly on Highway 36, but when deputies pulled him over, the driver didnt cooperate. The guy bailed out of the drivers seat, Sikora said. Brutus and officer Nicole Knierim were called to the area after the driver fled into Heg Park, according to Mount Pleasant Chief Tim Zarzecki. Thats when Brutus pick up the drivers trail. Brutus picked up a scent, Zarzecki wrote in an email. Brutus ran up a hill near/in Heg Park and immediately located the offender hiding. Sikora added that the man ran out as Brutus was searching and deputies apprehended him. The man had outstanding arrest warrants and was immediately taken into custody, Sikora said. Zarzecki said he was proud of Knierim and Brutus for assisting another office. Kudos to Brutus and MPPD K-9 Handler Officer Knierim for a job well done, he said. MADISON Two more members of a group of college students who pooled their money to buy hundreds of pounds of marijuana out West and sell it in Madison, including a leader of the ring, have been sentenced to prison. Amadou Camara, 24, of Sun Prairie, was sentenced to 2 years in federal prison by Chief U.S. District Judge William Conley in federal court in Madison on Tuesday, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office. From September 2012 to February 2015 the seven men then students or recent graduates of UW-Madison and Madison Area Technical College pooled tens of thousands of dollars to purchase pot in California and Colorado, the purchases ranging from five to 50 pounds. The loads were divvied up in Madison among the investors to sell at a big profit. On Wednesday, 23-year-old Yotam Israeli, of Madison, was sentenced to a year and a day in federal prison for his involvement in the operation. In addition to Camara and Israeli, four other men have been sentenced in the scheme. Enis Gashi, 21, the seventh defendant, is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 12. Conley said at sentencing that Camara had a managerial role in the conspiracy by recruiting at least one driver, supplying vehicles and financing for trips, and directing driver activity. The judge also said Camaras conduct could be tied to more than 220 pounds of the marijuana in the conspiracy, and, along with his manager role, warranted a longer sentence than others. Co-defendants Haris Riza, 22, and Parvis Samadzada, 22, were each sentenced to a year and a day in prison. Joseph Ramsey, 21, and Kevin Ha, 22, were each sentenced to three years probation. All four men are from Madison. ROCHESTER The Village of Rochester Public Works Committee is discussing spring repairs to a section of Case Eagle Park that was vandalized last fall. Rochester DPW manager Chris Birkett said the village is evaluating options for repairing grass near the parks ball fields, after damage caused by someone driving a car around the park. The damage includes tire ruts that are 2 to 4 inches deep, and Birkett said hes received a verbal repair estimate of $600 from a company the village has contracted in the past. It happened late last fall, right before the first snowfall, Birkett said. Were looking at some options, with the first one being: Repair it and hope it doesnt come back for a while. Birkett said another option could be blocking off that portion of the park with parking barriers. He said the vandalized area is a secluded part of the park thats hard to see from the highway. Its really good spot, unfortunately, for that type of activity, he said. Birkett talked about the possibility of repairs at the December and January Public Works Committee meetings. The committee received it well, he said. Birkett said he mentioned the vandalism to a Racine County sheriffs deputy but isnt sure whether a police or investigation report was filed. For now, Birkett is just relieved the incident took place when it did, so the village has plenty of time to repair the damage. It being winter, theres no rush, he said. If it had been in May, it wouldve been a different story. RACINE Several dozen students and staff of the Racine Unified School District called on administrators Wednesday to stop, wait and listen, protesting how swiftly the district is taking on several recent policy changes. In a rally and press conference at the districts administrative campus, 3109 Mount Pleasant St., leaders of district employee unions and student organizers specifically took aim at the districts plan to implement block scheduling in high schools next year. They said the change is happening too quickly for staff to be able to effectively teach under the new system. We need respect in the process of how our schools are changed, because thats how you are going to become empowered, said Aaron Eick, Racine Education Association president, in a fiery speech to gathered students. In a short statement issued before the rally, Superintendent Lolli Haws attested that the district has diligently sought to communicate and work with those affected by the changes, including students, parents and staff. Each of these changes will benefit our students, Haws stated. We cannot stop and wait; our students deserve the best opportunities now. We are committed to moving this district forward. The rally organized by leaders of the REA, Racine Educational Assistants Association and Youth Empowered in the Struggle drew about 45 people, approximately 10 adults and 35 students. Block scheduling for academies The districts plan to transition to block scheduling is part of the Academies of Racine, which are slated to at begin at Case, Park and Horlick high schools next fall. Administrators have said block scheduling will benefit students in the academies, because it will allow students to take a deeper dive into areas of the curriculum. Administrators have also said they will support staff through the transition, including with training sessions planned throughout the spring and summer. Eick and other union leaders have said they do not oppose block scheduling, but they want the district to wait an extra year before implementing it and use that time to collaborate more with employees and the unions. Janes Elementary calendar change Protesters also criticized the districts plan to transition Janes Year-Round Elementary School, 1425 N. Wisconsin St., to a traditional school-year calendar without adequate input from staff and families. District administrators have pointed to students at Janes consistently getting low scores on standardized tests and enrollment declining more sharply than at other schools. Administrators expect the change will facilitate better support and training to school staff. Kelly Wolf, a teacher at Janes who attended the rally, said that while the district informed staff of the change in December and held several parent meetings, Unified has been slow to give out further information. We just want some clarity, some communication, she said. Communication is really key for us, and its been pretty sad, nonexistent since December, she said. RACINE A Brookfield man with a sprawling empire of gas stations and convenience stores in Wisconsin has bought the long-vacant Zahns building. Public records show that Bachan Singh, 4455 Acre View Court, Brookfield, has purchased 500 Main St. for $275,000. The four-story, 39,000- square-foot building has been vacant 35 years, since Zahns Department Store closed in 1981. There have been various projects proposed for the structure including a childrens museum, boutique hotel, low-income housing, apartments and library space. According to property transfer records, the building was sold by Tri City National Bank to a limited liability corporation called 500 Main Street LLC, 4455 Acre View Court, Brookfield. Singh is an Indian immigrant who reportedly came to America in 1978 and has since made a fortune operating gas stations and developing real estate. The phone number given as Singhs contact number on the transfer was for the Shell Food Mart, 1319 W. North Ave., Milwaukee. The person who answered said Singh was not there. Calls to Singhs Brookfield residence a 24,000-square-foot mansion in the Milwaukee suburb went unanswered Wednesday. Racine City Administrator Tom Friedel said he had not heard from the buyer. Racine County Executive Jonathan Delagrave also said he had not talked to the buyer, nor had he contacted county officials or Racine County Economic Development Corp. Everything is speculation, Delagrave said. But its a great site. Lets hope he can do something great with it. At one time the property was on the market for $2.5 million. But over the years the price tag dropped to $1.99 million, to $1 million, to $850,000 and to $479,000 last September, according to Journal Times archives. Singh created his gas station empire in February 2010 when he spent $11 million to buy 66 gas stations at auction from the bankrupt Bulk Petroleum Co., media reports stated. Gas station owners from around the country called the auction of the stations, formerly owned by Mequon-based petroleum magnate Darshan Dhaliwal, rigged because Singh was Dhaliwals first cousin once removed. In October 2014, Singh bought a 14-story office building in downtown Milwaukee for $3.28 million through a national online auction, according to the Milwaukee Business Journal. Singh told the Business Journal he had not decided what to do with the 154,000-square-foot property. Singh and his huge home were in the news last October when his family hosted family and friends from Canada and India at the newly renovated house. Singh bought the unfinished home in November 2011 for $900,000 after prominent Brookfield developer Vincent Kuttemperoor of VK Development surrendered it to his bank, according to the Business Journal. So on Feb. 16, the day of our local primaries, you show up at your polling place, a poll worker asks for your address, you give it and off to the voting booth you go, right? Wrong. Its different from now on in Wisconsin, and its incumbent upon Gov. Scott Walkers administration to publicize the fact that its different. Compared to other states which implemented Voter ID, Wisconsins effort to increase awareness has been lackluster at best. Wisconsins Voter ID requirement takes effect this year, starting with the spring primary election on Feb. 16 and followed by the spring election and presidential primary on April 5. The Voter ID law was enacted in 2011 and briefly took effect for the 2012 spring primary election until court challenges halted its implementation. Wisconsins Voter ID requirement is among the most restrictive of any state. Voters must come to the polls with one of a list of approved photo IDs that include their signature, such as a Wisconsin drivers license, U.S. passport or U.S. military ID. Some student and tribal IDs qualify if theyre not expired. Student IDs also must be accompanied by a separate document that proves enrollment, such as a tuition statement. None of this was in effect on Nov. 4, 2014, the date of the last statewide election in Wisconsin. Nor was it in effect during the 2012 presidential election; according to voter turnout statistics, that was the last time many people in Wisconsin voted. We believe strongly in an informed electorate, but we know the reality of the situation is that there are many people of voting age who probably werent paying close attention to the legal journey of the Voter ID law, and therefore might not know that they will have to bring ID with them to vote. That lack of awareness does not disqualify them from voting. If youre a citizen, older than 18 and have not been convicted of a felony, you get to vote if, now, you show up with proper ID. Other states that implemented Voter ID in recent years launched paid media campaigns to educate voters. Pennsylvania spent $5 million on an ad campaign, Alabama ran print adsand Mississippi won advertising awardsfor its Voter ID spots. Wendy Underhill, an elections expert with the National Conference of State Legislatures, said Kansas ran billboards with the slogan: Got Voter ID? Wisconsin? Well, Wisconsin has a website. We have our doubts that Grandma or Grandpa are going to see it. The state elections board has created a website, bringit.wisconsin.gov, to inform the public about Voter ID. It also has crafted public service announcements that TV and radio stations may run, and has a staffer conducting Voter ID presentations to advocacy groups that work with voters. We know how PSAs work. May run is not nearly the same as Candidate X just paid for a 30-second spot, is it? Media outlets, including this one, welcome paid political advertising. As elections draw closer, youre far more likely to see or hear a paid political advertisement during the commercial break than something which is optional and not paid for. The state elections board, the Government Accountability Board, has no funds available for advertising about the new requirement, according to its spokesman, Reid Magney. Andrea Kaminski is director of League of Women Voters of Wisconsin, another group that has challenged the Voter ID law in court. Kaminski said lawmakers should act quickly, before the close of the 2015-2016 legislative session, to set aside funds for Voter ID ads on radio and TV, the Wisconsin State Journal reported Monday. If our lawmakers want people to vote and they should then they should be willing to budget money to help people do that, Kaminski said. This is not an issue the Legislature gets to cry poverty about, either. If Voter ID was important enough for the Republican majority to pass and send to Gov. Walker, its important enough to publicize. You dont get to change the requirements for voting without telling the people about it. The animosity that Republicans in Madison have toward the GAB is evident, seeing as they are legislating out of existence. We dont care which branch of the government does the publicizing on voter ID; we care that it gets publicized. If Wisconsins Voter ID law is truly about preventing fraud at the polls, then the legislators who passed it and the governor who signed it into law have a moral obligation to the states law-abiding citizens to inform them that they must bring one of those forms of identification to their respective polling places. Not one law-abiding person should be disenfranchised simply because what was good enough to be allowed to vote last time wont be good enough this time. Withering on the Vine The Demographic Time Bomb is Most Marked in Japan The demographic time bomb whereby the elderly population assumes a greater and ... Government Sexual Libertinism Coming to a Government School Near You Further to our piece yesterday on the promotion of sexual libertinism in government schools, we rep... Some Random Observations The Aftermath of Mass Pre-Mediated Murder A few observations on the murder of 14 people in San Bernadino and the wounding of many more see... Letter From the UK (About State Tyranny) Ta-ta UK freedoms! Miranda matter outs vindictiveness of wounded police state Annie Machon is a former intelligence of... The Big One The Panoptican State Is Actually Operational Yesterday the "big one" dropped. The Guardian reported that the US and UK spy age... Fraud Central German Professor: NASA Has Fiddled Climate Data On Unbelievable Scale by James Delingpole BreitbartLondon A German professor ha... Statist Groupthink More and More Fashionable The Rise of Liberal Intolerance in America Edward Luce Financial Times I t ought to be a triumphal moment for American liberalism .... Vacuous Greenism Anti-Fracking Luddiocy Think of any technology that involves carbon based energy and its utilisation, and the lunatic fringe can be found ... "It is Finished": the Sixth Word from the Cross It is Finished: our Lords Sixth Word from the Cross What is history? That simple question covers a multitude of complexity, profundity... When plunder becomes a way of life for a group of men living together in society, they create for themselves in the course of time a ... The High Court of Australia [official website] ruled [judgment] Wednesday that the countrys offshore detention policy for asylum seekers is legal, rejecting a challenge that it violates the Australian constitution. The challenge was brought by lawyers for a female Bangladeshi detainee who was brought to Australia for medical reasons. Under the controversial policy, those who seek asylum in Australia arriving by boat are detained [VOA report] on the island of Nauru or on the Manus Island in Papua New Guinea. The policy has generated outcry from human rights advocates and some senators, who argue that Nauru is not safe [BBC report] for children, as the ruling is set to allow more than 250 people [BBC report], including 37 babies, to be deported to detention camps. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child [official website] urged [press release] Australian authorities to make the best interests of the children theit primary consideration, reminding them that they remain a party to the Convention on the Rights of the Child [text]. Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull [personal website] has defended the policy that they must ensure that the countrys borders remain secure. The rights of migrant populations has emerged as one of the most significant humanitarian issue around the world, as millions seek asylum from conflict nations. Earlier this month the UN Subcommittee on the Prevention of torture stated [JURIST report] that migrant detention facilities in Cyprus need better monitoring and should improve conditions. Last month Danish lawmakers passed a controversial bill [JURIST report] allowing authorities to seize assets from immigrants seeking asylum to cover their expenses. Also last month Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] reported [JURIST report] saying that Lebanese residency laws risked creating a large undocumented community of refugees living at the margins of society. In November UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon addressed [JURIST report] the UN General Assembly and cautioned the international community to avoid discrimination against Muslims, especially refugees and migrants entering Europe, as a result of the recent terrorist attacks in Paris. Also that month Amnesty International analyzed [JURIST report] the EUs approach to the refugee crisis and recommends changes to ensure international law is followed and human rights are appropriately valued. In October HRW called on [JURIST report] the EU and Western Balkans states to focus on remedying what it characterized as deplorable conditions for asylum-seekers in Europe. Chinese courts convicted 14 government officials and company executives on Wednesday due to their involvement in a 2014 factory explosion that killed 146 workers because of inappropriately stored chemicals. The sentences [Xinhua report], for the crime of causing a major labor safety accident or dereliction of duty, range from three to seven-and-a-half years. The arrests come after Chinas procuratorate opened an investigation [Xinhua report] on more than 26 individuals and after the Tianjin Mayor Huang Xingguo announced that the owners of the hazmat facility that exploded [JURIST report] in the city used their political connections to build the facility despite violating safety rules. One rule barred [NYT report] storage of hazardous chemicals within 3,200 feet of residential areas, much farther than the storage facility was actually located. One owner, Doug Shexuan, is the son of a former police chief and the other owner, Yu Xuewei, is a former executive at a state-owned chemical company. The two men purposefully concealed their ownership in the company so that they could secretly use their personal relationships with government officials to obtain licenses for building the facility. China has a history of imposing severe sentences on officials and others found responsible for high-profile incidents. In August the government announced regulations [Xinhua report], which it said had been in place since August 9, holding those overseeing chemical facilities responsible if they fail to take safety precautions. In May 2011, the country said it would impose the death sentence [JURIST report] and other harsh penalties for officials found liable in food safety cases. In September 2010, officials in Chinas Shanxi province arrested seven individuals [JURIST report], including the executive of a dairy company, after that companys powdered milk was found to contain melamine. In July 2010, Chinese authorities discovered 64 tons of raw dairy materials [Xinhua report] contaminated with melamine in Qinghai province. In February, Chinese police arrested three individuals [JURIST report] for their roles in the 2008 tainted milk scandal. Two other individuals were executed [JURIST report] in November 2009 after being convicted of endangering public safety and selling toxic food. [JURIST] The US Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of Michigan [official website] on Tuesday announced that the FBI [official website] will join a criminal investigation into the contaminated drinking water in Flint, Michigan. The FBI will join a multi-agency team [NYT report] in the ongoing investigation. In 2014 Flints drinking water supply was switched from Lake Huron water treated in Detroit to water from the Flint River treated at the Flint water treatment plant in order to reduce costs. The new supply was not treated with required corrosion control chemicals and the water caused lead and pathogens [flintwaterstudy.org] to get into the towns water supply from corroding pipes. Researchers from Virginia Tech concluded that lead levels were high enough to be designated as toxic waste [WP report]. The Justice Department has also opened an investigation [Huffington Post report] into the situation. Public officials have come under fire [The Atlantic report] for their response to the crisis, as it took 20 months after the initial switch for an emergency to be declared by the state. The National Guard was activated [CNN report] in January in order to distribute bottled water and water filters. Flint residents are currently being forced to rely on bottled water for drinking, cooking and bathing. Last week the Natural Resources Defense Council filed a lawsuit [JURIST report] in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, seeking the replacement of lead water pipes in the city of Flint. The lawsuit, filed in conjunction with Concerned Pastors for Social Action, the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan and Flint resident Melissa Mays, seeks to force city and state officials to mediate alleged violations of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act [materials]. Also last week, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette announced [JURIST report] that he has appointed a former prosecutor to act as Special Counsel in his investigation into the water contamination crisis in the city of Flint and a retired Detroit FBI chief will also participate in the investigation. In mid-January, Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette requested public input on risks and alternative studies [JURIST report] as the investigation continues. The German Cabinet [official website] approved new asylum laws on Wednesday in response to the hundreds of thousands of refugees [CFR backgrounder] that have entered the country since the beginning of 2015. The bill [press release] will speed up asylum procedures and related legal appeals and will bar entry into the country for some asylum seekers families for a period of two years. Benefits provided to asylum seekers were modified. The cabinet also designated Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia as safe countries of origin and thus it will be more difficult for refugees from those areas to find harbor in Germany. The new asylum bill comes after Germany announced [JURIST report] last September that it was invoking temporary border controls at the nations southern border with Austria. The issue of migrant rights has emerged as one of the most significant humanitarian issues around the world, as millions seek asylum from conflict nations. In November UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon [official profile] addressed [JURIST report] the UN General Assembly and cautioned the international community to avoid discrimination against Muslims, especially refugees and migrants entering Europe, as a result of the recent terrorist attacks in Paris a week earlier. Earlier that month Amnesty International (AI) [advocacy website] analyzed [JURIST report] the EUs approach to the refugee crisis and recommended changes to ensure international law is followed and human rights are appropriately valued. In October Human Rights Watch (HRW) [advocacy website] called on [JURIST report] the EU and Western Balkans states to focus on remedying what it characterized as deplorable conditions for asylum-seekers in Europe. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights gave the opening statement [JURIST report] at the 30th session of the Human Rights Council in September in which he addressed, among other pressing human rights issues, the migrant crisis. An Israeli court on Thursday sentenced two minors for the murder of a Palestinian teenager. The court sentenced one of the minors to life in prison while the other received 21 years as they were believed to have had a lesser role in the crime. A third minor is awaiting his verdict following a psychological examination. The Israeli minors were found guilty [JURIST report] by the court in November of kidnapping Mohammed Abu Khdeir in July 2014 and then burning him to death. The murder was supposedly in response [AP report] to three Israeli teens being abducted and murdered by Hamas earlier that summer. Kdheirs murder led to an increased amount of violence in the region resulting in a 50-day war that killed more than 2200 Palestinians and 73 Israelis. The Israel-Palestine conflict [HRW backgrounder] continues to be a significant international issue. In March the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs released [JURIST report] its 2014 Annual Humanitarian Overview and noted that Palestinian civilians continue to face daily threats to their physical safety and liberty and 2014 held the highest civilian death toll in the conflict since the annexation of the Palestinian territories in 1967. Also in March the UN Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights told the UN Human Rights Council that human rights violations fuel and shape the conflict [JURIST report] in the occupied Palestinian territories. In August, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged both sides of the conflict [JURIST report] to reconcile and move towards peace after an attack occurred in the West Bank village of Duma, where Jewish extremists allegedly set fire to a Palestinian home while the family slept. In April, HRW alleged [report] that Israeli settlement farmers in the occupied West Bank are using Palestinian child laborers in dangerous conditions in violation of international laws. UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Juan E. Mendez [official profile] on Thursday called [press release] on the Mauritanian authorities to protect suspects and detainees from abuse and torture while being held in the country. The call to implement already existing laws and safeguards comes after Mendez spent ten days on an official visit to the country. He was particularly concerned that there did not yet exist a legal avenue to investigate and prosecute allegations of prisoner mistreatment and torture which may result in false, coerced confessions of crimes. According to Mendez, this lapse results in the legal systems inability to investigate the alleged abuses is in direct conflict with the UNs National Preventive Mechanism [official summary] to end torture. In interviews with detainees, several described some forms of coercion by police and gendarmerie at arrest and interrogation that amount to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment under international law, such as beatings, threats, demeaning verbal abuse and slaps In some testimonies that I received and consider reliable the severity of the pain and suffering endured did constitute torture, such as in prolonged solitary confinement, or stress positions or severe beatings lasting several days. Another point of concern for Mendez was the used of unauthorized detentions facilities where prisoners suspected of terrorism are unable to procure access legal counsel for a minimum of forty five days. Mendez is expected to deliver a final, official report on his trip to Mauritania to the UN [official cite] by the end of the year. Allegations of torture and human rights abuses of prisoners and detainees continue to be made worldwide. The High Court of Australia [official website] ruled [judgment] this week that the countrys offshore detention policy for asylum seekers is legal, rejecting a challenge that it violates [JURIST report] the Australian constitution. Also this week, the UN Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture (SPT) [official website] stated [press release] that migrant detention facilities in Cyprus need better monitoring and should improve conditions [JURIST, report]. In January A court in Lisbon, Portugal, ruled [JURIST report] that a former CIA operative shall be extradited to Italy to serve a seven-year sentence for her involvement in the 2003 kidnapping and rendition of Egyptian terror suspect Osama Moustafa Hassan Nasr. In October, Mendez urged states to protect human rights and refrain from torture [JURIST report] even when acting transnationally. The US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit [official website] affirmed [opinion, PDF] the decision of the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia [official website], holding Monday that a Somali torture claim lacked a sufficient nexus with the US to allow jurisdiction under the Alien Tort Statute [text, PDF]. In 1987, during political turmoil, Farhan Warfaa was taken from his home in Somalia, beaten, and tortured for approximately three months. Yusuf Ali was a colonel in the Somali National Army and had questioned Warfaa several times during his detainment for political opposition prior to shooting him and ordering him to be left for dead. Ali had been living in Virginia for eight years before Warfaa, still living in Somalia, filed the initial claim in 2004. Even though Ali is now a US resident, the court held that Warfaa had filed no claim that touches and concerns the US, because all relevant events occurred in Somalia. The opinion found Alis ultimate residence as merely incidental. Another claim, under the Torture Victim Protection Act (TVPA) [text, PDF], was allowed to proceed. Ali is calling for immunity from his actions as a foreign official, which TVPA would deny. In 2014 the US Supreme Court refused [JURIST report] to hear a similar immunity plea from former Somali Prime Minister, Mohamed Ali Samantar, also under the TVPA. In that case, the Fourth Circuit upheld an order from the same district court mandating that the former PM pay $21 million to Somali torture victims. Like Ali, Samantar claimed that as a foreign official, he had common-law immunity for acts performed on behalf of a foreign state despite allegations that those acts violated international law. The ruling meant that Samantar could be held liable for human rights abuses related to the killing and torture of members of the Isaaq clan in Somalia throughout the 1980s under former dictator Siad Barre, the same political conflict Warfaa was abducted under. The US House of Representatives failed [official summary] Tuesday to garner enough votes to override the presidents veto of the Restoring Americans Healthcare Freedom Reconciliation Act of 2015 [HR 3762, PDF], the most recent legislative effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) [official website] and defund Planned Parenthood [advocacy website]. Congress passed [JURIST report] HR 3762 in January to clear the way for genuine, compassionate, patient-centered health care reform. The house needed a two-thirds majority to override the veto, but failed [official vote] by a vote of 241-186. This was the 64th time Congress has attempted to repeal the ACA. The ACA [JURIST backgrounder] has generated significant legal controversy [JURIST backgrounder] since its passage in 2010. The National Conference of State Legislatures [official website] reports that between 2010 and 2015, at least 21 states enacted laws attempting to challenge or completely opt out of mandatory provisions of the ACA. Most recently the act was amended by the Protecting Affordable Coverage for Employees Act [text], which allows states to consider employers with 51 to 100 employees as large employers, removing certain restrictions on small employers from those in this category. In June the Supreme Court ruled [JURIST report] in King v. Burwell [SCOTUSblog materials] that tax credits available to those who buy health insurance through state exchanges are also available to those who buy it through the federal exchange. Just the daily thoughts and gripes of a guy attempting to survive in America's heartland. Yes, you can transfer your domain to any registrar or hosting company once you have purchased it. Since domain transfers are a manual process, it can take up to 5 days to transfer the domain. Domains purchased with payment plans are not eligible to transfer until all payments have been made. Please remember that our 30-day money back guarantee is void once a domain has been transferred. For transfer instructions to GoDaddy, please click here. NOC officials involved in fuel theft in Charali depot in Jhapa At a time when there is acute fuel shortage across the country, reports of Nepal Oil Corporation, Jhapa being involved in theft of petroleum products have come into light. North Korea 'preparing long-range missile launch' North Korea appears to be preparing to launch a long-range missile, according to South Korea's defence ministry and Japanese media. Ready to boost fuel supply to Nepal: Indian Oil minister India's Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday said that the Indian government is ready to supply the petroleum products to Nepal as per the current demand. Syria conflict: Sides trade blame over talks' suspension Syria's government and the opposition have blamed each other for the suspension of peace talks in Geneva. Top IS commanders 'taking refuge' in Libya Several senior commanders from the so-called Islamic State have moved to Libya from Iraq and Syria in recent months, according to a top Libyan intelligence official. Valleys heritage sites await tourists return Compared to 500 visitors a day during this time of the year, the World Heritage Site greets only about 200 now. What It Is KauaiEclectic is a collection of observations, images and writings about Kauai Kamawaelualanimoku and the world as seen, felt, experienced and interpreted by me. Hans Koert , who passed away in September 2014, was a passionated jazz collector and the author of the Hit of the Week and Durium Discog... Mike Dunleavy the governor of the US state of Alaska is intending to introduce legislation that will repeal the two state boards which regu... I have been with lots of Binary Option brokers so far, and only few of them were able to be what I expected them to be. Most of them will sc... Vietnam is expected to continue a push for closer relations with South Korea under its re-elected leader, Seoul's top envoy here said Wednesday. Amb. Jun Dae-joo said the new line-up of other top officials also heralds that the two sides will upgrade bilateral ties by a notch. Last week, the Communist Party of Vietnam chose Nguyen Phu Trong, the incumbent general secretary, as the country's top leader for a second five-year term. It named Tran Dai Quang, minister of public security, as the nation's new president. Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc was promoted to the post of prime minister. It's hard to define whether Vietnam's leadership is pro-China or pro-U.S. as it has traditionally pursued pragmatism. "In terms of relations with South Korea, however, it can be said that they all are pro-South Korea psychologically," Jun told Yonhap News Agency. He recalled Trong's trip to Seoul in 2014, during which he visited Samsung Electronics. At that time, Trong made clear that Vietnam places importance on its relations with South Korea, the largest investor in the Southeast Asian country. "He also later instructed his government to pay more heed to South Korea," the ambassador said. Quang, nominated to become the nation's new president, recently established the "Korea Desk" within the Vietnamese police to specialize in crimes against Koreans while serving as minister of public security, according to Jun. "Vietnam is in forward-looking, substantive cooperative partnerships with South Korea, while maintaining traditional friendly ties," he said, raising the need for Seoul and Hanoi to deepen bilateral relations in economy, national security and other fields. A bilateral free trade agreement took effect late last year. "Vietnam's position is that it would support South Korea if it wants to participate in the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP)," said the envoy who assumed the post in 2013. He had run businesses in Vietnam for 18 years. (Yonhap) Russia and North Korea have signed an agreement on the extradition of illegal immigrants staying in their respective countries, Russia's emigration office said Wednesday. The agreement was reached Tuesday in Moscow between Nikolay Smorodin, deputy head of Russia's Federal Migration Service (FMS) and North Korea's deputy foreign minister Pak Myong-guk, the office said. It said the two countries also signed related protocols of the agreement on the transfer and acceptance of persons who enter or stay illegally in Russia and North Korea. According to an FMS official, the agreement will greatly contribute to decreasing the number of illegal migrants staying in both countries. Some 10,000 North Koreans are reportedly staying in Russia as legitimate workers, mostly in Maritime Province, Khabarovsk and Sakhalin. Some of them, however, are reportedly staying illegally in Russia even after their labor contracts have expired. Besides, some other North Koreans have fled North Korea to sneak into Russia via other countries, including China. The agreement calls for the deportation of illegal immigrants within 30 days after they are confirmed to be staying without legitimate documents. In November last year, the two countries also signed a treaty on mutual legal assistance in criminal cases and a treaty on the extradition of criminals between the two countries. (Yonhap) No Yes, a light case Yes, two or more light cases One serious case Two or more serious bouts Vote View Results Check back often for news and commentary about Kentucky by David Adams. Contact via email: kyprogress(at)yahoo.com or Lexington area telephone 537-5372. The quest for finding out the fate of the Rev. W. H. Parri-Jones began last fall when a researcher visiting the Black River Falls Public Librarys history room realized her ancestors were among the founding fathers of the North Bend Presbyterian Church. The late Parri-Jones served the North Bend congregation from December 1914 to June 1920 and also served the outlying preaching point at Mindoro. While Jackson County History Room Historian Mary I. Murray Woods was assisting the researcher, she also received a call from Linda Achterkirch of the Mindoro Presbyterian Church. Linda was working on the churchs centennial celebration, which is planned for next summer, and also was wondering what happened to Parri-Jones. Woods checked the local newspapers to see if anything could be found about his assignments after leaving this area. Searching online, she found an article published June 23, 1920, stated, At a meeting of the Presbytery of La Crosse, June 14th, the pastoral relation between Rev. W. H. Parri Jones and the North Bend Church was dissolved, after seven years of congenial labor. The pastor goes to Portland Presbytery. This is one of our substantial rural parishes, with an outlying preaching point at Mindere (Mindoro). A July 2, 1920, article noted, The North Bend Birthday Club and the ladies of the North Bend Presbyterian Church tendered Rev. and Mrs. W. H. Parri-Jones a farewell surprise. Rev. and Mrs. Jones depart for their new pastorate at Astoria, Oregon this week. Woods research into Parri-Jones new assignment in Oregon provided no results. She then realized that checking newspapers for anniversary celebrations for the two local churches may prove worthwhile, and an article about the 60th anniversary of the North Bend Presbyterian Church printed a letter, congratulating the congregation, from Parri-Jones from Yates City, Ill. Woods then turned to the community of Yates City, Ill., in hopes of finding more about Parri-Jones. However, the research became more complex when she located a cemetery monument with only his wifes name, Anna, engraved. She then turned to the Salem Township Public Library in Yates City for assistance. After explaining the situation to head librarian Denise Hayes, she offered to go the cemetery and do some research. The stone only had engraved, Anna, wife of W. H. Parri-Jones June 17, 1870 May 29, 1925. However, the cemetery sexton happened to be in the cemetery, so she directed her questions to her. The importance of good record keeping proved worthwhile. In her records, a coupon showed that William Parri-Jones, age 59, died at Fr. Madison, Iowa, on Dec. 28, 1928, and his body was to be removed to Yates City Cemetery in Knox County, Iowa, and there to inter body of said deceased person. Another paper, signed by the Sexton John Bowman from Jan. 1, 1929, stated that the body was interred. In talking with the current cemetery sexton, Hayes was assured that there appears to be an unmarked grave next to Anna Parri-Jones. One can assume this was the resting place for her husband, the Rev. Parri-Jones. Among the questions unanswered is why Parri-Jones name was never put on the stone. However, it seems pretty understandable. Parri-Jones and his wife had no children or no known relatives. An obituary could not be found for either of the deceased. However, census records show that Anna was born in Llanrwst, N. Wales, and naturalization records, filed in Jackson County, Wis. for Rev. Parri-Jones, show that he was born in Ruthin, North Wales. He was naturalized on April 9, 1917. Both applied for passports in May 1923 to visit relatives in Great Britain. With some questions answered as to what happened to the reverend and locating his final resting place, Woods felt that one act of kindness needed to be suggested. She suggested to Achterkirch that the Mindoro and North Bend churches go together and have Parri-Jones name engraved on the stone. Woods said that it bothered her that the final resting place for a minister was not known, and would be lost forever and forgotten. Expressing their appreciation for her suggestion, Achterkirch contacted Lori Stuhr, secretary for the North Bend Church. With approval from both congregations, financial support now allows the final resting place for Rev. Parri-Jones to be engraved on the stone he shares with his wife thanks to the cooperation of several officials. This is just one of many wonderful and caring examples of people connecting through research, and an act of kindness that will have an everlasting effect on a minister and his wife, other researchers, two churches and a cemetery, Woods said. When Jeremy Randall joined the West Salem Police Department in 2006, he never imagined he would one day be second in command. But after nearly 10 years of service, Randall, 39, was promoted to lieutenant this week at a ceremony held at Tuesday nights West Salem Village Board meeting. With his promotion to lieutenant, Randall will be filling a much-needed supervisory role in a department stretched thin. Randall joined the West Salem Police Department in 2006, taking on a part-time position while serving as security director at Valley View Mall in La Crosse. He was offered a full-time position working for the department in late 2007. He said after seeing the quality of the department in West Salem, he took the job and ended his commitment to Valley View Mall. Randall said he believed it was his experience with administration and management while working as the security director at Valley View Mall that made him an ideal candidate. I was very grateful to be able to apply for this position and subsequently get it, he said. Im very lucky to be able to say I still love what I do. I really enjoy being part of the department. Randall said its still going to be a challenge. First off, its going to be a second ranking position in this department, he said. As the second ranking officer in the department, Randall will be taking on a more administrative role, and he will take the lead in investigations when Police Chief Charles Ashbeck is off duty or otherwise unavailable. Randall, who grew up in Onalaska, was committed to serving the region like his father had before him. He said it was his father, a former California police officer who moved to the Coulee Region when Randall was young, who sparked his interest in law enforcement. I remember wanting to do this in kindergarten and first grade, Randall said. After graduating high school, he attended Western Technical College in La Crosse where he earned an associate degree in criminal justice. In 1999, he began working part-time as a security officer at Valley View Mall, and in 2000 after graduating from Western he took on a second part-time job working for the Stoddard Police Department. In 2002, he was promoted to security coordinator at Valley View Mall. This, however, wasnt enough for Randall, who was raising two young children at the time, and in 2005 he took on a part-time job working for the Trempealeau Police Department. He still spends a few hours helping out up there every now and then. In 2006, he was promoted to security director at Valley View Mall, the same year he began working part time for the West Salem Police Department. An avid hunter and angler, Randall and his family live in rural Monroe County where they have numerous pets including two cats, two dogs and three horses. His wife, Jovanna, is a police officer in La Crosse. Together they have two children, 15-year-old Abigail and 13-year-old Gavin. SPARTA A Monroe County judge Thursday sentenced a Necedah man to 4 years in prison for supplying the heroin that killed a Tomah man in 2014. Shane Shelby, 40, is the first person prosecuted in Monroe County under the Len Bias law, which holds drug dealers accountable in fatal overdose cases. The case serves as a reminder to dealers that theyre only one overdose away for facing a relatively lengthy prison term, Monroe County District Attorney Kevin Croninger said. There isnt a more serious drug offense, he said. Shelby sold Derik McGovern, 26, $150 worth of heroin early July 1 during their first meeting in Tomah. McGovern, a veteran, died later that morning of an overdose at a house in Tomah where he stayed since his release from jail just days earlier. Its incredibly sad he lost his battle with addiction, Croninger said. Shelby pleaded no contest to first-degree reckless homicide and heroin delivery, both as a repeat offender. Charges of heroin delivery and possession of narcotic drugs were dismissed but considered by the judge at sentencing. He also will spend 10 years on extended supervision and receives credit for one year served. Attorneys jointly recommended the sentence adopted by the judge in large part because of Shelbys extensive cooperation with law enforcement after his arrest. While under police supervision, Shelby arranged a drug deal with his supplier in Illinois who was the target of a federal investigation, Tomah police investigator Robert Walensky testified. That dealer, Ryan Hawkins, was one of 21 people charged under the Illinois Street Gang and Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, according to media reports. Shelby also provided information in other drug investigations that contributed to the fight against Monroe Countys heroin epidemic, Croninger said. He agreed to cooperate before plea negotiations began in his case, said his attorney, Kenneth Hamm. I believe it was him wanting to make amends for what hes done, he said. Shelby is an alcoholic turned drug addict who sold heroin to fund his own habit, Hamm said. You hit rock bottom, Monroe County Judge Todd Ziegler said. And thats where you find yourself right now. Shelby wept as he told the judge that he realizes his recovery will involve more than abstinence alone. He plans to use his experience to deter others from drug trafficking. ALMA The Buffalo County Board of Adjustment has voted down a proposed sand mining project in the towns of Maxville and Nelson. All three members of the board of adjustment voted to deny a non-metallic mining conditional-use zoning permit sought by Breezy Point Properties of rural Durand. People opposed to granting the proposed mining permit dominated a public hearing in front of the board of adjustment in January at the Buffalo County Courthouse. Wisconsin Proppant Resources of Stewartville, Minn., and landowners represented by Deric Lindstrom of Breezy Point Farms, same address as Breezy Point Properties, applied for a permit to excavate sand and crush, screen, wash, dry and stockpile it for transport on trucks. The countys zoning department said the plan called for extracting sand from valley slopes along a one-mile stretch of valley slopes and ridges. The company proposed using trucks to haul 60 to 100 loads of sand per day, with the volume of sand ranging from 330,000 to 550,000 tons annually for around five years. An engineering consultant for the countys highway department did traffic and pavement analysis studies that concluded Highway K was not built to handle the amount of increased heavy truck traffic. Town boards in Maxville and Nelson favored approving the mining permit with modifications and attached conditions of operation. The countys nonmetallic mining policy and procedures manual sets a series of more than 15 standard conditions that must be met for all mining projects. In addition, the zoning department recommended 47 other conditions it wanted to see attached to a permit had the board of adjustment approved it. HIBBING, Minn. (AP) Police in Hibbing have arrested the mother of two young children who authorities say were home alone when a fire broke out. The children are ages 2 and 5. The older child told investigators some papers on the stove caught fire. The two children escaped and went to a neighbor Tuesday evening. They told police their mother was at work. The fire was contained to the kitchen area in the three-story apartment. Damage is estimated at $15,000. The mother has not been formally charged. MADISON Both houses of the Wisconsin Legislature last year passed the state budget in the middle of the night, a practice Democratic Rep. Beth Meyers of Bayfield wants to halt. Meyers is circulating a bill to amend Assembly rules to require debate on the budget bill during normal waking hours when Wisconsin residents can easily observe the proceedings. Majority and minority leaders would define normal waking hours, and the bill would require the Assembly to stop until the next legislative day whenever a debate reaches the end of that time frame. It makes sense to have democracy performed during waking hours when more people can be aware of whats going on at the Capitol and they can feel like they participated in the actions that are taking place, Meyers said. Meyers said normal waking hours can be defined using common sense, but any time before 11 p.m. could be standard. The Wisconsin Assembly passed last years budget in the early hours of a Thursday morning, after a two-hour delay for a bomb threat at the Capitol and more than 12 hours after debate began. The Senate passed the budget just before midnight two days earlier, after eight hours of debate. Assembly majority and minority leaders have already established a memorandum of understanding for the legislative session aimed at more productive debate. It includes a provision that every effort will be made to finish debate at a reasonable time and stipulates the majority and minority leaders will negotiate a time frame for debate on each bill. I think that they really have taken steps to ensure a more productive debate and more public participation, said Kit Beyer, spokeswoman for Assembly Speaker Robin Vos. Beyer said this is the second session that such an agreement has been made in the Assembly and it aims to cut down on some customary practices of long or unproductive debates. The memo includes 17 points emphasizing prompt start times, time limits on debates and objections to breaking for caucus. Meyers wants to take that further by prohibiting budget debates late in the night. No bill, no matter what the issue, should be debated and brought to the floor in the middle of the night when most people are asleep and unable to observe the process, Meyers wrote in a memo soliciting co-sponsors. The bill has little chance of advancing in a Republican-controlled Legislature. Just when it seems as if the smoke may be clearing in the anti-tobacco crusade, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa remain enveloped in a fog that earns the states several Fs from the American Lung Association. Those failing grades, logged in the associations annual State of Tobacco Control report issued Wednesday, are justified, said Judi Zabel, one of the principals in smoke-free initiatives in the Coulee Region. I think its a good gauge of where weve been and where we are, said Zabel, an educator with the La Crosse County Health Department. The report also is a good barometer of where more needs to be done, she said. The analysis grades all 50 states for performance in four areas: tobacco prevention and control program funding, tobacco taxes, smoke-free air and access to cessation services. Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa are among the roughly half of the states that snag As for smoke-free laws, but they break the curve after that. Minnesota gets an A for access to services to help quit smoking, and Wisconsin and Minnesota get Bs for tax policies, while Wisconsin and Iowa get Fs for access to services and Iowa chalks up another F for taxes. All three are on the same page for funding prevention and control programs, with a trio of Fs. On the surface, the Fs for cessation programs might seem to be a tough grade, considering a variety of programs available through Gundersen Health System, Mayo Clinic Health System-Franciscan Healthcare, county health departments and other sources. But below the surface lingers the challenge of informing the more vulnerable segments of society, especially low-income people, those with less education, people with mental health problems and members of the LGBT community, said Zabel, who also is coordinator for the 7 Cs Health Initiative, which covers La Crosse, Monroe, Vernon, Trempealeau, Jackson, Crawford and Buffalo counties. There are resources, but are they available when people need them? she said. Will they get that benefit only once a year? For example, if someone starts the year with a resolution to quit smoking by enrolling in a program but fails to follow through, Zabel asked whether that person could enroll again in July. We know that, on average, it takes six to 11 tries to quit, she said. As for taxation, states should tax all tobacco products at the same level, instead of applying the top levy to cigarettes and lower taxes to cigars, chew and other items, she said. As for programs to quit smoking, Zabel noted that the state of Wisconsin provides $5.3 million for such initiatives, while it takes in $756 million a year in taxes and tobacco settlements. Were grateful for that, but the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) recommends $57.5 million to cover health problems resulting from smoking, she said. One in four children younger than 11 has tried smoking, she said, adding, We need to be in our elementary schools, and were not. We also need to be in populations disproportionately high in smoking. Every dollar invested in tobacco prevention saves $3 in tobacco-related health care costs, she said. Were a good return on investment, Zabel said. Local efforts such as FACT, a youth movement that previously stood for Fighting Against Corporate Tobacco but now representing Spreading the Truth About Tobacco, have made inroads, but much remains to be done, especially in light of flavored tobacco products aimed at the youth market, she said. Teenage smoking in the Badger State has declined from 33 percent in 2000 to 10 percent today, and it is down to 9 percent in La Crosse, Zabel said. Where were being challenged is with electronic cigarettes, she said. A quarter-million youths nationwide who never have smoked have tried e-cigarettes, she said, with youths e-cig use nationally at 4 percent, statewide at 8 percent and in La Crosse, 14 percent. Youths know cigarettes cause damage, but they dont believe e-cigarettes do, even though there is no proof they are safe, she said. On the flip side of that coin are sellers of electronic cigarettes, which may or may not include nicotine in the flavored liquids they contain. We just want to get people off of cigarettes in the healthiest way possible, said Michael Sprague, manager of the E-Cig Warehouse, which opened at 70 Copeland Ave. in La Crosse in November. All we do is vaping, he said, using the common term for e-cigarettes because they deliver water vapor instead of smoke. All we do are electronic nothing you light a flame to. The store, which Sprague said does not sell to people younger than 18 (Wisconsin law bans such sales), features a bar of sorts with 10 barstools where patrons can test 140 flavors available, as well as a lounge area with couches to provide space for kibitzing about the practice. There is a lot of chattering, because vapers still are growing, he said of the clientele, generally between 25 and 35. Picking your preferred taste is the key to enjoying the practice, said Sprague, who said his favorite flavor these days is Bakers Dream. It is like a sweet banana bread, he said. Its kind of weird, when you get into vaping, you talk about things relative to food. Sprague, a former smoker who said vaping helped him quit, acknowledged, I was originally skeptical about vaping. He had been using a vaping pen, one of the low-end devices, but warmed to the practice when he switched to another method. I personally needed a different device, he said. E-cigarette fluids can have no nicotine, or varied amounts, including high doses and stepping down as one moves toward quitting, he said. Devices at E-Cig Warehouse range from $40 to $300 for somebody who really wants that level, he said. Its not that different, but its like somebody who likes Prada shoes. By the way, fans of smokeless tobacco such as Skoal and other chews might be interested in the fact that Feb. 14-20 is National Through With Chew Week. The potential of a Zika virus outbreak in United States has been a moving target, with federal health officials describing it initially as not likely, then maybe, then oops there are several cases, then issuing travel advisories and now, recommending condoms for some pregnant women during sex. The increasing uncertainty stems not only because of the first case reported in Minnesota but also because a Texas case was attributed to sexual contact, amid previous assertions that only infected Aedes aegypti species of mosquitoes spread the disease, which presents the greatest risk to fetuses. There is a lot we dont understand about the virus and exactly how it is transmitted, said Dr. David McNamara, an infectious disease specialist at Gundersen Health System in La Crosse. The illness usually is mild, with symptoms lasting from several days to a week. Severity requiring hospitalization is uncommon, and fatalities are rare, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nonethless, the CDC has escalated its cautions in recent days. In addition, the American Red Cross announced Wednesday that it will not accept blood donations from people who acknowledge that they have traveled to Mexico, the Caribbean or Central or South America within 28 days before they want to donate. We think people who are infected may have the virus in their blood, McNamara said. We dont have large-scale testing for the Zika virus like we do for HIV. The Red Crosss identification of those particular regions mirrors the CDC advisories that have expanded cautions to 30 countries and territories because Zika outbreaks involving millions have been reported in those areas. The Red Cross also asked that anyone who develops symptoms of the Zika virus infection within 14 days of donation to notify the agency immediately so it can quarantine the blood. Those symptoms include fever, rash, joint pain and red eyes, as well as include muscle pain and headache, according to the CDC. About 80 percent of the people who are infected with the Zika virus dont even develop symptoms, the World Health Organization says. No vaccine or medicine is available for the virus, which was discovered in the Zika Forest of Uganda in 1947. In contrast to federal officials earlier comments that seemed to pooh-pooh even the idea of a U.S. outbreak, McNamara said, I think there very well could be transmission, particularly in typical areas where the mosquito is most common Florida, Texas and the Gulf Coast, mostly the southeast states. I would hope it would be pretty limited, he said. The Aedes aegypti species, which also spreads dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever, is common in those warmer, humid areas, said Dave Geske, vector control manager for La Crosse County and 12 area counties. None will maintain here, he said. Now, down the road, maybe in 20 years, there is a potential as the mosquitoes evolve. The Anoka County, Minn., woman in her 60s who developed symptoms Jan. 1 recently had returned from Honduras. She did not require hospitalization and is expected to make a full recovery, health officials said. In the Texas case, a man who had traveled to Venezuela and had sexual relations with his wife upon his return later fell ill, health officials said. Tests for the Zika virus found that both had the virus. The woman, who is pregnant, had not left the United States since 2008, so health officials deduced that he must have contracted it from a mosquito bite and passed the virus to her sexually. In light of that case, the CDC updated its advisory to say, "Until we know more, if your male sexual partner has traveled to or lives in an area with active Zika virus transmission, you should abstain from sex or use condoms the right way every time you have sex for the duration of the pregnancy. Although the fetus reportedly is OK in this case, the virus can cause infant microcephaly, an abnormally small head connected with an undeveloped brain. Gundersens Dr. McNamara confirmed that assessment, saying, The real risk is mainly for an unborn fetus and a malformed brain. In addition to the Minnesota and Texas cases, the fact that Florida cases grew from nine to a dozen Wednesday prompted Gov. Rick Scott to expand the state of emergency he had declared earlier from four counties to five, including Broward, Miami-Dade, Hillsborough, Lee and Santa Rosa. All of those who were diagnosed with the virus contracted it while traveling outside the country, in areas where transmission of the Zika virus is continuing, Scott said. None had contracted the virus from mosquito bites while in Florida, he said, although an Aedes aegypti mosquito that bites an infected person can pass it on to any ensuing individuals it injects. "We can prepare for the worse and hope for the best," the governor said. "We are going to do everything we can to stay ahead of the Zika virus. Gov. Scott Walker isn't worrying about his sagging poll numbers right now, despite indications that a majority of Wisconsin voters don't want him to run for a third term. The governor's approval rating among Wisconsin voters hasn't touched 40 percent since he ended his presidential campaign in September. And of the voters polled in the Marquette University Law School poll released last week, 36 percent said they would like the governor to seek a third term, while 61 percent said they don't want him to run again. "Well, in 2011, my poll numbers were so low that Time magazine called me 'Dead Man Walker.' In June of 2012 I won the recall election with more votes and a higher percentage of the vote than I did the first time," Walker told reporters Wednesday. "So for us, its just steady. We dont get too high when things are good, we dont get too low when times are challenging." He argued on Wednesday that despite widespread backlash to his 2011 battle with labor unions, public opinion swung back in his favor by the time voters went to the polls in 2012 and 2014. "We just persevere going forward," Walker said. "For us, I think what weve found when we ultimately prevailed in the 2012 recall election is because people, despite what they were seeing on TV ads and maybe they were hearing about some of the stories out there, eventually they saw the reforms were working." Walker said he's listening to voters as he travels throughout the state and putting a renewed focus on matching employers with qualified employees and investing more in public education. The governor's most recent approval rating was 38 percent, up one point from 37 percent just after he exited the presidential race. Man dies 9 months after April shooting in Milwaukee MILWAUKEE The Milwaukee County medical examiners office says a 20-year-old man has died more than nine months after he was shot on Milwaukees north side. According to the medical examiners office, the man was shot April 23 while he was inside a vehicle. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reports no other details about the shooting were immediately available Wednesday afternoon. Electronic voter registration bill clears election committee MADISON Wisconsin residents would be able to register to vote online under a bill that passed the Senates elections committee Wednesday along party lines. Though Democrats support online registration, they take issue with the bills elimination of special registration deputies, who help register voters in-person up until 20 days before an election. Democrats worry the lack of that assistance could disenfranchise students, seniors and low-income voters. In an amendment passed 3-2 Wednesday, those deputies would be replaced with new election registration officials, who could register voters at the polls, at residential care facilities or for in-person absentee voting. We think online registration actually solves the need for (special registration deputies), said bill author Sen. Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg. Judge gives jailor 30 years for having sex with inmates MADISON A judge has sentenced a Polk County jailor to 30 years in prison for having sex with multiple inmates. Prosecutors charged Darryl Christensen in April with five felony counts of second-degree sexual assault by corrections staff. According to a criminal complaint, Christensen sexually assaulted five female jail inmates on multiple occasions between 2011 and 2014. Christensen, who turned 49 in May, pleaded guilty to all five counts in November. Washburn County Circuit Judge Eugene Harrington, who presided over the case, sentenced Christensen on Monday to 30 years in prison and 30 years on extended supervision. Christensens attorney, Aaron Nelson, asked the judge to give Christensen eight-and-a-half years, calling that a fair punishment given Christensens age. Outside spending begins in Wisconsin Supreme Court race MADISON Outside groups have started pumping money into Wisconsins Supreme Court race. The conservative-leaning Wisconsin Alliance for Reform has spent at least $234,660 on a statewide ad buy supporting Justice Rebecca Bradley, according to research released Wednesday by Justice at Stake and the Brennan Center for Justice. Wisconsin Alliance for Reform released a 30-second issue ad this week touting Bradleys merits. Groups dont need to report spending on such ads to the state. Justice at Stake and the Brennan Center for Justice compiled a spending estimate using files television broadcasters have uploaded to the Federal Communications Commission. BELLE GLADE, Fla. (AP) Dozens of farmworkers looked up at the little yellow plane buzzing over the Florida radish field, a mist of pesticide falling from its wings. Farmworkers are supposed to be protected by government rules regulating exposure to toxic farm chemicals. But in this case, the breeze pushed the pesticide over the crew in a neighboring field, where it fell mostly on women, including at least one who was pregnant. I smelled a strong odor and started feeling bad, worker Maria Garcia later told a state investigator. I had a headache, itchy eyes and threw up. The health investigator assigned to the case said more than a dozen workers showed symptoms of pesticide poisoning, and also found evidence that the farm and crop-dusting contractor may have violated federal farmworker safety laws. An Associated Press review of federal and state enforcement data and other records revealed that the pesticide-safety system is riddled with problems: Investigations often take years to complete and result in few penalties. Written warnings are common, fines rare. Compliance is sometimes voluntary, not required. And worker anonymity can be compromised, making employees reluctant to report violations. The agriculture industry defends the system, saying the low numbers are a sign that farms are doing a good job of protecting workers. President Barack Obamas administration recently adopted tougher farmworker protections after 20 years of debate and fierce resistance from the chemical and agricultural lobbies. However, when they take effect in 2017, all of the new rules will still rely on the existing enforcement system. Adding to the troubles are the regulators themselves. In all states except California, enforcement of federal pesticide-safety laws is managed by the same agencies that promote agricultural industries. The Florida workers fell ill on Oct. 14, 2014, in Belle Glade, a farm town near Lake Okeechobee where the motto is Her soil is her fortune. They had been moved at the last minute to a celery field owned by Duda Farms. Rains the previous night had made the fields they were supposed to plant too soggy. That was not communicated to the crop-duster pilot, who should have waited to spray a restricted-use pesticide called Bathyroid XL, records show. Twelve women including Garcia and one man were hospitalized. Many were released and cleared to go back to work after a few hours. But some, including the pregnant worker, required follow-up medical screening for lingering symptoms, according to state health records about the incident. Despite the findings about pesticide poisoning and evidence of violations, a state investigation resulted in no punishment for the farm and, after more than a year, only the small fine for the crop duster, according to the case file obtained by the AP through a public-records request. Workers contacted by the AP said they were never interviewed. The Florida system is terribly broken, said Greg Schell of Florida Legal Services, a national expert who has been litigating farmworker cases for decades. Unless you see somebody being sprayed, its your word against the employer. Its not clear how many workers get sick from pesticides each year. No one gathers comprehensive data. At the beginning of 2016, a new law went into effect in Texas. The law permits a gun owner with a concealed-weapon license to carry a gun openly in public. The new law is being both supported and protested throughout the state. Stores, markets and restaurants have the right to ban guns on their property. But some business owners are supporting the new law by offering special deals to people who openly carry their guns. Restaurant owner Trent Brooks believes legal gun owners help prevent crime. He offers a 10 percent reduction in the cost of food to customers who wear guns into to his restaurant. However, Brooks told VOA news that the new law has led some people to stop eating at his restaurant. Brooks said, We have people who say they are not coming back; we have people who say they are not going to support us, and that is their choice. Gun-rights supporters have held meetings around Texas to celebrate the new law. But many gun owners said the new law has resulted in more gun bans on private property. Some businesses have posted legal, written notices to ban guns. Kroger is one of Americas largest groups of food stores. It has over 220 stores in Texas alone. The company has not banned the carrying of handguns in its Texas stores. A parent named Mandy said she would be uneasy shopping in a store where guns are permitted. I would not feel comfortable with my kids being around it [a gun], she said. Close to 945,000 Texans have handgun permits and are affected by the new law. In August, openly carrying guns will become permissible at state colleges and universities. Im Jonathan Evans. Greg Flakus reported on this story for VOANews.com. Jim Dresbach adapted this story for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. What do you think about the new gun law in Texas? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or visit our Facebook page. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story conceal v. to hide something from sight customer n. someone who buys goods or services from a business comfortable adv. allowing you to be relaxed: causing no worries, difficulty, or uncertainty The memory of a beloved pet inspires one couple's fight against injustice. Comment Policy Advance Indiana allows you to post comments via this blog subject to the guidelines set forth herein. You understand that any comments you post are your own and are not those of Advance Indiana. You further understand that Advance Indiana is not responsible for the content of any external sites referenced in your comments. Unlawful, harassing, defamatory, abusive, threatening, harmful, obscene, profane, sexually oriented, racially offensive, or otherwise objectionable comments are not acceptable. If you think any content posted or otherwise included in Advance Indiana violates the guidelines set forth herein, then please alert Advance Indiana. Advance Indiana reserves the right to pre-screen, edit, and remove any post as it deems appropriate. You specifically acknowledge that Advance Indiana has no obligation to display any post submitted or otherwise provided via Advance Indiana. Disclaimer: Some of the links and banners on Life in Israel are ads, and some are affiliate links. Affiliate links are links that will earn me a commission off any purchases you might make after clicking on the link/banner, though you will not pay more because of that. The developers of the Ubuntu Linux operating system offer software that runs on a range of devices, including desktops, servers, and smartphones. For the past few years Canonical has also been working on something called Convergence: software that lets you run the same apps on your phone as you do on your notebook or desktop. Now Canonical has unveiled the first tablet that will support Convergence. The BQ Aquaris M10 Ubuntu Edition is a 10 inch tablet that supports mobile apps when used on its own. But connect a mouse, keyboard, and maybe an external display, and you get a desktop-style user interface and support for desktop apps. The Aquaris M10 Ubuntu Edition tablet is expected to ship in March. BQ hasnt announced the price yet. The tablet comes Spanish device maker BQ, one of the few companies currently producing smartphones that run Ubuntu software. The tablet has reasonably decent specs, but its the convergence software that really makes it stand out. Like Ubuntu phones, the Aquaris M10 runs mobile software and scopes designed for touchscreen interaction. But you can view multiple apps at once, thanks to the side stage feature that lets you view one phone-sized app and one tablet-sized app on the screen at the same time. For instance you could have a chat window or video call window open at the same time as a web browser or game. Connect a Bluetooth mouse and keyboard, and Ubuntu will automatically change the user interface to desktop mode, allowing you to use the operating system much the way you would on a notebook or desktop computer. You can resize and reposition apps and view as many of them at at time as you can make room for on the screen. Hook up an external display and you can use the tablet like a desktop. That feature is expected to be available in phones eventually as well but the BQ Aquaris M10 will be the first device to ship with full support for Convergence. If this sounds a little like Microsofts Continuum for phone software thats built into Windows 10 Mobile, thats because Canonical isnt the only company looking to bridge the gap between phones or tablets and desktop computers. But Continuum for phone only works lets you view one app at a time, only works with an external display, and only supports Universal Windows apps, which means the vast majority of Windows software cant be run on a smartphone with an ARM-based processor. Ubuntu, meanwhile, lets you run the same apps on your tablet as you would run on a notebook. That includes LibreOffice, Firefox, and many other apps as well as software designed specifically for Ubuntu phones and tablets. There are some limitations. While you can run desktop apps in tablet mode, Ubuntus Unity user interface will only switch to desktop mode when a mouse is detected. You cant trigger it when using a touch-only device. And apps designed for x86 chips do need to be recompiled to run on ARM processors if youre using an ARM-based devices like the BQ Aquaris M10 Ubuntu Edition. Canonical says its been recompiling apps for a while since this isnt the first Ubuntu device to feature an ARM-based processor, but its possible you may find some software that doesnt work at least until developers release ARM-friendly versions of their apps. The BQ Aquaris M10 Ubuntu Edition tablet tablet features include: 10.1 inch, 1920 x 1200 pixel display MediaTek MT8163A ARM Cortex-A53 quad-core processor 2GB RAM 16GB storage + microSD card slot for up to 64GB of removable storage 8MP camera with auto-focus front-facing speakers micro HDMI output 7,280 mAh battery The tablet measures 9.7 x 6.7 x 0.3 and weighs about a pound. While this tablet has an ARM-based processor, Canonical says its software would support devices with Intel chips. Preparing for the New Hampshire primaries next week, the presidential candidates and their volunteers will do almost anything to win the votes of the Granite States citizens. Theyll even make house visits. Its a great way to connect with people and develop a strong personal rapport, says Rabbi Levi Krinsky of Chabad of New Hampshire. Krinsky should know. Although his daughter Chanchie isnt running for office, shes successfully piloting a traveling Hebrew school and has thus learned the value of interfacing with people on their own turf. Meeting the children in the intimate setting of their own homes allows for a much stronger bond between us. Our classes benefit from the building of trust between us, says Chanchie. Ilana Chasins days are impressively packed for a 12-year-old. By the time the clock chimes 6:30 p.m. on Mondays, the Londonderry girl has had a full day at school and three hours of cheerleading practice. Still, theres one more item on her schedule: an hour and a half of Hebrew School lessons. At Ilanas home. The idea of a non-traditional traveling Hebrew school came to Chanchie after speaking to parents of Camp Gan Israel campers and other youth programs. I was hearing this repeated complaint by parents who want their children to attend Hebrew school, but couldnt figure out how to fit it into their schedules. Many of these families are spread across the cities of New Hampshire, making it hard to fit the 30-45 minute commute to Manchester, where Chabad is located into their day. Ilanas mom, Jeannette, confirms: I can tell you with confidence that if not for [the new school model], my girls would not be attending any Hebrew School. She explains that she had experimented with a lot of different Hebrew Schools, but it just wasnt working. Her daughters good grades were dropping because there was not enough time in the day to get everything done. Looking at the typical day of a young family, where extra curricular clubs and sport practices leave no time for extra commutes, Chanchie, an experienced Hebrew school teacher, began to think unconventionally, and soon devised a model that would work for everyone. Instead of students traveling to Chabad, shed travel to them, saving parents the drudgery of carpooling and the children, the exhaustion of another commute. The benefit of my traveling to the different areas, allows Hebrew School to become not just another chore. Our class is within a comfortable time frame, on a convenient day, and everyone involved can slip right into learning as soon as I knock on the door. Coining it the Hebrew School House Calls (HSHC), Chanchie accepted requests for time slots. Each family looked at their own schedules and found an hour and a half a week that they could set aside. Families with similar schedules and living in close proximity to each other joined the same time slot, in some cases rotating the hosting home. After the first year, the number of students climbed to 30, with nine hosting homes. The convenience of the house calls brings people in, and then they realize what they were missing, said Miri Shpindler, whose two year old son will soon join his older brothers and sister in their weekly session. When they get a taste of Hebrew school, it makes sense to them to make it a priority, Her children, she adds, love the idea of having Hebrew school in their own home. It motivates them to organize and set up the playroom in anticipation of their teachers visits. Working off what she had used in her past classrooms, Chanchie developed a curriculum modeled on a cooperative approach to education in which the students learn to bring their own abilities to the group effort. Some of the classes have older students aiding the younger ones, benefiting both age groups.Using the popular Aleph Champ program for Hebrew reading, she developed a one-room schoolhouse effect, with students of all different levels working at their own pace. Capping her classes to eight students, she has the ability to provide individualized attention. When Im teaching, I dont have to worry about a huge class, and I dont need to focus on the rules or discipline as much. I can put all my focus on the students, and pay attention to what they are excited about. At HSHC, children learn not only to read the Hebrew aleph-bet, but they begin to love the holidays and the idea of being Jewish. In the cold New England state, says Chanchie, thats a big deal. Indeed, Jeanette says she loves hearing the giggles coming from the living room during Hebrew School, where her two daughters and two other girls they hadnt known before, have now become close friends. Its not only the children whove made new friends. I met young Jewish families I never knew whove lived right near me, says Miri. This model is strengthening our community as well as giving our children the education. Another unexpected development has the children applying what they learn in school, to life at home. With a traditional Hebrew School, it is easy to leave what you learn at the door. But with the classes held in their homes they have an easier time integrating what they learn into their home life. Co-directors of Chabad of New Hampshire, Rabbi Levi and Mrs. Shternie Krinsky, are gratified. Watching our daughter tirelessly create and run this program, weve learned that not every community is the same, and when you find what your community requires, everyone benefits. We have seen our community grow so much closer since the start of the house calls. Sharing the adventure of writing and researching the story of Isaac Beckley Werner (1845-1895) homesteader, agriculturalist, inventor, journalist, scholar and political activist As far as middle class India is concerned, one of the worst feelings is when the first free month of a paid service is about to come to an end. The world's most popular video content streaming platform debuted in India last month, and the time has come when a large batch of free Netflix subscriptions are about to run out. To renew or to not renew, that is the question. First, let's look at why not renewing is a genuine option, probably even the more popular one. It's simple, really. Life will move on, just as earlier. There's a whole lot of free content available online, and popular Netflix originals like Narcos and Orange is the New Black are freely available through, let's say, 'nefarious' means anyway. (That's another joy so many of us would be unwilling to give up: Living on the edge of the law, like a boss.) There's also the issue of bandwidth and the cost of streaming. 3G may be affordable for regular use, but for streaming videos, the costs pile up quickly, particularly if a show like Daredevil grabs at your gut, making you want to binge-watch it even if an unlimited wifi connection is unavailable. On regular 3G, just one season of a show will set you back by a few thousands at least. Also, with most home broadband connections hovering at about 4 mbps, continuous HD streaming is something one shouldn't expect. What you're more likely to get is your video experience switching from HD to SD and back every few minutes, which is noticeable even on a mobile screen. For those who've hooked it up to a TV via Chromecast and suchlike, the experience will be downright jarring. (Then again, the Chromecast crowd will probably have a better internet connection anyway.) Another serious issue is the number of shows and films available on Netflix India; it is significantly lesser than the whole Netflix catalogue. In fact, even a wildly-loved show like House of Cards is, for some reason, not available in India. Its baffling, but true. We can expect the catalogue to expand on an ongoing basis soon enough, but clearly, everything may not be available to us as soon as its out on Netflix. Not many would be happy paying for it, only to end up downloading a show which is yet to appear on Netflix India. Wed do it, but we wouldnt be happy. (FOMO was probably invented to describe this exact syndrome.) But, like every issue, there are two sides to this one as well. Paying for Netflix, even if youre a median content consumer, could potentially be life-changing. For one, youll never fall short of content. Even with its limited catalogue, theres enough on Netflix India already to last you till retirement. If youre already retired, then it can keep you company till the grave or pyre (take your pick). Sense 8, Bloodline, Making A Murderer, Master of None, Jessica Jones; theres something for everyone. And those just constitute a tiny fraction of the Netflix originals. If youre feeling a wave of nostalgia and want to revisit episodes of your favourite older shows like Breaking Bad or Dexter, theyre all there as well. Another win for Netflix India is the homegrown content that they have. Heard a lot about Randeep Hoodas dashing turn in Main Aur Charles or the cutesy, contemporary depiction of romance in Mani Ratnams OK Kanmani, but never got around to watching them on the big screen? Well, Netflix to the rescue. Youve not spent irrational amounts of money at the multiplex, and youre still contributing to the profits of content that you truly like or are interested in. We may hate parting with our hard-earned cash, but the only way to rightfully expect good content is if you pay to view it. Netflix is a terrific way to legally consume quality content on the go, while never having to worry about storage space for all those movies and shows you love, but for some inexplicable reason, are unwilling to delete from your hard drive. Something like Netflix falls right in the crack between a necessity and a luxury - at Rs 500 a month for the cheapest available subscription pack, you get access to everything on Netflix India in standard definition, at a price thats less than tickets for two, for one film at your favourite multiplex. At 650 a month, you get HD access, with the ability to use it on two screens simultaneously. With the current payment model, its something that will get cut right out of your credit card without causing too much of a dent. Its a subtle lifestyle shift that could enrich the way you consume content, because most of the target group for this kind of service does, in fact, have access to value-for-money unlimited broadband. Make no mistake, on-the-go digital content consumption is the way of the future. The death of traditional movie theatres has already been predicted, and television in India has never moved past the idiot box tag. Well known Indian production houses like Balaji and YRFs Y-Films are already investing in digital content in a big way. Netflix is still the daddy of them all, so expect Indian Netflix originals soon enough. (Imagine, for instance, a Narcos-scaled show based on the life of Dawood Ibrahim. Such a thing might be on its way already, who knows.) Currently, the web is also the only way for us to have unfettered access to uncensored content. Digital is shining, so now is when we must make hay; perhaps the time has come for us to finally learn how to chill. New Delhi: Reliance Infrastructure (RInfra) on Thursday sold its cement business arm to Birla Corporation for Rs 4,800 crore, a deal that will help Anil Ambani-led Group lower its debt burden. "RInfra today announced the signing of share purchase agreement with Birla Corporation Limited, the flagship Company of the M P Birla Group, in relation to 100 percent sale of its subsidiary RCCPL," the Reliance Group company said in a statement. "Deal values cement business at Rs 4,800 crore at USD 140/tonne," it said adding that the proceeds will be utilised for debt reduction. RCCPL has an integrated cement capacity of 5.08 million tonne per annum (MTPA) at Maihar, Madhya Pradesh and Kundanganj, Uttar Pradesh and a grinding unit of 0.5 Mtpa at Butibori, Maharashtra. "Under this transaction Birla Corporation Ltd will acquire the 100 percent shareholding of RInfra in RCCPL. The transaction is subject to approval of the Competition Commission of India and other applicable regulatory approvals," the company said. It added that SBI Capital Markets acted as the financial advisors to RInfra for this transaction. RInfra is one of the largest infrastructure companies, developing projects through various special purpose vehicles (SPVs) in several high growth sectors such as power, roads, metro rail, cement and defence. Birla Corporation has presence across cement and jute and cement constitutes over 90 per cent of the company's revenues. With a total operational cement capacity of 10 MTPA, it has units in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. PTI New Delhi: Allocation of coal linkages for the non-regulated sector, which includes steel and cement, will be only through the auction route to ensure transparency, the government said today. "Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved allocation of coal linkages for non-regulated sector only through auction," Power and Coal Minister Piyush Goyal told the media after the CCEA meeting. "Sectors included are Cement, Steel/Sponge Iron, Aluminium, and others (excluding fertiliser, urea)," he said. The framework attempts to make coal available in a fair manner to end-users, the minister said. "Proposed auction methodology leads to price through a market mechanism; it does not seek to maximise revenue", he said, adding, "it ensures that all market participants of non-regulated sector have a fair chance to coal linkage, irrespective of size". Coal Secretary Anil Swarup said that coal linkages for 24 million tonnes would go under the hammer in the first year. According to Reuters, Coal India Ltd will put up a quarter of its production for auction to non-power companies following Wednesday's decision by the cabinet, which was chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Goyal had earlier said the government is considering a policy for coal linkage auction. Letter of Assurance is issued on furnishing Commitment Guarantee followed by execution of fuel supply agreement (FSA) on the fulfillment of LOA conditions in the stipulated period of time. Till now, Standing Linkage Committee has been deciding on allocation of long-term and short-term linkages for the sectors, including power and steel. PTI New Delhi - With a view to ensure greater participation of states, Union Cabinet on Wednesday allowed the Railways to form Joint Venture companies with state governments to mobilise resources for speedy implementation of rail projects. Keeping in mind the growing demands for railway lines in various states and huge requirement of funds to execute them, JV companies will be now responsible for identifying projects, land acquisition and possible financing in addition to government funding and also monitoring. The Cabinet meeting presided by Prime Minister Narendra Modi decided that the Joint Venture companies would be formed with equity participation of the Ministry of Railways and concerned state governments. Each Joint Venture (JV) would have an initial paid-up capital of Rs 100 crores based on the quantum of projects to be undertaken, a statement said. Railways' initial paid-up capital will be limited to Rs 50 crore for each state. Further infusion of fund/ equity for the purpose of the projects shall be done after approval of the project and its funding at the level of appropriate competent authority, the statement added. The JV can also form project-specific SPVs with equity holding by other shareholders like banks, ports, public sector undertakings, mining companies. The joint venture exercise would ensure greater participation of state governments in implementation of Railway projects, both in terms of financial participation as well as decision making process. This will also facilitate faster statutory approvals and land acquisition. Besides transporting people, various cement, steel, power plants would get the necessary rail link for transportation of their raw material and finished products. The railways has recently signed MoU with the Kerala and Andhra governments for formation of JV companies to ensure faster implementation of rail projects in the respective states. According to railways, it is always necessary to have partnership with state governments as it has been announced in the last Rail Budget. Earlier, Odisha and Maharashtra had signed similar agreements with the railways to execute projects in their respective states. PTI Bengaluru - Union Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday said the central government will contribute Rs 1 lakh crore in next two years for road development in Karnataka. "For road development in Karnataka, from our side, we will contribute Rs 1 lakh crore in next two years," he said at the three-day long Global Investors Meet--Invest Karnataka-2016, which was inaugurated here. "..We have also decided to expand the capacity of New Mangaluru Port with an investment of Rs 10,000 crore," he said. Earlier, inaugurating the meet Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said he expects Karnataka to surpass the national growth rate, saying it has the potential to grow at least 2-3 per cent ahead of India's GDP. Speaking after inaugurating the global investors' meet 'Invest Karnataka-2016', Jaitley said: "... given its natural advantage, first-grade human resource and the natural technology inclination of entrepreneurs... Karnataka has to grow at least 2-3 per cent ahead of India's GDP." Complimenting the state government for organising the meet, he said, "Karnataka has the capacity, and I think it is that capacity which we have to fully realise." Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Venkaiah Naidu and Ananth Kumar, among others, attended the meet. Acknowledging that Karnataka is the leader as far as education is concerned, the finance minister said the state will continue to produce best human resource in India. "One of the best things that happened to Karnataka over the last 2-3 decades was that even at the age of regulated economy, some wisdom dawned on this country and we decided to leave the IT sector alone. Since we left the IT sector alone free from any interference of the government, they prospered. They became in fact a face of India's growth potential," Jaitley added. With natural innovation, start-ups growing in the state, and a lot more potential in aerospace, the state should look at large manufacturing investment potential, he suggested. "Manufacturing is where jobs are... if we are able to concentrate on this with natural advantage of R&D centres worldwide coming into the state, I think we can exploit all these potential and really convert Karnataka into a destination of investment of economic activity of growth," Jaitley added. "I think every rupee that goes into Karnataka, investment goes into India's growth..." Tata thumbs up Veteran industrialist Ratan Tata today pitched for investing in Karnataka, saying it is a centre of high technology, including IT and aerospace. "I am speaking with great past experience, and I have been in the state and have been interacting with the state. Karnataka definitely is one of the major places one should look at in making investments here," Tata, the former chairman of conglomerate Tata Group, said. Speaking at the inauguration of Invest Karnataka Global Investors' Meet here, Tata said he was not making such a statement on the basis of promises but on the basis of his own experience. Karnataka still remains a centre of high technology - be it aviation, aerospace, IT, Biotechnology and the electronic industries. "It also has human capital," he added. The veteran industrialist also said the country had great deal to offer as it was having a huge market and considerable skills and capital. He also said, "the future of India will depend on future of investments and coordination of business in high technology." PTI New Delhi: It may only be a matter of time before the Tatas become majority shareholders in two Indian airlines. Multiple sources confirmed on Thursday that discussions are on between Tata Sons and Telestra Tradeplace for Tatas to buy out Telestras 10% stake in low-cost carrier AirAsia India. When this happens, the Tatas could end up owning 51% stake in this airline where as AirAsia BhD would own the remaining 49%. The Tatas already control a majority 51% stake in full service carrier Vistara where as again 49% is being held by a foreign airline, Singapore Airlines. This is what will make any possible acquisition of majority stake in AirAsia India too rather interesting though it will not violate the laid down laws. Is this move going to spell trouble for a group which has been passionate about the aviation business for decades but was thwarted twice, before finally succeeding in running two airlines with foreign partners in India? In the last two-and-a-half decades, the pioneer of Indian aviation has seen many highs and lows in the aviation industry. Doors finally opened for the Tatas in aviation when the government reversed an earlier policy decision and allowed foreign airlines to hold up to 49% equity stake in Indian airlines in September 2012. Since then, the Tatas first tied up with AirAsia BhD of Malaysia to set up AA India and later cemented a long held friendship with Singapore Airlines to form Vistara. At the time of AirAsia India, Tatas had initially taken only 30% stake while allowing a relatively unknown company called Telestra Tradeplace to take 21% stake. And when the second airline venture was formed with SIA, they clarified that the business models of the two airlines would remain distinct and therefore there was no possibility of any operational or managerial overlap. But now that the possibility of two Tata-controlled airlines is very real, some questions need to be posed: 1) Why did the Tatas not pick up 51% stake at the time of formation of Air Asia India itself? Since this JV was formed before any discussions had been finalised with SIA for a second airline venture in India, the Tatas were free to acquire majority in AA India then. It seems the Tatas were keen to only make a passive investment in an airline venture as they were wary after the earlier fiascos and the government had just relaxed the ban over foreign airlines' investment in Indian counterparts. So Telestra was brought in to comply with the FDI limits which bar any foreign airlines from holding majority equity so that the total Indian stake remained at 51%, split between Tata Sons (30%) and Telestra (21%). Now, with the prospects of aviation sector improving, the Tatas may want to gain management control in this venture. 2) Why is Telestra keen on selling out? Well, Arun Bhatia of Telestra had recently gone public about his myriad issues with the airline's functioning. In mid-2013 too, Bhatia had publicly stated he was disappointed with the Tatas for not keeping him in the loop while investing in a second airline, Vistara. Also, there have been hints all along that Telestra was brought into the three-way JV (AA India is 49% owned by AirAsia BhD) at the recommendation of AA's Tony Fernandes. 3) In case the buyout happens, the Tatas may have to face some queries by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) since it will then be majority owner in two airlines operating in domestic and overseas markets from India. But CCI queries may not be a stumbling block just yet given the market share of the two Tata airlines is still insignificant in India and any allegations of market monopoly can easily be dismissed. Anyways, AA India is an LCC whereas Vistara is a full service airline so their areas of operation are also distinct. The AA India saga AirAsia India started operations in June 2014. The LCC saw an initial investment of $30 million but no excess funds have been invested in it till date. If the Tatas do take majority control in the LCC, their first task should surely be lining up significant investments into AirAsia India since lack of scale is hampering the airlines growth. AirAsia India claims to have one of the lowest cost structures among all Indian airlines but cash is urgently needed for network and fleet expansion. AirAsia India needs scale to be able to compete in a highly competitive market like India where at least 3 in 4 flyers already fly an LCC. Its crying need is a substantial investment from the shareholders. Speaking to Firstpost, AirAsia India CEO and MD Mittu Chandilya denied any knowledge of a change in the shareholding pattern of the airline saying, "There may have been a lot of discussions but as the CEO I am not privy to these. I am focused on operations. A lot of reports on this subject may be speculative." But he did point out that operationally, the airline has been doing well. He cited aircraft utilisation of 13.5 hours with a fleet of six aircraft, low-cost base and increased overall operational efficiencies. The manpower-aircraft ratio of the company is at 110 as of now. Incremental improvements in operations are also happening, with a new CFO and a commercial director joining soon. In the December quarter of this fiscal, the airline claims to have made its first gross profit and in January too, it claims to be making gross profit. This is a vast improvement over the Rs 65 crore loss it posted in the September quarter this fiscal and Rs 24.71 crore loss in the year-ago period. Originally, the airline had planned to add 10 aircraft to its fleet each year but market realities and the government dragging its feet over the 5/20 rule forced AirAsia India to halt such ambitious plans. It now has just six aircraft in its fleet compared to 15 it would have had if the original blueprint were to be followed. There is yet no clarity on when the next two aircraft will arrive since AirAsia India is awaiting the decision on 5/20. This is a rule which bars Indian airlines from flying overseas unless they have completed five years of Indian operations and have a fleet of 20 aircraft. Chandilya says fleet expansion is awaiting clarity on the Civil Aviation Policy (which will determine whether the 5/20 restriction stays or goes). If 5/20 is scrapped, then tier I towns may become more important than tier II (which are currently the airlines focus) for overseas flights basically, the entire network will undergo a change. But the Federation of Indian Airlines (FIA), a lobby group of powerful incumbent airlines, competitors of AirAsia India, has been lobbying hard against 5/20 removal. Its plea? That the scrapping of this rule will help only the two Tata airlines, AA India and Vistara. Will such a strong competitors lobby keep quiet if the Tatas become majority owners of not one but two airlines in India? It remains to be seen. India's top multinational IT company Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has been rated as the world's most powerful brand in Information Technology Services by a leading global brand valuation firm, the company said Wednesday. Brand Finance's 2016 annual report evaluated thousands of the world's top brands to determine which are the most powerful and the most valuable. Scoring highly on a wide variety of measures such as familiarity, loyalty, staff satisfaction and corporate reputation, TCS emerged as the IT services industry's most powerful brand with a score of 78.3 points - earning it an AA+ rating. "TCS' customer focus has been central to its recent success, but a closer look at our data shows strong and improving scores for brand investment and staff satisfaction too," said David Haigh, CEO, Brand Finance. "It has emerged as a dominant force in the IT services industry and is the strongest brand in the sector. Its brand power is indisputable," Haigh said. Across all industries, Disney was rated as the most powerful brand and Apple as the most valuable brand for 2016. According to the report, TCS is also the fastest growing brand within its industry over the last 6 years. The company's overall brand value has increased from $2.34 billion in 2010 (when the first evaluation of the TCS brand was conducted) to $9.4 billion in 2016. "Customer centricity lies at the heart of our organisation and is a key driver for growth of the TCS brand. The efforts of our 344,000 employees - our best brand ambassadors - Have helped our brand strength to be rated at the top of our industry," said N Chandrasekaran, CEO and Managing Director of TCS. PTI Reports on Thursday quoted Bengaluru police and said that five have been arrested for assaulting a Tanzanian woman, who was beaten and stripped in Bengaluru on Sunday. According to TV reports, police is questioning more suspects. Earlier, police had launched a manhunt for suspects who allegedly assaulted the 20-year-old following a road accident, a top police official told PTI. "We have registered a case of riot and arson against the accused on victim's statement in which she reported of being assaulted in a mistaken identity by a mob on the outskirts of the city," city police commissioner N S Megharik told reporters in Bengaluru on Wednesday. Denying reports in a section of media that the victim was also molested, Megharik said the African woman had admitted being only assaulted by a frenzied mob after her three male friends deserted her at Soladevanahalli where the car in which they were travelling was burnt. "The incident occurred because the mob mistook the victim's car being involved in a road mishap on same night (31 January) when a 20-year-old drunken Sudanese national (Mohammed Ahad Ismai) ran over a woman fatally. We arrested him after he was rescued from a raging mob," Megharik said. Police did not register a case soon after the road mishap and the mob attack, as the victim was not in the city for two days since Sunday. "We have formed special teams to trap the culprits and render justice to the victim who declined to file complaint against the accused fearing attack again. The victim's friends told police that on Sunday the furious mob had pulled them out of their car, assaulted them and molested her in which her clothes were torn. John Kijazi, Tanzanian envoy to India, in an interview to Times Now, said, "We expect a thorough investigation into this incident. There should also be sensitisation programme to prevent such violence." Meanwhile, the city-based Tanzanian youth association decided to seek its embassy's help in registering an assault case and booking the culprits. Earlier on Wednesday, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj described the attack as "shameful" and expressed deep pain over the Sunday incident on microblogging site Twitter. "We are deeply pained over the shameful incident with a Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru. I spoke to the chief minister Karnataka. He informed me that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested," Sushma Swaraj tweeted. The minister sought a report from the Karnataka government and asked Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to ensure safety of foreign students. With inputs from IANS The aerial distance between New Delhi and Bengaluru is 1,740 km, around 500 km more than the distance between the National Capital and Hyderabad. Perhaps that explains why Rahul Gandhi has not been able to pay a visit to Bengaluru still, more than 24 hours since reports first came in of a racist attack on a Tanzanian student who was beaten up and strip-shamed on the streets of Bengaluru for a crime she did not even commit. It is quite possible that the Indian National Congress is passing through a financial crunch and the vice-president simply doesnt have enough money to book a flight to the Karnataka capital. The partys coffers must be really empty while fighting the National Herald case. That would, at least, be a logical explanation. Nothing else explains the remarkable silence so far from the Gandhi scion, who wasted little time in booking the first flight out of New Delhi and was among the first politicians to descend from the sky into the premises of Hyderabad Central University where Rohith Vemula committed suicide. Flights may no doubt be costly. But it isnt known if Twitter charges a convenience fee when politicians post tweets. Till the time of writing of this report, the Congress vice-president has failed to post even one tweet on the racist attack on the Bengaluru student that threatens to sour Indias relationship with African nations. Reports indicate that the High Commission of Tanzania has sent a Note Verbale to Indias external affairs ministry, requesting it to take necessary legal action. Contrast that with Rahuls hyper-active mode since Vemulas death. Not only did he rush to gain political capital out of an incident which could be directly or indirectly laid at BJPs door, through his tweets he instigated the students to create a non-stop stir. My message to every single student of this country is- when you let what happened to Rohith happen, it will happen to you one day Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) January 30, 2016 In total, the Congress vice-president posted around 30 tweets on Vemulas death, expressing at various times, his solidarity and outrage. While it is commendable that he took it upon himself to highlight one of Indias abhorrent social ills, casteism, one expects him to show the same alacrity in tackling racism. Yet 24 hours since a violent mob attacked, beat up, stripped naked and paraded the 21-year-old Tanzanian girl, thrashed her friends, snatched away mobile phones and burnt down their car resulting in the loss of their passports, ATM cards and cash, Rahul Gandhi maintains a studied silence. The students had nothing to do with an accident that took place 30 minutes earlier on the same spot. Their only fault, presumably, was that they belonged to the same race as that of the Sudanese national who was involved in the collision that resulted in a death. It will be difficult for even the most hard-boiled scriptwriter in either Hollywood or Bollywood to come up with a sketch that captures the absolute horror. What was stopping Congresss second-in-command from flying to Karnataka, assess the situation first-hand, take necessary steps and reach out to the African community? The students are now mortally scared of even stepping out of their rooms, leave alone continuing with studies. Isnt it what is expected of someone who aspires to be a national leader and is quick to take up any cause, be it Dalit stir following Vemulas suicide or Delhi cops attack on protesting students. Why, then, in this case, has Rahul limited himself to being a pen-pushing babu and ask for a report instead? He did not ask for any 'reports' from anybody before he descended on Hyderabad University campus, did he? Truth, facts and verification of the same did not seem to have any importance in launching a political broadside against Prime Minister Narendra Modi then. It is possible that Rahul reckons that racism and race-related attacks on foreign students are less serious because they do not come with a ready vote bank. Or does he reckon that governments controlled by his party are islands of Utopia in India? The worst response that we can come up with when confronted with racism is denial. And that is exactly what the Karnataka government is in, denial. Its home minister has launched a damage control exercise by claiming that girl was not stripped. That's an open issue, fine, but he also said the attack wasnt a racist either. So we can guess what kind of a 'report' he will send for Rahul's consideration. The kind that says, 'no baba, no need to come'. This issue has very little tourism potential and absolutely no electoral prospects. New Delhi: Police swarmed the British School in Chanakyapuri's diplomatic area on Thursday and searched the premises for an hour after a threat call warned of an attack with an AK-47 rifle. "The school authorities informed us about receiving a call at around 1 PM. The caller claimed he was armed with an AK-47 and threatened to kill all students," DCP, New Delhi, Jatin Narwal said. "Several police teams were rushed to the school and its entry and exit points closed. A thorough search was conducted in classrooms, washrooms and storerooms for an hour. It turned out to be a hoax call," he said. Though no case has been registered in this regard so far, efforts are on to trace the caller and probe is underway, Narwal said. "We safely sent all the students back home after police informed us it was a hoax call and there was no threat. The campus is secure and everybody is home. All the security protocols are in place at the school," Director of the school Vanita Uppal said. In a message sent to all parents, the school authorities said, "The school was under lock-down for the last one hour. Police have given an 'all clear' and all students and staff are safe. Students were moved out in a safe and controlled manner, after school activities are cancelled. Buses will be delayed by 10-15 minutes." PTI Kolkata: A phone call on Thursday claiming that a bomb had been planted inside the West Bengal secretariat 'Nabanna' that houses Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's office, turned out to be hoax. The call was received at the PBX of 'Nabanna' when the Chief Minister was present in her office on the 14th floor. Police was immediately informed of about the phone call, Joint Commissioner Kolkata Police (Headquarters) Supratim Sarkar said. Kolkata Police, its bomb detection and disposal squad, dog squad, special branch, detective department along with Howrah Police and other security agencies immediately rushed to 'Nabanna' and conducted a thorough search on all the floors, Sarkar said. Senior police officers monitored the drill at the Secretariat which houses many important departments and offices of a number of ministers. Along with different floors, the roof of the building too was checked throughly by the bomb and dog squads, besides the parking and other places around the building. The call turned out to be a hoax as nothing was found in the hours-long search operation, Sarkar said. Security in and around the entire Secretariat has been beefed up following the incident, he added. PTI New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to entertain a plea seeking direction to three civic bodies in the capital to take steps to resolve the strike by their employees that has resulted garbage piling up in the city. "Go to the high court," the apex court bench headed by the Chief Justice TS Thakur said as the counsel for the petitioner Rahul Birla told the court that the Delhi High Court has adjourned the hearing without passing any directions to the civic body. Dismissing the plea as withdraw, Chief Justice Thakur told the petitioner's counsel: "Why do you file such petitions. Go to the high court." IANS WHY DONT YOU READ THESE? Bengaluru: Police have launched a manhunt for suspects who allegedly attacked and stripped a Tanzanian woman in Bengaluru following a road accident, a top police official said. "We have registered a case of riot and arson against the accused on victim's statement in which she reported of being assaulted in a mistaken identity by a mob on the outskirts of the city," city police commissioner N.S. Megharik told reporters in Bengaluru on Wednesday. Denying reports in a section of media that the victim was also molested, Megharik said the African woman had admitted being only assaulted by a frenzied mob after her three male friends deserted her at Soladevanahalli where the car in which they were travelling was burnt. "The incident occurred because the mob mistook the victim's car being involved in a road mishap on same night (31 January) when a 20-year-old drunken Sudanese national (Mohammed Ahad Ismai) ran over a woman fatally. We arrested him after he was rescued from a raging mob," Megharik said. Police did not register a case soon after the road mishap and the mob attack, as the victim was not in the city for two days since Sunday. "We have formed special teams to trap the culprits and render justice to the victim who declined to file complaint against the accused fearing attack again. The victim's friends told police that on Sunday the furious mob had pulled them out of their car, assaulted them and molested her in which her clothes were torn. Meanwhile, the city-based Tanzanian youth association decided to seek its embassy's help in registering an assault case and booking the culprits. Earlier in the day, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj described the attack as "shameful" and expressed deep pain over the Sunday incident on microblogging site Twitter. "We are deeply pained over the shameful incident with a Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru. I spoke to the chief minister Karnataka. He informed me that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested," Sushma Swaraj tweeted. The minister sought a report from the Karnataka government and asked Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to ensure safety of foreign students. IANS New Delhi: Voicing concern over a Tanzanian woman student being allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in Bengaluru, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi has sought a report from the Karnataka government on the incident immediately. "Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately," party General Secretary Digvijay Singh said in a series of tweets. Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately. digvijaya singh (@digvijaya_28) February 4, 2016 Strongly condemn Incident with the Tanzanian Lady in Bangalore. Police must act strongly against the culprits. digvijaya singh (@digvijaya_28) February 4, 2016 The Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car in the city. The 21-year-old Tanzanian, who is doing her Bachelor of Business Management course, was dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends on Sunday night. The car was stopped by the mob shortly after they reached the accident spot on Sunday night, according to All African Students Union in Bengaluru. She was stripped by a section of the mob and pushed out of a slow-moving bus that was passing by as she tried to board it to escape, the Union's Legal Adviser Bosco Kaweesi had said. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had termed the incident as shameful. Swaraj had spoken to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and requested him to ensure stringent punishment to the guilty. Swaraj said Siddaramaiah informed her that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested. Official sources in New Delhi had said the High Commission of Tanzania has sent a Note Verbale to the External Affairs Ministry about the reported attack, requesting it to take necessary legal action against the guilty. According to the Bangalore police, the complaint by the Tanzanian girl was filed on Wednesday even though incident happened on Sunday. PTI Nagpur: A sessions court on Thursday awarded death to two collegians guilty of kidnapping and killing an eight-year-old schoolboy in Nagpur two years ago. Sessions court principal judge Kishore K Sonawane pronounced the death verdict against Rajesh D Davare (19) and his friend Arvind A Singh (23) amidst a charged atmosphere outside the court, where thousands of people were present. The duo -- B Com students at the city's PWS College of Arts and Commerce -- was charged with the kidnapping and brutal killing of the schoolboy, Yug Chandak, by inflicting about 26 wounds on his body, which was recovered from a remote place here a day after the murder on 1 September 2014. A third accused -- the 17-year-old brother of one of the two killers, who was a co-conspirator in the crime -- has been sent to a juvenile remand home. The victim's father, Mukesh Chandak, a noted medico, welcomed the judgment and said "this will serve as a strong message to society". "We welcome the ruling and are satisfied that justice has been done; our child will not return, but it will prevent such crimes in future. This will serve as a strong message to society," an emotional Chandak reacted to media persons. On Wednesday, Principal Judge Sonawane found the duo guilty under Indian Penal Code Sections 302 (murder), 364A (kidnapping for ransom), 201 (destroying evidences) and 120B (criminal conspiracy), for their first ever criminal offence. The order on the quantum of punishment was reserved for Thursday. Rejecting the plea by defence lawyers Pradeep Agrawal and Manmohan Upadhyay for life sentence, the court said that though it was a first offence, it was not accidental and the crime was premeditated, planned and executed calmly. "Merely because they are young in age does not reduce the seriousness of the crime," Principal Judge Sonawane ruled, adding that there was no question of leniency for the offence. The crime was apparently a revenge for the alleged humiliation meted out to Davare who worked as an accountant in Chandak's office and was accused of some financial misappropriation. Along with his accomplices, Davare planned the kidnapping and murder of the little boy. On the fateful day, Yug returned from school around 5 pm, left his bag at the security office of the building Guruvandan Apartments, Chhapru Nagar, and went out to play. Davare and Singh lay in wait for him on a motorcycle near the gate and after speaking briefly with them, Yug also went with them. He failed to return that night and the next morning a frantic search was launched for the missing boy. After hectic investigations, the police traced Yug's body to a drainage pipe in a gutter near Lonkheri village, around 25 km on the outskirts of Nagpur. During the trial, which was one of the most keenly watched legal battles in Nagpur in recent times, the prosecution examined 50 witnesses and none of them turned hostile, considered a rarity in such cases. Additional Public Prosecutor Jyoti Vajani, who did the examining of witnesses, was assisted by Chandaks' lawyer Rajendra Daga and police investigating officer Satyanarain Jaiswal. IANS New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh MLA Mukhtar Ansari and his three associates were on Thursday acquitted by a Delhi court of charges of allegedly running an organised crime syndicate for undue pecuniary benefits. Additional Sessions Judge Chandra Shekhar absolved 57-year-old Ansari, an independent legislator from Mau and an accused in the 2005 murder of BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai, his alleged accomplices Prem Prakash alias Munna Bajrangi, Iftekhar Ahmed and Meraz Ahmed of the charges under section 3 (4) of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) for being a member of an organised crime syndicate. The court while pronouncing the judgement said the four accused were acquitted due to lack of evidence against them and a weak prosecution case. A case was lodged against Ansari and three others by the Special Cell of Delhi Police in 2009 under the provisions of MCOCA and they were later arrested. The court had on 3 May, 2012 framed charges against the four persons under MCOCA. Ansari, who was represented by advocate Deepak Sharma, and the other accused had pleaded not guilty and claimed trial. Bajrangi, currently lodged in Jhansi jail, was also charged for running an organised crime, with the court noting that the offences did not result in any deaths. Iftikhar and Meraz Ahmed were charged for conspiring or attempting to commit or advocating, abetting and knowingly facilitating the commission of organised crimes by Bajrangi. Bajrangi was arrested by the Special Cell of Delhi Police in October 2009 for threatening a South Delhi businessman Ashok Tebriwal to extort money. His accomplice Iftekhar and Meraz were arrested in November, 2009 and MCOCA was invoked against them after the police said they were running an organised crime syndicate. Bajrangi, Iftekhar and Meraz were, however, acquitted by a magisterial court in 2012 in the extortion case under the IPC while the case under MCOCA was on before the ASJ. Police had arrested Bajrangi and others from Mumbai, claiming they had intercepted a telephonic conversation that revealed a conspiracy to extort money from Tebriwal. It had claimed that callers were associates of Bajrangi who had called up Tebriwal demanding Rs one crore. Following this, the police had also lodged an FIR against Ansari, who was said to be close to Bajrangi, after it claimed to have found that he was also a part of the organised crime syndicate and was arrested in May 2010. The prosecutor had earlier told the court that all the four have been involved in various cases of extortion, threatening in Delhi, UP and Maharashtra. They also face prosecution for allegedly murdering BJP MLA Krishnanand Rai in 2005. PTI By Dr Amit Sengupta Once discussed in hushed tones, cancer has entered normal drawing room conversations in India. This has to do, on one hand, with a rise in cancer incidence with a change in the countrys demographic profile. Cancer is primarily a disease that afflicts the later decades of life, though we do see a relatively small number of childhood cancers and cancers during adolescence and early adulthood. However, most cancers are clustered in the later decades of life and as people survive more, the incidence of cancer cases increase. The other shift in popular perception about cancer is that it is no more being considered as a death sentence in many cases as it attacks the victim when he or she is in the twilight zone. Cancer patients are surviving much longer, many are leading years or decades of fulfilling lives after diagnosis. Cancer therapies are more numerous, have less side effects than before because they are more targeted. New cancer drugs are being researched and developed every year. Severely compromised access to diagnosis and treatment Unfortunately the news is not all good for cancer patients in India. While new knowledge makes it possible to detect cancer early and to effectively treat a significant number, access to diagnosis and treatment is extremely limited. On an average there is a 16 percent chance of an average person in India being afflicted by cancer over a lifetime. While there are huge variations related to lifestyle, occupation, gender and conditions of living, this means that one in six people will be affected by cancer at some point in life. Clearly cancer is no more something that happens to someone else it can conceivably happen to us or people close to us. The Lancet reported in 2014 that the incidence of cancer in India (about a million cases in a population of 1.2 billion) is about a quarter of what one would see in Western Europe. This is easily explained by demographics while the profile of Indias population is changing, India still has a relatively younger population compared to Europe. But the bad news is that, in spite of a relatively low incidence, the mortality from cancer in India is similar to what one sees in aging populations in the global North. Unlike in developed nations where cancer diagnosis and treatment are integral parts of the health system, in India most people with cancer will never receive effective treatment. Of those who develop cancer in India a large majority will never be diagnosed, of those who are diagnosed a majority will be diagnosed too late for treatment to take effect, and of those who are diagnosed in time, a significant number will not have access to the best treatment available. Poor infrastructure for surveillance and treatment The distance we need to travel before cancer treatment is universally available is clear from the fact that cancer surveillance is in its infancy. The National Cancer Registry Program (NCRP) of the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) runs Cancer Registries in Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Thiruvnanthapuram, Dibrugarh, Guwahati and Chandigarh, which cover just 7 percent of the population. Thus even basic data on cancer prevalence and trends is limited. Extrapolating the limited data available in these centres, the NCRP projects that there were 1,148,692 cancer affected people in India in 2015 and this number is projected to rise to 1,320,928 by 2020. Of these tobacco related cancers (mainly of the lungs, mouth, tongue and throat) are estimated to account for 28 percent, followed by 19 percent for gastrointestinal cancers, 13 percent for cancers of the female reproductive tract (cervix, ovary and uterus), 10 percent for cancers of blood and lymphatic systems and 9 percent for breast cancers. There are, of course, major gender differences mouth and lung cancers are most common among males (in large measure related to higher tobacco use) while cancers of the breast and reproductive tract are commonest among females. Like for all diseases, cancers take a higher toll on the poor. The 2014 Lancet report comments that in India poorer people [are] more likely to die from cancer before the age of 70 years than those who are more affluent. The poor are at a higher risk as many infections, unhygienic conditions of living and poor personal habits predispose to the development of cancers that would otherwise have been avoidable. Further they are less likely to be diagnosed or to receive treatment. One doesnt need to be prescient to conclude that long term survival of cancer patients is critically dependent on a functioning health system that promotes equitable access. There are only an estimated 300 cancer treatment centres for the entire county, largely clustered around metropolitan centres. Primary level facilities have little or no facilities for cancer detection, let alone treatment. Where are the compulsory licenses for generic manufacturing? Compounding this situation of poor access to facilities is the new challenge faced by India after it amended its Patent Act in 2005. Having become a signatory to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) agreement, Indian companies are not allowed to make generic version of newly discovered cancer drugs. Most new cancer drugs are prohibitively expensive as patent holders in the US and Europe charge monopoly prices. For example a months treatment for Renal Cell Carcinoma using Pfizers Sunitinib would cost about Rs 1,75,000 while treatment using BMSs Dasatinib for leukemia would cost Rs 1,60,000 per month. The Indian Patent Act has a specific provision that allows the government to issue a license to a domestic company to produce a patented medicine known as a compulsory license. This power can be exercised in situations where a needed medicine is not available at an affordable price in the domestic market. Unfortunately in over 10 years since India changed its Patent Act the provision has been used only once, when a license was issued to the Indian generic manufacturer NATCO to produce Bayers version of the anti liver cancer drug Sorafenib (sold by Bayer as Nexavar). The price drop was dramatic from Rs 2,80,00 per month for Bayers drug to Rs 8,800 per month when substituted with NATCOs generic version. Towards the end of the UPA governments second term the Ministry of Health had constituted a sub-committee to short list drugs which could be recommended for issuance of licenses to generic manufacturers, so that they could introduce low cost generic versions. Included in the list were several anti-cancer drugs, including dasatinib. The initiative was still born as other ministries, especially the Ministry of Commerce, posed objections to this move. The current government has signaled that it is willing to accommodate several objections raised by the US government regarding provisions of the Indian Patent Act, including those dealing with compulsory licenses. Political will is clearly lacking when faced with the might of the Multinational Pharmaceutical industry. Concurrently Indian generic companies are working in a more hostile environment without the explicit support provided by the 1970 Patent Act. Neither do they feel secure that their interests would be safeguarded by public policies. In such a situation they would rather collaborate with MNCs (which they are doing as evidenced by the slew of collaborative marketing, research and manufacturing licenses they are entering into with MNCs) rather than annoy them with compulsory license applications. The net effect is that the Indian generic industry, the third largest in the world by volume and known as the pharmacy of the South has been able to secure one measly compulsory license worse than what even Zambia and Zimbabwe have approved! The situation that Indian cancer patients find themselves in could have several remedies. Primarily solutions have to be located in a well resourced and affordable health system that scales up surveillance, diagnosis and treatment. Primary care services are as necessary as are tertiary facilities in such a system. Importantly the potential of Indias generic industry needs to be harnessed with clear intent and purpose so that the fruits of new knowledge are not denied forever to the growing number of cancer patients. Kochi: Describing the current political climate in Kerala as "very conducive" for BJP to come to power, party President Amit Shah on Thursday urged cadres to make special efforts to woo various sections, including minorities, to ensure its victory in the coming assembly elections. Addressing BJP's Kerala core committee meeting at nearby Aluva, he said the Vimochana Yatra led by state party President Kummanam Rajasekharan had received a "positive" response from the people, party sources said. The current political climate in the state, where the party has so far not been able to open its account either in Lok Sabha or Assembly elections, was "very conducive" for BJP, he said, referring to the good show by the party in the recent civic polls and the "positive response" to the yatra. Shah wanted the cadres to make maximum use of the situation and reach out to all sections in the state, including the minority communities, the sources said. "Now we have to generate confidence among the people that the party will come to power," he said, while calling for an action plan at the ward level to galvanise the party. Briefing reporters after the meeting, Rajasekharan, who was recently appointed to the post of state party chief to steer it in the polls, said the party would soon constitute a 15-member election committee to finalise the candidate list. "Several prominent personalities will be in the list," he said. Asked whether he would be in the fray, Rajasekharan, who had been in the forefront of many agitations in the state, said he was "bound to obey whatever decision the party takes". Stating that BJP's doors were "open" and it was ready for alliance with like-minded parties, Rajasekharan said the party, however, had not started the process of discussion in this regard with anyone so far. But, he said, they will hold talks soon with various parties, including BDJS (Bharat Dharma Jana Sena), formed recently by the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP) led by Vellapally Natesan. "The immediate task before the party is to ready the organisational machinery to face the polls," he said. Hitting out at ruling Congress-led UDF and CPI(M)-headed LDF opposition, whose successive governments had ruled alternately and allegedly ruined the state, Rajasekharan said, "So, we are confident that we will get people's vote. The effort is to garner the support of new voters." He said the party had a 15 per cent vote share presently and it needed to increase that and added the BJP was contesting the polls this time to "win and rule". BJP is making all out efforts to break the bipolar politics of UDF and LDF. The party had received a shot in the arm in the civic polls held in November as it increased its vote base and made inroads in several areas. Later, Shah also attended a core committee meeting of party leaders of Tamil Nadu to work out strategies and to strengthen the organisational set up in the state, which is also slated to hold assembly polls in a few months. Besides the state presidents, general secretaries of the party in the two states, Union Ministers -- Prakash Javadaker, in-charge of party affairs in Tamil Nadu, J P Nadda, in-charge of Kerala, and Pon Radhakrishnan -- were among those who attended the meetings. PTI New Delhi: The BJP on Thursday questioned Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's silence over the Tanzanian student's assault and other incidents of crime against women in non-BJP ruled states. "It is unfortunate that Rahul Gandhi has been selective to raise his voice on such incidents only in BJP-ruled states," Bharatiya Janata Party secretary Srikant Sharma told reporters here. "Will he (Rahul) go to Bengaluru and sit on dharna to protest against the assault of the Tanzanian student. In Muzaffarnagar, a 40-year-old women was gang-raped. A minor was raped in Tripura but Rahul remained silent, why this selective approach?" he asked. In a case of mistaken identity, a mob assaulted Lina Martin, 21, suspecting her to be a friend of Sudanese student Mohammad Ahad, whose car fatally ran over a woman pedestrian while he driving drunk. Sharma alleged police were inactive towards the Tanzanian student's assault and law and order has become a casualty in Congress-ruled Karnataka. He also took a dig at Kejriwal, and said: "Why is Kejriwal silent? He didn't even need to travel to Bengaluru from Delhi as he is in Bengaluru itself." IANS Ahead of the court hearing on 20 February, Congress' Rahul and Sonia Gandhi have moved the Supreme Court against a High Court order issuing them a summons in the National Herald case. The High Court order had dismissed the pleas of the Gandhis challenging the summons issued to them. The Congress has claimed 'several legal deficiencies' in the High Court. The party has claimed that no one has ever complained of being cheated in the matter, and a person with no locus standi, Subramanian Swamy, is making the allegations. It contends that Subramanian Swamy, who filed the case, is just a front and and the real strings are being pulled from 7, RCR. The National Herald was a newspaper that India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru helped set in pre-Independence India in the year 1938. It was part of a company called Associated Journals Limited (AJL), which was funded by the Congress. According to the Enforcement Directorate (ED), a private non-profit company 'Young Indian' was formed in March 2011, with Sonia and Rahul holding 38 percent of the shares each, allegedly with the specific aim of taking over the liabilities of AJL. Swamy has accused Congress leaders of being involved in cheating through the acquisition of AJL by Young Indian Pvt Ltd. He alleged that YIL paid merely Rs 50 lakh to recover an amount of Rs 90.25 crore that AJL owed to the Congress Chennai: Senior BJP leader Subramanian Swamy on Tuesday said he was hopeful that DMK chief M Karunanidhi will decline to be the Chief Ministerial candidate to pave the way for his son Stalin so that his party could tie up with the Dravidian outfit and DMDK could also be a partner. Giving a new twist to his party's efforts in seeking potential alliance partners for the upcoming Assembly election, Swamy said in a tweet,"I am hopeful MK will decline to be CM candidate and make Stalin leader." He also said, "Then hope BJP align Stalin and Vijaykanth (DMDK chief) in a new alliance." So far, neither the state unit of the BJP nor the DMK has shown any interest in forging an alliance though both are vigourously trying to rope in Vijayakanth-led DMDK in their respective fronts. Against this background, what Swamy tweeted on Tuesday has caught party workers by surprise. Till date, DMK has been unequivocal about Karunanidhi being the party's choice as chief minister. Addressing a meeting on Tuesday, Stalin expressed confidence that a "government headed by party president Karunanidhi would work for the welfare of all sections of the people" if voted to power. Interestingly, People's Welfare Front comprising Left parties, MDMK, and the VCK too is actively trying to get the DMDK on its side. PTI Moscow: Russia said on Thursday it regretted the suspension of Syrian peace talks and expressed hope the negotiations could continue after the West accused Moscow of seeking a military solution to the war. "One can express regret in this regard but no one expected that everything will be simple and quick," President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. He said that the Kremlin hoped that it would "soon" become clear when and how the talks would resume. "It is unlikely that someone expected immediate results from the first round. This would probably be short-sighted," Peskov said. "Of course it is obvious that moving forward will be difficult and we are hoping that the break will be followed by another round of these truly difficult talks." UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura announced on Wednesday the suspension of peace talks to end Syria's civil war as President Bashar al-Assad's regime secured a major battlefield victory against rebels and Russia vowed no let-up in air strikes. The United States and France condemned the Russian bombing around Syria's second city of Aleppo. The Syrian opposition has been outraged by Moscow's determination to press ahead with its bombing campaign during peace talks and accused Russia of targeting civilians. But Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that air strikes would continue until "terrorist organisations" including the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria are defeated. Russia's defence ministry said earlier that a military adviser had been killed in Syria by Islamic State shelling. Peskov confirmed his death but said the Kremlin would not disclose his name. AFP After, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said he could turn himself over to British police on Friday, more than three years after seeking refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, the UN Panel ruled in favour of Assange reports BBC. Assange had said that he would finally hand himself in if his appeal to a UN panel falls through. If the appeal is successful, he said he would expect to be able to leave the embassy a free man. Assange: I will accept arrest by British police on Friday if UN rules against me. More info: https://t.co/Mb6gXlz7QS pic.twitter.com/mffVsqKj5w WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) February 4, 2016 According to The Guardian's short guide on why the founder was taking refuge in an embassay in London, Assange had sought asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy after entering it in June 2012 following a series of legal challenges where there was an arrest warrant out for him Sweden for alleged sexual assault charges. Assange is "technically free to leave" but cannot because he would be in breach of a European arrest warrant. The Guardian explains that the UN panel is set up to "investigate the lawfulness of state detention on individuals." Assange said earlier on Thursday, "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal." "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me." The non-binding decision will come from the UN's Working Group on Arbitrary Detention. The 44-year-old has been holed up in the embassy in west London since June 2012 in a bid to avoid extradition to Sweden over rape allegations, charges he has denied. Ecuador has granted him asylum, but he faces immediate arrest if he steps onto British soil and for years police have been posted around the clock outside its doors at a cost of millions of pounds. Separately, the Australian fears he could eventually face extradition to the United States to be put on a trial over the leak of hundreds of thousands of classified military and diplomatic documents by his anti-secrecy group Wikileaks. Assange founded WikiLeaks in 2006, and its activities -- including the release of 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and 250,000 diplomatic cables -- have infuriated the United States. The main source of the leaks, US Army soldier Chelsea Manning, was sentenced to 35 years in prison for breaches of the Espionage Act. 'Black stain' WikiLeaks has said Sweden's handling of its founder's case has left a "black stain" on the country's human rights record. In September 2014, Assange filed a complaint against Sweden and Britain to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, claiming his confinement in the embassy amounted to illegal detention. "The only protection he has... is to stay in the confines of the embassy; the only way for Mr Assange to enjoy his right to asylum is to be in detention," the submission said. "This is not a legally acceptable choice," it added, according to a file posted on the website justice4assange.com. Any decision by the UN group would not be legally binding, but Justice forAssange claims its rulings influenced the release from detention of prominent figures including Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi and Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian, who was held by Iran for 18 months. A divisive figure, Assange has likened his confinement in the embassy, where he lives in a small room divided into an office and a living area, to living on a space station. Previously he lived in the more impressive surroundings of an English country mansion owned by one of his supporters, documentary maker Vaughan Smith. In October last year, British police ended a round-the-clock guard outside the embassy building but said they would strengthen a "covert plan" to prevent his departure. London police said at the time: "The operation to arrest Julian Assange does however continue and should he leave the embassy ... (police) will make every effort to arrest him." with inputs from AFP Aden: A senior Al-Qaeda operative in Yemen with a $5 million US bounty on his head was killed Thursday in one of two suspected American drone strikes in the war-torn country. Jalal Belaidi, alias Abu Hamza, a top commander of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), was killed along with two guards when their vehicle was hit in the Maraqesha area of Abyan province, a relative said. A tribal source also confirmed the death of Belaidi following contact with AQAP militants in the area. The United States is the only country known to operate armed drones over Yemen, home to AQAP, considered by Washington as the jihadist group's most dangerous affiliate. The US State Department said Belaidi was a regional AQAP emir, responsible for multiple provinces in Yemen. It offered a $5-million reward for information on Belaidi over his alleged involvement in plotting bomb attacks on Western diplomatic officials and facilities in the capital Sanaa in 2013. Born in Abyan, Belaidi served in the past as the leader of Al-Qaeda in Zinjibar, but he is said to have climbed the ranks of the jihadist group to became a top military commander. Another overnight drone strike killed six suspected members of AQAP in nearby Shabwa province, a security official said. The unmanned aircraft targeted an vehicle in Rodhoum area, killing its six passengers, the official said. The US has kept up strikes on jihadists during months of fighting between pro-government forces and Iran-backed Huthi rebels who control large parts of Yemen, including Sanaa. Loyalists backed by a Saudi-led coalition have recaptured Aden, Lahj and three other southern provinces from Shiite rebels since July. Jihadists gains Jihadists, including AQAP and the Islamic State group, have gained ground in the south, with Al-Qaeda fighters seizing the town of Azzan in Shabwa earlier this week. Azzan lies on the highway between Shabwa's provincial capital Ataq and the city of Mukalla, the capital of the vast desert Hadramawt province overrun by jihadists in April. Al-Qaeda militants control Abyan's provincial capital Zinjibar and the nearby town of Jaar. They move freely between Hadramawt, Shabwa and Abyan. The US's long-running drone campaign in Yemen dealt a blow to AQAP in June, when a strike killed the group's leader Nasir al-Wuhayshi. He was replaced by AQAP military commander Qassem al-Rimi. Islamists have been behind a surge in attacks on security installations and officials in Aden, which has been chosen as a temporary base for the government. On Wednesday, a suicide bomber attacked the convoy of Lahj police chief Colonel Adel al-Halemi in northeastern Aden. A guard and a 12-year-old boy were killed in the car bomb while Halemi sustained light wounds, security officials said. More than 5,800 people have been killed since the coalition launched an air and ground war against the rebels in March, according to the United Nations. AFP After a series of misdiagnoses, the Hartleys, of Kansas, were told Claire had microcephaly, a serious birth defect that causes babies to have extremely small heads and brains, and, in her case, made it unlikely she would live beyond a year. Almost five years later, Claire was defying the odds and, although she couldn't speak or walk or even sit upright, she was a happy and vibrant child. The Hartleys felt ready to get pregnant again. Rounds of genetic testing had not revealed anything to suggest Claire's microcephaly was anything but an anomaly. When Claire was born, Hartley looked adoringly into her daughter's big eyes and remembered thinking that she'd forgotten how tiny a newborn's head was. Then the doctors whisked her baby away. Something was wrong. Something that couldn't be fixed. Gwen Hartley's 19-week sonogram was normal. Her baby girl, her second child, was going to complete her storybook life. She'd married her high school sweetheart, they already had a healthy son, a house and a dog. Then, at their 26-week sonogram, the doctors told them their third child's head was too small, five weeks behind what was considered normal, and that she certainly also had microcephaly. Hartley remembers her first impulse was to laugh, then she and her husband, Scott, broke down and sobbed. Gwen Hartley and her daughters Lola and Claire. Credit:Facebook: Gwen Hartley Until recently, the universe of people who understood microcephaly was limited to the small community of families living with children born with the condition. There are about 25,000 children with it in the United States. But now thousands of women in Brazil reportedly have babies diagnosed with the birth defect, and it has been linked to the also rare mosquito-borne Zika virus. The World Health Organisation has declared Zika an international health emergency. Women in affected countries have been urged not to get pregnant. Claire is now almost 15 years old, and her little sister, Lola, is almost 10. For the first time in their lives, people are paying attention to their condition, and it is terrifying the public. And that's been extremely painful for Hartley. "Part of me is grateful for the awareness of something we've been dealing with for 15 years, part of me feels sad for the families because I know what they've been through, twice. It's been really emotional," Hartley, 41, said in a phone interview. "At the same time, I know the joy that can come from having these kids. I wouldn't purposely want another child to be affected, but I'm happy that they'll know what I know. I would not have chosen it prior to my girls, but I didn't know what I was missing out on." The abrupt resignation of Ukraine's economy minister, followed by several of his deputies, over allegations of corruption has jeopardized Kiev's relations with its Western backers, threatening vital loan aid, politicians said on Thursday. Aivaras Abromavicius quit on Wednesday, saying he would not become a "puppet" for corrupt vested interests, and accused a close ally of President Petro Poroshenko of trying to siphon off state funds. Parliamentary Speaker Volodymyr Groysman said Ukraine was entering a "deep political crisis" and called for a government reshuffle, while several of Abromavicius's deputies resigned overnight. One compared working at the ministry to suffering a "death by a thousand cuts." Abromavicius's departure shone an uncomfortable spotlight on Ukraine's efforts to reform its economy and tackle corruption, which its Western-backed government pledged to do when it came to power after the Maidan protests in the winter of 2013/2014. "What happened is a catastrophe for the whole country," Leonid Yemets, a lawmaker with People's Front that belongs to Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk, told Reuters. "Think about it: how can we now talk with our partners in the West, with our donors, after the minister comes out and says that the deputy head of the president's faction is corrupt. Who will want to speak with us after this?" Abromavicius accused Ihor Kononenko of lobbying to get his people appointed as heads of state companies, culminating in an attempt to appoint one of his people as Abromavicius's deputy. Kononenko denied the accusations as "completely absurd," and said Abromavicius was trying to shift blame for his own failures in running the ministry. The prime minister later said there was a campaign to discredit his government, and accused Abromavicius of "running from the field of battle." Aid money Ukraine relies on aid money from its Western backers, including the International Monetary Fund, the United States and the European Union, to stay afloat. Ukraine's economy shrank by more than 10 percent last year, dragged down by its war against pro-Russian separatists, who have taken control over a swathe of the country's eastern industrial heartland. The government's patchy performance in introducing reforms, coupled with domestic political squabbles, have already delayed the disbursement of new aid money. "Aivaras was a favorite of our Western partners and his decision very negatively affects our relations with them," Yegor Sobolev, also a lawmaker in the ruling four-party coalition, told Reuters. "The fact that there is still corruption in the country wasn't news to the West, but now it is in the public sphere and now Western politicians must explain to their citizens why they have to help such a country as Ukraine." Ukraine is hoping the IMF will soon decide to disburse a third tranche of loans worth $1.7 billion which has been delayed since October. "The consequences of Aivaras's announcement are hard to predict, but it's clear that they are very negative," said a lawmaker from Poroshenko's faction, who declined to be named. "It could lead to the postponement of the IMF tranche." There has been no comment so far from the IMF about the resignation. The U.S. State Department declined to comment on Wednesday about what impact it could have. A statement from Western diplomats, including those from Germany and the United States, said they were "deeply disappointed." South Sudan rebel leader Riek Machar visits Egypt Wednesday at the invitation of Egyptian leader Abel Fattah El Sissi. Ezekiel Lol Gatkuoth, secretary for foreign affairs of the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement-In Opposition, said talks will center on getting Egypt to support the implementation of last Augusts agreement to end the South Sudan conflict. Machar's visit comes on the heels of last weeks African Union summit, where leaders expressed disappointment in both the rebels and the South Sudan government on the lack of progress in implementing the agreement, particularly the formation of a government of national unity. Implementation has been stalled due to the opposition rejection of President Salva Kiirs decision to create 28 states. Gatkuoth says Egypt has had historic relations with South Sudan, and Machar will urge Sissi to use those relations to help the peace process. One, they [Egypt] can talk to Juba because they have influence over Juba; they can also talk to us because they also influence over us because if you can recall also, Egypt was a former colonial power together with the United Kingdom and now South Sudan as an independent country, many of our leaders were educated in Egypt," he said. "So, the role of Egypt is being appreciated by all of us across the aisle. So, they can also influence us to make sure that this agreement is respected by all parties. Gatkuoth also said the Egypt visit is in line with Machars regional tour to drum up support for the peace process, which has taken him so far to Uganda and last weeks African Union summit. The chairman of the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission, which is tasked with monitoring the implementation of the August peace agreement, has urged both parties to form the transitional government of national unity without further delay. Former Botswana president Festus Mogae told government and opposition officials in Juba Tuesday that he is disappointed in the delay, which he said is contributing to the continued suffering of the South Sudanese people. The deadline for forming the transitional government was last month. This disappointment stems not solely because of a day on the calendar was missed but because the potential, the opportunity, the possibility of a new government is so close, so vital for this country, that it must be taken," Mogae said. "Every day we spend here, I think of children I met growing up without the chance of education, the chance of bettering their own lives denied through no fault of their own. Gatkuoth said rebel leader Machar is ready to come to Juba to be sworn in as the vice president of South Sudan as soon as the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission facilitates the move to Juba of rebel security forces. We have informed officially in a meeting that now we are ready for our leader to come to Juba to be sworn as the first vice president of the Republic, but now we want the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission and the whole world to move quickly to bring in the security forces of the SPLA-in Opposition to Juba as soon as possible, Gatkuoth said. The impasse in implementing the peace agreement arose after President Salva Kiir created 28 states out of the current 10 states, a move the rebels said violated the agreement. Gatkuoth said both the rebels and the South Sudan government have agreed to the stipulations in the communique of IGAD, which calls for suspension of the operationalization of the 28 states once a transitional government of national unity has been formed. We [the government of the Republic of South Sudan and also the SPLA in Opposition and other opposition parties] have adopted the IGAD communique which is basically saying, one, take the security forces of the SPLA-IO to Juba, two, form the transitional government, three, discuss the 28 states, and immediately once the transitional government of national unity is in place, the operationalization of the 28 states will be suspended until there is an agreement by the two parties on the number of states, he said. But he said if the two parties still fail to agree on the number of states, then a provision in the agreement that is 10 states will prevail. Twelve Pacific Rim countries have set the stage for what may become the worlds largest trading bloc. After more than five years of negotiations, ministers from Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the United States gathered in Auckland, New Zealand, Thursday to sign the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement. Yet the landmark free trade deal faces more roadblocks before it becomes a done deal. With a combined trade of more than $1.5 trillion, the 12 countries that make up the TPP are responsible for 40 percent of the worlds economy. Opportunity to increase market For U.S. companies, its an opportunity to sell more products. And for a president in his final year in office, a chance to expand his legacy and counter Chinas growing influence in the Pacific. "With TPP, China doesn't set the rules in that region, we do. You want to show our strength in this new century? Approve this agreement. Give us the tools to enforce it," President Barack Obama said during his State of the Union speech in January. TPP would eliminate tariffs on thousands of U.S. products, and create common trading standards, but not if protesters around the world have their say. In Santiago, Chile, farmers worry about the impact of new biotech standards. In Kuala Lumpur, protesters claim the U.S. wants to control business in Malaysia. Critics of TPP And in Washington, where activists gathered on a rain-soaked day, TPP is an example of corporate greed run amuck. Labor groups claim TPP is a betrayal of American workers and businesses, who will not be able to compete with lower wage earning countries. U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman says that's not true, that TPP will boost exports and add $100 billion to the U.S. economy each year. If through this trade agreement, we can disproportionately reduce barriers to other markets, bring down tariffs that are much higher in Japan, Vietnam, Malaysia, etc., so that we can get access to those markets; raise standards in those countries so that we have a more level playing field on which we can compete, were going to increase our exports," Froman said. However, many protesters aren't buying it. Even as finance ministers from the TPP countries sign the landmark agreement in New Zealand, conservative estimates suggest a working deal may be at least two years away. Lawmakers in TPP countries still need to review thousands of pages of new regulations. And despite prodding by the U.S. president, analysts say congressional approval in an election year is highly doubtful. Twelve Pacific region trade ministers signed the Trans-Pacific Partnership in Auckland, New Zealand, on Thursday a broad free-trade deal that will cut taxes and trade barriers for nearly half of the world's economy. Trade Representative Michael Froman signed for the United States. All the ministers said their goal is to "enhance shared prosperity, create jobs and promote sustainable economic development for all of our nations." The agreement is considered one of President Barack Obama's proudest achievements in his seven years in office. Obama issued a statement saying the deal will bolster American leadership abroad and support good jobs at home. He said he will push U.S. lawmakers to quickly ratify the deal. "I'll continue working with Democrats and Republicans in Congress to enact it into law as soon as possible, he said, so our economy can immediately start benefiting from the tens of billions of dollars in new export opportunities. We should get TPP done this year and give more American workers the shot at success they deserve and help more American businesses compete and win around the world." 7 years in making It took seven years of often contentious negotiations to complete the trade deal. The deal basically reduces tariffs and trade barriers for numerous goods and services, including cars, medicines and dairy products. It also sets rules for labor and environmental protection, and protects intellectual property rights for multinational corporations. Parliaments and legislatures of all 12 countries must ratify the deal. Many in the U.S. Congress oppose it for various reasons. Opponents say the pact will cost American jobs, flood the U.S. market with foreign products, harm the environment and threaten human health with unsafe imported food. But the White House has said the agreement will cut 18,000 different taxes on U.S. exports and open the globe to more American-made products, plus it has the strongest labor and environmental protection ever included in a global trade deal. Along with the United States, the other partnership members are Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. China, the world's second-largest economy, decided not to join the trade pact as it pursues its own economic agenda. But U.S. officials have said the Chinese are welcome to become a partner when they think the time is right. WATCH: Roadblocks remain, despite signing of TPP The Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Alexis Tam, is heading a delegation that is taking part in the Sapporo Snow Festival for the first time. The famous event, which kicks off today, attracts around two million visitors to the Japanese city every year. Macau will be promoted during this years festival through an ice sculpture of the iconic Ruins of St Paul that will be on display. A video mapping show will be projected onto the sculpture. According to a statement issued yesterday by the Macau Government Tourism Office (MGTO), a local cafe will be set up in the festival grounds and several promotional activities will be organized in order to attract more international visitors. The 67th edition of the Sapporo Snow Festival will take place in the city located in Hokkaido prefecture until February 11, featuring more than 200 ice sculptures at three display locations across a 1.5 kilometer-long exhibition area. The central point of the display is in Odori Park. Alexis Tam attended a ceremony yesterday marking the delivery of the Macau sculpture where he said that he was confident that this promotion of the city through the Sapporo Snow Festival would attract more Japanese citizens and international visitors to the territory. RM The Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) has launched a photo album titled Where the World Heritage Shines Photographs of the Historic Centre of Macau to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the inscription of the citys Historic Centre on UNESCOs World Heritage List. According to a press release, the album places emphasis on the photographs of the Historic Centre of Macau, but also includes descriptions of the images, introductions for the historic heritage sites and interviews with the author. Chan Hin Io, a renowned local photographer, has focused on festivities and religious activities relating to the sites featured in the album. The photos not only depict the citys mix of Eastern and Western cultures, but also reflect the communitys close connection with the historic center. The book intends to show the richness of Macaus World Heritage and its charm through various angles, shooting times and backgrounds, featuring a range of concepts and compositions. Aside from gaining a new perspective of the citys world heritage sites, readers of the album can now better grasp the changes that the Historic Centre of Macau has gone through and discover the stories behind the photographs. Trade between Macau and the city of Zhongshan in 2015 increased 13.9 percent over the previous year and reached USD230 million, the Macau Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) announced. The announcement was made after a meeting in Macau between a delegation from Zhongshan headed by the vice president of the Chinese municipality Yang Wen Long, the president and executive member of the IPIM, Jackson Chang and Gloria Ung, respectively, to discuss bilateral cooperation agreements signed in 2015. IPIMs statement said the two sides discussed the development of relations between the two cities and agreed to strengthen measures to provide better services to entrepreneurs and investors and jointly organize missions to study the Portuguese-speaking countries. An agreement was also reached to organize visits this year by Macau businesspeople to Zhongshan and vice versa to strengthen the complementarity of the commercial and industrial sectors of the Chinese city, located in Guangdong Province, and the Macau Special Administrative Region. During the meeting, the president of IPIM invited representatives of city of Zhongshan to be present at the 5th Ministerial Conference of the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese- speaking Countries (Macau), to be held next November in Macau. MDT/Macauhub Equatorial Guinea wants to join Forum Macau and apparently it has Chinas blessing, a diplomatic source told the Times. The membership of Eq. Guinea, a Franco-Lusophone-Spanish country, may be formalized by the third quarter this year, during the next Ministers Conference of the organization to be held in Macau. About to celebrate its first anniversary as a member of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP) in July, the west central African country, with a population of 1.6 million, is becoming a magnet for Chinese investment in Africa. According to our sources, other countries in Africa are willing to join Forum Macau, even though they are not part of the CPLP. We are talking of countries that claim to have Portuguese influence in the past, the diplomat said, although they dont have Portuguese as an official language. The recent five-day visit to Beijing by the president of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang, resulted in a credit line of USD2 billion and the release projects of at least three major Chinese business groups, at a time when the African country is dealing with difficulties due to the oil price breaks, its main export. The Chinese Prime Minister, Li Keqiang said that Equatorial Guinea has developed relatively well with the government supporting the expansion of investment in infrastructure, of which the country has a great need, Macauhub reported this week. During the visit, which also marked the 45th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, agreements were signed with Chinese companies for power generation and industrial development projects, which are an essential part of the governments objective to diversify the economy beyond oil. Central to this objective is the USD2 billion credit line that the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Chinas largest bank by assets, granted to Equatorial Guinea in order to finance work carried out by Chinese companies in the country, as part of a mechanism endorsed by the presidents of both countries. The Ministry of Mines, Industry and Energy signed three agreements for projects in the country, including with China Dalian International Cooperation Group (CDIG) to start technical studies for the development of the industrial city of Mbini, which the government intends to make an economic benchmark in that African region. The China State Construction Engineering Corporation will also be involved in the development of oil facilities in the town of Luba, extending the local port to make it a logistics hub for the oil and gas industry and other industrial activities. Equatorial Guineas membership of the CPLP was confirmed at the organizations latest summit in July 2014 in Dili, at a time when it had important economic links, especially with Brazil. The countrys membership has added nearly $20 billion to the combined GDP of Portuguese-speaking countries, which currently represents close to 4 percent of the world total, and is expected to continue growing. *With Macauhub A grassroots group petitioned at a McDonalds canteen in Avenida de Horta e Costa, asking McDonalds Macau to explain the Husi incident to the public. As a big fast-food chain in Macau, McDonalds is liable for guaranteeing consumers rights. () It should explain the incident to the public. If these imported products really contain the expired meat, what will they do? said Lee Kin Yun, a representative from the Labor Party formed by several workers groups. Petitioners said that they would also send a letter to the Food Safety Center of the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau (IACM): IACM works passively. It only took action when the scandal was revealed. If the media had not disclosed the incident, the organization would have done nothing. McDonalds Macau had earlier explained in a statement that the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau has already suspended the importation of all products from Husi China. This suspension, the company said, will only affect the availability of the McCrispy Chicken Burger. McDonalds Macau always strictly follows all food safety regulations and standards set by the Macau government. At this point, since IACM suspended importation of HUSI products from China, we no longer use any HUSI products in our Macau restaurants, the company stated earlier this week. The statement followed IACMs announcement that Husi supplied 576 kilograms of Frozen Fully Cooked Crispy Chicken to McDonalds Macau in June. Some 43.3 percent of Chinese netizens commenting on the countrys latest food safety scandal have directed their anger towards poor supervision, according to a report in Wednesdays China Youth Daily. According to the report, the analysis, undertaken by the major daily papers research department, was based on 2,000 posts taken as a random sample between Sunday and Tuesday from approximately 1.6 million posts on social media. Many Internet users are looking to harsher legislation as a solution, with 20.1 percent of the analyzed posts calling for harsher penalties for food crimes. On Sunday, a Shanghai TV station exposed Shanghai Husi Food Co., Ltd., a supplier to a fast food chains including McDonalds and KFC, for having sold products containing expired meat. Shanghai police said on Wednesday that they have detained five people involved in the scandal. McDonalds Macau had admitted to using products provided by Shanghai Husi Food Co Ltd, the company shut down by mainland food safety authorities. Yesterday, a bill for the revision of the Food Safety Law was tabled for its first reading at Chinas top legislature. It outlines harsher sanctions for offenders and a stricter food safety supervision system. For instance, the bill suggests raising the fine for offenders to up to 30 times the value of their products. After Chinese authorities shut down OSIs Shanghai Husi Food plant this week for allegedly selling expired products, McDonalds said that it will continue to use the Husi divisions other operations in the country. While McDonalds transitions to a state-of-the-art facility in Henan, it plans to rely on Husis Hebei plant. We and our suppliers have a decades-long proven track record of providing safe, quality food to our customers worldwide, said the Oak Brook, an Illinois-based chain, in a statement. Husi is taking swift action by investigating what happened and overhauling its safety procedures. We have been in direct contact with OSIs global leaders; as an added assurance of uncompromised safety, they are sending their top food safety experts to China to provide expertise on operations. This move provides a contrast to the reaction of Yum, the largest fast-food business in China. The company, which owns Pizza Hut, KFC and Taco Bell, terminated its relationship with OSI after a government probe into the alteration of expiry dates. MDT/Agencies Sales of live poultry in Macau are suspended until at least tomorrow after authorities detected the avian influenza subtype H7 in a local market on Wednesday. According to a statement issued yesterday by the Government Information Bureau, in order to safeguard public safety and minimize the risk of having the virus spread, authorities culled more than 15,000 chickens at the wholesale market in Macau, where birds imported from the mainland are kept before being put onto the local market. The action was carried out shortly after an environmental sample taken from a live poultry stall at the Patane Temporary Market tested positive for the H7 subtype virus. Representatives from Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau (IACM) confirmed at a press conference that the chickens suspected of being infected with the virus came from a farm in Gaoming District in Guangdong. IACM informed the mainland authorities about the case. An IACM official stated that the local government decided to temporarily suspend live poultry sales for three days. . A public health contingency mechanism was implemented once the virus was detected, including suspending imports from the suspected farm and a thorough cleaning and sanitization of all the poultry wholesale outlets including live poultry stalls in local markets. The health bureau said that three employees who were in contact with the live poultry would be placed under a 10-day medical surveillance at the Conde S. Januario Hospital. The authorities urge those who have been to the infected stall and the Patane Temporary Market on Wednesday to contact the Health Bureau or call the enquiry hotline (2870 0800) should symptoms such as fever or cough develop. McDonalds Macau has released a statement, admitting that it used products provided by Shanghai Husi Food Co Ltd, the company that was shut down by mainland food safety authorities after it was revealed to have used meat beyond its expiry date. McDonalds Macau explained that the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau has already suspended the importation of all products from Husi China. This suspension, the company said, will only affect the availability of the McCrispy Chicken Burger. McDonalds Macau always strictly follows all food safety regulations and standards set by the Macau government. At this point, since IACM suspended importation of HUSI products from China, we no longer use any HUSI products in our Macau restaurants, the company states. Regarding another of its products chicken patties McDonalds said that these are imported from Husi Beijing. Due to the suspension, McDonalds has also stopped importing from Husi Beijing. The company also reiterated that McDonalds Macau no longer uses Husi products. The Husi meat scandal continues to haunt the company. The mainland authorities have detained five employees of Husi Food Co. Ltd, who are accused of selling expired beef and chicken to fast food chains such as McDonalds and KFC. The deputy director of Chinas food safety agency, Gu Zhenghua, told Xinhua News Agency that the alleged illegal conduct was an arrangement organized by the company. It is reported that among those detained is Husis quality manager, Zhang Hui, who told the authorities that the meat had been produced under tacit approval of the companys senior managers. He also claimed that this kind of malpractice has taken place for years. The food safety incident first surfaced several days ago when Dragon TV, a Shanghai broadcaster, revealed that Husi had repackaged old beef and chicken and put new expiry dates on these products. Restaurant operators that have withdrawn products made with meat from Husi include McDonalds Corp.; KFC owner Yum Brands Inc.; pizza chain Papa Johns International Inc.; Starbucks Corp.; Burger King Corp.; and Dicos, a Taiwanese-owned sandwich shop chain. The Portuguese photographer Antonio Mil- Homens recently opened his new working studio in Macau. The photographer with a career of over 40 years in professional photography, having held over 15 individual and 20 collective photography exhibitions as well as having many works published by the media, decided to take the next step in his career. To learn more about this new place and Antonio Mil-Homens ambitions for it, the Times spoke to the photographer in his new place of work. This is a little bit of a crazy investment, he admitted, alluding to the fact that he is aware that sooner or later we will have to leave the building where the studio is now installed since many landlords tend not to rent to the same person for a long period of time, or, in case they do, the rents tend to climb during that period. But I think that this is a positive craziness and an alternative to what is currently happening to the photography market in Macau. There are more and more people entering the market; very young people, barely equipped and offering works at very low prices without understanding that they are jeopardizing their own future and those of others working in the same field, the photographer said. That is the main reason he decided to invest in a new studio and switch his field of work since magazines and newspapers are disinvesting in photography and in professional photographers, requesting journalists and editors to do that job too, Antonio Mil-Homens said. With this studio Antonio Mil-Homens hopes to be able to create a new market in a field that he has always nurtured, targeting mostly advertising, product and commercial photography, as well as high-end productions that do not easily find space in Macau due to the fact that we usually work in tiny places. The 115 sqm studio offers multi-functionality and conditions for bigger productions. Life experience has taught the photographer to have space in Macau for niche markets in terms of creative industries, design products, fashion creators and people from abroad that want to create artistic productions in Macau. But the new studio has potential to also be a space of arts and culture that can include several forms and with the purpose of being a gathering space for people who share the same interests. Education and training is another field that the photographer hopes the studio can be used for, adding that there are fantastic conditions here for workshops and courses too. A study issued yesterday by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission says the yuan is likely to gain prominence over rival international currencies, the Japanese Yen, British Pound and the Euro, over the next decade. In addition the study stipulated that, although the rise of the yuan may slightly erode the leading status of the U.S. dollar, it is unlikely to supplant the latter as the number one reserve currency. Cornell University economist Eswar Prasad wrote in the report that China is likely to undertake a reform process of its financial and monetary system to become largely open within the next three to five years. The elevation in status of the yuan has pulled into question whether the Hong Kong dollar (and subsequently the Macau pataca) should remain pegged to the U.S. dollar. The peg has caused problems in the past as Hong Kong and Macau move through different parts of the economic boom and bust cycle out of synchronization with the U.S. economy. The dependency reduces the ability for Macau and Hong Kongs Monetary Authorities to take the necessary steps to curtail recessionary pressures. John Greenwood, the architect behind the pegging of the HKD, has said that the small, open economy of Hong Kong would not be stable if its currency were to float freely against others, because of large capital flows that make the SAR vulnerable to market volatility. Yet a case could be made for both the MOP and HKD to be linked to the Chinese yuan, given the level of economic dependency both SARs face in relation to the mainland. However, economist Prasad warned in the report that Beijing must yet enact a broader liberalization of its currency system before it can be regarded as a safe haven currency. Staff reporter hkd peg provided stability Hong Kong pegged its currency with the USD on October 17, 1983. Over thirty years ago, the decision provided stability as China and the United Kingdom initiated discussions on Hong Kongs handover to mainland rule. Today, the two currencies remain pegged. Macaus currency is also indirectly pegged with the USD. One of the most dramatic moments of Tuesdays hearing on Medicaid expansion was when Dr. Kenneth Krell of Idaho Falls accused the Idaho Legislature of being responsible for the deaths of 324 people a year, or almost 1,000 over the past three years, due to lawmakers failure to expand Medicaid. I would ask you to please stop the killing, Krell said, drawing applause and cheers from the Medicaid expansion supporters in the overflow room and a rebuke from Senate Health and Welfare Chairman Lee Heider, R-Twin Falls, who said he would shut down the next speaker who disrespects the Senate. Krell is the director of critical care at Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center, and one of Krells patients, Jenny Steinke, is one of the documented examples of someone who, arguably, might be alive today with Medicaid expansion. Steinke had asthma, and since neither she nor her husband made enough at their jobs to afford insurance she was treating herself with short-acting inhalers from a community clinic. One day, the inhalers stopped working and a neighbor brought her, suffocating, to the hospital. She stopped breathing in the truck. Medical staff worked hard to revive her but she ended up brain dead from prolonged oxygen deprivation and had to be taken off life support. Steinkes story was reported in the Idaho Falls Post Register in October and picked up by newspapers across the state. But what is this number of 1,000 people dead from a lack of Medicaid expansion based on? Its an extrapolation from a 2012 study in the New England Journal of Medicine, comparing mortality rates in three states that expanded Medicaid New York, Maine and Arizona to the rates in Pennsylvania, Nevada, New Mexico and New Hampshire, which didnt. Researchers analyzed deaths among people aged 20 to 64 people over 64 qualify for Medicare, and children qualify for Medicaid and, after controlling for demographic and economic factors, estimated that the Medicaid expansions were associated with a decline of 6.1 percent in deaths, or about 2,840 per year for every 500,000 adults added, according to the New York Times write up of the study results. The study found a drop in death rates in the states that expanded Medicaid and an increase in the ones that didnt. I cant tell you for sure that this is a cause-and-effect relationship, that the Medicaid expansion caused fewer non-elderly adults to die, one of the researchers told the paper. I can tell you we did everything we could to rule out alternative explanations. So, Krells estimate of 324 deaths a year in Idaho caused by a lack of Medicaid expansion comes from the studys conclusion that deaths in states without Medicaid expansion are 19.7 per 100,000 people higher, then multiplying this by Idahos population. At the time, some conservatives noted the limitations to the data. Again from the New York Times: Douglas Holtz-Eakin, president of the American Action Forum, a Republican-oriented group, said the study was well done and brings more evidence in about the benefit side of Medicaid, but he wondered if the results could be generalized. The three states studied voluntarily expanded their Medicaid programs, presumably confident they could pay for the expansion, and had enough doctors accepting Medicaid to treat additional beneficiaries. Other states may be less able to afford it, he said, and it is possible that having a piece of paper that says youre on Medicaid doesnt do any good because they cant see anybody. On the other side, opponents of Medicaid expansion frequently cite a study comparing Medicaid recipients to people not on Medicaid in Oregon after that state expanded Medicaid. Idaho Freedom Foundation Vice President Fred Binrbaum, the only person to testify against Medicaid expansion on Tuesday, cited this study as evidence that Medicaid doesnt improve health outcomes. Since Oregon used a lottery system to select the recipients they had almost 30,000 slots but closer to 90,000 applicants researchers followed one group that got Medicaid and one that didnt. More than 12,000 people were part of the study. It found an increase in use of preventive care and hospital visits among the now-insured, but the only statistically significant health improvement researchers was a drop in rates of depression. Categories such as blood pressure and cholesterol didnt change much. There were, though, decreases on financial strain for those who were on Medicaid. Conservatives said the study shows the Medicaid expansion doesnt do much, since health outcomes for those on Medicaid are pretty close to those for the uninsured: There is no way to spin these results as anything but a rebuke to those who are pushing states to expand Medicaid, Michael Cannon, director of health policy studies for the Cato Institute, wrote for Real Clear Politics at the time. The Obama administration has been trying to convince states to throw more than a trillion additional taxpayer dollars at Medicaid by participating in the expansion, when the best-designed research available cannot find any evidence that it improves the physical health of enrollees. The OHIE even studied the most vulnerable part of the Medicaid-expansion population those below 100 percent of the federal poverty level yet still found no improvements in physical health. Not everyone agreed with that take, pointing to the increase use of preventive care and medical care in general, plus the decrease in financial strain on the poor and now-insured, shows its benefits: Obviously, simply feeling healthier does not an argument for expanding Medicaid make, Brian Fung wrote in The Atlantic. But the drop in depression diagnoses is a promising outcome given the conditions links to all manner of unpleasant health consequences. Taking greater steps to identify health problems before they happen has also been touted as a key requirement in keeping healthcare costs low over the long term. And improvements in financial security including a 40 percent drop in the likelihood of having to take out a loan or leave other bills unpaid due to spending on healthcare are a promising sign if the aim is to make healthcare more affordable. Birders heartbroken after last weeks shooting of two ferruginous hawks have something new to hope for: the recovery of a third ferruginous hawk found near Murtaugh Lake. This hawk, suffering from a type of pneumonia or a lung infection, is recovering in the care of volunteer raptor rehabilitator Julie Randell of Kimberly. Burley birder and photographer Linda Wilcox on Saturday found the light-phase ferruginous hawk, unable to fly, in the same spot where she discovered the two hawks shot last week. Again, she called Randell for help, and Randell captured it during a snowstorm. At first, the women thought this hawk, too, had been shot. Randell fed it mice for the rest of the weekend then took it Monday to a veterinary office, where X-rays showed no injury. By then worsening symptoms made it clear the hawk was sick. Its responding to antibiotics, and it seems to be pulling out of it, Randell said Tuesday. The hawk was also getting subcutaneous fluid to fight dehydration, and Randell was feeding it a slurry from a feeding tube holding the beak open with two fingers and inserting the tube with the other hand. She fed the hawk at midnight, checked it at 5 a.m. and fed it again at 7 a.m. thinking it was still docile enough that she didnt need gloves. She was wrong. In fact, it drew blood on my finger, Randell said, heartened by the sign of improvement. Bird rehabbers elsewhere in Idaho have checked in on the hawks progress. And Kimberly birder Pat Weber grieving over the two hawks that had to be euthanized last week ran over to Randells house with mice from her freezer. Having something to do eases the grieving, said Weber, who helped Randell with the antibiotics and feeding Monday night. I think people have really latched onto this story, at least in the birding community, Weber said Tuesday. Randell called me with an update Wednesday morning: Our bird is doing well, hes hanging in there. The antibiotics seem to be working. Hes not out of the woods yet, so were keeping our fingers crossed. But so far so good. Elsewhere in todays Outdoors section, youll see another reminder about the Feb. 12-14 Hagerman Bird Festival and its Feb. 10 registration deadline. Dont miss the chance to mingle with (and learn from) other birders in the field. But next week offers a lot of other outdoor fun, too. The Wood River Extreme Skijoring Association will hold its 2016 races at noon Feb. 13-14 in Quigley Canyon adjacent to the Wood River High School ballfield. Its a crazy spectacle: running horses pulling skiers through a course of ski gates, jumps and rings. Information: Woodriveresja.com or 208-720-7798. At the annual Salmon River Snowmobilers Ball on Feb. 13 in Stanley, snowmobilers gather for touring followed by an evening social event. Information: Stanley-Sawtooth Chamber of Commerce, Stanleycc.org. Birders of all ages may join the City of Rocks National Reserves free Great Backyard Bird Count on Feb. 12-15 to help create a real-time snapshot of where birds are. At the visitor center that Friday and Saturday, bird feeders will be stocked and binoculars provided. Rangers will teach bird identification skills, use of field guides and techniques for beginners. Sightings will be submitted through eBird.org, and visitors may participate through live tweets, Instagram and Facebook posts. Details: Facebook.com/CityOfRocksNPS OWYHEE A judge stripped a Utah man of his Idaho hunting license for two years after he pleaded guilty to poaching a mule deer in Owyhee County in 2014. Mark J. Richens, 34, of Roosevelt, Utah, also must pay a fine of $665 and cannot accompany other hunters into the field or carry a gun in Idaho for two years. Hell serve 90 days in jail should he fail to comply with these conditions for the first year. Richens was originally charged in Owyhee County with misdemeanor counts of unlawfully taking a big game animal and hunting with an invalid tag. The invalid tag charge was dismissed as part of a plea agreement Richens made with prosecutors in October. An investigation of Richens began with a concerned citizen, a call to Citizens Against Poaching and tips from social media, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game said in a statement. We developed a solid case thanks to citizen involvement, Fish and Game regional investigator Kurt Stieglitz said. Its gratifying to know that so many Idahoans value the states wildlife and will move quickly to defend it. In November 2014, a concerned citizen saw two men at a gas station off Interstate 84 east of Boise and reported seeing a mule deer under a tarp in the back of their new Ford Raptor pickup truck, Fish and Game said. Days later, investigators identified one of the men as Richens and determined he had just purchased a duplicate deer tag, claiming he lost his original late-season buck tag for Fish and Games Unit 40, southwest of Boise on the Oregon border. A short time later, investigators found Richens was back in Unit 40 hunting trophy mule deer. On Dec. 19, 2014, Fish and Game released case information to the media and on Facebook and the department received a tip that identified Richens as the driver of the Raptor pickup. That helped bolster its case, Fish and Game said. Anyone with information about suspected poaching activity is encouraged to call the Citizens Against Poaching hotline at 1-800-632-5999. Callers can remain anonymous and cash rewards are often paid for information leading to the successful conclusion of a case. TWIN FALLS Two people who live at the Twin Falls home where a 38-year-old man died Tuesday have been arrested and charged with delivering drugs to a confidential informant last year. The man and woman were arraigned on the drug charges Wednesday about the same time Joseph Lee Mohlmans body was being returned to Twin Falls following a 9 a.m. autopsy in Boise. Mohlman died in a home at 351 Seventh Ave. N. early Tuesday morning, police said. Officers responded to the home just before 1 a.m. and found Mohlman injured, but paramedics were unable to save his life. Twin Falls County Coroner Gene Turley withheld the results of the autopsy Wednesday citing the ongoing death investigation, which police said Tuesday could be a homicide. Twin Falls County Prosecutor Grant Loebs said Wednesday night his office had yet to receive the autopsy report. The two people who live at the home where Mohlman died were arraigned on drug charges stemming from a police sting last August and September. The owner of the home was already in jail on drug charges. Charles Edward Gray, 41, and Denise Suzanne Servin, 35, both of Twin Falls, were arraigned Wednesday in Twin Falls County Magistrate Court on two felony counts each of delivery of a controlled substance. Servins bond was set at $10,000 while Grays was set at $100,000. Both Servin and Gray were booked into Twin Falls County Jail in the hours following Mohlmans death, jail records showed. Servin was booked at 6:32 a.m. Tuesday, Gray at 9:32 a.m. I dont think theres any connection between the drug charges and the death, Twin Falls County Prosecutor Grant Loebs said Wednesay night. The charges against Gray and Servin stem from two incidents in August and September, but Loebs said he didnt know why they were arrested Tuesday and not on an earlier date. When asked if Gray or Servin were at the house when Mohlman died, Loebs said I dont have any comment. City spokesman Joshua Palmer did not know Wednesday evening what time, or where, Servin and Gray were arrested Tuesday. The couple, described as boyfriend and girlfriend in court documents, are charged with selling methamphetamine to a confidential informant Aug. 27 and again Sep. 9, court documents said. Both times Gray arrived to the meeting place in a green Ford Expedition registered to Servin, who was a passenger on both occasions. On Tuesday, the green Expedition was one of three vehicles in the driveway at the home where Mohlman died. The owner of the home, 51-year-old Carolyn Debbie Olsen, has been in Twin Falls County Jail since Jan. 14 when she was arrested for a probation violation and charged with felony possession of a controlled substance. On Tuesday Loebs said Mohlmans death was being investigated as someone else killed someone, and were trying to find out what happened. Loebs also said Tuesday that Mohlman did not die from natural causes and that early indications are its not a self-inflicted wound. I dont believe theres a danger to members of the general public, he said. BOISE | The Idaho State Police would be able to use unmarked cars if a bill introduced Wednesday passes. The intent, said ISP Deputy Director Lt. Col. Kedrick Wills, is to use the cars to crack down on aggressive driving, which he said is a factor in 56 percent of traffic crashes in Idaho. "We constantly hear from the public the need to address this issue," Wills told the Senate Judiciary and Rules Committee. ISP is required to use marked cars under the law. The bill specifies at least 90 percent of ISP's cars must be marked. "We want to have this simply as a tool and not to take the place of marked patrol vehicles," he said. The bill says unmarked vehicles can be used "as necessary to enforce the laws of this state," which Wills said was added to ensure that a trooper in an unmarked vehicle who witnesses another crime doesn't hesitate to intervene. Sen. Abby Lee, R-Fruitland, said some people have concerns about criminals impersonating police officers pulling people over. Wills replied that troopers would always wear uniforms and carry commission cards, and that other agencies that use unmarked vehicles have not seen an increase in this problem. Impersonators who pull people over usually don't wear police uniforms, Wills said. "I'm a father of three teenage daughters and I understand that this may be a concern," he said. The committee voted to print the bill, setting the stage for a hearing. Let's talk about the Titantic. Her size was greater than any other liners. The builders of Titanic thought it would never sink. But it hit an iceberg and it sunk, there were not enough lifeboats. Are we like Titanic? The captain: President Barack Obama. The crew: Senate and Congress. The lifeboats: hospital and doctors. The life-jackets: governors. The passengers: American people. President Barack Obama wants more Syrian refugees in United States. What if 10,000 refugees need free flu shots and there isn't enough flu vaccine? What about hospitals and emergency room over-crowding? How many doctors have retired? Even our veterans have a hard time with over-crowded hospitals and not enough doctors. Is an Idaho family next? If we are so worried about Syrian refugees why, didn't we help them over there? It's not a flood, earthquake or volcano that destroyed their land. Terrorist ran the Syrians off their land. The terrorist want more land. What's next? America, France or Russia? And where do we run when terrorists come here? Canada or Mexico. I'm glad Gov. Butch Otter said no more Syrian refugees. Now where is the land for 10,000 refugees? Was Idaho state land taken over by federal government? It's unthinkable is it? But so was the Titanic. 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Kamal bin Abdullah I am Mohd. Kamal bin Abdullah, who resides in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. I hold a post-graduate law degree from the United Kingdom. I blog to tell MALAYSIANS THE TRUTH. View my complete profile Blog Archive SHARE THIS BLOG SEARCH THIS BLOG BUY MY BOOK ... at Barnes & Noble or Amazon . A full set of End Notes, Advance Praise, and reviews can be found here . REGULAR READERS ... UNIVERSITY WEB PAGE You can access Professor Martinez' web page - where you will find course syllabus, op-ed articles, academic contributions, etc. - by clicking here BARACK OBAMA " ... The 40-hour work week, the minimum wage, family leave, health insurance, Social Security, Medicare, retirement plans. The cornerstones of middle-class security all bear the union label." HARRY S. TRUMAN "I never did give them hell. I just told the truth and they thought it was hell." WOODROW WILSON "I have long enjoyed the friendship and companionship of Republicans because I am by instinct a teacher, and I would like to teach them something." JOHN F. KENNEDY "The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie, deliberate, contrived, and dishonest, but the myth, persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic." THOMAS JEFFERSON "He who knows nothing is closer to the truth than he whose mind is filled with falsehoods and errors." FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT "I ask you to judge me by the enemies I've made." * * * * * * * " ... while they prate of economic laws, men and women are starving. We must lay hold of the fact that economic laws are not made by nature. They are made by human beings." JOHN M. KEYNES "I do not know which makes a man more conservative--to know nothing but the present, or nothing but the past." VISITOR LOCATIONS MORE ABOUT MARK MARK MARTINEZ'S WEBSITE My Liberal Identity: You are a Reality-Based Intellectualist, also known as the liberal elite. You are a proud member of whats known as the reality-based community, where science, reason, and non-Jesus-based thought reign supreme. Take the quiz at http://www.fightconservatives.com/Inside-the-Book/What-Breed-of-Liberal-Are-You.html BLOG ARCHIVE The General National Congress (GNC) sacked ten of its members who signed the Libyan Political Agreement (LPA) in December alleging that they acted against the constitution in a move analysts say could be meant to reject the agreement while promoting the Libya-Libya dialogue. The sacking comes at a time Western countries are pressuring the rival governments to support a unity government in order to counter the spread of the Islamic State group in the country. A senior Libyan intelligence officer claimed that senior members of the extremist group are using the North African country as a safe haven as bombings intensify in Syria and Iraq. First deputy head of the GNC, Awad Mohammed Abdul-Sadiq, told reporters at a news conference that the parliament sacked some of the members who signed the agreement in Morocco last year because they were not authorized to accomplish such an act and have thereby violated the (2011) constitution. The rival Libyan parliaments met days before the signing of the LPA, that they oppose, to discuss means of ending the war in talks dubbed as the Libya-Libya dialogue claiming that Libyans are capable of solving their own problems. Both parliaments had stated that signatories of the UN-backed agreement acted individually and not on their behalf. The UN and several countries have warned that delaying the formation of a unity government empowers the Islamic State to increase its territorial control. According to Ismail Shukri, the head of intelligence service in the city of Misrata, foreigners account for around 70% of the IS groups fighters and members of Saddam Husseins disbanded army are among them. Members of the UK parliament are urging their government to halt military supplies to Saudi Arabia until an international independent inquiry into their actions in Yemen is completed. The pressure came following a letter from aid agencies to Secretary Justine Greening of the international development select committee calling for the withdrawal of UKs opposition to an inquiry into alleged abuses of humanitarian laws in the war torn country. Pressure on Riyadh, over the bombings carried out by the military coalition it is leading, increased after a leaked UN report stated that some actions of the Houthis and the coalition forces could be considered as crimes against humanity. Committee Chairman Stephen Twigg stressed the need for an independent, international fact-finding mission to uncover the truth. Until then we should cease selling arms to Saudi Arabia. MPs told The Guardian that they received evidence that close to 3billion worth of arms licenses have been granted for exports to Saudi in the last six months. This includes 1bn worth of bombs rockets and missiles for the three-month period from July to September last year up from only 9m in the previous three months. The committee in the U.K parliament is asking the government to suspend exportation licenses but that is unlikely to hurt the oil rich country because U.K is not its main source of supply. Riyadh is preparing to buy $1.29billion of arms from the US as it continues its war to reinstate Hadi as the president of Yemen. Saudi Arabia has always stressed that it is fighting against terrorism and foreign minister al-Jubeir stressed in a recent column that al-Qaeda, ISIS and Iran are all contributors of the global terrorism which Riyadh is determinedly fighting. As Ankara and Moscow continue to have issues over airspace violations and approval of flights, the Russian Foreign Ministry has called on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to refrain from interfering from what it considers to be a bilateral matter. Director Andrei Kelin, head of the European Cooperation Department at the Russian Foreign Ministry, stressed in a press release that Russian aircrafts violating Turkish airspace, the latest allegation dating back to last week, is not part of the multilateral organizations mission because there is no concept of airspace within the alliance. His remarks came after NATO confirmed Turkeys allegations of a Russian Sukhoi-34 illegally entering its airspace before asking Moscow to stop violating NATOs airspace. Russia denied the allegations and Kelin said the issue must be resolved between the two countries; between Moscow and Ankara. On Thursday, Turkeys Foreign Ministry spokesman Tanju Bilgicha explained that Ankara on Wednesday cancelled the approval of a Russian surveillance flight that was already in the country because they could not reach an agreement on the flight route. The surveillance was to be held under the Open Skies Treaty to develop transparency, monitor the fulfillment of armament control agreements, and expand capabilities to prevent crises within the framework of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) and other international organizations. The route according to Sergey Ryzhkov, chief of the Russian Defense Ministrys department for control of the implementation of treaties included the observation of areas adjacent to the Syrian border and airfields where NATO aircraft are concentrated. Ties between the two countries continue to be tense and it is unclear if Ankara would approve the request if modified even though Russia has not revealed such plans. Tunisian Interior Ministry Tuesday announced it killed three terrorists and arrested a fourth one in military raids conducted since Monday in Matmata, governorate of Gabes. A statement from the ministry indicated three terrorists were killed on Monday on the first day of the operation while a fourth was arrested on Tuesday after forces succeeded in nabbing him in a cave. The statement also pointed out on that on the basis of the first investigation elements, the arrested terrorist was a foreign national. Two alleged Jihadists were killed on Monday in a clash during which a member of the National Guard was wounded, the statement said, adding that the special National Unit killed a third terrorist Tuesday in the cave where he had retreated. A fourth Jihadist; a foreign national on the basis of the first elements of investigation, was wounded and arrested, the ministry said later in the day. Tunisia has become home to numerous terrorist cells putting the country security and stability at risk. The country was rocked in 2015 by three terrorist attacks, all of them claimed by the Islamic State. In March last year, two alleged IS trained fighters gunned down 21 people mostly foreign tourists at Bardo Museum in Tunis. In June, another 23-year old Tunisian, also said trained in Libya, mowed down 38 people including 30 British tourists at a Sousse resort hotel. A November suicide attack against the Presidential special unit bus killed 12 passengers. IS group claimed responsibility of the attack. According to a UN Working Group, Tunisia has become the largest provider of foreign fighters to hotbed conflict zones. More than 5,000 Tunisians have joined terrorist organizations, according to the group. The African Development Bank (AfDB) on Tuesday said the federal government of Nigeria had requested a Budget Support Loan of $1 billion to enable it fund the 2016 budget. The request comes as Africas largest economy grapples with a $15 billion budget deficit in the wake of the oil crash that has seen prices fall about 70% in the last year and a half. The oil-dependent nation derives more than 90% of its foreign exchange earnings from crude sales. It produces about 1.8 million barrels of oil per day and 35% of its GDP comes from the oil and gas sector. The request for support is being considered by the Bank and it is envisaged that an appraisal mission will be in Abuja soon to work with the authorities and major stakeholders on the operation, the AfDB stated. According to the countrys Finance Minister Kemi Adeosun, the federal government last week held exploratory talks with the World Bank and looked at options to borrow from the AfDB and China Exim Bank. These loans arent an emergency measure, but merely the cheapest way for the country to shore up its finances, Kemi Adeosun said. The west-African nation expects a budget deficit of 3 trillion naira ($15 billion) in 2016, up from an initial 2.2 trillion naira ($11 billion) estimate. Your digital subscription includes access to content from all our websites in your region. Access unlimited news content and The Canberra Times app. Premium subscribers also enjoy interactive puzzles and access to the digital version of our print edition - Today's Paper. A new study by researchers at Cohen Children's Medical Center of New York (CCMC) suggests that more than one-quarter million school-age children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or other developmental disorders wander away from adult supervision each year. More than 26% of children with special needs in the study had wandered away from a safe environment within the past 12 months, say the researchers, with public places being the most common location for it to occur. Children between the ages of 6 to 11 were more likely to wander than those ages 12 to 17. Appearing Thursday in the online scientific journal PLOS ONE, it is the first published study to report the prevalence of elopement, or wandering, using a nationwide sample of school-age children with developmental disabilities, such as ASD, intellectual disability (ID), or developmental delay (DD). "Wandering has become a greater concern; said Andrew Adesman, MD, chief of developmental pediatrics at CCMC and senior investigator of the study. "Not only does it pose a significant risk to the safety and well-being of children with developmental disabilities, but fear of wandering can be a daily source of stress and anxiety for parents of affected children." In 2013, a 14-year-old Long Island boy with autism wandered out of his classroom and past a school security guard. The teen's body was found several months later on the shore of the East River. "As the prevalence of autism spectrum disorders in the United States continues to rise, there is a need to better understand the behaviors that may compromise the safety and well-being of these children," said Bridget Kiely a research assistant in the division of developmental and behavioral pediatrics at CCMC and principal investigator in the study. Using data from a 2011 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey of parents and guardians of more than 4,000 children ages 6 to 17 with special health care needs, researchers divided the children into three groups: those with ASD only; ASD with ID and/or DD; and just ID and/or DD. Researchers found that children with ASD (with or without associated cognitive delays) were more likely to wander off than children with cognitive impairment but no ASD. Across all groups, wanderers were more likely to not realize when they are in danger, to have difficulty distinguishing between strangers and familiar people, to show sudden mood changes, to over-react to situations and people, to get angry quickly, and to panic in new situations or if change occurs. "The kids who are most likely to wander are the kids who are least likely to respond appropriately to police or rescue personnel - potentially further jeopardizing their safety;" added Dr. Adesman. "First responders need to recognize that children or young adults with an autism spectrum disorder may over-react to some well-intentioned interventions and may be unresponsive to simple commands or questions" In terms of prevention strategies, the researchers also found that caregivers of children with ASD and ID/DD were more likely than those in the other two groups to use fences, locks, alarms, electronic tracking devices or other measures to prevent wandering. Explore further Healthcare providers' responses to parental concerns can delay diagnosis of autism spectrum disorders Only two per cent of patients with life-threatening bleeding after serious injury receive optimal blood transfusion therapy in England and Wales, according to research led by Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) and NHS Blood and Transplant. The study estimates that nearly 5,000 trauma patients sustain major haemorrhage in England and Wales each year and that one-third of those die. The research spotlights how delays in blood transfusion practices may contribute to this high death rate. Globally, bleeding following injury is estimated to be responsible for over two million deaths per year. Current treatment strategies focus on the rapid delivery of red blood cells, plasma and other clotting products. However, the logistics of providing the correct quantities in the right proportion during the first minutes and hours of emergency care can be extremely challenging. Professor Karim Brohi, Chair of Trauma Sciences at Queen Mary University of London, and a Trauma Surgeon at the Royal London Hospital Major Trauma Centre, said: "Bleeding is the leading cause of preventable death in trauma. The rapid and consistent delivery of blood, plasma, platelets and other clotting products to trauma patients is essential to maintain clotting during haemorrhage and has been shown to halve mortality. However, we found that only two per cent of patients with massive haemorrhage received the optimal type of blood transfusion for their resuscitation. "There is a clear opportunity for clinicians to improve the delivery of blood and clotting products during resuscitation for major haemorrhage." The study, published in the British Journal of Surgery, is the first to describe patterns of blood use and outcomes from major trauma haemorrhage on a national level. Looking at 22 hospitals in England and Wales, the researchers studied 442 patients who had experienced major trauma haemorrhage as a result of their injuries. Mortality from bleeding tended to occur early, with nearly two-thirds of all deaths in the first 24 hours. An unexpectedly high number of deaths (7.9 per cent) occurred once the patient left hospital, the reasons for which are unclear. Overall, only two per cent of all patients with massive haemorrhage received what might be considered the optimal transfusion of a high dose of clotting products in conjunction with red blood cells during the first hour of arrival within the Emergency Department. The average time to transfusion of red blood cells was longer than expected, at 41 minutes. Administration of specific blood components to aid with blood clotting such as plasma, platelets and cryoprecipitate was significantly delayed, occurring on average 2-3 hours after admission. The incidence of major haemorrhage increased markedly in patients over 65 years, who were twice as likely to suffer massive haemorrhage as a result of an injury compared to younger groups. The causes for this increased incidence were unclear and the researchers say further investigation is needed to examine the role of associated medical problems and prescribed medication. Transfusion procedures may also need to be adapted for older patients. Professor Brohi added: "The rapid delivery of the right mix of blood components in an emergency environment is extremely challenging. Some transfusion components have to be thawed and at present aren't always available for the patient quickly enough. More research is also needed into techniques and devices to control bleeding earlier - even at the scene of injury." Dr Simon Stanworth, at NHSBT/Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust, indicated the importance of the study as a baseline recording of practice: "This study tells us about the challenges of early delivery and administration of blood patients to a group of patients with life-threatening injuries. Whilst the reasons for these delays are varied between hospitals, NHSBT is looking at ways to improve the availability of blood components, for example, using promoting and assessing different types of plasma, such as extended pre-thawed or liquid plasma, which would be more readily available for timely use. This area of the optimal products remains a high-priority for NHSBT and indeed all Blood Transfusion Services. " Study limitations include the data not being complete for all patients, such as timings of transfusions. The study was also undertaken at an early stage in national trauma network reorganization. Explore further Study compares effectiveness of different transfusion strategies for severe trauma More information: 'Mortality from trauma haemorrhage and opportunities for improvement in transfusion practice' S. J. Stanworth, R. Davenport, N. Curry, F. Seeney, S. Eaglestone, A. Edwards, K. Martin, S Allard, M. Woodford, F. E. Lecky and K. Brohi , British Journal of Surgery 2016. Journal information: British Journal of Surgery 'Mortality from trauma haemorrhage and opportunities for improvement in transfusion practice' S. J. Stanworth, R. Davenport, N. Curry, F. Seeney, S. Eaglestone, A. Edwards, K. Martin, S Allard, M. Woodford, F. E. Lecky and K. Brohi ,2016. In this Jan. 27, 2016, file photo, an Aedes aegypti mosquito is photographed through a microscope at the Fiocruz institute in Recife, Pernambuco state, Brazil. The mosquito behind the Zika virus seems to operate like a heat-driven missile of disease. Scientists say the hotter it gets, the better the mosquito that carries Zika virus is at transmitting a variety of dangerous illnesses. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File) Brazil is not sharing enough samples and disease data to let researchers determine whether the Zika virus is, as feared, linked to the increased number of babies born with abnormally small heads in the South American country, U.N. and U.S. health officials say. Without viruses from Brazilthe epicenter of the ongoing Zika crisislaboratories in the United States and Europe are being forced to work with samples from previous outbreaks, and is frustrating efforts to develop diagnostic tests, drugs and vaccines. Scientists tell The Associated Press that having so little to work with is hampering their ability to track the virus' evolution. One major problem appears to be Brazilian law. At the moment, it is technically illegal for Brazilian researchers and institutes to share genetic material, including blood samples containing Zika and other viruses. "It's a very delicate issue, this sharing of samples. Lawyers have to be involved," said Dr. Marcos Espinal, director of communicable diseases in the World Health Organization's regional office in Washington. Espinal said he hoped the issue might be resolved after discussions between the U.S. and Brazilian presidents that included working together on Zika and developing new tools to stop the virus. He said WHO's role was mainly to be a broker to encourage countries to share. When asked whether the estimate of other scientists that Brazil had provided fewer than 20 samples was true, he agreed it probably was. Paulo Gadelha, president of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Brazil's premier state-run research institute for tropical diseases, speaks during an interview in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. "Until the law is implemented, we're legally prohibited from sending samples abroad," said Gadelha, about sharing Zika virus samples with other countries. "Even if we wanted to send this material abroad, we can't because it's considered a crime. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo) "There is no way this should not be solved in the foreseeable future," he said. "Waiting is always risky during an emergency." WHO infectious diseases expert Dr. Sylvie Briand was more circumspect, saying on Thursday in Geneva that it wasn't necessary to have the latest strains because unlike more rapidly mutating viruses like the flu, for which up-to-date samples are needed to make a vaccine, no such shot exists for Zika. But not all experts were convinced. "That's crazy," said Michael Osterholm, an infectious diseases expert at the University of Minnesota. "What about developing diagnostics, and tracking virulence of the virus? There's a lot of issues you want to have the most current virus for." Municipal Health Secretary Daniel Soranz, left, talks with Rio 2016 Director of Medical Services Joao Grangeiro, during a media briefing that included the Zika virus in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016. Grangeiro says athletes "will not be at risk at games time." He said organizers are following guidelines by the World Health Organiaztion, which has declared the spread of the mosquito-borne virus an "extraordinary event and public health threat." (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo) The obstacle to sharing emerged last May, when President Dilma Rousseff signed a new law to regulate how researchers use the country's genetic resources. But the regulatory framework hasn't yet been drafted, leaving scientists in legal limbo. "Until the law is implemented, we're legally prohibited from sending samples abroad," said Paulo Gadelha, president of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Brazil's premier state-run research institute for tropical diseases. "Even if we wanted to send this material abroad, we can't because it's considered a crime." The ban does not necessarily mean foreign researchers can't access samples. Some were shared with the United States, including tissue samples from two newborns who died and two fetuses recently examined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But a U.S. official said that wasn't enough to develop accurate tests for the virus or help determine whether Zika is in fact behind the recent jump in the number of congenital defects. Given the drought of Brazilian samples, public health officials across the world are falling back on older virusesor discreetly taking them from private patients. Cassiana Severino holds her daughter Melisa Vitoria, born with microcephaly at the IMIP hospital in Recife, Pernambuco state, Brazil, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. The Zika virus is spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which is well-adapted to humans, thrives in people's homes and can breed in even a bottle cap's-worth of stagnant water. The Zika virus is suspected to cause microcephaly in newborn children. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) The U.S. official, who shared the information on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak publicly, said the CDC was relying on a strain taken from a 2013 outbreak in French Polynesia to perfect its Zika tests. U.S. researchers trying to sequence Zika's genetic code have been forced to work with virus samples from Puerto Rico for the same reason, he said. In England, researchers are using samples drawn from Micronesia, the site of an outbreak in 2007. The French are using samples from Polynesia and Martinique. In Spain, scientists have a Ugandan strain of Zika supplied by the United States. Even Portugal, Brazil's former colonial master, doesn't have the Brazilian strain; the National Health Institute in Lisbon said its tests relied on a U.S. sample from the 1980s, among others. Some researchers are bypassing Brazil's bureaucracy by getting samples sent to them for testing by a private lab, said Dr. Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit, an expert on mosquito-borne diseases at the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine in Hamburg. "It's almost impossible to get samples from the country," Schmidt-Chanasit told AP, referring to Brazil. "It's not going via official government channels. Our source is simply the rich people who want a diagnosis." Isabela Cristina, 18, who is six months pregnant, center, looks at her exams as she waits at a bus stop outside the IMIP hospital in Recife, Pernambuco state, Brazil, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. Isabela Cristina had Zika symptoms and was worried about the health of her baby, but her ultrasound scan and other exams were normal. The Zika virus is suspected to cause microcephaly in newborn children. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) In public, health leaders have been eager to boast about their excellent collaboration. WHO's chief, Dr. Margaret Chan, said after Monday's meeting that Brazil and the United States were working "very closely" on studies. When asked about sample sharing, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told AP: "I don't think it's an issue." Behind-the-scenes, it was another story. Four officials at the World Health Organization told AP that the Brazilians were starving international partners of up-to-date information. "WHO has gotten zero from them, no clinical or lab findings," one of the officials said. The Director of the Pan American Health Organization Dr. Carissa Etienne, center, speaks to the press during the Mercosur Health Ministers summit to address the spread of Zika virus in the region, at the Mercosur building in Montevideo, Uruguay, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. The ministers of 13 countries are meeting to coordinate efforts to fight the spread of the mosquito born virus. (AP Photo/Matilde Campodonico) All four spoke on condition of anonymity because they were talking without authorization. Ben Neuman, a virologist at Reading University in England, said thousands of samplesor hundreds at a minimumwere needed to track the virus and determine how it's changing. "Science only works when we share," he said. The virus sharing problems aren't limited to Brazil, said Gadelha of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation. "This isn't a unilateral issue; it's a global problem," he said. More than a decade ago, WHO faced a similar problem when Indonesia refused to hand over bird flu samples, arguing that Western scientists would use them to make drugs and vaccines the country couldn't afford. Lawrence Gostin, director of WHO's Collaborating Center on Public Health Law and Human Rights at Georgetown University, said there are no rules that force governments to hand over viruses, tissue samples or other information. "If countries don't share, the only repercussions they face are public condemnation," he said. Explore further Brazil trying to develop vaccine against Zika virus 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. (HealthDay)The incidence of primary chronic immune thrombocytopenia (cITP) is 2.30/100,000 person-years, and incidence is associated with increased risk of infections within the five years before cITP diagnosis, according to a study published online Jan. 21 in the Journal of Thrombosis and Haemostasis. Charlotta Ekstrand, from the Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, and colleagues examined the correlation of cITP with infection before diagnosis. Data were included for 1,087 adults with primary cITP identified from the Swedish Patient Register between 2006 and 2012. Using rates from the general population, the authors estimated the standardized incidence ratios (SIRs) as a measure of relative risk. The researchers found that cITP incidence was 2.30 per 100,000 person-years. There was a correlation for cITP with elevated risk of serious infections requiring inpatient or outpatient care within five years prior to cITP diagnosis (SIR, 8.74). Candidiasis, viral infection of unspecified site, and acute upper respiratory infections had higher magnitude SIRs. The SIR for anti-infective drugs was 1.37; the highest SIRs were seen for amoxicillin, macrolides, nitrofurantoin, and antivirals. "The findings indicate that infection is not only related to the immunomodulation treatment but also to the disease itself," the authors write. The Centre for Pharmacology and Epidemiology unit at the Karolinska Institutet collaborates with another university that receives funding from Amgen in the form of research grants. Explore further Index CRC tumor site impacts increased CA risk for survivors Copyright 2016 HealthDay. All rights reserved. (HealthDay)Legionnaires' diseasethe respiratory illness that plagued New York City in an outbreak last summeris typically thought to develop when people breathe in contaminated mist or water droplets. However, a case that occurred in the fall of 2014 in Portugal suggests that the often deadly bacterial infection may, in rare cases, pass person-to-person. One expert in the United States urged caution in interpreting the findings, however. "While this case report sheds new light on a potential concern for person-to-person transmission for Legionnaires' disease, it's important to realize that the primary mode of transmission continues to be via inhalation of infected aerosols from cooling towers associated with large-scale air conditioning and ventilation units," said Dr. Robert Glatter, an emergency physician at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. Legionnaires' disease was first seen among 2,000 American Legionnaires attending a convention in Philadelphia in the summer of 1976, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The outbreak was linked to air conditioner cooling towers in the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel. That outbreak sickened 221 people, and killed 34 of them. Last summer, 124 people were sickened and 12 people died in an outbreak of Legionnaires' disease tied to contaminated cooling towers at a hotel in New York City's South Bronx. Those cases were not thought to involve person-to-person transmission. However, Portuguese researchers reporting Feb. 4 in the New England Journal of Medicine believe they have identified such a case. According to a team led by Dr. Ana Correia, of the Northern Regional Health Administration in Porto, a 48-year-old male maintenance worker contracted an infection with the Legionnaires' bacterium after working at a contaminated cooling tower complex near Lisbon. He returned to the home he shared with his 74-year-old mother in Porto, nearly 190 miles away, and began to show signs of illness about three days later. His mother nursed the ailing manwho was later transferred to a hospitaland about two weeks later, she too became ill. Laboratory testing confirmed that the mother's illness was caused by the same strain of Legionnaires' bacterium that had infected her son. Both the mother and son died of the illness. Since mother and son had the identical strain of Legionnaires' bacterium, and the mother had never visited the infected site near Lisbon, "we suspect that person-to-person transmission probably occurred" in this case, Correia's team concluded. Dr. Leonard Krilov is chief of pediatric infectious diseases at Winthrop-University Hospital in Mineola, N.Y. He agreed that this is the "first case of documented person-to-person" transmission of Legionnaires' diseaseprobably due to the long and sustained closeness between mother and son as she cared for him at home. But Glatter stressed this case is likely very rare, and should not raise alarm bells. Instead, he said, "what is apparent to me is the importance of conducting future high-quality epidemiologic studies to better understand and determine actual and reported risks of person-to-person transmission for Legionnaires' disease." In the meantime, Glatter said, the best way to curb outbreaks should be "the meticulous disinfection of cooling towers," since they are the source of the vast majority of infections. Explore further Death toll in New York Legionnaires' outbreak hits eight Copyright 2016 HealthDay. All rights reserved. Brain cells from a fruit fly model of Alzheimer's disease were compared to healthy brain cells to show a type of dysfunction in the diseased cells, said a researcher from the Barshop Institute for Longevity and Aging Studies at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. Credit: Public domain image of fruit fly by Botaurus Brain cell death in Alzheimer's disease is linked to disruption of a skeleton that surrounds the nucleus of the cells, a researcher in the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio said. The finding is expected to open new avenues of study of how to prevent the earliest biological events that result in Alzheimer's. The nucleus is the control center of cells. A mesh-like scaffold called the lamin nucleoskeleton surrounds this control center but is disordered in Alzheimer's, said Bess Frost, Ph.D., assistant professor of cellular and structural biology at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio. Dr. Frost was trained at Harvard Medical School and in November started her new laboratory at the UT Health Science Center's Barshop Institute for Longevity and Aging Studies. Confirmed in human cells Dr. Frost and two co-authors showedfor the first timethat lamin dysfunction can cause the death of brain cells, which are called neurons. The team made this finding in a fruit fly disease model initially and confirmed it in postmortem brain tissue of people who had Alzheimer's disease, whose families donated their brains to research. "Human brain donation is a very critical part of this work," Dr. Frost said. "It was important to show that what we found in the fly is really relevant to human disease." A cell nucleus from a normal, healthy brain is shown at left. The lamin nucleoskeleton forms the perimeter around the nucleus. By contrast, tunnel-like anomalies are evident in the nucleus of the Alzheimer's disease-affected cell shown at right. This image is from the laboratory of Bess Frost, Ph.D., of the School of Medicine and Barshop Institute for Longevity and Aging Studies at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. Credit: Laboratory of Bess Frost, Ph.D./UT Health Science Center San Antonio Dr. Frost and her colleagues used a technique called super-resolution microscopy to analyze the fruit fly and human specimens. They found peculiar features that looked like tunnels in the lamin of Alzheimer's-affected specimens. Seems to be Alzheimer's-specific The team also studied a fruit fly model of Huntington's disease and did not find any problems with the lamin. "So, at least compared to one other neurodegenerative disease, lamin dysfunction seems to be specific to Alzheimer's disease," Dr. Frost said. The findings, made while Dr. Frost was at Harvard and Brigham and Women's Hospital, are in in the journal Current Biology and were posted online in January. Dr. Frost encourages people to consider brain donation, whether or not they have a neurodegenerative disease. Comparing healthy, normal brain tissue to diseased brain tissue is a very useful tool for neuroscientists, she said. New Alzheimer's institute A state-of-the-art tissue biorepository will be part of the Institute for Alzheimer and Neurodegenerative Diseases announced by the Health Science Center last September. The biobank will be linked to a database containing the health history of each donor. Dr. Frost said she is very excited that the institute is being launched and plans to be involved once it is operational. Dr. Frost is establishing her laboratory with support from The University of Texas System Rising STARS Award. STARS stands for Science and Technology Acquisition and Retention. Explore further Synapse discovery could lead to new treatments for Alzheimer's disease Orange harvest 2015-16: Georgia exports 26,509 tonnes of mandarins abroad Georgia has exported 26,509 tonnes of mandarins to Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Belarus and other foreign nations.Additionally 9,095 tonnes of mandarins were processed in Georgia, which brought in 1,860,005 GEL income to mandarin farmers. Of this amount the state subsidy was 909,573 GEL, revealed Georgias Agriculture Ministry.Georgian standard mandarins were mainly exported to: Russia 20,705 tonnes (78.1 percent); Ukraine 3,969 tonnes (14.97 percent); Armenia 787 tonnes (2.97 percent); Kazakhstan - 447 tonnes (1.69 percent); Azerbaijan - 286 tonnes (1.08 percent); Belarus 242 tonnes (0.91 percent); and Other countries - 74 tonnes (0.28 percent).Six processing plants helped sort the citrus harvest this year in Georgias Kobuleti, Keda, Ambrolauri, Chokhatauri and Gori municipalities.Earlier the Government of Georgia offered farmers and industry players a helping hand by opening a special coordination centre that supported the sale of mandarins.Georgias Agriculture Ministry said companies that paid 0.20 GEL for every kilogram of lower quality mandarins, to be processed and not sold as fruit, would receive a subsidy of 0.10 GEL from the state.As of today, 655,027 GEL has been allocated to companies who addressed Georgias Ministry of Agriculture.The programme will finish on January 31, 2016.Last month, Georgias Agriculture Minister, Otar Danelia, said the Government had allocated two million GEL to support the export of Georgian mandarins abroad. This money was used to add extra transport vehicles to the current fleet, meaning export of Georgian citrus would reach its destination in more "favourable conditions and fund the operation of storage facilities. EU ready to support diversification of Azerbaijani economy The EU is ready to support the diversification of the Azerbaijani economy, the EU office in Brussels told Trend Jan. 27.Azerbaijan's exports to the EU consist mainly of mineral fuels (98.9 percent) and the drop of oil prices might primarily affect Azerbaijan's export revenues, the EU office said. A way to mitigate potential negative impacts on trade revenues would be the diversification of the economy, for which the EU is ready to support.Regulatory approximation of Azerbaijan's trade-related legislation and procedures with international standards and increased competition as promoted by the WTO would be effective tools to support the potential of Azerbaijan's trade and of EU-Azerbaijan trade relations, the statement said. It is also clear that WTO membership would create a more stable investment environment which is key for diversification of the economy of Azerbaijan and would probably attract EU and international investments in a wide range of sectors of the economy.The EU is the main trade partner of Azerbaijan. According to the Azerbaijani State Customs Committee, the share of European countries in Azerbaijan's foreign trade amounted to 46.8 percent in January-October 2015. Some 30.51 percent and 59.23 percent of Azerbaijani import and export account for the share of the EU countries respectively. 700 Euclid Avenue If you're a happy tenant living in one of the 240 units on South Beach recently inhaled by Boardwalk Properties FL for $59 million, sorry to be the bearer of bad news -- you might have to find a new home. The new owner tells the Miami Herald he plans to renovate the 15 older Art Deco apartment buildings and hike the rent by up to 50 percent. It's a record multi-housing deal in South Beach. Naturally they'll shift away from the working-class tenants who currently occupy them towards "people who drive Porsches" and don't want to live in high rises. "It's true that instead of having taxi drivers and sous chefs, you'll end up with younger attorneys, people who work in the Design District, people who work downtown," said Adam Walker, who runs Boardwalk, a private company that owns about 700 apartments in Miami Beach and Bay Harbor Islands. "These are people who drive Porsches and are drawn to Miami Beach but don't want to live in high rises." One thing Walker might not have considered is the willingness of these Porsche owners to park their vehicles on the street, which is a necessity accompanying many of the buildings sold. The sale is disturbing because while South Beach has its faults - the traffic, the constant construction, and the already booming prices - the magical island shouldn't be the exclusive home to the affluent. There's no other neighborhood in South Florida quite like it, presenting not just superb walkability and fantastic people-watching but a vibe distinct from the rest of Miami, housing all sorts of people from various backgrounds and offering a true island feel. The Miami Herald put together a map showing the locations of the 15 apartment buildings included in the sale, located between 7th street and 15 street in the heart of South Beach. We listed the addresses down below. 700 Euclid Ave. 715 Michigan Ave. 951 Jefferson Ave. 1017 Jefferson Ave. 1025 Meridian Ave. 1135 Eighth St. 1226 Drexel Ave. 1251 Euclid Ave. 1326 Pennsylvania Ave. 1348 Drexel Ave. 1455 Euclid Ave. 948-952 Meridian Ave. 1336 Pennsylvania Ave. 1440 Euclid Ave. 1110 Pennsylvania Ave. Boardwalk is aiming to renovate five buildings a year. They'll be redoing roofs, repainting, and overhauling interiors with new appliances, AC units, counter-tops and flooring. South Beach apartments sell for record-breaking $59 million [Miami Herald] @PatriciaMazzei Here's what Annette Taddeo had to say about former U.S. Rep. Joe Garcia jumping into the Democratic primary for his old congressional seat -- where Taddeo is already running. Our South Florida families, workers and small business owners deserve a voice in Washington who will always speak for them. I began this race for Congress nearly a year ago because as a mother and small business owner, I understand the needs of our communities and I want to be their voice and fight for them every single day. As a member of Congress I will fight to raise the minimum wage, bring jobs back to our communities, ensure equal pay for women and to strengthen our schools. This is what our communities deserve, but sadly the 26th District has instead endured a series of politicians who've put self-interest first, acted unethically, and at times even acted illegally. Its time to turn a new page in South Florida. The communities of South Florida want an advocate whose only interest is helping our diverse neighborhoods and families thrive. We deserve a leader who will build on Obamacare, not repeal it. Defend Planned Parenthood, not defund it. Reject the anti-immigrant Party of Trump, not champion it. We deserve a candidate who will bring South Floridas values to Washington, not become part of the problem. Thats why Im running and its why Ive been so proud to receive the endorsements of individuals, businesses, unions and elected leaders across the 26th District. Legislative committees continue meeting in Tallahassee, while the state's top officials go to the fair. Here's what we're watching: * They won't have an official cabinet meeting, but Republican Gov. Rick Scott, Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater, Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam and Attorney General Pam Bondi will still be at the Florida State Fair in Tampa to help kick off the festivities. The governor will host a luncheon there at noon. * At 9 a.m., the House Judiciary Committee will again take up the proposed "Pastor Protection Act," which allows clergy to turn away gay couples seeking to marry. The committee's vote was postponed last week. * The House State Affairs Committee could vote to send to the House floor a proposal that changes the legal language of Florida's absentee voting to "vote-by-mail." That panel also meets at 9 a.m. * The Senate Transportation Committee, also gathering at 9 a.m., will give a first hearing to a bill by Republican Sens. Jeff Brandes of St. Petersburg, and Anitere Flores of Miami, which aims to outlaw the use of red-light camera devices in Florida. * A bill dealing with cremation fees that counties charge is set for its final committee hearing in the House. The Regulatory Affairs Committee meets at 1 p.m. The super PAC supporting former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is trying to counter a perceived challenge for moderate New Hampshire voters from Ohio Gov. John Kasich. The PAC, Right to Rise, is airing an ad in New Hampshire that declares Kasich "wrong on New Hampshire issues." Its run at least 284 times on Boston television since Jan. 21, according to the Internet Archives Political Ad Tracker. The 30-second ad makes a number of claims, but we decided to focus on one surrounding spending. The ad claims Kasich had "the worst rating on spending of any governor in the country, Republican or Democrat." Thats a potentially devastating claim, especially since Kasich is selling the economic turnaround in Ohio as part of his presidential resume. It in large part hinges on Kasichs decision to expand Medicaid in the state as part of President Barack Obamas health care law. See what Aaron Sharockman of PolitiFact found and follow PolitiFact's live coverage in New Hampshire. @MichaelAuslen After the number of confirmed cases of Zika virus in Florida grew to 12, Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday expanded a public health emergency in the state to include Broward County. Speaking in Tampa alongside Dr. John Armstrong, the states surgeon general, Scott urged Floridians to be prepared, just like a hurricane. He is asking the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to provide at least 1,000 kits to test pregnant women who show symptoms of the virus. Its no different than what I do in hurricanes. You always try to get out in front of something, try to prevent the problem but know if youre going to have a problem youd rather be prepared. All 12 of the confirmed cases in Florida are travel-related, and there have been no known transmissions within the state, either from mosquitos or between people. None of the people who have been infected are pregnant women, according to Scotts office. Reports have connected Zika to a serious birth defect of the brain called microcephaly, although according to the CDC, knowledge of the link...is evolving. On Wednesday, Scott signed an executive order declaring the public health emergency in Hillsborough, Miami-Dade, Santa Rosa and Lee counties. The governors action is reminiscent of his response to the 2014 Ebola outbreak in Africa, but he has not declared public health emergencies for outbreaks of other illnesses, including other mosquito-borne diseases. With regard to Ebola, we got ahead of it, Scott said. We put a lot of effort into making sure everyone was informed in our state in case something happened. @NewsbySmiley Ken Russell, Miami's newly elected District 2 commissioner, is shaking things up after two months in office. On Wednesday, Russell informed Pieter Bockweg, the executive director of the Omni Community Redevelopment Agency, that he intends to fire him, the Miami Herald has learned. Russell is the chairman of the agency, which is tasked with using property taxes to eliminate slum and blight in the Omni district north of the I-395. Bockweg, who is also the head of Miami's Midtown CRA, did not return a phone call Wednesday evening. A vote by Miami commissioners, who sit on the Omni CRA board, would be needed to actually terminate his contract. Bockweg learned about Russell's intentions in a face-to-face meeting just days after Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez suggested the agency contribute money to help subsidize the operations of the suddenly cash-strapped Frost Museum of Science, a proposal Russell opposes. Russell, who campaigned on CRA reform, did not immediately return a text message. An office staffer said Russell would release a statement Thursday about recent personnel decisions. Updated: On Friday morning, Russel's interim chief of staff, Eleazar Melendez, sent an email stating that Russell did not tell Bockweg he intended to fire him. Rather, Melendez says Bockweg offered to resign. "The commissioner did have a face-to-face conversation with Mr. Bockweg this week where he shared with Mr. Bockweg his view of what a CRA should and should not focus on," Melendez wrote. "During the meeting, Mr. Bockweg offered to resign. Please be aware that the only people at the meeting were myself, Mr. Bockweg and Commissioner Russell. If anyone other than those three people is telling you they witnessed the meeting, they are lying to you." Melendez requested a retraction and provided the following statement from Russell: "Replacing the executive director of the CRA is not the chairmans privilege, but a matter that needs to be considered by that board. Russell's move to fire Bockweg comes shortly after he parted ways with his chief of staff, Kirk Menendez. Menendez, a City Hall veteran who has been hired and fired from several other positions, said he left Russell's office a few days ago. He wouldn't say whether he was fired or resigned, and declined to discuss the circumstances around his termination. "We had a talk," Menendez said Thursday. "I just really need to move on. I'm a dad and that comes first." @MichaelAuslen State lawmakers are working on the state's budget, and leaders in the Florida House want to make sure none of that money goes to Planned Parenthood. At the top of the chamber's budget proposals for the Department of Health and the Agency for Health Care Administration are directions that "no funds...may be provided to Planned Parenthood" and "no recipients of funds...shall provide funding to Planned Parenthood directly or indirectly." "I think it's the appropriate checks and balances that has to go on within the three branches of government," said Rep. Matt Hudson, R-Naples, the House's health care budget chairman. "And, frankly, I think it's the right thing to do." This is the Legislature's first budget since videos were published online last summer that appeared to show Planned Parenthood officials in other states discussing fetal tissue donation programs. The videos incited outrage among many conservatives, including Florida Gov. Rick Scott, who instructed AHCA to investigate the state's 16 Planned Parenthood clinics, which resulted in contested violations, although none of them were related to the videos. The Florida Family Policy Council, a group of social conservatives, has been attacking Scott for not being hard enough on Planned Parenthood, asking him to instruct AHCA to end state Medicaid contracts that send about $45,000 a year to the organization. State money cannot be used to fund abortions, but Planned Parenthood and other abortion clinics But Hudson said the videos are not why that language is in the budget bill. Still, he said there's nothing unusual about banning Planned Parenthood funding, even for competitive DOH and AHCA contracts, while allowing other abortion clinics' services to receive state money. "We have the ability to decide who we appropriate to and who we don't appropriate to," Hudson said. "If we're going to highlight a specific entity in the budget that we're going to fund, why not highlight a specific entity we're not going to fund." The provision is not in the Senate's proposed budget. But Senate Appropriations Chairman Tom Lee, R-Brandon, said it could come up as the two chambers negotiate differences in their budgets in conference committee. "Well, I think there are a lot of our members -- lot of our conservative members in the Senate that would want to take a look at that issue," he said. "And if the House is raising it, it sounds like it might be a conference discussion that were going to have whether members want to have it or not. so you know, put it on the list of things to talk about." Times/Herald staff writer Jeremy Wallace contributed to this post. @MichaelAuslen The Florida House on Wednesday voted to remove aggravated assault from the list of crimes requiring a minimum sentence of 20 years under the state's 10-20-Life Law. With a unanimous vote, the House joined the Florida Senate, sending the proposal (SB 228) to Gov. Rick Scott for his signature. Under the 10-20-Life Law, crimes involving guns are subject to minimum sentences, but the law has been called into question for being unflexible, including in cases when people have been convicted for firing warning shots. A taskforce created by Scott in 2013 recommended that the Legislature "eliminate any unintended consequences" under 10-20-Life. "It's probably the best thing that I've done since I've been here," said Rep. Neil Combee, R-Polk City, the bill's sponsor. Once the Legislature sends the bill to Scott, he has seven days to sign or veto it. @PatriciaMazzei TILTON, N.H. -- Team Jeb Bush and Team Marco Rubio arent even pretending anymore that the two Florida men arent gunning for each other ahead of Tuesdays New Hampshire primary. Conservative Solutions PAC, which is backing Rubio, released a video Thursday attacking the former governor as a poor campaigner past his prime. What happened to Jeb Bush? He spent millions praising himself, and his campaign tanked. Then Jeb spent millions more tearing down Republicans, and he fell even further, the spot says. Jeb Bushs ideas are old and wrong, from Wall Street bailouts to Common Core. Jeb Bush: He did some good things in the past, but hes not the answer for Americas future. Bush, who hadnt seen the video, suggested it was a sign that hes doing well enough in New Hampshire despite having placed far behind Rubio in Iowa to merit attention. Ive laid out the most detailed plans about the future, much more than him, and hes attacking me at the same time that hes all worried that people are attacking him, Bush told reporters outside the Tiltn Diner (No Crybabies, No Beepers), where he shook voters hands and had lunch. This is politics. I can take the hits. Sen. Rubio was supportive of Race to the Top, the one indirect means by which the federal government would have been involved in Common Core standards. He also accused Rubio of having "no record" and trying to "rewrite history." Rubio has repeatedly countered that being a governor like Bush doesn't prepare a candidate for the presidency, which is a different gig altogether. Earlier Thursday, Bush had cast Rubio as a career politician, telling manufacturing workers in Pittsfield that the senator was elected when he was 26. But he has never done anything in his life, Bush said at Globe Manufacturing, the same firefighter-suit producer Rubio had visited a day earlier. I know that youll take you r decision, and youll do it wisely. @PatriciaMazzei TILTON, N.H. -- Miami's two Republican presidential candidates, Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio, both get applause when they campaign against federal funding for so-called "sanctuary cities," where local law-enforcement agencies limit their cooperation with federal immigration authorities. But advocates consider their home county of Miami-Dade to be such a sanctuary. And legislation passed by the Florida House on Wednesday that would ban the practice would, by the House staff's own analysis, affect Miami-Dade. Asked about the state legislation while campaigning in New Hampshire on Thursday, Bush, a former Florida governor, cautioned against painting all cities and counties with too wide a brush. "Miami-Dade County's version of a sanctuary city may be different than the one that exists in San Francisco, where they released convicted felons into the community rather than apply federal law," Bush said. "I don't think Miami-Dade was doing that. So you've got to be careful about the conversation." He reiterated, however, that it shouldn't be OK for a local police department to defy immigration law. (The way Miami-Dade's policy works is that the police department cooperates with the feds on some immigration cases, but does not detain people flagged as being in the country illegally indefinitely.) "I don't think there should be a violation of federal law by local communities knowingly doing it," Bush said. "There should be some restrictions. The idea of restricting federal law-enforcement dollars for communities that violate federal law and endanger their communities is appropriate. "I don't think Miami-Dade County does that, though." @PatriciaMazzei Marco Rubio has kept David Rivera, his longtime friend and former Miami congressman who is under investigation by the feds, at a distance as he runs for president. But Rivera hasnt kept a distance from Rubios presidential bid. Rivera traveled to Iowa ahead of Mondays caucuses, visiting the eastern portion of the state and at meeting with other Rubio friends and volunteers to watch the results Monday night. One of them posted a photograph of Rivera and three others posing at a Hooters restaurant in Davenport. In the picture, Rivera is giving a thumbs-up. Dana Hudson, a Washington lobbyist and Rubio backer, posted the photo on Facebook. She appeared next to Rivera, along with Miami pollster Dario Moreno and Rafael Ralph Perez, a former aide to then-state Rep. Rubio. (Perez is also giving a thumbs-up.) Hudson declined to comment. Perez told a reporter he hadnt seen the photo. Rivera did not respond to a request for comment. Moreno said he and Perez volunteered for Rubios campaign, knocking on voters doors and telephoning them, but Rivera did not participate in those activities. David was just, you know, watching the returns, kind of staying away from the campaigns, Moreno said. He wasnt connected to the campaign I know for a fact he wasnt. He was sort of doing stuff on his own. Everybody was out there I mean, half of Florida was in Iowa, Moreno added. At least half of the Republican part of Florida. Rubio spokesman Alex Conant said he didn't know why Rivera was around. "We didn't see him," he said. In the past, Rubios aides, aware of the negative publicity surrounding Rivera, have been adamant that the ex-congressman has had no involvement in their effort. He showed up at the first GOP debate in Cleveland last August, and then at a debate in Madison, Wisconsin, last November. Both times, Rubios team insisted it hadnt given the ex-congressman tickets. Rivera credited his access to the many political friends hes cultivated over the years. The former congressman has been the target of a federal criminal investigation in Miami into an illegal campaign-finance scheme that secretly financed a ringer Democratic candidate in 2012. He served in the Florida House of Representatives as Rubios budget chief, and the two used to own a Tallahassee home together. Rubio has stood by his old friend throughout the years, saying he hopes Rivera can put his troubles behind him. Photo via Facebook Theres the raising-the-stakes line about the 2016 election being a referendum on our identity. Theres the gloomy warning that seven more years of Democratic governance would result in a nation in decline. Theres the acknowledgment that voters are angry, and they should be. But, lest that sound like a concession to Republican rival Donald Trump, Rubio intones, Anger is not a plan. He wants to get to your questions, he promises voters twice, at the beginning and near the end of his not-so-short opening remarks, which often top 20 minutes. But he first wants you to know, needs you to know, just how personal this campaign is for him, the son of immigrants who were born in Cuba, as youve probably already heard for whom America is not just the country I was born in it is the nation that literally changed the history of my family. Event after event, its the same lines, the same anecdotes, even the same jokes, often delivered with the same oh-so-perfect timing. (His memoir, An American Son, which helped him pay back his student-loan debt, is now available on paperback! Cue laughter. Every time.) This is the talent of Marco Rubio, presidential candidate. And also what some of his rivals are trying to turn into a liability. Hes too scripted, opponent Chris Christie says. Too rehearsed. He doesnt answer enough questions from voters maybe five or six per event or from reporters. More here. Photo credit: Jacquelyn Martin, Associated Press @JeremySWallace A fight over polluted waters ignited a rare public battle of wills on Wednesday between some of the top Republican leaders in the Florida Senate as they worked on a new state budget. Sen. Joe Negron, who is set to become Senate President next year, muscled an amendment into the state budget, over the objections of the current budget chairman and former Senate President Tom Lee, that would slash proposed funding for state park improvements by 30 percent. That money would then be redirected to a water project aimed at stopping hundreds of millions of gallons of polluted water from flowing into the St. Lucie and the Caloosahatchee rivers. Negron said the polluted water flooding from Lake Okeechobee into his home region along the St Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon needs to be addressed by the Legislature. I feel on behalf of my community, I cant vote for a budget today that I havent addressed an underlying emergency situation that doesnt just affect my community, but also affects southwest Florida, Negron said. Sen. Alan Hays, R-Umatilla, objected to Negrons push, saying he supports the idea of Negrons project, but was opposed to him taking money from the state parks to do it. Hays is the chairman of a budget subcommittee that has jurisdiction over funding of the state park system. I just dont like this amendment because you just overpowered the state parks, Hays said. Hays asked Negron to withdraw the amendment and he would help him find the money elsewhere in the budget before the full spending bill makes it to the floor of the Senate for a vote next week. But Negron refused to yield, saying he needed the item in the budget, but would be happy to help Hays find replacement money for the parks later. You seem to be determined to jam it on there, Hays said. The Senate's budget chief, Sen. Tom Lee, said Wednesday he is putting the bill to prevent local governments from imposing regulations on fracking for oil and gas on hold until the Florida Department of Environmental Regulation, which he believes has been absent form the contentious discussion, is prepared to provide some "honest answers." SB 318 allows the state to regulate and authorize the pumping of large volumes of water, sand and chemicals into the ground using high pressure to recover oil and gas deposits but allows the companies to shield from the public what chemicals are used by labeling them as "trade secrets." The Senate bill is next scheduled for a vote before the Senate Appropriations Committee which Lee chairs. The bill's companion, HB 191, passed by a 73-45 vote in the House last week, with seven Republicans joined Democrats to oppose the measure. Lee's home county of Hillsborough on Wednesday passed a resolution urging the legislature to remove the local preemption language from the bill and remove the provision that shields disclosure of the chemicals used. Download Hillsborough resolution Lee, R-Brandon, said he was not aware of the commission resolution but while he voted for the measure when it was before the Senate General Government Appropriations Subcommittee, he said he will not hear the bill until he gets more cooperation from state regulators. "My frustraiton was the DEP was nowhere to be seen,'' he said. "I have told the stakeholders that I will not hear the bill in this committee until such time as the Department of Environmental Protection, which is our regulator, is prepared to come before this committee and answer questions on the record about provisions of that bill. "We want credible, scientific responses to questions. Not special interest responses. And so I think a lot of people have concerns about a number of differences in the bill as it relates to our substrate made of limerock -- versus where fracking is going on in other places of the country --as well as the preemption language and how there's no sunset to it." He said he expects his committee "will ultimately agenda the bill" but "we will continue to work with the Department of Environmental Protection to try to get some straight answers." Lee said that the Hillsborough Board of County Commissioners is not alone in its reservations about the proposal. "There is a growing number of people, not just in the environmental community but in local governments, particularly on the preemption issue, that are concerned about what they believe is an overreach by the state,'' he said. Photo: In this March 29, 2013 photo, workers tend to a well head during a hydraulic fracturing operation at an Encana Oil & Gas Inc. gas well outside Rifle, Colorado. Brennan Linsley AP @JeremySWallace As expected, the Florida House and Senate backed new state budget plans on Wednesday that are in conflict over how to handle one of Gov. Rick Scott's top priorities. The Senate Appropriations Committee voted out a budget that heads to the full Senate next that includes the $250 million Scott has requested for a pool of funding that he wants to use as incentive money to lure companies to move jobs to Florida. About $100 million of that funding in the Senate's plan would come from the state's expected share of settlement money from the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010. Key members of the Senate have been critical of Scott's job incentive program over the last year questioning the return on the investment and what kinds of jobs it is really bringing to Florida. But Senate Appropriations chairman Tom Lee, R-Brandon, said on Wednesday he backed the idea because its so important for Scott and is a legitimate use of state funding. "There is an argument to be made that the governor has based his legacy and staked his political reputation on creating jobs," Lee said. "We want to help the governor get where he wants to get within reason." But the House Appropriations Committee on Wednesday passed a spending plan that includes no new money for the incentive program. Historian Michael C. Hardy's quest to understand Confederate history, from the boots up. 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My aim is to (a) increase awareness of the benefits of midwifery around the world, and (b) keep more women and babies alive by teaching essential obstetric emergency skills. It's nigh on time worldwide governments put women's rights on the agenda, and shameful so many women and infants are still dying. Got some ideas about economics, policy, science, art or whatever, and you can write? Let us know here , we're looking for contributors! A kohlrabi, a member of the cabbage family, sits atop a glass vase that's filled with bright magenta liquid set on a background of hazy neon cyan-green. A pear, bisected but still upright, bleeds purplish fluid. A paper party pineapple looks despondent and withering, soaked as it is in syrupy yellow fluid in a wonderful sight gag. Sarah Knobel uses the clean, aspirational visual language of product photography as bait in her "Drips" series, on display this Friday at FrontierSpace. The eye-candy color palette draws in the viewer, as do the familiarity of the household objects. But once inside the image, you circle back and forth between the intrinsic pleasure of the composition and the jarring, inexplicable contexts she's created. "I like the feeling of product photography," she said in a phone interview. "But it's not something that's a product at all. It's got that shiny surface, but it has that disturbing feeling." She arranges the objects in sometimes shocking situations, like one of a cantaloupe struck through with a tube as though it were part of a science experiment. She cracked the rind to form an anthropomorphic frowney face that bleeds mint-green liquid onto the forced cheer of the pink ground. It's disturbing, but you'll want to keep looking, like a Grand Guignol of fruits and vegetables. *** The archival pigment prints, some measuring 44 by 60 inches, plus a video in a similar vein, represent Knobel's first showing in Missoula since she moved to Montana. She's exhibited her work extensively around the country, including in Seattle, Miami and Washington, D.C., and abroad in Germany, Belgium and Greece. For much of her career, she specialized in self-portraits that toyed with the idea of multiple identities, often with collage-like usage of digital editing and manipulation that will be familiar to viewers of the meta-madness on "Adult Swim." By her final show at the Hamiltonian Gallery in D.C., she'd begun moving away from self-portraits, saying she "felt done" with the genre. "Maybe it was self-therapy and I didn't realize it in a way," she said. After a stint in Japan, she took a job at Montana State University-Billings, where she's an assistant professor of art, starting in fall 2012. By this time, she'd moved into still lifes, although not the kind you'd imagine. One of her projects from Japan used colorful assemblies of cheap objects from 100 yen shops. Another, "Trash," was the same concept, but employed her own garbage in festive piles with celebratory plumes of colored smoke. "Icescapes" is perhaps the most alien she placed souvenirs and party items and other colorful miscellaneous items into Jell-O molds. After they were frozen into blocks, she photographed them as they melted, resulting in colorful but nearly unidentifiable organic-seeming objects. She started the "Drips" series, meanwhile, last summer when she was pregnant. "It was almost subconscious and I started realizing it was me trying to deal with my pregnancy and all the oddities with what's happening to my body, and things that were out of my control," she said. The objects seem almost "post-human," she said unimportant, transient things that maybe aspire to something more. They don't last, she said, but they seem as though they've been experimented on, like they can be something else. While the figure, or her own face, never appear in the pictures, she feels they're of a piece with her previous work. "I still think these are kind of self-meditative in indirect ways," she said. Knobel considers herself "an artist who uses photography as an outlet," not a photographer in the traditional sense. (She has an MFA in photography from the University of Cincinnati.) While she lives in a state where landscape and wildlife dominate the medium, she sees her pictures in the context of photographers like Annette Kelm and others who are exploring the possibilities of still life. Like photographer Sally Mann, who once said "if it doesn't have ambiguity don't bother to take it," Knobel wants her pictures to be open-ended for the viewer to interpret as they see fit. Nor does she approach her work with a message or direction in mind at first. "I work very intuitively," she said. "Sometimes things just come out and I start realizing what it is and then I develop it." Here are a few titles to consider adding to your bedside table, as you celebrate leap year 2016. Two books that arrived in stores during the holidays but worthy of more attention: *** "Move Over Apple, A is for Arrowhead" by Toni Marie LaGree In "Move Over Apple, A is for Arrowhead," Abe the apple is being asked to take a holiday and find real objects that match each letter. As Abe moves through the alphabet describing each letter and corresponding object, he uses rhymes such as, "I is for I-beam. They make buildings strong. J is for Jig and fishing all day long. K is for Karate. We kick and bow." Abe is a lovable, funny narrator and it is fun to see what object is used for each letter. This book is a fun way to help your child learn to read. *** "The Actor" by Beth Hunter McHugh Riverbend Publishing of Helena and the Sterry family of Hingham are pleased to announce that the 2015 Meadowlark Award for women writers has been won by Beth Hunter McHugh of Hamilton for her novel, "The Actor." In the summer of 1967, life seems almost dangerously idyllic to 13-year-old Grace Birch and her 11-year-old sister Franny. Their mother is Nora, a beautiful and educated woman who writes haunted love poems when she isn't working as a law professor at the local university. Their father is David, an actor turned drama professor. When Ivan, a young actor, comes to stay with the family, Nora and David's relationship faces its greatest test. David falls in love with Ivan, and Grace and Franny realize that their parents' relationship holds an ancient and long-buried secret. The Meadowlark Award is named for the best-selling book "When the Meadowlark Sings" by Nedra Sterry. Written when Sterry was 82 years old, "Meadowlark" is a memoir of growing up along Montana's Hi-Line. Before her death in 2013, Sterry established the award with an endowment from her book royalties. Her goal was to encourage women writers. The endowment is administered by the Montana State University-Northern Foundation. *** New releases include something from a Montana debut author and a proven best-selling author: *** "The Flood Girls" by Richard Fifield Welcome to Quinn, Montana, population 956. A town where nearly all of the volunteer firemen are named Jim, where The Dirty Shame the only bar in town refuses to serve mixed drinks (too much work), where the locals hate the newcomers (then again, they hate the locals, too) and where the town softball team has never even come close to having a winning season. Until now. Rachel Flood has snuck back into town after leaving behind a trail of chaos nine years prior. She's here to make amends, but nobody wants to hear it, especially her mother, Laverna. But with the help of a local boy named Jake and a little soul-searching, she just might make things right. *** "The Road to Little Dribbling: Adventures of an American in Britain" by Bill Bryson Twenty years ago, Bill Bryson went on a trip around Britain to discover and celebrate that green and pleasant land, which he described in "Notes from a Small Island." Now, he has traveled about Britain again, by bus and train and rental car and on foot, to see what has changed and what hasn't. Following (but not too closely) a route he dubs the Bryson Line, from Bognor Regis in the south to Cape Wrath in the north, by way of places few travelers ever get to at all, Bryson rediscovers the wondrously beautiful, magnificently eccentric, endearingly singular country that he both celebrates and now calls home. *** A variety of books now in paperback: *** "The Doll's House: A Detective Helen Grace Thriller" by M.J. Arlidge When the body of a woman is found buried on a secluded beach, Detective Helen Grace is called to the scene. She knows right away that the killer is no amateur. The woman has been dead for years, and no one has even reported her missing. But why would they? She's still sending text messages to her family. Helen is convinced that a criminal mastermind is at work: someone very smart, very careful and, worst of all, very patient. But as she struggles to piece together the killer's motive, time is running out for a victim who is still alive. This is the third thriller from the author of "Eeny Meeny" and "Pop Goes the Weasel," both of which became my favorite new mysteries last fall. *** "Bettyville: A Memoir" by George Hodgman When George Hodgman leaves Manhattan for his hometown of Paris, Missouri, he finds himself an unlikely caretaker and near-lethal cook in a head-on collision with his aging mother, Betty. Will George lure her into assisted living? When hell freezes over. He can't bring himself to force her from the home they both treasure the place where his father's voice lingers, the scene of shared jokes, skirmishes, and dusty antiques. Betty, who speaks her mind but cannot quite reveal her heart, has never really accepted the fact that her son is gay. As these two unforgettable characters try to bring their different worlds together, Hodgman reveals the challenges of Betty's life and his own struggle for self-respect. *** "Orhan's Inheritance" by Aline Ohanesian When Orhan's brilliant and eccentric grandfather, Kemal Turkoglu, who built a dynasty out of making kilim rugs, is found dead, submerged in a vat of dye, Orhan inherits the decades-old business. But Kemal has left the family estate to a stranger thousands of miles away, an aging woman in a retirement home in Los Angeles. Intent on righting this injustice, Orhan unearths a story that, if told, has the power to undo the legacy upon which Orhan's family is built, a story that could unravel his own future. *** "Considering Hate: Violence, Goodness, and Justice in American Culture and Politics" by Kay Whitlock, Michael Bronski Over the centuries, American society has been plagued by brutality fueled by disregard for the humanity of others: systemic violence against Native peoples, black people and immigrants. "Considering Hate" challenges easy assumptions and failed solutions, arguing that "hate violence" reflects existing cultural norms. Drawing upon social science, philosophy, theology, film and literature, the authors examine how hate and common, even ordinary, forms of individual and group violence are excused and normalized in popular culture and political discussion. This massive denial of brutal reality profoundly warps society's ideas about goodness and justice. *** Barbara Theroux manages Fact and Fiction bookstore in downtown Missoula and writes for the Booming section. We finally made it into the month of February, and even though there is plenty of ice fishing left to do, spring open water fishing is right around the corner. The month that is known for Valentines Day is also the month that boat dealers around the state hold their annual shows. It seems like every major city in Montana has a show this time of year. The shows are used to introduce new boat features and added incentives to make it even more attractive for you to buy one. Kalispell, Great Falls, Billings, Helena and Missoula all have boats shows in the next couple of weeks. All of them except the one in Missoula will be at a fairgrounds venue. Missoula does not have a venue to accommodate such a show, so Bretz RV and Marine decided to expand its showroom. Construction is now complete, bringing the indoor showroom to 20,000 square feet more than enough room to showcase boats from six different manufacturers, said Mark Bretz. "We are really excited about this addition to our existing facility," he said. "It should benefit our customers by enabling them to browse our complete boat lineup, which we have also expanded over the past few years." In addition to the larger showroom and more manufacturers being represented, two free fishing seminars will be offered during their 11-day boat show. We are looking forward to bringing in Mike Howe along Kit and Trevor Johnson from Kits Tackle to give folks an opportunity to learn how to catch more fish," said Matt Powell, marketing manager for Bretz. "This is the first year we have offered this at our boat show and with the added room it just made sense because fishing and boats obviously go hand in hand." Howe, from A Able Charters on Flathead Lake, will present his seminar on how to "Catch Trout at Ice Out"at 10 a.m. Saturday. Howe will discuss the many reasons why this is the best time of year to target trout, as well as discuss locations, tactics and gear selection. "I work with tackle manufacturers all year long to help develop products and tactics that are designed to catch more fish, and I love sharing them with anglers," Howe said. The Johnsons, from Kits Tackle in Helena, will be at Bretz at 10 a.m. Saturday, Feb. 13, to talk about how to catch more fish on Holter Reservoir. The famous father-son duo will present their seminar based on a multi-technique approach to fishing. Holter offers fantastic trout, walleye and perch fishing, and we will be giving tips on how to have a unique multi-species day of fishing on one of the prettiest lakes in Montana," Trevor Johnson said. "Learn how to jig up eater walleye and jumbo perch in the morning, then chase big rainbows and the occasional brown trout in the afternoon with the fly rods." For more information, call 844-259-6093. *** Mark Wards statewide "Montana Outdoor Radio Show" airs Saturdays from 6 to 8 a.m. in Missoula on KGVO 1290 AM and 101.5 FM. Email Ward at captain@montanaoutdoor.com. Graduation Matters Montana has launched a new fund that will award grants to communities across the state working on initiatives to raise high school graduation rates. Superintendent of Public Instruction Denise Juneau announced Wednesday that the 2016 Graduation Matters Montana Challenge Fund was being backed by more than $190,000 from the Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation and AT&T. The fund will provide grants of up to $10,000 to new and existing Graduation Matters programs. Fifty-three communities across Montana already have a local Graduation Matters program. Since 2009, the statewide graduation rate has increased from 80.7 percent to 86 percent. In January, Juneau visited Sentinel High School, where she announced that it had the highest Class AA graduation rate in the state last year at 92 percent, the only school in that class with a rate higher than 90 percent. Missoula County Public Schools overall led Class AA districts in both graduation and dropout rates, with Class C Seeley-Swan High School having the only 100 percent graduation rate in western Montana. Applications for the challenge fund are due by March 4, and are available online at graduationmatters.mt.gov. LAKESIDE A young woman who moved to Flathead County last year is saying she was in the back seat of the pickup truck driven by LaVoy Finicum when Finicum was shot by state police in Oregon last month during the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. Authorities have refused to confirm or deny whether Victoria Sharp, 18, was a passenger in Finicums truck. Sharp told CNN that Finicum was not acting aggressively when he was killed. The Lakeside woman said she was in the back seat of Finicums white truck between Ryan Bundy and Shawna Cox when Finicum drove into a snowbank while trying to evade a roadblock. Finicum was killed after exiting the truck. Video shows him apparently reaching inside his coat twice before an officer fired. In the CNN interview, Sharp says she only sees Finicum trying to keep his balance in the snow. He had his hands up, Sharp told CNN correspondent Kyung Lah. He was shouting that if they were going to shoot, then just shoot him. I remember him saying that if they shoot him, its an innocent mans blood on their hands. Lah showed Sharp the FBI video during the interview, but Sharp insisted she didn't see Finicum reaching for what could be a weapon. Authorities said they found a loaded gun in Finicums pocket. *** Sharp, who is originally from Kansas, apparently met her family in Oregon to sing Christian songs and provide moral support to the armed protesters. Her Facebook page says she is a hostess at Tamarack Brewing Co. in Lakeside. A woman who answered the phone there Wednesday said Sharp was not there, and that she was not at liberty to give out any information about her. Sharps Facebook friends include several members of the Bundy family, including Ryan Bundy, who was wounded during the arrest. Ryans brother Ammon, who was in a different vehicle, was the acknowledged leader of the occupation. According to the Topeka Capitol-Journal, Sharp is from Auburn, a small town southwest of Topeka. A story by Angela Deines quotes a local minister as saying the Sharp family is active in a lot of things. Theyre very patriotic and have very high standards. Theyre very musical. A woman identified as Sharps mother, Odalis, says on a YouTube posting that she brought her children to Oregon, and that Were here to sing for the Lord. This is a worthwhile cause and we just hope to make a difference. We just hope to be able to bless the hearts of the people through the songs. Another YouTube posting which is not the CNN interview is a 12 1/2-minute video that identifies Victoria Sharp as the speaker. In it, she says law enforcement fired at least 120 shots altogether at the truck after Finicum was killed. Thats when Ryan Bundy was wounded, the woman says. A Montana man, Ryan Payne of Anaconda, was in the truck, and one of those arrested. While winter is usually a slow time for the bike industry, the inside of the Bicycle Hangar was busy Wednesday as the shop hosted a blood donation drive for the American Red Cross. Peter Kern, owner of the Missoula bike shop, started hosting the two-day blood drives after his wife Hailey was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in March 2014. She received blood transfusions very regularly throughout her treatment, he said. Kern said he started donating in college after attending a drive held by the Alpha Phi sorority and continued to give regularly in part because he has type O-negative blood, making him a universal red cell donor. For this years drive, the shops third, Kern reached out to friends, customers and businesses near the bike shop, scheduling 74 people for appointments between Tuesday and Wednesday, including nine current and former employees. Kristi Tranter of the American Red Cross, who was running the blood drive, said an emergency need for blood donations exists. Storms in January canceled more than 340 drives across the United States, she said, resulting in the loss of 9,500 units of blood that would have been collected. Also, the Red Cross typically gets a fewer donors between Thanksgiving and New Years because people are busier around the holidays. Were in an appeal right now for us to get as many units as we can, Tranter said. Staff from the Missoula Red Cross office travel as far away as St. Regis, Deer Lodge and Salmon, Idaho, to hold blood drives. Often, the blood collected stays in Montana unless it is nearing the end of its 42-day shelf life and is needed elsewhere. Theres a less than 1 percent non-usage of blood, Tranter said. The key to being a successful donor is preparation, Tranter said. Donors should eat a large meal and drink 32 to 40 ounces of water before giving blood. I always say today is the day you get to eat whatever you want because of the calories we take out, she said. Each donor goes through a short physical that measures blood pressure, pulse and hemoglobin count, and answers questions about their health history. That information is sent along with the unit of blood in what Tranter likened to a passport. Everything that we do is a procedural step, so we know every unit we put out there has gone through the same criteria, she said. From the time they walk in the door, the whole process takes between 45 minutes to an hour, with the average time for the actual blood draw being around six minutes, Tranter said. While this weeks blood drive took place inside the Bicycle Hangar because there are fewer customers during winter, Kern said hes planning to hold another one in the summer, when the Red Cross can set up its mobile donation bus in the parking lot. I was astonished to read a letter sent by our county commissioners to Assistant Secretary of State Anne Richard. In it the commissioners are happy to accept 100 refugees per month to Missoula. This is despite FBI Director James Comeys statement that it is impossible to "vet" any refugee for a criminal record. What are you going to do? Call the Syrian Security Services for a background check on so-and-so to see if he is a good citizen? Please! With millions of "refugees" pouring into Europe, bringing mass rapes, sexual assaults and pillaging, why would it be any different in the U.S.? Look at what happened in Cologne, Germany on New Years Eve. Over 1,000 sexual assaults have been reported to the Cologne police. The assault victims report their perps as non-Europeans. The female mayor of Cologne suggested women just keep potential rapists at arms length to prevent rape (www.cnn.com/2016/01/06/europe/germany-cologne-assault. Read it). In Austria, gun shops are sold out of firearms because Austrian women are buying them for personal protection. Sweden is the rape capital of the world. These "refugees" are economic opportunists and are mostly military-age young men, not escapees from a war zone. Ask yourself why is it so easy for these "refugees" to come through Turkey, into southern Europe, then into the heart of Europe, unrestricted and unvetted? The answer: to change the language, culture and judicial system of civilized Europe. Jeff Martin, Missoula HELENA Representatives from some air ambulance companies made their case Thursday that theyre put in a bind by insurance companies and have to charge high rates to patients to stay in business. But a hospital-based service in Billings says it operates at a small profit and doesnt send bills to people who take emergency flights. Representatives from REACHAir, which operates Summit Air Ambulance in Bozeman and Helena, as well as an industry spokesman and director of finance for the Washington-based nonprofit that runs flights that serve St. Patrick Hospital in Missoula, spoke during a packed meeting of the Legislatures Economic Affairs Interim Committee on Thursday. The committee is studying air ambulance service, which has changed rapidly during the past decade. The State Auditors Office received more than 20 complaints last year from Montanans who have received large bills for the medical flights, some more than $100,000. Air ambulances generally fall into three categories: hospital-based services that are a part of the contracts those facilities negotiate with insurance companies and providers; nonprofit operators that are affiliated with hospitals; and for-profit companies. Don Wharton, who represents REACHAir, said his company has its hands tied over the large bills it sends consumers. We do not like sending our patients large balance bills, but we find we have no choice because of the position we are put in by insurance carriers, he said. Wharton said insurance companies, which Summit does not contract with, will pay what they deem allowable charges." It's a number the insurance company sets and an amount Wharton said isnt enough to keep his company operating. If we were to accept what they are willing to pay, we certainly would not have a sustainable business, he said. Summit said in December it was starting to talk with insurance provider Allegiance. But St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings, which has both a helicopter and airplane ambulance, operates its service at a small profit, said Ron Oldfield, the hospitals chief financial officer. Were not losing money on it, and we dont balance bill, he said. St. Vincent contracts with insurance companies such as Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana. About 60 percent of the people it flies have insurance under either Medicare or Medicaid. Oldfield wouldnt say how much the hospital gets paid by insurance companies, but did say that his hospital might have a higher flight volume, possibly helping with profitability. *** Insurance representatives who spoke after the industry representatives said private air ambulance companies wont work with them on rates and wont explain their cost structure. Paul Pedersen of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana said what his company calls allowable isnt just some made-up number, its 200 percent of what rural Medicare will pay for the service. Most insurance companies cover about 250 percent of what rural Medicare pays. Rural Medicare pays 150 percent more than urban Medicare. Pedersen said people insured under BCBS last year took 300 fixed-wing air ambulance flights, 75 percent of which were in network. Members took 230 helicopter flights, and about 78 percent were in network. BCBS pays the same for both in- and out-of-network flights. The only difference is that out-of-network providers can bill patients for the difference between what insurance pays and what they bill, called balance billing. That number was $5 million for BCBS members last year. The president of Allegiance, Ron Dewsnup, said whats charged by private companies varies widely, sometimes up to 1,000 percent of what rural Medicare will pay for the flights. Dewsnup called for hospitals and private companies to disclose any ownership, financial or contractual relationship they might have. In Helena, St. Peter's Hospital had an agreement to call Summit over other providers, even those that contract with insurance. The hospital ended that agreement late last year, citing concerns over costs to patients. Todd Lovshin of PacificSource said his company has never had a conversation about rates with Summit because they dont return our calls, he said. He wants to be able to get information about why private providers charge what they charge. Theres not a lot of consistency on how those charges are made, he said. *** Representatives from the states two largest pools of insured people, the state of Montana and Montana University System, talked about the struggles people in their groups have faced. Marilyn Bartlett, the health care benefits division administrator for the state, said her plan covers 34,000 people in Montana. The state self-funds its insurance and uses Allegiance as a third-party administrator. She said more flights taken by people in her pool are from out-of-network providers jumping from 36 percent in 2013 to 49 percent in 2014. She said the state pays 250 percent of what rural Medicare pays, and that covers just 55 percent of what is billed. In December, Bartlett said St. Peters in Helena used an airplane to transport a patient 81 miles to Great Falls for a non-emergency flight that resulted in a $30,140 bill. She said an in-network flight would have cost $7,600, Medicare would pay $5,500, and a round ambulance would have cost about $2,500. Stat Air, a four-hospital cooperative based out of Glasgow, said it ended its contract with BCBS because of inconsistencies in payments, said Clay Berger, Northeast Montana Stat Air cooperative program director. The insurance company paid $4,000 on some flights and $14,000 on others, Berger said. Stat still transported 47 BCBS patients in 2015, out of 550 flights total. The average bill for a BCBS patient was $20,000. Allegiance paid an average of $17,998 for flights its patients took on Stat, and Allegiance does not balance bill for the difference because of its contracts with Stat, he said. Connie Welsh of the Montana University System health plan said she cant get private air ambulance companies to answer her phone calls. We have seen that air ambulance companies that do not participate in networks are more frequently not wanting to talk to us, she said. Will you at least take my call? I need to have those folks ... who are looking at a business model very different from the way I am looking at it, from a human level, willing to take my calls. REACHAir representative Wharton said his company would work with insurance companies that offer reasonable rates. Our company is more than willing to step forward if there are true negotiations. , . , 12 2000 . , - . , . , . , . City Club Missoula will present "The State of the Community" with Missoula County Commissioner Cola Rowley, University of Montana President Royce Engstrom and Missoula Mayor John Engen at 11:30 a.m. Monday at the DoubleTree Hotel Edgewater, 100 Madison St. The annual State of the Community event gives Missoula residents and guests the chance to hear from three leaders in local government and higher education as they look back through the past year and look forward to the work ahead as Missoula grows and prospers. Attendees can expect to hear short talks of about 10 minutes each, followed by the opportunity to ask questions directly. Reservations are required by noon Friday. Credit card reservations can be made at cityclubmissoula.com. To pay at the door by check, email ccm@cityclubmissoula.com and indicate if you want lunch, $16 per person for members, $20 per person for non-members, or the no-lunch option of forum only for $10. Cancel if necessary by the reservation deadline. Missoulian Staff BILLINGS - Two former Yellowstone County Sheriffs deputies did not act criminally in the shooting death of Loren Simpson last winter, a jury ruled unanimously Wednesday following a two-day coroners inquest. Jason Robinson and Christopher Rudolph were found justified in killing 28-year-old Simpson on Jan. 8, 2015, as Simpson approached them on White Buffalo Road in Huntley driving a Ford Explorer that had been reported stolen. Robinson was training Rudolph who had been a deputy less than five months. Both men resigned from the sheriffs office five days after the shooting. After the verdict, the Simpson family's attorney Nathan Wagner said they respected the jury's verdict, but believed the civil case pending against Yellowstone County in federal court still has merit. "We are confident that the outcome will be different when we are allowed to present the rest of the evidence and cross examine the witnesses at the civil trial," Wagner said. "We look forward to the opportunity to continue pursuing justice for the family." Yellowstone County Sheriff Mike Linder said he was glad for the jury's verdict but could not comment on matters related to the resignation of both deputies due to the active litigation. The inquest, which began Tuesday, was called to determine whether the deputies acted criminally in the shooting. Even with the jurys finding, a decision on any criminal charges will be up to County Attorney Scott Twito. The dash-cam video clearly shows the stolen Ford Explorer approaching the deputies standing near the patrol car they had parked to partially block the road. The deputies yell several times for the driver to stop. Shut it down, one of them yells. Right now, yells the other. The driver veers off the road away from the deputies and into the deep snow as the deputies open fire using a shotgun and an AR-15 rifle. The deputies fired for five seconds. Use-of-force expert and former FBI special Agent Brian Kensel said the deputies fired a total of 54 projectiles in that span. In the days after the shooting, the deputies told investigators they felt threatened by the Explorer coming toward them. Robinson testified Wednesday the angle of the patrol car's dash-cam shows a distorted perception of the incident. Robinson had tears in his eyes as he described the incident. He said he saw snow kick off the Explorers back tires, believing it was accelerating. "I saw the front wheels turn in my direction, Robinson said. At that point, I knew he didnt care he was going through me and he was going to kill me." Robinson said he fired 18 rounds from his AR-15. Two of those rounds hit Simpson, one of them through the Explorers back window and into the back of Simpsons head. The Explorer stopped in the deep snow next to the road. Robinson said he reached for another shell magazine and realized he didn't have one. He then drew his service pistol and approached the car, yelling for the driver to show his hands. At this point, Robinson said he still didn't know who was in the Explorer. "I reached the car. I could see that he was slunk forward. He had blue gloves on his hands. They were on his lap. I could see he wasnt breathing," Robinson said. "It was a cold day and we could all see our breath. There was nothing coming." From the moment Simpson was perceived as a threat, to the moment deputies opened fire was a "blink" of time, Robinson said. Robinson was training Rudolph that day, even though he was not certified for that training. Rudolph said he suggested they bring out their long guns as they drove behind the Ford Explorer. They knew they were going to be conducting a high-risk felony stop, Rudolph said. Rudolph said the two formed a plan fast as they watched the Explorer approach. They had called for back-up from other law enforcement officers, but that assistance hadnt arrived yet, Rudolph testified. He said he was afraid if he tried to back up their patrol car, they would get stuck in the snow. The deputies followed their training, Rudolph said. "We were going to stop that vehicle," he said. The two got out their patrol car and walked toward the approaching car, raising their weapons. In the video, Robinson appears to cross in front of Rudolph at one point, with Rudolph appearing to lower his gun and raise it again to continue firing. Simpson was shot once with a slug from the shotgun and twice with the rifle. The rifle caused the fatal shot, striking Simpson through the back of the head and immediately paralyzing him, according to Thomas Bennett, associate medical examiner for the Montana and Wyoming, who testified Tuesday. A juror Wednesday asked if Robinson would have done anything different that day if he could. "Yeah," Robinson said. "I would have stayed home that day." Kensel, the use-of-force expert, testified the deputies were justified in their actions. He said the only thing that matters in the eyes of the law is that the deputies felt threatened in the moments before they pulled the trigger. Any actions leading up to that moment are a smoke screen distracting them from the matter at hand. Ed Zink, Yellowstone County Deputy Chief of Criminal Litigation, said policing in 2016 is more difficult than it's ever been and this is being reflected not just in Billings and Yellowstone County but nationwide. HAMILTON After quickly selling the first 88 panels in its 25-kilowatt Valley Solar installation, the Ravalli Electric Co-op is expanding the project. REC communications specialist Alyssa Barnes said the staff was unsure how quickly the panels would sell. We started taking reservations in October and there were definitely a few slow periods, but by the end of the year we had more buyers than the handful of panels we had left, Barnes said. The rapid sales and obvious support for the project persuaded the Ravalli Electric Co-op board of directors to offer an additional solar array. The second phase will double the size of the installation, resulting in a 50-kilowatt system with 176 solar panels. The Valley Solar project will be the same size as the array the Missoula Electric Co-op installed next to its Lolo substation. Ravalli Electric Co-op general manager Mark Grotbo said he was encouraged by the members level of interest. We are constantly exploring new ways to provide power to the valley and its nice when we can directly involve our membership in the process, Grotbo said. The REC will hold a grand opening celebration this spring when the solar project is completed and panels are generating power near the end of April. Members who purchased panels will receive credit on their Ravalli Electric Co-op bills annually. The REC currently has about 8,000 members. The nonprofit cooperative has served rural areas of the Bitterroot Valley from Sula to Florence since 1936. Ravalli Electric Co-op members who are interested in participating in Valley Solar's second phase can call (406) 961-3001, go to the office at 1051 Eastside Highway in Corvallis or visit ravallielectric.com. LONDON Tefaf Maastricht, Europes biggest and most prestigious fair devoted to art, antiques and design, is expanding into New York. The Netherlands-based event, organized by dealers under the umbrella of the European Fine Art Foundation, a nonprofit body, is collaborating with the New York art advisers Artvest Partners to hold two annual fairs at the Park Avenue Armory, Tefaf said on Wednesday. Tefaf New York Fall will open in October to showcase dealers specializing in artworks from antiquity to the 20th century. Tefaf New York Spring, scheduled for May 2017, will focus on high-end modern art and design. Each fair is to feature about 80 to 90 international exhibitors. Humberto Moreira, a Mexican former governor who spent a week in a Spanish jail on suspicion of money laundering last month, flew back to Mexico on Wednesday. After Mr. Moreira was detained in Madrid on Jan. 15, the case against him crumbled. Judge Santiago Pedraz of Spains National Court rejected prosecutors arguments that Mr. Moreira had transferred 200,000 euros, or about $218,000, in illegitimate funds to Spain in 2013 and ordered his release. Mr. Moreiras passport was initially withheld, but after prosecutors failed to appeal, it was returned on Tuesday and Mr. Moreira boarded an Aeromexico flight on Wednesday. Mr. Moreira, 49, is notorious for having increased the debt of his state, Coahuila, by 100 times while serving as its governor from 2005 to 2011 and concealing the loans. Way up in the foothills of the Alps, about as far north as you can go in the Lombardy region of Italy without hitting Switzerland, a series of terraced vineyards hug the hillsides overlooking the river Adda. With the majestic snowcapped massif to the north, the narrow river valley to the south and centuries-old castles crowning hilltops for good measure, this wine zone, Valtellina, is strikingly beautiful. For years, the wines, made almost entirely of the nebbiolo grape, were little known in the United States and, indeed, in the rest of Italy. Most of the production went to Switzerland, which naturally has a taste for good Alpine wine. Perhaps this was as it should have been. Production of the wine was necessarily small, and the wines presented a different, leaner, tauter face of nebbiolo. The steep terraced vineyards, source of the best grapes, had to be tended almost entirely by hand. Their labor-intensive nature, along with the rapid industrialization of Lombardy, led some growers to abandon the terraces in the mid-20th century. The colossal effort required to farm wasnt worth the return. As in other wine regions with precipitous hillside vineyards, like Cornas, stalwart growers persevered even as much of the rest of the world ignored them. I remember back in the 1990s, a few Valtellina wines would occasionally show up on shelves in New York. But the prevailing attitude was that these wines were too austere, too acidic, to appeal to many Americans. Ormat Announces Commercial Operation of Plant 4 in Olkaria III in Kenya, Expanding Complex Capacity to Nearly 140 MW RENO, Nev., Feb. 04, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Ormat Technologies, Inc. (NYSE:ORA) announced today that it reached commercial operation of Plant 4 in the Olkaria III complex in Kenya, increasing the complex total generating capacity by 29 MW to 139 MW. Plant 4 will sell its electricity to Kenya Power and Lighting Company Limited (KPLC) under a 20-year PPA. In October 2015, Ormat signed an amendment to the Power Purchase Agreement ("PPA") with KPLC that enables the increase of the capacity of Plant 4 expansions to an aggregate of 100 MW, in phases. With the commissioning of plant 4, the 140 MW Olkaria III complex will provide clean and reliable electricity to over 250,000 households in Kenya, supporting the Government of Kenyas 2030 vision to increase generation capacity, noted Isaac Angel, Chief Executive Officer We are proud to be part of Kenyas efforts, and view this facility as a key component of our geographic expansion strategy. Now that we have the commercial terms in place, we will continue to evaluate the feasibility of future expansions of the Olkaria III complex as well as other prospects to support our growth in Kenya. Ormat has implemented a multi-phased development strategy in Olkaria III. The first phase of Plant 1 commenced operation in 2000 and the second phase in 2009. Plant 2 commenced commercial operation in 2013 and plant 3 in 2014. Ormat financed the first three plants of the complex with a $310 million debt facility provided by the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the U.S. Governments development finance institution. Plant 4 was financed by Ormat equity which is covered under insurance policy from MIGA (a member of the World Bank Group) to cover its exposure to certain political risks involved in operating in developing countries. About Ormat Technologies With over five decades of experience, Ormat Technologies, Inc. is a leading geothermal company and the only vertically integrated company solely engaged in geothermal and recovered energy generation (REG), with the objective of becoming a leading global provider of renewable energy. The company owns, operates, designs, manufactures and sells geothermal and REG power plants primarily based on the Ormat Energy Converter - a power generation unit that converts low-, medium- and high-temperature heat into electricity. With 69 U.S. patents, Ormats power solutions have been refined and perfected under the most grueling environmental conditions. Ormat has 470 employees in the United States and over 600 overseas. Ormats flexible, modular solutions for geothermal power and REG are ideal for the vast range of resource characteristics. The company has engineered, manufactured and constructed power plants, which it currently owns or has installed to utilities and developers worldwide, totaling over 2,000 MW of gross capacity. Ormats generating portfolio is spread globally in the U.S., Guatemala and Kenya. Ormats Safe Harbor Statement Information provided in this press release may contain statements relating to current expectations, estimates, forecasts and projections about future events that are "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements generally relate to Ormat's plans, objectives and expectations for future operations and are based upon its management's current estimates and projections of future results or trends. Actual future results may differ materially from those projected as a result of certain risks and uncertainties. For a discussion of such risks and uncertainties, see "Risk Factors" as described in Ormat Technologies, Inc.'s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 26, 2015. These forward-looking statements are made only as of the date hereof, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Ormat Technologies Contact: Smadar Lavi Investor Relations 775-356-9029 (ext. 65726) slavi@ormat.com Investor Relations Agency Contact: Rob Fink/Brett Maas Hayden - IR 646-415-8972/646-536-7331 rob@haydenir.com / brett@haydenir.com Medical Marijuana, Inc. Announces the Launch of HempMeds Mexico: Opening the Cannabidiol (CBD) Market to the Countrys More Than 122 Million Residents Medical Marijuana, Inc.s RSHO-XTM Hemp-Based Cannabidiol (CBD) Products Are Now Available For Import Into Mexico at HempMeds.MX SAN DIEGO, Feb. 04, 2016 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- It is with great excitement that Medical Marijuana, Inc. (OTC Pink:MJNA) announces the launch of HempMeds Mexico to shareholders and the public. HempMeds Mexico was created to provide access to CBD hemp oil products that are now legal to import in the country of Mexico for the first time. The Company is in the process of establishing a HempMeds Mexico office in Monterrey, Mexico within the next week. Over the next year the Company will bring its lab, manufacturing, sales and distribution facilities to Mexico, in order to provide our products to all of the Latin America market, creating employment and an entirely new industry in Mexico, stated Stuart W. Titus, PhD and Chief Executive Officer of Medical Marijuana, Inc. According to a recent Reuters article, Mexico represents a $1 billion to $2 billion opportunity in terms of cumulative revenue over the next 10 years. History was made on Tuesday, February 2, 2016 when the government of Mexico issued two of the countrys first permits to import the cannabidiol (CBD) product, Real Scientific Hemp OilTM called RSHO-XTM, from the Company. The move by COFEPRIS (the Mexican health authority) has cleared the way for millions of individuals and families to access HempMeds Mexicos RSHO-XTM, a non-psychoactive cannabidiol (CBD) hemp oil. RSHO-XTM is a CBD hemp oil product that is specific to the Mexico market. This is a giant step in the right direction, this historic decision will soon allow anyone in Mexico the freedom to import RSHO-XTM products, with a doctors prescription and import permit. Its our mission to make cannabidiol products safe, and easily accessible to every person in Mexico, said Titus. Around the globe, cannabidiol (CBD) hemp oil is widely regarded as a whole food and superfood. MJNAs cannabidiol is derived from the mature stalk of the hemp plant and is considered a food nutrient delivering the benefits of cannabinoids without the psychotropic/euphoric effects of Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC). Although CBD hemp oil products from MJNA are readily available online in the U.S. as a nutritional supplement or food product and can be shipped to all 50 states, territories, and districts, hemp oil products are handled quite differently in Mexico and Brazil, which require a doctors prescription and import permit. HempMeds Mexico will be attending every national public debate throughout Mexico through April 5th, as the country determines how to change its laws to conform with the landmark Mexican Supreme Court cannabis ruling in November 2015. HempMeds Mexico will also continue to sponsor and hold events throughout the country. Along with our premier partner, the Por Grace Foundation, HempMeds Mexico has already hosted two historic educational events, one in Mexico City and a second in Monterrey. Details of the COFEPRIS announcement can be found here: http://www.cofepris.gob.mx/Documents/NotasPrincipales/01022016.pdf Additional information is listed on the HempMeds Mexico website. For more information on RSHO-XTM, visit http://www.hempmeds.mx About HempMeds Mexico HempMeds Mexico is a Mexico-based company, created to provide access to cannabinoid-based products including cannabidiol (CBD) hemp oil products as they become legal in the country of Mexico for the first time. Our Company is a sales, marketing and distribution company. HempMeds Mexico plans to work directly with the Mexican government to safely and legally provide access to our CBD hemp oil products. HempMeds Mexico is the first company to legally ship RSHO-XTM CBD hemp oil into Mexico. For more information, please review the companys website at: http://hempmeds.mx/. About Medical Marijuana Inc. The mission of Medical Marijuana, Inc. (OTC Pink:MJNA) is to be the premier hemp industry innovator, leveraging our team of professionals to source, evaluate and purchase value-added companies and products, while allowing them to keep their integrity and entrepreneurial spirit. We strive to create awareness within our industry, develop environmentally-friendly, economically sustainable businesses, while increasing shareholder value. For more information, please visit the company's website at: www.MedicalMarijuanaInc.com. FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION (FDA) DISCLOSURE These statements have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, treat or cure any disease. FORWARD-LOOKING DISCLAIMER This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements and information, as defined within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and is subject to the Safe Harbor created by those sections. This material contains statements about expected future events and/or financial results that are forward-looking in nature and subject to risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements by definition involve risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Medical Marijuana, Inc. to be materially different from the statements made herein. LEGAL DISCLOSURE Medical Marijuana Inc. and HempMeds do not sell or distribute any products that are in violation of the United States Controlled Substances Act (US.CSA). These companies do grow, sell, and distribute hemp-based products and are involved with the federally legal distribution of medical marijuana-based products within certain international markets. Cannabidiol is a natural constituent of hemp oil. For further information, please contact: Public Relations contact: Andrew Hard Chief Executive Officer CMW Media P. 888-829-0070 andrew.hard@cmwmedia.com www.cmwmedia.com HempMeds Mexico contact: US: 1-866-786-2440 MX: 001-866-786-2440 http://hempmeds.mx/contact-us/ Corporate contact: Medical Marijuana, Inc. Toll Free: 888-OTC-MJNA (888-682-6562) www.medicalmarijuanainc.com www.facebook.com/mjnainc DynaResource, Inc. Appoints Mr. Rene L. F. Mladosich as General Manager of the San Jose de Gracia Project DynaResource, Inc. ("DynaUSA" and "the Company") (OTCQB: DYNR) is pleased to announce that it has approved the appointment of Mr. Rene L.F. Mladosich as General Manager of the San Jose de Gracia Project, effective February 1, 2016. Mr. Mladosich brings over 30 years of direct experience in the mining industry in Mexico to DynaResource. He has worked for Companies such as: Campania Mineras de Cananea, Campania Minera Hecla (Hecla Mining), Campania Minera Pangea (now owed by McEwen Mining), Campania Minera Dolores (Minefinders), Minera Alamos de Sonora, and Campania Minera Pena de Bernal (Starcore International Mines). Mr. Mladosich has also provided consulting services to companies such as Minefinders, Pan American Silver and Scorpio. Mr. Mladosich is a proven and successful manager in Mexico with experience in the following areas: general management, underground and open pit operations, process plant recovery and optimization, construction, exploration, logistics, permitting, environmental, and plant and pit design. Mr. Mladosich holds a B.S. degree from the University of Sonora, where he was awarded First of the Class 6 times, and Mr. Mladosich studied 1 year of metallurgy in the Master's Degree work program at the University. Mr. Mladosich speaks fluent Spanish and English, and has studied French under the French Embassy Program in Mexico. Mr. K.D. Diepholz, Chairman/CEO of DynaUSA, said, "Mr. Mladosich brings a direct and hands on approach, which is a perfect fit for DynaResource and its current activities at San Jose de Gracia. Rene will be the on-site leader of the operations and project development at the San Jose de Gracia Project ('SJG'), under Mineras de DynaResource S.A. de C.V. ('DynaMineras'), the exclusive operating entity at SJG. Future development is projected to include an expansion of the current underground mining and pilot production activities, and is expected to include DynaMineras' accomplishing of a preliminary economic assessment report, scoping study, or similar, which report will be expected to support the project financing of the possible open pit production at SJG. "Further, Rene is joining DynaResource at an optimum time, where he can lead and manage the day to day test mining and milling operations, and where he can lead the expansion of the test underground mining and milling operations, and he can direct the near term increase in test mining and pilot production volumes and output. I'm looking forward to working directly with Rene, and with our team of managers and personnel in Mexico; together we have established the goal of increasing the volume of current operations to 200 tons per day by June 30, 2016. I am confident Rene can lead our team on the ground towards accomplishing our targets. And I am delighted to welcome Rene to the DynaResource Companies." Mr. Mladosich said: "The DynaResource Companies and the SJG Project offer a unique and substantial opportunity for the development of a first-class mining company. I am excited to join a very talented professional and management team already in place at the DynaResource Companies, in both the US and Mexico. The SJG mine and plant teams include knowledgeable and experienced mining engineers, geologists, plant processing and lab personnel who exhibit the expertise and experience to operate mines and develop mineral deposits. I am looking forward to providing the on-site leadership and guidance for the DynaResource Companies, in order to develop and expand the SJG Project into a world class property. "Further, in the short term, I will be focused on increasing production volumes and outputs to a projected target of 200 tons per day by June 30, 2016, and I am confident we can accomplish our goals. I am excited to join the DynaResource team, and I look forward to working with Mr. Diepholz and the executive managers and personnel of the Company; I can foresee a long term and significant professional opportunity within the DynaResource group of companies." DynaMineras - Exclusive Operating Entity at San Jose de Gracia (DynaUSA Owns 100%) DynaMineras is named the exclusive operating entity at the SJG Project. Under the terms of the Operating Agreement, DynaMineras retains the rights to finance, maintain, operate, explore and exploit the SJG Property. DynaMineras - 20 Year Land Lease Agreement On January 6, 2014, DynaMineras entered into a 20-year land lease agreement (The "20 Year Land Lease") with the Santa Maria Ejido Community ("SJG Ejido") surrounding SJG. The 20 Year Land Lease covers an area of 4,399 hectares surrounding the main mineral resource areas of SJG, and provides for annual lease payments by DynaMineras of $1,359,443 Pesos (approx. $ 75,000 USD). DynaMineras - Mine Plan and Mill Operations (Pilot Operations) DynaMineras is conducting operations at SJG according to internally developed mine plans for San Pablo Mine, and through the internally designed SJG Pilot Mill facility (consisting of a basic gravity-flotation circuit) which was previously operated by DynaUSA during the 2003-2006 period. There is no preliminary economic assessment report completed for SJG so the precise cutoff grade for underground mining has not yet been determined. The operations are being funded internally by DynaMineras and DynaUSA. The mine plan was developed from the block model of resources as defined in the DynaMexico NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate ("See NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate for SJG", below); and from the analysis of underground mining works conducted in 2003-2006. DynaResource de Mexico, SA de CV. ("DynaMexico") Ownership - DynaUSA owns 80% DynaMexico owns 100% of the SJG Project. DynaUSA currently holds 80% of the total outstanding Capital of DynaMexico. DynaUSA - DynaMexico (Previous Pilot Production Operations 2003-2006) DynaUSA is a Resource Investment, Management, Production and Operations Company, with current test underground mining and pilot mill production operations in Mexico, based in Irving, Texas; with a current focus on the exploitation and development of the San Jose de Gracia Project in northern Sinaloa Mexico ("SJG"), targeting growth in the production, development, and exploration of predominately gold resources. The Company founded "DynaMexico" in March 2000 specifically for the purpose of acquiring and consolidating the SJG District; and it completed the consolidation of the entire SJG District to DynaMexico in 2003 (approx. 15 sq. km. at that time), with the exception of the San Miguel Mining Concession (7 Hectares, for which DynaMexico is proceeding towards accomplishing the transfer of title, under previously signed sale and purchase agreements). During the period 2003-2006, DynaMexico conducted pilot production operations at the San Pablo area of SJG, reporting production results of: 18,250 Oz. Gold sold; 42,000 tons mill feed; average feed grades of 15-20 g/t Gold; and, average production costs of less than $175/Oz. Gold. San Jose de Gracia ("SJG") The San Jose de Gracia District, currently covering an area of 69,121 Hectares, is 100% owned by DynaResource de Mexico, S.A. de C.V. ("DynaMexico"). DynaUSA currently holds 80% of the outstanding shares of DynaMexico. In excess of one million ounces gold was reportedly produced from the SJG District in the early 1900's, originating from high grade gold veins, including approximately 470,000 Oz. gold reportedly produced from the La Purisima area of SJG at an average gold grade of 66.7 g/t. In June 2010, the SJG Project was recognized by the State of Sinaloa as the most significant Gold Project in the State for the year 2010. National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") Technical Report for DynaMexico - SJG DynaUSA received from DynaMexico on March 28, 2012 a National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") compliant Technical Report for the San Jose de Gracia Project (the "2012 DynaMexico Luna-CAM SJG Technical Report", the "Technical Report"), and approved by DynaMexico, the 100% owner of SJG. The 2012 DynaMexico Luna-CAM SJG Technical Report was prepared by Mr. Ramon Luna, BS, P. Geo., of Servicios y Proyectos Mineros, Hermosillo, Mexico and a Qualified Person as defined under NI 43-101; and by Mr. Robert Sandefur, BS, MSc, P.E., a senior reserve analyst for Chlumsky, Armbrust & Meyer LLC, Lakewood, CO., and a Qualified Person as defined under NI 43-101. The 2012 DynaMexico Luna-CAM SJG Technical Report includes as Section Fourteen (14) a Mineral Resource Estimate for SJG as prepared by Mr. Sandefur (the "2012 DynaMexico-CAM SJG 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate", and, the "Mineral Resource Estimate"). DynaUSA filed the Technical Report on SEDAR (www.sedar.com) on March 28, 2012. DynaUSA received from DynaMexico on December 31, 2012, an updated NI 43-101 compliant ("NI 43-101") Technical Report for the San Jose de Gracia Project (the "Updated 2012 DynaMexico Luna-CAM SJG Technical Report, and the "Updated Technical Report"). The Updated Technical Report was approved by DynaMexico, and filed by DynaUSA with SEDAR on December 31, 2012. (See DynaUSA news release dated January 10, 2013.) National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") Mineral Resource Estimate for SJG The 2012 DynaMexico-CAM SJG Mineral Resource Estimate concentrates on four separate main vein systems at SJG: Tres Amigos, San Pablo, La Union, and La Purisima. The Mineral Resource Estimate includes the following Resources: "Indicated Resources": (1) Tres Amigos; 893,000 tonnes with an average grade of 4.46 g/t, totaling 128,000 Oz. Au; (2) San Pablo; 1,308,000 tonnes with an average grade of 6.52 g/t, totaling 274,000 Oz. Au.; "Inferred Resources": (1) 3,953,000 tonnes in aggregate for the four main vein systems, with an average grade of 5.83 g/t, totaling 741,000 Oz. Au. The Effective Date of the 2012 DynaMexico Luna-CAM SJG Technical Reports and including the 2012 DynaMexico-CAM SJG 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate is February 6, 2012. The Mineral Resource Estimate is reported using a 2.0 g/t cutoff grade for underground mining. As of the Effective Date of the Technical Reports and Mineral Resource Estimate, there is no economic assessment report completed for SJG so the precise cutoff grade for underground mining has not yet been determined. On behalf of the Board of Directors, K.D. DIEPHOLZ; DynaResource, Inc.; Chairman and CEO IMPORTANT CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING CANADIAN DISCLOSURE STANDARDS The Company is an "OTC Reporting Issuer" as that term is defined in Multilateral Instrument 51-509, Issuers Quoted in the U.S. Over-the-Counter Markets, promulgated by various Canadian Provincial Securities Commissions. Accordingly, certain disclosure in this news release or other disclosure provided by the Company has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of securities laws in effect in Canada, which differ from the requirements of United States securities laws. In Canada, an issuer is required to provide technical information with respect to mineralization, including reserves and resources, if any, on its mineral exploration properties in accordance with Canadian requirements, which differ significantly from the requirements of the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") applicable to registration statements and reports filed by United States companies pursuant to the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. As such, information contained in this news release or other disclosure provided by the Company concerning descriptions of mineralization under Canadian standards may not be comparable to similar information made public by United States companies subject to the reporting and disclosure requirements of the SEC and not subject to Canadian securities legislation. This news release or other disclosure provided by the Company may use the terms "measured mineral resources", "indicated mineral resources" and "inferred mineral resources". While these terms are recognized and required by Canadian regulations (under National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects), the SEC does not recognize them. United States investors are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of the mineral deposits in these categories will ever be converted to reserves. In addition, "inferred mineral resources" have a great amount of uncertainty as to their existence and economic and legal feasibility. It cannot be assumed that all or any part of an inferred mineral resource will ever be upgraded to a higher category. Under Canadian securities legislation, estimates of inferred mineral resources may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies, although they may form, in certain circumstances, the basis of a "preliminary economic assessment" as that term is defined in National Instrument 43-101, Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. U.S. investors are cautioned not to assume that part or all of an inferred mineral resource exists, or is economically or legally mineable. CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION This News release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27 A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Certain information contained in this news release, including any information relating to future financial or operating performance may be deemed "forward-looking". All statements in this news release, other than statements of historical fact, that address events or developments that DynaResource expects to occur, are "forward-looking information". These statements relate to future events or future performance and reflect the Company's expectations regarding the future growth, results of operations, business prospects and opportunities of DynaResource. These forward-looking statements reflect the Company's current internal projections, expectations or beliefs and are based on information currently available to DynaResource. In some cases, forward-looking information can be identified by terminology such as "may", "will", "should", "expect", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "projects", "potential", "scheduled", "forecast", "budget" or the negative of those terms or other comparable terminology. Certain assumptions have been made regarding the Company's plans at the San Jose de Gracia property. Many of these assumptions are based on factors and events that are not within the control of DynaResource and there is no assurance they will prove to be correct. Such factors include, without limitation: capital requirements, fluctuations in the international currency markets and in the rates of exchange of the currencies of the United States and Mexico; price volatility in the spot and forward markets for commodities; discrepancies between actual and estimated production, between actual and estimated reserves and resources and between actual and estimated metallurgical recoveries; changes in national and local governments in any country which DynaResource currently or may in the future carry on business; taxation; controls; regulations and political or economic developments in the countries in which DynaResource does or may carry on business; the speculative nature of mineral exploration and development, including the risks of obtaining necessary licenses and permits, diminishing quantities or grades of reserves; competition; loss of key employees; additional funding requirements; actual results of current exploration or reclamation activities; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; accidents; labor disputes; defective title to mineral claims or property or contests over claims to mineral properties. In addition, there are risks and hazards associated with the business of mineral exploration, development and mining, including environmental hazards, industrial accidents, unusual or unexpected formations, pressures, cave-ins, flooding and gold bullion losses (and the risk of inadequate insurance or inability to obtain insurance, to cover these risks) as well as those risks referenced in the Annual Report for DynaResource available at www.sec.gov. Forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance and actual results and future events could differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking information. All of the forward-looking information contained in this news release is qualified by these cautionary statements. Although DynaResource believes that the forward-looking information contained in this news release is based on reasonable assumptions, readers cannot be assured that actual results will be consistent with such statements. Accordingly, readers are cautioned against placing undue reliance on forward-looking information. DynaResource expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, events or otherwise. First Colombia Gold Acquires Large Car Wash Operation First Colombia Gold Corp. (OTC PINK: FCGD) announced today that it has reached an agreement to purchase a full service car wash located in Bluffton, South Carolina. The car wash location has a current appraisal valuing the property at $860,000 and is currently doing $500,000 in annual revenue. The company has made growth in the retail space a key focus of its growth strategy and has put a lot of focus on the convenience store and car wash sectors. The company's CEO, Jason Castenir, stated, "When we launched our master plan to retool this company and bring it back into a profitable enterprise, we really put in place three areas of emphasis. We wanted to focus on the commercial fuel markets through our terminal locations and grow our fuel resale business, we wanted to have a strong retail presence through convenience store, truck stop and car wash facilities and we wanted to develop our quick serve restaurant business and utilize that brand within the convenience stores locations. This car wash we are announcing today is a very high quality acquisition and a tremendous business that we were able to put in place. This equates to more than $40,000 per month in revenue for our company with great profit margins already in place." The company also reiterated its commitment to complete the 11 convenience store acquisition and plans to update the market in the coming weeks on the specific dates for that closing. Mr. Castenir added, "We are very excited about the revenue possibilities through these acquisitions and fully expect our revenue to increase substantially." Disclaimer This release contains forward-looking statements that are based on beliefs of First Colombia Gold Corp. management and reflect First Colombia Gold Corp.'s current expectations as contemplated under section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and section 21E of the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. When we use in this release the words "estimate," "project," "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "expect," "plan," "predict," "may," "should," "will," "can," the negative of these words, or such other variations thereon, or comparable terminology, are all intended to identify forward looking statements. Such statements reflect the current views of First Colombia Gold Corp. with respect to future events based on currently available information and are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to, risks and uncertainties pertaining to development of mining properties, changes in economic conditions and other risks, uncertainties and factors, which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievement expressed or implied by such forward looking statements to differ materially from the forward looking statements. The information contained in this press release is historical in nature, has not been updated, and is current only to the date shown in this press release. This information may no longer be accurate and therefore you should not rely on the information contained in this press release. To the extent permitted by law, First Colombia Gold Corp. and its employees, agents and consultants exclude all liability for any loss or damage arising from the use of, or reliance on, any such information, whether or not caused by any negligent act or omission. This press release incorporates by reference the Company's filings with the SEC including 10K, 10Q, 8K reports and other filings. Investors are encouraged to review all filings. There is no assurance First Colombia Gold Corp. will identify projects of merit or if it will have sufficient financing to implement its business plan. There is no assurance that the Company's due diligence on the potential acquisition of oil and gas assets will be favorable nor that definitive terms can be negotiated. Information in this release includes representations from the private companies referred to which has not been independently verified by the company. A downturn in oil prices would affect the potential profitability of the proposed acquisition negatively. Pure Energy Appoints Alex Rothwell & Paul Reinhart to Its Strategic Advisory Board, Announces Grant of Options PURE ENERGY MINERALS LTD. (TSX VENTURE: PE) (FRANKFURT: AHG1) (OTCQB: HMGLF) ("Pure Energy" or the "Company") is very pleased to announce the appointment of two new members to the Company's Advisory Board. ALEX ROTHWELL Alex Rothwell has more than 20 years of experience in Canadian capital markets and investment banking. Prior to retiring from the industry and relocating to Victoria, BC in late 2015, Alex was President of Macquarie Capital Markets Canada, a leading Canadian investment bank with operations in Institutional Sales, Trading & Research, Equity Capital Markets, and Corporate Finance. In this role, he focused on working closely with corporate issuers to direct and manage their interactions with the institutional shareholder community, and further to advise them on their capital markets strategies, funding requirements and capital raises. Prior to managing these operations for Macquarie, he was a Senior Managing Partner and the Head of Institutional Sales at Orion Securities, a partner-owned boutique investment bank which was bought by Macquarie in 2007. He began his career in capital markets in 1995 with Bunting Warburg (the predecessor firm to UBS Canada) as a specialist advising US hedge funds in merger arbitrage strategies. In addition to his expertise in hedge funds, over the course of his career he has developed a deep knowledge of, and connections to, the global network of mutual funds and pension fund investors that are active in Canadian equity markets. Mr. Rothwell has an MBA from the Ivey School of Business (1995) and holds a Bachelor of Chemical Engineering from McGill University (1991). PAUL REINHART Paul Reinhart is the President of Vanhart Capital Corporation (Vanhart), a company specializing in early stage businesses in the resource and life sciences industries. Paul have been actively investing in Canadian-based companies for over 30 years, providing early stage financing and shareholder management services. Initially focused on the resources sector, Vanhart expanded into the life sciences industry in the early 1990's. The companies in Vanhart's life sciences portfolio have ranged from players in hyperbaric medicine (OxyMed Systems Inc), medical devices (Angiotech Pharmaceuticals and IMRIS) to food-related technology (Enwave). In addition to providing access to capital, Paul has been a founding shareholder and director of many such ventures over the years, including resource companies such as Stikine Resources, Kokanee Explorations and Far West Mining (now Capstone Mining). Pure Energy CEO Robert Mintak commented, "We are excited to add Mr. Rothwell and Mr. Reinhart to our team. Collectively they bring considerable strategic experience in the mining and small cap market space. We are looking forward to working with them to identify and take advantage of new opportunities to create value for our shareholders." The Company also announces, subject to regulatory approval, it has granted a total of 400,000 stock options (the "Options") to consultants of the Company to purchase common shares of the Company in accordance with its stock option plan. All of the Options vest quarterly, with the first such vesting occurring upon issuance of the Options, are issued at an exercise price of $0.57 per common share and expire five years from the date of issuance. On behalf of the Board of Directors "Robert Mintak" Chief Executive Officer About Pure Energy: Pure Energy is a lithium-brine resource developer that is driven to become the lowest-cost lithium supplier for the burgeoning North American lithium battery industry. Pure Energy is currently focused on the development of our prospective Clayton Valley South ("CVS") Lithium Brine Project, which has the following key attributes: A large land position with excellent existing infrastructure in a first-class mining jurisdiction: Approximately 9,324 acres in three main claim groups in the southern half of Clayton Valley, Esmeralda County, Nevada. Adjacent to the only producing lithium operation in the United States (Albemarle's Silver Peak lithium brine mine). An inferred mineral resource of 816,000 metric tonnes of Lithium Carbonate Equivalent (LCE), reported in accordance with NI 43-101. Metallurgical and process studies underway to better understand the feasibility and economics of using modern environmentally-responsible processing technology to convert the CVS brines into high purity lithium products for new energy storage uses. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. We Seek Safe Harbour Link back to original article on NuziNet.com Link back to Pure Energy Minerals Limited on NuziNet.com I want to share with you the most exciting and relevant new development in birding: eBird. EBird is a web-based program as well as an app for both Apple and Android phones, notepads and iPads. The phone app is simply a field version of the web-based program. I used to keep handwritten notes in the field on bird observations and then enter those notes into a computer program such as BirdBase or Avisys at home. I still do that, but I am also using ebird because the data is automatically shared with birders and scientists around the world. The advantage of the eBird app is that I no longer have to make field notes on observations, and then enter the data in eBird at home. In the past, depending on how busy I was, I sometimes entered the data the same day, but often I would get a backlog of field notes and went several days before I entered the data. With the phone app, I have been able to enter the data in the field, and it is automatically entered in the eBird database. I have also gotten more specific on where my observations are made. I used to do one list for the entire day, such as the Upper Clark Valley. Now I start a new list every 5 miles of observations, making the data much more site-specific. The app allows you to record the birds you see in the field, keep track of your bird lists, share your sightings with others, explore graphs and maps on the trends in bird species and contribute to science and conservation. If you want to add the app to your Android phone or tablet go to Play Store and type in BirdLog. You will see BirdLog NA (North America) as a free app. You will also find that there are free BirdLog apps for many parts of the world, such as Asia, Europe, Africa, South America, etc. If you want the BirdLog World there is a charge for that app. You probably should familiarize yourself with North America before you download other ebird apps. If you have an Apple phone or iPad, go to iTunes and download eBird mobile. You should also access the web version at home and register both. That way your mobile app and web-based ebird will operate seamlessly. I use the PC and Android versions. I do all of my field work on the Android and then study and manipulate the data and print out reports on my PC. The important thing to remember is that all of the data that you enter with your phone or tablet is automatically placed in your personal database and accessible on your PC or Apple product. One change I recently made in the way I use BirdLog is switching from using my smartphone to using a data line-connected tablet. The advantage for me is that the screen is larger, it's easier to see and the keyboard fits my hands better. I purchased a mini-pad so it is not too large and still usable in the field. In addition I downloaded four field guides to the mini-pad so I have everything in one unit. The mini-pad is Bluetooth-enabled so I can use an external wireless speaker for playing bird songs from the field guides. How many birders are using eBird? There are currently 262,109 users, who have posted from 2,774,557 locations and 262.6 million bird observations. This provides for an incredible data base for you to explore. So how do you use the program? When you are in the field, open the program and tap submit sighting.'' It then asks choose a recent location or new location.'' The program remembers your recent locations and gives you a list to select from. If it is a new location you select choose location from a map.'' The app will bring up a map with an arrow on your exact location and give the location a name. You then enter the time and date. Then, based on the date of the submission and the location, the program searches the 262 million entries and provides a list of birds you could expect for that location and time of year. You then enter the number of birds for each species that you see. Once you are done you click whether it is a complete checklist or not, the distance you traveled observing the current list, the amount of time it took to see the birds on the current checklist and the number of observers in your party. You now click submit the list. If you have no phone connection click save and then submit it later. You also have the option of sharing the list with others through email. When you are home using your computer, you have lots of options as to what to do with your field data. On the eBird home page click my data,'' and a screen will come up with your bird statistics and your lists.'' Under your list you can either click on life or year list, and that list will appear on the screen with the birds in taxonomic order. To the right of the species name will be the date you first saw the species and the location. If you click on the species a list will appear of every location you have seen the species for a given year, and if you click on the location, every species seen at that location will appear. All lists are printable. The other option is to click on explore data.'' On this page you can get a list of species for any region. Another option is a map of the United States with dots for all of the sightings for a particular species. On this option you can select the date and get real time data on the migration of a species in the spring or fall. You can also select line or bar graphs for a particular species at a given location during a calendar year. A fun option on this page is the Top 100 for a location and a year. It is interesting to see how many species you have seen compared to others in an area for a particular year. For instance, in 2015, I am currently in 12th place in Montana; in 2014 I was 17th, 2013 eighth, and in 2012 first. There are many other ways to use ebird besides those I have described. I encourage you to explore ebird for yourself and begin to enter your observations. Using ebird, will make you a better birder. Its free, its fun, and you will be contributing significant data, used by scientists to study population trends and migration in North American and around the world. A work-related accident at Montana Resources Wednesday morning sent a contract employee to the hospital. An employee for Western States, a Caterpillar dealer based out of Missoula, was injured while assembling one of MR's new haul trucks on MR's property, said Mike McGivern, vice president of human resources. The mining company bought two new haul trucks last year and two more this year. McGivern said MR is not able to comment on the worker's condition. The accident was called in to the Butte police department dispatch at about 10:30 a.m. Wednesday. Police blocked traffic along Mercury Street to allow the ambulance unimpeded access to St. James Healthcare. A hospital spokeswoman could not release information. Montana Resources has been celebrating the longest-running safety record in the history of Butte mining. On Dec. 9, 2015, the mine achieved five million hours with no lost time due to an accident. Because the accident on Wednesday morning happened to a contract worker, MR's safety record is not affected by the incident, McGivern said. The Mine Safety and Health Administration, a federal agency, and Western States are investigating the accident. McGivern said MR is assisting in the investigation. HELENA Republicans Roger Koopman, of Bozeman, and Bob Lake, of Hamilton, are both running to keep their seats on the Montana Public Service Commission. Lake filed Wednesday for District 4, while Koopman will Thursday for District 3. Democrat Pat Noonan, of Ramsay, is also running for the District 3 seat. Noonan is serving his fourth, and last, term as a state representative. He is facing Caron Cooper, of Livingston, in the primary. Democrat Mark Sweeney, of Philipsburg, who ran for the PSC seat in District 3 2012 when he lived in Anaconda and narrowly lost in the primary, is also running in District 4. Tony O'Donnell, a Republican from Billings, is running for the District 2 seat. Koopman, in a press release sent Wednesday, said he'll continue fighting for affordable, reliable energy, and for regulatory decisions in the best interests of all Montanans." Also in a press release, Lake said energy consumers will face much hardship in the near future if regulators dont provide strong leadership and resolve to protect low cost, reliable energy services, and I promise the people of Montana that I will strive to do just that throughout a second term on the PSC. In 2012 Koopman defeated incumbent Democrat John Vincent. Lake defeated incumbent Democrat Gail Gutsche of Missoula in that election, which created an all-Republican five-member commission for the first time in the PSC's nearly 40-year history. Koopman in his release said hes built a reputation for being a thorough, independent-minded commissioner, who is tough but fair, and who often takes the lead on difficult issues. Montana and the PSC are facing issues of epic proportion, and our degree of resolve in standing up for the states legitimate interests will determine our energy future. The EPAs so-called Clean Power Plan is an example of the kind of federal power grab that threatens our state, and too many of our state politicians seem ready to knuckle under. These regulations are highly discriminatory against Montana, and if enforced, will have a devastating impact on rate payers and the states economy. How the next Public Service Commission responds to this bureaucratic injustice will be a real test of our mettle. Im one commissioner who will not back down with so very much at stake, Koopman said. Koopman said the most important mission of the PSC is to keep the lights on and keep the rates low. Lake said it's been his goal to fight for long-term affordability and reliability of energy in Montana Its easy to criticize the actions of a regulatory body like the PSC when you havent been in the trenches, contemplating the decisions that the Commission must make. Striking the balance between low rates for consumers, and a just, reasonable return to the utility that allows it to keep the lights on is no easy task. It takes real persistence and experience to understand the complexities of every situation that the Commission finds itself, and I am confident that my time on the PSC will serve Montana consumers better than the ideologically driven, pie-in-the-sky agenda put forth by others who currently seek this office. Koopman is the owner of Career Concepts employment services, a Bozeman-based job placement agency he founded in 1980. He has also spent two terms in the Montana House of Representatives, from 2005 to 2008. Lake worked in the private sector for 38 years, including owning and operating Lakeland Feed & Supply in Hamilton, and also spent 10 years in the Montana Legislature. District 3 encompasses 14 counties in southwest Montana, stretching from Butte and Dillon on the west to Columbus and Roundup on the east. District 4 includes Missoula, Granite, Powell, Ravalli, Sanders and Lincoln counties. Butte-Silver Bow County could soon join several other counties in receiving and responding to 911 messages sent via texts. The Council of Commissioners approved Wednesday night a $9,000 contract with Third Signal LLC to implement and test the system, including procedures dispatchers should follow when receiving 911 text messages. Undersheriff George Skuletich said there are certain advantages to Text 911. If a person is in an area or in a situation where they cannot use voice, they can text us whats going on and well be able to have officers respond, he said Wednesday. It does have its advantages, and its another service we can provide. The Montana Standard reported in late December that Butte-Silver Bow County would join Anaconda-Deer Lodge County, Chouteau, Fallon, Missoula and Lewis and Clark counties by providing the service. The Federal Communications Commission issued an order in August 2014 requiring all U.S. mobile carriers and some texting apps to implement text-to-911 service. Third Signal will work with wireless carriers in Butte-Silver Bow to implement the services here. Skuletich said police will probably encourage young people to text information when appropriate. He added that individuals may also feel more comfortable texting police dispatch, rather than calling. Whats nice about it, too, our dispatchers will be able to text back, ask questions, he said. Well have a permanent record of that. There are some challenges to Text 911, however, such as obtaining all the necessary information that dispatchers typically learn from a caller. Maybe the person whos texting us wont be able to get us that information, and then we wont be able to get back in touch with them, Skuletich said. But the undersheriff said there are more benefits to drawbacks. Dispatcher J.R. Gonzalez said Text 911 will give citizens another tool to contact the dispatch center. This is going to be something new for us, something that well have to train on. I think itll work good and be a good deal for everybody involved, he said. Once the contract is signed, he said Third Signal will set up the system and it should be operational sometime this spring. On Tuesday, January 19, the Restore Our Creek Coalition joined forces with The Montana Standard to sponsor a public forum. Well over 200 people attended the event a fact that several of the speakers noted as being the largest meeting held since Butte Superfund meetings began back in the early Nineties. You got their attentionfinally. The forum included representatives of the Environmental Protection Agency, Montanas Department of Environmental Quality and its Natural Resource Damages Program, and Butte-Silver Bow. BP-ARCO was invited but declined to participate. Nevertheless, those representatives who did attend listened to Butte citizens about the prospects for cleaning up the Silver Bow Creek Corridor from Texas Avenue to Montana Street For the attendance by an overwhelming number of people from Butte at the forum, we in the Coalition thank you. As EPAs Superfund cleanup process nears its final decisions for Butte, the future of the communitys cleanup has been hanging by a thread, with rumors seeping out of closed-door negotiating sessions suggesting that Butte people dont care about these issues and that whatever the agencies decide, Butte folks will learn to live with. You proved them wrong, and their response to your eloquent, frustrated voices at the meeting show that they got the message. But your attendance at one event isnt enough to swing this bureaucratic Titanic around to steer us away from the iceberg beneath the surface of our creek. To get a proper cleanup, one that does right by Buttes residents and businesses and families to ensure our health and the communitys prosperity, your continued involvement is essential. That involvement will also ensure that the cleanup does whats needed to restore the creek corridor to a functioning watercourse that helps attract travelers, future business investment, and local recreational opportunitiesand, of course, the resident trout, waterfowl, and other wildlife expected to be found along any normal Montana creek. One member of the audience spoke up and asked the Coalition members, So what can we do? How can we get involved? You can show that you care about Buttes future, and that you want to have a voice in what becomes of this mile-and-a-half creekside corridor by participating in the upcoming series of design workshops the Restore Our Creek Coalition will be hosting in early March. The primary goal of the Restore Our Creek Coalition is to ensure that members of the local Butte community are given a strong voice in the decision-making for this corridorboth its cleanup and its restorationand thats what these workshops aim to accomplish. Our Coalition members have their own ideas for restoration, but we know that the Butte public will bring many more insights to the discussion. Who should come to these workshops? If you cared enough to attend the January 19th forum, youre already primed with information that will make you a productive participant; come to the workshops. If you own a business, a residence, or other property in Butte, the value of your investment is at stake in these decisions; come to the workshops. If youre a parent and youd like your school-age children to choose to stay in Butte because of its natural attractionsand its career prospects; come to these workshops. If youre a student or a teacher, these workshops offer you the chance to engage in a real-life civics lesson, with tangible results; come to the workshops. We arent organizing these workshops as gripe sessions, or blame-naming; just the opposite. These design workshops offer the community an opportunity to look squarely and realistically at the situation as were given it, and to tell the people that work for us at EPA, the State of Montana, and Butte-Silver Bowas well as their hired consultantswhat end results will make their decades-long work on Superfund-mandated cleanup right by us. The widespread exasperation voiced at the January public forum was genuine: many of us whove monitored these issues since EPA came to town have watched our colleagues age and die before they got to see progress, much less completion, of the restoration work needed. But the upcoming design workshops aim to harness that intensity and turn it toward shaping the look and feel of this vital area of central Butte, of articulating future uses and development opportunities for the space. Watch for the announcement of these workshops, and come help Restore Our Creek to what you want it to be. -- Northey Tretheway, Butte, is a member of the Restore Our Creek Coalition. Butte-Silver Bow commissioners gave county staff the go-ahead Wednesday night to take steps necessary to secure an area near the Metro Sewer plant as a home for the county's vehicle and maintenance shops. County officials wanted permission to start negotiations for two possible sites the one near the sewer plant and the old Montana Pole plant. But several commissioners raised objection to the pole plant site, saying it was polluted and they did not trust state officials to give them reliable assurances that it was safe. After an hour of debate, the council voted 7-5 to only consider the site near the sewer plant. That site is 20 acres off of Centennial Avenue that is owned by Gilman Construction. But officials say the owner is willing to sell. The shops now sit on 13 acres behind the Butte Civic Center but must be moved if the Parrot mine tailings are removed. Gov. Steve Bullock has said he wants removal to begin this summer. Planning Director Jon Sesso told commissioners last week the shops would not be moved to the pole site near Montana Street and Interstate 15-90 unless the Montana Department of Environmental Safety gave its own assurances. The pole plant ran for nearly 40 years but shut down in 1984 when oil was discovered leaching into Silver Bow Creek. Officials determined later that a 42-acre plume of byproducts from chemicals used to treat fence posts and railroad ties was polluting the creek, soil and groundwater. The state has treated the site for 20 years, and though groundwater will need to be treated for years to come, the DEQ says the soil is clean enough to be spread out over the site and capped. It has indicated that its work could be completed soon and the area turned over to Butte-Silver Bow. Sesso wanted commissioners to let Chief Executive Matt Vincent open negotiations with the DEQ to acquire the property, subject to several conditions. Sesso spelled those out in an email memo to commissioners a few days ago. They include a declaration by the DEQ that cleanup is complete and is fully protective of human health and the environment. The DEQ and federal Environmental Protection Agency also must give the county indemnification for any future remedial actions necessary, including costs to move the shops again if necessary. The state must also agree to pay costs for preparing the property to host the shops. But that wasn't good enough for several commissioners who said it did not make sense to move the shops from one polluted site to another. Heightened security will be in place at the courthouse next week because of a murder trial and bomb threats that have forced evacuation of the building six times since mid-January, Butte District Judge Kurt Krueger said Wednesday. Chief Executive Matt Vincent sent an email to courthouse employees, elected officials and department heads informing them of an order Krueger issued late Wednesday afternoon. It includes steps that will be taken because of a retrial set to begin Monday for 25-year-old Adam Hatfield, who is accused in the beating death of his father in 2008. Krueger, who noted the protocol during previous bomb threats was to evacuate the building, said that would not be done if more threats are received while the trial is going on, unless authorities deem them necessary. Krueger said that decision was based on the importance of the legal system and protecting the rights of all parties in the court system. He said he also heavily weighed the interests of security of all those who work and visit the courthouse. He and Vincent said the extra steps starting next week include having all employees enter the building from the rear door. They must have their county-issued ID cards to get in and all bags, purses and backpacks carried by them or the general public will be subject to search. People using the parking garage will be asked to ensure that the garage door is closed before leaving their vehicle to come inside and before driving away after departing. Basement access will be restricted to essential personnel, Vincent said in his email, and anyone making deliveries must come through the rear door. The public will only be allowed to enter the courthouse through the main Granite Street entrance unless they require handicapped access. The building will be examined at the beginning of each day before it is open to employees or the public to confirm no threat exists. Vincent attached Kruegers three-page order with his email and asked all employees to review it. In that order, Krueger noted that recent bomb threats have occurred in many places throughout the U.S. and elsewhere in Montana. He said they are automated calls to existing numbers and are disguised through a spoof or swatting system. During the last several incidents, Krueger wrote, there has been no confirmation of the existence of a credible threat after such phone calls have been made. Krueger said the normal evacuation protocol shall be held in abeyance during the trial but during that time, Butte-Silver Bow law enforcement and county officials would be responsible for the elevated level of security. And they are authorized to evacuate if they feel it is necessary, he said. Courthouse employees have grown increasingly frustrated by the bomb threats. The last one was received in Butte District Court at 1:43 p.m. Monday. Police and firefighters have responded each time and searched the building but have turned up nothing. Some meetings and proceedings have been moved to nearby county offices during the bomb scares so work could continue. Vincent said in his Tuesday email that law enforcement, fire services, emergency preparedness officials and information technology staff have been working diligently to evaluate and update our procedures in these types of critical events since the first instance. He said he was coordinating with Krueger on the safety protocol order to be issued Wednesday. The updated procedures he is working on, Vincent wrote, will be released but not be in effect until after the trial. Cindi Shaw, chairwoman of the Council of Commissioners, said earlier Wednesday that Vincent should notify all county employees not just department heads and elected officials about steps being taken given the bomb threats. She said numerous employees have asked her what is going on. I feel that our chief executive should be giving some kind of assurance to the general public and to the employees that work on this is being done, she said. It would be nice to hear an assurance that things are being worked on throughout the county and other offices. When asked about that earlier Wednesday, county spokesman Jeremy Gatz-Miller said Vincents office was about to release updated plans but put them on hold pending Kruegers order. Sheriff Ed Lester said Wednesday that security will be enhanced significantly during the Hatfield trial. Undersheriff George Skuletich said Wednesday that the bomb-threat calls seem to be from a computer-generated program that is voice-activated with pre-recorded messages and responses. The response doesnt necessarily match the questions were asking, he said. They appear to be coming from outside Montana and might be coming from outside the U.S, he said. Butte police continue to work with the federal Department of Homeland Security and the FBI to investigate the threats. Skuletich said it was quite a substantial investigation that the FBI was leading now. The phone numbers from the calls arent attached to anything, he said. They arent to a cell phone, they arent to a business, they arent to a person, he said. Theyre just a number that floats out there. Skuletich said the murder trial could span two weeks and authorities were meeting to discuss security, including steps to take in case of more bomb threats during the trial. Look, I'm not a movie critic, and I never claimed to be... I just happen to like watching movies. Last week, a group of church friends held a town hall meeting in Brunswick, Ga. Their purpose is embodied in their name: Justice For Caroline Small. Chances are, you've never heard of her. She was a waitress, a mother of two girls, and a woman with mental health issues who was in and out of drug treatment programs for much of her life until she was killed by police in June of 2010. Her death was every bit as outrageous as those of Oscar Grant, Eric Garner, Walter Scott, Freddie Gray and Tamir Rice, but has received only a fraction of the attention. Indeed, unless you live in Georgia or North Florida, you probably don't know her story. And you should. As told in news reports and a dash cam video, it goes like this: A police officer responds to a call of a woman doing drugs in a parking lot. When he tells her to shut off the car, she takes off instead. A four mile, low-speed chase ensues. It ends when a police car bumps her vehicle, spinning it to a stop. With one police car sitting nose to nose, another on her passenger side, a utility pole behind her, a ditch on her left and all four tires gone, Small has nowhere to go. Still, she shifts into reverse and then forward, banging uselessly against the utility pole and the patrol car. Police yell at her to get out. Instead, she tries again back against the pole, forward, bumping the car. And Sgt. Corey Sasser and Officer Todd Simpson open fire, tattooing her windshield with .45 caliber rounds. Afterward, they discuss their marksmanship. "I hit her right in the face ... right on the bridge of the nose," says Sasser. Simpson waves off a former EMT who approaches to render aid. "She's dead. I shot her in the head. Her head exploded." Small actually died seven days later. Sasser and Simpson were cleared of wrongdoing by a grand jury and by internal affairs. A civil suit was dismissed. Justice for Caroline Small was formed last year after the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and a local ABC News affiliate investigated the shooting and found that police, seeking to protect their own, interfered with a supposedly "independent" probe, while the district attorney deferred to them at every step, essentially paving the way for the grand jury to clear the two officers. Perhaps most damning: the investigation concludes police tampered with the crime scene and manufactured misleading evidence. Grand jurors were led to believe Small had room to maneuver her car and could have run the officers down. The dash cam video search it online for yourself proves the unarmed woman was hemmed in and posed no immediate threat. So Justice for Caroline Small is calling for a new investigation of the shooting and a probe of the police department itself. In a nation that has come to think of the police shooting of unarmed people and the protests thereof as a black thing, they are an anomaly. Visit JusticeForCaroline.com and you will find, as one told an AJC reporter, "old-time, white, middle-class people." As such, they provide a wordless yet eloquent reminder that, although African Americans bear the brunt of our unwillingness to demand accountability for police misbehavior, unchecked power ultimately has no racial loyalties. The refusal to understand that is a dangerous luxury none of us can afford. As a member named Kay Allen told the AJC, this shooting of a 35-year-old white woman "changes in some ways the way that you view the police and just thinking they are there to protect you. And it's kind of like, 'Well, maybe not. Maybe there's another side to things that we don't always know about.'" It is the kind of dawning realization that often precedes enlightenment. And in that sense, Justice For Caroline Small might be a small step toward justice for us all. Leonard Pitts is a columnist for The Miami Herald. Readers may email him at lpitts@miamiherald.com. ORIGINAL NOTICE FOR PUBLICATION U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION, AS TRUSTEE FOR THE CWMBS REPERFORMING LOAN REMIC TRUST CERTIFICATES, SERIES 2006-R1, Plaintiff, vs. JULIA ALVAREZ AKA JULIA GARCIA GRACIA; JOSE A. ALVAREZ AKA JOSE ALVAREZ; MARIBEL RUIZ PEREZ; PABLO ALBA; STATE OF IOWA and PARTIES IN POSSESSION, Defendants. To the above-named Defendants: Jose A. Alvarez aka Jose Alvarez You are notified there was on 11/6/2015 filed in the Office of the Clerk of the above-named Court a Foreclosure Petition, which prays for foreclosure of a mortgage in favor of the Plaintiff on the property described herein and judgment in rem in the amount of $43,202.19 plus interest at the rate of 8.0% per annum from 5/1/2015, such amount equaling $288.01 per month, the costs of the action including title costs of $250.00, and reasonable attorney fees and that said sums be declared a lien upon the following-described premises from 8/15/2000, located in Muscatine County, Iowa, to-wit: Lot 97 of Island View Addition to the City of Muscatine, Iowa that the mortgage on the above-described real estate be foreclosed, that a special execution issue for the sale of as much of the mortgaged premises as is necessary to satisfy the judgment and for other relief as the Court may deem just and equitable. The attorney for the Plaintiff is David M. Erickson, whose address is The Davis Brown Tower, 215 10th Street, Suite 1300, Des Moines, Iowa 50309-3993, Phone: (515) 288-2500, Facsimile: (515) 243-0654. NOTICE THE PLAINTIFF HAS ELECTED FORECLOSURE WITHOUT REDEMPTION. THIS MEANS THAT THE SALE OF THE MORTGAGED PROPERTY WILL OCCUR PROMPTLY AFTER ENTRY OF JUDGMENT UNLESS YOU FILE WITH THE COURT A WRITTEN DEMAND TO DELAY THE SALE. IF YOU FILE A WRITTEN DEMAND, THE SALE WILL BE DELAYED UNTIL SIX MONTHS FROM ENTRY OF JUDGMENT IF THE MORTGAGED PROPERTY IS YOUR RESIDENCE AND IS A ONE-FAMILY OR TWO-FAMILY DWELLING OR UNTIL TWO MONTHS FROM ENTRY OF JUDGMENT IF THE MORTGAGED PROPERTY IS NOT YOUR RESIDENCE OR IS YOUR RESIDENCE BUT NOT A ONE-FAMILY OR TWO-FAMILY DWELLING. YOU WILL HAVE NO RIGHT OF REDEMPTION AFTER THE SALE. THE PURCHASER AT THE SALE WILL BE ENTITLED TO IMMEDIATE POSSESSION OF THE MORTGAGED PROPERTY. YOU MAY PURCHASE AT THE SALE. You must serve a motion or answer on or before the 9thd day of March, 2016, and within a reasonable time thereafter, file your motion or answer, in the Iowa District Court for Muscatine County, Iowa, at the County Courthouse in Muscatine, Iowa. If you do not, judgment by default may be rendered against you for the relief demanded in the Petition. If you need assistance to participate in court due to a disability, call the disability coordinator at 563-328-4145. Persons who are hearing or speech impaired may call Relay Iowa TTY (1 800 735 2942.) Disability coordinators cannot provide legal advice. IMPORTANT YOU ARE ADVISED TO SEEK LEGAL ADVICE AT ONCE TO PROTECT YOUR INTERESTS. Date of Third Publication 18th day of February, 2016 The Muscatine County Board of Supervisors met in regular session at 7:00 P.M. with Howard, Kelly, Sorensen, Sauer and Bonebrake present. Chairperson Sorensen presiding. On a motion by Kelly, second by Bonebrake, the agenda was approved as presented. Ayes: All. Greater Muscatine Chamber of Commerce and Industry Executive Director Greg Jenkins applauded the Community for securing RAGBRAI. Jenkins asked for a Board member to serve on the Advisory Board for RAGBRAI. Sorensen stated he will serve on the Advisory Board. Greg Lindle, 1705 Lindle Avenue, expressed concern about the Lindle Avenue bridge. Lindle stated the embargo has been reduced from 21 tons to 6 tons. Lindle stated there are five homes in need of propane, cattle needing to be fed, full grain bins on the other side of the bridge that no one can service due to the reduced embargo. Kelly stated historically two propane trucks can service the homes by driving an empty one across the bridge and piping the propane to it. Bonebrake apologized for the inconvenience, but stated there are ways of getting material across the bridge in smaller quantities and he is not the only property owner that has encountered this issue. Kelly stated the bridge is scheduled for replacement in 2018, but Lindle stated the bridge will not last that long. Lindle expressed concern about dogs and raccoons dumped in the County. Lindle also expressed concerns about bow hunters. Tracey Kuehl, Iowa Friends for Companion Animals, requested the Board declare February 3rd as Iowa Puppy Mill Awareness Day. Kuehl stated penalties are very lax on federally licensed facilities and Iowa Friends for Companion Animals would like to legislate for state oversight of these facilities. Bonebrake stated the material provided by Kuehl does not detail the type of violations or severity. Kuehl stated 50% of violations are for inadequate veterinary care. Kuehl stated Iowa Friends for Companion Animals only focuses on cats and dogs from wholesale federal operations as retail operations are licensed and inspected by the State of Iowa. Kuehl stated Missouri, Kansas and Oklahoma all have state oversight of federally licensed operations. Sorensen stated it upsets him when the federal government does not do what they are supposed to, but he is not a big regulation person. Howard stated the proclamation is merely awareness and does not mention proposed legislation. On a motion by Howard, second by Kelly, the Board approved Proclamation #01-25-16-01 Iowa Puppy Mill Awareness Day. Roll call vote: Ayes: Howard, Kelly and Sorensen. Nays: Sauer and Bonebrake. Discussion was held with Emergency Manager Matt Shook regarding the possible purchase and installation of security cameras and additional work for the P25 project. Shook presented the following quotes: FSS Inc. - $26,773.00; Supreme Radio - $19,976.25; and Inteconnex - $31,108.08. Shook recommended the FSS Inc. bid because he felt the other bids were lacking and the County's experience is with FSS Inc. as they provided all of the security cameras in the Jail and key card system at DHS. Budget Administrator Sherry Seright stated the County is getting more equipment and at a much lower labor cost than the apparent low bidder. On a motion by Howard, second by Sauer, the Board approved purchase and installation of security cameras from FSS, Inc. at a cost of $26,773.00. Ayes: All. Shook requested approval of additional electric work at the Conesville Tower ($8,793) and for UPS backup at the Public Safety Building ($31,520). On a motion by Kelly, second by Bonebrake, the Board approved the additional electrical expenditures through Lighting Maintenance, Inc. in the amount of $40,313. Ayes: All. The Board canvassed the Drainage District #1 Election held on January 15, 2016. Results were as follows: For the office of Trustee for a three-year term beginning January 23, 2016 - 4 votes were cast. Russ VanAcker received 3 votes and there was one scattered vote. Russ VanAcker was elected. The Board canvassed the Drainage District #2 Election held on January 20, 2016. Results were as follows: For the office of Trustee for a three-year term beginning January 23, 2016 - 2 votes were cast. Mike Walker received 2 votes. Mike Walker was elected The Board canvassed the Drainage District #4 Election held on January 15, 2016. Results were as follows: For the office of Trustee for a three-year term beginning January 23, 2016 - 3 votes were cast. Mike Meyers received 3 votes. Mike Meyers was elected. The Board canvassed the Drainage District #9 Election held on January 16, 2016. Results were as follows: For the office of Trustee for a three-year term beginning January 23, 2016 - 4 votes were cast. Richard Lovetinsky received 4 votes. Richard Lovetinsky was elected. The Board canvassed the Levee District #17 Election held on January 16, 2016. Results were as follows: For the office of Trustee for a three-year term beginning January 23, 2016 - 3 votes were cast. Keith Barnhart received 3 votes. Keith Barnhart was elected. The Board canvassed the Muscatine-Louisa Island Levee First District Election held on January 16, 2016. Results were as follows: For the office of Trustee for a three-year term beginning January 23, 2016 - 7 votes were cast. Rodd McNeal received 7 votes. Rodd McNeal was elected. The Board canvassed the Muscatine-Louisa Drainage District #13 First District Election held on January 16, 2016. Results were as follows: For the office of Trustee for a three-year term beginning January 23, 2016 - 1,844 votes were cast. Rodd McNeal received 1,844 votes. Rodd McNeal was elected. On a motion by Howard, second by Kelly, minutes of the January 18, 2016 regular meeting, January 19, 2016 special meeting and January 21, 2016 special meeting were approved as written. Ayes: All. Correspondence: Kelly received a letter from Chris Wahlig, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Genesis Health Systems stating they are committed to expanding Behavioral Health Services. Committee Reports: Sauer attended a Muscatine County Conservation Board meeting January 18th. Sauer attended a Muscatine County Fair Board meeting January 21st. Bonebrake attended a Muscatine County Solid Waste Management meeting January 18th. Kelly met with Doug Cropper, CEO of Genesis Health Systems, regarding their request for support for additional mental health services. On a motion by Kelly, second by Bonebrake, the letting date was set for February 8, 2016 at 9:00 A.M. for LFM-(MO-6)-7X-70 for a Bridge Deck Overlay on Wildcat Den Road over Pine Creek. Ayes: All. On a motion by Kelly, second by Sauer, the Board accepted the resignation of Larry Wolf from the Muscatine County Conservation Board. Ayes: Kelly, Sorensen, Sauer and Bonebrake. Nay: Howard. The Board thanked Wolf for his many years of service on the Conservation Board. On a motion Bonebrake, second by Kelly, the Chair was authorized to sign a letter of support for additional mental health services in the Eastern Iowa Region. Ayes: All. Discussion was held regarding proposals received in response to a Request for Qualifications for real estate consulting services. Administrative Services Director Nancy Schreiber stated two proposals were received and asked for direction on how to proceed. Board consensus was to invite both realtors to a future Board meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 8:26 P.M. ATTEST: Betty L. Wamback First Deputy Auditor Jeff Sorensen, Chairperson Board of Supervisors The Muscatine County Board of Supervisors met in special session at 9:00 A.M. with Kelly, Sorensen, Sauer and Bonebrake present. Howard was absent. Chairperson Sorensen presiding. On a motion by Bonebrake, second by Sauer, the agenda was approved as presented. Ayes: All. Administrative Services Director Nancy Schreiber and Budget Administrator Sherry Seright reviewed the FY16/17 MUSCOM, E911 and Emergency Management budgets. Seright explained Emergency Management budgeted $258,691 in expenditures, but $100,000 will be used out of Emergency Management reserves to begin replacement of sirens in the City of Muscatine. Seright stated only $158,691 will be levied through the General Supplemental Fund. Seright stated the MUSCOM budget has increased due to annual maintenance fees on the new equipment. Discussion was held with Community Services Director Mike Johannsen regarding the funding of crisis services by the Eastern Iowa Mental Health/Disability Services Region and its effect on Muscatine County's FY16/17 Budget. Johannsen stated the County will transfer approximately $235,528 to the Region in FY16/17, which represents the County's fund balance in excess of 25% of its budgeted expenditures. Discussion was held regarding proposed capital projects for FY16/17 and beyond. Projects were presented and discussed individually by Budget Administrator Sherry Seright. Board consensus was to include the following in the FY16/17 capital projects budget: Engineer/Sheriff Office Parking Lot - $200,000; Engineer/Sheriff Office Connection to City Water - $150,000; Community Services Building Repair Steps - $8,000; Community Services Repair Drain Pipe Under Floor - $75,000; and Replace Voting Equipment - $250,000. Administrative Services Director Nancy Schreiber stated the total budgeted for FY16/17 would be rounded up to $700,000. Board consensus was to proceed with budgeting for a possible $500,000 borrowing for FY16/17 capital projects. Board consensus was to place further consideration of the following capital projects under future budgets after FY16/17: Administration Building Retaining Wall - $90,000; Courthouse 3rd Floor Courtroom Restoration - $750,000; Courthouse Exterior Lighting - $20,000; and Upgrade County Computer Software - $200,000; Community Services Building Windows - $300,000; Community Services Building Landscape Terrace - $35,000; and Upgrade Water Quality Systems at Jail and Community Services - $20,000. The Board held ongoing discussion of the proposed FY16/17 Muscatine County Budget. Budget Coordinator Sherry Seright reviewed FY16/17 estimated fund summaries as follows: General Basic - $3.76 levy results in a 29% fund balance; General Supplemental - $2.29 levy results in a 33% fund balance; MH/DD - $1.07 levy results in a 76% fund balance; Rural Services - $2.54 levy results in a 50% fund balance for Rural Services and a 3% fund balance for Secondary Roads; and Debt Service - $.76 levy results in a 2% fund balance. Administrative Services Director Nancy Schreiber stated General Basic does not take into account possible personnel changes at the Jail that could decrease the fund balance further. Seright stated if the County continues to have expenditures greater than revenue over the next few years, the Board will have to increase the levy rate at some point. The Board recessed at 12:17 P.M. and reconvened at 12:32 P.M. Discussion was held regarding funding for outside agencies to be included in the proposed FY16/17 budget. Board consensus was to fund outside agencies as follows: Muscatine Legal Services - $22,170; River Bend Transit - $7,000; Senior Resources - $35,000; Greater Muscatine Chamber of Commerce & Industry - $10,000; Quad Cities First - $5,000; Wilton Development Corporation - $3,000; West Liberty Development Corporation - $3,000; Muscatine County Fair Board - $24,000 (plus $5,000 second installment of four year commitment); Convention and Visitors Bureau - $1,000; Eastern Iowa Tourism Association - $500; Wilton Library - $14,209; West Liberty Library - $14,209; and Musser Public Library - $115,089. Discussion was held regarding proposed capital purchases. Board consensus was to include the following proposed capital purchases in the FY16/17 budget: Truck - General Services; 3 Squad Cars - Sheriff; SUV - Conservation; UTV for Deep Lakes Park - Conservation; 2 Tandem Plow Trucks (with snow equipment) - Secondary Roads; Sign truck - Secondary Roads; Motor Grader - Secondary Roads: and a Cold Storage Building - Secondary Roads. The meeting was adjourned at 1:27 P.M. ATTEST: Betty L. Wamback First Deputy Auditor Jeff Sorensen, Chairperson Board of Supervisors WAPELLO, Iowa With only a few more department budgets to review, the Louisa County Board of Supervisors appeared poised to finish up its budget planning process when a surprise email arrived. It notified the supervisors to expect an 18.5 percent increase in the countys health insurance premium for the coming year. It wasnt the news the supervisors were hoping for as they struggle to keep from raising county property taxes while meeting the demand for services and other needs. Thats nearly $15,000 per year (of increase), supervisor Chair Paula Buckman pointed out after the board met with public health administrator Patti Sallee and county engineer Larry Roehl to review the proposed fiscal year 2017 spending plans for their departments. She hinted the county might have to look at other options to reduce the premium, including possibly going with a different plan or carrier. Supervisor Randy Griffin agreed the increase was a problem, but wondered what the alternative could be. He also said changes could be difficult to make. I dont know what the answer is, he said, explaining if the board tried to alter the countys health insurance program it would need to re-open negotiations with the countys labor unions. Auditor Sandy Elliott also told the board any effort to modify budgets could be a problem because the county must submit its approved budget to the state by March 15. Elliott said a public hearing would need to be held before that could be done and she had anticipated that for March 8. Since the budget proposal must be published at least 10 days and not more than 20 days before the public hearing, a final budget proposal needed to be completed in the next few weeks. Supervisor Chris Ball said time would be too short to make any major changes. Were too late. Were going to have to budget for 18.5 percent, he said. Griffin agreed. Roll it up and see what it looks like, he said. Meanwhile, the board also reviewed the countys final remaining FY17 department budget proposals on Tuesday. The largest of the proposals was Roehls secondary roads spending plan. It showed around $3.7 million in expenditures compared to this years projection of around $5 million. The largest spending would come in the departments Roads Account, with a proposed budget of $1.38 million. New equipment, with a proposed budget of $320,000; administration, $286,877; and equipment operations, $643,387 were also among the largest accounts. The projected spending in the current fiscal year is $3.23 million. Roehl pointed out to the supervisors that the countys Farm-to-Market road account, which is funded through the states road use tax, was not included in the county budget since it is handled by the state. He also explained the state would allow the county to build up to three years of unallocated balance before it would re-distribute that money to other counties. Roehl said he was hoping to build up the fund to help cover part of the estimated $7-$8 million it will cost to construct a new County Highway 99 bridge at Wapello. Around $3 million in grants has already been awarded for the bridge, which is slated to be bid in FY17. The supervisors also reviewed the proposed county health budget. According to administrator Patti Sallee, her department is projected to spend $664,847, compared to re-estimated FY16 spending of $660,216. MUSCATINE, Iowa The conservation heated up Wednesday evening when council members and city staff talked about snow. The Muscatine City Council continued reviewing the fiscal year 2016-17 budget, focusing on public works. When the snow and ice removal budget was brought up, councilman Allen Harvey asked about getting downtown sidewalks cleared faster. Randy Hill, recently retired public works director who is helping through the budget process, said it's possible get the contractor to expedite it but it would cost more money and there are still other obstacles. Harvey asked why the service was contracted out rather than having city employees do it. Randy Howell, street maintenance supervisor, said it would take three to four days to clear downtown because crews would be out plowing roads, unless Harvey wanted it to take longer to get to streets. "Our goal is to have the entire city cleaned and cleared within 48 hours," Hill said. Harvey's specific complaint was the snow piled up along the curb before being hauled away completely. "It defeats the purpose of clearing the street if you can't get to the sidewalk," Harvey said. Hill noted that the service is unique to downtown businesses as others across town are on their own for snow removal. He said it's an unavoidable inconvenience for a short time. "This is Iowa. It snows. It's going to happen," Hill said. Hill also said that the city has to put up signs giving people sufficient notice to not park downtown and to remove their cars so the snow can be cleared. Councilman Philip Fitzgerald suggested requiring downtown businesses to clear a path from their door to the street when it snows. He pointed out that residents are required to clear their sidewalks. The issue was brought up at a Jan. 7 council meeting, but hasn't been an issue but once this year. In the budget summary for snow and ice removal, the revised estimate for the current budget that ends June 30 has decreased spending by $70,300 because the city has needed to buy only one barge load of salt instead of the two planned in the budget. Muscatine has seen few snow and ice storms, especially compared to recent years. According to the budget summary, there were 14 snow events in 2014-15 costing the city $48,455 and 26 snow events costing $51,495. Another big item of discussion was the street sweeper. The public works department is asking for $226,000 to buy a new street sweeper. The oldest one the city owns is from 2000 and the chassis has been out of production for about six years, according to Howell. "We wear out everything on those sweepers," Howell said. The dirt is hard on the equipment, he explained. Howell is asking for a mechanical sweeper that has less moving parts. He said they have rented two each spring in recent years. "We have great success with them," Howell said. Councilman Santos Saucedo asked if leasing the equipment, since it's used only nine months of the year, might be cheaper than buying a new one and paying for the repair and maintenance on it. With other council members agreeing, Howell said he would provide estimates for a lease option to the council. The city hopes to hire a new public works director this spring. City Administrator Gregg Mandsager said the job was posted in the past but only one person was interviewed. He said he plans to post the job again in March. Hill is helping during budget presentations and discussions despite being retired. The council will have another budget review session at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 4, to review requests from outside agencies including the Senior Resources, the Muscatine Humane Society and Greater Muscatine Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The council will then have its regular business meeting at 7 p.m. At that meeting the council will have a public hearing for and consider vacating a utility easement in Muscatine Pointe Subdivision, have a public hearing or and consider adopting the city's capital improvement plan for fiscal years 2016 through 2020. MUSCATINE, Iowa United Way of Muscatine encourages people earning $62,000 or less to keep more of their money this tax season by using a free, online tax preparation service and accessing valuable tax credits. A new national survey finds 72 percent of working Americans making that amount or less are unaware they qualify for free tax filing and counseling, according to a press release. The survey, conducted for United Way Worldwide, finds that most respondents are unfamiliar with MyFreeTaxes, a mobile-optimized software program allowing free federal and state tax preparation and filing in all 50 states and Washington, DC. The self-file service is available for anyone earning $62,000 or less. United Way of Muscatine is hosting a session 5:30-7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 9, at MCSA, 312 Iowa Ave., to show residents how to use the online system. Reservations are not necessary and the sessions are open to the public. The Iowa House's stodgy politics too often belong in the Dark Ages. And, with combatants in the War on Drugs in full retreat, it's time to stop making criminals our of Iowa's citizens. The Democrat-dominated state Senate voted in April to legalize medical marijuana. The bill died in the Republican-controlled House. Further, Iowa is among just 16 states that don't permit widespread access to naloxone, a lifesaving antidote for opiate overdose. Welcome to the 21st century, representatives. We'd be happy to have you. Pot is an effective treatment for a slew of ailments, from post-traumatic stress to chemotherapy-induced nausea, studies have shown. And, yet, Republicans are quick to strike it down. Comically, now-unenforced federal law is the excuse. Apparently, the states' rights party is only on patrol when it befits them. Meanwhile, states throughout the country are adopting common sense medical marijuana laws. Illinois's burgeoning program is just now getting off the ground. State medical officials continuously review what conditions should qualify for marijuana access. Growers and physicians are under strict oversight. It's a highly regulated program designed to ease Illinoisan's pain. Iowans, on the contrary, are faced with a court date. It's especially troubling because Iowa's pot ban effectively makes a criminal of anyone who crosses the Mississippi River looking for treatment. Sure, they can get a prescription from a doctor. They can even buy it. But enter the state and face a charge. Slashing the cost of the criminal justice system is one of Gov. Terry Branstad's focuses this legislative session, remember. Here's an idea: Back off on prosecuting marijuana users. Naloxone is in the same GOP-directed holding pattern as medical marijuana. Again, the Senate passed legislation to make the drug available to addicts' families. The House refused to act. All the while, the heroin epidemic continues to sweep throughout rural and urban communities. Heroin knows no economic privilege. It doesn't see color. It feeds off of anyone looking for an escape. It thrives on the human condition. Illinois Democrats overrode Gov. Bruce Rauner's veto this past year, making naloxone more available. And, even in that case, Rauner's dissent was more about funding the treatment than issuing the drug. Clearly, Illinois's Republican governor understands the importance of quick action when an opiate user takes too much. For years, the U.S. has pumped Americans full of pain killers. Drugs, such as Oxycodone, pervade society. And slinging the highly addictive pain killers on the black market is big business. It's a society-wide problem that can't be fixed with punitive measures alone. Treatment, not jail, is the key. But a user has to live long enough to get help. That's where naloxone comes in. Iowa House Republicans spent last year clinging to punitive, draconian policy, while Illinois came to its senses. Iowa House Republicans preferred a "just say no" fantasyland, instead of facing the harsh realities of the human condition. They should rejoin reality in 2016. The Quad-City Times Les blattes ou cafards (Blatta orientalis) sont des insectes qui appartiennent a la famille des Blattoptera. Ils se caracterisent par leur forme allongee, leurs ailes [] The DA said it wants to privatise the SABC as part of its vision for government, set out in its Vision 2029 document. It said it would sell the SABC as various commercial entities, with licence conditions that would mandate the entity to produce radio and television content geared towards public benefit, and not just profit. Icasa and the Competition Commission would oversee the process to ensure a diversity of ownership and voices in the SABC. Its plan to sell the SABC is just part the DAs larger aim to streamline the government. The DA promised to do away with the separate Ministries of Communications, and Telecommunications and Postal Services, and merge them into a new Economic Infrastructure Ministry. This new ministry will encompass the mandates from the following existing ministries and programmes: The Ministry of Communications. The Ministry of Telecommunications and Postal Services. The Public Sector Information Communication Technology Management Programme from the Department of Public Service and Administration. The State Security Agencys National Communications Centre. The Ministry of Transport. The mandate of the Department of Public Enterprises for the management of Transnet and SA Express, as well as for South African Airways, from the National Treasury. A number of government departments will function under this new merged ministry, including a reimagined and renamed Department of Information and Communications Technology. Both the departments of Communications and Telecommunications and Postal Services will be collapsed into the new department of ICT. This department would regulate, develop, and legislate all of the infrastructure that information and communications technology runs on in the country, said the DA. More government news Why does SABC COO Hlaudi Motsoeneng get a R3.7-million salary? Jacob Zuma, you have until Friday to settle on Nkandla: Con Court South African government wants to regulate online comments Pediatrician. Geneticist in Training. Runner. Muslim. Little person. South Asian. Female. Thankful. Optimistic. Tends to take road that is less traveled. Opinions expressed are my own. Tons of what is believed to be contraband sugar and rice were yesterday dipped into the Indian Ocean using heavy cranes after KRA official stormed Mombasa port and gave the orders. This action came shortly after President Uhuru visited the facility but failed to torch a container that belongs to the countys governor, Hassan Joho. It is further reported that the President had tried to have the illegally imported goods torched but when his plans didnt go through, he ordered that the smuggled consignment be destroyed by all means possible. Residents and port workers watched in disbelief as the goods worth millions went to waste as some demanded that they be given sacks of rice and sugar for free instead. Below are photos of KRA officials carrying out the exercise. LONDON WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has found a surprising ally a little known United Nations panel that has decided he has been unfairly detained in Britain while seeking to avoid extradition to Sweden to answer allegations of sexual misconduct. But its not clear if the findings of the five members of the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, to be officially announced in Geneva Friday, will lead to a change in Assanges legal status. The sun-starved computer hacker has holed up inside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London for more than three years, and as things stand now he still faces arrest if he steps outside. Swedish officials said Thursday the U.N. panel report concludes Assange has been a victim of an arbitrary detention, apparently because he has been unable to leave the embassy without fear of being immediately taken into custody by British police armed with a European arrest warrant. British and Swedish officials have indicated they will not be swayed by the U.N. panels report, which is not binding and has no legal authority. Swedish prosecutors want to question Assange over allegations of rape stemming from a working visit he made to the Nordic country in 2010 when WikiLeaks was attracting international attention for its secret-spilling ways. They havent charged him with any crime so far, but Assange has refused to return to answer questions saying he fears the whole thing is an elaborate setup designed to send him to the United States to face espionage charges there. British police also accuse Assange of jumping bail. LONDON World leaders pledged more than $10 billion Thursday to help fund schools, shelter and jobs for refugees from Syrias civil war, money that British Prime Minister David Cameron said will save lives, will give hope, will give people the chance of a future. But participants at the aid conference in London acknowledged that prospects for ending the conflict have rarely been worse: Peace talks are suspended, fighting is intensifying, Russia and the West are at odds, and millions of Syrians are suffering from bombardment, homelessness and hunger. The situation in Syria is as close to hell as we are likely to find on this Earth, said United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was no more upbeat. After almost five years of fighting, its pretty incredible that as we come here in London in 2016, the situation on the ground is actually worse, he said. The one-day meeting, held under tight security at a conference center near Parliament, aspired to bring new urgency to the effort to help the 4.6 million Syrians who have sought refuge in neighboring countries including Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. Another 6 million people or more are displaced within Syria, and a quarter of a million have been killed. Previous calls for international donations have come up short, and the five-year war has driven a chaotic exodus of hundreds of thousands of desperate refugees to Europe. Thursdays pledges are intended to slow that migration, by creating school places and secure jobs for Syrian refugees in the Middle East, and economic support for the overburdened host nations. Cameron said participants had pledged almost $6 billion for 2016, and another $5 billion by 2020. The British leader called the conference hosted by Britain, Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the U.N. a real breakthrough, not just in terms of money but in terms of how we handle these refugee crises. The tally falls short of the $9 billion the U.N. and regional countries said was needed for 2016 alone, but it was a significant improvement on half-hearted previous fundraising efforts. Last years conference, in Kuwait, raised just half its $7 billion target, forcing cuts to programs such as refugee food aid. Aid groups welcomed the money, but slammed the international community for allowing the war to go on. Peter Maurer, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, said the world had shown a lack of political action and ambition to resolve the crisis. Humanitarian aid is always just a quick fix, and never enough, he said. Queen of the Valley Medical Centers Palliative and Supportive Care Medical Director, Douglas Wilson, M.D., was named 2015 Physician of the Year by the Napa County Medical Society. In addition to excellent, compassionate patient care (which includes home visits when needed), he participates in a number of community collaborative efforts, said Dr. Robert Moore, the chief medical officer for Partnership HealthPlan of California. Dr. Wilson grew up in California and attended medical school at Loma Linda University. After he completed his residency in 2001, he began working as a family physician at Ole Health. He has worked there for the past 15 years. It is wonderful, validating and humbling to receive this award," said Wilson. "I am honored." Grapegrower Andy Beckstoffer is famous for helping transform grape-growing in Napa Valley into a highly lucrative, luxury-branded business, able to fetch some of the highest-priced cabernet sauvignon grapes in the world. Now he intends to expand his branding prowess to his vineyards in the Red Hills appellation of Lake County. We believe that the fruit from our Amber Knolls vineyard is the pearl of the Red Hills, he said in his native Virginia drawl at his Rutherford office. Beckstoffer was referring to his 1,200-cabernet-acre vineyard in Lake County. Up to now, most of the fruit he has produced there has been sold to larger producers, including Clos du Bois and Joel Gott wines, although some has found its way into the hands of elite winemakers such as Thomas Brown and other luminaries. Were not in the commodity business, Beckstoffer said. Were in the branded-product business, and we believe that Amber Knolls cab could be in the $80- to $100-per-bottle category of vineyard-designated wine. We are so sure that we are willing to give away 10 acres worth of free fruit to prove it. Beckstoffer was referring to his newest strategy to give 10 winemakers an acres worth of cabernet sauvignon grapes for three vintages. Winemakers can apply by Feb. 15 by submitting their cover letters and resumes. According to the Beckstoffer website, qualifications for the applying winemakers include a minimum of five years in winemaking production and knowledge and experience in producing ultra-premium cabernet sauvignon. We hope the applicants include both established, well-known vintners as well as up-and-comers, said David Beckstoffer. David is one of Beckstoffers sons, and since 1997 he has helped his father run the Beckstoffer Vineyards operation, which oversees the farming of roughly 3,600 acres in Napa Valley, Mendocino County and the Red Hills of Lake County. Beyond being provided free grapes, the chosen winemakers will help with the farming decisions that apply to their selected acre. Typically, we harvest grapes mechanically up there, but for the acres picked by our chosen winemakers well treat the farming just like our most premier vineyards in Napa Valley, harvesting by hand and reducing the crop loads to 3 or so tons an acre, David said. All our vineyards are farmed sustainably, but the winemakers will have a say in farming decisions such as yield, pruning, irrigation and other issues that are key to grape quality. Many winemakers are excited by this opportunity. I threw my name into the hat because this seems like a very exciting opportunity to explore a new wine-growing area and work with an amazing farming company, wrote Keith Emerson in an email. A Boston native, Emerson consults for many brands and is Napas Vineyard 29 director of winemaking. He and his partner also have their own brand, Emerson Brown Wines. I have worked with the Beckstoffer team at a few of their other ranches for several years and have had nothing but the best experiences, Emerson wrote. While I have only worked with one Red Hills, Lake County cabernet vineyard, I have tasted several wines made from these vineyards and have a basic understanding of the flavor profile that these unique vineyards produce. There is a lot to learn up there in the Red Hills, and I want to be a part of it. What is the motivation behind what they are calling a grape opportunity? Beckstoffer said, Well get a better understanding of how different parts of the vineyard perform, and because the winning winemakers must use the best barrels and the best techniques, well have a better understanding of what winemaking seems to work. Beyond that, Beckstoffer hopes that after three years of working with what he says is exceptional-quality fruit, each winemaker will take advantage of their option to sign a long-term contract for the fruit. We believe that this program is good for us but also for the winemakers and even for Lake County as a whole. he said. We think our vineyards in the Red Hills are producing exceptional cabernet, and when the right people see what the vineyard can do, theyll understand the exceptional opportunity. Eventually, if this works as expected, this will help draw more businesses to the area, including hotels, restaurants and more wineries. Beckstoffer imagines a day when Lake County is synonymous with what people think of as California Wine Country. Of course, that would also mean he could charge higher prices for his grapes, which provides pause for at least one potential applicant. I think the fruit can be beautiful from up there, said a Napa Valley winemaker who asked not to be named. I considered applying, but right now I can get very good cab from up there at a decent price and then sell the wine for $20 or $30 a bottle with no strings attached. Will Red Hills AVA become Californias newest, hottest wine country? With Beckstoffers track record and reputation, few would bet against it. Or as Keith Emerson wrote, The Beckstoffer name speaks for itself, and if Andy is betting on Amber Knolls, that seems like something that Id like to be in on! For Beckstoffer, the path is clear. We intend on establishing Amber Knolls as a premium brand, he said and then smiled widely. Look, when I got here back in the 1960s, ToKalon cabernet was being used in a blended wine at Beaulieu. At that time, most people didnt understand that the greatest wines actually came from great vineyards. They were thinking that if there was a great wine, then it must be the winemaker. But now we all know that its the vineyard that makes all the difference. Interested winemakers can submit resumes and cover letters to info@beckstoffervineyards.com or learn more at www.cmilancomm.com/assets/upload/files/beckstoffer/OpportunityBeckstofferVineyards_FNL_1.19.16.pdf. A Napa man was found nearly dead and suffering from a gunshot wound to the head in the front seat of a vehicle on Wednesday morning. The man was found in a parking lot adjacent the Redwood Credit Union on the 1700 block of First Street around 8 a.m. An employee of one of the surrounding businesses found him and called the police. The 58-year-old white male was found with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, according to Napa Police. He was transported to Queen of the Valley Medical Center where he died as a result of the injury. Editor's note: This story has been modified from its original form to correct initial reports about where in the car the man was seated. Napa Valley College is citing two recent performance reports to show that students are achieving educational outcomes at a higher rate than students at other community colleges and that the school is exceeding its established standards of academic quality. The college recently completed a comprehensive evaluation process for accreditation, including a self-evaluation report written by faculty and staff and a site visit conducted by peers from other community colleges. The accreditation process is designed to identify areas for improvement and expansion of effective practices. We are pleased that the college is doing well, and see this as an opportunity to make things even better, NVC president Dr. Ron Kraft said in a news release. The Student Success Scorecard, published by the California Community Colleges Chancellors Office, reports that NVC exceeded performance in five of seven measured areas in 2013-2014: Student progress and achievement, showing 50.5 percent of first-time NVC students received a degree, certificate or transfer within six years, compared to 45.4 percent average among all California community colleges. Career Technical Education (CTE), showing 61.8 percent of CTE students completed a degree, certificate or transfer within six years, compared to 48.7 percent average among other community colleges. Students who completed at least 30 units, showing 69.9 percent of NVC students compared to 64.8 percent among other colleges. English students who advanced from remedial to college-level English, 52.5 percent compared to 42.7 percent. Math students who advanced from remedial to college-level math, 36.7 percent compared to 31.2 percent. Based on the CTE completion rate, NVC ranked fifth in the state. Two areas in which NVC did not keep pace with the average scores among other community colleges are: Persistence, measuring sustained enrollment, with NVC showing 68 percent compared to the average of other community colleges, 69.2 percent. English as a Second Language (ESL), measuring the percentage of student who enrolled in ESL courses at below-transfer level, but advanced to college level, with NVC showing 17.7 percent compared to the average of other colleges, 25.6 percent. The college is doing well in other areas of performance, according to the annual Core Indicators Report issued by the colleges Office of Research, Planning and Institutional Effectiveness: NVC established institutional standards of performance in 2013 to address requirements of the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC), the body that accredits California community colleges. In 2014-15, NVC exceeded all standards of performance, which include the following measures: successful course completion, fall-to-fall persistence, the number of degree and certificate recipients, and the number of transfers to the University of California and California State University systems. Between 2013-14 and 2014-15 the number of associate degrees for transfer increased by 159 percent almost double the 80 percent increase across the community college system. Over the last four years, UC and CSU transfers by NVC students increased 6 percent, while the completion rate among CTE students increased 4 percent. During the accreditation evaluation teams visit in fall 2015, it acknowledged NVCs success and suggested ways that the college can become even better, the college reported. The ACCJC met last month to review NVCs self-evaluation as well as the visiting teams report and to determine NVCs accreditation status. The college anticipates receiving an action letter from the ACCJC early this month. Improvements in these areas will allow the college to maintain excellence in teaching and learning, said Dr. Kraft, While we are mindful that being ranked as Californias No.1 Community College is wonderful, we always keep looking to the future. Napa Valley College is currently ranked as the best two-year college in California by bestcolleges.com. The 2015 Student Success Scorecard is posted on the CCCCO website: http://scorecard.cccco.edu/scorecard.aspx. The Core Indicators Report is posted on the college website: http://www.napavalley.edu/AboutNVC/Planning/research/Pages/Core-Indicators-2015.aspx Gov. Jerry Browns timing seems perfect as he asks voters to modify a tough anti-crime policy he signed four decades ago. As the governor unveiled last week his ballot measure to make it easier for nonviolent felons to be paroled and soften the treatment of juvenile offenders, the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC) released one of its periodic attitudinal polls of the California public. PPIC found that Browns standing is high, with a nearly 60 percent approval rating, fear of crime doesnt register strongly and Californians dont like their tax money going into prisons, which they erroneously think is the states biggest expense. Moreover, the states voters have not reacted negatively to Browns past acts under pressure from federal courts to reduce the prison population, and have themselves voted to soften treatment of some low-level crimes. During Browns first stint as governor four decades ago, Californias crime rate was soaring and politicians accused of being soft on crime were being ousted by voters. Ever sensitive to political mood swings, he enthusiastically embraced a crackdown on crime and, among other acts, signed legislation to do away with the states indeterminate sentencing law that gave judges and correctional officials leeway on handling felons, and replace it with a law mandating fixed terms. At the time, the states prisons housed scarcely 20,000 men and women, but the crackdown which included many other lock-em-up laws and tougher attitudes by prosecutors and judges created a flood of new inmates, and Brown was compelled to ask voters for a bond issue to build new prisons. Over the next few decades, the state built 22 prisons and filled them actually overfilled them with more than 160,000 inmates and the cost of incarceration increased 20-fold to more than $10 billion a year. Brown eventually returned to Sacramento as attorney general and then ran for governor. In both roles, he faced federal court pressure to alleviate prison overcrowding. Meanwhile, he had concluded that the determinate sentence law he championed and a tough juvenile law that voters had passed in 2000 were counterproductive and had unintended consequences. And one of the key unintended consequences was the removal of incentives for inmates to improve themselves, he said last week, because they had a certain date and there was nothing in their control that would give them a reward for turning their lives around. Browns new measure adds fuel to a simmering debate over whether reducing prison populations through diversion of felons into local jails and probation and Proposition 47, the 2014 measure that reduces penalties for some crime, have sparked a sharp uptick in crime. Republican state Sen. Jim Nielsen is one who says they have. Nielsen who was first elected to the Legislature in 1978 on the crime issue, defeating a Democratic incumbent, and served eight years on the state parole board immediately denounced Browns new measure, citing reports of sharp violent crime increases in Los Angeles and Sacramento. While the political climate appears favorable for Browns measure this year and he has a $24 million campaign account to spend on it, were police organizations to oppose it strenuously, its path to enactment might not be smooth. Dan Walters writes for The Sacramento Bee. I was surprised and dismayed by the Napa Valley Register story Proposed Initiative would reduce deaths at animal shelter (Jan. 31). The story gives a lopsided and inappropriately negative impression of the county shelter, leading the reader to think it is in the business of killing animals. Nothing could be further from the truth. Small, but telling, points: the story headline is melodramatic and sensational, and the chosen front page photo just reinforces the death row tone, unlike the two additional photos available online. The story mentions the shelters statutory obligations, creating the impression that staff are quick to euthanize animals as soon as legally permissible. The writer gives no account of what it is that the shelter staff actually do. It is also unfortunate that the paper chose to repeat the false live release rate numbers quoted in the initiative. That report was developed by the state for tracking rabies cases, and includes animals that are not part of the widely accepted method of calculating live release. The actual live release rate for the shelter in 2014 was 80 percent. In 2015 that number for dogs was 93 percent. Shelter staff already do many of the things the proposed ordinance would require. They record carefully physical and mental health information about their charges, and that information is available to the public on kennel and cage cards. It often includes valuable insights from former owners. Shelter staff and volunteers spend countless hours socializing and learning the personalities of the dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, parakeets, etc. who are in their care. They use their knowledge to make best matches between animals and potential adopters. They call in experts to assist with particularly tough mental or physical health issues. The shelter maintains a significant marketing effort for its charges: photos and biographies on the shelter website, the same information at Petfinder, Facebook postings, monthly full-page ads in the Register, bus cards with Platypus Wine Tours, and a satellite adoption center with Pet Food Express. In recent years, no animal at the shelter has been euthanized due to lack of space. The shelter team has developed solid partnerships with many groups to transfer animals to their shelters or nonprofit groups for adoption when space constraints become critical, with substantial success. In the six months ending 2015, 189 animal transfers occurred to 17 of these groups (the proponents of the initiative accepted seven animals, or 3 percent of this total). Closer inspection of available data shows that the challenge is not with dogs but cats, specifically feral cats. Napa County does not have a critical mass of local organizations that act as effective advocates for feral cats, making sure that cats that are neutered and released have basic food, shelter and health issues managed. Other counties do have such organizations, and that dramatically increases live release results. Perhaps this is a responsibility that some of Napas volunteer organizations could take on. Such an effort would be a significant assist in improving the live release rate for cats. The shelter and all animal welfare advocates also have to think about the broader needs of the community, including personal safety, respect for private property (with regard to trap, neuter, release) and legal accountability. It is unlikely that savings from reduced euthanasia will pay for the new bureaucracy mandated by this initiative. As written, this proposal will drive up costs to the taxpayer, with little actual benefit to the animals. I urge those who think the proposed ordinance is the answer to dig into the facts, make sure they know what the question is; visit the shelter and learn what is actually happening now. And perhaps ask the sponsors of this ordinance what their organizations are willing to do to be part of the solution. Sally Seymour Napa PARIS Paris attack leader said he entered France in group of 90 The woman who tipped police to the Islamic State commander of the Nov. 13 attacks in Paris says he told her he entered the Paris region among a multinational group of 90 extremists still scattered in the area. In an interview aired Thursday by RMC television and confirmed by her lawyer, the woman identified only as Sonia said Abdelhamid Abaaoud was proud of the attack that killed 130 people. Sonia was with Abaaouds female cousin when they picked him up from a deserted stretch of road outside Paris to take him to the hideout in Saint-Denis where he ultimately died. She said he told her he had entered France without documents, among a group of 90 that included both Europeans and Arabs. MADRID Jet evacuated in Madrid after hoax threat Passengers on a jet set to leave Madrid for Saudi Arabia were evacuated Thursday after the pilot reported an unspecified threat that authorities later determined was a hoax. The Saudi Arabian Airlines jet taxied to a remote part of Madrids airport Thursday after the threat was reported and all passengers safely disembarked, a spokeswoman for Spains airport authority AENA said. She had no further details about the nature of the threat, but said Madrids airport was briefly placed on a high level safety alert by law enforcement officials. Spains Civil Guard police force tweeted hours later that the threat was a false alarm. The alert level for Madrids airport was lowered after the passengers disembarked from the jet, which was supposed to fly to Riyadh and the airport was operating normally. The AENA official spoke on condition of anonymity because of agency rules preventing her from being named. CAIRO Saudi official says kingdom ready to send troops to Syria A Saudi military spokesman says the kingdom is ready to send ground troops to Syria to fight Islamic State group provided coalition leaders agree during an upcoming meeting in Brussels. Brig. Gen. Ahmed Asiri told The Associated Press on Thursday that Saudi Arabia has taken part in coalition airstrikes against ISIS since the U.S.-led campaign began in September 2014, but would now provide ground troops. The United States is scheduled to convene a meeting of defense ministers from countries fighting IS in Brussels this month. We are determined to fight and defeat Daesh, Asiri said, using the Arabic acronym for IS. He didnt elaborate on how many troops the kingdom would send. Saudi Arabia is deeply involved in Yemens civil war, where it is fighting Iranian-backed Shiite rebels. MAKHACHKALA, Russia Hundreds protest womens death at Russian maternity hospital Hundreds of people, most of them women, protested outside a maternity hospital in Russias southern Dagestan region where a woman died after giving birth to twins. The protesters blamed doctors for the death of the 34-year-old woman, who already had four older children. Police spokeswoman Fatina Ubaidatova said on Thursday that an estimated 600 people took part in Wednesdays protest at the maternity hospital in the city of Khasavyurt and some threw stones at the building in anger. She said police then moved in to guard the building. Investigators said they are looking into the death of the woman to determine whether criminal charges should be filed. She died on Friday, two days after delivering the twins by cesarean section. BANGKOK Thai police say mystery of body parts in river solved Police in Thailands capital said Thursday they have identified a man whose body parts were found floating in the citys Chao Phraya River as a Spanish consultant, and also have identified suspects in his killing. Police Gen. Panya Mamen told reporters in Bangkok that police are gathering more evidence and searching for the suspects, and expect to solve the case within 48 hours. We believe that there was more than one perpetrator and we believe that they worked as a team, he said. Panya said the victim was a Spanish man who had traveled to Thailand a number of times, but only provided his given name, David. He said police were able to match DNA from the seven body parts that were found and that from a man who had been reported missing. He said the man apparently was forced to turn over money to the suspects, and was then killed to silence him. From the witnesses and from the evidence we recovered, we believe we already know what the story is about, he said. The Santa Clara firefighter who was arrested for possibly killing his dog pleaded not guilty during his arraignment in Napa County Superior Court on Feb. 3. Nicholas Joseph Luiz, 32, of Napa faces two charges of felony animal cruelty, according to court documents. One count is for the alleged malicious and intentional torture of his dog, Woody, between Oct. 1 and Dec. 28. The second count is for his alleged killing of the animal on Dec. 29. Judge Francisca P. Tisher ordered that records from California Pet Hospital in Napa be released to the prosecution. Luiz was arrested on Dec. 30 after a neighbor reported seeing him abuse the dog in Luiz's backyard on Massa Drive. The witness told police on Dec. 29 that Luiz had been abusing the German shepherd puppy for several months and had possibly killed it earlier that day. Napa Police responded to the residence on the 1100 block of Massa Drive that night, but there was no answer. When police returned the next morning with a search warrant, the 5-month-old puppy was found dead inside the residence. Luiz admitted to killing his dog, according to the police report. Investigators believed the dog was repeatedly slammed to the ground in the backyard, causing his death. Luiz, out on bail, was ordered to appear at the next scheduled hearing. A preliminary hearing is set for March 9. Were hoping that justice will be served for Woody and that hell get convicted on both felony counts, said Monica Stevens, executive director at Jameson Animal Rescue Ranch in St. Helena. Stevens and several others from the animal rescue were in court during the arraignment in support of the District Attorneys Office, she said. Its important for Luiz to be convicted so that other people dont think they can get away with heinous acts like this, she added. When it starts to happen in this beautiful wine country, people take note, Stevens said. Earlier media reports said Luiz has been placed on paid administrative leave by the Santa Clara Fire Department. The department could not be reached for comment on Wednesday afternoon. Spending as much time on the UK's inland waterways as all the other stuff of life will allow us! YEREVAN. There is no great peril in the report, entitled Inhabitants of frontier regions of Azerbaijan are deliberately deprived of water, at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). Ruling Republican Party of Armenia deputy Armen Mkhitaryan told the aforesaid to Armenian News- NEWS.am. The main report was Walters report which was thwarted, and this was a victory, the MP said. The other was about the Sarsang Reservoir. I dont see a huge riskiness here, since it refers to livelihood. We [i.e. the Armenian side] also have a reservoir which they [i.e. the Azerbaijani side] shut. We may come to an agreement in an interstate form, together with the three [OSCE Minsk Group co-] chairs, mediators, and we give them water, and they give water to the population of our villages. Reflecting on the abovementioned reports content that Armenia could trigger a humanitarian disaster, Mkhitaryan stated: The humanitarian disaster is all around the world now, starting from Africa. The situation is the same in South America; this is a natural process. In his words, it is difficult to prevent such reports with just five or six MPs. On January 26, PACE voted against MP Robert Walters (UK) one-sided report entitled Escalation of Violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and Other Occupied Territories of Azerbaijan, but adopted MP Milica Markovics (Bosnia and Herzegovina) one-sided report about Sarsang Reservoir in Nagorno-Karabakh, and entitled Inhabitants of frontier regions of Azerbaijan are deliberately deprived of water. Prime Minister of Finland does not think that Hungary and Turkey will block country's application for NATO membership Foreign Ministry: It seems Ankara is more interested in opening corridor through Armenia than Azerbaijan Mirzoyan: Unexpected third countries support Azerbaijani interpretation of road to Nakhchivan Foreign Ministry: Armenia, Iran and Bulgaria initial agreement on creation of Persian Gulf-Black Sea corridor Israeli Defense Minister to visit Ankara Armenian Foreign Minister names main obstacle to solving problems with Azerbaijan Erdogan once again raises issue of so-called 'Zangezur corridor' Armenian and Iranian FMs to open Iranian Consulate General in Syunik province tomorrow Abdollahian: Aliyev assured that he does not want border changes, Iran will prevent implementation of such idea Iranian Foreign Minister in Yerevan supports '3+3' platform Iranian Foreign Minister recalls Tehran's 'red lines' in regional issues Mirzoyan: We highly appreciate Iran's principled position regarding territorial integrity of Armenia UK imposes sanctions against Iran for alleged delivery of drones to Russia Yerevan hosts meeting of Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in narrow composition Armenian and Iranian Foreign Ministers meet in Yerevan in extended format Charles Michel: EU energy deal possible, but difficult Erdogan says Baku should demand 'compensation' from Yerevan Pashinyan: EEU mechanisms are of great help, trade turnover between Armenia and Belarus has doubled Yair Lapid: Russia-Iran relations are serious problem for Ukraine, Europe, and whole world Amir-Abdollahian: Iran is against presence of foreigners in this region, both in Azerbaijan and Armenia Pashinyan at EAEU meeting: Fundamental principles of world economic system in question Iranian Foreign Minister's official visit to Yerevan begins Macron says Germany should not isolate itself in Europe EU begins deployment of mission on Armenia-Azerbaijan border Trump's son made fun of Zelenskyy's ability to ask West for money EU to provide emergency aid for Armenia residents affected by recent Azerbaijan military aggression Azerbaijan army units fire at Armenia positions Mikhail Mishustin arrives in Yerevan EU approves new sanctions against Iran over alleged drone deliveries to Russia Eurasian Intergovernmental Council meeting begins in Yerevan Baku calls OSCE mission to assess situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border 'private visit' On fourth day of IRGC military exercises on border with Azerbaijan, artillery destroys planned targets Liz Truss quits as UK Prime Minister Turkey parliament to consider extending Turkish militarys mandate in Azerbaijan Dollar falls, euro rises in Armenia Russias Putin ratifies agreement on simplification of payments for goods transit within EEU territory Stoltenberg: Almost all NATO countries have agreed to Sweden and Finland joining the alliance Ombudswoman of Armenia: Azerbaijan prevents removal of remains of fallen soldiers Zakharova: Matter of holding CSTO Collective Security Council meeting being worked out Ombudswoman of Armenia: I received video materials from EU special representative about Azerbaijanis Armenia Security Council chief, UK army general discuss cooperation in security Armenia and Kazakhstan discuss bilateral military cooperation Iran says U.S. and Israel won't be able to split the republic 201 bodies are identified of Armenia soldiers who died as result of September military aggression by Azerbaijan Iran FM to arrive in Armenia today Turkey, Azerbaijan presidents officially open international airport in occupied Artsakh territory Armenia President visits several leading Bulgaria IT companies Ruben Vardanyan: I will assume Artsakh State Minister position at beginning of November Armenia PM on making EU observation mission permanent: I'm not sure about that US State Dept.: Our ultimate goal is peaceful resolution between Armenia and Azerbaijan Armenia, Qatar to collaborate in tourism sector Turkey president travels to Azerbaijan Bandits in Russia cut off Armenian man's hands, shoot him in legs President of Armenia, mayor of Bulgarias Plovdiv discuss avenues for deepening of cooperation Armenia has new customs attache at Upper Lars checkpoint on Russia-Georgia border Karabakh official: Baku goes for gradual escalation, provocation of situation Armenia to get 33mn grant from EU for police, migration service, business development in Syunik Province Lacote: OSCE observation mission deployment will contribute to respect of Armenia territorial integrity World oil prices going up Russia extends flight restrictions at 11 airports Newspaper: Karabakh delegation to head for Moscow, meeting with Putin considered probable Newspaper: Azerbaijan aggression on September 13 paralyzes Armenia public administration for some time Azerbaijan army opens fire towards Armenia positions at midnight Retired US Air Force general is offered consulting job in Azerbaijan at rate of $5,000 a day White House is puzzling over how to avoid meeting between Putin and Biden at G-20 summit Eduard Aghajanyan: Once again I remind that Armenia was deprived of opportunity to protect rights of people of Artsakh U.S. says that limiting Russian oil prices is not aimed at OPEC OSCE sends mission to Armenia to assess situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border Jeff Bezos warns that U.S. economy may face recession Kiev says nearly 40% of Ukraine's energy infrastructure has been damaged Raisi: Iran will use all its capabilities and potential to end war in Ukraine Qatar gets first pandas in Middle East Armenian president delivers lecture at St. Kliment Ohridski University in Sofia More than half of Britons think Liz Truss should resign Bloomberg: Putin and Erdogan's cordial relationship arouses Western anger Dutch government invests up to 3.5 billion in military procurement Erdogan discusses latest developments in Ukraine with Zelenskyy School in Paris expels student from class for denying Armenian Genocide Germany would like to participate in EU observer mission to Armenia U.S. is considering plan to co-produce weapons with Taiwan Poland to buy K239 Chunmoo from South Korea Air defense system repels several missile attacks by Ukrainian troops at Kakhovskaya HPP Baku court does not definitively terminate criminal prosecution of Yunus spouses Liz Truss has no plans to resign CSTO countries agree on draft agreement on standardization of military equipment EU countries agree to sanction eight people and organizations over Iranian drones Congressman David Price meets with rector of Yerevan State University Chairman of Amsterdam City Court visits Tsitsernakaberd Memorial Complex in Yerevan ASPU supports process of unification of universities Deputy Chief of Police on new draft law: 'Citizen of Azerbaijan' is extremely relative notion Benny Gantz: Israel will not supply weapons to Ukraine Saudi Arabia lifts ban on Turkish soap operas Armenia lawyer arrested Remains discovered during renovation of Ministry of Culture building in Tbilisi are transferred to Armenian Pantheon Dollar goes up, euro falls in Armenia IRGC special forces conduct helicopter operations on third day of exercises on border with Azerbaijan MFA: France position on achieving Armenia-Azerbaijan peace is unchanged Foreign Minister: Iran will not allow blocking its communications with Armenia Kremlin: Russia does not intend to close borders amid introduction of martial law in four regions EU mission delegation visits some border communities of Armenias Gegharkunik Province (PHOTOS) YEREVAN. President of the National Assembly (NA) of Armenia, Galust Sahakyan, on Thursday received British Ambassador Judith Margaret Farnworth. The NA informed Armenian News-NEWS.am that the parliament speaker stressed that the Armenia-UK political contacts have intensified and cooperation achieved considerable progress in recent years. Sahakyan expressed a conviction that Armenia looks toward expanding relations with Great Britain. In addition, the NA President touched upon the two resolutions on Nagorno-Karabakh during the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) Winter Session, and which, by his assessment, were distorting the reality and inhibiting the peaceful negotiation process over the Karabakh conflict, and misleading the international community. Head of the Armenian parliament noted that the resolution, entitled Escalation of Violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and Other Occupied Territories of Azerbaijan, by British former MP Robert Walter, was not adopted due to the PACE MPs who voted for justice. That resolution contained a serious risk, as it was an inadmissible attempt by Azerbaijan and its co-thinkers to move the settlement of the Karabakh problem to parallel platforms, said Sahakyan. The speaker of parliament noted that Armenia continues remaining adherent to the ongoing negotiating process under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs, which is the only internationally recognized platform of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict settlement. Ambassador Farnworth, for her part, also emphasized the development of the bilateral relations in several domains. In the course of the meeting the sides touched upon the process of the constitutional reforms. In this connection, the UK ambassador welcomed the decision of the Armenian authorities to switch to a parliamentary system of governance. And regarding Robert Walters anti-Armenian report, Judith Margaret Farnworth noted that an individuals report does not reflect the policy of the government, and added that Great Britain supports a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh problem. On January 26, PACE voted against MP Robert Walters (UK) one-sided report entitled Escalation of Violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and Other Occupied Territories of Azerbaijan, but adopted MP Milica Markovics (Bosnia and Herzegovina) one-sided report about Sarsang Reservoir in Nagorno-Karabakh, and entitled Inhabitants of frontier regions of Azerbaijan are deliberately deprived of water. STEPANAKERT. - Representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Nagorno-Karabakh have visited the detained citizens of Azerbaijan Dilham Askerov and Shahbaz Guliyev. On February 03, the ICRC in Nagorno-Karabakh visited again two Azerbaijani detainees and provided them with an opportunity to exchange family news. According to its mandate, the ICRC will continue its visits to these individuals in detention on a regular basis to monitor treatment and conditions of detention and help to ensure that the detainees are able to maintain contact with their families," head of communication department at ICRC in Karabakh, Eteri Musaelyan, told Armenian News-NEWS.am correspondent. Azerbaijani sabotage and intelligence-gathering team member Dilham Askerov was charged with espionage; unauthorized border trespass; kidnapping and violence against a minor, committed by an organized group; murder committed by an organized group motivated by ethnic hatred; and attempt of murder of two persons, committed by an organized group, motivated by ethnic hatred. The other team member, Shahbaz Guliyev, on the other hand, was charged with espionage; unauthorized border trespass; kidnapping and violence against a minor, committed by an organized group; and murder committed by an organized group motivated by ethnic hatred. On December 29, 2014, the First Instance General Jurisdiction Court of the NKR sentenced Askerov and Guliyev to life and 22 years, respectively, in prison. The saboteurs attorneys, however, had appealed these sentences. But on March 10, the NKR Court of Appeal upheld the earlier court verdict. So, the attorneys of Dilham Askerov and Shahbaz Guliyev had appealed, at the NKR Supreme Court, the rulings handed down by the two previous tribunals. Prime Minister of Finland does not think that Hungary and Turkey will block country's application for NATO membership Sleeping less than five hours night increases risk of many diseases Antwerp: Karen Khachanov loses to Sebastian Korda Foreign Ministry: It seems Ankara is more interested in opening corridor through Armenia than Azerbaijan Mirzoyan: Unexpected third countries support Azerbaijani interpretation of road to Nakhchivan Foreign Ministry: Armenia, Iran and Bulgaria initial agreement on creation of Persian Gulf-Black Sea corridor Israeli Defense Minister to visit Ankara Manchester United rule out Ronaldo Armenian Foreign Minister names main obstacle to solving problems with Azerbaijan Erdogan once again raises issue of so-called 'Zangezur corridor' Armenian and Iranian FMs to open Iranian Consulate General in Syunik province tomorrow Abdollahian: Aliyev assured that he does not want border changes, Iran will prevent implementation of such idea Iranian Foreign Minister in Yerevan supports '3+3' platform Iranian Foreign Minister recalls Tehran's 'red lines' in regional issues Mirzoyan: We highly appreciate Iran's principled position regarding territorial integrity of Armenia UK imposes sanctions against Iran for alleged delivery of drones to Russia Yerevan hosts meeting of Eurasian Intergovernmental Council in narrow composition Thibaut Courtois resume training in general group of Real Madrid Armenian and Iranian Foreign Ministers meet in Yerevan in extended format European plague survivors leave their descendants prone to arthritis Charles Michel: EU energy deal possible, but difficult Erdogan says Baku should demand 'compensation' from Yerevan Pashinyan: EEU mechanisms are of great help, trade turnover between Armenia and Belarus has doubled Lana Del Rey reports theft of her laptop with new songs from her car Yair Lapid: Russia-Iran relations are serious problem for Ukraine, Europe, and whole world Eye test saves American woman's life Amir-Abdollahian: Iran is against presence of foreigners in this region, both in Azerbaijan and Armenia Pashinyan at EAEU meeting: Fundamental principles of world economic system in question Iranian Foreign Minister's official visit to Yerevan begins Macron says Germany should not isolate itself in Europe EU begins deployment of mission on Armenia-Azerbaijan border Taylor Swift's ex-boyfriend joins Ukrainian army Inter's new kit (photo) Trump's son made fun of Zelenskyy's ability to ask West for money EU to provide emergency aid for Armenia residents affected by recent Azerbaijan military aggression Sales of new iPhone 14 Plus are close to zero: What's wrong with it? Azerbaijan army units fire at Armenia positions Mikhail Mishustin arrives in Yerevan U.S. Championship: Sevian is in 9th place, Aronian in 10th place EU approves new sanctions against Iran over alleged drone deliveries to Russia Eurasian Intergovernmental Council meeting begins in Yerevan Baku calls OSCE mission to assess situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border 'private visit' Alashkert beat Lernayin Artsakh On fourth day of IRGC military exercises on border with Azerbaijan, artillery destroys planned targets Liz Truss quits as UK Prime Minister Turkey parliament to consider extending Turkish militarys mandate in Azerbaijan Dollar falls, euro rises in Armenia Russias Putin ratifies agreement on simplification of payments for goods transit within EEU territory Stoltenberg: Almost all NATO countries have agreed to Sweden and Finland joining the alliance Ombudswoman of Armenia: Azerbaijan prevents removal of remains of fallen soldiers Zakharova: Matter of holding CSTO Collective Security Council meeting being worked out Ombudswoman of Armenia: I received video materials from EU special representative about Azerbaijanis Far from 'micro': Tens of thousands of users and companies around world affected by Microsoft leak Armenia Security Council chief, UK army general discuss cooperation in security How to do exercise to lose weight while sitting Inter will extend Lukaku's lease Armenia and Kazakhstan discuss bilateral military cooperation Iran says U.S. and Israel won't be able to split the republic 201 bodies are identified of Armenia soldiers who died as result of September military aggression by Azerbaijan Florida residents warned of spread of flesh-eating bacteria due to Hurricane Ian Iran FM to arrive in Armenia today Diablo IV closed beta testing: First footage is online Turkey, Azerbaijan presidents officially open international airport in occupied Artsakh territory Armenia President visits several leading Bulgaria IT companies Nigerian model Ololade Olagbaye on working in Armenia, her dreams, starting business in Yerevan (PHOTOS) Ruben Vardanyan: I will assume Artsakh State Minister position at beginning of November Armenia PM on making EU observation mission permanent: I'm not sure about that US State Dept.: Our ultimate goal is peaceful resolution between Armenia and Azerbaijan Armenia, Qatar to collaborate in tourism sector Turkey president travels to Azerbaijan Bandits in Russia cut off Armenian man's hands, shoot him in legs President of Armenia, mayor of Bulgarias Plovdiv discuss avenues for deepening of cooperation Armenia has new customs attache at Upper Lars checkpoint on Russia-Georgia border James Webb Telescope captures stunning image of Pillars of Creation, replicating famous Hubble photo Karabakh official: Baku goes for gradual escalation, provocation of situation Armenia to get 33mn grant from EU for police, migration service, business development in Syunik Province Lacote: OSCE observation mission deployment will contribute to respect of Armenia territorial integrity World oil prices going up Russia extends flight restrictions at 11 airports How do crooks steal Peugeot and Toyota cars using JBL wireless speakers? Meghan Markle poses for Variety magazine cover, gives candid interview Newspaper: Karabakh delegation to head for Moscow, meeting with Putin considered probable Ronaldo leaves Man United bench before end of match Newspaper: Azerbaijan aggression on September 13 paralyzes Armenia public administration for some time Azerbaijan army opens fire towards Armenia positions at midnight DFB-Pokal: Bayern, Union Berlin are in Round of 16 Retired US Air Force general is offered consulting job in Azerbaijan at rate of $5,000 a day White House is puzzling over how to avoid meeting between Putin and Biden at G-20 summit Eduard Aghajanyan: Once again I remind that Armenia was deprived of opportunity to protect rights of people of Artsakh U.S. says that limiting Russian oil prices is not aimed at OPEC OSCE sends mission to Armenia to assess situation on Armenian-Azerbaijani border Jeff Bezos warns that U.S. economy may face recession Kiev says nearly 40% of Ukraine's energy infrastructure has been damaged Participation of French goalkeeper in World Cup 2022 in question James Webb Telescope captures stunning image of merging galaxies Raisi: Iran will use all its capabilities and potential to end war in Ukraine Qatar gets first pandas in Middle East Armenian president delivers lecture at St. Kliment Ohridski University in Sofia More than half of Britons think Liz Truss should resign PSG intend to sign Christopher Nkunku Emory University faculty wrote or edited 121 books in 2015 a 20 percent increase from the year before on topics ranging from literature and philosophy to business and medicine. To celebrate their achievements, the Center for Faculty Development and Excellence hosted the annual Feast of Words on Feb. 1 at the Emory Barnes & Noble Bookstore. The popular event kicked off Founders Week, Emory's midwinter academic festival, which commemorates the first official meeting of the founders of Emory College on Feb. 6, 1837 two months after the state of Georgia formally granted a charter to establish the college. "Emory is very clear: We have a mission statement that says we create, preserve, teach and apply knowledge in the service of humanity," Emory President James Wagner said before leading attendees in a toast to this year's authors. "The Feast of Words is a direct no proxy required illustration that Emory is doing its job and that you are doing your jobs." Before introducing Wagner for the toast, Provost Claire Sterk praised the Feast of Words as "an occasion to really celebrate the intellectual community that we have." "I think this is amazing: In an era where we talk about university presses having fewer resources to sustain their publishing, where academic publishing overall seems to be changing, and where we are moving to very different ways of getting our knowledge out, here we have gone up 20 percent in terms of the number of books the Emory faculty has put forth." The 121 books published this year come from 105 faculty authors or editors, including 61 from Emory College of Arts and Sciences, 26 from the School of Medicine, 20 from Emory Law, 12 from Candler School of Theology, three from Oxford College, two each from Goizueta Business School and Rollins School of Public Health, and one from Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing. Emeriti faculty are included on the list 11 times, while the year's tally also includes one each from the Center for Ethics and the Center for Digital Scholarship. Fifteen members of the University faculty wrote or edited multiple titles in 2015. Below is a sample of the diverse books written or edited by Emory faculty this year. For a full list of Emory University books published in 2015, visit here. "Rebranding Islam" For someone who, when he began his MA in anthropology, could barely place Indonesia on a map, James Bourk Hoesterey has come a long way with the publication of "Rebranding Islam: Piety, Prosperity, and a Self-Help Guru." Now assistant professor of religion, Hoesterey spent two years shadowing the charismatic television preacher known to a nation of admirers as Aa Gym. With a self-help message of Manajemen Qolbu (Managing the Heart), Gym transformed himself from a young man without formal religious education into a religious celebrity, national icon and Islamic brand. Viewers by the millions watched his weekly television shows, hundreds of thousands made pilgrimages to his Islamic school, and politicians of all stripes sought photo-ops during campaign season. The book asks important questions about shifts within the religious culture of Indonesia, the worlds largest Muslim-majority country, including: Does Gyms popularity signal a new kind of religious authority? In addition, what does the rise of self-help gurus say about the anxieties and aspirations of middle-class Muslims in Indonesia? When Gyms devoted public discovered that he embraced polygamy legal in Indonesia by taking a second wife, it all came crashing down. Women shredded his picture, the countrys president ordered a review of marriage law, and Gyms business empire dissolved. This is experiential ethnography of a most interesting sort. Aa Jim, as Hoesterey is known, becomes part of the [Gym] road show. In the end, he concludes, religious figures who follow will not equal Gyms celebrity because it was achieved during the uncertain, yet hopeful, dawn of post-authoritarian Indonesia. "Beastly Morality" Surely when praise from Jane Goodall the United Nations Messenger of Peace adorns your books back cover, you have done something right. The book is "Beastly Morality: Animals as Ethical Agents," and the editor is Jonathan Crane, Raymond F. Schinazi Scholar in Bioethics and Jewish Thought at the Center for Ethics. The volume has sparked a paradigm shift in animal studies by envisioning nonhuman animals as distinct moral agents. Crane points out that animal welfare, while revolutionary in many aspects, nonetheless maintains its ultimate gaze on the human animal, not the nonhuman animal. Drawing on ethics, religion, philosophy, law, ethology and cognitive science, the contributors prove that nonhuman animals possess complex reasoning capacities, empathic sociality, and dynamic and enduring self-conceptions. Says Celia Deane-Drummond, theology professor and director of the Center for Theology, Science, and Human Flourishing at the University of Notre Dame, This book is radical in the very best sense of the word, serious scholarship combined with far-reaching ethical implications. "Original Sacred Harp" For the uninitiated, a National Public Radio feature described the paradox of Sacred Harp singing this way: Theres no harp in Sacred Harp singing no instruments at all. Just the power of voice, in four-part harmony. The origin of the music goes back centuries first in England, then in colonial New England, then the music migrated south, where it took root. Jesse Karlsberg, postdoctoral fellow in digital humanities publishing at the Emory Center for Digital Scholarship (ECDS), is the prime mover behind "Original Sacred Harp: Centennial Edition." It is a commemorative, facsimile, reprint edition of the 1911 edition of "Original Sacred Harp," which helped propel Sacred Harp music into the 20th century and affected its practice up to the present. Karlsberg has written an engaging new introduction for the volume that speaks to the books publication history, social context and reception. This meticulously digitized and restored copy represents a collaboration between Pitts Theology Library, ECDS, Woodruff Library, and the Sacred Harp Publishing Company. Karlsberg chose to edit a facsimile reprint rather than re-typeset because, as he says, the original's quirks, typographical errors, and uneven print quality . . . speak to its historical circumstances. This handsome volume coming back into circulation also marks the beginning of Sounding Spirit, a more sustained effort to publish companion digital annotated and print facsimile editions of a range of significant out-of-print vernacular sacred American music texts. The book was launched at the annual Emory Sacred Harp event, which last year coincided with a meeting at Emory of the Society for Christian Scholarship in Music. This year's Sacred Harp Sing is set for Saturday, Feb. 13, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Cannon Chapel; the event is free and open to the public. "Rethinking Thought" Nothing sparks more thought about thought than encountering a mind different from ones own, writes Laura Otis in "Rethinking Thought: Inside the Minds of Creative Scientists and Artists." From the opening lines of this unique study, Otis puts the limitations of her own mind on full, sometimes comic, view. Otis is not a visual thinker. Every time she turns the key in her front-door lock, she wiggles it both ways. If she was in a space five minutes before and called upon to describe it, she cant. Poor Otis? Hardly. With an MA in neuroscience and a PhD in comparative literature, this former MacArthur fellownow professor of Englishhas a gem of a mind. The message of her book is that minds must be able to present their strengths variously. Until recently, scientists search for similarities guided studies of the human brain. Examining individual quirks, Otis says, has been a luxury that they cannot yet afford. Otis builds a fascinating narrative around, as she calls them, 34 different heads. They include those who work in science or literature or (like Otis) some combination thereof. Some of those she interviewed are well known to the Emory community: Mark Bauerlein, Natasha Trethewey and Salman Rushdie. This February, join Arts at Emory for a diverse slate of campus events. The spring Cinematheque series "French New Wave: Classics and Rediscoveries" continues with curated films by French auteurs; Theater Emory showcases new plays in its series "Brave New Works," and the annual Emory Jazz Fest returns with two weekends of shows. Over the span of five Monday evenings, which began Feb. 1, the Michael C. Carlos Museum will host Virgil scholar and professor of classics Christine Perkell as she guides readers through the conflicting, complex interpretations of "The Aeneid" in Carlos Reads Book Club, which meets at 7:30 p.m. in the board room on level two of the museum. Jasper Gaunt, curator of Greek and Roman Art, will lead a five-week study into the art of the ancient Greek vase on Wednesdays in Greek Vase Painting Study. The seminar takes place at 7:30 p.m. in the Tate Room on the plaza level. Registration is required for these events. The Film and Media Studies department continues its Cinematheque series "French New Wave: Classics and Rediscoveries" this month with screenings of "Shoot the Piano Player" (1960), "The Soft Skin" (1964), "Breathless" (1960) and "Made in USA" (1966). Cinematheque screenings are free and open to the public; they are held each Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. in White Hall 208. On Feb. 20-21, the extreme narrative "Out 1" will be screened in two parts with breaks between episodes. Emory Dance continues the "Fast First Fridays" choreographic challenge under the helm of Greg Catellier with Atlanta dancer Claire Molla and five robotic lights. The performance begins at 6:45 p.m. on Feb. 5 in the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts Dance Studio. And on Monday, Feb. 8, the spring Friends of Dance lecture, titled "Argentine Tango for People with Parkinson's Disease: a Neuroscientific Perspective," focuses on the design and optimization of creative movement/dance-based therapies to improve mobility, cognition and quality of life in older individuals with movement disorders. The free lecture begins at 7:30 p.m. in the Oxford Road Building's presentation room. Theater Emory continues and concludes its annual "Brave New Works" series in the Schwartz Theater Lab with performances of new work, such as "The Bonobo Project," inspired by summer workshops in the lab; "King James;" the "Fellowship Series," in which three playwrights present material for consideration of the Emory Playwright Fellow position; and "The Looking Glass." Reservations are required and can be made online. Emory's annual Jazz Fest kicks off Feb. 6 at 8 p.m. with the Julian Bliss Septet's "A Tribute to Benny Goodman" as part of the 2015-2016 Candler Concert Series. Jazz Fest continues the following weekend as clarinetist-saxophonist Anat Cohen teams up with the Gary Motley Trio in the Emerson Concert Hall on Friday, Feb. 12, at 8 p.m. Big Band Night closes out the festival with a free, public show Saturday, Feb. 13, at 8 p.m. All shows take place in Emerson Concert Hall in the Schwartz Center for Performing Arts; tickets to the Feb. 6 and Feb. 12 performances are on sale now. The Emory Chamber Music Society of Atlanta presents "Elena Cholakova & William Ransom: Two Piano Concert." Join the duo Feb. 21 at 4 p.m. in Emerson Concert Hall, as they perform Aaron Copland's "Hoe Down," Witold Lutoslawski's "Paganini Variations," Franz Liszt's "Reminiscences of Don Juan," and Maurice Ravel's "La Valse." Groundbreaking orchestral collective The Knights is joined by acclaimed violinist Gil Shaham as part of the Candler Concert Series on Friday, Feb. 20, at 8 p.m. in Emerson Concert Hall. Tickets are available online. On Wednesday, Feb. 24, at 4 p.m., Emory President James Wagner joins Rosemary Magee, director of the Stuart A. Rose Manuscript, Archives, and Rare Book Library, for a Creativity Conversation discussing Wagner's inspiration for his own creativity as well as how he has tapped into those energies for his work in organization leadership. The free event takes place in the Rose Library's teaching/learning studio on level 10 of Woodruff Library. The Emory Wind Ensemble, along with Theater Emory, presents "Music from the Stage and Screen" on Saturday, Feb. 27, at 8 p.m. in Emerson Concert Hall. This free concert features performances of Walton's score to "Henry V," Copland's iconic "The Red Pony," and more. When Emory's Presidential Selection Committee began the process of choosing the University's next president, members quickly decided to expand the conversation outward, taking key questions directly to the Emory community. What are the biggest challenges facing Emory's next president? What should Emory do better? What character traits, education or experiences should our next president bring to the job? The answers, they reasoned, would impact the future of the University. It was only right that the community should be part of the discussion. From the moment last fall when President James W. Wagner announced his intent to retire in August 2016, John Morgan, chair of the Emory University Board of Trustees, pledged to keep the community informed throughout the process of selecting the University's next president. In November, just days after the Board of Trustees appointed the 14-member Presidential Selection Committee, Morgan spoke to a joint meeting of the University Senate and Faculty Council. He emphasized that the committee's goal "is not only to identify a presidential candidate to the Board of Trustees, but to consider what we want to accomplish as a community at Emory over the next five to ten years. "This is a once-in-a-decade opportunity to bring together all the voices in the Emory community to determine what we value, where we see ourselves going, and how we define that," said Morgan, who also chairs the Presidential Selection Committee. The committee has hosted 37 intensive listening and dialogue sessions over the past three months to engage faculty, staff, students, alumni, Emory Healthcare physicians, and other members of the Emory community in the selection process. This week, sessions included meetings with faculty and staff. The forum focused on Emory staff was moderated by Presidential Selection Committee members Leah Ward Sears 80L, former Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice and Emory trustee; Susan Cahoon 68C, an Atlanta lawyer and Emory trustee; and Susan Cruse, Emory's senior vice president for development and alumni relations. The goal was the same as in earlier meetings held with students, individual schools and units, alumni, academic and administrative leadership, faculty, and governance groups. The committee sought to gather a wide and diverse sample of perspectives. "We've had some incredible, thoughtful input from people," Cahoon said at the staff forum. "We're finding it's tremendously useful in thinking about where all of you see this University, what you see as its challenges, where you want it to be, and the kind of leadership you want." At each meeting, the committee has sought opinions about the attributes, credentials, experience, qualities, and values that should be considered in selecting Emory's next president. That input will be used to help inform and shape the presidential prospectus or job description that will be pivotal in recruiting potential candidates. Once completed and approved by the Emory Board of Trustees, the final prospectus will be shared not only with potential candidates, but also with the University community, and it will be posted to the presidential selection website later this month, confirmed Allison Dykes, vice president and secretary of the University, who is supporting the committee with Peter Barnes, vice president for human resources. Key questions for Emory's future At each meeting held by the Presidential Selection Committee, the dialogue has been guided by six questions: What do you see as the major challenges and opportunities facing Emory over the likely tenure of the next president? We know that the world of higher education is becoming increasingly competitive. What do you see as Emory's strongest competitive advantage? How would you describe Emory's culture today and how would you like to see it change? What do you think needs to be preserved at Emory and why? By the end of the next president's term, what should be different about Emory? Do you have any advice for the Presidential Selection Committee? At this week's session with Emory staff, conversation topics included college affordability, global competition and international branding, attracting and retaining top faculty, and strengthening Emory's ties with community partners. Dialogue also touched upon Emory's evolving culture, its unique strengths in the liberal arts and healthcare, and the University's willingness to engage with tough topics. The committee was advised to seek a president who was an innovator and risk-taker a forward-thinking, inspirational visionary who is skilled at building consensus, knowledgeable about development practices, adaptable with the fast-changing environment of higher education, and who has a passion for people. Emphasis on community engagement From the beginning of the selection process, public engagement has been identified as a key component, said Dykes. Through listening sessions and online input, valuable information and perspectives have already been collected from hundreds of individuals. "It was an ambitious goal to have a very inclusive process that provided as many opportunities as possible to gather community input," she said. "However, the Presidential Selection Committee placed such a priority on this phase of the search and knew that if we were to have a successful search, having the community engaged in the process was absolutely critical." Throughout it all, "the candor, the thoughtfulness, the desire to contribute the process has been productive and wonderful," she added. Those who may have been unable to attend a forum and still seek to answer the committee's questions or contribute additional thoughts should visit here. Questions about the process may be submitted here. BENGALURU: With the advent of technology, we have reached in the era of Facebook and Google. And between accessing any of such websites, the most common application used by us is Web Browser. Although browsers are primarily intended to use the World Wide Web, they can also be used to access information provided by web servers in private networks or files in file systems. The ways that web browser makers fund their development costs has changed over time. Eventually it has become crucial to select a web browser that fits our needs. If you are eager to note, here is the list of 6 Web Browsers as compiled by Nick Bartholomew from pc-tablet.co.in for Windows PC, Android, iOS Mobile Phones and Tablets. Google Chrome Google Chrome is a freeware web browser developed by Google. As of December 2015, StatCounter estimates that Google Chrome has a 58 percent worldwide usage share of web browsers as a desktop browser. It is also the most popular browser for smartphones, and combined across all platforms at about 45 percent. Its success has led to Google expanding the 'Chrome' brand name on various other products such as the Chromecast. Google releases the majority of Chrome's source code as an open-source project Chromium. A notable component that is not open source is their version of the built-in Adobe Flash Player, called Pepper Flash Player. Read Also: Challenges Deterrent to IoT Startups in 2016 10 Cool Tips and Tricks to use Android 6.0 Marshmallow Human culture, not smarts, may have overwhelmed Neanderthals, say Stanford researchers Neanderthals, longtime residents of Earth, eventually disappeared after the arrival of humans. Stanford researchers, armed with mathematical models, suggest that our higher level of cultural organization may have allowed us to eventually overwhelm the Neanderthals. What happened to the Neanderthals? They left their African homes and migrated into Europe 350,000 to 600,000 years ago, well ahead of modern humans, who showed up only about 45,000 years ago. But within about 5,000 years of our arrival, the indigenous Neanderthals had disappeared. AP Photo/Martin Meissner Reconstructions of Homo neanderthalensis at the Neanderthal Museum in Mettmann, Germany. Stanford researchers have created a mathematical model that explains Neanderthals' extinction through competition with modern humans. Anthropologists have proposed that the Neanderthals may have been done in by terrible epidemics or an inability to adapt to climate changes of the era, but Stanford researchers now suggest culture wars of a sort might have spelled the end. The team, led by biologist Marcus Feldman, came to their conclusion after creating mathematical models that demonstrated that it wasn't necessary for the humans to outnumber the locals in order to prevail. A smaller band of humans with a more highly developed level of culture could eventually push out the Neanderthals, the models showed. The edge wasn't just raw intelligence. Archeological findings have shown that brain size was essentially the same for humans and Neanderthals, and recent paleo-anthropological studies suggest that Neanderthals were capable of a range of advanced intellectual behaviors typically associated with early modern humans. But a more fully developed culture among humans could have led to being able to gather territory or hunt over a larger area, or a higher level of tool-making. And better tools probably meant better weapons. "Presumably there was a lot of violence going on at that time," said Feldman, who is the Burnet C. and Mildred Finley Wohlford Professor of in the School of Humanities and Sciences. "I assume it wasn't only constructive things done with tools. A hand axe can be used for constructive purposes and destructive purposes." Looking at the results of the modeling, the researchers concluded that a small population of humans with a high level of sophistication could have overwhelmed a larger, established population of Neanderthals that had been getting by with a lower level of cultural sophistication. And the rich probably got richer in some sense, because a growing population of humans could support a higher level of cultural sophistication. The modeling also suggests then that it was not necessarily a genetic mutation that changed the human brain and provided a leg up for humans over Neanderthals, as has been suggested, Feldman said. "They are presumably the last close relatives to us, before humans dominated the world," he said. Feldman's research team included William Gilpin, a graduate student in applied physics at Stanford, and Kenichi Aoki of the Organization for the Strategic Coordination of Research and Intellectual Properties at Meiji University in Japan. He said that drawing from an interdisciplinary group of experts makes this type of work possible. "One of the great things about Stanford is how easy this is to do," he said. "It's always been the case, since I did my doctorate over in the math department, that interdisciplinary research has been encouraged and strongly supported by the university." The research is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The land-locked Central Asian states are interested in trade via the Gwadar Port, Sharif said. The Dawn reported that Sharif said that CPEC would open new vistas of development and prosperity in the region in general and benefit the country in particular. The inauguration ceremony of M8 was attended by Chief Minister Balochistan Nawab Sanaullah Zehri, Chief of Army Staff General Raheel Shari and other high ranking military and civilian officials. The Prime Minister on the occasion also praised the services and sacrifices rendered by the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) in the construction of CPEC. Sharif further said that CPEC would ensure economic development of Balochistan.(ANI) Director General Inter-Services Intelligence Rizwan Akhtar would travel to Afghanistan for a meeting with the acting chief of the National Directorate of Security (NDS), Masoud Andarabi, Dawn online reported. The US is facilitating the meeting which would also be attended by Chinese officials as observers. The meeting which earlier was planned to be held in Islamabad, comes ahead of the Quadrilateral Coordination Group meeting comprising Pakistan, Afghanistan, US and China scheduled for February 6. The intelligence talks, an official said, were separate from the quadrilateral mechanism, even though the parleys were expected to impact the reconciliation effort, as well. The meeting is taking place as Pakistan had called on Afghanistan to act against the terrorist group involved in January 20 Bacha Khan University attack that killed 22 people. Islamabad alleged that terrorists planned and directed the terrorist activity using Afghan soil and telecom infrastructure. It would also be the first time that the two intelligence agencies would be directly talking to each other about their relationship since a cooperation deal signed between them in May 2015 was prevented from materialising due to a stiff opposition in Kabul. --Indo-Asian News Service ksk ( 232 Words) 2016-02-04-08:39:33 (IANS) "We thanked Pakistan Army for their gesture but since our resources are adequate and teams are well placed, we do not need any help," an Indian Army spokesperson said here. Terming the offer a routine gesture, the spokesperson added ,"It is a normal gesture when any incident takes place near the Line of Control". Earlier, Pakistan Army's Director General of Military Operations Major General Sahir Shamshad Mirza called Indian DGMO Lt. General Ranbir Singh and offered assistance in the ongoing rescue operation, a military statement in Islamabad said. Ten Indian soldiers were reportedly buried in an avalanche that hit Siachen glacier in the Indian side of Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday. The soldiers were hit while on duty at a post at an altitude of 19,000 feet. The post was being manned by a junior officer and nine soldiers when the avalanche struck, an army statement said. In 2012, at least 140 people, including Pakistan Army personnel and civilians, were killed when an avalanche struck an army camp in the strategically important Gayari sector. The Siachen glacier has been dubbed as the worlds highest battlefield. Avalanches and landslides are common in the area during winter and temperatures there can drop to as low as minus 60 degrees Celsius. An estimated 8,000 troops have died on the glacier since 1984, almost all of them in avalanches and landslides or due to frostbite, altitude sickness or heart failure rather than combat. --Indo-Asian News Service ao-ahm/vt ( 285 Words) 2016-02-04-21:29:34 (IANS) Opponents of the TPP have called for the analysis after the World Bank revealed it would only lift Australia's GDP by 0.7 percent by 2030, Xinhua news agency reported. However, Robb, who signed the agreement with counterparts from the 11 other nations, said that calls for the cost-benefit analysis were the latest attempts by the "usual suspects" to derail the agreement. "No we won't (order the analysis), because they're all the usual suspects," Robb said. "Most of the people driving that campaign have been opponents of free trade for decades. They're entitled to that view, but nothing that would come out of an inquiry would change their mind, " he said. The trade minister, who was also in charge of negotiating Australia's free trade agreement with China, praised the TPP and said it would open up opportunities for "millions" of Australians. The Trans-Pacific Partnership is a multi-national free trade agreement between Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam. --Indo-Asian News Service ksk ( 200 Words) 2016-02-04-08:53:34 (IANS) The trade deal looks to facilitate investment between the 12 countries across the Pacific Rim, which together account for about 40 percent of the global economy, BBC reported. The US-led initiative was agreed in October 2015 after years of negotiations and multiple missed deadlines. Australian Trade Minister Andrew Robb was the first to sign the pact. Those attending the ceremony cheered as his New Zealand counterpart, Todd McClay, added the last signature. The TPP involves Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the US. However, the TPP continues to face opposition. Those against the deal, particularly some Americans, fear it could mean jobs will move from the US to developing countries. In the lead up to Thursday's signing, the streets around Auckland's central business district were disrupted by groups blocking access to the Auckland Harbour Bridge. Police clashed with some protesters, who have widely claimed the deal will benefit big business rather than workers. --Indo-Asian News Service ksk/vm ( 200 Words) 2016-02-04-11:27:34 (IANS) Re-energising ties! 13th round of India-Iran FOCs to review multi-sectoral relationship takes place in Delhi, external affairs ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup tweeted. Earlier on Thursday, addressing the media here, Swarup said that the delegation-level talks would be co-chaired by Indian Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar and Iranian Deputy Minister for Asia and Pacific Affairs Ebrahim Rahimpour. The two sides will do a review of India-Iran bilateral relations, including a number of subjects such as connectivity and infrastructure, energy, economic relations, cultural and consular cooperation, defence and security cooperation, he said. The two sides are also expected to discuss regional and security issues and developments in the regions. According to Swarup, India's close and civilisational ties with Iran in the contemporary times have evolved with the two countries becoming close partners. Iran is an important economic and security space for us and is also amongst our most important sources for energy, the spokesman said. Recently, India's participation in the development of Phase I of the Charbahar port has added another dimension to developing better connectivity not just with Iran but also with Afghanistan and Central Asia. After the signing of an inter-governmental memorandum of understanding (MoU) in 2014, a contract between an Indian entity and an Iranian entity for the development of Phase I of Charbahar port and its operations was in the final stage of negotiations, Swarup informed. Ahead of Thursday's meeting, Deputy Minister Rahimpour also called on External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj here. --Indo-Asian News Service ab/vt ( 271 Words) 2016-02-04-21:15:33 (IANS) Bollywood star Sunny Deol, who is usually portrayed as the angry and impatient guy on the silver screen, is actually the opposite in real life. Sunny, who is most famous for his film 'Gadar', came to New Delhi to promote his new film 'Ghayal Once Again' where he spilled the beans on how he is in real life. The 58-yeaar-old actor exclusively told ANI, "We are actors and that's what we are supposed to do. If I am going to be what I am on the screen then that will be very boring." "It's not like I am very patient in real life, I am just a normal human being. But definitely being in this profession, this is what you learn i.e. how to be patient. I have learned to move along and move ahead. If one is not patient, you will then only be disturbing your creativity and won't be able to focus on your work", he added. Sunny will be seen playing the role of a newspaper editor in 'Ghayal Once Again', taking on anti social elements in society. 'Ghayal Once Again' is produced by Sunny's actor father Dharamendra and will hit the theatres on February 5. (ANI) The spread of Zika virus and the 'negative connotation' added to it has forced Tata Motors to change the name of its newly developed and yet-to-be-launched hatchback Zica car. "We had named this car as Zica, as it is the short form of Zippy Car, because its performance in both petrol and diesel is very zippy. Since Zika is a name of virus, so definitely, there is a negative connotation added to it and hence we thought that changing the name would be an intelligent move," Girish Wagh, Senior Vice-President (Programme Planning and Project Management - PVBU), Tata Motors, told ANI. Wagah further said that in last few weeks Zika virus has spread and there is a global health warning issued in the name of it. "Looking at the current scenario, we felt that carrying the brand name 'Zica' won't be right for the product and since time is still left for the launch and hence we are going to change the name of the model," he added. The new car was displayed publicly for the first time at the Auto Expo 2016, in New Delhi (Greater Noida) from February 3-9. While it carried the 'Zica' label for the duration of the event, the new name will be announced after a few weeks, ensuring all necessary consumer/ branding and regulatory aspects are addressed. The car will be introduced in the market after the rebranding. (ANI) The 30-year-old Brazilian was straightway given his marching orders for sticking his studs into Messi's knee while going for a ball during Barcelona's 2-1 win at the Camp Nou. Describing the three-match suspension as 'too harsh', Atletico Madrid insisted that they would appeal against their player's ban and said that Luis had never been a violent player and that he did not intend to harm Messi, the Guardian reported. Atletico, which played one game more than Barca, are second in the league table, three points behind the Spanish giants. (ANI) The Bengaluru Police on Wednesday filed an FIR against some unknown persons in connection with the assault on a 21-year-old Tanzanian student. The Tanzanian student was beaten and then stripped by a group of locals in Bengaluru after they assumed she was part of an incident in which a Sudanese man had run over a local woman. "This girl arrived at the spot 30 minutes after the accident from a different route. They saw the mob attacking the guy, who had caused the accident, the girl had no connection with him," Bosco Kaweesi, Legal Adviser, All African Students Union told the media here. Kaweesi further said the victim was assaulted in the worst possible manner. The incident took place on Hesaraghatta Road in Bengaluru on Saturday night after a Sudanese national ran his car over a 35-year-old woman resulting in on the spot death of the woman. The Tanzanian student was travelling in another car, a Wagon-R, along with four others. The young woman, who arrived on the spot around 30 minutes later, was dragged out of the car and paraded naked after being stripped by the mob. The victim told the police in her complaint that when she tried to get on a bus in order to escape the assault, people on the bus pushed her back towards the mob. Earlier, the local residents set fire to two cars belonging to the African students, who studied in local colleges in Ganapathinagar on Hesaraghatta Road. (ANI) The woman, who claimed to have some grievances which were not heard in her native town, picked up a flower pot and hurled at the Prime Minister's convoy at South Block. It is reported that the woman was persistent to meet the Prime Minister and after being stopped, she became furious and damaged some flower pots. The woman was later detained by the police. "The woman suddenly started running towards the Raisina Hill area. The police tried to stop her but then this woman broke a flower pot and threw it," DCP Jatin Narwal told said. "The lady is in her early 20s and belongs to Uttar Pradesh's Sahibabad District. He says that she has some grievances over there which were not heard and registered. When the police was preparing the route, she started fighting with them," he added. This is the second incident of a security breach in the capital this year. A woman had earlier thrown ink at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on January 17 at the Chhatrasal Stadium where he was addressing a thanksgiving rally on the 15-day trial of traffic rationing measures in Delhi. (ANI) Japan's leading IT and network technologies company, NEC Corporation, has launched a cyber security factory in Singapore as the latest addition to its global portfolio of security operation centers. The opening ceremony was recently held in Singapore. "Today's inauguration ceremony is a quite big step for NEC in order to keep the cyber field in the APAC area, by using today's new opening Cyber Security Factory," said Nobuhiro Endo, the president of NEC Corporation. The NEC is already working with the Singapore Government to strengthen the country's preparedness in combating the latest cyber threats. In particular, NEC and the Singapore Economic Development Board have launched the Strategic Attachment and Training Program to promote the next generation of IT cyber security experts. "A leading global technology ICT company such as NEC has anchored its advanced capabilities and help the development of professionals and innovations in Singapore. Facilities such as the Cyber Security Factory will go a long way in helping businesses better manage and mitigate cyber security challenges," said David Koh, chief executive, Cyber Security Agency of Singapore. In 2014, NEC established its first cyber security factory in Japan as a specialised unit dedicated to countering cyber threats and attacks, including surveillance of networks and websites, investigating malware sources and information leakage. The newly opened cyber security factory in Singapore will collaborate with NEC's Security Operations Centers located in strategic parts of the world, with an aim to provide an inter-connected network to share intelligence on cyber threats and deliver all time security to the users. "The cyber security factory targets two key segments of our customers - Japanese companies in this region, and SME, Small and Medium Enterprises operating in this region as well. The key value that the Cyber Security Factory brings to the customer is that we can bring affordable quality cyber security defense solutions to a lot of our customers. They can - including in this region that will include the places far from India or even Thailand and Philippines - subscribe and try our innovative solutions," said Douglas Tang, Head of Cyber Security, NEC Corporation. In another technological development, a device will now help to read the mind of your pet. Japan's Anicall Corporation has introduced gyro-censor, which can be fixed in a collar of cat or dog. Gyro-censor monitors activity and posture of the animal. Sensing data then sent from device to smart phone. It shows the emotions of the pet whether the cat or dog is exciting, relaxed or in a mood to play. Red sign shows exciting. Green shows relaxed. Blue shows want to play together. It is updated reflecting their mind simultaneously. "In the situation of sleeping if the pet show their belly it means they are relieved or obedience. On the contrary if they sleep crawling it shows tiredness or precaution. Attached censor grasp minute difference of the animal and shows their mind," said Masayoshi Asai of Anicall Corporation. For the owner of the pets their health is big concern. Wearable device analyses their feeding situation to grasp the change of their body condition. It is very relieved for their owner. "When they eat food this system analyze their chewing, eagerness and width of neck waving. It is indicated by figure and score," Asai added. The company's policy is 'Internet of Animal'. Through the internet, the company tries to establish new relationship between the animal and human being. "Considering happiness of animal I would like to realise symbiosis of human being and animal," Asai added. With the help of this technology, the pets can get better care. (ANI) The 25-year-old complained of stiffness while bowling that worsened when he had to bat during Australia's humiliating 159-run loss to New Zealand in the opening one-day international at Eden Park on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Marcus Stoinis has been roped in to replace Faulkner in the 14-man squad, Stuff.co.nz reported. Faulkner was the latest to join the already injury-ravaged squad ahead of the World Twenty20, where Australia will play their first match against New Zealand on March 18 in Dharamsala. While skipper Aaron Finch, who injured his hamstring during the series against India, is racing the clock to be fit for the T20 format's pinnacle tournament, pace bowlers Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins have been ruled out of the event due to their respective injuries. (ANI) External Affairs Minister (EAM) Sushma Swaraj on Wednesday lauded the efforts of Indian Embassy in Berlin and Ambassador of India designate to Germany for helping distressed Indian woman Gurpreet and her eight-year-old daughter, who had been kept in a refugee camp in Germany by her husband's family. "Outstanding job done by our @AmbGurjitSingh (Ambassador of India designate to Germany) and Raveesh Kumar our Consul General in Frankfurt. @eoiberlin," EAM Sushma said in a tweet. The Foreign Minister in another tweet confirmed said that the distressed Indian woman Gurpreet along with her daughter has been brought from the refugee camp. "We have brought Gurpreet and her 8 year old daughter from the refugee camp to our Consulate in Frankfurt. Gurpreet and her daughter will reach New Delhi from Frankfurt by flight AI 120 at 9.35 am tommw morning," she added. Swaraj had earlier assured help to Gurpreet, who had posted a short video on Twitter, alleging that she and her eight-year-old daughter had been kept in a refugee camp in Germany by her husband's family. (ANI) Opting to bat first, England got off to a thunderous start as Jason Roy and Alex Hales (57) notched up a brisk 68-run partnership for the opening wicket with Roy (48) in particular punishing the opponents' bowling. Batting mainstay Joe Root added 52 runs before Buttler (105) smacked a wayward South African bowling attack to secure his century off just 73 balls, Sport24 reported. Subsequently, Ben Stokes continued his rich vein of form, bludgeoning a swift 57 off 38 balls, which includes four boundaries and three sixes. Meanwhile, skipper Eoin Morgan and Moeen Ali contributed 23 and 19 runs respectively before the tourists made 399 for nine in their stipulated 50 overs. For South Africa, Chris Morris was the pick of the bowlers with three scalps. (ANI) Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday asserted that the nation would stand by Pakistan if the latter is committed to take action against terrorists. "Our government of India will stand by Pakistan if it takes decisive action against terrorists and their organisations. For India, Mumbai and Pathankot terror attacks have signified a tectonic shift," Home Minister Rajnath Singh said while addressing the valedictory session of Counter Terrorism Conference 2016 here. "Most of the terror attacks emanate from Pakistan. Pakistan has to show some sincerity and take action against terrorists operating from its soil," he added. The Home Minister also asserted that the advance intelligence input on Pathankot helped the security agencies in neutralising the possible impact of the terror attack. "We are working on a National Security Strategy aiming to achieve seamless coordination between all the agencies," he added. Home Minister Singh also pointed out that after the Pathankot terror attack the government is reviewing its Counter Terror strategy, adding that the government is fully equipped and prepared to deal with Cross border terrorism. "We are now formulating an effective strategy which would help in preventing our country from such terror attacks in future. We are fully equipped and prepared to deal with Cross border terrorism or any kind of terrorism," he added. Asserting that the terrorism is a 'byproduct of a perverse mind', Home Minister Singh, said: "Today much of the world is grappling with the scourge of terrorism and its dangerous consequences." "The challenge of terrorism gets compounded when certain states use it as an instrument of their foreign policy. Terrorism is a hydra-headed monster fed by massive supply of funds through different routes. It is a big challenge to cut these supply lines," he added. The Home Minister further said that the world must accept the reality without any loss of time that there is no 'good' terrorist. "From traditional forms of terrorism, we are now witnessing cyber terrorism, narco - terrorism and bio terrorism," he added. Home Minister Singh also pointed out that India is full of diversity with multi lingual, multi religious and multi ethnic society. "These conditions are actively utilised by anti-national elements and other enemies to foment trouble in our country," he said. "To counter such threats we need to undertake sound preventive and responsive security measures," he added. (ANI) The Congress councillors on Wednesday came for a Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) budget meeting, wearing pollution masks in protest against the Deonar dumping ground fire leading to 'poor' and 'very poor' air quality and formation of thick blanket of fog. Accusing the administration, the BJP and Shiv Sena for playing with the health of Mumbaikars, Congress councillor Devendra Ambekar said, "We are wearing masks in protest against the Deonar dumping ground fire, which is creating health hazard for Mumbaikars. The Municipal Commissioner should have made a statement in this regard at the meeting of the Standing Committee, where the media were also present, that what steps they were taking to deal with this problem. The administration, the BJP and the Shiv Sena don't care for the health of the people of Mumbai." Another Congress councillor Bakkunissa Ansari described the fire at the Deonar dumping ground in the commercial capital as a 'calamity'. "The worst thing is that the ruling members were not present there. The mayor, along with a team, has gone on a tour to Andaman and Nicobar. They didn't know that the Deonar occurrence was still there, how could they make such a blunder? For the first time in Mumbai, schools were closed, and children were vomiting... Whose responsibility is this? The BJP and the Shiv Sena have been ruling for 25 years but have never taken these things seriously as their only aim is touring. They go on tours with their families at the expense on people's money," Ansari said. "The Deonar issue is very serious as it is affecting people's health, 70 percent of which are minorities, with 37,000 crore budget can't they develop the area," asked Ansari. Parts of Mumbai have been engulfed in a thick blanket of smog since Thursday due to a huge fire at the Deonar garbage dumping ground on the city's eastern fringe, forcing government schools in central Shivaji Nagar and Deonar to remain closed. As fire continues to simmer at the dumping ground, the number of people falling ill due to the smoke has increased. (ANI) Expressing complete support to a Pakistani parliamentary panel advising Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif against encouraging "active support" to "armed, banned and militant" groups in Kashmir, defence expert Deepankar Banerjee on Wednesday said that the move was indicative of a possibility of less terrorism in India. "Pakistan parliamentary panel has rightly advised their government. If this continues Pakistan will be denied international aid, trade. We expect from now onwards at least for several of months from now there will no terrorist activity will take place," Banerjee told ANI. Asserting that the global opinion towards Pakistan was changing as they were the originators of 'terrorism', he said that it was about time for Islamabad to take concrete steps. "Across the globe, the originators and fountainhead of terrorism is accepted to be in Pakistan as well as in West Asia. Pakistan and terrorism have become synonymous and as a consequence, they have facing backlash from across the world," he added. The defence expert warned that if Pakistan does not mend its ways, soon enough they will face boycott from the world, which will include being denied international aid and support. Earlier, a Pakistani parliamentary panel has advised Islamabad against encouraging "active support" to "armed, banned and militant" groups in Kashmir. "Pakistan should not encourage calls for active support of armed, banned, militant groups in Kashmir," stated a four-page policy paper issued Monday by the National Assembly Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs. (ANI) Right to Information (RTI) activist Anil Galgali on Thursday said that actor and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Hema Malini, who is caught in a land allotment controversy, must pay compensation for the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Act violation while developing Versova plot which was earlier allotted to her. "A lot of environmental damage has already been done to the land. There was also the violation of Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Act. The Maharashtra Government should take compensation from Hema Malini while developing Versova plot which was earlier allotted to her," Galgali told ANI. "The amount of Rs.10 lakhs that have been submitted by her should not be given back by the state government because whenever this kind of land is allotted; there is a condition that the land is not damaged," he added. He also accused the state government of being liberal to Hema Malini as she is a BJP MP. A fresh RTI query revealed that the actress allegedly violated the CRZ Act by destroying mangroves on a plot previously given to her at Versova, for which a notice was served to her in 1998. Hema Malini has, however, contended that an unnecessary row was being kicked up over the matter as she had already said that she would return the land at Versova once she takes possession of the land recently allotted to her. The actress-turned-politician is already facing heat from the Opposition for securing a prime piece of land measuring 2000 sq metres for her dance academy in Andheri for a throwaway price of Rs. 70,000. (ANI) Kerala's ruling Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) is "supremely confident" of retaining power in assembly elections this year, Revenue and Coir Minister Adoor Prakash said on Wednesday. "The Congress will be back in power. We are supremely confident," the minister told IANS on the sidelines of the Coir Kerala 2016 event here, rejecting suggestions that the UDF was on the back foot. Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has been hit by allegations from one of the key accused in what is widely known as the "solar scam" ahead of the polls, prompting opposition calls that Chandy must quit. Prakash insisted that this would not affect the UDF's prospects in the electoral battle in which the main foe of the Congress would be the Left Democratic Front (LDF) led by the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M). He said the government had undertaken several major and numerous small developmental projects in the past few years, including the Kochi Metro and the Kannur airport, and all of them had won widespread admiration. "Our chief minister has also repeatedly toured each and every one of the 140 assembly constituencies, talking and interacting with people," he said. "The people of Kerala know the CM very well. I don't think the allegations (hurled against him) will in any way affect him or the Congress or the UDF. We are going to come back to power," Prakash said. He blamed the CPI-M for the allegations of corruption levelled at Chandy. "The CPI-M is managing all this. It is their drama. But it won't work." Prakash, who is considered close to the chief minister, said the coming together of the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam - the traditional Dalit voice in Kerala - and the Bharatiya Janata Paty (BJP) "will not have much impact" in the elections. In recent years, the BJP has been trying hard to become a key player in Kerala's electoral politics which has been traditionally dominated by the Congress-led UDF and the LDF. Kerala also happens to be the only major state in the country where the BJP has never won an assembly or Lok Sabha seat. The BJP is determined to break the jinx. Prakash countered that this won't be possible. "In Kerala, people don't appreciate communal politics. That is why the BJP is only a bit player in this state. It will remain like that." In the last assembly election in 2012, the Congress ended up as the second largest party in the 140-member assembly after the CPI-M but it managed to form the UDF government. Prakash was asked if the Congress would be able to topple the CPI-M from the top slot this year. Sounding somewhat evasive, the minister told IANS: "I am sure about one thing. Our coalition will come to power again." (M.R. Narayan Swamy can be contacted at narayan.swamy@ians.in) --Indo-Asian News Service mr/hs ( 491 Words) 2016-02-04-10:09:35 (IANS) Defense Secretary Ash Carter on Wednesday said the U.S. Navy would buy more high-end submarines, destroyers, fighter jets and unmanned underwater vehicles in coming years, using $8 billion saved by scaling back orders for smaller, less capable Littoral Combat Ships. Carter said the Pentagon's five-year budget plan also included $2.9 billion to modify Raytheon Co's new SM-6 missiles for use as powerful anti-ship weapons and buy 625 more of the weapons, which are now used for missile defense. In fiscal 2017, the Navy would spend $587 million to buy 125 SM-6 missiles, according to a senior defense official. Secret testing last month had proven the Navy's ability to use the new Raytheon missiles as offensive anti-ship weapons, Carter told sailors at the Navy's massive San Diego base. The move will dramatically bolster the military capabilities of the U.S. warships that carry them at a time when China and other countries are rapidly developing anti-ship weapons. Carter embarked on a three-day tour of U.S. military bases on Tuesday after providing a preview of the Obama administration's $582.7 billion fiscal 2017 defense budget ahead of the formal rollout next week. The Pentagon's budget reshapes spending priorities to reflect a new strategic environment marked by a return to greater power competition from Russia and China, and other threats such as Iran, North Korea and Islamic States. Carter said the Pentagon's five-year plan would fund nine Virginia-class submarines and 10 DDG-51 destroyers over the next five years. Both ships are built by Huntington Ingalls and General Dynamics Corp. He said the Navy would also buy 13 more Lockheed Martin Corp F-35 fighter jets than planned over the next five years - 10 for the Navy and three for the Marine Corps - as well as 16 more Boeing Co F/A-18E/F fighters. It would also spend $600 million over the next five years to buy variable-size payload unmanned underwater vehicles. Carter defended his plan to truncate orders of the two-model Littoral Ship program at 40 ships instead of 52, saying the current security environment demanded more sophisticated capabilities. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus had argued forcefully for the larger fleet of LCS ships, which are designed for surface and anti-submarine warfare, as well as mine-hunting missions. U.S. officials said the Navy would buy two LCS ships in fiscal 2017, with orders dropping to one a year in subsequent years. Lockheed and Australia's Austal build two different models of the LCS ships. REUTERS PS PR0455 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0352-572284.Xml Australia batsman George Bailey has hit back at reports he was to blame for the non-referral howler that saw David Warner's wicket thrown away and hastened his team's slide to a record 159-run defeat against New Zealand at Eden Park.Opening batsman Warner was dismissed lbw during Wednesday's first one-day international and after a chat with non-striker Bailey, elected to walk rather than employ the Decision Review System (DRS).The ball-tracking technology showed the delivery flying well clear of the stumps and Warner bashed his bat into his pad in annoyance as he trudged off the ground.The wicket left Australia on 39 for three in pursuit of 308 for victory and was the catalyst for a batting collapse that saw another three wickets tumble for the addition of only two runs as the visitors were eventually dismissed for just 148.Bailey did the rounds of Australian talk radio shows on Thursday and said Warner had actually ignored his advice."I said, 'What did it feel like?' And he said, 'High'. So I said, 'Go for it'. And he turned around and walked off," Bailey told Melbourne radio station RSN."So, I don't really know what more he wants from my end."Bailey said Warner had also remonstrated with him later in the dressing room."He said, 'I wasn't that confident in what you said'. I said I'm not really sure what you're after. I can't be any more explicit than saying 'go for it'," he added.Batsmen generally seek help with referrals for lbw decisions given the non-striker has a better view of deliveries but Bailey said the onus should not be on the player at the other end."You know, I reckon, if you're out or even if it's close and it's up to you to make that call," he told Melbourne radio station SEN.The three-match one-day international series moves on to Wellington on Saturday with the sides also scheduled to play two tests.REUTERS CJ RAI1036 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0400-572353.Xml Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has sought a report from Karnataka government on the assault on a Tanzanian student in Bengaluru, Senior Congress leader and AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh said today. In a series of posts on his twitter account this morning, Mr Singh said, ''Strongly condemn Incident with the Tanzanian Lady in Bangalore. Police must act strongly against the culprits. Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately.'' According to reports, a 21-year-old Tanzanian girl was allegedly stripped, assaulted and paraded naked by a mob in Bengaluru on Sunday, while local police stood as mute bystanders. The reports said the woman's car was also torched and her four friends were beaten up too. The mob was reportedly incensed after another car driven by a Sudanese youth ran over and killed a 35-year-old local. The 21-year-old Tanzanian, who is doing her Bachelor of Business Management course, was dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends. The car was stopped by the mob shortly after they reached the accident spot on Sunday night, according to All African Students Union in Bengaluru. UNI AR RSA 1115 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0400-572404.Xml Maharashtra Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao has asked Minister for Education and Culture to consider screening of short films and documentaries containing social message through schools and colleges in the State. Mentioning that short films and documentaries have the power to transform society, he felt that screening of such films in educational institutions would make learning comprehensive as well as entertaining for students.The Governor was speaking at the concluding ceremony of the week-long Mumbai International Film Festival of short, animation and documentaries at Ravindra Natya Mandir yesterday. Addressing the gathering of filmmakers from different countries, the Governor said India needs a young generation of film produces who are ready to experiment and innovate. He said the nation needs filmproducers from all parts of the country as according to him, together they will bring out the beauty, peculiarity and diversity of the nation and its people. The Governor asked the Films Division to work closely with media departments of Universities in Maharashtra and sought the help of Films Division and FTII in starting Film Appreciation Programmes inall universities. The Governor asked Doordarshan to keep a fixed time slot of one hour for screening the best of short films and documentaries from across the world. He also expressed the need to encourage more women to become documentary and short film makers.UNI NP RSA 0904 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0171-572149.Xml Though assembly elections in Uttar Pradesh are a year away, the small parties that have influence in select pockets, are in high demand as bigger outfis want an alliance with them. The Janata Dal (U) that had harvested dramatic gains in Bihar elections after forging a grand alliance, has already shown its inclination to ink a deal with Rashtriya Lok Dal of Ajit Singh. JD (U) chief Sharad Yadav who was recently in Lucknow, had declared that his party would support RLD in byelections slated for March 3. It is not only the RLD even smaller parties like Apna Dal, the faction headed by Krishna Patel, wife of Sonelal Patel, the Peace Party of Dr Ayub and even the Kaumi Ekta Dal of jailed legislator Mukhtar Ansari are destined to harvest a rich dividends in this election. Another small party Bharatiya Samaj Party formed by former BSP law maker Om Prakash Rajbhar is willing to ally with any party. All these parties though small, hold influence in select pockets. If RLD is strong in western UP, the Peace Party has a sizeable support group in Gorakhpur and adjoining areas. Similarly, Mukhtar Ansaris Ekta Dal enjoys support of Muslims in Mau and Azamgarh belt. Ditto is the case with Bharatiya Samaj party that revolves around Rajbhars and Apna Dal that gets its power from Kurmis in Mirzapur-Allahabad belt. A senior Samajwadi Party leader said that no party will be able to cross the magic number independently. Though Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav has said that the Samajwadi Party wants to go alone, it will not hesitate to forge alliance with like minded parties. One thing is quite sure that SP would not be a part of grand alliance, if it ever comes up in UP. It would be feasible for the party to enter into an alliance with small but those parties who eat into SPs vote bank. The parties like Kaumi Ekta Dal, Bharatiya Samaj Party, Peace Party and Apna Dal could be good allies, he said. He said these parties are vote katwa (vote cutting) party and will hit SP in the elections. Any alliance with these parties will bolster partys chances in western UP. ''The BJP on the other hand will be forced to go alone. It is politically ostracised in UP. It does not have a natural ally though it contested Lok Sabha election with the support of Apna Dal (Anupriya) faction,'' analysts say. The Congress could be the main gainer in this whole drama. It could be part of grand alliance with Janata Dal (U) and RLD other partners. We have not taken a call now. The party leadership has declared that we will go alone. We are in a good footing why should we look for an alliance, Mahroof Khan, a senior Congress leader said. But this is not the last word. The situation may change soon.UNI MB RSA 1121 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0196-572388.Xml Acting on the specific inputs and receiving certain complaints that three people were selling fake lottery tickets of Arunachal Pradesh and Bhutan Government, police party from Bakshi Nagar area last night conducted a raid in a hotel and arrested the trio. The arrested people used to sell fake lottery tickets on huge amounts by alluring the innocent people and were active in the city from last couple of months, police here today said. The accused were identified as Surender Kumar, 40, Subash Chander, 44, and Amit Makkar, 33 all residents of Sriganga Nagar Rajasthan. A case under relevant sections has been registered and investigations started, police added.UNI VBH CJ RSA 1253 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0400-572572.Xml : The students Union of the English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU) would hold protest from today against disciplinary action on 11 students for being part of a peaceful protest demanding elections to the Students Union in October. The Union is also demanding revocation of disciplinary action against eleven students by the university in November. The student community had organised a series of peaceful rallies and cultural activities protesting against silencing of democratic rights through show-cause notices and disciplinary actions, and the delay in conducting elections to the Students Union, the Union said in a release here today. The University took action against 11 students on November 5 accusing them of "inciting violence on campus" and "engaging in anti-university activities. The hostel admission of eight students had been cancelled and three students were reprimanded, and apart from that, the fellowship of 4 Ph.D. scholars had been suspended. The students were not even summoned by the Proctorial Board that took action against them, nor was any proof furnished against them for the crimes they are accused of. Even after repeated requests for a review of the unjust decision, the University has not yet done anything, and the students, including two girls, were forced to take refuge at the residences of their friends. As the grievances are not yet addressed by the University, the student community, under the leadership of the Union, has decided to sleep in the open from today, protesting against denial of natural justice. The students have also decided to stage a rally within the campus at 1700 hrs today, and the Union would continue to protest, till disciplinary action is withdrawn, the release added.UNI KNR KVV ADB 1250 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0414-572558.Xml A delegation led by Ms Kathleen Wynne, Premier of Ontario and H Wade MacLauchlan, Premier of Prince Edward Island of Canada, has conveyed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi that over the past year Canadian businesses and investors, including various Canadian pension funds, have shown enhanced interest and confidence in India. This was evident from the ''strong participation from Canada'' in the two-day India investment Summit being held from today. The Premiers of Ontario and the Prince Edward Island, who called on the PM yesterday, expressed deep appreciation and support for the initiatives launched by the Union Government in the fields of manufacturing, skill, infrastructure development, renewable energy, urban renewal, waste management, education and agriculture. Responding, the PM said that India too attached high priority to its relations with Canada. His own visit to Canada in April 2015, which was the first bilateral visit of an Indian PM after a gap of nearly 42 years, and subsequent developments in bilateral relations have highlighted the synergy and complementarities between the two countries in various fields. Mr Modi conveyed his warm greetings to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and expressed confidence that his visit to India later this year would provide an opportunity to further deepen the strategic partnership between the two countries, an official statement here said.UNI SD RSA 1356 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0005-572653.Xml Announcing the award, Jawaharlal Nehru Nehru Educational and Cultural Academy Chairman V Abdul Razak and General Convener M Prakasan said Mohanan has been chosen for the award for his contribution towards empowerment of marginalized section of people. Janata Dal (U) State President and former Union Minister M P Veerendra Kumar would present the award, carrying a purse of Rs 10,000, plaque and citation, at a function here on February 12, they said. Senior Congress leader M K Raghavan, MP would formally inaugurate the academy, they added.UNI PCH KVV ADB1350 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0328-572643.Xml The Supreme Court today refused to hear a plea seeking a direction to Delhi's three civic bodies to take steps to address the ongoing strike by the MCD employees.While refusing to hear their plea, the apex court bench, headed by the Chief Justice of India (CJI) Tirath Singh Thakur, said, "Go to the High Court."The SC said so after the lawyer for the petitioner, Rahul Birla, told the court that the Delhi High Court has adjourned the hearing without passing any directions to the civic body.CJI Thakur told the petitioner's counsel, "Why do you file such petitions. Go to the High Court." The petitioner, in his plea, had moved the apex court and said the Delhi High Court's attitude in this case was soft and thus, wanted the Supreme Court to intervene.Yesterday, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had announced a loan of Rs 551 crore for payment of salaries to striking workers of two municipal corporations in the national capital and urged them to call off their strike.UNI XC SA RSA 1305 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0400-572590.Xml Police confirmed that an First Information Report (FIR) has been registered against producer Suresh Mehta, but he is absconding since the FIR was lodged. In her statement the model said, she was touched by Mehta since long time and one fine day he called her at a five-star hotel under the pretext to offer a role in a picture. There he offered her a glass of alcohol and tried to rape her, it stated. Police has launched a manhunt for Mehta, sources added. UNI ST RB RSA RAI1310 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0169-572507.Xml Uttar Pradesh State Election Commission (SEC) has made all arrangements for a free and fair block pramukh elections in 816 blocks of the state on February 7. With charges of misuse of official machinery and use of muscle and money power to purchase out the voters, State Chief Election Commissioner S K Agarwal today said that nominations would be filed tomorrow from 1100 hrs to 1500 hrs and thereafter scrutiny of the papers would take place. Mr Agarwal told UNI here said candidates can withdraw their nominations on February 6 from 1100 hrs to 1500 hrs. Polling would be held between 1100 hrs to 1500 hrs on February 7 and counting of votes would be taken up immediately thereafter. Mr Agarwal said that after yesterday's Allahabad High Court ruling now the elections of the Block Pramukhs of three assembly segments, where bypolls would be held on March 3, will also be held on February 7. Polling for the block pramukh would be held in 74 districts of the state, except in Allahabad and Chitrakoot districts, where the polling would be held on February 10 due to religious issue. There are 77576 block panchayat members who would vote in the elections but there would be several blocks where the candidates would be elected unopposed. The highest number of block pramukhs would be 22 in Azamgarh district followed by 21 in Jaunpur and 20 in Allahabad while the lowest would be four each in Ghaziabad and Mahabo districts. Meanwhile opposition parties have charged the ruling Samajwadi Party with misusing official machinery to influence the elections. There are also reports of candidates distributing money and other things to woo the voters. Earlier the SEC has ordered a probe into the alleged phone threatening by UP tourism minister Om Prakash Singh received by a probable candidates of the block pramukh.UNI MB RSA NS1312 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0196-572415.Xml The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), through its letter dated October 8, 2015, sought the governor's sanction to prosecute Chavan under Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code after "fresh incriminating material" was allegedly found against Chavan. Chavan is currently a Lok Sabha member from Maharashtra and chief of the state unit of the Congress party. CBI included a report by a two-member Commission of Inquiry, comprising Justice J.A. Patil (retd) and former chief secretary P. Subramanian, besides Bombay High Court observations in a criminal revision application filed in 2014. Accordingly, Rao granted the sanction to prosecute Chavan under Section 197 of CrPC and Sections 120-B and 420 of the Indian Penal Code in the Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society case. The Maharashtra cabinet, at a meeting last week presided over by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, recommended to the governor to accord the sanction. In its report, the commission of inquiry had indicted four former chief ministers -- Chavan, late Vilasrao Deshmukh, Sushilkumar Shinde and Shivajirao Nilangekar-Patil, also revenue minister at the relevant time -- besides several top bureaucrats and other officials for their role in the high-profile scam. The commission was set up in January 2011. However, its report and recommendations were rejected by the then Congress-Nationalist Congress Party government in December 2013. --Indo-Asian News Service qn/tsb/dg ( 260 Words) 2016-02-04-14:55:36 (IANS) A sessions court on Thursday awarded death to two collegians guilty of kidnapping and killing an eight-year-old schoolboy here two years ago. Sessions court principal judge Kishore K. Sonawane pronounced the death verdict against Rajesh D. Davare (19) and his friend Arvind A. Singh (23) amidst a charged atmosphere outside the court, where thousands of people were present. The duo -- B.Com. students at the city's PWS College of Arts and Commerce -- was charged with the kidnapping and brutal killing of the schoolboy, Yug Chandak, by inflicting about 26 wounds on his body, which was recovered from a remote place here a day after the murder on September 1, 2014. A third accused -- the 17-year-old brother of one of the two killers, who was a co-conspirator in the crime -- has been sent to a juvenile remand home. The victim's father, Mukesh Chandak, a noted medico, welcomed the judgment and said "this will serve as a strong message to society". "We welcome the ruling and are satisfied that justice has been done; our child will not return, but it will prevent such crimes in future. This will serve as a strong message to society," an emotional Chandak reacted to media persons. On Wednesday, Principal Judge Sonawane found the duo guilty under Indian Penal Code Sections 302 (murder), 364A (kidnapping for ransom), 201 (destroying evidences) and 120B (criminal conspiracy), for their first ever criminal offence. The order on the quantum of punishment was reserved for Thursday. Rejecting the plea by defence lawyers Pradeep Agrawal and Manmohan Upadhyay for life sentence, the court said that though it was a first offence, it was not accidental and the crime was premeditated, planned and executed calmly. "Merely because they are young in age does not reduce the seriousness of the crime," Principal Judge Sonawane ruled, adding that there was no question of leniency for the offence. The crime was apparently a revenge for the alleged humiliation meted out to Davare who worked as an accountant in Chandak's office and was accused of some financial misappropriation. Along with his accomplices, Davare planned the kidnapping and murder of the little boy. On the fateful day, Yug returned from school around 5 p.m., left his bag at the security office of the building Guruvandan Apartments, Chhapru Nagar, and went out to play. Davare and Singh lay in wait for him on a motorcycle near the gate and after speaking briefly with them, Yug also went with them. He failed to return that night and the next morning a frantic search was launched for the missing boy. After hectic investigations, the police traced Yug's body to a drainage pipe in a gutter near Lonkheri village, around 25 km on the outskirts of Nagpur. During the trial, which was one of the most keenly watched legal battles here in recent times, the prosecution examined 50 witnesses and none of them turned hostile, considered a rarity in such cases. Additional Public Prosecutor Jyoti Vajani, who did the examining of witnesses, was assisted by Chandaks' lawyer Rajendra Daga and police investigating officer Satyanarain Jaiswal. --Indo-Asian News Service qn/kb/dg ( 527 Words) 2016-02-04-15:15:36 (IANS) The government today hoped that the Budget session of Parliament, which will begin from February 23 and last till May 13, will be constructive unlike the Monsoon and the Winter sessions. A meeting of the Cabinet Committee of Parliamentary Affairs today announced that the Budget session would begin on February 23. The Railway Budget and the General Budget would be presented on February 25 and 29 respectively. The annual Economic Survey would be tabled on February 26. The first part of the Budget session will continue from February 23 to March 16 after which Parliament will go for recess till April 25, and the Budget session would come to a close on May 13. "The Budget Session of Parliament will commence on February 23. The Rail Budget will be presented on February 25, the pre-budget economic survey on February 26 and the General budget on February 29. The first part of Budget session will end on March 16 and the second part will be convened from April 25 to May 13," Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu told reporters after the meeting. Mr Naidu said that there were suggestions for curtailing the recess period due to assembly elections in five states but the government as well as political parties wanted a full session. The government hoped that unlike the previous Monsoon and the Winter sessions, the Budget session would be constructive. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the government was hopeful that this session will be constructive and positive, unlike the previous two sessions when Congress and other opposition parties stalled proceedings and blocked key reform legislation. "We are hopeful that this budget session will be constructive that will take forward the country's development and that of the poor, youth and other sections. We hope no political party will stop the progress and development on these issues. We hope the Congress will make up for the loss of the previous two sessions. We are making attempts to talk to all so that this session functions in a proper manner. We are talking to all parties, formally and informally and our attempt is that the budget session is positive and constructive," Mr Naqvi said.Though focus during the session will largely on the financial business, the government was also hoping to secure the passage of the GST Bill, a crucial bill in pursuit of its economic reforms agenda. On the other hand, the Congress will be looking to attack the government on several issues such as the suicide of Dalit scholar Rohit Vermula in the Hyderabad Central University. The Congress has been demanding the removal of Union Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya for allegedly abetting the suicide of the Dalit scholar. It has also called for action against Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani in the matter. It also planned to raise the issue of the imposition of the Presidents rule in Arunachal Pradesh.Earlier in the Winter Session, several days were washed out due to protests by Congress members over the attempts by the BJP and the Centre to topple the Congress government in Arunachal Pradesh by misusing the office of the Governor. In the morning, the government called an all-party meeting to discuss the Budget session schedule, especially in view of the coming Assembly polls in four states and one union territory.At the meeting , the opposition parties demanded that the Budget Session be not curtailed despite assembly elections in five states. Among the leaders who participated in the meet were Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma and Deepinder Singh Hooda of Congress, Sharad Yadav and K C Tyagi of JD-U, Ram Gopal Yadav of Samajwadi Party and Sitaram Yechury of CPI-M. "The Session's working days should not be curtailed. They should hold a complete recess to enable the Standing Committees to examine the budgetary allocations to various ministries," Mr Azad, the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, said. Endorsing Mr Azads views, Mr Yadav said, "There was consensus among various parties that despite the assembly elections in a few states, the number of working days of the budget session should not be reduced. But parties left it to the government for deciding the dates of recess."Mr Yechury said every year the government should come out with a calendar of Parliament sittings so that there was no confusion. "The Election Commission will then decide the dates for elections knowing when Parliament is sitting. The Prime Minister will also know about the sittings and will remain in House and not be abroad," he said.UNI AR SW 1454 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0092-572785.Xml The Tamil Nadu Government has so far received an amount of Rs 338.77 crore from various companies and institutions to provide relief to the people in the flood affected districts of the State. An official release here said Rs 18.87 crore was given as relief to the Chief Minister's Public Relief Fund by various companies today. While Larsen and Toubro provided a relief of Rs 10.80 crore, the Indian Overseas Bank (IOB) donated Rs 4.18 crore, IDBI Bank Rs 1.25 crore, the Tiruchirapalli-based Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) as part of one day salary of its staff contributed Rs 1.63 crore and Bank of India Rs one crore. L and T Joint Managing Director and Chairman S N Subramanian, IOB Managing Director and CEO R Koteeswaran, IDBI Chief General Manager and Zonal Chairman (South) Rabi Naraynan Panda, BHEL Executive Dircector S Gopinath and Bank of India Executive Director R A Sankaranaarayanan met Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa at the State Secretariat and handed over the relief amount to her. With this, a sum of Rs 338.77 crore was given to the Chief Minister's Public Relief Fund towards relief and rehabilitation measures to the people in flood-affected districts.UNI GV KVV AK 1535 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0414-572879.Xml Indian Electronic System Design andManufacturing industry which has launched a plan to achieve USD400 billion Make in India ESDM opportunity has a fairly bigchallenge to meet, Nirmala Seetharaman, Union Minister of State forCommerce & Industry said today. Speaking at the IESA Vision Summit 2016 here, the minister said there waslack of balance between demand and supply of electronics in Indiaand this is a serious concern. ''Electronics is the third biggest import after crude oil andgold. There are only 3,500 electronics manufacturing units andtherefore the need to set up more units in India for reaching zeroimport. The National Electronics Policy calls for USD 100 billioninvestments in this sector, which will result in 28 Mn jobs. But,between 2000 and 2014-15, we have had only USD 1.53 billioninvestments coming in this sector, while 100 per cent FDI in thissector has been given,'' Ms Nirmala said. ''Manufacturing is the second 5 year plan and the government triedto address it through National Manufacturing Policy. However,presently its contribution to GDP is only 12 per cent - 14 per cent.Services sector contributes to 50 per cent GDP but that is notcreating jobs. Manufacturing contribution should be 25 per cent by 2022.'' ''We are hopeful National Knowledge Network, National OpticalFibres, Digitization program, Broadband push, will generate moredemand and employability. Startups today are looking at applicationbased technology to facilitate the consumer. Space technology, R&Dtowards core Science, Physics based Science, Earth Science are theareas where India has strengths. Technology needs to come theretoo,'' she added. India Electronics and Semiconductor Association (IESA),representing the Indian Electronic System Design and Manufacturing(ESDM), today concluded IESA Vision Summit 2016, its annual industryleadership Conclave, with an Action Plan for achieving the USD 400Bn Make in India ESDM opportunity. The Action plan constitutes of 4 components- Talent Development,Strengthen Startup Ecosystem, Industry-Academia involvement and IP Creation.MORE UNI RS MSP KVV ADB 1525 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0285-572830.Xml Long cherished dream of Kannada film industryfor a Film City in the City of Palaces will become a reality soon asthe Karnataka Government has handed over the land to the Departmentof Information and Public Relations, Karnataka Chalanachitra AcademyChairman S V Rajendra Babu said today. Speaking to newspersons here, he observed that ''Mysuru is mostsuitable for developing film city vis-a-vis Bengaluru. BeforeBangalore became the hub of Kannada cinema activities, it was Mysuruwhich was the centre of film production, thanks to the presence offilm studios such as Navajyothi and Premier.'' Mr Babu also confirmed that handing over the land process wasalready over and the Film City would come up on Private PublicParticipation (PPP) model. This is expected to be a giant leap inpromoting the Kannada film industry. The process of PPP will beidentified shortly with preparing design for the project and globaltenders will be called for the execution. In the first phase it required Rs 150 crore and the proposedFilm City will be the state of the art with all facilities,including the present day trend of digitalisation in a one roof. He said a single plot of land measuring about 100 acres has beenidentified near Kodakola, about 15 km from Mysuru off the NationalHighway 212, for establishing the Film City. The Department ofTourism had requested the district administration to find an stretchof land for setting up the Film City, which would become a one-stopdestination for film making, in and around Mysuru. Also, land forthe proposed Tourist Facilitation Centre, a one-stop destination for tourists where facilities such as tickets fortourist spots, taxi hiring and so on were available under one roof, has been identified in Mysuru. Mr Babu said Mysuru has best spots for the film shooting and more than 250 places around the city with in the radius of ten km, besides it has as many as 16 palaces. Speaking on the ongoing International Film Festival in Bangaluru and Mysuru, he said, the festival received tremendous response in both the cities. The award presentation and valedictory ceremony of the festival will be held for the first time in the film industry in front of Mysore Palace tomorrow.UNI BSP MSP KVV AK 1540 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0285-572851.Xml According to police Arora who was coming towards Basti Jodhewal Chowk from Jalandhar by-pass in his car when two motorcycle-borne men shot at him and fled. In this incident the Shiv Sena leader received injuries in the neck and was rushed to Christian Medical College and Hospital (CMCH), while his gunman escaped unhurt. Meanwhile, a case of attempt to murder has been registered against the unidentified persons. However, the police are looking for the CCTV footage in the area to identify the accused. Meanwhile, Punjab Shiv Sena chief Rajiv Tandon has condemned the attack and demanded the arrest of the culprits. UNI NC SW NS1535 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-572831.Xml As Indian Navy is set to hold its second International Fleet Review (IFR), an offshore patrol vessel, INS Sumitra, has been converted to serve as the presidential yatch from which the supreme commander of the armed forces, President Pranab Mukherjee will inspect the fleet. INS Sumitra is the fourth and last of the Saryu class patrol vessel of the Indian Navy, designed and constructed by Goa Shipyard Limited. It is designed to undertake fleet support operations, coastal and offshore patrolling, ocean surveillance and monitoring of sea lines of communications and offshore assets and escort duties. The vessel was also involved in the rescue operations from Yemen during Operation Rahat in the wake of fighting between government forces and tribal rebels. The vessel rescued 350 Indian citizens by evacuating them from Aden to Djibouti across the Red Sea. With the Ashoka emblem on her side and flying the President's Standard on the mast, the yatch is set to stand out amidst the scores of lined-up ships. For the IFR, the upper deck of the ship has been modified to host the VVIP guests along with the president. Some changes have also been made in the interior of the ship, and an operation theater and a cardio lab have been set up along with other medical facilities. On February 6, the president will board the yacht after a 21-gun salute and a ceremonial guard of honour. The presidential yacht will weave through the 90 ships planned to be part of the fleet review off the Visakhapatnam port. As the yacht passes between the review columns, each ship, flying its full regalia, will salute the president. Along the way, the president will also witness operational demonstrations in the form of a breathtaking flypast by the naval air arm and a daring display by the elite marine commandoes. The skills of the yachtsmen of Indian Navy embodying the spirit of adventure will also be on display. During the final stage of the review, a mobile column of warships and submarines will stage a high-speed steam-past alongside the yacht. Handed over to the Indian Navy on July 18, 2014, INS Sumitra is one of its newest ships, commissioned into the fleet by the Indian Navy chief, Admiral R.K. Dhowan, on September 4, 2014 in Chennai. Under the Eastern Naval Command, the ship is commanded by Commander Milind Mokashi. INS Sumitra was diverted from her anti-piracy patrol in the Lakshadweep region to join the operation while Saudi Arabia-led forces were conducting air strikes against Iranian-backed Houthi rebels. --Indo-Asian News Service ao/vm ( 452 Words) 2016-02-04-16:06:17 (IANS) Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar today said that the state government has set a target to have funds to the tune of Rs 100 crore under Haryana Kanya Kosh and he would appeal all the registered companies in the state to contribute at least one per cent of their profit for the same as their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Mr Khattar while presiding over the first meeting of Governing Body of Haryana Kanya Kosh Society here said those who would make maximum contribution to the HKK would be honoured by the state. The Haryana Kanya Kosh aims at providing funds and other inputs for the implementation of Aapki Beti Humari Beti Scheme and other programmes and schemes being implemented for the welfare of girl child. Mr Khattar said that he would urge all these companies to come forward and donate liberally to the Haryana Kanya Kosh and ensure educational and nutritional development of girls. Reiterating the commitment of the state government for the welfare of girls, the Chief Minister said that the government is creating an environment in which the girls are provided with equal opportunities. Therefore, he said that at the launch of Beti Bachao Beti Padhao Programme by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Panipat on January 22, 2015, he had announced to set up Haryana Kanya Kosh. The CM said the Prime Minister had, during his recent Mann Ki Baat programme, also appreciated the Haryana Government for promoting the cause of the girl child by giving the honour of hoisting the National Flag in the rural areas on Republic Day to the most educated girl in the village. Mr Modi also appreciated the efforts made for effective implementation of the Beti Padhao-Beti Bachao programme which has resulted in record increase in the sex ratio, he added. UNI NC JN GC1702 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-573018.Xml MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup said that a team, which included the Tanzanain High Commissioner, was being sent to Bengaluru tomorrow, to get the first hand information. The safety and security of all Tanzanian students would be ensured, he said, adding that the. case had been handed over to the crime branch. A 21-year-old Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob who mistook her for being an associate of a Sudanese national involved in an accident in which a local woman was mowed down by a car. External Affairs Minister Minister Suyshma Swaraj had yesterday expressed pain over the incident and sought a report from Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.UNI PRA NAZ SW 1804 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0091-573407.Xml The government today hoped that the Budget Session of Parliament, which will begin from February 23 and last till May 13, will be constructive unlike the Monsoon and the Winter sessions . A meeting of the Cabinet Committee of Parliamentary Affairs today announced that the Budget session would begin on February 23.Addressing reporters after the CCPA meeting, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu said the Budget Session will begin from February 23 and will continue till May 13, subject to exigencies of government business with recess from March 17 till April 24, 2016 to enable the department-related Standing Committees examine the Budget proposals of different ministries and departments.Mr Naidu said the session opens with the address of President Pranab Mukherjee to the Members of both the Houses at a joint sitting in the Central Hall of Parliament on February 23. The Railway Budget and the General Budget would be presented on February 25 and February 29 respectively. The annual Economic Survey would be tabled on February 26. The first part of the Budget session will continue from February 23 to March 16 after which Parliament will go for recess till April 24, and the Budget session would come to a close on May 13. Mr Naidu said there were suggestions for curtailing the recess period due to assembly elections in five states but the government as well as political parties wanted a full session. Budget session will have a total of 31 sittings spread over a total duration of 81 days. The Minister added that this year, the Budget session will run full course with recess in between unlike in 2011 when the recess was done away with on account of Assembly elections in five states that are going to the polls this year also. These states are Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, West Bengal and Assam. Besides Mr Naidu, Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Finance Minister Arun Jaitely, Minorities Affairs Minister Najma Heptuallah, Food and Civil Supplies Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Zubin Irani and Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi attended the CCPA meeting. The Government hoped that unlike the previous Monsoon and Winter sessions, the Budget session would be constructive.Mr Naqvi said the government was hopeful that this budget session will be constructive and positive, unlike the previous two sessions when Congress and other opposition parties stalled proceedings and blocked key reform legislations."We are hopeful that this budget session will be constructive that will take forward the country's development and that of the poor, youth and other sections. We hope no political party will stop the progress and development on these issues. We hope the Congress party will make up for the loss of the previous two sessions. We are making attempts to talk to all so that this session functions in a proper manner. We are talking to all parties, formally and informally and our attempt is that the budget session is positive and constructive," Mr Naqvi said.Though focus during the session will largely on the financial business, the government is also hoping to secure the passage of the GST Bill, a crucial bill in pursuit of its economic reforms agenda. Ratification of Ordinance relating to Presidents Rule in Arunachal Pradesh and passing of a Bill in respect of Ordinance regarding Enemy Properties will be taken up on priority during the session. On the other hand, the Congress will be looking to attack the government on several issues such as the suicide of Dalit scholar Rohith Vermula in the Hyderabad Central University. The Congress has been demanding the removal of Union Labour Minister Bandaru Dattatreya for allegedly abetting the suicide of the Dalit scholar. It has also called for action against Ms Irani in the matter. It also planned to raise the issue of the imposition of the Presidents rule in Arunachal Pradesh. During the Winter session, several days were washed out due to protests by the Congress members over the attempts by the BJP and the Centre to topple the Congress government in Arunachal Pradesh by misusing the office of the Governor. Earlier in the morning, the government called an all-party meeting to discuss the Budget session schedule, especially in view of the coming Assembly polls in four states and one union territory.More UNI AR SW 1529 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0092-573189.Xml With the Tamil Nadu Assembly polls three to four months away, a high-level Election Commission (EC) teamwill visit the State and the neighbouringUnion Territory of Puducherry hold discussions with political parties and top officials from February nine to 11. According to Chief Electoral Officer Rajesh Lakhoni, the EC team led by Chief Election Commissioner Naseem Zaidi, will hold a meeting with representatives of political parties in Puducherryon February nine. He would hold a similar meeting with representatives of political parties here on February 10. This will be followed by meetings with top officials, including the Chief Secretary and Director General of Police, the following day. During the meetings, the EC will seek the views of the stakeholders based on whichthe polling dates would be decided. Since the elections would be held in five States (Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Assam,West Bengal and Kerala) at the same time, the EC would take into consideration the availability of central forces while deciding the poll schedule. The EC will also taken into account the ensuing festivals, weather conditions and school examinations while working out the schedule. The EC has already visited West Bengal and Assam to take stock of poll preparedness in the two States. UNI GV VV AK1715 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0415-573179.Xml The Hyderabad Karnataka Chamber of Commerceand Industry (HKCCI) has strongly opposed the proposal by theGulbarga Electricity Supply Company (GESCOM) before the KarnatakaElectricity Regulatory Commission (KERC) seeking a power tariff hikeby Rs 1.02 paise per unit for consumers of all categories. In an affidavit submitted before the KERC, copy of which wasreleased to the press here, HKCCI Energy Sub-Committee Chairman Mr Ramulu said that the GESCOM, instead of initiating measures toreduce power transmission and distribution losses, was seekingtariff hike and shifting the burden to the consumer. He said that power transmission and distribution losses was about18 per cent, while the KERCs rule puts it at 15 per cent. Thecompany has miserably failed in its primary duty of supplyingquality power and frequent power sheding has affected the industrialproduction in the region. The GESCOM has no moral right to seek theKERCs permission to increase the tariff since it failed to provideround the clock power to industries. It has also failed to arrestpilferage of power due to its inefficient handling of powersituation and was passing on the loss to the consumers and coveringup their inefficiency. The HKCCI said that uniform tariff was collected from allcategories of consumers as in the case of telephone tariff, fuelcharges and in consumer items like milk. They stated that by doingaway with subsidies in power supply to various categories ofconsumers, the GESCOM can do away with the practice of seekingannual increase in power tariff.UNI SD MSP VV 1746 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0285-573135.Xml Seven executives at CITIC Securities Co Ltd , one of China's biggest brokerages, have returned to either work or their homes after they were involved in investigations by Chinese authorities. An announcement by CITIC on Thursday comes after domestic financial media Caixin reported that five senior managers at CITIC Securities had returned to the company after reportedly assisting with government probes into insider trading. "The company is operating normally," CITIC Securities said in a brief statement on the Shanghai stock exchange. The seven executives named in the statement were either being investigated or assisting in the probe, said the brokerage, which reported a loss of 607.7 million yuan ($92.40 million) in January following China's recent market rout. After China's stock market turmoil last summer, the country's regulators launched a wide-ranging crackdown on perceived causes of the crash, which included probes into brokerages for suspected illegal trading practices. Last September, CITIC disclosed an investigation by the police into senior managers for alleged market manipulation. Caixin named the executives who returned to CITIC as General Director Xu Gang, Chief Financial Officer Ge Xiaobo, Financial Markets Management Committee Director Liu Wei and the heads of the investment banking and international investment banking units Chen Jun and Yan Jianlin. In the statement on Thursday, CITIC named the five executives and two others - Qi Shuguang and Chen Rongjie, though it did not elaborate on details of the investigations. However, CITIC's statement did not mention Cheng Boming, general manager of CITIC Securities, and Fang Qingli, the financial business head, Fang Qingli, both of whom Caixin said had yet to return to the company. Officials at the Ministry of Public Security were not immediately available for comment. All the executives named in the Caixin report could not be reached for comment. CITIC said in an exchange filing in September that Cheng was under police investigation. In a separate filing in December, CITIC said it was unable to contact Chen Jun and Yan Jianlin. ($1 = 6.5771 Chinese yuan renminbi) REUTERS JW BL1843 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0364-573596.Xml Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal today said the victory of the SAD in the Khadoor Sahib bypoll would be a victory for development and would lay the foundation for an SAD-BJP win in the 2017 Assembly elections. Addressing largely attended gatherings at village Deenewal, Pakhoke, Bagrian, Pandori Golla, Sanghe, Naurangabad,Vein Puri, Tur and Pheloke, the SAD president urged the people to vote for Ravinder Singh Brahmpura to give a befitting answer to opposition parties who had chosen to run away from the fray. The SAD- BJP government, will also teach a lesson to both the Congress and AAP which has disrespected the electorate by boycotting the by poll, he said. Mr Badal lamented that all facilities be it free power to the agriculture sector, old age pension, Atta - Daal scheme, Shagun scheme and even the latest free medical insurance scheme with a cover of Rs 50,000 per annum had been initiated during SAD- BJP rule. He said soon there would be a further influx of funds in the rural areas with Rs 4,000 crore being earmarked for upgrading streets and drains in the State. Mr Badal said similarly the maximum recruitment in government jobs had occurred during SAD- BJP rule. He said in direct contrast to a total ban on government recruitment during the previous Congress government, one lakh youth had been given government jobs already by the SAD- BJP government and another 1.20 lakh would be recruited in six months. MORE UNI NC SHS SW GC1815 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-573242.Xml Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee president Capt Amarinder Singh today condemned the murderous attack on a Shiv Sena leader in Ludhiana. "Punjab cannot afford another dark era of violence and bloodshed", he warned, while stressing the need for identifying and punishing the culprits. He also apprehended that some vested interests might be trying to vitiate peace deliberate in an election year to create fear among people. The PCC president pointing out, this was second such incident in the recent past in Ludhiana as earlier some unidentified gunmen had attacked the RSS volunteers performing their morning drill. "We may and we strongly differ with the ideology of the RSS, Shiv Sena or any other such organisation, at the same time we condemn any act of violence against anyone including the members of these organisations", he added. "We must nip the evil in the bud lest it is too late", he said, while wondering why the state government had not been able to trace the culprits of the earlier attack so far. "Or someone is getting it done deliberately as we have already entered into the election year to reap the electoral harvest out of fear and communal polarisation", he asked. Ridicules Kamal Sharmas ignorance about military parade Capt Amarinder also took a dig at the BJP state president Kamal Sharma over his statement that there was no participation of Sikhs in the Republic Day parade. "Mr Sharma is speaking from his encyclopaedic ignorance about both the Republic Day parade and what I had said on the issue", he said. The PCC president clarified that he had said, had there been any contingent from Punjab, it would have provided a better idea to the French President, Francois Hollande, who was the Chief Guest on the occasion as France has banned turban in public places and strengthened our case.UNI NC SHS SW VN1947 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0293-573698.Xml The lt. governor is the administrator of Delhi and every file has to go through him, the central government told the Delhi High Court on Thursday during the hearing on a bunch of pleas over the lt. governor's powers on governance in the city. A division bench of Chief Justice G. Rohini and Justice Jayant Nath was further informed by Additional Solicitor Genral (ASG) Sanjay Jain appearing for central government that the kt. governor is the executive head of the state. Terming Delhi a centrally-administered capital, he said the chief minister and his council has to aid and advise the lt. governor, if there is a difference. "In relation to Delhi, whatever the council of minister decide that has to rotate through the lt. governor. There is no other option. "As per article 239 AA (4) of constitution of India and transaction of business rules, every file has to go through the lt.governor. In relation to Delhi, the administrator is the lt. governor and centre has to perform special role," Jain told the bench, explaining that government has to forward its every file/decision to the lt.governor and its upon the latter to agree or disagree on the issue. The court was hearing a bunch of pleas arising out of spat between the lt. governor and the Delhi government. In one of its pleas, the Delhi government challenged the May 21 notification of the central government giving the lt. governor absolute powers to appoint bureaucrats to various posts in the Delhi government and barring the Anti-Corruption Bureau from proceeding against any staff under the central government's control. --Indo-Asian News Service gt/vd ( 281 Words) 2016-02-04-21:25:33 (IANS) President Pranab Mukherjee will visit Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh from February 5 to 7, 2016 where he will witness the International Fleet Review (IFR) on February 6.The President, as the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, reviews the Indian Naval Fleet once in his/her term as part of the Presidents Fleet Review. This review aims at assuring the country of the Indian Navys preparedness, high morale and discipline. The IFR allows the host nation an occasion to display its maritime capabilities and the bridges of friendship it has built with other maritime nations.The last IFR was conducted in January 2001, off Mumbai with participation from 29 countries. The fleet review will at a much larger scale than ever done before. It will witness participation from 50 countries. UNI AR AJ 2033 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0092-573917.Xml :: An Education Expo featuring 12 top American Universities will be held this month in the City with the aim of reaching out to aspiring students who wish to pursue their education in the US. This expo will offer students the benefit of getting first hand information for undergraduate and Post graduate programs from representatives of 12 top universities from the US, according to a release here today. This program is free and open to the public and will be held on the February 10 and the US Consul in Hyderabad will begin this program with a seminar to highlight the American Visa process for aspiring students. The key highlight of this event is the merit based scholarships which are offered to both undergraduate and graduate students across all 12 universities. Merit based Scholarship on offer can range from 10,000 US dollars to full tuition fee for duration of the programme. The event is supported by US Department of commerce at the US consulate in Hyderabad.UNI KNR VV AK2042 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0415-573871.Xml The Odisha government is taking steps to improve the infrastructure for cancer care in the state by extending treatment facilities in the districts, Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak said here today. A Linear Accelerator, a modern device used to treat cancer, was installed at the Acharya Harihar Regional Cancer Centre at Cuttack recently while steps were being initiated to provide cancer screening and follow-up treatment in the districts, Mr. Nayak said while addressing a cancer survivors program held at the SOA University to mark the World Cancer Day. He said initially, the government is planning to introduce such treatment facilities including chemotherapy in ten district headquarter hospitals and it will be extended to other districts subsequently. The doctors were being trained in Delhi and Mumbai and would be posted in the districts soon, the Minister said. Patients, he further said who were being treated at the AHRCC, were being provided all cancer related drugs free of cost through Niramaya, the program launched through the Odisha State Medical Corporation Ltd (OSMCL). Mr Nayak said cancer had affected over 14 million people worldwide with around three million of them being in India alone. Around 1.2 million new patients were getting added to that list every year, he said adding the greatest need was to create awareness about the disease. Prof D K Roy, Medical Director of IMS and Sum Hospital, presided over the function which was addressed by two senior journalists Dilip Satpathy and. Chandrabhanu Patnaik, both of whom had a brush with cancer. Mr Satpathy, said the people afflicted with cancer should not think that the doctors report was a death sentence but face the situation with courage. Lauding the government for its efforts to provide drugs to cancer patients free of cost, he suggested that the facility should be extended to those under treatment in government hospitals in the districts. Besides, government and private hospitals should stress on counseling as the patients needed a huge amount of psychological boost to deal with cancer, he said. Narrating his own experience, Mr Patnaik said the person afflicted with the disease required mental strength to face the situation. But certain things in life happen because they need to happen to help us understand life, he said. Dr Roy said the IMS and Sum Hospital would be procuring a Linear Accelerator soon besides PET Scan machine and open a paediatric oncology wing.UNI DP BM DS AJ BL2031 -- (UNI) -- C-1-DL0213-573758.Xml Union Minister of State for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Giriraj Singh, who was on his two-day visit to Tripura, said, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar may be known for his clean image and non-corrupt tag but he has failed miserably in providing good governance to the people. The minister also visited the 14-year old tribal rape victim at the hospital. He was accompanied by newly appointed BJP State President Biplab Deb who provided the victims family financial assistance of Rupees fifty thousand from the party. ''Ironically, this is not the first incidence of such crime in Tripura. The Chief Minister and the government are hiding the facts about rising crimes in the state,'' Tripura BJP State In-charge Sunil Deodhar said in a statement.UNI NY AJ 2144 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0099-574045.Xml Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee (UPCC) today said if the tainted engineer-in-chief of Noida, Yadav Singh, arrested by the CBI, is grilled properly then the top families of both Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party would get in trouble.The party alleged that both the political families of the regional outfits had openly given patronage to Yadav Singh for their own benefits and said truth could be exposed if central agency brings the entire matter in ''black and white'' and initiates criminal proceedings against those who were hand-in-gloves with him.''If central bureau of investigation grills Yadav Singh properly then involvement of the top families of both SP and BSP, who siphoned off several thousands of crore rupees into their secret accounts by patronising his corrupt practices in Noida, Greater Noida and Yamuna Expressway, will come to the fore and almost all the family members will find themselves behind the bar along with him, vice-chairman of the UPCC media cell, Virendra Madan claimed here.He further alleged that BJP was having a tactical understanding with both SP and BSP, and thus the ''interrogation'' as well as `recoveries made from the tainted engineer, would always remain `secret and the saffron leaders would use it just to `blackmail both the two regional outfits to get their support in passing controversial bills in the Parliament. Meanwhile social activists Nutan Thakur, on whose Public Interest Litigation (PIL), High Court had ordered CBI probe against Yadav Singh, has now demanded that role of state senior officials should also be enquired in Singhs case. Singh, arrested by CBI yesterday, was suspended by the government on December 8, 2014 after Income Tax raided his residence and his associates in Noida and Delhi. A departmental inquiry was also underway against Singh, being conducted by chief executive officer of Noida authority. The IT raids were carried out in Delhi and NCR region in connection with sale of plots in Noida through bogus share holdings.Singh, who was appointed as the engineer-in-chief of Noida authority during BSP supremo Mayawati's regime from 2007-12 had been suspended when Samajwadi Party came to power, but was later reinstated.UNI MB PY AJ 2235 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0298-573939.Xml Strongly reacting to 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed's call to launch more Pathankot airbase like attacks, New Delhi today asked Pakistan to curb his propaganda against India if it is serious about the ties."We heard recently that the administration in Pakistan has banned the coverage of his rallies, including the television coverage. But his videos are doing the rounds. We expect Pakistan to curb his activities," the Ministry of External Affairs spokesman Vikas Swarup told mediapersons here."He is globally designated international terrorist. His claim that his many front organisations are carrying out charitable work is a fig leaf, I would say, not even a fig leaf," Mr Swarup said."Eight lakh Indian troops are committing genocide on Kashmiris. Dont they have a right to carry out Pathankot-style attacks for their defence?," Hafiz was quoted as saying in a rally in Pakistan yesterday.However, the Indian agencies believe he is trying to throw investigators off scent by trying to say the attack was a home-grown and handiwork of Kashmiris, not Pakistan based Jaish-e Mohammad.UNI PRA AJ 2309 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0384-574103.Xml The rockets were launched by the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front and slammed into government-controlled districts of Daraa, Xinhua cited SANA news agency as saying. The attack came a week after the Syrian army, backed by allied fighters of the Lebanese Hezbollah, captured the key town of Sheikh Miskeen in the countryside of Daraa. The contested city, which has seen previous battles between the rebels and the Syrian army, constitutes a supply line for the rebels who are operating in Daraa, the birthplace of Syria's nearly five years of conflict. --Indo-Asian News Service sku/ ( 123 Words) 2016-02-04-07:41:34 (IANS) Footage of one of Australia's leading television personalities has appeared in the latest Islamic State (IS) propaganda video that calls on more supporters to join their war against the West. The 12-minute video, released on Thursday morning (Australian time) on IS's underground communication network, includes vision of Australian TV host Karl Stefanovic reporting in Paris after the attacks on the French capital in November, Xinhua reported on Wednesday. Stefanovic, an Australian presenter and journalist with the Nine Network, is one of the country's most popular on-screen personalities. The 49-year-old was recording a live piece-to-camera outside the Le Carillion bar in Paris -- where more than a dozen of the 130 people were killed during the attacks -- when several loud bangs, mistaken for gun shots, sent a swarm of fearful pedestrians running down the street. The IS video, entitled "So we will give him a good life," also features still images of U.S. President Barack Obama and French President Francois Hollande, as well as other horrific images from last year's Paris attacks. It also shows footage of the attack, which IS later claimed responsibility for, on a disability center in San Bernardino, California, which killed 14 people and seriously injured 22 others in the worst mass shooting on U.S. soil since the Sandy Hook massacre in 2012. Not only has video served to boost morale of IS troops, the latest piece of propaganda shows the high life new recruits can expect when they venture to Syria's war-torn regions of Aleppo and Raqqa. However, the latest first-hand accounts contradict the video, with many reports saying the regime is struggling to hold territory in Iraq and Syria and provide troops with basic sustenance. The Nine Network declined to comment on the video. --Indo-Asian News Service sku/ ( 306 Words) 2016-02-04-08:05:55 (IANS) The aid will be distributed between the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), World Food Programme (WFO) and Australian NGOs working in the region, Xinhua news agency reported. Bishop said the government and the opposition felt compelled to assist those suffering through the "world's worst" humanitarian crisis. "Australia's assistance will help Syrian refugees and their host communities in the region access vital resources such as food, shelter and protection," she said. "This increased contribution will support civilians affected by the world's worst humanitarian crisis." About 13 million people require urgent humanitarian assistance. A further 4.6 million Syrians are refugees in neighbouring countries. An estimated 10 million people in Iraq also require urgent humanitarian support this year. "In addition to this increased humanitarian funding, the Australian government will also deploy 10 Australian Civilian Corps specialists to Lebanon and Jordan to assist UN and NGO partners deliver education, water, sanitation, camp infrastructure, logistics and protection to Syrian refugees." Bishop said a small proportion of the aid money would also be given to the UN agencies in Iraq, as they continue to help communities destroyed by the Islamic State (IS). The Australian government will also provide an additional $3.5 million for Iraq, including $1.4 million to the UN Development Programme (UNDP) to help stabilise areas of the country liberated from the IS. --Indo-Asian News Service ksk ( 263 Words) 2016-02-04-08:25:34 (IANS) According to authorities, the idea is to give employees more family time and also stimulate tourism, the China Daily reported on Wednesday. A number of provinces and municipalities across China, including Hebei, Jiangxi and Chongqing, have issued new policies, calling on companies to create 2.5-day weekends. Under the plan, government institutions, state-owned companies, joint-ventures and privately-held companies are to be given incentives to allow their workers to take off at noon on Friday before coming back to the office on Monday. The plan was announced in November 2015. In adopting the policy, the State Council, China's cabinet, says it hopes to create "favourable conditions," to give employees more family time, as well as stimulate tourism. Under the provisions, a 40-hour work-week is still required, meaning employees who get a 2.5-day weekend are going to have to make up the hours somewhere else during their week. A nation-wide, two-day weekend policy was first set into law in China in 1995. --Indo-Asian News Service ksk ( 201 Words) 2016-02-04-10:17:35 (IANS) Muhammad Rizalman, 39, who was Malaysian defence attache in Wellington when the attack occurred in May 2014, admitted to the charge in the High Court in Wellington in December 2015, Xinhua news agency reported. Rizalman would serve a nine-month home detention sentence in New Zealand. The presiding judge said Rizalman had terrified his victim and had shown a startling lack of remorse. Rizalman's lawyer said his client was in an altered mental state at the time of the incident, caused by work stress, possible depression and potential use of drugs. The case became an international incident after Rizalman was allowed to claim diplomatic immunity and return home in the wake of the offense. The revelations and ensuing scandal forced the New Zealand government to make an embarrassing request for Rizalman's extradition, which occurred in October 2014. --Indo-Asian News Service ksk/vm ( 172 Words) 2016-02-04-11:17:40 (IANS) The World Health Organization voiced concern over the reported sexual transmission of the Zika virus in Texas amid worries that such infections could make efforts to combat the virus linked to severe birth defects in Brazil even tougher. The virus, spreading quickly across the Americas, is usually transmitted by mosquitoes. But health officials in Dallas County reported on Tuesday that the first known case contracted in the United States was a person infected after having sex with somebody who had returned from Venezuela. The WHO declared a global health emergency on Monday, citing a "strongly suspected" casual relationship between Zika infection in pregnancy and microcephaly, a condition marked by abnormally small head size that can cause permanent brain damage in newborns. Health ministers from across South America gathered in Uruguay's capital, Montevideo, to discuss the public health emergency and how the region can coordinate its fight against the outbreak. There is no treatment or vaccine for Zika. Sexual transmission could add a new dimension to the threat Zika poses, but WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl stressed that "almost a 100 per cent of the cases" are transmitted by the bite of a mosquito. "This reported case in the US of course raises concerns," Hartl said at the UN agency's headquarters in Geneva. "This needs to be further investigated to understand the conditions and how often or likely sexual transmission is." But he said that for the WHO "the most important thing to do is to control people's exposure to mosquitoes." The WHO estimates as many as 4 million people could become infected in the Americas. Hartl called the Texas case only the second worldwide linked to sexual transmission, referring to media reports about a case of an American man who returned from Senegal in 2008 and is suspected of having infected his wife. The medical literature also has a case in which the virus was detected in semen. "If you swap enough bodily fluid, most viruses can probably be sexually transmitted to some extent," said Ben Neuman, a virologist at Britain's University of Reading. Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a public health emergency in four counties with travel-related cases of the Zika virus, and ordered state officials to increase mosquito control efforts in some of the southeastern US state's most heavily populated locales including Miami and Tampa. Scott directed state officials to pay special attention to mosquito spraying in residential areas. In addition, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which has urged pregnant women to consider delaying travel to locations with ongoing Zika transmissions, added Jamaica and Tonga to its travel alert. The WHO said the virus has been transmitted in at least 32 countries, from South America to the Western Pacific. Late on Tuesday, the Brazilian health ministry said the number of newborns with microcephaly it suspects are linked to the virus had increased to 4,074 as of January 30, from 3,718 a week earlier. Researchers have identified evidence of Zika infection in 17 of these cases, either in the baby or in the mother, but have not confirmed that Zika can cause microcephaly.WARNING FOR EUROPE The WHO warned member states in Europe yesterday that the risk of the virus spreading into the region increases with the onset of spring and summer. "Now is the time for countries to prepare themselves to reduce the risk to their populations," said the WHO's Europe chief, Zsuzsanna Jakab. "Every European country in which Aedes mosquitoes are present can be at risk for the spread of Zika virus disease." The Pan American Health Organization, the WHO's arm for the Americas, said it needed an estimated 8.5 million dollars to help countries in the region respond to the Zika threat. Brazilian Health Minister Marcelo Castro said US experts will travel to Brazil next week to start work on the development of a Zika vaccine and come up with a timetable for the effort. A number of drug developers and universities are attempting to produce a vaccine. Experts have said a vaccine is months or even years away. Japan's leading drugmaker Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd said it has created a team to investigate how it might help make a vaccine, a day after France's Sanofi SA said it would launch a Zika vaccine program. Pfizer Inc, Johnson and Johnson and Merck & Co Inc said they were evaluating their technologies or existing vaccines for their potential to combat Zika. Indian biotechnology company Bharat Biotech said it was working on two possible vaccines. The rising number of cases has stirred concern ahead of the Olympic Games in August in Rio de Janeiro in August when Brazil's second largest city will host tens of thousands of athletes and tourists from around the world.REUTERS PS PR0409 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0352-572272.Xml Ukrainian Economy Minister Aivaras Abromavicius quit saying his ministry was being hijacked by corrupt vested interests, dealing another blow to Western hopes that the country can reform itself. In his statement, Abromavicius singled out a close ally of President Petro Poroshenko, accusing him of blocking the ministry's work and pressing for powerful jobs for placemen, with the support of the president's office. Poroshenko later responded by urging Abromavicius to stay, adding that the anti-corruption bureau would investigate the allegations. Abromavicius's exit could derail plans to privatise around 100 state-owned companies, which were a plank of a reform programme to turn around an economy which shrank by more than a tenth last year. There has been mounting public anger that the new, pro-Western government that came to power after a pro-Russian president was toppled by protests in 2014 has not delivered on promises to stamp out corruption. The government's approval ratings have fallen sharply. Ukraine's international backers, including the United States and the European Union, have also become increasingly impatient with the slow pace of change in a country into which they have pumped billions of dollars in aid. A group of envoys, including the US, German and British representatives in Kiev, said they were "deeply disappointed" by the resignation, which also sent Ukrainian sovereign bonds tumbling. US State Department spokesman John Kirby said Abromavicius implemented tough economic policies that delivered "real reform results for Ukraine." He urged Ukraine's leaders to press ahead with those reforms but declined to speculate on the impact the resignation would have on US assistance to Kiev. Any threat of Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk's government collapsing would deeply worry Ukraine's Western partners, who have backed the coalition to keep the country from falling back into Moscow's orbit. "Neither me, nor my team have any desire to serve as a cover-up for the covert corruption, or become puppets for those who, very much like the 'old' government, are trying to exercise control over the flow of public funds," Abromavicius said in an English-language statement. Ukraine has struggled economically since the 2014 revolt, which was followed by Russia's annexation of its Crimea peninsula and by war in the east of the country against pro-Russian separatists Kiev says are supported by Moscow. Abromavicius is a Lithuanian-born former asset manager who was brought in as one of several foreign experts to help run Ukraine's new government. He said Ihor Kononenko, a senior lawmaker close to Poroshenko, had lobbied to get his people appointed as heads of state companies, culminating in an attempt to appoint one of his people as Abromavicius's deputy. A candidate showed up, demanding to be appointed, he said. After that, "I received a call from the President's Administration, whereby I was emphatically suggested to hire this individual, as well as another one, who would take the position of my deputy in charge of defence industry. I responded by declining to take part in this corrupt arrangement and by offering to resign my post." Kononenko denied the accusations as "completely absurd", and said Abromavicius was trying to shift blame for his own failures in running the ministry. Yatseniuk said there was a campaign to discredit his government, and accused Abromavicius of "running from the field of battle."WORSE NOT BETTER Since coming to power in 2014, the government has pledged to stamp out the systemic graft that flourished under former president Viktor Yanukovich and kept Ukraine hooked on Russian money and cheap gas. But many Ukrainians believe corruption has not improved, eroding support for the authorities, deterring foreign investment and causing Western backers to question Kiev's ability to deliver real change. They have warned Ukraine not to repeat the mistakes of more than a decade ago, when the euphoria of the "Orange Revolution" of 2004, an earlier popular protest movement that brought pro-Western leaders to power, eroded amid government infighting and a failure to stamp out graft. The slow pace of change now threatens to derail a 40 billion dollars aid-for-reforms deal championed by the International Monetary Fund, European Union and United States. "Abromavicius' initial appointment was made precisely because, as a Lithuanian with no experience in Ukrainian politics, he came from outside a corrupt system and could credibly work to reform it," said Daragh McDowell of the risk analytics firm Verisk Maplecroft. His exit "will fatally undermine what little confidence investors still had in the Poroshenko administration and Ukraine's economic prospects in general." Low approval ratings for Yatseniuk's government have raised expectations of a major ministerial reshuffle, and the government also could face a no-confidence vote in parliament around the middle of February. "It is important that Ukraine's leaders set aside their parochial differences, put the vested interests that have hindered the country's progress for decades squarely in the past, and press forward on vital reforms," the foreign envoys in Kiev said in a joint statement. Some other cabinet members have also expressed frustration at the pace of progress in their ministries. Infrastructure Minister Andriy Pyvovarsky has threatened to resign, while Health Minister Alexander Kvitashvili tendered his resignation last summer, only to have it rejected by parliament. Abromavicius's resignation must also be approved by lawmakers, and he urged them to meet today to green-light his departure. Poroshenko said in a statement that Abromavicius had recognised the support the president had given him. "As far as I'm concerned this support is guaranteed, in the future also. I believe that Aivaras should stay as minister and continue reforms. He went away to think," he said. The statement did not address the allegation of his office meddling in appointments in the ministry. REUTERS PS PR0415 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0352-572273.Xml Talks being mediated by the United Nations to end the war in Syria are on hold, UN envoy Staffan de Mistura said, while another official at the United Nations blamed the suspension on Russia's latest military escalation. "I have concluded frankly that after the first week of preparatory talks there is more work to be done, not only by us but by the stakeholders," he said. "I have indicated from the first day that I won't talk for the sake of talking." He was speaking after meeting opposition coordinator Riad Hijab, who had just arrived in Geneva. A senior UN official told Reuters on condition of anonymity that de Mistura called a halt to the talks after Russia increased air strikes to help the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, undermining the negotiating process. "I think the special envoy decided to suspend the talks because the (United Nations) did not want to be associated with the Russian escalation in Syria, which risks undermining the talks completely," the official said. "The stepped up airstrikes gain the government ground, but also aim at humiliating the opposition on the ground and in Geneva," he added. Hijab told reporters that it was not the last chance for peace, but the opposition would not return to peace talks without evidence of humanitarian improvements on the ground. The pause was a chance for the international community to put pressure on Assad and his allies, he said. The pause came abruptly after several days of stuttering progress and postponed meetings, without De Mistura ever getting the two sides in a dialogue. De Mistura's office initially said the talks would resume on February 25 but later issued a statement saying the could start again before that date. It also came after intensified Syrian government advances backed by Russian air strikes on rebel positions in northern Aleppo. Hijab blamed the Syrian government delegation for collapsing the talks, but its leader Bashar Ja'afari said it was "a failure of everybody except the government of the Syrian Arab Republic." Ja'afari told reporters that he had known for "hours" that the opposition wanted to withdraw and accused De Mistura of pausing the talks to avert a walk-out. "We consider that the style used by the Special Envoy to justify the withdrawal of Riyadh delegation under instructions from Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey was not subjective. It didn't say the truth as it was," Ja'afari said. Those regional powers, along with the United States, Russia Iran and others, comprise the "International Syria Support Group" (ISSG), which has thrown its weight behind De Mistura's initiative, without always agreeing on how he should go about it. "We are waiting for the United States to stop leading from the back, and the Russians, who are co-broker of the ISSG, to stop adding fuel to the fire," said opposition spokeswoman Farah al-Atassi. US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and other top ISSG diplomats are expected to meet at the annual Munich security conference on February 11. "I will be asking for the ISSG to convene as soon as possible, hopefully in Munich, and for the UN Security Council to meet and reconvene on February 25," De Mistura said. German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier also said he saw an opportunity for negotiations at the Munich conference. De Mistura said he planned to go to London for a Syria humanitarian pledging conference today, since the plight of Syria's 5 million refugees would be an additional incentive to reconvene the talks. The Swedish-Italian diplomat apologised to reporters who had waited in sleet and hail while he spent 2 1/2 hours meeting the opposition delegation. He said he was neither frustrated nor disappointed by having to pause the talks. "I have been long enough at the UN to know that when you have a five-year war that has had so many difficult moments you have to be determined but also realistic." REUTERS PS PR0449 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0352-572282.Xml International pressure grew on North Korea to call off a planned rocket launch, seen by some governments as another missile test, while Japan put its military on alert to shoot down any rocket that threatens its territory. North Korea notified United Nations agencies on Tuesday of its plan to launch what it called an "earth observation satellite" some time between February 8 and 25. Pyongyang has said it has a sovereign right to pursue a space programme, although the United States and other governments suspect such rocket launches are tests of its missiles. Japan's defence minister, Gen Nakatani, told a media briefing on Wednesday he had issued an order to shoot down any "ballistic missile threat". Tension rose in East Asia last month after North Korea's fourth nuclear test, this time of what it said was a hydrogen bomb. A rocket launch coming so soon after would raise concern that North Korea plans to fit nuclear warheads on its missiles, giving it the capability to launch a strike against South Korea, Japan and possibly targets as far away as the US West Coast. North Korea last launched a long-range rocket in December 2012, sending an object it described as a communications satellite into orbit. South Korea warned the North it would pay a "severe price" if it goes ahead with the launch. "North Korea's notice of the plan to launch a long-range missile, coming at a time when there is a discussion for (UN) Security Council sanctions on its fourth nuclear test, is a direct challenge to the international community," the presidential Blue House said in a statement. Russia's Foreign Ministry said Pyongyang was demonstrating "an outrageous disregard for the universally recognised norms of international law," while France said the launch would merit a firm response from the international community. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged North Korea not to use ballistic missile technology, which is banned by Security Council resolutions. 'EXTREMELY CONCERNED' China, under US pressure to use its influence to rein in the isolated North, said Pyongyang's right to space exploration was restricted under UN resolutions. China is North Korea's sole main ally, though Beijing disapproves of its nuclear programme. "We are extremely concerned about this," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told a briefing yesterday. "In the present situation, we hope North Korea exercises restraint on the issue of launching satellites, acts cautiously and does not take any escalatory steps that may further raise tensions on the Korean peninsula." Reports of the planned launch also drew fresh US calls for tougher UN sanctions that are already under discussion in response to North Korea's January 6 nuclear test. A spokeswoman for the International Maritime Organization, a UN agency, said it had been told by North Korea of the plan to launch a satellite. The Washington-based North Korean monitoring project 38 North said commercial satellite images of North Korea's Sohae launch site taken on Monday showed activity consistent with preparations for a launch within North Korea's given timeframe, but no indications that this was imminent. North Korea said the launch would be conducted in the morning one day during the announced period, and gave the coordinates for the locations where the rocket boosters and the cover for the payload would drop. Those locations are expected to be in the Yellow Sea off the Korean Peninsula's west coast and in the Pacific Ocean to the east of the Philippines, Pyongyang said. South Korea told commercial airliners to avoid flying in areas of the rocket's possible flight path during the period.REUTERS PS PR0542 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0352-572286.Xml A powerful US lawmaker demanded Secretary of State John Kerry provide an explanation of a 1.7 billion dollars claim settlement paid to Iran just as Tehran released American prisoners last month. Republican Representative Ed Royce, chairman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, wrote that the timing of the settlement and the administration's failure to brief Congress "has led some to express concern that the payment represents a de facto 'ransom' for the release of American hostages." Royce asked Kerry to provide by February 17 information including lists of all US officials who participated in negotiations with Iran over the settlement agreement, the prisoner release and the nuclear agreement announced in July. He also asked for legal analyses of the dispute, a timeline of negotiations over the dispute and an explanation of how the interest payment in the settlement was calculated, among other information. On January 17, the State Department said the United States and Iran had settled a longstanding claim at the Iran-US. Claims Tribunal, releasing to Tehran 400 million dollars in funds frozen since 1981 plus 1.3 billion dollars in interest. US Republican lawmakers, who are strongly critical of Democratic President Barack Obama's Iran policy, have been questioning the payment for weeks. No Republican supported the nuclear agreement when Congress had the opportunity to review it last year. State Department officials were not immediately available to comment on the letter.After the settlement was announced, Obama said it was a better alternative than letting more interest accumulate while waiting for a legal judgment.REUTERS PS PR0554 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0352-572291.Xml A confidential report to the United Nations Security Council accuses Rwanda of recruiting and training Burundian refugees with the goal of ousting Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza. The report by experts who monitor sanctions on Democratic Republic of Congo, which was seen by Reuters yesterday, contained the strongest testimony yet that Rwanda is meddling in Burundi affairs and comes amid fears that worsening political violence could escalate into mass atrocities. The report cites accounts from several rebel fighters, who told the sanctions monitors the training was done in a forest camp in Rwanda. Nkurunziza's re-election for a third term last year sparked the country's crisis and raised concerns that there could be a bloody ethnic conflict in a region where memories of Rwanda's 1994 genocide are still fresh. The experts said in the report that they had spoken with 18 Burundian combatants in eastern Congo's South Kivu province. "They all told the group that they had been recruited in the Mahama Refugee Camp in eastern Rwanda in May and June 2015 and were given two months of military training by instructors, who included Rwandan military personnel," according to the report. The Burundian combatants, which included six children, told the UN experts they were trained in military tactics, use of assault rifles and machine guns, grenades, anti-personnel and anti-tank mines, mortars and rocket-propelled grenades. They said there were at least four companies of 100 recruits each being trained in a forest camp while they were there. "They were transported around Rwanda in the back of military trucks, often with Rwandan military escort," the UN experts wrote. "They reported that their ultimate goal was to remove Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza from power." Burundi and Rwanda have the same ethnic mix, about 85 per cent Hutus and 15 per cent Tutsis. A 12-year civil war in Burundi, which ended in 2005, pitted a Tutsi-led army against Hutu rebel groups. Rwandan UN Ambassador Eugene Gasana dismissed the accusations against Kigali contained in the report and told Reuters, "This further undermines the credibility of the Group of Experts, which seems to have extended its own mandate, but apparently investigating Burundi." The UN report did not say why the Burundian fighters had crossed into Congo. But Russia's Deputy UN Ambassador Petr Iliichev said last month that there had been reports of Burundian rebels trying to recruit more fighters in Congo. "The Burundian combatants showed the group fake DRC identification cards that had been produced for them in Rwanda, so they could avoid suspicion while in the DRC," the report said. Burundi accused Rwanda in December of supporting a rebel group that was recruiting Burundian refugees on Rwandan soil, but Rwandan President Paul Kagame dismissed the allegations as "childish." The accusations by Burundi were prompted by the charity Refugees International, which said in a December report it was "deeply concerned" by claims of Burundian refugees in Rwanda that they were being recruited by "non-state armed groups". The UN Security Council traveled to Burundi in late January, its second visit to the country in less than 10 months. The United Nations has estimated the death toll at 439 people but has said it could be higher. More than 240,000 people have fled abroad and the country's economy is in crisis. US Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power said during the visit to Burundi that the 15-member council had expressed concern about the allegations of external interference. REUTERS PS PR0742 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0352-572303.Xml Vice-President M Hamid Ansari today promised that India will extend support to China and Southeast Asia in their search for peace and stability in the volatile region and requested all parties to the maritime and territorial disputes in the South China Sea to exercise restraint.In an address at Thailands prestigious Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok this morning, Dr Ansari who arrived yesterday from Brunei, reiterated New Delhis backing for efforts by China and Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) members to agree on rules of conduct for the South China Sea.India has a shared vision for a peaceful region and the seas around us. We believe that all trade routes and the sea lanes must be protected from traditional and non-traditional threats and all countries using these international waters must act with responsibility and restraint, the Vice-President said. The evolving situation in the South China Sea demands restraint from all parties. We support collective efforts by ASEAN Member States and China to conclude the Code of Conduct to keep peace and stability in the region, he added.Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and China are locked in decades-old territorial disputes centred on island chains and sea waters, which flared up most recently with Chinas building of airstrips on reclaimed land in three reefs in the Spratly Islands near the Philippines starting in 2014. UNI XC CJ RSA 1100 -- (UNI) -- C-1-1-DL0400-572393.Xml Russia strongly called on North Korea today to refrain from a planned rocket launch this month, saying such actions could further escalate tension in Northeast Asia, Russia's Foreign Ministry said.The message was personally conveyed by Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov to North Korea's ambassador to Russia, Kim Jong-un, it said.Pyongyang notified UN agencies on Tuesday of its plan to launch what it called an "earth observation satellite" some time between February 8 and 25. REUTERS SA AS1606 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0386-572983.Xml Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said Syrian peace talks in Geneva, which were suspended on Wednesday, were pointless while President Bashar al-Assad's forces and Russia continued their attacks in the country.UN envoy Staffan de Mistura halted his efforts to conduct the talks after the Syrian army, backed by Russian air strikes, advanced against rebel forces north of Aleppo, choking opposition supply lines from Turkey to the city."Russia continues to kill people in Syria. Could there be such a peace gathering? Could there be such peace talks?" Erdogan said in a speech in Peru, in comments published on the presidency website."In an environment where children are still being killed, such attempts do not have any function apart from making things easier for the tyrant," he said.De Mistura announced a three-week pause in the Geneva talks, the first attempt in two years to negotiate an end to Syria's war. Another senior UN official said the Russian escalation was the main reason.Turkey is a main backer of the Syrian opposition and has long argued that there can be no peace in Syria without Assad's removal. Erdogan cast doubt on whether the talks would make meaningful progress even if they resumed."They always convene, get together, eat, drink and then leave. Now they are giving a date for end-February. Let's watch. You will see that once it is Feb.ruary 28 they will postpone again," he said at a university in Lima, the Peruvian capital.EXACERBATING REFUGEE CRISISRussian air strikes have killed nearly 1,400 civilians since Moscow started its aerial campaign in support of Assad nearly four months ago, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said on Saturday.Moscow says there will be no respite in its air campaign, which it says targets "terrorists".Turkey has warned that Russia's actions risk exacerbating a refugee crisis, just as Ankara is trying to stem the flow of migrants to Europe under an agreement with the European Union.EU countries on Wednesday approved 3 billion euro (3.35 billion dollars) in funding to help Turkey improve living conditions for refugees in return for its help ensuring fewer leave for Europe.Also on offer to Ankara, which wants to revive relations with its European neighbours after years of coolness, is a "re-energised" negotiating process on Turkish membership of the EU. But Erdogan said not enough progress had been made."They agreed that Turkey is a key country in solving the migrant crisis ... Our accession process has accelerated. But we still haven't seen the concrete steps that we have been expecting," he said, without elaborating.REUTERS SA AS1621 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0386-573025.Xml Italy's Foreign Ministry today summoned the Egyptian ambassador to Rome to express concern about the suspicious death of an Italian man in Cairo and to urge a joint investigation, according to a statement.The ministry's director general, Michele Valensise, "urgently" summoned Egyptian Ambassador Amr Mostafa Kamal Helmy after the body of 28-year-old Giulio Regeni, a graduate student at Britain's Cambridge University, was found yestersday.He had disappeared on January 25. His body showed signs of torture, officials said today. The ministry said it expected "maximum collaboration at all levels in light of the exceptional gravity of what happened"."In his country's name, Helmy expressed profound condolences for Regeni's death and assured us Egypt will cooperate fully in finding those responsible for this criminal act," the statement said. REUTERS SA AS1631 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0386-573065.Xml German Foreign Minister Frank Walter Steinmeier said today that talks for a political solution to end the civil war in Syria were difficult, but he was not without hope."In the coming days, we have to and will speak particularly with Russia about how we can get improvements especially on the humanitarian side," Steinmeier said during a visit in the Saudi capital Riyadh.There would be a chance for further talks between ministers in Munich next week on the sidelines of the annual security conference, he added.REUTERS SA NS1650 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0386-573081.Xml The body of an Italian student who went missing in Cairo was found half naked by the roadside with cigarette burns and other signs of torture, a senior Egyptian prosecutor said today.In Rome, Italy's Foreign Ministry summoned the Egyptian ambassador to express concern over the death of Giulio Regeni, who disappeared on January 25, the five-year anniversary of the uprising that ended Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule.The body of the 28-year-old Cambridge University doctoral student has been taken to a Cairo morgue, a morgue worker and security officials said.Security officials said an investigation had begun. Regeni was found at the start of the highway from Cairo to Alexandria, they said.A friend said Regeni had disappeared after leaving his home in a smart district in Cairo to meet another friend downtown.Last year, Islamic State militants kidnapped a Croatian man from the outskirts of Cairo and later beheaded him, but such incidents are rare and there was a heavy police presence in downtown Cairo when Regeni went missing.Although the cause of death is still unclear, Regeni's case could hurt Egypt's efforts to project an image of stability and attract more tourism and foreign investment after years of political turmoil and Islamist militant violence.The Italian Foreign Ministry's director general, Michele Valensise, "urgently" summoned Egyptian Ambassador Amr Mostafa Kamal Helmy after Regeni's body was found yesterday.The ministry said it expected "maximum collaboration at all levels in light of the exceptional gravity of what happened".Italian Industry Minister Federica Guidi cut short a two-day visit to Egypt yesterday after Regeni's death was reported.A copy of Regeni's CV, provided by another friend, indicated he spoke four languages and had won several scholarships. His research focused on trade unions in Egypt after the 2011 uprising that ended Mubarak's 30-year rule.Human rights groups say Egyptians are often detained by police on little evidence and beaten or coerced. Scores have disappeared since 2013. Egypt denies allegations of police brutality.Islamist militants have killed hundreds of police and soldiers since the army toppled President Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood in 2013 after mass protests against his rule. They have also targeted Westerners. REUTERS SA CS1732 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0386-573255.Xml Villagers from two major ethnic groups in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo clashed with machetes and batons before dispersing when army troops and UN peacekeepers intervened and fired into the air, a UN spokesman said.The latest spasm of violence between Hutu and Nande villagers followed the killing of a Hutu civilian three km away by presumed Mai Mai militiamen, UN mission military spokesman Amouzoun Codjo Martin told Reuters.At least six civilians have been killed near the town of Luofo in North Kivu province's Lubero territory, some 100 km from the Uganda border, in the past two days as tensions between the area's Hutu and Nande communities have risen.Martin did not confirm the ethnicity of the attackers in Wednesday's villager clash. However, local activists identified them as Nande. Local Mai Mai groups are dominated by Nande.Ethnic rivalries, foreign invasions and competition for land and rich mineral deposits among eastern Congo's dozens of rebel groups have stoked persistent conflict over the last two decades, costing millions of lives.The United Nations warned last month that a surge in kidnappings and general insecurity in North Kivu in recent months is preventing aid workers from delivering essential humanitarian assistance to the impoverished population.The Nande, who dominate commerce in North Kivu, are historic rivals of the local Hutu. Intercommunal friction has risen since Congo's army launched a military offensive last year against the FDLR, a Rwandan Hutu militia operating in eastern Congo.Wednesday's clashes followed the killing of at least five Hutu civilians in a neighbouring village on Tuesday by presumed Mai Mai fighters.Local activists said the murders appeared to be retaliation for a nighttime assault last month, blamed by authorities on the FDLR, that killed at least 14 Nande in the nearby town of Miriki.Joseph Mali Kidogo, president of the Civil Society of Lubero, said he was concerned that the violence could spiral out of control. "There is a great fear of what is going to happen next between these two communities," he said. REUTERS SA SB1743 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0386-573331.Xml Donor nations pledged today to give billions of dollars in aid to Syrians as world leaders gathered for a conference to tackle the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with Turkey reporting a new exodus of tens of thousands fleeing air strikes.With Syria's five-year-old civil war raging and another attempt at peace negotiations called off in Geneva after just a few days, the London conference will aim to address the needs of some 6 million people displaced within Syria and more than 4 million refugees in other countries.Underlining the desperate situation on the ground in Syria, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told the meeting that tens of thousands of Syrians were on the move towards his country to escape aerial bombardments on the city of Aleppo."Sixty to seventy thousand people in the camps in north Aleppo are moving towards Turkey. My mind is not now in London, but on our border - how to relocate these new people coming from Syria?" he said. "Three hundred thousand people living in Aleppo are ready to move towards Turkey."Turkey is already hosting more than 2.5 million Syrian refugees. Jordan and Lebanon are the other countries bearing the brunt of the Syrian refugee exodus."Looking into the eyes of my people, and seeing the hardship and distress they carry, I must tell you we have reached our limit," said Jordan's King Abdullah.Several speakers also made the point that while the situation of refugees was bad, that of Syrians trapped inside the country enduring bombardments, sieges and, in some places, starvation was far worse.United Nations agencies are appealing for 7.73 billion dollars to cope with the Syrian emergency this year, and countries in the region are asking for an additional 1.2 billion dollars.Conference co-hosts Britain, Norway and Germany were the first to announce their pledges.Britain promised an extra 1.2 billion pounds ( 1.76 billion dollars) by 2020, raising its total commitment to 2.3 billion pounds. Norway pledged 1.17 billion dollars over the next four years, while Germany said it would give 2.3 billion euros ( 2.57 billion dollars) by 2018.GLOBAL STANDOFFThe almost five-year-old conflict has killed an estimated 250,000 people and stoked the spread of Islamist militancy across the Middle East and North Africa.For European nations, improving the humanitarian situation in Syria and neighbouring countries is crucial to reducing incentives for Syrians to travel to Europe, where a large refugee influx has put many countries under severe strain."The German government is convinced that the refugee movements can be solved by fighting their reason for leaving. London is a major step to come closer to this aim," German Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters at the conference.A UN envoy halted his attempts to conduct Syrian peace talks yesterday after the Syrian army, backed by Russian air strikes, advanced against rebel forces north of Aleppo, choking opposition supply lines from Turkey to the city.Arriving at the London conference, US Secretary of State John Kerry said Russia had a responsibility to live up to its UN commitment to allow access to humanitarian aid and to cease attacks on Syrian civilians.Kerry said he had spoken to his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov and the pair had agreed on the need to discuss how to achieve a ceasefire in Syria.US and Russian support for opposing sides in the war, which has drawn in regional states and enabled the spread of Islamic State insurgents, means a local conflict has become an increasingly fraught global standoff.UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the first steps in the Geneva peace talks had been undermined by a lack of sufficient humanitarian access and by a sudden increase in aerial bombing and military activity on the ground."The coming days should be used to get back to the table, not to secure more gains on the battlefield," he said.The conference will focus particularly on the need to provide an education for displaced Syrian children and job opportunities for adults, reflecting growing recognition that the fallout from the Syrian war will be very long-term. (1 dollar = 0.6825 pounds) ( 1 dollar = 0.8952 euros) REUTERS JW CS1813 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0364-573453.Xml US Secretary of State John Kerry pledged a total of around 890 million dollars in aid for Syria and neighbouring countries at a donor conference today and said he was in talks with his Russian counterpart about increasing humanitarian access to the country. The money comprises about 600 million dollarws in humanitarian assistance and around 290 million dollars in development aid for neighbouring states, he said. US officials told reporters that the 290 million dollars would go to Jordan and Lebanon and would pay for such things as education to help them cope with the influx of Syrian children who need to go to school. The US aid pledge covers the US 2016 fiscal year, which will end on September 30, 2016. REUTERS JW CS1814 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0364-573461.Xml An alarm raised at Spanish international airport Barajas after a bomb threat on a flight bound for Riyadh, Saudi Arabia was lowered to local from general, Spanish airport operator Aena said today. The alarm does not affect any other flight in and out of the airport, Aena said. All passengers and crew have been evacuated from the plane, which has been isolated at the airport, the operator added. Flight SVA 226 returned to Barajas airport after an alert was raised over a bomb threat, the Interior Minister Jose Fernandez Diaz said. Aena later clarified the plane never took off.REUTERS JW CS1814 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0364-573464.Xml Countries where Syrian refugees seek asylum should end harsh policies on registration, deportation and education that violate fundamental rights, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said today as donors met in London. These refugees should not be sent back to their war-torn country, refugee registration requirements should be made less restrictive and access to education should be made easier for Syrian children, HRW said in a report. "This conference needs to set a new agenda on Syrian refugees, making respecting their fundamental rights the top priority," Bill Frelick, HRW refugee program director, said of the one-day donors conference in London. "Host countries in which refugees make up as much as a quarter of the population need vastly more donor assistance, but that money won't help Syrians who are being pushed back or driven to destitution by harsh policies." The Syrian civil war has killed an estimated 250,000 people and driven millions from their homes, with 6 million Syrians displaced within the country and more than 4 million others having left for Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and beyond. "Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey have all restricted entry to refugees from Syria in 2015 and pushed back asylum seekers or forcibly returned refugees in violation of their international obligations," the human rights group said. In January, Turkey introduced visa requirements for Syrians arriving by air and sea, forcing hundreds of Syrians to return to Damascus. Slow registration and screening systems have also caused large numbers of Syrians to become stranded at the Jordanian border in recent months in difficult conditions. Some 700,000 Syrian children in refugee camps in Jordan, Lebanon and other Middle Eastern countries are out of school, according to a report by the Malala Fund founded by Pakistani education campaigner and Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai. HRW urges donors, including those in the United States, European Union (EU) and Gulf states, to share responsibility for hosting Syrian refugees with Turkey, Jordan, and Lebanon. UN agencies are appealing for close to 8 billion dollars this year to cope with the humanitarian disaster caused by the Syrian civil war. Germany has already pledged 2.3 billion dollars by 2018, Britain 1.75 billion dollars by 2020 and Norway 1.17 billion dollars by 2020. UN-mediated proximity talks in Geneva on ending Syria's five-year civil war were suspended on Wednesday after just a few days amid acrimony between government and opposition negotiators. They are due to resume on February 25 REUTERS JW CS1815 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0364-573472.Xml Iran will continue to develop its missile programme and it should not be considered a threat to neighbouring and friendly countries, the semi-official Fars news agency quoted the head of the army as saying today. Under a deal reached between Iran and six major powers in 2015, most international sanctions imposed on Iran due to its nuclear programme were lifted last month. However, sanctions imposed on its missile programme were not lifted. According to a July 20 United Nations Security Council resolution endorsing the deal, Iran is still "called upon" to refrain from work on ballistic missiles designed to deliver nuclear weapons for up to eight years. In October, Iran violated a United Nations ban by testing a precision-guided ballistic missile, prompting a US threat to impose more sanctions. In December, President Hassan Rouhani ordered Iran's missile programme to be expanded. "Iran's missile capability and its missile programme will become stronger. We do not pay attention and do not implement resolutions against Iran, and this is not a violation of the nuclear deal," Fars quoted commander-in-chief Ataollah Salehi as saying. He was referring to Iran's deal with world powers last year to curb a nuclear programme that the West feared, despite Tehran's denials, was aimed at acquiring atomic weapons. "Our missile programme is not a threat against our friends but it is a threat against our enemies. Israel should understand what it means," Salehi said. Opposition to Israel, which Tehran refuses to recognize since its 1979 Islamic revolution, is a central policy in the Muslim Shi'ite-dominated countrREUTERS JW BL1842 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0364-573558.Xml The abrupt resignation of Ukraine's economy minister, followed by several of his deputies, over allegations of corruption has jeopardised Kiev's relations with its Western backers, threatening vital loan aid, politicians said today. Aivaras Abromavicius quit yesterday, saying he would not become a "puppet" for corrupt vested interests, and accused a close ally of President Petro Poroshenko of trying to siphon off state funds. Parliamentary Speaker Volodymyr Groysman said Ukraine was entering a "deep political crisis" and called for a government reshuffle, while several of Abromavicius's deputies resigned overnight. One compared working at the ministry to suffering a "death by a thousand cuts". Abromavicius's departure shone an uncomfortable spotlight on Ukraine's efforts to reform its economy and tackle corruption, which its Western-backed government pledged to do when it came to power after the Maidan protests in the winter of 2013/2014. "What happened is a catastrophe for the whole country," Leonid Yemets, a lawmaker with People's Front that belongs to Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk, told Reuters. "Think about it: how can we now talk with out partners in the West, with our donors, after the minister comes out and says that the deputy head of the president's faction is corrupt. Who will want to speak with us after this?" Abromavicius accused Ihor Kononenko of lobbying to get his people appointed as heads of state companies, culminating in an attempt to appoint one of his people as Abromavicius's deputy. Kononenko denied the accusations as "completely absurd", and said Abromavicius was trying to shift blame for his own failures in running the ministry. The prime minister later said there was a campaign to discredit his government, and accused Abromavicius of "running from the field of battle". AID MONEY Ukraine relies on aid money from its Western backers, including the International Monetary Fund, the United States and the European Union, to stay afloat. Ukraine's economy shrunk by more than 10 per cent last year, dragged down by its war against pro-Russian separatists, who have taken control over a swathe of the country's eastern industrial heartland. The government's patchy performance in introducing reforms, coupled with domestic political squabbles, have already delayed the disbursement of new aid money. "Aivaras was a favourite of our Western partners and his decision very negatively affects our relations with them," Yegor Sobolev, also a lawmaker in the ruling four-party coalition, told Reuters. "The fact that there is still corruption in the country wasn't news to the West, but now it is in the public sphere and now Western politicians must explain to their citizens why they have to help such a country as Ukraine." Ukraine is hoping the IMF will soon decide to disburse a third tranche of loans - worth 1.7 billion dollars - which has been delayed since October. "The consequences of Aivaras's announcement are hard to predict, but it's clear that they are very negative," said a lawmaker from Poroshenko's faction, who declined to be named. "It could lead to the postponement of the IMF tranche." There has been no comment so far from the IMF about the resignation. The US State Department declined to comment yesterday about what impact it could have. A statement from Western diplomats, including those from Germany and the United States, said they were "deeply disappointed".REUTERS JW BL1849 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0364-573619.Xml Sweden's Foreign Ministry said today that a United Nations panel had ruled that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange had been "arbitrarily detained". "Their working group has made the judgment that Assange has been arbitrarily detained in contravention of international commitments," a spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry said. The comment confirms a report by the BBC earlier today. Assange, 44, took refuge in Ecuador's embassy in London in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden. Swedish prosecutors want to question him over allegations, which he denies, that he committed rape in 2010. REUTERS PY BL2102 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0298-573985.Xml Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said today he did not know about the case of a former BBC Persian journalist who was reported to have been arrested at his home in Tehran. Bahman Daroshafaei was detained yesterday, according to the opposition website Kaleme.com. "I read about this journalist as I arrived in the UK, so I don't know about him, what happened. You know we have independent judiciary, which insists on its independence," Zarif said at an event in the British parliament. REUTERS PY BL2155 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0298-574072.Xml Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi spoke to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi today, urging the swift return of the body of a slain Italian student who was found with cigarette burns on his body, a government source said. Renzi asked for 28-year-old Giulio Regeni's corpse, which was discovered yesterday on the outskirts of Cairo, to be returned "soon" to Italy and his family. He also asked for "full access by our representatives to follow the developments in the investigation first hand and find those responsible for this horrible crime and bring them to justice," the source said.REUTERS PY BL2221 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0298-574079.Xml Spain's King Felipe and Queen Letizia today postponed a March state visit to Britain because of the longer-than-expected process to form a Spanish government following an inconclusive general election in December. The Spanish royal household announced on December 3 the king and queen would pay a three-day state visit to Britain from March 8 to March 10, invited by Queen Elizabeth. However, the king has been playing a central role in political parties' negotiations to form a government six weeks after an indecisive general election and it looks like this process could continue for at least another month. King Felipe on Tuesday asked Socialist head Pedro Sanchez to lead talks to form a potential coalition government with other political parties after acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy deferred a parliamentary confidence vote because he lacked the support to win it. REUTERS PY BL2230 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0298-574085.Xml Russia is trying to divert attention away from its own crimes in Syria by suggesting that Turkey is preparing a military incursion in the country, a senior official in Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu's office said today. "The Russians are trying to hide their crimes in Syria. They are simply diverting attention from their attacks on civilians as a country already invading Syria. Turkey has all the rights to take any measures to protect its own security," the official told Reuters. A Russian defence ministry spokesman said earlier today that Moscow had serious grounds to suspect Turkey is preparing a military incursion in Syria.REUTERS PY BL2324 -- (Reuters) -- C-1-1-DL0298-574112.Xml Brigadier Ahmed Asiri, spokesperson for the Saudi-led Arab coalition in Yemen, told an interview with the Arabiya TV that Saudi Arabia is ready to join ground operations in the U.S.led coalition against the IS group in Syria, Xinhua reported. The general said his country has been an active member of the anti-IS coalition since 2014, and has carried out more than 190 aerial missions, adding that to beat IS group, the coalition needs to combine aerial operations with ground operations. The pledge came after two suicide bomb attacks targeting a Shia mosque in the Kingdom late last month that killed two people, and injured seven more. Several similar attacks were registered last year, of which they were adopted by IS militant group. The kingdom also announced late last year the formation of a military coalition of 34 Muslim-majority countries to fight terrorism. --Indo-Asian News Service sku/ ( 186 Words) 2016-02-05-03:31:33 (IANS) The Indian army said Thursday there was little chance of finding alive any of the 10 soldiers buried in an avalanche at the Siachen Glacier in the remote Himalayas, as rescue efforts continued. The soldiers were on duty at an army post on a glacier at an altitude of 5,900 metres (19,600 feet) when it was hit by a massive avalanche early Wednesday. Specialist army and air force teams searched for a second day at the site, near the de facto border with Pakistan. "It is with deepest regrets that we have to state that chances of finding any survivors are now very remote," General D. S. Hooda of the army's Northern Command said in a statement. "Rescue teams are braving adverse weather and effects of rarified atmosphere to locate and rescue survivors," the statement added. Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to the soldiers and sent condolences to their families on Twitter. "Demise of soldiers in Siachen is very tragic. I salute the brave soldiers who gave their lives to the nation," he wrote. Special equipment has been flown in to Leh, the main city in the high-altitude region known as Ladakh, to assist the rescue efforts, officials said. Indian troops patrol the Siachen Glacier, dubbed the world's highest battlefield, in the Kashmir region, which is disputed between India and Pakistan. Avalanches and landslides are common in the area during winter and temperatures can drop as low as minus 60 degrees Celsius (minus 76 degrees Fahrenheit). In January, four soldiers were killed by an avalanche, while last year another four died when their vehicle was buried under an avalanche near Leh. An estimated 8,000 troops have died on the glacier since 1984, almost all of them from avalanches, landslides, frostbite, altitude sickness or heart failure rather than combat. Nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan fought over Siachen in 1987. But guns on the glacier have largely fallen silent since a peace process began in 2004. Take a good look at those leftovers sitting in your lunchbox. Eye that egg salad sandwich. Stare at that instant soup mix. Your weekday lunch has superpowers. Here's why: Eating with your co-workers may help build camaraderie, foster deeper work relationships and boost productivity. Firefighters who eat together, for example, perform better together in their life-or-death line of work than those who don't, according to a 2015 study published in the journal Human Performance. "There's a different kind of intimacy that comes with sharing food and drink with somebody," says Kevin Kniffin, visiting assistant professor of organizational behavior and leadership in the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management at Cornell University who authored the study. "The kind of bonding that can come through eating together has value in terms of cohesiveness in the work team." In addition to potentially improving productivity, those who lunch with co-workers may earn a much-needed break, establish office friendships and score a chance to do some casual, low-level networking. Eating at your desk, on the other hand, has the power to get a lot of spinach mysteriously stuck in your keyboard. So, when the lunch hour rolls around, here's why you should pick up your salad and head to the cafeteria with a few colleagues. 1. It boosts productivity. After studying firehouses for 15 months, Kniffin and his colleagues found that firefighters who ate together worked better together. In fact, some firefighters went so far as to eat two meals -- one with their spouses and one with their co-workers -- in order to participate in this essential team-building activity. Those of us who don't fight fires each day can still take away some lessons from the study, says Kniffin, who notes that it's not necessarily a causal relationship, but it's still a relationship. "Look at any tall building and you're going to find companies already committing significant resources to worksite eateries," Kniffin says. "Companies are showing intuition that there are benefits -- work benefits, performance benefits -- to co-workers eating together." Story continues 2. It's a networking tool. Having a lunch buddy can also be an effective way to do some in-house networking with colleagues. That holds true for maintaining friendly relationships with office peers -- and for making connections to colleagues in far-flung departments. "Left up to our own devices, we end up having lunch with people who sit with us, who are on the same teams as us," says Michael Soto, co-founder of Spark Collaboration, which introduces co-workers for one-on-one meetings to build relationships and learn about other areas of the company. "We encourage people to reach out and talk to people from different social circles." Soto sees eating with someone from another department -- or grabbing coffee or tea -- as an important way to break down the silos that exist in an office. It can be a way to share different perspectives on companywide goals or brainstorm solutions to challenges with someone from a different background. "It lets you get an understanding of a part of the company that you typically don't have," he says. Some employers may already encourage this cross-office unity with organized lunches, such as affinity group meetings, brown bag seminars and other sponsored events. It's a cheaper way to build unity than herding everyone off to the ropes course for a team-building exercise. And it takes care of a biological necessity: Everyone has to eat. 3. It makes you happier. "If we can foster an environment where people are establishing friendships with the people around them, people will be happier at their job, almost regardless of the work they're doing," says Andrew Horn, co-founder and CEO of Tribute, a video-montage platform, and frequent speaker on networking and communication. Having a friend in the office to eat with can lessen the dread of trudging to work every day. Lunch buddies have a few minutes to loosen their ties and workshop solutions to office problems or just dish on the latest news. Of course, it's wise to keep the office gossip and trash talk to a minimum at lunch, especially if you're eating in a communal space where the wrong person may overhear it. Says Horn: "Even if it's not the most natural thing for you to go and spend time with your co-workers, spending time to develop those relationships is something I think you'll be proud of as a human being and a professional in the long run." Susannah Snider is the Careers editor at U.S. News. She previously covered paying for college and graduate school. You can follow her on Twitter or email her at ssnider@usnews.com. Damascus (AFP) - Tens of thousands of Syrians were apparently streaming towards Turkey on Friday as regime troops pressed a major Russian-backed offensive around Aleppo, while Moscow and Ankara traded barbs over the escalating crisis. Turkey's Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, speaking at a conference in London where donors pledged more than $10 billion in aid for Syrians, said up to 70,000 people were headed towards his country to escape the fighting. Some 300,000 people are thought to be isolated in Aleppo after the rebels' main supply route was severed by regime forces backed by Russian warplanes in an offensive that scuppered peace talks this week. The UN Security Council will meet Friday for consultations with envoy Staffan de Mistura over the breakdown of the negotiations, which had been hailed as the biggest diplomatic push to end Syria's five-year war, which have been suspended until February 25. "The situation in the north countryside of Aleppo is catastrophic," said Maamoun al-Khateeb, an activist and journalist from nearby Marea village. "Civilians are now besieged from three sides and have just one road to the Turkish territories," he said, explaining that regime forces threatened from the south, Islamic State (IS) jihadists from the east and Kurdish fighters from the west. As the offensive raged, diplomatic tensions were also rising, with Moscow accusing opposition supporter Ankara of preparing to invade Syria, saying it had spotted troops and military equipment on the border. Hours earlier Davutoglu had accused supporters of President Bashar al-Assad, which include Russia, of "committing the same war crimes" as the regime. Western nations have accused Syria's government of torpedoing peace talks this week with its military offensive, and Washington demanded Moscow halt its campaign in support of Assad. Russian bombings killed at least 21 civilians, including three children, on Thursday, according to Britain-based monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. Story continues In London for the donors conference, US Secretary of State John Kerry said he had warned Moscow to stop targeting the Syrian opposition, in a "robust" phone call with Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov. - 'Waiting at the door' - Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia, which backs opponents of the regime, said it was ready to join any ground operation by the US-led coalition against IS in Syria. "If there is any willingness in the coalition to go in the ground operation, we will contribute positively in that," Brigadier General Ahmed al-Assiri told AFP. More than 260,000 people have died in Syria's conflict and more than half the country's population have been forced from their homes, while the chaos has helped to fuel the rise of extremist groups such as IS across the region. The World Bank on Thursday estimated the war has cost Syria and its neighbours -- Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt -- some $35 billion so far. Measured by 2007 prices, that is the equivalent of Syria's entire economic output that year. Aleppo city, Syria's former economic powerhouse, has been divided between opposition control in the east and regime control in the west since mid-2012. The rebels' main supply line to Turkey was severed on Wednesday when regime troops broke an opposition siege of two Shiite towns, Nubol and Zahraa, on the route to the border. Regime forces entered the two towns on Thursday to the cheers of residents, who chanted pro-government slogans and showered the fighters with rice. But elsewhere in the region the advance prompted tens of thousands to flee for fear of being caught up in the fighting. Davutoglu said 60,000 to 70,000 people were "moving towards Turkey" and 10,000 were "waiting at the door" on the border because of air strikes and attacks around Aleppo. The Observatory said nearly 40,000 people in Aleppo province had fled their homes, with many massing at the border. A high-ranking Syrian government official described the Aleppo advances as important, but said the regime had even more ambitious goals. "The next objectives are to close the borders with Turkey to prevent the arrival of troops and weapons, then taking Aleppo province, then Idlib province, and finally Idlib city," he told AFP. Madrid (AFP) - Passengers on a flight to Riyadh from Madrid were evacuated Thursday after a note threatening a bomb attack was found inside the plane in what was later confirmed as a hoax. The Saudi Arabian Airlines flight had been due to take off in the mid-morning from Madrid but the captain requested an evacuation after a note reading "11:30 bomb" was discovered pinned to the interior. The plane was taken to an isolated part of the airport for inspection. The airline is just the latest to be hit by fake threats as jitters over extremist attacks continue, particularly since a Russian passenger jet crashed in October over the Sinai peninsula, killing 224 people in what Moscow said was an act of terror. "The information that we have from the Guardia Civil (police force) is that it was a false alert," a spokeswoman for airport operator AENA, who refused to be named, told AFP. Security forces and rescue services were quickly mobilised when the note was discovered on board the SVA 226 flight that carried 97 passengers and 15 crew members. After an inspection of the aircraft, the authorities eventually concluded there was no bomb on board. The airport continued to operate normally throughout. Saudi Arabian Airlines is just the latest to be hit by such a hoax. Last month, an Indian passenger plane was forced to make an emergency landing in the country's western city of Nagpur after a hoax bomb threat. That same January, a Scandinavian Airlines plane carrying 72 people from London to Stockholm was diverted to Gothenburg and the passengers evacuated, due to a hoax bomb threat. Montevideo (AFP) - South American health ministers held an emergency meeting on slowing the spread of the Zika virus, dubbed a "nightmare" by hard-hit Brazil, where it is blamed for brain damage in babies. With health authorities warning the disease could infect up to four million people in the Americas, ministers from 14 countries held talks in Uruguay to plot their response to the growing crisis, with fears the virus could spread worldwide. The meeting focused on ways to control the mosquito population spreading the virus, though reports of a US patient catching the disease by having sex fueled fears that it will not be easy to contain. Brazil said it was sending more than 500,000 personnel out to clean up mosquito breeding grounds and advise people about the disease. Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said her government was directing "all resources" available toward the crisis, and vowed to do "absolutely everything" for the families of babies born with microcephaly, or abnormally small heads and brains. The number of babies with the condition has surged since the Zika outbreak sweeping Latin America was detected last year. "This virus, which only recently arrived in Brazil and Latin America, no longer is a distant nightmare but a real threat to all Brazilians' homes," Rousseff said in a nationally televised message. Florida Governor Rick Scott meanwhile declared a health emergency in four counties after six new Zika cases were detected in the US state. The new infections bring the number of Zika cases in Florida to nine. Authorities say all caught the virus while traveling abroad, though there is concern it could spread locally because the Aedes aegypti mosquito that transmits the virus is present in the southern United States. - Condom advice - The fever starts with a mosquito bite and normally causes little more than a fever and rash. But since October, Brazil has reported 404 confirmed cases of microcephaly -- up from 147 in 2014 -- plus 3,670 suspected cases. The timing has fueled strong suspicions that Zika is causing the birth defect. Story continues The virus has also been linked to a potentially paralyzing nerve disorder called Guillain-Barre syndrome in some patients. Authorities in Texas on Tuesday said they had confirmed a case of the virus being transmitted by sexual contact. Health authorities in Ireland urged men to wear a condom during sex for one month after returning from a country affected by Zika. British and Canadian authorities said returning travelers will be barred from donating blood for a month and three weeks respectively, underlining growing fears worldwide. The South American health ministers gathered in Montevideo were reluctant to quantify the risk of sexual transmission. "If that is confirmed, it will give a new dimension to the problem," said the head of the Pan American Health Organization, Carissa Etienne. She said Zika was now present in 26 countries across the Americas. "What worries the ministers is the speed with which Zika virus infections have spread," she told reporters on the sidelines of the talks. Etienne said her organization provided $850,000 to help countries fight Zika but that 10 times that amount would be needed. - Global Zika fears - The World Health Organization has declared the spike in serious birth defects an international emergency and launched a global Zika response unit. Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Jamaica and the US territory of Puerto Rico have all warned women not to get pregnant. Health experts warn that Zika poses a massive threat to Asia. Thailand confirmed that a man contracted the infection and Indonesia has also reported a domestic case -- as has Cape Verde off northwest Africa. The WHO warned European countries to act early to stop Zika spreading. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said the mosquito has "re-colonized" Madeira in Portugal and parts of southern Russia and Georgia in recent years after disappearing from the continent in the 20th century. It has been spotted as far north as the Netherlands. Indian drugs company Bharat Biotech said it was developing the world's first Zika vaccine and was ready to test it on animals. French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi earlier said it had begun researching a vaccine for Zika, for which there is currently no specific treatment. Santiago (AFP) - Antarctica will host its first international chess match this weekend, between former world champion Hou Yifan of China and Chilean grandmaster Cristobal Henriquez, officials said Thursday. The match, which will be played at a Chilean base, will be held either Saturday or Sunday, depending on weather conditions. "There is no precedent in the world of chess of an international match being played in Antarctica," Beatriz Marinello, vice president of the World Chess Federation, told Chilean newspaper El Mercurio. The match, which will be broadcast on the website of the Chilean Chess Federation, is part of commemorations to mark the 500th anniversary of the discovery of the Strait of Magellan at the southern tip of South America. "Playing against a number-one is a dream, and doing it in Antarctica makes me doubly happy," said Henriquez, considered his country's best player. JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Loss-making ArcelorMittal South Africa is reviewing the future of a major steel export facility on South Africa's west coast due to low prices and rising electricity costs. The ArcelorMittal unit revealed the review of its Saldanha Works on Thursday as it flagged a deeper loss for 2015. It expects a headline loss per share of 1,250 cents for the year ended 31 December, 22 times higher than the previous year. It also said it had written down 3.6 billion rand ($228 million)on Saldanha Works, which sits on a major iron ore export line. "The future of the operation is currently being reviewed," the company said. Saldanha Works, which produces around 1.2 million tonnes annually with a staff of more than 500, is the company's newest plant and the only one focused on export. Shares in ArcelorMittal South Africa were up 10 percent at 7.65 rand by 1130 GMT, buoyed by reports that China plans to cut its steel manufacturing capacity.[nL3N15J3OB] South Africa's government in August last year agreed to a 10 percent steel import tariff as trading authorities continue to investigate several Chinese steel products on anti-dumping grounds.[nL5N10Z27O] ArcelorMittal South Africa said such imports were a factor in its performance. "The local steel industry continues to be threatened by the weak international steel environment with imports primarily from China continuing to enter our local market," ArcelorMittal South Africa said in a statement. ArcelorMittal said in a separate statement that Dean Subramanian, currently chief financial officer, has been appointed acting chief executive after the steelmaker' s chief executive Paul O'Flaherty stepped down in December after less than two years at the helm. [nL8N1432GT] ($1 = 15.7926 rand) (Reporting by TJ Strydom; Editing by Alexander Smith) Australian church leaders Thursday said they would offer sanctuary to asylum-seekers facing removal to a remote Pacific detention camp, vowing to defy the government's harsh immigration rules. The asylum-seekers, who were brought to Australia from Nauru mostly for medical reasons, number more than 260 and include 37 babies born in the country and 54 other children, advocates said. The Anglican Dean of Brisbane, the Very Reverend Peter Catt, said the churches were reinventing the "ancient concept of sanctuary" by opening facilities such as St John's Cathedral in Brisbane to the asylum-seekers. Catt told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation the concept of sanctuary was not tested under law, "but my hunch is that if the authorities chose to enter the church and take people away, it would probably be a legal action". He added: "So this is really a moral stand and it wouldn't be a good look, I don't think, for someone to enter a church and to drag people away." Asylum-seekers, including children, who try to reach Australia by boat are sent to off-shore detention centres in Papua New Guinea and Nauru, where they can be held indefinitely while refugee applications are processed. They are blocked from being resettled in Australia even if found to be genuine refugees. Many of the asylum-seekers brought to Australia from Nauru are being held at Wickham Point, a secure facility near Darwin in northern Australia. The High Court ruled Wednesday the detention of asylum-seekers on Nauru did not breach domestic law, meaning the potential refugees could be returned there in the coming days. Across Australia, thousands of people protested Thursday against the possible off-shore transfer of the asylum-seekers, carrying signs reading "(Prime Minister) Malcolm Turnbull #LetThemStay". Australian Churches Refugee Taskforce's Misha Coleman admitted it would be difficult to move the detained asylum-seekers to the sanctuaries but said if they were, the cases would be managed "in a very sort of confidential way". Story continues - 'Child mental health at risk' - Immigration Minister Peter Dutton said the churches had the right to their opinion but were not above Australian law. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull defended the tough measures on deterring asylum-seekers, saying "one child in detention is one child too many". He added: "Our goal is to reduce that (number of children in detention) to zero but the key element in doing so is ensuring that people do not get on people smugglers' boats and put their lives at risk," Turnbull told parliament in Canberra Thursday. The churches' stance came as the nation's human rights chief said children being held at Wickham Point suffered high levels of mental illness. Human Rights Commission head Gillian Triggs said a medical team led by the government-funded body found that "34 percent of the hundreds of children we visited had severe to moderate mental illness compared with two percent for children in the Australian community". Of the children aged over eight previously held in Nauru, 95 percent were assessed as at risk of post-traumatic stress disorder, the report released Thursday said. "These children, most of whom had spent months in Nauru, are among the most traumatised we have ever seen in our 50 years of combined professional experience," Elizabeth Elliott, one of the paediatricians who accessed the children in October last year, added in a statement. Those interviewed told doctors of thoughts of suicide and self-harm, while others had already self-harmed, the report said. "Hell is a hot place and it was hot in Nauru. In hell you have no quality of life. In hell you have people tormenting you," a father of a two-year-old and two-month-old said of his fear of being sent back. Nauru's government hit back at criticism of the camp's conditions. Justice Minister David Adeang said in a statement that asylum-seeker families were "safe, well-supported and treated with great respect". The United Nations human rights agency warned Wednesday Australia was at risk of violating its obligations under international law if the asylum-seekers were transferred to Nauru. Canberra says the policy is necessary to prevent the deaths of asylum-seekers at sea. London (AFP) - Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu implicitly accused Russia of "war crimes" Thursday in comments at a donor conference in London, warning that the Syrian city of Aleppo was under "heavy attack" by Russian warplanes. "The root cause is the war crimes committed by Syrian regime then war crimes committed by Daesh," said Davutoglu, who spoke in English and referred to Islamic State using another Arabic name. "Those who are helping Assad regime are committing same war crimes," he said. It is an age-old dilemma. There is tremendous energy and collaboration that happens in a group environment, but interactive offices make it really tough to get your actual work done. Successful employees (at all levels) have to master the balance between connection and productivity when on the job. Here are some tips to get it right in 2016. 1. Learn (and use) "911" versus "411." Vibrant companies know that it is useful to foster an environment with easy access to information without a lot of bureaucracy and formality. More seasoned employees are often the best source of this knowledge -- so it makes sense that the best and brightest staff members are used as real-life Google at work. However, if you are playing sage for your colleagues all day, you have little time to actually solve the business problems for which you were hired. That is where understanding "911" versus "411" is critical. Hold yourself and those around you to the idea that if something is urgent -- business will be lost, damages may occur or someone will no longer be productive if this isn't addressed immediately -- it is a "911" and merits an interruption. However, if something is less pressing, or a "411," which is the number you would dial to get information pre-Google, those things can be saved up until there is a break in workflow. Adhering to this standard for interruptions will give you back protected time to focus on more pressing tasks. It will also train those employees who interrupt all the time to be more resourceful in finding answers and encourages everyone to plan their time more thoughtfully. 2. Minimize unnecessary distractions. Does the following describe you at work? You start to look up something professionally related online, and the next thing you know you are engrossed in a YouTube video from yesterday's "Kocktails with Khloe." Or you are just about to finish up a proposal, and you get caught up in your colleagues' conversation regarding how their paid time off hasn't showed up in their paycheck for the third time. Instead of completing the proposal before lunch, you find yourself giving a tutorial on how to use your company's intranet to see benefits tracking and previous pay stubs. In short, distractions happen on both a small and large scale to most of us throughout the day. To avoid distractions at work, block out the noise -- literally. Wear headphones, provided you are not seated at a desk where clients may come in or in a role where headphones are not appropriate. Wearing headphones, even with no music on, limits what you can hear and who will approach you. Others are less likely to disturb you unless they feel something is very time sensitive. If listening to music increases your concentration, wearing headphones and listening to music has an even greater value. If you have the option to close your office door, that works, too. 3. Write down the things you need to accomplish for the day. Too often people just assume that if they thought about something, then they will focus on it. Actually writing something down helps you to achieve it. Your list of what you want to accomplish is like a map to get to your destination. When you are focused on your map, you are less available to respond to distractions. To accomplish the most at work, be the CEO of your time. Just as business leaders are expected to have a business plan for their company, you should have a plan for your day as well. 4. Review your efforts and re-prioritize. We often spend our time on what is in front of us although it may not be strategic or career-enhancing. It is just obvious and very present. When you review your goals for the day and evaluate your efforts, you have no choice but to see if you are expending effort on the things that are critical and most valuable or losing time to less meaningful distractions. None of us would invest money in a publicly traded stock with a CEO who loses the company money but keeps a very organized supply closet. A CEO's top priority is to increase the company's value for shareholders. Organized supply closets, while great to look at, are not the best use of an executive's talents. This is why no analyst or prospectus has ever lauded an executive's power of supply organization. Far-fetched example? Yes, but the same is true for each of us at work. You have been hired to solve specific business problems. Each day, make sure you plan to prioritize things related to the business issues your role was designed to address. At the end of each day, check your work. Did you accomplish your goals and enhance your career or did you use the majority of the day reacting to other people's priorities? When you take ownership of your time, minimize distractions and take an honest look at your performance, you will be in great shape for professional success in 2016. Robin Reshwan is the founder of Collegial Services, a consulting/staffing firm that connects college students, recent graduates and the organizations that hire them and a certified Women's Business Enterprise (WBE). She has interviewed, placed and hired thousands of people across a broad spectrum of companies and industries. Her career tips and advice are used by universities, national clubs/associations and businesses. A Certified Professional Resume Writer, Robin has been honored as a Professional Business Woman of the Year by the American Business Women's Association. She graduated Phi Beta Kappa and as a Regents Scholar from University of California, Davis. BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazilian health officials said on Thursday they have confirmed two cases of transmission of Zika through transfusions of blood from donors who had been infected with the mosquito-borne virus that is spreading rapidly through the Americas. Marcelo Addas Carvalho, director of the Blood Center at the Sao Paulo state University of Campinas, said genetic testing confirmed that a man who received a blood transfusion using blood from a donor with Zika in March 2015 became infected with the virus, although the patient did not develop symptoms. Earlier, the health department of Campinas, an industrial city near Sao Paulo, said a man with gunshot wounds became infected with Zika after multiple blood transfusions in April 2015 that included blood donated by an infected person. Carvalho said the infection of the wounded man was most probably caused by the transfusion but genetic tests have not yet been conducted to confirm it. He said it was very unlikely the infection was caused by a mosquito bite because the patient was in a hospital intensive care unit for three months. The patient later died from his gunshot wounds and not the Zika infection, local health officials and Carvalho said. "The two cases can be considered transmission of the virus through blood transfusion, with greater certainty in the first because we did genetic sequencing comparing the virus in the donor and to the virus in the recipient," he said by telephone. Zika is usually contracted via mosquito bites, so transmission of the illness through blood transfusions adds another concern to efforts to contain the outbreak. Some countries have tightened procedures for blood donations, to protect blood supplies. Zika has been reported in 30 countries since it first appeared in the Americas last year in Brazil, where it has been linked to thousands of babies being born with microcephaly. This is a condition where infants have abnormally small heads and often have underdeveloped brains. Brazil's Health Ministry, leading efforts to contain a public health emergency in the country worst hit by the virus, emphasized in a statement that the recipient died of his wounds and not from the Zika infection. It said it was reinforcing instructions to blood banks that people infected with Zika or dengue not be permitted to donate blood for 30 days after full recovery from the active stage of Zika infection. On Tuesday, the American Red Cross urged prospective donors who have visited Zika outbreak zones to wait at least 28 days before giving blood, but said the risk of transmitting the virus through blood donations was "extremely" low in the continental United States. The agency asked donors who give blood and subsequently develop symptoms consistent with Zika within 14 days to notify the Red Cross so the product can be quarantined. Also causing concern is the possibility of transmission through sexual contact. Health officials in Texas reported on Tuesday that a person in Dallas became infected after having sex with another person who had traveled in Venezuela, where the virus is circulating. (Reporting by Anthony Boadle; Editing by Will Dunham, Frances Kerry and Bernard Orr) (Adds blood center doctor confirming second case) BRASILIA, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Brazilian health officials said on Thursday they have confirmed two cases of transmission of Zika through transfusions of blood from donors who had been infected with the mosquito-borne virus that is spreading rapidly through the Americas. Marcelo Addas Carvalho, director of the Blood Center at the Sao Paulo state University of Campinas, said genetic testing confirmed that a man who received a blood transfusion using blood from a donor with Zika in March 2015 became infected with the virus, although the patient did not develop symptoms. Earlier, the health department of Campinas, an industrial city near Sao Paulo, said a man with gunshot wounds became infected with Zika after multiple blood transfusions in April 2015 that included blood donated by an infected person. Carvalho said the infection of the wounded man was most probably caused by the transfusion but genetic tests have not yet been conducted to confirm it. He said it was very unlikely the infection was caused by a mosquito bite because the patient was in a hospital intensive care unit for three months. The patient later died from his gunshot wounds and not the Zika infection, local health officials and Carvalho said. "The two cases can be considered transmission of the virus through blood transfusion, with greater certainty in the first because we did genetic sequencing comparing the virus in the donor and to the virus in the recipient," he said by telephone. Zika is usually contracted via mosquito bites, so transmission of the illness through blood transfusions adds another concern to efforts to contain the outbreak. Some countries have tightened procedures for blood donations, to protect blood supplies. Zika has been reported in 30 countries since it first appeared in the Americas last year in Brazil, where it has been linked to thousands of babies being born with microcephaly. This is a condition where infants have abnormally small heads and often have underdeveloped brains. Brazil's Health Ministry, leading efforts to contain a public health emergency in the country worst hit by the virus, emphasized in a statement that the recipient died of his wounds and not from the Zika infection. It said it was reinforcing instructions to blood banks that people infected with Zika or dengue not be permitted to donate blood for 30 days after full recovery from the active stage of Zika infection. On Tuesday, the American Red Cross urged prospective donors who have visited Zika outbreak zones to wait at least 28 days before giving blood, but said the risk of transmitting the virus through blood donations was "extremely" low in the continental United States. The agency asked donors who give blood and subsequently develop symptoms consistent with Zika within 14 days to notify the Red Cross so the product can be quarantined. Also causing concern is the possibility of transmission through sexual contact. Health officials in Texas reported on Tuesday that a person in Dallas became infected after having sex with another person who had traveled in Venezuela, where the virus is circulating. (Reporting by Anthony Boadle; Editing by Will Dunham, Frances Kerry and Bernard Orr) By Daniel Flynn and Brad Haynes SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Leading researchers in Brazil are borrowing techniques used to accelerate the fight against Ebola in the hope of developing a Zika virus treatment that could be tested in humans in a year. Professor Jorge Kalil, head of the state-run Butantan Institute, told Reuters this week scientists there planned to use animals to produce antibodies to tackle the virus, which is suspected of causing brain damage in more than 4,000 infants in the South American country. A similar research path was used in the hunt for an Ebola treatment. There is no cure or vaccine for the virus, which was discovered in the Zika Forest in Uganda in 1947. It was detected in Brazil for the first time last year and has since spread to at least 26 countries in the Americas. The virus has mild effects - red eyes, fever, joint pains and a rash - and nearly 80 percent of people who are infected experience no symptoms. The World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday declared an emergency over Zika, lending urgency to research into whether Zika infection in pregnancy does in fact cause microcephaly, a condition marked by abnormally small heads, in newborns. Brazil is investigating 4,074 suspected cases of microcephaly. Kalil, an immunologist, said the institute was cultivating the virus in quantities sufficient to start tests in isolating antibodies in rodents. Researchers would then attempt to produce them in larger quantities in horses and purify the antibodies in the laboratory before starting tests on humans. "The antibodies ... could be injected into women with Zika to neutralize the virus," Kalil told Reuters in an interview. "I think we can reach that point in a year." Researchers do not have a clear model of how the virus operates in animals or humans. Several organizations are working on the problem in rodents and primates because of the urgency, Kalil said. Scientists generally prefer to use human antibodies in drugs because the immune system might react to them, but it has been done. Such was the case of early versions of Mapp Biopharmaceutical Incs ZMapp antiviral treatment for Ebola, which was developed in mouse blood cells that were exposed to samples containing Ebola virus fragments. These cells were genetically modified to make them more human. "People have to understand this is an emergency," Kalil said. "If we have an idea and a product that causes no harm, we have the obligation to test it." A second stage would be to produce a convalescent serum with neutralizing antibodies from humans, Kalil said. Kalil expressed hope the WHO's emergency declaration prompts Brazil to lift bureaucratic restrictions on the import of equipment and materials needed for producing serums and vaccines, and on the export of medical samples to the United States. "Either this emergency opens the door for a real exchange of material and chemicals between serious institutions...or we will not be able to keep to our timetable," he said. NEW TEST, VACCINE With no widely available commercial tests for the mosquito-borne virus, no one knows how many cases have occurred in Brazil. Kalil said that identifying the antibodies for Zika could allow a quicker and more effective test to be developed in three to six months. However, many scientists are concerned that the similarity of Zika to fellow flavivirus dengue, which is widespread in Brazil, could hinder the search for a fast and efficient test. That is because diagnostic tests to identify Zika antibodies also react to dengue, skewing results. The Butantan Institute hopes this similarity with dengue could help it with the hunt for a vaccine to help prevent the spread of the disease. Butantan - Brazil's largest producer of immunobiological products - has worked for nearly a decade with the U.S. National Institutes for Health (NIH) on a vaccine for dengue and believes they can piggy-back on that research to reach a solution for the Zika virus. Researchers at Butantan hope to insert genetic material from Zika into their dengue vaccine, which last month started Phase 3 clinical trials in Brazil - the final stage of testing involving human subjects on a large scale. "We believe that by taking this shortcut to Zika using the dengue virus, in a year we could start tests in humans," said Kalil, who trained in Paris under Nobel prize-winning immunologist Jean Dausset. "In three years, we could start Phase 3 testing." As private companies such as France's Sanofi SA joining the search for a vaccine, Kalil expressed hope that a breakthrough could come even sooner, noting that drug companies made the breakthrough with a vaccine for the Ebola virus. Hampering its research, Butantan has been hard-hit by two years of budget cuts as the economy slid into its worst recession for decades. But Kalil voiced hope that President Dilma Rousseff would make good on a pledge to prioritize resources for Zika. "All the projects I have requested so far have been approved and I hope that resources will be disbursed very quickly," he said. (Reporting by Daniel Flynn and Brad Haynes; Editing by Lisa Shumaker) By Anthony Boadle BRASILIA (Reuters) - Two cases of Zika being transmitted through blood transfusions were reported in Brazil on Thursday, adding to concerns over the virus that has been linked to severe birth defects and is typically spread through mosquito bites. The disclosure of the blood transfusion cases in the industrial city of Campinas near Sao Paulo came two days after Texas authorities said a person became infected through sex. Concern over the virus is mounting as Brazil prepares to host the Olympic Games in August, with tens of thousands of athletes and tourists anticipated. There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika, which has caused outbreaks in at least 26 countries in the Americas. Brazil researchers hope to develop a treatment that could be tested in humans in a year. Dr. Marcelo Addas Carvalho, director of the blood center at the University of Campinas, said genetic testing confirmed that a man who received a blood transfusion from a Zika-infected man in March 2015 became infected with the virus, although he did not develop symptoms. Another man, who had suffered gunshot wounds, became infected with Zika after receiving multiple blood transfusions that included blood donated by an infected person in April 2015, Carvalho said. Carvalho said that infection probably was caused by the transfusion but genetic tests have not yet been conducted to confirm it. He said it was very unlikely the infection was caused by a mosquito bite because the patient was in a hospital intensive care unit for three months. The patient later died from his gunshot wounds and not the Zika infection, health officials and Carvalho said. Carvalho sought to downplay the Zika threat arising from blood transfusions, saying such transmission of the virus is very rare and not an important factor in the outbreak. "Governments and society in general should focus on eliminating the mosquito, which is the main form of transmission," Carvalho added. Brazil estimates that up to 1.5 million people have been infected in the country. Brazil is investigating more than 4,000 suspected cases of microcephaly, a condition in which infants are born with abnormally small heads and can suffer developmental problems, that may be linked to Zika. Researchers have identified evidence of Zika infection in 17 of these cases, either in the baby or in the mother, but have not confirmed that Zika can cause microcephaly. The World Health Organization declared a global health emergency related to Zika on Monday, citing the microcephaly threat. FLORIDA EXPANDS EMERGENCY DECLARATION Florida Governor Rick Scott on Thursday expanded a Zika public health emergency in the state, adding a fifth locale, Broward County, to the four counties he announced on Wednesday. "With over 20 million residents and 100 million tourists, we must stay ahead of the possible spread of the Zika virus and take immediate action to ensure Florida is prepared," Scott said. Florida Senator Bill Nelson, a Democrat, called for President Barack Obama to appoint a Zika "czar" to coordinate the federal government's response as Obama did during the Ebola outbreak last year. Sexual contact and blood transfusions as modes of transmission have been matters of concern for experts since the Zika outbreak's outset, said infectious diseases expert Dr. William Schaffner of the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee. But Schaffner questioned whether either will lead to widespread Zika transmission. "A little bit of transmission? Sure," Schaffner said. "But the main engine of transmission that has led this virus to be spread widely throughout Central and South America and the Caribbean is, of course, the mosquito." Procedures for blood donations have been tightened in countries including Brazil to protect blood supplies from Zika. U.S. health officials are still working on national guidelines. Following word of the Texas case on Tuesday, U.S. health officials urged the use of condoms to prevent spreading sexually transmitted infections. Brazil said it was reinforcing instructions to blood banks that people infected with Zika or dengue not be permitted to donate blood for 30 days after full recovery from the active stage of Zika infection. The American Red Cross has urged prospective donors who have visited Zika outbreak zones to wait at least 28 days before giving blood, but called the risk of transmitting it through blood donations "extremely" low in the continental United States. In the Texas case, authorities said a person in Dallas became infected with Zika after having sex with another person who had traveled in Venezuela, where the virus is circulating. Local health officials said on Thursday both those people have fully recovered from the virus. Schaffner said uncertainties remain about sexual transmission of the virus, including how long a person might be able to transmit it or whether an infected person must have had symptomatic Zika in order to be able to transmit Zika through sex. Most infected people do not develop any symptoms. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo expanded his state's free Zika testing to include all pregnant women who have traveled to countries where people have been infected. (Reporting by Anthony Boadle in Brasilia; Additional reporting by Jon Herskovitz in Austin, Texas and Letitia Stein in Tampa; Writing by Will Dunham, Lisa Shumaker; Editing by Michele Gershberg, Grant McCool and Bernard Orr) London (AFP) - Britain should "free" Julian Assange after a UN panel decision expected to find his confinement in the Ecuadorian embassy in London unlawful is published on Friday, one of his lawyers told AFP. "If it respects its international commitments to the United Nations, it has to respect a decision of a working group based on the UN convention on political and civil rights. We hope it will endeavour to free Assange," said Christophe Marchand, who works for the Brussels-based law firm Jus Cogens. "Assange's position has always been that he is in detention, like in a transit zone," he said. "The next step is what Britain and Sweden are going to do. The ball is in their court, they have to put an end to the legal labyrinth," he added. The WikiLeaks founder, who has been holed up at the embassy since June 2012 to avoid arrest, said he expects the British police to call off their attempts to detain him if the panel rules in his favour when it publishes its report on Friday. But Sweden's prosecution authority said the ruling had no impact on its investigation into a 2010 rape allegation against him, and Britain said it would have to arrest him as long as a European warrant for his arrest remained in vigour. London (AFP) - The British government announced 1.2 billion (1.6 million euros, $1.74 billion) in aid for war-torn Syria and its neighbours on Thursday, ahead of a donors' conference in London. "More money is needed to tackle this crisis and it is needed now," Prime Minister David Cameron said in a statement announcing the pledge, which will fund education, jobs and humanitarian relief in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. The promise amounts to an extra 1.2 billion, to be spent between 2016 and 2020, to address "the world's biggest humanitarian crisis", Cameron's office said. Britain has already agreed to spend 1.12 billion on the region. It comes as world leaders are due to gather in London to try to raise $9 billion for the millions of Syrians affected by five years of civil war and to address an acute refugee crisis. The conflict has forced 4.6 million Syrians to seek refuge in nearby countries -- Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt -- while hundreds of thousands have journeyed to Europe in the region's biggest migration crisis since World War II. "With hundreds of thousands of people risking their lives crossing the Aegean or the Balkans, now is the time to take a new approach to the humanitarian disaster in Syria," Cameron said. Donors will have to dig deeper than the last conference in 2015, when UN agencies asked for $8.4 billion to help Syria and its neighbours, but raised just $3.3 billion. The organisers have already agreed that participants should at least "double" their contributions from last year. Aid from the conference will be targeted at helping the economies of Syria's neighbours, creating jobs for refugees and citizens of their host countries, according to the release. It will also go towards food, shelter, medical care and rebuilding health facilities in Syria itself. Speaking ahead of the conference, Norway's Minister for Foreign Affairs Borge Brende said there was a "moral imperative, human imperative" to act. "It's a lost generation if we're not successful tomorrow," Brende said. By Elizabeth Piper LONDON - Prime Minister David Cameron stood firm on Wednesday against eurosceptic members of his own party who criticised a plan to keep Britain in the European Union as a watered down "thin gruel" of broken promises. The deal, presented by European Council President Donald Tusk on Tuesday, has so far received a warm response from European capitals which must approve it. But at home, it risks reopening a longstanding wound in Cameron's Conservative Party, beset by division over Europe for decades. Bringing the package to parliament, the prime minister faced more than two hours of sometimes hostile questioning, mostly from established eurosceptic ruling party members who had already written off Cameron's renegotiation as a waste of time. The first round of what is likely to be a months-long battle was less heated in parliament than in the mostly eurosceptic British press, which trashed the deal as a "farce", a "joke" or a "delusion". With his cabinet ministers instructed not to pick sides until a deal with Brussels is final, Cameron faced criticism only from party "backbenchers" without government posts. Nevertheless, the going could get tougher: former defence secretary Liam Fox, a leading eurosceptic Conservative backbencher, told BBC radio that up to five ministers in the prime minister's cabinet were certain to back leaving. In parliament, Conservative eurosceptic Bill Cash asked: "Why has my right honourable friend, in order to stay in, bypassed so many promises and principles?" Jacob Rees-Mogg, a lawmaker who had previously written off Cameron's demands as thin gruel, said: "The thin gruel has been further watered down." He added: "My right honourable friend has a fortnight I think in which to salvage his reputation as a negotiator," referring to a summit of EU leaders on Feb. 18-19 which could pave the way for a membership referendum as early as in June. Cameron replied to his "honourable friends" - parliamentary-speak for lawmakers from the same party - that the measures would ensure "that Britain truly can have the best of both worlds". He now faces weeks of trying to persuade those wary of the EU that the deal will tackle the two most important issues for voters: migration and returning powers from Brussels to London. DISSENT? Cameron has spent months trying to secure a deal so that he can campaign to stay in a reformed EU. He promised the referendum in 2013 to try to put to rest the divisive subject of Europe that dogged his Conservative predecessor John Major and brought down his hero, Margaret Thatcher. The stakes are high. A vote to leave would not only transform Britain's future role in world trade and affairs but would also shake the EU, which has struggled to maintain unity over migration and financial crises, by ripping away its second-largest economy and one of its two main military powers. Financial markets have largely welcomed the deal, but that optimism is also threatened by ongoing uncertainty. A Reuters poll of economists predicted the sterling currency would rise this year but the referendum was the main risk factor. Cameron has heard warm words from other European capitals, with even eastern European countries, which had balked at measures to stop welfare payments to EU migrants, saying they were willing to study the deal. At home, the prime minister may struggle to keep his party together. Cameron has said ministers will be free to campaign on either side of the referendum once a final deal is reached, but hopes that leading figures including members of his cabinet will follow his lead. Some may hesitate to back an EU deal that so many in their party distrust. London's popular Mayor Boris Johnson, a potential Conservative successor to Cameron, strayed close to the line of dissent: "Most people looking at this will think that there is a lot more to do." Oliver Daddow, an expert on British European policy at Nottingham Trent University, said Cameron now had to get a deal past other EU members - which may fear the deal could harm their countries' interests or cause a voter backlash against them - while dealing at home with a potential split in his party. "Referendums in Britain are a political expedient, not a constitutional requirement," he said. "In this case, one has to ask whether the referendum itself was a politically wise move, seeing as it could tear apart the Conservative Party. Again." (additional reporting by Kylie MacLellan and William James in London, Adrian Krajewski in Warsaw, Robin Emmott and Philip Blenkinsop in Brussels; editing by Peter Graff) By Alastair Sharp TORONTO (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar rallied to a seven-week high against a broadly weaker U.S. counterpart on Wednesday as oil prices bounced and doubts about future U.S. rate hikes weighed on the greenback. The loonie, as Canada's currency is colloquially known, may have also benefited from the announced takeover of a major Canadian retailer. Wednesday's rally completes a reversal of weakness since the start of 2016, which saw the loonie hit C$1.4689, its weakest level since April 2003. The recovery was set off by the Bank of Canada's Jan. 20 decision to hold rates steady when many were bracing for a cut. Meanwhile, doubts about the pace of U.S. rate hikes were stoked on Wednesday by a top U.S. Federal Reserve official's acknowledgement that tighter financial conditions would weigh on policymakers heading into a March meeting. The Canadian dollar ended the session trading at C$1.3773 to the greenback, or 72.61 U.S. cents, much stronger than the Bank of Canada's official close of C$1.4027, or 71.29 U.S. cents. The currency touched its strongest level since Dec. 16 at C$1.3757, while its weakest level was C$1.4103. "For the most part it was a one-way street," said David Bradley, director of foreign exchange trading at Scotiabank, citing the likely liquidation of bullish bets on the U.S. dollar against a string of currencies as technical levels broke down. Oil prices jumped 8 percent higher, helped by the U.S. dollar weakness which made the commodity cheaper for holders of other currencies. Rising oil prices also typically support the currency of Canada, a major energy exporter. [O/R] Scotia's Bradley said the Canadian currency will likely trade closer to the lower end of a C$1.35 to C$1.45 range, with potential for more appreciation if U.S. jobs data due on Friday disappoints. U.S. home improvement retailer Lowe's Companies Inc said it agreed to buy Canada's Rona Inc in a deal valued at C$3.2 billion ($2.28 billion). Dealers doubted that foreign exchange flows related to the deal had driven the Canadian dollar higher overnight. But expectation that flows might occur was supportive of the currency. "It could be market participants thinking that they might front run that (takeover related flows)," said Brad Schruder, director of foreign exchange at BMO Capital Markets. Canadian government bond prices were lower across the maturity curve, with the two-year price down 5.5 Canadian cents to yield 0.401 percent and the benchmark 10-year falling 33 Canadian cents to yield 1.154 percent. (Additional reporting by Fergal Smith; Editing by Nick Zieminski and Tom Brown) Cancertreatment Alexis Devaney was unaware of the large tumor growing in her body until a friend of the family pointed out a peculiar lump in her back during a visit. A few scans and biopsies later, she was informed that she had thyroid cancer. She was 12-years-old at the time. Not too long after, I had a total thyroidectomy, said the now 24-year-old Devaney, a Brooklyn-based wedding photographer, in an interview with Mashable. And they took out two parathyroid [glands] and a bunch of lymph nodes. SEE ALSO: Obama puts Biden in 'mission control' of new push to cure cancer Following the surgery, she also received radiation treatment. For the next five years, Devaney received regular check-ups every few months for a while, eventually graduating to once a year until she reached the five-year mark, which was supposed to be the point at which she could stop coming in for examinations so frequently. But the exam did not go as expected. At my five-year check-up, they found cancer cells in my neck, said Devaney, who had just turned 18 by that point and was preparing to head off to her dream college, the Hallmark Institute of Photography in Massachusetts. Image: Star Shooter/MediaPunch/IPx She recalls considering deferring treatment so she could go away to school immediately but ultimately opted for a procedure known as a radical neck dissection, which involved the removal of essentially all of the lymph nodes on the right side of her neck. A week after the procedure, she went in for a check-up and was cleared to leave for college. Today, Devaney is unable to say for sure whether shes truly cancer-free. Several years ago, scans revealed another mass in her body but the scar tissue and other physical consequences of her surgeries and radiation have made it difficult to access for a biopsy. So far, the mass hasnt grown since 2009, so doctors are content to watch and wait for the time being but they still cant say definitively what it is. One theory is that the mass is another cancerous tumor, but its being kept in check by medications Devaney takes, and could be kept at bay indefinitely. Story continues Technically, Im in remission, Devaney said. I used to say that I was cancer-free, and I dont say that anymore. What does a cure look like? Devaneys nebulous status exemplifies some difficult questions about the future of cancer treatment namely, what exactly it means to cure cancer, or if its even possible. Its an issue thats come to the surface of discussions about cancer research in recent weeks with the creation of the new White House Cancer Moonshot Task Force, which was announced by President Obama during his final State of the Union address in January and formally kicked off in a White House meeting that took place on Feb. 1. Vice President Joe Biden, who lost his son Beau to brain cancer on May 30 at the age of 46, is heading up the effort. In his address, Obama declared his intent to make America the country that cures cancer once and for all. The new memorandum establishing the task force listed accelerated progress toward prevention, treatment and a cure as a primary objective. The problem is that many experts agree that striving for a single cure for cancer is a simplistic and likely impossible goal. After all, there are dozens of known types of cancers in existence, many of which respond differently to different types of treatments. Its more reasonable to assume that many different cures may exist, depending on the kind of cancer being treated. And some experts believe that the idea of a cure, in and of itself, might not even be so straightforward an idea thats made apparent in cases like Devaneys. The reality is we can already cure some cancers, said Otis Brawley, chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society, in an interview. Breast, lung and colon cancers are all commonly cured at certain stages, he pointed out that is, the patient goes into a state of permanent remission and there is no more sign of cancer in the body. Coexisting with cancer For other types of cancers, Brawley suggested that a more realistic approach would be to model our expectations of a cure after the attitudes commonly adopted toward conditions such as diabetes that is, people being able to live for a prolonged period of time in peaceful coexistence with their disease, he said. This is not a cure in the traditional sense coexistence implies lifelong treatment and maintenance in order to keep the disease under control but the idea does push toward a similar outcome for the patient: a long, high-quality life in which the disease continues to exist but remains permanently under control. This is the scenario that Devaney may be experiencing now, although she and her doctors still arent sure. Devaney also pointed out living under such conditions still keeps the patient in a constant state of worry that their maintenance treatments and medications may fail and that their cancer may resurface. I feel like if I was cured I wouldnt have to worry about it, she said. So, as Devaney pointed out, theres clear incentive to keep searching for more absolute types of cures. But even these are likely to be heavily dependent on the type of cancer in question, as well as a number of other factors, including the root cause of the cancer or the patients genetic history, experts say and they may require a great deal of tailoring to individual patients. I think there will be multiple approaches applied that are really personalized to each persons cancer, said Joanne Weidhaas, professor of radiation oncology and member of UCLAs Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, in an interview. It wont be the same because people have different cancer biologies." On the other hand, many experts are optimistic about promising new therapies that have shown potential to be used in the treatment of a range of different conditions. There will not be a single cure, but there may be many cancers that can be cured using similar mechanistic approaches for example, harnessing the power of our immune system to fight cancer, said Gary Gilliland, president and director of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, in an email to Mashable. The type of treatment Gilliland referred to is known as immunotherapy, and its been rapidly gaining traction among cancer researchers. The idea is to develop therapies that help the immune system eradicate cancer cells on its own, rather than using drugs or radiation to target tumors. Image: White House photo/pete souza Its a game-changing concept, according to Ronald DePinho, president of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. MD Anderson has its own Moon Shots program, which was established in 2012 and aims to reduce cancer mortality and suffering. The program places a high emphasis on the study of immunotherapy and has launched more than a hundred clinical trials so far. Its been suggested that immunotherapy is a target area for Bidens new initiative as well. In January, the vice president chose to formally launch the moonshot at the University of Pennsylvanias Abramson Cancer Center, in a nod to the institutes pioneering research into immunotherapy. But there are other research areas to consider as well. Brawley, of the American Cancer Society, suggested that another focus area should be prevention - in other words, curing cancer by finding better ways to prevent people from getting it in the first place. This is another part of the MD Anderson Moon Shots program, according to DePinho. For the time being, the direction that the new White House task force takes still remains to be seen, and its progress toward a cure, or cures whatever they may look like has yet to unfold. But the overall mood surrounding the initiative is one of optimism. In an outline of the initiatives intentions published in Medium on Jan. 12, Biden pointed to the revolutionary new therapies (immunotherapy included) that have begun to emerge in recent years and noted that cancer research appears to be at an inflection point. With the launching of the Moonshot initiative, he wrote, he plans to solidify a genuine global commitment to end cancer as we know it today. And while its still unclear what exactly the end of cancer will look like, the future according to the experts is bright. By Chen Aizhu and Freya Berry BEIJING/LONDON (Reuters) - A frenetic year of negotiations and setbacks preceded China National Chemical Corp's (ChemChina) blockbuster $43 billion bid for Swiss seeds and pesticides giant Syngenta. But state-owned ChemChina boss Ren Jianxin's dream of snapping up either Syngenta or its U.S. rival Dow Chemical Co goes back much further - to just after his firm was officially established in 2004. "We've been following Syngenta from shortly after the group was founded, scouting for co-operation projects and joint venture opportunities," said one veteran ChemChina staff member. "To ChemChina, Syngenta and Dow were goddesses that we hoped one day we could win." For more than a decade, such aspirations were unaffordable for ChemChina and unappealing for Syngenta. Ren spent those years though developing a strong relationship with Mike Mack who, until last October, was Syngenta's chief executive. Ren's canny relationship-building came into its own a year ago, when the Swiss firm found itself the subject of hostile bids from U.S. rival Monsanto. "When it became clear that Syngenta was under attack from Monsanto, ChemChina called them up and asked if they should play the white knight," said one adviser on the deal. ChemChina mandated HSBC to work with them on a possible approach and while Syngenta was rebuffing Monsanto, it was drawing up ideas with its Chinese counterpart on what they could do together. At the time, the state-owned Chinese giant could not match Monsanto's financial fire power, but its collegial relationship with Syngenta left it in a strong position for later negotiations. "ChemChina had reached out. They understood their proposal then was not commensurate with Monsanto's," said one source who worked on the deal from Syngenta's side. THE FRIENDLY SUITOR Last August Syngenta spurned Monsanto's final offer for the company, which had valued it at $47 billion, prompting the U.S. firm to walk away, citing a lack of "constructive engagement" from the Swiss firm. Syngenta said Monsanto was trying to buy it on the cheap, but the rejection angered investors, especially when the company's subsequent third quarter earnings came in shy of expectations. So two months after the final Monsanto rejection, Ren's ally Mack left the company. By then consolidation between Syngenta's rivals Dow and DuPont coupled with a slump in grain prices meant the board felt it had little choice but to push on negotiations with its friendly Chinese suitor. "Discussions intensified at the time the Dow-DuPont merger surfaced, because that effectively took two players out of the market," said the adviser. Bankers and company executives shuttled between meetings in Basel, Beijing and London, with Gordon Dyal, Goldman Sachs' former head of M&A, advising Syngenta through his one-man Dyalco outfit. For several months, discussions were focused on a complex two-stage takeover that would involve ChemChina buying 70 percent of Syngenta up front, and the remaining 30 percent further down the line, according to the adviser on the deal. That "proved too difficult to pull off from technical execution to regulatory approval" the adviser said, prompting discussions to move on to a pure all-in cash $43 billion deal. "Towards end of the year, they indicated a value to us that we thought we could work with. The key issue for us is that we were never going to reach an agreement unless funding was certain and confirmed," said the Syngenta-side source on the deal. A source with knowledge of the deal said on Wednesday that ChemChina had secured 100 percent of its funding requirements. "That's what they achieved through the month of January; what clinched the deal ultimately was the ability to confirm to us that funding was in place. We had some discussions on price but the key was that the money was good," the Syngenta-side source said. (Additional reporting by Arno Schuetze in Frankfurt; writing by Rachel Armstrong; editing by Philippa Fletcher) BEIJING (Reuters) - China's airline pilots have been warned to steer clear of prostitutes, gambling and drink ahead of this year's Lunar New Year holiday, part of a campaign to strengthen the country's air safety record. China has experienced few crashes since the early 2000s, the result of stricter safety rules, better training and a relatively young fleet of mainly Western-made aircraft. Praising Chinese pilots for flying 8.46 million hours last year, the China Airline Pilots' Association noted in an open letter that "very few" pilots were selfish or hedonistic. The association did say, however, that some pilots were involved with prostitutes, gambling, drunk-driving and smuggling. Such behavior "severely challenges legal and moral bottom lines", it said without naming any pilots. The open letter was published on an Chinese aviation website late on Wednesday. The publication comes just ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday when millions travel to their home provinces or overseas and is intended to make sure that pilots maintain their adherence to safety, industry observers said. "Safety is everything in China," said Joe Tymczyszyn, former executive director for the U.S.-China Aviation Cooperation Program. "If there is any small deviation in safety, there is strict, strong punishment." Officials at the pilots' association could not immediately be reached for comment. (Reporting by Fang Yan and Matthew Miller in BEIJING; Editing by Nick Macfie) Beijing (AFP) - China announced plans to cut steel production by as much as 150 million tonnes over the next five years, state media reported Thursday, as the country stares down industrial overcapacity that has weighed on its growth. The State Council, the country's cabinet, said it would close outdated plants and refuse to license new steel projects, the official Xinhua news service said. Crude steel production declined 2.3 percent year-on-year to 803.8 million tonnes in 2015, the National Bureau of Statistics said last month. Xinhua news agency described it as the first drop since 1981. China accounts for half the world's crude steel production, according to data from the World Steel Association. But the sector has been plagued by overcapacity in both China and the rest of the world for years, and global prices have plummeted in the face of oversupply. Experts say China is sitting on an overproduction of 340 million tonnes. The current production capacity is 1.2 billion tonnes, but the country only produced 804 million tonnes last year, Xinhua said. European producers accuse Chinese firms of selling below the cost of production, and French economy minister Emmanuel Macron has warned that Europe would not accept the "Chinese dumping". Steel producers have also been hit by concerns over China's slowing growth, which reached 6.9 percent in 2015, its slowest for 25 years. Beijing has banned new projects in a variety of other industries in an effort to correct the problem, including cement, electrolytic aluminium, flat glass and shipbuilding. Many of China's giant state-owned enterprises are unviable and Premier Li Keqiang has called for a "cutback on overcapacity in traditional industries as well as a large number of zombie enterprises". By Jane Wardell and Matt Siegel SYDNEY (Reuters) - An Australian court ruling paving the way for the deportation of over 250 asylum seekers to an offshore immigration camp drew criticism from The United Nations and sparked protests on Thursday, while church leaders publicly offered them sanctuary. On Wednesday, the High Court rejected a legal test case that challenged Australia's right to deport detained asylum seekers to the tiny South Pacific island of Nauru, about 3,000 km (1,800 miles) northeast of Australia. Some 267 people who were brought from Nauru to Australia for medical treatment, including up to 80 children, are now at risk of being returned to the detention center that houses around 500 people. The center has been widely criticized for harsh conditions and reports of systemic child abuse. Rupert Colville, the spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, said in an emailed statement that Australia could contravene its obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child by sending back the group, which includes more than 12 women and at least one child who have alleged sexual assault or harassment while in Nauru. The group also includes 37 children born in Australia. Under Australias immigration policy, asylum seekers attempting to reach the country by boat are intercepted and sent to camps on Nauru or on Manus island in Papua New Guinea. The government says the policies are necessary to stop asylum seekers dying at sea aboard the often rickety boats used by people smugglers. Immigration Minister Peter Dutton reiterated in a statement that asylum seekers arriving by boat would either be intercepted and turned back or "sent to another country for processing". However, in an interview on ABC Radio on Thursday, he appeared to open the door to at least some of those affected remaining in Australia. "If there are exceptional circumstances in the individual cases, then we're happy to look at that and thats always been the case," he said. While the numbers of people attempting to reach Australia are small in comparison with the floods of asylum seekers in Europe, the issue is a big political challenge for Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. Hundreds of Australians on Thursday protested outside the Sydney offices of the Department of Immigration, with more rallies planned in cities across the country. "It's a completely dreadful and immoral thing that we are sending kids back there. It makes me ashamed of my government and ashamed of Australia" Sara Lubowitz, 52, told Reuters. Several churches have offered sanctuary to the asylum seekers. The Anglican Dean of Brisbane, Peter Catt, declared the city's cathedral a sanctuary for those who have suffered trauma and risk abuse if they are returned to Nauru. (Additional reporting Jarni Blakkarly in SYDNEY; Editing by Grant McCool, Paul Tait and Michael Perry) By Jane Wardell SYDNEY (Reuters) - The United Nations on Thursday strongly criticized an Australian court ruling that paves the way for the deportation of dozens of infants born to asylum seekers as church leaders offered sanctuary to refugees at risk of abuse if they were returned to a South Pacific island detention center. The High Court on Wednesday rejected a legal test case brought by an unidentified Bangladeshi woman that challenged Australia's right to deport detained asylum seekers to Nauru, about 3,000 km (1,800 miles) northeast of Australia. Some 267 people who were brought from Nauru to Australia for medical treatment, including up to 80 children, are now at risk of being returned to the detention center that houses around 500 people. The center has been widely criticized by the U.N. and other human rights agencies for harsh conditions and reports of systemic child abuse. "We believe that transferring these 267 individuals to Nauru could further damage their physical and mental health, and would put Australia at risk of breaching its obligation not to return any person to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment under the Convention against Torture," Rupert Colville, the spokesman for the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, said in an emailed statement. Colville said the group includes more than 12 women and at least one child who have suffered sexual assault or harassment while in Nauru. It also includes 37 children born in Australia. "Sending these children to Nauru could contravene Australias obligations under the Convention on the Rights of the Child," he said. Under Australias immigration policy, asylum seekers attempting to reach the country by boat are intercepted and sent to camps on the island nation of Nauru or on Manus island in Papua New Guinea. While the numbers of people attempting to reach Australia are small in comparison with the floods of asylum seekers in Europe, the issue is a big political challenge for Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull. The pressure was ratcheted up on Thursday as several churches offered sanctuary to the asylum seekers. The Anglican Dean of Brisbane, Peter Catt, declared the city's cathedral a sanctuary for those who have suffered trauma and risk abuse if they are returned to Nauru. "This fundamentally goes against our faith, so our church community is compelled to act, despite the possibility of individual penalty against us," Catt said. The concept of sanctuary, a religious tenet that dates back to the Old Testament, has never been tested under Australian law. (Reporting By Jane Wardell; editing by Grant McCool) (Reuters) - Cisco Systems Inc said on Wednesday it was buying Jasper Technologies Inc, a startup that connects devices like cars and medical devices to the Internet, for $1.4 billion in cash and equity awards, its largest acquisition since 2013. Legacy technology companies like Cisco have been trying to find paths for growth while new technology developments, such as the rise of cloud computing, threaten their core businesses. The emerging field dubbed Internet of Things, offers Cisco, known for networking equipment, a chance to offer cutting-edge technology to its current customers. In addition to connecting devices to the Internet, Jasper makes a software platform that helps monitor these devices once they are online. Rob Salvagno, Cisco's vice president of corporate development, said in an interview that the Internet of Things has been a priority for Cisco for the past few years. "We've been keeping an eye on this market and what we noticed was that Jasper represented a unique asset. We believe they are the largest Internet of Things service platform of scale today," he said. Connecting myriad objects to the Internet is in its infancy today, said Gaurav Garg, a Jasper board member and a partner at Wing Venture Capital who compared the potential of the technology to the early days of the electrical grid. "Who thought we'd be plugging computers and all sorts of things into it?" he asked, assigning similar possibilities to the Internet of Things. Cisco, which has acquired dozens of smaller companies over the years, is shifting its business toward high-end switches and routers and investing in new products such as data analytics software and cloud-based tools for data centers. Jasper is the largest deal for Cisco since it acquired security company Sourcefire for $2.7 billion in 2013. Jasper had been planning an initial public offering and had banks to help it prepare. Its investors, such as Singapore's Temasek, Sequoia Capital and Benchmark Capital, will now get a chance to cash out without having to brave the rocky equity markets, which have seen no technology IPOs this year. Story continues Jasper's chief executive, Jahangir Mohammed, will stay on with Cisco and run a new Internet of Things Software Business unit once the deal closes in the third quarter. In March 2015, another big legacy company, IBM, said it would invest $3 billion over the next four years to help companies track the data from sensor-equipped devices and smartphones. IBM calls its initiative the IoT Foundation. Other competitors in the space include General Electric and Microsoft. (Reporting by Liana B. Baker; Additional reporting by Sarah McBride in San Francisco; Editing by Andrew Hay and Leslie Adler) (Reuters) - Cisco Systems Inc said on Wednesday it was buying Jasper Technologies Inc, a startup that connects devices like cars and medical devices to the Internet, for $1.4 billion in cash and equity awards, its largest acquisition since 2013. Legacy technology companies like Cisco have been trying to find paths for growth while new technology developments, such as the rise of cloud computing, threaten their core businesses. The so called Internet of Things, the area Jasper specializes in, offers Cisco a chance to offer cutting-edge technology to its current customers such as telecommunications companies. Jasper connects devices like cars, jet engines and pacemakers to the Internet and also makes a software platform that helps monitor these devices once they are online. Rob Salvagno, Cisco's vice president of corporate development, said in an interview that the Internet of Things has been a priority for the company for the past few years. "We've been keeping an eye on this market and what we noticed was that Jasper represented a unique asset. We believe they are the largest Internet of Things service platform of scale today," he said. Cisco, which has acquired dozens of smaller companies over the years, is shifting its business towards high-end switches and routers and investing in new products such as data analytics software and cloud-based tools for data centers. This was the largest deal for Cisco since it acquired security company Sourcefire for $2.7 billion in 2013. Jasper had been planning an initial public offering and had banks to help it prepare. Its investors such as Singapore's Temasek, Sequoia Capital and Benchmark Capital, will now get a chance to cash out without having to brave the rocky equity markets which have seen no technology IPOs this year. Jasper's chief executive Jahangir Mohammed will stay on with Cisco and run a new Internet of Things Software Business Unit once the deal closes in the third quarter. In March 2015, another big legacy company, IBM, said it would invest $3 billion over the next four years to help companies track the data from sensor-equipped devices and smartphones. IBM calls its initiative the IoT Foundation. Other competitors in the space include GE and Microsoft. (Reporting by Liana B. Baker; additional reporting by Sarah McBride in San Francisco; Editing by Andrew Hay) Portsmouth (United States) (AFP) - Democrats Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders face off Thursday in the first debate since their bruising Iowa clash and days before the next round of voting in the tortuous race to the White House. Clinton won Iowa by a hair but Sanders leads handsomely in the polls in New Hampshire, where Republicans are also swarming to for the crucial February 9 vote, with Donald Trump eager to reclaim the Republican lead after he was beaten in Iowa by arch-conservative Senator Ted Cruz. The billionaire Trump also faces the sudden, dramatic rise of Senator Marco Rubio, who is gaining traction among mainstream Republican voters. Sanders, an independent senator from neighboring Vermont and self-described democratic socialist, is riding high in the Granite State, commanding a 20 percent lead over Clinton, according to the latest poll. Clinton's campaign admitted that Sanders had raised more money in January -- $20 million in donations to their $15 million, an indication of Sanders' growing stature in their battle for the Democratic presidential nomination. Sanders claimed moral victory in the Iowa vote earlier this week, drawing nearly even with his more illustrious rival in the first vote of the 2016 election cycle. Clinton clinched the narrowest victory in Iowa caucus history with 49.8 percent compared to 49.6 percent for Sanders, saving herself the embarrassment of reliving her bitter 2008 defeat to Barack Obama. She is now trying to cut substantially into Sanders' New Hampshire lead and regain some momentum going into friendlier territory later this month in Nevada and South Carolina. - Sanders streaks ahead - Their debate showdown, scheduled at the last minute, will be their first without Democratic challenger Martin O'Malley, the former Maryland governor who exited the race after a disastrous showing in Iowa. With just the two on stage, Clinton and Sanders will square off over their key differences on foreign policy, guns, health care and taxes at the University of New Hampshire in Durham, aired by MSNBC. Story continues An NBC, Wall Street Journal, Marist poll released hours before the debate gave Sanders 58 percent support among likely Democratic primary voters in New Hampshire and Clinton 38 percent. Sanders also leads the former first lady among independents, 69 to 26 percent, and voters aged 18-29 by 76 to 24 percent, the poll found. At a town hall meeting Wednesday in Derry, New Hampshire, the two made back-to-back appearances, clashing over who will more faithfully carry the progressive torch. Clinton insisted she is "a progressive who gets results," as opposed to the more ideological "political revolution" espoused by Sanders, 74, who has chased young and first-time voters. The more moderate Clinton is about incremental change: slow but steady reforms on Wall Street, tweaks to Obama's Affordable Care Act and expanding university scholarships. Clinton, 68, acknowledged she faces an uphill battle in winning over the younger vote, which polls show identify strongly with Sanders' poverty-busting agenda and free tuition at public colleges. "They don't have to be for me, I'm going to be for them," she said. Sanders insists he is the candidate more committed to reining in billionaires' influence on the US political system. "You're looking at the guy who's not just talking the talk when it comes to campaign finance -- I am walking the walk," Sanders posted on Twitter. - Marco-mentum? - On the Republican side, Trump is firmly ahead in New Hampshire, with the telegenic Rubio moving into second place ahead of Cruz, according to the latest University of Massachusetts/Lowell poll. Trump leads Rubio by 21 points and analysts warn that anything less than victory on Tuesday will further damage his campaign message that he is a winner. For the first time, he ditched big-style rallies to schedule smaller, more traditional campaign stops with small business owners, police and a town hall on Thursday in New Hampshire. Trump is "very rattled," said Cruz in a video broadcast by CNN. The real estate mogul has accused Cruz of stealing victory in Iowa by sending out a misleading statement saying fellow candidate Ben Carson was quitting the race, something Carson vehemently denied. Rubio is claiming his own "Marco-mentum." His team has announced several new congressional endorsements, with Rubio projecting a sense of confidence and mainstream electability on the campaign trail. Rubio now claims support from six US senators, including South Carolina's Tim Scott. Cruz has no endorsements yet from fellow senators. By John Whitesides (Reuters) - Democratic presidential contenders Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders take an increasingly combative tone into their first one-on-one debate on Thursday, cranking up a fight over who is best suited to lead the party's liberal agenda on the economy and healthcare. Five days before New Hampshire voters render a judgment in the second of the state-by-state presidential nominating contests, Clinton and Sanders will square off on MSNBC at 9 p.m. EST (0200 Friday GMT) in Durham, New Hampshire. Polls show Sanders, a U.S. senator from neighboring Vermont, has a comfortable lead over Clinton in New Hampshire after surprising the front-runner by managing a virtual tie with her in the kickoff contest in Iowa on Monday. In the two days since, the Democrats have clashed sharply over who is more capable of carrying out the party's liberal proposals to battle income inequality, bolster healthcare coverage and rein in Wall Street. The exchanges intensified ahead of the debate, which will be the first since former Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley dropped out on Monday night. It also is one of four debates Clinton and Sanders agreed to add to the schedule. Sanders, a democratic socialist who has galvanized the party's liberal wing, accused Clinton on Wednesday of being a progressive on some days and a moderate on others. He cited her shifts on trade and energy policies and her 2003 Senate vote to back the Iraq war, which she has called a mistake. Clinton said she was amused to see Sanders setting himself up as the "gatekeeper" for who was a progressive and that President Barack Obama would not qualify under his definitions. "I know where I stand, I know who stands with me, I know what Ive done," Clinton, a former secretary of state and U.S. senator, said at a town hall on Wednesday night where she and Sanders spoke separately. Clinton has tried to play down expectations for her performance in New Hampshire, where she came from behind for an upset victory in the 2008 campaign just days after losing badly to Obama in Iowa. The surprisingly strong performance by Sanders in Iowa is likely to prolong a race that Clinton entered as the prohibitive favorite. In addition to previously scheduled debates in Wisconsin and Florida, the candidates added one in March in Flint, Michigan, to draw attention to the city's contaminated water crisis ahead of the Michigan primary. They also will debate in April and May. (Reporting by John Whitesides; Editing by Bill Trott) Panama City (AFP) - A multi-billion-dollar expansion of Panama's canal to triple its capacity will likely miss yet another completion deadline and now won't be finished until June, according to the waterway's administrator. "The inauguration will still take place in the second quarter, but more towards June," Jorge Quijano told AFP on Thursday. A month ago, Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela had said the work would be completed "around the month of May." That in itself was another delay after a series of missed deadlines for the expansion of the 80-kilometer (50-mile) canal, which is over a century old. Work to enlarge the waterway so that it can handle more traffic and bigger cargo ships started in 2007 and was originally supposed to have finished in 2014. But overruns and contractual disputes pushed that back to April 2016, then to May this year, and now, according to Quijano, by yet another month. The cost of the project has ballooned from an initially budgeted $5.3 billion to around $7 billion. Quijano said the latest delay was due to repairs on fissures detected in August in one of the canal's new locks which he said were now complete. The Spanish-led GUPC consortium handling the expansion on Thursday started filling two reinforced locks with water to test the repairs, a process that will take 35 days. Around five percent of the world's commercial shipping passes through the Panama Canal. The Central American country currently earns $1 billion a year in revenue from shipping fees for using the canal. With the expansion, it hopes to triple that within a decade. By the time Daniel Rigmaiden was 16, he knew he wanted to live off the grid. I decided not to participate in society after I graduated high school because I was upset about the whole government machine, he recalls of his early disillusionment. The whole thing felt like a sham. I knew I had to participate and try to fix it or opt out and not be involved at all. Rigmaiden decided to opt out. After graduating in 1999, he began using multiple fake identities, moving from town to town in coastal California selling fake IDs. He began filing tax returns for dead people, pocketing hundreds of thousands of dollars over the next few years. In 2008, his luck ran out: After a joint investigation by the FBI, the IRS, and the U.S. Postal Service, Rigmaiden was arrested and charged with wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, among other charges. He was 27. As he sat in jail awaiting his trial, however, he couldnt stop thinking about the lengths he had gone to, to cover his tracks. He obsessed over how, in spite of that, federal agents found him. My apartment wasnt in my name, and I made sure no one ever followed me back home when I went out, Rigmaiden, now 35, tells TakePart. There werent any loose ends. Except for one: the Verizon AirCard he used to get online. Rigmaiden had intentionally purchased a card without a GPS chip and knew that triangulations from cell towers would only track the card in a broad range rather than offer a specific location. But it was still the one piece that made him vulnerable to surveillance. Realizing this, Rigmaiden became convinced the government had used some kind of high-powered secret technology to track the AirCard and find hima story featured in the documentary series Truth and Power, directed by Brian Knappenberger and airing Friday on Pivot (watch a sneak peek below). From his cell, Rigmaiden started to draw out what the tool must have looked like. He spent 15 hours writing a letter filled with diagrams explaining the secret technology, then sent it to his court-appointed attorney. The lawyer didn't reply and withdrew from his case. A second appointed attorney urged him to take a plea agreement and refused to show him any of the orders obtained by the government to track him. Story continues Determined, Rigmaiden chose to defend himself, spending hours in the jails law library teaching himself the law and poring over any books that seemed helpful. Eventually, the government turned over 14,000 pages of evidence it had collected against him, and he sifted through it page by page. Thats when he found the most important word in his case: Stingray. There was a summary of how they located me, Rigmaiden says. It matched exactly what I theorized. What had started as a search for a solid defense that would get him out of jail led to the realization that his case was much bigger than him. He began requesting cases by phone from a paralegal who worked for his third attorney, who still assisted him occasionally. The hunt led to numerous historical cell-site-information cases being tackled by civil liberties groups, raising serious privacy concerns. I was getting some copies of their briefs and realized if this was a big issue, then the Stingray must be a huge issue, Rigmaiden says. Called an unconstitutional, all-you-can-eat data buffet by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Stingrays are used by federal and local law enforcement to search for specific cell phone signals in large areas. The device poses as a cell phone tower; when phones are used, the device picks up data on who is being called and their precise locations. Privacy advocates are especially critical of the fact that this process involves triggering responses from all cell phones in the targeted areanot just that of a suspect. The American Civil Liberties Union and the Electronic Frontier Foundation submitted an amicus brief supporting Rigmaidens defense in 2012. The devices broadcast electronic signals that penetrate the walls of private locations not visible to the naked eye, including homes, offices, and other private locations of the target and third parties in the area, reads the brief. In other words, Stingray is the Fourth Amendments worst nightmare. Rigmaiden and Stingray were thrust into the spotlight. Once a recluse who avoided societal participation at all costs, Rigmaidenwho was released from jail following a negotiated plea agreement in 2014now actively consults with the ACLU and other organizations in ongoing litigation and legislative advocacy work regarding the use of Stingrays. Working with the ACLUs Washington state chapter, he helped draft a bill that gained bipartisan support to regulate the use of Stingrays. He also regularly assists journalists with document searches to encourage accurate reporting. RELATED: Truth and Power Sneak Peek: How Governments Spy on Their Own Citizens As long as the spotlights on me, Im going to try and voice my opinion and change things for the better, Rigmaiden says. As the saga of his discovery sets to air this week, Rigmaiden shares that he followed the story of hacker activist Aaron Swartz while he was in jail and was interested in working with Knappenberger after learning hed made The Internet's Own Boy, a documentary about Swartz. This is the first time theres been anything on this in video form, Rigmaiden says. I think this is a good way to get the message out about Stingray and hopefully get people motivated to get involved. Today, Rigmaiden sees a different world from the one he wanted to check out of as a disenchanted teenager. With the advent of social media, its easier to connect and disseminate alternative messages, which gives him hope for change. Its possible now to take on the machine and make a difference, he says. The underdog can make a difference and prevail. Truth and Power airs Fridays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Pivot, Participant Medias television network. You can also learn about protecting your civil liberties in the digital age by exploring Know Your Rights, a Pivot-supported initiative from the ACLU of Southern California. Related stories on TakePart: Truth and Power Sneak Peek: Inside the Rise of Black Lives Matter The ACLU Wants Federal Authorities to Examine Hollywood Hiring Practices If You're Black and You Like Marijuana, You're 3.67 Times More Likely to Be Arrested Original article from TakePart By Aaron Ross KINSHASA (Reuters) - Villagers from two major ethnic groups in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo clashed with machetes and batons before dispersing when army troops and U.N. peacekeepers intervened and fired into the air, a U.N. spokesman said. The latest spasm of violence between Hutu and Nande villagers followed the killing of a Hutu civilian three km (two miles) away by presumed Mai Mai militiamen, U.N. mission military spokesman Amouzoun Codjo Martin told Reuters. At least six civilians have been killed near the town of Luofo in North Kivu province's Lubero territory, some 100 km (65 miles) from the Uganda border, in the past two days as tensions between the area's Hutu and Nande communities have risen. Martin did not confirm the ethnicity of the attackers in Wednesday's villager clash. However, local activists identified them as Nande. Local Mai Mai groups are dominated by Nande. Ethnic rivalries, foreign invasions and competition for land and rich mineral deposits among eastern Congo's dozens of rebel groups have stoked persistent conflict over the last two decades, costing millions of lives. The United Nations warned last month that a surge in kidnappings and general insecurity in North Kivu in recent months is preventing aid workers from delivering essential humanitarian assistance to the impoverished population. The Nande, who dominate commerce in North Kivu, are historic rivals of the local Hutu. Intercommunal friction has risen since Congo's army launched a military offensive last year against the FDLR, a Rwandan Hutu militia operating in eastern Congo. Wednesday's clashes followed the killing of at least five Hutu civilians in a neighbouring village on Tuesday by presumed Mai Mai fighters. Local activists said the murders appeared to be retaliation for a nighttime assault last month, blamed by authorities on the FDLR, that killed at least 14 Nande in the nearby town of Miriki. Joseph Mali Kidogo, president of the Civil Society of Lubero, said he was concerned that the violence could spiral out of control. "There is a great fear of what is going to happen next between these two communities," he said. (Reporting by Aaron Ross; Editing by Makini Brice and Mark Heinrich) By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - Congolese troops killed two United Nations peacekeepers after civilians accused the Tanzanian U.N. troops of providing supplies to Islamist Ugandan rebels in east Congo, according to a confidential U.N. Security Council report. U.N. experts who monitor sanctions on Democratic Republic of Congo said the U.N. peacekeeping force MONUSCO initially blamed the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), Ugandan rebels operating in Congo since the 1990s, for a May 5 ambush that killed two peacekeepers and several civilians and injured 26 U.N. troops. But the group of experts said it was not an ambush and that Congolese troops (FARDC) fired at peacekeepers near the Mayi Moya town in Beni after "they had been told by two civilians that the Tanzanians were providing supplies to the ADF." The experts wrote in a report, seen by Reuters this week, that the Tanzanian troops had met the ADF but the group is "not in a position to explain why." Tanzania's defense minister, Hussein Mwinyi, told Reuters he had not seen the U.N. report and therefore could not immediately comment. MONUSCO spokesman Felix Basse said he was unaware of the U.N. experts' report and declined immediate comment, while the FARDC spokesman General Leon Kasonga said he did not have any information about the incident. More than a decade after the formal end to regional conflicts in eastern Congo that killed millions of people, most from hunger and disease, dozens of armed groups are still exploiting its natural resources and attacking local people. The U.N. experts report casts doubt on a near blanket attribution of recent attacks near Beni on the ADF. The Congolese government and United Nations have blamed the ADF for murdering hundreds of civilians near Beni since 2014. They estimate the group's size to be a few hundred fighters. Independent analysts have pointed to mounting evidence that other armed groups are responsible for at least some of the attacks. Local residents have accused the Congolese army and peacekeeping units of complicity with the ADF, charges both forces deny. The U.N. experts are also investigating a Nov. 29 attack, which they believe was carried out by the ADF in collaboration with another armed group, on the town of Eringeti, during which one Malawian peacekeeper and several civilians were killed. "The group obtained information that the commander of the FARDC in Eringeti was aware that an attack on the town was going to take place," wrote the U.N. experts, adding that a Congolese military prosecutor has opened a case against the commander. (Additional reporting by Aaron Ross in Kinshasa and Fumbuka Ng'wanakilala in Tanzania; Editing by Alistair Bell) By Donna Owens BALTIMORE (Reuters) - The Baltimore man whose conviction for a 1999 murder was put into question by the popular podcast "Serial" was calm when he was told the victim was missing, a witness testified at a court hearing on Thursday. Asia McClain Chapman, a high school classmate of Adnan Syed, who is serving a life term for the murder and is seeking a retrial, said she spoke with him at a library for about 20 minutes and told him that his ex-girlfriend had disappeared. Its cool. I just want her to be happy, she said Syed told her, noting that he seemed "calm." During the hearing at Baltimore City Circuit Court, McClain broke down as she recalled learning that the girlfriend, Hae Min Lee, 18, had been murdered. "I could not reconcile the demeanor of Syed with that of a murderer, she said under cross examination. McClain Chapman said she was never contacted to provide a possible alibi at his initial trial. Syed, 35, was convicted in 2000 of the murder. The slaying was the subject of the podcast "Serial" which began in October 2014, which was released by public radio station WBEZ in Chicago. The podcast raised doubts about Syed's conviction and has been downloaded tens of millions of times. The Maryland Court of Special Appeals returned the case to Baltimore City Circuit Court last year for post-conviction proceedings. The hearing will weigh potential evidence that was not used in previous proceedings or may have been misinterpreted, and the court could order a new trial. McClain Chapman said she and a friend visited Syeds family home in the days after the killing to share information that might prove helpful to his case. She repeated earlier testimony that relatives said that Syed was having trouble recalling his exact whereabouts between getting out of school and going to a mosque the day of the murder. Prosecutor Thiru Vignarajah pressed McClain Chapman about her recollection of events, asking at one point, "Is it possible that you're mixing up your memory?" Story continues He also focused on two letters she wrote to Syed after he had been arrested. In one of them, shown on a screen in the courtroom, she wrote, I have reason to believe in your innocence. The prosecutor also wanted to know if Syed had helped McClain write a second letter which contained details of the case. She said he had not. (Reporting by Ian Simpson; Editing by Cynthia Osterman) Norristown (United States) (AFP) - A US judge paved the way Wednesday for disgraced TV legend Bill Cosby to stand trial for the first time on a criminal sexual assault charge, throwing out an attempt by his lawyers to dismiss the case. Dozens of women have come forward to accuse the 78-year-old Cosby of abuse in allegations spanning four decades, but the vast majority have expired under statues of limitations. The megastar turned pariah spent two days in court in Norristown, just outside Philadelphia, as his lawyers disputed the legality of the case, which dates back to 2004 and was settled in 2006 by a civil suit. In a deposition Cosby gave as part of the civil suit, he admitted giving the woman, Andrea Constand, a pill but said all relations with her were consensual and accused her of lying about the assault. Prosecutors in Montgomery County reopened the case last year, claiming that new evidence came to light in July. Cosby posted bail of $1 million on December 30. Cosby's legal team argued that violated a 2005 agreement that he would never be prosecuted over the allegation of assault made by Constand, a former employee of Temple University in Philadelphia. Constand says Cosby forced himself on her at his suburban Philadelphia home in 2004. Prosecutors say he urged her to take pills and drink wine, leaving her unable to resist as he made his move on her. If found guilty, Cosby -- who has surrendered his passport to the court but has yet to enter a plea to the criminal charge -- could face up to 10 years in prison and a $25,000 fine. More than 50 women have publicly alleged sexual abuse by the pioneering black comedian, who attained his greatest fame for his role as a lovable obstetrician and family man in the hit 1980s sitcom "The Cosby Show." But his attorneys repeatedly deny any wrongdoing by the veteran TV actor and say he has since lost his sight. Statutes of limitations prevent most of the women who have accused the comedian of sexual assault from taking legal action. Story continues - New evidence - In the Pennsylvania case, the statute of limitations is set to expire early next year. Cosby's team called as a witness Bruce Castor, the former district attorney who reached the agreement that the actor would not be prosecuted over the alleged assault if he testified in the civil suit. Castor told the court on Tuesday that Constand's credibility had been in question and her account inconsistent, arguing that the civil agreement offered the best possible justice. "The matter was resolved and I am hopeful that I had made Ms Constand a millionaire," the former prosecutor added. Cosby's lawyers also argued that the 10-year delay since the alleged incident had also "greatly prejudiced" their client. But Judge Steven O'Neill rejected the defense's arguments. Prosecutors said the release of court documents in July and the subsequent release of the deposition had in part led to the reopening of the case. "I think Andrea is a liar and I know she's a liar because I was there," Cosby said in the deposition, cited by The New York Times. Constand has said she was willing to cooperate with prosecutors, according to prosecutor Kevin Steele. The avalanche of accusations against Cosby have led television networks to back away from projects connected to him, and several universities have stripped him of honorary degrees. In December, he filed a defamation suit against seven of his accusers. By Amanda Becker and Emily Stephenson (Reuters) - Democratic presidential hopefuls Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton battled over their progressive credentials at a town hall on Wednesday, but also reflected on their spirituality, a topic that more commonly dominates the narrative on the other side of the political aisle. Sanders, speaking at the televised event in Derry, New Hampshire, built on an earlier back-and-forth between the two candidates on Twitter and in appearances in the state, which hosts the second party-nominating contest on Feb. 9, reminding voters that he and Clinton have made different decisions on backing the Iraq war, taking money from Super PACs and energy policies. "Some of my best friends are moderates, but you cant be a progressive and a moderate at the same time," Sanders said at the town hall, hosted by CNN, which included questions from voters. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke immediately after Sanders at the town hall. I was somewhat amused today that Senator Sanders has set himself up to be the gatekeeper on who is a progressive, because under the definition that was flying around on Twitter and statements from his campaign, Barack Obama would not be a progressive, Joe Biden would not be a progressive ... so Im not going to let that bother me," she said. Her campaign issued a press release during Sanders' appearance, listing Clinton's efforts "fighting for progressive causes" including health care and education. "I know where I stand, I know who stands with me, I know what Ive done," Clinton said. Moderator Anderson Cooper, referring to criticism from Sanders that Clinton is too close to Wall Street, asked her about the more than $600,000 she received from speaking to the investment bank Goldman Sachs. Thats what they offered, Clinton said, adding that the payments haven't had any effect on her calls to rein in the big banks. SPIRITUAL FEELINGS The two candidates arrived in New Hampshire on Tuesday, a day after Clinton marked a narrow victory in the Iowa caucuses, the first nominating contest leading up to the Nov. 8 presidential election. Sanders, an independent U.S. senator from Vermont who is a democratic socialist, is polling more than 15 points ahead of Clinton in New Hampshire, but is trailing her nationally by roughly the same amount. During the town hall, Sanders fielded a question about how he would appeal to a broader swath of the electorate, including minority and religious voters - blocs he will need to draw to the polls if he hopes to maintain momentum against Clinton in upcoming nominating contests in the South and West. "Everybody practices religion in a different way. To me, I would not be here tonight, I would not be running for president of the United States, if I did not have very strong religious and spiritual feelings," said Sanders, who, if elected, would be the first Jewish U.S. president. "My spirituality is that we are all in this together," Sanders added. Clinton, a former first lady and former U.S. senator who has spent decades in public life, fielded a question that elicited a similarly spiritual response, speaking of balancing the role of public servant and her sense of self. "I get a scripture lesson every morning from a minister that I have a really close personal relationship with," Clinton said. "He gets up really early to send it to me, so you know, there it is, in my inbox at 5 a.m." Clinton is seeking to manage expectations about her performance in next week's New Hampshire primary, saying Sanders has an advantage because he is from a neighboring state. But Clinton shows huge polling leads in the next round of primary contests in Nevada and South Carolina. The results from New Hampshire could shift momentum in the Democratic race. Clinton had hoped for a strong finish against Sanders in Iowa to vanquish his insurgent candidacy. In New Hampshire, she hopes to overcome his polling lead. (Additional writing by Richard Valdmanis; Editing by Richard Valdmanis and Leslie Adler) Almost exactly four years ago, Samsungs marketing boss sat down for an interview and made a claim that seemed almost comical at the time. There was a bit of a language barrier, but the gist of Young-Hee Lees bold claim was this: People had been obsessed with Apples iPhone line for long enough, and Samsung was going to shift their obsession to Galaxy phones. If only it were that easy, right? Well, as it turns out, it is that easy when youve got a massive smartphone division and tens of billions of dollars to spend on marketing. At the time of the interview, Samsung had already set in motion a major shift in its advertising strategy that had two goals. The first, believe it or not, boiled down to brand awareness; Samsung was already a consumer electronics giant, but it was hardly the first name that came to mind when Western consumers were shopping for smartphones. The second goal was to make iPhone users look like idiots. To make them look like mindless hipster sheep who were willing excited, even to knowingly use an inferior product simply because everyone else was using it. Samsungs Galaxy phones, of course, were the better alternative that a smarter breed of consumer would seek out. Samsungs new advertising and marketing blitz came at the perfect time. Apples iPhone had become such a phenomenon that there was practically no counterculture to speak of, so Samsung would fill a gap and become that counterculture. Nokia was still the worlds top vendor by volume but it had become painfully obvious that the company wasnt able to change with the industry. BlackBerry, known then as Research In Motion, seemed even less willing to adapt, and it was in the early days of a descent that BGR foretold time and time again. The iPhone was sleek, elegant and cool. There was simply nothing else like it but that wouldnt be the case for very long. Behind closed doors, Samsung had already begun to rebuild its smartphones from the ground up with one technical goal in mind: copy the iPhone. Fanboy arguments and court battles aside, its difficult to argue that wasnt the case. There are even some internal documents that prove it, like the 132-page report Samsung created to help its engineers copy the iPhone pixel by pixel. Story continues And once Samsung had a line of smartphones that could compete with the iPhone, it was ready to make that impossible promise and begin a meteoric rise that would take it straight to the top of the smartphone market. In 2015, Samsung shipped an estimated 319.7 million handsets, about 88 million more handsets than No. 2 vendor Apple sold during the same period. Of course, the impact of that massive figure is diminished when you consider how many smartphones Samsung shipped in the prior year: 317.2 million. Samsungs smartphone growth has come grinding to a halt. And its not because the companys phones arent as good as they once were, or because Samsungs advertising has slowed down. In both cases, the truth is quite the opposite the Galaxy S6 and Note 5 are two of the most impressive smartphones that have ever existed, and Samsungs marketing budget is still 11 digits each year. Its also certainly not because Samsung is running out of room to grow; an estimated 1.4 billion smartphones shipped in 2015. The bottom line is this: Samsungs best smartphones simply arent exciting anymore. How long can you beat the same old drum and expect to find success? A few new features here, a slight redesign there, and a whole bunch of advertising. In 2011, Samsung was advertising something fresh and new. In 2015, Samsung was advertising smartphones that are barely distinguishable from rival devices to most people. Even when Samsung does try to stray from convention and build something new and exciting, it cant seem to strike a chord when it goes out on its own. The companys edge devices were somewhat popular in 2015 and they certainly helped Samsungs margins, but it would be a stretch to say that they generated any real excitement on a wide scale. Of course, the driving force behind Samsungs volume growth over the years wasnt really its high-end smartphones that competed with the iPhone. Instead, Samsung wisely built less capable smartphones that took all of those great iPhone-inspired features and offered them to consumers at a fraction of the price. It was fun while it lasted, but a flurry of companies have popped up in the East that make similar phones and sell them at cheaper prices. Then, theres the iPhone. Apple saw slower iPhone growth in 2015 than in any prior year, and Apple still managed to increase its iPhone sales by 20% over 2014 thanks to new records achieved in each quarter. The recent holiday quarter was the toughest to top, though Apple broadcast that inevitability loud and clear back with the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus launched. Despite the slowed growth toward the end of the year, it would be impossible to claim that people werent excited for the launch of the iPhone 6s. And with the S year behind us, 2016s iPhone launches will bring redesigned handsets that stir up even more excitement. Apples iPhone are, simply put, the only smartphones that really still excite people on a global scale. There are definitely other brands that manage to drum up excitement. A good example is Xiaomi, a Chinese smartphone startup that cut its teeth by quite literally copying every move Apple made as closely as it could, to the point where it couldnt even sell its phones aggressively outside of the Far East since Apple would have sued it into oblivion. But on a global scale right now, theres Apple and theres everyone else. Historically, traffic to BGRs early coverage of unreleased smartphones has been a fairly good gauge of global consumer interest. We cover early leaks and rumors quite often, and healthy traffic to that coverage has always been a solid indiction of strong sales at launch. It makes sense, and similar parallels have been drawn with Google search traffic. As always, iPhone 7 rumors have been pulling in a healthy amount of interest. Meanwhile, Galaxy S7 leaks havent seemed to attract nearly as much attention as Galaxy S6 leaks did, and that model drew in fewer readers than the Galaxy S5 ahead of its launch. Samsung is in a position where marketing and dominance in distribution channels are allowing the companys smartphone business to coast. The South Korean giants phones have so much more visibility than rival handsets in so many markets that is now practically guaranteed a level of success. At least, for the time being. But coasting isnt growth, and weve seen no indication in more than a month of leaks and rumors that the Galaxy S7 will lead to growth. Weve also seen nothing from Samsungs low-end and mid-range phones that suggest a return to growth is imminent. Instead, Samsung executives were walking on eggshells as they warned of another difficult year ahead on the companys recent earnings call. Its a tough time to be a leader in the smartphone market if you cant manage to generate real excitement surrounding your smartphone launches. Meanwhile, were likely headed toward yet another round of records when the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus debut later this year. And at the high end of the smartphone market, you can follow the excitement right to the money. Dollars and Sense is a recurring column by BGR Executive Editor Zach Epstein. It offers insights on subtle changes in and around consumer electronics with the potential to have a broad impact on companies that drive the industry. Contact the author at z@bgr.com. Related stories Video shows how to upgrade a 16GB iPhone 6 to 128GB for just $60 What happens on the Internet in one minute? New evidence points to future iPhones with holographic displays More from BGR: Video shows how to upgrade a 16GB iPhone 6 to 128GB for just $60 This article was originally published on BGR.com (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's plane made an emergency landing in Nashville, Tennessee, on Wednesday because of engine trouble, officials said. The Boeing 757 was flying to Little Rock, Arkansas, from New York when it landed at Nashville International Airport. Trump traveled the rest of the way in a small charter aircraft, a campaign spokeswoman said. The Federal Aviation Administration said Trump's plane landed safely at 4:40 p.m. after reporting engine problems. The agency will investigated the incident, it said. (Reporting by Ian Simpson; Editing by Michael Perry) ADEN (Reuters) - A suspected U.S. drone strike overnight killed a top Islamist militant commander in southern Yemen who had run al Qaeda's combat operations and had a $5 million U.S. bounty on his head, residents said. In nine months of civil war and a Gulf military intervention in Yemen, the United States has kept up a drone campaign there against al Qaeda and increasingly, Islamic State militants, who have continued to carry out attacks. Impoverished Yemen has suffered fierce fighting and humanitarian crisis since March, when a Saudi-led Gulf Arab coalition began near-daily air strikes to rout the Iran-backed Houthis and restore the central government. Jalal Baleedi was killed by a drone strike as he was traveling in a car with two others in coastal Abyan province. According to media reports and some analysts, Baleedi may have recently defected from Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) to become the chief of Islamic State's Yemen branch. The U.S. State Department said Baleedi was involved in planning attacks on Western diplomatic targets in Sanaa in 2013 and put a reward of up to $5 million for information that would bring him to justice. Al Qaeda militants rallied in Abyan capital Zinjibar and planted the group's black flag on government buildings and setting up checkpoints on main roads and the highway leading to the port city of Aden, Yemen's temporary capital some 40 kilometers (25 miles) away. Another strike on Thursday killed six al Qaeda militants in a car near al Rawda city in Shabwa province, residents said. AQAP has taken advantage of the war pitting forces loyal Saudi-backed President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and Houthi militiamen based in the capital Sanaa to grab territory and operate more openly. But the group has faced ideological competition from Islamic State, which has siphoned off recruits as it has launched spectacular attacks against Shi'ite Muslim mosques and government targets. Suspected U.S. drone strikes, which normally use Hellfire missiles, have killed some of AQAP's top leaders, including its chief Nasser al-Wuhayshi last June. Separately, pro-Hadi forces backed by heavy Gulf Arab air strikes advanced in the mountains surrounding Sanaa, capturing several villages and attacking a Houthi-held military base. The clashes in the area of Nehm have killed dozens of people in the last three days, tribal sources said, and bring Saudi-backed Yemeni forces within about 65 kilometers of the capital. (Reporting by Mohammed Mukhashaf and Mohammed Ghobari; Writing by Noah Browning and Yara Bayoumy; Editing by Tom Heneghan) The Hague (AFP) - A Dutch man accused of murdering a former health minister has admitted to the killing, saying he was on a "divine mission" because of her role in legalising euthanasia, Dutch media said Thursday. Els Borst, who as health minister from 1994 to 2002 helped the Netherlands become the world's first country to legalise doctor-assisted death, was found with multiple stab wounds in her garage in February 2014. She was 81. Her alleged assailant, who has been only identified as Bart van U. because of Dutch privacy concerns, unexpectedly confessed at a closed-door hearing in Rotterdam, saying he was a man on a "divine mission", public newscaster NOS reported. Until now he had remained silent on the murder that shocked the Netherlands, in particular members of Borst's progressive D66 political party. Coming from a conservative Christian background, Bart van U. has also already confessed to killing his sister, Dutch national news agency ANP said. Borst, a medical doctor, was known for her progressive and liberal positions on health care. Direct euthanasia has been legal since April 2002 in the Netherlands. Under the legislation patients can request the administration of lethal doses of a drug if they are mentally lucid. They must also be suffering from an incurable condition and must show that they have endured unbearable suffering. The Netherlands has also authorised euthanasia for children younger than 12 under strict conditions. Euthanasia under close medical supervision is increasingly popular as a way to end life in the Netherlands, where nearly 4,000 people undertook the practice in 2012. Quito (AFP) - Ecuador said Thursday that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is welcome to remain in its London embassy, ahead of a UN panel's expected ruling that his stay there amounts to illegal detention. "It's a personal decision. We've given him protection and of course it is still in place. The basis on which we granted him asylum remains in place," Patino told journalists, a day before the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention was expected to publish a ruling in Assange's favor. Assange, who fled to the embassy in 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden to face a rape allegation, filed a complaint against Britain and Sweden with the UN panel in September 2014, claiming his confinement amounted to illegal detention. The Swedish foreign ministry said the panel had ruled in Assange's favor. Assange has said that should mean he is now treated as a free man, but Swedish prosecutors said the non-binding ruling had no impact on their investigation, and the British government said it was still under an obligation to arrest him. Assange is wanted on a 2010 rape accusation, which he denies. The 44-year-old Australian refuses to travel to Sweden to answer the allegation, saying he fears he would then face extradition to the United States and trial over the leaking of hundreds of thousands of classified US military and diplomatic documents in 2010. J. Grisham Looking into the empty black eyes of a bird, it's easy to figure out why we're so quick to throw them in jail for the petty crime of being too pretty. They are the alienthe other ( the chicken is a distant relative of T-Rex , as my editor is so quick to point out). We live in progressive times, however, and it seems wrong to jail something just because it's foreign. Maybe it's just the pesky remnants of my teenage idealism, but shoving an animal known for flying into a cage seems a little crappy. But fear not, dear reader. You can have your birds and free them, too. All thanks to the modern-day miracle of bird feeders. Feeding wild birds is not only a better alternative to keeping one locked up, but during the cold season a simple meal can mean the difference between life and death for a nonmigratory flock. Insects and berries disappear during the winter months and food sources become strained for many of the local bird specieslike juncos, woodpeckers, sparrows, nuthatches and even the hated dove. J. Grisham And if you're worrying over the fact that you won't have a beautiful creature locked away where you can look at it whenever you want, keep in mind that nonmigratory flockshang around if they find a nice, safe food supply. I've got an army of sparrows in my backyard right now that just sits in the trees, following me with those cold, dead eyes every time I walk out the door. They chirp like it's the end of the world if I don't have a seed bag with me. For those with a darker streak, you'll be happy to know that building a bird mecca will also attract those villainous birds of prey. Last year, my backyard became an all-you-can-eat buffet for a pair of great horned owls, who would hang out in a tree right off of my patio, never complaining about the human voyeur. This year, I've spotted a Cooper's hawk prowling around and once even hopping up on the porch bannister while I was playing video games about 10 feet away. It's a real thrill to see nature so close up, and New Mexico happens to be one of the most happening spots for bird-watching in the nation with hundreds of species to be seen. But if you're still undecided, let me attempt to persuade you on the behalf of science. According to Dr. Emma Greig from the Cornell University Lab of Ornithology and Project Leader of the FeederWatch program, the Southwest could use more amateur ornithologists. FeederWatch is a winter-long survey that uses information gathered by at-home bird-watchers to track the routes of migrating birds and record trends of national population distribution. As Dr. Greig told me, Bird feeders are a great magnifying glass on the birds in an area, and Project FeederWatch provides a standardized method of counting that allows people to contribute to a nearly 30-year-long and running dataset. This means that we can compare observations made in 1989 to observations made in 2015, and this is an incredibly valuable way to track changes in bird populations. Which means you can tell people that you're helping with the progress of knowledge, even if you're really just drinking beer and watching birds. J. Grisham So you're convinced. Now what do you do? Getting started is easy and cheap. A suet feedera cage about the size of an outstretched hand that's perfect for attracting woodpeckers, bushtits and morewill cost you less than $5. The suet itself, a brick of rendered fat that usually comes embedded with berries and seed, only costs around $2. Another cheapie is the sock feeder, which will attract finches and costs somewhere in the neighborhood of $5. A 5-pound bag of birdseed is about $10 and can last up to a month. Stand feeders can get pricey, ranging from $30-$200. But if you really want to get down to basics, just throw some seed on the ground or get a setup going like mine: an old plate on a patio chair. We have a ton of ground-feeding birds in the area, like sparrows, finches and thrashers, and they aren't too critical when it comes to feeder setups, meaning all you have to do to make a whole slew of new friends is get over those creepy, soulless eyes. Brrr. By Lin Noueihed CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt expects to receive a $1 billion World Bank loan approved in December once outstanding paperwork is finalised and is negotiating to secure more aid from Saudi Arabia, International Cooperation Minister Sahar Nasr said on Thursday. Egypt has been negotiating billions of dollars in aid from various lenders to help revive an economy battered by political upheaval since the 2011 revolt and ease a dollar shortage that has crippled import activity and hampered recovery. The first $1 billion tranche of a three-year, $3 billion loan from the World Bank to support Egypt's budget was approved by the lender in December and was expected to arrive soon after. But Egyptian media has questioned whether the money would come as the programme is linked to the government's economic reform programme, including plans for value-added tax (VAT). Egypt's new parliament, which held its first session last month, ratified the vast majority of economic laws passed by presidential decree during the three years in which Egypt did not have a legislative house. But it has yet to ratify the government's economic plan or the World Bank loan itself. "We are just working on submitting the required documentation. It is nothing. We are normal. There is nothing (to say) about it," Nasr told Reuters in a telephone interview. "We need all the documentation, any law, any decree that we put we have to submit in English ... Decrees on subsidies, laws for the establishment of industrial zones, fiscal reforms ... I thought I would wait for parliament to ratify everything meanwhile." The World Bank told Reuters in December that the first tranche was focused on "10 prior actions for policy and institutional reforms" already implemented. The second and third tranches are linked to additional reforms the government plans. "The whole reform programme will need to be done and not just the VAT being out. We need to have executive regulation in place and be operational," said Nasr, an ex-World Bank official. Nasr said a $500 million loan for budget support from the African Development Bank, part of a $1.5 billion three-year programme also signed in December, had been transferred. Since those loans were approved Egypt has secured multi-billion-dollar aid commitments both from China and Saudi Arabia and signed major investment deals with Russia. MORE SAUDI AID? Egypt was in talks with Saudi Arabia to secure more aid, Nasr said, declining to give details. Egypt was also working to iron out the details of a Saudi pledge to invest $8 billion in Egypt but Nasr said she was taking time to approve projects that were ready to go. Egypt has previously signed preliminary deals on big-ticket investments that were later downsized or delayed. Nasr said the government was still negotiating the details of a Saudi pledge to provide Egypt with petroleum aid over five years. Egypt signed an initial three-month deal with Riyadh to meet immediate needs while talks were ongoing. "I wanted to make sure the three months are covered and to give myself time to make an even better deal for a five-year plan," she said. Egypt spends roughly $700 million a month on petroleum product imports. While it has benefited from plummeting global oil prices, a forex shortage has made it harder for import-reliant Egypt to finance shipments. Last month, a BP tanker carrying liquefied natural gas was diverted from Egypt in what traders said was a sign that the currency crisis was jeopardising energy supplies. BP and the government denied any payment problems and said the shipment was delayed by mutual agreement. Nasr said the shipment was delayed because Egypt had managed to secure its needs more cheaply elsewhere. "If we get a better deal at a better rate for this month, we will take the better rate," she said. (Editing by Michael Georgy and Alison Williams) Several fashion and beauty firms have been inspired to celebrate Chinese New Year 2016, which rings in the Year of the Fire Monkey on February 8. Along with Kenzo, Adidas and Giorgio Armani Beauty, American luxury brand Estee Lauder has dressed up one of its flagship products for the occasion, with a limited edition "Advanced Night Repair" serum. Estee Lauder's limited edition version of its iconic "Advanced Night Repair Synchronized Recovery Complex II" serum, which launched in its original formulation in 1982, celebrates the Year of the Monkey in stylish tribute to this Chinese zodiac sign associated with energetic and quick-witted characters. The brand's star product ditches its trademark brown bottle for an eye-catching gold finish, topped off with a red monkey charm keyring. In Chinese culture, red represents happiness and gold representing wealth. As the first cosmetic product to use hyaluronic acid, Advanced Night Repair serum helps protect skin against external factors while repairing past damage and protecting the skin's future. This limited edition version is out now from selected retailers or on www.esteelauder.com, priced 121 or $92 for 50 ml (1.7 oz). Brussels (AFP) - No European leaders are satisfied so far with proposals for a deal to keep Britain in the EU, which Prime Minister David Cameron hopes to secure at a summit this month, sources close to the negotiations told AFP. Initial reactions from European capitals show that "nobody's happy" with the draft agreement that European Union president Donald Tusk unveiled on Monday, one European source said on condition of anonymity. The lack of satisfaction so far is a sign that Tusk's proposal is fair and balanced, but also an indication that it could be hard to reach a deal at the February 18-19 meeting of the 28 EU leaders, the source added. Cameron, who is aiming to hold a referendum on Britain's EU membership in June, met Tusk on the margins of a Syria donor conference in London on Thursday. The British prime minister is now set to fly to Poland and Denmark on Friday at the start of a whirlwind fortnight of diplomacy in a bid to win over his sceptical EU counterparts and secure an accord. European diplomats in Brussels are set to hold their first full talks on the new proposals on Friday, and will meet again next Thursday in a bid to iron out their differences and reach an agreement at the summit. In a phone call between the British prime minister and European Parliament president Martin Schulz on Thursday, both agreed "there was still hard work ahead", according to a spokesman from Cameron's Downing street office. "Mr Schulz explained that the political groups in the European Parliament were currently considering the proposals ahead of the formal talks" on Friday, the spokesman said. Cameron has also been in frequent contact with French President Francois Hollande, who warned on Wednesday that there should be no more changes to the deal at the summit itself, and who has expressed concern over Tusk's proposals for protections for non-eurozone countries. A British government source said however that "the mood is improving on that." Story continues Spain is meanwhile dissatisfied with the European Commission, the executive arm of the EU headed by Jean-Claude Juncker, for not taking a tougher line on Cameron's demands for a limit to benefits for EU migrants working in Britain, another European source said. Tusk's proposals include a four-year "emergency brake" limiting welfare payments to migrants, as well as a "red card" system for national parliaments to overrule draft EU laws. Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia have previously expressed concerns over the welfare plan, saying it would discriminate against hundreds of thousands of their citizens who currently work in Britain. By Nate Raymond NEW YORK (Reuters) - Former pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli suffered a roughly $40 million drop in the value of a trading account used to secure his bail following his arrest on securities fraud charges, a U.S. prosecutor said on Wednesday. At a hearing in federal court in Brooklyn, Assistant U.S. Attorney Winston Paes said the account contained mostly shares of KaloBios Pharmaceuticals Inc , a drug company that Shkreli briefly ran. KaloBios filed for bankruptcy in December, wiping out most of its equity value. That caused the value of Shkreli's E*Trade brokerage account to drop to $4 million to $5 million, from the $45 million level when it had been frozen, the prosecutor said. Paes told U.S. District Judge Kiyo Matsumoto that Shkreli may need to post new assets to secure his $5 million bond, which was issued following the 32-year-old's arrest in December. Shkreli's new laywer, Benjamin Brafman, responded, "There's nothing like an indictment to affect the price of shares even if the shares have significant value." Shkreli's criminal case arose from his prior management of hedge fund MSMB Capital Management and Retrophin Inc , a biopharmaceutical company where he was chief executive before being fired in 2014. Prosecutors said Shkreli engaged in a Ponzi-like scheme in which he defrauded investors in MSMB, and misappropriated $11 million in assets from Retrophin to repay them. He has pleaded not guilty. Shkreli's arrest came soon after Turing Pharmaceuticals, another company he headed at the time, caused a public outcry by raising the price of a drug used to treat a dangerous parasitic infection to $750 from $13.50.Since his arrest, Shkreli has remained active on social media and given interviews to the press. Some of that may now end. Brafman, whose clients have included former International Monetary Fund chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn and rapper Sean "Diddy" Combs, told reporters that as a condition of his hiring, Shkreli was to stop talking to the media. "We want to try this case in court, not the media," Brafman said. Shkreli is expected to appear on Thursday at a congressional hearing on drug pricing, and assert his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination under the U.S. Constitution. In a separate case, a federal judge in Manhattan on Tuesday gave preliminary approval to a $3 million class action settlement for Retrophin shareholders, based on many claims at issue in Shkreli's criminal prosecution. BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazil wants to liberalize trade in vehicles and auto parts with Argentina and Mexico, Trade Minister Armando Monteiro told Reuters on Thursday, in a major shift away from protectionism. "Our auto industry is very competitive and will benefit from those deals," Monteiro said in a short interview. "We need to move in the direction of free trade." President Dilma Rousseff's government is moving to bolster trade to ease the pains of local manufacturers and take advantage of a weakening Brazilian real that has made Brazilian products more competitive abroad. Monteiro, the former head of a powerful trade group who will travel next week to Mexico and Argentina, has been under pressure from local auto producers who are struggling in Brazil's recession. The minister said the government's priority is to rework a bilateral auto deal with Argentina that expires in late June and advance talks to expand overall trade with Mexico. He added that the auto trade liberalization with Argentina could be gradual. Despite being major partners of the South American trading bloc Mercosur, the two countries have automobile trade quotas. A Brazilian government source told Reuters earlier on Thursday that Argentina's new center-right President Mauricio Macri has signaled he is willing to free auto trade as part of his drive to overhaul the economy. The same official involved in negotiations with both countries said Mexico needs to limit the imports of used vehicles from the United States before Brazil can fully liberalize trade. Importing cars from its northern neighbor curbs Mexican demand for Brazilian cars, the source said. Brazil was until recently one of the world's five biggest auto markets, and it remains a major base of operations for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV , Volkswagen AG , General Motors Co and Ford Motor Co . (Reporting by Alonso Soto; Editing by Cynthia Osterman) A sequel to the January 2015 E.L. James adaptation, "Fifty Shades of Grey," will film scenes in Paris during a five-month production schedule starting in February. Filming for both "Fifty Shades Darker" and "Fifty Shades Freed" take place on a back-to-back schedule, and the storyline of "Fifty Shades Freed" starts off with Anastasia (Dakota Johnson) and Christian (Jamie Dornan) visiting several European cities, including Paris and neighboring chateau city Versailles. Stephane Martinet, deputy director of the Ile-de-France Film Commission, told The Hollywood Reporter that the film industry has shown "resilience" following the Paris attacks of November 2015. "Paris is a big production hub for France and internationally, and that hasn't changed. For example, at the moment there are 10 crews on the streets of Paris," he said. "Everybody wants to be a part of this and knows how important it is to the city to sustain our film industry." By Steve Gorman LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Methane fumes spewing from a ruptured underground pipeline near a Los Angeles neighborhood hastened the demise of an elderly woman already suffering from lung cancer, her family said in the first wrongful death claim stemming from the gas leak. The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages against Southern California Gas Co, a division of San Diego-based Sempra Energy, for the suffering and death of Zelda Rothman, 79, who died on Jan. 25, about three months after the leak was detected. Rothman, who lived about 3 miles (5 km) from the source of the escaping methane at the Aliso Canyon natural gas storage field, was leading an active life, despite her diagnosis of stage 4 lung cancer, her family's lawyer, Scott Glovsky, said on Thursday. "She was going on cruises, and going out to lunch with friends and driving," Glovsky said. Her fragile condition began to worsen in the weeks after the leak began as she suffered from increasingly labored breathing and extreme headaches, requiring round-the-clock oxygen support by December, according to the lawsuit. Rothman, a decades-long resident of the Porter Ranch community where thousands of residents have been temporarily relocated at the utility's expense, was moved into a hospital after her adult children visited in December, Glovsky said. The complaint blames her rapid decline on exposure to methane, the principal component of the escaping natural gas, and other contaminants within the gas. Ranked as the largest such gas leak ever in California, it accounted for a fourth of all methane emissions statewide at its peak. "We're not claiming the gas company caused (Rothman's) cancer," Glovsky said. "We're claiming they essentially poisoned her and hastened her death and destroyed the quality of her life in the time she had left." The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday, asserts the utility could have halted the leak soon after it was detected if the ruptured well were equipped with a "sub-surface safety valve," which the complaint said the company removed in 1979. Story continues "We are sorry to hear about the family's loss," company spokeswoman Kristine Lloyd said of the wrongful death claim. "We are reviewing the lawsuit and will allow the judicial process to take its course." More than 20 lawsuits against SoCal Gas have been filed by residents over the leak, along with civil claims by Los Angeles city and county, the state of California and air quality regulators. County prosecutors filed criminal charges on Tuesday. (Reporting by Steve Gorman; Editing by Peter Cooney) By Siva Govindasamy and Anshuman Daga SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Fresh from taking on the world in financial services, China's cashed-up banks are targeting a bigger slice of the surging global aviation market, beefing up affiliates bent on supplying planes to airlines around the planet. Chinese lenders have grown big in traditional business like investment banking and brokerage, flush with Beijing backing and cheap funding. Now institutions are investing in operators that specialize in jet leasing, a newer financial service that was once the exclusive preserve of Western players. Bank of China Ltd's <601988.SS> BOC Aviation Pte arm is set to go public this year with an estimated $3 billion listing, the industry's biggest. Four Chinese lessors - including BOC Aviation - are among the world's top 15 by fleet value in a $228 billion industry, according to consultancy Flightglobal. Western firms like AerCap Holdings NV and GE Capital Aviation Services LLC still dominate a sector that underpins aviation - some 40 percent of carriers' aircraft are leased to avoid the fixed costs of owning planes. But China, through its banks, is aiming to create its own global champions. "The political drive is there for China to be part of the global economy," said Johnny Lau, who ran the aircraft leasing arms of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd (ICBC) <601398.SS> and China Minsheng Banking Corp <600016.SS> before starting his own consultancy. Against a backdrop of oil prices falling to 12-year lows, at least temporarily reducing aircraft operating costs and boosting carriers' profitability hopes, the drive is already under way. GROWING PAINS? Though industry insiders say some of China's newer leasing operations may face growing pains in securing specialist expertise, Singapore-based BOC Aviation is different. Now China's biggest lessor, and the world's sixth-biggest, with a fleet valued at more than $10 billion, BOC Aviation was founded in 1993 and bought by Bank of China in 2006 from investors including Singapore Airlines . Story continues For China's banks, keen to grow abroad, the lure is in part predictable, dollar-denominated revenue streams. Airplane lessors are basically financing operations: planes are bought from aircraft makers like Boeing Co and Airbus Group in bulk and rented out to airlines - from full-service carriers to budget operators - keen to keep fleets flexible. "It is an enviable position," said consultant Lau. "When (Chinese lessors) issue a bond backed by their parents with the bank's guarantee, there is no problem finding investors." Apart from Bank of China, units of ICBC and China Development Bank Corp are among the top 15 leasing firms in the world. Their clients stretch across the global industry: BOC Aviation, which declined to comment for this article, leases jets to full-service Gulf carrier Emirates Airline and U.S. low-cost operator Southwest Airlines Co , among others. Ambitious leasing subsidiaries of China Construction Bank Corp <601939.SS> and Bank of Communications Co <601398.SS> are among those ramping up after placing multi-billion dollar orders for Airbus and Boeing aircraft. BOC AVIATION - MODEL OF SUCCESS It's not all plain sailing. The Chinese lessors can be hampered by a lack of management talent, experience and industry connections - ties which can smooth over everything from marketing a plane once a lease comes to an end, to lessening the impact of a client airline's bankruptcy. "The technical expertise in terms of the aircraft, how to actually manage it when it comes to the end of the lease term is very, very important because that impacts the return," said Clarence Leung, asset finance & leasing director at PwC. BOC Aviation provides an example of the opposite. Chief executive Robert Martin, on board since 1998, has been credited with bridging differences between a Singapore-based team of experienced international leasing executives and a Chinese banking giant, creating a business known for a focus on profitability, not size. While the lessor has ordered more than 170 Airbus and Boeing aircraft worth over $18 billion at list prices over the last 18 months alone, almost all are narrow-body jets like the Airbus A320s and Boeing 737s. These account for 70 percent of its overall portfolio - as they are used by more operators and therefore easier to place. The company's good record has also helped it to win lucrative, highly-competitive deals such as a contract to supply 20 A320s to Singapore Airlines' Indian subsidiary Vistara. (Editing by Kenneth Maxwell) Miami (AFP) - Florida's supreme court on Thursday overturned the conviction of a Spaniard sentenced to death for a triple murder in 1994, and ordered a retrial. The court said there was "simply no excuse for the numerous deficiencies and failures" of Pablo Ibar's defense attorney. "Accordingly, we reverse the trial court's denial of post-conviction relief and remand for a new trial," it said. Ibar, 43, has spent the past 22 years behind bars, 15 of them on death row, for the murder of a nightclub owner and two women he had brought home with him. The case had been closely followed in Spain, where it was taken up as a cause by anti-death penalty activists. Washington (AFP) - Islamic State fighters have streamed into Libya in recent months, a US official said Thursday, heightening fears that the extremists are gaining ground and influence in the north African country. About 5,000 IS jihadists are now in Libya, the defense official said, approximately double earlier estimates, while the number of IS extremists in Iraq and Syria has dropped. The updated tallies comes as the adminstration of President Barack Obama faces growing calls for the US military to step up action against the IS group in Libya, where the jihadists have already seized the city of Sirte and an adjoining length of Mediterranean coastline. NATO defense ministers are meeting in Brussels next week to evaluate the ongoing US-led coalition campaign against the IS group and to discuss ways of redoubling efforts. The United States now believes there to be between 19,000 and 25,000 IS fighters in Iraq and Syria -- the group's so-called "caliphate" -- down from a previous count of 20,000-33,000. But there are growing fears about the fate of Libya, which has been in chaos since the NATO-backed ouster of longtime dictator Moamer Kadhafi in 2011. IS fighters have capitalized on the disarray and spread the group's influence into the north African nation, establishing a stronghold in Sirte, Kadhafi's hometown. Life in the city, which IS fighters seized in June, now resembles that of other towns flying the jihadists' signature black flag. Witnesses have described public executions and say women are no longer allowed outside without a male guardian. Reluctant to see its 18-month air campaign against the IS group in Iraq and Syria spread to a third country, the United States has repeatedly stressed the importance of finding cooperative local partners to help fight the IS group in Libya. Washington has also pushed international allies -- especially former colonial power Italy -- to take the lead in any coalition operations there. Story continues And administration officials say any actions in Libya must be carried out in the context of a functioning government. - Ease of travel to Libya - The decrease of IS fighters in Iraq and Syria is due to successes in the ongoing US-led air campaign and the relative ease of traveling to Libya from north African countries, the US official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. It's a "combination of battlefield deaths, desertions, internal disciplinary actions, recruiting shortfalls and difficulties that foreign fighters face traveling into Syria," the official said. White House spokesman Josh Earnest confirmed the latest tally for Iraq and Syria, based on a new intelligence assessment. Islamic State fighters "continue to be a substantial threat, but the potential numbers have declined," he said. "That's a testament to the efforts of our partners on the ground who are taking the fight to ISIL on the ground," he added, using an alternative acronym for the IS group. While Obama is not considering opening "a new front" against the IS group in Libya, Earnest said the United States is ready to intervene if necessary. "We're going to continue to watch how the threat in Libya evolves and we're going to continue to be prepared to take action," he said. The United States has already taken some limited steps in Libya. In November, it launched an air strike killing top IS leader Abu Nabil, an Iraqi also known as Wissam Najm Abd Zayd al-Zubaydi. And in December the Pentagon acknowledged that a group of US special operations troops who traveled to Libya to "foster relationships" was kicked out of the conflict-torn country soon after arriving. U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg answers questions from the media during a forum Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016 at suburban Quezon city, northeast of Manila, Philippines. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez) The United States government has earmarked funds to rehabilitate about eight military bases in the Philippines as part of an enhanced security alliance in a bid to blunt Chinas continued expansion in regional waters, Washingtons envoy said Wednesday. About 66 million dollars in foreign military funding has been earmarked for the Philippines under the Enhanced Security Defense Alliance (EDCA), which nationalist groups had opposed but the Supreme Court recently gave the green light. A protester shouts slogans during a rally outside the U.S. Embassy in Manila to protest the recent Philippine Supreme Courts decision upholding the constitutionality of the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement or EDCA at dawn Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016 in the Philippines. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez) The pact would essentially boost an existing mutual defense treaty, and among others, pave the way for the transfer of a third high-endurance cutter and research ship this year. A similar, former US ship now patrols Philippine territory after it was transformed as the local navys flagship. While there will be no new bases under the pact, US envoy Philip Goldberg said additional funds were being readied for the Philippines. What we do in military construction funds and things available are subject to appropriation by our Congress, Goldberg told reporters, adding that 66 million dollars in foreign military funding (is) in process for Philippines. We expect there will be additional sources of funds for both carrying out EDCA through military construction funds and increases in maritime security initiative, Goldberg said. He stressed EDCA was designed to support the Philippine efforts at building a minimum credible defense by modernizing its ill-equipped armed forces to address what he called were 21st century challenges. Story continues Japan, Australia, others also participating in helping Philippines in terms of building credible minimum defense. Im just saying those are parallel efforts and even in some cases there are discussions of moving forward together to make sure we are collaborating together, he said. The decision to construct or rehabilitate bases will be jointly agreed, he stressed. He said US defense officials were currently consulting with their counterparts from the Philippine defense and foreign affairs departments to push the process as rapidly as possible. Goldberg noted that the Philippines was an important place for the US with a long history of military alliance, dating back to World War II. The US and the Philippines are treaty allies. We have the MDT (Mutual Defense Treaty)(the) oldest defense treaty we have in this region, he said, noting that President Barrack Obama has stated an ironclad commitment as far as the US is concerned. Thats a very serious commitment, he said. Under the new agreement, more US troops and equipment are to be expected on local soil, a quarter of a century since a nationalistic congress voted to shut down two of Americas largest overseas bases in Subic and Clark, north of Manila. A local marching band welcomes the arrival of sailors aboard the USS Topeka (SSN-754), a Los Angeles-class submarine, as it prepares to be docked at the Alava pier off Subic port in Zambales province for a three-day port call at northwestern Philippines, Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2016. (AP Photo/Jun Dumaguing) Goldbergs statement comes amid Chinas perceived aggressiveness in the South China Sea, where of late it has expanded land territory in reefs it claims causing alarm from rival claimants. They claimed it could be a prelude to China establishing an air defense identification zone, and fortifying its claim. China claims that whole of the South China Sea, while Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam, Taiwan and the Philippines also have rival claims to parts of the sea, which is believed to have untapped gas and mineral deposits. Goldberg stressed the US supports a peaceful, legal, diplomatic resolution to the issues, nothing it was right for the Philippines to bring the case to an international tribunal, which China has snubbed. In terms of freedom of navigation, we continue to believe international law allows us to carry out freedom of navigation, he said. We seek the best possible relationship with China. But we would also like to see the engagement of entire region on solutions that are rules based and not unilateral. He said Washington would like to see the region follow a code of conduct. That to us is the way to go, he said. But China has questioned the deal, and warned that the EDCA could push the situation to the brink of war. Manila now appears to be turning to Uncle Sam to back its ambition to counter China, according to an editorial carried by the official Xinhua new agency, an official mouthpiece of Beijing. The deal was groundless because China has never coerced any country on the South China Sea issue, the editorial stressed. Gaza City (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) - Struck in an Israeli air raid in the 2014 Gaza war, Mohammed's home was only recently rebuilt but he remains undaunted by the prospect of another showdown with the Jewish state. "I'm not afraid of Israel," the 35-year-old father of six said while seated on floor cushions in his home in the Zeitoun neighbourhood of Gaza City, his children occasionally peeking their heads around the door. The member of the leftist Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (DFLP) said preparations for another war have included rebuilding attack tunnels destroyed by Israel two years ago. As a wave of Palestinian stabbings, shootings and car-rammings have shaken the West Bank and Israel, the Gaza Strip has remained relatively calm. But increasingly belligerent rhetoric from both Israel and Hamas, the Islamist group that rules Gaza, along with the reconstruction of tunnels the Jewish state says could be used to attack it, have renewed fears of yet another conflict in the enclave still recovering from the 2014 war. In many ways, another confrontation with the Israeli military would be the last thing the Gaza Strip needs -- there have been three since 2008. Around 100,000 people are still displaced and the unemployment rate is among the world's highest. An Israeli blockade has been in place for nearly a decade, tightly restricting the movement of goods and the 1.8 million Gazans. Beyond that, a more radical strain of Islam has taken root, with Hamas seeking to limit the influence of Salafist jihadists who sympathise with the Islamic State group and who have claimed responsibility for recent rocket fire toward Israel. All of it deeply concerns those involved in rebuilding Gaza. Robert Piper, the UN's deputy special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, told AFP after a recent visit that it "remains on a frankly disastrous trajectory of de-development and radicalisation, as far as I can tell". Story continues - Underground heroes - The deadly January 26 collapse of a tunnel belonging to Hamas's armed wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, as well as another on February 2 drew fresh scrutiny of the movement's intentions. The tunnels have been used to store weapons and stage attacks in the past, with Hamas officials saying they are necessary to defend against Israel's firepower. In 2006, a group of militants entered Israel through a tunnel, seized Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit and smuggled him back to Gaza, resulting five years later in a prisoner exchange that saw more than 1,000 walk out of Israeli jails. Last month's collapse killed seven Hamas militants who were hailed as heroes, with Ismail Haniya, Hamas's chief in the enclave, giving a speech at their funeral at Gaza City's main mosque. "East of Gaza City, underground heroes build tunnels" along the Israeli border, while west of the city they are "testing rockets every day", said Haniya. A Hamas official later called them "defensive tunnels for the protection of our people in the face of any Israeli aggression". Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded with his own threats. "If we are attacked from tunnels from the Gaza Strip, we will take very strong action against Hamas, much stronger" than in 2014, he said. Violence since October has already killed 26 Israelis and 164 Palestinians. Most of the Palestinians were killed while carrying out attacks, while others were shot dead during clashes and demonstrations. While violent protests have broken out along the Gaza border, with a number of Gazans shot dead by Israeli forces during clashes, the strip has so far played only a limited role in the unrest. Some analysts say Hamas would prefer to rebuild rather than face another war. But it cannot remain completely on the sidelines during what many Palestinians are calling a new "intifada", or uprising, in the West Bank. - 'Started with stones' - It must also contend with pressure from Salafists, though the threat has so far been seen as limited. Among the narrow streets of Shati refugee camp near the Gazan shoreline, a man claiming to lead a Salafist group said he could see himself travelling to Syria or Iraq to fight with the Islamic State. Sporting a thick beard and an olive green jacket, he told AFP he believed Hamas's version of Islam was not pure enough and that he was among those who had split from Al-Qassam Brigades to join the Salafists. "Our jihad is to have Allah's religion on the ground," he said. The militant said Salafists had fired rockets at Israel in defiance of a truce that ended the 2014 war in revenge for Hamas's arrest of its members. Hamas was said to have arrested around 100 of them last year. But for those like Mohammed, the Gazan who has finally moved back into his home, the enemy is Israel. He said he received a warning phone call from the Israeli military before his home was hit in 2014 that gave him minutes to evacuate the family. "We started with stones," he said defiantly, referring to the first intifada in 1987-1993. "Now we have rockets. As long as Israel stays on my land, the resistance will continue." Athens (AFP) - Thousands marched in Greece on Thursday as a crippling general strike against pension reforms swept the country, with hooded youths lobbing firebombs at riot police in scattered skirmishes in Athens. Some 40,000 people joined protests in the Greek capital and another 14,000 demonstrated in Thessaloniki in the 24-hour industrial action, police said, as riot officers in Athens fired tear gas in response to Molotov cocktails. A journalist was taken to hospital after being beaten on the sidelines of the demonstration. Police detained two people at the end of the protest, but not in relation to this incident. It was the broadest protest since leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras first came to power just over a year ago. The unrest comes as the Greek government and its creditors are meeting to review the 84 billion euro ($91.6 billion) bailout agreed in July after six months of bitter talks that nearly saw Greece exit the euro. Thursday's general strike -- the third in as many months -- paralysed transportation, stopping train and ferry services and grounding dozens of flights. The pensions overhaul, a key part of Greece's latest economic bailout, has sparked a major backlash against embattled Tsipras. The widespread opposition has led to the rare sight of white-collar professionals marching alongside workers. Lawyers, notaries, insurers and engineers have joined the protests, an action the media have dubbed the "necktie movement". "They have massacred my generation. We can no longer get married or have children," said Dina, 32, who owns a lingerie shop and was marching in Athens, referring to five years of austerity cuts under Greece's successive economic bailouts. Tsipras is accused of breaking his campaign promise to eliminate austerity. "The pledges were hot air," read black balloons carried by some protesters. One group marched behind a banner in Chinese opposing the imminent sale of the Piraeus port authority to Chinese shipping giant COSCO. Story continues Many traders shut their shops in support of the strike. Petrol stations were closed and taxis pulled off the streets. Hospitals were also operating on an emergency footing. Farmers also have protested at dozens of locations on national highways, intermittently blocking traffic with tractors. On Tuesday, they blocked freight trucks from travelling into Bulgaria and Turkey, causing long lines at the borders. - Pension reform 'not viable' - The strikers are furious at government plans to lower the maximum pension to 2,300 euros ($2,500) per month from 2,700 euros currently and introduce a new minimum guaranteed basic pension of 384 euros. "It's true that the pension system requires reform but this reform cannot make it viable," lawyer Thomas Karachristos told AFP. In his case, Karachristos says next year he will be paying 88 percent of his salary in taxes and pension contributions. Tsipras's leftist administration also wants to merge pension funds and increase social security contributions by both employers and staff. Critics say the new system penalises those who dutifully pay their pension contributions over a lifetime of work and will encourage undeclared labour practices. - 'Difficult negotiations' - But Greece must save 1.8 billion euros from state spending on pensions under a three-year bailout agreed with the European Union in July. The Tsipras government has warned the nation's pension system will soon collapse without the reform, which is expected to be put to a vote later this month in parliament, where the prime minister has only a razor-thin majority. After meeting representatives of creditor institutions -- the European Commission, the European Central Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the EU's bailout fund, the European Stability Mechanism -- Labour Minister Georges Katrougalos admitted talks on the thorny issue of pension reform had been tough. "The negotiations have been detailed and difficult. There has been discussion of the whole of the reform project," he said. Katrougalos said all areas were still open for discussion and talks would continue next week with the creditors' technical teams. It seems weirdly appropriate that, for a long time, talking about anything millennial was a way of hinting at the apocalypse. Today, Millennial, usually refers to the generation of people born, depending on your definition, sometime between the early 1980s and the early 2000s. But during most of that period, millennial referred to an attitude, a lens through which people viewed the near future. The year 2000 fast approaches, James Atlas wrote in 1989, and millennial doom is in the air. Global warming, nuclear proliferation, chaos in Eastern Europe. Even the notion of post is over. Post-modernism, post-history, post-culture ... were beyond that now. In 1994, The New York Times described millennial thinking, as an outsized appreciation for new technology, comparing a burgeoning culture in which the pursuit of computer technologys outer edge mirrored the previous generation that had staked out the frontiers of sex, drugs, and rock in the 1960s. Recommended: Personal Stories of Abortion Made Public A Millennium is looming, Richard Taruskin, the music critic, mock-warned in 1997, apparently fed up with all the prognosticating. Leading up to the year 2000, we were all millennialsbracing for a new century, living at a time of uncertainty. Which is funny because, in the post-9/11 world (turns out post wasnt over after all), that uncertainty would be recast as hypesilly fears from the ignorant bubble of the 1990s; misguided focus on crises, like Y2K, that didnt destroy us after all. But now, if you ask anyone who isnt one and some of those who are, Millennials are whats destroying us. They are accused of being lazy, entitled, coddled, and narcissistic. Theyre ruining the workforce, the country, and, apparently, Thanksgiving. Google autocomplete Its not like we didnt see this coming. Every generation since the invention of the teenager has come of age to eye-rolling from the grown-ups who grew up before them. In 1964, when the toddlers of the post-war Baby Boom were fully-fledged teens, the writer Martha Weinman Lear, described the new generation thusly: Story continues There they stand, on a big threshold and awesomely hip. They cut their baby teeth on television, sharpened their bite on space, grew up to marry sooner, pay later, become dropouts and juvenile delinquents, crowd the colleges and the Peace Corps, act distressingly complacent and painfully idealistic, head straight for hell and be the bright new hope of tomorrow. In short, to mess briefly with Dickens, they are the best of teens, they are the worst of teens, and they are surrounded by adults who know one view or the other to be absolutely true. Boomers, the 75 million or so people born between 1946 and 1964, were derided for their obsession with instant communication (sound familiar?)the instant joke, the instant fad, the instant dance, the instant celebrity, instantly communicated by television and relays of disk jockeys from coast to coast, as Lear put it. The girls dressed too casually and had (gasp!) pierced ears. Teenagers used slang like gear and tuff (when they meant fabulous) and animal and skag (when they meant jerk). Recommended: CDC to Women: Don't Drink Unless You're On Birth Control The communication may be faster, but the herd instinct is no greater than it used to be, Lear wrote. Beatlemania has nothing on the raccoon coat, the Big Apple, or those Three Little Fishes in an IttyBitty Pool. Those little fishies were the subject of a No. 1 song in 1939. A tune that, to a certain generation, still evokes, well, something. I suppose, like anything, you had to be there. We're also constantly reminded that decades define us, John Allen Paulos wrote for The New York Times in 1995. Is there anything more vapid? In the free-love, anti-war 60s, hippies felt so-and-so; the greed of the 80s led yuppies to do such and such; sullen and unread Generation X-ers (Roman numeral Ten-ers?) never do anything. We should brace ourselves for the millennial fatuities to come in the year 1999. Though Paulos seemed to have been referring to the time period, and not just the youths of the era, his use of millennial was at least semi-prescient. The term, as a name for a generation of young people, wouldnt be fully established for more than a decade. Older Millennialspeople who were in high school in the second half of the 1990sused to be known as Generation Y, echoing Generation X that came before them. (The Times, in 2009, defined Generation Y as anyone born between roughly 1980 and 2003.) Some old Millennials and not-quite-Millennials disassociate themselves from the Millennial designation altogether. Recommended: Clearing the Body's Retired Cells Slows Aging and Extends Life Im not Gen X and Im not a Millennial either, the writer Doree Shafrir tweeted in 2011. Im some low-birthrate in-between thing. WHO WILL SPEAK FOR ME. Shafrir, who wrote an insightful essay for Slate about the suggestions she receivedGeneration Jem, for examplesettled on Generation Catalano, a reference to the short-lived but beloved television show My So-Called Life, which first aired in 1994. This urge to define generations is also about a yearning for a collective memory in an increasingly atomized world, at least where my generation is concerned, Shafrir wrote. Indeed, where the Millennials tend to define themselves in terms of the way they live now, people in my cohort find fellowship more in what happened in the past, clinging to cultural totems as though our shared experiences will somehow lead us to better figure out who we are. Life magazine, 1970 (eBay) Shafrir was right, but not entirely. Millennials, even before 2011 when she wrote that essay, were and are obsessed with nostalgia as a way of establishing an identity. Thats a human trait, not a generational one. (See also: this hat and this 1970 Life magazine cover.) Longing for the past obviously isnt always a good thing. (See also: this smart Rebecca Onion essay, for Aeon, about how generational thinking confirms preconceived prejudices.) It is, at the very least, an unwieldy framework for making sense of ones place in time and culture. And that because the way people define generations shifts. Generations themselves change, which is to say, people change. In 1992, The Atlantic tried coining Thirteeners as an alternate term for Generation X. Heres how the writers Neil Howe and William Strauss described how they came up with the it: Americas thirteenth generation, born from 1961 to 1981, ranging in age from eleven to thirty-one. Demographers call them Baby Busters, a name that deserves a prompt and final burial. First, it's incorrect: The early-sixties birth cohorts are among the biggest in U.S. historyand, at 80 million, this generation has numerically outgrown the Boom. By the late 1990s it will even outvote the Boom. Second, the name is insulting"Boom" followed by "Bust," as though wonder were followed by disappointment. The novelist Doug Coupland, himself a 1961 baby, dubs his age-mates "Generation X" or "Xers," a name first used by and about British Boomer-punkers. Shann Nix, a journalist at the San Francisco Chronicle, suggests "posties" (as in "post yuppies"), another name that, like Coupland's, leaves the generation in the shadow of the great Boom. We give these young people a nonlabel label that has nothing to do with Boomers. If we count back to the peers of Benjamin Franklin, "Thirteeners" are, in point of fact, the thirteenth generation to know the U.S. flag and the Constitution. More than a name, the number thirteen is a gauntlet, an obstacle to be overcome. Maybe it's the floor where elevators don't stop, or the doughnut that bakers don't count. Then again, maybe it's a suit's thirteenth cardthe acethat wins, face-down, in a game of high-stakes blackjack. It's an understated number for an underestimated generation. Thirteeners never caught on. Generation X became the accepted term for a loosely defined generation the way Millennials has. Similarly, back when Millennials were still being called Generation Y, there were other suggestions for post-1980 babies, like echo boomers and the baby boomlet, a reference to the parents of these babies. Why not just call them the Tamagotchi Generation? Linda Lee wrote for The New York Times in 1997, referring to a fad electronic toy of the time. They like things technological and cute (like the 1995 movie Babe); they are open to the global marketplace and insist on their right to irony. Perhaps its worth underscoring here that, at the time when cultural critics were first deriding this new generations values, tens of millions of Millennials hadnt even been born yet. Back in 1994, Rich Cohen, a contributing editor for Rolling Stone, playfully described babies of the era as the Small Generation, a group born after the Rodney King affair but before Rwanda ... a generation that has known no President other than Bill Clinton and seems likely to call Hillary Clinton mother. The Small Generation shows real discomfort when presented with the American way of life, Cohen wrote. Not only have they shunned traditional careers (almost none of them work), they have a sailors disregard for hygiene. They pick their noses and soil their briefs and cry about it, expecting someone else to clean up the mess. The joke was: Theyre babies. The thing Cohen was actually lampooning, though, was the widespread obsession with generational boundaries, and the predictable narratives that this preoccupation fosters. If being a resented older generation is a novel experience for Boomers, and if life on the short end feels ruinous to Thirteeners, each group can take a measure of solace in the repeating generational rhythms of American history, Howe and Strauss wrote for The Atlantic in 1992. About every eighty or ninety years America has experienced this kind of generation gap between self-righteous neopuritans entering midlife and nomadic survivalists just coming of age. And given that the post-Millennial generation is only a few years away from heading off to college, and just a few more removed from entering the workforce, the cycle is poised to repeat itself. What should we call them, anyway? Read more from The Atlantic: This article was originally published on The Atlantic. RIYADH (Reuters) - German Foreign Minister Frank Walter Steinmeier said on Thursday that talks for a political solution to end the civil war in Syria were difficult, but he was not without hope. "In the coming days, we have to and will speak particularly with Russia about how we can get improvements especially on the humanitarian side," Steinmeier said during a visit in the Saudi capital Riyadh. There would be a chance for further talks between ministers in Munich next week on the sidelines of the annual security conference, he added. (Reporting by Sabine Siebold,; Writing by Michael Nienaber,; Editing by Madeline Chambers) ASAMANKESE, Ghana (Reuters) - Ghana will aim to raise the area under cocoa production by 750,000 hectares over the next decade, the chief executive of cocoa industry regulator Cocobod said on Thursday, from about 1 million hectares now. Ghana, the world's second biggest cocoa producer, is targeting production of 850,000-900,000 tonnes for the 2015-16 season that began last October up from production in the previous season of about 740,000. Cocobod Chief Executive Stephen Opuni gave no details of how the increase in area under production would be achieved or on the progress of the cocoa season. Some farmers have complained about a lack of rain and a severe seasonal dry Harmattan wind. Opuni said Cocobod was distributing 60 million free seedlings to farmers this year, up from 50 million last year. "The planting material is free and we have identified more than 30,000 young men and women who are attracted into cocoa farming and we will continue to motivate them by supplying them with materials and agronomist extension services," he told reporters. Production during the 2014-15 cocoa season fell below the initial Cocobod target of more than 1 million tonnes and many in the industry hope this season will provide a rebound. (Reporting by Kwasi Kpodo; writing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg; editing by Adrian Croft and David Clarke) By Joseph Ax NEW YORK (Reuters) - A correction officer at New York City's notorious Rikers Island jail complex has been charged with smuggling synthetic marijuana, also known as "K2," into the facility. Mohammed Sufian, 25, was arrested late on Wednesday after a drug-sniffing dog helped authorities find 61 grams of the narcotic wrapped in electrical tape and hidden inside his socks, according to the city's Department of Investigation. A search of Sufian's home yielded five similar packages, four containing synthetic marijuana and one containing tobacco, authorities said. Dozens of Rikers staffers have been charged with crimes including assault and smuggling over the past two years, as persistent allegations of inmate abuse and drug trafficking have plagued one of the country's largest jail complexes. The approximately 10,000 inmates, housed in 10 facilities, are mostly either defendants awaiting trial who have not made bail or convicted individuals serving short-term sentences. The city agreed to implement a series of reforms last year to resolve a lawsuit filed by inmates and backed by the U.S. Department of Justice alleging that guards routinely used excessive force. In 2014, the Department of Correction agreed to install drug detection dogs at Rikers to inspect staff members after a Department of Investigation report concluded that inadequate screening procedures did little to stem the flow of illegal contraband. (Reporting by Joseph Ax; Editing by Andrew Hay) CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's HC Securities is working on acquisitions in Egypt worth more than 5 billion Egyptian pounds ($638.6 million) this year, Chairman Hussein Choucri told Reuters. "The sellers in the deals taking place in 2016 are Egyptians and the buyers are foreigners and Arabs," Choucri said. Choucri also said his HC Securities is advising on an acquisition of a Turkish medical firm by a company in the United Arab Emirates, and hopes the deal would be completed this year. ($1 = 7.8300 Egyptian pounds) (Reporting by Ehab Farouk; writing by Asma Alsharif; editing by David Clarke) By Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) - The federal appeals court in New York struck down a U.S. regulation that made it harder for hospitals to provide better medical care at lower cost by claiming they were "rural" for some purposes and "urban" for others. Thursday's decision by the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals is a victory for hospitals in urban areas including the acute care Lawrence + Memorial Hospital of New London, Connecticut, which said the Department of Health and Human Services' "reclassification rule" forced it to overpay for drugs that patients needed. Writing for the appeals court, Judge Jed Rakoff said the 2000 regulation conflicted with the plain meaning of the federal Medicare statute, and that HHS lacked authority to implement it. Medicare lets hospitals be reimbursed for the cost of providing services. It allows some hospitals to be classified simultaneously as "rural" to get lower drug pricing and "urban" to ensure they can attract and pay qualified staff. But under the HHS rule, according to Rakoff, urban hospitals classified as "rural" to reduce drug prices could not be deemed "urban" by the agency's Medicare Geographic Classification Review Board, unless they first canceled their rural status for the years in which they sought reclassification. In December 2014, a federal judge rejected the New London hospital's challenge to the rule, which she said reflected a "deliberate, logical, and considered" effort at HHS to implement an ambiguous Medicare statute. But Rakoff, who normally sits on the federal district court in Manhattan, said the statute was clear and downplayed concern that hospitals might seek classifications they do not deserve. The law "simply increases the number of situations in which hospitals can be treated as rural for some purposes and urban for others, but there is nothing 'absurd' about such a measured approach," he wrote. "An agency may not rewrite clear statutory terms to suit its own sense of how the statute should operate." A spokesman for U.S. Attorney Deirdre Daly in Connecticut, who defended the HHS regulation, said: "The Justice Department and HHS are reviewing the decision to determine how best to proceed." Joseph Glazer, the hospital's lawyer, in an email said his client is pleased with the decision. He said the dual classification saves hospitals millions of dollars annually through greater Medicare reimbursements or cost savings. The case is Lawrence + Memorial Hospital v Burwell et al, 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 15-164. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Tom Brown and Cynthia Osterman) By Dustin Volz WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. House of Representatives has subpoenaed the U.S. Office of Personnel Management for documents related to the hacking of the agencys files that compromised sensitive information of roughly 22 million people, Representative Jason Chaffetz said on Wednesday. Chaffetz, a Utah Republican who heads the Houses oversight panel, said that Office of Personnel Management acting director Beth Cobert was not cooperating with his committees investigation by failing to produce unredacted versions of network security guides that were stolen in the data breach. Ms. Cobert is not working in good faith with the committee, Chaffetz said. I will use all available remedies to obtain the information needed to conduct a thorough and meaningful investigation. An Office of Personnel Management spokesman, when asked about the subpoena, pointed to written testimony given by the agency last month stating it "has made every effort to work in good faith to respond to multiple congressional oversight requests, including document productions." The files, which Chaffetz has requested for several months, were outdated security documents seized during the hack, according to June 2015 testimony by Donna Seymour, the agencys chief information officer. The Office of Personnel Management has provided partially redacted versions of those manuals, which it has said contained sensitive information about its information technology. Chaffetz has expressed concern that the manuals could be used to launch another cyber attack. The intrusion, which began in 2014 and was disclosed publicly last year, exposed the names, addresses, Social Security numbers and other sensitive information for current and former federal employees and contractors, as well as applicants for federal jobs and individuals listed on background check forms. U.S. officials have privately blamed China for the hacking. Beijing has denied the allegations, and China's state news agency has said the breach was carried out by a criminal enterprise. Cobert is scheduled on Thursday to testify before a Senate panel considering her nomination to a four-year term as Office of Personnel Management chief. (Reporting by Dustin Volz) Health officials issued new recommendations this week in an update to the vaccine schedule for children, including a recommendation to get a new type of vaccine against HPV, and an update to the timing of this vaccine for some children. The updated schedule for children and teens was released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, along with a corresponding policy statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics. The update is an opportunity to remind people that "vaccine-preventable disease is at historically low levels for almost every single vaccine," said Dr. Cody Meissner, a co-author of the new policy statement and a pediatric infectious-disease specialist at Tufts University in Boston. "And the reason for that is because vaccine uptake is at historically high levels." "If we have a decrease in immunization rates, we are going to see these diseases return," Meissner said, citing the recent outbreaks of measles and whooping cough as possible examples of this. One change in the updated schedule is the introduction of a new type of HPV vaccine, called 9vHPV, which was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in December 2014. The previously recommended vaccine, called 4vHPV, offered protection against four types of HPV associated with certain types of cancer. The new vaccine adds protection against five more types of HPV linked to cancer, particularly cervical cancer, Meissner said. [5 Dangerous Vaccine Myths] "That means that the HPV-4 vaccine covered about 65 percent of the viruses that cause cervical cancer, and the HPV-9 will prevent about 80 percent of the viruses that cause cervical cancer," Meissner told Live Science. The new schedule continues to recommend that the HPV vaccine be given to children beginning at age 11. However, the new schedule now recommends that children with a history of sexual abuse receive the first dose of the vaccine at age 9, because they have an increased risk of HPV infection. Story continues This increased risk is partly because children who have suffered abuse are more likely to become sexually active at an earlier age, Meissner said. Meningitis prevention The updated vaccination schedule now also includes the addition of the meningococcal B vaccine for some adolescents. The vaccine protects against the rare but potentially life-threatening bacterial infection that can affect the brain. The vaccine is recommended at age 10 for children who are at an increased risk of contracting the disease. This high-risk group includes kids with certain immunodeficiencies, such as those who have had to have their spleen removed, Meissner said. Individuals who don't have a high risk of contracting the disease can be considered for the vaccine between ages 16 and 18, depending on their doctor's recommendation. The meningococcal B vaccine was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2014 in response to several outbreaks of bacterial meningitis at colleges in the United States. Vaccination schedules for children and teens are approved annually by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of the CDC, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. The AAP policy statement was published Monday (Feb. 1) in the journal Pediatrics. Follow Agata Blaszczak-Boxe on Twitter. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Originally published on Live Science. Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. By Sanjeev Miglani NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India ratified an international convention on nuclear energy accident liability, the government said on Thursday, the final piece in its efforts to address the concerns of foreign nuclear suppliers and draw them into a market worth billions of dollars. Nuclear reactor makers such as General Electric have been reluctant to set up plants in India because of a 2010 liability law that makes equipment suppliers potentially accountable for accidents, not just the plant operators as is the global norm. Since then, India which wants to ramp up the share of nuclear power from barely 3 percent to 25 percent by 2050 has been trying to assuage the fears of the nuclear suppliers. Last year it launched an insurance pool with a liability cap of 15 billion Indian rupees ($225 million) to cover the suppliers' risk of potential liability. On Thursday, the Indian Foreign Ministry said it had submitted the document to ratify the Convention of Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage, which seeks to establish a uniform global legal regime for the compensation of victims in the event of a nuclear accident. "This marks a conclusive step in the addressing of issues related to civil nuclear liability in India," the Foreign Ministry said after the document was handed to the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna. Energy-starved India plans to construct about 60 nuclear reactors and has been in talks with Westinghouse Electric Co LLC, GE as well as France's Areva for setting them up at sites already selected around the country. Russia is separately building six reactors in southern India and is in talks for another six. The total size of the Indian market is estimated at $150 billion dollars, making it equal to or just behind China's. India expects to seal an agreement with Westinghouse to build six reactors by the first half of this year, a government official said in December, after it ratified the international convention on compensation. (Reporting by Sanjeev Miglani; Editing by Alison Williams) By Paritosh Bansal and Sanjeev Miglani NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Afghanistan expects to restart peace talks with the Taliban within six months, chief executive Abdullah Abdullah said on Thursday, pinning hopes on factions within the Islamist militant group he said might be ready to give up violence. Talks between Kabul and the Afghan Taliban have been on hold since efforts collapsed last year after it became known that Mullah Mohammad Omar, the movement's founder and leader, had been dead for two years, throwing the group into disarray. Abdullah said that Omar's death had left the Taliban deeply divided, making peace negotiations complicated, but there was reason to hope that talks to end 15 years of bloodshed in the South Asian country could resume. "There might be groups among the Taliban who might be willing to talk and give up violence," Abdullah told Reuters in an interview in New Delhi, where he held talks with Indian leaders on bilateral issues. "It should be sooner than six months," Abdullah said, when asked when he expected talks with the Taliban to begin. He said there had been some contact between Taliban factions willing to give up violence and Afghan security agencies, but he declined to give further details. His comments came ahead of a meeting between four powers - the United States, China, Pakistan and Afghanistan - in Islamabad on Feb. 6 to lay the ground for talks that Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's government wants to conduct with the insurgent group. China had a role to play in the Afghan peace process because of the challenge it faced in its Xinjiang province from the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, which was also fighting alongside the Taliban in Afghanistan, Abdullah said. Equally important were Beijing's close ties with Pakistan, Abdullah added, because that could help coax the Taliban to the negotiating table. The Afghan Taliban leadership, now headed by Mullah Akhtar Mansour, has long sheltered in Pakistan from where they have waged a deadly insurgency. EXTENDED FOREIGN TROOP PRESENCE China, Pakistan and the United States had agreed to use their influence to facilitate talks with the Taliban, Abdullah said. The countries are discussing issues including where to hold talks with Taliban factions who decide to come to the table and what to do about those who stay away, he added. Any talks with the Taliban will be led by the Afghans, he said. "How it moves forward and what it takes, nobody can judge at this stage," Abdullah said. Despite the ongoing effort to restart negotiations, the Taliban have ramped up their campaign of violence across Afghanistan from the start of the year, with suicide attacks and territorial gains in southern Helmand province. Last month they reiterated their demand for the release of political prisoners as a condition to rejoin talks. They have also asked to be removed from a U.N. blacklist under which senior leaders cannot travel freely and their assets are frozen. Abdullah said he expected U.S. forces to remain in Afghanistan beyond 2016 in some form and that an extended presence was necessary to support the government. A Pentagon report released in December said the security situation in Afghanistan deteriorated in the second half of 2015, with Taliban militants staging more attacks and inflicting far more casualties on Afghan forces. The outlook prompted U.S. President Barack Obama to announce in October that he would maintain a force of 9,800 troops in Afghanistan through most of 2016, instead of drawing down to an embassy-based presence by 2017. "The reality is that there is this number of troops and they are doing an effective job in support of our institutions, in equipping, in assisting, in training," Abdullah said. "My perception is that the presence will continue beyond 2016 in one form or another, and that is needed." (Editing by Mike Collett-White) LONDON (Reuters) - Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Thursday he did not know about the case of a former BBC Persian journalist who was reported to have been arrested at his home in Tehran. Bahman Daroshafaei was detained on Wednesday, according to the opposition website Kaleme.com. "I read about this journalist as I arrived in the UK, so I don't know about him, what happened. You know we have independent judiciary, which insists on its independence," Zarif said at an event in the British parliament. (Reporting by William James; editing by Stephen Addison) LONDON (Reuters) - Any ceasefire in Syria should not include stopping military operations to combat terrorist groups, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Thursday. "Ceasefire, based on everybody's interpretation, does not include giving a breathing space to recognized terrorist organizations," he told an event in British parliament. "Having a ceasefire is different from letting up the fight against terrorism." He named the Nusra Front and Islamic State as such organizations. Earlier Zarif had called for an immediate ceasefire in Syria and for U.N.-mediated peace talks to resume after they were suspended on Wednesday. (Reporting by William James; editing by Stephen Addison) Arbil (Iraq) (AFP) - Iraq's Kurdish region has announced it will pay only partial salaries to all government employees except security personnel as it struggles with an economic crisis due to low oil prices. The autonomous region in northern Iraq, like the rest of the country, has been suffering from the huge drop in oil prices since mid-2014. Kurdish leader Massud Barzani this week called for a referendum on independence, but economic challenges effectively rule out a viable Iraqi Kurdish state for now. The salaries decision was taken "in order to ensure the continued distribution of part of the monthly salaries and allowances," the region's government said in a statement late Wednesday. The unpaid portion of the salaries going forward, as well as previously unpaid wages from last year, will be considered "loans remaining with the government, and will be returned later," the statement said. The new measures will affect higher salaries more than lower, it said. The region's cabinet approved other measures aimed at cutting costs and raising revenues, including public auctions of oil and oil products not exported via pipeline, and making employees responsible for expenses associated with government-provided vehicles. Public employees said the new measures would hit them hard. Kadhim Ismail said he and his wife are both teachers and that "after the reduction in salaries, we don't know how we will manage the rent" along with expenses for their four children. Midia Hassan, a 35-year-old government employee who has three children, was worried after the family had gone into debt to furnish their home. "We are still paying, and we don't know how we will get by with the reduction in salaries," Hassan said. Iraqi Kurdistan has been independently exporting crude via Turkey since a deal between it and Baghdad on oil and revenue sharing collapsed last year. Plunging prices have made a major dent in the oil revenues on which the region relies for the vast majority of its funds. Story continues Salaries for some Kurdish government employees have fallen months in arrears, and some have gone on strike to protest unpaid wages. The announcement about salaries came after Barzani, who has remained in power despite the expiration of his term as president, called for a referendum on independence. "The time has come and the conditions are now suitable for the people to make a decision through a referendum on their future," Barzani said, adding that a yes vote "would not necessarily lead to (an) immediate declaration of statehood." But Barzani's call was likely primarily an appeal to nationalism ahead of the bad news on salaries, or an attempt to otherwise aid himself politically. Eyes, guns and missiles are aimed at Iraq and Syria, with allied and Russian airstrikes mounting pressure against Islamic States so-called caliphate. But as the West doubles down and the militants territorial losses rack up, the jihadists may simply be moving on to Plan B. When the going gets tough for the tough guys themselves will they head for the hills or simply move the fight to Libya? For many, the going got tough in Syria and Iraq, and they got going. Millions have escaped and continue to flee, braving treacherous maritime crossings often dying and months in freezing European camps in the hope of carving out a better life. But now the militants are also feeling the heat, and possibly taking more advantage of Libyas instability. Already, experts say, theyve lost up to 25 percent of their territory in Iraq, along with some key oil refineries, and pressures mounting, thanks to allied and Russian airstrikes. Combined, its getting harder for ISIS to protect the areas they govern and keep their machine running by collecting taxes without expanding into other areas. Meanwhile, says Joshua Meservey, the Heritage Foundations policy analyst for Africa and the Middle East, Libya has become a backup plan or haven for if and when things turn sour in Iraq and Syria. Of course, ISIS isnt on its back heels. The caliphate model of gaining territory and taxing local populations is still going strong, and the militants are putting more resources into the Maghreb. And while the group has had a presence in Libya since 2014, its increasingly shifting eggs from one basket Syria and Iraq to the late Moammar Gadhafis homeland, where two governments are now vying ineffectively for control. That leaves loads of groups duking it out in a vacuum that ISIS has proven all too effective at monopolizing before, especially in Syria. Its going to become increasingly important to focus on Libya. Madeleine Moreau, analyst for Global Risk Insights Right now, ISIS has anywhere from 2,000 to 10,000 fighters in Libya, experts estimate. Thats a relatively small number when looking at the country as a whole, though its significant if ISIS members are concentrated in a town or specific area because they can run little areas, says Professor Daniel Byman of Georgetown Universitys Security Studies Program. And this piecemeal grabbing of land, and then exploiting resources and local bank accounts, is exactly how the militants roll. Indeed, the militants have carved out a beachhead in the coastal city of Sirte and are upping attacks against oil fields in a bid to secure lucrative resources in the north. So far these efforts have been fairly amateur, says Madeleine Moreau, a strategic media analyst for Global Risk Insights based in Beirut. But she notes that high-level ISIS leaders are leaving Syria and going to Libya to take advantage of the chaos, especially in the north, fueling fears that over the next six months, its going to become increasingly important to focus on Libya. Theyre also taking advantage of Libyas south, Moreau says, pointing to reports of training camps that are attracting foreign fighters especially from Tunisia and Algeria. Experts warn the West needs to be on the lookout for what these new trainees do next, especially as it grows more difficult for them to operate in Iraq. Another key is whether local Libyan support for ISIS thin at present shifts to a worrying degree. Yet the Maghreb is just the tip of a growing iceberg. ISIS also has fingers in jihadi pies in Egypt, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Jordan, Lebanon, Tunisia, Algeria, Nigeria, Yemen, Indonesia, Somalia and Turkey, as well as the Balkans and Caucuses, and most of the experts expect cross-border violence in Iraqi and Syrian neighbors to increase, alongside bombings in Turkey. At the same time, theres been a growing trend in recent months of ISIS-involved attacks overseas, from Paris to Indonesia, with more infrastructure behind those targets where attackers are communicating directly with senior ISIS leadership, says Seth Jones, RAND Corporations International Security and Defense Policy Center director. This means the group is getting more directly involved than it has in the past with external operations something thats likely to continue. To be sure, experts hedge on the notion that ISIS might abandon the caliphate and go all-in in Libya. Theyre obviously going to try to hold on in Iraq and Syria, says Byman. Some also point to the importance of the caliphates geography, particularly the Syrian town of Dabiq where ISIS believes the end-of-time battle will rage between the forces of the caliphate and the forces of Rome (i.e., the West). But while the West is beginning to make a bit of progress in pushing back the Islamist extremists in Iraq and Syria, this is likely to spur more violence. By working to co-opt more affiliates, extending its external operations apparatus and bolstering efforts in Libya, ISIS is planning to wreak more havoc worldwide, not less. And Meservey notes how strategically located Libya is close to the Middle East and Europe, with links to sub-Saharan Africa and how having a foothold there could at least allow them to move back to Iraq and Syria, later if need be. Theres no doubt that Libya is Plan B, he says. Related Articles Jerusalem (AFP) - Israel's Supreme Court on Thursday suspended the detention without trial of a Palestinian journalist who has been on hunger strike for more than two months, but he cannot leave hospital without permission. Mohammed al-Qiq, 33, was said to be on hunger strike for 72 days to protest being held under Israel's controversial administrative detention law, which allows the state to hold suspects for renewable six-month periods without trial. The court said the order was being suspended due to his poor health. His family will be allowed to visit him in hospital. Qiq's lawyer said the journalist had earlier pledged to refuse any order that "doesn't guarantee his freedom". "I'm going to visit him now to know his decision," said Jawad Boulus. Physicians for Human Rights-Israel said one of its doctors who visited Qiq on Thursday morning reported that his "condition was extremely grave and that most of the conversation took place through notes because he could barely speak or even hear." The International Committee of the Red Cross said last week that his life was in danger. Qiq, a father of two and a correspondent for Saudi Arabia's Almajd TV network, was arrested on November 21 at his home in the West Bank city of Ramallah. He has been refusing food since November 25 in protest against the "torture and ill treatment that he was subjected to during interrogation", according to Addameer, a Palestinian rights organisation. The Supreme Court previously refused to order his release, although it said it would follow his health on a daily basis. Shin Bet, the Israeli domestic security service, says Qiq was arrested for "terror activity" as part of the Islamist group Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip. Qiq was jailed for a month in 2003 and then for 13 months in 2004 for Hamas-related activities. In 2008, he was sentenced to 16 months on charges linked to his activities on the student council at the West Bank's Birzeit University. ROME (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi spoke to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Thursday, urging the swift return of the body of a slain Italian student who was found with cigarette burns on his body, a government source said. Renzi asked for 28-year-old Giulio Regeni's corpse, which was discovered on Wednesday on the outskirts of Cairo, to be returned "soon" to Italy and his family. He also asked for "full access by our representatives to follow the developments in the investigation first hand and find those responsible for this horrible crime and bring them to justice," the source said. (Reporting by Steve Scherer; Editing by Crispian Balmer) ROME (Reuters) - Italy will send a team specialized in treating war wounded to Iraq as it prepares to send troops to guard Mosul dam maintenance workers, Defence Minister Roberta Pinotti said on Thursday. In the wake of the deadly Islamic State attacks in Paris in November, Italy declined French and American calls to join in air strikes in Syria. But it has since announced an increase in its non-combat presence in Iraq, where Islamic State's self declared caliphate also extends. In an interview with Canale 5 television, Pinotti said Italy's cabinet would approve a mission to send 130 military personnel to retrieve and treat the wounded in the coming weeks. "It is a big commitment (of personnel) because to go and pick up a wounded person in a war zone is not something one can do without risks," Pinotti said. The mission responds to France's calls after the Paris attacks for allies to do more to fight Islamic State, she said, giving no further details about the planned operation. In December, the Italian government said it would deploy 450 soldiers to protect workers making urgent repairs on the Mosul dam. Together the two new missions will at least double Italy's presence in Iraq in coming months to more than 1,000. On Tuesday Italy said its Trevi Group had won a bid to carry out urgent repairs to Mosul's 3.6-km-long (2.2-mile) hydro-electric dam, which has suffered from structural flaws since its construction in the 1980s. A U.S. general said last week there was chance of catastrophic collapse of the dam, which would unleash a wall of water down the heavily populated Tigris River valley. Italy has about 530 soldiers in Iraq already. Some are in Erbil training Kurdish Peshmerga fighters, while others are providing training to counter terrorism forces and police in Baghdad. (Reporting by Steve Scherer; Editing by Dominic Evans) ROME (Reuters) - Italy's Foreign Ministry on Thursday summoned the Egyptian ambassador to Rome to express concern about the suspicious death of an Italian man in Cairo and to urge a joint investigation, according to a statement. The ministry's director general, Michele Valensise, "urgently" summoned Egyptian Ambassador Amr Mostafa Kamal Helmy after the body of 28-year-old Giulio Regeni, a graduate student at Britain's Cambridge University, was found on Wednesday. He had disappeared on Jan. 25. His body showed signs of torture, officials said on Thursday. The ministry said it expected "maximum collaboration at all levels in light of the exceptional gravity of what happened". "In his country's name, Helmy expressed profound condolences for Regeni's death and assured us Egypt will cooperate fully in finding those responsible for this criminal act," the statement said. (Reporting by Steve Scherer, editing by Isla Binnie) Sharp skyrocketed on Thursday with the hard-hit Japanese electronics giant saying it was mulling rival bailout offers, including one from Foxconn parent company Hon Hai Precision, as it posted another massive loss. Tokyo investors cheered local media reports that Sharp's board is favouring a 600 billion yen ($5.0 billion) rescue from Hon Hai, a key Apple supplier. Sharp -- which has teetered on the edge of bankruptcy for years -- kicked off a critical directors' meeting Thursday morning to review at least two competing bids, including a proposal from a domestic investment firm. Japanese media, including public broadcaster NHK and the Jiji Press news agency, said Sharp's board was leaning towards the offer from Hon Hai, which is based in Taiwan. The public-private Innovation Network Corporation of Japan (INCJ) has offered around 300 billion yen to rehabilitate the century-old company, which started life as a belt buckle and pencil maker. Sharp's chief Kozo Takahashi refused to be drawn on which offer he favoured, but said that his company was putting "more manpower" into evaluating the Taiwanese offer. "That doesn't mean one of them has an advantage over the other, however," he told reporters after the board meeting. "We are firmly scrutinising both (proposals) in a fair and transparent manner," added Takahashi. After soaring by more than 25 percent earlier, Sharp's volatile shares settled back slightly to close at 160 yen, up 16.79 percent on the day. The Aquos-brand maker, which is also an Apple supplier, has fallen on hard times in recent years, piling up eye-watering losses and ushering in a restructuring plan that has yet to pull it out of the mire. After markets closed, the firm posted a whopping nine-month net loss of $918 million, hit by restructuring costs and a slump in demand for its smartphone screens. Sales for the nine months fell about seven percent from a year ago. Story continues - 'Too much speculation' - Despite its bleeding balance sheet, Sharp remains a leader in liquid crystal display technology, a key asset for Hon Hai. "We cannot provide any comment -- there has been too much speculation," a Hon Hai spokeswoman told AFP earlier Thursday. The Taiwanese group's chairman Terry Gou met Sharps board at their Osaka headquarters last week to make his case for a raised bid of about 660 billion yen, Bloomberg News reported, citing a person familiar with the matter. Earlier reports had suggested Sharp was learning toward the offer from INCJ, which is the main shareholder in rival Japan Display. Media said Tokyo and Sharp's bank creditors were concerned about the company's key technologies falling into the hands of a foreign firm. The INCJ plan reportedly called for hiving off Sharp's LCD business and merging it with Japan Display, while the Foxconn offer would allow the firm to continue operating as a single entity. But Sharp's Takahashi said Thursday that both bids contemplate keeping the vast firm together. Along with rivals Sony and Panasonic, Japan's electronics giants were hammered by steep losses in their television units owing to stiff competition from lower-cost rivals, particularly in South Korea and Taiwan. They were also outmanoeuvred in the mobile phone business, but Sony and Panasonic have seen improving results. Los Angeles (AFP) - Joe Alaskey, the voice behind some of the most beloved cartoon characters including Daffy Duck, Bugs Bunny and Tweety Bird, has died at the age of 63. Alaskey, who had been battling cancer, in the late 1980s was one of the successors to the late cartoon pioneer Mel Blanc, who was known as "The Man of 1,000 voices." Daffy Duck proved to be one of Alaskey's best characters and in 2004, the New York-born actor won an Emmy for his performance on Cartoon Network's "Duck Dodgers." Apart from playing Looney Tune characters, he also lent his talent to other roles, playing the voice of Richard Nixon in the Oscar-winning "Forrest Gump" and Jackie Gleason in "King of the World." Most recently he was the narrator of "Murder Comes to Town," a TV series. Mark Evanier, a television writer who knew Alaskey, paid tribute to the comic actor in a blog, describing him as a man who learned at an early age that "he could overcome great shyness by becoming someone else." Evanier said that he often invited Alaskey to take part in panel discussions and had worked with him, and the biggest challenge was figuring out which voice he should impersonate. "The one I liked best was when he sounded like Joe Alaskey," Evanier wrote. "He had a long, long list of voices but that's the one I will miss most." By Johan Ahlander and Guy Faulconbridge STOCKHOLM/LONDON (Reuters) - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been subject to 'arbitrary detention' during the 3-1/2 years he has spent in the Ecuadorian embassy in London to avoid a rape investigation in Sweden, a U.N. panel will rule on Friday. Assange, who enraged the United States by publishing hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. diplomatic cables, appealed to the panel saying he was a political refugee whose rights had been infringed by being unable to take up asylum in Ecuador. The former computer hacker denies allegations of a 2010 rape in Sweden, saying the charge is a ploy that would eventually take him to the United States where a criminal investigation into the activities of WikiLeaks is still open. His leaks laid bare often highly critical U.S. appraisals of world leaders from Vladimir Putin to the Saudi royal family. Britain said it had never arbitrarily detained Assange and that the Australian had voluntarily avoided arrest by jumping bail to flee to the embassy. But the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention ruled in Assange's favor, Sweden said. "Should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," Assange, 44, said in a short statement posted on Twitter. He had said that if he lost the appeal then he would leave his cramped quarters at the embassy in the Knightsbridge area of London, though Britain said he would be arrested and extradited to Sweden as soon as he stepped outside. Assange made international headlines in early 2010 when WikiLeaks published classified U.S. military video showing a 2007 attack by Apache helicopters that killed a dozen people in Baghdad, including two Reuters news staff. Later that year, the group released over 90,000 secret documents detailing the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan, followed by almost 400,000 internal U.S. military reports detailing operations in Iraq. More than 250,000 classified cables from U.S. embassies followed, then almost three million dating back to 1973. POLITICAL REFUGEE? In his submission to the U.N. working group, which is due to publish its findings on Friday, Assange argued that his time in the embassy constituted arbitrary detention. "(The) working group has made the judgment that Assange has been arbitrarily detained in contravention of international commitments," a spokeswoman for the Swedish Foreign Ministry said, confirming an earlier report by the BBC. He said that he had been deprived of fundamental liberties including access to sunlight and fresh air, adequate medical facilities and legal and procedural security. While the ruling may draw attention to Assange's fate, it is unlikely to immediately affect the current investigations against him. "We have been consistently clear that Mr Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the U.K. but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorean embassy," a British government spokeswoman said. "An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European Arrest Warrant in place, so the UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Mr Assange to Sweden," she said. Swedish prosecutors said the U.N. decision had no formal impact on the rape investigation under Swedish law. A U.S. Grand Jury investigation into WikiLeaks is ongoing. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said it was unclear what the impact "a pronouncement from the United Nations would have on the situation". "But, you know, but he's facing serious charges inside of Sweden. Sweden has asked the British for extradition, and ultimately those two countries will have to resolve the situation," Earnest said. STAY OR GO? Britain, where Assange is wanted for jumping bail, has spent over 10 million pounds ($15 million) on keeping guards outside the embassy for over three years, "There seems to me a real risk that if he left the embassy that he may expose himself to arrest or questioning," said Philip Lynch, director of the International Service for Human Rights in Geneva, an NGO. "A decision that effective confinement in the Ecuadorian embassy constitutes arbitrary detention it doesnt necessarily lead to the conclusion that the underlying arrest warrants and extradition requests are unlawful." Per Samuelson, one of Assange's Swedish lawyers, said if the U.N. panel judged Assange's time in the embassy to be custody, he should be released immediately. "It is a very important body that would be then saying that Sweden's actions are inconsistent with the European Convention on Human Rights. And it is international common practice to follow those decisions," Samuelson told Reuters. Since Assange's confinement, WikiLeaks has continued to publish documents on topics such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, one of the world's biggest multinational trade deals. (Additional reporting by Matt Siegal in Sydney, Daniel Dickson in Stockholm, Michael Holden and Kate Holtin in London, Alistair Scrutton and Simon Johnson in Stockholm, Tom Miles in Geneva, Mark Hosenball in Washington; Editing by Ruth Pitchford) By Steve Bittenbender LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Reuters) - Kentucky authorities are investigating the death of a 16-year-old black girl at a regional detention center last month, state justice officials said on Wednesday. Gynnya McMillen died on Jan. 11 after her first night at the Lincoln Village Juvenile Detention Center in Elizabethtown, about 45 miles (72 km) south of Louisville. McMillens death has sparked questions as family members have set up a Facebook page urging the state to release information on the case. The Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting said last week that guards at the juvenile facility used a martial arts maneuver to restrain her as they took off her sweatshirt. The morning after being restrained, McMillen was found unresponsive in her room. State officials have acknowledged that the centers staff failed to perform routine checks on her, and one employee has been placed on paid leave during the investigation. The death is under investigation by the Kentucky State Police and the Internal Investigations Branch of the state Justice Cabinet, a spokeswoman for Justice and Public Safety Secretary John Tilley said. Tilley "is ensuring the Cabinet is as transparent as possible with the restrictions imposed by juvenile confidentiality statutes, the spokeswoman, Lisa Lamb, said in a statement. He is also committed to giving the family the answers they deserve as quickly as possible. Tilley has pledged an internal review will be carried out once the investigations are completed and any necessary reforms will be carried out quickly, Lamb said. The Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting said McMillen had been detained in Shelby County and charged with misdemeanor assault after an altercation with one of her parents. (Editing by Ian Simpson and Peter Cooney) Nairobi (AFP) - When driver service Uber launched in Kenya's tech-savvy capital, it was eagerly welcomed by many in Nairobi. But the taxi app has faced a violent backlash from traditional cab drivers angry at the new competition, with Uber drivers and cars attacked. "A car came in front of me, blocked my access from the exit. A few guys came out and stabbed my left tyres, both of them, front and back," said Martin, an Uber driver, who like many asked only to be indentified by his first name. "I understand their frustration, but like in any normal business, competition has to be allowed to progress." Launched in San Francisco in 2009, Uber now boasts of operating in 400 cities across 68 countries, and says on its website it "delivers food and packages, as well as people, all at the push of a button." Some visitors to Kenya might be surprised at seeing people tap on a smartphone to order a cab, followed by a driver bouncing down the often potholed or even dirt roads a few minutes later. But the East African nation has a thriving tech start-up scene, including the enormously successful M-Pesa mobile money transfer system which allows clients to send cash with their cellphones. - 'Barbaric acts' - With formal registered taxis few and far between outside major hotels or airports, people previously relied on a handful of telephone numbers of private taxi drivers to pick them up. In a city famed for sometimes nightmarish traffic jams, an online service that can see a driver arrive within minutes had a ready and willing market, proving popular immediately. But that also made others angry and triggered some violent reaction. Another Uber driver, Victor, described how a colleague was dragged out of the car, beaten, and had his phone and cash stolen. "Most of Uber drivers are kind of scared. During the day, there are not such incidents, it's safe," Victor said. "It is only at night that you are getting intimidations, threats, all those crazy happenings." Story continues Uber does not employ drivers or own vehicles, but instead uses non-professionally licensed contractors with their own cars, allowing them to run their own businesses. Traditional taxis remain fiercely opposed. "Some of these taxi drivers are operating as hooligans... They rob you, they beat you up, they vandalize the car," another Uber driver said. Kenyan police say there have been multiple reports of violence but insist they are taking action. "We have received numerous complaints from Uber taxi drivers complaining how they are being harassed by these other drivers and even assaulted," police spokesman Charles Owino said. "This is a matter we are taking very, very seriously." Kenya's Interior Ministry has issued a "strong word of caution to those behind the attacks that such barbaric acts cannot and shall not be tolerated." - 'Join the technology' - Uber, valued at over $50 billion, and operating in five African countries -- Egypt, Morocco, South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya -- has tried to calm the opposition. "We have been engaging with taxi associations since last year to find a way that we can partner with them," said Uber spokeswoman Samantha Allenberg. "We do not feel that it should be about Uber or taxi - but rather Uber and taxi." But taxi drivers say they won't back down, issuing an ultimatum ending on next Wednesday to the government to shut down Uber, or they will block roads in Nairobi -- already congested with hours long traffic jams at the best of times. Job Nzioka, senior member of the Kenya Taxi Cab Association, denies his members have been involved in attacks. "Those are lies," he said, dismissing reports Uber cars have been smashed up, and saying the taxi drivers in his association would not engage in violence. "They are disciplined -- because we also have our way of disciplining our guys when they go out of the way," he added. Uber drivers say they will not give up, and that it is the traditional drivers who should adapt. "It's very hard to fight technology," said Daniel, a driver. "It is here: it is changing things, it is making things become efficient. "The only way to survive with the coming of new technology is to join the technology." London (AFP) - US Secretary of State John Kerry demanded Thursday that Russia stop bombing the Syrian opposition, implicitly blaming Moscow for the collapse in peace talks. Speaking in London ahead of a conference on the Syrian humanitarian effort, Kerry said he had called Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov for a "robust" discussion. In Geneva on Wednesday, UN envoy Staffan de Mistura suspended attempts to begin a dialogue between Bashar al-Assad's regime and the Syrian opposition. Alongside Britain's Foreign Minister Phillip Hammond, Kerry read out sections of UN Security Council resolution 2254, passed in December, calling for an immediate ceasefire. "Russia has a responsibility, as do all parties, to live up to it," he said. "So I had a conversation this morning with Foreign Minister Lavrov. We discussed, and we agreed, that we need to discuss how to implement the ceasefire." Kerry also said that both parties to the conflict -- the rebels as well as the regime and its allies -- must allow access to besieged areas for humanitarian aid. "So we had a robust discussion this morning about that. We will be continuing the discussion," Kerry said. "Foreign Minister Lavrov and I will talk again today or tomorrow as we further this process and find the way forward to be able to implement this resolution fully." - Keeping up 'momentum' - The Russian foreign ministry said the ministers had agreed to do everything possible to make the break in Syrian peace talks "as short as possible." According to the Moscow read-out, Lavrov also voiced concern about "unacceptable" preliminary conditions being put forward by "some representatives" of the Syrian opposition. Moscow added that the two top diplomats -- who are set to meet for talks in Munich on February 11 -- agreed to coordinate possible steps to bring humanitarian aid to affected areas by air. Story continues As part of a contact group known as the International Syria Support Group, Russia and the United States worked together to get the warring parties to the table in Geneva. But, while Washington and its ally Saudi Arabia remain close to the opposition, Moscow has continued to take Assad's side and its aircraft bomb opposition targets daily. This has contributed to the mood of distrust at the talks, and the United Nations has proved unable to get the sides into serious negotiations on a political settlement. "Staffan de Mistura has temporarily interrupted the talks in order to try to resolve some of the issues regarding the next steps," Kerry explained. After a breakfast meeting with a small group of European and Middle Eastern powers, Kerry and Hammond headed into a donors conference to raise money to aid Syrian civilians. Hammond said the day's focus would be on funding for the refugee crisis and the eventual rebuilding of Syria, but that delegates would not forget about the peace process. "We're all very keen to keep momentum in that dialogue," the British minister told reporters. "We recognise that it's difficult for the regime to be at the table, talking to the opposition," he said. "And it's difficult for the opposition to talk to the regime when their people at home are being killed." Moscow (AFP) - Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry agreed in phone talks Thursday to do everything possible to make the break in Syrian peace talks "as short as possible." "Having expressed common regret that the inter-Syrian dialogue that recently started in Geneva under the auspices of the UN has been temporarily suspended, Sergei Lavrov and John Kerry agreed to take necessary steps so that such a break will be as short as possible," Russia's foreign ministry said. MOSCOW (Reuters) - Iran and Russia have initialed contracts worth around $40 billion, including for power-engineering and railway projects, Russian news agencies quoted Ali Akbar Velayati, top adviser to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as saying on Thursday. Velayati, who is wrapping up a visit to Moscow, said he had discussed some of the projects with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He said Tehran was interested in obtaining a loan from Russia for Iran's railways and nuclear power engineering. He said the package of projects had been signed in the past few months. "They have been initialed and are ready for implementation," Interfax news agency quoted him as saying. (Reporting by Jack Stubbs; Writing by Dmitry Solovyov) Pristina (AFP) - Kosovo's foreign minister and former premier Hashim Thaci says he received a death threat purportedly from the leader of the Islamic State organisation over his opposition to the extremist group. "It was a death threat against me and my family," Thaci told AFP in an interview on Wednesday. A Pristina news website this week reported details of a letter addressed to then-prime minister Thaci in late 2014, allegedly signed by IS chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, calling on him to abandon Kosovo's alignment with the West or face "great revenge". Thaci, who is now front-runner to become president of Muslim-majority Kosovo this year, confirmed that he had received a threatening letter from Baghdadi, saying he would "not step back or retreat from any threats" in tackling Islamic fundamentalism. About 300 of Kosovo's 1.8 million people have joined the jihadists' frontlines in Iraq and Syria in recent years -- the highest proportion of any European country's population. But there are now fewer than 70 still fighting, according to Kosovo's government, which has made high-profile arrests of recruiters and returnee fighters and strengthened legislation against them. On a recent visit to Pristina, US Secretary of State John Kerry said Kosovo had "set a powerful example" for the region but added: "It's obvious that more needs to be done." Thaci rose to prominence as political leader of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), a pro-independence ethnic Albanian guerilla group, during the 1998-1999 war against Slobodan Milosevic's Serbian forces. Milosevic's army withdrew from the southern province after an 11-week bombing campaign by NATO, and in 2008 it was Thaci who declared Kosovo's independence from Belgrade. More than 100 countries have recognised Kosovo's sovereignty, but not Serbia or its big ally Russia. Thaci's image has been tarnished by a 2011 Council of Europe report that alleged he led an organised crime network during and after the war involved in assassinations and the trafficking of drugs and human organs, amongst other accusations -- charges he strongly denies. Story continues A new EU-backed court to try alleged war crimes committed by members of the KLA is due to open in The Hague this year. "My life was threatened by Milosevic and now by IS... With the same allies that I won the battle against Milosevic, I will win the battle with IS," Thaci said on the sidelines of the Germia Hill regional security conference in Pristina. The 47-year-old said Kosovo "identifies with Euro-Atlantic values". Kosovo hopes to join the European Union, and Thaci warned that delays to Balkan countries' integration with the bloc were "opening more room" for Russia, Islamic fundamentalism and nationalism to operate in the region. Riga (AFP) - A BBC television drama depicting a Russian-backed rebellion in Latvia has triggered an outcry in the small Baltic NATO and EU state, with the foreign minister slamming the plot as "rubbish". The programme, titled "Third World War: Inside The War Room", aired on Wednesday and featured scenes of a Kremlin-supported rebellion in Latvia's eastern Latgale region, clearly modelled on the conflict in eastern Ukraine. "Watched BBC2 World War 3: Inside the War Room, while scenario of separatists in Latgale is rubbish, overall many lessons to learn for all," Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics said on Twitter. The show used former senior military, diplomatic and security service staff to make decisions on a British response to Russian aggression, also showed them not retaliating in the face of a Russian nuclear attack on London. It could be watched by viewers in Latvia with satellite TV, and local news programmes showed some of the more dramatic sequences. Under NATO's Article 5 provision for collective defence, an attack against one ally is an attack against all and automatically triggers a security response. Under Moscow's thumb in Soviet times, Latvia and fellow Baltic states Estonia and Lithuania have been on edge since Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in 2014. The Baltic trio and nearby Poland, which will host a NATO summit in July, have called on the Western defence alliance to reinforce its presence in the region because of their concern over Russia. A Rand Corporation threat assessment published on Wednesday found that it would take just 60 hours for Russia to take over Estonia and Latvia. "Across multiple games using a wide range of expert participants in and out of uniform playing both sides, the longest it has taken Russian forces to reach the outskirts of the Estonian and/or Latvian capitals of Tallinn and Riga, respectively, is 60 hours," Rand said in its report. "Such a rapid defeat would leave NATO with a limited number of options, all bad." Rand suggests that "a force of about seven brigades" including heavy armour supported by air power, "on the ground and ready to fight at the onset of hostilities could suffice to prevent the rapid overrun of the Baltic states." MASERU (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund has urged Lesotho to sharply reduce government spending on wages, currently the highest in sub-Saharan Africa, to prevent growth slowing even further. Lesotho's economic growth was likely to have slowed to 2.6 percent in 2015 from an average of 4.5 percent in the previous four years, the IMF said on Thursday in a report released at the conclusion of a visit to the country by its officials. Growth would average between 2.5 percent and 3 percent in 2016, depending on the severity of a drought affecting southern Africa, the global lending body said. "Containing the government wage bill - which at 23 percent of GDP is the largest in sub-Saharan Africa - will be central to a successful adjustment," said the IMF. The IMF warned the small mountain kingdom would experience a sharp and sustained fall in revenues from customs as the neighbouring economy of major trading partner South Africa slowed. Africa's most industrialised economy is expected to grow at only 0.9 percent in 2016, according to the central bank. (Writing by Mfuneko Toyana; Editing by James Macharia) There are about 15,000 jaguars living in the wild today. They are solitary creatures, preferring to live and hunt alone. But the one living and hunting in the United States takes the word loner to another level: The jaguar, nicknamed El Jefe, is the only known wild jaguar in the country. El Jefe, which means the boss in Spanish, made his public debut Wednesday in video footage released by the Seattle-based Conservation CATalyst and the Tucson, Arizona-based Center for Biological Diversity. The brief clip shows the big cat roaming the grassy forest floor of the Santa Rita Mountains, outside Tucson, navigating rocky creeks, and just doing jaguar-y things: Conservation CATalyst and the Center for Biological Diversity released new video today of the only known wild jaguar currently in the United States.Captured on remote sensor cameras in the Santa Rita Mountains just outside of Tucson, the dramatic footage provides a glimpse of the secretive life of one of natures most majestic and charismatic creatures. This is the first-ever publicly released video of the #jaguar, recently named 'El Jefe' by Tucson students, and it comes at a critical point in this cats conservation. Learn more here: http://www.biologicaldiversity.org/news/press_releases/2016/jaguar-02-03-2016.html Posted by Center for Biological Diversity on Wednesday, February 3, 2016 Since 2013, El Jefe has been photographed by motion-detecting cameras more than 100 times. But jaguars are notoriously elusive creatures. The 41-second video posted Wednesday is the product of three years of tracking. Chris Bugbee, a biologist at Conservation CATalyst, said in a statement that researchers regularly tinkered with camera locations and even used a dog specially trained to sniff out wildlife feces to track down El Jefe. Recommended: The Man Who Says the California Lotto Destroyed his $63-Million Winning Ticket Historically, jaguars are not uncommon in Arizona. Their range once extended north from Argentina to Central America and Mexico and up into south-central states and even California and Louisiana. But the big cats all but disappeared from the U.S. in the last century, mostly due to habitat loss and federal population-control programs intended to protect livestock. Will Rizzo described the bleak state of the jaguar in the U.S. in Smithsonian magazine in 2005: Story continues In 1963, a hunter in Arizonas White Mountains shot a female, the last of her sex to be documented in the United States. Two years later, the last legally killed jaguar, a male, was taken by a deer hunter in the Patagonia Mountains, south of Tucson. In 1969, Arizona outlawed most jaguar hunting, but with no females known to be at large, there was little hope the population could rebound. During the next 25 years, only two jaguars were documented in the United States, both killed: a large male shot in 1971 near the Santa Cruz River by two teenage duck hunters, and another male cornered by hounds in the Dos Cabezas Mountains in 1986. The conservation centers say a proposed copper mine by a Canadian company in the middle of the Santa Rita Mountains threatens to cleave thousands of acres from the jaguars natural territory. Biologists says El Jefe is the only verified jaguar living in the U.S. since Macho B, who was euthanized in 2009 following injuries sustained when he was captured and collared with a GPS tracker. The Arizona wildlife officials involved in the capture said it was accidental, but it was later revealed that one biologist had lured Macho B by placing feces from a captive female jaguar in heat along a trail the animal was known to frequent. (The Arizona Republics Dennis Wagner has a fascinating and comprehensive account of the capture and cover-up here.) These days, the most jaguar conservationists can doaside from hoping no one shoots and kills El Jefeis wait for other jaguars, particularly female ones, to cross over the border from Mexico. Fingers crossed that happens in time for Valentines Day. Read more from The Atlantic: This article was originally published on The Atlantic. By Michele Kambas KITI, Cyprus (Reuters) - They met though social media, inspired by their love of music. But musicians Larkos Larkou and Hatice Ardost are no ordinary couple, and until at least a decade ago their relationship would have been unheard of in a country riven by conflict and distrust. "Its not really a subject of discussion in our household," Larkou, 43, says somewhat awkwardly as he sits cradling a cup of tea by the kitchen counter at the home he shares in Cyprus with Ardost, 34, his wife. "Whether Hatice is a Turkish Cypriot and Im a Greek Cypriot might be a subject for others, but for us, this is completely natural." Ardost nods vigorously. "Two human beings being together is not a miracle." Their union is emblematic of a gradual thaw in relations between Greek and Turkish Cypriots in Cyprus, home to one of Europes most enduring conflicts. The island has been split since a Turkish invasion in 1974 prompted by a Greek Cypriot coup. The two populations were kept almost entirely separate until rules for travelling across the dividing line were eased in 2003. On-off peace talks over the years have repeatedly foundered over the property rights of thousands of internally displaced people, different interpretations of how close a new reunion will be, and the influence of Turkey over any reunified Cyprus. With two moderates now at the helm of talks, diplomats are now hopeful that a deal is within reach to solve the Cyprus conundrum after years of failed initiatives. But while politicians slog it out at the negotiation table, Cypriots on both sides of the divide have taken matters into their own hands. Ardost and Larkou are among a small, but growing community of mixed-marriage Cypriot couples, transcending psychological and physical barriers. They married within two months of meeting in 2014, and are expecting their first child later this year. 'BRAINWASHED' Growing up on an island split down its middle with reels of barbed wire and home to one of the oldest peacekeeping missions in the world, both grew up wondering what lay on the other side until checkpoint crossings were eased. They came from what they describe as open minded households Larkous mother is learning Turkish. Ardosts family "wanted peace in Cyprus before anyone started talking about it," she said. "When I was growing up we were brainwashed at schools, we used to think there was something bad on the other side," said Ardost, who grew up in the medieval city of Famagusta, on the islands eastern coast. "It was only when we grew up that we were able to understand that all Cypriots can live together." Larkou, whose family was displaced in Turkeys invasion in 1974, agrees. "It was exactly the same for us. That the Turks were bad. But Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots should have the chance to live together," he said. Both prefer identifying islanders as "Greek speaking" or "Turkish speaking" Cypriots. Larkou is the founder of "Kyprogenia", a musical collective which draws on a fusion of traditional Cypriot music genres with jazz, classical, rock and improvisation. Lyrics are in the Greek or Turkish Cypriot dialects, languages which borrow heavily from the influences of various cultures which have passed through Cyprus over the ages, and which share many common words. Acknowledging their work, Ardost and Larkou were recipients of an award last year given by Stelios Haji-Ioannou, the Greek-Cypriot founder of low-cost airline EasyJet, along with a number of other individuals, for fostering bi-communal contacts, actively supported by the leaderships of both sides. Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades, the Greek Cypriot leader, has reported a "common understanding on an important number of issues" with Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci, a moderate elected in early 2015. However Anastasiades is keen to point out that the sides should avoid creating expectations that a deal is within immediate reach. In an unusual move, he is due to brief parliament on Feb. 11 on the state of play in negotiations. "There is progress, but there is still a distance to cover," Anastasiades told Cypriot TV station Sigma in an interview aired on Tuesday. For tactical reasons, the sides have been careful to avoid saying publicly precisely which issues still divide them. From their home close to the coastal town of Larnaca in the government controlled south, Ardost and Larkou monitor the present round of talks, held at a United Nations compound in the divided capital Nicosia, with a slight detachment. PAST DISAPPOINTMENTS Peace initiatives have flopped before, most spectacularly in 2004, when Greek Cypriots rejected a United Nations reunification blueprint in a referendum. That plan was accepted by Turkish Cypriots, but with no deal a partitioned island was allowed to join the European Union, and effective membership of the bloc confined to the areas run by the internationally recognised Greek Cypriot government. Northern Cyprus is a breakaway Turkish Cypriot state, recognised only by Ankara. Larkou was among a Greek Cypriot minority who voted in favour of the 2004 plan, believing the benefits outweighed its drawbacks. Yet today, Ardost thinks that the intervening 11 years helped cement then-budding relationships among Cypriots who were then just recovering from years of non-contact, making prospects for a deal now greater. "This time there is more of a chance," she said. Larkou chooses his words carefully when asked if he is optimistic this time around. "I'm hopeful (of a breakthrough) and I am positive about it. This is our chance. I would like to see all Cypriots ready for this. Because this is a big change. Personally I'm ready, and many people around me are ready." Its all about compromise, he says. He worries however whether people are committed enough to see those compromises through, or yield at the first sign of difficulty. "We really have to understand that we have to make sacrifices, forgive, and realise mistakes." But the stars on Cyprus have been in alignment before, only to be blown spectacularly apart. Ardost says she would not be too disappointed if a deal fell through, believing that the common bonds islanders share will bring reunification, one day. "I will just say its not the right time," she says quietly. "Peace will happen. It has to happen." (Reporting by Michele Kambas; editing by Peter Graff) A disgraced Malaysian diplomat who "terrorised" and indecently assaulted a woman in New Zealand was sentenced Thursday to nine months home detention. Mohammed Rizalman bin Ismail, who was a military attache at Malaysia's Wellington embassy at the time of the attack, admitted to indecent assault last November after denying initial charges of attempted rape and burglary. Rizalman had followed Wellington woman Tania Billingsley to her home in May 2014, waited about 30 minutes outside and then entered the house and walked into her bedroom naked from the waist down. "You terrorised Ms Billingsley ... She was a young woman, alone in her room, who was entitled to feel safe and secure in her bedroom," Judge David Collins told Rizalman during sentencing. "No woman should have to endure the terrifying circumstances experienced by Ms Billingsley when you breached the sanctity of her bedroom." Collins said Rizalman's actions were "premeditated", however, Billingsley was not touched in a sexual way and Rizalman had hoped she would agree to sex. "You mistook a smile for a sexual advance, you deliberately followed her and waited outside her home for a long period of time," the judge said. Rizalman is to serve nine months confined to a house, but not the Malaysian High Commission, and will be deported at the completion of his sentence. Rizalman's lawyer Donald Stevens had cited extenuating circumstances including mental illness. By Parisa Hafezi ANKARA (Reuters) - Many Iranian women and young people are disillusioned about the upcoming elections, desperate for reform but losing hope in their pragmatic president and his promise of a freer society. The Feb. 26 parliamentary poll will see pro-reform candidates, who broadly back President Hassan Rouhani, attempt to overturn the majority held by conservative hardliners in the 290-seat assembly. It will be a test of public support for Rouhani himself ahead of presidential elections next year. While the vote might not have an influence on foreign policy, which is determined by Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the election of a reformist parliament could strengthen Rouhani's hand to push through economic reforms to open up the country to foreign trade and investment. Rouhani won the presidency in 2013, bolstered by the support of many women and young people who were encouraged by his comments that Iranians deserved to live in free country and have the rights enjoyed by other people around the world. "I am not going to make the same mistake twice. I have decided not to vote," said Setareh, a university graduate in the northern city of Rasht. "I voted for Rouhani - was he able to improve my situation? No." Rouhani's supporters hoped that his election victory would lead to social change in country where women have lesser rights than men in areas including inheritance, divorce and child custody and are subject to travel and dress restrictions, and strict Islamic law is enforced by a "morality police". But rights campaigners say there has been little, if any, moves to bring about greater political and cultural freedoms as the president has focused on striking the nuclear accord wit world powers to end the international sanctions that have crippled Iran's economy. Iran rejects any allegations it is discriminating against women, saying it follows Sharia law. Now Rouhani and his moderate allies are struggling to mobilize two of their main support bases - women and young people. The president's promises to loosen Internet restrictions have not been met. Access to social media remains officially blocked, though Rouhani and Khamenei have their own Twitter accounts. This has been a particular grievance among those under 30, who represent more than two-thirds of the 78 million population and were born after the 1979 Islamic revolution that toppled the U.S.-backed Shah. "I am not going to vote. What is the use of voting? My hopes are shattered," said a 27-year-old engineer in Tehran, who refused to give his name. HIGHLY EDUCATED The president's constitutional powers are limited, with ultimate authority in the hands of Khamenei, who has lambasted the West for using women as a tool to advertise products and satisfy "disorderly and unlawful sexual needs". The Feb. 26 elections will also see the public vote for members of the Assembly of Experts, a clerical body that could play a pivotal part in determining Iran's future path in both domestic and foreign policies - as at some point it will have the job of selecting a successor to 76-year-old Khamenei. Iranian women, who make up more than half of the population, are among the most highly educated in the Middle East; they have a literacy rate of over 80 percent and account for over 50 percent of university entrees. But under Iranian law, men can divorce their spouses far more easily than women, while custody of children over seven automatically goes to the father. Women have to get permission from their husbands to travel abroad. They are obliged to cover their hair and the shape of their bodies, their testimony as a legal witness is worth half that of a man, and daughters inherit half of what sons do. While they cannot run for president, they are however able to hold most jobs including other government positions, and can vote and drive. "What will change if I vote?" said Miriam, 26, who could not win custody of her eight-year-old son after getting divorced in the central city of Isfahan. "Can reformist candidates give me equal rights?" A report by the U.N. special rapporteur on Iran last year said human rights in the country "remained dire" under Rouhani, while separately a U.N. child rights watchdog said this month that girls faced discriminatory treatment "in family relations, criminal justice system, property rights". Iran denies any infringement of human rights. Retired government employee Fariba Khamesi, from Tehran, said that even if there had been little evidence of social change, she would not give up her hopes for a freer Iran. "Of course I will vote in the elections. There are many problems like the economic pressure, discriminatory laws against women, but if we don't cast our vote, conservatives will gain more power," the 58-year-old said. 'PAIN AND PROBLEMS' Rouhani's hardline rivals accuse him of having encouraged moral corruption in the society by advocating social tolerance. Moderate politicians remain faithful to Iran's theocratic system, but they advocate improved relations with the West, more freedom of expression and a loosening of strict Islamic rules governing dress and mingling between the sexes. "As an Iranian female candidate it is my duty to fight for their rights," said Soheila Jelodarzadeh, a pro-reform female candidate. "Women are determined to build Iran. And by casting our votes, we can reach that goal." International sanctions were lifted last month under a deal reached with six major powers in 2015 in return for Tehran curbing its nuclear program, but it will take time to bring down high unemployment and raise living standards. Student Hosseini, 17, whose father is a construction worker in the city of Mashhad, said moderate politicians had neglected the poor. "I will vote for those candidates who believe in pillars of the revolution. They will never forget people like my father and will understand our pain and problems," he said. Rouhani has called for curbs on the state's involvement in business and a push to end corruption and increase competition to end Iran's international isolation and help rescue the economy. He has invited foreign investment - including from U.S. companies - risking a confrontation with powerful conservative factions in the country's multi-tiered political system oppose his plans to open the Iranian economy to the world, fearing an infiltration of Western values and influence. Some pro-reform politicians have told Reuters that by securing Khamenei's consent to the nuclear deal, Rouhani depleted his political capital with the supreme leader, leaving nothing for domestic reforms. "Rouhani may want to create some changes but he is by no means a political opposition figure to the clerical establishment," said a senior Western diplomat in Tehran. "No matter which political faction wins the majority in the parliament. The ultimate power will remain in the hands of Mr. Khamenei." (Writing by Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Pravin Char) Winter storm Jonas brought with it record-breaking amounts of snow and blustering winds when it plowed through the northeastern and mid-Atlantic United States in late January. Now, scientists at NASA have created a new map showing the direction and speeds of the massive storm's wind gusts. The map, released by NASA's Earth Observatory on Jan. 29, shows especially strong winds along the coasts of Maryland, Delaware and southern New Jersey. Winds during winter storm Jonas wreaked havoc in coastal areas, with some gusts reaching 90 mph (145 km/h) strong enough to be considered hurricane-force winds, according to NASA. The arrows on the map represent wind direction, and the shades of blue indicate wind speeds increasing from dark to light blue. [Winter Storm Photos: Watch Jonas Wallop the Eastern US] But the new map does not use direct measures of wind speed and direction. Instead, it is based on data from RapidScat, a sensor mounted on the International Space Station. RapidScat measured microwave pulses that were reflected off the ocean surface back toward the sensor. Waters that were disturbed more by the wind returned a strong signal, while calmer waters returned a weak signal, allowing scientists to infer wind speed and direction based on the position and roughness of the waves, NASA officials said. RapidScat is an important tool for meteorologists, because maximum sustained winds are not always equally distributed in a storm, agency officials added. As the storm worsened on Jan. 23, the formidable winds caused a storm surge, or an abnormal rise of the water level, leading to significant coastal flooding. Along the New York Harbor area, the storm surge added around 3 feet (0.9 meters) to the normal tides, said Patrick Maloit, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service. The massive storm caused historic coastal flooding and widespread power outages in New Jersey. The town of Cape May, New Jersey, experienced its highest coastal flood on record, beating the levels that resulted from Hurricane Sandy in 2012, according to Gary Szatkowski, another meteorologist for the National Weather Service. Story continues Hurricane Sandy was pivotal in highlighting the problem of expanding coastal cities in the Northeast without adequate infrastructure to deal with extreme weather. With sea levels rising at a faster rate than ever before, according to climatologists at NASA, storms like Sandy and Jonas have the potential to cause even more devastation to both infrastructure and natural resources. In Delaware, beaches in Rehoboth and Bethany lost sand dunes due to winter storm Jonas, according to news reports. And in Virginia, aerial photographer Patrick Hendrickson captured an image (above) of several new breaches in a beach on Assateague Island. Sea-level rise and the resulting beach erosion hit especially close to home for NASA because half to two-thirds of NASA's assets stand within 16 feet (5 m) of sea level. In fact, the beach on Assateague Island helps protect launch infrastructure on Wallops Island, where several commercial and government rockets are launched each year and it's increasingly threatened by rising sea levels. Follow Knvul Sheikh on Twitter @KnvulS. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. The media has taken down another upstanding citizen. Martin Shkreli, unfairly slandered as the most hated man in America, is on a sort of redemption tour leading up to his forthcoming trial for federal securities fraud charges. Shkreli, to refresh your outrage, is the former CEO of drug firm Turing Pharmaceuticals, which earlier this year tried to help some cancer and HIV patients by raising the price of a drug they might need by 5,000%. Critics howled, but Shkreli straightened them out by explaining that the move was altruistic. Shkreli, also granted the honorary title of 'Pharma Bro', was further persecuted when federal prosecutors charged him in December with misappropriating funds from another company he ran, Retrophin, to pay off investors in two failed hedge funds he started. Shkreli insisted the charges, while unrelated to Turing, were a punishment for the companys price hike and for his habit of teasing people over the Internet. And today, when Shkreli appeared at a Congressional hearing on the drug-price hike and silently smirked while pleading the Fifth, his lawyer Ben Brafman explained that his client was just nervous. Shkreli will be a hero, Brafman insisted, once the silly felony charges are cleared up. Shkreli himself later clarified that he was, in fact, feeling contemptuous of Congress. Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government, he tweeted about half an hour after leaving the hearing. Within an hour, that remark earned nearly 400 likes. When speaking for himself, instead of battling crass media characterizations, Shkreli is an endearing chap. He earned legions of new fans this week after chatting with the hosts of a New York City hip-hop radio station about music, entitlement, and his impoverished upbringing. One fan spoke for many when he tweeted, The interview of Martin Shkreli showed me he actually ISNT a douche. Shkreli cataloged all the pro-Shkreli tweets on his own Twitter feed, which has nearly 50,000 followerseven more proof that hes cooler than the feds. Story continues Honestly the @breakfastclubam interview of @MartinShkreli showed me he actually ISN'T a douche. At all. The Chad Moore (@TheChadMoore) February 3, 2016 Theres even a Free Martin! movement, fueled by a sympathetic Vice article and interview, in which Shkreli claims none of his investors ever lost money, so there cant really be any crime. Thought you were an ass until I watched the Vice special, another fan tweeted. Turns out your [sic] a modern day Robin Hood! @MartinShkreli Thought you were an ass until I watched the Vice special. Turns out your a modern day Robin Hood! #Bravo Sir! Don't Stop! Jungle Apocalypse (@japocalypse) February 3, 2016 All Shkreli has to do now is convince the feds of that. The indictment could land him in jail for 20 years if hes found guilty. And the Congressional inquiry into the drug-price hikes probably isnt over. The committee holding the hearing subpoenaed internal Turing documents showing Shkreli boasting of the profits likely to start rolling in and devising a strategy to silence critics of the price hikes in the HIV community. But dont worry, thats just a misunderstanding. Hes really a peach of a guy. If he doesnt say so himself. Rick Newmans latest book is Liberty for All: A Manifesto for Reclaiming Financial and Political Freedom. Follow him on Twitter: @rickjnewman. By Jim Forsyth SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - The mayor and city manager of a south Texas town that bills itself as the "spinach capital of the world," were arrested on Thursday on charges including strong-arming contractors into paying bribes in exchange for doing business, authorities said. A federal indictment claims five current and former city officials of Crystal City demanded payments from contractors so they could pay off personal gambling bills, bar tabs, car loans, and other expenses. A businessman was also charged for running an illegal gambling operation. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Texas Rangers padlocked the City Hall for Crystal City, with a population of about 7,500 people as part of a probe into corruption where city officials are also accused of dipping into city coffers for their own personal gain, law enforcement officials said. None of those arrested, who include Mayor Ricardo Lopez, made statements after being taken into custody. If convicted, each faces up to 10 years in a federal prison, prosecutors said. City Manager William Jonas, according to the indictment, was elevated to that position from city attorney to reward him for procuring bribes, the indictment said. Businessman Ngoc Tri Nguyen, known as "Mister T," is charged with paying bribes in exchange for opening an illegal gambling room, and getting city officials to use their muscle to shut down a competing business, it said. Crystal City is known for a quirky tourist attraction of a large statue of the spinach-eating cartoon character Popeye in front of City Hall which celebrates the area's history as a spinach producer. It holds an annual spinach festival. "Public corruption is one of the most insidious crimes confronting our communities today," FBI Special Agent in Charge Christopher Combs said in a statement. "It contributes to the cynicism we are seeing from members of the public who often feel as though all politicians are corrupt." The arrests took place without incident and the FBI also seized documents at a San Antonio office in San Antonio, which is leased to Jonas, said FBI Special Agent Michelle Lee. Jonas, a San Antonio attorney, is a former prominent Texas Republican lobbyist who is also facing state charges of assault after police said he is suspected of pushing a woman who attempted to enter the City Hall using the wrong entrance. (Reporting by Jim Forsyth; Writing by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Chris Reese and Alistair Bell) San Francisco (AFP) - Sumner Redstone, the 92-year-old US tycoon, is stepping down as executive chairman of television and media giant CBS, the company said Wednesday. Ending the long-running uncertainty over his succession plan, CBS said Leslie Moonves was elected chairman and will keep the titles of president and chief executive. Redstone's resignation was effective on Tuesday, CBS said in a statement, and he will hold the title of chairman emeritus. His fragile health and uncertainty about who would take over from him had caused shareholder anxiety at CBS and Viacom, the other media giant where he holds the role of chairman. Redstone's daughter Shari will continue to serve as vice chair of the CBS board, a position she has held since 2005. Shari Redstone said that even though her father's trust calls for her to succeed him as non-executive chairman, she chose to nominate Moonves. "It is my firm belief that whoever may succeed my father as chair at each company should be someone who is not a trustee of my father's trust or otherwise intertwined in Redstone family matters, but rather a leader with an independent voice," she said. Both companies -- in which Redstone and his family hold controlling stakes -- are facing threats from the shift of viewers to Internet-based on-demand services such as Netflix, Amazon and Hulu. Viacom, which owns Paramount studios in Hollywood, said in a statement its board would meet on Thursday but offered no further details. Redstone, who is seen little these days outside his Beverly Hills home, has been notably absent from recent shareholder meetings and skipped analyst calls for the two companies. He has appeared frail in recent years, despite boasts about his workout routines and antioxidant supplements to keep himself healthy. The question of his health has made it to court and an ex-girlfriend has set in motion a battle over whether Redstone is able to make his own health care decisions. Story continues Manuela Herzer has portrayed the billionaire tycoon in court documents as a "living ghost" obsessed with sex and steak, and out of touch with his surroundings. Redstone has trouble controlling routine bodily functions and grasping significance of what doctors tell him, Herzer maintained in a legal filing. She asked last year that the court leave her in charge of Redstone's health care decisions on the basis that he was not competent enough to sign a directive assigning a new person to the task. Redstone led a 1987 hostile takeover of Viacom that pushed him into the national spotlight. Viacom in 2000 acquired CBS, but the two firms later split. By Nate Raymond NEW YORK (Reuters) - A Michigan art dealer was arrested by the FBI on Wednesday for what authorities say was an extensive scheme to sell counterfeit works by renowned artists including Willem de Kooning. Eric Spoutz, 32, was charged with wire fraud in a complaint filed in Manhattan federal court and arrested at an apartment he has in California, a spokeswoman for the Federal Bureau of Investigation said. Spoutz's lawyer did not respond to a request for comment. According to the complaint, Spoutz from 2010 to March 2015 sold dozens of forged works by famed American artists, including de Kooning, Franz Kline and Joan Mitchell, creating fake documentation to sway buyers of their authenticity. Diego Rodriguez, head of FBI's New York office, said Spoutz "created an entire world of fiction to make a profit." Authorities said Spoutz operated under a series of aliases including "Robert Chad Smith" and "John Goodman," after a website in 2005 accused him of offering forged artwork on eBay. To create a history of prior ownership, Spoutz forged letters from law firms and art galleries and created fake receipts and bills of sales, the complaint said. His explanations of where the artwork came from varied, the complaint said. In 2006, Spoutz said he bought the works from "a couple different private collections" and marketed them with "no assurance of authenticity." That claim was contained in an article calling Spoutz an "Art-World Powerbroker" that he himself submitted to a press release service after the 2005 forgery accusations. To a Connecticut auction house in 2010 to which he provided two Mitchell pastel works on consignment, Spoutz, calling himself "Robert Smith," claimed he inherited them from someone who died in 1976, the complaint said. But that individual actually bequeathed his entire art collection to Dartmouth College, the complaint said. Story continues During an FBI interview in 2014, Spoutz, a resident of Mount Clemens, Michigan, claimed to have acquired 30 works by de Kooning, prompting an agent to ask where they came from, the complaint said. "That's the big question," Spoutz replied, the complaint said. He claimed that in 2003, an employee introduced him to someone with an "as attributed" collection to sell, and that he bought works attributed to Mitchell, de Kooning, Kline and Arthur Dove, the complaint said. But the complaint said Spoutz claimed to have no documentation or proof of purchase for these pieces or contact information for the seller or his employee. (Reporting by Nate Raymond in New York; Editing by Bernard Orr) Paris (AFP) - Star choregrapher Benjamin Millepied is on the point of quitting Paris Opera Ballet which he had threatened to radically shake up, according to reports Wednesday. Millepied -- who is married to Hollywood star Natalie Portman -- took over France's most prestigious ballet company little more than a year ago, bringing a dash of glamour to one of the capital's most venerable institutions. He had been due to unveil his new season next week, but it was clear that all was not well after he lambasted the ballet's hierarchical structure in a French television documentary. The ballet refused to comment on the reports of his departure which were published on the website of Paris Match magazine, but confirmed that a press conference has been called for Thursday. "Stephane Lissner (the director of the opera) has important things to say," a spokeswoman for the ballet told AFP, who refused to deny Millepied's imminent departure. His fairytale return to France in 2014 came after a string of international successes after he founded the acclaimed LA Dance Project and married Portman, whom he met on the set of "Black Swan". She later won a best actress Oscar for her portrayal of a tortured ballerina in the film. The dancer turned choregrapher, who made his name at the New York City Ballet, did not hide his unhappiness with the way the Paris ballet was run in a behind-the-scenes documentary aired on the Canal+ channel just before Christmas. He claimed that the ballet was hidebound, too hierarchical and obsessed with internal competition. Nor was it as "excellent" as it claimed to be, he said, and performances sometimes looked like "wallpaper... and were deadly boring". "Is this no fun?" he cried at one point, appealing to his dancers to "let themselves go" in the classical ballet as they did in contemporary dance pieces. For all the ballet's faults, he said its troupe could be "perhaps the best modern dance group in the world". Israel-born Portman moved to Paris to be with her husband and their four-year-old son, Aleph. Her first film as a director, "A Tale of Love and Darkness" debuted at last year's Cannes film festival. But she has been reported keen to relaunch her career in Hollywood and has signed up to play Jackie Kennedy in a biopic of the late US first lady. New York (AFP) - A convicted murderer who escaped a maximum-security New York prison and went on the run for three weeks last year was sentenced Wednesday to up to 14 years more time behind bars, officials said. David Sweat, who is already serving a life sentence without parole for murdering a sheriff's deputy in 2002, had pleaded guilty to two counts of escape and one count of possessing dangerous contraband. He was sentenced at a Clinton County court in the state of New York to between seven and 14 years, in what was a largely procedural move. Sweat was captured just south of the Canadian border on June 28 after his audacious prison bust with convicted killer Richard Matt, who was shot dead by a US border patrol. The multimillion-dollar manhunt forced up to 1,300 law enforcement officers to scour the rugged, remote area around the Clinton Correctional Facility after Sweat and Matt broke free on June 6. They used power tools to cut through cell walls, then crawled through pipes to emerge from a manhole in the village of Dannemora. Niamey (AFP) - Niger's interior minister on Thursday accused supporters of jailed presidential candidate Hama Amadou of acts of violence against backers of the incumbent president seeking re-election. "Since the start of the campaign, there have been acts of aggression, violence committed by MODEN activists against supporters of (President) Mahamadou Issoufou and any vehicles with his poster," Hassoumi Massaoudou told AFP. Issoufou is running for a second term in the February 21 vote in the arid west African country, while his rival Amadou, of the Democratic Movement of Niger (MODEN), remains in prison over allegations of taking part in a baby trafficking scandal. The jailed politician, who was arrested in November on his return from exile in France, has denied the allegations and claims that "a political case" has been mounted to prevent him from challenging Issoufou. He has been denied bail though several other senior political, military and business figures facing accusations in the case have been released pending trial. The interior minister charged that Amadou's supporters had damaged "at least 50 vehicles" since the presidential campaign began on Saturday. "There's never been such violence before during an electoral campaign," he said. "Everywhere they see posters of Issoufou, they tear them down. When they run into activists with (car) stickers, they smash their vehicles," added Massaoudou, who is general secretary of the president's Nigerien Party for Democracy and Socialism (PNDS). On Tuesday evening, police fired tear gas to disperse thousands of Amadou's supporters who had gathered outside MODEN party headquarters in Niamey and spilled over into the road before a presidential motorcade was due to pass by. MODEN's campaign director Youba Diallo has charged that the national and presidential guards joined police in cracking down on the meeting of Amadou supporters. Story continues "We had to interrupt our meeting because of the suffocating gas," said one participant. The incident was the first since the start of the presidential election campaign. On February 21, almost 7.5 million voters will be called to the polls to choose among 15 presidential candidates, as well as electing a new parliament in one of the world's poorest nations. Abuja (AFP) - Nigeria's former national security advisor remains in custody as he is under investigation for alleged offences committed decades ago when he was an army officer, a state prosecutor said Thursday. Sambo Dasuki is already facing three trials with a slew of charges in connection with looting billions of dollars that were supposed to go towards fighting Boko Haram Islamists. He is one of just 55 people the Nigerian government claims stole more than $6 billion between 2006 and 2013, leaving Africa's biggest economy reeling in the wake of the global oil price plunge. But despite being granted bail in December, Dasuki has been kept in custody by Nigeria's intelligence agency, the Department of State Services (DSS), without access to his legal counsel. Prosecutor Rotimi Jacobs told an Abuja court that Dasuki was rearrested because the government is investigating an "alleged breach of service law" when he was serving as a colonel in the army before his retirement in 1994. Defence lawyer Joseph Daudu said Dasuki -- a powerful member of former president Goodluck Jonathan's administration -- is being denied the right to a fair trial and that all three cases against him should be dismissed. "There's really no way he can get a fair trial in the circumstances," Daudu said to AFP, vowing if necessary to take the matter to the Supreme Court. Dasuki is rumoured to have arrested Muhammadu Buhari at gunpoint when he was overthrown in a 1985 coup after serving nearly two years as head of a military government. Daudu said that Dasuki will neither "confirm or deny" that rumour, but added there is "no love lost" between his client and Buhari, now Nigeria's elected president. Political analyst Chris Ngwodo said that far from settling old grievances, the ultimate reason for Dasuki's continued incarceration is that the government is struggling to stitch together its case against him. "What is the most important thing for them is for him to be in custody, they do not want to make him free," Ngwodo said. "So they are resorting to somewhat underhanded tactics," Ngwodo said. "What they will keep doing is finding fresh ways of holding him in custody until they can fine tune their case." Washington (AFP) - The International Monetary Fund does not wish to slap "draconian measures" on hard-up Greece but wants more government progress on pension reform, IMF chief Christine Lagarde said Thursday. Lagarde spoke as Greece was hit by a general strike that brought tens of thousands of people into the streets in protest over pension reforms, a key part of Greece's latest economic bailout by the European Union. "I really don't like it when we're portrayed as this draconian, rigorous, terrible IMF," Lagarde said in an online news conference. "We don't want draconian measures to apply to Greece, which has already made a lot of sacrifices." But she insisted that the Greek reform program has to keep on track, notably on pension reforms, a key issue in negotiations between the government and its creditors. According to Lagarde, the current pension system, which costs the equivalent of 10 percent of the Greek economy annually, is not sustainable and should undergo a profound overhaul. In Europe, the average pension ratio is 2.5 percent of gross domestic product, she noted. The Europeans and the IMF have contested certain parts of the reform measures proposed by Athens, sparking the general strike Thursday. Pension reforms were part of the conditions imposed by the IMF for it to participate in the EU bailout of Greece last July. The crisis lender, which joined with the European Commission and the European Central Bank in the two prior bailouts of Greece, has not decided whether to join the latest one. The IMF is calling for reforms by Athens and for the Europeans to ease the country's debt burden. "The pension system needs to be reformed, the tax-collection system needs to be improved so that revenues come in and evasion is stopped," Lagarde said. "And the debt relief by the other Europeans must accompany this process." North Korea leader Kim Jong-Un has presided over a top-level meeting to discuss corruption and abuses of power by ruling party officials, state media said Thursday. In an unusual acknowledgement of systemic problems within the Worker's Party of Korea (WKP), the meeting identified a series of issues that needed urgent attention, the North's official KCNA news agency said. "It criticised mainly the practices of seeking privileges, misuse of authority, abuse of power and bureaucratism manifested in the party," it said. Solutions for "overcoming" such challenges were put forward, the agency said, without elaborating. The meeting brought together members of the WKP's central committee and those of another senior party committee that deals with military affairs. Kim opened the meeting and made a closing address, KCNA said. Corruption is believed to be endemic to nearly every stratum of North Korean society, where bribes are often required for everything from career advancement to access to basic foods and medicine. Last year, North Korea was ranked bottom -- with Somalia -- in the annual Corruption Perception Index compiled by Transparency International, which described the North's showing as "predictably disastrous." The North Korean media offers little coverage of corruption as a general issue, only raising it in individual cases, such as the 2013 purge of Kim's powerful uncle Jang Song-Thaek. Jang was vilified as a corrupt, drug-taking womaniser bent on building his own faction in the ruling party. South Korean President Park Geun-Hye on Thursday said a planned rocket launch by North Korea could "never be tolerated," as her defence ministry vowed to shoot down any missile that threatened its territory. Pyongyang has announced it will launch a satellite-bearing rocket sometime between February 8-25, which is around the time of the birthday on February 16 of late leader Kim Jong-Il, father of current leader Kim Jong-Un. UN sanctions prohibit North Korea from any use of ballistic missile technology, and such a launch would amount to another major violation of Security Council resolutions following its fourth nuclear test last month. "The fact that North Korea said it will launch a long-range missile following its nuclear test is a threat to peace on the Korean peninsula and to the world, and should never be tolerated," Park said. The North insists its space programme is purely scientific in nature, but the United States and allies like South Korea say its rocket launches are aimed at developing an inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of striking the US mainland. South Korean officials routinely refer to them as "long-range missiles" rather than space rockets. The planned launch poses a dilemma for the international community, which is already struggling to find a united response to the North's January 6 nuclear test. -- Harsher sanctions -- North Korea is already subject to numerous UN sanctions over previous nuclear and rocket tests, and Park said its continued provocative behaviour showed these had been ineffective. The only solution, she argued, was to impose sanctions harsh enough "to make it realise that it will not survive unless it gives up its nuclear programme." Earlier in the day, the defence ministry in Seoul said it had issued orders to destroy any missile that might stray over South Korean territory. "The military is ramping up its air defence readiness so it can intercept a missile or any debris that lands in our territory or waters," ministry spokesman Moon Sang-Gyun told reporters. Story continues Japan has issued a similar "destroy" order for any North Korean projectile that infringes on its territory. Japan's public broadcaster NHK reported Thursday that North Korea may be preparing a ballistic missile test from a base on its east coast in addition to the rocket launch. Citing diplomatic sources it did not identify, NHK reported that it has been "confirmed that a mobile launch pad in North Korea's eastern coastal area was on the move." As a ballistic missile is on the launch pad, it is possible that Pyongyang is preparing a launch there, the report added. NHK did not say whether it was a long- or short-range missile. South Korea's defence ministry said it was unable to confirm the report. TOKYO (Reuters) - North Korea's mobile missile launcher, carrying a ballistic missile, has been seen moving near the east coast and activity has also been seen at a long-range rocket launch pad on the west coast, Japanese public broadcaster NHK said on Thursday. International pressure has grown on North Korea to call off a planned rocket launch, seen by some governments as another missile test, since Pyongyang told U.N. agencies this week it would launch what it called an "earth observation satellite". Japan has put its military on alert to shoot down any rocket that threatens its territory. The NHK report said the mobile missile launcher was thought to normally remain stationary in places such as an underground facility. North Korea fired two mid-range ballistic missiles, which appeared to be Rodong-class missiles, from the mobile launcher off its east coast into the sea toward Japan in March 2014, the report said. (Reporting by Kaori Kaneko; Editing by Paul Tait) LONDON (Reuters) - The number of anti-Semitic incidents reported in Britain dropped by a fifth last year, although the figure was still the third-highest on record, a Jewish advisory body said on Thursday. The Community Security Trust, which advises Britain's estimated 260,000 Jews on security matters, said 924 incidents were recorded during 2015, including 86 violent assaults. The overall figure was a 22 percent reduction from the 1,168 anti-Semitic incidents in 2014, a record level which the CST had attributed to fighting in the Middle East involving Israeli forces and Palestinians. The number was still "unacceptably high", said David Delew, chief executive of the group. "The Jewish community has a right to expect anti-Semitism to be opposed wherever it occurs," he said in a statement. "It should have no place in our society." A second report by the Campaign Against Antisemitism, which obtained statistics from every police force in Britain, said anti-Semitic crime had surged by almost 18 percent in 2015, with an increase in the number of violent crimes. But the number of crimes that had led to charges dropped by almost a quarter. Jews across Europe have warned of a rising tide of anti-Semitism, fuelled by anger at Israeli policy in the Middle East, while far-right movements have gained popularity because of tensions over immigration. Fears were exacerbated by last year's attack on a Jewish supermarket in Paris by an Islamist gunman, which killed four people and a deadly shooting at a synagogue in Copenhagen. According to a survey last January, a quarter of Jews have considered leaving Britain in the last two years and more than half feel they have no long-term future in Europe. In its report, the trust said most of the British incidents involved random verbal abuse. Three-quarters occurred in or around London or in Manchester in northwest England, home to Britain's largest Jewish communities. The group, which began recording anti-Semitic occurrences in 1984, said it suspected many incidents were still not reported to the organisation or the police. "While a fall in anti-Semitic incidents should be welcomed, there are still too many cases of this type of hate crime," Home Secretary Theresa May said. "We also know that these types of crimes are often under-reported. We must give victims the confidence to coming forward to report these terrible acts." (Reporting by Michael Holden; editing by Stephen Addison, Larry King) The Anderson-Abruzzo International Balloon Museum is presenting a free public screening of the documentary Two Eagles this Saturday, Feb. 6, at the KiMo Theatre (423 Central NE). The film relates the story of two experieced gas balloonistsone from Albuquerque, one from Moscowwho launched their bid in 2015 to get into the record books. Filmmakers follow the pair as they attempt to cross the Pacific Ocean by balloon. A light dessert reception will begin at 6pm at KiMo, followed by opening remarks and presentations. The film will screen at 7pm. Admission is free, but a $5 suggested donation is encouraged and will benefit the science and education programs at the Albuquerque Balloon Museum. To reserve seating in advance , go to kimotickets.com. Roundhouse kick-off New Mexico Film & Media Day returns to the State Capitol on Monday, Feb. 8. Members of local unions (IATSE, SAG-AFTRA) are calling for a Film Industry Professionals Rally at the Roundhouse that morning. The goal is to expose our state legislators to the many people who work in the film industry and to show just how large an economic impact it has on our state (nearly $290 million last year alone). At 8:30am the mayor of Santa Fe will welcome participants at the Inn and Spa at Lorettos Tesuque Ballroom (211 Old Santa Fe Trail). At 9am the vendor information tables inside the Santa Fe Capitol Roundhouse will open, exposing visitors to the many local film-based companies. The Breaking Bad RV tour bus will be parked outside all day for photos. From noon to 1pm, the New Mexico Federation of Labor will present its Moral Mondays rally on the east side of the Rotunda. At 12:30pm there will be a press conference with Patrick Fabian, one of the stars of the AMC series Better Call Saul. From 1 to 4pm there will be a casting session outside the Rotunda featuring several local casting agencies. Participants can sign up inside at the casting table and have their pictures taken in the Shoot Santa Fe RV. There will be an Industry Professional Mixer at the Inn at Loretto from 1:30 to 2pm, allowing various crew members, actors and behind-the-scenes talent to get together and network. The Mitchell & Presley Talent Group will host a panel discussion on acting with special guest industry professionals from 2 to 5pm at the Inn at Loretto. Invited guests include casting director JoEdna Boldin, actor Vic Browder, actor/ director/ producer Lora Martinez-Cunningham, actor Esodie Geiger and line producer Alton Walpole. For more into look for New Mexico Film & Media Day on Facebook. OKLAHOMA CITY (Reuters) - An Oklahoma judge on Thursday allowed a case to proceed against a former Oklahoma Highway Patrol officer accused of pulling over three women at separate traffic stops and sexually assaulting them, a legal official said. Eric Roberts, 43, is set to be arraigned on Tuesday at a court in Sapulpa, southwest of Tulsa, on 11 criminal counts including sexual battery, indecent exposure, rape by instrumentation and second degree rape, the official said. During a hearing on Thursday, District Judge Douglas Golden dismissed a defense motion to quash the charges due to procedural matters. Roberts has previously pleaded not guilty to all the charges and denied the accusations. The case comes weeks after a former Oklahoma City officer convicted of raping four women and sexually assaulting several others while on duty was sentenced to 263 consecutive years in prison, the maximum allowable sentence. Roberts was suspended in July 2014 after a woman filed a federal lawsuit claiming the patrolman raped her during a traffic stop. Two more women later made similar allegations. Roberts resigned from the Oklahoma Highway Patrol in September 2014. The federal lawsuit claimed Roberts pulled the woman over and began asking her a series of sexual questions. He later drove her to a remote location while forcing her to watch a pornographic video on a cell phone. He then raped her, discarded a condom and used bottled water purchased along the way to clean himself, the suit said. The next day, the woman reported the incident to Oklahoma Highway Patrol, which investigated. They went to the scene of the reported assault and a condom was recovered, the suit said. According to the OHP, investigators discovered Roberts had turned his dashboard camera off during six traffic stops, including the one listed in the federal lawsuit. (Reporting by Heide Brandes and Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Sandra Maler) (Photo by Popspoken) [UPDATE Friday 5 February 2016, 4:14pm: The National Arts Council has replied to Yahoo Singapores query, stating the following: NAC is confident that as The Substation charts a new artistic vision under its new Artistic Director Alan Oei, it will continue to work closely with the arts community and its other partners. We understand that The Substation intends to consult on key topics including programming and venue rentals. We encourage all interested members of the community to share their views with Alan and his team during these opportunities.] An online petition calling for the government to set up a performance venue for Singaporean musicians has garnered more than 1,000 signatures since it started on Wednesday. The petition began two months after The Substations newest artistic director, Alan Oei, announced big plans to change the direction of the 26-year-old arts venue. According to media reports, the new direction involves the establishment of a research and developmental space, but it excludes renting out its spaces for the public. This affects Singapores homegrown musicians and supporters of the local music scene who flock to the gigs that often take place at The Substations 120 square meter Black Box Theatre. The announcement includes the eventual abandonment of the centres practice of renting out performance spaces to the public, and although the decision is respected, it leaves us, the many members of emerging bands, avid gig-goers and promoters, one less venue to congregate and share our love and passion for music, read the petition penned by Ierfan Lutfi, a budding musician from local rock band Aquila Vasica. He added, With The Substation joining the ranks of now-defunct performance venues such as Crawlspace, Blackhole212, and more recently Pink Noize and The Lithe Paralogue, we are left with little to no options for holding gigs. Those who would like to organise events for local musicians can also rent the spaces at Goodman Arts Centre and Aliwal Arts Centre. However, the rental cost of these places are not practical, he said. Story continues Furthermore, the two venues mentioned do not provide the relevant equipment needed for music performances, which means the organisers will need to incur more costs on rental and transportation of equipment, he noted. With the scale of the gigs we hold, we rarely (if ever) break even. Were really not in it for the money, but nobody would like to make a loss, he said. The online petition has been addressed to the National Arts Council as well as to Halimah Yacob, Speaker of the House and the chairman of the public petitions committee. The petition has also garnered more than 100 comments, many of them expressions of support. We are far behind many other countries who have appropriate venues, almost all of which are run as commercial businesses. However in Singapore this is not quite feasible yet, because of crazy commercial rentals, relatively low support (but its growing, it really is!) and a general lack of gig-going culture, said sound engineer and producer Daniel Sassoon. He is also a member of local band In Each Hand a Cutlass. Founder (and legendary dramatist) Kuo Pao Kuns initial vision for This Substation was one of messy plurality, unfettered experimentation, free collaboration. Wont this spirit be lost in all the structure, the carefully orchestrated, top-down curation of content? questioned Wei Shan Chew to The Substation. She is also a local musician, better known as Weish. The Substation is for everyone, do not take it away from the already small and struggling community of artists and performers that need an independent and affordable space to showcase their work. This goes against the very existence of the substation itself, said a Chun Kit. Yahoo Singapore has reached out to The Substation for comments. By Alex Dobuzinskis (Reuters) - In early January, occupiers of a wildlife refuge in eastern Oregon mulled how the siege would end and what would become of them, including facing prison or dying. What they did not anticipate was an apparent splinter group of armed occupiers ignoring their pleas and refusing to leave the remote Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. Now frustration is mounting as the holdouts cloud the fate of nine former occupiers in custody, charged with conspiracy to impede federal officers. Two others were released on condition that they wear tracking devices as they await trial. A judge has cited the continuing standoff as a major obstacle to the release of at least some of those who remain in custody. Andrew Kohlmetz, an attorney for arrested protester Jason Patrick, referred to the holdouts as "four idiots" at odds with his client's aims. "I can only say that it does impact everyone's chance at release," said Kohlmetz, whose client remained briefly at the refuge after state police shot one protester dead and arrested several others, including leader Ammon Bundy on Jan. 26. From jail, Bundy asked through his attorney for the remaining occupiers to stand down, and Patrick was arrested soon after. But the holdouts have ignored that plea, as Federal Bureau of Investigation agents and Oregon law enforcement continue to block access to the refuge 30 miles (48 km) from Burns in the state's rural east. At a court hearing on Wednesday for Bundy and the other defendants, prosecutors revealed they had obtained a grand jury indictment against 16 people, including the defendants, said Bundy's attorney Mike Arnold. Gerri Badden, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Portland, declined to disclose details and said the document would be unsealed on Thursday morning. The four holdouts have been identified as Jeff Banta, 46, David Fry, 27, and a married couple, Sean Anderson, 47, and Sandy Anderson, 48, according to The Oregonian newspaper. Story continues None of the four were among the original group of occupation leaders, according to a Reuters witness who spent a night with the occupiers in early January as they pondered their fate. Sean Anderson has a warrant out for his arrest in his previous home state of Wisconsin on misdemeanor charges from 2014 of resisting an officer, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia, according to court records. The occupiers took a stance reminiscent of the so-called Sagebrush Rebellion, a decades-old conflict over federal jurisdiction of millions of acres in the West. (Additional reporting by Jonathan Allen, Editing by Sara Catania and Cynthia Osterman) Auckland (AFP) - The biggest trade deal in history was signed Thursday, yoking 12 Pacific rim countries in a US-led initiative aimed at wresting influence from booming China. The ambitious Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) aims to slash tariffs and trade barriers for an enormous 40 percent of the global economy -- but pointedly does not include Beijing. "TPP allows America -- and not countries like China -- to write the rules of the road in the 21st century," US President Barack Obama said after the pact was signed in New Zealand. The deal -- whose birth was fraught by domestic opposition in the US and in other key players, such as Japan -- is a key plank of Obama's so-called "pivot" to Asia, as he seeks to counter the rising power of China. Along with a rebalancing of the US military machine towards the western Pacific, the TPP is recognition of the growing might of China, which has come to dominate the region, threatening American influence. Supporters of the deal say harnessing the power of free trade in such a dynamic part of the world is vital if the US is to fend off China's challenge to its supremacy. Trade ministers from 12 participating countries -- Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam -- signed the pact in Auckland early Thursday. Beijing was muted in its reaction to the deal, saying its officials were studying the 6,000-page document. A commerce ministry statement said China would "actively participate in and facilitate highly transparent, open and inclusive free trade arrangements in the region". Despite Obama's comments, the US has also sought to play down any overt anti-China rhetoric. US trade representative Michael Froman, in Auckland, said the agreement was "never directed against" any specific country and "it's important to have a constructive economic relationship" with China. Story continues Although the signing marks the end of the negotiating process, member states still have two years to get the deal approved at home before it becomes legally binding. "We will encourage all countries to complete their domestic ratification processes as quickly as possible," New Zealand Prime Minister John Key said. "TPP will provide much better access for goods and services to more than 800 million people across the TPP countries, which make up 36 percent of global GDP." However, ratification may prove far from easy, notably in the United States, where poisonous election-year politics are likely to stymie co-operation over a deal opponents have spun as a job killer. "It's highly unlikely (ratification) before the national elections in November," Tom Switzer of the University of Sydney's US Studies Centre told AFP. "In an election year, free trade is not a popular cause, and there are a lot of constituencies in both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party who are very much opposed to free trade or any kind of trade deal." In Japan -- the second biggest economy in the bloc, and one that was a relative latecomer to the process -- mainstream politicians and economists have generally supported the TPP as positive for Tokyo's export-driven growth even amid concerns over its impact on its prized agriculture industry. The Canadian government, which has changed since the deal was negotiated, signed up Thursday but has yet to decide whether to go through with ratification. While the 12 trade ministers were shaking hands in Auckland, thousands of protesters clogged the streets outside to voice their opposition. They argue the TPP will cost jobs and impact on sovereignty in Asia-Pacific states. American economist and Nobel Prize winner Joseph Stiglitz believes the TPP "may turn out to be the worst trade agreement in decades. "In 2016, we should hope for the TPP's defeat and the beginning of a new era of trade agreements that don't reward the powerful and punish the weak," he recently wrote in The Guardian newspaper. Panama City (AFP) - Panama is mulling releasing millions of genetically modified mosquitoes on its territory to combat the spread of the Zika virus, a prominent health official told AFP on Thursday. The health ministry and a tropical disease research lab, the Gorgas Institute, are evaluating "the viability and feasibility" of repeating and expanding on just such an experiment that took place two years ago, said Israel Cedeno, head of the ministry's epidemiological unit. As back then, the idea would be to introduce male Aedes aegypti mosquitoes whose genes had been altered so that their offspring, after mating with bloodsucking females, die at the larva stage. In 2014, the project, carried out in a town west of Panama's capital, resulted in a 93 percent decline in the mosquito population in the area. Cedeno cautioned however that while the results were encouraging "its cost is high." Because of that, the government needed to work out if the money would be better spent on genetically tinkering with mosquitoes or boosting public information campaigns to urge eradication of breeding spots for the insects. In Panama there are 50 confirmed cases of Zika infection, all of them in its Caribbean coastal region. The World Health Organization has said it suspects the virus might be behind a sudden spike in birth defects in a part of northern Brazil. By Andrew M. Seaman (Reuters Health) - Children perform worse in school when their parents are diagnosed with depression, suggests a study from Sweden. The study found a significant negative link between parents' depression and kids' school performance, said senior author Brian Lee, of the Drexel University School of Public Health in Philadelphia. "We obviously know that depression is a bad thing like any other mental health outcome," Lee said. "Its less recognized that mental health outcomes affect other people than the people themselves. So for parents or guardians, a vulnerable population would be their children." Previous studies found children with depressed parents are more likely to have problems with brain development, behavior and emotions, along with other psychiatric problems, Lee and his colleagues write in JAMA Psychiatry. Few studies have looked at school performance, however. For the new study, they used data from more than 1.1 million children born in Sweden between 1984 and 1994. Three percent of the mothers and about 2 percent of fathers were diagnosed with depression before their children finished their last required year of school, which occurs around age 16 in Sweden. Overall, when parents were diagnosed with depression during their children's lifetime, the kids' grades suffered. A mother's depression appeared to affect daughters more than sons, they note. Lee characterized the link between parental depression and children's school performance as "moderate." On the range of factors that influence a child's school performance, Lee said parental depression falls between a family's economic status and parental education, which is one of the biggest factors in determining a child's success in school. The researchers caution that depression may have been undermeasured in the population. Also, they can't say that a parent's depression actually causes children to perform worse in school. In an editorial published with the study, Myrna Weissman points out that providing mothers with treatment for their depression - with psychotherapy or medication - has been shown to reduce problems in children. "Therefore you should be treating the parents," said Weissman, of the New York State Psychiatric Institute and the Columbia University Department of Psychiatry in New York City. "Sometimes you have to treat the children, but you should start with the parents." Research suggests that depression may run in families, she told Reuters Health. Additionally, childrearing is demanding and made even more difficult if a person is suffering with depression. "Depression is a real illness," she said. "Depressed patients are awfully hard on themselves. They should be told its not their fault." SOURCE: http://bit.ly/1Pin6Jd and http://bit.ly/1Pin1W1 JAMA Psychiatry, online February 3, 2016. By Daniel Kelley NORRISTOWN, Pa. (Reuters) - A Pennsylvania judge refused to dismiss a sexual assault case against Bill Cosby on Wednesday, setting the stage for the first criminal prosecution of the once-celebrated comedian, who has for years denied allegations of assault by dozens of women. The decision was a loss for the 78-year-old entertainer, who for decades was beloved by U.S. television audiences for his family-friendly brand of humor. Cosby's attorneys had tried to convince Pennsylvania Common Pleas Court Judge Steven O'Neill that their client could not be prosecuted due to an agreement reached with a former Montgomery Country district attorney more than a decade ago. They never produced a written agreement to that effect. "I hereby find no basis to grant the relief requested" by Cosby's lawyers, O'Neill said at the end of a two-day hearing in suburban Philadelphia. More than 50 women have accused Cosby of sexually assaulting them in attacks dating back to the 1960s, and several civil lawsuits have been filed against him though many of the incidents are too old to prosecute. Prosecutors in Los Angeles County last month decided not to charge Cosby over two alleged cases of sexual assault dating to 1965 and 2008. Cosby, who has repeatedly denied wrongdoing, sat still and silent through Wednesday's court hearing, and offered no visible reaction to O'Neill's early evening decision. He could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison if convicted. Prosecutors and defense lawyers left court without speaking to reporters. PROSECUTOR, DEFENSE ATTORNEY AS WITNESSES Cosby's attorneys had called former Montgomery County District Attorney Bruce Castor as their primary witness. Castor testified that he had agreed not to prosecute Cosby in 2005 to clear the way for him to testify in a civil suit brought by alleged victim Andrea Constand, now 44, who has said Cosby plied her with alcohol and drugs before raping her. "I was hopeful that I had made Ms. Constand a millionaire." Castor testified on Tuesday. Cosby's top lawyer, John Schmitt, testified on Wednesday that he would not have allowed Cosby to give the deposition if he had believed prosecution was possible. Cosby told the court at the time that he gave Constand what he described as an anti-allergy pill before a sexual encounter he maintained was consensual. Defense attorneys on Tuesday presented a 2005 press release from Castor's office that they said amounted to an agreement not to prosecute Cosby. But current Montgomery County D.A. Kevin Steele attacked the idea that Cosby's lawyers would allow a deal that was never spelled out in a formal non-prosecution agreement and contended such a deal would not have legal force. "A secret agreement that permits a wealthy defendant to buy his way out of a criminal case isnt right," he said. The judge set a March 8 preliminary hearing for prosecutors to begin to discuss their evidence against Cosby. Karen Polesir, a leader of the Philadelphia arm of Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests, a group that advocates for victims of sexual abuse, praised the judge's decision. "This is a significant step forward for victims of sexual violence," she said. "We hope this victory will encourage other prosecutors and police to pursue older rape cases." (Writing by Scott Malone; Editing by Will Dunham and Tom Brown) During his disastrous naval assault on the city of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Lord Nelson lost hundreds of men, and was driven from the coast in defeat. He was also shot in the arm, and had to have part of it amputated. This being 1797, the amputation was done by knife without anesthetic. He seems to have been a good sport about the accident, especially since, in a sense, he never lost the arm. For the rest of his life he could sense it, as though the appendage were extending invisibly from the stump. He supposedly claimed that he now knew there had to be an afterlife because if his arm could have a ghost, then so could he. Lord Nelsons arm is a particularly famous example of a phantom limb. Almost all people who have an amputation experience a phantom. Usually the effect fades within days, but in some cases it can remain for a lifetime. The reason for the phantom is both simple and profound. The brain constructs a model of the self that neuroscientists call the body schema. The body schema is a simulation. It takes in touch, vision, and baseline information about whats connected to what, and builds a virtual model of your body. The body schema is not a literal description of the human body. It contains no information about bones, tendons, or the biochemical basis of muscle contraction. The brain doesnt need to know those details in order to control movement. Instead, it generates a surreal description of magic segments connected by hinges. Its a phantom body. Recommended: Clearing the Body's Retired Cells Slows Aging and Extends Life As a child grows up, the body schema adjusts to the changing body, but its adaptability has limits. A phantom limb is a stark reminder of the errors that the body schema can make. The truth is, we all have phantom limbs superimposed on our real ones. Lord Nelson lost the real one but kept the phantom. After studying the body schema for many years, I became interested in how the brain models another part of the self. Not a physical part like an arm, but a computational part. If the brain describes the physical body in ghostly, incomplete terms, how much more mystically would it describe a non-physical trait like computation? Story continues The brain needs to control its attention, just as it controls the body. One of the most crucial computational processes in the brain is attention. The word attention has many colloquial connotations, but in neuroscience it has a specific meaning. Attention is the selective enhancement of some signals over others, such that the brains resources are strategically deployed. In some ways attention is like a computational handits how the brain grasps things. The brain needs to control its attention, just as it controls the body. To understand how, we can gain some insight from control theory, a well-developed branch of engineering theory that deals in the optimal ways for complex systems to workwhether those systems dictate the airflow in a building, traffic patterns in a city, or a robot arm. In control theory, if a machine is to control something optimally, it needs a working model of whatever its controlling. The brain certainly follows this principle in controlling the body. Thats why it computes a body schema. Since the brain can control its attention exquisitely well, it almost certainly has an attention schema, a simulation of its own attention. Recommended: Prehistoric Mystery Meat: It's What's for Dinner But what kind of information is in that attention schema? How would it describe something as hard to pin down as attention? Presumably it would describe abstracted properties, not precise or microscopic details. It might describe attention as a kind of mental grasp, a personal experience, something located inside me that seizes on the things around me and empowers me to react to them. But it wouldnt contain information about neurons or synapses. It wouldnt describe the actual physical mechanisms of attention. Just as the body schema is a surreal description of the body, so the attention schema would be a surreal description of attention. You know, the feely thing inside me. Consciousness. Heres how a brain with an attention schema might behave. First, it would have a nuanced control of attention. Second, if it had an ability to translate internal information into words, it might make some strange, physically incoherent claims based on that attention schema. It wouldnt claim, Well look at that, my cerebral cortex has an attentional enhancement of the visual signal of that sandwich in front of me. Instead, going off the incomplete information in its attention schema, it might say, Ive got a non-physical, subjective experience of that sandwich. You know, the feely thing inside me. Consciousness. Thats the brains caricature of attention. Of course the process is not limited to sandwiches. The same logic applies to consciousness of any object in front of you, consciousness of a memory that youve just recalled, or consciousness of yourself as a person. This is called the attention schema theory, a theory that my lab has been developing and testing experimentally for the past five years. Its a theory of why we insist with such certainty that we have subjective experience. Attention is fundamental. Its present in almost all animals. To help control it, the brain evolved an attention schema. Because of the quirky information contained in the attention schema, the brain-machine claims to have a conscious experience of things. Consciousness is phantom attention. Without resorting to magic, mysticism, hard problems, or spooky soul energy, the theory explains the behavior of us humans who claimwho swear up and down and get testy when challengedthat we have a ghost in the machine. Lord Nelson may have been right when he said that a phantom arm is made of the same stuff as the soul. Its all information in the brain. Read more from The Atlantic: This article was originally published on The Atlantic. Machu Picchu is the granddaddy of archeological sites. Set in the Andes Mountains, the site was once an estate for the Inca emperor, as well as a place of worship and education. When the Spanish conquered Peru, Machu Picchu was abandoned, and the colonists never learned of its existence. The site remained hidden in the Andes, shrouded by green mountains and clouds of mist, completely unknown to the outside world. It wasn't until Hiram Bingham III, a Yale historian and explorer (and the inspiration for the famous character Indiana Jones) uncovered the ancient site in 1911 that the world took notice. And what notice it was. Machu Picchu's visitor numbers grew quickly, as did its aura. It soon became Peru's largest driver of tourism. Movies were made, books were written. Artifacts were taken, then returned. Machu Picchu was even recognized as one of the new seven wonders of the world, an honor that all but solidifies its place on the bucket lists of intrepid travelers around the world. But all this popularity has taken a toll. With 2,500 visitors per day wandering around the sacred stones, the temples are starting to topple. Structures that held for more than 500 years through earthquakes and landslides are coming apart. The site is under UNESCO protection, and in 2011 the Peruvian government limited the number of visitors allowed each day. Some have called for stricter rules, such as making areas off limits or requiring all visitors to stay with a guide. The future is unknown but one thing seems inevitable; it may not always be possible to visit the ancient city the way you can today. Here's what you need to know to before visiting Machu Picchu. Plan Ahead The best time to visit Machu Picchu is between May and September, when the weather is dry. This is also the most popular time at the site, and tickets and trains can sell out far in advance. October through April are considered"off peak, as it's rainy season, but crowds can be thinner. Story continues As soon as you know when you want to go, book your tickets. You can buy tickets online through the official Machu Picchu portal. The online system can be tricky to navigate, however. Pay a little more and you can have an agency take care of tickets for you. Or you can pick up tickets in person in Cusco, but keep in mind that tickets sell out weeks in advance during peak season. Also, keep in mind, if you're planning to hike the Inca Trail, your tour operator will take care of your tickets for you. It's possible to see the whole site in one (long) day; take the train in the morning, spend your day at the site and return that evening. If you want to climb one of the nearby mountains or be one of the first at the site in the morning, spend a night in Aguas Calientes, the town at the base of the mountain. The town itself has plenty of tourist kitsch, with pizza parlors, souvenir shops and bars hawking three-for-one pisco sours. It's also a good place to recoup or get a massage after an Inca Trail hike, but otherwise, there's little reason to linger. Getting to Machu Picchu Most visitors to Machu Picchu arrive by train, either from Cusco (via the nearby Poroy station) or the Sacred Valley. The train from Cusco takes nearly four hours; from Ollantaytambo, the train takes approximately two hours. You can buy tickets ahead of time online, which is highly recommended as trains tend to fill up in the busy season. Trains arrive in Aguas Calientes; from there, you'll hop on a 20-minute bus ride that snakes up to the entrance. But if Machu Picchu is the Holy Grail, hiking the Inca Trail is the true pilgrimage to get there. The ancient path is a challenging four-day trek. All trekkers must go with an organized group or guide; Llama Path and Alpaca Expeditions are popular, reputable options. While the trail sees about 400 hikers a day, this is not a stroll in the woods. Be prepared for the hot sun, cold nights, and lots of stair climbing at high elevations (the highest point ascends more than 13,700 feet). Also keep in mind that if you want to do the trek, you'll need to book your spot five to six months in advance, sometimes earlier during the peak season, and note: the Inca Trail is closed in February. Exploring Machu Picchu Once you've arrived, you can hire a guide or explore on your own. You can easily spend a full day discovering the urban core, temples and agricultural zones. High above the site is Intipunku (or the Sun Gate), where hikers on the Inca Trail arrive. All others arrive via the main entrance and make their way across cultivation terraces to the urban area. At the far end of the site is the trail to Huayna Picchu, which offers striking views of Machu Picchu. Climbing Huayna Picchu For a different perspective over the site -- and a test of your comfort with heights -- climb Huayna Picchu, that iconic pyramid-shaped mountain often captured in Machu Picchu photos. You'll need a separate ticket to climb the peak, and entry is limited to two time slots each morning. It takes about 45 minutes to reach the top, a craggy pile of rocks overlooking the Andes, Machu Picchu and the Urubamba River. The shortest way down is also the most treacherous; you'll traverse the panic attack-inducing Death Stairs, which lead straight down into what looks like oblivion. A less harrowing (but more physically demanding) route leads around the mountain past the Temple of the Moon, which takes about two to three hours. Either way, get ready to feel your legs burn. By Wiktor Szary and Marcin Goettig WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland's president approved new legislation to increase the government's surveillance powers, his office said on Thursday, despite fears that the new law undermines privacy. The law may fuel a row between the European Union and Poland's conservative Law and Justice (PiS) party, which came to power after the October election. The EU launched an unprecedented inquiry in January into whether Poland's new government has breached the EU's rule of law standards after passing new laws that critics say rein in the constitutional court and public media. Poland's newest law expands the authorities' access to digital data and loosens the legal framework limiting surveillance by law enforcement. It comes into force on Saturday after its approval by President Andrzej Duda, a close ally of PiS. Rights group Amnesty International described the law as "a major blow to human rights" and called a protest on Friday in front of the presidential office. Last month, thousands of people across the country protested against the law. The Law and Justice (PiS) party, the first party to win an outright parliamentary majority since Poland's transition from communism in 1989, says surveillance must be expanded to counter the threat of terrorism. The government said it had amended the bill to address an earlier ruling by the constitutional court, which said the bill was imprecise and lacked sufficient legal controls. Poland's Ombudsman has said that some of the new bill may be still be unconstitutional, including parts that allow surveillance to be extended to up to 18 months, limits on court control, and a broader range of potential targets. The Ombudsman's office said on Thursday that it will challenge the new law in the constitutional court. A new PiS-sponsored law that came into force last year significantly increased the size of the majority the court needs to pass rulings. That law, and another allowing the government to directly appoint heads of public media, sparked the EU investigation. The Polish government has been defended by Hungary's eurosceptic Prime Minister Victor Orban and Syed Kamall, the leader of the conservative fraction in the European Parliament. (Editing by Katharine Houreld) A few weeks before the Explorers Club held its annual dinner in 1951, the organizationa society for field researchers and dedicated adventurers received a letter with a strange request. It came from Paul Howes, a taxidermist, diorama-painter, and curator at the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, Connecticut. Dear Explorers Club: Unfortunately I will have to be away at the time of the annual dinner, but I am so anxious to have a fragment of that 250,000 year-old mastodon (?) meat for this museum that I had planned to secretly pocket my share, and exhibit here for all time instead of swallowing it. Would the Club let me have my tidbit preserved for this purpose if I sent in my $9.50, although I cannot be there to get it myself on the night of the dinner? This is a crazy request, but then you know explorers! I dont see why anybody else should get my share either, so if you all say yes I will send the check and an official bottle of preservative in which to drop this remarkable item, then we will have something here besides models and pictures and a couple of spare teeth to brag about. Howes almost had it rightaccording to rumor, the Club was going to be serving mammoth, not mastodon. The meat had supposedly been hacked from an icy carcass in the Aleutian Islands by a Jesuit-turned-geologist named Bernard Hubbard, nicknamed the Glacier Priest for his intrepid trips across the Arctic. Hubbard claimed to know of a stash of ancient meat, and when he heard the Club had been trying to find some, he had a sampling flown down to New York. There in the Grand Ballroom of the Roosevelt Hotel, hundreds of scientists and explorershiking boots and pith helmets swapped out for tuxedoeswould dig into the prehistoric snack as they traded stories about their latest adventures and sipped drinks cooled with bits of Alaskan glacier. Recommended: Clearing the Body's Retired Cells Slows Aging and Extends Life The meat was gone in a flash: The priest had apparently only sent enough for every guest to try a small sliver. But one slice, as Howes had requested, was carefully slipped into the preserving bottle that he had mailed to the hotel. From there, it was sent back to the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, and displayed in the mammal room. And there it sat for two decades, a grayish lump in a jarhardly a priority for kids with dinosaurs and other flesh-eating beasts on the brain. In 2001, the meat was transferred to the Yale Peabody Museum, along with a few other curiosities, and filed away in a back room. * * * As a Ph.D. candidate in paleontology at Yale and a student member of the Explorers Club, Matt Davis had heard the story of the mammoth steak. He knew it to be the firstand strangestin the clubs tradition of serving odd foodstuffs, a practice it continues today. (More recent menus have included deep-fried tarantulas, martinis garnished with goat eyeballs, and the barbecued sex organs of bulls.) He knew that tour guides at the Explorers Club headquarters on New Yorks Upper East Side often took visitors into the trophy room, pointing out the tusk of the mammoth whose meat had been eaten in 1951. He also knew that the story was probably apocryphal. When they dug up one of the best-preserved wooly mammoths in Siberia, the meat looked fresh: It was red and marbled with white fat, he told me. But once its open to the air and its melting, it quickly gets putrid. Recommended: The Pharmaceutical Industry's 'Dirty Secret' What Davis didnt know was that Yale had a sample of the meat in question. And the jar sitting somewhere in the Peabody Museum wasnt labeled as wooly mammoth or mastodon. Instead, it was listed as Megatherium, an extinct species of giant South American ground sloth. In September 2014, a professor of Daviss casually mentioned the sample over lunch; soon afterwards, his curiosity piqued, Davis found himself in the bowels of the Peabody, peering at the unraveling strands of mystery meat. It was the first time hed seen it. The mammal fossils he studies are stored in the museums basement, and he almost never ventures up into the wet collections, where lizards and snakes float serenely in jars of alcohol. Paul Howes serving of meat was on a shelf in a back corner of the vertebrate wet-collections room, beside containers of preserved baby monkeys, the hair on their faces rippling like sea grass. The label on the meat was unequivocal: This is the Megatherium meat served at an Explorers Club dinner in 1951. The text contained no mention of mammoth at all. If this meat really was Megatherium, it would be the paleontological equivalent of winning the lottery. When I read the label, my first thought was, We need to charter a helicopter to fly out to Alaska to go find the rest of this guy! said Davis. His excitement was understandable. Sloths havent always been the meek, sluggish animals we know today. Millions of years ago, one now-extinct species swam off the Pacific coast of South America, diving down to chomp on aquatic vegetation. Other species lumbered around like bears, rearing up on their hind legs to strip branches of their leaves. Megatherium was one of these. As Davis described it to me, it was roughly the size and weight of two SUVs stacked one on top of the other. And its remains had never been found father north than Peru. Recommended: Marco Rubio Proves Obama's Point About Islam If this meat had indeed been unearthed on the island of Akutan, as the Explorers Club claimed, and if it was indeed Megatherium, Davis would have just discovered the largest range expansion ever. Even if it were another species of ground slothlike one that had been found on mainland Alaska, thousands of miles away from Akutanit would still be the paleontological equivalent of winning the lottery. * * * Yet Davis didnt fly out to the volcanic shores of Akutan. It wouldve been crazy, setting off on a treasure hunt for an unidentified carcass that may not even be there. Instead, he teamed up with another grad student named Jessica Glassa geneticist who studies fishand a few other scientists to figure out what this meat actually was. Glass had known about the meat since around 2006; as an undergraduate at Yale, she had worked as an assistant at Peabody, processing new specimens as they were brought into the museum. As a student assistant, shed identified minnows and skinned ducks. One day, shed come in to work to find an ostrich head in the sink; another time, she found a bag on the floor that said, Do not open until the other zebra has been processed. Even with all this under her belt, she found the story of the Explorers Club meat bizarreshe couldnt stop imagining people gulping down what is basically an ancient cadaver. Think about how weird that is. You dont know how it died, how long its been dead, she said. Identifying the animal would prove difficult. We live in an age of easy DNA analysisspit in a vial, and six to eight weeks later, you can start exploring the nooks and crannies of your genomebut with ancient DNA, its not so simple. DNA degrades over time, and when the animal dies there are no more repair mechanisms, explained Glass. That means the strand of DNA would break up into tiny, tiny pieces. And 250,000 years allow for a whole lot of disintegration. Its possible to sequence those DNA fragments, but if you get any other bit of genetic material in your solutiona cat hair, say, or one of your own cells, or a bacterium thats floating around in the airchances are the DNA analysis will pick up on that instead. The newer, still-intact DNA can obscure the ancient bits, the way the lights of Times Square can overwhelm Orions Belt. The Explorers Club meat was even more likely to be contaminated, because it had been cooked in a stew. Glass had no idea what other ingredients she might accidentally unearth. But as curious as she was about the dinner, the mystery she wanted to crack was paleontological rather than culinary. To reduce the risk of adulterating her precious sample, she went through an elaborate ritual each time she ventured into the lab: She showered at home, and changed into a fresh set of clothes when she arrived, to make sure she hadnt tracked in any pollen or bacteria from the street. She walked over sticky mats, to clean the soles of her shoes. And then she pulled on a hair net, strapped on a mask, snapped on gloves, and slipped into a lab coat. You have to be careful you dont sneeze or cough, she said. Or breathe too much. Then, with tweezers and a razor blade, she began to dissect. She took a chunk out of the center, so nervous to be working on such a precious sample that she didnt quite trust her hands. Once shed cut out five 250-milligram chunks, she let them soak in a series of solutions that would dissolve the flesh and release the DNA. With a centrifuge, she filtered out the genetic material from all those other particles. After spending several weekends in the labthe process took months, as she was still spending her weekdays on her fish researchshe finally had enough DNA to sequence. But the genetic data that came back didnt match with mammoth or Megatherium. It didnt match with any prehistoric mammals at all. Instead, it was green sea turtleendangered, but still very much alive. * * * It was the equivalent of having people over for Halloween, Davis said of the prehistoric meat. You give people spaghetti and say, Ew, youre touching brains. The historical record backs his theory up. After the dinner, the events organizer, the theatre impresario Wendell Phillips Dodge, tried to admit that it was a hoax: He wrote in the Clubs quarterly, The Explorers Journal, that he may have found a way to transform turtle into sloth. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge. But no one picked up on Dodges winks or the nudges, and his prank was mostly ignored. The Christian Science Monitor had already published an article claiming that the meat was mammoth, and the news quickly spread. The meat is still sitting beside mammals in jars in a back room. Its label still reads Megatherium. But some day soon its identification will be updated. The jar will be moved a few shelves over, leaving behind its monkey neighbors to join the reptiles. Davis and Glass, who published their findings earlier this week in PLOS, arent too disappointed that their jackpot has turned into fools gold. To Glass, whos now in South Africa studying fish diversity, it raises questions about the thousands of other jars that are gathering dust beside it. Who knows what mysteries are behind them? she said. But a hint of nostalgia creeps into Daviss voice when he talks about the Explorers Clubs 1951 dinner. It was so popular, people liked it so much, that a few years later that they kicked it up a notch, he said of the mammoth meal. Were going to have polar bear, Were going to have fried termites. For better or for worse, thats what the Club is known for today. People arent following polar expeditions in the news anymore. Related Video New plant-based meats are an exciting development for nutrition and the environment. Read more from The Atlantic: This article was originally published on The Atlantic. GENEVA (Reuters) - Red Cross said on Thursday it had delivered food for more than 12,000 people to the besieged Syrian town of Mouadamiya near Damascus, enough for only three weeks and that regular access was needed. Medical supplies for 10,000 people were also brought into the town of 50,000 on Wednesday on convoys of the the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and Syrian Arab Red Crescent, it said in a statement. The agency is seeking access to bring more aid to the besieged town of Madaya in Rural Damascus and the villages of Foua and Kafraya in Idlib. "What we have seen on our way into town only shows how desperate the people are in Mouadamiya. They are hungry and they need us. Unconditional aid must be allowed to reach people in all the besieged and hard-to-reach areas in Syria," said Marianne Gasser, head of the ICRC delegation in Syria. (Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay Editing by Jeremy Gaunt) BEIRUT (Reuters) - Countries where Syrian refugees seek asylum should end harsh policies on registration, deportation and education that violate fundamental rights, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said on Thursday as donors met in London. These refugees should not be sent back to their war-torn country, refugee registration requirements should be made less restrictive and access to education should be made easier for Syrian children, HRW said in a report. "This conference needs to set a new agenda on Syrian refugees, making respecting their fundamental rights the top priority," Bill Frelick, HRW refugee program director, said of the one-day donors conference in London. "Host countries in which refugees make up as much as a quarter of the population need vastly more donor assistance, but that money won't help Syrians who are being pushed back or driven to destitution by harsh policies." The Syrian civil war has killed an estimated 250,000 people and driven millions from their homes, with 6 million Syrians displaced within the country and more than 4 million others having left for Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and beyond. "Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey have all restricted entry to refugees from Syria in 2015 and pushed back asylum seekers or forcibly returned refugees in violation of their international obligations," the human rights group said. In January, Turkey introduced visa requirements for Syrians arriving by air and sea, forcing hundreds of Syrians to return to Damascus. Slow registration and screening systems have also caused large numbers of Syrians to become stranded at the Jordanian border in recent months in difficult conditions. Some 700,000 Syrian children in refugee camps in Jordan, Lebanon and other Middle Eastern countries are out of school, according to a report by the Malala Fund founded by Pakistani education campaigner and Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai. HRW urges donors, including those in the United States, European Union (EU) and Gulf states, to share responsibility for hosting Syrian refugees with Turkey, Jordan, and Lebanon. U.N. agencies are appealing for close to $8 billion this year to cope with the humanitarian disaster caused by the Syrian civil war. Germany has already pledged $2.3 billion by 2018, Britain $1.75 billion by 2020 and Norway $1.17 billion by 2020. U.N.-mediated proximity talks in Geneva on ending Syria's five-year civil war were suspended on Wednesday after just a few days amid acrimony between government and opposition negotiators. They are due to resume on Feb. 25 [L8N15I3K3] (Reporting by Lisa Barrington; Editing by Tom Heneghan) (Reuters) - U.S. Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson on Thursday planned to eliminate 50 staff positions, or nearly half his staff, in a major downsizing of his flagging campaign, The Washington Post reported. The bulk of the cuts will come from his field offices and headquarters in Virginia, the report said, citing an internal memo and campaign officials. Carson, the retired neurosurgeon who failed to sustain traction in the first U.S. presidential contest in Iowa, will also reduce salaries for campaign workers, the report said. Carson finished in fourth at the Iowa caucuses on Monday with less than 10 percent of the vote. The Post said other cost-saving measures included possibly using commercial flights instead of private planes and limiting Carson's travel team to a select few advisers. His most senior staffers will remain on the campaign team, according to the report. (Reporting by Clarece Polke; Editing by Doina Chiacu) By Emily Stephenson HENNIKER, N.H. (Reuters) - Campaigning for the Republican presidential nomination took a nasty turn on Wednesday with billionaire businessman Donald Trump accusing rival Ted Cruz of fraud as the field of candidates narrowed ahead of next week's New Hampshire primary. Rand Paul, a U.S. senator from Kentucky with a libertarian philosophy, pulled out of the Republican race. Conservative Rick Santorum also exited the race on Wednesday and endorsed U.S. Senator Marco Rubio of Florida. Both Paul and Santorum, a former senator from Pennsylvania, did poorly in Monday's Iowa caucuses, which were won by Cruz, with Trump and Rubio finishing second and third. The caucuses were the first of the state-by-state nominating contests ahead of the Nov. 8 election to replace Democratic President Barack Obama. Trump, a real estate mogul and former reality TV star, went on Twitter on Wednesday to accuse the conservative U.S. senator from Texas of stealing his victory in Iowa. Cruz's team hit back by telling Trump to seek help for addiction to the social media site. The two men are going head-to-head for voters in New Hampshire, where Cruz's evangelical Christian credentials will not likely be as helpful as they were in Iowa. Opinion polls show Trump with a roughly 20-point lead in New Hampshire before next Tuesday's primary. As the New Hampshire race heats up, the Democratic presidential contenders will face off later on Wednesday in a town hall-style event hosted by CNN. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton narrowly beat Bernie Sanders, a U.S. senator from Vermont, in Iowa. Trump called for the nullification of Cruz's Iowa victory or a new vote in the state. "Ted Cruz didn't win Iowa, he stole it," Trump said in a series of tweets. "That is why all of the polls were so wrong and why he got far more votes than anticipated. Bad!" "Oh that voter fraud, you know, these politicians are brutal," Trump said later at a rally in Little Rock, Arkansas. "They are a bunch of dishonest cookies, I want to tell you." Trump referred to an email that Cruz's campaign sent on Monday that implied another Republican candidate, Ben Carson, was about to drop out of the race and that his Iowa backers should be urged to vote for the Texan instead. Cruz later apologized for the email. 'TWITTER ADDICTION' Trump also accused Cruz's team of sending out a mailer designed to look like an official electoral document to scare Iowa voters into turning out at the caucuses. The accusations were the latest aggressive tactic from Trump, who has courted controversy with attacks on other candidates and by urging a temporary ban on Muslims entering the United States and branding Mexican immigrants as criminals. Obama visited a mosque near Baltimore on Wednesday, declaring that attacks on Islam were an attack on all faiths, in a move to counter rhetoric from Trump and other Republican candidates that have alienated Muslims. The Cruz campaign said Trump's complaint was a cry for attention after the senator came from behind in the polls to win on Monday. A Cruz spokesman suggested he seek help for "Twitter addiction." "It is no surprise that Donald is throwing yet another temper-tantrum, or if you like, yet another Trumpertantrum," Cruz said. "I understand that Donald finds it very hard to lose but at the end of the day, the Iowa people spoke." Cruz won support in Iowa from much of the same conservative Christian constituency that helped Santorum to victory in the Iowa caucuses during the 2012 presidential campaign. But Santorum failed to take off in the 2016 race. He said on Fox News he was suspending his run and called Rubio a "born leader." The endorsement came as Rubio came under attack by rivals seeking to curry favor in New Hampshire. Rubio said he looked forward to teaming up with Santorum. "We want to use him as often as he's willing to work for us," Rubio said. Earlier on Wednesday, Paul became the second Republican to drop out of the race since the Iowa caucuses, after former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee. (Additional reporting by Amy Tennery in New York, Doina Chiacu, Susan Heavey and Eric Beech in Washington and Roberta Rampton in Maryland; Writing by Alistair Bell; Editing by Bill Trott and Peter Cooney) WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Rick Santorum withdrew from the race for the U.S. Republican presidential nomination on Wednesday and said he would endorse Senator Marco Rubio in the race for the White House. Santorum, a 57-year-old former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania, won the Iowa caucuses four years ago but managed only 1 percent of the vote in the Iowa contest on Monday. Santorum, in an appearance on Fox News announcing his withdrawal and endorsement of Rubio, called the Florida senator "a tremendously gifted young man and ... a born leader." He said Rubio "can bring this country together, not just moderates and conservatives but young and old." Rubio, 44, finished third in Monday's Iowa caucuses, the first contest in the state-by-state battle to decide who will be the Republican nominee in the November presidential election. U.S. Senator Ted Cruz of Texas finished first in Iowa, putting a dent in real estate tycoon Donald Trump's standing as the Republican front-runner. Santorum's withdrawal leaves nine Republican candidates in the 2016 White House race, with the next contest in New Hampshire on Tuesday. U.S. Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky announced earlier on Wednesday he was suspending his campaign after a fifth-place finish in Iowa. A favorite of the Christian right, Santorum announced his White House bid in May with an eye on economic issues. He campaigned on a promise to boost the middle class,eliminate the Internal Revenue Service and crack down on illegalimmigration. Santorum won a reputation as a strong social conservative in Congress, where he opposed same-sex marriage and the teaching of evolution in schools. (Reporting by Eric Beech; additional reporting by Mohammad Zargham; Editing by Cynthia Osterman) Tokyo (AFP) - Two giant pandas at Tokyo's Ueno Zoo have been given some private time in a bid to create a romantic environment in which the bashful creatures can mate. Public viewing was halted on Thursday in the hope that male Ri Ri -- who zookeepers confirmed has looked friskier in recent days -- will take advantage of the fleeting window that female Shin Shin is in heat. "There's really only a couple of days a year when a panda can get pregnant," a spokesman from Ueno Zoo's education department told AFP. "Pandas are solitary animals and the only time you will see them together is the mating season. "Usually they just sit apart from each other chewing their food, but Ri Ri has been looking more amorous of late." The cuddly creatures, both 10 years old, have a choice of two rooms in which to snuggle up to one another, although officials insist they will not interfere with the courting process. "There is a spare recreational room for them out the back," said the spokesman. "But we won't be giving them any special food or dimming the lights for them. "Nobody knows what kind of mood to create for animals to feel romantic," he added. "They don't just get into the mood with soft lighting like humans." Shin Shin, who was brought from China five years ago, just before the devastating tsunami in Japan's northeast, gave birth to a baby in 2012 but the cub died from pneumonia six days later. She had a phantom pregnancy in 2013 and the pandas have not bred since. Giant pandas are notoriously clumsy at mating, with males said to be bad at determining when a female is in the right frame of mind and often befuddled at knowing what to do next. In the event the animals do feel compatible, sex is frequently over too quickly to impregnate the female, who is only receptive to the proposition for two or three days a year between February and May. "It's true the females are picky," the zoo spokesman said. "In their natural habitat, they get to select the male." Story continues According to estimates, less than 2,000 giant pandas remain in the wild, in three provinces in south-central China. Should Shin Shin rebuff Ri Ri's advances for a third straight year, Ueno Zoo will consider artificial insemination, the official confirmed. "It remains an option but we'll see how they get on first," he said. By Doina Chiacu WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate Chris Christie has dismissed him as a puppet and former mentor Jeb Bush called him not fit to serve as up-and-coming Republican Marco Rubio becomes the man to beat in next week's New Hampshire primary. Rubio's unexpectedly strong third-place showing in Monday's Iowa caucuses has made him the target of rival Republican candidates who focused their campaigns on the New England state's first-in-the-nation primary. Christie, the New Jersey governor, former Florida Governor Jeb Bush and Ohio Governor John Kasich all hope for a strong showing in New Hampshire to boost their flagging campaigns to become the Republican nominee in the Nov. 8 election to replace Democratic President Barack Obama. While Christie said on Thursday he would not be out of the race if he lost to Rubio in New Hampshire, Kasich has told audiences he would go back to Ohio if he got "smoked" there. U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, who won the Iowa caucuses on strong evangelical Christian credentials, was expected to have less appeal for voters in New Hampshire. Real estate mogul Donald Trump's second-place showing in Iowa raised questions about how well his popularity can survive the voting booth. Christie has been one of Rubio's fiercest critics this week, calling the first-term U.S. senator from Florida "the boy in the bubble" the day after the Iowa vote. He continued the personal vein of attack on Thursday. "This isn't the most controlled candidate we've seen in this race at all. His handlers handle him all the time," Christie said on Fox News. "We need to take him out of that controlled atmosphere because, believe me, it won't be controlled against Hillary Clinton this fall," he said. Clinton, the former secretary of state, is battling U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont for the Democratic nomination. Bush, whose establishment Republican credentials have not guaranteed him public support, has also turned on his former protege. On Wednesday he took out a full-page ad in a leading New Hampshire newspaper, the Union-Leader, attacking Rubio as not ready to serve as commander in chief. "Nearly every political leader in Florida of stature who knows Marco and Jeb's records have joined us in endorsing Governor Bush," the ad read. Rubio has garnered significant endorsements since Monday, including U.S. Senator Tim Scott of South Carolina, which holds its primary this month, and U.S. Representative Matt Salmon of Arizona, a co-founder of the conservative House Freedom Caucus. (Additional reporting by Susan Heavey; Editing by Andrea Ricci) Russia military special forces With current force deployments, Russia could steamroll NATO forces in the Baltic states. In the most optimistic scenario for NATO, Moscow would be able to conquer all the way to Estonia's capital Tallinn in the course of 60 hours, according to a new report from the think tank RAND Corp. The report, which attempted to answer the dual questions of what would happen should Russia invade the NATO-member Baltic states and what could be done to prevent such a scenario, paints an incredibly bleak picture of NATO's ability to defend its most exposed states. Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia are the three NATO nations most exposed to Russia. Situated between Russia, Russia's principle ally Belarus, the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, and the Baltic Sea, the three nations with the exception of a sliver of Lithuania lack any shared borders with fellow NATO nations. russia map baltic This lack of a border, combined with the an ongoing drawdown of NATO forces relative to Russia's revanchist militarism, places the three nations at substantial risk from Russian adventurism. The RAND report, between the summer of 2014 and the spring of 2015, simulated a series of war games with military and non-military experts in order to understand what would happen during a Russian invasion. As current NATO force structures stand in Europe, RAND found that the military organization "cannot successfully defend the territory of its most exposed members." In the best case scenarios for NATO, Russia was prevented from reaching the outskirts either the Latvian or Estonian capitals for 60 hours. In the more dire scenarios, Russian forces were able to make it to the capitals in only 36 hours. nato v. russia This report from RAND echoes similar concerns of current Chairman of the NATO Military Committee General Petr Pavel. On May 27, 2015 Pavel warned that Moscow would be able to conquer the three Baltic States within two days despite their NATO membership. Pavel believed this would be largely possible due to NATO's relatively slow-moving command structure. Story continues "On the one hand, one of [NATO's] disadvantages is its complex process of decision making. It is because NATO has 28 members who have to reach consensus on all conclusions," Pavel told Czech news site CTK. "From the technical point of view, if I consider how many forces Russia is able to deploy in the Baltics, the size of the Baltic countries, and the density of forces on their territories, the Baltics could really be occupied in a couple of days." NATO US baltic russia Russia's ability to conquer the Baltics is due to both the Kremlin's ongoing push to modernize its military in addition to a general decline in NATO's ability to defend itself. Whereas Russia has undertaken massive pushes to modernize its fleet, with the possible outcome of denying NATO access to the Baltic Sea, and update its air force to deny the US air superiority, NATO military spending has largely fallen. As Foreign Policy notes, the US Army has pulled two heavily armored divisions out of Germany and only maintains two in Europe at this point. And in 2015, only five NATO nations met the minimum defense spending limit that the organization urges its members to meet. However, RAND notes that simple steps would change the calculus to enough of a degree as to prevent Russia's conquest of the Baltics. By deploying about seven brigades in Europe, NATO could ensure that it would have enough firepower to at least dissuade a Russian offensive. Here is the full report: NOW WATCH: The US Navy's last line of defense is this ultimate gun More From Business Insider Moscow (AFP) - Russia on Thursday accused Turkey of actively preparing to invade Syria, saying it had spotted troops and military equipment on the border with the war-torn country. "We have serious grounds to suspect Turkey is in intensive preparations for an armed invasion of the territory of a sovereign state -- the Syrian Arab Republic," the defence ministry said in a statement. Ties between Moscow, which supports the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and Ankara, which is a staunch backer of the opposition, have been in tatters since Turkey shot down a Russian bomber on the Syrian border in November. Moscow's claims came as Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, speaking at an international aid conference for Syria in London, implicitly accused Russia of "war crimes" in the country. Ankara said earlier Thursday that it had refused to allow a Russian reconnaissance plane to overfly its territory near Syria because of a disagreement over the flight plan. Russia said Turkey had not given Moscow any clear explanation for the decision. "We consider these Turkish actions to be a dangerous precedent and an attempt to conceal illegal military activities at the Syrian border," the defence ministry said. "Moreover, we are recording more and more signs of covert preparations by the Turkish armed forces for active action on Syrian territory," it said, adding that Russia has ramped up reconnaissance in the Middle East. "So if someone in Ankara believes that the cancellation of the flight by Russian monitors would allow (them) to hide something then this is unprofessional." The defence ministry, citing reconnaissance data, said Turkey had recently expanded a parking lot for heavy-duty trucks on the border as well two smaller parking lots in rebel-controlled Syria. "Such sites are used to secure a quick movement of military columns containing ammunition and weapons to a theatre of operations as well as a fast transfer and evacuation of personnel," it said. Story continues Moscow said it had recorded plenty of such examples at the Syrian-Turkish border "including the presence of troops and military equipment". Russia also said it was surprised that representatives of Pentagon, NATO and human rights organisations in Syria did not issue any reaction. The Turkish foreign ministry declined to immediately comment on the Russian claim. UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura announced Wednesday the suspension of peace talks to end Syria's civil war as the West accused Moscow of seeking a military solution to the war and refusing to halt its strikes. Following a request from Assad, Moscow launched a bombing campaign in Syria in September, saying it needed to target jihadists like the Islamic State group before they cross into Russia. The Syrian opposition has been outraged at Moscow's determination to press ahead with its bombing campaign during peace talks and accused Russia of targeting civilians. Beirut (AFP) - At least 21 civilians, including three children, were killed Thursday in Russian strikes on rebel-held districts of Syria's Aleppo city, a monitor said. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the strikes on six neighbourhoods of the northern city had also wounded many, and that the toll could rise. The raids come as government forces press an offensive north of the city, backed by Russian warplanes, to encircle rebels in the east of Aleppo city. Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said it was first time his organisation had been able to confirm Russian air strikes on Aleppo city since Moscow began its intervention on September 30. Until now Russian strikes had been concentrated on Aleppo province, he said. Aleppo city has been divided between rebel control in the east and government control in the west since shortly after fighting there began in mid-2012. In an operation launched on Monday, government forces have now almost encircled the east of the city, cutting the main rebel supply route from the Turkish border and breaking an opposition siege on two towns on the same road. Washington (AFP) - The United States on Wednesday denounced Russian air strikes in and around the Syrian city of Aleppo, saying they were targeting opposition groups and civilians and were harming faltering attempts at peace. "It is difficult in the extreme to see how strikes against civilian targets contribute in any way to the peace process now being explored," State Department spokesman John Kirby said, after the UN suspended peace negotiations until February 25. Moscow has consistently said that it is going after "terrorist organizations" in Syria, including the Islamic State extremist group. But the Syrian opposition -- and Western countries -- say the Russian strikes have almost entirely targeted other rebel groups, many of them backed by the West, Gulf states and Turkey. "We continue to see more Russian air strikes in and around Aleppo -- strikes not aimed at Daesh (the IS group), but rather, almost exclusively on the opposition," said Kirby. The spokesman said the strikes had "led to reports of civilian casualties, increased displacement of Syrian citizens and the possible obstruction of humanitarian assistance routes. "And so again we call on Russia to focus their military energy in Syria on Daesh, a common enemy to the entire international community, and not on the opposition or on innocent civilians." (Adds detail, quotes, analysts comments) By Vladimir Soldatkin MOSCOW, Feb 4 (Reuters) - A top official at Russian gas giant Gazprom played down the prospect of deliberate price cuts in the face of an expected influx of alternative fuels on Thursday. Gazprom deputy head Alexander Medvedev said there was no need for a price war over European gas markets, although if liquefied natural gas product costs and prices in the United States fell, Gazprom would have to respond by cutting costs. "Part of our volumes are marketed with (an) oil-peg. Within those contracts, a decades-long system of price revision mechanism exists," Medvedev told an investor meeting in London. "The other part of the volumes either directly or indirectly is related to the pricing at the gas hubs... In relation to such prices, we had not...and will not apply any discounts. So, I think there is no need for us to launch a price war". Natural gas from Russia accounts for a third of total gas consumption in the European Union, Gazprom's key market. Analysts expect rivalry for the market to intensify once the supplies of rival fuels, such as LNG from the United States and Australia begin to arrive in large volumes. Europe also has strategic importance for the United States, where companies that have already invested $60 billion in four giant export schemes see a lifeline in the continent's deep markets and dozens of under-used import terminals. Low oil prices, to which Gazprom's gas prices are pegged, have allowed it to strengthen its position in Europe as Germany, Russia's top gas buyer, bought 45.3 billion cubic metres (bcm) of Russian gas last year, an all-time high. UK consultancy Energy Aspects has said the incremental (year-on-year change) volumes of LNG likely to be available to Europe will be around 23 million tonnes in 2016 and 34 million tonnes in 2017. "For the next two years, we think Gazprom will default to business as usual and this will mean a drop in its exports by 10 bcm/y by 2017, as contract customers revert to minimum take-or-pay levels. At this point, we believe Gazprom will have to rethink its overall gas marketing strategy," it said. (Additional reporting by Nina Chestney in London; Editing by Jack Stubbs and Alexander Smith) United Nations (United States) (AFP) - Rwanda recruited and trained refugees from Burundi, among them children, whose ultimate goal was to remove President Pierre Nkurunziza from power, UN experts told the Security Council. The panel said in a confidential report obtained by AFP on Thursday that they had spoken to 18 Burundian refugees who provided details of their military training last summer in a Rwandan forest camp. "They reported that their ultimate goal was to remove Burundian President Nkurunziza from power," said the report by the panel of experts for the Democratic Republic of Congo. Burundi has repeatedly accused Rwanda of backing rebels intent on overthrowing the government in Bujumbura, allegations Rwanda denies. The refugees, who had crossed into the DR Congo, told the experts that they had been recruited in the Mahama refugee camp in eastern Rwanda in May and June 2015. The group was given two months of military training in Rwanda by instructors, some of whom were Rwandan military personnel, the report said. "Their training included military tactics and the maintenance and use of assault rifles and machine guns, as well as ideological and morale-building sessions," it added. Some were also trained in the use of grenades, anti-personnel and anti-tank mines, mortars and rocket-propelled grenades. Six of the 18 trained combatants were minors. The refugees told the experts that at least four companies of 100 recruits were being trained at the camp and that they were transported around Rwanda in military trucks, often with Rwandan military escorts. The Burundian combatants showed the experts fake identification cards from the DR Congo that were produced in Rwanda. The US-based advocacy group Refugees International said last month that Burundian men and boys were being recruited from Mahama camp and facing threats if they refused. "I haven't even seen the tiniest evidence of that so it becomes a lot of politicking," Rwandan President Paul Kagame said in December, calling the accusations "childish." Story continues UN experts also interviewed six Rwandan and Congolese nationals arrested on suspicion of arms smuggling at the Congolese-Rwandan border in October and November last year. Some of the suspected arms smugglers told the UN experts that the "weapons were to be used in support of an armed group in Burundi," said the report. Burundi has been in turmoil since Nkurunziza announced plans in April to run for a third term, which he went on to win. More than 400 people have died since then and at least 230,000 have fled the country. During a visit to Burundi last month, UN Security Council ambassadors met Nkurunziza, who again accused Rwanda of backing rebels. The African Union has proposed sending military observers on the Rwanda-Burundi border. As interest grows in Bernie Sanders revolutionary agenda following his strong showing against Hillary Clinton in the Democratic Iowa caucuses, a new study warns that the Vermont senators plan for universal government health care coverage could add as much as $14 trillion to the national debt over the coming decade -- even with enactment of the massive tax hikes that Sanders has outlined. Sanders favors replacing current federal health care programs, including the Affordable Care Act, with a single-payer Medicare for all program. He said it would assure all Americans full medical and prescription drug coverage and reduce the annual cost to consumers by eliminating the need to purchase private health insurance policies with ever-mounting premiums and co-payments. Related: Sanders Health Care Plan Would Cost $13.8 Trillion Over a Decade Bernies plan will cover the entire continuum of health care, from inpatient to outpatient care; preventive to emergency care; primary care to specialty care, including long-term and palliative care; vision, hearing and oral health care; mental health and substance abuse services; as well as prescription medications, medical equipment, supplies, diagnostics and treatments, according to Sanders campaign website. However, even with the adoption of the trillions of dollars in higher taxes Sanders has proposed to offset the cost of his national health care program, a new study by the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget found that the net cost to the federal government would skyrocket, and could potentially drive up the national debt by 100 percent to 150 percent of the Gross Domestic Product by 2026. Sanders health plan While the watchdog group applauded the self-described socialist who is not a member of the Democratic Party for attempting to match his health care proposals with increased tax revenues, the report warns that the overall cost to the government for would far exceed the tax revenue collected. Story continues Related: Sanders Says For-Profit Health Care Has to Go Sanders claims his single-payer program, which he says is similar to national health programs in Canada and Europe, would cost the government an additional $1.4 trillion a year or $14 trillion over the coming decade. Those figures are based on computations by the University of Massachusetts-Amherst economist Gerald Friedman. The governments costs would be offset with revenues from a combination of taxes on average workers, employers, investors, estates and the wealthiest earners. However, by our rough estimates, [Sanders] proposed offsets would cover only three quarters of his claimed cost, leaving a $3 trillion shortfall over ten years, the CFRFB report states. The study also cites an alternate analysis by health economist Kenneth Thorpe of Emory University forecasting substantially higher government costs or as much as $24.7 trillion over the coming decade. Thorpe and Friedman differ greatly over how much Sanders program would save in administrative costs, drug prices and other factors. As a result, Thorpe has projected a $14 trillion revenue shortfall for the government through 2026. Whats more, Sanders proposal would increase the top tax rate beyond the point where most economists believe it could continue generating more revenue, according to the CFRFB report. As a result, Sanders approach would produce even larger deficits as result of slowed economic growth. Related: The Next few Weeks Could Determine the ElectionHere Are the Key Events Other studies say much the same. A new analysis of Sanderss tax proposals by the non-partisan Tax Foundation concluded that they would raise tax revenue by $13.6 trillion over the coming decade, using standard methods for measuring the effect. However, because Sanders fiscal policies likely would discourage or slow economic growth and investment in the coming years, his tax proposals would ultimately collect only $9.8 trillion over the next ten years far below the cost to the government of undertaking a single-payer health insurance program. Sanders has energized large numbers of liberals and young people with his calls for a massive buildup of government programs and proposals for revising the federal tax code that would hammer Wall Street, the millionaire and billionaire class, and the striving middle class. Some estimates have placed the total cost of Sanderss social programs, including his single-pager planat $18 trillion over the coming decade. I believe everyone should be entitled to health care as a right, Sanders said recently at a town hall meeting in Iowa, claiming that his plan would save middle class people thousands of dollars a year on their health care bills. Sanders argued that it was unfair to criticize his proposed tax increases because millions of Americans would eventually see their higher taxes offset by elimination of the premiums on their current private health insurance policies. If you are paying $10,000 a year to a private health insurance company, and I say to you, hypothetically, that you are going to pay $5,000 more a year in taxesbut youre not going to pay any more private health insurance, are you going to be complaining about the fact that Ive saved you $5,000 in your total bills? Top Reads from The Fiscal Times: Riyadh (AFP) - Saudi Arabia is ready to join any ground operation the US-led coalition against the Islamic State group in Syria might decide on, a general from the kingdom said on Thursday. "If there is any willingness in the coalition to go in the ground operation, we will contribute positively in that," Brigadier General Ahmed al-Assiri told AFP. Since late 2014 Saudi Arabia has been part of a US-led coalition which officially has 65 members and has been bombing the Islamic State Sunni extremist group which seized large parts of Syria and Iraq. Assiri is spokesman for a separate Saudi-led Arab coalition which, since March, has conducted air strikes and ground operations in Yemen. That coalition supports the government there in its fight against Huthi rebels who seized much of the country and are backed by the kingdom's regional rival Iran. Iran is also one of the main allies of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whose regime has been fighting an insurgency for about five years. Saudi Arabia supports more moderate rebels against Assad's forces. US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter said in January that several members of the US-led coalition against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria are doing "nothing at all" to help destroy the jihadists. The United States has carried out the bulk of the roughly 9,800 air strikes launched in Iraq and Syria since the summer of 2014. Saudi Arabia carried out high-profile initial air strikes against the jihadists in Syria but participation by the kingdom and other Gulf members of the coalition declined when they began air strikes in Yemen. "We did not stop our operation in Syria in spite of the operation we have in Yemen," Assiri said. In November, the United Arab Emirates said it was ready to commit ground troops against jihadists in Syria. - Bearing the 'burden' - Quoted by the official WAM news agency, Emirati State Minister for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash said the UAE would "participate in any international effort demanding a ground intervention to fight terrorism". Story continues "Regional countries must bear part of the burden" of such an intervention, he said. The UAE belongs to the US-led coalition carrying out air strikes in territory under the jihadists' control in Syria and Iraq. It also has troops on the ground in Yemen as part of the Saudi-led coalition there. There have been growing calls for the anti-IS intervention to expand to a ground force. Russia launched its own strikes in Syria in late September and Iran has reportedly sent hundreds of troops to support Assad's regime. Critics -- including in the West and Sunni Arab Gulf nations -- have accused Russia of targeting moderate rebel forces as well as jihadists. Gargash also suggested the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen could be "an alternative model" to Western intervention in the region. US senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham have called for 100,000 foreign soldiers, most from Sunni regional states but also including Americans, to fight IS in Syria. Assiri's comment came as regime troops pressed a major Russian-backed offensive around Syria's second city Aleppo following the suspension of peace talks. Western nations accused Syria's regime of damaging the talks with its military offensive, and Washington on Thursday demanded Russia halt its bombing campaign in support of Assad's government. The growing offensive around Aleppo this week overshadowed peace and aid efforts, as regime forces sought to build on a series of important gains since Russia launched air strikes in September. Riyadh (AFP) - Iranian pilgrims are still welcome to visit Islam's holiest sites in Saudi Arabia despite increased tensions between the two countries, Riyadh's foreign minister said on Thursday. "Any Muslim is welcome in Mecca and Medina... and this includes the Iranian pilgrims," Adel al-Jubeir told reporters. He said the political crisis between the Sunni-ruled kingdom and its predominantly Shiite rival "has nothing to do at all" with the annual hajj pilgrimage or the lesser pilgrimage known as umra. The rites draw millions of faithful from around the world each year. In January, protesters burned Riyadh's embassy in Tehran and a consulate in Iran's second city of Mashhad to protest the Saudi execution of a prominent cleric from the minority Shiite community. Saudi Arabia and some of its allies cut diplomatic ties with Iran as a result. At a joint news conference Thursday with visiting German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Jubeir repeated accusations that Iran's "hostile policies" in the region for more than three decades led to the current situation. The two countries support opposite sides in the wars in Syria and Yemen. Iran has also consolidated its influence in Iraq and Lebanon. A stampede during the hajj last September that killed about 2,300 foreign pilgrims, including hundreds of Iranians, added to tensions. A person in Dallas appears to have spread the Zika virus to another person through sex, Texas health officials said today. Officials at Dallas County Health and Human Services (DCHHS) said that a person in the area was infected with the Zika virus after having sexual contact with another person who had returned from Venezuela, where the virus is spreading, and was ill. The case was confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the DCHHS said today (Feb. 2). "Now that we know Zika virus can be transmitted through sex, this increases our awareness campaign in educating the public about protecting themselves and others," Zachary Thompson, the DCHHS director, said in a statement. Thompson noted that abstinence or condoms are the best prevention methods against sexually transmitted diseases. [Zika Virus FAQs: Top Questions Answered] The Zika virus, which is currently spreading in more than 20 countries in Central and South America and the Caribbean, is usually transmitted by mosquitoes. But in rare cases, the virus has been reported to spread through sex, according to the CDC. For example, in 2008, an American scientist contracted the virus while working in Senegal, and apparently transmitted the virus to his wife when he returned home to Colorado. Sexual transmission was the most likely way that the wife became infected, according to a 2008 report of the case written by the scientist and his colleagues. And in a study published last year, researchers reported finding the Zika virus in the semen of a man who was infected with the virus during the 2013 outbreak in French Polynesia. The Dallas case is the first report of the Zika virus spreading in the United States this year. Health officials predict that there could be small outbreaks of the Zika virus in the country from the spread of the virus by mosquitoes, but this hasn't happened yet. Infection with the Zika virus usually causes no symptoms, but can lead to mild illness in some people, including fever, rash, joint pain or red eyes. However, health officials are concerned about a link between the Zika virus in pregnant women and microcephaly, a birth defect in which the baby's head is abnormally small. In Brazil, the number of suspected cases of microcephaly rose dramatically in 2015, at the same time the country was experiencing a Zika virus outbreak. Researchers have also found the Zika virus in the brain tissue of infants born with microcephaly. Story continues On Monday (Feb. 1), the World Health Organization called the link between the Zika virus and microcephaly "a public health emergency of international concern." The CDC recommends that all U.S. pregnant women consider postponing travel to the areas where the Zika virus is spreading, including 24 countries in Central and South America. Follow Rachael Rettner @RachaelRettner. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Royal Dutch Shell (Xetra: R6C1.DE - news) has reported an 80% plunge in profits and warned a prolonged drop in oil prices could see more cutbacks in the group, which has already slashed thousands of jobs. Earnings for 2015 fell to 2.6bn ($3.8bn) from 13.1bn ($19bn) the year before. The industry has been hammered by the collapse in the world energy market, which has seen the price of a barrel of Brent crude dive from $115 in the summer of 2014 to around $30 at the start of this year. The results come days after rival BP slumped to a 3.6bn ($5.2bn) annual loss. Shell (LSE: RDSB.L - news) is close to a 36bn ($52bn) merger with exploration group BG, with 10,000 jobs going across the two firms. Chief executive Ben van Beurden said Shell was undergoing "substantial changes", slashing costs and investment in response to the slump and added: "Shell will take further impactful decisions to manage through the oil price downturn, should conditions warrant that." But he expressed optimism about the coming merger. Mr van Beurden said: "The completion of the BG transaction, which we are expecting in a matter of weeks, marks the start of a new chapter in Shell, rejuvenating the company, and improving shareholder returns." The company cut back on investments in 2015 and is this year pulling out of a project in Abu Dhabi as well as postponing decisions on work in Canada and Nigeria. Shell's annual profit was hit by 4.7bn ($6.8bn) in one-off costs including write-downs in asset values and redundancy and restructuring expenses but earnings were still down sharply on an underlying basis, by 53%, to 7.3bn ($10.7bn). By Julie Gordon VANCOUVER (Reuters) - British Columbia's ambitions to become North America's next major liquefied natural gas exporter took another hit on Thursday, as Royal Dutch Shell pushed back a final investment decision (FID) on its LNG Canada project to late 2016. The delay came as Europe's largest oil company reported its lowest annual income in over a decade and said it would take further steps to cut costs to cope with weak oil prices if needed. LNG Canada, located on British Columbia's rugged northern coastline, is one of the frontrunners in a now slowing race to build Canada's first LNG export terminal. It has already been granted its key environmental permits. A Petronas-led project, also in the province's north, was given a conditional FID in June 2015, but an environmental review is still underway and could be further delayed by new rules requiring reviews to consider the emissions of upstream gas production. British Columbia's ruling Liberals, meanwhile, had been banking on having three LNG export terminals in operation by 2020, delivering new jobs in the near-term and bolstering government coffers in coming years. Shell has in the last year scrapped numerous multi-billion dollar projects, including a controversial exploration project in the Alaskan Arctic Sea, the Bab sour gas field in Abu Dhabi and Carmon Creek oil sands project in Canada. "We are postponing the final investment decision on LNG Canada right through the end of this year," Chief Executive Ben van Buerden told investors on a conference call. The LNG Canada partners - Shell, along with PetroChina Co Ltd, Korea Gas Corp and Mitsubishi Corp - had planned to take FID in the first half of 2016. Despite the delay, the team on the ground remained upbeat, noting that early work is moving ahead and the added time will be used to further derisk the C$25 billion ($18.22 billion) to C$40 billion ($29.15 billion) development. LNG prices are sinking as demand for the super-chilled gas slows and new supply from the United States, Australia and Russia is set to hit the market through 2021. Despite the near-term glut, Shell executives said they anticipate demand from China and other countries to increase through the next decade. (Reporting by Julie Gordon; Editing by Meredith Mazzilli) By Anjali Athavaley and Melissa Fares (Reuters) - Former Turing Pharmaceuticals Chief Executive Officer Martin Shkreli on Thursday called members of the U.S. Congress "imbeciles" on Twitter, moments after he refused to testify before a House of Representatives committee on why his company raised the price of a lifesaving medicine 5,000 percent. "Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government," said Shkreli, using his @MartinShkreli Twitter handle. He added, "I had prior counsel produce a memo on facial expressions during congressional testimony if anyone wants to see it. Interesting precedence." Earlier, Shkreli invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination and declined to answer questions from lawmakers about drug price increases he engineered such as hiking the price of 62-year-old Daraprim to $750 a pill from $13.50. During the hearing, Shkreli, whose youth and attitude have prompted some critics to label him "Pharmabro," responded to questions by continuing to laugh, twirling a pencil and yawning. After his appearance, he also retweeted several posts from supporters, including one from Michael J Lis (@mikeylis) that said: "Congress should just ask @MartinShkreli questions on Twitter instead of putting them in front of the house committee." Shkreli, 32, sparked outrage last year among patients, medical societies and Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton after the big hike in the price of 62-year-old Daraprim. Shkreli was a trending topic on social media following the hearing. There are about 30 posts per minute about him on Twitter as of Thursday morning, according to analytics firm Zoomph. About 92,000 people were talking about Shkreli on Facebook. His appearance prompted outrage on Thursday from members of Congress. Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders), U.S. senator from Vermont and Democratic presidential candidate, tweeted, "The American people are fed up with the blatant profiteering of pharmaceutical company CEOs like Martin Shkreli. It must end." U.S. House Representative from New Mexico Michelle Lujan Grisham (@RepLujanGrisham), a Democrat, said: "With all of the smirking, does @MartinShkreli really take this issue seriously? #PharmaBro." (Additional reporting by Dan Burns in New York; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn and David Gregorio) (Screenshot from ProTV) The Singapore woman who travelled to Romania with her mother to meet her online boyfriend reportedly plans to stay in the country for another one or two more months. Chinese daily Shin Min reported that Foo Li Kheng, 61, the mother of Cheryl Yap Lay Leng, 25, spoke to her husband Mr Yap via a phone call on Wednesday evening. During the phone call, it was reported that Foo told Mr Yap that they plan to stay in Romania for another one or two more months. Mother and daughter are currently staying with Yaps boyfriend, Alexandru Donea, 18, and his parents in a commune called Vulturesti, located about two and half hours drive from capital city Bucharest. Mr Yap agreed to this, and said he missed them and felt sad, adding that he hoped they would return safely. Miss Yap also told Romanian media she and Donea fell in love when they met in real life, and that she would stay on on Romania for him. The two have a common interest in Japanese anime and manga. Yap told Romanian media she came to Romania to work together on YouTube with Donea. A YouTube channel created by Donea features several anime music videos and has over 150,000 subscribers. Media reports added that she has also apologised for causing worry, but did not speak to her father during the phone call. Donea, however, apologised to her father over the phone. Mr Yap previously told the Chinese daily that he found out about the trip only when he saw his daughters credit card bill, which showed a return date of 16 April. He was also told by his daughters company that she did not apply for annual leave. Miss Yap also had with her four bank passbooks containing savings of at least S$40,000. Mr Yaps wife and daughter left for Romania without informing the rest of the family, and were uncontactable for 10 days. Their sudden departure sparked concerns that they were lured into a scam, and led to Mr Yap making a police report. Singapores Ministry of Foreign Affairs was also alerted. Romanias police force said the two were located in a commune called Vulturesti, and posted a photo of them on the national police forces Facebook page. The police confirmed they were not the victims of any crime. By Colin Packham and Michael Hirtzer SYDNEY/CHICAGO (Reuters) - Slowing Chinese demand for sorghum is set to exacerbate tough market conditions for grain farmers in the United States and Australia, as one of the few bright spots in global markets over the past two years starts to fade. Imports by top buyer China more than tripled in 2015 to above 10 million tonnes, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) data shows, as Chinese regulatory changes affecting corn boosted demand for sorghum for use in animal feed. Surging Chinese imports - up from just 631,000 tonnes in 2013 - have provided a lucrative trade for farmers in major producers Australia and the United States. U.S. exporters alone saw sorghum sales to China jump from $95 million in 2013 to close to $2 billion in the 2014/15 season as China gobbled up more than 80 percent of all sorghum imports last year, according to the USDA. Australian farmers sold a record A$410 million ($289 million) of sorghum in 2014/15, data from the country's commodity forecaster shows. But that demand is set to fall, with the USDA forecasting China's imports slipping to 7 million tonnes in 2015/16, while traders expect sales to be well down on even this figure as the country has built up large stocks of other feed grains. "Because of the huge stockpiles of corn and feed wheat, the Chinese government is trying to minimize the amount of imports of feed grain such as barley and sorghum, and so domestic users will tap the corn stockpiles," said Thomas Kim, sorghum trader at Nidera Australia. The depressed market for sorghum will add further pressure to prices of staple feed grains such as corn , which have come under sustained pressure amid global oversupply. SOURING GRAIN MARKET For Australia, the slowing demand closes the door on a market that has relieved pressure on growers battling drought and depressed global grain prices. Australia's grain market relies on wheat and sorghum for the vast majority of sales, and buoyant exports of the feed grain have helped offset lower wheat production as El Nino-related weather patterns stunted growth. Story continues Wheat production across Australia's east coast fell 15 percent below the five-year average in 2015, while global wheat prices were down 20 percent. The USDA last month forecast Australian exports of sorghum during the 2015/16 season at 1 million tonnes, well below the 1.7 million tonnes China purchased a year earlier. "I think the USDA number is high. The Chinese government released its No. 1 Central Document in the last week and they reiterated the need to use those domestic corn stocks," said Graydon Chong, senior analyst, Grains & Oilseeds, at Rabobank. Lower exports would also cut into a lucrative market for Australian east coast grain traders, including the country's largest listed bulk grain handler GrainCorp Ltd . In the United States, growers who targeted sorghum to capitalize on Chinese demand face lower returns. Kirk Liefer, who operates a farm in southern Illinois near St. Louis, upped his sorghum acreage last year to take advantage of a premium to corn. Prices are now about the same after benchmark corn prices fell to a six-month low in January. Liefer still plans to double his sorghum acreage this year as the crop is cheaper to plant and needs less fertilizer, offering savings over corn. U.S. production of sorghum rose nearly 40 percent in the 2015/16 season to 15.15 million tonnes, but with Chinese demand slowing, the USDA forecasts a 17 percent fall in exports. "The big gorilla in the room is China," said Wayne Cleveland, executive director of the Texas Sorghum Producers. "They still want to buy, they still like grain sorghum. It's just screwy government policies they have that tend to skew the market." ($1 = 1.4170 Australian dollars) (Reporting by Colin Packham in Sydney and Michael Hirtzer in Chicago; Additional reporting by Julie Ingwersen; Editing by Richard Pullin) A transparent material that can be attached to a smartphone's touch screen could help the device generate electricity whenever anyone taps it, researchers in China say. Touch screens are now found on most cell phones and tablet computers. Using a touch screen typically involves finger taps, and scientists at Lanzhou University in China reasoned that the mechanical energy from these motions could be converted into electricity to charge the phone's batteries, which could significantly extend the working time of these portable devices. The researchers developed a new material based on a transparent silicone rubber known as PDMS. Scientists embedded wires in this rubber that were made of lead zirconate titanate that were only 700 nanometers, or billionths of a meter, wide. For perspective, this is about 140 times thinner than the average width of a human hair. [Top 10 Inventions That Changed the World] As the rubber solidified, the researchers used electrical fields to align the nanowires in the rubber in columns. This alignment helped set both the material's electrical and visual properties. Whenever such nanowires are bent for instance, whenever anyone taps on the material they generate electricity, a phenomenon known as piezoelectricity. By making sure the nanowires are lined up with one another, the researchers helped ensure that they would react to finger taps in unison, generating as much energy from the motions as possible. When the material is viewed head-on, these incredibly narrow wires are largely invisible, and the material can look mostly transparent. As such, the nanowires "can harvest tapping energy on a screen without influencing the screen's normal working," study senior author Yong Qin, a materials scientist at Lanzhou University, told Live Science. In addition, when the material is viewed from an angle, the nanowires interfere with light rays, which means that anything seen through the material at that angle will look blurry. As such, the material can also help protect a user's privacy by preventing anyone nearby from being able to peek at someone else's smartphone screen. Story continues In experiments, tapping on the material generated an electrical current of 0.8 nanoamperes, or about one-millionth of the electricity used by a hearing aid. The scientists noted that the results of future research could help their material generate more current to efficiently recharge the batteries of mobile devices. Electrical signals from nanowires could also help researchers develop more sensitive touch screens, Qin said. The scientists detailed their findings online Jan. 13 in the journal Small. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Washington (AFP) - Pharmaceutical "bad boy" Martin Shkreli invoked his constitutional right against self-incrimination Thursday in a brief, contentious appearance before a US congressional panel. Shkreli, called to testify in a House oversight hearing on prescription drug prices, repeatedly declined to explain steep drug price increases he imposed as former chief executive of Turing Pharmaceuticals. Shkreli was asked what he would tell sick patients who can no longer afford the drug and whether he thinks he has done anything wrong. "On the advice of counsel, I invoke the Fifth Amendment and respectfully decline to answer your question," Shkreli told the lawmakers in each case. Shkreli wore a smirk and looked away from lawmakers much of the time, sparking bipartisan outrage. "It's not funny," said Maryland Democrat Elijah Cummings, the senior Democrat on the committee. "People are dying and they are getting sicker." Representative John Duncan, a Tennessee Republican and a veteran lawmaker first elected in 1988, said in all his years in Congress: "I've never seen an individual behave with such arrogance." Shkreli, 32, vaulted to notoriety in September 2015 after he raised the price of Daraprim from $13.50 to $750 per pill. Daraprim is a decades-old drug used to treat toxoplasmosis, a potentially fatal infection, and it is also used by HIV patients. In December, Shkreli was arrested and indicted for securities fraud for allegedly orchestrating a Ponzi scheme-like conspiracy at two hedge funds and another firm, prior to joining Turing. He is accused of lying to investors, moved money between investments to cover losses in other vehicles and siphoned off cash for personal expenses. Shkreli resigned as CEO of Turing the day after the indictment. Shkreli's attorney, Benjamin Brafman, a prominent criminal defense lawyer, told reporters after the appearance that it was a "frustrating morning for us." Story continues "Mr. Shkreli would like nothing more than to answer the committee's questions," Brafman said. However, invoking the Fifth Amendment was "appropriate" given his indictment on the fraud charge. "I would also tell you Mr. Shkreli did not intend to show any disrespect for any members of the committee, listened intently," he said. "Some of what you saw was nervous energy by an individual who very much would like to explain what happened, but has agreed to listen to his lawyer," said Brafman, whose high-profile clients have included Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the International Monetary Fund chief who resigned amid a sexual assault scandal. Shkreli stayed mum as television cameras followed him from the Capitol Hill hearing, but quickly took to Twitter after that to blast lawmakers. "Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government," he tweeted. JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa's national police chief, suspended over her role in the 2012 killing of 34 striking miners at Lonmin's Marikana mine, said on Wednesday a watchdog's recommendation to prosecute her amounted to a witchhunt. The incident, the country's worst police killing since the end of apartheid rule in 1994, sparked intense public and media criticism of the police, mining companies, unions and the governing African National Congress. On Tuesday, South Africa's police watchdog said it had recommended to prosecutors that Riah Phiyega, the national police chief at the time of the Marikana killings, face criminal charges for defeating the ends of justice. "Such a tragic event has been used as a witchhunt against me and others," Phiyega told a news conference on Wednesday. "I am not a criminal." Phiyega was suspended in October last year pending an investigation set up by President Jacob Zuma into allegations of misconduct in how the country's first female police chief handled labour unrest at Lonmin in 2012. "Investigations are not complete. I'm concerned about undignified haste to register charges against me," she said, in reference to the ongoing presidential investigation. (Reporting by Tiisetso Motsoeneng; Editing by Mark Heinrich) Madrid (AFP) - The March visit of the Spanish royal couple to Britain has been postponed due to the political situation in Spain, which has yet to form a government following inconclusive elections, the foreign ministry said Thursday. King Felipe VI and his wife Letizia had been due to pay a state visit to Britain from March 8 to 10 at the invitation of Queen Elizabeth II in what would have been the first such trip in more than 30 years. "Due to the current process of forming a new government in Spain, this state visit has been postponed," the foreign ministry said in a statement, without offering further details. Felipe acceded to the throne in 2014 when his father Juan Carlos abdicated, vowing to clean up the Spanish monarchy which has been hit by a series of scandals including fraud allegations against his sister Cristina and her husband. The 48-year-old forms a glamorous, modern couple with former television presenter Letizia, 43, whom he married in 2004. He has been actively involved in negotiations to form a government following elections on December 20 that saw the incumbent conservative Popular Party win but without an absolute majority, leaving its leader Mariano Rajoy struggling for support. After days of consultations with various party leaders, the king -- who traditionally nominates a candidate for prime minister following elections -- eventually picked Rajoy's main rival Pedro Sanchez, Socialist party chief. But Sanchez faces an uphill struggle to succeed where Rajoy failed, as he will have to sit down with conflicting parties to try and form an alliance acceptable to his own divided grouping that will also give him enough parliamentary seats to push his government through. Sri Lanka's war-battered minority Tamils welcomed the national anthem being sung in their language at Independence Day celebrations on Thursday for the first time in 67 years as a "giant step" towards reconciliation. The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) said the gesture, which saw schoolchildren sing Sri Lanka Matha ("Mother Sri Lanka") in Tamil at a military parade, signalled recognition the community were equal citizens. "It may be a small symbolic thing, but it is a very important step telling the Tamil-speaking people that they are equal members of this country and the state recognises that," M. A. Sumanthiran of the TNA, the island's main opposition party, told AFP. "It is in fact, a giant step from that perspective," Sumanthiran said, adding that he hoped more serious issues could also be resolved in the same spirit. Every year since 1949, the first anniversary of independence from Britain, the anthem had been sung at the main national celebration only in Sinhala, spoken by the island's ethnic Sinhalese majority. But on Thursday pupils sang in both languages at a televised military parade that also saw army tanks, gunships and fighter jets travel down Colombo's seafront promenade in front of thousands of flag-waving spectators. The Tamils bore the brunt of the island's 37-year civil war that ended in May 2009 and claimed at least 100,000 lives. But the election of reconciliation-minded President Maithripala Sirisena in January last year has helped to mend relations, and last year Tamils officially took part in national day celebrations for the first time. The previous government of strongman leader Mahinda Rajapakse had banned the singing of the national anthem in Tamil at official ceremonies. In a speech, Sirisena reiterated his pledge to allow an investigation into wartime human rights abuses following a UN Human Rights Council resolution late last year. "By implementing the resolution we safeguard the dignity of the nation, the people and the armed forces... and it helps us to be accepted as a respected member of the international community," the president said. Story continues Sirisena's new government has pledged to set up special war crimes courts this year to investigate allegations that troops killed at least 40,000 Tamil civilians in the final months of the conflict that ended in 2009. But opposition politicians, who deny war crimes were ever committed by a government-backed military, say the UN-mandated probe is intrusive and represents a threat to sovereignty. UN rights chief Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein is expected to travel to Sri Lanka on a four-day visit from Saturday, with his council due to review the country's progress in implementing the September resolution. Tamils account for just over 11 percent of the island's population of about 21 million and are demanding greater autonomy in areas where they are concentrated. Last month, Starbucks started giving full-time employees in China monthly housing allowances. The benefit, which will cover about half of the average workers housing costs, according to the company, is just Starbuckss latest welfare-policy roll-out. This year, the company will start giving U.K. employees interest-free loans to help pay the exorbitant up-front apartment-rental fees common in many cities there. Meanwhile, in the United States, Starbucks has started paying for employees to attend college, a program that began in 2014. About 5,000 have enrolled so far, and some 200 will have graduated by this summer. Increasingly it seems as if Starbucks is operating a sort of retail commonwealth (global population: 300,000). Working there typically means making low wages and having to smile when customers order no-whip, extra-foam lattes with one and a half packets of Splenda. But in a growing number of places, Starbucks will do a little something special to make up for that. Recommended: The Case for Reparations What the company provides depends on workers location. In many of its regions, using surveys, focus groups, and other forms of employee feedback, Starbucks diagnoses the biggest pain points for its young workers. Then the company designs a micro-solution of some kind, ameliorating the problem for some but not all employees. In America, workers most pressing needs have been health coverage (which Starbucks started offering in 1988 to full- and part-time employees) and, more recently, college tuition. In Britain and China, the greatest day-to-day pressures come from housing costs in cities. But why exactly has the company been doing this? Since when do executives at publicly traded companies worry about low-skilled workers holistic well-being? In speeches worldwide, Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz has been using the word humanity almost as often as coffee, and he insists it is in the companys business interests to do right by its workers. When he announced the college initiative in America, Schultz explained that he was trying to build a company with a conscience. In China, as he told more than 1,300 employees and their family members in January, We will do everything we can to continue to build a great and enduring company that you and your parents can be proud of. Story continues Some, though, accuse Starbucks of scoring cheap PR points with token gestures. If Schultz really wants to do the right thing, why not just double baristas wages? Id honestly rather have them cancel the college program, and Id give up my stock options, for a few more dollars per hour, wrote a self-identified Starbucks employee in a comment on Reddit last year. At the end of the day, thats what really ends up mattering the most. Recommended: Personal Stories of Abortion Made Public So far, both narratives appear to ring true. Starbucks is indeed doing well by doing good; its not a hoax. The business case for these perks is compelling. But the cynics are also right; these good deeds, unusual as they are, remain fairly modest. They will make Starbucks the company stronger and healthier, but they will not transform the economic opportunities of most baristas worldwide. The uncomfortable truth is that Starbucks currently depends upon the haves and the have-nots. China, for example, now has one of the worlds highest levels of income inequality, according to a recent report from Peking Universityhigher even than the U.S. The average Starbucks employee in China is a single 25-year-old who has recently moved to one of the 70 cities in which the company operates. Unlike their American counterparts, most Chinese Starbucks workers already have a college degree. They dont need tuition money; they need an apartment. Starbucks employees in China spend 20 to 50 percent of their paycheck on rental costs, according to the companys internal estimates. Almost three-quarters are migrant workers who have come to the cities for jobs and are struggling to start lives away from their families. Many are marginalized, legally and socially, living a life apart from the more affluent, permanent residents to whom they serve coffee. Under Chinese law, companies like Starbucks must contribute to a benefits system, known as the housing provident fund, that should, in theory, help employees afford apartments. But many cities do not allow withdrawals to be put toward rental costs. The money is meant to be used for purchasing a place, something the average barista in Shanghai has no hope of affording. Recommended: CDC to Women: Don't Drink Unless You're On Birth Control In the past, large companies, including Foxconn, which manufactures iPhones for Apple, have lured migrant workers by paying for employee dormitories. In the case of Starbucks, the company cannot house workers centrally because its stores are spread out all over China. Besides, the overcrowded, degrading conditions of some dormitories have led to worker protests and even riots, making them increasingly unattractive to image-conscious employers. So, considering the alternatives, the housing allowance is a relatively simple way for the company to help its workers. We want to help our young partners to better take care of themselves, settle in more easily, while they pursue their personal and professional dreams within Starbucks, Belinda Wong, the president of Starbucks China, wrote in a letter to employees announcing the benefit earlier this month. In Britain, meanwhile, property is more expensive than almost anywhere else in the world, outside of Monaco. Like their Chinese counterparts, the average Starbucks worker cannot possibly afford to buy an apartment. But in the U.K., even renting a room is a stretch, because urban renters must often pay an agent hundreds of poundson top of outrageous deposits demanded by landlords. That means people may need to pony up about 2,000 ($2,882) up front, according to Generation Rent, a U.K. organization that is helping to implement the program. The rental sector is completely unregulated, explains Betsy Dillner, the groups director. The government, especially in London, is not doing enough to keep housing prices under control. So this year, Starbucks will offer U.K. employees interest-free loans for up to a months pay, giving employees a year to pay off the debt. With over half of our partners being under 25 years old, Kris Engskov, the president of Starbucks Europe, Middle East, and Africa, said last year, rent affordability especially is an issue that affects them. These policies elegantly serve the interests of Starbucks the company. First, they encourage young people to work thereand to stay for a while. As the service sector continues to grow in China, Starbucks has to find ways to attract talent away from competitors. More importantly, Starbucks wants to keep the talent it has. In 2014, Starbucks CEO Schultz told The Wall Street Journal that the company was turning over nearly 100 percent of its baristas each year. (By contrast, his competitors had a 350 percent turnover, Schultz said.) Each newly hired Starbucks barista receives 24 hours of training and then requires weeks of on-the-job practice to get to a high level of productivity. (Starbucks is now making some of its greatest profits at its drive-through locations, which depend on highly efficient workers to churn out a freshly made, customized drink every 45 secondsroughly the amount of time that can pass before drivers waiting in line to become enraged.) This means that Starbucks is spending hundreds of millions of dollars a year on replacing its employees. If the company could reduce its turnover by even a few percentage points, the savings would run into the millions and could easily offset the costs of helping students pay for college courses or housing. Indeed, since the college program began, Starbuckss retention rate has improved and is now well under 100 percent, according to a company spokesperson (though it is hard to say for sure if the change is due to the college benefit). The companys benefit plans are beginning to reveal a heat map of inequalityfrom Beijing to Boston. Secondly, the benefits make Starbuckss customers feel good. This is central to Starbuckss business model, as Schultz readily admitted when I interviewed him last year for an Atlantic story on the companys college program. Theres real evidence that consumers have so many choices, and they are making hard choices based not only on convenience and price but on values. Not long afterwards, he made the point more bluntly to Fast Company: This is not altruistic; this is business. Values are a big part of both the balance sheet and the income statements of Starbucks. But why not just pay people more money? That way, workers could pay for college or apartments themselves, without interference from the invisible hand of Schultz, and customers could feel just as righteous about their coffee habits. And indeed, Starbucks has recently raised wages in the U.S. and the U.K., like other service-sector companies from McDonalds to Walmart. In China, the housing allowances will be the equivalent of a pay raise, showing up as more money in eligible workers paychecks (exact amounts will vary depending on location). But why not just raise wages even morefor all workersin lieu of perks for some workers? One reason is that it would be much more expensive for Starbucks. As lovely as the benefits sound, most Starbucks employees will not actually enjoy them. In China, the housing allowance is only for full-time employees at company-owned stores (or just 9,300 workers out of a total of 30,000 employees in China). And even full-time workers have to be at the company for six months before qualifying for the benefit. That means that only about a quarter of Starbuckss workers in China will receive the allowance for the foreseeable future. In the U.S., the college benefit is open to anyone who works at least 20 hours a week in a company-owned store. (Military veterans who work at Starbucks can now enroll a spouse or a child as well.) And so far, according to the company, nearly 90 percent of enrolled workers are re-upping for the next semesteran impressive retention rate for an online university. But less than 5 percent of the U.S. workforce has taken advantage of this benefit so far. Some baristas told me that they didnt have time for college, given their work and family obligations, while others were already attending other schools and did not want to switch to Arizona State University online, Starbuckss partner in the program. But for the workers who do use these benefits, the effect is more long-lasting than a wage increase might beat least for the company. The schemes nudge employees to commit to a longer time horizon than they might otherwise consider. Baristas wont reap the full value of a college degree or a housing loan unless they stick around for a while. (Workers dont have to stay at Starbucks once they earn a degree, but in order to be reimbursed for tuition they do have to stay while theyre taking classes.) In the U.K., Starbuckss 4,500 employees will only qualify for the housing loan after theyve been with the company for a year. The uncomfortable truth is that Starbucks currently depends upon the haves and the have-nots. The haves are their customers, and the have-nots are their workers. Like many companies and quite a few countries, Starbucks needs both groups to be satisfiedor at least apatheticin order to thrive. To its credit, the company has repeatedly listened to its workers and tried to help, even when doing so was very expensive (as in the case of health coverage for its U.S. workers). In the end, of course, none of Starbuckss policies will alter the larger structural problems afflicting low-skilled workers around the world. Ultimately the government needs to act by building more homes and giving renters more protection, says Dan Wilson Craw at Generation Rent in the U.K. In each case, Starbucks is applying a Band-Aid to a gaping wound created by the failures of governance and capitalism. And while its a more useful and better-targeted Band-Aid than what most other companies have so far bothered to contribute, it is still a Band-Aid. In fact, the companys benefit plans are beginning to reveal the weaknesses of the most powerful governments around the world, like a heat map of inequalityfrom Beijing to Boston. Starbucks is responding to something that the [Chinese] government has been unable to solve, says Mary Gallagher, the director of the Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies at the University of Michigan. But I dont think Starbucks is going to solve it either. Something larger is going to have to happen. Capitalist benevolence like this has been seen before, and its worth remembering. In the early 1900s, railroad and mining companies built entire towns, complete with churches and schools, for their workers in the U.S.a phase sometimes described as corporate paternalism. But then the Great Depression came, and some companies started doubling the cost of food in the company grocery stores or shutting down the towns altogether. It was up to the federal government to eventually create structural changes to smooth out the inevitable spikes and potholes of capitalism (hence the New Deal). Until governments can manage to do thatin China, the U.S., and the U.K.workers will have to collect their Band-Aids where they can and hope the bandages last longer than the average business cycle. Related Video Read more from The Atlantic: This article was originally published on The Atlantic. A stricken cargo ship carrying timber from west Africa was successfully towed into the northern Spanish port of Bilbao Wednesday after a days-long salvage operation prevented it from crashing into the neighbouring French coast. A tugboat dragged the listing Panama-registered "Modern Express" into the port accompanied by other vessels, an AFP photographer said, after an unexplained breakdown in high seas last month forced the 22 crew to abandon ship in a dramatic helicopter rescue. The 164-metre-long (538-foot) ship will now have to be moored and put upright again in the coming days in the biggest ever such operation organised by the port of Bilbao, one of the largest on Spain's Atlantic coast. The Modern Express was carrying diggers and 3,600 tonnes of timber from Gabon in west Africa to the port of Le Havre in Normandy, France when it ran into difficulties in January. It was also carrying 300 tonnes of fuel oil, although authorities said there was a limited risk of pollution in the event of a crash. The ship's crew sent a distress signal on January 26 after the vessel listed strongly to one side, possibly due to its cargo coming loose in the hull. Two Spanish helicopters were dispatched to airlift the crew to safety. They had been left clinging to the deck of the ship after it tilted at 40 degrees while buffeted by large waves and high winds. - 'Moving mountain' - The abandoned ship then drifted in rough seas for several days before authorities launched a bid to attach a tow line and stop it from hitting the French coast. Dutch salvage experts were lowered by helicopter onto the vessel to try and attach the line. They failed three times, with the cable snapping on Saturday due to swells of up to five metres (16 feet). "The difficulty is a combination of several things: the wind, the swell and the angle of the boat which is like climbing a mountain, but which is moving," a spokesperson for SMIT Salvage, the Dutch company working to attach the towline, told AFP over the weekend. Story continues On Monday, as the ship was approaching dangerously close to the coast not far from the western French resort of La Rochelle, they launched a final attempt and succeeded in connecting a tugboat to the vessel. The tugboat pivoted the ship, pointed it towards the open sea and started slowly dragging it away from France to Bilbao at the request of the vessel's owner, South Korean firm Cido Shipping. By late Tuesday it was nearing Bilbao, according to Spanish authorities, who decided to delay the operation to bring it into port until daylight Wednesday. If the towing operation had failed, the Modern Express would likely have crashed into France's coast, where it would have been dismantled or cut up. Paying off your student loans is just one of the competing financial goals many consumers are required to juggle. Another is home ownership. It's pretty clear that your student loan payments are going to affect how much and how quickly you're able to save a down payment for your first home, as well as the affordability of your mortgage payments. But they can also affect your eligibility for the mortgage in the first place. Take a look at the following to see how the different federal mortgage programs view the various types of student loan payments. FHA Loans Created in the 1930s, a Federal Housing Administration mortgage is a popular choice for many first-time homebuyers. Not only does it often allow for a lower down payment -- 3.5 percent in some cases -- the credit criteria can be a little more forgiving than one from a traditional lender. Unfortunately, recent changes to FHA mortgage underwriting rules may make this option less available to consumers with student loan debt. In the past, consumers who had their student loan payments deferred for at least 12 months could exclude this debt from the overall debt-to-income ratio considered when applying for a mortgage. What lenders look for here is whether your monthly debts are so high compared with your income that you are likely to struggle or be unable to pay your mortgage payment down the line. Most lenders look for debt-to-income ratios lower than about 43 percent, but some are OK if it is as high as 50 percent. For borrowers with large student loan debt, having the option to exclude this debt from that debt-to-income calculation could mean the difference between being approved for an FHA mortgage and being denied. Since Sept. 14, however, such deferred loans will now be included in the debt-to-income calculation to the tune of 2 percent of the student loan amount or about $200 for every $10,000 owed. This includes situations where the borrower is under an income-based repayment plan with a payment of zero dollars. Borrowers with fixed monthly payments will have those payments used in the debt-to-income formula. Story continues While this rule change will certainly cause some first-time applicants to be denied, it will also help ensure that consumers are not taking on more debt than is manageable. [Test your knowledge with this quiz on student loan repayment.] VA Loans Veterans Administration loans work under similar guidelines; however, they will not count the student loan debt if the loan is in an 18- to 24-month deferment at the time of closing. Anecdotal evidence seems to indicate that underwriters sometimes use the same standards for both FHA and VA home loans, so it's always a good idea to ask how a deferred or zero dollar income-based repayment amount will be treated. [Get familiar with private student loan repayment options.] USDA Loans Department of Agriculture home loans will take into account 1 percent of the balance of the loans in cases where the loans are deferred or under an adjustable repayment plan such as income-based repayment. If you are on a standard, nonadjustable payment plan, that is the amount that will be used in the debt-to-income calculation. Most traditional mortgage writers use Fannie Mae's underwriting standards. These standards have also recently changed, but for the homebuyer's benefit. These new standards require that the greater of 1 percent of the student loan balance or the actual payment amount be used when determining applicants' debt-to-income ratio. Up until recently, the amount used was 2 percent. Betsy Mayotte, director of regulatory compliance for American Student Assistance, regularly advises consumers on planning and paying for college. Mayotte, who received a B.S. in business communications from Bentley College, is a frequent contributor to ASA's SALT Blog; responds to public inquiries via the advice resource "Just Ask;" and is frequently quoted in traditional and social media on the topics of student loans and financial aid. Stockholm (AFP) - Sweden's Migration Agency said Thursday it expected around 100,000 asylum seekers in 2016, fewer than the 163,000 last year, but warned its estimates remain uncertain given Europe's struggle to control the migration crisis. "One can hardly speak of forecasts now. The future depends entirely on the decisions and actions taken at the European Union level and in Sweden," agency director Anders Danielsson said in a statement. Sweden, a country of 9.8 million, was one of the EU states with the highest proportion of refugees per capita last year as Europe battles its worst migration crisis since World War II. The migration agency said it was basing its 2016 planning on a scenario of around 100,000 asylum seekers, but gave an upper estimate of 140,000 should Turkish and European authorities be overwhelmed and if Swedish border controls prove ineffective. Conversely, if border controls work properly and more restrictive measures are put in place, Sweden might receive as few as 70,000 migrants. "We need to steer the number down towards 70,000 and preferably even under that," Immigration Minister Morgan Johansson told reporters. "If we see the numbers beginning to rise to a level that we can't manage, then we'll have to do more." Danielsson told Swedish news agency TT that the crisis was "definitely not over". "The only thing we know is that the pressure on Europe will be at least as strong or even stronger in 2016 than in 2015," he said. The influx to Sweden has plummeted since January 4, when Stockholm introduced systematic photo identification checks on train, bus and ferry passengers entering via Denmark. At a peak in October, Sweden received around 10,000 asylum requests a week, compared to less than 1,000 a week now. But Sweden's capacities are under strain, with rising concern about conditions in overcrowded asylum facilities and tensions between migrants and locals. In late January, Sweden said it expected that around 45 percent of those who sought asylum last year be rejected, forecasting the expulsion of up to 80,000 people. STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Sweden's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that a United Nations panel had ruled that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange had been "arbitrarily detained". "Their working group has made the judgment that Assange has been arbitrarily detained in contravention of international commitments," a spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry said. The comment confirms a report by the BBC earlier on Thursday. Assange, 44, took refuge in Ecuador's embassy in London in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden. Swedish prosecutors want to question him over allegations, which he denies, that he committed rape in 2010. (Reporting by Johan Ahlander; Writing by Simon Johnson; Editing by Alistair SCrutton) STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Swedish prosecutors said on Thursday a U.N. ruling which said Julian Assange had been 'arbitrarily detained' in Ecuador's embassy in London had no formal impact into an ongoing rape investigation against the WikiLeak's founder. "The statement from the Working Group has no formal impact on the ongoing investigation, according to Swedish law," the Prosecution Authority said in a statement. "The prosecutor responsible for the case is on a journey and has not yet been able to take a position on the latest development." Assange, 44, took refuge at the embassy in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning over allegations, which he denies, that he committed rape in 2010. (Reporting by Stockholm Newsroom; Editing by Dominic Evans) London (AFP) - World leaders pledged over $10 billion (9.0 billion euros) Thursday to help conflict-hit Syrians at a London conference overshadowed by the breakdown of peace talks in Geneva. The European Union, Germany, Britain and the United States were among the biggest donors to provide food, education and job opportunities for Syrians in their homeland and neighbouring countries where they have fled. But hopes that the package could make a major difference inside Syria were weighed down by the suspension Wednesday of peace talks in Geneva until February 25. That came as Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces, supported by Russian air strikes, stepped up their offensive near the major northern city of Aleppo, forcing nearly 40,000 civilians to flee. "Today's achievements are not a solution to the crisis -- we still need to see a political transition," British Prime Minister David Cameron said as the conference wrapped up. "But with today's commitments... our message to the people of Syria and the region is clear -- we will stand with you and support you for as long as it takes". Other steps agreed included the creation of an estimated 1.1 million jobs for Syrian refugees and those living in neighbouring countries by 2018. The conference also committed to getting 1.7 million children into education by the end of 2016/17. The $10 billion was split between just over half the amount which will be given out this year and the rest which was committed for 2017-20. - 'Reduced to eating grass' - Despite the pledges, the mood among many leaders was bleak, reflecting frustration at the halt Wednesday of the so-called proximity talks in Geneva which were seen as the best hope for peace since the conflict erupted in March 2011. "After five years of fighting, it's pretty incredible that as we come here in London, the situation on the ground is actually worse, not better," US Secretary of State John Kerry said. Story continues "If people are reduced to eating grass and leaves and killing stray animals in order to survive, that's something that should tear at the conscience of all civilised people," he added. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu accused the Assad regime of using a "middle centuries war strategy of starvation" against civilians near Aleppo. Among the biggest donors were the EU and its member states, which pledged more than three billion euros this year. Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose open-door policy for refugees has proved deeply controversial in Germany, offered 2.3 billion euros ($2.6 billion) by 2018. "What we can do by providing some funds for you is one element to help people not to have to embark on these very dangerous journeys that would take them to Europe," Merkel said. Britain announced 1.2 billion (1.6 million euros, $1.74 billion) and the United States $890 million. Cameron, who was co-hosting the conference, said a "new approach" was needed to address "one of the worst humanitarian crises of our time". His government, which has agreed to take 20,000 Syrian refugees by 2020, argues that those displaced are best helped close to home and wants to support neighbouring countries in doing so. - Following through commitments - Around 4.6 million Syrians have fled to nearby countries -- Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt -- while hundreds of thousands have gone to Europe. Jordan's King Abdullah II said that one in five people living in his country was now a refugee and that it had "reached our limit". Among those drumming up donations was Pakistani Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, who called for $1.4 billion of donations to help educate children inside Syria and in refugee camps. Representatives of Syrian charities attending the event noted that many more colleagues had been unable to make it as they had not been granted visas. During one session, Rouba Mhaissen, founder of Sawa For Development And Aid, asked how many Syrians were in the room -- and only two people put their hands up. Fadi Hallisso, co-founder of Basmeh and Zeitooneh (Smile and Olive) which works with refugees in Turkey and Lebanon, stressed the importance of protecting Syrians as a priority. "We are at the beginning of the right track but we have to watch to see that countries are committing to what they have pledged," he told AFP. He added that he was "not over-optimistic either because what is the point of constructing a school if it is bombarded?" London (AFP) - The United States demanded Thursday that Russia immediately halt its bombing campaign in Syria after a bitter breakdown in peace talks exposed the deep rift between world powers aiming to end the five-year conflict. On the ground, nearly 40,000 people have fled an offensive this week by President Bashar al-Assad's regime north of the city of Aleppo, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor. Assad's forces also entered two Shiite villages that were under siege by rebels, prompting what state news agency SANA called "mass celebrations" in the streets of Nubol and Zahraa. International donors were meeting in London on the Syria crisis just hours after the peace talks in Geneva were suspended Wednesday until February 25, with UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura saying "more work" was needed. The talks had been tipped as the most important push so far to end Syria's brutal conflict, which has killed more than 260,000 people and forced half the country's people from their homes since March 2011. Russia has been supporting the Assad regime with air strikes since September which it says are targeted at "terrorist organisations" such as the Islamic State group. US Secretary of State John Kerry warned Moscow to halt its bombing of the Syrian opposition in what he said was a "robust" phone call with Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov. "We discussed, and we agreed, that we need to discuss how to implement the ceasefire," he said, adding he and Lavrov would speak again later Thursday or on Friday. The Russian foreign ministry said Kerry and Lavrov had agreed to do everything possible to make the break in peace talks "as short as possible." French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius accused Syria and Russia of "torpedoing the peace efforts" with the offensive. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the pause in the talks showed "just how deep, how difficult the divisions are". Story continues - 'Eating grass to survive' - The suspension of the talks came as donors gathered in the British capital aiming to raise billions of dollars in aid for Syria and to help its neighbours cope with millions of people who have taken refuge on their soil. Co-host British Prime Minister David Cameron urged a political transition away from Assad "however difficult that may be". Britain pledged 1.2 billion (1.6 million euros, $1.74 billion) to be spent between 2016 and 2020 on what Cameron called "the world's biggest humanitarian crisis". German Chancellor Angela Merkel, under growing pressure over her open door policy for refugees amid Europe's biggest such crisis since World War II, pledged 2.3 billion euros. And Kerry announced $890 million from the United States. "If people are reduced to eating grass and leaves and killing stray animals in order to survive, that's something that should tear at the conscience of all civilised people," he said. Some 4.6 million Syrians have fled to nearby countries -- Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt -- while hundreds of thousands have journeyed to Europe. Jordan's King Abdullah II told the conference his country of around 6.5 million people had "reached our limit" after taking nearly 1.3 million refugees. Lebanon's Education Minister Elias Bou Saab told BBC radio that his nation of four million people had taken 1.5 million Syrian refugees and was dealing with an "earthquake". Up to 70,000 more people from camps near Aleppo are now moving towards Turkey as a result of the recent aerial bombardments, according to Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. "My mind is not now in London but on our border (and) how to relocate these new people coming from Syria," he told the conference. As well as drumming up aid, the meeting aims to allow more refugees to work in their host countries and boost their education. The UN is appealing for nearly $8 billion, while regional governments are seeking an extra $1.2 billion. Organisers have already agreed that participants should at least "double" their contributions from 2015, when they raised $3.3 billion. - Problems from the start - The Geneva initiative aimed to coax both sides into six months of indirect "proximity talks" under a November roadmap but there were problems from the start. The opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC) arrived reluctantly and several days late, insisting on immediate steps to allow aid to get through to besieged cities, a halt to the bombardment of civilians and the release of thousands of prisoners. Munzer Makhous from the HNC told AFP on Thursday that the pause in the talks was "the right decision" and called on the United States to help create "a balance" between the opposing delegations to avoid failure in a fresh round. "There needs to be pressure from the Americans on the Russians," he said in Geneva, hours before the HNC delegation was due to leave the Swiss city. "The balance needs to change, at least so it can be equal between the government and the opposition so each side can then make compromises," he added. WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Continued attacks by Syrian government forces, backed by Russian air strikes, against opposition-held areas signal their intention to pursue a military rather than a political solution to the Syrian conflict, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Wednesday. In a statement, Kerry called on the Syrian government and its supporters to halt bombardment of opposition-held areas, especially in Aleppo, and end sieges of civilians in accordance with United Nations Security Council resolution, the State Department said in a statement. "It is past time for them to meet existing obligations and restore the international communitys confidence in their intentions of supporting a peaceful resolution to the Syrian crisis," Kerry said. He added that the United States looked forward to resumption of peace talks later this month. (Reporting by Eric Walsh; Editing by Mohammad Zargham) Stockholm (AFP) - Here are key dates in the five-year legal saga of Australian WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. - November 18, 2010: A Swedish prosecutor issues a European arrest warrant for Assange on sexual assault allegations involving two Swedish women. Assange denies the claims, saying the young women consented. WikiLeaks starts releasing more than 250,000 classified US diplomatic cables, revealing often frank assessments of US officials as well as the views of other governments. Some 500,000 classified military documents concerning American diplomacy and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq had already been released by Wikileaks in July and October, 2010, respectively. - December 7, 2010: Assange turns himself in to police in London and is placed in custody pending a ruling on the Swedish extradition request. He is later released on bail and calls the Swedish rape allegations a smear campaign. Under the bail conditions, he must live at a supporter's mansion in England. - February 24, 2011: A British judge rules that Assange can be extradited to Sweden. In November Britain's High Court rejects an appeal against his extradition. Assange fears Sweden will hand him over to US authorities who could prosecute him for publishing the documents and possibly sentence him to death. - June 19, 2012: Assange requests political asylum at the Ecuadorian embassy in London. He is allowed to stay there by the government in Quito. - October 25, 2013: Ecuador demands that Britain allows Assange to fly to Quito. - July 16, 2014: A Swedish court upholds the European arrest warrant against Assange. - August 18, 2014 Assange's lawyer says he will not leave the embassy until it is guaranteed he will avoid extradition to the United States. - November 20, 2014: Assange loses an appeal against the arrest warrant. - September 12, 2014: Assange files a complaint against Sweden and Britain with the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention. - February 6, 2015: Story continues WikiLeaks says the cost of policing Assange is A10 million (13 million euros, $14.5 million), the equivalent of 39,000 hospital beds. Police say they spend 11,000 euros a day on surveillance. - February 25, 2015: Assange's lawyers ask Sweden's Supreme Court to quash the arrest warrant. - March 13, 2015: Swedish prosecutors offer to question Assange in London. He initially accepts, but Quito demands later that an Ecuadorian prosecutor do the questioning. - February 2, 2016: Assange says he will turn himself over to British police if the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention rules that he has not been arbitrarily detained. - February 4, 2016: The UN panel rules that Assange's confinement in the Ecuadorean embassy amounts to illegal detention, Sweden's foreign ministry says. - February 5, 2016: The UN panel confirms its view that Assange has been "arbitrarily detained," saying he should be able to claim compensation from Britain and Sweden over his time in the embassy. Britain immediately rejects the ruling, saying it will challenge it. By Kylie MacLellan LONDON (Reuters) - As senior British Conservatives prepare to take sides in a referendum on European Union membership, some will be more focussed on their own future - and their chances of succeeding Prime Minister David Cameron - than that of the country. While Cameron will allow his ministers to choose whether they support the 'in' or 'out' campaigns for the upcoming national vote, those hoping to become the next Conservative leader face a dilemma. If they come out in favour of Britain remaining in the bloc, they risk alienating the party's largely eurosceptic membership. But if they opt for a British exit, they will find themselves campaigning against their own leader - something that is likely to hurt their ambitions if they end up on the losing side. A draft deal on Britain's future published by the EU on Tuesday still has to be accepted by the other 27 member states. However, Cameron's support for the proposals has effectively fired the starting gun on the campaign for the referendum which he says could be held within a few months. Cameron reminded his ministers this week that they must back his renegotiation effort until a final deal is reached, something he hopes to achieve at a summit of EU leaders on Feb. 18-19, but the British media are looking for signs of which way they will swing. Eurosceptic Conservatives predict four or five cabinet ministers could back an 'out' vote, adding weight to their campaign. But with a leadership battle on the horizon, Cameron may have contained the risk of high profile splits. Potential successors have been manoeuvring since Cameron said he would not stand again at the next national election in 2020, and what they say and do on Europe will be closely watched by the lawmakers and ordinary members who will choose the new party leader. "The people who are thinking about going for the party leadership don't want to muck up their pitch," said Simon Usherwood, a fellow on the UK in a Changing Europe academic research programme. Any senior Conservatives campaigning for Britain to leave would be following a high risk strategy. "They are going to have to go against Cameron and only one of them can win," he said. Cameron once insisted his ministers would have to campaign for a collective cabinet position in the referendum but, faced with a likely eurosceptic rebellion, he dropped this demand. Usherwood believes the prime minister has strengthened his hand by getting some wavering ministers involved in hammering out the deal with Brussels on revising British EU membership terms. "Cameron has done a good job of making sure that he has dipped any number of people's hands in the blood of the renegotiation so that for them to then stop and say 'this (deal) is rubbish' becomes effectively impossible," he said. Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, who previously said he would vote to leave if the EU refused to change, has indicated he plans to back the 'in' campaign, saying he would find it difficult to oppose the government position and describing the draft deal as "a framework for substantial change". GAME PLAN Finance minister George Osborne, a close ally of Cameron, is the frontrunner for the party leadership, with flamboyant London Mayor Boris Johnson and interior minister Theresa May also among the favourites to be one of the two candidates chosen by Conservative lawmakers to go forward to a vote of party members. A YouGov poll of 1,003 Conservative Party members in September found 33 percent would back Osborne for leader, compared with 31 percent for Johnson and 17 percent for May. As Osborne has closely aligned himself with Cameron's position of staying in a reformed EU, the issue could give the more eurosceptic Johnson and May an opportunity to differentiate themselves. But the 'out' campaigns' hopes of securing their backing could be thwarted by personal ambition. Johnson, a former Brussels correspondent for The Daily Telegraph whose father was a member of the European Parliament, has the potential influence to sway the outcome of the vote. Polls show he is one of the most well-known politicians in the country and voters trust his opinion on the EU. He has also proven he has broad appeal, twice being elected mayor in the opposition Labour stronghold of London. Johnson, who is not a member of Cameron's cabinet and can therefore speak freely on Europe, has flirted with backing 'out' but the risk of ending up on the losing side after campaigning against his leader is likely to prove too much of a barrier. "His game plan, I think, is to be slightly more eurosceptic than Osborne and that is all he needs to do to make the eurosceptics feel that he is a better bet," Johnson biographer Andrew Gimson told Reuters. "He doesn't have to go the whole hog and take an enormous risk." Johnson, who is due to step down as mayor in May, has been careful to talk up Cameron's renegotiation efforts. "He makes apparently loyal remarks which are actually raising the bar of what Cameron can be expected to achieve," said Gimson. TOO ENTHUSIASTIC Lawmaker Steve Baker, co-chairman of the eurosceptic group Conservatives for Britain, predicts 50-70 of the party's 330 lawmakers will campaign for 'out', but acknowledges top cabinet ministers may hold back. "I am prepared at this point to go into the campaign without any cabinet big beasts," he told the BBC. House of Commons leader Chris Grayling and Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith, a former Conservative leader, are among those tipped to campaign for 'out', and reported by the British media to be increasingly frustrated at not being allowed to air their views in public yet. Despite talking tough at last year's Conservative conference on Britain's need to be able to curb immigration, interior minister May has largely stayed out of the EU renegotiation, keeping her cards close to her chest. Once tipped as a leader of the 'out' side, some commentators now predict she could keep a low profile during the campaign and then portray herself as the best candidate to bring the party back together afterwards. May has described Tuesday's draft proposals as "a basis for a deal". With polls showing a majority of party members favour leaving the EU, would-be successors must still tread a fine line if they decide to campaign for 'in'. "I imagine they are game playing it," said Steven Fielding, professor of political history at the University of Nottingham. "None of those people can afford to be too enthusiastic if they want to win over Conservative members." (Reporting by Kylie MacLellan, editing by Elizabeth Piper and David Stamp) Toshiba said Thursday it has expanded its full-year loss forecast to an eye-watering $6.0 billion, as one of Japan's best-known firms accounts for an embarrassing profit-padding scandal. The company -- a vast conglomerate that makes everything from rice cookers to nuclear plants -- also pointed to a global economic slowdown, saying it was taking a big bite out of results across its sectors, including memory chip and computer sales. Its new forecast of a 710 billion yen loss for the fiscal year to March -- well up from an earlier 550 billion yen net loss estimate -- came as Toshiba said it lost 479.4 billion yen in the nine months to December, reversing a profit from a year earlier. The disappointing figures follow Toshiba's announcement last month it was inflating tenfold a damages claim against a group of former executives in the wake of its accounting scandal. The company said it was now seeking around $27 million from five former top managers, including a trio of presidents, for their role in the fraud. Japan's market watchdog last month slapped the firm with a record $60 million fine over the affair, which saw the company inflate profits by about $1.2 billion since the 2008 global financial crisis. A company-hired panel found top executives had pressured underlings systematically to pump up profit figures to hide poor results. Toshiba's business was dented by the global downturn, while the 2011 Fukushima disaster killed off demand for atomic power at home in a big blow to the firm's key nuclear division. The scandal ushered in a wide-ranging restructuring, which included thousands of job cuts. The company has about 200,000 employees globally. "Toshiba Group has decided to execute bold structural reforms of its unprofitable businesses, and accordingly executed sales of fixed assets and other measures," it said Thursday. "For this reason, substantial losses were recorded" in the latest period, it added, citing restructuring costs. Story continues The company pledged to press on with the overhaul. It Tokyo-listed shares closed up 2.90 percent at 198.5 yen before Toshiba announced its earnings report, bucking a downturn in the broader market. The accounting scandal was one of the most damaging to hit Japan in recent years. The case forced an incumbent president and seven other top executives to resign last year and hammered the company's share price. Toshiba is facing lawsuits from investors, while Moody's and Standard & Poor's downgraded its credit rating to junk after the scandal. Auckland (AFP) - Twelve countries around signed the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), on Thursday in New Zealand, a huge free trade pact. Here are five key points about the TPP: -- The biggest deal of its kind in history, the TPP aims to remove tariffs and other barriers to free trade between 12 Pacific Rim nations. -- Those countries are Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam, and together they account for 40 percent of the global economy. -- The deal is seen as part of President Barack Obama's "pivot" to Asia, as he seeks to counter the rising power of China in the region and across the world. "TPP allows America -- and not countries like China -- to write the rules of the road in the 21st century," he said after the pact was signed. -- Participating countries now have two years to get the final deal approved at home, but this may not be straightforward -- particularly in the US, where opponents say the TPP is a job killer. -- While supporters say the deal will boost economies by harnessing the power of free trade, it has also come in for criticism around the world. Tens of thousands of protestors clogged the streets of Auckland to protest the deal Thursday, saying the TPP will benefit big business at the expense of small firms. In 1947, New Mexico police officer Lonnie Zamora was chasing a speeding car when he heard a loud noise. He saw a flame shoot up in a nearby patch of desert and went over to investigate, thinking a dynamite shack in the area might have exploded. What Zamora reported is still under intense dispute decades later. He says he saw a sedan-size, shiny object on a hilltop. Once he got closer on foot, the object began making loud noises. Zamora backed away but saw the UFO rise into the sky and speed away until it disappeared. The UFO sighting which is still unexplained despite investigators' belief that Zamora told the truth was investigated by the United States Air Force as a part of Project BLUE BOOK, which recorded 12,618 sightings of strange objects between 1947 and 1969. The Central Intelligence Agency also assisted in analyzing the sightings. [Where to Spot UFOs (Infographic)] Below are the tips that the CIA learned from "flying saucer intelligence," as the agency highlighted in a recent blog post. Helpfully, the CIA also published a list of UFO cases that Fox Mulder and Dana Scully the heroes of the recently revived "X-Files" TV series would enjoy. Create a group to find and evaluate the sightings. After the 1947 incident, Project SAUCER was established to obtain all possible information about these sightings. (The premise was that the sightings were not necessarily UFOs, but could be foreign craft.) The group was renamed Project SIGN and then Project BLUE BOOK. Figure out your investigation's goals. Project BLUE BOOK aimed to find out if UFOs were a threat to U.S. security, determine if UFOs have technology that could be used by the U.S., and explain which stimuli cause a person to report a UFO. Consult with experts. Project BLUE BOOK's outside experts included astrophysicists, federal aviation officials, pilots, academics, and people at the U.S. Weather Bureau, local weather stations, the National Center for Atmospheric Research and NASA, among other organizations. Organize cases in a reporting system. BLUE BOOK's categories included astronomical, aircraft, balloons, satellites, other (such as reflections or mirages), insufficient data and unidentified. Eliminate false positives. Examples included misidentified aircraft (particularly the U-2, A-12 and SR-71 spy planes), hoaxes and mass hysteria. Develop methodology to identify common aircraft (or other phenomena) the public mistook as UFOs. Examine witness documentation. Conduct controlled experiments, such as photographing certain types of balloons from different distances under similar weather conditions. Gather and test physical and forensic evidence. The Zamora investigation included using Geiger counters to look for radiation, and sending soil samples off for expert analysis. Discourage false reporting. In the 1950s, during the Cold War, there were concerns the Soviet Union could deploy fake "UFOs" to incite panic in the U.S. So officials countered that by teaching the public how to look for similar phenomena, such as astronomical objects (meteors) or illuminated objects (balloons). Follow Elizabeth Howell @howellspace, or Space.com @Spacedotcom. We're also on Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com. Copyright 2016 SPACE.com, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Tunis (AFP) - Tunisia said on Thursday it is lifting a nationwide nighttime curfew imposed last month after the worst social unrest witnessed in the country since its 2011 revolution. "In light of the improvement in the security situation, it was decided that from Thursday... the curfew on all Tunisian territory will be lifted," the interior ministry said in a statement. The curfew was imposed after protests that started in the central town of Kasserine, where an unemployed man was electrocuted during a January 16 demonstration over the lack of economic prospects in the region. The unrest, the worst since the uprising five years ago that ousted longtime dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, spread to several other towns and to Tunis where shops were burned and looted in one suburb in the night of January 21. The authorities announced the curfew the next day, and protests ebbed after continuing for a while in Kasserine and the nearby town of Sidi Bouzid, the cradle of the 2011 revolution. Tunisia in November imposed another nighttime curfew in the capital and suburbs after a deadly bus bombing claimed by the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group. It was lifted in December. Following the November 24 suicide attack that killed 12 presidential guards, the government also declared a nationwide state of emergency, which remains in place. While Tunisia is considered a rare success story of the 2011 regional uprisings known as the Arab Spring, the authorities have failed to resolve the problems of social exclusion. Last year two other IS-claimed attacks in the capital and near the Mediterranean resort town of Sousse killed a total of 60 people, all but one of them foreign tourists. Istanbul (AFP) - A Turkish court on Thursday charged a radical leftwing militant over the 1996 assassination of a top industrialist after the suspect was caught allegedly plotting an attack, local media said. Ismail Akkol of the outlawed Revolutionary People's Liberation Party-Front (DHKP-C) was detained on Tuesday with another militant on suspicion of planning a suicide bombing in the capital Ankara. Police later said Akkol had been wanted for 20 years over the killing of Ozdemir Sabanci, then the billionaire head of one of Turkey's largest industrial empires. A court in Istanbul remanded Akkol in custody, the Dogan news agency said, without specifiying the charges against him. Akkol told the court that he had been told by police that he would most likely be "executed in jail", it said. Sabanci was killed along with his secretary and another colleague in an attack on the Istanbul headquarters of Sabanci Holding in January 1996 that was blamed on the Marxist DHKP-C. Akkol and another suspect fled the country. Fehriye Erdal, a female DHKPC member, was captured in Belgium in 1999 but later released and Turkey is still seeking her extradition. Another militant, Mustafa Duyar, was murdered in prison while serving a life sentence over the Sabanci killing, the only person convicted in the case. Akkol and another man were arrested at a bus station in the western town of Soke on Tuesday, carrying weapons, explosives, ammunition and fake IDs. Dogan quoted police sources as saying that the pair had been planning a suicide attack in Ankara. Turkey has been on high alert for months following a series of attacks blamed on the Islamic State group, most recently a suicide bombing in January that killed 11 German tourists in the heart of Istanbul. In October, 103 people were killed in double suicide bombings at a pro-Kurdish rally in Ankara, the deadliest attack in Turkey's modern history. The DHKP-C has also staged a string of usually small-scale attacks in Istanbul over the last few months. It is classified as a terrorist organisation by the United States and the European Union and is vehemently anti-US, anti-NATO, and anti-Turkish establishment. ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Turkey returned its ambassador to the Vatican on Thursday, nearly 10 months after withdrawing him in protest against Pope Francis' description of the century-old massacres of Christian Armenians as genocide. The pope sparked a row with Turkey when he said the killing of up to 1.5 million Armenians in World War One was "the first genocide of the 20th century", just days before commemorations to mark the centennial of the massacres in April. Muslim Turkey promptly recalled its envoy. In diplomatic terms, a 10-month absence for an ambassador is a very long time. Turkey accepts that many Christian Armenians were killed in clashes with Ottoman soldiers when Armenians lived in the empire ruled from Istanbul, but denies hundreds of thousands were killed and that this amounted to genocide. Tanju Bilgic, the Turkish Foreign Ministry's spokesman, said the decision came after the Vatican on Wednesday praised Turkey's willingness to open its archives to historians and create a joint commission of scholars to explore past events. The Vatican comment was within a statement about the pope having received a book by an Italian author about a naval battle between Turkey and the Venetian Republic in 1657. Francis is given many books at his general audiences on Wednesdays but the Vatican rarely issues statements about them, so praise for Turkey in the context of the book was a sign that the Holy See way trying to find a solution to the impasse, a diplomatic source said. In the statement the Vatican also recognised the killing of a Turkish ambassador to the Holy See in 1977 by Armenian gunmen as terrorism, which Turkey "appreciated", Bilgic said. Turkey routinely withdraws its representatives in countries that decide to recognise the killing of Armenians as genocide. An overwhelming majority of Turks reject the accusation of genocide. The issue continues to thwart efforts to re-open diplomatic ties with neighbouring Armenia, and their 300-km (190-mile) border has been closed for two decades. (This version of the story corrects paragraph 4 to say Armenians lived in Ottoman empire, not Armenia was part of it) (Reporting by Tulay Karadeniz Additional reporting by Philip Pullella in Rome; Writing by Ayla Jean Yackley; Editing by Nick Tattersall and Louise Ireland) LONDON (Reuters) - Those helping support the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad are committing war crimes, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on Thursday. "The root cause of this problem is the war crimes committed by the Syrian regime, and the war crimes committed by Daesh, by ISIS," Davutoglu told a news conference on the sidelines of a fund-raising conference in London. "Those who are helping the Assad regime are committing the same war crimes. I am especially telling this today because Aleppo is under heavy attack by Russian airplanes." (Reporting by Kylie MacLellan; editing by Stephen Addison) Jerusalem (AFP) - Two Arab Israeli teenage girls stabbed and lightly wounded a guard at a bus station in central Israeli city Ramle on Thursday before being arrested, police said. The attack was the latest in a four-month wave of Palestinian violence targeting Israeli civilians and security personnel in the West Bank and Israel. According to police, a security guard at the entrance to the central bus station of the city, southeast of Tel Aviv, asked the two 13-year-olds -- one of them carrying a backpack -- to identify themselves. The two then pulled knives and stabbed the guard in an arm and his legs, lightly wounding him before they were apprehended. The guard was taken to hospital, medics said. A number of Arab Israelis have carried out attacks as part of the wave of Palestinian violence since October, which has killed 26 Israelis, as well as an American and an Eritrean, according to an AFP count. At the same time, 164 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces, most while carrying out attacks but others during clashes and demonstrations. Arab Israelis hold Israeli citizenship, though they largely see themselves as Palestinians. By Dan Williams JERUSALEM (Reuters) - An Israeli court jailed two Jewish youths on Thursday, one for life and the other for 21 years, for the murder of a Palestinian teenager in Jerusalem, a crime that helped trigger the 2014 Gaza war. The youths - unnamed because of their age - and a man, who organized the murder, were found guilty in November of the abduction, bludgeoning, strangling and burning of 16-year-old Mohammed Abu Khudair on July 2, 2014. All of them had confessed and said the murder was revenge for the killing of three Israeli youths by Hamas in the occupied West Bank days beforehand, prosecutors said. The incidents raised tensions, and a seven-week Israeli offensive against the Hamas-run Gaza Strip began on July 8 after cross-border Palestinian rocket attacks and an Israeli roundup of suspected militants in the West Bank. Tensions are intensifying again, with a wave of Palestinian street attacks against Israelis now in its fifth month, fueled in part by Israeli building on land the Palestinians want for an independent state, stalled peace talks, and Muslim anger at perceived Jewish encroachment on a contested Jerusalem shrine. Abu Khudair's father, Hussein, told reporters at Jerusalem District Court that the family wanted an appeal to the Supreme Court to give the youngest defendant a life prison term as well. The boys were 17 and 16 when they murdered Abu Khudair. "If there is no apartheid or racism (in Israel), you will have to do this," Hussein Abu Khudair said, saying authorities had been easy on the teenager because he is a Jew not an Arab. The state had sought life prison terms for both teenagers, but voiced satisfaction with Thursday's sentencing. "I hope that the message will be relayed that actions of this kind are revolting and that we as a society will not accept them," prosecutor Uri Korb told reporters. The man who organized Abu Khudair's murder, Yosef Haim Ben-David, lodged an insanity plea that has held up his formal conviction and sentencing. A court review of his psychological competence is scheduled for next week. Korb said that it was too early to know whether the state would appeal the lesser sentence of the younger teen and that the state hoped to quash Ben-David's insanity plea, see him jailed for life and "bring closure of this in the near future". Avi Himi, lawyer for the younger teenager, said he would advise his client to appeal. "I believe the minor did take part in the incident but not in the actual murder and should therefore have been acquitted of the murder charge," he said. A lawyer for the older youth did not immediately comment on his client's sentence. Life terms in Israel have often been commuted to 25 years' imprisonment, with reductions of terms possible under individual parole considerations or clemency. (Additional reporting by Maayan Lubell; Editing by Louise Ireland) Jerusalem (AFP) - A court sentenced two young Israelis to life and 21 years in prison Thursday for the 2014 burning alive of a Palestinian teenager. The sentencing came amid a wave of Palestinian stabbings, shootings and car-rammings that erupted in October, including an attack in Jerusalem on Wednesday that killed a policewoman. The two Israelis sentenced were minors at the time of the chilling attack in which they and a third man snatched Mohammed Abu Khdeir, 16, from an east Jerusalem street then killed him. The youngest of the three -- given 21 years -- was said to have psychiatric problems and found to have remained in the car when Abu Khdeir was killed. Israeli settler Yosef Haim Ben-David, 31, is said to have led the assault but his lawyers say he suffers from mental illness and was not responsible for his actions at the time. The court has found that he committed the crime but is yet to rule if he is mentally competent. The two others were 16 when they killed Abu Khdeir in 2014 but are now 18. The court, which has not identified them because they were minors at the time, noted they were from ultra-Orthodox Jewish families. Abu Khdeir's mother, Suha, screamed when the sentences were announced in the packed courtroom. Both she and her husband Hussein criticised the decision to jail one of the Israelis to 21 years. He called for their homes to be demolished, as Israel regularly does for Palestinian attackers. "This is the life of Mohammed we are talking about," Suha Abu Khdeir said. "He did not deserve this." The Jerusalem District Attorney's office said that it had requested life imprisonment for the two but it hoped the sentences given would deter others. "The terrible tragedy that befell the family of the boy Mohammed Abu Khdeir cannot be reversed, but the verdict given today conveys a message to society's aversion to such acts," it said in a statement. - Revenge plot - Abu Khdeir's killing was part of a spiral of violence that led to a 50-day war in the Gaza Strip in summer 2014. Story continues He was kidnapped from Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on July 2, 2014 and beaten, with his burned body found hours later in a forest in the western part of the city. A forensic report showed smoke in his lungs, indicating he was alive when set alight. It was seen as revenge for the killing of Israelis Naftali Frenkel, Gilad Shaer and Eyal Yifrach, who were abducted from a hitchhiking stop near the flashpoint West Bank city of Hebron. Israeli authorities said the suspects had decided to kill an Arab in revenge and equipped themselves with cable ties, petrol and other materials before randomly choosing Abu Khdeir. The court's actions came with tensions once again high. On Thursday, Israeli forces locked down the West Bank hometown of Palestinians who killed a 19-year-old policewoman and wounded another in Jerusalem on Wednesday, an attack analysts called an escalation after months of violence. The three Palestinians from Qabatiya near Jenin, believed to be 19 to 20 years old, were shot dead during the attack outside Jerusalem's Old City in which the border policewoman was shot in the head. Israeli authorities said the three assailants were armed with guns, knives and explosives, indicating they intended to carry out a major attack. - 'Widespread arrests' - The surviving officer was stabbed and is in a "moderate and stable" condition, the hospital said. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited her Thursday and spoke of intensified security measures. "Qabatiya is cordoned off. The (security forces) are carrying out widespread arrests," he said. "We have revoked very many permits to work in Israel and the attorney general informed me yesterday that he has slated several more terrorists' homes to be sealed and demolished." Residents and Palestinian police said all entrances to Qabatiya were locked down. Clashes also broke out between stone-throwing residents and soldiers. A 15-year-old was taken to hospital after being hit by an Israeli jeep and four people were wounded by Israeli gunfire, said Palestinian medics. The wave of violence since October has killed 26 Israelis, as well as an American and an Eritrean, according to an AFP count. At the same time, 164 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces, most while carrying out attacks but others during clashes and demonstrations. The violence continued on Thursday, when two 13-year-old Arab Israeli girls stabbed and lightly wounded a security guard at a bus station in Ramle, in central Israel. The two were arrested. NELLIS AIR FORCE BASE, Nev. (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Thursday the United States was watching events in Libya very carefully but had made no decision on expanding its role there. Carter, on a visit to Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, said the focus was now on political change in Libya, where two warring administrations are expected to form a unity government. The Pentagon chief also said he was aware of reports that the Saudi government had offered to send ground troops to Syria and that he looks forward to discussing the offer with Saudi officials in Brussels next week. Carter said the Saudi government has indicated a willingness to do more in the fight against Islamic State. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Eric Beech) By Julia Harte, Julia Edwards and Andy Sullivan WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Justice Department is considering legal changes to combat what it sees as a rising threat from domestic anti-government extremists, senior officials told Reuters, even as it steps up efforts to stop Islamic State-inspired attacks at home. Extremist groups motivated by a range of U.S.-born philosophies present a "clear and present danger," John Carlin, the Justice Department's chief of national security, told Reuters in an interview. Based on recent reports and the cases we are seeing, it seems like were in a heightened environment. Over the past year, the Justice Department has brought charges against domestic extremist suspects accused of attempting to bomb U.S. military bases, kill police officers and fire bomb a school and other buildings in a predominantly Muslim town in New York state. But federal prosecutors tackling domestic extremists still lack an important legal tool they have used extensively in dozens of prosecutions against Islamic State-inspired suspects: a law that prohibits supporting designated terrorist groups. Carlin and other Justice Department officials declined to say if they would ask Congress for a comparable domestic extremist statute, or comment on what other changes they might pursue to toughen the fight against anti-government extremists. The U.S. State Department designates international terrorist organizations to which it is illegal to provide "material support." No domestic groups have that designation, helping to create a disparity in charges faced by international extremist suspects compared to domestic ones. A Reuters analysis of more than 100 federal cases found that domestic terrorism suspects collectively have faced less severe charges than those accused of acting on behalf of Islamic State since prosecutors began targeting that group in early 2014. (Graphic: http://tmsnrt.rs/1IbZGHR) Story continues Over the past two years, 27 defendants have been charged with plotting or inciting attacks within the United States in the name of Islamic State. They have faced charges that carried a median prison sentence of 53 years - half of the defendants faced more, and half faced less. In the same period, 27 adherents of U.S.-based anti-government ideologies have been charged with similar activity. They faced charges that carried a median prison sentence of 20 years. Carlin said his counter-terrorism team, including a recently hired counsel, is taking a thoughtful look at the nature and scope of the domestic terrorism threat and helping to analyze potential legal improvements and enhancements to better combat those threats. The counsel, who was appointed last October and has not been named publicly, will identify cases being prosecuted at the state level that could arguably meet the federal definition of domestic terrorism," a Justice Department official said. That would give the department a direct role in more domestic extremism cases. Recognizing that domestic threats were rapidly evolving, and had the potential to grow, the department in March 2015 rated disrupting such terrorists as a key component of its broader counter-terrorism efforts, officials said. THE THREAT PENDULUM The Justice Department aggressively pursued domestic extremists after Timothy McVeigh bombed a federal building in Oklahoma City in 1995, killing 168 people. The government shifted its focus to international terrorism after al Qaeda killed nearly 3,000 Americans on Sept. 11, 2001. But in recent years anti-government activists, like those who occupied a wildlife preserve in eastern Oregon last month, have regained prominence. As law enforcement experts confront domestic militia groups, "sovereign citizens" who do not recognize government authority, and other anti-government extremists, they also face a heightened threat from Islamic extremists like the couple who carried out the Dec. 2 shootings in San Bernardino, California. "A new development we're seeing is that when it comes to ISIL investigations, the flash-to-bang time from radicalization to action appears to be happening faster than with other types of terrorists," said Michael Steinbach, the head of the FBIs Counterterrorism Division. As a result, government agents are quick to investigate people who appear sympathetic toward Islamic State, current and former officials say. But some say the government has been overzealous in its pursuit of Islamic State suspects. Similar actions by extremist suspects have yielded sharply disparate sentences. Eight Islamic State-related defendants have been sentenced so far, to prison terms that range from three to 20 years, the Reuters review found. Over the same period, 18 domestic extremists have been sentenced to terms from one day to 12 years. Prosecutors say Harlem Suarez, 23, of Key West, Florida, tried to buy a bomb last year from an undercover FBI agent as he plotted attacks on behalf of Islamic State. He faces a possible sentence of life in prison and has pleaded not guilty. Michael Sibley, 67, left two unexploded pipe bombs and a Koran in a park in Roswell, Georgia in 2014 in what he later told police was an attempt to highlight the danger of Islamic terrorism. He pleaded guilty and faces a maximum of five years in prison. "A different standard is being applied to Muslims than to other people," said Daryl Johnson, a former counterterrorism expert at the Department of Homeland Security who now works as a law enforcement consultant. "SPRING-LOADED" Steinbach said that the FBI can never open up any type of investigation just on the basis of race, creed, or religion, But he added that federal agents are "spring-loaded" to open investigations into Americans who support groups on the State Department list of designated terrorist organizations. The maximum penalty for supporting one of these groups has been raised from 10 years to 20 years in prison since 2001. It has been applied in 58 of the government's 79 Islamic State cases since 2014 against defendants who engaged in a wide range of activity, from traveling to Syria to fight alongside Islamic State to raising money for a friend who wished to do so. Judges usually issue sentences below the maximum, but some charges trigger sentencing "enhancements" that raise the baseline sentence a judge can issue and the material support charge raises it more than most. Domestic groups enjoy greater constitutional protections because being a member of those groups, no matter how extreme their rhetoric, is not a crime. Prosecutors can bring material support terrorism charges against defendants who aren't linked to groups on the State Department's list, but they have only done so twice against non-jihadist suspects since the law was enacted in 1994. The law, which prohibits supporting people who have been deemed to be terrorists by their actions, carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison. Current and former federal prosecutors say they rarely consider that statute in domestic terrorism cases because it is often hard to convince a jury that someone who is not affiliated with a foreign group can be guilty of terrorism. William Wilmoth, a former federal prosecutor who invoked that law in a 1996 case against a West Virginia militia member, said he was surprised to hear that it isn't used more often. "These guys have every right to have off-center political views," he said. "But when they made affirmative steps to blow up an actual federal facility... we thought it was an important place for us to go and prosecute." (Reporting by Julia Harte, Julia Edwards and Andy Sullivan; editing by Stuart Grudgings) By Tom Perry, Jack Stubbs and Estelle Shirbon BEIRUT/MOSCOW/LONDON (Reuters) - Russia said on Thursday it suspected Turkey was preparing a military incursion into Syria, as a Syrian army source said Aleppo would soon be encircled by government forces with Russian air support. Turkey in turn accused Moscow of trying to divert attention from its own "crimes" in Syria, and said Aleppo was threatened with a "siege of starvation". It said Turkey had the right to take any measures to protect its security. In another sign of the spreading international ramifications of the five-year-old Syrian war, Saudi Arabia said it was ready to participate in ground operations against Islamic State in Syria if the U.S.-led alliance decided to launch them. The United Nations on Wednesday suspended the first peace talks in two years, halting an effort that seemed doomed from the start as the war raged unabated. Washington said on Thursday however it was hopeful they would resume by the end of the month, and Russia said it expected that no later than Feb. 25. Donors convened in London to tackle the refugee crisis created by the conflict. British Prime Minister David Cameron said they raised $11 billion for Syrian humanitarian needs over the next four years. Turkey said at the conference up to 70,000 refugees from Aleppo were moving toward the border to escape air strikes. BORDER MARCH Footage online showed hundreds of people, mostly women, children and the elderly, marching towards Turkey's Onucpinar border gate, carrying carpets, blankets and food on their backs. Four months of Russian air strikes have tipped the momentum of the war Assad's way. With Moscow's help and allies including Lebanon's Hezbollah and Iranian fighters, the Syrian army is regaining areas on key fronts in the west. Russia's defense ministry said it had registered "a growing number of signs of hidden preparation of the Turkish Armed Forces for active actions on the territory of Syria". Any Turkish incursion would risk direct confrontation between Russia and a NATO member. "The Russians are trying to hide their crimes in Syria," said a senior official in Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu's office. "They are simply diverting attention from their attacks on civilians as a country already invading Syria. Turkey has all the rights to take any measures to protect its own security." In London, Davutoglu said the "humanitarian logistic corridor" between Turkey and Aleppo was "under the invasion of these foreign fighters and regime forces (with) the support of Russian warplanes". "What they want to do in Aleppo today is exactly what they did in Madaya before, a siege of starvation," he added. Davutoglu pledged that whatever the cost Turkey's door would remain open to all Syrians. It has already taken in more than 2.5 million. Relations between Russia and Turkey have deteriorated badly since Turkey shot down a Russian warplane near the Syrian border in November. State Department spokesman John Kirby declined to comment on Turkish military operations on the Syrian border, saying only: "They are working to secure that stretch of border, but I'm not going to comment on specific military activities of another nation inside their borders." ALEPPO, STRATEGIC PRIZE Aleppo, just 50 km (30 miles) south of the Turkish border, is a major strategic prize in the war and is currently divided into areas of government and opposition control. Many of the rebels fighting in and around the city have close ties to Turkey. This week, three days of intensive Russian bombing helped the army and allied fighters to sever a major supply line to the northwest of the city, in the process reaching two Shi'ite towns loyal to the government for the first time in 3-1/2 years. The army source said operations to fully encircle Aleppo from the west would be launched soon. A senior, non-Syrian security source close to Damascus said Iranian fighters had played a crucial role. "Qassem Soleimani is there in the same area," said the source, referring to the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' elite Quds force responsible for overseas operations. Residents thanked Assad, Iran and Hezbollah in celebratory scenes from the Shi'ite towns of Nubul and al-Zahraa broadcast by Hezbollah's al-Manar TV. The powerful Kurdish YPG militia, which controls wide areas of northern Syria, meanwhile added to the pressure on insurgents, capturing two villages near Nubul and al-Zahraa, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported. The Syrian Kurds have consistently denied opposition claims that they cooperate with Damascus. All diplomatic efforts towards ending the conflict have failed. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the latest steps in peace talks were undermined by increased aerial bombing. U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura announced a three-week pause. "I think the special envoy decided to suspend the talks because the organization did not want to be associated with the Russian escalation in Syria, which risks undermining the talks completely," a U.N. official told Reuters. Mohammad Javad Zarif, foreign minister of Iran, called in London for the talks to resume and for an immediate ceasefire. But he said later that should not mean stopping military operations against "recognized terrorist organizations", naming the Nusra Front and Islamic State. REBELS HOPE FOR MORE WEAPONS U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov had agreed on the need to discuss how to implement a ceasefire in Syria during a call on Thursday. The State Department said later Kerry would travel to Munich next week to seek an agreement on a ceasefire after assurances by Lavrov that Moscow was committed to a political solution in Syria. The State Department's Kirby, however, said that Russia's pledges to end the Syria conflict through political dialogue did not match its military actions on the battlefield, where it continued to bomb opposition positions. "Were certainly seeing, at least in the very recent past, discordant messages" by Russia, Kirby added. Rebel commanders said they hoped the peace talks' collapse would convince their foreign backers, including Saudi Arabia, that it was time to send them more powerful and advanced weapons, including anti-aircraft missiles. Assad's foreign opponents have been funneling weapons to vetted rebel groups via both Turkey and Jordan. One rebel leader said he expected "something new, God willing" after the failure of the Geneva talks. Another rebel commander said: "They are promising to continue the support. In what form, I don't yet know ... How it will crystallize, nobody knows ... We need to wait." Both spoke on condition of anonymity. While vetted "Free Syrian Army" rebels have received weapons including U.S.-made guided anti-tank missiles, their calls for anti-aircraft missiles have gone unanswered mostly because of fears they could end up in the hands of powerful jihadist groups such as the Nusra Front, which are also fighting Assad. A Russian defense ministry spokesman said a Russian military trainer was killed in a mortar attack on Feb. 1. "They (Russian military servicemen) are not taking part in ground operations," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. "We are talking about advisers. This is linked to teaching Syrian colleagues to operate equipment which is being delivered to Syria under existing contracts." A Saudi general said the kingdom was "ready to participate in any ground operations that the (U.S.-led) coalition (against Islamic State) may agree to carry out in Syria". Brigadier General Ahmed Asseri, who is also the spokesman for the Saudi-led Arab coalition fighting Iranian-backed forces in Yemen, was speaking to Saudi-owned al-Arabiya TV. (Additional reporting by Istanbul, Washington and Dubai bureaux; Editing by Andrew Roche and Lisa Shumaker) WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Treasury Secretary Jack Lew reiterated to China the importance of transitioning to a market-determined exchange rate in an orderly and transparent way, the Treasury said on Wednesday. During a phone call with Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang on Tuesday evening, Lew also urged Beijing to clearly communicate its exchange rate policies and actions to financial markets, the Treasury said in a statement. Wang said in the call that China remained capable of keeping the exchange rate of China's currency, the renminbi, "basically stable at a reasonable and balanced level", the official Xinhua news agency reported late on Wednesday. Xinhua added Wang and Lew also discussed how to push forward a bilateral investment treaty, under discussion for much of last year, to help improve business ties between the two countries. (Reporting by Lindsay Dunsmuir; Additional reporting by Adam Jourdan in Shanghai; Editing by Andrea Ricci and Eric Meijer) LONDON (Reuters) - Britain said on Thursday that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange had avoided arrest by fleeing to the Ecuadorian embassy and that it was under obligation to extradite him to Sweden over an outstanding rape allegation. Assange's 3-1/2 year stay in the Ecuadorian embassy in London amounts to "unlawful detention," a United Nations panel examining his appeal will rule on Friday, the BBC reported. "We have been consistently clear that Mr Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the UK but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorean embassy," a government spokeswoman said. "An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European Arrest Warrant in place, so the UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Mr Assange to Sweden." (Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge; editing by Stephen Addison) Kiev (AFP) - Ukraine faced the prospect Thursday of a fresh political crisis sparked by its reformist economy minister's resignation in protest at alleged influence-peddling and state graft. President Petro Poroshenko and Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk hastily arranged a meeting with ambassadors from the G7 nations after the envoys expressed deep concern at Aivaras Abromavicius's shock decision to step down. Poroshenko held last-ditch talks with the Lithuanian-born minister Wednesday in a bid to change his mind and reassure him that all his charges would be investigated in full. But parliament began debating the 40-year-old's future in a tense session that saw one deputy raise the prospect of holding a vote of no confidence in the government as a whole. "It is clear to everyone that we are entering a serious political crisis," parliamentary speaker Volodymyr Groysman told reporters. Western frustration has been fanned by the fact that Abromavicius is the fourth reform-minded minister to tender his resignation since Ukraine's 2014 revolution broke its ties with Russia and set it on a European course. Parliament never approved any of their dismissals and they still remain acting ministers in their posts. Yet the attempted flight of cabinet members charged with putting the war-scarred nation of about 40 million on a transparent path toward growth highlights the problems Ukraine faces in fulfilling its dream of joining the EU. The G7 envoys emerged from their talks with Ukraine's two top leaders and Groysman without divulging much about what was discussed. The Ukrainian leaders "assured us that they will work together, will work in unity for the reforms in the country," Japanese Ambassador Shigeki Sumi said on behalf of the foreign group. But the European Business Association on Ukraine openly called the economy chief's resignation "an appalling symptom, which is likely to have very negative repercussions." Story continues - New vested interests - Abromavicius levelled his most serious charges against a top Poroshenko party member named Igor Kononenko -- a figure the Ukrainian media often refer to as a "grey cardinal" who implements the president's political will. He accused Kononenko of trying to push his own people into economy ministry positions that oversee the cash flows of Ukraine's vast but notoriously opaque defence and energy industries. Abromavicius had tried to remove figures tied to vested interests from state corporations that have been bleeding money due to suspected corruption and complex offshore schemes. "I expected this," Abromavicius told the Novoye Vremya weekly's website just hours after his decision to quit. "But I expected this to come from the old interests (of ousted Russian-backed president Viktor Yanukovych) and not the new ones," he added. "It came as a big surprise when certain new politicians tried to get their hand on state companies." - 'Western confidence low' - Kononenko himself denied the charges and said he was ready to step down from his senior post in Poroshenko's parliamentary faction if his fellow deputies do not trust his work. But some political analysts said the entire scandal had already undermined Ukraine's reputation and threatened the disbursement of essential assistance tentatively promised by Ukraine's Western allies and the International Monetary Fund. "Regardless of whether Abromavicius stays or goes, this domestic political crisis is likely to have major repercussions," Anders Aslund of the US-based Atlantic Council wrote in a report. "The confidence of Western governments in the current Ukrainian administration is running low," Aslund added. "The International Monetary Fund, the United States, and the European Union had been expected to provide a total of $4 billion (3.6 billion euros) in credits later this month, but none are likely to contribute unless the Ukrainian government shows real commitment to fight corruption." By Pavel Polityuk and Natalia Zinets KIEV (Reuters) - Three Ukrainian cabinet members who had previously tendered their resignations will now remain in their posts, the government announced on Thursday, a show of unity a day after the abrupt exit of a key minister. Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk held an emergency cabinet meeting that looked to repair the damage from the departure of Economy Minister Aivaras Abromavicius, which had been seen as a major blow to Ukraine's fight against corruption. Abromavicius quit saying he would not become a "puppet" for corrupt vested interests, and accused a close ally of President Petro Poroshenko of trying to siphon off state funds. The move has highlighted deep divisions within the ruling coalition and prompted Ukraine's western backers to warn that the country is reneging on the reform promises it made in exchange for billions of dollars in financial aid. Yatseniuk said the government was determined not to stray from its reform drive. "Our principle is one for all and all for one. We came as a united team and we will work as a united, team," he said. "We demand ... an end to blackmail, political pressure (and) under-the-table dealings for positions of ministers, their deputies or the heads of state companies," he said. The health, agriculture and infrastructure ministers, who had also previously tendered their resignations, said they would continue to work in the cabinet provided they would be allowed to pass reform initiatives without political interference. However Abromavicius, whom Ukraine's international supporters championed as a key reformer, does not appear to have reversed his decision. Television footage of the meeting showed an empty chair next to Finance Minister Natalia Yaresko, where the economy minister would normally sit. His resignation, followed by several of his deputies, has raised concerns among local politicians that Kiev's relations with its Western backers could sour, threatening vital loan aid. AID MONEY Parliamentary Speaker Volodymyr Groysman earlier said Ukraine was entering a "deep political crisis" and called for a government reshuffle. The episode has shone an uncomfortable spotlight on Ukraine's efforts to tackle corruption, which the government pledged to do when it came to power after the Maidan protests in the winter of 2013/2014. "What happened is a catastrophe for the whole country," Leonid Yemets, a lawmaker with People's Front that belongs to Yatseniuk, told Reuters. "Think about it: how can we now talk with out partners in the West, with our donors, after the minister comes out and says that the deputy head of the president's faction is corrupt. Who will want to speak with us after this?" Abromavicius accused Ihor Kononenko, an ally of Poroshenko, of lobbying to get his people appointed as heads of state companies, culminating in an attempt to appoint one of his people as Abromavicius's deputy. Kononenko denied the accusations as "completely absurd", and said Abromavicius was trying to shift blame for his own failures in running the ministry. Ukraine relies on aid money from its Western backers, including the International Monetary Fund, the United States and the European Union, to stay afloat. In Washington, IMF managing director Christine Lagarde said that Abromavicius' resignation was "of concern" but mentioned no changes to Ukraine's funding program. "If the allegations that he makes in his resignation are correct, then it's obviously an indication that the anti-corruption measures that were committed to by the government are not yet working," Lagarde told a media briefing on Thursday. She added that such measures need "to be implemented and enforced rigorously, because the authorities are accountable not only to the Ukrainian people, but also to the international community." Ukraine's economy shrunk by more than 10 percent last year, dragged down by its war against pro-Russian separatists, who have taken control over a swathe of the country's eastern industrial heartland. The government is hoping the IMF will soon decide to disburse a third tranche of loans - worth $1.7 billion - which has been delayed since October. "The consequences of (the economy minister's) announcement are hard to predict, but it's clear that they are very negative," said a lawmaker from Poroshenko's faction, who declined to be named. "It could lead to the postponement of the IMF tranche." (Writing by Matthias Williams and Alessandra Prentice; Additional reporting by Alessandra Prentice and David Lawder; Editing by Toby Chopra and Meredith Mazzilli) Washington (AFP) - International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde said Thursday the abrupt resignation of Ukraine's reformist economy minister, who cited government corruption, was a troubling sign for its bailout program. "His recently announced resignation is a concern," Lagarde said in an online news conference when questioned about the resignation of Aivaras Abromavicius on Wednesday in protest at alleged influence-peddling and state graft. "If the allegations that he makes in his resignation are correct, then it's obviously an indication that the anti-corruption measures that were committed by the government are not yet working," the IMF managing director said. The IMF is the main source of rescue financing for Ukraine as the cash-strapped country battles with crises ranging from falling commodity prices to a new trade embargo by Russia. The Fund has a $17.5 billion rescue program for Ukraine on condition the government enacts economic reforms and fights corruption. "There's more progress to be had in this area," Lagarde said. "A lot of work needs to be done and it has to be implemented vigorously because the Ukrainian authorities are not only accountable to the Ukrainian people but also to the international community." Western frustration has been fanned by the fact that Abromavicius is the fourth reform-minded minister to tender his resignation since Ukraine's 2014 revolution broke its ties with Russia and set it on a European course. President Petro Poroshenko held last-ditch talks with the Lithuanian-born minister Wednesday in a bid to change his mind and reassure him that all his charges would be investigated in full. But parliament began debating the 40-year-old's future Thursday in a tense session that saw one deputy raise the prospect of holding a vote of no confidence in the government as a whole. United Nations (United States) (AFP) - The UN Security Council will meet Friday for consultations with UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura on the breakdown in Syria peace talks, diplomats said Thursday. Mistura will report to ambassadors of the 15 Security Council members on the decision to suspend the talks in Geneva. The closed-door meeting was requested by Venezuela, which chairs the Security Council for the month of February. After six days of separate discussions in Geneva with the Syrian regime and opposition, Mistura Wednesday announced a "pause" in the process, dashing hopes of coaxing Syria's warring parties into indirect "proximity talks" aimed at ending the almost five year old civil war. Mistura declined to categorize the breakdown as a failure, and said discussions would resume on February 25. With the opposition arriving late in Geneva and demanding immediate action on the humanitarian front while regime forces backed by Russia advanced on the ground, the announcement was of little surprise, experts said. Washington (AFP) - US Secretary of State John Kerry accused Moscow and Damascus of seeking a military solution to the war in Syria rather than a political one, after peace talks were suspended. Kerry's strongly worded remarks came hours after the peace talks were suspended and as the Kremlin, a staunch ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, vowed there would be no let-up in its controversial air campaign. "The continued assault by Syrian regime forces -- enabled by Russian air strikes -- against opposition-held areas, as well as regime and allied militias continued besiegement of hundreds of thousands of civilians, have clearly signaled the intention to seek a military solution rather than enable a political one," Kerry said in a statement. The United States and France had earlier condemned the Russian bombing around Syria's second city of Aleppo and Kerry again called for an immediate end to the bombardment. "It is past time for them to meet existing obligations and restore the international communitys confidence in their intentions of supporting a peaceful resolution to the Syrian crisis," Kerry said, addressing the Syrian regime "and its supporters." He added: "During this pause (in the talks), the world needs to push in one direction -- toward stopping the oppression and suffering of the Syrian people and ending, not prolonging, this conflict." Backed by external powers embroiled in Syria's war, the faltering peace negotiations are seeking to end a conflict that has killed more than 260,000 people and fueled the meteoric rise of the extremist Islamic State group. Miami (AFP) - Shrimp, swordfish, cod and crab are among more than a dozen types of seafood that would be subject to increasing scrutiny under a US plan to curb illegal imports, US officials said Thursday. The proposal announced by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) "will collect data about harvest, landing, and chain of custody of fish and fish products" involving 16 kinds of seafood imported into the United States and considered particularly vulnerable to fishing and seafood fraud. Some two billion dollars worth of seafood -- up to 32 percent of wild-caught seafood imported into the United States each year -- are illegal, according to research published in 2014 in the journal Marine Policy. Most wild-caught imports to the United States come from 10 countries: China, Thailand, Indonesia, Ecuador, Canada, Vietnam, the Philippines, India, Mexico and Chile. "This proposed rule is a critical first step in our efforts to create a comprehensive traceability program designed to prevent products from illegal and fraudulent fishing entering US commerce," said Catherine Novelli, under secretary of state for economic growth, energy, and the environment. The species on the list include abalone, Atlantic and Pacific cod, blue crab, dolphinfish (also known as mahi mahi) and grouper. Also included are king crab, red snapper, sea cucumber, all species of sharks and shrimp, swordfish and four kinds of tuna -- albacore, bigeye, skipjack and yellowfin tuna. The proposal is open for a 60-day comment period, which closes in early April, and the rule could become final by September or October. It is part of a series of recommendations issued by US President Barack Obama's Task Force on Combating Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing and Seafood Fraud "to ensure that global seafood resources are sustainably managed and not fraudulently marketed," NOAA said in a statement. However, critics pointed out the proposal would trace seafood to its point of entry into the US, but not to its point of sale, making little impact on consumer behavior. Story continues The advocacy group Oceana welcomed the proposal as a "first step" but urged stricter measures. "The steps outlined will not fully solve these problems," said Oceana's senior campaign director Beth Lowell. "It needs to apply to all seafood," she said. "Products need to be traced throughout the entire supply chain to final point of sale." Washington (AFP) - The planned withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan will hurt efforts to train and support local forces, the top US and NATO military commander in the war-torn country said Thursday. General John Campbell, who is reaching the end of an 18-month tour in Afghanistan and is expected to retire, said plans to draw the current US presence of 9,800 troops down to 5,500 would leave "very limited" capacity to support local forces. "To continue to build on the Afghan security forces ... we'd have to make some adjustments to that number," Campbell told the Senate Armed Services Committee in Washington. Afghan forces have just completed their first full year leading the fight against Taliban and other insurgent groups, with NATO and US forces remaining in a "train, advise and assist" role. But the Afghans have suffered several major setbacks, including the brief Taliban capture of the city of Kunduz. Further complicating the fragile security situation is the emergence of Islamic State jihadists in parts of the country. They are trying to establish a base in Nangarhar province in eastern Afghanistan, near the Pakistan border. "Afghanistan is at an inflection point," Campbell said. "If we do not make deliberate, measured adjustments, 2016 is at risk of being no better, and possibly worse, than 2015." Campbell's replacement will be Lieutenant General John "Mick" Nicholson, assuming he is confirmed by the Senate. During repeated questioning from committee chairman Senator John McCain about whether the troop level of 5,500 is sufficient, Campbell said he would carry out what he had been ordered to do. "I believe the right thing to do is to prepare to go to 5,500 as I am ordered," he said, though he noted that he would prefer additional troop pull-outs to be "conditions-based" rather than predicated on arbitrary Washington timelines. President Barack Obama in October announced that 9,800 US forces would remain in Afghanistan through most of 2016 -- backtracking on an earlier pledge to pull all but 1,000 US troops from the country. Campbell said the troop draw-down to 5,500 would likely begin in the fall. Caracas (AFP) - Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro vowed Thursday the opposition's attempts to drive him from power would not prosper "by fair means or foul" in a political crisis gripping the oil-rich nation. Opposition leaders have called for Maduro to be ousted by constitutional means, accusing him of dragging the country close to economic ruin. Despite having lost control of the National Assembly legislature Maduro dug in his heels as he rallied supporters near the Miraflores presidential palace. The rally commemorated a failed 1992 coup attempt by his predecessor Hugo Chavez, whom he hails as founder of the government's socialist "revolution." "The people must not allow the oligarchy to cut short this beautiful revolution," he told the crowd of thousands. "We are preparing for that so as not to allow them to do it one way or another, by fair means or foul." On Tuesday a small group of lawmakers presented a proposed constitutional amendment to cut Maduro's mandate short by two years and call a general election by the end of this year. The lawmakers were from the Radical Cause party, a minority member of the opposition MUD coalition. The MUD took control of the legislature last month after voters fed up with economic hardship turned on Maduro in elections. The resulting political standoff has raised fears of violence in the South American country, where 43 people died in anti-government riots in 2014. Other top MUD leaders have ramped up their calls in recent weeks to oust Maduro, promising to devise by June a legal means to do so. By Colleen Jenkins (Reuters) - Two Virginia Tech students plotted to kill a 13-year-old girl, buying a shovel and loading her body into the trunk of a Lexus before dumping it in a remote location, a prosecutor said on Thursday, according to media reports. The details emerged during a bail hearing for one of the students jailed in the death of Nicole Lovell of Blacksburg, Virginia, the town where the university is located. Natalie Keepers, 19, is charged with being an accessory before and after the fact of the murder, as well as with concealing a dead body. David Eisenhauer, 18, a fellow first-year engineering student, is charged with murder and abduction. A judge denied bond for Keepers at the hearing in Christiansburg, Virginia, a court official confirmed. Prosecutor Mary Pettitt said the students planned for Eisenhauer to lure Lovell from her home on the promise of a date before taking her to a selected site to cut her throat, the Roanoke Times newspaper reported. Pettitt did not give a motive, the paper reported, but said Keepers expressed she "was excited to be a part of something secret and special with Eisenhauer." Keepers maintained she was not present for the killing but told police she helped Eisenhauer load Lovell's body into the trunk of his Lexus, the prosecutor said, according to the newspaper. Keepers testified she had been receiving counseling and taking medication for mental health issues, the paper said. Pettitt could not be immediately reached for comment. Police have said Eisenhauer took advantage of a prior connection with Lovell to abduct and kill her. A neighbor whose daughters played with Lovell hours before her disappearance last week has told reporters Lovell had shared texts she exchanged through the smartphone messaging app Kik with an 18-year-old male she planned to meet. Lovell is believed to have been stabbed to death on Jan. 27, the day she disappeared. Her body was found Saturday in a wooded area in North Carolina, about two hours from Blacksburg. Story continues Kik Interactive spokesman Rod McLeod said the messaging service responded to emergency requests from the FBI and believed the information provided helped lead to the suspects' arrests. Keepers and Eisenhauer could go to prison for life if convicted. Their arrests have shocked acquaintances. "The David I knew had his faults, but this is beyond the scope of imagination," Gaige Kern, who ran cross country with Eisenhauer at Virginia Tech, wrote on Facebook. (Reporting by Colleen Jenkins in Winston-Salem, N.C.; Editing by Cynthia Osterman) Democratic presidential candidate Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has been called many things since his announcement in April that he would be running for Head of State. Until this week, "actor" was not commonly one of those things. A viral video of Sanders' cameo in the 1999 romantic comedy My X-Girlfriend's Wedding Reception shows Sanders as Rabbi Manny Shevitz. The Sanders campaign confirmed to CNN that the cameo was actually Sanders, and not a look-alike. "My name is Rabbi Manny Shevitz," the actor-turned-2016-presidential-candidate says. "And I am very pleased that you invited me to be with you today. I've prepared a few words for this important occasion." Speaking at a Jewish Italian wedding, Sanders goes off on a diatribe about the Brooklyn Dodgers and their 1957 move to Los Angeles. Sanders may have actually grown up as a Brooklyn Dodgers fan; he was born in Brooklyn, New York. "Two million dollars here; they spend $12 million there," Sanders lamented. "What's so free about that free agency?" While Sanders was mayor of Burlington, Vermont, from 1981 to 1989, he made another cameo appearance in the 1988 drama-comedy Sweet Hearts Dance. Sanders filmed alongside Academy Award-winner Susan Sarandon, who is campaigning for Sanders, according to Yahoo News. Sanders appears briefly in the film, handing out Halloween candy to children, after "being accused of being a bit stingy last year," a caption of a video of the scene on YouTube reads. But Bernie Sanders' talents weren't limited to the big screen. In 2014 his 1987 folk album, We Shall Overcome, was re-released by a small record label in Vermont. The album features Sanders and various artists producing remakes on civil rights-era songs. ABIDJAN (Reuters) - Turnover on West Africa's BRVM bourse rose about 48 percent last year, boosted by regional economic growth, the manager of the stock exchange told reporters on Thursday. "The economic growth of our region is the factor that explains the performance of BRVM," said Edoh Kossi Amenounve. "There is also monetary stability." Amenounve said regional investors accounted for about 75 percent of the turnover, which amounted to 337.9 billion CFA francs ($576.9 million), while international investors were responsible for 25 percent. The bourse is targeting a turnover of 400 billion CFA francs for 2016 and three new listings, including Bank of Africa-Mali and NSIA-Banque, which would put the number of companies at 42, Amenounve said. Average daily turnover at the exchange amounted to $2 million, according to the manager. In addition, investors had received 87 billion CFA francs in dividends and 96 billion CFA francs in bond interest. Amenounve said the all-shares index composite rose by 17.77 percent in the year, the best performer in Africa. ($1 = 585.6800 CFA francs) (Reporting by Loucoumane Coulibaly; Editing by Mark Potter) View in Alibi calendar Anthrax drummer bitches about post-modernity. Anthrax drummer bitches about post-modernity. Benante is blunt about the basics Anthrax vs. the Future Courtesy of the band Aural Fixation Six Girls, One Couch Litter Brain on their new album, Nope WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The White House said on Thursday it was hopeful that Syria peace talks suspended by the United Nations in Geneva would be back on track by the end of the month. "The U.N. representative ... did announce that the talks had been paused. He's used that terminology primarily because he expects the talks to resume before the end of the month," White House spokesman Josh Earnest said at a news briefing. "We're obviously hopeful that that will happen. And we're going to continue to try to encourage both sides in that direction." (Reporting by Ayesha Rascoe and Mohammad Zargham; Writing by Doina Chiacu; Editing by Frances Kerry) By Isla Binnie ROME (Reuters) - World food prices fell to near a seven-year low in January, weighed down by declines for agricultural commodities, particularly sugar, the United Nations food agency said on Thursday. Food prices have fallen for four straight years and remain under pressure from ample agricultural supply, a slowing global economy, and a strengthening U.S. dollar. The Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) food price index, which measures monthly changes for a basket of cereals, oilseeds, dairy products, meat and sugar, averaged 150.4 points in January against a revised 153.4 points the month before. The 1.9 percent decrease from December follows an almost 19 percent slide in 2015. Food on international markets in January was 16 percent cheaper than one year ago, the FAO said. "There are still prospects perhaps for further downward pressure on markets, but the U.S. economy, exchange rates, and the overall macro conditions are impossible to predict and their implications could be quite important," FAO senior economist Abdolreza Abbassian said. Positive revisions for wheat production prompted the FAO to raise its estimate for world cereal output in 2015 to 2.531 billion tonnes, still 1.2 percent below 2014's record harvest. Early prospects for cereal harvests in 2016 are mixed, the FAO said, partly due to El Nino-associated weather patterns having a particularly deleterious effect in the southern hemisphere. Southern Africa's crop prospects have been severely weakened by the dry and hot weather El Nino has brought, and wheat output in South Africa is likely to fall 25 percent, the FAO said. Early-season dryness in Brazil and Argentina could also result in reduced plantings. Dry weather forced Ukraine to cut the area under wheat, but conditions are better in Russia. (Reporting by Isla Binnie; Editing by Jan Harvey) (Corrects paragraph 3 to "causal" instead of "casual") * Sexual transmission may add new dimension to Zika threat * South America health ministers gather in Uruguay * WHO says nearly all Zika cases come from mosquito bites * More microcephaly cases reported in Brazil By Stephanie Nebehay and Anthony Boadle GENEVA/BRASILIA, Feb 3 (Reuters) - The World Health Organization voiced concern on Wednesday over the reported sexual transmission of the Zika virus in Texas amid worries that such infections could make efforts to combat the virus linked to severe birth defects in Brazil even tougher. The virus, spreading quickly across the Americas, is usually transmitted by mosquitoes. But health officials in Dallas County reported on Tuesday that the first known case contracted in the United States was a person infected after having sex with somebody who had returned from Venezuela. The WHO declared a global health emergency on Monday, citing a "strongly suspected" causal relationship between Zika infection in pregnancy and microcephaly, a condition marked by abnormally small head size that can cause permanent brain damage in newborns. Health ministers from across South America gathered in Uruguay's capital, Montevideo, to discuss the public health emergency and how the region can coordinate its fight against the outbreak. There is no treatment or vaccine for Zika. Sexual transmission could add a new dimension to the threat Zika poses, but WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl stressed that "almost a 100 percent of the cases" are transmitted by the bite of a mosquito. "This reported case in the U.S. of course raises concerns," Hartl said at the U.N. agency's headquarters in Geneva. "This needs to be further investigated to understand the conditions and how often or likely sexual transmission is." But he said that for the WHO "the most important thing to do is to control people's exposure to mosquitoes." The WHO estimates as many as 4 million people could become infected in the Americas. Hartl called the Texas case only the second worldwide linked to sexual transmission, referring to media reports about a case of an American man who returned from Senegal in 2008 and is suspected of having infected his wife. The medical literature also has a case in which the virus was detected in semen. "If you swap enough bodily fluid, most viruses can probably be sexually transmitted to some extent," said Ben Neuman, a virologist at Britain's University of Reading. Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a public health emergency in four counties with travel-related cases of the Zika virus, and ordered state officials to increase mosquito control efforts in some of the southeastern U.S. state's most heavily populated locales including Miami and Tampa. Scott directed state officials to pay special attention to mosquito spraying in residential areas. In addition, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which has urged pregnant women to consider delaying travel to locations with ongoing Zika transmissions, added Jamaica and Tonga to its travel alert. The WHO said the virus has been transmitted in at least 32 countries, from South America to the Western Pacific. Late on Tuesday, the Brazilian health ministry said the number of newborns with microcephaly it suspects are linked to the virus had increased to 4,074 as of Jan. 30, from 3,718 a week earlier. Researchers have identified evidence of Zika infection in 17 of these cases, either in the baby or in the mother, but have not confirmed that Zika can cause microcephaly. WARNING FOR EUROPE The WHO warned member states in Europe on Wednesday that the risk of the virus spreading into the region increases with the onset of spring and summer. "Now is the time for countries to prepare themselves to reduce the risk to their populations," said the WHO's Europe chief, Zsuzsanna Jakab. "Every European country in which Aedes mosquitoes are present can be at risk for the spread of Zika virus disease." The Pan American Health Organization, the WHO's arm for the Americas, said it needed an estimated $8.5 million to help countries in the region respond to the Zika threat. Brazilian Health Minister Marcelo Castro said U.S. experts will travel to Brazil next week to start work on the development of a Zika vaccine and come up with a timetable for the effort. A number of drug developers and universities are attempting to produce a vaccine. Experts have said a vaccine is months or even years away. Japan's leading drugmaker Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd said it has created a team to investigate how it might help make a vaccine, a day after France's Sanofi SA said it would launch a Zika vaccine program. Pfizer Inc, Johnson and Johnson and Merck & Co Inc said they were evaluating their technologies or existing vaccines for their potential to combat Zika. Indian biotechnology company Bharat Biotech said it was working on two possible vaccines. The rising number of cases has stirred concern ahead of the Olympic Games in August in Rio de Janeiro in August when Brazil's second largest city will host tens of thousands of athletes and tourists from around the world. (Additional reporting by Malena Castaldi and Sarah Marsh in Montevideo, Kate Kelland and Ben Hirschler in London, Zeba Siddiqui in Mumbai, Anthony Boadle in Brasilia, Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva, Amrutha Penumudi and Natalie Grover in Bengaluru and Letitia Stein in Tampa; Writing by Will Dunham; Editing by Michele Gershberg and Frances Kerry) By Edward Krudy NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York City's mayor Bill de Blasio will call for a city-run retirement system for private sector employees in his annual keynote address on Thursday. De Blasio, a Democrat, will reveal that he wants the city to become the first in the country to offer a retirement system to private employees. While better paid jobs offer individual savings plans, they are not always on offer to lower income workers. U.S. towns, cities, and states offer retirement plans for public workers that offer a defined level of benefits. New York City manages about $160 billion in its public pension funds for teachers, police, firefighters and other city workers. Some states have already started looking at introducing plans for private sector workers, leveraging the extensive infrastructure, know-how, and cost benefits they have acquired in running plans for public employees. Company pension plans have largely been replaced with savings plans that do not offer guaranteed retirement income. Workers frequently do not save enough and those at the lower end of the income spectrum are particularly impacted. City officials cited startling figures. Only 43 percent of working New Yorkers have access to a retirement plan, they said. Around 40 percent of New Yorkers between the ages of 50 and 64 have less than $10,000 saved for retirement. The mayor's plan would allow any New Yorker working at a business with ten or more employees to automatically enroll in an employee-funded retirement plan. The initiative from de Blasio is a continuation of his policy of improving lives for lower income New Yorkers. He has championed increasing the minimum wage to $15 per hour and introducing parental and sick leave. (Reporting by Edward Krudy; Editing by Bernard Orr) LUSAKA (Reuters) - Zambia closed two government universities on Wednesday following violent student protests over unpaid meal allowances, its higher education minister said. Minister Michael Kaingu said the government had indefintely closed the University of Zambia and Copperbelt University to protect people's lives and property. "All students are expected to leave the two university campuses by midnight tonight," Kaingu told a media briefing. Police had apprehended 26 University of Zambia students who blocked a road and stoned motor vehicles in Lusaka late on Tuesday during the protest, police spokeswoman Charity Chanda said. Dozens of other students at the Copperbelt University in Kitwe who were involved in a separate protest were apprehended, Chanda said. (Reporting by Chris Mfula; Editing by Angus MacSwan) By Stephanie Nebehay and Anthony Boadle GENEVA/BRASILIA (Reuters) - The World Health Organization voiced concern on Wednesday over the reported sexual transmission of the Zika virus in Texas amid worries that such infections could make efforts to combat the virus linked to severe birth defects in Brazil even tougher. The virus, spreading quickly across the Americas, is usually transmitted by mosquitoes. But health officials in Dallas County reported on Tuesday that the first known case contracted in the United States was a person infected after having sex with somebody who had returned from Venezuela. The WHO declared a global health emergency on Monday, citing a "strongly suspected" causal relationship between Zika infection in pregnancy and microcephaly, a condition marked by abnormally small head size that can cause permanent brain damage in newborns. Health ministers from across South America gathered in Uruguay's capital, Montevideo, to discuss the public health emergency and how the region can coordinate its fight against the outbreak. There is no treatment or vaccine for Zika. Sexual transmission could add a new dimension to the threat Zika poses, but WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl stressed that "almost a 100 percent of the cases" are transmitted by the bite of a mosquito. "This reported case in the U.S. of course raises concerns," Hartl said at the U.N. agency's headquarters in Geneva. "This needs to be further investigated to understand the conditions and how often or likely sexual transmission is." But he said that for the WHO "the most important thing to do is to control people's exposure to mosquitoes." The WHO estimates as many as 4 million people could become infected in the Americas. Hartl called the Texas case only the second worldwide linked to sexual transmission, referring to media reports about a case of an American man who returned from Senegal in 2008 and is suspected of having infected his wife. The medical literature also has a case in which the virus was detected in semen. "If you swap enough bodily fluid, most viruses can probably be sexually transmitted to some extent," said Ben Neuman, a virologist at Britains University of Reading. Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a public health emergency in four counties with travel-related cases of the Zika virus, and ordered state officials to increase mosquito control efforts in some of the southeastern U.S. state's most heavily populated locales including Miami and Tampa. Scott directed state officials to pay special attention to mosquito spraying in residential areas. In addition, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which has urged pregnant women to consider delaying travel to locations with ongoing Zika transmissions, added Jamaica and Tonga to its travel alert. The WHO said the virus has been transmitted in at least 32 countries, from South America to the Western Pacific. Late on Tuesday, the Brazilian health ministry said the number of newborns with microcephaly it suspects are linked to the virus had increased to 4,074 as of Jan. 30, from 3,718 a week earlier. Researchers have identified evidence of Zika infection in 17 of these cases, either in the baby or in the mother, but have not confirmed that Zika can cause microcephaly. WARNING FOR EUROPE The WHO warned member states in Europe on Wednesday that the risk of the virus spreading into the region increases with the onset of spring and summer. "Now is the time for countries to prepare themselves to reduce the risk to their populations," said the WHO's Europe chief, Zsuzsanna Jakab. "Every European country in which Aedes mosquitoes are present can be at risk for the spread of Zika virus disease." The Pan American Health Organization, the WHO's arm for the Americas, said it needed an estimated $8.5 million to help countries in the region respond to the Zika threat. Brazilian Health Minister Marcelo Castro said U.S. experts will travel to Brazil next week to start work on the development of a Zika vaccine and come up with a timetable for the effort. A number of drug developers and universities are attempting to produce a vaccine. Experts have said a vaccine is months or even years away. Japan's leading drugmaker Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd said it has created a team to investigate how it might help make a vaccine, a day after France's Sanofi SA said it would launch a Zika vaccine program. Pfizer Inc, Johnson and Johnson and Merck & Co Inc said they were evaluating their technologies or existing vaccines for their potential to combat Zika. Indian biotechnology company Bharat Biotech said it was working on two possible vaccines. The rising number of cases has stirred concern ahead of the Olympic Games in August in Rio de Janeiro in August when Brazil's second largest city will host tens of thousands of athletes and tourists from around the world. (Additional reporting by Malena Castaldi and Sarah Marsh in Montevideo, Kate Kelland and Ben Hirschler in London, Zeba Siddiqui in Mumbai, Anthony Boadle in Brasilia, Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva, Amrutha Penumudi and Natalie Grover in Bengaluru and Letitia Stein in Tampa; Writing by Will Dunham; Editing by Michele Gershberg and Frances Kerry) Panama City (AFP) - New direct Emirates Airline flights starting next month between Dubai and Panama will boost trade, officials predicted Thursday -- but the spread of the Zika virus through Latin America could deal a blow to passenger numbers. Panama's foreign ministry said the service -- which will be the world's longest nonstop flight at 17 and a half hours -- will "strengthen" commercial and cultural ties between the Middle East and Central American hubs. Underlining this "new era of relations," the foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates, Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan, will visit Panama next Thursday to discuss bilateral issues, the ministry said in a statement. The Emirates flights were meant to have already begun this week. But they were delayed to March 31, reportedly because codeshare agreements with other airlines needed more time. Now, though, the spread of the Zika virus through Central America could put a crimp in bookings to Panama. The World Health Organization suspects the mosquito-borne virus might be behind a spike of birth defects in northern Brazil, and several countries have cautioned about travel to affected destinations. Emirates, which already flies to Brazil, is reportedly offering refunds or reticketing for passengers with travel booked to such countries. The airline's plan for servicing Panama is to use Boeing 777s -- aircraft configured for just 266 passengers, around half of what its flagship Airbus A380s can carry. Emirates, a subsidiary of a holding company wholly owned by Dubai's government, flies to more than 150 destinations. Dubai is now ranked the world's busiest airport in terms of international passenger numbers. By MacDonald Dzirutwe HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe will allow foreigners to buy stakes of up to 49 percent in companies listed on its stock exchange as it tries to boost investment and revive its struggling economy, central bank governor John Mangudya said on Thursday. In a speech, he also said all investments by Zimbabweans abroad would require central bank approval with immediate effect and that banks would be penalised if they allowed external transfers not approved by the central bank. He also urged the creation of an Economic Crimes Court. "We have ... increased the threshold of foreign investors on the stock exchange from 40 percent to 49 percent in line with the indigenisation and economic empowerment policy," Mangudya said in a speech. The central bank chief said Zimbabwean companies and individuals had illegally transferred $1.884 billion in 2015, blaming this on lax foreign exchange controls since the country abandoned its currency in 2009 in favour of foreign currencies. The money was being transferred through non-remittance of export earnings, unapproved foreign investments, tax evasion and smuggling, he added. "This country needs to plug the leakages of foreign exchange for the economy to undergo durable and robust transformation," Mangudya said. The Southern African nation is still struggling to overcome a steep 1999-2008 recession that saw its economy contract by nearly 50 percent, with problems exacerbated by a devastating drought and plunging prices for the commodities it exports. The former British colony finances its entire budget from taxes after international financial institutions stopped lending in 2000 after Zimbabwe defaulted on its debt. On Thursday, the central bank chief blamed low industrial capacity and tax revenues as well as a liquidity crunch for sluggish growth and said suppressed demand is feeding deflation. Mangudya said low commodity prices had hit exports, which fell 12.2 percent to $2.5 billion between January and November last year. Imports also declined 5.8 percent to $5.9 billion during the same period. On Wednesday, the World Bank forecast Zimbabwe's economy will grow by 1.5 percent in 2016, less than the government projects, and said consumer prices will remain deflationary due to global and local constraints on its recovery. (Editing by James Macharia and Catherine Evans) Trini elected to EITI International Board Hart was elected by a wide margin over candidates from Colombia, Peru, Honduras and Albania for a place on the 2016-19 EITI Board. Newly elected members will be announced at the 7th EITI Global Conference in Peru later this month. A Trinidad and Tobago delegation will attend the conference. Commenting on his election, Hart said, I intend to use my position on the board to promote the TTEITI brand as well as the innovations we have introduced to EITI implementation. If our pioneering ideas are adopted, they could change for the better how the EITI is implemented worldwide. He added, The EITI is about protecting the peoples patrimony. Therefore, I will advance ideas to assist small countries rich in natural resources, like our CARICOM partners, in benefitting from EITI implementation. Since 2010, under Harts leadership, Trinidad and Tobago has been at the forefront of several progressive EITI implementation strategies. Hart pledges his continued advocacy for Trinidad and Tobago to be the EITI Champion for the CARICOM region. In the last two months TTEITI, in partnership with UWI and the British High Commission, has held workshops in Jamaica, Suriname and Guyana to promote the EITI aims of transparency, accountability and improved revenue management in those countries extractive sectors. These sectors are mainly oil, gas and mining for minerals, but can also include forestry and fishing industries. The series of regional workshops will end with a Regional Symposium in Guyana on March 4, 2016. Hart is a retired Quantity Surveyor and Project Manager. He served on the Commission of Enquiry into alleged corruption in the Piarco Airport project. This led to his commitment to reducing the opportunities for corruption in the nations public and private sectors. In addition, Hart was a Director of the Trinidad and Tobago Transparency Institute (Transparency) for five years, during which he served as Director, Treasurer and Chair for three years. Transparencys 14 years of advocacy with other civil society groups for public sector procurement reform bore fruit in January 2015 when the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Property Act 2015 was passed in Parliament. Hart served on the Cabinet-appointed Oversight Committee for Public Procurement that guided the implementation of the Act, which should become fully operational in 2016. Businessman: Reduce VAT to 9% A lot of things in this country are subsidised. Electricity, water and gas being the main things, so people need to realise that with the drop in revenue, Government needs to find money from somewhere to continue providing services. I think Government should reduce the VAT even more, to about nine percent and apply it to the majority of things. This would be more affordable to us consumers while bringing in even more money for Government, Hosein argued. Unlike most supermarkets, management at Xtra Foods chose to display the old and new prices on their more than 50,000 items, thus allowing shoppers to track which items have increased and which have decreased in cost following the February 1 VAT changes. Thousands of items, many of them food products, were removed from the zero-rated list and placed on the VATable list, while VAT itself was reduced from 15 percent to 12.5 percent. Asked what he thought of the supermarkets display decision, Hosein said he was happy to have a quick reference for the changes but that when it comes to quality, once I can afford it, I will continue buying certain brands. Buying local isnt always an option. Sometimes the quality isnt as good, sometimes the item costs more, so Ill have to see what my options are, Hosein told Business Day. Other shoppers, however, were already calculating how much theyd have to cut back on following the application of VAT to previously zero-rated items such as juices and snacks. One woman who was buying a few items at Food Basket Market Place, Endeavour Industrial Estate, Endeavour Road, Chaguanas said, My son and daughter prefer certain drinks and snacks. So rather than deprive them of what they like to carry to school, my husband and I will make whatever sacrifices we have to. For some shoppers, the price changes may affect how often or how much of an item they buy, but because the items are essential, they will continue purchasing those products. Sunil Ramoutar and Nisha Seenath from Cunupia fall into this category. Ramoutar explained that they operate a food business, so we have to buy meat each week. We shop at Food Basket because the quality is good, so even though fresh and frozen meat no longer zero-rated, we have to buy it. Zikas cost The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has cautioned pregnant women to consider postponing travel to any area where Zika virus transmission is ongoing. This caution includes countries in the Caribbean for example the US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Barbados and St Martin. For many of these countries, tourism is a critical part of their GDP and earns vital foreign exchange. The business case for investing in preparedness is compelling. A recent report by the commission on a Global Health Risk Framework for the Future estimated that the expected economic cost of potential pandemics was more than $60 billion a year. Caribbean nations whose economies are dependent on tourism are seeing cancellations escalate by the day. These cancellations mean lower demand for manufactured goods from Trinidad and Tobago (cancellations by Caribbean Nations affecting TT in particular?). This could not be happening at a worse time when we need the non-energy sector to expand. We in this country need to see the speed of the spread of the virus and its reach globally as the outcome of globalisation and urbanisation. It is very difficult to prevent the spread, but efforts need to be employed in minimizing the spread to the barest minimum and reduce the risks to women. Researchers in the New England Journal of Medicine pointed out that urban crowding, constant international travel, and other human behaviors combined with human-caused micro perturbations in ecologic balance can cause innumerable slumbering infectious agents to emerge unexpectedly, like the Zika virus. Theres also the impact on the population of delayed and discouraged pregnancies. Advising entire cohorts of women to postpone childbearing for years could impact the demographic trajectories of countries, adversely affecting their future economic prospects. This has implications for pension contributions down the road. There is also the medical costs associated with treating with affected babies born with birth defects and neurological problems. This can require different types of health care and social support cost, borne mainly by the state throughout the life of the affected children. Families would also be affected emotionally and financially, and their lives will have to change to address the needs of their affected child. Against this backdrop what should be the epidemiological response if there is an outbreak after Carnival? What is the institutional capacity to manage such an outbreak? Does the Ministry of Health have the capacity to share guidance on behavioral changes that can temper the spread of Zika? We hope that the containment efforts would not be hamstrung by the governments acute fiscal constraints particularly if the government needs to develop and/or deploy both preventive and therapeutic interventions. The choice of where and on what to spend scarce funds is paramount. Zika is one choice we must not forego. TT can weather economic storm In an interview about the banks Consolidated Financial Statements for 2015, released last week, Johnston was asked how the low and declining energy prices, combined with the recession and appeals for people to cut back on spending would impact on the banks loan portfolio and ultimately its profit in its next reporting period. He responded that consumer confidence is a really important part of any economy. If a client doesnt feel that they can buy that new car, invest in the addition to their home, when people hold onto their savings, it has ripple effects through clients and businesses and taxes and so it can become quite a significant factor in the performance of the economy and I think that its important that Governments and businesses and the media all speak prudently about this. Johnston noted that Trinidad and Tobago is in a very strong position. Theres a lot of liquidity in the market with families, with individuals with businesses, and the Government still does have capacity that I think allows the Trinidad economy to weather this downturn, whether its a year or even a bit longer, theres no reason why we cant continue to do well through these challenging times. He added, We dont want to be alarmist because that would just cause people to behave in ways they wouldnt normally, which then causes unintended consequences. He said that RBC operates in 39 countries around the world and every one of them have gone through tough times at one point or another. We as a learning organisation are able to share and learn from those experiences. Darryl White, managing director of RBC Royal Bank Trinidad and Tobago Limited, agreed with Johnston. He pointed out that while Trinidad and Tobago is facing depressed energy prices, the country must figure out how to adapt and adjust to it. He said, Banks are built for this. This is why we have a rigour and a discipline around how we deal with the assets of the bank, how we deal with loans, how we deal with the balance sheet. We construct ourselves to be able to come through tough times like this for our clients because this is when our clients need us most. And when I say at times like this, recessions are a reality, all economies have cycles. What we do have in our favour in Trinidad, and Trinidad is still a very key market for us, but what we do have in our favour in Trinidad is the reality that if we look at (the country) in terms of the savings at the institutional level, at the household level and there are savings as well at the State level. So you look at all stratas and there is a fair amount of savings that allows for a buffer during difficult times. He said the bank had seen savings growing at the household level. You look at investments in the institutions, whether you look at our own mutual funds, which are institutional investments that are all around the world, some of the best assets that you will find. If you look at the National Insurance Scheme we have lots of savings within (that) and if you look at the Government, we do have a Heritage and Stabilisation Fund. I wish there were more, but US$5 million for 1.3 million people is not an unsubstantial amount and we are much better off than many of our neighbours stepping into this period of time. It is about how we use those savings and how we unlock that potential and I think that as an organisation thats what we see and thats how we want to position ourselves in 2016. Johnston said that RBC Financial Caribbean operates in 17 countries in the region and, with the exception of two or three, they were all facing economic headwinds. And its requiring our clients, our governments and ourselves to do things differently to make our way through these challenging times. Despite the headwinds, I think clients are finding a way to thrive, were finding a way to help governments make their way through the challenges and I think as you look at our 2015 results its demonstrated our ability to facilitate a turnaround in a very difficult timeframe and our expectations are that in 2016 we will continue to see improvement in the financial performance. We have an aggressive business plan and we have every expectation that we are going to achieve it. The Consolidated Financial Statements for 2015 showed that the Group had core earnings of TT$792 million for the fiscal year ending October 31, 2015, compared to TT$511 million for the same period in 2014. Johnston said the management of the bank was not surprised by the turnaround. It was the result of a series of management actions that we took beginning in 2013 through to 2015, which set the foundation for the turnaround whether it was through the sale of countries that just didnt fit with our long term strategy not a simple thing to do to restructuring of our distribution footprint to investing in technology, investing in products. It was a very thoughtful approach to how you get from challenging period to one in which we could have a sustainable business going forward, he said. The Group last year sold its operations in Suriname and Johnston said it was a very difficult decision to withdraw from that market. You dont enter into those things lightly because it impacts communities, clients, staff. But when you look at our strategic ambitions in the Caribbean we knew that the world had changed from when we originally bought Royal Bank of Trinidad and Tobago. We were not going to use Suriname as a launch pad into further acquisitions in South America so it was sort of off the table and it gave us pause to say Well, if our core footprint is going to be the Caribbean which we are in, how do we want to organise ourselves for the future Suriname was an asset that we had two interested buyers for and we proceeded down that path. Johnston said the bank had introduced private banking for its high net worth clients and had also introduced private banking in Trinidad and Tobago, Bahamas, Cayman Islands, and Barbados, all in a bid to serve that part of the market better than we have been able to in the past. Were growing out our mobile banking capability so that we can serve clients where they chose to be served not in a branch which has traditional banking hours. So were being flexible and innovative with our investments, particularly around distribution. We can be impactful in the market without being a bricks and mortar 8 am 2 pm financial institution. White said that although RBC Royal Bank Trinidad and Tobago Limited had only 24 branches, it had approximately 50 distribution points through which the bank was able to meet client needs. He added that customers and the public could look for more such developments in the future. These would include new products such as Easy Pay which would allow the banks clients to swipe their card from their mobile phone, a great benefit to small businesses and especially taxi drivers, as he said it would reduce their risk of falling victim to criminals. He said Easy Pay would give them an opportunity to be more secure, to expand commerce. Extended banking hours was another direction in which the bank was heading, along with Saturday banking. Asked about recent reports of skimming White said such illegal activity is not new, but was part of the operational risk for a bank. He noted that affected clients were refunded what was taken from their account. While declining to say how much the bank spent in compensating customers, White said banks are built to deal with situations like these. We have to ensure and we always say that the first line of defence is our clients, he said. He said that in order to make it harder and harder for the scammers the bank keeps building its fences and continues to be vigilant. We continue to put in more secure ways to do business because we need to ensure that people will continue to be confident to use those channels. I certainly wont stop using it. Retail mortgages was another key area mentioned in Johnstons report as one the bank intended to develop further. He said he believed RBC had a decent share of the market but believed it could take a larger share as well. So much so that the bank has adopted the tagline for its mortgage business, Well meet you almost anywhere. He said it is a promise the bank is taking very seriously. So what weve done is that weve taken the service to our clients and our mortgage specialists are mobile. No longer do we want people necessarily to come into the bank for a mortgage. We want to go out there and have the conversation with you, go see the property, see which way the sun comes up so you know you could build it in the right direction, be there when you open the door and you have the key and then have conversations about how are you going to get that property developed. Johnston said the banks plan for 2016 is very challenging, adding that RBC is moving away from trying to win every client in the Caribbean. We want to try to be the very best to that group of clients while still doing a very good job for all the clients who need us for the challenges that they face in their life and all the day-to-day banking that goes with that. TT gets good BPO rating The report gave high marks to Trinidad and Tobagos International Financial Centre, which seeks to bring rigour to companies decision about where to locate their offshore operations. What this means is that TT ranks in the top 50 in Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) location index. We have accomplished a major milestone with the ranking. The recognition provides a considerable boost as we continue our marketing and promotion of Trinidad and Tobago as the preferred nearshore location for F&A BPO services in the Central American and the wider region, stated Varun Maharaj, chief executive officer of the Trinidad and Tobago IFC. The 2016 A T Kearneys Global Services Location Index GSLT places Trinidad and Tobago at number 43 out of a total of 55 countries analysed for the report, demonstrating this countrys increasing national profile. The seventh edition of the report titled On the Eve of Disruption explores the top contenders in the global BPO market and analyses what sets them apart across three major categories; financial attractiveness, people skills and availability and business environment. In fact the report rates Trinidad and Tobago ahead of Jamaica, Canada, Singapore and Ireland, all of which have been playing in this industry for more than a decade. With the nation experiencing an economic decline and as global oil and gas prices continue to decline, the GSLI ranking represents a silver lining and underscores the leading role which the expansion of the nations financial sector will continue to play in achieving diversification and ongoing economic prosperity. This country, one of the four newest entrants to the list, was noted in the report as capitalising on its experience in servicing the energy industry to other sectors of activity. The report further identifies other favourable characteristics such as the nations low infrastructure costs, high literacy rate, strong telecommunications infrastructure and tax incentives, as well as its nearshore location to Canada and the United States. So therefore, mandated by the government of TT to drive the development of the financial services sector, the Trinidad and Tobago International Financial Centre IFC has worked assiduously, promoting the nations value proposition for Finance and Accounting (F&A) Business Process Outsourcing at targeted international conference. As recently last year the IFC continued its efforts by partnering with the National Association of Software and Services Companies NASSCOM, for its Business Process Management BPM Strategy Summit held in Bangalore, India. Mobile Revolution Currently, there were over 10 billion mobile devices with Internet access that were expected to be in use at the end of last year. As such, the app-building industry needs to grow to match the demand being achieved. Since the inception of this industry, a record number of 83 billion apps have been downloaded; with industry professionals predicting downloads to exceed 200 billion per year by 2017. Users are favouring the expediency and a bett er overall user experience of native apps on both smart phones and tablets. The average user spends more ti me using mobile apps as opposed to visiting the mobile web; an average of 139 minutes per day. Lets flashback to more than 15 years ago when the Internet was the newest groundbreaking discovery and companies were scrambling to put out a website with all their information; it seemed like it was mandatory if a company wanted to be seen as a worthy competitor on the market. Now fast forward to present day the mobile age, companies are quickly realising that in order to engage with mobile users, they need to provide them with a medium in which they are constantly interacting with mobile apps. The shift to mobile app development is about to get even more appealing to developers. Last year, Google implemented mobile friendly factors in its search results. It ranks mobile apps participating in App Indexing better in the mobile search results. This algorithmic change has a significant effect in search. Users now find it much simpler to get relevant results optimised for their devices. With all this over saturation of mobile applications, how can developers create apps that would stand out? Predicti ons on what the mobile application market will be like this year indicates that apps will get more targeted. Developers should create apps that are more targeted for a specific need rather than building apps that serve a multi -purpose function. The more specific you make an app, the easier it is to stand out. Also, investing in graphics would be a plus in this visual age. Users tend to download an app that immediately catches their eye. The success and rise of mobile apps is, without a doubt, the biggest player in the market. Pretty soon, most would be conforming to it. So what are you waiting on? Platforms such as Apperyio, Mobile Roadie and AppMakr make it easy for anyone to get started on building and joining the mobile revoluti on. Once your application is built, you can bring it in to the Centre for Enterprise Developments mCentre. mCentre is the only mobile applications laboratory and accelerator in the region which incubates high potential mobile app developers. This lab provides world class business and technical training to individuals on mobile app development and entrepreneurship on all platforms; Android, iOS, Blackberry and Windows. The mCentre operates a mobile application testing facility referred to as the Living Lab, which provides testing services on all mobile application platforms Android, iOS, Windows and Blackberry. Using appropriate checklists, the tests use measurements which provide an indication as to where improvements, if any, can be made to the mobile application. The mCentres also hosts an App Club, which is an outreach programme to help build a developer community as well as awareness of different platforms, SDKs, APIs and other technology. Members of the App Club are aff orded the opportunity to attend various training workshops and seminars all geared towards mobile application development and commercialisation. For more information, please contact CARIRIs mCentre at the Centre for Enterprise Development at 299-0209 ext 2317 or email us at mcentre@cedcariri.com/ mail@cedcariri.com Man arrested trying to cash fake pension cheque Reports are the suspect, who gave police addresses at Couva and in Diego Martin, went to the branch of First Citizens Bank at about 11.30 am and informed a teller he came to cash a cheque in the name of a Tunapuna woman. The woman, he added, gave him authorisation to cash the cheque. He then presented the teller with two forms of identification. Upon perusing the documents, the teller observed that they were fraudulent. The bank teller contacted police who responded shortly and arrested him in full view of other customers at the bank. After taking him to the Marabella Police Station, the suspect confessed that such action was not his first. He is expected is placed on several identification parades today and investigations are continuing Children: They catch daddys killers yet? Henry was shot dead and his wife Anika Kwanza, beaten, chopped and left for dead on Monday night, as their two children looked on along a road in Upper Cascade, St Anns. Kwanza remains warded in critical condition at hospital. The children are really taking this on, said Gloria Henry, the childrens grandmother. They know that the father is dead. They keep telling us that they saw when he was shot. One of the children, who is four, keeps asking me if they catch the killers yet, she said. The children, she added, are asking if their mother is dead. At about 9 pm on Monday, Henry and Kwanza were attacked by a group of men as they walked with with their two children towards their home. Henry was shot several times and died later while en route to hospital. Kwanza was beaten with a piece of concrete block and then chopped. The children were unharmed. Up to yesterday, the killers remained at large. Police believe robbery was the motive. Investigations are continuing Man jailed for 30 months Shameel Ali was charged with possession of 0.59 grammes of marijuana and resisting arrest. He was charged by PC Dev Ramadhin at the Chutney Brass event at Guaracara Park. Ramadhin of the Southern Division Task Force arrested the 25-year-old Ali of Aranjuez when he saw him smoking a marijuana joint. Magistrate Brahmanand Dubay was told on Monday that while PC Ramadhin and his colleague PC Denzil Deena were arresting Ali, he struggled and threatened PC Ramadhin to rape and murder his wife and kill his children. Ali later apologised to the officer in court for his threats. Yesterday, senior police officers in San Fernando told the Newsday that a specific and unambiguous threat against a person, moreso a member of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service, is to be treated with the utmost urgency. When that threat is made against the police officers wife arising during the course of his duties, such reports are deemed to be even more serious, the senior police officer commented. Magistrate Dubay on Monday, remanded Ali into custody pending a tracing of his criminal record after he pleaded guilty to the two charges. Alis sister Sarita Ali and brother Jeffrey Ali, were also arrested at the fete for resisting arrest and using obscene language respectively. They also appeared in court on Monday before another magistrate and both pleaded not guilty. Yesterday, Shameel Ali was brought before Magistrate Dubay as as the court prosecutor Sgt Maharaj presented the criminal record to the magistrate, the accuseds attorney Nicole Basraj was invited to mitigate on her clients behalf. The magistrate said that after considering Alis guilty plea, and the four previous convictions for marijuana, the most lenient sentence would be 18 months hard labour. And on the charge of resisting arrest, Dubay sentenced Ali to 12 months in jail. The sentences are to run concurrently, the magistrate ordered, so Ali would serve only 18 months. 12 charges for man Marlon Williams, 26, of Xoria Lane, Pleasantville, appeared before Deputy Chief Magistrate Mark Wellington in the the San Fernando Magistrates Court, having been arrested. The magistrate read to Williams a charge that he kidnapped PH driver Andrew Bethel. The second charge is that on Sunday, Williams kidnapped Timothy Ali. Two other charges are that Williams robbed both men using violence. Wellington read to Williams three separate charges that he shot at Constables Roger Guerero, Utam Ramdass and Sandeep Maraj. He was also charged for being in possession of a firearm, ammunition, possession of firearm to endanger life and ammunition to endanger life. A twelfth charge is that Williams discharged a firearm 40 meters from a public road. The charges were laid by Corporal Jameer Hosein. Williams attorney, Annalee Girwar, told Magistrate Wellington that the accused was nursing a gunshot wound to the knee. The magistrate ordered that the accused be taken to hospital for treatment, and, that he be remanded into custody for the next 28 days. $80,000 bail for man on $97,000 larceny charge The charge was read by Deputy Chief Magistrate Mark Wellington to Dhanasar, that on Monday, he stole the money from the company. The charge arose from a break-in at the companys offices which led to enquiries being conducted by PCs Adrian Mungal and Bridgemohan of the Mon Repos Criminal Investigation Department. The court police prosecutor, Police Constable Cleyon Seedan, said that $60,219 were recovered. Mungal displayed the cash to the court, which was wrapped and sealed in a black plastic bag. Police Constables Crawford, Fonrose and Bridgemohan of the Rapid Response Unit, arrested Dhanasar whilst Mungal laid the charge. Dhanasar pleaded not guilty and Wellington granted him bail in the sum of $80,000 to be approved. He is to re-appear on March 2. More rival gang members in prison This has necessitated their separation in order to reduce the risk of incidents, related to events on the outside. There are a number of gangs within our environment now, with the proliferation of gangs within Trinidad and Tobago, its a challenge keeping members separate from each other in prison. Externally, gang warfare is brewing between gangs (such as) Rasta City and the Muslims, and it seems that certain elements are bent on transferring that to within the prison environment. So we have to do our best to keep their members separated. Apart from minimising the chance of fights between incarcerated members of rival gangs, Sterling said the Prison Service also engages gang members in programmes geared towards addressing their reasons behind their decisions to join a gang while teaching them life-skills. We try to keep them in separate areas and engage them in specific programmes to treat with the way they think because your thinking guides your attitude, actions and words. Some of them joined gangs for survival, because of fear, financial gains, but some of our youths are too easily influenced in a negative manner. The Commissioner of Prisons added that these programmes include building the inmates self-esteem, spiritual programmes, general life skills, the consequences of negative behaviour, psychological programmes to deal with the mind, educational programmes. Its a holistic, motivational, approach to their rehabilitation. We have to get rid of the attempted warfare (within) prison, Sterling declared, because at the end of the day, we want to prepare these persons for restoration and re-integration into society. We want to prepare these persons to understand the value of living, the value of their lives. The Calypso Showcase is an example of the opportunities we provide for (inmates) to release their true potential. Sterling was speaking with Newsday on Wednesday during the annual Prisons In D Square Calypso Showcase, held by the Trinidad and Tobago Prison Service at Woodford Square, Port-of-Spain Investigations ongoing in Kerron George murder The mother who wished not to be named, made a plea to the police to further probe the case with a focus on the owner of the car, who she believes set her son up to be killed. According to reports, around 4 am, Tareek Kerron George, Daniel Dottin and David Adams were about to leaving Copacabana Night Club on Dundonald Street when four gunmen approached the group and opened fire. George died on the scene whilst Adams and Dottin were taken to hospital where they were treated for gunshot wounds about the body. Newsday was later informed that he may have been killed after being accused of stealing the car with which he went to the Night Club. Newsday was told that he was accosted at the bar and accused, but denied the claim, saying that he borrowed the vehicle from a neighbour. Georges mother, Patricia Ross said after his death, police searched the car, and seized it for evidence. They could not find any keys for the car. Later she saw the owner of the vehicle who said he had his vehicle returned, and was using a spare key. Ross began to suspect that the person who claims ownership of the car passed it on to George intentionally. Baby Miracle needs your help But joy has turned to worry and dread after adorable baby Miracle was diagnosed by San Fernando General Hospital doctors as having Congenital Cyanotic Heart Disease. To correct the problem and potentially save little Miracles life, she will have to be taken abroad either in Colombia or the United States for corrective medical treatment. The cost for the trip and fees to doctors and surgeons overseas is in the range of US$200,000 and the worried couple are appealing for help from the public and corporate TT to give their daughter a more than fighting chance at life. According to the website Healthline.com, Cyanotic congenital heart disease (CCHD) is a condition present at birth. CCHD causes low levels of oxygen in the blood. A common symptom is a bluish tint to the skin, called cyanosis. In many cases, more than one defect is present. Imaging tests including chest X-rays and echocardiograms can confirm the presence of defects causing cyanotic heart disease. Medication can help relieve symptoms of cyanosis. The Cross family, minus baby Miracle, who remains warded at the Paediatric section of the San Fernando General Hospital, visited Newsdays San Fernando offices yesterday to ask that a story be published to make the public aware of their plea for funds. Miracle, who is 17-days-old today, must have the life-saving surgery soon or she would die, worried father Kerwin said. Dr ODonogue, a senior medical officer with the SFGHs Neonatal Unit, has written a medical report and letter, which has been addressed to the Childrens Life Fund, established by the former Peoples Partnership government, outlining the medical condition of Miracle and the need for her to undergo surgery urgently. He stated that the baby is being closely monitored in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, and her parents are being informed regularly of their daughters condition. Cross said that he has since been in contact with officials in the Childrens Life Fund, but there are numerous documentation he must first process, before his application can be entertained. In the meantime, her daughter is living on borrowed time and the father is appealing to the nation for help. He said he is to establish an account this week at a commercial bank where donations of money could be deposited. I must start now to raise funds, because I have been told that the cost is going to be about US$200,000. On Saturday we will have a bar-b-que sale to launch the fund-raising venture to save our baby, Cross said. He is asking anyone desirous of helping to save his daughter to contact the family at 366-2653 and 393-6826. Girl, 5, in more sex videos The man is currently on the run. Even as Trinidad and Tobago reacted in shock and horror to Newsdays front page headline yesterday Child, 5, In Sex Video CPU and Cyber Crimes Unit officers were examining the contents of the pix and video folders in a cellular phone belonging to the man who is now on the run. The first sex video found was shown to police on Sunday last in which the child is seen performing oral sex on the man. Further examination of the contents of the phones SIM card revealed photos of the girl in the nude, others with the suspect carrying out serious acts of indecency on her and video images of the man attempting sexual intercourse with the five-year-old. A subsequent medical examination by District Medical Officer Dr Reddy revealed the child was not penetrated by the man whom she trustingly called, uncle. On Sunday, the suspect who is a security guard was at his girlfriends home in Rio Claro when the woman confronted him about a video on his cellular phone showing him being given oral sex by her daughter. The man fled from the house and remains at large. A report was made to the Rio Claro police and Ag Sgt Mohammed and WPC Ramjattan took possession of the phone and its sim card. Officers of the Police Services Cyber Crimes Unit as well as the CPU were called in. Police are now in possession of the address of the man who lives in the Princes Town area and they are working closely with Insp Don Gajadhar of the Southern Division to arrest the suspect who is believed to be on the run. The child was taken for another examination yesterday and her mother along with other relatives are expected to undergo counselling. Newsday understands that police also contacted persons whose phone numbers were listed on the mans cell phone directory so that they could verify his address. A woman who claimed to have had a relationship with the man described him as sick when she spoke with officers on Tuesday. She also confirmed his address as being in the Princes Town area. Yesterday, National Security Minister Edmund Dillon said he is extremely alarmed at reports of sex attacks and other forms of abuse against the nations innocent. He said he will meet with Ag Police Commissioner Stephen Williams for an update on how well staffed the Witness and Victim Support unit is and what additional resources are needed. Dillon said all crimes are serious but crimes against children is beyond reprehensible and the Ministry and Police is adopting a zero tolerance approach to predators targetting the nations innocent. He begged parents to take responsibility for their childrens safety and well-being be being on the alert for signs of abuse and also to minimise opportunities for predators to strike. HELLO FROM THE INSIDE The system was introduced by TSTT effective on Monday and the 300 inmates who signed up for the service have each been allowed ten five-minute free calls, in the first instance, thereafter $400 must be paid to allow an inmate access to a four-number personal identification numbers (PIN) which will give them access to make calls during the one-hour airing out period allotted daily. The system, known as the Prisoner Call Out System is being manned by prisons officers at the Remand Section who have been trained to monitor calls and even terminate a call when the conversation is deemed a threat to security. Ten phone booths have been set up at the airing yard of the Remand Section of Golden Grove Prison while one has been placed at the Prison Infirmary and three others at the high risk area. In exceptional circumstances, prisoners who return late from court and want to have access to the phone will be able to do so at the high risk section. Even on weekends some prisoners will also be given the opportunity to use the phones, but under the strictest security. The system is the brainchild of former Minister of Justice Prakash Ramadhar and was given the thumbs up by Minister of National Security Edmund Dillon. Newsday understands that TSTT the provider for the service was contracted to set up the system and relatives of inmates were given the option of going to TSTT to pay $400 so their jailed loved ones can access the service. Yesterday, a person claiming to be former Trinidad Express journalist Akile Simon, who is incarcerated while awaiting trial on criminal charges, said he was one of the first to take advantage of the new system and has spoken to his attorney, Newsday and loved ones. He added that cell phones illegally brought into the prison for use by prisoners are now useless as grabbers and jammers are now in effect. Simon said some prisoners are suspicious of the new system but he felt it is a good service as prisoners can legally interact with their loved ones or attorneys without fear of being caught. I welcome the initiative as no longer will prisoners have to hide cell phones and use it illegally to contact relatives, attorneys and others, Simon said. The steps in the system include a prisoner entering his PIN on the phone prompting the system to dial the person who the prisoner wishes to speak to. An automated system will then indicate to the person who the prisoner is trying to reach, that this is a call from the prisons. The recipient is then prompted to either accept the call (press 5) or reject the call (press 9). Prisons Commissioner Sterling Stewart yesterday confirmed the new call out system saying this was a welcomed move. This will allow inmates to communicate with their families legally and eradicate the need to use illegal cellular phones. This new system coupled with the implementation of cellphone blockers and jammers will see the eradication of cellular phone use by inmates, the Commissioner said. National Security Minister Edmund Dillon told Newsday he fully endorses the initiative which will go a long way in stamping out the smuggling of cellular phones into the prisons. He opined that the service will also aid in the rehabilitation process as inmates will be able to interact with loved ones without resorting to illegal means. Ceran Richards, president of the Prisons Officers Association (POA) welcomed the telephone initiative stating it was a move in the right direction. We are living in a civil society and prisoners have their rights. They are human beings and while they are in remand prison they need to communicate with their lawyers, families, loved ones and so on. So we support this system. Black Stalins grandson wins Jnr Extempo Calliste won the title yesterday at the first Junior Extempo Monarch Competition which was held at the Seamen and Waterfront Workers Trade Union (SWWTU) hall, Wrightson Road, Portof- Spain. Calliste, a Form Five student of St Benedict College, La Romaine beat out 11 others in the competition In the final round it was Calliste, 16, against 15-year-old Keishon Phillip of Belmont Boys Secondary. Phillip, who is blind, battled with Calliste for four verses on the topic of whether north or south would take the crown. Each verse was better than the last and when they were finished, several people shouted to the judges that it should be a tie because they both did well. Speaking to reporters after, Calliste admitted the competition was challenging because it required one to make up a song on the spot. It was really not easy, the first thing that comes to your mind, you just have to say it, he said. He said his grandfather inspired him in a big way. Without him, I wont have the inspiration to do what it is I did today...he would be extremely proud to know that his grandson is the first Junior Extempo Monarch, he said. Phillip, said he did his best and he did not expect to place second but with his mentor reigning Extempo champion, Joseph Lingo Vautor-La Placeliere sitting in the audience, it motivated him. Before battling each other, the two proved they deserved to be in the finals as they handled their various topics with ease. In the first round, Phillip tackled social media telling his fellow students that it corrupts their brain and they should study their books instead. Calliste dealt with Taking pride in the national anthem. When it was down to eight, Calliste tackled the topic, My favourite calypsonian, choosing his grandfather who he said was the greatest person out of all the few. Fire victims still homeless The family of seven is now sleeping on the floor of the La Romaine Community Centre. While the family is thankful for the temporary shelter at the centre, Hilman Ben- Shaul Burke, 50 is fearful for the health of his wife Shirley Thomas, 37, who remains traumatized. Since the fire she has not been able to sleep properly at night. I am worried about her health and our unborn baby. This has taken a toll on her and she is almost ready to have this baby. She is worrying, and this is not good for her. On Monday afternoon, a fire of unknown origin which claimed the life of pensioner Michael Lochan, 80, completely destroyed the two-storey house at Southern Main Road, La Romaine which she shared with her husband Ben-Shaul Burke and their five children. The room for the couples unborn daughter was already prepared with crib, playpen and baby clothes and Thomass bag was packed and ready for the hospital. Also destroyed was the family-run business on the premises Little Bs Mini Mart , an upholstery shop currently undergoing some changes and a Mercedes Benz valued at $150,000. Total losses have been estimated to run into hundreds of thousands of dollars. According to police, at about 3.30 pm, the fire started at the two-storey house along the Southern Main Road in La Romaine near St Benedicts College. Reports said that the pensioner remained trapped in the building when the fire started, while the pregnant mother ran out of the building with her children. Ben-Shaul Burke, told Newsday yesterday that his children are having nightmares. One of my little girl, Soriyah told me yesterday,daddy I want to go home. She is only three years old, she does not understand that our house was burnt to the ground by the fire. I had to explain to her that she could not go back home because of the fire, but she just kept crying. It is really hard for them, the emotional father said. The cause of the fire has not been determined. Manager of the people of People Issues and Resolutions Unit, Asauph Ghany told Newsday that he would be willing to meet with the family to render assistance. Anyone willing to help the family can call,383-7964. Nets, fish against Zika He initially held a meeting at the corporations office with members of the Ministry of Health, Insect Vector division, the Eastern Regional Health Authority (ERHA) and local councillors and aldermen, and then he led an awareness raising walkabout through Sangre Grande city centre. Among those receiving a gift of a free mosquito net, was local resident Sarah Mohammed who is just over eight months pregnant. She expressed gratitude to Rondon. While the provision of mosquito nets, citronella oil and zappers were aimed primarily at pregnant women, at several stages of the walkabout there was a rush for these items by persons clearly not within the target group, a few who Rondon gave the items, fulfilling his earlier warning in the meeting that there would be a rush for these items from the general population. The earlier meeting saw a keen discussion as small fishes to eat mosquito larvae in stagnant pools of water, as an alternative the laying down of poisons. At the last meeting held on Monday at the office, the use of such biological agents as fish had been discussed, with consultations ongoing with the Ministry of Agriculture, aldermen David Alfonso told yesterdays meeting that a suitable type of fish should be selected that could survive the conditions so as to successfully consume the mosquito larvae. The focus of the meeting was the need to destroy mosquito breeding sites listed as stagnant water, discarded utensils, and bushy areas including overgrown lots of land. Rondon says he was open to ideas, but lamented that he no longer has litter wardens to assist in the efforts as these were all recently retrenched nationwide. ERHA CEO Dr Rameshwar Maharaj briefed the meeting saying that while there are no Zika cases in TT yet, the focus is now on source-reduction, declaring get rid of the mosquito breeding places The best thing PNM has done in 50 years The adulation was given to Minister of National Security when he visited the Sogren Trace community yesterday, weeks after two school boys were shot dead in the area. Since the police have come here, I feel happier, said one concerned resident at the community meeting. If it werent for the police and the Regiments presence, I am sure that there would be more crime. Before, some of the pan players might give some trouble, there might be some fights, or someone might get chopped, but nowadays everyone have guns. It has been 50 years that Laventille has been supporting the PNM said the residents, so far, this has been the best thing that they have done While complimenting the Minister on his actions, the residents noted that there were still several problems that faced the Laventille area, and by extension Sogren Trace. Some residents pointed out the need for programmes that would provide employment for persons in the area, while others looked to the minister to deal with issues like repairing damaged drains. Mostly, residents pleaded with the minister to introduce and maintain several programmes that have been implemented in the past. The minister assured that there would not only be a maintenance in current programmes, but there would be an introduction of new ones. Speaking to the media after the meeting Dillon said that the joint patrols between police officers and officers of the Defence Force would be able to protect the citizens from criminal elements. We will not sit by and allow those who are bent on committing illegal activities to own this country. Dillon said. So the message was strongly that we are going to be there, making life difficult for those who have illegal guns in TT. You cannot be living life comfortable, bearing illegal guns and so on, when normal, peaceful citizens are miserable and fearful. Your life must be miserable. That is our mission, and thats one of the things I am working towards so that some day you are prosecuted to the full brunt of the law. The joint presence of Regiment officers and police was reintroduced into the Laventille area last month, after 16-year-old Mark Richards and 17-year-old Denilson Smith were gunned down near Sogren Trace in Laventille. Labour Minister to meet with Arcelor Mittal, steelworkers Union Arcelor Mittal on Tuesday served notice on the union, of its intention to temporarily lay off 498 workers from its Point Lisas Steel Plant from yesterday until March 13, 2016. The workers began receiving the notices on Tuesday afternoon, concluding on Wednesday morning. President of the SWU, Christopher Henry, said the union is looking forward to the discussions because the process of consultation with the company was not afforded to the union. Henry said a statement issued yesterday by Arcelor Mittal that the union was not willing to hold talks with the company was false. Meanwhile, the SWU held talks yesterday with the management of Central Trinidad Steel Limited (Centrin) a member of the Bhagwansinghs Group of companies. The company delegation comprised Centrins General Manager, Wayne Wong and Vinoo Ramoutar, a company director. Henry said the company advanced its reasons for having to shut down the plant, mainly the lack of US dollars to purchase raw materials, a discussion the union said the company had to pursue with the Government. Henry said Centrin also said Arcelor Mittals decision to idle its plant forced Centrin to close its facility because of its inability to get raw materials. Henry said the union agreed to begin discussion with the Government to stop the importation of what it said was low grade steel from China. Henry said the union asked Centrin to rescind the retrenchment letters it had served the workers, and allow the two sides to work together on the issues of the importation of cheap steel. Despite Carnival Parliament work continues The Energy Affairs committee is one of many new JSCs formed under the new Standing Orders of the House of Representatives. The JSC on Public Administration and Appropriations meets in camera at the same venue on February 10 at 1.30 pm. This committee is chaired by House Speaker, Bridgid Annisette-George. Other members of the committee include Energy Minister, Nicole Olivierre, and Opposition Senator ,Wade Mark. On February 12, the JSC on the Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Property (Amendment) Bill 2015, will meet privately at the same venue at 9.30 am. Imbert is the chairman of the committee The House of Representatives and the Senate, which sat last month, have both been adjourned to dates to be fixed. In presenting the Finance Bill 2016 in Parliament last month, Imbert indicated a second finance bill would be coming soon, to deal with providing incentives to the private sector for housing construction. The bill could be laid in Parliament sometime after Carnival. In his message to the nation on December 29, 2015, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley indicated that increasing housing construction was one way that Government would be seeking to stimulate economic growth. Speaking at a Housing Development Corporation (HDC) key distribution ceremony at South Quay on Tuesday, Rowley said the Home Mortgage Bank and the TT Mortgage Finance Company would be merged. Today's Headlines and Commentary - Lawfare mikenova shared this story from Lawfare. When it unveils its annual budget request next week, the New York Times reports that the Obama administration will request $582.7 billion in defense funding . In a preview of the 2017 budget reque... EU Says Crimea Return Necessary for Lifting Russia Sanctions | News mikenova shared this story . The European parliament has named the return of the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014, to Ukraine as one of the necessary conditions for lifting sanctions against the country, according to a res... Reviving American Power After Obama mikenova shared this story . By Kim R. Holmes, Ph.D. For the last seven years we have witnessed an unprecedented experiment based on a fundamental question: What would the world look like if the United States pulled back from its traditi... / mikenova shared this story from Latest Articles. , ... Russia Loses Its Trump Card | News mikenova shared this story . Vladimir Frolov Republican voters in Iowa may have thwarted Russian President Vladimir Putin's wish to see the "doubtlessly talented" Donald Trump as the next U.S. president. Trump, the ... A record number of people convicted of crimes were exonerated last year mikenova shared this story . The inside track on Washington politics. Be the first to know about new stories from PowerPost. Sign up to follow, and well e-mail you free updates as theyre published. Youll receive free... How FBI blocks whistleblower fighting dismissal; new bill could help others mikenova shared this story . The inside track on Washington politics. Be the first to know about new stories from PowerPost. Sign up to follow, and well e-mail you free updates as theyre published. Youll receive free... In a first, judge grants retrial solely on FBI hair match mikenova shared this story . The inside track on Washington politics. Be the first to know about new stories from PowerPost. Sign up to follow, and well e-mail you free updates as theyre published. Youll receive free... National Security Agency plans major reorganization mikenova shared this story . The inside track on Washington politics. Be the first to know about new stories from PowerPost. Sign up to follow, and well e-mail you free updates as theyre published. Youll receive free... As Syria burns, Turkeys Kurdish problem is getting worse mikenova shared this story . The inside track on Washington politics. Be the first to know about new stories from PowerPost. Sign up to follow, and well e-mail you free updates as theyre published. Youll receive free... The Pentagons Top Threat? Russia mikenova shared this story . The Pentagon has put Russia at the top of its list of national security threats with its plan to increase the deployment of heavy weapons, armored vehicles and troops on rotating assignment to NATO countries ... After four months, Russias campaign in Syria is proving successful for Moscow mikenova shared this story . The inside track on Washington politics. Be the first to know about new stories from PowerPost. Sign up to follow, and well e-mail you free updates as theyre published. Youll receive free... Railing Against Graft, a Georgian Leads Calls for a Cleanup in Ukraine mikenova shared this story . KHARKIV, Ukraine It was supposed to be a routine cabinet meeting for Ukraine s Western-backed government. The interior minister, Arsen B. Avakov, a banker and businessman, was reading a prepare... UN envoy announces temporary pause to Syria peace talks mikenova shared this story . The inside track on Washington politics. Be the first to know about new stories from PowerPost. Sign up to follow, and well e-mail you free updates as theyre published. Youll receive free... Syria Peace Talks Put on Hold, U.N. Envoy Says mikenova shared this story . GENEVAUnited Nations-backed peace talks to end Syrias conflict faltered Wednesday as U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura declared a temporary pause, citing inadequate progress addressing the country&#... The Ayatollahs Drug Dealers - WSJ mikenova shared this story . U.S. law enforcement officials on Monday announced the arrests of several alleged leaders of a global drug-trafficking and money-laundering network with ties to Lebanons Hezbollah. The arrests are a re... A Quick and Provisional GRU Update mikenova shared this story from In Moscows Shadows. Update: the afternoon I wrote this, it was announced that Lt Gen Igor Korobov has been appointed. Needless to say, I take full credit for forcing the Kremlins hand ;) . Meanwhil... Still Awaiting New GRU Chief mikenova shared this story from Russian Defense Policy. On 13 January, Kommersants Ivan Safronov wrote that late GRU Chief General-Colonel Igor Serguns successor will be one of the military intelligence directorates ... Putin Names Korobov As New Military Intelligence Chief mikenova shared this story from Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty. P resident Vladimir Putin has appointed Lieutenant General Igor Korobov to head the Russian military intelligence agency, known as the GRU, following the death of his pre... mikenova shared this story from . - &... U.S. Treasury Imposes Sanctions on Hezbollah Money-Laundering Network Jewish Business News mikenova shared this story from Jewish Business News. Two key figures in Hezbollahs money-laundering network were hit with sanctions by the U.S. Treasury Department on Thursday. The department officially designated Moh... puerto rico - Google Search mikenova shared this story . Puerto Rico proposes debt cut for creditors, slammed by insurer CNBC - 3 hours ago Puerto Rico has offered a huge haircut to creditors that would reduce its debt by about $23 billion in the opening salvo to r... Syrias Phony Peace Talks - WSJ mikenova shared this story . Regarding the Syrian peace talks that began over the weekend in Geneva, allow us to raise two questions: What peaceand what talks? The regime of Bashar Assad is intensifying its longstanding sta... After Sanctions, Iran's Growing Role in the Caucasus mikenova shared this story . Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, President Hassan Rouhani and Azerbaijan's Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov attend the opening session of a two-day conference of the Economic Cooperation Organ... Fraternal Order Of Police Hacked, Private Files Reveal Criticism Of Obama, Sonya Sotomayor mikenova shared this story from International Business Times. Electronic files of the Fraternal Order of Police the United States largest police union were hacked Thursday, revealing a series of forum posts cr... Death of the GRU Commander mikenova shared this story from Defense One - All Content. In February 2014 , contact ceased between U.S. and Russian military intelligence as part of an overall shutdown of defense relations in the wake of Russias illegal annexat... , mikenova shared this story . , ... - mikenova shared this story . &#... mikenova shared this story . &#... Putin Lives in Fear of Another Chechen War mikenova shared this story from Newsweek. This article first appeared on the Atlantic Council site . I ask Ramzan Akhmatovich for forgiveness and thank him for not yet killing me. This is an example of the messages Russian ... 4,130,3524,130,352 4,130,352 4,130,352 This post has been generated by Page2RSS 2016-01-30Syria Kurds leave Geneva without peace talks invites: sources 2016-01-30 Syria Kurds leave Geneva without peace talks invites: sources | NATO - News: Statement by the NATO Secretary General on Russian air space violation, 30-Jan.-2016 | Welcome to the Age of the Commando - NYTimes.com | Judge rules... New BBG CEO John Lansing is having a positive impact, but is it enough? mikenova shared this story from BBG Watch. BBGWatcher January 29, 2016 Featured News , Hot Tub Blog BBG , David Ensor , defunct , employee morale , H.R. 2323 , Hillary Clinton , IBB , International Broadcasting Bureau , Jeff Shell , John... 4,130,2614,130,261 4,130,261 4,130,261 This post has been generated by Page2RSS This post has been generated by Page2RSS 4,126,6034,126,6032016-01-29U.N. launches Syria peace talks despite opposition boycott | Reuters 4,126,603 4,126,603 2016-01-29 U.N. launches Syria peace talks despite opposition boycott | Reuters - Mike Nova's Shared NewsLinks Review Mike Nova's Shared NewsLinks Review From The Major News Sources 2016-01-29U.N. launches Syria... 2016-01-29U.N. launches Syria peace talks despite opposition boycott | Reuters 2016-01-29 U.N. launches Syria peace talks despite opposition boycott | Reuters | Exclusive: EgyptAir mechanic suspected in Russian plane crash | Reuters | Hacker exposes private data of Americas biggest police union RT USA | Homeland... Puerto Rico Non-Profits Tax Filings Raise Questions mikenova shared this story from Washington Free Beacon. Alejandro Javier Garcia Padilla / AP BY: Alana Goodman Puerto Rico Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla urged the public this week to ignore concerns about a corporate-funded charity t... 4,126,5184,126,518 4,126,518 4,126,518 This post has been generated by Page2RSS 2016-01-28**"A Comprehensive Threat" The Daily Vertical: A Comprehensive Threat 2016-01-28 **"A Comprehensive Threat" The Daily Vertical: A Comprehensive Threat M.N.: A threat? Most definitely, yes. An "enemy"? "Definitely not" (hopefully) , or not yet. Gen. Breedlove put it very well: "Stop hugging the Russian bear... Political, Situational, and other News Affecting Wentzville, St. Charles County, St. Louis Metropolitan, Missouri, and the Nation as a Whole. Writerphilic Nkiacha Atemnkeng works at the Douala International Airport in Cameroon. His blog work won Ethiopian Airlines Cameroon's blogging award in 2016. He attended the 2015 Caine Prize writers' workshop in Ghana, the 2017 Nigeria Cameroon Literary Exchange project and the 2018 Miles Morland workshop in Uganda. His work has been published in the 2015 Caine Prize anthology, Culture Trip, The Africa Report, This is Africa, Bakwa, Saraba and Gyara. He is a Sylt writing residency prize winner and a Kundslerdorf Schoppingen fellow. He tweets @nkiacha One of the core entries in New Zealand's political lexicon is "within the rules". Its politician-speak for "morally indefensible". The Ministry for the Environment is now using that phrase to describe the way we paid our Kyoto obligations with outright fraudulent Ukranian "emissions reductions". Following the release of the government's Kyoto CP1 "true-up" report (which revealed the use of these fraudulent credits), I submitted an OIA request for the Ministry for the Environment's advice on the composition of our Kyoto payment. The response claims that "New Zealand has met its Kyoto Protocol commitments within the rules, and in good faith". But the advice itself makes it clear that a deliberate decision was made to use the dodgy units - effectively laundering them - so as to maximise the number of units that could be carried over, and minimise the effort required to reduce emissions in future: We recommend that you retain only units that can be carried over. If we find that New Zealand cannot carry any Kyoto Protocol units over into CP2, a domestic substitute would be needed to incorporate them in accounting for New Zealand's 2013-20 target. This approach will facilitate the use of the Kyoto Protocol framework of rules in accounting for New Zealand's 2013-20 target, by ensuring that New Zealand's use of surplus units to comply with the target will be in line with Protocol rules. Most of the ERUs now in New Zealand are from Ukraine, and come from projects that Ukraine registered and approved just in time for the units to be issued in 2012-13. The abatement claimed for these projects (in CP1) was therefore almost entirely retrospective. No international review was required. This will affect perceptions of environmental integrity. The perception that New Zealand's proposed contribution in the new agreement is devalued up-front by our proposing to offset it using carried-over CP1 project units. This was done in clear knowledge that the units were environmentally worthless, as a later section on "Issues of credibility for imported units" makes clear:And a Treasury proposal to retain some of these units was rejected on the basis of that low environmental integrity and because ofSo, instead they're proposing to offset it using carried over CP1 AAU - which we hav eonly because we used those dodgy, environmentally unacceptable Ukranian units to pay our CP1 obligation. Effectively, we've just laundered those "credits", without changing our actual position in the slightest.As MfE notes, this is "within the rules". But it is neither credible nor moral. Kindof like our climate change policy as a whole. The Libyan rivals who endorsed the Political Dialogue Agreement are meeting Thursday in Skhirat, Morocco, to form a new cabinet after the previous cabinet was rejected by Libyas internationally-recognized law body; the Tobruk-based House of Representatives (HoR.) The first cabinet proposed by Prime Minister-designate Faiez Serraj was rejected last month by a majority of HoR members who deemed the 32-member cabinet too large and called on Serrajs team to cut it down. The HoR also criticized an article of the Dialogue agreement which vests the Presidency Council with the authority to name countrys top security and military officials. Head of the UN mission in Libya Martin Kobler warned however that HoR has no authority to make changes to the agreement. Formation of the unity government is highly expected. Members of Global Coalition against the Islamic State that held a meeting in Rome this week called on Libyans to facilitate the formation of the Government of National Accord (GNA); the sole solution for Libya to tackle its numerous challenges and more importantly to fight IS group which is expanding and sowing havoc across the country. The EU also urged on Wednesday the protagonists to support a broad-based unity government or face the prospect of more chaos. Besides, in face of the IS groups growing expansion and threats, Libyas friends led by the US are seriously considering military intervention against the terrorist group. However Frances Laurent Fabius Tuesday indicated that France will not take part in a military intervention in Libya adding that for the moment Paris is only concerned about how to help Libyans form a unity government. British Foreign Minister Philip Hammond also ruled out at the Rome gathering sending British troops to Libya to combat the spread of the Islamic State, saying he does not think that putting combat troops on the ground is a helpful contribution. According to him, What the Libyans need is strategic organization, command and control, and air-gathered intelligence. IS made giant advances last year, seizing in June late Col. Gaddafis hometown Sirte and conquering other vast regions including the Libyan coastal territories enabling it to indulge more into migrant trafficking. French Government Wednesday agreed to extend the on-going state of emergency for further three months, but the decision could be enacted only after it is debated and passed by lawmakers at a session scheduled for February 16. The government wishes to extend the state of emergency in order to tackle terrorist threats still floating in the air, said cabinet spokesman Stephane Le Foll. Frances Francois Holland declared the state of emergency in the wake of the Paris November 13 attacks which killed 130 people. The state of emergency was extended for three months to end in February. Right groups have stood against the state of emergency saying that it curbs peoples rights and gives too much power to security forces and intelligence services. Critics of the extension of the state of emergency and its inscription in the constitution took to the streets in Paris and in other cities across the country to denounce the governments plans. Jacques Toubon, a leading human rights activist, lambasted Hollands intention to extend the state of emergency. He said since the state of emergency was declared last year, he received more complaints (18 per cent increase) from citizens denouncing governments violation of their rights and freedom. Reports based on foreign sources indicate that the Islamic State is mobilizing forces and planning attacks in Algeria. According to Algerian local daily el watan citing security sources, three Algerians Jihadists among whom Mohamed Merimi alias Mouram Al Djazairi and Abou Al Kacem Al Mouhajir; who all fought in the ranks of IS in Syria have been mandated by the group leader Abou Bakr Al Baghdadi to recruit forces in Algeria. Libyan security authorities from Tripoli informed their Algerian counterparts that the terrorist group enjoying freeway in Libya is planning to expand its operations and attacks in Algeria and Morocco, the daily said. According to Abdel Raouf Kara head of a Tripoli-supported militia in charge of countering actions of terrorist groups in Tripoli, intelligence data and interrogations of some IS militants point out that the group is planning to march towards Algeria and Morocco. We received intelligence there are less Libyans among IS fighters here. Many of them are Tunisian, Moroccan, Algerian, Nigerian and Sudanese. It is also reported that several have come back from Syria. They are well organized and well prepared for everything. And upon findings of the interrogations of IS prisoners, we infer that next targets will be Morocco and Algeria, Raouf Kara told Middle East Eye. IS has released many videos calling Algerians to join the organization. Algerian security forces have stepped up actions against the groups militants in Algeria, according to el watan which reported that security forces nabbed a 32-member cell end of last week in Boumerdes. Some 21 other members of the terrorist group were also arrested last year, the daily said. Four women, including Abou Mouram Al Djazairis wife, were among the arrested suspects. In just one week, President Barack Obama has recognized on two occasions Moroccos role in spreading tolerant Islam and fostering inter-faith dialog, the latest occasion was on Wednesday during his first visit to a mosque in America. In remarks he made during his visit to a mosque in Baltimore, Maryland, on Wednesday, President Obama recalled again that Morocco has just hosted a conference on the rights of religious minorities in the land of Islam. Muslims just met in Morocco to protect religious minorities, including Christians and Jews, said President Obama who had spoken of this same conference during a ceremony held last week in Washington. He had insisted on the role of such initiatives in bolstering rapprochement between people of different faiths and in fighting intolerance, indifference and bigotry. The conference, attended by representatives of different religious communities, stressed the importance to refer to common values to nurture religious tolerance and counter extremism and radical ideologies. It adopted the Marrakech Declaration calling the international community to enact laws criminalizing insults to religions, violations of sanctities and all hate and racist speeches. The Conference also urged Muslim countries not to deprive minorities of their rights under the pretext of religion. In his remarks in the Baltimore mosque, President Obama deplored that as the Muslim American community remains relatively small, many Americans only hear about Muslims and Islam from the news after an act of terrorism, or in distorted media portrayals in TV or film, all of which gives this hugely distorted impression. And since 9/11, but more recently, since the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, youve seen too often people conflating the horrific acts of terrorism with the beliefs of an entire faith, he said. And of course, recently, weve heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim Americans that has no place in our country, President Obama said alluding to recent anti-Muslim statements made by some Republican Presidential candidates, including Donald Trump who calls to ban all Muslims from emigrating to the United States. Imputing the surge of anti-Islam attitudes to such statement, he said, No surprise, then, that threats and harassment of Muslim Americans have surged. The Secret to Happiness is the Joy of the Lord; and the joy of the Lord is His manifest presence in your life. It is our Privilege and Responsibility to Glorify God; and we glorify God by manifesting His character every moment and in every situation. Humility and Pride You can tell a humble man that he has a problem with pride and he will agree with you; but if you tell a proud man that he has a problem with pride, he becomes your enemy. This one thing I know for sure, that whenever there is a problem with my relationship with the Lord, it is not His fault. Some people are just plain lazy; some people are just overly sensitive to gravity; others are simply economical with their energy. It's not enough to preach the Gospel; you must be the Gospel. If you can describe your life in a nutshell, there's a good probability that you're a nut. As a good Canadian, I'd like to apologize in advance for anything I might say that offends you; sometimes my mouth hits high gear while my brain is still in low. Never allow the thought, "I am of no use where I am"; because you certainly can be of no use where you are not. Oswald Chambers We cannot even begin to approach the Truth until we are willing to go wherever the Truth leads us. The newest object of idol worship is 'my opinion'! Suffering is the only experience we have in common with every other human who ever lived. Confira o preco do seguro para o Chevrolet Onix Saiba quando voce gastaria com o seguro do carro mais vendido do Brasil ADREES LATIF By Amanda Becker DURHAM, N.H. (Reuters) - Democrat Hillary Clinton went on the attack against rival Bernie Sanders on Thursday in their most contentious presidential debate yet, questioning whether his ambitious proposals were viable and accusing him of an "artful smear" in suggesting she could be bought by political donations. Sanders fought back repeatedly, questioning Clinton's progressive credentials and portraying her as a creature of the political establishment in a debate that featured heated exchanges on healthcare, college tuition funding and efforts to rein in Wall Street. The intensity reflected a race that has seen Clinton's once prohibitive lead in polls shrivel against Sanders as the two vie for the Democratic nomination for the Nov. 8 election. One of Clinton's most forceful remarks came in response to a suggestion by Sanders that she could be influenced by political donations by Wall Street. "Enough is enough. If you've got something to say, say it directly," she said. "But you will not find that I ever changed a view or a vote because of any donation that I ever received. "So I think it's time to end the very artful smear that you and your campaign have been carrying out," she said. Clinton charged that Sanders' proposal for single-payer universal healthcare coverage would jeopardize Obamacare, calling it "a great mistake," and said his plans for free college education would be too costly to be realistic. "I can get things done. I'm not making promises I can't keep," Clinton said. Sanders said he would not dismantle Obamacare but would expand it, pointing to the many other countries that provide universal healthcare. "I do not accept the belief that the United States of America cant do that," Sanders said. "By moving forward, rallying the American people, I do believe we should have healthcare for all." Sanders said his proposal for free tuition at public universities would be paid with a tax on Wall Street speculation. "The middle class bailed out Wall Street in their time of need. Now, it is Wall Street's time to help the middle class," he said. SANDERS LEADS IN NEW HAMPSHIRE POLLS Five days before New Hampshire holds the second of the state-by-state presidential nominating contests, opinion polls show Sanders, a U.S. senator from neighboring Vermont, with a double-digit lead over Clinton after surprising the front-runner by finishing just barely behind her in Iowa on Monday. Clinton seemed energized by her underdog status in New Hampshire, delivering her most aggressive debate performance of the campaign. It was reminiscent of her 2008 run against Barack Obama, when she also began as the front-runner but became a sharper and less cautious candidate as she began to lose. The debate was the first since former Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley dropped out on Monday after a poor finish in Iowa, giving the two candidates more freedom to directly engage each other. Sanders accused Clinton of representing "the establishment," while saying he represented "ordinary working Americans." He also noted her Super PAC had taken contributions from Wall Street firms and that Clinton received big speaking fees from Goldman Sachs. Clinton disputed the establishment label, saying it was "quite amusing" to accuse "a woman, running to be the first woman president, as the establishment." The two battled over who best represented progressive ideals. Sanders said he would lead a "political revolution," but Clinton questioned his ability to get his proposals through a Republican-led Congress. "A progressive is someone who makes progress," she said. And she attacked Sanders' own credentials as a progressive, bringing up his votes against the 1993 Brady bill that mandated federal background checks on gun purchases and his 2005 vote for a bill to protect gun manufacturers and dealers from lawsuits. "If we're going to get into labels, I don't think it was particularly progressive to vote against the Brady bill five times," she said. "I don't think it was progressive to vote to give gun makers and sellers immunity." Sanders repeated his earlier pledge not to attack Clinton on the controversy over her use of a private email account and a private server for government business when she was secretary of state. "I will not politicize it," he said. But Sanders renewed his attacks on Clinton for her Senate vote to authorize the U.S. invasion of Iraq, which she has since called a mistake. He pointed out he voted against the war, which he said had led to the rise of the Islamic State militant group. "Look we did differ," Clinton responded. "A vote in 2002 is not a plan to defeat ISIS. "We have to look at the threats that we face right now." Clinton has tried to play down expectations for her performance in New Hampshire, where she came from behind for an upset victory in the 2008 campaign just days after losing badly to Obama in Iowa. The surprisingly strong performance by Sanders in Iowa is likely to prolong a race that Clinton entered as the presumptive front-runner. In addition to previously scheduled debates in Wisconsin and Florida, the candidates added one in March in Flint, Michigan, to draw attention to the city's contaminated water crisis ahead of the Michigan primary. They also will debate in April and May. (Additional reporting by Alana Wise and Megan Cassella; Writing by John Whitesides; Editing by Leslie Adler and Jonathan Oatis) SAP is the sponsor of this content. It was independently created by Reuters' editorial staff and funded in part by SAP, which otherwise has no role in this coverage. By Amanda Becker and Emily Stephenson By Amanda Becker and Emily Stephenson (Reuters) - Democratic presidential hopefuls Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton battled over their progressive credentials at a town hall on Wednesday, but also reflected on their spirituality, a topic that more commonly dominates the narrative on the other side of the political aisle. Sanders, speaking at the televised event in Derry, New Hampshire, built on an earlier back-and-forth between the two candidates on Twitter and in appearances in the state, which hosts the second party-nominating contest on Feb. 9, reminding voters that he and Clinton have made different decisions on backing the Iraq war, taking money from Super PACs and energy policies. "Some of my best friends are moderates, but you cant be a progressive and a moderate at the same time," Sanders said at the town hall, hosted by CNN, which included questions from voters. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke immediately after Sanders at the town hall. I was somewhat amused today that Senator Sanders has set himself up to be the gatekeeper on who is a progressive, because under the definition that was flying around on Twitter and statements from his campaign, Barack Obama would not be a progressive, Joe Biden would not be a progressive ... so Im not going to let that bother me," she said. Her campaign issued a press release during Sanders' appearance, listing Clinton's efforts "fighting for progressive causes" including health care and education. "I know where I stand, I know who stands with me, I know what Ive done," Clinton said. Moderator Anderson Cooper, referring to criticism from Sanders that Clinton is too close to Wall Street, asked her about the more than $600,000 she received from speaking to the investment bank Goldman Sachs. Thats what they offered, Clinton said, adding that the payments haven't had any effect on her calls to rein in the big banks. SPIRITUAL FEELINGS The two candidates arrived in New Hampshire on Tuesday, a day after Clinton marked a narrow victory in the Iowa caucuses, the first nominating contest leading up to the Nov. 8 presidential election. Sanders, an independent U.S. senator from Vermont who is a democratic socialist, is polling more than 15 points ahead of Clinton in New Hampshire, but is trailing her nationally by roughly the same amount. During the town hall, Sanders fielded a question about how he would appeal to a broader swath of the electorate, including minority and religious voters - blocs he will need to draw to the polls if he hopes to maintain momentum against Clinton in upcoming nominating contests in the South and West. "Everybody practices religion in a different way. To me, I would not be here tonight, I would not be running for president of the United States, if I did not have very strong religious and spiritual feelings," said Sanders, who, if elected, would be the first Jewish U.S. president. "My spirituality is that we are all in this together," Sanders added. Clinton, a former first lady and former U.S. senator who has spent decades in public life, fielded a question that elicited a similarly spiritual response, speaking of balancing the role of public servant and her sense of self. "I get a scripture lesson every morning from a minister that I have a really close personal relationship with," Clinton said. "He gets up really early to send it to me, so you know, there it is, in my inbox at 5 a.m." Clinton is seeking to manage expectations about her performance in next week's New Hampshire primary, saying Sanders has an advantage because he is from a neighboring state. But Clinton shows huge polling leads in the next round of primary contests in Nevada and South Carolina. The results from New Hampshire could shift momentum in the Democratic race. Clinton had hoped for a strong finish against Sanders in Iowa to vanquish his insurgent candidacy. In New Hampshire, she hopes to overcome his polling lead. (Additional writing by Richard Valdmanis; Editing by Richard Valdmanis and Leslie Adler) SAP is the sponsor of this content. It was independently created by Reuters' editorial staff and funded in part by SAP, which otherwise has no role in this coverage. A proposed streetcar that would connect Brooklyn and Queens just got a big backer: According to the New York Times, Mayor Bill de Blasio will endorse the idea in his State of the City address, happening tonight at Lehman College in the Bronx. The proposal calls for a 17-mile system of above-ground rails that would run along the East River waterfront, linking Astoria to Sunset Park through neighborhoods like Long Island City, Greenpoint, Dumbo, and Red Hook. According to the Times, the streetcar would travel at a speed of about 12 miles per hourat that rate, it would connect Greenpoint to Dumbo in a little less than half an hour. The projected cost: $2.5 billion. In an interview with the Times, Alicia Glen, the deputy mayor in charge of economic development, said the system is a way of "mapping transit to the future of New York." The neighborhoods that the streetcar would connect (Long Island City, Williamsburg, Downtown Brooklyn, Sunset Park) are places where developers are investing heavily in residential and commercial development, particularly in the way of office space. And the current optionsMTA buses, or some combination of the G train and multiple transfersare less than ideal. "The old transportation system was a hub-and-spoke approach, where people went into Manhattan for work and came back out," Glen told the Times. But she also acknowledged that the project would face "significant engineering challenges." For one, the streetcar is designed to run alongside existing traffic, including buses and cars. Current renderings don't show a barrier between the different methods of transportation, though those could be added if the system comes to fruition. There are several other hurdles to cross before the project could move forward: It would need to go through the public review process, for one, and would require input from the many neighborhoods the streetcar would service. Of course, one particularly large hurdle wouldn't be there: Because the streetcar would operate outside of the MTA's purview and within the city, it would not require state (ahem, Governor Cuomo) approval. And the proposal already has some big-name backers in the real estate world, including Doug Steiner and Two Trees's Jed Walentas (both of whom are working on big developments that the streetcar would connectSteiner at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, and Walentas in basically all of Dumbo). Tucker Reed, the president of the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, namechecked the "pockets of unprecedented job and housing growth" as a reason to bring the project to life. "This streetcar line can be the catalyst to extend that opportunity to tens of thousands of New Yorkers in many more neighborhoods," he said in a statement. If the plan moves forward, construction wouldn't begin until 2019 at the earliest, with the streetcar operating by 2024, potentially. Mayor de Blasio to Propose Streetcar Line Linking Brooklyn and Queens [NYT] Nonprofit Wants 17-Mile Streetcar Linking Brooklyn & Queens [Curbed] Not only will Mayor de Blasio's State of the City on Thursday night bring news of a planned $2.5 billion streetcar connecting Brooklyn and Queens, but Politico reports that the mayor is also expected to announce a mixed-use "Innovation Cluster" for Governors Island. A press release sent out by the city confirms: de Blasio will announce a "comprehensive activation of Governors Island that will transform it into a dynamic, year-round destination for New Yorkers." Currently, the 172-acre island is closed to the public in the winter and parts of the spring. The project will include activating up to "900,000 square feet of existing space in protected historic buildings, waterfront promenades with sweeping views of New York Harbor, 48 acres of new parkland that will be fully open to the public this year, and 33 acres on the south side of the island for the new 'Innovation Cluster.'" The mayor's forthcoming proposal is expected to bring technology, cultural, educational, retail and conference spaces to the island, including the creative reuse of landmarked historic buildings into space for STEM programs. "Creative reuse of landmarked historic buildings by becoming the home for the latest in STEM innovation is the best of both worlds," the chair of Manhattan Community Board 1 issued in a statement. The mayor is expected to give control of the project to the Trust For Governors Island, which controls 150 aces of the 172-acre island. The federal government sold the land to New York in 2003, and kept 22 acres that include two early 19th-century forts as a national monument. The trust is expected to issue a formal solicitation for ideas this summer and a request for proposals for activation of the vacant space and historic district sometime later this year. After proposals are chosen and the ULURP process is complete, construction could begin as early as 2019. De Blasio to unveil mixed-use project for Governors Island, sources say [Politico] Governors Islands New Rolling Hills Will Open This Summer [Curbed] All Governors Island coverage [Curbed] Cookie banner We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from. To learn more or opt-out, read our Cookie Policy. Please also read our Privacy Notice and Terms of Use, which became effective December 20, 2019. By choosing I Accept, you consent to our use of cookies and other tracking technologies. Despite agreeing to a compromise, and intensive efforts to gain critical allies over the last few weeks, Mayor Bill de Blasio's plan to limit horse-drawn carriages in the city has failed, The New York Times reports. The City Council planned to vote on the bill on Friday, but has now removed it from its calendar after one of the key supporters of the revised proposal the Teamsters union, withdrew its support. "We negotiated in good faith with the City Council and the Teamsters to reach this agreement," de Blasio said in an emailed statement. "The terms of that agreement have not changed during these past weeks, but today the Teamsters decided to back away from the fair compromise they had previously endorsed. While we are disappointed this bill will no longer be considered Friday, the people of this city know what I believe, and we will work toward a new path on this issue." When de Blasio was first campaigning for office he wanted the horse carriage industry to be banned completely in the city. After a strong backlash, de Blasio agreed to a compromise where the number of carriages would be reduced from 220 to 95, pedicabs would be banned below 85th street, and a new stable and carriage house would be built along the 85th Street Transverse. But that compromise ultimately didn't pass muster either. The Teamsters, who had previously supported the bill despite opposition from carriage drivers, decided the bill was not in the best interest of the horse carriage industry. The City Council rarely votes on measures that are assured not to pass, and as a result the item was removed from the agenda on Friday, according to the Times. Council members, who had mostly been hesitant about the bill, were only likely to support it with the backing of the Teamsters. According to the Mayor's office, the bill had enough votes to pass in the City Council before the Teamsters decided to pull out. Mayor de Blasio's Carriage-Horse Plan Falters in City Council [New York Times] All The Horse Carriage Industry Coverage [Curbed] It should look something like this. Photo: Patrick T. Fallon/2016 Bloomberg Finance LP If youre a Democrat whos still hopelessly torn between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, we have some good news: The DNC has added many more debates, the first of which airs tonight on MSNBC. How will this debate be different from all the previous Democratic forums? Well, for starters, its not taking place in the middle of a holiday weekend. Heres a guide to get you up to speed, and be sure to tune in later for Daily Intelligencers liveblog and complete coverage of the debate. When and where is the debate being held? Thursday at 9 p.m. EST at the University of New Hampshire in Durham. Why is this debate being held? Because no was happy with the debate schedule created by the Democratic National Committee, which seemed designed to ensure that voters wouldnt watch them. Sanders and OMalley supporters alleged that DNC chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz set the bizarre schedule to benefit Clinton, and she was initially resistant to holding more debates (in addition to two scheduled to take place on February 11 and March 9). After negotiations with the Democratic campaigns, on Wednesday, Wasserman Schultz announced that the DNC has agreed to sanction four more debates, bringing the total number in this election cycle to ten. There will be a debate in Flint, Michigan, in March, and the Washington Post reports that the two additional debates will take place in Pennsylvania in April and in California in May. How can I watch it? If you dont have cable, you can watch a livestream of the debate on NBCNews.com and MSNBC.com, or the networks apps. You can also follow along on social media with the hashtag #DemDebate (which has nothing to do with #DemBabies, though Mariah Carey is a Hillary supporter). Who will be there? Just Sanders and Clinton. As you may or may not have noticed, Martin OMalley dropped out of the race shortly after the Iowa caucus results came in. Whos moderating? Meet the Press host Chuck Todd and MSNBCs Rachel Maddow, who fought for more Democratic debates. The New Hampshire Union Leader will also pitch in. How are the candidates preparing? With a quasi-debate that aired on CNN Wednesday night. During the New Hampshire town hall, Clinton and Sanders disputed whether shes actually a progressive who likes to get things done, as shes fond of saying (though they were never onstage together). Will there be a lot of fighting? This is the first time the candidates will go head-to-head without having to deal with OMalley attempting to speak. But the chances of Sanders calling Clinton a maniac or her attempting to argue that Americans born to Polish immigrants arent eligible to run for president are extremely slim. Then again, they essentially tied in Iowa; Clinton needs to shoot up about 20 points by Tuesday if she wants to win New Hampshire, and Sanders has taken to posting things like this on Twitter: Threatened with the extinction of his candidacy, Chris Christie takes desperate measures to draw attention to Rubios extremist position in socially tolerant New Hampshire. Photo: Getty Images Look quickly, political junkies, because Chris Christie did something on Morning Joe today that is as rare as the sighting of the most endangered of species: one Republican politician attacking another for being too conservative. He went after Marco Rubio for opposing exceptions to a hypothetical abortion ban for pregnancies caused by rape or incest. I will tell you one thing Marco Rubio has done: He has made it very clear that on the issue of pro-life, Marco Rubio is not for an exception for rape, incest, or life of the mother, Christie said. Now, you know, I think thats the kind of position New Hampshire voters would be concerned about, he added. Im pro-life, but I believe that rape, incest, and the life of the mother as Ronald Reagan did should be exceptions to that rule. Christie is attacking Rubio for taking the standard position of the anti-choice movement a key GOP constituency group which happens to conflict with public opinion, even among Republicans, and especially in socially tolerant New England. The whole rape-incest exception became part of the political status quo through a compromise reached in Congress in 1993 that gave Henry Hyde enough Democratic votes to maintain his famous amendment banning use of federal funds (especially through Medicaid) to pay for abortions. Anti-choice advocates have tolerated it and politicians who supported it as a sop to public opinion, but in their perfect world it would be abandoned along with all other concessions to the idea that a woman doesnt have rights superior to that of the zygote or fetus for which she is serving as a biologically (and perhaps divinely) ordained incubator. Like the whole partial-birth abortion shuck, rape-incest exceptions have become a fine way for conservatives to draw attention away from their fundamental position of criminalizing nearly all abortions. But its understood by all involved that these relatively marginal issues are tactical, not fundamental; thats why every Republican National Convention platform since 1980 has endorsed an abortion ban without mentioning exceptions, even though particular presidential nominees (most recently Mitt Romney) were for rape, incest, or life-of-the-mother exceptions. That makes sense when you think about it: Once you accept the premise that, from the moment of conception, pregnancy involves a human being who needs to be protected from the potential murderer carrying it, rape or incest exceptions make no sense; they enable, as anti-choicers often say, a second act of violence that merely compounds the crime that generated the pregnancy. The woman who is the object rather than the subject of such laws is irrelevant to their twisted logic. And so in Republican presidential nomination contests, candidates who want the special friendship of the anti-choice lobby take exactly the same position as Marco Rubio (and Ted Cruz, and Ben Carson, and former candidates Mike Huckabee, Rick Santorum, and Bobby Jindal), and then try to avoid talking about it and especially stumbling into the kind of stupid and embarrassing defenses of it that brought down Senate candidate Todd Akin in 2012. Whats unusual in this case is that its a Republican thats holding Rubio accountable for his position. And while the anti-choice lobby is fine with Christies own position on the subject for the time being, anyway it will be a long time, if ever, before hes forgiven for calling out Rubio for holding the correct position. But you have to appreciate that Chris Christies presidential candidacy is hanging by a thread. After months and months of feverish campaigning and dragging himself out of the negative favorability territory he inhabited after Bridgegate, Christie has seen in New Hampshire the faint glimmer of survival, triumph, and revenge. Hes been endorsed by the Granite States major newspaper, the Union Leader. Hes part of a tightly competitive pack of Establishment candidates struggling to survive in the state and then move on to confront Donald Trump and Ted Cruz. And now all that could be going down the drain thanks to the hype Rubio earned from doing much better than expected in Iowa. All the things Rubio and his backers have done to project an image of a candidate acceptable to all wings of the party make him vulnerable to charges of hypocrisy, flip-flopping, and, alternatively, RINOism (which is and will be Cruzs critique) or extremism. This last road, so rarely taken by Republican primary candidates, is where Christies gone in his hour of need. It may or may not work in the New Hampshire primary. But the one clear beneficiary is the Democratic presidential nominee, who will inevitably record and repeat every word Christie says about Rubios extremist position. Keep on keepin on. Photo: Spencer Platt/Getty Images The New York City Council was all set to vote this Friday on the mayors proposal to curtail the carriage-horse industry, but now its looking like the deal behind the bill has crumbled. The Times reports that the Teamsters, who represent the carriage workers and signed on to the plan to reduce the number of horses and limit them to Central Park, have pulled out under increasing opposition to the bill. So here we go again. The Teamsters withdrawal delivers a big blow to Mayor de Blasio, who, unable to sell his complete carriage ban, had worked with the union to bring this compromise to the table. According to The Wall Street Journal, the mayor had enough votes until recently to get the legislation through the City Council, but the prospects of it passing flatlined once the union pulled out. Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito said, per Gothamist, they wouldnt put any bill to a vote that didnt have the Teamsters support. So what stopped them? In a statement, the Teamsters said they had turned against the bill because, with the legislation now finalized, our members are not confident that it provides a viable future for their industry. Two weeks ago, the unions representatives testified in front of the City Council, pushing for a more flexible timeline for the new scheme to roll out. The current proposal called for the number of horse licenses to drop from 180 to 110 by December of this year, and fall to 95 once the city opened a $20 million stable in Central Park. Both Teamsters and councilmembers raised concerns about the number of job losses. At the hearing, the representatives for the mayors office couldnt give exact figures, but later estimated that about 40 to 50 drivers could be out of work by December 2016. Mayor de Blasios very public defeats on this odd cause celebre are adding up. We negotiated in good faith with the City Council and the Teamsters to reach this agreement, the mayor said in a statement. The terms of that agreement have not changed during these past weeks, but today the Teamsters decided to back away from the fair compromise they had previously endorsed The people of this city know what I believe, and we will work toward a new path on this issue, he added. Animal-rights groups including NYCLASS, which had pushed for an all-out ban had come around to making the deal, saying it would get the horses off the dangerous city streets. The Teamsters last-minute bailout, however, bodes well for another group: pedicab drivers, who would have been banished to an area above 85th Street in Central Park. DeRay Mckesson joins a field of 28 candidates. Photo: Kimberly White/2015 Getty Images There was a surprise in the already-crowded Baltimore mayoral race on Wednesday when DeRay Mckesson, an activist who rose to prominence following the killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, filed to enter the race hours before the deadline. Filing deadline surprise: @deray files to run for mayor of Baltimore pic.twitter.com/J1ABRGjSau Luke Broadwater (@lukebroadwater) February 4, 2016 Mckesson, 30, left his job as a Minneapolis public-schools administrator and has been working full-time as an activist in the Black Lives Matter movement. His entry into the race represents a new phase in the movement, which has mainly focused on changing the system from the outside. In a November interview with New York, Mckesson said he thought the world of politics could be a ripe world for those good at activism, at mobilizing, at protesting. He also said he was considering running for mayor in his hometown of Baltimore: Working as a senior leader in two public-school systems changed the way I thought about politics. I saw the importance of what it was like to understand the details at such a deep level and how decisions made within the system often have immediate and sweeping impact. I managed a range of workflows, from staffing to workers compensation in the Baltimore City Public Schools, and there, I saw the power of what it would be like to be on the inside, fighting for change. And obviously in protests, I see what its like to be outside the system, pressing and fighting. Many people have asked me if Id consider running for mayor of Baltimore. And I think its I dont know at what point Id think being an elected official would be the best way to be in the work, because right now we are trying to apply this pressure from the outside. And force systems to change and respond, forcing these conversations. Im confident that protesters will run for office at the local level soon. And do transformative work. And I want to support that. And know protesters would be completely capable. Related Stories In Conversation With DeRay Mckesson Including Mckesson, there are 13 Democrats, four Republicans, three Green Party members, and a Libertarian seeking the office. Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake is not seeking reelection. The Baltimore Sun notes that with so many Democrats running, a candidate could win the April 26 primary without securing a large portion of the vote. Mckesson said in a statement that hes hoping to challenge the status quo in the city. If Baltimore wants to achieve its promise and possibility, he said, we cannot rely on traditional pathways to politics and the traditional politicians who walk that path. We have to challenge the practices that have not and will not lead to transformation. Photo: Friends of the Brooklyn Queens Connector Good morning and welcome to Fresh Intelligence, our roundup of the stories, ideas, and memes youll be talking about today. In this edition, the boroughs may get a streetcar someday, we lose a few more GOP candidates, and Mark Zuckerberg updates the world on the state of his bank account. Heres the rundown for Thursday, February 4. WEATHER Meteorologists are abuzz about the coming snows. A changing weather pattern means wintery weather might soon return to the Northeast and South. Until then, New Yorkers can expect high temperatures into the mid-50s, but bring an umbrella. [Weather.com] FRONT PAGE Our Childrens Children Might Take a Streetcar From Brooklyn to Queens New York mayor Bill de Blasio will announce plans to build a streetcar line along the East River between Brooklyn and Queens as part of a larger vision to revitalize the waterfront. The mayor is set to announce the details of his plan in his State of the City speech today. Construction would start in 2019, and service probably wouldnt start until 2024, at which point well be doing all of our traveling via hoverboard anyway. [NYT] EARLY AND OFTEN Trump Files for Election Bankruptcy A good old fashioned do-over, thats Donald Trumps plan for the Iowa caucus. The presidential hopeful backtracked from being a gracious loser yesterday and, momentarily forgetting how politics works, accused Ted Cruz of lying and generally being shady. He then called the whole process illegal and demanded a redo. Rand Paul Admits Hes Been Out-Trolled by Trump, Exits Race In one of the most grimly existential concession speeches of our time, Rand Paul announced yesterday that he is backing out of the presidential race. Today, I will end where I began, said the Kentucky senator, who will now patiently wait for death. [Politico] Santorum Hates Trump and Cruz More Than We Realized Rick Santorum suspended his campaign as well, and directed his very small number of supporters to vote for Rubio. President of Nearly 3 Million Muslims Visits One Mosque Once President Obama dropped by the Islamic Society of Baltimore for a community roundtable yesterday in a bid to reassure Muslims that discrimination against an entire faith will not be tolerated in this country. Theres still a lot of evidence to the contrary, like the fact that Marco Rubio was upset about the visit. Democrats Prepare for Televised Debate With Televised Debate The two remaining Democrats, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, politely butted heads yesterday at a town-hall meeting in New Hampshire. Aside from a heated debate over who is more progressive, the confrontation held few surprises, meaning that the debate tomorrow night will hold absolutely none. THE STREET, THE VALLEY Despised Wealthy Jerk Now Just Despised Jerk Martin Shkreli, everyones favorite example of everything thats wrong with humans, is not doing so hot. It was revealed in court yesterday that his E*Trade account somehow we dont think Warren Buffett has an E*Trade account had dropped from $45 million to $4 million. Shkrelis last communication with the public was a ten-hour video he uploaded to YouTube that shows him hanging out, talking on the phone, playing video games, and checking his Twitter. Its actually kind of humanizing. [CNN] Mark Zuckerberg Is Our Generations Jeff Bezos Thanks to his disturbingly well-performing picture-sharing site, Mark Zuckerberg leapfrogged both Amazons Jeff Bezos and Mexican telecom-mogul Carlos Slim to become the fourth richest man in the world. Zuckerberg now has $50 billion. You Still Wont Find Anyone to Help You Home Depot, a.k.a. a great way to ruin a Sunday, announced it will be hiring an additional 80,000 sales associates in preparation for the expected seasonal rush. Home Depots busiest season is spring because everyone needs to refinish their deck or something. [USA Today] A.I. Head Sounds Ominous Is That Just Us? Google veteran Amit Singhal is stepping down as the companys chief of internet search business and will be replaced by John Giannandrea, the head of its artificial-intelligence wing. This move is just one of a string of recent announcements that show Silicon Valley is more focused than ever on A.I., and it makes us very uncomfortable. [Reuters] Company Going Off Cliff in Flames Would Make a Great Video As it turns out, the thrill of sticking a camera on your head wears off after a while. Global causer of motion sickness GoPro is in trouble. Shares of the company dropped 9 percent yesterday mostly because everyone who wants a GoPro already has one. [Bloomberg] MEDIA BUBBLE Why Does It Take So Many People to Make 2 Broke Girls? Bear with us. Leslie Moonves is now the chairman of CBS and also the CEO and the president of CBS. He is replacing Sumner Redstone, who is the executive chairman of Viacom, but who will now also be the chairman emeritus of CBS. The maneuver is apparently part of a secret deal Redstones daughter worked out with Moonves. That makes sense. [Variety] Time Tells Women What They Want In a bid to get a slice of that tasty online-revenue pie, Time Inc. is launching a new website aimed at young women. Specifically, Motto is for young women looking for advice. Managing editor of Time Digital Edward Felsenthal said and this is serious that increasingly people are looking for media that tells them what to do. [WSJ] PHOTO OP Flint Now Actually Waterworld Democratic congresswoman Michelle Lujan Grisham rocked a skull-and-bones eye patch while questioning witnesses at the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on the Safe Drinking Water Act in Flint, perfectly capturing the mood of the nation. Photo: Bill Clark/ 2016 CQ-Roll Call, Inc. MORNING MEME Todays morning meme is actually two memes. Could you choose between this cat in a fly choker/broken vase: And an adorable polar-bear cub? Didnt think so. WATCH: The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium baby polar bear is one of the cutest animals you will ever see! Find voting info for her name on their Facebook page (voting ends tonight). Posted by Good Morning America on Wednesday, February 3, 2016 OTHER LOCAL NEWS Silenced Hero Spoke Truth to Children A 19-year-old Arizona day-care worker was somehow caught off guard when she was fired from her job after posting images of her flipping off the children she was supposed to be looking after. She captioned her photos I swear I love kids! which is great and actually kind of a pun. [Fox] Palm Beach Lawyer Convention The annual blacktip-shark winter migration is on, with thousands of sharks just going nuts off the coast of Palm Beach as they head for warmer waters and a richer food supply. That explains why flights are so cheap. [Sun Sentinel] HAPPENING TODAY Oh Good, Another Debate! The Democratic New Hampshire debate will take place on Thursday night after Bernie Sanders agreed to attend at the last minute. If New Hampshire voters have somehow managed to tune out the race until now, this is their last chance to make up their minds before Tuesdays primary. L.A. Unites in Mass Dumpster Dive A lottery ticket worth $63 million is going to expire tomorrow if the owner doesnt claim it. The ticket was sold in a Los Angelesarea 7-Eleven in August. Whether the ticket is claimed or not the owner of the store will still receive $315,000. If youre one of those drunk lottery-ticket-buying types, maybe go check your pockets. [LAT] Jeb Bush Gives In, Calls His Mom Jeb Bush is planning to deploy his secret weapon today: his mom, Barbara. The former First Lady is a beloved and slightly feared figure on both sides of the aisle, and Jeb clearly hopes she will bolster his reputation with women and get people to take him a bit more seriously in general. [NYT] Jeb? Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Ahead of the New Hampshire primary, the GOP Establishment is sending Jeb Bushs campaign a clear message: Beat Rubio or die. To keep the partys primary from devolving into a two-man race between a pathological narcissist and unlikable sociopath, Republican bigwigs need to unite behind a pseudo-moderate. On Monday in Iowa, Marco Rubio made a strong case that he is the most competitive of the fields more palatable reactionaries. The Florida senator posted a strong third-place showing, capturing 23 percent of the vote. Bush, by contrast, finished in sixth 3,000 votes behind Kentucky senator Rand Paul, who put his campaign out of its misery on Wednesday. Imagine youre a prominent Republican donor who aligned yourself with Jeb! last year, back when everybody was doing it. On the one hand, you could keep bankrolling the guy who spent $5,000 for every vote he received in the Hawkeye State the one who just barely persuaded his own mother to endorse him, the one whose most reliable applause line has become please clap. On the other hand, you could switch allegiance to the younger, handsomer, more Latino politician with identical politics the one who septupled Bushs support in Iowa. How eager would you be to pursue option No. 1? How about if Bush lost to Rubio again, this time in a region where his family has deep political roots? According to the New York Times, you would not be eager to do that. Not at all. Some of Mr. Bushs major donors, including those with long ties to the family, are also growing impatient, hoping he will not go past New Hampshire absent a strong finish here, Jonathan Martin and Ashley Parker wrote on Wednesday. Bushs most prominent supporters on Capitol Hill are striking a similar note. If Rubio beats him badly in New Hampshire, Jeb is toast, South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham, who endorsed Bush after folding his own hopeless 2016 bid, told the Times. Meanwhile, one of the first members of Congress to endorse Bush, Texas representative Pete Sessions, told the National Journal that his eye is wandering to another candidate. Everybody is weighing and balancing what they know now that they didnt know 10 months ago, and I think that the person who gets closest to me is a Rubio, Sessions said. But the beleaguered candidate himself seems determined to keep his campaign marching, regardless of how he performs in the Granite State primary, where current polls show him only one point behind Rubio for ownership of fourth place. Oh, Im continuing on, Bush told reporters Tuesday, when asked if he would keep campaigning, even in the face of a poor showing next week. Im continuing on, yeah. If Bush wishes to persist, the Establishment cant stop him, at least not immediately. As of January 1, Bushs campaign had $7.6 million on hand, and his super-pac was funded to the tune of $58 million. Rubios other rivals for the title of Establishment candidate, John Kasich and Chris Christie, arent nearly that well bankrolled. Even if Rubio won over every donor with lifelong ties to the Bush family, Jeb! could still contest this thing for months, which would be a real problem for anyone but Trump or Cruz Republicans. Bush hasnt merely slowed the putatively moderate portion of the GOP electorate from consolidating behind Rubio hes also spent $20 million trying to weaken the partys most popular Establishment candidate. If those attacks arent enough to lift Jeb! over Marco in New Hampshire, there wont be much clapping for Bush in the GOPs ranks, no matter how humorously he begs for it. No, thank you. Photo: Image Source/Getty Images Crime may be at an all-time low in New York, but weird scary subway attacks are not. Eight slashings have occurred so far this year, and Wednesday evening a woman at the Times Square subway station was reportedly attacked with a needle. According to the New York Daily News, the 37-year-old woman was on her way home at around 6:50 p.m. When she exited the subway station via the W. 49th Street and Seventh Avenue turnstile, she felt a man bump into her and a sharp pain in her shoulder. When she arrived home she discovered a puncture wound on that shoulder and checked into Queens Mount Sinai Hospital for treatment. An emergency-room doctor reportedly confirmed the wound was consistent with a needle, but exactly what the attacker used to puncture his victims skin whether a syringe, a sewing needle, or some other thin sharp object is still unclear. Police are checking the surveillance recordings to get a better idea of what happened. This attack comes as cops are struggling to get a handle on the spike in subway slashings, some of which have been spurred by arguments and others of which appear to be random. On Monday the Guardian Angels started patrolling trains for the first time in more than two decades, and the NYPD has upped its presence on trains and platforms as well. Police Commissioner Bratton even proposed a (probably illegal) plan to bar career criminals from the subways. Well deal with it, he said during an interview on Monday. What happens without this subway stop? Photo: Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images First off, the facts as they are known: The Canarsie Tube, the tunnel that carries the L train under the East River from Brooklyn to Manhattan and back, is a mess. Hurricane Sandy more or less filled up the portion of the tunnel under the river, plus a bit on either side, significantly damaging about three miles worth of concrete, cables, signals, and rails, plus a pump room near Avenue D. And no, Sandy did not single out the hipsters: Nine such underwater tunnels were damaged during the hurricane, in varying degrees, and three are either under repairs or fixed already. Most of those, like the R trains Montague Tube, are in areas that were at least somewhat doubly served, mitigating the pain. The L is next, and for the inner-Brooklyn portion of its run, its pretty much the only train around that runs to Manhattan and back. It now carries about 350,000 riders per day, up significantly in recent years (4.7 percent in 2014 alone!) as Williamsburg and Bushwick entered their postindustrial lives. And quite a few of those thousands may have a problem next year, because that tunnel has to be fixed, and the train may come to a halt. All the options available, from shuttle buses to gondolas to some version of the new and enticing light-rail proposal, fall well short of the ability to handle that very large number of people with any kind of efficiency. The repair contract for the tunnel was bid out with an estimate that it would take 40 months of weekend work. Last year, the excellent subway blogger at Second Avenue Sagas did a nice job of explaining how bad the damage was, and noted one small upside to the rebuild that the First Avenue stop, in Manhattan, will gain a new entrance at the eastern end of its platform, serving Avenue A. Most cities do maintenance and repairs at night, when the trains are not running. (The London Underground mostly closes down at midnight.) That is not an ordinary option in the City That Never Sleeps, although night-and-weekend service interruptions have become routine. This time, though, the MTA has floated the possibility of another scheme: Closing the tunnel completely would allow the work to be done in a year rather than three and a half, while (presumably) funneling most Manhattan commuters over to the J/M/Z lines. Certainly, it would make a commuters life that much worse, but it would also perhaps lessen the pain in a rip-off-the-Band-Aid-in-one-go kind of way. There is an alternative plan to close one side of the Canarsie tube (which is really two tubes) at a time, and shuttle people back and forth on the single other track as work is done. If youre a betting person, your money might go there. (The MTA has been mum about which plan it prefers, and did not respond to two requests for comment on this story.) Could be Lorimer Street, for awhile. Photo: Marcin Wichary/Flickr In either scheme, of course, the entire L line would not be closed. Everyone to the east of the Myrtle-Wyckoff stop, coming from East New York and Canarsie, will be able to transfer to the M and, in some cases, the A/C and J/Z, all of which make multiple connections with other lines on their various routes to Manhattan. (This is a rare case where poorer New Yorkers will be somewhat less screwed over than richer ones.) If youre east of the Lorimer stop, you will be able to transfer to the G train, which is less helpful but at least will take you to another line headed for midtown or downtown. The MTA would be likely to put on extra G service, and it had better, because even that train is not exactly empty right now. That leaves the people who come through the Bedford Avenue stop, which is the busiest one on the Brooklyn part of the L. Its weekday passenger load in 2014 (the last year for which data are available) was 27,224 people, up more than 50 percent in a decade, and that figure barely dips on the weekends, presumably because of Williamsburgs social scene. Some of its riders would go one stop over, to Lorimer Street, and catch the G; others would drive or bike or (this being Williamsburg) skateboard. How do you move the remainder to and from their jobs every day? To hear some of them tell it, a full closure would wreck whatever cultural specialness remains in Williamsburg. To which point, a colleague of mine correctly sneered: Infrastructure doesnt care. Well, lets work out some numbers. (Stipulated: These figures are speculative.) The ridership statistic above suggests that the trains pick up and disgorge perhaps 5,000 people per hour at Bedford between 8 and 10 a.m. and 5 and 7 p.m. If a percentage of those go to Lorimer Street instead, and others find alternative routes or work from home or whatever, a decent guess is that 3,000 people an hour will need to be shuttled over to the J/M/Z stop at Marcy Avenue. You can pack 112 people onto the MTAs big articulated buses, meaning youd need 26 of them per hour one every two and a half minutes. Given that it takes a solid couple of minutes to load that many bodies, something like an entire block would have to become a dedicated bus stop, because buses will literally be lining up. Traffic will cause them to arrive in clumps. (Let us not think too hard about the wheelchair lifts, which are both legally and morally necessary but hugely slow down the boarding process.) Bedford Avenue itself might need a dedicated lane. If you live near the Bedford stop, its going to be a very noisy, very crowded, highly diesel-scented year. If youre going to commute this way, youd better start getting up an hour earlier. And if youve ever lived above a subway line that went out during a rainstorm, you will remember the long waits for a ride home. Hope you like articulated buses. Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images The other alternatives to this parade of buses are perhaps more charming, certainly more attractive, and barely workable. Ferries? Sure, if you have a beard and a blacksmith shop, the 19th-century aspect of commuting by ship sounds lovely. But the current fast ferries can carry 399 people, and make a couple of round trips an hour. (Theyre also mostly full already, at least at rush hour.) Even if the MTA rented a small fleet of comparable boats, and just had them shuttle between Williamsburg and the stop at East 35th Street, that would handle a tiny fraction of the demand, very slowly. And then the 34th Street crosstown bus, running at its customary four or five miles per hour, would soon become its own kind of hellscape. The Skyway? Come on. Its proposal claims it could somehow move 5,000 passengers an hour in total, with a car emptying and loading every 30 seconds, but thats a fantasy. In real life, it would carry maybe 12 people in each of those little pods, when its not windy, and would grind to a halt every time an old guy takes an extra minute or so to disembark. (The Roosevelt Island tram has transported 30 million people altogether since it was opened in 1976; the L train carries that many every 90 days.) Its a lovely amenity an urban garnish, if you will but its hardly a transit system. Plus we dont have it yet, and getting it built in months rather than years is a pretty fanciful idea, too. A friend yesterday suggested that a far larger conventional ferry Staten Islandsize would do the job passably well, and I was surprised to find that the 24-foot minimum depth of the East River would allow such a boat to dock at either end of the commute. Itd be great if we had, say, a retired Staten Island ferryboat in mothballs, waiting for such an occasion which, in fact, we did, until it sank and was sold off for scrapping a couple of years ago. Another big ferry, one that had served Marthas Vineyard for decades, was bought by New York for Governors Island in 2007. It turned out to be a useless rust bucket, and it has ended up in the ship graveyard off Staten Island. So wed have to find one and fit it out, a process that would probably take about as long as the L-train closure would, and shouldve been started yesterday. As daffy-seeming an idea as it is, it ought to be taken seriously. The capacity of the current Staten Island Ferry is about 6,000 people. For Brooklyn, surely the bicyclists would get to take over the car deck. The solution? Photo: Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images The short answer is that its going to be a long slog of a year. Uber will make a bunch of money. So, perhaps, will rental brokers, as a small but significant percentage of Williamsburgers head elsewhere. Everyone else: Get your VPN ready. And order a new pair of wet-weather walking shoes. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Consider the recent adventures in awkwardness from Jeb Bushs campaign: On Monday, the former Florida governor took the stage at a pre-caucus briefing in Des Moines after being introduced as George er, Jeb Bush. Later that same meeting, two apparent seat-fillers stood up and loudly demanded to know why they hadnt yet been paid. (As Daily Intelligencers Ed Kilgore reported, seat-fillers were offered $25 per hour to make the gathering appear more full.) Then there was Wednesday and the two saddest words ever uttered by a prospective presidential candidate: Please clap. And thats just this week. To be fair to Bush, when you see please clap in its proper context, its not quite as bad as a New York Times reporter made it out to be; its hard to get a crowd excited enough to spontaneously applaud something as mild as a safer world. But the story took flight on Wednesday, likely in part because it fits one of the narratives of Bushs overall campaign: This is so awkward it physically hurts me. I get secondhand embarrassment from the facial expressions of Jeb Bush Joe Corkery (@Joecorkery54) September 17, 2015 Jeb Bush gives me secondhand embarrassment. Marisa Stotter (@marisastotter) December 31, 2015 Oh the secondhand awkward on that 'please clap' makes me want to hide under the desk #Maddow Keva (@Synergy3k) February 4, 2016 Psychologists call the feeling vicarious embarrassment; the German word for it is Fremdscham, which translates literally to external shame. One of the most basic, primal human instincts is to keep up your standing within your social group. This is, in fact, the reigning theory of regular old embarrassment that the feeling exists in order to maintain social order, by giving people an internal clue that theyve stepped out of line, and that theyd better self-correct. For our ancestors, losing your standing in your group could potentially threaten your survival. Now, of course, it also means someone might immortalize the moment in a GIF. That GIF comes from a recent thread in a subreddit exclusively devoted to dissecting cringe-worthy behavior. Secondhand embarrassment likely works the same way as the firsthand kind, but the feeling arises because youre imagining yourself in the awkward persons shoes. Most everyone feels, to some degree, embarrassment on behalf of someone elses pratfall or screwup, but research has suggested that people vary in the degree to which they experience secondhand embarrassment. If some of Bushs most painfully awkward moments have been hard for you to watch or, for that matter, if you cant bear the American Idol auditions, or if youve never been able to make it through an entire episode of the British version of The Office it likely means that you number among the easily empathetically embarrassed. As psychology writer Oliver Burkeman phrased it in a 2014 piece for The Guardian, this suggests you have a generally high capacity for involvement in the emotional lives of others. It means youre skilled at taking the perspective of others, in other words: You see someone else making a fool of himself and you feel it, as if it were happening to you. And theres a reason, incidentally, that we call these moments painfully awkward: The neural pathways that are activated when viewing another persons social pain are the very same ones that are active when you watch someone withstand physical pain. The German researchers of the 2011 PLOS ONE study that discovered this, by the way, came about their findings by making their study participants watch other people do fun things like wearing a shirt emblazoned with the phrase I Am Sexy. One recent study found that the more you like someone, the more you feel empathetic embarrassment on their behalf. This may turn out to be good news for Bush, especially when one considers that time he tried to chest-bump someone. Or that time he told a first-time voter, I want to be your first. "I want to be your first," Bush awkwardly tells a college kid who said he will be a first-time voter. Ed O'Keefe (@edatpost) February 2, 2016 Or the time he couldnt quite remember Malia Obamas name. Jeb, while telling an anecdote about FLOTUS, invokes her daughter, calling her "Malayla." Candace Smith (@CandaceSmith_) January 6, 2016 Im picking on Bush, but he is by no means the first politician to struggle with social ineptitude. Four years ago, we had Mitt Romney insisting that he actually [likes] jokes as well as things that are sort of fun, and apparently attempting to prove the matter by making a weird joke at a New Hampshire diner about a server grabbing his butt. Or theres President Richard Nixon, who once, famously, wore wingtip shoes on the beach. As the Daily Beast noted in a 2012 piece, Clearly you can be elected president and get things done even if youre not a people person. Few would place big bets on Bushs chances at the presidency at this point. But at least one poll on Wednesday afternoon did show him rising to second place. To which I think Bush might say: Please clap? Listening to Stevie Nicks With Kim Gordon and Daryl K An afternoon in L.A., bathed in nostalgia for 90s New York. Photographs by Todd Cole Its a grayish morning in Los Feliz, and Kim Gordon is late for the photo shoot where shell be modeling the latest Madewell collaboration. She has decided to walk from her house to the shoot, taking place inside a cozy, 1950s home decked out in vintage furniture. Everybody on set is horrified by the distance of her journey (ten minutes by foot), because, as the cliche goes, nobody walks in L.A. But these days Kim Gordon does as she pleases. In the latest chapter of her life, postSonic Youth, she's left the dreary East Coast winters and returned to the city she grew up in making new art, new habits. On this particular day, she's on her way to meet her old friend Daryl Kerrigan, designer of cult '90s fashion label Daryl K. Madewell is about to release a 19-piece capsule collection with Kerrigan, for which Gordon and her 22-year-old daughter, Coco, appear in the campaign imagery. Even from down the block Gordon is unmistakable, her signature blonde bangs skimming the top of her sunglasses, her soft, pinstripe blazer tied loosely at her waist. When Gordon arrives, the two women catch up a bit. It's been years since they've seen each other, it turns out. Right away, they talk about their kids, swiping through images on their phones the way people do these days. The home screen on Gordon's phone is the Madewell image of her and Coco. I was surprised she wanted to be photographed. She doesnt often want that, Kim says of her daughter. Indeed, the seemingly born-to-be-hip Coco Gordon Moore doesnt even have a public Instagram account. Everyone wants to talk about David Bowie, his recent death, his legacy, his style. Kerrigan can't stop watching his performances on YouTube. Gordon tells us all how much she loved playing a show with him at his 50th birthday party. Chances are, if you ask any woman who worked downtown in the mid-'90s where she bought her favorite clothes, she's likely to mention Daryl K's shop on Bond Street. It seems impossible now, even preposterous to imagine, that 20 years ago it took a modicum of effort to find cool clothing in New York. But its true: "Back then, there was nothing, as Gordon says. There were no blogs devoted to street style, no easy ways to access images of things that inspired you. "Very few stores, she continues. People were really into vintage, Doc Martens, Canal Jeans." Indie magazines were expensive broke college students spent hours standing in the dirty, disorganized magazine shop on the corner of Spring and Lafayette, leafing through issues of Purple or Index or Interview and not buying them. The scavenger hunt to find a pair of leather pants (spotted on the most intimidating woman at one of the newly opened Chelsea galleries) could take weeks. You roamed certain neighborhoods simply to encounter interesting people so you could take note of their style and file it away in the Pinterest board of your mind. If you found a store or a bar that seemed special, you didn't always tell everybody about it because you had done the hard work of finding it and you might not want to "ruin" it with overexposure. You took for granted that the right people would find it on their own, like you had. Yes, this is the once-cool-40-year-old New Yorker's "I walked a mile in the snow" story, but it's true nonetheless. Besides, this might be the special appeal, to younger shoppers, of having Gordon and Kerrigan wearing a brand like Madewell: In our hyperconnected Instagram era, in which people seek constant validation of their personal taste, its very difficult to achieve anywhere near the level of earned cool that these two have. When Daryl opened her first store in the East Village in 1992, she was doing something slightly more feminine, minimal and fitted, than anybody else at the time. It felt really right," Gordon remembers. According to Gordon, she and her friend, the stylist Daisy von Furth (with whom she would go on to start X-Girl, another cult '90s clothing store for a slightly younger set), were"obsessed" with boot-cut pants. Kerrigan had that market cornered, and Gordon became one of her highest-profile fans. Gordon recalls even wearing Daryl K's signature low-slung vinyl pants as maternitywear. "Yes, they had a nice bit of stretch, didn't they?" Kerrigan teases fondly. Kerrigan's soft, sophisticated Dublin accent adds a conspiratorial warmth to everything she says. Her blue eyes grab you from behind her tinted aviators, and her gray-blonde hair is the only thing that betrays her 51 years. Beneath her shirt, unbuttoned to the limits of acceptability, gold chains peek out in a sexy tangle. Flipping through the new collection, she whisks away a sample-size pair of high-waisted, boot-cut jeans and a denim jacket so small it could fit a child. Gordon, meanwhile, chooses a black suede miniskirt to try on. She deems it too long, and the tailor on set shortens it to a mere 13.5 inches. Gordon's smooth, tan legs are the envy of the room, but in the end she decides to go with jeans and a T-shirt. "I've always been more of a tomboy," she explains. "Im drawn to the type of girl who can wear just a T-shirt and plain jeans and make them her own." Kerrigan agrees: "Too much fashion ruins things." I mention that as I get older, I care less and less about male attention, that I dress more for myself than ever. I still care, Kim laughs. Im single now, after all. Photo: Todd Cole The women browse the huge record collection in the house where they're shooting, stopping occasionally to play an album. Gordon jokingly looks for covers with '70s, California vibes, "something denim-y" to match their outfits. Finding various all-male acts like the Allman Brothers and Donovan, she says quietly, almost to herself, "How about some women?" After searching for a Runaways record to no avail, she settles on Rita Coolidge's self-titled album and plays "Born Under a Bad Sign," before moving on to Fleetwood Mac's Tusk. "I met Stevie once," she tells Kerrigan. "She was so down-to-earth." Its a sweet moment from someone who must have inspired that same comment in legions of fans herself. Even icons have their icons. Icon isnt a word Gordon seems comfortable with, waving that status off with a bemused shrug. I have to admit that I was never a big Sonic Youth fan when it would have been cool to be one. But I always watched Kim. She represented the woman who had figured out how to have a dynamic marriage, a creative life, a prominent place in a male-dominated field, a child and always great style. Lately, though Ive been more interested in her than ever. In the aftermath of her divorce and the breakup of her band, Gordon has almost single-handedly redefined what it means to be over 60. She and Kerrigan, with their wonderful, no-Botox faces and joyful girlishness, appear to be pioneering a new kind of aging, one that seems to reject the notion that women become invisible. In fact, I'm dying for examples of women who let themselves just look like they look; women like Ines de la Fressange, or Linda Rodin with her gorgeous wrinkles, or even much older women like Iris Apfel: They represent a future in which women remain bright, chic, and even gain relevance and personal confidence with age. Gordon and her daughter also recently modeled for Marc Jacobs's fall 2015 campaign; in an ad, the duo stare down the camera with a compound ferocity. Gordon isn't so much passing the torch as inviting a new generation to share the stage. And that generosity, it seems to me, is part of what makes Gordon inspiring in a way thats even more revolutionary than the way she was cool 25 years ago. Shes learned how to be at ease. "Everybody thinks that everything has to be about success and upward and bigger and more and more, she says, but it doesn't have to be like that. Dr. Adriana Melo. Photo: Courtesy of Adriana Melo For the first time in her 22-year career, Brazilian obstetrician Adriana Melo couldnt explain to a patient what was happening to her fetus. The 20-week-olds head appeared too small on the ultrasound image. Parts of her brain appeared atrophied, while calcium deposits dotted other parts. Two weeks later, Melo found herself at a loss again. A 24-week-old fetus also had a smaller-than-average head, and his brain was asymmetrical. His thalamus, a part of the brain that controls movement and sensation, had failed to develop properly. Melo knew enough to diagnose the fetuses, whose mothers named them Catarina and Guilherme, with microcephaly, but she didnt know how or why they had it. It is difficult to tell a mother that there is a problem with her baby but you dont know why, says Melo, who works in the state of Paraiba, in the poor northeastern part of Brazil. My first patients, the mothers of Catarina and Guilherme, were my partners in looking for answers. Over the next three weeks, Melo, who has doctorates in obstetrics and gynecology and infant maternal health, canvassed doctors across the country. She was closely following the news out of Recife, a city in neighboring Pernambuco, where doctors had noticed that many pregnant women had red spots on their bodies, a sign of the Zika virus. Melo had noticed the marks on Catarina and Guilhermes mothers as well, but their blood tests showed no evidence of the virus. Yet the more research she did, the more she began to suspect a connection between the Zika virus and microcephaly. So in early November she extracted amniotic fluid from the two mothers and sent it to be analyzed at the Fundacao Oswaldo Cruz, a national science research institution in Rio de Janeiro. She convinced the Paraiba health authorities to pay for the two pregnant mothers to travel 1,650 miles to Sao Paulo, where an international meeting on fetal medicine was taking place in mid-November. When Melo received the laboratory results, her suspicions were confirmed: Three different tests detected the presence of the Zika virus in the amniotic fluid of her two patients, indicating a possible relationship between the Zika virus and microcephaly. Before last year, Zika which was first discovered in the 1940s in Uganda was relatively rare in Brazil. But the number of people suffering from the virus began to skyrocket last May. At the same time, doctors in Brazils northeastern states noticed a spike in the number of babies being born with microcephaly a neurological condition in which an infants head does not grow to a sufficient size in the womb. Around the time Melo diagnosed microcephaly in Catarina and Guilherme, Doctors Vanessa van der Linden Mota and her mother, Ana van der Linden, were seeing a spike in the number of women in Recife bearing children with microcephaly, and they alerted the health ministry. But it was Melo who first called for public-health officials to test amniotic fluid. Since then, the two mothers, whose names have never been revealed, have played an integral role in the research on Zika and microcephaly. By mid-November, Brazils ministry of health began to require that doctors report cases of pregnant women with red spots on their skin. And though the relationship between Zika and microcephaly has yet to be proven conclusively, on February 1, the World Health Organization declared Zika a global public emergency because of the mounting evidence that it is causing neurological disorders in babies. When the suspected connection went public, it set off shock waves around the world. But Melo took her discovery in stride. This wasnt a surprise to me, she says. I always believed there was a connection between microcephaly and Zika. In the past five months, Brazils ministry of health has counted 4,783 suspected cases of microcephaly. The epicenter of the outbreak is Recife, in Pernambuco state, with 1,447 suspected cases. The second-hardest-hit state is Paraiba, where Melo works, with 750 suspected cases. Both Paraiba and Pernambuco are in Brazils northeast region, which is developed but much poorer than the southeast, where Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo are located. Brazilian people dont even think that people in the northeast do research, Melo says. They certainly dont think that we produce high-quality research. Melo, who is married with two daughters, specializes in fetal medicine and works in the public and private sector in Campina Grande, a city of 400,000 people in the interior of Paraiba. On a typical day, she leaves her house at 8 a.m. and tends to appointments at her private practice. Two days a week, she treats mothers with high-risk pregnancies at a public hospital, for which she earns $950 a month. She also teaches fetal medicine at a medical school in Campina Grande, and spends her nights on her fetal medicine research. Melo says that she specializes in fetal medicine because she does not like to work with death. The arrival of Zika just solidified my career as a researcher and proved what I could do, she says. Months after she first drew a connection, Melos work on Zika and microcephaly continues. Every Friday she examines the ultrasounds of pregnant women who have a history with the Zika virus. Thus far she has examined more than 150 women. Seventeen of their fetuses were diagnosed with microcephaly, which she treats while continuing the search for the cause. The world owes them some answers, Melo says. Bill Cosby. Photo: Gilbert Carrasquillo/Getty Images A judge in Pennsylvania has ruled not to dismiss the assault case against Bill Cosby. Cosby was arraigned in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, in December on aggravated indecent assault charges after former Temple employee Andrea Constand said Cosby drugged and assaulted her in January 2004. Cosbys legal team had requested the charges be dismissed, citing a former prosecutors promise not to go after him as reasoning. Judge Steven ONeill denied this request, ensuring that Constands case will continue. Obviously Andrea was very upset yesterday with the manner in which Castor testified about her, Constands lawyer told People. We feel very vindicated and are convinced now that justice will prevail in a Montgomery County courtroom. Constand is one of more than 35 women who say Cosby assaulted them. Following the mysterious death of seven cattle near an oil field in Kansas, public health authorities are investigating whether oil drilling could be the cause. In late December, seven dead cattle were found near an oil field in the Cimarron National Grassland, Kansas, and authorities believe that cows inhaled something toxic, prompting them to deny public access to the 2,500-acre Cimarron National Grassland until at least May. Six of the cattle were discovered together in a low-lying area, while a seventh was found a short distance away, with local veterinarians identifying the ingestion or inhalation of something toxic leading to pulmonary edema or fluid in the lungs as a possible cause, though the cause of death has not been officially declared. More specifically, they suspect the cattle may have inhaled hydrogen sulfidea toxic gas that can be released in the oil and gas drilling process. They havent pinpointed the cause officially, but it was enough to implement an emergency order to halt public access to the area for a prolonged period. Related: Fundamentals For Oil Still Bearish, But Sentiment Is Shifting While the general public is denied access to the grassland, oil and gas companies operating in the Stirrup Oil Field area here are still operational, including Anadarko Petroleum, Merit Energy and Argent Energy. It is kind of a unique situation were dealing with and Im honestly afraid well never find the answer, local veterinarian Tera Barnhardt told media. It would not be the first mysterious cattle deaths tentatively linked to oil and gas drilling. Related: Japan And Iran Could Keep a Lid On Oil Price Rally In 2012, 140 cattle were exposed to fracking wastewater in northcentral Pennsylvania when an impoundment was breached. Approximately 70 cows died, and the remainder produced only 11 calves, of which three survived. Another 17 cows died in Louisiana that same year after being exposed to spilled fracking fluid, according to Cornell University. In New Mexico, hair testing of sick cattle that grazed near well pads found petroleum residues in 54 of 56 animals. Cattle that have been exposed to wastewater (flowback and/or produced water) or affected well or pond water may have trouble breeding, according to Veterinarian Michelle Bamberger and Cornell Professor Robert Oswalt in a 2012 peer study. Related: This Could Be A Big Setback For Irans Oil Export Plans Over the past decadeand particularly since the shale boomscholars and activists have attempted to link oil and gas drilling to negative impacts on the health of cattle through poisoning of the air, water and soil. So far, they havent been as successful and they would likeand no one has definitively pinpointed the causes of these cattle deathbut their message is this: Even though there are still many unknowns here, cattle deaths should in the very least serve as an early warning for humans. What concerns Bamberger most is that exposed livestock are making their way into the food systemthe potential consequences of which we would not see for many years to come. By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Oil prices have whipsawed back and forth over the past two weeks, largely due to the rise and fall of expectations that OPEC might call an emergency meeting. Comments from several Russian oil executives and government officials sent oil prices surging at the end of January. Then prices retraced their gains when officials from OPEC dismissed the stories as just rumors. Nothing had changed, OPEC officials argued, even though some people in Russia were hinting at a meeting. But the rumors persist. The latest fuel to the rumor fire is the fact that now six OPEC member states have said that they would be willing to attend an emergency meeting if one was called, the highest total yet. Venezuela has officially requested an emergency meeting, and the oil minister from the South American OPEC member said that six OPEC members plus two non-members are willing to discuss measures to stabilize oil prices. Related: Oil Majors Converging Here Could Mean A New Hotspot The list includes Iraq, Algeria, Nigeria, Ecuador, Iran, and of course Venezuela. Russia and Oman, two non-OPEC members, would also be willing to attend. The idea is to not just hold a meeting, but for all the countries to attend with the intention of reaching agreements, Venezuelas oil minister Eulogio Del Pino said in the statement. Current prices are below equilibrium, and that encourages the speculators and market instability. The last statement is especially true oil markets are at their most volatile point in years. The price movements over the past few weeks have been large and extreme. But speculators are starting to take much more bullish positions on crude oil, closing out net-short positions and going long. That suggests that a more solid price rally could be just around the corner or, at least, speculators think that might be the case. Related: Why U.S. Shale Is Not Capitulating Yet A rally will depend on the fundamentals, however, which is why a potential emergency OPEC meeting looms so large over the oil markets. Much now depends on Saudi Arabias position, the most powerful member of OPEC. Saudi Arabia has suggested in the past that it would be open to coordinated production cuts if Russia came along. There are still a lot of hurdles that would need to be cleared for cooperation between all the parties involved, but Venezuela is doing its best to get everyone on board. By Charles Kennedy of Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: The anti-government protests in Moldova are not just about political power; they are also driven in part by a desire for greater transparency. One source of protesters ire is electricity or, specifically, the tangled system under which electrical power is generated and distributed in the country. It is one thing that power prices have increased by about 37 percent since last November, Moldovans grumble. But it is quite another when no one not even government officials can state who actually owns the company that provides most of the power for this country of 3.6 million. Moldova gets up to 80 percent of its electricity from a hydropower station, Cuciurgan, located in breakaway Transnistria, a region controlled by pro-Russian separatists. For the past 11 years, the Kremlin-linked Russian energy company Inter RAO has run the hydropower station through its subsidiary, MoldGRES (the Russian acronym for Moldovan HydroElectric Station). But in late 2014, a peculiar change occurred. Moldovas state-run power company Energocom began receiving Cuciurgans electricity via an intermediary, a heretofore unknown entity called EnergoKapital, headquartered in Transnistria. Economist Sergiu Tofilat, an expert at the non-governmental Institute for European Policies and Reforms in Chi?in?u, estimates that EnergoKapital earns between $150 million and $160 million annually from its activities as Moldovas power middleman. The tariff for EnergoKapitals electricity, sold to consumers at 2.16 lei ($0.10) per kilowatt, is not regulated. Related:Oil Companies Market Caps Crushed By Oil Crash Nor, apparently, is its ownership registered. Although required by law to record shareholder information, Moldovas State Registration Chamber, an agency operating under the Ministry of Justice, does not have such details for EnergoKapital on file. The companys address is registered in Transnistrias capital, Tiraspol. Unlike other post-Soviet states that have unresolved separatist conflicts, Moldova continues to register businesses in breakaway Transnistria. EnergoKapitals contract with the state-run Energocom was concluded roughly a month and a half after it was registered as a company, the government claims. Economy Ministry spokesperson Nicoleta P?dure? said the ministry, which oversees energy policy, played no role in the negotiations. In response to EurasiaNet.orgs request for information about EnergoKapital, Moldovas Intelligence and Security Service emailed that the matter is currently under investigation by the state authorities. It declined to discuss the company further. Related: Iran Looking To Ramp Up More Than Just Oil Production Last October, Moldovas national energy regulators, ANRE, extended the deal with EnergoKapital for six months. The reasons for the arrangement have not been clearly stated. One former director of Moldovas Energy Regulatory Commission, Victor Parlicov, believes that EnergoKapital could not occur without the consent of MoldGRES, and [it] could not accept the scheme without the final approval from shareholders of [Russias] Inter RAO, which owns MoldGRES. Parlicov is now an expert at the non-governmental Viitorul Institute for Development and Social Initiatives. We have to understand that the armed conflict from 1992 [over Transnistria] hasnt stopped yet, and that is because smart guys from both sides of the Dniester [River, which separates Transnistria from Moldovan-controlled territory] have realized that having a territory with an undefined legal status can be a very efficient tool for carrying out various schemes, added political analyst Oazu Nantoi. At an October 2015 news conference, Deputy Economy Minister Valeriu Triboi alleged that de-facto separatist authorities in Transnistria had imposed EnergoKapital on the Moldovan government after Ukraine, which supplied roughly half of Moldovas energy, cut supplies in late 2014. The price offered, he claimed, was lower than for electricity purchased directly from Cuciurgan. Related:Russia Cries Dyadya (Uncle), Is Saudi Arabia Listening? Citing no sources, an article on a Transnistria-based discussion forum, openpmr.info, offered registration information for EnergoKapitals supposed shareholders. The shareholder information could not be entirely verified. Others have speculated that the company could have strong ties to a Moldovan oligarch. EnergoKapital is not the first entity used by the Moldovan government to obtain electricity from Transnistrias Cuciurgan hydropower station. Since the country gained independence in 1991, several go-between firms whose owners are unknown persons who hide in tax havens, have funneled power into Moldova from Transnistria, Romania and Ukraine, the economic-analysis website Mold-Street.com detailed recently. A tradition of shadowy deals between the government and businesses allegedly linked to various officials long has persisted in Moldova, which saw $1 billion in taxpayer funds vanish through an elaborate money-laundering scheme last year. Moldova ranked 103rd out of 168 countries surveyed in the 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index produced by anti-corruption watchdog Transparency International. Anger at such practices has helped fuel protesters demands for fresh elections. The government refuses to resign, but parliament, which opened its spring session February 1, is expected to vote on a measure to hold a referendum on the direct election of the president. Currently, the chief executive is selected by legislators. By Eurasianet More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: When he was the richest and most influential African-American in Milwaukee, John L. Slaughter was known as "Long John" because he was six-and-a-half feet tall, as well as "Honest John" because, as owner of one of Downtowns biggest gambling joints, it was said he never "dealt from the bottom of the deck." He was also no stranger to the police blotter since even aboveboard gambling was officially illegal when Slaughter reigned, in the long-ago words of a local newspaper, as "king of the Milwaukee colored colony." And his fall from the throne was as jaw-dropping as his rise. Slaughter came here in the 1880s and worked as a Pullman porter until he sold a watch for $10 and parlayed that into $200 at a local gambling house. It may have been one at 207 W. Water St. (now North Plankinton Avenue) run by a black man named so help me God Scott Walker, who according to Slaughter "came as near being a gentleman as any man I ever saw." In 1897, Slaughter recalled being there on the night 10 years earlier when a hardcase named Luther Reynolds "as tough a n----r as ever lived, and as mean when he was sober as some men are when they are drunk" came in and busted the place up. Slaughter himself threw Reynolds out. A few months later, Walker and Reynolds met in a Chicago saloon and got into a dispute that ended when Walker shot him dead. He was sentenced to life in prison, but in 97 was pardoned by Illinois Gov. John Altgeld. That $200 Slaughter won gambling became seed money for the empire he built and presided over in "The Badlands," the African-American district roughly bounded by Wisconsin and Kilbourn Aves., and 3rd and 6th Streets. The centerpiece of Slaughters empire was The Turf Hotel at 217 Wells St. The inn and restaurant catered to blacks not welcome at the citys segregated facilities. But black and white customers rubbed shoulders at the crap tables and roulette wheels on the premises, and the brave ones drank in Slaughters tavern known as "The Bucket of Blood." Slaughters holdings later included another Downtown restaurant and a theater. In a "Glimpses of an Earlier Milwaukee" column in The Milwaukee Journal in 1928, Bill Hooker said Slaughter was also "a political boss in the fourth ward among the colored voters and he was able to deliver the goods." Long Johns partner in The Turf was Cully M. Thorning, a white man born in Norway. After several raids as well as lawsuits by sore losers like Maximillian Lowen, a waiter who dropped $577 at The Turf in 1902 and wanted it back because it was his wifes inheritance, Slaughter put his real estate in his wife Lucys name and branched out into horse racing. One of his prize thoroughbreds was named after Milwaukee Mayor David Rose, thanks to his unofficial motto, "Anything Goes." It was said that, at The Turf, money "rolled in so fast (Slaughter) threw it in canvas bags without counting it," and he became "as well known as the mayor and chief of police." In the early 1900s, Slaughters holdings were said to be worth in the neighborhood of half a million around $13 million in current dollars. But in 06, Mayor Rose was deposed at the polls, and new Mayor Sherburne Becker ordered police to step up raids against gambling operations. Gambling was scaled back at The Turf, but four years later when the Socialists took over City Hall, Long Johns license to conduct business at the Turf was yanked. "I dont know what to do," he said in early July 1910. "Its the only place of its kind in the United States, for the best class of colored people to congregate. It has that reputation all over the United States. Why shouldnt a colored man have a place where he can meet his own people?" As for gambling, thered been none at The Turf for a couple years, protested Slaughter, who in this case was Not-So-Honest John because, even as he spoke, his place was Betting Central for anyone anxious to make a wager on the July 4 "Battle of the Century" between black heavyweight champion Jack Johnson and Great White Hope Jim Jeffries. "The betting was right smart around here," Slaughter told George E. Phair of the Sentinel the day after Johnsons victory. "And it wasnt on prejudice, neither. The colored people are getting too wise to bet on a black man simply because he is black. They figured Johnson the better man and bet that way. "Celebration? Would you white folks celebrate if Jeffries won? We jes pocket you folks money. Thats all." Johnson and Slaughter were friends until the heavyweight champion married Etta Duryea, a white woman. "I could have as many pretty, clever, white women as I might wish," said Long John, but "I have more respect for myself as a man than to marry a white woman." When Jack Johnson was in Milwaukee the previous February for a weeklong vaudeville engagement at the New Star Theater, the famous boxer stayed at one of the bigger Downtown hotels but only after agreeing to eat in his room instead of dining with the white customers in the unnamed hotels restaurant. Owners of the other hotels had no desire to integrate their establishments and therefore couldnt endorse Slaughters appeal of his license revocation fast enough. Managers of The Pfister, Plankinton, Davidson, Republican, Schlitz, St. Charles, Blatz, Atlas, Aberdeen and Kirby House hotels presented to the Common Council a petition that said: "Believing some consideration should be shown those members of the traveling public visiting our city who belong to the colored race, we hereby protest against the injustice which, in our opinion, is being done J.L. Slaughter, who at such great expense [reportedly 50 grand] has built, furnished and equipped the Turf hotel for the accommodation of members of his race, by denying him a license." Slaughter ended up selling the original hotel but, at the end of 1910, got a license to take over the Grand hotel at 309 4th St., which became the new Turf. He ran it until 1916, when he pulled up stakes, moved to Chicago, invested heavily in real estate and over the course of the next decade went stone broke. He returned to Milwaukee in 28, proclaimed he was through with gambling, opened a real estate office at 722 Walnut St. and didnt make enough to pay the rent. Long John was 72 when the police "morals squad" busted him and five players on Nov. 25, 1930 for gambling at 630 Walnut St. "Backslider is caught at game," was the headline on the small story in The Journal the next day. Slaughter was fined $50. Three years later, the onetime Badlands potentate was back in court, but not for gambling. "Ive lost all my property, and I havent a nickel in the bank," Slaughter told Judge Michael S. Sheridan in applying for a county pension. "I hate to come here and ask for help," admitted Long John. "You know I want a job more, but there isnt much a man can do at 74. And I think in one year (in) the old days I paid more taxes and did more good to the people of Milwaukee than it will cost to give me a pension." "You could use $200 a month, I suppose," sniffed Sheridan. "I know youve been used to dealing in big figures. The law doesnt allow a pension anywhere near that large. Ill grant you $25 a month, and its up to you to arrange to make that last." The big man who said he "dealt em straight, rolled em wide, and never turned a hungry man down" spent his final days at the Prince Hall Masonic Home for Negroes in Rock Island, Ill. John L. Slaughter tapped out for good on July 22, 1942. Judge Cormac Carney (Image by public domain) Details DMCA sua sponte: (sooh-uh spahn-tay) adj. Latin for "of one's own will," meaning on one's own volition, usually referring to a judge's order made without a request by any party to the case. [law.com] On January 11, 2016, in Jones v. Davis, [1] Jones filed a Petition For Rehearing And Petition For Rehearing En Banc in the Ninth Circuit. This article argues that the petition should be granted, but decided on grounds beyond those set forth in the petition, and that the case is an ideal vehicle for reconsidering the constitutionality of the death penalty la Justice Breyer's June 2015 dissent in Glossip v. Gross, [2] where, joined by Justice Ginsburg, he wrote: [R]ather than try to patch up the death penalty's legal wounds one at a time, I would ask for full briefing on a more basic question: whether the death penalty violates the Constitution [which] forbids the "inflict[ion]" of "cruel and unusual punishments." In 1995, Ernest Jones was sent to California's death row for a horrific rape-murder. [3] After seemingly exhausting state remedies, Jones sought a writ of habeas corpus in the Central District of California, under the Anti-terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA), 28 U.S.C. 2254 . As follows, Judge Cormac Carney (a George W. Bush appointee) startled the legal world by preempting Jones' original petition, which has yet to be heard. Since 1978, California has sent over 900 convicts to death row, but the death sentences of only 31 have become final (of whom 13 have been executed), while 87 have died of natural causes or suicide. Finding this due to systemic backlogs in hopelessly underfunded state postconviction review processes, on July 16, 2014 Carney issued a 29-page Order Declaring California's Death Penalty System Unconstitutional , [4] as arbitrarily selective, under the landmark case of Furman v. Georgia , [5] which in 1972 conditionally nixed the death penalty nationwide. Carney's Order states (at 2; emphasis in orig.): [T]he dysfunctional administration of California's death penalty system has resulted, and will continue to result, in an inordinate and unpredictable period of delay preceding [] actual execution. Indeed, for most, systemic delay has made their execution so unlikely that the death sentence carefully and deliberately imposed by the jury has been quietly transformed into one no rational jury or legislature could ever impose: life in prison, with the remote possibility of death . As for the random few for whom execution does become a reality, they will have languished for so long on Death Row that their execution will serve no retributive or deterrent purpose and will be arbitrary. Unfortunately, in Jones v. Davis, a Ninth Circuit panel vacated Carney's Order on what the media universally reported as purely procedural/technical grounds, quoting the holding that "[b]ecause Petitioner asks us to apply a novel constitutional rule, we may not assess the substantive validity of his claim." [6] In so ruling, the panel turned a blind eye not only to its own sua sponte powers, but to the already exercised sua sponte power of the district court, in finding the claim substantively valid. Despite not ruling on the claim's "substantive validity," the panel's ruling was formally on the merits, and it entailed " a detailed analysis of federal constitutional law." [7] The petition for rehearing (at 13-16) even complains that the merits should not have been reached. In fact, so as to find that the claim was novel (and therefore avoidable), the panel decisively and dispositively suppressed both Furman's holding that death penalty regimes resulting in freakishly rare executions are arbitrary per se, [8] and Furman's requirement that discretionary death sentencing be formally fettered , including through adequate appeal processes. [9] To rescue the record from inherently irrelevant confusions, and to correct the drastic suppression of Furman, an en banc Ninth Circuit panel should sua sponte articulate and apply a proper standard for reviewing sua sponte trial court decisions. Under that standard, it should reach the merits of Carney's Order, and vigorously restore it. ************************ The home page of California's state-funded Habeas Corpus Resource Center, which acts as Jones' counsel, has long been given over to Jones v. Davis. It provides links to all substantive Ninth Circuit filings, including nine pro and one con amicus briefs. [10] Interest in the case caused the Ninth Circuit to create a similar Jones page . Despite the wide public interest and the life-and-death import of the issues, most of the parties' argument and of the court of appeal opinion is small-minded, irrelevant, confused, and/or worse. In the petition for rehearing (at 15-16) Jones himself presents arguments against Carney's basic finding of futility in returning the case to the California courts, to first exhaust state remedies. In all prior filings, Jones passionately, convincingly, and of course argued in support of the futility finding. This tactical repositioning [11] perversely condemns Carney's Order not only under the essentially irrelevant exhaustion of remedies provision of AEDPA, but also under the pertinent "enough is enough" or "justice requires it" sua sponte discretionary standard. What's up? It's a long story, fully told in a paper that this article is in part written to recommend, namely, Judge Carney v. The Death Penalty: Ninth Circuit Panel Suppresses Furman's Repudiations Of Dysfunctional Sentencing And Freakishly Rare Execution Regimes . The paper thoroughly addresses the common law context and the record in Jones at face value (i.e. under AEDPA), before presenting the sua sponte perspective of this article as a take-it-or-leave-it final point. ************************ The sorry record in Jones is not primarily the fault of the parties or of the court. After Carney ordered Jones to file a claim of the court's creation, everyone, including Carney, by default fell into the habit of applying AEDPA pleading standards. This is understandable, given the lack of any articulated standards for the sua sponte creation of issues, and for reviewing the sua sponte creation of issues. As Bradley Scott Shannon explains: Quietly, [] sua sponte decisionmaking has become de rigueur, but there is no articulated set of criteria for determining when such power should [] be exercised . . . [S]ua sponte decisionmaking [lies on] a spectrum . . . At the most permissible end of the spectrum, one might place decisions that seem to be mandatory, such as dismissals for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction [12] Carney's Order, by affirming a legal theory of his own creation, albeit within the compass of the extant controversy (seeking the same relief, based on essentially the same facts), lies at the least permissible end of the spectrum, and must be extraordinarily justified. On the other hand, the sua sponte discretion required for an en banc Ninth Circuit panel to announce and apply the appropriate sua sponte standards to Carney's Order, lies at the most permissible, maybe-mandatory end of the spectrum. The standards to be applied are matters of district court jurisdiction, [13] and so also of appellate jurisdiction, which the court of appeal has a routine duty to independently determine. A regular cause for raising issues sua sponte is "[t]he judiciary's interest in protecting the constitutionally demarcated limits on its authority." [14] Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). After five years of fighting to clear his name -- having been smeared relentlessly yet charged with no crime -- Assange is closer to justice and vindication, and perhaps freedom, than at any time since he was arrested and held in London under a European Extradition Warrant, itself now discredited by Parliament. The UN Working Group bases its judgments on the European Convention on Human Rights and three other treaties that are binding on all its signatories. Both Britain and Sweden participated in the 16-month long UN investigation and submitted evidence and defended their position before the tribunal. It would fly contemptuously in the face of international law if they did not comply with the judgement and allow Assange to leave the refuge granted him by the Ecuadorean government in its London embassy. In previous, celebrated cases ruled upon by the Working Group -- Aung Sang Suu Kyi in Burma, imprisoned opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim in Malaysia, detained Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian in Iran, both Britain and Sweden have given support to the tribunal. The difference now is that Assange's persecution and confinement endures in the heart of London. The Assange case has never been primarily about allegations of sexual misconduct in Sweden -- where the Stockholm Chief Prosecutor, Eva Finne, dismissed the case, saying, "I don't believe there is any reason to suspect that he has committed rape," and one of the women involved accused the police of fabricating evidence and "railroading" her, protesting she "did not want to accuse JA of anything" -- and a second prosecutor mysteriously re-opened the case after political intervention, then stalled it. The Assange case is rooted across the Atlantic in Pentagon-dominated Washington, obsessed with pursuing and prosecuting whistleblowers, especially Assange for having exposed, in WikiLeaks, US capital crimes in Afghanistan and Iraq: the wholesale killing of civilians and a contempt for sovereignty and international law. None of this truth-telling is illegal under the US Constitution. As a presidential candidate in 2008, Barack Obama, a professor of constitutional law, lauded whistleblowers as "part of a healthy democracy [and they] must be protected from reprisal." Obama, the betrayer, has since prosecuted more whistleblowers than all the US presidents combined. The courageous Chelsea Manning is serving 35 years in prison, having been tortured during her long pre-trial detention. The prospect of a similar fate has hung over Assange like a Damocles sword. According to documents released by Edward Snowden, Assange is on a "Manhunt target list." Vice-President Joe Biden has called him a "cyber terrorist." In Alexandria, Virginia, a secret grand jury has attempted to concoct a crime for which Assange can be prosecuted in a court. Even though he is not an American, he is currently being fitted up with an espionage law dredged up from a century ago when it was used to silence conscientious objectors during the First World War; the Espionage Act has provisions of both life imprisonment and the death penalty. Assange's ability to defend himself in this Kafkaesque world has been handicapped by the US declaring his case a state secret. A federal court has blocked the release of all information about what is known as the "national security" investigation of WikiLeaks. The supporting act in this charade has been played by the second Swedish prosecutor, Marianne Ny. Until recently, Ny had refused to comply with a routine European procedure that required her to travel to London to question Assange and so advance the case that James Catlin, one of Assange's barristers, called "a laughing stock ... it's as if they make it up as they go along." Indeed, even before Assange had left Sweden for London in 2010, Marianne Ny made no attempt to question him. In the years since, she has never properly explained, even to her own judicial authorities, why she has not completed the case she so enthusiastically re-ignited -- just as the she has never explained why she has refused to give Assange a guarantee that he will not be extradited on to the US under a secret arrangement agreed between Stockholm and Washington. In 2010, the Independent in London revealed that the two governments had discussed Assange's onward extradition. Then there is tiny, brave Ecuador. One of the reasons Ecuador granted Julian Assange political asylum was that his own government, in Australia, had offered him none of the help to which he had a legal right and so abandoned him. Australia's collusion with the United States against its own citizen is evident in leaked documents; no more faithful vassals has America than the obeisant politicians of the Antipodes. Four years ago, in Sydney, I spent several hours with the Liberal Member of the Federal Parliament, Malcolm Turnbull. We discussed the threats to Assange and their wider implications for freedom of speech and justice, and why Australia was obliged to stand by him. Turnbull is now the Prime Minister of Australia and, as I write, is attending an international conference on Syria hosted the Cameron government -- about 15 minutes' cab ride from the room that Julian Assange has occupied for three and a half years in the small Ecuadorean embassy just along from Harrod's. The Syria connection is relevant if unreported; it was WikiLeaks that revealed that the United States had long planned to overthrow the Assad government in Syria. Today, as he meets and greets, Prime Minister Turnbull has an opportunity to contribute a modicum of purpose and truth to the conference by speaking up for his unjustly imprisoned compatriot, for whom he showed such concern when we met. All he need do is quote the judgement of the UN Working Party on Arbitrary Detention. Will he reclaim this shred of Australia's reputation in the decent world? What is certain is that the decent world owes much to Julian Assange. He told us how indecent power behaves in secret, how it lies and manipulates and engages in great acts of violence, sustaining wars that kill and maim and turn millions into the refugees now in the news. Telling us this truth alone earns Assange his freedom, whereas justice is his right. Over the last several years, Albuquerques new District 6 City Councilor Pat Davis has evolved from arresting marijuana users as a police officer to an advocate for the legalization of cannabis. By day, Davis is the executive director of ProgressNow New Mexico, a grass roots progressive advocacy non-profit that works on public policy issues. He was elected last November after longtime District 6 Councilor Rey Garduno retired and gave Davis his endorsement. Davis had an easy confidence working the crowd at a recent Nob Hill neighborhood association meeting where area residents came to hear an update on crime. He is optimistic about his plans for the next few years as a city councilor. He has been at the council table about month; here is what he told Weekly Alibi about his new assignment. Alibi: At press time, you will have three city council meetings under your belt. How is it going? Pat Davis: Im having a ball. But even with all of my years working in the public policy arena, Im surprised every day by the chance to weigh in on something new. As a police officer youve made arrests and later been arrested for a DWI. How does that help you with the citys troubled police department? I wondered, coming in, how much leeway I would have to follow my own questions about our progress on DOJ reform measures and whether one councilor could really assert any influence over the process. Ive been able to sit down with Dr. Ginger, the city attorney, police union and police leaders and have real, blunt conversations about the department and our progress. I think my experience has allowed me to sit down and have my questions and suggestions taken seriously in a way that someone without my background wouldnt have going in. Talk about the rapid transit line being planned. Many businesses in your district along the proposed route are not in support of it. Ive said all along that Im a big supporter of public transit and it is absolutely clear that we have to update our system. But, I came to this job months after the initial Albuquerque Rapid Transit project was considered and funded by the previous City Council. Central was picked because it is by far the most used transit route and provides the most access to businesses and jobsexactly the things transit-dependent residents and future residents need from a bus line. The city reached out to everyone early on but has done little to keep up those conversations going as designs have been updated. To address this, I have set up my own community meetings. At the end of the day, no matter how I vote if we receive the final grant from DC, there are still eight other councilors on the Council who have already voted for the project. You introduced a Memorial opposing a so-called Religious Freedom bill winding through this years legislature. The bill essentially gives businesses the option of not providing goods and services to those who dont agree with their religious stances. The Memorial is a good start, but what other initiatives will you seek to advance the causes of LGBT residents? Id love to see more open LGBT New Mexicans run for office and I think the public climate around this has changed so much over the past decade that it is suddenly possible in more communities than many imagine. Ive had discussions with other openly gay officials around the state and I think youll start seeing more of us recruiting others to run in the elections ahead. Im watching the new quarter-cent behavioral health services tax to see that it addresses LGBT mental health issues such as partner violence, drug use, bullying and crisis intervention. Legalizing marijuana is a hot topic for municipalities, especially when it comes to tax revenue. Do you plan on any initiatives on the city level to make that happen? Yep. I was proud to help lead the decriminalization campaigns in 2013 that led to Santa Fes decriminalization ordinance and the introduction of a similar one in Albuquerque. It got a majority vote from the Albuquerque Council but couldnt get past the mayors veto. Ill bring it back again later this year and we will send it back to the mayor. What presidential candidate are you supporting? Ill be looking for not Donald Trump on my ballot. Ill likely vote for Bernie Sanders on Primary Day. Hes brought a conversation to politics weve long needed. Are you a dog or cat person? Both. Coming from a farm, I always grew up with weird animals but Ive always had dogs as pets. But when Chris moved in last year he brought his cat Gus who has totally taken over the neighborhood. So now Im a cat and dog guy. Tell Alibi readers something about yourself that will surprise them. Thats usually the I used to be a cop thing because no one thinks a progressive activist would ever come out of that line of work. But now everyone knows that. So, try this: I went to Chick-fil-A university. OK, its not actually called that but it is the university that Chick-fil-A sends their employees who work full-time during high school and earn scholarships. Its called Berry College and is a huge (24,000+ acres) private college in Georgia, where I grew up. Given my political opposition to CFAs anti-marriage campaigns, most people are surprised I lived for four years next to many of the people who fight about it now. Reprinted from Other Words Let's End Torture in U.S. Prisons Solitary confinement is exactly what it sounds like. A prisoner is kept in a small cell -- usually 6 feet by 10 -- alone, for 23 hours a day. For one hour a day, he or she may be taken into a small cage outside, with the opportunity to walk in circles before being taken back in. Even the outdoor cage can usually be opened and closed remotely. The idea is to keep the prisoner from having any human interaction. Those who've been through it call it a "living death." The United Nations calls it torture. The practice is widespread in the United States. And until recently, it was applied even to juveniles in the federal prison. In January, President Barack Obama banned solitary confinement for federal inmates under the age of 18. He also ordered new limits on the amount of time prisoners of any age can be caged up alone. These are great steps forward for human rights in the federal prison system. But they won't help most of the prisoners currently in solitary, who languish in lower jurisdictions. State prison systems across the country use solitary confinement as a way to destroy people. These prisoners routinely experience "intense anxiety, paranoia, depression, memory loss, hallucinations, and other perceptual distortions," philosophy professor Lisa Guenther noted in The New York Times. Many Americans think that solitary is reserved for the worst and most dangerous criminals. In most cases, that's simply not true. Solitary is used not for the safety of inmates or prison guards, but as a punishment and as an expression of power by guards. For example, a prisoner can be sent to solitary for "insolence" or for "investigation." What does that mean? Anything the guard wants it to. Talk back to an officer? Solitary! Take more than 15 minutes to eat your meal? Solitary! An anonymous source accuses you of gambling? Straight to solitary. When an inmate is sent to solitary, the prison's internal investigators are supposed to begin an inquiry into his or her behavior. They're given 90 days to do it, after which the prisoner should be released back to the prison's general population. But in fact, the investigators can renew the 90-day solitary period for a full year. That's an entire year living in a small gray room the size of a walk-in closet with no human contact. It would make just about anybody crazy. Even when prisoners are fortunate enough to have an attorney or family members who can press prison authorities on their behalf, the prison can simply transfer them to another facility -- where the whole solitary count starts over again. Congress Switchboard: 202-224-3121 "In this book, Rob Kall is fueling a discussion that is long overdue, one that can perhaps shake us out of our current herd mentality, back to true community and intertwined purpose. His bottom-up discourse may serve to turn us all upside down just long enough to view our current politic from a different perspective." Dr. Mari K. Swingle, author of i-Minds: How Cell Phones, Computers, Gaming, and Social Media are Changing Our Brains, Our Behavior, and the Evolution of Our Species "I didn't have any money. Now there is a massive infusion of hundreds of millions of dollars into campaigns for all the candidates. Some candidates like Trump can put in his own money but others have to be able to raise a $100m to $200m just to get the Republican or Democratic nomination. That's the biggest change in America." Former President Jimmy Carter is not one to hold back how he feels about the current condition of money in politics. When he ran against Gerald Ford and later Ronald Reagan, he says, "We didn't raise a single penny to fund our campaigns." This morning he told BBC Radio 4's Today program: "The erroneous ruling of the supreme court, where millionaires, billionaires, can put in unlimited amounts of money, give legal bribery the chance to prevail, because all the candidates, whether they are honest or not, or whether they are Democratic or Republican, depend on these massive infusions of money from very rich people in order to have money to campaign." Last October, President Carter appeared in a candid interview with Oprah, and said if he were to run for president in today's world, he would not be able to afford it. "We've become, now, an oligarchy instead of a democracy. I think that's been the worst damage to the basic moral and ethical standards to the American political system that I've ever seen in my life." President Carter expanded on the issue with Thom Hartmann in July 2015: "It violates the essence of what made America a great country in its political system. Now it's just an oligarchy, with unlimited political bribery being the essence of getting the nominations for president or to elect the president. And the same thing applies to governors and U.S. senators and congress members. So now we've just seen a complete subversion of our political system as a payoff to major contributors, who want and expect and sometimes get favors for themselves after the election's over." During the BBC interview, President Carter also discussed the work he's done via The Carter Center to help eradicate the plague of Guinea Worm Disease. The Center was co-founded with former First Lady Rosalynn Carter in 1982. Since then, cases of the disease have dropped down from 3 million to only 22 cases now known in the world. Articles Listed By Date List By Popularity Search Title Date Between Any 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 Any 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 and Any 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 Any 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 Page 1 of 4 First Last Back Next 2 3 4 View All (1 comments) SHARE Google, HuffPo, Greenpeace & the liberal progressive 'Resistance' are lying to you the biggest opposition to the transformational change we need on the planet comes not from among the sources of power I traditionally investigate; not simply from the incumbency; not from the 'Deep State', 'Big Oil', 'Financial Elites', or other extractive industries; but from those amongst us who shout the clarion call for Change, who carry the banners of Resistance, who proudly wear the badges of Progress. Saturday, December 2, 2017the biggest opposition to the transformational change we need on the planet comes not from among the sources of power I traditionally investigate; not simply from the incumbency; not from the 'Deep State', 'Big Oil', 'Financial Elites', or other extractive industries; but from those amongst us who shout the clarion call for Change, who carry the banners of Resistance, who proudly wear the badges of Progress. (11 comments) SHARE Thanksgiving: celebrating the hidden holocaust Imagine if the Nazis won the Second World War. Yes, yes, I know there's a TV show about that -- but stay with me. So imagine: the Nazis won, and then every year, on the day when we currently hold" Thursday, November 23, 2017Imagine if the Nazis won the Second World War. Yes, yes, I know there's a TV show about that -- but stay with me. So imagine: the Nazis won, and then every year, on the day when we currently hold" SHARE Theresa May's counter-extremism plan will create an incompetent police state Theresa May's response to the upsurge of violence that has hit Britain since the beginning of 2017 will fail for one fundamental reason: she refuses to hold her own government to account for its systematic incubation of extremism. Sunday, June 25, 2017Theresa May's response to the upsurge of violence that has hit Britain since the beginning of 2017 will fail for one fundamental reason: she refuses to hold her own government to account for its systematic incubation of extremism. (8 comments) SHARE The Pentagon's secret pre-crime program to know your thoughts, predict your future -- INSURGE intelligence -- Medium US military contractors are mining social media to influence your 'cognitive behavior' when you get angry at the state Wednesday, February 3, 2016US military contractors are mining social media to influence your 'cognitive behavior' when you get angry at the state (5 comments) SHARE Terror, climate chaos, financial crisis are the costs of 'doing business' The techno-narcissism of predatory neoliberal capitalism is locked into an endless war with the bastard monster of its own creation, Islamist militant supremacism. Both ideologies believe they represent "civilisation". Both are merely fractured mirror images, reflecting a deeper Crisis of Civilisation. Friday, January 1, 2016The techno-narcissism of predatory neoliberal capitalism is locked into an endless war with the bastard monster of its own creation, Islamist militant supremacism. Both ideologies believe they represent "civilisation". Both are merely fractured mirror images, reflecting a deeper Crisis of Civilisation. (7 comments) SHARE Paris climate negotiations won't stop the planet burning The much-vaunted COP21 negotiations in Paris are, despite the claims of world leaders, dead on arrival. Emissions reductions targets are not up for discussion. Those pledges are already on the table, having been put forward voluntarily by each country. Government negotiators in Paris are instead looking at banal details of how and when countries should commit to improving their voluntary pledges... Wednesday, December 9, 2015The much-vaunted COP21 negotiations in Paris are, despite the claims of world leaders, dead on arrival. Emissions reductions targets are not up for discussion. Those pledges are already on the table, having been put forward voluntarily by each country. Government negotiators in Paris are instead looking at banal details of how and when countries should commit to improving their voluntary pledges... (4 comments) SHARE Paris Attacks and Climate Change Push Us to Fix a World of Broken Systems In much the same way that 9/11 saw the birth of a new era of perpetual war in the Muslim world, the 11/13 Paris attacks are giving rise to a new phase in that perpetual war: a relentless state of emergency, in which citizens are expected, in the words of British Home Secretary Theresa May, to possess "vigilance"--a euphemism for constant paranoia, suspicion, and fear in their everyday dealings with other citizens. Sunday, November 22, 2015In much the same way that 9/11 saw the birth of a new era of perpetual war in the Muslim world, the 11/13 Paris attacks are giving rise to a new phase in that perpetual war: a relentless state of emergency, in which citizens are expected, in the words of British Home Secretary Theresa May, to possess "vigilance"--a euphemism for constant paranoia, suspicion, and fear in their everyday dealings with other citizens. (6 comments) SHARE ISIS wants to destroy the 'grey zone'. Here's how we defend it So far, world governments have responded as if the ISIS attack came entirely out of the blue... The Paris attacks have occurred on the tail-end of an escalating series of massacres... The goal is to inflict trauma, fear, paranoia, suspicion, panic & terror -- but there is a twisted logic as part of this continuum of violence, which is to draw the western world into an apocalyptic civilizational Armageddon with Islam Tuesday, November 17, 2015So far, world governments have responded as if the ISIS attack came entirely out of the blue... The Paris attacks have occurred on the tail-end of an escalating series of massacres... The goal is to inflict trauma, fear, paranoia, suspicion, panic & terror -- but there is a twisted logic as part of this continuum of violence, which is to draw the western world into an apocalyptic civilizational Armageddon with Islam (12 comments) SHARE No scientific evidence of GM food safety: Norwegian Govt Study It is "premature" to declare GM safe due to "incomplete" scientific knowledge, finds report commissioned by Norwegian Government Tuesday, July 14, 2015It is "premature" to declare GM safe due to "incomplete" scientific knowledge, finds report commissioned by Norwegian Government (16 comments) SHARE The bin Laden death mythology -- INSURGE intelligence -- Medium Official history of raid camouflages US protection of governments behind 9/11 Friday, July 3, 2015Official history of raid camouflages US protection of governments behind 9/11 (3 comments) SHARE A scientific Model Supported By a UK Govt Taskforce Flags Risk of Civilisation's Collapse by 2040 New scientific models supported by the British government's Foreign Office show that if we don't change course, in less than three decades industrial civilisation will essentially collapse due to catastrophic food shortages, triggered by a combination of climate change, water scarcity, energy crisis, and political instability Monday, June 22, 2015New scientific models supported by the British government's Foreign Office show that if we don't change course, in less than three decades industrial civilisation will essentially collapse due to catastrophic food shortages, triggered by a combination of climate change, water scarcity, energy crisis, and political instability (9 comments) SHARE Ex-intel officials: Pentagon report proves US complicity in ISIS -- INSURGE intelligence -- Medium Renowned government whistleblowers weigh in on debate over controversial declassified document Monday, June 8, 2015Renowned government whistleblowers weigh in on debate over controversial declassified document (1 comments) SHARE The circus: How British intelligence primed both sides of the 'terror war' The circus: How British intelligence primed both sides of the 'terror war' Saturday, February 28, 2015The circus: How British intelligence primed both sides of the 'terror war' (1 comments) SHARE Small-Scale Traditional Farming Is the Only Way to Avoid Food Crisis, UN Researcher Says New scientific research increasingly shows how "agroecology" offers environmentally sustainable methods that can meet the rapidly growing demand for food. Sunday, December 28, 2014New scientific research increasingly shows how "agroecology" offers environmentally sustainable methods that can meet the rapidly growing demand for food. (3 comments) SHARE How the Pentagon's Skynet Would Automate War Mass surveillance, drone swarms, cyborg soldiers, telekinesis, synthetic organisms, and laser beams will determine future conflict by 2030. Tuesday, November 25, 2014Mass surveillance, drone swarms, cyborg soldiers, telekinesis, synthetic organisms, and laser beams will determine future conflict by 2030. (6 comments) SHARE The Great Unravelling: Tunisia, Egypt and the Protracted Collapse of the American Empire What is happening in Tunisia and Egypt manifests a deeper convergence of fundamental structural crises which are truly global in scale. The Empire is unravelling. But that doesn't mean what takes its place will be any better. Tuesday, February 1, 2011What is happening in Tunisia and Egypt manifests a deeper convergence of fundamental structural crises which are truly global in scale. The Empire is unravelling. But that doesn't mean what takes its place will be any better. SHARE Terminal Depletion of the World's Mineral Energy Reserves Looms Dpletion of the world's mineral energy reserves looms imminent - or certainly within the first quarter of this century. It may well signify the end of industrial civilization as we know it, and synchronous failures could permit a convergence of energy, food, and economic crises as early as 2018. But study after study proves that we know what we can do to forge a more sustainable world. It is high time for a great transition. Tuesday, October 12, 2010Dpletion of the world's mineral energy reserves looms imminent - or certainly within the first quarter of this century. It may well signify the end of industrial civilization as we know it, and synchronous failures could permit a convergence of energy, food, and economic crises as early as 2018. But study after study proves that we know what we can do to forge a more sustainable world. It is high time for a great transition. SHARE The Real ClimateGate, Part 2: Why the IPCC stands stronger than ever The second and final part of my Real ClimateGate series, systematically dissecting the prominent 'sceptic' claims alleging the invalidity and corruption of the IPCC, from AmazonGate to GlacierGate to PachauriGate, and beyond. Friday, October 1, 2010The second and final part of my Real ClimateGate series, systematically dissecting the prominent 'sceptic' claims alleging the invalidity and corruption of the IPCC, from AmazonGate to GlacierGate to PachauriGate, and beyond. Page 1 of 4 First Last Back Next 2 3 4 View All This is to inform all candidates that the Full List of Shortlisted Candidates For SEPLAT/NPDC Scholarship Exam 2016 is out and exam date sc... ronald.vargas.quesada@gmail.com / Blog de Tecnologias Oracle desde 2009, San Jose, Costa Rica, La adquisicion de cualquier conocimiento es siempre util al intelecto, que sabra descartar lo malo y conservar lo bueno. Leonardo Da Vinci / Larry Ellison to Graduates: Live Your Dreams, Not the Dreams of Others / -Comienza haciendo lo necesario; luego haz lo posible y de repente estaras haciendo lo imposible." San Francisco de Asis Big Victory SB 1551 Gun control Bill pulled By Taxpayer Association of Oregon The nefarious Blacklisting Gun Control Bill, SB 1551, was pulled from committee today with signs that it will not come back. The bill would allow citizens to blacklist each other form purchasing a gun if they felt that person was unfit to have one. The bill created a statewide website database where people could list people without the person being accused ever knowing they were blacklisted. This was a terrible blacklisting bill reminiscent of McCarthyism. The bill included a Fake Emergency Clause designed to block voters repealing the bill if they chose to use the referendum petition process. Please! Dont ever let politicians abuse our Democracy with Fake Emergency Clauses ever again, not for this gun control bill or for any bill in the future by singing the petition to end Fake Emergency abuse which restores your right to vote and repeal bad bills. The petition is endorsed by the Oregon Firearms Federation, Oregon Republican Party and the Taxpayer Association. Please request a petition directly by going to No Fake Emergencies. Read the bill here Special thanks to the many gun owners, second Amendment groups, Oregon Firearms Federation, and radio hosts who kept pressure against this bill and secured the victory. Please click here in order to read our guidelines on commenting to the blog. A forum for critical analysis of international issues and developments of particular relevance to the sustainable political and socio-economic development of Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs). WikiLeaks chief, who is avoiding extradition by living in Ecuadorian embassy, has won UN backing Julian Assange argued he was illegally confined to the embassy because he risked arrest if he left. Photograph: Pool/Reuters Analysis Julian Assange's embassy showdown: what it means and what happens next Four key questions answered on why the WikiLeaks founder is still holed up in an embassy in London and what could happen on Friday Read more The stories you need to read, in one handy email Read more A United Nations panel has decided that Julian Assanges three-and-a-half years in the Ecuadorian embassy amount to arbitrary detention, leading his lawyers to call for the Swedish extradition request to be dropped immediately.A Swedish foreign ministry spokeswoman confirmed that the UN panel, due to publish its findings on Friday, had concluded that Assange was arbitrarily detained.The WikiLeaks founder sought asylum from Ecuador in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden to face questioning over rape and sexual assault allegations, which he denies.The panels findings were disclosed to the Swedish and British governments on 22 January, and will be published on Friday morning.Their judgment is not legally binding but can be used to apply pressure on states in human rights cases.Anna Ekberg, spokesperson for the Swedish foreign ministry, said: The UN working group on arbitrary detention has concluded that Mr Assange is arbitrarily detained. The working groups view differs from that of the Swedish authorities. We will forward a reply to the working group tomorrow. It will be more clear tomorrow why we reject the working groups conclusions.Assanges Swedish lawyer, Per Samuelson, said earlier that if the working group found in his favour, there is only one solution for Marianne Ny [the Swedish prosecutor seeking Assanges extradition], and that is to immediately release him and drop the case. Samuelson added: If he is regarded as detained, that means he has served his time, so I see no other option for Sweden but to close the case.Assanges lawyers demanded assurances from the UK that he would not be arrested and subjected to extradition proceedings to face potential prosecution over WikiLeaks publishing activities.The British Foreign Office said it would not pre-empt the panels findings, but said in a statement: We have been consistently clear that Mr Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the UK but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorian embassy.An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European arrest warrant in place, so the UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Mr Assange to Sweden.In a statement issued by WikiLeaks on Twitter, Assange said that if the UN panel rejected his claim, he would voluntarily walk out of the embassy on Friday and accept arrest as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal.He added: However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me.Neither Sweden nor the UK will be compelled to take any action, but a source familiar with the working group said that if the governments choose to ignore the decision, it could make it difficult for them in future to bring pressure on other countries over human rights violations. Julian Assange: what are his options after leaving the Ecuadorian embassy? Assanges lawyers had appealed to the UN panel claiming that his stay in the embassy was arbitrary because he had been unable to exercise his right to asylum, arguing: The only way for Mr Assange to enjoy is right to asylum is to be in detention. This is not a legally acceptable choice.They also argued that UK law had changed since 2012, which meant that if arrested today he would no longer be liable to extradition under the European arrest warrant.Melinda Taylor, an Assange legal spokeswoman, said the Australian had not yet been formally informed by the panel of its findings, but if it finds that the standard for arbitrary detention is met, we would expect his release and compensation.In addition to Sweden dropping the extradition request, she called for the UK to return Assanges passport and give him assurances that he would not be subject to arrest for a potential further extradition request by the US.Assange and WikiLeaks have been the subject of a secret grand jury investigation in Virginia that has been looking into whether to prosecute them over the US cable disclosures, and the Australian fears that he could become immediately subject to a second extradition process even if Sweden drops its inquiry.If one of the orders is that he should be released and his liberty should be assured, we would obviously look to the UK to make sure that it is effective and not illusory, that its not just liberty for five seconds, but liberty that is meaningful, Taylor said.British police ended the costly 24-hour guard of the Knightsbridge embassy last October, but the building remains under covert surveillance. A Metropolitan police spokesman said on Thursday: The operation to arrest Julian Assange does continue and should he leave the embassy the MPS will make every effort to arrest him.Sweden and Ecuador have been locked in lengthy negotiations over arrangements to allow Swedish prosecutors to interview Assange in the embassy. Ecuadors foreign minister said last month that the country would allow access for questioning, but Sweden later said its request had been rejected on formal grounds. It is considering whether to submit a fresh request.Samuelson said his client still hoped to clear his name. This does not mean that the question of interrogation will be over. We still want an interrogation to take place so that Mr Assange can clear his name and show everyone that he is innocent.The difference is that he will no longer be in custody in absentia and thus be able to use his asylum outside of the embassy. If Assange is regarded as detained he has already served the time so to speak so Marianne Ny should drop the case altogether.Last August Sweden dropped part of its investigation into Assange after the statute of limitations on allegations of sexual assault expired. It is still seeking to interview him on one outstanding allegation of rape. The accusations were made by two women in Sweden in 2010, but no charges have been brought.At the Ecuadorian embassy, the WikiLeaks spokesman Kristinn Hrafnsson said that if Assanges claim through the UN was successful he planned to appear by videolink at a press conference in west London on Friday. If he loses, as he says, hell just walk out of there, Hrafnsson told the Guardian, as he left the embassy building after around three hours of discussions with Assange.The process has been going on for 18 months, the UK government has made submissions to the working group so it has accepted its authority, Hrafnsson said. What signal does it send that the UK and Sweden would ignore this UN body? It would completely destroy its authority. Are they willing to set that precedent? Egypt has not accepted its findings with regard to the detention of its former president [Mohammed Morsi] - is that the standard the UK wants to hold?Assanges health is fragile from the effects of living inside for more than three years but Hrafnsson said he was busily preparing for Friday. However the decision goes, it is an extremely important moment for him. Hopefully its the end of the road.Source: http://www.theguardian.com/media/2016/feb/04/julian-assange-wikileaks-arrest-friday-un-investigation Pak Afghan intelligence agencies to hold talks in Kabul ISLAMABAD: Intelligence agencies of Pakistan and Afghanistan will hold talks in Kabul on Thursday to try to reduce the trust deficit between the two neighbours. Director General ISI Lt Gen Rizwan Akhtar would travel to Afghanistan for a meeting with the acting chief of the National Directorate of Security (NDS), Masoud Andarabi. The US is facilitating the meeting which would also be attended by Chinese officials as observers. The meeting which earlier was planned to be held in Islamabad, comes ahead of the Quadrilateral Coordination Group meeting comprising Pakistan, Afghanistan, US and China scheduled for Feb 6. The intelligence talks, an official said, were separate from the quadrilateral mechanism, even though the parleys were expected to impact the reconciliation effort, as well. The meeting is taking place as Pakistan had called on Afghanistan to act against the terrorist group involved in Jan 20 Bacha Khan University attack. Islamabad alleges that terrorists planned and directed the terrorist activity using Afghan soil and telecom infrastructure. It would also be the first time that the two intelligence agencies would be directly talking to each other about their relationship since a cooperation deal signed between them in May last year was prevented from materialising due to a stiff opposition in Kabul. PIA cancelled domestic, international flights KARACHI: All domestic and international flights of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) remained cancelled on Thursday as the strike resulting from an employees' protest against the national carrier's proposed privatisation entered its third day. PIA employees continued their protest outside major airports across the country, which came as the federal government invoked the Essential Services (Maintenance) Act, 1952, in the PIA for six months. PIA representatives at Karachi's Jinnah International Airport, Islamabad's Benazir Bhutto International Airport, Lahore's Allama Iqbal International Airport and Peshawar's Bacha Khan International Airport confirmed that all domestic and international flights scheduled for Wednesday were cancelled. "All PIA flights have been suspended indefinitely," said a PIA inquiry representative at Lahore airport. He said two PIA flights from London and Milan landed at Lahore airport on Wednesday morning, although services of "employees of a private company" were used to handle the arriving flights. Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) spokesman Pervez George toldreporters that the authority has requested private carrier Airblue to schedule additional flights between major cities to accommodate passengers after cancellation of PIA flights. PIA Joint Action Committee (JAC) spokesman Nasrullah Khan said employees had resumed protest outside all major airports in the country and there has been no change in their demands. PIA employees' four-point agenda: Government should immediately take back the bill passed on January 21 converting the national flag carrier into a public limited company. PIA's employees be provided a chance to reform the airline. If the employees fail to do so, the government will have the freedom to do whatever it finds suitable. Privatisation, in any form, whether it is in form of a strategic partner or selling of 36 per cent or 1pc of the organisation's shares, is not acceptable to the employees. Government should immediately review the aviation policy and form a committee for this purpose comprising members from PIA employees' JAC along with PIA experts Khursheed Anwar, Kamran Hasan and Salahuddin. As news of the deaths of two protesting PIA employees in a clash with security forces spread on Tuesday evening, the national flag carrier's flight operations across the country began shutting down in solidarity with the protesters, officials said. PIA flight operations were suspended around 4pm at Lahore, Islamabad, Quetta and Peshawar airports. The status of PIA flights at Karachi was already uncertain due to the violent protests. As the demonstration turned bloody, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif warned that protesting employees of PIA will be fired from service and can be sent to jail for a year. Later in the night, PIA Chairman Nasser Jaffer announced that he has resigned from his post following the death of two employees. Director General Sindh Rangers Major Bilal Akbar has formed an investigation committee to launch a probe into the killing of PIA workers during the anti-privatisation protest, DawnNews reported. The committee, headed by a brigadier rank officer, will look into the case keeping in view all the aspects which resulted in the death of two employees. JAC spokesman Nasrullah Khan claimed on Wednesday that four PIA employees "went missing" last night. Among the four are Deputy Convener JAC and President of People's Unity union Hidayatullah Khan and senior vice president of People's Unity Zameer Chandio, Nasrullah said and PIA employees Saifullah and Mansoor, DawnNews reported. The committee will approach police to register First Information Reports against their disappearance, he said. Later addressing a press conference in the evening, JAC Chairman Sohail Baloch said the four members are still missing and that the PPP Karachi President Najmi Alam has said that they are not in the custody of the police. Alam said that if the missing members are in the custody of Rangers or any other security agency, the government will try to bring them back by the evening, said Baloch. This will decide our future course of action. If the government thinks this is becoming a law and order situation, then it should make efforts to resolve it, maintained the JAC chairman. The National Assembly on January 21 witnessed the passage of six bills, including one to convert the national flag carrier into a public limited company. Under the bill, Pakistan International Airlines Corporation (PIAC) is to be converted into a public limited company as Pakistan International Airlines Company Limited (PIACL). The government plans to split the ailing national flag carrier PIA into two companies and sell the control of its core business to a global airline, but the opposition to the sell-off has been intense. But representatives of PIA employees announced on Sunday their opposition to the government's privatisation plan, saying they would continue their strike and bring flight operations to a halt from Tuesday if their demands are not met. From Greg Swank, 12-4-2 You are about to read a list of 45 goals that found their way down the halls of our great Capitol back in 1963. As... It has taken a watchdog outside group, the Parents Coalition of Montgomery County, to ferret out this waste. The coalition, driven by its sharp curiosity, frequently uses the Maryland Public Information Act to request public records and keep track of district decisions and spending. We commend the coalition for its important work on this front. It is saving county residents money as inappropriate spending has been uncovered. July 16, 2014 The mathematical (and other) thoughts of a (now retired) math teacher, This page has found a new home Hive bees. Credit: Professor Stephen Martin, University of Salford The spread of a disease that is decimating global bee populations is manmade, and driven by European honeybee populations, new research has concluded. A study led by the University of Exeter and UC Berkeley and published in the journal Science found that the European honeybee Apis mellifera is overwhelmingly the source of cases of the Deformed Wing Virus infecting hives worldwide. The finding suggests that the pandemic is manmade rather than naturally occurring, with human trade and transportation of bees for crop pollination driving the spread. Although separately they are not major threats to bee populations, when the Varroa mite carries the disease, the combination is deadly, and has wiped out millions of honeybees over recent decades. Varroa feed on bee larvae while the Deformed Wing Virus kills off bees, a devastating double blow to colonies. The situation is adding to fears over the future of global bee populations, with major implications for biodiversity, agricultural biosecurity, global economies, and human health. The study was funded by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and supported by a Royal Society Dorothy Hodgkin Fellowship. It involved collaborators from the universities of Sheffield, Cambridge, Salford and California, as well as ETH Zurich in Switzerland. Varroa. Credit: Professor Stephen Martin, University of Salford Lead author Dr Lena Wilfert, of the University of Exeter's Centre for Ecology and Conservation, on the Penryn Campus in Cornwall, said: "This is the first study to conclude that Europe is the backbone of the global spread of the bee killing combination of Deformed Wing Virus and Varroa. This demonstrates that the spread of this combination is largely manmade - if the spread was naturally occurring, we would expect to see transmission between countries that are close to each other, but we found that, for example, the New Zealand virus population originated in Europe. This significantly strengthens the theory that human transportation of bees is responsible for the spread of this devastating disease. We must now maintain strict limits on the movement of bees, whether they are known to carry Varroa or not. It's also really important that beekeepers at all levels take steps to control Varroa in their hives, as this viral disease can also affect wild pollinators." Researchers analysed sequence data of Deformed Wing Virus samples across the globe from honeybees and Varroa mites, as well as the occurrence of Varroa. They used the information to reconstruct the spread of Deformed Wing Virus and found that the epidemic largely spread from Europe to North America, Australia and New Zealand. They found some two-way movement between Europe and Asia, but none between Asia and Australasia, despite their closer proximity. The team also looked at samples from other species suspected of transmitting the disease, including different species of honeybee, mite and bumblebees, but concluded that the European honeybee was the key transmitter. Professor Roger Butlin, Professor of Evolutionary Biology at the University of Sheffield, said: "Our study has found that the deformed wing virus is a major threat to honeybee populations across the world and this epidemic has been driven by the trade and movement of honeybee colonies. Varroa on pupa. Credit: Professor Stephen Martin, University of Salford "Domesticated honeybee colonies are hugely important for our agriculture systems, but this study shows the risks of moving animals and plants around the world. The consequences can be devastating, both for domestic animals and for wildlife. The risk of introducing viruses or other pathogens is just one of many potential dangers." Senior author Professor Mike Boots of Exeter and UC Berkeley concluded: "The key insight of our work is that the global virus pandemic in honeybees is manmade not natural. It's therefore within our hands to mitigate this and future disease problems." More information: "Deformed wing virus is a recent global epidemic in honeybees driven by Varroa mites," Science, DOI: 10.1126/science.aac9976 Journal information: Science "Deformed wing virus is a recent global epidemic in honeybees driven by Varroa mites," A photograph of les Closeaux at Rueil-Malmaison, Paris Basin, France. Credit: L. Lang DNA evidence lifted from the ancient bones and teeth of people who lived in Europe from the Late Pleistocene to the early Holocenespanning almost 30,000 years of European prehistoryhas offered some surprises, according to researchers who report their findings in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on Feb. 4, 2016. Perhaps most notably, the evidence shows a major shift in the population around 14,500 years ago, during a period of severe climatic instability. "We uncovered a completely unknown chapter of human history: a major population turnover in Europe at the end of the last Ice Age," says leading author Johannes Krause of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Germany. The researchers pieced this missing history together by reconstructing the mitochondrial genomes of 35 hunter-gatherer individuals who lived in Italy, Germany, Belgium, France, the Czech Republic, and Romania from 35,000 to 7,000 years ago. Mitochondria are organelles within cells that carry their own DNA and can be used to infer patterns of maternal ancestry. "There has been a real lack of genetic data from this time period, so consequently we knew very little about the population structure or dynamics of the first modern humans in Europe," Krause says. The new data show that the mitochondrial DNA of three individuals who lived in present-day Belgium and France before the coldest period in the last Ice Agethe Last Glacial Maximumbelonged to haplogroup M. This is remarkable because the M haplogroup is effectively absent in modern Europeans but is extremely common in modern Asian, Australasian, and Native American populations. Dolnte Vestonice burial 16, South Moravia, Czech Republic Credit: Martin Frouz The absence of the M haplogroup and its presence in other parts of the world had previously led to the argument that non-African people dispersed on multiple occasions to spread across Eurasia and Australasia. The researchers say the discovery of this maternal lineage in Europe in the ancient past now suggests instead that all non-Africans dispersed rapidly from a single population, at a time they place around 50,000 years ago. Then, at some later stage, the M haplogroup was apparently lost from Europe. "When the Last Glacial Maximum began around 25,000 years ago, hunter-gatherer populations retreated south to a number of putative refugia, and the consequent genetic bottleneck probably resulted in the loss of this haplogroup," explains first author of the study Cosimo Posth of Germany's University of Tubingen. A photo of Hohle Fels, Swabian Jura, Germany Credit: Alb-Donau-Kreis Tourismus The researchers say their biggest surprise, however, was evidence of a major turnover of the population in Europe around 14,500 years ago, as the climate began to warm. "Our model suggests that during this period of climatic upheaval, the descendants of the hunter-gatherers who survived through the Last Glacial Maximum were largely replaced by a population from another source," says Adam Powell, another senior author at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History. The researchers say the next step is to construct a more comprehensive picture of the past by analyzing the complete genomes of these ancient individuals along with additional specimens representing more times and places. More information: Current Biology, Posth et al.: "Pleistocene Mitochondrial Genomes Suggest a Single Major Dispersal of Non-Africans and a Late Glacial Population Turnover in Europe" Journal information: Current Biology , Posth et al.: "Pleistocene Mitochondrial Genomes Suggest a Single Major Dispersal of Non-Africans and a Late Glacial Population Turnover in Europe" dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2016.01.037 A scanning electron microscope image of the head of "Dark-fly," a Drosophila melanogaster line reared for 1,400 generations in a dark environment. Credit: Naoyuki Fuse, Kyoto University. On November 11, 1954, Syuiti Mori turned out the lights on a small group of fruit flies. More than sixty years later, the descendents of those flies have adapted to life without light. These fliesa variety now known as "Dark-fly"outcompete their light-loving cousins when they live together in constant darkness, according to research reported in the February issue of G3: Genes|Genomes|Genetics. This competitive difference allowed the researchers to re-play the evolution of Dark-fly and identify the genomic regions that contribute to its success in the dark. "We hope understanding the genetics behind Dark-fly's adaptations will shed light on how genes are selected during rapid evolution," says study leader Naoyuki Fuse of Kyoto University. The Dark-fly project is the longest-running example of an experimental evolution study where scientists follow a population over many generations. It is also the first to analyze genome evolution in a multicellular organism adapted to a defined condition in the lab. The project was initiated by Mori as part of a series of experiments investigating how the traits of fruit flies are altered in response to changes in their environment. The fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster is a heavily studied model organism often used to examine genetic changes during evolution. To keep the flies away from light, they are reared in vials kept in a large pot painted black on the inside and covered with a blackout cloth. When the vials and food need to be changed, the researchers tend to the flies in the pitch dark, then use a feeble red light to check on their work. Fruit flies can't see this light because the species lacks those light receptor proteins that absorb red wavelengths. When Mori retired, he passed on the precious fly stocks to his colleagues at Kyoto University, who have maintained them continuously to this day. The stock of flies has now spent more than 1,500 generations without light. In human terms, that would be like sequestering generations of our ancestors in the dark for 30,000 years. Today, Dark-fly looks almost identical to normal (wild-type) D. melanogaster, but the variety is also subtly different. For example, Dark-fly individuals move around more in response to sudden light exposure, even after spending a generation in normal day/night cycles. They are also more sensitive to certain smells and have longer head bristles, which are sensory organs that serve as the fruit fly version of a cat's whiskers. Dark-fly also produces more offspring when kept in constant darkness than in alternating light and dark. But although Dark-fly does better in the dark than the light, is it more highly adapted than the wild-type to its dim environment? The team tested this hypothesis by housing the two types of fruit flies together, allowing them to mate at random, and then assessing the parentage of the flies that made up the next generations. The results showed that Dark-fly has a competitive advantage in reproduction over the wild-type when bred in the dark. Fuse suggests this might be due to differences in pheromone signaling when the flies select their mates, or to altered circadian rhythms of mating or sleep behaviors. Which genes are responsible for the adaptation to dark conditions? Previously, the team sequenced the Dark-fly genome, identifying mutations that distinguish it from wild-type. But not many of those genetic variants are likely to be responsible for the adaptations that help Dark-fly thrive without light; many of the variants may have no effect, or may affect unrelated traits. To hone in on the dark-adaptation genes, the team performed another kind of experimental evolution study. They first reared Dark-flies and normal flies in mixed colonies, allowing the two types to interbreed freely for 49 generations. These colonies were maintained in constant dark and compared to control colonies with normal 24-hour light/dark cycles. With each generation, those flies that produced the most offspring contributed more of their genes to the colony as a whole. As the genomes of the two types of fly mixed, those genes responsible for Dark-fly's unique adaptations should become more common in the colony kept in the dark. To find those genes, the team sequenced the genomes of flies at the beginning and end of the experiment and looked for genetic variants originating in Dark-fly that became more common only under the dark conditions. Such variants were located in 28 regions of the Dark-fly genome. From these regions, the researchers narrowed down the candidates to 84 genes. Among these candidates are likely the genes associated with dark-adaptive traits. These include genes that encode chemical receptors, and genes involved in pheromone synthesis, the formation of smell memories, and circadian rhythms. In future work, the team will examine the activity and functions of these candidates to link them to specific Dark-fly adaptations. "We will soon have the ability to try my dream experiment: using genome-editing technology to introduce defined mutations into the wild-type to try to reproduce the Dark-fly's traits. This would give us a precise molecular profile of this remarkable example of evolution in the lab," says Fuse. Explore further Study finds variation in circadian clock protein in fruit flies More information: M. Izutsu et al. Dynamics of Dark-Fly Genome Under Environmental Selections, G3: Genes|Genomes|Genetics (2015). M. Izutsu et al. Dynamics of Dark-Fly Genome Under Environmental Selections,(2015). DOI: 10.1534/g3.115.023549 Everyone ticks multiple demographic boxes. Credit: www.shutterstock.com Actress Patricia Arquette's comments at the 2015 Oscars award night drew criticism for implicitly framing gender equality as an issue for straight white women. She insisted that, "It's time for all the women in America and all the men that love women and all the gay people and all the people of color that we've all fought for to fight for us now." Among other concerns, critics argued she overlooked the unique challenges faced by queer women, women of color and other women at the intersection of multiple minority groups. This sentiment reflects a growing movement within feminist circles to understand how people simultaneously face bias along multiple identity dimensions such as gender, race, and sexual orientation an idea called intersectionality. Social psychologists have recently joined in this movement, but have also reframed the discussion. The politics on intersectionality can "resemble a score-keeping contest between battle-weary warriors," argued social psychologists Valerie Purdie-Vaughns and Richard Eibach in an influential 2008 review article. "The warriors display ever deeper and more gruesome battle scars in a game of one-upmanship." Setting aside these "oppression Olympics," intersectionality is a fertile area for scientific research, argued Rutgers University psychologist Diana Sanchez at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology (SPSP) conference last week. At this academic gathering, intersectionality was a major topic at a daylong session about gender. Here are three lines of research illustrating how gender interacts with other social identities to shape bias in often surprising ways. People of multiple minority groups face both distinct advantages and disadvantages. Biases based on gender and race do not always simply pile up to create double disadvantages, for instance. When stereotypes can both help and hurt black women leaders Women are often viewed negatively for exhibiting traditionally masculine behavior. Assertive female leaders are disliked, while assertive male leaders gain respect, for instance. However, could this distaste for assertive female leaders vary by race? Unlike white women, black women are often stereotyped as being assertive, confident and not feminine. These masculine traits are not only expected for black women but also allowed, at least in leadership roles, according to research presented at the SPSP conference. Robert Livingston, lecturer of public policy at Harvard University, presented an experiment about how 84 nonblack participants responded to a corporate executive described as either "tough, determined" or "caring, committed." The race and gender of the fictitious leader were also varied across conditions. Both white female and black male leaders were rated more negatively when described as tough rather than caring. In contrast, black women faced no such penalty for behaving assertively and were instead rated similarly to white men. Livingston concluded black women "were able to show dominance, assertiveness, agency without the same penalty that either white women or black men suffered." He suggested that white women get knocked for being "tough, determined" because they are expected to be warm and caring. Black men are penalized because they are feared by others and activate other stereotypes such as being dangerous. In contrast, black women are expected to be assertive and confident, unlike white women, and they're not feared in the same way as black men, Livingston suggested. Livingston, however, emphasized that these evaluations are complex and likely depend on context. In a follow-up experiment led by Duke University associate professor of management and organizations Ashleigh Rosette, black female leaders were evaluated especially harshly if their corporation had performed poorly during the past five months. Under those conditions, black women were rated more negatively than white women or black men for the exact same business scenario. Robert Livingston discusses his research on how gender and race interact to influence evaluations of corporate leaders. If you are a black woman, you can be an assertive leader as long as you don't make any mistakes, Livingston argued. "But the first time you make a mistake, your competence is called into question well before the white woman or the black man." When multiple minority identities render groups invisible Individuals of multiple minority groups may be overlooked and marginalized for not being prototypical of their respective groups, argued Rebecca Mohr, doctoral psychology student at Columbia University. For instance, white women are seen as prototypical of "women." Black men are seen as prototypical of "black people." But black women are seen as neither prototypical of "black people" nor "women," Mohr argued based on prior research. Racial minority women can therefore be rendered metaphorically invisible. Along with Columbia Associate Professor of Psychology Valerie Purdie-Vaughns, Mohr tested whether racial minority women are featured in mass media less frequently than more prototypical others. In a currently unpublished study, the researchers analyzed covers of Time magazine published from 1980 to 2008. They chose Time because it's one of the longest-running U.S. publications and is published weekly, offering a large archive of covers. It's also a general interest magazine, meaning that people on the covers should presumably "appeal to a wide swath of Americans," Mohr pointed out. The study found that racial minority women were underrepresented when racial minorities were on the cover of Time. For instance, women were only 20 percent of the covers that featured racial minorities. Conversely, when women were on the cover, racial minority women were underrepresented relative to their share of the U.S. population. Mohr suggested that these results reflect the broader invisibility of racial minority women in American society. For instance, even though three black queer women started the Black Lives Matter movement, most media attention has focused on black men killed by police. In contrast, black women killed by police such as Meagan Hockaday, Tanisha Anderson and Rekia Boyd are invisible, critics argue. How gender gaps in STEM participation vary by race Gender gaps in pursing natural science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields surprisingly sometimes vary by race, noted Laurie O'Brien, associate professor of psychology at Tulane University. Women of color in STEM may sometimes face "double jeopardy" because of both racial bias and gender bias in some contexts such as gaining influence over others in academic departments. However, "double jeopardy" is not the full story, O'Brien argued in her SPSP talk. For instance, when entering college, black women are more likely than white women to intend to major in STEM. Her research shows that black women hold weaker gender-STEM stereotypes than white women, helping explain that difference. O'Brien also pointed to research by psychologists Monica Biernat and Amanda Sesko about bias favoring male computer engineers. This bias was found only when undergraduates evaluated fictitious white, but not black, employees. Black women were instead evaluated similarly compared to white men. In one large nationally representative experiment, gender bias in STEM even reversed by race and ethnicity. STEM faculty responded less often to emails from white female than white male prospective graduate students. However, STEM faculty consistently responded more often to Hispanic women than Hispanic men. O'Brien emphasized these data are complex. For instance, even though black women start out in college more interested in STEM than white women, black women may face unique barriers such as race-based stereotypes to completing college with a STEM degree. In her current research, O'Brien studies how the effects of interventions to bring girls into STEM may vary by race. Thinking beyond 'double jeopardy' This research on intersectionality challenges the simple narrative that prejudices such as sexism and racism always combine to create "double jeopardy." For instance, racial minority women can be rendered "invisible." But this invisibility may also protect them in some cases by making them less prototypical targets of common forms of bias. This research is still in its early stages. For instance, more studies are needed to test how evaluations of black female leaders found in small laboratory experiments generalize to real world settings. Attendees at the SPSP conference also emphasized the need to develop theoretical frameworks that can help explain the nuanced results. The emerging data show that gender can interact with other social identities to shape perceptions and evaluations in complex and often surprising ways. Explore further Black women leaders approved for assertiveness in the workplace This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. In a paper published today in Scientific Reports a group of researchers led by LSTM have found that the key to an inherited deficiency, predisposing people to emphysema and other lung conditions, could lie in their Viking roots. Archaeological excavations of Viking latrine pits in Denmark have revealed that these populations suffered massive worm infestations sciencenordic.com/dna-study-vi intestinal-parasites. The way that their genes developed to protect their vital organs from disease caused by worms has become the inherited trait which can now lead to lung disease in smokers. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and emphysema affect over 300 million people, or nearly 5% of the global population. The only inherited risk factor is alpha-1-antitrypsin (A1AT) deficiency, and this risk is compounded if individuals smoke tobacco. A1AT protects the lungs and liver from enzymes called proteases that are produced by cells of the immune system, but also by parasitic worms. In the absence of A1AT these proteases can break down lung tissue leading to COPD and emphysema. Deficiency of A1AT is genetically determined and is due to deviants of A1AT that are surprisingly common, particularly in Scandinavia, where they evolved in Viking populations more than two thousand years ago. Why these disease-causing deviants of A1AT are so common in human populations today has long been a mystery. LSTM's Professor Richard Pleass is senior author on the paper. He said: "Vikings would have eaten contaminated food and parasites would have migrated to various organs, including lungs and liver, where the proteases they released would cause disease." In this latest paper the authors show that these deviant forms of A1AT bind an antibody called immunoglobulin E (IgE) that evolved to protect people from worms. The binding of A1AT to IgE prevents the antibody molecule from being broken down by such proteases. "Thus these deviant forms of A1AT would have protected Viking populations, who neither smoked tobacco nor lived long lives, from worms." Continued Professor Pleass, "it is only in the last century that modern medicine has allowed human populations to be treated for disease causing worms. Consequently these deviant forms of A1AT, that once protected people from parasites, are now at liberty to cause emphysema and COPD." Explore further New collaboration to develop treatments for liver disease More information: Phyllis M. Quinn et al. IgE-tailpiece associates with -1-antitrypsin (A1AT) to protect IgE from proteolysis without compromising its ability to interact with FcRI, Scientific Reports (2016). Journal information: Scientific Reports Phyllis M. Quinn et al. IgE-tailpiece associates with -1-antitrypsin (A1AT) to protect IgE from proteolysis without compromising its ability to interact with FcRI,(2016). DOI: 10.1038/srep20509 Mid-infrared light, which has a wavelength longer than visible light but shorter than microwaves, has many important applications in remote sensing and communication technologies. Researchers in Japan have demonstrated the successful operation of several new photonic components that can effectively guide the passage of mid-infrared light. The research may lead to a faster internet and sensitive detectors for important molecules like carbon dioxide. The team presents their results at the Optical Fiber Communication Conference and Exhibition (OFC), held March 20-24 in Anaheim, California, USA. The researchers built the new components from the material germanium (Ge). Like silicon, which is commonly used in conventional near-infrared photonics, germanium is a group IV semiconductor, which means it is in the same column of the periodic table and has similar electrical properties. Germanium has several properties that make it particularly well-suited to transmit and guide mid-infrared light, said Jian Kang, a Ph.D. candidate in the Takagi-Takenaka group in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Systems, University of Tokyo, Japan. Germanium has high optical transparency in the mid-infrared range so mid-infrared light can easily pass through it. Compared to silicon, germanium has a number of other optically interesting properties. These include a higher refractive index, which means light passes more slowly through it. Germanium also has a larger third-order nonlinearity, an optical effect that can be exploited to, for example, amplify or self-focus beams of light. It has a stronger free-carrier effect, which means charge carrying electrons and holes in the material can help modulate light. Germanium also has a stronger thermo-optic effect than silicon, which means the refractive index can be more easily controlled with temperature. "These properties could make Ge-based devices show higher performance or even realize new functionalities in the mid-infrared," said Kang. Furthermore, recent progress on lasers made from strained-Ge and GeSn-based materials make germanium a promising material for integrating both the light producing and light steering components on the same photonic chip, Kang said. Kang and his colleagues designed and tested several fundamental photonic waveguide components made from germanium, including grating couplers, MMI couplers, and micro-ring resonators. Grating couplers are used to couple light efficiently from free space into a waveguide, and vice versa, MMI couplers are used as routers or couplers for light signal processing in the waveguide, and micro-ring resonators are used to filter certain wavelengths of light passing through. The biggest challenge the team faced was controlling the device fabrication process, including the polishing and etching of the germanium wafer, Kang said. "Currently, the Ge device performance may be not as good as state-of-the-art Si-based ones, because the study of Ge-based photonic components for mid-infrared is quite new and there remain many issues in the optimization of the fabrication process," he said. "Nevertheless, we believe that Ge-based devices have intrinsic advantages." Germanium's attractive optical properties in the mid-infrared mean that an optimized Ge waveguide could be more compact than a similar silicon device, meaning more chips could fit into the same space, Kang noted. Many important molecules, such as carbon dioxide, absorb and emit light in the mid-infrared when they change vibrational states, so mid-infrared photonics could serve as the basis for new sensors. Monitoring and detecting carbon emissions, hidden explosives, and health conditions like liver disease and cancer are all possible with Ge-based sensors, Kang said. Ge-based photonic chips also have the potential to increase the bandwidth of optical fiber communications. "In a general sense, it can make the internet much faster," Kang said. For now, Kang and his colleagues are working on improving their fabrication techniques. Afterwards they plan to build more devices, such as optical switches, and to integrate a GeSn laser and Ge waveguide devices onto the same chip. Explore further Imec demonstrates 50GHz Ge waveguide electro-absorption modulator More information: Presentation: "Design and Characterization of Ge Passive Waveguide Components on Ge-on-Insulator for Mid-Infrared Photonics," by Jian Kang, Xiao Yu, Mitsuru Takenaka and Shinichi Takagi. The lead-poisoning disaster in Flint, Michigan is more than a shocking public health failure. It is an assault on human rights a recognition that has been largely absent from most discussions of how and why this could have happened in the advanced industrial democracy of the United States. It is arguably the largest discrete violation of its type since the infamous and grossly unethical Tuskegee syphilis medical study of the last century. The water poisoning in Flint was finally forced into official recognition by a brave and stubborn pediatrician, Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, who documented what was really happening to Flints vulnerable children and other residents. There are differences between Flint and Tuskegee, of course. Tuskegee was a deliberately, even cynically, planned trial involving a moderate number of adult African-American men, who were purposely left untreated to suffer the progression of their disease, while falsely told that they were being helped. It was a cruel medical study directed by government public health doctors who violated their professional medical ethics. Flint is the consequence of depraved indifference and layer upon layer of smug, incompetent denial by the state government more like a slow-moving, long-lasting Tuskegee, with an impact orders of magnitude greater in terms of the numbers of people affected: tens of thousands of particularly vulnerable children and tens of thousands more adolescents and adults. However, just beneath the surface of these two events is the similarity. All of the men in Tuskegee were African-American, and so were the majority of those exposed to toxic water in Flint. In both events, a particularly despicable form of racism is manifested: a contemptuous disregard for the health of people of color, especially if they are poor and can be dismissed as politically and economically irrelevant. Every person has the universally-recognized right to the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health a right callously ignored by the very people tasked with safeguarding these citizens wellbeing: their local, state, and federal public health and environmental agencies and their elected representatives. For almost two years, the children of Flint have been exposed to the risk of brain damage impairing IQ and causing behavioral disorders that in many cases will prove to be irreversible, and will continue to unfold for years. Into this swamp of denial stepped Dr. Hanna-Attisha, who carefully reviewed past and current hospital records and documented what was already happening: a doubling and tripling of cases of dangerously elevated levels of lead in childrens blood. She went public with those facts, and, like other citizens of Flint, she was accused of causing hysteria. But she persisted, and won: Flints mayor declared a state of emergency over the water issue in December. Dr. Hanna-Attishas work illustrates a truth larger than the Flint case itself. A new and important domain of professional responsibility has emerged for health professionals and medical scientists: the documentation and exposure of human rights and civil rights abuses that violate long-established legal and ethical agreements, and international and domestic laws. Dr. Hanna-Attishas efforts are essentially similar to the work of Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) in Syria or other conflict zones, in detention camps and prisons in the United States and abroad, in humanitarian crises, and among asylum seekers. Such work, and efforts by many other organizations, will be needed in Flint to assure that affected children will receive the careful monitoring, medical care, and intense educational support they may need for many years to come. But a moral response to the outrage in Flint obliges all of us not just doctors, bioethicists, and human rights advocates to act. We must add our voices to calls by the ACLU and other organizations for transparency and accountability for those that caused human damage on this massive scale. We need action now. State authorities must conduct adequate sampling and water testing in the homes where lead pipes are likely to be present, and enforce rigorous inspection, testing, and removal of lead paint in old housing, which is likely the biggest source of chronic lead exposure. Most important of all, authorities must recognize and address the need for active and ongoing federal supervision. We must assure congressional funding for the essential infrastructure repairs and for ongoing educational, cognitive performance, and remedial support for affected children for the next decade. And we should prevent one last parallel between Tuskegee and Flint from emerging. After Tuskegee, no one ever faced effective criminal prosecution. It remains to be seen whether or not that will happen in Flint. Fast dining app Allset launches in New York City. Takes on Opentable NEW YORK, Feb. 3, 2016 /PRNewswire/ Allset (www.allsetnow.com), a mobile app for restaurants and busy lunchtime eaters, is launching today their service at 40 restaurants in NYC. Allset expands to the East Coast after successfully launching the app with 50 restaurants in San Francisco and Palo Alto. From today, restaurants in New York are eligible to use the app and allow lunchtime diners to book a table, pre-order their food, and pay their bill. Using Allset saves diners up to 40 minutes of their time, which is usually spent eating out during the lunch rush. Benefits for Restaurants Reach busy diners by offering a quicker lunch service. Increase table turnover by cutting dining time in half. In one-touch acceptance of orders, reservations, and payments. Free setup. No hardware to install. Benefits for Lunch Eaters By booking, pre-ordering, and paying, busy diners can have their lunch ready-to-be-served upon their arrival, and can return to work without waiting for the check. Diners with tight schedules can now eat lunch at restaurants in under 30 minutes. No more having to choose between fast food, takeout and eating at desk. Diners can invite friends to join them for lunch. Team lunches - companies can order lunch at restaurants nearby for their employees, control budget, and see analytics. Affordable Costs $0.99 for users per order. Key Restaurant Partners in NYC Palma, Les Halles, Mari Vanna, Brasserie Cognac, Carma Asian Tapas, IL Brigante, Senza Gluten, Numero 28, Bos Kitchen & Bar, Black Barn, Serafina Group. Were creating a better way for busy people to have lunch. Our goal is to help people take a real break, save time, and enjoy the full restaurant experience. We partner with local restaurants to evolve their hospitality and bring busy people back inside for lunch. Stas Matviyenko, CEO Allset Weve heard about Allset before. Were glad they entered New Yorks restaurant scene. Our guests will love the convenience of ordering lunch ahead via the app rather than wondering if they will really be able to get seated and served during their lunch break. Allsets customized service meets the needs of todays guests that want to schedule lunch on their terms while the app will help us effectively market our business. Boris Artemyev, GM at Mari Vanna Get Allset For iOS: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/allset-order-sit-down-lunches/id1016005447?mt=8 For Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.allset.client Restaurants registration: https://allsetnow.com/for-restaurants Video demonstrating the app: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aJCZTJdWrZw About Allset was launched 3 months ago in San Francisco. Today they serve over 1,000 orders per month with 50 restaurant partners in the Bay Area. One restaurant that uses Allset, Les Clos, reported a 25% increase in lunch sales. Allset is funded by a $1.5M seed round by SMRK VC Fund and private investor and entrepreneur Alexandr Chernyak. More Hospitality news: Welcome Welcome to Conservative Musings. The purpose of this blog is to discuss with everyone (conservatives, moderates, independents and progressives) the issues of the day in an intelligent discussion. We believe that discussion can lead to agreement or an agreement to disagree but it must be held in a mutually respectful environment. We learn nothing from name calling or argument for argument's sake therefore we will not allow that to happen here. We will post our point of view and want a spirited discussion of the issues. Please express your opinions, hopefully we all can learn. For full functionality of this site it is necessary to enable JavaScript. Here are the instructions how to enable JavaScript in your web browser A continuing complaint of those interested in trying medical marijuana for one of the 10 conditions listed in the law has been difficulty finding a doctor to prescribe it. There is no list of doctors available for patients, but practitioners have access to a list of registered physicians who consented to be listed. So far in New York, 344 doctors have taken the online course to register to prescribe medical marijuana and 551 patients have been certified. Those numbers continue to grow every day I check the Department of Health website. If your doctor doesn't want to take the course and register, they can make a referral. That can still be a pain for patients who then have to pay for two doctor visits. Today I interviewed a decorated Iraq War veteran who is interested in trying medical cannabis oil to manage phantom pains caused by severe nerve damage (neuropathy and chronic pain would qualify) in his left leg. This is the result of an injury during the war that has left him now disabled. The VA bans its doctors from discussing medical marijuana with veterans. Meanwhile federally legal drugs -- produced by big pharmaceutical companies -- with debilitating side effects, as this veteran described them, are on the table. Last November, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved the Veterans Equal Access Amendment, which was aimed at blocking the VA from using funds to enforce the ban on doctors working with the VA. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand has been vocal about giving veterans the same access. BALLSTON SPA | Ballston Spa National Bank, in partnership with its customers, recently completed a program that provided a total of $7,500 to 12 food pantries across the region, according to a prepared statement. In addition to food donations collected during the sixth-annual drive, customers gave nearly $5,000 in cash. The bank matched more than $2,500 of those donations, according to the prepared statement. Funds for the food pantries, which included Saratoga County Economic Opportunity Council, Malta Community Center, Greenfield Food Pantry and Wilton Food Pantry, were delivered to the Regional Food Bank of Northeastern New York. Cash donations to the regional food bank allow that organization to purchase approximately $11 worth of food for every $1 donated. For more information on Ballston Spa National Bank, visit bsnb.com. FORT EDWARD The Kingsbury man accused of killing his girlfriends toddler daughter with illegal drugs has refused a plea deal offer that would have resulted in the murder charge against him being dropped in exchange for a guilty plea to first-degree manslaughter. Joshua J. Bennett would have served 21 years in state prison and up to 5 years on parole for the death of 13-month-old Kayleigh Cassell under the offer, which was outlined Thursday in Washington County Court. His lawyer, Garfield Raymond, said Bennett would be willing to accept a deal that would include a guilty plea to felony charges of criminally negligent homicide and criminal possession of a controlled substance, with a concurrent prison sentence to the six-year term he is serving for a related felony drug plea. The 21-year term would have been served concurrently to the drug sentence as well. Washington County District Attorney Tony Jordan said the plea offer would have resolved the case without trial and ensured Bennett would admit to his role in Kayleighs death. They werent interested and we dont anticipate it (plea discussions) going any further, Jordan said. We are preparing for trial on February 22. Bennett, 35, faces second-degree murder, first-degree manslaughter, criminal possession of a controlled substance and lesser counts in the Feb. 22, 2015 death of Kayleigh at his familys home. The girl died from complications from long-term drug exposure, and scientific tests show she had ingested heroin and cocaine over a period of months, court documents allege. He is not accused of intentionally killing the girl, but is alleged to have shown depraved indifference to human life in causing the death. Kayleighs mother, Rachel Rae Ball, 27, of Gansevoort, pleaded guilty to criminally negligent homicide and two felony drug charges in the case. She faces a minimum of 8 1/3 years in prison and a maximum of 22 years, the sentence dependent on her testimony against Bennett. The case is a circumstantial one, with court records showing no direct evidence of Bennett giving drugs to the girl. But Ball has said he physically abused the girl, was responsible for the drugs in the home and repeatedly asked her to leave the room so he could be alone with Kayleigh. Bennett sat quietly in court on Thursday as Washington County Judge Kelly McKeighan, Raymond and Washington County First Assistant District Attorney Christian Morris discussed evidence issues in the case. Bennett is to return to court Wednesday for additional pre-trial issues, including a possible hearing on what portions of his criminal record will be admissible during his trial. Raymond said after the hearing that results of DNA tests he received recently were good for the defense, since they show Balls DNA and not Bennetts on drug packages found in the Kingsbury home. All the glassine vials have her DNA on it, not his, Raymond said. Bennett is serving his prison term in Downstate Correctional Facility. SOUTH GLENS FALLS The man who abandoned a convenience store on the corner of routes 32 and 9 in South Glens Falls, leaving meat to rot inside, has left two clues to why he vanished. Law enforcement in New York City seized $48,000 in cash from Navjeet Singh Chawla around Nov. 5, 2015, according to court records. The cash was seized on the belief that it was the product of drug sales. But Chawla was not arrested, according to New York City police records. Police said that meant he was not found with any drugs on him only the cash, which officers considered suspicious because there was so much of it. Law enforcement can seize cash and other possessions on the grounds that they may be the products of drug trafficking. To get them back, the owner has to prove they were legally earned or purchased. The case involving Chawlas cash has not yet been resolved, and the U.S. Attorneys Office declined to discuss it, saying it was the offices policy to not comment. Chawla does not have a listed attorney for the case. Its not clear why Chawla, who owns a house in Waterford, was in New York City. But he left one other clue that suggests he was heading to Sacramento, California. On his doorstep in Waterford is an overnight-air package from Dish Network. A second package from Dish Network, mailed at the same time, was rerouted to a new address in Sacramento, California, according to UPS package tracking records. Other mail, including a sorry we missed you sticker, is also waiting at his front door in Waterford, indicating no one has been home in months. Chawlas Toyota Sequoia, with custom plates, still sits in the driveway. Meanwhile, a man identifying himself as Chawla called South Glens Falls Mayor Joe Orlow on Tuesday and promised to reopen the store. Hes going to come in and clean. Itll be within the next month or so, Orlow said. He said hes had some circumstances and hes gone to his other country. Hes coming back. He said hes gotten the situation straightened out. Employees locked the store and left more than three months ago, when Chawla vanished. National Grid recently cut power, and village officials are now concerned that the rotting meat and moldy bread in the deli section of the store could be a health hazard. But the village has little power to do anything about it. Once the store is officially declared a health hazard, the village attorney Mike Muller is planning to write a letter, asking the mortgage-holding bank to clean out the store. Muller said the village has no authority to break in and do the clean-up. At the state level, the Department of Agriculture and Markets handles health problems at convenience stores. Officials there said they were not aware of the closed store. Officials at the state Department of Health said they were well-informed on the issue, but have no jurisdiction. According to Orlow, Chawla also said his wife would reopen the store. But since Chawlas house appears untouched, its not clear where she lives. Orlow acknowledged he has no proof Chawla will return or was telling him the truth. Id like to take it at face value, he said. Hes a valuable member of the community. Id like him to be welcomed. M WAQAR..... "A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary.Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death." --Albert Einstein !!! NEWS,ARTICLES,EDITORIALS,MUSIC... Ze chi pe mayeen yum da agha pukhtunistan de.....(Liberal,Progressive,Secular World.)''Secularism is not against religion; it is the message of humanity.'' In April 2010, the Government of Ghana signed a public-private partnership (PPP) contract to reengineer business registration processes, deploy state-of-the-art application software and hardware, and employ best-in-class solutions for the Ghana Revenue Authority and the Registrar Generals Office. This was part of a broader program to achieve greater efficiency, transparency, and effectiveness in the delivery of selected government services using information and communications technology (ICT). The PPP was structured on a design, finance, build, operate, and transfer model. The government supported the project through resources from a World Bank-financed eGhana Project], contributing about one-third of the $60 million project costs; the private sector contributed the remainder. The agreement was for the private sector to build and manage the e-tax and electronic business registration platform until their investment costs were recoveredwithin five and not exceeding seven years from the effective date of the contract. At the end of the operations period, the system would be turned over to designated government organizations for continuing operation. The objective of eGhana was to broaden the tax base, increase compliance and transparency, reduce incidence of fraud, and improve the competitiveness of the business climate in Ghana. The existing processes led to fraud and significant delays; for example, business registration in Ghana before the automation took on average about two weeks. After automation, businesses could complete registration in three to five days, and planned improvements will ultimately reduce this to one day. Overcoming challenges facing Ghanas e-government The process of automating Ghanas revenue agencies and the business registration system faced significant challenges along the way. For example: Ghana Revenue Authority Bill Ghana discovered oil Ghana Revenue Authority before the automation Ghana Revenue Authority after the automation Despite these challenges, the eGhana PPP is considered a flagship project for the government and one of the more successful PPPs in the country. The tax registration systems are streamlined, and have allowed about 592,000 new taxpayers to file online. The combined impact of new taxpayers and new businesses seeking to normalize operations is already having a positive impact on the revenues of the Registrar Generals department and the economy as a whole. Modeling change for Ghanas e-government Other countries can learn from Ghanas e-government PPP. In particular, its important to keep in mind that the implementation of complex PPPs (especially for tax modernization) requires the utmost commitment of all partners to the broader vision of improved efficiency and services to citizens. It also requires that all partners remain flexible to policy changes that may improve outcomes. Communicating continuously with the public and relevant stakeholder institutions throughout the project implementation process is key as well. Staying the course brings measurable benefits to all parties. For the government, it includes a broadened tax base, potential increase in revenues, reduced inefficiencies, and cost savings. Taxpayers gain access to new, simplified online services. For the private partner, rewards vary and may include agreed interest on investment or share of revenue collected in other countries. In Ghanas case, the share of revenue was capped at total cost of investment. There are also rewards for development partners in the form of improved governance and judicious use of scarce public funds. Welcome to the Pulse Community! We will now be sending you a daily newsletter on news, entertainment and more. Also join us across all of our other channels - we love to be connected! The ministry of Finance included the cancellation of the import duties in the 2015 budget but the government did not enforce the removal of the taxes. According to the Ghana Revenue Authority the government did not give a final directive as to when the taxes should be removed. Officials of the Ministry of Finance say the decision to scrap the tax is to streamline the country's import tax regime in alignment with the ECOWAS Common Tarriffs. The Parliament of the Economic Community of West African States approved the implementation of a common import and export regime for the sub- region in order to improve intra- West African trade. This means that government will have to align all its import duties to conform with the West African average, and the taxes on mobile phone accessories is one of them. Currently, government charges a 20% import tax on mobile phones and accessories, whilst the Ecowas Common Tariff stipulates 10%. Government has therefore decided to reduce the tariff to 10%, but cannot totally scrap the taxes as originally planned. The two bodies are calling on the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) to suspend the implementation of the CET else they will hit the street to protest if it not put on hold. However, the Chief Revenue Officer of the Customs Service Division of the GRA, Dr Okoh Appiah told Accra based Citi FM that nothing can be done about it. READ MORE According to him, Ghana had a limited commodity code tariffs lines to "submit to ECOWAS Commission for consideration." He said Ghana could not factor everything into the CET. The executive director of the Importers and Exporters Association, Samson Awingobite said the implementation of the ECOWAS tariffs means that some of Ghana's custom duties must be reduced while others must be removed completely. " We are petitioning the Ministry of Trade, the Chief of Staff, and the even the ECOWAS Parliament on Ghana's need to fully comply with the ECOWAS Common Tariff Regime." He said government is not respecting and abiding by the negotiated tariffs as agreed upon by the ECOWAS Parliament. " Whereas the ECOWAS Common Tariff Regime stipulates a 10% import duty on rice, Ghana is charging 20%. It must be a flat 10% in accordance to the stipulations." The CET came into effect following the passage of the Customs (Amendment) Act, 2015 (Act 905), by the Ghana Revenue Authority. The CET is one of the instruments of harmonising ECOWAS Member States and strengthening its Common Market. The law is composed of four tariff rates of custom duty, namely 0 % for Essential Social Goods, 5% for Goods of Primary Necessity, Raw Materials and Specific Inputs, 10% for Intermediate Goods and 20% for Final Consumption Goods. New Patriotic Party Member of Parliament (MP) for Atwima-Nwabiagya North, Benito Owusu-Bio has said the CET will hurt Ghana's timber industry. Read More: > Redevelopment Mahama assures Kumasi of gargantuan Kejetia market This according to mayor, Kojo Bonsu, will help the assembly keep proper track of all traders affected by the Kejekia Market Redevelopment project. Pulse Business earlier reported the skepticism of traders about market stalls being allocated equitably to those who have been affected by demolition works leading to the commencement of the Kejetia/Central Market Redevelopment Project, which is being undertaken at a cost $298 million. Read More : > Strike Kejetia Terminal construction workers strike over bad service conditions This will help in allocating shops to the traders after the market has been reconstructed. Mayor Kojo Bonsu again revealed to Pulse Business that the exercise will include the records of names, photographs and biometric data of the traders. A middle-aged man, Prince Agina, on Wednesday told an Igando Customary Court in Lagos State that his wife, Obianuju, has been poisoning his meals since 2008.The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the union which was consummated on Dec. 24, 2006 in Anambra had been blessed with three children.Obianuju was also accused of frequent fighting and infidelity by her husband."Since 2008, I have noticed that my food was being laced with poison, which has resulted to my deteriorating health; as I am standing here, I'm sick."Usually, I travel a lot. On one occasion when I returned home; I noticed that the centre table in our home had broken; when I asked my daughter how it happened, she told me that one uncle broke it."This means my wife brings other men into our matrimonial home whenever I travelled because my daughter knows all her uncles."She goes out at will without my permission, she does not listen to me as her husband and I don't love her anymore, Agina said.However, the respondent denied all the allegations leveled against her by her estranged husband."My husband has diabetes and hypertension; and he keeps eating those foods that the doctor warned him to desist from."Please tell me why he won't be sick always."I stayed with him at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) for four months looking after him but he did not listen to the doctors advice."So, how has his disobedience become my fault."He married me a virgin; so why will I start sleeping around now, why will I bring men into the house where my children are staying with me."He abandoned me and the children for four years when he travelled to Angola and he wasn't sending money from there for our upkeep."My family members took care of my children and I throughout the period, she said.The president of the court, Adegboyega Omilola, referred the couple to the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) office for possible settlement.Omilola said the couple should appear before the ADR members on Feb. 25, while he adjourned the case to March 7 for further hearing. In an exclusive interview with Pulse Business, the executive director of the Importers and Exporters Association, Samson Awingobite said the implementation of the ECOWAS tariffs means that some of Ghana's custom duties must be reduced while others must be removed completely. " We are petitioning the Ministry of Trade, the Chief of Staff, and the even the ECOWAS Parliament on Ghana's need to fully comply with the ECOWAS Common Tariff Regime." Related Stories: > The Ghana Union of Traders Association- GUTA in collaboration with the Importers and Exporters Association identified the 0% import duty on Pharmaceutical products, 0% on social goods, 5% on Raw Materials for production, 10% on materials for polishing , 20% for consumer products like TV sets, 10% for rice imports, and 35% for agricultural and tomato based produce as well as cosmetics. Samson Awingobite tells Pulse Business that the government is not respecting and abiding by the negotiated tariffs as agreed upon by the ECOWAS Parliament. " Whereas the ECOWAS Common Tariff Regime stipulates a 10% import duty on rice, Ghana is charging 20%. It must be a flat 10% in accordance to the stipulations." Again, the Executive Director of the association also sees the need for a drastic reconsideration of the country's import tax levies if Ghana is to be at par with her Francophone counterparts who charge relatively cheaper rates. " Our Francophone counterparts like the Ivorians do not charge levies like the National Health Insurance Levy and the Value Added Tax as part of their import charges. This means that government will have to streamline those charges charges too." Apparently, government's refusal to streamline these charges after the country is opened up to these West African Countries, will mean that the Ghanaian market will be flooded with cheaper imports from Cote d'ivoire and other neighbouring countries, killing the operations local businesses. Additionally, government is likely to loose revenues as importers are likely to clear their goods through the ports of counterpart West African Countries with cheaper import duties, according to Mr. Awingobite. At the Blogging Ghana #ByTheFireside event in Accra on February 3, Fiona Worlanyo Aku Ansa, also known as Aku PurpleHeart played her award-winning short film, which shows how wrong a Valentines Day date can go when theres no toilet in a house. The short film starts out with a man courting a woman on Valentines Day at his house, offering her a meal he has prepared for her. As he goes in to kiss her, she pulls away saying she needs to use the bathroom immediately. However, she soon discovers her date does not have a washroom so she has to rush to a public one clutching her stomach. Angrily, she breaks up with the man for not having his own toilet. Aku said her film, which uses humour to get across its important message, was inspired by a personal experience. She said the lack of toilets in Ghana was something everyone could relate to. I have always wondered why people build houses with no toilets. I think this really has to end because having a toilet facility in the house is one of the most important things every individual house needs to have. Aku was concerned about the health effects of not having proper toilet facilities, 'its unacceptable, she said, while her audience of Ghana's leading bloggers agreed. This is something quite a lot of people can relate to. This is something we see a lot everyday, this is an issue that needs to be addressed. The film was in Ga which Aku felt made it more authentic and relatable. Aku Ansa also used her talk to allude to sexual harassment in the film industry. She initially wanted to be an actor but producers would ask her to prove herself, to do something else to get the job. This inspired her to get into producing her own films so she can act in them, and give other people a chance to act without having to do things for people. The #ByTheFireside event also featured a talk by award-winning actress and women's rights activist Akumaa Mama Zimbi on her #WearYourDrossNow campaign, where she promotes abstinence until marriage through social and traditional media. Speaking of her campaign she said I kept encouraging, educating, empowering you need to wait until that appointed time with the rightful person. She advocated no marriage, no sex and also said men should not spend money on women until they married. Its about making the right decisions, she said. She said waiting until marriage would save lives. Akumaa Mama Zimbi took questions from the audience, where it was asked if she would be willing to bend her rules to promote safe sex, she replied with a firm "no". The Inspector General of Police (IGP) John Kudalor visited the area to ascertain how much damage 12 years of the Fulani invasion has caused the area. At a meeting attended by the Inspector on February 4, the Ashanti Regional Security Council (REGSEC), and other security agencies and leaders decided to combine police and military personnel to flush out the activities of the Fulanis. Led by the Ashanti Regional Security Council, the team will patrol the area to contain the situation with police patrol teams and military vehicles. It is expected the action will take a month. The security action comes after residents of the area vowed to take on the nomadic herdsmen after a farmer was gunned down by the Fulanis. The farmer, David Atiah, 25 was reportedly trying to prevent the cattle from eating crops on his mothers farm. Kudalor said stringent measures will be adopted by the police to contain the situation, Accra-based Joy FM has reported. Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Christopher Tawiah, Brong-Ahafo Regional Police Public Relations Officer (PRO), who confirmed the news to Ghana News Agency said that on Friday, January 29, the Wenchi Police had a distressed call from an unknown person about the attempted destoolment by a group. He said arriving at the scene, the police were able to arrest two people, Peter Ankamah, 58 years and Isaac Adabanka, a 34 year-old court registrar. ASP Tawiah said the two have been charged with possession of fire arms without permit, discharging fire arms at a public place without authority and holding public event without authority. The demonstration which started from the house of the Bolin-Lana, son of a former Ya-Na Mohammedu Abdulai IV, was peaceful. The Abudu family said the demonstration was also to ensure that the ruling government fulfill its promises of renovating the Gbewa Palace. "We appeal to the president to inspect the handing over of the dilapidated Gbewaa palace to the Abudu royal family . The Abudu royal family is willing and ready to renovate the old Gbewaa palace for the sole purpose of performing the funeral of the late Naa-Mahamadu Abdulai IV," spokersperson of the Abudu royal family said after the demonstration. The police and military personnel were at the demonstration to provide security. Background The two families, Abudus and Andanis have been engaged in a chieftaincy conflict in Dagbon for some years now. This was after the King of Dagombas and the overlord of Dagbon, Yaa Naa Yakubu Andani II was killed on March 27, 2002. The Abudus have subsequently indicated that they would use all available means to have access to the Gbewaa palace to perform the funeral rites of their late chief, Naa-Mahamadu Abdulai IV, if the Andanis fail to give them access to the palace. But the Andani family have also vowed to face the Abudus squarely if they try to occupy the palace with force. Docia left home on January 26 2016 to fetch water and never came back. A search organised yesterday by the community with assistance from the police discovered the body of the girl cut into pieces in the bush close to the town. A 35 year old man named Yaw Akoto has been arrested for the murder. According to an uncle to the deceased, Yaw Sarpong, the suspect is widely known in the community to be mentally challenged. He told Okay Fm in Accra that when the search party found her niece, her two hands were cut off and her breast was also cut and her vagina too. He has cut them and he was grilling them at his hideout. Deputy Eastern regional police spokesperson Sageant Gideon Boateng told pulse.com.gh we saw certain things but we have to send the body to the experts to ascertain whether it was being roasted but from physical intention one will say the body was being roasted." He said the case was still being investigated and will look into the roasting claims. Their ruling also indicated that they did not believe the Chief Justice could not be said to be erred as she had given the applicant an opportunity to prove his innocence since the committee to investigate the matter will not make a decision based on public opinion. They further stated that Justice Dery could adopt a process of defamation in addressing his concerns. The embattled high court judge sued Anas Aremeyaw Anas, the Chief Justice and the Judicial Secretary for violating his constitutional rights by putting out into public domain the alleged evidence of his misconduct when the issue was supposed to be dealt with in camera. Speaking at the Flagstaff House on February 3, Jackson highlighted the U.S./Ghanaian partnership in four key areasdemocracy, prosperity, security and health and expressed commitment to deepening that partnership further. In looking at prosperity and economic growth, its clear that addressing the energy issues through Power Africa and the Millennium Challenge Compact will take us a long way. In addition, I believe that our investments in agriculture and our partnership in education will also ensure that we can build opportunities for Ghanaian youth. He also spoke about the U.S. collaboration with Ghana on armed forces training and on programs to address HIV/AIDS, malaria, nutrition, food security, terrorism, and trafficking. Jackson also noted the November elections in both Ghana and the United States. This is a unique year for our democracies. In November, your country will vote. Twenty-four hours later, my country will go to the polls. And in both cases, Im confident that we will continue the tradition of peaceful, credible elections, he said. I feel that its worth restating that the United States interest is only in the credibility of the election. Its up to the people of Ghana to decide their future. We look forward to working with the Electoral Commission and civil society to assist in supporting those elections. There are some things men should never say to their women conversational land mines that appear insignificant on the face of it, but are anything but. The good news is that we know, for the most part, what they are. Many men have suffered before you. It would be wise to heed their counsel. 1. Are you really going to eat all that?Your girlfriend is, by definition, as light as a feather and nimble as a ballerina. To so much as whisper a hint of the notion that she might be, you know, otherwise, is to risk paying a price as heavy as you suspect her to be. In fact, avoid the topic of food altogether if you can. Eating is an emotional, often obsessive business for women, and occasionally its an actual disorder. Its tied up with their identity, their self-image, their fantasies. So the answer is, yes, shes really going to eat all that. All that ballet must have given her an appetite. 2. BitchThe B word is like the N word: Unless youve been appropriately oppressed, you dont get to use it. You might be able to pull off an ironic Snoop Dogg-style beeeyatch, so long as youre smiling as you say it. But to say b*tch with any kind of intent is to pull the pin out of a grenade. 3. My ex used to Anything you say with the words my ex in it will be held against you in a court of law, as it should. Of course its natural to compare your girlfriends, but keep it to yourself. There are inside thoughts and outside thoughts. This belongs firmly to the former category. 4. You always do thatOne sure way to escalate a minor tiff into a nuclear showdown is to use words like never and always. Theyre too sweeping to be true, so youll not only upset her, but also give her the opportunity to prove you wrong and seize the higher ground. And it tends to drag every other argument youve had into your present one, which is like rehashing all the worst parts of your relationship all at once. 5. You sound just like your motherDont compare her to her mother. Or her sister, for that matter. You dont know those people like she does, and you dont know the full complexity of their relationships. And anyway, everyone wants an independent identity, separate and distinct from their family members. 6. Yeah, shes hotChances are she lured you in with an innocent question, like, Do you think shes cute? shrugging her shoulders like it wouldnt matter either way. But dont be fooled. You must lie quickly and reflexively. Whether its a girl in a magazine, a Facebook friend, a waitress whoever the answer is always no. In fact, you win extra points for casually finding fault in her the closer you look. Watch your girlfriend light up as you say, Is it me, or is her nose a bit weird? 7. Whats up with your hair?Her hair looks great and it suits her perfectly. Shes allowed to have a bad hair day, but youre not allowed to notice. For girls, hair isnt just hair. 8. RelaxThe thing about relax is it dramatically reduces the chances of her relaxing. The same goes for chill and calm down. Heres an alternative: I can see how you would feel that way. It takes a Zen master to actually use it in the heat of combat, but its there if you need it. 9. Is this your time of the month?Even if it is, youre not to mention it. Your role is to pretend that her menstrual cycle has no effect on her tendency to shriek and stamp and then burst into tears for no reason whatsoever. In this matter, you must occupy the high ground and show pity. Indulge her delusion that she is not in fact deranged by hormones and that shes making a valid point. The moment will pass. According to BBC, the hole in the plane's side appeared shortly after take-off from Mogadishu at 10,000ft (3,048m), a colleague of one of the passengers. The Daallo Airlines flight, bound for Djibouti, was carrying about 60 people on board, a police officer at the scene told the Bloomberg news agency. Some reports say a fire broke out shortly after take-off. Somalia's ambassador to the UN Awale Kullane was onboard the plane, and posted a video on Facebook of passengers sitting calmly while oxygen masks hung from overhead. "Onboard Jubba/Daalo Airlines this morning, while it was on air for a few minutes we just heard a loud noise and couldn't see anything but smoke for a few seconds, when visibility returned we realised quite a chunk of the plane [was] missing," he posted. Somalia's Minister for Air Transport, Ali Ahmed Jama said an investigation was launched into the cause of the fire. Welcome to the Pulse Community! We will now be sending you a daily newsletter on news, entertainment and more. Also join us across all of our other channels - we love to be connected! Welcome to the Pulse Community! We will now be sending you a daily newsletter on news, entertainment and more. Also join us across all of our other channels - we love to be connected! The duo were charged before Justice Musa Kurya, accused of duping the customers of the defunct Covenant Fadama Cooperative Society of the amount, alongside one Okewole Dayo and Dadin Kowa Microfinance Bank Limited. The EFCC prosecutor, in one of the counts filed against Katung and the others, said that they committed the crime in 2012. The anti-graft agency also accused them of transferring the sum of N50 million from Covenant Fadama Cooperative Society account, to a First Bank account, and the Dadin Kowa Microfinance Bank. When the charges were read to them, a little drama played out as Bishop Katung pleaded guilty to one of the counts, before suddenly making a reversal and pleaded not guilty. The Consultant Family Physician in the Federal Medical Centre, Owerri, FMC, identified as Dr. Bende Azudialo, had according to reports, been shot in the head by a policeman during a peaceful demonstration by medical practitioners. The State Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, Dr. Hyacinth Emele, speaking during a press conference held in Owerri, said: If the policeman that fired the lethal shot is not identified and prosecuted, doctors will commence indefinite industrial action. The security agencies and Imo State Government should note that all hospitals in the state will close shop thereafter until the erring policeman is fished out and punished. "The initial report we got from the medical team was that Dr. Azudialo lost about 1.5 litres of blood when he was rushed to the hospital and that was a substantial loss. Dr. Darlington Akukwu also revealed that the Nigerian Medical Association, NMA, had formally written to the Commissioner of Police, the Directorate of State Security, DSS, the Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, and all other related agencies, alerting them of the peaceful protest. According to police report, the Cross River State born Utum, a graduate of Accounting from the University of Calabar, had left her office in Ikeja on January 1, 2016, to visit her lover and has not been seen since then as her whereabouts has remained a mystery. The case was reported at the Ojodu Police Division while Amelogu was reportedly arrested after a mobile phone and a handbag belonging to the victim were found in his apartment on the day she went missing, but no headway has been made in tracing Utum who was working in the hospitality department of airline. The missing Grace Utum Photo Credit: Facebook An uncle of the victim, Felix Omini, explained that the family became worried after her mother called one of her telephone lines and a stranger picked the call. Her mother called her that night and discovered that it was a stranger that picked the call. The stranger said the phone was missing and its owner had called him and said she was coming for it in company with a man. Graces mother called her boyfriend, Amelogu, thinking he was the man the stranger was referring to. But he said he had also been trying to reach her without success. The victims father, Obongha Utum, said his daughter and Amelogu had been dating for three years and would have been married, but for a problem with their blood compatibility. The police said we should talk to the boyfriend because that was where she said she was going, but I dont know what to think. They are church members and were supposed to have been married; but that became impossible after they discovered their genotypes were not compatible. We have also gone to Agbado Crossing in Ogun State, where she lived with a friend. We didnt meet anybody in the house; everywhere was deserted. Grace Utum has been declared missing Photo Credit: Facebook The boyfriend, Amelogu, also explained that the last time he communicated with Utum was on January 1, at about 3pm and since then, has not heard from her. We were together on December 31, 2015; she slept at my place. She sometimes stayed at my place because her office in Ikeja is closer to my house in Ojodu Berger. She rented an apartment in Agbado Crossing, Ogun State. Around 6am on January 1, she said she was going to the office. We always had a family reunion every New Year at my uncles place in Ajah, so we planned to meet there. I spoke with her around 12 noon. Then around 3pm, when I was at my uncles place, we communicated again and I asked if she was still coming. She said she was rounding off at the office and would soon join me. But after that, her phone went and was unreachable till 7pm. Her mother said she called her and a stranger picked it and said the phone was missing. I was surprised because she (Grace) didnt call me that she had misplaced her phone. My name is and I got married to my husband, , in October, 2015, but barely few months after our wedding, we are having conflict already and it has been causing friction in our home. I work with a multinational company as a a regional manager in Lagos, with a very good salary. I was the one who helped Tim in my company but then, we were just friends. But along the line, we became lovers and after dating for a while, we got married but going by the company's policy, a husband and his wife cannot work in the same office. The onus is now on us to decide who should resign and not wanting to lose me due to what I bring to the company, the management advised Tim to resign, even promising to help him become and independent distributor for the company. But husband thinks I connived with the management to come up with the idea and insists that I be the one to resign, even when he knows that we would not be able to survive on his salary. The twist is that members of his family all agree with him that I should be the one to resign, with the argument that in their culture, it is the man who provides for his family. No one is ready to also see reason with me even when my staying in the company would be to the benefit of everyone. Tim has given me an ultimatum to resign at the end of this month or I will leave his house. What do you think I should do in this situation? Queen." Apart from stabbing Oluwaseun, the hoodlums also reportedly beat him to a pulp in the Island area of the state. It was gathered that Oluwaseun who works at the Oja Oba Market on Dosumu Street, was first rushed to the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Idi Araba, where the knife that was lodged in his head, before he was transferred to private hospital for further treatment. According to witnesses, Oluwaseun's offence was that he had informed the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), of the State Police Command, that the hoodlums used to hide dangerous weapons in the market as well as gather there where they plan their activities. On storming the market, the SARS operatives recovered the weapons, including cutlasses, knives and guns, but they were unable to arrest the hoodlums. On Thursday, January 21, 2016, at about 9pm, the victim, who was on a night duty, was clearing some refuse in the market when the hoodlums attacked him while some of his colleagues also had cuts inflicted on them. After stabbing him in the eye through the side of his head, the hoodlums abandoned the LAWMA worker by the roadside with the knife stuck in his eye. Concerned residents were the ones who first rushed him to LUTH before informing the police at the Adeniji Adele Division. A witness narrated how the incident happened: Lawee told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lafia that the farms were in Karu and Akwanga Local Government areas of the state. He said that over 37, 000 birds had been culled in the two farms since the discovery. He said the birds were culled as part of efforts to restrict the spread of the disease to the two farms. "When we got information about the outbreak of the disease last week, we immediately mobilised experts from the ministrys poultry and livestock department to depopulate and disinfect the affected farms. "This is in order to check the spread of the disease, Lawee said. He said that the ministry was also educating poultry farmers and members of the public on ways to handle birds to avoid contracting the disease. He said it had been difficult to pay compensation for the culled birds because poultry farms in the state were not properly registered. The virus, spreading quickly across the Americas, is usually transmitted by mosquitoes. But health officials in Dallas County reported on Tuesday that the first known case contracted in the United States was a person infected after having sex with somebody who had returned from Venezuela. The WHO declared a global health emergency on Monday, citing a "strongly suspected" causal relationship between Zika infection in pregnancy and microcephaly, a condition marked by abnormally small head size that can cause permanent brain damage in newborns. Health ministers from across South America gathered in Uruguay's capital, Montevideo, to discuss the public health emergency and how the region can coordinate its fight against the outbreak. Sexual transmission could add a new dimension to the threat Zika poses, but WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl stressed that "almost a 100 percent of the cases" are transmitted by the bite of a mosquito. "This reported case in the U.S. of course raises concerns," Hartl said at the U.N. agency's headquarters in Geneva. "This needs to be further investigated to understand the conditions and how often or likely sexual transmission is." But he said that for the WHO "the most important thing to do is to control people's exposure to mosquitoes." The WHO estimates as many as 4 million people could become infected in the Americas. Hartl called the Texas case only the second worldwide linked to sexual transmission, referring to media reports about a case of an American man who returned from Senegal in 2008 and is suspected of having infected his wife. The medical literature also has a case in which the virus was detected in semen. "If you swap enough bodily fluid, most viruses can probably be sexually transmitted to some extent," said Ben Neuman, a virologist at Britain's University of Reading. Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a public health emergency in four counties with travel-related cases of the Zika virus, and ordered state officials to increase mosquito control efforts in some of the southeastern U.S. state's most heavily populated locales including Miami and Tampa. Scott directed state officials to pay special attention to mosquito spraying in residential areas. In addition, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which has urged pregnant women to consider delaying travel to locations with ongoing Zika transmissions, added Jamaica and Tonga to its travel alert. The WHO said the virus has been transmitted in at least 32 countries, from South America to the Western Pacific. Late on Tuesday, the Brazilian health ministry said the number of newborns with microcephaly it suspects are linked to the virus had increased to 4,074 as of Jan. 30, from 3,718 a week earlier. Researchers have identified evidence of Zika infection in 17 of these cases, either in the baby or in the mother, but have not confirmed that Zika can cause microcephaly. WARNING FOR EUROPE The WHO warned member states in Europe on Wednesday that the risk of the virus spreading into the region increases with the onset of spring and summer. "Now is the time for countries to prepare themselves to reduce the risk to their populations," said the WHO's Europe chief, Zsuzsanna Jakab. "Every European country in which Aedes mosquitoes are present can be at risk for the spread of Zika virus disease." The Pan American Health Organization, the WHO's arm for the Americas, said it needed an estimated $8.5 million to help countries in the region respond to the Zika threat. Brazilian Health Minister Marcelo Castro said U.S. experts will travel to Brazil next week to start work on the development of a Zika vaccine and come up with a timetable for the effort. A number of drug developers and universities are attempting to produce a vaccine. Experts have said a vaccine is months or even years away. Japan's leading drugmaker Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd said it has created a team to investigate how it might help make a vaccine, a day after France's Sanofi SA said it would launch a Zika vaccine program. Pfizer Inc, Johnson and Johnson and Merck & Co Inc said they were evaluating their technologies or existing vaccines for their potential to combat Zika. Indian biotechnology company Bharat Biotech said it was working on two possible vaccines. "When recently, Baba (Adetunji) came to discuss with me his promotion to the post of Balogun following the death of High Chief Sule Omiyale, nobody could have thought that so soon after his promotion to the exalted seat of Balogun, he would be celebrating his imminence to the exalted throne of Olubadan of Ibadan land. "But, this is the way of God. When God turns to you, then it is your turn, he said. The governor pledged his support and cooperation toward the coronation of the new Olubadan. Earlier, the Olubadan-designate had expressed his appreciation to the Ajimobi administration for his support to the traditional institution in the state. He also thanked the governor for his administration's effort to give the late Olubadan, Oba Samuel Odulana, a befitting burial. Adetunji described the late monarch as a highly respected and honest personality, saying the people of Ibadan land would miss him. Speaking at a world press conference in Abuja, Convener/National President of the Coalition, Comrade Ibrahim Abubakar urged President Muhammadu Buhari to expel the Iranian Ambassador, Saeed Koozechi from Nigeria. Abubakar explained that the comments credited to the Iranian ambassador to Nigeria following the clash between the Army and members of the Shiite, were very undiplomatic and could amount to a threat to Nigerias internal security He also said the President should take the further step of severing all diplomatic ties with the government of Iran until they commit to staying out of the internal affairs of Nigeria. He said, That Iran can continue to undermine Nigeria after Mr Presidents recent visit to that country makes the message obviously clear that cordial relations with Iran will not add value to us. "We also appeal to the media to consider national interest in the course of reporting. It will be counterproductive to help a belligerent country further its propaganda that is aimed at destabilising our country as it is obvious that the Iranian Ambassador is counting on Nigerias liberal media environment to help spread fear and encourage insurgency. In his home country, no media organisation would have dared to publish a story that is critical of the government how much more of stories that are meant to undermine Iran. He said for the fact that the Iranian government is yet to recall its ambassador after such unguarded statement, shows he enjoys the support of his government. Abubakar however warned that Nigerians cannot allow external interference with Nigerias internal security matters. He said, Nigeria, being a member of the United Nations, UN is bound by all the relevant conventions on Human Rights and other protocols, does not require a lecture from Iran on how to manage its internal affairs, particularly when the issue under consideration borders on security and survival of the nation. By the way, Iran should first put its house in order before trying to lecture another country, on what constitutes Human Right and how to safeguard it. Here is a country where executions are as rampant as tooth extraction at a dentists; people are flogged or amputated for minor offences; minorities are hounded; freedom of expression is lacking; and women rank a little above property. It should be crystal clear by now that the era of imperialism is past and Iran does not have the kind of right it is arrogating to itself over Nigeria or any other country for that matter. We should have by now reported Iran to the UN. The arms found in Shiite enclave came from somewhere; our intelligence agencies certainly must have a clue to this. We still have the unresolved problem of some high calibre armaments which includes missiles illegally shipped into this country. Gentlemen, recall that sometimes ago a cache of firearms and other weapons were uncovered in Kano and it has all the fingerprints of a country on it. The right thing therefore, is for Iran to have tried hiding its involvement in the militarisation of the Shiite in Nigeria and not try to intimidate a sovereign nation for defending itself against Iranian proxies. He said the Federal government of Nigeria must protect the county at any cost, in line with the provisions of the Constitution it swore to uphold - in pursuit of Nigerias territorial integrity and general well-being. Abubakar said Nigerians see this Iranian interference as part of a desperate attempt to create a Shiite axis of power as compensation for the sliding influence of the sect in the Middle East where the Sunni brand of Islam is gaining the upper hand. He said Unfortunately for Iran, they blatantly ignore the reality that Islam in Nigeria is not known to be as heavily polarised along sectarian lines as it would want it to be. According to him, Nigeria and the human rights community will continue to encourage respect for human rights in the country, but will not back any group that takes arm against the Nigerian state. He said, when the Nigerian Army had a face-off with the Islamic Movement in Nigeria, better known as Shiite last year, many of us were vocal in our condemnation of what some viewed as the high handedness with which the Army responded to provocation from the sects members. But those with the capacity to be truthful will admit that resident of Zaria, Kaduna state and environs have been living under the reign of terror of the Shiite led by Mr. Ibrahim Yakubu El-Zakyzaky. Their lawlessness reached climax to the point that the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Tukur Buratai and his entourage could have been killed had the situation been handled differently. He said, Nigeria is already grappling with the horrors of Boko Haram, which has ties with an extreme brand of Islam. The Iran sponsored Shiite extremism was another front that was opened against the country. Iran must therefore not expect a different treatment from those who bear arms against the state simply on account that they belong to the same sect as is dominant in the Islamic Republic. We fear that the whole of this support on so called humanitarian grounds is a ploy to plunge Nigeria into further crisis, disrupt sales of Nigerian crude oil in the international market, and create space for Iranian oil as it is just emerging from crippling sanctions that had prevented it from selling oil. The group also blamed the sect for worsening the incident, by refusing to resolve the issue amicably. In a press briefing held by the National Coordinator of GCCLAC, Dr. Gabriel Nwambu, and Women Leader, Hajia Maina Abubakar, the group said We want Nigerians to get this fact very clear; based on our findings, the fact that somebody is a military personnel or an officer does not insulate him or prevent him from enjoying the fundamental human rights as entrenched in the constitution. We are saying he narrowly escaped death, and for those who have gone biased to say that there was nothing bad, that the army was busy killing people, it is important to note that the Sergeant in the US Marine in Wowood was murdered with just a knife. So, dangerous weapons of all sorts by the mob constitute a major threat to life. The assurance was given by the Brigade Commander, 4 Brigade of the Nigerian Army in Benin City, Brigadier General Faruk Yahaya, The Guardian reports. We heard of the explosion here and I came for an on-the-spot assessment to know what happened, so that you can brief appropriately. By my assessment and by that of others, it is obvious that it is not a terrorist attack, he said. It is not an attack on this place. The people around here can bear witness; we dont think it is an attack. Perhaps, you can describe it as an accident or something that was buried there that exploded. We are grateful to God that when the thing happened, there were no people very close by. The incident would have been bigger; what happened to nearby houses is as a result of vibration from the explosion. What I will only urge all of us to do is to be vigilant. Security is everybodys business. When you see something you do not understand, you suspect, report to the security agencies. People are living in communities; when there is somebody alien to them, they know. I am not in a position to say what the building was meant for. What we saw suggests that whoever was there, was having the material (IEDs) you saw, he added. Abubakar issued the warning yesterday, February 3, 2016, when he received a delegation consisting of members of the European Union (EU), United Nations (UN) and World Bank in the state, Daily Sun reports. Rebuilding infrastructure is important in rebuilding the areas but addressing the underlying factor of the insurgency is much more important because the North-East is seriously affected by poverty and ignorance, he said. If poverty and ignorance are not properly addressed, they could provide grounds for the rise of another crazy group if Boko Haram is taken care of. We are running a risk if poverty is not addressed. African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council boss, Smail Chergui had, on Monday, February 1, 2016, named Switzerland among nations which donated towards the war against the sect. In a statement released on Wednesday, February 3, however, the country said that it had not given any funding to military operations against Boko Haram. The statement, obtained by AFP, reads: As a neutral actor in conflict situations, Switzerland has never given financial support to military interventions and will abstain from doing so in the future. Switzerlands action in the Lake Chad region consists solely and exclusively in the financial support to the major humanitarian agencies. Dalori stated this on Thursday, Feruary 4, when he visited Dalori village of Konduga Local Government, to determine the extent of the havoc wrecked on the community in the last Boko Haram attack. The APC Chieftain said he had to leave the town with his associates as advised by the Theatre Commander, Operation Lafiya Dole, Major General Abubakar, who told him the sect was planning an attack. I wish we could go round and see the extent of destruction but according to what we got from the Theatre Commander, Boko Haram are regrouping in Yale, so we should leave immediately, he said. Justice Hussein Baba-Yusuf, according to PRNigeria, set the date after Joseph Daodu (SAN), counsel to Dasuki, and Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), counsel to the federal government, had addressed the court on a motion seeking the release of Dasuki. Daodu asked the court to prohibit the federal government from further prosecuting him or further seeking any indulgence from the court until he was allowed to enjoy the bail granted him. He based his arguments on the fact that Justice Yusuf had granted the defendant bail on December 18, 2015; and after perfecting the bail conditions, he was rearrested allegedly on the orders of the federal government and was taken to the custody of the Department of the State Services (DSS). He said since Dasuki's rearrest on December 29, the DSS had refused to let his lawyers and family members have access to him. Daodu therefore urged the court to compel the federal government to obey the bail conditions granted Dasuki and allow him to enjoy his freedom in line with the law that presumed him innocent until he was proved guilty. Judges must assert the efficacy of their orders, he said. In his counter argument, counsel to the federal government, Jacobs, informed the judge that the motion was an abuse of the court process because there was no evidence placed before the court that the accused was rearrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). The state Governor Malam Nasir El-Rufai represented by Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Mohammed Abdullahi Sani said the program is part of the efforts of the state government to make the state great again. "Be aware that there are many people that want this opportunity so it is key to make a success of the programme. It is an opportunity to change your life. "The bank of industry has always been there but people have not been really equipped to access it and that is what the program is all about. The success will be determined by the number of people you are able to employ. "Our hope is to see you people successful, because this programme is very close to the heart of the state Governor Malam Nasir El-Rufai and will want to see you succeed, so that he can bring in others," he said. Regional Head, North West, of the Bank of Industry (BOI) Ibrahim Bissallah explained that Key to success in every business is anchored on access to finance and knowledge. "We are going to give you the necessary support and encouragement and we are looking towards to other states to emulate what Kaduna State Government has done," he said. The Guest Speaker, Captain Daniel Omale insisted that Business is the way to go in the new world order, advising President Muhammadu Buhari that it is time to leave oil alone. "Oil prices are going down and what is the way forward. Government need to diversify from oil." Punch reports that Shehu said Buhari has achieved a lot these past seven months, with his war against corruption. The Presidential spokeman said He is making good strides towards improving governance by tackling corruption. Till date, a good number of persons believed to have collectively stolen billions from taxpayers have been arrested and are facing the courts. We are working with our allies across the world from Britain and America to France and Germany to China and the UAE to source, locate and repatriate misappropriated funds. So far, an escrow account has been opened for money that is being returned. This is only the start. The return of stolen funds is important, but it is just as critical to ensure that those who seek to steal realise that no longer will there be such impunity in Nigeria," shehu said. Doesnt the President deserve credit for this and other efforts to confront the monster of corruption? he asked. The command's spokesman, DSP Zubairu Abubakar, who disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said the suspects were arrested during a massive raid. According to him, investigation reveals that the deceased was stabbed to death by unknown persons on Jan. 22 at about 1 pm close to Kaduna Capital School in Malali area of Kaduna. Abubakar said that investigation was ongoing and vowed that any person found to be part of the killing would be brought to book. "The command will not sit down and allow some miscreants to cause havoc in the society; the clampdown on miscreants will continue until crime reduces to zero level in the state, he said. According to Joseph, the dwindling global oil prices calls for affirmative action and the need for the diversification of the nation's economy. He said MSMEs in the country must imbibe standardization and quality assurance to boost exportation. Dr Joseph, during the flag-off of the subsidy of sales of standards to MSMEs said they must imbibe standardization and quality assurance to boost exportation. "The aim is to promote opportunities for global acceptance of local made products. Consequently, all MSMEs are encouraged to take advantage of the opportunity," He said the 25 per cent subsidy would encourage our MSMEs to collaborate with SON to ensure that their products are competitive enough to discourage importation," Joseph said. The Director General of NCAA, Captain Muhtar Usman, announced the suspension yesterday while speaking to newsmen at the NCAA Annex, Murtala Muhammed International Airport. On the heels of the Bristow Helicopters controlled ditching yesterday, 3rd February 2016, I consider it expedient to communicate to you certain decisions that the Authority has taken concerning the incident. "These decisions are without prejudice to the investigations being conducted by the Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB). As a matter of fact, it will serve to assist the entire process. The Authority will fully support AIB in the investigation. "The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has therefore decided to suspend the operation of the Bristow Helicopters SikorskyS-76C++ type till further notice, Usman said. The helicopter was heading to Lagos from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, when it crashed in the lagoon, al though the company described the crash as "water landing". All11 people on boardthe aircraft were rescued alive. Alhaji Tokunbo Korodo, South-West Chairman of Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), made the call during interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), in Lagos on Thursday. He stressed that protection of the pipes should be given priority. The chairman said marketers in oil sector and government were losing billions of naira due to vandalism. He said the recent bombing of pipes in Niger Delta led to the closure of Port-Harcourt and Kaduna refineries.According to him, this has led to the stoppage of loading of petroleum products at NNPC depots in Mosinmi, Ejigbo and Ibadan. Korodo said the convergence of petroleum tankers in Apapa for loading had resulted in gridlock, adding that it would lead to scarcity if not checked. The chairman appealed to Federal Government to expedite action on the repair of vandalised pipes so that work would start in the two refineries. NAN reports that militants blew up the Abiteye Flow Station and Sagara Chevron line pipes in Warri South West Local Government Area of Delta on Jan.14. The attack came few hours after multiple explosions rocked several oil installations between Ikpokpo and Odidi flow stations, mostly in Gbaramatu Kingdom. He said this while inaugurating some projects in Ogun state, as a continuation of the 40th anniversary of the state. Punch reports that Osinbajo said We will implement all our campaign promises. We will create jobs for the unemployed youths. We shall create 500,000 jobs for volunteer teachers. They will be trained and employed. We also have programmes for market men and women and artisans. We will give them soft loans to boost their business. The masses were those that voted for us, the masses will not suffer under this administration. The Vice-President also said The development of our country should be of utmost importance to all of us. We should continue to proclaim it loud that corruption should not be tolerated. We have to keep saying it everywhere that no corrupt person would go scot-free. Adding that Whoever is involved and whatever his status is, he must answer for such wrongdoing. We have to keep proclaiming that everywhere. The Federal Government wants to do more for Nigerians, especially in the area of micro-finance and micro-credit schemes but corruption has been the bane of our development. We need money to do all these things. Zakzaky has been in detention for the past 50 days following a clash between his members and a convoy of the Nigeria Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai. The Shiites leader, his wife were arrested a day after his members clashed with the Nigerian Military on 12 December, 2015. The group has claimed that several of it members were also arrested while Shaikh Zakzaki's residence located at Gellesu Zaria, including their places of worship were demolished military authorities. The soldiers accused the shi'ites of setting up an illegal checkpoint in an attempt to assassinate the country's Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant Yusuf Tukur Brutai in the ancient city. An allegation the shi'ites leadership strongly denied. A commission of Inquiry has been set up by the Kaduna State government to investigate the actual cause of the crisis. The protesters who are mostly student comprised of women and men came under auspices of Academic Forum of the movement said, it is pathetic that contrary to Nigerian constitution that said nobody should be detained more than 24 hours without being charged to the court, sheik El-Zakzaky has been in custody for 50days which is a violation of his constitutional right. Leader of the protesters Mikaeel Yusuf said, following the military assault on the residents of sheik El-Zakzaky and two of their centers 730 of their members have been missing while 220 are in Kaduna prison, among them women and children. It is now six weeks on, since when the Nigerian Army launched a coordinated crackdown massacre on members of the Islamic Movement in Nigeria under the guardianship of Shaikh Ibraheem Zakzaky. "Tens of students were brutally killed by the Nigerian Army and hundreds more are still under illegal detentions. This is a display of inhumane and gross violation of fundamental human rights against fellow Nigerian Citizens. Based on the list that the Islamic Movement compiled, 750 men and women are either in military detentions or murdered. Amongst them are dozens of students, excluding the 220 others that are presently in Kaduna languishing with gun shots injuries without medical treatment. "Did Some of shi'ites children killed in 2014 by the same Army also blocked way? Does the house of Shaikh Zakzaky that was set on fire with people inside and later demolished blocked way? We are calling for the immediate release of and his wife as well as all others in detention. The perpetrators of these demonic acts be brought to book for the crime against humanity we demand Justice right now." He said. The President was in France, where he held talks with the President of the European Parliament, Mr Martin Schulz and the President of the European Commission, Mr Jean-Claude Juncker. The Ekiti state Governor, Ayo Fayose has criticised the President for his constant travels, saying each foreign trip costs Nigeria $1 million. Fayose said Conservatively, about $1 million goes into every of the foreign trips and the way the President is going, foreign trips alone might gulp 20 percent of the Federal Government budget and that will be disastrous for the dwindling economy of the country. Adding that This year alone, President Buhari has travelled to the United Arab Emirate, Kenya, Ethiopia and he is leaving for France and United Kingdom today to spend four days abroad. In most of these trips, about $500,000 is spent on estacode, transportation, accommodation, honorarium, media coverage, contingency and other expenses on accompanying Presidency officials. In the interview Davis spoke about her visit to Africa and the insecurities facing some countries on the continent. She said we had become numb to the African tragedy because: No one is educating us about Boko Haram and the atrocities in Africa, the focus is usually on the Middle East and the gun violence here in America. The key is you do more when you know more, the actress added. She revealed that her first visit to the continent was at the age of 25 when she visited Gambia in West Africa. She described it as a life changing experience. Davis recently won 'Outstanding performance by a female actor' in a drama series at the 22nd annual Screen Actors Guild Awards (SAG) held on Saturday, January 30, 2015. " I thank the people of the state for their support and resilience over the years and I promise to redouble my efforts at taking the state to greater height," he added. The governor dedicated the verdict at the Supreme Court, which affirmed him the winner of the April 23, 2015 governorship poll, to God and the good people of the state. The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN) reports that former Gov. Rasheed Ladoja and the Accord Party governorship candidate in the election had approached the court to stop Ajimobi from being declared winner of the election. Ajimobi also said: Although all men and women of goodwill pleaded with the Ladoja camp to accept defeat and cooperate with the winner in the onerous task of rebuilding the legacies of our heroes past, they bluntly refused. Although contestants from other parties quickly conceded defeat and indeed proceeded to congratulate the winner having seen the trend of the results. "Ladoja and his party refused to play the gallant losers, preferring instead to fight to the finish. " We were never bothered knowing full well that the people had spoken so clearly. "They unmistakably on that historic April day returned their vote of confidence for the candidate in whom they were well pleased. I'm using this opportunity to call on my brother, Ladoja, and others still in the opposition to join hands with us to take our state to another level that will be different from a village. Worthy of note, was his comments about former President Goodluck Jonathan. In his speech, Mr President said "As I have stated in other fora, the action of Nigerias former President Goodluck Jonathan, is commendable. Adding that "For the first time in the history of Nigeria, a Presidential Candidate and sitting President, conceded electoral defeat. He also said Democracy has come to Nigeria to stay, sooner than we expected, Nigeria will be regarded as one of the strongest in Africa. Orisalade stated this in a statement released to newsmen in Ado Ekiti, the state capital, today, February 4. He said in view of the revelation made by Dr. Tope Aluko, a former Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, Fayose's election must not be allowed to stand. He added that Aluko should not be criticised for coming out with the truth but instead commended for having the courage to shed light into the "judicial coup", which was allegedly carried out by ex-president Goodluck Jonathan's agents. The comment was made by NURTW President, Alhaji Najeem Yasin during a visit to INEC Chairman, Mahmood Yakubu on Wednesday, February 3, 2016, in Abuja, Punch reports. We are of the opinion that some of these challenges that must be tackled include the streamlining of the existing political parties to a number that is manageable, Yasin said. We also call for the speedy revision of the voter register so that future presidential, governorship, national and states assembly polls would be conducted in the freest and fairest manner, such that the elections would not be marred in pointless dispute. In addition, the issue of Card Reader designed by the commission, which was vital to the successful conduct of the last general elections, should be perfected and upgraded to function better so as to ensure the success of 2019 elections and beyond, he added. He had been detained for his alleged involvement in the $2.1million arms funds meant for the procurement of arsenals for the military for the fight against Boko Haram, but was allegedly looted by the former National Security Adviser (NSA), Sambo Dasuki and others. In January while still in detention, he appeared at a federal high court in Abuja three times in handcuffs, and fully bearded. He regained freedom on January 28. However, Abba Dabo, the former special adviser on political matters to former Vice President Namadi Sambo, has claimed that Metuh gave him N25m to fight criticisms in the traditional and in the social media against former President Goodluck Jonathan. But he voluntarily took it to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) after discovering that the money was linked to the controversial arms deal. Oyegun made the remark on Wednesday, February 3, 2016, while receiving a delegation of APC members from Rivers State in Abuja, Vanguard reports. The APC National leadership has not neglected party leaders and supporters in Rivers State. The state has always been in the front burner of discussion and decision in the party. There is obviously something fundamentally wrong in Rivers State which needs to be investigated and addressed, he said. Your visit has had a sober effect on me. This meeting will kickstart urgent actions to address what went wrong. As of today, there is an attempt being made by INEC to bar us from elections in Anambra and other states. We must address these issues. I still find the judgement on the Rivers State governorship election totally astonishing. There is something fundamentally wrong in the judiciary. We have lost very important resource-rich states to the PDP. No matter how crude oil prices have fallen, it is still the most important revenue earner for the country. I will take up your request to facilitate a meeting with the President. We will do that as soon as possible and also make it clear that there are problems which as a party, we must address, he added. Adeyemi spoke to Punch following reports that a Magistrate court in the state had ordered the Commissioner of Police, Etop James to arrest Aluko. The order was reportedly granted by Chief Magistrate Adesoji Adegboye based on a motion filed by the state Director of Public Prosecution, Gbenga Adaramola. The case was started after a lawyer, Sunday Olowolafe wrote to the state Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Owoseni Ajayi, calling for the Alukos prosecution. Olowolafe said: I hereby apply to your office that Dr. Temitope Kolawole Aluko be arrested and prosecuted for perjury in view of the interview recently granted on Channels Television by 8pm on Sunday, January 31, 2016. The said Dr. Temitope Kolawole Aluko now recanted the evidence he gave in the course of the hearing of the Ekiti State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal as a star witness even up to the Supreme Court. The Certified True Copy of the Statement on Oath, evidence of Dr. Temitope Kolawole Aluko in court on the November 12, 2014 and the copies of Nigerian Tribune and The Punch newspapers of Monday, February 1, 2016 that reported the interview granted are hereto attached. It is to be noted that if this act is not looked into, it will definitely defile the course of justice and consequently rubbish the judicial proceedings. Aluko has been in the eye of the storm since he alleged, during a Channels TV interview, that the June 2014 governorship elections in the state were rigged in favour of Governor Ayo Fayose. Tomori, in a speech on Wednesday, February 3rd, has identified simplicity, honesty, faith and absolute confidence in God as the reasons the clergy is so successful. He spoke at the 2nd Annual Public Lecture Series to mark Pastor Adeboyes 74th birthday at the Haven Event Centre, Skypower Ground, GRA, Ikeja, Lagos. He said the church, which had less than 40 parishes across Nigeria before his emergence as the general overseer, grew to over 40,000 parishes in 186 countries. The verdict of the Coroner presided over by Magistrate Oyetade Komolafe was delivered on July 8, 2015 and same indicted the church and its engineers for criminal negligence and recommended them for prosecution. The State had thereafter filed 111 counts criminal charge against the Trustees of the church, the two engineers and two companies before Justice Lawal Akapo also of the Ikeja High Court. However, in their fresh action, filed before Justice Kazeem Alogba, the Trustees of the church had sought for an order stopping their proposed arraignment and an order quashing the decision of the Coroner. Magistrate Komolafe had held that the building that killed the victims was built without approval, adding that its collapse was due to structural defect. But the church and its engineers Oladele Ogundeji and Akinbela Fatiregun, rejected the verdict, describing it as unreasonable and one-sided. When the matter came up before Justice Alogba on Thursday, lawyer to the Trustees, Mr. E.L Akpofure (SAN) said Magistrate Komolafe erred in law to have sat as Coroner Court in Alimosho District, which he argued was non-existent. Akpofure also referred to an argument of the State Government to the effect that the criminal charge filed before Justice Akapo was pursuant to the investigation conducted by the police and not the decision of the Coroner, saying that such argument was a confirmation that no investigation was conducted because the police never interrogated the Trustees of the church. In response, Lagos State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Adeniji Kazeem said the issue of wrong heading of the nomenclature of the Coroner was a mere irregularity which lacked the vibe to render the proceedings of the Coroner invalid. While describing it as a mere technical point, Kazeem said such argument was not directed at substantial justice, and as such, the court should discountenance it. Speaking on the powers of the Attorney General of a State to file criminal charge, Kazeem said once satisfied that a prima facie evidence has been established, the Attorney General has powers to file criminal charge even without the input of the police. While questioning the jurisdiction of the court to hear the instant suit, Kazeem argued that the Trustees of the church were clearly out of time as mandated by Order 40, Rule 4 of the rules of the court within which to file the suit, and as such, the case was dead on arrival. He said under the rules, such application ought to have been brought within three months of the decision of the Coroner, but it was filed on January 13, 2016, almost six months after the verdict of the Coroner, which was delivered on July 8, 2015. The Attorney General also faulted the verifying affidavit in support of the suit deposed to by one Sunday Okoroji, an Assistant to Prophet TB Joshua, saying the deponent lacked the power to replace the Trustees of the church, who are legally empowered to do so. He added: My Lord, we submit that there is no proper verifying affidavit before this court because the said Okoroji cannot replace the Trustees of the church who are still alive and kicking and as such the application is incompetent, Kazeem argued. He, thereafter, urged the court to dismiss the application with substantial cost, saying it was in the interest of justice for the court to so hold. Justice Alogba, in a brief bench ruling, said that he would give the matter the urgency it deserved being a matter of public importance. The widow, who lives with her four children in Jambiani village, South Unguja, in Zanzibar in Tanzania, had grown food crops on the four-acre farm for years until her father-in-law seized and tried to sell the land after her husband's burial. Although Tanzania's constitution upholds equal rights to property ownership, customary practices continue to impact women who often only have access to land via their husbands, fathers or other male relatives and have no idea of their rights. The situation is even more complicated in Zanzibar, the semi-autonomous archipelago of the eastern African nation, that has its own laws and no land policy expressly guaranteeing womens rights to land. "I really don't know why he decided to take away the land we really need for our very survival," Salim, 48, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in an interview. "I've suffered a lot because I had no other place to plant maize and vegetables to feed my family." For she is among a group of widows in Zanzibar to receive training on property and inheritance rights. The Zanzibar government and several non-government organisations have embarked on a series of awareness campaigns to enlighten women of their rights through grassroots advocacy to get rid of discriminatory practices. Social, economic and political rights for women in Tanzania are secured within the constitution but experts say women tend to have inferior land rights compared to men and their access to land is often indirect and insecure as they rarely acquire land in their own right. LEARNING THEIR RIGHTS The training included an introduction to property rights, laws on matrimonial property and inheritance rights. It was conducted by a local non-government organisation, Vitongoji Environmental Conservation Association (VICA), set up by Pemba environmental activists and funded by the Foundation for Civil Societies in Tanzania. Salim said the training armed her with the knowledge to fight back, challenging her father-in-law over taking her late husband's farm and denying her family a livelihood. "I filed a case at the high court. The proceeding went on for four months and at last the judge was convinced that I had all the rights to inherit the farm," said Salim, who moved back to the farm last August and is again growing crops. Low awareness and understanding of the laws in Zanzibar are still huge barriers for women to access their rights. "If we do not get women to be aware of their property and inheritance rights issues, then we have done a zero work," said Mohammed Omar, VICA advocacy officer. Zainab Suleiman, a resident of Gamba in Unguja North district, was shocked to learn two years ago that her husband had stolen her title deed and replaced her name with his name. She said the matter has been resolved with help from women's rights activists and land officials who managed to cancel the faked title deed and issue a new one with her name. However her marriage has failed with her husband threatening to file for divorce, saying she undermined his authority. Not all cases work out so well. A few months after Salma Haruni's husband died, his relatives at Kowani village told her that she and her daughter had to move out so a male relative could inherit the property. Haruni, 32, who has a nine-year-old daughter, refused, claiming she was legally married and therefore had rights to her late husband's assets but she gave up the right after a local leader told her traditional norms made it impossible for her to inherit property. "I was brutally evicted and since then I learnt a bitter lesson that a marriage contract expires soon after your husband is dead," said Haruni who is now living with her aunt at Kizi Mkazi village, a popular spot for dolphin viewing in Zanzibar. Salha Mohamed, an official from Zanzibar's Ministry of Lands Housing, Water and Energy, said the initiative to train women on their rights was intended to empower women on land and property ownership issues. Assange, a former computer hacker who has been holed up in the embassy since June 2012, told the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention that he was a political refugee whose rights had been infringed by being unable to take up asylum in Ecuador. Reuters was unable immediately to confirm the BBC report and the UN said the panel's opinion, which is not legally binding, was due to be published on Friday. The British police said Assange would face arrest if he leaves the embassy. "Should the U.N. announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," Assange said in a statement posted on the Wikileaks Twitter account. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me." A decision in his favour would mark the latest twist in a tumultuous journey for Assange since he incensed the United States and its allies by using his WikiLeaks website to leak hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. diplomatic and military cables in 2010, disclosures that often embarrassed Washington. Assange, 44, fears Sweden will extradite him to the United States, where he could be put on trial over WikiLeaks' publication of the classified military and diplomatic documents, one of the largest information leaks in U.S. history. He made international headlines in early 2010 when WikiLeaks published classified U.S. military video showing a 2007 attack by Apache helicopters that killed a dozen people in Baghdad, including two Reuters news staff. Later that year, the group released over 90,000 secret documents detailing the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan, followed by almost 400,000 internal U.S. military reports detailing operations in Iraq. Those disclosures were followed by the release of more than 250,000 classified cables from U.S. embassies. It would go on to add almost three million more diplomatic cables dating back to 1973. POLITICAL REFUGEE? In his submission to the U.N. working group, a body of outside experts, Assange argued that his time in the embassy constituted arbitrary detention. Assange says he is the victim of a witch hunt directed by the United States and that his fate is a test case for freedom of expression. He said that he had been deprived of his fundamental liberties, including lack of access to sunlight or fresh air, adequate medical facilities, as well as legal and procedural insecurity. Per Samuelson, one of Assange's Swedish lawyers, said if the U.N. panel judged Assange's time in the embassy to be custody, he should be released immediately. "It is a very important body that would be then saying that Sweden's actions are inconsistent with the European Convention on Human Rights. And it is international common practice to follow those decisions," Samuelson told Reuters. In addition, hundreds of applications from Syrian refugees have been put on hold and many might ultimately be rejected, Leon Rodriguez, director of the Citizenship and Immigration Services unit of the Department of Homeland Security, told the committee. At a time when millions of refugees are arriving in Europe and elsewhere from the Middle East and Africa, Democratic President Barack Obama's pledge to take in 10,000 people fleeing war-torn Syria has come under fire, especially from Republicans. The United States so far has admitted 2,000 refugees. Michael McCaul, the Republican chairman of the House of Representatives Homeland Security Committee, said at a hearing that authorities have identified about 40 violent militants who had attempted to enter Europe posing as refugees. Other committee Republicans at the hearing questioned why the Obama administration wanted to admit any Syrian refugees, given that the Syria-based Islamic State movement has pledged to attack the United States and other western countries. "Our intelligence community has ... told me that individuals with terrorism ties in Syria have already tried to gain access to our country through the refugee program," McCaul said. "What's even more concerning is that top officials have testified before this committee that intelligence gaps prevent us from being able to confidently weed out terrorists," he said. Rodriguez and other Homeland Security and State Department officials told the committee that U.S. procedures for vetting Syrian refugees were among the most rigorous in the world. U.S. agencies have tightened procedures for checking backgrounds of would-be U.S. immigrants and visitors after a recent arrival from the Middle East was one of two shooters who killed 14 people in San Bernardino, California. Speaking before the Davenport City Councils Committee-of-the-Whole meeting Wednesday, Davenport Central High School teacher Daniel Flaherty held up two tattered textbooks that the school district has not had the money to replace. The first book was a chemistry textbook with tape on its spine to hold the covers in place. The other was an American government textbook, with a copyright date of 2004. This is what the underfunding of our schools looks like Flaherty told the council as it considered a resolution encouraging the Iowa General Assembly to adopt legislation that would eliminate the disparity in per pupil funding. Holding up the government textbook, Flaherty, a 28-year veteran of the district said, When this textbook was written, todays President Obama was then Senator-elect Obama. While the fundamental principles of the Constitution dont change, the actions of government happen in real time. Holding up the chemistry book, he added that while many chemical principles dont change, it is hard to encourage a child to learn with book that is falling apart. The council unanimously passed the resolution, but not before a number of school officials and a couple of students had their say. Wearing an Im Worth-less T-shirt, 16-year-old Anthony DeSalvo, a junior at North High School, told the council, This simply isnt fair. We need your help, he said. J.B. Young is closing because of a lack of funding. Teachers and staff are losing their jobs. Families ask about school systems, and were losing those families to other cities. Schools, DeSalvo said, are the heart of our cities and communities. They are the best investment. The Davenport School District, along with about 160 other districts in the state, receives the minimum funding from the state, which comes to $6,446 per student, said Davenport School Board Vice President Richard Clewell. The remaining districts, about 170, he said, receive more than Davenport, with six receiving up to $175 more per student. Bettendorf receives about $80 more per student, Clewell said. Pleasant Valley receives at least $100 more per student. North Scott is in the same boat with us. Clewell said that during the 2016-17 school year the district will be down to a negative unspent balance. Thats legal use of the funds we get from the state. It will all be gone, he said. We will have no way to provide our children the equal funding that those other districts are getting. That is when Superintendent Art Tate, with the blessing of the seven-member school board, will violate state law and dip into the $30 million reserve funds, which they have no authority from the state to use, Clewell said. We have seven board members who took an oath to uphold Iowa law, and they are willing to break the law to provide our students with an education that is equal to every other student in the state of Iowa, he said. Its civil disobedience. Education is the basis of everything we have here in Iowa and in this nation. Matthew Gonzales, 17, a junior at Davenport Central, told the council that students in school districts that do not receive proper funding are left at a competitive disadvantage. If our students are not getting the same education as others, how can we expect them to go and an compete for the same jobs, and qualify for the same colleges? In other news, the council unanimously passed a resolution to urge the Iowa Legislature to adopt legislation that will put Naloxone in the hands of police, other healthcare professionals and family members. Naloxone, sold under the name Narcan, is an opiate antidote that is used in cases when someone has overdosed on drugs such as heroin. One death is too many, said Sue Van Camp, of Davenport, who lost a son to an overdose. Van Camp and her friend Kim Brown, who also lost a son to an overdose, have been pushing for a law that allows Narcan to be placed in the hands of people who can use it to save the lives of overdose victims. There will be no rematch. Rep. Ross Paustian, R-Walcott, is planning to seek re-election this year. But he won't be facing Frank Wood, the Eldridge Democrat who has been his foil the past two election cycles. Wood said Thursday that he won't run for the seat this year and wants to step back from politics. Another Democrat is expected to announce a bid soon, Wood said, but he declined to identify the person. The 92nd District legislative seat, which covers much of western Scott County, has bounced between the Republicans and Democrats in recent years. Paustian won it in 2010, then lost the seat to Wood in 2012. In 2014, Paustian came back to wrest the seat back for the Republicans. Paustian announced his intent to seek re-election a week ago. In his announcement, he said he meets with small business people frequently and wants to help them. "Instead of stifling these job creators with burdensome taxes and regulations we need to find ways to help them succeed and hire more Iowans," Paustian said. It's likely the seat will be hotly contested again this year. The number of Republicans and Democrats in the district are nearly evenly divided. Paustian says he will focus his attention on the economy and balancing the state budget. In the past, education funding has been an important issue in the district. House Republicans are seeking a 2 percent increase in basic state aid to schools, while Democrats want a 4 percent increase. Paustian said Thursday that increased Medicaid costs are eating away at the budget. "There just isnt enough money in the budget," he said. "Its still an increase. Even 2 percent is still an increase." Democrats have argued that limiting state aid will hurt schools and push up local property taxes. Gov. Terry Branstad has proposed a 2.45 percent increase. Paustian, a fifth-generation farmer, is vice chair of the House Agriculture and Environmental Protection committees. He also sits on the Economic Growth and Natural Resources panels. He also is a past president of the Scott County Farm Bureau. The 92nd District covers much of rural western Scott County, including Eldridge, Walcott, Blue Grass, New Liberty and Maysville. It also includes parts of northern Davenport. DES MOINES A House subcommittee on Thursday passed a bill aimed at curbing government sanctuary policies under which state or local officials fail to share information or cooperate with federal authorities in enforcing immigration laws. House Study Bill 558 would prohibit the state of Iowa, cities and counties and any of their agencies, officers or employees from adopting or enforcing any rule, ordinance, policy or procedure that limits or restricts the enforcement of any federal immigration law to less than the full extent permitted by federal law. The measure also would prohibit the state, cities or counties from withholding information regarding the citizenship or immigration status of any individual, as well as prohibiting law enforcement officials or agencies from gathering such information, directing law enforcement officials or agencies not to gather such information or prohibiting the communication of such information to federal law enforcement agencies. Rep. Greg Heartsill, a Melcher-Dallas Republican, said the proposed statute is an effort to make certain state and local officials cant turn a blind eye to someones immigration status if they are in this country illegally. Rep. Steve Holt, R-Denison, said there are more than 300 governmental jurisdictions, including several in Iowa that he did not specify, that are considered "sanctuary cities or countries that protect those in the country illegally from deportation by refusing to comply with Immigration Customs Enforcement detainers or otherwise impeding communication and information exchanges between their employees and federal immigration agents. No one is above the law. It is important for the safety and security of our citizens that we enforce immigration laws and that we cooperate with the federal government in the enforcement of immigration laws and the deportation of those who are in our country illegally, Holt told a House Public Safety subcommittee Thursday. Its unacceptable that any citizen in the state of Iowa should lose their life as the result of an individual who is here illegally because of a sanctuary policy. Peter McRoberts, a lobbyist for the ACLU of Iowa, said, however, that at least two dozen county sheriffs and county attorneys are refusing to honor immigration detainers to hold suspects believed in violation of immigration laws beyond 48 hours because of concerns over the constitutionality and liability when Immigration Customs Enforcement fails to respond in a timely manner to pick up the detainees. We believe that is a relatively clear violation of the United States Constitution to hold someone indefinitely without a criminal charge, he said. McRoberts said state and local jurisdictions should not take the risk for issues that are the responsibility of federal agencies and Congress in opposing the House bill on constitutional, procedural and liability grounds. ICE has responsibility to show up on time, he said. Dont tell sheriffs youre on the hook if we dont show up. Rita Carter of the United Methodist Church said the shift represented an unfunded mandate for local governments, while Tom Chapman of the Iowa Catholic Conference said immigration is a very complex problem that requires prudent solutions for situations such as detaining children who are in the country illegally and issuing alternative drivers licenses to keep Iowa roads safe. I just would question whether this bill is the right way to deal with it, Chapman told the three-lawmaker panel. Rep. Marti Anderson, D-Des Moines, asked, What problem are we trying to solve with this bill? and said she did not like to make laws based on individual cases. The bill passed the subcommittee Thursday and could get consideration from the full House Public Safety Committee as early as next week. An increase in taxes could be on the horizon for Illinois residents to help offset budget deficits in the state, state Comptroller Leslie Geissler Munger said Wednesday. Munger, a Republican, was in Moline as part of a statewide tour to address Illinois $6.2 billion deficit in fiscal year 2016, created in part by the expiration of $5 billion in taxes on Jan. 1 and an estimated $1.2 billion in additional expenditures. The deficit and resulting budget war over how to best deal with it has caused a long-term stalemate between Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner and the Democratic-led state Legislature. That impasse has delayed agreement on a budget and resulted in several state social and educational programs being negatively affected because of a lack of funding. Every day, we see growing hardship because Illinois does not have a budget in place, Munger said. On Jan. 1, the individual tax rate for Illinois residents was lowered from 5 percent to 3.75 percent, creating an expected shortfall in $5 billion in income for 2016. When asked if taxes could be raised again on Illinois residents to deal with the deficit, Munger said she could see that taxes could be raised temporarily to address the budget issues. Then we could see where we were going with the deficits and with growth, and then (taxes could) eventually come back down again," she said. "(We) will have to deal with the tax issue somewhere if we take the long-term approach. She supports the continuation of Illinois flat-tax policies, and not a system of progressive taxes a lower percentage rate for lower wage earners and a progressively higher percentage rate for higher-income earners. Illinois' constitution only allows for a flat tax. She said that she believes taxes should be spread among all taxpayers and does not support the so-called millionaires tax, in which individual earners would be taxed an additional 3 percent for every dollar earned more than $1 million. She said the millionaires tax would not bring in enough revenue. In November 2014, 64 percent of Illinois residents voted in a non-binding referendum for the enactment of an additional tax of 3 percent on millionaires. Several other states, including California, have enacted similar taxes, with money raised mostly going toward education. I am not in favor of a progressive tax at all, Munger said. We already have a situation in Illinois where high-income earners can leave, where businesses can leave, and weve seen that happen. That is not beneficial for our economy. According to an independent study done in September 2015 by the Center for Tax and Budget Accountability, the tax cuts for corporations and upper-income individuals that are part of Rauners budget would not have any significant long-term positive impact on the financial health of the state. We disagree with that research, Munger said. Munger added that she thinks the stalemate is the result of stubbornness on the side of both Democrats and Republicans and the time has come for more cooperation and compromise. There is plenty of blame to go around on both sides, but Im optimistic that with enough people understanding (this issue) we can compromise, she said. I think everyone needs to put the state first. Davenport's city administrator search committee has chosen Strategic Government Resources, or SGR, of Keller, Texas, to perform the search. The City Council has appropriated $25,000 for the search. Davenport Alderwoman Kerri Tompkins, 8th Ward, told the search committee during its meeting Wednesday that those committee members who read over the seven proposals and submitted recommendations had SGR among the top two on their list. The eight committee members present for Wednesday's meeting unanimously approved SGR as the search company. Tompkins said that although the six other search companies had good things to offer, SGR "laid out their search process clearly in its RFP (request for proposals). It was very detailed, very thorough." Davenport Mayor Frank Klipsch said he liked that representatives of SGR "will be interviewing the City Council members, the 11 members of the search committee, city staff and a number of the key stakeholders throughout the community." Who those stakeholders to be interviewed are has yet to be determined, he said. "But that process will help them develop a profile of the person we'd like to have fill the position," Klipsch said. Davenport Alderman Bill Boom, 3rd Ward, said the council could vote on the selection of SGR as early as Feb. 17. Strategic Government Resources first must send a contract that will be looked over by the city attorney. "Once the contract has gone through legal review, then city council will vote on it," Boom said. Tompkins said the process for selecting the next city administrator should be under way by the middle of March. Corri Spiegel is serving as Davenport's interim administrator. She has held the position since former City Administrator Craig Malin left the job in June. About 1,400 first-graders in the Davenport Community School District are receiving ballet lessons this week, thanks to a pilot program developed by Ballet Quad-Cities to encourage reading. The hour-long program "Dance Me a Story" teaches children how to tell a story without using words and how to convey meaning through the movements of dance. The program was created by Joedy Cook, founder of Ballet Quad-Cities, a professional dance company based in Rock Island. She previewed it at libraries and senior centers, then secured grants from The Bechtel Trusts, the Hubbell-Waterman Foundation, the Iowa Arts Council and Humanities Iowa to take it to the district's 19 elementary schools. The program combines elements of reading, writing, listening, music and physical education, some in the classroom and some when dancers from Ballet Quad-Cities visit the schools. On Wednesday, dancers Marie Buser and Patrick Green danced the story to about 45 children gathered in the gym of Madison Elementary School. First, Buser read the story "Snow Day" by Lynn Plourde, describing the activities of a child who gets a free day from school because of snow. Then, she and Green showed the children how the story might be conveyed through movements called choreography. "Can you say 'choreography'? " Green challenged the students. The two dancers then gave examples, such as stretching and yawning for waking up. The children practiced the actions, then put everything together in a full performance with music. "It's touching, it's listening, it's feeling, it's not just sitting in a desk," Cook said of the program. Steve Schwaegler, fine arts curriculum specialist for the district, said the program "makes a lot of connections" for students. Its official: Uber is coming to the Quad-Cities, and by this afternoon, those in need of a lift can book one on the ride-hailing services smartphone app. Mike White, general manager of Uber Iowa, who will be overseeing the companys launch here, said on Monday that the enterprise is ready to finally call the Quad-Cities home. "The Quad-Cities has always been a hub for transportation innovation, White said. From steamboats to advanced manufacturing, it happens here first, so were excited about continuing that tradition. Uber, which lets people book and pay for a private car service using the companys free smartphone app, already has launched services in more than 100 cities across the country, including two other cities in Iowa Des Moines and Cedar Rapids. Following the companys 1 p.m. announcement at LeClaire Park in Davenport, dozens of driver partners will be ready to go, according to company spokespeople. Uber spokeswoman Jennifer Mullin said the company has recruited and will continue to recruit drivers, who Uber refers to as independent contractors, not employees. To qualify as a driver, an individual must have insurance and a four-door vehicle thats less than 10 years old for starters. Before an Uber driver can hit the road, the company also runs background checks, which include searches on the National Sex Offender Registry, National Criminal Search and several databases used to flag suspected terrorists. White said hes excited to introduce a new way for folks to earn extra money in their free time. Following the launch, White said the service initially will focus on the core metro Quad-Cities but will expand its reach to surrounding communities as the business grows. Fares for UberX, the brand being launched in the Quad-Cities, fluctuate based on demand. News of the companys arrival in town has some Quad-Citians primarily millennials and young professionals thrilled, and others local transportation services indifferent and not so excited about the extra competition. Kyle Carter, executive director of the Downtown Davenport Partnership, said Uber couldnt have arrived at a better time. Its no secret that the Quad-City transportation structure is lacking, he said. Uber is going to fill a huge gap for people to get around in a cost-effective way. Max Addai, the owner of Davenport-based Maxs Cab & Transportation Co., said hes not afraid of Uber. Ive been doing this almost 30 years here, so its just like another cab company opening in town, Addai said. If youre in any business, competition is part of it. Addai added that although cab companies in bigger cities may have issues with Uber, he doesnt see that happening here. In bigger cities, its more difficult to get cabs, he said. In the Quad-Cities, people call cabs. Meanwhile, two other Quad-City transportation services have tried to lure more riders by partnering with a GPS-oriented app called Gata Hub, which allows people to book rides using their smartphone. Two relatively new Davenport companies, Good To Go Taxi and Rave Luxury Transportation, use the app. Mike McMahon, who opened Rave Luxury Transportation in February 2014, said he thinks the app could help Quad-City transportation companies compete against Uber. Were dealing with Generation Y here, so once they understand that Gata is out there, it definitely shows there are other options that dont have surge pricing, said McMahon, whose company transports riders in luxury vehicles, including Lexus and Cadillac, and requires a $30 minimum fare. According to its website, Gata Hub works only with reputable taxi fleets in cities that employ only insured and fully licensed drivers. In April, the Iowa Senate killed legislation that would have created a statewide regulatory framework for ride-share companies, such as Uber. Among other things, the bill would have set required mandatory levels of insurance, background checks for drivers and online posting of their methods for calculating fares. Carter said he predicts community members will take a liking to Uber once they understand how it works. Once people use it (Uber) a couple times, theyre going to get hooked, he said. Winter temperatures have been relatively mild in the Quad-City region this season, and that's a key reason why the total number of birds tallied in this year's Christmas Bird Count was down slightly. Generally, waterfowl birds inflate Quad-City region numbers because ice on rivers farther north pushes large numbers of the birds into this area, said Kelly McKay, a field biologist from Hampton, who co-compiles the numbers. This year, however, waterfowl numbers were down in the seven counting areas from Sterling/Rock Falls, Ill., in the north to Muscatine in the south that McKay compiles because "there was no ice pushing them down," he said. The total number of birds for this year was 153,295, compared to 163,881 last year and 159,664 the year before. Diversity of species was good, however: 118 total species compared with 109 last year and 113 the year before, he said. The Christmas census of bird populations has been conducted nationally for 116 years under the auspices of the National Audubon Society. On designated days in December and January, volunteers count birds at feeders and in the field, taking note of both numbers and species. Over time, the data reflect trends. The seven counting areas compiled by McKay and Steve Hager, professor of biology at Augustana College, Rock Island, each encompass an expanse of about 117 square miles. The one location where waterfowl and water birds were most abundant this year was in pool 17 above the lock and dam at Clinton, Iowa/Savanna, Ill., McKay said. Counters tallied 67,955 waterfowl, representing 21 species of ducks, geese and swans. Two species that smashed previous records for sheer numbers were the 35,777 canvasback ducks and 15,348 common golden-eye ducks, McKay said. Another reason the total number may have been down was a decrease in the number of semi-hardy birds, such as robins. In recent years, these birds have been sticking around this region because overall winter temperatures have been warmer, but this year, there was a cold snap in November. If they were in migration mode when they encountered the cold, they would have kept on flying south, McKay said. Finally, the past two winters have had stretches of bitterly cold temperatures that likely killed a lot of birds, decreasing their numbers overall, McKay said. If Hillary Clinton fails to fulfill her destiny and retake the White House, she'll have to go on that lonely political walk of shame. And then historians may point their bony fingers at young Taylor Gipple. For it was Mr. Gipple, Iowa millennial and passionate supporter of Sen. Bernie Sanders, who gave us the single most important nationally televised moment of Clinton's presidential campaign so far. Think of it as Hillary's Queen Cersei moment. If you don't follow HBO's series "Game of Thrones," and the ruthless matron of a fading dynasty, then you're probably too old or calcified to care about cool stuff such as politics. But Gipple isn't too old, and neither are millions of other millennials, those on the left following Sanders, the Vermont socialist, or those millennials on the right following the anti-establishment candidates. So this one should outlast the Iowa caucuses and follow Mrs. Clinton to the Democratic primaries of New Hampshire and South Carolina, because it explains her great problem. She has experience, yes. She knows politics. She's a creature of the Democratic establishment, yes. And she's a survivor. But she cannot be trusted. People think she's a liar. Poll after poll reflects this. And so, it does not bode well for a Clinton Restoration. Sanders has the crowds, the excitement and, though he's 74, young liberals like him. And Hillary? She's the establishment candidate. They tolerate her. The Queen Cersei moment wasn't inspired by the vast right-wing conspiracy, or a cast of enemies real or imagined, or even by the FBI investigating Clinton's email scandal. Instead it was inspired by Gipple, a Democrat young enough to believe virtue has a place in our politics. "It feels like there's a lot of young people out there, like myself, who are very passionate supporters of Bernie Sanders. And I just don't see the same enthusiasm among younger people for you," Gipple said in a nervous voice at an Iowa town hall on CNN. "In fact," Gipple said, "I've heard quite a few people my age that think you're dishonest, but I'd like to hear from you, why you feel the enthusiasm isn't there." She paused, then blinked and her face began to move toward him on the end of her neck. There was that Queen Cersei smile. Not with her eyes but with teeth, before she fixed on him with her squint. If she was standing not in Iowa but in HBO, Cersei's guards would have already ripped out young Gipple's tongue or lopped off his thumbs. Happily, Hillary took neither tongue nor thumbs. Instead, she tried to take Gipple's pride. And that will cost her more. She started by recounting all of the "stuff" that's been thrown at her over the years. "But if you're new to politics and this is the first time you've really paid attention, you go, 'Oh, my gosh, look at all of this.' And you have to say to yourself, 'Why are they throwing all of that?'" Clinton said. "I'll tell you why: I've been on the front lines of change and progress since I was your age." Since I was your age, sonny! And what have you done except clap your hands for Bernie, you punk kid! What she ignored, obviously, is the FBI investigating how top-secret government emails showed up on her private email server in her basement. Instead, it was, "Why are they throwing all of that?" as if "they" are angry conservative talk show hosts, not the Obama administration. Reports out of the Obama government on Friday -- just days before the Iowa caucuses -- confirmed that at least 22 emails of the most closely guarded government secrets were on her private server. That's bad news for Hillary's campaign, because that private server -- with many more emails -- could have been compromised by foreign intelligence. She's tried to deny and spin her way past all of it, but it's all catching up to her now. Gipple didn't know all that as he stood, rather nervously, before Hillary the Great as she dressed him down on national TV. "When I worked on health care back in '93 and '94, and I don't know if you were born then, I can't quite tell, but, if you'd been around, and had been able to pay attention, I was trying to get us to universal health care coverage," she said. If you'd been around. If you were born then. If you'd been able to pay attention. At least she didn't mention that some Democrats voting in 2016 may have been toddlers chewing frozen bagels for teething pain when her husband was impeached. On the Republican side, voters feel betrayed by the GOP establishment, which is why the leading candidates, Donald Trump and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, are running insurgent campaigns. These two promise, basically, that if elected president they'll go to Washington and punch the whole town in the mouth. And many Republicans, numbed by the establishment GOP's constant betrayals, are desperate to believe in something. Sanders offers a similar sense from the anti-establishment insurgent Democratic left. Young Democrats flock to the old guy. Yes, he promises free college tuition and fully federalized health care he can't really pay for. But they flock to him because he gives them something else, something to believe in. They want to believe. But they won't let themselves believe in Hillary. And that's her problem now. SPRINGFIELD Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan has announced another round of public hearings on the state's education funding formula, which critics say leaves districts with higher poverty rates and lower property values at a disadvantage. A bipartisan education funding task force, which began meeting last year, will hold its first hearing of the spring legislative session Feb. 16 in Springfield, the Chicago Democrat announced Thursday. Overhauling the way the state funds public schools has been a priority of Senate Democrats, led by Senate President John Cullerton of Chicago. Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner gave a nod to the idea last week in his State of the State address. Madigan's announcement also comes at a time when the financial troubles of Chicago Public Schools have created another point of tension between Rauner and Democrats amid the state's budget impasse. "Senate President Cullerton has shown strong leadership on the issue of fair and equitable education funding, which is so important to every community across our state," Madigan said in a prepared statement. "The President's commitment to fairly funding our schools and helping all students meet their full potential is one that I share, and I plan to work with him to achieve this goal while making sure that voices from across our state are heard and that all schools and programs are protected throughout this process." A series of hearings will be held throughout the spring to develop a legislative plan, the speaker said. House Majority Leader Barbara Flynn Currie, a fellow Chicago Democrat, is leading the task force. Sen. Andy Manar of Bunker Hill, the Senate Democrats' point man on education funding, has been working for the past three years on an overhaul of the school aid formula. He introduced a bill last year that would funnel more money to poorer districts and seeks to address some concerns with an earlier version. Madigan spokesman Steve Brown said the speaker hasn't taken a position on Manar's proposal. "Part of the purpose of this task force is to develop that position for House members," Brown said. The panel also will examine a proposal from the Illinois State Board of Education to shift $300 million in special education funds into general state aid for schools, he said. Rep. John Bradley, a Marion Democrat who is on the task force, said the "deliberate, thoughtful approach" the House is taking is appropriate given the gravity of the issue. Bradley said he wants kids across Illinois, including two of his own children in the Marion School District, to have similar opportunities. "The children in my area are worth as much as the children throughout the rest of the state," he said. But Rep. Robert Pritchard of Hinckley, the Republican spokesman on the task force, said there have been enough hearings already. "It's time to sit down and start analyzing what the recommendations are and determining what we can make movement with," Pritchard said. Any move to give more money to poorer districts shouldn't come at the expense of others, he said. "You've got to put new money into it so that you don't have losers and focus that new money on those students that aren't being served," Pritchard said. A roundup of legislative and Capitol news items of interest for Tuesday, Feb. 3 2016: ICN AIDS CAUCUS COVERAGE: When Iowa became the focus of worldwide media attention on Feb. 1, the Iowa Communications Network, or ICN, provided fast, strong, reliable broadband to media that converged on the Capitol Complex in Des Moines to cover the first-in-the-nation Iowa precinct caucuses, according to a spokesman for the state-owned network. During the weeks leading up to the caucuses, ICN coordinated multiple service requests from the Iowa Department of Administrative Services for temporary services at various locations, according to John Cahill. In addition to a tremendous amount of broadband, ICN provided NBC, ABC, CNN, Fox News and other media with Internet circuits for streaming video, updating social media and communicating back to their network offices. ICN understands the importance of providing strong broadband with uninterrupted service during the caucuses when Iowa is in the spotlight, according to Ric Lumbard, ICN executive director. ICN worked diligently to ensure Iowans and the world could receive instant caucus news and results from the media that were stationed around the Capitol Complex, he said. STATE REVENUE UPDATE: Tax collections flowing into the state treasury last month were 3.8 percent higher than in January 2015, but a Legislative Services Agency analyst said Wednesday the number is deceptive and month-to-month comparisons are problematic. LSA senior tax analyst Jeff Robinson said calendar and timing issues resulted in positive tax withholding and the figures for January but having the month end on a weekend had negative offsets. Robinson said the factors likely means the $21.1 million increase in January receipts will be reduced in current month comparison when February revenue is calculated. For the fiscal year to date, tax collections are up $88 million, or 2.3 percent, above the July-through-January period one year ago. Robinson noted the 2.3 percent growth rate was below the 3.8 percent increase the state Revenue Estimating Conference set for the current fiscal year during its December meeting. Personal income tax collections are up 6.7 percent for the fiscal year, but slow sales/use tax growth and a 15.5 percent drop in corporate income tax receipts are placing a drag on collection numbers for fiscal 2016. More than $3.948 billion in state general fund receipts have been collected this fiscal year compared to $3.86 billion during the same seven-month period in fiscal 2015, according the LSA monthly report. NEW JUDGE: Gov. Terry Branstad on Wednesday appointed David N. May as judge to the 5C Judicial District in Polk County, filling the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Robert Hutchison. David May is an experienced trial attorney with an exceptionally bright legal mind and a strong work ethic, Branstad said in making the appointment. May, 44, of Polk City, currently is in private practice. He also serves as a lecturer at the Annual Fire Investigation School for the Iowa Fire Service Training Bureau and has served as an instructor at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. HEATING COSTS: Natural gas prices in Iowa have dropped while propane prices have stayed unchanged and home heating oil rose by a penny per gallon in the past week. The prices of natural gas dipped to $2.03/MMbtu in the latest fuel price survey issued by the state Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. Home-heating oil stood at $146 a gallon while propane stood at $1.01 per gallon statewide. On the motor fuels market, the price of regular unleaded gasoline in Iowa averaged $1.72 a gallon, according to AAA. That was 5 cents a gallon lower than one week ago and down 29 cents from one year ago. The national average on Tuesday for regular unleaded gasoline was $1.78, down 5 cents a gallon from last week. Retail diesel fuel prices in Iowa were 2 cents a gallon lower on the Tuesday report with a statewide average of $1.90 compared to $2.59 in Iowa a year ago. BYRNES OUT: Rep. Josh Byrnes, R-Osage, announced Wednesday he will leave the Legislature to take a position as general manager of Osage Municipal Utilities. He will not seek re-election. Byrnes, who is in his third term, chairs the House Transportation Committee and led the effort in 2015 to increase the motor fuel tax by a dime a gallon. Byrnes has worked as a high school teacher, community college administrator and EMT. CMV SCREENING: A Senate Human Resources subcommittee moved forward SF 2075 that would require all infants to be screened for cytomegalovirus, or CMV, a common virus that can cause hearing loss and other forms of developmental disability. According to the Iowa Department of Public Health, about 104 Iowa babies are affected each year. Sen. Janet Petersen, D-Des Moines, sponsored the bill after learning about CMV from constituents. Newborns can be infected in the womb or become infected during birth or shortly after birth such as through breast-feeding. Representatives of the health care community raised several questions about the bill, including concerns about cost and whether they would be borne by insurance and or Medicaid. Most are registered as undecided. Sen. Mary Joe Wilhelm, D-Cresco, and Chaz Allen, D-Newton, signed off on the bill despite reservations. Sen. Mark Chelgren, R-Ottumwa, said he would wait for the bill to mature. QUOTE OF THE DAY: Youre making an assumption that if I fish in a farm pond thats all I fish, but I can only catch bullheads for so long, Rep. Norlin Mommsen, R-DeWitt, commenting on HF 2046, which would allow people to fish on farm ponds without a license. Compiled by the Des Moines Bureau DES MOINES An Iowa Senate committee has approved legalizing fireworks in Iowa, but a condition included in the bill likely will create a patchwork of pyrotechnic prohibitions. By a 10-5 vote, the Senate State Government Committee approved Senate File 508 would allow the possession, sale, transfer, purchase and use of fireworks. However, by changing an opt-out provision to opt-in, the bill essentially would leave the legalization up to county boards and city councils. As adopted, you have no statewide law, sponsor Sen. Jeff Danielson, D-Cedar Falls, said. However, Sen. Matt McCoy, D-Des Moines, who opposes legalization, argued the opt-in language was necessary to honor Iowas home rule for cities. Danielson, a professional firefighter, proposed SF 508 because he believes Iowa has taken a head-in-the sand approach to the issue for too many years in advocating adding more than a dozen consumer fireworks to the list of legal products, which currently includes only sparklers and other small novelties. It makes no sense to legalize products that contribute to more than 11,000 injuries a year, many to children, as well as 17,000 fires that caused $32 million in property loss. Fireworks can be annoying and trigger PTSD and panic in animals, he said. Theres no good common-sense reason to be moving this bill forward, McCoy said. If for no other reason than protecting children would be a good reason to vote against this. Legalizing fireworks will be anti-business for insurance companies, including those with major operations in Iowa. He predicted state revenue from sales tax on fireworks sales and licenses required for vendors will be miniscule compared to cost to insurance companies. Jump into the real world, Republican Sen. Rick Bertrand said, pointing out that fireworks are legal across the river from his Sioux City district. South Dakotans arent exploding fireworks 365 days a year and blowing their fingers off every day. If lawmakers want to protect children from associated risks, Sen. Jake Chapman, R-Adel, said, they may want to ban balloons and dolls, which account for more childhood deaths than fireworks. Its a matter of freedom a freedom Iowans want, said Chapman, an EMT. Lets trust Iowans with the responsibility of the safe handling of fireworks. Iowans, McCoy said, have to learn to live closely and we do that by learning to live peacefully. The bill, which was supported and opposed by both Democrats and Republicans, will move to the full Senate as a committee bill. The South Dakota Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the conviction of a Lake Andes man who was drunk when he drove into two federal wildlife researchers, killing them. Ronald Fischer Jr. is serving 30 years in prison for vehicular homicide in the July 2013 deaths of Maegan Spindler, 25, of Cazenovia, New York, and Robert Klumb, 46, of Pierre. Prosecutors say Fischer was drunk and ran a stop sign before he struck the two U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service researchers in a parking lot. They were conducting tests on the Missouri River. After the crash, investigators obtained Fischer's blood samples from Wagner Community Memorial Hospital, where he was being treated. According to court records, his blood-alcohol content was 0.232 percent, which is nearly three times the legal limit of 0.08 percent. Fischer's attorney, Tim Whalen, argued before the justices last month that authorities infringed on Fischer's constitutional rights by drawing blood without a warrant and that it shouldn't have been allowed into evidence at his trial. He said the officers knew they would get the blood sample from the hospital and chose not to get a warrant. Assistant Attorney General Kelly Marnette argued that law enforcement did nothing wrong and went above and beyond in handling the crash scene. In a written opinion, the high court ruled that the drawing of blood was objectively reasonable. "Blood drawn by hospital personnel for medical purposes is not subject to Fourth Amendment protection and therefore suppression of the draw was not warranted," the justices wrote. Spindler's parents, Gregg and Susan Spindler, issued a statement Thursday urging the Legislature to pass a bill classifying vehicular homicide as a crime of violence. The measure was introduced in the state Senate and referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee. "We ask you to consider whether Maegan and Rob met violent deaths," they wrote. "There is only one answer to that question." PIERRE | A package of protections for elderly people in South Dakota against emotional and financial abuse, including enhanced penalties for emotional abuse, won approval Wednesday from the state Senate. The vote was 35-0. Senate Bill 54 now goes to the House of Representatives. Sen. David Novstrup, R-Aberdeen, sponsored the legislation last year to establish the task force. David Gilbertson, chief justice for the South Dakota Supreme Court, had suggested the topic should be a priority for lawmakers. Some people have described elder abuse as hiding in plain sight or a silent crisis, Novstrup said. The task force made 16 recommendations; 10 are contained in the legislation. One of the changes calls for emotional abuse to be classified as a Class 1 misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail and a fine of $2,000. The Legislative Research Council estimated the impact of adding the emotional-abuse misdemeanor at $1,054 per year. That is based on the likelihood of nine arrests and one conviction per year, with an average jail sentence of 10 days costing $105.40 per day. Physical abuse or neglect of an elder person or a disabled person is already a Class 6 felony, punishable by up to two years in state prison and a fine of $4,000. There were 53 physical abuse cases from Jan. 1, 2010, through Dec. 31, 2015, with seven convictions, according to the LRC. The average time served for those convictions was 730 days in prison, or about two years. Another change allows financial institutions to report suspicious situations to the state attorney general office. The LRC report said the U.S. Census Bureau estimated there are about 128,000 South Dakotans who are older than age 65. Federal officials on Wednesday outlined a plan to improve care at hospitals that treat Native Americans in four Great Plains states, including creating a multi-agency group to focus on quality and patient safety and designating a single organization to accredit Indian Health Service hospitals. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services detailed the steps to The Associated Press prior to a U.S. Senate committee hearing on Wednesday afternoon in Washington focusing on the quality of care at IHS hospitals in the region. The hearing and promised reforms come weeks after federal inspections highlighted serious problems at hospitals on the Pine Ridge and Rosebud Indian reservations and months after inspectors uncovered inadequate care for a man who died of kidney failure two days after seeking care from a hospital in Nebraska. HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell is establishing a group that will include leaders from IHS which administers the hospitals that provide free care for Native Americans the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other agencies. The group will try to resolve persistent staffing shortages and develop policy and training proposals to "bolster the safety culture," HHS said, as well as provide immediate assistance to hospitals in need, focusing first on the Great Plains region of the Dakotas, Iowa and Nebraska. "As part of that plan, the executive council will be charged with executing a rapid-response process, including deploying resources from across the Department when a facility needs immediate, systematic improvement," according to the initiatives given to the AP. Federal officials said using a single accrediting body would ensure "similar performance measures and expectations are applied across IHS hospitals" around the country. All accreditation surveys would then be reviewed annually to identify which hospitals and medical centers need the most help. Another change is bolstering training for the boards and doctors who run the hospitals, and using "data analytics" to improve reporting and decision-making. Earlier this week, federal authorities announced that a new acting director was assigned to the Great Plains Area office in Aberdeen and that they'll deploy a four-member team to address problems at the hospitals in the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota and the Winnebago Reservation in Nebraska. In October, inspectors visiting the hospital in Pine Ridge in western South Dakota cited safety deficiencies including unlocked cupboards with syringes, needles and other equipment; unsecured drugs and medical records; an isolation room without gowns and masks; and doctors without proper credentials. An inspection of the Rosebud hospital in November found conditions so alarming the emergency room was shut down. A patient having a heart attack wasn't treated until 90 minutes after she arrived. Serious staffing shortages in the emergency room included vacancies for the supervising medical officer, a medical officer, two physician assistants and three clinical nurses. Sonia Little Hawk-Weston, chairwoman of the Health and Human Services Committee for the Oglala Sioux Tribal Council, told the committee of many cases of misdiagnosis, lack of access to care, and increasing costs to patients. IHS provides services to about 130,000 people through seven hospitals, 15 health centers and several smaller satellite clinics in the four-state area. At the emergency room in Rosebud alone, 6,595 patients were seen between May and October. Although all involved seem determined to resolve the problems, two U.S. senators showed sharply differing views on Wednesday as to whether the beleaguered IHS needs more federal money to resolve severe lapses in medical coverage. In a hearing of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on Wednesday, U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., said the IHS is underfunded by 50 percent, adding that the U.S. Congress was partly to blame for the service's failures. Tester urged members of congress who are serious about fixing the problems to properly fund the agency. But on a conference call with reporters before the committee hearing, U.S. Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., said that solutions for improving the system could include holding IHS administrators accountable to their promises and that pumping more money into the system is not the answer. Thune, who was invited to sit on the committee for this hearing, told of a young woman who gave birth on the bathroom floor inside an IHS hospital without any health care professionals to help. According to IHS Principal Deputy Director Robert McSwain, there is a 37 percent vacancy rate for physicians in the Great Plains region. McSwain said his office is working to increase incentives to help recruit and retain quality physicians, but attracting talent to remote regions without many basic services has been a challenge for the agency. HHS acting Deputy Secretary Mary Wakefield said expanding tele-health, or health care administered by a remote doctor who teleconferences into the hospital room, could alleviate some of the staff shortages. McSwain said the IHS executive staff recently added a new position of deputy director of quality health care. A St. Francis man convicted of assault with a dangerous weapon has been sentenced by a U.S. District Judge to more than three years in prison. Allan Left Hand Bull, 23, will serve 42 months in custody with two years of supervised release. He will also have to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund. Indicted for assault with a dangerous weapon by a federal grand jury on Oct. 14 last year, Left Hand Bull pleaded guilty to the charge on Dec. 8. According to authorities, an intoxicated Left Hand Bull attacked his girlfriend with a knife and chased her down the street before choking her with his arm on Aug. 10. The primary investigators in the case were the Rosebud Sioux Tribe Law Enforcement Services, though Left Hand Bull was turned over to the U.S. Marshals Service upon arrest. A Rapid City woman is asserting in a newly filed lawsuit that she was the victim of reverse discrimination, and was harassed and ultimately fired from her job because she is white and not a Native American as her boss believed. A lawyer for Alicia A. Cline, who is white, filed the lawsuit last week in U.S. District Court. The lawsuit says Cline suffered racial discrimination and then retaliation for reporting it. Cline worked at Community Alternatives of the Black Hills from 2009 until she was fired in 2015. She is suing the facilitys parent corporation, Community Education Centers, which is headquartered in New Jersey. Community Alternatives of the Black Hills is a Rapid City halfway house to which federal and state inmates may qualify to be sent for help re-entering society as they finish their sentences. Clines attorney, Kassie McKie Shiffermiller, of the law firm Lynn, Jackson, Shultz & Lebrun in Rapid City, said this week that neither she nor Cline would comment publicly on the matter. A spokesman for Community Education Centers said that company officials had not yet received the lawsuit papers and had no comment. Clines allegations are laid out in a legal document known as a complaint. The complaint says that in October 2014, Cline came under the supervision of a new boss. Throughout his first few weeks of employment, [the supervisor] made several comments to Cline that suggested that he thought that Cline was of Native American descent, the complaint says, but Cline did not correct him or make any comments in response. Then, a few days prior to Thanksgiving 2014, Cline missed work to take her ill children to the doctor, the complaint says. Upon returning to work, she commented to her supervisor that she was relieved the childrens illnesses arose before Thanksgiving, because she assumed the clinic would be closed on the holiday. According to Clines complaint, the supervisor said Cline could have taken her children to Sioux San Hospital, the local Indian Health Service facility, if they had been ill on Thanksgiving. Cline told the supervisor that neither she nor her children were Native American and were therefore not eligible for care at an Indian Health Service facility. After the November 24th conversation, [the supervisor's] communication to Cline became less responsive and more critical and confrontational, Clines complaint says. The complaint says the supervisor also removed some of Cline's responsibilities. The supervisor also made other racial comments toward Cline," including but not limited to the supervisor's vision for hiring only Native Americans at CABH, the complaint says. The supervisor's race is not stated in the complaint, and the Journal was not able to find contact information for that person. The complaint lists the supervisor as the former director of Community Alternatives of the Black Hills. Clines complaint says she reported the supervisor's comments to a number of people, starting locally and then working up the corporate chain of command. In response, the complaint says, she was disciplined for a separate matter, then inexplicably suspended without pay, then finally fired Jan. 16, 2015, with gross misconduct and other causes listed. At the time of her termination, she was the facilitys deputy director. Cline filed discrimination charges with the state Department of Labor and the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and both rejected her claim. Her lawsuit seeks money in the form of compensatory and punitive damages but does not list specific dollar amounts. Community Education Centers has 21 days from its receipt of the lawsuit to file an answer. Boys will be boys. Of course, teaching them to be men is where the problem can lie. Two situations in Rapid City recently offered opportunities for boys to learn about life in the real world. But, of course, no one can agree on what lessons were to be learned or how they shouldve been taught. Case 1: the 11-year old suspended from school after a knife he dropped was noticed by a classmate. See teacher. See assistant principal and father. Reason for the knife in a zero-tolerance weapons policy school system? According to this paper: Hed seen it lying around at home and put it in his pocket to give back to his brother. As a journalist, as a reader, I wouldve appreciated better reporting. Lying around? Something there doesnt quite jive for me. Maybe its the former cop in me. Maybe its the ask all questions til there are none journalist in me. Maybe its the former boy in me who grew up in Brooklyn and was given my first knife by my NYPD father when I was 5 with an explanation of the responsibility of owning this tool that wasnt a toy and could be a weapon. I do admit that after being mugged when I was 9, I began carrying a knife everywhere I went. Nothing enormous. Just big enough to use if I had to. I never showed it, and I was never mugged again. Did I take it to Catholic elementary and high school? You bet your butt. Would I have been suspended or expelled? Im sure. Mom and Dad wouldve gone ballistic. But I felt it was worth the risk. I was a small kid who learned to defend myself from an equally small but older friend. And it was the time and environment of use a garbage can lid or whatever you need to survive. Of course, it was also pre-9/11 and it wasnt Rapid City where, despite the recent increase in some crimes, growing up is nothing like it was or is in New York. When I read the headline about the kid with the knife I was ready to understand his position if it involved bullying though Id still agree with his suspension. It wasnt about bullying, I still agree and Mom and Dad need to stop whining about it. You knew the penalty. Your son knew the penalty. And far too often easing the rules for one incident can justify another. Case in point: the newest story about the 12-year old Rapid kid who held an open box cutter against a classmates stomach. He was also suspended. The parents of the second dont feel their son is safe with the first kid coming back to school. I agree. Expel the box cutter kid. Thats not just bringing a knife to school, thats assault with intent. As for that 11-year-old and his parents: this is what could have happened if someone picked up your sons knife and didnt give it back. Learn from the mistake. Rapid City schools well doneish! Why do some elected officials in this state continue to struggle with the concepts of transparency and accountability? Why after declaring their intention to run for public office and then soliciting votes do they decide it is logical to regard the public as an obstacle to effective governing? Apparently, some local elected officials are not satisfied even though emails sent on government accounts are considered private conversations, or that they can go into executive or closed meetings for a variety of reasons and then are not required to disclose what happens there unless they decide to. Now, we are learning that some local elected bodies apparently are taking it a step further by prohibiting members of the public from recording public meetings held in public places. Apparently, they believe being in absolute control of their meeting is an entitlement they earned when they were elected by the voters, the same people whose trust they sought while on the campaign trail. As a result, 18 lawmakers including Sens. Craig Tieszen and Bruce Rampelberg of Rapid City and Reps. Lance Russell of Hill City, Timothy Johns of Lead and Thomas Brunner of Nisland have co-sponsored Senate Bill 90, which allows the public to use either audio or visual technology to record a public meeting "as long as the recording is reasonable and not disruptive." While this legislation does give local elected bodies a little wiggle room to pull the plug on a recording they deem unreasonable, it also puts the burden on them to do so and then convince the other elected officials to agree that the recording is disruptive. It is unfortunate that we need this sort of legislation in a democracy, but we also know that some elected officials are willing to go to great lengths to conduct as much business as possible away from the critical eye of the public and the media and then deflect blame when someone is unhappy with their decisions. But if that is the case, they should choose not to run for an elected office and pursue other endeavors that can be done in private and with less scrutiny. The advance of technology allows the public access to meetings that otherwise are difficult to attend for people who are working, raising families and paying their taxes. They, like government, should be entitled to take advantage of technology as a way to become better-informed citizens who can make educated decisions when they cast their votes at the next election. The lawmakers who co-sponsored this legislation should get the support of the entire Legislature. SB 90 will make our elected officials more accountable and that's good for South Dakota. We use cookies to ensure you get the best experience on the website. The purposes of using cookies are defined in the Privacy Policy of RAPSI If you agree to continue using cookies, please click the "Confirm" button. If you do not agree, you can change your browser settings. Russian court sentences five members of banned Islamic group to long prison terms MOSCOW, February 4 (RAPSI) Circuit session of the Moscow Regional Military Court on Thursday sentenced five members of Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami organization banned in Russia to prison terms ranging from 5.5 to 17 years, RIA Novosti reported citing the Chelyabinsk regional department of the Federal Security Service (FSB). The court found them guilty of creating and participation in the extremist and terrorist organizations and preparing to seizure or retention of power. According to investigators, in 2013, residents of the Chelyabinsk Region, Salavat Khabirov, Alfred Shaimov, Rinat Shamsutdinov, Orifdzhan Mirov and Radik Kabirov, organized a branch of the terrorist organization. Counterintelligence agents stopped their activity in October 2014. Hizb ut-Tahrir (the Party of Islamic Liberation), founded in Jerusalem in 1953, is banned in several Arab and Central Asian countries. Russia's Supreme Court banned the group from operating on the territory of the country in 2003, describing it as a terrorist organization. Hizb ut-Tahrir members are regularly arrested by the police across Russia, mainly in big cities in central Russia, the Volga region and Siberia. Also, there are many supporters in Crimea, which rejoined Russia last spring. KALISPELL Small dairy producers say the state may drive several of them out of business with current proposals to raise the price of some milk inspection assessments and expand it to non-producers to cover a projected budget deficit within the Department of Livestock. Theyre making decisions that are going to sink some of us, Jared Tuck, president of Kalispell Kreamery, says of the Board of Livestock, which has proposed the rule changes. Tuck said his business which is unique in that its dairy farm, Hedstrom Dairy, is just a few feet from its processing plant can survive the increases, but others wont be able to. What they want to do to the dairy industry will tank the small guys, he said. Theyre catering to the large guys. Heidi Arnold, who started Flathead Lake Cheese in Polson with her husband Joe four years ago, said one proposal would raise their fees from nothing they dont produce milk, they just buy it to $725 a month, or $8,700 a year. If I had an extra $725 a month, Id have an employee, Arnold said. What I dont think theyre considering is if we go out of business because of this, that moneys not going to be there. Dropped into the middle of the controversy is Mike Honeycutt, who began his new job as the executive officer of the Department of Livestock on Monday. The big message that is important is that a final decision has not been made, Honeycutt said Tuesday. Were still trying to find the right solution, hopefully somewhere in between that allows us to meet our obligation to the public and doesnt create a new challenge for businesses. We certainly have to respect, and be cognizant of, unintended impacts, whether on large or small producers. We dont want to be picking winners and losers. The Montana Legislatures Economic Affairs Interim Committee ordered the Department of Livestock to delay adoption of any changes pending a Thursday hearing in Helena, where Department of Livestock officials and dairy producers are expected to testify. *** Figures on the projected deficit in the costs associated with inspecting and testing dairy producers vary. Honeycutt said his department has come up with cost-saving measures that have reduced it from the original $147,000, but just hours into his new job he had not yet seen the latest number. Tuck and Arnold agree that part of the problem is an antiquated fee schedule that the department is working under. The way it stands, the state covers none of the funding, and its strictly supported by producers, Arnold said. That worked out fine when there were several hundred dairy producers in the state, but the big ones have been swallowing up the small ones for a long time. Theres also a maximum monthly assessment. Tuck says that means that as smaller farms are merged into larger ones that are already paying the maximum assessment fee, the fees the smaller farms were paying are lost but fees for the larger farms never go up. Tuck said one of the proposals hes seen would reduce the maximum fee from $1,050 a month to $925, while raising costs for the smaller producers and introducing significant fees to businesses such as Wilcoxsons Ice Cream and Flathead Lake Cheese. Wilcoxsons has been making ice cream in Montana for 100 years, and never had to pay before, Tuck said, so with this, their fees would go from zero to $750 a month. Youve got people milking 100 goats who have never even reached the minimum; theyll go from zero to $250 a month. Those are significant increases. There are 67 licensed dairies left in Montana. Gallatin County has the most, with 16. In west-central and northwest Montana, there are five in Ravalli County, four in Lake County and one in Flathead County. Arnold said there are only a handful more businesses like hers that purchase milk from those dairies to make their own products, and are also affected. *** The Montana Milk Producers Association has written a letter to the Board of Livestock to express our strong disagreement with the proposed changes. In it, Krista Lee Evans argues, on behalf of the association, that money appropriated by the Legislature to fund the human health portion of the diagnostic lab program should include money for testing milk. Our big question is, who is benefiting? Tuck says. Theyre arguing its the creameries and dairies, and theyre providing services for quality control. But their role is purely in the realm of public health and safety. Ill tell you what, if Im paying for quality control, Im going to get what Im paying for. Arnold says there is no way it should cost almost $9,000 a year for Flathead Lake Cheese to be inspected twice a year the inspections last 60 to 90 minutes, she says and submit 24 samples a year to the lab for testing. The assessments are used to protect public health, Evans wrote, and the public should bear a majority if not all the cost. ... Requiring the dairy producers in Montana to pay substantially higher assessments without taking into account and/or applying the general fund appropriation toward its intended us is simply wrong. Tuck also says the seven-member board, appointed by the governor, that oversees the Department of Livestock is supposed to have one representative of the dairy industry on it, but has been without one for approximately a year. Whats really outrageous is the board thats raising these fees is not elected, Tuck said. Who gives this kind of authority to non-elected officials? Theres real farms on the other side of their numbers. *** Honeycutt said the board is juggling two different scenarios: how to deal with the current projected shortfall, and how to deal with it in the future so that were not in the same position again. We have to put some things out as potential solutions, he said, but were not at a point that were sold on any solution. This does hit us right where we live, and we have to be careful. We dont want to rush into a decision with unintended consequences. Thursdays legislative hearing, Honeycutt said, will allow legislators to make sure were asking the right questions, and make sure weve thought through the impacts. Its a huge issue, and were feeling the weight of it. Between the feedback weve been getting and the meeting, we hope to find ways forward. They may not be perfect for everyone, but hopefully they can avoid some of the consequences. Down the road, he added, It would be nice to find a solution that helps the program get funded, and doesnt create barriers for businesses. Arnold would like to see the Legislature get involved. The Legislature needs to review how the department is run, and remove the antiquated parts, she said. Theres never going to be enough money the way its set up now. HELENA A Montana ice cream maker said hes considering getting milk from Idaho instead of in-state dairies because of costs hed have to pay under proposed increased fees. Wilcoxson's Ice Cream President Matt Schaeffer said his company has never had to pay fees on milk it uses from within the state. Now theyre trying to tell us were going to charge $17,400 a year out of the blue, he said Thursday during a hearing in Helena. When that happened, it kind of woke me up a little bit and we started looking around. Each month, dairies are charged about 15 cents per hundred pounds of milk produced, with a minimum charge of $50 and a maximum of $1,050. Under the current rule, processors such as small plants that make ice cream and cheese, are not charged. Under the proposed rule, that rate nearly doubles to 27 cents per hundred pounds of milk, and the minimum fee jumps to $225 a month while the maximum drops to $950. Processors would pay a minimum of $725 a month and a maximum of $2,850. The increase in fees is to make up for a projected shortfall in the Department of Livestock budget. Even with objections to the proposed fees from producers and processors, the Legislature's Economic Affairs Interim Committee decided Thursday to lift its objections to the rule, with the understanding that the Board of Livestock will change whats being proposed based on feedback it heard at town halls around the state. The vote was 6-2, with Sen. Gordon Vance, R-Belgrade, and Rep. Vince Ricci, R-Laurel, objecting. The board will have to hold public hearings on any changes it makes to the rule, giving dairies and the public the opportunity to comment on the next iteration. The board will also appear before the interim committee again. *** George Harris, administrator of the Department of Livestock, said the part of the department that tests milk and does inspections is facing a budget shortfall, partly because there are a declining number of dairies in the state, meaning fewer people are paying inspection and testing fees. He said other factors are also involved the lab has been understaffed and needs more employees but he didnt have exact numbers on what is causing the shortfall. John Scully, vice chair of the Board of Livestock, said that based on comments from dairy producers and processors, the department knows the numbers in the proposed rule will have to change, though hes not sure how. Weve asked folks to provide alternatives, he said, noting the board still needs to review all the comments it has received. Previously the Board of Milk Control was in charge of the fees and only charged producers. But in a cleanup of the language of state statutes a few years ago, a change gave the task to the Board of Livestock. The statute also previously included language that allowed for assessing a fee on processors, though that hasn't happened in the past. Its just a whoops, Scully said. Producers and processors have opposed the rule. *** Schaeffer said Wilcoxsons is the last ice cream producer in the state and does $5 million a year in business. He said milk from Idaho already costs $4 less per hundred pounds than milk from Montana. Hes traveling to that state next week to talk to dairies there. He said if he starts getting his milk from Idaho, it would create a million-pound surplus in the state. Wilcoxson's makes ice cream at plants in Billings and Livingston and employs 25 people. I dont actually want to use out-of-state milk, but with this additional fee theyre trying to impose on it, its huge, he said. If my hand is forced I will look elsewhere, and that includes moving production out of state. Several decades ago, milk producers starting paying fees to help pay for the lab that tests milk for bacteria and other problems and for inspections. Schaeffer said that money used to come from the states general fund and he feels thats where the funding should come from now. Doug Kamerman of Dairyland Farms near Manhattan said he would have gotten hit twice by the new fee, once at his 700-head dairy and again at the Dairygold co-op of which he is a member. He said that testing is a public health and safety issue and should be paid for out of the general fund. Lark Gilmer, who owns Poor Orphan Creamery in Sheridan, makes sheeps milk cheese and buys milk from the dairy at the state prison to produce cows milk cheese during the off-season. She said shes the smallest producer in the state and the rule not only creates an economic issue, but a philosophical one. If you allow this rule with this fee increase to go through, you will discourage people from actually going small and small actually employs a lot of people in the community. It also supports the community, she said. Kim Ashmore said she plans to put in a sheep dairy in Helena, but wont if the new fees are too high. She said she has invested a lot of money and already has livestock, but is holding off on building infrastructure. If this proposal goes through, we wont even open the doors, he said. *** Rep. Ricci said he opposed lifting the objection to the rule because he didnt see any harm leaving it in place. We have the word of Scully and the board that they will proceed with something different, he said. What are you out if you leave the objection on the table? Scully wasn't opposed to maintaining the objection. Administrative rules are filed with the Secretary of States Office to be published, which is when they take effect. The last day this rule could be filed with the secretary of state is June 27, then it would be published July 8. Lifting the objection will allow this rule to be published by July without further approval from the committee. BOZEMAN (AP) Montana dairy producers are worried after the state Department of Livestock proposed increases on dairy inspection fees that some say could cripple small dairies. The proposal would nearly double the charge for milk producers and add a minimum $725 fee per month for processors, including cheesemakers and large producers who are not charged under current rules. Under state laws, the department is required to charge its licensees to cover the cost of inspections. The department says it has a $130,000 deficit, but small dairies said they would get hit the worst. "You choose the option that wouldn't bring in the most revenue, but the one that would cripple the small dairies," said Lark Gilmer, owner of Poor Orphan Creamery in Sheridan. Currently, there are fewer than 80 licensed dairy operations across the state. Gilmer said with fewer producers, the costs are rising. Dairy owners are also asking why they are being charged for inspections, which they consider a public health issue, the Bozeman Daily Chronicle reported. "There's other options that we haven't considered for funding this health issue. There's got to be other options available to us," said Gilmer. Department officials say they don't believe lawmakers will change the rules. "An agency going to the Legislature is not very popular and not very effective," Zaluski said. "It's not so easy for us to say that we need more resources for this particular problem." The current system pleases no one. Larger processors often have in-house testing facilities and say they should pay lower fees. Smaller dairy owners said they don't make enough money to absorb a fee increase. Chad Lee, Milk Control Bureau chief, said reducing inspections could have a devastating effect. "Potentially you could have the result where the plants would lose their ability to ship out of state, which would put dairies out of business for sure," Lee said. Hamilton Republican Bob Lake will seek a second term on the Montana Public Service Commission. Lake filed Wednesday for the District 4 seat. Elected to the commission in 2012, Lake brought 38 years of experience from the private sector including owning and operating Hamiltons Lakeland Feed and Supply and a decade on the Montana Legislature to the job. In a press release, Lake said during his first term on the commission, his primary goal was to fight for the preservation of long-term affordability and reliability of energy in Montana. That included overseeing the purchase of 11 hydroelectric dams by NorthWestern Energy in 2014. Energy consumers will face much hardship in the near future if regulators dont provide strong leadership and resolve to protect low cost, reliable energy services, Lake said. I promise the people of Montana that I will strive to do just that in my second term on the PSC. Lake said his experience on the regulatory board will be an asset to the states residents. Its easy to criticize the actions of a regulatory body like the PSC when you havent been in the trenches, contemplating the decisions that the commission must make, Lake said. Striking the balance between low rates for consumers, and a just, reasonable return to the utility that allows it to keep the lights on is no easy task. It takes real persistence and experience to understand the complexities of every situation that the commission finds itself, and I am confident that my time on the PSC will serve Montana consumers better than the ideologically driven, pie-in-the-sky agenda put forth by others who currently seek this office. Lake is being challenged by Democrat Mark Sweeney of Phillipsburg, who narrowly lost in the 2012 primary for the District 3 PSC seat. Sweeney is a former manager of the state-owned Washoe Park Fish Hatchery in Anaconda. He has since moved to Phillipsburg, which is part of PSC District 4. With all five PSC seats currently held by Republicans, Sweeney has said that he believes the PSC is out-of-balance politically and that it needs some diversity. Sweeney was born in Butte and grew up in Miles City. He earned a degree in natural resource management from Western Montana College in 1982 and spent 26 years working at the Anaconda fish hatchery. He also has served as an Anaconda-Deer Lodge County commissioner for two years. PSC District 4 encompasses seven counties in western and northwestern Montana that stretches from Libby to Hamilton. PSC Republican incumbent Roger Koopman of Bozeman also announced this week that he will file for reelection for the District 3 seat. Democrat Pat Noonan of Ramsay has also filed for that position. Tony ODonnell, a Republican from Billings, is running for the District 2 seat. Masters Of War Come you masters of war You that build all the guns You that build the death planes You that build all the bombs You that hide behind walls You that hide behind desks I just want you to know I can see through your masks. You that never done nothin' But build to destroy You play with my world Like it's your little toy You put a gun in my hand And you hide from my eyes And you turn and run farther When the fast bullets fly. Like Judas of old You lie and deceive A world war can be won You want me to believe But I see through your eyes And I see through your brain Like I see through the water That runs down my drain. You fasten all the triggers For the others to fire Then you set back and watch When the death count gets higher You hide in your mansion' As young people's blood Flows out of their bodies And is buried in the mud. You've thrown the worst fear That can ever be hurled Fear to bring children Into the world For threatening my baby Unborn and unnamed You ain't worth the blood That runs in your veins. How much do I know To talk out of turn You might say that I'm young You might say I'm unlearned But there's one thing I know Though I'm younger than you That even Jesus would never Forgive what you do. Let me ask you one question Is your money that good Will it buy you forgiveness Do you think that it could I think you will find When your death takes its toll All the money you made Will never buy back your soul. And I hope that you die And your death'll come soon I will follow your casket In the pale afternoon And I'll watch while you're lowered Down to your deathbed And I'll stand over your grave 'Til I'm sure that you're dead.------- Bob Dylan 1963 "New Again" "New Again" "Memories of You - EP" "Memories of You - EP" every Wednesdaya at 9pm Listen to the Radio Show & Podcast VIDEO OF THE WEEK Blog Archive October 2022 (38) September 2022 (60) August 2022 (63) July 2022 (65) June 2022 (68) May 2022 (67) April 2022 (62) March 2022 (68) February 2022 (54) January 2022 (61) December 2021 (70) November 2021 (72) October 2021 (67) September 2021 (59) August 2021 (56) July 2021 (57) June 2021 (66) May 2021 (63) April 2021 (75) March 2021 (73) February 2021 (61) January 2021 (69) December 2020 (62) November 2020 (62) October 2020 (70) September 2020 (51) August 2020 (52) July 2020 (60) June 2020 (57) May 2020 (79) April 2020 (56) March 2020 (52) February 2020 (50) January 2020 (69) December 2019 (58) November 2019 (64) October 2019 (44) September 2019 (49) August 2019 (71) July 2019 (71) June 2019 (71) May 2019 (67) April 2019 (74) March 2019 (85) February 2019 (64) January 2019 (73) December 2018 (66) November 2018 (81) October 2018 (87) September 2018 (66) August 2018 (76) July 2018 (84) June 2018 (86) May 2018 (64) April 2018 (83) March 2018 (78) February 2018 (69) January 2018 (69) December 2017 (82) November 2017 (87) October 2017 (89) September 2017 (77) August 2017 (75) July 2017 (76) June 2017 (90) May 2017 (86) April 2017 (59) March 2017 (61) February 2017 (82) January 2017 (91) December 2016 (90) November 2016 (80) October 2016 (75) September 2016 (95) August 2016 (104) July 2016 (93) June 2016 (96) May 2016 (98) April 2016 (99) March 2016 (113) February 2016 (82) January 2016 (98) December 2015 (113) November 2015 (94) October 2015 (93) September 2015 (98) August 2015 (97) July 2015 (105) June 2015 (103) May 2015 (95) April 2015 (100) March 2015 (102) February 2015 (93) January 2015 (114) December 2014 (110) November 2014 (103) October 2014 (105) September 2014 (96) August 2014 (96) July 2014 (112) June 2014 (119) May 2014 (109) April 2014 (116) March 2014 (117) February 2014 (109) January 2014 (116) December 2013 (117) November 2013 (121) October 2013 (125) September 2013 (93) August 2013 (115) July 2013 (110) June 2013 (102) May 2013 (115) April 2013 (113) March 2013 (119) February 2013 (108) January 2013 (119) December 2012 (132) November 2012 (115) October 2012 (121) September 2012 (115) August 2012 (124) July 2012 (102) June 2012 (121) May 2012 (121) April 2012 (127) March 2012 (130) February 2012 (112) January 2012 (131) December 2011 (129) November 2011 (118) October 2011 (118) September 2011 (110) August 2011 (138) July 2011 (146) June 2011 (139) May 2011 (144) April 2011 (127) March 2011 (140) February 2011 (116) January 2011 (134) December 2010 (133) November 2010 (136) October 2010 (148) September 2010 (128) August 2010 (155) July 2010 (129) June 2010 (138) May 2010 (152) April 2010 (161) March 2010 (119) February 2010 (149) January 2010 (155) December 2009 (177) November 2009 (171) October 2009 (176) September 2009 (159) August 2009 (156) July 2009 (170) June 2009 (157) May 2009 (185) April 2009 (179) March 2009 (183) February 2009 (170) January 2009 (181) December 2008 (189) November 2008 (183) October 2008 (164) September 2008 (164) August 2008 (177) July 2008 (179) June 2008 (170) May 2008 (191) April 2008 (175) March 2008 (195) February 2008 (162) January 2008 (188) December 2007 (187) November 2007 (189) October 2007 (194) September 2007 (156) August 2007 (194) July 2007 (163) June 2007 (176) May 2007 (190) April 2007 (177) March 2007 (192) February 2007 (165) January 2007 (170) December 2006 (182) November 2006 (177) October 2006 (185) September 2006 (180) August 2006 (156) July 2006 (160) June 2006 (177) May 2006 (173) April 2006 (157) March 2006 (158) February 2006 (146) January 2006 (144) December 2005 (135) November 2005 (138) October 2005 (128) September 2005 (141) August 2005 (136) July 2005 (133) June 2005 (119) May 2005 (143) April 2005 (52) Sagarmatha Network Pvt. 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I have been doing the Royal Musings and Royal Book News blogs since 2008. I do not have a paywall or charge for reading articles. I enjoy writing and researching and reading. I devote a fair amount of time to the blog. No expectations or obligations when reading Royal Musings or Royal Book News - but if you enjoy either or both blogs, feel free to make a donation. Or not, course. Thank you very much. I still have the Amazon adverts. I make pennies off any Amazon sale (not just books) if you enter through one of my book links or the search boxes on the right side of the blogs Celebrating the Life and Politics of Professor Randhir Singh Marxist philosopher, Legendary teacher and Communist for life 1922-2016 India International Centre [New Delhi] Main Auditorium February 5, 2016 | 4 to 6 pm o o o Political theorist and Marxist scholar Randhir Singh dies On Monday evening, a group of Singhas students, colleagues and friends gathered at Lodhi Crematorium to bid farewell to the former Professor of Political Science in Delhi University. Express News Service, Delhi, Published: Feb 2, 2016 http://indianexpress.com/article/cities/delhi/political-theorist-and-marxist-scholar-randhir-singh-dies/ o o o (SACW Special - 5 February 2016) Prof Randhir Singh - an inspiring Marxist intellectual by Pritam Singh Prof Randhir Singh (born on January 11 1922), an internationally renowned Marxist scholar of political science and one of the leading nationally known Punjabi intellectual died on January 31 in Delhi a few weeks after celebrating his 94th birthday. When I was an undergraduate student of economics at Panjab University, Chandigarh and was increasingly getting interested in Marxism and the Naxalite movement, a left wing economist Amit Bhaduri visited the university. I and Harbhajan Halvarvi, an underground Naxalite activist, went to meet him to find out if he could help us in establishing contacts with Marxist intellectuals in Calcutta who could help us in conducting study circles on Marxism in Punjab, and he suggested to us that we should establish contacts with Randhir Singh and Bipan Chandra of Delhi University. That was the first time I heard about Randhir Singh. Since that time and meeting him on his 93rd birthday party in Delhi in January 2015, it has been a long history of friendship and political-intellectual relationship. When I used to look at the intellectual heritage of Punjabi communists, he was the one who inspired me the most. [. . .] read more at: http://sacw.net/article12363.html o o o The Tribune, February 2, 2016 He moulded minds, touched lives by Neera Chandhoke A great teacher directs us to the right path. This is what Randhir was, and will be remembered for. He is perhaps the only teacher in the Department of Political Science who became a cult figure, inspiring young people to critically engage with society. In the early 1970s, Professor Randhir Singh became the Head of the Political Science Department in Delhi University, and along with a few bright and energetic colleagues in the department and colleges, wrought a virtual revolution in the study and teaching of a adry as dusta discipline. This was a remarkable achievement given the dismal state of the field of political science. The subject, now taught in more than a 100 universities and thousands of colleges in the country, is of relatively recent provenance. It took birth in the 1930s by an act of secession from history, in universities of North India. The progress of the discipline was slow, and till 1938 only five universities had offered the subject. Teaching was majorly shaped by the influence of British philosophical idealists, TH Green, FH Bradly and Bernard Bosanquet. Interesting as it may be, this philosophical orientation contributed little to the understanding of social and political life in the country. Political theory was taught unimaginatively, as a philosophy that originating in alien lands had little relevance for individual and collective lives in India. After Independence, political science, particularly the study of Indian politics,became excessively formalistic and legalistic. By the 1960s, the behavioural revolution pioneered by American political science came to dominate the scene in India. Behaviouralism was apolitical and status quoist, and generations of students remained unfamiliar with the key concepts of normative political theory: justice, egalitarianism, substantive freedom, exploitation, and liberation, which are essential for substantive democracy, and particularly a "new" democracy like India. In the middle of a political science that deadened political sensibilities, Randhir Singh launched a storm of new vocabularies, new understandings, and new political judgements. We, as students and as young teachers became aware of the depredations of colonialism, exploitative ruling classes, the many inhumanities of capitalism, and possibilities of emancipation. Politics, said Randhir, to some of us, is defined as the art of the possible; it is rather the art of the impossible. As a Marxist who had taken keen part in the communist movement during his student days in Lahore, Randhir gave to us a materialist conception of history, and an agential conception of human beings. People could make their own histories, even if the histories they made were not the histories they had wanted to make in the first instance. After Partition, Randhir Singhs family came to Delhi. As a faculty member in what was then Delhi College, now Zakir Hussain, Randhir acquired great repute as a gifted teacher. In his professional life, Randhir faced and surmounted a number of obstacles. His passion for interpreting the texts of political theory through the prism of Marxist materialism aroused scepticism, even envy among colleagues in the postgraduate Department of political science. Resultantly, he was excluded from teaching in the department. Yet the number of political science students who thronged his classes in the history department of the university swelled. There came a time when his peers could no longer deny him a professorship in the department, and this was the time when a rather boring discipline was transformed beyond belief. The makeover in the course content of the discipline was nothing short of dramatic. From teaching the constitutional history of India, as a series of acts drafted and implemented by the colonial government, we as young teachers came to understand and communicate the extent of damage colonialism had produced, the hold of imperialism, and the making of a neo-colonial ruling class. "Gandhi," Randhir, used to say, "wanted the peasant to inherit India", but "history decreed that the capitalist inherited India". The focus of political science changed, it acquired a historical, analytical and normative edge, and we began to speak of gender, class and caste, the nature of the state, power, domination and exploitation. In his professional life, Randhir exhibited exemplary courage and integrity virtues that are somewhat rare even in the realms of academia. He refused to compromise, even at the risk of making some enemies, but he considered engaging with small minds below his dignity. To his friends and admirers, he was amazingly generous, sometimes sharp of tongue, but always large-hearted. As long as he taught he published sparingly. But his work on Michael Oakeshott, Reason, Revolution and Political Theory was well received. When the time for his retirement came, some of us organised as a festschrift, a special issue of the Department journal Teaching Politics that Randhir and some colleagues had initiated. The editor of the volume asked him for his bio-data. Characteristically, Randhir gave her a short piece titled "in lieu of a bio-data". In this elegantly written piece he spoke of his participation in the communist movement, and his teaching career. The piece gives us reason to ponder on the utter irrationality of academic life. A teacher, Randhir taught us, is not expected to recommend to students a long list of books .Teaching is about instigating them to think and question inherited beliefs, making them aware of the brutalities of society, and about imparting the need to battle injustice. A great teacher directs us to the right path. This is what Randhir was, and will be remembered for. Farewell Guru, friend and comrade, you will be sadly missed. The writer is visiting Professor at Centre for Study of Law and Governance, JNU o o o The Wire, February 2, 2016 A Marxist Scholar Who Never Hesitated to Take the Unpopular View by Pritam Singh The late Prof Randhir Singh, scholar and political scientist who taught at Delhi University Professor Randhir Singh, an internationally renowned Marxist scholar of political science, who died on January 31 at the age of 95 was a kind of legend among his students. Apart from a brief stint at Jawaharlal Nehru University, he spent his entire academic career at the Department of political science at the University of Delhi. His lectures were so popular for the sheer brilliance of their content and delivered with such passion and engagement that students from as diverse disciplines as Economics, Sociology, Law, Literature, Mathematics and even Physics and Chemistry, attended in large numbers. Unlike most academics these days who pride themselves on their research publications, he was very proud of his teaching achievements. And, of course, among his students are now very successful academics who have proud publication records and many of them attribute their fascination with the subject of political science to Prof Randhir Singhas lectures they attended at Delhi University. Prof Singh attracted critical acclaim in the world of political science with the publication of his book Reason, Revolution and Political Theory (1967) which is a powerful and widely reviewed Marxist critique of the work of the conservative political theorist Michael Oakeshott. The late Mohit Sen, the CPI theorist, reviewing Randhir Singhas book in Economic and Political Weekly (EPW) had remarked that with this book, Indian political scientists could claim an equal status in the world of international scholarship on political theory. Critical of state repression in Punjab In 1987, Randhir Singh wrote a very influential article that was entitled aMarxists and the Sikh Extremist Movement in Punjaba that was published in the EPW, which was an example of his intellectual and political integrity where he overcame personal considerations in criticising very sharply his lifelong friend the historian Bipan Chandra. He criticised what he called athe Ribeiro-Girilal Jain-Bipan Chandra linea for its advocacy of resolving the Punjab crisis by using the repressive apparatus of the state in liquidating the Sikh extremists. He also ridiculed the CPI and CPM for indirectly endorsing this line by joining the BJP in aunited all-party ralliesa against Sikh extremism under the name of aunity and integrity of the countrya. He argued that this line not only reinforced the class rule of the Indian state, it also fed aggressive Hindu chauvinist nationalism. The robustness of his criticism of this line has been proved by the subsequent events that have shown that the main beneficiaries have been the BJP-led political tendencies and forces. He was far away from being an armchair theoretician. Not only was he a leading light of the Delhi University Teachersa Association for a long period of time and especially in its formative stage, but he was also an active supporter of the trade unions, Kisan Sabhas, human rights groups and the campaigning organisations of women, Dalits, tribal communities and the minority nationalities in the country. A remarkable quality of Prof Singh was that he was constantly refreshing his ideas and perspectives. He was one of the very few among the Indian academics who understood the importance of the vision of eco-socialism in its critique of capitalismas environmentally destructive character. In terms of moral and intellectual qualities, Randhir Singh was one of the tallest public intellectuals India has produced in the last few decades, and the Punjabis can be genuinely proud of him. Pritam Singh is a professor at Oxford Brookes University o o o Randhir Singh obituary by Pritam Singh (The Guardian, 24 February 2016) http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/feb/24/randhir-singh-obituary Randhir Singh: Farewell Teacher, Comrade, and Friend by Jyotsna Kapur https://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/2016/kapur260216.html o o o Links to some writings by Prof Randhir Singh Marxism, Socialism, Indian Politics: A View from the Left by Randhir Singh Note that this only concerns my own imagery posted here, not imagery by others which I post with permission (the latter are clearly indicated as such in the subscripts)! Excerpt from United Nations resolution 2222 (XXI) Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies In order to promote international co-operation in the peaceful exploration and use of outer space, States Parties to the Treaty conducting activities in outer space, including the moon and other celestial bodies, agree to inform the Secretary-General of the United Nations as well as the public and the international scientific community, to the greatest extent feasible and practicable, of the nature, conduct, locations and results of such activities. On receiving the said information, the Secretary-General of the United Nations should be prepared to disseminate it immediately and effectively. Click On Our Advertisers Ads Most of our ads have links to take you directly to their Websites. Just click on an ad and away you go. First, note that this is NOT a blog....it's a collection of essays similar in nature to what the Greek Plutarch attempted to write. Second: NO, there will be no Facebook connection to the essay collection. Besides the negativity with FB, there is just too much potential in the future for censorship with FB. Third, this log of essays is written by an American (not a German). If you are a German seeking commentary written by a German, on Germans....look elsewhere. Fourth, I will offer wit and sarcasm on Germany, Germans, Germanology, German political figures, German TV, German beer, German food, German humor (or lack of), German habits, German weirdness, German news, German autos, German brilliance, German stupidity, German customs, German Nazis, German history, and German stubbornness. Fifth (new), the essays are not about ethnic pathways to your grandfather or great-grandmother who was German. It relates present day Germans. If you are trying to get some understanding to your ancestor who packed up and left sixty years ago from the old 'homeland', then this blog is probably not for you. Final note: I generally only delete comments that are spam-related, or hype over pure Nationalist Socialist agendas. I generally won't support one-sided arguments/agendas. I also don't think accusations of racism or nationalism are generally proven, and can reflect poorly upon the person making the accusations. I was one of those Americans who did over twenty years of military time....married a German....and eventually returned as a retiree.I'm one of the few who stood under the German umbrella.....paid German taxes for some years.....German social security.....and felt the various pains like Germans.So, this is my all-purpose commentary essay, designed for non-Germans mostly (and those Germans who accidentally discover it). I tend to put German culture into the spotlight of sarcasm, wit and humor. I'm simply pointing out the richness and craziness of life in Germany, which even some Germans can't understand.The amusing thing is that I'm merely repeating the exercise that Mark Twain performed in 1880, when he published "A Tramp Abroad". Various comments were dished out on the Germans....which apparently did not trigger any wars, chaos, climate change, or ill feelings. "Resistance to Tyrants is Obedience to God"- Benjamin Franklin Print Media/Music/Video selections: RonDoids does not own the copyright to certain media posted within our site. "Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use." If you are currently a print subscriber but don't have an online account, select this option. You will need to use your 7 digit subscriber account number (with leading zeros) and your last name (in UPPERCASE). DOJ announces appointment of new Acting Pardon Attorney | Main | "Obey All Laws and Be Good: Probation and the Meaning of Recidivism" The Marshall Project has this intriguing new piece on the modern reality and reform of collateral consequences headlined "Six States Where Felons Cant Get Food Stamps: Few holdouts remain, as drug-war-era bans on benefits are lifted." Here are the details: For almost two decades, Alabama residents convicted of a drug-related felony were barred for life from receiving food stamps or welfare payments. Starting this month, the ban will officially be lifted. Alabama is not the only state that is backing away from the ban, which was established in 1996 under President Bill Clintons welfare reform law and blocks only drug offenders from receiving assistance, not any other felons. Eighteen states have completely abandoned the federal prohibition on drug offenders receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, or food stamps. Twenty-six other states have partly eased those restrictions, often by providing the benefits only if the recipient complies with parole, does not commit a second offense, enrolls in treatment, etc. At least three more states Georgia, Nebraska, and Indiana are now considering similar reforms. Only six states continue to fully enforce the War on Drugs-era ban. ... States have been somewhat less willing to lift the ban on drug offenders receiving Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), otherwise known as welfare. Thirteen states continue to fully prohibit anyone with a drug-related conviction from getting welfare benefits, and 23 others maintain a partial ban. Unlike food stamps, which are paid for in full by the federal government, welfare is partly funded by the states. That means it is significantly more expensive for states to expand access to welfare, which may be part of the reason this ban has been slower to fall. This week the UK Guardian built a story around the fact that longtime gay activist and friend of Harvey Milk Cleve Jones was sounding alarm bells about seeing a group of men he thought were straight commandeering the pool table and patio at a gay bar in the Castro called The Mix. First off, I'd like to go on the record as saying I'm more than familiar with the Castro neighborhood, and I do not think that The Mix is in any danger of becoming a straight bar. Yes, real estate is expensive, and yes, you see some more families on the streets of the neighborhood than you once did, but it's also every bit the drunken LGBT shitshow it's always been on most nights and weekends. The neighborhood remains majority-gay, as this retail survey found last year, even though it found that the percentage of newer residents who are gay was somewhat less than among those who'd lived there 10 years or more. Still, it's a central, desirable, tech-shuttle- and transit-connected neighborhood that has, along with The Mission next door, become one of the hottest rental markets, and that includes for tech-employed gays as well as straights. And the straight people, by and large, while patronizing local restaurants, are still more likely to walk in the direction of the Mission to do their drinking though places like Brewcade, Blackbird, and Churchill have all opened their doors to heterosexual clientele in recent years. To quote Jones, "The tech bros had taken over The Mix. They commanded [sic] the pool table and the patio. These big, loud, butch guys. It was scary. Im not heterophobic, but I dont want to go to a gay bar and buy some guy a drink and have him smirk and tell me hes straight. They can go anywhere. We cant. I just need to call bullshit on this because a) a lot of young gay people have tons of straight friends and will, in fact, bring them along to bars; b) a lot of dudes who look like straight "tech bros" to Jones might in fact be gay; c) if there are neighborhood gay bars like The Gangway that are in trouble or closing, it's more because gay men often use their cell phones to hook up these days, and don't need a gay bar in every neighborhood for that purpose; and d) The Mix remains very, very gay. So everyone needs to calm down and stop re-posting the story on social media, because even conservative site Breitbart has leapt on this one, poo-pooing Jones's and others' "shock" about having to deal with icky straight people on their turf. Tolerance, of course, goes both ways. Update: Jones, himself, responds to SFist, and basically says he regrets the quote, which was not at all the focus of his interview. I think you're right to call BS on this. After a very long interview about the many forces that are transforming LGBT life in San Francisco, the reporter chose to focus on an off-hand, semi-humorous side comment that I regretted shortly after it left my mouth. The issues we face are far more important and complex than straight people in gay bars. I do think we can have a conversation about "gay space" but frankly, I think we all have more important issues at the moment. Previously: Retail Survey Says: Castro Getting Less Gay, But Remains Very Gay When a Bud Light truck bottomed out on a steep hill at Jones and California yesterday afternoon, we took a small bit of admitted pleasure in laughing at the charming naivete on display. Like, dude, you tried to turn that truck down that street? But today we learn that yesterday's incident wasn't the only case of San Francisco's wonderful hills threatening to spike the cheap-beer-fueled Super Bowl party dreams of out-of-town visitors. In fact, the very same hill at Jones and California Street said "no thank you" to a Miller Lite truck just last week. SFist reader Court Toomey was walking home last week when he came across the scene pictured above. "Cops and an industrial tow truck were there for over an hour," explained Toomey. Unfortunately Toomey didn't have any photos of the industrial tow truck used to pull this thing off the crest (we asked), but we imagine it was no easy feat. So what is going on here? Bad GPS directions followed by out-of-town delivery drivers? Maybe. Or maybe this beautiful San Francisco hill is making a bold statement just in time for Super Bowl 50: No cheap beer shall pass here. Previously: Super Bowl Parties Threatened As Bud Light Truck Bottoms Out On SF Street This Page has moved to a new address: Sorry for the inconvenience Redirection provided by Blogger to WordPress Migration Service Disclaimer: This blog is a personal non profit unofficial web site and has been created for hobby, educational, research and informational purposes only. Any material will be removed upon request from copyright holders. FAIR USE NOTICE: This blog may contain copyrighted material. 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Acts 17:11 These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. OXNARD, Calif. | Beverage company KeVita got its start in a kitchen. But now, KeVitas 57,000-square-foot facility in this coastal city west of Los Angeles can turn out 160,000 bottles of its popular fermented kombucha tea and other beverages in a day. Processes such as bottle cleaning are automated, and many systems can be operated from an iPad. The kombucha business has grown up, turning into an industry that could reach $656.7 million in U.S. sales by 2019, according to research firm Euromonitor International. It fits right into that health and wellness trend, said Duane Stanford, editor of Beverage Digest, a trade publication for the U.S. nonalcoholic beverage industry. People are looking for healthier beverages, theyre looking at ingredients and because theres a segment of consumers that are really interested in that, kombucha just kind of becomes one of those niche products that is able to get a following. But with that growth comes increased scrutiny by federal regulators to keep kombuchas alcohol content under the limit acceptable for nonalcoholic beverages. The tangy tea with a vinegar-like taste has been around for hundreds if not thousands of years. Advocates say the drink, made with tea, sugar and a culture of bacteria and yeast, has health benefits, such as improving digestion and liver function. (The Mayo Clinic has said that theres no scientific evidence to back up these claims.) Theres an experience they have thats difficult to quantify, Hannah Crum, president and co-founder of trade group Kombucha Brewers International, said about customers. Most of them say that it just makes them feel good and thats what spurs them to buy it. The fermented probiotic beverage crept into the commercial beverage market in 1995 when G.T. Dave started to sell kombucha brewed in his parents kitchen. The then-17-year-old Beverly Hills High School dropout eventually turned his home-grown business, Millennium Products Inc., into the dominant force in the kombucha market. Other producers started to jump in, but as the industry was poised to expand in 2010, kombucha bottles were pulled off shelves temporarily at Whole Foods Market Inc. stores. The Austin, Texas-based grocery chain cited concerns with slightly elevated alcohol levels in some products that didnt match their labels. After discussing the issue with suppliers, the company and producers decided on a voluntary withdrawal. At the same time, federal regulators from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau sent letters to some producers saying that their drinks contained 0.5 percent or more alcohol, higher than the limit to be considered a nonalcoholic beverage. Some producers decided to obtain permits and release their kombucha as an alcoholic drink. Others reformulated to ensure that their kombucha could stay nonalcoholic, TTB spokesman Tom Hogue said. The turmoil allowed KeVita to grab shelf space in grocery stores. The company launched in 2010 with a sparkling probiotic drink that was seen as lighter but complementary to kombucha and signed a contract with Whole Foods. About two years ago, the company ventured into kombucha and also added a line of sparkling probiotic tonics, making it the second-largest kombucha-maker in the nation with about 15 percent of the market share, according to KeVita. All we wanted to do was execute, be in compliance and get our toehold in every Whole Foods in America, KeVita Chief Executive Bill Moses said. In the last few years, kombucha has seen a resurgence. Sales of ready-to-drink carbonated tea, which includes many kombucha brands, jumped from $127.8 million in 2009 to $529.1 million in 2014, according to Euromonitor. For the non-carbonated bottled tea category, U.S. sales increased to $4.8 billion last year, up from $3.8 billion in 2009. Stanford of Beverage Digest cautioned that its still too early to tell whether kombucha can reach the same level of mainstream success as smoothies, Naked Juice and similar healthy beverage counterparts. A lot of it just depends on how the American palate evolves when it comes to health and wellness drinks, he said. SIOUX CENTER, Iowa | Republican caucus-goers across Iowa spent an hour or more Monday night listening to pitches for a bevy of presidential candidates before voting for their favorite contender. But in at least one caucus site in Northwest Iowa, numerous Republican voters showed up ahead of time to cast their ballots and then promptly left before the meeting began at 7 p.m. Jacob Hall, a Republican who took part in that caucus on the campus of Dordt College in Sioux Center, said he was disappointed that caucus leaders allowed Dordt students, and perhaps others, to vote early. "My biggest concern is the volume of people who were allowed to vote early. I do not understand why an email was sent to Dordt students explicitly telling them they could vote and then leave, yet at the caucus registration, workers were told not to volunteer that information unless asked by the general public," Hall said. Hall said Jeff Taylor, a Dordt college professor who served as a co-chair at the Republican caucus, sent an email to students, saying they could vote prior to the 7 p.m. start time. Taylor on Wednesday declined comment and referred questions to the Iowa Republican Party. A state party spokesman confirmed that while early voting is not a typical practice, local caucus leaders did not break any party rules. Hall shared with the Journal an email Taylor sent to Dordt students from his college email account. The email encouraged participation in Democratic or Republican caucuses, and said, "If you attend the Republican caucus, immediate voting is permitted. If you want to cast a vote right after you check-in, and then want to leave, you may. The caucus will have a secure box for these early votes. Of course, you are encouraged to stay to hear brief speeches on behalf of the presidential candidates, remarks by local candidates, discussion of the party platform, and other business." Voters were allowed to vote and leave until around 6:20 p.m., Hall said. After caucus leaders decided too many people were doing so they temporarily stopped early balloting. But shortly after the caucus began at 7 p.m., it was announced that anyone who wanted to cast a vote and leave could do so before the caucus began. Hall said the focus was to get "as many college students to vote as possible without regard for the process." He said caucuses include speeches in support of candidates, which is a step that should be heard before people vote. "We may as well have a primary, which would undoubtedly hurt those candidates who are the most conservative because winning a caucus takes committed, grassroot support," Hall said. Hall also expressed concern that after the caucus site ran out of ballots, organizers handed out torn pieces of notebook paper with no special markings for voters to write down their preference. State Republican Party spokesman Charle Szold noted a record 187,000 caucus-goers showed up Monday night, so some precinct chairs made decisions to speed up the process. Szold said caucus night was a statewide success in spite of the challenging number of Republicans who took part in 1,682 precincts, and party officials are proud the final results were reported within four hours. Sioux County, the most Republican county in Iowa, had 4,594 GOP voters take part in Monday's caucuses. Sen. Ted Cruz, the winner of the statewide contest, carried the county with 33.2 percent, with Sen. Marco Rubio close behind in second place. THUMBS UP Iowa Republicans set record Republicans established a new turnout record for the Iowa caucuses on Monday night. More than 180,000 registered Republicans caucused, easily breaking the former record of 121,503 set in 2012. Executive overreach will be focus U.S. Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, will chair a task force on executive branch overreach formed on Wednesday by the House Judiciary Committee. "It will be part of the task forces mission to study the impact the increase in presidential and executive branch power has had on the ability of Congress to conduct oversight of the executive branch, the lack of transparency that furthers unchecked executive power and the constitutional requirement of the president to faithfully execute the law," according to a House Judiciary Committee statement. "Additionally, the task force will review the tools at the disposal of the Congress to restore the proper balance of powers and hold the executive branch accountable. It will also make recommendations where there are deficiencies, including legislative solutions." The Constitution is clear: It is the role of Congress to make all laws, the judiciary to interpret the laws and the president to enforce the laws, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., said. Going extra mile for public input The City Council on Monday voted 5-0 to table second reading of two proposed ordinances impacting the Rose Hill neighborhood until Feb. 22 in order to allow time for more community feedback at a public meeting. At the council's request, a meeting was scheduled for Feb. 9. The meeting will be held at 7 p.m. in City Hall. Last month, the council gave first reading to a plan through which the city would rezone the 40-acre neighborhood and establish design standards for exterior building alterations in the name of historic protection. Rose Hill was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002. "We just really want to make sure we know all the comments and citizen input," City Planner Charlie Cowell said. State conference will have local impact Some 250 local hotel rooms will be filled for the annual meeting of the Iowa Association of Business and Industry from June 14 to 16 in Sioux City, The Journal reported Jan. 27. Mike Ralston, president of the IABI, announced this and other details related to the meeting during a news conference at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in downtown Sioux City. The meeting is expected to draw some 600 business and industry leaders from across the state. THUMBS DOWN Pessimistic Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad told local leaders gathered in Des Moines for the local lobbying trip organized by the Siouxland Chamber of Commerce he isn't optimistic for passage of legislation to strengthen anti-bullying law in the state during this year's session. Anti-bullying legislation passed in the Senate last year, but House leaders prevented the bill from reaching the floor for a vote. "I'm not optimistic, considering House Republicans really wouldn't take that up," Branstad said. "This year, I don't think that's changed." According to a Jan. 28 story from The Journal's Des Moines bureau, Branstad said last year's successful push to raise the state's gas tax by 10 cents per gallon may have made some Republican lawmakers averse to cooperation on an anti-bullying bill. If that's true, shame on them. Protection of Iowa children from the scourge of bullying shouldn't be treated as a pawn in a political game. SIOUX CITY | A day after a historic blizzard clobbered the region, Siouxlanders struggled Wednesday to get back to business as normal, as snow-covered roads continued to make travel treacherous. Winter Storm Kayla dumped 12.4 inches of snow on Sioux City, easily shattering the previous record for Groundhog Day of 3 inches set in 1976. More than two dozen other Siouxland cities recorded double-digit snowfall amounts, led by 17.5 inches in Wayne, Nebraska, and 17 inches in Vermillion, South Dakota, according to the National Weather Service. The more than a foot of snow that fell in Sioux City tied for the sixth-highest amount on any day in Iowa's fourth largest city. In addition, just three days into the month, the city also has nearly eclipsed the record of 14 inches of snow for February. While city plows worked overnight Tuesday and all day Wednesday, Mayor Bob Scott said it likely will take a few more days to finish cleaning all the residential streets. Theres a whole lot of snow, and unfortunately it came over an extended period of time, Scott said Wednesday. I say well have it pretty well cleaned up by the weekend. I dont think you can expect much more than that given the circumstances. On many of the roadways that had been plowed, motorists found the going somewhat rough Wednesday. Police Chief Doug Young said many streets were covered in rough, packed snow. You have to drive cautiously. It is slippery, Young said. "There is a lot of packed snow and ice underneath. The city remained in a snow emergency until midnight Wednesday. Sandy Blevins, an administrative assistant for the city managers office, said officials will reassess whether the emergency, which requires motorists who park on streets to move their vehicles or risk being towed, needs to be extended into Thursday. The blizzard that hit after midnight Tuesday paralyzed much of the region well into Wednesday morning. High winds produced large drifts in many places, and poor visibility and dangerous white-out conditions forced schools and businesses to close or delay their start times. The Sioux City school district cancelled classes Wednesday, giving students a second straight snow day. Classes will start at the regular times on Thursday, the district said. The Tyson beef plant in Dakota City, the metro area's largest employer, cut back to one shift of production Wednesday after being closed Tuesday due to the winter storm. A Tyson pork plant in Madison, Nebraska, remained idle due to poor road conditions. Interstate 29 in South Dakota reopened Wednesday morning after being shut down north of Sioux City Tuesday due to hazardous conditions. The interstate closure forced scores of over-the-road truckers to park overnight at area truck stops and other available parking such as the Tyson Events Center. Many area hotels also filled with motorists stranded by the blizzard. Sgt. Todd Sassman, who works with the police traffic investigations unit, said road conditions Wednesday made it difficult for trucks to travel through the city. Some of them havent been able to make as wide of turns as theyve been able to do, he said. So theyve gotten hung up in corners and stuff. Sassman also cautioned drivers to be weary of windrows that snow plows leave behind in the middle lane of three-lane streets downtown. "In a lot of areas those windrows are above visibility levels of cars, said Sassman, who noted at least seven crashes occurred in Sioux City Wednesday morning, but none were serious. Downtown streets are melting pretty decent, but a lot of the residential areas are still pretty nasty, Sassman said. Dianne Krier, a spokeswoman for Mercy Medical Center, said the emergency department had not reported any weather-related injuries. Traffic, she said, was ordinary. They really think people heeded the advice of staying home, she said. In rural Woodbury County, most gravel and secondary roads were closed, said Lt. Tony Wingert with the Woodbury County Sheriffs Office. Wingert said U.S. Highway 20 was covered in ice and snow, which created poor driving conditions. Woodbury Countys tow ban was lifted about 8:30 a.m., Wingert said. No crashes had been reported as of 9:32 a.m., but several cars had veered into ditches. By Wednesday afternoon, Wingert said road conditions were improving, but all the roads hadnt been hit yet. Kyle Weisser, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls, said breezy winds will continue to create snowdrifts this week. He added Sioux City should not expect snowfall on Friday, but according to the Weather Service, there is a 20 percent chance of snow that day. In Sioux City, the expected temperatures this week through the weekend will be in the low to upper 30s. DES MOINES | The anticipated annual showdown on school funding moved a step closer Tuesday when the Democratic-majority Senate Education Committee voted along party lines for a 4 percent increase in state aid to K-12 schools for fiscal year 2018. Without comment, the Senate Education Committee approved Senate Study Bills 3064 and 3065. I dont think we need debate here, Chairman Herman Quirmbach, D-Ames, said. There will be plenty of opportunity out on the floor. Quirmbach has warned that anything less than 4 percent will underfund schools. That limits opportunities for students and undermines the states economic future. By law, the fiscal 2018 school aid number should be set within 30 days of the governor making a recommendation. The House GOP and Gov. Terry Branstad want to change the law. Branstad has not made a fiscal 2018 recommendation. The Senate Education Committees funding proposal for 2018 comes as the Legislature still is trying to resolve school appropriations for fiscal 2017. The Republican-controlled House has approved a 2 percent increase, or nearly $81 million, in fiscal 2017. That not only half what Democrats are proposing, but below Gov. Terry Branstads proposed 2.45 percent increase. That issue is in a conference committee. House Republicans say that although 2 percent is not a big increase, it is appropriate in light of the states financial realities. House Education Committee Chairman Ron Jorgensen, R-Sioux City, said the $134 million that would go to base school budgets and the third year of the states education reforms would take 88 percent of the new money that House Republicans believe is available to spend next fiscal year. House Democrats argued the 2 percent increase would short-change students and raise local school property taxes. Quirmbach and Rep. Patti Ruff, D-McGregor, earlier released results of a survey of 257 school superintendents that found 88 percent favored a 4 percent increase in state aid to K-12 schools. Only three favored the 2 percent option. We want to know what you think about the movies. You can Tweet us your reviews @scweekender or share them on Facebook, www.facebook.com/siouxcityweekender. We'll pick the best comments on Monday before the next Weekender. Here are this week's movies: Kung Fu Panda 3 Starring: Jack Black, Angelina Jolie Story: Po meets his biological father and a village of pandas threatened by an ancient evil spirit. Po must protect them. Rated: PG for for martial arts action and some mild rude humor Verdict: Your movie review could go here. Tweet us @scweekender The Finest Hours Starring: Chris Pine, Casey Affleck Story: A pair of oil tankers are destroyed during a blizzard and the Coast Guard is tasked to rescue the crew. Rated: PG-13 for intense sequences of peril Verdict: Your movie review could go here. Tweet us @scweekender Jane Got a Gun Starring: Natalie Portman, Joel Edgerton Story: An outlaw is hunted by a rival gang, but his wife and her ex-lover are out to save him and defend the family. Rated: R for violence and some language Verdict: Your movie review could go here. Tweet us @scweekender Dirty Grandpa Starring: Zac Efron, Robert De Niro Story: A high-strung groom-to-be chauffeurs his perverted, former Army general grandpa to Florida for spring break. Rated: R for crude sexual content, graphic nudity, language and drug use Verdict: Your movie review could go here. Tweet us @scweekender The 5th Wave Starring: Chloe Grace Moretz Story: A teenage girl must protect her younger brother after Earth is attacked by waves of alien attacks. Rated: PG-13 for violence, sci-fi thematic elements, language and brief teen partying Verdict: Your movie review could go here. Tweet us @scweekender Ride Along 2 Starring: Kevin Hart, Ice Cube Story: Two police officers join forces to take down baddies. One is a groom-to-be, the other is his future brother-in-law. Rated: PG-13 for violence, sexual content, language and some drug material Verdict: Your movie review could go here. Tweet us @scweekender 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi Starring: John Krasinski, James Badge Dale Story: An American Ambassador is killed during an attack in Libya, a security team struggles to understand the chaos. Rated: R for strong violence, bloody images and language Verdict: Your movie review could go here. Tweet us @scweekender The Revenant Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy Story: A man on a fur trade expedition is thrust into a quest for survival after being left for dead. Rated: R for strong violence, gory image, a sexual assault, language and brief nudity Verdict: Your movie review could go here. Tweet us @scweekender The Hateful Eight Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell Story: A bounty hunter and his perp take refuge in a cabin full of eccentric and possibly dangerous characters. Rated: R for strong bloody violence, a scene of violent sexual content, language and some graphic nudity Verdict: Your movie review could go here. Tweet us @scweekender Star Wars: The Force Awakens Starring: Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill Story: The saga continues 30 years after Episode VI and follows three new characters: Finn, Rey and Poe Dameron. Rated: PG-13 for sci-fi action violence Verdict: The Force Awakens lived up to hype, just enough nods to past films, but with new characters/plot to set course for more films. @SCJBretH Some of the best inventions were created by accident. And that was also the case for Martha Pincoffs when she created Hot Dang and its now somewhat famous meatless veggie grain burger. Pincoffs never intended to start a business or to invent a new type of food. She was actually just taking part in an experiment. For a year, Pincoffs and her partner started a challenge where they only made food from locally sourced ingredients. And one night, when she didnt feel like heading out to the farmers market yet again, Pincoffs threw together some rice, barley, beans and other random ingredients she had lying around and made a meatless veggie burger patty. When she shared the meatless veggie grain burger with friends, they raved about it. With their constant encouragement, Pincoffs decided to start selling them at local farmers markets. And shortly after, she was approached by someone from Whole Foods. So she started selling the burgers there and in other markets and restaurants as well. Since Hot Dang was founded back in 2011, the company has grown tremendously. The grain burgers are sold in Whole Foods stores, Hat Creek Burger Company restaurants in Texas, and several other markets, stores and restaurant chains. Pincoffs even enlisted the help of family friend Tim Murphy, a food industry veteran who now serves as the companys CEO. Together, Murphy and Pincoffs have even expanded the companys product line. Aside from Pincoffs original grain burger creation, which they call The OG, the company sells a barbecue flavored patty called Big Tex, a southwest flavored patty called El Guapo and an Italian flavored one called The Don. Now, the company is even expanding into the breakfast market with a line of Breakfast Toasters. Murphy described them as similar to Pop-Tarts, since they can be heated up in the toaster. But theyre made with things like oats, seeds, nuts and berries. Pincoffs innovation in the kitchen certainly has been a big part of Hot Dangs success to this point. But another factor could be the growing popularity of healthy food options. Murphy even suggested that this trend is giving small businesses a greater opportunity in the food industry than theyve seen in the past. He said in a phone interview with Small Business Trends, Its amazing to see how these small little guys are disrupting an industry. You have less people eating foods from big companies like General Mills and Kraft and more people supporting these cool smaller brands. But with that growing segment of the industry, Hot Dang has to work even harder to stand out. One way that Murphy says makes Hot Dang different is the companys attitude. Rather than focusing on what is not in the food, just like all the meat-free, dairy-free, gluten-free, egg-free, flavor-free options out there, Hot Dang focuses more on taste and fun. It all comes down to the name, Hot Dang. The idea behind it is like, Hot Dang! This is a healthy food that actually tastes good. Its that element of surprise. And it shows that were having fun with it, says Murphy. Part of that fun also lies in the companys marketing efforts. Hot Dang puts a lot of emphasis on its blog and Instagram account, which showcase different ways to use the Hot Dang grain patties, aside from just throwing them on a bun with some ketchup and mustard. Instead, Murphy says you can use them as the base for plenty of different dishes. You can create a salad around them, top them with eggs, add them to your pasta or use them basically any other way you can think of. The company loves encouraging that kind of creativity among its customers, especially since thats the type of thinking that led to the companys founding in the first place. Thanks to William for the link! A Saudi military spokesman said Thursday the kingdom is ready to send ground troops to Syria to fight Islamic State group provided coalition leaders agree during an upcoming meeting in Brussels. Brig. Gen. Ahmed Asiri told The Associated Press that Saudi Arabia has taken part in coalition airstrikes against IS since the U.S.-led campaign began in September 2014, but could now provide ground troops. The United States is scheduled to convene a meeting of defence ministers from countries fighting IS in Brussels this month. We are determined to fight and defeat Daesh, Asiri said, using the Arabic acronym for IS. He didnt elaborate on how many troops the kingdom would send. Saudi Arabia is deeply involved in Yemens civil war, where it is fighting Iranian-backed Shiite rebels. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries have long viewed Iran as a regional menace, and Riyadh and Tehran back opposite sides in the wars in Syria and Yemen. Asiris announcement came shortly after Russia said it suspects Turkey of planning a military invasion of Syria. Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said Thursday in a statement that the Russian military has registered a growing number of signs of hidden preparation of the Turkish armed forces for active actions on the territory of Syria. He said images of a checkpoint on the Turkish-Syrian border taken in late October and late January show a buildup of transportation infrastructure that could be used for moving in troops, ammunition and weapons. The announcement came a day after U.N.-led peace talks in Geneva were suspended for three weeks. via Globe Mail.This is getting interesting again. First my readers have been abuzz about the advances that the Syrian Army is making. The Syrians with alot of help from their Russian allies are carrying the day. Then we have the breakdown in peace talks because the Russians didn't agree to stop bombing the rebels.Personally I think that was a move to freeze the conflict and keep the Syrian regime from regaining even more territory.Now we have Turkey and Saudi Arabia ready to send troops into the country? Once again we tiptoe up to the brink of a serious miscalculation by some of our idiot allies. I just hope the Obama administration has the good sense to not save them from themselves.Yeah. This just moved up the "watch list". There are many fitness goals out there that we desire. Some of us want to be leaner and others wish to put on muscle mass. The thing is, for you to achieve your fitness goals, you need to When German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced last August that her government would allow unregistered refugees to come to Germany, she set off the biggest migrant wave since the Second World War.Despite the negative effects this huge influx of people has had on the German economy and society, such as the mass sexual molestation and rape of hundreds of women last New Years Eve in Cologne, increased crime and concerns for personal safety among native Germans, supporters of Merkels action believe it was nevertheless justified by the humanitarian emergency and the need to save lives But in an exclusive and revealing interview with the German newspaper Die Welt, an internationally recognised migration and Third World expert, Paul Collier, author of the book Exodus: How Migration Is Changing Our World, convincingly debunks this myth. Collier, a former director of the World Bank who currently holds an economics professorship at Oxford University, believes Merkels open-doors decision did not save a single Syrian from death.Despite best intentions, Germany has, instead, dead people on its conscience, Collier told Die Welt. Many people understood Merkels words as an invitation and only after that did they actually set out on the dangerous journey, sacrifice their savings and entrust their lives to dubious smugglers.Meant as a humanitarian gesture, Collier maintains Merkels announcement had the opposite effect in regard to migrants safety and well-being. The refugees, he said, were already in safe, third states, such as Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon, and did not come to Germany directly from war and crisis countries. But it was this invitation that caused them to leave these relatively safe havens, where most lived in tolerable conditions, and risk their lives on the arduous trip to Germany.With her communication, Collier said, she (Merkel) made migrants out of refugees.And for some, the journey was deadly. Three-year-old Alan Kurdi was the most famous child/refugee death that occurred after Merkels invitation. Along with his mother and a sibling, he drowned trying the smugglers route of reaching Europe, travelling by boat with his family from the Turkish coast to a nearby Greek island. A picture of him lying dead on a Turkish beach where his little body washed up flashed around the world, generating deep concern and much sympathy for the migrants. One report stated his father had paid smugglers more than $5,000.While there is no exact figure regarding how many unfortunates have lost their lives on the trek to and through Europe, drowning deaths have increased in recent months. It is believed more than 250 people perished last month alone trying to reach a Greek island. And many of those who drowned were also children like Kurdi. They obviously would be the least able to fend for themselves in an emergency.And even if the migrants reach the Promised Land, the affluence heaven of Germany, their suffering often does not end there. In fact, for some, this may constitute the worst part of their ordeal.In the refugee asylums the Germans hastily erected, life can be very dangerous. As is now well known, violence between young men of different ethnic groups is rampant, and the polices ability to control it is minimal. But even worse, it is the women and children in these cramped accommodations who are most often victims of sexual assault In his Die Welt interview, Collier expressed a special interest in potential African migrants, especially the 100 million people living south of the equator. He cites a former World Bank economist, Serge Mikhailov, who holds that this region is the next Afghanistan. And it is this mass of humanity that could pose Europes next huge migrant crisis.The chaos in Africa is definitely increasing, he said. above all, the situation in Mali and Niger is already very unstable. And then the German chancellor comes along and announces that Europes doors are open. Simply consider for a moment how that catches on with these people.When one speaks of Syrian refugees, Collier says this concerns 14 million. But hundreds of millions more living in poor countries are setting out for the rich, western world."A colossal mass, which, when it is once set in motion, is scarcely still controllable, he said.To avoid such a frightening prospect and human tragedy, Collier states that a radical swing in communication has to be made.Europe must clearly state that economic migrants should not even bother to set out on the journey at all, he said.And while Collier believes it is essential for Europe to help genuine refugees, those who fled their countries for reasons of sheer survival, this should be done in the secure, neighbouring countries of the conflict regions. These neighbouring nations are the ones legally obligated under international treaties for accepting them. They are also much easier and much safer to reach than Europe for those fleeing war. Besides, even genuine refugees have no claim to a place in Europe. And Collier cant understand why this claim is even being discussed, calling it a false debate.Under international law, the European Union is not responsible for the acceptance of refugees, he said. It is however responsible for securing its own borders, either together or, when that is not possible, then just every state on its own.European aid to genuine refugees, Collier says, should take the form of helping the safe, third countries bear the costs of hosting the refugees. This is the policy Saudi Arabia and the Gulf States follow. The United Arab Emirates, for example, financially supports a camp in Jordan that houses thousands of refugees.Collier would also like to see the European Union help create jobs for the refugees in these third countries. It is this lack of prospects, he says, that cause many to set out on the dangerous trip to Europe to seek their fortune there. Collier agrees with German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaubles proposal for a Marshall Plan for refugees in the countries bordering the Syrian conflict.The recent, mass influx of migrants will, in the end, benefit neither Syria nor Germany, Collier believes. Regarding Syria, educated and qualified Syrian migrants will want to set down roots in Germany. But these are exactly the people Syria will need to rebuild once the fighting stops.As for Germany, the arrival of such large numbers of migrants will make integration difficult. And the more that arrive, the more challenging the integration task will become.For then the necessity to really open oneself language-wise and culturally to the host country sinks, he said. In future, difficult to control parallel societies will come into being.Collier says he cannot understand even until today why Merkel took the action that she did last August. Until last year, refugees were no great theme for Europeans. The Oxford professor blames the German chancellor for the refugee crisis, telling Die Welt: Who else?With that, she has definitely burdened Germany and Europe with a colossal problem, which no longer can be so simply solved. Gov. Larry Hogan gives State of the State address as Senate President Mike Miller, left, and House Speaker Michael Busch listen. (Photo: MarylandReporter.com) ANNAPOLIS (Feb. 4, 2016)The tone of Gov. Larry Hogans State of the State address to the legislature Wednesday was far more conciliatory than last year. But for many Democrats the tune was all too familiar, and they werent singing along.Addressing the Democrat-controlled General Assembly, he used the word together 26 times and the word bipartisan six times in his half-hour speech . He talked about the legislators working with him and helping him, he challenged them to put aside partisanship.In the days ahead, I extend my hand to youin cooperation and in devotion to our dutyand I ask each of you, and all Marylanders, to seek that middle ground where we can all stand together, Hogan said. Because together, we are stronger.Thanks to your collaborationwe have begun to clean up the problems of yesterday. Now, lets come together once again to take care of todays challenges, and to provide for a brighter tomorrow.At another point, Hogan said: This past year, we ushered in a new era of bipartisanship in Maryland.Before the speech, Democratic state and local elected officials had gathered to criticize the governor.Asked about evidence of Hogans bipartisanship, they laughed.We are here to work with Gov. Hogan, said Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, but there is a point where your press releases, your press conferences have to match up with your policies. This is about putting your funding where your mouth is.Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz, a potential rival to Hogan in the 2018 election, was particularly scornful of Hogan's policies, asking Where's the beef?The governor has promised to provide record funding for education and yet how much money is in this budget beyond the minimum operating budget thats required by law? Zero, said Kamenetz. Money to tear down vacant houses and new money to invest in Baltimore housing? "Zero," Kamenetz said. A dedicated pot of school construction to pay for air conditioning units? "Zero," he said. The full video of the Democratic press conference is on the Facebook page of Bryan Sears of the Daily Record.)Those charges came an hour before the Republican governor had uttered a word from the rostrum of the House of Delegates chamber.After the speech, Democrats said the rhetoric hardly matched the reality of Hogans first year.It was so far off the scale, said Del. Frank Turner, a Howard County Democrat who is vice chair of the Ways & Means. It was unbelievable, said Turner, throwing up his hands.His first-term Howard County seat mates, two of the three doctors in the legislature, were disappointed in a more subdued way.Its disheartening to hear how bad the state is, said Del. Terri Hill, after how hard weve worked to improve conditions and fund programs.Del. Clarence Lam said, Hes very quick to take credit for work that has been done by a lot of people. His words dont match his actions.Particularly galling to Democrats is Hogan's boast: "This year, we will break our historic record-high investment in public education from last year, and thanks to your help, I have become the first governor in Maryland history to ever fully fund GCEI in his second year."The legislature's "help" came in a bill forcing the governor to spend the money. Last May, Hogan said he let this legislation become law without his signature because he didn't want to fight a losing battle if he vetoed it.The Democratic lawmakers and executives continue to fume that he refuses to release $68 million in Geographic Cost of Education Index Funds that they fenced off in this year's budget. And they complain that he takes credit for funding transportation projects with money that he wouldn't have if his efforts to repeal automatic increases in the gasoline tax had been successful.Hogan gave his 2,800-word speech almost exactly as written from teleprompters.There was little new in its familiar but polished recitation of accomplishments:"In just 12 months, we have added more than 55,000 new jobsthe largest gain in the mid-Atlantic regionand were adding jobs at one of the fastest rates in the entire country."By improving our economy, creating jobs, standing up to special interest groups, holding the line on new spending, and belt-tightening all across state government, we have made tremendous progress toward solving our states fiscal problems."All the legislative proposals had already been announced in press conferences and press releases, and most of the legislation had already been introduced. This lack of news is a familiar problem for governors of both parties, since the formal State of the State speech comes weeks after their budgets and legislative packages are sent to the General Assembly.Senate President Mike Miller, praised by Hogan in the speech as someone who "has spent a lifetime tirelessly working on behalf of all Marylanders," said the speech was "better" than last year's. Given that Miller found Hogan's address last year terrible, negative and one of the worst he had even heard, that was faint praise.Last year's speech had been met by stony silence from Democratic legislators. Some parts of Hogan's speech this year were met with pockets of polite applause from Democrats, while Republican lawmakers stood and applauded several sections.The only part of the speech that seemed to generate real enthusiasm from the Democrats was Hogan's praise of Pope Francis."Pope Francis challenged us to act 'without prejudice, without superiority, and without condescension'traits that can sometimes drag down even the most well-intentioned of us," said Hogan, who was blessed by the pope on behalf of all cancer patients.Republican leaders were puzzled by the Democrats' negative reactions."It was certainly bipartisan," said Senate Minority Whip Steve Hershey. "This is a common sense guy. He's done a tremendous job outside of the legislative session."House Minority Whip Kathy Szeliga called the speech "inspirational" and "an olive branch" to Democrats."We do need to work together," Szeliga said. "I think it's a call to everyone."The Democrats' complaints at the morning press conference led to an unusually detailed pushback from Hogan's deputy communication director Doug Mayer.In an email to reporters, Mayer said: "Instead of launching into partisan, counterproductive, and flat-out misleading attacks, like many of the press conference participants did this morning, below is a very direct and comprehensive review of the facts and the major investments being made in these respective jurisdictions .""The main takeaway being this," said Mayer. "Prince George's County, Montgomery County, and Baltimore City represent either the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd highest level of funding in terms of direct local aid and in direct aid for K-12 education." LA PLATA, Md. (Feb. 4, 2016)Not many fifth-grade students can say they have gone swimming in below freezing temperatures, but those at Mary B. Neal Elementary School now can. Safely indoors in the humid air of the Donald Wade Aquatics Center at St. Charles High School with the water at a comfortable 84 degrees, and surrounded by seasoned swim instructors, the students took part in activities designed to teach them how to stay safe around water. Instructorssome who had gone through the same program when they were in elementary schoolalso stressed keeping a level head during an emergency and offered tips about how to help someone who is drowning or who needs help in the water. "Think so you don't sink," said Don Layton, aquatics director at Henry E. Lackey High School, who lead the presentation. "Take a few seconds to get your head together." Each year about 1,900 fifth-graders wade through the program where they learn how to help someone in distress in the water and what to do if they were to find themselves in such a situation. Hope Smith, an Indian Head Elementary School physical education teacher, started the program about 35 years ago with the help of Rob Chamberlain, aquatics coordinator at the College of Southern Maryland for 30 years, following the drowning deaths of two young boys in Western Charles County. The program was held at the Indian Head naval base for the first two years. "We used to do it at the end of May in an outdoor pool and it was brutal," Chamberlain said. The program branched off to schools in areas that didn't have access to public pools, but by the mid-1980s it expanded countywide to all fifth-grade students, Chamberlain said. Making a splash Students don't walk into the pool uneducated. Physical education teachers prepare students before the field trips. "They not only prepare the students with program information, they secure parent permission, volunteers, transportation, on deck supervision and safety, and many teachers join us in the water working with the students," Layton said. "Each school has the American Red Cross Whales Tales video lessons and posters." Some teachers delve further into the water safety program. Debbie Haan at Arthur Middleton Elementary School goes over the lessons with each of her students, no matter their grade. "If a student attends Middleton for all five years, they go through the in-school portion of Whales Tales five times by the time they see us," Layton said. Haan has been with the school system for more than 30 years. She used to teach water safety to just her fifth graders, but in 2007 she lost a fourth-grade student to drowning and decided regardless of their age, children should learn about water safety. "I don't want to lose another child to drowning," she said. Water, water everywhere The county is surrounded by water. "We have the Potomac, Patuxent and the many feeder creeks and streams around and within our county," Layton said. Even asphalt- and lawn-covered neighborhoods have lakes, ponds, private and public swimming pools. "This is not a 'play day'," Layton said. "It is an instructional program to help our students learn how to be safe in, on and around the water. How to not panic if they find themselves in an emergency situation and how to assist without putting themselves in danger if someone else is in trouble." "They might not have to save themselves, but they might have to save someone else," Haan said. "I learned that you are not supposed to go into the water if someone is drowning," said Elizabeth Nambooze, who said she is a pretty good swimmer. She added that she was going to tell her parents what she learned in the program to ensure they would know what to do if they were in a situation where they needed to help someone in trouble. "It's the best program. They come back to school with wet heads and talk about [the program]" Haan said. "It's not testing; they don't have to study for it. It's a life lesson." PRINCE FREDERICKThe Calvert County Public Schools Board of Education approved a change to the calendar for the 2016-2017 school year.School for students will begin on August 29, 2016, one day earlier than in the original calendar. School will be closed for students and ten- and eleven-month employees on December 23, 2016. The complete calendar is posted on the school system website: www.calvertcounty.education.PRINCE FREDERICKFor the fifth year in a row, Calvert County Public Schools (CCPS) is being recognized for energy conservation through participation in the Demand Response Program sponsored by CPower, an energy management company. The school system will receive a check for $47,828 from CPower and an equal amount of credit on future electric bills from the Southern Maryland Electric Company (SMECO).CPower works with SMECO and other utility companies to administer their load control programs to ensure affordable power during peak demand times, which typically occur during the summer. To avoid paying for higher priced energy at times of high demand on the electric grid, large consumers, such as CCPS, are asked to reduce their energy use for several hours during the day in order to offset the increased demand. As compensation for our participation and performance, CCPS annually receives a credit from SMECO based on the actual amount of decreased consumption, as well as a matching check from CPower.The money received will be reinvested in schools to make them more energy efficient, including installing energy-efficient fixtures and upgrading HVAC controls.CCPS has reduced its overall consumption of electricity by 8.9% since 2008 by installing energy-efficient equipment and encouraging people to change behaviors to conserve energy.North Point High School is hosting a coffee house event this weekend, 7 p.m., Feb. 4-6, in the school cafeteria. This is the 10th annual event, Coffeehouse 2016: Deja Brew All Over Again, for the school and will feature alumni students and student performances such as singing, dancing, poetry and other talents. Hot drinks and desserts, made by students in the North Point Culinary Arts program, will be available for purchase. Cost of attendance is $8 general admission and $5 for students and senior citizens. North Point is at 2500 Davis Road in Waldorf. Call 301-753-1759 for more information.The Mattawoman Creek Art Center is hosting the "Seven Up High School Exhibit" now through Sunday, Feb. 7. The exhibit features artwork from student's at all seven Charles County Public high schools and includes paintings, drawings, photography and multimedia pieces. The exhibit is open to the public from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. this Friday, Saturday and Sunday. A panel of judges selects student artwork to be included in the exhibit annually.Students in the North Point High School Academy of Health Professions program are participating in a "Pink goes Red" event from 4 to 8 p.m., this Friday, Feb. 5 at St. Charles Town Center in Waldorf. The event will take place on the first floor of the mall, near the central escalators and main elevator. The students will help promote healthy habits to mall patrons and provide information about heart disease and prevention. The event will also feature registered nurses from the University of Maryland Charles Regional Medical Center who will be on site to provide blood pressure screenings. The event is coordinated by the Nu Zeta Omega Chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc. annually.Henry E. Lackey High School is hosting the U.S. Navy Band Commodores, the Navy's premier jazz ensemble, at 7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 26. Admission is free and the concert is open to the public. The 18-member group is led by Senior Chief Musician William C. Mulligan. Their performances feature a mix of traditional big band music, jazz vocal arrangements and new instrumental music written specifically for the Commodores. Visit http://www.navyband.navy.mil/commodores.html to learn more about the Commodores.The North Point High School Skills USA chapter is hosting a meal at 5 p.m., Thursday, Feb. 11 at Our Place, a soup kitchen located at Good Shepherd Methodist Church in Waldorf. Meals will be prepared by the North Point Culinary Arts students, and Skills USA students will serve visitors. Visitors will also receive weekly care packages purchased through donations from the North Point CISCO Academy program and Our Place will receive additional donations from North Point students to help their efforts. To learn more about Our Place, visit http://www.ourplacewaldorf.com/ LEONARDTOWNThe Board of Education of St. Mary's County seeks public input in preparation for the development of the 2016-2017 (Fiscal Year 2017) operating budget for St. Mary's County Public Schools (SMCPS). SMCPS employees and community members are invited to participate in this Budget Forum on Wednesday, February 17, 6:00 p.m., in the Board of Education Meeting Room of the Central Administration Building, 23160 Moakley Street, Leonardtown, Maryland.A sign-up sheet will be available at 5:30 p.m., with individual public comment limited to three minutes. Speakers are encouraged to provide comments in writing, even if presented at the forum, to allow the Board to give consideration to all input.For additional information, call (301) 475-5511, ext. 32177. More than 50 LGBT activists signed a letter directed to the National LGBTQ Task Force to unequivocally express our collective and deep concern about anti-Israel protests that disrupted the opening reception to its annual Creating Change Conference. Many LGBT activists felt the protests had anti-Semitic overtones. Some examples include one Jewish man being called a kike; the protestors chanting From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free, which many Jewish people believe is a call for the destruction of Israel; and another protestor yelling we are going to challenge these Zionist racist motherfuckers. Some of these incidents were caught on video. The opening reception was hosted by A Wider Bridge, an organization seeking to bolster LGBTQ connections with Israel. A representative from Jerusalem Open House for Pride and Tolerance was one of the featured speakers. The protestors believe AWB fosters pinkwashing, which is a so-called public relations strategy that uses Israel's good record on LGBT rights to deflect from its treatment of the Palestinians. Queer anti-Israel activists complained about the opening reception before the conference and the Task Force initially cancelled the event. But within a day they had reversed their decision after many other LGBT activists spoke out against the cancellation. Signatories on the letter included Roberta Kaplan, lead Counsel on U.S. vs. Windsor; Edie Windsor, plaintiff, U.S. vs. Windsor; Barney Frank, former member, U.S. House of Representatives; and Evan Wolfson, former executive director, Freedom to Marry. Local activist Lee Rubin, former board chair of the Task Force also signed onto the letter. The protestors meanwhile released a statement calling the actions of the Task Force racist and made several demands, which include: The Task Force publicly endorse the Palestinian Right To Return The Task Force endorse BDS, the boycott, divestment, and sanctions movement An apology from the Task Force We should note that this is not the first time that the Task Force has been criticized for marginalizing people of color or cultivating racism at Creating Change, the letter reads. In the letter they expressed pride that they were able to accomplish some of their goals. A few of our goals were accomplished, namely that we shut down the pinkwashing reception and raised the national visibility of pinkwashing as a Zionist tactic, the letter continued. One of the protest organizers disputed the claims made by first hand observers. Bashar Makhay told the Washington Blade that we heard no reports of anti-Semitic language while adding If that language was used, people should be held accountable for that. In a strongly worded statement after the conference wrapped up the Task Force condemned anti-Semitism. I want to make this crystal clear: the National LGBTQ Task Force wholeheartedly condemns anti-Semitism and anti-Semitic statements made at any Task Force event including our Creating Change Conference. It is unacceptable. Hate speech of any kind is unacceptable whether its directed at Jewish or Muslim people. The protestors letter then blasted the Task Forces response: The Task Force conflates anti-Zionism and indeed all criticism of Israeli policy with anti-Semitism, which trivializes the very meaning of anti-Semitism, and exploits the term in order to silence political debate and distract from occupation and colonialism, which are at the heart of this issue. We are extremely disappointed by the unaccountable, racist actions of the Task Force as an institution. We will continue to press them on our demands and move forward in our work to confront pinkwashing and push LGBT organizations to name and reject their complicity in colonial occupation. With more and more rights secured, the LGBT community is becoming harder to herd into one corner. The 2016 U.S. Presidential election is an example of this evolution. Once considered a lock for Democratic Party support, more gays are beginning to identify as Republicans. Eric Gilbert is a 48-year-old bisexual man from Boca Raton who vocally supports Donald J. Trump. Gilbert, who says his line of work is sales, does not believe the governments employment numbers. Underemployment is really somewhere around 40 percent, Gilbert said, in a telephone call to SFGN. Where are the good paying jobs? I know so many people that gotta drive Uber cars just to get by. Gilbert said he doesnt buy into the hype that Trump is a bigot, instead insisting the billionaire businessman was one of the first to implement workplace protections for gay and lesbian employees at his Atlantic City, N.J. casinos. The countrys in deep trouble and Mr. Trump is the only one who can turn things around, Gilbert said. Gilbert said he has received a harsh backlash from other gay men because of his support for Trump. Ive had some guys defriend me on Facebook, he admitted. Meanwhile, on the Democratic side, U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, has passionate gay support too. Mitchell Stollberg-Appleyard, a married gay man from Oakland Park, is actively campaigning for the avowed socialist. Bernie has been consistent with his values throughout his career, Stollberg-Appleyard said. He has stood up for and defended the LGBT community before it was the accepted thing to do. Stollberg-Appleyard said he has been phone banking for the Sanders campaign and is confident the former Mayor of Burlington, Vermont will win the Democratic Partys nomination. Hes going to surprise people, Stollberg-Appleyard said. Elsewhere, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has no shortage of gay supporters. One of those is Noah Kim, a volunteer for the Clinton campaign in Iowa. Days before the Iowa Caucuses, Kim introduced former U.S. Congresswoman Gabby Giffords and her husband retired Naval Capt. Mark Kelly to a room full of canvassers in Des Moines. The couple spoke of the need to reform Americas gun control regulations, with Kelly saying Clinton was the right person to make it happen. Afterward, Kim, a gay Asian American who lives in Virginia, said it is common sense to enact better legislation on firearms, adding tightening the gun show loophole is possible. As for Clinton winning the Presidency, Kim said count on it. We are very confident in our ground game, Kim said. Weve had volunteers out every weekend through sub-zero temperatures, through bad weatherif that doesnt show a supporter base and a grassroots volunteer base as enthusiastic, excited and committed to electing Hillary Clinton as our next President I dont know what does. Caucus results from Iowa show Hillary Clinton beating Bernie Sanders by less than one percentage point. Participation remained high in the Midwestern state. It was exciting, a bit chaotic, but it got organized, said Julie Joyce, a lesbian from Des Moines, who pledged her support for Hillary Clinton at Polk Countys precinct 55. Shes the best candidate for the LGBT community, Joyce said. Most Republicans make me cringe. City commissioners have unanimously approved new regulations on vacation home rentals but stopped short of going as far as some residents would have liked. The regulations were approved Jan. 26 and include registering with the city as a vacation rental, providing contact information of the person responsible for overseeing the property, waste disposal, occupancy limits and compliance with inspections. The regulations will be sent to the Planning and Zoning Board for approval before being sent back to the commission. Its estimated that Planning and Zoning will vote on the regulations at its Feb. 9 meeting. Resident Constance Ruppender, who has three vacation rentals on her street, said the regulations create some balance but do nothing to cap the number of rentals [in a certain area]. Resident Kate Donohue said homeowners just want peace and quiet in our homes. With this ordinance, something can be done. One vacation rental owner, who said he tries to be responsible, expressed sympathy for homeowners. I would not want to be one of my neighbors in West Wilton Manors, said Jared Cashner. I wouldnt want four or five on my block, said Vice Mayor Scott Newton. But theres something keeping the city from putting a cap on the number of vacation rentals on a street. In an official response to Wilton Manors, Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote that municipalities could not restrict vacation rentals from operating in residential areas. City Attorney Kerry Ezrol said, based on some recent court decisions, that the city could enact some regulations as long as it doesnt get too restrictive. The more regulations that are imposed . . . that is where the potential for litigation exists, said Ezrol. Based upon some cases that have been decided, we can regulate them. Recently, the Florida Fifth District Court of Appeals supported a ruling in favor of Flagler Countys vacation rental ordinance. Commissioner Julie Carson said she wants to make sure city staff are more pro-active, enforce the regulations and have a list of vacation homes ready at any time for commissioners to look at. I want our city on top of this. Mayor Gary Resnick urged residents to call their state legislators to support home rule for cities that want to regulate vacation rentals. You think they dont listen to you but they do. In contrast to the rest of the commission, Commissioner Justin Flippen took exception to language in the regulations that stated all the vacation rentals were injurious to the community. Flippen said many responsible vacation rental owners contribute to the local economy by bringing in tourists and increasing property values by fixing up some of the dilapidated homes. He cited Ed Lugo Resort, located near Wilton Drive, as a good example. I understand the need for regulations [but I dont want] a couple bad apples to ruin things for the other vacation rental owners who are responsible. I cant deem all of these injurious because some of them are. Commissioner Tom Green said Ed Lugo was a bad example because it is in an area zoned for lodging. I will never accept the fact that some [vacation rentals] are nice, said Green. Flippen said that no one wants a big hotel and that the vacation rentals adds to the bedroom quality people like about Wilton Manors. Green countered, I would love a hotel in Wilton Manors. I just would not want it next to someones house. Commissioner Tom Green was definitely the star of the show at our City Commission meeting last Tuesday night. The agenda included ordinances creating a Green Building Code and regulations for vacation home rentals, two items long championed by Commissioner Green. Once the lone voice on the Commission when it came to discussing a stronger and more substantive Green Building Code here in Wilton Manors, Commissioner Green can now be both proud and happy that the entire Commission voted in favor of the new ordinance creating the Wilton Manors Green Building Program. Since our last municipal election and the addition of Commissioner Flippen to the dais, Tom Green gained a strong ally in his pursuit to pass such an ordinance. Good, forward-thinking policies such as these demonstrate that municipalities across Florida are stepping up to the plate and taking the necessary steps to protect our environment and place greater pressure on our regional and state governing bodies to take similar action on a grander scale. However, discussion between Commissioners Green and Flippen was not so harmonious when it came to the next ordinance up for business. The Regulation of Vacation Home Rentals, up for First Reading, is another issue that Commissioner Green has been championing for a number of years. In the past, most calls for action were dampened by the reality that the state greatly restricts local governments in regulating vacation home rentals. With a number of municipalities recently passing restrictions based on code-related issues, and with very limited court challenges, we can finally see a light at the end of the tunnel. The cities of Fort Lauderdale and Lighthouse Point have already passed similar ordinances, which set the stage for our residents to demand action from our city officials. And, listen they did! Our Mayor and City Commissioners support taking much needed action to create some set of rules, some guidelines, some protections to deal with this growing menace to our neighborhoods. Commissioner Flippen voiced concern at language that seemed to demonize all vacation home operators in our city, taking issue with the wording in the ordinance that vacation home rentals are injurious to our community. This sympathetic view toward the so-called good guys out there fails to understand a basic reality, so clearly stated by Commissioner Green, that a business/ vacation rental has no place being in a zoned single-family neighborhood. These words were met with enthusiastic applause from residents in the Commission Chambers. Commission Green is totally correct. We already have special zoning areas for businesses, for Bed & Breakfasts, for multi-family and mixed use. Our zoned single-family neighborhoods are not the place for transient lodging businesses. Hopefully the free ride for many of these operators will be coming to an end as neighbors and communities are made aware of what can and cannot be done when dealing with short term vacation home rentals and to make sure that these properties are properly registered, paying their taxes, and not homesteaded. The view that the good guys are doing benevolent acts by taking run-down properties and turning them into a nice place that is better for the surrounding community is just wrong! With the rise in home values the past few years, do we really think that no one else would have purchased and improved these properties? Realtors and other property investors have done a wonderful job in renovating older homes and selling them to buyers who are now part of our community. The vacation home operator is running a business to make money, and they are doing that at the expense of our quality of life and our zoning regulations that are supposed to protect our single-family home neighborhoods. I love meeting new people from all walks of life and from different places, but I can do that at the many businesses along Wilton Drive and throughout our city. Unfortunately, with short term vacation homes popping up everywhere, more and more residents of our city dont even have to go out, they can meet all these new people as they check in to the rental right next door each and every week. I would rather build a lifelong relationship with a good neighbor, his partner, and their dogs, or the new couple who moved in a few houses down with two young children who wave hello everyday on their way to school. I want neighbors who build community, not strangers looking for a good time. Community is what we need to protect as we move ahead and make ourselves a stronger and better city. Cause life is just better here Know someone who volunteers a lot? Want to see them recognized for their efforts? Nows the chance. Nominations are now being accepted for the first-ever Community Spirit Awards. For years, the city has recognized residents and business owners who have volunteered and assisted the city. But this year, Johnnie Goodnight, assistant to the city manager, said members of the Community Affairs Advisory Board [CAAB] decided the city needed to recognize people who have made contributions not connected to the city. Contributions that maybe arent quite as visible even for something as small as mowing a neighbors lawn. Were excited to launch the Community Spirit Awards to engage local residents and business owners to acknowledge those who deserve recognition for their spirit of giving, said Deborah Allen, chair of CAAB. We encourage the community to nominate qualified candidates as we know there are many deserving individuals. The Volunteer of the Year will be an award given to the resident who has consistently demonstrated his or her dedication to the community through civic or charitable volunteer service during 2015. The Volunteer Business of the Year will be given to an outstanding business, business association or not-for-profit organization located in Wilton Manors or one that provides direct service to area residents. Those nominated cant receive compensation for their service and it must be unrelated to their job. Nominations must be 250 words or less and are due by March 21. For more information, visit WiltonManors.com/documentcenter/view/1487 or call 954-390-2120. Saturn's rings NASA/JPL/SSI It seems intuitive that an opaque material should contain more stuff than a more translucent substance. For example, muddier water has more suspended particles of dirt in it than clearer water. Likewise, you might think that, in the rings of Saturn, more opaque areas contain a greater concentration of material than places where the rings seem more transparent. But this intuition does not always apply, according to a recent study of the rings using data from NASAs Cassini mission. In their analysis, scientists found surprisingly little correlation between how dense a ring might appear to be in terms of its opacity and reflectiveness and the amount of material it contains. The new results concern Saturns B ring, the brightest and most opaque of Saturns rings, and are consistent with previous studies that found similar results for Saturns other main rings. The scientists found that, while the opacity of the B ring varied by a large amount across its width, the mass or amount of material did not vary much from place to place. They weighed the nearly opaque center of the B ring for the first time technically, they determined its mass density in several places by analyzing spiral density waves. These are fine-scale ring features created by gravity tugging on ring particles from Saturns moons, and the planets own gravity. The structure of each wave depends directly on the amount of mass in the part of the rings where the wave is located. At present its far from clear how regions with the same amount of material can have such different opacities. It could be something associated with the size or density of individual particles, or it could have something to do with the structure of the rings, said Matthew Hedman, the studys lead author and a Cassini participating scientist at the University of Idaho, Moscow. Cassini co-investigator Phil Nicholson of Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, co-authored the work with Hedman. Appearances can be deceiving, said Nicholson. A good analogy is how a foggy meadow is much more opaque than a swimming pool, even though the pool is denser and contains a lot more water. Research on the mass of Saturns rings has important implications for their age. A less massive ring would evolve faster than a ring containing more material, becoming darkened by dust from meteorites and other cosmic sources more quickly. Thus, the less massive the B ring is, the younger it might be perhaps a few hundred million years instead of a few billion. By weighing the core of the B ring for the first time, this study makes a meaningful step in our quest to piece together the age and origin of Saturns rings, said Linda Spilker, Cassini project scientist at NASAs Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California. The rings are so magnificent and awe-inspiring, its impossible for us to resist the mystery of how they came to be. While all the giant planets in our solar system (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune) have ring systems of their own, Saturns are clearly different. Explaining why Saturns rings are so bright and vast is an important challenge in understanding their formation and history. For scientists, the density of material packed into each section of the rings is a critical factor in ascribing their formation to a physical process. An earlier study by members of Cassinis composite infrared spectrometer team had suggested the possibility that there might be less material in the B ring than researchers had thought. The new analysis is the first to directly measure the density of mass in the ring and demonstrate that this is the case. Hedman and Nicholson used a new technique to analyze data from a series of observations by Cassinis visible and infrared mapping spectrometer as it peered through the rings toward a bright star. By combining multiple observations, they were able to identify spiral density waves in the rings that arent obvious in individual measurements. The analysis also found that the overall mass of the B ring is unexpectedly low. It was surprising, said Hedman, because some parts of the B ring are up to 10 times more opaque than the neighboring A ring, but the B ring may weigh in at only two to three times the A rings mass. Despite the low mass found by Hedman and Nicholson, the B ring is still thought to contain the bulk of material in Saturns ring system. And although this study leaves some uncertainty about the rings mass, a more precise measurement of the total mass of Saturns rings is on the way. Previously, Cassini had measured Saturns gravity field, telling scientists the total mass of Saturn and its rings. In 2017, Cassini will determine the mass of Saturn alone by flying just inside the rings during the final phase of its mission. The difference between the two measurements is expected to finally reveal the rings true mass. Reference: The B-Rings Surface Mass Density from Hidden Density Waves: Less than Meets the Eye? M. M. Hedman & P. D. Nicholson, 2016, Icarus [http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.icarus.2016.01.007]. Text & Images: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2016-032 THE MASS resignations of nurses might endanger the smooth functioning of hospitals, especially in Presov, Zilina and Trnava, MP and extra-parliamentary party Sanca vice-chair Viliam Novotny said on February 3. Font size: A - | A + Novotny, who is also a member of the parliamentary health committee and a former cabinet advisor (for health care) to previous rightist governments, will appeal for an extraordinary session of the committee. He would like to obtain approval from the committee to carry out research into the hospitals in question. He has received wide support from other committee members. Committee chair Richard Rasi (of the ruling Smer party) will have to convene a session within seven days. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Of course, it will be on the schedule but I need to take a closer look to find the best possible date for the majority of the committee to appear, Rasi reacted, as quoted by the TASR newswire. An enquiry into hospitals would make information about the provision of health care unbiased, Novotny said. The public has the right to know the truth. The enquiry would focus on urgent as well as planned health-care provision and on the number of personnel in each department. If the situation turns out to be unbearable, Novotny does not rule out convening an extraordinary session of parliament. Rasi thinks that this activity will not yield any results because none of the politicians is a nurse. I guess its the last chance for the extra-parliamentary Sanca party to make itself visible prior to the general election, he opined. The Christian Democratic Movement (KDH) Party's MP Ivan Uhliarik, a former health minister, also supports an extraordinary committee session. Uhliarik said that Health Minister Viliam Cislak is downplaying the situation with nurses, and he also does not like Cislaks move to sue medical staff over their alleged threats concerning health-care services. Representatives of nurses would be also invited to the session. The Health Ministry rejects claims about an emergency situation in the hospitals from which the largest number of nurses left. Patients are being taken care of well in both Zilina and Presov Hospitals. THE BUST dedicated to former communist leader Vasil Bilak was unveiled in his native village of Krajna Bystra on February 21, 2015, a year after his death. Font size: A - | A + Legal proceedings have begun at Svidnik District Court against two artists from Kosice who are accused of defacing the bust, the TASR learnt from Presov Regional Court spokesman Michal Drimak on February 3. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement From the outset, the sculpture has elicited mixed reactions from the public. Many perceived the commemoration as a provocation, as Bilaks name was closely linked with the 1968 invasion of Czechoslovakia by the armies of the Warsaw Pact. On the second day following the busts unveiling, the defendants defaced it by using red spray-paint to write the word Svina / Pig in what they claim was a gesture of civic activism. The Kosice-based artists, Peter Kalmus and Lubos Lorenz, admitted at that time to the Sme daily that it was them who sprayed the bust. Read also: Read also: Bilak memorial draws criticism, is vandalised Read more Shortly after being spray-painted, Bilaks bust produced by the unreformed Communist Party of Slovakia (KSS) was stolen. According to KSS spokesperson Helena Polanska, the communists originally planned to have the damaged bust cleaned up and were waiting for a forensic experts opinion. Before they could follow through with their intent, however, the sculpture vanished. Read also: Read also: Monument of deceased communist leader sparks emotions Read more On February 3, both defendants and the damaged side were heard in court and the proceeding was then adjourned to March 14, in order to secure further evidence, Drimak told the SITA newswire. TEN days after thousands of teachers launched their strike for higher salaries Prime Minister Robert Fico insisted on February 3 that government will not make any decisions prior to the general election on March 5. Font size: A - | A + After all thats happened, its impossible to adopt decisions of a financial nature before March 5, Fico told the press on February 3. Its time to resume classes and hold rational discussions as to what will be done after the parliamentary election. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Fico pledged his readiness to meet the teachers representatives and talk about issues such as the contents of the national education programme. The Slovak Teachers Initiative (ISU) launched a full-fledged strike on January 25. They fault the government for ignoring their demands in the long-term for a more adequate financing mechanism in the education system, according to Vladimir Crmoman of ISU. In its response the ISU stated that Fico intentionally decreases the seriousness of the situation and refuses to acknowledge that his ruling Smer party is not fulfilling its promises. After teachers protest in 2012 the Ficos cabinet accepted parliaments resolution saying that government in December 2012 had to create report on the education sector and a list of measures on how to improve it. The government accepted the resolution including description of situation and proposal of systematic solutions but it has not dealt with them until this day, Branislav Kocan of ISU said, as quoted by the TASR newswire on January 4. Before we will discuss new conceptions, memorandums, national programmes we would welcome if government could do the homework it received in 2012. Arguing over salaries ISUs requirements are the same as those that the Slovak Teachers Chamber (SKU) addressed to the government back in October 2015. The SKU demanded salary increases for all teaching and professional employees in regional education facilities of 140 per month this year and 90 per month at the beginning of 2017. Teachers also demanded that the budgets of the Education, Science, Research and Sport Ministry and the Interior Ministry should be increased by 400 million in order to tackle current differences in school facilities in 2016. Responding to teachers requests Fico has stated for several times that the incumbent government has increased the salaries of teachers by 22 percent in total between 2012-16. Nobody else in the state sector has seen their salaries increased by as much, Fico told the press. During Iveta Radicovas government (2010-12), a fat zero emerged from negotiations. He went on that if Smer will be part of a coalition after the election, it will continue to increase the salaries of teachers. There are resources to raise their salaries by at least 25 percent during the next term, according to Fico. The government lacks the will to accept teaches demands and ignores them, according to Jana Ftacnik Pastorkova of ISU. We see that those demands could be already realised; if ministry can find 20 million for continuing the controversial [education software] Knowledge Planet or for donations to universities which are losing their accreditation, money for our demands could be found, Pastorkova said, as quoted by TASR. She referred to controversial subsidies granted by the Education Ministry to University of Central Europe in Skalica and The Danubius University in Sladkovicovo. The ministry admitted that it has supported private schools even though projects of state schools were of higher quality because it needed to allot the money quickly, by the end of 2015. Playing with numbers A total of 11,564 registered teachers in 746 schools joined the strike on the first day, according to the ISU website. However, many schools did not break or suspend classes and only about 300 schools closed. Since January 25 the number of schools involved in the teachers strike has gradually decreased and ten days later just 47 schools were closed, out of the total of 6,274 schools in Slovakia, just 0.7 percent of the total, the Education Ministry stated on February 3. Classes are now being held in as much as 99 percent of schools, Fico told the press. At no point were more than two percent of schools involved. The ISU responded that government is presenting the wrong numbers. Since January 25 more than 14,500 teachers in more than 950 schools participated in the strike resulting in around 300,000 classes which did not take place, according to ISU. Joining forces Dissatisfied teachers joined forces with around 600 nurses who are also on strike due to low salaries and made a joint call on February 3 for their situation to be dealt with at an extraordinary parliamentary session. Its a joint struggle that connects us - the problems of both teachers and nurses have been ignored for a long time, said Crmoman, as quoted by TASR. The signatures of at least 30 legislators are required in order for such a special session to take place. Opposition parties - Christian Democratic Movement (KDH), Ordinary People and Independent Personalities (OLaNO), Freedom and Solidarity (SaS) and Most-Hid - all confirmed their readiness to hold the session. Represented by MP Miroslav Beblavy, who is listed as independent in parliament, politicians from the extra-parliamentary Siet party also endorsed the session. Slovak Democratic and Christian Union (SDKU) also spoke in favour of such a session this past weekend. An extraordinary session of parliament would not bring any results, only squabbling, according to Fico. It wont be possible to make any decisions there, Fico told the press. It has been clearly said that financial decisions cant be taken until March 5. It is however good what happened at the parliamentary committee for education taking place on February 2, where the committee members agreed on a call on all parties running in the March 5 election to declare a public commitment to approve a national education programme for 2016-20 with a time schedule and necessary financial provision, according to Fico. Education, Science, Research and Sport Minister Juraj Draxler, Parliamentary Chairman Peter Pellegrini and the education committee chairman Mojmir Mamojka are willing to have a discussion with the teachers. They are available for discussion about what to do next, how it should look like when it comes to the national education programme, or the governments programme statement, said Fico, as quoted by TASR. Strike goes on Meanwhile dozens of teachers gathered in front of Government Office in Bratislava on February 3 saying that they want to remind the cabinet of its job to do everything within its powers to make the Slovak education system better. Carrying banners with the slogan I am a teacher, the teachers waited for ministers to arrive for a Cabinet session. It was a silent protest, partly to express the opinion that the government has been silent so far as well, according to Branislav Kocan from ISU. Its also a message to Prime Minister Robert Fico that there is basically been no discussion about education in the past four years, Kocan told TASR. Politicians have kept a lid on all problems, and now there are consequences. The government is still quiet about resolving the current situation. Other protests and public meetings took place in several other towns and cities around the country. Supporting teachers Though the number of teachers who actively participate in the strike and thus lose a portion of their pay is falling, support of the public is gradually becoming stronger. A series of rallies have included parents and a petition supporting the teachers demands has collected more than 8,000 signatures, Sme daily wrote. Ive been going to these protests since the strike was launched because I have two children of school age and I want them to learn in an adequate environment, one of the parents participating on February 3 protest in Bratislava told TASR. At the same time my heart is with the teachers and their demands for higher salaries. People have organised fund raisers to contribute to teachers salaries. Also more than 10,000 teachers, parents and students created live chains in 14 towns and cities around the country. President Andrej Kiska has decided to support teachers together with nurses. He established a web portal verejnaobjednavka.sk (public demand), where he appeals on people to help him create an order for functioning health care and quality elementary schools. The head of state says that he considers education and health care the most important areas that need improvement. It is right that Kiska entered the political campaign season in this way, according to political analyst Jan Baranek. We need an active president who will point to non-functioning things in the country, Baranek told the Sme. The school and teachers are strong archetypes which surface in our dreams even years after we left the classrooms. Font size: A - | A + HARDLY anyone can remember the time when they learned to draw the curve of the letter B, or the right angle of an epsilon, but many would instantly recall who taught them to write. Many would not be able to list the alkali metals of Mendeleevs periodic table or Pharaohs dynasties of Egypt, yet they remember easily witty comments of their class teacher which he or she repeated for generations of students like a chorus of a popular song. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement We do not remember specific tasks from math that made us mentally bleed but we remember the anxiety and being sick from worry that the teacher may call us to the table on a day when we did not prepare for lessons. The school and teachers are strong archetypes which surface in our dreams even years after we left the classrooms. Sometimes as a sort of anxiety: we cannot recall the lesson and we fail at exams. Most of our school memories are strongly connected to teachers. Whole generations of students pass through their hands. Sometimes they had already taught the father or mother of their students. They are forming their students with everything they are: opinions, moods, or gestures. Did they take you by the hand and lift you out of the grey mass? It is important what hands you render your children to. There are days when the children spend more time with their teachers than with their own parents. If the teacher can find talent in a student and can draw them from an anonymous mass, than there is more hope that one day, the student will be happy in his or her future profession. If the teacher was able to convince even a single student that he or she is precious despite not winning the adolescent popularity charts at school, the teacher has done something substantial for the future of this country. However, only a person of calling is capable of such fine sense. A frustrated foot soldier of the education system, who chases the end of month on a treadmill, juggling between two jobs to make ends meet will lose his sensitivity after some time. Thus, the society cannot be indifferent towards whether the best brains, people able to inspire opt for the teaching job or it remains for those who resorted to teaching only after they had exhausted all the other possibilities of their future existence. It makes a difference whether teachers are inspired and creative or whether there are burnt out after a few years at schools where political nominees who have already collected the last euro-crumbs from the table pull the strings. Teachers from the last century Jan taught Maths at a secondary school in a small town for more than 40 years. He wore a perfectly ironed blue coat and he was never on first-name, or too close, relations with students. He taught at a school where he had studied himself. His students could see in one of the yellowed old seniors photos hanging in the dark corridor of school how their professor looked when he was 19 years old. Students never knew when they would be examined, as he drew the order from a small sachet with jettons. Someone was examined three times a week; and someone never. He rarely shouted and the cruellest words he said to a student were that he was looking at the blackboard as a cow stares at a new gate, meaning he looks silly. Dignity surrounded him as a sort of protective shield against students mockery, and despite his small stature, he never seemed petty. On one winter day, when the class in which students did not change their shoes, looked like a muddy railway station waiting room, he told students they cannot learn in such dirt. He did not return before they had wiped the floor clean. Alexander taught physics. He was coming close to retirement and was tired of teaching. He rode a bicycle to school which he put together from different parts. It was cheaper than to buy a new one. He was maintaining distance from his students, and he sometimes treated boys as if he was a commander of a battalion in which they were to serve. He had the impression that by the end of the 1980s, discipline was disappearing from the school and that without it, students will get lost in life; as he was getting lost in the new era that was invading schools through all holes. But he always used to teaching the curricula passionately, as if it was his last chance to pass something on to students. Ladislav taught history before the Velvet Revolution that toppled communism. Even students who disliked him strived for his acknowledgement. His witty remarks were passed on between students as some kind of heritage and only those in the know laughed at them. There were lessons, like the victorious February revolution (which brought communists to power in 1948) that he skipped, and said only that maybe one day they will be able to read fuller and truer textbooks on this topic. Teachers of the past had their hands tied: be it by the regime, by the tradition, or by conservativism. However, there were also those among them who are remembered by generations of students with everything they were; with their imperfections, generosity as well as pettiness, together with the silent pride of a teacher that they wore under blue coats. Teachers today We thought that after the Velvet Revolution, our schools will become seed beds for innovators, thinkers and future leaders for whom the school system will open doors which had remained closed for their parents. And we could catch up with the time that our country spent unfree under communism. We hoped that schools would gradually change into places where children will learn in a new way so that they can pose the right questions; because our future will depend on the answers to these questions. We hoped that the time when children are doomed to mediocrity and get lost in the whole machinery like some less-important index in a chart will become the past. But today, in the ocean of indexes, also teachers get lost whom we expect to tap and draw the best from their students. We have created an environment where the hunt for various degrees has been elevated above the essence of school: to help the students understand what they excel in, and how they could best use their talents in life. We chained their hands with curricula and nailed down their teachers pride with low salaries. Part of teachers do not teach currently Currently, teachers in Slovakia are on strike so that society notices them. It is surely not just their salaries they are fighting for, but also for the importance society attributes to them. Their professional self-esteem is at stake. Schools must be healthy, self-confident places which both students and teachers visit proudly. Schools of the 21st century cannot be open-air museums, some kind of display cabinet of what has survived under the front of revolutionary changes from the times when students were guided not to stand out too much from the grey, compact mass. An 8-year-old Slovak boy abducted by his father two weeks ago has been placed in a facility in Italy waiting for authorities to decide about his fate. Font size: A - | A + PETER Husar is eight years old and lives with his mother in Slovakia. Two weeks ago, his father who is Greek and has an American passport kidnapped him in front of his school in Bratislava and took him abroad. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement The police found the boy when he and his father were boarding a ferry in Italy. The Italian authorities took the boy and placed him in a facility for children. The boy's mother, who is in Italy and is only allowed to meet her child for two hours every day, has been trying to have him return to Slovakia for a week now, but the Slovak court which was to rule about the guardianship order of the father suspended the proceeding in his case on February 3, the Slovak Radio (SRo) reported. The Italian authorities have been waiting for the ruling before releasing the child. "Slovak court does not have the power to rule about the rights and duties of the parents towards the minor, since the USA is the country of usual residence of the minor and the minor is currently not in the territory of the Slovak Republic," the court's spokesperson Peter Adamciak told SRo. Read also: Read also: Children most commonly abducted by own parents Read more The parents of the child have been living separately for some time now. After the mother stayed with the child for a longer time in Slovakia last year, the father had a guardianship order issued by the US authorities. The order, however, is not valid in Slovakia, according to the SRo report. Only the American courts are authorised to rule about the rights and duties of the parents in this case, Adamciak told the radio. The Slovak Justice Ministry is cooperating with the Italian authorities regarding the case, and expects the matter to be solved soon "in the best interest of the child", the ministry spokesperson Alexandra Donevova told SRo. President Andrej Kiska and the Centre for Labour, Social Affairs, and Family are also involved in the case, SRo reported. RENOWNED Slovak childrens surgeon Vladimir Cingel passed away at the age of 54. Font size: A - | A + In September 2007 he led the team that separated twins Misko and Marek who were born attached. It was only the second such surgery in Slovakia; while he assisted also in the first Siamese twin separation operation here, the Sme daily wrote. Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement Skryt Remove ad Article continues after video advertisement The two boys were attached in the chest and abdominal area, and their livers and hearts had to be separated; but both of them died within two months after the surgery, the Plus jeden den daily wrote. He died on January 31 in Dubai where he was working the past few years. The cause of his death is not known. "A similar focus in Asia is against China." However, even that massive increase in expenditure was likely to be wasted because the cost of defending small, poor members of NATO in eastern Europe was cost-prohibitive, Steinberg observed. "A RAND Corporation war game, reported this week, found that NATO cannot defend the Baltics against a Russian incursion, and that it would take seven combat brigades at a cost of $7.2 billion a year to put them in place," Steinberg pointed out. The costly defense build-up would also put a huge additional burden on troubled European Union economies already in deep crisis, Steinberg warned. "At a time when the European and US economies are actually in the tank, when the Trans-Atlantic big banks are carrying massive amounts of non-performing debt The levels of folly in this situation are hard to keep up with," Steinberg concluded. Military affairs analyst and retired US Army Major Todd Pierce told Sputnik the money spent on the military build-up in both Europe and the Middle East looked certain to be wasted because it would be used to expand operations and policies that had already proved to be failures. "Is the 50 percent increase reasonable? No. Is it caused by ineffectiveness of the current operations? Yes," Pierce said. "How effectively could this money be spent? And for what purposes? It is just more money down the Pentagon rat hole." Pierce said Department of Defense planners would do far better to question their underlying strategic assumptions and recommend policies of dialogue and cooperation to defuse tensions in Europe between the superpowers. He added that in Bosnia, the process is likewise stalled, Popovic said, as while the Bosnian and Croat politicians support the idea, it still requires the consent of the country's Serbs, who live in the Republika Srpska, which makes up 49 percent of the country's territory. In Macedonia, only the separatism-minded Albanian minority supports accension to NATO, Popovic said, while Greece has blocked the organization from accepting the country because of a naming dispute. "The situation with Montenegro even more clear. Montenegrins are traditionally sympathetic to Russia, while 40 percent of them identify themselves as Serbs and speak the Serbian language. But even among those who identify themselves as Montenegrins, many oppose joining NATO. The Montenegro regime stubbornly avoids the referendum, in which, obviously, the majority of Montenegrin citizens would vote for the country's military neutrality, and therefore, against joining NATO," Popovic added. Russia has a good position in former Yugoslavia, according to Popovic, ecause it supports the territorial integrity of Montenegro and Macedonia, while also supporting the current sovereign status of Bosnia. As for the South Stream project, the European Union blocked it on selfish grounds, according to Popovic, fearing an "expansion of Russian political influence," something that, he says, Russia must do to strengthen the Balkan states' neutrality. He added that while Serbia should have closer ties with EU members, it would not be rational for Serbia to join the bloc when Russia remains its close and natural ally. On February 1, China launched the latest addition to the Beidou Navigation Satellite System from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in the southwestern province of Sichuan. It was carried into medium-earth orbit by the Long March 3C carrier rocket, where it was deployed at an altitude of about 13,670 miles (22,000 km), inclined 55 degrees. "It is the 21st satellite in the Beidou Navigation Satellite System, and takes China one step closer to providing an alternative to the United States' GPS system," Xinhua reported. The satellite was the fifth of a new generation of Beidou satellites, the first of which was launched in March 2015. The system's first satellite, Beidou-1A, was launched on October 30, 2000, and formed an experimental Beidou navigation system when a third satellite was launched in 2003. The five new generation satellites are tasked with "testing inter-satellite crosslinks and a new navigation-signaling system that will set the framework and technical standards for global coverage," Xinhua reported. On Tuesday North Korea notified the UN's International Maritime Organization that it intends to launch an "earth observation satellite" between February 8 and 25. Pyongyang last launched a long-range rocket in December 2012, which it also described as a communications satellite. "A nuclear weapons program has three legs: developing the nuclear fuel (the hardest part), developing the warhead, and the delivery system, and there's simply no doubt that the missile program that North Korea has been developing is its nuclear weapons delivery system." Fleitz said that the Japanese have legitimate concerns about their safety, given the past waywardness of some North Korean rockets, to which North Korea has responded in the past. "The Japanese are worried about this because the North Korean missile program doesn't have a very good record. A lot of the missiles have not launched, or they've blown up on the pad or they've only gone a short distance." "Japan is worried one of these rockets may crash into Japan, I think it's a legitimate concern." "For this reason, starting with the last launch after Japan threatened to shoot down its missiles, North Korea has used a trajectory that did not go over Japan. In the 1990s they flew a missile over Japan and the Japanese were outraged." "I don't think the North Koreans are going to do that again." TOKYO (Sputnik) Japan's Okinawa prefectural assembly member Hiroshi Goya proposed on Thursday a compromise in the US Futenma airbase relocation dispute. In late October, the Japanese government resumed construction of a new base for the US Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, having negated a regional government veto on its relocation from Okinawa's highly-populated district in the city of Ginowan to the Henoko coastal area of Nago city. "To reach a compromise, the coastal landfill work should not be carried out near Camp Schwab, relocating the base to the training practice ground siteIf that is possible, then the government will get results in moving the Futenma airbase, while the governor and his supporters will be granted their main demand, which is to prevent landfill work," the lawmaker told Radio Sputnik Japanese. On Monday, the Turkish Exporters' Assembly reported that the country's exports had suffered a 14.4% year-on-year decline in January. Exports to Russia, meanwhile, dropped a whopping 65%, from $313 million in January 2015, to $110 million in January 2016. Hatice Karahan, an expert at Turkey's Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research (SETA), spoke with Sputnik Turkey about the state of the Turkish economy, and the impact of Russian sanctions on the country's economic well-being. "The volume of exports going to Russia has faced a decline. Naturally, Russian sanctions played the main role. In January, exports declined by 65%. According to Turkish Exporters' Assembly's figures, the most serious blow was faced by fruit and vegetable exporters, with the textile and automotive industries also observing a decline," Karahan said. And this yuan/petrodollar disparity with Moscow soon to distance Riyadh as China's top oil supplier is one of the key reasons why there does not seem to be a Russian-Saudi oil price "grand bargain" deal in the horizon. The other reason is Russia and Iran will only accept an oil deal if Saudi Arabia accepts a political Syrian deal. As Petroleum Intelligence Weekly has reported, Moscow's proposal remains on the table; it's open for a 5% output cut by OPEC (including Iran and Iraq) and non-OPEC producers. What's certainly advancing under the radar is something way more serious; a Russia/China-based alternative monetary system. That's why the Russian Central Bank is basically not interfering with the fall of the ruble parallel to the fall in oil prices. Russia will need a lot of rubles for the Russia/China monetary system. So Moscow's strategy is to buy rubles back from the flooded market at rock-bottom prices, using artificially boosted dollars and euros. Russia's treasury, meanwhile, also bought Russian companies shares at low market prices while repatriating at least 30% of Russian oil shares previously owned by foreigners. Would this also help to convince the Saudis that their oil price crash strategy is leading nowhere? There's no evidence so far. Meanwhile, Warrior Prince Mohammed bin Salman continues to practically sit on the throne out of deference to his father, ailing King Salman. Rumors of a Riyadh coup persist. The key will be the extent of US support for Mohammed bin Nayef; the real Masters of the Universe over Washington won't tolerate the erratic Warrior Prince succeeding his father. So the bottom line, as a House of Saud-linked source summed it up, is that "the Saudis are staying for now with the devil they know (the US) rather than the devil that they don't know (Russia)." All that of course may change in an instant if the alarmed Riyadh royals conclude that the devil they know is up to its tried and tested regime change tricks. But then, it will be too late. The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official position of Sputnik. If the WGAD makes decision in favor of the WikiLeaks founder this will mean that he had been arbitrarily detained. That's why Sweden and the United Kingdom should release Assange immediately and compensate him. On September 12, 2014, Assange submitted a complaint against London and Stockholm to the WGAD. The UN panel is expected to finish its investigation and to announce its decision on the possible release of Assange on Friday. "should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," Assange said on Thursday. MOSCOW (Sputnik)Russia is equally ready to revive its relationship with the European Union as Brussels, although their ties need to be renegotiated, the head of Russian Foreign Ministry's Department of European Cooperation said. Asked by RIA Novosti if Moscow was ready for a Russia-EU "reset," Andrei Kelin replied, "The traditional answer to this is: we will be ready to the same extent as our partners." "The crisis in our relationship with the European Union will end sooner or later it cannot last forever," he said, adding this relationship needed to be "reinvented." "These are people who traveled to Russia with the stated aim of working or visiting relatives; it was not stated that their aim was to travel to Norway. These people made false claims about the purpose of their visit to Russia. We don't want to take those people back, they broke our laws, and we have agreed with the Norwegian authorities to take pause and work on a procedure that will allow us to resolve this problem in the interests of Russia and Norway." "We have an agreement about readmission between Russia and Norway and our Federal Migration Service is discussing the possibility of making a speedy addition to that agreement with our Norwegian colleagues which solves the practical problems that arise from such unscrupulous travelers," Lavrov said. On Wednesday a delegation from the Norwegian Justice and Foreign Ministries met with representatives of the Russian Migration Service to discuss the issue. Thor Arne Aas, Director General of the Norwegian Ministry of Justice, told Norway's Afterposten that as a result of the meeting Russia agreed to take back between 200 and 300 failed asylum seekers who have a valid Russian visa or right to reside in Russia. Four senior members of the United Nations and two aid workers told the Guardian newspaper that the UN was failing to respond to the Syrian crisis in very much the same way it failed handling the final stages of the Sri Lankan civil war. One of the main concerns, according to the officials, is the UNs struggle to tackle chronic starvation and deliver much needed aid to certain areas of Syria. Ammar Waqqaf from the British Syrian Society believes the UN needs to work with the legitimate Syrian government if it is to be successful in the region. Countries that didnt wish to join the NATO club, he adds, were targeted with sanctions (Belarus) or sanctions and bombing (Yugoslavia).In 1999, NATO established as a defensive military alliance in 1949 not only broke international law when it attacked the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, but also contravened Article One of its own constitution. Russia was fine when it was acquiescing in all of this, but as soon as it began to stand up for itself and try and defend its own legitimate interests, the Cold War restarted, the author states referring to conflict in Ukraine and the 2008 conflict with Georgia, orchestrated by the West. Clarke notes that all the above clearly contradicts the claims of the newly updated strategy that Russia is the cause of much concern due to its increasingly aggressive behavior in Eastern Europe and militarization in the Arctic. He writes that the double standards over national interests which the updated Theater Strategy highlights are quite remarkable. It seems that while the US can claim that a European continent that is thousands of miles away from the US is its key terrain and essential to defending its national interests- Russia has absolutely no right to respond when the US carries out regime change on its own doorstep. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras Syriza government needs to save 1.8 billion euros under the terms of its international bailout. Pensions have already been slashed 11 times since 2010. The Greek government say the nations pension system will soon collapse if the reforms are not passed through parliament. "The reforms are causing social unrest and a very unequal society. There is political unrest and economic instability which are creating a very dangerous situation in Greece, Tsamurgelis told Sputnik. The European Commission has predicted that unemployment will drop to 24 percent in 2016 which is still the highest in Europe. National debt is expected to reach 185 percent of Greeces economic output this year again, the highest in the EU. "The situation is very disappointing its like it was in 2015. Radical changes are needed not playing around with numbers. The government is playing around with expensive numbers," Tsamurgelis told Sputnik. The national strike has left hospitals manned with emergency staff, while farmers have used tractors to block traffic and travel links across the country have been paralyzed. Tens of thousands marching through Athens as part of major general #strike protesting pension reform. #Greece pic.twitter.com/cIwTL5bk5W Elena Becatoros (@ElenaBec) February 4, 2016 "The unrest is dangerous. Its changing the political environment, the general atmosphere is explosive. Its not just about the pension reforms it is creating an unequal society. It will reinforce the Golden Dawn party and the government majority could end up being very different to what the EU want," said Tsamurgelis. The economic crisis, which once dominated Europes front pages, has been replaced by the refugee crisis. A crisis that affects Greece more than any other country and described by Tsamurgelis as "a bomb that is about to explode". "The EU has not decided what to do yet. Germany has to be more serious and Europe has to take radical measures but is avoiding the refugee problem. The EU needs to force other come countries to resolve the issue," Tsamurgelis told Sputnik. More than a million refugees and migrants arrived in Europe in 2015 the majority of whom traveled to Greece via Turkey and more than a million migrants are expected to arrive this year. Thousands of Greek workers are gathering outside the Greek parliament in Athens putting the economic crisis firmly back on the political agenda and on front page news. . If you do not agree with the blocking, please use the Access to the chat has been blocked for violating the rules . You will be able to participate again through:. If you do not agree with the blocking, please use the feedback form The discussion is closed. You can participate in the discussion within 24 hours after the publication of the article. Then the French journalist and writer claimed that Strauss Kahn had attempted to rape her, but the charges were dropped through lack of evidence. In 2012, he was accused of taking part in sex parties at hotels in Lille, northern France, which involved prostitutes. Although he admitted attending the parties, Strauss-Kahn denied knowing the involvement of prostitutes. He was accused of "aggravated pimping" but the charges were dropped in 2015. Billionaire Battle He joins the supervisory board at Bank Credit-Dnepr, which is owned by Ukrainian billionaire Viktor Pinchuk, the son-in-law of former Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma. He is ranked by Forbes as at January 2016 as being worth US$1.4 billion. He is a friend of former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair. Pinchuk is the founder and main owner of EastOne Group LLC which provides services to around twenty companies which include: Credit-Dnepr, the Interpipe Pipe and Wheel Company, StarLightMedia TV (which includes STB, Novy, ICTV, QTV, M1 and M2), and the Fakty i Komentarii newspaper. Punchuk became embroiled in what was due to be the most expensive court case in English history when he brought legal action in a US$2 billion lawsuit against two other Ukrainian billionaires, London-based Gennadiy Bogolyubov and his business partner, Igor Kolomoisky over the purchase of a mining company in Ukraine. The case was settled out of court just days before the trial was due to begin. The Victor Pinchuk Foundation has supported a film made by Steven Spielberg on the Holocaust in Ukraine as well as human rights projects with George Soros. Pinchuk organized a free concert by Paul McCartney and launched an arts prize, with a jury comprising Elton John and Jeff Koons, among others. Welcome call to halt UK arms sales to Saudi Arabia for use in Yemen from @CommonsIDC today https://t.co/DgYgDVO6pJ Amnesty UK (@AmnestyUK) February 3, 2016 Civilian targets include two international hospitals, a wedding and five schools in Yemen although Saudi Arabia says it does not target civilians. "Tremendous Support" According to a report in London newspaper The Independent, the ADS Group posted a statement on social media, saying that Britains Defense Secretary had provided tremendous support for its operations at the dinner. Tremendous support for all our industries from SoS for defence, Michael Fallon at our dinner this evening. ADS Group (@ADSgroupUK) February 2, 2016 The event hosted by ADS costs US$367 (252) for members and US$ 677 (464) for non-members. Last years banquet was attended by over 40 MPs and an uninvited guest but The Independent says this years attendance numbers are still not known. A Ministry of Defense spokesman told The Independent: "It is nonsense to suggest that this engagement is directly linked to exports to one country. This is the annual dinner of a forum that represents hundreds of organizations that sustains tens of thousands of UK jobs across aerospace, space and defense." Andrew Smith, spokesman for Campaign Against Arms Trade said: "The fact that over 40 MPs attended as guests of arms companies and arms trade lobby groups last year is a disgrace and shows the extent of the arms trades connections and political lobbying." Commenting on the attendance of the ministers to the banquet held the same day MPs called for the suspension of all arms sales to Saudi Arabia, Smith said: "The humanitarian crisis in Yemen is getting worse. 14 million Yemeni people are facing food insecurity and 1.4 million children are acutely malnourished." The British government deny any involvement in Saudi Arabias military campaign while MPs, lawyers and human rights campaigners argue that it is unlawful for the UK to be supplying weapons. Anders Ohlin, the man in charge of the culture and education department of the Burlov Municipality, told Sydsvenskan that such incidents mostly occur after school. Since summer the number of refugees requiring the integrative education has increased from a few dozen to over a hundred, with most of the migrants being boys and young men, which upset the 'balance' between boys and girls, he added. A fourteen-year-old female high-school student named Emilia told the newspaper how a young man, her senior, threatened her, and then began stalking her and her friends after school. Her friend, Nora, confirmed the story, adding that she no longer wants to go to school. A mother of one of the students said that her daughter is so afraid that she keeps the blinds in their house closed at all times. Earlier, Svenska Dagbladet reported that Stockholm sought to offer economic assistance to Morocco in an attempt to return young Moroccan refugees to their country of origin. The move was apparently prompted by numerous petty robberies and thefts committed by Moroccan teenagers in Sweden's major cities which became a serious concern for local police, the newspaper remarks. Under the newly approved law passed by Denmark's center-right government, police will have the right to seize valuables worth more than US$1496. The bill received widespread condemnation among human rights groups, which likened the move Nazi Germany when Jews were stripped of their valuables. UN chief Ban Ki-moon's spokesperson also criticized the policy, saying refugees deserved "compassion and respect". "People who have suffered tremendously, who have escaped war and conflict, who've literally walked hundreds of kilometers if not more and put their lives at risk by crossing the Mediterranean should be treated with compassion and respect, and within their full rights as refugees," said Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. YouGov conducted a poll off the back of the newly approved law, asking Europeans whether they would "support a Danish-style asylum seeker asset confiscation law" in their own country. Interviewed by Latvian radio station Baltkom , Abdullah, a professor of political science at the University of Damascus, suggested that when Western commentators say that Assad is an 'undemocratic leader', they are deceiving their audience, because Western allies Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar aren't exactly shining examples of democracy. "Briefly describing the conflict in Syria is not so simple; there are several layers, including the domestic and international. But I do not believe that democracy, freedom and human rights are the main object of this conflict, however the West might portray it," Abdullah said. "The main forces fighting against the Syrian government consist of groups tied to Al-Qaeda and Islamist ideology. We are not fighting against people fighting for freedom and democracy, but against terrorists, which are clearly being supported by the government of Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar. The ideologies of these countries have nothing to do with democracy," he added. That number of troops would leave the US with "a very limited ability" to conduct its counter-terrorism operations and its mission to train, advise and assist Afghan security forces, Campbell told the Committee, Stars and Stripes reported. "The United States must continue to show flexibility with our mission in 2016 and beyond," Campbell said. Davis also cited Lieutenant General John W. Nicholson, who will succeed Campbell as the top US commander in Afghanistan. Nicholson told the Senate Armed Services Committee last week that America's vital interests and objectives in Afghanistan form part of the 2015 National Security Strategy, two main pillars of which are "combatting the persistent threat of terrorism," and "building capacity to prevent conflict." "The US presence in Afghanistan aims to defeat al Qaeda and its affiliates, contribute to regional and international peace and stability, and enhance the ability of Afghanistan to deter threats against its sovereignty, security and territorial integrity," Nicholson said. Davis was scathing in his assessment of 14 years of US efforts to reach the aims: "By every measure, the US military mission in Afghanistan has outright failed to attain those objectives," he wrote. In addition, Nicholson's claims that "the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces (ANDSF) have more than held their own against the insurgency," and that "the ANDSF continue to demonstrate that they are a competent and confident force, and have embraced their role in securing Afghanistan," do not correspond to reality. The analyst pointed to a report published by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in December, which described the Afghan government and ANDSF as "losing at every level: Politics, governance, economics, security, and popular support." "This becomes brutally clear from the metrics available on the war, as well as from virtually all media reporting." "It is also clear from the fact that the Obama administration is steadily having to revise its plans for Afghanistan, extending the military train and assist mission from a planned end in 2016 to 2017 or beyond, and gradually adapting its size and scale to the fact that the threat is steadily gaining both in military terms and in the far more important area of regional presence, control, and influence," CSIS wrote. In order to retain at least some semblance of a fighting capacity, the militants forces in the Syrias northern regions continue abandoning their positions and falling back to the Turkish border, Konashekov told media. According to him, the militants leaders are forced to focus their efforts on evacuating their wounded fighters and attempting to restore control of the situation. The soldiers of the Syrian Arab Army, aided by popular forces, have driven back the militants in the province of Aleppo and lift the blockade from the settlements of Nubul and az-Zahra that were besieged for over four years, he added. Terrorists trained teen suicide bombers in Syria to carry out terrorist attacks in the country, Maj.Gen. Igor Konashenkov said. According to him, the oldest among the suicide bombers has just turned 16 years old; and the youngest one is 14. "According to the data provided by the representatives of the Syrian opposition, al-Nusra Front and Ahrar ash-Sham terrorist groups trained a group of teenagers to be suicide bombers in the Syrian province of Idlib. The terrorists were planning to use the teens to carry out terrorist attacks against civilians in the provinces of Damascus, Homs and Latakia," the spokesman added. "As for the agency, WHO requires $17 million," he added. According to the UN refugee agency, 13.5 million Syrians are displaced inside the conflict-torn Arab republic, while about 4.6 million people have fled the country, mostly to the neighboring states of Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan. Germany earmarked $1.3 billion in humanitarian aid this year, the United Kingdom pledged $750 million, and Norway $282 million, among other participants of the conference. The United Kingdom urged participants to double their contributions to humanitarian aid ahead of the fundraising event to meet the United Nations appeal for $7.73 billion. Downing Street stressed that, last year, only $3.3 billion of the requested $8.4 billion was donated. The 2016 Supporting Syria and the Region conference is co-hosted in London by the United Kingdom, Germany, Kuwait, Norway and the United Nations. Its stated aim is to raise "significant new funding" for short- and long-term humanitarian support for the Arab republic, which has been ravaged by a nearly five-year civil war. Erdogan Toprak, member of the Republican Peoples Party (CHP) who has served as the MP for Istanbul's third electoral district since 2011, pointed out that the recent visit of the Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu to Saudi Arabia has strangely coincided with the start of the Syrian peace talks in Geneva, as well as with the worsening of Ankara's relations with Moscow following the alleged violation of Turkish airspace by a Russian Su-34 warplane. In a weekly report by the parliamentary team he leads, Toprak also noted that President Erdogans visit to Riyadh in December 2015 was immediately followed by an announcement heralding the creation of the Islamic military coalition, and that Turkey immediately offered to join it. "The presence Hulusi Akar, Chief of the General Staff of the Turkish Armed Forces, among the people accompanying Davutoglu to Riyadh, as well as a group photograph featuring Akar posing together with a top Saudi official while wearing army fatigues and boots, sends a clear message: the Turkish Armed Forces are ready to take the lead role in a possible ground military action in Syria," Toprak surmised. But the US has been looking to avoid further aggravating tensions with Moscow. For now, Washington continues to recognize that new NATO bases in Eastern Europe, including Poland, would be a breach of the 1997 NATO-Russia Founding Act, which prohibits the permanent stationing of 'significant forces' in former Warsaw Pact states. On Wednesday, in an interview for Polish radio station RMF 24, John C. Law, the US Deputy Chief of Mission to Poland, reiterated that unfortunately for Warsaw, the Pentagon's planned spending increases do not mean that the US will be building new bases in Poland. "It's not about the lack of will to ensure equal security for all; it's about the belief that there are other, more effective ways to ensure this security," the official said, responding to his interviewer's question about whether the new spending was a sign that Washington had decided to change course ahead of this summer's upcoming NATO summit. Assuring listeners that Poland would get its fair share of the security to be provided by the Pentagon's spending spree, Law noted that the money would go to improving existing NATO infrastructure in the area, including the Lask Airbase in central Poland, where a detachment of US Air Force units has been permanently based since 2012. For instance, the deputy ambassador noted, the base's runway may be upgraded to accommodate more planes. Speaking at a press conference before his departure from Geneva, Alloush told journalists that "we will come back when things change on the ground according to our expectations." "But the question arises," Hackensberger noted, "as to whether he will ever come back again in a comparatively strong position, because on Wednesday night, the Syrian Army, with the help of Russian aviation, broke through two blockaded Shiite settlements. It is a military success which could have important consequences for the rest of the war." The towns Nuble and Zahraa, are located about 20 kilometers from Aleppo in the country's north. "And with their breakthrough, government forces cut the last supply route the rebels had a route stretching from Aleppo to Bab al-Salama on the Turkish border." "And it's not just about food supplies, but also oil and gas for the northern Syrian city, and the entire province of Idlib," the journalist emphasized. The UN envoy said in a Wednesday statement that negotiations were postponed because of a lack of progress in the discussions dedicated to the resolution of humanitarian issues in Syria. Last week, the highly-anticipated talks on Syrian reconciliation mediated by the United Nations began in Geneva in line with the December UN Security Council resolution on Syrian settlement that ruled to bring the entire spectrum of political groups in the crisis-torn country to the negotiating table. "Of course, we regret the fact that UN special envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura was forced to make a decision on the suspension of negotiations as a result of the position taken at todays meeting by the [opposition] delegation from Riyadh." Pause in Intra-Syria Talks to Affect Int'l Syria Support Group Negotiations The pause in intra-Syrian peace talks will affect discussions within the framework of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) planned for February 11, Gennady Gatilov said. "I think that what happened today will naturally affect the discussion that will take place on February 11 in Munich within the framework of the International Syria Support Group," Gatilov said, adding that he hoped that ISSG participants "will speak in favor of the continuation of the negotiation process and nobody will put up any obstacles." The International Syria Support Group (ISSG), an international format aiming to resolve the Syrian crisis, was formed in November shortly after the beginning of the Syria peace talks in Vienna. The format currently involves Russia, the Arab League countries, the European Union and some of its member states, China, Iran, Turkey, the United Nations and the United States. According to the Russian deputy foreign minister, Russia and the United States maintain regular contact, including between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry, on the Syrian issue. The UN Security Council adopted a resolution on December 18 on settling the Syrian conflict. It reaffirmed the goals of the previous Vienna deals to bring the entire spectrum of political groups in the crisis-torn country to the negotiating table. MOSCOW (Sputnik)Russia believes that the United States approach to Moscow will evolve into more pragmatism, but Moscow will not beg Washington to be friends, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. We hope that US approaches to relations with Russia will evolve into being more pragmatic and measured. Historical experience shows that our countries are capable of cooperating fruitfully and reaching results where there is a balance of interests and last-minute political gains dont take precedence, Lavrov said in an interview with Italys Limes monthly magazine. Lavrov reiterated that Moscow and Washington have many common tasks, including countering international terrorism. The former leader of Germanys second-placed Social Democratic Party (SPD) and the ex-president of Bundesrat said, however, that Russias historical ties with Germany were no guarantee for its return to a partnership with Europe after the breakdown over Ukraine and a series of anti-Russia sanctions. "Understanding requires a continued dialogue and good cooperation projects. Sanctions are hindering them," Platzeck explained, adding this was the reason why he opposed sanctions against Russia from the very beginning. This is not the first time when representatives of German authorities and companies voice opinions that the anti-Moscow sanctions should be lifted. On January 22, Chairman of the Munich Security Conference Wolfgang Ischinger said that German companies would like to see the Western sanctions against Russia lifted today, not in a year. President of the German-Russian Chamber of Foreign Trade Dr. Rainer Seele expressed similar opinion in December. Many German enterprises have stayed on in Russia because of its importance as a trade partner even after Europe imposed sanctions on Moscow, Matthias Platzeck, the head of the German-Russian Forum, told Sputnik. The German-Russian Forum is a bilateral initiative that promotes political, civil society, cultural and scientific contacts between the two countries. "Our work of building bridges also sets the pace for [cooperation in] economy. Unfortunately, there have been losses due to sanctions," Platzeck, the former leader of Germanys Social Democratic Party (SPD), said. "Still, [German] enterprises are staying in Russia because they know what a valuable trade partner this country is for us and for Europe." In 2014, the United States and European Union acted in concert to impose a series of economic sanctions on the Russian energy, banking and defense sectors, after expressing outrage over Crimeas reunification with Russia. Moscow has refuted the allegations, warning that the Western sanctions are counterproductive. In response to the Western restrictive measures, in August 2014, Russia announced a one-year food embargo on products originating in states that imposed sanctions against it. The ban has since been extended for another year. "Unfortunately, today in Europe there are forces, seeking historic score-settling with Russia, applying great efforts to raise the conflict level in our continent. At the same time, the fact that even in the current difficult situation many European countries, including our Italian partners, are showing keen interest in maintaining constructive dialogue with our country, in improving the situation in the European space, encourages optimism. We appreciate this attitude," Lavrov said. He added that Moscow proceeds from the fact that the progressive development of equal and mutually beneficial relations between Russia and the European Union fits interests of both sides as an important factor of strengthening international security. "In particular since many challenges and threats, including an unprecedented surge of terrorism and extremism, requires the establishment of collective work," Lavrov said. He stressed that Moscow does not see reasonable alternative to long-term formation of the area of economic and humanitarian cooperation from the Atlantic to the Pacific, while relying on the architecture of equal and indivisible security. On Wednesday, the Lithuanian-born former hedge banker, appointed minister in December 2014 to facilitate austerity, deregulation and privatization reforms, tendered his resignation, citing high-level corruption schemes and saying that he was being "systematically blocked" from doing his job. "Today, I decided to tender my resignation as the Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Ukraine," Abromavicius said in a statement published on the ministry's website. "It has become clear that any kind of systematic reform is decisively blocked. It is more than the mere lack of support or political will. These are concrete actions aiming to paralyze our reform efforts." "Neither me, nor my team, have any desire to serve as a cover-up for covert corruption, or become puppets for those who, very much like the 'old government', are trying to exercise control over the flow of public funds. I am not willing to travel to Davos and talk about our successes to international investors and partners, all the while knowing that certain individuals are scheming to pursue their own interests behind my back," the minister added. I also speak with Mayor Cindy Lerner of Pinecrest, FLoriday today, about the open letter [PDF] she recently sent, with 14 other Mayors from across the Sunshine State, to Marco Rubio, seeking a meeting with the Florida U.S. Senator, now a leading candidate for the 2016 GOP Presidential nomination, decrying his flip-flops on climate action. Rubio, as Lerner explains, was once in favor of action to stave off the worst effects of global warming such as the sea level rise already encroaching on south Florida towns like Lerner's before he decided to run for President and become a climate change denier. "Marco Rubio and all the Republican candidates who are in denial, it's really part of a campaign strategy, an ideology, that ignores the reality of the consequences we're facing," she tells me. Lerner notes that where Republicans in Florida had once actual lead on Climate Change, since Republican Gov. Rick Scott took office in 2011, state GOPers have almost completely reversed course. That, even as the "very porous geology that the peninsula of Florida was built on" is already taking on more salt water than can be handled as sea levels rise and "100-year storms" are now "coming several times a year." MOSCOW (Sputnik)Ankaras refusal to allow Russia to conduct an observation flight over Turkish territory under the Open Skies Treat confirms Moscows concerns that Ankara is supporting the Daesh , which is prohibited in numerous countries including the United States and Russia, on the Turkish-Syrian border, a high-ranking source in the Russian Foreign Ministry said Thursday. Russian inspectors planned to conduct the observation flight on board an An-30B plane over Turkish territory on February 1-5, but they were refused permission to do so after they arrived in Turkey and announced the flight route. This case is of course outrageous because the Open Skies Treaty today is practically one of many mechanisms that continue to operate in the European space and this treaty is valid and allows for acquiring valid information on steps being taken or not being taken by one or another state, the source told RIA Novosti. It seems that Sofia knows perfectly well that its possible rapprochement with Moscow could also mean revitalizing Bulgaria's tourism industry, given that last summer saw a plummeting number of Russian visitors at the country's Black Sea resorts. In this vein, Gerasimov hinted at the possibility of "diverting Russian tourists from Turkey" to Bulgaria, while Sofia pledged to ease its visa requirements for Russians. Opinion polls indicate that ordinary Bulgarians continue to see Russia as their country's staunchest ally, something that was specifically reflected in a survey last year which showed that 61 percent of participants maintained a positive attitude towards Russia. Another study, conducted by Pew Research in Spring, 2015, found that only 15 percent of Turks have a favorable view of Russia. Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov has, meanwhile, admitted that Sofia was asked to take a side amid the ongoing deterioration of ties between Russia and Turkey over the downing of a Russian warplane. "Now that the two titans have clashed, they want us to say whether we are pro-Russian or pro-Turkish. We are neither pro-Russian nor pro-Turkish. We want to be loyal neighbors," he said. Relations between Russia and the EU states, including Bulgaria, went downhill in 2014, when they joined Washington in accusing Moscow of fueling the Ukrainian crisis, imposing economic sanctions as a punitive measure. The Russian authorities have refuted the allegations, warning that the Western sanctions are counterproductive. MOSCOW (Sputnik)Earlier this week, senior Russian lawmakers, headed by speaker of the Russian parliament's upper house Valentina Matvienko, held parliamentary-level talks with their Israeli and Palestinian counterparts. Konstantin Kosachev, the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the upper house of the Russian parliament, had a final meeting on the results of the talks earlier in the day. "The talks show that Russia is perceived as a state that can really influence the course of events in the Middle East. All sides are confident that a parliamentary democracy is something that can play a significant role to this end. [The efforts of] the parliamentarians can become a unifying starting point for building a serious and meaningful conversation on the regional problems," Kosachev said following the meeting. The lawmaker pointed out that during the parliamentary talks, the issue of the fight against terrorism was repeatedly raised. In his statement Hijab referred to the second rounds of UN-sponsored peace talks, Geneva II, that ended in an impasse between the Assad government and the Syrian opposition in early 2014. "HNC will leave Geneva tomorrow and will not come back here until we see progress on the ground, " Riyad Hijab stressed, urging the international community to ensure the establishment of a transitional government body in Damascus. Mohamed Alloush, a representative of Jaish al-Islam, told Sputnik that the participation of the rebel Islamist group in the new round of intra-Syrian peace talks would depend on the humanitarian situation in the country. "Unless there is the improvement of humanitarian conditions in accordance with the UN resolution 2254, we are not talking about our participation [in the new series of the talks scheduled for February 25]," Alloush said. US CLAIMS RUSSIA 'IN PART' TO BLAME US State Department spokesperson John Kirby "in part" blamed Russia for contributing to the failure of the negotiations. "Its difficult in the extreme to see how strikes against civilian targets contribute in any way to the peace process now being explored," Kirby stated on Wednesday when asked what was responsible for UN envoy pressing the pause button on the talks in Geneva. The Alberta Standardbred Horse Association (ASHA) has announced that its stallion auction is now underway, with proceeds to be donated to the Classy Lane Barn Fire fund. One breeding for each of the following stallions is available: Custard The Dragon, JK Royal Flush, JK Royal Flush, Major Hottie, Mystery Chase, Mystician, Riverboat King, Trust The Artist, Vertical Horizon, and Wink N Atcha. The minimum bid is set at $500 with bidding increments set at $100. Bidding began on Tuesday, Feb. 2 at 9 a.m. and will end on Monday, Feb. 8 at 4 p.m. Bids can be made by calling ASHA's Colleen Haining at 587-877-2540. Participants are kindly asked to be considerate of stallions and their owners' best interests and consider not bidding for mares over the age of 20 years old, for mares that have been barren two or more consecutive times, for mares due after May 21, 2016, and for mares that have already been booked to another stallion. Please note that this auction is for the stud fee only. All other expenses are to be taken care of by the bidder/mare owner. Successful bidders are required to have their payment to the ASHA office within 30 days of the auction completion (March 8, 2016). (With files from ASHA) Alfie Carroll, Canada's early season win leader, swept a pair of Preferred events featured at The Raceway at the Western Fair District on Wednesday evening (Feb. 3) with pacing mare Goldies Mach and trotting gelding Delcrest Massy. Goldies Mach pulled off an 11-1 upset in the $8,500 Fillies & Mares Preferred 3 Pace as she fought off Eat Me Up (Lorne House) through the final three-quarters of the mile to win by half a length in 1:59.2. Favourite Cant Stop (Bob McClure) came off cover to finish one and a half lengths behind in third. Gord McDonnell trains and co-owns the five-year-old Mach Three mare with Vince Orlando and Steve John of Leamington, Ont. Carroll drove Goldies Mach to her second win of the year from four starts. Victor Puddy trainee Delcrest Massy was also a front-end winner in the $8,300 Preferred 3 Trot, delivering on his 1-5 pari-mutuel promise. The four-year-old son of Muscle Mass looped Tortola Sunrise (Nick Steward) early in the mile and held off that rival in deep stretch for the half-length triumph in 2:01.1. Blazing Shot (Paul MacKenzie) journeyed first over and finished five lengths behind in third. Delcrest Massy now has three wins and a second-place finish in his first four starts of the year for owner Keith Cassell of Smiths Falls, Ont. Carroll's driving double pushed his 2016 win count to 63, giving him a 26-win margin atop the standings over Bob McClure in his quest for his second straight national driving title. To view Wednesday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Wednesday Results - Western Fair Raceway. War Cry Hall and Tim Tetrick, a 21-1 longshot, came flying down the lane to score a 1:54.1 victory in the $21,000 Open Trot over a 'sloppy' track at Dover Downs on Wednesday, Feb. 3. Tetrick pulled RBH Ventures War Cry Hall out of the middle of the pack in a nine-horse field to follow Panamanian Hanover (Tony Morgan) down the backstretch. Panamanian Hanover took the lead with a cluster of rivals coming on while turning for home. War Cry Hall had the most speed in the stretch to post a 1:54.1 victory, his first of 2015. Panamanian Hanover held on for second with steady Spunky Jack (Roger Plante) taking third. The win for the New York-bred Cash Hall-Winners Only gelding is nearing half-million in purses. His 28th lifetime win gives him total earnings of $489,250. Meanwhile, a two-race win streak by Bluebird Reverend came to an end. Another longshot, 11-1 Inner Peace prevailed in the sub-feature $15,500 4&5-Year-Old Trot with Pat Berry guiding a 1:56.1 triumph. An altered son of Crazed-Peace Of Mind, J Craparotta & P Berry Racing own the five-year-old trained by Traci Berry, who won his first start of the year. Royal Becca J (Jack Parker) led early and finished second. Kolbees Star (Corey Callahan) saw a two-race win stretch come to an end by finishing third. Tim Tetrick drove three winners while Corey Callahan, Vic Kirby and trainer Jim King had two wins each. (With files from Dover Downs) After a few seasons standing stateside, pacing stallion Believeinbruiser is returning to Ontario for stud duty in 2016. The son of Mach Three - Believeinyourdream stood the last few years in Ohio. Lou Eftimiadias brought him back to Ontario due to renewed confidence in the province's breeding and racing program. From limited opportunity, Believeinbruiser has sired stakes winners and sub-1:50 speed. His most notable performer is Bugger Bruiser p,4,1:49.3 ($359,777), the winner of the 2013 Ontario Sires Stakes Super Final for two-year-old pacing colts & geldings. From 21 horses eligible to race, Believeinbruiser has sired 14 starters with average earnings in excess of $64,000. Believeinbruiser will be standing at Eftimiadias' farm in Newmarket, Ont. with a $1,500 stud fee. Contact Lou at 905-716-3247 for further details or to book. Trot Insider has learned that longtime trainer Robert 'Bob' Metcalfe passed away on Saturday, January 30 at the age of 68. Originally from Wingham, Metcalfe was residing in Cambridge, Ont. at the time of his passing. A fixture on Ontario's 'B-track' circuit for years, Metcalfe won 117 race lifetime and was most fond of trotter Something To Keep. Cremation has taken place. There will be no funeral, but a celebration of life will be arranged this spring with further details to be finalized. Please join Standardbred Canada in offering condolences to the family and friends of Robert Metcalfe. David Daleiden to Post Bail Today Contact: Alexandra Snyder, Life Legal Defense Foundation , 202-717-7371HOUSTON, Feb. 4, 2016 / Standard Newswire / -- Life Legal client David Daleiden, Founder of the Center for Medical Progress, will post bail in Harris County, Texas today. Daleiden has been indicted by a grand jury on charges of tampering with a governmental record and violating the Texas statute on human organ trafficking. Sandra Merritt, who worked with Daleiden to investigate Planned Parenthood's trade in fetal body parts, was also indicted on the tampering charge.The tampering charge, which is a felony offense, is for the use of a California identification to enter the Planned Parenthood facility for the purpose of the investigation. It is the same charge that would be leveled at a minor who used a fake ID to purchase alcohol. However, the law also provides a defense where the false information has "no effect on the government's purpose for requiring the governmental record." The charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.Daleiden was also charged with human organ trafficking, a misdemeanor charge, for allegedly offering to purchase fetal body parts from Planned Parenthood. Inexplicably, Planned Parenthood was not charged with the corresponding crime of offering to sell human organs. Moreover, an attorney for Planned Parenthood has reported that the grand jury never even voted on charges against his client.The charges filed against Daleiden and Merritt do not in any way diminish the overwhelming evidence obtained by the Center for Medical Progress showing that Planned Parenthood has engaged in and is more than willing to profit from the sale of fetal tissue. CMP released a new video on Tuesday that shows Planned Parenthood Gulf Coast's Director of Research discussing "remuneration" and "compensation" with Daleiden, who posed as a fetal tissue buyer."If David's investigation had revealed evidence of criminal conduct in a meatpacking plant, his freedom would not be threatened," notes Alexandra Snyder, Life Legal's Executive Director, who is in Harris County with Daleiden. "The videos would be seen as providing a valuable public benefit and prosecutors would act on the information. We are confident that other agencies will take an objective look at Planned Parenthood's willingness to engage in illegal activity, including altering the abortion procedure to obtain intact fetal cadavers, that is clearly evident in the videos. In the meantime, we will do everything we can to defend David from these baseless charges."Both Texas Governor Greg Abbott and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton have pledged to continue their respective investigations into Planned Parenthood's activities. According to Paxton, "The fact remains that the videos exposed the horrific nature of abortion and the shameful disregard for human life of the abortion industry."Life Legal is representing David in three lawsuits filed against him and is working with his legal defense team in Harris County to file a motion to quash the indictment.About Life Legal Defense FoundationLife Legal Defense Foundation was established in 1989, and is a nonprofit organization composed of attorneys and other concerned citizens committed to giving helpless and innocent human beings of any age, and their advocates, a trained and committed voice in the courtrooms of our nation. For more information about the Life Legal Defense Foundation, visit www.lldf.org Christian Prayer Network Leaders Call for 30 Days of Prayer for the Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States as They Prepare to Hear 'The Texas Case' on March 2, 2016 Contact: Queta Aguilar, 210-614-7157, info@txjf.org SAN ANTONIO, Texas, Feb. 4, 2016 /Standard Newswire/ -- The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) recently rejected the Arkansas case which banned abortion after 12 weeks and the North Dakota case which banned abortion after six weeks. Both of these states had even offered, by law, to care for until adulthood every unwanted child so that any woman that wanted the liberty to be free of unwanted child care could do so. These leaders agree with the statement: "We tremble for our country when we remember that God is just and that His justice never sleeps. We fear that the judgment of Almighty God, which is designed to be merciful, and the wrath of God, will come upon the United States of America. God hates the shedding of innocent blood." But there is hope for our nation if Christians will pray! "If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people, and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land." II Chronicles 7:13-14. We believe that the role of the SCOTUS is to affirm God given rights to every individual throughout ALL stages of LIFE. We are calling for national prayers of repentance from February 3 to March 4. On January 22, the Jonas storm, which also means Jonah, hit Washington, D.C. That same day the Supreme Court denied North Dakota the right to ban abortion and help women with child care. We urge everyone to pray every day for the Supreme Court and America to repent. From February 3 to March 4, we are urging prayer groups to cooperate in mobilizing the Body of Christ to 24/7 non-stop prayer for the SCOTUS. On March 2, the Supreme Court will hear the Texas case which calls for ambulatory surgical centers and hospital admitting privileges. We all will have another opportunity to repent for the sin of abortion through this case. For prayer contact/information, please go to www.nationalhighwayofprayer.net. Sara Ballenger Capitol Hill Prayer Partners Rudi Bam Kadesh Ministries Rhonda Barnes Aftermath Ministries Mark Beliles America Transformation Company Mike Bickle International House of Prayer, Kansas City Maryal Boumann PRAY CALIFORNIA Gwen Bradley Life on Wheels Prayer Ministry, Montgomery, AL Maureen Bravo Liberty Prayer Network Joyce Zounis Brown Voices of Truth Pierre Bynum Family Research Council Peter Carlson Pray Oregon Samuel B. Casey Law of Life Project Virginia Chapman Church Awakening Prayer Call Cindy Collins & Rebecca Porter Operation Outcry Jeffrey Daly National Day of Repentance Michael Dowling & Anne Trumbo San Francisco House of Prayer for All Nations Bev Dennen ASK Network Chris & Dorothy Dundas House of Accord Dallas Eggemeyer Lightbearers International Mark Gonzales United States Hispanic Prayer and Action Network Dai Sup Han Prayer Surge NOW! Lewis & Rachel Hogan United Cry Lois Hogan Jefferson City Healing Community, MO Jason Hubbard Light of the World Prayer Center Taechin "TC" Kim Transform USA Alveda King African American Outreach, Priests for Life Dave Kubal & Kris Kubal Intercessors for America Rick Lindsay Encourage Men to Pray Matt Lockett Bound4LIFE International Sarah Lowe Watchmen of the Night Donna Matts Biblical Marriage Dennis McKirahan U.S. National Prayer Council, Ohio Elizabeth McKirahan Shofar Call International Richard & Mary "Gerri" Morris Mary Germain International Ministries, Inc. Paul & Britainie Nelson Prayer Mountain Dallas Allan Parker & Fritz Steiger The Justice Foundation John Robb International Prayer Connect World Prayer Assembly 2012 Ann Quest Unity Quest Cheryl Risch Pray Central Valley Fred & Susan Rowe USA Watch/Global Watch Transform World Celebration Challenge Carol Sewell Generation to Generation, G2G.org Tom Schlueter Prince of Peace House of Prayer Texas Apostolic Prayer Network Dick Simmons & Bill Landers Men for Nations Ren Vandesteeg Blue Skies of Texas West Bob Williamson The Jesus Alliance New CMP Video Details How Planned Parenthood Pads Invoices for Profit Contact: Troy Newman, President, 316-841-1700; Cheryl Sullenger, Senior Vice President, 316-516-3034; both with Operation Rescue, info.operationrescue@gmail.com HOUSTON, Feb. 4, 2016 /Standard Newswire/ -- The Center for Medical Progress has released a new video detailing how Planned Parenthood used bogus line-item entries to hide profits from the sale of aborted baby remains. The video focuses on invoices obtained by Operation Rescue's Texas attorney Briscoe Cain through Freedom of Information Act requests and connects the dots to Planned Parenthood's duplicitous book-keeping scheme with clips from the CMP's undercover investigation at the Houston Planned Parenthood, one of the largest volume late-term abortion facilities in the country. "The invoices clearly show how Planned Parenthood padded invoices in such a way as to hide the fact they were making illegal profits," said Operation Rescue Senior Vice President Cheryl Sullenger. "This is not only hard evidence that Planned Parenthood broke the law, but also shows that The Harris County grand jury indicted the wrong people." A Harris County Grand Jury recently indicted CMP leader David Daleiden and his associate, Susan Merritt, who conducted the on-site undercover sting in Houston. While the same grand jury is said to have "cleared" Planned Parenthood, Operation Rescue has uncovered evidence that bias in the office of District Attorney Devon Anderson tainted the process and turned the investigation against the whistleblowers who reported evidence of Planned Parenthood's obvious criminal conduct. Daleiden and Merritt will turn themselves in at the Harris County Courthouse on Thursday when a press conference by national leaders will present over 100,000 signatures calling on Anderson to drop the charges against Daleiden and Merritt. A coalition of pro-life leaders, including Sullenger of Operation Rescue, plan to present over 100,000 signatures to Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson after a press conference also Thursday morning. Operation Rescue President Troy Newman served as a founding Board Member for the Center for Medical Progress. He, along with Daleiden and others, have been sued in a San Francisco Federal Court by Planned Parenthood and the National Abortion Federation, who are attempting to use the courts to silence the evidence against them deflect public attention from their own wrongdoing. "We call on District Attorney Devon Anderson to resign due to her inability to conduct her duties without bias," said Sullenger. "We also call for all charges to be dropped against Daleiden and Merritt and for special prosecutors to reopen the Planned Parenthood and Karpen cases." Houston abortionist Douglas Karpen was accused by former employees of murdering babies who were born alive during late-term abortions, but was "cleared" by another Anderson grand jury in 2013. Karpen was represented by attorney Chip Lewis, who is a personal friend of Anderson's and is her largest political donor, who recently indicated he has improper inside knowledge of both grand juries. View the invoices Watch the new CMP video. About Operation Rescue Operation Rescue is one of the leading pro-life Christian activist organizations in the nation and has become a strong voice for the pro-life movement in America. Click here to support Operation Rescue. Er is iets heel griezeligs aan de gang in Nederland. Dat wij geleidelijk aan in een totalitaire 'democratie' wegzinken wordt steeds ... The Bonneville Power Administration still favors a route for its new Southwest Washington high-voltage power line that would run north of Castle Rock and cut across the Lewis River below Merwin Dam. The agency on Wednesday released its final Environmental Impact Statement for the controversial project. BPA selected Central Alternative Option 1, confirming the preferred route it first identified in 2012. BPA now estimates the line will cost $722 million, up from earlier estimates of $460 million. However, Mark Korsness, the BPAs project manager, said the agency could still decide that electric conservation may eliminate need for the new line. Its not a decision to build, Korsness said of the environmental study. No major power transmission line has been built in Western Washington in 40 years, and BPAs proposal has been controversial because homeowners oppose power lines near their homes. The BPA markets federal power throughout the region, supplying power to numerous utilities, including the Cowlitz PUD. It says the new 500 kilovolt line from the Castle Rock area to Troutdale, Ore., is probably necessary to meant to handle electrical demands during periods of peak demand, such as cold snaps or heat waves. The agency considered four routes for the line before choosing the favored Central route. Its similar to the route suggested in 2012, but there are quite a few small changes along the route to avoid homes, Korsness said. BPA evaluated about 10,000 public comments before choosing a route; at this point, the formal public comment period is over. Suspended from 150-foot-tall towers, the line would cross West Side Highway and the Cowlitz River north of Castle Rock, then cross Spirit Lake Memorial Highway a few blocks uphill from the Exit 49 area. The route cuts mostly on timberland as it veers to the south, crossing Rose Valley Road near Marantha Road and Kalama River Road near the Weyerhaeuser 6100 line. The power line would cross Lewis River Road just west of Merwin Village Road. We dont have to take anybodys home, Korness said, though an analysis of the similar route favored in 2012 found that 327 homes are within 500 feet of the proposed line. About one-half of the route would cross Weyerhaeuser Co. land, one-quarter would cross state land and one-eighth would cross areas owned by small landowners, with the remainder already owned by BPA. BPA Administrator Elliot Mainzer will now now decide whether to proceed with the line, Korsness said, a process that could take a year. However, the agency is raising the possibility that the line can be nixed or delayed. We might be able to find a mix of things so we might be able to find that the line isnt needed, said BPA spokesman Kevin Wingert. Alternatives to building the line include BPA changing its sources of electricity, which would ease demand along existing transmission lines; using diesel generators or more solar power; using large-scale batteries during times of high power demand; or reducing the need for power through energy efficiency. If the BPA decides to proceed, it would take up to two years to acquire easements. The line would require a 150-foot-wide open area where hay and cattle could be raised but trees couldnt be grown. BPA has spent $85 million planning the line so far. A special meeting will be held at 1:30 p.m. Friday at the Port of Longview to discuss the port's role in the Kelso airport. Port commissioners as well as representatives from the City of Kelso will also will attend the meeting to talk about the future of the airfield, formally known as the Southwest Washington Regional Airport. The city recently stepped up to take over management again of the airport under a contract with the airport authority. Kelso used to run the airport, but for the last few years it has operated independently under the direction of the airport board. Members of the five-member board are drawn from the cities of Longview and Kelso, the Port of Longview, Cowlitz County and one at large member from one of those organizations. Those entities now contribute four equal shares to the cost of running the airport. Acceptable mediocrity In the Jan. 29 Friday free form, The Daily News expressed support for legislation sponsored by Rep. Ed Orcutt, changing the state constitution to mandate a super-majority, two-thirds legislative vote in order to raise taxes. This based on Initiative 1366, put forth by Tim Eyman in the last election, in which only one-third of the registered voters of Cowlitz County even participated. 64 percent voted for I-1366. If you do the math, less than 1/4 of registered Cowlitz County voters supported Initiative 1366. Statewide, less than 40 percent of our voting-age population participates in elections. This means that as few as 21 percent of eligible adults could be making elective decisions for all of us. We seem willing to govern ourselves with a super-minority popular vote. That is a far cry from requiring a two-thirds legislative vote. Our state is in a fiscal crisis. We cant manage to fund either schools or mental health care. We have insufficient funds to maintain our parks, roads, and bridges. Given this, how can The Daily News editorial board possibly support Orcutts legislation? if we expect decent services, we have to be willing to pay for them. If not, I guess we should all stop complaining and accept mediocrity as our state standard. Is that who we really are? Marquita Green Longview Concerns recognized My last letter to the editor criticized the chamber of commerce for their lack of foresight in supporting the coal dock. I was surprised to receive a letter from Mike Wallin, thanking me for my letter to the editor. He neither agreed nor disagreed with my statements, but at least he acknowledged my letter. Too many elected officials ignore the wishes of their constituents. It was very nice to know one is aware of the comments and concerns of the people. Mary Wallem Longview Damage done A Jan. 20 letter writer said he is waiting for one bank CEO to go to jail for the financial collapse in 2008. He can stop waiting; one did go to jail and many were fined millions. Bushs bailout money was paid back to taxpayers with interest, thanks to President Obama and the Democrat Congress in 2009 and 2010. The banks collapsed because Bush deregulated them. Today, because of President Obama and Democrats, banks are regulated. The Democrats Dodd-Frank Law will keep banks from ever getting too big to fail again, and taxpayers will never again have to bail banks out. The same writer claimed President Clinton damaged America. However, President Clinton created 22 million jobs, more than any 20th or 21st Century president. Clinton balanced budgets, left a large surplus and no debt. While Bush gave large tax breaks and bonuses to businesses that shipped jobs overseas. Causing the U.S. to lose 700,000 jobs a month and the Great Recession. Bush caused great damage to our country. K.D. Slade Longview In God we trust Has there ever been a more turbulent time in American history? The two political parties are hopelessly divided, our role in the Middle East seems undefinable, the value of the unborn and marriage drift further from Gods ideal and our fiscal indebtedness grows. by the hour. Yet God remains uninvited into our situation. A nation that proclaims In God We Trust seems to put trust in everything but Him. Bill Wells Longview Editors note: Todays editorial originally appeared in The Columbian. Editorial content from other publications is provided to give readers a sampling of regional and national opinion and does not necessarily reflect positions endorsed by the Editorial Board of The Daily News. When it comes to the defense of the United States, many would argue that no expense is too great. And while this nations security must stand among the most inviolate duties of government, a similar argument can be made that the law of diminishing returns is at play with debate over the Pentagons budget for the coming year. On Tuesday, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter unveiled his departments vision for a future of battling the Islamic State and other adversaries. Now we have to think and do a lot of different things about a lot of different challenges not just ISIL and other terrorist groups, but also competitors like Russia and China, and threats like North Korea and Iran, Carter said during a speech at the Economic Club in Washington, D.C. Undoubtedly, the world is a dangerous place, and the United States has antagonists ranging from nations who are challengers for global influence to non-nations motivated by murderous demagoguery. Carter said the Pentagon is planning to increase spending for fighting Islamic State by 50 percent, to $7.5 billion, and to quadruple spending in Europe to reassure allies and deter Russian aggression. Because Congress approved and President Barack Obama signed a two-year budget agreement last fall, those expenses will draw money from elsewhere in this years $582 billion defense budget. And that is what brings us to the law of diminishing returns, an economic principle that says at a certain point, increased spending on an item only marginally improves effectiveness (or, in the case of a business, profit margin). Many members of Congress have expressed the opinion that last years budget deal falls short of meeting the nations defense needs. In January, Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-Texas and chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, said: Last falls budget agreement does not provide enough money for defense. And Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., has said: What we must also acknowledge is that, while the threat posed by (the Islamic State) and our other adversaries is growing, our national security budgets are increasingly disconnected from our national security requirements. In addition, several Republican presidential candidates have criticized President Obamas handling of the military. Ted Cruz, for example, said, Barack Obama, right now, No. 1, over seven years has dramatically degraded our military. It should be noted, however, that according to PolitiFact, for five straight years Congress has adopted military budgets smaller than those requested by the president. While Republicans understandably are attempting to score political points in an election year, they also are ignoring a pertinent fact: The U.S. defense budget of $582 billion is by far the largest of any nation, representing about one-third of the worlds military expenditures. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, in 2014 the United States spent more on the military than the next 10 nations combined and most of those are our allies. Given that, it seems difficult to argue that the United States military is not well-prepared to defend this nation or intervene overseas when necessary. Carter said: In this budget, were taking the long view. We have to, because even as we fight todays fights, we must also be prepared for the fights that might come 10, 20, or 30 years down the road. That sounds reasonable more reasonable than suggesting that increased spending will enhance this nations security. The Oscar B is again scheduled to return to service. Wahkiakum County Public Works Director Chuck Beyer said the ferry should be operating by Monday. The ferry provides hourly round-trip service between Puget Island and Westport, Ore. It has been shut down since Dec. 11 after river debris clogged the cooling intakes for its generator motor. The ferry underwent a retrofit in a Vancouver dry dock and was scheduled to return to service last week. But on its return voyage from Vancouver the ship shuddered at high engine speeds. Engineers learned that the seals on one of two propeller drive shafts were leaking. All the parts for the repair should be in Wahkiakum County today or Friday, Beyer said, and hes hoping the ferry is ready to return to service Monday. He said he purchased an extra set of seals to avoid lengthy delays should the same problem arise again. Pacific County Emergency Management will be hosting a series of community forums regarding tsunami inundation on Feb. 24 and March 16. The forums will serve as a ramp-up to the Cascadia Rising Functional Exercise, a national-level exercise designed to test response to a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake and subsequent tsunami. Tim Walsh, Chief Hazard Geologist from the Washington Department of Natural Resources, and George Crawford from the Washington State Emergency Management Division will be present to discuss the Cascadia Subduction Zone and answer questions. The first forum will be held at Pacific County Fire District No. 1, located at 26110 Ridge Ave. in Ocean Park from 2-4 p.m. on Feb. 24. The forum will be repeated at 7 p.m. at the Ilwaco Community Building, 158 First Ave. North (U.S. 101) in Ilwaco from 7 to 9 p.m. The same program also will be presented March 16, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Shoalwater Bay Tribal Center, located at 2373 Old Tokeland Road in Tokeland. The final forum will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. in South Bend in the Board of County Commissioners Meeting Room at the Pacific County Annex, 1210 West Robert Bush Drive. Between January 2003 and September 2006, out of 138 letters to the editor that I sent to the Financial Times before I placed them on this blog they published these 15 . Not bad! Thank you FT!Unfortunately, since then and until the very last day of the decade, out of some 1.000 letters that you can find here, FT published none, zero, zilch. Of course FT is under no obligation whatsoever to publish any of my letters and of course one should not exclude the possibilities that my letters might have quite dramatically gone from bad to worse yet one wonders.My usual suspects are:1. Someone in FT with a delicate ego feels his or her importance diminished by giving voice to a lowly non PhD from a developing country daring to opine on many issues of developed countries.2. That FT has some sort of conflict of interest with the credit rating agencies that makes it hard for them to give too much relevance to someone who considers they have been given too much powers.3. The FT establishment had perhaps decided there were only macro economic problems and not any financial regulation problems, and wanted to hear no monothematic contradictions on that.4. That FT feels slightly embarrassed when someone repeatedly asks the emperor-is-naked type question of what is the purpose of the banks and realizing this was something FT should have itself asked a long time ago.5. It is way too much oversight for FT to handle.6. Or am I just supposed to be a living example of one half of the Financial Times motto, namely that of "without favour"Which one do you believe is closest to the truth? hidden Apple Inc must pay VirnetX Holding Corp more than $625 million for using the patent licensing company's Internet security technology without permission in its FaceTime and iMessage features, a federal jury in Texas said on Wednesday. The award was more than the $532 million VirnetX had sought before the trial began on 25 January in Tyler, Texas. The jury said Apple's infringement was wilful. VirnetX stock was trading at $9.30 after hours, up 94 percent from its Wednesday close. Apple was down 45 cents to $95.90 in after-hours trading. The verdict, though a blow for Apple, does not pose a threat to the company, which reported in January that its cash pile had reached $216 billion. Still, the amount is high for a patent case. Apple issued a statement vowing to appeal. "We are surprised and disappointed by the verdict," the company said. "Cases like this simply reinforce the desperate need for patent reform." Also on Wednesday, Apple filed court papers asking U.S. District Judge Robert Schroeder to declare a mistrial, saying VirnetX's attorneys had misled the jury during closing arguments. It is not known when Schroeder will rule on that request. "The jury saw what we have been saying all along: Apple has been infringing VirnetXs patented technology for years, VirnetX lawyer Jason Cassady said in a statement. VirnetX, a Nevada-based company that derives most of its revenue from licensing patents, first sued Apple in 2010 over the iPhone maker's use of secure networks, known as virtual private networks, and secure communications links in Apple's FaceTime video conferencing application. It was the second time VirnetX and Apple battled in court. In November 2012, a jury found Apple infringed four VirnetX patents with its iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad products, as well as with its Mac computers, awarding $368.2 million in damages. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the nation's top patent court in Washington, D.C., partly overturned that verdict, saying there were problems with how the trial judge instructed jurors on calculating damages. The retrial also incorporated claims from a second lawsuit VirnetX filed against Cupertino, California-based Apple in 2012 over newer versions of the Apple security features as well as its iMessage application. VirnetX was assigned the four patents by Science Applications International Corp in 2006, court papers show. In May 2010, VirnetX won a $200 million settlement from Microsoft Corp over the VPN technology. The case is VirnetX Inc v. Apple Inc in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, No. 12-cv-855. Reuters tech2 News Staff Google indeed does not like anyone interfering with its ad business. While there are plenty of ad blockers now popping up on the iOS App Store, Android's ad blocking capabilities are either reduced to complete browsers built for that purpose (AdBlock Plus), or plug-ins that are limited to third party browsers. Obviously Google would not like to kill its ad business by allowing a plugin to work with native apps on its own device, which is something startup Rocketship Apps learned the hard way. The startup's Adblock Fast plugin, shot to fame because it was the first plugin to work with Samsung's built-in browser that is available as a native app on Samsung devices. The app upon being uploaded quickly peaked on the Google Play Store soon after which Google noticed it and it was pulled down. The Verge had a word with Rocketship developer Brian Kennish who commented that the company's plug-in violated the Google Play Developer Program Policies that developers are expected to adhere to. In this case it was section 4.4 of the Developer Distribution Agreement that prevents apps or plugins offered through the Play Store from interfering or blocking devices, networks and services of third parties. In short, the app prevented the Samsung browser (a native app on a device powered by Google) from displaying ads, which was bad news of the developer. Indeed the way out of this mess is to create a similar plug in for a third-party browser or create an ad blocking browser instead, which is what AdBlock Plus eventually did after being rejected from the Store in a similar manner. Odd bit in this case is that Samsung helped Rocketship Apps build the plugin, so clearly someone forgot to read the memo. Pranjal Kshirsagar One of Google's most influential engineers, Amit Singhal, will be stepping down later this month to spend more time with his family and dedicate time to giving something back to society. Amit Singhal was born in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh in India and received a Bachelor of Engineering degree from IIT Roorkee. He continued his computer science education in the United States and received an MS degree from the University of Minnesota, Duluth, in 1991. Singhal continued his studies at Cornell University, Ithaca in New York and went on to receive a PhD in 1996. It was at Cornell that Singhal studied with Gerard Salton a pioneer in the field of information retrieval, also known as 'the father of digital search'. Singhal got hooked on to solving the problem of search and after the PhD, he joined AT&T Labs where he continued his research in information retrieval, speech retrieval and other related fields. In 2000, Singhal was persuaded by his friend Krishna Bharat (an Indian research scientist, who worked at Google and led the team that developed its Google News product) to join Google. He and his teams were responsible for the Google search algorithms and he is also referred to as the master of what Google calls 'ranking algorithm' the formulas that decide which Web pages best answer each user's question. After joining Google, there was no turning back for Singhal. He was named a Google Fellow as a reward for re-writing the search engine in 2001. In 2011, he was inducted as a Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery. Fortune named Singhal one of the smartest people in tech. In 2011, he was given the Outstanding Achievement in Science and Technology Award at The Asian Awards. In addition to this, he was also elected as one of the members of the National Academy of Engineering. Google and Singhal seem to have a harmonious growth story. What started as Backrub by Larry Page and Sergey Brin, working out of Stanford University servers in 1995, got registered as Google in 1997. And after the new algorithm in 2001, followed a string of patents and innovative updates that literally made it a synonym for searching on the internet -- just Google it, we say when want to look something up. The recent past saw Singhal take up a new challenge reinvent Google for the mobile world. In a report by the New York Times, Singhal said that smartphones were fundamentally changing the way people consumed information and Google's search had to cater to that which meant rethinking what search means from first principles. Singhal and his team spent five years building products like the Knowledge Graph, which powers tools like voice search and also introduced 'Now on Tap' that embeds search inside features like text messages and apps on Android phones. Towards the end of last year, Singhal led his team to build a cool prototype that professed his love for Star Trek. They created a fully working prototype of the programme's famous lapel pin communicators. The pin, explains this report, was used by Captain Picard and his crew to communicate, and Google kept the basic principles by building in a microphone and Bluetooth connectivity to sync with a smartphone. Singhal said he had always wanted that pin and on a whim decided to make the prototype. Singhal's belief of the concept of 'ubiquitous computing' led to the prototype and what he hopes will grow out of these baby steps and become reality. Algorithms and learnings that we have had for 15 years of running Google are actually coming in tremendously handy in building the future, Singhal had said in the New York Times report. Without those, we would be lost today. tech2 News Staff Microsoft is ready to shell out about $250 million to acquire UK-based Swiftkey, the predictive keyboard maker, reported the Financial Times earlier today. Microsoft has confirmed the deal through its blog. The Financial Times also reported that founders Jon Reynolds and Ben Medlock who set up the company in 2008, will each make more than $30 million from the deal. It would appear that, in essence the deal would be redundant for Microsoft, which has its own keyboard app called Word Flow -- albeit available only on Windows Phones. But Microsoft is interested in the predictive technology that powers the SwiftKey app. Harry Shum, Executive Vice President, Technology and Research at Microsoft said in his blog, "This acquisition is a great example of Microsofts commitment to bringing its software and services to all platforms. Well continue to develop SwiftKeys market-leading keyboard apps for Android and iOS as well as explore scenarios for the integration of the core technology across the breadth of our product and services portfolio. Moreover, SwiftKeys predictive technology aligns with Microsofts investments and ambition to develop intelligent systems that can work more on the users behalf and under their control." Shum also mentioned they will reveal in due time how the company plans to integrate SwiftKey technology with its own Word Flow technology for Windows. He also mentioned in the blog post how the new technology, talent and market position that SwiftKey brings to Microsoft will help futher demonstrate the company's intentions to bring key apps and technologies to platforms from Windows to Android to iOS. tech2 News Staff Twitter has announced a few improvements to its website, that will bring tweets to even more people across the globe. The company is rolling out a home timeline to people across 23 countries who visit the twitter.com homepage on their mobile devices. Prior to this, one could see individual tweets but it was being said that it was hard to discover stories and conversations happening on Twitter without signing in. Now, users can check out a news story. According to a press statement by the company, "users can check out a news story as it unfolds, dive into the play-by-play discussions around a game, and then come back again to see that exchange between two rappers everyones been talking about." It's in real time and straight from the source, similar to the Twitter experience for those who log in. Twitter is also expanding its refreshed twitter.com homepage on web, which is already available in the US and Japan, to countries such as Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, France, Germany, Japan, Kenya, India, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Nigeria, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Spain, South Africa, Taiwan, the UK and the US. Starting today, anyone can explore and discover different topics and stories as they occur, including some that are tailored based on their location and activity on Twitter. Recently, Twitter also improved 'logged out' user experience. The company is rolling out a home timeline to people across 23 countries who visit the twitter.com homepage on their mobile devices. Twitter is also expanding its refreshed twitter.com homepage on web, which is already available in the US and Japan, to countries such as Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, France, Germany, Japan, Kenya, India, Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Nigeria, Portugal, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Spain, South Africa, Taiwan and the UK. A blog containing opinion and analysis in a wide array of areas including the economy, health care, broadband and international relations. Money looted from Sonali, BASIC Banks: Muhith Staff Reporter : Finance Minister AMA Muhith on Wednesday said that massive loan scams in Sonali and BASIC Bank have eroded their financial position and they are now struggling to regain their previous position. "These state-owned banks have experienced several financial scandals in the recent past. Several robbery incidents have taken place in the Sonali Bank. Some high officials of the BASIC Bank also looted huge money from it," Muhith said these while addressing the Annual General Meeting (AGM)-2016 of Janata Bank Ltd. The AGM was held at Hotel Sonargaon in the city. The Finance Minister added that Sonali and BASIC banks have been immersed in scams and scandal, so, it will take time for these state-owned banks to regain their previous positions. "The government is closely monitoring the activities of the public banks so that they could improve their financial positions. It has already entered into an agreement with them back to strengthen the positions of these banks," he added. He, however, said that Janata Bank is relatively in a better position among other state-owned commercial banks. Dismissing the allegation that Bangladesh has more than enough commercial banks, the Minister said the number is not excess in terms of the number of the population. "Many people are still remaining out of banking service despite having around 9,000 bank branches across the country," said Muhith, adding, "Some 13 crore people out of 16 crore are economically solvent and live above the poverty line. This led to increase of demands for bank loans." The Finance Minister also said Bangladesh has been able to keep its GDP growth rate above 6 percent despite worldwide economic slowdown. This is very important for the country's economic stability. Bangladesh also has good contributions to international business, the Minister added. Speaking at the function, Managing Director (MD) of Janata Bank Abdus Salam said his bank has earned Tk 1,162 crore as profit in 2015 against the target of Tk 1,100 crore and collected Tk 800 crore default loans in 2015. The number of loss-making branches of the bank has come down to 35 which were 60 in 2014, Salam added. The bank has set a target of making a profit of Tk 1,350 crore, financing Tk 16,500 crore in export sector and Tk 16,000 crore in import, making a deposit of Tk 63,000 and disbursing Tk 38,500 as loan and advance for 2016. Broadcast Law in June: Inu Information Minister Hasanul Haque Inu on Thursday said the draft of a Broadcast Law will be placed at the next session of Parliament in June after getting clearance from Cabinet. The minister disclosed the information while talking to reporters at the secretariat after a meeting with a UNDP official. We will get the draft of the law within next two weeks, Inu said. After getting the copy of the draft, it will be opened to public for feedback and opinions, he said. The minister also said the law would come into effect in the light of National Broadcast Policy 2014, and an independent broadcast commission would also be installed under the new law. Inu said his ministry was going to arrange a two-day media convention where journalists from across the country are expected to participate. During the convention, journalists will be urged to play significant roles to save democracy and to work against militancy and terrorism, said the minister. Earlier, Inu joined a meeting with Resident Representative of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Robert D. Watkins. Inu said UNDP has proposed to train journalists to play a role to deal with earthquake. The UNDP has also offered to increase the aptitudes of the Community Radios, Inu said. -- Dhaka, Feb 4 (UNB) Pentagon chief unveils plans to buy more high-end ships, fighters Reuters, San Diego : Defence Secretary Ash Carter on Wednesday said the U.S. Navy would buy more high-end submarines, destroyers, fighter jets and unmanned underwater vehicles in coming years, using $8 billion saved by scaling back orders for smaller, less capable Littoral Combat Ships. Carter said the Pentagon's five-year budget plan also included $2.9 billion to modify Raytheon Co's new SM-6 missiles for use as powerful anti-ship weapons and buy 625 more of the weapons, which are now used for missile defense. In fiscal 2017, the Navy would spend $587 million to buy 125 SM-6 missiles, according to a senior defense official. Secret testing last month had proven the Navy's ability to use the new Raytheon missiles as offensive anti-ship weapons, Carter told sailors at the Navy's massive San Diego base. The move will dramatically bolster the military capabilities of the U.S. warships that carry them at a time when China and other countries are rapidly developing anti-ship weapons. Carter embarked on a three-day tour of U.S. military bases on Tuesday after providing a preview of the Obama administration's $582.7 billion fiscal 2017 defense budget ahead of the formal rollout next week. Arakan Army leader, 3 others sent to jail in Rangamati UNB, Rangamati : A court here on Wednesday sent suspected leader of Myanmar insurgent group 'Arakan Army' Renin Suye and its three members to jail rejecting their bail petitions in two cases filed with Rajasthali police station. Additional judicial magistrate Sabrina Ali passed the order when the four Myanmar nationals-Renin Suye, Jo Su Aung Marma, 42, and Mong Su Aang Marma, 39, Ong U Yang Rakhain- were produced before her court. The court also acquitted Jo Su Aung Marma, and Mong Su Aang Marma from a case filed under the Foreigners Act, 1946. The court also fixed February 18 for next hearing. Earlier on August 26, tipped off, a team of army and police personnel conducted a joint drive in Kainda union of Rajasthali upazila and arrested Ong U Yang Rakhain, Jo Su Aung Marma, and Mong Su Aang Marma, for their suspected involvement in the activities of the insurgent group. In another drive on October 15, Renin Suye was arrested from Islampur in Rajasthali. 19 universities sign for campus networking Campus Report : Nineteen public universities of the country signed agreement with UGC for establishing campus networking at UGC auditorium on Wednesday. UGC Chairman Prof Abdul Mannan was present on the occasion as chief guest. Dr Md. Mokhlesur Rahman, Senior Operations Officer, World Bank, Dhaka was present as special guest. UGC Member Prof Dr Md. Akhtar Hossain presided over the ceremony. Dr Gauranga Chandra Mohanta, ndc, Project Director, Higher Education Quality Enhancement Project (HEQEP) delivered the welcome address. Dr Md. Khaled, Secretary, UGC and Vice-Chancellors of the concerned universities signed the agreement on behalf of their respective institutions. UGC Chairman, in his speech said that campus networking is a must for teachers, students and researchers for access to world knowledge pool in the globalized and ever-changing world. In a knowledge-based society, high-speed internet connectivity is the prime need of the hour for creation of new knowledge and dissimination of it to the global community, he added. UGC Members Prof Dr Dil Afroza Begum, Prof Dr M Shah Nowaz Ali, representatives from HEQEP, BdREN and high offcials of UGC, among others were present on the occasion. The universities signed the agreement included Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, National University, Bangladesh Open University, Mawlana Bhashani Science and Technology University, Patuakhali Science and Technology University, Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology, Rajshahi University of Engineering and Technology, Khulna University of Engineering and Technology, Dhaka University of Engineering and Technology, Jagannath University, Comilla University, Chittagong Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Jessore University of Science and Technology, Bangladesh University of Professionals, Begum Rokeya University, Rangpur, Pabna Science and Technology University, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Science and Technology University, Barisal University and Bangladesh Textile University. Joint confce on internationalization of higher education Participants of a joint conference on internationalization of higher education held recently. Campus Report : The American International University-Bangladesh (AIUB) and the Daffodil International University (DIU), two leading private universities in Bangladesh have been selected by the International Association of Universities (IAU), UNESCO, Paris in view of its ardent commitment to internationalization. The present initiatives of these universities are enhanced with the launching of IAU's Internationalization Strategies Advisory Service (ISAS). The advisory service which focused on the outcome of the self-assessment conducted by each university on internationalization based on the framework provided and the valuable information generated from the various sectors of each of these universities. The joint conference held on 28 January 2016 in Westin Hotel becomes a platform bringing together institutional leaders and key officials to further expound and convey their perspectives and experiences on the internationalization issues and concerns. The observations and global knowledge of the IAU's experts composed of Eva Egron-Polak, Secretary General of IAU, spoke on global internationalization; Dr Anna Ciccarelli, IAU Board Member discussed on how internationalization strategies can be adapted in different contexts and Prof Dr SM Kabir shared his views on the impact of the regional perspective of internationalization to Bangladesh. Giorgio Marinoni, the Manager of HE and Internationalization policy and projects, IAU have put the conference in the right perspective. Prof Dr Mohammad Yousuf Ali Mollah, Member, University Grants Commission of Bangladesh and Prof Dr Mesbahuddin Ahmed, Head, QAU, UGC shared their insights on the government's perspective on internationalization, and quality assurance, respectively. The two Vice Chancellors of AIUB and DIU, Dr Carmen Z Lamagna and Prof Dr Yousuf Mahbubul Islam, respectively warmly welcomed the participants especially the honorable Chief and Special guests, IAU experts. The open discussions and contributions in terms of university's practices and experiences by the participants were indeed valuable and challenging to serve as basis for a comprehensive framework of internationalization for the two sponsoring universities but generally, to the universities in Bangladesh. The Conference was closed by Prof Dr M Lutfar Rahman, Professor Emeritus of DIU and the vote of thanks was expressed by the Prof Dr Charles C Villanueva, Pro Vice Chancellor of AIUB. The Vice Chancellors of the other Universities, Deans, Program Directors, Directors of the IQAC and others high officials of the AIUB were present in the occasion. Iranian businessmen want to invest in BD Visiting Iranian business delegates expressed their eagerness to work together with Bashundhara Group to promote country's energy sector Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) President Hossain Khaled speaking at a 15-member Iranian business delegation at the conference room of the DCCI in the city on Thursday. Economic Reporter : A 15-member Iranian business delegation met Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) President Hossain Khaled and members of the Board of Directors of DCCI on Thursday. An interactive B2B meeting was also held at the conference room of the DCCI in the city. Advisor to the Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade Mohammad Reza Mowdoody led the Iranian delegation. Ambassador of Iran in Bangladesh Dr. Abbas Vaezi was also present during the meeting. During the business-to-business talk DCCI President Hossain Khaled invited Iran's businessmen to invest in Bangladesh. He requested Iranian businessmen to invest in RMG, textile, ship building, tourism, power and energy, railway, cement sector in Bangladesh. Hossain Khaled emphasized direct banking and technology transfer with Iran. Mohammad Reza Mowdoody said that Bangladesh is a country of huge investment potentials. He stressed on exchanging trade delegation between Bangladesh and Iran. He also urged for establishing Iran-Bangladesh joint Chamber to boost bilateral trade. He said that business community of both the countries should expedite business to increase volume of bilateral trade between Bangladesh and iran. Iranian businessmen showed interest to invest in cement, clinker, railway transportation, polymer, leather, shoes, chemical. DCCI's Senior Vice President Humayun Rashid, Vice President K. Atique-e-Rabbani, Directors AKD Khair Mohammad Khan, S Rumi Saifullah, Khondokar Abdul Muktadir, Salim Akter Khan, Riyadh Hossain, former vice president M Abu Hurairah and Hossain A Sikder were also present and took part in the b2b session. In this backdrop, the visiting Iranian business delegates on Wednesday expressed their eagerness to work together with Bashundhara Group, the country's leading business conglomerate, in the thriving energy sector. They assured Bashundhara Group of helping construct an oil refinery in Bangladesh. The Bashundhara Group also discussed its blueprint to import liquefied petroleum (LP) gas and crude oil from Iran. The Iranian delegation held a meeting with the Bashundhara Group officials in the chairman's residence on Wednesday evening. Bashundhara Group Chairman Ahmed Akbar Sobhan, Managing Director Sayem Sobhan Anvir and Additional Managing Director Safwan Sobhan, among others, were present at the meeting. Iranian Ambassador (extraordinary and plenipotentiary) in Dhaka Dr Abbas Vaezi was also present. The meeting discussed the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Bashundhara Group and Trade Promotion Organisation of Iran. China should do more to solve the Syrian refugee crisis Moritz Rudolf and Angela Stanzel : According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), as of January 19, over 4.6 million Syrians had fled the terror of the Islamic State (also known as ISIS) and Bashar al-Assad's barrel bombs. Most of those refugees ended up in Turkey, Lebanon, or Jordan, but a significant number sought refuge in Europe. China is far from becoming a preferred destination for migrants from the Middle East, and the Chinese government is also not going to open its doors to refugees. Nevertheless, Beijing could play a constructive role in the ongoing crisis. Currently China's refugee aid in the Levant equals the contribution of Austria. Given the size and economic capabilities of the PRC, this is very little. According to UN data, by October 2015 China had contributed $14 million in humanitarian aid to Syria since the beginning of the crisis in 2011. In October and December 2015, the Chinese Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced the provision of additional sums of $16 million and $6 million respectively. In comparison, the United States has given $2.9 billion, Germany $1.4 billion, and the U.K. over $1.5 billion since the beginning of the Syrian conflict. Within China there is a vivid discussion on how Beijing should respond to the refugee crisis. Some intellectuals, including Professor Wan Meng from Beijing Foreign Studies University, argue that China, as a responsible rising power, should help to ease the situation. Beijing should be able to increase its financial contributions, since it is already evolving into a global player in disaster relief and humanitarian aid: During the Ebola crisis in 2014, China sent medical aid worth over $200 million as well as medical experts and even PLA medical staff. After last year's earthquake in Nepal, Beijing pledged $500 million for reconstruction and medical aid and it recently offered help to Indonesia to cope with forest fires raging in Sumatra and Kalimantan. In addition, China has and is contributing troops to UN peacekeeping missions, for instance in Mali and South Sudan. However, another faction - which seems to be prevailing within China - argues that the United States and Europe caused much of the crisis in the Middle East, and should therefore take the responsibility and deal with the consequences. The West, meanwhile, should respect China's reluctance to get involved. As Wu Sike, China's former special envoy to the Middle East, stated in November 2015, "The interfering policies of the United States, Europe and other Western nations and their trying to push their own values to change the Middle East have bought long-term turmoil and have been an important inducement to this wave of refugees." In November 2015, during the German-Chinese human rights dialogue, Chinese representatives even criticized Germany's handling of the refugee crisis on human rights grounds. Recently China has moved swiftly on the diplomatic stage, but it remains unlikely that China is willing or able to play a significant role in solving the crisis. Beijing could, however, increase its financial support and should do so, out of mere self-interest. More financial aid by Beijing would be a "low cost, low risk engagement," in particular compared to the billions of U.S. dollars China has pledged to the "One Belt, One Road (OBOR)" initiative. Stability is the Achilles' heel for the success of OBOR in the region. By increasing financial contributions, Beijing would not be drawn into the Syrian conflict and it would not deviate from the principle of non-interference. In fact, China could actually play a constructive role in stabilizing the region. At a time when China desperately needs to create a positive image of itself in the world, helping to curb the refugee crisis could turn out to be a great PR coup for Beijing. In addition, China could illustrate that it is a responsible global stakeholder by stepping up its financial support to the UNHCR. Financial aid to upgrade refugee camps in the Middle East or parts of Eastern Europe (e.g. Lebanon or Macedonia) could be beneficial to the refugees as well as to the overwhelmed countries hosting them. It could even help to curb the influx of refugees to Europe and turn out to be a significant trust-building measure between Europe and China. For the last few months, some EU member states, such as Germany, have tried to involve China in solving the refugee crisis. During an interview with the South China Morning Post, the German ambassador to China, Michael Clauss, stated that "any contribution from China's side would be more than welcome." In late December during the visit of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to Berlin, he and his German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier also discussed the refugee crisis. And in early January, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang talked about China's potential role in responding to the refugee crisis during a telephone conversation. On February 4, an international high-ranking donors conference for Syria will take place in London. The conference was co-organized by Norway, the U.K., Germany, and Kuwait as well as the UN. China has not yet indicated whether it will respond to the recent $7 billion UN appeal for aid to alleviate the humanitarian crisis in Syria. But a U.K.-China Joint Statement on Syria, released one month prior to the conference in London, implies that China could use this stage to step up and announce more financial contributions. The long-term objective for Europe should be to establish a sustainable mechanism to involve China in managing the refugee crisis beyond ad hoc responses. The most obvious channel would be the UNHCR, which is chronically underfunded. Germany in particular should strive to actively engage China and put the refugee crisis on the agenda during its OECD presidency this year. Furthermore, Germany will follow China as chair of the G20 in 2017, which represents another window of opportunity to engage China. (Moritz Rudolf is a research associate at the Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS) in Berlin. Angela Stanzel is Policy Fellow in the Asia and China program at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR). 2 Bangladeshis face gallows for drug smuggling in Kuwait Arab Times, Kuwait City :Criminal court presided over by Judge Mohammad Al-Duaij sentenced two Bangladeshi expatriates to death for smuggling and peddling drugs. According to the case file, one of the convicts was seized by customs officers at Kuwait International Airport for attempting to leave the customs area without handing over his baggage for security screening.The convict, who was entering the country under Article 20 visa (domestic visa), was found in possession of one kilogram of marijuana, which he confessed he was smuggling for one of his compatriots who was eventually arrested by securitymen. Kuwait Municipality demolished three tents that were wrongly erected on state property which were attached to cafe joints without obtaining necessary permission from the authority at Sulaibiya Industrial Area. The officials also removed three abandoned vehicles, three cranes and violating tyres. The campaign was carried out by the Emergency Team from Jahra Municipality in collaboration with the General Services Department affiliated to Kuwait Municipality. The tents obstructed the emergency services offered to the public and impeded traffic flow, pedestrian movement and blocked view in certain cases. Meanwhile, an inspection campaign was carried out by officers from Ahmadi Security Directorate on Jan 27 and 28 during which 26 violators of law were arrested, 13 traffic citations were issued and a number of individuals were arrested as well as a vehicle wanted by law for a murder case was seized and its owner arrested. Public univ teachers suspend prog till Feb 23 Staff Reporter : The teachers of public universities have suspended their work abstention programme against disparity in the New Pay Scale till February 23. They appeared optimistic about the success of their agitation before deadline. Federation of Bangladesh University Teachers' Association (FBUTA) decided it on Thursday after a meeting of the body representing teachers of 37 public universities. FBUTA Secretary General Professor ASM Maksud Kamal made the announcement. "We will sit on February 23 to assess the development. Then we will decide the next course of action," he said. "We are heading for a respectable solution. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is aware of our situation," he said. He said the association would be happy if an acceptable formula was found. "If the solution is an honourable one, we will thank the government ... Or else, we will announce our next programme." Professor Kamal said that the FBUTA had held talks with four senior government officials and had one round of discussions with the University Grants Commission. "We think we are moving towards an honourable solution. But a lot depends on the mindset of the bureaucrats." FBUTA President Professor Farid Uddin Ahmed said, "We hope to reach a solution soon."The agitation has been suspended, but the movement is on, he claimed. "We were in the midst of a movement and we still are." Public university teachers, who have been vocal since May last year over issue of "pay discrepancy," across Bangladesh went on a seven-day strike last month. They subsided and postponed their strike on January 20 after assurance from Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. They said that they would disclose further programme later. Several meetings were held with four government secretaries and University Grants Commission (UGC) officials to resolve the issue, he said. "We are optimistic about success." Meanwhile, the leading teachers' platform FBUTA will hold meetings with Education and Finance Secretaries on February 7. University Grants Commission (UGC) Chairman Prof Abdul Mannan will chair the meeting. They have crossed all limits: NHRC chief Staff Reporter : Chairman of National Human Rights Commission [NHRC] Dr Mizanur Rahman on Thursday said that the illegal activities of police have crossed all limits in the recent time. The NHRC chief said that a tea seller has to sacrifice his life because of unlawful and outrageous activities of police. His comment came as the tea seller Babul Mattabbar, 45, died at the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) on Thursday afternoon. The man struggled for hours for survival with almost 95 per cent burn injuries in his body. "It's a shame for the whole nation. The outrageous behaviour of police has reached an excessive level. It needs to stop just now," Dr Mizan said after visiting the victim tea seller Babul Mattabbar at the hospital.Babul, who suffered burns as he fell on kerosene stove after allegedly being pushed by a police source after he refused to pay toll to him. The incident occurred in Godaraghat of Mirpur area in Wednesday night. Because of the impact, the stove exploded and his body caught fire. He died at the hospital yesterday afternoon. Dr Mizan also said that they would go to the higher court if the alleged law enforcers are not sued. He requested the Home Minister to take steps to ensure justice in the incident. Meanwhile, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal on Thursday said no offenders would be spared if they were involved where a tea seller caught fire from his kerosene stove reportedly involving a policeman. The Home Minister promised justice if any policeman is involved in the incident. Govt out to foil council of BNP: Noman UNB, Dhaka :BNP's senior leader Abdullah Al Noman on Thursday accused the government of conspiring to obstruct their party' s sixth national council."The government is plotting to impede our sixth national council. The sedition case filed against our chairperson is aimed at keeping her away from the council activities," he said. Noman however said their party is determined to hold their council at the right time.The BNP leader came up with the remarks while talking to reporters after placing wreaths at the grave of party founder Ziaur Rahman with leaders andin Indonesia while Toader is a Romanian. Except Toader, the other three have genetic roots in West Java.The problem with "Tree Man Disease" is that there is still no cure. Muggers loot Tk 40 lakh in Gazipur UNB, Gazipur :In an armed attack, muggers looted Tk 40 lakh of a garment factory intercepting a microbus in the city on Thursday.The injured include accounts officer Parvez of 'Wales Fashion Limited' in Barobari of the city, and its employees Azad, Ilias, and microbus driver Shahidul Haque. Of them, Ilias sustained bullet wounds.Police and witnesses said the five employees of the factory were returning to their factory by the microbus after withdrawing money from the Uttara branch of IFIC Bank.As they reached the Mill-gate area under Tongi Police Station at noon, a group of 5-6 hoodlums, posing as traffic police, signaled it to stop. As soon as the vehicle stopped, the thugs fired around 5-6 gunshots targeting the vehicle and took away a bag containing Tk 40 lakh from the vehicle, leaving five employees injured.The injured were taken to Tongi hospital.Contacted, officer-in-charge of Tongi Police Station Feroz Talukdar said they were trying to arrest the criminals. Dispose Ekram murder case by 6 months: SC UNB, Dhaka : The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court on Thursday asked the court concerned in Feni to dispose of Fulgazi upazila chairman Ekram murder case within six months. A four-member bench of the Appellate Division, headed by Chief Justice SK Sinha, passed the order after dismissing a petition filed a sate counsel seeking stay on the HC order that had granted bail to Fulgazi upazila unit Awami League joint secretary Jahangir Kabir Adel. The apex court also asked the Feni court to consider the bail of Adel if it is not possible to dispose of the case within six months. Adv Abdul Based Majumdar appeared for Adel while Attorney General Mahbubey Alam and Deputy Attorney General Khandaker M Diliruzzaman represented the state. On November 16, 2015, the HC granted bail to local AL leader Jahangir Kabir Adel in the case. Later, the chamber judge stayed Adel's bail following a petition filed by the public prosecutor and sent the petition to the full bench of the Supreme Court. On May 20, 2014, Ekramul Haque Ekram, also president of Fulgazi upazila unit of Awami League, came under attack by miscreants in front of Bilasi Cinema Hall in Feni district town on his way to Fulgazi municipality office. The miscreants intercepted his microbus and fired shots on him from a very close range and then set fire to the vehicle. They left the scene after confirming Ekram's death on the spot. On August 28, police submitted charge-sheet against 56 people in the murder case. Alleged HuTman held in city bdnews24.com : Police have detained a suspected member of the banned Islamist outfit Hizbut Tahrir from Dhaka. Faidur Rahman, 36, was held from his residence at Tolarbagh in Mirpur on Wednesday night, said Special Superintendent Md Abul Kalam Azad of the2 Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI). "Faidur, is a trader of fish and scrap cloth produced as waste in garment factories (locally called Jhoot). But he has been for long running internet campaigns for the Hizbut Tahrir and also against the government. The evidence of his [illegal] activities has been found in his laptop," he told bdnews24.com. "He was responsible for recruiting members for the outfit from various places of Dhaka. He was once arrested from Shahbagh in 2010." A case was filed with Mirpur Police Station against him under the ICT Act, said the PBI official. "We are now looking for his associates." This blog features my weekly column called "What's up in the sky". It is published every Saturday in the Ellensburg newspaper, Daily Record (http://www.kvnews.com/). While my postings will be most accurate for Central Washington, readers throughout the northern USA may find something of use. . NEWS AND VIEWS THAT IMPACT LIMITED CONSTITUTIONAL GOVERNMENT "There is danger from all men. The only maxim of a free government ought to be to trust no man living with power to endanger the public liberty." - - - - John Adams The Gay Courier has been established to provide news, information and info on, from and about the gay community, and other social events and happenings from around the world, from all sorts of sources, to all who are interested in this news, information and info! The postings are as is, and all copyrights and or ownerships are and remain with the original copyright-holder and or owner! If you are looking for the new Immoral Minority posts, you should know that they can be found here at our new home Please stop by to get caught up on politics, join the conversations, or simply check out the new digs. More than 1,500 supporters and city and state stakeholders gathered with more than two dozen pastors and church leaders for the first ever Senior Pastoral Alliance of Southwest Louisiana induction ceremony on Sunday. Photo by Amanda Jean Harris The Cajundome Convention Center felt like a place of worship Sunday evening when more than 1,500 supporters and city and state stakeholders gathered with more than two dozen pastors and church leaders for the first ever Senior Pastoral Alliance of Southwest Louisiana induction ceremony. The event, organized by Destiny of Faith Christian Center Church pastor Rev. Ken Lazard, opened with moving gospel music and recognition of local elected officials and law enforcement leaders in the crowd with a focused purpose to love, lead, unite, reach. Their efforts began with fanfare Sunday night and a focus to better north Lafayette and beyond by joining forces to celebrate the important role the faith-based community represents in Acadiana and how vital it is to engage the community in stimulating economic development, community revitalization and political accountability, according to the groups mission. Newly elected governor John Bel Edwards sent a rousing collection of remarks to be delivered by Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development Secretary Shawn Wilson opening with a passage from Matthew about the story of a house built on the sand with a shaky foundation. Its time for Louisiana to get our house in order, Wilson said. View a gallery of images from the event here. Wilson warned the group of the looming $750 million-plus shortfall coming in the budget with a greater deficit next year (nearly $2 billion). We can together overcome whatever hurdles to move Louisiana forward, Wilson said asking the group for understanding as sacrifices and cuts come and charging them as the church to care for those who will be impacted by cuts. Moving Louisiana and Lafayette forward was the call of the evening. A representative for City-Parish President Joel Robideaux Marcus Bruno who handles government and constituent relations lauded the group for consolidating their efforts and asked for time and unity as the new leadership in Lafayette moves forward. Give us your time, most of all give us your prayers, he said. There was certainly no shortage of those on Sunday evening. Haynesville Shale Photo courtesy Wiki Commons Buying low and selling high in this market only works if you know the true value of your acquisition. Nobody, and I include myself, can predict oil prices for the immediate future. However, I do have another type of prediction: More new domestic oil and gas companies will be formed in the next five years than in any similar time frame in the history of the U.S. This is for one simple reason at these prices, oil is the safest investment simply because it is well below its replacement cost. If you look at the true full cycle cost of development and production, todays price means that it is not possible for the U.S. to sustain exploration even at its present low level. No new exploration means no new reserves and less future production, which eventually leads to lower production and higher prices. So buy low and sell high. I am not the only one who believes this, which may be why we see record amounts of capital gathering on the sidelines, waiting for the right investment opportunity. So the question is, what should you buy? In working with our clients to help evaluate acquisitions, here is what weve discovered: A typical acquisition in the shale consists of a scattering of wells and leases across a broad area. Pooling agreements usually determine the working interest (expense) and net revenue interest (income) on each well based on tract acreage contribution to the production unit. This means that one acre in this unit has a separate and distinct value that is different than one acre in another unit, in the same area, and even on the same lease. The value of each acre is dependent on where it is located, what depths/horizons are part of that acre, how much is developed, and how much undeveloped is remaining. When buying acreage, you need to know how many more wells can be drilled within that unit as per the pooling agreement, as it is now common to see multiple wells drilled within any unit. Recently we came a across a situation in which the oil and gas lease contained two adjacent tracts of land on the same lease; each tract was in its own separate producing unit for the Haynesville shale formation. One of the units had six producing wells (fully developed) and the other tract had one producing well (five potential additional locations), all drilled during higher gas price years and within two years of each other. Production and depletion for all of the wells were similar, so the depletion type curve, estimated ultimate recoveries for each well, cash flows and remaining present values would all be the same. One might assume that based on todays commodity price and the fact that no new wells can be economically drilled, that the value of each tract is based solely on the value of its current production. This assumption would be a mistake. The unit with six wells is fully developed, meaning the reservoir has been fully developed and no more wells will be drilled in that unit, regardless of future commodity price. However, the tract in the unit with only one well drilled and producing can offer five new locations, when prices recover. So the value of the underdeveloped acreage has a greater income potential than the fully developed acreage. Think of the undeveloped acreage as an open-ended call option meaning that at some time in the future, as long as the lease/tract is held by production, the owner of that lease has the right, but not the obligation, to drill additional wells. So if and when commodity prices rise, the undeveloped tract becomes more and more valuable. Also, its important to be aware of which leases have depth/horizon severance issues as well as horizontal and/or vertical pugh clause issues. With this awareness, you can determine what you can keep and what you will lose, as well as how much to budget for future payments and when to pay them. The key to doing intelligent and effective due diligence and evaluation of an acquisition is to look at and value each tract of land, considering its present estimated ultimate recovery and future EUR potential. As prices rise, the tracts with the least amount of developed producing wells will have a greater increase in value than those tracts that are more fully developed. With todays database and GIS technology, this process can be simple, fast and well worth the investment. Otherwise, I honestly do not know how anyone can truly be knowledgeable and competitive in acquisitions in todays environment. Tim Supple is the president of the online software tool iLandMan, which has offices in Lafayette, Houston and Oklahoma City. Supple and has been in the oil and gas industry for nearly 40 years working as a landman, broker and exploration and production operator, before entering the land software business in 2005. Monet rahapelien ystavat ovat viime vuosina loytaneet netticasinot ja olleet ihmeissaan. Verrattuna kotimaisen Veikkauksen kivijalkarahapeleihin puhutaan aivan eri tason palautusprosenteista ja lisaksi pelaaminen on aarimmaisen helppoa ja turvallista. Netticasinoiden maara on tana paivana todella suuri ja niita loytyy jokaiseen lahtoon, suurin ongelma aloittelevalla pelaajalla onkin tehda valinta siita, minka netticasinon valitsee. Kaikkien netticasinoiden mainospuheet naet lupaavat kauniita asioita ja niiden lapinakeminen on tietysti tarkeaa. Nyrkkisaantona voidaan kuitenkin jo kattelyssa todeta, etta jos valitsemasi netticasino on lisensoitu ETA-alueella, sen kanssa ei tule olemaan ongelmia, ellei niita itse jarjesta. Kay tutustumassa parhaisiin netticasinoihin osoitteessa www.ilmaiskierroksia.info! Ensimmainen nyrkkisaanto on siis varmistaa, etta valitsemallasi netticasinolla on ETA-alueen lisenssi. Suurimmassa osassa tapauksista se on Maltan eli MGA:n lisenssi. Myos Viron, Englannin ja Gibraltarin lisensseja nakyy ja naissa valvonta on jopa Maltaa tiukempaa. Lopputulema on kuitenkin se, etta ETA-alueen lisenssi takaa suomalaisille verovapaat voitot seka sen, etta niita valvotaan kontrolloidusti. Maailmalla on iso nippu Curacaon lisenssilla toimivia netticasinoita ja niistakin suurin osa on laadukkaita. Ne eivat kuitenkaan ole suomalaisille asiakkaille verovapaita, joten emme suosittele niita. Tana paivana markkinoille on ilmaantunut paljon ETA-alueella toimiva netticasinoita ilman rekisteroitymista. Jos tarkoitus on vain pelata yksittaisia pelikertoja, on varsin helppo suositella naita. Netticasinot ilman rekisteroitymista tarjoavat palvelun tunnistautumisen verkkopankin avainlukulistan avulla ja saman palvelun kautta tapahtuvat talletukset ja mahdolliset voittojen nostot silmanrapayksessa. Normaaleihin netticasinoihin pitaa asiakkaan rekisteroitya, tehda talletukset ja tunnistautua dokumenttien avulla. Tama on lisenssiehtojen mukainen kaytanto, eika kovinkaan monimutkainen, mutta silti monet asiakkaat haluavat yksinkertaista ja nopeaa palvelua. Toki normaalit netticasinot tarjoavat usein asiakkailleen laadukkaita talletusbonuksia ja erilaisia kampanjoita, joten kannattaa tarkkaan punnita, kumman ratkaisun valitsee. Kannattaa myos muistaa, etta tunnistautuminen tehdaan vain kerran, joten mikaan jatkuva riippakivi se ei ole. Suomalaiset asiakkaat ovat netticasinoille tarkeita, joten kaikilla vahankin laadukkailla netticasinoilla on suomenkieliset sivut seka suomenkielinen asiakaspalvelu suomenkielisyys kannattaakin ottaa netticasinoa valittaessa nyrkkisaannoksi. Vaikka tana paivana englanninkielisyys on harvoille ongelma, on suomenkielisten netticasinoiden maara niin valtava, etta suosittelemme niiden kayttoa. Rahansiirrot ovat tana paivana niin hyvassa mallissa, etta niiden kanssa tuskin tulee mitaan ongelmia. Kolme tarkeinta segmenttia: Suomalaiset verkkopankit, luottokortit (Visa, Mastercard) seka nettilompakot (Skrill, Neteller) loytyvat jokaisesta laadukkaasta netticasinosta. Viime vuosien trendiksi noussut verkkokauppa on kehittanyt rahansiirrot niin laadukkaiksi ja nopeiksi, etta niiden suhteen ei ole enaa vuosiin ollut ongelmia. Luonnollisesti netticasinot kayttavat naita samoja palveluita ja hyotyvat kehityksesta. Naiden isojen linjojen jalkeen netticasinon valintaan vaikuttavat luonnollisesti tarjottavat tervetuliaisbonukset uudet asiakkaat saavat tana paivana kovan kilpailun myota merkittavia etuja netticasinoilta ja niita kannattaa luonnollisesti vertailla. Erilaiset talletusbonukset, ilmaiskierrokset seka ilmaiset pelirahat tuovat suuriakin rahanarvoisia etuja ja niiden vertailu on ehdottomasti kannattavaa. Myoskaan useampien tilien avaaminen ja tervetuliaistarjousten kayttaminen ei missaan nimessa ole huono idea. Kun edella mainitut asiat ovat mieleisia ja vaihtoehtoja on vielakin jaljella, mennaan jo nyansseihin. Toki pelivalikoima on yksi kriteeri, mutta taman paivan netticasinoissa tamakin asia on paasaantoisesti varsin samanlainen. Toki useamman samantasoisen netticasinon vertailussa kannattaa yleensa valita se, jossa on eniten peleja tarjolla. Vaikka omat suosikit loytyisivatkin useammasta, voi tulevaisuudessa mielenkiinto nousta joihinkin muihin peleihin ja silloin on tietysti mukavampaa, etta ne loytyvat valikoimista. Viimeisena voidaan nostaa esiin kaytettavyys joidenkin netticasinoiden sivut ovat vilkkuvia, valkkyvia ja epakaytannollisia. Omaan silmaan ja kaytettavyyteen sopiva sivusto on luonnollisesti aina se paras valinta. Tarjonta netticasinoissa on tana paivana valtava ja jokaiselle loytyy varmasti se oma netticasino onnea matkaan! Pre-purchase property inspection is a relatively new thing in the United Kingdom. Its not something that most people have heard about, but it has become increasingly popular over the last few years with the rise in property prices and increased demand for high quality homes. What are the benefits of pre-purchase building inspection? What can you expect to find out when you pay someone else to inspect your home before you buy it? And what should you look for during an inspection? Many people want to know if theyre buying a house thats been well maintained or if its had any serious problems. If youve found a place on the market that seems attractive, but then discover some issues after moving in, you may not be as excited about buying it as you thought you were. Its important to do your due diligence when looking at properties. A lot goes into making a property appealing to potential buyers, from the landscaping to the flooring to the kitchen appliances. The same applies when inspecting a property there are many things that need checking over to make sure everything is running smoothly. Here are some of the benefits of performing a pre-purchase inspection: You get to see exactly what will happen to your money When you go shopping for a new car, youll probably be shown several different models. You might even be shown one that looks like a great value, but doesnt fit around all of the extra features that you want. When it comes time to actually buy the vehicle, however, you wont have seen how your money will be spent on it once you drive it off the showroom floor. Likewise, when you shop for a new home, you dont really know what youre getting yourself into until you move in. In order to get a feel for whether the home youre considering is what you want, you normally have to spend quite a bit of time inside it. This allows you to learn more about everything that youre going to be spending your hard-earned cash on. A pre-purchase building inspection gives you much the same kind of experience without having to spend thousands of dollars. Since youre paying for the service, you can expect to see exactly what youre paying for, instead of just seeing a vague idea of what you might end up with. You find out about potential major repairs Some buildings are very expensive to maintain, which means that owners often neglect them for the sake of saving money. While youre paying for a building inspection, youre also paying for a professional who knows how to spot signs of trouble and repair work that needs doing. If you notice that a particular area of your new home needs fixing right away, you can call in an expert to take care of it quickly. If you find that theres something wrong with your boiler, you wont have to wait weeks for a plumber to come over and fix it. Instead, youll have access to a solution immediately. You can save hundreds of pounds by finding out about potential problems early on One of the biggest expenses when you first buy a home is the cost of moving in. Many people dont realize this until its too late. Buying a home involves not only paying for the actual house, but also for moving costs, furniture, and other items that have to be moved along with the home. Having a good idea ahead of time of what youre likely to encounter can help you avoid these kinds of costs. If you know youll need to replace the plumbing system, for example, youll be able to put together a budget for the expense and plan accordingly. You can protect your investment by finding out if the homes been well cared for While there are plenty of people who think that houses always look better when theyre newly built, youd be surprised at how well maintained older residences can still look nice. Sometimes, though, those homes need some additional maintenance to keep them looking their best. This could involve repairs that arent so noticeable or small improvements that you wouldnt consider otherwise. Even worse, some houses have fallen into disrepair without anyone noticing. This is why having a professional perform a building inspection prior to purchasing a home is such a big benefit. Not only will it give you insight into the state of the property, but it will also give you peace of mind knowing youre not getting taken advantage of. As long as youre aware of the potential pitfalls, youll have less reason to worry about the state of your new home. You can use information gathered during a building inspection to negotiate a lower price If youre worried about buying a home because you suspect that it may need extensive renovation work, you may already have a rough idea of how much work youll need to do to bring it up to scratch. That knowledge can come in handy if you decide to buy the home. You can use all of the details that you gather during a building inspection to present a realistic picture of what the home is worth to prospective buyers. If a potential buyer thinks that the home is worth more than what you paid for it, you can try negotiating a lower price. You can sell your home faster and for more money If you decide to list your home on the market soon after buying it, youll need to price it accurately in order to attract buyers. But if youve already done a thorough building inspection, youll know exactly what work is needed and what the current market conditions are. In other words, youll be able to make a more accurate estimate of the amount of money youve invested in the home and how much its worth. If you find that youre selling your house for close to its full market value, you can use this information to convince the potential buyer that your home is worth the asking price. Even if youre planning to stay in the home for a while before you decide to sell, the fact that you did a thorough building inspection will give you more confidence when listing it. Prospective buyers will know exactly what theyre paying for. Your home will hold its value longer As mentioned earlier, the value of a home depends heavily upon the condition of the building itself. If your home is in bad shape, potential buyers wont be interested in buying it. On the other hand, if youve performed a thorough building inspection and know what sort of repairs are necessary, you can offer your prospective buyer a compelling reason to invest in your property. When you buy a home, youre essentially agreeing to have it inspected periodically to ensure that it stays in top shape. Not only does this allow you to avoid expensive repairs down the road, but it can also increase the value of your home. You can make smart decisions about property investments Buying real estate isnt as simple as just driving a couple of minutes to pick up a house. There are lots of considerations involved, ranging from location to cost. The same is true when youre investing in property. If you find a house that meets all of your requirements, youll want to make sure that you have a solid understanding of where it stands with regards to the rest of the market. If you havent spent enough time researching the area, you could inadvertently end up with a bad deal. There are lots of resources available online that can help you determine the overall level of competition in your area. They can also help you figure out if there are any properties that meet your requirements that you didnt know about. If you own rental property, you can use the information to identify tenants who might cause damage If you own rental property and youve noticed that certain tenants consistently cause damage, you can use the results of a building inspection to identify them. You can then contact them directly to let them know that youre watching them closely and that you dont appreciate the problem theyre causing. They might start taking better care of their homes, which would be good news for everyone. It could also be the case that youll find out that theyre responsible for previous damages that werent caught during a previous visit. You can make smarter decisions about hiring contractors If youve hired contractors to build or repair your home, you might want to ask them for references. However, unless you perform a thorough building inspection, you might not know exactly what to look for. For instance, maybe you only checked the roof for leaks or the walls for cracks. You might not have looked underneath the foundation for anything that could cause a future issue. By performing a building inspection, you can ensure that you hire reputable contractors who will be trustworthy with your money. You can avoid purchasing a home thats in poor condition Of course, the main benefit of structural inspections perth is that it helps you avoid purchasing a home thats in poor condition. Before you make the decision to buy a home, you should do whatever you can to find out about the state of the building. You can also ask your realtor about what sorts of inspections are typically recommended. Some agents say that its standard practice to check the heating system, the roof, the electrical wiring, and the floors. Others will tell you that they recommend that you check the entire structure. Either way, if you choose to hire an inspector, youll find out exactly what needs to be fixed and how much it will cost to do so. As a result, it can be concluded that a pre-purchase building inspection is highly important for the buyers because it provides transparency regarding the current conditions of the structure. Additionally, the building owner is made aware of any upgrades or repairs that are required, which could lead to a fair deal throughout the purchasing and selling process. th, 2016 February 4, 2016 Baton Rouge, Louisiana LOUISIANA BIG LOSER IN IOWA CAUCUS! No, the title for the real loser was, hands down, the state of Louisiana. Because of both selfishness and a lack of any creative thinking, state officials in the Bayou State passed on the chance of receiving worldwide publicity and having hundreds of millions of dollars poured into the states economy. Simply put, Louisiana blew the chance of being the first presidential primary state and reaping all the benefits. The biggest loser in the recent Iowa presidential caucuses was not Donald Trump or any of the other candidates who did not meet expectations in garnering voters.No, the title for the real loser was, hands down, the state of Louisiana.Because of both selfishness and a lack of any creative thinking, state officials in the Bayou State passed on the chance of receiving worldwide publicity and having hundreds of millions of dollars poured into the states economy.Simply put, Louisiana blew the chance of being the first presidential primary state and reaping all the benefits. It is the first test, coming after almost a full year of campaigning, polling, punditry and the like. And with all the campaigning, Iowa was the center of political attention for the past six months. Whos leading in Iowa? What do Iowans think about the countrys direction? Whats the make up of Iowa? There was media coverage ad infinitum about a small Midwestern state best known to most of us for growing corn. Iowa scored the presidential Super Bowl by being the first state out of the box. The Washington Post reported that Iowa matters.It is the first test, coming after almost a full year of campaigning, polling, punditry and the like.And with all the campaigning, Iowa was the center of political attention for the past six months.Whos leading in Iowa?What do Iowans think about the countrys direction?Whats the make up of Iowa?There was media coverage ad infinitum about a small Midwestern state best known to most of us for growing corn. But what an opportunity missed. Louisiana could have held the nations first presidential primary at the same time as the recent gubernatorial election. No other state holds an election so close to the presidential primary season. So the Bayou State could have garnered all this same national attention and financial benefits, and for no additional cost since state elections were already taking place. set for March 8th, a week after Super Tuesday when the nominees could well be decided.But what an opportunity missed. Louisiana could have held the nations first presidential primary at the same time as the recent gubernatorial election. No other state holds an election so close to the presidential primary season. So the Bayou State could have garnered all this same national attention and financial benefits, and for no additional cost since state elections were already taking place. Right now, Louisianas presidential primary is Or how about Hillary Clinton venturing up to Rapides Parish for a ham sandwich at Leas Lunchroom in LaCount? (She probably ought to pass on the famous coconut or chocolate pies.) Senator Ted Cruz is from Texas, and would no doubt be partial to Cou-yons Barbecue in Port Allen. A stop in Crowley for Marco Rubio would require a visit with B.I. Moody as he holds court each Saturday morning with the regulars at the Rice Palace Cafe. Just imagine the national media coverage and the excitement of Donald Trump dropping in a Hammonds Hi-Ho barbeque restaurant to meet with the locals.Or how about Hillary Clinton venturing up to Rapides Parish for a ham sandwich at Leas Lunchroom in LaCount? (She probably ought to pass on the famous coconut or chocolate pies.)Senator Ted Cruz is from Texas, and would no doubt be partial to Cou-yons Barbecue in Port Allen.A stop in Crowley for Marco Rubio would require a visit with B.I. Moody as he holds court each Saturday morning with the regulars at the Rice Palace Cafe. They will be heartily welcomed in Iowa, Louisiana, by Mayor (Pronounced poncho for all you Yankees and Rednecks.) The Mayor, who puts her home phone number on the town website, will treat any of the presidential candidates to coffee and beignets at Lil Reds. Carol Ponthieux.(Pronounced poncho for all you Yankees and Rednecks.)The Mayor, who puts her home phone number on the town website, will treat any of the presidential candidates to coffee and beignets at Lil Reds. And if any of the other candidates feel the necessity to actually go to Iowa, well no big deal.They will be heartily welcomed in Iowa, Louisiana, by Mayor The candidates campaigning in the state of Iowa spend over $100 million. Media outlets, consultants and campaign volunteers ran up a similar amount over the past year. Economists often quote the economic turnover effect of dollars spent in a local or state economy as anywhere from six to seven times. So $200 million dropped into the Louisiana economy that turns over a number of times is certainly no small change. Just how much did Louisiana lose by failing to hold the first in the nation presidential primary?The candidates campaigning in the state of Iowa spend over $100 million.Media outlets, consultants and campaign volunteers ran up a similar amount over the past year. Economists often quote the economic turnover effect of dollars spent in a local or state economy as anywhere from six to seven times.So $200 million dropped into the Louisiana economy that turns over a number of times is certainly no small change. Governor Bobby Jindal quickly scuttled any initial interest in such a novel idea because of his delusional campaign for president. His own campaign was sinking fast, and he did not want to be embarrassed by a certain poor showing in his home state. And legislators at the time didnt have the gumption to take on the good fight for a cause that would have brought bountiful publicity and huge financial rewards. So why wasnt there an effort made to hold a presidential primary at the same time as the gubernatorial election in Louisiana this past November?Governor Bobby Jindal quickly scuttled any initial interest in such a novel idea because of his delusional campaign for president.His own campaign was sinking fast, and he did not want to be embarrassed by a certain poor showing in his home state.And legislators at the time didnt have the gumption to take on the good fight for a cause that would have brought bountiful publicity and huge financial rewards. Once again, a lack of vision and commitment will cause the Bayou State to be irrelevant in deciding who will lead the country. But, at least, you can go to Iowa. That is, Iowa, Louisiana. Its one of the last stops traveling I-10 on your way to Texas. But dont expect to see anyone there campaigning for president. Louisiana will be merely a footnote when the campaign comes to an end.Once again, a lack of vision and commitment will cause the Bayou State to be irrelevant in deciding who will lead the country.But, at least, you can go to Iowa.That is, Iowa, Louisiana.Its one of the last stops traveling I-10 on your way to Texas. But dont expect to see anyone there campaigning for president. ****** So its perhaps a sign of how dire the situation is in Louisiana that Jindals budget was missing $3.5 million for presidential primaries, and nobody raised a fuss. Washington Post Peace and Justice Jim Brown Jim Browns syndicated column appears each week in numerous newspapers throughout the nation and on websites worldwide. You can read all his past columns and see continuing updates at http://www.jimbrownusa.com . You can also hear Jims nationally syndicated radio show each Sunday morning from 9:00 am till 11:00 am Central Time on the Genesis Radio Network, with a live stream at http://www.jimbrownusa.com . This past Tuesday morning, John Brown was cleaning up a broken light bulb he had just replaced. It was a silly accident, but in light of recent events, it came with a reminder: Things could be worse. In the early morning hours of Jan. 13, firefighters arrived on the scene of a fire at John Browns On the Square, a fixture on Marions town square since 2007. It took six hours for the Marion Fire Department to get things under control. The downstairs bar area was a total loss. John Brown's in Marion gutted after early morning fire MARION Derek Cook was thunderstruck Wednesday after seeing the damage left by an overnight If it was in there, its in the dumpster now, Brown said. Fortunately, although the bar itself was completely destroyed, the rest of the building fared much better. There was only smoke damage to the upstairs storage areas and the structure of the building is sound. I cant praise the Marion Fire Department enough, Brown said. They saved it. The damaged downstairs area has already been gutted, Brown said, and contractors are still turning in bids for the renovation work. Though Brown said he basically has a blank slate to recreate the space, because of the square footage, when the bar returns itll be the same setup with a few improvements. Well, were going to be better, but not bigger, Brown said. It is what it is. We had our cry. The time of discouragement very quickly turned to encouragement for Brown and his family wife Missy and sons David and Danny. Word of the fire spread rapidly through social media and a very simple post John put up on Facebook later in the afternoon of Jan. 13 received 49,000 views and responses. Secondary Modern calling it a day after 10-plus years The bio on their Bandcamp page reads: Secondary Modern is comprised of three young men from Its just overwhelming, quite frankly, John Brown said. We have nowhere to go but forward. Soon Caylan Hill, event manager at Hangar 9 in Carbondale a bar that also suffered through destruction and rebuilt reached out to put together a benefit concert to help cover any shortfalls from insurance coverage. Black Diamond Harley-Davidson in Marion will also host a benefit concert. A GoFundMe page has also been set up. Southern Illinois band Secondary Modern two of three of the band's members are Browns sons, David and Danny was supposed to play its last show at John Browns before the fire. Fittingly, their last performance will now be at the Friday night benefit at Hangar 9. Its always been not only a home for us, but lots of bands, Danny Brown said. John Brown said that the flood of support has really reminded him that people care and appreciate what his establishment meant to them and hes not going to take it for granted. Now I have to hit the ground running, Brown said. Ive got to earn this. Ill never be able to repay this debt. Two men were arrested Tuesday night after an altercation led to gunshots fired near the Saluki Apartments complex on South Wall Street, police said Wednesday. No one was injured during the incident. Carbondale police officers responded to the corner of Wall and East Cindy streets at about 7:45 p.m. after multiple reports of gunshots. There they found 32-year-old Michael P. Wooley, who is homeless, and John T. McGrath, 26, who lives nearby. Citations down, hospitalizations up at this years Polar Bear in Carbondale Police issued a total of 130 citations to 111 Polar Bear partiers this past weekend a drop Police said Wooley and McGrath had been fighting when McGrath grabbed and fired a gun. Police said they found what looked like cocaine on Wooley and what looked like marijuana on McGrath. Both men were arrested. Wooley has been charged with possession of a controlled substance and unlawful use of a weapon by a felon. McGrath was charged with reckless discharge of a firearm and possession of cannabis. Both men are being held at Jackson County Jail. Bail has not yet been set by a judge. Anyone with additional information is asked to call the Carbondale Police Department at 618-457-3200 or Crime Stoppers at 618-549-2677. This was the third incident of gunshots fired in Carbondale since Saturday. During Polar Bear festivities Saturday night, a victim suffered non-life threatening injuries during an apparent robbery. Carbondale police also responded Monday afternoon to Memorial Hospital of Carbondale, where a victim had shown up after being shot at an unknown location. The bullet caused non-life threatening injuries. Investigations are ongoing. The Southern CARTERVILLE A series of extensive layoffs and budget cuts is on the horizon at John A. Logan College. Vice President for Administration Larry Peterson said hes not sure how many employees will receive the bad news later this month, but all told, the cuts likely will total about $7 million. Members of the Carterville-based colleges Board of Trustees will take up a reduction-in-force proposal, along with other cuts, at their next board meeting, on Feb. 23. JALC coffers will be empty without state budget CARTERVILLE Even with millions in internal budget cuts and inter-fund loans, in the absenc The average full-time JALC employee makes about $57,000 per year. Given that, it would take about 120 layoffs to total $7 million in savings. Peterson said that many layoffs are unlikely, but the cuts will be significant. The news comes as community colleges and universities throughout Illinois enter their eighth month without state funding. Leaders at JALC and elsewhere suspect they may never receive funding for the 2016 fiscal year, and when funding comes through for fiscal year 2017, its likely to be reduced. To say youre not getting any state funding, thats a game changer, Peterson said. The college receives about 35 percent of its funding from the state. JALC Vice President Brad McCormick announced in January that the college will run out of money in about 12 months, assuming no funding this year and 75 percent funding next. JALC will front MAP grants this semester CARTERVILLE John A. Logan College will front nearly $300,000 to pay for low-income student Still, administrators said the Carterville-based college will stay open. The upcoming layoffs and cuts should bring expenditures down enough to weather a year without funding and handle state budget reductions moving forward as long as the board borrows between $3 million and $5 million. The reductions will result in a leaner, more efficient college, Peterson said while also eliminating course offerings and increasing the proportion of so-called term faculty, or instructors who work on a semester-to-semester or year-to-year basis. Angela Calcaterra, the colleges coordinator of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services and co-president of JALCs Professional Staff Association union, said rumors of the layoffs have been flying around campus and morale is low. Its almost like the walking dead in a way, she said. People arent sure if theyre going to be targeted. Calcaterra said she and many other staffers question the boards priorities, in light of some of the their recent spending decisions -- $290,000 to buy out former President Mike Dreiths contract and more than $900,000 for support and help-desk services related to a higher-education management program known as Jenzabar. The feeling is, Oh, were not worth it, she said. Were willing to put out money for those things, but to keep our employees, thats not maybe as urgent. House and Peterson's terms extended at JALC CARTERVILLE Members of John A. Logan Colleges Board of Trustees voted unanimously Tuesday Meanwhile, other Southern Illinois community colleges also are feeling the sting of no state funding. Southeastern Illinois College announced four layoffs this past month. President Jonah Rice said he anticipates a series of reductions, including more layoffs, throughout the spring. Its really difficult to imagine what higher education in Illinois will look like if they let this drag on through the fall, Rice said. The Harrisburg-based college will eke by, but course offerings will dwindle, class sizes will grow, and, Well be down to a skeleton staff. SPRINGFIELD Comptroller Leslie Munger is touring the state to sound the alarm about the long-term damage the ongoing budget impasse is having on the people of Illinois. Repeating a message she delivered earlier this week in Chicago, Republican Munger told reporters Thursday at the Capitol that the state is on pace to dig itself $6.2 billion deeper into debt by the time the fiscal year ends June 30. Thats the result of $5 billion in lost revenue due to the partial rollback of a 2011 state income tax increase and $1.2 billion of additional spending in the Department of Human Services and the Department of Healthcare and Family Services due to court orders and consent decrees. By spending more as we bring in billions less, we are making it even more difficult to create a pathway for fiscal sanity, which will allow the state to regain its financial footing and keep our promises over the long term to fund education, social services, public safety and infrastructure, Munger said. So what is the answer? Clearly, Illinois must pass a budget, a balanced budget, and regain controls over our spending and revenue. Illinois has been operating without a budget since the current fiscal year began July 1. As a result, major cuts have been announced in recent weeks at Lutheran Social Services, Eastern Illinois University and elsewhere. Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner vetoed all but the elementary and secondary education portion of the budget the legislature approved, saying it was about $4 billion out of balance. Rauner has insisted on winning legislative support for elements of his pro-business, anti-union turnaround agenda before he will agree to tax increases Democrats are seeking to plug the budget hole. Democrats, who have said spending cuts also are needed to balance the budget, say the first-term governor is responsible for the deadlock because he has tied the budget to unrelated issues, such as term limits for lawmakers and changes to collective bargaining rights for local government workers. Munger said its time for the two sides to stop pointing fingers and find common ground. What I would suggest to all parties is that they all get together in a room and start talking about this and focus on solutions and not get in their own corners, she said. The problems we have today are not one year in the making. ... This is the result of decades of bad decisions in the state, and theres plenty of blame to go around. Trying to close the hole with income taxes alone would require an increase from the current 3.75 percent personal rate to 7 percent or 8 percent, Munger said. I dont know any legislator who would vote for a 7 to 8 percent tax increase, and I dont know many businesses who would stay here, she said. John Patterson, a spokesman for Senate President John Cullerton, said the Chicago Democrat agrees that we need to find ways to work together, find common ground and build solutions. Steve Brown, a spokesman for Democratic House Speaker Michael Madigan of Chicago, said Mungers warnings have ignored the fact that Rauner could have used his amendatory veto powers to balance the budget. But for the bungled veto, much of what she points out never would have occurred, Brown said. CHICAGO Gov. Bruce Rauner used his executive powers Wednesday to establish a privately run and funded economic development corporation that'll take over a state agency's role in luring new business to Illinois, despite concerns from top Democrats about transparency. Rauner, a former private equity investor, signed an order pitching the Illinois Business and Economic Development Corporation as a way to make Illinois more competitive for jobs. The nonprofit group will be funded by private funding, and Rauner estimated donors were prepared to chip in "millions" of dollars. The state's commerce agency would still have oversight and would have to approve any incentives the corporation offers. Governor calls for purchasing changes to free up money Gov. Bruce Rauner is backing a plan to revamp the way the state buys goods and services, cha "That entity will recruit superstar leaders from the business community whose job is to sell, market, creatively promote, and negotiate incentives for the state of Illinois to bring businesses here," Rauner explained at the signing in Chicago. The Republican, who campaigned on the idea that Illinois should be run more like a business, said it's too hard for the commerce department to promote the state on its own because of bureaucracy and red tape. Rauner said the corporation would draw on private sector resources with proper checks and balances in place, though the executive order offered scant details on exactly how the private-public partnership would be run. The move bypasses the Democrat-controlled Legislature where lawmakers had taken up Rauner's privitaization idea, but his representatives objected to the requirement of a review after three years. Rauner, already locked in a months-long budget standoff with legislative Democrats, said Tuesday he didn't want the plan to "die in three years" or be subject to "political games." House Speaker Michael Madigan's spokesman Steve Brown said that wasn't the case and raised questions about issues in other states. "You wonder what kind of fresh loopholes are in this new order and why he ran away from any kind of oversight," Brown said. Senate President John Cullerton's spokesman John Patterson said the main concern was public accountability as the governor moved "forward on his own." Cullerton urges Rauner to sign higher education bill Illinois Senate President John Cullerton says he wants to give Gov. Bruce Rauner a cooling- More than a dozen states have public-private partnerships for economic development. The idea comes to Illinois as the state faces criticism from top executives and other states for not having an environment conducive to doing business. Illinois has the nation's worst-funded pension system, low credit ratings and billions in unpaid bills. Also, Rauner and legislative Democrats haven't agreed on a spending plan for the fiscal year that began July 1. Illinois officials said they liked corporation models in Ohio, Texas and Michigan, but were wary of Wisconsin's, which has been has been fraught with problems since it was created in 2001. The issues have included high turnover in key management positions, not recovering loans made to troubled companies, and giving out $126 million without a formal review. Future of Rauner-backed pension proposal unclear Extending an olive branch to Democrats amid Illinois seven-month budget impasse, Republican Rauner said transparency issues had been addressed in Illinois: Board members will be subject to a conflict of interest policy and donors will be publicly disclosed. He added Tuesday that board meetings will be public and the corporation subject to Freedom of Information Act requests. Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Director Jim Schultz said a board of volunteers will oversee the Chicago-based corporation, which will employ roughly 20 to 30 people at first. Rauner told reporters he wasn't sure if he'd be on the board but he planned to be "very involved." Alee Quick Local news editor Alee Quick is the local news editor for The Southern. Follow Alee Quick Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today Im not a big Hillary fan. The its her time refrain feels more like a monarchic passing of the crown than an election. Shes the establishment candidate, a run-of-the-mill Democrat who promises more of the moderate lefts status quo. Shes invoked the current president, and of course was a member of his cabinet, and therefore promises more of the same. Lyons: Hillary Clinton is the only capable candidate In my estimation, there's only one presidential candidate in 2016 fully capable of doing the I was one of the young, idealistic Obama voters in 2008 who felt disappointed when Obama turned out to be more center-of-left than Id expected. In 2012 I voted to re-elect him because the alternative was just too out of sync with my own principles. Like many people my age, Im suspicious of Hillary Clinton for many reasons. But shes a she, and she was the first she to win an Iowa caucus. Theres something in that I cant ignore. If Fiorina had won Monday, I think I would have felt the same, as much as her principles and politics are unpalatable to me. I come from a big, highly opinionated family, most of whom are pretty staunch Democrats. An aunt was handing out Hillary buttons on Christmas, and when she offered me one, she was scandalized when I waffled. We argued, and I ended up taking the button, stowing it in my coat pocket. Now its languishing in a drawer, much the same as the homemade Bernie stickers given to me by the friend of a friend. My aunt made the its her time argument, and I expressed my discomfort. But what I'm hearing from Hillary supporters like my aunt is more than just Its Hillary Clintons time. Theyre women closer to Clintons age who are saying, its our time. These are women who, incomprehensibly, saw efforts to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment fail. They're women who worked the second shift they labored at full-time jobs, then came home to a second shift as main caregiver, cook and cleaner for children and helpless husbands. Theyre women who looked at First Lady Clinton and saw a woman like them, who was full of ambition, smarts and tenacity, and stood in her husbands shadow (Hillary less so than other first ladies, to be sure, but the fact of the position still exists). Theyre high-power professionals who moved up the institutional ladder and faced blowback male colleagues whispering behind backs, fashion police criticizing pantsuits and shoulder pads, being called a five-letter word, and no, I don't mean "bossy" like Hillary has. Why the Illinois Primary matters Suddenly its become serious. After months of jockeying, joking, and polling potential voter Its about more than policy and politics. Its about having a leader who really understands what it was like. What its still like. On election night in 2008, my brothers who are biracial lit fireworks in my parents front yard to celebrate Obama's historic election. My mom yanked my then-6-year-old niece out of bed to join the celebration, but my niece just slept in my mothers arms while my brothers carried on. It wasnt about politics. It was about electing a leader who really understands what it's like. It was about a kid growing up with a president who looks like her dad. Now its possible my niece will enter her high school years with a president who looks like her. Its worth something. "Though defensive violence will always be 'a sad necessity' in the eyes of men of principle, it would be still more unfortunate if wrongdoers should dominate just men." - St. Augustine "A new idea is first condemned as ridiculous, and then dismissed as trivial, until finally it becomes what everybody knows." - William James "This is the real task before us: to reassert our commitment as a nation to a law higher than our own, to renew our spiritual strength. Only by building a wall of such spiritual resolve can we, as a free people, hope to protect our own heritage and make it someday the birthright of all men." -- Ronald Reagan A patriot must always be ready to defend his country against his government." -- Edward Abbey "A free people ought not only to be armed and disciplined, but they should have sufficient arms and ammunition to maintain a status of independence from any who might attempt to abuse them, which would include their own government." ~~~George Washington"Conservatives are enemies of the government. Liberals are enemies of the nation because they are not enemies of the government."Aristotle the Hun"Life is not about waiting for the storms to pass...it's about learning how to dance in the rain." ANONA nation that substitutes emotion and empathy for rational thought will eventually digress into the Dark Ages,Congressman Steve King (R-IA),Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It would be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies.The robber barons cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.They may be more likely to go to Heaven for good intentions yet at the same time likelier to make a Hell of earth. This very kindness stings with intolerable insult. To be cured against ones will and cured of states which we may not regard as disease is to be put on a level of those who have not yet reached the age of reason or those who never will; to be classed with infants, imbeciles, and domestic animals.~ C. S. Lewis A Whittaker Elementary School fifth grader, wearing a judges robe and holding a gavel, told the crowd attending the third annual MLK Jr. Oratory Competition that he is walking boldly through the doors opened by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Xzavier Sebastian Anthony, 10, took top place in the MLK Jr. Oratory Competition 2016, the third annual contest hosted by Orangeburg Consolidated School District Five. The event was held on Jan. 28 at New Zion Baptist Church in Orangeburg. Eight contestants, representing each of the districts elementary schools, participated in the competition. Students had to be either in the fourth or fifth grades and deliver a two- to five-minute original, memorized speech. The theme was What can I achieve in my lifetime because of what Dr. King achieved in his? Anthony said he wished he could thank King, not only for paving the way for me to do the things that interest me, but most importantly for paving the way for me to do anything I choose. Unfortunately, not everyone realizes this paved road exists. He spoke of violence and crime that lead to overcrowded prison populations. People shooting others for no reason -- cops shooting innocent people and people shooting innocent cops, Anthony said. For example, the Emanuel 9 in Charleston. Dr. King taught peace and non-violence so we could be free. But the more I think about it, are we really free? he asked. Look at all of the injustices, all of the hatred in society, Anthony told the audience. Harkening Kings words, the student encouraged the audience to participate. Turn to your neighbor and say, Love is the only force capable of turning an enemy into a friend, he said. Dr. King had a dream so I could dream, and believe me, my dreams are alive, Anthony said. I dream of being a judge one day, and in order to become a judge, I have to be able to display qualities that stand apart from the ordinary. So, therefore, I strive daily to be extraordinary, he said. I dont know about you, but my dreams, my goals, my aspirations will prevail through those same doors that the great Dr. King worked so hard to open." Anthony continued, Who would have imagined that on Jan. 15, 1929, the world would be introduced to a man who proved to be so remarkable in leading civil rights activists, a man who played such a pivotal role in ending segregation of African American citizens and opening doors for you." Another great man was born into this work on April 11, 2005, and his name is Xzavier Sebastian Anthony," he said. Speaking over the crowds applause, he added, Let me correct myself -- the future Honorable Xzavier Sebastian Anthony. Placing second in the competition was Tamia Yarbrough, a fifth grader at Rivelon Elementary. I am continuing the dream of what I can achieve in my lifetime because of what Dr. King achieved in his, she said. I can become a legacy of leadership. I can become a Supreme Court judge despite my gender or my skin color. I am continuing the dream, Yarbrough said. Ammariah Elise McCray, a fifth grader at Brookdale Elementary, won third place. Just as Dr. King had a dream for a better tomorrow, I, too, have a dream. My dream is to be a Secret Service agent and protect the president of the United States of America, McCray said. Long ago, blacks couldnt even come close to the White House, much less protect the president. Our jobs back then were cooking, cleaning and yard maintenance. But now, because of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., I am greatness. I am the Secret Service agent that will protect the president. The following students received honorable mentions: Tamerria Felder, Bethune-Bowman; Justin MaKye Simpson, Sheridan; Nylasia Tyyanna Hallinquest, Mellichamp; Syrenity Sims, Dover; and Sheridan Tucker-Staley, Marshall. A five-member judging panel scored each of the students. The judges were Candace Berry-Vaughn, Barry Charley, Derrick F. Dash, Gwendolyn Phillips and Zipporah Mapp Sumpter. OCSD 5 Superintendent Dr. Jesse Washington III said, Tonight I stand proud to be a part of Orangeburg Consolidated School District Five. The MLK Jr. Oratory Competition is one of the special occasions throughout the year that our students really get an opportunity to shine," he said. To all of the contestants, you all did an awesome job tonight. It is not easy to get up in front of people and deliver a speech." Also included in the program were: Autumn Coulter, 2015 District 5 Teacher of the Year, who served as mistress of ceremony; Matthew Frederick, 2015 OCSD 5 Oratory Competition runner-Up; musical selections by the Whittaker Elementary School Choral Ensemble; special greetings from Sen. John W. Matthews, D-Bowman; remarks by program coordinators Dr. Derrick James and Karen James; musical selections by the North Middle/High School band; a solo by Sydney Murdaugh, an Orangeburg-Wilkinson High student and special recognitions and presentations by Parrie Hook, District 5 chief instructional services officer. The corporate sponsor for the event was Jimmy Jones Toyota of Orangeburg. by Gloriah There is a new kid on the block where musical prowess is concerned. As a matter of fact, there is a new band of three kids on the block of musical excellence here in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. This is none other than the Melisizwe Brothers, comprised of the James family of Upper Fair Hall. They have been wow-ing audiences across St. Vincent and the Grenadine:, but who really are they? The Melisizwe Brothers is comprised of Mark, Seth and Zachery James. According to the childrens mother and father, Sherry and Mark James, the name Melisizwe, pronounced Me-lis-we, was specially chosen. Mark James told THE VINCENTIAN, "We believe that a name is important, so we wanted one that had meaning. After much research, he said, they chose the South African name which means Leaders of the future/nation, as they wanted their children to be leaders within themselves first, and so the Melisizwe Brothers was born. Mark James Jr. Mark James Jr. is a twelve-year-old student of the St. Martins Secondary School. The electric and acoustic guitars are his specialties, but he is also proficient in piano and clarinet. He also has a special gift of voice. THE VINCENTIAN was told that as an infant, his Mom sang to him and he hummed. Family karaoke provided hints of aptitude for singing, resulting in his learning to read at age five, in order to sing the words. By Grade Two, Mark was singing Michael Jacksons Ben, and proved to have a definite singing talent. His parents approached the Leduc School of Music in Alberta, Canada for voice training, but were told that his voice might change because of his youth. The school requested a voice demo, and Mark was successful. He has had, to date, five years of training in classical singing. Seth James Seth is nine years old and attends the Petersville Primary School. According to his father, he is "the serious sibling. He plays the guitar, violin, African drums and the steel pan, but his main instrument is the piano. His playing style is mainly classical, having also trained at the Leduc School of Music, but he has a profound understanding of mixing musical styles and genres, and more often than not, shows a penchant for infusing elements of jazz into his repertoire. Zachery James Zachery is the epitome of the Melisiziwe Brothers. Though only eight years old, Zachery is the sibling that interacts with all instruments. According to his Dad, "We were told that he has perfect pitch, so he just picks up an instrument and can play it without any tutoring. Known moreso for his violin playing, Zachery does so, and on all other instruments including drums, piano, steel pan, bass guitar, African drums and the recorder - without a single professional lesson. Zachery, though, has developed a singing voice that has captivated all those who have heard him. His inherent abilities and his dynamism have led to the release of his first full recording, With Jesus I Can Soar, during the latter part of 2015. A holistic approach Mark James Sr. explained that because they wanted their children to develop to their maximum potential, they are not restricted to only music. They devote time daily to doing homework and reading books. They use the internet but do not watch television. "We have been successful in transferring their TV time into music time, Mr. James explained. Each boy is currently being trained in track and field, and engages in doing charity work, as in feeding homeless people on the streets of Kingstown last Christmas. They also work on their farm: ploughing, planting, weeding and harvesting plants. This makes them grounded and down-to-earth. The family, in "giving back, offers free music and vocal classes for children and adults, at their home in Upper Fair Hall. Persons may just turn up, choose an instrument and begin learning the theory and practice of music. As for the boys, Mr. James was sure to add, "I know the boys are going to make it, but when they do, I will love for it to be with a St. Vincent and the Grenadines tag. The Melisiziwe Brothers, with youth on their side, have a wealth of ground to cover, and seem set to cover that ground and themselves in further glory. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking Accept, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. The Blog of Author and Historian Troy D. Smith A forum of finance ministers of Asia and the Pacific will be held in Baku in March. The announcement was made as Azerbaijans Finance Minister Samir Sharifov met with UN Deputy Secretary General and Executive Secretary of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific Shamshad Akhtar. They focused on the activities of Azerbaijan in UN bodies, and the country`s role in strengthening peace and security in the region. They emphasized favorable geographical position of Azerbaijan, transit opportunities of the country, participation of Azerbaijan in significant energy and regional transport and infrastructure projects. The meeting also highlighted the importance of Baku-Tbilisi-Kars, North-South and the Baku International Sea Trade Port projects. /By Azertac/ Azerbaijan`s Minister of Energy Natig Aliyev has met Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece Nikos Kotzias. Mr. Aliyev highlighted successfully developing economic relations between Azerbaijan and Greece, saying friendship and mutual respect lie at the heart of these ties. The Minister stressed the importance of implementation of the Southern Gas Corridor project, which will contribute to the energy cooperation. The Minister spoke about the Trans Adriatic pipeline project. Nikos Kotzias, in turn, highlighted the role of TAP in energy security of Europe said Azerbaijan`s gas would be transported to Europe via TAP soon. The Minister also expressed hope that privatization of Greek DESFA company would be solved. They discussed issues related to the second meeting of Advisory Council of Ministers of representing countries at the Southern Gas corridor project, which will be held in February. The Southern Gas Corridor project envisages the transportation of gas from the Caspian region through Georgia and Turkey to Europe. This large project aims at diversifying the routes and sources of energy supply that will enhance energy security of Europe. The Southern Gas Corridor project will ensure Caspian gas supply to the European markets for the first time in history. /By Azertac/ President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow has said there was great potential for developing relations between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan as he met newly-appointed Ambassador Hasan Zeynalov. Prior to the conversation, the Ambassador presented his credentials to President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow. The President of Turkmenistan touched upon the concrete fields of cooperation between the two countries, highlighted existence of wide opportunities in economic and energy areas. President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow said Turkmenistan is rich with its natural gas resources and puts into agenda of transportation opportunities of gas via Azerbaijan. The President also said improvement of transit roads, would positively influence to increasing the trade tournament. The Turkmen leader also stressed the importance of deepening the relations in humanitarian field. President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow emphasized the significance of developing the educational, scientific, tourism, cultural relations between the two countries. The sides stressed the importance of strengthening the activity of Azerbaijani-Turkmen Joint Inter-Governmental Commission. The Turkmenistan`s leader expressed assurance that the ambassador`s activity would contribute to development of ties between the two countries. The President asked the ambassador to communicate his best wishes to President Ilham Aliyev. Hasan Zeynalov, conveyed greetings of President Ilham Aliyev to the Turkmenistan`s leader. The Ambassador highlighted the steadily developing relations between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan. The Diplomat said there was great potential for implementing joint regional projects and boosting bilateral cooperation between the two countries. Mr. Zeynalov said both countries shared the same historical-cultural values, adding he would try his best for further deepening relations between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan. /By Azertac/ /By Azernews/ By Aynur Karimova The Central Bank of Azerbaijan restored the license of the NBCBank on February 1, which was revoked on January 26. The CBA has made such a decision due to the NBCBank's plans to consolidate with other banks operating in the country, Trend reported on February 2. In this regard, a protocol of intents has been signed between the banks. "NBCBank has appealed to the CBA, informing it about a desire to consolidate with other banks, as well as to carry out measures for improving the financial situation, ensuring fulfillment of the obligations, as well as restoring the capital position," the CBA reported. The bank started implementing overdue obligations before its clients and creditors through additional capitalization of the bank. "Given this fact, as well as the relevance of consolidation process to the strategy of development of the banking sector, a decision on termination of the license of the NBCBank was annulled. The bank will operate under the strict control of the CBA until the full completion of the consolidation process," the CBA said. A source in the banking sector of Azerbaijan told local media that the NBCBank intends to merge its assets with Parabank and Dekabank, which merge for consolidation in April, 2016. However, Parabank told day.az that they have no information about such a merger, while Dekabank has denied such a consolidation. The NBCBank told day.az that the protocol of intents has already been signed, but did not reveal the names of merging banks. A source in the CBA told local media that the third party of the consolidation is not Dekabank, but is Kredobank. This is not the first case of consolidation. Azerbaijani AGBank and DemirBank earlier signed a protocol of intent about merger. Meanwhile, the Caucasus Development Bank, which is active in the Azerbaijani banking sector, will discuss its merger with other banks on March 20 as well. The bank reported that the shareholders will have an extraordinary meeting at the request of the Supervisory Board of the Caucasus Development Bank. The Caucasus Development Bank intends to merge with Gunay Bank and Atrabank, Trend reported earlier. The Caucasus Development Banks license was revoked upon a decision of the CBA on January 27. The decision on the revocation of the Caucasus Development Bank's license was taken because the total capital of the bank did not correspond to the CBA's minimum requirement of 50 million manats ($31.13 million). "The Caucasus Development Bank could not fulfill its obligations to creditors and failed to manage its current activity reliably and prudentially," the CBA said. Since the beginning of 2016, the CBA has terminated the licenses of Texnika Bank, the Caucasus Development Bank, Atrabank, Gandja Bank, Bank of Azerbaijan, United Credit Bank and NBCBank. The license of the seventh bank - Texnika Bank - was revoked on February 2, 2016. Currently, 37 banks have licenses for banking activity in Azerbaijan. The consolidation of banks is likely to lead to financial recovery of the banks as this process is in the interests of both owners and clients of banks. The consolidation will also allow stable banks, which have deliberately decided to merge, to increase their share in the market and to gain more revenues. This strategy would be more correct if targets growth of profit and market share. The International Finance Corporation and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development support the consolidation of banks in Azerbaijan, regarding it as a way leading to financial recovery of the banks. Azerbaijan has experienced good examples of consolidation of banks earlier. For instance, UniBank was formed by the merger of two commercial banks in 2002 - MBank and Promtexbank, where the EBRD acquired a 15-percent share, and 8.3333 percent is owned by the German Investment Corporation DEG. Bank of Baku merged with IlkBank in 2005. Depositors to receive compensation Preliminary amount of compensation, which will be paid by the Azerbaijan Deposit Insurance Fund for the return of deposits in three bankrupt banks (the Bank of Azerbaijan, the Gandja Bank and the United Credit Bank), will amount to 28.83 million manats ($17.95 million). Azad Javadov, the Executive Director of the ADIF, told journalists on February 3 that even if the rest liquidated banks [their total number is seven] are declared bankrupt, the ADIF will have enough money to pay out compensations. The volume of insured deposits at Texnika Bank is 79.34 million manats ($49.39 million), the Atrabank 7.56 million manats ($4.71 million), while the Caucasus Development Bank has insured deposits worth 1.52 million manats ($0.946 million), according to preliminary data. It is easy to calculate that even if these three banks are declared bankrupt, the total amount of reimbursable contributions will be slightly more than 117 million manats ($72.83 million), while the fund has 132 million manats ($82.17 million), the head of the fund said. Javadov noted that in case of shortage of money, the fund will attract a loan from the CBA. He went on to add that the funds to the depositors of the Bank of Azerbaijan will be fully paid within 10 days. To date, the ADIF has paid out over 9 million manats ($5.6 million) to more than 430 investors of the Bank of Azerbaijan. The ADIF will also pay 1.5 million manats ($0.934 million) to the 378 insured depositors of the Gandja Bank, according to Javadov. Furthermore, the depositors of the United Credit Bank will be able to appeal to the ADIF for payment of compensation since February 9. Azerbaijani Texnikabank, the license of which was revoked by the Central Bank of Azerbaijan, has no plans to merge with other banks, Chairman of the banks Supervisory Board Etibar Aliyev told Trend Feb. 4. The Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) revoked the license of Texnikabank OJSC Feb. 2. This decision was made because the total capital of the bank didnt correspond to the CBA minimum requirement of 50 million manats. The total capital adequacy ratio amounted to three percent [the CBA minimum requirement is 10 percent]. The bank couldnt fulfill its obligations to creditors and didnt manage its current activity prudentially. Temporary administrator was appointed at the bank since Feb. 2. Aliyev said that the bank is not going to litigate the decision of the central bank regarding the revocation of the license. After revocation of license, the bank has two ways: to litigate the decision of the central bank or to accept it, he said. It was only last week when I was asked about the bank's actions in the case of revocation of the license, and I said I dont believe that the Central Bank of Azerbaijan will do it, but if that happens, I wont litigate the central banks decision. I would like to add that Texnikabank is not going to consolidate with other banks. At the same time, Aliyev noted that the bank doesnt agree with the decision of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan, although did accept it. The bank was functioning normally, and we had all the possibilities to ensure the creditors' claims, said the head of the banks Supervisory Board. I consider it wrong to revoke the bank's license, which is not encumbered by obligations, but I respect and accept that decision. He went on to add that the decision to revoke the bank's license shouldnt affect activities of its subsidiaries - Alfa Insurance company and Kapital Menecment OJSC, which has a license for broker, dealer and underwriting activity. The bank is a wholly shareholder of the both companies, he said. Both companies continue their activities, Aliyev said. At the moment they continue to function, and it is too early to speak of any changes. He added that the bank has all the necessary funds to fulfill the claims of creditors. The insured portion of bank deposits will be returned by the Azerbaijan Deposit Insurance Fund (ADIF), Aliyev said. Regarding other commitments, they will be covered through the bank's assets. But this process may take some time, since, in accordance with the law, there should be the court's decision and a liquidator should be determined. Currently, some 36 banks have banking activity licenses in Azerbaijan. The CBA has revoked the licenses of six banks since early 2016 [Bank of Azerbaijan, Gence Bank, United Credit Bank, Atra Bank, Caucasian Development Bank and Texnikabank]. Texnikabank has been operating in Azerbaijan since 1994 (previously - Rashadbank). Until now, the bank's shareholders comprised of Beaufort Investissements S.A investment company [head office is located in Luxembourg] with interest of 78.4421 percent, while 21.5579 percent belonged to physical entities. /By Trend/ Lithuanian director Aleksandras Brokas' Endless Corridor film about the Khojaly Massacre has won the Humanitarian Award of Global Accolade Global Film Competition. The Accolade Global Film Competition Humanitarian Award honors filmmakers who are bringing awareness to issues of Ecological, Political, Social Justice, Health and Wellness, Animals, Wildlife, Conservation and Spiritual importance. Each year Accolade Global Film Competition bestows a Humanitarian Award to a deserving filmmaker who is committed to making a difference in the world. The premiere of the documentary was held on July 1 last year at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). Gerald Rafshoon (US), a Grammy Award winner, and Aleksandras A. Brokas (Lithuania) are the documentary's producers. Endless Corridor has been submitted for more than 60 film festivals throughout the world. Most have already included it in their official programmes. Two more awards came from Tenerife International Film Festival in July, where the film was declared to be the "Best Documentary", and Aleksandras Brokas the "Best Director of a Documentary." Endless Corridor follows two journalists, Lithuanian Richard Lapaitis and Russian Victoria Ivleva, on their return to Azerbaijan 20 years after covering the horrific Khojaly Massacre during the ArmenianAzerbaijani conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh. They journey to find the survivors they had first met in the aftermath of the Armenian attack. The accounts of both victims and perpetrators tell a dramatic story of the humanity and inhumanity of events in western Azerbaijan on 26 February 1992. The film is narrated by Jeremy Irons, the Oscar-winning British actor, and the Emmy-winning American producer Gerald Rafshoon was the Executive Producer. The film was presented in Istanbul, Ankara, Rome, Vilnius, London, Paris, Dublin, Berlin, Bern and Luxembourg in February as part of the Justice for Khojaly campaign, organised by Leyla Aliyeva, Vice-President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. The film was broadcast in Kanal 24, CNN Turk of Turkey, Albanian National TV and Israeli Channel 1. Eurochannel website has published an interview with Aleksandras Brokas, Director of the film. /By Azertac/ Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias has visited Parliament of Azerbaijan to meet its Speaker Ogtay Asadov. Mr. Asadov underlined the importance of reciprocal visits, saying this contributed to development of relations between the two countries. The Parliament Speaker stressed the importance of further boosting economic cooperation between the two countries. Mr. Asadov highlighted cooperation between the two countries, saying, this laid solid ground. Mr. Asadov also spoke about the energy projects of Azerbaijan. Nikos Kotzias, in turn, highlighted his meetings, saying this would contribute to development of relations. The Minister stressed the significance of further boosting bilateral ties between Azerbaijan and Greece. Azerbaijani Armed Forces have eliminated three members of the Armenian subversive group on the Azerbaijani-Armenian state border, the Defense Ministry of Azerbaijan said Feb. 4. A soldier of Azerbaijani Armed Forces Imran Mirzoyev was killed Feb. 3 at 17:50 (GMT + 4 hours) in the result of enemy sabotage on the Azerbaijani-Armenian state border, the ministry said. Azerbaijani Defense Ministry expresses its deep condolences to relatives and friends of the deceased. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions. /By Trend/ An OSCE monitoring was held Feb. 4 along the contact line between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops. The Azerbaijani defense ministry has said the monitoring, held in line with the mandate of personal representative of the OSCE chairperson-in-office, passed without any incident. OSCEs monitoring took place near the village of Ashagi Veysalli of the Fizuli district of Azerbaijan. On the Azerbaijani side, the monitoring was carried out by the field assistants of OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative Peter Svedberg, Jiri Aberle, Simon Tiller and the representative of the OSCE High Level Planning Group, Colonel Tuncay Sevim. On the opposite side, the monitoring was conducted by the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairman-in-Office Ambassador Andrzej Kasprzyk, the field assistants of OSCE chairperson-in-office personal representative Yevgeny Sharov, Hristo Hristov and the representative of the OSCE High Level Planning Group, Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Nepokritikh. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts. /By Trend/ /By Azernews/ By Laman Sadigova Yerevan has once again disseminated false information about the situation on the frontline, claiming that Azerbaijani Armed Forces shelled civilians. The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry has refused the reports, saying that the Azerbaijani Armed Forces have never shelled civilians, civil facilities and cars by respecting the norms and principles of international humanitarian law. The ministry assessed the reports as absurd, noting that this information is absolutely groundless and aims to charge Azerbaijan and conceal another sabotage of Armenians on the Azerbaijani-Armenian state border. In the early morning, the Defense Ministry reported about the provocation of the Armenian side on the state border with Azerbaijan. Three members of Armenian diversionary group were killed as a result of the operational activities undertaken by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces. Azerbaijani servicemen Mirzayev Imran Khudaverdi was killed in the fire opened from the Armenian side. For over two decades, Azerbaijan and Armenia have been locked in conflict which emerged over Armenia's territorial claims against its South Caucasus neighbor. Since a war in the early 1990s, Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions. A fragile ceasefire has been in place since 1994, but long-standing efforts by U.S., Russian and French mediators have been largely fruitless so far. Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on its pullout from the neighboring country's territories. The "Supporting Syria and the Region Conference" started in London on February 4. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, who is on a visit to the United Kingdom, is attending the conference at the invitation of Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland David Cameron, Federal Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany Angela Merkel, Prime Minister of Norway Erna Solberg, and Emir of Kuwait Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. Co-organized by the UK, Germany, Kuwait, Norway and the United Nations, the conference brings together world leaders from around the globe to rise to the challenge of raising the money needed to help millions of people whose lives have been torn apart by the devastating civil war. It aims to generate significant new help for the immediate and longer-term needs of those affected by the Syrian conflict, including increased funding. /By Azertac/ /By Azernews/ By Laman Sadigova The bilateral relations between Australia and Azerbaijan develop dynamically, while the two countries enjoy perspectives for cooperation in different spheres. James Martin Larsen, Australias ambassador to Turkey and Azerbaijan made the remark as he met with the Azerbaijan-Australia working group on Interparliamentary relations, headed by Azerbaijani MP Khanlar Fatiyev. The ambassador highlighted the fact that the working group was able to do a great job on giving information about Azerbaijan to colleagues from Australia in its short period of existence. Fatiyev, for his part, said the relations between the two countries have undergone significant qualitative changes in recent years Today Azerbaijan is known well enough in Australia at the level of the Parliament and the government. In particular, in her recent speech, Australian Foreign Minister Julia Bishop said that Canberra recognizes Azerbaijans territorial integrity, and also called to liberate occupied territories, Fatiyev said. The other important factor is that the issue on releasing Azerbaijani hostages held by Armenia also was raised in the Australian Parliament. The MP further noted that today Azerbaijans relations with Australia are also notable from an economic point of view. Speaking about the economic diversification, President Ilham Aliyev noted that agriculture will provide the country's non-oil exports, population with work, as well as food security. Thus, it would be very useful to study the Australian experience, in which this area is one of the main spheres, said Fatiyev. The issues on trade and economic cooperation, relations in the social and humanitarian spheres, as well as issues on extending interparliamentary relations were also discussed during the meeting. The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Australia stood at $4.937 million as of 2014, which is 2.4 times less than in 2013, according to Azerbaijans State Customs Committee. The trade turnover between the two countries is made up mostly of Azerbaijan's exports of crude petroleum to Australia. President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has met with President of the Republic of Croatia Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic on the sidelines of Supporting Syria and the Region Conference in London. The sides expressed satisfaction with the development of bilateral ties between the two countries. They expressed mutual interest in developing economic cooperation even further, and implementing energy, transport and infrastructure projects. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev highlighted the work done under the Great Silk Road and the Southern Gas Corridor projects. During the conversation, the presidents discussed how to achieve mutual understanding for the implementation of joint projects. /By Azertac/ Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesman Tanju Bilgic said Wednesday that the Turkish ambassador to the Vatican, Mehmet Pacaci would return to duty,Anadolu Agency reported. "It has been decided that our ambassador to the Vatican, Mehmet Pacaci, who has been in Ankara since the religious ceremony held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican on April 12, 2015, will return to duty", Bilgic said. The political tension between the Vatican and Turkey came after Pope Francis's remarks during the ceremony for Armenians on April 12, 2015 as the Pope called the killing of Armenians in 1915 a "genocide". That day, Pacaci was recalled by Turkey after the Pope's remarks. The Vatican Press Office stated Wednesday that it acknowledged Turkey's "repeated commitment" to open archives to historians and researchers in order to shed light on the 1915 events. The 1915 events occurred during World War I when a part of the Armenian population living in the Ottoman Empire sided with the invading Russians and revolted. The relocation of Armenians by the Ottomans in eastern Anatolia following the revolts resulted in numerous casualties. Turkey does not dispute that there were casualties on both sides, but rejects calling the events genocide". Instead, it calls for a joint commission of historians to be established and archives to be opened in order to study and uncover what happened between the Ottoman Empire and its Armenian citizens. /By Trend/ Six members of the OPEC have agreed to hold an urgent meeting, Shana news agency reported Feb. 4. After a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, Venezuela's oil minister Eulogio del Pino said that Russia also support an urgent meeting between OPEC members to cut production level to push the prices up. Venezuela's oil minister has started a round of trips to major oil producers to convince them to decrease production level in order to raise the prices. He met with his Russian counterpart Alexander Novak on Monday and after Iran, Eulogio del Pino will visit Saudi Arabia and Qatar. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the global oil production reached 96.31 mbpd, while demand was 94.47 mbpd in 2015. Huge amount of oil glut has pushed the prices down, from $108 in the first half of 2014 to the current $35. Eulogio del Pino said that Iran, Oman and Iraq are among OPEC members who have willingness to hold OPEC's urgent meeting. He also called on the other non-OPEC producers on cutting the oil output and supporting prices. It is not clear whether Saudi Arabia and Qatar who are strongly against losing their shares in oil markets would agree to cut their production or not, but the possibility is high, is case major non-OPEC members cut their production level. Before, Shana reported that Iran is against holding OPEC's urgent meeting until the members and non-OPEC oil producers reach an agreement to decline production. Iran's Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh says the country would increase the oil production level by 0.5 mb/d in 1H16 and the same amount in 2H16. Shana says it seems the global oil production should decrease by 1.5 mb/d to eliminate the glut in near future and support the prices. Alexander Novak, Russian energy minister, said Jan. 28 that the planned OPEC meeting in February with representatives of other oil-producing countries could discuss reduction of oil production by each producer country by five percent, but a general agreement is needed for that. Approximately these parameters were voiced to cut the production for each country by five percent, Novak told reporters responding to a question about whether Saudi Arabia offered Russia to cut production by five percent. The latest OPEC monthly report, released Jan. 18, indicates that the cartel has decreased oil production by 210,000 barrels per day in December, month-to-month to 32.182 mbpd. In 2016, the demand for OPEC crude is forecasted at 31.6 mbpd, some 1.7 mbpd higher than the previous year. OPEC will hold an ordinary meeting June 2. /By Trend/ Prospects of cooperation between Turkmenistan and Austria in the sphere of economy and energy were discussed during a meeting in the Turkmen foreign ministry with a delegation led by the Second President of Austrian National Council Karlheinz Kopf, the Turkmen ministry said. In addition, the sides discussed participation of Austrian companies in the construction of transport infrastructure facilities in Turkmenistan. Positive dynamics of bilateral trade was also stressed at the talks. In this context, particular importance was given to the role of the joint intergovernmental Turkmen-Austrian commission, the message said. Turkmenistan is one of the promising partners in the sphere of energy security for Austria and EU. The project for construction of a gas pipeline through the bottom of the Caspian Sea to the Azerbaijani coast is one of the possible options for delivering Turkmen gas to this market. Bulk purchasing of Turkmen textile is another sphere in which Vienna has shown interest. This industry continues developing in Turkmenistan as a result of the increase in domestic processing of cultivated cotton. Moreover, Austria is interested in creating partnership with Turkmenistan in the sphere of processing agricultural products and food production. Construction, health care and tourism are also among the priorities of partnership between Austria and Turkmenistan. /By Trend/ While Iranian officials have expressed interest for reviving Tehran's economic ties with the US, there are obstacles that prevent it from happening, Daniel Serwer, a conflict management professor at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and director of its Conflict Management Program believes. In particular, as Serwer told Trend, there are issues with presence of US businessmen and investors in Iran. There are three big obstacles: continuing US sanctions levied for other than nuclear reasons, lack of diplomatic ties between the US and Iran, and American distrust of the Iranian courts and political system. You would have to be a brave investor to run that gauntlet, Serwer said. Serwer, while responding to a question about the idea of Iran's cooperation with the entire West, excluding the US, which is supported by local conservatives, said as the US is maintaining more sanctions against Iran, unrelated to the nuclear field, so it is natural that the co-op with the EU will move ahead faster. The EU also has a much stronger interest in Iranian energy resources, Serwer, a former US diplomat said. Further commenting about the possibility for the EU to gradually replace Tehrans traditional allies,China and Russia- in post-sanctions period, the analyst said that China is a major customer for Iran's energy resources and a major supplier as well, while Russia is far less important. There are many areas in which Iranians will prefer the EU technology and investment over Russian competitors, Serwer underlined. While responding to the question whether developing the Iran-EU ties also may lead to improving political ties with the US, he said Washington will handle its own political ties with Iran. It is hesitant because of Iranian subversion in the Gulf states, human rights abuses and threats against Israel. The EU appears less reluctant, he said. Speaking about the possibility of the US to deal with Iran economically, putting aside the human rights issue, Serwer said that he doubts the US will do that, while the EU will be less exigent. /By Trend/ The Syrian conflict can be resolved after a new government is formed in Syria, UK Prime Minister David Cameron said Feb. 4. Cameron was delivering speech at the donor conference titled "Supporting Syria and the Region" in London. Cameron said that the long-term solution to the Syrian conflict can be achieved only through political transition to a new government, which will lead the whole nation. In his turn, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon expressed concern about the lack of humanitarian access, intensifying bombing of Syria and military activity. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev is also among the participants of the conference. The president is taking part in the conference upon an invitation of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, UK Prime Minister David Cameron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg and Emir of Kuwait Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah. /By Trend/ Iranian Armed Forces' Chief of Staff Major General Hassan Firouzabadi has accused the US of organizing conspiracy against the commander of the elite Qods force, Major General Qassem Soleimani. The US is after attacking Maj-Gen Soleimani, Tasnim news agency quoted Firouzabadi as saying. Firuzabadi further added that several measures have been taken to protect Soleimani. Back in November, rebel Syrian groups claimed that they targeted a car with Soleimani inside, using two missiles near Aleppo, however Iranians later dismissed the reports. According to some media reports the elite Qods force is in charge of the IRGCs operations beyond Iranian borders and it had a considerable role in fighting against the IS terrorist group (ISIL, ISIS or Daesh). Soleimani achieved almost a celebrity-like status among Iranian, Iraqi and Syrian Shia Muslims on social media. Many social media pages dedicated to the general have been publishing photos and videos of him on the battlefields in Syria and Iraq. Meanwhile, reportedly the Syrian army has recently made advances after launching massive operations backed by the Russian Air Force, IRGC and Lebanon's Hezbollah against the armed opposition groups. A UN Security Council resolution on Dec. 18 approved a draft resolution on peace process in Syria. According to the resolution, Syrian government and opposition groups should attend peace talks to find a solution for putting an end to the crisis. However just a few days after launching the talks, the UN suspended peace talks suggesting that they will resume since Feb. 25. Syrian sides keep blaming each other for the collapse of the talks. Over 250,000 people have died and at least 11 million have been displaced in Syria, since the crisis broke out in 2011. Ambassador of France to Azerbaijan Aurelia Bouchez has attended the opening of the winter school that organized for the teachers of the Azerbaijan State University of Economics. Rector of Azerbaijan State University of Economics Adalat Muradov highlighted the importance of arranging the winter school. Ambassador Aurelia Bouchez spoke about the educational opportunities in France, and stressed the importance of benefiting from the positive sides of the experience of Paris-Sorbonne University. Another winter school will be arranged for the teachers of Azerbaijan State University of Economics by Turkish Uludag University Professor Ercan Dulgeroglu. The winter school will last until Saturday. /By Azertac/ Bahraini investors were yesterday (February 2) urged to look into the potentially untapped markets of Sri Lanka that could promise high returns and boost economic and commercial ties between the two countries. This was highlighted by Sri Lankan Industry and Commerce Minister Rishad Bathiudeen who ended a successful two-day visit to Bahrain yesterday, during which he met top officials, ministers, community members and businessmen, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication. To read further, please visit GDNonline Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, recently hosted a workshop to focus on the development of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the region. Hosted with the Khalifa Fund for Enterprise Development and the Mohammed Bin Rashid Establishment, the Change for the Better event aimed to promote a sustainable business environment for SMEs, and to enable them to develop their services and products. The workshop was designed to promote interaction between project owners who are financed by the Khalifa Fund and the individual Mohammed Bin Rashid projects that are trying to build a wider network of relationships that will increase their efficiency, open new opportunities and develop business in the region. Adil Al Mulla, Etihad Airways vice president of Procurement and Supply Management, said: As the national airline of the UAE we are committed to playing a vital role in the community by supporting SMEs across the UAE. Our cooperation with the Khalifa Fund and the Mohammed Bin Rashid Establishment is recognition of those individual entrepreneurs. It is their efforts to showcase the airlines best policies and practices that have promoted better contracting opportunities in their businesses. Abdulla Al Hameli, Enterprise Development and Support Department Manager at Khalifa Fund, said: Etihad Airways played a vital role in supporting and enabling the fund in conjunction with the Khalifa entrepreneurs. The Fund will continue to work in order to create suitable growth and the development of SMEs across the country. This workshop offered a prestigious local platform to exchange knowledge and experiences and discuss the challenges facing the SME sector in emerging economies and developing countries. At Khalifa Fund, we are keen to support value-added projects as we recognise the importance of innovation in developing a knowledge society and a knowledge-based economy." Ibtihal Naji, director of Corporate Development at Mohammed Bin Rashid Establishment, said: We are grateful for Etihad Airways initiative in organising the Change for the Better workshop. There is no doubt that the workshop has had an impact on enriching the knowledge of members of the Mohammed bin Rashid Establishment and informing them about the airlines advanced automated purchase system. This will significantly contribute to raising the efficiency of their products and services. It should also enhance their position as key suppliers to Etihad Airways. TradeArabia News Service Egyptian investment bank HC Securities is working on acquisition deals in Egypt potentially worth more than 5 billion Egyptian pounds ($639 million), Chairman Hussein Choucri told Reuters. Egypt's economy has been struggling since a 2011 uprising drove tourists and foreign investors away - major sources of foreign currency. But the economy is expected to grow around 5 per cent this financial year, following 4.2 per cent growth in 2014-15, and a handful of recent deals have raised hopes more could be on the way. "We are working on five to six deals in 2016 worth, in total, more than five billion pounds ... The sellers in the deals taking place in 2016 are Egyptians and the buyers are foreigners and Arabs," Choucri said. Choucri also said HC Securities was advising on an acquisition of a Turkish medical firm by a company in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and hoped the deal would be completed this year. "We are the financial advisers to a UAE company in its bid to acquire a Turkish firm in the medical sector. The size of the deal is not clear yet but we hope to complete it this year," he said, declining to name the two companies. HC Securities is an investment bank and asset management firm with operations in Egypt and the UAE. It manages 14 investment funds and several investment portfolios. Choucri said his firm was keen to create a $100 million direct investment fund, but could not give a time frame of when that would happen. "We are done with the strategy of the fund and the documents relating to it but we are still trying to attract the relevant leadership," he said. Choucri stressed the importance of reassuring foreign investors of the economic situation in Egypt in order to attract them again. "There must be attempts made to attract foreign investment in dollars, especially from institutional financial (investors) who used to invest in treasury bills before 2011 and left after the revolution," he said. Reuters Officials from both companies at the signing Bahrain-based Asry, a leading ship and rig repair yard, has signed a specialised services agreement with Lightfoot Defence, a UK-based refrigeration and heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) contractor, to become one of the yards onsite specialist contractors. Lightfoot will provide upgrade, modification and repair services to standard and non-magnetic air-conditioning plants and associated equipment of naval vessels calling at the yard, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication. Aluminium powder maker Bahrain Atomizers International (BAI) faces uncertain times in the aftermath of a 400 per cent increase in premium that Alba charged for its metal from the beginning of 2015. General manager Tim McLaughlin said the company kept to its strategy of staying competitive through increased productivity to mitigate the impact of Albas high premium. However, theres been a softening of the market. A lot of our customer demand has decreased," he told Gulf Industry magazine. The company optimised its plant and increased throughput while maintaining the same head count, but subsequent to that there was a drop in demand, he stated. Production in 2015 was similar to the 2013 level less than 8,000 tonnes. In 2013 we were limited by production. Now we have more capacity but decreased demand, observed the official. In 2014, BAIs output was around 8,800 tonnes, the improvement coming from the opening of its second automatic line, Atomiser 2, which had not been operating since mid-2012. The company had also installed new mixing equipment which gave productivity enhancements as well as safety and environmental improvement. Turnover was $25 million in 2014 against $22 million in the previous year. The figure for 2015 is approximately $22 million. However, Atomiser 2 did not have a long run and the plant is once again idle and can be re-opened if needed, said McLaughlin. The official had predicted a gloomy outlook at the beginning of 2015 and expected to gain from capacity made available by the closing of a company in the US, the expectation materialising. It went in our favour but it would be difficult to quantify the actual increase in business because of various factors at play, he commented. BAI also hoped at the beginning of 2015 that a trend in favour of niche products using aluminium in powder metallurgy applications, such as in automobile parts, would maintain its momentum. It is difficult to say if that happened. Our volumes for automobiles have not decreased. Its also difficult to say whether we had the same share of the same volume or a bigger share of a smaller volume, McLaughlin said. The chemical sector accounts for 50 per cent of BAI sales, metallurgy 30 per cent, refractories 15 per cent and pigments 5 per cent. The distribution pattern was generally similar to the one in 2014 with the US as the single largest market, accounting for 25 per cent, Europe and India each making up 20 per cent, Japan accounting for 10 per cent and other Asian states 15 per cent. Markets including South America and South Africa contribute to the remaining share. India has traditionally been a strong market for BAI, the Bahrain firm enjoying favour with buyers there even though India has aluminium powder facilities. BAIs better quality is cited as the reason for the preference. BAI has not been successful in the Gulf market because of an absence of plants using aluminium powder in their processes. Year 2015 was unchanged in the region with Saudi Arabia taking less than 5 per cent. With uncertainty looming large, McLaughlin surmised that people seem reluctant to make contract decisions including the traditional suppliers. While production capacity of aluminium powder has risen internationally, there have been no new players in the atomiser industry. BAI, part of the global Ecka Granules Group, has specifications for more than 100 grades but generally produces just 40. TradeArabia News Service Saudi Foreign Minister Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir has reiterated the Kingdom's firm commitment to defeat terrorism in an op-ed published by Newsweek, titled "The Saudis Are Fighting Terrorism, Don't Believe Otherwise." "Multiple actors--each with their own motives--have targeted the kingdom, seeking to destabilise the country and terrorise the Saudi people. So it is in our national interest to defeat terrorism--and a national priority," wrote Al-Jubeir. He continued: "It makes no sense for Saudi Arabia to support or condone those who have as their goal the destruction of Saudi Arabia. It is against our values, our faith and our national character." Al-Jubeir stressed that Saudi Arabia is sparing no expense to combat terrorism and all its sources. "Whether non-state actors like Al-Qaeda or the Islamic State militant group (ISIS), or state-sponsored extremism from Iran and its proxies, Saudi Arabia has, as much as any other country, a national security incentive to stop the men, the money and the mindset that foments terrorism and violent extremism," he stated. The foreign minister also addressed the kingdom's efforts to cooperate with international partners, including the UN. - PRNewswire WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's three-and-a-half-year stay in the Ecuadorian embassy in London to avoid rape investigation in Sweden amounts to 'arbitrary detention', a United Nations panel will rule on Friday. Assange, a former computer hacker who has been holed up in the embassy since June 2012, told the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention that he was a political refugee whose rights had been infringed by being unable to take up asylum in Ecuador. He denies allegations of rape in 2010 and has portrayed them as a ploy to have him eventually sent to the US, where he could be put on trial over WikiLeaks' publication of the classified military and diplomatic documents. Britain said it had never arbitrarily detained Assange and that the Australian had voluntarily avoided arrest by jumping bail to flee to the embassy. But the UN panel of outside experts has ruled in Assange's favour, Sweden said. "(The) working group has made the judgment that Assange has been arbitrarily detained in contravention of international commitments," a spokeswoman for the Swedish Foreign Ministry said, confirming a report by the BBC. The ruling is to be published on Friday. Assange had said earlier in a short message on Twitter that he would have left the embassy if the UN panel had ruled against him. "(But) should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," Assange, 44, said. Britain said Assange will be arrested if he leaves his cramped quarters at the embassy and then extradited to Sweden. The decision in his favour marks the latest twist in a tumultuous journey for Assange since he incensed the US and its allies by using his WikiLeaks website to leak hundreds of thousands of secret US diplomatic and military cables in 2010, disclosures that often embarrassed Washington. - Reuters Cyber Gear, an award-winning internet company based in Dubai, UAE is celebrating the completion of 20 years in the Internet business. Sharad Agarwal, CEO of Cyber Gear said: "We are delighted to have had the opportunity to work with several multinational clients like British Airways, Microsoft, Shell, Total, Starwood, InterContinental Hotels Group, Hyatt, Marriott Vacation Club, Burger King, Applebees, Saks Fifth Avenue, Toshiba, Sharp and Xerox. While we have expanded our services from web to mobile to Social and IoT, we are still very passionate about building world class web presence for our clients to benefit from the power of the internet to Go Global, he added. Since 1996, Cyber Gear has been a pre-eminent force in the e-business industry by developing award winning web projects. Positioned as an industry leader, Cyber Gear provides state-of-the-art internet solutions to a large number of multinational, government and private sector organisations. Cyber Gear services include design of knowledge portals, intranets, e-CRM, e-business, CMS, e-commerce & mobile applications and e-marketing. Cyber Gear has signed contracts with leading retail, educational and financial sector organisations for implementing web based projects. TradeArabia News Service Saudi Arabias population increased 2.4 percent to 31.52 million last year from 30.77 million in 2014, a report quoting the Saudi Department of Statistics and Information. Saudi nationals made up two-thirds of the population at 21.1 million, while the number of expatriates rose to 10.4 million, the Arab News report said. The kingdoms population was 22.6 million in 2004, the report said. The countrys GDP per capita grew over the past 12 years by 6 per cent on average, or an annual increase of SR3,200 ($852.8). The highest growth was recorded between 2010 and 2011 when it expanded by 24 percent from SR71,100 ($18,949) to SR87,900 ($23,426), it said. The per capita income dropped by 15 percent to SR77,700 last year from SR91,900 in 2014, the report added. The Renault-Nissan Alliance sold 8,528,887 vehicles in 2015, up almost 1 per cent from the previous year, attributed to record sales in the US, China and Europe. Combined sales for the worlds fourth largest car group, which includes Renault Group, Nissan Motor Co, and Russias Avtovaz, held steady despite sharp declines in the overall Russian and Brazilian markets, said the statement from the company. Renault, Nissan and Avtovaz, Russias largest automaker, account for about one in 10 cars sold worldwide, it added. Renault Group, Europes third-largest automaker, sold a record 2,801,592 vehicles worldwide in 2015, up 3.3 per cent from 2014, in a market that grew by 1.6 per cent. This marked the third consecutive year of sales growth for Renault. Dacia sales accounted for a record 550,920 vehicles, up 7.7 per cent, it said. Renault, one of the fastest-growing major brand in Europe, reached a market share of 10.1 per cent in a market that rose 9.4 per cent. Renault retained its light commercial vehicle leadership in Europe for the eighteenth consecutive year. Nissan Motor Co Ltd, sold a record 5,421,804 cars and trucks worldwide, up 2.1 per cent. In each of its two biggest markets, the US and China, Nissan sold at least 1.25 million vehicles. Infiniti accounted for a record 215,250 vehicles, up 16 per cent from the previous year, thanks to all-time high sales in all key regions, including the Americas and China. AVTOVAZ, which sells cars under the LADA brand, sold 305,491 vehicles, down 31.5 per cent due to the slump in the Russian market. The Renault-Nissan Alliance has a majority stake in AVTOVAZ through a joint venture with state corporation Rostec. Together, the Renault-Nissan Alliance and AVTOVAZ sell about one in three cars in Russia, further added the statement. The overall Russian car market plunged by more than 35 per cent. The Alliance increased its market share from 30.7 per cent in 2014 to 32.3 per cent in 2015. The Alliances top 10 markets in 2015 were the US, China, France, Japan, Mexico, UK, Germany, Russia, Brazil and Spain. In the US, Nissan set an all-time record with 1,484,918 vehicles, up 7.1 percent, resulting in a record market share of 8.5 per cent. Nissan also set annual sales records for Rogue, Versa, NV and NV200. In the light truck segment, sales rose 20 per cent compared with 2014. In China, Nissan sold 1.25 million vehicles, up 6.3 per cent. It remains the leading Japanese automaker in China with a market share of more than 5 per cent. Earlier this month, Renault began production of the Kadjar SUV at its joint venture plant in Wuhan with Dongfeng Motor Corp. This is the first model to be produced by Renault in China. The new plant will have an initial production capacity of 150,000 vehicles a year, with the potential to expand to 300,000 vehicles as demand increases. In France, Renaults home market, Renault sold 607,173 vehicles, up 5.1 per cent. Its market share totaled 26.4 per cent. The Clio compact car remained the top-selling passenger vehicle for the sixth consecutive year. Renault ZOE was the leading electric passenger vehicle with at 60 per cent market share. In Japan, Nissans home market, Nissan sold 589,046 vehicles, down 12.1 per cent. Nissans market share stood at 11.7 per cent. In Mexico, Nissan posted record sales of 348,941 vehicles, up 19 per cent. With a market share of 25.8 per cent for 2015, Nissan has held the top sales spot in Mexico for the last six consecutive years. In Brazil, Renaults second-largest market, its market share increased by 0.2 points to 7.3 per cent in a market that contracted by 25.5 per cent. In India, which is expected to be an important pillar of Alliance sales and industrial growth in the future, Renault remained the leading European automotive brand with sales up more than 20 percent to 53,848 vehicles. More than 80,000 people in India placed orders for the Renault Kwid compact hatchback since its launch in September. The Kwid is the first Alliance vehicle built on Common Module Family-A architecture, the smallest and most affordable category of cars in the Alliance CMF family. The Datsun brand will launch a model using CMF-A architecture later this year. The Alliance sells about one in two pure electric vehicles worldwide. Through the end of December, the Alliance has sold a cumulative 302,000 electric vehicles (Evs) worldwide. The first mainstream, mass-marketed EV, the Nissan LEAF, went on sale in December 2010. Nissan LEAF remains the worlds best-selling EV with more than 201,000 vehicles sold since its launch. Since Renault began selling EVs in October 2011, Renault has sold a cumulative 83,000 electric vehicles worldwide, including the Twizy two-seater urban commuter. The Renault Kangoo Z.E. remains the top light commercial EV in Europe. In calendar-year 2015, the Renault-Nissan Alliance sold 85,000 electric vehicles, up more than 2.5 per cent compared with previous year. Nissans global EV sales fell 9.8 per cent, while Renaults sales increased 45 per cent. The 2016 Nissan LEAF has an all-new 30 kWh battery, which delivers 20 per cent more driving range between charges than the previous 24 kWh version. In addition to LEAF, Nissan also sells the e-NV200 van. In Europe, Nissans EV sales rose 14.3 per cent in 2015 to nearly 20,000 vehicles. Renaults EV sales in Europe increased 49 percent to nearly 23,100 vehicles, excluding Twizy. Renault ZOE was the best-selling EV in Europe in 2015, accounting for nearly 19 percent of the market, it added. TradeArabia News Service GE and the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, the founding partners of the inaugural Emirates Energy Efficiency Summit to be held in Dubai, UAE, have announced details of the speaker programme. After a year of continued global energy crises and with renewed volatility in the crude oil market, the event will provide valuable insights into the key energy challenges the world faces in 2016, said a statement. The invitation-only event, which takes place on February 3 and 4 at the American University in Dubai, will host an informative programme of roundtable discussions and expert presentations. Among the speakers are Dr Mohamed Ahmed Bin Fahad and Dr Meshgan Al Awar, chairman and secretary general, respectively, of Zayed International Foundation for the Environment, who will be sharing their significant insights. Also taking to the stage will be Abdulla Alshahyari, acting director of the Conservation and Efficiency Department at the UAE Ministry of Energy. With the UAE looking to lead the Middle Easts energy efficient movement, Alshahyari will share case studies and examples of best practice, drawing from the ministrys vast experience. The attendees will learn how the country is diversifying its economy towards a future that looks increasingly likely to lie in renewable energy. Working under the overarching theme of Energy Efficiency in the UAE: an opportunity for sustained growth and global leadership,' the speakers will be sharing their understanding of the main components needed for successful engagement with the content organised into three broad streams. The Informed section will consider how to educate and inspire future generations, with a focus on the role of social media in spreading important energy efficiency messages. There will be an emphasis on the increasingly important role technology plays in reducing inefficient energy use, said the statement. The section will touch upon recent findings by the Masdar Group, based in Abu Dhabi, who have identified that sand could play a key role in concentrated solar power and the ramifications this could have for the region, it said. The Motivated content stream will look at the key drivers for behavioral change and the need to tailor communications to encourage consumers and businesses to invest in energy efficiency. This is a particular salient point of discussion for the region after the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) opened avenues for private firms to invest in the states renewable energy market, amid budget constraints. Finally, the Accountable section will consider incentives versus legislation and the effect on the wider society. With the UAE Government's recent decision to abolish water and electric subsidies, in a bid to curb energy usage, speakers will debate whether the legislation will have its desired impact and consider what role measurability - from metering to labelling has on dictating energy use. Erdem Soyal, project sales general manager for GE Middle East, Africa and Turkey (MEAT), said: The overall objective of the EEES is to foster enhanced communication, while educating participants about key energy efficiency issues and provoking a two-way dialogue. "As such, we are keen to bring together a heavyweight program of speakers that can add real value for participants and will ultimately drive tangible action. - TradeArabia News Service Global technology investor Amadeus Capital Partners has invested $40 million into Travelstart, a South Africa-based online travel agency (OTA). With the new funding comes a strategic partnership with Africa's largest mobile telecommunications provider MTN which has a subscriber base of more than 230 million. The funding will be used for Travelstarts expansion and to solidify the companys position as the biggest OTA player on that continent. In the three short years since Travelstart launched commercial operations in Egypt weve worked hard to become the first choice for Egyptian travellers, said Ahmed Saad, regional manager for Travelstart Egypt. We are proud to have been awarded Best Online Travel Agency two years running by Amadeus Egypt. In 2015, we launched Travelstarts Arabic language portal, bringing our travel services to an even broader segment of the Egyptian market. Africa is considered the last frontier in online travel. In most developed countries Internet and mobile travel purchases now represent the lions share of the online travel market while in Africa web-based travel companies share less than 5 per cent of the entire market. Travelstart celebrates 10 years in Africa this year, said Travelstart CEO Stephan Ekbergh, In that time our in-house team has built a robust platform to serve consumers and significantly lower fares for all travellers. We take all the complexities out of travel for both travellers and suppliers and solve real problems that only exist in the most diverse of markets. The investment is the largest of its kind on the African continent in Turkey and the Middle East, Africa alone is a $50 billion travel market growing between 3 per cent and 5 per cent annually. The investment from Amadeus Capital and the MTN partnership is a fantastic fit for our company as we share the same ideology and long term commitment, said Ekbergh. TradeArabia News Service Austrian Airlines has become the worlds first carrier to launch a new mobile solution, eFlight Manager, developed by Sabre Corporation, a global travel technology provider. The new solution will enable real-time NOTAM, weather and flightplan updates throughout the lifecycle of the airlines flights if air-to-ground communication is available in the cockpit. Austrian Airlines, a long-term customer of Sabres AirCentre Flight Plan Manager, worked with Sabre to develop the solutions new mobile extension. The industry-leading technology enables airlines, which operate with the most mobile workforces in the world, to access digital flight planning information anytime, anywhere. This will help to further improve the safety of flights, by providing pilots with the necessary information to track and avoid bad weather. Airlines will also be able to adjust fuel calculations based on this data. Since the launch of the beta phase at the start of November, a small test group at Austrian Airlines has been using the solution inflight on tablet devices. Through integrated systems and real-time downloads of the latest flight data, Austrian Airlines has been able to achieve a common view between pilots and dispatchers, enabling greater efficiency in flight planning. The solution will also help the airline improve post-flight analysis and planning by synchronising aircraft and ground-based data. Austrian Airlines is dedicated to using the latest technology across its operations, said Dino Gelmetti, vice president EMEA, Airline Solutions, Sabre. Our new solution leverages the latest in mobile technology and was created in response to the growing need for more connected airline operations that talk to each other for improved efficiency. As the first airline to pioneer our mobile flight planning technology, Austrian Airlines will be able to drive greater efficiency and cost savings as well as provide a more seamless and efficient service to its passengers. Following a successful trial, the airline will roll out the new technology to its entire flight staff of 950 in the coming months, and will start using the mobile recalculation capabilities to realise additional fuel savings and operational efficiencies. Sabres innovative and industry-leading technology is most in line with our goals of being an airline that is at the forefront of mobile technology in-flight. said Captain Dr Philipp Haller, A320-Pilot and EFB-Administrator at Austrian Airlines. Austrian Airlines has been using Electronic Flight Bags for more than 10 years and eFlight Manager enables us to establish a complete paper-free briefing process including continuous inflight optimisation. We are proud to be the launch partner of Sabres eFlight Manager technology as it supports our vision to be one of the worlds most forward-thinking airlines." TradeArabia News Service Meet award-winning artisans and buy their products at Kerala Arts and Crafts Village Help Yourself Stuff to help you. Saturday morning watercolor Art 321, Casper Artists Guild has reopened with our first exhibit of the new year, Anything Goes. Saturday morning watercolor classes have begun, 10 a.m. to noon, with the following lineup of classes: February 6, trees, instructed by Jennifer Morss; February 13, practice session; February 20, reflections and shadows; February 27, practice session. For more information or questions about these classes, please call Ellen Black at 265-6783. We are looking forward to our next busy year of classes, workshops, exhibits and the making and sharing art! Boyds bring Marriage Live to Casper The Art of Marriage Live featuring Family Lifes Weekend to Remember speakers Bruce and Julie Boyd is coming Casper on February 19 and 20 at Cornerstone Evangelical Free Church, 4100 Casper Mountain Road. Through teaching, stories, and humor, the Boyds will address the challenges and beauty of Gods design. The event begins on Friday, February 19, from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. and continues on Saturday, February 20, from 8:30 a.m. to noon. Cost is $50 per couple which includes the seminar, workbooks, and refreshments. Child care will be provided. For more information and to register call 235-6363 or visit www.cornerstonefree.org. Workshop at Art 321 ART 321 Casper Artists Guild workshop for February: Upholstery workshop, instructed by Connie Atkinson (Hi-Mark Upholstery), will be held for three consecutive months: First session, Saturday and Sunday, February 20 and 21, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; second session, Saturday and Sunday, March 19 and 20, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Third and final session, Saturday and Sunday, April 16 and 17, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fee is $60 for members/$80 for non-members + a $10 supply fee. Open to all levels. Register on line or stop by the gallery please. Order trees from extension office Premium quality seedling trees, shrubs and perennials are available for windbreaks and wildlife habitat enhancement from the UW/Natrona County Extension. Order forms are available at the Agriculture Resource and Learning Center, 2011 Fairgrounds Road, Casper, WY 82604. For more information, call Rose Jones at 235-9400. There are 40 species available: Bareroot species are 25 for $30; large tubed species, 30 for $83; small tubed species, 30 for $70; small trays are 50 for $99; XL potted species are $12 each. Order now for best selection with May delivery. Healing seminar set A Conscious co-creation/self-transformation and healing seminar taught by Cathy Hazel Adams, practitioner in Intuitive Quantum Transformation and Energy Healing, will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Feb. 20-21 at the Agricultural Resources Learning Center, 2011 Fairgrounds Road. Its not too late to receive the Early Bird registration discount! For complete registrations received on or before Jan. 31, $105. Price is $130. For more information or to register, visit www.cathyhazeladams.com or call 307-797-9677. Free tax help offered The Wyoming Free Tax Service (VITA) runs through April 13, 2016. Our hours will be Tuesday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Friday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. We will be closed on Sunday and Monday as well as Easter Weekend, Friday March 25, and Saturday, March 26. Our location is the Aspen Creek Building, 800 Werner Court, Suite 180. This is a first come, first serve service so no appointments will be scheduled. Please bring your social security card, photo identification and appropriate paperwork that is needed, or we will not be able to assist you in your tax return. If you have any questions, please feel free to call (307) 315-1830 during our hours of operation. www.wyomingfreetaxservice.org Open Sky Meditation Saturday Morning Sits Open Sky Meditation Group is offering a three-hour meditation practice on the second Saturday of each month through May. Meditation will start at 9 a.m. and end at noon. First hour will be meditation instruction. Second hour will be open meditation. Third hour will be a guided meditation. On Feb. 13 and May 14, we will meet in the yoga room 101 at Skelton Energy Institute, Casper College. On March 12 and April 9, we will meet in room 217 of Strausner Hall, Casper College. These sits are open to all. Please feel free to come and leave as your schedule dictates. We hope to see you there. If you have questions, feel free to call Gale Sleep at 307-251-6959. Here and Now: Dementia-focused monthly art class Every third Tuesday of the month from 1 to 3 p.m. There is no charge. Here and Now is a program made possible through a collaboration between Wyoming Dementia Care and the Nicolaysen Art Museum. It is designed to provide a supportive environment for people with dementia and Alzheimers and their loved ones. The class offers a chance to experience sensory and intellectual stimulation, communicate through art and explore various art media including paint, clay, collage and printmaking. To register for class contact Dani with Wyoming Dementia Care 265-4678, ext. 106, or at wyodementia@casperseniorcenter.com or Zhanna Gallegos at 235-5247 or at zgallegos@thenic.org. Parent conference on disAbilities 4th Annual Parent Conference on DisAbilities- Expectations: Open Doors, is Friday, Feb. 26, through Sunday, Feb. 28 at noon at the Parkway Plaza, sponsored by the Parent Information Center. $50 for Wyoming families of children with disabilities, $100 for educators, child care providers and others. NCSD #1 is covering the cost of registration for Natrona County families of school-aged students on IEPs. Featured keynote speaker Friday, Feb. 26, will be Paula Kluth, nationally renowned speaker and author on Inclusion and Autism. Other topics over the weekend will include IEPs without conflict, practical assistive technology for everyday use, sensory disorder, studentdirected IEPs; transition to employment and more! Limited number of travel stipends available. Respite available separately through Arc of Natrona County. PTSB and STARS credit available. For more information, contact Teri Dawson at (307) 684-2277 or tdawson@wpic.org Parents Helping Parents The 25th Anniversary Banquet Celebration & Silent Auction for Parents Helping Parents of Wyoming, Inc., is 6 p.m., Saturday, Feb. 27, at the Parkway Plaza. Cost is $35/person or $60/couple; tickets available online at www.wpic.org PHP is celebrating 25 years of helping raise families expectations and opening doors for children with disabilities by increasing family engagement and meaningful partnerships with schools through its projects, the Parent Information Center and the Parent Education Network. We want to say thank you to the families who have honored us with their trust in supporting the ups and downs of their journey. Join us as we celebrate 25 years of educational milestones! No host cash bar begins at 6. For more information, contact Teri Dawson at (307) 684-2277 or tdawson@wpic.org Cities and counties in Idaho would need state approval to enforce plastic bag bans under a new proposal currently making its way through the Idaho Statehouse. The Idaho House voted 52-17 on Wednesday to make it illegal for cities to impose bag bans, restrictions on Styrofoam containers and other disposable products. If approved, local officials would need permission from the Idaho Legislature to enact the restrictions. Currently, no cities enforce plastic bag bans in Idaho, but such efforts have been made in the past. The proposals have angered minority Democratic members, who argue that their conservative colleagues will scoff at any federal government involvement but impose the same heavy handiness on cities and towns especially those known for leaning liberal. The bill now moves to the Senate for approval. In the wake of a court decision that de-criminalized polygamy in Utah, a state lawmaker wants to revive the ban on living with multiple so-called spiritual wives. The proposal unveiled Wednesday by Republican Rep. Mike Noel of Kanab would make it a felony to live with more than one purported spouse. That would revise a key portion of the law struck down by a judge in 2013 after a polygamous family from the TV show "Sister Wives" sued. State attorneys say the proposal would narrow the definition of the crime and could end the lawsuit now before a federal appeals court if it passes. The lawyer for the "Sister Wives" family, though, says any law that bans consenting adults from living with multiple wives would likely violate their freedom of religion. TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) Kansas lawmakers are considering a bill that would allow teachers and school administrators to be prosecuted for presenting material perceived as harmful to minors. The bill passed the Senate last year and was considered in a House committee Tuesday, the Wichita Eagle (http://bit.ly/1UJBBts ) reported. It stems from a 2014 controversy in the Shawnee Mission school district over a poster in a sex education classroom that listed oral sex and other acts as ways people express their sexual feelings. Children could have been irreparably harmed by viewing the poster "because it affects their brains," according to the bill's sponsor, Republican state Sen. Mary Pilcher-Cook of Shawnee. "State laws should protect parents' rights to safeguard our children against harmful materials, especially in schools," she said. Currently, state law protects school officials against the misdemeanor charge of presenting harmful material to minors if it's part of a lesson. The proposed legislation would remove that protection for teachers at public, private and parochial schools. Teachers would face a fine or up to six months in jail if convicted of the charge. Opponents are concerned that educators would be vulnerable to prosecution for presenting controversial works of art and literature. Democratic state Rep. John Carmichael of Wichita asked whether a teacher could be prosecuted for showing an image of Michelangelo's sculpture David, which depicts male genitalia, or for teaching Shakespeare's play "Romeo and Juliet," which features sexual puns. Pilcher-Cook pointed to a section of the bill that defines harmful material as material "a reasonable person would find ... lacks serious literary, scientific, educational, artistic or political value." When Carmichael continued to press the issue, Pilcher-Cook said individual prosecutors and juries will be responsible for determining whether something is considered harmful material. The bill also would deter teachers from using inappropriate material in the classroom, according to Pilcher-Cook, who said the fact that the poster was "posted without fear is a problem in and of itself." Tom Witt, a gay-rights activist who testified against the bill on behalf of his husband who's a public school teacher, believes the bill is meant "to strike fear into the hearts of teachers." "Here's what my husband wants to know: Which of the books on the list are going to send him to jail?" Witt said. "That's all we need to know." ___ Information from: The Wichita (Kan.) Eagle, http://www.kansas.com Making the leap from the military to the private sector can be a daunting task. It can be scary. I guess its the fear of the unknown, said Antwyon Smith, a logistics manager who has served in the Air Force for 19 years and plans to retire in the next few years. You cant do this forever, Smith said of serving in the military. Were taught you have to take advantage and prepare yourself. Smith chatted with potential employers showing my face and seeing whats out there at the Next Steps for Vets job fair Wednesday morning at Pima Community Colleges Coalition Center at 4355 E. Calle Aurora. Roughly 70 service members and veterans listened to panel discussions and visited with about a dozen local employers in the aerospace, manufacturing and healthcare industries. We are looking for people who are ready to take it to the next level, Esteban Garcia, technical manager for World View Enterprises, told the audience. The Tucson-based high-altitude-balloon company sees growth on the horizon in research and tourism, Garcia said. And the company needs people who understand technical information and can communicate well with engineers. Dave Raymond, an instructor at PCC, told the audience the school already trains airframe technicians and likely will develop a similar program for balloons. Our program is designed for veterans who are just out of the military, with the goal of getting them certified by the Federal Aviation Administration, he said. For airmen at the job fair, the FAA was a popular option after leaving the service. With the FAA, its the exact same job, just different clothes, said Nicholas Cunningham, 31, an airfield systems technician with the Air Force. Just like the Air Force, the FAA needs people who know how to manage incoming and outgoing airplanes, he said. For service members thinking about leaving the military, one of the draws is the chance to work with newer technology rather than decades-old equipment used by the military, said ground radar technician Matt Sacco, 25. I want to roll into that, Sacco said. Sargent Aerospace and Defense was on hand looking for machinists, assemblers, engineers, project managers, and desk workers like cost accountants, said Tanya Jimenez, who works in human resources at Sargent. Military candidates are always great, she said. You give them a project and they are going to follow through with it. Former service members ask the right questions and are always punctual, Jimenez said. She recommends service members train as much as possible, and even do an internship or two, before leaving the service. Southwest Gas also had a booth at the job fair, trying to attract veterans to a multitude of positions. We love veterans, said Deron Johnson of Southwest Gas human resources department. A lot of veterans experience is applicable to what we do, Johnson said, listing construction, communications, engineering and automotive work. Be prepared to be disturbed and to laugh at the Winding Road Theater Ensembles next production. The company is staging Emilie Becks Sovereign Body, a play about a woman who is assaulted by a neurological disease that robs her of her life as she knows it. While there are some wonderfully funny characters in it, at its heart is a disease that has no defense. The inspiration: My aunt got Parkinsons when she was quite young, says Beck from her Los Angeles-area home. She had two young children when she started to get the symptoms. I would take her and my grandmother out for lunch or on errands, and inevitably something would happen. She would fall, or couldnt move. She always made jokes about it. One of the jokes resonated for me something about an affair with Mr. Parkinson. It was a man who took her away from everything in her life. That kind of stayed with me. An evasion: Beck began to do extensive research on the disease, which led her to a magazine with content written by Parkinsons patients. As I started reading them, one thing leapt out at me they referred to Parkinsons as something that invaded their bodies. They all independently used the word. For me, that was an entry into the play. The Man (in the play) is the metaphor for evasion. Disease with no name: While her aunts Parkinsons was a prompt for the play, a disease is never named in Sovereign Body its just clear that her body has been taken over. In an early draft, his name was Mr. Parkinson. Someone said he can speak for so many others things that this could be about a woman who has a stroke or cancer or multiple sclerosis. I want it to be accessible to everyone. No answers: I always wanted to write a play that opens up questions for people, opens an investigation into their own lives, says Beck. I dont want people to walk away saying, Now I know what to think. For me, what theater has the capacity to do is make us feel things very deeply and very grandly; it is a way to reach deep inside of us and let us see how we are all connected. It has to represent stories that we recognize but are bigger than our personal experience. I say all that because I hope the play is a way to experience what tends to be a very personal and private experience in a communal and cathartic way. Orrencios opens at Joesler Village Just in time for Valentines Day: The bustling Joesler Village shopping center at River Road and Campbell Avenue has a new date spot specializing in gourmet Italian food. Orenccios Ristorante Terrazza opened its doors last week, bringing in wood-fired pizzas and a substantial seafood menu including dishes like lobster ravioli and Naples-style clam chowder. The Tucson restaurant, owned by German Canez, is actually the second Orenccios locationthe first being in Nogales, Arizona. The colors of the intimate dining room at 1765 E. River Road have been muted since its days as Om Modern Asian Kitchen, and the team has installed a wood-fired pizza oven behind a new bartop in the center of the restaurant. In the future, there will also be a 40-person patio. The menu leans toward upscale, with pasta dishes averaging about $14 and heartier meats and seafoods upwards of $20. Chefs specialties include several steaks like rib eye, filet mignon as well as veal osso buco plates for $36. All entrees come with a soup or salad. Orenccios has a full bar with 16 wines by the glass and a basic cocktail list of classics like the Orange Negroni with Hendricks Gin. The team also plans to roll out a 3 to 6 p.m. happy hour with food and drink specials. Theres also live music Thursday through Saturday nights. The restaurant is going in next to R&R Family Restaurant, which opened in the former Contigo space in October. By the summer, Canez is opening an Orenccios Express lunch place in the recently closed Falafel King at 1800 E. Fort Lowell Road. That location will serve quicker items like salads, pizzas and paninis. Cheers, Ten Fifty-Five One of Tucsons most beloved breweries is celebrating its third anniversary this weekend with a big ol block party outside its south-side brewhouse. It will throw a tailgate festival complete with live music, tailgating games and food from the Blacktop Grill and Reilly Craft Pizza and Drink. In addition to its regular beer lineup, Ten Fifty-Five is tapping two new brews for the party, including a cherry version of the popular Sugar Skull Chocolate Milk Stout. The party goes from 2 to 10 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 6 at 3810 E. 44th St. More info here: 1055brewing.com The Screamery ice cream shop opened its second location on Speedway April 7 and a 3rd downtown in early June. Owner Kenny Sarnoski opened up shop in the former Headquarters Hookah at 2545 E. Speedway next door to Alibaba Mediterranean Restaurant, and in the old Buffalo Exchange at 250 E. Congress. Hours are 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Sundays through Thursdays and 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. Sarnoski said he anticipates opening four or five Screamery shops in the Tucson area with wife/business partner, Linda Sarnoski. Everybody loves it, he said of Screamerys handcrafted ice creams that start with custom, in-house pasteurized cream. Just being so far east is a bummer for most of Tucson and we want to be able to service as many people with our product as we can. 85, passed away at home in Tucson, AZ, on Monday, February 1, 2016, after a brief bout with pneumonia. The daughter of the late Benjamin J. and Margaret V. Camp, she was born in and grew up in Rome, GA. She was also preceded in death in 2010 by her husband, Maurice Magee. She is survived by daughters, Sara Magee Jones and Margaret Magee of Greensboro, NC; by son, Michael Magee of Tucson, AZ; by sister, Joy Camp Parks of Leeds, AL, and sister-in-law, Johnsie Robinson Magee of Savannah, GA. She is also survived by nephews and nieces James, Benjamin, Perry and Rebecca Newton and Kathy Newton Buchan, as well as Chris Magee, Connie Magee Williams, and Cathy Magee McBrayer. A warm and generous wife, mother, sister, aunt, and friend, Carol was a natural diplomat, organizer, and facilitator. Carol had a great sense of humor, was always positive and upbeat, and sought and found the best in everyone she met. A master of many subjects, Carol, whose original degree from the University of Georgia was in cartography, was a teacher for more than 40 years, beginning by teaching physical education, then English, and then reading and special education. Her last 'official' career stint was as registrar at St. Cyril of Alexandria Catholic School in Tucson, where she sometimes tutored the advanced eighth graders in high school algebra. Carol and Maurice were passionate about classical and folk music both as participants and spectators. Carol started her musical 'performing career' in the University of Georgia marching band and became a master-level recorder player in her later years. She was a member, officer, and avid supporter of Arizona Early Music Society, Tucson Recorder Society, Young Audiences, and other Tucson musical organizations. Both Carol and Maurice were lifelong learners, participating for years in the SAGE (now OLLI) senior continuing education program at the University of Arizona. Carol and Maurice also attended a wide variety of Elderhostel sessions and similar senior education programs. Aside from music, word games like Boggle and Scrabble were Carol's favorite pastimes. The Magee family would like to extend their heartfelt thanks to all the Visiting Angels caregivers, who helped Carol in recent years. We especially thank Maree Johnson, a Godsend who's become very much a part of the Magee family. A Memorial Mass for Carol, followed by a light luncheon, will be held at 11:00 a.m., Friday, February 5, 2016 at St. Cyril of Alexandria Catholic Church, 4725 E. Pima Street, Tucson, AZ 85712. ADAIR FUNERAL HOMES, Dodge Chapel, 1050 N. Dodge Blvd., Tucson is handling all final arrangements. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests memorial gifts to the Arizona Early Music Society, P.O. Box 4172, Tucson, AZ 85733-4172, or to the charity of your choice. 97, passed away on January 23, 2016 at Peppi's House at TMC, in Tucson. Harold came to Tucson with his wife, Wannietta and daughter, Jocelyn in 1943 to find relief from Tuberculosis. After finding his first paying job at J.C. Penny he became one of the first x-ray technicians in Tucson. He then aspired to become a Dentist and went to the UofA and then on to the Univ. of Calif. Dental in San Francisco. Upon graduation with honors he returned to Tucson to establish his practice. He soon branched out to Nogales and not only succeeded in private practice but performed dental procedures pro bono for a great many indigent children in Arizona and Sonora. At retirement he spent many hours volunteering at St. Elizabeth Clinic and St. Alban's Episcopal Church. During his various careers he received many acknowledgements for service and accomplishments. He was preceded in life by his wife, Wannietta, whom he loved and admired greatly. He is survived by his daughter, Jocelyn Clark (Don) and granddaughter, Renee Clark Jordan (Patrick). A Celebration of Life will be held at St. Alban's Episcopal Church, 3738 N. Sabino Canyon at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, February 5, 2016. In lieu of flowers, at the wishes of Dr. Coffman, donations may be made to St. Alban's Episcopal Church. Arrangements by HUDGEL'S SWAN FUNERAL HOME. A group of Arivaca residents expanded their Border Patrol checkpoint monitoring campaign on Wednesday to Arizona 286. Nine residents of the small community, about 60 miles south of Tucson, grabbed their clipboards and safety vests and sat across the highway from Border Patrol agents as they inspected vehicles heading north from Sasabe. Their goal was to collect information such as the number of cars that go through, how long they are questioned, occupant ethnicity when possible and whether they are sent to secondary inspection. In February 2014, members of People Helping People, a humanitarian group founded in Arivaca, began monitoring the checkpoint on Arivaca Road to document what they said are abuses and civil rights violations from the agency. But after two years, it was time to move to the other checkpoint Arivaca residents must cross to leave the town, said Leesa Jacobson, one of the groups founding members. When they started, she said, the plan was a few months of intensive monitoring, but they decided to continue on and off after they heard from others that agents were being nicer, since part of their efforts are also to serve as a deterren t. Unlike the first time they monitored the other checkpoint, when volunteers said they were met with resistance from the agents who set up enforcement barriers and used their vehicles to block their views, this time the agents were, in general, professional and respectful, said Jacobson. She and fellow member Peter Ragan have a lawsuit pending in federal court alleging First Amendment rights violations. The Border Patrol declined to comment due to the lawsuit. On Wednesday, after some back and forth, the agency allowed them to observe the agents from the other side of the road as long as they didnt interfere with their work or traffic. The monitoring efforts are part of a broader campaign to have the checkpoints removed. The Supreme Court has ruled that questions must be brief, minimally intrusive and focused on immigration. For anything else, including further detention, there must be consent or probable cause. After People Helping People opened an office in 2013, residents approached them with complaints, volunteer Sophie Smith said, but they didnt go anywhere. We started talking about organizing two years ago because it was a source of constant frustration, said Ragan. In additon to checkpoint monitoring, the group gathered signatures and released a report based on their observations in which they found Hispanics were more likely to face prolonged stops and secondary inspections. In the last few years, the American Civil Liberties Union has also filed an administrative complaint with the Department of Homeland Security, citing rights violations at checkpoints and calling for a Justice Department investigation. In 2015, it also issued a report based on public records obtained after it sued the government in which it found widespread abuses not being investigated or pursued. Border Patrol officials say the checkpoints are here to stay. I look at checkpoints as a critical tool within the Border Patrol toolkit to control the border overall, Tucson Sector Border Patrol Chief Paul Beeson told the Arizona Daily Star in a recent interview. They are strategically located in areas of the border where we have seen activity occurring. But the agency aims to ensure agents are professional, he said, and that we are doing it mindful and respectful of Constitutional rights. For Jacobson, the fact that agents are more courteous since they started to take notes is not enough. The Pima County Sheriff's Department has called off its search of an abandoned mine in Arivaca, after federal authorities requested its aid last night in locating a person. Agents attempted to apprehend a group of people in Arivaca Wednesday night, and one person fled into an abandoned mine. Deputies searched late into the night, but no one was located. Federal authorities requested the aid of the regional Special Weapons and Tactics team, the bomb squad and the search and rescue team, said Deputy Ryan Inglett, a Pima County Sheriff's Department spokesman. Inglett said that because of the potential dangers associated with abandoned mines, federal authorities asked the specialized units to assist in finding the person in the mine. The units have equipment available for the search, said Inglett. The search and rescue team is trained in finding people and administering medical treatment, Inglett said. He said members also are trained in rope rescue techniques. PHOENIX State schools chief Diane Douglas is lashing out at what she said is a repulsive plan by a Mesa Republican lawmaker she contends will strip her of many of her constitutional duties. Douglas said Wednesday the proposal by Sen. Jeff Dial would give those duties to the state Board of Education. She said that would be a mistake as the board, most of whose members are appointed by the governor, meets only once a month. But Douglas, who is enmeshed in two lawsuits with the board, sees a more sinister motive. She suggested this is all about those who want to preserve the Common Core standards that the board approved six years ago that she has tried repeatedly to kill. More to the point, Douglas, a member of the board, said she campaigned on a platform of repealing Common Core. Having successfully faced a primary election, a general election, a pathetic recall effort and an ongoing lawsuit by the state Board of Education, I am stunned that a so-called conservative Republican would try to reverse the will of the people, Douglas said in a prepared statement. Dial, for his part, said all he is trying to do is clarify what appear to be conflicts in state law between what are the powers of the board and the superintendent of public instruction. He said those conflicts have resulted in the two lawsuits. Its going to get us out of where were suing each other, Dial said. We want to get the money into the classroom, not into the courts, into the lawyers, he continued. So this just clarifies the statutes. Among the issues are who controls the boards staff. Douglas tried to fire two board employees last year after she accused them of thwarting her efforts to kill Common Core. That move was effectively reversed by Gov. Doug Ducey, who told state personnel officials to keep them on the payroll. A lawsuit by Douglas to get a judge to rule that she controlled staffers ended up with the judge concluding it was a political matter in which she would not intervene. That ruling is on appeal. Dials legislation, SB 1416, clearly puts the board in control of hiring, firing and supervising their own workers. More significant, Dial said his legislation clarifies that it is the board that sets policy and it is up to the schools chief to implement that policy. Douglas said he cant constitutionally do that. But Dial pointed out the Arizona Constitution says the duties of the superintendent of public instruction are prescribed by law. Maybe shes not aware of this, but we make the law here at the Legislature, he said. Nor does Dial believe that the fact Douglas is elected by the people should give her more powers than a board appointed by the governor. If you look at the constitution and the state statutes, (her power) is implementing the education policy here in the state, he said. Dial said, though, it is the governor and the Legislature that really set state education policy. Dial said this has nothing to do with Common Core. The measure is set for a hearing Thursday, Feb. 4, in the Senate Education Committee. The Vail School Districts upcoming job fair is not attracting as many candidates as previous years, causing alarm for district officials. About 70 people are registered to be interviewed at Vail schools upcoming job fair on Saturday, Feb. 6. Thats about half the number of applicants, about 40 of whom were hired by the district, signed up during the same time last year. Teacher retention and recruitment continues to be a problem around the nation and especially in Arizona, where teacher salaries are among the lowest in the country. The estimated average salary for teachers in Arizona in the 2014-2015 school year is about $45,000, compared to the national average of about $57,000, according to the National Education Association. A Tucson Values Teachers research shows that the average teacher salary in Tucson is about $39,000. A recent report by the Arizona Educator Retention & Recruitment Task Force said that a severe shortage of effective teachers continues to lead the list of critical issues. Among the top reasons for teachers leaving their jobs was lack of respect and low pay. Vail district has had five to 10 open positions throughout this school year, said Calvin Baker, the districts superintendent. Thats the worst that its been in my 37 years as a school administrator, he said. Ive never had the degree of continuously open positions that we have now. The district expects to hire about 100 teachers for the coming school year, Baker said. And not all of the 70 people who signed up for the job fair would get hired, which would result in more vacant teaching positions. Its a cause for concern that we may have even more vacant positions next year, he said. Baker sent an email to parents, seeking help in finding potential teachers. He said he wants to shake every bush and look under every rock to try to find quality teachers. He encouraged parents to recommend qualified teachers to apply and also asked parents with bachelors degrees to consider teaching, adding that the district would help them with training and the certification process. Thats not the preferable way, but we will have to do what we have to do to solve the problem, he said. Sunnyside Unified School District is also hosting a job fair Saturday, said Mary Veres, the districts spokeswoman. About 50 people have registered for interviews so far, which is fewer than last year. The district is planning to recruit for about 80 positions. Last year, 136 people registered to interview at Sunnysides job fair, but there were also more open positions, she said. One hundred eighty people came to the event. Tucson Unified School District hosted a job fair for positions in its magnet schools last Saturday, said Janet Rico Uhrig, that districts director of talent acquisition, recruitment and retention. Sixty-five people came, seven of whom were hired. This year is the first time TUSD has hosted a January job fair, she said. But the district wanted to make sure that magnet schools had priority in hiring experienced teachers. Two more job fairs, which would recruit for positions district-wide, are scheduled for February and March. Katie Rogerson, interim director of Tucson Values Teachers, said she was surprised to hear that Vail, which has had relatively fewer teacher vacancies in past years, was having a hard time recruiting teachers. Its another symptom in this larger teacher retention crisis, she said. Most teachers come into the profession because they feel passionate about education and children, not because they want to make a lot of money, she said. But many of them face financial hardships that may require them to get second jobs or leave the profession for better opportunities. A lack of respect for teachers, which Tucson Values Teachers and other groups researching shortages in Arizona have found to be another reason for teachers leaving, goes hand in hand with the low salary, Rogerson said. If you truly respect an educated professional, you should pay them what they are worth, and thats going to have to happen at the state level, she said. PHOENIX Undeterred by prior vetoes, gun-rights advocates are making a new push to allow some people to bring their firearms into public buildings. But this time, with a new governor, theyre hoping for a different result. Existing law allows the operators of public buildings to prohibit weapons by posting a sign and providing lockers where armed individuals can check their weapons. SB 1257 would add an additional requirement of security guards and metal detectors. And if a government agency balked at doing that, whether for cost or any other reason, then the more than 252,000 Arizonans who have state-issued permits to carry concealed firearms could ignore the signs and keep their guns with them. SB 1257 wasnt the only gun-rights measure approved Wednesday by the Senate Judiciary Committee. The panel also voted to allow lawsuits against any city that knowingly and willfully enacts gun regulations in excess of what the Legislature has permitted. And if a court agrees, it can assess a civil penalty up to $50,000 and remove public officials from office. SB 1266 is aimed largely at Tucson, which has refused to repeal two gun regulations that former Attorney General Tom Horne concluded in 2013 are beyond the citys authority. One allows police to request a breath sample from someone who has negligently discharged a firearm and appears intoxicated. The other requires people to report the loss or theft of a gun to police. The city has ignored Hornes formal legal opinion. Sen. Steve Smith, R-Maricopa, said this new legislation puts some teeth into existing laws that pre-empt local gun laws. But Todd Rathner, lobbyist for the Arizona State Rifle and Pistol Association, the state arm of the National Rifle Association, said the law is needed to curb incursions by other communities into the Second Amendment rights of citizens. He cited a 2013 bid by Yavapai County to restrict a rancher from having a gun range on his own property. The broader measure goes to the question of what Sen. John Kavanagh, R-Fountain Hills, said is the right of people to be able to defend themselves. If you honestly believe that a sign on the door and thats it keeps weapons out, I think thats dishonest, he said. The proposal drew criticism from Dale Wiebusch of the League of Arizona Cities and Towns. He cited estimates that it would cost communities about $100,000 to put guards and a metal detector at each public entrance to a building. Gov. Jan Brewer vetoed similar legislation several times, citing that issue of cost. This bill would establish an unfunded mandate on our state and local governments, she wrote in 2014. It is an unnecessary diversion of limited resources. Smith, however, said theres a much less expensive option: Let concealed carry permit holders keep their guns. Gov. Doug Ducey has not had a chance to weigh in on the issue. Nearly identical legislation last year never reached his desk. Both measures now need full Senate approval before going to the House. The $2 billion, 515-mile-long SunZia power line project got a big boost Wednesday from the Arizona Corporation Commission, which voted 3-2 to approve its construction in this state. The project involves two power lines, with transmission towers standing an average of 135 feet tall, that would go from central New Mexico into Southern Arizona near Bowie and Willcox before climbing north through the lower San Pedro River Valley, about two to five miles west of the river itself. Commissioners who voted for the project said its reputed benefits for renewable energy either outweigh negative impacts, or that those impacts can be effectively controlled. The supporters were commission newcomer Andy Tobin and commissioners Bob Stump and Bob Burns. Opponents said they didnt feel Arizona would benefit much from the power lines, at least not nearly as much as will New Mexico. They also felt the environmental impacts could be very serious, since they involve the lower San Pedro Valley, by all accounts one of Arizona and the Southwests premier biological hot spots. No votes were cast by Commission Chairman Doug Little and Commissioner Tom Forese. The vote by the all-Republican commission grants the power line project a certificate that essentially says it will be economically beneficial while balancing those benefits with environmental impacts a subject that brought a huge amount of discussion and dissent. Environmentalist Christina McVie, a leading opponent of the project, said afterward that the commissions action essentially spells the death knell of whats arguably the leading geophysical feature in the Southwest, the San Pedro River Valley lying north of Benson. Ian Calkins, a spokesman for project developer SunZia Transmission LLC, said the commissions vote is a significant milestone in the development of critical electric infrastructure in the Southwest United States. Wednesdays vote followed two days of sometimes highly emotional, sometimes very detailed comments for and against the line by San Pedro Valley residents, SunZia officials, elected officials, environmentalists and a host of other speakers. Probably the biggest issue was whether the lines would seriously damage the San Pedro area, through habitat fragmentation, collisions of birds with the power lines and the ability of non-native invasive plants to grow in the power line right-of-way and in roads used to access the lines. The second biggest was whether the lines will really carry renewable energy, as SunZia said, or simply bring in more fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas from existing or future power plants. The 10-year conflict over SunZia now moves to New Mexico, from which the lines would start in Lincoln County. New Mexicos Public Regulatory Commission must approve a formal permit for the line, following a public hearing. New Mexicos two Democratic U.S. senators have supported the project, but the Republican congressman whose district the line would run through has opposed it and the states land commissioner has taken a go-slow attitude toward it. The states largest newspaper, the Albuquerque Journal, has also been critical of it. Tom Wray, SunZias project manager, said the New Mexico commission will have to apply essentially the same criteria as the Arizona Corporation Commission used to decide whether to approve the permit. He said he expects the permit approval process will take about 60 to 90 days, and that the company application will be filed by early summer 2016. The company has said it hopes to have the first line operating by 2021. At Wednesdays meeting, the ACCs Burns used a water-energy link to make the case for SunZia, saying its needed in part because of what he sees as impending water shortages in the state due to continued drought thats reducing flows on the Colorado River. If we cant shift some of this power generation off the water, how can we shift it off if we cant get power not using water, Burns said, since solar and wind energy use much less water than conventional forms such as coal- and natural gas- fired power plants. Chairman Little called running two high voltage power lines through the San Pedro Valley a mistake of the first order. I am extremely disappointed in the outcome of this decision and believe there were better alternative routes with significantly less environmental impacts that unfortunately were not approved when the project went through its federal environmental review, Little said. I am truly saddened that one of the crown jewels of Arizonas unspoiled wilderness will be irreparably harmed by this decision. But Stump noted that nationally, utilities are spending more than $100 billion a year in grid upgrades, essential to ensuring reliability and integration of renewable energy. Today, we have an opportunity to render our infrastructure more reliable for our future, at no cost to ratepayers, Stump said. This is, I believe, a pressing need. Lets also be clear: widespread delivery of renewable energy is impossible without substantial infrastructure upgrades. Forese said the project would be a tremendous gain for New Mexico but would do little for Arizona. While SunZia backers said the power lines would bring renewable wind energy from New Mexico to this state, opponents brought out evidence suggesting Arizona would not be a good market for New Mexico-based wind power because this state already has rich solar energy resources. The opponents, along with a top Tucson Electric Power official, said the main market for any wind energy the lines would bring would be California. PHOENIX If you want to vote in a presidential preference primary, next month could be your last chance. On an 8-6 vote Wednesday the House Appropriations Committee voted to make the March 22 state-run event the last one, ever. After that, it would be up to each political party to find its own way of picking delegates to the national convention. That means the cost would be borne by the parties involved. Thats the way it was through the 1992 presidential election. The following year lawmakers decided to have a state-run primary, at least in part amid hopes that it would attract candidates to the state. That has produced mixed results. But Secretary of State Michele Reagan told lawmakers Wednesday theres another reason that having the state spend close to $10 million a year no longer makes sense: A good number of Arizonans cant participate. She pointed out that there are more people registered as independents than there are either Republicans or Democrats. But the law limits voting in the presidential primary solely to those actually registered with each party. House Minority Leader Eric Meyer, D-Paradise Valley, said theres a simple answer for that: Open the process to independents. There is precedent for that. Independents can vote in the regular primary in August. No one on the committee suggested that as an alternative. Uprooted Palestinians are at the heart of the conflict in the M.E Palestinians uprooted by force of arms. Yet faced immense difficulties have survived, kept alive their history and culture, passed keys of family homes in occupied Palestine from one generation to the next. Cross-Straits stability and peace is 'irresistible trend' Updated: 2016-02-03 08:16 By Xinhua(China Daily) The Chinese mainland will work to maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits and contain "Taiwan independence" activities, the nation's top political adviser said on Tuesday. "We will unswervingly uphold the principles and policies decided by the central leadership on Taiwan affairs, adhere to the one-China principle, firmly oppose and contain 'Taiwan independence' separatist activities in any form, safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity and push forward the peaceful development of cross-Straits relations," said Yu Zhengsheng. Yu, chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, made the remarks at an annual meeting of central and local officials in charge of Taiwan affairs. In the past year, the central leadership has accurately analyzed and grasped the cross-Straits situation, and it has actively boosted the development of relations between the two sides, he said. The influence of the first meeting between cross-Straits leaders in 66 years, which was held in Singapore in November, was felt around the world, Yu added. The two sides have set up the institutional framework for communication and cooperation that has benefited people on both sides of the Straits, based on adherence to the 1992 Consensus and opposition to "Taiwan independence", since 2008, Yu said. "The peaceful development of cross-Straits ties is a correct path, and no one can resist the trend," he added. The mainland will increase exchanges with Taiwan parties and groups that uphold the one-China principle in an effort to safeguard the political foundation shared by the two sides, according to a statement issued after the meeting. Efforts will be made to promote economic integration across the Taiwan Straits, including industrial and financial cooperation, and to benefit as many small businesses, farmers and fishermen as possible. More measures will be adopted to facilitate exchanges in culture, education, tourism and religion across the Straits, according to the statement. The authorities also vowed a harsh crackdown on corruption among officials working on Taiwan affairs. Gong Qinggai, deputy head of the Taiwan Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, has been placed under investigation for "serious disciplinary violations," the top anti-graft body said last month. More tech spending to propel innovation Updated: 2016-02-03 08:17 By Xu Jingxi in Guangzhou(China Daily) Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province, plans to double its fiscal expenditure on science and technology to incubate high-tech startups, seeking a new identity as an international hub of scientific and technological innovation, said government officials. The foreign trade and commerce center saw year-on-year economic growth of 8.4 percent last year, bringing the full-year GDP to 1.81 trillion yuan ($275 billion), ranking third in China for the 27th consecutive year, according to a government work report released on Monday. Guangzhou aims to have an average annual GDP growth rate of above 7.5 percent during the 13th Five-Year Plan (2016-20), Mayor Chen Jianhua revealed while delivering the work report at the opening of the city's annual legislative session. Tianhe-2, the world's most powerful supercomputer, was developed by China's National University of Defense Technology and deployed at the National Supercomputer Center in Guangzhou. Long Hongtao / Xinhua "Given that traditional industries' power in driving economic growth is weakening, we are stepping up efforts to encourage scientific and technological innovation in order to push forward industrial transformation and upgrading," Chen said. "We will increase R&D expenditure to 3 percent of GDP during the 13th Five-Year Plan and develop Guangzhou into a national central city in terms of innovation." The figure was around 2 percent in 2014, according to Zhao Xiaoxi, director of the planning department at the Guangzhou Science Technology and Innovation Commission. "Providing better leverage through increased fiscal expenditure, we want to encourage enterprises to invest more in R&D," Zhao said, adding that tax reductions and subsidies will be offered to new scientific institutes and high-tech startups. Guangzhou has its eyes on biological medicine, computer science and intelligent manufacturing to fuel its economic growth. The city contains two-thirds of the universities and all the key national laboratories in Guangdong province, and hosts the world's fastest supercomputer Tianhe-2, according to Nanfang Daily. The government is also building a corridor for scientific and technological innovation that links the Sino-Singapore Guangzhou Knowledge City and Guangzhou Science City in the north, Guangzhou International Bio Island and the higher education mega center in the middle, and the innovation park in Nansha district in the south. The corridor can also extend southward to Dongguan, Shenzhen and Hong Kong. "Guangzhou can be the leader of innovation in the Pearl River Delta, by linking the research platforms in Guangzhou, the innovation atmosphere in Shenzhen and the manufacturing base in Dongguan through the corridor," Li Lixun, a professor of city planning at Sun Yat-sen University, told Nanfang Daily. xujingxi@chinadaily.com.cn (China Daily 02/03/2016 page5) Logistics base in Djibouti 'essential', ministry says Updated: 2016-02-04 19:16 By WANG XU and ZHANG YUNBI(chinadaily.com.cn) China's logistical support facilities in Djibouti are "essential" as the navy combats piracy, Beijing said on Thursday. The Foreign Ministry stressed its importance in a written reply to China Daily on Thursday in response to Wednesday's media reports that "China will start work soon on a naval base in Djibouti". Djibouti's President Ismail Omar Guelleh told Reuters in a weekend interview that China is expected to start work in Djibouti soon on a naval base. China and Djibouti have agreed on the building of logistical support facilities in Djibouti through friendly consultation, the office said. "China has sent escort fleets to conduct patrols in the Gulf of Aden and Somalia in recent years,'' the ministry said and highlighted the importance of facilities for crew members and energy supplies. The support facilities will mainly be used by the Chinese military for its officers and men and to replenish ships to aid anti-piracy patrols and humanitarian assistance missions and disaster relief operations, the ministry said. The support facilities will also help China to "better perform its international obligations and maintain international and regional peace and stability", it added. WASHINGTON -- The US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Russel will pay a visit to Beijing next month, discussing important bilateral issues with senior Chinese officials. "Assistant Secretary Russel will be in Beijing from September 6-8. In Beijing, the Assistant Secretary will meet senior Chinese officials to discuss a range of issues of importance to the bilateral relationship," The State Department said in a press release. Before heading to China, Russel will travel to Myanmar. He will also visit Mongolia for annual bilateral consultations, according to the press release. Russel will be the second senior US official to visit China recently. US National Security Advisor Susan Rice went to Beijing last week and met with Chinese President Xi Jinping and other senior officials of China. Rice's visit was seen as a preparation for Xi's visit to the US in September. She told Xi that US President Barack Obama looks forward to continuing in-depth exchanges with him on bilateral relations and international issues of common concern. Pyongyang should 'exercise restraint' Updated: 2016-02-04 12:22 By Ang Xu in Beijing and Chen Weihua in Washington(China Daily USA) Beijing urged Pyongyang to exercise restraint after its announcement of plans to launch a satellite later this month, and experts said the announcement provided an excuse for the US and Japan to escalate their military presence in Northeast Asia, which would harm regional peace. China is seriously concerned about a plan by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to launch the satellite, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told a media briefing on Wednesday. Beijing hopes Pyongyang will act prudently to avoid escalating tensions, he added. The DPRK is entitled to peaceful use of outer space, but this right is restricted by resolutions of the United Nations Security Council, Lu said. Lu was referring to UN Security Council Resolution 1718, adopted in 2006, which ordered the DPRK to give up testing nuclear and ballistic missile technology. However, Pyongyang has ignored the UN resolution several times since 2006 and conducted its fourth nuclear test on Jan 6, causing other countries to work on new sanctions to help control the situation. Asked whether the announcement was a slap in the face to Beijing, Lu hinted it was for Washington. "In response to some countries' outcry for pressure and sanctions, the DPRK conducted one nuclear test after another," he said. "In this sense, the DPRK did slap some country across the face. As for whose face the DPRK did slap, I think the country itself knows well." Meanwhile, Washington sharply criticized Pyongyang's announcement on Wednesday, describing the move as a "destabilizing provocation". Defense Secretary Ash Carter said China and the DPRK were among the challenges that prompted seeking a $582.7 billion defense budget for 2017. At the same time, Japan put its military on alert on Wednesday to shoot down any DPRK rocket that threatens it, while Seoul warned Pyongyang it would pay a "severe price" if it goes ahead with a satellite launch. Huang Youfu, a Korean studies professor at Minzu University of China, said the DPRK is taking this dangerous step only to force the US to talk with it. "The DPRK expressed its willingness to hold talks with the US after it conducted its fourth nuclear test, but received nothing," Huang said. "So they went further to push the US but maybe only resulted in making the situation even worse." "Now the US and Japan are taking that as an excuse to strengthen their military presence in Northeast Asia," Huang added. Contact the writerthrough wangxu@chinadaily.com.cn. Both symptoms and causes of terrorism require strong remedies Updated: 2016-01-27 08:23 By Wang Hui(China Daily) A number of countries have fallen victim to terrorist attacks recently, pointing to the cruelty of extremists and the importance of maintaining high vigilance against terrorism worldwide. On Jan 20, a terrorist attack on a university campus in northwest Pakistan killed at least 22 people and wounded dozens more. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack. This is not the first time that schools in the South Asian country have been targeted by the Taliban. Just over a year ago, Pakistan experienced one of the deadliest school attacks in its history near Peshawar. More than 150 people were killed, mostly children. Also on Jan 20, a Taliban suicide car bomber targeted a minibus in Kabul that was carrying journalists working for a private Afghan television channel, killing seven. Prior to these, an attack on a hotel in Burkina Faso's capital Ouagadougou on Jan 15, carried out by al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb, left at least 29 people dead and 30 others injured. The day before, explosions and gunfire rocked downtown Jakarta, the Indonesian capital, killing seven people and injuring 20 others. Indonesian police said the Islamic State terrorist group was responsible. That so many countries have been targeted by terrorist groups within such a short period of time shows the rampancy of terrorism and extremism worldwide. The perpetrators may belong to different terrorist groups and be entrenched in different parts of the world, but they all employ similar methods to harm innocent people and produce as much fear and social panic as possible. The global cancer of terrorism and extremism has not sprung up over night. It has its roots in countries and regions which have long been mired in economic stagnation, domestic social unrest and acute sectarian rifts or ethnic tensions. In such places, social backwardness and lasting poverty have resulted in a lack of education and high unemployment among young people who are thus easily influenced by extremist ideology. The ineffectiveness of efforts to curb major extremist groups such as the Islamic State, al-Qaida and the Taliban has also inflated the arrogance of terrorists. Since the rise of the IS terrorist group in the Middle East in 2014, the world has witnessed a rising number of terrorist attacks elsewhere as it has exported its extremism and terrorism to other countries and regions. This in turn has highlighted the pressing need to rally greater political will around the global fight against terror and for more effective international cooperation. Both the symptoms and the root causes of terrorism need to be addressed. No single remedy and no country alone can eradicate the soil in which extremism and terrorism grows. It is necessary for countries to plug the loopholes in their national security and share intelligence with each other so as to curb the infiltration of extremists and terrorists. It is crucial the international community jointly raise anti-terror awareness among the public and make concerted efforts to address social injustices, such as racial discrimination, income gaps and poverty, so as to eliminate the soil for homegrown terrorism. Admittedly, the global campaign to contain terror through the use of force may only help address the symptoms of terrorism. Not to mention that the three major camps led by the United States, Russia and Saudi Arabia respectively are fighting isolated battles out of self-centered calculations. Obviously, better coordination and a united front are needed so that the military operations against the IS group, in particular, can yield significant results soon. But efforts also need to be made to revitalize the economies of conflict-ridden countries that have become hot-beds for extremism. The rest of the world should help these countries find a successful development model so that they can play their part in the war against terror. The author is a senior writer with China Daily. wanghui@chinadaily.com.cn Taliban kill 10-year-old hailed as militia hero Updated: 2016-02-04 10:10 (Agencies/chinadaily.com.cn) Wasil Ahmad, 10, an Afghan boy who was declared a hero for fighting the Taliban, has been shot dead by militants while on his way to school. [Photo/IC] A 10-year-old Afghan boy who was declared a hero after fighting the Taliban has been shot dead by insurgents while on his way to school. Wasil Ahmad, who fought the Taliban alongside his uncle on many occasions, was killed on Monday near his home in Tirin Kot, capital of the southern Uruzgan province, said deputy police chief Rahimullah Khan. Wasil had been a local celebrity of sorts. Photographs widely circulated on social media show him holding an automatic weapon and wearing a uniform and helmet. Wasil's uncle was a former Taliban commander who changed allegiance to the government and was appointed local police commander in Khas Uruzgan district, Khan said. The use of child soldiers is illegal in Afghanistan, but the charity Child Soldiers International said both government forces and insurgents had been recruiting minors for years. The organisation's policy and advocacy director Charu Lata Hogg said the Afghan government, despite pledging to stop the recruitment and use of children by the Afghan security forces, was making "slow and tardy progress". She said: "There is a lack of political will to address this issue, and while it's within the framework of overall human rights violations, there is a specific commitment by the government to clean it up but sufficient measures are not being taken." In a June 2015 report presented to the UN security council's working group on children and armed conflict, the London-based charity said children were recruited by the Afghan national police and the Afghan local police. It said the recruitment was mainly driven by poverty, but also filial duty, patriotism and honour. The Afghan local police, set up with US and British funding to provide security at a district level, has been widely criticised for a range of abuses, including extortion, as in many places it operates much like an independent militia. The government has been urged to disband the force but relies on it to supplement the overstretched army and police. The report said that in May of last year the charity found that half of national police checkpoints in Tirin Kot "were staffed with visibly younger officers", who all acknowledged they were under 18 years old. That James Webb Space Telescope can see everything! However, as powerful as it is, it may not be able to encompass the massive scale of this... Please turn JavaScript on and reload the page. Loading... Checking your browser before accessing the website. This process is automatic. Your browser will redirect to your requested content shortly. Please wait a few seconds. Hanoi, February 4 (VNA) Hundreds of rooms equipped with blankets, cushions, televisions and heaters will be available for the homeless at universities in Hanoi during the Tet (Lunar New Year) 2016 holiday. This is part of the Hay Go Cua (Knock on Door) campaign, which aims to provide the homeless a shelter during the Lunar New Year holiday. Can Anh Tuan, director of the training assistance centre of National Economics University, said the university would open the dormitory for 15 days from February 2 to 15 to welcome the homeless. "The university does not have a limit on the number of beds for the poor. At present, we have ten well-equipped rooms with 40 beds. These rooms are guest rooms for lecturers to take a break at noon or those that have not been rented by students," Tuan said on vnexpress.net. The university will also hold an end-of-year party and present gifts to provide a warm atmosphere for the homeless during the Lunar New Year. Those who do not have personal documents will also be allowed to stay in the university, which will work with the authorities to help them register for temporary residence. "Ten officers and security guards will work round the clock to ensure the safety of these people as well as the school's facilities, in case some people make use of the opportunity to create trouble," Tuan said. He said he hoped the volunteers would expand the meaningful programme for the needy, and that the homeless would get rid of any inferiority complex for moving into the dormitory. Hanoi Foreign Trade University is also preparing 40 beds for the homeless. "On the afternoon of February 7 (the last afternoon of the lunar year), the university will organise a party for those who come to live at our hostel. We will serve them two meals a day at our canteen during their stay at our university," Bui Ngoc Dung, head of the facility management department at Hanoi Foreign Trade University, said. Vietnam National University in Hanoi has also opened 15 rooms at its hostel in Nam Tu Liem district from February 5 to 14, to welcome about 100 people. Hanoi National University of Education and the Academy of Finance are also ready to welcome the poor and the homeless during the Tet holiday. VNA/VNP In the Spirit of open-text, collaboration, communication and Good Anthropology... This blog is for educational purposes only; as such it is a capitalist-free zone. The views, images and opinions expressed here are those of the author only, unless otherwise noted. The author does not necessarily share or endorse any of the views or contents of linked sites. All responsibility for "Visual Anthropology of Japan" lies with the author and not any institution he may be affiliated with. Peace. The proposed move for acquiring Nagarjuna Oil Corporation (NOCL) by Singapore-based Netoil (Singapore) (PTE) Ltd has hit a roadblock as the board of directors of Nagarjuna Oil Refinery Ltd (NORL), which holds 47 per cent of the equity share capital of NOCL, unanimously decided not to pursue the deal.In September last year, the company said a confirmatory due diligence of NOCL was being undertaken by Netoil to enable it to acquire the equity capital in NOCL to take forward the petroleum refining project of NOCL. "Further, Nagarjuna Oil Refinery Ltd has informed BSE that the board of directors of the Company at its meeting held on February 04, 2016 have unanimously resolved not to pursue the matter any further with Netoil," said NORL in a regulatory filing. As reported earlier, Netoil had agreed to acquire the project for Rs 3,600 crore and had signed a term sheet with major investors, the Nagarjuna Group, which holds 47 per cent, and Tata Sons and Tata Petrodyne, which hold 25 per cent in NOCL. Earlier, sources in NOCL said the company required interim funding of Rs 24 crore to pay the salary backlog since November 2014. Service providers at the site were also threatening NOCL staff over unpaid dues, they added. The sources alleged the issue of back wages and vendor dues had not been addressed by Netoil or banks that had lent money to NOCL. Failure to clear dues may force the Tamil Nadu government to cancel the memorandum of understanding, said an NOCL employee earlier. Government officials were not available for comment. Responding to the allegation, Netoil then said, "We are not recognised as investors by the shareholders and lenders of NOCL. There is a restructuring process that needs to be completed. The company is negotiating with minority shareholders. It is not a question of Rs 24 crore, considering the company's wealth and seriousness it want the project to be up and running." "We are seriously considering to take over the project. So far $8 million have been spent for financial, technical and legal due diligence. We hope to do the financial closure by end of October," said the company. Netoil had in April made an offer to KS Raju, chairman of the Nagarjuna Group, to bring in an advance of Rs 66 crore to pay the back wages and dues to vendors. Later it reduced this to Rs 24 crore as a short-term loan but even this was not provided to the company, NOCL sources said. The 6 million tonne refinery is the first phase of a Rs 25,000 crore project in which the total capacity was expected to be around 12 million tonne, according to reports. The project was delayed due to damages caused by a cyclone some years back and also hit by the global economic slowdown later. Around 15 lenders have invested in the project and later the Banks sought Reserve Bank of India's dispensation in view of the assets likely to be classified by RBI as non-performing. An official from the company said in Net Present Value terms, if the VAT refund is Rs 18,000 crore, the company has to repay only Rs 15,000 crore in today's value. In other words, the company will receive its entire entitlement of VAT refund of Rs 18,000 crore at the rate of Rs 3,000 crore every year in the first six years after commissioning. The company can utilise around 80 per cent of this Rs 3,000 crore, ie Rs 2,400 crore every year for any purpose it desires, e.g. repay the debt, go in for expansion and modernisation etc. The company needs to keep only the remaining 20 per cent or Rs 600 crore in FD for 16 years and that is enough to repay Rs 3000 crore plus 0.1 per cent interest after 16 years, explained a senior official, who didn't want to be identified, earlier. The United States has denounced Russian air strikes in and around the Syrian city of Aleppo, saying they were targeting opposition groups and civilians and were harming faltering attempts at peace. "It is difficult to see how strikes against civilian targets contribute in any way to the peace process now being explored," state department spokesman John Kirby said, after the UN suspended peace negotiations until February 25. Moscow has consistently said that it is going after "terrorist organisations" in Syria, including the Islamic State. But the Syrian opposition and Western countries say the Russian strikes have almost majorly targeted other rebel groups, many of them backed by the West, Gulf states and Turkey. "We continue to see more Russian air strikes in and around Aleppo strikes not aimed at Daesh (the IS group), but rather, almost exclusively on the opposition," said Kirby. The spokesman said the strikes had "led to reports of civilian casualties, increased displacement of Syrian citizens and the possible obstruction of humanitarian assistance routes. "And so again we call on Russia to focus their military energy in Syria on Daesh, a common enemy to the entire community, and not on the opposition or on innocent civilians," he added. India ratified an international convention on nuclear energy accident liability, the government said on Thursday; the final piece in its efforts to address the concerns of foreign nuclear suppliers and draw them into a market worth billions of dollars. Nuclear reactor makers such as General Electric have been reluctant to set up plants in India because of a 2010 liability law that makes equipment suppliers potentially accountable for accidents, not just the plant operators as is the global norm. Since then, India, which wants to ramp up the share of nuclear power from barely 3% to 25% by 2050, has been trying to assuage the fears of the nuclear suppliers. Last year, it launched an insurance pool with a liability cap of Rs 1,500 crore ($225 million) to cover the suppliers' risk of potential liability. On Thursday, the Foreign Ministry said it had submitted the document to ratify the Convention of Supplementary Compensation for Nuclear Damage, which seeks to establish a uniform global legal regime for the compensation of victims in the event of a nuclear accident. "This marks a conclusive step in the addressing of issues related to civil nuclear liability in India," the Foreign Ministry said after the document was handed to the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna. Energy-starved India plans to construct about 60 nuclear reactors and has been in talks with Westinghouse Electric Co LLC, GE as well as France's Areva for setting them up at sites already selected around the country. Russia is separately building six reactors in southern India and is in talks for another six. The total size of the Indian market is estimated at $150 billion dollars, making it equal to or just behind China's. India expects to seal an agreement with Westinghouse to build six reactors by the first half of this year, a government official said in December, after it ratified the international convention on compensation. 06:56 Meghan Markle seems to be distancing herself from Netflix docuseries TalkTV Royal Editor Sarah Hewson says Meghan Markle seems to be distancing herself from her and Prince Harrys delayed Netflix docuseries following... 06:06 Inexcusable: Kanye Wests comments regarding George Floyd were stupid Fox News contributor Tyrus says Kanye West is a genius in the music studio but his fame is his worst enemy, as the American rapper... 02:26 Concerning: Americans trust in the media at near record lows The Australians Media Writer Sophie Elsworth says Americans trust in the media being near record lows is a real concern. WATERLOO The Friends of KUNI/KHKE Blues Blowout selection committee had a tough choice. In Shaun Murphy, they had an established known artist with roots going back to Motown Records. Or they could jump on board an up-and-coming group, the Cash Box Kings, who were riding high on their latest release. They decided to do both. We just decided to go for it, said Denny McCabe, Friends of KUNI/KHKE entertainment chairman. Add the perennial local blues legends Bob Dorr and the Blue Band, and this years Blues Blowout is a three-act bill this Saturday. The Cash Box Kings, a Chicago group rooted in traditional post-war blues styles, released their album Holding Court in May last year. It received favorable reviews and widespread play by the time the group was booked for the Blues Blowout. Afterward, the album and band were nominated for top honors at the 37th Annual Blues Music Awards. The album was nominated for album of the year and for best traditional album honors. The band is up for best band honors. Bob Dorr, who has been playing and performing blues for more than 40 years, described the awards as the biggest blues industry awards. The blues Grammys, Dorr said. For Dorr, who has continued to share the stage with greatness, this will be the first time he has shared the stage with Murphy or the Cash Box Kings ensemble. Murphy caught the attention of a Motown employee when she was performing in a musical with Meatloaf. She later joined Little Feat and then toured and recorded with Eric Clapton and Bob Seger. Murphy spent some of her early life in Iowa and as a result is being inducted into the Iowa Blues Hall of Fame the weekend after the Blues Blowout. Blue Band guitarist Jeff Petersen of Waterloo will be inducted, too. Dorr said Petersens induction is past due. Hes very deserving, Dorr said. I felt stupid being in there without him. Dorr said the lineup should interest blues fans in the area, but the bulk of the crowd comes to enjoy the annual event and see friends. The event is at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Electric Park Ballroom. Doors open at 6 p.m. The start time is earlier than in past years. Tickets are $25 in advance or $30 at the door. CEDAR FALLS | A City Council member cast the lone vote against the selection of a consultant to do a traffic study around the proposed location of a new Cedar Falls hospital. Council member Susan deBuhr was the lone dissenter as the council voted 6-1 to hire Foth Engineering and Environment, headquartered in Green Bay, Wis., with offices in Des Moines and Cedar Rapids, to study traffic around the proposed hospital site, at Hudson and Greenhill roads, and the surrounding area, at a cost not to exceed $27,500. In a memo to council members, staff noted Foth was selected by the citys community development department. The study is necessary to determine any intersection improvements required as part of the proposed hospital adjacent to Greenhill Road and Hudson Road. Acting City Administrator Ron Gaines and City Engineer Randy Lorenzen said typically a developer would perform such a study, but it was deemed important for the city to do the study because of the potential for additional commercial development in the area. Its more of a regional issue, Lorenzen said. So were trying to look at the impacts from (Iowa Highway) 58 through the intersection at Hudson and Greenhill, and then the intersection with Continental Access, make sure that, as that project moves forward, we know what the traffic impacts are. Plus then, on the south side of the road, theres talk about commercial development in Greenhill Village. Time is of the essence. Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare-Iowa is moving quickly on the hospital project. Seeking formal requests for proposals would have required more time. In May, Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare-Iowa, which has operated city-owned Sartori Memorial since 1997, plans a new $120 million hospital in southern Cedar Falls to replace Sartori, at West Sixth and College Streets since 1914. The study is fine, deBuhr said, but the normal selection procedure should have been followed. Without that, she said, It was picking someone because they did work with you before. Foth is the engineering firm working with the city on the controversial University Avenue reconstruction project, the design of which deBuhr has opposed. It involves narrowing the road from six lanes to four and replacing several signalized intersections with roundabouts. However, deBuhr said, she did not vote against Foth because of its work on University Avenue, but because of the process, or lack thereof, used in selecting the firm. ELK RUN HEIGHTS An early morning fire destroyed a garage in Elk Run Heights. The two-story detached garage behind 211 Toneff Drive was a total loss, and heat from the blaze damaged the siding on a neighboring garage and knocked out overhead power lines, said Battalion Chief Michael Moore with Waterloo Fire Rescue. He said the damaged lines left part of the neighborhood without electricity for a brief time until workers with MidAmerican Energy restored power. Firefighters were called to the home at 2:35 a.m. Wednesday, and the garage was fully engulfed when crews arrived, Moore said. The buildings roof and second floor collapsed onto the ground floor where two vehicles were parked, Moore said. Police make gun arrest in Waterloo WATERLOO Police arrested a Waterloo man after he was found with a stolen pistol Tuesday morning. Tramaine Terrell Gary, 22, of 4966 William Drive, was arrested for felon on possession of a firearm and first-degree theft following a traffic stop at West Sixth Street and Byron Avenue. He was taken to the Black Hawk County Jail, and his bond was set at $30,500. Officers stopped the vehicle for an equipment violation at about 12:21 a.m. Tuesday, and Gary, who owns the vehicle, was a backseat passenger. Police found marijuana and discovered a 9mm Hi Point handgun inside the locked glove compartment. Gary is barred from handling firearms because of a 2014 burglary conviction, court records state. Officers determined the weapon had been reported stolen from a Waterloo home in October. The victim told police that Gary was an acquaintance of her boyfriend and had been at her house numerous times in the past, records state. Man gets five year prison term MASON CITY A Clarksville man has been sentenced to up to five years in prison on Cerro Gordo County forgery convictions. Matthew S. Merrick, 29, a former Mason City resident, was sentenced to up to five years in prison for forgery as a Class D felony Monday in Cerro Gordo County District Court. A $750 fine was suspended. He was sentenced to up to two years in prison for forgery as an aggravated misdemeanor. A $625 fine was suspended. The two sentences are to be served concurrently. Merrick opened a checking account in the name of another at US Bank in Mason City on Oct. 19, forging the name of the other person on the account applications, according to court documents. He then wrote checks with a forged signature on that account. Merrick fraudulently opened a cell phone contract at Best Buy in Mason City on Oct. 20 and signed the contract with the name of another person, according to court records. He pleaded guilty in December. Fire destroys election papers COULTER A Franklin County sheriffs deputys plans hit an unexpected hurdle when his election paperwork burned up in a truck fire Monday, officials say. The fire broke out about 4:10 p.m. in a truck at Franklin County Chief Deputy Linn Larsons residence west of Coulter, located about eight miles west of Hampton, according to a Franklin County Sheriffs Office statement. The fire destroyed Larsons 2001 Ford F-150, a snow blade and everything inside the truck, including signed nomination papers Larson had collected in order to run for Franklin County sheriff. Larson, a Republican, had planned to take the signed nomination papers to the local caucus later that night. Instead, he had to start fresh at the caucus by collecting a new round of signatures. It worked out as Larson was able to get more of the required signatures than he had in the paperwork that burned in the truck. The caucuses were very well-attended throughout Iowa and that was to my advantage last evening, Larson said Tuesday. His first opportunity to file papers is March 7. The fire started in the engine or dashboard area while the truck was parked next to Larsons home. DES MOINES (AP) Legislation that would legalize the sale of fireworks in Iowa advanced Wednesday through parts of the Iowa Legislature, though it may face some challenges from lawmakers. A Senate committee voted 10-5 in support of the bill, which would allow the retail sale and use of consumer fireworks such as firecrackers and roman candles. Current law allows sales of novelties like sparklers. The measure bounced between the Republican-majority House and the Democratic-controlled Senate last session with little success. Advocacy groups have raised concerns about injuries, while supporters have pointed out that Iowa residents are simply driving to a neighboring state to purchase consumer fireworks. The time has come to look at that policy (and) come up with a thoughtful, responsible way to allow both the freedom and the public safety to be balanced on this particular product, said Sen. Jeff Danielson, D-Cedar Falls, chairman of the Senate State Government Committee. Despite the overwhelming vote for the measure, the meeting entered a second hour as lawmakers discussed the bills overall merits. Sen. Rick Bertrand, R-Sioux City, challenged the argument the law would lead to fireworks going off daily. He noted he lives near neighboring South Dakota, where the sale of fireworks is legal, and hes experienced little trouble. They dont shoot 365 days a year. They dont go out there and their fingers every day are coming off. ... Thats an illusion that I think just manifests fear, he said. Sen. Matt McCoy, D-Des Moines, proposed an amendment to the bill that would give cities and municipalities more flexibility to not implement the bill if it becomes law. It later was approved on a narrow 8-7 vote. The fact is, this is a bad piece of legislation, he said. Danielson said McCoys amendment negatively affects the bill because the language in it would require every city and municipality to vote on whether to legalize consumer fireworks. He said his original bill had a feature that would automatically implement the law then leave it up to a community to opt out. He called McCoys action a poison pill amendment. Danielson plans to challenge it if the bill makes it to a floor vote in the Senate. I think it makes the bill unenforceable and difficult to administer from a state perspective, he said. DES MOINES Legislative Democrats on Thursday declared Gov. Terry Branstads plan to hire private companies to manage Iowas $5 billion Medicaid program a disaster and planned to run legislation next week to pull the plug on privatization in favor of the state-run system. This things a mess right now. The rollout has been horrible. Its a disaster, Senate Majority Leader Mike Gronstal, D-Council Bluffs, said of Branstads effort to bring in private managers to oversee health options for a more-efficient Medicaid program that serves 560,000 Iowans. However, Branstad aides said the GOP governor is moving ahead with plans to implement his Medicaid modernization March 1 and House Speaker Linda Upmeyer, R-Clear Lake, said she did not expect the Republican-run Iowa House would join Democrats in obstructing a change designed to improve health outcomes for recipients and contain rising health care costs better than the current approach. Im certainly not interested in passing any bill that faces a certain veto, so thats probably not something well do, said Upmeyer, who expressed disappointment opponents have been delaying and sabotaging the whole idea simply to protect the status quo. She also noted ending the effort totally blows up their budget because up to $55 million in savings was built into this fiscal years spending plan. Senate President Pam Jochum, D-Dubuque, said majority Senate Democrats plan to work next week on legislation that would halt the governors unilateral decision to privatize Iowas Medicaid program because Iowans are telling them the plan is failing amid confusion and frustration with a changeover already once delayed that is slated to take place March 1. Gov. Branstad tried to do too much, too fast. As a result, he has failed to protect vulnerable Iowans, said Jochum, who said a subcommittee on Monday will take up the Health Care Protection Act a bill that directs the Iowa Department of Human Services to immediately give notice of termination to the three private out-of-state managed care companies and directs state agencies to continue efforts to improve patient outcomes, increase access to care and make the public management of Medicaid more efficient. This common-sense legislation is necessary because Iowa still isnt ready even after a 60-day delay to implement a privatized Medicaid system operated by for-profit, out-of-state companies, Jochum told a Statehouse news conference. Officials with the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services delayed the planned Jan. 1 implementation of the switch to a privately managed Medicaid system in Iowa until March 1 to give DHS officials and private companies more time to make changes and correct deficiencies to ensure the health and well-being Iowans receiving Medicaid services. However, Jochum, who has an adult developmentally disabled daughter enrolled in Medicaid, and Rep. Lisa Heddens, D-Ames, said Iowans continue to express concerns over a failure to establish adequate provider networks, disruptions of long-standing patient-provider relationships, diminished quality and access to health care services, and inadequate communication with patients and providers as March 1 approaches. WATERLOO | Punxsutawney Phil in Pennsylvania observed no shadow Tuesday. Neither did Shubenacadie Sam in Nova Scotia, Gen. Beauregard Lee in Georgia or Charles C. Hogg in New York, also known as Staten Island Chuck. So spring will arrive early, according to the groundhogs. Or will it? Wiarton Willie in Ontario, Buckeye Chuck in Ohio and Woody the Woodchuck in Michigan did see darker versions of themselves which, of course, means six more weeks of winter. Sadly, we cannot look to Winnipeg Willow in Canada to settle the question. She did not get to make a prediction this year, expiring just a few days ahead of her annual holiday. While folks in other regions played with their groundhogs, Iowans hunkered down against the storm some have now pegged the Groundhog Day Blizzard. And as you know, when a storm gets a name, its probably one for the record books. According to the National Weather Service, Waterloo on Tuesday got 3.5 inches, but Mason City picked up 10, a record for the date. The previous mark was 6.3 inches, which covered Mason City on Feb. 2, 2004. Iowa Environmental Mesonet, which is operated by Iowa State University, offered 24-hour totals. Its analysis showed most of Black Hawk County collected 7.5 inches during storm, which spilled over two days. Grundy County got anywhere from about 6 to 11 inches during that period, and Butler County was in the 7- to 9-inch range. The snowstorm cut diagonally across northeast Iowa, and snowfall totals varied wildly in some locations. According to Mesonet, Bremer, Chickasaw and Fayette counties generally finished with 6 to 8 inches. Buchanan County, though, got about 6 inches in the northwest corner but just an inch or so in the southeast. The blizzard hit northwest Iowa hardest, depositing up to 16 inches in places, according to Mesonet. The Groundhogs Day blizzard packed a major punch for Iowa with significant amounts of snowfall over northern Iowa and plenty of blowing and drifting snow, according to the website. Needless to say, this winter storm created major travel issues, which continue this Wednesday morning with travel not advised over much of northwestern Iowa. Generally, by Wednesday evening the states highways, though snow-packed, were passable, according to the Iowa Department of Transportation. The lone exception was a stretch of Iowa Highway 17 in Hamilton County. Officials did not recommend travel on that road. Which makes some sense, according to Mesonets snowfall totals: The region near Webster City and Stanhope reportedly got 8 to 12 inches. Seth Orta, 10, and his 6-year-old sister, Alyse, spent part of Wednesday sledding with their friend, Ava Boyd, 8. The group were among the kids and adults attacking a small hill in Hope Martin Memorial Park along Fletcher Avenue in Waterloo. We had a snow day. Snow days are awesome, Seth said. Today through the end of the week might be even better for outdoor activities. A warming trend will continue into the weekend, according to the National Weather Service, with highs Saturday and Sunday forecast above 30 degrees in Waterloo. Additional snow is only a minor consideration during the same period. There will be some threat of light snow or flurries in northern Iowa Thursday and again Friday into Friday evening, although any amounts would be under an inch on Friday, according to the weather service. Based on the rest of the forecast, Willie, Chuck and Woody may be correct after all. The warmer readings this weekend will quickly disappear by early next week as an Arctic front pushes through the Midwest. A much colder air mass will be across the state early next week with temperatures well below normal, according to the weather service. Stupid groundhogs ... Snow removal update WATERLOO Waterloos downtown area clean-up, originally scheduled for Wednesday night is rescheduled for tonight starting at 8 p.m. All vehicles parked on downtown streets must be moved to allow for effective snow removal. Free parking is available in any of the downtown parking ramps until Friday at 7 a.m. Free parking is also available under the U.S. Highway 218 overpass. Vehicles left unattended once the business area is closed will be towed. UNI hosts mental illness film series CEDAR FALLS The University of Northern Iowa Rod Library and Student Disability Services will host The New Asylums: Mental Illness and the Criminal Justice System, as part of the Reaching for Higher Ground And Justice for All series. The event will take place from 6 to 7:30 p.m. Feb. 17 in the Center for Multicultural Education on campus. Steven Onken, associate professor of social work, will facilitate an audience discussion with panelists from local mental and criminal justice systems. People with disabilities are encouraged to attend. Vet clinics plan neutering event WATERLOO Eleven veterinary clinics are partnering with the Cedar Bend Humane Society to help host the 15th annual Neuter-A-Tomcat event in February. People may contact the veterinary clinics directly to make an appointment to neuter a farm cat or tame stray cat. The cost is $20 and this fee is a donation to the Cedar Bend Humane Society. Donations may also be made to the Cedar Bend Humane Society to support neutering stray tomcats that arrive at the shelter. The following clinics will be participating on designated days: Advanced Pet Care Clinic, Cedar Falls, every Monday, Wednesday and Friday in February, 277-7675. Avenue of the Saints Animal Hospital, Waverly location only, Thursdays in February, 352-3722. Budreau Veterinary Clinic, Cedar Falls, Feb. 11, 988-4760 Cedar Valley Veterinary Center, Cedar Falls, various dates in February, phone ahead and reserve a date, 277-4564. Companion Animal Clinic, Cedar Falls, Feb. 8, 277-2354. Compassionate Care Veterinary Clinic, Waverly, Feb. 23, 483-5049. Den Herder Veterinary Hospital, Waterloo, all month in February on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays by appointment, 232-5292. Pawsitive Pet Care, Waterloo, every Tuesday in February, 234-7511. Purr-sonal Care Cat Clinic, Waterloo, Feb. 24, 232-2228. Taylor Veterinary Hospital, Cedar Falls, all Tuesdays in February, 277-1883. Waverly Pet Clinic, Waverly, Feb. 10, 352-5732. Iowa JA honored with Peak award WATERLOO Junior Achievement of Eastern Iowa has been awarded the Peak Performance Award by Junior Achievement USA. The award, which is presented to 17 of the 113 national area offices, recognizes superior annual performance by a Junior Achievement area staff team in achieving growth in students reached or contact hours delivered, while still sustaining financial and operational soundness. Recipients must rank within the top 75 percent of all markets in year-to-year student growth or contact hours and have evidence of strong Junior Achievement brand alignment. By Bill Hughes Feb. 01, 2016 | 03:15 PM | PADUCAH, KY A Benton man charged with murder in McCracken County will not get a new venue for his trial. Commonwealth Attorney Dan Boaz told West Kentucky Star that 49-year-old Jeffrey Conrad's attorney had asked Circuit Judge Tim Kaltenbach on Friday to move the trial because media coverage over the last 8 months could taint a jury. After Boaz argued that recent higher profile cases have been able to seat a jury, Judge Kaltenbach denied the motion, saying if issues arise while seating a jury, he will deal with them at that time. Conrad was indicted on June 8, 2015 after an incident the previous day at a Reidland self-storage facility, where he allegedly shot 30-year-old Garlon Casey Cox in the head. Conrad told police he caught Cox and his friend, Brandon York, burglarizing his storage unit. Kaltenbach also ruled Friday on how much evidence and testimony can be presented about the criminal histories or drug histories of Cox and York. Boaz said any habitual drug use by either man should not matter in the trial, but Conrad's attorney, Doug Moore, argued that York and Cox's drug use and behavior led to the incident at the storage site with his client. Kaltenbach eventually ruled that discussion of drug use should only relate to the events of that day, and nothing prior. He ruled in a similar way on criminal histories, saying that York could only be questioned about whether he was a convicted felon, but no other details would be allowed. Boaz said another pretrial conference is scheduled for Feb. 26, and the trial should begin March 16. On the Net: Getting a movie character's name right is more important than you realise. You can have an amazingly nuanced plot with endless twists and turns and dialogue that leaps all the way across the room, but no Hollywood executive will green-light, no actor will sign onto, and no audience will go see a film if the protagonist goes by Stinks McGee (no offence to any Stinks out there). But what makes a cool name then? After all, so many famous character monikers gained weight over time, becoming highly regarded despite being rather bland, meaning that when stripped of context they don't quite hold up; the respective self-titled movies for John Carter, Jack Reacher and Jack Ryan all felt incredibly insipid precisely because they sounded like they were named after some disinteresting bloke from down the pub. Writers love to dip into Latin or other foreign languages for inspiration, finding attractive terms that carry some underlying meaning, although then you risk populating a world that's supposed to grounded with a bunch of mumbo gumbo names. 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Nov 09 (9) Nov 08 (9) Nov 07 (12) Nov 06 (8) Nov 05 (4) Oct 29 (1) Oct 01 (1) Jul 29 (1) May 11 (1) Jul 11 (1) If youre looking to try out an online casino, there are several things that will help you make a decision. Heres what you should look for when choosing an online casino Are they regulated? A lot of the larger ones have licenses issued by the authorities in their respective regions, so its worth checking this first. Do they offer games from different software providers? Some casinos just use one software provider and limit your selection. This is fine if you like playing those types of games but you may want to check other casinos as well. What does their payout percentage look like? The payout rate refers to how much money you can expect to win after every bet. A high payout rate means youll be able to play more often without having to worry about losing all your money. Its also important to know the minimum and maximum bets allowed on each game. If youre going to play roulette, for example, then you probably dont want a casino with a minimum bet of less than $2.50 or even lower than that. The players used to play the game slot online in the land based casinos in the past time. But now with time after the invention of the online casinos players play the game slot online. Online platform provide the players with the convenience in playing and even better winning. Even after keeping a good percentage of the profits, they distribute good funds to players. How many games do they offer? There are lots of different types of games to choose from. Roulette, blackjack and poker are some of the most popular options, but you might find slots, video pokers, video bingo and others as well. You can usually filter these games down to only show the ones that interest you best, so make sure that your list isnt too long! Is there a bonus offer? Many online casinos offer free bonuses as part of their welcome package which includes new players being awarded 100% up to $10 instantly, for example. These offers are great but not everyone has access to them all the time (and some require you to deposit real money). 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You can test drive various casinos completely risk-free, so you can feel confident about your choice before you make a single penny deposit. Amazon I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. Feb 3, 2016 | By Benedict US Defense Secretary Ash Carter has outlined plans for several new military projects during a preview of the Pentagons fiscal year 2017 budget request. Included in the budget proposal is a plan to build 3D printed microdrones. Defense Secretary Ash Carter Speaking on Tuesday at the Economic Club of Washington, DC, Carter addressed the global challenges facing the Department of Defense, outlining several projects proposed in the $582.7 billion defense budget. Five particular challenges to the US were highlighted: Russian aggression in Europe, the rise of China in the Asia Pacific, North Korea, Iran, and the ongoing fight against ISIS and other terrorist organizations. The secretary emphasized the importance of cyber-defense alongside the more established areas of military operation. In this budget were taking the long view," Carter said. "We have to. Even as we fight todays fights, we must also be prepared for the fights that might come 10, 20 or 30 years down the road. Not just the usual air, land and sea, but also particularly in the areas of cyber, space and electronic warfare, where our reliance on technology has given us great strengths but also led to vulnerabilities that adversaries are eager to exploit. Carters speech addressed many areas of national defense, but a proposal to build and deploy 3D printed microdrones may have taken some additive skeptics by surprise. The unmanned 3D printed aircraft will use commercially available components, and be deployed from larger, manned aircraft. The secretary refused to reveal whether the 3D printed microdrones would be explosive. In the air theyve developed micro drones that are really fast, really resistant, he explained. They can fly through heavy winds and be kicked out the back of a fighter jet moving at Mach 0.9, like they did during an operational exercise in Alaska last year, or they can be thrown into the air by a soldier in the middle of the Iraqi desert. Other projects outlined by the Defense Secretary include self-driving boats, which can network together to do all sorts of missions and an electromagnetic railgun that can fire projectiles at 4,500mph. The railgun is being viewed as a potential method of gun-based missile defense, with railgun projectiles fitted onto existing Navy weaponry. The 4,500mph railgun developed by the DoD The organization behind most of these futuristic contraptions is the Strategic Capabilities Office, created by Carter in 2012 to rapidly augment existing systems with new capabilities, now directed by technology expert William Roper. Keep following 3Ders for updates on new 3D printed technologies being developed by the US Department of Defense. Posted in 3D Printing Application Maybe you also like: Feb 4, 2016 | By Tess In 1996, world famous boxer Muhammad Ali was chosen to light the Olympic torch at the Atlanta Olympic games despite his suffering of Parkinsons disease. The moment was a historic one and to one young boy, who viewed the ceremony on Youtube years after it occurred, it was the ultimate inspiration. Utkarsh Tandon, the young boy who drew inspiration from Muhammad Ali, is now a high school student at Cupertino High School in California who has developed a 3D printed ring that is capable of monitoring Parkinsons patients tremors and translating them into data accessible through an iOS app. The project, named OneRing, started in 2014 when Tandon was a high school freshman and chose to develop a machine learning model that could collect data for people afflicted with Parkinsons disease for his science fair project. The project went on to win first prize and received a grant from the UCLA Brain Research Institute, which allowed Tandon to keep working. Having further developed the Parkinsons monitoring device with the funds, the OneRing is now being featured in a Kickstarter campaign in order to start production of the monitoring ring and distribute it to Parkinsons clinics. Parkinsons, for those unfamiliar, is a degenerative disease of the nervous system that affects over 10 million people worldwide. The disease manifests itself through the loss of control of the human motor system and through such involuntary movements as shaking, stiffness, and slowness. The disorder has gained some awareness in recent decades because of such high profile sufferers as Muhammad Ali, and Michael J. Fox, who has founded the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinsons Disease. The latter helped Tandon to develop his machine learning model through their publicly available Parkinsons datasets. Tandons OneRing uses intelligent machine learning technology to monitor and measure tremors and Parkinsons patients movements to help doctors and patients better understand their condition and determine what medications should be taken when to relieve symptoms efficiently. The product is a 3D printed ring made of plastic that houses a Bluetooth microchip that connects to the OneRing iOS app using a low Bluetooth connection. Tandon developed an algorithm that essentially lets the technology sense and classify body tremors and input the data into a detailed daily report. The OneRing is capable of dividing the tremors into three separate categories: dyskinesia, bradykinesia, and tremor. With these classifications it can be packaged in these very coherent patient reports that the physicians and the patients can read and interact with in a way that better recommends medication, explains Tandon. To use the OneRing, one simply has to wear it throughout the day, and turn on the iOS app which connects to it. From there, reports can be compiled and easily viewed as they are date and timestamped. To produce the rings, Tandon is currently sending his 3D digital files to 3D printing service Shapeways and ordering only small quantities. With the Kickstarter campaign, he is hoping to supply Parkinsons clinics with various sizes of the OneRing as well as iPods onto which the app can be downloaded. They are scheduled to be sent out by April 2016. So far, the crowdfunding campaign has been extremely successful, as it has already doubled its $1,500 goal with less than two days left of the campaign. Once funded, Tandon will continue to develop his product, through its technological aspects as well as its style. As Tandon says, It has to be something people want to wear. I want to make it look good while its doing the diagnosis in the background. Part of this stylistic evolution will be to make a one-size fits all ring using a more flexible 3D printed material. If you want to make a last minute pledge to Tandons OneRing campaign, check out his Kickstarter page here. Otherwise, be sure to keep an ear open for future projects led by the ambitious, and quite frankly, ingenious high schooler. Posted in 3D Printing Application Maybe you also like: Gregory Jones-Katz in The Chronicle of Higher Education: ver the past four decades, scholars in the American humanities have used deconstruction a style of interpretation pioneered by the French philosopher Jacques Derrida to question the binary oppositions that structure society and enforce power relations. One example: The historian Joan Wallach Scott deconstructed the categories of man and woman and helped launch the field of gender history. While fueling trailblazing work such as Scotts, deconstruction has conjured rather extreme, sometimes downright hysterical, responses. In the American press, vilification stretches back to the 1980s, when conservatives regularly launched polemics against deconstruction, condemning it as a movement against Western civilization. There has also been little love lost for deconstruction among members of the American left, from Marxists to Liberals, many of whom faulted Derrida and his epigones for an inadequate commitment to truth that made it impossible to develop a political philosophy. But the left and right alike have misunderstood deconstruction and the de Man affair certainly did not help matters. In 1987 it was revealed that the Yale professor Paul de Man, who had died four years earlier and was Derridas closest friend in American intellectual life as well as the most prominent exponent of deconstruction in the United States, had written pro-Nazi articles at least one explicitly anti-Semitic in 1941 and 1942 during his youth under the German occupation of Belgium. Derridas deconstructive readings of his friends wartime writings proved highly controversial; at one point, Derrida suggested that de Mans criticism in his article The Jews in Contemporary Literature of vulgar anti-Semitism could be interpreted as support of a refined anti-Semitism and a clandestine critique of the vulgarity of anti-Semitism. Derridas interpretation was red meat for hungry enemies of deconstruction, who offered it as proof of deconstructions nihilism. Since then, it has been difficult to conduct a dispassionate conversation about deconstruction. It is into this contentious legacy that Theory at Yale arrives marketed as an important first: a book-length history of the Yale School of Deconstruction. But Theory at Yale is instead a series of artful deconstructive readings of the event of theory in the American academy, with theory chiefly referring to a certain kind of reflection on language and literature that garnered the tag deconstruction in the 1970s, and in distorted form became a minor mass-media topic in the 1980s. More here. Tash Aw at The Times Literary Supplement: For over half a century, Indonesian literature has lived under twin shadows: that of the great writer and activist Pramoedya Ananta Toer, who died in 2006 aged eighty-one; and of the bloody events of 1965, which marked the end of the reign of Sukarno the nations Communist-leaning first President and the start of Suhartos thirty-one-year New Order regime, during which all official discussion of the events was suppressed. The decades-long silence surrounding 1965 during which up to a million suspected communist sympathizers were subjected to brutal torture and summary executions was always tested by writers and journalists, even during the most repressive moments of the Suharto censorship campaign, but its general absence from school textbooks and official discourse has created an enduring problem for the writers currently at the forefront of Indonesian literature: how to reclaim the stories of a missing, epoch-defining era and reconstruct a new understanding of their country. For authors such as Chudori who are now reconstructing this lost history there is a further complication: that of Pramoedyas immense legacy. Jailed firstly by the Dutch colonial administration for his pro-Independence writings, and then by the Suharto regime for his unwavering leftist, pro-Sukarno stance, Pramoedya represents both an inspiration and a unique challenge to all Indonesian writers who follow in his footsteps. His monumental body of works including the famous Buru quartet, written while he was imprisoned on the notorious island that gave the novels their nickname seemed to mirror the size and scope of the largest and most populous country in the region: a vast archipelago boasting a culture, history and size surpassed only by China and India on the Asian continent but a past whose titanic and relatively recent political struggles have remained curiously invisible to the worlds gaze. more here. Pankaj Mishra in The Guardian: The governments of Egypt and Turkey are brazenly leading a multi-pronged assault on writers, artists and intellectuals. Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan last month denounced his critics among Turkish academics as treasonous fifth columnists of foreign powers; many of them have been subsequently dismissed and suspended. Both Turkey and Egypt have imprisoned journalists, provoking international protests. But the suppression of intellectual and creative freedoms is assuming much cannier forms in India, a country with formal and apparently free democratic institutions. Controlled by upper-caste Hindu nationalists, Indian universities have been purging anti-nationals from both syllabuses and campuses for some months now. In a shocking turn of events last month, Rohith Vemula, a PhD student in Hyderabad, killed himself. Accused of anti-national political opinions, the impoverished research scholar, who belonged to one of Indias traditionally and cruelly disadvantaged castes, was suspended, and, after his fellowship was cancelled, expelled from student housing. Letters from Modis government in Delhi to university authorities revealed that the latter were under relentless pressure to move against extremist and anti-national politics on campus. Vemulas heartbreaking suicide note attests to the near-total isolation and despair of a gifted writer and thinker. The extended family of upper-caste nationalists plainly aim at total domination of the public sphere. But they dont only use the bullying power of the leviathan state one quickly identified by local and foreign critics to grind down their apparent enemies. They pursue them through police cases and legal petitions by private individuals a number of criminal complaints have been filed against writers and artists in India. They create a climate of impunity, in which emboldened mobs ransack newspapers offices, art galleries and cinemas. More here. Douglas Smith at Literary Review: The story of the Romanovs has been told countless times, but never with such a compelling combination of literary flair, narrative drive, solid research and psychological insight. The Romanovs covers it all, from war and diplomacy to institution building and court intrigue, but it is chiefly an intimate portrait that brings to life the twenty sovereigns of Russia in vivid fashion. Heavy is the cap of Monomakh, Pushkin wrote in Boris Godunov, referring to the royal Mongol helmet used to crown Michael I, the first Romanov tsar, in 1613. Heavy indeed. The teenage Michael had been tapped by the boyars to take the throne following the destruction of the ruling Rurikid family and the subsequent national nightmare known as the Time of Troubles. He cried and insisted he wanted nothing to do with the crown, and for good reason: several of his uncles had been killed in the struggle for control of Russia. But the grandees refused to be put off and they begged on bended knees for hours until the weeping Michael finally gave in. Michael survived the throne, but quite a few later Romanovs would not be so lucky: six of the last twelve rulers, Montefiore notes, were murdered, and even those who survived slept with one eye open. Michael had been chosen in large part because he was weak and would be putty in the hands of the mighty clans of the realm. Let us have Misha Romanov, boyar Fyodor Sheremetev said, for he is still young and not yet wise; he will suit our purpose. Sheremetev was right, but Michaels strong-willed father, Filaret, acted as the true power behind the throne and kept in check the various factions competing for influence. more here. From The Black Past: The slave ship Zong departed the coast of Africa on 6 September 1781 with 470 slaves. Since this human chattel was such a valuable commodity at that time, many captains took on more slaves than their ships could accommodate in order to maximize profits. The Zongs captain, Luke Collingwood, overloaded his ship with slaves and by 29 November many of them had begun to die from disease and malnutrition. The Zong then sailed in an area in the mid-Atlantic known as the Doldrums because of periods of little or no wind. As the ship sat stranded, sickness caused the deaths of seven of the 17 crew members and over 50 slaves. Increasingly desperate, Collingwood decided to jettison some of the cargo in order to save the ship and provide the ship owners the opportunity to claim for the loss on their insurance. Over the next week the remaining crew members threw 132 slaves who were sick and dying over the side. Another 10 slaves threw themselves overboard in what Collingwood later described as an Act of Defiance. Upon the Zongs arrival in Jamaica, James Gregson, the ships owner, filed an insurance claim for their loss. Gregson argued that the Zong did not have enough water to sustain both crew and the human commodities. The insurance underwriter, Thomas Gilbert, disputed the claim citing that the Zong had 420 gallons of water aboard when she was inventoried in Jamaica. Despite this the Jamaican court in 1782 found in favour of the owners. The insurers appealed the case in 1783 and in the process provoked a great deal of public interest and the attention of Great Britain's abolitionists. The leading abolitionist at the time, Granville Sharp, used the deaths of the slaves to increase public awareness about the slave trade and further the anti-slavery cause. It was he who first used the word massacre. Sharp attempted to have criminal charges brought against the Captain, crew, and the owners but was unsuccessful. Great Britain's The Solicitor General, Justice John Lee, however, refused to take up the criminal charges claiming What is this claim that human people have been thrown overboard? This is a case of chattels or goods. Blacks are goods and property; it is madness to accuse these well-serving honourable men of murder The case is the same as if wood had been thrown overboard. More here. (Note: At least one post will be dedicated to honor Black History Month throughout February) ACAs library of educational tools help members improve their business practices. ACA also holds the most popular industry conferences and offers credentialing for collectors, attorneys, and more. ACAs Training Zone subscription gives agencies access to almost all of our education for one low cost. While the vast majority of honorees in our annual Top New Products listing are software and applications, theres a reason we dont call it the Top New Computer Programs. Software whether on desktops or, more and more, in the cloud has already revolutionized the practice of accounting several times over, and we fully expect that it will continue to do so. But its not the only thing with the power to change the field, and the tools that will make the most difference to you wont always run on your laptop or tablet. (Well, actually, they might but as content, instead of software.) Hardware products, services, educational programs and continuing education courses all can have a major impact, too, and this year a number of entries in the last two categories really caught our eye. As knowledge workers and professionals whose value springs in large part from their expertise, accountants are both serious about their ongoing education, and well-positioned to capitalize on new ideas and new ways to demonstrate their competence to clients. For instance, this year saw a rush of certificate programs in a variety of areas, letting accountants learn about and then prove their knowledge of everything from basic tax prep to handling the tangible property repair regs all the way up to working with nonprofits. It also saw a push on different ways to educate the profession, including in small bites, as well as a program that legitimately, actually, honestly shows you how to predict the future for real. And if that doesnt grab you, there are still plenty of great software tools and apps on this years Top New Products. Read on to see the 2016 list. Accounting QuickBooks Online Self-Employed (Intuit) Designed for the rapidly growing on-demand/gig economy, Intuits QuickBooks Online Self-Employed was built to be as simple as possible for freelancers and independent contractors. The solution imports bank and credit card transactions, capturing them as individual expense cards that customers can categorize as business, personal or both a process made even easier and more intuitive via the mobile app, where expenses can be swiped left or right. One of QBO Self-Employeds biggest advantages is its year-round tracking of deductions, so entrepreneurial customers can easily pay those estimates at quarterly and year-end deadlines, minimizing distraction from business operations. Affordable Care Act Tools ONESOURCE ACA Reporting & Compliance (Thomson Reuters) Helping businesses of all sizes comply with the Affordable Care Act is one of the great opportunities of the past few years (as well as one of the bigger nightmares), and weve named Thomson Reuters ONESOURCE ACA Reporting & Compliance tool as one of our Top New Products for managing the distribution and filing of the forms associated with Obamacare for all the organizations that need to send out 1095-As, Bs and Cs. The Web-based tool tracks form corrections, collects consent forms for electronic distribution, and helps with managing file errors when e-filing with the IRS. We gave Greatlands Yearli an Honorable Mention, for adding the ability to file Forms 1095-B and C with the IRS and send copies to recipients, as well as developing a toolkit of great ACA-related resources for users. Business Analytics BlackLine Insights (BlackLine) and Host Analytics Modeling (Host Analytics) Finance professionals know key performance indicators are crucial to improving business processes and results, but beyond the obvious benchmarks, some mission-critical KPIs can be elusive. While BlackLine Insights includes core accounting activities like account reconciliations, the solution also enables accountants and chief financial officers to hone and calibrate the performance indicators that are most urgent for their business. These numbers can be tracked in real-time, and benchmarked against industry numbers based on live, aggregated and anonymized cloud data collected from other BlackLine customers. And because it lives in the cloud, this data is dynamic and easily adaptable to new and changing business goals, including the new benchmarks that BlackLine will provide in future product updates. Accountants can bolster their advisory work with Host Analytics Modeling, a module in the companys cloud enterprise performance management suite that enhances budgeting, planning, forecasting and modeling processes. By integrating both financial planning and operational data from other systems, the cloud modeling engine can map out multiple what-if scenarios related to tax and accounting, and the numbers can be collaborated on across multiple interfaces, from Excel to mobile. The models also cater to a range of user sophistication, from a quick drill-down into profitability metrics to the activities of what Host Analytics dubs power modelersusers actively communicating with the data and adding new dimensions and submodels. In this category, were also giving an Honorable Mention to iLumens Franchise Intelligence, a productivity tool for CPA firms with franchise consulting practices, which simplifies and standardizes data collection from franchisees. Certificates and Credentials AICPA Not-for-Profit Certificate I and II (American Institute of CPAs) When they want expertise, clients come to accountants; when accountants want expertise, they have to earn it themselves. This year saw the release of a number of different certificate programs to teach a wide range of very specific skills and then let you prove it. We named the AICPAs Not-for-Profit Certificate I and II our Top New Products in this category not just because the programs are comprehensive and jam-packed with real-world examples, case studies, animations and videos that will help you bone up on everything from the basics of nonprofit reporting to the complexity of preparing a complete set of NFP financials, but because this is an area that really calls for deeply knowledgeable accountants, and with more firms entering it as a sideline, its an area where they cant afford to be uninformed. Well single out a pair of other programs as Honorable Mentions, each of which touches on a hot regulatory or legislative topic: Wolters Kluwers CCH Tangible Property Regulations Certificate, and Thomson Reuters Checkpoint Learning Health Care Reform Certificate Program. Data Transfer Rivio Secure Financial Statement Clearinghouse (CPA.com and Confirmation.com) An online clearinghouse for private businesses to exchange financial information with their lenders and investors, Rivio is also a secure platform for these businesses to share secure, authenticated data with their CPA firms. CPA.com provides the front-end verification that CPA firms are appropriately licensed to upload financial information, and Confirmation.com delivers the same technology that powers its own audit confirmation platform. CPA.com and Confirmation.coms mission for the platform is to eliminate outdated and unsecure methods of exchanging sensitive information such as e-mail, and Rivio provides the controls and collaboration to modernize the process. Nonprofit Accounting Abila MIP Advance (Abila) Abila brought its MIP true fund accounting solution to the cloud, where the comprehensive financial management and reporting tool finds greater agility and integration capabilities. Within that cloud-based interface, MIP Advance presents a multi-dimensional and flexible chart of accounts, with detailed coding and tracking of all financial activities in unlimited segments and dimensions. Users can track, report and manage finances via customizable and role-based dashboards that enable them to view and drill down into the data most essential to their role whether financial or otherwise. Nonprofits and government entities can then use MIP Advances reporting and analytics tools to present this data in digestible, graphical formats that inspire engagement from boards and funding from donors. The solutions new API also provides easy integration with other applications. Practice Management Sage Impact (Sage) Online, customizable hub Sage Impact was built for accountants, by accountants (or at least with their detailed advisement). And while it imports real-time data from other Sage products, it also integrates with non-Sage solutions. Serving as a central location for practice management and client collaboration, Sage Impact also houses two of the companys newer cloud-based tools: Sage Value and Sage Match. Capitalizing on the emerging trend of value pricing, Sage Value provides tangible tools to have those cost discussions with clients in the form of service plans, comparison documents and proposal generation, while Sage Match makes accountants more accessible to prospects, giving business owners the ability to search for CPAs based on business focus, goals, location and desired expertise. SALT Tools BNA State Tax Analyzer (Bloomberg BNA) States are on an ever-more-desperate prowl for revenue, and that means more complex tax legislation and more stringent audits. The continually changing landscape of state tax regulations requires a powerful and streamlined tool beyond spreadsheets, and Bloomberg BNA provides it in this multi-state, multi-year, multi-scenario state tax analysis tool. With the cloud-based solution, tax and accounting professionals can do what-if planning, tax provision analysis, quarterly estimates and tax audit response, all with a full audit trail. The State Tax Analyzer also keeps up with the latest legislation, delivering automatic tax-law updates, and provides the added security of permissions controls. Self-Improvement The Anticipatory Organization: Accounting & Finance Edition (MACPA/BLI) and the Insight HR & Career Development Tool (Indiana Society of CPAs) With a staff crunch going on, the accounting profession is scrambling for warm bodies but its also worth spending some time on the bodies that are already here. Two of our Top New Products do exactly that, offering to help accountants boost their careers by bringing more value to the table. The first is the Anticipatory Organization: Accounting & Finance Edition, a set of video courses and exercises created by a partnership of the Maryland Association of CPAs and its Business Learning Institute with futurist Daniel Burrus. The point of the coursework is to teach you, literally, how to predict the future by identifying reliable trends and it actually works. The applications for firm strategy, client service, and guiding your own career are endless. Our second Top Product in the Self-Improvement Category is the Indiana Society of CPAs Insight HR & Career Development Tool, which lets CPAs evaluate themselves on core competencies and the soft skills that will mark the future leaders of the profession, as well as offering 360-degree assessments, and a toolkit for tracking personal development. Software Platforms Onvio (Thomson Reuters) The cloud has certainly made collaboration and integration easier but it hasnt eliminated friction entirely. For that, you need to look at tools that were built from the ground up to interact, and thats what Thomson Reuters new Onvio platform promises, with the added benefit of not having been built on the ground, but in the cloud. Its designed to give a single look and feel as well as a common database to a host of tax and accounting-related tools, and it launched with two core modules, Onvio Documents for document management and Onvio Client Center, a portal for securely sharing information with clients and staff. Thomson Reuters has already added Onvio Time and Billing, and plans more additions in the future. Tax Tools CCH International Tax Compliance Calendar (Wolters Kluwer) As more and more small businesses find customers overseas, more and more accountants are finding themselves trying to answer awkward questions about international tax issues. We named the CCH International Tax Compliance Calendar a Top New Product for giving users the ability to easily monitor updated tax laws, filing deadlines and compliance changes around the globe or in just the specific tax jurisdictions where they (and their clients) are interested. Customized alerts and mobility mean youll never miss an important development or deadline, no matter how far afield you or the taxing jurisdiction are. Wolters Kluwer also took an Honorable Mention in this category, for its CCH CodeConnect, which makes it even easier to find useful answers and guidance in its IntelliConnect research platform. Well also give a nod to RCReports, an online tool that makes it easy to create reasonable compensation reports for closely held business owners to show the IRS, and to Autokept, which is the only mileage and other tax-related information tracking app we know of that you can talk to. IMGCAP(1)]Accounting professionals and their clients encounter many different circumstances that may generate the need for an appraisal of a business or part of a business. For example, the following list includes some of the most common instances: Divorce Tax planning Buy-side due diligence on a merger or acquisition or sell-side advice on an offer Succession or estate planning Dispute between owners or between owner and contractors Adding or removing business partners. Some of these circumstances are more complex than others, and some involve higher stakes that could lead to litigation or scrutiny by the IRS. In some cases, the CPA or other valuation professional may be acting almost like a legal expert when they give an opinion on the value of the business or business interest. As a result, the complexity of the engagement (and the pricing of those services) may differ from one involving a lower-stakes situation. To help distinguish between the different levels of services for estimating the value of businesses, ownership interests, securities, etc., valuation services are often divided into two types: valuation engagements and calculation engagements. Distinguishing between the two is of most interest to CPAs, because they are required to follow AICPA standards governing business valuations. These standards, the AICPAs Statement on Standards for Valuation Services No. 1 (SSVS1), indicate CPAs should clarify in advance whether they are offering a valuation or calculation engagement. SSVS1 spells out what constitutes a valuation versus a calculation, and it describes when and how each is performed. The National Association of Certified Valuators and Analysts (NACVA) also has professional standards that describe differences between valuation and calculation engagements, but they are similar to those outlined by the AICPA. But in general, even with oversight CPAs as valuation professionals benefit from being able to differentiate between these types of engagements so they can better assess which service is right for their clients. Valuation Engagements According to the AICPA, a valuation engagement results in a conclusion of value, which is basically an opinion on the value of the business or ownership interest, and it requires more procedures than a calculation engagement. (These engagements, often referred to as full-blown valuations, are typically more costly.) As Houston accounting firm EEPB describes it, The CPA is expressing an independent conclusion of value, applying all applicable approaches and methods that are deemed necessary. As a result, these are typically used if the clients situation is at risk of ending up in court. Here are the main points the AICPA makes about a valuation engagement: 1. It is performed when the situation calls for the analyst to estimate the value of a subject interest, and when the analyst does so as outlined in SSVS1. 2. The analyst performing a valuation engagement is free to apply the valuation approaches and methods deemed appropriate for the circumstances, though all three valuation methods (asset-based, income-based and market-based) must be considered. 3. The results of the valuation are expressed as a conclusion of value, and the conclusion can either be a single amount or a range. NACVA says a valuation engagement requires that a member apply valuation approaches or methods deemed in the members professional judgment to be appropriate under the circumstances and results in a Conclusion of Value. Within valuation engagements, there are two levels of service typically offered: summary and detailed, for which a valuation analyst provides more in-depth research. Calculation Engagements A calculation engagement, according to the AICPA, results in a calculated value, which can be expressed as a single amount or a range. This type of engagement does not incorporate all of the procedures required for a valuation engagement. In fact, the valuation professional and client must agree in advance on a) the approaches and methods that will be used and b) the extent of procedures that will be used to calculate the value of a business or interest, and the valuation analyst must follow that arrangement. NACVAs standards are similar: A Calculation Engagement occurs when the client and member agree to specific valuation approaches, methods and the extent of selected procedures and results in a Calculated Value. As EEPB notes, procedures tied to a calculation are more limited in scope and therefore the calculation may or may not represent the actual value of the subject interest. Indeed, valuation analysts normally qualify calculated values by stating that the results might have been different if a valuation engagement had been performed instead, notes the accounting firm Gilliam Coble & Moser LLP in a post on its website. This is why many CPAs will not testify in court proceedings if they have performed only a calculation engagement and why some firms will decline to perform it if it appears the client may need it for litigationeither in court or with the IRS. Calculations of value can be useful for planning and to help negotiate settlements outside of court, but a client may need to upgrade to a valuation engagement if the settlement falls through. As noted earlier, different circumstances require varying levels of service when it comes to valuations. These levels roughly correspond to the levels of assurance provided by the engagements. In other words, in the same way accountants provide increasing levels of assurance for financial statements as they provide compilations, reviews and audits, valuation professionals offer increasing assurance for business valuations as they provide calculations, summary valuations and detailed valuations. Brad Spence is director of valuation solutions at the financial information company Sageworks. IMGCAP(1)]The concept of nexus, the minimum amount of contact between a taxpayer and a state which allows the state to tax a business, is not new. It arises from two clauses in the Constitution. The Commerce Clause prohibits a state from unduly burdening interstate commerce, and the Due Process Clause requires a minimum connection between a state and the entity it wishes to tax. What is new is the increasingly aggressive stance taken by the states in asserting nexus. Now, at least one state looks to fatten up on cookies, the bits of computer code that websites leave on computers and smartphones to track user data and to improve website experience. In Crutchfield, Inc. v. Testa, Ohios tax commissioner has asserted a theory of Internet nexus that would create taxable presence every time a retailers website is accessed by a customer in the state, said Matt Hedstrom, a partner with Alston & Birds State and Local Tax (SALT) Group. This theory that a company owns tangible personal property in the form of browser cookies place on consumers computers and mobile apps placed on customers cell phones would dramatically change the nexus landscape. Because those cookie-containing computers and cell phones are located in Ohio, the commissioner argues, the out-of-state businesses have themselves established physical presence nexus within the states borders. The issue was whether an economic presence test is Constitutional, and then randomly within the states brief came the argument that remote sellers own the cookies placed on the computers of consumers that visit their website, he added. Theyre saying that it constitutes physical presence and is sufficient for nexus. Since the case is still pending, it remains to be seen if the court takes this on or says nothing about it, Hedstrom noted. Under this theory, any company that transacts business with customers over the Internet would have nexus anywhere its customers are located, he said. Thats assuming that most companies are using cookies to market, and in fact they are. It would dramatically change the nexus profile for Internet companies. Hedstrom believes that the states theory of cookie nexus is misguided. When the U.S. Supreme Court decided Quill [a 1992 decision that established a physical presence test in the sales and use tax arena], it established a bright-line physical presence standard, he said. My view is that simply defining software as tangible personal property is not sufficient to create physical presence. The presence of cookies on a customers computer just doesnt rise to the level of physical presence under the Constitution. Moreover, several other states are also considering the Internet nexus theory, according to Hedstrom. He believes that it is unclear whether the commissioners brief in Crutchfield is merely arguing in the alternative or actually will adopt it as a new theory. However, the fact that it would even be considered is cause for concern, he said. The Ermenegildo Zegna Group and Stefano Pilati announced today that after three years as Head of Design for Ermenegildo Zegna Couture, Mr Pilati will step down from his position. Commenting on the announcement, Gildo Zegna, Chief Executive Officer of the Zegna Group said: "I want to thank Stefano for his contribution to Ermenegildo Zegna. We wanted to develop a strong point of view in fashion as well as style, and for Zegna to be a show not to be missed in Milan. We have reached this objective faster than expected. As we move on to write new chapters in Zegnas development, I wish Stefano well for his future endeavours." Stefano Pilati said: I have given much consideration to this decision and after thoughtful conversations with Gildo Zegna, we have reached the conclusion that the mission he entrusted me with had been fulfilled. I now wish to focus on other projects that I had put aside in order to achieve our common goals with Zegna Couture. It has been an honor to work with this extraordinary family company that puts quality, craftsmanship and excellence at the center of their business. I want to thank everyone at the Zegna Group and especially Gildo Zegna who has given me outstanding support and will remain a friend and a mentor. The Fall/Winter 2016 collection Mr Pilati presented to great acclaim in Milan on January 16, 2016 will be his last for the house. Gadre Marine Export Pvt. Ltd. started India's first Surimi ** manufacturing plant and currently is the largest Surimi producer and retailer in India. Fusing innovation and food with Surimi is flavoured with natural crab extract and made to taste like crab meat. This to our mind was a unique product - nothing short of an invention. The launch of this product has been planned with an extensive Marketing & Advertising campaign - What The Fish! What The Fish - an intriguing yet simple term, what the Fish strikes the right chord for the brand and its offering. The campaign is a holistic plan that covers Digital, Print & Electronic media. They have also produced a series of webisodes with Chef Vikas Khanna along with the TVC that will go live very soon. Sharing his thoughts on the association, Mr. Vikas Khanna quotes,I can never get enough of seafood and through this association I've explored some interesting recipes which will change the way we eat seafood! Especially with an upcoming, innovative products from Gadre". 'We've made fish taste like crab', changes the perspective, especially for the seafood lovers. After hours and days of brainstorming, we came up with this campaign that will definitely bring a new revolution in the food world and then it was conceived by our agency Onads Communications says Sneha Sharma, Brand Manager, Gadre Marine Export Pvt. Ltd. Executed by Tubelight Films, the TVC is in black & white and colour to represent the coming together of two different eras. The moment I read the script I was in love with it. says Prashant Issar, the founder of Tubelight Films. He adds, I didn't want to use any animation or graphic. So right from the casting of the scientist to his make-up, background sets, even the formulas on the blackboard was created, Giving it a more realistic look and feel. The high point of the film is when the worlds most famous scientist realises that it is Surimi which is flavoured with natural crab extract which tastes like crab meat and even he acknowledges that it is the greatest invention ever. All those who were involved in this campaign on and off sets have done a great job. adds Issar. Rapidly expanding in the Indian Market Gadre has taken the Market by storm with their innovative products. With their competitive pricing Gadre has charted an aggressive growth plan into Tier 1 and 2 cities across India. In order to appeal to the primary demographic, Gadre has launched special webisodes, which feature recipes created by Vikas Khanna. Special recipe features in Femina, Good Housekeeping and other magazines, which will be reaching out to Housewives pan India. Gadre products are fresh, healthy and easy to incorporate in recipes. They are also made easily available with the GPS store locator on their website. The association with Vikas Khanna an internationally renowned Chef only serves to prove that Gadre is the leading retailer of premium frozen seafood and the only choice for quality Surimi Value added products. The International Advertising Association - India Chapters Young Turks Forum launched its new series Advertising and The Five Senses. The series, presented by MTV India, launched yesterday, highlighted the importance of using all of our five senses in advertising, as opposed to only visual (sight "print advertising") or audio (sound "Radio"). The series will present sessions by industry experts with backgrounds in Taste, Sound, Sight, Smell and Touch so the audience could learn about the nuances of these senses as they relate to communication and together they can add immense value. The first session was by the Chef Sanjeev Kapoor. He spoke about the importance of all five senses coming together to make the food experience wholesome. He said that 70-75% of food experience is enhanced by the smell and not taste alone. And the look of the food adds to the appetite value of the food as does the touch and feel of food. Roshni Bajaj, well known food critic engaged in an interesting conversation with him at Wellingkar Institute of Management, Mumbai. Srinivasan K. Swamy, President, IAA India Chapter & Vice President Development, Asia Pacific, IAA said, With every IAA engagement, we attempt to explore a different perspectives of the communication industry. The Young Turks Forum has, in the past, seen interesting conversations by stalwarts who have challenged the status quo. The conversation between Sanjeev Kapoor and Roshni Bajaj Sanghvi was insightful and delightful, to say the least. The similarity and connect to the communication industry was obvious and the 100-odd students gathered there should have benefitted by attending this". Chef Sanjeev Kapoor highlighted his thought process in presenting a dish at a show. As the saying goes "God is in the details" he stressed the importance of 'execution'. While answering questions by Roshni Bajaj Sanghvi, he said - be outstanding in whatever you are doing; one has to stand out. In response to a question on global cuisine becoming a threat to the growth of Indian cuisine, he said Indian chefs are creative to create dishes in sync with the trends. Manish Advani, Head, Marketing and Public Relations, Mahindra Special Services Group, and Chair of the IAA Young Turks Forum series, said, "We wanted to offer the industry something different than what has been presented so far. So we conceptualized Advertising and the Five senses, and I am glad our series had a very good start with the Master Chef Sanjeev Kapoor Janak Sarda, Joint Managing Director of the Deshdoot Group of Newspapers and Young Professionals President of IAA India Chapter added, The interplay of five senses and their role in communication was beautifully brought about in a conversation by two very respected names in the food industry. One is a seasoned chef and a pioneer and the other a very well respected writer. The Young Turks Forum has hosted celebrities like Mahesh Bhatt, R Balki, Prasoon Joshi, Sameer Nair, Nihal Kaviratne (Chairman, Akzo Nobel India Ltd & TVS Indonesia), Jason Lewis (Author Explorer & Sustainability Campaigner), C K Ranganathan (CMD CavinKare) and Dr Sunita Maheshwari (Entrepreneur, RxDx Multispecialty Clinic) and many others. OLX India, Indias largest classifieds platform, today announced new developments within the companys Indian leadership. New additions have been made to the Indian leadership team with Suresh Krishnan, former Executive Director and VP Finance at Accor Hotels coming on board as the Chief Financial Officer, OLX India, and Joyeeta Chatterjee, former Director, Human Resources at Sun Pharmaceutical, joining as the Chief Human Resources Officer. In addition to this, Irwin Anand, former Chief Growth Officer at OLX India has been elevated to play the role of Chief Operating Officer, OLX India. Said Amarjit Singh Batra, CEO, OLX India, The journey of OLX from an unknown brand to the leader in online classifieds in India has been full of pioneering moments and milestones. Building the consumer-to-consumer (C2C) market in India involved a winning strategy, laser-sharp focus, and solid execution. In order to become the best classifieds team in the world, and to drive our next set of goals, we have strengthened our team and brought Suresh and Joyeeta on board. This is the first of many exciting developments that will be happening at OLX over the next couple of years. OLX India already has 80% market share of the consumer-to-consumer (C2C) online classifieds in India, and is the number one classifieds for used cars and motorbikes, mobile phones, and household items. OLX has five times the brand awareness that of the number #2 player classifieds player. The auto category, from which 45% of the page-views come, has a brand awareness at least five times that of any other player in the industry (according to Google Trends). OLX is the number #1 buying + selling mobile App in India according to Google Play store and is currently trending at 2.8 billion page-views a month (January 2015). As the Chief Financial Officer with 17 years of global experience across Asia, USA, and Europe in industries such as financial services, healthcare, and hospitality, Suresh will not only lead all financial decisions of OLX India but also prepare the company for a year of robust growth. Before joining OLX, Suresh was with Accor Hotels and prior to that he was the Group CFO at GE Capital India. Said Suresh Krishnan, CFO, OLX India,A leader in online classifieds in many countries globally including India, I am excited to join a young and energetic team and in partnering with them in their phenomenal growth story. Joyeeta has a rich and diverse experience having worked across several industries including logistics, media, information technology, telecom, and pharmaceuticals. Donning the hat of the Chief Human Resources Officer, Joyeeta will leverage her diverse experience of 21 years to promote organizational effectiveness, and drive new HR initiatives. Said Joyeeta Chatterjee, Chief Human Resource Officer, OLX India about her reasons for joining OLX, I joined OLX to become a part of a big data, internet, and technology-based company that is challenging traditional business models. Opportunity to work with a whole new generation of employees, who are entrepreneurial, mavericks, and very smart, and knowing that I am their people-practice nurturer and custodian makes me proud. Irwin in his new role will be the Chief Operating Officer at OLX India, driving product, technology, and customer experience functions. In his 3.5 years journey at OLX, Irwin has led diverse initiatives spanning mobile marketing, business development, strategy, and customer lifecycle management. He has a rich experience of 15 years driving business functions in the technology space, with his last stint being with Yahoo! India, driving inorganic user growth. In his new role Irwin will drive the product-led growth, user-retention, and monetization strategy in a mobile-first context. Said Irwin Anand, COO, OLX India, OLX has become the gold standard for used goods buying and selling in India. This is the outcome of our customer first mindset - solving user problems and needs through relentless iterations. As we move along, we will continue to foster a culture of experimentation and operational excellence in our path towards sustainable growth. Publicis has won the Heineken India business after a three-way agency pitch. The agency takes over the business from Wieden + Kennedy and will partner the account of their Bangalore office. The brand has been steadily growing market share in the country with their promise to retain the One World. One Heineken brand ideology. What makes this win even more prestigious is that Heineken has stood for famous advertising in every market it is present in. Europes No.1 brewer and the Worlds No.2 in value, Heineken is known for its iconic design and product experiences. Speaking of the appointment, Nakul Chopra, CEO, South-Asia, Publicis Worldwide and Bobby Pawar, MD, South-Asia, Publicis Worldwide in a joint statement said Partnering an iconic brand like Heineken is a dream opportunity. We are honored to have been chosen. We look forward to collaborating with them to create world class engagement ideas. In making the selection, Samar Singh Sheikhawat, Senior VP Marketing, United Breweries Ltd said, "We are delighted to partner with Publicis on the Heineken business in India. They bring with them a wealth of knowledge in creating effective communication across consumer product categories in the country. We believe this association will give further impetus to the fastest growing beer brand in our portfolio. We look forward to creating memorable work on Heineken in India in the years ahead." Paritosh Srivastava, COO, Publicis Ambience We are very proud to be associated with an advertising hall of fame brand like Heineken. The challenge is to live up to the legacy of great work the brand has done globally and were confident that together with the brand team we will meet it. Now has completed 10 years. The channel was launched on January 31, 2006. Times Now has consistently been the most watched English news channel over the last seven years and continues to dominate the market. The journey so far Two years after its launch, Times Now introduced a new brand of live reporting with the Prince episode in 2008. The channel telecast the ordeal of a five-year old boy Prince, who had fallen into a deep bore well, over a period of 72 hours minus ad breaks. Since then, the channel has aired numerous reports on events and issues that rocked the country, including the 26/11 terror attacks in Mumbai, Lalit Modi investigation, the CWG scam, the IPL scam, the Coalgate scam and the 2G scam, among others. Shows like The Newshour and Frankly Speaking with Arnab Goswami have a large, loyal fan base and get the political leaders, influencers and business captains up close and personal with the viewers through bold and intensive formats and engaging debates. Times Now has injected strong growth in the English News genre, garnering a 43 per cent market share in the English News category (Source: BARC| Period: Wk. 5215-0316 |Market: All India 1Mn+|TG: NCCS AB Males 22+| Day part: All days, 24 hours| Weekly Share % Average.) The channel, today, commands a 58 per cent overall market share during prime time in the English News category (Source: BARC| Period: Wk. 5215-0316 |Market: All India 1Mn+| TG: NCCS AB Males 22+| Day part: 2100-2230, Monday- Friday| Weekly Share % Average) Times Now introduced the Action Begins Here tag line to reposition itself in December 2014 as a fearless crusader willing to place on the table such burning issues as farmer suicides, women and childrens safety, corruption, etc. Reminiscing on the journey so far, Arnab Goswami, President, News, Editor-in-Chief, Times Now, ET Now and Magicbricks Now, the original architect of the soul of Times Now and its content, said, Ten years ago, when we set about planning to create Times Now, we questioned the old belief that news should remain just reported and hence a monologue. We asked ourselves: Why shouldnt news be information plus added perspective of different news makers and thought leaders thrown in? Even as we innovated on strategy, questioned old formats, and infused news with speed, throughout, we have remained unwavering in our mission to maintain the highest ethical and professional standards of news reportage. We are committed to ensuring that relevant news does not remain hidden from the public, and that it sparks opinion, debate, and corrective action. He added, Through our approach to television news journalism, we have changed, forever, the way news was presented in India. As a result, Times Now boasts of an exceptional top-of-mind recall. M K Anand, CEO & MD, Times Network, remarked, When I go back to the last 15 years, apart from Colors, I cant recollect any launch as stellar as Times Now. Times Now is a truly iconic news channel, respected for its committed, action-oriented, professional and impactful journalism. Times Now, Newshour and Arnab Goswami are household names. Its hard to imagine that just a decade ago, we did not have this mega brand. Times Now, like other young global mega media brands, is a reflection of what has changed in human society in the 21st century and what still endures as true and good. Over the last 10 years, the channel has led the nations discourse by stimulating collective national thought and resultant action and has become a strong agent of change. News genre entering a cyclical phase The news industry is a dynamic one. Commenting on the news broadcasting trends for the next few years, Goswami remarked, I think in the news space, the first cycle was 2008-2016 and the second cycle is 2016-2020. The second phase is always more dramatised as it is more dependent on external factors. We have already stepped into it and have entered a cyclical phase. There was a belief that news is all about the classes. We have democratised news. We have taken it to Indian homes and proved that it should cater to the masses as everyone has a right to it. We reach around 20 million homes and as many as 100-200 million people consume the bandwidth, he added. Goswami observed, In the next 3-5 years, we will be witnessing immense changes in this game. I think even online news channels will gain a fair amount of traction. Young people are not only fluffy watchers, they are interested in politics and are aware about various issues. Speaking about the television households in India, Anand said, There is normally one TV set in every household. So consensus viewing is required. You get better views if your target audience is youngsters and housewives. Talking about digital, when you are on handheld devices, the presentation has to change. On the revenues from ad sale, Anand felt that the news category was underpaid. We want to change that belief. Today, Newshour is able to command as much as the GECs, he added. Goswami added here that people were ready to pay for quality content. He said, Take Netflixs entry in India. They have not dropped their prices as they believe that people are willing to pay for quality content. Also, original content will be in longer formats. Everything cant be breaking news, a few are conversation news. We are looking at compelling content. We will do proper SWOT analysis before introducing any content. The way ahead Times Now has lined up robust growth plans for the next few months. The channel is working on digital strategy application and is looking to upgrade its website to cater to more audiences. According to Goswami, Nurturing the digital platform and transition is one of the focus areas. TV-cum-digital news will be attracting more investment. The English news space is only going to grow. Our economy is growing at 7 per cent pa. He added, We are looking forward to shifting from the Rs 500 crore revenue bracket to Rs 1,000 crore. I think the move to expand to the UK markets was a strong and bold move. He also felt that going forward, journalism would be more activist in nature and more campaign driven. Also, the format would not be the same in the future. Opinion is not a bad idea in journalism. It is good to speak up for the right and against the wrong as citizens of country, Goswami concluded. Training squadron doubles down in effort to grow RPA pilot ranks The 558th Flying Training Squadron ramped up efforts to double the remotely piloted aircraft pilot ranks with the start of its first 24-person class Jan. 11 at Joint Base San Antonio-Randolph. The larger class sizes are part of ongoing initiative announced by the Air Force in 2015 to increase the number of career RPA pilots across the service. The RPA community as a whole is experiencing manpower issues and there is a need to train more pilots to help ease the overall strain on the career field, said Lt. Col. John Stallworth, the 558th FTS commander. We have worked diligently since last April to ensure we can meet the increased demand for trained 18X pilots. Previously, RPA pilot training classes started with 12 students; by May, each will begin with 24 students. With 16 projected classes starting each fiscal year, the number of pilots trained annually will jump from 192 up to 384. One of the big challenges for the unit, which has been the sole source of RPA pilot training in the Air Force since January 2011, during the transition will be increasing overall production by 71 percent during fiscal 16, while at the same time, creating the permanent student production pipeline to be at full operational capability for fiscal 2017, said Lt. Col. Jason Thompson, the 558th FTS director of operations. The 558th FTS graduated 191 student pilots in fiscal 2015 and are projected to graduate 290 in fiscal 2016. Overall production counts not just students, but also includes the additional instructors needed to handle the increased load, Thompson said. There is a considerable amount of moving pieces in regards to getting both the students, as well as the instructors, ready to make this mission a reality. To help meet the increased student demands, Stallworth said the unit has hired roughly half of the 42 new instructor billets put on the books, which will see the squadron grow from 62 instructors to 104 over the next few months. Our instructor cadre will be roughly 50 percent military and 50 percent civilian, Stallworth said. The (instructors) are doing a great job being flexible during this time of growth; theyve done everything we have asked and more throughout this process. To aid in creating the permanent production stream of RPA pilots, the inside of the 558th FTS building is undergoing a major renovation project. The renovations include additional simulator rooms, plus additional classroom and office space, said Maj. Michawn, a 558th FTS RPA flight instructor and officer in charge of the renovations. Through our detailed planning with the Air Force Civil Engineer Center, the 502nd Civil Engineering Squadron and the contractor, we have mitigated most of the potential impacts to the students or their training time. The renovations, costing approximately $1.15 million, started Jan. 18 and are expected to be complete by early July, said Michawn, while noting any delays or deviations to the current plan have the potential to reduce RPA student production capacity. After the renovations are complete, students will be split into six flight rooms vice the old three, with a typical class of 24 being broke into two halves of 12, Stallworth said. While half the class is working on academics, the other half will be training on the simulators, minimizing down time to the maximum extent possible and at the same time, keeping instructor workloads manageable. Despite the renovations, the transition to larger class sizes wouldnt work without the dedicated work of the 558th FTS unit schedulers. Our scheduling team has been absolutely critical to making this plus-up happen, Stallworth said. Between academics and making sure everyone gets their sim time in, we havent had any major hiccups and this is primarily due to their efforts in thinking through the problems and coming up with flexible solutions. Partnering with the 502nd Trainer Development Squadron at Randolph to meet the need for more simulators, work is currently underway to design and build six new instrument simulators, as well as creating hardware and software upgrades to be made to 10 existing simulators to meet the improved training capabilities of the six new simulators, Stallworth said. The simulators are linked together so students have the opportunity to practice instrument flying procedures in a dynamic airspace environment similar to what they will encounter during real-world flight operations. The T-6A-like simulators being developed with the (502nd TDS) will be state of the art and we appreciate the efforts of the entire trainer development team in helping make this happen, Stallworth said. Another key element in ensuring mission success is the teamwork that has been on display between all the Joint Base San Antonio mission partners involved in the project, with crucial support coming from the 502nd Air Base Wings communications and contracting squadrons. The 502nd ABW has been tremendous in supporting the needs of our training mission, Michawn said. There have been a few challenges along the way, but all the players are focused on getting the mission done. (Editors note: In accordance with current Air Force guidance, the last names of the RPA operators in this story have been omitted due to operational security constraints.) Most recent bulletins on peace and security October 10, 2022 AfricaFocus 3.0: Not A Nation of Immigrants http://www.africafocus.org/docs22/af-221010.php Coming in 2023: AfricaFocus 3.0 July 20, 2022 Africa/Global: Oligarchs of All Nations http://www.africafocus.org/docs22/books2207.php "Biden Concedes Defeat on Climate Bill as Manchin and Inflation Upend Agenda" - New York Times, July 16, 2022 June 9, 2022 Africa/Global: Ukraine, Africa, and Our Planet http://www.africafocus.org/docs22/upd2206.php An end to this terrible war based on dialogue must be the international communitys highest priority. Support to the people of Ukraine must be matched by efforts to advance Russian/Ukrainian negotiations, European security dialogue, and wider risk-reduction measures to prevent nuclear escalation. - The Elders, May 25, 2022 March 25, 2022 Africa/Global: Updates from AfricaFocus http://www.africafocus.org/docs22/upd2203.php This is the first AfricaFocus Bulletin since January. Towards the end of that month, major issues with my home office computer systems crippled the interface which I normally use to publish the Bulletin, and catching up on a variety of medical issues also limited what I could do. Nothing life threatening, but lots of doctor appointments. August 26, 2021 Mozambique/Global: Most Egregious Corruption Case of the 21st Century http://www.africafocus.org/docs21/moz2108.php In my view the hidden debt scandal is the most egregious corruption case of the 21st century. In dollar terms, the Malaysian 1MBD case is larger, but Malaysia is far wealthier than Mozambique, ranked 47th out of 185 countries on GDP per capita whereas Mozambique ranks 180. - Richard Messick, senior contributor to the Global Anticorruption Blog and pro bono legal counsel to the Budget Monitoring Forum, a civil society coalition in Mozambique. July 27, 2021 USA/Africa: Building Back Better? Or Not? http://www.africafocus.org/docs21/usaf2107.php Last week marked six months for the Biden administration and for the narrow Democratic majority in Congress. So it seems an appropriate time for a report card on U.S. Africa policy. And that also means a review of U.S. policies on today's most pressing global issues, on which the negative effects fall disproportionately on Africans on the continent and in the diaspora. July 27, 2021 USA/Global: Let Cuba Live! http://www.africafocus.org/docs21/uscuba2107.php The Biden administration has now been in office for six months, along with a narrow Democratic majority in Congress. So it seems an appropriate time for a report card. I offered my evaluation in another AfricaFocus Bulletin sent out today, entitled Building Back Better? Or Not? But as I was finalizing that Bulletin, I realized that the rising U.S. attacks on Cuba are a key indicator of how things are going. May 31, 2021 Mozambique/Global: War, Intervention, and Solidarity http://www.africafocus.org/docs21/moz2105a.php No amount of international military assistance will, within two years, create a fighting force that can combat the insurgency. Two other factors complicate external support. Foreign intervention is likely to provoke a response from Islamic State to provide weapons and training to the insurgents. And the fight is already underway between factions in Frelimo over the upcoming 2024 elections. Cabo Delgado politics and economics, the police and military, and the war itself are already caught up in the bitter infighting. Thus the war seems likely to escalate and continue until a new president is in place in 2025. - Joseph Hanlon May 31, 2021 Mozambique/Global: Fossil Fuels, Debt, and Corruption http://www.africafocus.org/docs21/moz2105b.php The scandal of Mozambiques hidden debts has already cost the country at least 11 billion US dollars, and has plunged an additional two million people into poverty, according to a detailed study of the costs and consequences of the debt published on Friday by the anti-corruption NGO, the Centre for Public Integrity (CIP), and its Norwegian partner, the Christian Michelsen Institute. The term hidden debts refers to illicit loans of over two billion US dollars from the banks Credit Suisse and VTB of Russia in 2013 and 2014 to three fraudulent, securitylinked Mozambican companies Proindicus, Ematum (Mozambique Tuna Company), and MAM (Mozambique Asset Management). - report by Centre for Public Integrity (Mozambique) and Christian Michelsen Institute (Norway) March 22, 2021 Sahel: Questioning Counterterrorism? http://www.africafocus.org/docs21/sah2103.php In the context of complex and protracted conflicts, it is time to rethink the role of the international community and acknowledge its limits. Today, success depends first and foremost on the willingness (much more than on the capacity) of corrupt leaders to reform and renew their social contract with citizens, especially in rural areas. International efforts will fail as long as impunity prevails and local armies can kill civilians and topple governments without consequence. - Chatham House Research Paper February 8, 2021 Ethiopia: No End to War in Devastated Tigray http://www.africafocus.org/docs21/horn2102.php It feels strange to write about a humanitarian crisis in this day and age with barely any pictures, videos or witness testimonies from the ground. But that is what the situation in Ethiopias Tigray region has come to. Since the conflict between the federal government, led by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, and the regional governments ruling party, the Tigray Peoples Liberation Front (TPLF), began in November 2020, access to the region has been extremely limited. Internet and telephone connectivity was cut off as soon as the fighting began, disconnecting about 5 million people. Months later, the internet remains down and telephone communication has only been restored in a few main towns. Journalists and human rights monitors are still denied entry and cannot report to the world the full scale of the violence which has left at least hundreds of people dead and more than 470,000 displaced, according to the UN. - Vanessa Tsehaye, Amnesty International November 30, 2020 USA/Africa: Build Back Better on Africa Policy http://www.africafocus.org/docs20/usa2011.php President Trump's overt contempt for Africans is encapsulated in his famously crass remark about African countries. But the principal damage to Africa has stemmed from his administrations broader policy choices, such as the disastrous rejection of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Paris climate accords; harsh curbs on legal immigration and asylum; and gutting of gender equality programs. Nevertheless, the Biden administration should not merely go back to the pre-Trump status quo. We argue that an even more fundamental questioning of U.S. Africa-related policy is needed. - Imani Countess and William Minter Kunyaza, the secret to female orgasm Nsekuye Bizimana throws light on a revolutionary ancestral sexual practice Experts confirm that 70% of women do not achieve orgasm from vaginal penetration alone. To help them achieve sexual satisfaction, Nsekuye Bizimana has decided to bring an african ancestral practice, known as kunyaza, to light. In Le secret de lamour a lafricaine [the secret of african lovemaking] he reveals this ancestral sexual practice from the Central and Eastern African regions. After grilling and lodging cases against NCPs Bhujbals, now BJP has trained its gun on Congresss Chavan. Through this step, they are weakening the opposition by prosecuting the previous governments suspected scamsters. Maharashtra Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao has given permission to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to prosecute former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan in the controversial Adarsh Co-operative Housing Society scam, which is again a clear case of political vindictiveness by the BJP. The decision to allow CBI to prosecute Chavan in Adarsh case is illegal. Anyway, he is challenging it in the Supreme Court. On November 8, 2010, Chavan had to resign as chief minister following charges of corruption and nepotism in the allocation of flats in the 31 storey Adarsh Society building at Colaba in Mumbai. However, Chavan had denied the charges and later ensured that close relatives of his who had applied for flats withdrew their applications. The Adarsh Commission report which was partially accepted by the government in December 2014, has indicted several top bureaucrats, politicians and defense persons. Originally, conceived as a six storey structure to house Kargil war heroes and widows, Adarsh was accorded additional Floor Space Index, taking the total number of flats to 102. The list of violations includes cases of 22 benami flats. There was no environmental clearance for the scheme. The Adarsh CHS had never applied to the Ministry of Environment and Forests for Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) clearance through the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority. Environmental clearance is mandatory as the land for the residential structure falls in CRZ- 11 category. Important considerations such as traffic congestion were ignored. Prakash Peth Marg was not in the public interest but intended to serve the interests of the private housing society (Adarsh). It points to procedural violations in modifications of the development plan. Rules were flouted to accord higher Floor Space Index. The decision to raise the height of the building to 97.60 m as per the recommendations of High Rise Committee was improper. Apart from the administrative and procedural violations, there was the ad hoc manner in which flats were allocated to members. The Adarsh commission pointed that, The procedure followed by the Adarsh CHS for proposing the names for its membership was arbitrary and it lacked transparency, giving scope for nepotism and favouritism. A strong bias for promoting, and defending ones political party is witnessed in all the deliberations. To cite an instance, we are yet to plumb the truth behind the shameful wads of currencies displayed in the floor of the Parliament, which was alleged to have been parted with, to save the government. Dearth of space in certain localities ends up with burying one coffin above the other. So, the successive scams in India. The Hindus often more than visible policy of treating Muslims as a separate category is no less than pervert. The parliament does have so little representation of northeast citizenry, so few ministers from that part of the country. Todays politicians are only fascinated in their re-election. This is the reason why they are not true representatives of the people of this country. The overexcited talks in the assembly could still be tolerated if the topics were related to upliftment of the society or economic standing of the country. Instead, the discussions are mostly personal and targeted towards individual members. So, is the recent fuss about the former Finance Minister P Chidambaram. Ministers should rather concentrate on constructive talks and bring up good fights for pending bills. Fresh example has been the row over a cartoon of Ambedkar created almost 66 years back. What a shame! Our politicians are worried that the minds of the children will be maligned by these cartoons in their textbooks. They should know that nobody had noticed this as a felony before the row. These kinds of inappropriate debates have been the landmark of both the houses for over years which have done nothing but wasted time of the whole country. We should be proud of sixty years of Parliamentary democracy with all its limitations. In this context, we are reminded of the fact that our constitution has made the state very powerful and to get control of the state, politicians want power. All political parties have, therefore, one common goal: To rule. To get power to rule, the politicians are ready to go any level, disregard age-old conventions, to break rules. This must change. Hence when we celebrate 66 years of Parliamentary democracy, let us make united efforts to make our democracy more relevant for the largest majority of Indias poor. We must learn to debate, express dissent fearlessly and move forward. Ashok Chavan says CBIs re-application to governor for prosecuting him is illegal. The Congress party is unhappy with the Governor Ch Vidyasagar Raos decision to give nod for prosecuting former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh Housing Society scam. The party alleged that BJP is trying to settle political scores by seeking governors approval for prosecuting Chavan. Since BJP has a weak political base in Maharashtra the party is keen to strengthen itself ahead of the next assembly polls. They are also trying to check the growth of Congress in Maharashtra which is all set for a revival after winning the panchayat and civic body elections in the state. Chavan will be prosecuted under section 197 of Cr PC, for offences under Section 120-B and 420 of the IPC. The Governor had sought the aid and advice of the state council of ministers and he was subsequently advised by it to grant the sanction. The CBI had sought sanction for Chavans prosecution under Section 197 of the CrPC on the basis of the report of Justice Patil Commission of Enquiry and the observations of the Bombay High Court. Chavan, who is campaigning for the party candidate in the Palghar bypoll election said that the Fadnavis government is involved in a political vendetta to malign his career. Defending himself he said, I wont resign from the post of president of Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC). CBIs re-application to governor to prosecute me is totally illegal. We will seek the legal advice and proceed further. Krishna Hegde former Congress MLA from Vile Parle said, When the then governor had earlier rejected the application why CBI has filed the application once again? Its a political vendetta. BJP is using the government machinery for selfish motives. Earlier they had sent CBI to raid Virbhadra Singhs residence on the day of his daughters wedding which is unjustified. We have full faith in judiciary and Ashok bhau will come out clean. The whole matter was earlier debated in the Maharashtra assembly when the same people were in the opposition, he added. In December 2013, the then Governor K Sankaranarayanan had refused sanction to CBI to prosecute Chavan in the Adarsh housing scam, leaving the agency with no choice but to close the case against him. The Maharashtra Cabinet had recently recommended to the Governor that he should grant sanction to CBI to prosecute Chavan in the case. Mr. Chavan was among the 13 people chargesheeted by the CBI in the Adarsh scam in July 2012. Though other accused, including top IAS officers and office bearers of Adarsh Housing Society, a 30 storey high-rise in Colaba, were arrested, Mr Chavans prosecution requires permission from the Governor. Chavan was forced to quit in November 2010 after it emerged that three of his relatives had been given apartments in the 30-storey building. Expanding his wings, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) MP Asaduddin Owaisi has taken the stage on Thursday to address a gathering of poor and downtrodden in Faizabad for Bikapur bypoll to be held on 13 February. In a rally, the slogan Dekho Dekho Kaun Aaya, Sher Aaya, Sher Aaya rent the air at the venue. Significantly, this is the first time Owaisi has been given permission to hold a rally in Uttar Pradesh. My focus will be on Samajwadi Party, which has betrayed both Dalits and Muslims, said the AIMIM chief, showing his intention to take SP in next year assembly poll. Owaisis party had made it clear when it declared Pradeep Kumar Kori, a Dalit, as its Bikapur candidate for the upcoming bypolls. When asked about fielding a Dalit candidate from a general seat, the AIMIM MP said: Dr Ambedkar had the full support of Muslims when he contested polls. Both sections have now been deprived of their rights. The SP gave riots to Muslims and is now silent on the death of Dalit research scholar Rohith Vemula of Hyderabad and other Dalit issues, he said. Owaisi, in his speech, invoked Ambedkar, Rohit Vemula and Dadri incident in an attempt foster unity between the Dalit and Muslim communities. He announced that his work against Akhilesh Yadav government in Uttar Pradesh has now formally begun to finish SP politically. Owaisi, however, did not mention the BSP or Mayawati during his 35-minute speech at Eidgah ground in Bhadarsa, amidst an impressive gathering. Bhadarsa, a town nearly 25 kilometers from Faizabad, had witnessed communal riots in 2010. Owaisi made SP and BJP the target of his speech. Even the soul of Akhlaq is asking you to question the perpetrators of crime. I met Akhlaqs mother, she too asked me that no other son should die. Strangely Akhilesh Yadav could not find time to reach Dadri fearing that he may lose his chair by visiting Noida, he added. From the stage, he also said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should not think of sending forces to fight the ISIS as it is not Indias war. Suddenly they said that the ISIS is rampant in India. But they should know that Indian Muslims have nothing to do with ISIS. Modi ji should not think of sending forces to fight the ISIS, he said. A New Zealand court on Thursday sentenced a former Malaysian diplomat who indecently assaulted a woman at her Wellington home in May 2014. Muhammad Rizalman, 39, who was Malaysian defence attache in Wellington when the attack occurred in May 2014, admitted to the charge in the High Court in Wellington in December 2015, Xinhua news agency reported. Rizalman would serve a nine-month home detention sentence in New Zealand. The presiding judge said Rizalman had terrified his victim and had shown a startling lack of remorse. Rizalmans lawyer said his client was in an altered mental state at the time of the incident, caused by work stress, possible depression and potential use of drugs. The case became an international incident after Rizalman was allowed to claim diplomatic immunity and return home in the wake of the offense. The revelations and ensuing scandal forced the New Zealand government to make an embarrassing request for Rizalmans extradition, which occurred in October 2014. Russia on Thursday accused Turkey of actively preparing to invade Syria, saying it had spotted troops and military equipment on the border with the war-torn country. We have serious grounds to suspect Turkey is in intensive preparations for an armed invasion of the territory of a sovereign state the Syrian Arab Republic, the defence ministry said in a statement. Ties between Moscow, which supports the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and Ankara, which is a staunch backer of the opposition, have been in tatters since Turkey shot down a Russian bomber on the Syrian border in November. Moscow`s claims came as Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, speaking at an international aid conference for Syria in London, implicitly accused Russia of war crimes in the country. Ankara said earlier Thursday that it had refused to allow a Russian reconnaissance plane to overfly its territory near Syria because of a disagreement over the flight plan. Russia said Turkey had not given Moscow any clear explanation for the decision. We consider these Turkish actions to be a dangerous precedent and an attempt to conceal illegal military activities at the Syrian border, the defence ministry said. Moreover, we are recording more and more signs of covert preparations by the Turkish armed forces for active action on Syrian territory, it said, adding that Russia has ramped up reconnaissance in the Middle East. So if someone in Ankara believes that the cancellation of the flight by Russian monitors would allow (them) to hide something then this is unprofessional. The defence ministry, citing reconnaissance data, said Turkey had recently expanded a parking lot for heavy-duty trucks on the border as well two smaller parking lots in rebel-controlled Syria. Such sites are used to secure a quick movement of military columns containing ammunition and weapons to a theatre of operations as well as a fast transfer and evacuation of personnel, it said. Mexico has confirmed 37 cases of Zika virus infection in seven of the countrys 32 states, the media reported on Thursday. Thirty-four people were infected locally, while three were infected abroad, Health Minister Mercedes Juan said on Wednesday. Two-thirds of the cases were confirmed in the southern state of Chiapas. The rest of them were found in Oaxaca, Nuevo Leon, Tamaulipas, Jalisco, Sinaloa and Queretaro, Xinhua news agency reported. More than half patients were women between the ages of 16 and 24. Given that the virus can lead to birth defects in infected fetus, the ministry plans to provide the countrys gynecologists with special training in pre-natal care, said Juan. The ministrys director general of epidemiology, Cuitlahuac Ruiz Matus, warned that the number of cases in Mexico could spike starting in April or May, when temperatures rise and the rainy season begins. He urged to control the source of the virus, the Aedes aegypti mosquito. Zika has been linked to birth defects and has symptoms including fever, muscle and joint pain, headache, nausea and rashes in adults. The virus has spread rapidly through Latin America. The 10 Army personnel, including an officer, who were buried under a mass of snow after being hit by an avalanche on Wednesday at a high-altitude post on Siachen Glacier in Jammu and Kashmir, have died. Army and IAF tried hard since Wednesday to rescue the soldiers a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) and nine other ranks of Madras Regiment after their post was hit by the avalanche at the altitude of 19,000 feet close to the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan. Specialised teams with modern equipment, flown to Leh this morning, were also pressed into service along with sniffer dogs but all efforts to rescue them failed. Demise of soldiers in Siachen is very tragic. I salute the brave soldiers who gave their lives to the nation. Condolences to their families, Prime Minister Narendra said, confirming the fears about their fate. It is a tragic event and we salute the soldiers who braved all challenges to guard our frontiers and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty, said Lt Gen DS Hooda, Army Commander, Northern Command, in a message. Defence PRO based in Northern Command Col S D Goswami earlier said in statement in Jammu that Rescue teams are braving adverse weather and effects of rarified atmosphere to locate and rescue survivors. However, it is with deepest of regrets that we have to state that chances of finding any survivors are now very remote. The glaciated area presents temperatures ranging from a minimum of minus 42 degrees Celsius in the night to maximum of minus 25 degrees C during the day. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi also expressed grief over death of all the ten soldiers. Very sad to know that 10 of our brave soldiers lost their lives in an avalanche in Siachen, Gandhi said in a tweet. My thoughts &prayers are with their families, he added. WASHINGTON, Feb. 4, 2016 - Democrats stalled a bipartisan energy bill in the Senate, demanding that Republicans agree to include aid for the drinking water crisis in Flint, Michigan. A cloture motion that would have moved the Energy Policy Modernization Act toward final passage failed, 46-50, far short of the 60 votes needed. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell appealed to Democrats to allow the bill to move, but he ultimately switched his vote to oppose the cloture motion when it became obvious it would would fail. By voting against the motion, he can request another vote on it later. McConnell said discussions on the bill would continue over the weekend. Hopefully we'll be able to salvage this important bipartisan legislation in the next few days. Michigans two Democratic senators, Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters, have been pushing for a $600 million aid package that Republicans argue is premature. While a lot of positive progress has been made on the aid proposal were just not done yet, Stabenow said before the vote. We just want to know that we have an agreement to get this done. Nine Republicans besides McConnell voted against the cloture motion, while four Democrats and Independent Angus King of Maine voted to move the energy bill forward. The bill, which would be the first broad overhaul of federal energy policy since 2007, includes popular provisions to update the electricity grid, accelerate the export of liquefied natural gas and promote energy efficiency in homes and businesses. For Republicans, the measure includes incentives for fossil fuels, while for Democrats it would help promote a shift toward renewable power usage. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chairwoman Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, pleaded for Democrats not to stand in the way of the bill, which her committee approved 18-4 last summer. Keep up with ag and rural policy and energy news as it happens. Sign up for a four-week free trial of Agri-Pulse. You will be effectively giving up on so much that we have done, she said. She said the negotiations with the Michigan senators had been earnest and in good faith and ongoing. She has largely managed to protect the measure from fights over contentious amendments, including some targeting biofuels. Senate GOP Whip John Cornyn of Texas said the Flint aid package should be addressed through the normal appropriations process. Its not responsible, its not reasonable to insist on adding the aid to the bill, he said, accusing Democrats of holding the bill hostage to embarrass people. The three senators still running for president, Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio and Bernie Sanders, missed the vote. #30 WASHINGTON, Feb. 3, 2016 After months of being courted by Monsanto, Syngenta officials announced today that the global agribusiness company is best suited to marry-up with the state-owned China National Chemical Corp., known as ChemChina, in a deal valued at more than $43 billion in cash. Under the terms of the deal, ChemChina would pay $465 a share, plus a special dividend of five Swiss francs, or about $4.90, upon closing. That would be the equivalent of 480 francs a share, representing a 22 percent premium to Syngentas closing price on Tuesday, Syngenta reported this morning. A prospectus will be offered in the next few weeks, followed by an opening of the tender offer to shareholders. The transaction requires acceptance of 67 percent of shareholders. As part of the deal, Syngentas existing management would continue to run the company and be based in Switzerland, with offices also in the U.S., explained Chief Operating Officer Davor Pisk during a telephone interview with Agri-Pulse. Syngenta will remain Syngenta. Our commitment to high quality innovation and serving those around the world will be unaffected. We will continue to pursue all of the opportunities to improve agricultural productivity around the world including the Good Growth Plan to address global food security, Pisk emphasized. Why is Syngentas board so excited about the acquisition with ChemChina, the largest Chinese chemical company, based in the largest populated country on earth? Pisk outlined several benefits. The offer today values the quality of our portfolio and our businesses at a significant premium to share prices. More importantly it satisfies the needs of broader stakeholders, Pisk said. Syngenta has been facing increasing pressure to do a deal after rivals DuPont and Dow Chemical announced their plans to merge in December. From a regulatory point of view, Pisk pointed out that this package does not have the same level of overlaps that could require the firm to divest part of its portfolio. In a deal with another global seed and chemical company like Monsanto, the company would likely have had to divest its seed business and some of its herbicide business. However, theres no guarantee that the combined company still wont have to divest parts of its portfolio to satisfy regulators. In 2011, ChemChina purchased 60 percent of Israels Makhteshim Agan - the worlds largest maker of generic pesticides -- which has since been rebranded as ADAMA Agricultural Solutions. In Washington, concerns about the scope and potential impact on food security started to mount within hours of the announcement. National Farmers Union President Roger Johnson urged a full review of the deal by the federal interagency Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. He said his organization will pay particularly close attention to what he said was the alarming trend of Chinese government-owned entities purchasing U.S. and other agricultural companies. Chinese company Shuanghui International acquired U.S. pork producer Smithfield in 2013 for nearly $5 billion. While NFU is pleased that Syngenta will maintain its North American presence for the sake of competition in the marketplace, we will continue to review the impact this deal may have on the competitiveness in U.S. agriculture. NFU is especially concerned that yet another merger will trigger additional domestic consolidation of the remaining seed and crop protection companies. Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch, said that global agribusiness mega-mergers like the proposed ChemChina-Syngenta deal give a corporate cabal a stranglehold on the worlds farmers and the worlds eaters. When fewer firms control more of the seed and agrochemical market, both farmers and consumers lose out. Not an Agri-Pulse subscriber? Get our Daily Harvest email and Daybreak audio Monday through Friday mornings, a 16-page newsletter on Wednesdays, and access to premium content on our ag and rural policy website. Sign up for your four-week free trial Agri-Pulse subscription. But Pisk argued that the pending deal preserves choice for customers around the world." And even though he didnt directly address ChemChinas motives for the deal, Pisk said, They value Syngentas broad global reach, the quality of our research, the portfolio of our scientists and our technical and commercial experts around the world. They are also attracted to the opportunity to help more significantly address the modernization of Chinas agriculture. With 1.4 billion people to feed from an agricultural area that represents less than 7 percent of the global agricultural area, Pisk said there are big challenges there to having modern tools to increase productivity without impacting the environment. All of this is entirely consistent with everything we plan to do with our Good Growth Plan. #30 For more news, go to: www.Agri-Pulse.com WASHINGTON, Feb. 3, 2016 Trade ministers have officially signed off on the Trans-Pacific Partnership, but that doesnt look to be speeding up congressional approval in the United States. The officials from 12 Pacific Rim countries gathered in Auckland, New Zealand, Thursday (Wednesday in the U.S.) to sign the final text of the TPP, signaling the official end of the deals negotiations. Attention will now shift to gaining approval for the agreement in all member countries, something that might not happen until 2017 in the United States. Two congressional ag leaders told the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture on Wednesday that TPP approval is unlikely this year, and one is skeptical that the agreement will even pass at all. Collin Peterson, the ranking member of the House Agriculture Committee, said he is working his way through the massive agreement. From what I can tell, its not really a free trade agreement, the Minnesota Democrat said, likening it to more of a managed trade agreement where they have increased access in certain commodities and in certain countries. Theyre not really getting rid of the tariffs, theyre just eliminating them on a certain amount of product and so forth. Peterson did acknowledge some phasing out of tariffs happens over time, but still, he said, getting the agreement passed would be an uphill battle. He added that the current climate for TPP in the House is not a good one for those hoping for passage. From what Im hearing, if they brought up that agreement now in the House, it would fail, Peterson said. So I think theyve rightly decided that theyre going to wait until after the election and see what happens at that point. Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kansas, was also skeptical of the TPP's prospects, telling the nations ag commissioners and secretaries that TPP approval aint going to happen this year. I just dont see it happening in this session of Congress, Roberts told reporters Wednesday. Time is our most valuable commodity, and we dont have a lot of time, so we better concentrate on what we have to do. Roberts said the presidential race casts a big shadow over everything, including the debate over TPP. To help push the trade agreement over the finish line, Roberts called for greater involvement from the current resident of the White House. Following trade? We cover it on Agri-Pulse. Sign up today for a four-week free trial subscription. Any trade bill thats going to pass Congress, the president has to be involved, he said. I know the president is involved, but then again he doesnt come to the Congress much and say we really have to pass this and sit down with the principals with regard to what he needs in terms of votes. At the signing in New Zealand, U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman said he was confident that the leaders and members of Congress would see the benefits of the agreement and that TPP would have the necessary bipartisan support for final passage. Agriculture is for the most part throwing its collective weight behind the agreement and its speedy approval. The chief exception has been the National Farmers Union. NFU President Roger Johnson said in a release Wednesday that the agreement is destined to fail. Many agricultural organizations however, echo the sentiments of National Corn Growers Association President Chip Bowling, who said in a release Wednesday that the agreement would give Americas farmers and ranchers greater access to some of the worlds fastest-growing economies. #30 WASHINGTON, Feb. 3, 2016 - Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has notified lawmakers he lacks the legal authority to provide subsidies for cottonseed, a blow to growers reeling from a plunge in global cotton prices. The industry had asked Vilsack to make cottonseed an eligible commodity under the new Price Loss Coverage and Agriculture Risk Coverage programs that were created by the 2014 farm bill. Vilsack told reporters Wednesday that Congress would not only have to authorize coverage of cottonseed but also find a way to pay the estimated cost of the subsidies, about $1 billion a year. Later in the day Vilsack's office released a letter to the House Agriculture Committee explaining his decision to deny the industry request. Vilsack said there were other options for helping the industry, including lifting restrictions on USDAs use of the Commodity Credit Corp. to provide emergency assistance or to provide aid to cotton ginners. Since fiscal 2012, Congress has prohibited USDA from using CCC funds to provide emergency disaster assistance to farmers. We want to help. We understand the challenge, but right now were a bit stymied by the barriers, Vilsack said on the sidelines of the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture annual winter meeting. The question is whether or not there is any desire on the part of Congress to remove the barrier within the farm bill or to remove the barrier within CCC. House Agriculture Chairman Mike Conaway, whom Vilsack had informed of his decision earlier, continues to insist that USDA has adequate authority to help cotton growers either through the farm programs or through CCC. Conaway told Agri-Pulse he was enlisting the help of some Democrats to help persuade Vilsack to reconsider. Congressional action along the lines Vilsack suggested would amount to reopening the farm bill, Conaway said. He sees the hurt the cotton guys are going through. We just keep working and trying to make our case, Conaway said. Conaway noted that Vilsack is currently using CCC to fund the installation of ethanol blender pumps. Vilsacks comments Wednesday were not a surprise. He outlined his thinking to reporters nearly a month ago when he first publicly raised the issue of his legal authority. Vilsack noted then, and repeated in the letter, that cottonseeds were excluded from coverage under the new Stacked Income Protection Plan (STAX), a revenue insurance policy that the farm bill authorized as a replacement for direct payments. Vilsack pointed out in the letter that cotton growers uniquely received special transition payments after direct payment system was abolished in favor of the ARC and PLC options sought by growers of other commodities. Read about other USDA news such as this. Sign up for a four-week free trial Agri-Pulse subscription for the latest ag and rural policy news. Conaway argues that the Congress left the door open to include cottonseed as an eligible oilseed under PLC and ARC programs. Under the 2014 farm bill, USDA oilseeds not specified in the law receive a PLC price guarantee, or reference price, of $20.15 per hundredweight, which is well above recent market prices. Cotton growers say China's manipulation of cotton supplies drove cotton prices to levels that are unsustainable for U.S. producers. A representative of the National Cotton Council told Conaways committee in December that U.S. cotton acreage is at its lowest point in 30 years, exports their lowest in 15 years, and prices are seeing lows not witnessed since the 2009 recession. Another witness said cotton production would leave the United States if the industrys request was not approved. The cotton council issued a statement Wednesday saying it was extremely disappointed in Vilsacks position. We continue to believe, like a broad group of members of Congress, that USDA clearly has this authority as described in the current farm bill, the group said. (Updated Feb. 4) #30 For more news, go to www.Agri-Pulse.com Brussels (AINA) -- The European Parliament voted today to designate the atrocities committed by ISIS against religious and ethnic minorities, including Assyrians and Yazidis, as genocide. The resolution passed by an overwhelming majority. Formal genocide recognition places legal obligations on all countries who are signatories to the genocide convention to take action. According to a statement on the European Parliament website: The resolution, passed by show of hands, calls on the EU to establish a permanent Special Representative for Freedom of Religion and Belief and urges all countries in the international community to prevent war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide within their territory. All EU member states should update their legal and jurisdictional systems in order to prevent their nationals and citizens travelling to join ISIS/Daesh and other terrorist organisations and also ensure that, should they do so, they face criminal court proceedings as soon as possible, adds the text. Here is the full text of the resolution: The European Parliament, -- having regard to its previous resolutions of 27 February 2014 on the situation in Iraq(1), of 18 September 2014 on the situation in Iraq and Syria, and the IS offensive, including the persecution of minorities(2), in particular paragraph 4 thereof, of 27 November 2014 on Iraq: kidnapping and mistreatment of women(3), of 12 February 2015 on the humanitarian crisis in Iraq and Syria, in particular in the IS context(4), and specifically paragraph 27 thereof, of 12 March 2015 on recent attacks and abductions by ISIS/Daesh in the Middle East, notably of Assyrians(5), in particular paragraph 2 thereof, of 12 March 2015 on the Annual Report on Human Rights and Democracy in the World 2013 and the European Union's policy on the matter(6), in particular paragraphs 129 and 211 thereof, of 12 March 2015 on the EU's priorities for the UN Human Rights Council in 2015(7), in particular paragraphs 66 and 67 thereof, of 30 April 2015 on the persecution of Christians around the world, in relation to the killing of students in Kenya by terror group Al-Shabaab(8), in particular paragraph 10 thereof, and of 30 April 2015 on the destruction of cultural sites perpetrated by ISIS/Daesh(9), -- having regard to its recommendation to the Council of 18 April 2013 on the UN principle of the 'Responsibility to Protect' ('R2P')(10), -- having regard to the Council conclusions of 16 March 2015 on the EU Regional Strategy for Syria and Iraq as well as the ISIL/Daesh threat, of 20 October 2014 on the ISIL/Daesh crisis in Syria and Iraq, of 30 August 2014 on Iraq and Syria, of 14 April 2014 and 12 October 2015 on Syria, and of 15 August 2014 on Iraq, -- having regard to Council Decision 2003/335/JHA of 8 May 2003 on the investigation and prosecution of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes(11); -- having regard to: the EU Guidelines on the promotion and protection of freedom of religion or belief; the EU Guidelines on promoting compliance with international humanitarian law; the EU guidelines on violence against women and girls and combating all forms of discrimination against them; the guidelines for EU policy towards third countries on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment or treatment; the EU Guidelines on children and armed conflict; the EU Guidelines on the promotion and protection of the rights of the child; and the EU Human Rights Guidelines on freedom of expression online and offline; and the EU Guidelines to promote and protect the enjoyment of all human rights by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) persons, -- having regard to the statements by the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy (VP/HR) on Iraq and Syria, -- having regard to Resolution 2091 (2016) Foreign fighters in Syria and Iraq adopted by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on 27 January 2016, -- having regard to the statement of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, of 25 August 2014 on 'Iraqi civilians suffering "horrific" widespread and systematic persecution', -- having regard to the recent UN Security Council resolutions on Iraq and Syria, in particular Resolution 2249 (2015) condemning recent terrorists attacks by ISIS and Resolution 2254 (2015), endorsing a road map for the peace process in Syria and setting a timetable for talks, -- having regard to Resolution S-22/1 adopted by the UN Human Rights Council on 'The human rights situation in Iraq in the light of abuses committed by the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and associated groups', of 3 September 2014, -- having regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948, -- having regard to the UN Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Intolerance and of Discrimination based on Religion and Belief of 1981, -- having regard to the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment of 1984, -- having regard to the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide of 9 December 1948, -- having regard to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, in particular Articles 5 to 8 thereof, -- having regard to the Analysis Framework by the Office of the UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide (OSAPG), -- having regard to the statement of 12 August 2014 by the Special Adviser of the UN Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide and the Special Adviser of the UN Secretary-General on the Responsibility to Protect on the situation in Iraq, -- having regard to the Report of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on the human rights situation in Iraq in the light of abuses committed by the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant and associated groups, of 27 March 2015, in particular paragraph 16 thereof on 'Violations Perpetrated by ISIL -- Attacks against religious and ethnic groups', -- having regard to the statement of 13 October 2015 by the Special Adviser of the UN Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide and the Special Adviser of the UN Secretary-General on the Responsibility to Protect on the escalation of incitement to violence in Syria on religious grounds, -- having regard to the Report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic, presented in the Human Rights Council on 13 August 2015, in particular paragraphs 165 to 173 thereof, -- having regard to Rule 123(2) and (4) of its Rules of Procedure, A. whereas, as recognised by UN Security Council Resolution 2249 (2015), the violent extremist ideology of the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh', its terrorist acts, its continued gross systematic and widespread attacks directed against civilians, abuses of human rights and violations of international humanitarian law, including those perpetrated on religious or ethnic grounds, and its eradication of cultural heritage and trafficking of cultural property constitute a global and unprecedented threat to international peace and security; B. whereas religious and ethnic minorities, such as Christian (Chaldean/Syriac/Assyrian, Melkite and Armenian), Yazidi, Turkmens, Shabak, Kaka'i, Sabae-Mandean, Kurdish and Shi'a communities, as well as many Arabs and Sunni Muslims, have been targeted by the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh'; whereas many have been killed, slaughtered, beaten, subjected to extortion, abducted and tortured; whereas they have been enslaved (in particular women and girls, who have also been subjected to other forms of sexual violence) and forcibly converted, and have been victims of forced marriage and trafficking in human beings; whereas children have also been forcibly recruited; whereas mosques, monuments, shrines, churches and other places of worship, tombs and cemeteries have been vandalised; C. whereas genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes, wherever and whenever they happen, must not go unpunished, and whereas their effective prosecution must be ensured by taking measures at national level, by enhancing international cooperation and through the International Criminal Court and international criminal justice; D. whereas genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes are of concern to all EU Member States, which are determined to cooperate with a view to preventing such crimes and putting an end to the impunity of their perpetrators, in accordance with Council Common Position 2003/444/CFSP of 16 June 2003; E. whereas UN Security Council Resolution 2249 (2015) authorises those member states that have the capacity to do so to take all necessary measures, in compliance with international law, in particular with the United Nations Charter, and with international human rights, refugee and humanitarian law, on the territory under the control of the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh', in Syria and Iraq, to redouble and coordinate their efforts to prevent and suppress terrorist acts; F. whereas the international legal definition of genocide, in accordance with Article II of the 1948 UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, includes the words: 'any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or religious group, as such: (a) killing members of the group; (b) causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group; (c) deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part; (d) imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; and (e) forcibly transferring children of one group to another group'; whereas Article III of that Convention considers punishable not only genocide, but conspiracy to commit genocide, direct and public incitement to commit genocide, and complicity in genocide; G. whereas since 2014 an estimated 5 000 Yazidis have been killed, while many others have been tortured or forcibly converted to Islam; whereas at least 2 000 Yazidi women have been enslaved, and made victims of forced marriage and trafficking; whereas girls as young as six have been raped and Yazidi children have been forcibly recruited as soldiers for the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh'; whereas there is clear evidence of mass graves of Yazidi people abducted by the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh'; H. whereas on the night of 6 August 2014 more than 150 000 Christians fled the advance of the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh' over Mosul, Qaraqosh and other villages in the Nineveh Plains, having been robbed of all their belongings, and whereas to date they remain displaced and in precarious conditions in northern Iraq; whereas the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh' captured those who were unable to flee from Mosul and the Nineveh Plains, and whereas non-Muslim women and children were enslaved, with some being sold and others brutally killed and filmed by the perpetrators; I. whereas in February 2015 the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh' kidnapped more than 220 Assyrian Christians after overrunning several farming communities on the southern bank of the Khabur river in the north-eastern province of Hassakeh, and whereas to date only a few have been released, while the fate of the others remains unknown; J. whereas several reports by UN bodies, including the Special Adviser of the UN Secretary-General on the Prevention of Genocide, the Special Adviser of the UN Secretary-General on the Responsibility to Protect and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, have stated that acts committed by the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh' may amount to war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide; K. whereas the International Independent Commission of Inquiry has documented and reported that persons from ethnic and religious minorities opposing the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh' and other terrorist groups, militias and non-state armed groups in areas under their de facto control continue to be persecuted; L. whereas, according to the 'Responsibility to Protect' (R2P) principles, when a state (or non-state actor) manifestly fails to protect its population or is in fact a perpetrator of such crimes, the international community has a responsibility to take collective action to protect populations, in accordance with the UN Charter; M. whereas under international law each individual has the right to live according to his or her conscience and to freely hold and change religious and non-religious beliefs; whereas political and religious leaders have a duty at all levels to combat extremism and to promote mutual respect among individuals and religious groups; 1. Recalls its strong condemnation of the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh' and its egregious human rights abuses, which amount to crimes against humanity and war crimes, within the meaning of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), and that action should be taken for it to be recognised as genocide by the UN Security Council; is extremely concerned at this terrorist group's deliberate targeting of Christians (Chaldeans/ Syriacs/Assyrians, Melkites, Armenians), Yazidis, Turkmens, Shi'ites, Shabaks, Sabeans, Kaka'i and Sunnis who do not agree with their interpretation of Islam, as part of its attempts to exterminate any religious and ethnic minorities from the areas under its control; 2. Expresses its view that the persecution, atrocities and international crimes amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity; stresses that the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh' is committing genocide against Christians and Yazidis, and other religious and ethnic minorities, who do not agree with the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh' interpretation of Islam, and that this therefore entails action under the 1948 United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide; underlines the fact that those who intentionally, for ethnic or religious reasons, conspire in, plan, incite, commit or attempt to commit, are complicit in or support atrocities should be brought to justice and prosecuted for violations of international law, notably war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide; 3. Urges each of the Contracting Parties to the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, signed at Paris on 9 December 1948, and to other relevant international agreements, in particular the EU Member States, to prevent war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide within their territory; urges Syria and Iraq to accept the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court; 4. Urges the members of the UN Security Council to support a referral by the Security Council to the International Criminal Court in order to investigate violations committed in Iraq and Syria by the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh' against Christians, Yazidis and religious and ethnic minorities; 5. Urges each of the Contracting Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, of 1948, and to other international agreements for the prevention and punishment of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, and in particular the competent authorities of countries -- and their nationals -- which are in any way supporting, cooperating in or funding, or are complicit in, these crimes, to wholly fulfil their legal obligations under the convention and such other international agreements; 6. Urges the competent authorities of those countries which are in any way directly or indirectly supporting, cooperating in or funding, or are complicit in, these war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide, to wholly fulfil their legal obligations under international law and to stop these unacceptable behaviours, which are causing enormous damage to the Iraqi and Syrian societies and are seriously destabilising neighbouring countries and international peace and security; 7. Recalls that UN Security Council Resolution 2253 imposed a legal duty on UN member states to prohibit any kind of assistance to the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh' and other terrorist organisations, notably supplying arms and financial assistance, including the illegal oil trade, and urges them to make this kind of assistance a crime under domestic law; recalls that failure to act in consequence by some member states would constitute a violation of international law and endow other member states with a legal duty to implement the UN Security Council resolution by acting to bring the responsible individuals and entities to justice; 8. Denounces in the strongest terms the destruction of religious and cultural sites and artefacts by the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh', which constitutes an attack against the cultural heritage of all inhabitants of Syria and Iraq and of humanity at large; calls on all states to step up their criminal investigations and judicial cooperation with a view to identifying all groups responsible for illicit trafficking in cultural goods and for damaging or destroying cultural heritage that belongs to all of humanity in Syria, Iraq and the broader Middle East and North African regions; 9. Urges all the countries of the international community, including the EU Member States, to work actively on fighting radicalisation and to improve their legal and jurisdictional systems in order to avoid their nationals and citizens being able to travel to join the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh' and participate in violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, and to ensure that, should they do so, they are criminally prosecuted as soon as possible, including for online incitement and support to commit those crimes; 10. Calls for the EU to establish a permanent Special Representative for Freedom of Religion and Belief; 11. Recognises, supports and demands respect by all for the inalienable right of all ethnic and religious minorities, and others, living in Iraq and Syria, to continue to live in their historical and traditional homelands in dignity, equality and safety, and to fully practise their religion and beliefs freely without being subject to any kind of coercion, violence or discrimination; believes that, in order to stem the suffering and the mass exodus of Christians, Yazidis and other communities of the region, a clear and unequivocal statement by all regional political and religious leaders in support of their continued presence and full and equal rights as citizens of their home countries is imperative; 12. Requests the international community and its member states, including the EU and its Member States, to ensure the necessary security conditions and prospects for all those who have been forced to leave their homeland or have been forcibly displaced, to make effective as soon as possible their right to return to their homelands, to preserve their homes, land, property and belongings, as well as their churches and religious and cultural sites, and to be able to have a dignified life and future; 13. Recognises that the ongoing persecution of religious and ethnic groups in the Middle East is a factor that contributes to mass migration and internal displacement; 14. Stresses the importance of the international community providing protection and aid, including military protection and aid, in accordance with international law, to all those targeted by the so-called 'ISIS/Daesh' and other terrorist organisations in the Middle East, such as ethnic and religious minorities, and of such people's participation in future political lasting solutions; calls on all parties involved in the conflict to respect universal human rights and to facilitate the provision of humanitarian aid and assistance through all possible channels; calls for the creation of humanitarian corridors; considers that safe havens, protected by UN-mandated forces, could be part of the answer to the massive challenge of providing temporary protection for millions of refugees from the conflict in Syria and Iraq; 15. Reaffirms its full and active support for international diplomatic efforts and the work of UN Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura aimed at launching peace negotiations in Geneva between all Syrian parties, with the participation of all the relevant global and regional players, in the coming days, as well as his proposals for local ceasefires; calls for the EU and the international community to put pressure on all donors to fulfil their promises and to fully commit themselves to providing financial support for the host countries, especially ahead of the Syria donors' conference in London on 4 February 2016; 16. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the EU Special Representative for Human Rights, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the Government and Parliament of Syria, the Government and Council of Representatives of Iraq, the Regional Government of Kurdistan, the institutions of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (Gulf Cooperation Council, GCC), the United Nations Secretary-General, the United Nations General Assembly, the UN Security Council and the UN Human Rights Council. (1) Texts adopted, P8_TA(2014)0011. (2) Texts adopted, P8_TA(2014)0027. (3) Texts adopted, P8_TA(2014)0066. (4) Texts adopted, P8_TA(2015)0040. (5) Texts adopted, P8_TA(2015)0071. (6) Texts adopted, P8_TA(2015)0076. (7) Texts adopted, P8_TA(2015)0079. (8) Texts adopted, P8_TA(2015)0178. (9) Texts adopted, P8_TA(2015)0179. (10) Texts adopted, P7_TA(2013)0180. (11) OJ L 118, 14.5.2003, p. 12. February 3, 2016 Egypt's worsening human rights abuses are not going unnoticed. People are being assaulted on many fronts, from travel restrictions and false imprisonment to limits on freedom of expression, torture and killings. In an example of this trend, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi issued a presidential decree Jan. 13 designating 100 acres of land for construction of the new Giza Central Prison, a huge structure and its ancillary buildings, in the Giza desert. Sisi, and Adly Mansour before him, approved 16 new prisons in only 2 years in response to the detention of thousands of young people. Some facilities are still under construction. The number of prisons in Egypt has risen from 42 to 52 since 2011, according to Gamal Eid, executive director of the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information. During the rule of the Military Council, and that of deposed President Mohammed Morsi, Egyptian authorities had asserted that Egyptian prisons were free of political prisoners and detainees. However, current rights groups estimate 10,000 detainees are under investigation or awaiting trial in detention centers and prisons, and Eid wrote in a Jan. 13 Twitter post that Egypt now houses around 60,000 political prisoners. There are no official statistics on the number of inmates in Egyptian prisons. Recently, security agencies have investigated the fate of around 120 Egyptians out of a total of 200 detainees reported to have disappeared under suspicious circumstances, most of them anti-state activists. The Ministry of Interior informed the National Council for Human Rights in Egypt that the aforementioned were either being held pending investigations, were acquitted or escaped prison and are now being sought by authorities. After a series of incidents in which unarmed civilians were tortured and even killed by police officers inside and outside detention centers in past months, and the subsequent boisterous protests that sometimes required presidential intervention, the prosecutor generals office put a number of police officers on trial, some of whom were preliminarily put in prison or received other sentences. Egypt is experiencing an assault on the freedoms of opinion and expression at the hands of security services, under the pretext of safeguarding national security, as per a statement published by the Arabic Network for Human Rights Information. The statement condemned the arrest of journalists and a number of activists affiliated with certain social movements, primarily the April 6 Youth Movement. The movement has said it considers the regimes attempts to crush it as "failures," further characterizing this era of Egypts judiciary as bleak. The Arabic Network views such oppressive conduct as a continuation of the rabid campaign waged by authorities against all factions affiliated with the January 25 Revolution ahead of its commemoration. In a related incident on Jan. 14, Cairo airport authorities detained poet Omar Hazek and prevented him from traveling to the Netherlands to receive the Oxfam Novib/PEN International Free Expression Award. The incident with Hazek was not the first of its kind. Rights lawyer Tarek Elawady was also detained upon returning from Doha on Jan. 9 when, as he recounted, the scan of his passport raised a warning notification that he was wanted immediately. Elawady noted that detention without legal justification is a crime under the Egyptian Constitution. That same day, security forces raided the home of physician Taher Mokhtar, who was being visited by two of his friends. Officers searched the house and all three were taken to the police station and charged with possessing leaflets calling for the overthrow of the regime. They were further detained pending additional investigations. Mokhtar is a prominent activist calling for the reform of prison health services and a member of the campaign Medical Neglect in Prison is a Crime, which aims to guarantee all detainees their right to medical and health services. He also is an active member of the Doctors Syndicate Rights and Freedom Committee, which said on its website that Mokhtar was tasked by the syndicates board to follow up on the issue of detainee health conditions in police stations. Fourteen rights organizations and parties demanded the release of Mokhtar and his companions, saying the detention was a vindictive move against human rights defenders. Egyptian authorities are not content with merely preventing some citizens active in society from leaving the country. They also are barring the return of others who they allege pose a security risk. At the beginning of January, Egyptian authorities prevented researcher and university professor Amal Grami from entering the country because she was a threat to national security. Grami, who specializes in Islamic civilization and gender issues, was detained upon her arrival at Cairo International Airport. She was questioned for about 16 hours and her personal laptop and cellphone were searched. She was subsequently denied entry and deported back to Tunisia, an incident that rights organizations consider blatant police interference in academic liberties. Grami had been officially invited to speak at the anti-extremism international conference organized by the Library of Alexandria. She suggested her treatment was probably due to the sharp criticism she has leveled against Tunisian security agencies for their human rights violations. She said authorities might have considered her recent articles published in Egypts Al Shorouk newspaper as incitement against Egyptian state institutions, as events in Tunisia intersect with those in Egypt, given the past five years of revolutions in both countries. Grami added, No irony is greater than the fact that I am invited to give a lecture about 'Evaluation of Research Methods in Extremism and Terrorism Outcome and Proposals,' and then relegated to the same category as terrorists! In October, Alexandria University canceled, for security reasons, a lecture by Essam Heggy, a NASA scientist and former adviser to Mansour. Heggy is known for his critical views about the Egyptian government. After the cancellation, Heggy apologized to students via Facebook, writing, The administration of Alexandria University lacked the capacity to accommodate your enthusiasm and presence, and decided to cancel the lecture just one day before its date. I would like to thank the universitys administration for tirelessly endeavoring to maintain the homelands security, by barring a lecture about the discovery of the planet Mars. For his part, former Sisi campaign official Hazem Abdel Azim said, I am filled with sorrow when I assess the state of the country from [the January 25 Revolution] to date." He said joining Sisis campaign was the worst decision of his life. Amr Hamzawy, a political science professor at the American University in Cairo, said the ongoing oppression of free speech and liberties is beginning to create a republic of fear. February 3, 2016 GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip The Islamic University of Gaza which is one of the largest and most prestigious universities in the Gaza Strip has been battling a financial crisis for 2 years now. The repercussions of this crisis have started to clearly manifest; the university closed its gates for three days in January following disagreements between its administration and its staff union about the rights of employees at the university. The union subsequently resigned. The Islamic University, which was founded in 1978 as the first university in the Gaza Strip, is now suffering a severe financial crisis affecting the living standards of its staff. In mid-2014, the universitys administration issued a decision to implement a 40% reduction in the monthly salaries of its staff. These substantial income cuts led the university staff to resort to applying for financial aid provided by various charities. Riyad Shahin, a history professor at the Islamic University, who also serves as chairman of al-Riyad Charity Society in Gaza City, told Al-Monitor that some of the university staff have applied to his charity seeking financial support. He said, After the 40% salary cut, employees were no longer able to provide for their families. Some of them took out bank loans. The reduced salaries are not enough to cover their needs. Moreover, the delay in the payment of these salary cuts worsened the employees financial situation to the point that they sought the help of charities. We then provided them with financial aid. Shahin said that after the substantial salary cuts and the deduction of bank loans, the monthly salary of some employees dropped to less than $200 where it had been around $1,000 before which has forced many to sell their homes or cars. According to Kamal Ghoneim, former head of the staff union and professor of literature at the Islamic University, over the last 15 years, several factors have contributed to the financial crisis that now plagues one of Gazas largest higher education institutions. Ghoneim told Al-Monitor, One of the main causes that deepened the financial crisis is that the university has not raised its tuition fees during the past 15 years, taking into consideration the harsh economic conditions of the residents in the Gaza Strip. The Palestinian internal divide prevented the Islamic University just like other universities from obtaining its dues from the Ministry of Education and Higher Education in Ramallah. The amounts due are estimated at approximately $20 million. Ghoneim believes that the universitys rejection of a number of proposals made by the staff union to overcome the financial crisis and its execution of its own proposals such as the salary cuts that undermine the staffs interest and restrict their rights is yet another reason that further exacerbated the crisis. He said that the university implemented high salary cuts on a permanent basis and laid off a big part of its personnel. Ghoneim explained, We suggested that [faculties] coordinate in order to decrease the admission score rate so that a greater number of students could be accepted, launching educational projects such as the parallel education program, master's programs, endowments projects such as libraries and shops around the university, and residential towers that allow the university to spend money on students who are not able to pay. A number of other ideas [include] the ongoing flow of liquidity and uninterrupted education, so as not to remain under the mercy of grants from international and Arab organizations. Yet they have not been implemented given the administrations rejection. However, the university administration, which employs 400 people, continues to implement procedures such as reducing the employees salaries and the university expenses. Musheer Amer, director of public relations at the university, told Al-Monitor that they will continue with these procedures to resolve, or at least mitigate, the crisis in order for the university to survive and be financially and administratively stable. Amer noted that the university is affected by the Palestinian economic crisis, which made it necessary to take certain measures to face the crisis. He said, We suggested a 10% pay cut for the university administrative staff and academics, which will not be counted as part of their salary, to ease the financial crisis, and a 40% pay cut within their salary, which employees get back if there is money in the universitys treasury. Before the staff union resigned, they also rejected to increase the number of courses and hours of each professor and reduce the retirement age from 65 to 60 years old. Ayman al-Yazouri, deputy undersecretary of higher education at Gazas Education Ministry, told Al-Monitor that the other universities in the Gaza Strip are also plagued by the financial crisis. Their struggles, however, have not been revealed so far. Yazouri said that the Israeli blockade and economic crises in the Gaza Strip have cast their shadow on all public universities that operate to gain a profit, such as the Islamic University, as the economic situation of the students families keeps deteriorating. He added, Many students are not paying the university tuition fees due to financial issues, which has forced universities such as the Islamic University and Al-Azhar University to delay the payment of tuition fees for months or years after graduation. In addition to the employees salary cuts, Yazouri anticipates that the tuition fees might increase for some majors at the Islamic University in order to alleviate the crisis [they are facing]. Yet [this increase] will be made in a way that does not exceed the financial ceiling adopted by the other public universities. The financial crisis plaguing the Islamic University reveals that the higher education system in the Gaza Strip is economically vulnerable and raises the alarm to protect a number of big educational institutions in Gaza from collapse. February 3, 2016 The Islamic State is reviving an old ploy designed to recruit Sunnis by fomenting sectarian hatred. The January suicide bombings in Diyala province, which exemplify the strategy, heightened the fever between Shiites and Sunnis, especially as each side accuses the other of perpetrating the attacks. Some Sunni parties accuse the Shiite Popular Mobilization Units of attacking and burning down mosques, while Shiites point the finger at Sunnis, accusing them of supporting and protecting IS fighters. But IS which has portrayed itself as a protector of Sunni Arabs in Iraq and warned of a catastrophic fate for the Sunnis under what it considers Shiite rule is the biggest beneficiary of these events. It appears IS specifically is encouraging flare-ups in areas recently freed from its grip such as Abu Sayda, Baquba and Muqdadiyah. A suicide bombing occurred Jan. 11 in a popular cafe in Muqdadiyah's al-Asri neighborhood. As security forces and rescue workers arrived, a car bomb targeting the first responders exploded; the death toll reached 23 and 44 people were wounded. Another blast came the next day, targeting a security convoy near Baquba, 40 miles from Baghdad. That blast killed four security officers and wounded 11 people, including the provincial police intelligence director, Col. Qassem al-Anbaki. Reprisal acts on both sides have affected Sunni and Shiite areas equally. Following the terrorist explosions came extensive attacks on shops and more than a dozen mosques in Muqdadiyah, Balad Ruz and their suburbs. Iraqi officials and Popular Mobilization Units leaders were quick to control the situation and prevent its spread. Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi visited Diyala province Jan. 14 and Jan. 19. During his first visit, he issued strict directives on the need to punish and arrest those who attacked the mosques, protect public property in the province and firmly deal with those causing sectarian sedition. Hadi al-Amiri, a Popular Mobilization Units administrator and head of the Shiite Badr Organization a political party and militia with wide influence in Diyala province issued a statement Jan. 12 strongly condemning the attacks on the mosques in Diyala and the targeting of media figures, referring to the assassinations that day of an al-Sharqiya Channel reporter and cameraman by unknown assailants. Amiri also visited Muqdadiyah on Jan. 19 and stressed that the Popular Mobilization Units at the service of the citizens of Muqdadiyah are keen to preserve its stability and security. On the other hand, the targeting of Sunni centers has raised the ire of various Sunni leaders. The National Forces Alliance, the largest parliamentary bloc representing Sunni provinces, said it boycotted the parliamentary and government session Jan. 19 to protest the targeting of Sunnis in Diyala province. The Sunni Supreme Coordinating Committee, led by Osama al-Nujaifi, demanded that the United Nations be contacted about the Diyala events and asked for international protection for the Sunni Arabs in Iraq. In the same vein, on Jan. 13, the Association of Muslim Scholars called for Muslim governments to intervene to protect Sunnis by addressing global human rights organizations regarding the Iraqi governments crimes and by holding it fully responsible for the massacres and tragedies in Sunni cities. No action on the matter has been taken yet. Diyala has experienced sectarian tensions for years, as the province includes Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds. Diyala is located between Baghdad and Iran, which shares a long border with Iraq. This makes Diyala the perfect location for any Shiite or Sunni parties seeking to encourage sectarian and ethnic sedition between Sunnis and Shiites, or between Arabs and Kurds. The province experienced several waves of forced displacement in 2006 and 2007 after the bombing of the Askari shrine in Samarra in February 2006. Shiites were accused of displacing Sunnis in revenge for the mosques destruction. Al-Monitor talked with security officials who spoke on condition of anonymity. They said that Diyala province has IS sleeper cells and that the terrorist bombings on Jan. 11-12 were intended to provoke a reaction by the Shiite factions in the province against Sunnis which is exactly what happened. Uncontrolled groups of the Popular Mobilization Units reacted violently and randomly against the Sunnis in some areas of the province, according to security officials. However, no party claimed responsibility for the attacks. This is an old strategy that IS founder Abu Musab al-Zarqawi also employed (the organization was then known as al-Qaeda in Iraq). When al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri asked Zarqawi in 2005 not to target Shiites and to instead focus on US targets in Iraq, Zarqawi is reported to have responded, If we succeed in dragging them [Shiites] to a sectarian war, it would be possible to awaken the Sunnis, who would otherwise remain dormant if they dont feel an imminent threat of extermination at the hands of the Shiites. (Zarqawi was killed by US forces in 2006.) What happened in Diyala, and previously in other areas of Iraq during the height of the sectarian war (2006-2008), is likely to happen again. That would completely be in line with IS' use of Zarqawis strategy. IS wants to create a sectarian atmosphere to drive the Sunnis into IS arms, especially since the terrorist group has been acting to intimidate some Sunnis to fight in its ranks. The Iraqi government should be aware of this aim and try to prevent it. If Sunnis feel that the central government is not protecting them, that would undoubtedly play into the hands of IS and other terrorist organizations. Accordingly, decisively punishing those who attacked Sunni centers and taking strong action to prevent a recurrence would be important steps in this regard, especially in the areas that were recently liberated from IS grip. February 3, 2016 Israeli citizens are used to living under constant threat. Israel has been in an official state of war since the day it was founded in 1948. This is just part of the Israeli routine. In fact, it doesn't even prevent Israelis from being ranked first or second in terms of happiness, as evidenced in the UN World Happiness Report, polls by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and other surveys. Only one threat rouses Israelis to true panic: Hamas' tunnels. There is something about the tunnel phenomenon that elicits a deep fear in the toughest of Israelis. Residents of the Gaza envelope don't sleep so well thinking that Islamic jihadis might emerge at any given moment from the depths of the earth in the heart of a kibbutz to kill or abduct them and disappear without a trace. In recent weeks, this threat returned to the Israeli public's attention in a major way. On Feb. 3, Hamas announced the collapse of a tunnel in the midst of construction. Evidently, at least two Hamas activists or fighters were killed and eight injured. A similar collapse had occurred a few days earlier, killing seven people. Hamas had tried to hide these events, but without much success. According to the organization, the latter tunnel was the one kidnappers used to abduct the Israeli soldier Oron Shaul during Operation Protective Edge, in July 2014. Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh has confirmed that the movement is swiftly renovating its tunnel system. The Palestinians claim that they have already reached the same subterranean capabilities they had on the eve of Operation Protective Edge, but Israel's top brass believe that to be a wild exaggeration although no one doubts the digging operation is around the clock, in shifts. They are trying to fix as many tunnels as possible to allow Hamas to restore its assault capacity against the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). Hamas chose the tunnel system as a daring strategic weapon to compensate for its obvious weakness compared with the IDF in three battle-related arenas. Israel has air superiority, because its air force, one of the best in the world, enjoys full control of the skies, including use of some of the most sophisticated combat drones available. It became known only recently in the wake of documents from Edward Snowden's cache that Israels combat drones are armed, allowing it to attack targets and efficiently carry out targeted killings. Hamas is also no match for the IDF on the ground. The latter is larger and much better equipped and trained. The same holds true for naval superiority. Although the Palestinians established a naval commando, with stalwart scuba divers, they cannot compete with the fast boats of the Israeli navy. Thus all that remained for Mohammed al-Deif leader of Hamas military wing who during Operation Protective Edge survived the fifth attempt on his life was to find a sector where his organization would have a relative advantage over IDF soldiers. He searched, and he found it in the underground battlefield. Hamas views an abducted Israeli soldier as its biggest prize. The Israeli public cannot bear the thought of a kidnapped soldier being held prisoner by a terrorist organization. The national psychosis that developed around Gilad Shalit's abduction proved the truth of this hypothesis yet again. After holding Shalit a little more than five years (2006-11), Hamas received about a thousand Palestinian prisoners in exchange for him, one Israel soldier. Most of the prisoners were convicted murderers. The primary reason Hamas is building the tunnels is to facilitate the abduction of Israeli soldiers or civilians and drag them through the same tunnel to a hiding place prepared in advance. Hamas operatives in the depths of the tunnels are protected from aerial bombing, tank shells and even the IDFs infantry units. In trying to disable the tunnels during Operation Protective Edge, the Israeli air force dropped a large number of earth-penetrating JDAM bombs on tunnel shafts only later to find that they had caused only minor damage. All the enemy had to do was dig an alternative entrance nearby. In January, Gaza envelope residents filed a number of reports about noise from intensive digging, especially at night. Journalists and television crews flooded the area to record the sounds emitting from the ground, clearly audible for long hours of the day. The story made headlines in Israel, and the public wants clear answers from the IDF. According to current analysis, the Palestinians are far from finishing the tunnel renovations. At the height of the underground operations, Hamas had 32 tunnels, a large proportion of which crossed into Israeli territory. The updated assessment is that Hamas is in the throes of a renovation effort, and the IDF is unaware of any tunnels having penetrated Israeli territory thus far. There appears to be a sort of tunnel arms race, with the Palestinians trying to dig into Israeli territory, and Israel trying to develop a counter-deployment as the appropriate Zionist response. The Israelis call it the underground Iron Dome, referring to the anti-missile Iron Dome defense system. The tunnel defense is expected to allow effective recognition of tunnel-building activity with maximum accuracy. The US government recently authorized $120 million in special assistance for the development of such a system. Until it is in place, the IDF is considering beefing up protection around the Gaza envelope, sending infantry into the area and even conducting pre-emptive strikes. The latter option was recommended Jan. 31 by opposition leader Isaac Herzog. He said that if Israel is aware of the existence of assault tunnels, it must blow them up now, meaning before, not after, a catastrophe. The panic is exaggerated, a highly placed Israeli security source told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. Hamas is not ready for a clash with Israel at the moment. Their tunnel deployment now is far from the way it was before the Protective Edge campaign, and Israel is developing a mechanism for neutralizing the tunnels. The uproar is excessive. Nevertheless, anyone who has recently visited Gaza envelope locations cannot but be taken aback by the large quantity of heavy equipment deployed by the IDF for digging, drilling, maneuvering and wire-tapping at various spots in the area that is, wherever distraught residents have reported someone digging under their homes. Israel is hoping that Hamas wont try to break out if its isolation a second time via these tunnels from hell. Most of the houses that were destroyed in Gaza during Protective Edge are still in ruins, a senior Israeli officer for the Gaza envelope sector told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity. Hamas knows this, and is very aware of what will happen if they attack again. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a threat of his own: If we are attacked from tunnels from the Gaza Strip, well respond more powerfully that we did during the Protective Edge campaign. Maj. Gen. Yoav Poli Mordechai, coordinator of government activities in the territories, also sent a message to Gaza. Regardless, Israel is aware that the Gaza pressure cooker might be headed toward an explosion. To Gazas south, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is sealing tunnels and has closed the Rafah crossing because he views Hamas as a threat to his country's national security. To Gaza's west lies the Mediterranean Sea, controlled by the Israeli navy. The option left for Hamas is to challenge Israel underground to find a way out. Israel has risen to the challenge, and now the sides are asking themselves when, not if, the next round in Gaza will be. February 3, 2016 When Zionist Camp Knesset member Yoel Hasson asked if he could pay a visit to the Kida outpost to speak to the settlers there, the local residents agreed, eagerly. In the heart of the settlement movement, in a place where no one was likely to vote for him, Hasson engaged the settlers on Jan. 5 in one of the most fascinating political discussions he had ever had. It also happened to be one of the most relaxed. Kida is a communal village of 40 families founded in 2002. Hasson went there as part of his partys effort to reach out to new constituencies on the right and in the development (or periphery) towns. It was part of a program that emerged in response to the partys failure to win support among these constituencies in the March 2015 elections. In this particular case, however, Hasson knew that he wouldn't be winning new votes for his party. He simply sought to initiate a dialogue, thinking optimistically, On the day after an agreement is reached [with the Palestinians], we will all have to live together. Hasson grew up in the Likud. He followed Prime Minister Ariel Sharon when he quit Likud to found Kadima, then joined Tzipi Livni in creating the Hatnua Party and stayed with her when she merged the party into the Zionist Camp. This political history makes Hasson the ideal person in the Zionist Camp to lead efforts to reach out to the settlers. While Hasson embarked on his journey into the heart and soul of the right, a highly publicized feud broke out in the Labor Party, the larger partner in the Zionist Camp, over the diplomatic plan proposed by Zionist Camp leader Isaac Herzog. This feud has only served to exacerbate the public's sense that the Zionist Camp is still finding its way. In an interview with Al-Monitor, Hasson said he believes the Hatnua-Labor partnership will survive and take part in the next elections. He also thinks the Zionist Camp will find new voters in the larger settlement blocs. The text of the interview follows: Al-Monitor: Knesset member Hasson, isnt visiting Kida a waste of time for someone representing the Zionist Camp? Hasson: Absolutely not. This meeting was intended, first and foremost, to get to know one another and to prove that we can talk and engage in civil discourse despite the sharp differences between us. Regardless of what ultimately happens, we will still be living together in the end, within the same borders. It is obvious to me that no one in Kida voted for us or will vote for us, and actually, I have to admit that its a good feeling to go somewhere knowing in advance that your goal is not to convince anyone. We spoke for 2 hours. It was an honest and open dialogue despite the vast differences between us. I left feeling encouraged, because when the issue of the Palestinians came up, they raised it with a question mark instead of an exclamation point. They also realize that there is a demographic price to pay for keeping all the territories. Deep inside, they know that it is impossible for us to give blue [Israeli] identity cards to millions of Palestinians. When they started to talk about the resident status that the Arabs of East Jerusalem have, I used their own argument as a mirror. I told them that if they [the Palestinian permanent residents of East Jerusalem] decide tomorrow that they want to participate in Jerusalems municipal elections, the newly elected mayor of Jerusalem will be a Palestinian. It was moments like that during our conversation that caused me to feel like they also have some questions to ponder. They do not have obvious answers for everything. Al-Monitor: What was the biggest problem you faced talking to them? Hasson: I dont know how to answer their arguments that are based on faith or belief in God. One of the women said to me, Lets say I agree to be evacuated, but in the end, God doesnt allow me to leave. How can I argue with a faith that strong? I can say that a political decision cannot be based on something like that, but I can also understand her faith-based approach, even if I recognize that it is difficult to think diplomatically under such conditions. Our decision to begin with the hard core of the settler movement was intentional. Down the road, we plan to visit settlements in the settlement blocs that will remain part of Israel under any agreement. I intend to win over supporters there by putting the situation into sharper focus for them. When we treat Kida and [the settlement city of] Ariel the same way, we are actually putting Ariel and Gush Etzion [Etzion settlement bloc] at risk. That is why it is better if they [the settlers] did not compare the two. I believe wholeheartedly that the Zionist Camp is the one party that will advance the cause of the settlement blocs. Anyone who is evacuated will go live within those blocs. Al-Monitor: Do you really believe that anyone in Karnei Shomron or Ariel will vote for you? Hasson: I am confident that we can convince people in Ariel and Karnei Shomron to vote for the Zionist Camp. After all, we are the only party that considers preserving the settlement blocs to be an objective. We draw a distinction between Ariel and Gush Etzion on the one hand, and the tiny settlements and outposts along the central mountain ridge on the other hand. [Zionist Camp co-leader] Tzipi Livni was involved in formulating the Bush document, back when Ariel Sharon was prime minister [2004]. Sharon was the first, and so far the only, prime minister to succeed in obtaining an official American document stating that regardless of what diplomatic scenario unfolds, the settlement blocs will remain part of the State of Israel. Al-Monitor: It sounds as if you are adopting the same line as the right. Hasson: The Labor Party and Tzipi Livni [Hatnua] joined forces in an attempt to create a centrist party. About 800,000 people voted for us, but as impressive as that achievement was, it was not enough to bring us to power. One of the reasons was that we failed to relay the message that supporting a two-state solution is not a sign of weakness. On the contrary [it is a sign of strength]. The challenge before us is to explain that while we believe in a two-state solution, we do not plan to compromise on security. Furthermore, our position makes it possible for us to obtain international support for any military moves we must take. [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu has no international support, which is why he is so wary about using force. Beyond that, it is impossible to ignore the way the Palestinians have been acting. I claim that they also bear a large part of the responsibility for the process of radicalization underway, but also that they missed more than one opportunity [to reach an agreement]. They are now in a state of political chaos, which makes it impossible to reach an agreement. I can also understand the concern among the Israeli public that some [diplomatic] agreement or other will not last, given the current circumstances. One of the lessons we learned is that there is no reason for us to ignore the concerns and fears of our citizens. We shouldn't downplay or ridicule them, because in many cases, those fears really are justified. Al-Monitor: So whats the difference between you and Netanyahu? He also recognized the need for a two-state solution, but said that he didnt think that we could reach an agreement at present. Hasson: There is a vast difference between us. Ostensibly, Netanyahu is maintaining the status quo in Judea and Samaria, but the fact is that there is no such thing. The situation in Judea and Samaria is dynamic. Netanyahu is acting both openly and covertly to bring about a situation in which it will be impossible to implement separation between the Palestinians and us. I believe that this would be a very bad situation for the settlement blocs. Every tiny outpost threatens our ability to keep Ariel. I serve as the Knessets representative to the European Parliament, where I constantly hear them describing Ma'ale Adumim as a settlement. That is a problem. Ariel and Itamar are the same as far as the Europeans are concerned. That is the danger we face. Chaotic and unrestrained settlement activity threatens our ability to separate. Al-Monitor: What do you think about the way people in your party are attacking Herzog over his separation plan? Hasson: Sadly, Ive been seeing more spitefulness there than in any of the other parties Ive been in. I have experience being a member of a party that did not know how to back its leader. Thats what happened with Tzipi in Kadima. I am, therefore, fully aware of how that can destroy a party. It is important to back Herzog. We are living in a political system, and attacks of this sort arent necessarily innocent. There are personal interests at stake, especially when it comes to the battle over who will lead the Labor Party. The positive thing that is happening here is that the diplomatic dialogue is finally rising from its slumber. February 3, 2016 As the Middle Easts sectarian temperatures rise and the Saudi-Iranian geopolitical rivalry intensifies following Sheikh Nimr al-Nimrs execution, Gulf Arab leaders frequently invoke the concept of Gulf Cooperation Council unity. A deeper analysis reveals, however, that most of the smaller Arabian Peninsula kingdoms diplomatic actions against Tehran in January were cautious, measured and ultimately aimed at advancing their respective national interests instead of solidarity among GCC members. Qatar, which recalled its ambassador Jan. 6 but did not cut off ties with Tehran, is a case in point. Indeed, Dohas diplomatic gesture against Iran did signal solidarity with neighboring Saudi Arabia. Yet, Qatars limited action indicates that Doha continues to tread carefully in the grander Saudi-Iranian geopolitical rivalry. The Qataris appear committed to pursuing their traditional foreign policy strategy of playing off both Gulf powers conflicting agendas to advance the Persian Gulf emirates own geopolitical interests. Under Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thanis reign (1995-2013), Qatari-Iranian relations deepened significantly. Dohas outreach to Tehran, its support for the Muslim Brotherhood and the Qatari ownership of Al Jazeera all infuriated Riyadh officials, who frequently accused Doha of pursuing its own interests at the expense of the GCCs collective security. Saudi Arabia has often viewed Qatar as a thorn in its side and a challenge, despite its small size, to Riyadhs position as an anchor of the Gulfs geopolitical order. After the Arab Spring erupted across the region in 2011, analysts frequently referred to a Qatari-Saudi rivalry. At that time, Riyadh and Doha began competing to fill political vacuums in nations such as Egypt and Syria, based on their different visions for the Sunni Arab worlds future. Although growing Qatari-Iranian ties fueled tension between Doha and other GCC members, it was logical for Qatar to pursue an increasingly cooperative relationship with Tehran, given the emirates strategic interests and ambitions. A troubled history of distrustful relations with the Saudis, entailing border disputes and Riyadhs alleged interference in Dohas palace politics throughout the 1990s, prompted the Qataris to prioritize autonomy from Riyadhs geopolitical orbit. Deeper relations with Iran have been a means of achieving this independence. Qatars small Shiite minority, which has historically maintained positive relations with the Sunni majority, has never succumbed to significant Iranian influence. Accordingly, officials in Doha, unlike their counterparts in Riyadh and Manama, have never felt too threatened by a possible Iranian-inspired Shiite revolution in Qatar. In contrast to other GCC states, Qatar has often viewed Iran as part of the solution to regional security dilemmas. For example, in 2010, Doha signed a bilateral agreement with Tehran to combat terrorism and promote security cooperation. Four years earlier, Qatar was the only UN Security Council member to vote against Resolution 1696, which called on Iran to halt its uranium enrichment program. Strong economic bonds with Iran factor significantly in Dohas strategic calculations. Sharing North Dome/South Pars (the worlds largest natural gas field) with Iran, the Qatari leadership is motivated to address problems in Arab-Iranian relations using dialogue rather than hostility. Unquestionably, a military conflict in the Gulf involving Iran could threaten both Doha and Tehrans development of North Dome/South Pars. Thus, it was unsurprising that soon after the the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany and Tehran reached their watershed nuclear agreement, Qatars foreign minister welcomed it and declared that the deal will make the Middle East safer. In March 2014, Qatar experienced a crisis after Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates recalled their ambassadors from Doha. The action was an outcome of the aforementioned tensions between Qatar and these GCC members, which accused Doha of meddling in their domestic affairs. Saudi Arabia even threatened Qatar with a land and sea blockade. Realizing that Qatar had paid a major price for his fathers controversial foreign policy, Qatar's young emir, who inherited the throne in 2013, made substantial efforts to mend Qatari-Saudi ties. By November 2014, the three GCC states had sent their ambassadors back to Doha to end the eight-month rift. Qatar and Saudi Arabias alignment on the crises in Syria and Yemen has contributed to this easing of tension between the two monarchies. The new Saudi leader, King Salman bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud, has also softened the kingdoms tone toward the Muslim Brotherhood, viewing the Sunni Islamist group as a rather useful ally in his campaign to counter Iranian influence across the region. For this reason, Salman views the support of Qatar and Turkey for the Muslim Brotherhood with far less anxiety compared to his predecessor. At this sensitive juncture, Doha is determined to strike a balance that enables Qatar to reap all the benefits of an increasingly cooperative relationship with Iran, while building upon the emirs success in defusing tension with Saudi Arabia. This balance was on display after hundreds of Iranians ransacked Riyadhs embassy in Tehran. Qatar did recall its ambassador to Iran as a gesture of solidarity with Saudi Arabia, but did not follow Bahrain and Sudans lead by severing ties. That Qatar was the last GCC state to take diplomatic action against Tehran, coupled with the announcement coming from the Asian Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs not from the royal family underscored how carefully the Qataris played their cards. (Not lost in the equation was the fact that last December, Iranian-backed Shiite militias in Iraq took members of Qatars royal family captive, which further prompted Doha to avoid excessively antagonizing Iran.) As tension escalates between Riyadh and Tehran, causing the Middle Easts sectarian tensions to rise to the highest levels since the Iran-Iraq War, smaller GCC members such as Qatar will continue to feel the heat. The extent to which Qatar can continue balancing Saudi Arabia and Irans interests against one another without choosing sides remains to be seen. As Qatar continues to join the Saudis in waging proxy wars against Iran in Syria and Yemen while promoting a dialogue with post-sanctions Iran and cooperating in their respective energy sectors Doha is likely to leave Riyadh and Tehran guessing about its next move. Neither will be totally pleased with Qatars relatively independent foreign policy. February 3, 2016 Turkish involvement in the Syrian war has been heavily dominated by Islamist fighters, but the conflict has also drawn in an unlikely quarter Turkish nationalists. The far-right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) and its youth branch, the Idealist Hearths, have recently come into the spotlight with high-profile losses on the Syrian battlefield. The MHP is the main body of Turkeys ultranationalist movement, also known as the Gray Wolves, whose hall of fame includes failed papal assassin Mehmet Ali Agca. The Alperen Hearths, the youth branch of the smaller Great Union Party, which represents the ultranationalist movements Islamist-leaning wing, are also visibly interested in the Syrian war. The reason Turkish ultranationalists have gone to fight in Syria is the Turkmens, the ethnically Turkish minority that has increasingly found itself in Russia's cro sshairs. After the Russian airstrikes began Sept. 30, military operations targeting Bayir Bucak, the Turkmen region in the Latakia countryside, intensified. Turkeys ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), meanwhile, stirre d public sensitivities over the Turkmens, and the government propaganda most resonated in the ultranationalist quarter. While Turkish Islamists were regulars on the jihadi scene from Afghanistan and Chechnya to Bosnia and Kosovo, the ultranationalists had only taken feeble interest only in Chechnyas independence struggle. Hence, their role in Syria comes as an unprecedented cross-border venture. The latest ultranationalist casualty in Syria to make the headlines was Ibrahim Kucuk, the deputy head of the MHP branch in Istanbuls Fatih district. He was killed in a Russian raid on Mount Turkmen in Bayir Bucak, where he had fought for two months. A well-known leader in the Islamic community led the prayers at his funeral in Istanbul last week; among the senior MHP lawmakers attending were Oktay Vural, Celal Adan and Meral Aksener. An even more noteworthy mourner was Alparslan Celik the Turkish fighter in Syria who shot dead the pilot who ejected from the Russian jet Turkey downed in November. A number of Turkmen units have been created in Syria under Turkeys guidance and named after Ottoman rulers such as Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror, Yavuz Sultan Selim, Sultan Murat and Abdulhamid Khan. Unsurprisingly, the accompanying rhetoric has turned into a propaganda about defending Ottoman lands or homeland defense, as if a struggle were underway against a foreign occupier. Both those slogans and the names of the Turkmen groups ring out as yet another reflection of President Recep Tayyip Erdogans neo-Ottoman aspirations. The news of Kucuks death, for instance, circulated on social media as his martyrdom during the homeland defense at Mount Turkmen. Similarly, Celik the man in the crosshairs of Russian intelligence, according to the Turkish media says, The lands that are the relic of our ancestors are today under Russian bombardment. Almost all our villages there have been seized by the Russians. Celik, who has held senior posts in the Idealist Hearths, is a commander in the Second Coastal Division operating in the Latakia region. One of his fighters, fellow Idealist Hearths member Burak Misinci, was killed in July, and his funeral in Istanbul was also honored by high-level MHP figures. In addition to younger members of the Idealist Hearths, MHP members in senior positions have turned up in Syria as well. The heads of two district MHP branches in Istanbul, for instance, have shared pictures on social media posing in war gear at Mount Turkmen. After the war in Syria erupted, Islamists emerged as Turkeys main intervention tool, to no one's surprise. In 2014, however, stories began to appear in the media suggesting an ultranationalist link. A March 2014 report about the funeral of an Idealist Hearth activist killed in Aleppo was quite confusing. Prominent figures attended the funeral and Syrian Turkmen representatives paid a condolence visit to the family. Another surprise came the following month when Adil Orli, commander of the Turkmen Martyrs Brigade, a group known to have collaborated with the Turkish National Intelligence Organization (MIT) in arming Syrian Turkmens, visited local MHP leaders in Istanbul. The ultranationalist fighters figure mostly in the Second Coastal Division, in whose creation Turkey played a direct role. The group was formed in July 2015 as an umbrella organization for groups such as the Mount Turkmen Brigade, Muntasir Billah, the Sultan Mehmet the Conqueror Brigade, the Yavuz Sultan Selim Brigade, the 1071 Raiders and the Sultan Murad Brigade, whose representatives had gathered in Ankara to coordinate. The leadership of the umbrella group included Orli as a field commander. The meeting, held amid allegations that Syrian Kurds were committing ethnic cleansing against Turkmens following their capture of Tell Abyad from the Islamic State, resulted in another important agreement. According to leaks to pro-government media outlets, the decision entailed the creation of a 5,000-strong Turkmen army with the support of the MIT and the Turkish military. Soon, social media accounts linked to the Idealist Hearths and the Alperen Hearths began trumpeting that Damascus and Russian forces were committing a Turkmen genocide, urging the Turkish public to stand up against the tyrants. In November, the Alperen Hearths held a demonstration at the Russian Consulate in Istanbul to denounce Russian air raids on Mount Turkmen. The neighboring Dutch Consulate also got its share of the protesters eggs, thrown in error. The homeland defense label for the battles on Mount Turkmen became more and more frequent on social media. In the same vein, the head of an association supporting the Turkmens, Mehmet Ali Ozturk, argued that the onslaught on Bayir Bucak was in fact a move against Turkey via the Turkmens. He added, The services the AKP government launched in the Ottoman hinterland have raised questions of whether the Ottoman Empire is being revived, and this has caused anxiety among international powers. The Turkmens are a sensitive matter for Turkey. We are Turks, we are Turkmens, we are sensitive on this issue. The fears over the price tag of Turkish Islamists fighting in jihadist ranks are now amplified by the ultranationalists. In a country whose government has always been able to use the ultranationalists, a critical question pops up: What is the state going to do with ultranationalist mujahedeen with combat experience? Kemal Can, a journalist and the author of books on the ultranationalist movement, believes that state inducement is a major reason behind the ultranationalist venture in Syria. In remarks to Al-Monitor, Can offered the following assessment: One has to look at their links with the state rather than their ideological links. This quarter has been a useful resource for state operations. In the past, those people have been used in very professional operations. I think the grass roots and the organizational ranks are not very much engaged on the Turkmen issue. The ideological link is not as strong as in the involvement of the Islamists. I think that, directly or indirectly, the state link is the decisive one. Despite the loud controversy, the Syrian experience will not radicalize the ultranationalist base as expected, though it could have some other consequences. Certainly, the veteran operational cadres will be enriched from the states point of view. The ultranationalists are the most fertile pool for secret operations. Many opposition groups labeled the Free Syrian Army have in time shifted to a Salafi mindset. How the war will transform Turkeys ultranationalists is an important question. The Turkmen groups in which they fight have developed close links with Salafi jihadi organizations such as al-Qaeda franchise Jabhat al-Nusra. This will inevitably leave a residue. This story appears in Birmingham magazine's February 2016 Issue. Subscribe today! It's been twelve years since Mallory Smith and her family moved into their Birmingham home, and she's almost got it just as she wants it--almost. Over the years, the decorator has knocked out walls, torn out carpet and ripped out molding. Although she still has a few items on her to do list, this house--with its fine antiques from France and neutral color palette--is elegant, yet comfortable and cozy all at the same time, which sums up the decorator's philosophy and style. "I love rustic elegance," she says. "I love a formal but comfortable feeling. That means you're not scared to sit down. I love antiques and clean lines, but I think you have to bring in the rustic. To me, that's what makes it beautiful." Her latest projects are fine examples of just that beauty. She started working on her downstairs areas in October by painting the walls a classic white. Then, she removed all the crown molding and raised the door frames to eight feet. The extra height creates an optical illusion. Mallory says, "The ceilings are nine feet, but they look 10." In the den off the kitchen, she ripped out dated book shelves and the mantle. The new mantle looks like limestone but is actually stucco. It is flanked with antique consoles topped with old French jardinieres, or planters. The den, like the rest of the house, is peppered with fine antiques that Mallory and her family have collected over the years. Her mother Frances Standford and sister Ginny Smith own Maison de France Antiques in Leeds, so Mallory is frequently updating her collection with their new finds from France. Some of her favorite antiques are out of old Catholic churches, from altar candles to decorative doors. While the antiques add elegance to the space, wooden ceiling beams bring a rustic feel and also connect the den to the adjoining kitchen. When the family moved into the house, a standard-sized door connected the kitchen and den. Mallory opened the entry of the two rooms and added a wooden beam to the top of the doorframe. The kitchen ceiling also features rustic wooden beams. She added new cabinetry, as well, and topped them with classic Alabama white marble countertops. An antique French buffet de corps houses crystal and china, but the ornate piece is the real star. A small antique wooden, round table serves as the breakfast table. Formerly, she used the piece as a desk in her Cahaba Heights shop, Mallory Smith Interiors. Mallory says she loves finding new uses for old things. For instance, instead of a plain pantry door, she replaced hers with an antique one from France. The effect is, again, elegant, yet rustic. Upstairs, the remodeled master suite bath and closet has the same impact. The master bath was dated, and the closet small. Again, the decorator tore out walls and completely redefined the space. Where the tub used to be is now an elegant closet space, filled with mirrors and lots of storage. This is another one of Mallory's optical illusions. Though the actual floor space in the closet is small, it looks large thanks to the mirrored cabinets, and inside them, there's a ton of storage. She decorated the closet with vintage fashion prints and shopping bags collected over the years. The bathroom underwent a transformation, as well. A long vanity is now two separate ones with white marble tops. They are separated by double doors that lead into the bedroom. The antique silver-framed mirrors above the his-and-her vanities are Mallory's favorites. The old aclove tub was replaced with a free-standing one. A gold starburst mirror decorates the wall above it. The tiny shower was updated with a larger one with frameless, glass walls that reach the ceiling, creating the clean lines Mallory so loves. The floors in the shower are marble in a herringbone pattern. While there's much to love in this space, Mallory says her favorite part of the new bath is the small balcony. She contemplated having a window there, but then decided on a balcony with rounded French doors. The ornate ironwork of the balcony was designed by Mallory and created by her brother-in-law, Ben Smith, of Welding Wood. He also created the iron bed frame in the master. In this space, Mallory again stuck to her theme of rustic elegance. The neutral linen bedding is from Pom Pom at Home. A pair of antique French tapestry curtains decorate the walls, and a simple cowhide rug covers the hardwood floors. Like the rest of the house, the master bedroom has Mallory's simple yet elegant style, but she says there are still some finishing touches and tweaks to be made. However, when it comes to the bath and closet, well, those are complete in every way, she says. "I could live in here," Mallory says of the bath and closet spaces. "It just has everything I need. I love it." IMG_0621.jpg From left to right: David Brown, David Swatzell, Blake Wimberley (Photo by Wes Frazer) This story appears in Birmingham magazine's February 2016 Issue. Subscribe today! The Birmingham music scene is full of bands poised to make it big in 2016. Perhaps no other band is set to have a kickin' year like three-piece rockers WRAY. Indeed bassist/vocalist David Brown, guitarist/vocalist David Swatzell, and drummer Blake Wimberly had a busy winter. In early January, they collaborated with the Alabama Symphony and composer William Brittelle, who reworked their dreamy music into a grand orchestral sound. In mid-January, the band--represented by the perpetually cool Magic City record label Communicating Vessels--will release its first full-length album, "Hypatia," which took about a year to record. (Expect a midnight show at Seasick Records around the time of the release.) But what do you need to know about this soon-to-be-hot band? Here are six cool facts: THEY CALL THEIR SOUND "DREAM POP" AND MORE When I met the guys at Satellite coffee shop on a recent sunny Sunday afternoon, I lamented that I didn't know how to describe the band's sound. "That's good!" Wimberly exclaims. But after pressing a bit more, Brown offers: "We do not really want to wear our influences on our sleeves but we kind of do. It's kind of the nature of the brand of music we play. So I don't think we like to claim that we're a shoegaze band, but that's something that gets thrown around with our band. I think we all grew up listening to that stuff so that's a huge influence for us ... yeah, and I'd say dream pop and post-punk and Kraut ... you can take all those genres and put them into something and that's probably our music." THEY'RE MAGIC CITY BRED The guys all grew up in Birmingham - or, rather, the Magic City suburbs. They attended Oak Mountain (Brown), Hoover (Swatzell), and Pleasant Grove high schools (Wimberly). WRAY WAS "BORN" AT BOTTLETREE CAFE Both Davids have known each other for a while, and they've been active in the Birmingham music scene for a decade as members of the same bands. Brown and Wimberly didn't meet until about three years ago, when Swatzell introduced them one night at the quintensential Birmingham venue: the now-defunct Bottletree Cafe.. Not too long afterward, WRAY was formed. THE NEW ALBUM IS MORE COMPLETE "The first release was more or less an EP of all the songs we had written," Brown says. But the new album, "Hypatia"? "It is more of an album. We were consciously trying to make a more cohesive record ... It has parts that bleed in from other songs and has interludes. Some instrumental tracks, and those sort of things-- concepts you can use to fill out an album." THE TITLE TRACK IS A MUST-LISTEN The band agrees. Brown says, "It paved the way and set the mood for the rest of the album. I don't know if it's my favorite, but it's a very fitting song for our new record." Swatzell adds, "I think it has all our influences in that song. All of those pieces coming together. And it's an easy song, it's not in your face, it's not too mellow, it's kind of like right in between." YOU'LL FIND THE GUYS HANGING OUT AT... If you're looking for them, check out Trimtab, Saturn or Satellite, Seasick Records, and the Avondale bar Parkside. Chris Lu at Buck Mulligan's 02.04.16 Deputy Secretary of Labor Chris Lu (right) speaks to a roundtable at Buck Mulligan's on Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016 to support Birmingham raising its minimum wage to $10.10. Council President Johnathan Austin, right, listens. The Obama administration will do whatever it can to support Birmingham raising its minimum wage to $10.10 an hour, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Labor Chris Lu said at an event in Birmingham Thursday. Lu led a business roundtable at Buck Mulligan's in Five Points South composed of local government leaders, activists and local workers in support of raising the minimum wage. "Birmingham is really setting a path," Lu said. "Wherever there is a city or state that wants to take on this fight, we at the Department of Labor and the Obama administration are going to support it." Birmingham City Council passed a bill in August that would increase Birmingham's minimum wage to $10.10 an hour over the course of two years. Then, in September, a committee in the Alabama House of Representatives approved a bill that would keep cities and counties from passing their own minimum wages. That bill was eventually set aside, but could be passed this session. Council President Jonathan Austin said the two-year period was introduced to allow small businesses to adjust. But the council is considering moving that up because of the law. Montgomery City Councilman David Burkette said he's trying to get Montgomery to raise its minimum wage to $10.10 as well. He said he's secured four votes thus far. Le'Darius Hilliard, the president of the Jefferson County Young Democrats, said raising the minimum wage would not only be good for workers, but for society - alleviating poverty would lead to less crime, better health, and even a lower divorce rate, he said. Buck Mulligan's Owner Danny Winters has spoken out in favor of raising the minimum wage. He said ultimately it doesn't cost business owners more, because paying a higher wage increases employee retention, and training is expensive. "The money that you would spend upfront paying higher wages, that's the money you're going to spend that every month when you're training someone new," Winters said. "Because I own smaller businesses, my goal is to get good employees and keep them." Valentine's Hot and Hot Fish Club.jpg Hot and Hot Fish Club in Birmingham, Ala., is popular with diners who use the OpenTable online restaurant reservation and review service. OpenTable ranks Birmingham No. 6 on its 2016 list of the 25 Most Romantic Cities in America. (Photo courtesy of Hot and Hot Fish Club) When it comes to places to wine and dine your sweetheart, Birmingham is one of the most romantic cities in America, according to the online restaurant reservation service OpenTable. OpenTable released its 2016 rankings of the 25 Most Romantic Cities in America this morning, and Birmingham is No. 6 on the list, one behind Santa Fe, N.M., and one ahead of Oklahoma City, Okla. Virginia Beach, Va., is No. 1, and Texas is the best represented state, with three cities on the list -- San Antonio (No. 12), Fort Worth (No. 15) and Austin (No. 20). To compile the rankings, OpenTable used what it calls a "Most Romantic Cities Index" that factored in three variables: the percentage of restaurants rated "romantic" according to OpenTable diner reviews; the percentage of tables seated for two; and the percentage of people who dined out for Valentine's Day last year. "For generations, people have celebrated love by sharing a meal at enchanting, elegant restaurants," Caroline Potter, chief dining officer of OpenTable, said in a media release. "The cities on this list, from the charming coastal community that is Virginia Beach to the top dining destination of Chicago, are those in which deliciously romantic dinners are de rigueur for couples in all stages of courtship." OpenTable, which is part of The Priceline Group, is the world's leading provider of online restaurant reservations, seating more than 17 million diners per month via online bookings at more than 33,000 restaurants. Diners use the OpenTable network to see which restaurants have available tables, to select restaurants based on verified reviews from other diners, and to book reservations. Here, in order, are OpenTable's 25 Most Romantic Cities in America. 1. Virginia Beach, Virginia 2. Newport, Rhode Island 3. Milwaukee, Wisconsin 4. Atlantic City, New Jersey 5. Santa Fe, New Mexico 6. Birmingham, Alabama 7. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 8. Omaha, Nebraska 9. St. Louis, Missouri 10. Colorado Springs, Colorado 11. Baltimore, Maryland 12. San Antonio, Texas 13. Annapolis, Maryland 14. Madison, Wisconsin 15. Fort Worth, Texas 16. Greenville, South Carolina 17. Memphis, Tennessee 18. Louisville, Kentucky 19. Savannah, Georgia 20. Austin, Texas 21. Tulsa, Oklahoma 22. Greensboro, North Carolina 23. Chicago, Illinois 24. Lexington, Kentucky 25. Columbus, Ohio The complete list is also available here. Kelly Kazek | kkazek@al.com Don't Edit (Source: Mark Halseth/Friends of Magnolia Cemetery) Why do people leave Mardi Gras beads on these 12 graves? Its the time of year when plastic Mardi Gras beads are in plentiful supply at parties, parades, fundraising events and even cemeteries. Why do people leave beads on certain grave sites? Sometimes beads adorn graves of people who played pivotal roles in Mardi Gras in Mobile and New Orleans but in other cases, the reasons have nothing to do with the celebration of carnival. Here is a list of some of the people whose lives are honored with offerings of this festive grave decor. If you have photos to share of sites decorated with Mardi Gras beads, send them to kkazek@al.com. This photo shows the grave of Michael Krafft with a relief of a cow wearing a bell. See next slide for more info. Don't Edit (Source: Mark Halseth/Friends of Magnolia Cemetery) 1. Michael Krafft (1807-1839) Magnolia Cemetery Mobile, Ala. Michael Krafft is credited with starting the first masked parading society in the country. A cow and bell are etched into his headstone to signify that he founded the Cowbellian de Rakin Society. To honor his role in the carnival, visitors often drape Mardi Gras beads on his headstone. Don't Edit (AL.com File Photo/Mke Brantley) 2. Joe Cain (1832 1904) Church Street Cemetery Mobile, Ala. Joe Cain re-started Mardi Gras celebrations in Mobile following a hiatus during the Civil War. In 1868, he dressed as a fictional Indian chief called Slacabamorinico and paraded through Mobile with a small band of fellow Confederate veterans called the Lost Cause Minstrels. Each year, a group called Cain's Merry Widows makes a pilgrimage to his grave during Mardi Gras. Don't Edit (AL.com File/Sharon Steinmann) People often leave beads lying on the granite slab at his grave, which is etched with the words: Here lies old Joe Cain The heart and soul of Mardi Gras in Mobile Joseph Stillwell Cain Slacabamorinico - Old Slac Click here to see inside Cains historic Mobile home. Don't Edit Don't Edit (Source: Carol highsmith/Library of Congress) 3. Elizabeth Rabby Cain (1835 1907) Church Street Cemetery Mobile, Ala. Joe Cains wife is buried at his side. Her grave is marked with the same granite slab as her husband and beads are also often left beside her name. Don't Edit (Source: Beverly Crider/Strange Alabama) 4. Church Street Cemetery tombs Mobile, Ala. Many Church Street Cemetery grave sites, like this eroding tomb, are randomly decorated with beads during Mardi Gras. Church Street Cemetery was founded in 1819 and divided into three sections, one for Catholics, one for Protestants and another for the general population, in which many veterans, Masons, Odd Fellows and indigent people are interred. Don't Edit (Source: Greg Willis via Wikimedia Commons) 5. Marie Laveau (1794?-1881) St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 New Orleans. La. Marie Laveau practiced voodoo rituals in New Orleans and is known as a Voodoo Priestess. Legend states that anyone who marks an X on the outside of the tomb will have their wish granted by Laveau. If the wish were granted, the person had to return to circle the X and leave Laveau an offering. Those offerings are often in the form of Mardi Gras beads and trinkets. Be warned: Marking on any tomb is a federal crime, not to mention an act of disrespect. Don't Edit (Source: AL.com/Eliot Kamenitz) The marker at Marie Laveau's tomb. The Xs were left by superstitious visitors. Don't Edit (Source: Mark Halseth/Friends of Magnolia Cemetery) 6. George Huggins (1808-1852) Magnolia Cemetery Mobile, Ala. George Huggins was one of the original six founders of Mardi Gras parading societies in Mobile. Huggins and a group of friends including Michael Krafft friends formed the Cowbellion de Rakin Society in 1830. Huggins' grave features a unique relief carving of several symbols of the Cowbellions, including a skull, scythe, Mardi Gras mask and cowbell. (Note: This photo was altered slightly to better show the relief) Don't Edit Don't Edit (Course: Tim Childree via FindaGrave.com) Another view of George Huggins grave. Don't Edit (AL.com/BILL STARLING) 7. Julian Lee "Judy" Rayford (1908-1980) Church Street Graveyard Mobile, Ala. From time to time, people leave festive strings of beads on the grave of Judy Rayford, the man who established Joe Cain Day in 1967 as part of Mobiles Mardi Gras celebrations. Rayford, who wanted Cain to have credit for reviving Mardi Gras after the Civil War, was responsible for moving the bodies of Cain and his wife from Bayou La Batre to Church Street Cemetery. In 1967, Rayford led a jazz funeral procession to re-inter the Cains, accompanied by his beloved dog Rosie, known as the only dog to ever lead a Mardi Gras parade in Mobile. Don't Edit (Source: KimShockey via FindaGrave.com) 8. Kelly Mitchell (1868-1915) Rose Hill Cemetery Meridian, Miss. Kelly Mitchell was a gypsy queen who had a legendary funeral after she died during childbirth in Alabama at the age of 47. Newspaper accounts reported more than 20,000 people attended the funeral and that she was buried with jewels and gold coins. Her grave site is covered in concrete to discourage grave robbers. Today, people leave beads on the cross of her tombstone not because of Mardi Gras but to symbolize the opulence of gypsy royalty. Visitors also leave empty liquor bottles, symbolic of celebrating her life. Don't Edit (Source: KimShockey via FindaGrave.com) 9. Emil Mitchell (1857-1942) Rose Hill Cemetery Meridian, Miss. Emil Mitchell was king of the gypsies and the husband of Kelly Mitchell. Emil's funeral was also a huge event recorded in newspapers of the day. He, too, is said to have been buried with valuables. People visit the cemetery to leave beads, trinkets and liquor bottles on his grave. Don't Edit (Source: Tim Childree via FindaGrave.com) 10. John "Gus" Hines 1847-1922 Magnolia Cemetery Mobile, Ala. Although no beads are shown in this photo, people often leave offerings for Gus Hines, a man who was a float designer in Mobile for more than 50 years, beginning when Mardi Gras re-started after the Civil War. His headstone indicated he was in the Order of Myths, Infant Mystics and Krewe of Revelry. Click here to see a gallery of his float designs. Don't Edit Don't Edit (Source: Elaine J Masters via tripwellness.com) 11. Tomb of the Society for the Relief of Destitute Orphan Boys Lafayette Cemetery No. 1 New Orleans, Ala. The abandoned boys interred in this 1894 tomb have no known connection to Mardi Gras. So why are beads often draped on the cross at the tombs entrance? Likely because the heart-tugging description destitute orphan boys evokes sympathy in cemetery visitors, who leave tributes in the form of plastic beads. People also leave a variety of trinkets along the ledge that holds the stone cross. Don't Edit (Source: Grave Addiction via FindaGrave.com) 12. Eugene Walter (1921-1998) Church Street Cemetery Mobile, Ala. Eugene Walter was not a pivotal figure in the founding of Mardi Gras but as a Mobile native and one of the citys most eccentric figures, he often receives offerings of plastic trinkets on his grave. Walter was an artist, actor, author and even a cryptographer during World War II. He was known for writing The Socrates Monkey Seen Dancing in Midair, which accounts for the etching of a monkeys head on his grave. He also authored Moments with Eugene a book of prints of his artwork. Walter was also a friend of filmmaker Federico Fellini and Italian Princess Marguerite Caetani, leading to his appearance in more than 100 Italian films. His friends included William Faulkner, Judy Garland and T.S. Eliot. Don't Edit (Source: Carol M. Highsmith/Library of Congress) Detail of Eugene Walter's grave in Church Street Graveyard. Cherokee County authorities arrested a Florida man yesterday wanted in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area. Sheriff Jeff Shaver said Rikki L. Speakman, 35, of Dover, Fla. was arrested in Sand Rock Wednesday. "Investigators received information about the Florida fugitive and were able to locate him," Shaver said. Speakman is wanted by Hillsborough County, Fla. authorities on a probation violation involving grand theft. He remains in the Cherokee County Detention Center awaiting extradition to Florida. Multiple Alabama police agencies have been searching for someone who they believed was involved in a kidnapping earlier today in Mississippi. Authorities stopped the suspect vehicle on Interstate 20 near the Chula Vista exit around 3 p.m., and the woman told them she was with the man voluntarily. They told lawmen they were headed to Atlanta. The FBI confirmed there was no kidnapping. The woman texted her mother earlier in the day claiming to have been abducted in Kemper County, Mississippi, by a white man and that she was in the trunk of a car. Authorities said, however, that when they stopped the car on I-20, she was sitting in the front seat and had packed luggage with her. Lawmen say she could face charges for filing a false report. The investigation is ongoing. Alabama Trooper Chuck Daniel said that one person was taken into custody, and troopers turned over the case to the FBI and U.S. Marshals right away since the case was a potential kidnapping across state lines. There was no chase, and the driver pulled over right when a state trooper flashed his lights. Authorities earlier reported they were searching for a suspect involved in a kidnapping of a mother and her 3-year-old daughter earlier today in Kemper County, Mississippi. They were said to be traveling through west Alabama Thursday afternoon, according to a be-on-the-lookout (BOLO) police announcement broadcast to authorities. The suspect was reportedly driving a white Nissan Sentra with a Mississippi National Guard tag. A phone belonging to the suspect pinged in Woodstock on Thursday around 1 p.m., Woodstock Police Department Chief Len Price said. The suspect quickly turned his phone off, so authorities were unable to immediately locate the suspect. "We're out all over town searching, keeping the roads hot," Price said earlier this afternoon. "They probably got back on the interstate and left, but we've got state troopers and Tuscaloosa County helping us out." Trooper Reginal King at the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency said state troopers received the BOLO, and the agency was aware of the search. The lead agency in the case, the Kemper County Sheriff's Office in Mississippi, was not immediately available for comment. This story will be updated as more information is gathered. AL.com reporter Carol Robinson contributed to this report. The city of Birmingham on Thursday announced that it will now "ban the box" on job applications. Mayor William Bell, U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Labor Chris Lu and The Dannon Project Executive Director Kerri Pruitt announced the change at a Thursday press conference. The "box" refers to a line on job applications where those seeking employment must disclose conviction and arrest history. That disclosure often results in the applicant being removed from the candidate pool for that job. Mayor William Bell, U.S. Attorney Joyce White Vance, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Labor Chris Lu, State Rep. Juandalynn Givan and The Dannon Project Executive Director Kerri Pruitt announced the change at a Thursday press conference. (Kelsey Stein | kstein@al.com) "The city will continue to lead the way by expanding existing programs and furthering our reach," Bell said. "There is no such thing as a disposable person. We must take the time and make the effort to offer second chances to the thousands of people impacted by these statistics." About 95 percent of the 30,000 people currently incarcerated in Alabama will eventually return to their communities. In Jefferson County alone, about 2,000 people return from prison annually. Birmingham's ban the box will be implemented through an executive order signed by the mayor. It will remove the requirement from all city job applications. Data shows that ex-offenders who are able to find a job are about half as likely to reoffend as those who cannot find employment. "There is strong data showing that finding a job substantially reduces an ex-offender's likelihood of returning to prison," Vance said. "For those who believe former inmates are unsafe or unfit for the workplace, there is also ample data showing that employed ex-offenders have better retention rates, better performance metrics, and pose no greater risk within the workplace than those without a conviction history." "We are very thankful for the opportunity to educate returning citizens, as well as the extended community, about the valuable support that Ban the Box fofers in giving everyone equal access to employment," Pruitt said. Nineteen states and more than 100 cities and counties have some variation of "ban the box" laws or policies, according to the National Employment Law Project. Companies like Walmart, Target, Home Depot and Koch Industries have also banned the box. The policies vary, and most apply only to public employers. Generally, they mean that employers don't ask applicants about criminal histories until an interview, a conditional job offer or a determination that the applicant meets the minimum qualifications. Vance recently met with a group of Birmingham Business Alliance investors to discuss the "ban the box" initiative. While acknowledging that various companies require different approaches to hiring, most agreed that the move helps to reduce recidivism and give a second chance to those seeking to improve their lives. At the time of the meeting, Brian Hilson, president and CEO of the BBA, said it marked the beginning of an important discussion within the city's business community. Last month, the Alabama Prison Reform Task Force considered a similar proposal with statewide reach. The measure was put forth by Sen. Quinton Ross, D-Montgomery. The task force can't approve legislation, but can make recommendations to the Legislature. Read the executive order here: A Hoover woman, who served prison time for falsifying mortgage documents to buy two homes in 2008, entered a plea deal with federal prosecutors this week to a charge that she used a child's social security card to get banks to lend her money to buy three high-end used cars last year worth nearly $100,000. Danielle Lacey Chavers, 39, is to be arraigned Feb. 11 before a U.S. magistrate judge on one count of misuse of a Social Security Number, according to court records. She is in the custody of the U.S. Marshal's Office. Chavers' attorney declined comment. According to her plea agreement, Chavers admits to travelling to Rick Hendrick Chevrolet in Duluth, Ga., on May 8, 2015 to buy a 2010 Chevrolet Camaro for $24,244. The car was financed through Regions Bank, according to the plea deal. On May 17, 2015 Chavers travelled to Carmax in Norcross, Ga., to buy a 2010 Mercedes Benz R350 and obtained a loan from Wells Fargo to buy it for $34,000, according to court records. The next day, on May 18, she travelled to America's First Credit Union in Anniston and got $40,000 to purchase a 2013 Porsche Panamera, according to the plea deal. In each case, according to the plea agreement, Chavers submitted a Social Security number that belonged to a minor living in Illinois on the bank loan applications. The plea deal does not describe what happened to the three cars. Under her plea agreement Chavers is to pay $98,244 in restitution in the case. The maximum sentence for misuse of a Social Security number is no more than five years in federal prison. But under her plea deal, federal prosecutors agree to have her sentenced under the low end of the sentencing guidelines that will be determined by a judge. Chavers was sentenced in January 2013 by U.S. District Court Judge Virginia Hopkins for her guilty plea to two counts of wire fraud related to providing false information to banks on the purchase of two houses in Jefferson County in 2008, federal court records show. Chavers had claimed a higher income, a longer employment history with a local company than she really had, and more assets that she had, according to the document. The exact sentence Chavers received in the mortgage case, however, is not clear because the judge sealed the sentence record in the case. But according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons website, Chavers was released from prison on Feb. 14, 2014. An effort by federal prosecutors to revoke her probation in the mortgage case was begun this past fall, according to court records. Employees at the Piggly Wiggly in Davisville identified the Missouri couple in a robbery there Wednesday evening. Blake Fitzgerald and Brittany Harper, a Missouri couple now wanted in several states, are being investigated as possible suspects in a robbery in a small Florida town Wednesday afternoon. The robbery happened at the Piggly Wiggly in Davisville, Florida. Escambia County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Amber Southard said the robbery happened about 4:40 p.m. A white, bald male with a thin build entered the store, showed a gun to the clerk and escaped with an undisclosed amount of cash. He was wearing blue jeans and an American Eagle sweatshirt. After leaving the store, he got into a pickup truck driven by a white female wearing a hoodie, Southard said. Employees told NorthEscambia.com that an employee chased them briefly north on Highway 97 across the state line into Atmore. There were no injuries reported. According to store employees, the couple was clearly Blake Fitzgerald and Brittany Nicole Harper, both age 31 of Joplin, Missouri. Employees said deputies showed them photographs of the couple from a law enforcement bulletin, and it was a certain match. Authorities said there were several sightings of the pair in various Florida towns on Wednesday. They are investigating reports that the pair tried to pass a bad check at a store as far south as Orlando, and also that they were seen at a beach apparel store near Destin. Milan, Tenn., police reported that Harper, Fitzgerald and two others tried to buy a vehicle with cash on Wednesday. They said the group was in a green 1998 Oldsmobile Cutlass. Federal authorities, however, tell AL.com that the sightings in Tennessee are not believed to be Fitzgerald and Harper. Fitzgerald, a convicted felon who has three children, and Harper are now sought for crimes in Missouri, Alabama, Georgia and Florida. Joplin police Cpl. Chuck Niess said Fitzgerald is a suspect in a Jan. 22 break-in at the home of a doctor. At least two guns were taken, and police believe those are the guns Fitzgerald has used in the Alabama and Georgia crimes. There is also a burglary investigation underway from a break-in at Fitzgerald's grandmother's home in which he is also a suspect. Niess said he's not at all surprised at the accusations against Fitzgerald. "This is exactly the same stuff he was doing here,'' he said. "The Joplin Police Department hopes he is caught quickly before he does harm." Missouri's Cape Girardeau County Sheriff's Office Capt. David James said Fitzgerald and Harper are suspects in two stolen car cases there. On Jan. 26, a black Cadillac was stolen from X-treme Powersports, a used car lot in Webb City, Missouri. Two days later, lawmen spotted the stolen Cadillac and tried to pull the car over. The driver refused and the chase was on, James said. Ultimately, deputies lost sight of them. Later that day, James said, the couple is believed to have broken into a Cape Girardeau home. The suspects gained entry by smashing through a glass window. There was no one home at the time. They left the stolen Cadillac in the garage and stole the red Chevrolet Trailblazer that they would then drive to Alabama. James said the FBI in Missouri has been working with the FBI in Alabama. In Alabama, police say they robbed a Tuscaloosa hotel and kidnapped 26-year-old night clerk Kyle Dease at 6 a.m. Sunday. From there, they drove to Hoover where they attempted to carjack Zora Harris, a McDonald's manager arriving to work about 7:45 a.m. at the fast-food restaurant on U.S. 31 across from the Riverchase Galleria. Just 15 minutes later, police say the pair carried out a home invasion in Vestavia Hills, where they kidnapped a woman and took her Ford Edge. Both Alabama kidnapping victims were released unharmed. More than 36 hours later, Georgia police said Fitzgerald and Harper robbed a Perry gas station, abducting the 19-year-old clerk from that store. She, too, was released unharmed about 15 miles down the interstate. Florida investigators said no one was kidnapped in the Piggly Wiggly holdup Wednesday. Multiple law enforcement agencies are searching for Fitzgerald and Harper, including the U.S. Marshals and the FBI. The Marshals are offering a $10,000 reward for their capture. The couple is considered armed and dangerous, and shouldn't be approached. "I guess they see themselves as some kind of modern-day Bonnie and Clyde,'' said Cape Girardeau's James. "They seem to be getting more and more desperate." The charges continue to mount against a Missouri father of three and his girlfriend who are sought in a crime spree that spanned at least three states over the past week. Georgia authorities Wednesday said they have formally charged Blake Fitzgerald and Brittany Harper, both 30, in Monday's robbery of a Perry convenience store and the abduction of the 19-year-old clerk. The U.S. Marshal's Service has obtained a federal warrant against the pair for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution, and the FBI issued a "Seeking Information" poster, officially announcing an ongoing probe into federal carjacking charges against Fitzgerald. Also Wednesday, Missouri authorities released more information about the couple's possible crimes there before they headed south where police say they abducted three people in two days and attempted to rob another. "I guess they see themselves as some kind of modern-day Bonnie and Clyde,'' said Missouri's Cape Girardeau County Sheriff's Office Capt. David James. "They seem to be getting more and more desperate." Fitzgerald and Harper are charged in three Alabama cities. In Vestavia Hills, Fitzgerald is charged with one count of first-degree burglary, one count of first-degree kidnapping and one count of first-degree theft of property. Harper is charged with one count of first-degree kidnapping and first-degree theft of property. In Hoover, both are charged with first-degree robbery. And, in Tuscaloosa, they are also charged with robbery, kidnapping and theft. Perry Police Chief Steven Lynn said Wednesday his department obtained robbery and kidnapping charges against Fitzgerald, a convicted felon, and a kidnapping charge against Harper. Both Fitzgerald and Harper are from Joplin, Missouri where Fitzgerald is no stranger to lawmen. He was arrested in Missouri in 2013 after police say he and another man robbed a 63-year-old woman at knifepoint, and again last year. He is currently on probation in Missouri, court records show. Fitzgerald was charged in Jasper County Missouri in 2013 with felony first-degree burglary, vehicle tampering and theft. Police responded to the reported burglary at 2:21 a.m., according to The Joplin Globe. The 63-year-old female victim said the intruders were wearing cloth masks, broke into the house and robbed her at knife point, taking prescription medicine, cash and electronic equipment. They left in the victim's vehicle. According to the Missouri publication, Fitzgerald was also arrested on a drunken-driving accident injured two people and destroyed a fence. The Joplin Globe said he received "shock prison time" in those cases. Shock imprisonment is a boot-camp type of program as an alternative to prison geared toward rehabilitation. Missouri police told AL.com Fitzgerald only spent 120 in prison on a seven-year sentence. Last year, he received a suspended imposition of sentence for felony assault of another man at a nightclub. In that case, he pleaded guilty to second-degree assault in a plea agreement allowing probation but requiring the defendant to pay the victim's $17,596 in restitution. Joplin police Cpl. Chuck Niess said Fitzgerald is a suspect in a Jan. 22 break-in at the home of a doctor. At least two guns were taken in the break-in, and police believe those are the guns Fitzgerald has used in the Alabama and Georgia crimes. There is also a burglary investigation underway from a break-in at Fitzgerald's grandmother's home in which he is also a suspect. Niess said he's not at all surprised at the accusations against Fitzgerald. "This is exactly the same stuff he was doing here,'' he said. "The Joplin Police Department hopes he is caught quickly before he does harm." Cape Girardeau County's James said Fitzgerald and Harper are suspects in two stolen car cases there. On Jan. 26, a black Cadillac was stolen from X-treme Powersports, a used car lot in Webb City, Missouri. Two days later, lawmen spotted the stolen Cadillac and tried to pull them over. They refused and the chase was on, James said. Ultimately, deputies lost sight of them. Later that day, James said, the couple is believed to have broken into a Cape Girardeau home. The suspects gained entry to the home by smashing through a glass window. There was no one home at the time. They left the stolen Cadillac in the garage of that home, and stole the red Chevrolet Trailblazer that they would then drive to Alabama. James said the FBI in Missouri has been working with the FBI in Alabama. No crimes between Missouri and Alabama have yet been reported. Once in Alabama, the couple stopped at Microtel Inn and Suites in Tuscaloosa. Fitzgerald and Harper, saying they were on their way to Florida, stopped in the hotel claiming to have run out of gas. They called a cab, went to the restroom, got coffee, and used the lobby computer to look up directions to Panama City, all the while making friendly conversation with 26-year-old night clerk Kyle Dease. Before long, however, they robbed the hotel of $300 and abducted Dease at gunpoint. Dease chronicled his ordeal for AL.com, and said that during the nearly two hours Dease was with Fitzgerald and Harper, they told him they were trying to get to Florida to get married and start a new life together. Fitzgerald also told Dease he had no plans of returning to prison. With Dease in the backseat of his girlfriend's Volkswagon Jetta, the couple said they were looking for a fast car that would outrun police and stopped in Bessemer, but found nothing that appealed to them, Dease said. Next, they stopped in Hoover where police say they tried to rob McDonald's manager Zora Harris of her vehicle as she arrived to work about 7:45 a.m. Harris screamed and threw her keys toward a coworker that was coming to her rescue, which frightened off Fitzgerald and Harper. From there, they drove north on U.S. 31 and pulled into Montreat condominiums and apartments, where they set Dease free. But moments later, and less than a quarter of a mile away, police said Fitzgerald and Harper then kidnapped a Vestavia Hills wife and mother. They noticed an opened garage door on Monte Vista drive, and Fitzgerald went in while the family was eating breakfast and getting ready for church. As the husband ran to call 911, Fitzgerald forced the wife at gunpoint into her own silver Ford Edge in the garage. They released her barefoot, but unharmed, on a side road near Grandview Medical Center off of U.S. 280. Despite a massive search along the 280 corridor, police say Fitzgerald and Harper managed to get away. It would be more than 36 hours before they surfaced again. About 11 p.m. on Monday, in the small city of Perry, Georgia, authorities say Fitzgerald went into a Murphy Express, picked up a soft drink, ask for cigarettes and then pulled a gun, demanded cash. After emptying the register, authorities said Fitzgerald escorted the 19-year-old female clerk to the Ford Edge stolen out of Vestavia and put her in the front seat. Harper was in the back seat. They released drove about 15 miles before release the clerk in a rural area off of another I-75 exit. FBI spokesman Paul Daymond said the agency's Safe Streets Task Force is working closely with the U.S. Marshal's Service and local police. Marshals are offering a $10,000 reward for the capture of the couple. They were last known to still be in the silver Ford Edge is 2720AG7. Authorities said if anyone sees the vehicle, they should notify the nearest authorities. The couple is considered armed and dangerous and shouldn't be approached. Authorities confirm a pit bull attacked a 6-year-old boy near Mobile Monday night. The child has had multiple surgeries since and is still in critical condition at Children's of Alabama. Mobile Count Sheriff's Office spokesman Lori Myles said the family was at a home on Mars Court in the Wilmer community that evening. There were several kids playing outside while the dog was chained up in a yard. Myles said at some point the dog charged at the boy and pulled itself off the chain. The dog latched onto the child's throat, she said. The boy was flown to the Birmingham children's hospital where he remains in critical condition. The pit bull is now being quarantined by Animal Control. It will be turned over to sheriff's investigators later. No arrests have been made at this time. Myles said they will consult with the victim's family before deciding what to do. bowman.jpg Uber driver and Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Marcus Bowman sits in his ride on Jan. 22, 2015 in Mobile. (By Casey Toner/ctoner@al.com) U.S. Senator Richard Shelby is running for his sixth term in the Senate with a $19 million war chest. He is among the wealthier and longest-serving elected officials in Washington. Marcus Bowman has never held an elected public office before. He is an Uber driver. The contrast between the two competitors for the Republican nomination for the senate seat cannot be clearer. That's what Bowman is betting on. He is counting on his outsider status to help win votes when he faces off against Shelby and fellow challengers Jonathan McConnell, John Martin and Shadrack McGill during the March 1 Republican primary. "I believe that whether it's myself or somebody else in the next five years, there is going to be a candidate like me that's going to go from zero to hero so to speak," Bowman said. A Daphne resident, Bowman has driven for Uber since August, about a month after the city gave the ride-sharing the OK to continue service. Wages from the gig complements Bowman's side business. He sells phone systems and Internet access along the Gulf Coast. Bowman says he typically works late-night shifts to make the most money. It's not uncommon for him to finish his shift at 4 a.m. -- when Uber multiplies its prices. Ferrying around passengers in an Uber would seem like an ideal campaign vehicle, but Bowman's Uber is a no-politics zone. "This is not the time or place for me to be campaigning," Bowman said. "My whole philosophy is people will find out about my campaign and those folks that have been in that car with me will remember and go 'oh yeah, I know Marcus Bowman, I had a ride with him, that was awesome, he's such a great guy." If Bowman were to talk politics, his passengers would realize that he's a typical Alabama conservative. He is pro-life, pro-death penalty, pro-free markets, and pro-traditional marriage. Interestingly, Bowman has one divorce under his belt and a second one on the way. But he notes that he would not have been divorced if it were his choice. What separates him from Shelby, Bowman says, is that he's more of a doer and less of a talker. "What if Bernie Sanders becomes president," Bowman said. "Will he say 'I'm going to fight Bernie Sanders over the next four years,' or sit down and talk about ways to solve problems? "People are struggling and we can't just be grandstanding politicians." A spokeswoman for Shelby's campaign said that the incumbent senator has "always put Alabamians first and believes that fighting against Obama's liberal policies is one of the many ways that he can stand up for conservative principles and Alabama values." Bowman's campaign is a true do-it-yourself operation. He paid $3,480 to get on the ballot and drives throughout the state, speaking before local Republican committees, and meeting as many people as possible. His official U.S. Senate Facebook page shows him traveling everywhere from the beaches of Baldwin County to the scenic banks of Lake Guntersville. In his Uber, Bowman has driven more than 600 fares, a job he considers a form of public service. "You're serving everybody, you're talking with all different kinds of people and that reflects the type of representative I want to be," Bowman said. "It's somebody who is able to interact and talking with all kinds of folks and to make sure I have my boots on the ground crafting solutions for America that reach and connect with everybody." So far, none of his riders have threatened or harassed him. The worst he has dealt is when a drunk woman puked in his black six-seat 2014 Ford Flex SUV on New Year's Eve right around midnight. "It went into the speaker system," Bowman said, adding that Uber comped him $200 to clean it up. "That was the worst part about it. Because I was like 'I can't clean out my speaker system!'" Originally from Illinois, Bowman said he earned a finance and economics degree from Iowa State University in 1996 and a master's degree in public policy from George Mason University nine years later. In 2012, he moved to Alabama after spending 10 years in Washington D.C. working at consulting firm International Access. Working there, he often attended U.S. Senate committee hearings and analyzed highway funding and energy bills. Bowman keeps a memento from his days in the capital in his Uber, a pair of official U.S. Senate cufflinks. Pat Choate, running mate of former presidential candidate Ross Perot, bought them for him seven or eight years ago at the U.S. Senate gift shop. He slips them on at campaign events and thinks about the future. "My hope is that these are going to return to the Senate, and I'll be the next U.S. Senator and bring these back to the Senate," Bowman said. minimumwage_photo1.JPG Dozens gathered in Mountain Brook Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2015, to protest a bill by state Rep. David Faulkner, R-Mountain Brook, that would block a minimum wage increase approved by the Birmingham City Council. (file photo) Napoleon Bracy Kevin McCabe, a restaurant owner, is concerned that any hike in the minimum wage will lead to an overall increase in doing business. "Even though I pay my employees more than the minimum wage, an increase would affect everybody," said McCabe, owner of The Royal Street Cafe in downtown Mobile. "Businesses that provide services to restaurants to paper companies would have to go up on their prices for products." But for state Rep. Napoleon Bracy, D-Prichard, and proponents of a minimum wage increase in Alabama, an increase would help eliminate some of the taxpayers' costs on food and medical programs for the poor. Bracy said this week he plans on introducing legislation this session increasing the minimum wage in Mobile County from the current federal mandate of $7.25 an hour to $10.10. The Birmingham City Council approved a similar increase last year. Bracy's legislation comes at the same time other lawmakers are pushing for statewide increases. State Rep. Darrio Melton, D-Selma, said he plans on pushing forward two proposals to hike the minimum wage, one which sets it at $10.10 an hour with subsequent cost of living wage hikes. The other proposal ties Alabama's minimum wage with the federal level, but includes adjustments for cost of living increases. Melton said his proposals would amend the Alabama Constitution, which would give voters a chance to weigh in. "It's our hope the legislature would take this issue seriously and once and for all, establish a minimum wage across the board," Melton said. "One of the complaints we've heard from the legislature is they don't want different cities and counties (with different minimum wages). That's why the legislature needs to take an effort to establish a minimum wage." 'A different approach' Bracy, though, said he wants Mobile County to take a lead. His proposal comes at a time when lawmakers are hearing more support for an increase, especially from fast-food workers. He pointed to a rally held this week outside the statehouse in Montgomery as an illustration of why the minimum wage needs to be increased. "I wanted to take a different approach to see if our area in Mobile County can lead the charge in increasing the minimum wage in the state," Bracy said. The plan faces opposition. State Sen. Rusty Glover, R-Semmes, said he sees "no chance" of Bracy's proposal advancing. "I just don't think we would be considered business friendly to do that," Glover said. "The small business folks would be absolutely opposed to increases in the minimum wage. They are firmly against it." Rosemary Elebash, the Alabama director of the National Federation of Independent Business, said any plan boosting the minimum wage in Mobile County only would be a boon for neighboring counties. "You all have had such an outward movement to Baldwin County that if (Mobile County) puts itself at an economic disadvantage, then a franchise or a new business more likely will open in a place where the cost of doing business is more expensive than it is across the Bay," she said. 'Holding citizens hostage' Alabama is one of only five states that have not adopted a minimum wage above the federal standard. The others are Mississippi, South Carolina, Louisiana and Tennessee. Fourteen states began 2016 with higher minimum wages and, of those, 12 states increased rates through legislation passed in 2014 or 2015. Eleven states currently tie increases to the cost of living. Darrio Melto Melton blames the Republicans for the inaction in Alabama. "The legislature is holding the citizens of Alabama hostage because of their views on the minimum wage," he said. The current minimum wage, though, might be more valuable in Alabama than the increased minimum wage in some other states. An AL.com analysis last year showed that, even after adjusted for cost of living, the $7.25 hourly minimum wage is worth more in Alabama than the $9 minimum wage in California. The analysis also shows that Alabama's minimum wage stretches further than the minimum in New York, Hawaii and other states that are above the $7.25 threshold. Some cities across the U.S. are taking steps to keep increasing the minimum wage. Los Angeles and Seattle, for instance, have both adopted minimum wages of $15 an hour. In Alabama, the city of Birmingham and the University of Alabama-Birmingham have taken the lead. UAB, the state's largest employer, will raise its minimum wage to $11 an hour in March. The increases came despite an effort by state Rep. David Faulkner, R-Mountain Brook, to prevent cities and counties from setting minimum wages for private employers. His proposal, debate in the House during September's second special session, was set aside without a vote. "In the areas where the wage has gone up, it's not diminished the economy," Melton said. "I'm hoping there is an appetite for this conversation." Bren Riley, president of the AFL-CIO in Alabama, said an increase would help Alabama reduce dependency on government assistance. "We have seen statistics that show that if the minimum wage was raised, so many people would come off the rolls of the (food stamp) program," Riley said. "You're going to pay one way or the other. You may have to pay more for your Starbucks coffee, but maybe your tax dollars can go now toward building a new bridge in Mobile versus Medicaid because folks can make a little more money and can afford more insurance." AP-Zimbabwe-Lion-Killed The Mobile-based nonprofit Awakening Respect and Compassion for All Sentient Beings (ARC) will participate in the Worldwide Rally for Cecil, in honor of Cecil the lion who was killed in Zimbabwe by an American dentist last summer. (AP photo) Animal lovers all over the world were outraged last summer when a Minnesota dentist lured Cecil, a protected and collared lion, out of a national park in Zimbabwe, shot him with a bow and then pursued the injured creature for 40 hours before killing him with a rifle and beheading him. This Saturday, Feb. 6, at noon, a group of concerned animal advocates will gather in Bienville Square in downtown Mobile to educate the public about why they believe trophy hunting is wrong. Organized by Awakening Respect and Compassion for All Sentient Beings (ARC), in collaboration with CompassionWorks International (CWI), the Mobile event is part of the Worldwide Rally for Cecil, an anti-trophy-hunting campaign being held in more than 30 cities across 18 states and six countries. "We want to raise awareness about the suffering these animals endure and send a message to our community here in Alabama that the senseless killing of wildlife is not a sport," said Tracey Glover, executive director of the Mobile nonprofit ARC. "These animals suffer, and we as a society should condemn harming other beings for pleasure, whether those other beings are human or non-human." Glover pointed out that, since Cecil's death, efforts have been made to stop trophy hunters from importing their kills into the United States. Several airlines, including American Airlines, Delta and United, have all taken steps to prohibit the transporting of animal parts into this country, she said. And in December, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reclassified African lions under the Endangered Species Act, which Glover said will greatly curb trophy hunters' ability to import the body parts of trophy-hunted animals. ARC and the Worldwide Rally For Cecil also support the CECIL (Conserving Ecosystems by Ceasing the Importation of Large Animal Trophies) Act, which would extend the import- and export-related provision of the Endangered Species Act to all species proposed for listing as threatened or endangered under that act. "As wild animal populations decline around the world, responsible conservation and anti-poaching efforts must be immediately enacted in order to save our precious elephants, lions, tigers and other wild beings, including those animals who are trophy-hunted in our own backyard," said Glover. For more information about the local event, visit facebook.com/events/949238608499839/. For more information on CWI and the Worldwide Rally for Cecil, go to cwint.org/rallyforcecil. Creola Police Department identified the two commercial drivers who collided near the 14-mile marker on Highway 43 in Axis Wednesday morning. Dwight Salter, 57, of Repton, Alabama, was killed in the accident. Salter was driving a truck for Booker Trucking. Salter was traveling southbound when a truck driven by Michael Sands, of Irving, Texas, pulled out of the Parade Truck Stop and in front of Salter. Both trucks overturned. No charges have been filed as of yet. Creola Police continue to investigate the circumstances of the accident. A contract employee of an Alabama Department of Youth Services boys home in Dothan was accused of having sexual contact with a teenage resident of the facility, but years later was cleared of the charges. Shon Christopher Holton, 43, of Gordon, was arrested Jan. 29, 2016 and charged with 10 counts of custodial sexual misconduct, a felony, court records show. He was released from jail after posting $150,000 bond. Authorities claim Holton had sexual contact with a juvenile at the boys home between Feb. 18 and May 26, 2015. Dothan Police Lt. Will Glover told the Dothan Eagle the offenses occurred at the Dothan boys home, another Department of Youth Services facility and at an unspecified local residence. The Department of Youth Services said today that Holton was an employee of a company that contracted with Youth Services. "Once we were notified of the allegations, DYS made certain that he no longer had contact with the students in this contract facility," the agency said in a statement. After a trial in January 2019, Holton was acquitted of the charges. Updated at 2:59 p.m. with additional information from Department of Youth Services. Updated Dec. 5, 2019 to show Holton was acquitted of all charges. Authorities are searching for a missing Dallas County woman last seen on Jan. 30. Jessica Sessions Sheehan, 35, was last seen in the 1200 block of Duke Street, the Selma Times-Journal reported. She is known to frequent Wilcox County and unspecified areas of north Alabama. Sheehan is described as being 5 feet 6 inches tall weighing 135 pounds. She has blue eyes and blond hair. She drives a white 2012 Chrysler 200. Anyone with information on Sheehan's whereabouts is asked to call 334-876-4840. By Peter Jackson I remember that Monday like it was yesterday. I was out on my morning run thinking life is good - a great family, a great job, and great health. What more could I ask for? That evening my wife, Kathy, and I attended a reception for her father who was retiring after 30 plus years of Sunday school teaching. We had taken separate cars and I left the event a little early. About an hour and half later I received a phone call that Kathy had fainted and been taken by ambulance to a local hospital emergency room. How could this be, she was fine a little over an hour earlier and I had never known her to faint. The more I gave thought to all this on my way to the emergency room, the more my suspicions grew and the faster I drove. When I arrived at the hospital I was told she had suffered a sudden hemorrhagic stroke. At sunrise, after overnight surgery, the surgeon told me that Kathy, only 57 and with no prior health problems, had only a matter of hours left to live. She was in a coma at this point and I quickly realized that our wonderful 34 year marriage was most likely coming to an end. I summoned my three children , two of which were out of town at the time, hoping they would arrive before she went home to be with the Lord. We were thankful to have a few more days with her even though she was still in a coma. It gave us time to prepare. Her condition deteriorated over the remainder of the week, culminating in my having to disconnect her from all life support. The next few months were brutal. I really didn't think I would make it myself much longer without her. I couldn't help but relive the experience over and over and over again like a never ending tape loop. My mind was unable to focus and I kept forgetting things. This kind of grief is something you never get over completely. It changes your life from that point forward, but you learn to live with it. Although all of us at some time or another will face this difficult situation, we are never fully prepared. A friend who lost his wife earlier in the year told me about an organization called GriefShare, a 13 week grief recovery program for anyone who has suffered the loss of a close family member like a spouse, parent, sibling or child. GriefShare provided a friendly caring group of people who walked alongside me. Trained facilitators who experienced grief themselves guided me through one of life's most difficult experiences and provided me with the tools and resources to move forward and adjust to what they called the "new normal." All this in a safe, secure and confidential setting. Now, a few years later, I find myself leading GriefShare. I am attempting to instill the same peace, comfort and hope that was instilled in me when I needed it the most. Leading this program has been very rewarding and difficult at the same time. We have had participants suffering from the loss of a loved one not just the result of natural causes but from murder and suicide as well. Some of those in our groups grieve for loved ones as young as 2-weeks-old. There is light at the end of the tunnel, however. My job as a GriefShare leader and facilitator is to help those that participate recognize that eventually they too will see this light if they are patient and practice the principles presented in the program. Finally, my "light at the end of the tunnel" came when I was blessed for the second time in my life with a loving and beautiful new wife, Martee. GriefShare is a product of Church Initiative, Inc. based in Wake Forest, North Carolina and has been around for over 20 years. It is considered one of the most successful grief recovery programs in existence today. A biblical, Christ-centered grief support group ministry, their resources help equip a lay-led team for effective and ongoing grief ministry at their church. So far, they have equipped more than 17,000 churches worldwide. GriefShare meetings are held at Faith Presbyterian Church, 4601 Valleydale Road, Birmingham, AL 35242 on Thursday nights from 7:00pm to 8:45pm. Participants are welcome to join at any time during the 13 week cycles. Please contact Pete Jackson at 205.908.6529/txjackson5@gmail.com, or Martee Jackson at 205.540.2090/martee1912@gmail.com for questions and/or registration. Or you may visit http://www.griefshare.org/groups/63460 Registration Fee: $20.00 (includes workbook) I have one thing to say about reports that the chief of staff of the Army and the Marine Corps commandant told U.S. senators this week that Congress should amend the law that requires only men to register with Selective Service: Duh. If pressed, I would add that it's about time someone at the highest level in our military stated the obvious: It no longer makes sense for young women to be excluded from the requirement that men sign up with Selective Service within 30 days of their 18th birthdays. For starters, the Department of Defense has recently lifted its ban on women serving in combat roles - which, according to a 1981 Supreme Court ruling, was an acceptable basis for excluding women from registration. Second, in a society in which women demand equal treatment from their government and their institutions, it makes sense that they should also share in the burden of protecting their country. Why should only young men have to make themselves available for a potential draft? And if a draft were enacted, why should only young men face potential disruption of their lives, careers and families? Where's the fairness there? Requiring women to register with Selective Service does not mean that, if there were a draft, they automatically would be sent to the front lines. Some might, but the truth is, women generally have less upper body strength, body mass and endurance than men, meaning most would not be able to meet the physical standards for combat soldiers. A recruiting poster for the WAVES. Women who do meet the standards can now apply for combat roles, including special operations. That likely would continue if Congress instituted a draft. Most female draftees, along with many male draftees, presumably would fill the thousands upon thousands of other positions required in a modern military. But we're not really talking about a draft; we're talking about a shared requirement and commitment on the part of America's young people - all young people, ages 18 to 25 - to be almost instantly available if their country needs them. If you haven't heard much about this topic, it's no wonder: In the midst of all the Iowa post-mortems and the New Hampshire prognostications, seasoned with daily doses of Super Bowl hoopla, headlines like this one from The Washington Post slipped past many Americans: "Army and Marine Corps chiefs: It's time for women to register for the draft." Gen. Mark A. Milley, chief of staff of the Army, and Gen. Robert B. Neller, the Marine Corps commandant, made their remarks about Selective Service while testifying at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on the full integration of women in the military. They noted that about 15 percent of America's all-volunteer military is currently made up of women. There's no reason, however, that the percentage of men and women enrolled with Selective Service shouldn't be closer to 50-50. I will confess that the subject of women in the military is near and dear to my family's hearts: My husband's late mother was in the WAVES for 11 months during World War II. We all knew that WAVES was an acronym for "Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service." But years later, my mother-in-law - as witty and charming a woman as you could have hoped to meet - quipped that what it really stood for was "We Are Virgins Except Saturdays," which was always met with gales of laughter from those who hadn't heard the joke. Her service as a chaplain's assistant in the Navy was no joke, however. She and thousands of other women like her stepped up to help their country when it needed them. Seventy-five years later, men and women alike should be prepared to do the same. Frances Coleman is a freelance writer living in Baldwin County. Email her at fcoleman1953@gmail.com and "like" her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/prfrances. Barack Obama President Barack Obama delivers his final State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2016. (Evan Vucci/The Associated Press) By President Barack Obama Last fall, I listened as a mother named Cary Dixon told her family's story at a forum I convened in West Virginia. It was heartbreaking. Cary's adult son has struggled with a substance use disorder for years, and she described the pain that families like hers have gone through. "We dread the next phone call," she said. "We don't take vacations for fear of the next crisis. We come back from vacations because there's a crisis." Cary and her family are far from alone. As the use of prescription drugs has increased over the past 15 or 20 years, so has their misuse - as well as the wreckage caused by other opioids like heroin. In fact, four in five heroin users started out by misusing prescription drugs, and then switched to heroin. As a consequence, between 2002 and 2013, the rate of heroin-related deaths in America nearly quadrupled. More Americans now die of drug overdoses than they do in motor vehicle crashes. In Alabama, overdoses claimed 723 lives in 2014 alone. This crisis doesn't discriminate. It touches everybody - men and women, young and old, rich and poor; urban, suburban, and rural alike. It affects the coal miner or construction worker who takes pain medications for a work-related injury - or the doctor who writes them the prescription. Yet for too long, the stigma of addiction has discouraged too many Americans from seeking and receiving the help they deserve. With no other disease do we expect people to wait until they're a danger to themselves or others to self-diagnose and seek treatment. So we need to address this disease like we would any other - through effective prevention and treatment. We need to educate ourselves, our family members, and our communities about the dangers of prescription drug misuse as well as the availability of treatment and the hope of recovery. And we need to make sure every American seeking treatment can get it. That's why I've directed my administration to address this crisis. We've been working with communities to prevent and treat substance use disorders, pursue effective law enforcement strategies, reduce overdose deaths, and support those in recovery. And in October, I announced plans to train more federal health care workers who prescribe opioids, identify barriers to good treatment, and rally support from outside of government to help address this epidemic. But we need to do more to help families like Cary's. That's why the budget I'm sending to Congress includes $1.1 billion in new funding to stop the opioid overdose epidemic - funding to help every American seeking treatment get the care they need. It will help states like Alabama expand their treatment capacity and make services more affordable. My budget will continue to support education, prevention, drug monitoring programs, and law enforcement efforts to keep illegal drugs out of our communities. And finally, it will improve access to the overdose-reversal drug naloxone - so that we can save more lives. These are commonsense steps - steps to help Americans get the treatment they need, support law enforcement already stretching their resources, and support families and communities ravaged by this disease. I'm encouraged by the bipartisan support we've seen from leaders across the country on this issue, and I expect Congress to act. Because rather than keep spending billions of taxpayer dollars on overly long prison sentences for nonviolent drug offenders, we can save money, improve public safety, and achieve better outcomes by focusing on getting treatment to those who need it. This is a crisis that could touch any of us. These kids are our kids. These folks are our parents; our brothers and sisters; our neighbors and friends. We should treat them that way. We should take on this issue for their sake. And if we do that, we'll not only help our loved ones, we'll help strengthen our families, our community, and our entire country. Supreme Court orders re-examination of colonial-era law that criminalises homosexuals and other sexual minorities. Indias Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community is celebrating after the countrys Supreme Court decided to continue debating the legality of a law that effectively criminalises homosexuals and other sexual minorities. Its not the decision that anxious activists were expecting. Most believed that the court would throw the question of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) back to the parliament, as it did in December 2013. Back then judges said it wasnt for the courts but for the elected parliamentarians to change the laws. This law has to go because it's colonial baggage that has outlived its relevance by Dhrubo Jyoti, Activist Just months before a general election, no political party was willing to champion LGBT rights for fear of alienating mainstream voters. Section 377 of the IPC dates back to 1860 when India was a British colony. It has been used as an excuse to discriminate, harass, assault, attack or rape sexual minorities, denying them their rights as individuals and citizens. Outside the court, activist Dhrubo Jyoti told Al Jazeera: We really think, if its not today, if its five years from now, if its seven years from now, this law has to go, and this law has to go because its colonial baggage that has outlived its relevance. IPC Section 377 states that whoever voluntarily has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man, woman or animal shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or with imprisonment of either description for term which may extend to 10 years, and shall also be liable to fine. While the text of the law does not explicitly mention homosexuality, it has commonly been used as a weapon against sexual minorities in India, as a way to threaten and subjugate. READ MORE: Mumbai launches Indias first LGBT taxi service Furthermore, activists argue that the language is open to interpretation. What, they say, does carnal intercourse against the order of nature even mean? And couldnt certain sexual acts, whether performed by homosexuals or heterosexuals, be seen as a crime under section 377? Efforts to repeal the law began in 1991. More than 25 years later, Section 377 remains in place. But this week, the Indian Supreme Court acknowledged for the first time that it deserves more attention, arguing that sexuality is strictly a personal matter. It has called for a five-judge bench of constitutional experts to re-examine the law. Activists insist Section 377 is against the Indian constitution, violating articles 14,15, 19 and 21, which guarantee freedom of expression, personal liberty and equality to all citizens. This isnt about what you do in private in your bedroom, activist Amalina Kohli Dave said. Its about how 377 is being used to validate the fact that queer people cannot protect themselves legally. Indias LGBT community has come a long way, even though this remains a deeply conservative society where being openly gay or transgender can be tantamount to social suicide, even death. But the LGBT community is becoming more and more visible. The fight to repeal Section 377 is just one of many battles being waged by activists and, ironically, has helped to publicise their cause further. All the activists Al Jazeera spoke to said it was not a question of if, but when the law will be repealed. The wheels of change have started turning, they say. Theyre one step closer to coming out of the closet. So far in the UK, more than 65,000 people have lost their jobs owing to plummeting oil prices in the past year. This week I met Kenneth Little one casualty of the oil crisis in Scotland. A man with a firm handshake, he opened his door with a smile much welcome on a cold Aberdeenshire night. I mention Littles smile because he has more reasons than many to feel less than affable at the moment. A few weeks ago, he told me he had got a call to say that his contract with BP was ending early, months early. Its the oil price, he told me. This is a man who has never been unemployed in his 30-year career in Scotlands oil industry. He, like most, didnt get rich; he got by, supporting his family in whatever way he could. Little is still trying to come to terms with what has happened. He is already applying for other jobs, but says theres more competition than ever before. Wifes Facebook post His wife, Lynne, is angry about the way her husband has been treated and angry that all oil workers are portrayed as rich and greedy. A recent item she posted on Facebook about her husbands plight and that of his colleagues has been shared over and over again. There is an assumption that in Aberdeen, which is Europes oil hub, that everyone runs around in flashy cars and eats in fancy restaurants for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Lets be clear: Yes, for the past 40 years oil giants have made billions of dollars for themselves and North Sea oil has brought in billions of dollars in revenue for the UK. Yes, the average salary here is higher than the UK national average and some people have also been on big bucks. But dont forget that the UK oil and gas industry supports hundreds of thousands of workers across the country. The supply chain is huge and there are many people like Little who dont work on the rigs but in other roles. Biggest sector In Aberdeen at least, it seems that everyone is in some way connected to the industry, whether thats in the hotels where oil workers stay or driving taxis that ferry people about. It is the biggest sector here. So, when a taxi driver tells you hes lost half his work since the downturn, you get a sense of how hard the crisis is biting. Ask anyone here whats causing this crisis and people talk about geopolitics, how fracking in the US and an oversupply of oil is flooding the market. No one wants to look too far ahead and most hope it will get better when the price backs up, which it inevitably will. But one businessman said he is worried about a possible future skills gap and that the industry doesnt always learn from its mistakes. It lets people go and then rehires staff months or years later, on a higher salary. Assignment takeaway So far, in the UK more than 65,000 people have lost their jobs, according to UK Oil and Gas figures from last September. What will I take away from this assignment? A few things stand out: the image of the rigs in Cromarty Firth where they arre parked up against a spectacular Highland backdrop. That oil and politics are inextricably linked, not just here in Scotland but globally. Plus, something that Kenneth Little told me. People are saying, well, this is great because it costs so much less to fill up the car, to fill up the oil tank and everything else, he said. People dont realise that the cost of that fuel coming down has an impact on the number of jobs out there. The story of the man who inspired an uprising, rattled Islamabad and changed the country. Islamabad, Pakistan Maulana Mohammad Abdul Aziz may be the most hated man in Pakistan. Political commentators cannot stop talking about him. Neither can the opposition. Both use his example to shame the ruling party for its supposed nonchalant attitude towards extremism. It seems the government is afraid of him, said Senator Tahir Hussain Mashhadi during a session of the upper house. Maybe it is. Last month, for two hours each Friday, the authorities choked Islamabads mobile signals to prevent the cleric from delivering his weekly sermon through his phone. There is a police station right here, says Aziz, pointing behind him. Ask them. Is there any proof that I am a criminal, a terrorist or even a killer? All I speak for is an Islamic system. Is that a crime? he asks. The police station he is referring to reportedly has two First Information Reports registered against him for provocation and threatening the civil society. The police refused Al Jazeeras requests for comment. Even the interior minister insists that Aziz cannot be detained, owing to a lack of charges. Today, the 55-year-olds movements are restricted. He spends most of his time at a sprawling madrassa in the heart of Pakistans capital, Islamabad, that is still under construction. Policemen guard his premises. Agencies raid his madrassas and cart off his employees for questioning, he claims. Recently, his two sons-in-law were picked up. They returned only after he threatened to take to the streets. The silent majority is with us Aziz is a tall, slightly hunched man. When he speaks, he moves back and forth in a rhythmic motion, occasionally touching his scraggly white beard. The silent majority is with us, he says peering through his round spectacles. There are people who love us, not just in Pakistan but around the world. It is not a small group, he adds. He may be right. Seminaries run by his family in and around Islamabad house up to 5,000 male and female students and 550 teachers. Most hail from Kashmir and the Khyber Pakhtunwa province. Their monthly expenses, if Aziz is to be believed, can run up to Rs 15 million ($143,000), an amount bankrolled by local donations. Still, it is a small set-up when compared with his days as the head cleric of Islamabads oldest and second-largest mosque, the Lal Masjid (the Red Mosque). During the 1960s and 1970s, the crimson-coloured structure enjoyed iconic status and was often included in the itinerary of visiting foreign dignitaries. Then it fell from grace after the opening of the even larger Faisal Mosque in 1980. And again, in 2007, under the leadership of Aziz. The summer of 2007: a siege at the Red Mosque The bespectacled father of three does not inspire much fear if you meet him today. But he did, back in the summer of 2007 when he and his family roused an uprising that rattled Islamabad and changed Pakistan for the next decade. It began with his students. Under his guidance, they launched a violent and disruptive campaign to enforce a hardline version of sharia. Baton-wielding men and women took to the streets, forcing video stores they deemed immoral to shut. His brother threatened to throw acid on female students at the Quaid-i-Azam University. The governments muted response further emboldened the youngsters, who then abducted seven Chinese citizens from an upscale massage parlour that they insisted was a brothel. That final act jolted the establishment into action. China and Pakistan share a border and strong diplomatic ties. For Pakistan this was a matter of serious embarrassment and for China a matter of serious concern. Andrew Small writes in his book, The China-Pakistan Axis: Asias New Geopolitics that Chinas President, Hu Jintao, would receive regular briefings from his diplomats in Pakistan as the drama of the next 17 hours unfolded. Clashes finally erupted in July. The bloody 10-day siege ended with troops storming the Lal Masjid. At least 103 people were killed. Among the dead was Azizs firebrand brother, Abdul Rashid Ghazi, his mother and son. Small adds that the dead also included 12 Uighurs a Turkic-speaking Muslim ethnic group from China. After the crackdown, Aziz was caught trying to escape disguised as a woman. But during the siege, he was defiant. He claimed to have prepared 10,000 suicide bombers to strike. The 300-page report commissioned to investigate the Lal Masjid siege notes that he crowed about his victory. We have spoken to our brothers in the tribal areas, he told his students, and a host of other warriors, including Baitullah Mehsud, who would soon be coming to Islamabad for our support. Mehsud then went on to form the notorious Pakistan Taliban. San Bernardino, ISIL and sectarianism Even today, controversy seems to be drawn to Aziz. One of the gunmen in the San Bernardino massacre, Tashfeen Malik, had allegedly visited the Lal Masjid and taken a photograph with him. To these allegations, Aziz retorts: This news is absolutely false. She didnt take any pictures with me. He momentarily loses his cool. I dont even have a picture with my family, he says. READ MORE: The ethnicity of San Bernardino shooters doesnt matter In 2014, some girls from his madrassa uploaded a video in Arabic pledging allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Aziz seems to choose his words carefully. These girls did it on their own. They did it for the love of their religion, so I cannot condemn it, he says. He pauses, then continues: Our leaders have fooled us for 64 years. They told us that they will bring an Islamic system. No one was honest about it. If you are not going to do it and someone else will, then of course it will catch attention. You are seeing videos of violent acts committed by the Islamic State but not the videos of violence committed by the other side. By the other side, Aziz means the US, the Syrian government and Shia Muslims a group towards which he holds particular animosity. Aziz believes a Shia Muslim shot his father. The Mullah and his students Shortly after the siege, Ayman al-Zawahiri, then al-Qaedas number two to Osama bin Laden, released a video titled The Aggression against Lal Masjid. In it, he targeted Pakistans then president, Pervez Musharraf. The crime can only be washed away by repentance or blood, Zawahiri said. The reason al-Qaeda came to Azizs defence, says senior journalist Khaled Ahmed, is because Lal Masjid was an early link-up of sectarian clerics with Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda. With time, it also represented the interface with the Pakistan security agencies, with the non-state actors being used in Afghanistan. The Taliban were officially created as Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan by al-Qaeda after the Musharraf government decided to attack the Red Mosque with a commando unit. The same commando unit, Ahmed adds, was later blown up by a suicide bomber sent by al-Qaeda. Last year, Sabeen Mahmud, the Pakistani human rights activist, was shot dead. The alleged culprit, who also confessed to being involved in the killing of 45 members of the Shia Ismaili community in Karachi, told police that Mahmud had been targeted for her campaign against Aziz. Aziz is hanging on because of the strong presence of favourable factors in Islamabad, explains Ahmed. Including illegal madrassas, middle and lower-middle-class civil servants, slum dwellers and shopkeepers. There is another group that endorses and supports his views his students. What is the harm in trying the Islamic system? asks Ayesha, a 26-year-old graduate of one of Azizs seminaries. The media raise all kinds of propaganda against us, but they never ask us for our or the Maulanas point of view. As the interview comes to a close, the cleric collects a few copies of his self-published books from a small, rectangular office to hand out. One of them is entitled Is Pakistans Constitution Islamic? Outside, teenagers sit on straw mats revising their lessons for the day. Aziz checks the time on his Samsung mobile phone and begins to talk again. He is now citing examples from political talk shows, which, he says vilify him and his kind. TV anchors calls me Mullah. They say Mullah Abdul Aziz. Its not a bad thing, to be called a Mullah, he explains, smirking at the idea of being a Grinch to the rest of Pakistan. Does that make him angry? How do his 5,000 students feel, when civil society activists, political parties and the media call for his arrest? It makes the students angry, he says, looking contemplative, which is pretty natural. In south India, a couple know the various types of rain that fall on their land as intimately as they know each other. There is a sacred spot on Neelkumar and Rajmatis small farm in Karnataka, south India. To get to it from Bangalore, the capital of the state and the countrys IT hub, you need to change buses three times, travelling 500km into the mountains of the Western Ghats. Then you have to get off and walk. After an hour-and-a-half of meandering along dirt roads, through farm and jungle, you reach the elderly couples four-acre landholding in Kanapugaru village. Village is a loose term for these clusters of two or three houses scattered across the jungled Sharavathy Valley. Neelkumar and Rajmati built their three-roomed house themselves: the walls of laterite stone, plastered with the pinky-red mud of the area; the mud floor finished with a polished cow dung paste; and the roof of red clay tiles that extend out on two sides to make a sheltered veranda where the couple like to sit. The sacred spot, beside the stream that runs along the bottom of the valley at the edge of their fields, is quiet and unpolluted. It was identified generations before them; this generation merely returns to it. Once a year, at Diwali, the festival of lights celebrated by Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists and Jains, the two go to this spot to offer flowers to the stream and to dip a black terracotta pot into its waters. They place daily offerings of flowers, sweet dishes and fruits inside the pitcher and, after five days, submerge it back into the stream. The pots submergence symbolises the understanding that humans do not really own anything: the water is borrowed from nature to grow food, and then returned to its rightful place. The couple then give thanks to their gods and ancestors, for the forests and weather around them, and to the monsoon rains that grow their crops. The couple give thanks to Varuna, the god of oceans and rainfall, often depicted with an umbrella over his head. This year they will have crops to sell and will be comfortable. Knowing the rain Neelkumar and Rajmati live in a region of the Western Ghats called Malenadu, meaning place of rain in the Kannada language. They live their lives acutely attuned to the climate of their land. It would be almost impossible not to: the mountains form the bank that the southwest monsoon hits as it rolls in from the Arabian Sea, and for up to six months of the year the area is drenched in thunderous rains. For nearly half of this couples lives, great troughs of water have fallen from the sky, and they know the rains as intimately as they know each other. They refer to 10 different types of rain, identified by their intensities and length, and can predict from the feel of the air and the time of the year which one is about to fall. Everyone in Malenadu can. There is one kind that pours for four days and nights without a stop, says Neelkumar, looking out at his fields of areca, turmeric and rice paddy. Even if the world had turned upside down, we wouldnt be able to tell because of these rains. Back at the house, Rajmati chops vegetables for lunch with a traditional half-moon blade as the television in the background barks out sensationalist news on the local 24-hour channel. Radio and television mean that they have heard vaguely of something called global warming but they are not too familiar with the concept. Their world is one of seasons, and local politics. Neelkumar checks that the wild peacocks have not come out of the forest to eat the paddy, which is nearly ready, and in the afternoon the two relax on the veranda and chew the mildly stimulating areca nut. They roll up the broken nut in a betel leaf smeared with a little lime paste, occasionally mixing in a sprinkling of tobacco. They do this so often that their mouths are stained with it, and they sometimes have to spit it out before they can speak. It is one of their favourite pastimes. We take only what we need The semi-evergreen forests in front of them are a global hotspot of biodiversity, meaning that they contain an exceptional richness of plants and animals, including many endemic species that are threatened with destruction. These dense, dark forests are one of the last known habitats of the endangered lion-tailed macaque; Asian elephants and tigers move among the tall trees on the hillsides that give way to vast grasslands on the peaks. The forest is a trove of natural treasures, yet Neelkumar and Rajmati venture into it only very rarely. They are Digambar Jains, and their beliefs tell them not to exploit for financial profit. Jainism is one of the oldest Indian religions, and the couple believe that all living beings from plants to humans have a soul, and should be treated with respect and compassion. We only take from the forest what we need for the house, says Neelkumar, his gums and teeth red from areca nut. A yearly treat is the harvesting of wild forest honey, which the couple do in Ugadi, the regional new year celebration that falls between March and April. The local variety of bee is a small one, without a sting and blackish in colour, called Misri Jenu in Kannada, or the Dammer bee in English. Its hives are tiny, about the size of Neelkumars palm. Each yields only a couple of spoonfuls of honey, known for its medicinal properties, and the couple look forward to bringing home the combs to suck on for their heady sweetness. But the hives now are smaller, says Neelkumar. People are greedy, and they dont wait until they are big enough to take. It is a tiny example of the human actions that threaten this delicate ecosystem: from individual exploitations, to wider industrial development and global climate change. A land of rains Rajmati looks up. It is not yet dark, but their eight cattle are home early again, waiting at the wooden gate made of tree branches lashed together. She puts down her sweet chai and gets up to let them into their enclosure. She will have to cut some more wild grass from the fields to feed them. Rajmati and Neelkumars cattle never used to come home early. Every day they wander out through the forests to feed on the lush grass on the hilltops, and in previous years would sometimes stay out so long that Rajmati would have to go and fetch them home as darkness approached. But this year the grass on top of the hillocks is no longer there, so the cows return early looking to be fed. The couple say that last October was far hotter than usual, and the grass died as a result. It is a major event for them, one as odd as the household cat suddenly becoming a different colour. [During] Diwali, the temperatures [were as warm as] you would expect at Ugadi, says Rajmati. Neelkumar has also noticed a new type of disease on tree bark. But the strangest thing of all is that the rains have changed. They no longer feel familiar to them. A type that normally drizzles for two days might stop early. Rohini MaLe, which used to occur in June, may now come later. The couples observations corroborate the limited understanding of how climate change is already affecting parts of the Western Ghats. There has been an overall decrease in rainfall but the intensity of weather events has increased and become less predictable. Rajmati says that the rains have become scanty over the past few years. Neelkumar noticed excessively heavy rains in 2013 and 2014. They remind him of only two other occasions during his 30 years of farming this area one of which was in 1974 when heavy rain caused landslides to demolish agricultural fields. In this land of rains, too much can be a problem: The areca palm becomes vulnerable to pests, and the areca nut can rot. This happened during the heavy rains in 2014, and as a result the couple had only half of what their crop has been this year. And it has knock-on effects: the couple now buy various chemicals to fight the pests and spend hours applying them to the plants. When they work the fields, they cover their heads with caps made of hardened areca nut leaf bent to the shape of a head and stitched in turquoise thread by Rajmati to keep them dry. The changes are not critical for them at the moment such is the slope and saturation of these lands that the stream could give them enough water for their handful of fields for a year. They have a small vegetable patch growing okra, chilli, gourds and squash, and it usually yields enough for them to eat. For now, things are manageable and life is peaceful. During the monsoon, the electricity often goes out for days on end, and with it the modern conveniences that have brought so much change to Kanapugaru village over the past 10 years: the television goes quiet, the kitchen mixer stands still, the electric light that spills out of the house in long rectangles to the dark forest outside is cut. Instead the only noise is of the rain drumming on the roof and falling like thousands of grains of rice on to the leaves outside. The water pools in the red earth and slides down the pathways. On the porch, Neelkumar and Rajmati roll up the areca nut and chew. Kerosene lamps that are little more than a metal canister with a wick make hives of flickering orange light, and Neelkumar sings the folk songs he learned from his parents. He has one for every occasion, and many include a mention of rain. He and Rajmati do not know as many as their mothers, and their children know fewer still. Their two sons and daughter are grown-up now, and have moved away: the youngest two are studying computing, and working in Bangalore. Their oldest is married and lives 250km away, but comes to visit for Diwali. It is unlikely that any of them would be able to recognise all the different types of rain that fall in Malenadu. Since the writing of this article, Rajmati has unfortunately died. Photo gallery: The US has spent $10bn on resolving Colombias five-decade civil war, but peace will cost more still. New York, United States From the warzones of Ukraine to Syria and Afghanistan, Washingtons foreign policy experts have little to rejoice about. Against this backdrop, US support for peace between Colombias government and Marxist guerrillas is being lauded as a rare success story this week. On Thursday, US President Barack Obama will host his Colombian counterpart, Juan Manual Santos, to celebrate a 15-year programme of US military aid in pursuit of a peace deal with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) that is tantalisingly close to fruition. US officials say the $10bn provided for smashing rebels and narco-gangs via the Plan Colombia scheme since 2000 was money well spent. Helping to resolve Latin Americas longest war burnishes the credentials of Washington, which is often chided for destabilising its southern neighbours. According to Mark Feierstein, a senior director at the White Houses National Security Council, the US has helped Colombia to transform itself into a more secure, more prosperous and more peaceful democracy with a vibrant free-market economy. But finalising the accord could cost as much as getting FARC to the negotiating table. At the request of Santos, Obama will ask Congress to increase its annual assistance to Colombia, from about $300m currently to an unknown sum, perhaps as high as $500m. Feierstein declined to say how much Obama would request in his forthcoming budget proposal. Roberta Jacobson, a senior state department official, said Plan Colombia 2.0, as it has been dubbed, would aim at state-building in formerly rebel-held areas. It will focus on security, including counternarcotics, demobilisation of FARC fighters and demining, expanding the state presence in public institutions, Jacobson said. And it will focus on justice and assistance for victims of the conflict. But she warned that the March 23 deadline for signing the accord would likely be pushed back until mid-2016, as the rebels negotiate over such end-game issues as handing over their weapons and reintegrating into Colombian society. Analysts are divided over whether Congress should stump up the cash. Although Colombia has been hit by falling oil prices and the Zika virus, it is richer and more stable than many other states that could use some counter-insurgency dollars. The temptation, of course, in Washington, is to declare a success and move on, Eric Farnsworth, the vice president of the Council of the Americas, a think-tank, told Al Jazeera. But that would be a mistake, he added. If the US takes its eye off the ball, Colombia could quietly descend back into chaos under a weakened FARC, other armed groups and narco-gangs, and present a renewed security challenge in years to come. An imperfect success story Shannon ONeil, a scholar at the Council on Foreign Relations, a think-tank, said politicians would likely open the coffers. Colombia is a rare country that enjoys support on both sides of Congress and has given US taxpayers a good return on their investments. Colombia will need to invest billions of dollars to reintegrate FARC soldiers, to help millions of Colombians displaced by violence, and to build up Colombias infrastructure, connecting the country and its people, ONeil told Al Jazeera. The US, along with other nations and international donors, will likely sign on to help fund this process, but in the end it is Colombia that must knit back together its nation. Former US diplomat Peter DeShazo said 15 years of US support to Colombia only cost about the same as two months fighting in Afghanistan. The payback in poverty reduction, less crime and economic growth rates of 4.5 percent from 2002 to 2014 speak for themselves, he added. Others are more cautious. Vanda Felbab-Brown, a counterinsurgency expert at the Brookings Institution, a think-tank, describes Plan Colombia as a very imperfect success story and says Bogota should shoulder more of the burden. The Colombians are motivated. Santos, conscious of his legacy, is actively lobbying for a Nobel Peace Prize, she said. His government must end the war to secure entry to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, a club of rich nations. Clearly, Colombia deserves US support, but its also time for Colombia to start paying for itself, far more than has been the case, Felbab-Brown told Al Jazeera. Bogota should match every dollar provided by Washington, she added. Confessing to crimes Others point to the failures of Plan Colombia. Adam Isacson, from the Washington Office on Latin America, highlights corruption and rights abuses in a process that has only resulted in FARC forces shrinking from their peak of about 20,000 personnel to 7,000 today. It took 15 years only to reduce the size of the FARC by two-thirds, which still leaves them as one of the biggest and wealthiest insurgencies in the history of Latin America, Isacson told Al Jazeera. When Plan Colombia was hatched in 1999 by the administrations of Bill Clinton and Andres Pastrana, then Colombias president, the country was collapsing under the violence of FARC on the left and violent paramilitary forces on the right, both fuelled by cocaine-trade cash. The strategy helped cut Colombias coca crop and helped its government train and equip its security forces so they could regain control over swathes of the country that had been lost to the rebels. As the number of kidnappings, killings and attacks fell, Colombias economy picked up and tourists have started returning to visit its once-dangerous colonial towns, coffee plantations and mountain scenery. After almost four years of talks, negotiators in Cuba have brokered an accord that will see rebels confessing to their crimes to avoid jail time and compensating victims. Those who lay down their weapons will be allowed to participate in local politics. Many Colombians would rather see the rebels vanquished. US drug warrants against Colombian commanders One of the peace deals loudest critics is former President Alvaro Uribe, whose heavy-handed approach helped force a weakened FARC to the negotiating table. For him, governments should not make concessions to murderous drug traffickers. If Santos returns home from Washington with strong support from Republicans and Democrats and a package of support for when the peace deal is concluded, that would strengthen his hand back in Colombia, Farnsworth said. Santos has other problems. In 2006, US federal prosecutors accused 50 FARC leaders of supplying more than half of the worlds cocaine. Santos has asked the US to suspend drug warrants against guerrilla commanders, many of whom are negotiating in Havana. Feierstein said Colombian officials can make its own sovereign decisions, about whether to extradite suspects, but that the US will continue to seek extraditions of those who break US laws so that they can be held accountable in US courts. The White House is more likely to grant some form of financial assistance to support the implementation of the accords than to accept President Santos petition to have the FARC removed from the US list of terrorist organisations and suspend arrest warrants against several FARC leaders, Gustavo Flores-Macias, a scholar at Cornell University, told Al Jazeera. Follow James Reinl on Twitter: @jamesreinl Women employed in judicial institutions can no longer wear the hijab to work in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Hijabs are no longer welcome in judicial institutions in Bosnia and Herzegovina to avoid suspicion of religiously motivated bias, according to a recent conclusion reached by the countrys High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council. Lawyers, prosecutors and others employed in judicial institutions can no longer wear the hijab to work. Whether third parties, such as witnesses, will be permitted to participate in hearings while wearing it will be determined on a case-by-case basis. READ MORE: Christian college suspends hijab-wearing professor over Islam remarks This is the first time such a decision has been made in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Although the decision was reached during two sessions in September and October 2015, it was only two weeks ago that the news of it broke, sparking an outcry among citizens and within the Muslim community. The ban applies to the religious symbols of all religions. But many have argued that while a crucifix necklace can be removed or concealed, the same is not true for a hijab. Hanadi Salkica has been working as a lawyer since 2007 in the central city of Zenica. She says her hijab is not a religious symbol but a way of life and a personal style of dress. Salkica says she has never encountered a judge or anyone else in a courtroom who has looked at her differently because of it. Its sad that amid all the problems we have in this country, theyre interested in such irrelevant issues as whether someones way of dress will have an effect on their professionalism, Salkica says. How can you explain a statement made by a prominent representative of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council who said in a TV interview that [a covered woman] irritates [others] with her appearance? What does irritate mean? I irritate someone with my appearance just because when they see me, they know that Im a Bosniak Muslim? Its unbelievable. So the problem isnt with third parties or with lawyers, but rather with head judges who are unable to be objective because when they see someone who irritates them with their appearance, they cant do their job professionally, Salkica adds. Anti-hijab discrimination Salkica does believe that there has always been tacit workplace discrimination that has stopped hijab-wearing women from reaching certain positions. She says that there is not a single judge or prosecutor who wears a hijab. READ MORE: Inside the booming Muslim fashion industry A law stating that judges and officials cannot show any kind of religious, political, national or other affiliation while performing official duties has been in place in Bosnia and Herzegovina since 2003, but no one has tried to put it into practice until now. Dalida Burzic, a Sarajevo prosecutor, reported to the media last week that a woman who wears the hijab and works as a court reporter at the cantonal prosecutors office in Sarajevo has been transferred to the office of the prosecutors secretary as a result of the ban. Milan Tegeltija, the president of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council, or HJPC, says it is simply a case of implementing an existing law. Even by Dermana applies to everyone, in reality it targets mostly one specific group educated women who wear the hijab.] We didnt make anything up, Tegeltija explains. We simply gave orders to the courts and prosecutors office to implement the law as it is. If anyone believes that the law isnt right, then the place to change it wouldnt be with HJPC but with the parliament. On the other hand, the fact is that Bosnia and Herzegovina is a secular country. In a secular country, everything has to be secular, especially the public institutions which decide peoples rights and interests, Tegeltija adds. No one is saying that by wearing a religious symbol, the person is biased. But the fact is that the third party who is in court, who is being tried, can be prejudiced and think that there is no neutrality. Critics argue that the term religious symbol is vague and arbitrary and that the decision violates basic human rights such as the freedom of religion and the right to work as protected under the UN Declaration and European Convention on Human Rights and in all of Bosnias constitutions. Dermana Seta, the master of religious studies and president of the Commission on Religious Freedom of the Islamic Community, says that these rights can be limited in a democratic society on condition that it is according to law, with a legitimate goal in mind and that the measures are proportionate to the needs. In this case, Seta says, none of these conditions has been met, nor was there a debate about it in parliament. Even if it appears as neutral and as if [the ban] applies to everyone, in reality it targets mostly one specific group educated women who wear the hijab, Seta says. This is something that this country cannot allow to happen to exclude educated, professional women from the system. Seta says that the decision is especially problematic because it implies that women who wear the hijab cannot carry out their job professionally because they are biased. The way a person dresses due to their religious beliefs cant be an obstacle to an impartial and independent judiciary, says Fikret Karcic, a professor at Sarajevos Faculty of Law. READ MORE: Swedens hijabista selling Muslim fashion [Religious] believers can be unbiased judges because their own religion, which is Islam in this case, asks them to judge fairly, that justice is the closest to piety, and that they should judge fairly even if its against themselves. You cant expect a judge to leave their faith behind in the dressing room prior to entering the court and for them to judge as an abstract person without any relation with their identity. Nationwide protests According to the preliminary results of the 2013 population census, 50 percent of Bosnia and Herzegovinas population is Muslim. Bosnia and Herzegovina was one of the six republics that, for 50 years, formed the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. As was the case with most communist countries, religion was discouraged and suppressed. The break-up of Yugoslavia and the collapse of communism in the early 1990s paved the way for individuals to practise their religion without fear of losing their jobs or being detained. Salkica explains that today there are plenty of professional women who wear the hijab but face limitations in their careers due to discrimination, regardless of the field they are in. Since news of the ban broke, online petitions have gone viral and marches have been held in various cities. On February 1, for World Hijab Day, hijab-wearing activists posted photos of themselves holding signs with the hashtag #unbiased. This is not the first time the hijab has sparked controversy in the country. In 2012, Emela Mujanovic, an officer in Bosnias armed forces, was suspended after she refused to remove her hijab. The case was taken to Bosnias Constitutional Court, which concluded that her right to practise her religion had not been violated. The stories of two cancer patients reveal the desperate plight faced by those who cannot afford private care. Garissa, Kenya Go and speak to that lady. Her son has just been admitted for the tenth time, says Kadhra Mohamed as she fills out a medical report for the latest patient to be admitted to Ward One of the Garissa General Hospital, the largest in north-eastern Kenya. It is early afternoon and so hot that patients are choosing to lie on the floor instead of on their hospital beds. Kadhra directs us to Harun Abdullahi, a 17-year-old leukaemia patient. Harun was semi-conscious when he was brought to this poorly equipped hospital. He asks his mother to remove his shirt because the heat is unbearable. Beneath it, his skinny frame is covered in sweat. An hour or so earlier, he had a blood transfusion something that has become almost routine each time he is brought in. It has been almost two years of suffering now, says Haruns mother, Fatuma Adan. This is new to me and I dont know what to do. The 45-year-old single mother of nine has used all of her savings to take Harun to private hospitals in the Kenyan capital, Nairobi. She has even taken out loans, but still owes hospitals for his treatment. We kept on referring him to Kenyatta National Hospital [the largest referral hospital in Kenya, known as KNH], says Kadhra. But the familys financial constraints have prevented them from [taking him there]. Unfortunately, money is the green light to better healthcare. If you have it, then youre in a good position. For him, its sad, she adds. The cost of cancer treatment In Kenya, cancer treatment is becoming increasingly expensive. Few private hospitals are equipped to provide treatment, which makes it possible for those that are to charge higher rates. According to Faraja Cancer Support, an NGO that works with cancer patients, the average [cost of] treatment ranges from $1,600 to $5,000, which is way beyond the reach of many Kenyans. Even the $5 cost of one radiotherapy session at the public hospital can be prohibitively expensive for poor Kenyans who live on a dollar or less a day. And the number of people affected by this is on the rise. According to the Ministry of Health, there are 40,000 new cases of cancer reported annually in the country. Another 27,000 patients succumb to the disease each year. From 2011 to 2014, cancer deaths rose by 23 percent, up from 17 percent in 2010. Machines such as the positron emission tomography-magnetic resonanceimaging scanner can be critical to detecting cancer. But such technology is unavailable in Kenya because it uses radiation, and the country does not have laws and mechanisms in place to enable the safe handling of radioactive isotopes. In March 2015, hundreds of cancer patients were unable to proceed with their scheduled cancer treatment when the two radiotherapy machines at KNH broke down. KNH is the largest referral hospital not only in Kenya but in East and Central Africa. It is also the only public cancer treatment facility in the country. But it is poorly equipped and overstretched. Cancer victims from all over the country flood the facility to get cheap radiotherapy sessions. But they can sometimes wait almost a year for an appointment. When the radiotherapy machines broke down again last September, Fatuma Hamisi, who had travelled to Nairobi from Kwale, about 500km away, was forced to reschedule her appointment for months later. I was called by the doctors for my radiotherapy session. After arriving, I was told that the machines had broken down, the cervical cancer patient explains. The machines in question have been in use for 20 years, treating up to 100 patients a day instead of the recommended limit of 50. Hamisi could not afford to find treatment elsewhere. Private hospitals can charge around $300, about 60 times more than KNH, for a single radiotherapy session. Dr Catherine Nyongesa, a Kenyan cancer specialist, explains the importance of prompt treatment: Cancer treatment for patients should start as soon as possible. If delayed, it matures from a curable stage to an incurable one, hence making it more painful and expensive to deal with. The main cause [of delays] is a lack of financial support. Cancer drugs are also expensive since they are not subsidised. Many patients end up renting houses in the city or boarding in hotels, adding to the expense. Now I feel stranded, says Hamisi. I have no relatives here [In Nairobi]. I just report every morning [to the hospital] to check if they have fixed [the machine]. A more promising future? Those Kenyans who can afford it often go outside the country for their cancer treatment. According to the countrys health ministry, each year 10,000 Kenyans are treated elsewhere mainly in India and South Africa, which both have more advanced medical facilities. These patients are thought to spend a total of $108m on treatment abroad. But all hope may not be lost. The government has set aside $206m for cancer care. Much of this will go towards diagnosis equipment and it should help to make treatment more accessible for cancer patients. Kenyas first ever comprehensive cancer diagnostic and treatment hospital is also being established. The Tesla Cancer Centre is a $10m project due to be completed next year. The hospitals management intends to import a positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET CT) scanner an imaging tool that combines two scan techniques in one examination, allowing doctors to see any changes in the activity of cells and to know where those changes are taking place. As well as attracting patients who would otherwise travel to India or South Africa for treatment, the facility will also start a foundation to help impoverished cancer patients. As the World Cancer Day is marked, Kenyan cancer patients are left to hope that the treatment they need will reach them in time. For Fatuma Adan, however, it is too late. Harun succumbed to the disease only hours after arriving at KNH, after he was referred there by the hospital in Garissa. In her tiny rented house, she is left to mourn her only son and to wonder how she will repay the debts she accrued trying to save him. I do not know where to start from here, she says, crying. I have lost my son and I have debts to settle. Only God understands what I feel now. One thing she is sure of, is that her son would have received better treatment if she had been rich. Follow Osman Mohamed Osman on Twitter @OsmanMOsman Political action is needed to resolve the conflict and bring about accountability for international law violations. The international conference on Syria today in London is an opportune moment to remember that all wars, in particular this most catastrophic conflagration, are measured by their human cost. Aya Kassem is a seven-year-old Palestinian refugee from Damascus. A mortar attack mutilated her leg which had to be amputated. Courageously, and after a series of operations, Aya has learned to walk again. Her fortitude and sheer enthusiasm at the prospect of continuing her education are humbling. With determination beyond her years, she told us: It made me happy to go to school to meet friends and learn things that I never knew. Aya illustrates the very real and individual consequences of the Syrian conflict. Like so many, hers is a destiny that must be nurtured and respected. Nearly 12 million people have been forced to flee their homes; some 6.5 million are internally displaced; meanwhile 4.2 million have fled to neighbouring countries. Inside Syria, 13.5 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance. Palestine refugees Less attention is given to 560,000 Palestine refugees in Syria that have found themselves caught up in the conflict. They are survivors and children of survivors of the catastrophe or Nakba that befell the Palestinian people, when the 1948 Arab-Israeli war saw 750,000 Palestinians become refugees; they fled or were forced to flee their homes into neighbouring countries including Syria. READ MORE: An unsustainable refugee crisis Today the tragedy of their continuing displacement and exile, as part of a group of more than five million Palestine refugees across the region, is as yet unresolved. Aya illustrates the very real and individual consequences of the Syrian conflict. Like so many, hers is a destiny that must be nurtured and respected. by An estimated 450,000 of the 560,000 Palestine refugees registered with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in Syria remain inside the country; over 60 percent 280,000 people are internally displaced. This includes tens of thousands who are trapped in areas of active conflict, such as the Yarmouk refugee camp in Damascus. Though Yarmouk has sometimes made headlines, all 12 Palestine refugee camps in Syria have been affected by the fighting. We are dealing with yet another generation of Palestinians facing dispossession, displacement, destitution and loss of life. Of the Palestine refugees from Syria who have been forced again into exile, around 42,000 have fled to Lebanon and more than 17,000 to Jordan, living a precarious, marginalised existence dependent on UNRWA for basic subsistence needs. While their number there has been static for some time, others are taking the more desperate voyage to Europe by boat. UNRWA has a demonstrated capacity to meet Palestine refugee needs in Syria and beyond, when adequately funded. The agency has one of the largest presences of personnel in the country; our 4,000 staff have a deep and long-standing experience of the context. We are uniquely placed to help Palestine refugees to deal with the multiplicity of traumas and needs they face and we have a demonstrable ability to resume service provisions in Syrias rare post-conflict pockets. Preserving education Last year, 43,000 students attended our schools in Syria. We implemented a comprehensive Education in Emergencies scheme, which included self-learning materials complemented by online interactive learning programmes and support classes. Some 15 UNRWA health centres and 11 health points temporary makeshift clinics in conflict-affected areas conducted several hundred thousand consultations. Against considerable odds, our work daily demonstrates the value of preserving education and health services to ensure that no one is left behind; that there should be no lost generation. UNRWA combines an ability to respond to immediate emergency needs while at the same time providing longer-term development. We do so under one roof as part of one seamless, sustained intervention. So in addition to the human development work described above, in 2016, with the support of our donors and partners, we are planning a broad range of emergency programmes; food and cash for 430,000 people inside Syria and education and healthcare for the 60,000 Palestinians who have fled to Lebanon and Jordan. READ MORE: Europe, stop branding refugees Some 95 percent of Palestinians in Syria are reliant on URNWA aid. Our support is often the difference between life and death. The significance of this cannot be underestimated, particularly among a population which increasingly seeks protection and services outside the Middle East. With the conflict soon entering its sixth year, nothing today is more important than progress at the Geneva talks. Robust political action is needed to resolve the conflict and bring about accountability for violations of international law. In the meantime, we intend to energetically uphold the rights of Palestine refugees, in Syria and throughout the Middle East. Their plight and the uncertainty they face has gone on for far too long. Their tragedy is one that the world cannot overlook. In a region where hope and prospects are elusive at best, I return to Aya. Much remains to be done beyond saving her life and helping her to recover from the immediate trauma of losing her leg. Propelled by her ambition to achieve a full education, UNRWA will seek to sustain her through her youth and to adulthood, hoping that opportunities and achievement will lie ahead. Aya is a Palestine refugee, with her aspirations, pride and dignity. She is a citizen of the world and as such she should not be left behind. Pierre Krahenbuhl is the the Commissioner General of UNRWA. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy. Barzanis call for a vote on Iraqi Kurdistans independence panders to Kurdish dreams for his own legitimacy. Masoud Barzani, president of the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRG) and leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) of Iraq, made a renewed call for a referendum on independence for Iraqs Kurds this week. While Kurdish independence has been a latent desire for this veteran Kurdish politician, what explains this recent, sudden announcement? The answer lies somewhere in between Barzanis own domestic legitimacy crisis, falling international oil prices, and the fulfillment of ending a traumatic relationship between Iraqs Kurds and the rest of Iraq. While my family hails from the Arab south of Iraq, my first trip to Iraq as an adult was to Iraqi Kurdistan in 2003. Nevertheless, I was already familiar with the geography of this region before my arrival. I had conducted research on the Anfal Campaign, a military offensive launched by Saddam Husseins government in the final years of the Iran-Iraq War to quell the Kurdish uprising, where the Iraqi state employed chemical bombardments, depopulation campaigns, and mass executions against its own citizens in the north. When I passed through the village of Koy Sanjaq, for example, it was difficult for me to appreciate its natural beauty. As a doctoral student I had spent hours reading captured Iraqi intelligence files during the Iran-Iraq War on this village. At times, entire families from Koy Sanjaq were killed off, meticulously documented in a single piece of paper. Such documents are evidence of the traumatic relationship between the central government in Baghdad and Iraqs Kurds. However, despite the traumatic history, Barzanis recent announcement may have to do with more Machiavellian strategies for his political survival in the future, rather than escaping the horrors visited upon Iraqi Kurdistan in the past. Barzanis domestic woes In the summer of 2014 the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) had captured a large swaths of Iraqi territory. Iraqs future as an intact nation remained in doubt as ISIL seized Mosul and cities along the Tigris and Euphrates. READ MORE: Iraqi Kurdistan referendum: Going it alone In order to pre-empt ISILs advance, Kurdish forces seized the city of Kirkuk, which lay outside of the KRGs jurisdiction but had been long coveted as an integral part of Iraqi Kurdistan. At that juncture, the KRG emerged in a position of strength relative to the central government in Baghdad, whose military had all but collapsed in the face of the ISIL offensive. In July 2014 Barzani articulated the possibility of a Kurdish declaration of independence. However, as ISILs forces came dangerously close to the KRG capital of Irbil in August 2014, the Kurdish leadership realised it would have to rely on US support, particularly its air power, and subsequently deferred to Washingtons long-standing policy that Iraqs territorial integrity remain intact. For the most part, calls for independence among the Kurdish political elites remained relatively mute thereafter, despite being a cherished dream among the Kurdish population, particularly the youth. Barzanis most recent call for a vote on independence emerges at a time when he needs to seek legitimacy among his domestic constituency. Barzani's most recent call for a vote on independence emerges at a time when he needs to seek legitimacy among his domestic constituency. by In October of 2015 protests erupted over his extension of the term limit as president of the KRG, including in his traditional bastion of support, the city of Erbil. Media blackouts were imposed and Kurdish security forces were deployed to break up the protests. Not only did Barzani face this crisis, the KRG has also suffered from decreasing oil prices, its primary source of revenue, resulting in unpaid salaries for its civil servants and soldiers. Advocating independence for the Kurds now serves as a convenient ploy to deflect domestic criticism over Barzanis indefinite rule and economic crisis, and allowing him to gain the support of his own base, as well as constituencies loyal to the KRGs other political parties, such as the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan and the opposition party Gorran (Change). Barzanis strategy towards Baghdad In his recent announcement Barzani declared: The same way that Scotland, Catalonia and Quebec and other places have the right to express their opinions about their destiny, Kurdistan too has the right, and its non-negotiable. His attempt to situate Kurdish aspirations with that of Catalonias highlights another motivation behind Barzanis strategy. Not only does a call for independence appeal to Kurdish constituents, it serves as a tool to empower the KRG vis-a-vis the central government in Baghdad. READ MORE: Analysis: Machiavellian politics in Iraqi Kurdistan A recent Foreign Affairs article on Catalonias future highlights the manoeuvring behind the politicians in Barcelona and the Spanish capital, Madrid. What this article reveals and my own experiences in the summer of 2015 travelling to Catalan cities such as Girona, and Iraqi Kurdish cities such as Erbil is that while both populaces might have aspirations for independence, these dreams are manipulated by their political elites, who want to carve out more power for themselves. While these elites might make promises of independence to their constituents, these calls serve as a means of pressuring their respective central governments to devolve power and grant more autonomy to the regional politicians, particularly in terms of controlling the local finances of the KRG or Catalonia. Thus, Barzanis recent announcement might be a tactic of brinkmanship, forcing the government of Baghdad to recognise a fait accompli, Kurdish control over Kirkuk, and even greater Kurdish control of petroleum resources. Ending a traumatic relationship When I visited Iraqi Kurdistan in the summer of 2003, a member of the KDP told me that what unites Iraqis across all ethnicities and faiths are dumu mushtarika or shared tears. In other words Iraq as a nation suffered continuous trauma, whether it be three wars during Saddam Husseins tenure, or state-sponsored violence which targeted Kurds, Arabs Sunnis and Shia alike. In saying that, I believe this Kurdish politician was trying to articulate our shared commonality and a hope that moving beyond that traumatic period in the future would bring Iraqis together. However his hope failed to materialise. Even with a new Iraqi government in Baghdad, tensions persist between the KRG and the central government, between Kurd and Arab. Barzani has called for a non-binding vote on independence. It is meant to make a point, rather than an act of immediate secession. Nevertheless, I fear that the results of such a vote would only further polarise an already polarised Iraq. After that trip in 2003 to Iraqi Kurdistan, I eventually toured the entire nation, from Dohuk in the north to Umm Qasr in the very south. Having seen the nation in its entirety, as an Iraqi I now realise what independence would mean for Iraq. If I found redemption for the Iraqi nation, it was in Iraqi Kurdistan. It was only in Iraqi Kurdistan that I felt optimism for the future, that if this one part of Iraq could flourish and succeed, perhaps the centre and the south could imitate its success. Independence will fulfill a Kurdish dream. What that would mean for Iraq is most likely only more violent conflict with a future Kurdistan over borders, perpetuating the Iraqi nightmare. Ibrahim al-Marashi is an assistant professor at the Department of History, California State University, San Marcos. He is the co-author of Iraqs Armed Forces: An Analytical History. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy. Khaled A Beydoun is a law professor, and author of American Islamophobia: Understanding the Roots and Rise of Fear. On Wednesday, February 3, the United States President Barack Obama visited the Islamic Society of Baltimore. Seven years into his administration, and during the twilight of his final term, the visit will mark his first presidential stop at an American mosque. The visit drew as much ire as it did praise from Muslim Americans. Why so long? many reflected, particularly in light of Muslim Americans voting for Obama at a whopping 85 percent margin during his second campaign. Furthermore, why now, others wondered, contemplating what prevailing circumstances or state interests helped to deliver a presidential visit to a US mosque. A space that, within an ever more divided American imagination, is perceived as a training ground for extremism as often as it is thought of a place of worship. Since delivering his historic Cairo speech at Al-Azhar in June 2009, Obamas relationship with Islam, and Islamophobia, has been complex. A victim of Islamophobia himself, Obama manoeuvred around US mosques for seven years to dispel the myth that he wasnt a covert Muslim. Yet, while the decision to avoid US mosques was a calculated strategy to deflect the Islamophobia directed his way, his long-anticipated visit witnessed Obama pivot to the other side of that dynamic: seeking to advance counterterror policies targeting homegrown Muslim radicalisation. Victim of Islamophobia As demonstrated before and during his speech in Baltimore, Obama understands the roots of Muslim bigotry, recognises its effects on Muslim Americans and, as a victim of Islamophobia himself, can empathise with its injuries. Therefore, steering clear from American mosques for seven years was not driven by explicit Islamophobia. Obama's commitment to counter-radicalisation policing, and aim of enlisting Muslim Americans as intermediaries and informants, particularly in the wake of Paris and San Bernardino attacks, is the driving force behind his first visit to a US mosque. by But rather, by fear of the personal cost that interfacing with Muslim Americans, on their terrain, would have on his re-election prospects. And beyond that, by the political damage that stepping into a mosque would cause during the rising tide of anti-Muslim backlash and rhetorical venom from Republican presidential nominees. For the seven years leading up to the Baltimore visit, dodging allegations that he was an undercover Muslim included dodging requests to make an official US mosque visit. While rebuffing mosque invitation after invitation, Obama delivered notable addresses in several American churches. And just last May, he visited a Washington DC synagogue. Between being profiled as a Muslim by the likes of Donald Trump and extending the covert war on terror both globally and against the US eight million Muslim citizens domestically, Obamas long-awaited stop at an American mosque may be reason for greater concern than his decision to avoid them. Countering radicalisation While addressing the global Muslim community at Al-Azhar, Obama said: America and Islam are not exclusive, and need not be in competition. Instead, they overlap, and share common principles principles of justice and progress; tolerance and the dignity of all human beings. By challenging the clash of civilisations rhetoric and policies advanced by the Bush Administration, Obama mended the deep wounds it inflicted on Muslims in the US and abroad. Following his Cairo speech, Obama was lauded by Muslims and Muslim Americans. OPINION: A big thank-you to Obama after his mosque speech However, much like with the Cairo speech, the rift between the rhetoric about Muslim Americans he used and the policies employed against them is wide. And, with the expansion of counter-radicalisation policing, growing wider. With the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), Obama carried forward counterterror policies specifically targeting Muslim residents and citizens. Counter-radicalisation policing, the Obama administrations cornerstone counterterror programme, is built upon the ideological competition and civilisational conflict he disavowed seven years ago in Cairo. Radicalisation suggests that the path from Muslim to terrorist is a predictable one produced by or correlated with religious and political cultures of Muslim communities. INTERACTIVE: American Muslims speak out Obamas commitment to counter-radicalisation policing, and aim of enlisting Muslim Americans as intermediaries and informants, particularly in the wake of the Paris and San Bernardino attacks, is the driving force behind his first visit to a US mosque. Already piloted in Boston, Los Angeles and Minneapolis, the Department of Homeland security is bent on launching hard counter-radicalisation programmes in additional cities. Particularly cities with large and concentrated Muslim American populations. This was foreshadowed by his presidential address in the immediate wake of the San Bernardino shootings, when he said: And we are cooperating with Muslim communities here at home to counter the vicious ideology that ISIL promotes online. He echoed this again in Baltimore: Its why we will continue to partner with Muslim American communities not just to help you protect against extremist threats, but to expand healthcare and education and opportunity because thats the best way to build strong, resilient communities. Brilliantly, Obamas most explicit mention of counter-radicalisation was tied to healthcare, education, and work opportunity, which was no coincidence, but intended to frame the controversial counterterror programme as vital to the benefit of American communities, and specifically, Muslim American communities. Far from Cairo Obamas long awaited mosque visit, followed by a speech that mixed Assalamu Alaikums and Sabahs with laudatory normalising rhetoric, is a symbolic nod to Muslim Americans at large. The pull of Obamas rhetoric, so meticulously crafted and masterfully delivered, pulls Muslim Americans away from focusing on the mission of his cornerstone counterterror programme and counter-radicalisation policing. Unlike the historic Cairo speech, delivered in one of Islams most hallowed spaces, Obamas Baltimore speech was not motivated by American and Muslim reconciliation but, in direct contrast, to his administrations deepening commitment to counter Muslim radicalisation. This is how it will be remembered. Particularly after the seductive pull of his rhetoric is gradually drowned out by the immediate, expanding and collateral effects of counter-radicalisation policing. Coming to a mosque near you. Khaled A Beydoun is an assistant professor of law at the Barry University Dwayne O Andreas School of Law. He is a native of Detroit. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy. According to a news item on India Today, Last week, a team from Asias largest English news magazine, India Today, travelled to the Greek island of Lesbos to meet global artist and activist Ai Weiwei One of the pictures from our exclusive photo shoot shows Ai Weiwei lying face down on the pebbles next to the sea. This is a tribute to the tragic and everlasting image of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi, a Syrian refugee whose drowned body was washed up on a beach near the Turkish resort town of Bodrum last September. The urgent sense of excitement at breaking the news and the proprietorship of this picture and its artistic and political significance oozes from the gaudy breathlessness of its prose and yet you look at this picture of Ai Weiwei and you wonder: What does it exactly mean when a world renowned artist, a rather portly middle-aged man, poses as the malnourished dead body of a Syrian refugee child washed ashore as he and his family were trying to escape the slaughterhouse of their homeland? What are we supposed to feel, think, do when we see this picture of Ai Weiwei? Will it enhance or neutralise our terrorised sensibility to the original incident; will it underline or mock, ennoble or ridicule, the actual incident that has occasioned this artwork? Of mimicry and artistry Ai Weiwei is of course not the first one to turn his artistic gaze at this tragic incident. Before him, the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo had also depicted Aylan Kurdi, in which the three-year-old dead boy is shown in the sick mind of their cartoonist as having grown up and become a sexual predator violating European young women. ALSO READ: Can contemporary art become outdated? In the case of Charlie Hebdo, the response is of course very easy and straightforward. As represented by Charlie Hebdo, the French seem to have quite a sick, disgusting, and prodigiously obscene sense of humour that certainly does not warrant the murderous response of those Islamist thugs who went on a rampage killing people but nor does it justify any decent human being jumping on the ludicrous bandwagon of Je suis Charlie theatre of the absurd. Does Ai Weiwei's picture sublate and ennoble the occasion of that tragedy or does the figure of an overweight man pretending to be a lifeless child equally border with obscenity even despite the artist's intentions? by The case of Ai Weiwei, which is certainly very different from the obscenity of Charlie Hebdo, raises a more fundamental aesthetic question that may easily fade into the political. How do we represent tragic realities in this time of terror and in this age of visual oversaturation? Does Ai Weiweis picture sublate and ennoble the occasion of that tragedy or does the figure of an overweight man pretending to be a lifeless child equally border with obscenity even despite the artists intentions? Here, we need to abandon the realm of intention, for obviously Ai Weiwei has had far superior intentions than those of the ghastly racist Charlie Hebdo. Given his preoccupation with the fate of the refugees, he undoubtedly wishes to raise concern or even solidarity for the fate of this massive exodus of millions of human beings from their home and habitat. Would that perfectly plausible possibility render the picture that Ai Weiwei has had taken of himself while mimicking the moment of Aylan Kurdis death praiseworthy, uplifting, worthy of the exercise, and deserving of the term art? The problem here is more in the realm of mimetic representation than anything moral, ethical, or even political. Does Ai Weiwei could Ai Weiwei, or any other artist succeed to overcome the mimetic impossibility of representing this particular reality? Crisis of artistic representation Is this in any shape or form a successful act of artistic representation? What actually happens when we see the rather well-fed body of a grown-up man lying on a shore and pretending, mocking, or representing, even in perfectly mournful solidarity, to remind us of the lifeless body of a three-year-old boy? What I think we are facing today is a critical crisis of artistic representation the fundamental failure of conceptual art as we know it today to come to terms with realities that have trespassed national, regional, or imaginative geographies of representation. The enormity of the tragedy we are witnessing in places such as Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, etc is yet to find its own aesthetic idiomaticity and assimilating those horrid realities into conventional, even cliche and crude, conceptual art as articulated and staged by the North American and Western European curatorial provincialism is no longer sufficient. It is in fact positively revolting. Ai Weiwei is a celebrated Chinese artist, systematically persecuted by the Chinese government. That fact in and of itself is worthy of artistic contemplation. ALSO READ: Picturing the Prophet Muhammad But the dead body of Aylan Kurdi off the coast of Turkey represents the emerging topography of a calamity yet to be canvassed in the full spectrum of its tragic dimensions. The dead body of Aylan Kurdi off the coast of Turkey represents the emerging topography of a calamity yet to be canvassed in the full spectrum of its tragic dimensions. by What Ai Weiweis gesture shares with Charlie Hebdo is a fundamental failure of contemporary art in its European provenance (even when staged by a Chinese artist and commissioned by an Indian venue) to come to terms with those realities. Neither the Chinese artist, nor the Indian venue facilitating this particular art scene significantly alters the more territorial demarcation between reality and representation. Who gets artistically to represent whom and not just by what authority, but more immediately by means of what specific aesthetic parameters? What I am suggesting here is what I also thought when Fernando Botero began doing his paintings of Abu Ghraibs victims of sadistic torture. There are certain scenes, certain realities that the simple mandate of decency demands that no artist go near. Art cannot be made to consume the terror of reality. In Kafkas allegorical short story A Hunger Artist, we witness the fate of an unfortunate artist who performs hunger for the public but faces the incessant incredulity of the selfsame public that refuses to believe his honesty and truth. Towards the end of his life and career, the Hunger Artist is willing even to perform in a circus next to animals for a meagre number of people to watch him and still his audience keep declining. Today, the fate of artistic spectatorship is no less ludicrous or tragic. Who stages the artist today, what does the artist have to offer and put on display to gain an audiences? Like Kafkas Hunger Artist, there is nothing beyond a passing internet curiosity about even a world-renowned artist who may even fake death to stage a colossal human tragedy, but alas the public that he wishes to convince of something or another has always already scrolled down the page of history to the next atrocity. The three-year-old Aylan Kurdi died a very public death and was denied the dignity of a private mourning. The innocence of his perished life must rest heavily and irredeemably upon the guilty conscience of our humanity. No absolution is possible from that collective guilt and no decent artist must ever go near that sacred, forbidden, hallowed demarcation where humanity is held accountable to the judgment of the elemental forces of nature. Nothing will ever haunt the frightened humanity like the original snapshot of Aylan Kurdi nothing. There are certain irreducible realities that make a mockery of any artistic attempt at representing them more frightfully than they already are. The very act of representation is here suspect, indecent, grotesque. There are moments that only superior artists can realise, when the mourning must remain in blinding darkness, where in silence the quiet cry is the loudest scream, the harshest explosion of the fact that something is horridly amiss about the world. That volcanic void will swallow and nullify any artist too hungry and so foolish for fame that comes near it. Ai Weiwei the artist died in and with that fake death. That picture, perhaps, was his greatest work of suicidal art. Hamid Dabashi is Hagop Kevorkian Professor of Iranian Studies and Comparative Literature at Columbia University in New York. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial policy. Residents suffering in besieged areas as Russian attacks intensify after peace talks break down. Russia has intensified its air strikes in an attempt to back up the Syrian governments offensive in Syrias Aleppo, killing scores of people, Al Jazeera has learned. The reports of deaths come amid another breakdown of peace talks in Geneva and a donor conference in London where world leaders have pledged $10bn to help Syrians. At least 37 people have been killed, including three children, in suspected Russian air strikes on several neighbourhoods in Aleppo city, a local activist speaking on condition of anonymity told Al Jazeera on on Thursday. Syrian and Russian air strikes have targeted al-Bab, Hmeimeh, Soran and several other neighbourhoods in Aleppo province. We can confirm that 37 people have been killed but we are expecting the death toll to rise, he said. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights put the death toll at 21. Russia launched its military operation in Syria in September 2015, and it says the campaign is against armed groups such as the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, which has seized territory in Iraq and Syria, and al-Nusra Front. Against this backdrop of growing political tensions, Saudi Arabia said on Thursday it was ready to participate in any ground operations in Syria if the US-led coalition decided to start such operations. The Syrian government launched a major offensive from the north of Aleppo and captured several strategically important towns on Monday. Syrian forces and their allies broke a three-year rebel siege of the two Shia towns of Nubul and Zahraa in Aleppo province, Syrias official news agency SANA reported on Wednesday, cutting off a main supply route to nearby Turkey. The breakthrough comes after days of rapid military gains north of the major city of Aleppo, with Russian air strikes playing a key role in the advance. READ MORE: Inside Aleppos fight for water and electricity Nubul and Zahraa, with an estimated 60,000 population, are connected to the border by areas under the control of Kurdish armed groups that provided access. The towns have been besieged by rebels since 2012, and reaching them had long been a goal of President Bashar al-Assads government, which has also sought to sever vital rebel supply routes into Aleppo from Turkey. In a separate development, two women have died owing to malnutrition and the cold in the besieged town of Madaya, activists say. Abou Ammar, an aid worker in Madaya, west of Damascus, told Al Jazeera that the situation is becoming worse as supplies have began to run out. A 16-year old boy died before yesterday because of malnutrition. We told the MSF [Doctors Without Borders] charity that we have at least 64 new cases of people suffering from malnutrition. What was distributed last month is expected to last 30-35 days, Abou Ammar said. At least 19 people have died of malnutrition since three aid convoys entered the town on January 11. We were told to expect further humanitarian aid this week. The previous batch of aid did not include enough medical supplies or medication for diseases such as diabetes. Some people are in desperate need of urgent hospitalisation. The temperature drops to below zero at night and people are burning anything they can find to stay warm. In Syria, we are either bombed or starved to death. Madaya, which is controlled by opposition fighters, has been under siege by government forces and Hezbollah fighters since July. LETTER FROM MADAYA: Why doesnt anyone care? Images of malnourished Madaya residents shocked the world in early January, showing wide-eyed babies without access to milk and elderly men with cavernous rib cages. On January 31, MSF said that an estimated 320 people in Madaya were suffering from malnutrition, 33 of whom were in danger of death if they do not receive prompt and effective treatment. Up to two million Syrians are trapped in sieges by the government or by opposition groups, MSF said last month. Diplomatic efforts to end the conflict suffered a setback on Wednesday when Staffan de Mistura, the UN Syria special envoy, announced a temporary suspension of talks in Geneva between the opposition and the government. Following a meeting with the oppositions Higher Negotiations Committee in the Swiss city, de Mistura fixed February 25 as the date for resuming talks. Earlier on Wednesday, quoting information from the Syrian Network for Human Rights, the opposition accused the Syrian government and Russia of killing at least 300 civilians since the launch of the so-called Geneva III conference on January 29. The Geneva negotiations are meant to develop a road map to end the conflict of almost five years that has resulted in more than 250,000 Syrians being killed. The conflict has also displaced millions more and sent hundreds of thousands fleeing as refugees to Europe. App gives users in low-bandwidth regions access to a live audio stream of Al Jazeera TV on their devices. Al Jazeera Media Network has launched a new audio web app that gives users in low-bandwidth regions access to a live audio stream of the Al Jazeera TV broadcast on their devices. The service, which started on Thursday, will help Al Jazeera to reach new audiences where low internet speeds limit access to video by providing live audio from the Al Jazeera Arabic and Al Jazeera English channels. Ibrahim Hamid, director of enterprise and digital platforms at Al Jazeera Media Network, said the service underscored Al Jazeeras commitment todeveloping compelling digital experiences for those in areas with low-bandwidth internet connections. This service adds to our commitment of developing compelling digital experiences for those in areas with low-bandwidth internet connections in markets such as Southeast Asia and Africa. Samir Ibrahim, Al Jazeeras director of distribution and sales, said the Al Jazeera brand was continuing to expand into the digital sphere. At Al Jazeera, we continue to explore new and innovative ways to enhance our content consumption through a variety of ways. This announcement is another opportunity to strengthen our digital footprint and continue in our commitment to bringing access to Al Jazeera content across new platforms. The new app can be downloaded at listen.aljazeera.com. Move comes amid growing protests against High Court ruling that imprisoning refugees in offshore camps is legal. Australian church leaders say they will offer sanctuary to asylum seekers facing removal to a remote Pacific camp, vowing to defy the governments harsh immigration rules. The Anglican Dean of Brisbane, Peter Catt, said on Thursday that he was prepared to face charges of obstruction by attempting to prevent authorities from entering facilities such as St Johns Cathedral in Brisbane to arrest refugees. The refugees, who were brought to Australia from Nauru mostly for medical reasons, number more than 260 and include 37 babies born in the country and 54 other children, advocates said. According to Catt, the churches were reinventing the ancient concept of sanctuary by opening facilities to the asylum seekers. Catt told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation the concept of sanctuary was not tested under law, but my hunch is that if the authorities chose to enter the church and take people away, it would probably be a legal action. He added: So this is really a moral stand and it wouldnt be a good look, I dont think, for someone to enter a church and to drag people away. READ MORE: Strangers in Paradise: Australias offshore detainees Asylum seekers, including children, who try to reach Australia by boat are sent to offshore detention centres in Papua New Guinea and Nauru, where they can be imprisoned indefinitely while refugee applications are processed. They are blocked from being resettled in Australia even if the country assesses them to be refugees. However, many of the asylum seekers brought to Australia from Nauru are being held at Wickham Point, a secure facility near Darwin in northern Australia, raising questions about how they would reach churches in Brisbane or elsewhere. The High Court ruled on Wednesday that the imprisonment of asylum-seekers on Nauru did not breach domestic law, meaning that the refugees could be returned there in the coming days. Across Australia, thousands of people protested on Thursday against the possible transfer, carrying signs reading [Prime Minister] Malcolm Turnbull #LetThemStay. Misha Coleman, of the Australian Churches Refugee Taskforce, admitted that it would be difficult to move the imprisoned asylum seekers to the sanctuaries, but said that if they were, the cases would be managed in a very sort of confidential way. 5,000+ people in attendance for the #LetThemStay rally in Melbourne. https://t.co/TJ15HDphHW Jenn Atilemile (@jennatilemile) February 4, 2016 Melbourne #LetThemStay rally called at approx 5000 people. Shows the palpable anger at @TurnbullMalcolm considering such short notice. Corinne Grant (@corinne_grant) February 4, 2016 Knife-pinned note saying 11:30 bomb found inside Saudia passenger jet which was due to fly from Madrid to Riyadh. Passengers on a Saudi Arabian Airlines plane to Riyadh from Madrid have been evacuated after a note that read 11:30 bomb was found pinned to the inside of the aircraft with a knife, according to Spanish police. Thursdays bomb threat was fake, according to Saudi Arabian Airlines, or Saudia, whose plane was involved in the incident. The flight had been due to take off at 09:50 GMT but the captain requested an evacuation after the note was discovered and the aircraft was taken to an isolated place in the airport, which continued to function normally throughout. A Saudia spokesman said the threat was a false alarm and the airline was taking all the necessary precautions. Its just another hoax that all airlines are subjected to, he said. A spokesman for the Guardia Civil police force, who declined to be named, said there were 97 passengers on board the SVA 226 flight and 15 crew members. Security forces and rescue services are mobilised. The plane was isolated and passengers evacuated, a spokeswoman for AENA, the group that manages airports in Spain, told the AFP news agency. The spokeswoman, who also declined to give her name, said the airport was operating normally while security forces were inspecting the plane. In recent months several airlines have been hit by hoax threats as fears over violent attacks persist, particularly since a Russian passenger jet crashed in October over the Sinai peninsula, with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group claiming to have downed it. Last month, an Indian passenger plane was forced to make an emergency landing in the countrys western city of Nagpur after a hoax bomb threat. That same January, a Scandinavian Airlines plane carrying 72 people from London to Stockholm was diverted to Gothenburg and the passengers evacuated, owing to a bomb threat which turned out to be false. On World Cancer Day, scientists highlight promising cannabis results in rats to fight disease with minor side-effects. Scientists around the world continue to seek natural alternatives to fight cancer that dont destroy healthy cells like radiation and chemotherapy do in an effort to save millions of victims afflicted with the disease. As World Cancer Day is marked on Thursday, a myriad of alternative cancer treatments have been reported by researchers showing promising signs including wasp venom and a variety of herbs after being tested in laboratories. One potential alternative that has been a central subject of debate in the scientific community for decades is the plant cannabis. While medical marijuana use has grown in prominence in recent years for alleviating symptoms of disease, a burgeoning body of scientific reporting suggests cannabis may also possess powerful anti-cancer properties. Israel at forefront of testing medical marijuana The plant has a long history of treating many different types of illnesses since ancient times. But it wasnt until the 1940s when scientists managed to extract a group of chemicals known as cannabinoids that have become prominent in modern medical research, and prompted the development of the International Cannabinoid Research Society. Last year, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) for the first time announced that: Cannabis has been shown to kill cancer cells in the laboratory. Studies in mice and rats have shown that cannabinoids may inhibit tumour growth by causing cell death, blocking cell growth, and blocking the development of blood vessels needed by tumours to grow. Laboratory and animal studies have shown that cannabinoids may be able to kill cancer cells while protecting normal cells, the NCI stated. The NCI told Al Jazeera that since 2010 it has funded at least 36 cannabis-related research projects, noting that it funds only proposals of the highest scientific merit. The National Institute of Drug Abuse, another US government agency, also announced in 2015 that cannabis may have the capacity to combat tumours, citing a recent test on animals by researchers in Britain. Dr Wai Liu a research fellow at St Georges University of London, who led the research project told Al Jazeera that clinical trials had begun testing two cannabinoids against brain cancer in human patients after promising mice-tests. Liu said some compounds in cannabis can alter the signalling pathways in cancer that resist cell-death instructions. What we have shown is that cannabinoids can restore normal functioning of these pathways. This means that cancer cells are now able to die, Liu said. Our latest findings have shown that cannabinoids can combine effectively with irradiation to treat brain cancer. We showed that using these two together significantly reduced the sizes of brain cancer seen in mice. This data is very new and so exciting that clinical trials have started in patients with brain cancer. READ MORE: US government impedes medical marijuana research Liu also led a study in 2013 that found six cannabinoids were effective against leukemia cells. These agents are able to interfere with the development of cancerous cells, stopping them in their tracks and preventing them from growing. In some cases, by using specific dosage patterns, they can destroy cancer cells on their own, he said in a press release. Is it time to end the war on drugs? Used in combination with existing treatment, we could discover some highly effective strategies for tackling cancer. Significantly, these compounds are inexpensive to produce and making better use of their unique properties could result in much more cost-effective anti-cancer drugs in future. But he told Al Jazeera that it is still too early to say if cannabinoids will work in humans. Dennis Hill, a biochemist who had worked as cancer researcher for 10 years at the University of Texas MD Cancer Center one of the countrys leading cancer hospitals, told Al Jazeera how he avoided conventional treatments and cured himself of prostate cancer solely with cannabis oil. In 2010, Hill was diagnosed with a late-stage aggressive adenocarcinoma and scheduled by his urologist to receive radiation therapy. I got to see patients pretty often and watched many people suffer and die from the treatments, so I knew I was not interested in that, he said. In the meantime a friend of his recommended cannabis as a remedy and that prompted his research into it. As a biochemist, I understood the medical explanations that I read on how cannabis kills cancer cells, he said. He then cancelled his appointment for the radiation treatment. After several months of consuming cannabis oil, the cancer was completely gone, Hill said. It was amazing, he said, adding the side-effects were very trivial. READ MORE: The paradox of war on drugs and marijuana legalisation However, Dr Otis Brawley, chief medical officer at the American Cancer Society, told Al Jazeera there was not enough scientific evidence to suggest cannabinoids were responsible for the remission and other factors could have played a role. Hill said the plant needed to become legal for further research to thrive. As long as cannabis is on the federal government list of forbidden narcotics, it will not be available to researchers in this country. When cannabis is off this list, we will have plenty of research. Everyone is waiting, especially universities. Dr Ralph Moss, who promotes both conventional and alternative cancer treatments, told Al Jazeera many obstacles have been put up against new treatments. The problem is that almost invariably scientific advances must also be highly profitable to clear the hurdles of the FDA [US Food and Drug Administration]. This severely limits the number of drugs that can come to market, since unpatentable, out-of-patent, natural or generic medications are automatically ruled out by the demands of the marketplace. This issue, by the way, is almost entirely lacking from discussions of the pace of improvement in cancer treatment. Dozens of deaths reported in fighting in countrys third largest city between rebels and forces loyal to the government. Dozens of civilians in Yemen have been killed in fighting in the besieged city of Taiz between Houthi rebels and forces loyal to the government. And in the Arabian Peninsula countrys east, US drone strikes have reportedly left 12 people dead, including one of al-Qaedas most senior commanders. Taiz, Yemens third largest city, has been besieged by Houthi fighters for months. Hospitals are fast running out of medical supplies. The relentless fighting has killed hundreds of civilians and created a dire humanitarian situation. As in many other parts of Yemen, basic services have been suspended in Taiz. People fear outbreaks of disease due to the unsanitary conditions and fumes from explosives being used by all sides. In Pictures: Sanaa: A city of broken glass and shattered hope Pro-government fighters were not able to close in from Taiz after they faced stiff resistance there. They are trying to push towards the capital Sanaa from Jawf, Marib and Nehem. Yemens army and pro-government fighters say they have taken control of an important crossing linking Sanaa to Marib and Jawf. Fighters say taking over Nehem mountains will cut off supplies to Houthi fighters and Republican guard forces loyal to Ali Abdullah Saleh, the former president. But in the fight to take over a military camp and a weapons depot, more than 60 soldiers and fighters have been killed on both sides. Houthi fighters have the support of some tribes in Sanaa province and that has slowed the Yemeni militarys progress in taking back territory there. The lack of security is helping armed groups like al-Qaeda which has claimed control of several areas in recent weeks in the south. It is being targeted by US drone strikes and, in one such strike on Thursday, a local commander was reportedly killed. Jalal Mohsen Saeed Baleedi al-Marqashi, also known as Hamza al-Zinjibari, was the field commander of many provinces in Yemen for al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. His death, if confirmed, is seen as a blow for al-Qaeda. Yemen is being torn apart by conflict for the last two years. For millions of Yemenis struggling to survive, military gains by any side do not mean much. Protesters highlight the deals corporate agenda as 12 countries sign the Trans-Pacific Partnership in Auckland. Auckland, New Zealand One of the biggest and most controversial trade deals in history was signed on Thursday by ministers from the Asia-Pacific region and the Americas, as hundreds of protesters hit the streets to denounce it. Security was stepped up across Auckland for representatives who travelled here to sign the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) a deal involving 12 economies worth about $28 trillion. New Zealand Prime Minister John Key said the deal would benefit everybody. The opening of our markets will enhance the lives of our people. The TPP will make new trade opportunities. It is overwhelmingly in the best interests of our countries and our citizens, Key said. The TPP is a free trade agreement promising to liberalise trade and investment between the 12 nations, which make up about 36 percent of the worlds GDP. The deal which will cut tariffs, improve access to markets and set common ground on labour and environmental standards and intellectual property protections was finally reached in October after five years of negotiations. It includes Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US, and Vietnam. The TPP is supposed to ensure that everyone from Vietnamese shrimpers to New Zealand dairy farmers get cheaper access to markets and bring in economic benefits. READ MORE: Pacific Rim free trade agreement comes with high price Ministers received a traditional Maori welcome from members of the Ngati Whatua tribe including a hongi, which involves the pressing of noses and exchange of breath. But the welcome wasnt as warm in downtown Auckland, where hundreds of protesters from different groups gathered to rally against the deal. Many carried flags and banners and chanted outside the Skycity convention centre where the signing took place. No balance of interests Rowan Brooks, a protest organiser, said he was concerned about the power the agreement would give to big corporations. Basically it eats away at New Zealands sovereignty and the whole process was undemocratic The agreement gives power to corporations and takes it away from the people, Brooks told Al Jazeera. Jane Kelsey, a law professor at the University of Auckland, is one of the agreements fiercest critics. She said she was concerned about how the deal could be used by the US to counter Chinas influence in the region. Its kind of a Cold War by proxy of trade and investment agreements, Kelsey told Al Jazeera. And thats a real worry because not only do the corporations who have special insights and input to this agreement get to be centre stage, but also there is no balance of interests. The deal has not only triggered protests in New Zealand but also drawn international criticism. Former World Bank economist Joseph Stiglitz said it may turn out to be the worst trade agreement in decades. In an opinion piece for the Guardian, Stiglitz wrote: It gives foreign investors the right to sue governments in private international tribunals when they believe government regulations contravene the TPPs terms. In 2016, we should hope for the TPPs defeat and the beginning of a new trade era of agreements that dont reward the powerful and punish the weak, Stiglitz wrote. The TPP is expected to come into force within two years, once countries have completed their domestic legislative procedures. Questions have been raised over the ratification process as it coincides with the build-up to this years US presidential election. But US trade representative Michael Froman is confident it will be passed by the US Congress. We all have our domestic processes to go through and ours is clearly laid out I believe at the end of the day we will have the necessary bipartisan support for it to be approved, he said. Follow Caitlin McGee on Twitter: @MsCaitlinMcGee France has carried out abusive and discriminatory raids and house arrests against Muslims under its current state of emergency, traumatising and stigmatising those targeted, including children and the elderly, human rights groups said. Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International published separate research on Wednesday, pointing to cases where excessive force had been used, leading to human rights violations including violence. Those targeted said the police burst into homes, restaurants, or mosques; broke peoples belongings; threw Qurans on the floor; terrified children; and placed restrictions on peoples movements so severely that they lost jobs and income, or suffered physically. The raids were launched on November 14 in response to attacks in Paris a day earlier that left 130 people dead, and were later claimed by the Islamic State of Syria and the Levant (ISIL) group. ISILs claim triggered a backlash not just in France, but across Europe and elsewhere as Muslim communities were collectively punished. There are between 5.5 million and 6.2 million Muslims in France, or roughly 7.6 percent of the total population making the group the largest Muslim minority in Europe. Declared by President Francois Hollande, Frances emergency laws approved warrantless searches. Few results Both human rights groups said the raids, of which there were at least 3,200, have yielded few results. According to HRW, while between 350 and 400 people have been placed under house arrest, the counterterrorism unit of the Paris prosecutors office has opened only five terrorism-related investigations. Q&A: Muslim minorities are first victims of terror France has a responsibility to ensure public safety and try to prevent further attacks, but the police have used their new emergency powers in abusive, discriminatory, and unjustified ways, said Izza Leghtas, Western Europe researcher at HRW, calling for an immediate end to warrantless searches and house arrests. This abuse has traumatised families and tarnished reputations, leaving targets feeling like second-class citizens. More than 60 people Amnesty interviewed said police used excessive force and harsh measures with little or no explanation. In January, HRW interviewed 18 people who said they had been subjected to abusive searches or placed under house arrest, as well as human rights activists and lawyers working in affected areas. Terrified and shunned In one house raid, HRW said, police broke four of a disabled mans teeth before they realised he was not the person they were looking for. In another case, a single mothers children were transferred to foster care following a raid. Amnesty cited a case in the countrys southeastern region of Rhone-Alpes in which a woman who was subjected to a search subsequently lost her job. READ MORE: French civil liberties and the spirit of sacrifice I was dismissed just because of my supposed connections. They dont have anything to complain about in my work and I have been working with them for 12 years. Ive completely lost my bearings, said the woman, who was named only as D. In another case recorded by Amnesty, police forced open the door of an elderly man with heart problems, causing him to faint. He was later taken to hospital in an ambulance, while his daughters one of whom is disabled were handcuffed and screamed at by officers. He was so terrified, he cried a lot when we visited him at the hospital the first days, said Nadia, one of the 80-year-old mans daughters. Many of those interviewed said they were now scared of the police and have been shunned by their neighbours. Some said they were seeking to leave the country out of fear. Emergency law extension Frances government has said it will ask parliament to renew the state of emergency for another three months. But it has not provided compelling evidence that would justify the need to continue these sweeping measures, said HRW. READ MORE: Activists decry plans to revoke citizenship in France In a context of growing Islamophobia, the French government should urgently reach out to Muslims and give them assurances that they are not under suspicion because of their religion or ethnicity, HRWs Leghtas said. Freedom, equality and fraternity have been badly damaged in the weeks since the November attacks. France should live by those words and restore their meaning. Both Amnesty and HRW also took aim at a proposed measure to strip convicted terrorists with dual nationality of citizenship, a controversial bill over which Frances Justice Minister, the leftist Christiane Taubira, opposed and recently quit. According to Le Monde, some 3.3 million people have dual citizenship in France. Measures under a state of emergency must respect strict conditions: they must always be limited to what is strictly required by the exigencies of the emergency situation, said the report by Amnesty, which has tracked the implementation of emergency law since it began. They [the measures] must never be applied in a discriminatory manner. Follow Anealla Safdar on Twitter: @anealla Many struggling to make ends meet in main city of Central Asian nation whose economy is heavily dependent on oil. Almaty The impact of the falling oil prices is being felt globally. The price of US crude fell below $27 a barrel last month amid a global glut in oil supplies that seems to be getting worse. That is the lowest price since May 2003 and a far cry from the $100-a-barrel it fetched in the summer of 2014. Kazakhstan is Central Asias richest nation and its economy is dependent heavily on oil. After Russia, it is the largest oil producer among former Soviet states. The situation in Kazakhstan is no better than it is in other oil-producing countries. In the city of Almaty, many people are struggling to make ends meet. The suppliers and the landlords are raising prices, and the customers are spending less, Nailya Kaltayeva, a restaurant owner, told Al Jazeera. These are two problems were having to deal with at the same time. But the presidents office is assuring the public it is doing everything possible to stabilise the situation. Our budget has been cut by 40 percent, Dauren Abayev, adviser to President Nursultan Nazarbayev, said. We understand the difficulties our citizens are facing and are taking every action to stabilise the situation. At least 28 killed as one car bomb hits army barracks in Ramadi and another targets government base in Fallujah. At least 28 Iraqi soldiers have been killed in suicide attacks blamed on the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) group in Anbar. Iraqi government officials said one car bomb hit an army barracks on Thursday in the provincial capital Ramadi, where fighting has continued for months despite the Iraqi governments claim that it controls 95 percent of the city. The second attack targeted a government base in Fallujah, the other major ISIL-controlled city under siege by Iraqi forces, the officials said. Iraqi forces have been trying to clear areas of Anbar controlled by ISIL, which has seized territory in Iraq and Syria, but their advance has been slowed down by suicide attacks. In Ramadis Sijariya district, government forces said 50 percent of the city is now cleared. Backed by air support from the US-led international coalition and Iraqs air force, counterterrorism troops advanced towards the centre of Sijariya. The Ramadi police force also joined the push. Our forces advanced into Sijariya district, which is the last stronghold of Daesh (ISIL) and its fortified place Lieutenant-Colonel Muhannad al-Timmimi, from Iraqs elite Special Forces, told Reuters news agency. He said government forces had killed 37 ISIL fighters, destroyed two car bombs and removed 225 other bombs. Flashpoint Ramadi ISIL fighters have been pushed to Ramadis eastern suburbs, but almost all of the city, which was targeted by US-led air strikes, remains off-limits to its nearly half a million displaced residents, most of whom fled before the army advance. Military sources said the counterterrorism forces had also attacked positions in Husaiba al-Sharqiya, 10km east of Ramadi. ISIL fighters have left Ramadis streets and buildings booby-trapped with bombs, hampering efforts to rebuild the city two weeks after Iraqs elite counterterrorism forces claimed victory, officials said. Ramadi is the capital of the mainly Sunni Arab Anbar province. The government said it would be handed over to the local police and to a Sunni tribal force once it was secured. Ramadi was ISILs biggest prize of 2015, abandoned by government forces in May in a major setback for Baghdad and for the Iraqi troops that have been trained by the US since the overthrow of Saddam Hussein in 2003. Siege of Fallujah Elsewhere in Anbar, Iraqi security forces have completely cut off Fallujah and supplies of food and other basic necessities are running out, raising fears of a humanitarian crisis. In a telephone interview with Al Jazeera on Thursday, a Fallujah resident trapped inside the town said a 50kg bag of wheat costs as much as $900. Some residents had to sell their cars just to buy wheat for their families. There is no source for income for Fallujahs residents any more. Medicine ran out from pharmacies and clinics. Last month 10 people died for the lack of insulin, he said. The resident spoke to Al Jazeera at personal risk as ISIL has banned all communication with the media. One Iraqi military analyst said the Baghdad government has little choice other than to lay siege to Fallujah. There are no alternative plans. All the available plans by security forces are either to break into Fallujah, causing huge civilian casualties, or to shell it with mortars and air strikes, potentially causing catastrophic damage to basic infrastructure and human lives, Waltham al-Hashimi, a defence analyst, told Al Jazeera. So far aid agencies including the UN have not commented publicly on the siege of Fallujah, Al Jazeeras Imran Khan, reporting from Baghdad, said. No journalists are allowed in either by the government or ISIL, but what sources say suggests the situation remains dire. It might not be a humanitarian disaster yet, but that could be only a matter of time, he said. Rabia, Iraq More than a year has passed since Rabia was retaken from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), and still the twisted skeletons of shops and homes line the main road into town. The ruins of what was set to become the citys glitzy new hospital remain untouched the scattered debris a reminder of the brief but fierce battle that took place in October 2014 to drive ISIL fighters out. Like other towns and cities in Iraq that were fought for and liberated, Rabia remains in the throes of neglect, as basic services such as education and health are largely non-existent, and water and power substandard. The services are not good, 56-year-old Khalaf Dhiab, a retired resident of Rabia, told Al Jazeera. Theres flooding and the municipality is not cleaning the streets. WATCH: Kurdish forces battle ISIL in northern Iraq Southeast of Rabia, in the ethnically diverse town of Jalawla, water and electricity are mostly back on after the town was recaptured from ISIL in November 2014, following a joint operation by Shia militias and Peshmerga fighters. But the city itself remains in bad shape, said Christine van den Toorn, director of the Institute of Regional and International Studies (IRIS), an independent research centre. The bazaar and all the stores were burned and destroyed, the government buildings, hospital its like a tornado went through the town, van den Toorn told Al Jazeera after a recent visit to Jalawla. Last week, Kurdish media reported that some 200 families had returned to their homes in the town, and in the absence of services, had begun clearing the streets of debris themselves. It took a year and a half to start moving families back, but to the Kurds credit, they are Sunni Arab families, Shia Arab families and Kurdish families, van den Toorn said. In country engulfed by war and a crippling financial crisis, however, the immediate reconstruction of battle-scarred areas is not a realistic priority for Baghdad or the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). Long-standing rivalries between Baghdad and the Kurds over disputed territories have also played a role in hindering reconstruction, as both factions seek to lay claim on cities such as Sinjar and Jalawla but neither side is willing to invest fully in these areas until they can cement their grasp. Rabia is another classic example of this, according to a recent IRIS report: The federal government views Rabia sceptically for building alliances with Erbil, and in return the KRG is unable or unwilling to fully commit to a territory outside the constitutionally defined Iraqi Kurdistan. When ISIL seized control of Rabia in August 2014, the hospital was the first building to fall, and it became the armed groups last stronghold before they were defeated. Today, residents are forced to travel two hours east to Dohuk if they need medical facilities. When by Ahmad , we felt like we were coming to life. We dreamed of seeing a hospital in our city, but we had no such luck.When ISIL came, it was a black day for us.] Like Jalawla, Rabia has also seen the return of its residents, with around 3,000 families coming back so far, according to a Kurdish security source. Of the 25,000 people who previously lived in Rabia, almost all fled after ISIL invaded. Some businesses in Rabia, which took a major hit after ISILs takeover, have also attempted to get up and running again. The economy will get better, 25-year-old pharmacist Fawaz Hamid told Al Jazeera, sounding hopeful. The area is one of agriculture, and people are coming back. Yet Baghdad which has purchased quantities of wheat, barley and other products has failed to pay Rabia farmers for their past two harvests, noted Khaled Kanosh, a local community leader. This has exacerbated an already dire financial situation, with some farmers having to sell their cars and gold to make ends meet. Were waiting for the Kurdish governments economic support, because Baghdad is not giving us any, Kanosh said. Baghdad knows Rabias tribe is close to the KRG; thats why theyre not supporting us financially. Rabias bureaucracy is currently being managed by the Kurds, who have a strong military and security presence in the area, even though the population is divided in its support for the Peshmerga. READ MORE: Tension mounts between Iraqi Arabs and Kurds South of Rabia, the recently liberated city of Sinjar has also been struggling to recover. According to the Engineer Association for Development and Environment, a local NGO, 70 percent of Sinjars homes and 30 percent of its schools have been destroyed. The towns main hospital has also been damaged. Water facilities have been destroyed, added Peshmerga Colonel Jadan Darush Jadan, who is Yazidi. The KRG and Baghdad dont have enough resources to bring the city back to normal. We need international help. In addition to the physical damage, Sinjar is also suffering on a social level. Mistrust between Yazidis and Sunni Arabs lingers in the aftermath of the attacks carried out by ISIL against Yazidis in August 2014. Sunni Arab residents have been prevented from returning to the area, and their homes have been looted. Peshmerga forces are currently in control of Sinjar, but smooth governance is likely to prove a major challenge. No one trusts the Peshmerga. Even those [Yazidis] who are in the Peshmerga dont trust them, a 54-year-old Yazidi tribal leader told Al Jazeera on condition of anonymity. We dont want to be under Kurdish or central control. We want an independent force [comprised of Yazidis]. Back in Rabia, 63-year-old Ahmad Hussein walks across the rickety hospital rooftop, gesturing towards a concrete crater caused by coalition strikes more than a year ago. There were only three months left for the completion of the hospital, said Hussein, who had been given the task of supervising the workers. When they began building [the hospital], we felt like we were coming to life. We dreamed of seeing a hospital in our city, but we had no such luck. When ISIL came, it was a black day for us. Investigation urged to shed light on death of Italian student Giulio Regeni, 28, whose body showed signs of torture. Italys Foreign Ministry summoned the Egyptian ambassador to Rome to express concern after the body of an Italian man showing signs of torture was dumped on the side of a Cairo highway. On Thursday, the ministrys director-general, Michele Valensise, urgently summoned Egyptian Ambassador Amr Mostafa Kamal Helmy after the body of Giulio Regeni, 28, a graduate student at Cambridge University in the UK, was found a day earlier. Regeni, a PhD student, disappeared on January 25. Late on Thursday, Il Manifesto, an Italian newspaper, revealed Regeni worked as a freelance writer for the publication, and was writing from Egypt using a pseudonym. The editor of the paper said Regeni told him he feared for his life. The cause of death was still under investigation but prosecutor Ahmed Nagi, who leads the investigation team on the case, told the Associated Press news agency that all of his body, including his face had bruises, cuts from stabbings, and burns from cigarettes. It appeared to have been a slow death, said Nagi. The ministry said it expected maximum collaboration at all levels in light of the exceptional gravity of what happened. In his countrys name, Helmy expressed profound condolences for Regenis death and assured us Egypt will cooperate fully in finding those responsible for this criminal act, the statement said. Regeni, whose studies included Arabic and Arab literature, was from Fiumicello, near Udine in northeastern Italy. He was in Cairo doing research for his doctoral thesis, and was last seen when he left his suburban home with the intention of travelling by metro to meet a friend in the city centre. Cairo was extremely quiet on the day he disappeared. Authorities had ordered a security clampdown on the fifth anniversary of the Arab Spring uprising, which ended Hosni Mubaraks 30-year reign. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi was the first Western leader to receive former army chief and current Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi after the 2013 overthrow of his predecessor, Mohamed Morsi. Two Israelis convicted of abducting and burning Mohammed Abu Khdeir alive given life and 21 years, respectively. The parents of a Palestinian teenager burned alive by Israelis in the lead-up to the 2014 war on Gaza have denounced an Israeli court for not giving two offenders life sentences. The court on Thursday announced that one Israeli has been sentenced to life in prison, while another was given 21 years in prison for the abduction and subsequent murder of 16-year-old Mohammed Abu Khdeir in East Jerusalem. It is estimated that the pair will spend less than 20 years in prison, after parole and possible sentence reductions are taken into account. Suha Abu Khdeir said the court should have given both Israelis life sentences for their roles in the death of her son. They should get life sentences. Both of them. I dont agree with this decision. There is no democracy in Israel, she cried in the court room. They kidnapped and burned my son and they only get 21 years. I will not move from the court until there is justice. I will go to the international courts. I will not be quiet. READ MORE: Abu Khdeir: It is like Mohammed is being burned again The two Israelis were minors when they committed the crime with the help of a third Israeli man. Abu Khdeir was kidnapped in East Jerusalem and taken to a forest outside the city. He was tortured and burned alive. The claim for the Israeli who was sentenced to 21 years is that he did not participate in the actual killing, after the abduction and torture took place. A third Israeli man convicted of Abu Khdeirs killing, Yosef Haim Ben David, has yet to be sentenced, with the court yet to rule whether he is mentally competent. Muhannad Jbara, the lawyer for the Abu Khdeir family, echoed the mothers promise to take the case to the international courts: We asked for the most severe sentences, for life sentences. This is only the first battle to get justice. We will head to international courts as well. Meanwhile, the father of the victim pointed to the discrepancies in how the Israeli government punishes whole Palestinian families for the crimes of lone suspects. I ask the courts to demolish their homes, he said. We wont accept anything less than that. If you have democracy, then where is it? If there wasnt racism then we would get the same thing as an Arab would, to demolish their homes. My son hasnt died. He will stay with me always. They didnt give me justice: I, who lost my son and my whole life, Suha said in the court room. Japanese public broadcaster says North Korean mobile launcher has been seen travelling near east coast. North Koreas mobile missile launcher has been seen moving near the east coast carrying a ballistic missile launcher, while activity has also been seen at a long-range rocket launchpad on the west coast, Japanese public broadcaster NHK has reported. International pressure has grown on North Korea to call off a planned rocket launch, seen by some governments as another missile test, since Pyongyang told United Nations agencies this week it would launch what it called an earth observation satellite. The NHK report on Thursday said the mobile missile launcher was thought to normally remain stationary in places such as an underground facility. North Korea fired two mid-range ballistic missiles, which appeared to be Rodong-class missiles, from the mobile launcher off its east coast into the sea towards Japan in March 2014, Thursdays NHK report said. Japan has put its military on alert to shoot down any rocket that threatens its territory. Japan is saying it will if any parts of this rocket come down in various stages in Japanese territory shoot them down if necessary, Al Jazeeras Harry Fawcett reported. South Korea did not confirm the Japanese report about the mobile missile launcher, but defence officials said Pyongyang was preparing long-range missile at its Dongchang-ri launch site in the northwest The developments on Thursday came a day after UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called on Pyongyang to refrain from using ballistic missile technology. [These reports are] a deeply troubling development. It will further aggravate the profound concerns that the international community already has in the wake of the recent nuclear test, Ban said in a statement, referring to North Koreas claims of a bomb test in early January. READ MORE: Japan readies to destroy North Korea rocket Meanwhile, United States Defence Secretary Ash Carter said on Wednesday that the US military was keeping a vigilant eye on North Koreas missile and nuclear programmes, and was continually expanding its defences against a possible missile attack by Pyongyang. Carter said the US was on track to expand the number of ground-based missile interceptors in Alaska and Hawaii to 44 from 30, but no further interceptor expansion was planned. Sweden says decision on WikiLeaks founders detention at Ecuador embassy in London will not be binding on authorities. Swedens foreign ministry says a UN advisory panel has concluded that Julian Assange, WikiLeaks founder, has been a victim of arbitrary detention at the Ecuadorean embassy in London where he sought refuge in 2012. Sweden has seen the report, to be published on Friday, and the Geneva-based UN panel concluded that it was an arbitrary detention. It is a different assessment than what the Swedish authorities have made, Katarina Byrenius Roslund, foreign ministry spokesman, said, declining further comment. The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has not revealed its decision, saying it would remain confidential until Friday, said Christophe Peschoux of the UN human rights office in Geneva. READ MORE: Whats next for WikiLeaks? A finding in Assanges favour would not be binding on authorities in Sweden and Britain, which seek to arrest and question him, but it would represent a public-relations victory for the 44-year-old Australian. It could increase pressure on Swedish prosecutors to drop their bid to question Assange about allegations of sexual misconduct, and on British officials to alter plans to arrest Assange for jumping bail. Swedish officials would not comment on their plans on Thursday, and British police said plans to arrest Assange if he leaves the Ecuadorean embassy in London remain unchanged. However, Geoffrey Robertson QC, a former UN appeals judge and international lawyer, told Al Jazeera that a UN ruling would be binding in honour. It is a very important tribunal and Britain and Sweden are on a bound to abide by its decision, he said. Assange has been in the embassy for more than three years. His organisation WikiLeaks was responsible for publishing millions of documents considered classified by the US government. Assanges supporters have planned a news conference in London for that day to discuss his plans. Assange has said via Twitter that he expects to have his confiscated passport returned in light of the UN report and to be free to travel. He is expected at the news conference, either in person or more likely in a video link from his safe haven at the embassy. One of his lawyers told the Associated Press news agency on Thursday he may travel to Ecuador, which has given him political asylum, if he recovers his passport and his liberty. Italian daily says Giulio Regeni, found dead in Cairo, worked for it as freelance writer and had feared for his life. An Italian newspaper has revealed that a Cambridge University student found dead in Cairo worked for it as a freelance writer and had told one of the papers editors that he feared for his life. The Communist Il Manifesto said on Thursday that Giulio Regeni, 28, wrote several stories on workers rights and underground workers unions in Egypt using a pseudonym. The newspaper said it would publish Regenis last report on Friday, and would give more details on the last hours of his life. Regenia was a native of the northeastern Italian city of Udine. Reports late on Thursday said Matteo Renzi, Italys prime minister, called Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to demand that Regenis body be immediately repatriated, and Italian experts be given access to the investigation of his death. Renzi was the first Western leader to receive Sisi after the 2013 overthrow of his civilian predecessor, Mohamed Morsi. Thesis on trade unions Regeni was in Cairo doing research for his doctoral thesis on trade unions in Egypt, and was last seen on January 25, when he left his home with the intention of travelling by metro to meet a friend in the city centre. Initial reports said Regenis body bore signs of torture including cigarette-burn marks near the eyes and feet. Ahmed Nagi, Egyptian prosecutor, who leads the investigation team on the case, said it appeared to have been a slow death. The death has jeopardised relations between Italy and Egypt, with Michele Valensise, Italys foreign ministry director-general, urgently summoning the Egyptian ambassador, Amr Mostafa Kamal Helmy. In London, Paolo Gentiloni, Italian foreign minister, met his Egyptian counterpart Sameh Shoukry, and the two agreed to increase cooperation and coordination between the Egyptian and Italian sides to determine the cause of the death, according to the Egyptian foreign ministry. Gentiloni earlier said Italy needed to be involved in the investigation because we want the truth to come out, every last bit of it. We owe that much to a family that has been stricken in an irreparable way and, at the very least, has the right to know the truth. Federica Guidi, Italys economic development minister, who was in Cairo when Regenis body was discovered, cancelled the final day of a trade mission involving around 60 Italian companies. Hours earlier she had urged Sisi to intervene personally in the investigation into Regenis disappearance, underlining the potential for the case to disrupt normally close ties between Rome and Cairo. Offensive by forces loyal to President Assad takes Shia towns after three-year siege as Geneva peace talks called off. Syrias army and its allies have broken a three-year rebel siege of two Shia towns in northwest Syria, the government and rebel groups said, cutting off a main supply route to nearby Turkey. The breakthrough comes after days of rapid military gains north of the major city of Aleppo, with Russian air strikes playing a key role in the advance. The two towns of Nubul and Zahraa, with an estimated 60,000 population, are connected to the border by areas under the control of Kurdish militias that provided access. The Levant Front rebel group said the siege was broken after three days of legendary resistance by the revolutionaries facing the Russian military machine, and after more than 500 raids by Russian air planes, Reuters news agency reported. READ MORE: Syria peace talks plunged into new crisis Syrias state news agency SANA reported on Thursday mass celebrations in the streets of Nubul and Zahraa welcoming army troops and celebrating the breaking of the siege. The Al-Manar television station of Lebanese militia Hezbollah broadcast what it said was exclusive footage of Syrian government and allied fighters entering the towns. The channel showed crowds embracing soldiers and militiamen who fired into the air as they arrived. The two towns had been besieged by rebels since 2012, and reaching them had long been a goal of the government, which has also sought to sever key rebel supply routes into Aleppo from Turkey. Al Jazeeras Zeina Khodr, reporting from Gaziantep, Turkey, said that in taking the towns, the government achieved in three days what its been trying to do for three years. There is no doubt this is a decisive turning point because at the end of the day, Turkey is the lifeline for the opposition. What we understand from pro-government sources is that this is just the beginning the aim is to reach the Turkish border. Meanwhile, UN-mediated talks in Geneva to end the war in Syria were paused on Wednesday until February 25. US Secretary of State John Kerry blamed the Syrian government and its Russian allies for the stall in negotiations. The continued assault by Syrian regime forces enabled by Russian air strikes against opposition-held areas, as well as regime and allied militias continued besiegement of hundreds of thousands of civilians, have clearly signalled the intention to seek a military solution rather than enable a political one, Kerry said in a statement. Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, said on Wednesday that the bombardment would continue. Russian strikes will not cease until we really defeat terrorist organisations like Jabhat al-Nusra. And I dont see why these air strikes should be stopped, he said. The conflict, that has lasted nearly five years, has resulted in more than 250,000 Syrians being killed. The civil war has also displaced millions more and sent hundreds of thousands fleeing as refugees to Europe. Steven Heydemann, a professor of Middle East studies at Smith College in the US, told Al Jazeera that the country was now likely to see an upsurge in fighting after the military advancements by government forces. My sense is that what we have now created are incentives for the opposition and its regional backers to escalate their military activity in response to what theyre confronting from the regime and that were entering a period where well see a spiral upward in the level of violence, Heydemann said. The Syrian government and its allies were also on the offensive against rebels south of Aleppo, Syrias commercial centre, and against Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant to the east of the city split between government and rebel control. Alongside heavy Russian aerial support, the advances have been made possible by ground troops from Lebanons Hezbollah movement and Iranian-backed militias that support President Bashar al-Assads government. The Russia air strikes that began in September tilted the war in Assads favour. Reports said pro-government militias from the besieged towns were able to link up with advancing Syrian army troops after the town of Maarsteh al-Khan fell. Breaking the siege opens a direct route for the Syrian army to Kurdish-controlled Afrin and brings them closer to areas run by Turkish-backed rebels near the Turkish border. Defence strategists said that the two heavily garrisoned towns could become a launching pad for the Syrian army and its allies for wider territorial gains in northern Aleppo province and to tighten the encirclement of the rebel-held part of Aleppo city. Raid on card club in resort town of Pattaya leads to arrest of 32 senior-citizen foreigners. A vow by Thailands military government to rid the country of foreign criminals has netted an unlikely group of outlaws elderly bridge players. Police and military volunteers raided a bridge club on Wednesday night in Pattaya a resort town renowned for its go-go bars and links with organised crime arresting 32 foreigners, most of them British. There were 32 people, all of them foreigners, arrested for gambling, Colonel Suthat Pumphanmuang, Pattaya police superintendent, told the AFP news agency on Thursday. Suthat said that the raid was sparked by a member of the public complaining to the countrys anti-corruption centre. Almost all forms of gambling apart from the lottery and bets on some animal fighting is outlawed in Thailand, though underground betting is rampant. The chairman of the bridge club is arguing that they were not gambling [for money], Suthat said. Man arrested in Thailand over Facebook posts He added that all but one of those arrested were freed on a $140 bail after 12 hours in custody. The final person was unable to pay bail and remains in jail. Police said that those arrested included 12 British nationals, three Norwegians, three Swedes, two Australians, a German, a Dane, a Canadian, a New Zealander and a Dutch and Irish national. The other nationalities were not made public. A British Embassy spokesman said that officials were in contact with local authorities following the arrest of several British nationals. Jomtien and Pattaya Bridge Club, the target of the raid, is a venue popular with elderly foreign players that advertises publicly and meets three times a week above a restaurant. Pattaya One, a local English-language newspaper, ran photographs of the raid showing groups of largely elderly foreigners gathered around tables holding playing cards as police looked on. The paper said that the club had been operating bridge nights since 1994. Since seizing power in 2014, Thailands leader, General Prayuth Chan-ocha, has vowed to crack down on a raft of social ills, including corruption and criminal networks, both foreign and domestic. Despite the coup and crackdown, tourist arrivals were at a record 29.9 million in 2015, according to a forecast by the Thai tourism ministry. Al Jazeera correspondents analyse what trade pact signed by 12 nations means for China, New Zealand, Canada and Mexico. The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) a deal involving 12 economies worth about $28 trillion was signed in Auckland, New Zealand, on Thursday by ministers from the Asia-Pacific region and the Americas. The pact which will cut tariffs, improve access to markets and set common ground on labour and environmental standards and intellectual property protections was finally reached last October after five years of negotiations. The partnership comprises Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the US and Vietnam. Al Jazeeras correspondents analyse what the deal means for some of the countries. Adrian Brown China China is not used to being excluded from a big new international organisation. As the country with the worlds second largest economy, its absence from the TPP represents a loss of face. It could also mark the start, perhaps, of an economic Cold War as China and the US vie for influence in the Asia-Pacific region. Beijing regards the pact as another Washington-led attempt to contain China. The governments countermeasures include support for a rival trade pact as well as its Silk Road project. This is President Xi Jinpings ambitious plan to revive the fabled trading routes between China and Europe via Central Asia. But the official mood could best described as ambivalent. The government has said it might apply for TPP membership in the future. Besides, say economists, Chinas key trading partners include four TPP member countries Australia, New Zealand, Vietnam and Japan. Observers also say that China may not yet feel it is ready to sign up to higher and more rigorous trade standards at a time when it is facing a multitude of economic challenges. Wayne Hay New Zealand Regardless of whether you agree or disagree with the TPP, its a big deal. So why is it being signed in little old New Zealand at the bottom of the world? You can trace the origins of this pact back to 2000 when New Zealand and Singapore signed a free trade deal that was later joined by Brunei and Chile forming what became known as the P4. Then, the likes of the US began discussions about creating a wider agreement involving more countries. Weve ended up with 12 nations signing the TPP and throughout all the negotiations, New Zealand has played a leading role as it sought to find more lucrative markets for its export-led economy. If nothing else, its something of a diplomatic victory for this small country. But there has also been a lot of opposition to the deal with several protests happening around New Zealand by people who ask why there has to be so much secrecy surrounding the details of the negotiations. They also asked why New Zealand should be amending laws to accommodate other countries and giving big business the opportunity to sue the government if they feel any future legislation contradicts agreements made in the TPP. Daniel Lak Canada Canada joined the TPP talks in 2012. The countrys late arrival was probably because of its reluctance to open its dairy, poultry and egg markets to foreign competition. Those types of farmers are very protected in Canada. New Zealand in particular wanted access to Canada for its mighty dairy export industry. Compounding the problem for the former Conservatve prime minister, Stephen Harper, was last years federal election campaign. The talks ended with an agreement on October 5 and Harper tried to present it as a win-win for Canada, which got access to a trillion-dollar market across Asia and the North America and got to keep import volumes low for politically sensitive farm products. The main opposition parties begged to differ. The left-of-centre New Democrats said the deal was bad for everyone, and the eventual election winners, Justin Trudeaus Liberals, said they would study the deal before deciding on a stance. Now that Trudeau is in power, he says Canada will sign the TPP but keep studying before it ratifies something critics say is akin to having your cake and eating it too. Canadians arent broadly opposed to free trade as their country is a big exporter of commodities and always needs new markets. But polls show theyll need convincing on some aspects of the TPP. If, as supporters suggest, it leads to cheaper milk and eggs, then probably this country will feel comfortable inside the worlds largest trading bloc. If not, expect growing opposition. Natasha Ghoneim Mexico Critics in Mexico have called the TPP NAFTA on steroids. The reference is to the North American Free Trade Agreement that went into effect in 1994 and established a trading bloc between Mexico, the US and Canada. Twenty-two years later, the same criticism of NAFTA is reverberating with the TPP. Last week, Mexicos National Workers Union led a protest to voice its opposition. Critics allege the TPP was negotiated secretly, the benefits will only reach multinational corporations while failing to trickle down to farmers and workers and may adversely impact food security in Mexico. President Enrique Pena Nieto has characterised the TPP as a signature policy. He says it will give Mexico an expanded opportunity to trade with countries on the most populous continent. He has promised Mexicans that it will bring greater investment, increase exports of cars and electronics and bring more well-paid jobs to the country. Just as there remains great debate on the overall merits of NAFTA for Mexican farmers and workers, its likely there will continue to be debate about how TPP will impact jobs in Mexico. Founder of whistle-blower website demands UK authorities stop further attempts to arrest him if UN rules in his favour. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says he will respect a UN ruling on his case and accept arrest by British authorities at noon on Friday if it goes against him. UK police said Thursday earlier announced plans to take Assange into custody on an outstanding arrest warrant were still in place. Assange, 44, an Australian national, has been sought by Swedish authorities since 2012 for questioning over allegations of rape. Critics say the accusations were an attempt to possibly extradite him to the United States, where he could face charges over WikiLeaks publication of classified military and diplomatic documents. In June 2012, Assange took refuge in the the UKs Ecuadorian embassy after Ecuador granted him political asylum to avoid extradition to Sweden. He has lived there for three-and-a-half years appealing his case to the UN. Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police, as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal, a statement posted Thursday on WikiLeaks Twitter page said. However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me, Assange added. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has been considering his case after an appeal by Assange that his time spent in the embassy constituted arbitrary detention. Assange argued that he had been deprived of his fundamental liberties, including lack of access to sunlight or fresh air, and adequate medical facilities, as well as legal and procedural insecurity. Alcohol abuse among women becomes increasing cause for public health concern in nation with easy availability of liquor. South Koreans are the among the biggest alcohol consumers in the world. And that is giving public health officials a headache. Increasingly, women have joined the ranks of the countrys heaviest drinkers, with an average of seven million bottles of soju rice wine consumed every night. On a given night, police officers respond to several calls for help to rescue intoxicated individuals on the streets of Seoul. The number of calls we are getting involving drunks is increasing, Choi Kyungreol, a police officer, told Al Jazeera. Women make up most of our callers now. Theyre destroying themselves with liquor. Its heartbreaking. Availability of liquor is said to be a big reason behind this. Soju wine, for instance, can be easily found and costs only $1 a bottle. Kim Jin, a self-confessed alcoholic, has blasted liquor companies advertising tactics using celebrities to lure people, including young women, into drinking. Jin, along with 25 other alcoholics, has launched a class action lawsuit against big liquor producers. People look at these advertisements and see celebrities having fun and downing liquor, he said. Naturally, this encourages consumers to drink more. Its all a big lie. South Korea has the highest youth suicide rates in the developed world and university students such as Jiyeon Shin and her friends said partying and binge drinking help shake off stress. Liquor is something thats naturally shared between friends and family. I think Korean drinking culture is very uplifting, Jiyeon said. From the 101 East film South Koreas Hangover. To watch the full film, click here How will improving relations between communist Cuba and the capitalist US affect the lives of people on both sides? Scroll to watch part one of Cuba Year Zero Last year, the United States flag was raised in Cuba for the first time in more than five decades, as diplomatic relations between the two states were unfrozen and the American embassy in Havana reopened. This dramatic turnaround was preceded by a series of previously unthinkable shifts in policy enacted by the Cuban government, now led by Fidel Castros brother, Raul. The president has been opening up Cubas economy since 2010, permitting Cubans to open private businesses and buy and sell property, while foreign companies can now invest in the island nation. In three reports to be broadcast this month, we look at the reforms that appear to be bringing a return to capitalism ever closer and ask what these changes mean for Cuban citizens and the future of their socialist state. In part one of Cuba Year Zero, we explore what it means for Cubas socialism to make peace with the US government and ask if this decision reflects recognition by the state of a failure to empower its people. In part two, we meet members of the revolutionary generation. Inside Cuba, we talk to those who were members of Fidel Castros rebel army and sacrificed their individualism to make the revolution succeed. In Miami, we meet their former enemies: one million Cubans who left the country in the 1960s and formed groups in exile to conspire against the communist government. Both sides must now face the fact that Castros Cuba is finally making peace with the United States, thereby ending a struggle which has lasted, and dominated, most of their lives. FILMMAKERS VIEW By Rodrigo Vazquez In 2010, some 500,000 Cuban state employees were issued with licences to start private businesses, among them a group of flower-sellers who operate at a major crossroads in downtown Havana. Today, the self-employed sellers have become considerably better off than their counterparts who continue to work for the state. They have beautiful things they always sell out first, one state seller said, lamenting the lack of diversity in stock provided to him by the government. But he, too, sees the economic changes and rapprochement with the United States as positive steps towards a better life for all in Cuba. I think its great. I have a lot of faith in that, he said. Five years into the reforms, there are three times more restaurants and bars in Havana. But it hasnt all been plain sailing. Cuban would-be entrepreneurs have had to adjust to commercial realities that were previously alien to this country. New-found competition coupled with a lack of low-cost suppliers has caused many businesses to close their doors almost as soon as they opened. In an attempt to better supply the market, the Cuban government has begun turning state companies into private cooperatives. But again, a lack of business acumen has prevented many from realising their potential. Nobody knows anything, we all lack the training, says a worker from one such business, CNA Textiles. But despite these complaints, the employees at this cooperative have seen their income triple since it moved from state control to the private sector. Amid such dramatic changes, observers might be forgiven for assuming that, these days, Fidel Castro and Che Guevaras war on profit-oriented capitalism is just a slogan on a wall. But not everyone is happy with the new rules. Ever since I can remember, weve been told that capitalism is a means of production that wont solve the worlds problems, none other than Che Guevaras son Camilo said. Now we have the proof that the world is being destroyed and that the human species is in danger. But for their part, the authorities insist that opening up the economy wont stop Cuba from doing things differently. One example of an alternative model frequently put forward is the development of organic farms set up in the 1990s to boost food production. The Alamar cooperative began 20 years ago and has been remarkably successful, not just by providing something to eat for those who live and work in its fields; the profits it makes are also used to subsidise transport and electricity while providing free education and healthcare for the surrounding community. But regardless of these achievements, Cuba is already showing signs that it is not impervious to the familiar driving forces that characterise capitalism in the rest of the western hemisphere. The new opportunities brought about by Raul Castros reforms have begun to create a burgeoning middle class, but at the same time the government has been cutting down on social programmes for the poor. Meanwhile, tourism has become the main channel for attracting much-needed US dollars, prompting the government to invest heavily in this area, and creating a bubble within which earnings far outstrip any other industry. Once again, downtown Havana is showing the kind of discrepancies in wealth between its citizens that were last seen before the revolution. While one former guerrilla fighter, who entered Havana with Fidel Castros forces in 1959, lived her final years in crowded squalor, four blocks away, one of her neighbours owns one of the citys most successful restaurants, which recently played host to six presidents in a single night. David LyttleThe MACJanuary 22, 2016The soft launch of Brilliant Corners 2016 (March 5-12) took place in Belfast's multi-million pound arts centre, The MAC, and featured Northern Ireland's internationally acclaimed drummer/composer David LyttleMoving On Music's Artist-In Residence at The MAC for 2016. The venue, however, was not one of The MAC's main theatres, but instead, a rather curious corner of the complex called The Studio. The Studio looked like an upended oblong room, with a split level and a spiral stairwell that bestowed a vaguely lighthouse effect on the cramped space. It was a suitably brilliant and slightly kooky corner in which to get the ball rolling on the fourth edition of Belfast's annual festival of jazz.Lyttle has had a busy and rewarding time of late. His third album as leader, Faces on his own Lyte Records , was nominated in 2015 for both MOBO and UMA awards for best jazz album, in spite of the heavy rap, pop and soul threads, which are all elements of Lyttle's expansive musical universe. This intimate Belfast gig, however, with tenor saxophonist Melaina Gillard and bassist Neil O'Loghlen as Lyttle's trio partners, served up pure, unadulterated jazz of classic vintage, with swing, and bop to the fore.The set got underway with the smouldering blues of Lyttle's "City Life," with the trio spearheaded by the impressive Gillard. The Belfast-based American wove a beautifully weighted, sultry narrative that brought sympathetic respones from O'Loghlen and Lyttle. The drummer's melodic improvisation evoked the artistry of, whose first CD in five years, The Pauper and The Magician is, happily enough, the latest addition to Lyttle's eclectic label.A lilting melody and shuffling groove colored the infectious "Happy Easter," with O'Loghlen's sing-song solo paving the way for Gillard, who raised the intensity a notch as the rhythm maintained an unwavering course. "Jazz can mean really anything these days," Lyttle said by way of introduction to a new composition, "Jazz Wars"; Lyttle and Gillard's blustery solos were firmly planted in the bebop tradition, but the unexpectedly gentle, brushes-steered coda evoked a New Orleans dirge.Gillard's balladeering finesse was to the fore on the bluesy "Pure Imagination," the Leslie Bricusse/ Anthony Newley composition sung by Gene Wilder in the film Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory (1971). Lyttle's hands worked the drum skins like a conguero on the intro to "After The Flood," a melodically bright, rhythmically vibrant excerpt from a suite inspired by the story of Jonah and the Whale.For the album Faces, Lyttle had recruited tenor saxophonist, who gave a mesmerising performance on the rap-infused ballad "Lullaby for the Lost"; here, Gillard carved her own imprint on the song, gliding from whispered legato phrasing to a more robust and expansive improvisation, pulling the rhythm section with her. O'Loghlen responded with a leisurely solo ripe with melody before the trio reunited briefly. The bassistwho plays regularly withas well as in Ensemble Eriubrought a folksy lyricism to the trio, and his intuitive connection with Lyttle was evident. Lyttle and O'Loghlen know each other's rhythmic maps well, having toured together on a fifteen-date jaunt around Irish towns large and small in 2013, and their interplay during this evening was a delight.The trio closed out an absorbing set with "Rainbow Connection," the Paul Williams tune written for Kermit the Frog in The Muppet Movie (1979). The trio's soulful interpretationwith significant closing statements from all would have turned Kermit an even deeper shade of green with envy, and was illustration of the growing trend that any good tune, in the right hands, can be rebooted in a jazz context.The David Lyttle Trio plays a mid-morning gig at the Brilliant Corners festival on 11 March in the Crescent Arts Centre. Other acts appearing at this year's festival include, OKO featuring, Dinosuar, Alarmist,and, Vein Trio, and Cacao featuring. For the first time, Brilliant Corners enters into partnership with the Belfast Film Festival and films onandwill be screened in the BeanBag Cinema.Full details of Brilliant Corners (information and tickets) are available at Moving On Music's website Hamid Drake, Punkt + ICPBimhuisCarte BlancheAmsterdamJanuary 23, 2016World-renowned Amsterdam Bimhuis invited illustrious Chicagoan drummer/percussionistfor a carte blanche night on January 23rd. This article covers the event and adds some background notes. Hamid Drake frequently performs at this venue. To date he played Bimhuis 18 times in its 40 years of existence. When we consider this as well as his enormous musical range a festival would be necessary to represent him and his work. It would be no doubt a challenging transcending festival spanning several days. For a single carte blanche night however tough choices had to be made from many attractive options.Drake could have worked with some nice musical contrasts or complementarities, yet his main concern was to take a step forward. His definite choice was as surprising as obvious. He decided to conduct an unlikely encounter between members of good old Amsterdam ICP Orchestra, two young upcoming musicians, Italian vibraphonist Pasquale Mirra and Slovenian pianist, and the live remix crew of trailblazing Norwegian PUNKT with its far-reaching metamorphosis of music. The ICP-crew comprisedon trombone,andon saxophone and clarinet,on double bass and Kaja Draksler on piano. The PUNKT-crew broughtandelectronics, guitarist Eivind Aarset and Hamid Drake on drums/percussion. The introductory performance of the night was given by the duo of Hamid Drake and Italian vibraphonist Pasquale Mirra, representing Drake's work with other percussionists likeand Michael Zerang.What these parties share is the principle of instant composing: the open form, the improvisational attitude of creating music in real time. The difference lies in their modus operandi and the variety of instruments used. The ICP musicians (re)act instantly to/on the contributions of their fellow musicians; The PUNKT musicians together act on a preceding performance as a whole in their subsequent improvised live remix with electronic and acoustic instruments. Hamid Drake brought it together and challenged these musicians to inventively re-orientate and rewrite their routines. He, at the center, was free and bound to lead acoustic-/analog-oriented musicians towards ambient electronics, vice versa.Hamid Drake is one of the most illustrious, distinct and open-minded percussionists of this moment. Deeply rooted in the Afro-American tradition he covers a broad musical range in his collaborations. As a firmly grounded independent spirit he crossed the field of improvisation in jazz and world music in ever challenged and challenging ways. It is not, however, merely an ability to navigate into, through and out of differing musical fields. Drake is a highly precise and primarily spatial drummer with a great way of handling space, volume, repetition, and periodicity. This is intimately connected with his general appearance, his stature, and presence during his actions: with a majestic glow and elegant smile he channels cosmic energies into sound waves and eruptions.Listening to and watching Drake's play in differing contexts, works as an ear-opener. He is one of the drummers that enable listeners not only to hear the differences but also very clearly the common ground on a deeper level. In Free Improvisation Drake creates a rhythmical circulation that enables horn players to embrace, slip in and act out. The sounds of, for example, get an extra strong and deep charge in Drake's company. Conversely in other, straighter contexts Drake evokes a deeper rawness and edge.The unity of the diverse musical sources Drake went through and makes use of is represented best in his plentiful work with great Chicagoan reedman(1929-2010). As Drake stated early in the evening, Baba Anderson was a life long stimulator, guide and companion. You can experience this on their wonderful last album From The River To The Ocean (2007, Thrill Jockey) that bears witness of it. Other important formative influences were trumpeterand drummer Ed Blackwell he both met as a young musician when he started to work in Foday Muso Suso's Mandingo Griot Society together with his peer, percussionist Adam Rudolph, by the late '70s. The first album of the Mandingo Griot Society (with guesting Don Cherry) anticipated on the legendary CODONA-series of the early '80s with percussionistsand Don Cherry as forerunners of present world music and world jazz.Drake is at home at many sections, styles of music through his distinctive voice. Numerous varied collaborations with musicians and groups in/from Europe, Africa, Asia and the Caribbean bear witness of that. Reggae apparently is a special passion and connecting force for him. He is working in those contexts so intensely that people often know his work only partially due to their own preferences and focus. Nowadays there are few musicians who spiritually, creatively and practically span such a variety and range with their distinctive voice (for an introductory cross sectional radio feature (on demand) see HAMID DRAKE part 1 ... and see HAMID DRAKE part 2 ... ).Considering this and Drake's urge to move forward (or inward) to broaden the musical scope by creative invention, his PUNKT participation came into being quite naturally three years ago. It started at a PUNKT Paris event and continued at PUNKT events in Italy (Milano), and Norway (Kristiansand)(see more HERE ... ). Drake participated in and contributed to the input side as well as on the live remix side of it. In Paris he performed in a trio with Ethiopian vocalist Etenesh Wassie and French guitarist Mathieu Sourisseau and did a live remix with saxophonist, trumpeter, guitarist Eivind Aarset and the electronics/sampling of Jan Bang and Erik Honore -a multifaceted crew. The presence of Evan Parker here is not that astonishing either. Parker was one of the first improvisers working with live electronics with The Music Improvising Company (, Hugh Davis, Jamie Muir, Christine Jeffrey) in the late 60s. Their first recording was released as 4th album of the ECM-label's catalogue. More electronic albums by Parker's Electro-Acoustic Ensemble followed.Drake's carte blanche had a forceful focus on the live-remix as a connecting and unifying procedure, which was still more enforced by the fact that it was a premiere in Amsterdam and the first time a PUNKT remix took place in The Netherlands. At the beginning of the concerts Drake recalled Don Cherry who made his first record with electronics almost 50 years ago. In 1969 he recorded the Human Music album as a duo with electronics pioneer Jon Appleton, for Bob Thiele's Dutchman label. It happened just two years after the release of Morton Subnotik's groundbreaking album Silver Apples From The Moon.During the carte blanche program two methods (or procedures) of improvising were 'combined': the ICP and PUNKT method. Both parties share the principle of instant composing: the open form, the improvisational attitude of creating music in real time. The difference lies in their modus operandi and the variety of instruments used. The ICP musicians (re)act instantly on/to the contributions of their fellow musicians; PUNKT musicians together act on a preceding performance as a whole in their subsequent live-remix improvisation with the aid of electronic and acoustic instruments.A live remix differs from a studio remix in a couple of respects. In the studio there's more time and the possibility to retry. In the studio it is possible to listen to the input-piece of the mix again and again. The same goes up for manipulations. There might be collaboration between more people, but very often one person/author is responsible for the remix. In a live remix this reshaping has to be a joint effort, a real-time processing collaboration between a number of musicians using electronic devices, acoustic instruments and voice(s). The input of the live remix is an immediately preceding performance by a group of other musicians. The remix crew listens to/watches the performance and take decisions on what to do, how to proceed, what to use, etc.. These decisions can be taken in advance and/or during the improvisation itself. Live remixes are very often aided by electronic devicesjoined by traditional (acoustic) instruments/voices. It is not necessary, however, to base a live remix on electronics. It would be possible too to do it purely with acoustic instruments and solely based on the musicians memory. It happened a few years ago at the PUNKT FESTIVAL in a live remix by Norwegian-French group Dans Les Arbres (, and). This does, however, require special skills in terms of memory, accessing speed, and listening skills of the musicians. With the aid of electronic sound sampling equipment and manipulation processes the outcomes are more liquid, layered and porous, opening up a lot of new possibilities. Although it wouldn't be a surprise if the electronic treatment would have an impact on purely acoustic improvisation in the long run.The concept of live remixes not only allows for endless variation (of different order); it is in a way an exteriorization of the musical listening process. We hear what we want to hear or what we are used to hearing. But there will always be more or less unknown elements and characteristics that challenge the listener to assimilate or to accommodate to, to evade or to transform. In a live remix you can hear what the remixing musicians hear or want to hear. The result is a merging of known and unknown things. Certain forms of music making might or want to challenge the listening process. In the live remix it is made more made more translucent and tangible and gets its own epic form.As mentioned before, Hamid Drake's Carte Blanche night consisted of three parts: a duo opening with young Italian vibraphonist Pasquale Mirra, a contribution by the five musicians of the Amsterdam impro-scene, and a live remix by a PUNKT-crew including Hamid Drake himself together with Jan Bang, Erik Honore, and Eivind Aarset.Hamid Drake and vibraphonist Pasquale Mirra have been working as a duo since 2008 and form a proven unit. They took off at a highly energetic pace right from the start. From their first beat and sound their music had a strong African vibe and flavor. Mirra, an agile musician with a very unique style, wonderfully extended Drake's circulating beats with his wonderfully tinkling and chiming metallophonic sounds.Gradually their music turned into the melodism of a longer chant, "Born upon a Lotus." Drake commenced to sing after switching to the big frame drum. Mirra enhanced the chant's unfolding beauty by applying endearing and subtle varieties of the percussive possibilities of his instrument. It included spontaneous preparationswith aluminum foil amongst others -and extended techniques. Following the music's own way a moving document of deep personal expression arose from the two musicians' weaving.On cue the Amsterdam crew entered the stage and joined Drake and Mirra by overwriting the chant and leading the music into a different direction. After a short interplay of Kaja Draksler and Mirra, Mirra and Drake faded out and left the stage to the Amsterdam musicians. The ICP-horns intoned a kind of funeral march with some great doubling of Wierbos' trombone and Glerum's double bass. The music conjured up some sort of black magic, a sortilege kind of atmosphere on the edge of funny and sinister. Baars and Moore then freaked out on their clarinets into an armada of (Steve) Lacyan duck calls, among others. It evoked multiple vivacious, jagged frictions and deformations and offered a rich variety to vamp from where the music slipped into some crazy polka jive. It finally again transmuted into a crooked crutch waltz accompanied and echoed by a sample of stride piano of Kaja Draksler. She fitted in, acting quite consistently without trying to excel or provoke. The performance satisfied quite well a definition ICP drummeronce gave of improvisation: the art of quickly crossing a busy street thereby entraining and carrying along as much stuff as possible.Thus the ICP-unit with its strong musical individuals that have known each other for decades did its clear ICP thing, showcased a sample of ICP music pur sang, satisfying expectations. It felt as a rock thrown into a dusty field. This constituted the input for the highly anticipated live remix taking place at the rear part of the stage with its wide- open views of the center of Amsterdam.Where the musician in the first two parts formed a longer or shorter diagonal on stage, the musicians formed half a circle open to the audience during the live-remix: two 'machine men' at the center flanked by drummer Hamid Drake on the left side and guitarist Eivind Aarset on the other.For the live remix the dramaturgy of its progression is of major importance. It is its dynamics that counts, the way parts of the original performance re-appear do not appear. The music of the live remix appeared to be a floating multilayered soundscape with deep valleys, remote sounds, crackling and buzzing noises and a clearly perceptible pulse. It could be perceived as an outer space area, a dream landscape or an inner memory space (in the sense of James Joyce or Marcel Proust)The audience immediately noticed that a completely new sound reality was manifesting itself, a sound reality of a different level with lots of possibilities to manipulate and incorporate elements and moments of the past performance. Some perceived it as a piece of music in its own right, others were more keen on discerning elements from the preceding input-performance and relating both to each other. Some experienced barriers due to preferences, discomfort or even the rejection of the use of electronics.Music that is experienced can be reproduced by the human memory through certain structural features and the talent and skills of the musicians involved, as well as features of the performance situation. This has thoroughly changed with the possibility of recording, sampling and other electronic forms of manipulation, and the sound quality in particular. This even influences musicians who do not (directly) use electronics in their performance.Live remixing indeed has been developed from recording and the use of (studio) electronics, and especially the approach and esthetics of Punkt founders Jan Bang and Erik Honore, although it is not necessarily confined to this particular use of electronics. There have been live remixes with mainly acoustic instruments and voice(s). One should experience several live remixes to get a good idea of the significance, scope and possibilities of this concept.The step from remixing in the studio to real-time live remixing on stage is a huge and bold one. As mentioned before, a live remix clearly differs from what people might know from studio remixes of known recordings. These very often are collages, superimposing along a clear idea of usually one single author, fabricated and accomplished in a longer period including retrials and revisions. In a live remix the same technical/electronic aids are available but have to be applied rapidly in real time in interaction with other electronic or acoustic musicians. What is needed therefore is a division of tasks combined with clear notions of space, sound, ether and narrative.As said before the live remix did not reproduce the experienced performance, the 'original' work. Neither did it rework and reshape it in an ICP way of improvising. Instead, the remix crew created a 'wider' reflective-narrative space filled with echoes of the previously experienced performance (as a whole), traces of their own subjective listening and transformations of it within its very own momentum.The ICP crew worked through extensions yielded by crumpling, creasing and crushing sounds, making use of the dynamics emerging from it in terms of flow, rhythm, new sound connections and cohesions. The remix crew in a way realized the opposite. The remix crew widened and deepened the field of operation and its space. Their beautiful, strange sounds did not so much result from crashes and crushes, but from the manipulation and combination (of elements) on micro(tonal) level. One could also describe it as a deconstructive modus operandi vs. a suggestive sub- melodic modus operandi.These contrasts and opposites were clearly manifested through the two performances. It would have been a real deal if a direct confrontation of both worlds of improvisation could have been experienced in a third step meeting, a meeting including musicians from both camps in both crews. However, this night had a more limited scope centered on Hamid Drake as a musician working in multiple approaches and worlds.The Punkt musicians perfectly managed to build up beautiful lines from fragments and micro-elements. From an almost motionless and serene tranquility they ignited violently raging sound storms with powerful outbursts, time and again and always right in time. Traces of the preceding performance of the duo and the ICP quintet were buried deep in the mix, now and then floating to the (sub)surface. It was a long while waiting for the clarinets and duck calls, but in the end, right before giving up, it was there, clearly discernible yet coming from an unknown place, some deeper area. A special treat were the 'never ending's end' and coda -very serious yet full of humor.The most striking characteristic of the live remix was the 'natural' musical unity of the electric/electronic musicians with the acoustic drumming of Hamid Drake. The crew generously supported his drumming, which was quite effective and beautifully uplifting. Hamid Drake gave them a lot to build upon and fly. This revealed a lot about their mutual sensibilities and orientations.Jan Bang may be considered the most percussive live electronics musician around and visually this was certainly more than evident during the remixing. He was in fact another percussionist part of the crew. Bang is a seducer in the finest sense: he is inviting, has amazing ears, a superb overview and he radiates trust. Erik Honore had the grounding role and servedsuper-concentrated and with a latent grin -the deeper and darker tonalities, allowing the others to vibrate. Eivind Aarsetthe crew's alchemistis a rhythmically highly sensitive colorist. He is able to shoot out at the right moment when the music engorges and huge waves arise. He did more discrete work this time, work you would notice when hearing the music without. Hamid Drake first and finally was the emanative and equilibrating persona securing cyclical forward motion, space, acceptance and clearness of inner light. In the end he stepped forward to express his graciousness for making it all possible through an ensemble of creative, spiritual, interpersonal, and organizational movements during and towards the night and the preparation of it.In general it may be stated that the audience was quite curious, open, accepting and immediately caught by the music of the Punkt remix crew with Hamid Drake. A considerable part of the crowd seemed to be really fascinated. They highly appreciated the unknown even when its execution remained a closed book for many in the audience. This, however, is quite a characteristic experience when living a PUNKT live remix for the first time. It fascinates and puzzles at the same time.The stark contrast between the two approaches and crews was clearly felt, yet the approaches were mediated convincingly by Hamid Drake as the central figure of the program. It was a precious thing to experience how each crew arrived at and yielded its very own strange beautiful sounds (to use an expression of John Lurie).The program notes mention that "Hamid Drake challenges the musicians to (...) inventively re-orientate and rewrite their routines" and that he "leads the acoustic/analog-oriented musicians towards ambient electronica and vice versa." It is obvious that it needs still more to accomplish that. PUNKT entails that the remixed musician takes his/her seat also on the live remix side -like many musicians, improvisers such as, Adam Rudolph and Evan Parker, composers such as Rolf Wallin and Dai Fujikura and pop musicians such as Guy Sigsworth have done in the past 11 years. PUNKT is not only a musical concept, but also a concept of genre crossing and genre- spanning, multidisciplinary cooperation. The way into more live remixes in Amsterdam and elsewhere lies open.A special account of the event will be published soon at INNER TOUR of fine artist Rita Draper FrazaoNext up in Bimhuis' Carte Blanche Series is pianistfrom the UK, to perform on February, 27th .Hamid Drake Carte Blanche is available as on demand streaming on BIMHUIS RADIO Reading the spare (and tongue-in-cheek) liner notes of guitarist/composer Colin Cannon's Intermission (Farewell), one could easily get the idea that Cannon wrote, arranged and produced the album for a relatively small inner circle of friends, family and associates. Referring to that cohort, he writes, ..."and besides you people, I don't particular care who else listens to thisit wasn't made for them." As with Mel Brooks' "The Producers," Cannon has failed to marginalize his wider audience by turning out one of the most charismatic releases in recent years.Cannon has been leading a solid quartet for the past seven years, putting out two releases, In Summary (Self Produced, 2009) and Glenville (Self Produced, 2012). The 'Farewell' portion of the title refers to a departure from that format but that is only partially the case. Bassist Zak Croxall, drummer Tom Hartman and Manami Morita on all keys, are the same musicians appearing on the quartet albums, though Hartman shared drumming credits with Devin Collins on the latter of the two.Japanese native, Morita, like a number of well-known jazz players from that country, began with classical piano before making the change to jazz. She later received a scholarship to Berklee College of Music and went on to win a number of competitive awards. Also a Berklee alum, Hartman studied with drummer/vocalist, saxophonist, and trumpeter. Rounding out the all-Berklee quartet are Croxall and Cannon who at the age of sixteen was opening for the likes of Grammy-nomineesand. He later studied with the same instructor who had tutoredand. Working in tandem with the quartet is an ensemble that includes four vocalists, strings, brass and woodwind and vibraphone.The hook is in from the opening of Part I, "Your Everyday Prelude," with Cannon's gentle picking merging with lush strings and overlaying spoken-word narratives from 1950s field recordings, moving in and out of focus. Carkner's haunting trumpet guides the transition to "Everyday" which wraps up with a swirl of soaring guitar, vocals and the sound of giggling children. Buoyant vocalese opens "La Da" but the piece ends more choir-like as anxious narratives continue to run in the background. "Mofo" begins with Morita's elegiac piano but morphs into a hard rock guitar piece. The "Intermission" half of the title track features "Let's All Go to the Lobby," the audio portion of a 1953 animated musical short that played as a trailer in cinemas, urging audiences to visit the concession stand. That piece transitions to an ethereal musical request to "check your phone; sip your drink."By the time we get to Part II, it has become clear that the music on Intermission (Farewell) deserves not to be categorized. Themes may draw on jazz, rock or European chamber but the balance is intentionally open-ended, moving from minimal to orchestral; from simple and sweet to complex and jagged. Yet, with all these moving parts, there is a sense with each of these pieces that they are natural and undeviating from Cannon's vision. When "Reflections 3" closes the album it feels like a rich, satisfying and original musical experience has been realized.Cannon moves listeners away from preconceived notions with Intermission (Farewell). He works multiple genres, traditions and styles to create an organic and opulent tapestry. The performances here are flawless; there are no wasted measures in this intoxicating combination of melody and surprising developments. It's early in the year but Intermission (Farewell) deserves to be on some lists when the year wraps up. Ukrainian bassist Ark Ovrutski arrived on American soil just over a decade ago, and he's been rather busy ever since. A nonstop go-getter from his earliest days, Ovrutski immediately made the most out of that move, steadily working his way into the ultra-competitive New York jazz scene and seeking out opportunities to further his playing and knowledge in formal academic settings and informal environments. Now, with a full gigging schedule, a doctorate from the University of Illinois, and some notable recordings under his namethe southward glancing The Sounds Of Brasil (Self Produced, 2010) and the more stylistically broad-minded 44:33 (Zoho Records, 2014)Ovrutski can look back with pride on the way he spent his first ten years in the jazz capital of the world. He's truly arrived, and this album makes that point.Intersection frames Ovrutski's lyrical soloing, warm sound, and strong rhythmic presence within a variety of contexts, highlighting the fact that his range is nearly limitless. "Waltz For Debby" gives pause to appreciate Ovrutski's refined ways with his woody instrument and his arranging skills, as voices waft through the air and melodic duties are shifted around on thisclassic; "The Twister" points to his push-and-prod playing, as he drives the band and fearlessly interacts with pianist; "Bolero" gives a clear impression that he understands the value of playing a support role for the greater good; and "Tom Thumb" underscores the fact that he's able to seamlessly blend styles and languages, as thatcomposition becomes something of a funk-Brazilian-boogaloo hybrid in this band's hands. Take all of that, and then further the picture by looking at the non-stop action on drummer's "Manhattan Style" and the calming countenance of's "La Mesha." Then you begin to realize just how versatile Ovrutski really is.While the success of this recording is due, in large part, to what Ovrutski brings to the table on the performance, composition, and arranging ends, a good deal of credit must also go to the top-shelf players that he brought in for the project. Da Fonseca and Alves, who also filled out the rhythm ranks on Sounds Of Brasil, are on the same wavelength with Ovrutski. All three are mutable musical personalities, strong yet flexible men who are capable of changing the current, going with the flow, or pushing back against it. Then there's trombonist, who brings a gorgeous round sound to bear when in the confines of a ballad and hits the ground running when dropped into pressure-cooker environs, and saxophonist, who alternately soothes and singes. Together, these five make for a dream quintet, agile yet grounded, muscular yet sensitive, and completely in step with one another in terms of sound and vision. The eight numbers on Intersection say all of that and more. The computer/internet age ushers in new ways of selling music. Record stores, flipping through bins of long playing albumslong gone. Compact discsnot selling like they used to. Digital downloadsthe thing of the future? Guitaristhas come up with the ideainfluenced by trumpeter' foray into this territory, perhaps, with his Three Views (Greenleaf, 2011)of releasing four digital EPs, "extended play" sets that clock in at about thirty minutes apiece, spreading those releases over the course of nine months, then collecting those digital releases and and offering them up as four physical EPs and selling the product as a reasonably-price box set.Lundbom and his main musical vehicle, Big Five Chord, begin this journey with the first of the four EPs, Make Magic Happen, one of the most adventurous, schizoid, raucous, rip-roaring rock/jazz/bass-and-drum-thumping/wild-men-at-the saxophones wailing/soaring guitar amalgams you'll hear in modern music. The twenty-eight minute set contain three tunestwo Lundbom originals and ancover.In a day of seventy-eight minute CD releases, a set just under a half an hour long is easily absorbable. As ragged and rough around the edges as this sound seems on first listen, there is an underlying tightness and continuity of vision that holds this set together. The two saxophonists,(aka Balto Exclamationpoint) andswing their respective axes with abandon. Bassistand drummerlay down deep, heavy-gravity grooves for guitarist Lundbom's unfettered, screaming guitar on the opener, "Ain't Cha."The group sounds something like a reincarnation of the Rockin' Rebels, on their 1963 Swan Records single, "Wild Weekend," squawking and honking saxophones pushing the surf rock sound into another dimension, the guitar freed of any family friendly, two and a half minute radio constraints, or any requirement to keep itself tethered to the Earth.A part of the appealing strangeness of Big Five Chord's sound come from Balto Exclamationpoint and his use of his creation, the balto! saxophonean alto sax fitted with a bari sax mouthpiece and a plastic reed. The music it makes is described, accurately, as a "goose strangling sound." And if that doesn't take things out to the edge enough, Murray (Balto Exclamationpoint) employs, on the closer, Ornette Coleman's "Law Years," a "thunder tube," a 7x2&1/2 tube with a drum head at one end attached to a 17" long spring. This tube is then inserted into the bell of a tenor saxophoneafter the trip to the Home Depot to buy the parts to construct this contraption, we can guess. It sounds like a saxophone made inexpertly out of galvanized steel. In a good way.Odd and innovative, and compelling. Music that hits you in the gut. Since 2004 when Ashley Wales and John Coxoncollectively known as Spring Heel Jack (SHJ)set up Treader records and released its first three CD's, the label has enjoyed a reputation for high quality music and distinctive packaging. Following Spring Heel Jack's switch from drum 'n' bass and jungle to free improvisation, they built up an impressive network of contacts with improvisers which they used to good effect with Treader. The label's roster reads like a Who's Who of improv: Evan Parker, John Tchicai, John Butcher, Alex Ward, Alan Wilkinson on reeds, Wadada Leo Smith on trumpet, Matthew Shipp and Pat Thomas on keyboards as well as a host of great drummersMark Sanders, Eddie Prevost, Han Bennink, Roger Turner, Tony Marsh, Steve Noble, Charles Hayward... plus Wales and Coxon themselves, of course.In addition, Frauke Stegmann's distinctive sleeve designs featuring metallic, embossed relief pictures of animals have given Treader a signature look that must be the envy of many larger labels. Quite simply, it is impossible to mistake a Treader CD for anything else. The label releases its CD's in batches of three, with the batch considered below being the seventh, thus bringing the number of Treader releases to twenty-one in its first decade. The average of two releases per year is indicative of the high level of quality control the label operates; they do not put CD's out just for the sake of it!The label's last batch of three CD's was the only one so far with a common theme and shared personnel, but the latest batch has reverted to type with three very different discs, although each of them stems from a landmark gig. Otherwise, the only things they have in common are their sleeve designer and the quality of their music...Spring Heel Jack with Pat Thomas/Alex Ward/Paul LyttonLive in AntwerpTreader2014This release is a surprise because it is the first time that Treader has released a Spring Heel Jack CD. It is very welcome as SHJ's last CD release was Songs & Themes (Thirsty Ear, 2008), which was studio-recorded in 2007. Now, Live in Antwerp is publicised by Treader as being a recording of "Spring Heel Jack's penultimate live concert." It was recorded at the WIM Free Music Festival, Antwerp, on September 23rd 2007. For the occasion, Wales and Coxon were joined by the stellar team of Pat Thomas on piano and electronics, Alex Ward on clarinet and Paul Lytton on drums. The album consists of one fifty-minute track, presumably the entire set from the gig. The quintet is in fine form, producing a textbook example of the music that made SHJ a valuable addition to the improv scene.As so often, SHJ focus their efforts on creating and maintaining an environment in which the other musicians can stretch out and shine. Coxon's guitar and Wales's sound samples do this simply but effectively and, sure enough, it works, with the players soon settling into a loose, easy-going dialogue to which all five contribute. Given that, it hardly seems right to single anyone out, but special mention must go to Ward who is a prominent focus for much of the time, varying his playing sufficiently for it to remain fresh and enthralling. SHJ throw in just enough unpredictable or unidentifiable sounds to keep the soundscape interesting for listeners and musicians alike, ensuring that it never becomes too cosy or easy for anyone. If it transpires that this is the last release by Spring Heel Jack, they will have gone out on a high. As so often, SHJ are impossible to ignore!fORCH / FURTspukhafte FernwirkungTreader2014Since the mid-90's, the duo of electronicists Paul Obermayer and Richard Barretttogether known as Furthas built up a formidable reputation through CD releases and energetic live performances. Not as long-established, but just as impressive in its own way, is the expanded ensemble which goes by the title fORCH; alongside Obermayer and Barrett this adds saxophonist John Butcher, Canadian clarinetist Lori Freeman, vocalists Phil Minton and Ute Wasserman, harpist Rhodri Davies and drummer Paul Lovensa mouth-watering list on paper, but better in practice!spukhafte Fernwirkung is a fascinating document that contains two closely connected tracks. The title track was recorded live in concert at Donauesechinger Musiktage, in October 2012, as part of the Donauesechinger Festival. Improvising octets can sometimes become cluttered or degenerate into chatter, so it is good news that, in that concert, fORCH performed a "piece for improvisers" by Furt that consisted of "a structure based on time-proportions, which evolves from juxtaposed duos through overlapping trios to alternating quartets." Sure enough, the organisation provided by such a structure averts any potential problems and brings the best out of the musicians, allowing them to interact creatively without strait-jacketing them. Throughout the piece there are too many outstanding passages to arbitrarily single out any one of them for particular praise. Everybody shines! The track's forty-one minutes fly by.Now things get more complicated... Following that fORCH concert, Obermayer and Barrett used recordings from it, alongside their own live electronics, in a piece entitled "Hmyz," prepared specially for the occasion and recorded on the day following the fORCH concert. But we do not get to hear that version, as the version of "Hmyz" included here was recorded the day before the fORCH concert (presumably using studio-recorded music by fORCH). Nonetheless, the contrast between the two tracks is still striking, and the juxtaposition of the two enhances appreciation of Furt's artistry as we get to hear the raw material they used in the construction of the second piece. Very impressive.Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith / John TilburyBishopsgate ConcertTreader2014As its title suggests, this CD is a live recording of the one-off duo concert that trumpeter Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith and pianist John Tilbury played as part of the 2012 London Jazz Festival, at the Bishopsgate Institute in the City of London, on Wednesday 14th November. That gig caused quite a stir in the capital, with tickets heavily in demand beforehandbut only available on the doorand the event itself being much discussed afterwards. Although Smith and Tilbury are both first-rate improvisers, coming from different traditionsTilbury classically trained, Smith from free jazzthey were not an obviously compatible pairing. As if in recognition of this, the concert began with solo sets from Smith and from Tilbury before the two a duo set concluded the evening.This album includes all the music played on the night. It opens with Tilbury's seventeen-minute set in which he employed two pianos, one prepared, the other not. His timing, note selection, use of silences and preparations all contribute to a typically tasteful and gripping performance, one which is more akin to his performances of Feldman than to jazz piano. The transition from the restraint of Tilbury's solo set to Smith's opening salvo of solo trumpet highlights the contrast between them. However, Smith then moves on to another solo in which his Harmon-muted horn is more mellow, one which recalls his fine playing in the group Yo Miles with Henry Kaiser.In the concluding thirty-two-minute duo (seen in the YouTube clip, below) despite occupying opposite sides of the stage, the two musicians achieved a rapport, successfully bridging the gap between them and achieving a sympathetic balance.Credit for this goes equally to both of them, as neither dominates and, to accommodate the other, each of them subtly alters their playing from their solo set. Full of drama, the end result is an engaging object lesson in improvisation from two masters of the art.Going into its second decade, Treader is in excellent shape.Tracks and PersonnelLive in AntwerpTracks: SHJ Live in Antwerp.Personnel: Pat Thomas: piano, electronics; Alex Ward: clarinet; Paul Lytton: drums; Ashley Wales: electronics, samples; John Coxon: electric guitar.spukhafte FernwirkungTracks: spukhafte Fernwirkung; Hmyz.Personnel: Richard Barrett: electronics; Paul Obermayer: electronics; Phil Minton: vocals (1); Ute Wasserman: vocals (1); Lori Freedman: clarinets (1); John Butcher: saxophones (1); Rhodri Davies: harps (1); Paul Lovens: percussion (1).Bishopsgate ConcertTracks: JT Solo; IWLS Solo 1; IWLS Solo 2; IWLS Solo 3; Bishopsgate Duo.Personnel: Ishmael Wadada Leo Smith: trumpet, Zurna (2-5); John Tilbury: piano, prepared piano, bird whistle (1, 5). UF engineering students will bring clean water to a secondary school in Nepal this May. UFs Engineers Without Borders will take about seven students to Khanalthok, Nepal, to build a hand-washing station and implement a hygiene education program in the secondary school, said Taylor Chaisson, the Nepal project leader. The only source of drinking water is from a tap that is 45 minutes away from the school, said Matthew Burke, a 22-year-old UF environmental engineering senior. The water shows high counts of coliform bacteria, which could make students sick, he said. Our hope is to provide these kids with clean water so they will go to school and stay in school, Burke said. Mackenzie Shepherd, a UF biological engineering junior, said the team will install a first-flush system to create clean water. When it rains, this device will collect all the contaminants, such as animal feces and leaves, found in water from the roof. Once collected, the clean rain water will flow through the pipes and into the tank, the 20-year-old said. The team will then build a hand-washing station that is connected to the clean water tank, Chaisson said. This system will allow the team to teach the community proper hand-washing techniques that are instrumental for their health, the 20-year-old said. With their regularity of diarrhea, they dont understand that washing their hands will help them not be sick all of the time, Chaisson said. They hope to implement the water sanitation and hygiene education program, WASH, through games, Burke said. One of our main goals is to implement an education program that will last in the long term, Chaisson said. We hope to improve their health as a result of us going. UFs Engineers Without Borders has traveled to Nepal twice before, Chaisson said. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now On the first trip, the team asked the villagers questions about their conditions, families and health. From their questions, they realized the lack of clean water was a major issue. They took water samples and found it was contaminated, she said. All of their water is filled with E.coli-related bacteria, except for the rain water, she said. After finding this information, the organization decided to focus its project on clean water for the school, Chaisson said. Courtesy to The Alligator UFs Engineers without Borders collect water samples for testing in Nepal during their 2014 trip. On their second trip, the team members measured gutters and buildings and performed site assessments for the water-safety devices they will implement, she said. Chaisson said this experience allows engineers to get firsthand experience before graduation while experiencing a new culture. None of us spoke the same language, she said. But it was amazing to be able to communicate through acts of kindness. UFs Engineers without Borders install a new water pump in Nepal during their 2014 trip. This year, the a team of about seven students will return to Nepal to build a hand-washing stations and teach hygiene programs at the local schools. Before Valentines Day, UF students can learn about consent. UFs Sexual Trauma/Interpersonal Violence Education, or STRIVE, will host its third annual Cupids Consent Week starting Friday. The group is hosting three main events to discuss giving and receiving sexual consent, Rita Lawrence, the adviser for STRIVE UF, said. She said the country is changing from a no means no attitude to a yes means yes perspective. Overall, society is promoting that sex is voluntary. Lawrence said one of the goals of the week is to clear up some misconceptions regarding sexual consent. She said some may not know that those who are drunk cannot give consent. She said the understanding of sexual consent has gained national attention. We are in the midst of culture change, Lawrence said. Lawrence said almost no attention has been paid to men as sexual assault victims, in addition to women. Almost all sexual assaults occur with a person the victim knows, not with strangers. People dont really realize its happening, Megan Ingram, a UF telecommunication freshman, said. A panel discussion will be held in the atrium of Ustler Hall to discuss sexual consent. The panelists will be graduate students, and the event is partnering with UFs LGBT Student Affairs, Lawrence said. Ingram, 18, said she hopes panelists bring in facts and numbers regarding sexual assault to emphasize how big the problem is. The sexual consent fair will offer activities regarding sexual consent, Lawrence said. Michael Hedrich, a UF materials science and engineering freshman, said he hopes some of the activities address self-control and how alcohol affects decisions. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now Consent is really the only thing that matters, Hedrich, 19, said. If students complete at least six events, they can receive special prizes, such as shirts or umbrellas, Lawrence said. We want to make sex fun for everyone, she said. About 15 Alachua County residents met at Hawthorne Middle and High School on Tuesday night to answer one question: What needs improvement in Alachua County schools? Southern Legal Counsel hosted the meeting, and the next discussion is scheduled for Tuesday at Buchholz High School. For reasons discussed at the meeting, SLC is going to trial for a lawsuit against the Florida State Board of Education on March 14. Dan Boyd, a former Alachua County superintendent, said Florida provides $2,000 less per student than the average state. The Florida Legislature mandates certain class sizes, computers for testing, school security, end-of-year exams and online classes, Boyd said. However, the state fails to fund its mandates, he said. The requirements, coupled with a lack of funding, make it hard for students to meet the 24-credit-hour high school requirements and still participate in electives and extracurricular activities, Boyd said. He said legislatures take money from lobbyists and pass laws without proper funding. I hope that we can prevail in this, he said, referring to the SLC lawsuit. It is something that can be done to help save public education, the route were taking now is absolute destruction. Libby Hartwell, the principal of Hawthorne Middle and High School, said scarce resources are putting students education at risk. Right now we are stretching as thin as we can, she said. Erin Scarborough, the president of the J.J. Finley Elementary School PTA, said the SLC lawsuit gives her and other like-minded people a voice. This wont be the end, this is only the beginning, she said. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now Several days ago, a column published in this paper accused those who support Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., for the Democratic nomination of being lazy and cowardly. Now, being a Sanders supporter there goes my shot at ever being a public servant sure, I do not necessarily see myself as brave. I get scared of simple things, like heights, clowns and people with two first names, like Taylor Scott, Jennifer Lawrence or Zachary Lee. But cowardly? Ill have you know I once had a bowl of nails for breakfast. Without any milk. As for the laziness? Perhaps accusations of this nature like accusing me of writing this article in my underpants on my couch while inebriated are not entirely unfounded. But cowardly is not the right word. Surely a word like cowardly would be relegated to accusations that dont talk about issues or policies, but rather, blatantly incorrect concepts like feasibility. Such accusations are as misguided as they are cowardly, because they sidestep substantive discussion on controversial issues. Moreover, such accusations remind me of those lobbed at socialist President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, who did such a terrible job in office that Congress had to enact term limits after he had been re-elected four times by the American people. So when I read things like this, honestly, very articulate and comprehensive column that accuses Sen. Sanders and his politics of lacking feasibility and or practical knowledge, I cant help but cringe. In terms of feasibility, Im confident when I say Sanders has learned something about legislative compromise in his combined 25 years in Congress 16 years as a House representative, nine as a senator. Hes actually been nicknamed the Amendment King by peers because of his willingness to negotiate with those on the other side of the aisle. These conservatives, mind you, range from the ideological extremes like Jim Inhofe, to truly honorable individuals like John McCain. With regards to critiques on his foreign policy experience, or lack thereof, Sanders has continually demonstrated competency. In 2003, the senator openly criticized launching Operation Enduring Freedom the fancy way of saying the Iraq War since America has not officially declared a war since World War II. Had the United States not engaged in Operation Enduring Freedom, it is frighteningly safe to say ISIS would not exist, and UF students would not be embarrassed explaining what the Integrated Student Information System is to family and friends. Seriously, Jewish parents of mine, Im switching out of a class, nothing more. But not everything in that column was claimed undeservedly. At one point, the columnist wrote, supporters of Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., annoy the hell out of me, and honestly, I kind of agree with this sentiment. Im often embarrassed by fellow Bernie supporters, the same way I imagine vegans and people who do CrossFit are annoyed by members of their community who come across as rude, obnoxious and oftentimes condescending. Im also irritated by people who have made his campaign their latest trend, like Beanie Babies or kale. However, there is nothing cowardly about backing the candidate with more formal political experience than Secretary Hillary Clinton, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, or Asshole Trump. There is nothing cowardly about supporting the only candidate with a police record granted, he was arrested for resisting arrest during a demonstration against segregation, which isnt nearly as cool as freeing Pussy Riot. There is nothing cowardly about voting for the man whose constituency wanted him to represent them for 25 straight years, and is now overwhelmingly backing him for the Oval Office. But Ill give it to you, maam. Youre absolutely right that there is nothing brave in electing the man who is qualified, experienced, sensible, aware and, most importantly, unaffected. Zachary Lee is a UF philosophy junior. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now In honor of Black History Month, the Matheson History Museum will debut a new exhibition to the public Tuesday. The museum will examine the hidden histories of sites on the Florida Black Heritage Trail in and around Alachua County. The free exhibition, titled Long Road to Freedom: The Florida Black Heritage Trail, will examine some of the historic landmarks commissioned for preservation in Florida, said Rebecca Fitsimmons, a Matheson curator and archivist. The museum exhibit will be accompanied by visiting guest speakers throughout February and March. Fitsimmons said she believes the exhibition will be meaningful for the public. Its a wonderful opportunity to explain a lot of the complexities related to quite a long span of history within this state, she said. My hope is that people will come in and become interested and inspired to maybe learn on their own about some element that they found intriguing or peaked their curiosity. Fitsimmons said she has put together an exhibit including powerful images, documents and photographs, as well as interactive voice recordings. Peggy Macdonald, the executive director at the Matheson, said the exhibition would revolve around landmarks both marked and unmarked. On the Florida Black Heritage Trail, there are physical buildings that still exist like the Cotton Club, and thatll be part of our exhibition, but there are other landmarks that have gone, such as the Union Academy, which was the Freedmens Union school that was built here after the Civil War in Gainesville, Macdonald said. Although the Union Academy building is no longer there, the site is important, and theres no historical marker. Macdonald said the museum hopes the exhibition will lead to a community partnership to create a historical marker at Union Academy. The first event planned at the Matheson for the exhibition will be today at 6 p.m. It will be a panel presentation on Rosewood, a part of Florida in Levy County that was home to a racial riot and atrocity in January 1923. Three Rosewood history experts Gary Moore, David Colburn and Sherry DuPree will present on the hidden history of the Rosewood area. Gary Moore, a journalist and the author of the new book, Rosewood: The Full Story, will be the highlighted speaker of the event and will participate in a book signing, Macdonald said. Moore was the first reporter to unearth the story of Rosewood in 1982. The Rosewood atrocity resulted in the deaths of six individuals and the destruction of a community. The focus of his work is deciphering what really did happen at Rosewood, Macdonald said. He is also trying to preserve evidence of the Rosewood atrocity through his book and otherwise. Its important work that needs to be done. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now The darker history of Rosewood, as well as the history of the Newberry Six a case in which six individuals were brutally lynched in 1916 are two tragic pieces of Florida history that the Matheson will examine as part of the exhibition, Macdonald said. We want to examine even the more uncomfortable parts of history so that we can learn from them and question where we are today, how far weve come and how far we have to go, Macdonald said. Rhinos, religion and gold rushes are just a few of the film topics at the Seventh Annual Cinema Verde International Environmental Film and Arts Festival. The four-day event will run from Feb. 11 to Feb. 14 and feature screenings, live music and art. Film screenings will take place at the Hippodrome State Theatre, Sababa and Omis Playa Azul. The fair will be held Sunday on the Sun Center Plaza. Trish Riley, the festivals director and an environmental journalist, said the fair will include music, vendors and artists painting live for an auction at the end of the festival. Ticket prices include $25 for a day pass and $10 for one film, but that pass will also include several films with shorter time lengths, she said. On Sunday, the festival will sell armbands for $10, which will give attendees deals on passion fruit mojitos and food at the two restaurants showing films. Riley said she co-founded the event to bring interesting environmental films to the Gainesville community, and this years festival includes films ranging from fun to informative. Z Nail Gang is a film that details the events of a town rising up against a corporate mining giant and will be shown Feb. 12, according to the festivals event page. Kaziranga, another film that will be shown Feb. 12, depicts the battle between poachers and conservationists over endangered Indian rhinos. Some of the festivals film directors are set to attend the event, including Elam Stoltzfus, the director of Coastal Dune Lakes: Jewels of Floridas Emerald Coast. The film shows what Floridian organizations are doing to save the endangered wildlife and will be shown Feb. 11, according to the event page. The showing will include an informal discussion after each film, Riley said. Im sharing this information because Ive dedicated 20 years to learning about it, she said. And I know how important it is. Riley said religious organizations tend to veer to the political Right when it comes to the environment. However, in recent years, these groups have become more aware of environmental issues. Sam Kauffmann, a director and Boston University professor of film and television, said he hopes his film shows a change in thinking within conservative groups. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now The film Evangelicals For Climate Action follows three evangelicals committed to the environment, including a student, reverend and college professor, he said. It gives one hope that we really can tackle this problem, Kauffmann said. The film will be screened Feb. 14, along with other international films from places such as Japan, Africa, Iran and Germany, according to the festivals event page. Will Vaughn, 29, will be one of the artists painting Sunday for the auction at the end of the festival. He said his art is based in nature and impressionistic in style, and he aims to share what he feels when he interacts with nature. The goal is to be able to take that feeling of connectedness and put it on the canvas, he said. Riley said she welcomes everyone from the educational and environmental communities to attend. She said she hopes people who do not rate the environment as a top priority will come to see what the festival is about. We are just trying to bring people together so that change can move forward, she said. If you've ever been told you have resting bitch face, here's some good news: Scientists just discovered that it's a very real thing and that those who look generally discontent have more emotions than those who, well, don't suffer from RBF. Weird, right? Here's a breakdown: CNN reports that scientists at Noldus Information Technologya company that developed software that conducts observational and behavioral researchused said software's FaceReader technology to analyze the resting bitch faces of celebs like Kanye West, Kristen Stewart, and Anna Kendrick. The software works by determining the percentage of underlying emotions it's picking up from the face. On average, a facial expression is 97 percent neutral, with 3 percent of underlying emotions. But according to the software, someone with RBF expresses upwards of 6 percent of underlying emotions, ranging from sadness to happiness to anger. The most common emotion read? Contempt. Yikes. So, does that mean if you have resting bitch face you're constantly hating everyone around you? Not necessarily. Macbeth tells CNN that cultural and gender bias could be playing a role: "Eastern European people are seen as very stoic and not showing a lot of emotion, and a lot of the people touted as having RBF are women," she says. CNN also spoke to Anthony S. Youn, a plastic surgeon in Detroit, who says he has RBF. "I don't think [the software] can tell if it's true sadness or bitterness," he says. "I have it, but it doesn't mean I am in a bad mood." Instead, Youn says resting bitch face is probably caused by aging and the effects of gravity pulling our faces down into a permanent frown. Not sure if you have RBF? Share your photo with Noldus to find out. Things People Who Hate Mornings Experience Every Day: The concession company VEPL (Vindhyachal Expressway Private Limited) has awarded the contract for the operation and maintenance of the National Highway 7 to Egis for three years. The National Highway 7 (NH-7) is a 73 km toll motorway connecting main city of Rewa and Hanumana (in Rewa district on border of the states of Madhya Pradesh & Uttar Pradesh) of the Indian federal state of Madhya Pradesh. Egis is in charge of toll collection, route patrolling and incident management and routine maintenance of a section of the stretch (40 km) with one toll plaza of 6 lanes. Since more than 20 years, Egis has been involved in many projects to upgrade and develop the entire road infrastructure of the country, by intervening in transport fields (air, rail, road, sea), construction, urban development, water or environment. In road operation, in addition to the National Highway 7, Egis is in charge of the operation and maintenance of four other motorways: the National Highway 47 in Kerala (64 km), the National Highway 93 in Uttar Pradesh (82 km), the National Highway 8D in Gujarat (124 km) and the State Highway 01 in Telengana (72 km). This new operating contract strengthens the position of Egis to contribute to the sustainable economic and social development of India. World leader in motorway and toll operation, Egis operates more than 2400 km of motorways around the world, with 39 km of tunnels used daily by 1 200 000 vehicles. Egis also implements and operates the most modern 100% electronic toll collection solutions: toll systems, congestion charging, national per-kilometre charging, interoperability solutions, etc. (Issued as received) United Nations human rights expert Juan E. Mendez today called on the Mauritanian authorities to put into practice the existing laws and safeguards for the protection from torture and ill-treatment for all suspects and detainees in Mauritania. The legal safeguards against torture and ill-treatment are in place, but they dont work, []http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Appa-sourceTheAfric... James Duddridge, Minister for Africa, said of the recent violence: I condemn the latest brutal attacks on innocent civilians in Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon. Our thoughts are with the families of those who lost their lives and all who were affected by terrorist action. The UK stands with the governments in the Lake Chad region []Source : http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Appa-sourceTheAfric... AR's Editor Joe Shea Talks About Elections On Iranian TV Bear Stearns Saved By Fed As Lehman Bros. Falters; Major Bank Failure Looms Over Wall Street, Sends Markets Into 200-Pt. Dive Lie Upon Lie Five Years Into the Iraq War The Administration Still Churns Out Lies by Randolph Holhut A Small Tragedy Even at 90, As Friends Turn Cool She Knows the Show Must Go On by Joyce Marcel I'll Take Me Imagine John Wayne or Arnold In Heels, Silk and a Girdle by Elizabeth Andrews Sen. Nelson Calls For New Fla. Primary; Gov Crist Backs 'Do-Over' Who'll Win? Ask Spock Spock.com Engine Predicts Winners By Site Searches; It Can be Wrong by Jay Bhatti Chatting Up The Cat God Gave Me Dominion Over Him But I Think He's a Non-Believer by Constance Daley Death of a Thug The Life and Horrors of Suharto by Andreas Harsono ___________________________ This Just In Sierra Club: McCain Ducked All 15 Key Votes On Green Laws (AR) A Work By AR's T.S. Kerrigan Is Chosen As 'Best Poem' By Wordpress Site Murder At Mile 63 The Deadly Assault and Bush Administration Cover-Up by S. Eben Kirkesby and Andreas Harsono 5427 14th St. West, Bradenton, FL 34207 $6.99 Fish Fridays! Manatee Co.'s Only 24-Hr. FREE Wi-Fi Paid Advertisement On Native Ground AFTER 5 YEARS, WE'RE STILL LIED TO ABOUT IRAQ by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- Next week is the fifth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq. And it is likely that sometime in the next couple of weeks, the 4,000th American soldier will die in Iraq. [MORE] Momentum OFF TO SEE THE WIZARD by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt. - It's 1931, and a 14-year-old girl is standing alone on a stage. She's small and lively with dark curly hair, widespread hazel eyes, slender wrists and an open, eager face filled with the wonder of performing. Her name is Rose, and one day she will be my mother. But now she is performing an Eugene O'Neill monologue called "Before Breakfast" for a ladies' club in a wealthy suburb of Long Island. [MORE] One Woman's World COMFORTABLE WITH MYSELF by Elizabeth T. Andrews CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- I'm not sure but I think I may be socially incorrect. [MORE] On Native Ground ENOUGH FOR A WAR, NOT FOR A PEOPLE by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- Last week, the National Governors Assn. met in Washington, D.C. One of the tasks the NGA had on its agenda was to ask President Bush to increase federal spending on roads, bridges and other public works projects as a way to stimulate the economy. He rejected their pleas out of hand, claiming that infrastructure projects wouldn't offer any short-term economic boost. [MORE] Brasch Words BEWARE THE SELF-REVERENTIAL PRESS by Walter Brasch BLOOMSBURG, Pa. -- Shortly before the primary votes this past week, Newsweek's Jonathan Alter called Sen. Barack Obama's surge to the Democratic nomination "inevitable." It also called for Hillary Clinton to "start her campaign for Senate majority leader." [MORE] Constance A CONVERSATION WITH MY CAT Constance Daley ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. -- Normally, when the cat starts his evening rant of meowing continuously until he makes his point, I just take it as long as I can, pick him up, and put him in the garage for the night. He doesn't want to go, but the meowing stops and I don't care if he likes it or not. [MORE] Momentum OUT OF STRUGGLE, ART by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- Here we are again at the crossroads of art and social change, having the opportunity to watch good and great films about the lives of women in support of the Women's Crisis Center. [MORE] Campaign 2008 HOW TO PREDICT SUPER TUESDAY II WINNERS? ONLINE SEARCH by Jay Bhatti NEW YORK, March 4, 2008, 7:00PM ET -- With the outcomes of the Texas, Vermont, Ohio and Rhode Island primaries to be decided tonight, how possible is it that online searching can predict who will win tonight's primaries? [MORE] One Woman's World DON'T VOTE; IT ENCOURAGES THEM by Elizabeth T. Andrews CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- Call me angry and disgusted but don't call me un-American because I won't be voting come November. [MORE] On Native Ground BUSH AND THE KEYBOARD COMMANDOS by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- As the days tick down toward the eventual departure of President George W. Bush from the White House, it's a hopeful sign that most Americans are no longer moved by his Administration's constant exploitation of terrorism for political gain. [MORE] Momentum WHICH AMERICA DO YOU LIVE IN? by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- It's a little confusing. [MORE] Make My Dat THE LAWYER THAT ATE NEW YORK by Erik Deckers INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- I used to know a guy who, quite literally, didn't get hyperbole. He didn't understand exaggeration. As a result, he missed most jokes that came his way. [MORE] On Native Ground FIDEL RETIRES: NOW THE COLD WAR IS REALLY OVER by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- Maybe now, we can finally say the Cold War is over. [MORE] Make My Dat THE LAWYER THAT ATE NEW YORK by Erik Deckers INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- I used to know a guy who, quite literally, didn't get hyperbole. He didn't understand exaggeration. As a result, he missed most jokes that came his way. [MORE] One Woman's World POLITICS IS NO PARTY by Elizabeth T. Andrews CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- Are you having a hard time focusing your eyes? Do you have faint red spots all over your body? Is there a ringing in your ears and do you see wavy lines when you look at your television set? Do your hands shake when you try to hold a cup of coffee? And have you recently been forgetting what day of the week it is - or what year? [MORE] Make My Day FOR BETTER OR WORSE ... A LOT WORSE by Erik Deckers INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- "Marriage: It's Only Going to Get Worse." [MORE] Constance YOU CALL THESE RIGHTS? by Constance Daley ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. -- When you express an opinion you hope to persuade others to your point of view. It doesn't always happen but still, opinion writers try. [MORE] Momentum THE BRIDGE WOMAN by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt. - Out there in America - yes, still - is a generation of women who were born in the 1940s, raised in the 1950s, and who came to radical consciousness in the late 1960s and early 1970s. I am one of them. Hillary Clinton is one of them. [MORE] On Native Ground OBAMA AND MY GENERATION by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- I originally planned on voting for Dennis Kucinich in the Vermont Primary on March 4. [MORE] The Willies: WARNING: THIS MEDICATION MAY MURDER YOUR FRIENDS by Joe Shea BRADENTON, Fla. -- You've heard the warnings, haven't you? Stop Prozac and you may take a shotgun, an Uzi or an AK-47 and mow down your family and friends, or even a whole classroom full of your fellow students. You didn't? Well, that warning is not on the bottle, but like countless mass-murder incidents before it, Friday's shootings at Northern Illinois University, as well as the Virginia Tech shootings that killed 32 last year, was probably precipitated by the effect of stopping medications that suppress anger and other powerful emotions but do not relieve the underlying cause. Isn't it time we started warning people - or stopped prescribing these medicines? [MORE] One Woman's World DON'T KNOCK ON MY DOOR by Elizabeth T. Andrews CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- I wish I could feel delight in my poet's mansion being like Grand Central Station all the time, but I can't. And I wish my place was such a place that someone would one day write: "Her door was always open and she always made you feel all fuzzy and warm in her presence. She could make a cup of coffee seem like a banquet." [MORE] Reporting: Panama PANAMA'S VIOLENT LABOR UNREST INTENSIFIES Mark Scheinbaum PANAMA CITY, Panama, Feb, 15, 2008 -- After just one day of relative calm, wildcat construction strikes by some members of Panama's largest union flared up again Friday morning, four days after a police sniper shot one worker. More than 140 demonstrators have been injured and at least 500 arrested, authorities say. [MORE] Brasch Words TO STIMULATE ECONOMY, BUY A CHINESE-MADE U.S. FLAG by Walter Brasch BLOOMSBURG, Pa. -- Walking down Main Street, pushing a grocery cart loaded with clothes, toys, and appliances was Marshbaum. Fastened to the right front corner of the cart was an American flag tied onto a three-foot ruler. [MORE] Make My Day THE TOOTH, AND NOTHING BUT THE TOOTH by Erik Deckers INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- To commemorate the death of noted shark exploder Roy Scheider, and the "Jaws" movies that resulted in Erik never setting foot in the ocean again, we are reprinting this column from 2003. Shark Experts 0, Sharks 1 [MORE] Momentum THE WINTER OF MY DISCONTENT by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt. - As I write this, it's raining ice. Maybe a half a foot of snow and ice has already landed up here in the woods of Dummerston. Our cars are encased in it, and the door to the house is blocked. The satellite dish that brings in our Internet service quit about 20 minutes ago - frozen solid. [MORE] The Willies AMERICA TO HILLARY: GET OUT! by Joe Shea BRADENTON, Fla., Feb. 13, 2008 -- Sen. Hillary Clinton has adopted the Rudy Giuliani strategy, and it's working - for Sen. Barack Obama. It turns out to be the strategy all Democrats are seeking - an exit strategy. But it's not for Iraq. It's for her exit from the race for the 2008 Democratic Presidential nomination. [MORE] Constance CONFESSIONS OF A DISAPPOINTED VOTER by Constance Daley ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. -- A week ago at just about this time, I completed an article and was about to submit it as scheduled to The American Reporter. I was feeling rather elated, ready to show up on Super Tuesday morning, firmly touch the X next to Rudy Giuliani's name and get on with my day. He was my choice; he would get my vote. [MORE] Reporting: Florida SIERRA CLUB SET TO SUSPEND FLA. CHAPTER by Joe Shea BRADENTON, Fla., Feb. 10, 2008 -- The national Sierra Club is set to suspend its Florida chapter after years of divisive infighting, the president of the national club told Florida members in a letter delivered to some this weekend. It is the first time in its 116-year history that such a step has been considered by the club, according to news reports. [MORE] One Woman's World PLANT A NEW WORLD THIS SPRING by Elizabeth T. Andrews CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- For a little while, the men will just have to toss and turn in their fear-free-women beds. For a small space of time Hillary Clinton will just have to trudge on toward the White House without my faint applause in the background. [MORE] On Native Ground VERMONT AND THE 5 STAGES OF CONSERVATIVE GRIEF by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- First, Vermont tried to convince the nation to impeach President Bush and Vice President Cheney. [MORE] Make My Day REBEL WITHOUT A TONGUE by Erik Deckers INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- Kids' brains work in amazing ways. At times, they can grasp complex concepts and make impressive discoveries. Other times, you have to wonder how we ever survived as a species. [MORE] The Willies FOR DEMOCRATS, NOW IT'S ABOUT RACE, INCOME AND GENDER by Joe Shea BRADENTON, Feb. 6, 2008 -- It's not a good time to be a Democrat. As the Super Tuesday results demonstrated, the presidential race between Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton has divided the partly along clear racial, income and gender lines - the very distinctions the party has sought to erase in principle but has emphasized in its pursuit of diversity. [MORE] Momentum SUPER TUESDAY BLUES by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt. -- Super Tuesday has come and gone and I still can't get excited about the upcoming presidential elections. [MORE] The Willies ON THE BRINK OF HISTORY, YOUR PUSH IS NEEDED by Joe Shea BRADENTON, Fla., Feb. 5. 2008 -- I'm expecting a sea change tonight. I believe that for the first time in this nation's history we will once and forever banish racism as the deciding factor in the destiny of African-Americans, and indeed adopt diversity as our path to the future. [MORE] Campaign 2008 AT 88, EVERY VOTE REALLY COUNTS by Ted Manna DENVER, Feb. 5, 2008 -- Pearl Turner will caucus for Mitt Romney tonight in Denver. [MORE] One Woman's World STAND BY YOUR WOMAN by Elizabeth T. Andrews CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- The black vote. The gay vote. The fundamentalist vote. The Hispanic vote. [MORE] An AR Special SUSPECTS IN BENAZIR ASSASSINATION HAVE TIES TO MUSHARRAF by Ahmar Mustikhan WASHINGTON, D.C. -- When Gordon Brown this past Monday feted coup-leader-turned-President Pervez Musharraf at 10 Downing Street, Britain's new prime minister probably didn't ask the Pakistani dictator a question that is now on many minds: Did you order the murder of Benazir Bhutto? [MORE] Momentum TO THE VERMONT DELEGATION: WHAT HAVE YOU DONE FOR US LATELY? by Joyce Marcel DUMMERSTON, Vt. Back when President George W. Bush and Dick Vice President Dick Cheney were building up to their loathsome war in Iraq, very few people were brave enough to call the bullies' bluff. [MORE] On Native Ground IF BUSH HAS HIS WAY, WE'LL NEVER LEAVE IRAQ by Randolph T. Holhut DUMMERSTON, Vt. - In his final State of the Union address on Jan. 28, President Bush cautioned against accelerating U.S. troop withdrawals from Iraq, saying that it would endanger the process that has been made over the past year. [MORE] Campaign 2008 CLASH OF COMMENTS AND PROTESTORS AT CLINTON, OBAMA RALLIES IN DENVER by Ted Manna DENVER, Feb. 1, 2008 -- At least four presidential campaigns of both partiers rolled into in Denver this week ahead of the Feb. 5 "Super Tuesday" primaries in 22 states, but it was the Democratic presidential contenders who drew the big crowds and duked it out Wednesday. If sheer numbers are any indication, Sen. Barack Obama - preceded by a buoyant and beautiful Caroline Kennedy - won the round handily. He is the overwhelming favorite to win the Colorado primary next Tuesday. [MORE] The Willies WHY THE FLORIDA PRIMARY STINKS by Joe Shea BRADENTON, Fla., Jan. 30, 2008 -- I was with my wife and daughter driving the back way from Miami home to Bradenton when we stopped at a McDonald's in Clewiston, the only big town along the vast shore of Lake Okeechobee, the state's precious freshwater reservoir. The McDonald's had three televisions at a central seating area, each tuned to a different network, and our table was in front of CNN as the very first election results started to pour in around 7:30PM. With them, almost as counterpoint, suddenly came such an overwhelming odor of cow plop that my wife started to throw up as we all ran to the parking lot. [MORE] Passings: Suharto DEATH OF A KEMUSU THUG by Andreas Harsono JAKARTA - A few minutes after hearing that former president Suharto had died in his hospital bed, Marco, a militia leader in downtown Jakarta, raced to Suhartos house, wearing his jungle camouflage and began guarding the Suhartos residence on Cendana Street. [MORE] Constance I REMEMBER YOU by Constance Daley ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga.. -- It seems to be more often lately that the sentiment is spoken but it's always been out there: "You never get over the death of your child." This is true. But the heartfelt expressions come from some who cannot fathom the notion of losing a child; their own child is who is in their mind, not another mother's child. [MORE] In 1855, Karl Benz combined his profession of manufacturing internal combustion engines with his hobby of designing carriages to produce the first autonomously powered mobile carriage the automobile. Benz introduced an engine as a solution to a specific engineering problem: to make a carriage move quickly without a horse. The engine supplanted the horse; it did not make horses faster. In 2008, a similar engineering problem was solved by Satoshi Nakamoto. He combined cryptography and peer-to-peer networks to produce bitcoin, the first fully electronic cash. Nakamoto introduced the bitcoin blockchain as a solution to a specific engineering problem: to move money online in the same way cash is transacted in person without a trusted third party. So despite banks' attempts to test and use blockchain technology for their own commercial gain, it is outside the realm of possibility for the technology to serve any useful purpose for the intermediaries it was designed to replace. That is akin to burdening horses with engines in the name of technological innovation: the approach would only slow down the horse and alleviate none of its problems. Such a ridiculous notion will find no real world demand. When two parties transact with bitcoin, the transaction is broadcast to all network computers that expend significant processing power to verify all transactions and to verify each other's verification. This highly complex iterative process lets the network achieve consensus on one unalterable record of transactions that are inscribed in a chain of blocks. It also rewards members with new bitcoins that are roughly in proportion to the processing power they spend. This approach is computationally intensive and an expensive method for verifying transactions. That explains why the network's processing power today has exceeded 1 Exahash per second dwarfing the world's largest supercomputers and also why it consumes enormous amounts of electricity. There are many easier and less cumbersome ways of recording transactions, but this is the only method that eliminates the need for a trusted third party. A transaction is committed to the blockchain because many verifiers compete to verify it for profit. Yet not one of them is relied upon or trusted for the transaction to go through. Rather, fraud is immediately detected and reversed by other network members who have strong incentives to ensure the integrity of the network. In other words, bitcoin is a system built entirely on cumbersome and expensive verification so it can eliminate the need for any trust or accountability between all parties: It is 100% verification and 0% trust. Only time will tell whether this model will supplant traditional forms of finance that utilize simpler technologies but continue to rely on trust and multiple layers of intermediation in various degrees. It is possible that bitcoin will grow to displace many financial intermediaries. It is also possible that bitcoin will stagnate or even fail and disappear. What cannot happen is bitcoin's blockchain benefiting the intermediation that the digital currency was meant to replace. For any trusted third party carrying out payments, trading, or recordkeeping, the blockchain is an extremely costly and inefficient technology to utilize. A non-bitcoin blockchain combines the worst of both worlds: the cumbersome structure of the blockchain with the cost and security risk of trusted third parties. It is no wonder that seven years after its invention, blockchain technology has not yet managed to break through in a successful, ready-for-market commercial application other than the one for which it was specifically designed: bitcoin. Instead, there has been an abundance of hype, conferences and high-profile discussions in media, government, academia, industry, and the World Economic Forum on the potential of blockchain technology. Many millions of dollars have been invested in venture capital, research and marketing by governments and institutions that are seduced by the hype, without any practical result. Blockchain consultants have built prototypes for stock trading, asset registry, voting and payment clearance. But none of them have been commercially deployed because they are more expensive than simpler methods relying on established database and software stacks, as the government of Vermont recently concluded. Meanwhile, banks don't have a great track record in applying earlier technological advances for their own use. While JPMorgan Chase's CEO Jamie Dimon was touting blockchain technology in Davos last week, his bank's Open Financial Exchange interfaces a technology from 1997 to provide aggregators a central database of customer information had been down for two months. In contrast, the bitcoin network was born from the blockchain design two months after Nakamoto presented the technology. To this day, it has been operating uninterrupted and growing to more than $6 billion worth of bitcoins. The blockchain was the solution to the electronic cash problem. Because it worked, it grew quickly while Nakamoto worked anonymously and only communicated curtly via email for about two years. It did not need investment, venture capital, conferences, or advertisement. There are many simple technologies banks need to optimize and to improve to enhance their products. Instead, they are seduced by the siren song of futuristic buzzwords and searching for a problem to solve with a blockchain. But they won't find anything. Saifedean Ammous is an assistant professor of economics at the Lebanese American University. The big winner in Iowas Republican caucuses on Monday night might not have been Ted Cruz. It may have been a nominating process that fails to yield a clear winner. A clear winner being a candidate who goes to Cleveland this summer with the presidential nomination in hand. At the end of Monday night, which count really mattered? Delegates acquired. As of this writing, Cruz has bagged eight delegates, Trump and Rubio, seven each, with four other delegates going to also-rans. Raw vote totals are what most folk tend to watch and weigh. But in 2016, it pays to more closely follow the candidates delegate totals. Thanks to the Republican National Committee (RNC), caucuses and primaries held prior to mid-March mandate proportional distribution of delegates based on candidates vote totals in given contests. Most early caucuses and primaries impose threshold minimums to win delegates (say, Alabama, with a 20% threshold). Prior to Mid-March, 25 States, along with DC, Guam, and Puerto Rico, will hold proportional contests. That accounts for 1,022 bound delegates (bound being delegates committed to a candidate for the first vote). 45% of the bound delegates will be picked proportionally or in hybrid formats, which include triggering provisions for larger delegate yields for candidates who meet higher vote percentage thresholds. There are WTA (winner-take-all) thresholds, but those will be quite difficult to achieve. Starting with Super Tuesday, March 15, most of the remaining states have opted to hold winner-take-all contests, though a handful will continue to make proportional distributions. From mid-March forward, 1,238 bound delegates will be chosen (Colorados delegates declare at convention). The number of delegates needed to secure the GOP nomination is 1,237. There are a number of unbound (3 per state) and unpledged delegates. The unpledged delegates are mostly establishment picks who would factor in at a deadlocked convention. Short of a breakout by one the major contenders (Trump, Cruz, and Rubio), its not hard to imagine a scenario where the proportional phase of the nominating process yields tightly packed delegate counts among the three. Complicating matters is if new life is breathed into the Carson, Kasich, or Christe campaigns (as improbable as that appears). But, say you, wont the nomination fight be resolved with Super Tuesday and the subsequent contests? That could happen, but consider this prospect. Cruz, Rubio, and Trump take roughly a third each of the delegates in the proportional phase. For illustration, say, 340 delegates per man. That means in the winner-take-all phase, one of the principals would need to capture 897 of the available 1,238 bound delegates to win. Thats about 73% of the total or three out of every four delegates. Possible, but how likely? This assumes, too, that the principals are competitive with one another, affording each the chance to pick off states. Cruz, Trump, and Rubio have the resources to stay the course. Trump is self-funding. Cruzs fundraising operation is already solid and benefits all the more from his Iowa win. Rubios stronger than anticipated finish in Iowa boosts his fundraising. And as Rubio consolidates establishment voters -- as he began doing in Iowa -- and lesser establishment candidates drop out, expect a significant upswing in his campaigns financial fortunes. Writes Michael Snyder at Before Its News: [I]f no candidate is able to secure enough delegates, that means that we would end up with a brokered convention. The mechanics of a brokered convention can get quite complicated, but on a practical level what that would essentially mean is that the party establishment would get to hand select the nominee. And in case you are wondering, that would not be Donald Trump or Ted Cruz. Snyders assessment is flawed in a couple of respects (though not his conclusion about the candidates). Deadlocked versus a brokered convention, the more accurate designation is deadlocked. A brokered convention suggests that party bosses call the shots nearly exclusively. The party boss era in American politics is long past. Though unpledged delegates -- who are likely establishment recruits -- will play a critical role at a deadlocked convention, its important to remember that bound delegates are only committed to their candidates on the first ballot. Thereafter, theyre unbound. Candidates and, perhaps, dark horses (yes, a draft is possible) primary focus for vote gathering will be among all those plentiful unbound state delegates. If the convention deadlocks, its going to be the Wild West, with plenty of wheeling and dealing, barroom brawls, shoot-outs, shenanigans, and backroom deals. But all that will occur across delegations and not just among the establishment few. Snyders guess that the nominee wont be named Cruz or Trump should a deadlock occur is reasonable. Deadlocked conventions -- if past brokered conventions are any guide -- tend to nominee candidates who at least appear more centrist or moderate. At a deadlocked 2016 Cleveland affair, the buzz word may be electable. Right now, Marco Rubio seems to fit the bill. As Snyder pointed out in his article, thats not an endorsement; its merely an observation. If the Republican field narrows to two principal candidates, then the chances for a deadlocked convention melt away. But if, as anticipated, Cruz, Trump, and Rubio (and possibly one or two others) remain in the race, then a deadlocked convention moves from maybe to probable with each passing primary, caucus, and state convention. The Republican presidential nominee who emerges will have done so after the fight of his political life and ours. Each of the top-three Republican presidential candidates has stumbled, tripping over a position he once held, and then changed. Having changed his position on something big or small, he winds up spending entirely too much time either trying to deny the change, or to try and explain it all away. Call it the Kerry Syndrome, in honor of the failed presidential candidate who was famously quoted as saying:"I was for the war before I was against it. If youre a politician, at some point you have changed your positions, regardless of who you are or how solid your views,. This is in part a response to a natural evolution of views as individuals mature, and in part it reflects changes in the world, which require a re-assessment of long-cherished views that no longer align with reality. Some of the greatest politicians of the 20th Century performed remarkable political changes -- and not only survived, but prospered. Winston Churchill crossed the floor in Parliament, leaving the Conservative Party for the Liberal Party in 1904, allowing him to serve on the War Cabinet during the Great War. Then, in 1924, he switched back to the Conservative Party. This was remarkable, but Churchill was a remarkable man. Equally remarkable was the man whod become a New Deal Democrat, and ultimately a union president, before seeing the light and becoming a strong advocate for conservatism. This transformation allowed Ronald Wilson Reagan to have a keen insight into his opposition -- his rapier wit seldom missed the targets that were so visible to him. Unfortunately most Republican presidential candidates dont have a clue how to deal with it. But it doesnt have to be that way. Of this years cavalcade of candidates, only one -- Chris Christie -- seems to have handled his change at all well -- though for the true believers, the suspicion that his was a change of convenience still lingers. At one time, Chris Christie was publicly pro-abortion. That is beyond question. Yet hes changed that view based on a friends traumatic experience, and said so publicly. Instead of dodging the truth, he confronted the press and the public with his story, challenging them to prove him wrong. His answer was plausible, impossible to disprove, and widely accepted -- except by ardent pro-life conservatives and members of the media whose job in life seems to be stirring the pot by playing Gotcha. However, if Iowa is any example, Chris Christie has bigger campaign problems than his shift toward more conservative positions on abortion or gun control. Setting Governor Christie aside, the top-three candidates to come out of Iowa all have changed positions -- on important conservative issues. In a recent and effective ad, Marco Rubio offered a decent explanation for his changing his position on amnesty; however, he has not yet carried this level of candor into the debates, at least not in any effective way. That was good, but an ad is almost never enough. People need to see him say this in public, to themselves and to the media. Until Rubio boldly confronts this issue in public -- then puts it to rest, once and for all -- amnesty will continue to dog him. Not every die-hard closed-border anti-amnesty advocate will accept his change message -- that after Paris and San Bernadino and the tide of illegal-immigrant children who recently flooded our borders, we can do nothing about amnesty until we close our borders -- or his one-time alliance with Chuck Schumer. Yet some conservatives will be able to set that aside and move on. At the outset, Donald Trump tried to explain away his complex set of position changes, but he hasnt tried very hard. Early in the pre-primary campaign, Trump has found that he can be effective without being specific. At some point, however, he will either become so dominant that it wont matter, or he will be forced to confront the fact that hes only become conservative since he decided to run for president. As the competition tightens, the two more conservative top candidates will be forced to try and get conservative Trump supporters to wake up, at which point even The Donald will have to play by this rule. Then theres Ted Cruz. In the January 14 debate, he was apparently caught off guard by questions about the parliamentary chicanery used in an attempt to kill the Gang of Eights Amnesty Bill. He tried this by offering amendments that would push the bill beyond a point where its supporters could continue to support it. At the time -- in 2013 -- Cruz gave a number of interviews, and made a number of public statements, expressing his support of the amnesty bill, if only his amendments were allowed to fix it. This put the Senator on record as supporting amnesty -- which worked just fine in 2013, as he maneuvered to kill it with kindness -- but three years later, those video clips made him look like a classic flip-flopper in the John Kerry mold. You know, I was for amnesty before I was against amnesty. Since that flip-flop would look no different than what Senator Rubio actually did -- change his position on amnesty -- it could be a deal-killer among those looking for an authentic, uncompromising conservative. He finally decided that his only safe position was to admit to the lesser sin -- admit to his political deception, even while he reaffirmed his firm opposition to amnesty. That, he reasoned, was a position that conservatives might accept, even while they swallowed the fact that Cruz had lied in public about his intentions. Yet Ted, when the issue came up in the January 14 debate -- and later in an interview on Fox, had no convincing answer, as if hed never expected this to surface. Instead, Cruz fumbled around, unable to provide a coherent and convincing explanation. That made him look guilty of something. However, two weeks later, in an interview with Megyn Kelly on January 29, immediately after the last debate before the Iowa Caucus, Ted He finally admitted that his set of five amendments to the amnesty bill were all intended to be poison pills. All of his angst over a mis-step or an ineffective response to a pointed question about a changed opinion could have been avoided by any of the leading candidates by following a straightforward, four-step process that any candidate needs to take to address a change in positions. First, acknowledge to yourself that you have changed your position -- and the reason for the change. Some people who are under attack in public are tempted to adopt a defensive mode, even one that borders on denial. Hillary Clinton is an example of a candidate who -- when under attack -- seems to believe her own stories -- she so intensely wants people to believe her that she seems to believe herself, no matter how implausible the excuse. If you think sticking to your excuse might work for you, ask yourself how well its worked for Hillary. Next, take that acknowledgement public. If possible, get this out there before the press or your opponents make an issue of it -- that may sound counter-intuitive, but it is a remarkably effective way of burying a story. If youve already admitted changing positions, its hard for others to attack you. However, if its already out there, its still not too late to put it to rest. You may have to repeat yourself a few times, but if you stick to your honest story, eventually this will recede -- to be replaced by other problems, but they would have arisen anyway. Next, explain this change in position by citing changed circumstances, as Marco Rubio has done in a commercial. Another way to explain the change is to cite a traumatic experience that opened your eyes to a different perspective. This is the approach Chris Christie used in explaining away his changed position on abortion. What is important is that the explanation must be honest, because the press and opponents will fact-check, the better to punch holes in the reason for the change in position. Finally, present an action plan that reflects your new position. In Marco Rubios case, he then doubled down on this explanation for his change by pointing out that no amnesty would be possible until the borders were truly secure. Finally, he vowed that no one would be able to enter the US unless he or she could explain who they were and what they intended to do in America. These four steps, modified for changing experiences, have proven themselves over four decades. Getting out front of a potentially troubling story can put it to bed -- without scandal, there is no news. However, if its too late to get out front of it, admitting it -- and offering both a rational and honest explanation, followed by an action plan to put your new position into action, will quickly dampen the fires of opposition. If your opponent pushes too hard, he will look the bully, and you, the honest and upright victim of his bullying. There are worse positions to be in. Ned Barnett is the owner of Barnett Marketing Communications in Las Vegas. He has been active in politics since the 1974 Ford campaign, and has worked on three state-level presidential campaigns, along with dozens of campaigns for other candidates and issues. He has testified twice before Congress, and has written a dozen published books on professional communications. He is currently working on a book about how to win political campaigns. Iowa's in the books, and Cruz emerged victorious. Being a pretty avid observer of this crazy kaleidoscopic coverage of the 2016 primary that is fragmenting (reinventing?) the Republican Party, I found the results pretty interesting. Most notable is that Cruz won pretty handily in spite of his stumping against ethanol subsidies, a ludicrous federally sponsored imposition that uniquely benefits Iowa's farming industry while Americans suffer lower gas mileage, higher food prices, and the swifter deterioration of their vehicles. Suffice it to say, if nothing else has up to this point (though plenty should have), this should signify that Cruz is a candidate more principled than opportunistic. And it should be noted that Iowans deserve some credit here. Hard decisions must be made to correct fundamentally flawed government programs that are bleeding taxpayers, from the municipal level all the way to the federal. The choice to make such a decision, knowing that your immediate circumstances might be impacted in a negative way, is an honorable thing to do. And Iowans came out to do it in record numbers. If small-government conservatives want to free taxpayers from the debt drivers that are the touchstones of the progressivist agenda, others will have to follow Iowa's lead. Clearly, not everyone is happy about the Cruz victory, and they don't share my optimism about what it may signify i.e., a roused electorate ready to reclaim its liberty from a government that has reached well beyond its constitutional tether. But that's all reasonable enough. It's the primary season, and the electorate passionately defending their preferred candidates is healthy, and expected. All that matters is that when it comes down to supporting whoever wins what looks to be a three-man race among Cruz, Trump, and Rubio, conservatives will stand up and ride the big-government grifters out of Washington on a rail. But there's something, I fear, that threatens that outcome. It's not just the fractured appearance of the conservative base that the media seem to accentuate. It's a fissure that potentially runs much deeper. And it's not new, by any stretch of the imagination. It has to do with the schism in the conservative base over just how much, if at all, religion should be expressed by a given candidate. To illustrate, I give you two fanatics one a die-hard Trump supporter, the other a die-hard Trump opponent. First up, I give you "Cindy from North Carolina," a caller to the Rush Limbaugh program on Tuesday, February 2's program. She identifies herself as a devoted follower and fan of Rush. After having met Reagan thirty-one years ago, she became a Republican and never looked back. Today, however, she disagreed with her beloved host. What she disagreed with, it seems, is Rush's candor, which appeared to be pretty critical of Donald Trump's decisions in the Iowa primary that led to his defeat. What were the grounds for Cindy to disagree with Rush? That Ted Cruz is a "creepy" Christian zealot. She doesn't need a politician who "beats a Jesus fish" or "carries a cross on his back." No, sir, it's just The Donald for this gal. And she said on-air, with a zealot's fervor, "I will never vote for Cruz." Which is to say, if the choice in November is between Hillary and Cruz, we can expect Cindy and her likeminded cohorts to sit this one out. Now, let's take another fanatic, this time a Cruz supporter. Wildly popular blogger Matt Walsh, who has moved on from witty social commentary on Facebook to sermonizing at TheBlaze, writes in his article, "Dear Christians: If You Vote For A Godless Man, You Are Asking for Tyranny": If a man has no moral center, if he has ambition but no faith, if he does not demonstrate humility or integrity, I will never vote for him for president. I don't care who he is, what he says, or what positions he holds. None of that will matter when we are living under his tyranny. [] You deserve it because you chose it, just as the souls in Hell deserve Hell because they chose it. If you go to the ballot box and say "I am going to do my part to put this self-absorbed pagan in charge of my nation" you are directly consenting to the inevitable result. You are embracing it. You are asking for it. Though Matt Walsh and I both support Ted Cruz as our preferred Republican nominee, and I agree with his desire for a nominee who espouses Christian values, what he expresses here is equally threatening to our country's future. "I will never vote for him." Walsh, like many of the staunchly religious conservatives I've spoken to, is suggesting that if it comes down to Bernie Sanders vs. Donald Trump, he'll sit this one out, believing his soul to be absolved, even if his doing so leads to Bernie Sanders's election as president. Both examples represent the two edges of Damocles's blade that hovers above us. It is the same fanaticism that kept conservative voters at home in 2012, granting the tyrant in the White House four more years to trample the Constitution. It is the utter blindness to recognize that of two evils, one may be the lesser. It is the naivete to believe that by not voting for the lesser evil, you are doing nothing to empower the greater evil. Whether a conservative trusts Donald Trump or dislikes Cruz's Christian proclamations is far less important than the utter destruction of American virtues like limited government and individual liberty promised by Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders. It is foolishness to assert that because you can't fully trust the person who is espousing some of the things that you fervently believe, you would rather empower the person you trust beyond doubt will enact all of those things that you adamantly oppose. What good comes of staunch conservatives staying at home as Hillary or Sanders is elected? Will the prospect of their presidencies portend a better outcome for Christians or for conservative American ideas like individual liberty and limited government? Will fewer babies be aborted under Clinton or Sanders, or more? Will either Clinton or Sanders seek to protect Second Amendment rights, or challenge them further? Will either choose to rein in government spending, or will they do more to bleed taxpayers in social engineering schemes? Will either choose to secure the borders, or will they nullify them? Will the threat of Islamic fundamentalism be addressed, or will it continue to be ignored? All Americans know the answer to these questions. On which side of the aisle you sit should determine how your vote should be expressed, even if you don't find the candidate completely to your satisfaction. Here is the danger. If Cruz does win the primary outright, there are some Trump supporters who will be lost, due to Trump's appeal to some conservatives, independents, and even Democrats, who may not vote for Cruz, believing him to be too vocally Christian or socially conservative, as Cindy the caller does. If Trump wins the Republican nod, Republicans will have what they've long sought, though it will have been achieved in a manner that the GOP think-tanks could never have predicted. Trump will have a genuine chance to win voters from moderates and Democrats' bulwark demographics. Some polls even show that 20% of Democrats may defect to vote for Trump. However, whatever boon that may provide Trump could be nullified by hardline conservatives' refusal to vote for him, for reasons such as expressed by Matt Walsh. Rubio, interestingly, seems to have struck a balance in this arena as the token "establishment candidate" despite his Tea Party pedigree and may likewise have appeal to the moderate vote. But he could be stymied by hardline supporters of both Cruz and Trump, who value border security and immigration law enforcement as the most prominent issue in the campaign. They may refuse to vote for him due to his more secular heresy, believing him to be an establishment Judas for his role in the Gang of Eight's 2013 efforts to institute amnesty. What we need to remember above all, despite how cliched this sounds, is that any of these candidates who may win the Republican ticket is far superior to the two serious candidates currently vying for the Democrat nomination. Perhaps more important than anything else, we all need to remember that there will be a time when we must come together and vote for Cruz, Trump, or Rubio if not to stand for our own preferred brand of conservatism alone, then to stand for our brand of conservatism's best shot at defeating the elements that threaten to destroy everything in which we believe. William Sullivan blogs at Political Palaver and can be followed on Twitter. The Vermont socialist senator thinks that a everyone deserves a living wage which usually means that a minimum-wage worker with no skills ought to be able to raise a family. But like most lefties, his motto is do as I say, not as I do. Writing in Takis Magazine, James E. Miller feasts on the Sanders hypocrisy Sanders has propelled himself to the near-top of the Democrats favorite list based on, among many things, his support for a living wage. The current federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour is a starvation wage, the irascible senator proclaimed at a Capitol Hill rally last year, and [it] must be raised to a living wage. Thats a nice, and unrealistic, sentiment. But the problem is that Sanders doesnt think his own employees deserve that kind of pay. According to the Media Research Center, the Sanders campaign pays its interns only $12 an hour. Thats a hefty sum for phone bankers and coffee fetchers. But its not enough to pay apartment rent and feed a family. Does Bernie not think his college-age employees deserve to live securely? Sanders do as I say, not as I do approach also pertains to the app economy. Not one to let an industry operate away from the watchful eye of the government, the senator says he has serious problems with companies like Uber because they are unregulated. And yet, as a study by National Journal showed, Bernie used the ride-sharing service Uber for 100% of his taxi rides for the first six months of his campaign. For a company that skirts worker protection laws, one might think Mr. Solidarity would refuse to patronize Uber. Then there is the coup de grace: Sanders used his congressional campaign war chest to enrich his family members. An investigation by the neocon outlet Washington Free Beacon reveals that Sanders wife, Jane OMeara Sanders, collected a cool $90,000 from her husbands House campaign in return for consulting services from 2002 to 2004. Bernies stepdaughter Carina Driscoll also collected $65,000 from the campaign during the same period. Thats chump change by Hillary Clinton standards, of course. But give Bernie some time. Hes only been on the national scene for a matter of months. Opportunity beckons. John Ellis Bush (Jeb! for short) isnt trying to figure out whats smart and whats stupid to say. He seems pretty genuine. Speaking from the heart. And the stupidity just keeps on coming. For those who thought it was pathetic when Jeb! recently asked his tiny audience to clap (please clap) as he shuffled around making uninspiring statements, it turns out that was just the warm-up act. Yesterday Jeb! was happy, happy, happy about Obamas recent visit to a mosque and ! (for even shorter, as he diminishes himself) gushed with enthusiasm for Muslims. During an interview on the Hugh Hewitt show, ! said he had not yet listened to Obamas speech (a speech Hewitt gushed over) but was happy about it nonetheless. Breitbart reports: If it was a good speech, Im happy, because I think its important for the president to lead in this regard. And my brother did it much earlier in his tenure than Barack Obamas done it in the eighth year. And Im not quite sure he avoided doing this, but it was appropriate to do it. And sometimes, you have to give someone credit for a job well done. I havent seen the speech, but its important. Look, when you have a candidate for president that says were going to ban all Muslims coming into the country, the implications of that are horrific as it relates to our national security. But it also sends a signal to the millions of peaceful Muslims that are as American as you and I. And I think its important for people to know that they have worth, that they have value, that were all, you know, were all American. And we should target our energies to defeat radical Islam and the radicalization of people. We need to be kept safe, but you can do that by being respectful of people of the Muslim faith as well. Say what? Hes happy if it was a good speech. Really? How incredibly naive, pandering, stupid, and clueless. (And thats being generous.) ! hadnt seen the speech; nevertheless, its important. Again: really? Why? What was the important part? The part when Obama said that Muslim Americans keep us safe? I dont mean to misrepresent Obama. When he said Muslims keep us safe, he was referring to Muslims who work in the Department of Homeland Security and other government agencies. Hmm. Still not feeling the safety thing. But back to !. Did he think the speech was good and important because Obama claimed that Muslims have been a part of America since our nations founding? (Of course, technically, thats true if you consider the Barbary Pirates, but I dont think thats what Obama was talking about.) Or maybe ! thought it was incredibly important that Obama rambled on at a mosque, expressing sympathy for the ever-(faux) victimized Muslim (all the while engaging in a weird repetitive movement of his tongue against the inside of his lips). ! was also eager to paint Muslim Americans as patriotic folks like you and I. Excuse me, but I prefer not to be lumped in with a group whose religious book is a totalitarian doctrine that demands the demise of every single non-Muslim in America, and around the world. And it really ticked me off when ! insisted that we respect people of the Muslim faith. Again. Sorry, but that faith mandates world domination. There is a cutoff beyond which respect is not given. Id say thats the cutoff. But maybe thats just me. Hat tips: The Right Scoop, Jihad Watch, CNN, MSNBC As the body count at the hand of Islamic extremists continues to rise in America, shouldn't the president be trying to come up with a way to defend Judeo-Christian types, who cling to guns and the Bible, from Islamic jihadi types who cling to machetes and the Quran? Guess not, because for his first visit to a U.S. mosque, Obama chose a congregation where a Sudanese native and former member of the Muslim Brotherhood, Mohamed Adam el-Sheikh, was chief imam for almost twenty years. Why would a U.S. president even give credence to a congregation once led by a man who also lent a hand in founding the Muslim American Society, a Muslim Brotherhood-established organization interested in advancing sharia law? Does Obama not care that in his spare time, the current executive director of the Fiqh Council of North America, an association of Islamic legal scholars, also helped found the notorious Dar Al-Hijrah mosque, led by the late al-Qaeda terrorist Anwar al-Awlaki? Or that in 2004, while still serving as imam of the Islamic Society of Baltimore, el-Sheikh discussed Palestinian suicide bombers with the Washington Post? If certain Muslims are to be cornered where they cannot defend themselves, except through these kinds of means, and their local religious leaders issued fatwas to permit that, then it becomes acceptable as an exceptional rule, but should not be taken as a principle. Even the alleged terrorist-affiliated Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) commended Obama's decision to visit the Islamic Society of Baltimore, saying: For a number of years, we've been encouraging the president to go to an American mosque. With the tremendous rise in anti-Muslim sentiment in our country, we believe that it will send a message of inclusion and mutual respect. "Inclusion and mutual respect"? Maybe CAIR should tell that to the two homosexual men murdered by devout Muslim-American/convicted sex offender Ali Muhammad Brown, who, after rinsing the blood off his hands, went on to avenge Muslim deaths overseas by also executing 19-year-old college student Brendan Tevlin at a traffic light. Prior to the president showing up in Baltimore, White House spokesperson Josh "Not So" Earnest had this to say: I think the president is quite interested in making sure that we're affirming the important role that Muslims play in our diverse American society and certainly affirming their right to worship God in a way that's consistent with their heritage. Question: Who exactly is not upholding "the important role that Muslims play in our diverse American society"? And in the 3,186 mosques located in cities all across America, which people are having their "right to worship God in a way that's consistent with their heritage" thwarted? Furthermore, rather than worrying about the 3 million Muslims steadily progressing toward becoming the second largest religion in America, maybe Josh should be making sure that, despite Obama, the Little Sisters of the Poor retain their "right to worship God in a way that's consistent with their heritage." Meanwhile, the president descended on the Islamic Society of Baltimore, which is sort of like preaching about being less discriminatory toward Christians from the pulpit of the hateful Westboro Baptist Church. In Baltimore, Obama mentioned bullied Muslim children and vandalized mosques and lauded Ibtihaj Muhammad, a 2016 female Olympian who plays with swords while dressed in a hijab. Then he pointed out that "we have to understand: an attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths." One small problem! This is the guy who consistently assaults certain faiths. In 2009, prior to a speaking engagement at Georgetown University's Gaston Hall, Obama requested the crucifixes be covered up. That same year, in order to have a "non-religious" Christmas, Obama suggested that the East Room Nativity be relocated. Likewise, the president has blamed Christianity for lives lost during the Crusades and regularly ridicules the Christian faith with snide remarks. As for God's chosen people, Obama insulted Jews at a White House Hanukah celebration; publicly dissed Bibi Netanyahu; and, worse yet, minimized the threat posed by providing a genocidal anti-Semitic revolutionary theocratic state a pathway to a nuclear bomb. Not to mention the president's failure to acknowledge the worldwide genocide being waged by Muslims against Christians, or ignoring the fact that in America, Jews are ten times more likely than Muslims to be targeted for a hate crime. Advocating for Islam seems to be Barack "that's not who we are'" Obama's most ardent public relations effort. In his recent State of the Union address, anyone perceived to be indulging in what he perceives as anti-Muslim bigotry was publicly rebuked when he said: When politicians insult Muslims, whether abroad or our fellow citizens, when a mosque is vandalized, or a kid called names, that doesn't make us safer. That's not telling it like it is. It's just wrong. It diminishes us in the eyes of the world. How about when Muslim extremists living in the U.S. shoot and kill 14 people at a Christmas party; behead a co-worker at a food distribution plant; or, "on a mission from Allah," stab a store clerk to death? Does that "make us safer"? Besides, how is America elevated in the eyes of the world if our president remains silent after Islamic extremists behead two Coptic Christians in New Jersey, or slit the throats of three Jewish men in Massachusetts? Since Barack Obama ascended from the mean streets of Chicago to the Oval Office in 2009, there have been approximately 64 people murdered by Muslim extremists on U.S. soil, and that's not counting the number of American deaths at the hands of Muslims overseas. And yet, in another attempt to address what Barack Obama calls a "hugely distorted impression" of Islam, the one suffering from what perceives in others hoped to remedy the problem by commiserating with the guilty at a radical mosque in Baltimore. Jeannie hosts a blog at www.jeannie-ology.com. After Donald Trump's behavior these past few days, millions of his supporters must be reconsidering their choice by now. With each passing day, it becomes clearer that this man cannot, must not, become the Republican nominee. A few months back, he was vilifying Ben Carson for things revealed in Carson's biography that happened when Carson was fourteen. Trump maligned Dr. Carson in every way he could think of: he insulted his faith (Seventh-Day Adventist) and said he is a "sick puppy," comparing him to a child molester. He said that he is "pathologically incurable," that he is "damaged." He asked, "How stupid are the people of Iowa?" when Dr. Carson was ahead in the polls. He spent weeks attacking Dr. Carson in the worst, most disgusting ways. He succeeded in bringing Dr. Carson's numbers down. After viewing the above video, ask yourself how those people in that audience continued to listen. Why did they stay? Have we become so mind-numbed with anger at Obama's destructive policies that we sit still for this brand of poisonous venom? After praising Ted Cruz for months, once Cruz's numbers began to rise, Trump began sliming him in his own cruel manner: "He's a nasty guy. Nobody likes him." "He's owned by the banks." Considering that Trump owes many hundreds of millions to banks, the latter charge is particularly egregious. Now that Ted Cruz beat him in Iowa, Trump has escalated his attacks against Cruz and is passionately defending Dr. Carson, the man he so viciously and disingenuously maligned a few months ago. He is claiming that Cruz "stole" the election, speaking as though he is Dr. Carson's greatest benefactor. Trump is a hypocrite of the first order. Who does this kind of thing? A man who thinks the electorate are so stupid that they will not remember his earlier verbal savagery toward one of the finest men in our nation? When Trump appeared on the political stage in June and announced his candidacy, it was great theatre of the Saturday Night Live variety. All of us who are enraged at the damage done to America these past seven years were thrilled to hear someone, anyone, give voice to our anger. But even then, few of us took him seriously. How can a man who indiscriminantly spews disparaging vitriol with abandon actually be a candidate for president of the United States? How can a man who promises all manner of ridiculous things people know he cannot fulfill be taken seriously? How can a man who gives exactly no specifics on his plans, foreign or domestic, be electable? After a rather surprisingly gracious speech on Monday night, today Trump is back to his usual nonsense, threatening to sue Cruz for voter fraud, claiming he won the Iowa caucus, and calling for a redo of the election in Iowa. The Cruz campaign took its cue from CNN and, like CNN, assumed that Dr. Carson was suspending his quest for office. The initial mistakes were made by the Carson campaign and CNN. The Cruz people just got on board. It is not pretty, but this is politics as usual. Only Trump has taken gutter politics to a new and loathsome low. The Republicans began this election season with a large bench of great candidates, each of them eminently more qualified, people of far better character, than Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump. Some have taken themselves out of the race for of lack of support. All but Trump would be a better president than Obama has been. Any one of those who remain in the race would be better than Hillary or Trump. Please, voters, step back and really listen to this man. See him for what he is. Stars and Stripes reports that, as predicted here on American Thinker, it's time for women to sign up for draft . The Marine Corps commandant and Army chief of staff told the Senate on Tuesday that they believe women should be required to sign up for the military draft now that they are being integrated into all combat positions. Marine Gen. Robert Neller and Army Gen. Mark Milley testified there should no longer be an exemption for women in the Selective Service program, while Navy Secretary Ray Mabus said the opening of combat roles has raised the need for a national debate. Now millennial women can join their brethren in accepting their duty to defend liberty! April 15, 2016 could be more than just Tax Day this year! But service leaders who testified including Neller told lawmakers they have accepted the integration order and are moving forward. The Pentagon hopes to have all plans in place by April. There are those who may rightly point out that on a merit basis, women will likely wash out of the plum combat occupations. But do we not honor Rosie the Riveter? Given the modern tooth-to-tail ration of military forces, there will be plenty of slots available in logistics. It might be appropriate to read Rudyard Kipling's poem, "The Female of the Species," with its refrain "For the female of the species is more deadly than the male." One thing those ISIS "fighters" fear is dying at the hands of a woman! On a personal basis, one of my ancestors was the captain of a schooner in the Massachusetts Navy during the American Revolution (his commission is on file in the Massachusetts Archives). The captain told the story of returning home from sea one day. He described his wife as being a woman of great courage who kept an ax near her bed as a weapon of defense. (Is Hillary in favor of Ax Control legislation?) One night he arrived home late from sea, he found the door barred and raised a window attempt[ing] to get in. In a twinkling the ax was over his head, but the familiar voice "Don't" checked the descending implement and [his wife] was quite overcome by the act. [The captain] said, 'That was coming the nearer my end than any accident or danger of the sea which I have met'. It is notable that among those dangers at sea he faced was the armed boarding of a British warship, which then lowered its colors in surrender to the Americans. Britannia longer "ruled the waves." Grandma was a warrior! Now, it is true that not all women are so strong. But "they also serve who only peel potatoes." Imagine Chelsea Clinton signing up to do her turn as Private Benjamin! The movie came out in 1980, the same year Chelsea was born. Now she can live the dream! And she can repair the family honor by joining, rather than dodging, the draft. Korean messaging giant Line can be found on just about any platform, including Windows PCs, and currently holds the messaging app crown in Japan, while placing in the top five in most Asian markets. With 216 million monthly active users compared to the reigning champ WhatsApps recent attainment of the 1 billion mark, theyre not doing terribly bad on the world stage. The app is owned by South Korean Naver Corp, but operates as its own company, Line Corporation. Attempts to become a full-fledged web platform, in the vein of Facebooks Messenger, are coming along quite nicely in some markets. In Indonesia, however, theyve decided to make a new effort to pull ahead of their rivals and out of fourth place by integrating with the countrys most popular taxi service, PT Go-Jek Indonesia. This is the first arrangement of this sort that Line has made and its hoping that this will attract enough users to give them the kind of momentum theyll need to outpace Facebooks Messenger and WhatsApp, as well as WeChat. Although many users may already have Go-Jeks official app, Line has made integration very simple and hopes this will court current app users and new users of Go-Jeks service. To get started, all a user has to do is add Go-Jeks official account, gojekindonesia, to their friends list. From there, theyll be presented with a picture. Tapping that begins a relatively simple signup process. After the initial signup is completed, all users have to do to hail is message the word Order to Go-Jeks account. Theyll receive some info on their driver, as well as contact info if needed, and the driver will be on their way. Advertisement Along with the obvious benefits of being cheaper and faster than a traditional taxi, motorcycle taxi Go-Jek is now easier to reach than ever. They are already Indonesias most popular motorcycle taxi, given the often rather difficult traffic in the main cities, but Go-Jek may just become more popular thanks to this deal. Line has 30 million users in Indonesia and Go-Jeks app has been downloaded 6 million times, though they did not disclose the number of active users. There are over 200,000 registered drivers across 10 cities. Google has introduced their new Nexus handsets back in September last year. The Mountain View giant has decided to release two Nexus handsets at the same time, which is the first time ever that has happened. Theyve introduced the LG-made Nexus 5X, and the Huawei-made Nexus 6P. The former is Googles mid-range offering, while the latter is their flagship phablet. That being said, both of these devices have been available all around the world for quite some time now, and Google has even introduced the new, Gold-colored variant of the Nexus 6P a while back. This model has been available in select markets, including the US, but it hasnt been available for purchase in Canada, until now. The Graphite and Aluminum variants of the Nexus 6P have arrived in Canada last November, and the Gold-colored model is now available as well. Thats not all though, Google has slashed $50 off of its price from the get-go, the device now costs $649.99 (32GB model), while the 64GB variant can be purchased for $699.99. The Graphite and Aluminum models, however, still start at $699.99 in Canada. Thats not all though, if you purchase the Nexus 6P (no matter which variant), youll also get $50 credit for a Huawei Watch purchase, just in case youd like to buy both. The Google Nexus 6P can be purchased directly from the Google Play Store in Canada, so if youre interested, follow the source link down below. Advertisement The Google Nexus 6P features a 5.7-inch QHD (2560 x 1440) AMOLED display, 3GB of RAM and 32GB / 64GB of internal storage. This phablet is fueled by the Snapdragon 810 64-bit octa-core processor, and an Adreno 530 GPU for graphics. The 12.3-megapixel shooter (1.55um pixel size) is placed on the back of this phone, and an 8-megapixel snapper can be found up front. The device features a fingerprint scanner on the back, and offer front-facing stereo speakers as well. The 3,450mAh battery is also a part of this package, and the device is made out of aluminum. Android 6.0 Marshmallow comes pre-installed here, and were talking about a stock version of Googles OS here, of course. Through a post on its official Twitter account, Google has announced that anybody buying the new Chromecast media streaming dongle, or indeed, the Chromecast Audio, will get a $10 credit on the Google Play Store. The money can then be redeemed by buying apps, games, movies and other digital media from Google Play. The offer is valid for exactly three weeks starting today, meaning, Chromecast purchases made between the 3rd to the 24th of this month will be eligible for the credit. The offer is applicable only for US residents who choose to activate (or have already activated) a Google Payment account. According to the terms of the deal, the credit needs to be added to a Google Payment account by May 31st, and redeemed on the Play Store by the end of this year. Google, of course, keeps introducing new schemes from time to time, and one of the interesting promotional deals thats currently up for grabs is a $50 credit towards a Huawei Watch for those who choose to buy the Nexus 6P on the Play Store. This particular offer went live on the 12th of January, and is applicable for all US and Canadian residents. The credit in this case must be redeemed at the latest by the 1st of September this year. Google also offers many of its apps and games at reduced costs from time to time, and just a couple of weeks back, the search giant was offering up to fifty percent discount on a number of games on Google Play. Last month, the company was also offering a $20 Play Store credit to new Chromecast buyers. Advertisement For the uninitiated, Google launched its refreshed lineup of Chromecast dongles last September, having launched the original first-gen versions back in 2013. The second-generation of Googles ultra-affordable $35 devices use an HDMI interface to plug into TV sets, and come in a number of colors, including Lemonade, Coral and Black. The devices also support dual-band Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/ac and according to its product page, is compatible with a number of mobile and desktop operating platforms, including Android 4.1 Jelly Bean and above, Windows 7 and above, iOS 7 and above, Mac OS X Lion (10.7) and above and also, Googles own Chrome OS. You probably use Googles search engine just about every day. Most people using Android do, along with a great many who arent using Android. So many people use Google Search so often that the company built an empire on the search engine, selling advertisements that promised to reach billions of eyes billions of times. A short fifteen years or so ago, back in 2000, Krishna Bharat convinced a friend to join a burgeoning search company called Google. That friend was Amitabh Kumar Amit Singhal. Singhal went on to help design one of the most influential technologies in the shaping of the modern internet. If not for Singhal and his contributions to Google Search and future products, we may very well be telling confused loved ones to look it up rather than simply Google it. As of this writing, Singhal is a senior vice president, software engineer, Google fellow and the head of Googles core ranking team. As of February 26, Singhal announced Wednesday on his Google+ channel, he will shift his primary roles to father, husband and philanthropist. In a post entitled, The Journey Continues, Singhal says, As I entered the fifteenth year of working at Google, Ive been asking myself the question, what would you want to do for the next fifteen? The answer has overwhelmingly been: give back to others. He goes on to say that this is a great time in his life to make the change and take the opportunity to give back to others, as well as to spend more time with his wife and his son, who is poised to leave for college soon. Advertisement Singhal says he has left Search in very capable hands, being a handpicked set of leaders who already manage most day to day operations of the Search department. He also said of his time at Google, It fills me with pride to see what we have built in the last fifteen years. Search has transformed peoples lives; over a billion people rely on us. Our mission of empowering people with information and the impact it has had on this world cannot be overstated. Under the leadership team that Singhal has left behind, Search and other operations should continue without a hitch. He ends the post with a quote from Chief Siahl; Take nothing but memories, leave nothing but footprints! Huawei has announced the launch of its Honor 7 Premium smartphone in Europe on Thursday. The company had announced the availability of the Honor 5X smartphone in the continent earlier in the day as per a prior commitment and now, apparently, it will be joined by the Honor 7 Premium next month. The device was reportedly unveiled in Munich at the same event where Huawei announced the availability of the Honor 5X, and is basically an updated version of the Honor 7 handset that the company had launched last year as the flagship Honor-branded handset. The fact that the phone will likely be a premium variant of the original Honor 7 was probably pretty clear from the nomenclature itself, but Huawei sought to clear all confusion regarding the phones hardware by releasing a statement, saying, The specifications for this fast, reliable and desirable phone remain unchanged with a blazing fast octa-core which takes gaming to the next level. This particular version, however, will additionally come with a bundled 9 Volt / 2 Ampere charger as part of the package, which should definitely bring down charging times for the 3,100 mAh battery. The company claims that the battery will get 50 percent charged in just half an hour. As mentioned already, the rest of the hardware specs of this upcoming handset are apparently identical to that of the original device, which means the phone will come with the same 5.2-inch Full HD screen and will be powered by the Kirin 935 chipset, which has an octa-core Cortex-A53 processor clocked at a maximum of 2.3 GHz, as also a Mali-T628 GPU. Theres 3 GB of RAM on offer, along with the aforementioned 32 GB of storage, with support for a microSD card for capacity expansion. As for the cameras, there will be a 20-megapixel unit on the rear, and an 8-megapixel one in the front. Advertisement The phone will also come with a fingerprint scanner according to Huaweis press release, and will be offered in at least two different colors Golden and Mystery Brown. The pricing of the upcoming device is still a mystery, but it will probably be revealed when it will actually be made available for purchase, which, according to the company, should happen sometime next month. Huawei has had a brilliant time of late with its smartphone business, thanks in no small part to its Honor sub-brand. The company will be hoping that its latest releases, the Honor 5X and the Honor 7 Premium, will be able to continue on with the momentum. A short while ago, LG finally confirmed that they would be showcasing their latest LG smartphone, the LG G5 at MWC in a couple of weeks time. It had been somewhat under debate as to whether LG would be announcing the G5 at the event or whether it would be announced in a G5 form or as some sort of other premium flagship smartphone. However, with the confirmation now coming through, it is clear the LG G5 will be unveiled at the event. That said, it might not be the only new device being launched on the day by LG. Known tipster, @evleaks sent out a rather ominous tweet earlier today. The tweet simply reads LG 360 VR. There are no further details provided in the tweet and as such there is not a lot to work off. Of course, this will immediately draw some comparisons to the recently rumored Samsung VR camera, the Gear 360. As it was only this week that reports emerged suggesting Samsungs option could be unveiled during MWC and along with the Galaxy S7. So the big assumption would be that along with the LG G5, LG could also be releasing their take on a 360 VR camera. Advertisement If correct and LG does announce a new LG 360 VR on the same day as the G5, then this will make for quite an interesting day, as Samsung is also hosting their press event on the same day, albeit a few hours later. And as they are expected to be announcing the Galaxy S7 and the Gear 360, it could be the case that LG just pips them to the post by announcing their latest flagship device and a similar virtual reality unit only hours before. Of course, this is still very much largely a rumor, however, LG does seem to be making use of a play theme with their advertising and teasing for MWC and an LG VR unit (of any sort), would seem to be in line with that play theme. Either way, with MWC getting closer, Feb 21st is starting to look like a very interesting day for both flagship mobiles and also for virtual reality. Xiaomi Mi 5 is one of the most talked about smartphone as of late. Xiaomis upcoming flagship was expected to arrive last year, but that didnt happen, so everyone assumed that it will launch in the first quarter of this year. Those guesses were spot on considering the fact Xiaomi confirmed that the device will land on February 24th, not only in Beijing, but in Barcelona as well (during the MWC). That being said, it was also confirmed that the phone will be fueled by the Snapdragon 820 SoC, sport a 1080p display instead of a QHD one, and that it will offer two SIM card slots on the inside. As its usually the case, we have a new leak to share with you today. If you take a look at the gallery down below, youll get to see another alleged Mi 5-related leak. As you can see, were looking at the phones alleged back panel here, a back panel which looks quite sleek. It seems like were looking at a glass back panel with a rather interesting pattern on it. I Initially thought this was metal on the back, but after taking a second look it definitely looks like glass. Now, this back cover looks quite a bit different than the ones weve seen thus far, not only is the flash on the opposite side, but the overall shape of it seems somewhat different, its not slightly curved as the ones weve seen thus far. Now, this might indicate that this leak is false, or that Xiaomi is truly going to release both the glass + metal and all-metal variants of this device, as the rumors have been suggesting. Advertisement Speaking of rumors, they said that well get both 3GB and 4GB RAM variants of the Mi 5, and that both the all-metal and glass + metal variants of the device will ship in multiple internal storage variants. The 16-megapixel OIS snapper has also been mentioned in various leaks, and so has the 3,600mAh battery. The Xiaomi Mi 5 will ship with Android 6.0 Marshmallow on the inside, and on top of it, youll be able to find Xiaomis proprietary Android-based MIUI 7 OS. The physical home key will be placed below the display, if the rumors are to be believed, and that home button might double as a fingerprint scanner. The launch event is close, but we do expect more info to leak before it, so stay tuned. We answer the Daily Mail question: Who will speak for England? Todays Daily Mail leads with a question: Who Will Speak for England? The question writer turns to history to see if figures from the past can answer the burning question. Today the Mail asks a question of profound significance to our destiny as a sovereign nation and the fate of our children and grandchildren. Who will speak for England? Not him: Its a question inspired by one of the most dramatic moments in the history of Parliamentary democracy. The date was September 2, 1939, the day after Hitler invaded Poland. Tory PM Neville Chamberlain had just made an ambivalent statement to the House, proposing no immediate action. On his backbenches, anti-appeasement stalwart Leo Amery was incensed. As Labours deputy leader Arthur Greenwood rose to reply for the Opposition, the Tory MP bellowed across the floor: Speak for England! And Greenwood did just that, voicing anger over the premiers reluctance to honour Britains treaty obligations to Poland. Bowing to the mood of the House, Chamberlain declared war on Hitler the next day. The Mail should realise that all is not lost. Someone might just make a peep for Albion. After all, on January 1934, the Mail was all for Hitler: As we cry Lets Bomb Brussels!, the article continues: Nobody is suggesting there are any parallels whatever between the Nazis and the EU. They are. See above. Indeed, the Mail would argue that one of the Unions great achievements, along with Nato, has been to foster peace in Europe. PEACE! We all vant ein leetle peace! To quote Mel Brookes: I dont want war. All I want is peace. Peace. Peace! A little piece of Poland/ A little piece of France /A little piece of Portugal /And Austria perchance But But as in 1939, we are at a crossroads in our island history. What happened to Nobody is suggesting there are any parallels whatever between the Nazis and the EU? For in perhaps as little as 20 weeks time, voters will be asked to decide nothing less than what sort of country we want to live in and bequeath to those who come after us. We want a country of patriots! Another question soon follows: Are we to be a self-governing nation, free in this age of mass migration to control our borders, strike trade agreements with whomever we choose and dismiss our rulers and lawmakers if they displease us? Ian Hislop nips in and tells us: the Mail is owned by the Rothermere family. What did your Dad do? The current Lord Rothermeres father loved Great Britain so much he went to live in France as a tax exile. He then passed on the nom-dom status to his son who doesnt actually pay the normal amount of tax despite owning a newspaper thats owned through various tax companies in Bermuda. Et continue: Or will our liberty, security and prosperity be better assured by submitting to a statist, unelected bureaucracy in Brussels, accepting the will of unaccountable judges and linking our destiny with that of a sclerotic Europe that tries to achieve the impossible by uniting countries as diverse as Germany and Greece? Do we want to live in Ibiza? The Mail then bashes the Tories and the BBC. So we ask again: who will speak for England (and, of course, by England, like Amery in 1939, we mean the whole of the United Kingdom)? Will Scotland? The Mail thinks the question so burning it asks Scots: Why do teenage girls send explicit pictures to boys? Answer: The EU makes them do it. Maybe migrants can speak for England after all, they love it enough to come here? With a tsunami of migrants flooding across Europe, can such tinkering with the small print really be enough here is nothing in Mr Camerons draft deal that will make one jot of difference to the numbers pouring in. Who speaks for England? Anorak Posted: 4th, February 2016 | In: Key Posts, Reviews, Tabloids Comment | TrackBack | Permalink (ANSA) - Rome, February 4 - Egyptian authorities have turned over the remains of slain Italian student Giulio Regeni to the Umberto I Italian Hospital in Cairo, sources said Thursday. It emerged earlier that Regeni, who was found dead with signs of torture in a Cairo ditch today, freelanced with left-leaning daily il manifesto. He covered Egyptian trade unions and used a pen name "because he feared for his safety" the Rome paper told ANSA. Also on Thursday, one of Regenis' Egyptian friends told Egyptian paper Al Ahram that the post-doctoral student was seeking contacts with labor activists so he could interview them. "Security officers summoned me after Regeni disappeared (on January 25)," said the friend, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "They wanted to know about the purpose of his visit and of his studies". Regeni, 28, was a Cambridge University doctoral student and a visiting scholar at the American University in Cairo (AUC). His body showed signs of cigarette burns, stab wounds, torture, and of having suffered a "slow death", the Associated Press quoted Egyptian prosecutors as saying. Egyptian prosecution sources said Regeni had contusions around the eyes "as though he had been punched (as well as) signs of torture and wounds all over the body". The Egyptian interior ministry revealed last week that of 191 disappearances listed by the country's National Council for Human Rights (NCHR), 99 occurred in custody. Egyptian human rights lawyer Mohamed Sobhy wrote on his Facebook page Wednesday night that the interior ministry was refusing him access to Regeni's body, which was at a mortuary in central Cairo and surrounded by "an impressive national security deployment". Regeni went missing in Cairo on the evening of January 25, the day of demonstrations marking the fifth anniversary of the Egyptian uprising that toppled former dictator Hosni Mubarak. On the day of the demonstrations, Egyptian authorities arrested about a dozen people in the country's capital. Italian Premier Matteo Renzi called Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to tell him that Regeni's body must be returned to his family as soon as possible, and that Italy must be granted "full access" to the investigation into what he called a "horrible murder". President Sergio Mattarella said he is "deeply disturbed" and called for the perpetrators of "this brutal crime" to be brought to justice. Al-Sisi reciprocated with another phone call, in which he said he has ordered his national prosecutor and interior ministry to "make every effort" to find out how Regeni died. A team of seven State, Carabinieri and Interpol officers is set to leave for Cairo on Friday to closely follow the investigation, government sources told ANSA late on Thursday. Meanwhile a Rome prosecutor has opened a murder probe against person or persons unknown in the death of Regeni. A senior Egyptian investigator had ruled out foul play earlier in the day, suggesting Regeni had been in a car crash. "There is no suspicion of crime in (Regeni's) death," General Khaled Shalabi, the director of the Giza general investigations administration, reportedly said. Back in Italy, Regeni's native town of Fiumicello in the northern Friuli Venezia Giulia region proclaimed citywide mourning, canceled a feast in honor of its patron saint on February 14, and placed black mourning ribbons on all its flags. "It's as though one of our sons had died," said Mayor Ennio Scridel. "Anguish and condolences for the young interrupted life of Giulio Regeni," tweeted Friuli Venezia Giulia Governor Debora Serracchiani. "We ask for light to be shed on this terrible incident". Friends and relatives described Regeni as "the son everyone would want" and as a "determined but supportive" person who was "passionate about the Middle East". Regeni served as the youth mayor of Fiumicello between the ages of 12 and 14. He went on to schools in Trieste and in New Mexico in the United States, before starting university at Oxford and then Cambridge. He had been in Cairo since September, researching for a thesis on the local economy. He spoke Arabic and English fluently and had won two prizes in 2012 and 2013 in a competition organised by a research institute that focused on Middle Eastern studies. Despite being far from Fiumicello, his friends said he always maintained strong links with his home town. He enjoyed telling stories about his experiences when he came back to visit his mother Paola, father Claudio and sister Irene. (ANSA) - Bergamo, February 4 - A high school philosophy professor was fired after 14 years on the job because he forgot to report he was fined 200 euros for urinating into a bush 11 years ago, Corriere della Sera paper reported Thursday. Stefano Rho', 43, a father of three born in Uganda of humanitarian doctor parents, in the summer of 2005 attended a village feast in Averara, pop. 182, located in the northern Brembana Valley. The village shut down early and there was no bathroom available, so Rho' and his friend relieved themselves in a bush. Police caught them in the act, cited them, and a justice of the peace eventually fined them 200 euros. In 2013, Rho' signed an education ministry form stating he had no criminal record. But the Bergamo school system discovered the discrepancy, and censured him. However the Audit Court later ruled that lying about one's record is grounds for firing, and he was. (ANSA) - London, February 4 - Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni announced at the conference of donors for Syria on Thursday that Italy will contribute "$400 million over the next three years". Gentiloni said in London that 150 million of the money will be donations, another 200 million will come in the form of "soft loans" and 50 million will be debt write-offs, above all to Jordan and Lebanon, which have both been inundated with refugees due to the Syrian conflict. Gentiloni said the donated cash would go to humanitarian aid to meet immediate needs and that just under $150 million of the money will be allocated this year. "The size of this pledge for Italy is extraordinary," Gentiloni said. (ANSA) - Rome, February 4 - Military intervention in Libya is "not imminent", Italian Defence Minister Roberta Pinotti said on Thursday. Pinotti told a talkshow on Canale 5 that Italy was focused on supporting Libya through its political process, although concerns were growing over the influence of the Islamic State (ISIS) militants. She said ISIS "is experiencing defeats in Iraq and Syria and is thinking of moving into Libya, where we have recorded the transfer of some leaders to protect themselves from coalition attacks". A list of proposed government ministers presented in Libya had been rejected and a new list is due to be presented next week, she said. "We hope that MPs will be able to agree on a government of national unity and then the Libyans themselves will tell us what they need and establish the necessary security framework," she said. Turning to Iraq, she said an Italian military mission tasked with protecting the Mosul dam would leave in the Spring. Italian firm Trevi has been awarded the contract to repair Iraq's biggest dam, whose risk of collapse has increased since it was seized by ISIS in 2014 and did not receive adequate maintenance. Separately, Pinotti said a decision to send 130 Italian soldiers to Iraq with personnel recovery duties was a response to requests for extra support from France after the attacks in Paris last year. (ANSA) - Rome, February 4 - Egyptian authorities have turned over the remains of slain Italian student Giulio Regeni to the Umberto I Italian Hospital in Cairo, sources said Thursday. It emerged earlier that Regeni, found dead with signs of torture in a Cairo ditch, freelanced with left-leaning daily il manifesto and used a pen name "because he feared for his safety," the paper told ANSA. He covered Egyptian trade unions in particular, the Rome daily said. Also on Thursday, one of Regenis' Egyptian friends told Egyptian paper Al Ahram that the post-doctoral student was seeking contacts with labor activists so he could interview them. "Security officers summoned me after Regeni disappeared (on January 25)," said the friend, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "They wanted to know about the purpose of his visit and of his studies". Italian Premier Matteo Renzi has told Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi that Regeni's body must be returned to his family as soon as possible, and that Italy must be granted "full access" to the investigation into what he called a "horrible murder". Renzi also called the student's parents, who live in the northern town of Fiumicello. A team of seven State, Carabinieri and Interpol officers is set to leave for Cairo on Friday to closely follow the investigation, government sources told ANSA late on Thursday. President Sergio Mattarella said he is "deeply disturbed" and called for the perpetrators of "this brutal crime" to be brought to justice. A Rome prosecutor has opened a murder probe against person or persons unknown in the death of Regeni, ordering police to carry out a preliminary investigation. The Egyptian foreign ministry summoned Italian Ambassador to Cairo Maurizio Massari in connection with "developments" in a probe into Regeni's, MENA news agency reported Thursday. Regeni, 28, was a Cambridge University doctoral student and a visiting scholar at the American University in Cairo (AUC). His body showed signs of cigarette burns, stab wounds, torture, and of having suffered a "slow death", the Associated Press quoted Egyptian prosecutors as saying. Also on Thursday, Egyptian prosecution sources said Regeni's remains had contusions around the eyes "as though he had been punched (as well as) signs of torture and wounds all over the body". An autopsy has been completed and a report will be sent to prosecutors at an unspecified date, prosecution sources said. Orders have been given to immediately question Regeni's friends as part of the investigation, the sources added. The prosecution statements appear to be at odds with those made earlier in the day by a senior Egyptian investigator, who ruled out foul play. "There is no suspicion of crime in the death of the young Italian Giulio Regeni," General Khaled Shalabi, the director of the Giza general investigations administration, was quoted as saying by the 'Youm7' website. "The body was found along the Cairo-Alessandria desert road". The site said Shalabi suggested Regeni may have been in a road accident, and that he denied the student had been "shot or stabbed". Egyptian human rights lawyer Mohamed Sobhy wrote on his Facebook page Wednesday night that the Egyptian interior ministry was refusing to let him view Regeni's body, which was at a mortuary in central Cairo and surrounded by "an impressive national security deployment". "We firmly request that Italian authorities collaborate in the investigation on the death of our countryman in Cairo because we want the truth to fully emerge," Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said on the sidelines of a Syria donors' conference in London. Gentiloni said he had conveyed this request earlier in the day to Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. "We owe this to the family, which has been stricken in an irreparable way," Gentiloni said. Meanwhile in Rome, Egyptian Ambassador Amr Mostafa Kamal Helmy "expressed profound condolences for the death of (Giulio) Regeni, on behalf of his country" after being summoned by the Italian foreign ministry, a statement said. The statement added that "Egypt will provide maximum cooperation to identify those responsible for this criminal act". Regeni's native town of Fiumicello in the northern Friuli Venezia Giulia region has proclaimed citywide mourning and canceled the feast of its patron saint on February 14. Flags on public buildings had black mourning ribbons. "It's as though one of our sons had died," said Mayor Ennio Scridel. "Anguish and condolences for the young interrupted life of Giulio Regeni," tweeted Friuli Venezia Giulia Governor Debora Serracchiani. "Now we ask for light to be shed on this terrible incident". Friends and relatives described Regenni as "the son everyone would want" and as a "determined but supportive" person who was "passionate about the Middle East". Regeni served as the youth mayor of Fiumicello between the ages of 12 and 14. He went on to schools in Trieste and in New Mexico in the United States, before starting university at Oxford and then Cambridge. He had been in Cairo since September, researching for a thesis on the local economy. He spoke Arabic and English fluently and had won two prizes in 2012 and 2013 in a competition organised by a research institute that focused on Middle Eastern studies. Despite being far from Fiumicello, his friends said he always maintained strong links with his home town. He enjoyed telling stories about his experiences when he came back to visit his mother Paola, father Claudio and sister Irene. Regeni went missing in Cairo on the evening of January 25, the day of demonstrations marking the fifth anniversary of the Egyptian uprising that toppled former dictator Hosni Mubarak. Italy's foreign ministry announced the disappearance, which it said took place under "mysterious" circumstances, on Sunday. On the day of the demonstrations, Egyptian authorities arrested about a dozen people in the country's capital. The Egyptian interior ministry revealed last week that of 191 disappearances listed by the country's National Council for Human Rights (NCHR), 99 occurred in custody. (ANSA) - Washington, February 4 - Italy this year is promoting cultural heritage protection in Washington D.C. as current rotating president of the European Union National Institutes for Culture (EUNIC). The EUNIC Protecting Our Heritage program - a network of national institutes for culture from EU member States - will be launched by the Italian Cultural Institute and is being inaugurated Thursday with an exhibition opening at the Italian embassy in the US capital. An exhibit titled Passages showcases photos by photographer and archaeologist Massimiliano Gatti exploring the history of ongoing conflicts in the Middle East. The show, which runs through March 15, will be introduced by Professor Jonathan Green, founding executive director of the ARTSblock cultural complex at the University of California, Riverside, and by Dr. Alexander Nagel, an archaeologist at the Smithsonian Institution, National Museum of Natural History. The program will continue throughout 2016 with conferences, seminars, exhibits, screenings and concerts organized in partnership with leading American and European cultural organizations. The initiative is sponsored by UNESCO and supported by the European Union's delegation to the US in Washington. It pursues two goals - raising public opinion awareness and boosting the network of international operators acting to protect cultural heritage from dangers ranging from terrorism and crime to climate change and oblivion. The program will remain open throughout 2016 to new input and projects from interested organizations. The themes already scheduled for debate have been presented in the form of open-ended questions. "The protection of the cultural heritage of humanity is a theme that is very dear to Italy around which we are registering great enthusiasm here in Washington as well," commented Ambassador Claudio Bisogniero. "We will use this occasion to give our contribution to a global cause, to help the international community forge a coalition based on its commitment - an imperative for all - to preserve our common memory at all cost," Bisogniero said. "We will do this through commemorative events, to remember the sacrifice of those who went as far as putting their lives in danger to protect art," continued the ambassador. He cited the so-called monuments men who helped recover artistic and cultural treasures during World War Two, the so-called mud angels who acted to save Florence's heritage during a catastrophic 1966 flood, and archaeologists working in crisis areas today. "Most of all, we will do it by trying to share experiences, catalyze energies and projects and explore new working methodologies together," he concluded. (ANSA) - Brussels, February 4 - The EU will back structural reforms in Italy without betraying the spirit of the Stability and Growth Pact, European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs Pierre Moscovici said Thursday. "Italy has received 0.4% of (budget) flexibility for important reforms, then asked for more flexibility for reforms and investments, then asked for more for migrants and. a few weeks ago, asked for a further margin of spending for anti-terrorism and culture spending," he said. Moscovici said there was "an open dialogue of quality" on all this and added "we will respond in May with a spirit of support for reforms but without contravening the spirit of the Pact". The commissioner also slammed Italian media depictions of him as "schizophrenic" in allegedly voicing differing opinions on Italy's flexibility demands. "I don't appear to suffer from this disease," he said. (by Stefania Fumo)(ANSA) - Rome, February 4 - Egyptian authorities have turned over the remains of slain Italian student Giulio Regeni to the Umberto I Italian Hospital in Cairo, sources said Thursday. It emerged earlier that Regeni, who was found dead with signs of torture in a Cairo ditch today, freelanced with left-leaning daily il manifesto. He covered Egyptian trade unions and used a pen name "because he feared for his safety" the Rome paper told ANSA. Also on Thursday, one of Regenis' Egyptian friends told Egyptian paper Al Ahram that the post-doctoral student was seeking contacts with labor activists so he could interview them. "Security officers summoned me after Regeni disappeared (on January 25)," said the friend, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "They wanted to know about the purpose of his visit and of his studies". Regeni, 28, was a Cambridge University doctoral student and a visiting scholar at the American University in Cairo (AUC). His body showed signs of cigarette burns, stab wounds, torture, and of having suffered a "slow death", the Associated Press quoted Egyptian prosecutors as saying. Egyptian prosecution sources said Regeni had contusions around the eyes "as though he had been punched (as well as) signs of torture and wounds all over the body". The Egyptian interior ministry revealed last week that of 191 disappearances listed by the country's National Council for Human Rights (NCHR), 99 occurred in custody. Egyptian human rights lawyer Mohamed Sobhy wrote on his Facebook page Wednesday night that the interior ministry was refusing him access to Regeni's body, which was at a mortuary in central Cairo and surrounded by "an impressive national security deployment". Regeni went missing in Cairo on the evening of January 25, the day of demonstrations marking the fifth anniversary of the Egyptian uprising that toppled former dictator Hosni Mubarak. On the day of the demonstrations, Egyptian authorities arrested about a dozen people in the country's capital. Italian Premier Matteo Renzi called Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to tell him that Regeni's body must be returned to his family as soon as possible, and that Italy must be granted "full access" to the investigation into what he called a "horrible murder". President Sergio Mattarella said he is "deeply disturbed" and called for the perpetrators of "this brutal crime" to be brought to justice. Al-Sisi reciprocated with another phone call, in which he said he has ordered his national prosecutor and interior ministry to "make every effort" to find out how Regeni died. A team of seven State, Carabinieri and Interpol officers is set to leave for Cairo on Friday to closely follow the investigation, government sources told ANSA late on Thursday. Meanwhile a Rome prosecutor has opened a murder probe against person or persons unknown in the death of Regeni. A senior Egyptian investigator had ruled out foul play earlier in the day, suggesting Regeni had been in a car crash. "There is no suspicion of crime in (Regeni's) death," General Khaled Shalabi, the director of the Giza general investigations administration, reportedly said. Back in Italy, Regeni's native town of Fiumicello in the northern Friuli Venezia Giulia region proclaimed citywide mourning, canceled a feast in honor of its patron saint on February 14, and placed black mourning ribbons on all its flags. "It's as though one of our sons had died," said Mayor Ennio Scridel. "Anguish and condolences for the young interrupted life of Giulio Regeni," tweeted Friuli Venezia Giulia Governor Debora Serracchiani. "We ask for light to be shed on this terrible incident". Friends and relatives described Regeni as "the son everyone would want" and as a "determined but supportive" person who was "passionate about the Middle East". Regeni served as the youth mayor of Fiumicello between the ages of 12 and 14. He went on to schools in Trieste and in New Mexico in the United States, before starting university at Oxford and then Cambridge. He had been in Cairo since September, researching for a thesis on the local economy. He spoke Arabic and English fluently and had won two prizes in 2012 and 2013 in a competition organised by a research institute that focused on Middle Eastern studies. Despite being far from Fiumicello, his friends said he always maintained strong links with his home town. He enjoyed telling stories about his experiences when he came back to visit his mother Paola, father Claudio and sister Irene. (ANSAmed) - ROME - Egyptian authorities have turned over the remains of slain Italian student Giulio Regeni to the Umberto I Italian Hospital in Cairo, sources said Thursday. It emerged earlier that Regeni, who was found dead with signs of torture in a Cairo ditch today, freelanced with left-leaning daily il manifesto. He covered Egyptian trade unions and used a pen name "because he feared for his safety" the Rome paper told ANSA. Also on Thursday, one of Regenis' Egyptian friends told Egyptian paper Al Ahram that the post-doctoral student was seeking contacts with labor activists so he could interview them. "Security officers summoned me after Regeni disappeared (on January 25)," said the friend, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "They wanted to know about the purpose of his visit and of his studies". Regeni, 28, was a Cambridge University doctoral student and a visiting scholar at the American University in Cairo (AUC). His body showed signs of cigarette burns, stab wounds, torture, and of having suffered a "slow death", the Associated Press quoted Egyptian prosecutors as saying. Egyptian prosecution sources said Regeni had contusions around the eyes "as though he had been punched (as well as) signs of torture and wounds all over the body". The Egyptian interior ministry revealed last week that of 191 disappearances listed by the country's National Council for Human Rights (NCHR), 99 occurred in custody. Egyptian human rights lawyer Mohamed Sobhy wrote on his Facebook page Wednesday night that the interior ministry was refusing him access to Regeni's body, which was at a mortuary in central Cairo and surrounded by "an impressive national security deployment". Regeni went missing in Cairo on the evening of January 25, the day of demonstrations marking the fifth anniversary of the Egyptian uprising that toppled former dictator Hosni Mubarak. On the day of the demonstrations, Egyptian authorities arrested about a dozen people in the country's capital. Italian Premier Matteo Renzi called Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to tell him that Regeni's body must be returned to his family as soon as possible, and that Italy must be granted "full access" to the investigation into what he called a "horrible murder". President Sergio Mattarella said he is "deeply disturbed" and called for the perpetrators of "this brutal crime" to be brought to justice. Al-Sisi reciprocated with another phone call, in which he said he has ordered his national prosecutor and interior ministry to "make every effort" to find out how Regeni died. A team of seven State, Carabinieri and Interpol officers is set to leave for Cairo on Friday to closely follow the investigation, government sources told ANSA late on Thursday. Meanwhile a Rome prosecutor has opened a murder probe against person or persons unknown in the death of Regeni. A senior Egyptian investigator had ruled out foul play earlier in the day, suggesting Regeni had been in a car crash. "There is no suspicion of crime in (Regeni's) death," General Khaled Shalabi, the director of the Giza general investigations administration, reportedly said. Back in Italy, Regeni's native town of Fiumicello in the northern Friuli Venezia Giulia region proclaimed citywide mourning, canceled a feast in honor of its patron saint on February 14, and placed black mourning ribbons on all its flags. "It's as though one of our sons had died," said Mayor Ennio Scridel. "Anguish and condolences for the young interrupted life of Giulio Regeni," tweeted Friuli Venezia Giulia Governor Debora Serracchiani. "We ask for light to be shed on this terrible incident". Friends and relatives described Regeni as "the son everyone would want" and as a "determined but supportive" person who was "passionate about the Middle East". Regeni served as the youth mayor of Fiumicello between the ages of 12 and 14. He went on to schools in Trieste and in New Mexico in the United States, before starting university at Oxford and then Cambridge. He had been in Cairo since September, researching for a thesis on the local economy. He spoke Arabic and English fluently and had won two prizes in 2012 and 2013 in a competition organised by a research institute that focused on Middle Eastern studies. Despite being far from Fiumicello, his friends said he always maintained strong links with his home town. He enjoyed telling stories about his experiences when he came back to visit his mother Paola, father Claudio and sister Irene. ROME - Greece is paralyzed by a general strike called by the largest private and public sector unions against a pension reform proposed by the Tsipras government. Many categories are protesting against a hike in social security payments and taxes, which will affect 75-80% of these categories' salaries, according to unions. Public transportation stopped working on Thursday both in city and in outer areas while members of unions representing professionals, artisans and retailers (Gsevee) will also strike. The Confederation of trade and enterprise (Esee) is also adhering to the protest. Lawyers, notaries, truck drivers, gas station attendants, doctors and pharmacists are among those expected to demonstrate. Maritime transport workers will strike for 48 hours until Saturday morning. LONDON - Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni announced at the conference of donors for Syria on Thursday that Italy will contribute "$400 million over the next three years". Gentiloni said in London that 150 million of the money will be donations, another 200 million will come in the form of "soft loans" and 50 million will be debt write-offs, above all to Jordan and Lebanon, which have both been inundated with refugees due to the Syrian conflict. Gentiloni said the donated cash would go to humanitarian aid to meet immediate needs and that just under $150 million of the money will be allocated this year. "The size of this pledge for Italy is extraordinary," Gentiloni said. Just after the recent Paris climate talks pinpointed tropical forests as a key weapon against global warming, a new study has found that direct engagement with local peoples in these territories and recognition of their land rights is more successful at preserving land than attempting to buy them off. Given that forests act as a carbon sink, governments and investors alike have pledged to protect these habitats in an effort to reduce net carbon emissions by conserving forests within their borders or by investing or donating resources to developing nations to do so. While the typical strategy has been to cordon off a natural area, often displacing or severely restricting the rights of local peoples living there, experts have found that engaging those communities makes more fiscal sense and is often more successful in protecting the land. Conventional thinking is, pay them off and theyll move, said Andy White, coordinator for the Rights and Resources Initiative (RRI), a nonprofit organization that works for policy reform related to forests. RRI on Wednesday released a report saying that investors cannot buy their way out of direct engagement with local peoples. This research finds that its really difficult and expensive to do that, so it calls for an approach where investors see the local community as parties to the deal who they have to deal with directly they have to work with the locals, White said. RRI analyzed over 400 cases of conflict related to mining, energy, agriculture and forestry. Researchers wanted to find out at what point in the investment cycle the conflicts occurred, and what was caused them. They found that the vast majority of the conflicts involved the local populations of minorities or indigenous peoples living in areas in which proposed projects would take place. In the forestry sector alone, 90 percent of the conflicts involved minorities and indigenous peoples living in those areas. Another surprising finding was that such conflicts were rarely about compensation, White said. Instead, RRI found that local communities are often concerned with their rights to the land, and resources such as water. The communitys role in the decision-making process is also a concern. Not only is it more expensive to kick people off of their traditional land, but local communities typically do a better job of preserving the land, White said. There is mounting evidence in recent years of how effective indigenous people are in protecting forests, White said. But until now there hasnt been both tools and data to assess the trade offs and costs thats whats unique about our study. In the report, White and other experts looked at Liberia and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Both countries made commitments in Paris to increase their forest areas Liberia by 30 percent and DRC by 17 percent. RRI looked at where traditional communities were located in both countries, and where the proposed protected areas were. It then looked at new data on the cost of displacing those people. There are two ways, White said, to displace local peoples: economically, by putting restrictions on what people can hunt or use from the forest, and full physical displacement, in which people are resettled. RRI found that in Liberia, the government of Norway had pledged up to $150 million to implement their strategy of converting protected areas in the name of conservation. In the process, however, people were displaced either through reduction in rights or full physical displacement. Our findings show the costs of compensating the people in those areas would be four to six times the total investment from Norway, White said. Then if you roll the film forward to keep the park alive, you have to pay for guards. And there, again, using the data available showing how much it costs to maintain parks, it costs at least $100 million over the next 20 years. It becomes an unfunded liability to the government, he said. Governments and investors seeking to meet their commitments to the climate by preserving forests can use this new body of tools to see what the best approach is for them, White said. RRI and TMP, a private company that develops economic and technological systems that improve the efficiency and impact of aid and philanthropic spending, have created two free, open-source tools IAN: Risk and IAN: Diligence to provide investors and risk analysts with reliable means of identifying risk and responding to the risk of disputes with local communities. We have the tools and data to help implement policies on both the public and private side to achieve the goals, White said. I think the climate community can finally recognize that securing indigenous peoples forest rights is a key climate strategy to reduce emissions. World pledges 10 bln dollars in aid as Syrian war rages on Russia accused of escalation, claims Turkey 'ready to invade' (ANSAmed) - LONDON, FEBRUARY 4 - Some 10 billion dollars were on Thursday pledged at a donors conference to help the millions of refugees and IDPs in Syria, torn apart by 5 years of war. However, on the ground the conflict that has killed over 250,000 people continues unabated, amid geopolitical interests and mutual recriminations. The fourth donors conference in London has resulted in generous pledges from 60 countries to NGOs such as Oxfam, Amnesty International and the Malala Foundation. A total of over 10 billion dollars has been promised, compared with an expected 9 million and double what was pledged a year ago (though only partially paid) in Kuwait. But there is a new stalemate in peace talks that began on Wednesday in Geneva and immediately postponed until February 25 by UN envoy Staffan De Mistura due to disagreements between the Syrian regime and representatives of the Syrian opposition and rebel forces, amid accusations and counter-accusations between Russia and Iran on one side and Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar, the US and Western nations on the other. Meanwhile, Syrian president Bashar Al-Assad's troops and allied militias are advancing towards Aleppo thanks to decisive Russian air support. US Secretary of State John Kerry has called for a halt to MiG and Sukhoi airstrikes but has not interrupted dialogue with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, in seeking an agreement for joint aid management and possibly ''humanitarian corridors''. Italian foreign minister Paolo Gentiloni has urged Moscow to be ''more constructive'', but called on ''all parties involved'' to do the same. The true clash is still between Moscow and Ankara, with Turkey accusing Russia of forcing 70,000 more Syrian civilians to flee the country. The Kremlin has replied that Turkey is conducting military maneuvers along the border and wants to take advantage of the situation to plan an ''invasion'' to counter Kurdish groups that have fought against the Islamic State (ISIS) but were excluded from the Geneva peace talks. (ANSAmed). Thousands striking against Greek pension reform Protests and clashes between police and anarchists in Athens (by Patrizio Nissirio) (ANSAmed) - ROME, FEBRUARY 4 - Thousands of people took to the streets of Athens and other Greek cities Thursday during a nationwide strike and protests against pension system reform announced by the Tsipras government. The government is experiencing problems amid arduous talks with international creditors, who are demanding that Athens abide by its pledges for savings targets, while large parts of the labor sector rail against the reform. Called by the public sector union ADEDY and its private sector counterpart GSEE, as well as the communist trade union PMAE, the strike included employees, freelance professionals, farmers, taxi drivers and gas station owners, as well as others. According to the police in Athens - where there were clashes with the throwing of stones and incendiary bombs by anarchist groups in several areas of the center, to which police responded by using tear gas - about 15,000 people took to the streets with the unions and headed towards Syntagma Square, where the parliament is located. Another 5,000 people organized by far-left groups marched from the archaeological museum in the same direction. Several incidents occurred along the procession, resulting in the arrest of two individuals. A farmers' banner was raised above the Acropolis for a few minutes around noon, and thousands of people demonstrated in Salonika. Shortly before the first clashes, a journalist from the Athina radio station, Dimitris Perros, was attacked by men with their faces covered. He suffered head injuries and was taken to hospital. Many parts of the labor market are protesting an increase in contributions that the government has proposed, which unions say that alongside an increase in taxes will end up taking away 75-80% of the income of these categories. This proposed contributive increase is opposed by Greece's international creditors as well, who say that more pension cuts and a rise in taxes on the highest income brackets would be preferable. The Tsipras government will have to find a middle ground and avoid surprises in parliament, where it holds only a slim majority. Public transport was on strike on Thursday, as was the union of professionals, craftsmen and merchants (GSEVEE), and the Trade and Enterprise Confederation. Taking to the streets were also lawyers, notaries, lorry drivers, gas station owners, doctors and pharmacists. Maritime transport workers will instead be on strike for 48 hours, until Saturday morning. (ANSAmed). (ANSAmed) - Rome, February 4 - Egyptian Ambassador Amr Mostafa Kamal Helmy "expressed in the name of his country profound condolences for the death of (Giulio) Regeni" after being summoned by the Italian foreign ministry, a statement said. The statement added that "Egypt will provide maximum cooperation to identify those responsible for this criminal act". Local media had reported that an Egyptian investigator had ruled out foul play in the case. Earlier, a senior Egyptian investigator has ruled out foul play in the death of Giulio Regeni, an Italian student who has been found dead after going missing in Cairo last month. "There is no suspicion of crime in the death of the young Italian Giulio Regeni," General Khaled Shalabi, the director of the Giza general investigations administration, was quoted as saying by the 'Youm7' website. "The body was found along the Cairo-Alessandria desert road". The site said Shalabi talked about the possibility of Regeni being involved in a road accident. It also quoted him as denyingh that the student had been "hit by shots from a fire arm or stabbed". Mideast: Jerusalem attack, arrests by army in West Bank Attackers' village shut down (ANSAmed) - TEL AVIV, FEBRUARY 4 - Israeli security forces last night carried out a round of arrests in the village of Kabatiya, near Jenin, from which came three Palestinians who on Wednesday carried out an attack with automatic weapons, knives and explosives at Jerusalem's Damascus gate, killing an Israeli policewoman and wounding two other officers. The army also blocked all access to the village and is preparing to blow up the homes of the attackers. Clashes between the army and demonstrators were registered neat the village. According to Israeli media, protesters threw stones, wounding three soldiers. The Palestinian agency quoted a PLO source as saying that four-five demonstrators were wounded in the clashes.(ANSAmed). Missing Italian found dead in Egypt, signs of 'torture' FM Gentiloni, joint investigation to find the truth (ANSA) - Cairo, February 4 - The body of Giulio Regeni, an Italian student who went missing in Cairo on January 25, has been found dead in ditch, sources said. The body of Giulio Regeni showed signs of cigarette burns, stab wounds, torture and of having suffered a "slow death", the Association Press quoted Egyptian prosecutors as saying. The foreign ministry in Rome said Thursday that Egyptian Ambassador Amr Mostafa Kamal Helmy had been urgently summoned so that Italian government could express its "dismay... at the tragic death of the young Giulio Regeni in Cairo". Helmy "expressed in the name of his country profound condolences for the death of (Giulio) Regeni" after being summoned by the Italian foreign ministry, a statement said. The statement added that "Egypt will provide maximum cooperation to identify those responsible for this criminal act". Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni said Thursday Italy wanted a joint investigation with Egypt to establish the truth about the death of Giulio Regeni, a 28-year-old doctoral student in Arabic at Cairo university. "We firmly ask Egypt that Italian authorities collaborate in the investigation on the death of our countryman in Cairo because we want the truth to fully emerge," Gentiloni said on the sidelines of a Syria donors' conference in London. Gentiloni said he had conveyed this earlier Thursday to Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry. "We owe this in particular to the family that has been stricken in an irreparable way but which at least demands to know the truth," Gentiloni said. Local media had reported that an Egyptian investigator had ruled out foul play in the case. "There is no suspicion of crime in the death of the young Italian Giulio Regeni," General Khaled Shalabi, the director of the Giza general investigations administration, was quoted as saying by the 'Youm7' website. "The body was found along the Cairo-Alessandria desert road". The site said Shalabi talked about the possibility of Regeni being involved in a road accident. It also quoted him as denyingh that the student had been "hit by shots from a fire arm or stabbed". (ANSAmed) - ISTANBUL - Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said Thursday that 10,000 Syrian refugees were waiting to cross into Turkey from Syria at the Bab Al-Salam border crossing near Kilis. Turkey has accepted over 6,000 refugees fleeing intense bombing by Russian and Syrian regime forces under Bashar Al-Assad since last weekend. Davutoglu said that another 70,000 people that had been staying in internally displaced persons (IDP) camps north of Aleppo were heading towards the border. ''My mind is not in London right now. It is at our border, and on where we can put these people coming from Syria,'' he said in taking part at the Donors Conference that began on Thursday in the British capital. The Turkish prime minister added that ''300,000 people living in Aleppo are ready to go towards Turkey'', and that to meet the needs of all the 2.5 million Syrian refugees already staying in the country there would be a need for another 20 billion dollars in addition to the over 10 billion that Ankara says it has already spent. Davutoglu accused the Assad regime of causing a halt to talks in Geneva intended to further peace efforts for the country in conflict through ''unrelenting bombing of hospitals and schools in Aleppo and Latakia''. A similar accusation had been made shortly before against Russia by Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The migrant crisis, which represents a true "test for the values" of Europe, is worsening and Italy and Greece will have to deal over the coming weeks with the arrival of thousands of people, the European commissioner for migration, home affairs and citizenship, Dimitris Avramopoulos, said Thursday. He added that the Schengen treaty is "under pressure" and will be saved by "implementing the rules". Hotspots must be created as soon as possible, all registrations must be carried out and all countries need to carry out checks, the EU commissioner told Italian state broadcaster RAI's Radio Anch'io program. Italy and Greece, whose citizens are helping migrants with humanity and solidarity, must not be left alone, he then noted, adding that, on the other han, he is counting on Italy to boost external border checks. (ANSAmed). ANSAmed - Today's events in the Mediterranean (ANSAmed) - ROME, FEBRUARY 4 - The following are the main events scheduled in the Euro-Mediterranean area for today: LONDON - Conference on the Syria humanitarian crisis with Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Federica Mogherini. ATHENS - General strike called by the main trade unions to protest against the pension reform. TUNIS - The first edition of the film festival "Premiers Gestes. Jeune cinema de Mediterranee", continues (to february 10). (ANSAmed). Libya actions to be agreed with neighbors, Tunisia president 'Take interests and stability into consideration' (ANSAmed) - TUNIS, FEBRUARY 4 - Prior to planning any foreign intervention in Libya, it is necessary to ''take into consideration the interests of neighboring countries and especially Tunisia'', Tunisian president Beji Caid Essebsi said Thursday. The remark came during a meeting with diplomatic missions and international organizations accredited in Tunis. President Essebsi underscored the repercussions of the Libyan conflict on Tunisia's security and stability, expressing his confidence in Libyans' ability to deal with internal divergences without foreign interference. The head of state called on the international community to help Libyans achieve ''full reconciliation'' to conclude the political transition process and to begin to rebuild for a ''better future for Libya and the region in general''. ''It is in the interests of Tunisia, the region and the world,'' he concluded, ''that Libya be united and stable''. (ANSAmed). Sanchez tries to form 'impossible' government Amid Podemos diktats and crossed vetoes, a month for 'miracle' (by Francesco Cerri) (ANSAmed) - MADRID, FEBRUARY 4 - It is an almost impossible mission the one entrusted Tuesday night by King Felipe of Spain to Socialist leader Pedro Sanchez: trying to form a new government and obtain a vote of confidence in parliament, which came out unmanageable following national elections last December 20. "Sanchez is jumping into the void", warned Abc while El Mundo spoke about "desperate" negotiations by the Psoe leader who is "looking for the impossible". Sanchez now has a month to invent a magic formula enabling him to obtain parliament's confidence and become premier, thus avoiding a probable ouster by part of the socialist 'barons' after the worst performance of the Psoe in history at political elections in December. Socialist lawmakers in Congress are 90 out of 350 against 123 of the Pp, 69 from Podemos and its allies from Catalonia, Galicia and Valencia, 40 from Ciudadanos, two from Izquierda Unida (lu). The other seats go to Catalan separatists (19) and Basque nationalists (Pnv, 6) and the Canaries (Cc, 1). King Felipe has charged Sanchez with attempting to form a government after the tactical step backwards of outgoing premier Mariano Rajoy, who came in first but is at the moment without allies. The Pp leader, who is suggesting a Gran Coalicion with the Psoe and Ciudadanos, hopes Sanchez will fail as candidate premier. The Socialist leader is aiming for a government of 'change', with Podemos and Ciudadanos, but leaders Pablo Iglesias and Albert Rivera have ruled out taking power together, saying they are ''incompatible''. The Pp of Rajoy for its part has decided to abstain to enable the appointment of a minority government led by Sanchez. The 'barons' of the Psoe, who are wary of a pact with Iglesias, who is demanding among other things a referendum on Catalonia's self-determination and a federal Spain, have told the leader he must not negotiate with separatists. But without their abstention Sanchez cannot reach the government. The Psoe leader - who has started contacts with leaders from other parties - would prefer a Portuguese-style system, or a minority Socialist government backed from the outside by Podemos, Iu and Pnv. Pr a 'moderate' reformist coalition with Ciudadanos with the external backing of Podemos. The post-Indignado party, which wants to raise to power and is asking for six ministers and the post of deputy premier for Iglesias, has ruled this out categorically. It is instead aiming for early elections in May-June. Iglesias has raised his voice with Sanchez, accusing him of ''hypocrisy'' for ''having tried to sell an impossible government accord with Podemos and Ciudadanos''. The only strategy that can be followed but is frail is a minority coalition between the Psoe, Podemos, lu and the Basques from Pnv (167 seats) which could be appointed with the abstention of separatists - who oppose rajoy - and a no vote from the Pp and Ciudadanos (163). If Sanchez will not make it by the beginning of March, Felipe VI and perhaps Rajoy will have once again a say in the matter. But it is much more likely that Spain, still without a government, will vote again. (ANSAmed). LONDON - The refugee emergency and Syria's chances to recover from a devastating civil war that shows no sign of ending and has already caused 250,00 victims and millions of displaced and refugees, are the issues at the center of the fourth Syria donors conference that kicked off Thursday morning in London with a working coalition restricted to leaders of some of the delegations of the 70 countries involved. The commitment announced is to multiply funding pledged at a previous conference in Kuwait - partly disregarded - to reach a total of nine billion dollars (8.3 billion euros). The event will be chaired by Great Britain and Germany - David Cameron and Angela Merkel will attend - together with Norway, Kuwait and the UN. The US delegation is led by Secretary of State John Kerry, while the EU is represented by European Council President Donald Tusk and the Italian delegation by Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni. The donors' conference takes place amid stalling peace talks in Geneva. Negotiations started yesterday but were immediately suspended by UN envoy, Staffan De Mistura, due to disagreements between the government of Damascus and representatives of part of the Syrian opposition and rebel militias. Such disagreements are reflected in recriminations between their respective 'patrons' (Russia and Iran one one side; Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar, alongside the US and western countries on the other), while on the background Bashar al-Assad's forces remain on the offensive and appear to be making progress in the area of Aleppo thanks to the key aerial support provided by Moscow. In London meanwhile aid to refugees is under discussion (over four million are outside the country, mostly in Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey), in particular tochildren: the UN has called for emergency intervention to guarantee, among other things, their education in order to prevent them from becoming a ''lost generation''. Among single donors, Tusk has already said that the EU will be pledging 2 billion euros (against the 1.1 promised in Kuwait in 2015) and Cameron has spoken about an additional 1.2 billion pounds from Great Britain, as guest country, stressing how supporting refugees vies to limit the flow of immigrants towards Europe. In order to prompt the generosity of official delegations, 90 humanitarian organizations gathered in London yesterday, including Oxfam and the Malala Foundation. Jan Egeland, from the Norwegian Refugee Council, noted on the sidelines of the initiative how only the end of fighting and a negotiated political solution will end the suffering of common Syrians. Meanwhile, it is ''imperative to invest in hope, education and in the improvement of living conditions of civilians to prepare the way for a more stable future''. The outbreak of the Zika virus across Central and South America, a pandemic that has been linked to birth defects and has triggered warnings in some countries against getting pregnant, has taken a new and more complicated turn. Public health officials had earlier said certain mosquitos transmit the virus, which can cause fever, rash, joint pain and conjunctivitis. But after local officials in Dallas reported Tuesday that a patient there had contracted Zika possibly through sexual contact with someone who had traveled to Venezuela, and not from a mosquito bite the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said it would reissue guidance within the next few days on how to avoid transmission. The CDC confirmed that the Texas case was the first in the continental United States to involve an infection contracted by someone who hadnt traveled abroad. Officials are investigating ways in which the virus may be transmitted through blood or semen, and are warning men and pregnant women who have traveled to affected areas to use condoms when having sex. Now that we know Zika virus can be transmitted through sex, this increases our awareness campaign in educating the public about protecting themselves and others, Zachary Thompson, director of Dallas County Health and Human Services, said in a news release. Next to abstinence, condoms are the best prevention method against any sexually transmitted infections. The Dallas patient, who has remained anonymous, does not appear to be the first person to have caught Zika virus through sexual transmission. During a 2013 outbreak of the virus in French Polynesia, the CDC identified a man in Tahiti (PDF) who had detectable levels of Zika virus in his semen and urine but not his blood, signifying sexual transmission. In another incident, Brian Foy, a microbiology and immunology professor at Colorado State University, contracted Zika in 2008 while conducting field research on malaria in Senegal, as did a fellow scientist. Foy reported that theyd both been bitten by Aedes albopictus mosquitoes, which are known to carry Zika. Within a week of returning to Colorado, both scientists became ill with extreme fatigue, headache and a rash. Foys wife who had never been to Africa and hadn't left the U.S. in the previous year developed similar symptoms days later. A colleague tested their blood and confirmed that all three had Zika, Foy and his fellow scientists wrote in a research paper published in the journal Emerging Infections Diseases in 2011. Though neither scientist had his sperm tested, circumstantial evidence suggests direct person-to-person, possibly sexual, transmission of the virus, the authors wrote. It is reasonable to suspect that infected semen may have passed from [Foy] to [Foys wife]" during sex, the authors wrote. Another possibility is that direct contact and exchange of other bodily fluids, such as saliva, could have resulted in [Zika] transmission. None of the couples four children developed the same symptoms. Public health experts say the possibility of sexual transmission of Zika calls for even more caution among pregnant women, who should protect themselves from mosquitoes and be careful about having sex with partners who may have been exposed to the virus. Because of rapidly changing knowledge, advice about protecting against Zika may well change over time as more is learned, Dr. Jesse Goodman, a professor of medicine and infectious diseases at Georgetown University, said in a statement. The Zika case in Dallas, he added, emphasizes the importance of better understanding the spread and transmission of Zika, and its potential health risks. It also reinforces the critical importance of working in collaboration globally both to control the mosquitos that transmit the disease and, longer term, to develop a safe and effective vaccine. The American Red Cross on Wednesday said it would ask blood donors who have traveled to Mexico, the Caribbean or Central or South America within the last month not to donate blood as health officials continue to monitor the spread of Zika. It added the caveat that the risk of contracting Zika by blood transfusion in the continental U.S. is believed to be extremely low due to the absence of local mosquito transmission. Syria: Erdogan, no peace if Russia continues to kill 'Attempts like the one in Geneva are only useful to Assad' (ANSAmed) - ISTANBUL, FEBRUARY 4 - ''Russia is continuing to kill people in Syria'', Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said during a visit to Peru. ''Could there be peace talks? In a context where children are still killed, such attempts have no other role than making things easier for the tyrant'', said Erdogan, who is touring South America, commenting talks on Syria in Geneva, suspended yesterday the UN special envoy, staffan de Mistura. Erdogan expressed doubts also on the real possibility that negotiations will resume: ''Each time they meet, they eat, drink and then leave. They now have an appointment at the end of February. You will see, as soon as February 28 comes, they will postpone again''. (ANSAmed) The INTACT and Antena 3 premises already belong to the Romanian state, said journalist Alessandra Stoicescu Tuesday, seeking to clarify information published in recent days by "pro Basescu media". "The two buildings are owned by the Romanian state, tabulated, with registration in the land register, they are not our property," said Alessandra Stoicescu Tuesday during the 100 minutes show on Antena 3. The pro Basescu media suggest we are paying rent to ourselves and we oppose the state taking over the buildings. (...) They have been in the states possession for a year and a half, Alessandra Stoicescu specified. Related to the false information in the press regarding the office rent destination where Antena 3 other Intact Media Group Tv outlets operate, we would like to make the following clarifications: 1. Following the Criminal Sentence no. 888 / A / 08.08.2014 and the subsequent decisions, several buildings, including the headquarters of Antena 3 have been passed into the states ownership and tabulated as such starting on 10.23.2014 (as shown in the attached document 2. No member of the Voiculescu family nor any company that Voiculescu family members own is not receiving rent from Antena 3 television channel nor from any other media or entity of the group. Moreover, Antena 3 and other media companies in the group have taken steps to conclude with the Government the rental documents for the building in the Bucharest-Ploiesti 25-27 and for the building in Garlei street no. 1B. 3. We would like to remind that, though it is known to anyone who has read in good faith the documents filed with the court ruling the judgment that Antena 3 headquarters located in Bucharest-Ploiesti nr. 25-27 has nothing to do with the ICA file. It was abusively included in the list of confiscated buildings. It was never the property of the Institute of Food Research, it was bought from CCAI 5 years after the ICA privatization. 4. It is quite surprising that these calumniating authors do not consider even expert opinions cited by them and which states that "Antena 3 is entitled to the damages claimed." Any other claims and comments that do not take into account the evidence presented prove the bad faith they act with. Over the last decade, APEC economies have been hard hit by global warming, losing $100 billion annually from disasters that are increasing in frequency and intensity due to climate change. That is why it is especially urgent that the region delivers on its green initiatives. How APEC Reconciles Trade and Climate Policies By Dr Alan Bollard Originally published in Foreign Affairs online https://www.foreignaffairs.com/ on 1 February 2016 and viewable directly at this link. Now that the dust has settled from the December Paris climate talks, where 195 governments agreed on a landmark plan for addressing global warming, the focus is shifting to the complex work of implementing those commitments. One concern is that the initiatives to fight climate change could negatively affect efforts to boost trade and economic growth, or vice versa. Although not without trade-offs, advancing these priorities can (and must), in fact, go hand-in-hand. This is particularly true when looking back at 2015: It was one of the hottest years in recorded history and it was shaken by uncertainty in the world economy, which continues today. These events speak to the need to press ahead with viable, complementary solutions. Out of all the groups working toward the goal of finding environmentally sound trade solutions is the 21-member Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). Collectively, these economies are home to three billion people and account for half of global trade, 60 percent of the worlds GDP, and 60 percent of the worlds energy consumption. According to the World Resources Institute, APEC also includes seven of the top ten greenhouse gas emitters, which together produce around 70 percent of the worlds total greenhouse gas emissions. Over the last decade, APEC economies have been hard hit by global warming, losing $100 billion annually from disasters that are increasing in frequency and intensity due to climate change. That is why it is especially urgent that the region delivers on its green initiatives. The regions economic development and the rise of a middle class have created an opening for APEC economiesboth developed and developingto proceed. For one, APEC members are working to open up the regions trade flows in order to facilitate the exchange of renewable and energy efficient technologies. APEC has committed to reducing tariffs on 54 environmental goodssuch as solar panels, wind turbines, and air pollution control equipmentto five percent or less. This is the first multilateral tariff-reduction arrangement in two decades, and all 21 APEC economies have submitted plans for implementation. When this landmark initiative is completed, it will help to lower the cost of green goods for consumers and, along with APECs efforts to support service providers that utilize clean technologies, better position the region to meet its target of doubling renewable energy by 2030 and reducing energy intensity (a measure of energy efficiency) by 45 percent by 2035. The tariff reductions on APECs environmental goods will also promote trade, worth around $300 billion within the region and $500 billion worldwide, as well as unlock new sources of economic growth. In fact, the market for environmental goods and services is rapidly expanding and is expected to double to $2 trillion within five years. Wealthy economies are not the only ones poised to reap the benefits. Developing economies are also playing a greater role in the production and trade of green technologies. For example, according to the International Trade Centre, the Philippines increased its photovoltaic cell-related exports exponentially over the last decade by getting involved in parts of the manufacturing process. For APEC economies to fully capitalize on these developments, however, they must promote an innovation-friendly environment. This involves resolving emerging trade and investment issues, such as promoting equal network access, securing data flows, and protecting intellectual property. All these efforts need to be coupled with support for the right infrastructure for green technologies, particularly within fast-growing urban areas, which put out up to 75 percent of emissions in Asia, according to the Asian Development Bank. APEC is currently working to facilitate publicprivate financing to bridge the regions $8 trillion infrastructure investment gap. Member economies have already begun laying the technical groundwork for new projects through a smart energy communities initiative. Launched in 2010 under Japans APEC chairmanship, the initiative is now promoting more efficient and resilient energy infrastructure, greater integration of renewable energy (including cutting edge fuel-cell technology), the large-scale adoption of electric vehicles, and the adoption of energy-saving windows and heat-deflecting building materials. This work is building the expertise needed to move these innovations forward. It is based on the lessons of successful case studies, such as one in Hawaii, the United States most petroleum-dependent state. Hawaii is advancing smart grid policies and technologies and by 2025, aims to generate 32.5 percent of its electricity through renewable sources. It is also the first U.S. state to set a 100 percent renewable energies goal, which it hopes to achieve by 2045. Another example is the no car day campaign in Seoul, which offers incentives like discounted fuel and free car washes when people choose to take public transportation rather than drive their cars. It has garnered a 30 percent participation rate, reduced the citys traffic volume by seven percent, cut emissions by 12 percent, and saved $600 million in fuel costs annually. To ensure that there is an adequate labor force to implement measures such as these, and to take advantage of the new economic opportunities they bring, APEC governments are deepening their cooperation with the private sector. For example, APEC members are working with the regions business community to create training and certification programs for designers and installers of solar photovoltaic rooftop systems. They are also establishing a network of clean transport and supply chain support centers and are sharing guidelines on how to cultivate low-impact tourism. For these green technologies and approaches to have a significant impact in curbing emissions and global warming, there is still the matter of integrating them on a regional scale. APEC has also sought to tackle this issue. In 2010, energy ministers launched a task force to identify and support cities that were incorporating low carbon measures into their urban planning. These cities would serve as a real-world testing ground for green development. In Danang, Vietnam, for example, APEC developed and funded a low carbon feasibility study in order to offer technical guidance to city planners as they roll out green measures such as an innovative electric bike and charging system and the use of kitchen waste to generate power, among others. This is not only good for the environment, but will also help Vietnams third largest city meet the growing demands of tourism and rapid urbanization. Other participants in what is known as the APEC Low Carbon Model Town program are piloting similar measures. And so far, the results are encouraging. An APEC study has found that San Borja, Peruone of the most recent participants to pursue new smart energy measuresmay exceed its targeted 15 percent emissions reduction by 2021. Its success provides a framework that can be duplicated across the 42 municipalities within Lima Province, home to nearly ten million people. The development of green transport, buildings, power grids, and jobs across the growing network of APEC Low Carbon Model Townsincluding Bitung, Indonesia; Mandaue City, the Philippines; Samui Island, Thailand; and Tianjin, Chinademonstrates that building both economically thriving and clean, low carbon societies is possible throughout the Asia Pacific. Of course, there is still a lot of work to be done. Challenges include rooting out inefficient subsidies for fossil fuels, which promote wasteful consumption and put green alternatives at a disadvantage. The region is also coming to grips with the need to stop the rampant exploitation of forests and the corruption that undermines environmental protection policies. But so far, APECs diverse members have managed to position themselves to take the next steps. If APEC succeeds in achieving its agenda, it will set an unprecedented example of how environmentally beneficial policies need not come at the expense of trade and development. The Airbus subsidiary signed an exclusive agreement with Dedienne at the MRO Middle East event in Dubai today. Satair will also be promoting and selling the Dedienne equipment in southern Central Asia as part of the five-year deal signed today. Zaher Elsahili, Dediennes Dubai-based general manager said: Our commitment to our customers is to deliver high-quality products, as well as premium service and high reactivity. With a strong partner in Satair Group we ensure that our GSE tooling will benefit from excellent marketing, commercial strategies with proven solutions such as full service distribution and integrated purchasing program. Customers will be the first to benefit from a partnership that we are very pleased to start and we believe that it will be a great success. DONE DEAL: Dediennes Zaher Elsahili (left) and Satairs managing director Terry Stone sign at todays event. Thomas, the first general manager for the United States in the airlines history, will be based in New York where he will be responsible for all commercial activity for Etihad Airways, as well as further growing the airlines relationships with trade and corporate partners with immediate effect. Thomas will report to Martin Drew, Senior Vice President of The Americas for Etihad Airways. Drew said the following of Thomas appointment: With the arrival of Etihad Airways Flying Reimagined A380 service, the opening of our new First and Business Class Lounge at New Yorks John F. Kennedy Airport, and strong demand for our services, 2015 has been a phenomenal year for our U.S. operations. Craigs extensive experience with Etihad Airways has given him extensive global knowledge of commercial management and he will play a critical role in ensuring the continued growth and success of our world-class offerings in the United States. Thomas most recently served as Etihad Airways general manager for Canada, based in Toronto. Previously, he served as Regional General Manager - Asia Pacific North and the Indian Subcontinent, and was based in Bangkok. He joined Etihad Airways in 2005 as the Sales and Marketing Manager - Southern Africa and later served as the airlines General Manager Thailand and State Manager of Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia. Prior to joining Etihad Airways, Thomas held various management roles in airport operations at Virgin Atlantic and served as Corporate Travel Manager at De Beers. Thomas new position will help the airline continue to grow its commercial partnerships and deliver the highest standards of service excellence to its guests as the company continues to deepen its footprint in the U.S. I am excited to take on this new role and continue my service with Etihad Airways in one of the airlines most dynamic and successful markets, said Thomas. I look forward to working with the team to find new and innovative ways of expanding and strengthening our strategic corporate and trade partnerships, strengthening our commercial ties and providing the world-class service, comfort, and hospitality that our airline has become known for and our valued guests have come to rely upon. The forecast has come from aviation & aerospace consultancy ICF International at the MRO Middle East conference in Dubai. Addressing the conference, Richard Brown, Principal of ICFs Aerospace & MRO Advisory said Middle East based operators currently spend around US $5 billion on their MRO needs, representing 8% of global demand. While global MRO demand is expected to grow by 4.1% per annum to reach US $96 billion, the Middle East market will significantly outstrip the worldwide average. Brown predicted the strongest demand drivers would be engine and component markets while airframe maintenance would be characterised by reduced labour intensity of checks and increasing intervals. Within the Middle East, Brown said the regions robust widebody fleet will be the leading driver of MRO spend over the coming decade. Annual regional demand growth from turbo-props would be just 0.7%; while yearly demand from regional jets would be 1.6%, narrowbody jet demand would grow by 9.4% and for widebodies by 7.1%. Brown said suppliers are now actively pursuing expressed interest in Iranian MRO opportunities. Iran will require new MRO capacity, services and capabilities providing significant growth opportunities for suppliers, already peaking interest from leading MROs, said Brown. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's three-and-a-half-year stay in the Ecuadorian embassy in London amounts to "unlawful detention," a United Nations panel examining his appeal will reportedly rule on Friday. Assange, a former computer hacker who has been holed up in the embassy since June 2012, told the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention that he was a political refugee whose rights had been infringed by being unable to take up asylum in Ecuador. While the panel hasn't officially released its decision, Sweden's foreign ministry said Thursday that the advisory group had concluded that Assange has been a victim of "arbitrary" detention at the Ecuadorean Embassy in London where he sought refuge in 2012. Without saying what the panel's decision was, Christophe Peschoux of the U.N. human rights office said that the Swedish mission in Geneva was informed of the finding on Jan. 22. Swedish prosecutors haven't charged Assange with any crime, but want to question him over sexual misconduct allegations. Britain said it had never arbitrarily detained Assange and that the Australian had voluntarily avoided arrest by jumping bail to flee to the embassy. It said Assange will be arrested if he leaves the embassy and then extradited to Sweden for questioning over allegations of rape in 2010. Assange denies the rape allegations. "Should the U.N. announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," Assange said in a statement posted on the Wikileaks Twitter account. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me." A decision in his favor would mark the latest twist in a tumultuous journey for Assange since he incensed the United States and its allies by using his WikiLeaks website to leak hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. diplomatic and military cables in 2010, disclosures that often embarrassed Washington. Assange, 44, fears Sweden will extradite him to the U.S., where he could be put on trial over WikiLeaks' publication of the classified military and diplomatic documents, one of the largest information leaks in U.S. history. He made international headlines in early 2010 when WikiLeaks published classified U.S. military video showing a 2007 attack by Apache helicopters that killed a dozen people in Baghdad, including two Reuters news staff. Later that year, the group released over 90,000 secret documents detailing the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan, followed by almost 400,000 internal U.S. military reports detailing operations in Iraq. Those disclosures were followed by the release of more than 250,000 classified cables from U.S. embassies. It would go on to add almost three million more diplomatic cables dating back to 1973. In his submission to the U.N. working group, a body of outside experts, Assange argued that his time in the embassy constituted arbitrary detention. Assange says he is the victim of a witch hunt directed by the U.S. and that his fate is a test case for freedom of expression. He said that he had been deprived of his fundamental liberties, including lack of access to sunlight or fresh air, adequate medical facilities, as well as legal and procedural insecurity. "We have been consistently clear that Mr. Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the U.K. but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorean embassy," a British government spokeswoman said. "An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European Arrest Warrant in place, so the U.K. continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Mr Assange to Sweden," she said. Per Samuelson, one of Assange's Swedish lawyers, said if the U.N. panel judged Assange's time in the embassy to be custody, he should be released immediately. "It is a very important body that would be then saying that Sweden's actions are inconsistent with the European Convention on Human Rights. And it is international common practice to follow those decisions," Samuelson told Reuters. U.N. official Peschoux said the application of the U.N. panel's decisions were "rarely immediate" and could take weeks or months to be applied. Plus, governments have up to two months after being notified to appeal a unfavorable ruling directly back to the working group. There is no higher authority in such cases. Since Assange's confinement, WikiLeaks has continued to publish documents on topics such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, one of the world's biggest multinational trade deals, which was signed by 12 member nations on Thursday in New Zealand. Wire services Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders opened up a new line of attack in the Democratic presidential primary on Wednesday, putting Hillary Clinton on the defensive over her liberal credentials just days after she eked out a slim victory in the Iowa caucuses. Some of my best friends are moderates, but you cant be a progressive and a moderate at the same time, Sanders said at a town hall in New Hampshire, which included questions from voters. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke immediately after Sanders at the town hall hosted by CNN and the New Hampshire Democratic Party at the Derry Opera House in Derry, New Hampshire. The two candidates arrived in the Granite State on Tuesday, a day after Clinton marked a narrow victory in the Iowa caucuses, the first nominating contest leading up to the Nov. 8 presidential election. Sanders, a democratic socialist, is polling more than 15 points ahead of Clinton in New Hampshire, but is trailing her nationally by roughly the same amount. Sanders rattled off a list of issues where Clinton isn't in sync with the liberal wing of the party, including trade, Wall Street regulation, climate change, campaign finance and the 2002 authorization of the war in Iraq. I do not know any progressive who has a super PAC and takes $15 million from Wall Street, Sanders said. That's just not progressive. Clinton moved quickly to defend her record, saying that under Sanders' criteria President Barack Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and even the deceased Minnesota Sen. Paul Wellstone, a champion of liberal causes, would not be considered progressive. I know where I stand, said Clinton. But I don't think it helps for the senator to be making those kinds of comparisons because clearly we all share the same hopes and aspirations for our country. She also pushed back on charges by Sanders and his allies that she cannot be trusted to regulate Wall Street because of the millions in speaking fees she made from the industry before announcing her presidential bid. Moderator Anderson Cooper asked her about the more than $600,000 she received from speaking to the investment bank Goldman Sachs. Thats what they offered, Clinton said. Clinton said she was still deciding whether to run for president when she accepted the appearances. The back-and-forth on progressive credentials was the latest example of tensions between Clinton and Sanders as the race nears the Feb. 9 New Hampshire primary. The Democratic rivals are expected to appear at a debate on Thursday night and both camps have quarreled over the timing and locations of three debates planned for later this spring. Clinton has questioned Sanders' commitment to gun control and whether his proposal to create a universal health care system might endanger Obama's signature health care law. Sanders, meanwhile, casts Clinton as an establishment figure and an inconsistent champion of liberal causes such as the environment, trade and campaign finance reform. Le CBD, cette molecule active du cannabis a aujourdhui le vent en poupe. Et cela est en grande partie du au fait quil permet... 16th CMSAF speaks with intel Airmen A former chief master sergeant of the Air Force spoke with members of the National Air and Space Intelligence Center when he visited Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Jan. 29. Retired Chief Master Sgt. of the Air Force James A. Roy told Airmen about what his career was like, what is happening with enlisted performance reports, and what the budget is looking like these days. "I look out at you and say, We're going to be OK, Roy said. We are going to have some bumps, but you are on the ground doing it every day. There are some challenges as I said, but I think we are ready for them. Roy gave some insight on how he got so far in his career. When speaking of his accomplishments and regrets, he mentioned that nothing he did could have been completed without his team. "You are only one person, he said. You can only be successful if you have a good team. Setting the priorities up front made the world of difference in my mind. As a team, we sat down and talked about what we were going to tackle. I couldnt have gotten where I am without the support of those around me. "Be sure to thank someone in your life that supports what you do. Thank them for the sacrifices they make every day." Following his speech, Roy took some questions from the audience. He gave answers for a variety of topics, but many questions were directed toward the new EPRs. "There are obviously a lot of changes with the evaluation system, Roy said. Every time you do that there is a bump." Despite the bumps in the system, he placed the primary importance on feedback. With well-conducted feedback, the system will take care of itself. "Under the old system, were you getting and receiving appropriate feedback? Roy asked. How do you expect someone to grow if you don't come up with a plan? You as a leader, as a supervisor, are responsible for doing that. Are you sitting down with Airmen and giving them feedback?" He reiterated his point by pushing the idea that a relationship is what is needed to provide good, constructive feedback. A supervisor and his Airmen must have a healthy understanding of each other for the constructive part to take place. "It is all about relationships, Roy said. Being a supervisor every day is all about relationships. It is not a text, not a tweet; it is face-to-face. There is nothing more important than face-to-face with Airmen." For decades, Grissom has been vital to the Air Force's global reach, but more recently Grissom became another valuable asset on a different battlefield.Lt. Gen. Bill Bender, Air Force chief of information dominance and chief information officer, visited Grissom Jan. 13-14 to discuss the future of cyber security and meet the Airmen who are helping shape its future through a new pilot program."We have a number of cyber security prototype initiatives taking place, and the 434th Air Refueling Wing has been selected as one of those pathfinders," said Bender "I wanted to come out very early on and meet the individuals in charge of those programs."The 434th ARW was selected as one of two lead pilot squadrons in the Air Force Reserve Command to transition into a next generation communications squadron."The pilot program incorporates a new mission set that takes a proactive approach towards cyber security," said Capt. Dustin Schimp, 434th Communications Squadron director of operations who is spearheading the prototype. "Currently, our main goal is to ensure patches are up-to-date and computers are functioning properly, but through this pilot program we will expand the domain of what we defend into other areas that directly impact flight operations."Areas that might be incorporated into their domain include weather systems, aircraft communications, and other electronic systems that have a direct impact to the refueling mission of the Hoosier Wing."Any area that's a vital part of sustaining our refueling mission is something that has to be protected," said Maj. Denney Neace, 434th CS commander. "Right now we are identifying those vulnerabilities and creating a plan to protect those assets."After they have been identified, we will then determine what additional resources such as manpower and equipment are needed to meet the cyber security initiatives," he explained.During his visit, Bender echoed the importance of cyber security integration and lauded Grissom for leading the way."It's been a great opportunity to see the people at Grissom who are going to build our Air Force of the future to ensure we are protected from cyber security concerns," explained Bender. "We have to start viewing cyber security from as a proactive approach rather than reactive,"Bender used the 2015 Office of Personnel Management breach as an example of how reactive measures can cost a significant amount more than proactive measures."The recent OPM breach has already cost the government millions of dollars and cost the enemy nothing," said Bender. "We have to continue protecting the information technology we've been protecting for the last 20 years, but more importantly we need to take a proactive approach to identify other percentage of vulnerabilities our enemies can take advantage of."During the visit, Bender also had an opportunity to tour one of Grissom's 16 KC-135R Stratotanker aircraft and operate a KC-135 simulator, but credited the people here as the base's best asset."My impression of Grissom is that you are all such a proud team; proud of your mission, proud of each other, willing to help each other, and that's the definition of teamwork," he said. "It makes a big difference when you have so many people fully committed to the mission like you do here."The 434th ARW is the largest KC-135R Stratotanker unit in the Air Force Reserve Command. Airmen and aircraft from the 434th ARW routinely deploy around the world in support of the Air Force mission and U.S. strategic objectives.Stay connected with the 434th ARW on Facebook and Twitter. 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Ashbourne is an historic market town in Derbyshire. Situated on the southern edge of the Peak District, it is known as the 'Gateway to Dovedale' and the 'Gateway to the Peak District'. Ashbourne is famous for the annual Royal Shrovetide Football Match, which has been played since at least 1667, although its origins may date back centuries earlier. Ashbourne became a Fairtrade town in March 2005. The popular Tissington Trail, which follows the route of the former Ashbourne to Buxton railway, starts on the edge of town. Keep up to date with the latest news from the town by signing up for our newsletter. The High Court rules "legitimate" the government's decision to move hundreds of migrants on the island of Nauru, where there are some prisons that "host" asylum seekers. Christian communities in the country offer their facilities to prevent deportation. The executive: "The Christians have the right to think whatever they want, but they are not above the law." Thousands march for migrants. Canberra (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The Christian Churches of Australia have offered to host hundreds of migrants whom the government want to deport on the island of Nauru. The declaration of congregations comes just hours after the National Court ruling that the decision to move asylum seekers from the country to the island of Micronesia is "legitimate". The group in question is composed of more than 260 people, including 37 children. The Anglican Primate Peter Catt said the chosen churches - a dozen, including the cathedral of Brisbane - are "reinventing the ancient concept of sanctuary. It is true that the concept of sanctuary has not been tested under law, but my hunch is that if the authorities chose to enter the church and take people away, it would probably be a legal action". He added: "So this is really a moral stand and it wouldn't be a good look, I don't think, for someone to enter a church and to drag people away." The vast majority of migrants trying to reach Australia by boat are arrested and taken to detention centers in Papua New Guinea or Nauru. The island of Manus is infamous for the situation that has arisen due to tensions related to migration. According to the law, they cannot be accepted in Australia even if they are considered to be true political or civilian refugees. Thousands of Australians have sided with the Churches, and took to the streets against the deportation of migrants. The protesters carried signs that read "Malcolm Turnbull, let them stay." Turnbull is the current prime minister of the country. Meanwhile, an investigation by the National Commission for Human Rights has stressed the risk of mental disorders for those who are locked up in refugee camps, especially for children. Misha Coleman, the task force of Australian churches for refugees, admits that " the sanctuaries but said if they were, the cases would be managed "in a very sort of confidential way". For his part, the Minister for Immigration Peter Dutton said that Christians "have a right to their opinions, but they are not above the law of Australia". CONNERSVILLE, Indiana On the morning of Nov. 18, in this rural town in eastern Indiana, Paula Maupin sat in a trailer in the parking lot of a shuttered lumber company, hoping a few heroin addicts might turn up. She is a nurse with the Fayette County health department, and it was opening day for the countys needle exchange program, one of three in the state. Maupin was there to offer drug users clean needles, anonymously, to remove dirty ones from circulation and stop the spread of disease. The trailer has no electricity a generator runs the lights, a phone charger and a tiny space heater but Maupin had bins of whatever a heroin addict might need syringes in various gauges, aluminum cookers the size of a tea light, ampoules of sterile water, cotton pellets to absorb impurities, gauze, Band-Aids and tourniquets. You offer them something that they will use and that they need, you get contact with them. And each encounter you mention the different other services that you have, including HIV testing and referrals to rehab, Maupin explains. A lot of times they're just really afraid to take that step. However modest, Fayette Countys syringe exchange program is a big step forward for Indiana, which banned syringe exchanges until last year. The Republican governor, Mike Pence, is a vocal opponent of the practice as condoning drug use, although it has been proven effective by years of research in preventing the spread of HIV and hepatitis. Even as 31 other U.S. states including all four of its neighbors opened the door to syringe exchange, Indiana kept it firmly shut. That changed abruptly in early 2015 when Scott County, another tiny rural community in central Indiana, reported dozens of new cases of HIV, all of them linked to a group of intravenous drug users who had been sharing needles. Under pressure from state and national public health experts, Pence signed an emergency measure in March 2015 establishing a needle exchange in Scott County and later allowed other counties to start their own. The outbreak pulled it out of the realm of politics and morality and pushed people who had otherwise been more hard-line about this to a place of pragmatism, says Daniel Raymond, policy director of the Harm Reduction Coalition, a national group advocating for more humane policies toward drug users. Bins of supplies used in the Fayette County public health department's syringe exchange program sit in an office in Connersville, Indiana on January 21, 2016. Maddie McGarvey for Al Jazeera America But Indianas grudging acceptance of syringe exchanges has done little more than shift the states responsibility for a public health crisis to the communities that are least able to handle it. While allowing needle exchanges, Indiana has left in place a ban on state funding, requiring counties such as Fayette that need the programs to come up with the money on their own. Weve basically tied both hands behind our back after we said, go for it! says Beth Meyerson, a professor of public health at Indiana University and co-director of the Rural Center for AIDS/STD Prevention. A spokesperson for Pence said the governors calendar is full and declined to provide a comment for this article. Indiana began investigating Scott Countys HIV outbreak on Jan. 23, 2015, and since then, public health experts in the state have been warning that other counties face similar challenges a growing population of IV drug users with hepatitis (often a bellwether for HIV) and not enough testing, rehabilitation or primary care facilities to treat them. Across Indiana there are 20 to 30 health departments that are seriously underfunded, says Jerry King, executive director of the Indiana Public Health Association. Those are all places that could experience the same things that Scott County has. In December 2015, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention identified several counties in Indiana as vulnerable to a similar HIV outbreak among IV drug users. But Pence, who faces re-election this year, has remained steadfastly opposed to lifting the ban on funding for needle exchange, despite the evidence that it works. A study published in January by George Washington University public health researchers, found that Washington, D.C.s needle exchange program helped avert 120 new HIV cases over two years. While 22 counties aside from Scott have expressed some interest in needle exchanges, only two have managed to set them up. Advocates are calling on Indiana to lift the ban, before another outbreak hits. The big thing that the state could do is to put some money behind it, says Raymond. That sends an important signal. It takes a key barrier off the table. U.S. counties where persons who inject drugs appear especially vulnerable to the rapid spread of HIV or hepatitis C Based on preliminary data, this supplemental map to an unpublished CDC analysis identified the 220 counties in the U.S. that are most vulnerable (in the top 5 percent) to future outbreaks of HIV or hepatitis C among people who inject drugs. The complete study is under review for publication and has not been released by the CDC. The analysis does not indicate that the entire population is at risk, or that an outbreak is inevitable. U.S. counties where persons who inject drugs appear especially vulnerable to the rapid spread of HIV or hepatitis C (PDF) U.S. counties where persons who inject drugs appear especially vulnerable to the rapid spread of HIV or hepatitis C (Text) Fayette County is typical of the communities hit hardest by the recent wave of opioid addiction in the United States its small and isolated, 96 percent white and 23 percent of the population is poor. Auto industry jobs, which once sustained the economy, have disappeared, and the population has shrunk so much that many towns in the county can no longer sustain a primary school. The auto parts giant Visteon, once the biggest employer in Fayette, closed its plant in 2007. But some things havent changed: the countryside is carpeted with corn and soybean farms, like the one where Maupin grew up, and teenagers still drive to the county seat, Connersville, to hang out at Kunkels Drive-In or the Pizza King. Drugs, too, have been a constant. Heroin has been around since I've been here, says Carol McQueen, another local farm girl who took over as police chief in Connersville on Jan. 1, after more than 20 years in the police department. There were just some people we knew who did it, she says. Then we started to notice that younger people were using it, then we started seeing it more frequently. A park in Connersville, Indiana, where police say drug activity is common. Maddie McGarvey for Al Jazeera America In 2014, after a surge in overdoses drew intense statewide media attention, state, county and local law enforcement officials came together on a task force to crack down on dealers and users. We've effectively slowed it in the last year, says Detective Scott Phillips, Connersvilles narcotics officer. But users simply switched to methamphetamines or prescription opioids when heroin got hard to find and then back again. If you cut off one supply theyll get it somewhere else, Phillips says. And the effort had no effect on overdose deaths: in 2014, there were 13 in Fayette County. In 2015, there were 14. Meanwhile, Maupin was watching a parallel surge in hepatitis. In her role as the countys public health nurse, she would investigate each case. I could link, probably, at least 95 to 99 percent of that to IV drug use, Maupin says. Some patients would confirm it directly. For others, she could figure it out. Connersville is a small town, and the names on the hepatitis reports were often the same ones listed in the Connersville News-Examiner police logs for arrests for drug possession or paraphernalia. Or she would find that they were Facebook friends with people who had died of overdoses. It wasnt clear what the county could do about it. We just kind of watched it, Maupin says. At that time, a needle exchange wasnt an option. We didnt know how to deal with it. In 2014, Maupin received 77 reports of hepatitis C in Fayette County; in 2015 there were more than 100. Indiana health officials were watching too. Hepatitis cases related to IV drug use have been climbing across the state since at least 2011. The link between the two is well-established: typically, within five years of beginning injection drug use, a person will test positive for hepatitis C, Meyerson explains. In 2014, state representative Ed Clere, who was then chairman of the public health committee, pushed for a bill to study the possibility of a statewide syringe exchange program, in response to rising hepatitis rates. In the face of vehement opposition, it failed to get out of the state senate. But national advocates, including Raymond of the Harm Reduction Coalition, were encouraged that at least the issue was on the table in Indiana. Community groups and local public health officials were largely unfamiliar with how needle exchanges worked, so he started doing training and outreach sessions with them in early 2015. They were also thinking that Indianas going to have a looming problem if we didn't try to advance needle exchange, Raymond says. That is exactly what happened. In January 2015, Indiana disclosed Scott Countys sudden spike in HIV infections: 11 new cases in a town of 4,200 people. By April, there were 135 confirmed. Even veteran public health workers were shocked at the extent of the outbreak and the deep problems it revealed three generations of injection drug use in a 10-block radius in one small town, where drug users were using dirty and broken needles and sharing them. But in other ways, the HIV outbreak was not surprising at all. Scott County had already seen a rise in hepatitis. They're really just several steps away from HIV at that point, Meyerson says. If one person in a tight network of drug users is exposed to HIV, it can spread very quickly. The avenue of transmission is so efficient, she says. With sex you don't have that kind of efficiency. With a syringe, oh my God, it's a line right in. In Scott Countys outbreak, 84 percent of the people who tested positive for HIV also had hepatitis, according to the CDC. The response was swift. On March 26, 2015 the governor announced a syringe exchange program in Scott County, on an emergency basis, to stop HIV from spreading further. Everybody's eyes were on Scott, Meyerson says. There was a lot of institutional support raining down on Scott to make this work. The states public health officials brought in regional and national experts to advise the county on setting up the program, and quickly set up a one-stop shop to bring all the services that had been missing in the county HIV testing, hepatitis treatment, subsidized insurance, ID cards under one roof and easily accessible to people who needed it. Used syringes are discarded in a bin at the Fayette County health department on January 21, 2016. A syringe exchange program allows people to safely discard their used needles, taking possibly infected ones out of circulation to prevent the spread of disease. Maddie McGarvey for Al Jazeera America But the governors support was lukewarm. I do not enter into this lightly, Pence told The Indianapolis Star. In response to a public health emergency, I'm prepared to make an exception to my long-standing opposition to needle exchange programs, he said, emphasizing that he would veto any bill that proposed a statewide solution. So the legislature passed a compromise: a law that allowed syringe exchange programs to be established by individual counties, if they declared that there was a public health emergency due to hepatitis or HIV and that a syringe exchange was medically appropriate. The ban on state funding was left in place, so counties would have to come up with the money themselves, and could not pool their efforts to come up with regional solutions even though 71 percent of Indiana counties have fewer than 50,000 people. Pence signed it into law in May. When Maupin first heard the news about the drug-related HIV outbreak in Scott, she was worried. The two rural counties are alike in nearly every way, with similar populations, similar drug use and hepatitis problems and similar results in the states annual ranking or counties health outcomes last and next-to-last. I started thinking, hmmm, that's a problem here too, Maupin says. I wonder if we need to think about that. But she was resistant as were most in the community to the idea of giving out syringes. We were with the ones who thought, well that's just enabling them, she says. But state officials strongly encouraged them to set up a program, she says, and then you look more into it, you do your research, and you see the correlation between the sharing of the equipment and the disease and realize that there's really not any other option. With the support of the county commissioners, Fayette submitted its needle exchange proposal last summer, and on Aug. 14, 2015, Maupin recalls, she got the phone call saying that they had been approved. A view of Connersville, Indiana, on Jan. 21, 2016. The area has seen a spike in overdose deaths and hepatitis cases in recent years. Maddie McGarvey for Al Jazeera America This is where the stories of these two counties diverge. While Scott benefited from top-down intervention by the state and its one-stop shop is considered a model for other syringe exchanges Fayette had to fend for itself. The county commissioner told her, We might have a little bit of money that we could scrounge up for you to get started, she recalls. For the rest, she turned to nonprofit grants, from the Indiana Recovery Alliance and AIDS United. When a potential spot for an office fell through, a neighboring county loaned them the trailer. The lot she found to park it in has no electricity, so the local emergency management director lent them his generator. The total budget is $22,400; shes spent about $6,000 so far. It took us until November to get enough funds, get everything set up and feel like we had enough to offer people, Maupin says. The first day she went out, she wasnt sure if anyone would come. Rumors had been circulating, she says, that the police would arrest people coming out of the trailer and charge them with possession of drug paraphernalia. It scared a lot of people away, she says. They were certain that it was being watched. For weeks, as the temperature dropped, no one showed up except an addictions counselor who volunteered to sit with her. Its really just been myself and him on Thursday mornings sitting in a cold trailer for three hours. By early January, the word seemed to have got out that this was for real. A few people have come to the public health office looking for her. I had a woman who injects four times a day, Maupin says. One man has come in twice. He's our big advocate. He's really pushing it to his friends. Another one has been talking about going into rehab. State laws on syringe exchange are complicated. Some 17 states (including Washington, D.C.) have explicitly authorized syringe exchange. Others have taken steps to reduce barriers to syringe access, which usually includes deregulating syringes or removing references to syringes from drug paraphernalia laws. A total of 29 states have taken steps to allow syringe exchange programs; Michigan and Ohio allow local authorities to do so. LawAtlas syringe distribution laws map The ban on state funding means that Maupin cant ask the part-time nurse, whose position is funded by the state, to help her set up or move supplies from the trailer. Occasionally, the countys food and sewage inspector or the births and deaths registrar give her a hand, but they, like Maupin, already have full-time jobs. She manages the syringe exchange program on top of her regular duties, which include everything from running flu shot clinics at local businesses to doing head lice checks for children to answering the call when someone faints at the courthouse and investigating reports of other communicable diseases. I never realized how alone I was in this, Maupin says. The state also did not put any additional funds toward its broader public health needs, despite ranking 48th out of 50 states in per capita spending on public health. So, Fayette has had to patch together the services HIV and hepatitis screening, detox and substance abuse programs needed for syringe exchanges to work most effectively. Its not about the needles, Meyerson says, but how to add all these services without additional money or manpower. That's really the conundrum that faces rural counties not only in Indiana but all over the country. It's how do we add this on? In some counties, opposition from law enforcement can make needle exchanges untenable. That was not the case in Fayette, where the prosecutors office and the local police are largely supportive. The prosecutor recently made it clear that he would not seek to file charges against people for drug paraphernalia, as long as they were not also carrying drugs. The police, too, have begun to shift away from a purely enforcement-based approach to illegal drug use. Once a week, an addictions counselor comes in to talk to people at the station house, and officers hope to start sending referrals to a new rehab facility planned for the area. We've kind of changed how we've thought in the last year, says McQueen, the police chief. Like the health department, the police in Connersville are not getting any additional funding for this. But if they dont find help for people who are addicted, the town will pay in other ways, McQueen says. Drug use fuels property crime, as well as most of the cases they see of child abuse and child neglect. Her deputy chief, Robert Fee, has just one plea: Make more state money available for treatment, close to the places where people live. Otherwise, tiny police departments and tiny public health departments end up competing against each other for the same pool of funds. Everyone's eating away at grants, says Fee. All that money can't be divided up everywhere. Its not about the needles. That's really the conundrum that faces rural counties not only in Indiana but all over how do we add this on? Beth Meyerson professor of public health, Indiana University The irony in Indiana is that its HIV outbreak has prompted more dramatic change outside the state than at home. Two powerful Republican senators from neighboring Kentucky Hal Rogers and Mitch McConnell credited Indianas experience as the impetus for pushing to end the federal ban on funding for needle exchange late last year. But Congress has not set aside any additional funding for needle exchanges, so states and counties are waiting for guidance from the CDC and other federal agencies to see what funds are available and how to apply for them. It's not going to be a massive infusion of new funds, Raymond says. The Indiana state legislature is in session now, but there is little political momentum for a change in the states ban on funding for needle exchange. Pence is up for re-election this year, and Ed Clere, the biggest advocate in the statehouse for needle exchange, was stripped of his chairmanship of the public health committee in November. Maupin, for her part, says she is sustained by her belief that shes doing Gods work. You get one problem solved and then something else comes along, she says. I have to be honest, it has been a lesson in faith. The example of the people coming into the health department office for clean needles passing the sheriff, the prosecutor and the probation office along the way also keeps her going. The ones that have come in, I think they're very brave, she says. They're taking a chance, I think, to come here. It gives me hope. Meyerson, however, worries that hope and prayer may not be enough for counties like these, forced to use duct tape and shoe string as a substitute for real investment in public health. These communities, they're MacGyvering it. They're really trying. At that point, we've got to help them out. Don't make the counties figure this out on their own. Today Sri Lanka marks its independence from British colonial rule. In his message for the occasion, the archbishop of Colombo calls for building "coexistence and joy." For the first time, during the event, the national anthem was sung in Tamil. Some activists march in the capital, demanding the release of Tamil political prisoners. Colombo (AsiaNews) Sri Lanka this morning celebrated its Independence Day marking the end of British colonial rule in 1948 in the presence of the countrys highest officials. Card Malcolm Ranjith, archbishop of Colombo, was among the dignitaries present. However, a few days ago, an Anglican clergyman joined the National Movement for the Release of Political Prisoners in a march through the streets of Colombo to demand freedom for unjustly jailed Tamils. In his message on Sri Lankas national day, Card Ranjith said, "as we celebrate the 68th anniversary of independence, I want to emphasise the importance of unity for building a climate of true independence in the country, where all communities can live in peace, unity, coexistence and joy. Celebrations began when President Sirisena hoisted the national flag, followed by Sri Lankas national anthem. The most touching part came when pupils, after singing the anthem in Sinhalese, sang it in Tamil. For the first time since the end of civil war, which pitted the government against Tamil rebels, the countrys national anthem was thus sung in the countys other national language, a sign that a real attempt is underway to reconcile the island communities following the election of President Maithripala Sirisena (pictured). For Deputy Foreign Minister Harsha de Silva on his Facebook page, this is A first in my lifetime! After many years the independence day celebrations came to a close with the national anthem sung in Tamil! Similarly, Mano Ganesan, Minister of National Dialogue and Tamil Progressive Alliance leader, tweeted, Yes it's a very small act but [one] that goes long way forward. [The] National anthem in Tamil after decades [is a] Victory 4 our Coexistence journey. However, for Card Ranjith, It is well known that we gained independence from British colonialism due to the peoples efforts, motivated by a single objective. Yet, We failed to use independence in a meaningful manner for the development of our country since we have divided based on race and political views. We could have been in a better place had we been able to rise as a single Sri Lankan nation. In fact, on the margins of national celebrations and nice words, some continue to protest the continued imprisonment of hundreds of innocent Tamils. On 1 February, Rev Marimuttu Sathivel joined political activists and marched from Welikada Prison to the Prime Ministers office in the capital to demand the government stop playing a double game and seriously address the problem of political prisoners." (Melani Manel Perera contributed to this article) Fr Paul Karam is in London for the Syria donor conference. For him, the priority is to stop the conflict. So far, "personal interests" have prevailed with "the civilian population" paying the price. The Middle East is "a raging volcano" that can be stymied by following the path of peace outlined by Pope Francis. London (AsiaNews) "The most important thing, the starting point is to stop this war. We must silence weapons today, not tomorrow. The urgency increases each passing day. As long as there is war, we can never solve problems. Sadly, the conflict is bound to intensify, said Fr Paul Karam, director of Caritas Lebanon. For the past four years, the Catholic charity has led the way in helping Syrian and other refugees, streaming out of war-torn parts of the Middle East. The clergyman is currently in London for the Syria donor conference. As long as personal interests prevail and the flow of arms continues, the civilian population, the poor, and all those who work every day to earn a living to survive and educate their children will pay the price, he told AsiaNews. World leaders gathered in London this morning in an attempt to raise US$ 9 billion to meet the needs of the millions of Syrian refugees who fled the civil war. Funds are also earmarked for resettlement in the Middle East, Europe and North America. However, only 43 per cent of the US$ 2.9 billion pledged to the UN's 2015 appeal were actually provided. Observers hope that this donor conference, the fourth of its kind, meets the United Nations' demand for US$ 7.73 billion to help in Syria, plus US$ 1.23 billion aid for countries in the region affected by the crisis. Some 70 international leaders will attend the summit, including United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. A coalition of more than 90 humanitarian and human rights groups involved in aid and rescue operations are also in London. Caritas Lebanon has never skirted its responsibility, providing not only food but also psychological support. It has also encouraged exchanges between Christians and Muslims, particularly among young people. "It is important to intervene in the health care field, as well as ensure that children are educated to give them a future, Fr Karam said. However, the most important thing to do is to stop the war. The international community has a responsibility to find a solution. It must also do something to stop arms trafficking. For the director of Caritas Lebanon, things cannot go on like this . . . There is always money for weapons, to destroy; nothing to end the violence and help people. We have to stop this tragedy." The solution lies with Pope Francis who laid down a roadmap for peace in his appeals. Hence, the failure of the ongoing Geneva talks is a source of "great sadness" because the parties "must seek peace and look for the good of the people, not their self-interest." "The Middle East is a raging volcano, the clergyman added. We hope that the international community wakes up, shows greater international solidarity and provides more aid to migrants." The war in Syria, which broke out in March 2011 as popular unrest against President Bashar al-Assad, morphed into open warfare involving Islamic extremist and jihadist group that has caused so far more than 260,000 deaths. Over this period, one of the worst humanitarian crisis in history has unfolded, with 4.6 million Syrians forced abroad, primarily in Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt. Hundreds of thousands more have tried to reach Europe, sometimes losing their life paying the ultimate price for daring to cross the treacherous waters of the Mediterranean. In recent days, those EU member states that had initially welcomed refugees, especially Chancellor Angela Merkels Germany, are now backtracking. (DS) After 24 hours of silence, Chinas media today published excerpts, comments and editorials about Pope Francis interview with Asia Times. Although the pope did not address religious issues or Church problems, many saw the interview as an attempt to improve diplomatic relations between China and the Vatican, and advised Francis to accept Mao Zedongs "three principles of independence" (theology, administration, jurisdiction), which would leave the power to appoint bishops in the hands of the Party. The People's Dailys Global Times publishes an editorial on the issue. Beijing (AsiaNews) Chinas national print and online media today reported and commented Pope Francis interview with Asia Times on Tuesday (2 February) almost 24 hours after the original publication, following a press brief by Chinese Foreign Affairs spokesman Lu Kang. We have noted relevant reports, Lu said about the interview. We also hope that the Vatican would adopt a flexible and practical attitude to create conditions for the improvement of the bilateral relationship. Excerpts, comments and editorials about the interview appeared today in major state-owned newspapers like the Global Times (which is associated with the People's Daily) and the (nationalist leaning) Guancha. Although the pope followed the lead of the journalist and did not address religious topics or relations between China and the Holy See, both publications focused on relations between Beijing and the Vatican, advising the latter to accept "the principles of independence for Chinas Catholic Church. These "principles of independence" (theology, administration, jurisdiction) date back to the Mao Zedongs era, when the Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association was founded, a situation reiterated by Deng Xiaoping and subsequent decisions However, for many Catholics in China, an "independent" Church means breaking away from papal authority and total submission to the Party. Below is the editorial published by the Global Times today. Beijing urges Vatican to be pragmatic. Source: Global Times Published: 2016-2-4 1:08:01 Pope Francis extends Lunar New Year greetings to Xi, Chinese people China on Wednesday urged the Vatican to adopt a flexible and pragmatic policy toward bilateral ties, after Pope Francis extended Chinese New Year wishes to President Xi Jinping and the Chinese people. "China is sincere about improving relations with the Vatican and has made consistent efforts We also hope the Vatican takes a flexible and pragmatic attitude and create conditions to improve bilateral relations," Lu Kang, spokesperson of the Chinese foreign ministry, said at a Wednesday press briefing. In an interview with Hong Kong-based Asia Times on Tuesday, Pope Francis extended his wishes and greetings to the Chinese president and people, ahead of the Chinese New Year, which falls on February 8 this year. The interview was recorded in the Vatican last week when a Chinese delegation was reportedly on a visit to the Holy See, according to The Huffington Post. Citing a recent article in the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, The Huffington Post said that China would accept the pontiff's choice of new bishops from a list approved by Chinese authorities, under a deal "reached between the two sides." Public speculation rose over a China-Vatican deal on bishop consecration when Coadjutor Bishop Zhang Yinlin was consecrated at a Catholic church in Anyang, Henan Province in August 2015. Zhang was believed to be the first bishop recognized by both Beijing and the Holy See since 2012 when consecration of some bishops without the Vatican's approval soured ties. "It could become a 'Chinese model' for both sides to explore ways to appoint bishops in China," Yan Kejia, director of the Institute of Religious Studies at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times. The "Chinese model" may be different from the "Vietnamese model," under which bishops nominated by both the Vatican and Vietnam are selected and approved by the Holy See. China may want more say in bilateral cooperation with the Vatican in bishop ordination, according to Liu Guopeng, an associate research fellow at the Institute of World Religion Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. "It is unlikely that the two countries would return to an indifferent attitude toward each other, as the Cold War mentality has been abandoned. China has realized the necessity to integrate and actively interact with the international community. The two significant powers both share the responsibility in promoting world peace and stability, which also provides a platform for dialogue and cooperation," Liu noted. The foreign ministry did not comment on the possibility of a long-anticipated visit to China by Pope Francis. However, Liu said leaders of the two countries, sharing similarly strong political charisma and promoting bold and resolute reforms, may lead to surprising and promising results. Thinking of our "final passage" which is "a light which illuminates life", "is a reality that we must always have before us". We must ask God to not fear death. Vatican City (AsiaNews) Thinking of death is illuminates life", moreover the greatest inheritance that we can leave is faith in "the God of truth", "who is Father and never disappoints, said Pope Francis at Mass this morning in Casa Santa Marta, commenting on the first reading of the day about the death of King David. In every life there is an ending, the Pope said. This is a thought that is not pleasing to us, that we always pass over, but it is an everyday reality. Thinking about death is a light that illuminates life and a reality that we should always have before us: In one of the Wednesday audiences there was among those who were sick a very old sister, but with face of peace, a luminous countenance: But how old are you, sister? With a smile she said, Eighty-three, but I am finishing my course in this life, to begin another with the Lord, because I have pancreatic cancer. And so, in peace, that woman had lived her consecrated life with great intensity. She did not fear death: I am finishing my course of life, to begin another. It is a passage. These things do us good. David ruled over Israel for 40 years, the Pope noted. Before dying, David exhorted his son Solomon to observe the Law of the Lord. David had sinned often in life, but had learned to ask for forgiveness and the Church calls him holy, a sinner, but a Saint! Now, at the point of death, David left to his son the most beautiful and greatest inheritance a man or a woman can leave to their children: He left them the faith: When a will is made, people say, I leave this to one person, this to another, to another person I leave this. Yes, thats fine, but the most beautiful inheritance, the greatest inheritance a man, a woman, can leave to their children is the faith. And David remembered the promises of God, he remembers his own faith in them, and he reminds his son of them, leaving the faith as an inheritance. When in the ceremony of Baptism we give the parents the lighted candle, the light of the faith, we are saying to them, Preserve it, make it grow in your son and in your daughter, and leave it to them as an inheritance. Leaving the faith as an inheritance this is what David teaches us. And he died, simply, like any man. But he knew well what to leave to his son, and what was the best inheritance he could leave: not the kingdom, but the faith! We would do well to ask ourselves a question, the Pope concluded: What is the inheritance I will leave with my life? Will I leave the inheritance of a man, a woman of faith? Will I leave this inheritance to my children? Let us ask two things of the Lord: to not be afraid of this final step, like the sister at the Wednesday audience (I am ending my course, but beginning another), not being afraid. And the second thing, that with our life, we might all be able to leave, as the better inheritance, the faith, faith in this faithful God, this God who is always close to us, this God who is a Father, and who never disappoints. An AsiaNews source describes a situation "at breaking point. There is no housing, water or work". The government has so far maintained "control", but long-term projects are needed as well as peace in Syria, because the refugees "want to return to their country. The increasing risk of a "silent fanaticism" that could flare up. In the midst of chaos, the reality of Karak Hospital, whichcontinues to assist pregnant women and children. Amman (AsiaNews) - The situation in Jordan is on "the verge of collapse", the country is struggling to withstand the waves of refugees that "continue to arrive from Syria", to withstand a war that risks "destabilizing" the entire region, although "so far the government has been able to maintain control". An institutional source for AsiaNews in Jordan, who has requested anonymity for security reasons, confirms the alarm recently sounded by King Abdullah, that "the dam is about to burst." According to the United Nations, there are at least 635 thousand refugees in Jordan. Amman says the figure is even higher and amounts to 1.4 million, about 20% of the total population. "Right now - says the source - the country is experiencing a situation of overcrowding, the presence of over a million refugees begins to weigh, forbearance has reached its limit. This uncertainty "scares people" and caused enormous repercussions. There is no water; people "are looking for jobs, often on the black market because cheaper, a framework that upset the normal situation of the country" . In Jordan, the schools, the hospitals, the labor market are collapsing. The European Union calls on the Amman government to create job opportunities for the refugees, but the reality is complicated and requires investment funds for both the local population and the refugees. Of which only 1.5% have a work permit, and the situation will worsen. "Prices have risen - confirms the AsiaNews source - and the biggest problem concerns water and houses. Added to this is the question of heating, which in winter becomes a necessity. It's really hard to provide for everything. Jordan has done all that it can, but now there is really need help because Amman cannot continue alone. And in this context there is an added risk of destabilization, even if currently the situation is not dangerous, there is great uncertainty about the future. " And the "future", a long term vision of the future is what is lacking in a country which is still hosting refugees from the first Gulf War, in 1991. Today world leaders will gather in London to raise nine billion dollars to meet the needs of the millions of Syrian refugees; the United Nations is asking for 7.73 billion dollars in aid to Syria, in addition to 1.23 billion for the states involved in the crisis. "World leaders - warns the source - must think about the extreme poverty and uncertainty that we experience here. Hunger, disease, the lack of basic necessities ... and then they also have to think about peace, the end of the conflict which is the primary condition to solve every crisis ". The main problem is the lack of "long-term" projects, so that the refugees can "look forward to be able to return to their homeland, where they lost homes, assets, property ... They come from Homs, Damascus, Aleppo, and want to return there". Projects and initiatives that must be supported by a united front: this cannot concern only governments but must also be shared by Europe, the United States, by the international community. "Because we are facing a closed world - concludes the source - where a silent fanaticism, which for now remains under control, is beginning to make its presence felt. But, one day, it could flare up ... ". In a widely critical situation, which also covers the southern Jordan, where there are at least 10 thousand Syrian refugees, there is a reality that continues to welcome refugees, especially pregnant women and children with severe problems due to the cold (it is snowing in the area) and malnutrition. This is the Italian Cnewa Hospital in Karak, a city of 170 thousand inhabitants 150 km south of Amman, the only equipped center of the region, where staff work with a common mission and without discrimination. Staff speak of a situation of emergency, with many children hospitalized with pneumonia and newborns that are physically debilitated. Despite the difficulties the hospital run by the Comboni Sisters keeps the doors open, welcoming Christians and Muslims without discrimination indeed, promoting mutual harmony. Even women experience this welcoming climate. The structure also suffers from the same severe financial difficulties that are affecting the whole country, but the help of volunteers and associations allows them to continue their work. Beginner's Guide To Spirits The Ultimate Beginner's Guide To Spirits Page 1 of 3 When were in college, our drinking requirements are pretty simple: Things to get us messed up (Jaeger Bombs, cinnamon whiskey shots) and things to get us messed up that we cant taste (Vodka and Whatevers). Generally, anything with a strong, distinctive flavor (or that costs more than $7 a bottle) is off the table. But youre a grown-ass man now, and fine spirits and craft cocktails are all the rage. Its time to set aside childish things (or at least, enjoy them with less frequency and more responsibility) as well as any prejudices you might have about strong or nasty spirits. Below, a list of gateway spirits: Generally milder, smoother and more palatable (sometimes cheaper also) than the larger category. In some cases, you may already know what you like. In others, the whole breed of booze is off the docket. Heres a way in. (Note: this isnt necessarily an endorsement of specific brands, nor a guarantee that they will be the right choice for you. These are some options for those who say, oh, I dont like X spirit, its too Y. Cmon, give it a shot. Literally!) Bourbon What It Is: This American whiskey is made from at least 51% corn, which on its own can be pretty brash (if youve ever tasted moonshine). Tempering the mash bill with other grains (wheat, rye, malted barley), and throwing the distillate in an oak barrel for a few years softens the alcohol and adds complexity. Whats Wrong With It: Cheap, high-proof bourbon used to be the norm during the last century. It had a kick and the good ol boys who drank it wanted it that way. Some still do. But for us everyday drinkers, that can be too much. Start Here: If youve followed the bourbon boom of the past few years, you may already know the adage wheat is sweet, rye is dry/spicey. Depending on the secondary grain, you get a different style of finished product. What you want is a wheated bourbon, perhaps with as much as 20% or 30% wheat. Theyre all the rage, and any good bartender will have a suggestion when you ask. Examples: Makers Mark (one of the first mainstream bourbons to go this way on a craft-style level; the mash bill is about 16% soft red winter wheat), Larceny, W.L. Weller or Old Weller, and the rock star of wheated bourbons, Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve. When You Start Getting Serious: Know that one thing special about Kentucky bourbons (besides water that runs through limestone substrates) is that the large aging houses (called rickhouses) have wildly different microtemperatures and humidities from the bottom to the top of the spaces, affecting each barrel differently. Start sampling single cask strength expressions of your favorite brand, and youll find surprising variations on that element alone. Gin What It Is: Flavored vodka, essentially. Botanicals (flowers, citrus peels, roots, leaves and sticks) are introduced into the neutral spirit, allowed to soak (steep) or steam through it, and distilled again. Whats Wrong With It: Juniper. That piney, oily note you detect is required for it to be gin. In London Dry gin, it must be the dominant aromatic and flavor note. Some people claim that it gives them headaches and/or terrible hangovers, or that it just tastes bad. Start Here: About a decade ago, a new category sometimes dubbed New Western Dry gins kicked off much of the modern microdistillery craze, spearheaded by Oregons Aviation Gin. The category is generally identified by softer juniper profiles and elevated floral or citrus notes. Meanwhile, other gin styles, including gins using a base created from non-grains (see GVine, below) or softened by post distillation flavors (as Hendricks does with cucumber and rose). Examples: Hendricks, GVine (made from the same grape as Cognac, and flavored in part with grape flowers), Bombay Sapphire East (botanicals include lemongrass and pepper), Portobello Road (a new one, made in London, but not a classic London Dry; its pleasantly citrusy). When You Start Getting Serious: First, you may find (as I did once upon a time) that you start to like the juniper-driven gins. They make incredible Martinis. Second, when youre ready to get a little crazy, consider the earthy funky Genevieve Gin from Anchor Distilling, or its inspiration (and gins older cousin) a Dutch Genever like Bols. Israel's Supreme Court on Thursday suspended the detention without trial of a Palestinian journalist who has been on hunger strike for more than two months and is reportedly near death, but said he cannot leave an Israeli hospital without permission. Mohammed al-Qeq, a news reporter for Saudi channel Al Majd, has refused food and medical treatment since Nov. 24, three days after he was arrested. Qeq, 33, is protesting his six-month sentence under Israels administrative detention law a controversial form of imprisonment that allows Israeli authorities to detain individuals indefinitely without charge or trial if they are deemed a security threat. Israel's Shin Bet security agency alleges that the West Bank resident and father of two has incited violence and is involved in terrorist activities linked to the armed group and political party Hamas. However, Qeq has denied the charges. The court said Qeqs detention order was being suspended due to his ailing health, and that his family will be allowed to visit him in hospital. However, the detention was not overturned and could be reinstated after Qeqs health improves. Samidoun, an advocacy group for Palestinian political prisoners, said on Thursday that Qeq had promptly rejected the suspension of his sentence, and was instead calling for it to be completely lifted. Al Jazeera could not confirm the report. Fayha Salash, Qeqs wife, previously told Al Jazeera that her husband would accept nothing less than complete freedom: He asked that we accept the outcome of his hunger strike, even his death. He said, I either live free or I die in dignity. The International Committee of the Red Cross said last week that Qeq's life was in danger. Since Israels military occupation of the West Bank in 1967, its military has placed thousands of Palestinians in administrative detention. Over 680 Palestinians are currently in administrative detention, out of the total 6,800 in Israeli prisons, according to Addameer, a Palestinian rights organization. For Palestinians in Israeli prisons, hunger strikes have become a common way of drawing public attention to their plight and challenging their treatment or detainment. "The only way Mohammad al-Qeq feels he is able to challenge his detention, without charge, is with his body, said Sunjeev Bery, Middle East-North Africa advocacy director at Amnesty International USA. Under administrative detention, Palestinian detainees have been imprisoned without knowing why theyre being imprisoned or when they might be released. Other local and international groups, including Reporters Without Borders and the European Union missions in Jerusalem and Ramallah, have also raised concerns over Israels use of administrative detention and called for Qeqs release. Israeli authorities, however, have so far refused to overturn his sentence. Al Jazeera and wire services. Ehab Zahriyeh contributed to this report. Demack, formerly a Rockhampton local, will be the citys first ever permanent Federal Circuit Court judge.The Queensland Law Society supports the appointment, saying it will reduce delays in access to justice for families in Central Queensland.This appointment will improve accessibility and reduce costs for those in Central Queensland requiring court assistance, said Queensland Law Society president Bill Potts.Judge Demack will make an excellent judge for Rockhampton. She is an experienced and highly regarded practitioner, principally in the area of family law, and she has been very active in Queensland Law Society events, especially our Symposia.While the Queensland Law Society welcomes the move, Potts said the existing court infrastructure in Rockhampton is stretched to breaking point.The accommodation of the Federal Circuit Court in the current precinct, will clearly lead to security requirements and greater demands on the local registry, he said.Queensland Law Society looks forward to the Federal Governments announcement of what arrangements will be made for the new judge.But the appointment has been met by criticism, Shadow Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus calling the appointment unworkable.While Labor welcomes a permanent Federal Circuit Court judge for Rockhampton in principle, the decision to shift Judge Demack from Brisbane ... will leave Queensland's capital city with a further vacancy, he told The Morning Bulletin.Furthermore, there is no infrastructure at the Rockhampton Court House to accommodate a permanent Federal Court judge, making Judge Demack's appointment virtually unworkable.According to The Morning Bulletin, Brandis said additional costs would be met from within the Federal Circuit Court's budget.This decision has been extremely well received by the people of central Queensland and will save them a great deal in time and delay, particularly in family law matters and family violence and cases involving family violence. There are more opportunities for engineers in Australia with both permanent and temporary jobs available for major projects, according to recruiters.Civil Engineers, Design Engineers and Rail Engineers are in high demand for highway and rail infrastructure projects in New South Wales, Victoria and the ACT, says the latest Hays Quarterly Report.The report also points out that the awarding of major infrastructure projects is generating business for associated industries and services boosting employment demand for certain roles such as transport planners.But the jobs are not for everyone as the hours can be long and they are not based in major cities where a lot of overseas professionals, for example, like to live."We are also seeing more candidates prepared to move out of big cities if it means improving their lifestyle," said Adam Shapley, senior regional director of Hays Engineering.He warned that salaries are not always at the top end of the scale despite a shortage of skilled workers. "Employers are not in a position to pay top end salaries to attract talent because they have to reduce their profit margin when bidding on work in order to win contracts," Shapley explained.It is part of a patchwork scenario currently in Australia, according to Megan Motto, chief executive of Consult Australia, the industry association for firms consulting in the built environment."While some sections of the industry are suffering from a surplus of skills, firms should not use this as a reason to become complacent in managing their talent," she said. She added that a strong pipeline of work in some States is underpinning a weaker outlook elsewhere.In terms of skills in demand, Hays Engineering says rail engineers with track signalling or electrification experience are needed at the moment and civil engineers, civil designers and MX designers are in demand too for road and highway infrastructure projects.Transport planners are in increasing demand as higher traffic and transport volumes create the need for more research and analytics while in the building industry there is a need for structural design engineers, civil engineers and structural engineers.Employers are also looking for Revit skills for many roles but are struggling to find candidates with the right software skills including self-sufficient architects and drafters. Revit modellers are in particular demand for ongoing building services contracts.The report also says that design consultancies are on the hunt for design engineers, ideally with road project experience plus strong IT/design systems experience, and there are likely to be more roles associated with renewable energy in light of the Government's more supportive attitude to the sector. I am trying to work out what my options are to obtain a residency visa in Australia but having read through numerous options I am totally confused. Here is my situation. I was born in the UK and immigrated to Australia in 1967 with my parents and two younger sisters. I lived and worked in Australia from 1967-1987 as a permanent resident when in 1987 I moved back to the UK to progress my career. My two sisters and parents still live in Australia and have done all their lives. My parents are divorced and remarried Australian citizens as have my sisters. With my parents now getting older I would like to move back to Australia to spend time with them. I am self-sufficient and have enough capital to purchase a house and will continue to work until retirement. I have a partner but there are no children involved. On numerous occasions I have returned to Australia for holidays etc...the last being over Xmas this year on a temporary 3-month visa. Having looked at my options, it seems that my previous residency doesn't count for much...so...can anyone help in terms of what options I might explore? I expect through my job that I will still need to leave Australia on business trips from time to time. Many thanks! Hi Mark, I returned to Australia as PR in 2014. Bad luck brought me to face a charge that later led me to a behavior bond. I was assaulted by holiday makers to which I reacted under sickness and in self-defense. I was charged on common assault by prejudiced female police and judge. The holiday travelers, whom picked fruits as they traveled around Australia, now left Australia indefinitely, but I have to deal with the effect of the bond. Form 1330t prevents the applicant from lodging when he/she is under the bond. My question is does this bond affect my citizenship application later on when it is expired? If yes, in what way? Due to the insecurity of my position in the aftermath of the event, I like to expedite the application process. Is there a way for me to do so by incorporating my 10 years stay in Australia in the past since Mr Keating's government? If so, what reasons can I provide in form 1290? If the answers are No to all above, what is the best advice you can give me going forwards? My status on PR application: Police record Australia: Clear, no arrest FBI record USA: Clear, no arrest Your replies are greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance. M.observer A host of new SUVs, sedans, performance cars and hybrids are on show in Delhi, with cars from Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki, Tata, and many more. This years Auto Expo is the biggest in its history, with SUVs and crossovers playing a prominent role as manufacturers display their upcoming cars to the Indian market. These are the main talking points, segment by segment. SUVs Some might say that the compact sedan segment has had its day in the sun, and if thats so, whats clearly taking over from it is the compact SUV. Maruti, Hyundai, Tata and Honda each showed off their intent to enter this segment with the Vitara Brezza, HND-14 Carlino concept, Nexon and BR-V, respectively. Then, of course, one of the pioneers of the compact SUV segment, the Renault Duster, was given a facelift and a new AMT gearbox. Maruti also showed the Ignis, and Chevrolet the Beat Active, which arent compact SUVs, but are both really attractive cross hatchbacks. A little further up the ranks are a couple of more premium SUVs, the Hyundai Tucson, Volkswagen Tiguan and Nissan X-Trail, all of which aim to find that sweet spot in the Rs 17-30 lakh range, between mainstream and luxury. Hot on their heels, however, is the all-new, more spacious, front-wheel-drive BMW X1 and punching a little higher is Mercs answer to the BMW X3, the handsome and plush new GLC. But when youre talking about SUVs, it doesnt get much more hardcore than Jeep, which is finally launching in India this year, and showed its first two models, the Grand Cherokee and Wrangler Unlimited. In the realm of ultra-luxury SUVs, you could go one of two ways. Theres the Range Rover SVAutobiography, the ultimate expression of luxury from JLR, or then theres the Mercedes-Benz G500 4x4 with its jacked-up suspension and yellow paint, that simply spits in the face of established luxury. Not left-field enough for you, how about the Mahindra XUV Aero a concept car that shows us what M&M thinks a coupe-SUV should be. What is likely to be one of the biggest launches of 2016 the brand new Toyota Innova Crysta MPV came with a few surprises, namely a more powerful diesel engine option, and the promise of a petrol variant. Sedans Much like Auto Expo 2014, this edition of the motorshow had its share of compact sedans as well. Volkswagen set the ball rolling with the reveal of the nice-looking Polo-based Ameo in the run up to the Auto Expo. The compact sedan thats been developed for India is expected to be positioned as the premium offering in the segment and will be priced higher than rivals. On the other hand, we can expect keen pricing for the production version of Tatas Kite 5. Basically, the sedan version of the soon-to-be-launched Zica hatchback, the Kite 5, at least in concept form, looks rather attractive. The same can also be said of the Chevrolet Beat Essentia which is a sedan version of the next-gen Beat. Designed largely in India, the Essentia that's expected in our market in 2017 will be a crucial car for Chevrolet as it seeks to increase sales. At the other end of the sedan spectrum, there was a lot from the luxury carmakers. Audi showcased the India-bound latest A4, Jaguar launched the XE and showed the XF and BMW launched the luxurious all-new 7-series. Performance cars Leading the pack of performance showstoppers was the Audi R8 V10 Plus which was launched at Rs 2.47 crore, with a 610bhp 5.2-litre V10 plonked on the back. Next up, the Nissan GT-R finally arrived on Indian shores and the carmaker announced that it will launch its flagship performance offering in September this year. More than 50 years after it was first unveiled, the Ford Mustang made its way into the country with an official launch planned in the second quarter of 2016. The US carmaker aims to create a niche in India by giving the country its first ever muscle car. Interestingly, Volkswagen has decided to launch the Polo GTI in India in three-door guise. Scheduled to go on sale in September 2016, the hot hatch could be priced above the Rs 20-lakh mark. Jeeps entry into the market also included the Grand Cherokee SRT, which features a potent 6.4-litre V8 petrol under the hood making 461bhp and will be out for the BMW X5 following its launch. Hybrids The national debate that arose in light of Delhis air pollution levels has prompted a strong focus on electric and hybrid vehicles. What makes this newfound emphasis on hybrids especially intriguing is that manufacturers are re-introducing vehicles to the Indian market in hybrid configuration three of five hybrids unveiled at the 2016 Auto Expo fit this bill. The Nissan X-Trail, the Volkswagen Passat GTE and the Honda Accord are all coming back to India after hiatuses of varying durations, and all of them get hybrid powertrains, at least in a variant. The X-Trail, back after two years, will come in a hybrid-only configuration while the VW Passat and the Honda Accord will be offered with hybrids as variants. Homegrown automaker Mahindra was visibly very gung-ho about electric vehicles. Its first move was the unveiling of the revised Formula E racecar, followed by the unveiling of an all-electric version of the Verito, christened the E-Verito, which will go on sale in March 2016. Mahindra also showed a race-spec version of the e2o Reva, called the e2o Sport. Also unveiled was a new generation of the original hybrid: the Toyota Prius. Bikes Two-wheeler makers also put their best wheel forward at the 2016 Auto Expo with a few notable unveilings and launches dominating proceedings. Leading the charge was the Akula 310 concept sportsbike from TVS. The Indian motorcycle manufacturer also unveiled two other concepts the RTR-based X21 and the Entorq 210 motor scooter. Also notable was the launch of classic British cafe racers, the Triumph Bonneville and Bonneville T120. Priced attractively at Rs 6.9 lakh and Rs 8.7 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi), respectively, Triumph just might be onto something here. The Bonneville Thruxton R was also revealed, though its launch will take place only in a few months. Yamaha launched its middleweight streetfighter sportsbike, the MT-09. However, the adoption of the CBU route makes it pricey, at Rs 10.2 lakh. Benelli unveiled four India-bound motorcycles: the Tornado 302, the TRK 502, the BX 250 and the TNT T 135. Honda finally raised the curtain on its mystery-shrouded Navi. A mix between a motorcycle and a scooter, the curious Navi shows Honda's creative side. The Japanese manufacturer also unveiled its Honda CRF1000L Africa Twin, a widely popular adventure tourer, and announced that it will be brought into India in CKD form. The SR 150 scooter from Aprilia was also a mix between a scooter and a motorcycle, but not in the way the Navi is. It combines the performance of a motorcycle with the convenience of a scooter, and aggressive styling. The BMW G 310 R was a silent unveil, but it created ripples nevertheless. The essence of the unveiling of the G 310 R is that it brings brilliant BMW technology to more people. UM finally made its India entry with two entry-level cruisers the Renegade Commando and the Renegade Sport S. Hero, Suzuki, Indian and Mahindra Two Wheelers were at the 2016 Auto Expo too. Show report by Gavin D'Souza, Nikhil Bhatia, Nishant Parekh and Siddhant Ghalla Delhi Auto Expo 2016 - live blog MEDIA DAY TWO: Click here for the gallery from around the show 1630 - The final press conferences have come to a close, with the biggest news from the final flurry coming from Renault with the Duster facelift that gets a new automatic gearbox. And that draws to a close our live coverage of the 2016 Auto Expo, but stay tuned for plenty more news, galleries and videos to come from us. 1530 - The Toyota press conference is underway, and the fourth-generation Toyota Prius is on show to the public. Managing director Naomi Ishi has used the press conference to reveal the manufacturer's impressive target of reducing CO2 emissions by 90 percent by 2050. 1445 - More on those Triumph bikes, our reporter Siddhant Ghalla said that a third bike was unveiled without actually being there. The original plan was to fly it to the Auto Expo, but it's been held up in customs. 1430 - It's not cheap, but it is a lot of fun. Would you be tempted to part with Rs 20 lakh for a VW Polo GTI? It's on show at VW's stall. 1400 - Triumph has launched two bikes: the Triumph Bonneville Street Twin and the Bonneville T120. Prices have been announched, too, and they're cheap. The iconic British Cafe Racers cost Rs 6.9 lakh and Rs 8.7, respectively. Tempted? Take a look through our full bike gallery. 1330 - Although Maruti has said the Baleno RS will go on sale this year, the model on show is still described as a concept car. 1315 - And here's the detals: Ignis and Baleno RS due during the festive season this year via Nexa dealerships. 1245 - The Maruti press conference is underway; the Ignis concept and Baleno RS are set to be showcased. 1215 - Our video team have been hard at work running up and down from stall to stall to bring you the very best coverage from the showfloor. See the fruits of their labours here: Tata Hexa first look, Sachin Tendulkar on the BMW 7 Series, and Volkswagen's Jurgen Stackmann. 1200 - In case you missed it yesterday, Datsun unveiled the Go-Cross concept - get full details here. 1130 - Roland Folger, Mercedes-Benz CEO, has been talking to our reporter Nishant Parekh. He spoke about diesel, BS-VI, and the market for AMG models. More to follow. 1100 - Fiat is showing a host of new metal, including a Punto-based crossover that will go on sale in the third quarter of this year. At the Mahindra stall, the SsangYong Tivoli crossover - already on sale overseas - is being shown. 1030 - Our reporters on the ground are saying it's been designed in-house by Mahindra but built by Pininfarina. 1000 - And the covers are off! A big reveal from Mahindra as the XUV Aero makes its debut, and the manufacturer has hinted it could actually make production: "With your help we can launch this car; we need your feedback." 0930 - Gavin D'Souza is one of the early birds hanging around the Mahindra stall, and he's snapped this picture of the XUV Aero under cover. "It seems Mahindra's decided to do its own X6. At least as a concept. Wraps off soon," he says. 0900 - We're back for the second media day and it promises to be another big one. It's still very cold in this press room, but Scania and JBM press conferences will get us nicely warmed up, before a scorcher from Mahindra & Mahindra. MEDIA DAY ONE: 1900 - Audi and BMW draw proceedings to a close, but not before we get an eyeful of one of the most popular cars at this year's show; the new Toyota Innova. We'll be back tomorrow morning from 9am to bring you all the action from every press conference. 1820 - Such is the scramble to get the best picture here, one of our reporters saw someone scrambling on top of an A3 Cabriolet's bonnet to get a shot of the Audi stall. 1815 - Sachin Tendulkar is set to unveil the BMW 7-series, which is priced from Rs 1.1 crore to Rs 1.5 crore. The X1 has been shown, too, get full details of it here. 1800 - There's a final flurry of press conferences from Nissan, BMW and Audi. We've seen the X-Trail on show, and heard that the GT-R is hitting the market in September. 1730 - More on those Kwid concepts now, with the Climber and Racer showing off-road and performance-focussed versions of the hatchback. There's also a chance that some of the feautres seen in both concepts could make it into future production models. 1715 - Away from new cars, our editor Hormazd Sorabjee has spoken to Maruti Suzuki president and COO Toshihiro Suzuki who had some interesting things to say about the challenges of making low-cost small cars return big profits. Read what he had to say here. 1645 - Would you like news of another SUV? Of course you would, here's more on the Honda BR-V, and here's a video of us driving it. 1630 - Remember when Jeep was set to enter the Indian market in 2014? Well, now it's actually going to happen, this year. The Wrangler, Grand Cherokee, and hot 237bhp Grand Cherokee SRT will go on sale in the middle of this year, first in metros then in Tier I cities. 1600 - The SUVs keep on coming. The Mercedes GLC is on show, as is the Tata Hexa. One is a bit more expensive than the other, though. 1515 - Two very interesting Kwid concepts have been on display. Full details to come. And India's very first indigenous hot hatch is strutting its stuff at the Tata stall. The Bolt Sport gets 108.5bhp (let's call it 109bhp) and can cover 0-100kph in 12 seconds. India-made hot hatches still have a bit of work to do, but then, you have to start somewhere. 1430 - The Hyundai Tucson is already on sale overseas but is coming to India, and now Volkswagen is also bringing a foreign SUV to this country. The Tiguan is expected here in 2017. 1415 - From the comments m.m. karthik asks: When will the Tata Zica be launched? And when will booking be started? Its not been confirmed by the manufacturer, but we expect it to be launched in the middle of this month. However, the entire marketing campaign has been hit by the news that Tata is changing the cars name because of the association with the Zika virus, so plans may change. It's still carrying the Zica name at the Auto Expo, though. Stay tuned. 1400 - Our man Gavin D'Souza is at the Honda stall awaiting the unveiling of the BR-V, which is a "crossover utility vehicle" rather than an "SUV". Whatever that means. 1345 - There's a few cars actually launching today, including the Jaguar XE which will enter the ultra-competitive executive sedan segment. It's on sale in India now, priced from Rs 39.9 lakh, click here for full info. 1315 - Mercedes is taking the time to show off an eclectic collection of its range, the most eye-catching being the G 500 4x4. The most important for India, though, is the GLC SUV which is making its debut in the country. More information to follow. 1300 - Big one from Tata as the Nexon compact SUV comes out from under the covers. It's trying to steal some of the thunder from the Vitara Brezza. 1245 - Honda, meanwhile, has shown an electric variation of the most popular motorised vehicle ever sold. The Honda EV Cub is based on the Super Cub and previews an electric scooter with a detachable battery to allow users to take it out and charge at home - nifty. 1230 - Plenty of bike news coming thick and fast. DSK Benelli have shown four models all set to reach India. Read about them here. 1200 - It's lunchtime, so sit back and watch our video coverage of the Auto Expo. Click here to see the Vitara Brezza. 1145 - Round-up of what's on at Hyundai's stall: Genesis, Tucson, HND-14 compact SUV. 1125 - It's kicking off at the Suzuki bike stall. Security had to be called after a scramble for the press kits made the big advertising board fall down. 1115 - More from Chevrolet now: the Beat Activ is another Beat-based concept and previews the next-generation hatchback which will launch in 2017. And the production-ready all-new Spin MPV has been showcased. 1105 - More on the Honda Navi (which stands for New Additional Value for India. Catchy, right?). It's priced from Rs 39,500 ex-showroom Delhi and has been designed entirely in India, read more about it here. 1100 - We love the Renault Kwid - we just named it our Car of the Year - and now it's set to receive some engine and gearbox updates. Buyers will be able to get a 1.0-litre petrol engine alongside the 800cc option, and it'll get an AMT gearbox as well. Will it make our favourite car of the past year even better? 1045 - Get involved and ask our reporters any questions you have on the new metal on show. Use the comments section on this article, tweet us @autocarindiamag or get in touch on Facebook. 1030 - Lest we forget, it's not all about cars at the Auto Expo, there's also a load of two-wheelers being shown for the first time. Check out our picture gallery on the Honda Navi - a mix between a motorcycle and a scooter, according to our reporter Siddhant Ghalla who was at the press conference. 1020 - For anyone tired of compact-SUVs and compact-sedans, Isuzu has shown a decidedly non-compact pick-up at its stall. The second-generation D-Max will go on sale for around Rs 15 lakh, which is a lot of car for the money. 1010 - More from that General Motors press conference now, and Chevrolet has shown a thinly veiled concept of a Beat-based compact sedan. A production version is set to follow in 2017, here's what we know. 1000 - SUVs, SUVs, SUVs: there's a pretty clear theme developing from this year's Auto Expo. Now Hyundai has unveiled a concept hinting at a future production SUV model to join its line-up. Click here for more on the HND-14 Carlino. 0945 - The big news from yesterday was VW showing off its new Ameo compact sedan that's been tailor-made for the Indian market. We're bursting at the seams with Ameo news - read the news story here, flick through the photo gallery here, and watch our video of it here. 0930 - We've got a constant stream of live pictures coming in from all of the press conferences, follow our live gallery to keep up to speed with it all. 0915 - The Hyundai Tucson looks like it's headed to India, and it could get here as early as September this year. 0900 - Over at Isuzu, the big off-road D-Max pick-up has been shown. It'll be built in India, priced from around Rs 15 lakh. 0845 - Our reporter Gavin D'Souza has been getting hands on with Maruti's new compact SUV: "Dash of Vitara Brezza all too familiar, but decently put together. Cabin is very spacious." 0830 - All eyes on General Motors and Hyundai now, more SUVs and concepts on the way 0815 - Compact SUVs are going to be a common sight at this year's Auto Expo, but will any be able to upstage the Brezza? We've got more pictures from the unveiling here. 0800 - The first press conference of the 2016 Auto Expo is underway and Maruti Suzuki has taken the covers off one of the biggest cars at the show: the Vitara Brezza compact SUV. Click here for full details on it. Mahindra XUV Aero concept The concept car previews a future XUV500-based SUV with coupe-like styling to pitch it in a class dominated by high-end luxury offerings like the BMW X6 and Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe. A production version could be Mahindras flagship model, positioned above the XUV500, and the concept car will show a new infotainment system to be used in future models. Maruti Suzuki The Maruti Vitara Brezza SUV, the carmaker's first compact SUV, is set to be positioned below the S-Cross in its range. It borrows features of its styling like its sloping roofline from the bigger Vitara SUV, which is sold overseas. The Vitara Brezza will be under four metres long and is likely to be be powered by Marutis 1.2- and 1.4-litre petrol engines, as well as the 1.3-litre diesel. The Vitara Brezza SUV will face competition from the Ford EcoSport and Mahindra TUV300 in the segment. Baleno RS The concept car will show a warm version of the premium hatchback, powered by the new 110bhp 1.0-litre Boosterjet engine with extra styling tweaks to give it a sporty look. The Boosterjet engine will be introduced in the standard Baleno, which was spotted testing with the engine recently. Ignis concept The small crossover was unveiled at the 2015 Tokyo motor show and will make its debut in India at the Auto Expo as a thinly-veiled concept form. It features a large grille with LED headlamps and flared wheel arches, and a production model could be launched later this year, but theres no official confirmation yet. New Mercedes GLC SUV The all-new GLC SUV closely resembles the C-class sedan from the outside and inside, where the GLC gets a luxurious cabin with rotary air vents and a touchscreen infotainment system. It will enter the Indian market with two variants of the 2.1-litre four-cylinder diesel engine the 168bhp 220d, and 201bhp GLC 250d. Mercedes GLC250d review S-Class Cabriolet The drop-top version of Mercedes luxury flagship sedan is the same length as the car its based on and the roof can be extended or folded away in 20 seconds at speeds up to 60kph. Nissan X-Trail Hybrid SUV The previous generation of X-Trail was discontinued in India in 2014 because of low demand, but Nissan is bringing back the SUV with sleeker styling and a plusher cabin and will price it around Rs 32-35 lakh. The SUV will be powered by Nissans 2.0-litre diesel engine mated to a CVT gearbox. Theres a lot of interest in this segment, and the X-Trail faces competition from the cheaper Hyundai Santa Fe and Honda CR-V. Renault Duster facelift The popular Duster is set to receive a facelift and new AMT gearbox option, and its already been spotted testing in India ahead of its debut at the Auto Expo 2016. The Easy-R AMT gearbox was chosen over the DCT gearbox available outside of India because it proved to be significantly cheaper for the buyer. Cosmetic tweaks are expected to include a reworked bumper and grille as well as modified headlamps. The launch is expected sometime around March or April. SsangYong Tivoli crossover The Mahindra-owned manufacturer could unveil the Tivoli crossover at the Auto Expo ahead of its India launch. Already on sale overseas, the Indian model will get Mahindras new engine family from the KUV100 compact SUV, with a 1.6-litre petrol and 1.6-litre diesel, but the price is yet to be confirmed. This vehicle was recently seen in India on tests. Tata Nexon-based Osprey compact SUV The compact SUV, known internally as Osprey, has been spotted testing and is based on the Nexon concept showcased at the Auto Expo in 2014. The production version is thought to draw heavily from the styling of the Nexon and will see the introduction of Tatas 110bhp 1.5-litre diesel engine. The launch is not expected before the end of this year. Tata Zica -based compact sedan The The Zica-based compact sedan will replace the Tata Indigo eCS and could be priced around Rs 4 lakh when it goes on sale this year. The 1.2-litre three-cylinder petrol engine and 1.0-litre diesel engine will be carried over from the Zica, mated to a five-speed manual gearbox, and other features from the hatchback version of the Zica such as Bluetooth, sat-nav, dual airbags and ABS are expected to be carried over. When launch, it will face competition from other compact sedans such as the Honda Amaze, Maruti DZire, Hyundai Xcent and Figo Aspire. All-new Toyota Innova A hugely important car for Toyota, the second-generation Innova features thoroughly updated styling and an improved interior. The MPV, which has been a very successful model for Toyota in India, also gets an all-new 2.4-litre diesel engine Volkswagen Ameo The Polo-based compact sedan has been developed specifically for the Indian market. It will share cosmetic and mechanical bits from the Polo and Vento and will be built at VW's plant in Pune and is likely to be priced above the Honda Amaze. Volkswagen Tiguan SUV The second-generation Tiguan is the first SUV to be based on Volkswagens MQB platform, shared with the Skoda Octavia. Its likely to be powered by a 148bhp 2.0-litre diesel engine. Volkswagen Passat GTE The all-new Passat will reach India later this year and Volkswagen is showcasing the car as a plug-in hybrid version. It has a 50km electric-only range, and with its 1.4-litre TSI petrol engine, a combined range of 1,001km. Also read: Blog: Tracking two decades of Auto Expo Auto Expo 2016: An overview Being jointly organised by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) and the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA), the latest edition of the Auto Expo will be held at the India Exposition Mart Ltd (IEML) in Greater Noida from February 5-9, 2016. We had reported in October than SIAM was preparing enclosed permanent structures at the venue to increase the total air-conditioned permanently covered floor space. The total floor space has been increased by 37,240 sq. metres (six new halls) over and above the already available eight halls, taking the total floor space to around 79,000 sq. metres. The Auto Expo 2016 is expected to see an increase in visitors with SIAM calculating a 20 percent rise compared to the previous edition. The number of exhibitors for the event has also risen to over 65 exhibitors from last year's count of 55. Participating brands The major automotive brands to be present at the Auto Expo 2016 will include Ashok Leyland, Audi, BMW, Datsun, Fiat, Ford, General Motors, Honda cars, Hyundai, Isuzu, Jaguar Land Rover, Mahindra and Mahindra, Maruti Suzuki, Mercedes-Benz, Nissan, Renault, Scania Commercial Vehicles, SML Isuzu, Tata Motors, Toyota Kirloskar Motors, VE Commercial vehicles, Volkswagen India and more. From the two- wheeler industry, the major brands to be present include Hero MotoCorp, Yamaha, Mahindra Two-Wheelers, Piaggio Vehicles, Suzuki Motorcycles, Triumph Motorcycles, TVS Motor Company and more. There will also be new entrants such as Abarth, BMW Motorrad, Jeep, DSK Benelli, Indian Motorcycles and many more. However, Bajaj, Volvo and Harley-Davidson will not be participating in the expo this year. The 2016 Auto Expo will also exhibit high-end bicycles, tyres and tubes, products from oil companies, Automotive Design and Technology, Engineering and IT for automobile companies, institutions, universities, auto insurance companies and media and auto portals/magazines. In addition, there will be a pavilion dedicated to classic cars and areas for activities such as safety riding and driving simulators. Accessibility The venue will be accessible through six entry points with CISF handling the security. There will also be free shuttle services available from the nearest metro station, which is the Botanical Gardens, Noida city centre and Pragati Maidan with as many as 160 DTC busses being pressed into service. Furthermore, there will also be an smartphone app available to help navigate through the various exhibits at the venue. Network connectivity The venue will provide Wi-Fi and internet coverage along with telecom companies having being asked to provide special towers to avoid network congestion at the venue. Tickets and timings Ticket bookings for the expo are already open on the Auto Expos official website www.autoexpo-themotorshow.in and www.bookmyshow.com. The tickets are priced at Rs 300 for general public hours during weekdays (1pm - 6pm), and Rs 400 for weekends (10am - 7pm). For visiting during business hours on weekdays (10am - 1pm), tickets cost Rs 650. However, business hours ticket holders will also be able to enter the venue during public hours, until 6pm. Free home delivery is offered on bookings of 3 to 10 tickets made before December 31, 2015. Otherwise, home delivery charges of Rs 75 per booking will be levied. Home delivery will not available for tickets booked online after January 25, 2016. Delivery starts from January 15, 2016, or the tickets can be collected from counters located at parking lots near the venue. Hospitality The Auto Expo will also have a food court which gets an extra 1,000 sq. metres over the one at the previous expo. The food court will hold 60 food stalls, 20 kiosks and multiple food trucks offering an assortment of cuisine from international brands and prominent local restaurants and outlets. Two restaurants run by the Taj and Radisson Hotels have also been arranged for at the venue. Like in 2014, this year's Auto Components Show one of the biggest exhibitions of automotive components, technology and services will take place from February 4 -7, at Pragati Maidan. Honda has revealed the India-spec BR-V at the 2016 Auto Expo. The all-new SUV from Honda shares its platform with the Brio, Amaze and the Mobilio, but gets a more rugged and angular design theme along with a seven-seat layout.The car on display was loaded up with a lot of chrome, right from the grille to the tailgate, door frames, door handles and even the wheels, which is bound to go down well in India. Also worth noting is that, in the flesh, it does have some proper SUV presence, and doesnt look like merely a jacked-up version of the Mobilio. Honda, however, has been careful to brand it a crossover utility vehicle or CUV, rather than an all-out SUV.In terms of design, the BR-V gets SUV styling cues that includes butch cladding that runs around the entire car, a rising beltline, pronounced wheel arch flares and roof rails. At 2,660mm, the BR-V's wheelbase is longer than that of Mobilio. The new car's interior features a seven-seat layout and an all-new dashboard design, which is more in line with Honda Jazz and City, unlike the cars it shares its platform with. In terms of engine details, the car is expected to use tweaked versions of Hondas existing 1.5-litre petrol and diesel engines.The BR-V was not launched at the 2016 Auto Expo, and the company says that will only happen later in 2016. The SUV will be manufactured at Honda's Tapukara facility in Rajasthan with production expected to begin in April this year. It will compete with the likes of the Mahindra Scorpio, Renault Duster, Maruti S-Cross and the popular Hyundai Creta. The carmaker also revealed the new Accord at the Auto Expo. The companys latest generation of the large sedan is set to arrive on our shores in petrol and petrol-hybrid guise, and will be imported into India as CBUs. Also on display are the Honda Project 2&4 concept, the Jazz racing concept and the McLaren Honda MP4-30 Formula 1 car. The first thing you need to know about the 2016 Opel Mokka is that the nameplate gained an X after Mokka. According to the German manufacturer, the X in the 2016 Opel Mokka X is the segment identifier for future Opel SUV and crossover vehicles. Therefore, we expect Opel to apply the X on its upcoming flagship SUV as well, the one that will be manufactured at the companys plant in Russelsheim.For the British market, the 2016 Opel Mokka X will be known as the 2016 Vauxhall Mokka X. The two are identical twins, minus the badges. The 4.28-meter long subcompact crossover incorporates a fresh design language, first applied to the Opel Corsa E and Astra K As you can see in the attached photo gallery, the exterior design has little in common with the pre-facelift Mokka. The visual improvement we like most is the double-wing signature LED daytime running lights.The wing-shaped horizontal grille or the optional LED lights of the tail lamps arent too shabby either. Another optional feature we are genuinely mad about is represented by the Adaptive Forward Lighting LED headlamps.When it arrives at European dealers this fall, the 2016 Opel Mokka X and its Vauxhall-badged sibling will be offered with a couple of 1.6-liter Whisper Diesel engines (110 or 136 PS), as well as a 1.4-liter Direct Injection Turbo with 152 PS at your right foots disposal.An adaptive all-wheel-drive system and a new type of six-speed automatic transmission will be made available in combination with the 1.4-liter turbo-4. Last but not least, the tech-savvy among you may be interested to know that IntelliLink with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto capability will be available for the facelifted Mokka from launch, as will the suite of OnStar services tailored for the European market. SUV When youre in a car, in case of an accident, its like having one or more get-out-of-jail free cards. As long as were not talking about full-speed head-on crashes, you can afford to have the occasional bump now and then, its no big deal. You just have to get your car repaired and thats that.On a motorcycle, any accident is a potentially fatal one. The first could very well be the last. And even if it doesnt kill you, it will probably be enough to make you want to stay away from that thing, and look for the biggest, heaviest and safest substitute of a tankto make sure you dont go through that again.In some countries, though, people rely heavily on their motorcycles and scooters. Excluding the financial aspect - two-wheeled vehicles are a lot more affordable - the streets just couldnt handle a larger amount of cars. They can hardly cope with the swarming mopeds and motorcycles at times...Certain parts of China fall into that category, and you can tell from this video shot in Wuhu, Anhui Province. Out of the seven vehicles that enter the scene, only two of them have four wheels. Unfortunately for the man driving on the right-hand lane, the vehicle he crashes into is one of them.Before we say anything else, the elaborate video description insists on the fact that, despite the severity of the crash, the rider is fine now. But this was a completely avoidable accident.The woman on the right is standing by her motorcycle, apparently waiting to push her vehicle across the road. She lets one other rider pass, and then looks over her shoulder and appears to begin crossing. She notices the soon-to-be victim coming, and so she stops. Too late, unfortunately, as the motorcycle driver had already begun the evasive maneuver that ultimately sent him in a head-on crash with the oncoming SUV.Theres no doubt about whos at fault here, but you have to ask yourself what the hell went through that mans mind. When presented with the option of potentially hitting sideways a stationary scooter and a certain frontal impact with an oncoming SUV, what would a man with his survival instinct intact choose? Watch the video below for the wrong answer. Warning, even though theres no gore and we know hes alright, some people might still find the images disturbing.[LIVELEAK=http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=7b2_1454556537] Shkreli was removed from his position at CEO of Turing last December. Turing raised the price of the decades-old drug Daraprim from $13.50 a pill to $750 a pill in September. Shkreli insisted that no one would be turned away because of a lack of ability to pay and that all profits would go into research. After Shkreli's arrest, the company said it would offer steep discounts in the price of the drug to hospitals, but has not reduced it to its original price. Online retail listings for Daraprim show the drug going for as much as $834 per pill, with a 60 pill course of treatment costing over $44,000. Nevertheless, Shkreli became the object of widespread ridicule and derision, earning the title of Pharma Bro from online commenters. In December, many music fans joined the outrage after Shkreli purchased a one-of-a-kind Wu Tang Clan album, Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, at auction for $2 million. Jason Chaffetz, a Utah Republican and chairman of the committee, asked Shkreli, What do you say to that single, pregnant woman, who might have AIDS...no income. She needs Daraprim in order to survive. What do you say to her when she has to make that choice? Having already said he was invoking his Fifth Amendment right to not testify, Shkreli gave a terse reply. On the advice of counsel, I invoke my 5th Amendment privilege against self incrimination and respectfully decline to answer your question, he said. Do you think youve done anything wrong? Chaffetz asked. Shkreli gave the same answer again. Republican Trey Gowdy of South Carolina criticized Shkreli for choosing to remain silent before Congress while defending himself enthusiastically on social media and on television and documenting his life using a Web camera in his apartment. He didnt have to be prodded to tweet a whole lot or show us his life on that little Web cam hes got," Gowdy said. He added that Shkreli would not have to answer questions at the hearing about the fraud charges against him and could, instead, talk about music. "We can even talk about the purchase is it Wu Tang Clan? Gowdy said. Is that the name of the album name of the group? Shkreli refused to answer. Before Chaffetz dismissed him, Rep. Elijah Cummings, a Maryland Democrat, asked Shkreli to lower the price of the drug, which Cummings said hits taxpayers as well as patients, and become an advocate for patients rights. I truly believe you could become a force of tremendous good," Cummings said. I beg that you reflect on it. There are so many people that could use your help. May God bless you. The movement started on January 24 and lasts for a week, as Chinese people are traveling back to their families to celebrate the holiday, which falls on February 8 this year.According to the Societe Generale SA Bank, fuel demand in China in this period will exceed the annual daily average by 242,000 barrels.Since 2015 registered an average apparent demand of 2.7 million barrels of fuel per day in China, according to data acquired by Bloomberg , during the new years holiday, the demand is expected to raise to almost three million barrels of fuel a day.All the requested fuel is destined for use in jets, cars, and trains. Each transportation solution is experiencing its equivalent of a gridlock, and travelers had to reserve tickets in advance to get a spot on a train or a seat on an airplane. Chinese train station was blocked by travelers , and we cannot even imagine whats happening on their road network, which is overcrowded even on regular days.Even with the worlds largest migration and the fact that China is the worlds biggest car market today, the Middle Kingdom is not the greatest oil consumer on the globe.That role still goes to the United States of America. Unlike the situation in China, the demand for fuel usually soars in the USA at the end of May.However, the analysts of the Societe Generale Bank estimate that the Chinese driving habits are on a growing trend even when theres no holiday in sight. The Chinese bought 2.4 million vehicles in December 2015, and theres no immediate sign of their market slowing down.Meanwhile, we cannot help wondering about the environmental impact of such a migration, and we ask ourselves if such great use of fuel in the name of family tradition is justified.After all, Chinas air is not the cleanest in the world, and using three million barrels of gasoline a day does not sound like something good for the ozone layer. The arrival of the Model X in China coincides with the Chinese New Year. Red is the color that symbolizes celebration in the country, so you shouldnt be surprised to find out that the first Model X batch for China is a limited edition known as the Signature Red. Based on the top-of-the-line P90D, the Tesla Model X Signature Red costs 1.48 million yuan. That equals $225,000 at the current exchange rates.Aside from the Signature Red paint, the limited edition Model X is equipped with every goodie available. For those customers who cant afford or dont need the excessive Signature Red Model X, the 90D and the P90D should do just fine. For the entry-level 90D, the sticker price is 1,171,800 yuan (the equivalent of approximately $178,155).Tesla announces that its pushing to deliver the first units of the Model X in China at the beginning of the second quarter. What that means is that the Chinese will receive their Model X electric SUVs a couple of months before European customers.Thats bold, but then again, China started to appreciate electric vehicles as of late. Take NEVS and its $12 billion deal as a case in point. For that mountain of money, NEVS will provide 150,000 EVs to Panda New Energy, a Chinese leasing company.The Model S got off to a rocky start in China, but the company managed to establish the brand in the Middle Kingdom. With the arrival of the Model X utility vehicle and the soon-to-be-presented Model 3 sedan, we bet that the electric vehicle manufacturer will rise to new heights in the worlds most dynamic new car market. Britains fastest snowboarder (94.2 mph; 151.6 km/h) went to the frozen lake of St. Moritz in Switzerland with the intention of writing history. On January 28, a diesel-powered Mitsubishi ASX crossover towed Jamie on his snowboard at 62.65 mph (100.84 km/h) on the out run. Thats no small feat, mind you.The return run saw the human-machine combo reach 61.45 mph (98.9 km/h), slightly less than on the out run. Nevertheless, the average of the two runs (62.05 mph or 99.87 km/h) was good enough to break a Guinness World Record. Clearly proud of his newly set record, 22-year-old Barrow declared, I do think though that I couldve easily handled going a lot faster if it wasnt for the soft snow due to unseasonably mild weather.Daredevil or not, the young lad is one hell of a sport. Im really looking forward to returning and attempting to beat my own record with the Mitsubishi ASX when there are more favorable weather conditions! Need we say more about what will happen to the newly set Guinness World Record? Clearly, Jamie will come back to St. Moritz not only to break the record again but to surpass himself as a sportsman and overcome his fear.On this occasion, the car is not the star. Sorry, Mitsubishi, but the ASX is getting kind of old now. The real star is Jamie because he pushes himself as hard as he can, despite the fact that he suffered a serious injury in 2013 resulting in dropping out of the British Snowboard Cross Team. Good on you, Jamie! ABS Helmuth Bott, the head of development who worked on the Porsche 959, took 29 chassis of the Porsche 930 to turn them into the 959 pre-production prototypes. Three categories of prototypes have been produced: F, N, and V. The V-series prototypes are the latest. These were used by Porsche for everything from media coverage to crash tests.Cue chassis number 10067. Internally referred to as V1KOM and registered as BB-PW481, this Porsche 959 was built in 1985, a year before the automaker started production of the Porsche 959. This example of the breed is one of four surviving prototypes and one of the two street-legal prototypes. As is often the case with pre-production mules, early design units are often destroyed or scrapped at the end of the development process for an all-new model.Happily, however, this one survived and it can be yours if your pockets are deep enough. During the development for the 959, Porsche engineers used #10067 forand tire tests. As such, this mule hasnt seen too much abuse throughout its career as a pre-production prototype. After development concluded, #10067 was sold to Tachio Saito, a professor that happened to be a close friend of Ferry Porsche. Better known as the founder of the Porsche Owners Club of Japan, Saito took delivery of his prototype after 16 months of restoration performed by Porsche themselves.After Saito, this particular Porsche 959 unit changed owners at least five times until now. Eventually, the prototype came up for sale again via the Art & Revs automobile gallery. Besides its interesting history, this $1,450,000 Zuffenhausen unicorn shows only 400 kilometers (250 miles) on the clock and comes with the pre-production magnesium wheels. So, are you interested in making it your own? But the most unexpected thing about the Fast & Furious saga is that Furious 7 happened despite Paul Walkers tragic death in 2013, five months after the release of the sixth movie. Boiled down to its core, Furious 7 is an action-packed homage to Paul Walker.Furious 7s ends with Dom and Brian bidding each other farewell, then driving off in separate directions. This means that Paul Walkers brother will not reprise the role of Brian OConner for Fast & Furious 8, which is due to premiere on April 14, 2017. A representative from Universal Pictures has confirmed that to Polygon by declaring that Cody Walker will not take part in the filming of the eighth movie, so that settles it from our point of view.Other things we know about Fast 8 (running title) is that it will be directed by F. Gary Gray of Straight Outta Compton fame, and Vin Diesel will produce the movie together with Michael Fottrell, Neal H. Moritz, and Chris Morgan.As expected, the cast will include Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Ludacris, and Jason Statham. The first poster for the movie, also revealed by Vin Diesel on Instagram, features New York Citys skyline. This practically confirms that the story will continue in downtown NYC.The thing is, nobody knows a thing about Fast & Furious 9 and Fast & Furious 10, due to hit theaters on April 19, 2019, and April 2, 2021, respectively. All we could ever wish for is a story thatll focus on car culture like the first Fast & Furious movie did back in 2001.Vin Diesel is also working on the third installment of xXx, titled The Return of Xander Cage and due 2017. Two congressmen in favor of privatizing the FAAs Air Traffic Organization introduced their proposal Wednesday, just after receiving written opposition from others in the House and Senate. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Bill Shuster, R-Pa., and Aviation Subcommittee Chairman Frank LoBiondo, R-N.J., introduced the Aviation Innovation, Reform, and Reauthorization (AIRR) Act, H.R. 4441 (PDF), which would fund a six-year reauthorization for the FAA resetting a longer funding clock as the current extension is set to end March 31. Shuster said in his announcement that privatization of the U.S. system would build on successful models in other countries. Our system is incredibly inefficient, and it will only get worse as passenger levels grow and as the FAA falls further behind in modernizing the system, he said. The bill will undergo discussion at a committee hearing next week. H.R. 4441 drew a mixed bag of reactions. Lawmakers from the House and Senate Appropriations Committees have already opposed the plan to move ATC services from the FAA to a corporation overseen by a board. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association statedit supports the bill, saying it wouldnt compromise safety, establishes a non-profit entity for ATC services, and maintains controllers jobs and employee benefits. Many voices in the public discussion of this issue, including the news media, will continue to use the word privatization to describe this bill. But to us, privatization has always meant a profit motive where safety is not the top priority. That definition does NOT fit this bill today, NATCA stated. AOPA said it will review the proposal in detail. There are some very good things for general aviation in this bilI. I think everyone can agree that the FAA can be more efficient and effective, and this legislation creates opportunities for both third class medical reform and certification reform that have the potential to make flying safer and more affordable, said AOPA President Mark Baker. But there are other provisions we will firmly oppose such as user fees for any segment of GA, including business aviation. And still other elements, like the plan to separate air traffic control from the FAA, raise important questions that demand meaningful answers. Ultimately, we need to know that any FAA reauthorization legislation will protect the interests of general aviation now and into the future. The bill outlines general criteria for charges and fees and states that they wont apply to ATC services to piston aircraft or noncommercial operations for turbine aircraft. EAA opposes the bill on a number of fronts, saying that while it includes third-class medical reform as previously proposed for personal light aircraft, privatization would remove congressional oversight of the system and leave GA without much representation. The captain of the Airbus A321 that landed Tuesday with a hole blown out of its side believes a bomb exploded as the jet climbed out ofMogadishu, Somalia. Authorities havent confirmed the source of the blast, and one passenger is believed to be dead from falling out of the hole. It was my first bomb; I hope it will be the last, Vlatko Vodopivec told The Associated Press. The Daallo Airlines jet, headed for Djibouti to the northwest, was at about 11,000 feet and climbing to 30,000 feet when a blast opened the side of the cabin, he said. When we heard a loud bang, the co-pilot went back to the cabin to inspect the damage, and I took over the commands as the procedure demands, he told the AP. The aircrafts systems were normal so he was able to return to Mogadishu. It would have been much worse if we were higher, he said. A mans body was found north of Mogadishu, but his identity hasnt been confirmed, the AP reported.Somalian authorities are investigating.The CEO of Daallo, Mohammed Ibrahim Yassin, acknowledged the possibility of a bomb. At this stage, everything is possible. We cannot rule out anything at this stage, he told the AP. Seventy-four passengers were reported to have been on the airliner, which Daallo says was operated by Hermes Airlines of Greece. Two passengers were treated for minor injuries.Cellphone videos following the blast showed oxygen masks deployed above all the seats in the cabin and donned by passengers as air blew into the right side of the aircraft. PORTER RANCH, California On a recent afternoon at King TaeKwonDo, in one of the many shopping centers dotting this sprawling suburb north of Los Angeles, only seven young children were attending the martial arts class. Just two months ago, there were 20. And in December and January, when enrollment usually soars as children cash in gift cards they received at Christmas, no one signed up. Sarah Tall, the owner of the three-and-a-half-year-old business, pulls out a letter from her landlord and breaks down in tears. She faces eviction if she doesnt pay the rent and late fees. My bank account is getting dry, said Tall. She cant make the full payment on time. In November we were busy, Tall said. Then, in December, I noticed people were not coming. The casualties of the natural gas leak that began in October are enormous. Up to 5,000 residents have fled the area to hotels and homes farther from the estimated 87.5 million tons of methane that have been pumped into the air by a Southern California Gas Co. facility. Residents have complained of nosebleeds, dizziness, nausea, headaches and respiratory problems. Students have been relocated to other schools. A flurry of lawsuits have been filed by residents who continue to pay the mortgage on homes they cant live in and who have had their lives turned on their heads by the disaster. Gov. Jerry Brown declared the situation a state of emergency. The South Coast Air Quality Management District, the agency that regulates Southern Californias air quality, is suing the gas company, accusing it of negligence in the design, construction and operation of one of the wells at the Aliso Canyon Natural Gas Storage Facility near Porter Ranch. And Tuesday, the first criminal charges in Los Angeles County against Southern California Gas were filed by the county's District Attorney Jackie Lacey for failing to immediately report the gas leak to state authorities. Also Tuesday, the California attorney general filed a lawsuit, alleging state health and safety law violations. And now, businesses that are losing their customer base have filed a class-action lawsuit. We heard that theres a dramatic loss of business, especially since it happened in their busiest time of the year the holidays, said Los Angeles City Councilmember Mitchell Englander. Englander is calling on the citys finance department to track how sales tax revenues have declined from previous years. From there, we may be able to offer reduced business taxes and were working with the county assessor to be able to offer reduced property taxes he said. Englander has joined the Valley Economic Development Center (VEDC) to provide micro-loans to small businesses that are struggling because of the gas leak. Businesses most directly affected are the ones that rely on children in the area from preschools and learning centers to martial arts centers such as King TaeKwonDo. I dispatched a team to go to Porter Ranch and Im hearing pain and suffering, said Alex Guerrero, chief operating officer of the non-profit VEDC. More than half of the struggling businesses are retail operations. Thats where the big problem starts, he said. Seven businesses told him that if they dont get some financial help, they might have to close their doors within a couple of weeks. We heard that theres a dramatic loss of business, especially since it happened in their busiest time of the year the holidays ... we may be able to offer reduced business taxes and were working with the county assessor to be able to offer reduced property taxes. Mitchell Englander Los Angeles City Councilmember The Weekender plans to make the most of Februarys chill by heading out to fly on the snow in search of hot meals as listed on SocialFlight.Skiplanes can head to Plymouth, Michigan, Saturday for a warm hangar, hot food and good company as EAA Chapter 113 hosts its Chili Fly-In. There will be lunch regardless of weather, so bring a pot of your favorite chili dish or dessert to share.Hot dogs and drinks will also be available for a donation. At Pioneer Airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, EAA will celebrate its anniversary with its annual Skiplane Fly-In, serving free chili and cake starting at 10:30 a.m. Clarence Aerodrome in New York invites all to its annual Clarence Skiplane Fly-In, offering free food and a bonfire starting at noon Saturday. Lancaster Airport in Pennsylvania will serve breakfast Saturday followed by a free safety presentation at 10:30 a.m. The Harrisburg FAASTeam will discuss loss of control, addressing the more subtle factors including pilot proficiency, aeronautical decision making, inadequate hazard identification and risk assessment, and hazardous operational environments. For more on this weekends fly-in events, visit SocialFlight. WHO WE AREMakers & Allies is an award-winning design and branding studio producing exclusively for the wine, craft, and spirits industry. Were a multi-talented creative crew that has learned how to play at the top of our game together. Were pre Human Rights Watch issued a report Thursday saying French Muslims have been unfairly targeted and have suffered abuse in police raids and searches during the state of emergency imposed after the Paris attacks in January. The report comes a day after the French government announced it wants to extend state-of-emergency powers for another three months. "The terrorist threat is still extremely high" in France and Europe, government spokesman Stephane Le Foll said Wednesday. "The state of emergency is necessary. It has been useful and must continue to be." Since gunmen and suicide bombers killed 130 people in attacks across Paris on Nov. 13, French police have carried out more than 3,200 raids and arrested between 350 and 400 people, HRW said. But the raids only resulted in the opening of five anti-terror investigations by the Paris prosecutor, the group said. Many of the people searched by police have reported incidents of abuse during the raids. They say French officials discriminated against them because they were Muslims. France has a responsibility to ensure public safety and try to prevent further attacks, but the police have used their new emergency powers in abusive, discriminatory, and unjustified ways, Izza Leghtas, Western Europe researcher at HRW, said in a news release. This abuse has traumatized families and tarnished reputations, leaving targets feeling like second-class citizens, Leghtas added. The state of emergency which allows police to conduct raids and searches without prior judicial approval or warrants is the longest one imposed in France since World War II. The current state of emergency expires on Feb. 26. On Saturday, thousands of people protested the governments plans to renew the state of emergency. Many also oppose a plan by French President Francois Holland to strip dual nationals of their citizenship if they are convicted of terrorism, an initiative that prompted Justice Minister Christiane Taubira to resign two weeks ago. Taubira said she quit over concerns that the proposal would fuel racism against French Muslims, who are more likely than others to hold dual citizenship. "My France of liberties, where are you?" read one banner at the Saturday protest. Rights group Amnesty International stressed that "the state of emergency cannot be a permanent solution without undermining fundamental freedoms." NGoran Ahoua who helped start a group to represent residents after police raided their building in the Saint-Denis suburb and killed two suspected attackers hiding there said he has requested compensation from the government. Residents have been locked out of their homes since the raid, he says. We were shaken and shocked by the police action, said Ahoua, an organizer with the group Association DAL of the Victims of 48 Rue de la Republique. Were waiting to be recognized by the French government as victims, he said. His association is demanding an end to the raids and arrests, and asking for more attention to urgent social ills plaguing the residents of the Paris suburb where the residents were wounded and displaced. The emergency isnt military, he said, Its social: the fight against stigmatization of religion, unemployment, and a lack of opportunities for youth. With The Associated Press 4 February 2016 11:21 (UTC+04:00) By Laman Sadigova Armenia is a country of migrants, Head of EU Delegation to Yerevan, Ambassador Piotr Switalski said on February 3. Addressing the conference Innovative Approaches to Diaspora Engagement and Use of Remittances for Child Wellbeing in Armenia, Switalski highlighted possible risks of Armenia-EU visa regime liberalization. The problem is what will happen to Armenia if the EU liberalize the visa regime and open its borders to Armenia, said the ambassador. Armenian Diaspora is very active and performs as a rather powerful lobby in many countries. It is also a source of foreign investments into Armenia and a cultural bridge between Armenia and the world. Diaspora is an opportunity of material assistance as well, particularly in the form of private money transfers. But lets be honest, those transfers sweeten the situation. People living abroad can be of much more use if they stay in their home countries, he said. Migration is nothing new to Armenians, as reportedly since 1990s the country lost over 1 million people -- about one third of its population. The situation in this South Caucasus country is indeed very difficult as the countrys economy and criminal government forces people to leave and seek for a better country abroad. For the first time in nearly 40 years, the population of Armenia fell below the level of 3 million according to the Armenian Statistics Agency. In 2015, the countrys population decreased by 12,000 people, while during the last five years it decreased by 35,000 people, and since gaining independence in 1991 - by 634,700 people. Thus, based on the 2011 census, 2,998,600 people live in the country as of January 1st 2016. The migration rate raises concerns for the countrys future but the government does nothing to improve the situation. --- Follow Laman Sadigova on Twitter: @s_laman93 Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 3 February 2016 16:41 (UTC+04:00) President Ilham Aliyev has today signed a decree on establishment of a public legal entity of the Financial Market Supervisory Body in Azerbaijan. The financial market supervisory body will handle all the functions of Azerbaijani State Committee for Securities, State Insurance Supervision Service under the countrys finance ministry, Financial Monitoring Service under the Central Bank of Azerbaijan. All the property of the mentioned state structures will be transferred to the financial market supervisory body. The mentioned structures will be liquidated since the day when the financial market supervisory bodys Charter enters force. President Aliyev signed another decree establishing the Board of Appeal under the President. The decree said that the Board will be created in order to provide a multistep process in the sphere of considering appeals by individuals and legal entities in the field of entrepreneurship, improving the mechanism of submitting complaints to a higher authority regarding the decisions of central and local executive authorities, their action or inaction. The head of state also approved the Regulations on the Board of Appeal and its staff Azerbaijani Presidential Administration was tasked to take the necessary steps to organize the activities of the Board of Appeal under the head of state. The head of state also signed a decree on the establishment of boards of appeal in central and local executive authorities of Azerbaijan. Model Regulations on Boards of Appeal of central executive authorities and Model Regulations on Boards of Appeal of local executive authorities have been approved in accordance with the decree. The Cabinet of Ministers was instructed to prepare and provide President Aliyev with proposals for bringing of his existing regulatory and legal acts into compliance with the decree in three months. The Cabinet was also instructed to provide bringing its regulatory and legal acts into compliance with this decree and inform the president about it within three months. The countrys Cabinet of Ministers should also check bringing of the regulatory and legal acts of central executive authorities into compliance with this decree and inform the president about this tasks implementation within five months, as well as solve other issues arising from the decree. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 10:26 (UTC+04:00) The OSCE Mink Group co-chairmen will visit the region in the nearest future, James Warlick, the OSCE Minsk Group US co-chairman, told Trend on February 3. Warlick said that the Co-Chairs are considering a visit to the region in the near future in order to pursue next steps following the meeting of the Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents in Switzerland. We continue to believe that such dialogue is necessary to bring about a lasting peace, he said. The Azerbaijani and Armenian presidents held a summit Dec.19 in Bern under the auspices of the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group. The conflict between the two South Caucasus countries began in 1988 when Armenia made territorial claims against Azerbaijan. As a result of the ensuing war, in 1992 Armenian armed forces occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. The two countries signed a ceasefire agreement in 1994. The co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk Group, Russia, France and the US are currently holding peace negotiations. Armenia has not yet implemented the UN Security Council's four resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding districts. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 12:15 (UTC+04:00) By Laman Sadigova Azerbaijans Armed Forces prevented Armenian troops provocation on the state border with Azerbaijan, the Defense Ministry reported on February 4, adding that the enemy retreated after suffering losses. Three members of Armenian diversionary group were killed as a result of the operational activities undertaken by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces. Azerbaijani Army lost one servicemen, as Mirzayev Imran Khudaverdi was killed in the fire opened from the Armenian side. The ministry expressed deep condolences to the family of the killed Azerbaijani serviceman. The situation on the contact line between Azerbaijan and Armenia has remained tense as the Armenian Armed Forces shattered ceasefire a total of 115 times throughout the day. Azerbaijan's internationally recognized Nagorno-Karabakh territory turned into a conflict zone following Armenia's aggression in the early 1990s. As a result of an armed invasion, 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory fell under Armenian occupation. Nonetheless, the OSCE has attempted to foster a peaceful resolution to this conflict amid Armenia's persistent derailment. --- Follow Laman Sadigova on Twitter: @s_laman93 Follow us on Twitter @AzerNews 4 February 2016 18:11 (UTC+04:00) By Aynur Karimova Greece has expressed a desire to get Azerbaijani gas as soon as possible. The Southern European nation with economic difficulties has assured to have necessary infrastructure for supply of Caspian blue fuel via the multi-billion Southern Gas Corridor. Nikos Kotzias, the Greek Foreign Minister, who was on a one-day official visit in Baku on February 2, believes that the Trans-Adriatic pipeline, a part of Azerbaijan-initiated giant Southern Gas Corridor, will play a crucial role in Europes energy security. He expressed confidence at a meeting with Azerbaijan's Energy Minister Natig Aliyev that the Azerbaijani gas will be supplied to Europe via TAP "in the nearest future." The Southern Gas Corridor project envisages the transportation of the gas to be extracted from the giant Shah Deniz field in the Azerbaijani section of the Caspian Sea. Shah Deniz Stage 2 gas will make a 3,500 kilometer journey from the Caspian Sea into Europe. This requires upgrading the existing infrastructure and the development of a chain of new pipelines. The existing South Caucasus Pipeline will be expanded with a new parallel pipeline across Azerbaijan and Georgia, while the Trans-Anatolian pipeline will transport Shah Deniz gas across Turkey to join the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline, which will take gas through Greece and Albania into Italy. However, the smooth implementation of the Southern Gas Corridor project is very important for the development of energy cooperation between Greece and Azerbaijan. "Greeces support for the construction of TAP is very important, because Azerbaijani gas will not be supplied to Europe unless the pipeline is ready," said Aliyev. Therefore, the timely implementation of the project will be effective for all sides, he added. The Southern Gas Corridor is set to change the energy map of the entire region, connecting gas supplies in the Caspian to markets in Europe for the very first time. The first gas supplies through the corridor to Georgia and Turkey are given a target date of late 2018. Gas deliveries to Europe are expected just over a year after the first gas is produced offshore in Azerbaijan. Today, despite the drop in oil prices, the implementation of projects on expansion of the South Caucasus Pipeline, construction of the TANAP and other work on Southern Gas Corridor are underway. "Some 50 percent of the work on the Shah Deniz 2 project has been completed. Eight of 26 planned production wells have been drilled," the Azerbaijani minister noted. Aliyev believes that the works under the project will not be suspended and the project will be completed on time. DESFA Greece, which is trying to concentrate on the development of strategic projects that will bring dividends in the future, hopes for rapid settlement of the issue concerning SOCARs deal to purchase a share in the Greek gas operator DESFA. The privatization of Greek natural gas transmission manager, DESFA, is profitable both for Greece and Azerbaijan: it plays a crucial role in the realization of major pipeline projects, including the TAP and Greece-Bulgaria Interconnector. It would bring subsequent investments to the Greek budget from Azerbaijans energy giant SOCAR, which agreed to pay 400 million euros to buy a 66 percent stake in the company. The sides also discussed the issues related to holding the second meeting of Advisory Board of the Southern Gas Corridor project in late February. Fruitful cooperation As part of the visit to Baku, the Greek FM held a meeting with his Azerbaijani counterpart Elmar Mammadyarov. Following the bilateral talks, Mammadyarov said at a briefing that besides energy sector, Greece and Azerbaijan also enjoy fruitful cooperation in other fields. We have discussed a number of issues on bilateral and regional cooperation during the meeting with my counterpart, he noted. "Issues of energy cooperation and cooperation within the framework of the EU were also on the agenda of the talks." Future ties Kotzias, who led a Greek delegation, also was received by Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, and the sides expressed interest in further strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries. Azerbaijan and Greece have a long history and unique culture, and the two peoples share a number of common values. In this regard, the two countries should effectively use this potential for further boosting the ties, according to Kotzias. They also exchanged views on the development of bilateral ties between the two countries in a variety of fields, in particular, the settlement of the Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Greece supports peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict," Kotzias told journalists as part of his visit. Nagorno-Karabakh emerged as result of Armenia's territorial claims on Azerbaijan in 1988. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and over 1 million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities. Since the war, Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions. Armenia continues the occupation in defiance of four UN Security Council resolutions calling for immediate and unconditional withdrawal. -- Aynur Karimova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 13:40 (UTC+04:00) Turkmen leader Gurbanguly Berdimuhammadov has highlighted great potential for developing relations between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan as he met Ambassador Hasan Zeynalov. Prior to the conversation, the newly-appointed ambassador presented his credentials to President Berdimuhammadov. The President touched upon the concrete fields of cooperation between the two countries, highlighted existence of wide opportunities in economic and energy areas. President Berdimuhammadov said Turkmenistan is rich with its natural gas resources and puts into agenda of transportation opportunities of gas via Azerbaijan. The President also said improvement of transit roads, would positively influence to increasing the trade turnover. The Turkmen leader also stressed the importance of deepening the relations in humanitarian field. He further noted the significance of developing the educational, scientific, tourism, cultural relations between the two countries. The sides stressed the importance of strengthening the activity of Azerbaijani-Turkmen Joint Inter-Governmental Commission. The Turkmen leader voiced assurance that the ambassador`s activity would contribute to development of ties between the two countries. In addition, the Turkmen president expressed his gratitude to the Azerbaijani side for its support for international initiatives put forward by independent neutral Turkmenistan from the rostrum of high global forums, which are aimed in particular on the formation of new architecture of global security, transformation of Central Asia and the Caspian region into an area of peace, stability and sustainable development. The President asked the ambassador to communicate his best wishes to President Ilham Aliyev. Hasan Zeynalov, conveyed greetings of President Aliyev to the Turkmenistan`s leader. The ambassador highlighted the steadily developing relations between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan. The diplomat said there was great potential for implementing joint regional projects and boosting bilateral cooperation between the two countries. Zeynalov said both countries shared the same historical-cultural values, adding he would try his best for further deepening relations between Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan, Azertac state news agency reported. Turkmenistan and Azerbaijan, the two Caspian littoral countries with rich hydrocarbon reserves are interested in using alternative routes for delivering energy resources of the Caspian region to Europe. The recent intensification of Turkmen oil transportation via Azerbaijan can be referred to as a brilliant example of mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 18:15 (UTC+04:00) By Laman Sadigova Germany favors the intensification of the negotiations under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Foreign Minister of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier mentioned it in his article dealing with the European security. "Armed clashes on the contact line and the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan give us cause for concern," he wrote. Steinmeier's statement was met in Azerbaijan with a great interest as the country is waiting for some progress in this regard for a long time. OSCE Minsk Group, which is brokering the long-lasting Nagorno-Karabakh conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, is a frequent subject of criticism in Baku for its inefficient activities. Long efforts taken for over two decades could not move the problem from the dead point to change the existing status quo. Azerbaijan, who's 20 percent of internationally recognized territory is under Armenian occupation, now urges to take measures to improve the peace process, and considers as an option drastic measures or refusing the services of the OSCE MG. The fragile ceasefire agreement between the conflict sides is broken almost every day as a result of Armenian provocations in the contact line of troops. Steinmaier believes that another important step towards the settlement is to create a mechanism to investigate ceasefire violations. Steinmeier stressed that he does not consider the unresolved conflicts in Transnistria, Nagorno-Karabakh and the South Caucasus as "frozen". Every year, they (the conflicts) continue to bring difficulties to the people affected by the conflict and bring stagnation in the region. We want to stabilize the ceasefire, to build trust and improve people's lives by taking small but real steps, such as increasing economic exchange," said German Foreign Minister. Earlier, German Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Heidrun Tempel, said that Germany will pay more attention to the settlement of frozen conflicts in 2016, particularly, to Nagorno Karabakh conflict. --- Follow Laman Sadigova on Twitter: @s_laman93 Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 15:20 (UTC+04:00) By Laman Sadigova Yerevan has once again disseminated false information about the situation on the frontline, claiming that Azerbaijani Armed Forces shelled civilians. The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry has refused the reports, saying that the Azerbaijani Armed Forces have never shelled civilians, civil facilities and cars by respecting the norms and principles of international humanitarian law. The ministry assessed the reports as absurd, noting that this information is absolutely groundless and aims to charge Azerbaijan and conceal another sabotage of Armenians on the Azerbaijani-Armenian state border. In the early morning, the Defense Ministry reported about the provocation of the Armenian side on the state border with Azerbaijan. Three members of Armenian diversionary group were killed as a result of the operational activities undertaken by the Azerbaijani Armed Forces. Azerbaijani servicemen Mirzayev Imran Khudaverdi was killed in the fire opened from the Armenian side. For over two decades, Azerbaijan and Armenia have been locked in conflict which emerged over Armenia's territorial claims against its South Caucasus neighbor. Since a war in the early 1990s, Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan's territory, including Nagorno-Karabakh and seven surrounding regions. A fragile ceasefire has been in place since 1994, but long-standing efforts by U.S., Russian and French mediators have been largely fruitless so far. Armenia has not yet implemented the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on its pullout from the neighboring country's territories. --- Follow Laman Sadigova on Twitter: @s_laman93 Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 17:03 (UTC+04:00) By Laman Sadigova The bilateral relations between Australia and Azerbaijan develop dynamically, while the two countries enjoy perspectives for cooperation in different spheres. James Martin Larsen, Australias ambassador to Turkey and Azerbaijan made the remark as he met with the Azerbaijan-Australia working group on Interparliamentary relations, headed by Azerbaijani MP Khanlar Fatiyev. The ambassador highlighted the fact that the working group was able to do a great job on giving information about Azerbaijan to colleagues from Australia in its short period of existence. Fatiyev, for his part, said the relations between the two countries have undergone significant qualitative changes in recent years Today Azerbaijan is known well enough in Australia at the level of the Parliament and the government. In particular, in her recent speech, Australian Foreign Minister Julia Bishop said that Canberra recognizes Azerbaijans territorial integrity, and also called to liberate occupied territories, Fatiyev said. The other important factor is that the issue on releasing Azerbaijani hostages held by Armenia also was raised in the Australian Parliament. The MP further noted that today Azerbaijans relations with Australia are also notable from an economic point of view. Speaking about the economic diversification, President Ilham Aliyev noted that agriculture will provide the country's non-oil exports, population with work, as well as food security. Thus, it would be very useful to study the Australian experience, in which this area is one of the main spheres, said Fatiyev. The issues on trade and economic cooperation, relations in the social and humanitarian spheres, as well as issues on extending interparliamentary relations were also discussed during the meeting. The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Australia stood at $4.937 million as of 2014, which is 2.4 times less than in 2013, according to Azerbaijans State Customs Committee. The trade turnover between the two countries is made up mostly of Azerbaijan's exports of crude petroleum to Australia. --- Follow Laman Sadigova on Twitter: @s_laman93 Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz I knew I wouldnt sleep on Tuesday, when the state of Georgia geared up to execute Brandon Jones. At 72, Jones was the oldest prisoner to ever be killed there, and to me, he was no anonymous condemned prisoner: Jones was an old client of mine. More than 20 years ago, I got him off death row. Then, I moved away from Georgia, and some local lawyers managed to get him back on. His appeals failed; they made plans to end his life. So even though I was in London some 4,261 miles away, on Tuesday, my mind was on the Georgia Diagnostic and Classification Center, its euphemistic name for death row. Brandon always insisted that while he had taken part in his alleged crime a robbery of a convenience store in 1979 his co-defendant, Van Solomon, was the one who shot Roger Tackett, the unfortunate and entirely innocent attendant. Solomon was electrocuted in 1985, despite the heroic efforts of my good friend, lawyer George Kendall. I was more fortunate: In 1989 I managed to persuade a federal judge to order a new sentencing trial to decide whether Brandon would live or die. It was a curious issue that seemed to save Brandons life. In talking to the jurors, I learned that they had illegally taken a Bible into their deliberations. They had not turned to Matthew 5:7 and read that Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. Rather, they had relied on Exodus 21:24: You shall appoint as a penalty life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise. Because of this smuggled guidance, Brandon got a new sentencing trial. By the time Brandon was on trial again, in 1994, I had moved to Louisiana to set up a death penalty charity, and could not commute hundreds of miles to Cobb County, Georgia, for the case. I found him an excellent lawyer, but he and Brandon had a falling out, and Brandon ended up with two court-appointed lawyers who had no idea what they were doing. Tom Charron, a bloodthirsty local District Attorney who seems to relish the association of his name with the mythological ferryman Charon on the River Styx, successfully urged the jury to call for a second death sentence. I have participated in the retrials of every other client whose sentence I managed to reverse, and won every time. Brandon was the solitary exception. In that way, I, too, failed him. On the morning of Tuesday, February 1, Brandons death had been sanctioned by the narrowest of margins. The issue was whether Georgias new secrecy laws were valid: The state now refuses to allow access to information about the drugs being used in executions after a spate of embarrassing challenges to the execution protocol some concerning botched executions, some concerning the right of pharmaceutical companies to object to the government using their life-saving drugs to kill people. Five of the eleven judges on the federal court of appeals voted for a stay. Today Brandon Jones will be executed, possibly in violation of the Constitution, Judge Robin Rosenbaum predicted. He may also be cruelly and unusually punished in the process. But if he is, we will not know until its too late if ever. Even at the eleventh hour, the battle was not over. Sickening as it sounds, I have often received a stay from some judge, anywhere between Atlanta and Washington DC, within an hour of an execution. Here, Brandons execution was set for midnight GMT, [7 p.m. in Georgia]. His current lawyers filed a flurry of last minute pleadings, and they won Brandon extra time and extra life albeit perhaps only temporarily. So the clock edged around as Brandon sat in the holding cell, close by the execution chamber. 4 February 2016 17:50 (UTC+04:00) Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev met with his Croatian counterpart Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic on the sidelines of Supporting Syria and the Region Conference in London on February 4. The sides expressed satisfaction with the development of bilateral ties between the two countries. They voiced mutual interest in developing economic cooperation even further, and implementing energy, transport and infrastructure projects. President Ilham Aliyev highlighted the work done under the Great Silk Road and the Southern Gas Corridor projects. During the conversation, the presidents discussed how to achieve mutual understanding for the implementation of joint projects, Azertac state news agency reported. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 16:14 (UTC+04:00) By Amina Nazarli The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is ready to support the reforms carried out in Azerbaijan in the sphere of labor and social protection of population. Head of the ADB delegation Giovanni Capannelli made the remark as he met with Azerbaijans Labor and Social Protection Minister Salim Muslimov on February 3, Azertac reported. The minister provided an insight into the dynamics of socio-economic development that Azerbaijan gained in the past period. "Despite the aggravation of global economic crisis, growing geopolitical and economic tensions in the region, successful reforms courses of President Ilham Aliyev created the conditions for the macroeconomic situation in the country could be protected from adverse external economic influences, he said. Muslimov reminded that 1.1 percent increase was provided even last year in the case of the present world economic recession. Especially, as a positive continuation of the economic diversification processes non-oil industry grew by 8.4 percent and at present, its share in the country's gross domestic product reached 70 percent. Also last year, budget revenues on this sector increased 9.5 percent, last year and 3.6 percent increase manifested itself in the export of non-oil products ." The minister noted that the implementation of all programs on social sphere is successfully continued, the next steps are being taken to strengthen the social protection of the population. "Just last year, amount of funds allocated from the state budget for social spending was more than 5 percent compared to 2014, that it confirms once again the policy of the state is socially oriented. In recent days, increasing social payments aimed at socially vulnerable groups, salaries and so on was provided with the relevant documents signed by the head of state". Muslumov stated that the aim of the new economic policy of the head of state is accelerating development of the non-oil sector nowadays. "The cooperation ongoing successfully between Azerbaijani government and the Asian Development Bank for a long time covers the non-oil areas and contributes to the development of social infrastructure in the country, he said adding that social projects implemented by ADB on related to the internally displaced persons, practical benefits are commendable. "Country Partnership Strategy" approved by Organization in 2014-2018, is of paramount importance in terms of supporting the diversification of the economy in the context of cooperation, development of private sector, as well as measures related to the low-income population, the implementation of an inclusive approach to the social security system, according to the minister. Capannelli spoke about the projects implemented in cooperation with the government, their positive results. The meeting also featured discussion of ensuring inclusive social development, cooperation in this field under the conditions of maintaining macroeconomic stability and other issues. Since becoming the member of the bank in 1999, Azerbaijan has received some 20 project loans, and one project grant totaling $1.64 billion, including six non-sovereign loans of $143 million, and $14.4 million in technical assistance grants to support its development programs. -- Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz -- Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 18:19 (UTC+04:00) By Laman Sadigova The Ministry of Economy and Azerbaijan Investment Company are exploring the possibility of creating an industrial park in Masalli, a southern region in 240 km of capital Baku. Technology parks are an important element of modern innovative economy. The Ministry of Economy reported that a team of experts are studying the possibility of the region, in particular the relevant infrastructure, to carry out the project. The creation of such a large-scale project will indeed boost the effectiveness of the region and will be a big impetus for its future development. Deputy Economy Minister Niyazi Safarov informed about industrial parks created in the regions and the head of state's instruction to open new jobs in industry. He also noted the benefits provided by the decree of President Ilham Aliyev on additional measures to encourage investment. The executive director of the Azerbaijan Investment Company Rovshan Najaf, in his turn, briefed about the advantages of the industrial park and the offered services. --- Follow Laman Sadigova on Twitter: @s_laman93 Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 17:44 (UTC+04:00) By Aynur Karimova Azerbaijan, which is keen to cope with the impact of decrease of revenues from oil sales, has replaced the individual supervisory authorities in the financial sector with a single regulator to simplify procedures and enhance control. On February 3, President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree on the establishment of a public legal entity - the financial market supervisory body - in Azerbaijan. The establishment of a financial market supervisory body in Azerbaijan is aimed at improving the management and regulation mechanisms of the financial market of the country. Elman Rustamov, the Chairman of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan, believes this is a positive step to open new opportunities for pursuing a unified policy and regulatory standards on the financial market To date, the supervision on the financial market of the country was carried out by several institutions. This body, which will handle all the functions of the State Committee for Securities, the State Insurance Supervision Service under the Finance Ministry, and the Financial Monitoring Service under the CBA, will facilitate the CBA's work, Rustamov underscored. "The CBA has retained its functions on ensuring the financial stability. We will work together to ensure stability in the financial sector, especially, the financial stability," he added. The financial market supervisory body will be the heir of the entire property of the State Committee for Securities, the State Insurance Supervision Service and the Financial Monitoring Service. The mentioned structures will be liquidated on the date the financial market supervisory bodys Charter enacts. Azerbaijans economy has been hit by a series of negative shocks, in particular, a marked drop in oil prices, a significant slowdown of economic growth and considerable currency depreciation in trading partner countries. After a sharp decrease in price of black gold, Baku has announced a series of measures to deal with financial difficulties. With reserves falling and external shocks intensifying, the Central Bank had to devalue the manat, and shift to a managed float exchange rate regime. But the devaluations helped to improve competitiveness. Since then, the CBA has allowed greater exchange rate flexibility, and took measures to prevent capital outflows. The next step was consolidation in the banking system through merging or liquidating some problem banks. Last week, Azerbaijan set the oil price in the updated budget-2016 at $25 per barrel. These economic developments in the world dictate the necessity to ensure efficiency and transparency of the financial system of each country, and Azerbaijan is not exception. Effective ensuring of the activity of the financial markets, as well as the protection of the rights of creditors, investors and policyholders are required for more stability and sustainability of the financial system, and its competitiveness. The financial market supervisory body will be established for the purpose of licensing, regulating and controlling activities of the market of securities, investment funds, insurance and credit institutions (banks, non-bank credit institutions, postal operator) and payment systems. The financial market supervisory body will help to improve the control system to counteract legalization of money or other property received by criminal way and financing terrorism, as well as ensuring transparency and flexibility of the control system in these areas. The principle of a single financial market regulation has been successfully applied in global financial centers, and the body to be established in Azerbaijan will be ruled by this progressive international experience in its activity, the Department of Economic Reforms under the President reported on February 4. The supervisory body was established within the framework of ongoing structural reforms to improve the business environment, promote transparency and increase efficiency of public administration. This body will implement all aspects of regulation of financial and banking activities based on best international principles. To ensure transparency the body will be managed in accordance with the principles of collegial governance, and the principles of operational and financial independence will be taken as a basis. According to the presidential decree, the charter, the structure and composition of the Board of the body will be determined within a month. A source in the Committee on Securities told Reuters that there is no clarity who will lead the new supervisory body, ru.investing.com reported. "The presidential decree instructs to establish a working group to develop a status and a charter of the body, after which the form of accountability of the body will be known, and its manager will be determined," the source added. It is expected that Azerbaijan will form a multi-year fiscal consolidation plan, bolster the monetary policy framework to support the move to exchange rate flexibility, further strengthen the financial sector and pursue structural reforms. -- Aynur Karimova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 14:52 (UTC+04:00) By Amina Nazarli Endless Corridor film about the Khojaly Massacre has won a prestigious Humanitarian Award for Outstanding Achievement from The Accolade Global Film Competition. The Accolade Global Film Competition Humanitarian Award honors filmmakers who are bringing awareness to issues of ecological, political, social justice, health and wellness, animals, wildlife, conservation and spiritual importance. Each year Accolade Global Film Competition bestows a Humanitarian Award to a deserving filmmaker who is committed to making a difference in the world. Lithuanian director Aleksandras Brokas' film is the definitive account of the heart-rending human rights tragedy in 1992 when hundreds of Azerbaijanis were massacred after Armenians stormed the city of Khojaly. Endless Corridor follows two journalists, Lithuanian Richard Lapaitis and Russian Victoria Ivleva, on their return to Azerbaijan 20 years after covering the horrific Khojaly Massacre during the ArmenianAzerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. They journey to find the survivors they had first met in the aftermath of the Armenian attack. The film includes interviews with the survivors and spine chilling admissions from the perpetrators. A riveting documentary that unfolds like a dramatic narrative with exceptional lighting and cinematography is narrated by Jeremy Irons, the Oscar-winning British actor. Executive produced by Emmy Award winner Gerald Rafshoon. Rick Prickett, who chairs The Accolade Global Film Competition, had this to say about the Humanitarian winners, It takes great talent to tackle the worlds most pressing issues with film and do a great job. It takes an even greater heart. The Accolade helps set the standard for Humanitarian filmmaking worldwide. The goal of The Accolade is to help winners achieve the recognition they deserve for the incredible job that they do. The premiere of Endless Corridor was held on July 1 last year at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA). The film has been submitted for more than 70 film festivals throughout the world. Most have already included it in their official programmes. In 2015, the film was presented in Istanbul, Ankara, Rome, Vilnius, London, Paris, Dublin, Berlin, Bern and Luxembourg in February as part of the Justice for Khojaly campaign, organised by Leyla Aliyeva, Vice-President of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 12:35 (UTC+04:00) Irans capability to build economic ties with the West excluding the US, in compliance with the West minus the US doctrine, is under doubt, believes an expert. Iran will be able to build primarily economic relations with individual European states, as well as the European Union and other US allies, James Dorsey, senior fellow at Nanyang Technological University's S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, told Trend Feb. 3 commenting on the issue. Beyond that the US would be an integral part of anything the West does, he stressed. In the early 1990s, Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei put forward a doctrine known as the West minus the United States. The doctrine, which envisages Iran's cooperation with the entire West excluding the US, has since then been followed by all Iranian administrations. Khamenei even banned any talks with the US beyond the nuclear issue. Dorsey, while responding to a question about the major obstacles to the resumption of Iran-US economic ties, said the primary barrier is the remaining restrictions by the US with regard to the Islamic Republic. It was primarily the United Nations sanctions, rather than that of the US, that were lifted, he explained. Iranian officials have repeatedly announced that Tehran is open for economic ties with the US, including presence of American businessmen and investors in the country. In the most recent similar remark, President Hassan Rouhani said that there is no restriction against entrepreneurs from the US to do business in Iran. Further responding to the question whether West may sacrifice its principles, such as human rights, for economic interests in ties with Iran, Dorsey said, the West does that regularly, why would it not do so with Iran too? --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 11:37 (UTC+04:00) The price of oil rose on the world markets. Cost of the US Light crude oil increased $2.17 to stand at $31.83 on the New York Stock Exchange NYMEX. Price of the Brent crude oil at the London ICE (InterContinental Exchange Futures) rose $2.32 to trade at $34.71. SOCAR Marketing and Economic Operations Department reported that the price of a barrel of Azeri Light crude oil increased $1 to stand at $35.09 on the world markets. Meanwhile, Iranian media reported that six members of the OPEC have agreed to hold an urgent meeting. After a meeting with his Iranian counterpart Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, Venezuela's oil minister Eulogio del Pino said that Russia also support an urgent meeting between OPEC members to cut production level to push the prices up. Venezuela's oil minister has started a round of trips to major oil producers to convince them to decrease production level in order to raise the prices. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the global oil production reached 96.31 mbpd, while demand was 94.47 mbpd in 2015. Huge amount of oil glut has pushed the prices down, from $108 in the first half of 2014 to the current $35. The latest OPEC monthly report, released on January 18, indicates that the cartel has decreased oil production by 210,000 barrels per day in December, month-to-month to 32.182 mbpd. In 2016, the demand for OPEC crude is forecasted at 31.6 mbpd, some 1.7 mbpd higher than the previous year. OPEC will hold an ordinary meeting on June 2. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 18:02 (UTC+04:00) By Aynur Karimova Russia officials believe that Iran would stand at a prominent place in the Russian trade system. Alexey Pushkov, the Head of the Foreign Affairs Committee in the Russian Duma, told journalists on February 2 that Moscow and Tehran are entering a new stage of relations as today the two countries are keen to develop trade and economic relations. "Because Iran is no longer associated with sanctions," he said after a meeting with Ali Akbar Velayati, the Advisor of the Supreme Leader of Iran." At a time when the EU sanctions against Russia continue, when we are looking for new partners in the trade and economic fields, we believe that Iran could take a more prominent place in the system of our trade relations." Pushkov believes that there is niche for it, especially in conditions when Russia's relations with Turkey have sharply reduced and ties with the EU in the field of food supply are still to be restored. He also spoke about the negotiations held between the Iranian and Russian sides. The parliamentarians from both countries stressed the importance of military-technical cooperation, putting a special accent on the development of economic relations in other fields. They stressed the need to increase the trade turnover between Russia and Iran, which is now roughly $3 billion, given the opportunities that the economies could provide each other, he added. Currently, Russia and Iran are negotiating the opportunities to establish and expand cooperation in various projects, including in the energy sector. "We just noted that the military-technical cooperation is an important direction of cooperation to develop, of course, including cooperation in the nuclear energy sector," he added. "But during the talks more emphasis was made on the necessity to develop trade and economic relations in other fields, as there existed block due to the sanctions. The structure of Russian foreign trade is now a subject to change due to European sanctions and a sharp slowdown in our relations with Turkey." Velayati was on a four-day visit in Moscow (February 1-4) to discuss regional issues and bilateral ties with senior Russian officials. Ahead of his departure for Moscow, Velayati described Iran and Russia as two influential countries in the region and in the world and said Iran and Russia are the main pillars of regional cooperation in fight against terrorism. Relations between Tehran and Moscow throughout history have been very unprecedented and grounds for expansion of all-out mutual, regional and defense cooperation have been developed. Today, sanctions-free Tehran is ready to develop strategic cooperation with Russia in all fields. The two countries enjoy all conditions for building economic cooperation. As part of the visit to Moscow, Velayati met with Russia's Special Envoy on Syria Alexander Lavrentiev and the sides discussed the Syrian crisis, Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev, and Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov. Ties with Russia priority for Tehran Iranian Ambassador to Moscow Mehdi Sanaei believes that the development of relations with Russia is a priority for Iran's foreign policy. "Our relations are now developing in all fields, and the current period can be characterized as one of the most important and effective. And the result will be visible for many years," RIA Novosti quoted the diplomat as saying at a round table in Russian Institute for Strategic Studies on February 3. Removal of international sanctions on Iran has given a new impetus to the Tehran-Moscow ties and will become a new basis to their development. "As the Iranian president said last night in an interview, Russia is and will retain its priority in the foreign policy of the Islamic Republic of Iran. This is envisaged in the program of the current government," Sanaei noted. -- Aynur Karimova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Aynur_Karimova Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 13:22 (UTC+04:00) The 2nd International Conference Tank Farms and Oil Terminals of Caspian Region will take place in Astana, Kazakhstan on 16-17th May 2016. AZERTAC is a media partner of the conference. More than 150 delegates will represent leading oil transportation and storage companies, national operators, regulators, experts and technical directors. Delegates will be able to meet oil tanks farms and terminals technical directors, leading technology providers and vendors, regulators from ministries and industry experts. The organizer of the conference is Vostock Capital, whose analytic team conducted an in-depth survey of tank farms and oil terminals of the Caspian region. More than 100 executives of oil tank farms, refineries, oil terminals, service companies and regulatory authorities from Caspian countries took part in the research. The report includes: a list of the most interesting investment projects (oil tank farms and terminals) in the region of the Caspian Sea; the most popular criteria that help technical directors in selection of technologies and equipment for their infrastructure upgrades in context of the product localization, local content and policy of import substitution; a list of the most promising technologies that are required in the oil transportation and storage industry at the moment, and many others that are important for the development of efficient operations, Azertac state news agency reported. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 4 February 2016 13:00 (UTC+04:00) By Amina Nazarli Azerbaijan will be more accessible for the foreign tourists, since the country halved electronic visas issuing term. Now those who want to visit the Land of Fire do not need to wait 10 days for the confirmation of their e-visas, as the duration of procedures reduced to 5 days. New amendments were adopted at the plenary session of the Azerbaijan Cabinet of Ministers on February 1. Azerbaijani MP Kamran Nabizada believes that this step will undoubtedly lead to an increase in the tourist flow to the country and the further development of the tourism sector. Naturally, incomes of enterprises and tourism facilities will increase. In general revenues to the state budget will also grow, he said. Nabizada underlined the importance to avoid delays and artificial barriers in the process of visa issuing. Such cases may generate negative image of the country in foreign tourists who want to visit Azerbaijan, and in some cases discourage them from traveling. I believe that a reduction in the period of visa procedures will give a big impetus to the development of tourism, the MP said. Switching to issuing e-visas regime since March 2013, significantly simplified lives of many tourists interested in visiting Azerbaijan. At present, documents required for getting an electronic visa include a filled and signed e-Visa application form, Passport style colored photo (dimensions 3x4), a colored copy of Passports main page, and a copy of round-trip flight ticket or reservation. Nabizada said necessary infrastructure, price and quality of services in this sector enabled to promote tourism in the country. He suggested to discuss further prospects and measures for the development of foreign tourism in Azerbaijan. The MP also touched upon the low-cost travel packages, recalling the World Tourism Organizations report for 2014, which tells that 40 percent of the tourists in the world chose cheap travel packages, preferring living in hostels. Cheap accommodations like hostels are popular in many European countries, where the cost of living varies between $5 to $10 and the MP stressed that Azerbaijan has large unrealized potentials in this field. To compare, the number of hostels in Georgia has reached 100, while in Azerbaijan only 5-6 hostels are operating. I think that construction of hostels will lead to the further development of tourism, increase in the number of small and medium-sized businesses, and create conditions for the opening of additional jobs, Nabizada ended. The construction of hostels is now one of the main steps for Azerbaijan, which has become a favorite destination for 2.5 million tourists visiting the country every year. Land of Fire has a chain of luxury brand hotels including Jumeirah, Excelsior, Hilton, Four Seasons, Fairmont, JW Marriott, Kempinski, as well as some two-star and three-star hotels, however, construction of hostels will give extra opportunity for the country to boost the tourist flow. -- Amina Nazarli is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @amina_nazarli Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Economic theory holds that removing trade barriers among nations should increase global wealth. But the proposed 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership that Congress must soon give a straight up-or-down vote threatens our liberties as Americans and is likely to add almost nothing to U.S. economic growth. I have been a longtime critic of the agreement, especially since WikiLeaks obtained a draft of its intellectual property provisions, showed a clear bias in favor of corporations. Since Washington made the text public in October I have come to see some very real benefits in the agreement but not nearly enough to warrant making it the law of the land. What I see now is a pact that would make government subservient to corporations, posing a real threat to freedom and self-governance. Does little on tariffs There are two chief reasons to reject the TPP. First, the partnership does little for the U.S. on tariffs. In fact, the TPP was only minimally about U.S. tariffs on imports, which overall are insignificant at 1.5 percent, amounting to only a fraction of a penny of each dollar of federal tax revenue. However, the same is not true for exports: Some U.S.-made goods are subject to tariffs of up to 70 percent. Tariffs on U.S. goods imposed by the 11 other countries fall to zero, encouraging more exports of machinery, automotive parts and other manufactured products. But these issues could be resolved in bilateral negotiations without expanding corporate powers. Second, the agreement would allow foreign corporations and governments to challenge federal, state and local laws in every other partnership country. The arbitration panels will likely to be composed of trade lawyers agreed to by each side. Despite some precedents in existing treaties, this raises fundamental questions of sovereignty, especially since corporate agents, not judges in courts of law, would make decisions binding on the body politic. That no case brought against the United States under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), for example, has resulted in damages should not blind us to the fact that huge damages could be awarded under the TPP. The TPP would create a system of arbitration run by insiders, who could be advocates one day, arbiters the next, an arrangement almost guaranteed to produce corrupt backscratching for the benefit of corporations and at the expense of we the people. Worse, no matter how economically damaging, unfair or just plain wrong the decisions of TPP arbitration panels, the rulings will not be subject to review by any court. This is justice of, by and for corporations, which means it cannot be justice. You could even pay more taxes to cover damages awarded by these unaccountable arbitration panels. More than $400 million in damages have been paid and $14 billion is sought under trade agreements already in effect. Minimal gains Supporters of the pact try to divert the public from these issues with promises of big economic gains that imply more jobs. Take the Peterson Institute for International Economics, which is sponsored by Wall Street mogul Peter Peterson. News reports last week cited a Peterson estimate that if the agreement were approved, American exports in 2030 would grow by an extra 9.1 percent, or $357 billion, in 2030. For people to remain free and governments to remain sovereign, corporations must remain subject to state control, not the other way around. That sounds terrific. The problem is in a related fact all the news reporters missed because they read the press release, not the actual study. The report predicts that imports will rise by the exact same $357 billion as exports, making the net result a big fat zero, as economist Dean Baker pointed out in his invaluable Beat The Press blog. Actual results will be not much better than zero, at least for America, the World Bank estimates. It projects the American economy in 2030 will be larger by an extra four-tenths of one percent. Thats roughly equal to the economy of metropolitan Oklahoma City. Australia, Canada, Chile and Mexico would see growth increase by a fraction of one percent to about 2 percent. On the other hand, the World Bank expects Vietnams economy to surge by an extra 10 percent and Malaysia about 8 percent. Some countries that are not part of the pact, such as Thailand, South Korea and the Philippines, can expect their economies to shrink, the World Bank predicted. That could lead to social upheaval. It also raises questions about China, which is not part of the pact and which has become increasingly bellicose under President Xi Jinping. Would Beijing react to the pact by creating its own economic trading zones, by disrupting the deal, by reviving the communist partys xenophobia or becoming even more aggressive in the South China Sea? In the U.S., advocates have failed to make the case that the pact will reduce our huge trade imbalances. Existing trade rules enable people to buy goods cheaply, especially Chinese goods, but at a terrible cost of lost manufacturing jobs and steadily draining American assets. If past experience is any guide, that will only continue with new agreements. NAFTA and our bilateral deals with China and South Korea have resulted in their exports to America growing much faster than our exports to them a boon to foreign workers at the expense of American workers, especially in manufacturing. Global capitalists are indifferent to these imbalances because they benefit no matter how individual countries fare. For each dollar of goods we sent to China last year they sent us more than $4 of goods; the trade imbalance ran close to $1 billion per day. With Seoul the ratio is less, about $1.60 to $1, with an annual trade imbalance of $26 billion. America has done better in services accounting, banking, information technology, law but those represent a minority of total trade. Expanding corporate power 3.0 ( - - ): editor [at] bahrainmirror.com After having her daughter, Kathleen Fleury decided to launch a site that would help parents fund their own maternity leave. Mark Fleming Photography When Fleury had her second child in October 2014, she decided political solutions were not coming fast enough. So I started thinking about how we could do something while we wait for the political landscape to change, Fleury said. That year, a friend of Fleurys with only one paid week of leave managed to raise $1,500 for extra time with his newborn through an email campaign. It was a simple concept, but Fleury thought it could be scaled up. And with that, the idea for MyBabyBond.com was born. Collins joined Fleury on the venture, and in the summer of 2015, the two launched the first crowdfunding site specifically dedicated to giving the gift of time to new parents. MyBabyBond aims to be an alternative to traditional baby showers; instead of registering for material goods, parents can invite friends and family to help fund the maternity and paternity leave thats often not available to them through employers. The families can set goals for how many weeks they need funding, and each donation appears on the site measured in time, not money. The duo says the mission isnt about making money for them. Theyd like to help change the culture in the U.S. surrounding paid leave; by simply existing, the site could help draw attention to the realities so many parents face, they say. Its babies. Its a generation, Fleury said. And yet our workplace culture doesnt invest in that. She says thats why they called it MyBabyBond: a place to make an investment in a bond between parents and children. For Collins, its a site that can also help bridge the gap between federal policy and reality. While the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) allows certain employees across the U.S. up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave, its not available to everyone and it doesnt help pay the bills that pile up during that period. "We have FMLA, she said. [MyBabyBond.com] allows people who can take the time to actually afford the time. Ashers Baking Companys appeal against its 500 fine for refusing to make a pro-gay marriage cake has been adjourned, due to the intervention of the Attorney General for Northern Ireland. As reported by The Belfast Telegraph, the Attorney General, John Larkin QC, made a last-minute request to deliver a representation on any potential clash between Northern Irelands equality legislation and European human rights law. It is believed the McArthur family, who own Ashers, would base their appeal on Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), which provides the right to freedom of expression. The McArthurs were appealing after being fined by Belfast County Court for refusing to create a pro-gay marriage cake for gay rights activist Gareth Lee. Lee had requested a cake featuring Sesame Street characters Bert and Ernie, often rumoured to be a gay couple, and the slogan Support Gay Marriage, for a private function marking International Day Against Homophobia in May 2014. Having paid in full, Ashers phoned him two days later to say they could not process the order. After a short hearing on 3 February, Lord Chief Justice Sir Declan Morgan adjourned the meeting until 9 May, when a four-day hearing will take place. Before that, however, the Court of Appeal will meet in March to hear arguments on the compatibility of Northern Irelands equality legislation and European human rights law, and whether there is a devolution point to be considered. "most unfortunate" Sir Morgan told the court it was most unfortunate the issue had only emerged two days before the trial, and said that although efforts had been made to see if the case could proceed as planned, it seems to us that it is simply not possible to do that without running into some risk of fairness in the hearing. Before the hearing, Daniel McArthur spoke outside the court and said: Ashers does not discriminate against anyone. We took issue with the message on the cake, not the customer. And as a family we believe we should retain the freedom to decline business that would force us to promote a cause with which we disagree. As Christians we cannot simply switch off our faith as we enter the workplace in the morning. Lee did not speak outside the court but arrived accompanied by the Equality Commissions chief commissioner, Dr Michael Wardlow. Wardlow said: Religious freedom is enshrined in the legislation. The problem is, although freedom to believe is absolute, freedom to express that belief is always limited, because if by expressing that belief you discriminate against others, then the law must intervene. So this is not simply about some form of religious intolerance or closing down of Christian expression, because, in all of this, the other person who has a right in this, who seems to have been forgotten, is Gareth. The Attorney General for Northern Ireland is the chief legal advisor in Northern Ireland for areas of criminal and civil laws which have been devolved to the region. The new Greggs bakery in Dumfries has put up a plaque in-store, to mark the spot where Robert the Bruce began his bid for the throne of Scotland. In 1306 Bruce killed his rival for the crown, John Red Comyn, on the site where Greggs now stands Greyfriars Church stood in its place at the time. A local trust (The Bruce Trust) had hoped to buy the premises and turn them into a visitor centre, but they were leased to Greggs instead. Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) Joan McAlpine contacted the firm to explain the historic significance of the site and, in response, they have now installed a plaque. It was designed in collaboration with the Dumfries-based Robert the Bruce Trust and its expert Professor Ted Cowan, emeritus professor of Scottish History at Glasgow University. McAlpine joined Cowan, and Ian and Margo McClumpha of the trust, to unveil the plaque. McAlpine said: I warmly congratulate Greggs for their response, which will give visitors a focus and educate people about the dramatic events that changed the course of history. McAlpine wrote to Roger Whiteside, Greggs chief executive, and was delighted when the company responded so positively. Fundacion Punta de Mita A.C. Matching Grant Program Punta de Mita, Mexico - The Fundacion Punta de Mita A.C. has launched the 2016 Fortalecimiento a las Organizaciones de Base (FOROB) open call in Banderas Bay. Sustainable grass roots projects that benefit the community and submit a proposal may receive a matching grant of up to $100 thousand pesos. FOROB represents a collaboration of national and international associations with the Fundacion Punta de Mita as their liaison in the region. The Riviera Nayarit Convention and Visitors Bureau supports works that promote collective community efforts. The deadline to submit projects is February 15, 2016. The proposals must fall within the precepts set by the Fundacion Punta de Mita: education, health, environment and community development. The budget must be implemented between March and November. In order to be eligible, the grass roots organizations must adhere to the institutional criteria as well as the project qualification criteria and the guidelines for proposal submission. This call is open to the Banderas Bay area, including Puerto Vallarta. "As 2016 takes off we're pleased to work with some of the excellent programs in the surrounding communities, as well as following up with those already established," commented Lisa Kathleen Schalla, Executive Director for the Fundacion Punta de Mita. "The main focus for 2016 will be to build up our community and know that we're a part of the whole, that we're all connected." The previous year four non-profit organizations received economic support thanks to these efforts. In order to participate, for contacts and any questions, please write to info(at)fundacionpuntademita.org. For more details, please visit fundacionpuntademita.org. Canada Vows to Resolve Visa Impasse With Mexico Ottawa - Canada's Foreign Minister Stephane Dion said last week a long-standing dispute with Mexico over visa restrictions would be resolved shortly. Mr. Dion made the remarks at a news conference following a meeting in Quebec City with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Mexican Foreign Minister Claudia Ruiz Massieu. The former Canadian Conservative government, unseated by the Liberal Party this past fall, implemented a policy back in 2009 requiring Mexicans visiting Canada to obtain a visa, in an effort to deter bogus refugee claims from Mexico. Canadian business leaders have pushed the federal government to repeal the policy because, they say, it thwarts attempts to build a closer trading and investment relationship with Mexico. Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto had pushed former Prime Minister Stephen Harper for a resolution to the visa impasse, which also raised the ire of Mexican business owners. "The visa situation between Canada and Mexico will be resolved, finished, kaput," Mr. Dion said, with Ms. Ruiz Massieu standing adjacent to him. He didn't provide further details at the news conference. Ms. Ruiz Massieu didn't address the Canadian visa issue. A representative for Mexico's embassy in Ottawa wasn't immediately available for comment. Canada and Mexico are partners in the North American Free-Trade Agreement, along with the U.S. Two-way trade between Canada and Mexico totaled roughly 34 billion Canadian dollars ($24.2 billion) in 2014, according to the most recent data. Medical Marijuana Inc. Eyes Mexico as Next Big Market Mexico City - Medical Marijuana Inc, a pioneer in the industrial hemp business, is betting on Mexico as its next big market as the country opens up to the import of some cannabis-derived products for medical use. The California-based company manufactures a hemp oil which can, under permits granted this week, be imported to Mexico for the first time to treat specific medical cases. It already supplies a similar product to Brazil. Stuart Titus, Medical Marijuana's chief executive, said Mexico represented a "$1 billion to $2 billion opportunity" in terms of cumulative revenue over the next 10 years. Many companies in the legal cannabis business are considering a bet on Mexico after a Supreme Court decision in November opened the door for the eventual legalization of recreational marijuana. Just days after this decision, a ruling party senator proposed a bill to allow the import of medical marijuana products to help the roughly 5,000 patients without access to such drugs. This bill could be approved by May. Medical Marijuana, a company controlled by private equity firm General Hemp LLC, will be able to import its Real Scientific Hemp Oil, or RSHO-X, before then. On Monday, Mexico's health ministry and Cofepris, the health regulator, authorized imports of the product for the specific use of two patients, in both cases young, female epilepsy sufferers. The permits are the first to be granted by the government bodies, although a judge last year sanctioned the import of a similar product for a third girl, said Andres Aguinaco, a lawyer representing the two girls named in Monday's announcement. Imports are restricted to products free of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the ingredient in marijuana that gets you 'high.' RSHO-X contains cannabidiol, the non-psychoactive component of the plant. In Brazil, Medical Marijuana's hemp oil is also imported on a case-by-case basis for the treatment of chronic pain and the symptoms of epilepsy and Parkinson's disease. "We do expect Mexico to be similar to Brazil, in that it will require a doctor's prescription," said Titus, adding that he expected more permits to follow. With a population of 120 million people, Mexico could eventually provide a sizeable market for marijuana investors. By way of comparison, the U.S. legal pot market was worth some $3.5 billion in 2015, according to marijuana investment and research firm ArcView Group. A federal U.S. legalization of marijuana would create a market worth $36.8 billion, it said. Treat Your Valentine to Jewelry from the OTFM-TC Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - Treat your Valentine to "make it, bake it, grow it" specialties from Vallarta's favorite weekend attraction, the Old Town Farmers Market-Tianguis Cultural! We have everything from heart-healthy produce, artisan foods and organic coffee to handcrafted decor, freshly cut tropical flowers and all-natural body products. We even have chiropractic sessions, live music, yoga classes and an International Food Court to make the perfect outing for you and your special someone! While here, be sure to meet Heriberto Saucedo Perez and his partner, Christel Reimink, of Heriko Jewelry. These two artisans have a special knack for wowing customers with distinctive, must-have jewelry pieces. Get to Know Heriko Jewelry Heriko Jewelry brings out the beauty of natural and organic materials, such as silver, gold, wood and leather, and the sophistication of fossils, fire opals, pearls and a wide variety of semi-precious stones. "We strongly believe that handmade jewelry should feel great when you wear it," says Saucedo. He encourages shoppers to respect the beauty and uniqueness of every stone. He also invites shoppers to try on the jewelry, and to trust the intuitive energy of the stones, many of which are Mexican. "Original," "A very unique style," "Drawn to it" and "Mystical"... all of these can be heard as shoppers try on and show off their favorite Heriko Jewelry pieces. Heriko Jewelry is known for its original silver and leather designs, as well as for its customized friendship and wedding bands. Heriko Jewelry also specializes in creative redesigns, transforming old silver and gold into breathtaking pieces. Meet the Artisans Guadalajara-native Saucedo started his artisan journey twenty years ago. Two artisans showed him, a mere seventeen year old, how to make leather sandals. That very day, Saucedo made (and sold) his first pair. He was hooked and immediately invested in a set of tools to continue his sandal-making adventure. Saucedo then began making bracelets, bags, tie-dye shirts and, eventually, jewelry made from natural materials. Saucedo received training from experienced artists and craftsmen, taking specialized courses, such as the complicated lost wax technique course at the UNAM's Escuela Nacional de Artes Plasticas in Mexico's silver-center, Taxco. Today, Saucedo is a master jeweler, making people happy with exquisite pieces to enjoy for a lifetime. Heriko Jewelry has been a part of the OTFM-TC since its first season. "Over the years, many of our visitors have become returning customers and dear friends," says Saucedo. "We've become a part of each others' history." Stop by this Saturday and pick out the perfect Valentine's Day gift from Heriko Jewelry's complete line. "On the spot" repairs and delivery options are available. If your jewelry needs to be adjusted, it can be fixed and delivered to your hotel or condo at no additional charge. For more information, contact them at (322)160-2747, herikojoyeria(at)hotmail.com, or on Facebook. Love Yoga? While at the market, join us for yoga classes (9:30-10:30 am) taught by instructors from Yoga Collective. We meet in the kiosk every Saturday morning through April 30th. Participation is by donation. Meet the Market The OTFM-TC is a North American style market that celebrates the tradition and culture of Mexico's outdoor Tianguis markets. It is also a registered non-profit/association civil organization that focuses on nurturing the entrepreneurial spirit of Puerto Vallartans. All OTFM-TC products are either locally grown or handmade within 75 kilometers of the city. You're Invited! The OTFM-TC will be open 9:30-2 every Saturday, from November 7, 2015, to April 30, 2016. You'll find us in Lazaro Cardenas Park, located in Vallarta's Emiliano Zapata neighborhood. For only 12 pesos an hour, you can park in the garage directly beneath park. Public buses and taxis also come this way with a Pino Suarez Street drop off. Get Involved Interested in becoming a new OTFM-TC vendor or volunteer? Stop by the information booth to pick up an application. Advertiser Disclosure We are an independent, advertising-supported comparison service. Our goal is to help you make smarter financial decisions by providing you with interactive tools and financial calculators, publishing original and objective content, by enabling you to conduct research and compare information for free - so that you can make financial decisions with confidence. Our articles, interactive tools, and hypothetical examples contain information to help you conduct research but are not intended to serve as investment advice, and we cannot guarantee that this information is applicable or accurate to your personal circumstances. Any estimates based on past performance do not a guarantee future performance, and prior to making any investment you should discuss your specific investment needs or seek advice from a qualified professional. 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Two men have been arrested in connection with a string of residential burglaries in Hillsborough, Polk and Pasco counties. Harry Daymon, 37, and Dustin Peters, 27, both face numerous charges such as armed robbery of a dwelling and grand theft. Multiple law enforcement agencies had been tracking the men for several months. They were arrested after they were caught breaking into a Wesley Chapel home on Saturday. Investigators obtained a search warrant and went into Peters apartment in Lakeland on Tuesday. They found about $200,000 worth of jewelry, electronics and other valuables in the apartment. Larry Richards said 50 watches and other jewelry items were stolen from his Valrico home in December. He was called to the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office to identify some of his things. "I figured I'd never see them again. Just kissed them goodbye," he said. "We want to get the belongings back to the victims as soon as possible," said Hillsborough Sheriff's Major Alan Hill. Hill said the pair is suspected of more than 30 burglaries. "This case isn't by any means over," he said. Daymon and Peters are being held in the Pasco County jail. Authorities said they could face more charges if detectives are able to link them to more burglaries. Police say a 50-year-old man was caught sexally abusing a 3-year-old girl by the girl's mother. Bernard Jones is facing charges of capital sexual battery, lewd and lascivious molestation on a child under 12 and aggravated battery. According to St. Petersburg police, the girl's mother walked into the girl's bedroom and saw Jones performing a sex act on the child. The mother called to her teenage son for help, and they wrestled Jones to the floor. During the altercation, Jones bit the son, then escaped and ran to a nearby home, police said. The mother called police, and officers found Jones and took him into custody. Police say Jones was known to the family. Police say Jones is a registered sex offender and that he was arrested in 1990 for entering the bedroom window of a 10-year-old girl and sexually assaulting her in Miami-Dade County. The prosecutor said he was also convicted in 2001 for kidnapping, burglary and sexual battery. He made his first appearance in front of Judge Philip Federico on Wednesday. "Youre charged with a sexual battery on a child 12 years of age or younger," he said. "Its a no bond. Indicates that youre previously a registered sex offender. Im assuming thats why it came in as a no bond. The public defender argued Jones should get a bond, despite being a registered sex offender. Jones told the judge he needs legal help until he can contact his boss, who he said would help him hire an attorney. Federico said that because of the prior history and the nature of the current charges, Jones' bond has been set at $1.1 million. Now with 12 cases of the mosquito-borne Zika virus in Florida, Gov. Rick Scott said the state is not taking any chances. Scott declared a public health emergency Wednesday in four counties with reported cases of the Zika virus. Three of those cases are in Hillsborough County, while the others are in Lee, Santa Rosa and Miami-Dade County. Scott visited Hillsborough County's Department of Health on Thursday. During a press conference he amended the public health emergency to include Broward County, where a new case was reported earlier in the day. Officials believe all of the caes are from people who contracted the disease while traveling abroad to affected countries. So far officials say they have seen no positive tests for the disease in local mosquito populations, but crews are still taking every precaution with stepped up efforts. Scott said the state will do the same. "We're going to get ahead of this," he said. "We're going to make sure our residents are safe, our visitors are safe. We're going to do everything we can to take care of everybody in our state." Scott is requesting thousands of test kits from the Centers for Disease Control for pregnant women who have traveled to places with the virus. There's concern Zika could cause birth defects. One type of kit also checks for past infections. "That's particularly important for pregnant women who traveled abroad, who may have had some symptoms of some fever, aches and pains, and they come back and say, 'I wonder if what I had overseas was Zika,' " Scott said. A second test looks for active cases of the Zika virus. Scott said the state has those kits but will purchase 4,000 more. The patient can then decide whether to take it. Pregnant women who attended the governor's press conference say it's a great idea. "You're used to taking a ton of tests when you're pregnant," Michelle Krohn said. "One more test to protect your baby, it's no problem." "I don't see any harm in the test kits," Kimberly Cruz said. "I don't have a problem taking the test if my doctor recommends it." Scott said he has also asked CDC officials to conduct a conference call within the next two weeks to help train Florida hospital works - especially those who work with pregnant women - on the ways Zika is spread, its symptoms, treatments and proper precautions. While some wonder why Florida was the first to declare a public health emergency because of Zika, the pregnant women we spoke with say they are happy the governor is taking action. Scott says that just as with a hurricane, the state is preparing for the worst while hoping for the best. As'ad's Bio As'ad AbuKhalil, born March 16, 1960. From Tyre, Lebanon, grew up in Beirut. Received his BA and MA from American University of Beirut in pol sc. Came to US in 1983 and received his PhD in comparative government from Georgetown University. Taught at Tufts University, Georgetown University, George Washington University, Colorado College, and Randolph-Macon Woman's College. Served as a Scholar-in-Residence at Middle East Institute in Washington DC. He served as free-lance Middle East consultant for NBC News and ABC News, an experience that only served to increase his disdain for maintream US media. He is now professor of political science at California State University, Stanislaus. His favorite food is fried eggplants. JavaScript is not available. Weve detected that JavaScript is disabled in this browser. Please enable JavaScript or switch to a supported browser to continue using twitter.com. You can see a list of supported browsers in our Help Center. Help Center Ambulatory surgery centers are developing new payer strategies as the healthcare market evolves toward value-based care. "There is tremendous pressure on healthcare costs that can naturally pressure health plans to seek unit cost reductions," says Brian Mathis, senior vice president, strategy and payment innovation at Surgical Care Affiliates. "Where we have seen our greatest successes is when we are able to work with health plan executives to devise a market wide strategy to ultimately reduce the cost of care for surgery." Here are five key trends to consider when developing a payer strategy for the future: 1. Increase pricing to incentivize ASC use. The ASCs strategy to reduce the cost of care often includes increasing the ASC pricing to appropriately incentivize physicians to use the outpatient center based on quality and cost. "Opportunities need to be presented to the health plans in the context in which they view the market," says Mr. Mathis. "Simply asking for higher rates is unlikely to succeed even if those higher rates may be justifiable. Instead, consider the entire outpatient surgery spend for that particular health plan and propose how you can help them beat their budget and what commitments you are willing to go at-risk for assuming you are confident in the impact your surgeons can have." 2. Jump onboard for risk-sharing. Health plans are focused on risk-sharing strategies to align stakeholder goals. Risk-sharing plans include bundled payments and accountable care organizations which make providers responsible for their outcomes and overall costs. The insurance companies are looking for surgery center partners to go further upstream and manage utilization in partnership with the organizations surgeons. "ACOs, a number of which are physician group led, can be a tremendous opportunity for ASCs with the sophistication to provide detailed analytics, reporting and deliver value by reducing the cost of care for surgery, which is one-third of the total medical spend," says Mr. Mathis. SCA currently partners with medical groups like Monarch, a division of Optum, and health systems like Advocate in Chicago on ACOs. "Both are very successfully pursuing ACO strategies and have chosen SCA because we can help them realize their goals for quality, patient experience and cost in their ACO contracts," says Mr. Mathis. 3. Embrace provider alignment in the face of narrow networks. Health plans, employers and individuals are looking for better pricing, and typically the best prices are through narrow networks. Narrow networks can be treacherous for providers because they promise volume in exchange for lower prices, and may not always prove beneficial. "Any network will need a broad array of services hospitals can provide so it can become challenging for a single ASC to remain part of that network," says Mr. Mathis. "We have seen success in this area by ensuring our surgeons and surgical facilities are a vital part of the healthcare delivery system in a market with a reputation for quality such that employers would not want a network without us." 4. Leverage best platforms as insurance companies consolidate. Health plan consolidation will likely affect contracts in the future, but the most recent wave of health plan consolidations are still a ways away from approval and completion. The larger mergers include Aetna-Human acquisition and Anthem-Cigna's merger. "On some levels we are experiencing it as a distraction for these health plans as resources become focused on the integrations and individuals naturally focus on what their role will be in the combined companies," says Mr. Mathis. "That said, as these companies come together we believe they will benefit from leveraging the best of platforms, which may help administer innovative payment methodologies like bundled payments and in many markets bringing a better sense of balance with the growing power of health systems." Throughout the mergers, ASCs that remain focused on delivering value to health plans and offering meaningful solutions to merit the health plan executives time will be most successful through the transition. 5. Meet high-deductible plans with higher acuity cases. An article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in January shows members of high deductible health plans and traditional plans are equally likely to price shop for medical care and have similar attitudes toward price and quality. The study suggests health plans should focus on working with providers to incentivize high quality care in high value sites. "Health plans continue to respond well to data that is directly correlated with their metrics and helps ensure they meet their operating plans for a market," says Mr. Mathis. "We are able to use our national database of information on quality and cost to ensure our partnerships are well-positioned to migrate high acuity cases to ASCs and to help independent surgeons and independent ASCs thrive as independents." Here are seven updates: MedPAC proposes eliminating ASC payment updates next year The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission is proposing to eliminate payment updates for ambulatory surgery centers in 2017. MedPAC also recommended updating inpatient and outpatient hospital payments in 2017, projected at 1.75 percent. Certain off-campus HOPDs subject to site-neutral payments Provider-based, off-campus hospital outpatient departments will be subject to site-neutral payments starting Jan. 1, 2017. The payment regulation is a provision of the Balanced Budget Act of 2015 and will apply to provider-based, off-campus HOPDs established after Nov. 1, 2015. Erlanger Health System to build $35M outpatient center On Jan. 27, Chattanooga, Tenn.-based Erlanger Health System launched its public fundraising drive to build a new Children's Hospital outpatient center. Erlanger Health System has raised nearly a third of the money they will need to build the $35 million facility. So far, Erlanger raised $8 million in contributions and pledges. Residents can work longer hours without compromising patient safety A recent study found when residents worked longer than mandated hours, patients fared just as well as patients whose residents worked mandated hours. Researchers randomly assigned over 4,000 surgery residents to regulated hours or a more flexible schedule, allowing the residents to stay on a case after their shifts ended. In both resident groups, 9 percent of patients died or had serious complications following surgery. Doctors United Surgery Center hosts Rep. Gene Green Houston-based Doctors United Surgery Center hosted U.S. Congressman Gene Green (TX-29) earlier this year. Rep. Green is a ranking member of the Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee. He met with the ASC to discuss major issues facing the industry. Late Broward CEO hired private investigator, feared office was bugged A private investigation is saying the late President and CEO of Broward Health, based in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., hired him last spring for an investigation into the public system that led to FBI involvement. The investigator, Wayne Black, detailed his conversations with Dr. El Sanadi in an email to Broward Health's general counsel. Dr. El Sanadi killed him on Jan. 24. CDC: Zika virus transmitted sexually in Texas The CDC confirmed a patient in Texas was infected with Zika virus after having sexual intercourse with someone who returned from a country where Zika is present. On Monday, the World Health Organization declared Zika virus and its link to birth defects an international public health emergency. More healthcare news: The Center for Minimally Invasive Surgery in Illinois partners with SCA: 5 key notes Surgery Partners shares receive 'buy' rating: 5 quick facts Nobilis Health CEO acquires 10k company shares: 3 insights A recent study found when residents worked longer than mandated hours, patients fared just as well as patients whose residents worked mandated hours, according to The Columbus Dispatch. In the study, researchers randomly assigned over 4,000 surgery residents to regulated hours or a more flexible schedule, allowing the residents to stay on a case after their shifts ended. Researchers then examined how many patients died or had serious complications in the month after surgery. American Board of Surgery paid for the study, and New England Journal of Medicine published the results. Here are five things to know: 1. In both resident groups, 9 percent of patients died or had serious complications following surgery. 2. Both groups expressed similar levels of satisfaction with their education as well as their well-being. 3. In 2011, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education set 80-hour maximum work weeks. 4. For medical school graduates participating in residency training programs in hospitals, rules impose shift limits of 16 hours for junior residents and 28 hours for senior residents. 5. Lead author Karl Bilimoria, MD, director of surgical outcomes and quality improvement at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago, said, "Our hope would be that the evidence would be used ... to change policies fairly soon and allow flexibility back into surgical residency." More healthcare news: Asheville Surgery Center joins Mission Health's EHR system: 3 things to know On-demand healthcare funding to reach $1B 5 things to know Federal regulation to require gender information on wage reports 4 takeaways Here are six news updates on key revenue cycle management companies. Craneware, a Scotland-based revenue cycle systems company, signed a $7.5 million contract with a U.S. hospital system and formed a strategic partnership with solutions provider VestaCare Tuesday. Craneware's automated revenue cycle solution received a first place position in the 2015/2016 Best in KLAS Awards: Software and Services. Lafayette (Ind.) Radiology signed a contract with McKesson Business Performance Services for a full range of revenue cycle management services. In a move to refocus its service offerings, the Kell Group will no longer provide outsourced medical billing services to healthcare clients. The company said it will instead refocus its business on revenue cycle management consulting for private medical practices. Zotec Partners will continue its gold level sponsorship commitment to the Emergency Department Practice Management Association in 2016. If you have a question, issue or note to suggest on revenue cycle management company, please contact Carrie Pallardy at cpallardy@beckershealthcare.com. https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/finance/indiana-radiology-group-selects-mckesson-for-rcm-services.html Healthcare is a round-the-clock industry hospitals must be staffed and prepared to handle medical emergencies and provide high-quality care for patients at all times. But the question about which physicians should be at the hospital and for how long has been long debated. In 2003, the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education required that residents not exceed 80 hours per week in the hospital, according to an article by Dhruv Khullar, MD, a resident physician at Boston-based Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, in The New York Times. In 2011, the ACGME restricted individual shifts for first-year residents to 16 hours. Since then, findings on the impact of the number and length of shifts per week on resident health, medical education and patient outcomes have been mixed. Here are seven key thoughts on residents' schedules and their impacts from Dr. Khullar. 1. A recent experiment that aimed to compare the effects on residents who worked 16-hour shifts with those who worked 28-hour shifts or more was deemed unethical by advocacy groups, who argued the trial exposed patients to dangerously sleep-deprived physicians while exposing the residents to increased risk of car accidents, needlestick injuries and depression, according to Dr. Khullar. 2. These concerns were not unfounded, as a recent study found that nearly a third of residents show symptoms of depression, while other studies reveal that almost 10 percent of fourth-year medical students and 5 percent of first-year residents have experienced suicidal thoughts in the previous two weeks, with minorities experiencing even higher rates. 3. However, more restrictive work hours wouldn't necessarily strictly yield improvements for residents and patients. With shorter shifts, there are more patient handoffs, increasing the likelihood that important pieces of information regarding each patient's case are overlooked and diminishing the quality of the patient's relationships with his or her primary caretakers. 4. According to Dr. Khullar, the metrics used to assess the impact of work hour restrictions such as mortality, procedural complications, adverse events and readmission rates are "crude." "They might make sense for hospitals and health systems designed to increase efficiency and insulate patients from human fallibility," he wrote. "But they fail to capture the nuances of care delivered at the doctor-patient level. Good patient care is about more than surgical infection rates and medication errors. At the end of a long shift, am I the kind of doctor and person I want to be? Do I make time to sit with a suffering patient? Do I snap at a well-meaning colleague?" 5. Dr. Khullar points out people's judgment of happiness and overall life satisfaction is surprisingly fickle, suggesting if he were to describe a particularly bad 16-hour shift, he would likely rate it worse than an exceptionally good 30-hour shift. 6. Additionally, tighter hour restrictions reduce the number of patients residents can see per shift, thereby potentially limiting important educational experiences, according to Dr. Khullar. At the same time, residents spend a significant amount of time on nonclinical, administrative tasks. Better delegation of such tasks to other healthcare professionals and focusing residents' time on clinical educational opportunities can maximize the benefits of a shorter shift. 7. In the end, Dr. Khullar suggests, "The right answer on how many hours residents should work may be more nuanced than we've been willing to accept. It isn't the same today as it was 20 years ago, as the complexity of caring for patients and medical technology continue to evolve. It varies by subspecialty discontinuity may have graver consequences for neurosurgery, say, than for radiology. And it hinges more on the character of work than the length of it I'd spend twice as long at a patient's bedside if I could spend half as long at a computer." Though we often say value-based care, increased pressure on compensation and a new regulatory environment will force physicians to adapt, we don't always give them credit for changing. In fact, many long-standing stereotypes about physicians especially in regards to their attitudes toward physician preference items, financial relationships and practice priorities are simply not true, according to a survey from Procured Health. Procured Health surveyed more than 100 electrophysiologists and orthopedic surgeons. The sample included employed and independent physicians, and physicians from an array of working environments, from teaching hospitals to community hospitals. Here are the top survey findings some of which may be surprising. 1. Physicians do not find vendors trustworthy. Though they may seem attached to certain vendors physicians ranked their satisfaction with device representatives equal to that of department chairs many say this is because vendors have been the primary source of information on product and procedure innovations. Despite this, physicians generally mistrust device reps, and said in the survey they value peer-reviewed literature and patient complaints more than vendors when making product decisions. 2. Physicians are more flexible than they are given credit for, according to the survey. Many administrators feel the need to surrender to every request from physicians for devices, or they will simply leave. However, the survey found only 6.9 percent of respondents had ever left a hospital due to medical device restrictions. According to Procured Health, given the 13-year average tenure of the physicians surveyed, this percentage is minimal. 3. Employment is not an automatic path to engagement and collaboration. According to Procured Health, many healthcare administrators may feel changing financial relationships with physicians is enough to incentivize collaboration. The survey shows financial rewards are important, but they are not the top driver of satisfaction. 4. A well-run hospital is physicians' No. 1 priority. According to the survey, nine in 10 physicians feel efficient operations are very or extremely important. This ranked above clinical autonomy, work/life balance, hospital reputation and unrestricted access to devices. More articles on integration and physician issues: Western Maryland Health System to partner with medical marijuana company for cannabis research Harvard Medical School students: We want more diversity\ MountainView Hospital celebrates 20th anniversary Thirty-two physicians and providers will join Nashville, Tenn.-based Saint Thomas Medical Partners, a physician-led medical group that serves Tennessee and Kentucky, with its acquisition of Gallatin, Tenn.-based Sumner Medical Group. When the agreement becomes effective this spring, four Sumner Medical Group practice sites in Gallatin and Hendersonville, Tenn., will be rebranded with Saint Thomas Medical Partners. The group will be part of Nashville-based Saint Thomas Health, a member of St. Louis-based Ascension's nonprofit health system. Saint Thomas Medical Partners has 360 physicians and providers and serves patients across nearly 90 different practice sites. "This partnership will allow us to better provide patient-centered, population-based wellness and chronic disease management for the people of Sumner County by creating a fuller scope of practice, better coordinated throughout the spectrum of care," Sid King, MD, managing partner of Sumner Medical Group, said in a prepared statement. "Saint Thomas Health is a proven and respected healthcare leader in Middle Tennessee. We believe in their vision and mission for a regional network of high-quality physician practices, local and tertiary hospitals, and we look forward to becoming a fully integrated, dynamic part of Saint Thomas Medical Partners." More articles on integration and physician issues: Studer Group: More than half of physicians feel leaders don't do enough to combat burnout Sound physicians to provide care for Vibra Hospital DuPage Medical Group picks up 2 more physician groups Akron (Ohio) General CEO Tim Stover, MD, said the cash infusion the health system received from its merger with Cleveland Clinic saved it from going under, according to a WKSU report. However, the decision to come together was about more than just financial support, Dr. Stover and Delos "Toby" Cosgrove, MD, president and CEO of Cleveland Clinic, told an audience Tuesday at the Akron Press Club. "We had to find a partner, but in my mind, the partner was always about the clinical lift, it was not about the financial lift," Dr. Strover said, according to the report. Cleveland Clinic purchased a minority share of Akron General in 2014 for $100 million and completed a full acquisition of the health system Nov. 2. As a newly merged system, Cleveland Clinic took care of about $150 million of Akron General's debt, is supporting a $43 million expansion project and will provide a new EHR system, according to the report. In exchange, Cleveland Clinic has gained greater entry into the Akron market. Dr. Cosgrove assured audience members that Cleveland Clinic had no intention of diverting Akron General's patients to the Cleveland Clinic, but instead wants to expand the clinic's base and improve healthcare services in Summit County, according to an Ohio.com report. A Louisiana State University professor who was internationally renowned for his research in cardiac stem cells reportedly shot his wife to death Saturday night in their Pearl River County home before turning the gun on himself, according to The Sun Herald. William Claycomb, PhD, 73, and his wife, Victoria Burton, 61, both died from a gunshot wound to the head, according to Pearl River County Coroner Derek Turnage. Ms. Burton was found dead in the couple's home Saturday night, and Dr. Claycomb died early Sunday in a hospital. Mr. Turnage said the deaths will be ruled a murder-suicide, according to the report. No information regarding a possible motive has been released. Dr. Claycomb was a professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at LSU Health New Orleans School of Medicine and a leader in heart disease research. His discoveries have been recognized around the world, Steve Nelson, MD, dean of the medical school, told The Sun Herald. Shane Tucker, Pearl River County Chief Deputy, said Ms. Burton was experiencing health problems Saturday night and had called some friends, asking them to take her to the hospital. Emergency responders arrived at the couple's home after one of Ms. Burton's friends called 911 at 8:24 p.m. "Our deputies went in and saw Victoria on the floor in the kitchen," said Mr. Tucker, according to the report. "It appeared she had been shot in the head. They went to the bedroom and located William. He was awake but was unable to move." Dr. Claycomb had shot himself in the mouth, the coroner said. He was flown to Forrest General Hospital in Hattiesburg where he died at 12:34 a.m. Sunday. "There's still a lot to investigate," Mr. Tucker said. "We've subpoenaed medical records and are waiting to get autopsy results back, but we do believe the husband shot the wife and then shot himself." More healthcare news: 10 things to know about the National Cancer Moonshot Study finds for STEM careers, elite schooling doesn't matter Baylor Scott & White to close facility as services are consolidated New York City-based Empire BlueCross BlueShield has cut its insurance broker commissions, meaning it won't pay brokers to sign members up for its plans, according to Crain's New York Business. The change goes into effect April 1. "We recognize that this change will present an additional challenge to you in a difficult market, as carriers adjust to the rapidly changing individual market," Empire BCBS wrote in an email to brokers, according to the report. "We remain committed to the individual market, and we thank you for sharing your expertise with your clients our members in this demanding environment." Brokers who sign up consumers prior to April 1 will still receive a commission of $12 per member per month through the end of 2016. However, "a $6 per member per month bonus that was offered for brokers who enrolled new 2016 members into 2017 Empire plans won't be honored," according to the report. Empire's decision follows that of other health insurers. Minnetonka, Minn.-based UnitedHealth cut commissions in December, and New York City-based Oscar Health lowered broker commissions the same month. As of Sept. 30, Empire BCBS had 2.9 million members in New York city, according to the report. Gov. Rick Scott declared a state of public health emergency Wednesday in Florida's Miami-Dade, Lee, Hillsborough and Santa Rosa counties following the confirmation of nine Zika virus cases across the state. None of the cases have involved pregnant women and all infected individuals recently traveled to the Caribbean and Latin America, where they are thought to have contracted the virus which is spread through mosquito bites according to CBS Miami. "Although Florida's current nine Zika cases were travel-related, we have to ensure Florida is prepared and stays ahead of the spread of the Zika virus in our state," Gov. Scott said in a statement. "Our Department of Health will continue to be in constant communication with all county health offices, hospitals and the CDC. We know that we must be prepared for the worst even as we hope for the best." Gov. Scott's declaration enables Florida's agriculture department to use bigger doses of mosquito-killing spray in the affected counties and allows the health department to act autonomously to contain the virus. Researchers have established a strong causal link between Zika virus and microcephaly, an infant birth defect that can result in developmental complications and, in some instances, death. Though the majority of cases have been reported in Brazil, where thousands of babies born with microcephaly first drew attention to Zika, cases have now been reported in nearly 30 countries. Most Zika carriers are asymptomatic, with only about 1 in 5 presenting with mild fever and other flu symptoms that last about a week. However, concerns for pregnant women are so great that some governments, such as El Salvador, have recommended citizens hold off on becoming pregnant until at least 2018. Four individuals affected by the Legionnaires' disease outbreak in Flint, Mich., have filed a suit against McLaren Flint hospital and six state workers, arguing the illness could be attributed to the water crisis, according to an NBC News report. The city switched its water supply from Detroit to the Flint River in 2014 to save money while building a more cost-effective regional water system to bring in water from Lake Huron. Consequently, the switch exposed local residents to lead poisoning, E. coli bacteria and toxic chemical byproducts. State officials are still looking into whether the switch in water supply can be blamed for the Legionnaires' disease outbreak in 2014 and 2015, according to the NBC report. During the outbreak, roughly 87 cases of Legionnaires' disease were reported locally, and more than a dozen of the cases were treated at McLaren Flint. Eleven of those patients died, including the mother of one of the four people suing the hospital and state workers. The lawsuit alleges that failing to treat the river water with anti-corrosion agents violated federal regulations. "A hospital won't make money if it discloses a Legionnaires' outbreak from contaminated water, and a governor will stop hearing whispers that he's being considered for higher office if he reveals a water and Legionnaires' crisis," lawyer Geoffrey Fieger said in a statement cited by NBC. While the lawsuit only mentions damages above $25,000, Mr. Fieger told NBC his is seeking $100 million for his four clients. At the time of publication, McLaren Flint had not responded to a request for comment. More articles on Legionnaires' disease: At least 87 Legionnaires' cases, 10 deaths linked to Flint water crisis How many more have to die before regulators take action on Legionnaires disease? Death toll rises in Illinois Legionnaires' disease outbreak Extending hours for surgical residents doesn't negatively affect patient care, according to a New England Journal of Medicine study. In fact, longer hours may improve patient recovery if surgical residents stay with patients post-operation or are on hand to help stabilize them in critical situations, according to the authors. Researchers analyzed data from 117 residency programs across 151 hospitals and health systems and found those using more flexible duty hours for residents yielded no significant difference in residents' self-reported satisfaction, overall well-being, quality of training or patient outcomes for 10 metrics. The conclusions of the new study, which were presented at the Academic Surgical Congress on Tuesday, are a bit counterintuitive. Longer clinical hours are often associated with fatigue, burnout or slip-ups, and the issue has attracted regulatory attention. The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education revised its policies around shift hours for residents twice, first in 2003 and again in 2011. The 2003 revision mandated that residents work under 80 hours per week, including restrictions for minimum amount of time between shifts and caps on overnight shift length. The 2011 update decreased the acceptable shift length for residents and increased the amount of time they are required to take off between shifts. However, the authors suggest the real cause of errors in patient care occur during hand-offs, when a physician or medical staffer updates the incoming clinicians about the status of a patient. "In surgery, this more frequent turnover may compromise continuity of patient care, potentially jeopardize patient safety and decrease the quality of resident education by forcing residents to leave at critical times, such as in the middle of an operation or while stabilizing a critically ill patient," Karl Bilimoria, MD, director of the Surgical Outcomes and Quality Improvement Center at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago and co-author of the study, said in a statement. Greater flexibility in surgical resident works hours can prevent patient care disruptions without impacting outcomes or surgical education, the authors concluded. More articles on quality: Dr. Peter Pronovost: 9 necessary patient safety growth areas Labor and delivery bundle may improve patient outcomes: 3 study findings One reason for increased hospital safety costs? Patients aren't getting evidence-based care Englewood, Colo.-based Swedish Medical Center is notifying patients who had surgery at the facility between Aug. 17, 2015, and Jan. 22 they may be at risk for HIV and hepatitis B and C, according to the Denver Post. The hospital issued the warning after discovering a former Swedish employee, a surgical technician, was diverting drugs and possibly leaving behind dirty needles. The hospital subsequently removed him from patient care, his surgical technician's license was suspended and he is being investigated by the Englewood Police Department. Swedish is offering free, confidential blood tests to all surgical patients who underwent care at locations where the employee worked the number of potentially affected patients totals roughly 2,900. Currently, there is no known transmission to patients, according to the Post. Though the response thus far to the Zika virus has been bipartisan, media outlets like The Hill anticipate the contagious virus could soon creep in to politics. So far the media hype has been minimal relative to Ebola coverage, but if presidential candidates or other high profile politicians start making Zika a big deal, it could unnecessarily grow fears among the American public. As The Hill observed, political hype can blow the actual risk out of proportion. So far, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) has quietly voiced concerns about the issue to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has issued a warning that we may react too late and House Speak Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) has discussed the issue with President Barack Obama, according to The Hill. However, the administration has not been ignoring the virus, but its nature as significantly less of a threat than Ebola elicits a quieter response. It is primarily transmitted through mosquito bites, though it can also be transmitted sexually. The virus is not deadly, but it can cause serious birth defects. Experts told The Hill it is not a serious threat to most Americans, especially because our population is more spread out and more likely to use air conditioning and window screens. However, as the weather gets warmer and the presidential race ramps up, Zika still could become a top-of-mind campaign issue. More articles on quality: What to expect in the sepsis therapeutics market: 5 findings and forecasts Vaccine shows promise for reducing flu-associated atrial fibrillation Flu vaccination rates among US babies remains low, study finds Convincing physicians to invest in a venture requires tact, according to Physician's Money Digest. Here are eight strategies: 1. Develop a genuine relationship with physicians, built on honesty. 2. Associate with a mentor who shares a common interest and could help with the investment process. 3. Research networks specializing in biomedical clinical or digital health investments. 4. Network in the right places interdisciplinary, innovative environments where you'll run into investor physicians. 5. Follow the money and find physicians who make their investments public. Look in vacation or second-home communities. 6. Hospital, community resource fundraisers and college alumni events are prime places to meet physician investors. 7. Discover other companies that were successful in obtaining physician investors in the early states. Contact the CEO and figure out how they did it. 8. Sell it. Prepare to make your best possible pitch at any time. Be clear about the clinical challenge and why your investment is a game-changer. Three industry executives discussed the increasing difficult landscape for sales representatives trying to reach physicians, according to Medical Marketing & Media. 1. Pratap Khedkar, managing principal of ZS Associates, commented his company's sale representatives have experienced challenges in accessing physicians. Based on the ZS Associates spring 2015 AccessMonitor report, less than half of physicians will see representatives without payment. 2. Wayne Obetz, vice president of investment analytics and decision sciences of CMI/Compas, reported improved overall representative access, except in endocrinologist, nephrologists, psychologist and urologist specialties. Based on the CMI/Compas Media Vitals study, the number of physicians demanding representative appointments has increased. Although the access has improved, the rates are still lower than seen in 2013. 3. Michael Byrnes, executive vice president of sales at Rx EDGE Pharmacy Networks, commented on the increasing importance of the physician-pharmacist relationship. Physicians want to spend their time interacting with patients, not meeting with sales representatives. Many pharmacists are involving themselves more directly in patient care, working alongside the physicians. A former linen warehouse in Belfast city centre which has been sitting empty for more than a decade is finally set to be redeveloped after years of setbacks. Armagh House was due to be turned into a number developments over the years, but several were put off due to the economic downturn. Now, it's due to be turned into a mixed use building, with office space on most of the floors, alongside a restaurant and possibly retail at ground level. It's thought the project could be worth around 6m. The company behind the project is Armagh House Ltd, which was appointed by the Department for Social Development after it issued a brief in 2013. One of those behind the scheme is property developer Aran Blackbourne, who was also behind Ireland's tallest building, the Obel. The building was placed into administration back in 2012. It's understood the Karl Group is also involved in the ambitious new project. A spokesperson for DSD said the building is currently owned by the department, but work, and funding, will now be provided by the new company taking the development forward. "A development brief competition was advertised in November 2013 and following the selection of a preferred developer the department has been moving forward with the finalisation of a development agreement for a restaurant/cafe on the ground floor and office accommodation above," the spokesperson said. "The redevelopment of Armagh House will be taken forward by the preferred developer and the department will not provide any financial support." While at the early stages, it's understood drawings and detailed plans are being prepared and are due to be submitted in the next few days. Plans for the new development include some demolition of "part of elevation" to provide a new entrance at the corner of Alfred Street and Ormeau Avenue. In 2007, the Department for Social Development appointed one firm to develop the red-brick building on Ormeau Avenue, turning it into an upmarket apartment hotel. It was hoped the project - which was due to include 30 apartments and two penthouse suites - would have created 100 new jobs. Work on the 20m project was due to begin in late 2008. But the developers - Tullymore House Ltd, which runs the Galgorm Resort and Spa owned by Nicholas and Paul Hill - pulled out of the project, saying it was no longer economically viable, just as the downturn began. In 2010, DSD announced the scheme had been dropped as a result of economic conditions following the recession. However, in late 2013 the department issued a new development brief inviting proposals from the private sector to redevelop the vacant building. Built in 1907, Armagh House is a four-storey red brick warehouse designed by William J Roome for Greeves, Ridgeway & Co Linen and Damask Manufacturers. By the 1940s it was converted to government office use and it continued to be used in that way until the early 2000s. It has remained vacant ever since. Heathrow Airport has reiterated concerns Northern Ireland could lose out on regional routes into London if the green light isn't given for a third runway Heathrow Airport has reiterated concerns Northern Ireland could lose out on regional routes into London if the green light isn't given for a third runway. The Airports Commission has said Heathrow was best-placed to provide "urgently required" capacity, but the Government has yet to decide whether to plough ahead with the extension. There's concern big airlines could drop regional links in favour of more lucrative international connections. Nigel Milton, Heathrow's director of external affairs, told the Belfast Telegraph: "If we don't expand, regional services are going to come under pressure. "The opportunity of expansion, the message from Government, since they made the announcement, is that the case needs to be made - how the decision will benefit Northern Ireland. "EasyJet announced if we were to expand it would expand from Belfast International, which would bring a greater choice between airports and bring down prices." Speaking during a visit to Northern Ireland, where he addressed the launch of the Northern Ireland Independent Retail Trade Association's Alternative Programme for Government, Mr Milton said the message among business groups and politicians was clear: "Get on with it." Mr Milton said Heathrow Airport also agreed with a Bill put forward by the Ulster Unionist peer Lord Empey in order to ring-fence and protect regional routes. "We think there needs to be some intervention," he said. And on the possibility of the UK leaving the EU, Mr Milton said there was "concern" over the uncertainty. Ben Stiller and wife Christine Taylor will be on the red carpet Ben Stiller and Christine Taylor's children are distinctly unimpressed by Justin Bieber's cameo in their film star parents' latest movie, Zoolander No 2. In the sequel to 2001's Zoolander, the Canadian pop star meets his end after a night-time chase through the streets of Rome, amid a spate of celebrity killings. However, the Hollywood couple's children - Ella, 13, and Quinlin, 10 - were hardly excited. Speaking at a "fashionable screening" of the film in London's Leicester Square, Taylor explained: "Our daughter, who is almost 14 - of all of the 14-year-olds on the planet, she is the one child who is like: 'Dad, I get it, everyone loves Justin Bieber, but I'm not one of them.'" However, another celebrity cameo earned the film's star and co-writer Stiller some respect from his daughter. Taylor, who plays Derek Zoolander's on-screen love Matilda Jeffries, said: "Benedict? Let's not get started. Ella, our daughter, is obsessed with Sherlock, obsessed with Benedict, so Ben's street cred rose in huge amounts the minute that she found out that Benedict was a part of the movie." Benedict Cumberbatch plays androgynous model-of-the-moment, All. The film sees male models Stiller (Zoolander) and Owen Wilson (Hansel) attempt to reclaim their place in the world of high fashion. Unfortunately, they find themselves irrelevant, branded "old" and "lame". Zoolander was not a box office hit in 2001, but found legions of fans in the following years. Stiller told the Press Association: "I felt bad for Derek after the first movie came out, because I think he thought he was going to have a bigger career after the movie, and nobody really went to the movie. And his modelling career kind of went down. "Last few years there's been a resurgence and now he's like back on top really, back in the limelight. I think when he realised the first movie wasn't a documentary and it was actually supposed to be fun - because he tried to sue Paramount -he got very confused. "Anyway it's nice to have him back." Will Ferrell has returned to the role of Derek and Hansel's fashion world enemy Mugatu - who starts the film in prison, serving a sentence for the attempted assassination of the prime minister of Malaysia 15 years ago. But he is soon out and up to his villainous tricks, declaring: "Prison changed me. I am bad to the core now." Explaining how he prepared for the role, Ferrell said: " I watched the first movie again prior to shooting, going: 'Oh I'd better remind myself how Mugatu sounds and acts and moves'. "But once I got in the first wardrobe fitting and got the wig on and the little tiny dog in my hand, I was right back where I was 15 years ago." He added: " There were a couple of times working with Ben where I would scream at him as Mugatu and he would look so stupid that I couldn't hold a straight face. "Working with Kristen Wiig is always a constant battle to not break up, so that's a sign that you're having fun." Wiig joined Zoolander No 2 as a newcomer, putting on an almost-unintelligible accent and layers of make-up to play fashion mogul Alexanya Atoz. The make-up took four hours to apply every day. "The good thing for me is that I couldn't move my face, even if I tried, because of all the prosthetics that I had," she explained. "So it was actually kind of hard to smile. So I would just laugh on the inside." Penelope Cruz is another newcomer, playing motorcycle-riding Valentina, an Interpol special agent (global fashion division). Valentina is forced to enlist the help of Derek and Hansel as she attempts to get to the bottom of the spate of celebrity killings. All the victims mysteriously snapped photos of Derek's "looks" in their dying moments, with Bieber declaring: "Peace out world". Cruz said: "I was so excited. I'm a huge fan of the first one, and when Ben called me, I was so happy." The red carpet event featured a successful bid by Stiller to break the record for a photo taken by the world's longest selfie stick. Surrounded by the cast of the film, fans, red carpet guests and the press, he hoisted the selfie stick in the air and was able to take a group photo. The record breaking attempt was verified by a representative from the Guinness Book of World Records. :: Zoolander No 2 is released in UK cinemas on February 12. Ricky Gervais's Equality Street song co-star Doc Brown said comedy is "not the battlefield" to address issues of racial diversity. The 37-year-old, whose real name is Ben Bailey Smith, joined Gervais's alter-ego David Brent as rapper Dom Johnson on the political reggae song for Comic Relief in 2013, a role he will revive in their feature film Life On The Road later this year. Following the Oscars diversity controversy, Gervais jokingly tweeted Smith: "You realise we won't get nominated for an Oscar with you in the movie, don't you? I've been a fool." But Smith, the son of a Jamaican immigrant mother and English father, disagreed that comedy is the way to tackle the situation. He said: "It's not the battlefield. You're preaching to the converted. I don't think it's all stand-ups but if they really want to do something you've got to get off the stage and do something about it. A joke is not the way forward." Comedian Sir Lenny Henry blasted Oscar nominee Charlotte Rampling for saying the row was racist to white people. But Smith said: "Casting is the true villain, the unspoken shadowy antagonist behind this Charlotte Rampling argument about the Oscars. "Everybody's banging on about black people not getting an Oscar and Charlotte Rampling rightly said 'Well, they weren't in any Oscar-winning movies so how could they?' Which is fair comment." He said the real issue is casting: "It's about people of colour having the opportunity to challenge the best actors to be in the best movies. If that opportunity isn't there then it can never happen and nothing will ever change." Smith takes up a prominent role in new ITV drama Brief Encounters shortly, about the birth of the Ann Summers sex parties. But now the brother of award-winning White Teeth novelist Zadie Smith is publishing his first book, I Am Bear. The children's tale of a prankster bear saw Smith and his illustrating partner Sav Akyuz in a four-way bidding war, eventually won by Walker Books. There is no competition with his sister, he said. "I think if I were a novelist too it would be direct competition. I don't want that, Zadie doesn't want that. Crucially I know I couldn't do it anyway. I don't have anything like the patience and intelligence to do what she does." In the book, the mischievous bear steals doughnuts from the police, amazes other forest inhabitants with his magic tricks and, controversially for a book aimed at three to seven-year-olds, eats his squirrel pal for lunch. It has all the hallmarks of a future children's classic, with bold illustration from Akyuz, who storyboarded John Lewis's famous Bear and the Hare Christmas advert, and catchy half-rap, half-rhyme read-aloud lyrics, that are complemented by a Smith-performed music video. Newly-announced Top Gear co-host Matt LeBlanc has challenged his Episodes co-star Stephen Mangan to a Top Gear duel. Top Gear fans were taken by surprise when the show's new host, Chris Evans, announced that Friends star LeBlanc would be his co-presenter when the rebooted show launches in May. LeBlanc, known for playing Friends' loveable Joey Tribbiani, is no stranger to Top Gear, having appeared on the last incarnation of the show twice. Following the announcement of his appointment, he responded to a comment from Mangan, who starred alongside him in the BBC-Showtime series, Episodes. Mangan re-tweeted a photo of Evans, LeBlanc and The Stig, commenting: "Still annoyed they made me wear that helmet." LeBlanc replied: "Ok Mangan , here's your chance to beat my time. You better come on the show." He was referring to his first 2012 appearance which saw him set the fastest-ever time for a celebrity lap around the Top Gear track. According to the official Top Gear website, he set an unbeaten lap time of 1m 42.1s in a Kia cee'd. The American actor also thanked fans for their kind words as he posted a candid snap of himself. He wrote: " Hey everyone,I'm really honored and looking forward to working on Top Gear with @achrisevans , damn he's tall." Sherlock co-creator Steven Moffat said helping to bring the hit detective TV show and Doctor Who to the screen were "two dream jobs", as he was awarded an OBE for services to drama. The writer and producer played down his achievements, saying his double success showed "the value of luck". Moffat received his honour from the Prince of Wales during a Buckingham Palace investiture ceremony and said about the experience: "It was very thrilling and formal and slightly, slightly, just very slightly, like being back at school. But nicer because everyone got a prize." He added: "Talking to other people before I came in, I kind of feel everyone's here for a better reason than me. "I've got not one, but two dream jobs so to get this lovely thing for already indulging myself in public, seems like an excess of good fortune." His journey to the television studio started in the classroom when the then teacher came up with an idea for a show about a school newspaper. Press Gang made stars of its young cast including Dexter Fletcher and Julia Sawalha, and launched Moffat into the world of television. He wrote some of the episodes for the revived Doctor Who and took over from Russell T Davies as executive producer and chief writer on the show in 2008. Since then, he has guided the show to new heights and steered it successfully through two regenerations of its title character. Moffat, whose credits also include Coupling and Chalk, had even more success with another revival when he brought master sleuth Sherlock Holmes into the modern world. The idea for the show, which features Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman as Holmes and Watson, came out of a conversation with the actor and fellow Doctor Who writer Mark Gatiss and has been an international hit. Moffat, speaking about the success of Sherlock, which he co-writes with Gatiss, said: "I think every single one of us involved, we're daily surprised." The writer, whose wife Sue Virtue is a fellow executive producer for the sleuth show, said: "It's just a tiny cottage industry Sherlock, it's just a wee bunch of folk, who all know each other, we have to keep reminding each other this is an international deal." He added: "Benedict seems to have claimed the part more than anyone else except Jeremy Brett and Basil Rathbone. He seems to be the third one in a way. "Sherlock Holmes is one of those things, if you love it enough and work hard at it, it will always reward you. Most of what we do is get Arthur Conan Doyle right, we update it, but we get it right." Asked about his future with Sherlock he said it would continue "as long as Benedict and Martin want to show up". More than 4,000 people have signed a petition within 24 hours demanding that "failing" autism services be improved in Northern Ireland. Angry and frustrated parents of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have said they now plan to take their protest to politicians at Stormont and present them with the petition. It comes after it emerged more than 2,000 children in Northern Ireland are waiting for an autism diagnosis - sometimes for more than two years - leaving desperate families calling for urgent action to reform the service. The petition - which calls for urgent action from both the Minister of Health Simon Hamilton and Education Minister John O'Dowd - has attracted thousands of signatures in just one day and says that children with ASD are "being failed by the health and education system in Northern Ireland". Read more Read More Stressed parents facing a long wait for a vital assessment have described the current system as a "shambles". In Belfast there is a waiting time of up to 94 weeks, while in the Northern Trust, families face a wait of up to 65 weeks. In the Southern Trust, meanwhile, there is an average 12-week wait. Emma Manton spoke to the Belfast Telegraph earlier this week about how her son and family had been left in limbo until he received a vital assessment. She was told that her six-year-old, Thomas, would finally receive a school observation but it could be a year before he is fully assessed by the autism assessment team. "At present we are waiting to find out when the Health Minister and possibly also the Education Minister will be in Stormont to present our petition so that it has the most effect; the proposed date is February 16 but that's pending confirmation at the moment," she said. "The reason the group has formed and started the petition is off the back of the recent outcry over waiting times for assessment but also because it's coming to light that even after assessment it's still a wait - and a battle - for everything that's needed from diagnosis onwards. "People are frustrated and struggling. "We hope to gain the attention of local government and get some answers as to why our children are being failed." Annemarie Smyth from Belfast, who is one of the thousands who signed the petition, said change is needed now. "These children struggle with anxiety, behaviour issues and low self-esteem due to unawareness and ignorance of their conditions. Our children are being failed and changes need to be made now," she said. A Health and Social Care Board spokeswoman said that a regional review of the development and delivery of autism services was being carried out. The petition can be viewed here. Cammell Laird handout photo of of 18 new apprentices who started work at the famous ship yard today. Ministers from Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have voiced concern to the Government about plans for an apprenticeship levy on companies. Employment and skills ministers from the three countries told the Westminster administration that the levy could undermine devolved policies on apprenticeships. They called for greater clarity around the introduction of the apprenticeship levy from April 2017. The levy will be set at 0.5% of a large employer's pay bill, and is expected to raise 3 billion to fund three million apprenticeships. Julie James, Welsh Government Deputy Minister for Skills and Technology said: "We have been very clear from the outset that the Welsh Government has serious concerns about the apprenticeship levy and the impact it will have on the apprenticeship system here in Wales. "The levy is an unwelcome new tax burden for Welsh employers, and means Welsh public services will have to pay money back to the Exchequer when they are already under pressure." Northern Ireland Employment and Learning Minister, Dr Stephen Farry said: "Along with my ministerial colleagues from Scotland and Wales I am concerned that the imposition of the apprenticeship levy could have unintended consequences for the devolved administrations. This levy will be a further tax burden on large businesses and this could impact negatively on the UK's and Northern Ireland's ability to compete globally and to attract new business." Roseanna Cunningham, Scotland's cabinet secretary for skills, added: "The introduction of the Levy remains a matter of fundamental concern for us. It encroaches on our devolved responsibilities and is causing concern for employers. The UK Government has no control over how our administrations provide apprenticeships and to imply otherwise by collecting what amounts to an employment tax is misleading for any employer with operations outside England. "We call upon the UK Government to offer urgent clarity on the Levy at today's meeting, and to consider the wider implications of its introduction." Neil Carberry, CBI Director for Employment and Skills, said: "Businesses across the UK share the concerns of skills ministers in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales about how a UK-wide tax can genuinely incentivise high-quality apprenticeships in all four nations, each with their own skills policies and priorities. "Business stands ready to help ensure the levy is as successful as it can be, but urgently requires clarity on how the system will work, as companies are making investment decisions now in the face of a substantial new tax." "Ensuring revenue raised by the levy is ring-fenced by each of the governments for employer training is something the CBI has called for since the policy's announcement." Skills Minister Nick Boles said: "For too long, UK employers have underinvested in skills. This is bad for our economy, our businesses and means our young people haven't been given the chances they deserve. The apprenticeship levy tackles this head on. "The levy will only be paid by the largest 2% of businesses and will create life changing opportunities for young people across the country. Devolved administrations will continue to have complete flexibility over training and apprenticeships and will have control over how they spend their levy funds." Actor and singer Conleth Kane has used his social media platforms to strongly criticise DUP councillor Carla Lockhart over her party's stance on same-sex marriage. The Lurgan actor linked to a Twitter post from the former Mayor of Craigavon in which she backed Ashers bakery in its legal battle after it was found to have discriminated against a gay customer. The gay actor rudely wrote: "Oh shut up Carla. Seriously." He then took to Facebook, where Mr Kane (31) wrote: "She's a member of the DUP party who won't let equal marriage go through in Northern Ireland. "Only wants to be part of Britain when it suits them. She's now supporting the appeal for Ashers Bakery and we are now debating openly on Twitter. "She's not smart enough to answer back though. "This silly little girl and her loathsome party will NEVER make me feel like a second class citizen in my home country." Mr Kane - who has just completed a stint in the Snow White panto in Belfast's Grand Opera House - added: "I don't think Little Miss DUP realises she's up against someone who has no issue with telling her how it is." Many of Mr Kane's friends then joined the discussion, with several making unpleasant and gratuitously offensive remarks about Ms Lockhart's physical appearance. However the actor - who now lives in London - made some effort to discourage comments about her appearance. Mr Kane was contacted for a comment last night, but had not responded at the time of going to press. Last night, Ms Lockhart told the Belfast Telegraph: "In public life we must expect people to push back - though I find social media lends itself to abuse. "People post comments they would never say to your face. "This tweet is an example of the sort of intolerance that's growing in our society. "I want Northern Ireland to be a place where people of all faiths and none can agree to disagree but show respect for each other. "The case against Ashers is an enormous waste of public money. "I fully support the McArthur family - and I should be entitled to express my opinion without facing rude and abusive comments." Last May, the West End stage star backed same-sex marriage in Northern Ireland, after receiving thousands of messages of support when he changed his Facebook status to 'gay'. An inquiry calls for removing the limit on seats for sale at George Best Belfast City Airport A restriction on the number of seats for sale at George Best Belfast City Airport should be removed, an independent inquiry said. The airport is proposing to replace the cap with noise controls. T he Planning Appeals Commission (PAC) found that residents living more than five kilometres from the airport should not face high volumes. The airport wants to change its planning agreement, removing a restriction on the number of departure seats it can sell in a year, currently capped at two million. Residents' groups claim if the change is approved it will create a busier and noisier airport. The PAC said: "Restriction 3, in respect of a seats for sale limitation, should be removed." It said the area affected by noise levels which cause people concern, 57 decibels, should not exceed 5.2 square kilometres. That is the area which a Belfast City Council forecast for 2025 suggested would be affected if the seats for sale restriction remained in place. A public inquiry was held into seats for sale last year. A final decision will rest with Environment Minister Mark H Durkan, who is not bound by any recommendation the inquiry made. Its other recommendations included: :: A levy of fines should be clearly laid out, to be imposed on flights landing after 9.30pm, increasing incrementally every 15 minutes. :: A departure noise control system should be introduced setting out a specified maximum limit. Fines should be established and clearly set out in the amended agreement, with all penalties payable to an Airport Community Fund. :: A continuous descent approach should be adopted for all aircraft landing. :: A noise insulation scheme should be brought in for residential and noise-sensitive properties experiencing noise levels of 63 decibels or above. A Planning Service statement said: "The department is considering the PAC recommendations with a view to making recommendations to the minister on if and how the planning agreement should be modified. "It emphasises that at this stage no recommendation has been made by the department with regard to any decision in the light of the PAC report and no decision has been reached by the minister." A Belfast City Airport spokesman said: "We welcome the recommendation by the Planning Appeals Commission to remove the seats for sale limit, which has been a long standing barrier to our business. "We will consider in more detail the findings of the report and will submit our views to the department within the time frame stipulated." A spokeswoman for the Belfast City Airport Watch steering group, which represents residents, said it was concerned that, if the inquiry panel's recommendations are implemented, more people will be exposed to a level of noise regarded as serious by the Government. "We don't believe such a move is necessary as there is already plenty of spare capacity for further airline passenger growth within Northern Ireland." Mitchell House school has come under fire in an inspectors report A special school in Belfast has been criticised by inspectors for being difficult to get around by wheelchair. Mitchell House School in the east of the city operates in an old house that was left in trust for the benefit of children with special needs. It educates 81 children between the ages of three and 19, mainly from Belfast, north Down and the surrounding areas. A report by the Education and Training Inspectorate (ETI) released this week has praised the leadership, teaching and pastoral care at the school as very good, but issued stinging criticism of the building. The report found: the school hall is too small for physical education or to hold an assembly and is unfit for purpose; small classrooms restrict movement of pupils using wheelchairs, standing frames and other apparatus; narrow and restricted corridors and steep ramps are difficult for pupils in wheelchairs; limited facilities for the storage of wheelchairs and other essential equipment; and covered walkways are not weather-resistant, and pupils in wheelchairs and those with restricted mobility have great difficulty accessing classrooms. It found that the school's accommodation is restricting the curriculum provision and requires urgent improvement to give the pupils the appropriate opportunities for play and to develop their independence. Mitchell House principal Laura Matchett said they were aware of the issues and would welcome a new school building. She said since the inspection was carried out in November the school, working with the Education Authority, has moved to remedy what they can. This includes repositioning stop buttons in the technology department, benches that are height-adjustable and replacing windows. "The last ETI report did identify some issues with the building as well, but as far as the school is concerned we really feel the most important thing is what happens inside the building - not the state of the building," she said. "We do recognise there are many issues that need dealt with. We would be really happy to have some of the things identified addressed. "A brand new build would be wonderful, but we don't dwell on that and we are very conscious that we have to function in this building as well as we can, and that is what we aim to do on a day-to-day basis. We try to make the impact as little as possible on the children and ensure they get a good quality education." Mitchell House Special School first opened its doors in November 1961 with eight resident pupils, and in the 2015/16 academic year has an enrolment of 81 children. A previous ETI inspection in 2007 similarly praised all aspects of the school apart from its accommodation. "There is a warm and welcoming sense of community and, despite poor accommodation, the staff provide a rich and varied range of activities and experiences for the pupils," it found. The Department of Education failed to respond to a request for a comment. Arlene Foster and Martin McGuinness have united with the leaders of Scotland and Wales to urge David Cameron not to hold a European Union referendum in June. The First and Deputy First Ministers, along with Nicola Sturgeon and Carwyn Jones, have warned that a June vote would mean the referendum campaign clashing with May elections to Stormont, Holyrood, and the Senedd. The first ministers said a June vote "risks confusing issues at a moment clarity is required" and urged Mr Cameron to "commit to deferring the EU referendum at least until later in the year". The Prime Minister rejected that, committing to a gap of at least six weeks after the May 5 elections before holding a referendum - leaving open the possibility of a vote on June 23 or 30. In their letter, the leaders said: "We believe that holding a referendum as early as June will mean that a significant part of the referendum campaign will necessarily run in parallel with those elections and risks confusing issues at a moment when clarity is required. "We believe that the European referendum is of vital importance to the future of the whole United Kingdom and the debate leading up to it should, therefore, be free of other campaigning distraction." Yesterday, DUP MEP Diane Dodds told the European Parliament that Mr Cameron's negotiations were "little more than a choreographed talks process, a faux battle, a smoke-and-mirrors charade that has resulted in little more than the status quo, a failure by our Prime Minister to stand up for our United Kingdom". Meanwhile, an academic has said Brexit could have a "huge impact" on large firms' plans to establish bases in Northern Ireland once corporation tax is cut. In the short term it would create added complexity, and could slow investment in the first couple of years, said Professor Neil Gibson, director of the Economic Policy Centre at the Ulster University. He gave evidence to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee of MPs at Westminster which is investigating the impact of any UK exit from the EU on Northern Ireland. Mr Gibson said: "An exit vote would weigh on traders' considerations in the short term, I would not underplay the impact on Northern Ireland, having made its biggest policy choice ... in the first two years not much is happening. "In the short run just the particular timing of that would have different implications. It would be a factor in those firms' decisions." As part of last year's Fresh Start political deal, the date for a tariff reduction in the business levy, to 12.5%, will be April 2018, matching the Republic of Ireland in an effort to compete for investment. Currently the rate is 20%. Advocates of a lower rate of tax on business profits in Northern Ireland point to a potentially transformative impact on a local economy that shares a land border with a jurisdiction - Ireland - where the tax is only 12.5%. Business leaders envisage tens of thousands of new jobs and greater prosperity. But critics claim reducing the local rate so significantly from the UK's would damage public spending, as it would see the Treasury cut an estimated 300m off the Executive's annual funding from the rest of the UK to offset the loss in revenue. It could also help encourage businesses in the UK to relocate. A special fundraising event for children with cancer in Northern Ireland is to celebrate the legacy of David Bowie on Friday night. DJ Joe Lindsay will play hits and some remixes and more obscure works from the artist's back catalogue. Bowie died of cancer last month, aged 69. A screening of Nicolas Roeg's science fiction drama The Man Who Fell To Earth, which Bowie starred in, is also planned on Friday night at the Limelight in Belfast. Lindsay said: "David Bowie is not just a loss to the world of music, he was much more than that, he defined a generation and an era. More than once. "His impact was felt in music, film, theatre, art and popular culture generally. A life lived in art, a giant presence gone, but a legacy that will endure and never be equalled. "Even at the end, his death was so very 'Bowie'. He left final artistic gifts and messages to us all. This will be a night of celebration and for raising money for an amazing charity." Proceeds will go to the Northern Ireland Cancer Fund For Children. Mark and Terri with Republic of Ireland manager Martin ONeill and Northern Ireland manager Michael ONeill at a match last year to raise funds for his treatment in Mexico Calls have been made for Derry City to immortalise legend Mark Farren with a permanent tribute to the player its Brandywell home. Mark Farren's death was announced on Wednesday. The 33-year-old died with his wife and family at his side. His family described him as a "gentleman" who was "football crazy". Following his passing, tributes have flowed for the legendary footballer who fought a brave battle against an aggressive brain tumour. Ex-England international Gary Lineker led tributes on social media. Derry City legend Liam Coyle has called for the Glentoran stand at the Brandywell to be named after the footballer who scored 114 goals in 209 appearances at the club during a nine-year spell. The club have announced that the number 18 will be retired in honour of the player. A book of condolence has been opened at the Brandywell stadium and Glenavon, who Farren also played for, are planning a tribute at the weekend's Irish Cup game against Glentoran. Read more: Read More Farren, who lost a six-year battle with cancer, will be buried on Friday beside his three children - triplets who were born prematurely. Mark's funeral service will be held in the church where he married wife Terri just a few years ago, St Mary's in Moville. Terri's brother Shaun Holmes said she had been devastated by the former Derry City and Glenavon star's death, but will draw strength from the hundreds of tributes which have flooded in from across Ireland and beyond. Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph, Mr Holmes said: "This is such a sad time for us all, even though we could see Mark fading from us over the past weeks. "Terri is in bits - we all are - but she is just devastated. She is an incredibly strong person and they were so strong together. It was amazing to see them, but this has hit her hard. "They have not had it easy but they never lost faith, even when they lost their wee triplets. "In the middle of Mark's illness the triplets - Terri, Marlie and Millie - were born in 2014, but they were premature, too premature, and they didn't make it. "They are buried in the graveyard of St Mary's in Moville, the same chapel that Mark and Terri were married in and the same chapel where Mark's funeral will take place." Mark was diagnosed with a brain tumour on Christmas Eve in 2008 when playing for Derry, where he was the record scorer. Incredibly, after a sabbatical of just over a year for treatment, he was back on the pitch, with high hopes he would remain cancer free. Sadly this was not to be, and last year his condition had deteriorated to such an extent that radical treatment - only available in Mexico - was considered his only hope. Mark and Terri travelled to Central America thanks to a huge fundraising campaign, and returned home to Donegal at the end of the summer. Mr Holmes said that while the family hoped and prayed for a miracle, Mark showed little sign of improvement. He explained: "Mark was very weak when he came back from Mexico. He couldn't walk without a lot of assistance and his speech was badly affected. Last October he said to me and my dad that he really wanted to go and see the Republic of Ireland match (against Germany), so we made the preparations to go. "But we were worried then that he wouldn't be fit enough for it. "Since then he really deteriorated and by the time December came we knew he hadn't long. "Over the past two weeks all of his closest friends came to see him and say their own goodbyes. "The two families are really close and we were all with him at the end, and he just passed away so peacefully. "He had battled so hard for six years, but he doesn't have to fight any more." Mark's funeral will take place at St Mary's Church, Ballybrack, at 11am. Family and friends gather at the funeral of Adam McCormack at Milltown Baptist Church in Belfast yesterday Family and friends gather at the funeral of Adam McCormack at Milltown Baptist Church in Belfast yesterday Family and friends gather at the funeral of Adam McCormack at Milltown Baptist Church in Belfast yesterday The community of Belvoir came together to say goodbye to the "one-of-a-kind" teenager who died in his sleep last week. Adam McCormack (15) passed away suddenly at his south Belfast home last Friday. Hundreds of people joined the funeral service at Milltown Baptist Church to say goodbye to the young Breda Academy pupil and to support his mum Lynn, dad Gary, sister Jourdan and brother Matthew. School friends wept and held each other as they remembered the unique sense of humour that made him special. Leading the service, Pastor William Warren said that Adam loved to laugh and that the family wanted the day to be a celebration of his life. Jourdan spoke on behalf of the devastated family and described him as a much loved brother, son and uncle. She told the congregation how they loved playing jokes on their mum together, and how Adam cared for his young niece and nephew. She said:"The memories I have I will never forget. You were taken far too soon. You had your whole life ahead of you. You will never be forgotten. We love you loads. Sweet dreams." His cousin David said: "I see today as less of a funeral and more of a celebration of the life of Adam. He was witty and loved by everyone. If there was just one word I could use to describe it, it would be 'unpredictable'." He said he and Adam attended a youth group at the church called Dreamscheme. His friends and family said Dreamscheme was something that Adam really enjoyed and he looked forward to it every week. David added: "If there was one thing that Adam loved, it was the company of his friends and family. The thought of going to Dreamscheme without him and the fact that we can't go down to our Nanny's and torture her is heartbreaking." His cousin Lauren added: "Adam really was one of a kind. I am so glad I had the privilege of growing up with him. When our Nanny used to babysit us, the first thing David would ask was if she was minding Adam too, and if she was, we knew we were in for such a fun morning. "Everyone knows there was never a dull moment with Adam." Dreamscheme leader Andy McCormick told Adam's friends and relatives about his sense of fun, but also of his honest and reliable side, as he said he always owned up when he did something wrong. Vice principal of Breda Academy Richard Massey spoke on behalf of the staff and students at the school where Adam was a Year 11 pupil. He said Adam was a caring boy, and shared a letter from a parent about how Adam had helped their child, who was lost on their first day of school. He also explained how Adam had grown in confidence in recent years and enjoyed having fun with everyone, including his teachers. Breda Academy pupils have created a memorial tree at the school with messages in tribute to their friend, and the school has also opened a book of condolence. Breda Academy was closed yesterday as a mark of respect and to allow staff and students to attend the funeral. Hundreds of pupils turned out in their school uniform and formed a guard of honour as the funeral cortege made its way to Roselawn Cemetary for a committal service. Pastor Warren said: "So many people have been touched by Adam's life and so many people have been affected by his sudden passing. On behalf of the family, I would like to thank everyone for their prayers and support." Health Minister Simon Hamilton has been accused of ignoring the concerns of staff over his decision to axe Northern Ireland's Health and Social Care Board. The biggest public sector union in the health service said his failure to respond was "really reprehensible" and warned of potential consequences - without spelling them out. A letter sent to the minister yesterday said the Northern Ireland Public Service Alliance (Nipsa) has had no answer to, or acknowledgement of, a letter sent to him and permanent secretary Richard Pengelly before Christmas. That was more than a month after Mr Hamilton announced his intention to shut the HSCB in a bid to cut health service bureaucracy and appointed an expert panel to examine how services should be delivered. The Board employs around 470 people - 80% of whom are represented by Nipsa - with an administrative budget of 27m. The DUP Minister said he wanted to see his Department take "firmer, strategic control of our Health and Social Care system". But Nipsa assistant secretary Kevin McCabe said: "Staff are livid over this cavalier approach. It is highly unusual in civil service terms not to even get an acknowledgement. To say the least, it is very disrespectful." His letter added: "This is not the sort of standard we expect from a NICS Department or its Minister and we can only conclude that it is further evidence of the way you view staff concerns and representations made by their representative body. Asked for a response yesterday, a spokesman would only say: "The Department does not comment on private correspondence." Northern Ireland actor James Nesbitt has thrown his weight behind a campaign to help fight a rent rise that has already forced his local toy shop to close The 'Lucky Man' star, who received an OBE in the New Year Honours List, joined a protest at Herne Hill in south London, where local residents are protesting against a decision by the Dulwich Estate to increase rents. More than 300 people took to the streets to march through Herne Hill on Saturday. Speaking at the march, Mr Nesbitt - who lives locally - told local media outlet the Brixton Blog: "The fact that Dulwich Estate, a wealthy landowner, is hiking up rates, which only benefits fee-paying schools while depriving the community of all these individual shops, is beyond me. "It just seems crazy that Dulwich Estate wants to do this to its own community, " Giles Gibson, chairman of the Herne Hill Forum, which organised the protest, told the blog: "Just Williams, our only local children's toy shop in Half Moon Lane, has gone. "They could not afford the near 70% rent hike that local landlord Dulwich Estate imposed." Dulwich Estate did not respond to a request for comment on the matter when contacted by the Belfast Telegraph. It's a modern day fairytale, more Tinderella than Cinderella, after a Carrickfergus woman met her Prince Charming online, said 'yes' on a mountain in Brazil, then won her wedding in a whirlwind love story. Jo and Gareth Martin caught each other's eyes on dating app Tinder, which matches potential love interests with the simple swipe of a touchscreen. The week after Valentine's Day 2014, the Carrickfergus woman spotted Gareth online. They instantly sensed a connection and swiftly went on their first date. "Gareth was even nicer in real life," said Jo. "We were in the coffee shop for hours, until closing time, and when he suggested dinner, I knew then he must like me." A flurry of dates ensued, and soon Jo and Gareth were inseparable. But there was one problem. Primary school teacher Jo was preparing for a new job in Sao Paolo, 6,000 miles away. The 29-year-old explained: "In the early stages I kept telling Gareth I was going to Brazil, so he could back out. He told me he'd come visit. "Three weeks in, he said he'd wait. It was very soon, but I'd fallen for him after four weeks." As Jo prepared to leave, Gareth (27) quit his job and followed his girlfriend of under six months to a tiny apartment across the globe. But the pair became homesick and decided to return to Belfast at Christmas for good. As they counted down the weeks to go home, Gareth revealed the big secret he'd kept since August, on a trip up Rio de Janeiro's Sugarloaf Mountain in November. Jo said: "Gareth was acting really weird and he was so impatient to get to the top. Then he called me over and was on one knee. He said: 'Fancy getting married, Jo?' "The ring was perfect. He bought it before he came to Brazil." Back in NI, they began planning their wedding for summer 2016. They picked the venue and paid the deposit but tried their luck at a competition which would pay for their big day. They made it through the heats to the final on stage at the Wedding Journal Show, along with five other couples. "We got down to the last two, and were gutted when we didn't win," said Jo. "We got over it and back to planning our wedding." However, their plans changed again with a phone call one afternoon. "They told me the winning couple had pulled out, so Gareth and I got the prize. I was in shock." "All of a sudden we were cancelling plans for next summer, and getting married on December 20." Instead of splashing out on a wedding, the bride and groom-to-be used their saved money to buy their first home together. Days before Christmas, they celebrated their union at Cabra Castle in Co Cavan. "It was the best day of my life," said Jo. "The ceremony was just amazing, and the minister was my best friend's husband. Saying our vows was so emotional." Jo's dad had died before he could see his only daughter get married. But she was determined to include all of the traditional father-of-the-bride roles. Jo explained: "My mum walked me down the aisle, and my brother Paul did a speech on dad's behalf. He made everyone cry. "My other brother Dave did the dance that's usually between the bride and her dad." The new Mrs Martin said: "The whole thing has been a massive whirlwind, with lots to learn. I wouldn't change one bit of it." Liam Neeson is to star in a new remake of Norwegian hit move In Order of Disappearance Hollywood star Liam Neeson has added his voice to a campaign to bring jobs back to his home town in Northern Ireland after a spate of major redundancies. Neeson has recorded a video message urging people to attend a trade union organised rally in Ballymena, Co Antrim, on Saturday. Fellow Ballymena-born actor James Nesbitt is also backing the call for more investment in a once-thriving town that has witnessed a series of large-scale job losses in recent years. The announced closures of a Michelin tyre factory and the JTI Gallaher cigarette plant have left more than 1,600 workers facing unemployment. The Rally for A Future event on Saturday is organised by the union Unite. In his video message, Taken star Neeson said: "Hello, I am Liam Neeson - a proud Ballymena man. I am backing the demand for jobs and investment for Ballymena. "I am asking you to attend the Rally For A Future at the Ballymena bandstand at noon on February 6. February 6 - please be there." Cold Feet star Nesbitt also sent a message of support. "I share the pain of the loss of so many jobs following the announced closure of the JTI Gallaher and Michelin factories in Ballymena," he said. "While my career has taken me far from home, I've always had a great affection for the town and its people. "The loss of these well-paying and stable jobs not only threatens those affected directly and their families, but will have a devastating impact on the wider economy and community. "We must seize this moment to show Ballymena and Northern Ireland's ambition to be a highly sought after centre for international business." A man accused of breaking into the home of a victim stabbed in the chest with a broken vodka bottle is no longer to be charged with his attempted murder, the High Court heard today. Gary Kelly, 26, was granted bail after a judge was told allegations that he tried to kill the man at his south Belfast flat have been withdrawn. Kelly, of Lavinia Mews in the city, now faces charges of burglary inflicting grievous bodily harm and robbery. He is one of three men accused of involvement in the break-in at Dunluce Avenue in July last year. Wounds inflicted in the early morning attack narrowly missed the victim's heart. Police believe he may have been targeted by mistake. The 33-year-old told detectives he was woken by noises outside and people coming upstairs, the court heard. When he went out into the hallway to investigate he said he was confronted by three men. Prosecution counsel Kate McKay continued: "One of them immediately smashed a bottle over his head and then stabbed him repeatedly in the chest and arm with the broken bottle. "The injured party was pleading for his life, then one of the males said 'Sorry mate, wrong house'." A mobile phone, card reader and cash were stolen. Kelly and his two co-accused were arrested in nearby areas of the city later that day. Defence barrister Declan Quinn argued that Kelly was not caught at the scene, adding that the victim failed to pick him out at an identification process. Mr Quinn also cited the lack of forensic evidence and reduced charge against his client in a case where he has spent seven months in custody. Granting bail, Judge Gordon Kerr QC held that the removal of the attempted murder charge amounted to a change in circumstances. "I do not consider the risk of similar offending is at a very high level," he said. Kelly was ordered to abide by a curfew and excluded from the area around the scene of the attack. George Osborne announced a levy on companies to fund apprenticeships will be set at 0.5% of an employer's pay bill Leading politicians from the devolved legislatures are gathering to warn the UK Government its apprenticeship levy could undermine policies in their areas. Scottish Skills Secretary Roseanna Cunningham will host Welsh Deputy Skills Minister Julie James, Northern Ireland Employment Minister Dr Stephen Farry and UK Skills Minister Nick Boles in Edinburgh. They will call for greater clarity around the introduction of the apprenticeship levy from April 2017. During last year's Spending Review and Autumn Statement, Chancellor George Osborne announced a levy on companies to fund apprenticeships will be set at 0.5% of an employer's pay bill. It is expected to raise 3 billion in an attempt to fund three million apprenticeships. The Government says the levy will only be paid on employers' pay bills over 3 million, resulting in fewer than 2% of UK employers paying it. The ministers fear the levy has the potential to undermine devolved apprenticeship policies. They are seeking the best method for fairly apportioning the levy raised across the devolved administrations, including transparency around UK departmental budgets. They will also ask for content and timelines for the legislation that will introduce the levy into statute and stress the need to ensure the changing apprenticeship landscape will be clear to cross-border employers and providers. Ms Cunningham said: "The introduction of the levy remains a matter of fundamental concern for us. It encroaches on our devolved responsibilities and is causing concern for employers. "The UK Government has no control over how our administrations provide apprenticeships and to imply otherwise by collecting what amounts to an employment tax is misleading for any employer with operations outside England. "We call upon the UK government to offer urgent clarity on the levy at today's meeting and to consider the wider implications of its introduction." Ms James added: "We have been very clear from the outset that the Welsh Government has serious concerns about the apprenticeship levy and the impact it will have on the apprenticeship system here in Wales. "I welcome the opportunity to discuss our shared concerns with the UK's other skills ministers." Dr Farry said: "Along with my ministerial colleagues from Scotland and Wales, I am concerned that the imposition of the apprenticeship levy could have unintended consequences for the devolved administrations. "This levy will be a further tax burden on large businesses and this could impact negatively on the UK's and Northern Ireland's ability to compete globally and to attract new business." Questions were raised about a lack of civil service staff at Parliament Buildings Civil servants at Stormont's department of culture have come under fire for not attending important scrutiny committee meetings. MLAs dismissed claims that staffing pressures meant officials have had to watch proceedings online instead of attending Parliament Buildings. Democratic Unionist William Humphrey told colleagues on the Culture Arts and Leisure Committee: "There is no DALO (Department Assembly Liaison Officer) here at all; hasn't been for weeks. "I just don't think that is good enough." The DALO acts as a conduit between minister Caral Ni Chuilin's department and the committee which is tasked with overseeing its work. Usually a mid-ranking manager, the official deals with any issues or correspondence that may arise during the weekly briefings, which are streamed live via the Assembly website. A clearly irked Mr Humphrey slammed what he described as a "conscience decision" not to attend. "If that was a politician doing that they would be absolutely gutted," the North Belfast MLA added. "We are being told they are watching the committee. We don't know that is the case. "I do not buy that they cannot send someone here - a link with our committee staff to the department - to the scrutiny committee that is charged to scrutinise the running of the department when there have been so many controversial issues over the last number of months." A committee clerk suggested the ongoing civil service voluntary severance scheme has had an impact. However, committee chairman Nelson McCausland, also of the DUP, said: "There is a difference between watching it on television and being in the room where you actually get a better understanding of interactions." The new Moderator of the Presbyterian Church has said some of the Christian ministers he admires and has most respect for are gay. Rev Frank Sellar won a landslide victory in the vote to be the next leader of the Presbyterian Church here, with the support of 18 out of the Church's 19 presbyteries across Ireland. The 57-year-old, who calls himself a "gospel radical" and Calvinist, said in this day and age there was greater opportunity for minorities in the Church - such as women and gay people - to be represented as members of the clergy. He said: "Currently, about seven per cent of the clergy are female and it would be good to see that number increase. However, entering the clergy is not something to be forced on people, they have to hear the call and want to follow it. "In my role I have come across many situations that people without a calling would find quite difficult. But for me, my faith in Jesus guides me, knowing that I am doing his work because I felt the call to do it." He added that the Church was the first to allow women to join the clergy as deaconesses as far back as 1908. It introduced women elders and the chance to become ministers in the 1970s. The father-of-three, currently serving at Bloomfield Presbyterian in east Belfast, said homophobia must be kicked to the kerb. Referring to two clerics - Ed Shaw and Vaugh Roberts, who both preach in England - the Moderator-Designate said those who are "same-sex attracted" and Christian can still live within the teachings of the Bible. "It might sound surprising, but some of the people in the clergy I admire, and indeed some of the people within Christian ministry that I respect most, are same-sex attracted and it's vital that people hear that," said Rev Sellar. "I believe there is no place in society for homophobia; in the cases of these two members, they have chosen to place their sexuality under the authority of the Lord and decided to live within the parameters the Bible sets." Rev Roberts, who is based at St Ebbes Church in Oxford, is "same-sex attracted" and celibate, though does not define himself as gay. Rev Sellar says he also takes a balanced view in the case of Ashers bakery, which has appealed against a judgment that it discriminated against a gay man who placed an order with the Christian-run firm for a cake bearing the slogan 'Support gay marriage'. Though confirming his belief that marriage should be between a man and a woman, he said: "It is a very important issue, not just for Christians but an appeal that is important to everybody. "Certainly, a business should not discriminate against customers because of their ethnicity, religion or sexual orientation - that would be quite wrong. But it is a much wider issue. "If a customer were to request a Muslim printer to print a cartoon of Mohammed, it would not be right, and there would be ramifications. "But that's quite different to coercion to participate in political campaigning, which is what I think is happening at the moment." Rev Sellar urged people to be responsible in their speech and behaviour in light of Pastor James McConnell's success in fighting a court case after he was accused of offending Muslims in an online sermon. He said: "With every privilege comes responsibilty. Freedom of speech is a wonderful thing to have, but there are responsibilities that go with that and those must be self-enforced." "We all have a responsibilty to be mindful of our actions towards others." Rev Sellar will take up the position of Moderator on June 6, when he is formally appointed at the General Assembly. A man has been charged after a stabbing outside a supermarket in Co Down on Tuesday night A Newcastle man was remanded into custody today accused of attacking a man outside a supermarket in the town. Standing in the dock of Downpatrick Magistrates Court sporting a severe black right eye and bruised temple, 53-year-old Brian Dougan remained handcuffed to a prison officer throughout the short hearing and nodded to confirm that he understood the three charges against him. Dougan, from Ballaghbeg Park in the seaside town, is accused of causing grievous bodily harm to Adrian McAvoy with intent, making a threat to kill Philip Smith and possessing a weapon, "namely a stick with nails," with intent to inflict GBH, all alleged to have occurred on 2 February this year. Mr McAvoy was attacked near the Tesco store on the Castlewellan Road in Newcastle at 7.35pm last Tuesday. Paramedics were called and the victim was taken for treatment for five stab wounds to Belfast's Royal Victoria Hospital where he remains in a stable condition. In court today Detective Constable Brannigan told a prosecuting lawyer he believed he could connect Dougan to the charges. Defence solicitor Gareth Doran revealed that Dougan has "a number of mental health issues" which will be assessed when he gets to Maghaberry Prison. Asking for the case to be adjourned for a week, he claimed that despite those difficulties, police were agreeable to Dougan being released on bail provided he had an address outside of the Newcastle area. DC Brannigan added however that police would be seeking further bail conditions as well as a suitable address and Mr Doran said he would contact hostels in an effort to obtain such an address. Remanding Dougan into custody to appear again next Thursday via videolink, District Judge Peter King granted legal aid in the case. The World Health Organisation has declared an international emergency over the virus (AP) Health officials in Northern Ireland have issued advice to medics on what action to take if an outbreak of Zika occurs here. The Public Health Authority (PHA) has also said it is monitoring the situation after two unrelated cases of the mosquito-borne virus that causes birth defects were confirmed in the Republic. One was a man and the other was an older woman who was not pregnant. Both have recovered. They both have a history of travel to a Zika-affected country. Zika has been linked to thousands of cases of babies born with underdeveloped brains in Brazil. The first known case of the Zika virus being sexually transmitted in the US has also been reported. "If a person acquires Zika virus infection abroad and becomes ill on their return, any risk to the wider population is negligible," a PHA spokesman said. Pregnant women or women planning to become pregnant are told they should consider avoiding travel to areas where Zika virus outbreaks are being reported. A song by Northern Ireland songwriter Ben Glover has scooped a top honour at the UK Americana Music Awards in London. Blackbirds, which was written by the Glenarm man and American singer-songwriter Gretchen Peters, was named International Song of the Year at the gala showbiz event. A clearly ecstatic Glover said on social media last night that he was "completely thrilled" by the award. "Absolutely delighted that Blackbirds has just won International Song Of The Year at the AMAUK16 awards! Start the party, Gretchen Peters!" he tweeted. The International song of the Year honour was presented to Ms Peters by actress Elizabeth McGovern, best known in the UK for her role as the Countess of Grantham in the hit TV series Downton Abbey. Peters is currently on tour in the UK. Glover moved to live in Nashville, Tennessee, the home of country music, in 2009. Blackbirds first appeared on his 2014 album Atlantic before being recorded by Peters on a 2015 album she named after the song. Ben's musical influences include Willie Nelson, Bob Dylan and Johnny Cash. The Daily Telegraph listed his Atlantic album as being among the best country music albums of 2014. It's been their dream home for 11 years - but Dan and Kate McQuillan fear they may be forced to walk away from their traditional thatched cottage after it was deluged by the floods. The couple have spent the weeks since Christmas battling night and day to keep floodwater and sewage effluent out of their 300-year-old cottage in the Birches area of Co Armagh. Dan says they "fell in love" with the historic thatched cottage when they bought it in 2005, but it could end up falling into disrepair if they have to walk away. He claims people in the area have been left high and dry by the Rivers Agency. At the height of the storms that deluged homes and businesses throughout the area the floodwater was a foot deep at the front and two feet deep at the back. Weeks later the pumps have finally been turned off, but effluent is still seeping up through the floor of the living room and the toilet can't be used because the septic tank system is completely blocked. Inside the cottage are spectacular twisted bog oak beams as historic as anything you might see in the Ulster Folk Museum, but the electrics are shot, and filthy water is still seeping in. Render on the external walls is starting to show cracks. "The sandbags were four or five feet high in some places," Dan said. "We haven't been able to use the toilet since before Christmas because the septic tank had flooded. "Then we got up on New Year's morning, looked out, and the water was up to the kerb at the front door. "We phoned the Rivers Agency and they were out within 45 minutes with one pallet of sandbags. In the end nine pallets were needed." Two pumps were constantly running because the water was seeping under the sandbags. Then one night Kate woke Dan at 4am to tell him the pumps had gone off. "The water was right across the floor and the pumps had failed," he said. "That happened four times. Basically, the water that came in here wasn't just water - it was sewage mixed with it. "Kate would sit up all night, I would get up at 6.30am and she would go to bed, and we'd swap over in the evening." Mr McQuillan paid tribute to Rivers Agency staff on the ground who had battled to keep the water out, but he was scathing about the organisation and doesn't believe that the sluice gates at Toome were fully opened in November as claimed. "The natural flood plain for Lough Neagh is around Coleraine but this has become the flood plain because the water couldn't go to Coleraine," he said. He was angered by comments from agency chief executive David Porter, who said if climate change predictions were true people would have to adapt to this pattern of flooding. "This is a 300-year-old house - it has been here ever since 1700. "I would like to put it to Mr Porter if this was his house and he was up to his knees in effluent and the flood was caused by somebody's ineptitude, what would he say? "If this house disappears, that is it gone forever. This is the tradition of our country that I am sitting in. "If this house can't be protected by some sort of flood barrier round the whole property it will fall into disrepair. We will have to walk away from it." Agriculture Minister Michelle O'Neill recently announced a new homeowners' flood protection scheme, but Mr McQuillan says he has been told it wouldn't cover the kind of protection his house needs. "This house needs some sort of retaining wall right round, a sluice gate in front and some kind of sump tank, so that if the rain starts the automatic pump can pump the water out into the field," he explained. Mr McQuillan says he has lost a 900 scanner and 14 years' worth of work files, but the job of clearing the house and assessing the damage is only starting. Meanwhile, Nigel Sands, who owns Sands Marine at Kinnego Marina, one of four shops on the Lough Neagh shore swamped with 10 inches of floodwater, says they reflooded again as recently as last Friday. He says his insurance company will write off the entire stock, which was worth 200,000. "All the carpets have to be ripped up, the counter is starting to rust and the displays are starting to delaminate," he said. "My biggest disappointment is that the Rivers Agency were totally aware. "They knew how much was coming into the lough and going out of the lough. "At what stage did they think it was pertinent to warn people through the media that the lough was going to overflow? "It's a Government agency controlling the biggest lough in the British Isles. Why would they stay quiet? If they had put out a warning we might have been able to put up a wall or something. "We're now into the sixth week and I haven't been able to trade. My biggest gripe is that they stayed silent. "It's the lack of any sort of support from the Government. You pay your rates and taxes and you say: 'What am I paying this for?'" Police at the scene last August A man set to be prosecuted for the murder of a west Belfast mother-of-three has been detained in Dublin on a European arrest warrant. The Public Prosecution Service (PPS) in Northern Ireland said it had decided to prosecute a suspect in relation to the murder of Jennifer Dornan. Raymond O'Neill was arrested by Garda in Dublin yesterday, and later appeared in an extradition court in the city. The 37-year-old was remanded in custody until later this month. He is believed to have been at a house party attended by Ms Dornan on the night of her brutal murder. Ms Dornan was found stabbed to death in her burning house at Hazel View in Lagmore, west Belfast, last August. It is believed she was followed by her killer from a friend's house on the night of the vicious attack. Detectives believe she was stabbed with a 14-inch blade before the upstairs of the property was set alight. O'Neill, who has a previous address in Summerhill Walk, Dunmurry, but is originally from Andersonstown, is to be prosecuted for murder and arson. Detectives investigating the murder believe Ms Dornan's killer torched the property in an attempt to cover their tracks. The property was so badly damaged by the blaze that the roof collapsed. A young family living next door narrowly escaped injury and subsequently moved out of their property because of the extent of the damage. Ms Dornan (30) had children aged eight, five and three. At the time of the murder O'Neill had been on the run from Mountjoy Prison in Dublin while on temporary release. He had been serving a sentence for a violent burglary. However, he was rearrested by Garda in Bundoran, Co Donegal, the following week. O'Neill has almost 90 previous convictions. The extradition of a serving prisoner can only be secured once he has served his original jail term, and O'Neill had a number of months left on his sentence for assault and burglary. In Northern Ireland a legal bid to transfer a suspect can only be made once a police file has been submitted to, and reviewed by, the PPS. It is a legal process that can take many months. PPS assistant director Marianne O'Kane said: "Senior prosecutors from both the PPS's serious crime unit and appeals and international section have worked closely with the PSNI investigating team over recent months to expedite the prosecution decision in this case and commence extradition proceedings." PSNI Detective Superintendent Kevin Geddes said: "We will be seeking this man's extradition to Northern Ireland as part of our investigation into Jennifer's murder. "We have been working closely with the Public Prosecution Service to ensure this matter is expedited as quickly as possible." Detectives have trawled through closed-circuit television footage taken from a number of properties as part of their investigation into Ms Dornan's murder. Following the killing, a Sinn Fein neighbour of Ms Dornan's handed over recordings of the area to the police. The CCTV evidence also includes tapes from a nearby property owned by Turkish barber Mehmet Oner. A source said Mr Oner's CCTV footage had picked up images of three people on the night - including one thought to be a female. The opening shots have been fired in what will be one of the Republic's shortest ever general election campaigns. Taoiseach Enda Kenny has announced on Twitter that the poll will be held on February 26. The Taoiseach told the parliament he was seeking its dissolution but only revealed the date of the poll in a video message on the social networking site. Mr Kenny made the announcement before travelling to President Michael D Higgins' official residence, Aras an Uachtarain in Dublin, to formally ask him to dissolve the 31st Dail. The new Dail, or lower house of parliament, will sit again on March 10 after what will be one of the shortest general election campaigns in Irish history. In his video message, Mr Kenny fired the opening salvo of the three-week campaign by stating Ireland was on the verge of collapse and its international reputation was in tatters when he came to power five years ago. He said: "Our public finances are back on track, the economy is growing again - faster than any country in the EU - 135,000 more people are back at work, and there is no more bailout, no more troika and no more dead banks." "Ireland is now clearly moving in the right direction." Mr Kenny's centre-right Fine Gael party and his junior coalition partners Labour hope to return to power, with a key campaign message being stability during economic recovery. Labour leader and Tanaiste (deputy prime minister) Joan Burton said the coalition was a "very united" government that had turned the country around. "The real test of any government is whether they leave the country in a better place and I will say with the Fine Gael-Labour Government we have definitely done that," she said. Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin attacked the Taoiseach for not allowing anyone else to speak in the Dail before its dissolution, saying he had hoped to pay tribute to veteran party colleagues not seeking re-election. "I thought it was it was a shabby end to a shabby government," he said. "I presumed I would get that opportunity, but people saw the Taoiseach made a speech and ran out of the house - it just didn't look well in terms of the national parliament conducting its business." Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams also criticised the Taoiseach's closing of parliament as a "pathetic end to a pathetic government". Children under 10 are not recognised in suicide figures and therefore not included Nearly 100 children aged 10 to 14 killed themselves in the UK in the past decade, according to the Office for National Statistics. Charities said the numbers are a "national scandal" and called for the taboo of talking about suicide to be broken down. Figures published for the first time show that 98 children under 15 have killed themselves in the UK from 2005 to 2014. Of these, 59 were boys and 39 were girls. Children under 10 are not recognised in suicide figures and therefore not included. Ged Flynn, the chief executive of the Papyrus prevention of young suicide charity, told the Press Association: " We have 'hidden' the fact that children and young people die this way because it is so flipping painful for us. "It is painful and toxic to think about it, so we hide it and hope it goes away. Today we can see it is not going away. "It is a national scandal and we have to talk about it." He said experts have known for some time that depression starts for some at an early age, and there are a "plethora of reasons" why children take their own lives. But the issue threaded through all cases is that the children feel "trapped or ashamed" by whatever is driving their suicidal thoughts. He said the onus should not always be on the suicidal person to have to seek help, and urged those worried about someone to simply ask them how they are. Mr Flynn said: "We think by asking them we will cause the problem so we keep quiet about it. But by asking you release that head of steam and enable that person who is suicidal to talk about it." An NSPCC spokesman said: "Our ChildLine service has seen a huge increase in calls from desperately unhappy children. "Last year more than half of the young people we referred to other agencies were suicidal. "No child should ever feel so helpless that they find themselves in this awful situation. We all have a part to play in helping a young person before they reach crisis point. It is vital that children can speak up and any young person who wants to talk can call ChildLine on 0800 1111." :: For confidential support and advice you can also contact the Papyrus charity's helpline on 08000684141 A Department of Health spokesman said: "Every death by suicide is a tragedy and is devastating for families, friends and communities. "Our Suicide Prevention Strategy brings together all government departments to work at preventing these deaths. "Alongside this we are investing almost 1 billion in providing mental health support in A&E and home based crisis care and soon, the NHS will be publishing its plan to improve mental health care, which will look at reducing suicides." David Cameron has hailed international pledges totalling more than 7 billion to ease the plight of Syrian refugees, amid warnings the latest onslaught by President Bashar Assad's forces could trigger a new mass exodus. At the end of an international pledging conference in London, the Prime Minister said the money promised by more than 60 countries would give hope to the millions of people displaced in the five-year civil war. But there was a stark warning by Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu of a fresh "humanitarian disaster" after regime forces - supported by Russian air strikes - cut off the northern city of Aleppo. He said that a supply corridor between the city and the Turkish border had been overrun, and accused Assad of preparing to mount a "siege of starvation" against Aleppo's 300,000 inhabitants. Ten thousand people had already fled to the border at Kilis in the hope of finding a "safe haven", he said, while another 30,000 had "escaped" from refugee camps in the area and were heading in the same direction. The offensive against Aleppo has already halted the latest attempt to re-start international peace talks in Geneva after just two days. Mr Davutoglu bitterly denounced the involvement of Russian warplanes, saying that in the past three days they had mounted 351 air strikes against the rebels - including civilian targets - and none against Islamic State - also referred to as Daesh. "We have to be shoulder-to-shoulder against those committing war crimes," he said. "In the last three days Russian warplanes bombarded Aleppo, and regime forces on the ground with foreign fighters - usually that means Daesh, but foreign fighters on the side of the regime - they attacked Aleppo. "The logistic corridor from Turkey to Aleppo has been cut off. This corridor is now under the invasion of these foreign fighters and regime forces by the support of Russian warplanes. "What they want to do today in Aleppo is exactly the same as what they did in Madaya before - the siege of starvation." Mr Cameron urged Russia to use its influence with the Assad regime to end the "indiscriminate" attacks, particularly the use of barrel bombs against civilian targets. "We must urgently redouble our efforts to prevent the intolerable levels of violence against civilians, ensuring all parties in the conflict bring an immediate end to the ongoing violations of international humanitarian law," he said. "Russia should support steps towards a ceasefire as envisaged by the Vienna process and mandated by the UN Security Council." United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said it was deeply disturbing that his special envoy Staffan de Mistura had been forced to "pause" the Geneva talks so soon after they had started. US Secretary of State John Kerry said that he had had a "robust" discussion with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov and called on Moscow to abide by a UN Security Council resolution requiring immediate access for humanitarian agencies and an end to attacks on civilians. "It is an obligation accepted by all parties in the United Nations resolution. Russia voted for that, Russia has responsibility - as do all parties - to live up to it," he said. Mr Ban hailed the London conference as "a great success", saying: "Never has the international community raised so much money on a single day for a single crisis." Some 6 billion US dollars (4.1 billion) was pledged for relief operations this year with a further 5 billion dollars (3.4 billion) to be handed over by 2020, although t he commitments still fell short of the UN's 7.7 billion dollar (5.4 billion) target for 2016. Mr Cameron said Britain was donating an extra 510 million in the current year, with the UK's total contribution since the start of the conflict set to rise to 2.3 billion by 2020. The Prime Minister praised agreements by the neighbouring countries of Turkey, Jordan and Syria - currently home to 4.6 million displaced people - to open up their jobs markets to the refugees and to provide school places for their children. "Taken together, what we are delivering today can play a crucial role in preventing refugees from feeling they need to risk their lives on the treacherous journey to Europe," he said. Proposals for reforming the European Union have failed to win over Britons with 45% intending to vote for the UK to leave, according to polling. Support for Brexit has increased in the face of a package of measures that would change the UK's relationship with Brussels, research for The Times found. The poll was carried out in the two days after publication of the outline deal and found the number of voters wanting to quit had risen by three points on the previous week. Some 36% of voters want Britain to remain in the 28-strong bloc but nearly a fifth, 19%, are yet to decide or plan not to vote, the YouGov survey said. It is the latest blow for Mr Cameron, who is fighting for support on a number of fronts. The Prime Minister has faced continued criticism of the deal from within his own party and Cabinet minister John Whittingdale has indicated he stands ready to campaign for Britain to leave. Mr Cameron is embarking on a fresh diplomatic dash round Europe to push for support from counterparts in Poland and Denmark ahead of the crunch meeting on the proposals later this month. It follows a series of talks with leaders, including European Council president Donald Tusk, German chancellor Angela Merkel and Polish PM Beata Szydlo, in the margins of the conference on the Syrian crisis in London Mr Cameron is holding further talks with Ms Szydo in Warsaw before heading to Copenhagen for a meeting with prime minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen to seek support for reform. The Prime Minister has agreed to meet the heads of the political groups in the European Parliament on February 16, two days before the leaders' summit. But Mr Cameron is facing a tough task at home as Eurosceptics in his party continue to heap criticism on the package. Mr Whittingdale has become the most senior figure in the party to suggest he is ready to campaign for Britain to quit since the proposals were put on the table by Mr Tusk on Tuesday. The Culture Secretary pointed to his track record of being "highly critical" of the way the 28-strong bloc is run as he refused to rule out backing a Brexit. He told The House magazine: "My position is that the Prime Minister is out there trying to negotiate the best deal he can for the country. "I have a track record where I've been highly critical of the way the EU works and I have opposed measures for closer integration and it certainly needs reform. "I hope the Prime Minister will get that agreement and then I'll look at it when he comes back with it." Asked if he would rule out backing Brexit, he replied: "I wouldn't." E.ON is accused of paying Age UK millions to sign up elderly customers to expensive deals The Charity Commission is looking at "any action that might be necessary" following claims that Age UK has been promoting expensive energy tariffs to the elderly in exchange for cash. The Sun newspaper claims E.ON has paid out 6 million a year to Age UK in return for the charity pushing expensive tariffs to the elderly. E.ON has confirmed there was a "commercial relationship" between it and the charity but the supplier said its tariffs were competitively priced and Age UK has rejected any allegations of wrongdoing. The Charity Commission said: "The Commission is aware of concerns raised in the media regarding Age UK's partnership activities with E.ON. "The Commission is in contact with both Age UK and Ofgem to determine what regulatory role the Commission might have and any action that might be necessary." Earlier, shadow energy secretary Lisa Nandy called on the Charity Commission to investigate, saying: "When people have so little trust in energy companies it's important they can trust third parties, like charities, when they offer special deals. "The Charity Commission should investigate whether Age UK has broken the rules because it's vital the public can have confidence in the good work charities do. "It's more important still that ministers fix our energy market to make it more transparent and stop backroom deals, wherever they occur." Ofgem also said it was "examining the claims", adding: "Ofgem rules require energy companies to treat consumers fairly when they are marketing and selling energy. "Ofgem has a track record of punishing firms who mislead consumers and we will look at carefully at these claims." Energy Secretary Amber Rudd said she was taking the allegations "very seriously" and had asked Ofgem to investigate further. The Sun said it found details of E.ON payments to the charity contained within Age UK's annual accounts. It is claimed the charity had been recommending a special E.ON tariff in leaflets and booklets, stating it was "great value" and "helps save energy and money". Age UK has been paid at least 6 million every year, receiving around 41 for every person that signed up, it was reported. It is claimed that the tariff, on average, costs pensioners 245 more than they would pay on E.ON's cheapest deal. A spokeswoman for E.ON said: "Our current Age UK tariff was the cheapest product of its type in the UK when it was launched in January. Customers can switch between products at any time without incurring any costs. "If a customer is on a fixed tariff and they opt in for a price alert, and if we issue a new tariff that is cheaper, we will automatically notify them of that. "But in line with Ofgem's rules we can't switch people without their consent." Currently there are around 152,000 customers on the deal - equating to a 37 million overspend by pensioners, The Sun reports - who last year typically shelled out 1,049 for fuel for 12 months. In January Age UK criticised the big six energy firms for overcharging and warned that more than 4.1 million older people were "anxious" about high heating costs. An Age UK spokesman rejected allegations that the charity has been pushing expensive tariffs and also the "interpretation of the figures". The spokesman said: "Age UK has worked with E.ON for the past 14 years, openly and above board, and they have been generous supporters of our charity over and above the number of customers on the tariff. "We launched the most competitive, fixed two-year energy tariff available anywhere on the market on January 20 this year, with no exit fees. "Energy prices change all the time and we have always advised older people to look out for new good deals and we will continue to do so." A Downing Street spokesman said: "As the Energy Secretary has set out, people expect a fair deal when it comes to their energy bills, and she has asked Ofgem to investigate these allegations and report back urgently. "The fact that we have taken immediate action and asked Ofgem to investigate and report back urgently tells you that this is clearly an important allegation and one we need to get to the bottom of." Navinder Singh Sarao is wanted in the US over allegations he helped cause Wall Street's "Flash Crash" A full extradition hearing is to take place for a British financial trader accused of helping trigger a multimillion-dollar US stock market crash. Navinder Singh Sarao, 37, is wanted in the US over allegations he helped cause the so-called Flash Crash on Wall Street in 2010 from his parents' home 3,500 miles away in Hounslow, west London. The US justice department claims Sarao and his company, Nav Sarao Futures Limited, made 26 million illegally over five years. The former bank worker and Brunel University student, who is fighting extradition, faces charges including wire fraud, commodities fraud and market manipulation, which carry sentences totalling a maximum of 380 years. Lawyers for the US government told a hearing in September that Sarao, who has Asperger's syndrome, also faces new allegations relating to emails he sent. District Judge Quentin Purdy initially set a 5 million surety as part of Sarao's bail conditions, which the trader claimed he was unable to pay. He was released on conditional bail in August after providing a 50,000 surety. The two-day extradition hearing is taking place at Westminster Magistrates' Court in London. A top investigator has released an artist's impression of a man seen in the vicinity of the murder of a Scottish man as his family mark what would have been his 30th birthday this week. Quantity surveyor Craig Mallon, originally from Lanarkshire, was killed with a single punch in Spain's Lloret de Mar in the early hours of May 19 2012 in a motiveless attack outside Rockefellers nightclub. He was in the Costa Brava resort with eight friends for his stepbrother Bryan's stag do and is believed to have been seen talking to a girl with long blonde hair a few feet from the door of the club not long before his death. Just seven hours after arriving in Lloret, he was assaulted and died in the street near Rockefellers. But the investigation into his murder went cold and the family of Craig, who was working as a project manager in Australia, turned to investigator David Swindle and his Crime Solutions firm for help. Now the former detective, best known as senior investigating officer in the case of Scottish serial killer Peter Tobin, has managed to secure a copy of the 600-page case file into Craig's murder for the family. It includes the artist's impression of a man seen at the scene, which he has had printed on posters and has released on social media. He said: "We got a mandate which enabled us to get hold of the 600-page case file, which included an artist's impression of quite a distinctive looking guy. "We've now released it on social media in different languages and we're trying to get access to CCTV from the night Craig was killed. "We have also enlisted a state-funded lawyer for Craig's family. We are analysing the case file for new leads and the lawyer is talking to a judge to try and progress the case." :: David Swindle, who has run Crime Solutions since retiring from Strathclyde Police in 2011, talks about his brainchild, Operation Anagram - an ongoing probe into the murders of Peter Tobin - in an exclusive interview in today's edition of Inside Crime magazine. Julian Assange has been living in the Ecuadorian embassy in London for more than three years A United Nations working group is believed to have decided that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is being unlawfully detained. Mr Assange has been living in the Ecuadorian embassy in London for more than three years and has been granted political asylum by the Ecuador government. He believes he will be transported to the United States to be quizzed over the activities of WikiLeaks if he is extradited to Sweden. There is an espionage case against him in the US. He filed a complaint against Sweden and the UK in September 2014 which has been considered by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention. The group of legal experts has made previous rulings on whether imprisonment or detention is lawful, which have led to people being released. The decision is due to be published on Friday but it is understood that it has ruled in Mr Assange's favour. It is expected the move will lead to calls from the UN for the UK and Sweden to release him. Mr Assange said he will hand himself over to police for arrest on Friday if the UN group rules that he has not been unlawfully detained. The Metropolitan Police have said they will make "every effort" to arrest the WikiLeaks founder should he leave the embassy. Mr Assange is wanted for questioning in Sweden over one allegation of sexual assault, which he has always denied, and is fighting against extradition. Current UK spin is suggest it has treaty obligations to arrest Assange. This is false for Sweden. There is no UK-Sweden extradition treaty. WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) February 4, 2016 "We've got to free him...this is absurd" says Julian Assange's friend Vaughan Smith to Sky's @KayBurley https://t.co/9TZELQezsq Sky News (@SkyNews) February 4, 2016 He was granted political asylum by Ecuador and has remained in their embassy since 2012. In a statement published by the WikiLeaks activist group, Mr Assange said he expected to walk free if British and Swedish authorities do not receive approval from the UN group. Mr Assange said: "Should the UN (working party) announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me." The statement was signed: "Julian Assange, Embassy of Ecuador, London." According to the website justice4assange.com, the 44-year-old Australian has so far spent 1,885 days "under house arrest". The embassy building remains under covert surveillance. A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: "The operation to arrest Julian Assange does however continue and should he leave the embassy the MPS will make every effort to arrest him." Sources at WikiLeaks said they were waiting for a formal announcement from the UN group. A Government spokesman said: "We will not pre-empt any opinions from the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention. "We have been consistently clear that Mr Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the UK but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorean embassy. "An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European Arrest Warrant in place, so the UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Mr Assange to Sweden." A Downing Street spokesman declined to comment on leaks of the UN panel's reported finding, saying the Government would not respond until its official publication. But he added that the findings will not be "legally binding", adding: "There is a European arrest warrant currently in place and we have a legal obligation to put that into effect." The spokesman added: "(Mr Assange) has never been detained in this country, so there is not arbitrary detention. He is avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorean embassy." Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Alistair Carmichael said: "Liberal Democrats have always said Julian Assange should return to Sweden to face the allegations against him in a fair trial. "The UK has a legal obligation to fulfil a European Arrest Warrant to extradite Mr Assange and it is vital that the Government sees this through." A Tory MP has made a "sincere and heartfelt" apology to the House of Commons after failing to declare more than 400,000 of outside income on time. The cross-party Standards Committee found Geoffrey Cox QC had committed a "serious" breach of rules - although it accepted he had not "intended to hide" earnings for hundreds of hours of legal work. The Torridge and West Devon MP blamed the ill-health retirement of the head clerk at his barrister chambers for the "oversight". In the past the clerk had "drawn the receipt of payments to my attention", he told the parliamentary standards commissioner. Between January and August last year he received 11 payments totalling more than 400,000, but did not declare them until the end of September - way over the 28-day deadline. Mr Cox said part of the reason he had not noticed the problem earlier was because he spent the summer recess launching "an entirely new international law chambers based in Mauritius and Dubai". He referred himself for investigation and resigned as a member of the Standards Committee on becoming aware of the breaches. In its report the committee said: " We accept that Mr Cox had no intention to hide these payments and that he has not breached the requirements of the House for declaration of relevant interests. "Nevertheless, as the commissioner notes, the number of payments and the sums involved in the late registration are significant and Mr Cox was in a position which should have ensured that he was more familiar with the rules and the relevant principles of public life in this area than other Members might be. "Mr Cox has already apologised to the Registrar and the Commissioner. We recommend that Mr Cox make an apology to the House for his failure to register payments in a timely fashion." In his evidence to the commissioner, Mr Cox stressed he had always been open about the scale of his outside earnings - which amounted to some 800,000 in 2014. But he said: "I failed to give this matter the due thought and priority it required and, for that reason, it is difficult to isolate the exact point at which I became aware that my entry was incomplete. "When the House rose for the summer, I was conscious, generally, of the matter as one I needed to get down to checking but my intense schedule at the time, which included the final planning and launch during recess of an entirely new international law chambers based in Mauritius and Dubai, meant that it was not until reviewing my records between September 20 and September 28 that, to my dismay, I became fully aware of the scale of my oversight. "I fully acknowledge that this was not acceptable and I have taken all necessary steps to ensure that it does not happen again." Mr Cox said his head clerk was with him for 29 years, and "had full access to, and oversight of, the details of my professional practice including my personal bank accounts". "He acted in many respects as my personal confidential secretary, including managing many of my financial affairs, even meeting the bank manager on my behalf, and he would draw the receipt of payments to my attention on an ad hoc basis, acting as my prompt for registration. He was also in direct and frequent contact with my parliamentary office as manager of my diary," the MP added. Delivering his apology to the House in the wake of the report, Mr Cox said: "I n 2009 the House resolved that honourable members should register all outside earnings within 28 days of their receipt whether connected with their parliamentary duties or not. "For a prolonged period last year I very much regret that I failed to comply with that rule in respect of my professional earnings as a barrister. "The House has a right to expect of its members, and particularly those on the Standards Committee as I was, that they will uphold its rules to the fullest extent. "For this reason I have stepped down from the Standards Committee and I hope that the House will accept my sincere and full hearted apology for my failure to observe this important rule." Mr Cox came under fire recently after it emerged he put in four expenses claims for 49p cartons of milk between June and August. The Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (Ipsa) refused to reimburse the money. In June he also had a claim for 2 worth of tea bags turned down. Mobile phone giant Vodafone has notched up its sixth consecutive quarter of revenue growth, lifted by a strong performance in the emerging markets. The group saw organic service revenue - a closely-watched measure of sales - rise 1.4% to 9.2 billion in the three months to the end of December last year, beating the 1.2% rise in the previous quarter. It was buoyed by "strong" service revenue growth in its India and South African businesses, which grew 2.3% and 7.2% respectively in the third quarter. The Newbury-based company also saw a brightening picture across Europe, with service revenues continuing to recover, down 0.6% in the three months to the end of December last year, compared to a 1% drop in the previous quarter. The group also confirmed that it was on course to hit full-year earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of between 11.7 billion and 12 billion. Shares in the FTSE 100 company were up 2% in early trading as investors digested the financial update, which came just days after it confirmed talks were under way with cable firm Liberty Global over a joint venture in the Netherlands. Vodafone - which had decided to abandon talks with Liberty Global six months earlier over a possible asset swap - said the discussions were ongoing and stressed they "do not extend beyond the creation of a joint venture in the Netherlands". Vittorio Colao, Vodafone group chief executive, hailed the boost in service revenues over the third quarter, stating the business had taken "another step forward in the last three months". He added: "We continue to face regulatory and competitive challenges in many markets, but we are confident that the business is well positioned for the growth opportunities ahead." In Germany, service revenue fell 0.4% in the third quarter, compared to a 1.8% drop in the second quarter, while in Italy service revenue was down 0.3% over the period, compared to a 2% fall in the second quarter before. But in the UK, service revenue dipped 0.7% in the three months to December 2015, against a 0.5% decline in the second quarter, as a boost to its fixed service business was offset by a fall in mobile revenues. The company added 506,000 new European mobile contract customers to its books over the period alongside 311,000 broadband customers. Charlie Huggins, analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: "Vodafone is broadening services out beyond mobile and into broadband, cable TV and fixed lines, moving toward the Holy Grail of quad-play services, one market at a time." Inspectors examined Nottinghamshire Police's handling of six cases relating to children at high risk of sexual exploitation Potentially crucial evidence was lost and a suspect was free to carry on offending because of "unacceptable" delays in child sex inquiries at a police force, a report by watchdogs has revealed. Inspectors examined Nottinghamshire Police's handling of six cases relating to children aged between 10 and 14 years who were at high risk of sexual exploitation. One was assessed as "requiring improvement" while the other five were inadequate. HM Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) said it found "poor supervision" in all six cases. It cited one example in which "long delays" occurred in an investigation into a 14-year-old girl's sexual relationship with a 21-year-old man. A frontline officer was given the task of completing an initial investigation before transferring the enquiry to the sexual exploitation investigation unit (SEIU). The report said: "It took six months for this initial work to be completed, and a significant delay before the suspect was arrested. "During this period, two further offences relating to the suspect, involving the exchange of indecent images with other teenage children, were reported to other forces." In four of the six cases, suspects were known to have access to other children who might have been potential victims but police failed to take action to manage the risk they posed, the watchdog said. It went on: "For example, the delays in arrest noted in the case above meant that appropriate bail conditions, which might have prevented further offending, were not imposed on the suspect." HMIC raised concerns that non-specialist staff were investigating child protection cases without having received training in how to manage them effectively. For example, in the case of a 10-year-old girl who had been groomed to send indecent images of herself over the internet, there was a 10-week delay in requesting analysis of the suspect's computer "because the officer did not understand the procedure". The report said: "During this time the suspect closed his Facebook account and potential evidence was lost." The inquiry is part of a rolling programme of child protection inspections of all forces in England and Wales. HM Inspector of Constabulary Zoe Billingham said: " We were concerned to find that non-specialist staff were investigating cases without receiving the training they need to manage these effectively. "We also found examples of poor supervision of investigations leading to unacceptable delays, which can leave opportunities for perpetrators to continue offending." In four cases the initial response was prompt, the report said, but there was a five-day delay in responding to a report of the sexual grooming of a 13-year-old boy and a 10-day delay in the case of a report concerning a 14-year-old girl in a sexual relationship with a 21-year-old man. When officers did respond, they took immediate action to ensure children were safe. Ms Billingham said that since an initial probe in September 2014, Nottinghamshire Police has " made a clear commitment to improving the services it provides to children". She added: "In particular, it has improved procedures for considering children's welfare when attending domestic abuse incidents, and improved the supervision of missing children cases." Referring to the case involving a 14-year-old girl discussed in the report, the force said: "T he length of time taken in this investigation actually demonstrates positive work by Nottinghamshire Police." It added: " When a victim would not engage with us we did not give up and continued to pursue the offender over a series of weeks until we could build up enough evidence to arrest him." The force said there were some cases where "it is completely appropriate for non-specialist staff to deal with offences which relate to child protection matters, with the help and advice of specialists". Chief Constable Chris Eyre said: "The safety and welfare of children is paramount, and at the heart of everything we do. "I'd like to reassure people that we have expert officers and staff working extremely hard to keep young people safe from harm. "Indeed our good progress in domestic abuse cases involving children has been highlighted in the report." HMIC said it was pleased to find the force has taken steps to ensure children were not detained in custody under section 136 of the Mental Health Act. Mr Eyre added: "We are also particularly proud that since April 2015 no child has been detained in police custody under the Mental Health Act." Welsh government ministers would have their pay cut by 10% if the Conservatives win the next Assembly election, party leader Andrew RT Davies has promised. Wales's First Minister's salary will rise to 140,000 this May while their cabinet team will also get a wage boost. However, Welsh Tory chief Mr Davies believes the Senedd's top politicians should have their pay reduced - and wants to use the saved cash to boost young people's involvement in politics. He is also calling for the Assembly to have shorter holidays and members to sit longer - branding the institution a "part-time parliament". Farmer-turned-politician Mr Davies will outline his proposals in a speech later in Cardiff. He is expected to say: "Wales should embrace organisations that encourage children and young people to get involved in the decision-making process and to support them in understanding their rights and responsibilities. "And denying young people that opportunity to learn, to influence and to develop is all the harder when, indeed, Assembly Members are set to benefit from a pay rise of their own. "That's why a Welsh Conservative government would cut ministerial pay by 10% across the board and plough every penny of that funding into giving young people a voice - reviving support for a national children and young people's assembly for Wales." Last year, an independent panel's decision to give AMs a pay rise sparked heated debate across Wales and prompted criticism from all parties. The Assembly's remuneration board insisted that higher salaries were justified given that Wales has more powers than ever before and the lure of better pay could also improve the calibre of candidates. While Mr Davies stopped short of calling for a pay cut across the board, he said he is against proposals to increase the number of AMs. And as well as a reduction in ministers' salaries, he wants the Assembly to sit more often and for longer hours. He will say: "Many commentators reach lazily for tried and tested arguments and call for more AMs here; but that's not going to improve engagement with the public. We need better politics - not more politicians. "At times, the Assembly gives the impression of being a 'part-time parliament'. "I've lost count of the number of occasions on which Welsh Government business has been wrapped up on a Tuesday by 5pm." Mr Davies's speech - entitled What A Future Welsh Parliament Should Look Like - will take place in the Welsh Assembly's Ty Hywel building at 7pm. The Zika virus is strongly suspected of causing birth defects in Brazil. (AP) A pregnant woman is among the seven people identified as being infected with the Zika virus in Spain after visiting affected countries. The country's health ministry said the woman travelled to Colombia, was presumably infected during the trip and is in her second trimester of pregnancy. She is under medical supervision in the north-eastern region of Catalonia. The ministry says the number of cases diagnosed so far are within expectations and do not pose a risk for the virus to be spread in Spain. International health authorities are trying to determine if the mosquito-borne illness is linked to birth defects in Brazil. In the US, Florida Governor Rick Scott said the state has three new cases of Zika and he is adding a fifth county to his health emergency declaration. Mr Scott told a news conference in Tampa that the 12 cases in Florida are all from people who became infected with the mosquito-borne virus when they travelled to other countries. Florida's warm climate, year-round mosquitoes and revolving door of international travellers make it vulnerable, but local governments have a history of fighting off similar viruses. Mr Scott said the state is preparing like it would for a hurricane and wants residents and tourists to know Florida is safe. He has asked the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention for 1,000 kits to test for Zika antibodies, on top of about 500 the state already has. A reveller talks to police during the start of the Cologne Carnival. (AP) Celebrations are under way in Cologne at the start of the German city's annual carnival, which comprises five days of partying. Festivities this year have been overshadowed by security concerns, prompting police to double the number of officers on patrol to more than 2,000 in an effort to reassure the public after an unprecedented series of robberies and sexual assaults mostly targeting women at New Year. Police say the attacks were mostly carried out by foreigners, fuelling debate in Germany about the country's ability to cope with the huge number of migrants that have arrived over the past year. In the old town, three young women dressed as clowns said they were not deterred by what had happened at New Year. "There is a lot of security and everyone is looking out for each other," said one of them, Julia Moser. Special safety points where people can go if they feel threatened have been set up at major squares. Henriette Reker, Cologne's mayor, has pledged to prevent a repeat of the New Year attacks. Still, some revellers said the city felt emptier than in previous years, though the wet weather could have been to blame. Christa Schneider, a native of Cologne, said the mood seemed more sober than usual. Her group planned to avoid dark alleys and overly large crowds, she said. The first day of carnival is traditionally referred to as "Weiberfastnacht" - a day when women symbolically take charge of the city. Josef Sommer, who heads the city's tourism agency, said he was confident the additional security measures would prevent a repeat of the New Year assaults and allay latent fears of Paris-style attacks by extremists. "Everyone can celebrate carnival the way they're used to, with the exception perhaps that people should follow police advice to refrain from wearing costumes that include realistic replica weapons," Mr Sommer told The Associated Press. The New Year assaults sparked a nationwide uproar, the removal of Cologne's police chief and a heated debate about integration at a time when Germany has seen huge numbers of refugees come into the country. Almost 1.1 million asylum seekers arrived in Germany last year and most of the attackers in Cologne were described as being of Arab or North African origin. Cologne prosecutors say they have received 1,037 criminal complaints over the New Year events, including 446 allegations of sexual assault, three of them rape. Criminal proceedings have begun against 50 individuals, of whom 11 are in custody, said Cologne prosecutor Ulrich Bremer. Most of the suspects are from Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, he said. Several are asylum-seekers. Cologne authorities have put in place additional video surveillance and street lighting to deter attackers and make it easier to catch any perpetrators. The city's new police chief, Juergen Mathies, said, however, that it would probably be impossible to prevent all crime, noting that last year's Rose Monday Carnival parade also saw 50 allegations of sexual assault, from groping to rape. Dozens of mostly elderly bridge playing Westerners have found themselves the surprise targets of a vice crackdown under Thailand's military government. The bridge players, mostly British but also from Scandinavia, the Netherlands and elsewhere, were busted by soldiers, police and local officials as they played cards at eight tables in an apartment above a restaurant, police said. T he law enforcement agents were acting on a tip that illegal gambling was taking place there. Those arrested on Wednesday afternoon - including an 84-year-old Dutch woman, according to the Pattaya One news website - were released on bail of 5,000 baht (96) each in the early hours of Thursday morning. Colonel Sukathat Pumpanmuang, superintendent of the Pattaya Police Station, said they would not be charged with gambling, but might be charged under a law limiting individuals to possession of 120 unregistered playing cards. The officer said police did not see money changing hands, but seized as evidence computers, decks of cards and a book with results of the bridge games. He said most of the players were in their 60s or older. The card players' plight was eased after the president of the Contract Bridge League of Thailand, Chodchoy Sophonpanich - a civic activist who is a member of Thailand's most prominent banking family - went to Pattaya on Thursday morning to advise police that bridge was treated under the law as a sport rather than gambling. "Police know that bridge is a sport because a similar case happened before, but this time it was military and district officials who initiated the raid and they probably didn't know," said Chaiyut Assanaiyarat, the bridge league's manager. The chief of Thailand's junta, Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, began a crackdown on gambling, especially at illegal casinos, soon after taking power as part of a broader anti-corruption campaign. Pharmaceutical chief Martin Shkreli has refused to answer questions at a US congressional hearing over severe price hikes for a drug sold by a company that he acquired. Mr Shkreli appeared to smirk throughout his hour-long appearance, and moments afterwards, insulting tweets began to appear under his official account calling Congress members "imbeciles". Mr Shkreli, widely scorned for hiking the price of a long-established and potentially lifesaving drug by more than 5,000%, exercised his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination when he went before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. Four times the brash entrepreneur and former hedge fund manager - who has been unapologetic about the price hikes, told the committee: "On the advice of counsel I invoke my Fifth amendment privilege against self-incrimination and respectfully decline to answer your question." Elijah Cummings of Maryland, the top Democrat on the committee, told the 32-year-old to wipe the smirk off his face. "I call this money blood money ... coming out of the pockets of hard working Americans," he said, as Mr Shkreli sat through the lecture. "I know you are smiling, but I am very serious, sir," Mr Cummings said. "I truly believe you can become a force of tremendous good. All I ask is that you reflect on it. No, I don't ask, I beg that you reflect on it." Mr Shkreli was dismissed less than an hour into the hearing, but not before Chairman Jason Chaffetz shouted down a request by Mr Shkreli's lawyer to speak. Congress members instead took turns denouncing his conduct and attitude. Minutes after Mr Shkreli walked out of the room, a tweet on his official Twitter account said: "Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government." Mr Cummings, attributing the tweets to Mr Shkreli, said: "There are very real issues for people with compromised immune systems." Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government. Martin Shkreli (@MartinShkreli) February 4, 2016 Check out my slick escape from the photographers into my armored SUV. #smoothhttps://t.co/QUntgc0Roo Martin Shkreli (@MartinShkreli) February 4, 2016 Mr Shkreli faces separate criminal charges of securities fraud in connection with another drug company he owned Congress had summoned him to answer for the decision that made him infamous: raising the price for Daraprim, the only approved drug for a rare and sometimes deadly parasitic infection. Mr Shkreli, who pleaded not guilty after his arrest in December in New York, has been out on 5 million US dollars bail. He walked into the packed hearing room well before the session began and met the cameras. Bahman Daroshafaei was formerly a reporter for the BBC's Persian service A former BBC Persian service reporter has been detained by Iranian authorities, an Iranian opposition website has reported. The report by Kaleme.com said judiciary officers detained Bahman Daroshafaei on Wednesday morning in his residence, but did not state a reason. Mr Daroshafaei, who left the BBC Persian service in London about two years ago, was working as translator of political books and novels. Works he had translated include Political Philosophy by David Miller and the memoir Down And Out In Paris And London by George Orwell. The detention took place as Iran's foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif arrived in London on Thursday to participate in a meeting of international donors to help millions of Syrians displaced by that country's civil war. Mr Daroshafei's detention is part of an ongoing crackdown on journalists and activists in Iran. Earlier this week the lawyer for two journalists, Isa Saharkhiz and Ehsun Mazandarani, who were detained in November, said authorities have accused them of acting against national security. Their detention followed the arrest of other cultural figures, including two poets and a filmmaker. The detentions and arrests come ahead of highly anticipated late-February elections for both the parliament and the all-cleric Assembly of Experts, the body that chooses Iran's supreme leaders. The elections are expected to be a showdown between hard-liners and moderates allied with President Hassan Rouhani. Giulio Regeni went missing in Cairo on the fifth anniversary of the uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak The body of a missing Italian student has been found with signs of torture, including multiple stab wounds and cigarette burns, on the outskirts of Cairo, an investigating prosecutor has said. Giulio Regeni, A 28-year-old graduate student , went missing in the Egyptian capital on January 25, the fifth anniversary of the uprising that toppled long-time autocrat Hosni Mubarak. His body was found on Wednesday along the Cairo-Alexandria Road in the October 6 suburb in western Cairo and was positively identified by his roommate, said the prosecutor, Ahmed Nagi, who leads the investigation team on the case. Mr Nagi said the cause of death was still under investigation but said "all of his body, including his face" had bruises, cuts from stabbings and burns from cigarettes. He said it appeared to have been a "slow death". Another person with knowledge of the case told the AP that the body was "partially burned". An employee at Cairo's central morgue confirmed that Regeni's body was brought there. Italy's Foreign Ministry said it has urgently summoned the Egyptian ambassador over the death of the student, seeking maximum cooperation in the investigation. The ministry said in a statement on Thursday that Italy renewed its request to launch an immediate investigation and include Italian experts. The statement also requested that the body be returned to Italy as soon as possible. The deputy head of criminal investigations in Cairo's twin province of Giza, Alaa Azmi, said Regeni's body was found on Wednesday morning with "bruises and cuts". An initial investigation showed it was a road accident, he said, adding that the preliminary forensic report had not mentioned any burns. "We have to wait for the full report by forensic experts. But what we know is that it is an accident," Mr Azmi said. The University of Cambridge lists Regeni as a student of its Department of Politics and International Studies. Regeni's body was found following an online campaign searching for him after he went missing. The Egyptian authorities had intensified a crackdown on dissent ahead of the January 25 anniversary, with police raiding apartments in downtown Cairo seeking signs of plans for organised protests and checking people's social media accounts. Egypt has seen years of upheaval since Mubarak's ouster in 2011, ending with the election of former defence minister Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi as president in 2014, after he led a 2013 military ouster of Islamist president Mohammed Morsi amid massive protests against his rule. Following Morsi's ouster, el-Sissi launched one of the harshest crackdowns in years, jailing of thousands of Islamists and scores of liberal, pro-democracy activists. In addition, Egypt has been battling a local Islamic State affiliate in the northern Sinai Peninsula, where Islamic militants stepped up attacks on security forces after the military ousted Morsi in 2013. While mainly contained in northern Sinai, militants have carried out a series of attacks in more central parts of the country, including the bombing of the Italian Consulate in Cairo and the kidnapping and beheading of a Croatian oil surveyor who was working in the capital in August last year. Regeni's disappearance and death came at a time when authorities and media close to the security services have often depicted foreigners as plotting against Egypt. At the same time, human rights groups have accused police of being behind the disappearances of Egyptian activists and suspected Islamists, a claim police have denied. Before January 25, security officials said they had been gathering intelligence for months on young pro-democracy activists and foreigners. News of Regeni's death also prompted Italy's economic development minister, Federica Guidi, to cut short a visit to Cairo and return home. Mr Guidi had been heading a delegation of 60 business people in Cairo, aimed at finding new areas of economic commerce and to help more Italian companies set up business in Egypt. Most of the delegation returned as well. An Italian newspaper accused Egyptian security forces of being behind the killing. "The strong suspicion is that Giulio Reggeni, the 28-year-old student who loved Egypt, was killed by Egypt ... by the system, by the security apparatus of an uncertain Egypt of today," read a page-one commentary from Il Sole 24 Ore, a business daily. Brigadier General Ahmed Asiri said Saudi Arabia would commit ground troops to Syria Saudi Arabia is ready to send ground troops to Syria to fight Islamic State, provided coalition leaders agree during an upcoming meeting in Brussels, a Saudi military spokesman has said. Brigadier General Ahmed Asiri said Saudi Arabia has taken part in coalition air strikes against IS since the US-led campaign began in September 2014, but would now provide ground troops. The US is scheduled to convene a meeting of defence ministers from countries fighting IS in Brussels this month. "We are determined to fight and defeat Daesh," Brig Gen Asiri said, using the Arabic acronym for IS. He did not elaborate on how many troops the kingdom would send. Saudi Arabia is deeply involved in Yemen's civil war, where it is fighting Iranian-backed Shiite rebels. Staffan de Mistura said it was not the end of the talks, and they had not failed (AP) The peace talks in the Syrian civil war are taking a break, but the fighting is not. UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura announced there would be a "temporary pause" in the indirect peace talks between the government and opposition, saying the process will resume by February 25. His office said the Geneva talks would take a "recess" by the end of Friday and would resume "no later than 25 February, and possibly much earlier". The delay reflects the rocky start of the talks on Monday in which neither the government nor the opposition even acknowledged that the negotiations had officially begun. "It is not the end, and it is not the failure of the talks," Mr de Mistura told reporters after a meeting with opposition leaders. The conflict that began in March 2011 has killed at least 250,000 people, displaced 11 million and given an opening for the Islamic State group to seize large parts of the country from forces loyal to President Bashar Assad. The last round of talks broke down in 2014. The Saudi-backed opposition, known as the High Negotiations Committee, had been reluctant to come to the talks, saying the government should first end the bombardment of civilians, allow aid into besieged rebel-held areas, and release thousands of detainees. On Wednesday, delegation head Riad Hajib said the Assad government had not met those demands. "The HNC delegation will leave tomorrow and will not return (to Geneva) until we see positive steps on humanitarian issues," he said. The head of the Syrian delegation, Bashar Ja'afari, said the opposition "had orders from its masters to ruin the talks". He said: "Yes, there is a failure. It is a failure of everybody except the government of the Syrian Arab Republic. "Those who have the responsibility of this failure are the Saudis, the Turks and the Qataris. They are the real handlers and the masters of the Riyadh group." On Wednesday, Syrian government forces, backed by Russian airstrikes, blasted their way into two Shiite villages in the north, breaking a long-running rebel siege, Syrian TV reported. The villages of Nubul and Zahra are located in the middle of opposition territory and have been blockaded by rebel groups for about three years, with the army occasionally dropping food and other aid to those inside. Reaching them marked a major victory for government forces, which have made significant advances in Aleppo province in recent days. The Syrian troops severed a key supply route linking the rebels in the city of Aleppo to the Turkish border. If the pro-government offensive succeeds, it will be one of the biggest blows to the insurgents since they captured large parts of Aleppo, Syria's largest city, in the summer of 2012. The offensive has led the opposition to accuse Damascus of negotiating in bad faith. The two delegations were not meeting face to face but were in separate rooms, with Mr de Mistura shuttling between them in the so-called "proximity talks". He had scheduled the talks to last six months. Relatives of Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdeir who was killed in 2014, hold posters bearing his portrait outside the Jerusalem district court during a hearing on February 4, 2016. AFP/Getty Images [File photo] Two teenagers have been jailed for kidnapping a Palestinian boy and burning him to death in Jerusalem. The murder of 16-year-old Mohammed Abu Khdeir sparked says of riots in East Jerusalem and the West Bank in July 2014 as tensions reached boiling point and Israel prepared to start a new bombing campaign in Gaza. Two of his killers were sentenced today in Jerusalem District Court but cannot be named because of reporting restrictions. A 17-year-old boy was jailed for life and a 16-year-old received a 21-year sentence, which Abu Khdeir's family are reportedly planning to appeal. The third convicted murderer, accused mastermind Yosef Haim Ben David, was not sentenced as a plea of insanity continues to be considered. Judges, who heard the case behind closed doors because the convicts were juveniles, dismissed claims by the two teenage boys that they did not kill Abu Khdeir and that Ben David committed the murder alone. Uri Korb, the state prosecutor, told reporters that the punishment reflected the barbaric act that marked a moral nadir. Expand Close Suha, the mother of Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdeir who was killed in 2014, reacts in a courtroom after the sentences were announced on February 4, 2016 at the Jerusalem district court. [File photo] AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Suha, the mother of Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdeir who was killed in 2014, reacts in a courtroom after the sentences were announced on February 4, 2016 at the Jerusalem district court. [File photo] AFP/Getty Images But Hussein Abu Khdeir, the victim's father, told Israel Radio he would appeal the shorter sentence to the Supreme Court. Abu Khdeir was waiting for friends outside a mosque during morning prayers in Shuafat, East Jerusalem, when he was abducted on 2 July 2014. Surveillance footage showed him being dragged into a car that drove into Jerusalem Forest, where his burned body was discovered just an hour later. An autopsy showed he had soot in his lungs, indicating he had been burned alive after being beaten and forced to swallow petrol by his attackers. The defendants confessed to carrying out the murder as a brutal act of revenge for the killing of three Jewish teenagers in the West Bank, who had been buried the previous day. Ben David called out the names of murdered Israelis, including Eyal Yifrah and Naftali Fraenkel as the boys beat Abu Khdeir and hit him in the head with a metal bar, the court heard. Expand Close Hussein, the father of Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdeir who was killed in 2014, talks to journalists after a hearing on February 4, 2016 at the Jerusalem district court. AFP/Getty Images AFP/Getty Images / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Hussein, the father of Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdeir who was killed in 2014, talks to journalists after a hearing on February 4, 2016 at the Jerusalem district court. AFP/Getty Images The Israeli Defence Ministry recognized Abu Khdeir as a victim of hostile action, granting his family the same compensation rights as the victims of Palestinian attacks. His mother, Suha, had called on authorities to treat them the way they treat us, adding: They need to demolish their homes and round them up, the way they do it to our children. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu contacted the family to pledge that the culprits would be prosecuted, calling the murder despicable. Independent Addressing a rally in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, Jamaat-ud-Dawa leader Hafiz Saeed praised the attack last month at the Pathankot Air Force Station in India, even as Pakistani and Indian leaders admitted it slowed the prospect of bilateral peace talks, Feb. 3, 2016. The government of a nation whose soil emanates terrorism must be held accountable to probe and explain the deeds of its non-state actors, a senior Indian official said Wednesday during an international counter-terrorism meeting in India. To be effective, any regime must enforce two key concepts: assigning responsibility and ensuring accountability, Indian Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar said while addressing some 250 foreign dignitaries at the Counter-Terrorism Conference 2016 in Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan. Naming and shaming must be carried out relentlessly in the case of perpetrators, supporters and connivers of terrorism. Tolerance for double standards on this issue must be equally frankly exposed, Jaishankar said, without naming any particular country. The two-day meeting, organized by the India Foundation, a think-tank backed by the countrys ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), came to a close Wednesday. Among those attending were Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Malaysian Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Nur Juzlan Mohamed and Afghan Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah, along with top security officials from India and 25 other countries. Now, the very basis of the contemporary international order is that nation states are its basic unit and each government takes responsibility for developments and actions within its territory, Jaishankar said. Indeed, when confronted with situations where that ability no longer exists, we term those polities as failed states and treat them as such. Furthermore, if actions emanating from a national territory impinge negatively on others, the government of that nation is, at the very least, pressed to probe and explain as the first step in a process of accountability, he said. In closing remarks, Home Minister Rajnath made direct references to Indias neighbor. Most of the terror attacks emanate from Pakistan. It has to show some sincerity and take action against terrorists operating from its soil, Singh said. Pathankot attack slowed talks Foreign secretary-level talks between India and Pakistan were called off last month after an attack on the Pathankot Air Force Station in Punjab on Jan. 2. India blames Pakistani militant outfit Jaish-e-Muhammad (JeM) for the attack, which killed seven Indian security officials. Even as Pakistan claims to have detained several JeM members, including its chief, Azhar Masood, it has asked India for more evidence to prove JeMs involvement. Last week, Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif admitted that the pending talks between the two arch-rivals, who routinely accuse each other of harboring terrorists and violating ceasefires, were derailed because of the Pathankot attack. Our government will stand by Pakistan if it takes decisive action against terrorists and their organizations, Singh said. While Pakistani and Indian officials were trying to reach an understanding on Wednesday, a Pakistani cleric praised the Pathankot attack, according to Agence France-Presse. Hafiz Saeed, the alleged mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks and leader of the banned Jamaat-ud-Dawa group, encouraged further violence following the air base assault, AFP reported. Addressing a rally of about 1,000 people in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, Saeed said: 800,000 Indian troops are committing genocide on Kashmiris. Dont they have a right to carry out Pathankot-style attacks for their defense? No good or bad terrorism Opening the conference on Tuesday, Indian President Pranab Mukherjee said action was required against states that support and sponsor terrorism as an instrument of policy. There is no good or bad terrorism. It is pure and simple evil, he said. Afghanistans Abdullah called on countries in the region to create a counter-terrorism strategy using each nations capabilities to combat the threat. Why cant we regionalize our national counter-terrorism plans? Heart of Asia, SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organization), SAARC (South Asian Association Regional Cooperation) can be appropriate mechanisms to tackle this. We should operationalize these mechanisms, Abdullah said. Indonesia can expect more attacks by Islamic State supporters on its soil because of a rivalry among top Indonesians in the group and a split within an IS unit in Syria made up of Southeast Asian fighters, a Jakarta think-tank says in a new report. More terrorist attacks in Indonesia are likely as local ISIS leaders compete at home and abroad to establish their supremacy, says the report published this week by the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict (IPAC), referring to IS by another acronym. The report also divulges fresh information about last months deadly attack in Jakarta the first one in Indonesia claimed by IS saying it was plotted and executed by a home-based group called, and not orchestrated from abroad as reported earlier. The Jakarta attack is now known to have been locally organized not directed from Syria as originally thought but it almost instantly resulted in instructions from a Syria-based leader to his followers to do one better, IPAC Director Sidney Jones said in a statement that accompanied the reports release. Leaders of Indonesias tiny pro-ISIS camp are competing to prove their fighting credentials, she added. Eight people, including four men alleged to have targeted a Starbucks cafe and the surrounding area in downtown Jakarta with bombs and guns, died in the attack on Jan. 14. Power play Titled Disunity Among Indonesian ISIS Supporters and the Risk of More Violence, the 13-page report examines how three IS figures from Indonesia who are based in Syria have been vying for influence amongst Indonesian supporters of the group: Bahrumsyah (also known as Abu Ibrahim and Abu Muhammad al-Indonesi), Abu Jandal (also known as Salim Mubarok Attamimi) and Bahrun Naim. According to IPAC, a rivalry between Bahrumsyah and Abu Jandal has led to the latter breaking away from Katibah Nusantara, an IS unit commanded by Bahrumsyah and made up exclusively of Malay-speaking fighters from Southeast Asia. Abu Jandal has established a faction called Katibah Masyarriq. The report says Bahrun Naim has tried to remain neutral in the rivalry between the two but has also been trying on his own to encourage and fund attacks in Indonesia and elsewhere in Southeast Asia. Contrary to what Indonesian police said in the aftermath of the Jakarta attack, when they named Bahrun Naim as its mastermind, there is no evidence to date to support that theory, IPAC reports. It says the attack was carried out by a local group, the Partisans of the Caliphate, or Jamaah Anshar Khilafah (JAK), and whose ideological leader is imprisoned Indonesian Muslim cleric Aman Abdurrahman. According to the report, Aman fell out with Bahrumsyah, the top IS commander in Syria, but Aman and Abu Jandal are close. Regional implications Bahrumsyah, Abu Jandal, and Bahrun Naim are competing with each other to encourage their contacts in Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines to undertake attacks against enemies of the self-declared caliphate. In some cases, they are also providing funds, the IPAC report says. At the same time, some groups in Indonesia are acting on their own, without direction from Syria, to carry out jihad operations (amaliyat) as a way of demonstrating their commitment to ISIS. The report goes on to say that the competition will produce an increase in terrorist plots that regional law enforcement agencies will be hard-pressed to contain. The three Indonesians control different pipelines for recruiting their countrymen to join the IS cause in the Middle East, the reports suggests. But a crackdown by Turkish authorities on suspected IS sympathizers and their families who are trying to cross into Syria will keep many IS recruits out of the war zone and confined to Indonesia, IPAC also predicts in the study. The fact that it has become much more difficult to cross into Syria from Turkey means that there will be more potential fighters willing to take on the war at home than in 2014 or 2015, IPAC says, noting that more than 215 Indonesians had been deported by Turkey as of December 2015. Mukhriz Mahathir (center) speaks during a press conference in Alor Setar, Kedah, at which he announced his resignation as chief minister of the state, Feb. 3, 2016. The son of former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad said Wednesday he was forced to resign as chief minister of Kedah state for criticizing Najib Razak, the ruling PM shadowed by a financial scandal connected to state investment fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB). Mukhriz Mahathir told a news conference in Alor Setar, the state capital, that the state assembly had voted to remove him from office following moves by his own party, the United Malays National Organization (UMNO), to boot him out. I was informed that I have lost the majority support in the Kedah state legislative assembly during a secret vote before the Kedah Regency Council following the plot to remove me from the office and to shut me up from voicing for the people concerning various national issues, said Mukhriz, 51. The resignation is the latest twist in a scandal that has triggered criminal probes in Singapore, Switzerland and other countries. It has led to calls for Najib to step down over revelations of a nearly U.S. $700 million deposit into his private banks accounts ahead of the 2013 general election. On Wednesday, the Prime Ministers office said Mukhriz had lost the support of the state assembly and UMNO members. This was due to a lack of confidence in his leadership, both as Menteri Besar [chief minister] and state party leader, and concerns that better preparations were needed to retain Kedah in the 14th General Election, the PMs office said in a statement posted on Facebook. The Prime Minister believes that the party and government must be disciplined and work together as a united team to combat the economic and security challenges Malaysia currently faces, the statement added. The real reason Mukhrizs father Mahathir Mohamad, one of Najibs most vocal critics, is among those who have called for the PM to resign. Mukhriz Wednesday said his ouster had nothing to do with his governing ability or any rejection by the people of Kedah. The real reason for such harsh action against me is because of my criticisms of the prime minister, which he himself acknowledged, the ex-chief minister added. Mukhriz is the latest senior official to fall following criticism of the 1MDB scandal. Among those given the boot are former Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, former UMNO divisional boss Khairuddin Abu Hassan and former Attorney General Abdul Gani Patail, who was probing the corruption allegations against Najib when he was terminated for health reasons in July. Legal moves against AG On Wednesday, Khairuddin filed a judicial motion at the High Court in Kuala Lumpur against Attorney General Mohamed Apandi Ali over his decision last week to clear Najib of potential corruption-related charges in probes linked to 1MDB. On Tuesday, former Law Minister Zaid Ibrahim also filed suit against Apandi for his decision to clear Najibs name in the scandal. In announcing his decision, Apandi said no criminal offense had been committed and that the $681 million was a personal donation to Najib from the Saudi royal family. Most of the money U.S. $620 million (2.03 billion ringgit) was eventually returned to the donor, according to Apandi, but he did not say what the donation was intended for or what happened to the remaining $61 million. This issue has been an unnecessary distraction for the country. Now that the matter has been comprehensively put to rest, it is time for us to unite and move on, Najib said after the AGs announcement. Najib chairs the indebted state funds advisory board. Swiss, Singaporean probes Last week, Switzerlands attorney general announced his office was requesting Malaysias help in determining whether $4 billion (16.57 billion ringgit) in funds from 1MDB and affiliated companies had been misappropriated. A small portion of the money had been transferred into Swiss bank accounts held by former Malaysian public officials and current and former public officials from the United Arab Emirates, the Swiss attorney-generals office said Friday. On Tuesday, a spokesman for the office told Reuters that Prime Minister Najib was not among the officials under investigation. On Monday, authorities in neighboring Singapore announced that they had seized many bank accounts in the city-state as part of investigations into possible money-laundering related to probes of 1MDB, media widely reported. Singapore does not tolerate the use of its financial system as a refuge or conduit for illicit funds, said a joint statement by the Monetary Authority of Singapore and its Commercial Affairs Department. In connection with these investigations, we have sought and are continuing to seek information from several financial institutions, are interviewing various individuals, and have seized a large number of bank accounts. A man monitors stock movements at a private trading firm in Kuala Lumpur, Jan. 7, 2016. Malaysians are dealing a series of financial concerns linked to the government and falling prices for top exports. Once an economic powerhouse in Southeast Asia, Malaysia has been hit with a series of financial setbacks under the leadership of Prime Minister Najib Razak which are not limited to debt-ridden state investment fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), economists claim. Malaysia is struggling with a crisis of confidence as a result of global and domestic political issues that have contributed to an economic slowdown, Noor Ihsan Mohamad, an associate professor of the International Islamic University Malaysias Kulliyyah of Economics and Management Sciences, told BenarNews. One clear instance is the recently published data on the Malaysia Consumer Sentiment Index (CSI) for the final quarter of 2015, he said in an interview. The CSI dipped to a record low of 63.8, eclipsing the previous low, 70.2, from the third quarter of 2015. The CSI measures attitudes about the nations business climate, personal finance and spending. Ihsan cautioned politicians to serve the people and create less political drama because normal Malaysians were feeling the pinch. Global banking group HSBC forecasts that Malaysias economy will grow by only 3.6 percent in 2016, because of high levels of public and private debt, according to AsiaOne. HSBCs projection points to the national economys weakest growth in seven years. The forecast is more bearish than the official 4 to 5 percent of growth projected, and substantially lower than 2015s estimated growth of 4.5 to 5 percent. Ongoing 1MDB issue Malaysians are hopeful that the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, which its government and 11 other Pacific Rim nations signed in New Zealand on Thursday, will help pull their country out of the doldrums. The trade deal aims to topple barriers to the free flow of goods, services and investment capital among Pacific Rim nations. Nonetheless, Malaysia is still under a cloud as it deals with fallout from revelations of a 2.08 billion ringgit (U.S. $681 million) deposit to the prime ministers private bank accounts, via agencies related to 1MDB, in the run-up to Malaysias 2013 general election. Attorney General Mohamed Apandi Ali last week announced that he would not pursue corruption-related charges linked to the deposit. Apandi said no criminal offense had been committed and that the money was a personal donation from the Saudi royal family to Najib. Most of the money 2.03 billion ringgit (U.S. $620 million) was eventually returned to the donor, according to Apandi, but he did not say what the donation was intended for or what happened to the remaining $61 million. The move does not end investigations into 1MDB. International authorities in the United States, Switzerland and Singapore are investigating 1MDB, whose advisory board is chaired by Najib. Ringgit loses value An economist working closely with the government said that while these scandals were political in nature, they have had economic repercussions, particularly through the depreciation of the ringgit. The political noises started in August and, similarly, the ringgit was hit hard since then, said the economist, who declined to be named. The ringgits depreciation is forcing students who had planned to study in the U.S. or Britain to explore other, less expensive options, the Malay Mail reported. According to the economist, the current political atmosphere has eroded public confidence in Najibs leadership. He said the government must become more transparent in government-related processes so as to help build confidence in the public sector. Even with massive structural change, we believe it would take at least five years for the effect to actually materialize. However, this is a much more difficult thing to achieve than becoming a high-income nation, the economist told BenarNews. The lack of confidence is also reflected in Malaysias dropping four places, to 54 out of 168 countries in Transparency Internationals annual Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI). In 2014, Malaysia ranked 50th of 175 nations. According to Barjoyai Bardai, a professor at Universiti Tun Abdul Razaks Graduate School of Business, a culture of corruption has long been embedded in Malaysias public and private sectors and has become the only way of doing real business. To correct this, we need a revolution in public and private sector practices. It is not impossible, but not easy either. Hong Kong and Singapore have done it with flying colors and so can we. But we need real clean and determined leaders and government to initiate this revolution, he told BenarNews in an email. Falling oil prices aid Malaysia Despite claims that last years sharp fall in oil prices hit Malaysias economy, Standard Chartered, a British banking and financial services firm, claims the nation actually imports more petroleum than it exports and the lower cost would actually benefit it, according to the Singapore Business Review. On the other hand, Standard Chartered claims that falling prices for palm oil negatively affected Malaysias economy, because exports for the commodity fell more than 4 percent in the first 10 months of 2015 compared with the same period in 2014. Malaysias 2015 fiscal deficit was raised only slightly to 3.2 percent of gross domestic product from the initially budgeted 3.0 percent, despite the sharp oil-price decline. This was partly thanks to subsidy savings (fuel subsidies have been eliminated), and partly because dividends from the national oil company are determined by the government and are set based on the previous years oil prices, Standard Chartered reported. Nation needs leaders with integrity Hafiz Rahman, who works in the oil and gas industry, said Malaysia desperately needed political stability and that could only exist through leaders with integrity, because investors wont invest in a corrupted country. Leaders with [a] high level of integrity will be able to lead their people and create a conducive economic atmosphere that will eventually bring political stability with minimal crime rate, he told BenarNews. In order to bring this about, the government should do away with corrupt government policies and appoint ministers who are known for their integrity. The government must provide strong, transparent leadership, with accountability, to drive the message of zero tolerance for graft; political financing, meanwhile, should be regulated with a more practical mechanism, than the current, Hafiz said. Malaysia has been governed by the same coalition, Barisan Nasional, since gaining its independence from Britain in 1957. Fahirul N. Ramli also contributed to the report. A former Chinese newspaper columnist who disappeared in Southeast Asia last month after fleeing China in search of political asylum is back in his homeland, assisting police with an investigation, his wife said. Li Xin, who once wrote for the cutting-edge Southern Metropolis Daily newspaper in Guangzhou, fled China last July, initially traveling to New Delhi where his application for political asylum and his U.S. visa application were both turned down. He later left India, and was last heard from on Jan. 11 after boarding a train in Thailand en route to Laos. His wife, He Fangxian, who remained in China with the couples only child, said she spoke with Li by phone on Wednesday from a police station near the couples current home in the central province of Henan. He told me he was submitting to investigation on a voluntary basis, and that it would be concluded very soon, she said. He told me to relax and have a happy [Chinese] New Year. She went to a local police station to take the call. When Li Xin spoke to me, he didnt say where he is right now; he didnt want me to know, she said. He just said he is back in China under investigation. He said it would be better for him and for me if I took it easy, and that he hoped there would be a result soon. But Li said nothing about where he is being held, nor the reason for the investigation, she said. I am guessing hes probably in Xinxiang [Henan province], because the state security police who called me were from Xinxiang, He said. Higher-ups involved An officer who answered the phone at the Xinxiang police station declined to comment on Li's whereabouts. We dont know where he is ... his wife asked us to look into it, and we made enquiries with the relevant authorities, she said. We only know what they told us. There were several higher departments involved, and we couldnt even figure out where he is. She said the case against Li did not originate in his hometown. This isnt our case. We were just helping (He Fangxian) because she reported him missing, and we were trying to find out for her. The officer said local police had no direct dealings with Li. Only his wife spoke with him directly. Pressured to inform Li Xin, a former campaigner for democratic reform and human rights, said state security police pressured him to become an informant by threatening him with criminal charges after he posted comments online in support of blind Shandong rights activist Chen Guangcheng, who is now a visiting scholar in the United States. After arriving in New Delhi, Li also revealed some of the inner workings of the Chinese propaganda regime, including a secret list of topics and sources off limits to media organizations. Chinas police recently set up a special unit to detain fugitives who flee the country, sparking fears that the ruling Chinese Communist Party is expanding its law enforcement activities far beyond its borders to target dissident asylum-seekers. Lis repatriation comes amid growing concerns among rights activists and lawyers over the clandestine detention of critics of the Chinese government outside the country, several of whom have been picked up in Thailand, Laos, Myanmar and Hong Kong by means of opaque and undocumented procedures in recent months. The latest radio and TVCs from Ogilvy for Careers24 are something to be proud of - highlighting the awkward scenarios that can arise when you're asked 'So what do you do?' They punt the point that you really should only do work you're proud of. If not, it's time to hit the job market - again. It takes clever strategy to build a new twist into an existing campaign while staying true to an existing brand tone. That's exactly what the Ogilvy & Mather Cape Town team did in collaboration with Egg Films on the latest installment of their Careers24 work. It's all about finding a job you're passionate about so that facing the typical 'I've just met you so I'll ask what you do for a living' question doesn't put you in an embarrassing situation, leaving you an awkward, stuttering mess if you aren't proud of your career path so far. See the examples below for proof: Awkward, right? Nadia Boucher Coombe, head of marketing for 24.com and Tseliso Rangaka, executive creative director at Ogilvy & Mather Cape Town, let us in on the campaign's success... Nadia Boucher Coombe, head of marketing for 24.com and Tseliso Rangaka, executive creative director at Ogilvy & Mather Cape Town 1. How did the 'not being proud of what you do is awkward' concept come about? Rangaka: "So, what do you do for a living?" is a question that comes up all the time - it's a question we ask that allows us to quickly size someone up". But often it's a question that people dread, as they feel embarrassed about their jobs. We thought the awkwardness of someone trying to answer that question could lead to some great comedy. 2. That it did. Talk us through the intricacies of advertising something as serious as job-hunting, which affects everybody at some stage of their life, some repeatedly - in a humorous way. Boucher Coombe: Careers24 is a functional platform that performs the serious task of connecting job seekers to their dream jobs. However, in order to attract jobseekers to the site, we needed to find a creative way of connecting with them on an emotional level. Well-placed humour is often the key to standing out in a cluttered advertising space, and who hasn't been in a situation where they've felt slightly awkward after being asked what they do for a living? The campaign aims to show the lighter side of this situation. 3. Ogilvy CT's MD, Luca Gallarelli, says the humour in these ads lies largely in the actors cast, as they accurately convey the shame we feel when we are not proud of what we do. How were the actors selected for the ads? Was it a similar 'auditioning/recruitment process' to that of finding a new job? Rangaka: Luckily, we had months to cast our roles and went through numerous rounds of casting in Johannesburg and Cape Town. The process was pretty straightforward: the actors who made us laugh the most got the job. 4. Any advice for jobseekers who just can't get a break into the industry they love and constantly get the 'so, what do you do for a living' question? Boucher Coombe: 'Never give up on finding the job that is right for you' is the obvious answer. There are plenty of things job seekers can constantly be doing to better their chances of getting hired for their dream job. Careers24 has a dedicated team of experts putting together career advice for job seekers such as CV and cover letter advice, interview tips, how to job hunt like a pro as well as managerial and career growth advice for those already in the job market, so visit the Careers24 career advice section. Rangaka: Failing that, having a list of made-up, never-heard-of-before careers at the ready is also an option! 5. What has response been to the campaign so far? Boucher Coombe: We've been tracking the response mainly through social media where we've also been advertising the commercials, and it has been overwhelmingly positive. People seem to especially resonate with the main character in the hospital scene. Because this is the second year we are rolling out the same creative concept with fresh ads, we knew that the humorous take on a sometimes serious situation would be well received. You can check out some of the live responses on Twitter. Cheers to a campaign that Careers24 and Ogilvy can be proud of for hitting the mark with its intended audience. Click here for more on Careers24 and here for more on Ogilvy. The second eCommerce Africa Confex takes place 17 - 18 February 2016 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre. With eCommerce forecasted to grow by 40% annually, the two-day conference is designed to introduce the latest trends, technologies and industry developments and to facilitate networking, education and inspiration for ecommerce leaders and peers. Following the success of the first eCommerce Africa Confex in 2015, where more than 800 attendees came from all over Africa, including Nigeria, Kenya, Lesotho, Namibia and Zimbabwe. The event will display over 50 solution providers and bring together the regions' leading merchants, major retailers, brands, developers, designers and ecommerce experts. It welcomes business owners, directors and CEOs as well as managers involved in marketing, merchandising, customer service, operations and supply chain management. The event will feature over 65 speakers, keynotes, panel discussions, technical demonstrations, networking opportunities, cocktail functions and an exhibition, all hosted by industry leaders. Terry Southam, md of Kinetic Events, the organisers says, "We have an exciting line-up of industry experts and an equally strong collection of sponsors and exhibitors for 2016." Speakers This year the agenda will focus on four key themes: the evolution of e-commerce, understanding the customer, the three P's of eCommerce: Payments, Protection and Processes, and agile omni-channel eCommerce. Ronnie Apteker, founder of Internet Solutions, will examine how to approach the business world with a lighter, more creative touch to help people engage with their customers. Emilian Popa, principal of Digital Growth Africa & Middle East, will discuss the macro-level of the industry and how it has evolved from 2015-2016. Joe Falter, CEO and founder, Hellofoods.com, will examine the company's journey as a case study in overcoming the obstacles in a new territory. Sponsored speakers Oracle Marketing Cloud (platinum sponsor) Keynote Speaker: Claudia Foster, senior strategic solutions consultant, Placing your Customer in the Centre of an Omni-Channel World Gold Sponsors include: The Association of African Exhibition Organisers' (AAXO) 2016 Conference has been arranged to coincide with two other significant industry events, the 30th SAACI Congress and the first UFI 'Global Exhibitions Day'in June 2016 in Mangaung, Bloemfontein. Following the SAACI Conference, which will be held from 5-7 June 2016, the AAXO Conference will take place on 8 June at the same venue. Linking the two meetings together in this way not only takes advantage of the synergy and shared vision of AAXO and SAACI, but also is more convenient for delegates who wish to attend both events. SAACI and AAXO have entered into a strategic partnership based on their dedication towards growing the meetings industry in Southern Africa. The collaboration between AAXO, which advocates specifically for exhibition organisers and SAACI, which represents a broad number of related sectors including technical and other service providers, transport services and venues, has been designed to include the sharing of resources, knowledge and training opportunities for mutual growth and support. This is highlighted by the decision to combine the conference dates for the two organisations. 8 June also marks Global Exhibitions Day, the beginning of a UFI and IAEE-led initiative to unify exhibition organisers, venues, associations and service providers from countries all around the world. Many organisations have agreed to participate and add their voice to the day. AAXO will be marking the occasion by having its conference on this day and being part of the task force. Kai Hattendorf, UFI md, says, "Global Exhibitions Day 2016 will be a day to celebrate the exhibition industry. We are thrilled by the strong and growing support for this idea, and we will now work with all our partners around the world, including AAXO in South Africa, to make it a special day indeed." Carol Weaving, chairperson of AAXO, is excited at the prospect of shared knowledge and opportunities. "AAXO has adopted a collaborative approach from its inception and this has led to the decision to combine the SAACI and AAXO conferences. We are also very proud to be part of the inspiring and powerful Global Exhibitions Day initiative." For more information, go to www.aaxo.co.za. The Finest Hours is an exquisitely well-made film about love and heroism, based on the remarkable true story of the most daring rescue mission in the history of the US Coast Guard, filled with nostalgia and adventure that immerses you emotionally and physically. Transporting you to the heart of the action and creating a fully immersive cinematic experience on an epic scale, the film is directed by Australian filmmaker Craig Gillespie (Lars and the Real Girl and the highly acclaimed Showtime series The United States of Tara), and written by Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson, based on the acclaimed non-fiction book of the same name by Casey Sherman and Michael J Tougias On 18 February, 1952, a massive nor'easter struck New England, pummeling towns along the Eastern Seaboard and wreaking havoc on anything caught in its destructive path, including two 500-foot oil tankers. The SS Pendleton and the SS Fort Mercer, bound for Boston, Massachusetts and Portland, Maine, respectively, were both ripped in half by the storm, stranding their crews at sea. The senior officer aboard the stern of the Pendleton, Chief Engineer Raymond Sybert (Casey Affleck), soon realises it is up to him to take charge of the frightened crew and keep the ship afloat as long as possible. Look for survivors The Coast Guard station in Chatham, Massachusetts was busy helping local fishermen protect their boats from the storm when they received word that the Fort Mercer was in trouble and orders Coxswain Bernie Webber (Chris Pine) to quickly assemble a crew and take out the CG36500 lifeboat to look for survivors. Webber and three men board the 36-foot motorised, wooden boat and set off on the perilous mission with bleak prospects, at best, and despite hurricane-force winds, 60-foot waves, frigid temperatures and zero visibility, miraculously locate the Pendleton and rescue 32 of its 33 men in the midst of the turbulent storm. While The Finest Hours is packed with thrilling, larger-than-life action sequences, it is anchored by the prevailing theme that resonates throughout the story: the strength of the human spirit. "These young men knew exactly what they were getting into when they climbed into that tiny lifeboat," says producer Dorothy Aufiero (The Fighter, Session 9). "They had the courage to go out there and put others' safety first and do something incredible, and I find that truly inspirational." When the Boston-based filmmaker first read The Finest Hours, the book by Casey Sherman and Michael J Tougias that documented the incredible tale of the Coast Guard's attempts to rescue survivors from two T2 oil tankers, she was shocked she had never heard about it before. While the SS Pendleton rescue was front-page news at the time, not everyone today is familiar with the story, including families of the men who were part of the rescue itself. "These guys just didn't talk about it because to them, it was their job," she explains. Aufiero brought the project to producer Jim Whitaker (Cinderella Man, The Odd Life of Timothy Green), who felt an immediate connection to the story. "I was born in Maryland but moved to Nova Scotia when I was 12 and my family lived in an eastern maritime town similar to Chatham, so I related to the story on a personal level," he says. "I knew about the Coast Guard and about the lives of people who made their living on the water and always knew I wanted to tell a story about the people that I grew up with." Vintage photos and archival footage They agreed that recreating the gallant efforts of these young men on the big screen was the perfect way to immortalise their story and put together a story treatment and sizzle reel incorporating vintage photos and archival footage of the actual events, which they brought to Disney. Oscar nominees Scott Silver (8 Mile) and Paul Tamasy and Eric Johnson (The Fighter) completed a screenplay based on Sherman and Tougias' book. While the book tells the story of both tankers that split that fateful night, the screenplay focusses primarily on the Pendleton rescue and its two stories: the men on the tanker trying to survive on the outside chance that someone might come to find them, and the four young men who set out to rescue them. Like Aufiero, Craig Gillespie was unfamiliar with the story when first sent the script, but he read it immediately, followed by the book, and was soon on board to direct. "I really enjoyed how very true the writers stayed to the events and the timeline of when things occurred, which is almost unfathomable considering all that was going on out there in the ocean," he says. "Yes, it's the story of the greatest small-boat rescue in Coast Guard history, but it also has all these great characters who really were unsung heroes. There was a sense of purity to that generation of men in that they often put others before themselves, and that's what makes them so heroic." "Craig was absolutely the perfect guy to direct this film," says Whitaker. "The movie is ultimately about a bunch of men going through this very difficult thing, but it's also about their humanity and the emotionality of their actions, and Craig is particularly good at finding those emotional moments and drawing them out in this beautifully subtle way." The Finest Hours celebrates man's will as his greatest weapon. These young men with different levels of experience, or lack thereof, conquer their own fears and face some of the most destructive forces of nature imaginable to accomplish the impossible. "It's a very simple story about these guys who have jobs to do. It wasn't done for glory and there wasn't a self-aggrandising vibe to it: it was just men doing their job," says Chris Pine. "There are no monsters, it's just men against the ocean, and I think there's something really exciting about seeing men and Mother Nature go at it because Mother Nature doesn't care who you are or where you come from - she just does her thing." "It's an amazing story," says director Craig Gillespie, "and while there are a lot of thrills and the scale is huge, in the end it's a very personal story." Adds Casey Affleck, "It's a real story about real people and what they are capable of doing, and how saving their own lives and the lives of others helps them to understand and appreciate their own strengths." From real life to reel life The only surviving member of the rescue crew, Fitzgerald, was engaged by the producers in the early stages of development, as was Gouthro, to help ensure the facts and details were authentic. "When the script was being written and it came to certain scenes where we needed specific details on what really happened, we had the ability to call and ask Andy," says Whitaker. "This film is at its best when it is celebrating its authenticity, and we really tried to have everything be as real as possible." On 10 November, 2014, both men visited the set to meet with the cast and crew and answer questions about their experience with the Coast Guard and observed filming of the scene where the Pendleton survivors descend the ladder into the lifeboat. "I was very impressed with the ship that they built," says Gouthro. "Andy and I couldn't believe how much it resembled the real Pendleton." "It was amazing for Andy and Gus to see us bringing their story to life," remembers Aufiero. "Everyone on set knew they were in the presence of true heroes." "Some people still look at the Pendleton rescue as a suicide mission, but I never saw it like that," says Fitzgerald, who is now 84 and lives with his wife in Colorado. "Like we used to say back then, 'You have to go out, but you don't have to come back.' Our job was to save people and that's what we did." Gouthro is 83 and lives in Wrentham, Massachusetts. "When people ask me about the Pendleton what I try to impress on them is that it really was no big deal to these guys," he says. "Those four men went out and did their job. They didn't like it - it's not like they were having a good time out on that lifeboat, but it's what they were told to do so they went out and did it." We filmed in that actual spot The production filmed at the Coast Guard station in Chatham where Daniel Cluff gave Webber the questionable assignment more than 60 years ago, which was especially poignant for the cast and crew. "There's this great photo of Bernie and his men sitting at a table in the mess at the station that was taken that night after their return, and we filmed in that actual spot," says Chris Pine. "It was a very profound experience." The production shot on the docks at Chatham's Stage Harbor (which filled in for the Chatham Fish Pier as it looks nothing like it did in 1952) and at sea where the actual rescue took place. It was also at the shipyards where a massive water tank holding 800,000 gallons of water was built. The tank, which measured 80 feet by 110 feet and was used to film scenes of the lifeboat's voyage out to sea and the subsequent rescue of the Pendleton's survivors, gave the production the ability to start and stop the waves, wind, rain and snow on command. "You would never be able to film in the ocean in a real squall - that would be absolutely impossible," says Ross. "You have to be able to control the elements." "We wanted to create the most realistic environment possible for our actors, so we did a combination of exterior shoots at some of the actual locations and some in the water tanks on our stages too," says Whitaker. "Approximately 70% of our water scenes were shot in the tanks, but the rest was in open water." As businesses start to dedicate more resources to managing their social media channels, the question that they are asking is how they should measure return on investment. There is no simple formula for creating a rand-and-cents metric for measuring social media. But social media does offer you the flexibility of setting up the metrics that make sense for your business and its objectives. This demands careful thought in terms of what your business goals are and how these can be measured to give you actionable information that you can use to improve business performance. Here are some metrics worth considering: 1. Customer service trends and impact Today, few brands can afford not to be on the more popular social media channels with some sort of customer service presence. Track the amount of queries you receive, what the most common complaints and issues are, and your success rate in resolving customers' problems. Many brands try to usher a person who is complaining on social media to another channel such as the contact centre or email. I think it's better in most cases to resolve the case across social media so that other users can see your good customer service in action. 2. Quality and volume of conversation Content marketing is the new buzzword. Many brands are publishing massive volumes of content on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and every other channel in the hope that it will mean something to someone somewhere. Rather than publishing for the sake of it, publish to start conversations. Sparking conversion is about asking people what they need and want. And it's about adding value to their lives. Track what people in your market are talking about and create content tailored to their interests. Competitions and incentives also work well. Also, be thoughtful in creating engaging and useful content that will support your product and service launches. Social media can be a great way of driving adoption. If you're launching a banking app, for example, ask people if they are using it. If not, why not? Then address their concerns. To measure success, look at who is talking about you, what they have to say about your content, and what sort of actions they are taking. For example, are you getting app downloads or website visits? Look beyond mentions and retweets - also try to look at the sentiment that lies beneath them. 3. Share of voice Don't underestimate the impact that gaining share of voice can have on your business. Benchmark how your social media efforts enhance your share of voice, as well as how positive or negative the conversations around your brand are. An efficient presence on social media can vastly improve your brand's visibility and reputation among consumers. And it can be important in winning trust from the younger generations who see social media as their preferred channel for communication and their first stop for news, information, and product recommendations. 4. Customer conversion and acquisition metrics Social media's most important role, I would argue, lies in customer retention and building a great brand experience (here, I'm leaving aside social media advertising, which can be a powerful direct marketing tool). That said, it can also play a supporting role in your sales strategy. You could, for example, track your audience growth rate and see how it maps into the growth of your business. And you might be interested to track customers who arrive on your website from social media and see how their engagement and conversion activity compares to those who arrive via search. 5. Social media as a way of measuring other business metrics In addition to measuring social media ROI, many marketers are using social media to keep track of other elements of their businesses' performance. By monitoring social channels, you can learn a great deal about what customers are saying about your brand, your products, and your advertising campaigns. Social media is a powerful and cost-effective way to do market research, and in near real-time. Some interesting things to measure, using social media monitoring and listening tools, might include: Are people talking about our multimillion Rand brand campaign and is their sentiment positive or neutral? How much are they talking about our products and those of our competitors? What are their feelings about them? Are we seeing a lot of complaints or praise for our customer service? What are the trends over a month or a year? Closing words Social media can be a highly effective business tool if driven by a senior executive who aligns it to real business goals, and then uses meaningful metrics to gauge progress. Not all of social media's value can be measured, however, returns such as earning consumer trust, opening a channel for conversation, and improving your customer experience can be differentiators for your brand, as challenging as they might be to quantify. Simplifyd business software, built for freelancers, small teams and everyone in between, has officially launched in South Africa, allowing small teams and entrepreneurs to invoice faster, get paid quicker and build better relationships with their clients. Sean Miller and James Willard, both business owners who faced many of the same challenges entrepreneurs the world over face, created the platform. With more people working remotely from business hubs or coffee shops, having one's invoicing, contact list (CRM), sales pipelines, money management, time tracking and task management all in one place, online, means one has access to it when and where one needs it. In addition, it means one only has one password to remember. In addition, the software comes equipped with a feature that allows users to invoice clients in multiple international currencies, no matter where they may be doing business in the world. Simplifyd has seen great success in the UK market where it first launched and is being applauded for delivering several key benefits, including helping small businesses optimise their efficiency, providing ways to revolutionise client communication, streamlining schedules and more. In addition, it went on to receive a nomination for App of the Year 2015 by www.Mevvy.com. While the Simplifyd team is based in the UK, it will be very active within South Africa and will tailor its approach to suit this market, working closely with South African-based company CN&CO. To test drive the Simplifyd platform, go to www.simplifyd.io. It looks like you have reached this page in error ... The content you are looking for has either moved, or if you typed in the address there might have been a mistake. If you believe there has been a technical error please let us know. Most Popular Destinations New Jersey governor, Republican presidential candidate and Disgusting Pig Vomit Chris Christie (R) told a group of supporters in New Hampshire that he would spank rather than prosecute Hillary Clinton. You know, out of the goodness of his heart. If he has one. At a New Hampshire campaign event, Chris Christie said that in a debate with Hillary Clinton, he would "beat her rear end on that stage." You know what? After I do shell be relieved because shell just be worried I was going to serve her with a subpoena," Christie said, according to ABC News. The crowd at the event chuckled lightly. Ha! Get it? Because she's guilty of something or another and she's a woman and assault is very funny. There's nothing funnier than prescribing corporal punishment in lieu of a political-motivated prosecution. This is really is quite the fantasy Chris Christie has because he will not be the Republican nominee for president and will never debate Hillary Clinton. Christie and his colleagues would never say they're going to beat the "rear end" of another man. Is it possible for someone to be a religious exclusivist and also believe in political pluralism? That is, can you believe that your religious tradition is the correct one and still affirm a form of political pluralism that allows others to believe the same? Can you allow others to offer their own vision of what it means to flourish? Flourishing: Why We Need Religion in a Globalized World , begs to differ. He demonstrates pretty convincingly that they are not inherently related. He gives us as a prime example Roger Williams. Roger Williams, the founder of Rhode Island, was a religious exclusivist. But, unlike his friend John Winthrop, the governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony ("city set on a hill"), he didn't believe that it was appropriate for the state to force a person to affirm a particular religious position or obey a religious law. Although he had been offered a prime pastorate in the colony on his arrival in 1634, he would later be run out of town. Why? Volf writes: There is a conceit in our culture that religious and political exclusivism go together but is this true? Miroslav Volf, in his bookbegs to differ. He demonstrates pretty convincingly that they are not inherently related. He gives us as a prime example Roger Williams. Roger Williams, the founder of Rhode Island, was a religious exclusivist. But, unlike his friend John Winthrop, the governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony ("city set on a hill"), he didn't believe that it was appropriate for the state to force a person to affirm a particular religious position or obey a religious law. Although he had been offered a prime pastorate in the colony on his arrival in 1634, he would later be run out of town. Why? Volf writes: What was his unpardonable offense? He advocated the seditious doctrine that the magistrates had no right to enforce obedience to the First Table of the Law, the portion of the Ten Commandments that regulated human duties to God. On this, he collided also with Winthrop, a man he considered his friend. [Flourishing, p. 153]. Volf notes that no one before Williams had argued for such a radical freedom of conscience as did he in response to his exile. Not even John Locke, whose ideas influenced the development of our political system, went as far as did he. Indeed, Volf writes: "Williams insisted that compulsion in matters of religion is utterly incompatible with the Christian faith" (p, 154). It is not good for Christianity to force a person to affirm the Christian faith or live by its tenets. That vision became the foundation for the colony and later state of Rhode Island. A strong faith thus requires political pluralism! So, when we hear rhetoric, especially from certain politicians, suggesting they are representing the Christian community, that they will fight for Christian values, and turn back those who differ, we need to question whether they are being true to the faith. That's not to say that our values are not rooted in our faith, it's just that we can't force others to join our religious tradition! So yes, religion, even exclusive forms, can thrive in a politically pluralistic context. It's okay to believe that you have come to the truth, but it's not okay to enforce that truth. Or, as Volf puts it: "Religious exclusivists who advocate political exlusivism are bad for today's world" (p. 159). If you are like me when you think of France you really don't even consider a beach vacation. I know my first thoughts go to Paris, a far cry from any lovely beach town. But after visiting France and leaving Paris I quickly realized that France is so much more than just Paris. There are also lovely beach towns! France offers an excellent holiday location for British tourists in particular because of the close proximity but these stunning beaches can be enjoyed by all. In terms of price, travel time, great resorts, food and wine it can even be done on a budget. Whilst planning your beach holiday for 2016, here are five suggestions that won't break the bank: Urville-Nacqueville, Normandy Plage de Gatseau, Ile dOleron Sainte-Marine, Brittany Cavalaire-sur-Mer, Provence Menton, Provence What do you think? Have you been to any great beach locations in France? I'd love to hear about it in the comments section below! Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest! Follow us on, and This beach is only a short drive from Cherbourg which is attainable via a. The ferry port itself is only 10km west of Urville-Nacqueville which is located near a coastal countryside with sweeping expanses of fine sand. Tourists can enjoy surfing, windsurfing, sailing and diving at this beach. There's even horse riding available.The Ile dOleron is on Frances second-largest island that has beautiful, undeveloped sandy beaches backed by dunes and pine woods. There is miles and miles of beach that extends along the south-west coast, and acres of space for tourists to enjoy ball games at low tide, and often a good surf. The prettiest strand among this island is the more intimatewhich overlooks the channel between the island and mainland. It contains soft sand, spattered with shells.The little port of Sainte-Marine offers a lovely crescent of fine sand. Located among neat lawns above the jetty, a 10-minutes walk south brings you to the mouth of the Odet, where a supremely unspoiled beach stretches west for four kilometres.This beach is as close to St Tropez as you need it to be. The Cavalaire-sur-Mer is easily affordable for families and has a safe main beach one cannot see the end of. Every maritime activity known to man is available. Located directly behind the beach are the Maures mountains which whisk you away from sea-sidery to tougher times in the twist of a hairpin.Menton has the lazy sunshine zest, contains two vast beaches of sand, unambiguous light and the Alps dropping direct to the sea. The resort is realistically accessible by rail if youre staying for an extended period of time, say a week. Mike Nicholas, CEO, BDA WASHINGTON Dealer and advisor groups want revisions to a Municipal Securities Rulemaking Board proposal to extend pay-to-play prohibitions to non-dealer municipal advisors. The MSRB filed its changes to MSRB Rule G-37 on political contributions, as well as MSRB Rules G-8 on books and records and G-9 on preservation of records, with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Dec. 16. Rule G-37 already applies to dealers and prevents them from engaging in negotiated transactions with an issuer for two years if the dealer, one of its municipal finance professionals, or a political action committee controlled by the dealer or an MFP makes a significant contribution to an issuer official who can influence the award of muni bond business. The rule includes a de minimis exception to the ban for individuals who give no more than $250 to any candidate for whom they can vote. The proposed rule changes would extend both the prohibition and exception to non-dealer MAs, with certain differences depending on whether the MA is a third-party solicitor. The updates to the MSRB's two recordkeeping rules would include documentation requirements to assure compliance with the G-37 amendments. Terri Heaton, president of the National Association of Municipal Advisors, said NAMA supports the MSRB's effort to extend the rule to MAs, but believes that the proposal will not lead to as a strong a rule as it could. "We believe that rulemakings could be further strengthened to create a true barrier from allowing political donations to influence business being done in the municipal securities sector," Heaton wrote in her letter. She added NAMA would most like to see an outright ban on contributions to bond ballot initiatives instead of continuing to allow them to be made but with proper disclosure. Heaton also said the rule needs to more clearly identify the responsibilities and disclosure requirements for dealers and MAs. "Without such clarifications, municipal advisors may inadvertently omit information that should be disclosed," she said. Bond Dealers of America chief executive officer Mike Nicholas agreed with Heaton, saying BDA supports the goal of the rule but would like to see revisions to eliminate "some unnecessary and duplicative regulatory filings for dealers" who may also act as MAs on other transactions. "Despite our concerns with the proposal's lack of harmonization with contribution limits and record-keeping requirements applicable to other federal pay-to-play regimes, BDA supports the level playing field that applying MSRB pay-to-play rules to non-dealer municipal advisors will create," Nicholas said. He recommended the SEC ask the MSRB to give guidance in the form of answers to frequently-asked-questions that allow dealer employees who act as both dealers and MAs to avoid keeping dual records and copies of disclosures for the same contributions. Nicholas also said BDA would like to see the de minimis exception increased to $350 to harmonize the rule with existing de minimis contribution limits for investment advisors and swap dealers under Commodities Future Trading Commission and SEC investment advisor political contribution rules. Leslie Norwood, associate general counsel and co-head of the municipal securities division for the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, said SIFMA "is looking forward to the SEC's approval of the changes" and echoed BDA's comments about the rule leveling the regulatory playing field. Under the proposed rule changes, dealer and municipal advisory firms would be divided into two broad categories: dealer firms and their MFPs, and municipal advisor firms and their municipal advisor professionals. MAPs would be defined similarly to MFPs. MA firms would be subdivided into MA firms that act as third-party solicitors and those that do not. An MA third-party solicitor generally would be an MA that solicits, will solicit, or wants to be hired to solicit a municipal issuer or other entity for compensation, even if that MA also provides advice. Under the existing rule, a dealer can only be subject to a ban on muni business if a contribution is made to an official who can influence the selection of a dealer. Similarly, under the rule changes, a non-solicitor municipal advisor can only be subject to a ban on MA business if a contribution is made to an official who can influence the selection of an MA. A ban on MA business would include both a ban on advising the municipal entity on certain matters and soliciting the municipal entity on behalf of third-party dealers, MAs, and investment advisors. But dealers who are also MAs could be subject to a "cross ban" on business, depending on the type of influence of the official they contribute to. A "cross ban" would treat a dealer-MA firm as a single economic unit. For example, if an MFP or MAP of the firm makes a contribution to an official who can influence the selection of dealers and MAs, the firm is subject to a temporary ban on both types of business. But if an MFP or MAP of the firm makes a contribution to an official who only has influence over the selection of underwriters, for example, the firm would be subject to a temporary ban on underwriting business. For MA third-party solicitors, the ban on municipal advisory business would apply if the official receiving the contribution has influence over selecting MAs, dealers, or investment advisors. If a dealer hires an MA third-party solicitor, the dealer also may be subject to a temporary ban on negotiated municipal securities business if the solicitor contributed to an official who could influence the selection of dealers. Similarly, if an MA hires an MA third-party solicitor, the MA also may be subject to a ban on municipal advisory business if the solicitor contributed to an official who has influence over selecting MAs. A top currency analyst with Rand Merchant Bank has advised Botswana to use its coal mineral to generate electricity than exporting it as raw coal, a top analyst with Rand Merchant Bank has said. His advise comes amid revelation that price of the mineral has gone down by 70 percent on the international market.Coal prices have reportedly plummeted to around US$55 per tonne from over US$120 per tonne recorded over 13 years ago. Reports say the demand for coal has shrunk and the industry has struggled with large global coal production cuts and accelerated mine closures. India and China which until recently, have been pillars of strong demand.Botswana is reported have coal resources of 200 billion tonnes but of that only three to five billion tonnes can be economically mined. Economists say the abundance of coal resources constitute a strength that the country should leverage on. Botswana has one operating mine, the Morupule mine, located west of Palapye in eastern Botswana. Speaking during budget review meeting Rand Merchant Bank Currency Strategist John Cairns said it was not wise for Botswana to export its coal in raw form. We have seen a very dramatic decline in almost all the commodity products. Oil for instance earlier this year it was US$30 per barrel. Similar declines have been observed in many other mineral and metal commodities, said Cairns. He said the decline has various implications on the Botswana economy. First of all Botswana export meaningful amount of copper and gold and all those prices have fallen down. Secondly there has been talk that Botswana could move exporting coal and our assessment during that time when those proposals where made we thought this was a very ambitious but certainly now it does not make any sense when coal price have dropped by 70 percent from highest, said Cairns. He said the best option was to use the coal and generate power which is in high demand.At this stage unfortunately the coal in the ground is very unlikely to be able to be a significant source of revenue for Batswana. Only perhaps, if the country could export its end product in terms of electricity from coal, said the economic analyst. He said Botswana has extensive and largely unexploited, coal resources which when developed can form part of the Governments effort to diversify the economy. Cairns said due to the decline in commodity such as copper and gold was affecting the economic growth of the entire African continent. There is a significant slowdown in growth in all African countries. Africa rising story has been affected by the fall in commodity and Africa is probably no longer the fastest growing economy in the world in the next few years, he said. He also further notes that the government revenue is set to be affected by reduction in production at Debswana.Botswana major exports is diamond and its prices has held up far better than other commodities unfortunately Debswana cutting back on production and this has implications for budget revenue and expected tax, he said. Already have an account? Log in here VANCOUVER - The second-largest timberland operator in New Brunswick and Maine says it's looking for a buyer for some or all of its assets. We need your support! Local journalism needs your support! As we navigate through unprecedented times, our journalists are working harder than ever to bring you the latest local updates to keep you safe and informed. Now, more than ever, we need your support. Starting at $4.99/month you can access your Brandon Sun online and full access to all content as it appears on our website. or call circulation directly at (204) 727-0527. Your pledge helps to ensure we provide the news that matters most to your community! Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 04/02/2016 (2450 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. CALGARY Prime Minister Justin Trudeau offered a sympathetic ear to major players in Canadas oilpatch Thursday, but didnt provide any assurances on the fate of the pipelines Alberta so desperately wants to move its product to the coasts. Trudeau, federal Natural Resources Minister Jim Carr and Alberta Premier Rachel Notley took part in one-hour roundtables with oil and natural gas producers and their suppliers. The provinces oil sector is looking for signals that Trudeau is serious about seeing pipelines built that will move its commodity to where it can be shipped to foreign markets. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, left, lowers the microphone for Alberta Premier Rachel Notley as the two answer questions after touring the YWCA and meeting with oil and gas executives in Calgary, Alta. on Thursday Feb. 4, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Larry MacDougal The Energy East project is seen as a key plank, but the controversial pipeline has drawn the ire of many along its route through Central Canada to the Atlantic coast. The prime minister was asked after the meeting if he told the industry that the federal government would approve Energy East if approved by the National Energy Board. Trudeau repeated his criticism of the previous Conservative government and its politicization of pipelines. He said he would not do the same. Im not going to prejudge or shortcut the NEB process as it goes forward, Trudeau said. Its important that we have confidence in our regulators. Its important they do their job and were going to allow them to do their job without political interference. The president and CEO of Suncor Energy (TSX:SU), Steve Williams, said the meeting with Trudeau was encouraging, but there were no guarantees about pipeline approvals. I think assurances is too strong a word. I think what we agreed was that we understood the need for them and were all going to go away and work towards that end, Williams said. Mark Salkeld, president of Petroleum Services Association of Canada, also found a reason for optimism after the meeting. He said industry players asked Trudeau to be our champion because energy is Canadas economic engine. We werent looking for handouts. We werent looking for incentives to get us through to the next stage. Were looking for things that will put our employees back to work, said Salkeld. Action is needed quickly, Salkeld added. Its critical. I mean this industry is essentially on its knees right now in Canada. If we dont get things moving relatively quickly theres going to be a generational loss, he said. Alberta Energy Minister Marg McCuaig-Boyd said Trudeau was paying close attention. We just had a great conversation that talked about the urgency of some of the challenges were facing, she said. There was no particular ask (from the participants). As he did in Edmonton on Wednesday, the prime minister continued to signal that changes are coming to make employment insurance easier to get for laid-off Albertans. We are working very hard, the minister of Employment is looking into it, he said. As you know this was a commitment we made through the election campaign to strengthen EI to make it more responsive to people who actually need it and now Alberta is facing some real challenges in needing it and were going to make sure that its there for them. Follow @BillGraveland on Twitter Already have an account? Log in here Westoba Credit Union, Crocus Credit Union, Sunrise Credit Union, and Vanguard Credit Union once again teamed up to sponsor the cost of the turkeys that were served at the annual Westman and Area Traditional Christmas Dinner. We need your support! Local journalism needs your support! As we navigate through unprecedented times, our journalists are working harder than ever to bring you the latest local updates to keep you safe and informed. Now, more than ever, we need your support. Starting at $4.99/month you can access your Brandon Sun online and full access to all content as it appears on our website. or call circulation directly at (204) 727-0527. Your pledge helps to ensure we provide the news that matters most to your community! Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 04/02/2016 (2450 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Earlier this winter, the Minnedosa Chancellors hosted their first ever Pink the Rink game. The goal was to raise money and awareness in the battle against cancer. The Chancellors hit the ice wearing pink jerseys, pink socks and dawning pink tape on their sticks. To raise money for the Canadian Cancer Society, they raffled off a 2015-2016 Chancellors Pink the Rink edition jersey signed by the team, and a Brandon Wheat Kings jersey signed by Wheat Kings players. The team also contributed their portion of the 50/50, the winner of the 50/50 draw gave back half of their prize and parts of the admission fees were donated. In total, the Chancellors were able to raise $1455.75 on the evening, which was donated to the Canadian Cancer Society. Overall, the team was extremely impressed by the support the community offered to their cause, and they are thrilled with the amount being donated towards cancer. Submitted Minnedosa Chancellors hosted their first ever Pink the Rink game earlier this winter to raise money and awareness in the battle against cancer. The team was dressed in pink jerseys, pink socks and had placed pink tape on their sticks. The Chancellors would like to extend their thanks to everyone who attended that game, and the team has decided that Pink the Rink will become an annual event in Minnedosa. Meanwhile, MW Construction ran a Pink Hat campaign in compliance with breast cancer, in which employees and support people raised the money, which was then matched by MW Construction owner Paul Whittom. MW employees donned their pink hats for a photo with members of the Waves of Hope breast cancer survivor dragon boat team. In the second photo, Whittom presents a cheque for $4,000 to team treasurer Althia Sigurdson. Waves of Hopes vision is to reach all Westman residents with their message of early detection, hope, and vitality while offering encouragement and support after breast cancer diagnosis. For information on the team, check out wavesofhope.ca. Submitted Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 04/02/2016 (2450 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. TORONTO Trailer Park Boys actress Lucy DeCoutere acknowledged Thursday at the Jian Ghomeshi sexual assault trial that her profile soared after she made public allegations against the former CBC star as his lawyer repeatedly questioned why she maintained a friendship with him following an alleged attack. DeCoutere, who has waived her right to a publication ban, was the second complainant to take the stand at Ghomeshis closely watched trial. She is one of three women behind five charges against Ghomeshi four counts of sexual assault and one count of overcoming resistance by choking. Hes pleaded not guilty. Jian Ghomeshi walks in front of protesters as he arrives at a Toronto courthouse with his lawyer Marie Henein (left) for the third day of his trial on Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn DeCoutere, who angled her body away from Ghomeshi for much of the day, alleged that the 48-year-old CBC Radio personality started choking and slapping her in the face without warning while they were kissing in his bedroom in the summer of 2003. While she recalled vivid details of the incident when questioned by a Crown prosecutor, Ghomeshis defence lawyer accused DeCoutere of omitting key details when talking to the police. In a rapid-fire round of questioning that ended with a courtroom cliffhanger, Marie Henein asked why DeCoutere a captain for the Royal Canadian Air Force hadnt told police about some emails she exchanged with Ghomeshi after the alleged assault. Henein noted that the actress only disclosed them to the Crown this week, after the first complainant to testify at the trial was confronted with her own emails to the disgraced broadcaster that contradicted testimony about not contacting Ghomeshi after her separate alleged assaults. The very first time this call gets made is because you know the defence might have some of those emails you were worried about, Henein said. I didnt understand the importance of after-contact incidents. I also thought, because of my ignorance of the system, that I would be interviewed by the Crown in a way that would allow me to elaborate on my statement, DeCoutere explained. When it became clear to me that I would be walking into cross-examination and have the Crown potentially be surprised by contact which I had with Mr. Ghomeshi over time apart from the time that he assaulted me, I was, yes, very concerned that would come as a surprise. Do you want to tell His Honour the real conversation that was going on? Henein pressed. Im not sure what you mean, DeCoutere said quietly, right before the proceedings ended for the day, drawing gasps of exasperation from courtroom spectators. The cliffhanger came after Henein asked DeCoutere why she failed to tell police about a kiss on Ghomeshis couch, and a kiss goodbye, after the alleged attack that occurred in his home while she was on a weekend trip to Toronto. DeCoutere testified she hung around after the alleged assault because she was trying to normalize a situation that had left her stunned. She also pushed back against Henein, saying the subsequent smooching didnt take away from the fact that Ghomeshi had assaulted her. Henein also demanded to know why DeCoutere had not mentioned cuddling in a park with Ghomeshi a day after the alleged assault an interaction captured on film. Photographs of Ghomeshi and DeCoutere were then shown in court. I dont remember these photographs being taken, said DeCoutere. I dont remember cuddling with him in the parkI guess because it clearly didnt leave an impression with me. Is it possible that you have a convenient memory? Henein asked. No, I dont have a convenient memory, DeCoutere replied. As in her cross-examination of the previous complainant, Henein didnt challenge DeCouteres allegation that Ghomeshi hit her, but concentrated on other details of the time the two spent together. She also noted the degree of public recognition DeCouteres story has brought the actress. DeCoutere said she first met Ghomeshi at a conference in Alberta in the summer of 2003, where they had friendly and slightly flirtatious conversations that ended with Ghomeshi giving her his business card. The two emailed and phoned each other over the next month until DeCoutere, who lived in Halifax, made the trip to Toronto. DeCoutere recalled they went for dinner together and then walked to his house, though, she noted, she had no intention of having sex with him. Shortly after they arrived, DeCoutere said Ghomeshi suddenly started kissing her, then grabbed her by the throat, pushed her up against a wall and hit her repeatedly across the face with an open hand. It just started, there was no buildup, she said. He started kissing me quite suddenly, and then it was interrupted when he pushed me up against the wall and the way I remember it, he hit me a couple of times and was looking at me and then he hit me again and then he stopped. DeCoutere testified that she did not consent to being choked or slapped. I remember not being able to breathe; shock and surprise, she said. I had never had an adult hit me before. We werent having an argument. I was just completely bewildered. DeCoutere testified she didnt leave Ghomeshis house right away because she didnt want to be rude, didnt want to anger Ghomeshi and wanted to placate the situation. As I say this now its outrageous that I stayed and I didnt just leave, but that was my reaction, she said. I was thinking that maybe this assault was a one-off. I was thinking everyone makes gaffesI had no framework for where to file it. Ghomeshi, meanwhile, didnt seem to acknowledge the incident. It was like nothing happened, which further fed to my interest in downplaying things, she said. After sitting in Ghomeshis living room while he played his guitar, DeCoutere said she left an hour later. She testified that the next summer, the pair ran into each other at the same Banff conference where they had first met. During a karaoke session, Ghomeshi walked on stage while DeCoutere was singing and made it a duet. The song was called (Hit Me) Baby One More Time,' DeCoutere testified. He took my microphone and that was sort of a weird power play. She also testified that at an earlier encounter at an awards show, Ghomeshi put his hand on my throat to remind me that he had choked me and I was totally shocked. For me it was an affirmation. Already have an account? Log in here TORONTO - Writer-director Jamie M. Dagg has won the Claude Jutra Award for his debut feature "River." We need your support! Local journalism needs your support! As we navigate through unprecedented times, our journalists are working harder than ever to bring you the latest local updates to keep you safe and informed. Now, more than ever, we need your support. Starting at $4.99/month you can access your Brandon Sun online and full access to all content as it appears on our website. or call circulation directly at (204) 727-0527. Your pledge helps to ensure we provide the news that matters most to your community! Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 04/02/2016 (2450 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. VANCOUVER A union representing thousands of British Columbia government workers has signed an accord vowing to oppose pipelines from crossing the territories of 130 First Nations. The B.C. Government and Service Employees Union signed a solidarity accord affirming its support of the Save the Fraser declaration, taking aim at the provincial Liberals handling of resource projects. The document of indigenous law bans the Northern Gateway pipeline or similar projects from crossing the signatories territories. About a third of the unions 65,000 members work in direct government service. Treasurer Paul Finch said Thursday the union supports a recent B.C. Supreme Court ruling that found the province failed in its duty to consult with First Nations on Northern Gateway. Governments have a legal and moral responsibility to engage in meaningful consultations with First Nations peoples, to gain their support before projects of this kind proceed, he said. So far, the B.C. government has spectacularly failed in this responsibility. Asked whether the union had concerns about opposing pipelines that could create jobs for British Columbians, Finch said it did not. He said there must be a new approach to how oil and gas projects are assessed in the province. Were in favour of resource development projects. They just have to be done right, he said. We keep coming again and again into confrontation over these projects. Its very clear that how its being done is not working. Finch said union members strongly supported signing the accord and it had been years in the making. The Northern Gateway pipeline, headed by Calgary-based Enbridge (TSX:ENB), would carry heavy Alberta oil to B.C.s north coast and was approved in 2014 by the federal cabinet. First Nations and environmentalists have launched multiple legal challenges that are working their way through the courts. A judge ruled last month that the B.C. government failed to consult with First Nations on the pipeline, stemming from the provinces decision to allow a single environmental assessment process under the National Energy Board rather than conducting a separate provincial review. The provincial government has formally opposed both Northern Gateway and Kinder Morgans proposed Trans Mountain pipeline expansion. Saikuz Chief Stan Thomas of the Yinka Dene Alliance, which spearheaded the declaration, said indigenous laws have guided the way First Nations use their lands and waters for generations and should be respected by all Canadians. Thomas said the tide was turning on Northern Gateway, pointing to Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus call for a moratorium on crude oil tankers on B.C.s north coast. All of this is happening because we continue to uphold our laws and because First Nations and non-indigenous people are standing together, he said. First Nations from across B.C. have signed the declaration, symbolically banning pipelines from crossing large swaths of land that cover nearly the entire province. The solidarity accord has also been signed by other labour unions including Unifor and the B.C. Teachers Federation, as well as business, environmental and community groups. Northern Gateway spokesman Ivan Giesbrecht said 28 First Nations that have signed on as equity partners of the project stand to lose about $1 billion in long-term economic and educational benefits if Trudeaus proposed north coast tanker ban proceeds. The pipeline is expected to generate $1.2 billion in tax revenue for B.C. and create over 3,000 construction jobs and 560 long-term jobs in the province, he said, adding a total of 1,150 long-term jobs would be created, including in Alberta. Follow @ellekane on Twitter. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 04/02/2016 (2450 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. REGINA A union representing more than 13,000 Saskatchewan health care workers says human tissue should not be turned into a commodity to be bought and sold. The Canadian Union of Public Employees says private, for-profit blood donor clinics should be banned in Saskatchewan. CUPE Saskatchewan president Tom Graham says government should promote and expand the voluntary donor system if there is a shortage of blood and donors. I know the minister had said that we have a short supply here and we do, but this is not going to resolve that and its quite frankly risking the blood supply, Graham said Thursday. A company called Canadian Plasma Resources is setting up in Saskatoon and plans to pay people with $25 gift cards for making plasma donations. Health Canada said in an email to The Canadian Press that Canadian Plasma Resources is licensed to operate two sites in Toronto, although they have never been opened. The Ontario government has now banned such clinics. The company filed an amendment to their licence to open one site in Saskatchewan and that application is still under review. Canadian Plasma Resources said the plasma would be used to make other medical therapies, not for transfusions. CEO Dr. Barzin Bahardoust said Health Canada and similar regulatory bodies around the world have concluded that compensation for plasma donors does not affect the safety of the product. Bahardoust pointed to a 2013 statement from Canadian Blood Services which said that a prohibition on paying donors for plasma would deny patients access to these products. Last month, the federal NDP also called on Ottawa to ban plasma clinics that pay donors. But Saskatchewan Health Minister Dustin Duncan replied that his province would not follow suit. Duncan said he doesnt have a problem with the clinic and noted that 80 per cent of plasma used in Canada currently comes from paid donors in the United States and Europe. Bahardoust said the number of Canadian donations is just going down. About a decade ago it was 40 per cent. Now its around 20 per cent and if we dont do anything about it, probably in less than a decade it would be in single digits, Bahardoust said in a recent interview with The Canadian Press. Bahardoust said the centre would be inspected by Health Canada and comply with national regulations, including donor screening and testing. But Graham pointed out that a federal inquiry into the tainted blood scandal of the 1980s recommended against paying blood donors. Graham said safeguards dont always work. The more different bodies (there are) doing something, the more opportunity there is for errors to be made, said Graham. Were not blatantly stating that Canadian Plasma Resources is going to just ignore any kind of safety of precautions, but it just strikes us as a risk thats unnecessary and offers up no reward. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 04/02/2016 (2450 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. HALIFAX Controversial changes to a seniors drug plan are being re-assessed after hearing concerns from seniors and advocacy groups, Nova Scotias premier said Thursday as he acknowledged that the changes werent initially communicated properly. Stephen McNeil said his government is open to addressing concerns about the revamped program. (Seniors) have raised issues, real-life stories where people were coming and telling them, This is what it would mean to me, said McNeil after a cabinet meeting Thursday. We want to make sure there isnt any unintended consequences to our decision which was causing some more difficulty on people who are just over the threshold when it comes to paying the pharmacare premium. Pharmacare is based on a blend of government contributions and premiums charged to seniors, which under the new system will be based on the incomes of single people and couples. The province has said under the revised system, 12,000 seniors who previously paid a premium wont pay one beginning April 1, while wealthier seniors will see their payments rise. McNeil also conceded that a letter to seniors outlining the changes to the program was inappropriate and didnt convey the changes accurately. It left the impression that everyone was being hit with a major increase, when two thirds of seniors are having the same or reduced premiums, said McNeil. That letter certainly left the wrong impression. Theres no question. The Nova Scotia Health Coalition has complained to the Ombudsmans office over the Health Departments poor communication about the program changes. In a letter to the Ombudsman posted on its website Thursday, the coalition said there has been a lack of information about the changes and the information that has been provided has caused confusion among seniors. Seniors and their families across the province have been mistreated by this governments incoherent communications around this issue, it said. The confusion is causing great stress and alarm among seniors, many of whom are now worried their premiums could increase by up to 200 per cent. Nova Scotias opposition parties have accused the Liberal government of designing a seniors drug plan that will save the province money, but cost seniors more. But McNeil said the revamped program was designed to help seniors with low incomes. We wanted to ensure that low-income Nova Scotians were having access to pharmacare and not having to make choices between filling a (prescription) and one of the basic necessities of life: heat, said McNeil. Follow (at)AlyThomson on Twitter. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 04/02/2016 (2450 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. OTTAWA The next phase of Canadas engagement in the global effort to root out Islamic militants will be unveiled within days and will include new aid funding, the federal international development minister said Thursday. That was Marie-Claude Bibeaus rationale for holding back on contributing new money at an international donors meeting in London that saw $10 billion committed between now and 2020 to help the victims of Syrias civil war. We will be making our announcement in Canada with Prime Minister (Justin) Trudeau, the minister of external affairs and the minister of national defence in a couple of days or so, Bibeau told a conference call. Canada will remain a significant donor in terms of humanitarian assistance, and we will increase our contribution for development and resilience projects. Bibeau said its important for the government to announce a holistic approach that incorporates all of the military, diplomatic and humanitarian contributions. Canada took a similar approach during the war in Afghanistan. An evaluation of that $2-billion aid program by the former Canadian International Development Agency later found that the blurring of lines related to the politicization and militarization of humanitarian assistance caused limitations on where humanitarian agencies could operate, among other problems. Access for aid agencies is one the key challenges within Syria at present. We learned from our past experience, Bibeau said of what lessons could be drawn from Afghanistan, but she declined to discuss it further until the formal announcement is made. To date, Canada has committed $650 million in humanitarian aid for people affected by the Syrian civil war and $233 million for longer-term development. In addition to the urgent humanitarian needs in Syria, the surrounding countries are struggling to deal with the influx of millions of refugees putting pressure on everything from schools to sewers. In London on Thursday, Jordans King Abdullah said his country could not sustain unaided the burden of what he said was almost 1.3 million Syrian refugees one-fifth of Jordans population. The Jordanian figure includes all Syrians in the country, even those who came before 2011; the UN refugee agency says it has registered 630,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan. We are doing our best against very difficult odds, the king said, but added: We have reached our limit. Our country will continue to do what we can do to help those in need, but it cannot be at the expense of our own peoples welfare. Nicolas Moyer, executive director of the Humanitarian Coalition, a group of five Canadian agencies, said hes confident the Canadian government will do more. But he said Canadians must as well. The reality is we are not able to fundraise for the Syrian crisis as much as we would like, Moyer said. The need far outstrips the donations coming in, the access to resources that we have from all sources. The government is matching donations from Canadians until the end of this month. The fund announced by the previous Conservative government was supposed to expire in December but was extended. That didnt trigger an influx of new cash because of several factors, said Moyer, including the nature of the conflict, the domestic response to the Syrian refugee crisis and the work of humanitarian agencies themselves. Humanitarian organizations in Canada have solicited their donor bases and those have responded in a very strong way, but after five years of engaging our constituencies and asking them for more, its not surprising that there is, across the country, a certain apathy to the topic, he said. We need to be looking at working more closely together at options to engage the public in different ways. with files from The Associated Press Follow @StephanieLevitz on Twitter Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 04/02/2016 (2450 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. WINNIPEG Some indigenous people say Winnipegs taxi industry is rife with racism and are calling for a boycott until their concerns are addressed. Jackie Traverse said she and other indigenous women are treated like garbage subject to discrimination, sexual harassment and even assault. Most cab drivers demand payment up front from aboriginal passengers, if they stop to pick them up at all, she said. Traverse has started a volunteer ride-sharing page for indigenous women and is calling for people to boycott the taxis. Im hoping to hit them in the wallet, said Traverse, a 46-year-old artist. We make up a good portion of their income and you dont treat customers like garbage. Winnipeg has spent the last year trying to address race relations after Macleans magazine dubbed it the most racist city in Canada. Despite a recent race summit, problems persist. A decorated indigenous war veteran said he was recently kicked out of a downtown mall by a security guard. A grand chief complained last month she was profiled and followed by security in a store before she approached the manager. Traverse said she has been forced out of a moving cab by a driver and was assaulted years ago but didnt to press charges. She has resorted to waving money while trying to hail a cab just to get one to stop. She said she is almost always asked to pay up front. They shouldnt paint everybody with the same brush. Grand Chief Terrance Nelson with the Southern Chiefs Organization said his office has compiled dozens of stories from women who have been harassed, discriminated against and seriously assaulted. The issue is not being taken seriously by police or by the taxi industry, he said. The organization is looking at starting its own taxi company with a fleet of 10 cabs within six months, he said. There is growing frustration. These are our mothers, our daughters, our sisters, our granddaughters. Its very, very personal. Taxicab board chairman David Sanders said the board has received a few formal complaints and acts quickly to investigate. People often wait too long to lodge a complaint or dont show up to a formal hearing, which makes it harder to address, he said. Everyone should feel safe taking a cab in Winnipeg, Sanders said. The extent to which they dont means we have more work to do. The board has reached out to indigenous organizations and will look at providing more cultural training to drivers including indigenous history and conflict resolution, he said. A consultation on the state of the industry is to get underway after the April 19 provincial election, he added. Grand Chief Sheila North Wilson, who represents northern First Nations, said thats just a start. More indigenous people should be hired by the industry and there should be a greater emphasis on educating all newcomers about First Nations, she suggested. North Wilson said the inability of young women to count on a safe ride home is putting them at risk at a time when the number of missing and murdered indigenous women hovers around 1,200. It puts people who already at vulnerable stages in their lives to be more exposed to the element of racism on our streets. North Wilson does see the tolerance for racism running out. Marginalized people (are) standing up for themselves and saying enough is enough. We demand respect and deserve respect. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 04/02/2016 (2450 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. ST. JOHNS, N.L. Sebastian Benuen uses one word to describe the collapse of the criminal case against the man who had been charged with killing his four-month-old grandson: Devastating. I dont know whats going on with the justice (system), he said from Sheshatshiu, N.L., near Happy Valley-Goose Bay. Theres all kinds of questions that need to be answered. It has been a rough stretch for Newfoundland and Labradors Justice Department. It announced in December that a second-degree murder charge laid in 2013 had been withdrawn against Thomas Michel, the father of Benuens baby grandson, Matthew Rich. The case could not proceed because crucial evidence tissue from the babys brain had gone missing. That revelation was followed in recent weeks by several cases tossed out of court over undue delays and questionable investigative methods. They include a child pornography case that involved a long wait for forensic analysis from police, a major fraud case that took more than eight years to come to trial, and a child luring case dismissed due to Charter of Rights violations. It is not acceptable, Justice Minister Andrew Parsons said in an interview. We have to take the steps that are necessary to avoid this happening. Parsons was sworn in after the Liberals took power in December, following 12 years of Progressive Conservative rule. He said he doesnt know yet what it will take to prevent further cases being dismissed. Do we need better protocol? Better policy? Different resources? I dont know. These are the answers we are still seeking. Last month, Parsons asked Albertas Serious Incident Response Team to review the RCMPs investigation into the killing of Don Dunphy. He was shot dead last Easter Sunday by a Royal Newfoundland Constabulary member who was part of then-premier Paul Davis security team. The officer went alone to the home of Dunphy, 59, in Mitchells Brook to investigate a perceived threat against provincial politicians on Twitter. The RCMP have reported that the officer said he responded with lethal force after Dunphy pointed a loaded .22-calibre rifle at him. And in a separate case last month, the Justice Department also called in the Serious Incident Response Team from Nova Scotia to review a complaint regarding how the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary handled an undisclosed investigation. Details were sparse, but the director of the Halifax-based team said the matter involves allegations of potential criminal conduct. St. Johns lawyer Mark Gruchy believes at least some of the recent upheaval is linked to social and criminal fallout from the provinces unprecedented offshore oil boom and its sudden economic decline. Prosecutions have also become increasingly complex, he said in an interview. I feel like for a long time the political powers were kind of asleep at the wheel. I dont think they are anymore. Any changes must be considered in light of the provinces almost $2-billion projected deficit. A senior government source who was not authorized to speak publicly said growing pressure to cut spending by as much as 30 per cent wont enhance police work or case management. Still, Parsons has already said he wants to introduce civilian-run oversight for cases of potential police misconduct. He also plans an independent review of how baby Matthew Richs brain tissue was lost. When the murder charge against Michel was withdrawn in December, the Chief Medical Examiners office said that autopsy tissue is kept for independent review in suspicious deaths, including non-accidental head injury in infants. Following examination of the brain by a forensic pathologist and a neuropathologist, subsequent attempts to locate the specimen were unsuccessful and it appears (it) may have been inadvertently disposed, the office said in a statement. Im a dad, Parsons said. Its a very tragic case and I cant imagine what the familys going through. Benuen recalled how his daughter who he said is still in a relationship with Michel brought his grandson for a visit just before he died. I played with him. He was standing on my knees. He was a very healthy baby at that time. And all of a sudden, a couple of days later, hes gone. Somebody must be held responsible for mistakes that have denied the family justice, Benuen said. We need answers. Follow @suebailey on Twitter. Already have an account? Log in here MONTREAL - Five of 14 men accused in an alleged juvenile pornography ring in Quebec were set to be released from jail Thursday after being given strict bail conditions pending their trial. We need your support! Local journalism needs your support! As we navigate through unprecedented times, our journalists are working harder than ever to bring you the latest local updates to keep you safe and informed. Now, more than ever, we need your support. Starting at $4.99/month you can access your Brandon Sun online and full access to all content as it appears on our website. or call circulation directly at (204) 727-0527. Your pledge helps to ensure we provide the news that matters most to your community! The field of telecommunications has appeared in Vietnam for more than 30 years and has helped the business environment and social life of ... Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 04/02/2016 (2450 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. CALGARY The CEO of Canadas biggest oilsands player says about 1,700 jobs were shed over the past year or so far surpassing its original target. Just over a year ago, Suncor Energy (TSX:SU) announced it would be cutting 1,000 jobs because of the sharp downturn in crude prices. We significantly overachieved, CEO Steve Williams said on a conference call with analysts on Thursday to discuss Suncors fourth-quarter results. Suncor President & CEO Steve Williams speaks to shareholders during Suncor Energy's annual general meeting in Edmonton on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. The CEO of Canada's biggest oilsands player says about 1,700 jobs were shed over the past year or so ??? far surpassing its original target. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jason Franson About 1,900 contractor and full-time employee positions were cut. But Suncor was able to move about 200 to 250 of those to work on projects under construction, mainly the Fort Hills oilsands project north of Fort McMurray, Alta., to bring the net reduction to about 1,700. Williams said no more job cuts are anticipated this year, with further cost cuts coming from improving processes and leaning on suppliers. Suncor posted a $2-billion net loss for the final three months of 2015, due to the crude price collapse, writedowns and a foreign-exchange loss related to debt denominated in U.S. dollars. A year earlier, it posted a net profit of $84 million. West Texas Intermediate crude prices averaged US$41.15 for the fourth quarter of 2015 versus US$73.15 in the prior-year quarter. The picture has since worsened, with WTI at around US$33 a barrel on Thursday. Suncor had a quarterly operating loss removing the impacts of unusual items of $26 million, versus an operating profit of profits of $386 million a year earlier. Its lowering its spending plans for 2016, with a capital budget of between $6 billion and $6.5 billion compared with the $6.7 billion to $7.3 billion range it set in November. Despite the fact that virtually all oilsands projects are losing money at current oil prices, Williams said Suncor is not ruling out more acquisitions. Suncor launched a hostile takeover for Canadian Oil Sands in October in a battle that became nasty at times. But the two companies reached a friendly deal in January thats worth $6.6 billion, including the target companys debt. An analyst asked Williams whether Suncor would stop at COS, or look to buy out other oilsands players like MEG Energy (TSX:MEG) or Cenovus Energy (TSX:CVE) He said there are no specific plans in the works, but that Suncor would weigh any opportunities that may arise. The crude rout has battered the share prices of energy firms, making them available at bargain prices. Im not going to tell you that we welcomed these much lower for much longer prices, but what I would say is that we see this period as just as much an opportunity as a threat, Williams said. Follow @LaurenKrugel on Twitter Microfinance Ireland has said 930 jobs were supported in small companies last year, after it approved 5.4m worth of loans. A total of 357 small companies were supported, out of 752 loan applications. Labour Environment Minister Alan Kelly has said water charges are not a major issue with the voting public, and claimed people were far more concerned with employment. The Environment Minister dismissed calls for Irish Water to be disbanded and the function returned to local councils. A new MRBI poll reveals that General Election 2016 is a wide open race. There is bad news for the Coalition as Fine Gael is down two points to 28% since the end of November, while Labour remains unchanged at 7%. Fianna Fail is up two to 21%, while Sinn Fein is down two at 19%. There is also good news in the Irish Times/Ipsos MRBI poll for Independents whose support has risen to 25%. This indicates they remain on course for a record result on election day. The combined poll result for the Coalition partners - 35% - would not see them reelected to government on their own. The election takes place on Friday, February 26, with the new Dail to meet on Thursday, March 10. Meanwhile, the economy looks set to dominate day two of Election 2016. Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny will today publish the party's long term economic plan, before campaigning in the midlands and east of the country. Labour is sticking to the financial theme - in Co Louth, Joan Burton will unveil plans on how to achieve full employment. Fianna Fail will outline proposals for mortgages and Micheal Martin will campaign in Waterford. Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams will campaign in Louth and Dublin, The People Before Profit, Anti Austerity alliance have a launch in Dublin, as do the Greens. By Daniel McConnell, Irish Examiner Political Editor Dublin South Independent TD Peter Mathews has disclosed he has been diagnosed with cancer, but he will contest the General Election. Mr Mathews, a banker turned politician, is running for re-election in Dublin-Rathdown, issued a statement today in which he revealed that he was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer last month. Mr Mathews, who left Fine Gael in 2013, said that the cancer is curable and he expects to be back in full health in the next number of months. He said his campaign will continue as he undergoes treatment. Born in 1951, the chartered accountant was elected as a Fine Gael TD for Dublin South in 2011, but lost the party whip when he voted against the Protection of Life during Pregnancy Bill. He initially joined the Reform Alliance with Lucinda Creighton, Terrence Flanagan and Denis Naughten, but did not go on to join Renua Ireland. He has been a thorn in the side of Ceann Comhairle Sean Barrett and has been ejected from the Dail on numerous occasions for his outbursts. The Simon Communities of Ireland are calling on people to ask canvassing General Election candidates about housing and homelessness. The homelessness charity said the issue of housing was one that affects all communities in all areas of the country. The United Nations has expressed concern about how the economic crash has affected children here. The Office of the High Commissioner has released its findings following a review of how children's rights are recognised in Ireland. In January, the Minister for Children appeared before the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child in Geneva to discuss Ireland's efforts to provide for chidren. This morning the committee released its findings following that review. The body says it is particularly concerned about how children with disabilities and those who live in Direct Provision are treated here. It has called for an increase in child benefit and other financial supports to children, particulary those with disabilities, to bring them in line with the increase in the cost of living. The committee has praised Ireland's successful exit from the financial bailout, but has raised concerns about cuts to departments including the Children's Ombudsman's office during the crash. It has again highlighted concerns about discrimination against Traveller and Roma children. Ireland has until 2021 to submit its next progress report. Well, I am starting a Wall of Shame for people who show that they have no clue about plants in general. I will be totally fair and I'm not going to expect ... 12 years ago Lazio will serve a two-match partial stadium ban after Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly was subjected to racist chants by a section of home fans at the Stadio Olimpico on Wednesday night. The referees report confirms the Senegalese was the target of abuse during the second half of a 2-0 Napoli victory, with match official Massimiliano Irrati deciding to halt play until the chanting abated. Lega Serie As disciplinary tribunal has now sanctioned Lazio by closing the Olimpicos north stand, where the clubs hardcore supporters gather, for their next home league game against Hellas Verona. The league has also activated a suspended partial ban issued last February after racist chanting in a match against Genoa, meaning the Curva Nord will remain closed for the visit of Sassuolo. A statement published on legaseriea.it said Lazio had to pay a 50,000 euro fine. Koulibaly, whose every touch was met by boos from a cluster of Lazio fans, thanked Tuscan referee Irrati for his support with an Instagram post. The 24-year-old wrote: A great win! I must thank everybody for their messages of solidarity. I also want to thank the Lazio fans but most of all, for his courage, referee Irrati. Thanks also to my team-mates, the club and our fans who have been a great support in the face of those ugly chants. Napoli boss Maurizio Sarri bemoaned the supporters behaviour following full-time in Rome. He told sscnapoli.it: I spoke with the fourth official because the situation was becoming embarrassing and I saw Koulibaly was getting really annoyed and wound up by the chants. So I think the referee took the right decision and I must congratulate him because hes sent a good message. Sarris opposite number Stefano Pioli, while condemning the abuse, did not think the stoppage was necessary or productive. He told RAI Sport: Abusive chants should not happen. People need to show respect and be polite. But I am not sure I would have stopped play I dont think thats helpful. The chanting is unjustified but by stopping play you give a sense of importance to a tiny minority of troublemakers. It certainly wasnt from the whole stadium. Top-flight officials have been granted the power to halt or even abandon games in the face of discriminatory behaviour from fans following a series of racist incidents. Mario Balotelli, Kevin-Prince Boateng and Kevin Constant are other players who have been targeted with abusive chants, with Atalanta supporters throwing bananas at the latter in May 2014. A year earlier, Boateng and his AC Milan team-mates walked off the pitch during a friendly match against Pro Patria when the midfielder was racially abused. A pregnant woman is among the seven people identified as being infected with the Zika virus in Spain after visiting affected countries. The countrys health ministry said the woman travelled to Colombia, was presumably infected during the trip and is in her second trimester of pregnancy. Saudi Arabia is ready to send ground troops to Syria to fight Islamic State, provided coalition leaders agree during an upcoming meeting in Brussels, a Saudi military spokesman has said. Brigadier General Ahmed Asiri said Saudi Arabia has taken part in coalition air strikes against IS since the US-led campaign began in September 2014, but would now provide ground troops. Don't Miss the Latest News Subscribing is the best way to get our best stories immediately. SINGAPORE: US oil may test a resistance at $87 per barrel, a break above which could open the way towards... South Dakota Says Enough - Moves To Stop Transgender Students From Using Opposite-Sex Bathrooms As Rush Limbaugh likes to keep it simple for those living in Rio Linda, CA. It's not what you call yourself or how you dress. It is what you have for your personal plumbing. Those with a male anatomies should be using the Male's Bathrooms and showers - not the Female bathrooms and showers. And vice versa for those with female anatomies. Those with a Female anatomies should be using the Female's Bathrooms and showers - not the Male bathrooms and showers. If you have your plumbing physically (not mentally) changed, you will adjust accordingly to the appropriate bathroom. This is not a mental or emotional issue, it is an anatomical issue. ~ Bill Smith, ARRA News Service ------------------ Im concerned about what I see happening in schools across our country, said Rep. Fred Deutsch, a Republican from Florence who introduced a bill last week that would ban transgender students from using school facilities opposite from their biological sex. Federal bureaucrats, without the force of federal law, are threatening to withhold federal funding from schools that do not allow transgender students full, unrestricted access to facilities of the opposite biological sex. I dont want that to happen in South Dakota. And I especially dont want our children to be required by the federal government to shower, change or use restrooms with other young people of the opposite biological sex. The bill, Left-leaning groups like the Human Rights Campaign said the bill is nothing more than a vile attack on students who are already vulnerable to high rates of discrimination and harassment. The South Dakota House of Representatives vote in favor of discrimination against transgender students is alarming and appalling, said JoDee Winterhof, HRC senior vice president for Policy and Political Affairs at the Human Rights Council, The legislation requires that a reasonable accommodation be made for students asserting their gender is different from their biological sex, and described a reasonable accommodation as one that does not impose an undue hardship on a school district, a single-occupancy restroom, a unisex restroom, or the controlled use of a restroom, locker room or shower room that is designated for use by faculty. Deutch views his legislation as a necessary response to what he considers That guidance states that Title IX protects transgender students from sex discrimination. Title IX is the federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in any education program that receives federal funding. Prior to the 2014 issued guidance, it was unclear whether or not the law applied to students using sex-segregated facilities. If schools do not comply with Title IX laws, they could be at risk of losing their federal funding. Last year, a school in Palatine, Ill., experienced that first-hand, when the Department of Education threatened to strip them of millions of dollars in federal funding for refusing to grant a transgender student who was born male but identifies as female full, unrestrained access to the girls locker rooms. In its investigation, the Department of Educations Office of Civil Rights However, that ruling conflicts with two decisions handed down in A similar case in Fairfax, Va., could elevate the legal debate. There, a teen who was born female but identifies as male is taking the case to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, where its decision could have a national impact. --------------- Kelsey Harkness (@kelseyjharkness) is a news producer at The Daily Signal. Tags: South Dakota, moves to stop, transgender students, , opposite-sex bathrooms, Kelsey Harkness, The Daily Signal To share or post to your site, click on "Post Link". Please mention / link to the ARRA News Service. and "Like" Facebook Page - Thanks! ~ Bill Smith, ARRA News Service------------------ by Kelsey Harkness : South Dakota could soon become the first state in the nation to pass legislation that would ban students from using public school bathrooms, locker rooms and showers that are opposite from their biological sex.Im concerned about what I see happening in schools across our country, said Rep. Fred Deutsch, a Republican from Florence who introduced a bill last week that would ban transgender students from using school facilities opposite from their biological sex.The bill, HB 1008 , passed the House last week by a vote of 58 to 10. The measure is expected to be taken up by the Senate this week.Left-leaning groups like the Human Rights Campaign said the bill is nothing more than a vile attack on students who are already vulnerable to high rates of discrimination and harassment.The South Dakota House of Representatives vote in favor of discrimination against transgender students is alarming and appalling, said JoDee Winterhof, HRC senior vice president for Policy and Political Affairs at the Human Rights Council, in a press release . Fair-minded South Dakotans absolutely must stand up now and demand their lawmakers in the Senate stop this hateful legislation from moving any further.The legislation requires that a reasonable accommodation be made for students asserting their gender is different from their biological sex, and described a reasonable accommodation as one that does not impose an undue hardship on a school district, a single-occupancy restroom, a unisex restroom, or the controlled use of a restroom, locker room or shower room that is designated for use by faculty.Deutch views his legislation as a necessary response to what he considers aggressive actions on behalf of the Obama administration to ensure schools comply with guidance they issued in April 2014.That guidance states that Title IX protects transgender students from sex discrimination.Title IX is the federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in any education program that receives federal funding. Prior to the 2014 issued guidance, it was unclear whether or not the law applied to students using sex-segregated facilities.If schools do not comply with Title IX laws, they could be at risk of losing their federal funding.Last year, a school in Palatine, Ill., experienced that first-hand, when the Department of Education threatened to strip them of millions of dollars in federal funding for refusing to grant a transgender student who was born male but identifies as female full, unrestrained access to the girls locker rooms.In its investigation, the Department of Educations Office of Civil Rights ruled that Township High School District 211 had discriminated against the student on the basis of sex.However, that ruling conflicts with two decisions handed down in Pennsylvania and Virginia , where courts ruled that Title IX does not apply to the issue of transgender students using sex-segregated facilities.A similar case in Fairfax, Va., could elevate the legal debate. There, a teen who was born female but identifies as male is taking the case to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit, where its decision could have a national impact.--------------- Posted by Bill Smith at 5:38 PM - Post Link LAHORE: While there is no let up in the spread of dengue, the Punjab government has increased the number of beds for... YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. Lubos Blaha, a Member of Parliament in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), announced he will continue to support Armenians in the conflict with Azerbaijan and Turkey. Blaha left a note about this on his Facebook page, Armenpress reports. I got a warm letter from the Armenian ambassador. It does not contain a state secret so I translated a few sentences from it. Dear Mr. Blaha, thanks to the Slovak delegations strongly support in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, anti-Armenian report Escalation of Violence in Nagorno-Karabakh and Other Occupied Territories of Azerbaijan was rejected. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to you and the other members of the Slovak delegation on protecting the position of Minsk Group co-chairs and Armenia for taking too active steps in Strasbourg. Your votes have made great contributions to the continuation of the peace process based on Madrid principles (2007). I am aware of the circumstances on your travel to Strasbourg and let me express my gratitude also for these efforts. I am very grateful for the respectful words; I treat Mr. Ambassador with respect and I assure Armenia that I always stand on the side, where truth and peace exist. I will continue to support Armenians in Armenia's conflict with Azerbaijan and Turkey, as you deserve it. LONDON: Liz Truss said on Thursday she would resign as British prime minister, brought down just six weeks into the... YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. A Russian military advisor who was killed in Syria has been posthumously awarded a State award, the Russian Defense Ministry said on February 3, Armenpress reports citing Sputniknews website. According to the ministry, the official was killed after a mortar shelling of the Syrian armys military garrison by the Islamic State militant group, prohibited in Russia. "A Russian military advisor in Syria was carrying tasks of helping the Syrian army familiarize itself with the new weapons supplied within the framework of acting intergovernmental contracts on military-technical cooperation," the ministry said. The Russian Aerospace Defense Forces have been conducting an aerial campaign against the terrorist positions in Syria since September 30, following a request from President Assad. TEHRAN: Iran has once again rejected allegations that it has supplied Russia with weapons "to be used in the war in... YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. The 4th session of regular four-day sittings launched at the National Assembly (NA). 115 MPs were registered, Armenpress reports. The previous days issues will be put to the vote at the beginning of the session. During the session of February 3 MPs continued to discuss the credit agreement The investment project on sustainable urban development signed between the Republic of Armenia (RA) and Asian Development Bank on October 13, 2015. Then the parliament discussed the credit agreement Additional Financing of the Lifeline Road Network Improvement Project signed between RA and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development on August 26, 2015. According to the agreement, EBRD will allocate $ 40 million loan for 25 years reimbursement term. The loan will be used to improve roads of vital importance. Parliament will continue the discussion of the credit agreement at the meeting of February 4. Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop (left) arrives at the Supporting Syria Conference. Australia has promised an extra $20 million for life-saving humanitarian assistance in Syria, and $5 million to Iraq. Credit:Getty Images Her announcement of the extra multi-year package was "not at all" a reaction to the level of contributions from other countries on Thursday, she said. Ms Bishop rejected criticism from several charities that Australia's latest contribution was less than its fair share. Activist and Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai stressed the need for Syrian children to receive education in exile. Credit:Getty Images "I would ask them to tell me where they would like me to find the money, where they would like me to cut funding in order to provide more," she said. "This is not a bottomless pit." Australians should be proud of the help they were giving in the region, she said. "We must end sieges and bring food to starving people": UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. Credit:Getty Images German Chancellor Angela Merkel has pledged 2.3 billion ($3.6 billion) in aid for Syria, in response to the worsening humanitarian crisis and the resulted exodus of refugees. "Today should be a day of hope," Dr Merkel said. The pledge, which was greeted by British Prime Minister David Cameron as "extraordinarily generous", came at a gathering of international donors in London attended by 70 countries' representatives and co-ordinated by the United Nations. Two-thirds of those still in Syria need help, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said. Half of the refugees who left Syria were children. "The requirements are immense," he said. "We must end sieges and bring food to starving people." More than 13 million Syrians are urgently in need of aid, and hundreds of thousands are trapped in areas where food deliveries are rare or non-existent. Organisers of the Supporting Syria conference in London hoped to raise billions more in pledges on Thursday, which would go directly to Syria to help starving citizens, and to countries in the region helping, housing, feeding and educating Syrians who have fled the conflict. More than 1.1 billion ($1.71 billion) would come from Germany this year, Dr Merkel said. The chancellor is under increasing pressure to reduce the number of migrants coming into Germany, as Germans worry about the economic impact of the million-plus who arrived last year. Public concern sharpened after scores of sexual assaults were reported from a gathering of migrants in Cologne at New Year's Eve. A survey this week by public broadcaster ARD showed popular support for the Chancellor was at its lowest level for almost five years. The UK pledged to invest an extra 1.2 billion ($2.5 billion) in international aid for Syria and the region between now and 2020, doubling its aid commitment. It would go into immediate aid but also into job-creation and education, Mr Cameron said. "We can provide the sense of hope needed to stop people thinking they have no option but to risk their lives on a dangerous journey to Europe," he said. Norway increased its aid to Syria and the region to NOK 2.4 billion ($391 million), and promised to provide a total of NOK 10 billion ($1.63 billion) over the next four years. Australia has promised an extra $20 million for life-saving humanitarian assistance in Syria, and $5 million to Iraq, through groups such as the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), World Food Programme (WFP) and Australian NGOs. Australia's assistance will help Syrian refugees and their host communities in the region access vital resources such as food, shelter and protection, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said. The Australian government will also deploy 10 Australian Civilian Corps specialists to Lebanon and Jordan to help with education, water, sanitation, camp infrastructure, logistics and protection for Syrian refugees. The conference was also addressed by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai, who stressed the need for Syrian children to receive education in exile, so a generation did not lose their opportunities for a better life. On Wednesday, the UN suspended Syrian peace talks amid a renewed offensive by the Assad regime and Russia. US secretary of state John Kerry said the suffering in Syria was growing, and "should tear at our consciences". He announced the US, which had already donated US$4.5 billion ($6.4 billion), would donate another US$925 million ($1.3 billion) in aid. The territory government will seek more information over a mooted federal take over of TAFE funding, as part of a leaked plan to be presented to the states and territories next month. On Thursday, Fairfax Media reported the Turnbull government proposal would see TAFE fees deregulated and institutions receiving the same funding as some privately operated colleges. The changes, set to be considered by the Council of Australian Governments, are designed as measures to increase competition in the sector. ACT Higher Education Minister Meegan Fitzharris says she is 'very cautious' about the leaked proposal. Credit:Melissa Adams Newly appointed ACT Higher Education, Training and Research Minister Meegan Fitzharris said the government had expected some proposals for changes, but more information was needed. Leaked federal government documents show the states and territories could provide top-up funding for TAFE bodies, but only to ensure "competitive neutrality" with private providers operating in the market. The thoughts of the fish could only be guessed at as Free Rain Theatre Company launched its forthcoming production of The Little Mermaid at the National Zoo and Aquarium on Thursday with a few songs from the show. This Canberra premiere production of the Disney stage musical adapted from the animated movie based on Hans Christian Andersen's fairytale tells the story of Ariel (played by Mikayla Williams), a mermaid fascinated by the world above the sea. She falls in love with the human Prince Eric (Tim Dal Cortivo) and seeks the help of the evil sea witch Ursula (Louiza Blomfield) to trade her tail for legs so she can meet him but also loses her voice in the bargain. Mikayla Williams will play Ariel in The Little Mermaid. Credit:Jamila Toderas Williams a brunette who dyed her hair when she starred as Elle in Free Rain's Legally Blonde a couple of years ago said she would be red-headed for Ariel, though whether she would wear a wig or dye her hair again was still under discussion. Either way, though, she was excited to be playing the part. Starting in rural areas south of Tuggeranong around the Brindabellas, helicopters will inspect the distance between vegetation and powerlines using Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) remote sensing technology. Helicopters will fly as low as 110 metres in some areas across the Canberra region as the electricity company's annual inspection program rolls out on Thursday. Helicopters will be used to inspect Canberra's overhead powerlines this month. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer Aerial inspections of Canberra's overheard powerlines are to prevent blackouts and bushfires, ActewAGL says. The aircraft will fly at around 110-150 metres in rural areas and around 310 metres in urban areas with minimal hovering, ActewAGL manager works delivery Clinton McAlister said. "The helicopter patrol is a significant part of our overall network maintenance program and bushfire mitigation strategy," he said. "Trees and vegetation growing too close to powerlines can cause blackouts and create safety hazards such as grass fires and bushfires. Trees and vegetation can also restrict access, preventing essential maintenance from being carried out." The helicopter will also take high resolution pole top images in rural areas with a high bushfire risk to determine where the priorities for preventative maintenance lies. Residents or the ACT Government will receive a notification if their vegetation is deemed to be too close to powerlines in suburban areas. The Australian domestic aviation market had weaker demand than any other major region of the world last year, with the number of passengers up just 0.4 per cent and capacity down by 0.2 per cent, according to new data from the International Air Transport Association. The subdued conditions in the Australian market, which has been hit by a downturn in flying in the mining and oil and gas sectors, compared with an average 6.3 per cent rise in demand and 5.2 per cent rise in capacity across major domestic markets such as the United States, Russia, India, China, Brazil and Japan. Qantas and Virgin Australia added little capacity last year, in a move that led to rising domestic airfares. Credit:Brendon Thorne Qantas and Virgin Australia have been cutting capacity in their mainline divisions as a result of weak demand, although they have been boosting capacity at low-cost carriers Jetstar and Tigerair Australia. Qantas in particular has been shifting capacity from Western Australian mining towns to east coast leisure spots to take advantage of a rising number of international tourists and increased domestic holiday travel resulting from the lower Australian dollar. The corporate watchdog has banned a former National Australia Bank adviser from providing financial services for seven years, saying he profited from submitting forms with forged client signatures. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission on Thursday announced the penalty for Shane Thompson, of New Gisborne in Victoria, a former NAB adviser accused of misleading and deceptive conduct. The banning of a former NAB adviser has resulted from ASIC's investigation into the big banks' wealth arms. Between late 2012 and early 2013, ASIC said Mr Thompson had prepared "change of adviser" forms, including some with forged signatures, which he submitted in order to mislead a financial product issuer. Submitting the forms meant general NAB clients were transferred onto his personal financial planning client list, and he received "financial planning remuneration benefit" as a result. Nintendo's first app made exclusively for mobile devices will launch on Android and iOS in March, and is the first of five apps the company will launch between now and the end of March 2017. Called Miitomo, the app is the Japanese gaming giant's take on a social network. The title is a portmanteau of tomo the Japanese word for 'friend' and Mii, the name given to the big-headed digital avatars Nintendo has used across its game systems since the Wii. More than 200 million Mii characters have been created across Nintendo systems so far, a number that's set to grow with the launch of Miitomo in March. Credit:Nintendo While most social networks allow users to post status updates, Miitomo will "spark fun and interesting conversation" by asking users to answer offbeat questions and sharing the answers between friends. "By answering questions in Miitomo, users will be able to discover surprising information and secrets about their friends," Nintendo said in a release. Photo-sharing will also feature in the app, but again with a Nintendo twist. Users will "share their experiences with others easily by taking and sharing photos featuring their Mii using the Miifoto feature," Nintendo said. The app was detailed during Nintendo's latest earnings report, during which new president Tatsumi Kimishima said the company's second app would feature one of its "best known" characters. He also detailed Nintendo Account, a new initiative to give users one identity across all Nintendo products which will begin in the coming weeks, and said that Miitomo would launch alongside a new program to reward people for using Nintendo products across game systems, smartphones and PCs. From February 17 Australians will be able to pre-register for Miitomo by using their existing social media account or email address to create a Nintendo account. Anybody who does so will apparently be offered "a special bonus" once the rewards system launches in March. Nintendo made the surprising announcement that it was working on smartphone games and apps around this time last year. Since then it has experimented with various mobile strategies in the video games for its handheld 3DS system, most recently with a free-to-download claw-grabbing game that encourages users to make small payments for the chance to win virtual badges. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. Relatively quiet situation dominated in the contact line of Karabakh-Azerbajani antagonistic troops during the entire day of February 3 and in the night of February 4. In the mentioned period enemy units, unlike taken mortar attacks during previous days, used rifle weapons towards a number of Armenian positions including machine guns and sniper rifles, press service of NKR Defense Ministry informed Armenpress. Staff of the Defense Armys frontier troops mostly refrained from response actions and took restrictive measures in case of need. BEACH HOUSE Sydney Opera House, February 3 You'd think the lofty, splendorous surrounds of the Sydney Opera House would be a perfect fit for Baltimore dream pop duo Beach House. Beach House: With live drums and bass added to the usual two-man show, everything was bigger, deeper and more forceful than we're used to. Credit:Prudence Upton But somehow it has taken almost a decade for them to get here. Nine years after their first track, Saltwater, Beach House are finally performing it on the Concert Hall stage in all its fuzzy, washed out glory. THEATRE THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST Oscar Wilde, Vaudeville Theatre London Selected cinemas, from February 6 "We live, I regret to say, in an age of surfaces," Lady Bracknell half-complains at the end of The Importance of Being Earnest. Of course, no one could be as devoted to keeping up appearances as Oscar Wilde's dragon lady and it's one of the play's ticklish ironies that the stern voice of the Establishment comes from a woman who started as a social climber of no means, clinging like a spider to every surface in sight. The Importance of Being Earnest ensemble, with David Suchet as Lady Bracknell. Credit:Nobby Clark The duplicity at the heart of Lady Bracknell, committed Bunburyist that she is, has attracted cross-gendered casting. If that seems an inevitable idea, the character still doesn't feel a natural fit for male actors. Australia's last significant production of Wilde's classic saw Geoffrey Rush in the role, and there was a pantomime coarseness to the way he filled out the bustle. Now it's David Suchet's turn as Lady B, and he steps into the gown as the heaviest note in a light and lovely production from Adrian Noble, recorded live from the Vaudeville Theatre in London. Those comments, though, came from Naomi Hodgson, a campaigner for The Wilderness Society, who joined about 20 anti-CSG protesters on Thursday outside Santos's Narrabri Gas Project 350 km north-west of Gloucester. No surprise, perhaps, that anti-CSG protesters had something to celebrate with AGL's decision to throw in the towel on gas exploration and production projects at Gloucester and Camden that would have involved $1 billion or more in spending. "It was jubilation. We're extremely empowered and excited that there's been another victory by the NSW community against coal seam gas." Some 16 protesters have been charged at the Santos' desalination plant works in the past two months, including a 47-year-old grandmother who was sprayed with pepper spray by police on Monday while locked on to machinery with another woman. Unless another brave company steps forward, Santos will once AGL exits its existing Camden field with its 96 operating wells in 2023 have the unenviable role as the sole remaining torch bearer of CSG in NSW. In Santos's favour is the fact that the government is more confident about the risks of drilling in the geological structures in the Pilliga than scientists ever were with the Gloucester project. Stuart Khan, an associate professor in engineering at UNSW, says the plan for 850 wells in the Pilliga also gives the project a greater scale to sort out the problems of salt disposal from the CSG production hence the desal plant under construction that is now the target of protest. By comparison, Khan notes that AGL was trying to get away with a plan to use the waste water after dilution for irrigation or at least until the Environment Protection Authority belatedly blew the whistle on the concept. Some of Australia's leading climate scientists will learn on Friday whether they still have a job when CSIRO managers provide details of savage cuts to their units. Larry Marshall, the new CSIRO chief executive, told staff by email on Thursday that 350 jobs would go over the next two years, with climate scientists in the Ocean and Atmosphere, and Land and Water units bearing the brunt of the cuts. Data and Manufacturing were also hit. Antarctic research is among areas of climate science that is expected to be hit by the CSIRO cuts. Credit:Nicholas Golledge While the organisation had pioneered climate research "the same way we saved the cotton and wool industries for our nation", the CSIRO "cannot rest on our laurels as that is the path to mediocrity," Dr Marshall said. Ninety-five per cent of asylum-seeker children who have lived at Nauru are at risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder, a medical team led by the Australian Human Rights Commission has found, in research that will fuel calls for asylum seekers in Australia to be saved from returning to offshore detention. The team interviewed children at Darwin's Wickham Point detention centre, most of whom had spent several months at Nauru, and found they were among the most traumatised children the paediatricians had seen. The researchers concluded that immigration detention at Nauru and Wickham Point centre is harmful to the physical and mental health of young children and youth. Cockroaches wriggle over one boy's body and spread to his face. Another is grabbed from behind; he runs for his mother but she has disappeared. A young girl sees thieves and another simply watches "my father and mother crying". These are the nightmares of children locked in Darwin's Wickham Point detention centre, where asylum seekers live in compounds named "Sand", "Surf and "Sun", and children's developmental risks are worse than any in the history of published medical research. "He is depressed, scratches himself [until] he bleeds," the mother of one 16-year-old boy told a medical team led by the Australian Human Rights Commission. Those are the words of Geoff Thorn, President of the Australian Window Cleaning Federation. You name it, it seems window cleaners have seen it and for good reason it is a trade that has earned the reputation for more than its share of 'wink, wink, know what I mean' humour. The lyrics in one version included the lines: 'Now lots of girls I've had to jilt, For they admire the way I'm built, It's a good job I don't wear a kilt, When I'm cleaning windows!" No wonder the BBC banned it from the nation's airwaves with director John Reith dismissing it as a 'disgusting little ditty'. But is the reputation still justified? Definitely if Ryan of Ryan's Window Cleaning is anything to go by. It is relevant to know he is 32 and single. "Recently I was working a big home up in Vaucluse," he said. "It was one of those warm days the week before last. I was dripping in sweat. When it was time to pay the lady came over to me. All she could do was look at my chest," he said. "She said would you like to go for a swim in the pool? I thought why is this woman flirting with me? I had met her husband. I said I needed to get home. She said: 'No, no, go for a swim.' I went for a quick dip and I noticed she kept looking out through the lounge windows." Another time, Ryan recalled, he was in a house near Parramatta on the water and the woman was there by herself. I'd been there for an hour or two and I was doing the inside of the windows in her bedroom. She came in and sat down on the bed and said: 'Ryan, do you do any services other than window cleaning?' YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. Not only necessity but also the possibility to reduce the price of gas is obvious conditioned by geopolitical developments. Armenian Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan announced during the session of February 4. It is essential for Armenian entrepreneurs the energy price not hindering the competitiveness of their products and we are concerned for Gazprom Armenia, as Armenias essential infrastructure, to be stable and reasonably profitable, Hovik Abrahamyan announced, Armenpress reports. However, according to the Prime Minister, the prices for the economy and the population should also be available and beneficial. The reduction in gas consumption clearly indicates that the company may have higher revenues in the case of lower prices, Hovik Abrahamyan announced. Located in a converted terrace in Sydney's inner west, the Balmain Uniting Church is one of the first suburban churches to offer sanctuary to asylum seekers at imminent risk of deportation. "We would do whatever it took to stop the government from taking them, we would stand in the way of the authorities," said Reverend Nicole Fleming. "And we are ready to go to jail, if that's what it comes to." On Wednesday, the High Court ruled that Australia's offshore detention is legal, clearing the way for 270 asylum seekers including 37 babies born in Australia to be returned either to Nauru or Manus Island. Emergency services personnel say a campaign to introduce tougher penalties against those who assault them on the job is gaining momentum. Paramedics filled the gallery at Southport Magistrates Court on Thursday for a mention of a man accused of assaulting an ambulance officer on the northern end of the Gold Coast in December. Ambos have protested outside Southport court. Matthew James Thielemans-Stirling is accused of serious assault of a public officer and common assault following the incident in Upper Coomera. Widening the Pacific Motorway near Logan needs to be the priority for both Queensland and Federal governments, Gold Coast mayor Tom Tate said. Cr Tate welcomed the decision by the Department of Transport and Main Roads on Wednesday to gazette a section of land in the new Gold Coast City Plan that will provide protection for a future alternative to one section of the Pacific Motorway. Gold Coast Mayor Tom Tate says widening the Logan section of the Pacific Motorway should be a priority. Credit:Tony Moore Cr Tate said he would write to new Transport and Main Roads minister Mark Bailey outlining exactly why the land should be preserved. The previous LNP state government in 2014 removed the zone of land, on the eastern side of the Pacific Motorway between Coomera and Jacobs Well from the then-emerging Gold Coast City Plan. A Melbourne man became one of the first in the state to be charged under new firearm trafficking laws after a cache of guns and 20,000 rounds of ammunition were seized by police on Wednesday morning. Police believe the 48-year-old man, who holds a shooters licence, is the second person charged with trafficking firearms since the Victorian government tightened the legislation in November. A 48-year-old Melbourne man has been charged with trafficking firearms. Another man was charged last month with the offence, police said. The 48-year-old was arrested after Clandestine Laboratory Squad detectives, with help from the new Purana Proactive Illicit Firearms Investigations Team, found 20 unregistered guns at a Tullamarine property on Wednesday. Under Mr Baird's proposal, the 15 per cent GST increase would net about an extra $32.5 billion. This would neatly offset a cut to the corporate tax rate from 30 per cent to 25 per cent, costing $8 billion, a $16 billion income tax cut, and an $8 billion compensation package. Tim Pallas has taken issue with NSW Premier Mike Baird's proposal to boost the GST to 15 per cent. Credit: Louise Kennerley In an escalation of the GST stoush, Treasurer Tim Pallas has taken issue with NSW Premier Mike Baird's proposal to boost the GST to 15 per cent, claiming it fails the fundamental objective to plug a funding hole for schools and hospitals. Lifting the GST to pay for company and personal income tax cuts would do nothing to tackle a yawning $26.5 billion funding gap for Victorian schools and hospitals, the state government has warned. With almost all of the GST gains absorbed by tax cuts and compensation, Mr Baird has also argued for an extra $7 billion from the Commonwealth over the three years to 2020 for the states to meet future funding challenges. This translates to about $583 million extra a year for Victoria. Mr Pallas said it was not enough to offset a $26.5 billion funding gap for Victorian hospitals and schools created by the federal government's first budget in 2014. "What everyone seems to have forgotten is that the objective of this tax debate needs to be addressing the funding gap for schools and hospitals, " he said. "An increase in the GST to fund company and personal income tax cuts in the pursuit of an election win is naked politics. The GST is an unfair tax that has no regard for a person's ability to pay." Government figures show that after factoring in the health and education funding shortfall, Mr Baird's plan would produce a small $94 million gain for Victoria in 2017-18. But after that the funding gap would balloon to $629 million in 2018-19, $1.3 billion the following year and almost $2.5 billion in 2020-21. Students at a school in Perth's northern suburbs have been allowed to return home after a police car chase forced the school into lockdown on Thursday afternoon. Parents of children at Lake Gwelup Primary school were advised around 2pm that the school's gates would remain closed until a group involved in a car chase with police in the area were apprehended. Police apprehended four out of five people involved in the car chase. A police spokesman said the vehicle was abandoned on Erindale Road and some of the occupants began jumping fences to try and escape police. Aided by a helicopter, police apprehended four of the vehicle's occupants. One of the men caught was arrested on a return to prison warrant. The others were released without charge. When City of Swan resident Betty Desmond got a glimpse of recent Swan Valley development plans she was shocked to discover that her newly renovated kitchen sat firmly on a path of destruction. Mrs Desmond is one of many residents who were blindsided by the state government after a government vision for a revamped Herne Hill Village revealed their homes would have to be demolished to make way for the development. Zelma Davey, Betty and Don Desmond and Mrs Christidis cant believe their homes will be replaced by roads and buildings in the Swan Valley Development Plan. Credit:Echo News The affected owners only realised they were earmarked for wipe-out when they saw a map in the plan showing retail, service industry and a retirement village where their homes once stood. Residents said the only information about proposed developments in the region was when they got a letter from the City of Swan about an application to open a winery restaurant on Lot 287 on Great Northern Highway. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. The Government of Armenia approved the ratification of the memorandum on the construction and exploitation of the new gas powerhouse nearby Vanadzor. The memorandum will be signed by the Government of Armenia (Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources) and Grange Power Ltd, by which the sides will confirm their mutual interest in cooperation over the power project. Minister of Energy and Natural Resources of Armenia Yervand Zakharyan mentioned that the thermal power station will have a total capacity of 234 MW with no less than 50.5% of CUA. 220 million USD will be invested for the project. According to the memorandum Grange Power Ltd will be obliged to check the possibility of realization of the project on power plant within 4 months and take all the measures to define appropriate financial tools. In case of finding the construction reasonable, Grange Power will establish a trade company in Armenia with which the final agreement will be signed, Armenpress reports, Zakharyan said. The government of Armenia will assist Grange Power to acquire land for the construction of the powerhouse in the vicinity of Vanadzor city in Lori Province. In addition, the private company will obliged to construct the powerhouse within 30 months after the agreement is ratified. It is planned that the entire electricity generated by the new powerhouse will be sold to the Government of Armenia. Two men have been charged with the murder of a 26-year-old who died after a brawl at the Esplanade train station in the early hours of January 27 after Australia Day celebrations. The 19-year-old men were charged on Friday after being questioned by police the day before. Police and forensic officers outside the Esplanade on January 27. Credit:Kema Johnson Both will appear in Perth Magistrates Court on Friday. The 26-year-old man was critically injured during the brawl, which happened between two large groups around 3.30am. There is a great incentive to claim to be a minor. Applicants have greater access to housing and schools and less chance of being deported. Alexandra Mezher, right, with friend Lejla Filipovic. Mezher was allegedly stabbed in the back by a 15-year-old migrant at the refugee centre where she was a volunteer. Credit:Lejla Filipovic via AP "At the moment, very few, if any, age assessments are being done in Sweden," Fredrik Beijer, director of legal affairs of Sweden's Migration Agency, said. Efforts to confirm ages have been hampered by the inability of authorities to carry out medical tests such as X-rays of teeth and hands. The government said in November it wanted the tests, but while such tests are not illegal doctors have refused, saying they are inaccurate. The police escort three men from a train at Hyllie station outside Malmo, Sweden. Interior Minister Anders Ygeman says Sweden could deport between 60,000 and 80,000 asylum-seekers in coming years. Credit:AP "We believe that for a decision that has such large consequences in an individual's life, one must require higher precision," Anders Hjern, a spokesman for the Swedish Paediatric Society, said. But doubts have not stopped the centre-right Moderates, Sweden's biggest opposition party, calling on the migration agency to hire doctors for medical checks in an effort to lower the number of children arriving without families. "Unaccompanied minors make up around 20 per cent of asylum seekers but they cost about half the migration budget," Hanif Bali, an Iranian-born legislator for the Moderates, said. Mr Bali himself came to Sweden as an unaccompanied minor at age three. "Out of my own experience, because I have lived in these kinds of homes, the environment becomes much harsher when you have older people there. You get prison rules and many children get caught up in the older people's troublemaking." Many other European Union countries do carry out medical tests. Austria, for example, allows doctors to do "age determination reports" that include checks on teeth as well as genital development. In Italy, medical-age assessments, such as X-rays, can be carried out by court order. The issue of refugee minors is especially sensitive in Sweden. Reports of assaults in overcrowded minors' centres including of a 22-year-old female Swedish employee of one centre who was stabbed to death last week have contributed to a sense authorities are overwhelmed. "The risk of disputes and discontent is obvious, and some small detail may trigger conflict," said Thomas Svensson, head of social affairs for the Emmaboda municipality in south-eastern Sweden, where staff at a home for unaccompanied minors locked themselves in a room as 19 migrant youths rioted. The influx of minors also carries big fiscal costs. Sweden last year had to find an extra 70,000 school places due to asylum seekers, on top of the 100,000 pupils that normally enter the school system for the first time in any given year. Half of unaccompanied minors have been registered as between 16 and 17, often making age confirmation difficult and sparking accusations from the likes of the far-right Sweden Democrats the third-biggest party in parliament that adults are taking advantage of soft controls to enter the country. Even without medical tests, some 667 minors had their age "adjusted" between January and November last year, according to the Justice Ministry. The data does not show if it was adjusted to above 18. That compares to 363 cases for all 2014. Manchester, New Hampshire: Hillary Clinton's campaign on Thursday warned rival Bernie Sanders against letting some of his supporters' "crudeness" particularly attacks from a social media contingent loosely dubbed the "Bernie Bros" seep into his own criticism of Mrs Clinton. Campaign manager Robby Mook and national press secretary Brian Fallon accused Senator Sanders of attacking Mrs Clinton by using "demeaning and insulting language", in Mr Fallon's words. They also said the candidate should be wary about letting even more loaded language emerge in his campaign's attacks. Mrs Clinton, long a divisive figure in American politics, has inspired a furious backlash in social media postings that at times include sexist, crude and vulgar commentary. There is no evidence any of these attacks are tied to Senator Sanders' campaign, and Senator Sanders' rapid-response director tweeted a plea to the Vermont senator's supporters to "be respectful" online. "When you look at what goes online in particular some of his supporters engage in negative hurtful nasty attacks and I think it is incumbent on him to call that out," Mr Mook said in comments after a Bloomberg Politics breakfast in Manchester, New Hampshire. "He needs to make sure that doesn't creep further into the campaign." YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. Facebook did not become the first social network; Odnoklassniki remains the leader. IT security expert Samvel Martirosyan told the journalists about this on February 4. Facebook administration makes all the efforts to keep us registered. We deal with a monopolistic sector. It makes all the efforts to keep people registered there, the most photos in the world are posted on Facebook, and struggle goes on with Youtube for video platform. Armenpress reports, Samvel Martirosyan said. In his words, Armenians make use of Facebook very actively as well. Odnoklassniki has 1 million active visitors daily while the number of Facebook visitors reaches 560 thousand daily. In 2010 it became an active tool in Armenia. Facebook was used as a civil platform. There were nearly 50thousand registered people then, Samvel Martirosyan stated, adding that the social network emerged as one of the key tools for the development of civil society. In his words, one of the negative impacts is that a user does not search information by his own, instead, reads what is posted. Aharon Adibekyan, director of Sociometer center for sociological studies, says that Facebook has 1.5 billion users throughout the world. February 4 is the day of establishment of Facebook. Facebook is an online social networking service headquartered in Menlo Park, California. Its website was launched on February 4, 2004, by Mark Zuckerberg with his Harvard College roommates and fellow students Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes. The founders had initially limited the website's membership to Harvard students, but later expanded it to colleges in the Boston area, the Ivy League, and Stanford University. It gradually added support for students at various other universities and later to high-school students. Since 2006, anyone who is at least 13 years old was allowed to become a registered user of the website, though the age requirement may be higher depending on applicable local laws. Its name comes from the face book directories often given to American university students. Latest News Australia's record property market run comes to an end PEXA NSW sees the largest declines in both property sales volume and aggregate value MFAA offers cybersecurity resources to members Optus data breach a 'wake-up call' for businesses Last month, a Melbourne-based broker and former CEO of the Australian Institute of Professional Brokers penned an open letter to the regulators, government and central bank demanding a frank conversation about the National Consumer Credit Protection Act (NCCP) and the role of the regulators.Speaking to Australian Broker about her open letter, Maria Rigoni, founder and owner of Universal Wealth Management, claimed ASICs recent crackdown on interest-only lending illustrates the lack of protection the current consumer protection laws offer and the need for a complete overhaul of the NCCP.Lenders have said ASIC has approached them and ASICs opinion is if people want interest-only loans to keep their repayments low then the lender should not accommodate them. The clients requirements and objectives which make [an interest-only] loan a not unsuitable loan have been ignored. ASIC have turned around and said it should be an unsuitable loan, Rigoni told Australian Broker.The NCCP is nonsensical consumer protection. The consumer protection laws are not protecting the consumer and they are not protecting me either.What I would like to see is a total overhaul of the NCCP. The whole focus of the NCCP does not give any power for a borrower to be a responsible borrower. It is all about the lender having the power and control.Rigoni is not alone. Other brokers have expressed their agreement in the Australian Broker forum. One commenter, L Best, said the whole Act should be scrapped and done over.Any loan decision should be shared an equal responsibility for the decision to borrow and the decision to lend should be 50/50 between the parties. Not a decision that is borne 100% by the lender. We are dealing with adults that should understand and make informed decisions for themselves, with guidance from their legal and financial advisersScrap the whole Act and start again and look for a measured an equal means to regulate. NSW sees the largest declines in both property sales volume and aggregate value Latest News Australia's record property market run comes to an end PEXA NSW sees the largest declines in both property sales volume and aggregate value MFAA offers cybersecurity resources to members Optus data breach a 'wake-up call' for businesses The number of residential property listings nationally dropped 0.2% in January, driven by a large fall in Sydney.Residential property listings were up in every capital city except Sydney and Melbourne over January, figures from SQM Research have revealed. Sydney experienced the largest fall in available properties over the first month of 2016, with listings down 5.2%. Melbourne listings were down 2.6% over the month. These figures indicate that the number of property sellers in both residential markets is beginning to decrease.Brisbane, on the other hand, saw the largest month-on-month increase in residential property listings, up 3% over January. This was followed by Perth (2.5%) and Canberra (1.6%).However, year-on-year results indicate that residential property listings are up for most capital cities. Property listings in Sydney and Canberra are considerably higher than this time last year with Sydney experiencing a yearly rise of 13.7% and Canberra recording a rise of 11.2%.Year-on-year, Melbourne and Hobart were the only two capital cities to record a drop in properties available for sale. Melbourne listing dropped 8.9% while Hobart listings dropped 7.7%.SQM Research managing director Louis Christopher says the figures are further proof that the Sydney market is beginning to cool.As we enter into the new property season its clear that our latest indicators are suggesting a continued mixed market across the nation.On the one hand there is an overhang of stock on the market in Sydney, which is a symptom of the slowdown in the market there that started the second half of last year. While on the other hand Melbourne does not appear to have any overhang, and so will be entering the new season less stock on the market than what has been the average for the past five years. Our forecast released back in October 2015, that Melbourne would outperform Sydney this year, seems to be very likely now. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams Theres nothing feminine about having a pussy! A new book of portraits aims to demonstrate that masculinity and kitty-cats are a purr-fect combination. The photographer behind Men with Cats, launching at Powerhouse Arena in Dumbo on Feb. 11, says that male cat-owners are just regular Joes who enjoy a warm cuddle from time to time. I just wanted to show that guys can own cats and be completely normal dudes, said feline enthusiast David Williams. The Sunset Park photographer, who owns two kitties, Margo and Tux, wants to debunk the crazy cat lady (and cat gent) stereotype, and show that furballs are not always owned by loony single people. His book includes more than 75 photos of men posing with their kitties, each with a quote that describes what cat-life is like for the men. For instance, one completely normal, masculine dude describes his cat by saying: Sneezle is the alpha male in our house. Hes large and in charge, and he does what he wants. Hes a great cat, but a terrible kitty. Williams started Men with Cats as a casual project in 2009, shooting friends and friends-of-friends with their kitties. But the feline photos went viral in early 2015, popping up on websites including Huffington Post and Cosmopolitan. So the project expanded, eventually including men California, Colorado, and Georgia as well as New York City residents. Furless protectors: Shawn, featured in the book Men with Cats says that his hairless sphynx kitties need tons of attention but its worth it every minute because theyre amazing. David Williams Even though he is mad for cats, Williams says that he loves dogs equally. But cats are easier to take care of in the city, and they are not picky about who they give their heart to, he claims. It doesnt matter your gender, I think a cat is going to love you no matter what as long as you feed them, said Williams, who has clearly had a very different experience with feline affection than many people. The book launch on Thursday will also feature an appearance by the male co-owner of Manhattans Koneko Cat Cafe. Men with Cats talk at Powerhouse Arena [37 Main St. at Water Street in Dumbo, www.power house arena.com ]. Feb. 11 at 7 pm. Free. Paws for thought: Devito says of his cat Carlos: The most difficult thing about cats is the fact that they know they are better than you. David Williams YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. Germany's Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs Frank-Walter Steinmeier published an article in the renowned The Huffington Post titled Why the OSCE is indispensable for security in Europe in which he referred to the settlement of Nagorno Karabakh conflict. Steinmeier mentioned they currently face what is perhaps the most serious threat to peace and security in Europe since the end of the Cold War. I do not want to adopt the kind of fatalism that labels the unresolved conflicts in Transdniestria, Nagorno-Karabakh and the Southern Caucasus as "frozen". Each year they continue to bring hardship to the people affected and stagnation to the regions involved. We want to stabilize the ceasefires, build trust and improve the day-to-day lives of the people by taking small but tangible steps, such as improving economic exchange. As regards the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, armed clashes along the line of contact and the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan give us cause for concern. Germany is campaigning for an intensification of the negotiations under the auspices of the OSCE Minsk Group. One important step to this end would be the creation of a mechanism to investigate violations of the ceasefire, German Foreign Minister emphasized. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams Theyre coming around. The Feds will likely give Coney Islands B&B Carousell the nations second-highest historical designation this month, according folks at the National Register of Historic Places. An application to list the century-old carousel on the register recently passed state-level review and moved on the Feds whose approval is largely perfunctory, an insider said. The expectation is that is that the nominations that come to us are eligible statistically, we accept most nominations that come to us through state offices, National Register historian Alexis Abernathy said. Gov. Cuomo announced support for the bid in September, and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand wrote a letter to the National Parks Service last week urging it to list the B&B, because of the merry-go-rounds link to Coney Islands heyday as an amusement monolith. The B&B has been a staple of Brooklyns Coney Island and has played a significant role in shaping much of its distinctive amusement park culture, Gillibrand wrote in the letter to agency honcho Jonathan Jarvis. The 110-year-old, city-owned carousel would be eligible for federal preservation grants if officials list it in the register. The B&B is the handiwork of an all-star cast of Coney Island carousel builders, painters, and horse-carvers whose work made Coney Island a Mecca for carousel-creation at the turn of the 20th century, according to carousel experts. It includes a horse by M.C. Illions, who the New York Times called the Michelangelo of carousel carvers, and dozens more by noted carver Charles Carmel their brightly colored and expressive horses define the Coney Island Style, one of the three major carousel art styles the National Carousel Association recognizes. The carousels pedigree is undeniably important to national history, the associations president said. [The B&Bs history] makes it a strong example of a carousel that tells the story of the carousel industry in Coney Island, Bette Largent said. It certainly contains enough history of the Golden Age of Carousels to be of true historic significance. The masters first built the carousel for a park in New Jersey, but it moved to the Peoples Playground after the Jersey park went belly-up. The city sent it to Ohio for restoration in 2005, and it made a glorious return in 2013. The B&B Carousell (yes, its spelled with two Ls) would be the 169th site in Brooklyn and the sixth carousel in the state to go on the register. The designation would make it eligible to become a national landmark the countrys highest historical designation, federal officials said. The National Register has until the last week in February to rule on the designation. Sign up for our amNY Sports email newsletter to get insights and game coverage for your favorite teams A Williamsburg hipster dive-bar empires expansion into Bedford-Stuyvesant is an unwelcome intrusion, say members of the local community board, who rejected its bid for a liquor license after locals grilled the owners on how many black employees they have and whether they put staff through sensitivity training to ensure they treat residents with respect. The advisory-panel voted 251 against the forthcoming Bedford Avenue bar from the guys behind urban honky-tonk Skinny Dennis, hair-metal hangout Rocka Rolla, faux-British pub George and Jacks, and pooch-friendly hangout Lucky Dog, fearing it will be an outsiders outpost that will refuse to assimilate with the neighborhood. This establishment is going to be built in Bed-Stuy, but its not for Bed-Stuy, said Community Board 3 member Felicia Alexander, who voted against the liquor license. Theyre not looking to embrace the community and welcome us in. The booze-slingers who plan to open their first non-L-train venture at the site of recently shuttered neighborhood staple Do or Dine near Quincy Street told the board members and locals they currently have six black employees out of a total 24, and would consider the sensitivity training. A partner in the venture assured the nay-sayers that the establishment will hire locals in the hopes they will draw a neighborhood crowd, and that all will be welcome at the new dive. It is for you, it is for everybody, and I hope you will get something out of it and give it a chance, said real-estate broker Roni Dotan, whose bars are best known for spiked frozen coffee drinks served ironically in Anthora cups and a bus that ferries drinkers between all four locations. I think if you went to our other bars you would see there is not one specific demographic. But one community member said the issue is not just black and white the new breed of bars in the nabe are often unwelcoming to born-and-bred Bedford-Stuyvesant residents, and locals feel they are being overrun. Its not necessarily a race thing its just the employees within these establishments do not always make the people in the community feel welcome, said Maria Flateau. A few hardcore fans showed up to voice their support for the new venture one barfly called one of the Williamsburg spots her Cheers but the glowing reviews just added to the boards skepticism. I have to applaud you I think youre the first to bring your own cheerleaders to a 4 am close, said Alexander. But that doesnt do much to sway our view. The influx of hipster bars into the nabe has been an ongoing concern in Community Board 3. Last month, members put another trendy barkeep through the ringer, though the majority ultimately decided to approve his application. The board also rejected another group seeking a liquor license for a Marcy Avenue cocktail and craft beer hangout at Mondays meeting only four rallied in defense of the bar while 17 gave it a flat no citing community concerns about proximity to schools and an overabundance of alcohol sales in the area. The boards votes dont actually stop the bars opening or getting a liquor license, however. Its decisions are passed on to the State Liquor Authority, which may or may not take them into consideration when deciding whether the bars gets to serve booze. Seattle mutant punks So Pitted are just a couple weeks from releasing their Sub Pop debut, neo. You can check out a couple more songs off the album -- "holding the void" & "the sickness" -- via a new live video that offers a fitting visual accompaniment to the band's melted sound. Of the song "holding the void," its writer, Nathan Rodriguez, told us, "Initially I wrote this song as a reaction to someone else but as more time passes it feels like i myself am the subject. Also, listen to those drums, this is practically a jock jam." The video makes its premiere in this post and you can watch below. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. Press service of Azerbaijani Defense Ministry announced on February 4 that allegedly an Azerbaijani soldier was killed as a result of a subversive action conducted by the Armenian side on Armenia-Azerbaijan border on February 3. Armenian Defense Ministry announces that the press release of the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry does not coincide with the reality. Armenpress was informed about this from the press service of the Defense Ministry of the Republic of Armenia. According to operative information, the death case registered in the armed forces of Azerbaijan is a result of non-statutory relationships. The Azerbaijani side once again tries to distort the reality by the means of misinformation and unreasonable accusations against the Armenian side. We once again underline the necessity to invest mechanisms for investigating incidents on the state border of Armenia and Azerbaijan and the contact line of Nagorno Karabakh conflict zone aimed at reducing and preventing possible incidents caused by armed confrontation. On this episode of Suits, Live to Fight, Gibbs tries to turn Donna against Harvey, Louis discovers who turned on Mike and Jessica goes to Jeff Malone for help. Anita Gibbs is not playing around. But she may wind up getting more than she bargained for when she picks a fight with Donna. Gibbs Threatens Donna As predicted, Gibbs bring Donna in for questioning, and also as expected, Donna has nothing to say. But as Donna is leaving, she spots her father in a room across the hall. It seems Donnas daddy was involved in some shady real estate deals a few years back. If Donna isnt willing to turn over something Gibbs can use against Mike and Harvey, her dad could suffer the consequences. Earlier That Day Suits Winter Premiere Recap: The Fallout from Mikes Arrest Begins >>> Louis Meets His New Norma For anyone worried that Gretchen might find herself unemployed, no fears. She is now working for Louis, and this woman has come prepared. Gretchen knew Louis previous secretary, Norma, for over 30 years. The two played Mahjong together every week, a game Louis had tried and failed to infiltrate. It was Norma who blackballed Harvey from the gathering. It was the only guaranteed respite from Louis never-ending tyranny. But Gretchens willing to put in a good word, and thus is the beginning of another beautiful friendship. Gibbs Goes After the Firm Donna has returned to Harveys desk, and the two dispense with any sentimentality and get right to work. Harveys schedule is now devoted to Mike, his number one client. They hit the ground running, because Jessica informs Harvey that Gibbs has subpoenaed every case Pearson Lecter Litt ever touched. Gibbs has openly declared war on the entire firm. Jessica has zero doubt that if Gibbs gets in the door, she will find something to pressure someone into saying whatever she wants, and Jessica doesnt want some stranger rifling through her house. Jessica thinks its time to bring in outside counsel, and she wants it to be Scottie. Harvey doesnt want to involve his ex, but Jessica argues they dont even have a strategy to stop the subpoenas. Good thing boy-wonder Mike shows up with a plan. The best defense is a good offense. Mike says they dont have to prove Gibbs cant subpoena their records, she has to prove that she can. As far as they know, Gibbs doesnt have any evidence that Jessica knew about Mike. Jessica isnt so sure. She believes those subpoenas are proof Gibbs has something, but Harvey, having worked in the D.A.s office for 5 years, and judges were known to give subpoenas out like candy. Jessica suggests Harvey and Mike get down to the D.A.s office and take Gibbs candy away. One Step Closer to Finding the Snitch Mike, Harvey and Gibbs meet with a judge. Harvey argues that Gibbs has no grounds to issue the subpoenas, and when Mike accuses Gibbs of trying to come after Harvey, she doesnt deny it. Gibbs doesnt believe there is any possible way Harvey couldnt have known. Harvey wants to know what evidence Gibbs has to corroborate any of her claims. Gibbs isnt about to turn over any evidence until she absolutely has to, but the judge begs to differs. She wants to know what got this whole ball rolling. Gibbs responds that she received an anonymous email from a reputable source. The judge demands to see a copy. The message was sent from a general Harvard faculty address, and Gibbs says they are working on tracking down the sender. The judge says Gibbs better be successful, because if she doesnt produce more concrete proof, shell toss the whole case. Now Harvey is convinced the whistle blower is Henry Gerard. Mike doesnt understand why Gerard would wait until now, but Harvey doesnt see who else it could be. Mike wants to go and talk to Gerard, use the leverage they have against him to get the guy to back down. Harvey argues this is a terrible idea. Gibbs is all over Mike, and if he goes to Boston, Mike will be leading her straight to the source. Harvey quickly comes up with a Plan B. Mike may not be able to go to Harvard, but he has someone in mind who can. The two arrive back at the office and are met by Rachel who tells him that Donna has been taken to the U.S. Attorneys Office. Before Harvey jumps onto his white horse to go rescue her, he orders Mike to proceed with their mystery plan. Mike tells Louis it was Henry Gerard who turned him in. Louis doesnt believe it, questioning how Gerard could possibly know. Mike explains Gerard figured it out, and now Louis has to go see Gerard and get him to recant the accusation. Louis has no idea how the hell hes supposed to pull that particular rabbit out of a hat, and Mike says they need to figure it out, together. Louis wonders where Harvey is, and being relentless as a dog with a bone, he gets Mike to admit that Donnas being questioned. This was exactly what Louis feared, and his first instinct is to jump up and rush to Donnas aid. Mike convinces Louis that the best way to help Donna make Gerard, and this whole case, go away. Louis reads the email and notices that it accuses Mike of being a potential fraud. Why would someone who knew for sure would use the word potential? Louis doesnt believe it was Gerard, and he believes he know who did. Obviously, Louis believes it was his ex-girlfriend and Harvard recruiter, the kinky Sheila Sazs, who bleeds crimson. Jessica Covers Her Ass Jessica goes to see her ex, Jeff. Jeff, like every other lawyer in the city, has heard about Mike. He questions how Jessica could let this happen, but before she offers up an explanation, she has a favor to ask. Jeff guesses she wants him to represent the firm, but Jessica clarifies that she wants him to represent her. Jessica admits she made a mistake not trusting Jeff once, and she doesnt want to make the same mistake twice. Jeff wants to know everything, and it isnt going to be protected by attorney-client privilege. Jessica is going to have to trust Jeff wont turn her in. Jessica was never worried that Jeff would narc her out, she didnt want to put him in a position where he had to lie, but shes ready to come clean now. Donnas Father Calls Harvey Out Seven years ago, Donnas dad came to her with an idea. He wanted to get back into real estate development after losing everything years earlier. Donnas father wanted to have Harvey help him secure the loan. Donna assured her dad that Harvey would never go for it because it wasnt legal, but her dad called it a slight of hand, nothing more, people do it all the time. So Donnas dad is a charlatan apparently, and not a very good one. Even though Donna thought it was a risk, she asked Harvey for the money. But Harvey said no, primarily to protect his Girl Friday from getting pulled into her fathers sketchy business practices. Donna gets to see her dad and apologizes for getting him dragged into this mess. He assures her its not big; people have tried to rattle his cage before. Harvey asks that Donna step out and give the two a minute. Once shes out of earshot, Harvey lays into Donnas father, demanding to know what the old guy did because Harvey cant get him out of trouble if he doesnt have all the facts. Donnas father says he did what everybody else did, he inflated his collateral. Donnas father isnt about to sit back and take any of the blame or a tongue lashing from Harvey. He makes it clear that his daughter is in her current predicament because of Harveys shady dealings, not his. Gibbs is trying to get daddy dearest to convince Donna to testify against Harvey, But dad wont do it because he knows it would kill Donna, and regardless of what Harvey might think, he wouldnt do anything to hurt his daughter. A Matter of Trust While Harvey is busy trying to save Donnas ass, Jessica is covering her own. She wants to know if Mike still has the letter he has proving Jessica knew he was a fraud. Mike wants to confirm Jessica destroyed the affidavit that Jessica had Rachel signed saying his girlfriend knew the truth about him. That would be a resounding no on both counts. Jessica says shell get rid of hers if Mike gets rid of his, but he gives just enough pause to piss Jessica off. Jessica isnt convinced Mike wont throw her and Harvey to the wolves, and Mike doesnt trust Jessica, given some of her past conduct. Jessica suggests that Mike has a chat with her attorney, Jeff Malone. The Source is Revealed Louis reunites with Sheila, and she admits shes the source. She read an article about Mikes promotion to junior partner and it prompted her to do some digging. Not to mention she remembers EVERY Harvard Law grad, and she had zero recollection of Mike. Her intentions werent insidious. She just wanted to protect the prestigious law schools reputation. Louis questions why Sheila didnt come to him first, and she answers that she didnt think she had to. Louis doesnt understand why she sent the email anonymously, and it was simply because this happened on her watch. Rachel doesnt understand why Louis is defending Mike and figures out Louis was in the know. He tells Sheila he wants her to retract the email, tell them she made a mistake and found the file. She refuses and on top of it all, shes heartbroken at Louis betrayal. His last play is to beg her not to come forward which she says she never had any intention of doing. Rachels Loyalty to Harvey Waivers Rachel finds Donna in the ladies room and tries to offer some comfort, but things take an ugly turn. Rachel hasnt abandoned the idea of turning on Harvey to save Mike, and the same holds true if Donna does it to save her father. Rachels life would get a whole lot better if Harvey take responsibilities for his actions. Donna defends Harvey to the ground, stating all her boss did was give Mike a chance, and Rachel says this is exactly why Mike wont turn on Harvey. Mike Strikes a Deal Mike is spiraling. He now knows it was Sheila, and Louis is upset that Mike is more concerned about covering his ass, than the personal toll this revelation is having on Louis. Mike goes to see Harvey to find out whats going on with Donnas father. Hes frustrated that Donnas father is in this mess because of him, and Harvey wont let Mike help. Mike is under investigation and has no reason to help with Donnas fathers case. Harvey is the mans counsel, period. Mikes frustration reaches another boiling point, but Harvey advises Mike to focus on what to do about Sheila, because if Gibbs finds her, theyre in deep shit. Mike decides to call on Gerard for help. Mike wants Gerard to sign an affidavit saying that Mike was in his class. That should be enough to dismiss the case, but even if it isnt, the affidavit creates reasonable doubt if he goes to trial. Gerard sees another possible scenario. The affidavit doesnt create reasonable doubt, Mike goes to jail, and Gerard is guilty of perjury. A desperate Mike threatens to anonymously call Harvard and accuse Gerard to taking a bribe from a student for a grade. Gerard tells Mike to do what he feels he has to, but Gerard is jeopardizing his whole life to sign that affidavit. Mike bluffed and lost. Pretty fitting since Gerard is a gambling man. But Mike has another idea, one that wont put Gerard in such a precarious position. Ive got to say he has balls to still ask for help after making that threat. Mike equates his battle to a game of poker, right up Gerards alley. And all Mike needs is the guy to help him bluff. Hopefully, it will work out better than his half-assed attempt at blackmail. Suits EP Aaron Korsh on Consequences of [Spoiler] Turning Mike In and More! >>> Harveys Past Comes Back to Haunt Him Donna suspects Harvey did something seven years ago to derail her fathers developments plans. After she asked him for the money, and Harvey refused, he also advised Donna not to lend the money to her father out of her own retirement savings because Donnas dad was a crappy businessman. This didnt go over well, and Donna thought Harveys judgement was clouded by his own dysfunction relationship with his parents. The past has caught up with Harvey. Donna tells him her father is officially going to be charged with bank fraud and wants to know what Harvey did. He admits to strong-arming a banker, and when Donna questions why, Harvey admits there was evidence that needed to get lost. Donnas intuition has always served her well, so she wants the full story of what happened years ago. Harvey not only refused to give Donnas dad his money, but told the man that if he took Donnas money, Harvey would pull every string he could to get the deal shut down. Harvey feels he did the right thing, but all Donna can see is that he went behind her back and set the wheels in motion for her dad to do something illegal. Now she has to choose between them. Mike and Harvey Take a Risk Things keep going from bad to worse, so Mike presents Harvey with a Hail Mary. Its a letter from Gerard. And while it doesnt state point blank that Mike attended Harvard, Gerard does write that he knows Mike to be an amazing lawyer, hes how mastery of the material Gerard teaches, and that Mike is an outstanding student of the law. Harvey knows its not much, but its all theyve got. Harvey presents the letter in court, and it goes as badly as he expected it would. But when Gibbs tells the judge its likely Harvey coerced Gerard into signing the letter, Harvey points out that while their exhibits are from blackmail, Gibbs are squeaky clean because shes Mother Teresa. Harvey tells the judge about Gibbs going after Donnas father in an attempt to get Donna to give false testimony. Mike also brings up Gibbs plan to have a federal marshal rough him up in a holding cell. The judge claims if theres proof that Gibbs is abusing her power, shell become the subject of an investigation. Gibbs changes course and says she wants to question Gerard. Harvey asks for a minute, during which Gibbs says shes knows the letter is crap, and Gerard will fold when she gets him on the stand. Harvey dares her to pick a fight with a renowned ethics professor. Gibbs questions what Harvey wants, and its simple. He wants Donna and her father off limits. She still gets to go to trial, and they both live to fight another day. She still wants the subpoenas, but Harvey wont bend there either, and he has the judge in his corner on that one. Harvey won the battle, but the war rages on. Gibbs shows up at the firm the following day with the subpoenas. The judge granted them after Sheila came forward. Other Revelations Jeff shames Mike into agreeing to make Jessicas letter disappear. But the real mastermind behind the emotional manipulation is Jessica. Jeff did her this favor, but he decides not to represent his former girlfriend but leaves the door open for them to possibly rekindle their romance. Gretchen comes to Louis and makes a confession. Shes the one who called the ABA journal to get them to write the article about Mike making junior partner. The same article that tipped of Sheila. Gretchen knew Louis and Harvey and Jessica were aware of Mikes deception, but her lips are sealed. Suits airs Wednesdays at 10pm on USA. (Image courtesy of USA) Howarth Timber and Building Supplies has strengthened its presence in the Lincolnshire region by making two new appointments at its Scunthorpe branch, as well as implementing a new regional manager. John Brandon, who has been with the company for 24 years, has become the new regional manager. Mr Brandon has been set the challenge of making Scunthorpe the first choice timber and builders merchant for trade and retail customers in the region. The store is set to benefit from major investment and is currently undergoing a major refurbishment, including a refit of the interior, a new flooring display, and an increased tool offering. The addition of Kevin Danks as branch manager has brought valuable expertise and local knowledge to the team, as well as 15 years experience in the building industry. Mr Danks specialises in building products, draining and civil products, and he arrived at Howarth after expressing a strong interest in being part of the development of an independent business in his hometown of Scunthorpe. Karl Wilmore, who has worked closely with Mr Danks in the past, has also joined the team at Scunthorpe as an external sales executive. With over 13 years experience in the industry and a proven specialism in timber, Mr Wilmore will be focused on expanding Howarths customer base and supporting Mr Danks to ensure all staff are equipped with the expertise to provide customers with a first rate experience. Mr Brandon said: This is an exciting time for Howarth Timbers Scunthorpe branch, and for the company as a whole as we strive to be the best timber and builders merchant in the UK. The addition of two experienced professionals has given our entire staff a boost and, with the branch refurbishment soon to take place, we are looking forward to giving our customers a better service and trading experience than ever before. Bordentown exhibit showcases items belonging to Napoleon's brother The Bordentown Historical society is gaining international attention for its Joseph Bonaparte exhibit, former King of Spain and brother of Napoleon. A youngster was hurt following a collision with a car in Burnham-On-Sea on Wednesday (February 3rd). Police and an ambulance were called to the junction of Rosewood Avenue and Ashcott Close shortly after 3.30pm. A Peugeot car was in collision with a boy, confirmed a police spokesman. The youngster was treated at the scene by ambulance staff and a spokesman said he did not require hospital treatment. The road was partially blocked while crews were at the scene. Noul premier britanic urmeaza sa fie desemnat pana la 28 octombrie YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. Cooperation format between the Republican Party of Armenia and the ARF will be clear within the coming days. RPA faction head Vahram Baghdasaryan told the journalists about this at the National Assembly. He also informed that at this stage there are no discussions over portfolios with the ARF. We have not discussed the issue of portfolios. Discussions over the cooperation format are still underway. Everything will be clarified within the coming days. The discussions will go on today and tomorrow, Armenpress reports, Baghdasaryan mentioned. To the question if structural changes may occur in the Government, Vahram Baghdasaryan told that it is hardly possible that such a necessity will rise. To the remark that there are rumors that the Ministry of Territorial Administration and Emergency Situations will be split and David Lokyan or Artsvik Minasyan will assume the post of the Minister of Territorial Administration, the RPA faction head said, I hear about that for the first time. Anyway, I am not guided by rumors, I am guided by facts. Referring to the question what has been the topic of discussions between RPA and ARF if the issue of portfolios was excluded, Vahram Baghdasaryan mentioned that the issue of portfolios is far secondary for him. We just have to clarify our views in this stage. Finally, the negotiations are held between two political forces with their own ideas and programs., the RPA faction head added. Virginia Rometty, chairman, president and chief executive of US information technology giant IBM, said India had the potential to grow at 10 per cent annually for the next two years. This century could, she felt, be India's. Speaking at IBMs flagship customer event, Think Forum, she spoke at length about IBMs cognitive cloud computing system, Watson, and how it had the potential to transform companies across the board. Watson is an artificially developed intelligence that works in natural languages. Currently, it is being applied in 36 countries and at a little more than 5,000 companies in the world. Watson will not replace us but assist us. This cognitive system is human plus machine, she said. Asked how the system could benefit India, she said Watson can provide technical support, reduce the time to solve problems and offer a platform for the growing start-up system, among other things. During the session, Martin Jetter, senior vice-president at IBM, got into a conversation with Himanshu Kapania, managing director, Idea Cellular. In the past eight years, said Kapania, theiy had grown at a fast pace and one of the factors was a cognitive system. Analytics is one of the important parts of the growth, he said. With its help, Idea went for consumer segmentation, which assisted the company in identifying various factors that drive the traffic. Adding: It is time to move from a static form of data to real time usage of data. Also, he said, 200 million people (in India) were privileged and knowledgeable, aware of the power of data and analytics, but another 900 mn were still grappling for basic amenities. If digital has to be successful, we need to reach out to that population. One of the key challenges to artificial intelligence is addressing the issue of privacy and security. Rometty said they were working with different governments to address this. The largest issue with security is that it comes from within...it is internal. Hence, its important to strike a balance between innovation and security, she said. Stressing upon the need to go cognitive, she told business executives, The world will embrace cognitive. There is no chance to keep up with the enormous information out there without the help of cognitive. Competition gets reset. Also: India is one of the great spots compared to the rest of the world. With entrepreneurship growing, this is a great time to start. The government on Thursday told the Delhi High Court its empowered committee of secretaries has decided that Cairn India, the petroleum arm of Vedanta Resources, cannot be allowed to export excess crude produced at its Rajasthan oil field. The high court had on January 19 asked the ministry of petroleum and natural gas to place the issue before the committee and come back with a decision. A company spokesperson refused to comment on the matter saying the issue is sub-judice. Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and governments Standing Counsel Anurag Ahluwalia on Thursday told the court the committee met on 21 January and decided Cairn cannot be allowed to export the excess crude. The government said it will file an affidavit to this effect before the next hearing in the case is on February 18. Cairn had petitioned the court last year alleging the government had incurred a loss as the company was forced to sell its share of crude from the field to private players at prices 20 per cent lower than global rates. The ministry had said the loss to government as calculated by Cairn was "notional". According to the production sharing contract (PSC), Cairn India gets 70 per cent of crude produced from the well and the rest goes to government. Under the PSC, the government or its nominee can pick up the company's share of crude and the rest could be sold to private players or exported. The court had observed in the previous hearing that if the excess crude was sold at lower rates then ultimately the government would suffer. It had asked the centre to take instructions in two weeks as to whether the ministry was willing to pick up the excess crude or if the company could export it. Cairn had said it had made several representations to Directorate General of Foreign Trade for permission to export the crude, but did not get any response. Prior to this, it had written to Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) to canalise export of the crude, but got no response from it as well. LEGAL TUSSLE Automobile makers can look forward to some significant demand drivers in the near future, as the government is ready to bring an incentive-based scrappage policy for older vehicles. Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and Shipping Nitin Gadkari on Thursday invited suggestions from the auto industry to take ahead the scrappage policy, aimed at replacing 10-year-old vehicles with modern fuel-efficient ones that conform to emission standards. The Cabinet note on scrappage policy is ready with my ministry. I am going to submit the note by this month and your (automobile industry) suggestions are invited, Gadkari said at the inaugural session of the 2016 Auto Expo. During a recent pre-Budget consultation meeting, Gadkari made a case before the finance ministry for incentive in the form of excise duty on purchase of new vehicles for buyers who surrender their old polluting vehicles. As a leader in hydropower generation, with a capacity of 6,507 Mw installed capacity, the National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC) is a bellwether for hydropower sector in the country. Stuck in problems, a slew of projects have been plagued by cost overruns. In an interview with Jyoti Mukul & Shreya Jai, K M Singh, chairman and managing director, NHPC, says the perception that there is no growth in hydropower is incorrect. Edited excerpts: What is your outlook for the hydropower sector? The perception of not much growth in the hydro is not correct. Hydropower potential in the country is identified up to 140,000 Mw and, so far, it is hardly 40,000 Mw, less than 50 per cent. Water is a state government subject and unless the state allows, one cannot harness its potential. Depending on the condition of the location, rocks, availability of water, and space for powerhouse and other facilities, a decision on the design is taken. The first National Democratic Alliance government had identified around 50,000-Mw hydro potential and prefeasibility reports were prepared for Arunachal Pradesh. Currently, a lot of emphasis is being given to renewable energy sources, to meet increasing demand of energy. Hydro, being a clean source, enhances energy security of the country and meets peak demand. An impetus to hydropower would bring down fossil fuel demand and facilitate water security, flood control and irrigation. Hydropower is the basic need of a country for maintenance and stabilisation of grid. Hydrothermal mix is required. For peaking power, which can be put on production within few minutes, only hydro, gas or nuclear is there. Fate of gas is known. Only hydro is a replenishable natural source. Even solar and wind are only available during the day. India has an economically viable exploitable hydropower potential of 145,320 Mw, of which 37,688 Mw has been developed and the balance under development. Where do you see growth for NHPC? Earlier, Arunachal Pradesh gave NHPC around 20,000-Mw projects. We started the survey and investigation but in the meantime, in 2003, Electricity Act was passed and private were allotted projects. The state government took away some projects from us. NHPC, currently, has an installed capacity of 6,507 Mw, of which 4,987 Mw is on standalone basis. In the current financial year, we are expecting up to 80 Mw by commissioning two units of TLDP-IV in West Bengal. By the end of the 12th Plan, we aim to add 1,702 Mw in our current installed capacity, of which six projects of 1,212 Mw have already been commissioned. In Arunachal, Twang I and II of 1,400 Mw are under clearance. Detailed project report is already submitted for these two projects. In Kotlibhel-IA in Uttarakhand, there is a Supreme Court ban, but we are expecting these will be cleared because it not on the main river. It is one of the six projects to be cleared. What is the companys capital expenditure plan? In 2015-16, Rs 4,100 crore was planned, but we will spend around Rs 3,600 crore. We have two projects where there are problems Subanshri Lower and in Parbati project in Himachal Pradesh. There was geographical problem but some progress has been made. What is NHPCs plan for diversification in the future? Our core business is hydro and whatever project and potential is there we will work for it. But we are also looking to expand beyond hydropower. We have planned four renewable energy projects on an ownership basis two wind power projects of 130 MW and two solar power projects of 100 MW are under clearance stage. We are also considering projects though JV mode one thermal power project in Pirpainti, Bihar and one 50 MW solar power project in UP. Is it correct to say that the governments emphasis has moved away from generation to transmission and distribution? Since hydro takes time to come up right from the conception of the project till eventual commissioning due to various reasons like remote location, local problems, strikes, the government went ahead for capacity addition in thermal which can be commissioned during short period and in large scale. In less time, one can add 2,000 MW thermal compared to 100 MW or 500 MW of hydropower. Irrespective of installed projects, in five to seven years one can commission project. NHPC completed Omkareshwar in Madhya Pradesh and Chamera in Himachal Pradesh before time. Another 1,000 mw Indrasagar was completed in four years. It depends on location and components required to get the potential. Lenovo (India) has turned profitable in 2014-15, its first annual profits since 2010-11. According to data available with the Registrar of Companies (RoC), the company posted a Rs 26.7 crore net profit for the financial year ending March 31, 2015, against a Rs 44.6 crore net loss during the previous year. Lenovo's revenue grew 41 per cent to Rs 5,667 crore from Rs 4,028 crore in 2013-14. The company has been posting sales growth year after year since 2010-11 but its bottom line has remained in the red (see table). Since 2014, Lenovo has gained significant market share in both personal computers and smartphones. It increased its market share in personal computers from 13.5 per cent in April-June 2014 to 19.8 per cent in January-March 2015. According to research firm International Data Corporation (IDC), Lenovo held on to its third spot in the market. The success of other products like laptops, personal computers and tablets also helped Lenovo's smartphone sales. Success of Lenovo's K3 Note, A6000 Plus, and Moto G 3rd Gen helped the company gain fourth spot in the smartphone market in September. "The group also started local manufacturing of its smartphones in India to strengthen their position in the market," IDC said in November 2015. In the past six quarters, Lenovo, including Motorola, has not only gained market share - from less than 5 per cent in June 2014 to some 11 per cent in December 2015 - but it also toppled home-grown Intex in the last quarter to be the third-largest smartphone vendor in India, reports from CyberMedia Research and Canalys suggested. Experts said Lenovo achieved its success because of its strategy and by judging the market right. Lenovo launched its first 4G LTE smartphone in mid-2014 while Samsung, Micromax and Lava, the other players of the top five, entered the segment in 2015. Lenovo's focus on 5-inch and above screen size devices also paid off. Motorola (now Moto), which Lenovo acquired in 2014 from Google, helped the company establish its presence in smartphones above the Rs 20,000 price band. Lenovo is rebranding devices under its brands Vibe and Moto to reduce cannibalisation. It has also decided to sell Moto smartphones through offline channels this year. Yuangqing Yang, chief executive, Lenovo, has set a target of becoming one of the top 20 companies in India with annual revenue of Rs 40,000 crore by 2018. India is the fastest growing aviation market in the world, with traffic growing 20.2 per cent year on year. The scorching pace is driven by low fares, rising demand in smaller cities and steady growth in domestic tourism. Airlines in India flew 81 million passengers in 2015. And next year, 100 million passengers are expected to travel within the country. Aided by a 24 per cent reduction in jet fuel prices average air fares on domestic routes have fallen 14 per cent to around Rs 4,500. This has led to a spurt in demand from leisure travellers and small and medium enterprises. The overall sector-wide occupancy rose to 82.5 per cent in 2015 from 76.4 per cent in 2014. Analysts expect fares to remain range bound in 2016 due to a mix of lower crude oil price and an increase in capacity. They see market leader IndiGo as the biggest beneficiary because of its lower operating costs and fleet expansion plans. Aviation consultancy CAPAs South Asia Chief Executive Officer Kapil Kaul expects IndiGo to outperform the market again and estimates IndiGo and GoAir will add 30 aircraft between them in 2016-17. Airlines have found a sweet spot and at Rs 4,000-4,500 we are seeing a lot of conversion from searches to bookings. In the last three months we have seen 45-50 per cent growth in airline bookings. We see strong demand from non-metros. Growth is largely driven by leisure travel and we have witnessed a surge in bookings over long weekends, said Samyuth Sridharan, president of online portal Cleartrip. Close to 60 per cent of our customers today come from Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities and this has been fuelled by the increase in air capacity and lower fares. Capacity to destinations such as Visakhapatnam and Bhubaneswar has gone up. Destinations such as Gorakhpur and Surat have come on the aviation map. The connectivity has benefited corporate travellers, said Karan Anand, head, relationships, Cox & Kings. Airports in South India have seen the strongest growth with Kochi, Bengaluru and Hyderabad leading, according to CAPA. This has been led by the increase in frequency on existing destinations and new routes like Hyderabad-Lucknow and Hyderabad-Jabalpur. Trujet began operations last year and Air Costa is expanding its operations. SpiceJet has come back from the brink of closure and is adding flights, said Hemanth DP, chief operating officer, of Hyderabad Airport at CAPA aviation summit on Thursday. Domestic traffic at Mumbai and Delhi grew 12 per cent while the top 10 airports operated by the Airports Authority of India registered 15 per cent growth in 2015-16. FLYING HIGH American internet TV company Netflix, which entered India last month, is eager to produce content from this country, both for here and for audiences abroad. Meantime, it will try to acquire streaming rights to movies across Indian languages. It recently bought the worldwide streaming rights to Bengali movie Brahman Naman at the Sundance Film Festival and has its eyes open for more such. It says it is also focusing on localising the platform with the addition of subtitle options in Indian languages, starting with Hindi. Netflix has earmarked $5 billion for content creation and acquisition for the January-December 2016 period. Original projects in India, if any during this time, will be funded out of this global budget. The company started producing original content in 2013 (Kevin Spacey starrer House of Cards was its first such production) to provide differentiated content on its platform. Netflixs model is similar to that of Discovery Network from the US, where there is a global content pool and budget, and each region is then allocated funds according to the production requirement. Netfix entered India as part of a 130-market global expansion and is now present in almost every major country, except China. We had two options wait for India to mature as a market in internet TV or enter, make mistakes and figure out a way to thrive here. We went with the latter, as we have observed that no amount of research can give us the insights that we get a mere two days after we go live in a market, says John Friedland, chief communications officer. In the case of India, the company is aware that with producers and broadcasters pushing their respective OTT (over-the-top) platforms, getting blockbuster films and/or shows will be next to impossible. Currently, the Netflix library for Indian content has one major recent hit in the form of Piku, a bunch of productions like Ship of Theseus and The Good Road, and some classics from Bollywood. The immediate focus is to strengthen the international content library. The company is primarily targeting outward-looking and affluent consumers, with international credit cards and smartphones in the new markets, it informed its shareholders in January. We do not want to be everything to everyone. From previous experience, we have observed that each market has a distinct viewing and paying pattern and choice of content. In India, we will start to learn what these are and will add content accordingly, says Friedland. The companys first major expansion was to the Latin American countries. Unlike other regions, Latin America had fairly simple streaming rights acquisition policies and Netflix identified it as the next frontier on its global expansion map. However, it soon learnt that importing content from the US to Latin America would result in subscriptions and viewer engagement. This, Friedland says, was among the most important lessons it learnt and has since decided to have the same pricing across markets but customised content offerings for each territory. Having said that, all of Netflixs original content will be available to subscribers across the globe. In the case of shows we have licensed from studios, the availability depends on what rights we have in which geography. That is why House of Cards is not available on Netflixin India. When we launched it, we did not have much presence beyond the Americas. So, elsewhere, different broadcasters and companies had the licence to the show, India included, Friedland explains. For India, it is currently waiting for the trial month period to be over, so that it can start assessing the viewing and payment habits of its Indian viewers. The companys metric for this assessment is growth in net subscribers and number of hours consumed. This year, the company will add 75 newshows/episodes of returning shows to its Originals catalogue, all of which (except House of Cards) will be launched at the same time across the globe. STEP BY STEP Government-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) has said would soon finalise the revised cost estimate for the development of its K-G basin discoveries. The current cost estimate works out as 50 per cent plus or minus the original estimate. We are now going to arrive at the exact cost in a week or 10 days, Chairman and Managing Director D K Sarraf said. Sarraf said development of its D5 block in the Krishna-Godavari (KG) basin, off the coast of Andhra Pradesh, might not be viable at a gas price less than $4.2 per million British thermal units (mBtu), when asked at what price their estimated Rs 40,000-crore investment in the block would be viable. He was speaking to journalists here at the India Investment Summit organised by the finance ministry. However, Sarraf denied a recent report that the company had written to the petroleum ministry for a revision of the governments natural gas pricing formula of October 2014. The rate by this formula (based on the average in gas surplus countries like the US, Russia and Canada) is $4.24 per mBtu. A new rate for domestically produced natural gas based on the formula takes effect from April 1. The company had earlier given a field development plan to the regulatory body, the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons, for starting production by 2018-19 from the block. ONGC plans to produce 77,000 barrels a day of oil and 14 million standard cubic metres a day of gas from the initial discoveries in the D5 block by 2018-19. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. Iran will continue to develop its missile program since it does not violate the agreement on the countrys nuclear program, Armenpress reports, citing Sputnik, Iranian Armed Forces Commander General-Major Salehi said on February 4. We are fulfilling our work and will continue in the future to strengthen and develop our missile program, Fars news agency quoted Salehi as saying. The international community has long suspected Iran of trying to develop a nuclear weapon, and the UN Security Council imposed two resolutions on Tehran seeking to curtail its activities involving ballistic missiles. On July 14, Iran and a group of six international mediators Russia, the United States, China, the United Kingdom, France and Germany signed an historic deal to guarantee the peaceful nature of Tehran's nuclear activities in exchange for sanctions relief. On January 16, the UN nuclear watchdog confirmed that Iran met its requirements under the deal, paving the way for sanctions relief. In January, the US Treasury Department sanctioned 11 entities and individuals, including six Iranians and one Chinese citizen, over their involvement in procurement on behalf of Irans ballistic missile program. The move came after media reported that Iran tested a surface-to-surface Emad (Pillar) missile in October in violation of a UN Security Council resolution. The private company of Tata Group doyen Ratan Tata will jointly invest with the $100-billion investment arm of the University of California, in start-ups and companies in India that focus on the segments of mobile telephony, energy, health care and emerging technologies. The investment cycle would be over 10 years, allowing the recipient companies to mature and earn returns. Tatas R N Tata Associates would be the vehicle to fund investments by the University of California (UC) partner, managed by its chief investment officer, Jagdeep Singh Baccher. In November, Tata joined as an advisor to the investment wing of UC to help on international strategy and investments of over $1 billion in three years into public markets and private assets in Asia, including India. We are looking at long-term, patient investments on solutions that dont lend to an IPO (initial public offer of equity) or exit on a valuation basis. The focus is to bet on great people and build enterprise, said Baccher. Tata would be the right partner. UC has around $500 million of investments in stock markets but this would be the first focused plan to invest in start-ups in the country. The partnership with Tata could eventually help set up its own team in India. The partners did not commit on any investments or figures, saying the engagement had only begun. Baccher said the partnership would also explore bringing technologies and inventions in the eight universities that come under the University of California, that could help in creating low cost and mass scale solutions. Since stepping down as chairman of Tata Group, Tata has bought minority stakes in a little over 25 companies. These include Snapdeal, Ola, Urban Ladder and a Chinese smartphone maker. He says these are private investments, done to learn about emerging businesses and work with youngsters. The challenge in investing in a start-up on the one hand is less than investing in stock market systems. At the same time, the risk profile could be higher, said Tata. In my view, the risks and difficulties involved with start-ups are less in magnitude than investing in a major company that has got millions of rupees tied up in a new project. He said he appreciated the governments move to provide support to start-ups and helping build a system for entrepreneurs. Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Infrastructure on Thursday sold its cement subsidiary to Birla Corp for Rs 4,800 crore at a valuation of $140 a tonne. Reliance Cement has a capacity of 5.5 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) in Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. While the transaction will boost Birla Corps capacity from 10 mtpa to 15.5 mtpa, the flagship company of M P Birla group will still not be among Indias top five cement companies. Reliance Cement fits our plans to grow the business profitably very well and offers lucrative prospects for creating synergy with existing operations. It provides an excellent platform for increasing our footprint in existing as well as new geographies, said Harsh V Lodha, chairman, Birla Corp. RInfra said, The transaction is subject to approval of the Competition Commission of India and other applicable regulatory approvals. Reliance Infrastructure had consolidated debt of Rs 25,800 crore at the end of the last financial year and is selling several assets to improve financial health. The group had announced plans to raise Rs 14,000 crore by selling cement and road assets by March 2017. In November, Reliance Infrastructure said it was selling a 49 per cent stake in its power generation, distribution and transmission business in Mumbai to Canadas Public Sector Pension Investment Board for an estimated sum of Rs 3,500 crore. This is the first step in our plan for making RInfra debt-free on a standalone basis. The other initiatives on Mumbai distribution and roads are on track, said Lalit Jalan, CEO, RInfra. The company stock on BSE closed at Rs 409.85, down 5.85 per cent. For the industry, the deal clearly shows that there is hardly any interest in the market for cement M&As. The plant is pretty new just a couple of years old. Even Reliance Infra was earlier expecting over Rs 5,000 crore, but they have got just Rs 4,800 crore. That tells you the state of the M&A appetite, he added. The Ambani group which has combined debt of Rs 98,800 crore has also announced that Reliance Communication will sell its telecom tower subsidiary to private equity firms Tillman Global Holdings and TPG Asia. An Update on the deal is expected anytime. Interestingly, a transaction between Birla Corp and Lafarge India collapsed early this week. In August last year, Birla Corp had acquired 5.15 mtpa cement capacity of Lafarge India in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand for Rs 5,000 crore. But the deal failed as an amendment in the Mining Act prohibited transfer of mining rights in case of asset sale. Lafarge now plans to sell its entire asset of 11 mtpa capacity in India through share sell to complete its global merger with Holcim. Birla Corp said it is looking for legal recourse on the failed deal with Lafarge. Even as Kolkata-based Rohit Ferro-Tech goes for strategic debt restructuring (SDR) after being saddled with mounting losses and huge loan dues, industry experts, bankers and analysts fear the lenders might not easily find a partner to offload their shares in the company under the new plan. The debt burden of the company, promoted by Suresh Kumar Patni in 2003, was Rs 2,185 crore as of March 2015, while it ended the previous financial year with a loss of Rs 353 crore. The market capitalisation had dipped to Rs 75 crore as on February 1, with shares trading below Rs 10 level. In this backdrop, a consortium of lenders led by State Bank of India invoked SDR in the company late last year. According to the SDR terms, the bankers will convert portions of their debt to equity and acquire sizable stake in the company within six months of the reference date. Then, offload the stakes in favour of a strategic partner within 18 months. The banks have no expertise to run the company. So, they will go for strategic sale of the assets after taking over the management through debt conversion. But, can they find a suitable buyer for the company when the market for ferroalloys and steel is on a trough? says R P Panda, an industry analyst. The firm has a total installed capacity of 274,583 tonnes per annum (tpa) of ferroalloys and 67.5-megawatt captive power plant spread in West Bengal and Odisha. It also has a 100,000 tpa stainless steel plant at Bishnupur in West Bengal. The Jajpur unit of Rohit Ferro-Tech in Odisha was sold last year to Balasore Alloys, a Ispat group company, at a consideration of Rs 1,050 crore through business transfer agreement by the lenders. Two other ferroalloys units of the company at Bishnupur and Haldia in West Bengal have been shut. But, it is better to sell the company at a discount and recover a substantial part of the exposure than to run the risk of letting the entire investment in the company become non-performing asset, he added. The factor, which has hurt the groups operation the most is that the management has gone for imprudent expansion of capacity, mostly between 2008 and 2010, without taking care of backward integration with raw material sources. As a result, without a captive mine, the operations have become unviable in a slump market with the cost of production pegged much higher than the selling price. Tata Steel, the countrys largest steel producer, reported a loss of Rs 2,127 crore in the quarter ended December 2015, against a profit of Rs 157 crore in the corresponding period in the previous year. This was mainly because of lower realisations, write-downs taken and restructuring done at its European operations along with employee separation compensation charges taken for the India business. The Street had anticipated a loss of Rs 1,103 crore as indicated by Bloomberg consensus estimates. The consolidated earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) at Rs 841 crore was much lower than the consensus estimate of Rs 1,409 crore according to Bloomberg and lower than the Rs 3,090 crore in the year ago quarter. Both net profit and Ebidta were the worst in three quarters. Cheap imports from China, Russia, Korea and Japan have surged to all-time highs. Imports to India were at 12 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) primarily originating from China, while imports to Europe were at 30 MTPA impacting realisations. Tata Steel Europe saw Ebitda loss of about Rs 675 crore, worse than expectations of about Rs 365 crore. The company attributed the loss to the sharp deterioration of market spreads in Q3FY16 to Euro 180 per tonne from Euro 207 per tonne in Q2FY16. Growing European steel demand continues to be undermined by a flood of imports into the region. Chinese steel shipments into Europe leapt more than 50 per cent last year, while imports from Russia and South Korea jumped 25 per cent and 30 per cent respectively, Karl-Ulrich Kohler, managing director and chief executive officer at Tata Steel in Europe, was quoted as saying. Consolidated earnings of the company from its steel business before finance cost, exceptional items and tax itself stood at a loss of Rs 81.23 crore in the period under review as against a profit of Rs 2,453 crore last year. Net sales of the company stood at Rs 27,818 crore in the period under review, down 16 per cent from same period last year on the back of lower steel prices even as deliveries were slightly better at 6.37 million tonne when compared to 6.29 million tonne last year. The company reported a loss at the operating profit level, which widened further with three-layered exceptional items coming in. As per Bloomberg estimates, the topline was expected to be at Rs 28,336 crore. In India, business climate is also muted. On standalone basis, revenues of the company stood at Rs 8,991 crore in the December quarter, down 8.5 per cent from same period last year. Bottom-line halved to Rs 452.82 crore in the quarter gone by from Rs 880 crore last year. Ebitda per tonne dipped to $97 as against analyst estimate of about $115. "The current business conditions for the global steel industry are extremely challenging with confluence of elevated imports across regions, currency headwinds and depressed market sentiments affecting Tata Steel Groups profitability. We are witnessing significant unfairly priced imports into countries like the UK, India and South East Asia which has disrupted the pricing discipline in most markets," Koushik Chatterjee, group executive director (finance and corporate) was quoted as saying. In the period under review, Tata Steel, under the exceptional item category, took a Rs 72.11 crore one-time non-cash write-down and a hit of Rs 615.39 crore for restructuring done at European operations along with employee separation compensation for India operations at Rs 24.27 crore. "Steel markets in India have been affected by depressed international steel prices and predatory imports. Tepid demand among steel consuming sectors has further exacerbated the problem," TV Narendran, managing director of Tata Steel India and South East Asia was quoted as saying. The quarter saw a sharp decline in steel prices which has impacted our margins at India operations, he added. At Kalinganagar, Tata Steel expects to commence the commercial production by end of this fiscal year. As at end of Q3FY16, Rs 23,000 crore was spent on the Kalinganagar project, of which Rs 7,000 crore through project finance debt and balance through internal equity, said the company. During the quarter, Tata Steel successfully refinanced $1.5 billion of debt which has given further flexibility and extended tenure while reducing costs, said the company. Walmart India President & Chief Executive Officer Krish Iyer said the company will be opening 10 cash-and-carry stores in Karnataka. "Today we signed an agreement with Karnataka government to open ten cash and carry stores in Karnataka," Iyer said. Speaking at a session on promoting women entrepreneurship at Invest Karnataka 2016, he said, We have also committed for women entrepreneurship development programme to be rolled out in the state. Stating that Walmart was currently running this programme on two fronts - demand side and supply side, Iyer said demand side included developing women entrepreneurs who can open kirana stores or small hotels, restaurants and dhabas to whom they will supply at low costs. On the supply side, he said "there is big opportunity." "We already have 30 women owned businesses for merchandise and 35 women owned businesses for services from whom we source from India," he added. He pointed out they were buying $20 billion worth of merchandise globally from women-owned businesses. According to him, the company has created a global goal to double the current sourcing from women owned business in the next five years. Also, he said the company aims to promote diversity and inclusion in the existing supplier mix from both merchandise as well as professional services, and to empower nearly one million women globally. "We are incorporating these three goals in our agenda of India," he added. Fast-food major Yum! Brands has split its India operations as same-store sales growth slides for the ninth consecutive quarter. The food retailer, which operates brands such as Pizza Hut, KFC and Taco Bell, saw same-store sales growth decline 13 per cent for the three months ending December 2015, pointing to challenges faced by the company in the domestic market. The split is on the lines of the three existing brands, with KFC headed by Rahul Shinde, Pizza Hut headed by Unnat Varma and Taco Bell under Ankush Tuli. The new division heads will now report directly to executives in the US, implying that the country head position has been eliminated. The India restructuring incidentally comes as Yum splits its operations globally into two independent publicly-traded companies. One company will operate its three brands KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, while the other will manage the China business, which has been consistently losing share to rivals. The separation is expected to be completed by the end of 2016. However, the India operation has been merged with the global divisions of KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell from January 2016, the company said. Yum's former India head Niren Chaudhary has moved to Dallas, where he is now in charge of the KFC business across Asia, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean based out of Dallas. Shinde, who heads the KFC business in India, will report to him. Abneesh Roy, associate director, research, institutional equities, Edelweiss, said the India restructuring would help Yum regain growth momentum, since the focus would now be narrowed down to the three individual brands. "Yum has stated that the split will help it achieve compelling growth strategies, distinct investment characteristics and optimise capital structures," Roy said in a just-released report. For the last five quarters, Yum's decline in same-store sales growth in India has been in double-digits, which the company is hoping to stem in the coming months. In comparison, rival Jubilant FoodWorks, the master franchisee of Domino's and Dunkin Donuts, has seen same-store sales growth turn positive from negative in the same period. Senior chartered accountants Yezdi H Malegam and Bansi S Mehta suggested an "action plan" - including floating a non-profit Young Indian - to revive The Associated Journals Limited (AJL), Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi said in a petition filed in Supreme Court on Thursday. "For the purpose of undertaking the process of revival of AJL, renowned financial experts Bansi S Mehta and Yezdi H Malegam were requested to suggest an action plan. According to the plan, Young Indian was incorporated as a company under Section 25 of the Companies Act, 1956, in November 2010," the special leave petition said. Business Standard has reviewed a copy of the petition. According to the action plan, loans of over Rs 90 crore given over the years by Congress to AJL, the parent of National Herald, were assigned to a then non-profit Young Indian for a sum of Rs 50 lakh. According to the second leg of the plan, Young Indian, floated by professionals and Gandhi family loyalists Suman Dubey and Sam Pitroda, got controlling stake of AJL. Gandhis later became controlling shareholders of Young Indian with 38 per cent stake each. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy has alleged the entire transaction was a 'land grab', aimed at the substantial real estate assets of National Herald in major cities such as Delhi, Lucknow and Mumbai. Malegam was a Reserve Bank of India board member and famously heading the central bank's panel on microfinance at the time of AJL restructuring, according to Bloomberg data. Mehta is chairman of Gillette India and is on the board of several companies. He is also the chief mentor of Bansi S Mehta & Co., a six-decade old firm in Mumbai "specialising in taxation, mergers & acquisitions, accounting & assurance, and corporate advisory." The petition challenged the Delhi High Court's December order, which had allowed the trial court to go into several charges, including cheating and criminal conspiracy, raising several questions of law. BJP leader Subramanian Swamy's 2013 complaint had alleged the commission of various offences under Sections 403, 406, 420 r/w S. 120 B of Indian Penal Code (IPC) in the Young Indian takeover of AJL. The Gandhis' petition questioned the locus standi of Swamy, who had filed the complaint, leading to legal proceedings and termed it 'politically motivated'. It stated: "The complaint filed by the complainant was a gross abuse of the process of law in as much as that despite the absence of essential ingredients for the offences alleged against the petitioner under Sections 403, 406, 420 r/w 120B of IPC; a false, vexatious and politically motivated complaint had been filed by the respondent, who is admittedly a third party to the entire set of transactions, solely with a view to unleash political vendetta to harass and cause harm to the leaders of INC." The questions included whether "the impugned judgement is liable to be set aside as the Hon'ble Single Judge of the High Court has evaded the question as to what offences are alleged in the complaint, grounds to proceed against the accused, allegations in the complaint and material brought on record prima-facie to substantiate the said accusation." The petition also wanted the apex court to consider the high court's "failure to take into consideration the facts on record, pleas raised by the accused and legal questions emerging in the course of the hearing." The petitioners, which included Young Indian directors Suman Dubey and Sam Pitroda, also contended "that the Hon'ble Single Judge has conducted fishing and roving inquiry into allegations of a general nature without examining the question as to what offences are alleged to be prima-facie." Prenuptial agreements in India might not be legally tenable but, increasingly, families are going for these contracts which state the assets of the bride and groom, and the compensation the woman will receive if the marriage turns sour and the couple legally part ways. Families are opting for prenuptial agreements to see the intentions of the parties involved, even though the contract is not legally binding, says senior advocate Mrunalini Deshmukh, who handled divorce cases of many Bollywood celebrities including Aamir and Reena Khan and Karisma Kapoor. She adds that the document is used to tell the court the conditions that the couple had agreed upon when they got married. And its not only the wealthy that are drawing up these agreements. Advocate Vandana Shah recently got a couple who asked her to help them draft one such contract. They were both part of corporate world, working in middle management. When she told them it would not have any standing in a court, they said they were making it so that both were clear on the settlement terms if they part ways. Prenuptials are popular in developed countries such as the US, Australia, France and Germany. But in India, there are Supreme Court rulings which say any contract which has marriage as an object is null and void. Recently, Maneka Gandhi, minister for women and child development, recommended to D V Sadananda Gowda, minister for law and justice, to make prenuptial agreements mandatory before marriage. The recommendation was made as many women from lower socio-economic backgrounds have to fight endless battles over alimony, marital ownership of property and assets during divorce. Deshmukh says, on an average, divorce cases take four to five years to conclude; but many also drag on for over 15 years. She has a client, who is still fighting a legal battle since 1999. The idea of legalising prenuptial agreements has many takers. Lawyers say it will help reduce the burden of courts. It will also end husbands and wives taking undue advantage of each other and will keep their expectations in check. Deshmukh feels it will also help solve common reasons for fights or disputes, such as division of property. Financial planners say it will be a good starting point in a marriage. When drawing a prenuptial agreement, the entire assets, liabilities, business ownerships, among other things, are listed out. This can make both parties aware of each others finances before tying the knot. Even if a prenuptial agreement does not become legal in India, there are a few things every couple should follow while managing their family finances to ensure that things dont go awry in case they part ways. Suresh Sadagopan, a certified financial planner, says couples should keep their finances separate and contribute towards expenses in equal proportion. If the husbands salary is Rs 1 lakh and wifes is Rs 50,000. They can equally contribute 30 per cent of their income to family expenses. Shah says couples should keep their bank accounts separate and all investments should be done through individual accounts. This will not only create a trail, but also make calculation of taxes easy. When buying property, couples should also take the ownership in the asset in proportion to their contribution, Sadagopan says. If the husband is paying 70 per cent of the equated monthly instalment, he should list his share in that proportion. The frequent and frequently discussed foreign trips of Prime Minister Narendra Modi have chalked up a bill of Rs 77 crore for chartered flights in the first six months of his tenure, according to data from his office. Modi took charge as prime minister on May 26, 2014. According to data from the Prime Minister's Office, this is the amount spent on five international trips between June 15 and November 20 (see chart). He also went twice to Nepal, but flew in Indian Air Force aircraft. The expenditure for these trips has not been revealed. Till December 2015, Modi has flown abroad 19 times, but the bills have been processed only for 2014 till now. Compared with his predecessor, Manmohan Singh, Modi's most expensive trip - to Myanmar, Australia and Fiji in November 2014 - was comparatively less costly at Rs 22.5 crore. Singh's trip to Brazil and Mexico in June 2012 for eight days had chalked up a flight bill of Rs 26.94 crore. Also, the current PM's chartered flight for a seven-day trip to the US in September 2014, where he had wooed the crowds at Madison Square in New York, had cost Rs 19 crore - less than Singh's trip for as many days to the US in September 2013, the bill for which was Rs 23.37 crore. However, when the figures are compared for expenses on flights abroad, Modi comes out on the top. In his first six months, Singh flew out four times but spent only Rs 30.45 crore. One must, of course, consider the fact that expenses between 2004 (when Singh took office) and 2014 are not comparable. They say that this diminutive, determined woman has done more than any other Indian to bring homosexuality out of the closet. For Anjali Gopalan, a pioneer in the field of HIV prevention and care in India, the battle for decriminalising homosexuality has had its fair share of ups and downs. But this week, when the Supreme Court finally moved to re-examine Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code that treats sexual activity between consenting adults of the same sex a criminal offence - it gave her, as well as the queer community, reason to be quietly optimistic. The fight for the rights of sexual minorities began in 2001, when Gopalan and Naz India Foundation, the NGO she founded in 1994 to work on HIV/AIDS and sexual health issues, filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) to decriminalise homosexuality and recant the archaic Section 377 under which individuals were harassed and discriminated against based on their sexual orientation. The Delhi High Court ruled in their favour in 2009 and declared Article 377 an infringement on individual rights. However, the cheer raised by civil society and the LGBTQ community was short-lived, as religious groups across the country challenged the verdict in Supreme Court in 2010. In December 2013, the Supreme Court reinstated Section 377, and overturned the High Court judgment, thereby recriminalising thousands of LGBTQ Indians. The turn of events must have been incredibly frustrating for Gopalan, for it raised questions for which there were no good answers. How would gay AIDS patients access government-sponsored treatment, if they feared being punished for their sexual preferences? What would happen to the thousands of individuals who had come out of the closet after the Delhi High Court decision, now that their sexual preferences were again deemed deviant and criminal? Eventually, Naz India, along with seven other civil rights and LGBTQ groups, filed a batch of curative petitions against Section 377 - the last judicial resort for redressal of grievances, which the Supreme Court heard this week. Meanwhile, Gopalan is back at work at her care home for children with HIV/AIDS, trying to break the resounding silence that envelopes the disease. Naz India has filed another PIL urging the Supreme Court to issue directions that HIV-positive school children should not be discriminated against for admission, or turned out after their HIV-positive status is revealed. Invoking the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, Gopalan and her cohorts at Naz India are demanding that children with HIV be notified as a "disadvantaged" group under the act, to ensure their continued education. Nominated (and shortlisted) for the Nobel Peace prize in 2005 and the French Legion of Honour in 2013, Gopalan is at the forefront of the fight for the rights of sexual minorities today. The question that her advocacy has raised is a critical one - can religious beliefs (in this case, about the immorality of homosexuality) trump the fundamental rights that each Indian citizen is entitled to? Judging from the events of February 2, she's given the Supreme Court some queer food for thought. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. Agreement mutually abolishing necessity of entry visa was signed in Macao between the Government of the Republic of Armenia and Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China on February 3. Ambassador of Armenia to Peoples Republic of China (PRC) Armen Sargsyan signed the agreement on behalf of the Armenian Government. As Armenpress was informed from the Department of Press, Information and Public Relations of MFA Armenia, during the meeting Ambassador Sargsyan discussed issues referring to establishment of cooperation in tourism, opportunities of mutual investments, organization of visits by official delegations with the official representative of Macao. Within the framework of the working visit to Macao, Ambassador Sargsyan held a meeting also with Jackson Chang, President of Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute, during which the sides discussed opportunities of implementation of bilateral trade, economic and investment programs. An agreement was reached to exchange information over exhibitions, fairs and various conferences organized in Armenia and Macao, as well as investment programs. The central government said it would by end-March offer for auction three Ultra Mega Power Projects (UMPPs), one each in Bihar, Odisha and Tamil Nadu, requiring a combined investment of Rs 80,000 crore. It also said four more states were likely to join the ambitious UDAY scheme for debt restructuring of distribution companies (discoms) in the sector by the end of this month. The UMPPs, said power secretary P K Pujari, were at Banka in Bihar, Bedabahal in Odisha and Cheyyur in Tamil Nadu. The minimum investment for a UMPP of 4,000 Mw was recently revised from Rs 20,000 crore to around Rs 27,000 crore, on the basis of a higher price for coal and land. The power ministry had aborted bidding for Cheyyur and Bedabahal in January last year, due to tepid response from the private sector. Private firms which had participated in the first round of bidding for both had withdrawn, citing difficulties in securing finances for these projects. Pujari said the bid document for one of the UMPPs had been finalised and would soon go for Cabinet approval. He also said the ministry had signed agreements with states to cover a little over half of total discom debt of Rs 4.37 lakh crore by March 31, under the Ujwal Discom Assurance Yojana (UDAY). More than 15 states have already shown their willingness to join the scheme. Bihar, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh are currently finalising the (agreements) for joining the scheme in 20 days, Pujari said. The sector, he said, would attract investments of at least Rs 10 lakh crore. This comprises investments worth nearly Rs 9.3 lakh crore in identified thermal power projects, Rs 78,600 crore in transmission projects to be awarded on rate-based competitive bidding and Rs 75,900 crore in the Deen Dayal Gram Jyoti Yojana that aims at separation of agricultural feeders from those supplying urban areas. Karnataka signed 147 projects with a commitment to invest Rs 1.33 lakh crore in the two-day Invest Karnataka event across energy, pharma, information technology & biotechnology, agriculture, infrastructure and tourism. This is in addition to Rs 1.75 lakh crore worth of projects approved by the state over the past year, which combined, would generate nearly 700,000 jobs. In order to ensure that the MoUs and interest showed by investors is realised and turned into actual investments, Karnataka has appointed an official to follow up on projects where investments are above Rs 200 crore. Moreover, the state will aim to have all projects approved by high-power committees and single-window committees before May 15. "Mobilising investments is a continuous process, it is not a process that can be done in two days. But we are confident with the amazing response that there should not be any doubt that Karnataka will be the key destination in India for investments," said R V Deshpande, industries minister with the government of Karnataka. Apart from the claimed Rs 3-lakh investment proposals in Karnataka, the state will also receive Rs 1 lakh crore over two years for the development of 4,000 km of national highways in the state. Further, Rs 200 crore will be invested in ports and Rs 500 crore will be given by Centre to set up a 1.3-million tonne urea plant. The Karnataka government will also set up a public-private partnership company called Karnataka Invest where industrialists will advise the government and will function as an ambassador to attract global investments. Based on the demand of power distribution companies in the state, the energy requirement of Odisha is pegged at 25,468 million units (MU) for 2016-17. Gridco, the state-run bulk power purchaser, has projected this power requirement in its annual revenue requirement (ARR), submitted to the Odisha Electricity Regulatory Commission (OERC). The projection consists of a sale of 25,468 MU by Gridco to distribution companies and emergency and backup power sale to Nalco and Imfa. Out of the total demand of distribution companies, Central Electricity Supply Utility (Cesu) requires 8,905 MU, North Eastern Electricity Supply Company of Orissa Limited (Nesco) 5,583 MU, Western Electricity Supply Company of Orissa Limited (Wesco) 7,450 MU and Southern Electricity Supply Company of Odisha Limited (Southco) 3,530 MU. With transmission loss pegged at 978.91 MU (3.70 per cent), the energy procurement will be 26,456.91MU, Gridco said. The total energy available is 29,147.42 MU. The estimated surplus energy of 2,690.52 MU will be utilised for power trading to reduce Gridco's losses. The total power purchase cost of Gridco is arrived at Rs 8,397.79 crore for 29,147.42 MU. It aims to purchase 20,883.62 MU from the state sector while 8744.22 MU will come from the central utilities. The bulk power trader has projected its annual revenue requirement at Rs 9227.67 crore before the regulator at a proposed bulk supply price (BSP) of 362.32 paise per unit charged to the distribution companies. It may be noted that as per the Electricity Act, 2003, the electricity tariff is determined on annual basis by OERC for generation, transmission and supply of electricity considering commercial viability and operational efficiency of the utilities. Ministry for Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG) has sought Rs 15,000 crore from the Ministry of Finance to build the second phase of the country's strategic petroleum reserves, Dharmendra Pradhan, Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas said at the IndianOil Petrochemical Conclave in Mumbai today. India is planning to build a 12.5 million tonnes of storage capacity under phase-two at four locations-- Bikaner in Rajasthan, Rajkot in Gujarat and Chandikhol in Orissa and Padur. While India currently imports about 80 percent of its oil requirements, the International Energy Agency predicts that by 2020, India could become the world's largest oil importer. The government wishes to take advantage of the slump in crude oil prices which has hit a 12 year low trading around $35 a barrel. The government had decided to set up 5 million metric tons of strategic crude oil storages at three locations-- Visakhapatnam, Mangalore and Padur. However, only the facility at Visakhapatnam is commissioned with a capacity to store 1.33 million tonnes of crude oil. The Mangalore and Padur projects, both on the western coast of Karnataka, are nearly complete, awaiting pipeline connections from the nearest ports. These three underground storages were to store about 5.33 million tonnes of crude oil. MoPNG also plans to extend financial partnerships to start-ups engaged in the oil and gas sector boost the 'Startup India' initiative. Pradhan said: "All the oil public sector undertaking units (PSUs) will invest and provide financial partnerships to new start-ups engaged in exploration and production and downstream activities to encourage local innovation and add skills." Pradhan said the Government is working on a policy to give 10 per cent purchase preference to local entrepreneurs to give a boost to the entrepreneurship ecosystem in the petrochemical industry. B Ashok, Chairman, Indian Oil Corporation, said that the company plans to invest Rs. 7,650 crore in setting up a petrochemical complex at its Paradip refinery in Odisha in the next three to four years. The complex will have a 700,000 tonnes per annum polypropylene plant and ethylene derivatives complex to manufacture around 350,000 tonnes of mono-ethylene glycols. Small (SFBs) that are aiming to start operations in this financial year have begun the hiring process and have turned to private sector and foreign lenders to source talent from. Human Resource consultants that have been given the mandate to hire believe that the number of people that these new niche are looking at hiring could go up to 20,000. Ajay Shah, Assistant Vice President, TeamLease Services said that small looking to hire 15,000-20,000 people in the next 12 months. "For senior roles, for which these banks will be hiring first, the talent will be taken in from top private banks. Hence, private banks have already started looking at retention plans to ensure that their high performers stay with them," he said. Experts believe that since most of the players that have been granted the SFB licence are microfinance players, they are already well equipped with a workforce that can qualify as feet on the street. Therefore, at present the hiring from most of the private and foreign banks will be at the managerial level. Consultants explain that private banks--ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, AxisBank, YES Bank, IndusInd Bank among others-- have emerged as the most obvious choice as they believe that they will be in a better position to adapt themselves to a start-up bank culture than employees from public sector banks. Officials also added that from a new bank perspective, private banks employees would see more opportunities with the line of business being similar to what the new players would be playing in. "For rural and semi-urban areas, they already have the requisite manpower and would also hire locally. But for senior levels, private bankers are the closest match," an HR consultant said. On the other hand even foreign banks are turning out to be a good poaching ground, explain experts. Kamal Karanth A, Managing Director-India, Kelly Services & KellyOCG said that small banks will find it easier to hire from MNC banks since these banks have been facing pressures globally leading to a headcount squeeze. He added that those from global banks would be easier to hire with an average 20 per cent hike. "Even though our banks are going to be focusing on financial inclusion, not all branches will be focused on the hinterland. We will also be focusing on urban exclusion and therefore for such roles it has been easier to tap people from private banks," said R Baskar Babu, Chief executive Officer, Suryoday, which has been grated in-principle licence for SFB by Reserve Bank of India. They are looking at hiring up to five hundred people in the coming months. Sunil Goel, Director, GlobalHunt said that poaching of talent from other banks could be seen as the small finance banks will hire 20-25 per cent of their total talent from the existing banks. He also added that with thin margins, to retain talent these banks may offer non-cash incentives. However, the banks dismiss it as a natural attrition process and do not think this will lead to a talent crunch. "This is a part of the process. Moreover, the new niche banks will not take away talent from the top management level but it will be more at the mid to lower level which anyway sees attrition on a regular basis. So we are not alarmed by it," said one of the human resource manager of a mid-sized private bank. Last year, the Reserve Bank of India had granted SFB licences to 10 of the 72 applicants. These SFBs will be similar to existing commercial lenders and will undertake basic banking activities such as accepting deposits and lending to the un-served and under-served sections. Their loan size and investment limit exposure to single and group obligators cannot be more than 10 per cent and 15 per cent of their capital, respectively. Also, at least 50 per cent of their loan portfolio has to include loans and advances of up to Rs 25 lakh. The regulator has said in time, small banks could convert themselves into universal banks, though the transition would depend on RBI's approval. ICAR is Committed to overcome Farm Constraints to make Indian Agriculture truly Sustainable and Profitable- Radha Mohan Singh . . Swarna Shreya, a new rice variety for droughtprone conditions was released . . 87thAGM of the ICAR Society . . Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister, Shri Radha Mohan Singh today here addresses the 87thAGM of the ICAR Society. Shri Singh said that the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has completed over eighty six years, overcoming challenges in growth and development of agriculture through generation of appropriate technologies that resulted in improving farm productivity, farm incomes, and building institutions, human resources, diversifying agriculture, creating new opportunities and opening up new frontiers of knowledge. The infusion of modern technologies in agriculture has undoubtedly rescued several innocent lives from claws of hungerthe ICAR is committed to overcome farm constraints to make Indian agriculture truly sustainable and profitable". . . Shri Singh while highlighting the achievements of ICAR and its educational and research institutes said that a new fish species Clarias serratobrachium sp. nov. was discovered from the wetlands along Indo-Burma border. Development of improved varieties and hybrids and availability of their quality seed is the most vital and critical input for increasing the productivity of crops. During the year, 80 new improved varieties/hybrids of different field and horticultural crops were released for cultivation in diverse agro-ecological regions of the country and produced and distributed over 98,000 quintals of breeder seeds of major food crops, as well. Biofortified rice variety CR Dhan 310 was commercialized successfully in the Indo-Gangetic Plains belt and Swarna Shreya, a new rice variety for droughtprone conditions was released." . . Full text of the speech of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister is as follows: . . Ministers of Agriculture, Horticulture, Animal Husbandry and Fisheries from States and distinguished Members of the Society; Members of ICAR Governing Body; my colleagues, Ministers of State, Dr Sanjeev Kumar Balyan, and Shri Kundariya; Dr Ayyappan, Secretary, DARE and DG, ICAR; Shri S.K. Singh, Additional Secretary & Financial Advisor, DARE; Shri C. Roul, Additional Secretary, DARE and Secretary, ICAR; Invitees, Senior officers of the Council, Representatives of Press and Media, Ladies and Gentlemen! . . I, on behalf of the ICAR and on my personal behalf, extend a warm welcome to you all in this 87thAnnual General Meeting of the ICAR Society. We are grateful to all the members of the Society and guests, who have responded to our request and travelled from all parts of the country to participate in this important annual meeting. Your keen interest and constructive suggestions, over the years, have proved to be very helpful in charting a science-led pathway for agricultural development in the country. We look forward to hear from you about the concerns relating to agriculture in your respective states and how we in the ICAR can be partners in addressing the same. . . The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has completed over eighty six years, overcoming challenges in growth and development of agriculture through generation of appropriate technologies that resulted in improving farm productivity, farm incomes, and building institutions, human resources, diversifying agriculture, creating new opportunities and opening up new frontiers of knowledge. The infusion of modern technologies in agriculture has undoubtedly rescued several innocent lives from claws of hunger. The ICAR is committed to overcome farm constraints to make Indian agriculture truly sustainable and profitable. I wish to avail this opportunity to share some of the important developments and achievements in the last year, As President of the ICAR Society. . . The 87th ICAR Foundation Day function of the ICAR on 25 July, 2015 was graced by Honble Prime Minister of India, for the second consecutive year. In his thought provoking Address, Hon'ble Prime Minister called upon agricultural scientists and planners to design second green revolution with new vision, dimensions and objectives in light of diverse challenges in this modern era. In this context, he reiterated that second green revolution will begin from the land of eastern India which has immense potential in terms of natural resources and willing farmers to take up experiments in fields. While appreciating the agricultural scientists and farmers for their contributions and Hon. PM suggested identification of commodities having high potential of income from national and global markets. . . The 68th UN General Assembly declared 2015 as the International Year of Soils (IYS) for raising awareness among the people on the importance of soil in sustaining life support system on earth. Keeping this in view, Indian Council of Agricultural Research celebrated World Soil Day on 5th December, 2015 across the country. All the state governments have together distributed about 40 lakh soil health. A total of 607 Krishi Vigyan Kendras and 80 ICAR institutions/Agricultural Universities organized the function inviting Honble Union Ministers, Governor, Chief Ministers, MPs, MLAs and other important persons for participation. In this event, about 2,50,000 Soil Health Cards were distributed to farmers who were also educated on use of these cards for maximizing farm productivity. I was myself at Ranchi, Jharkhand where 25,000 Soil Health Cards were distributed to farmers. I am happy to share with you that the number of mobile soil testing labs that was only 17 in the last four years has increased to 77 by December -2015 during last one and half years. . . ICAR celebrated Jai Kisan Jai Vigyan Week from 23 December to 29 December 2015 on the birth anniversary of former Prime Ministers Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Late Shri Chaudhary Charan Singh. The celebration was organized keeping in view their immense contribution for promoting use of science for the welfare of farmers. ICAR Institutes and KVKs across the country organized various farmer awareness programs, showcasing and demonstration of new technological advances for enhancing productivity and profitability of agriculture. Progressive farmers who have successfully adopted latest technologies and have made contribution in wide scale adoption of technologies by farmers were felicitated. . . During kharif 2015, unprecedented heavy infestation of whitefly on cotton was documented in Punjab and Haryana resulting in significant damage to the crop particularly in Punjab where more than 75% of the crop experienced delayed sowing due to delayed harvesting of wheat. In Haryana relatively less damage was experienced where nearly 50% cotton area was timely sown. Deficient rain fall coupled with hot, humid and cloudy weather during June-July led to severe outbreak of whitefly. We held several meetings on this issue with all the stakeholders and comprehensive strategy to prevent recurrence of the pest during next season has been planned. . . With an eye on the future needs of both, the agriculturalists as well as the consumers the Council has revised the mandates and formulated Vision-2050 for all its institutions including the headquarters. These steps are expected to provide useful directions to the future programmes of research and education. . . Building institutions of research and higher agricultural education received priority. Foundation stone of new Agricultural University in Andhra Pradesh, Horticultural Universities in Telangana, National Research Centre for Integrated Farming (NRCIF), Motihari, and Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), Hazaribagh, Jharkhand, were laid and Central Agricultural University, Imphal is being strengthened with six additional colleges in north eastern states on agriculture, horticulture, veterinary sciences and food processing, thereby raising the total number of colleges from 7 to 13. We are in the process of setting up a Post Graduate Institute of Horticulture, Amritsar. The Bill for conversion of Rajendra Agricultural University, Samastipur and Bihar into a Rajendra Central Agricultural University, Pusa is introduced in the Parliament. . . Government is committed to promote organic farming to increase soil health. New scheme Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) to develop organic clusters taken up from current year 2015-16. As a matter of fact, before the advent of synthetic chemical fertilsers and pesticides, organic farming formed the very basis of agriculture in India since ancient times. The soil fertility was maintained by using manures made using natural sources. . . During the year, the agricultural research and education institutions of the ICAR, successfully generated and introduced technologies to boost farm production and incomes. I am happy to mention that the ICAR, by the year 2015, prepared contingency plans for 600 districts in the country for addressing adverse climatic conditions including erratic monsoon. A total of 1,503 indigenous and 195 exotic collections comprising fruits, vegetables, tuber crops, plantation crops and nuts, spices, medicinal and aromatic plants, ornamental crops and mushrooms were made from different sources. Registration of seven new breeds of indigenous livestock during 2015 took the total number of registered indigenous breeds in the country to 151. A new fish species Clarias serratobrachium sp. nov. was discovered from the wetlands along Indo-Burma border. Development of improved varieties and hybrids and availability of their quality seed is the most vital and critical input for increasing the productivity of crops. During the year, 80 new improved varieties/hybrids of different field and horticultural crops were released for cultivation in diverse agro-ecological regions of the country and produced and distributed over 98,000 quintals of breeder seeds of major food crops, as well. Biofortified rice variety CR Dhan 310 was commercialized successfully in the Indo-Gangetic Plains belt and Swarna Shreya, a new rice variety for droughtprone conditions was released. For quicker spread of new technologies, demonstrations of oilseeds through KVKs have been introduced for first time in 2015-16. . . India remains global leader in production of milk for the last several years. Milk production increased from 137.69 Million Tonnes (MT) to 146.31 MT between 2013-14 and 2014-15 respectively. The estimated production for 2015-16 is projected at 160.35 MT, with highest annual increase of nearly 16 MT, in several years. Similarly the eggs have increased from 74 to 78 billion registering an annual growth rate of 5% and enabling 63 eggs per capita per year. In this important development the research institutions have played a crucial role. PCR assays for the detection of 17 prioritized exotic and emerging viruses were developed. FMD virus serotype O vaccine strain with enhanced thermo-stability was constructed using reverse genetic approach. . . Fisheries sector has recorded a very appreciable enhancement placing India at number two position among the fish producing nations. The Fish Production achieved a growth on 6.18% during 2014-15 which was 5.88% during 2013-14. Captive stocks of Rita chrysea, an indigenous catfish endemic to Mahanadi river, were successfully induced-bred in hatchery conditions. The fish has good consumer preference and market demand. . . For maintaining and upgrading quality and relevance of higher agricultural education, the Government has approved financial support of Rs. 2,900 crores for the 12th Plan. The support was provided for Niche Area of Excellence (28), Experiential Learning Units (21 new). The National Agricultural Science Fund, established to support basic and strategic research in agriculture, beside supporting, reviewing, monitoring and evaluation of the ongoing projects also initiated funding of new projects which were in the process of evaluation. . . Technology development and delivery are as important as the process of technology generation. Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) model is serving as the extension arm of the ICAR and received wide appreciation, not only in the country but abroad as well. The Government has accorded approval for Rs 3,900 crore for the continuation of the KVK scheme in the 12th Plan whereby nationwide 109 new KVKs will be established, the number of Agricultural Technology Application Research Institute (ATARI) erstwhile Zonal Project Directorates, has been increased from 8 to 11 and enhancement of KVK staff from 16 to 22. Provisions of strengthening of infrastructure at KVKs will also be made to improve the overall efficiency of technology assessment, refinement and transfer. The ICAR signed MoUs with national and internal organizations/institutions in the area of agricultural research and education. . . I once again welcome the delegates from different states and request them to share their own experience and concerns from all corners of the country. I on behalf of the Council, assure you that we would make all efforts within our domain, to see that your concerns are addressed at the earliest possible. I thank you once again for the participation in the 87th AGM of the ICAR Society. My best wishes to you all a very happy Basant Panchami and rich farm harvest." . . SS/CP Premiers of Ontario and Prince Edward Island provinces of Canada call on the Prime Minister . Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi received a delegation led by Ms Kathleen Wynne, Premier of Ontario and Mr H.Wade MacLauchlan, Premier of Prince Edward Island of Canada on February 3, 2016. . . The Premiers of Ontario and the Prince Edward Island expressed deep appreciation and support for the initiatives launched by the Government of India, including in the fields of manufacturing, skill, infrastructure development, renewable energy, urban renewal, waste management, education, agriculture. They conveyed that over the past year, the Canadian businesses and investors, including various Canadian Pension Funds, have shown enhanced interest and confidence in India. This was evident from a strong participation from Canada in the India investment Summit being held on 4-5 February 2016 in New Delhi. . . Prime Minister mentioned that India attached high priority to its relations with Canada. His own visit to Canada in April 2015, which was the first bilateral visit of the Prime Minister from India after a gap of nearly 42 years, and subsequent developments in bilateral relations have highlighted the synergy and complementarities between the two countries in various fields. Prime Minister conveyed his warm greetings to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and expressed confidence that his visit to India later this year would provide an opportunity to further deepen the strategic partnership between the two countries. . . President of India to witness the International Fleet Review on February 6 . The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee will visit Andhra Pradesh (Visakhapatnam) from February 5 to 7, 2016 where he will witness the International Fleet Review-2016 on February 6, 2016. . . The President of India as the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces reviews the Indian Naval Fleet once in his/her term as part of the Presidents Fleet Review. This review aims at assuring the country of the Indian Navys preparedness, high morale and discipline. The International Fleet Review allows the host nation an occasion to display its maritime capabilities and the bridges of friendship it has built with other maritime nations. . . The last International Fleet Review was conducted in January 2001, off Mumbai with participation from 29 countries. The International Fleet Review- 2016 will be done at a much larger scale than ever done before. It will witness participation from 50 countries. . . Shri Jayant Sinha, MoS (Finance) inaugurates the Second Pension Conclave under the theme of Universal Pension- Coverage, Adequacy and Sustainability"; Stresses upon the priority to provide the universal pension security including income security, health and life insurance to the people as early as possible . . The Minister of State for Finance, Shri Jayant Sinha, stressed upon the priority to provide the universal pension security including income security, health and life insurance to the people at large. He said that he believed in the philosophy to empower Indians with tools and knowledge to take ownership of their own retirement. Shri Sinha was delivering the Inaugural Address after inaugurating the Second Pension Conclave under the theme of Universal Pension- Coverage, Adequacy and Sustainability" being organised by the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) here today. In his address, Shri Sinha further stressed upon the fact that it is the right time when the advantage of young India with its demographic dividend and the growing economy can be leveraged with skill development and mitigation of low level financial literacy and expanding the coverage of pension with the participation of private sector with a sense of urgency. He stressed the importance of enrolling people into Pension schemes as quickly as possible, to take the advantage of the large number of young people in the country who would otherwise become dependent on the State and society in the old age. . . Second Pension Conclave under the theme of Universal Pension- Coverage, Adequacy and Sustainability" was organised here today by Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority. The objective of the conclave was to provide a platform to discuss, deliberate and to debate key issues pertaining to the challenges in pension sector and the need and ways to expand the pension coverage across the country. . . Earlier, Shri Hemant Contractor, Chairman, PFRDA, in his Keynote Address, gave an overview of the developments in terms of NPS infrastructure and product development during the last two years He informed that PFRDA was instrumental in notifying 14 Regulations defining the role and responsibilities of all stakeholders of NPS. During the last year, PFRDA has spruced-up the pension product making it user friendly by introducing the online mode for registration and contribution upload under NPS. Currently, 16 Banks are providing this facility. Around 35 Banks are using the SBI payment gateway, which can facilitate the said service to all citizens of India. The online exit shall be mandatory from 1st April, 2016 to facilitate the exit process. He mentioned that PFRDA was constantly striving to improve the risk/ reward profile of the investment portfolio and in the process, had permitted investment in new investments such as REITS, INVITS, IDFs etc. He also added that effort was required to meet the challenges facing the unorganised sector including low awareness and low income levels to save for the future. An effective distribution channel with proper incentive structure would go a long way in expanding the reach of NPS among the masses. It was important to include as many people in the pension plans, so that they would not face deprivation in their old age. . . The event was graced by presentations and panel discussions by eminent domain experts from World Bank- Mr Onno Ruhl, Country Director, Mr Robert Palacios, Senior Pension Economist and Mr William Price, Sr. Financial Sector Specialist, and distinguished economists, thinkers and academicians like Prof. Mukul Asher, Prof. Charan Singh etc. The Conclave was also attended by the different stakeholders under NPS i.e. Banks, Point of Presence (PoP) and Corporates participated in the conference. . . The discussions covered wide ranging sub-themes viz. (i) Pension reforms as part of the financial sector and fiscal reforms, (ii) social and economic aspects of the pension reforms, (iii) adequacy and sustainability of the pension to fulfil Government of Indias policy and vision of pensioned society with universal pension for all segments of population, (iv) best global practices in the pension sector (v) pension funds as source of long term funds for the infrastructure growth and capital market deepening and (vi) ensuring a clear vision for long term outcomes from the pension systems. . . Awards were given to the banks for their performance in the Atal Pension Yojana (APY). State Bank of India (SBI) received the award for Highest Atal pension Yojana (APY) Accounts sourced, Andhra Bank for Best Performing Bank in the category of Public Sector Banks (PSBs), Tamilnad Mercantaile Bank for Best Performing Bank in the category of Private Banks, Madhya Bihar Gramin Bank for the best Performing Bank in the category of Regional Rural Banks(RRBs) and Kottayam District Cooperative Bank for best Performing Bank in the category of Cooperative Banks. . . Currently, NPS has more than 1.14 crore subscribers with total Asset Under Management (AUM) of more than Rs.1.09 Lakh crores. . . Urban infrastructure building offers Rs.73 lakh cr investment opportunity for private sector, says Shri M.Venkaiah Naidu . . Minister calls for enabling environment for success of PPP model . . Minister of Urban Development Shri M.Venkaiah Naidu has asserted that urban infrastructure sector offers Rs.73 lakh crore investment opportunity for private sector and PPP investments over the next 15 years. He elaborated on this investment potential while speaking on Current status, Outlook and Investment opportunities in developing urban infrastructure at the India Investment Summit organized by the Ministry of Finance here today. . . Shri Naidu stressed that given the resource limitations of both central and state governments, private sector investments and Public-Private Partnerships are the chief instruments of resource mobilization to build the much needed urban infrastructure in the country. He noted that the Smart City Mission, Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), Swachh Bharat Mission and Prime Ministers Awas Yojana (Urban), which are aimed at ensuring urban infrastructure offered huge investment opportunities of the order of US $ 1,123 billion. . . Giving details, Shri Naidu said that over and above the support committed by the central and state governments, ensuring basic urban infrastructure requires Rs.56 lakh crores, building 2 crore houses for urban poor needs another Rs.11 lakh cr and Rs. 6 lakh cr for building 100 smart cities. . . Expressing hope that private sector and PPP investments can be mobilized to address the infrastructure challenge, Shri Naidu informed that 10 of the 20 smart cities announced last week have laid down clear road maps for mobilizing PPP investments of about Rs.9,000 cr. These include : Jaipur-Rs.2,563 cr, Belgavi (Karnatak)-Rs.1,006 cr, Davanagere (Karnataka) and New Delhi Municipal Council-Rs.797 cr each. . . Shri Naidu called for ensuring an enabling environment for the success of PPP mechanizing by addressing 6 key hurdles viz., Policy and regulatory gaps, Inadequate availability of long term financing, Inadequate capacities in public institutions and officials to manage PPP processes, Inadequate capacities in private sector including developers, investors and technical manpower, Inadequate shelf of bankable infra projects and Inadequate advocacy to create general appreciation of PPP by stakeholders. . . Bringing out the gaps in urban infrastructure, Shri Naidu noted that 50% of urban households still do not have water connections, only 69 litres per capita per day of water is being supplied in urban areas as against the norm of 135 lpcd, average water supply is only for 3 hours, sewerage network services cover only 12% households and only 5% of sewerage treatment capacity is available in urban areas. These gaps hit the urban poor the most and developing urban infrastructure accordingly leads to inclusive urban growth besides enhancing productivity and quality of life" said Shri Naidu. . . The Minister said that the Government led by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is addressing infrastructure deficit with a vigorous intent, intensity and initiatives to make urban areas more effective engines of economic growth. . . AAR YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. The European Court of Human Rights did not satisfy the claim of Lavrenti Kirakosyan against Armenia. Armenpress reports Kirakosyan claim was against the Police of Armenia which allegedly searched his house illegally in 2004 and found evidences which were later used against him in the court. First, an administrative case was brought against him for disobeying the lawful orders of police officers, and he was sentenced to ten days administrative detention, later his house had been searched twice and drugs were discovered. Kirakosyan complained in particular that the search warrant and the manner in which the search had been conducted had been in violation of Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life, the home and the correspondence) of the European Convention on Human Rights. ECHR found no violation of the Article 8. Vice President condoles the death of Shri Balram Jhakar . . The Vice President, Shri M. Hamid Ansari has condoled the death of former Lok Sabha Speaker, Shri Balram Jhakar, here today. . . Here is the text of the Vice Presidents condolence message: . . I am deeply grieved to hear about the demise of Shri Balram Jhakar, former Speaker of the Lok Sabha. . . A popular leader and a champion of the farmers, Shri Jhakhar contributed to the growth and deepening of Parliamentary system in India in his capacity as the Speaker of the Lok Sabha. . . I convey my deepest condolences to the bereaved members of the family and join the nation in praying for eternal peace for the departed soul." . . Vice President of India, Shri M. Hamid Ansari addressing the Banquet hosted by General Prayut Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister of Thailand, in Bangkok on 3 February 2016 . . "Your Excellency Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Thailand, . . Mrs. Naraporn Chan-o-cha, Distinguished Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen. . . My wife and I are delighted to be here in the dynamic city of Bangkok, the capital of this beautiful land. I thank Your Excellency for your gracious words, the warm welcome, the generous hospitality and the friendship of your people. . . Excellency, . . More than one million Indian tourists who visit the 'Land of Smiles' every year see the indelible imprint of our shared heritage - epitomized by the timeless message of Lord Buddha and the shared lore of the Ramayana. . . India and Thailand are natural partners, linked by history, geography and the close contacts between our two peoples. My visit, the first at by an Indian Vice-President in 56 years, is a manifestation of the desire we have to deepen the flow of ideas, people to people contacts and bilateral trade between our lands. . . My visit is taking place at a time when our bilateral relations can be described as excellent. We greatly appreciate the role of His Majesty the King in nurturing these relations; just as the idea of Buddhism, though germinating in India, has been nurtured in this land. We appreciate your Government's commitment to imparting greater momentum to the relations between our two countries. . . Excellency, . . Tomorrow, I will speak about India's Act East Policy at the prestigious Chulalongkorn University. Thailand is an important pillar of this policy and a valued partner. We admire the way Thailand has brought progress to its industrious people by making great strides in socio economic development. . . Our cooperation, both bilaterally and in the ASEAN rubric, encompasses diverse areas of mutual interest including Trade and Investment, Science and Technology, Education, and Cultural Exchanges. People-to-people contacts at various levels are the lifeblood of our friendship. I am pleased that our two countries have taken important steps in the pursuit of closer cooperation, stronger connectivity and greater commerce. . . As maritime neighbours, we have a shared interest in the security of international sea lanes of communication and commerce. Our resolve to strengthen our bilateral engagement in the areas of security and defence will help the region as a whole and promote greater regional economic integration and connectivity. . . We are both engaged in transforming our ancient lands in to modern knowledge economies. India is a bright spot with the highest economic growth amongst the larger emerging countries. There is growing interest from across the world in building partnerships of trade, investment and innovation with India. I would urge the government and business community in Thailand to avail of the opportunities provided by a growing India. . . Excellency, . . I see a very promising future for our bilateral relations. There is much untapped potential in our relationship and much to rediscover and learn from each other's culture, industry and society. With its unique geographic location, Thailand can be a bridge linking South East Asia to East Asia; while India can act as your springboard to West and Central Asia and to Europe. . . Our talks earlier today have put in place a roadmap for further strengthening our economic cooperation and intensification of our collaborations in all areas. Your scheduled visit to India this year will further enhance this vibrant and mutually beneficial cooperation. . . Next year, India and ASEAN will mark the 25th anniversary of their Dialogue Relations. We look forward to working with you under the framework of ASEAN. We shall strive to strengthen the India-ASEAN partnership, as also the BIMSTEC and Mekong-Ganga Cooperation. . . Excellency, . . The challenges of this century have been enormous and merits common understanding and joint efforts. Globalization of terrorism, impact of climate change on humanity and the health hazards which know no borders require global action. The international community is grappling with issues related to migration and integration of people. . . Our cultures with a civilizational heritage of peace, pluralism and co-existence in can offer lessons and lasting solutions. . . I thank you once again, Excellency, for the strong support extended by you personally and your government for strengthening our relationship. We look forward to the pleasure of receiving you in New Delhi. . . It gives me great pleasure to invite you to join me in raising a toast: . . to the good health and well-being of Their Majesties the King and the Queen . . to the continued progress and prosperity of the friendly people of Thailand, and . . to the eternal bonds of friendship between India and Thailand. . . Thank You." . . WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's three-and-a-half-year stay in the Ecuadorian embassy in London to avoid a rape investigation in Sweden amounts to 'arbitrary detention', a United Nations panel will rule on Friday. Assange, a former computer hacker who has been holed up in the embassy since June 2012, told the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention that he was a political refugee whose rights had been infringed by being unable to take up asylum in Ecuador. He denied allegations of rape in 2010 and has portrayed them as a ploy to have him eventually sent to the US, where he could be put on trial over WikiLeaks' publication of the classified military and diplomatic documents Britain said it had never arbitrarily detained Assange and that the Australian had voluntarily avoided arrest by jumping bail to flee to the embassy. But, the UN panel of outside experts has ruled in Assange's favour, Sweden said. "(The) working group has made the judgment that Assange has been arbitrarily detained in contravention of commitments," a spokeswoman for the Swedish Foreign Ministry said, confirming a report by the BBC. The ruling is to be published on Friday. Assange had said earlier in a short message on Twitter that he would have left the embassy if the UN panel had ruled against him. "(But) should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," Assange, 44, said. Britain said Assange will be arrested if he leaves his cramped quarters at the embassy and then extradited to Sweden. The decision in his favour marks the latest twist in a tumultuous journey for Assange since he incensed the US and its allies by using his WikiLeaks website to leak hundreds of thousands of secret US diplomatic and military cables in 2010, disclosures that often embarrassed Washington. He made headlines in early 2010 when WikiLeaks published classified US military video showing a 2007 attack by Apache helicopters that killed a dozen people in Baghdad, including two Reuters news staff. Later that year, the group released over 90,000 secret documents detailing the US-led military campaign in Afghanistan, followed by almost 400,000 internal US military reports detailing operations in Iraq. Those disclosures were followed by the release of over 250,000 classified cables from US embassies. It would go on to add almost three million more diplomatic cables dating back to 1973. Political refugee? In his submission to the UN working group, Assange argued that his time in the embassy constituted arbitrary detention. Assange says he is the victim of a witch hunt directed by the United States and that his fate is a test case for freedom of expression. He said that he had been deprived of his fundamental liberties, including lack of access to sunlight or fresh air, adequate medical facilities, as well as legal and procedural insecurity. "We have been consistently clear that Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the UK but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorean embassy," a British government spokeswoman said. "An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European Arrest Warrant in place, so the UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Assange to Sweden," she said. Per Samuelson, one of Assange's Swedish lawyers, said if the UN panel judged Assange's time in the embassy to be custody, he should be released immediately. "It is a very important body that would be then saying that Sweden's actions are inconsistent with the European Convention on Human Rights. And it is common practice to follow those decisions," Samuelson told Reuters. Since Assange's confinement, WikiLeaks has continued to publish documents on topics such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, one of the world's biggest multinational trade deals, which was signed by 12 member nations on Thursday in New Zealand. DERIVATIVE STRATEGIES M&M: BUY TARGET: Rs 1,218 STOP LOSS: Rs 1,194 BUY M&M FUTURES at Rs 1,203 [MACD BUY + VOLUME JUMP + OVERSOLD] YES BANK: BUY TARGET: Rs 786 STOP LOSS: Rs 770 BUY YES BANK FUTURES at Rs 777 [MACD & STOCHASTICS BUY + RISE IN VOLUME + ABV MOVING AVERAGES] Disclaimer: This report has been prepared by Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services Limited (GBNPP), here in after referred to as GBNPP. GBNPP, a publicly listed company, is engaged in services of retail broking, credit, portfolio management and marketing investment products including mutual funds, life and general insurance and properties. Each recipient of this report should make such investigation as it deems necessary to arrive at an independent evaluation of an investment in the securities of companies referred to in this report (including the merits and risks involved). This document is not for public distribution and has been furnished to you solely for your information and must not be reproduced or redistributed to any other person. Persons into whose possession this document may come are required to observe these restrictions. Opinion expressed herein is our current opinion as of the date appearing on this report only. While we endeavor to update on a reasonable basis the information discussed in this material, there may be regulatory, compliance, or other reasons that prevent us from doing so. Prospective investors and others are cautioned that any forward-looking statements are not predictions and may be subject to change without notice. Global food prices fell to the lowest level in nearly seven years due to a sharp decline in the prices of all agri commodities led by sugar. Data compiled by the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations showed its benchmark Food Price Index fell in January by 1.9% below its level in December 2015. The Food Price Index averaged 150.4 points in January, down 16% from a year earlier and registering its lowest level since April 2009. The main factors underlying the lingering decline in basic food commodity prices are the generally ample agricultural supply conditions, a slowing global economy, and the strengthening of the US dollar. In February, FAO also raised its forecast for worldwide cereal stocks in 2016, as a result of lowering its projected consumption and raising 2015 production prospects. "World cereal production in 2015 is estimated at close to 2531 million tonnes, 3.9 million tonnes more than reported in December but still 30.1 million tonnes (1.2%) below the 2014 record. This month's upgrade mostly reflects positive output revisions for wheat, mainly in Canada and Russia, and coarse grains in China, Canada and Paraguay, more than compensating for reductions of coarse grains production in the EU, the Sudan, Russian Federation, Ukraine and the United States. The 2015 world rice production forecast was also raised, but only slightly, as much of the improved outlook in China, Vietnam and the United States made up for a worsening in Japan and Nepal," FAO said in a report. The FAO forecast for world cereal utilisation in 2015-16 has been lowered by 2.3 million tonnes since the previous report to 2527 million tonnes, only 0.8% more than in 2014-15. Food consumption of cereals is projected at 1096 million tonnes, up 1.2% from 2014-15, while feed utilisation is forecast at 906 million tonnes, 1.3% higher than in 2014-15. Meanwhile, the FAO Sugar Price Index fell 4.1% from December, its first drop in four months, as crop conditions improved in Brazil, by far the world's leading sugar producer and exporter. The Dairy Price Index dropped by 3.0% on the back of large supplies, in both the EU and New Zealand, and torpid world import demand. It's Cereal Price Index declined 1.7% (to 149.1 points) amid ample global supplies and increased competition for export markets, especially for wheat and maise, as well as a strong US dollar. Weak prospects for 2016 Weather patterns associated with El Ni?o are sending mixed signals about the early prospects for cereal crops in 2016, especially in the Southern Hemisphere, according to FAO's Cereal Supply and Demand Brief, also released today. Crop prospects for 2016 have been "severely weakened" in Southern Africa, and a 25 percent cut in wheat production in South Africa now appears likely. Conditions for the crop are generally favourable in the Russian Federation and the European Union, but winter plantings declined in the United States and Ukraine. The area under wheat is also expected to be cut in India, following a poor monsoon and below average rains since October, FAO report said The 2016 outlook for rice along and south of the Equator is "dim" due, at times, to insufficient water and, at others, to excessive rains. As for the 2015 season, FAO modestly raised its forecast for world cereal production to 2531 million tonnes, up slightly from that released in December. Wheat output in Canada and Russia and maise output in China, Canada and Paraguay drove the upward revision. Meanwhile, FAO lowered its forecast for world cereal utilisation in the 2015-16 season to 2527 million tonnes, which remains 0.8% above that of the previous year. This reflects a 2.0% increase for wheat, largely on account of higher livestock feed use in developed countries and a 0.3% increase in maise. World rice utilisation is projected to expand by 1.1%, keeping world per-capita consumption stable. As a result of the upgraded production and downgraded consumption forecasts, world cereal stocks are set to end the 2016 seasons at 642 million tonnes, higher than they began. That level implies a steady and comfortable global cereal stock-to-use ratio of around 25%. After a nearly six-year low, prices of natural rubber (NR) rebounded in global markets on Thursday, after three major producing countries announced a supply cut to arrest a further fall. Prices of the benchmark SMR-20 variety rose two per cent to $1,107 a tonne at Kuala Lumpur; another, Latex, a similar rise to $885.50 a tonne. The rise in Bangkok was a bit subdued on wariness over tyre demand from China after its slowing in economic growth. The increase in NR prices is only a reaction to the supply cut announced by major producers. It is important to see if the trend continues. The problem is not swelling supply from large global producers but a slowdown in Chinese demand, said Mayur Milak, analyst at Anand Rathi Shares. Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia constitute 60 per cent of world supply. The three said on Thursday theyd agreed to cut 615,000 tonnes of shipment into the world market for six months beginning March. Thailand has announced a cut in export by about 324,000 tonnes, Indonesia by 238,740 tonnes and Malaysia by 52,260 tonnes. This International Tripartite Rubber Councils cut would constitute six per cent of world supply. The Council said the move would help arrest a decline in prices with a direct effect on the income of rubber smallholders in our three countries. In the past, announcement of a supply cut by one country has seen others grabbing more market share. A slowdown in Chinese demand remains a major concern for global players. Importantly, the price in India is 20 per cent higher than abroad; still, it would follow the global move, said Rajiv Budhraja, secretary general, Automotive Tyre Manufacturers Association. From a surplus, India has become a net importer of NR. Currently, India meets 40 per cent of its annual requirement of 1.2 million tonnes through import. The three leading global producers had collectively cut supply by 300,000 tonnes in 2012-13, equivalent to three per cent of 2012 global output. The intervention only briefly supported prices and Indonesia called for the pact to be discontinued. According to a study, world demand growth for NR is estimated to get slower, to 1.3 per cent or 12.6 million tonnes this year, while production expands 3.8 per cent to 13 mt. With the successful take-off of its maiden flight, AirAsia X now connects New Delhi directly to Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur. Array With the airline offering rates as low as Rs. 13k, it is sure pose a competition for other companies. The inaugural flight, D7183, operated by AirAsia X Berhad on an Airbus A330, which flew with over 90 percent of the seats occupied is testimony to the same. Array AirAsia X Chief Executive Officer, Benyamin Ismail on Thursday expressed his excitement in celebrating the return of AirAsia X flights to New Delhi. Array "We now have stronger foundation to be in this market, complementing the existing route network of our affiliates AirAsia berhad, Thai AirAsia and AirAsia India, in addition to the growing demand for connectivity between New Delhi and Kuala Lumpur. Moving forward, we plan to provide even greater connectivity to Australia and North Asia via Kuala Lumpur from this capital city," said Ismail as he addressed a gathering at the launch of the new flight. Array "In 2015, our affiliates Malaysia AirAsia and Thai AirAsia carried over one million guests in and out of India, and with AirAsia X's entry into this market, we can provide even more connectivity for our Indian guests to the rest of Asia and Australia through our extensive route network, especially through our Fly-Thru product," he added. Array New Dehli is the low-cost airline's 19th destination across Asia, Australia, New Zealand and Middle East. NCP leader Majeed Memon on Thursday dubbed the sanction granted to the CBI by Maharashtra Governor C. Vidyasagar Rao to prosecute former chief minister Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh Housing Society scam as 'disastrous' if done in political interest and wondered whether this was an attempt by the BJP to wipe out Congress from the state. Array "BJP and Congress are at loggerhead. We have heard the Prime Minister say time and again that 'we want Congress mukt bharat' (India sans Congress). So, is this an attempt to destroy Congress in Maharashtra because the man at the receiving end Ashok Chavan is one of the two MPs selected in the 2014 general election. So in order to damage him, is the Bharatiya Janata Party trying to damage or destroy Maharashtra Congress?" he asked. Array "If this is the case and because of this the Governor has been asked to grant sanction then this is disastrous. And I'm afraid this should not be true. The office must not be abused. We have seen what happened in Arunachal Pradesh. But the Congress has a remedial measure to challenge the sanction in the court of law," he told ANI. The senior lawyer also explained the procedure of granting sanction by a Governor and said that the exercise of the power was a legal one. Array "Grant of sanction by the Governor is a legal exercise, it is not a political exercise because under the relevant laws of Prevention of Corruption Act, in order to protect honest public servants, who are not involved in any crime and yet they are being persecuted by false prosecution, they should be protected by the law. Therefore, there is a procedure for grant of sanction," he told ANI. Array "But we have been seeing from past some time that the office of the Governor is being used, or rather abused for political purposes, for personal interest etc. which is a very bad indication as far as our Constitutional and legal framework is concerned. The grant and refusal of sanction in cases like this should be based entirely on the merits and the material of the case. Not on political consideration," he added. Array The CBI had sought sanction for Chavan's prosecution under Section 197 of the CrPC on the basis of the report of Justice Patil Commission of Enquiry and the observations of the Bombay High Court. The Governor had sought the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers and was advised by them to grant the sanction. Array Soon after the order, Chavan hit out at the Bharatiya Janata Party government and termed the order a "political vendetta against him." He said that he will seek legal advice in the case. He has also claimed that he will not resign from the post of president of Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC). Chavan was among the 13 people chargesheeted by the CBI in the Adarsh scam in July 2012. Array The other accused, including top IAS officers and office bearers of the Adarsh Housing Society, were arrested earlier. Chavan was forced to step down as the Chief Minister in November 2010 after it emerged that three of his relatives had been given apartments in the 30-storey building. In December 2013, the then governor K. Sankaranarayan had refused sanction to the CBI to prosecute Chavan in the scam, leaving the agency with no choice but to close the case against him. With five people being arrested so far in connection with the assault on Tanzanian female student, Tanzanian High Commissioner John WH Kijazi on Thursday said that 'mob justice' and 'racism' led to the unfortunate incident. "We are looking at it from both the angles..Everybody entitled to their own assessment, but there is an element of mob justice and racism. That is my assessment. She was attacked because she was black like guy who caused the accident," the Tanzanian Ambassador told ANI. He , however, acknowledged the fact that authorities were showing great concern over the unfortunate incident and have given assurance that justice would be done. Array External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had yesterday condemned the attack on the Tanzanian student, and asked for stringent punishment for the guilty. The Tanzanian student was beaten and then stripped by a group of locals in Bengaluru after they assumed she was part of an incident in which a Sudanese man had run over a local woman. Array The incident took place on Hesaraghatta Road in Bengaluru on Saturday night after a Sudanese ran his car over a 35-year-old woman resulting in on the spot death of the woman. Array The Tanzanian student was travelling in another car, a Wagon-R, along with four others. The young woman, who arrived on the spot around 30 minutes later, was dragged out of the car and paraded naked after being stripped by the mob. Array The victim told the police in her complaint that when she tried to get on a bus in order to escape the assault, people on the bus pushed her back towards the mob. Array Earlier, the local residents set fire to two cars belonging to the African students, who studied in local colleges in Ganapathinagar on Hesaraghatta Road. Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday said that Bihar government needs to look into the matter of sixty Dalit students threatening to commit suicide. Array He was responding to reports that sixty Dalit students from Bihar who were studying at the Rajdhani Engineering College in Bhubneshwar had threatened to commit suicide after the Bihar government allegedly stopped paying their college stipends. Array "The Bihar government delayed in paying scholarship money to some SC/ST students in college in Bhubaneswar. I have spoken to the college administration to speak to Bihar government so that these students are not driven to extreme steps. Bihar Govt needs to look into this matter without any delay, and come to the aid of these students as soon as possible," Pradhan told ANI here. Array The action from the college administration came after Bihar government failed to pay their stipend despite several reminders sent to it from the college. The students had taken admission in Rajdhani Engineering College in 2014 under the Dalit stipend scheme of the Bihar government. Array According to students, the college administration provided them free education, boarding and lodging for more than a year but later refused to carry with free services. The stipend which Bihar government has to give to these students is approximately Rs 1,10,000 per student annually. YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 4, ARMENPRESS. No discussion over the cooperation with the ARF was held during the February 4 Executive Body meeting of the Republican Party of Armenia. RPA spokesperson, Vice President of Republic of Armenia National Assembly Eduard Sharmazanov told the journalists about this after the RPA Executive Body meeting. We discussed the issue of amendments of the electoral code and the works of the four-day session of the National Assembly during the meeting. We did not discuss the issue of cooperation with the ARF, as the discussions are not over yet and nothing is clear yet, Armenpress reports, Sharmazanov mentioned. He expressed an opinion that by the end of the next week there will be clear understandings over RPA-ARF cooperation format. To the question why the discussions take so much time, Sharmazanov answered, As far as not everything is agreed upon, nothing is clarified. In fact, posts are the base of cooperation neither for us nor for the ARF, but party programs and responsibilities are, RPA spokesperson mentioned. To the question if the reason of the prolongation of the discussions is the announcement of the head of the ARF faction that the authorities are discredited, Sharmazanov answered, No, and who said that the discussions are being prolonged? The discussions are underway. We did not even touch upon that issue today. We need to have a complete, final position. Whenever we reach a final agreement, I will inform you. Everything is good, be optimistic, Sharmazanov concluded. Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday said that Budget Session of the Parliament will begin on February 23. The decision in this regard was taken in the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs (CCPA) meeting headed by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh. While the first session will continue till March 16, the second session will take place from April 25 to May 13. "The Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs met today and it was decided to recommend to the President to request him to address joint session of Parliament on 23rd February," Naidu said. "And then after that we will be having the discussion then we will have Railway Budget on 25th then we will have Economic Survey on 26th then 27th and 28th holidays because of Saturday and Sunday and 29th we are proposing to have the Budget and then the discussions will go up to 16th March," he added. He further said that out of total 81-day duration, there will be enough time for the Standing Committees to scrutinise the budget proposals and then they would be having 31 sittings. "The Committee has finalised it and this has been sent to the President Pranab Mukherjee with a request to address the joint session," he said. The government is keen to push its legislative agenda, thwarted in the last two sessions, while the Opposition is all geared up to target the ruling dispensation on a host of issues, including the suicide of PhD scholar Rohith Vemula and imposition of President's Rule in Arunachal Pradesh. The ongoing political crisis in Jammu and Kashmir is also likely to be raised by the Opposition during the Budget Session. The government has been critical of the Opposition for blocking the House proceedings and important legislations. Congress president Sonia Gandhi had earlier on Wednesday held a meeting with her party's core committee on parliamentary affairs - comprising whips of both Houses - to chalk out the party's strategy during the Budget Session. Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu has invited various political parties for an informal meeting later in the day in Parliament House to seek their advice on the Budget Session. Condemning the Tanzanian student assault case in Bengaluru, the Congress on Thursday backed party vice president Rahul Gandhi for seeking report from the Karnataka Government. "It's quite natural that the Congress vice-president seeks a report because it's a Congress Government there. The incident which happened in the outskirts of Bangalore, where a Tanzanian girl was stripped and paraded naked is a very horrible incident and it should not have happened," Congress leader P.C. Chacko told ANI. Rubbishing the opposition's claims that Gandhi is only acting based on the media reports, Chacko said that Rahul is alert about every aspect of the case. "He wants that the government should act. In many places, we have seen that the state governments are very lethargic in acting. In Karnataka, in previous incidents, there were stern actions. So, Rahul ji wants the Karnataka Government to act and to take very stringent action," he added. Following the brutal assault on the Tanzanian student, Rahul Gandhi has asked the Karnataka Government to explain the incident and send the report immediately. Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh confirmed the news on Twitter. "Strongly condemn Incident with the Tanzanian Lady in Bangalore. Police must act strongly against the culprits. Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately," Singh said in a series of tweets. The Bengaluru Police have arrested five people till now in connection with the assault case. The Tanzanian student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of mistaken identity after a woman was mowed down by a car in Bengaluru. The 21-year-old Tanzanian was dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends. She was stripped by a section of the mob and pushed out of a slow-moving bus that was passing by as she tried to board it to escape. DataWind Inc. signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) today with the Hyderabad Government of Telangana to set up its new manufacturing unit in the city. The MoU was signed between Information Technology Electronics and Communications (ITE and C) Department, Government of Telangana, and the "Datawind Innovations Pvt Ltd" in the presence of Kathleen Wynne, Premier of Ontario, Canada and Jupally Krishna Rao, Minister of Industries and Commerce, Telangana. The MoU will allow both parties to work collaboratively and cooperatively for the purpose of developing a mobile manufacturing ecosystem in Telangana. The new facility is expected to start production within 90 days generate 500 jobs in the first phase of its operation in the state. "Telangana is happy to invite investments in the state. We are happy that the company who connected the forgotten billions to the digital age has decided to put up their manufacturing unit in Hyderabad. This will boost the industrial scenario of the state and shall generate ample employment opportunities," said IT Secretary Telangana, Jayesh Ranjan. "DataWind mission is in line with our Telangana govt. mission, to provide internet to each and every household in the state," Ranjan added. Speaking on the occasion, Suneet Singh Tuli, President and CEO, DataWind said "We are excited to announce the expansion of our operations in Telangana. In addition to empowering citizens with affordable technology and internet access, we are committed to the communities where we operate by generating local jobs. The manufacturing facility in Hyderabad is the second facility of DataWind in India after Amritsar set up under Make in India campaign of the Prime Minister. It will have a capacity to produce 20 lakh units of tablets and smartphones per annum and will cater to the growing demand of low cost devices in the country. Minister of IT, Electronics and Communication KT Rama Rao said, "This is a very good endorsement about our state government policies. We are glad that out of all the states, DataWind has chosen Hyderabad Government is encouraging manufacturing companies and developing manufacturing hubs in and around Hyderabad." "The DataWind plant not only contribute to the economic development of the state but also helps in skilling the youth and creating enormous job opportunities in the region. Hyderabad has always promoted and encouraged corporate to establish their factories and Research and Development centers in the state," added Rao. Odisha Government will take concrete decision over Godavari-Mahanadi river linking project only after a thorough consideration, state Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has said. According to Patnaik, his government would reach a final conclusion over the issue only after thorough discussion between the officials of the state government and the Centre. The Chief Minister had yesterday evening held discussion with Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti in Bhubaneswar. Patnaik's statement comes after Bharti has said that the Godavari-Mahanadi river linking project will boost the agriculture sector and solve drinking water problem in Odisha. She said that a total of Rs. 30,000 crore would be spent on the project and the Centre will bear 90 per cent of the cost. National capital New Delhi will host an investment potential-related road show on East Kazakhstan on February 11 this year. The signature business-to- event, which is expected to take India-Kazakhstan commercial ties forward, will be held at the Shangri-La Hotel. It is being organised by the Embassy of Kazakhstan, the Government of the East Kazakhstan region in partnership with the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM). The road show is titled "Possibilities of cooperation between Indian and East-Kazakhstani companies". The road show will feature presentations on East Kazakhstan, its investment potential climate and its most attractive projects. Array The Kazakhstani side will be represented by the Ambassador of Kazakhstan to India Bulat Sarsenbayev, the First Deputy Governor of East Kazakhstan Oblast (Region) Narymbet Saktaganov, the Mayor of Semeysity, Salimov Yermak, and government and business representatives of East Kazakhstan. The East Kazakhstan delegation consists of eight members and it is expected that around 100 businessmen will attend the event. The East Kazakhstan region is situated in the north-east of the country, on the borders aligning the Altai Republic of Russia, in the east - the Chinese province of Xinjiang in the north-east, Pavlodar in the south, Almaty, in the west and the Karaganda region of Kazakhstan. East Kazakhstan comprises 10.2 percent of the entire territory of Kazakhstan and stretches over 283.3 thousand square kilometers. Array Eight hundred rivers flow through the region, including the Irtysh River. It has some of the world's largest lakes such as Zaisan, Markakol, Alakol and Sasykkol, besides several reservoirs, such as the Bukhtarma. The region's climate is continental and about 30 percent of the territory is covered by forests. It is a combination of steppes, desert and mountain-taiga landscapes. East Kazakhstan has 19 administrative units, including 15 districts, 10 cities, 754 villages and towns, 246 rural and township districts. Its administrative center is Ust-Kamenogorsk city with a population of 316,900 people, representing 23 percent of the population of the region. In terms of industry and investment potential, East Kazakhstan provides a unique combination of industry cooperating with agriculture, thus ensuring food security and a significant contribution to the Kazakh economy. The basic component of the region is agriculture, which is realised in six soil-climatic zones of the seven available. The total land fund of the region is 28.3 million hectares, including 22.7 million hectares of farmland; 10.2 million of them of are agricultural land and 1.4 million hectares of arable land. Array The region has large land and water resources for the development of irrigated agriculture. At present, it includes more than 200 thousand hectares of irrigated land, out of which only 79 hectares are used. These days, the investment package for the construction and reconstruction of irrigated lands on the area of 20000 hectares to provide them to investors is formed. The soil cover includes all types of ground, chestnut and gray. The average yield class of arable land is 39, hayfields (40) and pastures (21). In the northern areas, the ball bonitet arable land reaches up to 70. The variety of soil and climatic zones, large areas of agricultural land, the market demand for agricultural products defines the multi-disciplinary field of agriculture. Today, the region is developing dairy, beef cattle, sheep, horses, pigs, poultry, reindeer antlers, beekeeping and fish farming. Crop production is represented by corn, sunflower seeds, potatoes, vegetables, melons and gourds and fodder crops. Given the need and the opportunities and resources for investments is a list of guidelines and projects of agricultural development area. East Kazakhstan is one of the leading industrial and agricultural regions of the country with huge economic potential. It has large enterprises of non-ferrous metallurgy, mechanical engineering, power engineering, food and light industry. It also has the world's largest plant for production of fuel for nuclear power plants. Its mineral resources are also substantial. For instance, its lead reserves are an estimated 48 percent, while its zinc reserves are an estimated 49 percent. It produces six percent of industrial products throughout the country, one-fifth of the manufacturing industry and the fourth part of the output of metallurgy and machine building. Over the past five years, investment amounted to 8.3 billion U.S. dollars. The state program for accelerated industrial-innovative development includes 76 investment projects. Of these, 47 are worth 1.4 billion dollars. The focus is on promoting public-private partnership, attracting foreign investments through concession projects and the European Bank of reconstruction and development. The February 11 road show will include an address by R. K. Gupta, Chairman and Managing Director of WAPCOS; opening remarks by Ambassador Sarsenbayev, a representative of the ASSOCHAM President's Office and K. Nagaraj Naidu, Director (ITP), Ministry of External Affairs. The special address will delivered by Mr. Saktaganov Narymbet, the First Deputy to the Governor of the East Kazakhstani Region. The pre-lunch session will focus on business cooperation between India and Kazakhstan in which Indian and Kazakh panelists will take part. This will be followed by a networking lunch. A gun battle in Ghaziabad between police and two robbers, who were allegedly running away with a car, ended with the security personnel arresting one of them late last night. The gun battle left one robber and a policeman injured, while the other robber fled away. Both of them are currently undergoing treatment in the district hospital. "We chased two robbers after we got information of a car robbery. One robber managed to flee after the gun battle. We have nabbed the other one," Senior Superintendent of Police Ashish Srivastava said. The incident took place when the two robbers injured the driver and took the car in their possession. The injured driver informed the police, who then barged into action. After overpowering one of the robbers, the police recovered the car and a pistol. Meanwhile, the police are carrying on with further investigation to nab the other accused. Condemning the Tanzanian student assault case, Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju on Thursday said the Central Government is 'proactively' looking into the matter. "The Central Government should take this thing seriously. There should be no discrimination. If it happens, it's a very insulting thing for the nation. We are sympathetic to the issue. So, we are looking into the matter proactively," Rijiju told the media here. "It is an unfortunate incident. We will look into the matter. Our country, considering its past, was a victim to racial discrimination. It is a matter of disappointment if racial discrimination takes place in India," he added. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has asked the Karnataka Government to submit a report on the unfortunate incident. Tanzanian High Commissioner to India, John Kijazi, had earlier told ANI that they want the police to take strict action and arrest all the culprits. He also said the High Commission has written to the Indian Government, which in turn have assured them of action. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had yesterday condemned the attack on the Tanzanian student and asked for stringent punishment for the guilty. The Tanzanian student was beaten and then stripped by a group of locals in Bengaluru after they assumed she was part of an incident in which a Sudanese man had run over a local woman. The incident took place on Hesaraghatta Road in Bengaluru on Saturday night after a Sudanese ran his car over a 35-year-old woman resulting in on the spot death of the woman. The Tanzanian student was travelling in another car, a Wagon-R, along with four others. The young woman, who arrived on the spot around 30 minutes later, was dragged out of the car and paraded naked after being stripped by the mob. The victim told the police in her complaint that when she tried to get on a bus in order to escape the assault, people on the bus pushed her back towards the mob. Earlier, the local residents set fire to two cars belonging to the African students, who studied in local colleges in Ganapathinagar on Hesaraghatta Road. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday said 'globally designated international terrorist' Hafiz Saeed continues to enjoy the freedom to indulge in their activities in Pakistan. "His claims that his various front organisations are carrying out charitable work is a fig leaf. It is not even a fig leaf I would say. They indulge in terrorist activities and terrorist financing, it should be a matter of great concern for everyone that people like Hafiz Saeed and his associates continue to enjoy the freedom to indulge in their activities," said MEA official spokesperson Vikas Swarup. Swarup also asked Islamabad to initiate action against such elements. "In October, we had seen that the Government of Pakistan had banned the electronic coverage of some of these organisations including the one to which Hafiz Saeed belongs. But we are seeing now that Hafiz Saeed is making statements after statements and his rallies are being covered. So, obviously the concerned authorities need to take actions," he added. Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed had on Wednesday praised last month's terror attack at the Pathankot air force base and encouraged similar attacks against India. Saeed, who is the mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks, also lauded Kashmiri militant leader Sayed Salahuddin, who heads the United Jihad Council (UJC) that has claimed responsibility for the attack. The Chief Executive Officer of Afghanistan, Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, has claimed the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is a new phenomenon but added that the terror group does not have penetration in his country like in other parts of the . "ISIS was a new phenomenon but in Afghanistan they don't have a penetration like in other parts of the world," Abdullah said. "If Taliban agrees to give up violence and fight politically, it is at that stage that we can go forward, but so far no hint," he added. Asserting that talks and terrorism cannot go hand in hand, Abdullah said many Taliban leaders reside in Pakistan. Abdullah, who is on a five-day visit to New Delhi, earlier met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and recalled positively the latter's maiden and successful visit to Afghanistan in December 2015. The two leaders shared views on further deepening the strategic partnership, both in the bilateral and regional context. Manchester United midfielder Jesse Lingard has backed his embattled manager Louis Van Gaal, saying that the players are responsible for their bad performances and not the Dutchman. Van Gaal's job has been under scrutiny in recent times due to United's repeated poor performances in the Premier League and because of the club's early exit from Champions League. The 23-year-old said that United's recent 3-0 win over Stoke City proved that his side's players had regained their freedom and got back their lacked energy. Lingard, however, called on his side to focus on their games, insisting that United could not let their fans down by their poor display, Sport24 reported. United are currently fifth in the league table and are 10 points behind surprise pace setters Leicester City. They Van Gaal-led side will next lock horns with 13th-placed Chelsea on February 7. BJP leader Nand Kishore Yadav on Thursday criticised Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's reported move to forge a 'mahagathbandhan' in Uttar Pradesh ahead of the 2017 assembly polls, saying the alliance formed for momentary gains would not benefit such people in the long-run. "I have a huge objection with the word 'mahagathbandhan'. There was never a formation of the mahagathbandhan. The person, who was the founder of the mahagathbandhan, was Mulayam ji. Where is Mulayam ji and where is the mahagathbandhan? It is not for the first time that Nitish ji is stepping into other states. He has made similar efforts earlier as well in UP, Jharkhand, Delhi," he told ANI. Array "The mahagathbandhan you are talking about is already getting weak. The people with whom they are running the government in Bihar are not involved in Uttar Pradesh. What sort of an alliance is this? Only for momentary gains they are doing this, it will not benefit them in the long run," he added. Array While Nitish aiming to form the grand-alliance yet again, the Samajwadi Party has made its stand clear and said that it would go solo and not bome part of any alliance. The Mulayam Singh Yadav-led party had also walked out of the JD (U)-RJD-Congress grand alliance in Bihar and formed a third front to contest the assembly polls. With pressure mounting on the government to take strict action against those responsible for the assault on a female Tanzanian student, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) on Thursday asked the Karnataka Government to submit a report on the unfortunate incident. Tanzanian High Commissioner to India John Kijazi had earlier told ANI that they wanted the police to take strict action and arrest all the culprits. He also said that the High Commission has written to the Indian Government, which in turn, has assured them of action. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had yesterday condemned the attack on the Tanzanian student, and asked for stringent punishment for the guilty. Earlier today, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said that he has spoken to the External Affairs Minister and given her a factual report. The Tanzanian student was beaten and then stripped by a group of locals in Bengaluru after they assumed she was part of an incident in which a Sudanese man had run over a local woman. The incident took place on Hesaraghatta Road in Bengaluru on Saturday night after a Sudanese ran his car over a 35-year-old woman resulting in on the spot death of the woman. Array The Tanzanian student was travelling in another car, a Wagon-R, along with four others. The young woman, who arrived on the spot around 30 minutes later, was dragged out of the car and paraded naked after being stripped by the mob. Array The victim told the police in her complaint that when she tried to get on a bus in order to escape the assault, people on the bus pushed her back towards the mob. Earlier, the local residents set fire to two cars belonging to the African students, who studied in local colleges in Ganapathinagar on Hesaraghatta Road. Chelsea's sacked manager Jose Mourinho, who is the favourite to replace current Manchester United manager Louis Van Gaal, has reportedly agreed a deal to take over at Old Trafford. According to The Mirror, the Portuguese was 'close' to signing a deal to replace the Dutchman in the summer. Van Gaal's job has been under scrutiny in recent times due to United's repeated poor performances in the Premier League and because of the club's early exit from Champions League. United are currently fifth in the league table and are 10 points behind surprise pace setters Leicester City. They will next lock horns with 13th-placed Chelsea on February 7. Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday said that no date has been fixed as yet for the Foreign Secretary-level talks with India. "The date of Foreign Secretary-level talks has not been decided as yet. As soon as it is decided, we will inform you," Foreign Office spokesperson Qazi Khalilullah told a press conference here. Pakistan's High Commissioner to India, Abdul Basit, had earlier said that Foreign Secretaries Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry and S. Jaishankar are in touch with each other on the issue of working out modalities for their proposed composite dialogue talks. "There is no issue. Both Foreign Secretaries agreed on meeting in the near future. Both Foreign Secretaries are in contact with each other," Basit had told ANI in an exclusive interview. Khalilullah also reiterated Pakistan's stand on Dawood Ibrahim's whereabouts, saying the underworld don has no identity in the country. "Indian authorities at administerial level have themselves admitted that the whereabouts of Dawood Ibrahim are not known," he added. Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh had in August 2015 said that Dawood's permanent residence is in Pakistan. "His permanent residence is in Pakistan, but he keeps on changing his location," he said. "Such people have several passports, I have said in this regard in the House also earlier. It is possible, this is not a new report," he added. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Thursday said that it respected the Delhi High Court's decision to put a stay on the government's call to scrap the controversial management quota in nursery admissions in private unaided schools but added that this judgement has disappointed the parents. "With the scrapping of the management quota, the corruption behind it also ended and that is why the parents in the capital were happy. We respect the decision but this verdict has disappointed them," AAP leader Dilip Pandey told ANI. "We respect the verdict and the government will surely challenge this in the upper court," he added. Pandey further said the parents in the capital have been disappointed because they appreciated the AAP Government's move to scrap the management quota. "Out of 62 parameters, the court has accepted almost 51 to 52 of them. The management quota has not been accepted," he added. Pronouncing its order, the High Court today asked the AAP Government to take action against erring private schools, which were 'demanding money' from the parents to admit their kids using the management quota. The High Court also accepted 11 criteria proposed by the private schools' association as a replacement for the 62 criteria scrapped under the January 6 order. The High Court order came on plea by Action Committee Unaided Recognised Private Schools and Forum for Promotion of Quality Education For All - which claim to represent various private unaided schools - challenging the AAP Government's order. The association said the discretionary management quota is not only permitted in all private unaided recognised schools functioning across India but in higher and professional educational institutions. Pakistani and Afghan intelligence agencies are set to hold talks in Kabul today to decrease the trust deficit between the two countries. According to The Dawn, Director General ISI Lt Gen Rizwan Akhtar would travel to Afghanistan for a meeting with the acting chief of the National Directorate of Security (NDS), Masoud Andarabi. The US is facilitating the meeting which would also be attended by Chinese officials as observers. The meeting was earlier planned to be held in Islamabad. It comes ahead of the Quadrilateral Coordination Group meeting comprising Pakistan, Afghanistan, US and China scheduled for February 6. The intelligence talks, an official said, were separate from the quadrilateral mechanism, even though the parleys were expected to impact the reconciliation effort, as well. Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh on Thursday said the sanction issued against former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan in connection with the Adarsh Housing Society scam was on expected line but added that an inquiry should be done to unearth the names of the 'benami' holders. With Maharashtra Governor Vidyasagar Rao on Friday giving his sanction to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for the prosecution of senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan in connection with the Adarsh Housing Society corruption case, Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh on Thursday said his sanction was on expected line. "His sanction was on expected line. But, an inquiry should also be marked to unearth the names of those people who are 'benami' holders of flats in Aadarsh." "A flat is in the name of a driver, can a driver buy such a flat? Why there is no inquiry into that," he sought to know. Maharashtra Governor Vidyasagar Rao today gave his sanction to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for Chavan's prosecution in connection with the scam. In a letter dated October 8, CBI Joint Director, Mumbai, had sought sanction for the prosecution of Chavan under Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code (Cr.PC) on the basis of fresh material - namely, the report of Justice Patil Commission of Inquiry and the observations of the Bombay High Court in a criminal revision application. Under Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code (Cr.PC), no court should take cognisance of criminal charges against a public servant unless previous sanction to prosecute him is received from a competent authority. This safeguard is meant to help government servants perform their duties honestly without fear of malicious prosecution. As per protocol, the Governor's decision is based on the advice of the state council of ministers, which recommended that he sanction the prosecution. Chavan was among the 13 people chargesheeted by the CBI in the Adarsh scam in July 2012. Though other accused, including top IAS officers and office bearers of Adarsh Housing Society, a 30-storey high-rise in Colaba, were arrested, Chavan's prosecution required permission from the Governor. Chavan was forced to quit in November 2010 after it emerged that three of his relatives had been given apartments in the 30-storey building. The Supreme Court on Thursday declined to entertain a plea seeking its intervention in the ongoing MCD workers strike. The apex court asked the petitioner to approach the Delhi High Court where the matter is already pending. The petitioner, in his plea to the Chief Justice bench, had said that the High Court's attitude in this case is soft and thus, wanted the Supreme Court to intervene. Slamming the opposition for doing politics over the issue of strike by the MCD workers, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had yesterday said it's a clear case of mismanagement of fund by the civic bodies and demanded a CBI probe into the matter. Kejriwal had also announced a loan of Rs.551 crore for payment of salaries to striking workers of two municipal corporations in the capital and urged them to call off their strike. However, the agitating employees, mainly those of East and North Delhi municipal corporations, refused to call off the indefinite strike and demanded a permanent solution to the problem of fund crunch being faced by the civic bodies before they ended their stir. Employees of three civic bodies of the city- North Delhi Municipal Corporation, South Delhi Municipal Corporation and East Delhi Municipal Corporation, have been protesting against the non-payment of salaries, directing their ire at both the Delhi Government and the Centre for the last nine days. A bid by Bill Cosby's lawyers to have the sexual-assault charges against him dismissed was rejected by a Montgomery County judge, paving the way for a potential trial. The 78-year-old actor had claimed that the former D.A. in suburban Philadelphia had promised the comedian that he would not be prosecuted for allegedly sexually assaulting Andrea Constand, TMZ.com reported. Cosby had claimed that he agreed to sit for a deposition in Constand's civil case only because of the D.A.'s promise and that deposition contained essential information about supplying drugs to women that led to the criminal filing. According to the prosecutors, the former D.A. had no legal authority to make that secret agreement, which Cosby and his attorneys never got in writing. The judge agreed and now, the Constand case will move forward. Preliminary hearing is tentatively scheduled to begin in about a month. A rep for Cosby says the decision reached by the court was wrong and they will appeal. The 'Cosby Show' actor faces five to 10 years behind bars and a 25,000 dollar fine if found guilty of his charges. Since arraignment, he remains free on $1 million bail and has not entered a plea. Amid massive operation undertaken by the armed forces to rescue soldiers trapped under snow due to yesterday's avalanche near Siachen Glacier in Ladakh, the Defence Ministry on Thursday said that chances of finding any survivors are remote even as the search operation entered its second day. Specialized teams of the Army and the Air Force have been deployed to carry out the search and rescue operations in the area, where temperatures range from minus 42 degrees in the night to minus 25 degrees during the day. Specialised equipment has also been flown in to Leh today morning to further boost the rescue efforts. "The glaciated area presents temperatures ranging from a minimum of minus 42 degrees in the night to maximum of minus 25 degrees during the day. Rescue teams are braving adverse weather and effects of rarified atmosphere to locate and rescue survivors," said an official statement issued by the Defence Ministry. "However, it is with deepest of regrets that we have to state that chances of finding any survivors are now very remote," it added. Meanwhile, Lieutenant General DS Hooda, Army Commander, Northern Command, has expressed his grief over the tragic incident. "It is a tragic event and we salute the soldiers who braved all challenges to guard our frontiers and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty," he said. The avalanche struck an Indian Army post in the Northern Siachen Glacierat a height of 19,600 feet. The army post that faced its brunt was manned by one junior commissioned officer (JCO) and nine soldiers.All ten soldiers have gone missing after the avalanche. A team led by Tanzanian High Commissioner, John W.H. Kijazi, will visit Bengaluru on Friday to take stock of the situation arising after the alleged attack on a girl student by a mob. "The team is going to Bengaluru tomorrow (Friday), which includes the High Commissioner of Tanzania, who is also the Dean of the African Diplomatic Core, Joint Secretary (States), MEA Director East and Southern Africa and the regional director of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR), which liaises with the students who come here on ITS scholarships," said Ministry of External Affairs official spokesman Vikas Swarup during a weekly press briefing here. Swarup said External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj took a high-level meeting today, which was attended by Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar, Secretary (Economic Relations) Amar Sinha and other MEA senior official, to discuss the incident concerning the Tanzanian student in Bengaluru. "We condemn the incident unequivocally. The EAM, in her tweet yesterday (on Wednesday), also said that "we are deeply pained over the shameful incident". She immediately spoke to the Karnataka Chief Minister and sought an official report," he said. "We have now received the report from the Commissioner of Police, Bengaluru City, N. S. Megharikh. The Commissioner has assured us that stringent measures are being taken to prevent occurrence of such incidents in the future. In fact, the EAM has been informed by the Karnataka Chief Minister that a criminal case has been registered and five accused have been arrested," said Swarup. "We will extend the full cooperation for both the state and the Central Governments to the investigation of this case," he added. "The Ministry and the state government will also be reaching out to African students in the state to re-assure them that their security and wellbeing are our primary concerns," he said, adding that Secretary, ER, Amar Sinha spoke to the Tanzanian High Commissioner in this regard. "We have assured our African friends that necessary legal action would be taken and stringent punishment will be given to those involved in the attack, and that we will take all steps to ensure safety and security of African students in India," he added. Condemning the incident involving a 21-year-old Tanzanian student who was beaten and stripped of all her clothes by a group of locals in Bengaluru, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Thursday held the Congress answerable. "The kind of vandalism that happened with the girl is condemnable. It is Congress' government there. When there is even a small issue, or no issue at all, Rahul Gandhi ji rakes up the issue and stages protests and starts giving sermons to the whole nation," he told ANI. "But now that such a big incident has happened and after so much time has passed, the Congress party is sitting quietly just because this incident happened under their government. There is no kind of investigation. This testifies their hypocrisy. It is a condemnable incident and it obviously makes the Congress answerable," he added. The High Commission of Tanzania has sent a Note Verbale about reported attacks on African students in Bangalore. The Note Verbale requests the Government of India to follow up on this matter and take necessary legal action against those involved in such attacks and to ensure safety and security of all African students in India. Meanwhile, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has asked the Karnataka Government for explanation and has asked for a report immediately. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had also condemned the attack on the Tanzanian student, and asked for stringent punishment for the guilty. The Bengaluru Police have arrested five people till now in connection with the assault case on Tanzanian student that took place on Saturday night. Meanwhile, Tanzanian High Commissioner John Kijazi, in a telephonic conversation with ANI, said that they want the police to take strict action and arrest all the culprits. He also said the High Commission has written to the Indian Government, which in turn have assured them of action. Meanwhile, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has asked the state government to explain the incident and send the report immediately. Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh on Thursday confirmed the news on his official Twitter account. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had yesterday condemned the attack on the Tanzanian student, and asked for stringent punishment for the guilty. The Tanzanian student was beaten and then stripped by a group of locals in Bengaluru after they assumed she was part of an incident in which a Sudanese man had run over a local woman. The incident took place on Hesaraghatta Road in Bengaluru on Saturday night after a Sudanese ran his car over a 35-year-old woman resulting in on the spot death of the woman. The Tanzanian student was travelling in another car, a Wagon-R, along with four others. The young woman, who arrived on the spot around 30 minutes later, was dragged out of the car and paraded naked after being stripped by the mob. The victim told the police in her complaint that when she tried to get on a bus in order to escape the assault, people on the bus pushed her back towards the mob. Earlier, the local residents set fire to two cars belonging to the African students, who studied in local colleges in Ganapathinagar on Hesaraghatta Road. Following the brutal assault on Tanzanian student in Bengaluru, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has asked the Karnataka Government to explain the incident and send the report immediately. Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh on Thursday confirmed the news on his official Twitter account. "Strongly condemn Incident with the Tanzanian Lady in Bangalore. Police must act strongly against the culprits. Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately," Singh said in a series of tweets. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had yesterday condemned the attack on the Tanzanian student, and asked for stringent punishment for the guilty. "I have asked the Chief Minister (Siddaramaiah) to ensure safety and security of all foreign students and stringent punishment for the guilty," Swaraj said in a tweet. "I spoke to the Chief Minister Karnataka. He informed me that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested," she added. Expressing her grief over the incident, Swaraj said, "We are deeply pained over the shameful incident with a Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru." Meanwhile, the Bengaluru Police have filed an FIR against some unknown persons in connection with the assault on a 21-year-old Tanzanian student. The Tanzanian student was beaten and then stripped by a group of locals in Bengaluru after they assumed she was part of an incident in which a Sudanese man had run over a local woman. The incident took place on Hesaraghatta Road in Bengaluru on Saturday night after a Sudanese ran his car over a 35-year-old woman resulting in on the spot death of the woman. The Tanzanian student was travelling in another car, a Wagon-R, along with four others. The young woman, who arrived on the spot around 30 minutes later, was dragged out of the car and paraded naked after being stripped by the mob. The victim told the police in her complaint that when she tried to get on a bus in order to escape the assault, people on the bus pushed her back towards the mob. Earlier, the local residents set fire to two cars belonging to the African students, who studied in local colleges in Ganapathinagar on Hesaraghatta Road. Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader and senior lawyer Majeed Memon on Thursday called the incident involving a 21-year-old Tanzanian student, who was beaten and stripped of all her clothes by a group of locals in Bengaluru, a matter of great shame for India and urged the Centre and the State governments to together punish the guilty. "It is a great great distressing information that we get that if a foreign tourist coming here, a female, is being subjected to such kind of humiliating conduct by the people around. It is a matter of great shame for India. And we are very sorry. We must apologize to the Tanzanian government and Tanzanian people for this solitary act of inhuman behaviour and barbaric behaviour with a woman," he told ANI. "I think, both the government of state and the government of centre must come forward and take very stern action against all those responsible so that a right message goes all over the world that women in India, whether they are tourists or students are safe and they need not worry, for we will not only take care of them but we respect them," he added. In the latest development, The High Commission of Tanzania has sent a Note Verbale about reported attacks on African students in Bangalore. The Note Verbale requests the Government of India to follow up on this matter and take necessary legal action against those involved in such attacks and to ensure safety and security of all African students in India. Meanwhile, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has asked the Karnataka Government for explanation and has asked for a report immediately. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had also condemned the attack on the Tanzanian student, and asked for stringent punishment for the guilty. Women's rights activist and lawyer Abha Singh on Thursday asked Karnataka Home Minister G. Parmeshwara to release the police inquiry over his claim that the brutal attack on a Tanzanian student in Bengaluru was 'not a racial attack' and said that action should be taken against the girl under 211 of the IPC if her allegation is found to be wrong. "Can Karnataka Home Minister release the police inquiry? Why does he not show the police inquiry which says that the Tanzanian student was not stripped, it was not a racist attack because if he is coming on that then the inquiry should be shown to the public," Singh told ANI here. "However, going by the Home Minister's statement if it is found that the allegation of the Tanzanian student was wrong that she was not stripped, she was not paraded naked then action needs to be taken against this student under 211 of the IPC which clearly says that if you file a false FIR, false allegation intent to injure the opposition party then it is a non-cognizable bailable offence with an imprisonment up to six months. It is necessary that an action is taken because it is often seen that these laws which are meant to protect women are being misused with great impunity," he added. Parmeshwara earlier in the day told the media in Bengaluru that the attack on the Tanzanian student was 'not a racial attack' as the city does not have that kind of an attitude. "It's not a racial attack. It is just a response to the accident. Bengaluru does not have that kind of an attitude," Parmeshwara said. He also said that this incident would not have taken place had the Sudanese not killed somebody in the accident. "The five accused are being interrogated by the police officials. We have already informed the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) about it," said Parmeshwara. "The allegations that their clothes were torn off and they were paraded naked have not been verified as per the investigation so far," he added. Parmeshwara also said that more arrests would be made when the people in the mob are identified and added that this matter would not be taken casually. Array "There are 12,000 foreign students in Bangalore itself. Their protection and their pursuit of education is our duty, especially the Home Minister. But this kind of incident should not happen," he said. Parmeshwara further said there are times when foreign students stay even after their passports get expired and, therefore, they are going to pursue such cases. Giving details about the accident, the Home Minister said that Sudan's Mohd. Ismail was driving the car under the influence of liquor and then he hit K. Sanaullah and his wife. "The woman died on the spot. Sanaullah was injured and he was taken to the hospital. In the incident, Ismail was also injured. During this time, around three to four people gathered and set the car on fire," he said. "Near the spot, some students were coming in a car. Jamaal Ibrahim, the driver, and a Tanzanian student and others were then attacked by the mob," he added. He further said that the DGP and Commissioner went to the spot today and also spoke to the students. "The case has been transferred to the Central Crime Branch," he said. Array Parmeshwara also asserted that the state government would provide protection to the foreign students, but if they do anything against the law of the land then it's a different issue. Array Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah earlier said that he has spoken to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and given her a factual report about the incident. Array "I have instructed the DGP to inquire into the matter if there is any delay in registering the complaint or not," Siddaramaiah said. Array "The case is already registered and five accused have been arrested. Yesterday, Sushma Swaraj spoke to me and I have given factual report to her," he added. Array Swaraj had yesterday condemned the attack on the Tanzanian student and asked for stringent punishment for the guilty. Array "I have asked the Chief Minister (Siddaramaiah) to ensure safety and security of all foreign students and stringent punishment for the guilty," Swaraj said in a tweet. Array "I spoke to the Chief Minister Karnataka. He informed me that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested," she added. Array Expressing her grief over the incident, Swaraj said, "We are deeply pained over the shameful incident with a Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru." The Bengaluru Police had yesterday filed an FIR against some unknown persons in connection with the assault on a 21-year-old Tanzanian student. Array The Tanzanian student was beaten and then stripped by a group of locals in Bengaluru after they assumed she was part of an incident in which a Sudanese man had run over a local woman. Array The incident took place on Hesaraghatta Road in Bengaluru on Saturday night after a Sudanese ran his car over a 35-year-old woman resulting in on the spot death of the woman. Array The Tanzanian student was travelling in another car, a Wagon-R, along with four others. The young woman, who arrived on the spot around 30 minutes later, was dragged out of the car and paraded naked after being stripped by the mob. Array The victim told the police in her complaint that when she tried to get on a bus in order to escape the assault, the people on the bus pushed her back towards the mob. Karnataka Director General of Police (DGP) Om Prakash, who met the Tanzanian student as part of the investigation process on Thursday, said that the victim was not stripped and paraded. "She did not say that she was stripped and paraded. Yesterday, when she gave in writing, it was found that her top cloth was found removed, which she realised subsequently. Initially her statement could not be recorded, that is why Section 355 was in place," Prakash told the media here. "I checked the case by going to the police station. I talked to the victim. I did not record her statement because it should be part of a detailed inquiry. In many places, the people have reacted in the similar manner. Law is same for everyone and we will take action as per the law," he added. Karnataka Home Minister G. Parmeshwara earlier said that the attack on the Tanzanian student was 'not a racial attack'. "It's not a racial attack. It is just a response to the accident. Bengaluru does not have that kind of an attitude," Parmeshwara told a press conference. This came after Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah gave a factual report about the incident to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. Swaraj had earlier condemned the attack on the Tanzanian student and asked for stringent punishment for the guilty. The Bengaluru Police had yesterday filed an FIR against some unknown persons in connection with the assault on a 21-year-old Tanzanian student. The Tanzanian student was beaten and then stripped by a group of locals in Bengaluru after they assumed she was part of an incident in which a Sudanese man had run over a local woman. The incident took place on Hesaraghatta Road in Bengaluru on Saturday night after a Sudanese ran his car over a 35-year-old woman resulting in on the spot death of the woman. The Tanzanian student was travelling in another car, a Wagon-R, along with four others. The young woman, who arrived on the spot around 30 minutes later, was dragged out of the car and paraded naked after being stripped by the mob. The victim told the police in her complaint that when she tried to get on a bus in order to escape the assault, the people on the bus pushed her back towards the mob. Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju on Thursday condemned the incident involving a 21-year-old Tanzanian student in Bengaluru and urged the people of India to remember their colonial past and gain sensitivity towards racial discrimination. "Whenever such an incident happens, the first thing to do is condemn the attack and not defend it. Whether racist attack or not, whether stripped or not these are matters to be investigated by the officials when they are asked to do it. Police is supposed to act suo moto in such kinds of serious incidents. We should not jump on defending the case whether it is racial discrimination or not. But an incident related to the woman is in itself a serious matter. So, there is no question of defending it," he said. "Secondly, during the British rule, our country has seen and faced how we were discriminated on the basis of racial profile. Lot of Indians did face racial abuse in foreign countries. So, we should be very careful as we were victims of it. So, any kind of racial abuse or any kind of discrimination on racial lines has to be taken up with all seriousness," he added. He also said that the government has not yet been briefed officially and he was yet to receive the details of the report. "Whatever has come from the media, and the Foreign Minister has also reacted, it seems that the incident was serious and to what extent and what happened is a matter of enquiry, but the incident itself is serious, whatever may be the course," he said. The High Commission of Tanzania has sent a Note Verbale about reported attacks on African students in Bangalore. The Note Verbale requests the Government of India to follow up on this matter and take necessary legal action against those involved in such attacks and to ensure safety and security of all African students in India. Meanwhile, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has asked the Karnataka Government for explanation and has asked for a report immediately. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had also condemned the attack on the Tanzanian student and asked for stringent punishment for the guilty. With pressure mounting on the government to take strict action against those responsible for the assault the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) asked the Karnataka Government to submit a report on the unfortunate incident. Tanzanian High Commissioner to India John Kijazi had earlier told ANI that they wanted the police to take strict action and arrest all the culprits. He also said that the High Commission has written to the Indian Government, which in turn, has assured them of action. Earlier today, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said that he has spoken to the External Affairs Minister and given her a factual report. Women activists expressed dismay and outrage over a 21-year-old Tanzanian female student being beaten and stripped by locals in Bengaluru, and called on the Centre and the Karnataka Government to punish the guilty. People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) activist Kavita Srivastav said, "It seems that we are not only casteist, but racist as well. It is very sad that people can do anything to anyone. I would like to ask for forgiveness that she has to go through all this. The way Tanzanian woman was treated in an uncivilized way, I am pained and sad by the incident. The police have itself become the audience, it is a crime of omission. Each people involved in this should be arrested and punished." "The amount we criticise the police and the people, it will be less. We talk about 'make in India' but is this 'make in India' only for Caucasians and Chinese and not for black people? I am outraged by what has happened," she added. Array Commission for Women activist Nirmala Sawant said, "India is a country which is known for hospitality, good relationship and we have good relationship with the Tanzanian people and African countries. Having a discrimination on the basis of race, caste, creed is an offence and unconstitutional. Our image has been tarnished and we want immediate action on this. It is a criminal offense and guilty must be punished." Array "It is very nice to know that the top leadership of congress party, Mr. Rahul Gandhi has taken immediate cognizance of this matter. And also Madam Sushma Ji has given direction to her department to intervene in this matter," she added. Array Meanwhile, the High Commission of Tanzania has sent a Note Verbale about reported attacks on African students in Bangalore. The Note Verbale requests the Government of India to follow up on this matter and take necessary legal action against those involved in such attacks and to ensure safety and security of all African students in India. Array Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has asked the Karnataka Government for explanation and has asked for a report immediately. Array External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had also condemned the attack on the Tanzanian student, and asked for stringent punishment for the guilty. New Delhi, Feb. 4(ANI): 4th February, the world is celebrating and honouring cancer survivors today. On this occasion, Dr.Vaneet Gupta, Consultant and Oncologist from PSRI Hospital is giving out certain details about the disease and is briefing how one should take care of their . Explaining what this disease is, Dr. Vaneet said, "Cancer is a disease that occurs when the cells of the body multiply in an uncontrolled manner. It is not a single disease with a single type of treatment. There are more than 200 different kinds of cancer, each with its own name and treatment." Claiming that early diagnosis can often make a difference in how easily cancer is managed or treated and the chance of making a good recovery, he also said that people should keep a check on what kind of food they eat as little measures of precautions can save a life. "The quality of cancer care has increased enormously in recent years increasing the numbers of people are surviving cancer and leading a normal life," says Dr. Vaneet. Dr. Vaneet believes that by noticing symptoms like change in the size, shape or color of a mole, a sore that does not heal after several weeks, mouth/tongue ulcer lasting more than 3 weeks and cough/croaky voice lasting more than 3 weeks, one can easily keep a check on his . He added, "Be aware of the early warning signs for cancer and encourage and help people to speak to their family physician along with encouraging them in taking part in cancer screening Programmes." So this World Cancer Day say yes to a healthy life and no to this deadly disease. Search This Blog A button for your sidebar "PEACE IS A BY-PRODUCT OF VICTORY. PROSPERITY IS A BY-PRODUCT OF LIBERTY AND JUSTICE. " "The cost of freedom is always high, but Americans have always paid it. And one path we shall never choose, and that is the path of surrender, or submission." - John Fitzgerald Kennedy, 35th President of the United States QUESTION: WHICH VERSION OF ISLAM DID MUHAMMED PRACTICE, "MODERATE ISLAM"OR "RADICAL ISLAM"? THE ANSWER IS THE ONLY THING YOU REALLY HAVE TO KNOW ABOUT ISLAM - AND ITS APOLOGISTS. Blog Archive Bajaj Auto and Tata Steel are scheduled to announce their Q3 December 2015 results today, 4 February 2016. TCS announced after market hours yesterday, 3 February 2016 that Investec India, a part of wealth management giant Investec, has gone live on TCS BaNCS to power its front and back office operations in India. Shares of public sector oil marketing companies (PSU OMCs), oil exploration and production (E&P) firms and aviation stocks will be in focus after sharp rebound in oil prices. Brent for April settlement was currently up 30 cents at $35.34 a barrel. The contract had surged $2.32 a barrel or 7.09% to settle at $35.04 a barrel during previous trading session. Godrej Consumer Products (GCPL) yesterday, 3 February 2016 announced that its subsidiary has entered into an agreement with Canon Chemicals, for the acquisition of a majority equity stake in its business in Kenya. Canon Chemicals, a Kenya based company, manufactures and distributes products in the personal and home categories. Its major brand is Valon, a petroleum jelly. In 2015, the annualised revenue of the business was KSh 1,146 million. This acquisition helps GCPL in further building its presence in the Sub Saharan Africa market. The announcement was made before market hours today, 4 February 2016. NMDC in its latest price review has kept prices of lump ore unchanged at Rs 1,800 per tonne. The state-run iron ore miner also kept the prices of iron ore fines unchanged at Rs 1,560 per tonne. The prices are excluding royalty, taxes, DMF, duties, levies etc. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 3 February 2016. Thomas Cook (India) said that the board of directors of the company at its meeting held on 3 February 2016, inter alia, has accorded its in-principle approval for the merger of SITA, the inbound division of Kuoni Travel (India) (a wholly owned subsidiary of the company) with Travel Corporation (India) (also a wholly owned subsidiary of the company) subject to regulatory approvals and compliance. Seperately, Thomas Cook (India) said that Quess Corp (formerly IKYA Human Capital Solutions a subsidiary of Thomas Cook (India)) informed the company on 3 February 2016 about its filing of Draft Red Herring Prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Board of India for raising Rs 400 crore through an Initial Public Offering (IPO) of its equity shares. The announcement was made before market hours today, 4 February 2016. CCL Products (India)'s consolidated net profit fell 0.47% to Rs 25.98 crore on 11.76% decline in net total income from operations to Rs 212.92 crore in Q3 December 2015 over Q3 December 2014. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 3 February 2016. Hikal's net profit rose 32.44% to Rs 12.41 crore on 6.82% rise in net total income from operations to Rs 240.40 crore in Q3 December 2015 over Q3 December 2014. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 3 February 2016. Powered by Capital Market - Live News On 04 February 2016 Bharat Heavy Electricals has received a communication dated 04 February 2016, from the Department of Heavy Industry, Ministry of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises, informing that the Competent Authority has approved the appointment of T. Chockalingam as Director (Finance), BHEL for a period of five years w.e.f. the date of his assumption of charge of the post or till the date of his superannuation, or until further orders, whichever is the earliest. Powered by Capital Market - Live News Presentation of Railway Budget on 25 February, Economic Survey on 26 Feb and General Budget on 29 February Budget session of Parliament will begin from 23 February and will continue till 13 May 2016 subject to exigencies of Government Business with recess from 17 March till 24 April 2016 to enable the Department Related Standing Committees examine the Budget proposals of different ministries and departments. The details of Budget session schedule were informed by the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs M. Venkaiah Naidu, after the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs firmed up the schedule today. M.Venkaiah Naidu further stated that the session opens with the Address of President Pranab Mukherjee to the Members of both the Houses at a Joint Sitting in the Central Hall of Parliament on February 23, 2016. Presentation of Railway Budget will be on February 25, Economic Survey the next day and General Budget on February 29, 2016. Budget session will have a total of 31 sittings spread over a total duration of 81 days. Budget session of Parliament this year will run full course with recess in between unlike in 2011 when the recess was done away with on account of Assembly elections in five states that are going to polls this year also. These states are ; Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, West Bengal and Assam. Ministers Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitely, M Venkaiah Naidu, Dr.Najma Heptuallah, Ramvilas Paswan, Smt.Smriti Zubin Irani and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi attended the CCPA meeting. Before the CCPA meeting M.Venkaiah Naidu, Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs consulted leaders of different parties seeking their views on scheduling of the Budget session keeping in view the Assembly Polls in five states. In his opening remarks, Venkaiah Naidu said that the Government favoured a normal and full length session with sufficient recess in between to enable the work of Standing Committees. M.Venkaiah Naidu said that the dates could be adjusted based on the suggestions of different parties. CCPA later firmed up the session schedule keeping in view the requirement of Speaker of Lok Sabha and Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha to attend the Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference, suggestions form the leaders of various parties and holidays in the month of April,2016. Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma and Deepender Hooda from the Congress Party, Ramgopal Yadav (SP), Sharad Yadav and K.C.Tyagi (JDU), Bhartrihari Mahtab (BJD), Ambeth Rajan (BSP), Derek O'Brien (TMC) and Dr.Venugopal (AIADMK) participated in the consultations with the Government. Ratification of Ordinance relating to President's Rule in Arunachal Pradesh and passing of a Bill in respect of Ordinance regarding Enemy Properties will be taken up on priority during the session. Powered by Capital Market - Live News Load factor climbed 0.6 percentage points to a record annual high of 80.3% in 2015 The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced global passenger traffic results for 2015 showing demand (revenue passenger kilometers or RPKs) rose 6.5% for the full year compared to 2014. This was the strongest result since the post-Global Financial Crisis rebound in 2010 and well above the 10-year average annual growth rate of 5.5%. While economic fundamentals were weaker in 2015 compared to 2014, passenger demand was boosted by lower airfares. After adjusting for distortions caused by the rise of the US dollar, global airfares last year were approximately 5% lower than in 2014. "Last year's very strong performance, against a weaker economic backdrop, confirms the strong demand for aviation connectivity. But even as the appetite for air travel increased, consumers benefitted from lower fares compared to 2014," said Tony Tyler, IATA's Director General and CEO. Annual capacity rose 5.6% last year, with the result that load factor climbed 0.6 percentage points to a record annual high of 80.3%. All regions experienced positive traffic growth in 2015. Carriers in the Asia-Pacific region accounted for one-third of the total annual increase in traffic. 5.60% 5.90% 78.10%5.10% 4.20% 79.90%5.40% 5.30% 78.80%6.50% 5.90% 79.70%6.30% 5.20% 81.50%6.50% 5.60% 80.30% International Passenger Markets International passenger traffic rose 6.5% in 2015 compared to 2014. Capacity rose 5.9% and load factor rose 0.5 percentage points to 79.7%. All regions recorded year-over-year increases in demand. recorded a demand increase of 8.2% compared to 2014, which was the largest increase among the three largest regions. Demand was stimulated by a 7.3% increase in the number of direct airport connections in the region, resulting in time-savings for travelers. Capacity rose 6.4%, pushing up load factor 1.3 percentage points to 78.2%.international traffic climbed 5.0% in 2015. Capacity rose 3.8% and load factor increased 1.0 percentage point to 82.6%, highest among the regions. The healthy result in part was attributable to a pick-up in consumer spending in the Eurozone as well as a moderate increase in flight frequencies. Traffic growth slowed toward the end of the year owing to strikes at Lufthansa and the shutdown of Russia's Transaero.saw demand rise 3.2% in 2015, broadly unchanged from the growth achieved in 2014. Capacity rose 3.1%, edging up load factor 0.1 percentage points to 81.8%.had the strongest annual traffic growth at 10.5%. As a result, the share of international traffic carried by Middle East airlines reached 14.2%, surpassing their North American counterparts (13.4%). Capacity growth of 13.2% exceeded the demand gains, pushing down load factor 1.7 percentage points to 76.4%.traffic rose 9.3% in 2015. Capacity rose 9.2% and load factor inched up 0.1 percentage points to 80.1%. While key regional economies, particularly Brazil, have been struggling, overall traffic has been robust.had the slowest annual demand growth, up 3.0%, although this was a significant improvement over the 0.9% annual growth achieved in 2014. With capacity up just half as much as traffic, load factor climbed 1 percentage point to 68.5%. International traffic rose strongly in the second half of 2015, in conjunction with a jump in trade activity to and from the region. Domestic Passenger Markets Domestic air travel rose 6.3% in 2015. All markets showed growth, led by India and China but there was wide variance. Capacity rose 5.2% and load factor was 81.5%, up 0.9 percentage points over 2014. 3.20% 1.20% 77.90%-5.40% -4.00% 80.10%8.20% 8.20% 76.70%25.00% 25.20% 87.50%1.20% -2.90% 64.70%-3.40% -8.00% 70.00%4.90% 4.10% 84.10%5.10% 4.20% 79.90%domestic air travel rose just 0.8% in 2015, reflecting the country's deteriorating economic situation. Traffic trended downward throughout the year.domestic traffic climbed 4.9% last year, helped by solid economic growth. This was the fastest rate of increase since 2004 and the first time since 2003 that domestic traffic growth surpassed international growth. The load factor reached a domestic record high of 85.4%. "Aviation delivered strong results for the global economy in 2015, enabling connectivity and helping to drive economic development. The value of aviation is well understood by friends and families whom aviation brings together, by business travelers meeting clients in distant cities, and particularly by those for whom aviation is a lifeline in times of crisis. "It is very disappointing to see that some governments still wrongly believe that the value of taxes and charges that can be extracted from air transport outweighs the benefits-economic and social-of connectivity. The most recent example is the dramatic increase in the Italian Council Tax levied on air passengers. This 33-38% hike will damage Italian economic competitiveness, reduce passenger numbers by over 755,000 and GDP by EUR 146 million per year. An estimated 2,300 jobs a year will be lost. At a time when the global economy is showing signs of weakening, governments should be looking for ways to stimulate spending, not discourage it." Powered by Capital Market - Live News Godrej Consumer Products rose 1.43% to Rs 1,251.50 at 09:51 IST on BSE after the company announced that its subsidiary has entered into an agreement with Canon Chemicals, for the acquisition of a majority equity stake in its business in Kenya. The announcement was made before market hours today, 4 February 2016. Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 162.57 points or 0.67% at 24,385.89 On BSE, so far 8,840 shares were traded in the counter as against average daily volume of 20,657 shares in the past one quarter. The stock hit a high of Rs 1,264.40 and a low of Rs 1,245 so far during the day. The stock had hit a record high of Rs 1,456.65 on 3 August 2015. The stock had hit a 52-week low of Rs 1,022.50 on 4 February 2015. The stock had underperformed the market over the past one month till 3 February 2016, sliding 8.07% compared with 7.41% decline in the Sensex. The scrip, however, outperformed the market in past one quarter, falling 3.82% as against Sensex's 8.90% fall. The large-cap company has equity capital of Rs 34.05 crore. Face value per share is Re 1. Godrej Consumer Products announced that its subsidiary has entered into an agreement with Canon Chemicals, for the acquisition of a majority equity stake in its business in Kenya. Canon Chemicals is a Kenya based company engaged in manufacturing and distributing products in the personal and home care categories. Its major brand is Valon, a petroleum jelly. In 2015, the annualised revenue of the business was Kenyan Shilling (KSh) 1,146 million. This acquisition helps the company in further building its presence in the sub-Saharan Africa market, Godrej Consumer Products said. Godrej Consumer Products' consolidated net profit rose 22.5% to Rs 322.95 crore on 5.9% rise in total income to Rs 2380.96 crore in Q3 December 2015 over Q3 December 2014. Godrej Consumer Products is the largest home-grown home and personal care company in India. Powered by Capital Market - Live News India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) has maintained a stable rating and sector outlook on private sector banks and a stable to negative sector outlook for public sector banks (PSBs) for FY17. Capital requirements towards Basel III transition continued to increase in FY16, despite INR700bn as announced under the Indradhanush plan. Ind-Ra will watch out for any addition capital infusion announcement in the forthcoming union budget. The agency expects large private banks and the some large PSBs to be better placed with healthy internal accruals, strong capitalisation and better access to the capital markets. Most PSBs are likely to be under pressure to consolidate growth and focus on profitability given their significant capital requirements both from government and capital markets. Ind-Ra has also assigned a stable outlook to small finance banks. Ind-Ra estimates the incremental tier-1capital requirement to be INR2.9trn till FY19; which includes INR1.5trn in Additional Tier I (AT1) bonds. Critically, at least INR550bn in AT1 bonds would be needed by March 2017, given the current growth plans. So far banks have raised INR130bn through AT1 bonds from the market, active participation by insurance companies and provident funds however remains to be seen. Hence, a pick-up in AT1 appetite remains a key monitorable in FY17. Ind-Ra also expects credit costs to increase sharply in FY16E and FY17, given the persistent stress from large levered corporates and increasing recognition of the stress by the banking system. Impaired assets are expected to rise to 12.5% of loans by FY17 (including gross non-performing loans, standard restructured assets and asset reconstruction company receipts) compared to 10.8% in FY15. As highlighted in Ind-Ra's report 'The INR1trn Shortfall from Distressed Corporates', the agency estimates 1.7% of risk weighted assets as the potential haircut needed by banks to bring a bulk of the corporate exposure to a viable leverage level. However, credit growth is likely to get some support from the macro tailwinds going into FY17. Consequently, the agency expects the banking system's return on assets to dip in FY16 and then marginally rise in FY17. Private sector banks continue to improve their funding profile, on the back of their growing market share in current and savings account deposits. Conversely, most PSBs continue to report high funding gaps and may see a negative impact on their margins from increasing requirements on liquidity coverage ratio and the guidelines relating to the marginal cost of funding based lending rate. Ind-Ra also expects the small finance bank and payment banks to lead the change in the banking landscape, by cornering increasing share of small ticket transactions and gaining market share in both granular liabilities and well as retail assets. OUTLOOK SENSITIVITIES Long-Term Issuer Ratings for PSBs are largely support driven and will change only if there is any change in the government's support stance or a relative shift in their systemic importance. Ratings for private sector banks and ratings on tier-1 bonds (like AT1) for all banks are linked to the respective banks' standalone profile. Positive triggers such as improvements in funding gaps and single-name concentrations together with increased capitalisation levels and lower loan loss provisions may result in a positive outlook for banks whose ratings are driven by performance. Negative triggers will be pressure on capital ratios due to weak profitability, a spike in credit costs and delays in equity injections may lead to a negative sector outlook. Issuer ratings of government banks will mostly remain resilient on the expectations of continued government support. Powered by Capital Market - Live News India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) has maintained a stable outlook on the non-bank finance company (NBFC) sector and on the rated companies for FY17. The agency expects incremental delinquencies to moderate in FY17, led by strengthening of risk management practices, a revival in the borrowers' repayment capacity and a portfolio shift to less volatile asset classes. The agency estimates the gross NPL ratio to reach 7.8% at FYE17 (FYE16: 6.7%; September 2015: 6.0%), of which, 1.5%-1.7% is the likely impact of a shift to 120-day NPL recognition norm. NBFCs' access to cheaper funding sources and improving operating efficiencies could help them maintain adequate pre-provisioning operating profit buffers to cushion rising credit costs. Ind-Ra expects the revival in heavy and medium commercial vehicles led by fleet operators to trickle down to small road transport operators and driver-turned-owner segments, and boost the used vehicle market. However, the small commercial vehicle market is likely to be under continued pressure, due to the persistent overcapacity in the system. NBFCs with a higher exposure to the rural economy are also likely to see increased stress, until the agricultural economy revives. Ind-Ra expects NBFCs to continue to gain credit market share at the expense of banks, as banks struggle to raise capital for a successful transition to the Basel-III regime. This will force banks to reduce credit growth. The agency also expects retail-focused NBFCs to gradually reduce their single product concentration by diversifying into other asset classes, primarily secured in nature. Large NBFCs are likely to grow at 14% in FY17, with SME/MSME growing faster than commercial vehicles. Housing finance companies (HFCs) with reach and/or specialisation will continue to safeguard their market shares despite increased competition from banks. The agency expects large HFCs to grow at 13%-15% while mid-sized and regional HFCs will continue to grow at 8%-10%, higher than the system average. The agency continues to maintain a negative outlook on loan against property, as delinquencies are showing a rising trend and asset prices are visibly under pressure. Most large NBFCs continue to maintain adequate capital buffers, with Tier 1 ratios well above the 10% threshold. In view of the 90-day regulatory transition, Ind-Ra expects the net NPL/equity ratio of the sector to rise to 21% by FY17 (FY15: 11%), which will necessitate significant equity infusions in the medium term. Nevertheless, the agency believes that the ability of large NBFCs to tap the capital markets and external investors for equity is reasonable. Ind-Ra believes the establishment of the MUDRA Bank as a refinance agency and the proposed credit guarantee fund for refinanced loans will help the NBFCs lower their credit and liquidity risks. The applicability of SARFAESI to NBFCs could support improved recoveries. While the transition to 90-day NPL recognition will have a material impact on profitability, these guidelines could also improve the eligibility of NBFCs to avail specialised banking licences. The proportion of bank funding to NBFCs has significantly reduced over the years (September 2015: 44%; FY12: 56%), though this remains the largest source. As regulatory changes lend greater stability to the sector, Ind-Ra believes that NBFCs will be able to attract a diverse set of lenders, which will improve their funding profile further. OUTLOOK SENSITIVITIES Stable Profitability and Capital Buffers: A delayed recovery in economic activity, adversely impacting NBFC's credit quality and leading to significant erosion of their profitability and capital buffers could lead to a negative sector outlook. Cash flow pressures resulting in asset liability tenor mismatches and consequent refinancing risk could also lead to negative sector outlook. Conversely, NBFC's ability to maintain robust profitability and capital buffers through-the-cycle can lead to a positive sector outlook. Powered by Capital Market - Live News India through the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology signed a Cooperation Agreement to acquire the status of the Associate Member State European Molecular Biology Organisation (EMBO). This would strengthen scientific interaction and collaborative research between India and Europe in this field. After the signing of an agreement with Singapore by EMBC in July 2015, India will now become second such country outside the European region. EMBO is an organization of more than 1700 leading researchers that promotes excellence in the life sciences. The major goals of the organization are to support talented researchers at all stages of their careers, stimulate the exchange of scientific information. The movement was started in 1964 as European Molecular Biology Conference (EMBC) and subsequently it got intergovernmental funding. More information on the organisation is at www.embo.org With this India as an EMBC Associate Member State, researchers working in India are now eligible to participate in all EMBO programmes and activities. Indian scientists can apply to EMBO's programmes, such as long-term fellowships for postdoctoral researchers, short-term fellowships, courses and workshops, as well as the EMBO Young Investigator Programme. At the same time, Europe will benefit from networking with the top-level scientists in India's research community. The official kick-off launch ceremony of the agreement was held in New Delhi on 4 February 2016. Scientific presentations were made by Nobel Laureates Christiane Nslein-Volhard and Ada E. Yonath to mark the occasion. To mark the occasion, Professor Maria Leptin, Director of EMBO said - For the past five years, we have been promoting international interactions beyond Europe, and India is one of our prime partners. I am extremely pleased that India is going to be an Associate Member of EMBC and I look forward to India being able to access EMBO activities. Many European researchers have established scientific connections in India. No doubt these will be strengthened further once more tools and formal opportunities for interactions are available. Professor K. Vijay Raghavan, Secretary of the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) for the Government of India, who signed the agreement: India is rapidly growing into a position where we are making extraordinary demands on ourselves. India can only succeed if we partner with the best everywhere to bring the best here. He added: Through EMBO, we will not only have the excellent joint programmes that benefit India and Europe, but we hope to be a magnet that attracts bright young people to science from in- and outside India. Professor Gerrit van Meer, President of the EMBC, remarked: All member states welcome the exchange with Indian scientists that this agreement will bring. We look forward to seeing transcontinental projects spanning India and Europe grow in future. An EMBO-led delegation of ten researchers is in India now to visit various institutes across the country and meet with Indian scientists and government representatives. This newly forged cooperation will build upon already existing links between Indian and European scientists. In 2015, 10 Indian postdoctoral researchers received an EMBO Long-Term Fellowship to work in Europe and eight India-based scientists received the EMBO Short-Term Fellowship. A satellite symposium focusing on research in India has been an integral part of the annual conference The EMBO Meeting. Powered by Capital Market - Live News Ten pharma stocks fell 0.16% to 3.07% at 12:25 IST on BSE after the United States government reportedly made it mandatory for Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients to be manufactured locally. Lupin (down 3.07%), Cipla (down 2.27%), Divi's Laboratories (down 2.95%), Wockhardt (down 5.61%), Glenmark Pharmaceuticals (down 1.58%), Aurobindo Pharma (down 1.34%), Cadila Healthcare (down 1.39%), GlaxoSmithkline Pharmaceuticals (down 0.65%), Dr Reddy's Laboratories (down 0.16%) and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (down 0.4%) edged lower. Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 164.34 points or 0.68% at 24,387.66 US is a key market for Indian pharma companies. At present, nearly 80% of drug raw material requirement is met by India or China. This decision is likely to significantly impact Indian pharmaceutical exporters as it will impact drug exports, reports indicated. Before the new norms came into effect, US-based companies were allowed to procure Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) from countries like India and China, make the fixed formulations (final product) in the US and sell the drugs to the US government. The changes in the norms have been made under the Drug Master Files (DMF), a submission to the USFDA, made solely at the manufacturers' discretion to provide confidential information about facilities, processes, or articles used in the manufacturing, processing, packaging, and storing of one or more human drugs, reports suggested. This change is likely to affect Indian companies that have subsidiaries or holdings in the US that procure APIs from their Indian counterparts and make the finished product in the US, reports further informed. Indian companies are not allowed to quote for government contracts in the US since India is not a signatory to the WTO's government procurement agreement. Meanwhile, as per reports Pharmexcil - India's pharmaceutical Export Promotion Council - has approached the Commerce Ministry, requesting authorities to intervene and resolve the issue. The Indian government would first try to resolve this issue bilaterally, failing which it would consider approaching the World Trade Organisation's dispute settlement panel, reports added. Powered by Capital Market - Live News For 100% sale of its cement plant of 5.08 MTPA Reliance Infrastructure announced the signing of Share Purchase Agreement with Birla Corporation, the flagship Company of the M P Birla Group in relation to 100% sale of its subsidiary Reliance Cement Company. RCCPL has an integrated cement capacity of 5.08 Mtpa at Maihar, Madhya Pradesh and Kundanganj, Uttar Pradesh and a grinding unit of 0.5 Mtpa at Butibori, Maharashtra. Under this transaction Birla Corporation will acquire the 100% shareholding of RInfra in RCCPL. The transaction is subject to approval of the Competition Commission of India and other applicable regulatory approvals. Powered by Capital Market - Live News Item No "x x x. The elements of the crime of theft as provided for in Article 308 9 of the Revised Penal Code are as follows: (1) t... Stocks of metal and mining firms, oil exploration and production companies and index heavyweight Infosys led gains for key benchmark indices in what was a choppy trading session. The barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, rose 115.11 points or 0.48% to settle at 24,338.43. The gains for the 50-unit Nifty 50 index were higher in percentage terms than those for the Sensex. The Nifty rose 42.20 points or 0.57% to settle at 7,404. Gains in Asian stocks aided the upmove on the domestic bourses as the Sensex and the Nifty snapped a 3-day losing streak. The market breadth indicating the overall health of the market was weak. On BSE, 1,623 shares declined and 1,030 shares rose. A total of 123 shares were unchanged. The BSE Mid-Cap index dropped 0.18%. The BSE Small-Cap index declined 0.75%. Both these indices underperformed the Sensex. Shares of oil exploration and production firms gained after sharp rebound in crude oil prices. Shares of public sector oil marketing companies (PSU OMCs) dropped after a sharp rise in crude oil prices. Metal and mining stocks edged higher as copper prices rose in global commodities markets. Tata Steel edged higher in volatile trade ahead of the announcement of its third quarter results. Pharma stocks edged lower on media reports that the US government has made it mandatory for active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) to be manufactured locally. ABB India surged after reporting robust Q4 December 2015 results. Bajaj Auto edged lower in volatile trade after announcing third quarter results. The Sensex and the Nifty witnessed high intraday volatility. After registering decent gains in early trade on the back of higher Asian stocks, the two key benchmark indices trimmed gains in morning trade. The two key benchmark indices recovered from lower level after erasing a lion's portion of intraday gains in mid-morning trade. After extending gains in early afternoon trade, key indices pared gains in afternoon trade. Immense volatility was witnessed in late trade as the Sensex and the Nifty recovered from lower level after erasing almost entire intraday gains. The Sensex rose 115.11 points or 0.48% to settle at 24,338.43, its highest closing level since 2 February 2016. The index jumped 290.69 points or 1.2% at the day's high of 24,514.01. The barometer index rose 1.42 points at the day's low of 24,224.74. The Nifty rose 42.20 points or 0.57% to settle at 7,404, its highest closing level since 2 February 2016. The index rose 95.25 points or 1.29% at the day's high of 7,457.05. The index rose 4.15 points or 0.05% at the day's low of 7,365.95. In overseas stock markets, Asian and European stocks edged higher after disappointing US economic data was seen as putting interest-rate increases by the US Federal Reserve on hold. US stocks staged a late-day rally yesterday, 3 February 2016, as sharp rebound in oil prices lifted beaten-down energy shares and financials rebounded from initial sharp slide. The total turnover on BSE amounted to Rs 2735 crore, higher than turnover of Rs 2708.89 crore registered during the previous trading session. Among sectoral indices on BSE, the S&P BSE Utilities index (down 0.25%), the S&P BSE Finance index (up 0.22%), the S&P BSE Bankex (up 0.18%), the S&P BSE Oil & Gas index (up 0.08%), the S&P BSE Healthcare index (down 1.56%), the S&P BSE Realty index (down 0.3%), the S&P BSE Energy index (up 0.03%), the S&P BSE Consumer Discretionary Goods & Services index (up 0.18%), the S&P BSE FMCG index (up 0.23%) and the S&P BSE Telecom index (up 0.03%) underperformed the Sensex. The S&P BSE Power index (up 0.84%), the S&P BSE Auto index (up 0.52%), the S&P BSE Capital Goods index (up 1.93%), the S&P BSE Basic Materials index (up 1.11%), the S&P BSE Metal index (up 2.48%), the S&P BSE Industrials index (up 1.12%), the S&P BSE Teck index (up 0.83%), and the S&P BSE IT index (up 0.92%) outperformed the Sensex. Telecom stocks were mixed. Bharti Airtel (up 1.58%) and Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) (up 2.6%) edged higher. Idea Cellular (down 2.91%) and Reliance Communications (down 2.56%) declined. Shares of oil exploration and production firms gained after sharp rebound in crude oil prices. Cairn India (up 5.69%), Oil India (up 0.19%), and ONGC (up 3.28%) gained. Reliance Industries (RIL) declined 0.69%. Higher crude oil prices will result in higher realization from crude sales for oil exploration firms. Shares of public sector oil marketing companies (PSU OMCs) dropped after a sharp rise in crude oil prices. BPCL (down 0.14%), HPCL (down 4.56%) and Indian Oil Corporation (down 1.68%) declined. Higher crude oil prices will increase under-recoveries of PSU OMCs on domestic sale of LPG and kerosene at controlled prices. The government has already freed pricing of petrol and diesel. In the global commodities markets, Brent for April settlement was currently up 18 cents at $35.22 a barrel. The contract had surged $2.32 a barrel or 7.09% to settle at $35.04 a barrel during previous trading session. Infosys rose 1.88% to Rs 1,179.90. The stock hit high of Rs 1,193.60 and low of Rs 1,161.75 in intraday trade. Metal and mining stocks edged higher as copper prices rose in global commodities markets. Vedanta (up 9.89%), Hindalco Industries (up 3%), Jindal Steel & Power (up 3.61%), Hindustan Zinc (up 4.16%), JSW Steel (up 3.89%), Hindustan Copper (up 0.83%) and National Aluminium Company (up 0.52%) gained. Steel Authority of India dropped 1.16%. High Grade Copper for March 2016 delivery was currently up 0.81% at $2.1120 per pound on the COMEX. NMDC rose 4.17%. The company in its latest price review has kept prices of lump ore unchanged at Rs 1,800 per tonne. The state-run iron ore miner also kept the prices of iron ore fines unchanged at Rs 1,560 per tonne. The prices are excluding royalty, taxes, DMF, duties, levies etc. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 3 February 2016. Shares of public sector banks rose. Punjab National Bank (up 1.68%), Bank of Baroda (up 1.86%), Union Bank of India (up 1.22%), Canara Bank (up 0.77%), and Bank of India (up 0.3%) edged higher. State Bank of India (SBI) declined 1.81%. Stocks of private sector banks witnessed a mixed trend. HDFC Bank (up 0.62%), Axis Bank (up 0.41%), Kotak Mahindra Bank (up 1.62%), and IndusInd Bank (up 0.76%) edged higher. ICICI Bank (down 0.02%) and Yes Bank (down 2.38%) declined. Pharma stocks edged lower on media reports that the US government has made it mandatory for active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) to be manufactured locally. Wockhardt (down 11.13%), Aurobindo Pharma (down 3.23%), Strides Shasun (down 3.12%), Lupin (down 2.69%), Glenmark Pharmaceuticals (down 2.76%), Cipla (down 1.67%), Alkem Laboratories (down 2.51%), Cadila Healthcare (down 1.07%), Divi's Laboratories (down 2.54%) and Ipca Laboratories (down 1.54%) edged lower. Dr Reddy's Laboratories (up 0.14%), Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (up 0.33%) and GlaxoSmithkline Pharmaceuticals (up 0.28%) edged higher. The United States is a key market for Indian pharma companies. Tata Power gained 3.85% at Rs 59.30 after the company announced that its equal joint venture with ZESCO, a Zambian power utility company, has commissioned two units of 60 megawatts (MW) each of its 120 MW Itezhi Tezhi hydro power project in Zambia. The synchronization of both the units was completed in January 2016. ZESCO is the sole off-taker of power from the power plant. Separately, Tata Power announced that its joint venture company Industrial Energy (IEL) has synchronized the 67.5 megawatts (MW) unit 1 of its 202.50 MW IEL Kalinganagar project. These units are designed to cater to the requirement of LP steam, which is supplied to Tata Steel, which got commissioned from December 2015. Tata Steel edged higher in volatile trade ahead of the announcement of its third quarter results. The stock rose 1.5% to Rs 227.50. The scrip hit high of Rs 228.50 and low of Rs 219.15 in intraday trade. Tata Motors rose 2.12% at Rs 327.30 after Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) North America yesterday, 3 February 2016, said its US sales rose 7% to 7,007 units in January 2016 over January 2015. JLR is the British luxury car unit of Tata Motors. Bajaj Auto edged lower in volatile trade after announcing third quarter results. The stock lost 1.58% at Rs 2,311. The stock hit a high of Rs 2,392.75 and a low of Rs 2,292.25 in intraday trade. Bajaj Auto's net profit rose 4.67% to Rs 901.49 crore on 0.21% growth in total income to Rs 5764.58 crore in Q3 December 2015 over Q3 December 2014. Operating earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rose 2.66% to Rs 1234 crore in Q3 December 2015 over Q3 December 2014. Operating EBITDA margin improved to 22% in Q3 December 2015, from 21.1% in Q3 December 2014. The result was announced during market hours today, 4 February 2016. Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL) was off 1.01% at Rs 3,790. The stock hit a high of Rs 3,880 and a low of Rs 3,777 in intraday trade. MSIL during market hours today, 4 February 2016, said that it has unveiled Concept Ignis and Concept Baleno RS on the second day of Delhi Auto Expo 2016. Concept Ignis is a smart compact urban concept vehicle built on a new-generation platform. Concept Baleno RS is a sporty version of premium hatchback Baleno. Ignis and Baleno RS will be launched in India in the festival season, MSIL said in a statement. The company also unveiled the 1.0 BOOSTERJET direct injection turbo engine. This turbo engine offers an exhilarating drive feel while the external styling is even more edgy and sporty, MSIL said in a statement. Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) declined 0.71%. The company today, 4 February 2016, announced the launch of its new heavy commercial truck series under the BLAZO brand at the Auto Expo at Greater NOIDA. The BLAZO series of heavy commercial vehicles include multi-axle trucks, tippers and tractor trailers in the range of 25 to 49 ton GVW for the domestic market. ABB India surged 14.21% after net profit rose 53.75% to Rs 129.40 crore on 8.11% increase in total income to Rs 2435.89 crore in Q4 December 2015 over Q4 December 2014. Efforts towards increased localization coupled with strong focus on cost savings and project execution helped improve profitability, the company said in a statement. The result was announced during trading hours today, 4 February 2016. The company said that demand in its major areas of businesses was muted, reflecting ongoing macro uncertainties and challenges. Customers remained cautious but continued to make selective investments in infrastructure and critical power transmission projects. The order inflow stood at Rs 2058 crore in Q4 December 2015 and Rs 8100 crore for the year ended 31 December 2015. The orders from renewables (wind and solar) and railways segment more than doubled as compared to the year ended 31 December 2014 but was offset to a large extent by the silent investment pattern prevalent in the industry. The service business, at nearly Rs 1000 crore for 2015, posted a good double digit growth in orders compared to last year, as customers' focus on quality, safety and maintenance increased and decisions on new investments and large orders were delayed. An order backlog of Rs 7946 crore as on 31 December 2015 provides visibility for future revenue, ABB India said. The Sensex and the Nifty snapped a 3-day losing streak. The Sensex had declined 647.37 points or 2.6% in preceding three trading sessions to settle at 24,223.32 yesterday, February 2016, from its close of 24,870.69 on 29 January 2016. The Sensex has fallen 532.26 points or 2.14% in this month so far (till 4 February 2016). The Sensex has fallen 1,779.11 points or 6.81% in calendar year 2016 so far (till 4 February 2016). The Sensex is up 498.67 points or 2.09% from a 52-week low of 23,839.76 hit on 20 January 2016. The Sensex is off 5,686.31 points or 18.93% from a record high of 30,024.74 hit on 4 March 2015. Meanwhile, the government today, 4 February 2016, announced the schedule of the Budget session of parliament. The Budget session will begin on 23 February 2016 and will continue till 13 May 2016 with recess from 17 March 2016 to 24 April 2016. The presentation of Railway Budget will be on 25 February 2016, to be followed by the finance ministry's Economic Survey on 26 February 2016. Finance minister Arun Jaitley will present Union Budget 2016-17 in parliament on 29 February 2016. Powered by Capital Market - Live News In SIPCOT Industrial-park at Vallam-Vadagal, Chennai ZF Steering Gear India announced that at the Meeting of Board of Directors held on 04 November 2015, the Board, in-principle had decided to acquire an Industrial Plot in State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamilnadu (SIPCOT) Industrial-park at Vallam-Vadagal, Chennai. In view of the further discussion and analysis, the Company has decided to differ the implementation of the proposal to acquire Industrial Plot. Thus, the decision of the Board of Directors of the Company dated 04 November 2015 to acquire the said Industrial Plot, stands cancelled for the time being. Powered by Capital Market - Live News At least 15 workers were killed and over 20 others wounded when a Saudi-led airstrikes struck their cement factory in Yemen's northern province of Amran on Wednesday. The airstrike hit the main gate of the factory while workers were queue near the factory's gate to receive their monthly salary, Xinhua quoted officials and witnesses as saying on Wednesday. "So far, 15 workers were killed after the airstrike hit the scene while more than 20 others were critically hurt and brought to the hospital," a medic in Amran hospital told Xinhua. The cement factory in rebel-held Amran province, about 60 km north of the capital Sanaa, has been targeted by a series of airstrikes and the factory had stopped operating. Tribal sources and residents said nearly 40 villagers were killed or injured when three airstrikes hit the village of Al-Jubara tribe in Kutaf region on Wednesday. Elsewhere on the outskirts of the capital Sanaa, tribesmen and local council officials said a family of nine members traveling on a car to flee the ongoing intensified ground battles in Nihm district were all killed in an airstrike Wednesday afternoon. Around 2.56 crore voters are eligible to cast their ballot in the upcoming assembly elections in Kerala, the Election Commission announced on Thursday. There are 1.23 crore male voters and 1.33 females in the current voters list till January 14, Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi told reporters, adding that the process of including new voters will continue for 10 days before the notification comes out. Zaidi said 6.18 lakh new voters in the age group 18-21 have been included. There has been an overall increase of 3.88 lakh new voters from the last revision. The Election Commission team held meetings with various groups, including leaders of political parties, district collectors, and police officials as part of the preparations for the assembly polls to be held soon. "Our motto this time is no voter should be left out. I have asked my officials to see that not only should maximum people be included in the voters list, but also to ensure that the recent average turnout in polls that stands at 74 percent is increased through their efforts," said Zaidi. Elections to the 140-member assembly would be held in 21,498 polling stations. "There will be 500 model polling stations, and in 17 constituencies voter verified paper audit trail (VVPAT) would be made available, which would enable the voter to countercheck if he has cast the vote for the candidate of his choice," said Zaidi. He said the Election Commission will be relying on IT through several new apps. "Requests from political parties and candidates that require speedy clearances from officials, like permission for helicopters, and other such requests would be done online and permission granted in 24-36 hours," said Zaidi. Asked whether any mechanism would be available to the large number of non-resident Keralites to exercise their franchise, he said they have recommended for proxy voting besides online voting and they were waiting to hear from the concerned authorities who were looking into this. He said officials have been asked to take special care to monitor if voters were being bribed and also if there is any 'paid news'. Amid ongoing militancy and government forces operations against armed militants in the northern Badakhshan and Kunduz provinces, over two dozen Taliban fighters have surrendered and 17 others have been killed over the past two days, officials said on Thursday. A total of 25 Taliban militants have given up fighting and handed over their weapons to police in the northern Badakhshan province with Faizabad as its capital 315 km northwest of Kabul over the past two days, Xinhua quoted Ahmad Nawed Frotan, spokesman for provincial government, as saying. "A total of 25 Taliban fighters under Sheikh Jamal who were active in Tishkan district over the past couple of years laid down arms and resumed normal life over the past two days," Frotan said. He also added that cleanup operations have been continuing in Tishkan and Tagab districts since mid January to kill or capture insurgents. Taliban militants who are active in parts of Badakhshan province are yet to make comment. Similarly, mounting pressure against Taliban in the northern Kunduz province have claimed the lives of 17 insurgents. Citing a provincial security official, Mohammad Masoum Safi, local media reported on Thursday that clashes between security forces and Taliban militants in Ali Abad district of restive Kunduz province on Wednesday had left 17 armed insurgents, including two senior commanders of the militants - Mawlawi Niazi and Mawlawi Abdul Hai, dead. In the meantime, Taliban confirmed in an online statement the clash in Ali Abad district, but insisted that two civilians had been killed and two others injured. English model and television presenter Alexa Chung will be bringing her fashion sense and style to the house of Marks & Spencer by designing a capsule collection for the British fashion brand. The style icon along with the brand's team of designers will work towards creating a collection named Archive by Alexa. The collection, which will trace the history of the brand and narrate it with the help of clothes, will debut in select stores in India in April, read a statement. Chung is "thrilled" with this collaboration. "I have always had an affection for the brand. I am thrilled to be part of this special and unique project. There was something very touching about looking back through the British fashion and social history for which the brand is synonymous," Chung said. This project is the first of the 'M&S &' series, under which a sequence of exclusive collections in collaboration with designers, brands and fashion icons will be made. The 31-piece womenswear collection has been carefully curated and handpicked by Chung and the brand's design team. Steve Rowe, executive director of general merchandise of the brand, said: "It was a hugely insightful experience allowing Alexa full access to our company archive. The brand's history is vast and quality design has always been paramount; therefore using our expertise and classic designs and Alexa's unique eye and approach to style, our collaboration was born." With modern fabrications and a myriad colour palette, the contemporary collection will define heritage sensibility. The supporting campaign will launch in April with Chung herself taking creative ownership of the mood and direction. Indian actor Anupam Kher being denied a Pakistani visa is "reflective of the byzantine and thoroughly nebulous visa regime that exists between India and Pakistan", a leading daily said on Thursday. An editorial "Indo-Pak visa regime" in Dawn said that while there are differing accounts of why exactly Bollywood actor Anupam Kher was not issued a Pakistani visa, one thing is clear: "The episode is reflective of the byzantine and thoroughly nebulous visa regime that exists between India and Pakistan". The actor, who was supposed to attend the Karachi Literature Festival, which kicks off on Friday, says he was denied a visa as Pakistan's interior ministry did not issue a no-objection certificate. However, Pakistan's high commissioner in New Delhi says Kher never submitted a visa application, while a KLF organiser claims they were told "not to apply" for the Indian actor's visa. "Of course, many high-profile individuals from both countries have been denied visas or censured for using undesignated ports of entry," said the daily. It observed that if this is the state of affairs public figures face, "it can be well imagined what the common Indian or Pakistani has to go through when applying to visit the 'other side'. The fact is that miles of red tape have been put up by both bureaucracies to consciously discourage people from putting in a visa application". A 2012 agreement governs the visa regime between India and Pakistan. "But despite its promises, this arrangement is anything but liberal." "India requires Pakistanis applying for a visitors' visa to submit a 'sponsorship certificate', in which their Indian host promises to vouch for their 'good conduct' while in India. Also, for the vast majority of visitors with police reporting visas, the exercise can be a nightmare, with people often shaken down for bribes over minor technical issues," it added. The editorial went on to say that visa processing, which is supposed to take a little over a month, can take much longer, throwing travel plans off kilter. "If there is to be peace in the subcontinent fostered by people-to-people contacts, and if the dream of a connected South Asia is ever to be realised, these mediaeval rules need to be changed and the visa regime must be truly liberalised. Presently, divided families as well as ordinary people who desire to visit the other country are suffering, much to the delight of hard-line lobbies on both sides. "Whenever dialogue is resumed between Islamabad and New Delhi - and we hope this occurs soon - a more humane visa regime should be on top of the agenda." A stronger partnership between the Asean countries and India will boost Asia's voice in global governance, Vice President Hamid Ansari said on Thursday. "It is evident that a stronger Asean (Association of Southeast Asian Nations)-India partnership would give us a stronger voice on global governance issues," Ansari said while delivering a lecture on "India, Thailand and Asean: Contours of a Rejuvenated Relationship" at Chulalongkorn University here. "The time is ripe for our common engagement for bringing greater equity into the international order," he said. "Asean members and India have similar aspirations to have an open trading system through global organisations like the WTO. We have also shown a strong commitment, based on the principle of common but differentiated responsibility, as we take up our own role to address issues related to climate change." Ansari arrived in Bangkok on Wednesday on a three-day visit to Thailand at the official invitation of Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha. The second and last leg of his visit to southeast Asia which earlier took him to Brunei, Ansari's is the first visit by an Indian vice president to Thailand in 50 years. Stating that his visit underscored the importance India attached to Thailand as part of New Delhi's increasing engagement with the region, he said that despite the large size and rapid growth of economies of the two countries, trade and investment between the two remained modest. "There is a need to synergise our efforts in the areas of economy and business to enhance and diversify our trade. We need to encourage our private sectors to make investments in infrastructure and manufacturing sectors in the each others' country and for this the two governments are willing to provide a predictable and comprehensive legal and taxation frame-work," the vice president said. He also stressed on enhancing bilateral defence ties. "Thailand has played host to ships of the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard on several occasions in recent years. We hope to continue this cooperation through technical, human resource development, capacity building and contributing to the development of Thai capacities, both physical and human," he said. The countries of the Asean bloc form the core of India's Act East policy, Ansari said. "India places Asean at the core of the Act East policy and at the centre of our dream of an Asian century," he said "There is a special emphasis on India-Asean cooperation in our domestic agenda on infrastructure, manufacturing, trade, skills, urban renewal, smart cities and Make in India programmes," he stated. "Connectivity projects, cooperation in science and technology development and people-to-people exchanges are to be the springboard for regional integration and co-prosperity." The vice president said the three Cs of commerce, culture and connectivity defined the future focus areas of cooperation between Asean member states and India. Allow me to dwell on some aspects of it. "The spread of Buddhism from India is attributed to Emperor Ashoka, who sent Buddhist emissaries to Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodiaand Vietnam. Indian mythology and folklore finds reflection here. The Thai epic, Ramakien, is based on the Ramayana. The Ahoms, the Khamtis and the Khasis of India have links with Thai people," he said. As for commerce, he said in the year 2014-15, Asean-India trade stood at $76.58 billion, growing at an average annual growth rate of 12 percent, up from $44 billion during the year 2009-10. "In terms of two-way FDI (foreign direct investment) flows, the India-Asean region has significantly outpaced many other regions of the world," he stated. "With mutual trade and investment opportunities arising from the realisation of the Asean Economic Community and India's emphasis on 'Make in India', 'Digital India', 'Skill India' and 'Smart Cities' initiatives, we are confident that India-Asean commercial partnership will flourish." Ansari said India was open to offering Asean its indigenously developed GPS Aided Geo Augmented Navigation (GAGAN) services, which provide advanced navigation and location assistance and information facilities. Regarding connectivity, the vice president said special efforts were being made to develop a coherent strategy, particularly for linking Asean with northeast India. "This is reflected in the finalisation of negotiations on the India-Myanmar-Thailand Motor Vehicles Agreement and Asean-India Maritime Transport Cooperation Agreement. Asean-India Civil Aviation Task Force is expected to oversee optimisation of air connectivity. Other major projects on connectivity include the Kaladan multi-modal transit transport project and Rhi-Tiddim road," he said. Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop on Thursday announced the country will contribute an additional $18 million in humanitarian aid for Iraq and Syria in coming months. The aid will be distributed between the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), UN Children's Fund (UNICEF), World Food Programme (WFO) and Australian NGOs working in the region, Xinhua news agency reported. Bishop said the government and the opposition felt compelled to assist those suffering through the "world's worst" humanitarian crisis. "Australia's assistance will help Syrian refugees and their host communities in the region access vital resources such as food, shelter and protection," she said. "This increased contribution will support civilians affected by the world's worst humanitarian crisis." About 13 million people require urgent humanitarian assistance. A further 4.6 million Syrians are refugees in neighbouring countries. An estimated 10 million people in Iraq also require urgent humanitarian support this year. "In addition to this increased humanitarian funding, the Australian government will also deploy 10 Australian Civilian Corps specialists to Lebanon and Jordan to assist UN and NGO partners deliver education, water, sanitation, camp infrastructure, logistics and protection to Syrian refugees." Bishop said a small proportion of the aid money would also be given to the UN agencies in Iraq, as they continue to help communities destroyed by the Islamic State (IS). The Australian government will also provide an additional $3.5 million for Iraq, including $1.4 million to the UN Development Programme (UNDP) to help stabilise areas of the country liberated from the IS. Sanjay Leela Bhansali's "Bajirao Mastani" has landed five nominations, including in the Best Film category, at the 10th Asian Film Awards, where "The Assassin" is the front-runner with nine nominations. "Bajirao Mastani" will compete with Chinese director Jia Zhangke's "Mountains May Depart", Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-Hsien's "The Assassin", Japanese director Ryosuke Hashiguchi's "Three Stories of Love", Chinese film director Guan Hu's "Mr. Six" and South Korean director's Ryoo Seung-wan "Veteran" for the Best Film trophy. Besides getting nominated for the Best Film category, "Bajirao Mastani" has also earned nominations for Best Costume Design, Best Visual Effects, Best Original Music and Best Editing. However, "Bajirao Mastani" isn't the only Indian film to be nominated at the AFA. "Masaan", "Talvar", "Bombay Velvet" and "Baahubali: The Beginning" also received nominations in different categories. "Masaan" actor Vicky Kaushal is nominated for Best Newcomer, Vishal Bhardwaj for Best Screenplay ("Talvar"), Amit Trivedi for Best Original Music ("Bombay Velvet") and Srinivas Mohan ("Baahubali: The Beginning") for Best Visual Effects. For this edition, 77 nominations have been made for 15 awards. The nominations represent 36 films from nine countries, read a statement on the Asian Film Awards' official website. Organised by the Asian Film Awards Academy, the awards gala will be held on March 17 at the Venetian Theater in Macau. Moments after Colleen Deacon received support from three county Democratic committees, she picked up another endorsement in the 24th Congressional District race. Auburn Mayor Michael Quill endorsed Deacon, D-Syracuse, Wednesday night. He cited her work as U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand's central New York regional director and her knowledge of the district, which includes all of Cayuga County. "It's been a pleasure working with Colleen in this capacity, and I'm looking forward to helping her get elected in November," he said. It's the latest in a series of endorsements for Deacon, who is one of three Democrats vying for the party's nomination to face U.S. Rep. John Katko. On Tuesday, two central New York state legislators Assembly members Pamela Hunter and Bill Magnarelli announced their support for Deacon's campaign. She's also been endorsed by U.S. Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand and Chuck Schumer, Syracuse Mayor Stephanie Miner, Oswego County Democratic Chairman Mike Kunzwiler and EMILY's List, a national group supporting pro-choice Democratic women candidates. "For 12 years, I've worked for the people of this region in (ex-Syracuse Mayor Matt Driscoll's office) and in Senator Gillibrand's office," Deacon said. "I can relate to the challenges they face and I know the enormous potential we have here." Deacon and Steve Williams, a Syracuse-area attorney, received the support of the Cayuga, Oswego and Wayne county Democratic committees Wednesday. Both candidates tied for first after multiple rounds of voting. Eric Kingson, a Syracuse University professor and Social Security expert, finished third. Democrats are preparing for a primary. The three candidates have said that they intend to stay in the race. If there's a primary, it will be held Tuesday, June 28. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has appointed Major General Jai Shankar Menon to head the UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), which monitors the Syria-Israel ceasefire in the Golan Heights. Menon succeeds Lieutenant General Purna Chandra Thapa of Nepal whose assignment ends on Sunday. Menon was Additional Director General for Equipment Management in the Indian Army. Announcing the appointment Tuesday, Ban's deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq said, "Menon brings to his new position extensive command experience and knowledge of peacekeeping affairs at the national and levels." Menon is familiar with the region having served with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) from 2007 to 2009. UNDOF was set up in 1974 to supervise the ceasefire and disengagement agreement between Israel and Syria in the area seized by Israel during the 1967 War. His appointment as UNDOF Head of Mission and Force Commander comes at a time of heightened tension with Syria engulfed in a multilateral civil war involving the government headed by President Hafez al-Assad backed by Iran and Russia; rebels supported by Saudi Arabia, Gulf countries and the West, and the Islamic State, the fundamentalist terrorist group. The Syrian side that UNDOF monitors is still under the control of the beleaguered forces loyal to al-Assad. UNDOF has 947 personnel, 789 of them blue-helmeted troops, including 190 from India. Menon's previous assignments include General Officer Commanding of an infantry division, commandant of the Regimental Training Centre, brigade commander and Military Observer with the UN Operation in Mozambique. Bihar can benefit from Australia's technical know-how in disaster risk-reduction in the Kosi river basin, Bihar energy minister Bijendra Prasad Yadav said on Thursday. Australia has the technology and the experts to help the state in disaster management in Kosi river basin as well as developing the region, Yadav said at a two-day 'knowledge forum' here in the presence of Ryan Thew, first secretary, development, at the Australian High Commission in India. The Australian government is already supporting Kosi Basin Programme, an effort to generate knowledge on the frequency and magnitude of hydro-metrological induced disasters resulting from climate change events like melting of glacier and snows, land use and sedimentation. The 'knowledge forum', to be conducted over Thursday and Friday, is discussing the knowledge base generated under the Kosi Basin Programme and how it can be translated into policy and action. Yadav told Thew that there was no lack of money but what was needed most was technical help. Bihar disaster management minister Chandrashekhar echoed Yadav's views. The knowledge forum is jointly organised by the Bihar State Disaster Management Authority (BSDMA) and International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). Kosi is one of the most sediment-laden rivers in the world, making it highly prone to flooding. One of the most serious disasters in recent years occurred in August 2008 with the breaching of Kusaha embankment near the India-Nepal border resulting in flooding of five districts of north Bihar. The floods killed over 400 people, rendered nearly three million people homeless and destroyed crops spread over at least 840,000 acres of land. The BJP on Thursday questioned Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's silence over the Tanzanian student's assault and other incidents of crime against women in non-BJP ruled states. "It is unfortunate that Rahul Gandhi has been selective to raise his voice on such incidents only in BJP-ruled states," Bharatiya Janata Party secretary Srikant Sharma told reporters here. "Will he (Rahul) go to Bengaluru and sit on dharna to protest against the assault of the Tanzanian student. In Muzaffarnagar, a 40-year-old women was gang-raped. A minor was raped in Tripura but Rahul remained silent, why this selective approach?" he asked. In a case of mistaken identity, a mob assaulted Lina Martin, 21, suspecting her to be a friend of Sudanese student Mohammad Ahad, whose car fatally ran over a woman pedestrian while he driving drunk. Sharma alleged police were inactive towards the Tanzanian student's assault and law and order has become a casualty in Congress-ruled Karnataka. He also took a dig at Kejriwal, and said: "Why is Kejriwal silent? He didn't even need to travel to Bengaluru from Delhi as he is in Bengaluru itself." A Brazilian judge has banned the publication of Adolf Hitler's autobiography 'Mein Kampf' (My Struggle), ruling that it "incites intolerant practices" of social and religious groups against the Jews. Alberto Salomao Junior, judge from Rio de Janeiro Court of Justice, on Wednesday said in the ruling that the book, instigating racism and discrimination, was against the law of Brazil, Xinhua news agency reported citing a press release. According to the ruling, any publishing house violating the verdict will be fined 5,000 reals ($1,280) for each day the book reaches the public. However,the judge granted a five-day period for book shops and their legal representatives to consider whether to lodge an appeal before the ruling becomes permanent. Even after it becomes permanent, the ruling is applicable only in the state of Rio de Janeiro. 'Mein Kampf', written by Adolf Hitler in 1925, elaborates on the ideology which he used to rule Nazi Germany. The notorious book attracted public attention at the end of 2015, when it was published in Germany for the first time since the end of Second World War. Two Brazilian publishing houses have decided to publish a new version of the controversial book, which has already hit book shelves in the South American country. As the suicide of Rohith Vemula puts the focus back on the contentious issue of Dalit rights, former IAS officer and author P. Sivakami says that the community is denied even the minimum human rights. The critically acclaimed author and former bureaucrat said she quit in 2008 after being treated like an untouchable. Sivakami, who was in the Indian Administrative Service for 28 years, told IANS that her decision was fuelled by the realisation that Dalits have no place in nation-building. With more than eight books to her credit, Sivakami is among India's most prominent Dalit writers. Her first book, "In The Grip of Change", had created a stir as it questions patriarchy in the Dalit movement. "Both the political class and bureaucracy work together against the Dalits. During my service, though my position was next to the minister in the state I was serving in, I had to struggle for basic rights for tribals. I was dubbed as a person who belongs to the community when I was working for their welfare. It amounted to untouchability. I realised that there was an unwritten law against people from the lower community," said Sivakami, whose last posting was secretary of the Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare Department in Tamil Nadu. Many times, funds allocated for the tribal community were siphoned off for other projects and filling even a post of a teacher in a school for tribal children needed permission from the cabinet, which never listed it as a priority. "To fill vacancies, I had to get approval from the cabinet and it was never a priority for them. When I demanded to fill the posts of teachers in tribal schools, I was accused of running a parallel government. The funds meant for tribals were used for other projects," she said, adding that no Dalit has held secretary-level positions in the home or finance departments in the last six decades, which she deemed significant. "The post of secretary in the industries, finance or home ministry is considered a key position. No Dalit has been given these posts for the last 60 years. The discrimination is felt in all levels," Sivakami said, adding it was her father who inspired her to become a civil servant. Disillusioned with the system, she quit the service and joined the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) in 2009. A year later, she floated a political party, the Samuga Samathuva Padai to become the voice of the voiceless and the oppressed. Discrimination, according to Sivakami, is pervasive - whether in educational institutions or the bureaucracy. Referring to Rohith's suicide, Sivakami said educational institutions harass Dalits in the name of reservations. "There is a feeling that Dalits are not intelligent just because they have reservations. Dalits have a poor image," she lamented. Flaying theories that Rohith committed suicide under academic pressure, she said that it is shameful to attribute backwardness of intelligence to a certain community. "The set tone by BJP is that the scholar committed suicide owing to academic pressure and a research scholar needs extra brilliance. What do they mean by extra intelligence? How can you attribute it to backwardness," she asked. The former civil servant also felt that the brouhaha over Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi's visit to the Hyderabad Central University was unwarranted as any support is vital for the Dalit community. "Why call Rahul's visit as political? Any support is important for the victims. Why didn't (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi go there ? " she asked. As Rohith's suicide has brought out the wide gap in India's social system, Sivakami felt that the dominant culture has to introspect on its failures. "Nation building is not possible without brotherhood. Denying basic rights for the community based on caste is violence," she contended. A staunch Dalit feminist, Sivakami believed that women have to be brought into the mainstream and she doesn't regret leaving the civil service for activism. "I was voiceless there. Now I am doing meaningful jobs. My party has a presence in 10 districts in Tamil Nadu," she said. What is her solution for an equal society? "Sixty percent of the landless poor are Dalits. They should be given land and treated equally. The government has to strengthen the education system and create jobs in the private sector as well. Old habits never die. To change mindsets, one has to constantly talk about the discrimination the community faces," she opined. (Preetha Nair can be reached at preetha.n@ians.in. The writer spoke to P Sivakami on the sidelines of the Jaipur Literature Festival) Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti's hardening of stand and seeking "confidence-building measures" from the centre has made the task of forming a new government in Jammu and Kashmir an uphill task. Those thinking of alternate alliances to avoid mid-term elections in the state have also thrown up their hands, not exactly helping resolve the political gridlock. Both the opposition National Conference (NC) and the Congress have ruled out any role in forming the new government. "We are out. We will not support or align with any political combination to claim power in the state. We are not mandated to do so," said a senior NC leader on speculation about BJP feelers after the PDP's hardening of stand on government formation. Mehbooba Mufti had earlier sought assurances from the centre on time-bound implementation of the agenda the PDP and the Bharatiya Janata Party alliance had workedd out. "It is not a question of PDP and the BJP. The Centre must take confidence-building measures (CBMs) to address the peculiar problems faced by the people of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh," the PDP president told the media after meeting with Governor N.N. Vohra in Jammu on Tuesday. She maintained that the void caused by the January 7 death of her father, chief minister Mufti Muhammad Sayeed, needed to be bridged through these CBMs. Asked whether she had conveyed these CBMs to the centre, Mehbooba Mufti said she this had been done through appropriate channels. PDP insiders said the centre had been told about these steps through union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and BJP general secretary Ram Madhav. Mehbooba, however did not say the BJP-PDP alliance was over but only that "the alliance between the two parties has an agenda; we only want its implementation". "Nothing has been heard from Delhi thereafter. Not even a phone call. How can she, under these circumstances, face the people as the chief minister," remarked a former PDP minister. On the other hand, the BJP says 10 months is too short a period to revist the alliance agenda. "The PDP itself has called the agenda a sacred document. How can a sacred document be revisited in just 10 months? We are committed to its implementation in letter and spirit, but trying to mount pressure on us by continuing the present uncertainty is expecting the impossible," a senior BJP leader said in Jammu. Speculation about channels of communication open between the PDP and the Congress in case the BJP does not relent were trashed by senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad. "The PDP and the BJP have an alliance. It for them to give the people a government in the state. People want an elected government," the former chief minister said. "So far as we are concerned, we will not be a party to any alliance or combination," Azad said in Jammu on Wednesday. While the Congress and the NC have thrown up their hands on supporting any combination for government formation, the BJP has sought 10 days' time from Governor Vohra for its final decision on government formation. Amid a political deadlock, Vohra cannot wait endlessly for different political parties or combinations to come forward and stake claim to power in Jammu and Kashmir. (Sheikh Qayoom can be contacted at sheikh.abdul@ians.in) A Canadian opposition lawmaker's comment in the House of Commons that he needed an "English to English translation" to understand Indian-origin Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan has been taken as a racist slur and created a stir in the multi-racial country. The heckle was raised in the House of Commons on Monday by opposition Conservative member Jason Kenney, himself a former defence minister, as Sajjan was answering a question about the new Liberal government's plan to deal with the Islamic State terror group. Conservative Party's defence critic James Bezan and associate defence critic Pierre Paul-Hus both asked questions on the Liberals' election promise to withdraw Canada's fighter jets from the US-led mission in Iraq and Syria. Bezan accused Sajjan of suggesting that Canada's allies were to blame for the spread of IS, referring to Sajjan's speech at an event organised by Canada 2020 on Friday. "Why are the Liberals lecturing our allies on how to fight terrorism while at the same time befriending (Russian President Vladimir) Putin and Iran," asked Bezan. "It's about consulting our allies and having a dialogue," replied Sajjan. "These lessons, as I stated, were learned while working with our coalition partners, and that's the plan that we'll be putting forward and making sure that we get this right so we don't make the mistakes of the previous 10 years." Kenney said he needed an "English to English translation" to understand what Defence Minister Sajjan said. After Question Hour, the government's House Leader Kevin Lamoureux rose in the house and called for Kenney to apologise for his "inappropriate comment". "I'm wondering if the member would do the proper thing and apologise or at the very least explain his comments," Lamoureux said. Kenney refused to apologise for his remark, saying Sajjan's answer was "totally incoherent". This prompted shouts of "shame" from the ruling Liberal party MPs. Later, on Twitter, Liberal MP Raj Grewal called Kenney's remarks "unacceptable". Kenney, ironically, also previously served as minister for multi-culturalism, and for citizenship and immigration. In a major embarrassment to the opposition Congress, Maharashtra Governor C.V. Rao here on Thursday accorded sanction to the CBI to prosecute former chief minister Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh Society scam. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), through its letter dated October 8, 2015, sought the governor's sanction to prosecute Chavan under Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code after "fresh incriminating material" was allegedly found against Chavan. Reacting to the development, Chavan said: "The CBI's re-application to the governor to prosecute me is illegal. I will react in detail after consulting my legal advisors." Chavan is currently a Lok Sabha member from Nanded in Maharashtra and the state Congress president. Condemning the governor's sanction for Chavan's prosecution, senior party leader and MLC Sanjay Dutt termed it "BJP's vendetta politics to throttle the opposition expose on their misdoings". The CBI included in its request for prosection sanction a report by a two-member Commission of Inquiry, comprising Justice J.A. Patil (retd) and former chief secretary P. Subramanian, besides Bombay High Court observations in a criminal revision application filed in 2014. Accordingly, Rao granted the sanction to prosecute the Congress leader under Section 197 of CrPC and Sections 120-B and 420 of the Indian Penal Code in the Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society case. The Maharashtra cabinet, at a meeting presided over by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis last week, recommended to the governor to accord the sanction. In its report, the commission of inquiry had indicted four former chief ministers - Chavan, late Vilasrao Deshmukh, Sushilkumar Shinde and Shivajirao Nilangekar-Patil, also revenue minister at the relevant time - besides several top bureaucrats and other officials for their role in the high-profile scam. The commission was set up in January 2011. However, its report and recommendations were rejected by the then Congress-Nationalist Congress Party government in December 2013. Chavan, 57, served as the chief minister between December 2008 and November 2010 before he was replaced by Prithviraj Chavan following the scam. he is a son of former Congress strongman S.B. Chavan, a union minister and two-time chief minister of Maharashtra. The scam revolved around the allotment of flats in a 31-storey building constructed on a plot of land in the upmarket Colaba area of south Mumbai. On September 21, 1999, the Adarsh Society applied for land for constructing a building for war heroes and retired defence personnel. It was allotted the land reserved for a road on July 9, 2004. After the posh building was constructed, only 37 of the total 102 society members were defence personnel, including three related to the Kargil war. The remaining included several top politicians and serving or retired bureaucrats or their kin. Ever since the scam broke out, the controversial towering building is lying vacant with no power or water supply. Chavan resigned as chief minister after the Congress Party asked him to do so over corruption allegations. China's State Administration of Tourism is mulling over a new plan to create a two-and-a-half-day weekend across the country when the summer season starts, the media reported. According to authorities, the idea is to give employees more family time and also stimulate tourism, the China Daily reported on Wednesday. A number of provinces and municipalities across China, including Hebei, Jiangxi and Chongqing, have issued new policies, calling on companies to create 2.5-day weekends. Under the plan, government institutions, state-owned companies, joint-ventures and privately-held companies are to be given incentives to allow their workers to take off at noon on Friday before coming back to the office on Monday. The plan was announced in November 2015. In adopting the policy, the State Council, China's cabinet, says it hopes to create "favourable conditions," to give employees more family time, as well as stimulate tourism. Under the provisions, a 40-hour work-week is still required, meaning employees who get a 2.5-day weekend are going to have to make up the hours somewhere else during their week. A nation-wide, two-day weekend policy was first set into law in China in 1995. The vagaries of a globalised economy are working at the very roots of a democratic form of government, former Greek prime minister George Papandreou said, adding that in the present day and age, a fiscal rating agency had emerged more powerful than a nation. Papandreou was speaking on the subject of "intercultural dialogue for humanising globalisation" during the ninth edition of the D.D. Kosambi festival of ideas currently underway in Goa. "There is a fundamental question when we are talking about democracy in a globalising world. Can democracy work in a globalised economy when forces beyond our nation can determine our fate? This is not an abstract philosophical question. It is a defining question of our times with stark economic political and economic," Papandreou said while summing up the angst of the Mediterranean country, which battling bankruptcy and his experience at the helm while fighting the economic crisis. "I was facing a huge challenge. The markets were going crazy because Greece was seen as possible default. We could not borrow easily. My conclusion was that we could do a lot in Greece but we could not deal with these markets if we did not work together in Europe.... give a strong message to the global markets that we can handle this crisis," he said. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, he said, was positive about a Greek revival, but it was market mechanisms worked against Greek interests. "But despite Greece's democratic commitment to tackling this crisis, soon the markets began to mistrust us again. We were forced then to go to a special bailout mechanism which Europe then created," the former Greek premier said. "A rating agency today is much more powerful that an individual state and a nation. If it changes a country's rating and a whole lot of wealth moves out of the country," he further added. Along with democracy, Papandreou said that concepts like nationalism were an illusion in time of globalisation and governance systems across the world needed to adapt and grasp opportunities collectively. "Nationalism is an illusion in a time of globalisation. And Europe needs to become an example of politics, a democratic politics beyond borders. Of course there are margins for manoeuvre for local government and nations in a globalised world even more opportunities," he said. "We are confined by borders that have no relevance to the real world challenges of today. We have become a highly interdependent and global society and global issues beg for cooperation if they are to be addressed in a meaningful way." "We have to reclaim our democracies especially when lobbies are stronger than citizens, the world's richest 62 families who own half the world's wealth can buy out almost any government, media house, judges, politicians, barring a few exception," he added. New York's U.S. senators are going to bat again for an Auburn steel plant that is being threatened by artificially priced rebar imports from Turkey. U.S. Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand and Chuck Schumer signed a letter that was sent to Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker urging her agency to take action against the Turkish imports. The Commerce Department issued a preliminary countervailing duty determination in 2014, but the senators said it didn't stop Turkish companies from flooding the market with cheap rebar. According to Gillibrand, D-N.Y., and Schumer, D-N.Y., roughly 80 percent of U.S. rebar imports come from Turkey. This has had a negative impact on Nucor Steel and the U.S. rebar industry, which is now operating at 63-percent capacity. "To put Nucor and its workers on a level playing field, the Commerce Department needs to rehash this investigation and crack down on foreign steel companies, especially from Turkey, that artificially lower their prices," Schumer said. The senators previously pushed for the Commerce Department's action in 2014. While the initial investigation included Turkey, the agency only levied duties against Mexican steel imports. The Commerce Department is reconsidering whether Turkish companies should be subjected to duties on rebar imports. Gillibrand said the federal government and the International Trade Commission need to protect jobs in the U.S. steel industry. "Driving unfairly priced products into the U.S. cannot be tolerated and we need to continue to make it harder for foreign countries to corner the market through unfair and illegal trade and instead help put our steel manufacturers like Nucor Steel on a level playing field," she said. Nucor has more than 310 employees at its Auburn facility. The company also operates plants in Albany and Chemung. Here is the letter Gillibrand and Schumer sent to Pritzker: Dear Secretary Pritzker: We write on behalf of steel reinforcing bar, rebar, producers in our states regarding the September 2013 antidumping and countervailing duty investigations on rebar imports from Turkey. The rebar producers in our states have expressed their concerns about the recent surge in rebar imports from Turkey. We urge the Department of Commerce to carefully consider the arguments raised by the U.S. industry in the remand proceedings of the antidumping investigation and to quickly complete the administrative review of the countervailing duty order on Turkish rebar. We must ensure that our antidumping and countervailing duties accurately reflect unfair trade practices so that U.S. workers and businesses can compete on a level playing field and are protected from unfairly-traded imports. As members who represent rebar manufacturing facilities, we understand the negative impacts that unfairly-traded imports can have on this industry, its workers, and their families, as well as on the American economy. The industry employs more than 10,000 workers throughout the country, all of whom rely on the effective enforcement of our trade laws. The U.S. rebar industry has expressed their concerns that current U.S. duties do not accurately reflect Turkish government subsidies or dumping margins for Turkish rebar imports. U.S. imports of rebar from Turkey have increased from around 70,000 tons per month to over 130,000 tons per month since the Departments preliminary countervailing duty determination in April 2014. It is our understanding that Turkeys rebar imports now constitute approximately 80 percent of U.S. rebar imports and around 20 percent of U.S. domestic rebar consumption and are projected to increase. Due to this unfair import competition, the U.S. rebar industry has experienced significant declines in production and is currently operating at around 63 percent capacity utilization. Many companies have been forced to close facilities, lay off workers and cut worker hours. We commend the Department for previously requesting a voluntary remand on the antidumping investigation on Turkish rebar. We understand that the U.S. Court of International Trade (USCIT) recently determined that the Department may have erred with respect to each of the issues appealed by the domestic industry in this investigation. As a result, the USCIT remanded each of these issues back to the Department for reconsideration. We urge the Department to carefully consider the arguments raised by the domestic industry in the remand proceedings to ensure the accurate calculation of dumping margins. Further, we understand that the domestic industry requested the initiation of an administrative review on November 30, 2015, and we ask that the Department carefully consider the issues raised by the domestic industry to ensure the accurate calculation of Turkish producers duty liability. Thank you for your attention to these matters; we look forward to your speedy reply, as it is essential that we do everything we can to prevent unfairly-traded rebar imports from further harming American jobs. Charles E. Schumer United States Senator Kirsten Gillibrand United States Senator "Million Dollar Quartet", a new limited drama series chronicling the rise of rock 'n' roll, is under way. Set in the early days of Memphis' Civil Rights era in the 1950s, the series will document the birth of rock 'n' roll and the rise of the genre's pioneering musicians during periods of extensive political change and social unrest, reports variety.com. CMT will partner with "Hatfields & McCoys" producer Thinkfactory Media to produce the series. The premiere of the eight-episode scripted series, which will be based on the Tony Award-winning musical "Million Dollar Quartet," will mark the 60th anniversary of the famed "Million Dollar Quartet" jam session that was recorded by Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins in Dec. 1956. CMT and Thinkfactory Media began a nationwide casting search for the roles of young Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, BB King, Ike Turner, Carl Perkins and other supporting characters beginning, with auditions to be held at the historic Humes Preparatory Academy Middle School, Presley's alma mater, on February 13. "'Million Dollar Quartet' will capture the star-crossed Memphis moments which led to the most explosive pop culture movement of the 20th Century, the birth of Rock 'n' Roll," said Brian Philips, CMT president. "The characters are all larger-than-life, so casting is a daunting challenge, but we're counting on the magic of Memphis to come alive again! This is among our most ambitious projects ever, and we entrust it to a proven epic filmmaker, Leslie Greif." The "Million Dollar Quartet" project is CMT's second scripted series announced for 2016 -- the network's Billy Ray Cyrus-led ensemble comedy "Still the King" will premiere this summer. Production for CMT's "Million Dollar Project" adaptation is set to begin in Memphis this spring. Living near cellphone towers that produce radio-frequency electromagnetic fields can amplify pain in amputees, suggests new research. "Our study provides evidence, for the first time, that subjects exposed to cellphone towers at low, regular levels can actually perceive pain," said senior study author Mario Romero-Ortega, associate professor of bioengineering at University of Texas at Dallas, US. Until this study, published online in the journal PLOS ONE, there was no scientific evidence to back up the anecdotal stories of people, who reported aberrant sensations and neuropathic pain around cellphone towers, the researchers said. "Our study also points to a specific nerve pathway that may contribute to our main finding," Romero-Ortega noted. Most of the research into the possible effects of cellphone towers on humans has been conducted on individuals with no diagnosed, pre-existing conditions. This is one of the first studies to look at the effects of electromagnetic fields (EMFs) in a nerve-injury model, Romero-Ortega said. The team hypothesised that the formation of neuromas -- inflamed peripheral nerve bundles that often form due to injury -- created an environment that may be sensitive to EMF-tissue interactions. To test this, the team randomly assigned 20 rats into two groups -- one receiving a nerve injury that simulated amputation, and the other group receiving a sham treatment. Researchers then exposed the rats to a radiofrequency electromagnetic antenna for 10 minutes, once per week for eight weeks. The antenna delivered a power density equal to that measured at 39 meters from a local cellphone tower. Researchers found that by the fourth week, 88 percent of rats in the nerve-injured group demonstrated a behavioural pain response, while only one rat in the other group exhibited pain at a single time point, and that was during the first week. "Our model found that electromagnetic fields evoked pain that is perceived before neuroma formation; subjects felt pain almost immediately," Romero-Ortega said. The researchers believe that the protein TRPV4, which is known to be a factor in heat sensitivity, could be a mediator in the pain response for these rats. Experts from India, China, Nepal, Australia and Singapore on Thursday stressed the need for regional cooperation to reduce risk of disaster and promote resilient livelihood in the Kosi river basin in Bihar and Nepal. "There is urgent need for regional cooperation for effective use of knowledge to address reduction in risk of water-related disaster and vulnerabilities and to improve the livelihood in the Kosi basin," said Dr Eklabya Sharma, director of programme operations, International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD). Water expert Asit K. Biswas, a visiting professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy in Singapore, said India and Nepal have not cooperated to develop the Kosi basin in the last 30 years. "If India and Nepal can work together, the river basin can be developed to generate hydroelectricity and higher growth," he said at a two-day knowledge forum workshop on disaster risk reduction and resilient livelihoods in the Kosi basin that began on Thursday. Rayan Thew, first secretary-development, at the Australian High Commission in India, said regional cooperation will help understand the challenges and potentials for the socio-economic and livelihood improvement in the Kosi basin. Prof Zhang Yili and Prof Chen Ningsheng from the Chinese Academy of Sciences also supported regional cooperation to manage disasters in the Kosi basin. The workshop has been organised by the Bihar state disaster management authority and ICIMOD. Afghanistan's Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah on Thursday said certain external forces were still supporting the Taliban in pursuit of their vested interests. He said the terror group's dream of capturing power in his country after the withdrawal of foreign troops had come to a naught. Abdullah, who held a breakfast meeting with a group of Indian and foreign journalists, said Pakistan had a role in Taliban affairs and can use its influence for the success of the quadrilateral peace talks in Afghanistan aimed at preserving its unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity. The chief executive, who held wide-ranging talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, said Taliban were confident of capturing powers in 2015 when the US troops left Afghanistan but failed in their mission. The Afghan security forces have gained in strength and are now capable of taking on the Taliban and other extremist groups, Abdullah said. He said factional fighting in the Taliban had caused chaos and confusion in its ranks. Hundreds of fighters have been killed in groups clashes and some of the factions have joined Daesh, the Afghan leader said. On Pakistan'a allegation that the attack on Bacha Khan University on January 20 was committed by terrorists operating from the Afghan soil, the chief executive said after Pakistan army launched a massive operation in the tribal belt of that country, scores of fighters moved into Afghanistan and are operating from areas under the control of Afghan Taliban. He said East Turkistan Movement terrorists have also taken shelter in Afghanistan along with central Asian fighters. Abdullah said India is a valued friend of Afghanistan and played a prominent role in the reconstruction of his country. "We want Indian to play more prominent and active role." He said India is already taking part in talks in Berlin regarding Afghanistan. On the attack on the Indian consulate in Mazar-i-Sharif in Afghanistan in which Pakistan army is allegedly involved, he said his country had shared information with India on the issue. "However, it is not appropriate to divulge it at this juncture when the probe is still on," Abdullah said. He said Afghanistan had acquired helicopters from India to fight the Taliban in some parts of his country. (Sheikh Manzoor is a Delhi-based freelance journalist. He can be contact at ahmedsmanzoor@gmail.com) US President Barack Obama said Thursday that faith can help the US overcome fear as his Christian faith has helped him overcome fear as the nation's commander in chief. "Like every president, like every leader, like every person, I've known fear," the president said at his final National Prayer Breakfast, an annual meeting of the city's political and religious leaders, as president. "God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind," he said without referring to some 2016 Republican presidential candidates, whom he has often accused of stoking fear. "Fear can lead us to lash out against those who are different or lead us to try to get some sinister other under control," Obama said. "Alternatively, fear can lead us to succumb to despair, or paralysis or cynicism. Fear can feed our most selfish impulses and erode the bonds of community. "It is a primal emotion, fear, one that we all experience. It can be contagious. If we let it consume us, the consequences of that fear can be worse than any outward threat," he said. But Obama said that faith can conquer fear. "Faith is the great cure for fear. Jesus is a good cure for fear," he said. "God gives believers the power, the love, the sound mind, required to conquer any fear. What more important moment for that faith than right now. "What better time than for these changing, tumultuous times than to have Jesus standing beside us, steadying our minds, cleansing our hearts, pointing us towards what matters," he said. Speaking at the Christian event, Obama also noted that he visited the Islamic Society of Baltimore on Wednesday and attended a Jewish event last week at the Israeli Embassy in Washington commemorating the Holocaust. "I've drawn strength from witnessing good people of all faiths who do the Lord's work each and every day," he said. The prime ministers of Finland, Lithuania and Sweden will be among the top dignitaries from across the world who will be attending the "Make in India Week" being organised by the government in Mumbai from February 13 to 18. "The confirmed list of government delegates now includes the prime ministers of Sweden, Finland and Lithuania, and prominent foreign dignitaries from a large number of countries, including Poland, Japan, Indonesia, Colombia, United Kingdom, Belgium, Mexico, Germany, and South Korea," external affairs ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said at a media briefing here on Thursday. He said that the main purpose of this event was to showcase the potential of design, innovation and sustainability of India's manufacturing sectors in the coming decades. "The week-long event will offer foreign investors and businesses unprecedented access, insights and opportunities to showcase, connect and collaborate with young Indian entrepreneurs, industry leaders, academicians and government officials at the central and state levels," he said. According to Swarup, key opportunities in sectors like auto and auto components, defence and aerospace, food processing, chemicals and petrochemicals, electronic and IT, pharmaceuticals, textiles, industrial equipment manufacturing, construction equipment, and infrastructure will be showcased through seminars and discussions among the major stakeholders. "Some of the highlights of the 'Make in India Week' would be the inauguration of the Make in India Centre at the Bandra-Kurla Complex by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, an intensive 24-hour hackathon featuring cooperation between coders, engineers, and designers for creative solutions to urban design problems, a CNN Asia business forum anchored by Farid Zakaria featuring global visionaries and leaders from the fields of finance, industry and design, and finally recognition of excellence in the world of manufacturing by instituting the Time India awards," he said. Five people suspected of assaulting a Tanzanian woman were arrested early on Thursday, Police Commissioner N.S. Megharik said. "We have arrested the five accused after interrogating them on Wednesday night under detention in the case registered on the victim's statement in a road rage incident," Megharik told IANS here. The commissioner, however, did not disclose names and age of the five accused. In a case of mistaken identity, a mob assaulted the victim, Lina Martin, 21, suspecting her to be a friend of a Sudanese student, Mohammad Ahad, whose car ran over a woman pedestrian (Shabana Taz) fatally while driving drunk on the same (Sunday) night. "Arrest of the accused has been made on the basis of eye witnesses' account and from the video footage from closed circuit television cameras (CCTV) in the area. We will produce them in a local court for custody and further interrogation," Megharik said. Denying reports in a section of media that the victim was stripped and paraded, Megharik said in her statement that she was only assaulted and molested in which her T-shirt was torn off. "Though the car mishap was 30 minutes before the victim reached the spot in the other car, the mob thought she was Ahad's friend and assaulted her," deputy police commissioner T.R. Suresh told reporters on Wednesday night. Ahad was also arrested on Sunday night for the fatal mishap involving his car and drunken driving. Police did not register the case soon after the road mishap and the mob attack, as the victim was not in city for two days since Sunday to record her statement. Five people suspected of assaulting a Tanzanian woman here were arrested early on Thursday, Police Commissioner N.S. Megharik said. "We have arrested the five accused after interrogating them on Wednesday night under detention in the criminal case registered on the victim's statement in a road rage incident in the city's northern suburb," Megharik told IANS here. The arrested are Lokesh, Banagiri, Ramaiah, Banu Prakash and Rahamatullah. In a case of mistaken identity, an angry mob assaulted Lina Martin, 21, suspecting her to be a friend of a Sudanese student whose car ran over a woman pedestrian on Sunday night. Mohammad Ahad Ismail, 20, in a case of drunken driving fatally ran his car Shabana Taz, 35, and injured her husband K. Sanaullah. "Arrests were made on the basis of eye witnesses accounts and video footage from closed circuit television cameras (CCTV) in the area," Megharik said. Later, Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara told reporters that more arrests are likely as the case of sexual assault was also registered under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and transferred to the city police crime branch for investigation by city's Additional Police Commissioner (law and order) Charan Reddy. "It is not a racial attack but a road rage by a frenzied mob on the spur of the moment over the death of a woman in the car mishap when she was crossing the road with her husband (K. Sanaullah) on the Hessaraghatta road," Parameshwara pointed out. "Bangaloreans don't have such a mindset to attack anyone on racial grounds," the minister asserted. Sudanese national Mohammad Ahad Ismail, 20, an MBA student, who caused the mishap, was arrested for drunken driving and causing Shabana's death. The mob attacked him before police came and rescued him on Sunday night. "Attack on Ismail and assault on the Tanzanian woman (Lina) are not connected as both incidents occurred one km apart and after a 30-minute gap," Parameshwar clarified to the media. Angry at Shabana's death in the mishap caused by a Sudanese, another violent mob mistakenly targetted Lina and burnt her WagonR car in which she was with three male friends and passing through the area, assuming her to be Ismail's friend. In her statement, Lina denied being stripped or paraded naked but said she was assaulted and molested by the mob when her T-shirt got torn off in the melee. When Lina's Tanzanian friend Junail Ibrahim, who was at the wheel, tried to stop the angry mob from assaulting her, he too was thrashed. They are undergraduate students of business management in a private college. An Iranian student, who was present at the spot, came to their rescue and took them to a nearby hospital for treatment. About 12,000 students of various countries are studying in colleges across the city. "We will take steps to ensure safety and security of all foreign students but will deal with them sternly if they violate the law and indulge in anti-national activities," Parameshwara said. Home furnishings retailer Ikea India on Thursday announced Rs.2,000 crore investment in Karnataka with a promise to incorporate 50 percent women in the workforce. "We will set up four stores in Karnataka. Each store will come with an investment of Rs.500 crore and create direct employment to 500 people and indirect employment to 1,500 people," said Ikea India CEO Juvencio Maetzu at Invest Karnataka 2016 Global Investors Meet (GIM). Considering the state as a key market for the company, Maetzu said Ikea India is committed to invest both in terms of retail and supply chain operations. Making a strong statement on gender equality at a panel discussion on Promoting Women Entrepreneurship, Maetzu said: "We will continue our world leading gender equality legacy of Ikea by hiring 50 percent women workforce. Gender equality is in our DNA. Gender equality is a basic human right which is non-negotiable for us." According to Maetzu, 52 percent of Ikea's global workforce constitutes women who also make up 48 percent of the company's managerial ranks. The company has identified three focus areas in its operations: Co-workers, supply chain and community. "We have decided that all Ikea stores will have a kindergarten in India. We are now establishing what does it take to support transport, health insurance," said Maetzu. Ikea has been sourcing in India for their supply chain for the past 30 years. Currently its sourcing value from India stands at $400 million which it wants to double it to $800 million. The company has 50 suppliers in India with 45,000 direct employees and 4,00,000 people involved in the extended supply chain. The first store of the Swedish giant in India will come up in Hyderabad in 2017 followed by stores in Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru. Former "Friends" star Matt LeBlanc has been revealed as one of the new presenters of BBC motoring show "Top Gear." LeBlanc's appointment marks the first time that the show has ever had a non-British host in its 39-year history, reports variety.com. He joins lead presenter Chris Evans on the revamped show, which is expected to return to TV screens in May, while in India it will be aired soon after that on AXN. "As a car nut and a massive fan of 'Top Gear', I'm honoured and excited to be a part of this iconic show's new chapter," LeBlanc said. Evans said of his new "Top Gear" presenter: "Matt's a lifelong fellow petrolhead and I'm thrilled he's joining 'Top Gear.' Acting out our craziest car notions on screen is a dream job and I know we'll both be debating some epic road trip ideas. We can't wait to share what we've been up to on screen later this year." LeBlanc has recently been starring in BBC-Showtime comedy "Episodes" for which he won a Golden Globe. He is already a familiar face to "Top Gear" viewers, having been a two-time guest on the show and the fastest celebrity to date around the "Top Gear" track in its reasonably priced car. LeBlanc also presented the recent standalone spin-off "Top Gear: The Races," where he led fans through some of the most memorable racing moments from the previous 22 series. Christians recently celebrated the birth of a child born in poverty to an unmarried middle eastern woman. This child grew to be a man of peace, a man of justice, who cared for the poor, the brokenhearted, the sick and the stranger in the land. He turned the tables on those who made money at the expense of the poor. He spoke with the unclean, ate with those who were shunned. He warned the rich and the powerful that wealth could hinder them from entering the Kingdom of God. He never carried a sword, even telling his disciple Peter to put his sword away on the night the soldiers took him to be crucified on a cross. He told us that we honor God by how we treat the least among us. He entered Jerusalem on a donkey, without soldiers, chariots or guards, accompanied by a group of barefoot, dusty and bedraggled disciples and still the people lay down their cloaks and sang hosanna. This man, Jesus, visited, broke bread and drank with those from other faith traditions, those who were the enemies of the Jews. In the Parable of the Good Samaritan it was the enemy, the Samaritan, who was righteous. Jesus horrified his disciples by speaking with a woman at a well who followed another faith, even going home with her and meeting her family! He blessed the Syrophoenician Woman who was no more worthy than a dog. And Jesus never said your faith in me made you well. He always said your faith made you well. Soon Christians will be celebrating Easter. According to this Christian story, Jesus died a horrible death on a cross along with thousands of other insurrectionists and revolutionaries, healers and preachers of justice in an unjust time. But also according to the story even death can't defeat love, joy and wonder in this world. For "Followers of the Way of Jesus," Easter reminds us to give our shortcomings, fears, and anxieties, our sins, to the cross which in turn opens us to new life. Without those burdens that keep us from living abundantly we become more aware of the beauty of Gods Creation and the common humanity of all Gods people. When we turn from ourselves and seek to make our little piece of the world a little better we can discover a new kind of joy, peace, and hope that can sustain us even in our darkest hours. Two thousand years later the spirit of Jesus' teachings have not died, they live on in the "Resurrected Christ. Barb E. Blom Aurora Heavy Industries Minister Anant Geete on Thursday said Volkswagen has admitted its cars do not comply with India's emission norms, and action will follow after written undertaking from the company. This is in variance with what the company has claimed. "They have (Volkswagen) said that they do not comply. They are also giving this in writing. We will take further action after that," the minister said at Auto Expo here, after visiting the exhibits of the German automaker here. "We have already asked them to recall the vehicles. When we will get a response in writing, we will propose further action," he said. Geete's comments come a day after Volkswagen apologised for the emissions fiasco at the Auto Fair but said their assessment was that the cars complied with the emission norms. Yet, it assured it was voluntarily recalling the vehicles to win back people's trust. "Volkswagen made some big mistakes," Jurgen Stackmann, board member for passenger cars overseeing sales and marketing, said. "I'm truly sorry for that. I assure you that we are committed to set things right. We want to win back the trust in our brand." He said the company was aware of the anxiety in the minds of those who owned the German car. "We have examined the issue very carefully under the observation of the authorities. We came to the conclusion that our cars fully comply with Indian emission standards. However, winning back the trust means more for us than just obeying the law," Stackmann added. Thus far, the company has decided to recall 323,700 vehicles of Audi, Skoda and Volkswagen. Senator for South Australia, David Fawcett on Thursday warned parliament that recognising overseas gay marriages could force the country to recognise child marriages too. "If we start making changes against our sovereign law in the interests of one group then why not the other groups," Fawcett said. "If we're going to be consistent ... then we need to start recognising things like child marriage, which I think clearly Australians would reject." Fawcett's claim came as the Senate debated a bill proposed by Greens Senator, Sarah Hanson-Young, that would recognise overseas gay marriage, Xinhua news agency reported. Fellow Greens senator Robert Simms said that passing the bill into law would end the cruel inconsistencies that currently exist between states on the issue. South Australian Premier Jay Weatherill, for example, recently apologized to the husband of British man David Bulmer-Rizzi after he was killed in a freak accident while the couple was honeymooning in Adelaide. Bulmer-Rizzi's death certificate was stamped "never married" because South Australia does not recognise gay marriage and his husband Marco was not recognised as his next-of-kin when making funeral arrangements. Tasmania, New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland all recognise overseas same-sex marriage in state law, leaving only South Australia and Western Australia as the only states that do not. India-born Amit Singhal, the longtime chief of Google's Internet search business, will leave the company on Feb 26 and be replaced by the head of the technology giant's artificial intelligence (AI) business. With John Giannandrea, currently a vice president of engineering, taking Singhal's place, Google is merging its research efforts with search, an indication of the priority of machine learning inside the company. Singhal, a 15-year Google veteran, was named "Google Fellow" in 2006 for his engineering work on the early search engine. In recent years, he has led the aggressive push for Google to improve its search results on mobile. "Search is stronger than ever, and will only get better in the hands of an outstanding set of senior leaders who are already running the show day-to-day," Singhal wrote in his retirement message on Google Plus. "My life has been a dream journey," he wrote. "From a little boy growing up in the Himalayas dreaming of the Star Trek computer, to an immigrant who came to the United States with two suitcases and not much else, to the person responsible for Search at Google, every turn has enriched me and made me a better person." "It fills me with pride to see what we have built in the last fifteen years. Search has transformed people's lives; over a billion people rely on us," Singhal wrote. "Our mission of empowering people with information and the impact it has had on this world cannot be overstated. When I started, who would have imagined that in a short period of fifteen years, we would tap a button, ask Google anything and get the answer. "Today, it has become second nature to us. My dream Star Trek computer is becoming a reality, and it is far better than what I ever imagined," Singhal said. Giannandrea, who joined Google in 2010, led Google's machine learning efforts, applying the technology to products such as image recognition for Google Photos search and the smart reply for Google Inbox. "Machine intelligence is crucial to our Search vision of building a truly intelligent assistant that connects our users to information and actions in the real world," Google said. (Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in) Repolling in one division of Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) will be held on Friday, officials said. The polling in 50 polling centres in Puranapul division of the old city will be held between 7 a.m. and 3 p.m. The Telangana State Election Commission ordered the re-poll after complaints of rigging by political parties during the polling on Tuesday. GHMC commissioner and special officer Janardhan Reddy said the counting will be taken up from 3 p.m. on Friday and not 8 a.m. as announced earlier. The first result is expected around 5 p.m. During the polling held in all 150 divisions, 45.27 percent voters turned out to exercise their franchise. GHMC officials said 33,60,543 voters out of the toal 74,23,980 cast their votes. Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) and Congress workers had clashed in Puranapul division during the polling. Police had arrested MIM legislator Ahmed Pasha Khadri and Congress candidate Mohammed Ghouse after they entered into a heated argument over allegations of rigging. Ghouse was taken to Mirchowk police station where Congress party's state president Uttam Kumar Reddy and senior leader Mohammed Ali Shabbir came to meet him. A group led by MIM chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi also reached the police station and took objection to the presence of the Congress leaders. Some MIM workers attacked Reddy's car and manhandled the two Congress leaders. Police have booked Owaisi and others. Three of those involved in the attack were arrested by the police on Wednesday. Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on Thursday said a state annual plan of Rs.5,200 crore has been proposed for the next fiscal with an increase of Rs.400 crore over the present fiscal. Presiding over a meeting of legislators here for finalising priorities for the 2016-17 budget, he said that with the consistent efforts of the state, the central government has restored the funding for core centrally sponsored schemes in the ratio of 90:10. With a view to avoiding unwanted delay in preparation of detailed project reports (DPRs), the state government has made provisions in the present budget for preparing DPRs on an outsource basis, he added. He said a skill development corporation has been set up and in-principle approval granted to Rs.640 crore scheme for implementing various skill development programmes. The chief minister announced enhancing the maximum limit for sending DPRs to NABARD from Rs.50 crore to Rs.60 crore per assembly segment from 2014-15 to 2017-18. Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Dhani Ram Shandil suggested adopting the solar power fencing project of Kerala to tackle the menace of stray animals in the state. He said the model could prove to be effective in avoiding losses to horticulture and agriculture produce. Tourism, horticulture and hydro-power generation are major contributors to the state's economic development. The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid-Tropics(ICRISAT) said on Thursday it has helped develop first machine harvestable variety of chickpea in Andhra Pradesh. The global organisation, headquartered in Patancheru near here, said chickpea variety, NBeG 47, is suitable for the Andhra Pradesh's variable climate. The breeding of this taller chickpea variety means that as many as 2.25 tons of chickpea can be harvested in just 75 minutes. Done manually, the process including cutting and threshing would normally take three days. This development was demonstrated recently in a farmer's fields in Andhra Pradesh's Anantapur district showing how farmers can save time and money, said a statement by ICRISAT. The chickpea variety was developed by Veera Jayalakshmi, principal scientist (chickpea breeding) at Acharya N.G. Ranga Agricultural University in Nandyal, with support from ICRISAT, which provided the breeding material and technical support. "Currently chickpea farming in Andhra Pradesh is partially mechanized - the crop is cut manually and then fed into a threshing machine. The total mechanization of harvesting is cost effective and quicker, reducing the risk of the ripened crop's exposure to untimely rain or other extreme weather conditions," said Pooran M. Gaur, principal scientist, Chickpea Breeding at ICRISAT. Jayalakshmi said that machine harvesting is better for the health of the labourers, especially women, as handling the crop causes painful dermatitis due to its high acid content. New Delhi and Beijing officials here on Thursday held the inaugural India-China maritime affairs dialogue and discussed wide range of issues related to maritime cooperation. The meeting covered a gamut of issues of "mutual interest and prospects for maritime cooperation between the two countries", an official statement said here. "The dialogue covered exchange of perspectives on maritime security, developments in international regimes such as the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and International Maritime Organisation (IMO) and prospects for maritime cooperation," read the statement. Earlier, China desired to step up maritime cooperation and dialogue with India and other South Asian countries to allay their concerns over increased Chinese naval activity in the Indian Ocean. The next round of dialogue will be held in Beijing on a mutually convenient date. The Indian delegation was led by Amandeep Singh Gill, joint secretary (Disarmament and International Security Affairs), in the external affairs ministry and the Chinese delegation was led by Kong Xuanyou, assistant minister of foreign affairs of China. India and Iran held the 13th round of Foreign Office consultations here on Thursday. "Re-energising ties! 13th round of India-Iran FOCs to review multi-sectoral relationship takes place in Delhi," external affairs ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup tweeted. Earlier on Thursday, addressing the media here, Swarup said that the delegation-level talks would be co-chaired by Indian Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar and Iranian Deputy Minister for Asia and Pacific Affairs Ebrahim Rahimpour. "The two sides will do a review of India-Iran bilateral relations, including a number of subjects such as connectivity and infrastructure, energy, economic relations, cultural and consular cooperation, defence and security cooperation," he said. "The two sides are also expected to discuss regional and security issues and developments in the regions." According to Swarup, India's close and civilisational ties with Iran in the contemporary times have evolved with the two countries becoming close partners. "Iran is an important economic and security space for us and is also amongst our most important sources for energy," the spokesman said. "Recently, India's participation in the development of Phase I of the Charbahar port has added another dimension to developing better connectivity not just with Iran but also with Afghanistan and Central Asia." After the signing of an inter-governmental memorandum of understanding (MoU) in 2014, a contract between an Indian entity and an Iranian entity for the development of Phase I of Charbahar port and its operations was in the final stage of negotiations, Swarup informed. Ahead of Thursday's meeting, Deputy Minister Rahimpour also called on External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj here. As India seeks to intensify ties with Africa, trade between India and Senegal, described as one of the continent's model democracies, totalled over $700 million in the 2014-15 financial year, an Indian diplomat posted in the Francophone west African nation said. "Official figures on trade between the two countries have grown steadily from 2010-11, when the total volume stood at $425.48 million. Trade between the countries has been growing at over 25 percent annually. India's exports to Senegal during the financial year 2014-15 were valued at $518.72 million and India's imports during the period were $208.13 million (for a total of $726.85 million)," R Narayanan, second secretary of the Indian embassy in Dakar, told IANS in an email exchange from Senegal's capital. Major items of export from India to Senegal include rice, textiles, food items, automobiles and pharmaceuticals. Major items of import from Senegal are phosphoric acid, phosphate ore and raw cashew. Embassy sources said an important initiative was taken in 1988 for counter-trade arrangements with Senegal but the results were not very encouraging. There are about 300 Indians in Senegal working with Indian companies, including those executing development projects under lines of credit extended by India under bilateral and multilateral schemes. The rest run their own businesses. "Bilateral trade volume has the potential to grow in the near future given the convergence of interests in terms of Senegal's growing economy, its need for investment in crucial infrastructure sectors and the Indian companies' endeavour to explore new markets and share their expertise in various fields with new partners," Narayanan said. The mission is making consistent efforts to help Indian businesses increase their presence in Senegal and utilise it as a gateway to the rest of West Africa, he said. Narayanan said that during the last three years, India has extended project assistance worth $300 million for rural electrification and fishery development projects, establishment of a slaughter house with modern facilities, a tannery and livestock market, a project for self-sufficiency in rice and the acquisition of buses. India has also extended various scholarships to the Senegalese, with 35 slots allocated under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation programme (ITEC) three years ago. Apart from this, two slots under the General Cultural Scholarship Scheme (GCSS) and nine slots under the Africa Scholarship Scheme are also made available annually for Senegal. For the current financial year, five slots for training in courses conducted by the Indian Navy and three in the courses conducted by the Indian Air Force have been allotted to Senegal. (Francis Kokutse can be contacted at fkokutse@gmail.com) Indonesia will chemically castrate child sex offenders, the country's National Commission on Child Protection announced on Thursday. President Joko Widodo is set to issue a regulation in lieu of law which stipulates a harsher sanction for anyone who commits sexual violence against children, which will involve injecting a hormone to reduce libido and sexual activity, in an attempt to minimise the chances of re-offending, Xinhua news agency reported. "The president has agreed to include imposing chemical castration in the regulation in lieu of law which also stipulates sexual abuse against children as an extraordinary crime," said Aris Merdeka Sirait, the commission's head. Extraordinary crimes in Indonesia include drug abuse, corruption and terrorism. Indonesia has witnessed a string of headline-grabbing cases of child sex assault in recent years with many of them involving serial pedophiles. Malaysia and India recently announced that they also considered similar measures against repeat sexual offenders and convicted rapists, but South Korea was the first Asian country to permit the punishment in 2011. Russia, Poland and some states in the US have long allowed such treatment. Auburn Fire Department: Jan. 24-30, 2016 Fires: 3 structure fires Motor vehicle accidents: 7 (4 with injuries, 1 bicycle struck by car) EMS: 91 (13 cardiac, 18 trauma, 1 overdose, 3 unconscious persons) Haz mat: 5 Hazardous conditions: 6 False alarms: 1 Investigations: 8 Service calls: 7 Rescue: 1 Fire inspections: 9 Fire safety consults with businesses: 7 Certificate of occupancy inspections: 1 School inspections: 2 Foster home inspection: 1 In total, personnel took part in 254 hours of documented training this week. Some topics included: EMS, firefighter rehabilitation at emergency scenes, rescuing trapped firefighters, ice rescue and emergency radio procedures. The department took delivery of 10 breathing air packs (SCBA), 20 air cylinders, 10 air face pieces and 10 voice amplifiers valued at approximately $75,000. The new equipment was obtained through a FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grant to support regional operations among Auburn, Cortland and Ithaca fire departments. Each department received an equal share of the grant proceeds. The units will replace others that are nearing the end of their serviceable life. Jan. 24 Crews responded to a fire on Wallace Avenue in a single family home. The fire was contained to an area on the second floor. The second floor sustained significant fire and smoke damage, the first floor sustained minor water damage. Four adults and two children have been temporarily displaced. The structure is repairable. The fire determined to be accidental. Jan. 28 Crews responded to a structure fire on Case Avenue. A fire on the exterior of the building was brought under control quickly and resulted in mainly cosmetic damage to the structure. The structure remained habitable. The cause of the fire was determined to be improper disposal of smoking materials. Jan. 29 Crews responded to a fire at Oak Creek Townhomes on Quill Avenue. The fire was extinguished and the damage was contained within one apartment. The occupants of the fire apartment were displaced but the occupants of the adjacent apartments were able to return home once the fire was under control. The cause of the fire is currently still under investigation. The Aurelius Fire Department provided a ladder truck to cover the city while our back-up truck was tending to two of these fires. Our primary ladder truck is currently still out of service awaiting repair. Several staff members assisted in providing firefighting and EMS training throughout New York state this week. The ocean along India's eastern coast is buzzing with activity as ships line up and friendly naval contingents from around the world arrive for the country's second International Fleet Review (IFR) on Saturday - and the first on this scale. On the theme "United through Oceans", the IFR is set to see participation of around 50 navies, 90 ships, including 24 warships, and over 70 aircraft. In addition, ships of the Indian Coast Guard and mercantile marine would also be participating. A fleet review is a ceremonial and stately inspection of naval warships by the supreme commander of the armed forces, President Pranab Mukherjee. This is the second time an IFR is being held in India, the last being held off Mumbai in 2001 when APJ Abdul Kalam was the president. Twenty-nine countries had participated in that event. Indian presidents have since reviewed Indian Navy fleets twice, in 2006, and 2011. The Indian Navy fleet for the IFR will comprise of over 75 frontline ships and submarines. The president will also review the Indian Naval air arm. Also featuring will be a flypast led by Rear Admiral P.K. Bahl, Flag Officer Naval Aviation and comprising 15 formations of 45 aircraft, including two formations from the Indian Coast Guard. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the gathering on Sunday and also release a book on India's maritime heritage. There will also be a Make in India exhibition to showcase "innovation, indigenisation and potential of the youth". The display will showcase navy's latest acquisitions such as the carrier-borne MIG 29K strike fighter, the P8I long range maritime reconnaissance aircraft and the KM-31 AEW helicopter. The list of participating navies includes the United States of America, China, the United Kingdom, Australia, France, Canada, Russia, South Africa, Japan, South Korea, Peru, Chile, Colombia and Brazil, . With huge crowds expected to gather for the spectacular event, the navy has made arrangements for galleries to accommodate 20,000 spectators, while another 150,000 can be accommodated on the beaches. The Indian Navy has achieved 90 percent indigenisation in its "float" component and of varying degrees in its other components. It aims at 100 percent indigenisation in its 15-year plan released last year. While the the navy showcases its strength, the soft power of Indian culture has not been given a miss either with a series of cultural events lined up as an extra treat for the spectators. The cultural events, in collaboration with South Central Zone Cultural Centre, Nagpur, includes folk dance performances, classical dances, music, and a reinterpretation of the "Mahabharat" epic. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said again on Thursday that the goods and services tax regime (GST) will become a reality soon, and added reforms in the country' direct tax system were also the government's priority. He said reforms have no finishing line. "The GST has been supported by most of the political parties. I am sure others will also see reason -- it law will become a reality very soon," the finance minister told the inaugural session of the two-day India Investment Summit here. The main opposition to the current format of the GST bill is from the Congress party that wants the government to scrap the proposed 1 percent additional levy to compensate states for losses for the switch, incorporate the GST rate within the bill and limit the exempt items. Jaitley said along with the indirect tax system, the direct tax regime was also being revamped. "We want to rationalise our direct tax system -- to make it one of the most competitive regimes in the world comparable with what competitive economies elsewhere have," the finance minister said, as he prepares to unveil the national budget for the next fiscal on February 29. Jaitley said even as concerns remain over the global financial system, India has now become and will remain the fastest growing economies in the world, since it has the potential to grow even faster, with full potential awaiting to be realised. He said global investors can also benefit in the process since the country needed investment in infrastructure, including roads, highways, fly-overs, railways, power, renewable energy, oil and gas, ports and airports among others. "It will be a win-win situation for both India and those who are investing in India," he said, and assured investors that his government was working on faster dispute resolution so that no project is held up. Jaitley also said a very effective bankruptcy and insolvency bill that was introduced in parliament in the previous session will see a passage during the ensuing session, for which a panel was burning mid-night oil to sumbit a report by the first week of March. "One of our greatest challenges was to re-establish the credibility of Indian markets. In order to establish the credibility of the Indian economy, it is important that we not only reform but continue reform only in one direction," he said. "We have eased out the processes. Several conditionalities that made the investment process more difficult, even those conditionalities have also been sliced away," he said. "For reforms, there is no finishing line." Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has said he will turn himself over to the police here on Friday if a UN panel rules he has not been unlawfully detained. Australian national Assange was originally arrested in London in 2010 under a European Arrest Warrant issued by Sweden over a sexual assault claim he denies. He was granted asylum by Ecuador and entered the country's embassy in London after the British Supreme Court ruled the extradition against him could go ahead, BBC reported. In 2014 he complained to the UN that he was being "arbitrarily detained". On Twitter, Assange said he would accept a decision against him but hoped to walk free if it went in his favour. "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal." "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," he added. Last October, Scotland Yard said it would no longer station officers outside the Ecuador embassy following an operation which had cost it 12 million pounds ($17 million). But it said "a number of overt and covert tactics to arrest him" would be deployed to arrest Assange. In December 2015, Swedish officials said they were optimistic about reaching an agreement with Ecuador which could pave the way for the questioning of Assange in London. Wikileaks posted secret American government documents on the internet and Assange said he believes Washington will seek his transfer to the US if he is sent to Sweden. Actor-filmmaker Kamal Haasan on Thursday attended an awareness programme on cancer welfare along with his partner and actress Gautami Tadimalla here. "In Dallas for 'Life Again', a global initiative for cancer care and awareness. Glad to be part of this endeavour," Kamal wrote on his Twitter page. On Saturday, Haasan will deliver a keynote address at the India Conference 2016 at the Harvard University, which will focus on the topic 'India in Transition - Opportunities and Challenges'. In April, he will start working on his next Tamil project, a family drama, which will also feature his daughter Shruti Haasan. In contrast to its high expectations, Karnataka has managed to get only Rs.1.33 lakh crore of investments at the fourth edition of its global investors meet (GIM), a state minister said on Thursday. "We have signed 121 agreements and expression of interest to the tune of Rs.1.33 lakh crore at the GIM," Industries Minister R.V. Deshpande said at the valedictory function on the second day of the three-day mega event here. The state government, however, secured 56 percent (Rs.1.75 lakh crore) of the total investment (Rs.3.08 lakh crore) received during 10 months of 2015-16 since April and approved by its high power committee and single window agencies. "The total investments (Rs.3.08 lakh crore) we garnered will generate 6.7 lakh jobs across the state," Deshpande said. Admitting that mobilising investments was a continuous process, he told the delegates that the state's focus was on implementing projects since the previous Congress government had launched the GIM in 2000. "Of the Rs.27,000 crore investments received then (2000), proposals worth Rs.18,000 crore were executed with 66 percent implementation rate," said Deshpande, who held the same portfolio in the then Congress government (1999-2004). The investments are in the state's focus sectors - manufacturing, pharma, bio-technology, IT, agri-business, urban infrastructure, infrastructure and tourism. "Investments will be made across the state, including Bellari, Bengaluru Rural, Dakshina Kannada, Kolar, Ramanagaram Shivamogga and Tumakuru," Deshpande told the delegates, including central and state ministers. "We have appointed an official to follow up all projects above Rs.200 crore. We also commit to have all projects approved by the high power committee and single window committee before May 15," he added. Giving break-up, the state industries department said of the 121 agreements entered into with investors and valued at Rs.133,177 crore would generate 193,905 jobs. "Of the total (6.7 lakh) jobs, 1,080 projects approved since April 1, 2015, with a combined investments of Rs.175,633 crore will create 477,026 jobs," the department said in a statement. Of the 121 projects received at the GIM, 25 are in food and agri-business sector, followed by 16 in energy, 12 in IT, seven in real estate, five each in oil & gas, and urban infrastructure, three each in cement, industrial infrastructure, manufacturing, pharma, steel, telecom, textiles & garments and tourism, two each in aerospace, biotech, electronics, healthcare and machinery and one each in chemicals, education, engineering, infrastructure, retail, and warehousing and logistics. Sectors like automobile, services, sports, sugar and waste management drew blank. Of the big ticket investments, Adani Green Energy Ltd has committed to invest Rs.18,500 crore, followed by JSW Steel Ltd Rs.12,396 crore, Geitso Green Energy Ltd Rs.10,000 crore, Essel Infra Projects Ltd Rs.7,200 crore and Shriram Properties Ltd Rs.5,920 crore. "The energy sector got the highest investment of Rs.1 lakh crore, followed by steel sector with Rs.38,000 crore and chemicals Rs.24,000 crore," the statement added. A test identification (TI) parade of the three accused -- Sambia Sohrab, Shahnawaz alias Shanu and Johnny -- in the sensational hit-and-run case in Kolkata in which a young IAF officer was killed, was held on Thursday. The TI parade was held in the presence of police and personnel from the armed forces present on January 13 at the Indira Gandhi Sarani where Indian Air Force corporal Abhimanyu Gaud was mowed down by a speeding vehicle while he was supervising the Republic Day parade rehearsal. However, both the IAF as well as the city police remained tight-lipped over the outcome of the TI parade. "The investigation is at a sensitive stage and divulging crucial information may have an adverse impact on the proceedings. Any information that needs to be conveyed shall be disseminated at the appropriate time," said an IAF officer. A city court earlier had fixed Thursday as the day for the TI parade. Prime accused Sambia, son of former Rashtriya Janata Dal legislator Mohammad Sohrab, is said to have been driving his car that broke through police barricades before knocking down Gaud. Remaining evasive on the outcome of the TI parade, a city police officer said sketches of Sambia's absconding brother Ambia and their father Mohammad Sohrab have been sent to many police stations. The duo is absconding since the day of the accident and a court has issued a lookout notice against them. While Sambia was arrested on January 16 from the city, his friend Shanawaz Khan was arrested from Delhi on January 18 and Johnny was nabbed a day later from Kolkata. The city police earlier had also turned down the IAF's request for a joint probe into the accident, citing lack of legal provision. The BJP's national spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi on Thursday said she would soon write to the union home ministry about the "rising violence" against women in Trinamool Congress-ruled West Bengal. "I will soon write to the union home ministry and also request our party's Mahila Morcha to pen a complaint to the National Commission for Women about the rising incidents of rape and molestation in the state," Lekhi told media persons here. She said it was a "shame" that incidents of atrocities on women were going up in the state despite the chief minister being a woman. She alleged that the Trinamool was presiding over a regime of psychological terror. "They are using terror to curb political activities of opposition parties." Lekhi also described the alleged assault on a Tanzanian woman in Bengaluru as an instance of "racial attack". She said Congress president Sonia Gandhi should have acted fast and asked Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to step down. Lekhi pooh-poohed the Karnataka government's claim that the woman was not paraded in the buff. "Denying of facts cannot change the truth. It is nothing but a case of racial discrimination," she said, wondering why women were "so unsafe" in states ruled by non-BJP parties. In a major embarrassment to the opposition Congress, Maharashtra Governor C.V. Rao here on Thursday accorded sanction to the CBI to prosecute former chief minister Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh Society scam. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), through its letter dated October 8, 2015, sought the governor's sanction to prosecute Chavan under Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code after "fresh incriminating material" was allegedly found against Chavan. Chavan is currently a Lok Sabha member from Maharashtra and chief of the state unit of the Congress party. CBI included a report by a two-member Commission of Inquiry, comprising Justice J.A. Patil (retd) and former chief secretary P. Subramanian, besides Bombay High Court observations in a criminal revision application filed in 2014. Accordingly, Rao granted the sanction to prosecute Chavan under Section 197 of CrPC and Sections 120-B and 420 of the Indian Penal Code in the Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society case. The Maharashtra cabinet, at a meeting last week presided over by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, recommended to the governor to accord the sanction. In its report, the commission of inquiry had indicted four former chief ministers -- Chavan, late Vilasrao Deshmukh, Sushilkumar Shinde and Shivajirao Nilangekar-Patil, also revenue minister at the relevant time -- besides several top bureaucrats and other officials for their role in the high-profile scam. The commission was set up in January 2011. However, its report and recommendations were rejected by the then Congress-Nationalist Congress Party government in December 2013. In a major embarrassment to the Congress, Maharashtra Governor C.V. Rao on Thursday accorded sanction to the Central Bureau of Investigation to prosecute former chief minister Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh Society scam. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday hoped for better trade and investment between India and Hong Kong when the Chinese special administrative region's (SAR) Chief Executive C.Y. Leung called on him. "The prime minister welcomed C.Y. Leung on his first official visit to India and expressed hope that his visit will lead to increased trade, investment and tourism links between India and Hong Kong," the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement. Leung briefed Modi about the strong interest among Hong Kong-based companies in India. "The prime minister and C.Y. Leung agreed to strengthen bilateral economic cooperation, especially in the financial services sector, as well as cooperation in the field of education," the statement added. Briefing the media here later, external affairs ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said that Leung visited Mumbai on February 2 and 3 at the invitation of Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and arrived in New Delhi on Thursday. Besides the prime minister, Leung also called on Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. On the first official visit of a chief executive of Hong Kong to India, Leung is being accompanied by a high-level multi-sectoral business delegation of 40 leading companies. "There were substantive business and economic interactions in Mumbai and in Delhi, including those facilitated by Ficci, CII and Hong Kong Trade Development Council," Swarup said. "In Mumbai, the chief executive also visited the Bharat Diamond Bourse, the Bombay Stock Exchange, and the Capital which is a joint infrastructure project HKSAR companies in Mumbai," he said, adding that in Delhi, Leung visited the Indian Institute of Technology. Trade between India and Hong Kong reached $24.4 billion in 2014. "The visit has provided Hong Kong companies an opportunity to actively explore partnerships in sectors such as infrastructure and transport, financial services, logistics, gems and jewellery, research and innovation, under initiatives such as Make in India, Startup India, and Smart Cities," the external affairs ministry spokesman said. "Hong Kong would be setting up a round table for business leaders from both sides," he added. Australia's one-term Prime Minister above ... Events of interest from a libertarian/conservative perspective below Nepal Finance Minister Bishnu Poudel will visit India next week which might help in finalising the dates for the proposed visit of Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli to New Delhi, a senior government official said on Thursday. "Finance Minister of Nepal Bishnu Poudel is scheduled to visit India on February 7-8 to discuss reconstruction assistance projects," external affairs ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said at a media briefing here. "Poudel is scheduled to meet our external affairs minister (Sushma Swaraj) and our finance minister (Arun Jaitley)," he said. "We are very hopeful that after this visit, there will also be concrete discussions on the dates for Prime Minister Oli's visit." There have been wide speculations about the possibility of Oli's visit to India after over 50 people were killed in the now more than five-month-old anti-constitutional protest by Madhesis in the southern Nepali Terai. Most of the 41 transit and customs points along the southern portion of the Himalayan nation's open border with India have been besieged by the Madhesi protestors who are demanding, among other things, a redrawing of the boundaries of the provinces in Nepal as proposed in the new Constitution -- promulgated on September 20 last year -- and representation in parliament on the basis of population. Unnerved by the prolonged Madhesi agitation, the ruling major-Left coalition as also the main opposition Nepali Congress last month approved two amendments to the four-month-old Constitution partly meeting the demands of the protestors. However, the Madhesi Morcha spearheading the agitation has rejected the amendments to the statute and announced a fresh agitation programme besides calling for a broader alliance among all forces in the Terai-Madhes region. The blockade of trucks going from India to Nepal by the Madhesis along the international border has led to severe shortages of medicines and other essential supplies in the Kathmandu Valley. Swarup, however, said that now the situation has improved quite a lot. "Now, about 1,300 trucks are passing daily. The waiting is down to about 300-400 trucks," he said. The spokesman said that before this whole logjam started, about 1,500 trucks used to go daily. "Now 1,300 trucks are going and this is despite the (major border crossing points) Raxaul and Birgunj being blocked by the protestors on the Nepalese side. This tells you that the situation has normalised to a large extent," he said. Swarup said that as far as the constitutional amendments were concerned, India has welcomed those as good positive steps "and we hope that the remaining issues which the Madhesis have with the Nepalese government can also now be sorted out in a spirit of reconciliation, flexibility, compromise and dialogue". North Korea is preparing to launch a long-range missile, the South Korean defence ministry announced on Thursday, warning of an imminent missile test by Pyongyang in the coming weeks. North Korea has recently informed international maritime, aviation and telecommunication agencies that it will launch a rocket to put a satellite into orbit, taking a preparatory step for what the outside world believes will be a defiant test of a ballistic missile, The Korea Herald reported. "In line with North Korea's warning of a missile launch sometime between February 8-25, it is preparing for the launch at Dongchang-ri," ministry spokesman Moon Sang-gyun said in a regular briefing. Moon, however, did not provide any details of the intelligence, saying he cannot confirm or deny a Japanese report that a mobile launcher loaded with a ballistic missile was seen moving along North Korea's east coast. The spokesman said South Korea will intercept any North Korean missile and debris if it falls in South Korea's land, sea or air territory. "The military is ramping up its air defence readiness so it can intercept a missile or any debris that lands in our territory or waters," Moon added. South Korea and the US have also deployed military assets to detect and track a North Korean missile if it is fired, he also added. President Barack Obama has sought to reassure the Muslim community amid an "inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim-Americans" that has seen Sikh Americans and others who are perceived to be Muslims targeted as well. Visiting a mosque in the US for the first time in his seven years as president Wednesday, Obama described Muslims as essential to the fabric of America as he sought to rebut the rhetoric from Republican presidential candidates, particularly frontrunner Donald Trump. "I know that in Muslim communities across our country, this is a time of concern and, frankly, a time of some fear," he said citing it as one reason for his visit to the Islamic Society of Baltimore, a 47-year-old mosque in Maryland outside Washington. "Like all Americans, you're worried about the threat of terrorism," said Obama. "But on top of that, as Muslim Americans, you also have another concern -- and that is your entire community so often is targeted or blamed for the violent acts of the very few." "Since 9/11, but more recently, since the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, you've seen too often people conflating the horrific acts of terrorism with the beliefs of an entire faith," he said. "And of course, recently, we've heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim Americans that has no place in our country," Obama said without naming Trump, who has called for a temporary bar on the entry of Muslims into the US, or anyone else. "No surprise, then, that threats and harassment of Muslim Americans have surged," he said. "We've seen children bullied. We've seen mosques vandalized. Sikh Americans and others who are perceived to be Muslims have been targeted, as well." "Let me say as clearly as I can as president of the United States: you fit right here," Obama said. "You're right where you belong. You're part of America too. You're not Muslim or American. You're Muslim and American." As he decried Republican counter-terror plans that would single out Muslims for extra scrutiny, Obama insisted that applying religious screens would only amplify messages coming from terrorist groups. "We can't be bystanders to bigotry," Obama said. "Together, we've got to show that America truly protects all faiths. As we protect our country from terrorism, we should not reinforce the ideas and the rhetoric of the terrorists themselves." Obama has visited mosques in the past, but never inside the US, which is home to 2.75 million Muslims, according to the Pew Research Centre. Alluding to conspiracy theories that suggest he himself is a Muslim, Obama who is a Christian, said the same rumours had plagued Thomas Jefferson, principal author of the Declaration of Independence and third US president. "I am not the first," he said. "I am in good company." Later at the State department asked whether attacks on the Sikhs in the US were sending a wrong image about US overseas, spokesperson John Kirby described such attacks as "abhorrent." "Attacks on anybody in the United States - whether they're verbal attacks or physical attacks - by virtue or due to a faith that they proclaim is abhorrent and not in keeping at all with American values or who we are as a country," he said. "Obviously, we wouldn't want people to take away from that a wrong impression about who we are as America, because it doesn't represent American values," Kirby said. (Arun Kumar can be contacted at arun.kumar@ians.in) U.S. President Barack on Wednesday slammed anti-Muslim rhetoric and appealed for tolerance for millions of Muslims in the country during his first visit to a U.S. mosque as president. "We have heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim-Americans that has no place anywhere in our country," said Obama in an address at the Islamic Society of Baltimore, Maryland. "You have seen too often people conflating the horrific acts of terrorism with the beliefs of an entire faith," he said, adding that the anti-Muslim rhetoric started since 9/11 attacks but more recently since the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California. "We have seen children bullied, we have seen mosques vandalized," said Obama. "That's not who we are." Though Obama did not specifically name anyone who, in his words, resorted to "inexcusable" anti-Muslim rhetoric in the political sphere, White House spokesman Josh Earnest on Tuesday took a clear jab at some Republicans who he said with "an alarming willingness" tried to "marginalise law-abiding, patriotic Muslim Americans." "It is just offensive to a lot of Americans who recognise that those kinds of cynical political tactics run directly contrary to the values ... in this country," Earnest said at Tuesday's briefing. U.S. President Barack on Wednesday slammed anti-Muslim rhetoric and appealed for tolerance for millions of Muslims in the country during his first visit to a U.S. mosque as president. "We have heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim-Americans that has no place anywhere in our country," Xinhua quoted Obama's address at the Islamic Society of Baltimore, Maryland on Wednesday. "You have seen too often people conflating the horrific acts of terrorism with the beliefs of an entire faith," he said, adding that the anti-Muslim rhetoric started since 9/11 attacks but more recently since the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California. "We have seen children bullied, we have seen mosques vandalized," said Obama. "That's not who we are." Though Obama did not specifically name anyone who, in his words, resorted to "inexcusable" anti-Muslim rhetoric in the political sphere, White House spokesman Josh Earnest on Tuesday took a clear jab at some Republicans who he said with "an alarming willingness" tried to "marginalise law-abiding, patriotic Muslim Americans." "It is just offensive to a lot of Americans who recognise that those kinds of cynical political tactics run directly contrary to the values ... in this country," Earnest said at Tuesday's briefing. Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Thursday urged Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu to allocate a sizable amount of Railway Budget 2016-17 for strengthening and expanding rail infrastructure in the state. In a letter to Prabhu, Patnaik said the railway route length and rail density in Odisha is very much below than national average as also substantially lower than that in neighboring states. "In contrast, gross earnings from various stations in the state of Odisha is estimated to be in excess of Rs.14,000 crore during the year 2014-15," he said. Noting Odisha continues to be one of the most preferred destinations for investment especially in metal, mining and power sectors, he said the nature of industrial activities in the state requires a robust and well planned railway infrastructure for its sustainability. He said his government would extend all help for implementation of railway projects in the state, adding the state has already signed the state specific umbrella MoU with the railway ministry for setting up a JV company for taking up new rail projects in the state with cost sharing of 51 percent by the state government and 49 percent by Indian Railways. Though the MoU has been signed over 3 months back, the formation of company is awaiting cabinet clearance, he said, requesting this be expedited so that the new projects in the state then can be taken up through the defined route envisaged in the MoU. He said the other MoU that was signed between Coal India, Indian Railway and Odisha government for creating rail infrastructure to evacuate coal deposits of the state has been operationalised by forming a SPV company. Informing that the state has attracted Rs.8,85,000 crores in diverse sectors and a comprehensive plan has been prepared for developing deep water sea ports along its coast, he urged to extend the eastern dedicated freight corridor from Dankuni to Berhampur to ensure seamless movement of freight between the upcoming ports including the major port at Paradip. He also requested to introduce some express trains and set up new divisional headquarters at Rayagada, Jajpur-Keonjhar road and Rourkela by extending the jurisdiction of East Coast Railway. As Indian Navy is set to hold its second International Fleet Review (IFR), an offshore patrol vessel, INS Sumitra, has been converted to serve as the presidential yatch from which the supreme commander of the armed forces, President Pranab Mukherjee will inspect the fleet. INS Sumitra is the fourth and last of the Saryu class patrol vessel of the Indian Navy, designed and constructed by Goa Shipyard Limited. It is designed to undertake fleet support operations, coastal and offshore patrolling, ocean surveillance and monitoring of sea lines of communications and offshore assets and escort duties. The vessel was also involved in the rescue operations from Yemen during Operation Rahat in the wake of fighting between government forces and tribal rebels. The vessel rescued 350 Indian citizens by evacuating them from Aden to Djibouti across the Red Sea. With the Ashoka emblem on her side and flying the President's Standard on the mast, the yatch is set to stand out amidst the scores of lined-up ships. For the IFR, the upper deck of the ship has been modified to host the VVIP guests along with the president. Some changes have also been made in the interior of the ship, and an operation theater and a cardio lab have been set up along with other medical facilities. On February 6, the president will board the yacht after a 21-gun salute and a ceremonial guard of honour. The presidential yacht will weave through the 90 ships planned to be part of the fleet review off the Visakhapatnam port. As the yacht passes between the review columns, each ship, flying its full regalia, will salute the president. Along the way, the president will also witness operational demonstrations in the form of a breathtaking flypast by the naval air arm and a daring display by the elite marine commandoes. The skills of the yachtsmen of Indian Navy embodying the spirit of adventure will also be on display. During the final stage of the review, a mobile column of warships and submarines will stage a high-speed steam-past alongside the yacht. Handed over to the Indian Navy on July 18, 2014, INS Sumitra is one of its newest ships, commissioned into the fleet by the Indian Navy chief, Admiral R.K. Dhowan, on September 4, 2014 in Chennai. Under the Eastern Naval Command, the ship is commanded by Commander Milind Mokashi. INS Sumitra was diverted from her anti-piracy patrol in the Lakshadweep region to join the operation while Saudi Arabia-led forces were conducting air strikes against Iranian-backed Houthi rebels. Canada's Ontario province on Thursday signed an MoU with Telangana for economic cooperation. The agreement was signed here in the presence of Ontario premier Kathleen Wynne, who is currently on a visit to India. The two states will work together to advance mutually beneficial avenues of economic co-operation, said a statement from Telangana government. Wynne said that the MoU would create opportunities to work in areas of information technology, agriculture and infrastructure. Ontario also signed agreements valued over $11.5 million with various companies and institutions in technology and higher education. These MoUs were signed at an event, where Wynne and the trade delegation accompanying her interacted with representatives of various companies. At the signing up of MoU between the two states, Telangana's Information Technology Minister K.Taraka Rama Rao that the high potential of economic cooperation between the start up state of Telangana and Ontario will be a win-win situation for both. Wynne said: "The seven agreements signed today will benefit India and Ontario for years to come, and the new MoU between Ontario and Telangana will help strengthen commercial ties across key sectors, including urban infrastructure, information and communications technology, and education." The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT)-Hyderabad signed a research partnership agreement with Ontario-based McMaster University, which will generate opportunities to create intellectual property through innovation and to commercialize research outcomes. Astra Microwave Products Ltd and Vaughan, Ontario-based Unique Broadband Systems Ltd established a joint venture to provide broadcasting services, satellite uplinking and medical imaging products to India and other regional markets. The Nuclear Fuel Complex based in Hyderabad and Ontario-based Kinectics signed a MoU for partnership in nuclear energy. Ottawa-based Solantro and their Indian partner, Smarttrack will collaborate on the development of power electric solutions for renewable energy and micro inverters. DataWind signed a MoU with the government of Telangana to open a manufacturing base in Hyderabad which is expected to be in production within few months. The Trans Pacific Partnership, one of the biggest multinational trade deals ever, was signed by ministers from its 12 member nations in New Zealand on Thursday. The trade deal looks to facilitate investment between the 12 countries across the Pacific Rim, which together account for about 40 percent of the global economy, BBC reported. The US-led initiative was agreed in October 2015 after years of negotiations and multiple missed deadlines. Australian Trade Minister Andrew Robb was the first to sign the pact. Those attending the ceremony cheered as his New Zealand counterpart, Todd McClay, added the last signature. The TPP involves Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and the US. However, the TPP continues to face opposition. Those against the deal, particularly some Americans, fear it could mean jobs will move from the US to developing countries. In the lead up to Thursday's signing, the streets around Auckland's central business district were disrupted by groups blocking access to the Auckland Harbour Bridge. Police clashed with some protesters, who have widely claimed the deal will benefit big business rather than workers. Officials from Islamabad and Kabul met in the Pakistani garrison city of Rawalpindi on Thursday and "reiterated that terrorists on either side of the border will not be allowed to misuse their soil". It is the second visit to Pakistan by senior Afghan military officers in a week to explore ways for increased security cooperation. The Afghan Director General of Military Operations Major General Afzal Aman along with his delegation visited the General Headquarters in Rawalpindi and met his Pakistani counterpart Maj Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza at a time when military-to-military contacts have increased between the two neighbours in recent days. "During the meeting today (Thursday), issues related to bilateral security and border management came under discussion," an army statement later said. Both sides also expressed their resolve to continue the interaction for better bilateral military-to-military coordination. In another development, Afghan Intelligence chief Masoud Andarabi arrived in Islamabad for discussions with his Pakistani counterpart on information sharing and to boost security cooperation, officials said. Andarabi was scheduled to meet Lt. General Rizwan Akhtar, chief of Inter-Services Intelligence, here, an official said. The meeting was part of the quadrilateral process of Afghanistan, China, Pakistan and the US for reconciliation with Taliban. auto de fe : an act of faith, the ritual of public penance before being burned at the stake as a heretic fey : doomed, hostile, "wild or crazy acting" (ascribed to supernatural causes and abilities such as prophecy) Intelligence chiefs of Pakistan and Afghanistan are set to hold talks in Kabul on Thursday in an attempt to reduce the trust deficit between the two South Asian neighbours. Director General Inter-Services Intelligence Rizwan Akhtar would travel to Afghanistan for a meeting with the acting chief of the National Directorate of Security (NDS), Masoud Andarabi, Dawn online reported. The US is facilitating the meeting which would also be attended by Chinese officials as observers. The meeting which earlier was planned to be held in Islamabad, comes ahead of the Quadrilateral Coordination Group meeting comprising Pakistan, Afghanistan, US and China scheduled for February 6. The intelligence talks, an official said, were separate from the quadrilateral mechanism, even though the parleys were expected to impact the reconciliation effort, as well. The meeting is taking place as Pakistan had called on Afghanistan to act against the terrorist group involved in January 20 Bacha Khan University attack that killed 22 people. Islamabad alleged that terrorists planned and directed the terrorist activity using Afghan soil and telecom infrastructure. It would also be the first time that the two intelligence agencies would be directly talking to each other about their relationship since a cooperation deal signed between them in May 2015 was prevented from materialising due to a stiff opposition in Kabul. Pakistan on Thursday offered its assistance in the rescue and recovery of Indian Army personnel buried in an avalanche on Siachen glacier. Pakistan Army's Director General of Military Operations Maj Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza called Indian DGMO Lt Gen Ranbir Singh and offered assistance in the ongoing rescue operation, a military statement here said. Ten Indian soldiers were reportedly buried in an avalanche that hit Siachen glacier in India-administered Kashmir on Wednesday. The soldiers were hit while on duty at a post at an altitude of 19,000 feet. An Indian army statement earlier said the post was being manned by a junior officer and nine soldiers when the avalanche struck. In 2012, at least 140 people, including Pakistan Army personnel and civilians, were killed when an avalanche struck an army camp in the strategically important Gayari sector. The Siachen Glacier has been dubbed as the world's highest battlefield. Avalanches and landslides are common in the area during winter and temperatures there can drop as low as minus 60 degrees Celsius. An estimated 8,000 troops have died on the glacier since 1984, almost all of them in avalanches and landslides or due to frostbite, altitude sickness or heart failure rather than combat. Troops from Sri Lanka and the Maldives troops have joined Pakistan in anti-terror military exercises in the country's northwest region, a military statement said on Thursday. The two-week long exercise was focused on counter-terrorism operations and sharing of field combat experience of the three south Asian countries' armed forces. The Pakistan military said a large number of friendly countries have requested the Pakistan Army to organise training for their troops in the state-of-the-art Counter Terrorism Training Centre in view of the successful anti-terrorism campaign codenamed "Zarb-e-Azb". So far, the Pakistan Army has conducted joint exercises with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, China and Jordan to enhance combat efficiency, the statement said. Pakistan Army chief General Raheel Sharif visited the National Counter Terrorism Training Centre (NCTC) in the town of Pabbi and witnessed the Pakistan-Sri Lanka-Maldives Trilateral Exercise "Eagle Dash-I", the statement said. General Raheel Sharif underscored that such exercises will consolidate the special relationship between the three countries' forces and help eliminate terrorism from the region. Foreign military delegates from Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, the Maldives and South Africa witnessed the exercise. The budget session of parliament will begin on February 23, it was announced here on Thursday. The budget session, which is held in two parts, will continue till March 16 before going into recess for 39 days, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu said in a tweet. The session will resume on April 25 and conclude on May 13, 2016, he added. The budget session of Parliament will begin on February 23 with President Pranab Mukherjee's address to a joint sitting of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. The General Budget will be presented on February 29, the government said on Thursday. The Rail Budget will be presented on February 25 and the economic survey report released the next day, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu said after a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs (CCPA). The meeting was attended by union ministers Rajnath Singh, Arun Jaitely, Najma Heptullah, Ramvilas Paswan, Smriti Irani and minister of state Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi. The budget session's first phase will continue till March 16, followed by a recess for 39 days, Naidu said. The session will resume on April 25 and conclude on May 13, he added. The budget session will have 31 sittings spread over 81 days. "The budget session this year will run its full course with recess in between, unlike in 2011 when the recess was done away with on account of assembly elections in five states that are going to polls this year also," a parliamentary affairs ministry statement said. Before the CCPA meeting, Naidu, Rajnath Singh and Naqvi consulted leaders of different parties to seek their views on scheduling the budget session, keeping in view the forthcoming assembly polls in West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry. Congress leaders Ghulam Nabi Azad, Anand Sharma and Deepender Hooda, Samajwadi party leader Ramgopal Yadav, Janata Dal-United leaders Sharad Yadav and K.C. Tyagi, Biju Janata Dal leader Bhartruhari Mahtab, Bahujan Samaj Party leader Ambeth Rajan, Trinamool Congress leader Derek O'Brien and All India Anna Dravid Munnetra Kazhagam leader Dr Venugopal participated in the consultations. Naidu said the government favoured a normal and full-length session with sufficient recess in between to enable the working of standing committees and added that the dates could be adjusted based on the suggestions from different parties. Ratification of an ordinance relating to President's Rule in Arunachal Pradesh and passing of a bill with respect to an ordinance regarding enemy properties will be taken up on priority during the session. As Finance Minister Arun Jaitley expressed the hope that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill will become a reality soon, it remains to be seen whether the bill will finally secure parliamentary approval during this budget session. Despite several efforts by the government, the GST Bill could not be passed in the Rajya Sabha in the winter session last year due to the Congress opposition. Prime Minister Narendra Modi had reached out to Congress president Sonia Gandhi and former prime minister Manmohan Singh last year to break the logjam. The Congress demands include a cap on the GST rate at 18 percent, deletion of the provision that allows imposition of one percent additional levy and an independent dispute resolution mechanism. The budget session of parliament will begin on February 23 with President Pranab Mukherjee addressing a joint sitting of the two houses -- the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, it was announced on Thursday. The rail budget will be presented on February 25 and the economic survey report released the next day. The general budget will be presented on February 29, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu said after a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs. The budget session is held in two parts and the first phase will continue till March 16 before going into recess for 39 days, Naidu said in a tweet. The session will resume on April 25 and finally conclude on May 13, he added. The central government also held a meeting with political leaders of poll-bound West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry to discuss if the dates of the budget session were clashing with any election activity in these states. Asserting that everybody has the right to express his dissent, veteran actor-director Amol Palekar on Thursday wondered why there was so much fuss over people returning their awards as a mark to protest against intolerance. "If an artiste feels he can convey his protest by returning his award, why are we getting so hyper and so upset about it? If I feel that I can convey my protest this way or some other way, then that must be respected," Palekar said here. "I have always condemned any such attempt to shut one's voice. If a play is banned, if a film is stopped, I have always condemned that. Whether I like that film or not is not the issue. Whether I agree with that point of view is not the issue. So far as freedom of expression goes, everybody must have the freedom," he said. Palekar was in the city to inaugurate the Kolkata Literature Festival along with eminent poet Ashok Vajpeyi. "Just because I don't agree with you, I have no right to shut you up. I have no right to say you are wrong or you are this or that," said Palekar about those protesting against intolerance being labelled as anti-national. "If I express my dissent, do I become anti-national immediately? If I have done this with the previous government, I have the right to express myself on the present government as well." "On censorship issue, I have fought with all the governments in Maharashtra, whether it is Congress or the Shiv Sena or whichever party. So, I think people have the right to protest, right to express dissent and that must be respected," he added. Flag carrier Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has incurred an estimated loss of about $17 million since last week as angry employees protested against a proposed plan to privatise the carrier, an official said on Thursday. As demonstrations against privatisation plans continued for the third day in many cities, PIA spokesman Danyal Gilani told Dawn online over 150 flights have been cancelled in the past three days of the strike. Gilani said between January 26, when the strike was announced and February 2, when a demonstration outside Karachi airport turned bloody as two PIA employees were shot dead, the airline suffered a loss of Rs.1 billion. Most people had cancelled their bookings because of reports about the strike, the spokesman said. Gilani said PIA is in final stages of negotiations with Etihad Airways and Turkish Airlines to facilitate passengers booked to travel internationally. The services of a private carrier are being used to accommodate passengers booked on domestic flights. The National Assembly on January 21 witnessed the passage of six bills, including one to convert the national flag carrier into a public limited company. Under the bill, Pakistan International Airlines Corporation (PIAC) is to be converted into a public limited company as Pakistan International Airlines Company Limited (PIACL). The government plans to split the ailing national flag carrier PIA into two companies and sell the control of its core business to a global airline, but the opposition to the sell-off has been intense. But representatives of PIA employees announced on Sunday their opposition to the government's privatisation plan, saying they would continue their strike and brought flight operations to a halt from Tuesday if their demands are not met. Actress Jennifer Garner was stopped by a group of New York City Police Department (NYPD) officers, who are said to be her big fans, and asked her to take selfies. The 43-year-old actress was here when she was stopped by a group of police officers. Surprisingly, one of them asked Garner to take a selfie with him. An eyewitness said that Garner was in a good mood and she immediately accepted the officer's request, reports aceshowbiz.com. "She was walking alone, just going about her day. The officers saw Jen and asked if she would take a photo with them, which she obliged," the eyewitness said. Despite having tumultuous life after splitting from Ben Affleck, the "Alias" actress seemed to enjoy her life as a single mother. Last week, the mother of three was photographed at a market in Pacific Palisades, where she grabbed some fruits and vegetables. Actress Radhika Apte has joined superstar Rajinikanth for the final schedule of upcoming Tamil gangster drama "Kabali" in Malaysia. "Important scenes between Rajinikanth and Radhika, besides some action sequences will be shot in this schedule that will go on for nearly three weeks in Malaysia," a source from the film's unit told IANS. Radhika plays Rajinikanth's wife in the film, which is being directed by Pa. Ranjith. "Kabalia, which also features Malaysian actors, is loosely based on real-life don Kabaleeshwaran. Rajinikanth plays an ageing don in the film. Slated to release in May, the film also features Dhanshikaa, Dinesh, Kalaiarasan and Ritwika in important roles. We know olive pits are more than just trash, but it might surprise you to know that they can generate energy in multiple ways. The first method wont shock anyone who keeps a pile of seasoned wood ready for the fireplace: combustion. Olive pits dont just burn; they burn well. In fact, pound for pound, olive pits produce more energy through combustion than hardwood, according to the not-for-profit engineering organization ASME. Sure, you could probably just toss your olive pits in a roaring fire to generate a little heat, but the smarter way to burn them is in a stove designed for the purpose. Magnum's Countryside stove, for instance, can handle olive pits and practically any other type of biomass (shelled corn, cherry pits or wood pellets, to name a few) that you can throw at it. But dont think olive pits can only be burned on a small scale. Large olive processing companies are warming up to the idea as well. Advertisement Musco Family Olive Co., for instance, generates about half of the electricity needed for the companys olive processing plant to run simply by burning the olive pits that it once paid to ship to the landfill. And since the company is the United States' largest olive processor, that's a lot of olive pits: 13 billion, to be exact. The potential to turn olive pits into electricity is even higher in Spain, the world's largest producer of olives. Already, a company named Calordom is using combustion to power hundreds of buildings throughout Madrid, and although some people have concerns about pollution generated from the process, the effectiveness of burning olive pits for energy is hard to debate. But thanks to the chemical composition of olive pits, combustion isnt the only way to coax fuel out of an olive pit. When researchers from the previously mentioned University of Sciences and Technology Houari Boumediene broke olive pits into their components for their denitrification study, they found that the pits are mostly made of cellulose and hemicelluloses (less complex polysaccharides found in plants), while about 15 to 23 percent of olive pits are composed of lignin (a polymer that's related to cellulose). That composition happens to be the same makeup of what are known as cellulosic biomasses, things like sawdust, corn husks and paper products. Cellulosic biomass is harder to turn into ethanol than sugarcane or corn since the sugars are trickier to extract, but researchers are finding a way. A team from Universities of Granada and Jaen discovered that by putting olive pits into a pressure cooker along with certain enzymes, they were able to remove sugars from the pits. From there, the team fermented the sugars to produce about 12.6 pounds (5.7 kilograms) of ethanol for every 220 pounds (100 kilograms) of olive pits they put in. Who knows how much more efficient the process could get? So while olive pits may not single-handedly solve the worlds energy woes, they could pitch in, proving the saying "one man's trash is another mans biofuel" right once again. Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday sought a report from the Karnataka government on the assault by a mob on a Tanzanian woman in Bengaluru. "Strongly condemn incident with the Tanzanian lady in Bangalore. Police must act strongly against the culprits. Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately," Congress general secretary Digvijaya Singh tweeted. Five people suspected of assaulting the Tanzanian woman were arrested early on Thursday, Bengaluru Police Commissioner N.S. Megharik said. A mob of people attacked and allegedly stripped the Tanzanian woman, a management institute student, after dragging her out of a car she was travelling in along with her three friends on Bengaluru outskirts on Sunday. Her friends were also beaten up. Megharik said the mob mistook her as one involved in an accident nearby in which a woman was run over. Reliance Infrastructure on Thursday announced a pact with Birla Corp, the flagship company of the MP Birla Group, to sell the entire 100-percent stake in its integrated cement subsidiary for a deal estimated at Rs.4,800 core Reliance Cement has an annual capacity of 5.08 million tonnes at its facilities at Maihar in Madhya Pradesh and Kundanganjm in, besides a grinding unit of 0.5 million tonnes at Butibori in Maharashtra. The deal being worked out is estimated at $140 per tonne capacity. "Under this transaction Birla Corp will acquire the 100 percent shareholding of Reliance Infra in Reliance Cement. The transaction is subject to approval of the Competition Commission of India and other applicable regulatory approvals," the company said in a statement. SBI Capital acted as the financial advisors to Reliance Group for this transaction, which will be used for reducing the group's debt, the company added. Birla Corp has a presence in cement and jute. The cement business constitutes over 90 percent of the company's revenues with over 10 million capacity. It has units in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. Anil Ambani-led Reliance Infra had said in November that the company had decided to sell its 5.8-million-tonne per annum cement firm while initiating the process to hive off the Rs.8,800-crore investment it has made in 11 road projects across seven states. The steps, the company said, were in tune with the renewed focus on the defence space for growth. "The 5.8 million tonnes per annum cement business and related assets will be disposed off through a formal process. The Company has short-listed seven potential buyers from a total of 15 parties that submitted preliminary expressions of interest," the company said. Addressing the shareholders, Ambani said: "Our capex (capital expenditure cycle) is now complete. Over Rs.30,000 crore has been spent in the last six years and all projects are operational. In the next financial year, you will see the full impact of cash flows." He also reiterated that defence and smart cities will be the two drivers of future growth. A song that Salman Khan wanted to use for "Tere Naam" has been included in "Sanam Teri Kasam", co-directed by his "Lucky: No Time for Love" makers Vinay Sapru and Radhika Rao, who say it was a way to add the superstar's 'lucky charm' to their film. On Wednesday, Salman tweeted: "Directors of my film 'Lucky...' and 'Sanam Teri Kasam' churaud (stole) my song from Himesh (Reshammiya). Lovely song. Had selected it for 'Tere Naam'." The song in question is titled "Haal-e-dil". Asked about it, Sapru told IANS that it's the first song that appears in the film. "Salman Khan is our mentor, so we do all our work keeping Salman informed about it. But as a project, we had not discussed 'Sanam Teri Kasam' with him. When we were discussing it and were showing everything that we have done in the film, 'Haal-e-dil' came up, and he said, 'This is my song!' He got a little upset about it," Sapru said. Sapru says music director Himesh Reshammiya had told him that the song's tune was first finalised by Salman for the 2003 "Tere Naam", which also starred Bhumika Chawla. "Not that we wanted to take this song, but when we were doing our music sitting with Himesh at that time, we finalised the first song of the film. There were two tunes to get finalised. But when Himesh said that this tune was finalised by Salman for 'Tere Naam', and he has kept another song that Salman could use it when he makes another tragic love story, we took this one." "Salman has been our lucky charm since we started our career, and we were very clear that by hook or by crook, we want Salman's lucky charm in our film. So, we finalised that song." The director said that the 50-year-old actor was "upset" but after seeing the song as part of "Sanam Teri Kasam", "it almost got tears to his eyes". Also, Sapru feels Salman's tweet on the song has "so much of love". "It's written by 'my directors'," he said. "Sanam Teri Kasam", releasing on Friday, stars Telugu actor Harshvardhan Rane and Pakistani actress Mawra Hocane, who are foraying into Bollywood. Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Thursday expressed deep distress over the death of soldiers in an avalanche on the Siachen glacier. A Congress statement said Gandhi saluted the soldiers who lost their lives securing the nation's boundaries in the most difficult terrain and weather conditions. "Congress president Sonia Gandhi expressed shock and deep distress on confirmation of death of 10 army men in an avalanche in Siachen," the statement said. Gandhi extended her condolences to the bereaved families and said the entire nation "stood bowed before selfless service and martyrdom of our soldiers". Ten soldiers, including a junior commissioned officer (JCO), went missing on Wednesday after an avalanche hit their patrol at 19,000 feet above sea level on the southern side of the Siachen glacier, which was once the world's highest battlefield, and which has an extremely hostile climate. A massive rescue operation was launched by the army and the air force to trace the missing personnel but an army official on Thursday said the possibility of any survivor was "remote". Islamabad is going to set up a special force of approximately 10,000 troops to protect Chinese people and enterprises along the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a media report said on Thursday. Visiting Pakistani diplomat Syed Tariq Fatemi on Wednesday revealed the establishment of the force in reply to Beijing's security concerns over the increasing number of Chinese involved in more than 200 projects in the country, including 14,000 engineers and technicians, the China Daily reported. "We have decided to create a special force of highly trained military people who will be specially equipped and will have special organisations in concerned ministries backing them, "Fatemi, who is Pakistan's special assistant to the prime minister for foreign affairs, said. "Their task will be to provide the necessary safety and security of Chinese working in Pakistan and the Chinese companies and industries set up there." He added that the move demonstrates the Pakistani government's strong commitment and that further steps would be taken as needed. The CPEC is an ongoing, $46 billion project invested in by China that will expand Pakistan's infrastructure by linking its southwestern port city of Gwadar to China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region via a vast network of highways and railways. Maharashtra's ruling BJP and the opposition Congress and the NCP engaged in a verbal duel after Governor C.V. Rao gave the green signal to the CBI to prosecute former chief minister Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh Society scam on Thursday. While Chavan, who is the state Congress president, cried foul over the move, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis justified the sanction to prosecute him and rejected charges of vendetta. Fadnavis said the government had sought the opinion of the state advocate general and he clearly said "such permission should be and could be granted". In view of fresh evidence which have come up in the case, the CBI sent a request seeking permission to prosecute Chavan and the governor forwarded it to the state cabinet, which recommended to the governor to act as per the opinion of the advocate general, Fadnavis pointed out. Accusing the ruling BJP of adopting a "vindictive attitude", Chavan questioned how could the opinion of a new governor change with a new government (BJP-Shiv Sena alliance) taking power in the state. He said the earlier governor (K. Sankaranarayanan) had taken a conscious stand in December 2013 after consulting the highest legal authorities and said he could not issue the sanction to the CBI for prosecution. Later, the CBI had moved the Bombay High Court to drop Chavan's name from the chargesheet, but now the same probe agency makes a U-turn in 2016, which is nothing but "political pressure on CBI", Chavan said. He said the report of the two-member commission of inquiry had made it clear that there was no reservation of the plot for any army personnel and that the land belonged to the state government. Chavan alleged that the issue was reopened under pressure from the BJP and its functioneries with a view to pursue political vendetta against the opposition parties and leaders. Leader of Opposition in the legislative council Dhananjay Munde, of the Nationalist Congress Party, regretted the development and said the government was trying to finish off the opposition and was misusing the CBI for political reasons. Condemning the development, Congress leader and legislative council member Sanjay Dutt termed it as the "BJP's vendetta to throttle the Opposition expose of their misdoings". External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Friday will leave on a two-day visit to Sri Lanka during which she will attend a meeting of the joint commission of the two countries. "External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will be visiting Sri Lanka on February 5-6 for the ninth session of the India-Sri Lanka Joint Commission," external affairs ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said at a media briefing here on Thursday. "The meeting of the joint commission, co-chaired by the minister of external affairs of India and the minister of foreign affairs of Sri Lanka, will be held on February 5 in Colombo," he said. The India-Sri Lanka Joint Commission was established in 1992 as an effective mechanism to address matters pertaining to bilateral cooperation. Swarup said the discussions in Friday's meeting will cover the entire gamut of the relationship between the two countries. Included in these would be economic cooperation, trade, power and energy, technical and maritime cooperation, social, cultural and educational matters, science and technology, defence cooperation, health, civil aviation, tourism and people-to-people contacts. "During her visit, the external affairs minister will call on President Maithripala Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickeremesinghe, and former president Chandrika Kumaratunga," he said. Sushmna Swaraj will also inaugurate a "Rise of Digital India" exhibition on February 6 as part of "Sangam - Festival of India in Sri Lanka 2015-16". "This exhibition will showcase the phenomenal rise of the computing sector and digital technologies in India which is positively impacting the everyday lives of people," Swarup said. Replying to questions, the spokesman said that the re-framing of the Sri Lankan constitution might come up during the discussions. The issue of Indian fishermen will also be taken up. A high-level team from New Delhi, including the Tanzanian high commissioner to India, will leave for Bengaluru today in connection with the assault on a Tanzanian woman in the Karnataka capital. The decision to send the team was taken at a high-level meeting convened by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Thursday that was attended by Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar, Secretary (Economic Relations) Amar Sinha and other senior officials of the ministry. "A team is going to Bengaluru tomorrow which includes the high commissioner of Tanzania, who is also the dean of the African diplomatic corps," external affairs ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup said at yesterday. "The team also includes the joint secretary (states), director (east and southern Africa) in the ministry of external affairs and the regional director of ICCR (Indian Council of Cultural Relations), which liaises with the students who come here on ICCR scholarships," he added. Five people suspected of assaulting the Tanzanian woman student were arrested early on Thursday, Bengaluru Police Commissioner N S Megharik said. "We have arrested the five accused after interrogating them on Wednesday night under detention in the case registered on the victim's statement in a road rage incident," Megharik said. The commissioner, however, did not disclose names and ages of the five accused. In a case of mistaken identity, a mob assaulted the victim suspecting her to be a friend of a Sudanese student, Mohammad Ahad, whose car ran over a woman pedestrian (Shabana Taz) injuring her fatally while driving drunk on Sunday night. "We condemn this unequivocally," Swarup said at the media briefing. "The external affairs minister, in her tweets yesterday, has also said that we are deeply pained over the shameful incident," he said. He said Sushma Swaraj immediately spoke to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and sought an official report. Secretary Sinha also spoke to Tanazanian High Commissioner John W.H. Kijazi and expressed regret at the incident. "Our Joint Secretary (States), Partha Satpathy, who happened to be in Bengaluru, liaised immediately with the state and local authorities," Swarup said. He also said that a report has been received from Bengaluru Police Commissioner Megharik. "The commissioner has assured us that stringent measures are being taken to prevent occurrence of such incidents in the future," the spokesman said, adding that "our African friends" have been assured that necessary legal action would be taken and stringent punishment would be given to those involved in the incident and that all steps would be taken for the safety and security of African students in India. There are around 5,000 African students in India. As for the team gong to Bengaluru today, Swarup said that "we will extend full cooperation of the state and central governments to the investigation of this case". "The ministry and the state government will also be reaching out to African students in the state to reassure them that their security and well-being is our primary concern," he added. Oscar-nominated film "Trumbo", which chronicles the life of a blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo, will hit theatres in India on February 12. PVR Pictures, which is releasing the movie in the country, announced the date in a statement here. Actor Bryan Cranston of "Breaking Bad" fame is bringing Oscar-winner screenwriter Trumbo's life on the silver screen. Cranston has been nominated in the Actor in a Leading Role category in the upcoming 88th Academy Awards for the film. Based on the biography by Bruce Cook, the film also touches upon issues regarding political freedom, censorship and civil liberties. "Trumbo" is directed by Jay Roach, known for "Austin Powers" and "Meet the Parents". The film explores how Trumbo's successful career came to a crushing end when he along with other Hollywood figures were blacklisted for their political beliefs. It tells the story of Trumbo's fight against the US government and studio bosses in a war over words and freedom. The film also stars Helen Mirren, Diane Lane and John Goodman. Kerala's ruling Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) is "supremely confident" of retaining power in assembly elections this year, Revenue and Coir Minister Adoor Prakash said on Wednesday. "The Congress will be back in power. We are supremely confident," the minister told IANS on the sidelines of the Coir Kerala 2016 event here, rejecting suggestions that the UDF was on the back foot. Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has been hit by allegations from one of the key accused in what is widely known as the "solar scam" ahead of the polls, prompting opposition calls that Chandy must quit. Prakash insisted that this would not affect the UDF's prospects in the electoral battle in which the main foe of the Congress would be the Left Democratic Front (LDF) led by the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M). He said the government had undertaken several major and numerous small developmental projects in the past few years, including the Kochi Metro and the Kannur airport, and all of them had won widespread admiration. "Our chief minister has also repeatedly toured each and every one of the 140 assembly constituencies, talking and interacting with people," he said. "The people of Kerala know the CM very well. I don't think the allegations (hurled against him) will in any way affect him or the Congress or the UDF. We are going to come back to power," Prakash said. He blamed the CPI-M for the allegations of corruption levelled at Chandy. "The CPI-M is managing all this. It is their drama. But it won't work." Prakash, who is considered close to the chief minister, said the coming together of the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam - the traditional Dalit voice in Kerala - and the Bharatiya Janata Paty (BJP) "will not have much impact" in the elections. In recent years, the BJP has been trying hard to become a key player in Kerala's electoral which has been traditionally dominated by the Congress-led UDF and the LDF. Kerala also happens to be the only major state in the country where the BJP has never won an assembly or Lok Sabha seat. The BJP is determined to break the jinx. Prakash countered that this won't be possible. "In Kerala, people don't appreciate communal . That is why the BJP is only a bit player in this state. It will remain like that." In the last assembly election in 2012, the Congress ended up as the second largest party in the 140-member assembly after the CPI-M but it managed to form the UDF government. Prakash was asked if the Congress would be able to topple the CPI-M from the top slot this year. Sounding somewhat evasive, the minister told IANS: "I am sure about one thing. Our coalition will come to power again." (M.R. Narayan Swamy can be contacted at narayan.swamy@ians.in) United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) should refrain from using "ballistic missile technology," according to Farhan Haq, deputy spokesman for the secretary-general. "The Secretary-General believes that it is important for the DPRK to refrain from using ballistic missile technology and to work for the peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula," Xinhua quoted Haq as saying on Wednesday. At Tuesday's daily briefing, Haq confirmed that three entities of the world body -- International Civil Aviation Organisation, International Maritime Organisation and International Telecommunications Union -- were all informed by the DPRK of its intentions to launch an earth-observation satellite between February 8 to 25. A UN panel considering the alleged "unlawful detention" of Julian Assange has reportedly ruled in favour of the WikiLeaks founder. Assange claimed asylum in London's Ecuadorean embassy in 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden over sex assault allegaions, which he denies. The London Metropolitan Police said Assange will be arrested if he leaves the embassy, BBC reported. Swedish prosecutors said the UN panel's decision would have "no formal impact" on its ongoing investigation. Assange earlier said his passport should be returned and his arrest warrant revoked if the UN panel ruled in his favour. In 2014, Assange complained to the UN that he was being "arbitrarily detained" as he could not leave the embassy without being arrested. The application claimed Assange had been "deprived of his liberty in an arbitrary manner for an unacceptable length of time". The UN's Working Group on Arbitrary Detention was due to announce the findings of its investigation on Friday. Wikileaks earlier tweeted it was waiting for "official confirmation" of the UN panel's decision. Downing Street said the panel's ruling would not be legally binding in Britain. A government spokesman said Assange still faced one allegation of rape, while a European Arrest Warrant remained in place. "We have been consistently clear that Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by Britain but was, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorean embassy," he added. "The Britain continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Assange to Sweden." The Swedish foreign ministry said in a statement that it noted the UN panel's decision "differs from that of the Swedish authorities". The statement added the legal process for Assange's case would be handled in court by Swedish prosecutors. Urban Development Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday said that urban infrastructure sector offers Rs.73 lakh crore investment opportunity for private sector and public-private partnership (PPP) investments over the next 15 years. "Given the resource limitations of both central and state governments, private sector investments and PPPs are the chief instruments of resource mobilisation to build the much needed urban infrastructure in the country," Naidu said at an investment summit here. Naidu said that over and above the support committed by the central and state governments, ensuring basic urban infrastructure requires Rs.56 lakh crore, building 2 crore houses for urban poor needs another Rs.11 lakh crore and Rs. 6 lakh crore for building 100 smart cities. Expressing hope that private sector and PPP investments can be mobilized to address the infrastructure challenge, he said that 10 of the 20 smart cities announced last week have laid down clear road maps for mobilising PPP investments of about Rs.9,000 crore. Bringing out the gaps in urban infrastructure, the minister noted that 50 percent of urban households still do not have water connections. "These gaps hit the urban poor the most and developing urban infrastructure accordingly leads to inclusive urban growth besides enhancing productivity and quality of life," he said. Retail giant Walmart India on Thursday announced it had signed an agreement with Karnataka government on Thrusday to set up 10 cash and carry stores in the state. "Today (Thursday), we signed an agreement with Karnataka government to open 10 cash and carry stores in Karnataka," said compnay's CEO Krish Iyer at panel discussion 'Promoting Women Entrepreneurship' at the Invest Karnataka 2016 Global Investors Meet (GIM). Citing Walmart's goals of promoting and encouraging women entrepreneurs in a big way, he invited them to approach Walmart team for evaluation to enroll as a vendor. "We are running a women entrepreneurship development programme on demand and supply side. Demand side includes developing women entrepreneurs who can open kirana stores or small hotels, restaurants and dhabas to whom we will supply at low costs," he said. Supply side opportunity is much bigger at Walmart where it already sources merchandise from 30 women-owned businesses and services from 35 women-owned businesses. In 2011, Walmart launched the global Women Economic Empowerment Programme aimed at doubling the current $20 billion worth merchandise sourcing from women entrepreneurs across the globe. Iyer said other important global goals for Walmart are to promote diversity and inclusion in the existing supplier mix from both merchandise and professional services and empower nearly one million women globally. Indian actor Irrfan Khan has refused a part in a Steven Spielberg film because he didn't find "enough meat to explore" himself as an actor. "I felt the character did not have enough meat to explore myself as an actor. Hence, I said no... Else who wouldn't want to work with Steven Spielberg?" Irrfan said in a statement. The "Slumdog Millionaire" and "Life of Pi" actor was offered to work in a Spielberg film, which also had Hollywood actress Scarlett Johansson in it. Sharing that it is more than a dilemma for him to choose or deny films, Irrfan said: "I am at a stage in my career where I am trying my best to surprise my audience with every role and give them some. I am hoping the future holds something so path-breaking and so empowering for me as an artiste that no will not be an option." The AAP government will appeal the Delhi High Court's Thursday order restoring the management quota in private unaided schools for nursery admissions, said Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. "It is duty of the government to provide better to the children in Delhi. We will appeal against the court's order," tweeted Sisodia, who holds the portfolio. Justice Manmohan, in an interim order, stayed the January 6 circular of the Aam Aadmi Party government that scrapped 62 criteria, including the management quota, saying it was passed without approval of Lt. Governor Najeeb Jung. "We welcome the court's decision but will continue our efforts to bring transparency in admission process at schools," Sisodia said in another tweet. Mayors of all three municipal corporations of Delhi on Thursday assured Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia of bringing the striking workers back to work though they refused to end their strike after Rs.551-crore loan announcement. "Met all the three mayors just now. They have assured me that they are making all efforts to get the striking employees back to work," Sisodia tweeted after meeting the mayors. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday announced a loan of Rs.551 crore to pay pending salaries of agitating workers of two municipal corporations. However, the employees refused to call off their strike and said the funds were not a permanent solution to the financial crisis. The mayors of North and East Delhi municipal corporations had said they would accept Rs.551 crore as a "grant" as the Delhi government was to pay Rs.3,000 crore to the local bodies as per the 3rd Delhi Finance Commission report. Women entrepreneurs must focus on scale and building a good team, said Biocon chairperson Kiran Mazumdar Shaw on Thursday. "As women, we must focus on building scale. If you don't build scale, I really believe you will be at a disadvantage. You cannot then build a credible business story," said Shaw at panel discussion 'Promoting Women Entrepreneurship' at Invest Karnataka 2016 Global Investors Meet (GIM). According to Shaw, scaling process is a daunting task without creating a good team. "A good team with critical competencies about business modeling, about finance and about marketing is a very important contributor for scaling and success," she said at the discussion attended by women entrepreneurs from across Karnataka. Shaw considers her bio-technology company Biocon as the first startup to emerge from Bengaluru and narrated the difficulties she faced while staring it. "In 1978, the bankers did not have faith in me that I being a woman am capable of setting up a business. Loans for women entrepreneurs were classified under the handicapped and backward classes category," she revealed. She thanked Karnataka State Industrial Investment and Development Corporation (KSIIDC) and Karnataka State Finance Corporation (KSFC) for coming to her aid and approving the loan. The panel discussion also hosted a sister city initiative agreement signing between Bengaluru and San Francisco. Additional Chief Secretary Ratna Prabha and Sister City Initiatives co-chair Nandini Tandon exchanged the agreement. Earlier, Women Entrepreneurs Guidance Cell (Mahila Udyamavani Cell) was launched to give a shot in the arm for women entrepreneurs. --Indo-Asian New Service sth/vd The Gujarat unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has organised a dayra, a public rendition of bhajans, in Morbi town, in honour of the young people who were jailed at the height of protests by the Patel (Patidar) community activists in the state last year and are now out on bail. The Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti and its convenor Hardik Patel, however, are not amused - they see in it a grand scheme by the state government to divide the Patels so that they are not able to stand up against the government. The BJP, on its part, insists that young people "deserve relief" after serving time in jail. At the C D Deshmukh Memorial Lecture organised last week by the National Council of Applied Economic Research, its director, Shekhar Shah, had an awkward moment when his voice cracked during his address. Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan came to Shah's rescue by walking up to him and offering him a glass of water. After recovering his composure Shah said, "When the RBI governor offers you water when you need it, you know monetary policy is in the right hands." Rajan, in his lecture, later at the same event, said he preferred the path of macroeconomic stability to reckless economic growth. In his policy review on February 2, the governor did not cut policy rates, preferring to wait for Budget announcements on fiscal consolidation. A man arrested in Ash Fork for attacking two women and their dog with an ax in July 2015 is going to prison. Stephen Lee Garcia, 29, pleaded guilty in Coconino County Superior Court early last month to one count of attempted aggravated assault and one count of animal cruelty. The attorneys did not stipulate a sentence in the plea agreement so Judge Jacqueline Hatch, siding with the prosecutor Wednesday, sentenced Garcia to 2.5 years behind bars, followed by three years of probation. This is a very strange case, said defense attorney Steve Harvey. According to the Coconino County Sheriffs Office, deputies responded to a report of an aggravated assault around 10:50 p.m. June 27 at a home in Kaibab Estates West, which is a rural unincorporated neighborhood located north of Ash Fork. The woman who owned the home was there with her 18-year-old granddaughter, who had her two 6-month-old twins with her. The homeowner told police she had given a ride to the suspect, who she identified as a friend she had not been in touch with for several years, earlier in the day. The suspect, who had been drinking, returned to the home later that afternoon. The homeowner told the judge Wednesday that they were watching TV and everything seemed fine before Garcia suddenly turned violent. The victims became concerned when one of the infants appeared to be turning purple as Garcia was holding it. He shook my son until he was blue and he refused to give him back to me, the childs mother told the judge Wednesday. She struggled with Garcia until she was able to take the baby out of his arms. She then locked both babies in a bedroom. The victims said Garcia responded by assaulting both of them, which included squeezing them so hard they had trouble breathing and chasing them with an ax. The homeowner said he threatened to chop (them) into little pieces. He also kept calling the homeowner mom even though she is not related to him. All he kept screaming was that he was going to kill us, one of the victims said. He was going to kill us if we didnt kill him. Garcia also struck the homeowners deaf dog in the head with the ax three or four times while it was lying on the floor, causing serious injuries. Its owner told the judge she spent approximately $1,900 on veterinarian bills but the dog, which was the only thing that kept her going after her husbands death, ended up dying anyway. He loved people, she said, sobbing. He never ever growled at anybody. Afterward, the suspect kicked through the locked door of the bathroom where the 18-year-old victim was hiding, attempted to pull her out and threatened her with the ax. The homeowner then grabbed the ax from the suspect and hit him in the back of the head with the blunt side multiple times, rendering him unconscious. He was transported to Flagstaff Medical Center for treatment. The victims also received medical care. The young mother told the judge she would not feel safe if Garcia were allowed back on the streets of Ask Fork on probation. Her grandmother made a similar plea. Dont let him walk around on the street, she said. He could flip out on somebody else and next time, he could kill them. He doesnt deserve to be on the street. He needs help. Harvey said the only explanation for Garcias actions was that he either had a mental breakdown or a bad drug reaction. However, Garcia claimed to be off drugs at the time and was receiving psychiatric treatment. Staff at FMC found no illicit substances in his system. This appears to just be a mental breakdown, Harvey said. Harvey said Garcia has no recollection of the attack but does not deny it happened. I dont know what caused or provoked this whole thing, he said. But if they feel that Ive done something, Id like to apologize. Harvey asked the judge to place Garcia on three years of intensive probation, but the judge ruled that probation would not be appropriate, given the charges. She found the defendants apparent diminished capacity as a mitigating factor, but said she would not give it much weight. Garcia will get credit for 220 days of time served. He must also undergo substance abuse and mental health evaluations, as well as any recommended treatment. The prosecution has 30 days to request restitution on behalf of the victims. One upside of globalisation is that goods and people move very quickly. This is also one of the downsides. It can lead to the rapid spread of disease. The Zika virus epidemic, which the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared a public health emergency, provides an excellent illustration of how this happens. Apropos the report, "Mehbooba Mufti meets governor, wants CBMs from Centre" (February 3), the Peoples Democratic Party chief must go ahead with forming a new government in Jammu and Kashmir in alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Why are there so many ifs and buts on her side? Why is she keeping her cards so close to her chest? Her continued indecisiveness may cost her dearly as well as the state and even the entire country. Mufti should rest her fears about the observance of confidence building measures by the BJP because status quo on the earlier agreed agenda has so far been maintained between the two parties. Further, the BJP leadership has never had questions about her taking over as chief minister. What is the hitch then? A key component of any alliance is trust. Mufti should either urgently join the alliance or scrap it. Let this political drama end. No more dithering please. S Kumar New Delhi can be mailed, faxed or e-mailed to:The Editor, Business StandardNehru House, 4 Bahadur Shah Zafar MargNew Delhi 110 002Fax: (011) 23720201E-mail: letters@bsmail.in Maharashtra's former chief minister Ashok Chavan today received a major body blow as the state Governor C Vidyasagar Rao allowed the Central Bureau of Investigation to prosecute him. Rao today gave his sanction to CBI to prosecute Chavan, under section 197 of CrPC, for offences under sections 120-B (conspiracy) and 420 (cheating) of IPC in the Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society case. The Governor had sought the aid and advice of the state council of ministers and he was subsequently advised by it to grant the sanction. Chavan, who is campaigning for the party candidate in the Palghar bypoll election, told Business Standard: ''CBI's re-application to governor to prosecute me is totally illegal. We will seek the legal advice and proceed further.'' He had recently alleged that the BJP was trying to silent voices in the Opposition by pressuring the CBI and the Governor. Former Governor K, Sankaranarayanan in December 2013 had refused sanction to the CBI to prosecute Chavan, who had to step down as chief minister after the scam surfaced in November 2010. Chavan was among the 12 people chargesheeted by the investigation agency in connection with the case. The chargesheet had alleged conspiracy but also referred to Chavan's individual acts when he was revenue minister and later chief minister. CBI had thereafter closed case against Chavan. However, the CBI joint director through letter on October 8, 2015, had again sought state Governor's sanction for Chavan's prosecution under Section 197 of the CrPC on the basis of the additional or fresh material, namely the report of Justice Patil Commission of enquiry and the observations of the Bombay High Court in the criminal revision application no 136 of 2014. The CBI has now cited these findings as fresh evidence against Chavan. The chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had said that the Congress government had neither rejected nor accepted the findings. Two teenaged students were today killed and 40 others injured when a bus collided with a truck on Delhi-Dehradun Highway, police said. The incident occurred when a passenger bus, going from Muzaffarnagar to Meerut, collided with a loaded truck near Bhensi cut under Khatoli police station on Delhi-Dehradun highway, circle officer Jogender Lal said. Those injured were hospitalised and the condition of some of them was stated to be critical, he said, adding that both the students were girls in their teens. Five persons have been arrested for the alleged assault and stripping of a Tanzanian woman here with the Karnataka government today saying it viewed the incident "seriously" but rejected suggestions that it was a racial attack. As the incident on Sunday night took a serious diplomatic turn, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said five men had been arrested and that Minister for External Affairs Sushma Swaraj spoke to him. A report would be sent to her, he said. "Case has been registered, five of them (accused) have been arrested. Sushma Swaraj also spoke to me, I will also be sending her a report through my Chief Secretary," he said. The Chief Minister said he has asked the police to conduct an inquiry on why complaint was not taken immediately. "I have asked them to take action against officials if there is any fault on their part," he said. The 21-year-old Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car here. She was reportedly dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends when she reached the accident spot mistaking them to have caused the fatal accident though a Sudanese was involved in it, police said. Swaraj had described it as a "shameful incident" and spoken to Siddaramaiah, seeking stringent punishment for the guilty, while the High Commission of Tanzania had sent a Note Verbale to the External Affairs Ministry on the issue. Voicing concern over the incident, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi today sought a report from the Karnataka government, according to party General Secretary Digvijay Singh, in charge of Congress affairs in the state. "Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately," Singh said in a series of tweets. But asked if the Congress high command has sought a report, Siddaramaiah said, "Why will high command seek report on everything? It is you people who are saying..." State Home Minister G Parameshwara told a press meet here that five persons had been arrested and more arrests would follow depending on the inquiry. The minister, who named the victim, denied that the Tanzanian woman was paraded naked saying, "No such thing happened." He also said, "This is definitely not a racial attack" and maintained that the incident was a response to an accident that had happened earlier, in which a Sudanese driving a car in an alleged drunken state had mowed down a woman and injured her husband seriously. Noting that the government has taken the case "seriously", he said, "If there are any lapses on the part of police officials, we will take very serious action, including suspension. Amidst the outrage over the alleged assault and stripping of a 21-year-old Tanzanian woman here, the Karnataka government today said five persons have been arrested in connection with the incident but denied that she was paraded naked. As the incident on Sunday night took a serious diplomatic turn, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said, "Case has been registered, five of them (accused) have been arrested. Sushma Swaraj also spoke to me, I will also be sending her a report through my Chief Secretary," he told reporters at a global investors meet in Bengaluru. State Home Minister G Parameshwara refuted reports that the Tanzanian woman was paraded naked saying, "No such thing happened".It was "definitely not a race attack", he said. Voicing concern over the incident, the Union Home Ministry asked the state government to give a detailed report about the circumstances leading to the assault of the Tanzanian woman, action taken against those allegedly involved in it and steps taken for the protection of the victim. The Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car here. She was reportedly dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends when she reached the accident spot with the miscreants mistaking them to have caused the fatal accident though a Sudanese was involved in it, police said. Facing flak over the incident, Siddaramaiah said he has asked the police to conduct an inquiry on why a complaint was not lodged immediately. In Delhi, Tanzanian High Commissioner John W H Kijazi said he had sent a complaint to the Government and sought prompt action against those behind the "unfortunate" incident. He urged the government to reinforce security in localities where African students were staying. "We request the Government of India to ensure safety and security of our students in Bengaluru and all other places in India," he said. Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi has sought a report from the Karnataka government, according to party General Secretary Digvijay Singh, in charge of Congress affairs in the state. "Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately," Singh said in a series of tweets. But asked if the Congress high command has sought a report, Siddaramaiah said, "Why will high command seek report on everything? It is you people who are saying... In Delhi, MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup said a team including the Tanzanian High Commissioner, who is also the Dean of the African Diplomatic Corps, will be leaving for Bengaluru tomorrow. The team also includes Joint Secretary (States), Director Eastern and Southern Africa in MEA and the Regional Director of ICCR, he said, adding the Central and state governments will extend full cooperation to investigation of this case. He said all steps will be taken to ensure the safety and security of African students in the country. According to All African Students Union's Legal Adviser Bosco Kaweesi, the woman student was stripped by a section of the mob and pushed out of a slow-moving bus that was passing by as she tried to board it to escape. "It is very clear from the report (submitted by police) that no such thing (being paraded naked) happened," Parameshwara said. Noting that 12,000 foreign students are studying in Bengaluru, he said it was the duty of the government to protect them. "If the accident had not occurred, this (incident) would not have happened," he said. He said no student gave a complaint or spoke about the incident involving the Tanzanian woman for two days. Later, she had given a statement to police which had been recorded. He said the Tanzanian student, who is doing MBA, was beaten up after the car in which she was travelling with three other occupants was stopped by the mob. Parameshwara said the Sudanese student, who was identified as Mohammed Ahmed Ismail, was driving the car in a drunken state and the vehicle hit two pedestrians with the woman dying on-the-spot and her husband being injured. Ismail was also sustained injuries and was shifted to hospital. Enraged people torched the vehicle, he said. It was later that the Tanzanian woman student and three others came to a spot about a km away from the accident site, when they were surrounded by the mob, he said. BJP trained its guns on Congress for its "hypocrisy" in not initiating action against the culprits and questioned Rahul Gandhi's "silence" over the incident that happened right under the nose of his party-run government. "Such a big incident has happened and so much time has passed, still Rahul and Congress are silent for something that has happened under the very nose of their government there. No action has been taken. This shows how much hypocrisy is there in them and how they play hypocritical politics," Union Minister and senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said. Seventy five kg of sea cucumber, an endangered coral reef species, was today seized when it was being transported from the seacoast to Mandapam near here and four persons arrested in this connection, police said. Police said the sea cucumber, a delicacy in many south east Asian nations, was being transported to Mandapam en route to Sri Lanka by four persons when their car was stopped and checked by coastal marine police. Police seized the sea cucumber and arrested them. The worth of the sea cucumber was around Rs 7.5 lakh, the officials said. Sea cucumbers, which play an important role in maintaining the marine ecological system, have been classified as endangered species and their harvest banned under the Wildlife Protection Act. Jalpaiguri district police have seized 800 bottles of cough syrup being sent to Bhutan to be used as intoxicant. The police today said during a routine check in Dhupguri last night, the district police intercepted a car carrying the 800 bottles of cough syrup. Of the four persons in the car, two were arrested while others managed to flee. During questioning it was learnt that the consignment was meant for Bhutan, the police said. The district police will be seeking help from the police of the neighbouring country in this regard. A 'brave' 9-year-old girl from Ukraine has cheated certain death by jumping 25 feet to escape a fire that engulfed her apartment complex here. Sofiya Doroshenko was alone when a fire broke out in her third floor apartment where she lived with her mother and stepfather, authorities said. When fire-fighters found her standing on the temporary safety of her balcony, they yelling at her to jump. There was no net, no pad to land on, no ladder to climb down. Fire trucks had yet to arrive to save her. "I didn't know what to do, and I just listened to them," Sofiya, who had came to the US just five months ago, told CNN affiliate WABC of New York. Sofiya said she decided to jump because she had no other chance to escape the fire. Underneath her were three police officers in Mahwah, New Jersey. Their arms were her only exit. "She was the most confident, brave little kid that I've ever met," said Lieutenant Jeff Dino of the Mahwah Police Department. "She put complete faith in us and when she jumped back we caught her." The "we" included Sergeant Brendan Mullin and Officer Thomas Solimano, who helped catch the falling girl and kept her from any injuries. They deflected praise for the rescue. "I really think she deserves the most credit here because of the way she reacted," Mullin said. Solimano said that Sofiya was much calmer and cooler under immense pressure than you would expect of a 9-year-old. "Were you scared?" a reporter asked. "Yes," she replied, nodding several times. Her family lost nearly everything in the fire, which also destroyed five more apartments. Sofiya's mother Yulia Doroshenko was not immediately concerned with her loss of possessions. "I want to thank them," she said. "I didn't believe this could happen, but it happened and thank you for saving my child," she added. A section of faculty members of AIIMS today condemned the alleged high-handedness on the part of the institute administration when Dr Kuldeep Kumar staged a dharna against his "illegal termination". The Faculty Association of AIIMS (FAAIIMS) has condemned the institute's decision of sacking the doctor (Kumar) and has announced support to him. Demanding that his termination be withdrawn immediately, they have also written to Union Health Minister. Dr Kumar has written a letter to Faculty Association of AIIMS (FAAIIMS) President saying that he was protesting peacefully in AIIMS at lunch hour yesterday but was allegedly thrown out by security personnel, said a senior doctor associated with FAIIMS. He also alleged that all his belongings were taken by security personal, the doctor said. AIIMS, however, has clarified that there were several complaints against Dr Kumar which included usage of objectionable language during ward assessment and bad behaviour with patients. AIIMS had terminated the services of Dr Kumar on January 10 for allegedly misbehaving with and manhandling a patient in September last year. Sex offender notification Detectives with the Flagstaff Police Department would like to make the following Level 3 (high risk to the community) sex offender notification: Leonard Castanon, 51, is living at 4185 E. Huntington Drive in Flagstaff. Castanon was convicted in Graham County Superior Court in 2015 for child molestation of a 4 year old. He is not wanted by police at this time. Notification that Level 2 and Level 3 sex offenders are living in the community is required by Arizona law. Resident abuse of this information to threaten, intimidate or harass sex offenders will not be tolerated by the police department. If residents have information about current criminal activity by any offender, contact the police department at 774-1414. For more information on sex offenders in the Flagstaff area, visit the Arizona Department of Public Safety sex offender Web site at www.azsexoffender.com. City and county residents who want to report a crime but wish to remain anonymous may call Silent Witness at 774-6111 or (877) 29-CRIME, submit a tip online at www.coconinosilentwitness.org, or text the word Flagtip along with your information to 274637 (CRIMES). Rewards of up to $2,000 are given for information that leads to an arrest. Congress today dubbed as "sheer political vendetta" the sanction to CBI to prosecute former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh scam case and warned Modi government that it would not be cowed down by launching of such "false" criminal cases against its leaders. "It is sheer political vendetta. Congress Party will not be cowed down by the spate of such false criminal cases against its leaders," party's chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala said. Earlier, another party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi insisted that Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao's decision to give sanction to CBI to prosecute Chavan in the case is "fully judicially reviewable" and is "legally weak". "Governor's action, especilly after such delay, amounts to review of earlier decision and would be fully judicially reviewable....It is fully challengable and legally weak decision," he said. He was reacting to the Governor's sanction days after the BJP-led government in the state recommended action against the Congress leader. In December 2013, the then Governor K Sankaranarayanan had refused sanction to CBI to prosecute Chavan in the Adarsh housing scam, leaving the agency with no choice but to close the case against him. The Maharashtra Cabinet had recently recommended to the Governor that he should grant sanction to CBI to prosecute Chavan in the case. Chavan had then dubbed the move as "vendetta" by the BJP-led government. Chavan, a Lok Sabha member from Nanded and MPCC president, had to step down as Chief Minister after the scam surfaced in 2010. He was among the 12 persons chargesheeted by the probe agency in connection with the case. CBI had alleged that Chavan suggested inclusion of civilian members in Adarsh Housing Society, meant for war veterans and widows of defence personnel, to secure flats for his relatives in the plush complex situated at Colaba in south Mumbai. Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan today alleged that BJP's "vindictive attitude" was behind the Governor's grant of sanction for prosecuting him in the Adarsh scam case. "The grant of sanction for prosecution and the CBI's decision to move the application has been done at the behest of the BJP," he said. His reactions came after Governor C Vidyasagar Rao today gave sanction to CBI to prosecute the Congress leader in the Adarsh scam case, days after the BJP-led government in the state recommended action against him. Chavan sought to know how could the opinion of a new Governor change with a new government in power in the state. "The (Justice Patil) committee's report is absolutely clear that there was no reservation for land for any Army personnel and the land belonged to the state government. This is just a vindictive attitude of the BJP," Chavan told PTI. "Once the Governor has taken a conscious stand after consulting the highest legal authority in the country, and then issued orders saying he cannot sanction prosecution, if the Governor changes and the government changes, does it mean that the opinion also changes?" he questioned. CBI had alleged that Chavan suggested inclusion of civilian members in Adarsh Housing Society, meant for war veterans and widows of defence personnel, to secure flats for his relatives in the plush complex situated at Colaba in south Mumbai. In December 2013, the then Governor K Sankaranarayanan had refused sanction to CBI to prosecute Chavan in the Adarsh housing scam, leaving the agency with no choice but to close the case against him. Chavan alleged that the BJP was putting "political pressure" on the CBI to take action against him at the behest of some members of the party. "Is BJP MP Kirit Somaiya a part of the government that it endorses his application and the entire process starts? You can see the political interference of the BJP functionaries in the whole process. Why was this issue raked up for the second time? Because of BJP functionaries and their political vendetta behind the issue," he said. "The grant of sanction for prosecution and the CBI's decision to move the application in the first place is on the insistence and pressure from the BJP," the Lok Sabha MP from Nanded said. Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao today gave sanction to CBI to prosecute former chief minister Ashok Chavan in Adarsh scam case, a move which the Congress leader dubbed as "vindictive" action by ruling BJP in the state. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, however, rejected Chavan's charge and defended the decision of his cabinet to give go-ahead in the case, holding there was sufficient ground for that. The Governor's nod came days after the state Government recommended to Governor Rao to give sanction to CBI to prosecute Chavan under section 197 of CrPC, for offences under sections 120-B (conspiracy) and 420 (cheating) of IPC in Adarsh Co-operative Housing Society case. On October 8, 2015, Joint Director CBI, Mumbai, had sought sanction for prosecution of Chavan under section 197 CrPC on the basis of additional or fresh material, like the report of Justice Patil Commission of Inquiry and the observations of the Bombay High Court in the criminal revision application, an official in the Governor's office said. "The Governor had recently sought the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers and was advised by the Council of Ministers to grant the sanction (to CBI)," he added. Chavan, a Lok Sabha member from Nanded and the state Congress president, had to step down as Chief Minister after the scam surfaced in 2010. He was among the 12 persons chargesheeted by the probe agency in connection with the case. CBI had alleged that Chavan suggested inclusion of civilian members in Adarsh Housing Society, meant for war veterans and widows of defence personnel, to secure flats for his relatives in the plush complex situated at Colaba in south Mumbai. In December 2013, the then Governor K Sankaranarayanan had refused sanction to CBI to prosecute Chavan in the Adarsh housing scam, leaving the agency with no choice but to close the case against him. Reacting to the development, Chavan told PTI, "The (Justice Patil) committee's report is absolutely clear that there was no reservation for land for any Army personnel and the land belonged to the state government. This is just a vindictive attitude of the BJP." He alleged that the BJP is putting "political pressure" on the CBI to take action against him at the behest of some members of the party. Refuting the charge, Fadnavis said the Advocate General, who was consulted, had clearly opined that "such permission should be and could be granted" since a new set of facts were discovered after the previous Governor declined permission to prosecute Chavan. "CBI said that after the last Governor rejected permission to prosecute Ashok Chavan, a new set of facts were discovered which clearly proves quid pro quo, that is, he gives permissions and his close relatives get flats. Thus, the CBI once again asked the Governor to permit it to prosecute Chavan," Fadnavis told PTI. More. Aditi Ashok gave her professional career a great start with a strong one-over 74 on the tough par-73 Beach Course at the Oates Victorian Open, here today. The 17-year-old school student, who will play one more event before taking a break for her examinations, had one birdie and two bogeys that placed her Tied-17. Aditi is five shots off the leader, Briton Georgia Hall (69), who leads by three over a group ofeight players who carded one-under 72. In an event that is being played over two courses, Aditi played a very steady round on the more difficult Beach Course. On a windy day when the course also played tough Aditi bogeyed the par-5 fifth. But she quickly made up with a birdie on par-5 11th. On par-3 17th, where the strong headwind made it particularly difficult, Aditi got a late bogey and ended with 74. Aditi's second course will be on the Creek Course. This is Aditi's professional debut and comes after she won the Ladies European Tour Q-School in December. While the Victorian Open is not an LET event, the field includes legends like Laura Davies and Karrie Webb, both of whom were off-colour and shot 77 each. Hall, often touted as a future star, finished with consecutive birdies on the 17th and 18th holes on the Beach Course to shoot a 4 under par round of 69 and will take a three shot lead into tomorrow's round at the other course, the Creek Course. Interestingly at her pro debut at the 2014 Dubai Ladies Masters, Hall shot a hole-in-one to win a Mercedes car, but took cash instead because she was not old enough at the time to hold a driver's license. In the morning reigning women's champion Marianne Skarpnord scored her first tournament hole-in-one on the 12thhole on the Beach Course almost a year to the day after her partner Richard Green achieved the same feat. AirAsia X today rolled out an all inclusive one-way fare for Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from here, starting from as low as Rs 6,790, a day after the airline re-launched its flight services in India. AirAsia X is the long-haul arm of the Malaysian airline AirAsia Berhad. It resumed flight services to Delhi yesterday, four years after discontinuing the route along with Mumbai, citing high airports cost. "We are excited to be here (again) today. We now have stronger foundation to be in the market, complementing the existing route network of our affiliates AirAsia Berhad, Thai AirAsia and AirAsia India, in addition to the growing demand for connectivity between New Delhi and Kuala Lumpur," AirAsia X Chief Executive Officer Ben Ismail said today. He said the airline in its second coming would be selling the network unlike point-to-point travel in the past and focus would be on traffic emanating from India for regions such as Australia, North Central Asia, China and Thailand, among others. "In 2015, our affiliates Malaysia AirAsia and Thai AirAsia carried over one million passengers in and out of India and with AirAsia X's (re) entry into the market, we can provide even more connectivity for our Indian guests to the rest of Asia and Australia through our extensive route network," he added. AirAsia X is offering promotional all-inclusive fares from New Delhi to Kuala Lumpur, starting from as low as Rs 6,790 for standard (economy) seats and Rs 29,990 for premium flatbed seats, the airline said. The tickets under the promotional fares scheme can be booked till February 14, starting today for a travel period between February 4th to June 30, 2016, it said. The merger of subsidiaries of Bharti Airtel and Axiata Group in Bangladesh is credit positive for both the companies, Moody's Investors Service said today. On January 28, Bharti Airtel Limited (Baa3 stable) and Malaysia-based Axiata Group Berhad (Baa2 stable) announced that they had agreed to merge their telecom subsidiaries in Bangladesh. Airtel Bangladesh is wholly owned by Bharti Airtel and Robi Axiata Limited is 91.59 per cent-owned by Axiata and 8.41 per cent-owned by Japan's NTT Docomo. "The merger, which requires regulatory approval, is credit positive for both Bharti Airtel and Axiata," Moody's said in a statement. The merger, which the companies expect to conclude in the first half of the year, will be structured via issuance of ordinary shares, whereby Robi will issue new ordinary shares to Bharti Singapore, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bharti Airtel. After completion of the merger, the companies expect that Axiata will own 58.7 per cent of Robi-Airtel, Bharti Airtel will have 25 per cent and NTT 6.3 per cent, it added. Moody's said the new entity, Robi-Airtel, will have a stronger market position than either Robi or Airtel has on a standalone basis in Bangladesh's highly competitive mobile telecommunications market. Also, it said, the merger will ultimately enhance network quality and coverage and allow operational synergies without adversely affecting the credit quality of either Bharti Airtel or Axiata. "We do not expect Bharti Airtel's and Axiata's metrics to be significantly affected by the merger because the contribution from their respective Bangladeshi subsidiaries is relatively small," it said. Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh today condemned the attack on a Shiv Sena leader in Ludhiana yesterday. "Punjab cannot afford another dark era of violence and bloodshed," he warned, while stressing the need for identifying and punishing the culprits. The PCC president pointed out, this was second such incident in the recent past in Ludhiana as earlier some unidentified gunmen had attacked the RSS volunteers performing their morning drill. "We may and we strongly differ with the ideology of the RSS, Shiv Sena or any other such organisation, at the same time we condemn any act of violence against anyone including the members of these organisations," he added in a statement. He also said, "we must nip the evil in the bud lest it is too late". The Amritsar MP wondered why the state government had not been able to trace the culprits of the earlier attack so far. "Or someone is getting it done deliberately as we have already entered into the election year to reap the electoral harvest out of fear and communal polarisation," he asked. Two unidentified motor cycle borne youth allegedly fired at Shiv Sena leader Amit Arora here at Basti Jodhewal in Ludhiana late last evening. Arora was rushed to the CMC Hospital at Ludhiana where his condition was stated to be serious, police had said, adding that two bullets hit the victim near his neck. However the assailants managed to escape after committing crime. Describing the current political climate in Kerala as "very conducive" for BJP to come to power, party President Amit Shah today urged cadres to make special efforts to woo various sections, including minorities, to ensure its victory in the coming assembly elections. Addressing BJP's Kerala core committee meeting at nearby Aluva, he said the Vimochana Yatra led by state party President Kummanam Rajasekharan had received a "positive" response from the people, party sources said. The current political climate in the state, where the party has so far not been able to open its account either in Lok Sabha or Assembly elections, was "very conducive" for BJP, he said referring to the good show by the party in the recent civic polls and the "positive response" to the yatra. Shah wanted the cadres to make maximum use of the situation and reach out to all sections in the state, including the minority communities, the sources said. "Now we have to generate confidence among the people that the party will come to power," he said, while calling for an action plan at the ward level to galvanise the party. Briefing reporters after the meeting, Rajasekharan, who was recently appointed to the post of state party chief to steer it in the polls, said the party would soon constitute a 15-member election committee to finalise the candidate list. "Several prominent personalities will be in the list," he said. Asked whether he would be in the fray, Rajasekharan, who had been in the forefront of many agitations in the state, said he was "bound to obey whatever decision the party takes". Stating that BJP's doors were "open" and it was ready for alliance with like-minded parties, Rajasekharan said the party, however, had not started the process of discussion in this regard with anyone so far. But, he said, they will hold talks soon with various parties, including BDJS (Bharat Dharma Jana Sena), formed recently by the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP) led by Vellapally Natesan. "The immediate task before the party is to ready the organisational machinery to face the polls," he said. Hitting out at ruling Congress-led UDF and CPI(M)-headed LDF opposition, whose successive governments had ruled alternately and allegedly ruined the state, Rajasekharan said,"So, we are confident that we will get people's vote. The effort is to garner the support of new voters." He said the party had a 15 per cent vote share presently and it needed to increase that and added the BJP was contesting the polls this time to "win and rule". BJP is making all out efforts to break the bipolar politics of UDF and LDF. The party had received a shot in the arm in the civic polls held in November as it increased its vote base and made inroads in several areas. Later, Shah also attended a core committee meeting of party leaders of Tamil Nadu to work out strategies and to strengthen the organisational set up in the state, which is also slated to hold assembly polls in a few months. Besides the state presidents, general secretaries of the party in the two states, Union Ministers -- Prakash Javadaker, in-charge of party affairs in Tamil Nadu, J P Nadda, in-charge of Kerala, and Pon Radhakrishnan -- were among those who attended the meetings. Steps should be taken against three Arab members of Israel's parliament who met this week with families of Palestinians who committed deadly attacks against civilians and security personnel, Israel's Prime Minister has said. Israeli media reports said the families asked for their relatives' bodies to be released to them, and held a moment of silence to honor the "martyrs." "Members of Knesset who go to comfort the families of terrorists who murdered Israelis do not deserve to be in the Israeli Knesset," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said yesterday. "I have asked the Speaker of the Knesset to examine what steps can be taken against them." Israel is struggling to combat almost five months of near-daily Palestinian attacks on civilians and soldiers that have killed 27 Israelis in stabbings, shootings and car-ramming assaults. Meanwhile, some 154 Palestinians, the majority of whom Israel says were attackers, have been killed by Israeli forces. The Arab lawmakers from the Joint List, an alliance of Arab-backed parties, met with the Palestinian families on Tuesday. Among them was the father of a Palestinian who on Oct. 13, 2015 carried out one of the deadliest attacks in recent months, Israeli media reported. Two Palestinian men boarded a bus in Jerusalem that day and began shooting and stabbing passengers, while another assailant rammed a car into a bus station before stabbing bystanders. Three Israelis were killed and several other people were wounded. The Arab parliamentarians, Hanin Zoabi, Basel Ghattas and Jamal Zahalka, reportedly said they would help the families get back the bodies of their family members. Israel has said it is holding the attackers' bodies due to security concerns. The issue has become a sore point with Palestinians. Posters of the dead are plastered on walls in east Jerusalem and the West Bank, and residents hold frequent demonstrations calling for the bodies' release. About two dozen bodies were transferred to the Palestinians last month. The three Arab lawmakers have angered mainstream Israelis before. Zoabi boycotted the playing of the national anthem when she was sworn into Israel's parliament. Israel's Arabs make up a fifth of the country's 8.4 million people. They enjoy full citizen rights but often face unfair treatment in areas such as housing and employment opportunities. Loss of ice in Antarctica caused by a warming ocean could raise global sea levels by three metres, a new study has warned. Researchers from the University of Edinburgh and University of Northumbria in the UK assessed the landscape to determine how the West Antarctic ice sheet might respond to increasing global temperatures. In the first study of its kind, researchers were able to gauge how levels of ice covering the land have changed over hundreds of thousands of years. They did so by studying peaks protruding through ice in the Ellsworth Mountains, on the Atlantic flank of Antarctica. Researchers assessed changes on slopes at various heights on the mountainside, which indicate levels previously reached by the ice sheet. They also mapped the distribution of boulders on the mountainside, which were deposited by melting glaciers. Chemical technology - known as exposure dating - showed how long rocks had been exposed to the atmosphere, and their age. The results indicate that during previous warm periods, a substantial amount of ice would have been lost from the West Antarctic ice sheet by ocean melting, but it would not have melted entirely. This suggests that ice would have been lost from areas below sea level, but not on upland areas. The study shows that parts of the West Antarctic ice sheet have existed continuously for at least 1.4 million years. "Our findings narrow the margin of uncertainty around the likely impact of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet on sea level rise," said Andrew Hein from University of Edinburgh. "This remains a troubling forecast since all signs suggest the ice from West Antarctica could disappear relatively quickly," Hein said. "It is possible that the ice sheet has passed the point of no return and, if so, the big question is how much will go and how much will sea levels rise," added John Woodward from the University of Northumbria. The findings were published in the journal Nature Communications. Flagstaff is inching closer to getting a long-term care veterans home. House Bill 2329, which would set aside $10 million in the state budget for the home passed the House Committee on Military Affairs and Public Safety by a 6 to 2 vote. Representatives Eddie Farnsworth and Mark Finchem were the only members of the committee to vote against it. The bill now moves forward to the House Appropriations Committee and then the Rules Committee before making it to the floor of the House. Mayor Jerry Nabours, Councilmembers Jeff Oravits and Karla Brewster and Flagstaff resident and Commander of the Military Order of the Purple Heart State of Arizona Billy Weldon traveled to Phoenix Thursday to testify in support of the bill. A similar bill, sponsored by Sen. Sylvia Allen, is making its way through the Senates Public Safety, Military and Technology Committee. That bill is supposed to come up for discussion at 9 a.m. next Wednesday. If it passes, it will have to pass the Senate Appropriations Committee and then the Senate Rules Committee before it reaches the Senate floor for a vote. If the bills are approved by the Legislature they will be sent to Gov. Doug Duceys office. If the governor approves the money will be set aside in the state budget. The $10 million is about a third of the cost to build the home, Oravits said. Once the state sets aside the money, the federal government will put the project on a waiting list for funds to cover the remaining $20 million price tag. Oravits said the citys contacts in Washington, D.C. have said that they dont think Flagstaffs request will stay on the waiting list long. We could see it started in the next two to three years, he said. Director General of Military Operations Lt Gen Ranbir Singh today declined his Pakistani counterpart's offer for help in rescuing Indian soldiers buried under snow after an avalanche hit their post in Siachen Glacier, saying necessary resources have already been put in place. Army sources said Pakistan's DGMO Maj Gen Amir Riaz called up earlier in the day and offered help. They said such calls are routine whenever any incident happens near the border. "During the conversation, he offered Pakistani help which was declined for now saying that enough resources have been put in place," the sources siad. Incidentally, the offer of help came over 30 hours after the incident. Ten soldiers of an army post, located at an altitude of 19,600 feet, were hit by a massive avalanche in the early hours yesterday. Rescue operations by specialized teams of the army and the air force continued for the second day today amid fears that they may be dead. "It is a tragic event and we salute the soldiers who braved all challenges to guard our frontiers and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty," Lt Gen D S Hooda, Army Commander, Northern Command, said. Snow cutters and specialised equipment were flown into Leh to further boost the rescue efforts. The glaciated area experiences temperatures ranging from a minimum of minus 42 degrees in the night to maximum of minus 25 degrees during the day. Rescue teams are braving adverse weather and effects of rarified atmosphere to locate and rescue survivors. "However, it is with deepest of regrets that we have to state that chances of finding any survivors are now very remote," an Army statement had said. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said he will turn himself over to British police tomorrow if a UN panel rules he has not been arbitrarily detained, after spending years in the Ecuadoran embassy in London. "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," he said in a statement today. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me." Assange has been holed up in the Ecuadoran embassy in west London for more than three years in a bid to avoid extradition to Sweden over rape allegations, a charge he has denied. The Australian WikiLeaks founder fears he could eventually face extradition to the US to be put on a trial over the leak of hundreds of thousands of classified military and diplomatic documents. In September 2014, he filed a complaint against Sweden and Britain to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention claiming his confinement in the embassy amounts to illegal detention. Any decision by the group would not be legally binding, but other people have reportedly been released in the past on the basis of its rulings. Australia is hopeful of securing a free-trade agreement with India "sometime this year", trade and investment minister said today after the country signed the historic Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement with 11 other nations. Andrew Robb, with his counterparts from 11 other nations signed the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) deal in Auckland in New Zealand. He said the agreement brings'enormous promise across both traditional areas of trade and investment and so-called 21st century areas like e-commerce and increasingly important global value chains. "The tariff cuts will deliver material gains for our exporters across the board and place downward pressure on the cost of imported goods for households and businesses, but the benefits that will flow from the creation of a more seamless trading environment are not well understood," Robb said. The minister expressed hope of securing a free trade agreement (FTA)with India 'sometimes this year', a local TV channel reported. He said "there are some quite sensitive issues but we are making good progress," the report said. According to a feasibility study conducted by both the countries jointly, the comprehensive FTA is likely to result in India gaining between 0.15 and 1.14 per cent of its GDP, while Australia would end up with the gains between 0.23 and 1.17 per cent of its GDP. The two-way trade between India and Australia stood at USD 12.12 billion in 2014-15. India's foreign investment into Australia is worth USD 11 billion. While, Australia has invested only USD 649.37 million during April 2000 and January 2015 in India. Robb further said the TPP would see the elimination of 98 per cent of tariffs among the 12 states. "The tariff cuts will deliver material gains for our exporters across the board and place downward pressure on the cost of imported goods for households and businesses, but the benefits that will flow from the creation of a more seamless trading environment are not well understood," he said. "The embrace of paperless trading, streamlined customs procedures and trading rules, assistance for SMEs, more seamless data flows and greater flexibility with data storage, are all features of the TPP," he added. The agreement also contains provisions to help stimulate new investment and as experience shows, when you deepen trading relations increased investment inevitably follows, he said. The US-led TPP agreement sets in place common rules for labour, the environment and for the first time in a trade treaty, rules to combat bribery and corruption. It will also ensure private companies and businesses are able to effectively compete against State Owned Enterprises (SOEs). Robb saidthe agreement will promote the expansion and diversification of Australia's world-class services sector by liberalising key barriers, providing more transparent and predictable operating conditions, and it will capture future services sector reforms. He said the TPP, which was open to other countries to join in the future, offered a pathway to a free trade area across the entire Asia Pacific region. "Given its reach and potential this is an agreement we simply cannot afford not to be part of," he added. The TPP is the world's most significant trade and investment agreement finalised in more than two decades with member countries accounting for around 40 per cent of global GDP. Australia's exports of goods and services to these countries were worth USD 109 billion last year - a third of Australia's total exports. In 2014, Australian investment in TPP countries was 45 per cent of all outward investment. Tariffs will be eliminated on USD 9 billion of Australia's dutiable exports to TPP countries, including USD 4.3 billion worth of agricultural goods with new levels of access for beef, dairy, sugar, rice, grains and wine. The TPP members include: Brunei, Chile, New Zealand, Singapore, Australia, Canada, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, the US and Vietnam. Australia was resisting mounting pressure not to deport child asylum seekers, with a minister warning today that allowing them to stay could attract more refugees to come by boat. Australia's three-year-old policy of paying the tiny Pacific nation of Nauru to accommodate asylum seekers who attempt to reach Australian shores by boat survived a challenge in the High Court yesterday. The test case ruling means 267 asylum seekers, most of whom came from Nauru to Australia for medical treatment or to support a family member who needed treatment, face potential deportation back to Nauru. Immigration Minister Peter Dutton today said that asylum seekers, including children, would be returned to Nauru once their medical needs had been met. "We have to be compassionate on one hand, but we have to be realistic about the threat from people smugglers," Dutton told Australian Broadcasting Corp. Radio. "We're acting in the best interests not only of these children, but children that would follow them," he added. The government has all but stopped the trafficking of asylum seekers from the Middle East and Asia in rickety Indonesian fishing boats during the past two years by refusing to allow new arrivals to ever settle in Australia. The government argues that the policy has saved lives because asylum seekers were no longer drowning at sea during long and treacherous voyages from Indonesian ports. Human rights agencies have called for the asylum seekers to be allowed to stay, with most focus on the 54 children and 37 Australian-born babies among them. Several churches around Australia have declared themselves places of sanctuary for asylum seekers facing deportation, a symbolic gesture that carries no legal consequences for authorities. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Rupert Colville, said legal amendments legislated by the government last year to safeguard its deal with Nauru against the High Court challenge "significantly contravenes the letter and spirit of human rights law." The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child reminded Australia that under the terms of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the best interests of the asylum seeker children should be a primary consideration in deciding whether to deport them. The Australian Human Rights Commission, a government-funded independent agency, reported that a medical team that had examined children held an immigration detention center in the Australian city of Darwin found that many had been severely traumatized by their experiences on Nauru. The government said this week is investigating a doctor's report that a 5-year-old boy currently in Australia had been raped on Nauru. An Iranian opposition website is reporting authorities have detained a former BBC Persian service reporter. A late report yesterday by Kaleme.Com says judiciary officers detained Bahman Daroshafaei on Wednesday morning in his residence did not elaborate on the reason. Daroshafaei, who left the BBC Persian service in London about two years ago, was working as translator of political books and novels. The detention took place as Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif arrived in London today to participate in a meeting on Syria. Calls to judiciary officials were not immediately returned today, part of the weekend in Iran. The move is part of a crackdown on journalists and activists by hard-liners ahead of highly anticipated parliamentary elections scheduled for later this month. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu implicitly accused Russia of "war crimes" today in comments at a donor conference in London, warning that the Syrian city of Aleppo was under "heavy attack" by Russian warplanes. "The root cause is the war crimes committed by Syrian regime then war crimes committed by Daesh," said Davutoglu, who spoke in English and referred to Islamic State using another Arabic name. "Those who are helping Assad regime are committing same war crimes," he said. Two unidentified youth today shot at and injured a bank clerk and looted Rs 45 lakh which was to be loaded in an ATM in Civil Lines area here, police said. Manoj Kumar was shot at by the youth riding a motorcycle when he was going to load Rs 45 lakh in Bank of India's ATM at Kalpana Nagar this evening, Superintendent of Police Manjil Saini said. The two miscreants snatched the bag in which the money was kept and fled from the spot, she said. The borders of the city have been sealed and investigation is underway in this regard, the SP said. Bank manager Satya Narain said that Kumar left the bank along with driver Shivam. Expressing shock over the incident in which a Tanzanian woman was allegedly stripped by a mob in Bengaluru, CPI today asked BJP and Congress to not engage in political sparring over such a "sensitive" issue. After BJP targeted Congress over the episode, CPI national secretary D Raja said, "BJP and Congress should not stoop low as far as public discourse is concerned." He asked "why such a sensitive issue is being made a matter of duel between the two parties?" "They (BJP, Congress) should think in terms of the nation. Such an incident could have happened in Gujarat also," Raja said. The Rajya Sabha MP said the incident has underscored the need for raising the level of social awareness among countrymen towards foreigners, particularly those from Africa. Terming the incident "shameful", Raja said it should not have occurred in the first place, especially in a cosmopolitan city like Bengaluru, which draws quite a lot of visitors from other countries. "As a nation we can create collective awareness. Our approach towards foreigners, particularly those from African countries, needs to change," he said. Raja urged the Congress-led Karnataka government to ensure stern action is taken against those involved. A 21-year-old Tanzanian student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car in Bengaluru on Sunday night. Five persons have been arrested in this connection. Earlier in the day, BJP targeted Congress for its "hypocrisy" in not initiating action against the culprits in the case and questioned party Vice President Rahul Gandhi's "silence" over the incident. The party accused the Congress government in Karnataka of covering up the incident and said its "inaction" has brought disrepute to Bengaluru. BJP today targeted Congress for its "hypocrisy" in not initiating action against the culprits in the Tanzanian woman stripping case in Bengaluru and questioned Rahul Gandhi's "silence" over the incident that happened right under the nose of his party government. The party accused the Congress government in Karnataka of covering up the incident and said its "inaction" has brought disrepute to Bangalore city. It also demanded immediate action, including transfer of DGP and suspension of police officers concerned. "Such a big incident has happened and so much time has passed, still Rahul and Congress are silent for something that has happened under the very nose of their government there. No action has been taken. This shows how much hypocrisy is there in them and how they play hypocritical politics," Union Minister and senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said. "It is shameful that those who are experts in creating a mountain out of a molehill have suddenly turned silent and their silence seems to justify such an unfortunate incident," Naqvi said. A Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car in the city. The 21-year-old Tanzanian, who is doing her Bachelor of Business Management course, was dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends on Sunday night. Naqvi said the incident is very unfortunate and "certainly the Congress is answerable for it". Further attacking Rahul Gandhi and Congress, he said they create problems even when there are none and hold dharnas and demonstrations to vitiate the atmosphere. State BJP spokesperson S Prakash said, "I feel the government made attempts to cover up the incident. Only when the media exposed, it had no other chance but to take action. However, so far no concrete action has been initiated. No officer has been suspended. Immediately, they should transfer the DGP, ACP and Inspector should be suspended." He said it is the "inaction" that resulted in such a tragic and shameful incident, which has brought disrepute to the peaceful Bangalore city. Congress leader P C Chacko, however, said Rahul Gandhi is very much alert to these issues and has sought government's opinion on this. "What he wants is the government should act. Rahulji wants the Karnataka government to act and very stringent action is to be taken by the government. That is what the vice president wants," he said. Terming the incident as "horrible", Chacko said if foreigners are not safe in the country, India cannot progress in today's world. He also said that Bangalore is a city which receives everyone from all over and its character should not be allowed to be lost. (REOPENS DEL18) Union Minority Affairs Minister Najma Heptulla also deplored the incident, saying such cases tarnish the country's image globally and insisted the state government take stern action. "This is condemnable, absolutely condemnable...What happened to girls who come here to learn, in Delhi and other places, this is very sad. This tarnishes the country's image. Government must take whatever action stern required," she told reporters. German luxury carmaker BMW today said it plans to launch the all-new Mini Convertible in India later this year. The new Mini Convertible will be launched as a completely built-up unit (CBU) in first half of the year. The company also confirmed the introduction of Mini Clubman in India in the near future. "It's the unmistakable Mini charisma that grips the hearts of Mini fans everywhere in the world. With the launch of the all-new Mini Convertible and the all-new Mini Clubman, Mini will continue its success story," BMW Group India President Philipp von Sahr told reporters here. The Mini model range in India presently includes Mini Cooper S 3-door, Mini Cooper D 3-door, Mini Cooper D 5-door, Mini Convertible and Mini Countryman D. Mini has established four exclusive outlets in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad. For those not into golf, FORE! means take cover, and when followed by left, it means take cover on the left... Thai police today said multiple body parts found floating in Bangkok's main river belong to a Spanish businessman who was likely kidnapped and extorted before he was murdered. The gruesome case has dominated Thai media coverage in recent days with television networks airing grim footage of officers hauling human appendages out of the city's Chao Praya river. The first body part was discovered on Sunday with six additional finds since then at different locations along the river. General Panya Maman, the officer leading the murder investigation, told reporters today the victim was a Spanish businessman who entered Thailand on January 19. "I am convinced that within next 48 hours this case will be resolved and that all perpetrators are foreign gangsters - although we suspect that some Thai nationals may have had knowledge (of the crime)," he said. An official at the Spanish embassy said they had yet to receive confirmation of the victim's identity. AFP is withholding the man's name until his family is notified. Panya said the murder likely took place between January 25 and 27. Detectives are working on the theory that he was kidnapped and coerced before he was killed. "Police have also detected that after his death they (his killers) transferred his money to several countries including Singapore, Spain and within Thailand," Panya said. Investigators initially struggled to identify the victim. Earlier in the week police said they believed the man was of Asian origin and suggested that Chinese triads might have been involved because of the method chosen to dispose of the body. The wide Chao Praya winds its way through Bangkok, which boasts a large networks of canals, and it is not unusual for bodies to be dumped in the city's waterways. Calling the Bengaluru mob action against a Tanzanian woman an act of "injustice" and "disgust", Bollywood stars Hrithik Roshan, Anil Kapoor and Sonakshi Sinha have said the perpetrators cannot be forgiven for the attack. The 21-year-old girl was allegedly beaten up and stripped by the mob after a woman was mowed down by a car in the city. Hrithik tweeted, "Injustice like this shames the entire human race. The ones who did wrong must be made to understand and repent!" "No apology is enough for the horror this girl from Tanzania was made to suffer!! Shameful..!" posted Farhan Akhtar. Director Punit Malhotra wrote, "What happened with the Tanzanian student is just sad, shameful & disgusting. I wish nothing short of capital punishment for the culprits." "To anyone that calls herself/himself a proud Indian, the Bengaluru incident is shameful & reeks of intolerance, racism & sheer inhumanity!" said Anil. Sonakshi posted, "What is wrong with people? What happened in bengaluru was sickening to say the least. I hope everyone who did that to the girl pays. Karma." Producer Ritesh Sidhwani tweeted, "Shocked disappointed & depressed on hearing about the #Bengaluru incident... The police standing there watching. Indian Govt Wake Up. A phone call today claiming that a bomb had been planted inside the West Bengal secretariat 'Nabanna' that houses Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's office, turned out to be hoax. The call was received at the PBX of 'Nabanna' when the Chief Minister was present in her office on the 14th floor. Police was immediately informed of about the phone call, Joint Commissioner Kolkata Police (Headquarters) Supratim Sarkar said. Kolkata Police, its bomb detection and disposal squad, dog squad, special branch, detective department along with Howrah Police and other security agencies immediately rushed to 'Nabanna' and conducted a thorough search on all the floors, Sarkar said. Senior police officers monitored the drill at the Secretariat which houses many important departments and offices of a number of ministers. Along with different floors, the roof of the building too was checked throughly by the bomb and dog squads, besides the parking and other places around the building. The call turned out to be a hoax as nothing was found in the hours-long search operation, Sarkar said. Security in and around the entire Secretariat has been beefed up following the incident, he added. The British government today announced $1.74 billion in aid for war-torn Syria and its neighbours, ahead of a donors' conference in London. "More money is needed to tackle this crisis and it is needed now," Prime Minister David Cameron said in a statement announcing the pledge, which will fund education, jobs and humanitarian relief in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. The promise amounts to an extra 1.2 billion pound, to be spent between 2016 and 2020, to address "the world's biggest humanitarian crisis", Cameron's office said. Britain has already agreed to spend 1.12 billion pound on the region. It comes as world leaders are due to gather in London to try to raise $9 billion for the millions of Syrians affected by five years of civil war and to address an acute refugee crisis. The conflict has forced 4.6 million Syrians to seek refuge in nearby countries -- Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt -- while hundreds of thousands have journeyed to Europe in the region's biggest migration crisis since World War II. "With hundreds of thousands of people risking their lives crossing the Aegean or the Balkans, now is the time to take a new approach to the humanitarian disaster in Syria," Cameron said. Donors will have to dig deeper than the last conference in 2015, when UN agencies asked for $8.4 billion to help Syria and its neighbours, but raised just $3.3 billion. The organisers have already agreed that participants should at least "double" their contributions from last year. Aid from the conference will be targeted at helping the economies of Syria's neighbours, creating jobs for refugees and citizens of their host countries, according to the release. It will also go towards food, shelter, medical care and rebuilding health facilities in Syria itself. Speaking ahead of the conference, Norway's Minister for Foreign Affairs Borge Brende said there was a "moral imperative, human imperative" to act. "It's a lost generation if we're not successful tomorrow," Brende said. Police swarmed the British School in Chanakyapuri's diplomatic area here today and searched the premises for an hour after a threat call warned of an attack with an AK-47 rifle. "The school authorities informed us about receiving a call at around 1 PM. The caller claimed he was armed with an AK-47 and threatened to kill all students," DCP, New Delhi, Jatin Narwal said. "Several police teams were rushed to the school and its entry and exit points closed. A thorough search was conducted in classrooms, washrooms and storerooms for an hour. It turned out to be a hoax call," he said. Though no case has been registered in this regard so far, efforts are on to trace the caller and probe is underway, Narwal said. "We safely sent all the students back home after police informed us it was a hoax call and there was no threat. The campus is secure and everybody is home. All the security protocols are in place at the school," Director of the school Vanita Uppal told PTI. In a message sent to all parents, the school authorities said, "The school was under lock-down for the last one hour. Police have given an 'all clear' and all students and staff are safe. Students were moved out in a safe and controlled manner, after school activities are cancelled. Buses will be delayed by 10-15 minutes. Kung Fu legend Bruce Lee will soon be adorning walls of homes in the country and outside, thanks to the coir of 'God's Own Country' Kerala. The state-run Kerala State Coir Corporation Ltd (KSCC) has designed a new wall-hanging made in coir with the face of Bruce Lee, the martial arts master known for his lightning quick kicks. The Bruce Lee wall-hanging, created by an in-house designer of the Alappuzha-based Corporation, is an attraction in the international pavilion of the ongoing 'Coir Kerala 2016', which will conclude here tomorrow, a release said. "We are targeting both the domestic and international market for the wall-hanging with the face of the Kung Fu master," KSCC Chairman Rajendra Prasad said here. "It is expected to be popular in China as well as the United States, where the Chinese-born actor lived," said KSCC Managing Director G N Nair. The wall-hanging has a coir base, on which the water colour painting was done after a bleaching process. A spray gun painting on a stencil plate was used to create the portrait of Bruce Lee, said designer Rajeevan P R, a KSCC employee in Alappuzha. KSCC's wall-hanging based on the famous Mona Lisa painting had been a huge attraction at last year's 'Coir Kerala', along with a portrait of musician Bob Marley. Another KSCC wall-hanging which is drawing visitors this year is one with a portrait and message of former President A P J Abdul Kalam, also designed in-house by the Corporation. The wall-hangings based on portraits of famous personalities is produced under the Corporation's Coircraft brand. In a bid to boost investor confidence, top stock exchange BSE today partnered with IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, to develop a scorecard, which will help companies assess their corporate governance performances as compared to national or international benchmarked practices. The 'Corporate Governance Scorecard' would enable firms to identify areas of further improvement and track progress. It can also be used to make board processes more efficient, improve strategy, aid decision making and manage risks. "Ultimately corporate governance decides the companies will issue what kind of information to the investors," BSE Managing Director and CEO Ashishkumar Chauhan told PTI. "Many times corporates may think that they are doing best in compliances and corporate governance, but with the scorecard you can know where exactly you stand overall vis a vis overall framework. They will get to know how much they are complying and in what time frame," he said. Chauhan also said the work on scorecard has begun fro, today with IFC holding a workshop. "Over the next 12 months it will be done in different parts of the country and corporates CFOs and compliance officers will be called and explained the meaning of it and how to measure themselves," he said. "This familiar framework has given good result in Brazil," he pointed out. "IFC is involved in strengthening corporate governance worldwide and developing an India-specific scorecard is a step in the right direction," IFC's global manager corporate governance Darrin R Hartzler said. "It will result in greater transparency among companies, enhancing investor confidence, access to capital, economic development, and growth," Hartzler said. India is International Finance Corporation's (IFC) top country exposure with committed portfolio of over USD 5 billion as of June 30. In the current fiscal, it has committed USD 1.4 billion in new investments. In addition to strengthening local capital markets in India, IFC is focused on boosting financing in infrastructure and logistics, promoting financial inclusion, among others. The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) is examining alleged malpractices in the lottery being run by the Mizoram government, officials today said. The exercise was slated to be completed within two months as important documents had already been collected from the agency, Institutional Finance and State Lottery (IFSL), officials in the Principal Accountant General's office here said. Opposition Mizo National Front (MNF) has alleged that crores of rupees were lost annually due to malpractices by government employees. MNF had also alleged that Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla had accorded undue favour to a lottery agent after overruling the decision of the Mizoram State Lottery Committee (MSLC). Lal Thanhawla has said there is nothing wrong in the state government running lotteries and expressed hope that the inquiry would bring out the truth. A car robber who was fleeing with stolen vehicle was nabbed after a chase and an encounter with police even as his accomplice managed to escape. Assistant Superintendent of Police Ashish Srivastava told PTI that the police control room received information that some robbers had stolen a car at gun point from one Ramesh Bhati from near Aradhana cinema around 11 pm yesterday. Police teams immediately launched a chase. Finding themselves cornered, the robbers opened fire to which the police relatiated. One of the robbers and a constable were injured in the encounter. The injured accused Raheem of Pasonda village was arrested and taken to hospital while his accomplice managed to escape, police said, adding that a hunt has been launched to nab him. About Me Bagsy Born Beeston, Notts 1946, my family moved to Dorset 1959. Joined the Royal Navy age 15 years and 50 days serving 10 years. In frigates firstly then over 5 years in the Submarine Service as a Seaman/Diver, reaching the dizzy heights of Leading Seaman, before leaving to join the Merchant Service, working in Ocean Salvage and Harbour Tugs, passenger / cargo ships, trials vessels, etc. Qualified as Mate (Chief Officer) in 1976 and as Master (Captain) in 1978. For my final 20 years of 47 I worked in the Offshore Oil Industry initially on the drilling rig Stena Hunter, then the accommodation barge Borgland Dolphin and finally the Floating Production Platform Buchan Alpha. On the rigs I forged a number of long lasting friendships several of whom shared some of my extensive travels. Setting foot on Caymen, Bermuda, Bahamas and The Azores in March 2013 brought my countries / autonimous regions total to 148. The best, undoubtedly, was Antarctica, followed by Australia, Mongolia, Belize, Zimbabwe, China and Madagascar, in no particular order. Love to all our readers, your in my thoughts. Bagsy View my complete profile The government is mulling over giving more autonomy to Tribal Research Institutes so they can offer PhD degrees and recruit experts while carrying out higher-level research work in tribal studies. "There is a plan to give TRIs more autonomy in academic and financial matters so that they can recruit domain experts for research work and have adequate physical infrastructure," a senior Tribal Ministry official said. The ministry also intends to set up a national-level apex body to coordinate activities of TRIs across the country to train manpower, share best practices and disseminate information. "Also, it was suggested that one TRI in each region of the country will be selected to promote them as top research centres and to coordinate the work of TRIs in the region. "Research done by TRIs will be also subjected to peer review to ascertain its quality. Reports of TRIs will be put up in public domain," the official said. Meanwhile, the National Training Resource Centre (NTRC), Orissa, has been designated as nodal institute to coordinate activities of TRIs, work as body of knowledge and research, support evidence-based policy, planning and legislations, capacity building and disseminate information, among others. According to the official, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had called for a greater role for TRIs in making policies for tribals. Union Tribal Minister Jual Oram had written to several Chief Ministers, noting that TRIs, which were constituted for research and documentation of socio-cultural and liguistic aspects of tribal life, have become weak over the years. "Posts are not being filled up. While funds are released by the Union government of India for the TRIs, their release is delayed due to numerous factors," he said. He had said that sometimes when a project is approved by the Centre, it needs approval of state government "which appears redundant because the project has been sanctioned in consultation with the state governments". Congress in Gujarat today distanced itself from party MP Pravin Rashtrapal's reported comment that if the Patels wants reservation they should marry their daughters in the Dalit community. Rashtrapal has denied making such a remark. In a statement here, State Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi said views expressed by Rashtrapal yesterday were personal and the party does not endorse them. Speaking at a party function in Gandhinagar, the Rajya Sabha MP, a Dalit, reportedly said if others want the benefits of reservation, they should marry their daughters with Dalit men. His remarks came at a time when the Patel community in Gujarat is demanding reservation in Goverment jobs and educational institutes under OBC category. Rashtrapal claimed he never made such remarks and spoke only about the need for reservation system. "I never said anything like that. That was a programme organised by Congress as part of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar's birth anniversary celebrations. I have not made any comment about Patel community or their ongoing agitation for reservation. I just spoke about why reservation is necessary," Rashtrapal told PTI. Meanwhile, a splinter group of PAAS (Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti organised protests at Gandhi Ashram to condemn Rashtrapal's alleged comments. In a statement, their leader Nachiket Mukhi said Congress must apologise for derogatory remarks by their MP. The main PAAS group, which is spearheading the quota stir, said its leaders are still verifying veracity of the comments. "It is too early to give any reaction, as we don't know what he exactly said in his address yesterday. We will first verify the facts and then take a decision (on protest)," said PAAS Ahmedabad Convener Atul Patel. The BJP today said any alliance between the Congress and the Left Front in West Bengal ahead of the Assembly elections will be suicidal for both the parties. "Both the Left and the Congress should contest the elections on their own. There are talks of an alliance between them ahead of the Assembly elections. This is happening only because they are afraid of the BJP. If this alliance happens, it will be suicidal for both the parties," Kailash Vijayvargiya, BJP National General Secretary and observer for West Bengal told reporters here. Criticising the ruling Trinamool Congress, the BJP leader said "The TMC government has failed on all fronts in Bengal. I am sure if BJP workers at the grass roots level pull up their socks and work hard, we will come to power in the state." Commenting on the suicide of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula in Hyderabad, the BJP leader said "Any death is tragic. Only the mother who has lost her son, feels the torment. One should not play politics over deaths." Vijayvargiya met BJP leaders from Alipurduars, Cooch Behar, Jalpaiguri and Siliguri and discussed strategies for the coming Assembly elections. Coming to the rescue of a UP-based runaway Hindu-Muslim couple, who got married in Delhi, a court here today refused to grant their custody to the Uttar Pradesh police. The 21-year-old girl, hailing from a Hindu family, deposed before Metropolitan Magistrate Babru Bhan that she has willingly come to Delhi with the 22-year-old Muslim youth fearing honour killing and tied nuptial knot with him in a Masjid here. The magistrate rejected the plea of UP police to take the couple with them for the purpose of investigation and recording the girl's statement. The court's direction came after an organisation which has given shelter to the couple here cited the Supreme Court judgements that the police need not take the girl with them for recording her statement and it can be done before a magistrate here. Advocate S C Joshi and Sanjoy Sachdev, Chairman of Love Commandos, an organisation which helps love birds, told the court that the couple was staying in their shelter home here and they have threat to lives from their families. Sachdev said his organisation had informed UP police and other authorities on January 8 that the couple has come to them in Delhi but even then the UP police registered an FIR for the alleged offence of kidnapping against the youth after a complaint was lodged by the girl's father. The girl and the youth belong to Maharajganj district in UP and had eloped as their families disapproved of their relationship and made it clear that they cannot marry as they belonged to two different religions, he said. The UP police sought assistance of Delhi Police in taking the couple's custody. The Delhi Police asked its counterpart to approach the competent court here and the matter was first placed before Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sudhanshu Kaushik who sent the case to Bhan after two other magistrates recused from recording the girl's statement. A Delhi court has dismissed the anticipatory bail plea of former MLA Rambeer Shokeen, who has been chargesheeted along with alleged gangster Neeraj Bawana and others in a case under the MCOCA, saying there was incriminating evidence showing he had played an active role in a crime syndicate. Additional Sessions Judge Rakesh Pandit denied relief to Shokeen, who was declared a proclaimed offender by the court on August 26 last year, observing he had harboured the other co-accused in the alleged crime syndicate run by Neeraj. "The anticipatory bail application moved on behalf of accused Rambeer Shokeen is dismissed as being not maintainable in view of Section 21 of the MCOCA and also on merits since there is incriminating evidence on record which shows that this accused has harboured other co-accused and thus, playing an active role in the syndicate run by accused Pankaj Sehrawat and Neeraj Sehrawat," the judge said. Shokeen, who has been evading arrest in the case, had sought anticipatory bail claiming that no role has been assigned to him in the police charge sheet and there was no admissible evidence to show that he was connected with the alleged organised activities of Neeraj. The Special Cell of Delhi Police opposed his bail plea saying that Shokeen was an active member and the political face of the organised crime syndicate. The court is currently hearing arguments on framing of charges in the case. The police has chargesheeted 10 persons, including Neeraj and Shokeen, for alleged offences punishable under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) provisions. In its charge sheet, police has said Neeraj belonged to a lower middle class family but enjoyed a lavish lifestyle from the money generated through the syndicate. Besides Neeraj and Shokeen, the police has chargesheeted Neeraj's elder brother Pankaj Sehrawat and other arrested members of the syndicate -- Sunil Rathi, Amit Malik alias Bhura, Naveen Dabas, Rahul Dabas, Naveen Hooda, Deepak Dabas and Gurpreet Singh in the case. The police, which has named 163 persons as prosecution witnesses in the case, claimed that these accused were involved in several criminal cases. A Delhi court today ordered framing of charges against three former CWG Organising Committee (OC) officials and others, including two UK-based firms, in a case of alleged financial bungling during the 2009 Queen's Baton Relay (QBR) in London before the mega sporting event here. Special Judge Ajay Kumar Jain ordered framing of charges against the six accused for alleged offences under section 120-B (criminal conspiracy) read with sections 420 (cheating), 468 (forgery for the purpose of cheating) and 471 (using as genuine a forged document) of the IPC and under relevant provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The court observed in its order that these accused were prima facie found to have committed the alleged offences. "List the matter for framing of charge for February 23. All the accused persons are directed to be present on the next date of hearing," the court said in its order. The court directed OC' s former Deputy Director General Sanjay Mahendroo, former Treasurer M Jaychandran, London-based businessman Ashish Patel and his two firms M/s A M Car and Van Hire Ltd and A M Films UK Ltd, to remain present before it on February 23 for formal framing of charges. Charges were also ordered to be framed against OC's then Joint Director General T S Darbari. All the accused have denied the allegations levelled against them by CBI. The CBI had lodged two separate cases against the ex-OC officials but had filed a combined charge sheet in the court. All the accused are on bail as the CBI had not filed the charge sheet within the statutory time limit of 60 days after the arrest of accused in corruption cases. Patel was summoned as accused after the court took cognisance of CBI's charge sheet filed in the case. In its charge sheet, CBI had alleged that the OC members had conspired to award contracts for local transportation and other services to Patel's firms at exorbitant rates during the 2009 QBR event held in London. These three former OC officials were booked for alleged irregularities in payments made to A M Car and Van Hire Ltd for transportation services during the QBR. According to CBI, while AM Films was awarded the work of installing three video screens near Buckingham Palace during the event, A M Cars was given the contract for providing logistics. US Secretary of State John Kerry has accused Moscow and Damascus of seeking a military solution to the war in Syria rather than a political, after peace talks were suspended. Kerry's strongly worded remarks came hours after the peace talks were suspended yesterday and as the Kremlin, a staunch ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, vowed there would be no let-up in its controversial air campaign. "The continued assault by Syrian regime forces -- enabled by Russian air strikes -- against opposition-held areas, as well as regime and allied militias' continued besiegement of hundreds of thousands of civilians, have clearly signaled the intention to seek a military solution rather than enable a political one," Kerry said in a statement. The United States and France had earlier condemned the Russian bombing around Syria's second city of Aleppo and Kerry again called for an immediate end to the bombardment. "It is past time for them to meet existing obligations and restore the community's confidence in their intentions of supporting a peaceful resolution to the Syrian crisis," Kerry said, addressing the Syrian regime "and its supporters." He added, "During this pause (in the talks), the world needs to push in one direction -- toward stopping the oppression and suffering of the Syrian people and ending, not prolonging, this conflict." Backed by external powers embroiled in Syria's war, the faltering peace negotiations are seeking to end a conflict that has killed more than 260,000 people and fueled the meteoric rise of the extremist Islamic State group. Low-cost mobile device maker DataWind today signed an MoU with the Telangana government to set up its manufacturing unit here with an initial investment of Rs 100 crore. The facility is expected to start production within 90 days and generate 500 jobs in the first phase of operation, the company officials said. "Between capital investment and working capital, we will allocate Rs 100 crore for setting up a new facility. Within the first three or four months, you would see that investment happening. The initial 500 jobs will happen right in the initial stages of first two-three months," Suneet Singh Tuli, President and CEO DataWind told reporters. The facility, with an initial capacity of 5,000 units a day (about 20 lakhs a year), is being set up close to the international airport here, he said. "Across the board... We will do (produce) tablets, smartphones, end networks... Over time, we will also set up touch panel manufacturing facility so that we are vertically integrating the components that we manufacture," he said. The quality of work force, the ecosystem of suppliers, the easy transit from Hong Kong, Taiwan and China to Hyderabad airport are among factors that made the company set up the facility here, he said. The MoU was signed in the presence of Kathleen Waynne, Premier of Ontario, Canada and Telangana industries minister Jupally Krishnarao during an event here as part of the Ontario trade mission to India. Among other major agreements, IIT, Hyderabad signed a Research Partnership Agreement with Hamilton, Ontario-based McMaster University, which will generate opportunities to create intellectual property through innovation. The Nuclear Fuel Complex (NFC) and Toronto, Ontario-based Kinetrics signed an MoU for partnership in the Canada-India nuclear energy initiatives, according to a release from the organisers. Eleven people including a former Trinamool Congress leader were awarded death sentence by Nadia district court today for killing a woman to grab government land about 14 months ago. Judge Partha Sarathi Mukhopadhyay slapped death penalty on the 11 accused for shooting to death Aparna Bag on November 23, 2014. One accused, Manabesh Biswas is still absconding. The 11 were convicted yesterday and the punishment was pronounced by the court today. They were charged under sections 9B of Explosive, 27/35 of Arms Act, IPC 307 (attempt to murder) and 302 (murder). Among those who were sentenced to death today is former Krishnaganj Trinamool Congress leader Lankeswar Ghosh, but the ruling party has said that he was not its member. The woman was killed when Ghosh along with his gang tried to seize land at Ghungragachhi under Krishnaganj block, which belongs to Refugee and Refugee Rehabilitation Department of West Bengal Government. The land was being tilled by 55 families for long and they claimed to have its possession. Some had even sold portions they claimed were theirs. On November 23, 2014, Ghosh along with his men appeared on the field on a tractor and tried to take over the land by force and was faced with resistance by the tillers. In the clash that ensued there was firing and three women received bullet injuries. Aparna Bag was hit on her chest and died. Two other women - Shyamali Tarafdar was hit on her jaw and Latika Tarafdar on her head. A student Rajiv Mondal too was hit by a bullet on his leg. The three, however, recovered later. A complaint was lodged with the police by Dipankar Biswas of Ghungragachhi and a case was initiated and 11 out of the 12 accused were arrested and kept in jail. Aparna's two daughters Devika and Nilima were the main witnesses. The 11 sentenced to death were Ghosh, Palash Ghosh, Sanat Ghosh, Shyamal Ghosh, Jhantu Ghosh, Goutam Ghosh, Paresh Ghosh, Joydeb Ghosh, Nepal Ghosh, Rajkumar Ghosh and Basu Ghosh. BJP president Amit Shah today told Tamil Nadu party leaders to ramp up propaganda by using technology for the coming state Assembly polls as he held a brainstorming session with top functionaries in Kerala. The tech-savvy BJP's poll propaganda in Tamil Nadu will see more use of digital screens mounted on "van raths" besides traditional campaign by state leaders in customised 'raths'. "Raths with digital screens will highlight the achievements of the BJP-led central government and people-friendly initiatives on the anvil," a top leader, who was privy to the meet, told PTI. He said such raths would travel to every nook and cranny of the state and drive home the "need" to give the saffron party a chance to provide a "result-oriented, clean government with a vision," after nearly half a century of rule by Dravidian parties, DMK and AIADMK. State leaders would tour all the 234 constituencies as part of intensification of propaganda, he said. Top Tamil Nadu leaders including state party chief Tamilisai Soundararajan, Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan, national secretary, H Raja, former state unit presidents, L Ganesan, and C P Radhakrishnan will lead such campaign raths, he said. Also, as part of efforts to gear up for the polls, workers' meeting would be held across the state from the booth-level, the leader said. Asked about alliance and his party leader Subramanian Swamy's pitch for a new "DMK-DMDK-BJP" front, he said, "The party is open to the question of alliance. We are weighing all options." Replying to another question, he said, "We are hopeful of sealing the alliance by the end of this month." Besides the state presidents, general secretaries of the party in the two states, Union Ministers - Prakash Javadekar, in-charge of party affairs in Tamil Nadu, J P Nadda, in-charge of Kerala, and Pon Radhakrishnan - were among those who attended the meeting at Aluva near Kochi. As of now, the BJP is vigorously trying to rope in Vijayakanth-led DMDK though there is no strong reciprocatory signals from him. PMK has said it would welcome BJP into its fold if it was ready to accept its leader Anbumani Ramadoss as Chief Ministerial candidate. Published by an old curmudgeon who came to America in 1936 as a refugee from Nazi Germany and proudly served in the U.S. Army during World War II. He is a former law enforcement officer and a retired professor of criminal justice who, in 1970, founded the Texas Narcotic Officers Association. BarkGrowlBite refuses to be politically correct. (Copyrighted articles are reproduced in accordance with the copyright laws of the U.S. Code, Title 17, Section 107.) A sense of disquiet prevailed at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC) today, a day ahead of its annual convocation, which a section of its former students has decided to boycott over the allegations of "casteism" that has rocked the campus. The student, who has been accused of writing a Facebook post against dalits, has written to the authorities claiming it to be a case of "personal vendetta" which has put his future in "peril". He has alleged the move against him was being "fanned" by a section of the faculty. A 'Sadbhavna march' was also taken out on the campus of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry-run institute here by few students of the present batch (2015-16) with an appeal not to "sully" its name. One of the former students, who has decided to boycott the convocation that is slated to be attended by Minister of State for I&B Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, said they cannot be part of celebrations of a campus "which is trying to cover up an atrocious incident". "We are not against a convocation per se. But we firmly believe that in the wake of recent incidents, as working journalists and conscious citizens we cannot be a part of the convocation," the former student belonging to the 2014-15 batch, said. The Centre had yesterday asked a joint secretary-level officer to inquire into the allegations of casteist remarks made against students belonging to SC and ST communities of the institute after they protested over the death of Hyderabad Central University scholar Rohith Vemula. In letters to the Social Justice Ministry and the Tribal Development Ministry, 17 students have complained against certain social media posts that first appeared on January 18. One of the complainants has also approached the SC/CT Commission. Authorities have also formed a five-member committee to look into the allegations and submit a report in three weeks. "No immediate action has been taken despite constituting a committee to look into the matter. Moreover, a section of the students has been skillfully targeting and traumatizing progressive Dalit and minority students," another student, who has also decided to boycott the convocation, said. Significantly, the decision to transfer Sengupta came within days of the I&B Ministry proposing a set of institutional mechanism including a code of conduct for teachers and employees that among other things included a "ban" on political activity by the faculty on the campus. In his resignation letter, Sengupta flayed the decision to transfer him accusing the IIMC authorities of reducing the institution into a "hand-maiden of a vicious, undemocratic and partisan regime". Sengupta, who has worked for leading dailies and magazines in the past, said the move to transfer him "arbitrarily" was part of a "larger witch-hunt" against intellectual freedom and to "target and eliminate individuals who this regime has declared as enemies for reasons only they know". "In IIMC, I have perhaps taken the maximum number of lectures/workshops, like many of my learned faculty members. I have taught my students that they will never do journalism which professes xenophobia, casteism, sexism, racism, and communalism. "That they should be objective and impartial. Also, that they should have open-ended, non-dogmatic and independent minds and stand for truth and public interest, come what may. I presume I am paying a price for that," he wrote. Sengupta said that it was an "honour" for him as a former JNUSU president to address the open air gathering of faculty and students of JNU and that he was proud being part of the "great intellectual and political tradition" of JNU. IIMC, run by the I&B Ministry, has been in the in the recent past over students alleging "casteism" against their peers belonging to the SC and ST community. The institute conducted a probe and ordered the expulsion of a student from its hostel here for three weeks for posting "offensive and insulting" remarks on social media against students belonging to dalit community. Another student, a Dalit and a complainant in the case, has also been expelled from the IIMC hostel for a week for allegedly using "indecent and vulgar language" against a faculty member on a Whatsapp group. With the government firm on introducing BS-VI emission norms by 2020, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari today asked automakers not to worry about availability of suitable fuel but focus on developing engines to meet the guidelines. Speaking at the inauguration of the Auto Expo here, the minister said pollution is a big problem and "green judges are now very active". "It is the time in the country to take appropriate steps," he told the gathered car makers, including Maruti Suzuki, Fiat Chrysler and Audi. He said the government has decided to introduce the BS-VI emission norms from April 1, 2020. "We are going to make these norms mandatory. Don't bother about the fuel. That will be my responsibility and (I am) following up with the petroleum ministry and at any cost, we will see to that," Gadkari said. Automobile manufacturers have expressed doubts on whether BS-VI compatible fuel would be available in time as the entire country is yet to be covered by BS-IV although it was introduced in 2010. They have also stated that the time span to upgrade to BS-VI from BS-IV in just five years is too short. Seeking to address these concerns, Gadkari said: "Petroleum ministry has already accepted the responsibility (to make BS-VI fuels) and it is their responsibility to see to it that the fuel is available." As the country gears up for BS-VI norms, the minister said, "I am sure the industry will develop indigenous competence for technological solutions and would not depend on imports to meet advanced emission norms." He further asked the the industry "to invest in electric vehicles and also in the R&D of new battery technologies. I am confident our industry is very competent, we need more research." Assuring support to the auto industry, Gadkari said he has tried to convince Finance Minister Arun Jaitley "to introduce some new schemes which can be helpful for the sector in the next Budget." Expressing similar sentiments, Heavy Industries Minister Anant Geete said: "We don't want to put the auto industry in hard times. Whatever cooperation you seek from the government, we will support you. I do hope that industry would also co-operate with us." Commenting on the issue of scrapping of old vehicles, Gadkari said the government is working on a policy. "My note is ready. I am open, I am inviting your suggestions on these policies because by the end of this month, we are going to submit these policies to the Cabinet," he said. The minister also sought co-operation of the auto industry in promotion of vehicle fitness centres. "We want to privatise it...So we are going to introduce a new policy by which are going to create more than 3,000 centres in the country, which can give training for driving licenses and can also take care of pollution and vehicle fitness," he said. Seasoned outfit East Bengal will look to return to winning ways when they lock horns with debutants Aizawl FC in an I-League encounter at the Barasat Stadium here tomorrow. The home side will be boosted by the presence of their newest recruit Frenchman Bernard Mendy at the defence. Both teams have lost their respective previous matches. While Bengaluru edged past East Bengal 1-0, Aizawl lost 0-2 to Sporting Clube de Goa. It will be a different ball game for Aizawl FC, playing in front of vociferous East Bengal fans. Having missed the the Bengaluru game, Mendy will be raring to go and look to live upto the sum East Bengal paid for his recruitment. East Bengal are at the fourth spot on the league standings with eight points while the visitors are seventh with four points. If East Bengal grab all three points tomorrow, they would go second on the table ahead of arch-rivals Mohun Bagan. Aizawl have impressed in their maiden season but failed to capitalise on their opportunities. They would look to exploit East Bengal's weakness in defence. The Election Commission today rejected the demand of certain political parties to raise the expenditure limit of candidates contesting assembly polls. "We have a ceiling laid down which is Rs 28 lakh. Unfortunately, very few winning candidates report expenditure to this limit. They generally report only 40 to 50 per cent (of the limit amount)," Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Nasim Zaidi told reporters after a day long review of poll preparedness with political leaders and state officials here. "So where is the justification to raise the expenditure amount? They do not even use that much amount. I think the current level is Ok, which we have revised two years ago," Zaidi said. "One or two political parties had raised this issue at the review meeting," he added. Asked whether the Assembly polls will be held in April or May, he said the Commission was still at the planning stage. However, he said the election process would be completed before May 30. "We are in the planning stage. We have to consider large number of factors such as metrological, examinations, festivalsetc. The Commission is still planning and therefore it is not possible to comment whether elections will be held in April or May," he said. Assembly polls are due in Kerala, West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry later this year. The ruling Congress in Kerala asked the CEC to hold the polls either in April end or May, while the CPI-M wanted it to be held in April. On demand for curbing abuse of money and paid news, the CEC said the Commission would work out a robust strategy to check the practice by deploying large number of flying squads, surveillance teams etc. For checking paid news, a media monitoring Committee would be operationalised without delay so that it is checked effectively. In this regard, he said the Commission had recommended legal amendments to treat paid as offence. Anybody indulging in paid should be subjected to penal action, fine and imprisonment. "But that amendment is under consideration at the appropriate level," he said. The body of a missing Italian student was found with signs of torture, including multiple stab wounds and cigarette burns, by the side of a highway on the outskirts here, an investigating prosecutor said today. Giulio Regeni, A 28-year-old graduate student, went missing in Cairo on January 25, the fifth anniversary of the uprising that toppled longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak. His body was found yesterday along the Cairo-Alexandria Road in the 6 October suburb in western Cairo and was positively identified by his roommate, the prosecutor, Ahmed Nagi, who leads the investigation team on the case, told The Associated Press. Nagi said the cause of death was still under investigation but said "all of his body, including his face" had bruises, cuts from stabbings and burns from cigarettes. He said it appeared to have been a "slow death." Another person with knowledge of the case told the AP that the body was "partially burned" and also said his body was found on the same highway. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to media. An employee at Cairo's central morgue confirmed that Regeni's body was brought there. Italy's Foreign Ministry said it has urgently summoned the Egyptian ambassador over the death of an Italian student on the outskirts of Cairo, seeking maximum cooperation in the investigation. The ministry said in a statement today that Italy renewed its request to launch an immediate investigation and include Italian experts. The statement also requested that the body be returned to Italy as soon as possible. The deputy head of criminal investigations in Cairo's twin province of Giza, Alaa Azmi, said Regeni's body found on Wednesday morning with "bruises and cuts." An initial investigation showed it was a road accident, he said, adding that the preliminary forensic report hadn't mentioned any burns. "We have to wait for the full report by forensic experts. But what we know is that it is an accident," Azmi said. The University of Cambridge lists Regeni as a student of its Department of Politics and International Studies. Regeni's body was found following an online campaign searching for him after he went missing. The Egyptian authorities had intensified a crackdown on dissent ahead of the January 25 anniversary, with police raiding apartments in downtown Cairo seeking signs of plans for organised protests and checking people's social media accounts. Egypt has seen years of upheaval since Mubarak's ouster in 2011, ending with the election of former Defence Minister Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi as president in 2014, after he led a 2013 military ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi amid massive protests against his rule. Italy today angrily demanded that Egypt authorise a joint investigation into the violent death of Giulio Regeni, a Cambridge University PhD student who mysteriously disappeared in Cairo last month. Regeni's corpse was found on the outskirts of the Egyptian capital on Wednesday, the foreign ministry in Rome confirmed after summoning Cairo's ambassador to express "the Italian government's bewilderment over the tragic death." Sources close to the case told AFP that the 28-year-old was found dumped in a ditch with a badly bruised face and other signs of ill-treatment across his body. The foreign ministry said Italy expected "the maximum cooperation from the Egyptian authorities at every level in light of the exceptional gravity of what happened to our compatriot and the traditional bonds of friendship between the two countries." The Egyptian ambassador was also informed that Italy wants its own experts to be fully involved in a joint investigation into what happened. The ministry said the ambassador, Amr Mostafa Kamal Helmy, had given assurances that the Egyptian authorities would do their utmost to find those responsible for "this criminal act." Economic Development Minister Federica Guidi, who was in Cairo when Regeni's body was discovered, cancelled the final day of a trade mission involving some 60 Italian companies in reaction to the . Hours earlier she had, according to the Italian media, urged Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to intervene personally in the investigation into Regeni's disappearance, underlining the potential for the case to disrupt normally close diplomatic ties between Rome and Cairo. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi was the first Western leader to receive former army chief Sisi after his 2013 overthrow of his Islamist predecessor Mohamed Morsi. Regeni, whose studies included Arabic and Arab literature, was from Fiumicello near Udine in northeastern Italy. He was in Cairo doing research for his doctoral thesis and was last seen on January 25 when he left his suburban home with the intention of travelling by metro to meet a friend in the city centre. Cairo was extremely quiet on the day he disappeared as a result of the authorities having ordered a security clampdown on what was the fifth anniversary of the Arab Spring uprising which ended Hosni Mubarak's 30-year reign. Favouring increase in EPFO investment in the equity market to 15 per cent, Union Minister Jayant Sinha today said the benefit of average costing must be available to the people saving for their retirement. Citing global empirical studies, Minister of State for Finance Jayant Sinha said that it has been established that systematic investment plans and average costing approach generate the best returns for long-term investors. "As you know there is an ability for EPFO to go up to 15 per cent in the equity markets (investment)... The benefit of average costing should be available to people saving for retirement because the equity markets will go through ups and downs," he said. Sinha was talking to the reporters on the sidelines of PFRDA's Pension Conclave. "There will be bull markets and there will be bear markets but if you follow an average costing approach, you will be building your own position in the market at appropriately low cost when the market is down," Sinha said. The minister also pitched for access to full range of pension products besides having exposure to global products so that people saving for retirement can diversify portfolio. "We also need to do make sure that our investors, who are saving for retirement have access to a full range of pension products... Such as venture capital and private equity which have generated very strong real returns around the world," he said. Lauding the National Pension System (NPS) scheme of the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA), he said it is a wonderful product having an established, low-cost and cost-effective platform for pension savings. "Those should be available for people saving for their retirement. We have to make sure that people have access to real estate which has also been a very good asset class. Global investment products should also be available for our savers so that they can further diversify and improve the risk ratio on their portfolio", Sinha said. Also, there is a need for India to recognise the importance of a set of diversified uncorrelated asset classes that helps push out the risk of all frontiers related with such kind of products. "All of those empirical evidence is also corroborated by the Indian equity markets, which have been volatile. But in the long-run, they have demonstrated quite impressively, it is almost better than any other asset," Sinha said. In August 2015, the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) had entered the equity market through exchange-traded fund route with an initial corpus of Rs 5,000 crore, which could go up to nearly Rs 15,000 crore. The investment was made through SBI Mutual Fund's two index-linked ETFs -- one to the BSE's Sensex and the other to NSE's Nifty. The EPFO manages a corpus of Rs 8.5 lakh crore and is expected receive incremental deposits of Rs 1.2 lakh crore during this fiscal. Earlier in the day, delivering the inaugural address at the Pension Conclave, Sinha said PFRDA is very much is line with the government's agenda to further the cause of creating a universal social security net for the citizens. "We need to deepen the pension (services) sector in India to empower the citizens. The NPS gives a sense of ownership to the subscribers," he said. Also, there is a need to add more people under the pension system from the unorganised sector and bring it to as much as 60-70 per cent. Sinha also hoped that India will achieve an ever faster economic growth in coming years and there is a huge young population that will be attracted towards pension products. However, he also said traditionally Indian people believe in channelising their money towards gold and real estate and there is a need to persuade them to divert their savings towards financial products. The minister also said that Indians should take advantage of the JAM (Jan Dhan-Aadhaar-Mobile) trinity for better capital management and risk diversification. No European leaders are satisfied so far with proposals for a deal to keep Britain in the EU, which Prime Minister David Cameron hopes to secure at a summit this month, sources close to the negotiations told AFP. Initial reactions from European capitals show that "nobody's happy" with the draft agreement that European Union president Donald Tusk unveiled on Monday, one European source said on condition of anonymity. The lack of satisfaction so far is a sign that Tusk's proposal is fair and balanced, but also an indication that it could be hard to reach a deal at the February 18-19 meeting of the 28 EU leaders, the source added. Cameron, who is aiming to hold a referendum on Britain's EU membership in June, met Tusk on the margins of a Syria donor conference in London on yesterday. The British prime minister is now set to fly to Poland and Denmark today at the start of a whirlwind fortnight of diplomacy in a bid to win over his sceptical EU counterparts and secure an accord. European diplomats in Brussels are set to hold their first full talks on the new proposals today, and will meet again next Thursday in a bid to iron out their differences and reach an agreement at the summit. Cameron has meanwhile been in frequent contact with French President Francois Hollande, who warned on Wednesday that there should be no more changes to the deal at the summit itself, and has expressed concern over Tusk's proposals for protections for non-eurozone countries. A British government source said however that "the mood is improving on that." Spain is meanwhile dissatisfied with the European Commission, the executive arm of the EU headed by Jean-Claude Juncker, for not taking a tougher line on Cameron's demands for a limit to benefits for EU migrants working in Britain, another European source said. Tusk's proposals include a four-year "emergency brake" limiting welfare payments to migrants, as well as "red card" system for national parliaments to overrule draft EU laws. Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia have previously expressed concerns over the welfare plan, saying it would discriminate against hundreds of thousands of their citizens who currently work in Britain. A local court today granted bail to former Congress MP Siricilla Rajaiah, his wife and son who were arrested for allegedly abetting the suicide of his daughter-in-law and three young grandsons. Fourth Additional Munsif Magistrate Court Warangal R Raghunadha Reddy today granted bail to Rajaiah, his wife Madhavi and son Anil Kumar and asked them to furnish two securities each of Rs 25,000. The court also ordered them to surrender their passports to the court and not to leave the country. The judge also asked them to appear before local police every Sunday. On November 4 last year, the charred bodies of Anil Kumar's wife S Sarika and her three children Abhinav (7), and twins Ayaan and Shriyaan (3) were recovered from the house of the former MP at Hanamkonda in Warangal district. Following a complaint by parents of S Sarika, the deceased daughter-in-law of Rajaiah, a case was registered against the former parliamentarian, his wife and son at Subedari police station under sections 498A (husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty) and 306 (abetment to suicide) of IPC and under section 174 (suspicious death) of CrPC for the death of the three boys. The trio were later arrested. According to police, Sarika and Anil, both classmates had fallen in love during their engineering degree course, and got married in 2002. Sarika, who quit her job as a software engineer in a multinational company, had earlier alleged that her husband was having an extra-marital affair and had even staged a sit-in protest outside Rajaiah's house. In April 2014, a criminal case had been filed against Rajaiah, Madhavi, Anil Kumar and another woman at the Begumpet women's police station in Hyderabad following a complaint lodged by Sarika, alleging that her husband and in-laws were harassing her, they added. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis today defended the Governor's sanction for prosecuting Congress leader Ashok Chavan in Adarsh scam case, stating the step was taken as per the advice of the state's top law officer and rejected the "vendetta" charge. Governor C Vidyasagar Rao today gave sanction to CBI to prosecute former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan in the case, days after the BJP-led state government recommended action against the leader, who is also a Lok Sabha MP. Fadnavis said the opinion of Advocate General was sought on the sanction and the law officer clearly said "such permission should be and could be granted." "CBI said after the last Governor rejected permission to prosecute Ashok Chavan, a new set of facts was discovered which clearly proved quid pro quo, that is, he gave permissions (for construction of 'Adarsh' building) and his close relatives got flats (in the housing society). "Thus, CBI once again asked the Governor to permit it to prosecute Chavan," Fadnavis told PTI. He said the Governor had forwarded the CBI's request to the Council of Ministers for aid and advice, which was in turn sent to the Advocate General. "The Council of Ministers, thus, decided to recommend the Governor to act in accordance with the opinion of AG and the Governor in turn gave his consent to CBI to prosecute (Chavan). Hence, there is no question of political vendetta (as alleged by Chavan)," he said. Fadnavis sought to know why would the Governor or the government refuse sanction to proceed against the Lok Sabha MP from Nanded (who is also President of Congress in Maharashtra), when the central agency has stated that it had evidence of his involvement in the case. "Even when the earlier Governor rejected permission and CBI went to the High Court, stating they don't want to file a chargesheet since Governor had denied sanction, the Court did not accept its plea and directed it to file a chargesheet," Fadnavis said. The erstwhile Congress-NCP government had also accepted the Adarsh Commission report which "clearly stated that Ashok Chavan is guilty". They only protected him in ATR (action taken report), saying CBI is already investigating so government does not need to take action, he added. (image) As I begin to dig into the work of my next book, Ive found myself thinking about politics and government far more than I anticipated. (For initial thoughts and stats, see Government By Numbers: Some Interesting Insights). While the body politic was always going to be one of the main pillars of the book, I didnt expect it to push itself to the foreground so quickly. Certainly the Occupy Wall St. movement is partially responsible, but theres more going on than that. Well before #ows became shorthand for class disparity in the United States, I began to formulate a hypothesis on the role of government in our lives. (I focus on the US for this exercise, as I am writing from my own experience. Id be very interested in responses from those living in other countries). The headline: Over the past five or six decades, weve slowly but surely transitioned several core responsibilities of our common lives from government to the private sector. Some shifts are still in early stages, others are nearly complete. But Im not sure that we have truly considered, as a society, the implications of this movement, which seem significant to me. Im no political scientist, but the net net of all this seems to be that were trusting private corporations to do what, for a long, long time, we considered was work entrusted to the common good. In short, weve put a great deal of our public trust into a system that, for all the good its done (and its done quite a lot), is driven by one core motivation: the pursuit of profit. A corollary to this hypothesis is that this shift has been made and possibly engendered by the ever increasing role of digitized information as the central driver of our society. But thats probably another post. Now before you start calling me an aging, anti-corporate hippie, remember that Ive started several companies, consider myself a free market capitalist, and Ive done pretty well so far. Im simply pointing something out here, not making any judgements (at least, not yet). So lets consider some key areas: Identity. We are increasingly going to the Web/Interent as the platform for our lives. There, our identity is not managed by the government. Its managed in the majority by Facebook. When we buy things, our identity is managed by PayPal, Amazon, and Amex/Visa/Mastercard, not to mention a raft of pretenders to our identity throne, including Facebook, Google, and startups like Square. All of these are private corporations. None of them ask us for our government issued identity cards before allowing us to make a purchase. Some do ask for our SSN, of course. But online, the government layer is melting into the background of our identity rather like DOS melted into the background of Windows 3. I expect this to be the source of some serious conflict in the coming decade(s). Control. It used to be the only entity that was legally allowed to track citizens on a regular basis was law enforcement agents of our government. Now, of course, we happily leave digital breadcrumbs everywhere, and private corporations, driven by profit, are far more advanced than the government at profiling and tracking us. Again, I expect this fact to be a source of conflict in the future. Delivery/Communication. For most of the past couple of centuries, youd use a government agency if you wanted to get something important either information, goods, or money from one place to another in our country. That agency was called the United States Postal Service, and it worked really, really well, considering all it had to do. Now, the Postal Service is broke, and we use UPS or FedEx for physical goods, and the Internet for information. While the government built the infrastructure for all these companies (airports, roads and Interstate highways, DARPAnet, commonly owned airwaves), it has now receded DOS-like into the background, and we now entrust the function of delivery to private corporations driven by profit. Investment. Do any of you remember when your grandparents would give you a government bond as a birthday gift? Or when people actually believed that they could retire on the government-mandated benefits of Social Security? I do. I have two parents who are drawing on those programs right now. But as the economy has turned to one driven by information and financialization, weve entrusted our retirement and our investment to private corporations as well. Education. Once almost entirely the realm of the government, weve watched our public education system crumble, and were still not really sure what to replace it with. However, one could reasonably argue that private companies will take this over in due time. Some like Edison and Phoenix are already well on the way. Healthcare. The US has always shied from government-run healthcare, and some might say Obamacare is proof were moving in the opposite direction from the other trends Ive outlined. But Im not so sure. I have a gut feeling the numbers in terms of Medicare etc. may prove something different, and as I understand it, the recent legislation was, in the main, about regulating the private industry, not creating a government alternative. I have a lot more to learn here. Security. This is the one area of government that we all seem to agree should stay in government hands. However, even this realm has been increasingly privatized from private prisons to vast armies of outsourced mercenaries and support teams for our military. I could go on, but instead Id rather that you do, in comments. What other aspects of our lives did we once entrust to government, but now entrust to private corporations? No matter what your politics, it seems clear to me that most of us no longer trust our government to do anything particularly well. In short, as a culture we seem to be punting on doing anything well if it doesnt have a profit motive. We are very good at is making corporations that are very good at making money. Is that enough? I dont know. I am not judging this trend, but rather pointing it out. Its something I plan to lean into as I write the book, and I am simply a curious amateur when it comes to understanding the space of government and the commons. To that end your input and suggestions as to sources and readings are gratefully welcomed. Finance Ministry has received over 70 application for the post of chief executive of India's maiden sovereign wealth fund. "We are in the process of selecting CEO of NIIF. The CEO will be drawn from the market... We have received 70 applications," Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das said today. The government in December had set up the Rs 40,000 crore National Investment and Infrastructure fund (NIIF), which is an investment vehicle for funding commercially viable greenfield, brownfield and stalled projects. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of India Investment Summit, Das said the government has already identified 5-6 infrastructure projects in railways and highways sector. He, however, did not give the investment envisaged in these projects. Finance Ministry in October had constituted a search- cum-selection Committee under the Chairmanship of Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das for selecting a CEO for the Investment Management Company under the NIIF. The Investment Management Company would be responsible for taking investment decision of NIIF corpus. The government's share in the corpus shall not exceed 49 per cent. While the government will invest Rs 20,000 crore in NIIF, another similar amount will come from private investors. Several foreign funds from US, UK, Canada, the UAE today participated in the summit in which Finance Minister Arun Jaitley unveiled the logo of NIIF. Imagine 2.25 tons of chickpea variety harvested in just 75 minutes. The process, including cutting and threshing, would normally take three days and this is made possible due to the breeding of a taller chickpea variety, Hyderabad-headquartered International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid-Tropics (ICRISAT) said. The chickpea variety, NBeG 47, is the first machine harvestable variety released in Andhra Pradesh suitable for the state's variable climate, ICRISAT said in a statement. A demonstration in this regard was recently done in a farmer's fields in Anantapur district showing how farmers can "save time and money". The chickpea variety planted in farmer B Rameswar Reddy's field was developed by Dr Veera Jayalakshmi, Principal Scientist (Chickpea Breeding) at Acharya NG Ranga Agricultural University in Nandyal, with support from ICRISAT, it said. The breeding material for developing this variety and technical support was provided by ICRISAT. "Currently, chickpea farming in AP is partially mechanised. The total mechanisation of harvesting is cost effective and quicker, reducing the risk of the ripened crop's exposure to untimely rain or extreme weather conditions," said Dr Pooran M Gaur, Principal Scientist, Chickpea Breeding at ICRISAT. "The innovative variety was developed to address the issue of labour shortage on farms and reduce drudgery, especially for women laborers. The yield of this new variety, 2.25 tons per ha, is on par and in some conditions better than the existing ruling variety JG 11 (1.75 to 2.5 tons per ha), provided the prescribed plant spacing is followed," ICRISAT said. More research efforts are underway to develop machine harvestable chickpea varieties suited for other parts of India like Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka, it said. A fishermen from a coastal hamlet in this district suffered an eye injury when his Sri Lankan counterparts, also Tamils, allegedly pelted stones at his mechanised boat at Neduntheevu off the island nation. Two of his colleagues with him however escaped unhurt in the attack which took place late last night. Sekar, Assistant Director of Fisheries, said that Mansoor (37), suffered eye injuries as the Sri Lankan fishermen, who were also tamils, pelted stones at their boat for allegedly violating the International Maritime Boundary Line. The injured fisherman was admitted to a private eye hospital today, he said. Since November 2015, 21 fishermen from Pudukottai district have been arrested by Sri Lankan naval personnel for allegedly fishing near the island nation's waters. Sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) from countries like Singapore and UAE as well as private equity funds today lined-up to explore investment avenues in India but they sought easy regulatory regime and appointment of a CEO of the country's maiden investment vehicle NIIF before committing their money. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley showcased investment opportunities in sectors ranging from roads and highways to energy to the select audience, which included European Investment Bank and PE funds from the US, the UK and Canada. He also held closed door discussions with of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority's MD Sheikh Hamid Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, besides courting officials of pension funds and institutional investors to present them the opportunity India offers at an event here. It wasn't officially revealed if any investment was committed. Royal Bank of Canada chief representative Akhauri Sinha said: "Any investor would look at the long term viability. So the more the (regulatory) clarity emerges, that will give us better comfort, a call can be taken about it. So it's little early to say that we are coming with investment. We have to wait and watch." European Investment Bank said it was ready to commit funds as there is a great scope for infrastructure development in India, but would like to see the commercial viability of the infrastructure projects. "We are committed to India. But before we commit any funds, we would first want to see the quality of the projects which would need funding," European Investment Bank Country Manager (South Asia) Sunita Lukkhoo said. The two-day India Investment Summit, organised by the Finance Ministry, saw participation from investors across the globe today. The summit has been organised to attract funds for the newly created National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF), which is an investment vehicle for funding projects. The Rs 40,000-crore fund will have government holding of 49 per cent and the rest will be of private investors. State Bank of India too said it would look at the possibility of participating in NIIF. "We will also look at whether we want to get involved in NIIF, as you know SBI is debt lender. Our equity appetite is very low but to the extent that we do invest in various funds. We will think about some of these also. "At this point of time, we have not taken a call on NIIF investment. The fund manager has to be in place, management structure has to get in place," SBI Chairperson Arundhati Bhattacharya told reporters. In his address at the event, Jaitley told investors that India offers a stable policy regime. He said Indian economy has shown resilience in times of global slowdown and in the last 19 months the government eased process of doing business as well as opened gates for foreign direct investments. A senior Congress leader today said foreigners should not be allowed to indulge in commercial activities along Goa's coastal belt, claiming that they don't follow the rules and regulations. "(Foreigners including) Russians and Israelis are illegally holding business activity in the (state's) coastal belt, particularly in the constituency of the state Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar," Rajya Sabha MP from Goa Shantaram Naik said. He said the foreigners arrive on Tourist Visa but blatantly violate the rules and that they should not be allowed to indulge in any commercial activity. Naik alleged that the state government has failed to take any concrete steps to curb these "illegal" businesses. "Some important people in the government are sheltering these foreigners involved in illegalities," he said. A proposal mooted by freedom fighters to hold a meeting of their organisation in London, the land of British whom they drove out of India 69 years ago, has been dropped following differences among themselves. In April last year, the London meeting proposal was mooted by a few members of the government-constituted Committee of Eminent Freedom Fighters in Srinagar. However, in the committee's meeting today, which was presided over by Union Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju, the proposal was rejected as there was no consensus among the freedom fighters over whether to hold a meeting in London, a Home Ministry official said. Later, the committee held detailed deliberations on various issues, including free education to dependents and grandchildren of freedom fighters in elementary and higher educational institutes. The Ministry of Home Affairs will consult the Human Resource Development Ministry in this regard and an appropriate decision will be taken subsequently, sources said. The meeting also discussed the proposal of introduction of NCERT textbooks on freedom fighters. The Ministry of Home Affairs will pursue the proposal with the HRD Ministry, sources said. Rijiju assured the freedom fighters that the MHA will provide them identity cards. A subsidiary of fast-moving consumer goods firm Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL) has acquired a majority stake in Kenya-based Canon Chemicals Ltd for an undisclosed sum. Canon Chemicals manufactures and distributes products in the personal and home categories. Its major brand is Valon, a petroleum jelly. In 2015, the annualised revenue of the business was Kenyan Shilling 1,146 million (about Rs 76 crore). This acquisition helps GCPL in further building its presence in the Sub Saharan Africa market, GCPL said. In the past few years, GCPL has been acquiring brands, specially in the African continent, mostly targeting local firms in emerging markets. It acquired 51 per cent stake in Darling South Africa in September 2011 and in Darling Mozambique in October 2011. "Canon has a strong track record of serving consumers in Kenya for over 40 years and we look forward to leveraging its strong brand equity and distribution infrastructure, for our business. This acquisition reflects our continued commitment to scaling up our presence in Africa," GCPL Managing Director Vivek Gambhir said. Darling Group Holdings operates in 14 countries across Africa, selling hair extension products under brand names like 'Darling' and 'Amigos'. Besides having stake in Darling Group, GCPL had also acquired South Africa's Kinky Group in 2008 and hair colour brand Rapidol in September 2006. Kinky offers a variety of products, including hair, hair-braids, hair pieces, wigs and wefted pieces. The Mumbai-based firm had also acquired Nigeria's personal care brand Tura for an undisclosed sum in 2010. Tura's product range includes soaps, moisturising lotions and skin-toning creams. GCPL shares were trading 1.03 per cent up at Rs 1,246.55 apiece in the morning trade on BSE. Biotechnology regulator GEAC is holding a second meeting tomorrow to discuss the much-debated genetically modified (GM) mustard seed issue despite strong opposition. The Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) had met once last month to hear views of the technology developer Deepak Pental, a scientist at the Delhi University. Later, a sub-panel of GEAC had met on February 2 on the matter. The Environment Ministry has received a proposal for commercial cultivation of a GM hybrid variety of the mustard plant developed by the university's Centre for Genetic Manipulation of Crop Plants (CGMCP). "The second meeting of GEAC is scheduled for tomorrow. The meeting will listen to the views of the sub-committee on the GM mustard proposal," sources said. Anti-GM farmer union bodies, including Bhartiya Kisan Sangh (BKS), have been demanding to cancel such meetings on the issue. "Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar is allowing GEAC to hold its meeting to process the GM mustard application on Friday (February 5). It makes us wonder what and wherefrom the need and pressure are emerging from," said a joint statement issued by 13 farmer unions yesterday. They had said the meeting has been scheduled despite opposition to the GM mustard from major crop-growing states, including BJP-rules ones. Besides the farmers' unions, there is stiff opposition from NGOs against GM mustard, which is seen to jeopardise traditional varieties and leave farmers dependent solely on private companies for such seeds. Former Union health minister Anbumani Ramadoss and several farmer groups such as Bhartiya Kisan Union, Bhartiya Kisan Sangh and the Right to Food Campaign have made representations to the government opposing GM mustard. Biotechnology industry body ABLE-AG is of the view that the regulator, GEAC, should at least be allowed to do a scientific review of the technology before firming up its mind. According to ABLE-AG, GM mustard -- which has the potential of increasing yield by 25 per cent -- is required in India as the country is still dependent on edible oil imports. India's rapeseed-mustard seed production stood at 63.09 lakh tonnes in 2014-15 crop year (July-June). This is the first proposal that has come up before the NDA government after the previous government had put a moratorium on commercial cultivation of Bt Brinjal in 2010. Currently, Bt cotton is the only GM crop allowed for commercialisation. The senior US commander in Afghanistan says if the American troop level is cut to 5,500 as President Barack Obama has proposed, there will be too few left to train the still-fledgling Afghan security forces. Army General John F Campbell's assessment underscores the risks of Obama's longstanding goal of ending the war before he leaves office in January 2017. The president's critics said leaving the Afghans without enough American military trainers would imperil the gains made since 2002, when the US committed to rebuilding the country. Nearly USD 64 billion has been allotted so far for building up the Afghan army and police. "Fifty-five hundred militarily will not allow you to do what you need to do," Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican who is a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said yesterday. "It puts the whole mission at risk." Yet patience among other lawmakers is fraying with the finish line so far away. The Afghans won't be able to independently sustain their security forces until 2024, according to Campbell. Campbell, who is expected to retire soon, is scheduled to testify Thursday before the Senate Armed Services Committee. He appeared Tuesday before the House Armed Services Committee and described the Afghan security forces as becoming increasingly competent. Yet significant hurdles remain and "persistent" training and advising is required to overcome them, he said. The challenges facing the Afghans are largely structural, such as building an adequate air force, gathering intelligence, maintaining war fighting equipment, budgeting and personnel management. As an example of how time consuming this all can be, Campbell pointed to the effort required to recruit and train military pilots. "You've got to start that now and make sure they realize if you recruit a guy now, you're not going to see him for another three years before he can be a pilot," he said. Initially, Obama said he would reduce the US force in Afghanistan to 5,500 troops by the end of last year, and then down to 1,000 by the end of 2016. But Obama backtracked in October, saying the situation remained too fragile for such a rapid withdrawal. The current US force of about 9,800 would stay in place through most of 2016 to perform counterterrorism missions and to train and advise the Afghan forces, Obama said during remarks from the Roosevelt Room in the White House. The reduction to 5,500 would occur "by the end of 2016," Obama said, although he didn't specify exactly when. The smaller force would still be expected to handle the dual-pronged mission. During an exchange with Rep Jim Bridenstine, an Oklahoma Republican, Campbell said a force of 5,500 would be focused on conducting counterterrorism operations. Greece was hit today by a general strike against an unpopular pension overhaul that has rallied workers against the embattled government of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. The 24-hour labour action has deprived the country of train and ferry services and will sideline dozens of flights. Hospitals will operate on emergency footing, gas stations will remain closed and taxis have been pulled off the streets. Lawyers and farmers are also participating in the walkout. The general strike, the third in as many months, is directed against government plans to lower the maximum pension to 2,300 euros ($2,500) a month from 2,700 euros currently and introduce a new minimum guaranteed basic pension of 384 euros. The leftist administration of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras also wants to merge pension funds and increase social security contributions by both employers and staff. The plan has been criticised by a wide array of professional classes, from lawyers and engineers to sailors and farmers. The farmers have formed protest hubs at dozens of locations on Greece's national highways, intermittently blocking traffic with tractors over the past two weeks. On Tuesday the farmers blocked passage of freight trucks into Bulgaria and Turkey, causing long lines on the respective borders. Greece must save 1.8 billion euros from state spending on pensions under a three-year bailout signed with the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the Monetary Fund in July. The Tsipras government has warned that the nation's pension system will soon collapse without the reform, which is expected to be put before parliament for a vote later this month. NCP MLA Jitendra Awhad today said Pakistani ghazal maestro Ghulam Ali will not perform at forthcoming 'Thane Festival' beginning February 11, but has agreed to perform in the city in future. "Ghulam Ali will not perform at Thane Festival, but has agreed to come to Thane later," Awhad told reporters here. To a query on reasons behind postponing Ali's concert, the NCP leader said, "I did not want any hindrance at the function and have put off Ali's performance to a future date". When asked whether the threat by Shiv Sena forced him to defer Ali's programme, Awhad said, "Why should I be afraid of them? I am in politics for the last 30 years. I will go ahead with the programme (with Ali, whenever rescheduled)". He said the country's biggest art gallery will be on display at "Thane Festival 2016". "Besides, paintings worth Rs 150 crore of M F Hussain, A R Chughtai, Jehangir Sabavala, Picasso etc will be showcased," he said. Awhad said the idol of Lord Ganesh, made from ruby worth Rs 76 crore, will also be displayed. "A cookery show and an augmented aquarium will be a matter of attraction during the four-day festival, proceeds of which will be donated for cancer patients," the MLA added. The Festival is organised by Awhad's organisation 'Sangharsh'. A variety of delicacies from across the country is a prominent feature of an upcoming celebration of India, which includes food, music, tradition and myriad crafts of the country here. The three-day GIG carnival set to begin on January 5 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium has been curated by Gourmet Planet and is part of the 'Incredible India' campaign of the Tourism Ministry. Among the delicacies included are those from North-East such as black rice, tiger prawn momos etc, Amritsari Chajju Ji ki tikki and parantha, Tunday Kabab from Lucknow, Rajasthani Kachori, Kuremal Ki Kulfi and Hyderabadi Biryani. "Chaats from seven cities- Mumbai, Lucknow, Bhopal, Agra, Varanasi, Delhi, Kanpur are on the fare. Apart from this we have some of the best restaurants from the city's participating," says Sonny Walia, curator of the festival. Walia says the eateries have been chosen with care to provide a eclectic gastronomical experience. "For example we have a very popular eatery from Jama Masjid area, it is a legendary one and the owner has never ventured outside the walled city. Another restaurant owned by an Uzbeki family and there is another that specialises in biryani," says Walia. Over 30 performing acts from across the nation catering to every kind of music ranging from Jazz and Blues to Ska, EDM, Electronica, Hindi Rock, Sufi and everything in between is also lined up. The Coke Studio is set to performing a live set at the carnival along with The Karsh Kale Collective, Prateek Kuhad, Hamza and Mannu, Medieval Punditz besides others. Rare craftsmanship on interactive display range from the traditional natural perfumes of Kannauj, Rogan art from Gujarat, stone pottery from Meghalaya, Jamdani work from Benaras, silver filigree work from Orissa, mask making from Majuli, leather craft from Pondicherry amongst a host of other traditional handicrafts will be shown in traditional artisanal works from across the country. "We are featured on the Incredible India's website. At the GIG there is also a luxury crafts section emphasising on luxury Made-In-India brands that use traditional methodologies with a modern design aesthetic," says Walia. Walia says after the inagural edition of the carnival, there are also plans to take it to other cities like Chandigarh, Jaipur, Lucknow etc. Union Minister Giriraj Singh today visited the 14-year-old tribal rape victim in Tripura and attacked Chief Minister Manik Sarkar for "miserably" failing to provide good governance. "Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar may be known for his clean image and 'non-corrupt' tag but he has failed miserably in providing good governance to the people," Singh on his 2-day visit to Tripura said, said. A press release issued in Delhi said that he was accompanied by newly appointed BJP State President Biplab Deb, who provided the victim's family financial assistance of Rs 50,000 on behalf the party. Tripura state BJP in-charge Sunil Deodhar said in a statement that while every Indian was celebrating Republic Day, the tribal girl was brutally raped in the North Eastern state. The girl was returning home with her brother in the evening when two accused - Sudhir Debbarma and Athens Debbarma - attacked them in Chachu Bazar area in Mohanpur and raped the girl after locking the brother in one room, he said. Later, the girl and her brother tried to commit suicide by consuming poison. They were admitted to government hospital, where the girl is stated to be critical still. The accused are absconding and police and the government are not keen on arresting the accused booked under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, Deodhar claimed. A 20-year-old girl, stated to be depressed, allegedly committed suicide died after jumping from the eighth floor of the district centre building in west Delhi's Janakpuri area today. Kavita was a final year student at Shyama Prasad Mukherji College of the University of Delhi, police said. The incident took place around 1.15 PM, following which the girl was taken to Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital where she was declared brought dead. No suicide note has been found, DCP (West) Pushpendra Kumar said. Once the police ascertained the girl's identity, they informed her relatives. Later her body was sent for a postmortem examination and an inquest was initiated, police said. Kavita was stated to be depressed after she lost her mother and younger sister in the last one and a half years. The police are checking her phone records to check with whom she had communicated before taking the extreme step. A senior police official said that the Janakpuri district centre was once considered a copycat suicide spot as a large number of suicides took place there mostly between 2005 and 2010, earning it the moniker 'death centre of the capital'. In 2006, Delhi Police had sought closure of the building after a series of suicides, the official said. Pakistan's powerful army chief Gen Raheel Sharif said today that a global response was needed to eliminate terrorism which transcends geographical, religious and racial boundaries. Sharif was visiting the National Counter Terrorism Training Centre (NCTC) in Pabbi in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and witnessed the Pakistan-Sri Lanka-Maldives trilateral military exercise 'Eagle Dash-I'. The army said in a statement that the two-week exercise was focused on counter terrorism operations and sharing of field combat experience of the three nations' armed forces. "Terrorism is a global phenomenon and terrorists have no country, religion or sect. Hence, a coordinated global response from us all," Sharif said. He claimed that Pakistan had also been a victim of terror for over a decade and had sacrificed a lot. So far Pakistan army has conducted joint exercises with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, China and Jordan. Sharif said that such exercises will consolidate special relationship between the three militaries and will help eliminate terrorism from the region. He said that Pakistan army has also taken the initiative of providing counter terrorism training to local police personnel and other law enforcement agencies in an effort to enhance their capacity and make them capable of dealing with this menace. Foreign military delegates from Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives and South Africa also witnessed the exercise. Design and digital product development company GlobalLogic today said it has expanded its Nagpur centre, allowing to increase the headcount at the facility to over 500 people by year-end. "The expansion of GlobalLogic's Nagpur facility will support employee growth of over 30 per cent bringing the total employee headcount to over 500 by the end of 2016," GlobalLogic said in a statement. GlobalLogic employs around 9,500 people globally, of which around 6,000 are located in India across its centres in Bengaluru, Hyderabad, NCR and Nagpur. The company will utilise the additional space acquired in Nagpur to build additional innovation labs and strengthen its skillsets in mobile, healthcare, mobile carriers, media, communications, security, IoT-connected devices and wearables, it added. GlobalLogic delivers end-to-end product development services to companies across segments helping them define and build their next generation of software-enabled products. Since establishing its first engineering center in Noida in 2000, GlobalLogic has expanded to 14 major product engineering centres and three design studios across the globe. The Nagpur centre is currently involved in projects like helping global medical device manufacturers build new-age interfaces for surgical implants, supporting end-to-end requirements traceability for FDA compliance etc. "I am confident that in addition to creating employment opportunities, we will also be able to foster innovation as a significant part of our growth agenda," GlobalLogic India Managing Director Sumit Sood said. Founded in 2000, GlobalLogic is headquartered in California. It operates design and engineering centres across Hyderabad, Noida, Gurgaon, Nagpur, and Bangalore. October 15, 2022, Saturday US President Joe Biden has said Pakistan is one of the most dangerous nations in the world as it has nuclear weapons without ... India-born Amit Singhal, the longtime head of Google's internet search business, is set to quit the company later this month and will be replaced by the technology giant's artificial intelligence chief. Singhal, 47, who joined Google in 2000, has been involved with many technologies that have made Alphabet, the parent of Google, an engineering powerhouse and one of the world's most valuable . "February 26 will be my last day at Google. My relationships are the most important thing I've accumulated in life," Singhal wrote in his retirement post on Google Plus. Describing his 15-year stint at the company as a "dream journey", Singhal wrote he wished to spend time with his family and intended to give away some of his fortune. "It has always been a priority for me to give back to people who are less fortunate, and make time for my family amidst competing work constraints - but on both fronts, I simply want to give and do more," Singhal wrote on Wednesday. "Now is a good time to make this important life change. Things are in amazing shape. Search is stronger than ever, and will only get better in the hands of an outstanding set of senior leaders who are already running the show day-to-day," he added. Singhal will be replaced by John Giannandrea, currently working in artificial intelligence(AI) at Alphabet. Born in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh, Singhal joined Google in 2000 and his earliest jobs at the company was rewriting the initial breakthrough algorithms. "From a little boy growing up in the Himalayas dreaming of the Star Trek computer, to an immigrant who came to the United States with two suitcases and not much else, to the person responsible for search at Google, every turn has enriched me and made me a better person," Singhal wrote. "It fills me with pride to see what we have built in the last fifteen years. Search has transformed people's lives; over a billion people rely on us...Today, it has become second nature to us. My dream Star Trek computer is becoming a reality, and it is far better than what I ever imagined," he added. Maharashtra Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao today applauded the NCC cadets for bringing laurels to the state at the Republic Day Camp held in New Delhi recently. The Governor hosted a reception to honour 104 NCC cadets and officers at Raj Bhavan and conveyed his appreciation to the team, a Raj Bhavan spokesperson said. Addressing the cadets on the occasion, Rao reminded them that "once a cadet, always a cadet" and told them they must live with discipline and patriotism all their life. He asked the cadets to become agents of change and provide leadership to the society in their chosen areas. He also advised the youths to refrain from addictions of all kinds. Additional Director General of Maharashtra NCC Maj Gen D S Gill informed that the NCC contingent from state comprised 77 boys and 37 girls. He said the State Directorate won a rich haul of trophies and medals including those for the Best Directorate in drill competition, ballet competition and the Most Enterprising Naval Unit. The cadets presented a cultural programme on the occasion. Governor's wife Ch Vinodha, NCC officers and cadets were present. The government is ready with a detailed strategy to prevent recurrence of whitefly pest attack on cotton crop in the next season, Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh said today. "We held several meetings on this issue with all the stakeholders and a comprehensive strategy to prevent recurrence of the pest during next season has been planned," Singh said addressing the 87th AGM of the ICAR Society. During the kharif 2015 season, unprecedented heavy infestation of whitefly on cotton was documented in Punjab and Haryana, resulting in significant damage to the crop, he said. There was a severe outbreak of whitefly attack due to deficient rainfall coupled with hot, humid and cloudy weather during June-July last year, he said this in a statement. The Minister further informed that crop damage in Haryana was relatively less as nearly 50 per cent cotton area in the state was sown on time whereas in Punjab, sowing in over 75 per cent of the crop area was delayed due to late harvesting of wheat. Approved in 2002, Bt cotton is the only genetically modified crop allowed for commercial cultivation in India and over 90 per cent of the country cotton area is sown under it. Asserting that Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) is committed to overcome farm constraints to make Indian agriculture sustainable and profitable, he said the Council has revised the mandates and formulated Vision-2050 for all its institutions with an eye on the future needs. The Minister also praised ICAR's agricultural research and education institutions for successfully generating and introducing technologies to boost farm production and incomes in 2015. The government will auction three ultra mega power projects, to be set up in three states of Bihar, Odisha and Tamil Nadu with an investment of over Rs 80,000 crore, by March this year. Power Secretary P K Pujari today said that there will be auction of "three UMPPs by March definitely". "These are Banka in Bihar, Bedabahal in Odisha, and Cheyyur in Tamil Nadu," Pujari told reporters on the sidelines of the India Investment Summit 2016. The Secretary, however, said that the Cheyyur UMPP is based on imported coal but there is a possibility of putting the project on the block. "The bid document for the domestic coal has been finalised and will soon be put for Union Cabinet approval," he said. As per the standard procedure, the bid document has be in place for auctioning a project. The document for imported coal is also being finalised by the ministry which will be sent for Cabinet approval. The investment for an UMPP of 4,000 MW has been revised from Rs 20,000 crore to about Rs 27,000 crore recently on basis of rise in the price of coal and land. Thus the three projects entails an investment of over Rs 80,000 crore. Government had aborted bidding for Cheyyur (Tamil Nadu) and Bedabahal (Odisha) in January last year due to tepid response from private sector. Private firms, which had participated in the first round of bidding for both the projects, withdrew their bids citing difficulties in securing finances for these projects. Punjab would take over Rs 15,628 crore of discom debt, being 75 per cent of the total discom debt of Rs 20,838 crore. outstanding as on September 30. The scheme also provides for the balance debt of Rs 5,210 crore to be re-priced or issued as State guaranteed discom bonds, at coupon rates around 3 per cent less than the average existing interest. At present, as many 17 states and a union territory have evinced their interest to join UDAY scheme. The government is expecting that by the end of this fiscal the agreements under the scheme would be signed which would cover over 90 per cent of total discoms debt of Rs 4.3 lakh crore. In a bid to rescue almost bankrupt state electricity retailers, the Centre had launched UDAY scheme for rejig of Rs 4.3 lakh crore debt of the utilities in November. Under the scheme states governments, which own the discoms, can take over 75 per cent of their debt as of September 30, and pay back lenders by selling bonds. For the remaining 25 per cent, discoms are to issue state guaranteed bonds. The UDAY scheme is optional and operationalised through signing of a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding by Centre, States and their discoms. Foreigners visiting India with e-tourist visa are likely to be given mobile SIM cards soon with the Home Ministry giving its in-principle approval to the proposal for promotion of tourism. The Tourism Ministry's proposal was discussed by the Foreigners Division of the Home Ministry threadbare and given its nod as part of the larger goal of attracting more tourists to India. "Even though there are issues of security, communication is important for any visitor. Since we are giving e-tourist visa to citizens of a limited number of countries and that too after proper verification, we are giving our approval to the proposal of giving SIM cards to tourists," a senior Home Ministry official said. As part of the proposal, the Tourism Ministry is planning to gift a kit comprising a SIM card, maps, booklets and CD with information about various tourist destinations, guidelines relating to dos and don't, details regarding whom to contact in case of any emergency, among other things. The e-tourist visa is currently given to citizens of 113 countries and government plans to raise it to 150 countries by March 31, 2016. Tourists can arrive in 16 designated airports across the country. Tourist visa on arrival, enabled by electronic travel authorisation, popularly known as e-tourist visa scheme was launched on November 27, 2014. Under the e-tourist visa scheme, an applicant receives an email authorising him or her to travel to India after it is approved and he or she can travel with a print-out of this authorisation. On arrival, the visitor has to present the authorisation to the immigration authorities who would then stamp the entry into the country. According to an official estimate, during January- November of 2015, a total of 3,41,683 tourists arrived on e-tourist visa as compared to 24,963 during the corresponding period of previous year, registering a growth of 1,268.8%. The UK accounted for 23.93% share of availing e-tourist visa facilities during November 2015, followed by the USA (16.33%), Russian Federation (8.17%), France (7.64%), Germany (5.60%) and Australia (4.82%). Canada had a share of 4.71%, while that of China stood at 3.26%, Ukraine 2.03 percent and Netherlands 1.75%. Hundreds of Gurkhas and Nepalese community members in the UK may have lost their life savings as they are believed to have fallen prey to a suspected 50 million pounds Ponzi scheme, police said today. Some of the victims have approached the City of London Police, however, many people have not contacted the police which today asked others to come forward and report the case. The police have arrested 14 people as part of the suspected "Ponzi scheme" linked with Capital World Markets (CWM) based in the financial district of London. They believe about 450 Gurkha including retired and serving soldiers and Nepalese community members may have invested in the "Ponzi scheme" which dupes people by distributing returns to investors from the money paid in by other investors. The victims are thought to have lost money after investing more than two million pounds with CWM, a fund manager suspected of running a fraudulent foreign exchange investment scheme promising customers a return of five per cent a month. "We are very keen to hear from members of the Ghurkha and Nepalese community who have put money into CWM's managed fund. So far, only five victims from this community have come forward, but we think more than 200 may have invested," City of London Police Detective Chief Inspector David Manley said. "Financially, they are not the biggest investors but in terms of harm they are among the biggest victims. This happened around the time of the Nepal earthquake and lots of Gurkhas send money home, so this scam will have really hit them hard. "We are not sure why there is a reluctance to come forward, whether it is a pride issue or whether they do not want to believe that they are not going to see their money again. We want to reassure them that they have done nothing wrong and will be treated sensitively. Our investigations are ongoing and this could be the only opportunity they have to get some justice," Manley said. Offering a return of five per cent a month, hundreds were lured into investing in the scheme, with an estimated 50 million pounds being poured in. More than half of those who fell prey to the fraud are believed to be Gurkhas. Gary Ghale from the Gurkha Welfare Trust believes the Nepali community in the UK may have been encouraged to invest in the scheme by unsuspecting family and friends. "We would advise anyone who believes they have fallen victim to this suspected fraud to contact the City of London Police immediately," he said. The Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court today issued notice to the Maharashtra government on a petition filed by Mumbai's gangster-turned-politician Arun Gawli, seeking furlough. The Division Bench of Justices Bhushan Dharmadhikari and Vijay Deshpande sought a reply from the state government within two weeks. Gawli, serving life imprisonment for the murder of Shiv Sena corporator Kamlakar Jamsandekhar, filed the plea two days back, after the prison authorities denied him furlough to meet his family. On October 14, 2015 Gawli had written to officiating Deputy Inspector General of Prisons, Eastern Region Nagpur, Yogesh Desai requesting furlough. His application for furlough was, however, rejected by the authority on the ground that if he is released he may commit other offences and might cause harm to the society. Lodged in Nagpur Central prison here, Gawli was convicted and sentenced by a Sessions Court in Mumbai on August 3, 2012 along with 11 others. Special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act court (MCOCA) Judge Prithviraj Chavan while pronouncing the verdict had also imposed a fine of Rs 17 lakh on Gawli, failing which he would have to undergo an additional three-year imprisonment. Gawli was arrested by the Mumbai police under relevant sections of IPC and stringent MCOCA. The Madras High Court today granted anticipatory bail to DMDK Chief Vijayakanth and seven others in a case filed against them for allegedly damaging a bus stop during a demonstration at Thanjavur and tearing a poster having a photo of chief minister Jayalalithaa. Granting anticipatory bail, Justice P.N.Prakash of the Court's Madurai bench directedVijayakanth to appear before the Judicial Magistrate Court-I at Thanjavur and get bail under usual procedure. Rejecting the plea of Vijayakanth's counsel that he be allowed to appear in a court at Chennai, the judge said he should appear in the Thanjavur court The judge directed the seven other DMDK activists to deposit Rs.75,000 in the Judicial Magistrate's court so that if they were found guilty after the trial under Damage to Public Properties Act, the money could be paid to the treasury. The Judge directed them to appear before the Magistrate I court and get the bail. When the government pleader said tearing of the government poster, containing the chief minister's portrait affected sentiments, the judge said mere tearing of banners would not lower the status of the leader of a political party in any way. The judge granted bail to eight other DMDK activists, who were arrested in connection with the case and lodged in jail, and directed them to pay a bond of Rs.10,000 besides two personal sureties. The Madras High Court today set aside the order of a single judge directing the Dindigul Municipal Corporation to appoint 25 persons as sanitary workers on compassionate grounds, and not to outsource sanitationwork. Allowing an appeal from the Municipality challenging the single judge order, A Division Bench of the Court's Madurai Bench, comprising Justice V Ramasubramanian and Justice N Kirubakaran, felt that the petitioner, M Lakshmi should have pleaded for herself only. However, she committed a mistake by seeking appointment for 24 others also on compassionate grounds. The single judge had directed the corporation not to outsource the job though the petitioner did not make such a prayer. "We are of the view that the order directing the appointment on compassionate grounds to persons other than the petitioner and the direction to not outsource, could not have been granted," the bench said. It further said as the corporation had already decided to appoint the petitioner as sanitary worker on compassionate grounds, the commissioner could issue necessary orders. The court also gave liberty to other applicants to file individual writ petitions seeking employment on similar grounds. Brazil is not sharing enough samples and disease data to let researchers determine whether the Zika virus is, as feared, linked to the increased number of babies born with abnormally small heads in the South American country, UN and US officials have said. The lack of data is forcing laboratories in the United States and Europe to work with samples from previous outbreaks, and is frustrating efforts to develop diagnostic tests, drugs and vaccines. Scientists tell The Associated Press that having so little to work with is hampering their ability to track the virus' evolution. One major problem appears to be Brazilian law. At the moment, it is technically illegal for Brazilian researchers and institutes to share genetic material, including blood samples containing Zika and other viruses. "It's a very delicate issue, this sharing of samples. Lawyers have to be involved," said Dr Marcos Espinal, director of communicable diseases in the World Organization's regional office in Washington. Espinal said he hoped the issue might be resolved after discussions between the US and Brazilian presidents. He said WHO's role was mainly to be a broker to encourage countries to share. When asked whether the estimate of other scientists that Brazil had provided fewer than 20 samples was true, he agreed it probably was. "There is no way this should not be solved in the foreseeable future," he said. "Waiting is always risky during an emergency." Last May, as the first cases of Zika in Brazil were emerging, President Dilma Rousseff signed a new law to regulate how researchers use the country's genetic resources. But the regulatory framework hasn't yet been drafted, leaving scientists in legal limbo. "Until the law is implemented, we're legally prohibited from sending samples abroad," said Paulo Gadelha, president of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Brazil's premier state-run research institute for tropical diseases. "Even if we wanted to send this material abroad, we can't because it's considered a crime." The ban does not necessarily mean foreign researchers can't access samples. Some were shared with the United States, including tissue samples from two newborns who died and two fetuses recently examined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But a US official said that wasn't enough to develop accurate tests for the virus or help determine whether Zika is in fact behind the recent jump in the number of congenital defects. The spike in cases prompted WHO to declare an international emergency Monday. India and Hong Kong today decided to strengthen economic cooperation, especially in financial services, as the visiting Chief Executive CY Leung met Prime Minister Narendra Modi here. Modi welcomed CY Leung on his first official visit to India and expressed the hope that his trip will lead to increased trade, investment and tourism links between India and Hong Kong, a PMO statement said. During the meeting, CY Leung told the Prime Minister about the strong interest among Hong Kong-based companies in India. Modi and CY Leung agreed to strengthen bilateral economic cooperation, especially in the financial services sector, as well as cooperation in the field of education, it said. Laying of wreaths at the 1971 war memorial here set the tone for the starting of the International Fleet Review (IFR) being organised by the Indian Navy. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu paid homage to the martyrs at the memorial 'Victory at Sea' off RK Beach Road. Dignitaries, including chief of Naval Staff, Admiral R K Dhowan, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command, Vice-Admiral Satish Soni, and commanding officers of visiting foreign naval ships, visiting the Eastern Naval Command laid wreaths at the memorial built by the Navy and the government of Andhra Pradesh. President Pranab Mukherjee is scheduled to review the naval fleet off Visakhapatnam on Saturday. On the occasion today, a 50-men guard of honour was paraded and Naidu proceeded to the memorial with the wreath-bearers marching in front. A two-minute silence was observed on the occasion as a mark of respect to the martyrs. The IFR 2016 is the biggest naval exercise wherein nearly 50 countries are participating. The last IFR was conducted in January 2001 off Mumbai with participation from 29 countries. Naidu also inaugurated the maritime exhibition at Andhra University Engineering College ground in the presence of Dhowan, Soni and commanding officers of foreign ships. The exhibition is held in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of 'Make in India'. Various Indian industries and organisations have set up an array of 74 stalls showcasing self-reliance of the Navy. A thematic light and sound show depicting the roles on Indian Navy both in war and peace time was the main attractive feature in the exhibition. An IFR village is co-located with the maritime exhibition, consisting of 100 craft stalls with a variety of art works including live stalls showcasing craftsmanship. The village also displays the rich cultural heritage of the country with its diverse traditions and cultures. "Andhra Pradesh is centrally located on East Coast and it plays an important role in economic growth of the country. The state is at the forefront of Prime Minister's 'Make In India' concept," Naidu said. In the IFR village, stalls are put up by PSUs and private entities under categories of 'float','move' and 'fight', showcasing innovation, indigenisation and potential of the youth of the country. As per the schedule of the five-day event, Dhowan will host a press conference tomorrow formally inviting the delegations from navies participating in IFR. An opening ceremony is planned as a curtain raiser event at INS Satavahana Stadium tomorrow afternoon. The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) - Hyderabad has entered into a research partnership agreement with Ontario-based McMaster University, which will generate opportunities to create intellectual property through innovation and to commercialise research outcomes. The agreement is one of the several such pacts valued over than 11.5 million dollars signed during the current visit of Kathleen Wynne, Premier of Ontario, Canada in India. Speaking at a plenary session attended by Ontario delegates and representatives from Indian companies Wynne said there is a long history between India and Ontario have a long history of working together - generating trade, jobs and economic growth for both regions. "The seven agreements signed today will benefit India and Ontario for years to come, and the new MOU between Ontario and Telangana will help strengthen commercial ties across key sectors, including urban infrastructure, information and communications technology, and education," Wynne said as per a statement released today. Among other agreements signed are one between Astra Microwave Products Limited and Vaughan, Ontario-based Unique Broadband Systems Limited established a joint venture to provide broadcasting services, satellite uplinking and medical imaging products to India and other regional markets. Another one between Nuclear Fuel Complex and Toronto, Ontario-based Kinectics for a partnership in the Canada - India nuclear energy initiatives, the statement added. Ottawa based Solantro and their Indian partner, Smarttrack will collaborate on the development of power electric solutions for renewable energy and micro inverters while DataWind signed a MOU with the Government of Telangana to open a manufacturing base in Hyderabad which is expected to be in production within months, the statement said. The BJP today alleged that illegal mining was its peak in Uttar Pradesh under the patronage of state Mining minister Gayatri Prajapati. "Several allegations have been levelled against Prajapati after Samajwadi Party (SP) formed the government, but as he is favourite of party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav no action was taken against him," BJP spokesman Chandramohan alleged. Chandramohan alleged that illegal mining was at its peak in the state under patronisation of Prajapati Demanding the SP supremo to clear his position on Prajapati, the spokesman said that Yadav teaches lesson of morality to the ministers, but he himself openly patronises the Mining minister. The International Monetary Fund today agreed to provide a USD 497 million tranche for Pakistan as part of a bailout package agreed in 2013. The decision was made after a crucial meeting between IMF and Pakistani official this week in Dubai. "After constructive discussions, the mission and the Pakistani authorities have reached staff level agreement on the completion of the tenth review under the EFF (Extended Fund Facility) arrangement," IMF said in a statement. The disbursement of the agreed amount will be made after requirement by the IMF board approval but it will be just a formality after the agreement reached with Pakistan. The IMF will still have to release USD 1.1 billion of the total USD 6.7 billion loan agreed three years ago. The loan helped Pakistan in 2013 to avoid a default when foreign exchange reserves had depleted to a dangerous level. The privatisation of 68 state-owned companies, which include loss-making enterprises like Pakistan International Airlines, is a crucial part of the IMF deal. Expressing concern over the alleged assault on and stripping of a Tanzanian woman in Bengaluru, Union Tourism and Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma today said such incidents affect the tourism industry. "Law and order is a state subject but if something like this happens to any tourist, particularly a foreigner and lady traveller, we fall behind from the tourist point of view," Sharma told reporters here. He also called for "special efforts" toward safety of tourists, particularly foreigners and ladies. A Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car in Bengaluru. Meanwhile, on a query on Sabarimala temple in Kerala, the Minister said the government is "considering highly" to put it in PRASAD scheme which is meant for developing pilgrimage centres. As many as 13 cities -- namely Ajmer, Amritsar, Amravati, Dwarka, Gaya, Kamakhaya, Kanchipuram, Kedarnath, Mathura, Patna, Puri, Varanasi and Velankanni -- have been identified for development under Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spirituality Augmentation Drive (PRASAD) by the Ministry of Tourism. Clarifying that he has never said that the entire country has become intolerant, eminent Hindi poet Ashok Vajpeyi, who has returned the Sahitya Akademi award, today said India has always been tolerant and will remain so. "We have not said India has become intolerant. It is certain forces, which are promoting intolerance," the 75-year-old writer said at a literary meet in the Kolkata Book Fair. "The country as a whole, people at large, India as a civilisation, has been plural, diverse and tolerant through millennia and will continue to remain so because the people of this country will not allow the elements of intolerance to have a hay day," Vajpayi said. In the same breath, he said in some ways the country has also been intolerant. "Our caste system existed because we have been intolerant. Now the voices of the marginalised are being heard. They are claiming their share of power and it is disturbing for those in the power," he said. The Hindi poet was among the earliest of about 40 writers who had returned their awards in the past few months to the Sahitya Akademi in protest against the literary body's silence on attacks on free thinkers like M M Kalburgi, Narendra Dabholkar and Govind Pansare. "We did it to bring the issue to the attention of the people at large because ultimately it is the people who are going to decide what kind of India they want," Vajpeyi said. On Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula's suicide, he said now the whole machinery and important ministers were beginning to dig into details to tell us that he was not a Dalit. "As if the fact that his mother was a Dalit is not enough. If he is not Dalit, then should we kill him or push him to suicide like that?" he wondered. He had recently returned the D Litt honour conferred to him by the Hyderabad Central University in protest against the "anti-Dalit" attitude of authorities. To a suggestion by one of the panelists, the poet, who has been the chairman of the Lalit Kala Akademi, said the word tolerance was inappropriate. "I agree that the word is a bit difficult. It is as if you are tolerating me although you don't agree with me. Words like accommodating or understanding, etc must have been better. Somehow this word got currency," he said. Amid enduring tensions over the South China Sea, India and China today held inaugural round of talks on maritime cooperation. The dialogue here covered a range of issues of mutual interest, including exchange of perspectives on maritime security and prospects for maritime cooperation between the two countries, the External Affairs Ministry said. It said developments in international regimes such as UNCLOS (UN Convention on the Law of the Sea) and IMO (International Maritime Organisation) also figured in the discussions. The Indian delegation was led by Amandeep Singh Gill, Joint Secretary (Disarmament and International Security Affairs) in the Ministry of External Affairs, while the Chinese delegation was led by Kong Xuanyou, Assistant Minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China. The next round will be held in Beijing on a mutually convenient date, the MEA said. The dialogue assumes significance as China has been critical of oil and gas exploration projects by Indian companies in the South China Sea, a huge source of hydrocarbons. China has acrimonious relationship with a number of countries including Vietnam over the South China Sea. India has been supporting freedom of navigation and access to resources in the South China Sea in accordance with principles of international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. However, China has been inisisting on outstanding issues being resolved bilaterally. India has been concerned over Chinese forays into the Indian Ocean and docking of its nuclear submarines in Sri Lanka and Pakistan. India and Mexico are enjoying robust growth even as emerging economies as a whole are facing the harsh reality of slow growth and reversal of capital flows, IMF chief Christine Lagarde said today. She said slow growth in China, decline in commodity prices and asynchronous monetary policies are among the challenges faced by the emerging economies. In remarks prepared for delivery at the University of Maryland, Lagarde said that after years of success, however, emerging markets as a group are now facing a new, harsh reality. "Growth rates are down, capital flows have reversed, and medium-term prospects have deteriorated sharply," she added. According to Lagarde, emerging markets are a group of about 30-50 countries that are in a transition phase -- not too rich, not too poor, and not too closed to foreign capital, with regulatory and financial systems that have yet to fully mature. "These countries are incredibly diverse - culturally, geographically, and even economically. Right now, for example, Brazil and Russia are in recession while India and Mexico are enjoying robust growth. So, it would be a mistake to think of these countries as a homogeneous bloc," she noted. Last month at the World Economic Forum (WEF), Lagarde had said that as India is growing fast at over 7 per cent, the nature of BRICS bloc has undergone a major change, with each member showing an economic performance very different from the other. Emerging and developing economies account for about 60 per cent of global GDP, up from just under half only a decade ago. "They contributed more than 80 per cent of global growth since the 2008 financial crisis, helping save many jobs in advanced economies, too. "And they have been the main driver behind the significant reduction in global poverty," Lagarde said today. According to Lagarde, softening of growth, scale of capital outflows and recent stock market declines are cause for concern in the short term. Going by estimates, emerging markets saw USD 531 billion worth net capital outflows last year compared with USD 48 billion net inflows in 2014. "The emerging world is also facing increasing geopolitical and environmental risks. Think of the Syrian refugee crisis that is directly affecting countries such as Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan, which are hosting millions of displaced people," the IMF chief said. Talking about the impact of climate change on food prices, political stability and people's health, Lagarde said that by 2030, "it is expected that more than 98 per cent of deaths related to climate change will occur in developing countries". On quota reforms, Lagarde said implementation of quota reforms at IMF has bolstered its ability to bring emerging and advanced economies together in a new partnership for growth. "For the first time in history, emerging market countries such as Brazil, China, India, and Russia are now among the 10 largest shareholders of the Fund," she added. India, like the rest of the world, is fast losing some of its iconic species due to illegal trade in wildlife, a senior forest official said today. Principal Chief Conservator of Forest (Adminstration), N Krishnakumar today said wildlife crime has progressively become an organised activity and affected many other species for illegal exploitation. "As the world grows in wealth, demand for species like tiger, elephant, leopard, pangolin or rhino for their parts and derivatives has increased. Wildlife crime has progressively become an organised activity and affects many other species for illegal exploitation," he said. He was addressing a 3-day national level workshop, claimed to be the first in India, on capacity building for effective wildlife law enforcement. Additional Director, Wildlife Crime Control Bureau, New Delhi, Tilottama Varma said it was important for the agency to secure cooperation and participation of other law enforcement agencies like police, railway protection force, Customs, border security forces and others. Shekhar Kumar Niraj, head of TRAFFIC India, joint organisers, claimed that the workshop was first of its kind in India, where officers from various law enforcement agencies have come together for intense skill development to combat wildlife crime and discuss and develop national level strategy and protocols for combating wildlife crime. The workshop is being organised by TRAFFIC, a global wildlife trade monitoring network, in partnership with Tamil Nadu Forest Department, Tamil Nadu Forest Academy, Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), and WWF-India. Around 100 participants from 18 states, representing the departments of forests, police and intelligence and seven central agencies, representing Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Indo-Tibetan Border Police forces, Border Security Forces, Customs, Railway Protection Force, Sastra Surakha Bal and others are attending the event. The workshop will discuss and share ideas related to identification of specimens in trade and strategies in combating crime, application of forensics and DNA techniques in wildlife crime investigations, Niraj said. Voicing concern over the "spreading tide of extremism", India today sought strong, coordinated action by like-minded nations to combat the menace as well as growing non-traditional threats like piracy. Addressing Thai academics, businessmen and students at the prestigious Chulalongkorn University here, Ansari also touched upon the "evolving situation" in the South China Sea that demands restraint from all parties. India supports collective efforts by ASEAN member states and China to conclude the code of conduct to keep peace and stability in the region, Ansari said about the South China Sea (SCS) issue in which Beijing is involved in a territorial dispute with a number of ASEAN members. China claims the SCS - a major shipping lane - and 90 per cent of the islands including major shipping lanes that dot it. Brunei, along with other ASEAN members like Malaysia, Philippines and Vietnam, has been also staking claims in the South China Sea. Over half of the world's commercial cargo passes through the Indo-Pacific waterways. "Non-traditional threats such as piracy, smuggling, transnational crimes and drug-trafficking are on the rise and pose a challenge for our countries and require strong and determined, coordinated action to control. "The spreading tide of extremism and terrorism is a threat we (India and Thailand) both face. Successfully dealing with such threats requires strong cooperation among like- minded partners. "Thailand and India already have a robust cooperation in this area and I am glad that we have also taken steps to institutionalise such cooperation at the regional level," he said during his visit to Thailand. Ansari also said that India is ready to "meet the expectations of our friends in the region and play a more pro-active role in the processes leading to the ASEAN Community". Underlining that there is "tremendous potential" for enhancing bilateral defence ties, he said India hopes to continue the already "robust" cooperation. Ansari, who flew into this southeast Asian country on the first visit by an Indian Vice President in half a century at the invitation of Thai premier Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha made the remarks in his speech on 'India, Thailand and ASEAN: Contours of a Rejuvenated Relationship'. India has a shared vision for a peaceful region and the seas around it and believes that all trade routes and the sea lanes must be protected from traditional and non-traditional threats and all countries using these international waters must act with responsibility and restraint, he said. "As the countries in the ASEAN region strive for greater economic integration, the safety of sea lanes - critical for maritime trade and commerce, maritime security, and access to marine resources in accordance with accepted international norms, continues to assume greater significance," he said. Stressing on the need for enhancing bilateral defence ties, he said: "Thailand has played host to ships of the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard on several occasions in recent years. "We hope to continue this cooperation through technical, human resource development, capacity building and contributing to the development of Thai capacities, both physical and human." He called for synergising efforts in areas of economy and business to enhance and diversify trade, saying despite the large size and rapid growth of respective economies, the trade and investment between India and Thailand remains modest. "We need to encourage our private sectors to make investments in infrastructure and manufacturing sectors in the each others' country and for this the two governments are willing to provide a predictable and comprehensive legal and taxation frame-work," he said. On India's engagement with ASEAN, Ansari said: "The Delhi Dialogue, the eighth edition of which will be held later this month; the ASEAN-India Eminent Persons Lecture Series and the ASEAN-India Centre in New Delhi are important components of our agenda to enhance mutual understanding." The ASEAN-India Plan of Action for the period 2016-20 was adopted in August 2015 which identifies concrete initiatives and areas of cooperation along the three ASEAN pillars - political-security, economic and socio-cultural, he said, adding: We have opened a separate Mission to ASEAN and EAS in Jakarta to further strengthen our engagement." Speaking on the trident of commerce, culture and connectivity, he said: "India is considering the feasibility of liberalising our visa regime for ASEAN countries to facilitate Buddhist tourist arrivals. Connectivity with ASEAN in all its dimensions - physical, institutional and people-to-people - continues to be a strategic priority for India, he said. "Special efforts are being made to develop a coherent strategy, particularly for linking ASEAN with North East India. This is reflected in the finalisation of negotiations on the India-Myanmar-Thailand Motor Vehicles Agreement and ASEAN-India Maritime Transport Cooperation Agreement. "ASEAN-India Civil Aviation Task Force is expected to oversee optimisation of air connectivity. Other major projects on connectivity include the Kaladan Multi-modal Transit Transport Project and Rhi-Tiddim Road," he said. He also stressed on the need for India and ASEAN to focus on an extension of the trilateral highway to Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. "We also have to work towards converting these transport corridors into economic corridors. The Mekong-India Economic Corridor, which is expected to connect the industrial and freight corridors in India with the production networks in the Mekong region through the Chennai-Dawei sea link will have a beneficial effect on all our economies. "As part of our digital connectivity initiatives, we are exploring the setting up of information highways or i-ways between India and ASEAN," he said. Amid efforts to resume its stalled peace process with the Taliban, Afghanistan today said India is "fully in the picture" and it is being kept abreast about every single development aimed at bringing stability in the war-ravaged nation. Chief Executive Officer of Afghanistan Abdullah Abdullah expressing satisfaction over defence and security ties between the two countries, also said his government was happy with support from India over supply of military hardware and that there was "no redline" on it. Asked during a media interaction whether there was any link between terror attacks outside Indian consulate in Mazar- e-Sharif and Pathankot air base, he said it would have been shared if there was any. He said every possible step is being taken to ensure security of diplomatic missions of India and others. On comments by an Afghan police official that Pakistan army personnel were involved in the Mazar-e-Sharif attack, he did not give a specific response but said, "We have full sense of cooperation between our security personnel." Identifying terrorism as the biggest challenge facing the region, Abdullah said Pakistan has influence over the Talibans and can play a major role in bringing the terror outfit to talks with Kabul. "There are enough lesson for us that the terror groups regardess of who have created and supported them will turn against the state," he said. On military hardware supply to Afghanistan by India, he said, "We are happy with support from India including the military part. It was being based on our priority. There is no limitation and there is no sort of redline." India had supplied three Mi-35 multi-role helicopters to Kabul in December. Queried whether India has been kept out of the peace process as Pakistan, China and the US were trying to restart Kabul's talks with the Taliban, he said this is a "preparatory phase of facilitating the negotiations and that India is fully in the picture" and that it is being "kept abreast about every single development". Representatives of Afgjanistan, Pakistan, China and the US are scheduled to meet on Saturday as part of the ongoing efforts to lay out a roadmap for the reconciliation process in Afghanistan. Abdullah said countries involved in the peace process at present have either influence on the Taliban or on the situation, adding there are no red lines for groups to give up violence to participoate in talks. He said Taliban leaders are based in Pakistan which can influence them to shun violence. "India is for a stable democratic inclusive Afghanistan. India's position converges with what we want. India has a big stake in stabilisation of the country and is part of that process," he said. Asked whether India has been kept out of the peace process under pressure from a third country, he only said, "India's position on talks is very clear. The negotiations have to be Afghan-led and Afghan-owned and that is what we have said." The Afghan CEO, who had arrived in India on a five-day visit on Sunday, had held talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. Abdullah said Afghjanistan is also negotiating with Russia for supply of helicopters. On China's involvement on the issue of resumption of peace talks, he said that country has good relations with Afghanistan as well as Pakistan while insisting that India is a strategic partner and can play a significant role in ensuring peace in Afghanistan. The Afghan CEO said the Indian government has expressed gratitude on the way Afghan security forces foiled the Mazar-e-Sharif attack. Inviting Indian companies to invest in Afghanistan, he said every possible help will be extended to them, besides ensuring ease of doing business. India has invested USD two billion in aid and reconstruction and trained scores of Afghan officers. Amid efforts to resume its stalled peace process with the Taliban, Afghanistan today said India is "fully in the picture" and it is being kept abreast about every single development aimed at bringing stability in the war-ravaged nation. Chief Executive Officer of Afghanistan Abdullah Abdullah expressing satisfaction over defence and security ties between the two countries, also said his government was happy with support from India over supply of military hardware and that there was "no redline" on it. National Security Advisor Ajit Doval called on Abdullah on the last day of his five-day visit here, and discussed various issues relating to security cooperation. The recent terror attacks near Indian missions in Afghanistan are understood to have figured in the meeting. Asked during a media interaction whether there was any link between terror attacks outside Indian consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif and Pathankot air base, he said it would have been shared if there was any. He said every possible step is being taken to ensure security of diplomatic missions of India and in his country. On comments by an Afghan police official that Pakistan army personnel were involved in the Mazar-e-Sharif attack, he did not give a specific response but said, "We have full sense of cooperation between our security personnel." Identifying terrorism as the biggest challenge facing the region, Abdullah said Pakistan has significant influence over the Talibans and can play a major role in bringing the terror outfit to talks with Kabul and help move forward the peace process. "There are enough lesson for us that the terror groups regardless of who have created and supported them will turn against the state," he said without elaborating further. On military hardware supply to Afghanistan by India, he said, "We are happy with support from India including the military part. It was being based on our priority. There is no limitation and there is no sort of redline." India had supplied three Mi-35 multi-role helicopters to Kabul in December. Queried whether India has been kept out of the peace process as Pakistan, China and the US were trying to restart Kabul's talks with the Taliban, he said this is a "preparatory phase of facilitating the negotiations and that India is fully in the picture" and that it is being "kept abreast about every single development". Representatives of Afgjanistan, Pakistan, China and the US are scheduled to meet on Saturday as part of the ongoing efforts to lay out a roadmap for the reconciliation process in Afghanistan. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) India and Iran today held extensive discussions on key bilateral and regional issues including security, energy, and connectivity as New Delhi looked at "re-energising" its ties with Tehran after the lifting of sanctions by the Western countries against it. During the 13th round of India-Iran Foreign Office Consultations, which was chaired by Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar and Ebrahim Rahimpour, Iranian Deputy Minister for Asia and Pacific Affairs, the two sides reviewed the entire gamut of bilateral ties, official sources said. Apart from taking stock of cooperation in the area of connectivity and energy, the two discussed regional security issues and development in the region. "Iran is an important economic and security space for us as also amongst most important sources of energy," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said, noting that after the lifting of sanctions against Tehran, New Delhi was looking at "re-energising" ties with its long-standing partner. According to official sources, they also discussed the possibility of a Preferential Trade Arrangement (PTA) and India's participation in the Farzad B gas block. Under pressure from the US and other western powers, India had relegated its second biggest oil supplier by cutting down purchases from 21.2 million tonnes in 2009-10 to 11 million tonnes in 2013-14. Imports have been of that order in the last three years. Indian firms have so far shied away from investing in Iran for the fear of sanctions by the US and Europe. It was deterring New Delhi from claiming rights to invest nearly USD 7 billion in the biggest gas discovery ever made by an Indian firm abroad. But after the lifting of sanctions, India is making a renewed pitch for rights to develop 12.8 Trillion cubic feet of gas reserves ONGC Videsh Ltd had found in 2008. Noting that the first phase of Chahabahar port contract was in final stages of negotiation, they also hoped for an early conclusion of the contract. They also discussed a possible Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement and the Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (BIPPA), sources said. Rahimpour later met Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj. India today said it is considering liberalising visa for the 10-member ASEAN to boost Buddhist tourist arrivals due to links of "shared heritage" including spread of Buddhism across parts of southeast Asia from India. "The spread of Buddhism from India is attributed to Emperor Ashoka, who sent Buddhist emissaries to Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. Indian mythology and folklore finds reflection here," Vice President Hamid Ansari said in his address at the Chulalongkorn University here. He said the trident of 'Commerce, Culture and Connectivity' defines the future focus areas of cooperation between ASEAN members and India. Ansari, who flew into this southeast Asian country on the first visit by an Indian Vice President in half a century, noted that from Borobudur in Indonesia to Angkor Wat in Cambodia, India's shared heritage finds an "exuberant manifestation". "The Thai epic, Ramakien is based on the Ramayana. The Ahoms, the Khamtis and the Khasis have links with Thai people. In modern times, many Indians emigrated to South East Asia in the 18th and 19th centuries. "Their descendants today constitute a vibrant community of people of Indian origin, contributing actively to their respective countries of adoption. "In consideration of these links, India is considering the feasibility of liberalising our visa regime for ASEAN countries to facilitate Buddhist tourist arrivals," he said. During his address on 'India, Thailand and ASEAN: Contours of a rejuvenated relationship' at the prestigious university, the vice president also referred to the re-establishment of the Nalanda University, which has strong support from several ASEAN members, and said efforts are on to set up a similar world-class varsity. "Nalanda was once a world-renowned knowledge hub where scholars from around the world, including South East Asia and India, exchanged knowledge and ideas. Now, we are working to create a similar world class university in the 21st century, with the support of our East Asian partners, and have offered scholarships to students from CLMV countries (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam) to study there," Ansari added. The Association of Southeast Asian Nation (ASEAN) has 10 member states - Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. India's non-aligned tradition is "receding", a former Bush Administration official has told a top Senate committee as he painted an upbeat scenario of growing Indo-US relations. "I'd say of all the aspects of US-India relations; the defence component now is moving forward with the most speed. Nothing is fast in India but with the most speed in that context," Michael Green, a former Bush Administration official and now with a think-tank, told members of the Senate Armed Services Committee during a hearing on Asia Pacific. "The bipartisan and continuous support for building this relationship is very positive thing for our country. There is still this non-aligned tradition in the ministry of external affairs but it's not growing. It's receding," he said in response to a question. And public opinion polls about the US and India are very, very positive. "We do more exercises with India than they do with the whole rest of the world combined. We also sell a lot of stuff," he added. "People forget we lost the fighter competition but we sell a lot of things to India. A 10-year vision would include regular Malabar exercises that would include the India Navy but also Japan, Singapore, Australia, you know, maybe China or others, depending on the exercise. You can do these in sequence and have different kinds of exercises," Green said. In the commercial or defence industrial relationship, he said that there's potential for ASW Patrol, maybe even submarines 10 years from now. "I wouldn't erase that. But it's not going to be a US Nuclear tech sub, it's going to be some version of a Japanese or Australian sub or maybe we help with the integration of the weapon systems. So, there's an industrial part," he said. However, one of the most difficult parts of the relationship has been the intelligence relationship which is the life blood of any alliance or partnership. "And that's moving at a good direction too. So, sustained bipartisan commitment to their relationship is good," he said. Praising the role of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in fighting terrorism, India today said it will "whole heartedly" support her government on all fronts and will jointly terrorism and violent extremism. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj conveyed this during her meeting with Bangladesh State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam here who is on a visit to attend a Counter Terrorism Conference in Jaipur. Swaraj expressed strong resolve to work jointly with Bangladesh in fighting the menace of terrorism and violent extremism. The two leaders discussed the issues of connectivity, hydro-power projects through sub-regional cooperation mechanism, a statement from the Bangladesh High Commission said. "In this context, she particularly praised the contribution of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in fighting terrorism. 'On every platform, India will extend support to Sheikh Hasina's government whole-heartedly'," it said quoting Swaraj. The Ministers expressed satisfaction over the implementation of the various agreements signed during the historic visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Bangladesh in June last year. Swaraj also assured Alam that instructions have been issued to authorities concerned to resolve at the earliest the issue of easing of visa processing for Bangladeshi travellers. She also informed of the initiative taken by the Indian government to translate Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibar Rahman's 'Unfinished Memoirs' in Hindi, it said. The two ministers appreciated the resolution of land and maritime boundaries between India and Bangladesh. In the joint-statement last year, Modi and his Bangladesh counterpart Sheikh Hasina had expressed satisfaction at the amicable settlement of the maritime boundary between the two countries. A group of Indian-Americans supporting Donald Trump have decided to campaign and run advertisements in New Hampshire after the Republican presidential front-runner suffered a shock defeat in Iowa. A decision in this regard was taken by the newly formed 'Indian Americans for Trump 2016' -- a political action committee -- at its meeting in New Jersey on Tuesday. "To turn out Indian Americans in New Hampshire to vote for Donald Trump on February 9, the Indian-Americans for Trump 2016 officers decided to educate the Indian-Americans about the primary election process," a statement said. This would be done by campaigning in the state, running informational articles and promotional advertisements in media outlets that reach the Indian-Americans in New Hampshire area. It will include a number of print, TV and social media, especially those that are popular among the Indian-Americans, the statement said. Formed in January, Indian Americans for Trump is headed by A D Amar and has members from New York and New Jersey. As the results of the Iowa Caucuses came in, the crowded Republican presidential race appeared to be narrowing down to a three-cornered contest with Florida Senator Marco Rubio coming a close third behind Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Trump. The race for the White House has entered New Hampshire with presidential aspirants from both the Republican and Democratic parties reaching this crucial state ahead of the February 9 primaries. Vice President Hamid Ansari today asked Thailand's vibrant Indian community tolook at the "new India" and invest in its growing economy. "This (Indian) community can contribute to the great efforts being made in India. It will make you proud of India and India will be proud of you," Ansari said, addressing a gathering of over 600 Indian nationals and Thai Indians at a reception hosted by Indian ambassador Bhagwant Bishnoi. He said Indian community should look at the "new India and invest in its growing economy". The Vice President said that every 7th person in the world is an Indian or of Indian-origin. "Soon there could be an Indian on the Mars with the success of Mangalyaan," he quipped. "The purpose of my visit is to strengthen the already strong ties between India and Thailand," he told the cheering audience. Ansari, who flew into this southeast Asian country on the first visit by an Indian Vice President in half a century at the invitation of Thai premier Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha, said there had always been a link between India and this region. "In diverse ways each one represents a new India which has predominantly young population," he said. Referring to diversity in India, he said, "Diversity to some is a challenge but for us it is something to be cherished and build on." "We have given substance to the plurality and democratic system has stood us in good stead," he added. "Our objective is to make India and Indians relevant to the world," he said. Ansari's visit is the first by an Indian Vice President to Thailand after a gap of 50 years. The last Vice President to come to Thailand was Zakir Hussain in 1966. Iran hopes the break in the Syria peace talks is only temporary, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said today, as he warned outside actors should not seek to dictate the agenda. Speaking at a Syria donors' conference in London, Zarif insisted Tehran believed that intra-Syrian talks were the "only way out" of the bloody civil war tearing the country apart. Zarif's was the first visit to Britain by an Iranian foreign minister to Britain in 16 years. International donors were meeting on the Syria crisis just hours after the peace talks in Geneva were suspended Wednesday until February 25. The "brutal images of barbarism" produced by the conflict "continue to agonise the entire humanity", he said. "From the beginning of the crisis in Syria, we maintained that a political resolution through intra-Syrian talks is the only way out. "We have also underlined that outside actors should facilitate such dialogue and not seek to dictate its parameters or outcome." "We hope that the pause in the Geneva talks is only temporary," he added. Zarif said Iran had provided USD 2.8 billion in aid so far, targeted at internally displaced people. "However, considering the extent of the humanitarian catastrophe, much more needs to be done inside as well as outside Syria," he said. He reiterated Iran's "readiness to engage in all efforts to bring an immediate ceasefire and to collaborate in humanitarian endeavours to alleviate the suffering of the Syrian people". An Iranian general has been killed by jihadists in Syria, reports say, the latest high-profile casualty of Tehran's efforts to prop up President Bashar al-Assad. Brigadier General Mohsen Ghajarian of the elite Revolutionary Guards was killed in the northern province of Aleppo, according to the Fars agency, which is close to the Guards. He was advising pro-government forces in the fight against the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group, it reported, without saying when he died. MizanOnline, a agency linked to the judiciary, also reported his death. Fars said six Iranian "volunteers" had also been killed in Aleppo province, where the Syrian army, backed by Russian air strikes, this week launched a major offensive against rebels. Iran has provided military advisers to Assad's army, as well as Iranian, Afghan, Iraqi and Pakistani "volunteers" to fight the rebels. The latest deaths bring to more than 100 the number of advisers and "volunteers" sent by Iran who have been killed in Syria since the beginning of October, according to an AFP tally. The casualties include General Hossein Hamedani, a veteran of the Iran-Iraq war who died in October after having conducted 80 missions in Syria. Assad's forces today entered the villages of Nubol and Zahraa north of Aleppo city, after breaking a rebel siege there, prompting what Syrian state agency SANA called "mass celebrations" in the streets. Iranian state media was also celebrating the victory with live reports from the battlefront. The conflict has killed more than 260,000 people and forced half the country's people from their homes since March 2011. A US defense official says new intelligence assessments show the number of Islamic State fighters has dropped in Iraq and Syria, but is rising in Libya. The official says reports suggest there are 19,000-25,000 IS fighters in Iraq and Syria, compared to an earlier range of 20,000 to more than 30,000. The decrease may explain some of the increase of IS in Libya, which has risen from a couple thousand to about 5,000. The official says coalition airstrikes and military operations in Iraq and Syria have killed IS fighters and made it more difficult for them to move into the region or recruit others. As a result, some may be going into Libya. The official was not authorized to discuss the numbers publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. The Israeli army blockaded a village in the northern West Bank today that it said was home to Palestinian assailants who carried out a deadly attack in Jerusalem, officials said. Three men from Qabatiya, near Jenin, yesterday attacked police with guns and knives outside Jerusalem's Old City, killing a female officer and wounding another before being shot dead. They were found to be in possession of explosive devices, police said. Following the attack, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with top security officials, who decided to bolster forces in the northern West Bank, carrying out arrests and imposing a blockade on Qabatiya, an official told AFP on condition of anonymity. The attack was described in Israeli media as an "escalation" after more than four months of Palestinian knife, gun and car-ramming attacks. "There's no doubt that the intention of a terrorist cell with such an arsenal of weapons was to carry out a mass attack," Israel police commissioner Roni Alsheich said on yesterday. The wave of violence since October has killed 26 Israelis, as well as an American and an Eritrean, according to an AFP count. At the same time, 164 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces, most while carrying out attacks but others during clashes and demonstrations. Israel said today it has charged a policeman with sending details of a Jewish woman who was riding in a car with Palestinian men to extremists opposed to interracial relationships. The justice ministry filed charges yesterday against border police officer Matan Amichai, who in December 2014 stopped a car in a routine check near the Palestinian neighbourhood of Silwan in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem. "In the vehicle were two Silwan residents and two young Jewish women," the ministry said in a statement. "The accused, who was on duty there at the time, took the identity card of one of the young women and photographed it with his mobile phone." Israeli ID cards carry, among other details, the holder's picture, address and marital status. The statement said Amichai sent the image to the head of Lehava, an extremist rightwing Israeli group, and to former parliament member Michael Ben-Ari, a follower of late anti-Arab rabbi Meir Kahane. In a message accompanying the picture, sent to Lehava's Benzi Gopstein, he said the two women went on a trip with the men to the Red Sea resort of Eilat. "Here is the ID of one of the girls, please do something," the statement quoted him as writing. "I wanted to cry," he allegedly wrote to Ben-Ari. Amichai was charged with invasion of privacy and abuse of his authority. No trial date was set. In August 2014 Lehava activists staged a rally where racist slogans, including "Death to Arabs!", were shouted at the wedding near Tel Aviv of a Muslim man and Jewish woman. Israel's Supreme Court today suspended the detention without trial of a Palestinian journalist who has been on hunger strike for more than two months, but he cannot leave hospital without permission. Mohammed al-Qiq, 33, was said to be on hunger strike for 72 days to protest being held under Israel's controversial administrative detention law, which allows the state to hold suspects for renewable six-month periods without trial. The court said the order was being suspended due to his poor health. His family will be allowed to visit him in hospital. Qiq's lawyer said the journalist had earlier pledged to refuse any order that "doesn't guarantee his freedom". "I'm going to visit him now to know his decision," said Jawad Boulus. The International Committee of the Red Cross said last week that Qiq's life was in danger. Qiq, a father of two and a correspondent for Saudi Arabia's Almajd TV network, was arrested on November 21 at his home in the West Bank city of Ramallah. He has been refusing food since November 25 in protest against the "torture and ill treatment that he was subjected to during interrogation", according to Addameer, a Palestinian rights organisation. Israel's Supreme Court previously refused to order his release, although it said it would follow his health on a daily basis. Shin Bet, the Israeli domestic security service, says Qiq was arrested for "terror activity" as part of the Islamist group Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip. Qiq was jailed for a month in 2003 and then for 13 months in 2004 for Hamas-related activities. In 2008, he was sentenced to 16 months on charges linked to his activities on the student council at the West Bank's Birzeit University. Italy has urged Egyptian authorities to launch a formal investigation into the fate of an Italian student who disappeared in the country on January 25, the fifth anniversary of the uprising that overthrew longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak. In a statement yesterday, the Italian Foreign Ministry expressed condolences to the family of 28-year-old Giulio Regeni and said his disappearance probably had a "tragic epilogue." The ministry said the had not been confirmed, and they were awaiting official word from Egyptian authorities. It said the government had asked Egypt to do everything possible to ascertain what happened, including launching a formal investigation with the participation of Italian experts. An Egyptian diplomat earlier yesterday said Egypt's Foreign Ministry, which was contacted by their Italian counterparts over the matter, had spoken with security agencies that were looking for the student. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to brief reporters. The University of Cambridge lists Regeni as a student of its Department of Politics and International Studies. With political uncertainty expected to prolong, Jammu and Kashmir Governor N N Vohra today appointed two retired IAS officers as his Advisors to assist him in running the affairs of the state. The order to appoint the retired civil servants of the Jammu and Kashmir cadre was issued by the Governor today, an official spokesman said. Dewan, a 1977-batch IAS officer, had taken voluntary retirement on October 20, 2014 after serving as Union Tourism Secretary. He had earlier served as Divisional Commissioner of Kashmir in early 2000s. A prolific writer, Dewan had taken voluntary retirement to focus on his literary works. Ganai, a 1982-batch IAS officer, also took premature retirement last year as he was overlooked for the post of Chief Secretary following premature retirement of then incumbent Mohammad Iqbal Khandey. Ganai has served in various capacities in the state and Union Government including Divisional Commissioner Kashmir, Financial Commissioner, Industries and Commerce Department. Ganai's last appointment was as Chairman, Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), a post declared equivalent in status to the IAS cadre post of Chief Secretary for the period till his term ended. The appointment of the Advisors by the Governor comes as the political uncertainty in the state is expected to continue with no party staking claim to form the government after the demise of then Chief Minister Mufti Sayeed on January 7. Vohra had on February 2 invited PDP president Mehbooba Mufti and BJP state president Sat Pal Sharma for clarifying their stand on government formation in the state but both put the onus on each other. Mehbooba, who is seen as the successor to her father as the Chief Minister, has set a slew of conditions for the BJP government at the Centre before she could take steps to form the government. The state was put under Governor's Rule on January 8, a day after death of Sayeed. PDP, with 27 MLAs in the 87-member Assembly and BJP with25 legislators, ran a coalition government headed by Sayeed for 10months before his demise on January 7. A Jharkhand Police constable, who has allegedly killed his girl-friend surrendered before police at Biramitrapur in Odisha's Sundargarh district today. The incident took place on February 1 and the constable Jiten Oram confessed his crime to his superiors yesterday evening and was brought to Biramtrapur Police Station, Odisha police said. Oram(22) said he had an affair with a 24-year-old woman from Ranchi, who was the sister in law of his elder brother. As the woman was pressurising him to marry her, Oram said he brought her to Odisha on February 1 and late in the afternoon took her into a dense forest on Odisha-Jharkhand border. The constable then hit the woman on the head with a blunt object he was carrying and hit her a couple of times more when she fell on the ground dead. He first tried to bury the body at the same place but unable to do so, he dragged the body to a another place and dumped it before leaving for Bansjore in Jharkhand, Oram confessed. During investigation it was found that the spot where he killed his girlfriend was actually inside Jharkhand, while the body was dumped inside Odisha. Inspector In-Charge of Biramitrapur police station, Manas Kumar Deo said as the crime took place inside Jaharkhand territory and the police of that state are now investigating the case. "We are helping as the body was found this side," he said. The chorus of protest against GM mustard today grew louder, with JD(U) today writing to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking cancellation of tomorrow's meeting of Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee called to decide the fate of GM crops. Holding that all mustard producing states are opposing this move of the government, party general secretary K C Tyagi reminded Modi that Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has already written to Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar urging him to make consulting the states and obtaining their consent mandatory for any kind of field trial. Talking to PTI, Tyagi said his party would like to take all-like minded parties on board on the issue and could also raise it in the upcoming Budget Session, if the government did not pay head to the demands for dropping the idea. Tyagi urged the prime minister "not to give consent" to introduction of genetically modified mustard crops and cancel the "pre-scheduled secret meeting" on the issue. Claiming that "strong and collective voices against this secret meeting and the proposal to introduce GM crops are being raised all over the nation", Tyagi said even developed countries like the US and China have avoided GM crops. Maintaining that proposed introduction of GM mustard has created an "environment of fear" among farmers, Tyagi said, "More than 50 farmers organisations across the country have slammed the government's proposed move to introduce the banned GM crops. "The Supreme Court has also demanded an explanation from the central government regarding the same. So as a people's representative, I would urge you to cancel the GEAC meeting." JD(U) has raised the issue a day after RSS-affiliate Swadeshi Jagran Manch warned against grant of permission for commercial production of GM mustard. Around 50 farmers unions including RSS-affliate Bharatiya Kisan Sangh yesterday expressed concern over the "secretive" process adopted by the government. Tyagi also referred to objections raised a few days ago by Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who had written a similar letter to the prime minister noting that approving commercial cultivation of GM mustard crops would "threaten" agriculture, farmers, health and environment. In the letter, Sisodia had claimed scientists were conducting trials in this regard at Delhi University without Delhi government's 'no objection certificate', which he termed as "illegal", and asserted that Centre should have engaged the states in a dialogue on the issue. Noting that Sisodia conveyed the Delhi government's opinion about the GM mustard, Tyagi said,"Not only this but organisations even from the BJP-ruled states have expressed their concern about the secretive processes adopted by the regulators. "Dallas Buyers Club" star Jennifer Garner was stopped by a police officer, who turned out to be her fan, and was asked if she wanted to take a selfie with him. The 43-year-old actress was in New York City when she was stopped by a group of police officers. Surprisingly, one of them asked the former wife of Ben Affleck to take a selfie with him. An eyewitness said that Garner was in a good mood and she immediately accepted the officer's request, reported Ace Showbiz. "She was walking alone, just going about her day. The officers saw Jen and asked if she would take a photo with them, which she obliged," a source said. Despite having tumultuous life after splitting from Affleck, the "Alias" actress seemed to enjoy her life as a single mother. Last week, the mother of three was photographed at a market in Pacific Palisades, where she grabbed some fresh fruit and vegetables. On the previous day, she was pictured leaving the gym to pick up her children from school. Actor Shahid Kapoor says his "Shaandaar" producer Karan Johar is someone who does not shy away from speaking his mind. Johar was recently at the receiving end for his comments on the lack of freedom of expression in the country. Defending Johar, the 34-year-old "Haider" star said everyone has a view on current issues, but few decide to express and the filmmaker is one of them. "Certain people want to express their views, certain people prefer not to express, but everybody has a view. Having said that, Karan (Johar) is somebody who has always spoken his mind. He has always expressed what he feels. So he decided to express," Shahid said in the Zee Cine Awards press conference here. Asked if celebrities should express their views on issues like 'intolerance', the actor said one need not be an intellectual to give their opinion on social issues. "I don't think one needs to be educated or intellectual to give views on social issues. I don't think anyone should consider themselves inadequate to speak about a current issue." Shahid Kapoor, who is currently working on Vishal Bharadwaj's "Rangoon," will host the Zee Cine Awards 2016 with Johar. Appreciating the Modi government's "pro-growth" stance, Hong Kong today said it can play a major role in funding and development of infrastructure projects in India. "Hong Kong can help finance India's infrastructure," C Y Leung, Chief Executive of Hong Kong SAR, said here at a CII function. Talking about his meeting with Prime Minister Minister Narendra Modi, Leung has agreed to take Hong Kong-India cooperation to even higher levels. He also mentioned about the two-day India Investment Summit, which seeks to attract global investments in sectors like highways, ports, railways, power and renewable energy. He expressed confidence that the trade between India and Hong Kong will continue to grow and added that he sees wealth of prospects, fresh opportunities. Leung said that the opportunities are increasing because of the "pro-growth" economic strategies devised and pursued by the Indian Prime Minister. Seeking investments, he said Hong Kong offers huge opportunities in terms of intellectual property rights protection, open society, good connectivity with the mainland of China and level-playing field. Further, he said global players in sectors including banking, finance, aviation, shipping, logistics and infrastructure have presence in Hong Kong and they "will be happy to share the experience and expertise to help you find opportunities in Hong Kong and the region". On increasing cultural relations and people to people ties, he said that they have forwarded a draft MoU on cultural cooperation to the Indian government, also looking forward to the signing as soon as possible. He added that education, technology and innovation are other areas where both the sides can enhance collaborations. "India is a world leader in IT and I know about their ambitious expansion plans for the sector, through the 'Make in India' programme," he said. Leung said, he has recently announced the setting up of an innovation and technology venture fund which aims at investing in local innovation and technology start-ups. In 2014-15, the bilateral trade between India and hong Kong stood at USD 19.17 billion. India has received USD 1.57 billion as foreign direct investment from that country during April 2000 and September 2015. Counting in the hotly-contested Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) polls would be taken up tomorrow, an election which has already generated considerable political heat with stakes high for the ruling TRS. Meanwhile, Telangana Congress Committee President Uttam Kumar Reddy and Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council Shabbir Ali were among those who were booked today for allegedly assaulting MIM party activists during the polls on Tuesday. This comes close on the heels of police booking a case against Asaduddin Owaisi, Hyderabad Lok Sabha MP, and his brother, MLA Akbaruddin Owaisi for allegedly assaulting Ali and a BJP candidate, respectively, during the election. The counting will begin at 3 PM and not 8 AM as planned earlier, because of repolling in 36 wards of Puranapul area of old city tomorrow following "poll discrepancies" in the election that recorded an overall 45 per cent turnout. GHMC Commissioner and election officer B Janardhan Reddy told reporters here that almost all results should be out by 8 PM. Elaborate arrangements, including security, are being made for counting. The exercise would be videographed. The election is seen as a major test of popularity for TRS, which is riding high after a massive victory in the Warangal Lok Sabha bypoll conducted recently. The ruling party is not known to be a major force in the city, and in the previous GHMC poll in 2009, it had not even contested. But the party, which put up a spirited campaign, is upbeat about its prospects with even exit polls conducted by television channels projecting it to emerge as a single largest party. Exit polls are projecting TRS to win on between 77 and 85 seats in the 150-member civic body. The poll is also a litmus test for Asaduddin Owaisi-led MIM, Congress and the TDP-BJP combine. GHMC covers 24 Assembly seats and the TDP-BJP combine had bagged 15 of them in the 2014 elections. US Secretary of State John Kerry demanded today that Russia stop bombing the Syrian opposition, implicitly blaming Moscow for the collapse in peace talks. Speaking in London ahead of a conference on the Syrian humanitarian effort, Kerry said he had called Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov for a "robust" discussion. In Geneva yesterday, UN envoy Staffan de Mistura suspended attempts to begin a dialogue between Bashar al-Assad's regime and the Syrian opposition. Alongside Britain's Foreign Minister Phillip Hammond, Kerry read out sections of UN Security Council resolution 2254, passed in December, calling for an immediate ceasefire. "Russia has a responsibility, as do all parties, to live up to it," he said. "So I had a conversation this morning with Foreign Minister Lavrov. We discussed, and we agreed, that we need to discuss how to implement the ceasefire." Kerry also said that both parties to the conflict - the rebels and the regime and its allies - must allow access to besieged areas for humanitarian aid. Three days after a newborn baby boy was kidnapped from a government hospital here, police today rescued the infant and arrested a woman who committed the offence. The accused Pinki, who allegedly took away the three-day-old baby from his mother Nasrin on the pretext of getting him vaccinated, was arrested from Amar Colony area here this morning, police said. "She has disclosed that the baby was stolen with the motive of sellingin Delhi. Her association with some gang is being looked into," SSP RakeshSinghsaid. Nasrin gave birth to the child on January 29. After the accused did not return with the baby, the parents filed a complaint with the Superintendent of hospital and later lodged an FIR. Singh added that they were looking for a nurse, Seema who is suspected to have hatched the plan. CCTV cameras are being installed in the district women's hospital where the incident happened. "Hospital staff has been instructed to carry ID cards and remain in uniform with nameplate. Attendants of any pregnant lady would be issued identity cards. The entry of any other person would remain barred," DM Rajesh Kumar said. Regular checks would also be carried out from time to time to ensure no violations of regulations take place, he added. "CCTVs are also being installed at the Govt gents hospital and the work is likely to be completed by tomorrow," Kumar said. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un presided over a meeting of senior ruling party officials aimed at rooting out corruption and abuses of power ahead of a major congress to be held in May, its state media reported today, calling the gathering the first of its kind. The meeting this week focused on strengthening the ruling party and criticized "the practices of seeking privileges, misuse of authority, abuse of power and bureaucratism," according to a report by the Korean Central News Agency. It is unusual for North Korea's state-controlled media to make note of such problems within the ruling Workers' Party of Korea, which Kim heads and which has been in power since the founding of North Korea in 1948. The two-day meeting, which ended yesterday and was "guided" by Kim, brought together members of the ruling party's Central Committee and the Party Committee of the Korean People's Army. Though the article did not elaborate on the problems or suggested solutions, outside experts have long speculated that corruption and power abuse within the party are widespread and have been worsening in recent years amid the growth of a quasi-legal capitalist-style marketization of the North's officially socialist and centrally-directed economy. In its annual report released last month, North Korea and Somalia were listed at the top of Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index for the second-straight year as the most corrupt governments in the world, scoring only 8 points on a scale of 100. The meeting was held as world attention is focused on North Korea's January 6 nuclear test, which it claims was the first of a hydrogen bomb, and its announcement it will launch a rocket this month to put its second Earth observation satellite in orbit. The UN Security Council is now discussing whether to slap new sanctions on the North over the nuclear test, which violated UN resolutions already in place. North Korea's ruling regime, meanwhile, is heavily focused on preparing for the 7th Party Congress, a major event that will be closely watched for signs of new policies or priorities that could provide insights into how Kim, who assumed power after the death of his father, Kim Jong Il, in late 2011, intends to deal with his country's economy, domestic political issues and external relations. The KCNA article said the congress, the first since more than 3,000 delegates gathered for the 6th Congress in 1980, will "be recorded as a new landmark in the history of the party." It said Kim told this week's gathering that the party is faced with "manifold difficulties and ordeals," but added that he said "nobody in the world can block our way. New technology and knowledge sharing are essential to ensure that urban communities come up with sustainable water solutions, a green body today said. Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) today organised India-South Africa Knowledge Sharing Workshop on Sustainable Water Solutions for Future which focused on mainstreaming faecal waste management and mainstreaming water-sensitive urban design and planning. "New technology and knowledge-sharing are essential to ensure that urban communities learn from each other and come up with solutions that are sustainable," said Suresh Rohilla, CSE's Water Programme Director. Noting that with increasing urban population, a sanitation crisis is growing, CSE said that a large amount of water is used in flushing human waste even as large numbers do not have access to toilets. Rohilla said CSE's programme efforts had been directed towards meeting the twin goals of laying the foundations for a water-prudent society and adapting to climate resilience. "We believe this experience needs to be leveraged to share solutions with other countries in the developing world from South America, Africa and Asia to meet the needs of urban populations in the current water and wastewater paradigm which are affordable and sustainable," he said. The workshop brought together key functionaries from Water Research Commission (WRC) South Africa, RAND Water (the largest bulk water utility in Africa), South Africa Department of Science and Technology and participants from India including representatives from Urban Development, Environment, Water Resources Ministries and others. Discussing technology for eliminating waste at the source, Dhesigen Naidoo from WRC said the provision of full waterborne systems may not be realistic or achievable in the short term and even in the long term in many developing countries. Naidoo said there was a need for next-generation toilet technology and moving away from the current 'flush-and-dispose' and 'drop-and-store' models. "We cannot continue to flush away valuable and scarce fresh water, creating more downstream challenges in terms of water treatment and water quality," he said. A presentation given by Rohilla showed that the current method of faecal management was "capital-intensive" and created and maintained a divide between the rich and the poor. "Inadequate water supply in this area results in exploitation of ground water. Besides, Dwarka also suffers from flooding," he said. Jayant Bhagwan from WRC highlighted some of the new innovation and tools in the management of faecal sludge by the Ethekweni Metro. A CSE analysis said that for the past many years, developing countries were struggling to find solutions to the immediate problems of poverty, hunger, water scarcity, pollution and climate change and it was important therefore, to interlink global experience. Christine Moe from Emory University said rapid urbanization in urban and peri-urban areas of low-income countries had led to a growing sanitation crisis. Despite the considerable sanitation needs of urban and peri-urban communities, there was little data to inform strategies to mitigate risks of faecal exposure in developing countries. Kosovo's foreign minister and former premier Hashim Thaci says he received a death threat purportedly from the leader of the Islamic State organisation over his opposition to the extremist group. "It was a death threat against me and my family," Thaci said. A Pristina website this week reported details of a letter addressed to then-prime minister Thaci in late 2014, allegedly signed by IS chief Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, calling on him to abandon Kosovo's alignment with the West or face "great revenge". Thaci, who is now front-runner to become president of Muslim-majority Kosovo this year, confirmed that he had received a threatening letter from Baghdadi, saying he would "not step back or retreat from any threats" in tackling Islamic fundamentalism. About 300 of Kosovo's 1.8 million people have joined the jihadists' frontlines in Iraq and Syria in recent years -- the highest proportion of any European country's population. But there are now fewer than 70 still fighting, according to Kosovo's government, which has made high-profile arrests of recruiters and returnee fighters and strengthened legislation against them. On a recent visit to Pristina, US Secretary of State John Kerry said Kosovo had "set a powerful example" for the region but added: "It's obvious that more needs to be done." Thaci rose to prominence as political leader of the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA), a pro-independence ethnic Albanian guerilla group, during the 1998-1999 war against Slobodan Milosevic's Serbian forces. Milosevic's army withdrew from the southern province after an 11-week bombing campaign by NATO, and in 2008 it was Thaci who declared Kosovo's independence from Belgrade. More than 100 countries have recognised Kosovo's sovereignty, but not Serbia or its big ally Russia. Thaci's image has been tarnished by a 2011 Council of Europe report that alleged he led an organised crime network during and after the war involved in assassinations and the trafficking of drugs and human organs, amongst other accusations -- charges he strongly denies. A new EU-backed court to try alleged war crimes committed by members of the KLA is due to open in The Hague this year. "My life was threatened by Milosevic and now by IS... With the same allies that I won the battle against Milosevic, I will win the battle with IS," Thaci said on the sidelines of the Germia Hill regional security conference in Pristina. The 47-year-old said Kosovo "identifies with Euro-Atlantic values". Kosovo hopes to join the European Union, and Thaci warned that delays to Balkan countries' integration with the bloc were "opening more room" for Russia, Islamic fundamentalism and nationalism to operate in the region. The Sri Lankan government will "protect" its soldiers in the investigations into the alleged human rights violations during the civil war with the Tamil Tigers, President Maithripala Sirisena vowed today. "We will face it while protecting the integrity of the nation and the security forces," Sirisena said. In an apparent criticism of his predecessor Mahinda Rajapaksa, Sirisena said Sri Lanka has been subjected to the UN rights inquiry due to the country's inability to fulfil the "required work" in the post-2009 period when the civil war with the LTTE ended in victory for the government troops. Addressing a programme on Sri Lanka's 68th Independence Day here, he said it was important to face the human rights inquiry with patience and foresight and added that opponents must not try to make a political capital out of it. His statement comes amid an uncertainity over the involvement of foreign judges into the probe of alleged atrocities committed during the war with the LTTE. A UN Human Rights Council resolution adopted in October last year and co-sponsored by Sri Lanka has prescribed an investigating mechanism involving judges, prosecutors and investigators. But the Sri Lankan President in a recent interview has ruled out the participation of foreign judges in the inquiry. The statement also comes ahead of the visit of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Raad Al Hussein to Sri Lanka on Saturday. Hussein advocated an hybrid court while Sri Lanka has opted for a domestic mechanism with experts assisting the investigation into the alleged abuses. The unity government of Sirisena and Wickremesinghe faces domestic pressure from Sinhala majority nationalists to not allow foreign judges to try army soldiers. Nationalists view the military as war heroes for ending the separatist campaign of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 2009 during which nearly 100,000 people were killed. Congress councillor and Leader of Opposition in North Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) Mukesh Goel today favoured merger of the three civic bodies into one, which was trifurcated by his party's government in 2012, citing corruption and financial mismanagement in them. "All three MCDs should be unified as weak leadership, financial mismanagement and corruption are responsible for this financial crisis," Goel said in a special budget meeting of the NDMC. Re-unification of the three municipal corporations is also a demand of the striking employees of the three MCDs. Presenting his speech on budget estimates for the financial year 2016-2017, Goel attacked the BJP leadership in the NDMC for the present crisis where employees have been forced to strike demanding their salaries and other dues. The municipal corporation employees including a large number of sanitation workers went on strike from January 27 demanding regular payment of salaries as well as re-unification of the three corporations. The erstwhile Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) was trifurcated in 2012, by the then Sheila Dikshit-led Congress government. The trifurcation of the civic body led to financial crunch being faced by East Delhi and North Delhi Municipal Corporations even as more prosperous South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) too has experienced the financial pinch. Vice President Hamid Ansari today called for "strong cooperation" among like-minded nations to tackle the growing menace of terrorism and underlined the "tremendous potential" for enhancing Indo-Thai defence ties. "The spreading tide of extremism and terrorism is a threat we both face," Ansari told Thai academics, businessmen and students in his address at the prestigious Chulalongkorn University here. "Successfully dealing with such threats requires strong cooperation among like-minded partners. Thailand and India already have a robust cooperation in this area and I am glad that we have also taken steps to institutionalise such cooperation at the regional level," he said in his address on 'India, Thailand and ASEAN: Contours of a rejuvenated relationship'. Ansari, who flew into this southeast Asian country on the first visit by an Indian Vice President in half a century, held talks with Thai premier Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday. In his address, Ansari said his visit underscores the importance India attaches to Thailand as part of its increasing engagement with the region. He asserted that there is "tremendous potential" for enhancing bilateral defence ties. "Thailand has played host to ships of the Indian Navy and the Indian Coast Guard on several occasions in recent years. We hope to continue this cooperation through technical, human resource development, capacity building and contributing to the development of Thai capacities, both physical and human," he said. However, Ansari noted that when it comes to economic cooperation, despite the large size and rapid growth of the two economies, the trade and investment between India and Thailand "remains modest". The Vice President noted that non-traditional threats such as piracy, smuggling, transnational crimes and drug- trafficking were on the rise and posed a challenge, requiring strong and determined, coordinated action. He reiterated India's stand that all trade routes and the sea lanes must be protected from traditional and non- traditional threats and all countries using these international waters must act with responsibility and restraint. "As the countries in the ASEAN region strive for greater economic integration, the safety of sea lanes -- critical for maritime trade and commerce, maritime security, and access to marine resources in accordance with accepted international norms, continues to assume greater significance," he told the packed auditorium at Chulalongkorn's Music Hall. He said India supported the collective efforts by ASEAN member states and China to conclude the Code of Conduct to keep peace and stability in the region. Jet Airways is looking at expanding operations to Hong Kong and the move will help boost business and tourism in both the countries, the airline said today. "Jet Airways commenced services to Hong Kong in 2009...And we are looking at other places from India to connect Hong Kong," Jet Airways chairman Naresh Goyal said at a CII event. The airline will explore every opportunity to increase connectivity with Hong Kong, he said. "We at Jet Airways are absolutely committed to whatever it takes to realise the traffic and freight between India and Hong Kong to provide air connectivity to the people of our region," he added. Goyal said the airline last year "welcomed about 3,30,000 guests on our flights between India and Hong Kong". He said that huge opportunities exists in both the countries to enhance cooperation in tourism sector. "Tourism in India has significant potential considering the rich cultural and historical heritage and places of natural beauty spread across the country," he said, adding that India is an important market for Hong Kong with the rapidly growing outbound tourism. Talking about the economic reforms in India, Goyal said the government is implementing several reform measures to unlock the country's vast untapped investment potential and "radically overhaul the business environment". He said the business community of Hong Kong has huge opportunities in India as growth is accelerating. "The policies are aimed at leveraging the business acumen of Indian entrepreneurs who recognise the huge potential that Hong Kong has to offer in varied fields," he said. Further, he added, there is a buoyancy and mood upliftment among industry, investors and stock market in India and it is felt by CII, Ficci, Indian entrepreneurs and captains of industry here. Goyal said that Hong Kong's investor friendly policies help attract Indian investors, and expressed hope that the visiting business delegation of Hong Kong will also "find common business interest in India and profitable avenues for investments". A Malaysian military officer whose legal case prompted outrage after he left New Zealand under the protection of diplomatic immunity was sentenced today to nine months of home detention after pleading guilty to indecent assault. New Zealand Judge David Collins said Muhammad Rizalman Ismail will serve the sentence in a Wellington rental home before being deported back to Malaysia. Rizalman was arrested in May 2014 after he broke into the home of a 21-year-old woman, entered her bedroom wearing nothing but a shirt and struggled with her before she escaped and called police. He returned to Malaysia soon after under diplomatic protection. New Zealand initially blamed Malaysia but then conceded its own officials may have helped facilitate Rizalman's departure. He was extradited back to New Zealand in November 2014. In a written decision, Judge Collins said Rizalman, 39, moved to New Zealand with his wife and three children after being appointed to his post at the Malaysian Embassy in 2013. The next year, the judge said, Rizalman began acting in strange ways, including purchasing synthetic marijuana and hitting on women. In May, he followed Tania Billingsley home after he thought she smiled at him, the judge said. He waited outside her home for more than half an hour, defecating and then removing his pants and underpants before breaking in and entering her bedroom, where she was watching a movie, according to the judge. "She leapt from her bed and screamed at you to get out," Collins wrote. "You then approached Ms. Billingsley and grabbed her shoulders." The judge said Billingsley managed to push Rizalman aside and grab a knife from the kitchen. The judge said Rizalman had no previous record and had written Billingsley a letter of apology. But he added that he was struck by Rizalman's lack of insight into his offending and its impact on Billingsley, who continues to be traumatized by the incident. Rizalman was ordered to pay Billingsley an undisclosed amount for reparations. The Associated Press does not typically identify victims in sexual or indecent assault cases, but Billingsley decided to identify herself in July 2014 and to speak out publicly, saying she felt frustrated and angry Rizalman had been able to leave. A man allegedly tried to commit suicide inside social activist Anna Hazare's office in Ralegan Siddhi in Maharashtra, police said today. The man identified only as Balu consumed poisonous substance inside Hazare's office last evening, a police official said. He was rushed to a hospital with the help of Parner police who have lodged a complaint, he said. An aide to Hazare said land dispute led the man, a farmer, to take the step. Reacting to the incident, Hazare said matters like land disputes should be resolved in court and suicide wasn't a solution. A local court today convicted a man for murdering an 18-year-old girl in 2006 near Manjeswaram in the district for spurning his advances. Kasargod District Adhoc Court- judge-II, Gopakumar found him guilty under IPC sections 302 (murder) and 449 (house trespass in order to commit offence punishable with imprisonment for life). He said he will pronounce the quantum of sentence on February 6. According to prosecution, B M Ummer alias Ummer Bari (33) was in love with Fathima Suhara but she spurned his advances. On the night of December 28, 2006, he climbed a coconut tree near the victim's house at Uluvar village near Manjeswaram, removed the roof tiles and got inside the room where she was alone and murdered her by slitting her throat. Her parents, who were in the next room, found her body lying in a pool of blood the next morning. During the course of the trial, 22 witnesses were examined. Ummer, who was arrested, subsequently came out on bail and went absconding but was traced to Nasik near Mumbai and arrested again in 2014. A man in New Zealand has been jailed for four months for starving his dog so badly that it was reduced to "a skeleton covered with fur", media reports said today. Terepai Noel Teremoana of Auckland was sentenced at the Manukau District Court after he was found guilty of reckless ill-treatment of the animal. The dog, named Ben, was discovered with open, infected wounds, and a Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) inspector who found him said he looked like "a skeleton covered with fur", with bones clearly seen through his skin. He also suffered from infected sores, an inch-long tail wound and an infestation of fleas and worms. He was so weak from malnutrition that he was unable to stand on his own, nzherald reported. The vet who treated the dog said that in her 24 years in the job, Ben was the most emaciated dog she had ever seen. Due to behavioural issues as a result of his abuse, Ben was later euthanised. SPCA chief executive Andrea Midgen said she hopes the sentencing sets a precedent for future animal abuse cases in New Zealand. Teremoana was also disqualified from owning a dog for five years and was ordered to pay reparations to the SPCA Auckland. The mayors of three BJP-ruled MCDs today discussed the "crisis" caused by the municipal workers' strike with Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and claimed the Delhi government is likely to give Rs 307 crore more to pay their salaries. "Sisodia admitted the crisis is real and there should be no delay in payment of salaries to the striking employees. He also admitted North and East municipal corporations needed more money. "Sisodia said he will talk to the Lt Governor and (Chief Minister) Arvind Kejriwal for the release of additional Rs 307 crore to North and East municipal corporations," North Delhi Mayor Ravinder Gupta said after the meeting at the Secretariat. The mayors told Sisodia releasing some money is not a permanent solution to the financial crisis faced by them. "We asked him for a permanent solution and told him the loans(extended) by Delhi government will put pressure on the MCDs which are not in a position to pay interest," said East Delhi Mayor Harshdeep Malhotra. "We told him we will accept the loan of Rs 551 crore as an installment of Rs 3,000 crore yet to be paid by the government to the MCDs," said South Delhi mayor Subhash Arya. The mayors said they have appealed to the government and the striking employees to help them restore essential services of sanitation, health and education provided by the municipal corporations. "We have appealed to the municipal corporation employees to call off their strike considering the hardships faced by people of Delhi and urged the Kejriwal government to help us restore sanitation, health and education services," Gupta said. With the strike by municipal employees entering its ninth day, a delegation of agitating sanitation workers today met Lt Governor Najeeb Jung and said the fund offered by the AAP government for paying their salaries were "insufficient". While the MCD workers refused to call off their strike, they claimed that the LG has assured them of looking into their demands. "Today we met Lt Governor Najeeb Jung and told him that the funds offered by the Aam Aadmi Party government is not sufficient to pay our dues. Therefore, we are going to continue the strike," said President of Swatantra Mazdoor Vikas Sanyukta Morcha Sanjay Gehlot. "The LG has assured us that he is trying to address the issue," Gehlot said. Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had yesterday announced a loan of Rs 551 crore to two BJP-ruled civic bodies, East Delhi Municipal Corporation and North Delhi Municipal Corporation, to pay salaries to their employees. The seniormost doctor of Government Medical College here has challenged in High Court the appointment of its 'acting Principal', contending that the appointee is his junior and that his appointment amounts to contempt of court. Javed Chowdhary has filed a contempt petition against IAS officer M K Bhandari and Acting Principal of the Medical College Kaisar Ahmad Koul over non-implementation of the High Court's order dated December 31, 2015. The HC today issued notices to Bhandari and Koul to show cause why contempt proceedings should not be initiated against them. The court directed them to be present in person or through a duly authorised attorney on February 8, when the contempt petition will come up for hearing. In the December 31 order, Justice Janak Raj Kotwal had said, the "competent authority (government) shall accord consideration to filling up the post of the Principal Government Medical College within a period of four weeks hereafter on regular basis having regard to the rule position. "In case that is not done for any reason, whatsoever, the impugned order shall stay and it shall be open for the respondents (competent authority) to make fresh temporary arrangement in which seniority shall prevail," the court had said. Chowdhary had approached the court after Rafiq Pampori resigned as Principal of the Medical College in November last year and sought voluntary retirement alleging that he was not being consulted in important decision relating the college. Ignoring the seniority list, the Government on December 19 appointed Koul -- junior to Chowdhary -- as acting Principal in his 'own pay and grade'. The government's appointment order said, "It shall not create any right, interest or equity in favour of the doctor for his promotion, as and when appointment/promotion to the post of Principal Government Medical College Srinagar will be made" in accordance with the provisions of the rules for recruitment. The government had given no reason for not following the seniority list while making the temporary appointment. The President of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Mehbooba Mufti has expressed grief and sorrow over the loss of Army soldiers in Siachen avalanche. In a statement issued here today, Mehbooba Mufti conveyed her heartfelt sympathies to the Northern Command Chief and the families of the Army personnel who are missing in the tragic incident. A three year old girl was shot dead by dacoits at Jaklla village in the district, police said today. A group of dacoits entered the house of Israr last night. The family members resisted the dacoits attempt to loot and shouted. The dacoits then opened fire killing three-year-old Zulfi, the police said. The dacoits fled from the spot. A 23-year-old man who went missing from Karnal in Hayrana was found dead in the Yamuna river in Shamli district, police said today. The youth, identified as Surjit Singh, was missing since January 23. His body was found floating in the Yamuna river yesterday, they said. The body has been sent for post-mortem and investigation is underway, police said. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad today urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to "break silence" over the Ayodhya issue, and give "a clear message" that his government was "committed to the construction of temple at the Ram Janmabhoomi". At a meeting of the VHP's "Kendriya Margadarshak Mandal" close to the holy Sangam here, the Sangh Parivar outfit asked the Prime Minister to "pay a visit to Ayodhya and click a selfie at the Ram Janmabhoomi" to underscore the commitment of the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre towards construction of temple at the dispute. At the meeting, which was attended by a number of VHP office-bearers and Hindu religious leaders, concerns were also raised over "increasing incidence of cow slaughter" and demands made for setting up a national "Gau Seva Aayog" on the pattern of similar bodies that have come up in BJP-ruled states like Gujarat and Haryana. Talking to reporters after the meeting, senior VHP leader Ram Vilas Vedanti said "it is necessary for Narendra Modi, who enjoys the blessings of the Hindu community, to break his silence over the Ayodhya issue. "He has visited a number of shrines in various countries - many of them belonging to other religions - and clicked selfies to demonstrate his regard for different sects. "Now he must visit Ayodhya and do the same there". Vedanti, who is also a member of the Ram Janmabhoomi Nyas and a former BJP MP, added "it has been said many times that matters of faith can not be decided by a court of law and that an Act of Parliament should pave way for the construction of a Ram temple at Ayodhya." "If the ruling BJP is wary of raising this issue in the Parliament on account of its lack of majority in the Rajya Sabha, it must consider the option of convening a special joint session of both houses," he said. "If Modi and the BJP succeed in getting such an Act passed in the Parliament, Hindus will bless them with an unprecedented victory in the 2019 elections. "Failure to do anything in this regard may earn them the wrath of the sant samaj, whose blessings were unequivocally with the party and its leader in the last general elections", Vedanti added. An annual chocolate lovers event coming up on Saturday is about more than chocolate, an organizer and business owner said. We really want people to be able to come out and enjoy some chocolate and we encourage this to be a shopping event and an exploring event of some of the dining and shopping options that we have in Beatrice, said Michael Sothan, executive director of Main Street Beatrice. Main Street Beatrice sponsors the Chocolate Lovers Shopping Day Extravaganza, which is in its sixth year and starts at 10 a.m. on Feb. 6. The first 150 people to register at 516 Court St. will receive a bag of coupons for downtown businesses. Participants can then tour 20 downtown businesses that will give free chocolate and advertise their products and sales. Those who visit and get a card punched at all 20 will be entered in a 3 p.m. drawing for a grand prize. Sometimes the event can be chocolate overload, but a lot of places have them nicely packaged, so you can save it for later or maybe share it with your sweetheart for Valentines Day, Sothan said. Its a lot of fun. Visitors wont just be handed bars of chocolate. Weve got some wonderful places (participating), Sothan said. The Black Crow they go all out. Theyre known for their desserts. ... Our restaurants do really wonderful jobs. Some other places make some neat creations. Some hire caterers. Others have classic, hometown goodies. Ray Arter, co-owner of The Black Crow, describes himself as a chocoholic. Its not dessert without chocolate, he said. Many of the restaurants desserts, including its chocolate decadence cake, include a common theme: Belgian chocolate. On Saturday, The Black Crow will give visitors Belgian chocolate truffles that have a ganache filling a mix of chocolate and cream and are dipped in the European chocolate that Arter said is pure and without the fillers that many American chocolates have. I hope people come out, Arter said. I really enjoy it. I think its something great for Beatrice. To associate Beatrice with this chocolate event ... Its nice for Beatrice. Its a sophisticated thing. The event is free. One reason we dont want to charge is because we would like people to be able to go out and enjoy downtown Beatrice and hopefully spend those dollars downtown enjoy lunch and maybe buy a unique item or two while theyre out, Sothan said. We want them to explore those shops, slow down and enjoy downtown. Sothan said part of the mission and success of the event is the visitors discovery of local businesses. Some people will say, I had no idea we had that type of option or that type of shop downtown, Sothan said. Some businesses get pretty busy Its like Black Friday again, he quoted one owner saying. Thats kind of exciting to be able to see that. Anyone can participate, but only those 21 years of age or older are eligible for gift bags and prizes. The winner does not need to be present during the prize drawing. A human rights group has alleged that at least eight women and girls were raped or sexually exploited by UN peacekeepers late last year in Central African Republic, and the world body announced that more than 100 troops would be sent home. Human Rights Watch yesterday said a 14-year-old and an 18-year-old alleged that peacekeepers gang-raped them near the airport in Bambari, the country's second-largest city. The UN peacekeeping mission in Central African Republic said later yesterday it had identified seven new possible victims in Bambari in cases that Human Rights Watch brought to its attention. The UN said the soldiers implicated in the cases are from the Republic of Congo and Congo. The mission said 120 soldiers from the Republic of Congo who were deployed to Bambari from September 17 to December 14 will be repatriated after an investigation is carried out. In the meantime, it said, they will be confined to barracks. A fact-finding expert sent to Bambari found "sufficient initial evidence" that five alleged victims were minors and had been sexually abused, and that one adult had been sexually exploited, the mission said. The expert was unable to interview the seventh alleged victim. One allegation by Human Rights Watch had been previously reported and is currently under investigation, the mission said. Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, the UN envoy for Central African Republic who traveled to Bambari yesterday, expressed outrage and shame at the latest allegations, saying it is "a double crime" to attack vulnerable women and children that peacekeepers were sent to protect. The new cases highlight concerns about peacekeeper abuse beyond the chaotic country's capital. The UN mission in Central African Republic tweeted that there have been 13 cases of sexual exploitation and abuse by peacekeepers in Bambari since September 2014. The UN has been unable to explain why so many rapes and other sexual abuse by peacekeepers have been alleged in Central African Republic, which has been gripped by deadly violence between Christians and Muslims since late 2013. Thousands of UN and other peacekeepers have been in the country since then. On Friday, UN Assistant Secretary-General Anthony Banbury came close to tears as he described four new child sex abuse cases in the country involving UN troops and police from Bangladesh, Congo, Niger and Senegal. It was the first time the world body had publicly named countries whose UN personnel are accused, as part of a new policy. A three-day 'Ind Expo' showcasing products and services of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) will begin here on February 6. "Railway, defence, automobile and 120 government and private companies will take part in the Expo," Indore MSME Development Institute's Director Pradip Kumar told reporters. Besides host Madhya Pradesh, enterprises of Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana, Rajasthan and Gujarat will also participate in the event and showcase their products. The newly appointed Mumbai Police Commissioner Dattatray Padsalgikar today met Maharashtra Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao at the Raj Bhavan here. This was a courtesy visit, an official release said. IPS officer Padsalgikar on January 31 had taken charge as the top cop of the Mumbai Police from outgoing Mumbai Police Commissioner Ahmed Javed, who is set to head to Saudi Arabia as its Ambassador after he retired from police service. Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu today expressed confidence that the GST bill as well as the ones on bankruptcy and real estate will get the approval of Parliament during the Budget Session beginning February 23. "I am always optimistic. I am not pessimistic like others ... I am optimistic that GST, real estate development bill and bankruptcy bill will be passed during this session," he told reporters on the sidelines of India Investment Summit here. The minister also appealed to the opposition parties, especially Congress, to let the Parliament approve these legislations as they were in the larger interest of the country. "I appeal to all parties... That as the country is moving forward, we need these legislations in the larger interest of the country. I appeal to them and I seek their cooperation for passing these legislations in the budget session," Naidu said. The Congress has stalled the passage of the constitution amendment Bill in the Rajya Sabha, derailing the government's plan to roll out GST from April 1, 2016. "We are already in touch (with Congress) and we have been in touch (and) we will be in touch in future also. There is a regular interaction which we have with other friendly parties. "Even about the (timing of the budget) session, I have consulted lot of our senior opposition party leaders and we continue our interaction with them," Naidu said. On the three demands of Congress with regard to the GST bill, he said: "We have already addressed these issues...And the same has been communicated to the Congress party." The three demands are a cap on the GST rate in the Constitution itself, removal of the proposed 1 per cent additional tax on inter-state movement of goods and setting up a judicial panel to adjudicate disputes among states. Budget Session of Parliament commences on February 23. While the first part of the session will end on March 16, the second part will be take place from April 25 to May 13. A hardcore NDFB militant has been apprehended by security forces in Assam's Kokrajhar district today. Acting on prior information, a joint team of the Army and the Police launched an operation in Gorebil village, and the militant on seeing the security persons, made an attempt to escape, a defence spokesman said. The security forces nabbed the militant who has been identified as the outfit's self-styled Section Commander Lothen Basumatary alias Birai. He was wanted by the Police in connection with the December 2014 NDFB attack on adivasi villagers. A 7.65 mm pistol and some ammunitions have been recovered from his possession, the spokesman added. The NDMC Commissioner today warned if the agitating employees do not resume duties with "immediate effect", their names will be sent to the Delhi High Court for creating "nuisance" even as the strikers vowed to continue the protest. "All the employees of North Delhi Municipal Corporation are hereby directed to resume duty with immediate effect, be it any department viz engineering, health, sanitation, education, general administration, horticulture, etc," stated a circular released by NDMC Commissioner P K Gupta. The Commissioner warned the names of those who do not resume duty will be forwarded to the High Court for creating "nuisance" and accordingly, for fixation of civil and criminal liability. "Things have improved and by the end of February 15, salary of January month would also be cleared. Thus, the main grievance of the striking employees has been redressed and now they dont have any valid and tenable reason to halt work," he said. East Delhi Commissioner Mohanjeet Singh in an order said the salaries of striking employees will be released soon after receiving funds from Delhi government. He also directed the head of departments to ensure the employees resume duty "immediately". However, the leaders of striking employees asserted their strike will continue till a permanent solution is found. "We have heard about the notices to resume work but we are agitating for a permanent solution, which is yet to be found. So, our strike continues," said Rajesh Mishra, president of United Front of MCD Employees. The strikers' leaders said discussions were held with Lt Governor Najeeb Jung and he has called them again tomorrow but their was no decision taken to end the strike. "The employees have not received their salaries yet. So, strike continues. We have been summoned by the Lt Governor on tomorrow and we will raise our demands," said Sanjay Gehlot, president of Swatnatra Mazdoor Vikas Sanyukt Morcha. The associations of doctors and teachers said a final call on the strike will be taken after consulting the leaders of United Front of MCD Employees. "Our strike is going on, but we will discuss further action in a meeting of United Front. We will demand an assurance for timely payment of salaries in the next financial year," said R R Gautam, president of Municipal Corporation Doctors Association. East Delhi Mayor Harshdeep Malhotra said a consultation was being held with the striking employees in EDMC but no final decision was taken by them. Nepal's rights watchdog today appealed to all sides to maintain restraint and avoid any violent clash over the ongoing protest by Madhesis over the new Constitution that has claimed more than 50 lives. Expressing its concern over recent activities of the agitating United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF) in Dhanusha and other districts, the National Human Rights Comission have asked protesting parties and their cadres to respect democratic norms and values during their agitation. The NHRC have also said the act of Madhesi parties' of obstructing leaders of other parties from carrying out their activities in various districts of southern Nepal is punishable. The UDMF leaders and cadres in various Terai districts had recently obstructed movement of leaders of Nepali Congress, CPN-UML and UCPN-Maoist. They had also vandalised houses of lawmakers in Dhanusha district. The statement issued by the Commission Spokesperson Mohna Ansari also called both the government and protesters to maintain restraint and avoid any violent clash. Madhesis, who are inhabitants of the Terai region, are opposed to the new Constitution that divides their ancestral homeland under the seven-province structure and have led an ongoing blockade of key border trade points with India. The agitating community that shares strong cultural and family bonds with India is demanding demarcation of provinces, fixing of electoral constituencies on the basis of population and proportional representation, and have launched a protest for months that has claimed at least 55 lives. India's new High Commissioner- designate to Pakistan Gautam H Bambawale today called on Premier Nawaz Sharif's top aide, who emphasised the envoy's crucial role in strengthening bilateral ties. Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Foreign Affairs Syed Tariq Fatemi welcomed the Indian envoy and wished him a successful and productive tenure. "He highlighted the important role of Bambawale in strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries," the Foreign Office (FO) said in a statement. No further details of the meeting were provided by the Foreign Office. Bambawale, who replaced T C A Raghavan after his retirement, arrived in the country last month and has not yet presented his credentials to the President of Pakistan which is a part of official protocol to start functioning as the High Commissioner. On his arrival, Bambawale, who was earlier India's envoy to Bhutan, had said that he was coming to Pakistan with the message of friendship and the intentions of improving bilateral relations. "We want to strengthen our relationship with Pakistan," the senior diplomat had said. Bambawale's appointment comes amid fresh strains between the two countries after the Pathankot attack, which led to postponement of the Foreign Secretary-level talks. Pinning hopes on foreign investors including SWFs and pension funds, the government today said it expects NIIF to become a major source of funding for infrastructure projects from the next fiscal. India's maiden Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF), NIIF, in which government will hold 49 per cent, will be mother-fund under which there would be several funds, Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das said at the India Investment Summit here. The 2-day summit will have 250 participants and 91 delegates from various countries. National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) will fund projects that are "commercially viable", he said while seeking support from various foreign funds from Canada, US, UK, Singapore and UAE. Government will provide the initial seed capital and the intention is to have investors come in with funds that are multiple times more, he said. "The essence of NIIF is that it can leverage and bring a lot of money into the infrastructure sector. The kind of the response that we have been getting from our interaction with various funds, I have the confidence that in the coming years say 2016-17 and thereafter NIIF will emerge as major vehicle in infrastructure sector in the country," he said. NIIF will have professional management which will do due diligence before investing in a project, he said, adding that the government has already identified about 6 projects in the railways and highways sectors which could be funded through this investment vehicle. Pitching for investment in infrastructure sector, Das said India continues to be a bright spot in turbulent times and an attractive destination for foreign investment. The country saw recently the biggest reforms in FDI norms, he said, adding the Government is committed to preserve the economic strength of the nation. The government has already signed an MoU with Russia's Rusnano for setting PE fund which will invest in high technology projects. The government in December had set up the Rs 40,000 crore NIIF, which is an investment vehicle for funding greenfield, brownfield and stalled projects. The funding decision of NIIF will be through an Investment Management Company. While the government will invest Rs 20,000 crore in NIIF, another similar amount will come from private investors. Japanese auto major Nissan has roped in Bollywood actor John Abraham as brand ambassador for its standout models to be launched in India including sportscar GT-R and Hybrid SUV X-Trail. GT-R and X-Trail will soon be on sale in the country. "The partnership with John Abraham is timed with Nissan's plans for further growth as the Japanese carmaker looks to expand its product range in India," said Nissan which announced its association with Abraham here today at Auto Expo 2016. Commenting on the development, Nissan India Operations President Guillaume Sicard said: "We are really excited about John Abraham joining the Nissan team. He will help ignite interest in the Nissan brand and the special models in our portfolio. John is a perfect fit with our plan to bring the best and latest of Nissan's global line-up to India" John Abraham said, "I am thrilled to be joining Nissan at such an exciting time for the company in India and look forward to the journey ahead." Nissan India, which is aiming to corner 5 per cent of the car market here by 2020, had yesterday announced expansion of its product-line with two more models this year - an electric hybrid crossover model of its popular SUV the X-Trail and sportscar GT-R. The electric crossover hybrid X-Trail will be the first fully electric SUV in the country. Each week, I have the privilege of traveling Nebraska. Over the past several months, I conducted 20 town halls, held 10 community visits recently following my State of the State address, and just this week I was in Chadron meeting with farmers and ranchers as well as community and business leaders. The number one concern I hear from Nebraskans, urban and rural, is that our property tax burden is too high. Property taxes on agricultural land have increased 66 percent in the last five years. Property taxes on residential and commercial properties have also increased. This is why Nebraskans are demanding relief. My approach to property tax relief, and taxes in general, is anchored in a few foundational principles. First, state tax dollars are your hard-earned dollars. Second, the only way to deliver sustainable tax relief is by exercising fiscal restraint with your taxpayer dollars. Third, we must be transparent and accountable to our constituents. Fourth and finally, local control is good governance. State government in Nebraska does not levy property taxes. The state, however, is responsible for setting the rules for how local governments levy property taxes including levy limits, bonding authority, reserve levels and budget authority, among others. This year, Im focused on delivering structural, long-term property tax relief by incentivizing fiscal restraint and accountability in the rules governing how local government collects property taxes. To this end, I have joined forces with Sen. Kate Sullivan, chairwoman of the Education Committee, and Sen. Mike Gloor, chairman of the Revenue Committee, to bring a property tax reform package that encourages local governments to restrain growth in spending to the same target rate as the state around 3 percent. Our property tax relief package consists of two bills, one in the Education Committee and one in the Revenue Committee. In this column, I will share with you a little bit about LB958, which is the Revenue Committee bill. LB958 encourages fiscal restraint and accountability by political subdivisions like cities, counties and natural resource districts. Additionally, it limits the increase in statewide agricultural and horticultural land valuations. It does this in three ways. First, it limits the budgeted growth of restricted funds. Restricted funds are essentially property taxes, local sales taxes, motor vehicle taxes, surpluses from user fees, county occupation taxes, etc. To do this, the bill eliminates exclusions to the spending limits including capital improvements, sinking funds for equipment purchases, and expenditures in support of interlocal agreements. Second, the bill reduces the number of exclusions to the property tax levy limit and imposes a new requirement for bonds issued after July 1, 2016. These bonds would now need to be approved by the voters to be excluded from the levy limits. The bill also requires that votes to exceed the levy limits must be made by a vote of the people. LB958 would repeal the power some local governments currently have to exceed the levy limits with a vote at a town hall meeting that may be attended by as few as 10 percent of the registered voters. By requiring voter approval more frequently, this bill increases transparency and voter involvement in local spending decisions. Finally, LB958 limits the statewide increase in agricultural and horticultural land valuation to an aggregate of 3 percent. If the statewide aggregate increase exceeds 3 percent, the Property Tax Administrator will determine the factor needed to uniformly and proportionately reduce the value of every parcel of agricultural and horticultural land so the statewide aggregate does not exceed 3 percent. This is an aggregate adjustment factor of 3 percent, not a hard cap, meaning that adjustments to individual tax bills will vary across the state. Ag land will still see valuation increases with this adjustment factor, but future valuation increases will be moderated. This tax relief package maintains local control and preserves existing funding mechanisms for local government. Under this package, our cities, counties and other local governments can still ask for a vote of the people if they need additional budget authority. For example, if your city wants to build a new gym, they can seek voter approval to use restricted funds. While Nebraskans desperately want property tax relief, special interest groups and their lobbyists are blocking reform. Last year, the Legislature and I successfully delivered $408 million in direct dollar-for-dollar property tax relief to all property owners across the state. This year, we are looking to make structural changes that will encourage fiscal restraint among local governments, increase accountability to taxpayers, and limit ag land valuations in aggregate across the state to 3 percent annually. If you believe in property tax relief, your senators need to hear from you about why delivering property tax relief is critical to your family budget this year. You can be assured they will hear from special interest lobbyists. You can find information on how to contact your senator at www.NebraskaLegislature.gov. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today met Home Minister Rajnath Singh and discussed with him various issues concerning the state that include Maoists activities. During the 20-minute meeting, the Chief Minister briefed the Home Minister about the prevailing situation in Bihar and steps taken to check the Maoist violence. Issues like disaster relief, modernisation of police forces and a few other matters were also discussed by Kumar with Singh, official sources said. Seeking incusion of Patna in the Smart City list, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar toady met Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu and discussed various issues related to urban development in the state. Kumar insisted on factoring in parameters like regional imbalance, existing gaps in institutional capabilities and variation in current level of development while selecting cities under the Smart City Mission. Noting that state capital Patna could not be shortlisted for inclusion in Smart City Mission, Kumar suggested that all such state capitals should be given another opportunity to compete for selection in the Centre's ambitious project. Besides Smart City, he took up the issue of implementation of new urban sector initiatives of the Centre and Swachh Bharat Mission. The Chief Minister suggested Naidu to consider increasing the central assistance of Rs 4,000 per toilet being provided under Swachh Bharat Mission in rural areas and said the state government was providing an additional Rs 8,000 per toilet. He also sought an increase in the Viability Gap Funding by the centre from the present 20 per cent of project cost. Kumar said the state government is providing an additional assistance of Rs 1,200 per household for collection and management of solid waste in urban areas. Naidu told Kumar that inclusion of cities from each state in Smart City Mission was based on the evaluation of all claimant cities by respective state governments. The selection of first batch of 20 cities was based on a competition among 97 cities as per criteria evolved in consultation with states, he told the Chief Minister. Naidu said only 20 cities were to be selected in the first round and nominees from all states would be covered under the next two rounds of competition. Naidu also informed Kumar that a special fast track competition is being conducted for one top ranked city from each of the 23 states that could not make it to the first list in which Bhagalpur, ranked 65, can participate. Of the three cities from Bihar included in the Smart City Mission, Biharsharif was ranked 91 and Muzaffarpur 94. In the meeting, Naidu underscored the need for focusing on improving urban governance in the state given the importance of towns and cities in catalyzing economic growth. He also said more attention needed to be paid to Swachh Bharat Mission in Bihar, besides expediting proposals under Housing for All mission meant for the urban poor. He said said a detailed project report in respect of Gaya under Heritage Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) should also be speeded up. There has been no "political discrimination" in the selection of first 20 smart cities, the Centre said today, amid allegations by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar of bias against his state in selection process. The government recently announced the first batch of 20 smart cities from 11 states and Delhi. "We have last week announced the first batch of winners of 20 smart cities. Some people are thinking that other cities are removed. No cities have been removed. All 100 cities are there in the Smart City. But only thing is, the Budget said first year 20 cities, second year 40, and third year another 40," Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu said here. Addressing the India Investment Summit, he said the selection of 20 smart cities was made through competition, which was totally objective and transparent. "There is no political consideration at all. Some people are saying this state is not there, that state is not there. Every state is there. They are not in the first 20. If you have to be in the first 20, you have to work hard," he said. Naidu said: "My own town is not there. Home minister town is not there. External Affairs Minister town is not there. Finance Minister town is also not there. Where is the question of political discrimination at all. There is no question". After the release of the first list, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish and RJD president Lalu Prasad had attacked the Centre for not selecting any city of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh in the list of 20 chosen for converting them into smart cities. "Bihar and UP gave 104 Lok Sabha seats to BJP to form its government at the Centre, but they are so 'Ehsaan pharamosh' (ungrateful) that no city of the two states figures in the list of 20 smart cities," Kumar had said. Naidu said the government believes in the national transformation and wants to uplift infrastructure and living standards of every city in the country. Apart from Bhubaneshwar, the cities in the first batch are Pune, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Bhopal, NDMC area of Delhi, Jaipur, Surat, Kochi, Jabalpur, Visakhapatnam, Solapur, Davanagere, Indore, Coimbatore, Kakinada, Belagavi, Udaipur, Guwahati and Ludhiana. Altogether 100 cities are to be developed into smart cities as per Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ambitious programme. For this, the Centre has earmarked Rs 48,000 crore and the states will have to contribute the equal amount. Under the programme, each selected city will be given Rs 500 crore over a period of five years by the Centre with the respective states expected to make the matching contribution. Amidst outrage over the alleged assault and stripping of a Tanzanian woman in Bengaluru, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju today said the incident is a matter of shame and no racial discrimination will be tolerated in the country. "For 200 years, India was enslaved by foreigners. We have been fighting racial discrimination. But in India itself, if there is racial discrimination, the government will take it very seriously. "We will not allow racial discrimination to take place in the country. This is a matter of shame for the entire nation," the Minister of State for Home told reporters here. A 21-year-old Tanzanian student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car in Bengaluru on Sunday night. Five persons have been arrested in this connection. The Pakistani lawyer of Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi, the mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attack, today said he does not expect an early conclusion of the case as a number of witnesses still have to record their statements in court. The Islamabad High Court last April had ordered the anti- terrorism court (ATC) to conclude the case in two months against seven accused including LeT operations commander Lakhvi. "Nine months passed by since the court set a deadline (to conclude the case) but the conclusion of the case is not in sight," Lakhvi's lawyer Raja Rizwan Abbasi told PTI, adding it was up to the prosecution to ensure that the remaining witnesses record their statements in the trial court. To a question whether any time frame about the conclusion of the case could be given, Abbasi said "No". Meanwhile, two witnesses appeared in yesterday's hearing of the ATC held at the Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi. "A government official and an employee of a business and engineering firm that sold engines to one of the suspects recorded their statements in court," a court official said. The trial court adjourned the hearing till February 10. The Pakistani firm had sold eight Japanese Yamaha engines to one of the Mumbai attack facilitators who supplied them to the terrorists, including Ajmal Kasab, for reaching Mumbai in a small boat. Earlier, the company's general manager said his firm had sold the engines to absconding accused Amjad Khan, a shadowy LeT organiser and financier from Karachi. The Yamaha engines were used by Kasab and the other terrorists to power their boat to reach Mumbai. Khan and nine other co-accused, said to be either trainers or facilitators of the terrorists who launched the attack in Mumbai, had been declared "proclaimed offenders or fugitives" by the anti-terrorism court. Khan, who figured in majority of dossiers provided to Pakistan by India, allegedly played a key role in arranging and providing funds to the 10 terrorists who attacked Mumbai. 20 suspects were named in a charge sheet filed in the anti-terrorism court in 2009. While 56-year-old Lakhvi is currently free on bail at an "undisclosed location" in the country, six other accused - Abdul Wajid, Mazhar Iqbal, Hamad Amin Sadiq, Shahid Jameel Riaz, Jamil Ahmed and Younis Anjum - have been lodged in Adiala Jail for over six years in connection with planning and executing the Mumbai attack in November, 2008 that killed 166 people. Blaming multinational corporations squarely for tax controversies, Reserve Bank Governor Raghuram Rajan today said their indulgence in avoidance and evasion results in prolonged legal battles. Addressing the issue of tax havens, Rajan wondered aloud as to what makes a bulk of intellectual property reside in Cayman Islands, quipping that no one has seen scientists in so large numbers in the Caribbean isles. "Occasionally, there is government excess, but they are not the only ones who commit excesses," he said, delivering the 13th Nani Palkhivala lecture on 'Strengthening the free enterprise in India' here. "Multinational corporations complain all the time of excessive demand about excessive taxation, but it is also true that MNCs across the world tend to find tax avoidance and sometimes tax evasion as an appropriate technique and therefore, there is a constant fight between governments and MNCs," he said. In remarks that come within a week of Prime Minister Narendra Modi assuring all retrospective taxation such as the infamous Vodafone case being an issue of the past, Rajan said the movement on taxation within the country has been "positive and in right direction". "The movement has been positive and in right direction, including the great debate on retrospective taxation which has allowed us to clarify our thinking on this issue and the government has stated its position very clearly on the way forward." The academic-turned central banker said he hopes that the Bankruptcy Code gets passed in the upcoming Budget session of Parliament. The code will help facilitate credit for both large enterprises as well as smaller ones which have suffered the most under laws like the Sarfaesi Act. "It would make it much easier for the smaller firm to get credit and also allow the large firm to get credit because now there is a way for the lenders to recover the money in the Bankruptcy Code," he said. Rajan said the government is also working on a plan to have unique IDs for businesses on the lines of the ambitious Aadhar programme for individuals, which will help establish credit histories and make it easier for the better-behaved firms access credit. US President Barack Obama has acknowledged that Sikh-Americans are often the target of threats and harassment as they are "perceived to be Muslims". Obama, while seeking to reassure Muslim-Americans in his historic address to minority community from the mosque in Baltimore, Maryland, termed the recent anti-Muslim rhetoric in the US poll campaign as "inexcusable". "Since 9/11, but more recently, since the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, you've seen too often people conflating the horrific acts of terrorism with the beliefs of an entire faith. And of course, recently, we've heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim Americans that has no place in our country," Obama said in a veiled jibe at Republican White House hopeful Donald Trump and others. "No surprise, then, that threats and harassment of Muslim-Americans have surged," he said yesterday . Obama pointed out that twice last year threats were made against children at the very mosque he was visiting. "Around the country, women wearing the hijab have been targeted. We've seen children bullied. We've seen mosques vandalised. Sikh Americans and others who are perceived to be Muslims have been targeted, as well," Obama said, noting that Sikh-Americans are often victimised for their appearance. Obama's acknowledgement of violence against Sikhs comes at a time when there have been a number of incidents of attacks and discrimination against the community. A 68-year-old Sikh man was stabbed to death in California's Fresno city on January 1 while in December another elderly Sikh man was brutally assaulted by two persons in Fresno. Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah has said that incidents like the Bangalore mob action against a Tanzanian woman cause irreparable damage to relations with African countries. "None of our fancy government summits in Delhi will undo the damage done to relations with countries in Africa by incidents like #Bangalore," he wrote on Twitter. The Conference working president was reacting to the incident in Bengaluru where a Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car. The 21-year-old Tanzanian, who is doing her Bachelor of Business Management course, was dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends. A NDFB(Songbijit) self-styled section commander of the militant outfit's Jharbari section was nabbed from Gorebil village in Assam's Kokrajhar district by a joint team of the Army and the police today, police officials said. The hardcore NDFB(S) cadre was identified as Lotheb Basumatary alias Birai, they said. A pistol with two rounds of ammunition were recovered from his possession, they added. A group of 30 survivors of female genital mutilation (FGM), belonging to a particular community, has started an online campaign against the practice and to put pressure on the government to bring a law to ban it. The group, 'Speak Out on FGM', has launched the petition on 'Change.Org' website, and claimed to have received 43,116 signatures till afternoon today. Female genital mutilation refers to several different harmful practices involving the cutting of the female genitals for non-medical reasons. In December 2012, the UN General Assembly unanimously voted to work for the elimination of FGM, reckoned as a violation of human rights. The group is launching another campaign, 'Each One-Reach One', on February 6, observed as Female Genital Mutilation Day, to reach out to the people and raise awareness about it. "This is an effort to wipe out this custom from our community. I am happy that thousands of survivors are joining this campaign not only from India, but also from Canada, Australia, South Africa, Britain, etc," A survivor told PTI. She said, "At the age of seven, I was subjected to FGM in Mumbai in an unhygienic condition and clandestine manner. The shock and the physical and psychological trauma of that day are still fresh in my mind. "We have also launched several WhatsApp groups and Facebook pages, which have received overwhelming response from across the globe," said the survivor, who is now 53 and working with a publishing company. Survivors maintained the reason for the tradition of FGM is to curb sexual drive of women and control them. They claimed FGM has nothing to do with religion and is more of a cultural practice. According to the World Health Organisation, between 100 million and 140 million women and girls across the world are thought to be living with the consequences of FGM. "This is the first time that survivors in India have joined hands to publicly campaign against this horrific practice," said Preethi Herman, Country Lead, change.Org. The message of this campaign is loud and clear. FGM needs to be banned, she added. The collection contains what you might expect of a personal archive of this sort: lots of correspondence, personal and professional, accounts of the theatres and productions, diaries, photographs, posters and scripts. What is initially striking is the organisation and annotation from Joan herself, she is incredibly present in her collection. Half I think as she organised her papers in order to write her autobiography but also with the knowledge that her papers would likely be of interest after her death. Her interference is both helpful and unhelpful to the cataloguing process. She adds detail and colour to events, clarifies names and organised a lot of her correspondence chronologically. But, she is also annotating things with a reflective eye, sometimes even copying out early diaries and editing them. Luckily, she has very distinctive hand-writing and tends to use capitals for her later additions and sometimes her control slips and little glimpses of an unguarded Joan peek through. An overground woman worker of outlawed insurgent outfit People Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK) was arrested from a passenger van by a combined team of Thoubal district police commando of Manipur police and 7 Assam Rifles in Thoubal. While frisking and checking at Heikakpokpi area along Indo-Myanmar road of Manipur's Thoubal district yesterday, police arrested the overground woman worker of outlawed PREPAK (PRO) group - identified as Nongthombam Ongbi Anoubi Devi (48) of Keirak Mayai Leikai of Thoubal district, the press releasen said. She was suspected to be involved in recruiting new cadre of the outlawed organisation. A case has been registered at Kakching police station for further investigation, the release added. The US-led Trans-Pacific Partnership, one of the biggest trade deals in history, was signed in New Zealand today as protestors demonstrated over fears for jobs and sovereignty. The ambitious deal, promising the elimination of nearly all tariffs among the 12 member nations, aims to break down trade and investment barriers between countries accounting for about 40% of the global . While New Zealand Prime Minister John Key and US Trade Representative Mike Froman lauded the pact at the ceremonial signing in Auckland, thousands of protestors blocked roads outside. "Today is a significant day, not only for New Zealand but for the other 11 countries in the Trans-Pacific Partnership," Key said. However, protesters argue it will cost jobs and impact on sovereignty in Asia-Pacific states. Australia's Trade Minister Andrew Robb said the TPP would see the elimination of 98% of tariffs among the 12 states. Although the signing marks the end of the negotiating process, members still have two years to get the deal approved at home before it becomes legally binding. "We will encourage all countries to complete their domestic ratification processes as quickly as possible," Key said. "TPP will provide much better access for goods and services to more than 800 million people across the TPP countries, which make up 36% of global GDP." The agreement was signed by Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam. "Other countries have already signalled an interest in joining TPP," Key said. "And this could lead to even greater regional economic integration." In a joint statement ministers representing the 12 countries said the TPP "will set a new standard for trade and investment in one of the world fastest growing and most dynamic regions. "Our goal is to enhance shared prosperity, create jobs and promote sustainable economic development for all of our nations." Froman had earlier warned against any delay in endorsing the deal. "After five years of negotiation, signing the TPP is an important milestone in our efforts to set high-standard rules of the road in the Asia-Pacific region and more generally, and to deliver an agreement that will benefit American workers, farmers and businesses," he said. Top military officials of Pakistan and Afghanistan today agreed not to allow their soil to be used by terrorists for cross-border militancy. The Afghan Director General Military Operations (DGMO) along with a delegation visited army headquarters in Rawalpindi and held a meeting with his Pakistani counterpart. During the meeting, issues related to bilateral security and border management were discussed, the Pakistan army said in a statement. "Both sides reiterated that terrorists operating on either side of border will not be allowed to use their soil for any terrorist activity on either side of the border," it said. The two sides also expressed resolve to continue the interaction for better bilateral military-to-military coordination. The Afghan military officers' visit was sequel to Army Chief General Raheel Sharif's visit to Kabul in December, during which it was decided that regular bilateral interactions between Pakistan and Afghanistan military will be held. Last week, bilateral Corps Commanders' meeting was held in Peshawar. Pakistan Army today offered assistance to locate and rescue 10 Indian soldiers who went missing after an avalanche hit a high-altitude military post in Siachen Glacier. Pakistan Army Director General Military Operations (DGMO) Major General Aamer Riaz called his Indian counterpart Lt Gen Ranbir Singh today and offered assistance for the rescue operation, the Express Tribune reported. The Inter-Services public Relations (ISPR) in a statement confirmed the Pakistan DGMO's call to his Indian counterpart. The deadly avalanche hit the post situated at 19,600 feet in Northern Glacier sector in Ladakh region in the world's highest battlefield yesterday in which 10 Indian army soldiers were trapped. The post is buried under tonnes of snow. Avalanches and landslides are common at the Siachen Glacier during the winter and temperatures there can drop as low as minus 60 degrees Celsius. In 2012, at least 140 people including Pakistani soldiers and civilians were killed when an avalanche struck an Army camp in the strategically important Gayari sector. An estimated 8,000 troops have died on the glacier since 1984, almost all of them from avalanches, landslides, frostbite, altitude sickness or heart failure rather than combat, local media reports said. Pakistan today said that it is in touch with India on finalising dates for the postponed Foreign Secretary-level talks. "Both sides are in touch regarding the date of Foreign Secretary-level talks. We will let you know when it is finalised," Foreign Office spokesman Qazi Khalilullah said today during weekly briefing. The agenda of the talks will be discussed after date for the Foreign Secretary-level talks is finalised, he said. India and Pakistan last month mutually agreed to a short deferment of Foreign Secretary-level talks after the Pathankot terror attack. Talking about the visa controversy relating to actor Anupam Kher, he said High Commissioner in India spoke to the actor and offered him a visa to attend the Literature Festival to which he was invited. "However, Kher replied that he would not be able to visit Pakistan due to other commitments," the spokesman said. Responding to a question, Khalilullah said the dossiers on India's alleged involvement in fomenting terrorism in Pakistan have already been shared with the US and the UN. To another query, he said that questions about Dawood Ibrahim have been asked several times in the past and reiterated Pakistan's position that he was not present in the country. "You may be aware that Indian authorities have admitted at the Ministerial level that Dawood Ibrahim's whereabouts were not known to them," he said. Ahead of Solidarity day being observed in Pakistan on Friday to supportright of self-determination of people of Kashmir, Khalilullah said, "India continues to violate the human rights of and brutalise Kashmiris in the occupied Kashmir. Pakistan has always condemned these atrocities." "Kashmir Solidarity Day, to be observed tomorrow, reminds us of the Indian atrocities and the need for Kashmir dispute to be resolved in accordance with the UN Security Council Resolutions and aspirations of the people of Kashmir," he said. Khalilullah also said the meeting of the Quadrilateral Coordination Group on Afghanistan talks was scheduled for February 6 and will be held in Islamabad as planned. He said Pakistan and Afghanistan were in touch at various levels regarding the use of Afghan soil by certain elements involved in the terrorist attack on Bacha Khan university. The spokesman said that Pakistan does not differentiate between good and bad terrorists and it was at the heart of Operation Zarb-e-Azb against militants. Radical Pakistani madrasas are enaged in massive trade-based money laundering to fund jihadist groups, eminent experts have told American lawmakers who expressed concerns over terror financing. Concerned over the practice, Congressman Stephen F Lynch said trade-based money laundering (TBML) involves using trade and products or commodities for value in order to divert and obscure the true nature of the illicit wealth. "Trade-based money laundering is related to terrorist finance," John Cassara, former US Intelligence Officer and Treasury Special Agent, told members of the House Financial Services Committee during a Congressional hearing. He said in one example of TBML and terrorist financing, a Pakistani madrassa was linked to radical jihadist groups and it received large amounts of money from foreign sources. "It was engaged in a side business dealing in animal hides. In order to justify the large inflow of funds, the madrassa claimed to sell a large number of hides to foreign customers at grossly inflated prices. This ruse allowed the extremists to 'legitimise' the inflow of funds which were then passed to terrorists," Cassara said. According to World Bank and IMF estimates, unofficial remittances could be well over USD 1 trillion as against the World Bank estimates that global remittances through official channels will reach USD 707 billion by 2016. Nikos Passas, professor of criminology and criminal justice at Northeastern University's College of Social Sciences and Humanities, said there are cases of terrorism finance and trade-based money laundering or other money laundering that goes through them. "In Mumbai, the attacks of Mumbai and the Indian parliament -- those cases were solved because of hawala collaboration. In Dubai, the Dubai police and D A made a big money laundering case with trade because of hawala information," Passas said in response to a question from Lynch, who is also a ranking member of the Committee. In response to another question from Congressman Andy Barr, Cassara said he believes trade-based money laundering is a major problem. "But it depends on the part of the world you're talking about. Certainly, if you're talking about South Asia, you're talking about Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Afghan Transit Trade, it's absolutely huge. Areas in Libya, Somalia, it's huge. In other areas, perhaps not as important," he said. In his remarks, Congressman Michael G Fitzpatrick said trade-based money laundering is the growth industry in terror finance. Lynch said trade-based money laundering involves using trade and products or commodities for value in order to divert and obscure the true nature of the illicit wealth. Currently, there is an ample opportunity for terrorist groups to exploit the trade system, with low risk of being caught, he said. Congressman Robert Pittenger, said criminal enterprises have relied on this method of illicit financing for years. However, many believe that this is an emerging technique now being used by terrorist groups to finance their violent and oppressive operations, he said. "Congress should prioritise efforts to stop the flow of money and resources to terrorist organisations. We must ensure that organisations like the financial crimes enforcement network receive their resources and intelligence necessary to combat trade-based money laundering and other methods of illicit financing," he said. Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and army chief General Raheel Sharif today discussed the role of hostile foreign intelligence agencies and their collaborators in fomenting instability in the country. According to the Inter-Services Public Relations, the two met at the ISI headquarters in Islamabad, Chief of Army Staff General Raheel emphasised on the need for continued efforts across the country to consolidate gains of Operation Zarb-e-Azb against militants. Army spokesman Lieutenant General Asim Saleem Bajwa said the meeting was attended by security officials including ISI chief Lieutenant General Rizwan Akhtar. "The role of hostile (foreign) intelligence agencies and their collaborators in fomenting instability in Pakistan and undermining Pakistan's interests was discussed in detail," Bajwa said. The "hostile agencies" were, however, not officially identified. The participants also reviewed the internal and external threat perceptions, including those from terrorist networks. The meeting also discussed the "management of Pak-Afghan border" and how to improve it to stop incursions from Afghanistan. Sharif appreciated the efforts and achievements of the army and intelligence agencies in achieving "major breakthroughs" and bringing a noticeable change in the security environment of the country. He said the entire nation was proud of its premier intelligence agency, reiterating that the government and the nation stood behind its armed forces. General Raheel underscored the need for continued efforts across country in consolidating gains of operation Zarb-e-Azb and intelligence based operations to ensure sustainable peace. Media reported that Interior Minister Nisar Ali Khan and NSA Lt-Gen (retd) Nasser Janjua also attended the meeting. Pakistan International Airlines has incurred an estimated loss of over USD 17 million since last week due to the country-wide strike by its employees against the planned privatisation of the ailing national flag carrier, an official said today. The protest was launched on January 26 but it turned violent on Tuesday when at least two PIA workers were shot dead in clashes with security forces outside the Jinnah International Airport in Karachi. The airline had suffered a loss of one billion Pakistani rupees till February 2. It lost another 500 million rupees between February 2 and 3 and by February 4, the cash-strapped carrier lost another estimated 300 million rupees, PIA spokesperson Danyal Gilani said. "So far, the airline has reported a loss of 1.8 billion rupees (over USD 17 million)," Gilani was quoted as saying by Dawn . The losses are due to grounding of the entire fleet of PIA and costs due to accommodating passengers with valid tickets at hotels and arranging other airlines to transport them. Four major airports - Karachi's Jinnah International Airport, Islamabad's Benazir Bhutto International Airport, Lahore's Allama Iqbal International Airport and Peshawar's Bacha Khan International Airport - saw a huge rush of passengers due to flight cancellations. Gilani said PIA is in final stages of negotiations with Etihad Airways and Turkish Airlines to facilitate passengers booked to travel internationally. Despite losses and suffering, no headway has been made so far in resolving the issues. At the center is a demand by workers to cancel a law passed last month to enable government to transform PIA into a public limited company and sell its shares with management rights. (Reopens FGN 10) The services of a private carrier are being used to accommodate passengers booked on domestic flights. The management also arranged four Boeing 747 jumbo planes to bring back hundreds of Pakistani pilgrims stranded in Jeddah because of cancellation of the PIA flights. The government plans to split the PIA into two companies and sell the control of its core business to a global airline. According to sources, Pakistan has already decided to offload several big organisations running into losses, including PIA, under an agreement with IMF and will ultimately sell it. The government has said that it will go ahead with the privatisation plans of the PIA, which has total losses and debts of around 254 and 300 billion Pakistani Rupees (USD 2.8 billion). Launched in 1955, PIA presently has a workforce of around 14,700 with a ratio of around 390 employees for one aircraft, the biggest in any airline. The Belgian who led the November 13 attacks on Paris bragged that he slipped into France with a group of 90 extremists from Europe and the Middle East, according to testimony from the woman who tipped police to his location. In an interview aired today by RMC television and confirmed by her lawyer, the woman identified only as Sonia said Abdelhamid Abaaoud was proud of the attack that killed 130 people. The 42-year-old woman was with Abaaoud's female cousin on November 15 when the younger woman got a call from a Belgian number. It was Abaaoud, asking for a hideout. The two women drove to a deserted industrial road outside Paris and Abaaoud came out of a bush. It was at that moment she realized who he was, according to her testimony. What followed is Abaaoud's only known conversation about the attacks and their aftermath with a woman so horrified and angered by the bloodshed that she challenged him repeatedly. She said the Islamic State group commander told her he had entered France without documents, among a group of 90 people that had scattered around the Paris region. She accused him of killing innocent people, which he denied, and challenged the deaths of Muslims that night. Those, she said, he described as "collateral damage." "He was proud of himself. That was the worst," she said. "He appeared to fear no one, a superman. He talked about it as though he was shopping and had gotten a bargain on a box of detergent." She asked him whether he had come in with Syrian refugees and he told her he came in a group without any documents. "There are Syrians, Iraqis, French, Germans, British. We came in a group of 90 and we're a little bit everywhere around Paris." She asked him why he needed the help of his cousin, her friend Hasna Ait Boulahcen, who ultimately died in the Saint-Denis apartment with him and another of the gunmen who attacked customers at bars and restaurants in central Paris. "He told me no, they left a lot of traces and they'll be identified quickly. And that it's not over," she said. His description of the triple suicide bombings at the French national stadium, which claimed only one victim amid a night of carnage: "The exact words of his response were: 'There were some failures. I am here to make sure that there will be no more. NCP corporator Najeeb Mulla, one of the accused in the case of abetment to suicide of a builder, today submitted in the sessions court here that he had enjoyed "cordial relations" with the deceased. Mulla is one of the four corporators accused of driving builder Suraj Parmar to suicide in October last year. The other accused are Hanumant Jagdale (NCP), Vikrant Chavan (Congress) and Sudhakar Chavan (Maharashtra Navnirman Sena). The submissions on Mulla's bail application, which he filed a fortnight back, began today before Special Judge V V Bambarde. His counsel Sudip Pasbola told the court that Mulla "never held any grudge against the builder". "Every day, Mulla used to text greeting messages to the deceased. Even on the day (October 7, 2015) when Parmar abruptly ended his life by shooting himself, Mulla had sent him a greeting message just hours before the incident," Pasbola contended. He requested the court to grant Mulla bail as police had already filed a charge sheet against all the accused on February 2. Thane Police had registered a case of abetment to suicide under IPC and criminal misconduct under Prevention of Corruption Act as the purported suicide note named these four corporators. In his suicide note, Parmar had mentioned names of the politicians but later scratched them out fearing harassment to his kin. Pasbola said the note itself was a "confession of the wrong business decisions taken by the deceased and he was upset over the same". He said Parmar's suicide was a "cumulative effect" of various circumstances and Mulla should not be blamed for the same. "The investigation in the case is directed only towards a particular paragraph in Parmar's suicide note and not in totality. Even the excel file given to the IT officers (which are believed to have names of those whom Parmar had paid bribe), the name of Mulla is not mentioned," he said. The court has fixed February 12 as the next date for hearing. The four corporators are currently in jail. The bail plea of one of the accused, Hanumant Jagdale, filled before the Bombay High Court, is scheduled to come up for hearing sometime next week. Guest speakers tackle topic of memorials, memory Alfred Brophy, a professor at the University of North Carolina School of Law, was one of two experts to lead discussion on memorials and building names at the Brewster Forum on Tuesday. Brophy argued for more resistance to renaming in most cases. Derek Alderman, head of the Department of Geography at the University of Tennessee, and Gerald Prokopowicz, ECU professor of history, listen to discussion about memorials and building names at the Brewster Forum on Tuesday. ECU sophomore Emmett Sarkorh asks a question during the Brewster Forum, part of the Voyages of Discovery Lecture Series, on Jan. 26. Attendees explored the challenge of reconciling history with contemporary realities in the naming of memorials. (Photos by Jay Clark) The controversy and debate surrounding memorials and building names, and the role they play in shaping our collective memory and understanding of history, have played out in recent years locally, nationwide and even globally.Two authorities on the subject met to discuss the topic "What's in a Name? Memorials and Historical Memory" on Tuesday in East Carolina University's Hendrix Theater. Derek Alderman, head of the Department of Geography at the University of Tennessee, and Alfred Brophy, a professor at the University of North Carolina School of Law, participated in the Brewster Forum, a debate-style presentation moderated by Gerald Prokopowicz, ECU professor of history.The Brewster Forum is part of the Voyages of Discovery Lecture Series, now in its ninth year. The series, said William Downs, dean of ECU's Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences, seeks to engage the campus and the citizens of eastern North Carolina on topics of enduring importance.The topic for this year's Brewster Forum, Downs said in his introduction, was clearly motivated by the public debate over renaming Aycock Hall, but was also an opportunity to address important larger issues surrounding the challenge of reconciling history with contemporary realities.he said.More than 80 students, faculty and community members attended the event, during which each speaker gave opening remarks, followed by a discussion prompted by questions from the moderator and then questions from the audience.Alderman, who taught at ECU from 2000-2012, said he is open to renaming or at least discussing the renaming of buildings that honor controversial figures.he said, but he emphasized that more important than the renaming itself is the discussion and work that surrounds it, hopefully resulting in a more thorough understanding of history.Brophy argued for more resistance to renaming, though he acknowledged that in some extreme cases, renaming could be appropriate.he said.he added.Brophy agreed with Alderman on the importance of discussing and contextualizing the history that led to the name or monument in the first place.Alderman said.Both speakers commended ECU for its approach to the controversy surrounding Aycock Hall. They agreed that the university got it right by allowing discussion and not making a rushed judgment, and by providing for contextualization of the history through the building of Heritage Hall, where the building's namesake and other people of historical significance to the university will be acknowledged.Alderman said,he added.The two speakers also participated in a small-group session with students on campus earlier in the afternoon. Several students offered insightful and thought-provoking comments that helped shape the evening's discussion, said Alderman.he explained.Geography student Tristan Briggs said she attended and participated in both events because of their relevance to the national issue.Alderman and Brophy, along with the students in the small group, listed a number of places and ways that the tensions over monuments and place names have come to the forefront throughout the U.S. and abroad.Minh Phan, a geography student, described a discussion in Richmond Hill, Ga. over its designation as a Henry Ford city after Ford was criticized for anti-Semitism.Phan said.said English student Sarah McKeever.In the end, Alderman and Brophy agreed, it's a complicated issue, and one for which there is no one-size-fits-all solution. First and foremost, it's important for the public to have a voice in the discussion.Brophy said. Passengers on a flight to Riyadh from Madrid were evacuated today after a note that read "11:30 bomb" was found pinned to the inside of the aircraft with a knife, police said. The Saudi Arabian Airlines flight had been due to take off at 0950 GMT but the captain requested an evacuation after the note was discovered and the aircraft was taken to an isolated place in the airport, which continued to function normally throughout. A spokesman for the Guardia Civil police force, who declined to be named, said there were 97 passengers on board the SVA 226 flight and 15 crew members. "Security forces and rescue services are mobilised. The plane was isolated and passengers evacuated," a spokeswoman for AENA, the group that manages airports in Spain, told AFP. The spokeswoman, who also declined to give her name, said the airport was operating normally while security forces were inspecting the plane. It is still unclear whether the bomb threat was real or not. But in recent months several airlines have been hit by hoax threats as jitters over extremist attacks continue, particularly since a Russian passenger jet crashed in October over the Sinai peninsula, with the Islamic State group claiming to have downed it. Last month, an Indian passenger plane was forced to make an emergency landing in the country's western city of Nagpur after a hoax bomb threat. That same January, a Scandinavian Airlines plane carrying 72 people from London to Stockholm was diverted to Gothenburg and the passengers evacuated, due to a bomb threat which turned out to be false. Union Minister Ramvilas Paswan today demanded that the Centre come up with a law which entitle reservation for the backward classes in the private sector jobs as it would help in the development of backward classes, SC and STs in the country. "We demand that there should be a law which enables there should be reservation for backward classes, SCs and STs in the private sector jobs too. We see that even after so many years of independence the condition of Dalits in the country is still very bad," Paswan told reporters on the sidelines of a party programme here tonight. Paswan, Union Minister of Food and Public Distribution, said as the private companies are availing benefits from the government they should also provide reservation to the dalits. Paswan further demanded that Centre should come up with residential schools in blocks of country where there will be 75 per cent reservation for the dalits. While talking about future plans of LJP in West Bengal, Paswan said party has plans to contest elections in the state. The Punjab Police has devised a multi-pronged strategy to counter the problems of drug abuse and peddling of narcotic substances in the state. Punjab DGP Suresh Arora today chaired a high-level meeting of zonal IGs and Police Commissioners to review the progress of drive against drug smuggling. He directed the police personnel to identify the narcotic smugglers in the state and initiate immediate legal action against them. Arora asked his officials to adopt a "zero tolerance policy" to check sale of narcotics and psychotropic substances. A special campaign will be launched to apprehend the proclaimed offenders and parole jumpers in cases related to the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, wherein their movable and immovable properties will be attached as per law. Two new 'Special Operations Cells' under intelligence wing of Punjab Police will be formed to tackle drug smuggling in Mohali and Ferozepur districts. With one such unit already functioning in Amritsar, the new units "will help contain multi-modal and multi-layered smuggling activities." The DGP has asked his officers to ensure filing of chargesheets within the stipulated time and depute officers for helping trial courts in expeditious conclusion of the cases. Arora underlined the need to create awareness about Rs 10,000 reward for providing drugs-related information. The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) today said it is awaiting New Delhi's reponse over its demandfor CBMs (Confidence Building Measures) to be taken by the BJP government headed by Prime MinisterNarendra Modi for paving way for early government formation. "We are clear on our side. They (Centre) have to do it. We havenothing to do", PDP Spokesman Naeem Akhtar told PTI tonight. Asked whether there was response from New Delhi, he said "no". Meanwhile, Mehbooba today visited Jammu region's party headquarters at Gandhi Nagar for the second consecutive day and met party leaders, activists and people. "She visited the Party office today met people there. She would also visit party office tomorrow and meet people", Akhtar said. Mehbooba visited the party headquarters here for the first time yesterday since Sayeed's death on January 7. She kept away from speaking to media. Yesterday, the party's MLC and spokesman Firdos Tak said BJP will need to respond to issues raised by Mehbooba before any steps could be taken for coalition government formation. "She (Mehbooba Ji) has categorically stated that some CBMs need to taken by the Centre. BJP has sought time. It is they who will have to explain," he said. "Both coalition partners have to sit and decide," he said. On BJP leader Ram Madav's statement there will be no condition for theformation of the government, Tak said, "there are no fresh conditions from PDP side. We want the implementation of the 'Agenda of Alliance' formed by both the coalition partners." With regard to time-line for formation of the government, he said, "Until the CMBs are not initiated (by New Delhi), there can be no government formation. Mehbooba had asserted after meeting Governor N N Vohra yesterday that PDP "cannot move forward" in forming government with BJP unless the Centre takes "tangible" CBMs to address the causes ofalienation and works towards a lasting solution to the state's problems. BJP had asked the Governor for 10 days' time to "resolve whatever isoutstanding" with PDP. In a bid to raise awareness about their rich cultural traditions, Kashmiri Pandits in the US state of Florida are working on an ambitious plan to create an arts and cultural project center in Miami. The announcement was made during the fourth annual Kashmiri Hindu Heritage Day in Miami, which was attended by a large number of community members and Mayor of the city of North Miami, Smith Joseph. Speaking on the occasion, Joseph recognised the need as well as the importance of preserving one's cultural roots. Kashmiri Hindu Heritage Day was held for the fourth time in succession in North Miami to bring various ethnic groups and diverse cultures of the world closer to each other. Director of cultural affairs and author Chandramukhi Ganju said she had an ambitious plan to create a Kashmiri arts and cultural project center in Miami to create awareness and understanding of the traditional culture of Kashmiri Pandits. The Mayor promised to support the initiative, saying it will keep the aspirations of the community alive away from their homeland. The main theme of the event this year was to recall the great saints of Kashmir Shaivism that evolved in Kashmir in the early 9th century AD as a fusion of Vedic and Buddhist cultures. Tension today prevailed in Doheli village, which witnessed a violet clash over appointment of an Imam at a mosque with police patrolling sensitive areas. Police is patrolling the sensitive areas as a precautionary measure, Circle Officer Akil Ahmad said. Nine persons were injured when two groups confronted each other over the Imam's appointment yesterday. A case has been registered against 20 people under sections 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting, armed with deadly weapon), 149 (unlawful assembly), 307 (attempt to murder) and 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) of the IPC, police said. Police fired in the air to disperse a mob to rescue a man and a young woman, who were held by villagers for having a relationship against tribal customs at Landupada village of West Singhbhum district this evening. Two policemen got injured in brickbatting, a senior police officer said. A police team led by the Karaikela police station officer-in-charge, B Tigga rushed to the village on being informed that the villagers were parading a man and a woman, who were cousins by relation and belonged to same gotra (sect), and planning to set them on fire for their relationship, the officer said. The woman was six months' pregnant but the villagers were not ready to accept their relationship, Superintendent of Police, Michael Raj S said. The police team, however, could finally rescue the duo and brought them to the police station, he said. On reaching the police station, Michael Raj said police were informed that the villagers intended to harm the parents and relatives of the boy and had to rush again to rescue the man's kins. The villagers gheraoed the policemen and started pelting stones demanding to hand over the man and the woman, he said adding two policemen have sustained head injuries in the brick-batting. The Sub-Divisional Police Officer (Chakradharpur), Subodh Jaiswal also rushed with adequate police force to the spot but he too was greeted with brick-bats. As all attempt to pacify the villagers went in vain, the policemen fired two rounds in the air to disperse the mob. Raj said the situation was well under control. Unconfirmed reports said five policemen including a Deputy SP sustained injuries in the brick-batting by villagers. Earlier, the villagers had convened a panchayat and decided to burn alive both the man and the woman for their illicit relation as such relationship in same 'gotra' was unacceptable, locals told the police. Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee president Uttam Kumar Reddy and party MLC Shabbir Ali have been booked for allegedly assaulting MIM party activists during the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation polls held on February 2. A case was lodged against Reddy, Ali and others on charges of criminal intimidation, voluntarily causing hurt and other relevant sections of the IPC on the complaints by MIM activists, Syed Abdul Quadri alias Khasaf and Shaik Abed, Mirchowk Police Station Inspector V Yadgir Reddy told PTI. According to the complaint, Khasaf and Shaik were assaulted by the senior Congress leaders and others near Mirchowk police station during the Greater Hyderabad civic polls, the officer said. Earlier, Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi, his brother MLA Akbaruddin and others were booked for allegedly assaulting Ali and a BJP candidate during the civic body polls. Ali, Leader of Opposition in Telangana Legislative Council had filed a complaint against Asaduddin and his followers for allegedly attacking him in Mirchowk area and based on the complaint, police arrested four persons namely, Kashaf, Abed and Mohammed Masiuddin, Misbah P yesterday. Asaduddin is Lok Sabha MP from Hyderabad while his brother is an MLA from Chandrayangutta here. Mirchowk and Chandrayangutta Police registered cases against the Owaisi brothers and others under IPC Sections 143 (unlawful assembly), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 341 (wrongful restraint) and 506 (criminal intimidation), among others. Reddy and Ali alleged MIM party workers led by Asaduddin attacked them and also damaged a vehicle belonging to Reddy. Ali said he suffered injuries below the right eye and on other body parts. On February 2, MIM and Congress workers had clashed during the civic polls and police resorted to lathi-charge to disperse them. The trouble began when Congress candidate Mohammad Gouse and MIM MLA Pasha Quadri got into a heated argument in Mirchowk in the old city, a stronghold of the regional party, following which they were briefly taken into police custody. Reddy and Ali then reached Mirchowk Police Station, where Gouse was kept in custody. Asaduddin also reached the station at the same time. According to police, they resorted to mild lathi-charge to disperse the agitated party workers, who led by their respective leaders, gathered outside the station. Meanwhile, Deputy Commissioner of Police (South Zone) V Satyanarayana said apart from the four arrested in connection with the attack on Ali and other Congress leaders, five more persons have been identified and they were being examined. Portugal has agreed to lower its 2016 budget deficit and growth forecasts following pressure from the European Commission, a government official has said. The new Socialist-led minority government, allied with the radical left, cut its projected budget deficit to 2.4% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), from 2.6% announced two weeks before, the source said yesterday on condition of anonymity. It also lowered its growth forecast to 1.9%, from 2.1%, after Brussels said the draft budget was too optimistic. The European Commission on Tuesday demanded Lisbon rework its draft budget, which was delayed by Portugal's inconclusive October elections, because it fell short of commitments to reduce public spending. The Commission, the executive arm of the EU's 28 member states, has until tomorrow to decide if Portugal's budget is in violation of the bloc's rules, in which case it must be resubmitted. Since taking office in November, Prime Minister Antonio Costa has sought to pull off a tricky balancing act, satisfying both Brussels and placating the domestic discontent over the years of austerity cutbacks which helped bring the Socialists to power. "The dialogue with the European Commission went very well," Costa said Wednesday. He added that "problems have been overcome," but refused to speculate on what the Commission's final decision would be. "This is a challenging budget," said the premier, which "turns the page on austerity while staying within the rules of the eurozone". Portugal's deficit is estimated at 4.2% of GDP for 2015, well above the bloc limit of 3.0%. The government hopes the final draft of the 2016 budget will be adopted by the council of ministers today after weeks of wranglings, before going to parliament on Friday. The Commission meanwhile said negotiations were continuing. "More efforts needed for PT (Portugal) to bridge fiscal gap. EU Commission to take decision on Friday," tweeted Annika Breidthardt, a spokeswoman for economic and financial affairs. A key stumbling block is the Commission's recommendation that Portugal cut public spending by the equivalent of 0.6% of annual economic output, way more than the 0.2% the government had in mind initially. According to Portuguese media, the government was now prepared to cut spending by 0.4%, notably by increasing a special levy on banks and the energy sector and raising taxes on fuel and vehicles. Bating for immense possibilities between India and Canada, Minister of Ontario province Michael Chan today said that 'sky is the limit' when it comes to engagements between the two countries. Chan noted that other than United States, which is its neighbour, Canada, Ontario (province) in particular, would like to focus on India to improve relations, including trade. "...In particular, we (Ontario province) want to focus (in) India. Because, India, look, I have been here four days. This is my first trip. The potential I see (in India) is unlimited. Sky is not tall enough for those potential. Everything is kind of like, we can do this, we can do that. "I just mentioned about education and agriculture. It was not in our mind before we started our trip. Landing here, we got two more sectors to focus-Education and agriculture. I think this (India) is one country to go to...," he told PTI. The minister was here as part of the Ontario Business Mission to India. The Ontario delegation has held business meets in the national capital Delhi and other cities in the last few days. The trade between Ontario and India stands at over USD two billion, Chan added. ECU Chancellor Search Committee to begin reviewing resumes UNC Board of Governors liaison Henry Hinton and ECU Board of Trustees member Deborah Davis review the timeline at the latest Chancellor Search Committee meeting, where it was decided that committee members will begin examining candidate resumes. Steve Jones, head of the search committee and chair of the Board of Trustees, leads the discussion at the Jan. 28 Chancellor Search Committee meeting. Lucy Leske, senior partner of Witt/Kieffer, right, provided the committee with an evaluation rubric. (Photos by Cliff Hollis) Members of the Chancellor Search Committee met Jan. 28 to discuss how they will review potential candidates for the next leader of East Carolina University.said Steve Jones, leader of the search committee and chair of the Board of Trustees.The search has reached the point where committee members will begin examining resume files submitted to Witt/Kieffer, the firm selected to help guide the committee through the selection.At Thursday's meeting, the search firm walked committee members through what they should consider in the early process of reviewing resume files, which usually include a cover letter and an electronic collection of the applicant's work.suggested Lucy Leske, senior partner of Witt/Kieffer.Leske provided the committee with an evaluation rubric to help the committee members fairly evaluate candidates and focus on a predetermined set of standards important to ECU and the surrounding community. The rubric includes criteria taken from the leadership profile produced by the group in earlier meetings. Examples of some of the criteria include interpersonal skills, administrative and academic experience, and a commitment to diversity.Witt/Kieffer will accept applicants through Feb. 12; however, search committee members will begin reviewing resumes immediately. Committee members were tasked with bringing forward five to seven resumes they feel deserve further discussion with the larger group at the next meeting on Feb. 17. They hope to conduct a first round of interviews in early March.At the close of the meeting, Jones reviewed the timeline of the chancellor search process and noted they were still in line to have a recommendation to University of North Carolina system President-elect Margaret Spellings by the end of March or early April. Spellings will take office March 1.In addition to discussing the next steps in the selection process, the committee heard from UNC system leaders about statewide and national trends in higher education that should be on their radar as they search for the next leader of ECU.Chancellor Steve Ballard announced last year his plans to step down effective July 1. He has served as ECU's chancellor since 2004.Updates on the committee's progress will be posted at the chancellor search website, www.ecu.edu/chancellorsearch President Pranab Mukherjee today greeted personnel and officers of the NDRF on the eve of its 11th Raising Day and complimented them for saving numerous lives during natural disasters. In his message to all officers and men of the force, the President lauded the rescue work undertaken by NDRF during the Nepal earthquake and flood in Chennai last year. "NDRF has proved its mettle by saving thousands of precious lives during numerous disasters in the country and abroad. The timely response provided by the skilled and motivated responders of NDRF during the recent earthquake in Nepal and flood in Chennai is praiseworthy. "The force has created remarkable credibility and confidence amongst the countrymen by dint of its sheer hard work, professional conduct and humanitarian approach," he said. Mukherjee said he was confident that the men of the force will continue to work with dedication, zeal and enthusiasm. "I extend my greetings and good wishes to all the officers and men of this organisation. I wish NDRF a glorious future," he said. NDRF is a central force tasked to respond swiftly during disasters and has its twelve battalions based in various parts of the country. It has been raised after inducting the manpower of various paramilitary forces of the country. It functions under the Union Home Ministry and was raised in 2006. President Alassane Ouattara today said he would "not send any more Ivorians" to the International Criminal Court in The Hague, where his longtime rival Laurent Gabgbo is currently on trial over deadly violence sparked by disputed 2010 polls. Speaking during a meeting with his French counterpart Francois Hollande in Paris, Ouattara said Ivory Coast now had "an operational justice system". More than 3,000 people were killed in five months of unrest after the 2010 presidential polls, when ex-leader Gbagbo refused to concede defeat to Ouattara. None of Ouattara's supporters have so far been charged by the ICC. Software provider Quick Heal Technologies Limitedwill hit capital markets with its IPO on February 8 at aprice band of Rs 311-321 per equity share of face valueof Rs 10 each. The IPO consists of a fresh issue of Rs 250 crore by the company and an offer for sale of up to 6,269,558 equityshares by promoters Kailash Sahebrao Katkar and himself, apart from Sequoia Capital India Investment Holdings III and Sequoia Capital India Investments III, the company's Managing Director Sanjay Sahebrao Katkar told reporters. The money would be utilised for promotionof brand and marketing of products. "As much as Rs 11 crore will be spent on doing it," he said. Another Rs 40 crore will be spent on lab capacitybuilding and Rs 27 crore for office facilities which arelocated in Pune and some other cities, he added. Rest of the money will be spent for general purposes, Katkar said, adding, "we plan to utilise the public money in next threeyears." Responding to a query on finances of the company, he said it has grown by 18 per cent last year. Asked about this year's target, he said, "We shall maintain the growth rate and expect to do better." ICICI Securities Limited, Jefferies India PrivateLimited, and JP Morgan India Private Limited are the BookRunning Lead Managers, while Link Intime India Private Limited is the registrar, Katkar said. Quick Heal's equity shares are proposed to be listedon the BSE and the NSE, he added. Producer Ritesh Sidhwani today said the shooting of the Shah Rukh Khan-starrer "Raees" is progressing smoothly in Bhuj even as Vishwa Hindu Parishad members threatened to disrupt it. The VHP yesterday protested against the shooting of the movie in the district. Sidhwani took to Twitter to clarify that the film has received cooperation from government and police force. "No disruption on Raees set in Bhuj shooting on schedule with full cooperation from government & police force...," he tweeted. Around 20-30 VHP activists had handed over a memorandum to district officers and demanded withdrawal of the permission given for the shooting of the film. They protested outside the district Collectors office pressing for the same demand. They shouted slogans against Shah Rukh and also burnt and tore his posters. RNT Associates, the investment vehicle of veteran industrialist Ratan Tata, today announced a partnership with the University of California to look at funding-appropriate startups, new companies and other enterprises in India. "We are here today to announce a partnership with University of California and ourselves - basically to look at funding appropriate startups, new companies and other enterprises in India," Tata told reporters here. He also said many details need to be worked out and it is at a concept stage. However, it is a very far-sighted step to recognise the new industry that is emerging in India, Tata added. "It is very far-sighted step to recognise the new industry that is emerging in India - (it is) not an extension of the industrial growth of any of us," he said. Asked about the duration of investment, the University of California's Chief Investment Officer, Vice President of Investments, Jagdeep Singh Bachher said they are looking at five to tens years of investment. "The most important thing is alignment of five to 10 years long-term investment, not looking for quick solutions. I don't think there is the capital issue. I don't think access to talent is the issue. I don't think there is any problem finding ideas to work on," he said. The partnership means there is a great runway that these opportunities have the ability to become collectively the new India which is exciting, Bachher said. Tata also said young people coming from US universities and some of them from University of California, can work together for cementing ties involving high, low and new technologies. To a query, Tata said, "What we are hoping to do is to provide mobility of these new startups to be partly funded to get interconnected." The partnership will cater to the needs of their businesses, he added. Replying to another query, Tata said "meeting after six months or a year, we will have found a better feel of what we have found, along the way resulted in investment." Talking about the nature of partnership, Tata said the "University of California, through its system, they have areas where great assistance will come to an entrepreneur which he himself would not be able to put together, and there may be areas in our side that the University of California has not seen an outlet, but an outlet does exist. Asked for what purpose the funds were going to be used, Tata said, "We haven't prejudged on either side that this is what funds are going to be used for. I think we have joined (hands) to encourage entrepreneurship which we think is promising. "We will support the founding group in a manner whichwe hope will make a difference," he added. Tata said the partnership can bring the strength of the University or connection that they have in related industry, but it is not a contractual thing. Asked about details of the partnership, Bachher said there is lots of details to be worked out, which is because the future is unknown. "You are absolutely right, there is lots of details to be worked out because the future is unknown. Also it is not because we cannot figure out how we can work together. It is because it is going to be constantly evolving," he said. Bachher also said the beauty of this partnership is to be flexible and nimble and just be part of the journey. Replying to other query, Bachher also said "even public sector and debt markets are exciting. So our view is to come and learn more and do more, but it with the trusted partners like Tata." "By partnering with them there will be tangential benefits," he added. War of words between the top two Republican and Democratic candidates has intensified ahead of the crucial New Hampshire primary next week, with Donald Trump launching a scathing, personal attack on Iowa Caucus winner Ted Cruz amid allegations rare in US electoral politics. Opening up an onslaught on Cruz, runner-up Donald Trump described him as a liar and accused him of fraud by "stealing" votes. Cruz, who appears more confident after his Monday victory in the crucial Caucus and has support of conservatives, fought back by saying that this was another "tantrum" of Trump. The war of words continued yesterday not only at public meetings, but also in the social media, particularly Twitter. "Ted Cruz didn't win Iowa, he stole it. That is why all of the polls were so wrong and why he got far more votes than anticipated. Bad!" Trump tweeted. "Yet another Trumpertantrum," Cruz fought back, adding that Trump is very angry with the people of Iowa. "They actually looked at his record." "I wake up every day and laugh at the latest thing Donald has tweeted. Because he's losing it. We need a commander in chief, not a twitterer in chief," he said after Trump went on the social media to lash out at the Texas Senator. "I think, what he (Cruz) did was disgusting," Trump told a channel. The mogul also tweeted: "Based on the fraud committed by Senator Ted Cruz during the Iowa Caucus, either a new election should take place or Cruz results nullified." Such allegations are rare in US electoral politics. A similar war of words was also witnessed in the rival Democratic camp as Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders traded barbs over who best embodies progressive values ahead of the New Hampshire primary next Tuesday. Vermont Senator Sanders alleged that Clinton is out of step with the party's base on issues ranging from campaign finance to climate change, trade and the Iraq War. Clinton shot back, saying she was "amused" that Sanders appears to consider himself the "gatekeeper on who's progressive". Throughout the day, the two Democratic presidential aspirants battled over who is more progressive. "I do not know any progressive who has a super-PAC and takes USD 15 million from Wall Street. That's just not progressive," Sanders said during a CNN town hall. "The progressive community was pretty united, and said don't listen to Bush, don't go to war. Secretary Clinton voted to go to war," he alleged. "Secretary Clinton has been a supporter in the past of various trade policies with China. Reluctantly, and after a lot of pressure on her, she came out against the TPP (Trans- Pacific Partnership), and I'm glad that she did," Sanders said. "Every sensible person understands that climate change is real. It is caused by human activity. And we have got to transform our energy system away from fossil fuel. "For a long time, Secretary Clinton was talking about the benefits of the Keystone pipeline. Well, there are no benefits to excavating and transporting some of the dirtiest fossil fuel in the world," Sanders said. Clinton fought back soon thereafter. "I was somewhat amused today that Senator Sanders has set himself up to be the gatekeeper on who is the progressive because under the definition that was flying around on Twitter and statements by the campaign, Barack Obama would not be a progressive, Joe Biden would not be a progressive, Jeanne Shaheen would not be a progressive, even the late, great Senator Paul Wellstone would not be a progressive," she said. "So I'm not going to let that bother me. I know where I stand. I know who stands with me. I know what I've done. But I don't think it helps for the senator to be making those kinds of comparisons because clearly we all share a lot of the same hopes and aspirations for our country that we want to see achieved," Clinton said. The Privileges Committee of Rajya Sabha has summoned lawyer Prashant Bhushan to appear before it on February 10 in connection with a breach of privilege notice against him for the alleged premature disclosure of a CAG report on allocation of D6 Block in KG Basin. In a communication to Bhushan, a Supreme Court lawyer and a leader of the outfit, Swaraj Abhiyan, Deputy Director of Rajya Sabha, Vijay Kumar, has asked him to appear in person before the Committee of Privileges headed by Congress MP PJ Kurien. The committee, which had met on October 6, last year to discuss the matter, decided to summon him to hear his defence. A privilege notice was given by JD-U MP KC Tyagi in this matter on July 1, 2014. In the letter to Bhushan, the Rajya Sabha Secretariat says "the Committee of Privileges is presently seized of a matter of breach of privilege of the House arising out of the alleged premature disclosure of a report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India pertaining to the allocation of D6 Block in KG basin to the Reliance Group in the press before the same was laid on the table of the House". Referring to the notice given by Tyagi, the Rajya Sabha Secretariat told Bhushan that "the Committee while considering the matter in its sitting held on October 6, 2015, has decided to hear you in the matter." Bhushan posted a copy of the Rajya Sabha notice asking him to appear before the panel on twitter, saying, "Rajya Sabha sect (sic) has issued breach of privilege notice for premature disclosure of CAG report on RIL loot of Gas!" Bhushan also posted his response to the notice. Asked about the notice, the former AAP member said, "According to Supreme Court judgements, Privileges of Parliament are only those privileges without which Parliament cannot function. "It is absurd to suggest that the disclosure of a CAG report to be tabled in Parliament can in any manner prevent or impede the functioning of Parliament. Perhaps the time has come to educate MPs about the notion of breach of privilege." Bhushan further said that "the Breach of Privilege notice sent by Rajya Sabha Secretariat for premature disclosure of CAG report on Reliance's loot of gas from KG Basin shows total ignorance of fundamental rights of citizens of this country and shows total lack of understanding of what constitutes a breach of privilege. (REOPENS DEL49) Bhushan said the citizens have a right to know about the "loot of natural resources" in the country, especially as exposed by CAG audits. The lawyer, who has also filed a PIL in this regard, said, "I have been not only disclosing the CAG reports to the people as and when I get them but also using them in the courts in PILs like in 2G scam or coal scam cases." Bhushan, who was a founder member of AAP until his expulsion from the party last year, has been raising the KG Basin issue for some time now. It was one of the main issues raised by AAP during the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, targeting both BJP and Congress. Projected as an "establishment candidate" after his strong showing at the Iowa Caucuses, Florida Senator Marco Rubio has been boosted in his quest with three Republican presidential aspirants dropping out of the White House race and one of them announcing support for him. As the results of the Iowa Caucuses came in, the crowded Republican presidential race appeared to be narrowing down to a three-cornered contest with Rubio coming a close third behind Texas Senator Ted Cruz and controversial presidential front-runner Donald Trump. After the caucuses, Republican presidential aspirants Rand Paul and Rick Santorum dropped out of the GOP presidential race yesterday. "He (Rubio) is a tremendously gifted young man and he is a leader. He is a born leader, and someone I feel a lot of confidence in that he is the new generation. And someone that can bring this country together," Santorum said while announcing to drop out of the presidential race following his poor performance in the Iowa Caucuses and extending support to Rubio. Mike Huckabee had announced to withdraw from the race on Monday itself just after the Iowa results. Political pundits say Rubio's campaign is now gaining momentum and has got a big boost with Santorum's endorsement. Nine candidates now remain in the Republican presidential nominee race -- Rubio, Trump, Cruz, former Florida governor Jeb Bush, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie, former HP chief Carly Fiorina, top American neurosurgeon Ben Carson, Ohio Governor John Kasich and former Virginia Governor Jim Gilmore. However, the race now appears to have narrowed down to Trump, Cruz, Rubio, Carson, Bush and Christie. In the Democratic Party, it is a direct contest between the former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders. Meanwhile, the race for the White House entered New Hampshire with presidential aspirants from both the Republican and Democratic parties reaching this crucial state ahead of the February 9 primaries. Rubio said Santorum's endorsement means a lot to his campaign. "I have tremendous respect for Rick...He has a great intent for blue-collar Americans. We need to grow our party among Americans who work hard with their hands every day and make a living to move their families forward. And Rick, I think, has a message for them that is phenomenal," he said. Sanders's campaign announced that he would be addressing more than a dozen rallies in the next few days. "Bernie has announced that for the remainder of the campaign in New Hampshire he will hold more than a dozen rallies and meetings to meet with voters all across the state," his campaign said. Russia's air force hit 875 "terrorist targets" in Syria this month, the defence ministry said today, after peace talks on ending the brutal war broke down. Planes conducted 237 combat sorties, striking 875 "terrorist" targets in the provinces of Aleppo, Latakia, Homs, Hama and Deir Ezzor, the defence ministry said in a statement. A ministry spokeswoman told AFP the strikes had taken place from Monday to Wednesday. The ministry said the military action backed a major offensive by Syrian government forces and pro-regime fighters in the northern Aleppo region. The offensive led to the liberation of the Shiite towns of Nubol and Zahraa, "which had been under siege for four years, it said. "As a result of the actions of the Russian air force, the rebels suffered considerable losses," it added. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Thursday that at least 21 civilians, including three children, had been killed by Russian strikes in rebel-held districts of Aleppo. The United States demanded today, a day after the peace talks were suspended, that Russia halt its bombing campaign in the war-torn country. Rail Division head unsure if eminent domain an option Direct intermodal rail access and new service offerings. Savings in logistics costs. Reduced truck traffic on Interstates 95 and 85. Greater potential access for state ports. Over 1,500 new direct and indirect jobs in North Carolina. After receiving the CSX study, Worley said NCDOT determined that it should commission an independent assessment of the facility and hired WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff to conduct it. Job estimates unclear RALEIGH The North Carolina Department of Transportation plans to continue its evaluation of CSX's request for $100 million toward a Johnston County intermodal project even though a spokesman for Gov. Pat McCrory said on Jan. 26 the proposed rail hub "does not appear to be a viable option."NCDOT Rail Division director Paul Worley told Carolina Journal on Friday that his office would evaluate CSX's request using the Strategic Mobility Formula the state uses to rank transportation projects. Worley said the final list of projects selected for funding would be released in March.The proposed 450-acre project site is located northeast of Selma, just outside the city limits, adjoining an existing CSX rail line. The facility would allow CSX to shift more container freight shipments now using only trucks to a combination of trucks and rail.Announcing the rail hub Jan. 14, McCrory said, "over time the project could bring 1,500 statewide jobs to North Carolina and provide an estimated $329 million in public benefits to the state." Soon after, the affected landowners learned that CSX threatened to use eminent domain to acquire property if landowners didn't want to sell.After an emergency closed-session meeting Jan. 20, less than a week after McCrory announced the project, the Johnston County Board of Commissioners issued a statement opposing both the project at the current location and the railroad company's threats to seize property if needed.In response to CJ's request for information on the job creation claims associated with the project, Worley's office shared a report titled "Project Scorpion: Evaluation of a Proposed Intermodal Terminal (CCX)." Since the announcement, officials have referred to the project as Carolina Connector, or CCX.Worley said DOT paid for the report, which was written by WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff, a Montreal-based engineering consulting firm with an office in Raleigh. The 91-page report is dated October 2015 with revisions in January 2016. It also is marked "DRAFT." Worley said the report probably would be updated before it is finalized and used in the evaluation process for state funding.Worley said that in June 2014, when CSX brought the project to the Rail Division, the company said it would need the state to contribute $100 million to the $271-million project."We will continue conversations with CSX. We will see if they come up with other sites. Whatever they come up with, we will evaluate it," Worley said.The Rail Division's mission statement says: "Since 1977, the Rail Division has focused on the safe and efficient movement of people and goods on North Carolina's railroads through freight, passenger and safety programs, supporting job creation and economic growth."Worley said the report did not address the possibility of eminent domain for the project. "We are not at that point," he said, adding that he was unaware if eminent domain remains an option. "I don't know. I am not an attorney." He also said the Rail Division never has been involved in a project of this magnitude.The report stated that CSX had conducted a study demonstrating the benefits of a North Carolina facility to the state and the broader U.S. economy. The CSX study concluded numerous benefits would result from the project, including:The conclusion: "The proposed CCX terminal in eastern North Carolina would prove to stimulate economic growth and reduce the adverse impacts of truck transportation producing significant benefits to the state. Increased employment and associated economic benefits would be a result of terminal construction, terminal operations, and local logistics and manufacturing development. The favorable economic impact would be complemented by benefits associated with the reduction in truck traffic including reduced pavement damage, congestion, emissions, and motor vehicle accidents."While McCrory, CSX, and most media outlets have said the project would create 1,500 jobs, the Project Scorpion report details much smaller numbers. (See page 35.)The report estimated that the project's direct, indirect, and "induced" jobs - jobs attributed to local businesses from the spending of employees and customers of the rail hub - would total 452 by 2019 and 632 by 2035. The report then compared those estimates to estimates from CSX's report. CSX estimated that direct, indirect, and induced jobs would total 538 by 2018 and 788 by 2035.In a telephone interview, Worley and officials from WSP Parsons Brinckerhoff could not explain where the 1,500 job figure used by McCrory and most media outlets originated. They also acknowledged the study did not account for lost jobs that would occur in the trucking industry if the project proved to be as successful as the study predicted. "Glee" creator Ryan Murphy is launching a foundation to help combat the diversity issue in Hollywood. The producer's new initiative, Half, which he has set up with partners at his company Ryan Murphy Productions, will make sure at least 50 per cent of the directors on his shows, including "Scream Queens", "American Crime Story" and "American Horror Story", will either be women or minorities by the end of 2016, said the Hollywood Reporter. "I personally can do better," he said in an interview in which he reveals plans to help make Hollywood more inclusive. Murphy, 50, also plans to begin visiting college campuses around the US to recruit students for mentoring programmes and internships in Hollywood. "The industry has always been about, you come to us. There's not a lot of effort and inclusion, and I'm saying, 'No, we're going to go to you'," he added. In another round of provocative remarks, Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) chief and Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed has warned India of more terror attacks. "You have only seen one attack on Pathankot. Matters could easily escalate," he said addressing a rally in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The JuD group chief alleged that Indian troops were committing "genocide" on Kashmiris and added "don't they have a right to carry out Pathankot-style attacks for their defence?" Saeed, in the rally yesterday, also lauded Kashmiri militant leader Syed Salahuddin, who heads the United Jihad Council that had claimed responsibility for the January 2 terror attack on the Indian Air Force base in Pathankot. Last month, Saeed had appeared on a private Pakistani channel's talk show despite Pakistan government's ban on the media coverage of militant groups like the JuD and LeT. Saeed made an appearance on a talk show on Channel 24 on January 27. He glorified his organisation's "public welfare" works and talked about how India and the US were"pressuring" the Pakistani government to take action against organisations like the JuD and Jaish-e-Mohammad, which is believed to be behind the Pathankot attack. Referring to the Pathankot terror attack, Saeed had dismissed the suggestion that the government was "patronising" some "non-state actors and banned organisations". The UN declared JuD a terror organisation and also individually designated Saeed as a terrorist in December 2008. The US has already put a $10 million bounty on his head. Saeed, who orchestrated the November, 2008, Mumbai terror attack in which 166 people were killed, roams around freely in Pakistan despite being a designated terrorist and has made many anti-India remarks and speeches. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders meet today night in their first one-on-one debate of the Democratic campaign as each tries to show they are the better advocate for progressive values. The race for the Democratic nomination, once seen as a sure thing for Clinton, took on new energy this week after Sanders held the former secretary of state to a razor-thin margin of victory in Iowa's leadoff caucuses. Their comments have become increasingly sharp this week, and the candidates agreed to add four more debates to the primary season schedule, including today's in New Hampshire. The candidates are arguing over who is more committed to, and capable of, carrying out a liberal agenda on health care, income inequality, worker rights and more. Sanders is favored in New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation February 9 primary as the state-by-state voting to collect delegates for the party's nominating convention picks up speed. Sanders, a senator from neighboring Vermont, said yesterday that Clinton's record is "just not progressive," including her vote as a senator to authorize the war in Iraq. Clinton said she has the ability to actually implement progressive changes. "Good ideas on paper are important, but you've got to be able to translate them into action," she said. Sanders cast himself as an underdog going up against "the most powerful political organization in the country." He says it will take a "political revolution" to achieve goals such as universal health care, a fairer tax system and an incorruptible campaign finance system. Clinton's prospects are much stronger after New Hampshire as the race moves on to states with more diverse electorates that are to her advantage. Today's debate will be the first faceoff for Clinton and Sanders since former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley dropped out of the race after a poor showing in Iowa on Monday. Clinton's razor-thin win in Iowa was the latest twist in an election campaign that, until recently, had been overtaken by the unusually crowded Republican field. Its candidates, who are scheduled to meet again in a debate Saturday, took New Hampshire by storm ahead of the primary. Saudi Arabia is ready to join any ground operation the US-led coalition against the Islamic State group in Syria might decide on, a general from the kingdom said today. "If there is any willingness in the coalition to go in the ground operation, we will contribute positively in that," Brigadier General Ahmed al-Assiri told AFP. Since late 2014 Saudi Arabia has been part of a US-led coalition which officially has 65 members and has been bombing the Islamic State Sunni extremist group which seized large parts of Syria and Iraq. Assiri is spokesman for a separate Saudi-led Arab coalition which, since March, has conducted air strikes and ground operations in Yemen. That coalition supports the government there in its fight against Huthi rebels who seized much of the country and are backed by the kingdom's regional rival Iran. Iran is also one of the main allies of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whose regime has been fighting an insurgency for about five years. Saudi Arabia supports more moderate rebels against Assad's forces. Iranian pilgrims are still welcome to visit Islam's holiest sites in Saudi Arabia despite increased tensions between the two countries, Riyadh's foreign minister said today. "Any Muslim is welcome in Mecca and Medina... And this includes the Iranian pilgrims," Adel al-Jubeir told reporters. He said the political crisis between the Sunni-ruled kingdom and its predominantly Shiite rival "has nothing to do at all" with the annual hajj pilgrimage or the lesser pilgrimage known as umra. The rites draw millions of faithful from around the world each year. In January, protesters burned Riyadh's embassy in Tehran and a consulate in Iran's second city of Mashhad to protest the Saudi execution of a prominent cleric from the minority Shiite community. Saudi Arabia and some of its allies cut diplomatic ties with Iran as a result. At a joint conference today with visiting German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Jubeir repeated accusations that Iran's "hostile policies" in the region for more than three decades led to the current situation. The two countries support opposite sides in the wars in Syria and Yemen. Iran has also consolidated its influence in Iraq and Lebanon. A stampede during the hajj last September that killed about 2,300 foreign pilgrims, including hundreds of Iranians, added to tensions. The Supreme Court today refused to accord urgent hearing on a plea of a BJP leader seeking a direction to the Centre that it should clarify its stand on mythological Ram Sethu. A bench comprising Chief Justice T S Thakur and Justices A K Sikri and R Banumathi asked BJP leader Subramanium Swamy, who has filed the plea, to come before the court if the Centre "touches" the mythological bridge. "There is no need for urgent hearing. If they do not touch the Ram Sethu, then you need not worry," the bench said. Swamy mentioned the matter and sought urgent hearing, saying that the Centre be asked to file its response to the effect that it will not tamper with the bridge. He also said that the Centre had already clarified its stand outside the court that it has no intention whatsoever to tamper with it. "As and when they (theCentre) touch it, you can come to us," the bench said. On November 26, last year, the apex court had granted four weeks time to the Centre for filing its response on Swamy's plea that he wanted to withdraw his 2009 petition against the Sethusamudram project as the government has decided that the mythological bridge Rama Sethu would not be dismantled. Earlier, Swamy had mentioned the matter for urgent hearing, saying that his prayer to scrap the project stands satisfied after the Centre took a decision. The Sethusamudram shipping channel project has been facing protests from some political parties, environmentalists and several Hindu religious groups. The Ram Sethu is a continuous stretch of limestone shoals that runs from Pamban Island near Rameshwaram in South India to Mannar Island off the northern coast of Sri Lanka. Under the Sethusamudram project, a 83-km-long deep water channel would have been created linking Mannar with Palk Strait by extensive dredging and removal of the limestone shoals which constitute the Sethu. A government school teacher has been arrested for allegedly indulging in obscene activities with minor girl students in neighbouring Mahoba district, police said today. Virendra Singh, a primary school teacher in Charkhari township, allegedly indulged in indecent activities with about six minor girls by calling them individually into a room, SP Harish Chander said. He was arrested yesterday after the parents complained to police about it, the SP said, adding a case has been registered and investigations are on. Singh has been suspended and a departmental inquiry is being conducted, Assistant Basic Shiksha Adhikari, Rameshwar said. Capital markets regulator Sebi today ordered MBK Business Development India and its directors to refund money which it had illegally raised from investors by issuing securities. The company and its directors have also been barred from the capital markets for four years. They have been ordered to refund the money along with 15 per cent annual interest. The regulator found that the company had raised more than Rs 9 crore through secured redeemable debentures from 8,516 people between 2010-2012 without complying with public issue norms. However, the firm claimed to have already returned nearly 50 per cent of the amount to the investors. Since the shares were issued by the firm to more than 50 people, it qualified as a public issue that requires compulsory listing on a recognised stock exchange, among other guidelines. MBK Business Development India and its promoter/directors shall refund the money collected through the issuance of secured redeemable debentures with an interest of 15 per cent per annum, Sebi said. Also, the markets watchdog has restrained the company and its directors from the securities markets "till the expiry of four years from the date of completion of refunds to investors." In case the company fails to comply with Sebi's order, the regulator would make a reference to state government/local police to register a civil/criminal case against the company and its directors for "offences of fraud, cheating, criminal breach of trust and misappropriation of public funds." It would also make a reference to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs to initiate the process of winding up of the company. These directions would come into force with immediate effect. Democratic presidential front- runner Hillary Clinton promised not to send US troops to war-torn Iraq or Syria if elected saying it would be a "terrible mistake", but refused to give any "blanket statement" on overseas deployment of American combat forces. "I will not send American combat troops to Iraq or Syria. That is off the table. That would be a terrible mistake," Clinton said. The US, however, will continue to use Special Forces because of the kind of threats America faces, she told a New Hampshire audience during a townhall organised by CNN. "The network of terrorist organisations - not just ISIS, but who are part of this unfortunate network that stretches from North Africa to South Asia - pose serious threats to friends, allies, partners, as well as to ourselves," she said, using an acronym of the Islamic State. "We have got to keep our country safe, and we have to work with the rest of the world to try to defeat ISIS, to end that terrorist threat. So I will be very careful, deliberate with decision makers when facing hard choices, because I know what's at stake," said the 68-year-old ex-secretary of state. In response to a query from the audience on overseas troop deployment, Clinton said she can't give a "blanket statement." "I know you can understand why there can't be from me anyway a blanket statement. But, I want to assure you I will be transparent, I will be open, and I will explain to the American people if any occasion arises where we do have to take military action to protect ourselves or our close friends and partners," Clinton said. Michael, who is opposed to "the US being the world's policeman", asked if she can assure him that as a president she would not expand US military involvement abroad? Clinton said she believes military force must always be the last resort not a first choice. "That is one of the biggest differences between me and the Republicans," she said. "I will do everything I possibly can to avoid sending American troops abroad, getting us involved in military conflicts," she said. "But I can't in good conscious stand here and tell you that there would never be any circumstances in the time that I served as President where it very well might be in America's best vital national security interest," Clinton said. Appearing earlier at the same townhall, Sanders emphasised that the Islamic State needed to be defeated. "For a start, in my view, we have got to crush ISIS," he said. "But we have to be not just tough, we have to be smart. That means we work with a large coalition, led by on-the- ground Muslim troops. King Abdullah of Jordan made the point, it will be Muslim troops who destroy ISIS, because ISIS has hijacked their religion," he said. "The US, the UK, France, Germany, Russia provide support, in my view, to the troops on the ground. So we've got to crush them. Internally, what we have got to do is significantly improve intelligence," Sanders said. Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia today met the aggrieved family of six-year-old Divyansh Kakrora who was found dead at a water reservoir in Ryan International school even as his parents alleged their child's death was a "murder" and the arrests made were mere formality. Sisodia, also the Education Minister accompanied by District Magistrate and SDM went to the meet the family at their residence in Sultanpur area, and assured them of full support in their pursuit for justice. The Education Minister had earlier in the day said that the school management should also be held responsible for the child's death. "Why there is no action against management? School mgmt is not there to earn huge money without any accountability," he tweeted. Meanwhile, the family of the deceased child today took out a candlelight vigil in Vasant Kunj area today. "My son's death is not a case of negligence but murder. The arrests made today were merely a formality. Therefore, we are demanding a CBI probe. If they were to be bailed out than why were they arrested? ," said Divyansh's father Ramheet Meenaa, a paramedical staffer at AIIMS. "Did the police ask them why did they inform us four hours after the death. They obviously wanted to destroy the evidences. The principal and others are involved and they are not speaking out. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal called me and said that he is coming to meet us," he added. His mother, said, "This should not happen to any other child. Those involved should get stringent punishment. If there is no safety in such a reputed school what will happen in other schools. Why the school had given my child a gold medal if he was a hyper kid?" The principal and four other staff members of the South Delhi school were arrested today, five days after the student was found dead in a water tank on the campus, triggering outrage. Those arrested were released on bail later. It has been far too many years since the Woke theology interlaced its canons within the fabric of the Indoctrination Realm, so it is nigh time to ask: Does this Representative Republic continue, as a functioning society of a self-governed people, by contending with the unusual, self absorbed dictates of the Woke, and their vast array of Victimhood scenarios? Yes, the Religion of Woke must continue; there are so many groups of underprivileged, underserved, a direct result of unrelenting Inequity; they deserve everything. No; the Woke fools must be toppled from their pedestal; a functioning society of a good Constitutional people cannot withstand this level of "existential" favoritism as it exists now, unending. Thousands marched as a crippling general strike against pension reforms swept Greece today, with hooded youths lobbing firebombs at riot police in scattered skirmishes in the capital. Some 40,000 people from all walks of life joined protests in Athens and another 14,000 demonstrated in Thessaloniki for the 24-hour industrial action, police said, as riot officers in the capital fired tear gas in response to the Molotov cocktails. A journalist was hospitalised after being beaten on the sidelines of the demonstration. Police detained two people at the end of the protest, but not in relation to this incident. It was the broadest protest since the arrival to power of leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras just over a year ago. Today's general strike -- the third in as many months -- has stopped train and ferry services and grounded dozens of flights. The pensions overhaul, a key part of Greece's latest economic bailout, has sparked a major backlash against embattled Tsipras. The widespread opposition has led to the rare sight of white-collar staff marching alongside workers. Lawyers, notaries, insurers and engineers have joined the protests en masse in action the media have dubbed the "necktie movement". "They have massacred my generation. We can no longer get married or have children," said Dina, a 32-year-old who owns an underwear shop and was marching in Athens, referring to five years of austerity cuts under Greece's successive economic bailouts. Tsipras is accused of breaking his promise to eliminate austerity when he came to power last year. "The pledges were hot air," read black balloons carried in the protest. One group marched behind a banner in Chinese opposing the imminent privatisation of the Piraeus port authority by Chinese shipping giant COSCO. Many traders shut their shops in solidarity, petrol stations were closed and taxis pulled off the streets. Hospitals were also operating on an emergency footing. Farmers have formed protest hubs at dozens of locations on national highways, intermittently blocking traffic with tractors, continuing demonstrations that have been going on for two weeks. Nagaland Chief Minister T R Zeliang has said solution to the protracted Naga political problem is the way to peace which will lead to progress and prosperity of the state. "As long as the gun culture prevails in the state, Nagas will never progress and the only means to put an end to gun culture is to find early solution to the Naga political problem," an official release quoted Zeliang as saying. The Narendra Modi government is committed to early settlement of the Naga political issue and Nagas should grasp the opportunity and collectively work towards it without creating further imbroglio among the Nagas, he said. "The sooner we solve this problem the sooner we will have permanent peace," he said, while expressing apprehension that if the issue is prolonged further, more armed groups will come up and create trouble. The Chief Minister said this while addressing the inaugural function of Aboi Town Council at Aboi in Mon district yesterday. Solution to the Naga political issue will not benefit any particular faction or tribe but for the whole Nagas, said Zeliang. The CM said when all the 60 legislators of all parties of the state Assembly, all the tribal hohos, civil societies and NGOs have come together to foster an early settlement of the issue, people should also render full support. Terming the alleged assault and stripping of a Tanzanian woman in Bengaluru as a case of "racial attack", BJP national spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi today said Congress chief Sonia Gandhi should have reprimanded the state government and removed the Karnataka chief minister. "Mrs (Sonia) Gandhi should have reprimanded the state government over this incident and should have immediately changed the chief minister, rather than asking for reports," Lekhi told PTI. Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi has sought a report from the Karnataka government, according to party General Secretary Digvijay Singh, the party's in-charge of the state. Countering the state government's claim that the woman was not paraded naked, Lekhi said, "Denying facts cannot change the truth." "It is a question of our prestige...On how we treat our women in our country. Her top was taken off and she was paraded nude on the street. Her car was burned. Denying the facts can't change the truth on the ground. "It is a case of racial discrimination, alongside a case of cruelty to women," she said and asked "Why are women in non-BJP ruled states are so unsafe?" Amidst the outrage over the alleged assault and stripping of a 21-year-old Tanzanian woman, the Karnataka government today said five persons have been arrested in connection with it but denied that she was paraded naked. Spain reported today that a pregnant woman who had returned from Colombia had been diagnosed with the Zika virus, in the first such known European case. "One of the patients diagnosed in (the northeastern region of) Catalonia is a pregnant woman, who showed symptoms after having travelled to Colombia," the health ministry said, adding she is one of seven cases in Spain and all are in good condition. A 21-year-old student was shot dead by unidentified assailants while he was sleeping in his house in Kisauli village here, police said today. Ritesh Yadav, who was the son of a constable in PAC Sitapur, was shot dead last night, ASP Kamlesh Dixit said. The body has been sent for post-mortem, he said. Supplies from India to Nepal, crippled for months due to the agitation by the Madhesi community, have "normalised to a large extent" as around 1,300 trucks are going to the Himalayan nation from here every day, the External Affairs Ministry said today. Foreign office spokesperson Vikas Swarup also said Nepalese Finance Minister Bishnu Poudel will arrive here on February 7 on a two-day visit during which he will hold talks with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. Poudel will be here to discuss reconstruction projects in Nepal, Swarup said and hoped concrete dates for Nepalese Prime Minister K P Oli's visit to India will be finalised after that trip. Asserting that the supplies have normalised to a "large extent", the Spokesperson said,"Before the logjam started, 1,500 trucks used to go (to Nepal). Now about 1,300 trucks are going." He said India welcomed the positive steps taken by the Nepalese government to address the concerns of the Indian origin Madhesi community. "Two constitutional amendments have been passed. We welcome those as good, positive steps and hope that the remaining issues which the Madhesis have with the Nepalese government will also be sorted out in the sprit of reconciliation, flexibility, compromise and dialogue. We are hopeful that things will be on track," he said. The agitation by Madhesi leaders in Terai region bordering India paralysed services in Nepal and triggered huge shortage of essential supplies, including fuel and medicines, as the protesters blocked all border trade points between the two countries. The Madhesi community is opposed to splitting the country into seven provinces under the new Constitution and has been demanding adequate protection of their rights. Three major demands of the Madhesi community include re-demarcation of the boundary, inclusion of proportionate representation and allocation of Parliament seats on the basis of population. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will travel to Colombo tomorrow on a two-day visit during which she will hold talks with the top Sri Lankan leadership and attend the 9th Indo-Lanka Joint Commission meeting to discuss key bilateral and regional issues. On her second visit to Sri Lanka within a year, Swaraj and her Lankan counterpart Mangala Samaraweera will co-chair the Joint Commission meet which will be held tomorrow in Colombo. The meeting is expected to discuss cooperation in areas such as economy, trade, power and energy, technical and maritime cooperation, social, cultural and educational matters, science and technology, defence cooperation, health, civil aviation, tourism and people-to-people contact. The last meeting of the Joint Commission was held in New Delhi in January 2013. The joint commission was set up in 1992 as a mechanism to address issues pertaining to bilateral cooperation. During her trip, Swaraj will call on President Maithripala Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and meet other top leaders and hold wide-ranging talks with them. The issue of fishermen is likely to come up for discussion. India-Sri Lanka relations had seen lows during last few years of the tenure of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who was voted out of power, even as China had expanded its footprint in the country by building ports, highways and participating in other infrastructure projects. The ties gained momentum after the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to that country in March last year, the first bilateral tour by an Indian premier in over 25 years. The US demanded Russia immediately halt its bombing campaign in Syria today after a bitter breakdown in peace talks exposed the deep rift between world powers aiming to end the five-year conflict.' On the ground in Syria meanwhile President Bashar al-Assad's forces made a breakthrough, entering two Shiite villages that had been under siege by rebels after also advancing around the second city Aleppo. Syria's state agency SANA reported "mass celebrations" in the streets of Nubol and Zahraa as people welcomed army troops and celebrated the breaking of the siege. Peace talks in Geneva were suspended yesterday until February 25, with UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura saying "more work" was needed. The talks had been tipped as the most important push so far to end Syria's bloody conflict, which has killed more than 260,000 people and forced half the country's people from their homes. But French French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius accused Damascus and Russia of "torpedoing the peace efforts" in Geneva with the offensive. Russia has been launching air strikes in Syria which it says are targeted at "terrorist organisations" such as the Islamic State group. Fabius added that world powers would hold "in-depth consultations" on their actions at the aid conference in London. US Secretary of State John Kerry warned Moscow to halt its bombing of the Syrian opposition in what he said was a "robust" phone call with Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov. "We discussed, and we agreed, that we need to discuss how to implement the ceasefire," he added. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon said the temporary pause in the talks showed "just how deep, how difficult the divisions are." At the start of the conference in London, co-host British Prime Minister David Cameron urged a political transition away from Assad in Syria "however difficult that may be." The suspension of the talks came as donors gathered in the British capital aiming to raise billions of dollars in aid for Syria and to help its neighbours cope with millions of people that have taken refuge on their soil. Ahead of the talks, Britain pledged 1.2 billion pounds in aid to be spent between 2016 and 2020 on what Cameron called "the world's biggest humanitarian crisis." German Chancellor Angela Merkel, under growing pressure over her open door policy for refugees amid Europe's biggest such crisis since World War II, pledged 2.3 billion euros. Some 4.6 million Syrians have fled to nearby countries - Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt - while hundreds of thousands have journeyed to Europe. A team comprising the Tanzanian High Commissioner and senior MEA officials will travel to Bengaluru tomorrow in connection with the alleged assault and stripping of a Tanzanian woman there, an incident termed as "isolated" by the government today. The decision to send a team was taken at a meeting convened here by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, who has described the incident as "shameful". Terming the incident as "isolated", MEA Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said it was result of a "chain reaction" following a road accident in which a women was killed. The ministry has received the report from the State Police Commissioner, who has assured that stringent measures were being taken to prevent occurrence of such incidents, he said. However, he did not elaborate on the details of the report. Noting that the minister called a meeting of senior ministry officials including Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar, the Spokesperson said,"We condemn the incident unequivocally". A team is leaving for Bengaluru tomorrow which will have the Tanzanian High Commissioner John W H Kijazi, who is also the Dean of the African Diplomatic Corps, will be leaving for Bengaluru tomorrow along with ministry officials including Joint Secretary (States), he said. Asked about the remarks of Tanzanian High Commissioner that it was a "racist" attack, Swarup said there was initially a road accident following which there was a "chain reaction" leading to this "shameful and regrettable" incident. "We have assured our African friends that necessary legal action will be taken and stringent punishment will be given to those involved in the attack and that we will take all steps to ensure safety and security of African students in India," the Spokesperson added while noting that there were about 5,000 African students in the country. A 21-year-old Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car in Bengaluru on Sunday, prompting the authorities of the East African country to raise the matter with the Indian government. Voicing concern over a Tanzanian woman student being allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in Bengaluru, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi has sought a report from the Karnataka government on the incident immediately. "Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately," party General Secretary Digvijay Singh said in a series of tweets. "Strongly condemn incident with Tanzanian lady in Bangalore. Police must act strongly against the culprits," Singh, who is in-charge of party affairs in Karnataka, said. The Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car in the city. The 21-year-old Tanzanian, who is doing her Bachelor of Business Management course, was dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends on Sunday night. The car was stopped by the mob shortly after they reached the accident spot on Sunday night, according to All African Students Union in Bengaluru. She was stripped by a section of the mob and pushed out of a slow-moving bus that was passing by as she tried to board it to escape, the Union's Legal Adviser Bosco Kaweesi had said. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had termed the incident as shameful. Swaraj had spoken to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and requested him to ensure stringent punishment to the guilty. Swaraj said Siddaramaiah informed her that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested. Official sources in New Delhi had said the High Commission of Tanzania has sent a Note Verbale to the External Affairs Ministry about the reported attack, requesting it to take necessary legal action against the guilty. According to the Bangalore police, the complaint by the Tanzanian girl was filed yesterday even though incident happened on Sunday. Censorship is define as the act of controlling or limiting the speech and expression of citizens. The issue over where freedom of speech ends sparked an ongoing debate at its creation, bringing rise to varying interpretations; this discourse is ironically a product of free speech. Some nations invoke stringent laws restricting the speech and expression of their constituents, these actions are mostly condemned by western civilizations. In most countries, censorship exists but does not play a major role citizens' daily lives. Freedom of speech creates a discourse that calls for creation of new and better ideas, bringing innovation to society; the best example being the Enlightenment era when some of the best philosophers in history flourished. Protecting this liberty is not only beneficial to society as a collective, but is also a right endowed to all people. Censorship is only appropriate under extreme circumstances where the rights of others are infringed upon.The right to free speech is a natural right, and should be treated as an unalienable sacred right for all. People have the right at birth to speak and express their thoughts as they please, provided they do not infringe on the rights of others. John Locke, seventeenth century enlightenment philosopher, viewed freedom of speech as a part of the natural rights; life, liberty, and estate. The philosophy of John Locke was a great influence on the authors of the Constitution, using many of Locke's ideas when establishing the principles of the United States government. He focused mainly on how the government should interact with its people, setting the standard for democracy in the modern era (Salton 71). Locke argues that limiting free speech is a violation of the right to autonomy and self-governing for all people. People have the right to determine their personal actions and to make their own decisions, telling people what they can and cannot say limits their autonomy (Yong 392-394). Additionally, censorship infringes on John Locke's natural right theory; a set of rights given to all people at birth. Censorship restricts citizens from living their life as they choose, which destroys the individuality of people.Censorship proponents will argue that censorship on government criticism is important to protect the people from instability due to public outcry. Political revolts start from massing criticism of the government, causing much distress throughout the country. By censoring comments on the government, maintaining order within the country will be easier and more stable. Censorship also protects safety by preventing citizens from leaking government secrets, the exposure by which can cause trouble and civil unrest for the government (Burnett). An example of this is Edward Snowden in 2013 disclosing numerous classified NSA documents which detailed a sophisticated international surveillance program. This caused growing distrust in the government, the federal government claims that the leak has harmed national security. Outrage toward the government is a normal part of a free society; when people have the right to express discontent, they will speak their minds. The citizens expressing discontent for their government invokes the change they want; the democracy survives and improves by maintaining the people's power. Governments should serve the people, not act against them, because a democracy's power is derived from the people. Freedom of speech and expression allows the people to preserve this power in government.Freedom of speech promotes a better society by eliminating the censorship of ideas or expression of important issues. When people are allowed to freely discuss ideas, new and better ideas are likely to emerge. In the Enlightenment Era, free speech flourished in meeting places such as coffeehouses, creating an environment of rationalism where thinkers shared new ideas; intellectuals would gather at coffeehouses, and binge-drink coffee as they discuss philosophy. This culture perpetuated Enlightenment philosophy, giving us the ideas on government we have today (Calhoun 7). Places like these rely on freedom of speech to be effective; fostering free speech accelerates the emergence of better ideas.A common counter-argument to free speech is that offensive language should be censored as it may offend others; and offensive speech does not need to be protected because it promotes intolerance. Instances of this logic applied has been on the rise, with cases such as people demanding the ban of the controversial "Draw Muhammad Day", or censoring ads opposing same-sex marriage at the forefront. Though these cases did not have the best of intentions, the groups engaging in "offensive behavior" were within their rights to do so. The reason for censorship is to protect others, particularly minorities, from things offensive or harmful (Tunehag 77). However, freedom of speech is designed to protect the speaker from censorship, not the listener from hearing things they may find unpleasant (79). Though the time has changed, the principle benefits of free speech remain the same; it allows new ideas to emerge. Censorship of any capacity or form causes a disruption in the expression of ideas due to fear of an unintentional violation. An example of this is Hong Kong, which does not have any explicit censorship laws, but a culture promoting self-censorship. Hong Kong journalists actively censor their reporting due to political, commercial, or social pressures (Skidmore 143). Jim Sciutto, a former journalist of Hong Kong, described self-censorship as "...nearly an epidemic in Hong Kong... A free Hong Kong press is already eroding" (144). A similar issue has the potential to emerge with further endorsement of censorship culture. Promoting intolerance of other cultures is not a good thing, however it is the duty of society to defeat these ideas with better ones; the solution is not to censor criticism.Freedom of Speech is a founding tenant of the United States government, existing as a fundamental liberty to protect the other freedoms given to citizens. This right exists to prevent the censoring of ideas others do not like, provided the speech is non-injurious. The framers of the Constitution viewed freedom of speech as an important right, viewing it as a natural right to protect the people against government tyranny (West 319-320). The founding fathers were in a general consensus that freedom of speech should protect all speech not directly harmful. James Madison, for example, once argued that speech is a property right, stating, "...a man has a property in his opinions and the free communication of them" (321.) Madison, a strong supporter of the First Amendment being ratified, is stating that citizens have the right to speak freely without the risk of being censored. Now, some may argue that the Constitution is a living document, one that must be interpreted to fit the needs of the time; thus the First Amendment does not need to be interpreted literally. The United States has people from many cultures, so we need speech codes to prevent disruption and maintain order. The issue with this argument is that the United States has always been an incredibly diverse country. The colonies were, obviously, comprised of immigrants from various parts of Europe, later including migrants from around the world. An incredible amount of diversity has always been an aspect of the United States.Freedom of Speech is the most essential right that needs to be protected impartially for all people. This right allows people to freely speak, fostering the growth and development of new ideas. Free Speech is important for the continuation of a democratic society, as well as continuing an open and accurate media. This liberty must not be limited further, as doing such violates the natural right of individuals.Work CitedBalter, S. J. "The Search for Grounds in Legal Argumentation: A Rhetorical Analysis of Texas vs Johnson." Argumentation 15.4 (2001): 381-395. ProQuest. Web. 5 Dec. 2015.Burnett, Dean. "Why government censorship [in no way at all] carries greater risks than benefits." The Guardian. 22 May 2015. Web. n.p. 26 Nov. 2015.Calhoun, Craig J. Habermas and the Public Sphere. MIT Press, 1992. Google Books. Web. 14. Dec. 2015.Decew, Judith Wagner. "FREE SPEECH AND OFFENSIVE EXPRESSION." Social Philosophy & Policy 21.2 (2004): 81-103. ProQuest. Web. 1 Dec. 2015.Horton, John. "Self-Censorship." Res Publica 17.1 (2011): 91-106. ProQuest. Web. 1 Dec. 2015.King, Gary, and Jennifer Pan, and Margaret E. Roberts. "How Censorship in China Allows Government Criticism but Silences Collective Expression." American Political Science Review 107 (2013): 1-18. ProQuest. Web. 1 Dec. 2015.Mello, Jeffery A. "Balancing Hate Speech, Professional Ethics, and First Amendment Rights: A Case of and from the Judiciary." Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal 18.1 (2006): 21-28. ProQuest. Web. 1 Dec. 2015.Salton, Herman T. "A Stroke of Genius? Religion, the Founding Fathers and the Creation of the American Polity." Public Administration Research 2.1 (2013): 67-75. ProQuest. Web. 14 Dec. 2015.Skidmore, Max J. "Censorship: Who needs it? How the conventional wisdom restricts information's free flow." Journal of Popular Culture 35.3 (2001): 143-156. ProQuest. Web. 5 Dec. 2015.Smith, Rodney K. "James Madison, John Witherspoon, and Oliver Cowdery: The First Amendment and the 134th section of the Doctrine and Covenants." Brigham Young University Law Review 2003.3 (2003): 891-940. ProQuest. Web. 1 Dec. 2015.Tunehag, Mats. "Freedom of Speech or Freedom from Hearing?" Sfera Politicii 19.7 (2011): 77-82, 96. ProQuest. Web. 1 December 2015.West, Thomas G. "Free speech in the American founding and in modern liberalism." Social Philosophy & Policy. 21.2 (2004): 310-384. ProQuest. Web. 14 Dec. 2015.Yong, Caleb. "Does Freedom of Speech Include Hate Speech?" Res Publica 17.4 (2011): 385-403. ProQuest. Web. 1 Dec. 2015. Aluminium major Nalco received a major stimulus with the Union Coal Ministry deciding to restore the tapering linkage coal supply from Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL) to two units of its Captive Power Plant (CPP) at Angul in Odisha. "We are thankful to Ministry of Mines, which strongly recommended our case before the Ministry of Coal," said Nalco CMD Tapan Kumar Chand announcing the Ministry's decision at the Annual Function of Nalco Employees' Forum (NEF) here today. Elaborating on the news, which coincided with the recognition of NEF, Chand said out of ten units of Nalco's 1,200 MW CPP, till now the company had assured supply of 47.16 lakh tonnes of coal per annum, as per Fuel Supply Agreement (FSA) with the Mahanadi Coalfields, for eight units only. For Unit 9 and 10, there was tapering linkage supply of 10.93 lakh tonnes of coal per annum, which was linked to Utkal E coal block allotted to Nalco. This linkage supply had stopped since 2011. With fresh allotment of Utkal D and E coal blocks by the Centre, having a reserve in excess of 200 million tonnes in the vicinity of CPP, which would take about couple of years for raising coal, the Ministry of Coal has decided to restore the tapering linkage, Chand said. This shall greatly increase power supply to Nalco's smelter located adjacent to its CPP, resulting in operation of more pots to smelt aluminium. Appreciating the proactive role played by Nalco's Workers' Unions, including NEF, Chand described the union leaders as hard-core managers. "Union-Management combined power of Nalco has defied the gravitational forces of current sluggish market and the company is flying high," Chand asserted. Tata Motors, country's largest commercial vehicles maker, today said it will replace all its conventional range of trucks -- both medium and heavy vehicles -- with the Signa range and the new models will cost around 2 per cent more than the existing ones. The move marks the branding of its truck business in a serious way as the existing conventional models are just numbered especially in the HCV segment. "The first model from the Signa range will be tractor trailers and will be available with the dealers in two months, while the tippers, and heavy trucks will be launched in the second half," Tata Motors' Vice-President for Sales and Marketing - Commercial Business Unit, RT Wasan told PTI here at the Delhi Auto Expo. When asked about the pricing, he said the exact prices will only be announced at the commercial launch but will not be very costly. "The prices may at best go up by less than 2 per cent, even though these trucks come with ABS, optional AC cabins and telematics which will allow a fleet operator to exactly track the vehicle as well as get quality warnings as well," Wasan said. He also said these trucks, to be rolled out from the Jamshedpur plant, have been under development for the past three years. However, he refused to share the quantum of investment gone into their development. Offered in various configurations, the Signa range of commercial vehicles is engineered and built to offer medium and heavy commercial vehicle buyers, a newly designed cabin, with the Tata Motors aggregates, Tata Motors Executive Director for commercial vehicle business, Ravi Pisharody told reporters. The company showcased three variants from the Signa range - the 4923.S tractor, the A 3118.T multi-axle truck and the 2518.K tipper. The auto major also unveiled the Ultra 1518, an all-new production ready variant from Tata Motors Ultra range of intermediate and light commercial vehicles. "With these commercial vehicle offerings, we hope to bring modern trucking mainstream, addressing emerging needs for a safe, comfortable and connected commercial vehicle experience," Pisharody said. The company has displayed its capabilities across the commercial vehicle spectrum, with technologies powering the future of goods and passenger movement, he added. "From the last-mile Magic Iris Ziva, propelled by Hydrogen based fuel-cell technologies, the Tata Starbus Hybrid - the world's first commercially produced CNG Hybrid bus to a new generation last mile goods transport solution from the Ace family Ace Mega Xl-with these new future ready products, we are all set to revolutionise the domestic commercial vehicle industry, Pisharody said. Tata Steel today reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 2,127.23 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2015 hit by subdued demand in India as well as higher regulatory costs and a strong British pound. Mumbai-based firm had a net profit of Rs 157.11 crore in the year-ago period. Total consolidated income of the steel maker declined by 17 per cent to Rs 28,039 crore in the October-December quarter of this fiscal, from Rs 33,633 crore during the same quarter in 2014-15, Tata Steel said in a BSE filing. Its total expenses more than doubled to Rs 1,224.90 crore from Rs 578 crore during the quarter under review. Steel deliveries of the company rose marginally to 6.37 million tonnes (MT) in the December quarter in 2015-16, from 6.29 MT during the same quarter in 2014-15. "Indian steel demand remained subdued post monsoon quarter due to sluggish uptick across key steel consuming sectors like construction, general engineering and infrastructure," Tata Steel said. Rural demand also remained muted. Oversupply in global steel markets coupled with relative stability of Indian rupee versus dollar as compared to other and currencies has made India a favoured import destination, it added. On its European operations, the firm said: "Surging imports into Europe exerted further pressure on margins in the last quarter. "The unprecedented market conditions, made worse by the UK's regulatory costs and strong pound, led to announcements to reduce jobs and mothball assets in the UK - part of an ongoing transformation programme." Tata Steel's Managing Director India and South East Asia T V Narendran said: "Steel markets in India have been affected by depressed international steel prices and predatory imports. Tepid demand among steel consuming sectors has further exacerbated the problem." To realign Tata Steel with new market realities, the firm is sharpening focus on effective management of costs. It will also continue to invest in its marketing franchise and in increasing the share of value added products, he added. Tata Steel in Europe CEO and Managing Director Karl Ulrich Kohler said: "This perfect storm (imports) caused the deterioration of our financial performance in the last quarter and led to us announcing restructuring in the UK where our operations also face higher regulatory costs." Growing European steel demand continues to be undermined by a flood of imports. Chinese steel shipments into Europe leapt over 50 per cent last year, while imports from Russia and South Korea jumped 25 per cent and 30 per cent, respectively, he added. Kohler said European steel association has identified that Chinese steel is being exported at prices below the cost of production. This unfair trade is undercutting domestic producers and harming European steel industry which employs thousands of people. "That's why we are calling on the European Commission and national governments to speed up and strengthen action against unfair trade," he added. On restructuring he said: "These changes will continue to be a core focus in a bid to improve our competitiveness and enable us to concentrate on supplying higher-value products to customers." Tata Steel Group Executive Director (Finance and Corporate) Koushik Chatterjee said current business conditions for the global steel industry are challenging with confluence of elevated imports across regions, currency headwinds and depressed market sentiments affecting group's profitability. "We are witnessing significant unfairly priced imports into countries like the UK, India and South East Asia which has disrupted the pricing discipline in most markets," he added. The Tata Steel Group has embarked on significant cost rationalisation programme including fixed cost reduction, right sizing of manpower, productivity management and enriching product mix across all geographies. These programmes are expected to enhance the sustainable profitability profile of the company. "Tata Steel has also undertaken significant portfolio restructuring and will continue to pursue the same in the future," he said. During the quarter, the firm successfully refinanced USD 1.5 billion of debt which has given it further flexibility and extended tenure while reducing costs. "Our liquidity remains strong at Rs 18,600 crore apart from the undrawn project finance facilities at Kalinganagar. The Group's leverage remain stable despite the ongoing capex of Rs 8,800 crore in April-December 2015-16, largely towards our Kalinganagar Project in Odisha," Chatterjee said. Tata Steel UK has announced cost-saving proposals to improve the competitiveness of its UK business. Plate mills in Scunthorpe, Dalzell and Clydebridge will be mothballed while one of the two coke ovens at the Scunthorpe steelworks will be closed, the firm said. "Along with earlier restructurings announced this year the proposed plan would lead to about 3,000 job losses," it added. As a part of its programme to enhance productivity in the future, Tata Steel India announced an employee separation programme during the current fiscal. 1,171 employees have been separated till January 2016, it said. NatSteel Holdings has also completed separation of 300 people in China. A vow by Thailand's junta to rid the country of foreign criminals has netted an unlikely group of outlaws - elderly bridge players. Police and military volunteers raided a bridge club yesterday in Pattaya, a resort town renowned for its go-go bars and links with organised crime, arresting 32 foreigners, most of them British. "There were 32 people, all of them foreigners arrested for gambling on Wednesday night," Colonel Suthat Pumphanmuang, Pattaya police superintendent, told AFP today, saying the raid was sparked by a member of the public complaining to the junta's anti-corruption centre. Almost all forms of gambling apart from the lottery and bets on some animal fighting are outlawed in Thailand, though underground betting is rampant. "The chairman of the bridge club is arguing that they were not gambling (for money)," Suthat said. He added that all but one of those arrested were freed on a 5,000 baht (USD 140) bail after 12 hours in custody. The final person was unable to pay bail and remains in jail. Police said those arrested included 12 British nationals, three Norwegians, three Swedes, two Australians, a German, a Dane, a Canadian, a New Zealander and one Dutch and one Irish national. The other nationalities were not made public. A British Embassy spokesman said officials were in contact with local authorities "following the arrest of several British nationals". Jomtien and Pattaya Bridge Club, the target of the raid, is a venue popular with elderly foreign players that advertises publicly and meets three times a week above a restaurant. Video of the raid posted by local media outlets showed groups of largely elderly foreigners gathered around tables holding playing cards looking confused by the sudden police interest. At one point officers pose for media pictures by a cabinet holding multiple packs of playing cards. The accused were later seen being walked to the back of a police van, one of them with the help of a walking stick. Pattaya One, a local English language newspaper, said the club had been operating bridge nights since 1994. Since seizing power in 2014, Thai junta chief Prayut Chan- O-Cha has vowed to crack down on a raft of social ills including corruption and criminal networks, both foreign and domestic. He has set up a corruption centre where members of the public can inform officials of alleged abuses or crimes. Travel firm Thomas Cook (India) today reported consolidated net loss of Rs 13.53 crore for the third quarter ended on December 31, 2015-16. It had reported net profit of Rs 18.16 crore during the October-December quarter of last financial year due to sharp increase in expenditure. The integrated travel and related financial services company's total income from operations was at Rs 1,044 crore during the quarter under review, up 40.86 per cent from Rs 741.12 crore in the same period of 2014-15. "With an eye on the bigger growth opportunities in Asia, we made a series of strategic acquisitions in the last quarter... The cost of these acquisitions obviously impacted profitability in the third quarter," said Thomas Cook (India) managing director Madhavan Menon. Thomas Cook's total expenditure grew by 44.06 per cent to Rs 1,014.52 crore as against Rs 704.22 crore reported in the year-ago period. The company also announced appointment of Dipak Deva as Managing Director of Travel Corporation (India) Ltd. In a separate filing, Thomas Cook said that its subsidiary Quess Corp has filed Draft Red Herring Prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to raise Rs 400 crore through an Initial Public Offering (IPO) of its equity shares. In another filing, it said its board of directors has accorded in-principle approval for the merger of SITA, the inbound division of Kuoni Travel (India), a wholly owned subsidiary of the company, with Travel Corporation (India), also a wholly owned subsidiary of the company subject to regulatory approvals and compliance. Thomas Cook also has signed an agreement with State Bank of India to offer their holiday savings plan to the bank's customers, The company stock was trading at Rs 190.35, down 1.30 per cent, on BSE. Odisha Police today arrested from Khallikote three college students of Ganjam for their alleged involvement in looting Rs three lakh cash from the manager of a petrol pump and seized Rs 2.24 lakh from them. Acting on a tip off the police also seized from them the motorcycle used in the crime, inspector in-charge of Kabisurya Nagara police station D R Patnaik said. The three are students of a private college near Khallikote and they had looted the cash at gun point from the petrol pump manager when he was on way to his house at Sindurapada, police said. "Three to four other persons are also suspected to be involved in the incident. We have identified them and will arrest them soon," Patnaik added. Three persons were arrested by police for allegedly duping several persons to the tune of lakhs of rupees by selling them fake insurance policies. The three persons identified as - Anand Ram, Pushkar Ram and Vijay Chhabra, were former employees of an insurance company. They later floated a sham insurance company of their own, DCP (East) B S Gujar said today. As they had access to the database of a prominent private insurance company, they choose their targets using the database, Gurjar said. They came under the police scanner when a man, whom they allegedly duped to the tune of around Rs 16 lakh on the pretext of premium on insurance policy which can bring huge tax rebates approached the police on Monday, police said. The police then registered a case at east Delhi's Jagatpuri police station and laid a trap and all three accused were arrested in the next 48 hours, police added. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa today called for filing a review plea in the Supreme Court against its order allowing Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL) to lay natural gas pipelines criss-crossing seven districts of the state. Chairing a high level meeting at the Secretariat in which Advocate General A L Somayaji, ministers and top officials participated, the CM directed filing of a review plea against the apex court order of February 2. In its order, Supreme Court had allowed GAIL to lay natural gas pipelines in Coimbatore, Tirupur, Salem, Erode, Namakkal, Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri districts dismissing the state's plea against it which had contended that farmers will be affected. Farmer organisations and political parties in the state, including the ruling AIADMK are against laying of the pipelines in farm lands as it would "affect farmers." They wanted GAIL to rework its alignment and lay down the pipes along highways. The state government had argued in the apex court that the pipelines in farm lands would affect the livelihood of about 5,500 small farmers. The proposed Rs 3,400 crore GAIL pipeline project from Kochi to Mangaluru covers 300 km in Tamil Nadu which is spread across seven districts. Following the judgment, opposition parties, including the DMK, DMDK, and CPI (M) urged the Tamil Nadu government to go in for a review petition in the apex court. A top UN official helping oversee Gaza's reconstruction following its 2014 war with Israel says the territory is on a "disastrous trajectory," with Israel's blockade and Palestinian divisions hampering recovery. Robert Piper, UN deputy special coordinator for the Middle East peace process as well as humanitarian coordinator for the Palestinian territories, spoke to AFP after returning from one of his regular visits to the impoverished Gaza Strip. His latest visit came at a time of growing concern over a possible new conflict in the enclave, which has already seen three wars with Israel since 2008, particularly over the reconstruction of tunnels that could be used to attack the Jewish state. More than a year after the last war in 2014, around 100,000 people remain displaced. Of the 11,000 homes completely destroyed, only 859 have been rebuilt. Delays in reconstruction have been blamed on Israel's blockade of Gaza along with shortages in donor funding, most of which has been provided by Qatar. A lack of coordination between Hamas, the Islamist movement that rules the Gaza Strip, and the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority, dominated by rival Fatah, have also contributed to the slow pace. Hailing the signing of one of the biggest multinational trade deals in history, President Barack Obama today said the Trans Pacific Partnership deal will bolster US' leadership abroad and give it an advantage over other leading economies like China. "The US-led Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), which was signed by 12 countries in New Zealand, would bolster American leadership abroad and support good jobs at home," Obama said. "Right now, the rules of global trade often undermine our values and put our workers and businesses at a disadvantage. TPP will change that. It eliminates more than 18,000 taxes that various countries put on Made in America products," Obama added. "It promotes a free and open internet and prevents unfair laws that restrict the free flow of data and information. It includes the strongest labour standards and environmental commitments in history - and, unlike in past agreements, these standards are fully enforceable," he remarked. "TPP allows America - and not countries like China - to write the rules of the road in the 21st century, which is especially important in a region as dynamic as the Asia-Pacific." Obama asked lawmakers to enact the deal into a law as soon as possible so that the American economy can immediately start benefiting from the tens of billions of dollars in new export opportunities. "We should get TPP done this year and give more American workers the shot at success they deserve and help more American businesses compete and win around the world," Obama said. Negotiated over five years, the TPP was signed by Brunei, Chile, New Zealand, Singapore, Australia, Canada, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, the US and Vietnam. It aims to break down trade and investment barriers between countries comprising about 40 per cent of the global economy. Business leaders gave a thumbs up to the deal. "We welcome the signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement, which presents a tremendous opportunity for American workers, farmers and businesses - and for the entire US economy," said Doug Oberhelman, chairman and CEO of Caterpillar and chairman of Business Roundtable. "We continue to call on Congress and the administration to quickly address the remaining industry issues to ensure the agreement provides maximum benefit, which will also enable greater likelihood of congressional approval this year," he said. "By opening markets and addressing long-standing and newer trade challenges for US businesses, farmers and workers, TPP will support much-needed US economic growth and the millions of American jobs tied to trade," said Tom Linebarger, chairman and CEO of Cummins. However, l35 leading public health and medical groups asked Congress to support a TPP provision that protects life-saving tobacco control measures from the tobacco industry's legal attacks under the agreement. Senator Sherrod Brown said while signing may be a victory for the corporations who negotiated this deal behind closed doors, it is a major loss for American workers. "TPP must still be approved by Congress. When TPP has its day on the Senate floor, I will do all I can to block this agreement, which will hurt workers in my state and across the country," he said. Several lawmakers including Tulsi Gabbard, Rosa DeLauro, Louise Slaughter, and Debbie Dingell joined AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka and representatives from MoveOn and the Sierra Club to oppose the TPP. "The American people have been left out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership from the very beginning and it shows in the resulting agreement. If this deal is enacted, the American people will be left behind as corporations benefit," Gabbard said. "The concern is that if I'm a business owner, I'm counting on a rush of customers on Friday night. If there's a food truck nearby, maybe they're taking some of my business," said Ed Ridpath, the Chairman of the Fuquay-Varina Planning Board. Yury Rojas, owner of Anna's Pizza, couldn't be reached for comment but a manager confirmed they have complained to the town about the trucks ... On Tuesday, Charles Barnes was the lone speaker in favor of the proposed ban. He's a partner in South Main Market, a downtown real estate company. It owns the building between Fainting Goat and The Mill, where Beef O'Brady's was until it recently closed. Like those who were against the proposal, he acknowledged room for compromise and asked the town to include his business in future discussions. "We're not opposed to food trucks," Barnes said. "We think food trucks should be regulated." What is the role of competition in the marketplace? That's the question surrounding a recent uproar in Fuquay-Varina, a Raleigh suburb located in the southwest corner of Wake County. Food trucks a Triangle staple have arrived in the town, and some restaurant owners are not happy. And what's more they're being surprisingly candid about the reasons for their push to regulate food trucks out of town.Some Fuquay-Varina restaurant owners have taken their concerns to the town's government. Ed Ridpath, chairman of the town's planning board and a former member of its board of commissioners , summed up those concerns in a recent article at WCNC In Ridpath's defense, he is one of the members of the planning board who is against an all-out ban. And as a member of the board of commissioners, he voted to allow food trucks in the first place. But if his understanding of the debate surrounding food trucks is accurate, this is a serious cause for concern. It seems that the town is not weighing the safety of allowing food trucks, but is instead simply deciding whether and how much to shield incumbent business owners from competition. This seems to be the case as reported by the News & Observer in January Okay, but why should they be regulated? Is it simply to protect incumbents from competition? If so, this is an illegitimate reason morally, economically, and, increasingly, legally.Morally, the use of government force as a tool to stifle fair competition is simply wrong. In a free society, people should be able to pursue their trade free of irrational legal barriers that serve only special interests. There's nothing wrong with a business owner disliking competition in fact, most people dislike having to compete for a living but that doesn't give businesses a license to regulate away anyone who dares challenge them in the marketplace.Economically, competition serves an important function in a free market. It keeps prices low and generally increases the quality and selection of goods available. This happens precisely because businesses have to compete with one another for consumers. It's no surprise, then, that some businesses try to avoid this hardship by getting special treatment from the government. But such special treatment acts as a constraint on supply, limiting competition and therefore reducing the benefits produced by competitive market forces. This means higher prices and less quality and choice for consumers.Legally, several federal appeals courts have found that economic regulations cannot be used to eliminate competition under the guise of law. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has found that The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals agrees, and has held that The United States Supreme Court held in City of Philadelphia v. State of New Jersey that However, that case has been limited to its particular facts under the United States Constitution's Interstate Commerce Clause.American courts are still far from taking a hard stand against economic protectionism. The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals has found that This decision creates a clear split between federal circuit courts on the issue of economic protectionism. Despite calls to take up the issue from numerous groups, including the Center for Law and Freedom and the Cato Institute , the U.S. Supreme Court has yet to provide any clarification.Further, given the lax nature of the rational basis test under which economic regulations are evaluated by courts, state actors merely need make a half-hearted appeal to some state interest like "safety" in order to see economic protectionist legislation upheld under the guise of some other interest. You can bet your bottom dollar that if the Town of Fuquay-Varina does enact a ban on food trucks, it will claim to be for the purpose of protecting some interest other than economic protectionism. Such a claim would likely be enough to defeat any constitutional challenge. We'll know more on Feb. 15, when Fuquay-Varina staffers are expected to bring the planning board draft regulations. Hopefully the town will side with the free market, leading to more choices and lower prices for consumers. A city-based trader was killed here after he was fatally attacked by two persons near his house in suburban Andheri, police said today. The victim, Ramu Dhotre, who is into transport business, was attacked yesterday with sharp-edged weapons near his residence at Gilbert road in Andheri (West), they said. Hearing the victim scream, his brother intervened to rescue him. However, Ramu died on the spot and his brother sustained injuries, a police officer from DN Nagar police station said. The assailants have been arrested and booked for murder. The motive behind the killing is not clear yet and probe was underway, the officer said. The entire incident was captured in the CCTV camera installed in the area. UK-based high-end motorcycle maker Triumph plans to be the market leader in the 500cc luxury premium segment in the country and is looking to sell about 1,800 bikes per year by 2020. "We would like to almost double our volumes by 2020. We are aiming to sell around 1,700 to 1,800 bikes by that time," Triumph Motorcycles India Managing Director Vimal Sumbly said. "Our strategy is very clear, to be the market leader here," he added. Triumph competes with brands like Harley Davidson, Ducati, Kawasaki and Suzuki in the top-end segment. The company, which started its operations in the country two years ago, has sold 2,500 units so far. "We have almost 30 per cent market share in India in 2015 in 500cc category as per SIAM data," Sumbly said. Triumph today launched three models of its iconic Bonneville range -- Street Twin, T120 and Thruxton R. The company has priced its 900cc Street Twin at Rs 6.90 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) and its 1,200cc model T120 at Rs 8.70 lakh. However, it is yet to announce the price of Thruxton R, delivery for which would start from July 2016. "The models selected for India are a result of the feedback we received directly from our customers and we are very sure of their success. "India is a diversified country and has different riding habits. Triumph is first one to recognise it and that why we got the volume," Sumbly said. Triumph Motorcycles India has a network of 12 dealers. Its portfolio spans across superbike categories of classics, cruisers, roadsters, adventure and super-sports. "Presently, 45 per cent of Triumph sales come from its Classic range," Sumbly added. Triumph has one assembling unit in Manesar, Haryana and produces seven bikes out of its total range of 15. Controversial Republican frontrunner Donald Trump has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize 2016 for his "vigorous" ideology that counters radical Islam as a weapon of deterrence, according to media reports. The 'unlikely' nomination of the 69-year-old hard-liner for the coveted peace prize highlights the vulnerability of the award - that it is easily misused as a publicity tool for a politician whose goals would seem to many as antithetical to the Nobel committee's. According to the information available on the Nobel Prize website: "A nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize may be submitted by any person who meets the nomination criteria. A letter of invitation to submit is not required. The names of the nominees and other information about the nominations cannot be revealed until 50 years later." Nominations for the award, that had a submission deadline of February 1, are a closely-guarded secret but those who nominate candidates can reveal the name of the person they have proposed, reports said. An American male senator or congressman nominated Trump - the real estate tycoon who is currently the Republican presidential frontrunner, according to Kristian Berg Harpviken, director of Oslo's Peace Research Institute. Harpviken told the Telegraph that he had seen the letter, which described Trump's "vigorous peace-through-strength ideology" as an effective "threat weapon of deterrence against radical Islam, ISIS, nuclear Iran and Communist China". Trump was criticised globally over a call for banning all Muslims from entering the US but refused to budge from his stance. The stunning provocative remarks made by him in December were not only condemned by the rival camp but party members as well. Harpviken said that whoever nominated Trump probably did it to secure more press coverage for the controversial candidate. "The person who suggested it may genuinely mean it, but the person who suggested it may also realise that the very fact that Trump's nomination gets confirmed has considerable interest in its own right, and that all publicity is good publicity. "The fact that you're asking me about his nomination indicates that, if that was the thinking, it worked," he said. The Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to 129 Nobel Laureates since 1901 including India's Kailash Satyarthi and Pakistani Malala Yousafzai for advocating child rights. The 2016 winner will be announced in October - just one month before the US presidential election. However, Trump - who was just yesterday slammed by party rival Ted Cruz as "twitterer in chief" for taking political slandering to new heights even on social media - has not tweeted anything about the nomination so far. Tunisia said today it is lifting a nationwide nighttime curfew imposed last month after the worst social unrest witnessed in the country since its 2011 revolution. "In light of the improvement in the security situation, it was decided that from Thursday... The curfew on all Tunisian territory will be lifted," the interior ministry said in a statement. The curfew was imposed after protests that started in the central town of Kasserine, where an unemployed man was electrocuted during a January 16 demonstration over the lack of economic prospects in the region. The unrest -- the worst since the uprising five years ago that ousted longtime dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali -- spread to several other towns and to Tunis where shops were burned and looted in one suburb in the night of January 21. The authorities announced the curfew the next day, and protests ebbed after continuing for a while in Kasserine and the nearby town of Sidi Bouzid, the cradle of the 2011 revolution. Tunisia in November imposed another nighttime curfew in the capital and suburbs after a deadly bus bombing claimed by the Islamic State (IS) jihadist group. It was lifted in December. Following the November 24 suicide attack that killed 12 presidential guards, the government also declared a nationwide state of emergency, which remains in place. While Tunisia is considered a rare success story of the 2011 regional uprisings known as the Arab Spring, the authorities have failed to resolve the problems of social exclusion and regional inequalities. Prime Minister Habib Essid last month said he had "no magic wand" to solve unemployment which is more than 15 percent nationwide and 32 percent for university graduates. Tunisia's economy grew last year by less than 0.3 percent, Economy Minister Slim Shaker said Tuesday. The North African country lost more than a third of its tourism revenues in 2015 after attacks targeting the vital sector claimed by IS. Two IS attacks last year killed 59 foreign tourists, badly shaking an industry that accounts for seven percent of the country's gross domestic product. Turkey's foreign ministry today said that it had refused to allow a Russian reconnaissance plane to overfly its territory near Syria, citing a disagreement over the itinerary plan, as relations between the two countries hit a post-Cold War low. The foreign ministry's statement came a day after Russia accused Turkey of breaching the Open Skies treaty by refusing the plane access. "An agreement could not be reached on the itinerary for the reconnaissance flight requested by the Russian Federation for 2-5 February 2016," the ministry said. Moscow said yesterday that the Russian plane's itinerary had been transmitted to the Turkish army in advance but authorisation was refused with Ankara. The 2002 Open Skies treaty, signed by over 30 nations including Russia, Turkey, the EU and the US, establishes a programme of unarmed aerial surveillance flights giving all participants the ability to gather information about military forces and activities of concern to them. Its aim is to boost mutual understanding and confidence. In an apparent bid to downplay the significance of the latest incident, the Turkish foreign ministry said today it had allowed Russia to conduct a reconnaissance flight in December after Moscow changed the itinerary as requested by Ankara. The latest salvo in an ongoing dispute between the two countries came some three months after Turkey shot down in November a Russian fighter jet on the Syrian border, sparking a war of words with Moscow which insisted its plane had not violated Turkish airspace. Russia launched a massive air campaign in September against rebels fighting to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, a long-time Moscow ally who Turkey bitterly opposes. Ankara on Saturday accused Moscow of a new violation of its airspace by a Russian Su-34 plane, a claim that Moscow dismissed as "baseless propaganda. Two Arab Israeli teenage girls stabbed and lightly wounded a guard at a bus station in central Israeli city Ramle today before being arrested, police said. The attack was the latest in a four-month wave of Palestinian violence targeting Israeli civilians and security personnel in the West Bank and Israel. According to police, a security guard at the entrance to the central bus station of the city, southeast of Tel Aviv, asked the two 13-year-olds -- one of them carrying a backpack -- to identify themselves. The two then pulled knives and stabbed the guard in an arm and his legs, lightly wounding him before they were apprehended. The guard was taken to hospital, medics said. A number of Arab Israelis have carried out attacks as part of the wave of Palestinian violence since October, which has killed 26 Israelis, as well as an American and an Eritrean, according to an AFP count. At the same time, 164 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces, most while carrying out attacks but others during clashes and demonstrations. Arab Israelis hold Israeli citizenship, though they largely see themselves as Palestinians. Two persons including an elderly woman were killed and four others critically injured when the SUV they were travelling in rammed a stationary truck near Lalpur barrier in Phardhan, police said today. The incident took place when a trader Pragyanshu and his family were returning to Lakhimpur late on Wednesday night after attending a wedding in Gola, police said. While the driver was killed on the spot, the trader's mother-in-law, Ashoka (60) died on the way to hospital, police said, adding Pragyanshu, his wife, sister-in-law and father-in-law were rushed to Lucknow Trauma Centre in a critical condition. His three children suffered minor injuries in the mishap, they added. A special police team is continuing the search for the two teenaged girls who went missing from a pre-university college in the city on February 1. The girls, aged 16 and 17, had attended the classes on the day and had left the college at around 2.30 pm, the college authorities said. They had also produced before the police the CCTV images of the girls leaving the college at that time. The parents of the commerce students registered a missing complaint with police on the evening of Feb 1 itself. Police said they were finding it difficult to locate the students as they were not carrying mobile phones with them. The girls also did not have much money with them, they said. They have questioned a youth from another college on seeing a Whatsapp chat with one of the missing students. However, no substantial clue was available, police said. Photos of the girls have been published in the social media seeking the co-operation of the public in the search. Two youths were today sentenced to death by a local court for kidnapping and brutally murdering an eight-year-old boy in 2014. Principal District and Sessions Judge Kishore Sonowane awarded the punishment to Rajesh Dhanalal Daware (21) and his friend Arvind Abhilash Singh (25) for killing Yug Chandak. Convicting them under IPC sections 364 (a) (kidnapping for ransom) and 302 (murder), the judge said it was an act of vengeance and stemmed from their dream of minting money. In a packed courtroom where both the convicts and the child's father were present, Judge Sonowane observed that though the accused were young, they deserve no leniency or mercy, and found them guilty of the brutal killing of the Class II student in September 2014. The judge observed that as per High Court and Supreme Court guidelines to deal with kidnapping and killing of children, the court was satisfied with the evidences and motive of both the accused for killing the child. The judge then ordered them to be hanged till death. He also awarded life imprisonment to the two youths and imposed a penalty of Rs 10,000 for conspiracy, and also sentenced them to another seven years' imprisonment along with Rs 5,000 fine for destroying evidences. The judge observed that both the youths had kidnapped Yug as they wanted to become rich by demanding ransom, and in the process killed the innocent child in a brutal manner and hit his face with stones to destroy evidence, and also buried the body. The perpetrators, both B Com students from a college at Kamptee Road, were convicted under sections 302 (murder), 364-A (kidnapping for ransom), 201 (destruction of evidence), and 120-B (criminal conspiracy). Daware's 17-year-old younger brother, who assisted them in the conspiracy, has already been referred to a juvenile remand home. About 26 injuries were found on Yug's body, including those on the neck. None of the 50 witnesses examined by the prosecution turned hostile, as per Additional Public Prosecutor Jyoti Vajani, Chandak family's counsel Rajendra Daga and Investigation Officer (IO) from Lakadganj Police Station, Satyanarayan Jaiswal. According to them, they brought to fore as many as 20 circumstances to prove complicity of the accused in the crime. With a view to take revenge from Dr Mukesh Chandak, who runs a nursing home in eastern part of city, for what Daware claimed as humiliation meted out to him by the doctor and extract ransom, the accused hatched the conspiracy to kidnap and kill Yug. The duo executed their plan and brutally killed the child by strangulating him on September 1, 2014. They later buried the body in sand under pipes near a culvert on the desolate Gumthi-Gumthala Road near Patansawangi village, about 27 kms from Nagpur. The duo had planned their escape after receiving money, but were arrested the next day after Chandak's family raised suspicion on Daware. During interrogation, both the accused confessed to have killed the boy and led the investigators to the spot where they had buried the child's body. The incident rattled Nagpur residents and many of them joined hands to condole Yug's death. Candle marches were taken out in support of the Chandak family and demand was raised for death sentence to the perpetrators of the innocent child's killing. The court relied on a number of factors, apart from strong testimony of 50 witnesses to nail the culprits. It included CCTV footage at a petrol pump where the accused filled up their bike tank after kidnapping the child, last seen theory of many witnesses, recovery of child's clothes from the spot shown by accused and Yug's earring which was traced to Arvind Singh's home. Even the call details records and, more importantly, the testimony of Daware's girlfriend went against them. Two school students from Patansawangi village, who saw the duo taking Yug on their bikes, were also made witnesses by the prosecution after requesting their parents. According to police, Daware was familiar with the place where the body was buried as often used to take a break at the spot with his girlfriend while returning from a religious place. The prosecution lawyers had earlier cited three landmark Supreme Court verdicts to press for death penalty to the accused, while terming the case as "rarest of rare" with no signs of reformation of the two accused. Britain today said it will arrest Wikileaks founder Julian Assange if he leaves the Ecuadorean Embassy here, where he is holed up since June 2012 to avoid a European arrest warrant against him over allegations of rape in Sweden. "An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European arrest warrant in place, so the UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Assange to Sweden," a UK government spokesperson said. The UK government statement comes a day ahead of a ruling by the UN' Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on whether the time the 44-year-old Australian national spent inside the Embassy amounts to illegal detention. While, no official announcement has been made by the UN panel, the BBC reported that it understands the decision has been made in Assange's favour. Earlier, Assange had promised to surrender to the police if the UN panel rules that the three years he was holed up inside the Embassy does not amount to illegal detention. In a statement issued by Wikileaks on Twitter, he said: "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the UK and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday (February 5) to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and termination of further attempts to arrest me." Assange was granted political asylum by the Ecuador government in 2012. In 2014, he complained to the UN that he was being "arbitrarily detained" as he could not leave without being arrested. The UK Foreign Office, on the other hand, claimed Assange had voluntarily avoided lawful detention, saying it still had an obligation to extradite him. Scotland Yard also said the arrest warrant against Assange remains in place and he is likely to be arrested if he decides to step out of his hideout. Assange sought political asylum at the embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden as he feared being transported to the US to be quizzed over the activities of WikiLeaks that caused considerable harm to the US foreign policy interests. He is wanted for questioning in Sweden over rape and sex assault allegations against two women, which he has always denied. Last month, it emerged that Assange will be questioned by Swedish authorities over the allegations at his Ecuadorean embassy hideout in London. Ukraine today faced the prospect of a fresh political crisis sparked by its reformist economy minister's resignation in protest at alleged influence- peddling and state graft. President Petro Poroshenko and Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk hastily arranged a meeting with ambassadors from the G7 nations after the envoys expressed deep concern at Aivaras Abromavicius's shock decision to step down. Poroshenko held last-ditch talks with the Lithuanian-born minister yesterday in a bid to change his mind and reassure him that all his charges would be investigated in full. But parliament began debating the 40-year-old's future in a tense session that saw one deputy raise the prospect of holding a vote of no confidence in the government as a whole. "It is clear to everyone that we are entering a serious political crisis," parliamentary speaker Volodymyr Groysman told reporters. Western frustration has been fanned by the fact that Abromavicius is the fourth reform-minded minister to tender his resignation since Ukraine's 2014 revolution broke its ties with Russia and set it on a European course. Parliament never approved any of their dismissals and they still remain acting ministers in their posts. Yet the attempted flight of cabinet members charged with putting the war-scarred nation of about 40 million on a transparent path toward growth highlights the problems Ukraine faces in fulfilling its dream of joining the EU. The G7 envoys emerged from their talks with Ukraine's two top leaders and Groysman without divulging much about what was discussed. The Ukrainian leaders "assured us that they will work together, will work in unity for the reforms in the country," Japanese Ambassador Shigeki Sumi said on behalf of the foreign group. But the European Business Association on Ukraine openly called the economy chief's resignation "an appalling symptom, which is likely to have very negative repercussions." Abromavicius levelled his most serious charges against a top Poroshenko party member named Igor Kononenko -- a figure the Ukrainian media often refer to as a "grey cardinal" who implements the president's political will. He accused Kononenko of trying to push his own people into economy ministry positions that oversee the cash flows of Ukraine's vast but notoriously opaque defence and energy industries. Abromavicius had tried to remove figures tied to vested interests from state corporations that have been bleeding money due to suspected corruption and complex offshore schemes. International Monetary Fund chief Christine Lagarde said today the abrupt resignation of Ukraine's reformist economy minister, who cited government corruption, was a troubling sign for its bailout program. "His recently announced resignation is a concern," Lagarde said in an online conference when questioned about the resignation of Aivaras Abromavicius yesterday in protest at alleged influence-peddling and state graft. "If the allegations that he makes in his resignation are correct, then it's obviously an indication that the anti-corruption measures that were committed by the government are not yet working," the IMF managing director said. The IMF is the main source of rescue financing for Ukraine as the cash-strapped country battles with crises ranging from falling commodity prices to a new trade embargo by Russia. The Fund has a $17.5 billion rescue program for Ukraine on condition the government enacts economic reforms and fights corruption. "There's more progress to be had in this area," Lagarde said. "A lot of work needs to be done and it has to be implemented vigorously because the Ukrainian authorities are not only accountable to the Ukrainian people but also to the international community." Western frustration has been fanned by the fact that Abromavicius is the fourth reform-minded minister to tender his resignation since Ukraine's 2014 revolution broke its ties with Russia and set it on a European course. President Petro Poroshenko held last-ditch talks with the Lithuanian-born minister Wednesday in a bid to change his mind and reassure him that all his charges would be investigated in full. But parliament began debating the 40-year-old's future in a tense session that saw one deputy raise the prospect of holding a vote of no confidence in the government as a whole. A UN panel has ruled that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been "arbitrarily detained" in the UK, a media report said here today. No official announcement has yet been made by the United Nations' Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in Geneva but BBC Radio 4 reported that it understands the decision has been made in Assange's favour. The UN panel has been considering a request by Assange for a ruling. It is due to announce its findings tomorrow. Assange, 44, was granted political asylum by Ecuador, which has housed him since 2012 at its central London embassy. The whistleblower has said he is willing to surrender to British police if the UN panel finds that the three years he was holed up inside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London does not amount to illegal detention. In 2014, he had complained to the UN that he was being "arbitrarily detained" as he could not leave the embassy without being arrested by the British police. The Australian national is wanted for questioning in Sweden over sex assault allegations against two women, which he denies. WikiLeaks, founded by Assange in 2006, released 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and 250,000 diplomatic cables enraging the United States. Assange fears being extradited to the US to be quizzed over the activities of WikiLeaks if he travels to Sweden. The UN group does not have any formal influence over the British and Swedish authorities and the UK Foreign Office said it still had an obligation to extradite Assange. Sena leader Amit Ghoda is facing an uphill task to retain the Palghar (ST) Assembly seat, which is witnessing a five-cornered contest. This tribal seat was won by Amit's father late Krishna Ghoda in October 2014 assembly elections. Bypolls to the Palghar constituency is due to be held on February 13, while results will be announced on February 16. Amit is pitted against former Congress minister Rajendra Gavit and former Sena leader Manisha Nimkar, who is this time contesting on a Bahujan Vikas Aghadi (BVA) ticket. Despite the BJP staying away from the election fray, Sena cadres are optimistic about the party retaining this seat. Besides Gavit and Nimkar, Ghoda is also facing challenge from Chandrakant Vartha (CPI-M) and Dileep A Dumada (Bahujan Mukti Party). Out of the total 2.47 lakh voters in the constituency, 1.27 lakh are male voters and 1.20 lakh are women. There will be a total of 312 polling stations out of which two are auxillary polling stations. Prior to delimitation, Nimkar had represented the constituency as a Sena MLA. Later, Krishna Ghoda won the seat on a Congress ticket and then on a NCP ticket. Gavit was victorious in 2009 elections defeating his nearest rival Manisha Nimkar (then Sena) by a margin of 20,791 votes. Again, late Krishna Ghoda (Sena) won the seat for Sena in 2014 defeating Gavit (Congress) by a margin of just 526 votes. Gavit later challenged the election result in the court of law. However, in the intervening period, Ghoda passed away forcing a bye-election. A Sena source said that party president Uddhav Thackeray is likely to address a election rally in the poll-bound seat before campaigning ends on February 11. Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu today asserted that urban infrastructure sector offers Rs 73 lakh crore investment opportunity for private sector and PPP investments over the next 15 years. He elaborated on this investment potential while speaking on "Current status, Outlook and Investment opportunities in developing urban infrastructure" at the India Investment Summit organised here. Naidu stressed that given the resource limitations of both Central and state governments, private sector investments and Public-Private Partnerships are the chief instruments of resource mobilisation to build the much needed urban infrastructure in the country. Bringing out the gaps in urban infrastructure, Naidu noted that 50 per cent of urban households still do not have water connections, only 69 litres per capita per day (lpcd) of water is being supplied in urban areas as against the norm of 135 lpcd, average water supply is only for 3 hours, sewerage network services cover only 12 per cent households and only 5 per cent of sewerage treatment capacity is available in urban areas. "These gaps hit the urban poor the most and developing urban infrastructure accordingly leads to inclusive urban growth besides enhancing productivity and quality of life" said Naidu. He noted that the Smart City Mission, Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), Swachh Bharat Mission and Prime Minister's Awas Yojana (Urban), which are aimed at ensuring urban infrastructure offered huge investment opportunities of the order of USD 1,123 billion. Giving details, Naidu said that over and above the support committed by the Central and state governments, ensuring basic urban infrastructure requires Rs 56 lakh crore, building 2 crore houses for urban poor needs another Rs 11 lakh crore and Rs 6 lakh crore for building 100 smart cities. Expressing hope that private sector and PPP investments can be mobilised to address the infrastructure challenge, Naidu informed "10 of the 20 smart cities announced last week have laid down clear road maps for mobilising PPP investments of about Rs 9,000 crore." These include Jaipur - Rs 2,563 crore, Belgavi - Rs 1,006 crore, Davanagere and New Delhi Municipal Council - Rs 797 crore each. Terming the recent anti-Muslim rhetoric in the US poll campaign as "inexcusable", President Barack Obama has said the best way to fight terrorism is to show that the US does not suppress Islam. "The best way to fight terrorism is to show the US does not suppress Islam and refute lies to the contrary," Obama said in his historic address to Muslim community from a mosque in Baltimore, Maryland. In his first visit to a mosque in the US, Obama yesterday referred to the recent political rhetoric against Muslims in the country, where Christians are in majority, and said Americans cannot be silent bystanders to bigotry against any faith. "An attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths," Obama said as he mentioned the recent attacks against the Muslim community and also cited assaults on Sikh Americans who look like them. Americans must speak up when any group is targeted. We have to respect the fact that we have freedom of religion," Obama said. "I know that in Muslim communities across our country this is a time of concern and, frankly, a time of some fear. Like all Americans, you're worried about the threat of terrorism, but on top of that, as Muslim-Americans, you also have another concern, and that is your entire community so often is targeted or blamed for the violent acts of the very few," the US President said. Referring to the recent attacks on Muslim Americans, Obama said since 9/11, but more recently since the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, they have seen too often people conflating the horrific acts of terrorism with the beliefs of an entire faith. "And, of course, recently we've heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim-Americans that has no place in our country. No surprise, then, that threats and harassment of Muslim-Americans have surged," he said in a veiled jibe at Republican White House hopeful Donald Trump and others. During his campaign, Trump called for a ban on Muslims entering the Us, triggering sharp reactions. In another apparent reference to recent political rhetoric, he opposed the idea of religious profiling. "We can't give in to profiling entire groups of people because there is no single profile of a terrorist. Engagement with Muslim Americans communities must never be a cover for surveillance," Obama said. "As we go forward, I want every Muslim American to remember that...Your fellow Americans stand with you," Obama said and assured the young Muslim Americans, that, "you are not Muslim or American. You are Muslim and American." Obama also urged the Muslim community to reject extremism and terrorism. Pushing back at critics who say he should talk about "Islamic terrorists". An air strike believed to have been carried out by a US drone in south Yemen today killed a prominent chief of Al-Qaeda's branch in the war-torn country, a family member said. Jalal Belaidi, alias Abu Hamza, a top commander of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), was killed along with two guards in the Maraqesha area of Abyan province, the relative said. The United States is the only country known to operate armed drones over Yemen, home to AQAP, considered by Washington as the jihadist group's most dangerous affiliate. A tribal source also confirmed the death of Belaidi following contact with AQAP militants in the area. Belaidi, who was born in Abyan, served in the past as the leader of Al-Qaeda in Zinjibar, but he is said to have climbed the ranks of the jihadist group to became a top military commander. The US has kept up strikes on jihadists during months of fighting between pro-government forces and Iran-backed Huthi rebels who control the capital. Late yesterday, a drone strike killed six suspected members of AQAP in nearby Shabwa province, a security official said. Jihadists, including AQAP and the Islamic State group, have gained ground in the south, with AQAP fighters seizing the town of Azzan in Shabwa earlier this week. Al-Qaeda militants control Abyan's provincial capital Zinjibar and the nearby town of Jaar. They move freely between Hadramawt, Shabwa and Abyan. The United States added another USD 890 million (just under 800 million euros) to the Syrian humanitarian aid effort today, pledging increased support for refugee aid. Addressing a summit of donor nations in London, Kerry said that USD 600 million in new funding would go on urgent aid to refugees and beleaguered populations in and around Syria. Another USD 290 million will go on development assistance for schooling for refugee children in Jordan and Lebanon. The figure covers the current US fiscal year, which runs until August, and is in addition to previous contributions. "The United States has provided over USD 4.5 billion to help Syrian refugees and those displaced within Syria, and I'm proud that that makes us the largest single external donor in the world," Kerry said. The US envoy urged the other countries represented in London to increase their own contributions to help deal with what he said was a "staggering" refugee crisis. "By helping refugees, we remind ourselves of who we are, what we are against, and what we are for," he said. In September, Kerry said, US President Barack Obama will convene a summit on refugees on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly. "Between then and now, we call on the global community to increase by at least thirty percent the overall response to humanitarian funding appeals for refugees," he said. Shrimp, swordfish, cod and crab are among more than a dozen types of seafood that would be subject to increasing scrutiny under a US plan to curb illegal imports, US officials said today. The proposal announced by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) "will collect data about harvest, landing, and chain of custody of fish and fish products" involving 16 kinds of seafood imported into the United States and considered particularly vulnerable to fishing and seafood fraud. Some two billion dollars worth of seafood -- up to 32 percent of wild-caught seafood imported into the United States each year -- are illegal, according to research published in 2014 in the journal Marine Policy. Most wild-caught imports to the United States come from 10 countries: China, Thailand, Indonesia, Ecuador, Canada, Vietnam, the Philippines, India, Mexico and Chile. "This proposed rule is a critical first step in our efforts to create a comprehensive traceability program designed to prevent products from illegal and fraudulent fishing entering US commerce," said Catherine Novelli, under secretary of state for economic growth, energy, and the environment. The species on the list include abalone, Atlantic and Pacific cod, blue crab, dolphinfish (also known as mahi mahi) and grouper. Also included are king crab, red snapper, sea cucumber, all species of sharks and shrimp, swordfish and four kinds of tuna -- albacore, bigeye, skipjack and yellowfin tuna. The proposal is open for a 60-day comment period, which closes in early April, and the rule could become final by September or October. It is part of a series of recommendations issued by US President Barack Obama's Task Force on Combating Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) Fishing and Seafood Fraud "to ensure that global seafood resources are sustainably managed and not fraudulently marketed," NOAA said in a statement. However, critics pointed out the proposal would trace seafood to its point of entry into the US, but not to its point of sale, making little impact on consumer behavior. The advocacy group Oceana welcomed the proposal as a "first step" but urged stricter measures. "The steps outlined will not fully solve these problems," said Oceana's senior campaign director Beth Lowell. "It needs to apply to all seafood," she said. "Products need to be traced throughout the entire supply chain to final point of sale. Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro has vowed the opposition's attempts to drive him from power would not prosper "by fair means or foul" in a political crisis gripping the oil-rich nation. Opposition leaders have called for Maduro to be ousted by constitutional means, accusing him of dragging the country close to economic ruin. Despite having lost control of the National Assembly legislature Maduro dug in his heels as he rallied supporters near the Miraflores presidential palace. The rally commemorated a failed 1992 coup attempt by his predecessor Hugo Chavez, whom he hails as founder of the government's socialist "revolution." "The people must not allow the oligarchy to cut short this beautiful revolution," he told the crowd of thousands yesterday. "We are preparing for that so as not to allow them to do it one way or another, by fair means or foul." On Tuesday a small group of lawmakers presented a proposed constitutional amendment to cut Maduro's mandate short by two years and call a general election by the end of this year. The lawmakers were from the Radical Cause party, a minority member of the opposition MUD coalition. The MUD took control of the legislature last month after voters fed up with economic hardship turned on Maduro in elections. The resulting political standoff has raised fears of violence in the South American country, where 43 people died in anti-government riots in 2014. Other top MUD leaders have ramped up their calls in recent weeks to oust Maduro, promising to devise by June a legal means to do so. Slamming the Congress and CPI-M led fronts, which had ruled Kerala alternatively, BJP President Amit Shah today alleged that both had followed vote bank politics with "violence and corruption" being the hallmark of their tenure. "While the world over, Communism has been wiped out, Congress has been rooted out from most of the states. These two parties cannot help Kerala," Shah said adding only a BJP government will help people of the state. "After two months, Kerala will decide which party should rule the state for the next 5 years and under whose leadership. I have full faith that Keralites want a change of governance this time," Shah said, addressing a well-attended rally here. Congress-led UDF and CPI-M-led LDF which ruled all these years did not do any good for the state, he said. While violence was the hallmark of LDF rule, corruption and violence was rampant under congress dispensation, Shah alleged. "When UDF goes, LDF comes and while LDF goes, UDF comes... If the Left comes, then there is violence, under Congress corruption and violence are rampant. "Only if BJP government comes, rule of law will prevail," Shah said at the meeting to mark the entry of 'Vimochana Yatra' by party's state president Kummanam Rajeskeharan to the central Travancore district of Kottayam. Attacking UDF and LDF governments for "following vote bank politics and appeasement policy" during their tenure, he said this had led to a situation wherein majority of the people were denied justice. "If BJP comes to power, there will be justice for all. I assure people that if BJP comes to power. Everyone will be treated alike," he said. During 10 years of rule by Congress-led UPA governments, there was corruption of Rs 12 lakh crore, he alleged. Hitting out at the Congress, Shah said the party under the leadership of Indira Gandhi had coined the slogan 'Garibi Hatao' in 1975. "Today even after 40 years, Rahul Gandhi is talking about 'Garibi Hatao'," he said. The Congress-led UDF government in the state was neck-deep in corruption, he alleged. "If I start counting the number of corruption cases-- Travancore Titanium, Solar case, PWD corruption, Nurses recruiting scam etc, it will take four days for this public meeting to end," he said. "The communists and Congress parties act as if they are fighting each other. But in West Bengal, the two were wooing each other," Shah said, referring to efforts by the Congress to warm up to the CPI-M in West Bengal. Noting that Kerala was the state where the first elected communist government in the world was formed in 1957, he said "they have now forgotten the ideologies they once stood for. The communists say they are atheists. But today's communists observe Janmashtami, Durga pooja etc." "We want progress to come to Kerala. We need to find solution to the rubber crisis, jobs for the unemployed youth in the state..There is need for change," he said. What the Congress failed to do in the last 60 years of its rule, the Modi government has done in one and half years of its rule, Shah claimed, listing various schemes undertaken by the Centre, including PM's Jan Dhan programme, Mudra Bank, Insurance scheme, Skill India, Start up India, Stand up India projects. "The Modi government is a government of the poor (Garibo ke sarkar). This government has implemented projects for the poor to wipe out poverty," he added. The Indian arm of German auto major Volkswagen today denied violation of emission norms in the country and said its cars were not equipped with "defeat device". The automobile giant, which has earlier apologised for the emission scandal, told the National Green Tribunal that the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) and Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) have initiated their investigations in the matter and a final report was awaited. It said no conclusion has yet been arrived at by the Indian authorities regarding violation of environmental norms in the country and any coercive order would be against the principles of natural justice. A cheat or defeat device is a software in diesel engines to manipulate emission tests by changing the performance of the vehicles to improve results. "The answering respondents (Volkswagen) have not made any statement to the effect that they have violated any Indian norms or regulations or that the vehicles manufactured by them are equipped with the alleged 'defeat device'. The allegations made by the applicant on the basis of reports are completely baseless and lack foundation. "It is specifically stated that the answering respondents have not made any statement before any judicial/quasi- judicial/government authority or to the media to the effect of admitting any violation of Indian norms," an affidavit filed before a bench of Justice M S Nambiar said. The company further told NGT that pursuant to ARAI's notice, it voluntarily conducted "on road" tests on the vehicles fitted with EA 189 diesel engines in the presence of ARAI officials by using their equipment. "The results of the test indicated that 'on road' test emissions were within the range of 1.1 times to 2.6 times of the applicable BS-IV norms. The results are considered to be normal and acceptable as the emissions are always higher when being run 'on road' as compared to the laboratory conditions," it said. Volkswagen said the emission levels prescribed in USA and Europe differ significantly from the emission limits prescribed in India and the technical specifications of the EA 189 diesel engines also differed significantly in both the countries. Justifying its step of recalling cars fitted with EA 189 diesel engines, Volkswagen said the step was taken for technical updation of the vehicles as a goodwill bonafide gesture. In India, the company has announced to recall 3,23,700 lakh vehicles across its three brands -- Audi, Skoda and Volkswagen. The recall covers cars sold from 2008 till end of November 2015. On January 6, the NGT had directed the company not to sell any diesel vehicle in India fitted with "cheat device" and file an undertaking in this regard. The Tribunal had last year issued notices to the Centre, Volkswagen and ARAI on a plea by Delhi residents and a school teacher seeking a ban on sale of its vehicles for alleged violation of emission norms. Volkswagen had admitted use of cheat device in 11 million diesel engine cars sold in the US, Europe and other global markets that allowed manipulation of emissions tests by changing the performance of the vehicles to improve results. As per latest reports, the company could face fine of up to USD 90 billion in the US following a lawsuit filed by the US Department of Justice. Volkswagen does not comply with India's emission norms and government will propose further action on the issue after getting a reply from the German firm, Union Heavy Industries Minister Anant Geete said today. The comment comes a day after the company apologised for making "big mistakes", but claimed that it met emission norms in India. "They (Volkswagen) do not comply to the emission norms. They are also giving this in writing. We will propose further action after that," Geete told reporters at the sidelines of the Auto Expo here, after visiting the Volkswagen stall at the Auto Expo. When asked about the nature of action, Geete said the government will decide on further action in the case after getting the company's written response. "We have already asked them to recall vehicles. When we will get their response in writing than we will propose further action," he said. Volkswagen passenger cars board member for sales and marketing Jurgen Stackmann had apologised on Wednesday for the emission issue in India but reiterated that its cars follow the country's norms and the recall of more than 3 lakh vehicles is a voluntary step taken by the company. "Volkswagen made some big mistakes. I am truly sorry for that. And I assure you we are committed to making things right... We have examined the issue very carefully under the observation of the authorities. And we came to the conclusion that our cars fully comply with Indian emission standards," Stackmann had said. He had said he is "apologising" on the behalf of the brand for the inconvenience and uncertainty that it might have caused in the country. "Nevertheless because we believe there is a fine difference between being legal and compliant, and actually we are gaining the trust of consumers after voluntary recall...To give them the same upgrade that we do in Europe," he said. Volkswagen plans to update the engines of over 3 lakh vehicles that it recalled in India after a government-ordered probe found it using diesel engines equipped with a defeat device which help cheat emission tests. In India Volkswagen has announced to recall 323,700 lakh vehicles across its three brands Audi, Skoda and Volkswagen. The recall covers cars sold from 2008 till end of November 2015 in India. It encompasses cars from the Volkswagen, Audi and Skoda model range which carry the software that requires to be updated. The firm has admitted use of defeat device in 11 million diesel engine cars sold in the US, Europe and other global markets that allowed manipulation of emissions tests by changing the performance of the vehicles to improve results. As per latest reports, the company could face fine of up to $90 billion in the US following a lawsuit filed by the US Department of Justice. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange today said he will surrender to the British police if a UN panel rules that the three years he was holed up inside the Ecuadorean Embassy here does not amount to illegal detention. "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," he said. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," he said in a statement issued by WikiLeaks on Twitter. Assange, 44, was granted political asylum by Ecuador, which has housed him since 2012 at its central London embassy. The whistleblower lives in a small room at the embassy and has likened his confinement to living in a space station. He took refuge in the embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden where two women have accused him of sexual assault. He denies the allegations. In 2014, Assange complained to the UN that he was being "arbitrarily detained" as he could not leave the embassy without being arrested. The UK Foreign Office, on the other hand, claimed Assange had voluntarily avoided lawful detention, saying it still had an obligation to extradite him. The UN's Working Group on Arbitrary Detention is due to announce the findings of its investigation into Assange's case tomorrow. Wikileaks, founded by Assange in 2006, released 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and 250,000 diplomatic cables enraging the United States. He fears being extradited to the US to be quizzed over the activities of WikiLeaks if he travels to Sweden, as the main source of the leaks, US soldier Chelsea Manning, was sentenced to 35 years in prison for breaches of the Espionage Act. Last month, it emerged that he is to be questioned by Swedish authorities over the sexual assault allegations at his Ecuadorean embassy hideout in London. Ecuador's president confirmed that a deal has been struck with Swedish prosecutors that will see Assange face questions over allegations he sexually assaulted two women, without having to leave the building where he has been seeking refuge for over three years. Negotiations began in June last year between Ecuador's acting foreign minister, Xavier Lasso, and the Swedish justice ministry's international affairs chief, Anna-Carin Svensson. In September 2014, Assange filed a complaint against Sweden and Britain to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention claiming his confinement in the embassy amounts to illegal detention. World leaders pledged over USD 10 billion (9.0 billion euros) today to help conflict-hit Syrians at a London conference overshadowed by the breakdown of peace talks in Geneva. The European Union, Germany, Britain and the United States were among the biggest donors to provide food, education and job opportunities for Syrians in their homeland and neighbouring countries where they have fled. But hopes that the package could make a major difference inside Syria were weighed down by the suspension Wednesday of peace talks in Geneva until February 25. That came as Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces, supported by Russian air strikes, stepped up their offensive near the major northern city of Aleppo, forcing nearly 40,000 civilians to flee. "Today's achievements are not a solution to the crisis -- we still need to see a political transition," British Prime Minister David Cameron said as the conference wrapped up. "But with today's commitments... Our message to the people of Syria and the region is clear -- we will stand with you and support you for as long as it takes". Other steps agreed included the creation of an estimated 1.1 million jobs for Syrian refugees and those living in neighbouring countries by 2018. The conference also committed to getting 1.7 million children into education by the end of 2016/17. The $10 billion was split between just over half the amount which will be given out this year and the rest which was committed for 2017-20. Despite the pledges, the mood among many leaders was bleak, reflecting frustration at the halt Wednesday of the so-called proximity talks in Geneva which were seen as the best hope for peace since the conflict erupted in March 2011. "After five years of fighting, it's pretty incredible that as we come here in London, the situation on the ground is actually worse, not better," US Secretary of State John Kerry said. "If people are reduced to eating grass and leaves and killing stray animals in order to survive, that's something that should tear at the conscience of all civilised people," he added. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu accused the Assad regime of using a "middle centuries war strategy of starvation" against civilians near Aleppo. Among the biggest donors were the EU and its member states, which pledged more than three billion euros this year. By Nigel Hunt and Marcy Nicholson LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Candy bars have shrunk and economic growth in Asia has slowed, meaning people are eating less chocolate and its key ingredient cocoa, which has seen its price fall this year after defying commodities trends to soar in 2015. High prices for ingredients last year - including nuts and milk as well as cocoa - helped make chocolate a less affordable treat for consumers in emerging markets such as China and India. Chocoholics in North America and Europe, meanwhile, opted for quality at the expense of quantity. Market research firm Nielsen has estimated there was a 3.7 percent year-on-year decline in global chocolate confectionery demand in the September-November period. With food retailers pressing manufacturers to minimise price rises, one response was "shrinkflation". Some companies put smaller bars in the pack but kept the price unchanged. "It used to be you had 'fun sizes' and now it's bite sizes," said Judith Ganes-Chase, soft commodities expert and president of New York-based J Ganes Consulting. "Fun size" bars in North America are two or three bites big. A much lower-than-expected crop in Ghana, the world's second largest producer, helped push global cocoa prices up by more than 10 percent last year. The early weeks of 2016 have already seen prices fall back again by as much as 15 percent, as production in Ghana rebounded and some investment funds reduced their holdings in commodities such as cocoa. But those hoping for chunkier bars or cheaper chocolate are likely to be disappointed, with manufacturers likely to pocket most of whatever they save on ingredients. Euromonitor analyst Jack Skelly said most chocolate makers are focussed on cutting costs at the moment, noting that cocoa prices are still much higher than a few years ago. "Profit margins are at the forefront for companies at the moment due to global market slowdown," he said. Consumers in more affluent countries have developed a taste for premium chocolate, with the extra cost partially offset by less frequent purchases. Premium chocolate maker Lindt & Spruengli reported sales growth of more than 7 percent in 2015, while mass-market rivals such as U.S.-based Hershey Company have struggled. The maker of Hershey Kisses and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups reported a bigger-than-expected 5 percent drop in quarterly net sales last week, noting weak demand in China and North America. [nL3N15C5WM] "We believe the macroeconomic environment and competitive activity in the international markets where we operate will continue to be a headwind for the chocolate category and Hershey in 2016," John P. Bilbrey, president and chief executive of Hershey Co said during a conference call. Euromonitor analyst Skelly said price rises has stunted demand growth in Asia. "In emerging markets like China and India I think affordability is a real issue which means chocolate isn't growing as quickly as it could," he said. GRINDING RECOVERS The fall in prices for cocoa has already begun to revive demand for grinders, who turn cocoa beans into ingredients like the cocoa butter used to make chocolate. "We are seeing very keen demand and off-take which is unusual for this time of the year," said Jeff Rasinski, vice-president of procurement and risk management for Blommer Chocolate Company, the biggest cocoa grinder in North America. Last year's rise in cocoa prices had made it less profitable to grind cocoa. In the 2014/15 (October/September) crop year, the International Cocoa Organization estimated global grindings fell by nearly 5 percent to 4.1 million tonnes. Analysts and traders said the revival in demand for processed cocoa may be driven by manufacturers restocking inventory, and doesn't necessarily mean people will soon be eating more chocolate. "There are a lot of people who delayed purchasing when prices were high. They're going to look to take advantage of the lower prices. That's going to help improve grind," Ganes-Chase said. "It has nothing to do with how much chocolate is being sold on the retail level. This is more about inventory management and trying to lock in lower price levels for manufacturers, bakeries or confectionery manufacturers." (Reporting by Nigel Hunt; editing by Peter Graff) - Cisco Systems Inc said on Wednesday it was buying Jasper Technologies Inc, a startup that connects devices like cars and medical devices to the Internet, for $1.4 billion in cash and equity awards, its largest acquisition since 2013. Legacy technology companies like Cisco have been trying to find paths for growth while new technology developments, such as the rise of cloud computing, threaten their core businesses. The emerging field dubbed Internet of Things, offers Cisco, known for networking equipment, a chance to offer cutting-edge technology to its current customers. In addition to connecting devices to the Internet, Jasper makes a software platform that helps monitor these devices once they are online. Rob Salvagno, Cisco's vice president of corporate development, said in an interview that the Internet of Things has been a priority for Cisco for the past few years. "We've been keeping an eye on this market and what we noticed was that Jasper represented a unique asset. We believe they are the largest Internet of Things service platform of scale today," he said. Connecting myriad objects to the Internet is in its infancy today, said Gaurav Garg, a Jasper board member and a partner at Wing Venture Capital who compared the potential of the technology to the early days of the electrical grid. "Who thought we'd be plugging computers and all sorts of things into it?" he asked, assigning similar possibilities to the Internet of Things. Cisco, which has acquired dozens of smaller companies over the years, is shifting its business toward high-end switches and routers and investing in new products such as data analytics software and cloud-based tools for data centers. Jasper is the largest deal for Cisco since it acquired security company Sourcefire for $2.7 billion in 2013. Jasper had been planning an initial public offering and had banks to help it prepare. Its investors, such as Singapore's Temasek, Sequoia Capital and Benchmark Capital, will now get a chance to cash out without having to brave the rocky equity markets, which have seen no technology IPOs this year. Jasper's chief executive, Jahangir Mohammed, will stay on with Cisco and run a new Internet of Things Software Business unit once the deal closes in the third quarter. In March 2015, another big legacy company, IBM, said it would invest $3 billion over the next four years to help companies track the data from sensor-equipped devices and smartphones. IBM calls its initiative the IoT Foundation. Other competitors in the space include General Electric and Microsoft. (Reporting by Liana B. Baker; Additional reporting by Sarah McBride in San Francisco; Editing by Andrew Hay and Leslie Adler) By Costas Pitas and Ana Nicolaci da Costa LONDON (Reuters) - Crises at home and turmoil on world markets may have taken the shine off London's luxury property market for Chinese, Russian and Middle Eastern investors: some are even looking to sell up. From Russian oligarchs and Middle Eastern oil barons to newly-minted Chinese entrepreneurs, foreign buyers have driven a spending spree on London property over the past two decades, snapping up everything from opulent homes to iconic commercial property. London is not alone. Wealthy overseas buyers have been investing in other cosmopolitan cities such as Sydney and New York, where property purchases are also viewed as a prestigious insurance policy against changes of fortune. But oil has lost nearly two thirds of its value since mid 2014, the Russian rouble has more than halved and Chinese growth is slowing. The scale of this wealth destruction combined with property tax rises in London has prompted investors to pause, estate agents said. "There's definitely been less (interest) ... over the last six months or so with the oil price and currency issues for the Russians," said Ed Mead, executive director of Douglas & Gordon estate agents which sells some of London's most expensive homes. "If people have bought a property here, which a lot of Chinese people have done over the last few years, we are definitely seeing more of them coming to us, saying look can you sell it for me." Data from estate agents and property consultancies shows there has been a fall in transactions in some of the most expensive areas of central London, a decline in asking prices and fewer Russian, Chinese and Middle Eastern buyers. Around 4 percent of prime London property buyers were Chinese in the first half of 2015 but that fell to 3 percent during the second half, according to data from property firm Savills. London ranks as the best city in the world for the global ultra-rich taking into account factors such as quality of life, business and leisure, according to the consultancy arm of estate agent Knight Frank, followed by New York, Hong Kong, Singapore and Shanghai. MOSCOW-ON-THAMES There was an even sharper fall in the number of Middle Eastern and North African buyers in 2015, with the proportion of those purchasing homes in central London's most expensive area more than halving to 4 percent from 10 percent in 2014. "People like the Qataris ... a year ago were big buyers and sovereign wealth funds too in London," said Charlie Ellingworth, who co-founded firm Property Vision which helps top-end buyers find homes worth more than 1 million pounds. "By all accounts that's going into reverse." The oil price has fallen by almost 60 percent since late 2014, hitting its lowest since 2003 in January, as near-record levels of output have caused currency devaluations and pushed Saudi Arabia to a record budget deficit. "When you've got an environment like this: the oil price has gone through the floor, the stock market is falling all over the place, everyone just sits like a frozen rabbit," Ellingworth said. London was once dubbed 'Londongrad' or 'Moscow-on-Thames' as the city of choice for rich Russians and other residents of former Soviet republics but enquiries from Russians fell 60 percent year-on-year in 2015, he said. In prime central London, the number of transactions fell by nearly a fifth in the last six months of 2015 compared to the same period in 2014, according to Knight Frank, with asking prices often needing to decline by 10 percent or more. Prices fell in some of the most attractive postcodes to foreign buyers including Knightsbridge, home to department store Harrods, Notting Hill and Chelsea. TAX PLEASE As London has traditionally benefited from far-off crises, some estate agents said the pause in buying from Russia, China and the Middle East was also being driven by a rise in UK taxation. In an attempt to allay the anger of locals priced out of the British capital, finance minister George Osborne has increased the taxation foreign buyers have to pay. Osborne has raised the amount of a property levy known as stamp duty paid on homes worth more than just under a million pounds, hiked the tax on properties bought through a company structure and cut mortgage interest relief for landlords. "There has been (a decline) but that is probably as much to do with what George Osborne has done as with what the Russians have done themselves," said Charles McDowell, an agent who mainly helps buyers find properties in some of the capital's most desirable areas. Multi-million pound properties are regularly sold in London with a seven-bedroom home with six bathrooms, a jacuzzi, sauna, cinema and two terraces currently on the market for 55 million pounds ($80 million) in Belgravia, one of the most expensive parts of Europe. Jonathan Hewlett, head of London sales at Savills, said that in the long term the capital still had a well-established reputation worldwide as a place to invest. "I think when you talk to people from overseas, they still see London as a very safe, nice place to live, safe for security, safe for ownership of property," he said. ($1 = 0.6882 pounds) (Writing by Costas Pitas; editing by Guy Faulconbridge and Anna Willard) By Siva Govindasamy and Anshuman Daga SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Fresh from taking on the world in financial services, China's cashed-up banks are targeting a bigger slice of the surging global aviation market, beefing up affiliates bent on supplying planes to airlines around the planet. Chinese lenders have grown big in traditional business like investment banking and brokerage, flush with Beijing backing and cheap funding. Now institutions are investing in operators that specialise in jet leasing, a newer financial service that was once the exclusive preserve of Western players. Bank of China Ltd's <601988.SS> BOC Aviation Pte arm is set to go public this year with an estimated $3 billion listing, the industry's biggest. Four Chinese lessors - including BOC Aviation - are among the world's top 15 by fleet value in a $228 billion industry, according to consultancy Flightglobal. Western firms like AerCap Holdings NV and GE Capital Aviation Services LLC still dominate a sector that underpins aviation - some 40 percent of carriers' aircraft are leased to avoid the fixed costs of owning planes. But China, through its banks, is aiming to create its own global champions. "The political drive is there for China to be part of the global economy," said Johnny Lau, who ran the aircraft leasing arms of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd (ICBC) <601398.SS> and China Minsheng Banking Corp <600016.SS> before starting his own consultancy. Against a backdrop of oil prices falling to 12-year lows, at least temporarily reducing aircraft operating costs and boosting carriers' profitability hopes, the drive is already under way. GROWING PAINS? Though industry insiders say some of China's newer leasing operations may face growing pains in securing specialist expertise, Singapore-based BOC Aviation is different. Now China's biggest lessor, and the world's sixth-biggest, with a fleet valued at more than $10 billion, BOC Aviation was founded in 1993 and bought by Bank of China in 2006 from investors including Singapore Airlines . For China's banks, keen to grow abroad, the lure is in part predictable, dollar-denominated revenue streams. Airplane lessors are basically financing operations: planes are bought from aircraft makers like Boeing Co and Airbus Group in bulk and rented out to airlines - from full-service carriers to budget operators - keen to keep fleets flexible. "It is an enviable position," said consultant Lau. "When (Chinese lessors) issue a bond backed by their parents with the bank's guarantee, there is no problem finding investors." Apart from Bank of China, units of ICBC and China Development Bank Corp are among the top 15 leasing firms in the world. Their clients stretch across the global industry: BOC Aviation, which declined to comment for this article, leases jets to full-service Gulf carrier Emirates Airline and U.S. low-cost operator Southwest Airlines Co , among others. Ambitious leasing subsidiaries of China Construction Bank Corp <601939.SS> and Bank of Communications Co <601398.SS> are among those ramping up after placing multi-billion dollar orders for Airbus and Boeing aircraft. BOC AVIATION - MODEL OF SUCCESS It's not all plain sailing. The Chinese lessors can be hampered by a lack of management talent, experience and industry connections - ties which can smooth over everything from marketing a plane once a lease comes to an end, to lessening the impact of a client airline's bankruptcy. "The technical expertise in terms of the aircraft, how to actually manage it when it comes to the end of the lease term is very, very important because that impacts the return," said Clarence Leung, asset finance & leasing director at PwC. BOC Aviation provides an example of the opposite. Chief executive Robert Martin, on board since 1998, has been credited with bridging differences between a Singapore-based team of experienced international leasing executives and a Chinese banking giant, creating a business known for a focus on profitability, not size. While the lessor has ordered more than 170 Airbus and Boeing aircraft worth over $18 billion at list prices over the last 18 months alone, almost all are narrow-body jets like the Airbus A320s and Boeing 737s. These account for 70 percent of its overall portfolio - as they are used by more operators and therefore easier to place. The company's good record has also helped it to win lucrative, highly-competitive deals such as a contract to supply 20 A320s to Singapore Airlines' Indian subsidiary Vistara. (Editing by Kenneth Maxwell) By Krishna N. Das and Mayank Bhardwaj NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Officials may decide on Friday whether to allow what could be India's first genetically modified (GM) food crop, mustard, spurred by food security concerns and as China makes a big bet on the technology with a $43 billion bid for seed firm Syngenta. Permitting GM food crops is a big call for a country that spends tens of billions of dollars importing edible oils and other food items every year. Farmers are stuck with old technology, yields are at a fraction of global levels, cultivable land is shrinking and weather patterns have become less predictable. Two straight droughts for the first time in three decades have made India a net importer of some food products for the first time in years. If a commercial launch of GM mustard is allowed, it could pave the way for other food crops such as corn varieties developed by Monsanto, in one of the world's biggest farm markets. [nL4N0W14EM] "I see this as a test case and I am hopeful," said Deepak Pental, the lead scientist who used government grants to conduct tests on the oilseed crop over the past decade. "How can we keep on running so scared when there is so much need for improving agricultural production?" But even winning the panel's approval is no guarantee that the GM crop would be introduced. Political and public opposition to lab-altered food remains strong amid fears they could compromise food safety and biodiversity. There is also suspicion among farmers that their introduction would give foreign seed suppliers too much control. "Why is the government imposing its decision on farmers on an unsafe and unproven technology, despite the availability of good varieties of mustard in our country?" Manish Sisodia, Delhi's deputy chief minister, told Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a letter this week. "We pray to you not to compromise our agriculture, citizens' health and the environment under pressure from a handful of foreign companies." PRESSURE BUILDING? Friday's meeting, the third held to evaluate field trial data on GM mustard, is an indication of how serious Modi's government is about pushing technology to lift food production after an impasse under the previous government halted research on transgenic crops. A member of the GM approval committee comprising government and independent experts said they had already discussed the mustard in the past two meetings this year, and the next gathering would be crucial to deciding its future. He declined to be named and did not give more details. Ashok Gulati, a farm economist who advised the last government, said that China's takeover of Swiss GM seed developer Syngenta should push the government into taking quick action. "It should come as ... a wakeup call for India, which has to feed more than a billion mouths," said Gulati. "India now doesn't have the luxury to sit on the issue of GM. It just needs to take this bold and decisive step." India placed a moratorium on GM aubergine in 2010, fearing the effect on food safety and biodiversity. Field trials of other GM crops were not formally halted, but the regulatory system was brought to a deadlock after that. However, Modi, who was istrumental in making Gujarat state the leading user of GM cotton in India when he was chief minister, cleared several field trials soon after taking office in New Delhi in 2014. Some grassroots groups associated with Modi's nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party have opposed GM crops because of the reliance on seeds patented by multinationals like Monsanto, DuPont, Dow Chemical and Syngenta. But New Delhi-based Pental said the mustard variety was developed by Indian scientists, and local firms could easily supply farmers with cheap seeds. TESTS REVEAL NO PROBLEMS The government's chief scientific adviser, R. Chidambaram, has also asked Modi for a quick decision on the issue. A senior environment ministry official, who is a member of the GM approval committee, had said earlier that studies found no ill effects from GM foods. Pental's mustard makes use of three genes already incorporated in rapeseed hybrids in Canada, the United States and Australia and extensive biosafety tests have revealed no cause for concern, according to a copy of the field trial report submitted to the government and seen by . Additionally, oil derived from its seeds does not contain proteins linked to the three genes used, Pental said. The mustard's yield is up to 38 percent higher than normal varieties, which would help Modi slash an annual bill for vegetable oil imports of more than $10 billion. A farm ministry official said they were keen to roll out any innovation that can help farmers produce more, as long as concerns of human and soil health are addressed. (Editing by Mike Collett-White) By Mehreen Zahra-Malik ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan has shelved plans to privatise its power supply companies and will miss deadlines to sell other loss-making state firms, reneging on promises Islamabad had made to the IMF in return for a $6.7 billion bailout three years ago. Two government officials with direct knowledge of the situation said International Monetary Fund officials meeting with Pakistani officials in Dubai this week were angered by the backtracking, but they expected the IMF would still release the remaining $1.6 billion to be disbursed. The IMF is due to announce its decision on the next tranche, expected to be $500 million, at a conference later on Thursday in Dubai. For all the IMF's frustration over the privatisation delays, the government has pushed ahead on other reforms, the Pakistani officials said, though there is another unspoken reason why Islamabad can expect the money to keep coming with little more than a reprimand. Western allies, and neighbours Afghanistan and India, fear an economic meltdown would create a witches brew in the nuclear-armed Muslim nation of 190 million, mostly poor people, whose fragile democracy is under internal attack from Islamist militants. Still, economists said a rebuke would send a negative signal to international financial markets about Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's government. "It was embarrassing and brutal," a senior Pakistani official present at the meeting in Dubai, told Reuters, describing the IMF's response when mission head Harald Finger was told that the government had decided not to sell nine power distribution companies because of fear of labour unrest. "It was nothing less than a dressing down. If the IMF still doesn't penalize us, then all I can say is, 'We're very lucky,'" the official said. The other source, a senior finance ministry official who was also in Dubai, confirmed the account. The finance ministry did not respond to calls seeking comment. A spokesman for the IMF said the Fund would not comment during a mission review. The IMF loan had helped Pakistan stave off a default in 2013, when dwindling foreign exchange reserves covered less than six weeks of imports. Pakistan's reserves have since swelled to $20.5 billion in January from $11 billion in mid-2013. UNION UNREST The privatisation of 68 state-owned companies, which include loss-making enterprises like Pakistan International Airlines and Pakistan Steel Mills, is a crucial part of the IMF deal and was meant to bring the country's finances back on track. Such enterprises drain about $5 billion every year from state coffers, around an eighth of the government's fiscal revenues last year of around four trillion rupees ($38.2 billion). The government has made some progress, including raising more than $1 billion by selling its entire stake in Habib Bank Ltd, but has struggled to find buyers for most of the companies and faced stiff opposition from labour unions. Protesters clashed with security officials on Tuesday over plans to privatise the national airline, leaving two people dead. Most PIA flights were grounded on Wednesday. Both Pakistani officials said the IMF had made clear its frustration with the delays to privatisation drive. "The IMF is asking the obvious question: 'Why didn't you start negotiations [with unions] earlier? Why wasn't this handled better at the political level?'" the senior government official said. The Pakistani officials told the IMF that taking on the power companies' 400,000 unionised employees was fraught with risk, and that instead the government would bring in independent boards of directors to improve management. Pakistan has already missed last year's deadlines to solicit buyer interest in PIA, and the officials said the government has now informed the IMF it would miss the June 2016 deadline to conclude the sale of 26 percent shares of the airline. Pakistan will also miss its deadline to sell Pakistan Steel Mills by March this year, the officials said. Pakistani governments problems dealing with the IMF could nudge them toward other avenues for help, like long-time ally China, which plans to invest $46 billion in a China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), and is also leading the new Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. "If money from the CPEC starts coming in, it allows the government to show that something is happening and that they don't need the IMF," said Akbar Zaidi, a South Asian expert at Columbia University. ($1 = 104.7600 Pakistani rupees) (Additional reporting and writing by Tommy Wilkes; Editing by Paritosh Bansal and Simon Cameron-Moore) By Mehreen Zahra-Malik ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan has shelved plans to privatise its power supply companies and will miss deadlines to sell other loss-making state firms, reneging on promises it made to the IMF in return for a $6.7 billion bailout three years ago. Two government officials with direct knowledge of the situation said International Monetary Fund (IMF) officials who met Pakistani officials in Dubai this week to review progress on reforms were angered by the backtracking. But the IMF still agreed on Thursday to release the next $497 million tranche of that loan, leaving a further $1.1 billion left to be released. Announcing that its team in Dubai had agreed that the tranche should be disbursed, subject to approval by the Fund's executive board, the IMF went on to lament Pakistan's slow progress in some areas. "While many structural benchmarks have been met, measures pertaining to the energy sector reform and restructuring of loss-making public enterprises are yet to be implemented," the IMF said in a statement. For all the IMF's frustration over the privatisation delays, the government has pushed ahead on other reforms, Pakistani officials said. "The energy sector reforms are on track and we have been working consistently," Finance Minister Ishaq Dar told a joint conference with IMF mission chief Harald Finger when asked about the decision to shelve the privatisation of power supply companies. Economists say Pakistan can expect the money to keep coming with little more than a reprimand as Western allies, and neighbours Afghanistan and India, fear an economic meltdown would further destabilise the nuclear-armed Muslim nation of 190 million, whose fragile democracy has been crippled by years of power shortages, corruption and militant violence. Still, a rebuke would send a negative signal to international financial markets about Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's government. "It was embarrassing and brutal," a senior Pakistani official present at the meeting in Dubai, told Reuters, describing the IMF's response when Finger was told that the government had decided not to sell nine power distribution companies because of fear of labour unrest. "It was nothing less than a dressing down. If the IMF still doesn't penalize us, then all I can say is, 'We're very lucky'," the official said. The other source, a senior finance ministry official who was also in Dubai, confirmed the account. The ministry did not respond to calls seeking comment. A spokesman for the IMF said earlier the Fund would not comment during a mission review. During the conference, Finger did not address alleged tensions at the Dubai meeting, though he did acknowledge "complexities" in the process. The IMF loan helped Pakistan stave off a default in 2013, when dwindling foreign exchange reserves covered less than six weeks of imports. Reserves have since swelled to $20.5 billion in January from $11 billion in mid-2013. UNION UNREST The privatisation of 68 state-owned companies, which include loss-making enterprises like Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and Pakistan Steel Mills, is a crucial part of the IMF deal and was meant to bring the country's finances back on track. Such enterprises drain about $5 billion every year from state coffers, around an eighth of the government's fiscal revenues last year of about four trillion rupees ($38.2 billion). The government has made some progress, including raising more than $1 billion by selling its entire stake in Habib Bank Ltd, but has struggled to find buyers for most of the companies and faced stiff opposition from labour unions. Protesters clashed with security officials on Tuesday over plans to privatise the national airline, leaving two people dead. Most PIA flights were grounded on Wednesday. The IMF's Finger said the Fund would not give a deadline for the privatisation of PIA, an apparent softening of its earlier insistence on a sell-off by a specific date. But both Pakistani officials said the IMF had made clear its frustration earlier in the week. "The IMF is asking the obvious question: 'Why didn't you start negotiations [with unions] earlier? Why wasn't this handled better at the political level?'," the senior government official said. Officials told the IMF that taking on the power companies' 400,000 unionised employees was fraught with risk, and that instead the government would bring in independent boards of directors to improve management. Pakistan will also miss a deadline to sell Pakistan Steel Mills by March, the Pakistani officials said. Problems dealing with the IMF could nudge the government toward other sources of help, like ally China, which plans to invest $46 billion in a China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), and is also leading a new Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. "If money from the CPEC starts coming in, it allows the government to show that something is happening and that they don't need the IMF," said Akbar Zaidi, a South Asian expert at Columbia University. (Additional reporting and writing by Tommy Wilkes, Nadia Saleem in DUBIA; Editing by Paritosh Bansal and Simon Cameron-Moore, Robert Birsel) Rajat Gupta, a former director of Goldman Sachs Group Inc and global managing director of McKinsey & Co, has persuaded a federal appeals court to take a fresh look at overturning his 2012 insider trading conviction. In an order on Thursday, the Second US Circuit Court of Appeals in New York said it will review Gupta's conviction for having passed tips to hedge fund manager Raj Rajaratnam about Goldman's financial results and a crucial $5 billion investment from Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc . The appeals court said it will examine whether jurors received improper instructions, and whether Gupta could demonstrate "actual innocence." It had most recently rejected Gupta's appeal efforts in December. "We are pleased with the court's ruling, and believe we have meritorious issues to present," Gupta's lawyer Gary Naftalis said in a phone interview. Gupta, 67, remains the highest-profile corporate executive convicted in a federal crackdown on insider trading, centered on hedge fund firms including Rajaratnam's Galleon Group. But several defendants have won reversals of their convictions and guilty pleas since the New York appeals court in December 2014 said insider trading required knowledge of a meaningful "personal benefit" such as money being exchanged for tips. The US Supreme Court is expected in a different case to decide the appropriate standard by the end of June. Evidence against Gupta included a September 23, 2008 phone call in which Rajaratnam told a trader that "something good might happen to Goldman." A few minutes later, Goldman announced a $5 billion investment from Berkshire. Prosecutors said a tip from Gupta prompted Rajaratnam's comment. Gupta spent more than 1-1/2 years of his two-year sentence in federal prison, but was moved to home confinement last month. He is eligible for release on March 13, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Rajaratnam is trying to void part of his own conviction and 11-year prison term, and throw out a $92.8 million penalty in a related US Securities and Exchange Commission civil case. The case is Gupta v. US, 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 15-2707. MUMBAI (Reuters) - Reliance Infrastructure Ltd said on Thursday it has agreed to sell its cement business to Birla Corporation Ltd for 48 billion rupees ($710 million), as part of its efforts to reduce debt. Reliance Infrastructure is an affiliate of billionaire Anil Ambani's Reliance Group conglomerate. Reliance Infrastructure's cement arm has three plants with total installed production capacity of 5.6 million tonnes per annum (MTPA). Another 5 MTPA plant is under construction in western Maharashtra state, according to its website. Meanwhile Birla Corp said on Tuesday it planned to take legal action against the Indian subsidiary of LafargeHolcim after a deal fell through to buy some of the Franco-Swiss group's local assets. In April last year LafargeHolcim agreed to sell two of its Indian plants to win local regulatory approvals for the merger of Lafarge and Holcim. ($1 = 67.6477 Indian rupees) (Reporting by Sumeet Chatterjee; Editing by Greg Mahlich) By Promit Mukherjee MUMBAI (Reuters) - Tata Steel Ltd swung to a hefty third quarter loss on Thursday, blaming cheap Chinese imports for having to axe 3,000 jobs at its UK unit, as it tries to slim down to cope with the global steel crisis. The European business of Tata Steel, the parent company of Britain's largest and Europe's second-largest steel producer, has cut thousands of jobs since it bought Anglo-Dutch producer Corus in 2007. Last month, the company, a unit of India's diversified Tata Group conglomerate, said it would cut 1,050 UK jobs on top of 1,200 announced in October. A total of 3,000 jobs will be lost including other measures announced this year. "We are witnessing significant unfairly priced imports into countries like the UK, India and South East Asia which has disrupted the pricing discipline in most markets," said Koushik Chatterjee, group executive director for finance and corporate. Mumbai-headquartered Tata Steel posted a net loss of 21.27 billion rupees ($314.5 million) in the quarter ended Dec. 31, against a net profit of 1.57 billion rupees in the same period a year ago. Sales fell 16.5 percent to 280.39 billion rupees as prices dropped, reflecting the availability of cheaper imported steel mainly from China in Europe and India. China makes nearly half the world's 1.6 billion tonnes of steel, and exported over 100 million tonnes of the alloy last year, more than four times the 2014 shipments from the European Union's largest producer, Germany. The company took a one-time charge of 7.11 billion rupees on its European operations due to a non-cash write down of fixed assets and restructuring provisions. It also took a charge for staff cuts in India. Chatterjee said the business conditions for the global steel industry were "extremely challenging" due to elevated imports across regions, currency headwinds and subdued market sentiment. Its EBITDA (earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization), a key gauge of profitability, dropped by over 70 percent, mainly due to Tata Steel's Europe unit that accounts for a little over half of its total revenues and production. The European business of the company posted an operating loss of 6.75 billion rupees. "Growing European steel demand continues to be undermined by a flood of imports into the region," said Karl-Ulrich Kohler, CEO of Tata Steel in Europe, adding Chinese steel shipments into Europe grew more than 50 percent last year. "These changes will continue to be a core focus in a bid to improve our competitiveness and enable us to concentrate on supplying higher-value products to customers." Elsewhere in Europe, ArcelorMittal said it was reviewing the future of a major steel export plant in South Africa, also blaming cheap imports from China. ($1 = 67.6250 Indian rupees) (Reporting by Promit Mukherjee; Editing by Sumeet Chatterjee and Elaine Hardcastle) Toshiba Corp said on Thursday it is examining whether to deepen its full-year loss forecast when it reports quarterly earnings later in the day, amid mounting restructuring costs after an accounting scandal. Kyodo News and The Nikkei reported that the industrial electronics conglomerate will downgrade its net loss projection to over 600 billion yen ($5.1 billion), from the 550 billion yen currently foreseen, for the year ending March 31. Toshiba said in a statement that the reports were not based on any company announcements and it would release its earnings at 0600 GMT. Vodafone met expectations with a 1.4% rise in revenue in its third quarter, its sixth consecutive quarter of growth, as recovery in Europe gained pace. The world's second largest operator reported organic service revenue of 9.2 billion pounds, in line with analyst forecasts, on Thursday and said it was on track to deliver full-year core earnings of between 11.7 billion and 12.0 billion pounds. Chief Executive Vittorio Colao said a multi-billion pound upgrade of Vodafone's networks was paying off, with the firm able to meet growing demand for data. "We continue to face regulatory and competitive challenges in many markets, but we are confident that the business is well positioned for the growth opportunities ahead," he said. Earlier this week Vodafone said it had restarted talks with Liberty Global, the cable company it was considering joining forces with last year to offer more packages of TV, broadband and mobile in European markets. This time, however, it said the talks were limited to the Netherlands. World food prices fell to near a seven-year low in January, weighed down by declines for agricultural commodities, particularly sugar, the United Nations food agency said on Thursday. Food prices have fallen for four straight years and remain under pressure from ample agricultural supply, a slowing global economy, and a strengthening U. S. dollar. The Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) food price index, which measures monthly changes for a basket of cereals, oilseeds, dairy products, meat and sugar, averaged 150.4 points in January against a revised 153.4 points the month before. The 1.9 percent decrease from December follows an almost 19 percent slide in 2015. Food on international markets in January was 16 percent cheaper than one year ago, the FAO said. "There are still prospects perhaps for further downward pressure on markets, but the U. S. economy, exchange rates, and the overall macro conditions are impossible to predict and their implications could be quite important," FAO senior economist Abdolreza Abbassian said. Positive revisions for wheat production prompted the FAO to raise its estimate for world cereal output in 2015 to 2.531 billion tonnes, still 1.2 percent below 2014's record harvest. Early prospects for cereal harvests in 2016 are mixed, the FAO said, partly due to El Nino-associated weather patterns having a particularly deleterious effect in the southern hemisphere. Southern Africa's crop prospects have been severely weakened by the dry and hot weather El Nino has brought, and wheat output in South Africa is likely to fall 25 percent, the FAO said. Early-season dryness in Brazil and Argentina could also result in reduced plantings. Dry weather forced Ukraine to cut the area under wheat, but conditions are better in Russia. When more than 65,000 people showed up to be a part of the Burning Man Festival in 2014, a week-long free-spirited celebration of art and music, they knew they should expect good things. But no one could have foreseen 20 giant lotuses blooming in the semi-arid land in Nevadas Black Rock Desert. Every time one touched a stem sprouting from these 10-14-feet high installations, it would pick up ones pulse via sensors and make the lotuses bloom. At a time, 40 people could touch this piece called Pulse and Bloom and see their heartbeats pulsate through LED-loaded structures. Its safe to say that the artist behind the project, Shilo Shiv Suleman, believes in the power of the collective consciousness. This belief found root in her after the infamous rape case of 2012 in New Delhi, when Suleman, who was in the city for a wedding, found herself surrounded by candles and placards at India Gate as the country mourned for Nirbhaya. For the first time in India, I saw people out on the streets and there was this incredible energy of thousands and thousands of people, says the 27-year-old. But what followed disturbed her. There was this wave of fear mongering, a constant rhetoric of donts. The fear was counter-productive to the larger change we needed, says Suleman, elaborating on what led her to form The Fearless Collective. With Fearless, Suleman collaborates with other artists, activists and volunteers to engage in storytelling in public places. One of their earliest projects was Paint the Town Pink for the Gulabi Gang art project. Suleman has dabbled with illustrating childrens book illustrator, an installation artist and now as Shilo of The Fearless Collective. Her murals by the Ganga, in Mumbais Dharavi and on the streets of Bengaluru are replete with elements of Magical Realism. With locals in Nepal Last year in Nepal, after the devastating earthquake, Suleman worked with local thangka artistes to get temple art out on Kathmandus streets while holding workshops on inherited fears. We inherit homes and jewels, but what about the emotions and fears that we take on, asks Suleman, who believes that these things make us who we are.Though gender-based issues continue to fuel their fire, volunteers or what Suleman calls Fearless farishtas (angels), also work with other subjects. After Nepal, Suleman was in Pakistan, interacting with communities across cities; one of these was in Lyari, where children are exposed to gang violence and grenades. People told me dont go to Pakistan, its dangerous. In Pakistan, people told me dont go to Lyari, its dangerous. But I have found that theres love wherever we go.The idea of taking Fearless to Pakistan was exciting, because it is a blend of street art and feminist movements, says Nida Mushtaq, a sexual rights activist and advocate who invited Suleman to Pakistan. We could create beauty and make the streets safe for public conversations, while exploring the deep and dark issues embedded in our society, she adds.Soon enough, on the walls of a grimy car-wash in Rawalpindi, an unusual image appeared. First came the painting of a larger-than-life yellow bike, followed by a radiant portrait of Bubbli Mallik of the Khwaja-sira or transgender community. While you admire her long flowing hair, unmissable in the portrait is the stubble on Malliks face, besides masculine hands on the two-wheeler.This mural was to normalise the transgender community. While there is a mysterious belief in the power of their prayers, this belief stems from a place of fear, explains Suleman. Young children, old men, and college girls came together to paint and write out prayers on the roses an Indian artist had drawn on the walls.Three years after Fearless began, Suleman is working on giving the collective a more formal structure as they expand to Pakistan, Lebanon and a host of other countries with over 600 farishtas. The whole world is our oyster. Cuba, Brazil, Morocco we just have to decide where well go next and make it work. After the damaging outbreak of the Ebola virus over the last two years, another little-known infection has prompted the World Health Organisation to declare an international public health emergency. The Zika virus, the first case of which was confirmed last May in Brazil, has since spread rapidly over South and Central America, reaching epidemic proportions.pread through mosquito bites, the virus is believed to cause brain shrinkage among the newborns of infected pregnant women and in a few cases lead to potentially fatal autoimmune conditions like the Guillain-Barre syndrome.About 1.5 million Brazilians have caught Zika, while some 3,700 cases of microcephaly, a condition where babies are born with visibly smaller heads and incomplete brain development, are being linked to the virus. While Brazil is worst hit, much of South and Central America have been affected too.In some regions, a state of emergency has been declared and the army has been called in to battle mosquitoes. The United States reported its first case in February and in times of increased international travel, it is feared the epidemic could soon reach other parts of the world. The threat is compounded by the fact that 80 per cent of those infected do not show any symptom, causing countries to step up efforts to improve testing. Zika was first isolated in 1947 and outbreaks were limited to Africa, Southeast Asia, and the Pacific Islands. Before 2015, it was largely unknown in the Americas. The virus is transmitted by the aedes aegypti mosquito, which also carries dengue and chikungunya.It is a day-biting, low-flying mosquito that is commonly found around houses and is known to breed in standing water. Affected persons often show mild symptoms including fever, rash or red eyes, which manifest over a period of five to 14 days after contact with the virus, says Monica Mahajan, senior consultant at Sakets Max Superspecialty Hospital.No case has been reported in India yet, but areas experiencing drought or water shortage, where people tend to store water, could be a breeding ground for virus-carrying mosquitoes. Local health organisations have warned pregnant women against travelling to affected countries. The health ministry will also begin screening those who fly back from Latin America. The medical fraternity is awaiting guidelines on which centres would provide diagnostic kits for testing people. Zika factfile Symptoms Majority of those infected remain asymptomatic or experience mild signs like fever, rash, joint pain or conjunctivitis. They could also experience muscle pain and headache. The time between exposure to the Zika virus and visibility of the symptoms is largely considered to be a few days to a week. The virus typically remains in the blood of infected persons for a few days but may stay longer in some people. Treatment There is no direct cure yet. As with other viral infections, doctors are so far treating the symptoms. Hyderabad-based Bharat Biotech claims to have achieved a breakthrough in developing a vaccine. One of the vaccines, it claims, has reached the stage of pre-clinical testing in animals. Does it kill? While the symptoms are usually mild, certain complications like microcephaly or the Guillain-Barre syndrome can prove fatal. Guillain-Barre is a rare disorder in which the body's immune system attacks the nerves. How is it different from dengue or chikungunya? The three diseases can have overlapping symptoms such as rashes, eye infections, joint and muscle pain. It will require specific tests to determine the presence of Zika virus. Affected countries Much of South America has been hit. While Brazil is worst hit, countries including Puerto Rico, Colombia, Costa Rica, Barbados, American Samoa and Bolivia are facing an epidemic too. Mexico and more recently, the United States have also recorded cases. Preventive measures for pregnant women Pregnant women, who if infected could transmit the virus to their children, have been advised to avoid travelling to affected countries. In affected regions, women have been advised to wear long-sleeved clothes and mosquito repellent at all times. There is no cure for the virus but a vaccine is expected to be available internationally by August, says Mahesh Lakhe, infectious diseases specialist with Columbia Asia Hospital, Pune. Meanwhile, it is important to build awareness and maintain dry surroundings, adds fellow specialist Om Shrivastav.There is a lot of speculation about the virus as research is still ongoing, says Shrivastav, who has been fielding anxious queries from patients over e-mail and WhatsApp. The worry is natural since India is prone to dengue outbreaks and could become exposed to spreading of Zika. The government announced the schedule of Parliaments Budget session on Thursday with a hope of getting crucial Bills related to goods and services tax, bankruptcy, and real estate regulation cleared. But the Opposition parties appeared unrelenting as the session coincides with the elections in five states West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry. At the India Investment Summit on Thursday, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley expressed hope that the Opposition will see reason to ensure the passage of the goods and services tax (GST) constitution amendment Bill in the coming session. Jaitley said a joint committee of Parliament, which is examining the details of the bankruptcy and insolvency Bill, is expected to submit its report by the first week of March and the Bill might be passed in the Budget session itself.. Read our full coverage on Union Budget 2016 . . However, until and unless either of the two sides bows down for the sake of legislative reforms, the upcoming session might be unproductive like the previous two because the Opposition commands a majority in the Rajya Sabha. The Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA) on Thursday met to finalise the dates for the presentation of the Railway Budget (February 25), tabling of the Economic Survey (February 26) and presentation of the General Budget (February 29). The Presidents address to the joint sitting of Parliament will be on February 23, the first day of the session. The first part of the session will end on March 16, with over a month-long recess from March 17 to April 24. The Houses will meet again from April 25 to May 13. In total, the session meant for financial business of the government will see 31 sittings over 81 days. Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu said he was optimistic that GST, real estate regulation, and bankruptcy Bills will be passed during the session. He claimed to be in touch with the Congress and other friendly Opposition parties. He said the government has already discussed the three points of disagreement on GST with the Congress. Naidu had met Congress President Sonia Gandhi after the Winter session in early January. However, sources in Congress said there has been no effort by the government to build bridges after the Winter session washout. The imposition of Presidents Rule in Arunachal Pradesh is a sore point with the Congress. Also, all Opposition parties are preparing to corner the government on its insensitive response to the death of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula. Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi had visited the Hyderabad Central University twice to express solidarity with the protesting students. The Congress and other opposition parties also complain of the governments misuse of investigative agencies like the Central Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement Directorate. Senior ministers met leaders of all political parties to explore whether there was any demand to curtail the session in view of the forthcoming state polls. The five states are scheduled to vote for a new government between the first week of April and first week of May. Both sides were unanimous in their support for a full session. Several members of the Parliament will be busy campaigning for the state polls and their attendance in the House is likely to be intermittent. In 2011, the month-long Budget session recess had been done away with because of the elections in these states. The then government had decided not to send the Finance Bill to the Standing Committees. The recess is the time given to department-related standing committees to examine the Budget proposals of different ministries and departments. The assembly election dates are likely to be announced by first week of March. Communist Party of India (Marxist) chief and Rajya Sabha MP Sitaram Yechury said every year government should come out with a calendar of Parliament sittings so that there is no confusion. The Election Commission will then decide the dates for elections knowing when Parliament is sitting. The Prime Minister will also know about the sittings and will remain in the House and not be abroad, Yechury said. HOUSE OUT OF ORDER 31 SITTINGS OVER 81 DAYS Budget session February 23 to May 13 Recess Mar 17 to Apr 24 Presidents address February 23 Railway Budget February 25 Economic Survey February 26 General Budget February 29 GOVT EXPECTATIONS Passage of key Bills on goods and services tax, bankruptcy, and real estate regulation Passage of ordinances on Presidents Rule in Arunachal Pradesh, and enemy properties CONGRESS-LED OPPOSITIONS STAND Govts response to death of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula Imposition of central rule in Arunachal Misuse of CBI and ED against opponents WHY TRUCE IS UNLIKELY ChemChina to acquire crop protection firm Syngenta for $ 43 bn Experts believe that the deal makes strategic sense as it allows Syngenta to expand in emerging markets and provides ChemChina access to latest crop protection technologies Experts believe that the deal makes strategic sense as it allows Syngenta to expand in emerging markets and provides ChemChina access to latest crop protection technologies ChemChina, which has business interests in materials science, life science, high-end manufacturing and basic chemicals, yesterday proposed to buy Swiss crop protection and seeds company Syngenta for about $ 43 billion. The board of directors of Syngenta considers that the proposed transaction respects the interests of all stakeholders and is unanimously recommending the offer to shareholders. There is committed financing for the deal and a strong commitment to pursue regulatory clearances, said Syngenta in a press release. The transaction is expected to conclude by the end of the year. As per the deal, Syngentas existing management will continue to run the company. After closing, a ten member board of directors will be chaired by Ren Jianxin, chairman of ChemChina, and will include four of the existing Syngenta Board members. Michel Demare, chairman of Syngenta, commented, In making this offer, ChemChina is recognising the quality and potential of Syngentas business. This includes industry-leading R&D and manufacturing and the quality of our people worldwide. The transaction minimises operational disruption; it is focused on growth globally, specifically in China and other emerging markets, and enables long-term investment in innovation. According to John Ramsay, chief executive officer, Syngenta, this deal will enable the company to maintain and expand its position in crop protection market, while at the same time significantly increase the potential for its seeds business. Ren Jianxin, chairman of ChemChina, said, We will continue to work alongside the management and employees of Syngenta to maintain the companys leading competitive edge in the global agricultural technology field. Some industry observers believe the deal makes strategic sense as it allows Syngenta to expand in emerging markets (notably in China) and provides ChemChina access to latest crop protection technologies. This is an acquisition driven primarily by growth strategy, and not potential synergies that usually result in cost cutting and reduction of workforce. So the deal is good news for both Syngentas shareholders as well as its employees. Most of the problems with such acquisitions tend to rise later on when the two firms try to integrate their processes, commented Kamel Mellahi, a professor of strategic management at Warwick Business School who has studied key Chinese businesses for a number of years. Syngenta has been going through challenging times recently, mainly because of its exposure to uncertainties in emerging markets and the recent collapse of commodity prices. For ChemChina, acquiring one of the worlds leading manufacturer of agricultural and chemicals and seeds with world class resources and capabilities will enable it to access valuable knowledge that could help its drive for innovation. The deal is going to take ChemChina to a whole new level, added Kamel Mellahi. BS B2B Bureau World food prices fell to near a seven-year low in January, weighed down by declines for agricultural commodities, particularly sugar, the United Nations food agency said on Thursday. Food prices have fallen for four straight years and remain under pressure from ample agricultural supply, a slowing global economy, and a strengthening U.S. dollar. The Food and Agriculture Organization's (FAO) food price index, which measures monthly changes for a basket of cereals, oilseeds, dairy products, meat and sugar, averaged 150.4 points in January against a revised 153.4 points the month before. The 1.9 percent decrease from December follows an almost 19 percent slide in 2015. Food on international markets in January was 16 percent cheaper than one year ago, the FAO said. "There are still prospects perhaps for further downward pressure on markets, but the U.S. economy, exchange rates, and the overall macro conditions are impossible to predict and their implications could be quite important," FAO senior economist Abdolreza Abbassian said. Positive revisions for wheat production prompted the FAO to raise its estimate for world cereal output in 2015 to 2.531 billion tonnes, still 1.2 percent below 2014's record harvest. Early prospects for cereal harvests in 2016 are mixed, the FAO said, partly due to El Nino-associated weather patterns having a particularly deleterious effect in the southern hemisphere. Southern Africa's crop prospects have been severely weakened by the dry and hot weather El Nino has brought, and wheat output in South Africa is likely to fall 25 percent, the FAO said. Early-season dryness in Brazil and Argentina could also result in reduced plantings. Dry weather forced Ukraine to cut the area under wheat, but conditions are better in Russia. (Reuters) Source: www.businessworld.ie Microfinance Ireland (MFI) has today announced a record 50% rise in the number of loan applications during 2015. The State backed not-for-profit lender to micro-businesses was established in late 2012 by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation under the Action Plan for Jobs. To date, it has approved 11.6m in loans to 770 businesses. A total of 752 businesses applied for loans in 2015, compared with 508 applications for 2014, an increase of 48%. The average loan size approved during 2015 was 15,190. MFI offers business loans of between 2,000 and 25,000 to companies with fewer than ten employees, with a turnover less than 2m. CEO of Microfinance Ireland, Michael Johnson claims two thirds of applications are coming from start-up businesses. Johnson commented, "As part of our annual customer survey, small business customers are reporting high levels of satisfaction with the loan support MFI offers; results show that 85% would apply to MFI again for future funding, 95% were happy with the term and flexibility of payments on their loan, while 96% would recommend MFI to a friend or family." Source: www.businessworld.ie It was announced today that 85 full-time and 30 part-time jobs are being created by six businesses operating at Belfast International Airport. This is the third consecutive announcement of a major jobs boost at the airport and will mean the injection in wages of more than 1.5 million into the Northern Ireland economy. This latest batch will bring to 298 the total number of new jobs announced at the airport within the past two months. The jobs are across a wide cross-section of aviation support activities including on-site food outlets, taxi operations and private charter services. Caterers SSP is planning to increase its workforce by 20 full-time and 30 part-time staff while the Fed & Watered outlet will add 10 new employees to the payroll. The airport taxi firm, Belfast Airport Taxis, is taking on thirty additional drivers to deal with the expected increase in passenger numbers with planned expansion by existing airlines and the opening of a three-aircraft hub by Ryanair at the end of March. Catering, retail and logistics company, LSG, has 16 places to fill. Private charter company, Jet Assist, will create 6 jobs with Car Care Solutions adding 3 additional jobs. All of the jobs will be featured at an Airport Jobs Fair to be held in the Templeton Hotel, Templepatrick, next Monday afternoon, 8th February. Belfast International Airport Director of Commercial Development, Brian Carlin said, "These jobs have little or no lead-in times. Theres a need for them now as we prepare for a bumper year with hundreds of thousands more passengers. Right across the board, were seeing welcome growth. "Airlines and airports generate jobs and new business opportunities at little or no cost to the taxpayer. Weve announced almost 300 new jobs over a nine-week period and thats the equivalent of a major overseas inward investment costing millions of pounds. In a real sense, were growing the business without reliance on the public purse." Source: www.businessworld.ie Commissioner Hood Richardson explains himself: Above. photo by Stan Deatherage Just about anything the any government does gets complicated very quickly. All government functions, from federal to state to county are complicated. The average person has great difficulty in understanding the policies, the whys and wherefores of all those people and the decisions being made. I believe we have several commissioners who are more clueless than the average citizen.The purpose of this article is to let you have a better understanding of our Emergency Management System. I do not present myself as an expert, just someone who has some knowledge.All EMS (Emergency Management Systems) in Beaufort County and the towns in Beaufort County were started and manned by volunteers. Eventually the City of Washington became a paid unit. All other units in the county were volunteer units until about 2 years ago. That is about the time that Gary "Nonsense" Brinn and Ron Buzzeo started fixing things. That is also about the time Vidant Shut down the Belhaven Hospital. Vidant, with their money and poor quality service, are a driving force in what is going on in the Beaufort County EMS system today.The lack of emergency care in Belhaven after July 1, 2014 caused the Town of Belhaven to join with the County to fund a contract with a private EMS provider. This started out being a temporary fix until the hospital could be reopened. The reopening of the Belhaven Hospital has dragged on since then as residents of Belhaven have fought against the reopening of the hospital. Residents fighting the reopening of the hospital is hard to believe. The Pantego Creek, LLC is standing firm in their refusal to give the hospital property to the town. They cannot tell you what they are going to do with it other than deny medical services in the Belhaven area. Sounds like a 2 year old and his toy to me.As a result of some deaths in the area who could possibly have been saved had the paramedical level of service been available the EMS service, has been upgraded. This doubled the cost to Belhaven and Berafort County.Within a few months along came Chocowinity EMS who under the leadership of former County Commissioner Jay Mcroy decided to become a paid unit, and upgrade to the paramedic level. They did not do a lot of financial planning and soon found they had run out of money. They scrambled around brought a law suit against Beaufort County, cut a deal with Vidant to complete against legally franchised companies to haul Vidant's patients. I guess it was Beaufort County's fault they ran out of money. They were supposed to get a franchise but they went on their own without permission. The law suit has never been dropped. The Chocowinity situation really got complicated when Buzzeo and "Nonsense" Brinn started helping them. It remains to be seen whether Chocowinity will survive financially or not.Beaufort County is shutting down units and hiring full time paramedicals to provide service 24 hours per day. We now have the Blounts Creek and the Bath units fully staffed.Beaufort County Emergency Dispatch has been trained to do medical dispatches in addition other police and fire work. Buzzeo and Brinn along with Waters, Belcher, Langley and Booth are now modernizing the entire County. Beaufort County notified the City of Washington that they are now the emergency medical dispatchers for the entire County and they would directly dispatch the City of Washington units. This means the you could see a City Washington EMS unit anywhere in the County. On occasion Washington has been sent to Bath While Chocowinity units have come to Washington. This can cause problems because Chocowinity will claim the billing for calls in Washington. Washington could struggle because of reduced revenues while they sit at a low volume location. Beaufort County contracts with the City of Washington to provide services to the northwest corner of the County (the Old Ford area). What if the City of Washington opts out of EMS and dumps the whole system on the County.. That would definitely be more expense to the County. But, all of this manipulation increases Chocowinity's revenue.What abut the volunteer units. Under the Gang of Six (Commissioners Buzzeo, "Nonsense" Brinn, Waters, Belcher, Langley and Booth) every person receiving services is to be billed for the service. Lets see, we are increasing services and taxes and now everyone is going to get a bill. Volunteer units have provided valuable services, for the most part free service to citizens. Now we are going to be taxed and billed for what these commissioners, in their sole discretion, have decided is something we need. This is not democracy, this is a dictatorship. Not one public hearing has been held to explain to the public what the plan is and how they are going to be expected to pay for it.At the Board meeting for the Belhaven area last month there was discussion about doing away with the contract for the private provider and the County taking over the Belhaven area. There was also talk about moving the unit in Belhaven to an out of town location.I am concerned about the future of EMS Services in Beaufort County. I am concerned about the heavy handed way Beaufort County has gone about changing EMS services. I am concerned about loosing the dedicated volunteers who have served the County so long. I am definitely concerned about how much our taxes will increase as we go to a high level of care in a county that does not have enough population to generate the revenues to pay for all these people and equipment. None of these six commissioners have successful experience in running businesses. I have not seen a business plan nor have I seen a financial plant. I have not seen a study showing estimated revenues.Commissioners Brinn, Buzzeo. Waters, Belcher, Booth and Langley have seized control of EMS services. They forgot the most important ingredient, the tax paying public. They, by themselves , have decided what is good for Beaufort County. They have left out all of the EMS volunteers and other stake holders. Big Brother knows best. They have missed the most important part. How to pay for this. They can make this work for two to three years by using the County savings account and looting the hospital trust fund. Then Taxes are going to go sky high.I do not know of a single county our size who has tried this and been successful. In the cases I know about the cost has gone through the ceiling and the public has demanded a reduction in services. We simply do not have the volume of calls to justify these changes. New service improvements and growth plans for Dublin Bus Airlink and its City & Coastal Tours services have been announced by the Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport, Paschal Donohoe today. To meet increasing customer demand and internal Airlink business projections of 100% revenue growth by 2020, Minister Donohoe announced enhanced services on the Airlink route, including improved frequency, additional vehicles and additional trips for cust omers. The number of daily trips at Airlink has increased by 42% (from 140 to 199) Monday to Saturday and earlier and later departure times of 4.45am and 12.30am have been scheduled. There will also be an increase of four additional trips on Sundays (from 118 to 122). Furthermore, Dublin Bus has seen strong performance across its Commercial Division that includes Airlink, Open Top City Tours, Coastal Tours and Ghostbus Tours. Most recently filed financial results (2014) show turnover of the Commercial Division of 15 million, with 2015 passenger numbers showing a 5% increase to 2 million passengers. Specifically Airlink passenger numbers have increased by 11% in 2015 up to 1.5 million. Minister Donohoe today commented, "Last year recorded the highest number of overseas tourists ever to come to Ireland. Through the implementation of the right policies to support the industry that success can continue. "The growth that Airlink and City & Coastal Tours have been experiencing is on the back of an exceptionally buoyant tourism sector and their plans to mark our centenary year will add to their impressive performance result and help them to realise their targets for the year ahead." Source: www.businessworld.ie Ryanair have today reported that traffic grew 25% to 7.5m customers in January. Their load factor rose 5% points to 88% and rolling annual traffic to January grew 17% to 102.9m customers. Ryanair raised its full-year profit forecast by 25 percent in early September, citing poor summer weather in northern Europe, strong sterling and the impact of improved customer service. But security alerts after attacks in Paris in November and strong competition has since forced it to cut average fares, which fell 1 percent in the last three months of 2015 and will fall 6 percent in the first three months of 2016. "We expect the lower fare environment to continue for the foreseeable future" with some respite during the summer months, Chief Executive Michael O'Leary said in a video presentation. Rival easyJet said last week its revenue per seat fell 3.7 percent in the three months to Dec. 31 and that it would continue to fall in early 2016. Ryanair last year was the first airline in the world to carry 100 million international passengers. On Monday, it increased its forecast for its financial year to March 31 to 106 million from 105 million and said it expected to grow to 113 million in its next financial year. Chief Financial Officer at Ryanair, Kenny Jacobs today commented, "Ryanairs January traffic grew by 25% to 7.5m customers, while our load factor jumped 5% points to 88%, thanks to Ryanair offering lower fares as part of our load factor active/yield passive policy. "These record monthly numbers and load factors are also due to the continuing success of our Always Getting Better customer experience programme, which continues to deliver stronger than expected forward bookings, traffic and load factors. (Reuters) Source: www.businessworld.ie Here at Business World we offer content creation services to a broad spectrum of clients, from leading outsourcers, to multinational finance companies, to well-known FMCG brands. What is key across all these industries is that they care hugely about their message and where it is seen. Its clear that all leading companies want to own their message, but they also want to measure their message; who does it reach, what are customers reactions, how does the media react to their products etc. Most messages, or adverts, are placed in the public domain via single or multi-platform advertising; print media, TV/radio, web content etc. However with such a wide range of medium how can a company quantify this advertising outlay? Here at Business World we are experts in generating market leading, thought driven, content, across all web platforms; both proprietary website and social media platforms. How we measure our clients output is via some very powerful tools such as SEO scores and analysis software, for example. To keep on top of our game we look to an international set of PR standards; by following global, leading, standards we can offer our clients outstanding, measurable, content. One such principle, that very much guides us, is the Barcelona Principles. In 2010 leading international companies in the PR field met in Barcelona to set voluntary guidelines on the key principles of the measurement of the efficacy of PR campaigns. This resulted in the Barcelona Principles being established. The principles identify the importance of measuring outcomes over output, based measurement of PR campaigns, the call for the exclusion of ad value equivalency metrics and the need to recognise the communication value of social media. In 2015 these core principles were updated to become more complete and to encompass changes in how PR, news, and information are accessed and understood. We only need to look at the key shifts in the way that news is shared to realise that digital content is written, read and digested differently to only 5-6 years ago. A keen example of this shift is in the numbers of users across leading social media platforms; Twitter went from approximately 30 million users in Jan 2010 (active monthly users, worldwide), to reach 310 million users in Jan 2016. Facebook; in Sept 2015 globally, there were over 1.55bn monthly active Facebook users, which is a 14% increase on September 2014s figure of 117.8bn. In 2010 monthly active Facebook users was 500m. These figures show that there are a far greater number of social media users in the last 5/6 years; how these users read, react and acknowledge online content has shifted massively and again is something that we have in mind when creating content for our clients. Here at Business World we are passionate about delivering great content for our clients. By adhering to forward thinking, progressive principles, such as the Barcelona Principles 2.0, we believe we can offer market leading content to our clients. Get in touch today for a free trial. About us New mortgage data published by the Banking & Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI) today shows that AIB Group continues to be the largest provider of mortgages in Ireland in 2015. The BPFI figures published today show that the mortgage market was valued at almost 4.9bn in 2015, an increase of 26% on 2014. AIB performed strongly in all mortgage categories financing over one third of all mortgages in Ireland and four in ten of First Time Buyer home purchases. Head of AIB Group Mortgage Business, Ken Burke today commented, "AIBs strong performance shows consumers are choosing real long-term value represented by low rates and market-leading customer service and support. "This latest data from BPFI shows that the market is continuing to recover, and we are confident that further growth will be evident in 2016. As the largest mortgage provider in Ireland, AIB will continue to support the recovery of the residential property market." Source: www.businessworld.ie Mobile phone company Vodafone met expectations with a 1.4 percent rise in revenue in its third quarter, its sixth consecutive quarter of growth, as recovery in Europe gained pace. The world's second largest operator reported organic service revenue of 9.2 billion pounds, in line with analyst forecasts, on Thursday and said it was on track to deliver full-year core earnings of between 11.7 billion and 12.0 billion pounds. Chief Executive Vittorio Colao said a multi-billion pound upgrade of Vodafone's networks was paying off, with the firm able to meet growing demand for data. "We continue to face regulatory and competitive challenges in many markets, but we are confident that the business is well positioned for the growth opportunities ahead," he said. Earlier this week Vodafone said it had restarted talks with Liberty Global, the cable company it was considering joining forces with last year to offer more packages of TV, broadband and mobile in European markets. This time, however, it said the talks were limited to the Netherlands.(Reuters) Source: www.businessworld.ie Adventures in Immersive Cinema: A reality by 2020? Published on February 4, 2016 Story by Quetzalcoatl Translation by: Arwen Dewey en fr pl es it de Every new year brings a new round of concepts based on new technologies all of which are touted as revolutionary. Among the latest to emerge is one idea thats likely to glean more interest than others: immersive cinema. Imagine a film that you watch, not on a screen from the comfort of your sofa, but from within the action itself, with your own head movements allowing you to explore the scene. Immersive virtual reality has long been seen as the daydream of scientists, but in 2013 it also became the dream of Antoine Cayrol at the time head of FatCat, an audio-visual production company. When he discovered virtual reality he immediately saw its development potential, not for video games, but in the audio-visual domain. He shared this interest with two other associates, and Okio Studio was born. The new company quickly evolved into Frances top producer of this radical new film genre and even became, in Cayrol's own words, one of the three best immersive cinema studios in the world. A shooting success Ten months of research and development followed, a barren period that initially involved many "inventors". Did Cayrol ever doubt the commercial viability of virtual reality helmets? The technological development has existed since the 1990s but never taken off. "Every technological innovation goes through two phases," he explains, "an early phase of commercialisation that ends in failure the technology isn't complete and the public unclear about what it's for then a successful phase a few years later. Virtual reality is now entering that second phase." The events of 2015 back up his argument; it seems to have been the year things really started to grow. First, immersive cinema took off as a concept. It was YouTube that first discovered the potential of this new format. At the beginning of 2015, the video-sharing website came out with YouTube360, a new channel dedicated to 360 content. You don't need a helmet to enjoy it; simply turning your phone in different directions will allow you to explore the image. This new channel was launched just as 360 cameras started becoming more readily available to consumers. As a result, most of the videos currently available on YouTube360 are the work of amateurs. Right now, one of the most popular videos shows a herd of cows. The cows are so intrigued by the camera that one of them licks it, inadvertently knocking it over. It would seem that the great artists of immersive cinema have yet to be discovered. But despite the narrative simplicity of the available videos, YouTube360 already has a following. Simply being able to enter the scene of a film even if its only actors are cows is tantalising enough to attract an audience. 2015 was also the year that Okio Studios really took off. The financial success of its first commercial productions surpassed the total of all its investments since 2013. But the Parisian studio didnt stop there. Besides its advertising projects, Okio started working on a made-for-TV film for the Franco-German TV network Arte, with the support of France's Centre National du Cinema. The script is as innovative as the technology. Viewers find themselves inside the head of a robot that looks like Philip K. Dick, the famous American science-fiction writer. Unlike in a video game, viewers experience real life actors and sets. "Immersive filming" is a fairly difficult process. Firstly, the actors are performing in front of a camera that leaves no blind spots behind which a film crew can hide. Also, any sudden movements of the camera must be avoided, since they are liable to make viewers nauseous. Besides these practical considerations, immersive cinema obliges us to rethink the entire concept of narrative structure: film frames don't exist, and the finished product can no longer consist of a series of brief shots, edited together. However Okio has decided to approach these challenges, the distribution of its made-for-TV movie in February of 2016 will be an important step in the company's development. But what happens next? Now that the first heroic pioneering steps have been taken, what kind of future can we predict for this new and different way of making films? Antoine Cayrol isn't worried about the future. According to him, the history of our relationship with screens follows one simple rule: every new technological development brings us a little bit closer to the screen. "First it was cinema, then television, and finally smartphones," he explains, "Helmets are a logical next step." Bjork in your living room For now, according to Cayrol, works of fiction won't be the biggest attraction. Instead the producer is betting, for the next few years at least, on music. More and more concerts and music videos, such as Bjork's, are being released as 360 videos. Cayrol also expects another major area of development to be the advertising sector. Luxury brands, especially high-end cars, are already showing interest. Bjork - Stonemilker (in 360) Long-term, he predicts that by 2020 immersive videos will be everywhere, and people will be using them regularly. The film industry itself is beginning to show real, if reserved, interest in this new type of cinema. "It's still in the early stages," he notes, "But American filmmakers like Spielberg have begun investing in the sector in case it proves to be successful." In fact, the first cinema equipped with helmets has just opened in Los Angeles. Though the producer doesn't necessarily connect immersive cinema's future with helmets. Other equipment could eventually create a more pleasant and efficient experience. As an example, he mentions Microsoft's Hololens, which is meant, among other things, to convert any living room into nothing less than a 360 cinema. For now, there is no guarantee that hanging out with holograms in the sitting room will soon be a part of our daily lives. People may get tired of such a "disruptive" technology, producers may not be able to sustain current growth patterns, or perhaps new technological breakthroughs will come along to take immersive cinema's place in the spotlight. But to our surprise and delight, the laws of innovation and commercial success it has brought to light keep on being out of this world. Story by Quetzalcoatl Translated from 2020, l'odyssee du cinema immersif ? Cafebabel's birthday bash: 15 years of Europe in Real Life Published on February 8, 2016 Story by Alexandre Heully en fr pl de es it This month, cafebabel turns 15. Our director reflects on a decade and a half of nostalgia typing on an old-fashioned computer and dressed in a snazzy cafebabel t-shirt and comes to the conclusion that we couldnt have done it without all of you. In 2001, a team of Erasmus students hoped to dream big: they were moved to create the first European media. It was long before the era of Facebook, back when emails were only checked twice a week. In room number 304 of the Institut dEtudes politiques in Strasbourg, after several hours spent struggling with Dreamweaver, we hit the final enter key of an oversized computer and brought cafebabel to life. A dozen articles were published in 4 languages. It feels good to remember the old good days when cafebabel was a student project, that today has turned into a professional website. Back in 2003 I created, along with Adriano Farano and Simon Loubris, the first professional newsroom in Paris, which is known today by all Babelians under the not-so-cute name of La RCE (Redaction centrale europeenne). Today, we are still in Paris (though not in the same office), and rely on a team of 12 full time staff, sporting nifty corporate t-shirts on big occasions. We started work in 4 languages French, Italian, Spanish and English you read that right, there was no German! It was 2004 before we expanded to include it as a fifth language (endlich!), shortly followed by a Catalan version (unfortunately suspended in 2008), and finally a Polish version in 2006. Cafebabel the story of a European media expanding thanks to a vivid network of (nowadays) 20 local teams across Europe. From Seville to Vilnius, from Brussels to Istanbul; we now count 1,500 contributors and publish almost 4,000 articles per year! Of course, this would NEVER have been possible without the commitment of an amazing network of volunteers from all over Europe and beyond. Translators, authors, photographers, filmmakers, local team members, staff and friends you made cafebabel what it is today! For our 15th anniversary, we are preparing some surprises: a gonzo video guiding you through the history of the cafebabel adventure, and the launch of a crowdfunding campaign for a book (a real book! Made of paper and everything!), which gathers the best feature reports and photography ever published on cafebabel, whilst reflecting on the vision of the Erasmus generation over the last 15 years. So happy 15th anniversary to our contributors and to our readers! And happy birthday cafebabel! Story by Alexandre Heully Could same-sex marriage become illegal in Switzerland? Published on February 4, 2016 Story by Fiona Guitard Translation by: eri en fr it es de pl The Swiss media have barely begun discussing it, but an initiative by the Christian Democratic Peoples Party seeks to outlaw marriage equality. Outside a cafe in Pariss 5th arrondissement, Charlotte (22), drinks a strong espresso, "bien serre" just the way she likes it. It has now been two years since she came to Paris to study Humanities. Why France? "Im a lesbian," she replies, "and I wanted to live my life away from the watchful eye of my family." Even though her parents have accepted her sexuality, Charlotte "like all young girls" wanted to discover herself far away from home. She remembers following the French debates on marriage equality in 2013: "The discussion was unprecedentedly ferocious," she recalls. In Switzerland in the same year, the Christian Democratic Peoples Party (PDC) launched a popular initiative entitled: For Couples and the Family No to Marriage Penalisation. It will go to vote on the 28th of February 2016. The initiative aims to end the imposition of higher taxes on some married and cohabiting couples while also defining marriage within the constitution as a "union between a man and a woman". Charlotte is incensed, and wonders if she will even return to her home country. "There is of course a taxation problem which needs to be dealt with," she admits, "But they want to stop gay, lesbian and trans people from marrying. Its serious because once it's in the constitution, thats bye-bye to my rights." Married couples and couples in civil partnerships since 2007 referred to in this proposal have been wringing their hands over tax penalisation. In Switzerland, married and registered couples effectively pay more tax and get smaller pensions than couples who simply live together. This is the main reason given by the PDC for launching the initiative, which would affect 80,000 couples, roughly 2% of the Swiss population. But to achieve their goal, the PDC also proposes defining marriage in the constitution as "the stable union between a man and a woman" in effect excluding same-sex couples. Citizens caught out? Little attention has been paid to the upcoming vote, in spite of warnings by LGBTI groups concerning the definition of marriage in the text of the initiative. But a poll conducted by gfs.bern for the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation and published on the 22nd of January showed that Swiss people support the PDC initiative as a whole. The poll aroused the political conscience of Didier Bonny, member of the Pro Aequalitate organisation: "When you see the name of the initiative, of course you want to vote in favour. On closer examination, theres a discrimination problem, and also a financial one because this initiative would be expensive for Switzerland." Bonny also mentions this in a piece republished on the website of the 360 organisation the initiative would cost 4 billion Swiss francs a year, of which 2 billion would come from community funds. The results of the poll have the political class worried, to the point of bringing the right and the left together on the issue. Bonny explains: "The Socialist Party of Switzerland and the Greens support the LGBTI community, as do the Radical Liberal Party and the Liberal Greens, who are on the right of the spectrum." They not only support the idea of individual rather than joint taxation, but they also want to reject discrimination towards same-sex couples. A joint press conference was set for the 27th of January to call for a "no" vote to the PDC initiative. If it is rejected, Bonny will be left wondering if "people voted for marriage equality, for individual taxation, or for both." But for this member of the Pro Aequalitate organisation, the most important thing is that citizens reject the initiative, no matter what their motivations are. Pro Aequalitate was founded on the 19th of August 2015, with the goal of shedding light on all referenda that affect LGBTI issues including informing the public on the content of the PDC initiative. The group has begun a "road tour" called Moving Forward Together a "no" campaign against the PDC initiative. The idea is to tour Switzerland in order to meet with citizens and inform them of the proposal. It began in the week starting the 11th of January 2016 in eastern Switzerland. After passing through Bern on the 30th of January, the "road tour" will continue on to Bienne on the 4th of February, Neuchatel on the 11th of February and Lausanne on the 13th of February, before finishing in Geneva on the 20th eight days before the vote. A "World First" If the PDC initiative is voted in, it will contradict article 8 of the Swiss Constitution, which forbids discrimination "based on lifestyle". Back in 2007, a civil partnership law called PEPS (offering more rights than the French equivalent, PACS, but not available to heterosexual couples) came into force following a 58% approval in a 2005 referendum. Switzerland became the first country in the world where the people formally recognised gay couples. Even though the State Council's Commission on Judicial Affairs gave its approval on the 1st of September 2015 for extending civil marriage to gay couples, with seven votes to five (with one abstention), a vote in favour of the PDC initiative would push marriage equality out of reach for several years. The initiative, which has been condemned by Amnesty International, will be decided upon at the end of the month. If Swiss citizens vote for the initiative, the country would become, as Bonny notes, "The first in Western Europe to adopt a law prohibiting equal marriage." Story by Fiona Guitard Translated from Le mariage gay illegal ? La Suisse joue la montre Your RSS feed from RSSFWD.com. Update your RSS... Caller-Times file The Bay Education Center will host a lecture on what residents can do to keep Aransas County clean by Diane Probst from noon to 1 p.m. Friday at 121 Seabreeze Drive, Rockport. SHARE THURSDAY LECTURE: The Marine Science Education Center will host a lecture entitled "Save the ... sharks" by Dr. Greg Stunz from the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies at 855 E. Cotter Ave., Port Aransas. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the lectures begin at 7 p.m. Cost: Free Information: 361-749-6805. FRIDAY PERFORMING ARTS: Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi will host its Soprano and the Sacred Ensemble at 7:30 p.m. Friday in the Performing Art Center. Cost: $10, adults; $5, children and students with an ID. Information: 361-825-2787. LECTURE: The Bay Education Center will host a lecture on what residents can do to keep Aransas County clean by Diane Probst from noon to 1 p.m. at 121 Seabreeze Drive, Rockport. Cost: Free Information: 361-749-3152. AWARENESS: The American Heart Association's National Go Red for Women Health Fair will be from 9 a.m. to noon Friday at 1702 Horne Road. Cost: Free. Information: 361-826-7267. For more events check Caller.com/vivacc The Golden Dome Drive-In at Lexington Boulevard and Moravian Street, seen here in December 1964, was topped by a fiberglass reinforced plastic dome that measured 28 feet in diameter and 8.5 feet tall at its peak. SHARE By Allison Ehrlich of the Caller-Times Did you ever treat yourself to a delicious, charbroiled Domeburger for 45 cents? This photo from December 1964 shows the Golden Dome Drive-In shortly after the second location for the local franchise opened at Lexington Boulevard and Moravian Street. If that location doesn't sound familiar, Lexington is now known as South Padre Island Drive. The original Golden Dome Drive-In opened in October 1963 at 10302 Leopard St. The dome on the Lexington location was built by Bott Engineering Co. of Mathis. It measured 28 feet in diameter and rose 8.5 feet at its peak. Constructed of fiberglass reinforced plastic three-sixteenths of an inch thick, the dome was entirely self-supporting with no interior framework. In an article, Winston Bott explained to Caller-Times reporter Grady Phelps how the dome consisted of 12 pie-shaped segments molded together at the edges with narrow plastic ribs. The structure's only steel component were the bolts used to align the ribs during construction and to fasten the dome to the drive-in's roof deck. Bott explained his company had no actual factory or shop, rather the dome was fabricated in authentic South Texas fashion "out under a mesquite tree." The Golden Dome chain didn't last long or expand beyond the two locations. The last mention I could find of the Golden Dome was in the 1969 city directory; by 1971 Snapka's had restaurants at both locations. Allison Ehrlich is the archive coordinator for the Caller-Times. Contact her at allison.ehrlich@caller.com and follow her on Twitter @CallerArchives. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times Melissa Garza (left) and Melinda Hernandez join parents and educators from the Bishop Consolidated Independent School District in preparing for the spirit competition at the 31st annual Parent Involvement Conference at the Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairground in Robstown on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. SHARE Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times The West Oso Independent School District mascot gets parents and educators riled up as they prepare for the spirit competition at the 31st annual Parent Involvement Conference at the Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairground in Robstown on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times Parents and educators from the Bishop Consolidated Independent School District prepare for the spirit competition at the 31st annual Parent Involvement Conference at the Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairground in Robstown on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. Rachel Denny Clow/Caller-Times Donna Valdez takes a photograph with a Mardi Gras cutout while attending the 31st annual Parent Involvement Conference at the Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairground in Robstown on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. Related Photos Parents and educators show spirit at annual conference By Beatriz Alvarado of the Caller-Times Author, trainer, and motivational speaker Mychal Wynn asked 745 parents to tape a list of colleges to their refrigerators. It's a tactic he advised the group to use to make academic goals a part of daily living. "If you're sitting here and you know your child needs a full scholarship for college, make that your No. 1 household priority," Wynn said to the audience of the 31st annual Parent Involvement Conference "Unmasking Barriers = Student Success." Hosted by the Education Service Center Region 2 and the Robstown Independent School District, the conference this year saw a record turnout of parents and educators from 28 area school districts, said Cindy Ferdin with the service center. This year's attendance was more than triple the attendance at the first event. Clad in Mardi Gras-themed props and attire, attendees filled the Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairground in Robstown and heard speakers address topics relevant to a parent's role in enabling their child's success. The group learned basics of embracing their children's talents to seek scholarships, instilling respect at a young age, planning for life after high school and changes at schools prompted by a new state law regarding attendance requirements. Ferdin said parents from all districts in the ESC-Region 2 voted on the topics covered during the conference. Parents from Premont ISD, a rural district that's been threatened with closure twice in less than 5 years, and Flour Bluff ISD, a Corpus Christi district with a reputation of academic achievement, sat at tables inches from one another. Both groups chanted equally as loud when Wynn asked the crowd to repeat inspirational phrases to embody the lessons. "The overall concept here is every child needs a plan," he said. One of Premont ISD's 56 parents who attended the conference, Clarissa Cantu, said her role as a parent and how it will contribute to the fate of the district became clearer during the conference. "Learning the new truancy rules was the most helpful," she said. "We're battling (the Texas Education Agency) right now and truancy is a big thing in our schools." Robstown ISD parent involvement coordinator Ruben Sanchez said the conference is a valuable tool for parents to educate themselves on current education issues. "Where else can we take parents to a conference for $40?" he said. Twitter: @CallerBetty Here's why the Nueces County judge race is one to watch Here's everything you need to know about Nueces County's top race, including the candidates and their top campaign funders. SHARE The city has invested two years and nearly $1 million in developing the master plan known as PlanCC 2035. The process has been hyper-public, with numerous hearings and opportunities for the public to comment, which the public has done voluminously. In December, At-large City Councilman Chad Magill, who has been a critic of PlanCC 2035, having called it an attempt to "recreate society," submitted an alternative that he has dubbed PlanCC 2036 and declared to be a reasonable compromise. We'll get to that. First let's consider that as recently as last week, some of Magill's fellow council members said they hadn't been aware of PlanCC 2036, which incorporates elements of PlanCC 2035 into the current plan that dates back to 1987. Magill can claim correctly that in addition to entering his plan into the public record at City Hall, he has shared it on his website and at meetings of groups and associations and that he brought three council colleagues to at least one of those meetings. That's not a council quorum and therefore is legal by a margin of one council member. But not everyone has time to monitor Magill's website and invitation-only lunch engagements, not even other council members. The upshot is that there's a transparency issue here. Who collaborated with Magill on PlanCC 2036? The council members he didn't consult have a right to know. So does the public. The public also had a right to see the sausage being made. The council-manager form of government is a process and Magill looped around it "looped around" being a nicer way of saying circumvented. Why say it the nicer way? Because what Magill did isn't exactly a hanging offense. It isn't even illegal. But it is becoming a pattern of behavior reminiscent of his eleventh-hour attempt to rescind the street maintenance fee when the budget deadline loomed. That said, let's set Magill's methodology aside for the moment without condoning it. The council members he left out of his loop should vet rather than vilify PlanCC 2036 not just because he has the votes to override their objections, but to see if it has merit. Good-faith or not, he tried to address concerns about PlanCC 2035 some of them not his alone. PlanCC 2035 envisions a few things that make Magill uneasy. They range from higher-than-minimum standards for clean water to underground electric lines instead of power poles to encouragement of fewer single-occupancy motor vehicle trips to providing all residents the opportunity to learn to swim. Those examples, minus context, could be viewed as overly active government at its touchy-feeliest. They also would make Corpus Christi a healthier, safer, prettier, better city. The main objection to PlanCC 2035 came from developers who feared that it would discourage or even stop the residential growth pattern of the past 40 or more years. However, at the end of the two-year process and before Magill submitted PlanCC 2036 city officials heard from key developers that their initial concerns about PlanCC 2035 had been addressed. So, PlanCC 2035 in its current form already is what Magill claims his plan to be a reasonable compromise. Growth is supposed to sustain a city by generating the tax and fee revenue that pays for infrastructure and services. And yet, for the past 30 years, the opposite has happened. The growth pattern has worn out the city's infrastructure, most noticeably its streets, and stretched services thin. And contrary to what some critics of city government like to say, the shortage of funding for streets can't all be blamed on the cost to build American Bank Center and Whataburger Field. They're like a bucket of water vs. the bay. So, as the council and Planning Commission move forward with PlanCC, never mind who gets to play the hero. The final document, whether it's PlanCC 2035, 2036 or PlanCC End Of Days, needs to make sure of two things that we don't kill growth and, just as importantly, that growth doesn't kill us. SHARE Charles Alexander 'Semper fi' to an old friend Jimmy Canales' letter in Tuesday's paper expressed, so well, what an awful lot of folks in this community must have been thinking ("Hero laid to rest). Adan Alaniz retired after 21 years from the U.S. Marine Corps as a first sergeant and went on to serve this community and all of South Texas for the next 28 years with the VA. He was also a very active member of Masonic Lodge 189. In 1959 as a Navy hospital corpsman I was at Camp Pendleton and met Adan when we both were assigned to 7th Motors. He was one of the sharpest Marines I had encountered. From his well pressed uniform to his well shined shoes he set a wonderful example for all that came in contact with him. He was soon transferred to the 11th Marines Drum and Bugle Corps and was a sight to behold out in front with a baton that was almost bigger than he was. Many years later after I was sent to Naval Hospital Corpus Christi our paths crossed again. It was so good to see him again and to know him through the VA and the Masonic Lodge. Semper Fi, old friend. After years of scientific monitoring of volcanic activities under the lakes, Japanese experts are handing over to their Cameroonian counterparts. ADS After spending over FCFA 1,380 billion since 2011 in monitoring volcanic activities in Lakes Monoun in Noun Division of the West Region and Nyos in Menchum Division of North West Region, the Japanese International Cooperation Agency, JICA, will as from next April hand over to Cameroonian scientists. In effect, monitoring of the two lakes dates back to 1986 after the Lake Nyos Gas Disaster. Briefing the media in Yaounde yesterday, February 2, 2016, in preparation for a press trip to Lake Nyos, Prof. Minoru Kusakabe of Toyama University, Japan, said nine Cameroonian scientists from the Institute of Mining and Geological Research, IRGM, have received training in Japan up to PhD level to continue with the project. Similarly, the Cameroonian government will henceforth source for funding for the project; instead of JICA providing the funds as has been the case in the past. Other outcomes of 30 years of monitoring the two volcanic lakes include transfer of knowledge and techniques for lake monitoring, passing on of knowledge and understanding of automatic monitoring systems, hydrological and microbiological assessment of ground water and the organisation of several workshops. As a measure to ensure proper take-over of the Magmatic Fluid Supply Into Lakes Nyos and Monoun and Mitigation of Natural Disasters Through Capacity-building, or SATREPS NyMo Project, an international conference on volcanic lakes will be organised in Yaounde next month. According to Prof. Kusakabe, the objective is to evaluate 30 years of monitoring volcanic activities in the two lakes. At least 40 to 50 international experts are expected at the conference. It will be recalled that the August 21, 1986 Gas Disaster in Lake Nyos killed 1,746 people, displaced 3,500 others and destroyed over 8,000 livestock. Earlier on August 15, 1984 at Lake Monoun, a similar disaster caused the death of 37 people. Contrary to rumours that were peddled at the time, the sudden release of gas from the lakes was caused by the gradual accumulation of magmatic CO2 in deep waters. Scientists though acknowledge that both disasters were rare natural phenomena as nothing like that had happened before. ADS Results of an independent project carried out by a private consulting firm were presented on February 2, 2016. ADS Amongst the State-owned Universities in the country, the University of Yaounde II, Soa has been ranked as the first public institution of higher learning in the country that provides quality professional training to its students. The revelation was made yesterday, February 2, 2016 during the presentation of a project carried out by a private consulting firm; Chaning Consulting and Services, on the Independent Ranking of Institutions of Professional Learning in the public and private sectors. The Universities of Dschang and Buea were second and third respectively. The ranking was based on the perception of users such as corporate executives, chiefs of services who do not only employ graduates from these institutions but also work with them on a daily basis. Through a survey, some 1,773 operational managers from 1,090 private and public companies in all the ten regions of the country answered questions on which institution offers the best training in various domains such as banking, Journalism, Medicine and Human Sciences, Human Resources, Secretariat, Language, Management, Law, Petroleum, Insurance, Public Works, Arts, Audio-Visual and Cinema, Education, Accounting and Environment. The Director General of Chaning Consulting and Services, Charles Mboningn who is also the coordinator of the project said a research team of 79 experts worked to classify 264 professional institutions in 25 fields of studies. The Minister of Higher Education, Professor Jacques Fame Ndongo said the initiative was laudable because the ranking of performance of graduate from institutions will not only urge schools to improve on their curricula, but also on their method of teaching. Jacques Fame Ndongo said such a project calls for competition amongst higher professional institutions thereby ensuring quality training in relation with the job market. A project like this, the Minister of Higher Education said, is important for the education system because it will promote excellence as prescribed by the Head of State. Although the project may call for criticism, especially as some private institutions rank above public institutions in certain domains, one of the experts of the project, Professor P. K. Titanji said it is a springboard of competition which will lead to efficiency. ADS "We have met the enemy, and he is us." - Pogo | BY Ricki Green | Experiential agency, Carrspace has recently partnered with 360fly, a brand thats creating an entirely new way to capture, share and enjoy the world. 360fly is the worlds first 360o single lens video camera that enables users to capture every moment, from every angle, all at once and at the single touch of a button. Taking the idea of immersive video to a whole new level, 360fly turns peoples activities whether extreme or everyday into something people can relive again and again, flicking between viewpoints to make sure they dont miss a thing. To help support its push into the Australian market and showcase what the technology can do, Carrspace was tasked with creating an engaging Virtual Reality point of sale display for the launch retailers across the country. The units had to be modular, have a minimal footprint, stand out in a busy retail environment and importantly, sell the 360fly story without the need for sales staff. Adapting concept drawings of a prototype unit in the USA, Carrspace called upon its diverse skillsets as well as its proven relationships with technology and fabrication partners to design, build and install the units nationwide. The reaction to the interactive display has been immediate, with retailers loving the striking design and, in a number of cases, moving a much better-known competitor product to a less trafficked part of the store to make room for it. | BY Ricki Green | AdFest has announce that Ben Welsh, creative chairman of M&C Saatchi Asia, is joining this years festival to present a session titled: Innovation & Creativity and why Asia is well placed to excel. Welsh will kick off his session by explaining the success of Clever Buoy, a shark-detection device created for Optus by M&C Saatchi in Sydney, which has taken the world by storm. With two more innovations in production, Welsh believes agencies are now delving into new territory as innovators, not just creators. Says Welsh: I dont work in tech, nor venture capital, R&D or anything like that. I work in an advertising agency. So how come an advertising agency is rated one of Australias most innovative companies? In my talk I will ponder the relationship between innovation and creativity, what they have in common and where they differ. Ill talk about the work we have been doing at M&C Saatchi to illustrate these points. I used to say creativity and innovation are the same. Now, while I think they have much in common, they are siblings rather than twins same parents, with a lot of similarities but many differences too. I intend to go on to explore innovation in Asia its proud past and exciting future. And, based on my limited experience of the region, Ill stick my neck out and say why Asian agencies are well placed to innovate, despite a few cultural hurdles. Before stepping into a new role as creative chairman of M&C Saatchi Asia last year, Welsh was executive creative director at M&C Saatchi in Sydney, which was voted Australias second most innovative company at the BRW Awards, 2014. At M&C Saatchi, Sydney, he helped the agency win clients, awards, accolades and Agency of The Year titles including back-to-back B&T Agency of The Year titles in 2014 and 2015 and Campaign Asias Australia/NZ Creative Agency of the Year for 2015. Originally a copywriter, Welsh still loves writing, but more often these days hes busy leading, nurturing, defending, advocating and guiding ideas, strategy, the way the region works you name it. Hes judged Cannes, D&AD, LIA and more, and will attend AdFest this year as Jury President, Film Lotus and Radio Lotus. Innovation & Creativity and why Asia is well placed to excel will take place on Friday 18th March 2016 at 4.45pm. | BY Ricki Green | Globally renowned and highly-awarded creative Simon Collins has moved back to Australia to head up the creative capability of 1 Kent Street, a new STW brand, offering a collective of senior professionals able to quickly respond to large-scale and unique briefs. Beginning this week, Collins role will see him work alongside chief strategy officer Rose Herceg, group business director Rob Currie, and other key experts from within the group as and when required. The 1 Kent St collective will work on high-level, complex briefs that require a unique and deep level of engagement, according to STW CEO, Michael Connaghan. The purpose of 1 Kent St is not to replicate anything our existing agencies currently provide, but to help clients who may need a complex, high-level response for a major project or to a business, government or social issue. 1 Kent St is essentially a roving group of executives able to turn their focus to solving these problems, and developing a response in an instant. They are unencumbered with the running of any one specific agency, so they can offer a rare flexibility. As a result, they are able to quickly immerse themselves in developing a solution without disrupting agency workflow and other client demands, he said. Connaghan said Collins 25-year plus creative career, teamed with his local experience and global perspective made him ideal for the role, and to work within the 1 Kent St collective. Simon is an outstanding creative who has an ability to get to the heart of a problem quickly, and develop unique and highly effective creative solutions. Hes also worked with, and helped to develop some of the industrys most talented staff in a range of markets, and will bring a highly desirable combination of quick thinking and solutions-based creativity to the role. As part of his broader remit, Collins is also tasked with mentoring creatives across the group housed within the Kent Street campus* in addition to consulting, assisting with pitches, and developing creative talent. It is not the first time Collins has worked with Connaghan; the two first forged a strong working relationship in 2004 at JWT Australia. Collins said of his move back to Australia and STW: I couldnt pass up the opportunity to work in New York, enjoyed my time in London, but always intended to come back to Australia if the right job was offered, he said. This is that job. I am incredibly excited by the prospect of working with Mike Connaghan again, and with the great team hes assembled at STW. Collins said apart from the opportunity to work with STWs talented pool of creatives, he was also looking forward to the challenge of working within the 1 Kent St collective. I have always believed that every client is unique, and therefore needs a unique response to every problem, he said. Quickly immersing myself in a clients business and getting to the heart of a brief has always been a key part of my approach, which fits perfectly with the 1 Kent St thinking. One of Australias most awarded creatives, Collins was CD of the Campaign Palace in Sydney and Melbourne in the 1990s, before launching his own agency, Collins Thomas Cullen in 2000. The agency was sold to WPP in 2004, and Collins became ECD of JWT Australia (where he first worked with Mike Connaghan). He then moved to New York, where he worked at Y&R as global creative director of New Business. He then became European CD on the Colgate Palmolive business, dividing his time between the NY and Paris offices. He also spent several years at Euro RCG (now Havas) London, where he was global CD on Reckitt Benckiser business, and a key creative in the successful 2010 Conservative general election campaign. During this time he also worked as global CD on Australian Wool Innovation (The Woolmark), creating the global No Finer Feeling campaign which re-launched Australian wool as the most desirable fibre in the international high fashion category. British Prime Minister Liz Truss resigns after six weeks in office Liz Truss lasted 45 days in office as Britain's prime minister, the shortest tenure ever for someone in the position. Latest updates. Bert and Jack Yates serve with the IMB-SBC in Nairobi, Kenya. Jack, whose heart's desire is to equip and teach God's children in Africa to carry out the Great Commission, serves as the Principal of the Kenya Baptist Theological College. Bert serves as the Prayer Networker for the Sub-Saharan African Peoples Affinity, sharing what God is doing in our part of the world and how others can join in His work! Ive been gone a while from the blogging scene. Some of my more regular readers no doubt noticed but did not hassle me about it. Thank you for that. Sinc... 6 years ago The Billings Symphony Orchestra and Chorale invites patrons to take a global musical trip during the Feb. 6 concert at the Alberta Bair Theater, "Around the World and To the Stars." The orchestra will also honor longtime educator and double bass player Richele Sitton with the Award for Excellence in Music Education. The concert, featuring young soloists who are recent winners of a competition presented by the Montana Association of Symphony Orchestras, begins at 7:30 p.m. Concert Cues will begin at 6:45 p.m. The musical travels begin in Spain for the composition "March of the Toreadors" by George Bizet. Then the orchestra takes listeners to Germany with Carl Maria Von Webers "Bassoon Concerto." Then listeners are taken back to the U.S. to witness Samuel Barbers popular "Violin Concerto." Wrapping up the journey, Rimsky-Korsakovs "Scheherazade" will tell the timeless tale of Arabian Nights. "Around the World and To the Stars" will feature the 2015 MASO Youth Competition winners Edin Agamenoni on bassoon and Emily Young on violin. Every two years, Montana students compete for the opportunity to play with Montana Symphony Orchestras and win cash prizes. Agamenoni, the senior division winner, attended high school at CMR in Great Falls. He is currently a freshman at Northwestern Universitys Bienen School of Music, where he is studying bassoon performance with David McGill. Young, the college division winner, is from Bozeman. She is currently studying violin performance and visual art at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. Before the Saturday evening concert, the symphony and chorale, MASO winners and Maestra Anne Harrigan will be traveling to the Laurel High School for a special performance Friday, Feb. 5 beginning at 7 p.m. in the auditorium. This concert has limited seating with a general seating price of $10. Tickets for the school performance are available by phone, 252-3610, or at the door. Sitton, the BSO&Cs orchestra personnel manager, has played with the symphony since she was 14, studying under Mike Peterson, Rebecca Jackman, and last years recipient of the Award for Music Education, Vikki Payne. She took some time away to attend the University of Wyoming, where she received both her bachelor's and master's degree in music education. She started her teaching career in middle school choir 23 years ago and has led the Senior High Orchestra for 17 years. Sitton teaches three high school orchestras, two elementary school string classes and runs the Billings Public Schools String Camp each summer. Sitton also has a small private bass studio. For information on tickets, call the Billings Symphony Orchestra and Chorale, 252-3610, or visit their website at billingssymphony.org. Wednesday, February 3, 2016 at 5:33PM Scion no more: Scion's last concept vehicle shown off at the Detroit Auto Show - Photo By Gadjo Sevilla By Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla Scion, the Toyota sub-brand designed to attract younger buyers will be discontinued. Toyota said it will rebadge three of its 2017 model-year Scions as Toyotas, beginning in August. One model, the tC coupe, will no longer be produced as of that month. Scion debuted in the US in 2003 and was a targeted towards first-time buyers and students. The brand was built on the foundations of Toyota vehicles but offered customization in terms of colour and materials, quirky vehicle styles and youthful advertising campaigns. Scion only came to Canada in 2010, Toyota is scrapping the brand in response to customer needs. While Scion's models did appeal to younger buyers, they did have universal appeal and offered variants that few other carmakers could compete with. Personally, I was impressed by the 2016 Scion iM hatchback which seems to have absorbed some styling cues from Toyota as well as Lexus. Half of Scion buyers were under 35 years of age. And In Canada, nearly two-thirds of Scions sold were bought by customers who'd never bought any Toyota products. "Our goal was to make Toyota and our dealers stronger by learning how to better attract and engage young customers," said Toyota Canada CEO Larry Hutchinson. "This is exactly what we have accomplished." While Scion always struggled with poor sales, the biggest reason for discontinuing the brand is likely that the target audience matured and started buying more mainstream vehicles. Scion, which is only sold in the U.S., Canada and Puerto Rico, has no stand-alone dealerships. The brand is sold through 1,004 Toyota dealerships, which will continue to service the cars and when the current models get a Toyota rebrand later in the year, they will continue to be offered as part of Toyota's portfolio of vehicles. This Canberra premiere production of the Disney stage musical adapted from the animated movie based on Hans Christian Andersen's fairytale tells the story of Ariel (played by Mikayla Williams), a mermaid fascinated by the world above the sea. She falls in love with the human Prince Eric (Tim Dal Cortivo) and seeks the help of the evil sea witch Ursula (Louiza Blomfield) to trade her tail for legs so she can meet him but also loses her voice in the bargain. A Wyoming study attempting to understand the mule deer population decline in the southwestern part of the state has found a new killer of fawns adenovirus hemorrhagic disease, or AHD. AHD is a pretty new discovery, said Samantha Dwinnell, a researcher for the Wyoming Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, during a presentation to the Wyoming Game and Fish Commission last week. Because the discovery is so new, researchers are uncertain how it is affecting the migratory mule deer populations of the Wyoming Range. But of the 52 fawns collared for the study, there were 22 mortalities. Of those, 36 percent of the deaths were attributed to AHD. Twenty-seven percent of the deaths were caused by predators. The diseases presence is not limited to Wyoming. There have been some outbreaks that have occurred throughout the West and in Iowa, Dwinnell said. Population cycles Mule deer populations have always cycled between years of high populations and lows. But in recent decades many of those populations have nosedived across the West and have been slow to recover. Theories about why have ranged from loss of habitat to climate change and competition with other species, like elk and whitetail deer. We find that most of our does are pregnant with two fawns every year, pretty consistently, Dwinnell said. But when we look at fall recruitment we find we are losing about half of the fawns over the summer. So the question we want to address is: Whats killing these fawns? Predators are always the first thing that comes to mind when ungulate populations fall. Wolves were blamed for a decline of elk in the southern Bitterroot Valley, but a Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks study found that mountain lions were a greater threat. Wyoming biologists thought black bear predation of fawns may have been to blame for mule deer declines, but only two of the fawns killed by predators were attributed to black bears. Coyotes were bigger killers. Evidence that AHD is present points to another possible cause that may have gone undocumented. This disease may be more prevalent than we ever knew, Dwinnell said. The mortality rate in the young is about 90 percent and about 20 percent in adults. In Montana Blood samples taken from mule deer in Montana have shown exposure to AHD, but no die-off event has ever been documented, according Jennifer Ramsey, a Fish, Wildlife and Parks veterinarian. But were definitely keeping our eyes open, she added. The public or wardens are often the folks who are first to detect sickly animals, Ramsey said, which should be reported to wildlife officials for testing. Testing an animal that was only recently killed or died is important to detect the cause of infection. We do rely heavily on the public and field personnel when they are out and about, Ramsey said. Dwinnell pointed out that the Wyoming researchers probably wouldnt have detected AHDs presence without its intensive study. Mule deer does were captured, collared and had an intrauterine device inserted in their womb to document birth sites. That allowed the scientists to find newborn fawns and collar them. When the collars emitted a mortality signal, the scientists could arrive quickly to determine the cause of death. If youre not closely following mortality in fawns then you arent going to see it, Dwinnell said. Symptoms The diseases symptoms are similar to more well-known infections in deer and antelope like bluetongue, or pneumonia that infects bighorn sheep. Symptoms may include ulcers and abscesses in the mouth and throat, according to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlifes website. Acute symptoms include rapid or open mouth breathing, foaming or drooling at the mouth, diarrhea (possibly bloody), weakness and copius amounts of fluid in the body cavity. AHD is so virulent that it can kill within three to five days of exposure. The disease was first found in deer in 1993 in Northern California and was blamed for killing thousands of deer in 17 counties. In 2001 it was discovered in blacktail deer in Oregon. In the summer of 2002 AHD was blamed for the deaths of more than 1,000 Oregon deer. Disease by itself generally does not determine mule deer abundance, according to a report from the Western Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies Mule Deer Working Group. Instead, it often takes advantage of animals stressed by other factors like nutritional or mineral imbalances. Rarely do disease outbreaks cause rapid or large-scale mortality in mule deer; most occur as smaller-scale die-offs or reduce productivity, the report added. Managing the outbreak of diseases like AHD are difficult, if not impossible, because of wildlifes free-roaming nature, the WAFWA report said. Preventing disease introduction into susceptible populations is the most efficient and cost-effective method of disease management, it added. Spread of the disease can come from contact with an infected animal, airborne particles or bodily fluids. Consequently, animals that live in close contact, like deer on a winter range or urban deer, may be more susceptible. There have been no reported cases of humans contracting the virus or getting sick from eating the meat of an animal exposed to AHD, according to the Oregon DFW. More research Dwinnells research is part of a larger look at a combination of factors affecting the Wyoming Ranges migratory mule deer population. Another study is looking at habitat on the winter range and how thats been affected by energy development mule deer tend to avoid the areas unless the forage quality is especially attractive. Migration routes and the importance of spring green-up called surfing the green wave is also being examined. So were really hoping to connect the landscape with the animals nutrition and how that affects fawn survival, Dwinnell said. Another year of research would be helpful in providing answers to some of the questions raised about fawn survival and exposure to AHD, Dwinnell said. That would take another $150,000, she told the commissioners, who sounded willing to consider funding an extension of the work. Were just scratching the surface with our findings, she said. Another year of fawn survival data and more analysis to tease apart all of those factors (would be helpful). We should have something pretty comprehensive in two years. Two former Yellowstone County Sheriffs deputies did not act criminally in the shooting death of Loren Simpson last winter, a jury ruled unanimously Wednesday following a two-day coroners inquest. Jason Robinson and Christopher Rudolph were found justified in killing 28-year-old Simpson on Jan. 8, 2015, as Simpson approached them on White Buffalo Road in Huntley driving a Ford Explorer that had been reported stolen. Robinson was training Rudolph who had been a deputy less than five months. Both men resigned from the sheriffs office five days after the shooting. After the verdict, the Simpson family's attorney Nathan Wagner said they respected the jury's verdict, but believed the civil case pending against Yellowstone County in federal court still has merit. "We are confident that the outcome will be different when we are allowed to present the rest of the evidence and cross examine the witnesses at the civil trial," Wagner said. "We look forward to the opportunity to continue pursuing justice for the family." Yellowstone County Sheriff Mike Linder said he was glad for the jury's verdict but could not comment on matters related to the resignation of both deputies due to the active litigation. The inquest, which began Tuesday, was called to determine whether the deputies acted criminally in the shooting. Even with the jurys finding, a decision on any criminal charges will be up to County Attorney Scott Twito. The dash-cam video clearly shows the stolen Ford Explorer approaching the deputies standing near the patrol car they had parked to partially block the road. The deputies yell several times for the driver to stop. Shut it down, one of them yells. Right now, yells the other. The driver veers off the road away from the deputies and into the deep snow as the deputies open fire using a shotgun and an AR-15 rifle. The deputies fired for five seconds. Use-of-force expert and former FBI special Agent Brian Kensel said the deputies fired a total of 54 projectiles in that span. In the days after the shooting, the deputies told investigators they felt threatened by the Explorer coming toward them. Robinson testified Wednesday the angle of the patrol car's dash-cam shows a distorted perception of the incident. Robinson had tears in his eyes as he described the incident. He said he saw snow kick off the Explorers back tires, believing it was accelerating. "I saw the front wheels turn in my direction, Robinson said. At that point, I knew he didnt care he was going through me and he was going to kill me." Robinson said he fired 18 rounds from his AR-15. Two of those rounds hit Simpson, one of them through the Explorers back window and into the back of Simpsons head. The Explorer stopped in the deep snow next to the road. Robinson said he reached for another shell magazine and realized he didn't have one. He then drew his service pistol and approached the car, yelling for the driver to show his hands. At this point, Robinson said he still didn't know who was in the Explorer. "I reached the car. I could see that he was slunk forward. He had blue gloves on his hands. They were on his lap. I could see he wasnt breathing," Robinson said. "It was a cold day and we could all see our breath. There was nothing coming." From the moment Simpson was perceived as a threat, to the moment deputies opened fire was a "blink" of time, Robinson said. Robinson was training Rudolph that day, even though he was not certified for that training. Rudolph said he suggested they bring out their long guns as they drove behind the Ford Explorer. They knew they were going to be conducting a high-risk felony stop, Rudolph said. Rudolph said the two formed a plan fast as they watched the Explorer approach. They had called for back-up from other law enforcement officers, but that assistance hadnt arrived yet, Rudolph testified. He said he was afraid if he tried to back up their patrol car, they would get stuck in the snow. The deputies followed their training, Rudolph said. "We were going to stop that vehicle," he said. The two got out their patrol car and walked toward the approaching car, raising their weapons. In the video, Robinson appears to cross in front of Rudolph at one point, with Rudolph appearing to lower his gun and raise it again to continue firing. Simpson was shot once with a slug from the shotgun and twice with the rifle. The rifle caused the fatal shot, striking Simpson through the back of the head and immediately paralyzing him, according to Thomas Bennett, associate medical examiner for the Montana and Wyoming, who testified Tuesday. A juror Wednesday asked if Robinson would have done anything different that day if he could. "Yeah," Robinson said. "I would have stayed home that day." Kensel, the use-of-force expert, testified the deputies were justified in their actions. He said the only thing that matters in the eyes of the law is that the deputies felt threatened in the moments before they pulled the trigger. Any actions leading up to that moment are a smoke screen distracting them from the matter at hand. Ed Zink, Yellowstone County Deputy Chief of Criminal Litigation, said policing in 2016 is more difficult than it's ever been and this is being reflected not just in Billings and Yellowstone County but nationwide. HARDIN A judge went above the prosecutors recommendation and sentenced Kerstyn Old Bull to 20 years in prison for the death of 6-year-old Kiomora Kiki Hogan. Old Bull, 27 of Hardin, was sentenced Wednesday in front of a packed Big Horn County District Court. The prison term doubles the 10 years recommended brought by County Attorney Gerald Jay Harris, who has been the focus of criticism for amending a count of deliberate homicide for a lesser charge. Old Bulls sentence is the maximum allowed for her convictions of criminal endangerment and obstructing justice, to which Old Bull pleaded guilty in November. Old Bull will not be eligible for parole for 17 years. Big Horn County District Judge Blair Jones spoke at length about the tragic nature of Kiomoras death and said that his role was to provide a measure of justice. Still, Wednesdays sentencing didnt put to rest the questions surrounding Kiomoras death. The why of all this seems disturbingly and unsatisfyingly elusive, Jones said. Old Bull was originally charged with deliberate homicide and accused of beating Kiomora after authorities learned that the girl was found unresponsive on March 3, 2015, and rushed to a hospital in Denver. Medical personnel ruled that Kiomora died of single forceful blow to the head and that there was no medical manner in which this injury could have been inflicted accidentally, according to charging documents. Charges were also brought against Kiomoras father and Old Bulls boyfriend, Clint Hogan, who allegedly waited two hours before contacting authorities. By November, Harris dropped Old Bulls homicide charge in exchange for criminal endangerment. A negligent homicide charge against Hogan had also been dropped in exchange for his testimony at a potential trial for Old Bull. It sparked outrage that continued through Wednesdays hearing. Kiomoras grandmother, Valerie Packs The Hat, stood in front of the courthouse on Wednesday alongside others in protest of the plea deal. Hes not defending my granddaughter, she said of Harris. Its almost like hes defending (Kerstyn). The protesters held signs and solicited honks from passing drivers while sheriffs deputies patrolled the area, cautioning people to stay out of the street. A line formed outside of the small courtroom for Old Bulls sentencing at 1:30 p.m. When the sentence was pronounced, there was applause in the gallery. Harris has been quiet about his motive for amending the homicide charge and for his recommendation of 10 years in prison. But on Wednesday morning he filed a memo, saying that the driving force behind the sentence was the strength of evidence. A murder conviction would have been difficult, he wrote. The memo was careful to point out the language for a criminal endangerment conviction, which doesnt directly link Old Bull to hitting Kiomora. It says instead that Old Bull admitted to causing the victims risk of death. He wrote that the charge fit the evidence, rather than making the evidence fit a homicide charge. Later in the memo, Harris brought up the evidence again. It may never be known what precisely caused this extraordinarily tragic situation, Harris wrote, but the overwhelming strength of evidence shows the defendant was physically present at the time it happened. Elsewhere, he wrote that Kiomoras ultimate death came after the family decided to take the 6-year-old off of life support, leaving an opportunity for a potential juror to wonder whether the girl would have survived otherwise. In the original charging documents, the nature of the trauma was labeled a homicide, and law enforcement believed Old Bull was the only one watching Kiomora at the time of her injury. But the circumstances surrounding that night are still unclear. In a separate memo, defense attorney Clark Matthews disputed the story that Hogan had gone out to the store on the night of the incident and returned later to find his daughter unresponsive. Hogan's charging documents accused him of waiting two hours while his daughter injured daughter was nearby, but Matthews said that his testimony would have been unreliable. After accepting a plea deal, Hogan is now expected to plead guilty to a felony charge of obstructing justice later this month, Harris said. Harris said after the hearing Wednesday that his work was limited to the evidence provided. During the hearing, Judge Jones pushed past the murky details. The incontrovertible fact is that Kiki has died, and the court has to factor that into its judgment today, he said. The 20-year sentence amounts to two consecutive 10-year terms for each count. Old Bull was ordered to pay restitution to Kiomoras family for funeral and travel costs. The exact figure was not available at the hearing, Harris said, but it will be at least $5,000. Jones also spoke about evidence of habitual abuse against Kiomora. Initial investigators found new and old bruises on the 6-year-olds body. Harris acknowledged this and said that those investigations were not over. Its been my goal from the beginning to account all known and provable instances of criminal conduct, he said. [Your Business Name] Contact Info Phone: Fax: Email: Web: CAPITOLHILLCUBANS.COM Business Overview Geographic Area Line of Business Brands We Carry Products and Services Discounts Offered Additional Information Business Hours Timezone We Accept Three college students who first met while attending a Catholic high school in Florida have launched a scholarship fund to help others experience faithful Catholic education at a Newman Guide college. As we went off to different colleges, we kept in touch and found time to catch up whenever we returned [] Our Promise: Welcome to Care2, the world's largest community for good. Here, you'll find over 45 million like-minded people working towards progress, kindness, and lasting impact. Care2 Stands Against: bigots, racists, bullies, science deniers, misogynists, gun lobbyists, xenophobes, the willfully ignorant, animal abusers, frackers, and other mean people. If you find yourself aligning with any of those folks, you can move along, nothing to see here. Care2 Stands With: humanitarians, animal lovers, feminists, rabble-rousers, nature-buffs, creatives, the naturally curious, and people who really love to do the right thing. You are our people. You Care. We Care2. The University of Cambridge re-introduces the written entrance test for admissions from the academic year 2017. Students who are willing to join the premier British institution will have to take the admission test along with the interview. The entrance exams at the Cambridge University was discontinued during the 1980's. The reintroduction of the entrance test for admission process will make the Cambridge University in line with the Oxford University. Study Abroad UK The university's director of admissions, Dr. Sam Lucy, informed all major schools and colleges of the UK of the change in the admission process through a letter. "The colleges of the University of Cambridge are introducing a system of common format written assessments for applicants, specifically tailored to each subject. This will provide admission tutors with valuable additional evidence of our applicants' academic abilities, knowledge base and potential to succeed in the Cambridge course for which they have applied," she wrote. "This move is a result of responding to teacher and student feedback, a desire to harmonise and simplify our existing use of written assessments and a need to develop new ways to maintain the effectiveness and fairness of our admissions system during ongoing qualification reform," she added. The written entrance tests will begin from November this year, students will have to take up a pre-interview test or a test at the interview depending upon the course they apply for. The pre-interview tests will be held at individual schools and colleges on the same day as the University of Oxford's pre-interview tests, to facilitate their administration by all schools and colleges. The at-interview tests will be conducted during the December interview period on the university premises, usually on the same day as the interviews. How to Crack the Entrance Exam Interview? The university says no advance preparation will be needed, "other than revision of relevant recent subject knowledge where appropriate". Most at-interview assessments will be an hour long and most pre-interview assessments will be no longer than two hours. Courses that have pre-interview written tests include medicine, economics, engineering, English, history and natural sciences. Courses with at-interview written tests include computer science, architecture, archeology, law and philosophy, among others. Also read: Applications are invited by Jharkhand Public Service Commission. JPSC is looking out for 24 Food Safety Officer Post. Details of the this recruitment is listed below. Notification details Notification No. : 01/2016 Name of the post and Number of posts allocated Food Safety Officer: 24 Who is Eligible for the Food Safety Officer Post? Candidates interested to apply for the above post must be qualified as per the organisations requirement. Qualification becomes manadatory to test the skills and their perseverance in doing a certain job. A Degree from a Recognized University. To know more about the required qualification in detail log on to this organisations website. Age Limit: 21 years. How to Apply for Food Safety Officer post? Candidates who are interested in the above mentioned job can apply to the post through the prescribed formats. Do not forget to send the applications along with other necessary documents. Admit Card, Result and all other details of the JPSC and be found from the official website. What are the Important Dates Associated with job/post? Last Date to Apply: 16 February 2016. ROUNDUP Roundup residents had no shortage of suggestions for cutting Montana regulations as they met Thursday morning with Greg Gianforte, GOP candidate for governor. State taxes on Social Security, reforms to Fish Wildlife and Parks and tougher minimum wage requirements were on the minds of a dozen people at the first stop of Gianforte's "Regulation Roundup Tour." Gianforte scheduled similar Thursday meetings in Two Dot, Ryegate, White Sulphur Springs and Livingston. "As I talk to small business people, there's a lot of regulations that get in the way of them thriving," Gianforte said. "I'm a firm believer in jobs and opportunity only being created in the private sector. I'm a private business guy myself." Gianforte created RightNow Technologies, a customer service software firm in Bozeman that Gianforte launched in his home 20 years ago. The business grew to roughly 1,000 employees and eventually sold for $1.8 billion to Oracle, which still operates from RightNow's Bozeman campus. Packed into the back dining area of the Busy Bee Cafe, area residents filled out index cards with information about changes to state government they'd like to see. Gianforte vowed to post the recommendations online at RegulationRoundup.com, where the public will be allowed to vote for which reforms they prefer. Montana income taxes on Social Security have to go, recommended senior Ed Raastad, a retired law enforcement worker. "Most people collecting Social Security are retired. They as a group place the least demand on public services. They don't generate the trash, they don't have kids in school, they don't require law enforcement," Raastad said. "And Montana is one of only a couple of three states in the country that taxes Social Security. I'd like to see some thought to making Social Security exempt. Also...." Gianforte handed Raastad a pen and paper as the retiree formulated a second recommendation. "You need a number of cards, sir," the candidate said, presenting Raastad a few cards to get going. Montana's Fish, Wildlife and Parks could use a regulation haircut, said Gary Eliasson, whose farm community lost its irrigation diversion dam during flooding in 2011. The dam, which had provided gravity-fed irrigation water to several farms for more than 100 years, couldn't be replaced because FWP and the Department of Environmental Quality objected, Eliasson said. "It was originally built in 1892. So it predated most of our government agencies, that's for sure," Eliasson said. "Where we ran into a brick wall was with two Montana agencies, DEQ and mainly the Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. And they basically stopped us. They would just absolutely not allow us to put that diversion dam back in." Gianforte said there are good people in government who have poor leadership. "Anytime you don't identify the noble purpose in your work, why you exist, you end up starting to hide behind a rule book and you create a reason to exist," Gianforte said. Busy Bee owner MaryAnn Petrie discouraged Gianforte from supporting an increase in the minimum wage as governor. Petrie said she bases worker pay on skills provided and a minimum wage increase would drive up costs unnecessarily. "I believe competitiveness in the workforce brings good people into your employment," Petrie said. Gianforte said the burden of higher minimum wages on employers would mean fewer jobs, not more, because of cost. "We need to create jobs that warrant higher wages," Gianforte said. "Legislating higher wages actually reduces employment opportunities for people. So I would be opposed to an increase in the minimum wage. I'm a big fan of increased education, increased skills, so people can earn more." HELENA Backers of a ballot measure to expand rights for crime victims and their families say they have enough signatures to put the Marsy's Law initiative before voters in November. Montana is one several states where national victims' rights advocates hope to build momentum for expanding the measure into more states. In 2008, voters in California were the first to pass the law. A similar measure went into effect in Illinois last year. And efforts are now also underway in Georgia, Hawaii, Kentucky, Nevada, North Dakota and South Dakota. The law is in honor of Marsalee "Marsy" Nicholas, a University of California, Santa Barbara, student who was stalked and killed in 1983 by a former boyfriend. The national effort is bankrolled by her brother, high tech billionaire Henry Nicholas. Just a week after the college student was murdered, Henry Nicholas and his mother crossed paths with the suspect while in a grocery store. They were never informed that authorities had released the suspect on bail. The law would amend the state constitution to require prosecutors to inform victims or their families of key developments in a case and accord them the right to be heard in proceedings. "The criminal justice system can get confusing, and sometimes victims feel left out. And sometimes they are left out," said Derek VanLuchene, a former Montana law officer, whose 8-year-old brother Ryan was killed in 1987. "Back then, there was no such thing as victims' rights. ... We were in the dark on what's going on," said VanLuchene, who was 17 at the time of his brother's disappearance and who later founded Ryan United, a victims' rights group based in Helena. National organizers are targeting 18 states that they say have inadequate laws to protect victims and their families. "Victims of crime do not have equal rights to those accused or convicted of crime," said Gail Gitcho, the spokeswoman for the national group, Marsy's Law for All. "Criminals have more rights than victims do, and that's unfair, not right and we're working to change it." National organizers say many of the states targeted by the Marsy's Law campaign are smaller and cost less to get measures on the ballot. They are also cheaper media markets in which to wage campaigns. In Montana, organizers expressed confidence that they have the minimum number of signatures required 48,349 collected across 40 legislative districts to place the measure on the ballot, said Charles Denowh, who is leading the ballot drive in Montana. He said many counties in Montana already do a good job in keeping victims and their families in the loop. Marsy's Law, he said, would require every county to extend rights and courtesies to victims of crime. Gallatin County Attorney Marty Lambert said laws already exist in Montana to protect victims of violent crime. He worries that expanding the law to misdemeanors and nonviolent offenses, as he said Marsy's Law would do, could further burden overstretched staffs. "We do not have time and the staff for every single theft case to afford the rights that are set forth in Marsy's Law," he said. "We do not have the sufficient resources to implement the requirements of the law." At a reception Wednesday after an all-schools Mass and annual awards ceremony, at which four people were recognized for their work with Billings Catholic Schools, one bespectacled face was notably absent. Dr. Craig Pierson, a Central High chemistry teacher and the 2016 Billings Catholic Schools Educator of the Year, was already back at work in his second-floor classroom. He was packing for the schools Discovery Night, an open house for prospective students and their families scheduled to take place that night in the gym. He just takes it on himself to do whatever needs to be done, Billings Catholic Schools President Shaun Harrington said. Hes the spirit of Billings Catholic Schools. When asked about his display, Pierson slipped naturally into educator mode while pulling out bottles of gasoline, alcohol and water, followed by chemistry models, a strip of rabbit fur and a metal rod. After setting up the bottles to release their liquid in a vertical stream, Pierson intended to rub the metal rod on the rabbit fur, creating a positive charge that would pull liquids with oxygen molecules, like alcohol and water, toward the rod and elicit no reaction from substances without, like gasoline. Pierson called it chemistry magic, but its not magic that his students mentioned when asked about the person who had received the loudest cheers earlier. Senior Jade Harrison had Pierson for seventh period chemistry when she was a freshman. Hes super fasciniating and enthusiastic with every subject he lectures about, Harrison said, recalling how Pierson would break out class with a cheer of Go Rams chem seven. Nels Mork, a junior in Piersons Advanced Placement chemistry class also noted Piersons energy. He really loves his subject, and he shows that in his teaching." Pierson began as a substitute teacher in School District 2 before other educators encouraged him to get his masters in education at Montana State University Billings. For 15 years now, he's taught at Central High. Pierson also holds a Ph.D. in chemistry from Pennsylvania State University and a bachelors degree in chemistry from the University of Montana. He said watching students grow, including those who struggle with chemistry, keeps him excited and committed to education. And the students notice. When they see someone work that hard for them, they appreciate it, Harrington said. Does anybody find the irony in a Miami police officer clashing with a plainclothes internal affairs lieutenant who was initially pulled over for speeding, and briefly arrested for shoving the door on the cop, who was then suspended for secretly recording the incident on his personal GoPro camera? Oh, yes you do The story and the video footage was first shared on the Crespogram blog , which said the incident occurred last month outside a gas station on Flagler Street and 18th Avenue, when Miami police officer Marcel Jackson stopped Lieutenant David Ramras from Internal Affairs. As it turned out, Ramras was from the same department as Officer Jackson, but the cop did not know that at the time he stopped him. After pulling over Ramras, who was not in uniform and was driving an unmarked Chevrolet sedan, we see Jackson in the video asking for his drivers license. The man appears to refuse and then pushes his door open, at which point, an altercation ensued, which ended with Jackson throwing Ramras down to the ground. Amazingly, only a couple seconds later, three squad cars appear to help the cop. In the video footage, we hear Ramras getting up and yelling, You do know who the fk I am, to which Jackson responds, No, I dont,. While Miami patrol cars do not carry dashboard cameras on their vehicles, Jackson apparently fitted his own personal filming device on the car that captured the incident. Upon returning to his vehicle, he seemingly placed his camera out of sight, but it was still on and it recorded a phone call he had with a person named Rick in which he gave his side of the story. It was a regular vehicle, regular tag, regular everything, we hear Officer Jackson telling the man. I walk up to the guy, you know, I ask him for his drivers license, registration and insurance, and hes like, you know, um, quiet with me, and hes like, whats all that stuff on your face? and Im like, excuse me? I said thats none of your concern and then he pushes open his door and hits me with the door. So I pushed the door back and tell him to stay in the car, and hes like Im Lieutenant of Police, Im Lieutenant of Police and he pushes his way out. So, I took him to the ground and I tell him to stop. Luckily, some K9 officers pulled up and helped me out. Dude, this guy is a Lieutenant from my department. And I tell him, I dont care who you are you dont jump out like that on me. We then hear Jackson say: You know, I was actually on my way to a call. The only reason why I stopped him is because he approached a pedestrian. He was flying, so I pulled him over. I was just going to make contact with him, but hes running around trying to pull muscle and rank, but Im telling him, sir, you cant do that. Hes telling me, get the fk in your car and I was like, what; who are you talking to?' I said, sir, license, registration and insurance. Just like any 19 Ive ever done in my life, dude. And this guyjust jumps down my throat. And Im like, ok, umhe didnt even give me a chance to say what I pulled him over for. Later on Jackson tells Rick: I thought I was going to shoot this mancause I didnt know if he was armed, whether he is a police officer or not. I told him dont go for no weapons, dont you do nothing I will shoot you, I told him straight up. You may be wondering how did the video ended up on the web. Well, heres what Crespopgram said: I have never met or spoken to Officer Marcel Jackson about this, or any other incident. I did not receive the tape from him, and initially I was leery of doing a story about this because I suspected that I was provided the tape and the information about what happened in a back hand way to hurt him. I was able to confirm to my satisfaction that while he had nothing to do with how I got the tape, it was provided to me by people interested in seeing that Jackson did not get railroaded According to a report from the Miami Herald, the two officers involved in the scuffle have been relieved of their posts for now, but for different reasons. Undercover Lt. Ramras was transferred from internal affairs to a post in command staffs office doing paperwork, pending investigation, while Jackson was relieved of duty with pay, because according to police, he refused to hand over the personal GoPro camera that recorded the event as well as several traffic violations. Crespo said that Ramras move is considered by some people a promotion of sorts adding that he was provided an attorney by the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) of which Jackson is also a member. Jackson went out and got his own lawyer, because even though the video tape clearly shows that Ramras was the aggressor in his efforts to get out of his car, Jackson as the low man on the totem pole is believed to be the one who stands the best chance of actually being punished over this incident, Crespo reported. Police Chief Manuel Orosa told the Miami Herald that he is not sure yet what caused the scuffle, but stated that Ramras identified himself and provided identification before getting out of the car. As for Jackson, Orosa said: An officer recording traffic stops with a private camera, the rules say you cant do that. Were liable for what he does at work and it [the video] needs to be stored for safekeeping. If its destroyed, thats a no-no. Mayor Tomas Regalado said that the video was a shame. It really looks bad because its right in the middle of Flagler and you have a plain-clothes officer fighting another officer, said the mayor. But it doesnt represent our police department. Crespo also raised another issue one that surely crosses the minds of the rest of us: If I had been stopped, and I had attempted to do what the police lieutenant did, I would have been arrested, he said. I might even have been shot. Thoughts? By John Halas VIDEO The French brand returns to the grid as a standalone manufacturer after a four-year sabbatical and it has just unveiled this seasons fighter. Its Formula 1 program car will include an in-house chassis as well as the French marques existing R.E. 16 power unit. Throughout 2016, Kevin Magnussen and Jolyon Palmer will race for Renault, with Esteban Ocon as the third and reserve driver. Renault-Nissan Alliance partner Infiniti has also been confirmed as the primary partner for the Renault F1 squad, leaving Red Bull Racing without a title sponsor. The debut of the new F1 car came as chairman and chief executive Carlos Ghosn announced two new pillars of the French carmakers performance division. Renault Sport will consist of Renault Sport Racing and Renault Sport Cars. The first of those will encompass all of the companys motorsport activities, including Formula One, Formula Renault 2.0 and the Renault Sport R.S.01 Trophy series. Meanwhile, Renault Sport Cars will be behind the firms high-performance road models, such as the the Megane RS and Clio RS, that are supposed to get a publicity and image boost by the brands involvement in F1. PHOTO GALLERY Photo: Contributed - bclc.com While Canadian lotto prizes do not reach the billion-dollar mark like some south of the border, Canadians do have a chance to win some of the $93 million worth of prizes in this week's Lotto Max draw. According to the B.C. Lottery Corporation, Lotto Max fever is heating up with a $60 million jackpot available on Fridays draw, and an additional chance to win 33 Maxmillion prizes of $1 million each. Its anticipated that 40 per cent of all Lotto Max sales will take place Friday afternoon with the biggest peaks during the lunch hour and afternoon, when lottery retailers in B.C. are expected to process up to 4,500 transactions per minute, says the BCLC. Lotto Max draws are held every Friday night. A $5 ticket gets you three chances to win. To win the $60 million you must match seven out of seven numbers. While the $60 million may seem like pennies in comparison to the Powerball $1.6 billion jackpot, the odds are better this side of the border. Anyone with a Powerball ticket for the record-high American prize had a one in more than 292 million chance to win. To put that in perspective, someone who purchases 50 tickets weekly would win the jackpot, on average, once every 112,000 years. Whereas, one's odds of winning the Lotto Max jackpot or Maxmillion prize, while still terrible, are one in 28,633,528 per play. Despite the odds, 98 Maxmillions have been won in B.C. since September 2009 along with a few jackpots as well. Lotto Max customers in B.C. have until 7:30 p.m. on Friday evenings to purchase a ticket for that nights draw. The former director of the Montana Audubon Center in Billings has sued the organization for wrongful termination after her resignation in June. The lawsuit, filed in Yellowstone County in December, claims that Darcie Howard was forced out of her position with Montana Audubon, where she worked as director for five years. It claims that her resignation amounted to being "constructively terminated," meaning that she resigned because her employer created a hostile work environment. The complaint says that Howard's resignation grew out of a "lack of procedural hierarchy, procedures, lack of evaluations and unethical behavior" by supervisors. The document lists no examples of the behavior but claims that the actions violated Montana's wrongful termination act. Mark Hilario, Howard's attorney, declined to provide specific examples but said that Howard was "constructively discharged," a term that appears multiple times in the lawsuit. The news of Howard's resignation last year was met with praise for her work at the small Billings facility. That included Montana Audubon executive director Steve Hoffman. On Tuesday, Hoffman would only say that Howard's resignation was voluntary. The lawsuit also names "John Does 1-5" as defendants. According to court documents, Howard believes that these people participated in the "performance of the wrongful acts." In court documents, Montana Audubon denies any wrongdoing. The nonprofit organization also denies that Howard completed internal grievance processes prior to her resignation. The parties will set a trial date this month in the case. In December, the Audubon Center announced that it hired a new director, Jonathan Lutz. Photo: Contributed - Rodion Kutsaev Energy/labour debates dominate In last weeks MP report I wrote, On Wednesday, the Liberal Government announced a new pipeline review process, and on Thursday, the Official Opposition Conservatives will table a motion calling on the Liberal Government to express support for the Energy East project, along with a number of other conditions. I have included the reference above, as I can now update this information. The Liberal Government did announce a revised pipeline review process that, contrary to promises of an entirely new process, takes much of the existing process and adds some new considerations. Some of these considerations include more public consultations, in particular with First Nations. Upstream GHG (greenhouse gas emissions) will now be assessed as well. The combined effect of these new measures means the review process will be further delayed. My thoughts on the new review policy? Having met with several groups and citizens who oppose new Canadian pipeline development, the message often communicated is that new pipelines will not be supported under any circumstance. Thus, lengthening the review process is, in my view, unlikely to sway those opposed to pipelines. Within twenty four hours of the new review process announcement, many prominent anti-pipeline organizations, including some First Nations groups, rejected the Liberal changes. Ultimately, delaying the decision is an unhelpful measure. I do see value in tracking GHG emissions, however all infrastructure projects have a GHG footprint, and selectively tracking GHG emissions from some projects and not others seems counter-productive, if the Liberal Government is serious about meeting reduced GHG emission targets. This leads to the Opposition motion that reads: Given this time of economic uncertainty, the House: (a) recognizes the importance of the energy sector to the Canadian economy, and supports its development in an environmentally sustainable way; (b) agrees that pipelines are the safest way to transport oil; (c) acknowledges the desire for the Energy East pipeline expressed by the provincial governments of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, and New Brunswick; and (d) expresses its support for the Energy East pipeline currently under consideration. Although this motion did not call for Energy East to be formerly approved, it was still rejected by the Liberal Government in a whipped vote, and was opposed by the NDP in a similar manner. It is clear that the debate on Canadian pipelines is far from over. Under debate as well this week is Government Bill C-4 from the Liberals, which proposes a number of changes, mostly related to unions. Specifically, the right for a worker to have a private ballot when voting on unionization for a federally regulated work environment is being repealed under this bill. Also being repealed is the union fiscal transparency act that would require unions to publicly disclose wages, benefits and other union expenses taken from tax deductible union dues. Ironically on the same day the Liberals announced Bill C-4, Elections Canada reported the Liberal Party of Canada had taken an illegal union donation during the October election. As the Official opposition, we believe in increased financial transparency, and the right to a private ballot for workers. We will oppose this bill. I welcome your comments, questions and concerns and can be reached at [email protected] or toll free at 1.800.665.8711. This article is written by or on behalf of an outsourced columnist and does not necessarily reflect the views of Castanet. With about 500 inmates packed in Yellowstone Countys jail a space designed to house 286 officials from the Two Rivers Regional Detention Facility in Hardin came calling on Wednesday. For $68 a day per inmate, Yellowstone County could send its prisoners to the Hardin jail, said Mike Porter, a senior warden with Emerald Correctional Management, a Louisiana-based company that contracted in 2014 with Two Rivers Authority in Hardin to operate the jail. The Hardin jail, Porter said, would transport inmates for court appearances, provide direct supervision of prisoners, offer video conferencing and indemnify the county against liability. The 464-bed facility also meets jail standards, he said. Porter, along with officials from Two Rivers Authority, the economic development arm of Hardin, met with county officials for about 45 minutes Wednesday morning to encourage Yellowstone County to use the Two Rivers Regional Detention Facility. Yellowstone County Commission Chairman Bill Kennedy, along with Kevan Bryan, finance director, and Dan Schwarz, chief deputy attorney of the civil division, peppered Porter and Authority officials with questions but made no commitments. Commissioners John Ostlund and Jim Reno were in Great Falls attending a Montana Association of Counties meeting. Sheriff Mike Linder, who has opposed sending inmates to Hardin, was attending a coroners inquest on Wednesday. Linder, who has toured the Hardin jail, has expressed concerns about the buildings lack of natural lighting and its indirect supervision of inmates. In addition, the sheriff has said that to house 100 inmates in Hardin, it would cost the county at least $2.2 million a year, at $60 per day per inmate, or $11 million over five years. Linder has said he believes it is better to invest the money into building locally instead of spending it on rent in a private jail in another county. Kennedy urged Hardin officials to prepare a fact sheet and provide documents that address all of the issues surrounding their jail, including incarceration standards and insurance. Big Horn County Commissioner Sidney Fitzpatrick also attended the meeting. He said his county has concerns similar to Yellowstone Countys about contracting for inmate space. Yellowstone County, Kennedy said, keeps hearing that the Hardin jail doesnt meet standards and that MACo will not insure the county if it sends its inmates to Hardin. Porter responded that the jail complies with American Correctional Association standards and also meets MACo standards, which he said refer to Montanas administrative rules. Requests from Emerald and the Authority to meet with MACo officials, Porter said, have received no response. Porter also said the company has insurance and would indemnify the county against any liability. Bryan asked Porter to provide a copy of the companys insurance policy. Another knock against the jail, Kennedy said, has been that it doesnt provide enough natural light. Porter said the standards regarding daylight apply to new construction, not existing construction. If daylight was what it took to get a contract, the jail would put in skylights, he said. Another issue involves inmates Yellowstone County holds for the state Department of Corrections. The state inmates include those who have been sentenced and are awaiting transportation to prison and those on probation and parole violations. The jail recently had about 100 state inmates. The countys rate with the state was $76.94 per inmate, but the 2015 Legislature cut the rate it pays to $69 per inmate. Revenue the jail receives from the state and other jurisdictions to hold inmates helps pay for operational costs. Yellowstone County officials questioned why the Hardin jail didnt contract directly with the state to hold DOC inmates and whether it made sense for Yellowstone County to be the middleman if it sent its state prisoners to Hardin. The Hardin jail, which opened in 2007 and was built for $27 million by the Authority, the economic development arm of Hardin, has sat mostly empty for various reasons including insurance coverage, jail standards and jurisdictional issues over whether it could house out-of-state inmates. The jail also has accrued a debt of about $40 million. Under Emeralds management, the Hardin jail had almost 250 inmates at one point, mostly through a contract with the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs to house tribal inmates, and a contract with Williams County, N.D., to house some of its prisoners. But the BIA contract ended last fall when federal funding ceased and and the inmates were removed. As of Sunday, the Hardin jail had 21 inmates, mostly from North Dakota, said Jeff McDowell, the Authoritys executive director. Meanwhile, Yellowstone County commissioners are considering a proposal from the sheriff and finance director to build a new, 148-bed womens unit using borrowed funds and county reserves for an estimated $9.95 million. Last year, voters rejected a six-mill levy request that would have raised $1.8 million a year in taxes to help pay for a $7 million expansion to add a 100-bed womens unit and make other improvements. In October 2015, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP)* approved the Recommended Immunization Schedule for Adults Aged 19 Years or Older, United States, 2016. This schedule provides a summary of ACIP recommendations for the use of vaccines routinely recommended for adults aged 19 years or older in two figures, footnotes for each vaccine, and a table that describes primary contraindications and precautions for commonly used vaccines for adults. Although the figures in the adult immunization schedule illustrate recommended vaccinations that begin at age 19 years, the footnotes contain information on vaccines that are recommended for adults that may begin at age younger than age 19 years. The footnotes also contain vaccine dosing, intervals between doses, and other important information and should be read with the figures. Changes in the 2016 adult immunization schedule from the 2015 schedule included the following new ACIP recommendations: Interval change for 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) followed by 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPSV23) from 6 to 12 months to at least 1 year for adults aged 65 years who do not have immunocompromising conditions, anatomical or functional asplenia, cerebrospinal fluid leaks, or cochlear implants (1). The interval for adults aged 19 years with any of these conditions is at least 8 weeks (2). Serogroup B meningococcal (MenB) vaccine series should be administered to certain groups of persons aged 10 years who are at increased risk for serogroup B meningococcal disease (3). Men B vaccine series may be administered to adolescents and young adults aged 16 through 23 years (preferred age is 16 through 18 years) to provide short-term protection against most strains of serogroup B meningococcal disease (4). Nine-valent human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine (9vHPV) has been added to the schedule and can be used for routine vaccination of females and males against HPV (5). These recommendations were also reviewed and approved by the American College of Physicians, the American Academy of Family Physicians, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, and the American College of Nurse-Midwives. The 2016 adult immunization schedule contains the following changes from the 2015 schedule: In Figures 1 (Recommended adult immunization schedule, by vaccine and age group) and 2 (Vaccines that might be indicated for adults based on medical and other indications), the row for Meningococcal was retitled Meningococcal 4-valent conjugate (MenACWY) or polysaccharide (MPSV4) and a new row for Meningococcal B (MenB) was added; additional text was added in indication bars to describe reasons for alternate dosing schedules for vaccines where such designations were appropriate. For example, the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) indication bar that stated 1 or 2 doses in the 2015 schedule was revised to 1 or 2 doses depending on indication in the 2016 schedule. In Figure 2, the text in the PPSV23 indication bar was revised from 1 or 2 doses to 1, 2, or 3 doses depending on indication to account for the recommendation that adults aged 19 years with immunocompromising conditions or anatomical or functional asplenia can receive up to 3 doses of PPSV23. The text in the Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) indication bar was revised from 1 or 3 doses to 3 doses, post-HSCT recipients only because adults who have received hematopoietic stem cell transplants are the only group for which a 3-dose series of Hib vaccination is recommended; for the other groups of adults for which Hib vaccination is recommended, the text in the indication bar has been revised to 1 dose. In Footnotes, the sections on influenza, pneumococcal, meningococcal, and HPV vaccination were changed as follows: The language on vaccinating persons with egg allergies was clarified to state: Persons aged 18 years with egg allergy of any severity may receive the recombinant influenza vaccine (RIV) because it does not contain any egg protein. Persons with hives-only allergy to eggs may receive the inactivated influenza vaccine (IIV) with additional safety measures. (6). Two errata in the 2015 footnotes on pneumococcal vaccination were corrected: 1) Adults aged 19 years replaced adults aged 19 through 64 years as the age at which adults with immunocompromising conditions, anatomical or functional asplenia, cerebrospinal fluid leaks, or cochlear implants should receive PCV13 followed by PPSV23 at least 8 weeks later (7); and 2) Adults aged 19 through 64 years who are residents of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities was removed from the list of persons for whom PPSV23 is recommended. These adults should be assessed for pneumococcal vaccination status and vaccinated as appropriate on the basis of age or medical indications (7). Recommendations for the use of MenB vaccine for persons aged 10 years with certain conditions were included (3). Information was also included to indicate that persons aged 16 through 23 years (preferred age range is 16 through 18 years) may be vaccinated with either a 2-dose series of MenB-4C or a 3-dose series of MenB-FHbp vaccine to provide short-term protection against most strains of serogroup B meningococcal disease (4). The use of 9vHPV vaccine for HPV vaccination of young adult females and males was added (4). For females, 2vHPV, 4vHPV, or 9vHPV may be used; for males, 4vHPV or 9vHPV may be used as indicated. In the table of contraindications and precautions to commonly used vaccines in adults, rows for MenACWY/MPSV4 and MenB vaccines replaced the single row for meningococcal vaccine in the 2016 table. Details on these updates and information on other vaccines recommended for adults are available online under Adult Immunization Schedule, United States, 2016 (www.cdc.gov/vaccines/schedules/hcp/adult.html) and in the Annals of Internal Medicine (8). The full ACIP recommendations for each vaccine are also available online (www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/acip-recs/index.html). LafargeHolcim considering revised divestment plan in India 04 February 2016 LafargeHolcim confirmed today that it is considering a divestment of its interest in Lafarge India with a cement capacity of around 11Mta. The divestment would require the approval of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) as an alternative remedy for the merger of the groups legacy companies. The company said in a statement that it is no longer in discussion with Birla Corporation Limited (BCL) for the sale of the Jojobera and Sonadih cement plants in eastern India announced last year. The BCL proposal involved the divestment of 5.1Mta of capacity by Lafarge India. Both BCL as buyer and the sale agreement with BCL were subject to approval by the CCI along with other regulatory approvals and customary conditions. "Due to the current regulatory issues relating to the transfer of mining rights captive and critical to the two plants, LafargeHolcim was obliged to submit an alternate remedy to the CCI to ensure compliance with the order," the statement said. LafargeHolcim added that an alternative option is now under consideration by the CCI. "The Group remains in dialogue with the CCI and will communicate any further updates to the divestment process in India in due time," it said. Published under "No trade agreement is going to force us to change our laws," declared President Barack Obama in a speech at Nike Corporation's Oregon headquarters last May. He mocked the critics who warned treaties like the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership would undermine a wide range of U.S. laws protecting consumers, small businesses and local democracy, among other concerns. They're making this stuff up," chided Obama. Before the year was over, however, Obama proved the critics right. He and Congress revoked the U.S. country-of-origin labeling law with passage of the federal spending bill on Dec. 18. The law enabled consumers to know the origin of meats for sale in grocery stores via mandatory package labels, but was deemed an illegal barrier to trade by the World Trade Organization last spring. The WTO tribunal demanded the U.S. weaken or drop COOL or else face more than $1 billion in retaliatory tariffs by Canada and Mexico (the amount of profits allegedly lost by meatpacking corporations due to compliance costs). The WTO ruled COOL illegal because its requirements "create an incentive for processors to use exclusively domestic livestock." Forced ignorance About 90 percent of Americans favor mandatory food labeling laws because they want to make informed decisions about what their families eat. But the labels also are popular among independent ranchers. Why? When competitive options exist, most of us prefer to buy products or services sourced closer to home. But if global corporations can force us to make decisions in ignorance, small businesses and consumers both will lose. Gerald Schreibers family has raised cattle on Colorados eastern plains for more than a century. He believes losing COOL would be harmful to small ranches like his, noting when youre in a commodity business, branding is crucial. Schreiber scoffed at a Senate proposal to replace COOL requirements with voluntary labeling, The big meatpackers wont do it they prefer keeping you in the dark. Jack Owen, who runs a family ranch in Alzada, suspects the WTO ruling is responsible for driving down the price he receives for some cattle by more than one-third. All the other fundamental market conditions would point to sustaining healthy prices, said Owen. The COOL precedent worries many small business advocates and local officials because a variety of measures widely used to support local entrepreneurs also could be deemed illegal under the same rationale, such as preferring purchasing from local or in-state businesses. Under the TPP, taxpayers have no right to prefer contracting a local resident for a project over a global corporation based in Shanghai or Tokyo. Basic planning rules that protect local values and quality of life, such as the modest limits on the size of box stores in Bozeman and Ravalli County also could be struck down by the WTO. Like most gifts to large corporations, the TPP is being sold to citizens as something that will help small businesses. Factoids like 95 percent of potential customers live outside our borders appear throughout the Obama Administrations TPP marketing. Since well over 99 percent of all businesses have fewer than 500 employees, some of those naturally could increase overseas sales. But according to the U.S. Census Bureau, just 3 percent of those businesses export anything at all. Firms with fewer than 100 employees saw their share of U.S. exports to Mexico and Canada decrease after implementation of NAFTA from 14 percent to 10 percent. Like the TPP, NAFTA focused far more on changing rules to favor the largest corporations than on lowering tariffs. Theres no reason to think homogenizing (read: lowering) standards globally will result in anything other than global corporations grabbing even more market share. Centralizing power The debate over TPP is the rare issue with virtually no correlation to partisan affiliations. Homogenizing laws across states and nations invariably means diminishing the ability of communities and states to serve their own residents and build more self-reliant economies. The resulting centralization of power in distant institutions concerns people across the political spectrum. If foreign corporations can force the U.S. to abandon a compelling public interest like knowing the source of your food, its hard to imagine what laws wont be challenged. While TPP boosters would have us believe its simply about trade and tariffs, the core of the vast treaty deals with empowering transnational corporations to prevent or strike down laws that place any other value above maximizing corporate profit. Its about who will govern. The U.S. Senate Indian Affairs Committee approved a $420 million water rights settlement with Montana's Blackfeet American Indian tribe on Wednesday, sending the measure to the full Senate with how to pay for it still unresolved. The settlement proposes to rehabilitate the Four Horns Dam and Blackfeet Irrigation Project and make other improvements on the Blackfeet tribe's northwestern Montana reservation. Negotiations on the agreement began more than 30 years ago. It was approved by the Montana Legislature in 2009. Blackfeet Tribal Business Council Chairman Harry Barnes said Wednesday's vote represented an historic milestone in the drawn-out process. But Barnes added that the measure faces a "tough hurdle" in the House, where a companion bill sponsored by Montana Republican Rep. Ryan Zinke has yet to be scheduled for a vote. Prior attempts to advance the settlement through Congress failed, after the administration of President Barack Obama objected to its original price tag of $591 million. The latest version, sponsored by Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Tester and Republican U.S. Sen. Steve Daines, emerged from negotiations between the administration and the tribe, Tester said. Both Tester and Daines said that they would seek ways to offset its price tag using money from other areas of the federal budget. "We've got to find the dough, and there is dough in the Bureau of Reclamation, to do not only this water project but other water projects in the West," Tester told The Associated Press. "It is incumbent on us to tap some pots of money in there and use them for water." The agreement, he added, would provide the tribe with healthy drinking water and help boost economic development, on a reservation that suffers from rampant poverty and unemployment. The tribe must approve the settlement before it can become effective. It would require the tribe to waive its legal claims against the federal government over water disputes dating back a century. Those include the government's past failures to protect the tribes water rights, the diversion of water off the reservation for a government irrigation project and environmental damages caused by that diversion. Sen. John Hoeven, a Republican from neighboring North Dakota, opposed the Senate measure. Hoeven expressed concern over its potential consequences for any future water agreements between Montana and North Dakota. Hoeven said the attorneys general of the two states have been in negotiations over the matter but have not resolved it. Tester said Hoeven's concerns were speculative and had nothing to do with the Blackfeet settlement. LAKESIDE A young woman who moved to Flathead County last year is saying she was in the back seat of the pickup driven by LaVoy Finicum when Finicum was shot by state police in Oregon last month during the armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge. Authorities have refused to confirm or deny whether Victoria Sharp, 18, was a passenger in Finicums truck. Sharp told CNN that Finicum was not acting aggressively when he was killed. The Lakeside woman said she was in the back seat of Finicums white truck between Ryan Bundy and Shawna Cox when Finicum drove into a snowbank while trying to evade a roadblock. Finicum was killed after exiting the truck. Video shows him apparently reaching inside his coat twice before an officer fired. In the CNN interview, Sharp says she only sees Finicum trying to keep his balance in the snow. He had his hands up, Sharp told CNN correspondent Kyung Lah. He was shouting that if they were going to shoot, then just shoot him. I remember him saying that if they shoot him, its an innocent mans blood on their hands. Lah showed Sharp the FBI video during the interview, but Sharp insisted she didn't see Finicum reaching for what could be a weapon. Authorities said they found a loaded gun in Finicums pocket. Sharp, who is originally from Kansas, apparently met her family in Oregon to sing Christian songs and provide moral support to the armed protesters. Her Facebook page says she is a hostess at Tamarack Brewing Co. in Lakeside. A woman who answered the phone there Wednesday said Sharp was not there, and that she was not at liberty to give out any information about her. Sharps Facebook friends include several members of the Bundy family, including Ryan Bundy, who was wounded during the arrest. Ryans brother Ammon, who was in a different vehicle, was the acknowledged leader of the occupation. According to the Topeka Capitol-Journal, Sharp is from Auburn, a small town southwest of Topeka. A story by Angela Deines quotes a local minister as saying the Sharp family is active in a lot of things. Theyre very patriotic and have very high standards. Theyre very musical. A woman identified as Sharps mother, Odalis, says on a YouTube posting that she brought her children to Oregon, and that Were here to sing for the Lord. This is a worthwhile cause, and we just hope to make a difference. We just hope to be able to bless the hearts of the people through the songs. Another YouTube posting which is not the CNN interview is a 12 1/2-minute video that identifies Victoria Sharp as the speaker. In it, she says law enforcement fired at least 120 shots altogether at the truck after Finicum was killed. Thats when Ryan Bundy was wounded, the woman says. A Montana man, Ryan Payne of Anaconda, was in the truck, and was among those arrested. HELENA Representatives from some air ambulance companies made their case Thursday that theyre put in a bind by insurance companies and have to charge high rates to patients to stay in business. But a hospital-based service in Billings says it operates at a small profit and doesnt send bills to people who take emergency flights. Representatives from REACHAir, which operates Summit Air Ambulance in Bozeman and Helena, as well as an industry spokesman and director of finance for the Washington-based nonprofit that runs flights that serve St. Patrick Hospital in Missoula, spoke during a packed meeting of the Legislatures Economic Affairs Interim Committee on Thursday. The committee is studying air ambulance service, which has changed rapidly in the past decade. The state auditors office received more than 20 complaints last year from Montanans who have received large bills for the medical flights, some more than $100,000. Air ambulances generally fall into three categories: hospital-based services that are a part of the contracts those facilities negotiate with insurance companies and providers; nonprofit operators that are affiliated with hospitals; and for-profit companies. Don Wharton, who represents REACHAir, said his company has its hands tied over the large bills it sends consumers. We do not like sending our patients large balanced bills, but we find we have no choice because of the position we are put in by insurance carriers, he said. Wharton said insurance companies, which Summit does not contract with, will pay what they deem allowable charges, a number the insurance company sets and an amount Wharton said isnt enough to keep his company operating. If we were to accept what they are willing to pay, we certainly would not have a sustainable business, he said. Summit said in December it was starting to talk with insurance provider Allegiance. But St. Vincent Healthcare in Billings, which has both a helicopter and airplane ambulance, operates its service at a small profit, said Ron Oldfield, the hospitals chief financial officer. Were not losing money on it, and we dont balance bill, he said. St. Vincent contracts with insurance companies such as Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana. About 60 percent of the people it flies have insurance under either Medicare or Medicaid. Oldfield wouldnt say how much the hospital gets paid by insurance companies, but did say that his hospital might have a higher flight volume, possibly helping with profitability. Insurance representatives who spoke after the industry representatives said that the private air ambulance companies wont work with them on rates and wont explain their cost structure. Paul Pedersen, of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Montana, said what his company calls allowable isnt just some made-up number, its 200 percent of what rural Medicare will pay for the service. Most insurance companies cover about 250 percent of what rural Medicare pays. Rural Medicare pays 150 percent more than urban Medicare. Pedersen said people insured under BCBS last year took 300 fixed-wing air ambulance flights, 75 percent of which were in network. Members took 230 helicopter flights, and about 50 were not in network. BCBS pays the same for both in- and out-of-network flights. The only difference is that out-of-network providers can bill patients for the difference between what insurance pays and what they bill, called balance billing. That number was $5 million for BCBS members last year. The president of Allegiance, Ron Dewsnup, said whats charged by private companies varies widely, sometimes up to 1,000 percent of what rural Medicare will pay for the flights. Dewsnup called for hospitals and private companies to disclose any ownership, financial or contractual relationship they might have. In Helena, St. Peter's Hospital had an agreement to call Summit over other providers, even those that contract with insurance. The hospital ended that agreement late last year, citing concerns over costs to patients. Todd Lovshin, of PacificSource, said his company has never had a conversation about rates with Summit because they dont return our calls, he said. He wants to be able to get information about why private providers charge what they charge. Theres not a lot of consistency on how those charges are made, he said. Representatives from the states two largest pools of insured people, the State of Montana and Montana University System, talked about the struggles people in their groups have faced. Marilyn Bartlett, the health care benefits division administration for the state, said her plan covers 34,000 people all across the state. The state self-funds its insurance and uses Allegiance as a third-party administrator. She said more flights taken by people in her pool are from out-of-network providers jumping from 36 percent in 2013 to 49 percent in 2014. She said the state pays 250 percent of what rural Medicare pays, and that covers just 55 percent of what is billed. In December, Bartlett said St. Peters in Helena used an airplane to transport a patient 81 miles to Great Falls for a non-emergency flight that resulted in a $30,140 bill. She said an in-network flight would have cost $7,600, Medicare would pay $5,500, and a ground ambulance would have cost about $2,500. STAT Air, a four-hospital cooperative based out of Glasgow, said it ended its contract with BCBS because of inconsistencies in payments, said Clay Berger, Northeast Montana Stat Air cooperative program director. The insurance company paid $4,000 on some flights, $14,000 on others, Berger said. Stat still transported 47 BCBS patients in 2015, out of 550 flights total. The average bill for a BCBS patient was $20,000. Allegiance paid an average of $17,998 for flights its patients took on Stat, and Allegiance does not balance bill for the difference because of their contracts with Stat, he said. Connie Welsh, with the Montana University System health plan, said she cant get private air ambulance companies to answer her phone calls. We have seen that air ambulance companies that do not participate in networks are more frequently not wanting to talk to us, she said. Will you at least take my call? I need to have those folks who are looking at a business model very different from the way I am looking at it, from a human level, willing to take my calls. REACHAir representative Wharton said his company would work with insurance companies who will offer reasonable rates. Our company is more than willing to step forward if there are true negotiations. A South Dakota livestock organization is petitioning U.S. Air Force officials to provide more information to ranchers who monitor their herds and land by air in a newly expanded training zone. The South Dakota Stockgrowers Association's request to officials at Ellsworth Air Force Base this week addresses the expansion of the Powder River Training Complex, which roughly quadrupled the training airspace to nearly 35,000 square miles in the Dakotas, Montana and Wyoming the largest over the continental U.S. Stockgrowers president Bill Kluck said Air Force officials committed to making flight information available to ranchers who fly small aircraft to survey their herds and hunt coyotes, but said they have not effectively followed through. Kluck said a website set up to inform pilots about training missions is not updated regularly and that it's difficult to call the base directly for information. "All of that has to be kept very current, or somebody's going to get hurt because of it," he said. "They have to know if they're up there or not." Officials at Ellsworth didn't immediately respond to questions from The Associated Press on Wednesday. The Air Force has said any given location across the training area could experience up to nine low-altitude overflights annually. Supersonic flights would be limited to 10 days a year during large-scale exercises, which could cause up to as many as 88 civilian flights a day to be delayed, though the Air Force said that number would likely be smaller. Kluk said there haven't been any incidents so far, but that some pilots have told him they voluntarily grounded themselves after realizing there were nearby missions taking place. Larry Nelson, who surveys his cattle and sheep operation in northwestern South Dakota in his single-engine airplane, said he hasn't received any information from Ellsworth about how to check whether it's safe to fly. While he uses a Federal Aviation Administration website to monitor training activity, he said it's not very intuitive and that the Air Force should be better at working with civilian pilots in the region. "If I was a recreational flier, I would be happy to wait until I knew the Air Force was not in the area, but I am not a recreational pilot," he said. "This has to do with me being able to keep track of my business here in a cost-effective way." Kluck said the Stockgrowers Association has been criticized in the past from people who think they're opposed to the base and its training operations. "We're very pro-military as a whole and do not want to see it shut down," he said, "we just want to make sure that we're protected." LANDER, Wyo. By one measure, emissions from Wyomings oil and gas wells rose 17 percent in 2015. By another, they fell 8 percent. Solving the discrepancy has taken on renewed urgency as state and federal regulators prepare separate plans to curb flaring and venting, two common practices for releasing natural gas from oil wells into the atmosphere. Wyoming regulators will accept public comment on their effort to curb such emissions at a meeting Thursday in Casper. The state proposal follows on the heels of a similar effort from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, which released a draft strategy for cutting flaring and venting last month. Trends in flaring and venting have become a significant point of contention against that backdrop. An increase in flaring and venting volumes, coming in a year when drilling declined substantially, would offer further ammunition to environmentalists, who claim state and federal regulations do not prevent natural gas from being disposed into the atmosphere. They worry the releases represent a climate threat methane is 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide and a waste. A recent study commissioned by the Environmental Defense Fund found oil companies lost $330 million worth of natural gas in 2013 to flaring, venting and leaks from wells on public land nationwide. The report estimated Wyomings loss at $42.5 million. We only revise these rules once every several decades, said Amber Wilson, environmental quality advocate at the Wyoming Outdoor Council, a Lander-based conservation group. We should do it right. A decrease would bolster industrys argument that emissions are already falling, thanks to existing regulations and the efforts of companies to reduce wasted gas. Industry representatives point to federal figures that show a 21 percent decline in oilfield methane emissions between 1990 and 2013. I think companies are doing their very best to try to take the product to market, to save jobs in this state and strengthen the economy of Wyoming, said John Robitaille, vice president of the Petroleum Association of Wyoming. It doesnt make sense to me that someone would purposely waste a product that would do just that. That business model is unsustainable. Emissions figures But concrete emission figures are hard to come by, as the well with the states top flaring and venting volumes shows. Samson Oil and Gas USA began drilling the Bluff 1-11 well in Goshen County during January of 2014. The well began reporting large flaring and venting volumes 17 months later. Between May and August, Samson Oil and Gas reported flaring and venting of 1.2 billion cubic feet, almost 13 times more than the well with the next highest flaring and venting volume. Include Bluff 1-11 in the states flaring and venting tally and Wyomings 2015 total rises to 5.8 billion cubic feet; remove it and the figure falls to 4.6 billion cubic feet. Wyomings total flaring and venting volume in 2014, by comparison, was 5 billion cubic feet. Yet Bluff 1-11 carries an important distinction. Many oil wells in places like Campbell and Laramie counties, regions at the heart of the recent drilling boom, flare or vent natural gas because they lack the infrastructure to capture it. By contrast, nearly all of Bluff 1-11s emissions are comprised of nitrogen, a naturally occurring element that presents little danger to public health or the environment in and of itself. We found the worst of all things. (The well) had a commodity that was absolutely worthless, said Samson Oil and Gas Managing Director Terry Barr. He estimated Bluff 1-11s emissions were 98 percent nitrogen and 1 to 2 percent methane. For that reason, state officials and industry representatives say the figure should not be included in the states 2015 total. But environmentalists argue Wyoming should not be so quick to remove the well from the states tally. The Cowboy State lacks reporting requirements that would determine if other harmful pollutants, like ozone forming volatile organic compounds, were released with the nitrogen. Roughly 12.4 million cubic feet to 24.9 million cubic feet of natural gas would have been vented if 1 to 2 percent of Bluff 1-11s emissions were methane. Reform The dynamic highlights one rare point of agreement: the need to reform Wyomings reporting standards. The state presently requires companies to report flaring or venting volumes. It does not require companies to identify the type of gas, its quality or even how it is disposed. In other words, companies report how much they vent and flare. But production reports dont say what type of gas they are releasing or whether it was vented or flared. We have a number. We dont know what that number means, said Robitaille, the PAW vice president. A lot of this stuff is inert gases. One of them is nitrogen. We dont know that by looking at a number. Added Jon Goldstein, a senior policy analyst at the Environmental Defense Fund, They need to know what volumes are being flared and what volumes are being vented. Venting is the practice of releasing raw methane into the atmosphere. It is generally believed to poise greater risks than flaring, where some pollutants are burned off before being disposed of. CASPER, Wyo. A Casper man accused of inappropriately touching a 10-year-old girl last fall pleaded not guilty Wednesday in Natrona County District Court. Jeremy Morgan faces two counts of second-degree sexual abuse of a minor, according to court documents. Morgan, 40, is being held in the detention center on bond. According to the documents, the abuse was reported to police on Oct. 23, one day after it allegedly took place at a home in Casper. The girl was interviewed at the Child Advocacy Project a few days later. She told interviewers Morgan touched her inappropriately and that she had instructed him to stop several times before he finally did, the documents say. She also said Morgan forced her to touch him inappropriately and that she had repeatedly pulled away, according to the documents. When interviewed by detectives in November at the police department, Morgan admitted to touching the girl inappropriately and to forcing her to touch him inappropriately, the documents state. He said the girl repeatedly told him to stop. Morgan was upset and crying while he was interviewed by detectives, according to the documents. Public defender Kurt Infanger is representing Morgan. Assistant District Attorney Brett Johnson is prosecuting the case. CASPER, Wyo. A judge sentenced a Casper man to probation Wednesday for endangering his daughter by repeatedly locking her in the familys garage for hours at a time. Natrona County District Judge Daniel Forgey ruled Joseph Shane must serve two years of supervised probation. The judge also imposed a two-year suspended jail sentence, meaning if Shane violates his probation, he could spend time behind bars. Shane is also required to pay a $1,500 fine and complete 100 hours of community service. Police began their investigation in 2013 after a social worker at Bar Nunn Elementary School reported Shane's 9-year-old daughter appeared to be dirty and malnourished. Authorities charged Shane and his wife, Roberta, last February. Shane originally faced a felony charge of being an accessory to child abuse, as well as a misdemeanor child endangering charge. However, Shane pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts as part of a plea deal. Roberta Shane was previously a library worker at Roosevelt High School and was fired by the school district after the charges arose. She pleaded guilty to felony child abuse causing mental injury and misdemeanor child endangering. Forgey sentenced her last week to five years of supervised probation. Prosecutor Stephanie Hambrick said Wednesday that Shanes daughter is doing well with her adoptive family. She is a loving, happy little girl, Hambrick said. She didnt deserve the treatment she was given by her father. Hambrick said Shane continues to blame his daughter for what happened. This is the person in her world, her daddy, who is supposed to defend her, and he didnt do that, Hambrick said. Its just beyond me that a father could do that to his little girl. Just before Forgey handed down the sentence, Shane told the judge he had taken responsibility for his actions by pleading guilty to the charges. He said giving his daughter up for adoption was the hardest choice hes ever had to make. I think that took a lot of courage and responsibility on his part, Shanes defense attorney, Craig Silva, told the judge. Shanes daughter told police she had been repeatedly locked in the familys garage and forced to sleep on a cot in the laundry room, court documents show. She was malnourished when she was placed in foster care in April 2013. When the girl was kept in the garage, she was left a roll of toilet paper and told to use the backyard if she needed to go to the bathroom, the documents state. A psychiatrist who examined the girl said she'd been put through repetitive emotional abuse and not given enough to eat. Billy's Bonkers Blog of Bewilderment > Recent Entries > Archive > Friends > Profile 01:58 pm - Country 34 - Malaysia I emerge, tired and weary, off the plane in the extremely early hours of the morning at KLIA2, the huge new companion terminal to Kuala Lumpur International Airport that only began operations two years back. British citizens to Malaysia (ruled by us until the 1950s) are given 90 days free entry on arrival along with most of Europe, although for some reason my stamp only allows me 30. Probably a case of the immigration officer just using the standard stamp for Thai citizens instead of bothering to get the 90 one out, no matter as I'm only here a couple days anyway. I charge up my phone and grab a quick meal until the sun rises, recalculating the currency in my head as 1 is now worth 6 Malaysian ringgits instead of 50 Thai baht, a brief brush-up of my six times table doing the job. My face feeling itchy, a look in the mirror reveals me to be covered in insect bites, red blotches all over my cheeks and neck - hopefully none of them carrying any deadly viruses or I'm kinda screwed. Mostly it just makes me feel a bit of a prat, and despite scouring all the stores I see I can't find any selling insect repellent. Something to grab soon, methinks. A local school kid in his mid-teens observes me with fascination as I eat my morning grub. "You from Europe?" he asks. "Yes, England" I smile back. "I would like to go to Europe!" he beams cheerfully. Before adding, sadly, "but due to French terror, I cannot." If I were more awake I'd tell him how there's nothing to worry about - the huge capital cities of London, Paris, Berlin, the Scandinavian landscapes and fjords and summer sands and sun of the south, the magic of Reykjavik, Ljubljana, Venice and Prague...but instead I just sagely nod my head. I eventually pay ten ringgits for a comfy bus that takes me to KL Sentral, the main train station, snoozing for the whole hour journey and disembarking even more tired than when I got off the plane. Five ringgits provides a locker to store my bag, and with the sky now firmly blue I take the train to the city's absolute must-see, the Petronas Towers. In most places I visit I always search for the highest viewing point early on, allowing me to see everything laid out nicely and plan my route for the day. These towers, however, are extra special. Opened in the late 1990s, they were for a good few years the tallest buildings in the entire world, Malaysia taking the crown after almost a century of United States dominance. They held the title until 2004 when overtaken by Taiwans Taipei 101 and eventually Dubais Burj Khalifa, and remain the world's highest twin towers to this day. Admission many years back was free, but today a limited amount of tickets are sold for a whopping 84 ringgits each - a little expensive but it is one hell of a building, and already a large line has formed to be the first up that day. We're only allowed a few minutes up there so photos have to be done quick, first at the Skybridge connecting the towers followed by the observation floor itself, bright blue skies providing grand views of the city and mountains around. One of the computer screens with info on the towers is amusingly blocked with a system message warning that their copy of Windows is not genuine, something I almost get a picture of before a staff member legs it to the screen and turns it off. The only thing missing from the view are the towers themselves. But just as the Empire State can be seen from the Rockefeller Centre, and Paris's Eiffel Tower from the Arc de Triomphe, there's always a second option. The nearby KL Tower gives you an equally awesome view and I walk there from Petronas, the heat increasing quickly as the morning continues on and I somehow miss the free shuttle bus that takes you some of the distance, causing me to walk much longer than necessary. On arrival I'm the only one there, and given a virtual VIP treatment as all the staff welcome me in and take me to the top, including the green screen photo I'm encouraged to buy at the end. I'm slightly mortified on seeing it due to the massive sweat patches on my t-shirt, but while the full-size choice is a bit too much, they offer me two mini-sized ones in keyring and magnet form for a combo deal of a fiver. Oh go on then, I need at least one physical souvenir to prove I've actually been here and haven't just photoshopped various backgrounds on a load of selfies, so to their delight I I give them the money. This time I do find the bus, and I cool down and rest my legs on a free air-conditioned service that takes me back through the city to KLCC Mall for lunch, my eating experience enlivened by a live song and dance show on a huge stage in the centre. If Westfield Shepherd's Bush do that sort of thing I've yet to see it. Clouds begin to develop, but the skies hold long enough for me to make it to lovely Merdeka Square, site of the founding of what was then just Malay's independence almost sixty years ago - other states joined up later on to form the full Malaysia, including one breakaway nation I'll be visiting very soon. Here more than anywhere can the full multicultural experience of Kuala Lumpur be felt, with influences of British, Chinese and South Indian architecture surrounding from every side of the square. With buildings and mosques stretching back a century or more, it's a whole world and time away from the massive modern malls and skyscrapers around Petronas. On my way back to Sentral I visit Kuala Lumpur's old, crumbling but beautiful train station of its recent past, a building that astonishingly remained the city's central terminus until modern KL Sentral was opened in 2001. It regains its old-time splendour but today is used rarely and entire sections are occupied by storage and the homeless, making me wonder how long it's got left. My energy is exhausted by my return to Sentral, and I zone out for several hours on a bench near the intercity departure gate, a thunderstorm developing outside and two police talking to a young Western woman sitting on the floor, dressed in your classic hippy-traveller threads and holding a large "HELP ME GET TO INDIA" sign. A TV screen plays the same four ads on a loop to the point where they're well and truly burned into my head by the evening, particularly the irritatingly catchy jingle of a local cafe which echoes in my mind for days after. Here is where, until just a few years ago, I could take a direct train to my next country of Singapore. But their main station closed for good in 2011, meaning all trains from KL now stopped in the outskirts of the country at the Woodlands border checkpoint instead. Then, four years later, this was cut further back to not reaching Singapore at all, instead at Johor Bahru at the edge of South Malaysia and a limited shuttle service taking you the final five minutes across the border. I've booked a night sleeper train for about a fiver, scheduled to leave at 10:15pm. When the time comes it isn't here, and the board lists a departure time of 04:38am. Come on. Surely not. None of the other passengers seem fazed by this, several whistling the same cafe jingle that continues to endlessly play. No announcements are made for the delay and everyone waits patiently for the train to arrive, which it does - to my relief - at 11pm. I'm immediately in love with the train, a series of bunk beds with fancy yellow-orange curtains for privacy and all having their own windows. A group of Turkish tourists joke about the lack of wifi as I find my allotted bed and clamber inside, pulling the quilt over me with glee and relaxing again at last. Within seconds, I'm sound asleep. I wake up to a silent engine and almost empty carriage, and as I check the time I realise I've arrived at Johor Bahru and everyone's getting off - I slept so soundly that seven hours passed in what seemed like seven minutes. Quick toilet and shave break at JB Sentral, we're stamped out of Malaysia and there's an almighty RUSH of 50-odd people to squeeze onto the shuttle train, followed by another speed out the doors to be first in line for passport control. And then, finally, I was in Singapore! About us Once more in Papua New Guinea we serve a fourth term with Mission Aviation Fellowship . We currently stay in Telefomin, a village in the West of the highlands close to the Indonesian border. Using small airplanes MAF support communities living in the bush by enabling basic services like health care, education, and community development, as well as spiritual support through church workers. Good People Brewing Company in Alabama, announced it will begin selling its selection of beers in central Tennessee. Partnering with Hand Family Companies, the Birmingham-based brewery will expand into Chattanooga, Clarksville and Cookeville. Weve got a lot of love for Tennessee at Good People, said Michael Sellers, who cofounded Good People in 2008 with his friend Jason Malone. When youre hiking the Cumberland Trail, having a pint at a downtown brewpub or tucking into some ribs at a barbecue shack off a county road, youre always reminded of the best things the South has to offer. Its a thrill for Good People to become a part of peoples lives here. This is Good Peoples third out-of-state expansion, coming just a week after an expansion into the Florida Panhandle market. Three years ago, in Feb. 2013, Good People expanded first into Nashville. Building on this successful first step into an out-of-state market, the brewery is prepared to meet the demand of devoted customers in new markets such as central Tennessee. Good People has great liquid that has been sold in Nashville for a while now with great success, and after visiting their facility, I saw firsthand the commitment to continuing that quality for years to come, said Austin Sawyer, sales director of Craft and Import Brands for Hand Family Companies. Many people from our Tennessee markets have either visited Nashville or Birmingham and always ask about Good People beers, so we felt confident that the demand is there to justify bringing them to our other Tennessee markets. Then there is the fact that they are seriously good peopletheir team is passionate in what they do and they have a lot of fun while doing it each and every day. "Good People offers a variety of well-balanced beers that will soon be available in the area, both on draft and in cans. In 2015 alone," officials said. Paste magazine dubbed Good Peoples IPA one of the 25 best in the country and the special reserve El Gordo Imperial Stout one of the 12 best beers of the year, while Food Republic declared Good People Alabamas craft beer king. BeerAdvocate currently lists Snake Handler Double IPA, El Gordo and Hitchhiker IPA among the 10 best Southern beers, with Coffee Oatmeal Stout and Fatso Imperial Stout joining them in the top 20. Customers can check in with their favorite supermarket, bar or restaurant to see when Good Peoples brews will be available. In the meantime, Good People will put on promotions and samplings throughout central Tennessee in the weeks to come. For up-to-date information about these events, like Good People Brewing Co. on Facebook or follow on Twitter or Instagram at @GPBrewing. Each week, readers of New Homes Marketplace ask questions of area homebuilders. Bob Meyn, vice president of sales and marketing for the Chicago Division of Taylor Morrison, provides this week's answers. Q: In the Chicago area, what home building project or community are you most proud of, and why? Brenda, Woodstock Advertisement A: We take pride in all of our communities. Given the investment level and product type each Taylor Morrison community is unique. Three communities that are opening this spring and that we are very proud and excited about are all very different. Colfax Crossing will offer 101 maintenance-free townhomes in Des Plaines. Finding and developing property in infill areas such as Des Plaines is very difficult to come by so we are proud of this new community. Two additional communities we are excited about include Tallgrass in Lake Barrington, which will offer luxury single-family residences in a gated neighborhood surrounded by picturesque forest preserve land and served by highly-acclaimed Barrington School District and Symphony Bay in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, which will be a premier maintenance-free, age-targeted neighborhood offering 425 single-family homes and duplexes and lake access. Q: How do you maintain communication with the buyer after they've moved in? Dave, St. Charles Advertisement A: During the post-closing warranty period we meet with buyers at 30 days to review warranty items and again at 11 months to address any items that may need attention. About Taylor Morrison More than 100 years of experience are built into every Taylor Morrison home. Today, Taylor Morrison and Darling Homes are building homes and communities in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, North Carolina, South Carolina and Texas, drawing accolades from homebuyers and industry experts alike. At Taylor Morrison, "inspired by you" is more than just a catchphrase it's their passion. For more information about Taylor Morrison, visit taylormorrison.com. Submit your question Do you have a question for Ask A Builder? To submit your question, send an email with "ASK A BUILDER" in the subject line to CTMGlocalcontent@chicagotribune.com. Please include your name and hometown in the email. Taylor Morrison is offering single-family homes in the upper-$300,000s at Creeks Crossing, a picturesque neighborhood of 30 home sites just east of Randall Road in Algonquin. Sales will begin in January and interested buyers are encouraged to call 847-232-8480 to add their names to the VIP interest list. "Creeks Crossing allows buyers to have the best of both worlds," says Bob Meyn, vice president for the Chicago Division of Taylor Morrison. "A charming, picturesque neighborhood of only 30 homes tucked away from the daily hustle-and-bustle yet minutes from every imaginable shop, restaurant and convenience along Randall Road." Advertisement The collection of two-story, single-family homes range from 2,908 to 3,797 square feet in size with four bedrooms, 2.5 or 3.5 baths and attached two- and three-car garages. Both lookout and walkout basements are offered as well as pond views and cul-de-sac locations. "The home designs offered at Creeks Crossing have a proven track record of success at Taylor Morrison communities throughout the country," Meyn says. "Buyers appreciate the flex space offered in each home allowing them to dictate how that space is used. For some, a formal living or dining room might be necessary for others a den or first-floor guest room might be needed. These plans give buyers the opportunity to customize their living space to suit their lifestyle needs." Advertisement Offering 3,797 square feet of living space, the Stockton plan will be featured as a professionally-decorated model home. In addition to a large, gourmet kitchen with breakfast bar, walk-in pantry and dining area that is open to the great room, the flexible Stockton has two flex rooms. The first towards the front of the home off the foyer, which many use as a formal dining room with butler's pantry, and the second located toward the back of the home off the great room near the powder room, which is often used as a den or guest room. Upstairs, the owner's suite features a sitting room, private luxury bath and spectacular walk-in closest. A Jack-and-Jill suite and Princess suite are also included as is a convenient second-floor laundry room. The loft lends itself to more customizable living options such as a teen media space or homework hub. Buyers who would like to add their name to the VIP interest list are encouraged to call 847-232-8480. Creeks Crossing is located at 1660 Creeks Crossing Drive in Algonquin. For more information, visit taylormorrison.com/new-homes/Illinois/Chicago. YWCA Metropolitan Chicago has opened its eighth community-based center, the Julian Grace Innovation & Technology Institute in North Lawndale. (Christopher Dilts photo ) There's a new technology hub in North Lawndale. The YWCA Metropolitan Chicago will welcome community members to the grand opening of the Julian Grace Innovation and Technology Institute Thursday evening. Advertisement Steve Sarowitz, chairman and founder of Arlington Heights-based payroll technology company Paylocity, donated $1.1 million to open the West Side center, YWCA's eighth in Chicago. It is named for Sarowitz's Julian Grace Foundation, a private grantmaking non-profit that gets its moniker from his children's middle names. "This center really demonstrates the partnerships and opportunities that can happen when you have entrepreneurs focused on how to invest in the community in smart ways that are going to yield greater returns," said YWCA CEO Dorri McWhorter . The Julian Grace ITI offers economic empowerment services, including TechGYRLS, which aims to encourage girls in science, technology, engineering, arts and math (STEAM); an eight-week basic math and English course; and Developing Digital Diversity, a program targeting STEAM and leadership training for boys and girls. YWCA also offers business and entrepreneurship services to women and minority business owners in partnership with the Women's Business Development Center. Advertisement TechGYRLS and Developing Digital Diversity are already attracting about 30 participants a night, McWhorter said. SapientNitro, Gensler, which also designed the offices of Chicago companies including World Kitchen Cleverbridge andhelped build out the space at 3517 W. Arthington St. The space features 24 collaboration areas where adults can use computer labs during the day and kids can attend training sessions after school. McWhorter said she hopes to take advantage of the center's location inside the Homan Square Community Center and next to a Chicago Park District facility where many seniors spend time. She said she's interested in offering tech classes to seniors. Programming caters to all ages, McWhorter said. Unlike some other technology centers, Julian Grace ITI also offers training for adults seeking basic computer literacy skills, such as how to use Microsoft programs or access apps, she said. McWhorter said such training could make a big difference for adults who lack regular computer access. "To us, it's really about helping them access a different way of life that they'll be shut out from if they don't get those skills," McWhorter said. McWhorter said Comcast Illinois donated computers to the center and is subsidizing laptop and computer purchases through its Internet Essentials program. Chicago is at the bottom of the heap in an analysis comparing job growth with the national average. Recovery has slowed in Illinois over the last few months. (Kevin Tanaka / Pioneer Press) Chicago has landed at the bottom of the heap in an analysis comparing local job growth with the national average. The analysis released Thursday by Chicago-based CareerBuilder and its subsidiary Emsi, which interprets labor market data, listed the 10 "most competitive" and 10 "least competitive" metro areas based on the gap between local job-creation numbers and what those numbers could have been if the metro area had followed national growth trends. Advertisement Though the Chicago metro area added 55,443 jobs over 2014 and 2015, it fell far short of the 92,480 jobs it would have created had it matched the U.S. employment growth rate of 2 percent during that period. The report looked at total job growth across industries for each of the 150 most populous U.S. metro areas over 2014 and 2015, to identify when regional market dynamics caused the rate to exceed or fall short of national trends. Advertisement Chicago ranked No. 1 in the "least competitive" pile because it fell short of expectations by 37,037 jobs, followed by New York, which fell short by 31,305 jobs, even though it added 155,981 jobs during that two-year period. Philadelphia came next. By no means does that suggest those metro areas have the worst job prospects. New Orleans lost 2,491 jobs during 2014 and 2015, according to the report, leaving it 14,268 jobs short of expectations. Lafayette, La., also lost overall jobs over the period, and among areas on the "least competitive" list had the greatest percentage of jobs linked to regional uncompetitiveness. St. Louis; Richmond, Va.; Virginia Beach, Va.; Cleveland; and Tulsa, Okla., rounded out that list. On the bright side, Dallas led the "most competitive" pack with 112,829 jobs created during 2014 and 2015, which is 44,871 more than if it had matched the 2 percent U.S. employment growth rate. San Jose, Calif., followed, exceeding expectations by 39,519 jobs. Los Angeles; Seattle; Miami; Atlanta; Orlando, Fla.; San Francisco; Riverside, Calif.; and Charlotte, N.C., rounded out the top 10. Among all of the metro areas studied, Provo-Orem, Utah, best known as home of Brigham Young University, had the highest percentage of total jobs linked to regional competitiveness that is, its job growth could be most attributed to the local economy rather than national trends, even though its overall job creation wasn't large enough to land it in the top 10 list. Twenty-seven of the top 50 metro areas outpaced national trends, the report said. "The unique characteristics of their local economies played a large part in their growth, such as the booming tech industry in Silicon Valley or the tourism industry in Orlando," CareerBuilder CEO Matt Ferguson said in a statement. "Meanwhile, jobs in the oil and gas industry took a hit, which had a major impact on cities like Tulsa and Lafayette." Looking at an industry breakdown for Chicago, it appears that a wide variety of industries are underperforming by small amounts. Job creation fell short of the national average the most in the education sector, including elementary and secondary schools as well as colleges and universities. Restaurants, hotels, physicians' offices, employment placement agencies and discount department stores also fell short of overall national trends. Advertisement The industries locally that exceeded national job growth rates included warehouse clubs and supercenters, supermarkets and other grocery stores, services for the elderly, and local government. Eliza Forsythe, an assistant professor in the School of Labor and Employment Relations at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, who was not involved in the study, cautioned against labeling differences from national trends as a "competitive effect." The analysis appears to be consistent with a broader pattern that has shown Illinois' recovery has slowed over the last few months, similar to several other states. "Although the slowdown in Illinois' economic recovery over the last few months is troubling, there is nothing in the data to indicate that Chicago, its people and its businesses are less competitive than other cities in the country," Forsythe said. aelejalderuiz@tribpub.com Twitter @alexiaer Pedestrians walk past Marshall Field's in this 2005 file photo. Macy's, which bought the store and rebranded it, is fighting to protect the Field's trademark. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune) Macy's might have ditched the Marshall Field's name a decade ago after it bought the storied Chicago department store chain, but that doesn't mean the retailer wants anyone else to use the moniker, either. Earlier this week, a California judge ruled that Macy's still has a "protected interest" in the trademarks on T-shirts of eight department store chains, including Marshall Field's, that it acquired over the years. Advertisement The decision comes nearly a year after Macy's filed a trademark infringement suit in the Northern District of California against Strategic Marks. The lawsuit said that Strategic, which tries to revive dormant brands, was trying to use Macy's "heritage" brands such as Marshall Field's to sell products like T-shirts at www.retrodepartmentstores.com. Ellia Kassoff, chief executive of Newport Coast, Calif.-based Strategic Marks, said that, where Marshall Field's is concerned, the judge's ruling affects only Marshall Field's T-shirts, not online ventures or even bricks-and-mortar stores. He said he is pleased with the ruling and said it was expected. Advertisement A trial over other trademark issues not related to the T-shirts is set to begin May 2. In 2005, Macy's (then called Federated Department Stores) completed its purchase of Field's parent May Department Stores and announced it would erase a name that dated back to the 1800s in Chicago. Macy's lawsuit had said that, "in promotional text, defendants have written that they are: Bringing back all the old department stores you remember and loved. Retro Fashion Mall is proud to bring back a legend! Marshall Field's " U.S. District Court Judge Edward Chen, however, said it found that "Macy's has a protected interest in the registered trademarks, and that there is a high likelihood of confusion based on Strategic Marks's use of the same exact mark on the same products." "Macy's is pleased that Judge Chen recognized the importance of Macy's heritage brands, and looks forward to prevailing at trial on the remaining store names," said Anthony Lo Cicero, an Amster Rothstein & Ebenstein lawyer representing Macy's. byerak@tribpub.com Twitter @beckyyerak Al Gunwall, of Manning, has accepted the position of North Dakota volunteer state co-chair of the Mule Deer Foundation of North Dakota. Gunwall will coordinate with the foundation's regional director to develop local fundraising chapters and events. Gunwall has been a committee member with the Teddy Roosevelt Chapter in Dickinson for the past six years. Ryan Krapp will continue in his role as state co-chair serving as a liaison with local, state and federal agencies and with industry organizations. Foundation regional director Marshall Johnson said, in recent years, Gunwall has focused on assisting with chapter development and in forming new chapters in North Dakota. Johnson said that focus will continue this year in the communities of Watford City, Bowman, Beulah and Tioga. Additionally, the foundation will be working with PLOTS biologists to identify landowners with an interest in improving habitat. Johnson said the North Dakota Mule Deer Foundation was awarded a $470,000 grant from the state's Outdoor Heritage Fund. The Mule Deer Foundation has more than 140 chapters nationwide. In North Dakota, there are seven chapters with about 1,500 members, according to Johnson. Chapters are located in Bismarck, Dickinson, Elgin, Fargo, Minot, Watford City and Williston. Reservations soon available The North Dakota Parks and Recreation Department's reservation system for state park camping will open in a couple of weeks. People can begin reserving spots at 7 a.m. Feb. 16. This year, for the first time, all state park campsites and corrals can be reserved. State park full services begin May 20. Online, reservations can be made 24 hours a day with the exception of the first day of the 95-day window. These reservations will be available at 7 a.m. The North Dakota Parks and Recreation Departments online reservation service can be found at www.parkrec.nd.gov. The toll-free call center at 800-807-4723 hours are 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. Campsite reservations may be made for May 20 through Sept. 5. In addition, the following horse parks will take campsite and corral reservations: Fort Abraham Lincoln State Park through Sept. 5, Fort Ransom though Sept. 25, Little Missouri State Park through Oct. 31 and Sully Creek State Park through Nov. 30. All campsite stays are limited to 14 consecutive days in any 30-day period, unless otherwise noted. Cabin, yurt, tipi, shelter and meeting hall reservations may be made 365 days in advance. Reservations for campsites and cabins, yurts and tipis can be made until noon the day prior to arrival. Horse campsite and corral reservations must be made directly through the park. Michael Ferro, chairman of the Chicago Sun-Times, speaks during the "Titans at the Table" Bloomberg Television program in Chicago on April 18, 2012. (Daniel Acker / Bloomberg) Michael Ferro, majority owner of the Chicago Sun-Times, has become the largest shareholder in Chicago-based Tribune Publishing, parent company of the Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times and other major daily newspapers. Tribune Publishing sold more than 5.2 million shares of newly issued common stock to Merrick Media, a Chicago-based investment firm controlled by Ferro, in a $44.4 million deal announced Thursday. Advertisement The purchase gives Ferro, a successful technology entrepreneur and nascent media baron, nearly a 17 percent stake in Tribune Publishing and a significant say in the direction of the legacy newspaper company as it navigates its digital future. Ferro, 49, will become nonexecutive chairman of Tribune Publishing's board. He will retain his stake in the Sun-Times but is stepping back from active management. Addressing Tribune Publishing employees during a webcast Thursday, Ferro gushed over his new investment and outlined his vision for helping Tribune Publishing reverse years of industrywide revenue declines. Advertisement "It's not as simple as one may think," Ferro said. "It's not about digital subscribers or print. Some of the biggest companies in the world are using our data and making billions of dollars on it, and we need to find a way how we tap into that so that our journalism remains stronger than ever." Ferro said he sought to create more value from Tribune Publishing content, develop new digital properties and leverage untapped logistics capabilities associated with newspaper distribution. Merrick Media's holdings surpass those of Los Angeles-based investment firm Oaktree Capital Management, which had been the company's largest shareholder. Tribune Publishing filed paperwork with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in November, signaling Oaktree's interest in selling its 4.7 million shares. Under terms of the transaction, Ferro's firm cannot acquire more than 25 percent of the outstanding shares and cannot sell its stake in Tribune Publishing for three years. "I have no intention of ever selling my stake," Ferro said during the webcast. A spokesman declined a request to make Ferro available for an interview. Eddy Hartenstein, who has served as Tribune Publishing's nonexecutive chairman since its August 2014 spinoff from Tribune Media, will remain on the board. Ferro will retain an ownership interest in Wrapports, the investment group that bought the Sun-Times in December 2011, but he will relinquish "all operating involvement" with the newspaper, said Dennis Culloton, a Wrapports spokesman. Even in the digital media age, industry experts say federal regulators still frown on a single owner who has two major daily newspapers in one city. But with managerial firewalls erected and a large but minority stake in Tribune Publishing, it isn't clear Ferro's investment will raise concerns, according to Lee Simowitz, a Washington-based antitrust attorney with BakerHostetler. Advertisement "Clearly there's a consciousness of these issues and there's been an attempt to address them," Simowitz said. "Whether that attempt would be sufficient is hard to say." Financial analyst Hamed Khorsand, who follows the company for BWS Financial, said investors are more concerned about the dilution of Tribune Publishing's stock and the decision to eliminate the cash dividend of 70 cents per share annually. Tribune Publishing's stock fell more than 11 percent Thursday, closing at $7.98 per share. "The actions are very shareholder unfriendly," Khorsand said. "The stock price is down mostly because they cut the dividend." The deal, completed Wednesday after the stock market closed, more than doubles the amount of cash on hand at Tribune Publishing, enabling the company to pursue strategic acquisitions and its digital transformation, according to Tribune Publishing CEO Jack Griffin. "This is a vote of confidence in our strategy and gives us further capacity to accelerate it," Griffin said. In 2014, Tribune Publishing acquired 38 suburban Chicago newspapers from Ferro's Sun-Times Media for $23.5 million, and last year bought the San Diego Union-Tribune for $85 million. Topping the list of potential acquisition targets is the Orange County Register, where Tribune Publishing is expected to bid against two other potential buyers for the assets of bankrupt California publishing company Freedom Communications. Advertisement Ferro's technology investment track record has yielded some big returns. His investment firm Merrick Ventures bought a controlling stake in Merge Healthcare, a Chicago-based medical software company, for $20 million in 2008. Though the company did not turn a yearly profit under Ferro, he sold it in October to IBM for about $1 billion, including the assumption of debt. His investment in the Chicago Sun-Times has yet to produce such dividends. Wrapports bought the Sun-Times and its portfolio of suburban newspapers for about $20 million. His big plans mostly fizzled, and the newspaper and its staff have been substantially downsized amid steady losses. Investors injected an additional $70 million into the operation as of last spring. Among the failed initiatives was Grid, a glossy Sunday business magazine launched in early 2013 that disappeared within months, along with much of the newspaper's local business coverage, which has since been farmed out to USA Today. In 2013, the Sun-Times directed reporters to snap photos with iPhones and fired the paper's photographers, a move that drew national attention and became symbolic of the headwinds facing the newspaper industry. Its digital initiatives also have fallen short, notably the low-budget Sun-Times Network, an aggregated national news site. Advertisement Ferro will now take a hands-off approach with the Sun-Times, stepping down as chairman of Wrapports. Veteran Chicago journalist Bruce Sagan, 87, a Wrapports board member and publisher of the Hyde Park Herald, was named chairman of Sun-Times Holdings. Jim Kirk, Sun-Times publisher and editor-in-chief, will join Sagan on the new board overseeing the Sun-Times. John Canning, co-founder of Madison Dearborn Partners, will assume the role of chairman of Wrapports. Ferro said the Sun-Times is in a "very healthy position now," and discounted the idea that his dual ownership signaled Chicago would soon be a one-newspaper town. "They're different products," Ferro said. "I see both products being around for a very long time." Griffin said he welcomes Ferro's investment and involvement in Tribune Publishing. "He brings vision and energy and commitment and capital," Griffin said. "He's a tremendous admirer of our brands at Tribune our premium journalism, our content so it's a winning combination for the company." Ferro has an even more ambitious goal for his investment in Tribune Publishing. Advertisement "This is going to be my legacy business," Ferro said. "I hope that this is what people remember me for 100 years from now." rchannick@tribpub.com Twitter @RobertChannick Goose Island is riding Green Line to national distribution. The pale ale that has been available only in Chicago and only on draft since its introduction six years ago will be getting a national rollout in bottles, cans and kegs by the end of February, Goose Island President and General Manager Ken Stout said Thursday. Advertisement The vast majority of Green Line will be made in Baldwinsville, N.Y., at an Anheuser-Busch plant that produces several other Goose Island brands. The lone exception will be the draft version of Green Line in Chicago, which will continue to be made at Goose Island's Fulton Street brewery. (The packaged version of Green Line in Chicago will also come from Baldwinsville.) With the expansion of Green Line, Goose Island is discontinuing its 312 Urban Pale Ale, which the brewery launched in early 2014 as an expansion of the wildly successful 312 Urban Wheat Ale. Advertisement Goose Island had considered expanding the sub-brand of 312 beers even further, possibly to include its recently released Four Star pilsner. But the brewery realized that multiple 312 beers confused customers, Stout said. Once demand for 312 Urban Pale Ale had turned tepid following a strong start, Goose Island decided to hand the 312 moniker exclusively to Urban Wheat Ale. Goose Island is changing up the label for 312 Urban Wheat Ale as it becomes the sole 312 beer in the lineup. Suddenly with no pale ale in its national lineup, the brewery decided to expand production and distribution of Green Line, which has been another of Goose Island's most successful beers in Chicago. "We've had people begging us for Green Line outside of Chicago since we introduced it just begging for it," Stout said. "There's a built-up demand and a reputation. We're bullish about how it will do." Goose Island long touted Green Line, which is named for the train line that runs two blocks from the brewery, as environmentally sustainable: available only locally and on draft, which reduces carbon emissions from trucking routes and the materials used to package the beer. Though the brewery will continue to donate some Green Line proceeds to Chicago environmental non-profits, Stout acknowledged that some people might be put off by a beer being scaled up that was initially billed as environmentally sustainable. But he said trade-offs must be made for Goose Island to continue to grow. "Could there be an account that says, 'I'm not crazy about this we had Green Line to ourselves, and now you can buy a 12-pack in Minneapolis or Seattle?' Yeah, that's possible," he said. "But at the same time, so much is changing in craft brewing. With what's happened (with sales involving) Lagunitas and Ballast Point, people understand that breweries are extremely capital intensive. You cannot grow without capital." Because some consumers were also unaware that the 312 beers were made by Goose Island, the brewery is also redesigning its 312 Urban Wheat Ale package to mimic the presentation of its other major beers including IPA, Honker's Ale, Four Star Pils and its seasonal releases with the word "Goose" at the top of the label. Eat. Watch. Do. Weekly What to eat. What to watch. What you need to live your best life ... now. > When former Goose Island brewmaster Greg Hall introduced 312 Urban Wheat Ale in 2004, he has said that he was deliberately distancing the brand from the brewery in order to appeal to younger drinkers. Hall has said that Goose Island was largely considered an older person's brand at the time. Advertisement But Goose Island has revamped its design during the past year to become more contemporary, and Stout said it was time to bring 312 Urban Wheat Ale more clearly into the Goose Island fold. "I can't tell you how many times at the brewery or at an event, someone says, '312 is a Goose Island beer? I had no idea!'" he said. "Under that 312 umbrella, we had to ask ourselves whether we were making things clear to beer lovers." The demise of 312 Urban Pale Ale leaves a hole in the beer menu at Wrigley Field, where vendors have sold the beer for the past two seasons. Stout said that for the 2016 season, 16-ounce cans of Green Line, 312 Urban Wheat Ale, Four Star Pils and IPA will be sold at Cubs games. He did not know which of the beers would be sold by vendors (along with Budweiser and Bud Light) in the aisles. A spokesperson for Levy Restaurants, which handles food and beverage at Wrigley Field, declined to comment. The expanded Green Line will be available in six packs of 12-ounce bottles, 12 packs of 12-ounce bottles, 12 packs of 12-ounce cans and four packs of 16-ounce cans. Though the packaged beer will land nationally on Feb. 29, Chicago will see it during the week of Feb. 15, Stout said. jbnoel@chicagotribune.com Twitter @joshbnoel "In the case of 'Macbeth' (1948), a film that Welles shot in a little over 30 days at Republic Pictures, he had the audacity to have the actors speak with a Scottish brogue. And at the time the English were in a firestorm over it, and unfortunately American culture revered whatever the English had to say about Shakespeare. But the setting is Scotland! So at some point, the studio said, 'You've got to come in and redo this' " meaning, have the actors re-record their dialogue, minus the Scottish accents "and he began doing it and then eventually said, 'I'm not doing this anymore,' so they had to re-edit the film to compensate for some of that obvious inconsistency they were left with. That was a ridiculous situation." Like so many of our contemporaries, my brother and I grew up in a sea of harvest gold and avocado green, and the most interesting furniture in our Racine, Wis., house was a hi-fi that took entire old-growth forest to manufacture. Above that sea of green and gold, with Burt Bacharach and the original cast album of "The Music Man" wafting out of tiny little console speakers covered by wee bronze curtains, smoke filled the air. Our folks smoked, like millions back then, and millions today. It went with all the smoking on screen in an average hour of '60s and '70s television. My parents, happily alive today, eventually called it a day on cigarettes, and everyone was better for it. Strandbeest creator Theo Jansen takes one of his creations for a walk in Downtown Chicago on Feb. 4, 2016. Read more or view photos of Jansen's moving sculptures. (Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune) (Chicago Tribune) The Strandbeest's joints squeaked as it walked near The Bean at Millennium Park, its sails fluttering gently as the wind pushed it forward. Onlookers described it as "a cross between a dinosaur and an airplane" or "something da Vinci would make," but the Dutch artist and creator of the Strandbeest or "beach creatures," describes it as a new form of life that has evolved over 25 years. Advertisement "These animals have to survive on beaches so during the generations they survive better and better against the storms and the sand and the water," said Theo Jansen, creator of the Strandbeests. "At the end of my life, I hope to get them so far that they can live on their own so when I leave this planet I want to leave a new species for the world." Expand Autoplay Image 1 of 8 Dutch artist Theo Jansen walks with a Strandbeest "beach creature," across Michigan Avenue in Chicago on Feb. 4, 2016. "Strandbeest: The Dream Machines of Theo Jansen" exhibit will run in the Chicago Cultural Center Feb. 6-May1. (Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune) Constructed with beige PVC pipes, nearly 40 "generations" of Strandbeests of different sizes and abilities have been created, based on a genetic algorithm that Jansen wrote on his Atari home computer when he started creating them. The 13 ratios used to create the walking movement of the leg system are present throughout his creations and are also open source on the Internet, spurring other artists, students and creators to make their own. Advertisement "All the students they think they're having a good time with the Strandbeest making them but the fact is they are used for the reproduction of the Strandbeest," Jansen said. "They're infected with the DNA code and they are making Strandbeests (that can multiply) so well in all corners of the world." Jansen's creations will be displayed at the Chicago Cultural Center from Saturday through May 1. The exhibition, organized by the Peabody Essex Museum, is the first tour of the Strandbeests to the United States. Next stop for the exhibition is the Exploratorium in San Francisco. "It's kind of like art, science and storytelling," said Trevor Smith, the Peabody Essex Museum curator who is managing the tour. "There's something about this dream of a new species that he wants to leave that has something of a mythic dimension to it. He's always telling stories about something that is real but sounds impossible, or something that's impossible but sounds real. He's really on the edge of fiction and reality." Multiple public programs will be held at the Cultural Center regarding the Strandbeest and the exhibition is free. For more information, visit www.chicagoculturalcenter.org. gwong@tribpub.com Twitter @GraceWong630 Reporting from Manchester, N.H. It was not so long ago that Hillary Clinton was relishing her status as an icon among young feminists, who cheered her resilience to political attack, her use of her stardom to advance the cause of women worldwide, even her trademark pantsuits. But now, when Clinton needs that support the most, much of her backing among women of the millennial generation has vanished. Advertisement Get unlimited access to L.A. Times political coverage, subscribe today >> Locked in an increasingly tense battle for the Democratic nomination, Clinton has aggressively reached out to young women with the promise of breaking a glass ceiling that the women's movement has worked for decades to shatter. The newest generation of feminists is responding with a shrug. Advertisement The persona cultivated by Clinton's campaign -- that of an exciting, trailblazing big sister with a "Girl Power" playlist of songs at the ready -- isn't sticking. Young female voters seem more likely to see in Clinton an overcautious mother. In Iowa this week, women 29 and younger voted for Clinton's challenger, Sen. Bernie Sanders, by a stunning margin of roughly 6 to 1, much as young men did, according to the poll of voters arriving at precinct caucuses conducted for the television networks and the Associated Press. In advance of Tuesday's New Hampshire primary, polls have shown Sanders holding the support of a majority of young women here, as well a sharp contrast to Clinton's dominance among women closer to her own age. The problem is not rejection of feminism surveys suggest millennial women are the most staunchly feminist group of voters in America. They want to see a woman in the White House. Just not necessarily this woman. "I am excited for a future in which we will have a female president, but I don't think Hillary is that person for this generation," said Rachael Jennings, 28, a high school teacher in Dublin, N.H. The same sentiment was echoed over and over in interviews with younger female voters here and in Iowa. These progressive voters instead see as their champion a man a 74-year-old democratic socialist, at that. Sanders is all the rage for now. "Young women cannot remember a time that Hillary was not a household name, and it confuses them what she stands for," said Nichola Gutgold, a professor of communication arts and sciences at Penn State, who wrote a book, "Almost Madam President," about Clinton's 2008 quest for the nomination. "Rejecting her is a way of rejecting the establishment." Longtime feminist leaders have found that development flummoxing and have dived into the campaign to try to turn the tide so far, to little effect. Advertisement "I will be honest. We are engaging sooner than we expected," said Eleanor Smeal, who runs the Feminist Majority Foundation, which days before the Iowa caucuses put resources into the state to try to boost Clinton's chances. NARAL Pro-Choice America, a leading abortion rights organization, has made tens of thousands of phone calls and trips to the doorsteps of voters in early primary states on Clinton's behalf. Planned Parenthood Votes, the advocacy arm of the women's healthcare provider, blitzed Iowa Democrats with pro-Clinton mailers and a television advertising campaign. But still, Clinton finds herself caught up in the cross-generational friction between a movement tantalizingly close to achieving a long-elusive goal and newer-wave feminists whose experience with the gender gap differs from that of their mothers and grandmothers. Clinton's troubles locking down millennial women voters are part of the broader difficulty she faces in separating from an establishment many young liberal voters have come to loathe. For young Democrats, getting a woman in the Oval Office has not ranked as high on the priority list as putting Wall Street or the giant health insurance companies in their place. The landmark feminist gains on Clinton's resume are not what stand out to this group, which was barely in diapers when she gave the historic women's rights speech in Beijing that her supporters tout as among her finest accomplishments. "They are already inside an order that has changed as a result of the feminist movement," said Kathleen Hall Jamieson, director of the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania. "They have opportunities women once didn't have." Advertisement Young voters are by their nature uncomfortable with the status quo, Jamieson said, and Clinton has difficulty convincing them that she is the change agent in the race. "I'm a student. I will have to pay for college, and debt is something that scares me," said Meg Renzelman, 18, after a Sanders rally in Keene, N.H. The Sanders plan for free public college tuition is a big draw to her. "There is this assumption that if you are a woman, you should support Hillary Clinton because she is a woman," Renzelman said. "But I feel like Bernie is going to support women in the same way." The pervasiveness of that view has touched off a backlash among other young feminists who are excited about Clinton, including a recent profanity laced, all-caps posting that drew thousands of comments to the millennial-focused website Pajiba. The writer, Courtney Enlow, infuriated by her generation's abandonment of Clinton, suggested that Clinton was being held to a double standard. Sanders is allowed to loudly denounce what he describes as corporate malfeasance, while she needs to avoid sounding angry, Enlow wrote, adding that if the former secretary of State said some of the things Sanders has, she would find "Fox News ... burying her alive in tampons and crucifixes." Clinton has put considerable effort into making a feminist pitch to young female voters. That's a marked difference from her run eight years ago, when she took a more muted approach to the glass ceiling, avoiding placing women's issues at the center of her campaign until the very end. Advertisement Now, Clinton hawks a needlepoint pillow on her website that says "A Woman's Place Is in the White House." The interview-averse candidate has sat for what can be intensely personal one-on-one chats with Internet phenoms whose productions are targeted at millennial women. Still, in New Hampshire this week, Clinton acknowledged that her message is not breaking through with young voters and that she needs to recalibrate it. In a televised town hall Wednesday night in Derry, N.H., Clinton said the support Sanders won among young women in Iowa was "amazing." "I accept the fact that I have work to do to convey what I stand for, what I've accomplished, what I want to do for young people in our country," she said. Despite the travails, there is a potential consolation, at least according to some Democratic strategists. If Clinton eventually prevails, the excitement Sanders has generated could ultimately work in her favor. He is drawing to the polls large numbers of young feminists who otherwise might not have voted. Democratic pollster Celinda Lake expects those voters will be back come November, and if Clinton is the nominee, she will be their obvious choice against the GOP, whose candidates uniformly oppose many of the key values young feminists espouse. Advertisement "In a general election," Lake said, "this is the group where she is strongest." For more on the Clinton campaign, follow @evanhalper Hoy: Lea esta historia en espanol Get unlimited access to L.A. Times political coverage, subscribe today >> MORE ON CAMPAIGN 2016 Latinos attended Iowa's caucuses in record numbers, group says Advertisement Far from the Mexican border, candidates keep immigration at forefront Skelton: California's primary might matter, but the odds are against it It may come as a surprise to two journeyers in Yann Martel's latest work of fiction that there are actually no mountains in the High Mountains of Portugal. Whatever it says in the guidebooks, a young Lisbon man is disappointed to discover, "There is nothing beyond mere hills an extensive, undulating, mostly treeless steppe." A Canadian politician, too, is puzzled to encounter "a barren savannah without any peaks anywhere." But for readers of "Life of Pi" and other Martel concoctions, this discrepancy between reality and myth is quite familiar. In his whimsy-streaked, sometimes inscrutable novels, what the eye sees and what the soul experiences can be two completely different things. So it goes in "The High Mountains of Portugal," in which three male protagonists have their lives reshaped by a chimpanzee. Advertisement In "Homeless," the first of three loosely connected tales, set in 1904, a hapless Lisbon man named Tomas searches for a historical crucifix of supposedly earthshaking significance, playing out his obsession with the writings of an obscure 17th century priest. Since the death of his lover (a servant of his uncle's), their illegitimate child and his father in the span of a week, he has walked backwards as a statement of defiance against fate. Now, risking life and limb behind the wheel of an automobile never having laid his eyes on such a machine let alone climbed inside one Tomas tempts fate to a greater degree. The appearance of the car in the isolated towns he chaotically rolls through draws violent reactions from the people who live there. Ultimately, his efforts to overcome all odds (and heavy thrown objects) and make it to the not-high mountains prove more meaningful than his strange, chimp-ified holy grail though his ultimate, anguished cry, "We are risen apes, not fallen angels," lends a special poetry to the proceedings. Advertisement In the second tale, "Homeward," set in 1938, Dr. Eusebio Lozora, a pathologist in the northeastern city of Braganca, proves to know less than he thinks when he utters, "Every dead body is a book with a story to tell." The full meaning becomes clear to him only after he cuts open the corpse of a man delivered in a suitcase by his widow. His scalpel liberates a stream of vomit from the feet, a flute from the penis and (spoilerish alert) a curled up chimp from the chest. Finally, in "Home," set in 1981, Canadian Sen. Peter Tovy, laid low by the death of his wife, becomes attached to a mysterious chimp named Odo during an official visit to Oklahoma. Peter is so intrigued by Odo, whom he meets at a university research facility, that he quits his delegation, buys a car, drives his new companion all the way to New York and flies him to the quaint Portuguese town of Tuizelo, where Peter was born. The villagers don't find it particularly strange when man and animal move into a disheveled house that lacks both electricity and hot water. Indeed, the villagers help fix up the abode and set up the new residents with food and other necessities. Peter and Odo spend their days wrestling, going on walks and grooming each other. The question is, how long will their be able to maintain their peaceful existence before Odo resorts to his natural instincts and does something worse than break a dish? One of Martel's themes, though, is that regression isn't always such a bad thing. For Peter, "The members of his own species now bring on a feeling of weariness in him. They are too noisy, too fractious, too arrogant, too unreliable. He much prefers the intense silence of Odo's presence the profound simplicity of his means and aims." Martel's blend of fable, magic realism, road comedy and religious philosophy never coheres. But there's no denying the simple pleasures to be had in "The High Mountains of Portugal," ranging from the descriptions of the towns and townspeople to the insistence of Lozora's devout wife that Agatha Christie's novels are steeped in Christianity (the 13 passengers in "Murder on the Orient Express" are obviously stand-ins for Jesus' 12 disciples plus a Judas) to Tomas' frantic efforts to perform maintenance on the car, faced with "a hundred little chicks chirping frantically their whole beings trembling with need as they scream for their drops of oil." The stories don't really need the connective elements: Peter's walking backwards like Tomas, for example, adds no meaning. But stripped of high concepts, Martel wouldn't be Martel. And who among his fans would want that? Lloyd Sachs, a regular contributor to Printers Row, is the author of a forthcoming book about producer and songwriter T Bone Burnett. "The High Mountains of Portugal" By Yann Martel, Spiegel & Grau, 332 pages; $27 The sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff, with its vast loss of life, provides the plot for "Salt to the Sea" by Ruta Sepetys, a story of World War II refugees from several nations. (Magda Starowieyska photo / Philomel Books) In her first novel, the international best-seller "Between Shades of Gray" (Philomel, 2011), Ruta Sepetys was inspired by the history of her father's homeland of Lithuania, where in 1941 many families were rounded up by the Stalin regime and sent to prison camps in Siberia. Now, after a detour to New Orleans in her second novel, "Out of the Easy" (2013), Sepetys has returned to Eastern Europe, again during World War II, and to one of that dark era's deadliest yet least-known tragedies. Marketed as Young Adult fiction yet equally accessible to adult readers, "Salt to the Sea" is the story of four teenagers from different nations Germany, Poland, Lithuania and East Prussia fleeing the Soviet advance into German-occupied territory in the region in early 1945. They make their way on board the Wilhelm Gustloff, one of several vessels pressed into service as part of Operation Hannibal, a massive effort by Hitler's government to evacuate refugees from the war zone. Advertisement Within hours after the Gustloff sailed with more than 10,000 passengers and crew aboard, it sank in the Baltic Sea after being torpedoed by a Soviet submarine. More than 9,000 people were killed, most of them civilians, most of them children a greater loss of life than that of the Titanic and the Lusitania disasters put together. But because of several historical and geopolitical factors, the incident remains largely unknown. In part to find out why, Printers Row recently interviewed Sepetys, who lives in Nashville, by phone from Denver, where she was attending a booksellers' conference. Here's an edited transcript of our conversation. Q: The event that forms the backdrop of your novel the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff, with a huge loss of life is all but unknown. How did you learn about it? Advertisement A: Part of the story I knew for quite a long time. I knew about this massive refugee trek through East Prussia in the winter of 1945, and I wanted to give voice to those people. I might be going out on a limb here, but I think that in the United States, not many families have a connection or experience with occupation or war over the past few decades. The concept of "refugee" is something frightening, it's something foreign. So I wanted to write from that point of view, which is why I have four alternating main characters, all young people from different nations, seeing life from four different cultural lenses on this refugee trek. But the other part of the novel, which chronicles the sinking of the Wilhelm Gustloff the single greatest maritime disaster in history, which somehow history has opted to forget I didn't know about until much more recently. After I wrote my first novel, which told the story of Lithuanians, Latvians and Estonians who were deported to Siberia under Stalin's regime, my father's cousin, Erika Demski, visited from Europe. She said, "Ruta, I know that you love hidden history, and you love underrepresented stories. You have to tell the story of the Wilhelm Gustloff." But I didn't know what she was talking about. Q: Of course people know about the Titanic, but A: But in 1945, there was a ship sinking that dwarfed the death toll of the Titanic and the Lusitania combined. I asked my dad's cousin, "How do you know about this ship?" And she said, "I had passage on the Wilhelm Gustloff." The day of the voyage, it turned out, fate intervened and she was not able to get on board the ship. She stood with her family on the dock, watching the Gustloff sail away, thinking her life was over. The Russians were sweeping in, destroying everything in their path, but she couldn't get on the ship. (She later sailed on another ship and now lives in Belgium.) And she said something that lingered with me: "Sometimes it's not where you are. It's where you aren't." And I was fascinated by the story, wondering why it is that some parts of history penetrate our collective consciousness, and others remain hidden? Q: The incident would have been reported, wouldn't it? A: Well, when the ship sank, the Germans tried to conceal the story. Although they were obviously losing the war at that point, they felt that if the ship's sinking were reported and it was known that such a massive loss of life 9,343 people, including 5,000 teenagers and children happened on their watch, morale would really be affected. So the Germans discouraged anyone from sharing the story. And after the war, the Russians didn't publicize it from their side because the submarine commander had been dishonorably discharged. And certainly the Germans weren't in any position to paint themselves as victims, considering their role in war brutalities. So there's a combination of reasons why this story has remained dormant. Q: The Wilhelm Gustloff was a former cruise ship that had been repurposed to evacuate refugees, right? A: Correct. Once the war started, it was used as a hospital ship for a while, then as barracks for naval personnel. By the time it sank on Jan. 30, 1945, the ship had not sailed for four years. Its final mission was Operation Hannibal, a large naval evacuation that is believed to be larger than Dunkirk. The Germans were losing the war, the Russians were pushing in and in between the Germans and the Russians were millions of refugees. The Germans commandeered every vessel they could find for this operation, one of which was the Gustloff. Q: The idea was to remove Germans and people of German ancestry from the war zone. Advertisement A: Correct, plus their wounded military personnel. The ship held 1,400 people, but then they decided to take the furniture off the ship to fit in more people. Then they drained the swimming pool and put people there. So when the ship sailed, it was carrying over 10,000 people. Q: We don't want to give away the end of your novel A: Thank you. Q: but we can say that there were some survivors. A: Yes. Although it was a German ship, there were Lithuanians, Estonians, Latvians on it. Some of the crew were Croatians. And that's what drew me to so many different countries researching this book. Depending on what country you're from, you view history through your own cultural lens. The people of Poland view this piece of history one way, people from Lithuania another, the Germans of course from their own viewpoint. So I wanted characters who represent these different lenses. I also have a German sailor. Q: At one point you have him reading his copy of "Mein Kampf." Advertisement A: Yes, all four main characters are both hunted and haunted by secrets and war. Joana is a young Lithuanian nurse. Emilia is the daughter of a Polish mathematician. Then we have Florian, who is from East Prussia and is a restoration artist who has been recruited by the Nazis. Finally we have Alfred, a German sailor, through whose eyes we see into the Gustloff. Their fates converge as they make their way to the port to board this doomed ship. Q: For readers who may not know what the map of Europe looked like in 1945, East Prussia was a small country north of Poland and south of Lithuania. It doesn't exist anymore, as such; it's now part of Poland. A: Right. At one time, Prussia was a German kingdom with a population of over 40 million. My mother and her family were from West Prussia, often known as Pomerania. The Gustloff sailed from what the Germans called Gotenhafen; it's now called Gdynia. So I traveled to Gdynia to research the execution of Operation Hannibal, and my publisher in Poland connected me to two of the original Polish divers who are now elderly who were among the first to dive the sunken Gustloff. They not only helped me in Gdynia and Gdansk; together we walked the path of the refugees during their flight. So I was able to see what it was like although they did it in the depths of winter, and I was doing it in the spring. Q: Must have been eerie. A: It was. When I was doing some more research at a museum in Denmark, on the island of Bornholm, there was a message in a bottle that had been thrown from one of the refugee ships from Operation Hannibal. It really moved me. These people, they were so desperate for someone to know their story, they put a message in a bottle and threw it overboard. It didn't name the ship, but it said something like, "We're 8,000 refugees on this ship, we're packed in like sardines, and we don't know where the ship is going. But we are celebrating our freedom and the life ahead of us. Please tell someone." There was no name. But they wanted someone to know their story, that they existed. Q: You don't know whether they made it to their destination, obviously. Advertisement A: No. They might have, but it's also true that other ships were sunk on the Baltic Sea that winter, with about 25,000 deaths in all. Q: Your mother's family was from Prussia, and your father's? How did they make their way to the United States? A: My father and his parents were from Lithuania. They fled through Poland and spent a brief period in refugee camps in Austria, and finally made it to Germany, where they spent the bulk of their time in refugee camps. After the war, you know, there was an incredible refugee crisis. There were an estimated 12 million displaced people. Under the International Refugee Organization (IRO), they created the Displaced Persons Act, and there were five major territories that were taking refugees at the time: Australia, the United States, Canada, South Africa and South America. But it took a long time to organize this resettlement effort. The IRO resettled about eight to nine million refugees, among them my family. They came to the United States on a troop ship, the General Muir and landed in Brooklyn. My grandparents scrubbed toilets on Wall Street until they were able to make their way to Detroit, where my grandfather was presented with an opportunity. He had a military engineering background, and Ford Motor Company offered him a position in Detroit. Q: What's your dad's name? A: George Sepetys. He's a very vibrant 80-year-old now, although we lost my mother to cancer just before the holidays. But my dad's a fighter. He lost his home, he lost his country and now he's lost his beloved companion of 60 years, but he said, "Look, life is a fight. You just keep on fighting." Q: Your book is being marketed as Young Adult fiction. What's your take on that? Advertisement A: Well, my first novel, "Between Shades of Gray," was published in 45 countries and 33 languages, but in some of those countries, I wasn't published as a Young Adult author. In Italy, Spain and Brazil, for example, I'm an adult author, not a Young Adult author. So I have to kind of bridge both markets, if you will. My goal is to present a piece of history, a time period that has a complexity to it, in a way that is digestible and intriguing. My theory is a book belongs to the reader, and it's up to the reader to interpret the story, not for the author to explain it. What I hope is that if young people read the book, it would put a face to the forgotten, and these "refugees" which is just a label, a term become real, and the readers will become interested and research the period. That certainly happened with my first novel. So yes, I do have a Young Adult audience, but I don't necessarily write with the young adult in mind. I find when I tour that young readers are deep thinkers and feelers. I know myself that books I read at 14 and 15 made a profound impression on me. So I certainly hope that young readers gravitate toward my novels, but I don't necessarily write just for a young reader. Q: I was talking to someone recently about what it is that defines YA fiction, and the only answer we could agree on was the age of the protagonists. Here you have four teenagers as protagonists. A: Sure. And here in the U.S., I'm published by Philomel, an imprint of Penguin Young Readers Group, which is for young readers. But I hope the books can be read by adults as well. Kevin Nance is a Chicago-based freelance writer and photographer whose work appears in the Washington Post, USA Today, Poets & Writers Magazine and other publications. Follow him on Twitter @KevinNance1. "Salt to the Sea" By Ruta Sepetys, Philomel, 391 pages, $18.99 The vice chairman of the University of Minnesota Board of Regents has apologized for questioning whether declining enrollment at one college is due to its diversity. Steve Sviggum said in a statement issued late Tuesday that hes willing to learn and must do better, referring to his comment about falling student numbers at the University of Minnesota, Morris. Sviggum said during a board meeting last week that he has received a couple letters from friends who decided not to attend Morris because it is too diverse. He said the prospective students just didnt feel comfortable there. Sviggum wrote that he was truly sorry too those he offended. He added that his question was meant to encourage discussion about enrollment, which is down 50% from its peak. "I don't know what you can do to change these numbers," Angelo said. "This is not something that will change overnight. There are a multitude of issues the police can't fix. We can't adjust people's incomes. We can't cure your addiction, fix your marriage, fix your children, or repair other socio-economic dilemmas. Our job is to enforce laws. And few like it very much when we do." City Colleges of Chicago Chancellor Cheryl Hyman talks with board Chairman Charles Middleton during a board meeting Feb. 4, 2016, in which the faculty declared a vote of no confidence in her. (Anthony Souffle / Chicago Tribune) The City Colleges of Chicago faculty council Thursday announced a vote of no confidence in the chancellor's leadership, citing uneasiness with steps administrators have taken to "reinvent" the state's largest community college network. The decision comes after Chancellor Cheryl Hyman made several changes to the seven-campus system's policies, such as increasing tuition for some part-time students and eliminating class registration one full week prior to the start of a semester, without consulting them, faculty members say. Advertisement "There's a lack of shared governance. The joke at City Colleges is they govern, and then they share what they've decided," said Sean Noonan, who holds the legislative chair with the Cook County College Teachers Union. The council, which represents the faculty, said officials were implementing "sweeping changes" without any "meaningful demonstration of concern for faculty, student or community concerns," according to the resolution, said Jennifer Alexander, the council's president. Advertisement At Harold Washington College, for instance, 114 of 116 full-time faculty members voted, with 106 of them supporting the resolution, said Jenny Armendarez, an associate professor of English, speech and theater. City Colleges is the largest community college system in Illinois, serving about 114,000 students per year, according to its website. At a meeting Thursday of City Colleges' board of trustees, more than a dozen community leaders and students spoke in defense of Hyman and the reinvention campaign, citing its multiple successes. Among them is City Colleges' graduation rate which rose from 7 percent to 17 percent since 2009. U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush said Hyman is a talented educational leader who left the "comfortable corporate world" to lead City Colleges. "(Faculty) fight change with everything they have, because change threatens their sense of being comfortable," he said. "We ought to be commending and applauding her for her results. Why are we here this morning even discussing a vote of confidence for Chancellor Hyman?" The City Colleges system has traditionally been a low-cost way for Chicagoans to take classes toward a two-year associate degree. The board, appointed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel, voted in July to raise tuition as part of a $696 million spending plan that includes no property tax increase. By raising costs for students instead, City Colleges could balance its budget without resorting to the politically painful tax increases Emanuel faces as he deals with pension shortfalls and budgeting issues at City Hall and Chicago Public Schools. Last fall, City Colleges swapped its $89-per-credit-hour tuition structure in favor of a three-tier "flat-fee" payment structure. Hyman said it was designed to encourage full-time status by making it less expensive on a per-class basis to carry a full load of more than three courses per semester part of her "reinvention" campaign to boost the low percentage of students who transfer to a four-year institution or go on to get bachelor's degrees. Advertisement But faculty members argue City Colleges largely serves students who can take just a class or two per semester due to job and family commitments. For them, tuition rose significantly. Taking a single three-credit class now costs them $599, up from $267 under the previous tuition structure. A pair of three-credit classes used to cost $534, and now costs $1,069. By increasing their tuition, Noonan said administrators send part-time students a dangerous message: that City Colleges isn't interested in "kids who aren't primed to be successful." Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. > "What this tuition change has done is tell (part-time) students 'Oh, we're not really into you,' " Noonan said. Hyman was not made available to comment on the faculty resolution. Board Chairman Charles Middleton said the board supports Hyman and looks forward to working with her to improve on the "considerable achievements that have already been attained under her leadership." Faculty members also took issue with Emanuel's aggressive push to remake the community colleges, by linking individual campuses with particular industries in a bid to make the degrees "more relevant to the modern workplace." Malcolm X College, for instance, now has a curriculum geared toward the health care field, and Olive-Harvey is focused on transportation logistics. The results of a survey of full-time faculty conducted by the council found that 72.4 percent of 471 respondents were dissatisfied with the direction of City Colleges, according to the resolution. Advertisement Hyman was appointed chancellor in April 2010, according to the university's website. Before that, she served as vice president of operations strategy and business intelligence at ComEd, an Exelon company. After graduating from City Colleges' Olive-Harvey campus, she earned a bachelor's degree in computer science from Illinois Institute of Technology, a master's degree in community development from North Park University and an executive MBA from Northwestern University. meltagouri@chicagotribune.com Twitter @marwaeltagouri Laura LaPlante, right, was three weeks from graduating from the University of Chicago Law School when she was killed in a crash caused by Erik Johnson, left, driving the wrong way on Lake Shore Drive while drunk. (Chicago Police Department / Family photos) The mother of a promising University of Chicago Law School student sobbed Thursday as she talked in a Cook County courtroom about how a crash caused by a man driving the wrong way on Lake Shore Drive while drunk had forever changed two families' lives. Judith Wasil's son, Michael, 24, suffered traumatic brain injuries, while his friend Laura Anne LaPlante, 26, also a U. of C. law student, was killed. Both were three weeks from graduation from the prestigious school. Advertisement "Certain truths that I had always taken to be self-evident were instantly shattered," said Wasil, whose son did not attend the hearing at the Leighton Criminal Court Building. "We were no longer a normal, happy family. My son was lying in a hospital bed hooked up to machines and fighting for his life. My family had suffered one of the worst tragedies a family can experience." The defendant, Erik Johnson, sat with slumped shoulders looking shellshocked as Wasil spoke. He briefly appeared to lose his composure and fight back tears as Assistant State's Attorney Geraldine D'Souza read a statement from LaPlante's parents wishing Johnson's family well. Advertisement "Our beloved daughter, Laura, has been killed and her right to live is gone," wrote Daniel and Roberta LaPlante. "Her significant potential to contribute to the betterment and well-being of society will never be realized as a result of Mr. Johnson's actions. She will also not realize her own fulfillment from life, including a family of her own, professional and civic activities and sharing life with her parents and siblings. Emergency personnel at the scene of a wrong-way crash on Lake Shore Drive on May 1, 2014. (WGN-TV / WGN-TV) "Laura was a leader in her short life; for her immediate and extended family, for her academic institutions and colleagues, for her friends and associates, and for everyone who knew her. ... Our family has suffered immeasurable pain and loss from Laura's death. We are not, and will never be, the same family without her. We will continue to struggle with sadness, anxiety and a variety of yet-to-be-realized tensions in all the years to come." Johnson pleaded guilty to two counts of aggravated DUI and was sentenced to eight years in prison as part of a deal worked out with the approval of both victims' families. He must serve a minimum of nearly six years in prison. Johnson, at the time of the crash a recent Loyola University graduate who had been out drinking with co-workers, had a blood-alcohol level of 0.195 percent, about 2 1/2 times the legal limit. His SUV, being driven south in the northbound lanes on a twisting curve of Lake Shore Drive near Navy Pier, smashed into a taxi carrying LaPlante and Wasil shortly before 2 a.m. in early May 2014. The impact knocked both into the taxi's windshield. The driver, the only one wearing a seat belt, suffered a broken elbow. Calling it "a heart-wrenching tragedy of the worst kind," Wasil's mother said the massive injuries at first left her son unable to swallow, eat, drink, walk, talk, read or write. He has recovered physically except for a pronounced limp, she told Judge William Lacy, but his brain injury "continues to be problematic" and is "essentially a life sentence." Wasil has difficulty even forming sentences, according to an attorney for the family. Both victims' families have filed lawsuits against Johnson. Advertisement Johnson's father, Bill, stood and offered his apologies for the tragedy, saying he was shocked and in disbelief at his son's involvement in the crash at the time because of his "gentle, kind, caring and charitable" nature. "There are no words to express the grief that Erik feels and his family shares over those impacted by this tragedy," he said. "The best of us all make mistakes, and it is horrible and unfair how one mistake can hurt so many people," the father said. "A parent looks at success in life through the happiness and success of their children. We are devastated by the understanding that Erik will be punished for this mistake for the rest of his life. We will be haunted by regret over what we might have done differently as parents. We know Erik is a good person, and we and many others still love him deeply and remain proud of what he had become before this." Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. > Moments before the judge handed down the sentence, Johnson, now 25, apologized for his actions. "I do not deserve to be breathing the same air as all of you," Johnson told the courtroom. "I wish this senseless act had killed me alone because of my own mistake. "I was brought up in a moral and ethical household where we were taught to respect life and a person's free will," he said. "No one in my family ever committed a crime, no one in my family ever hurt anyone. But in one night I lost complete control over everything I've ever been taught and everything I've ever believed myself. Advertisement "I have single-handedly taken away the life of a young woman already great but destined for greater things," Johnson said. "I am devastated to think of what I have taken from you." Johnson, who vowed to work to prevent drunken driving after his release from prison, kept his eyes downcast as a deputy sheriff led him from the courtroom. sschmadeke@tribpub.com Twitter @SteveSchmadeke A federal judge on Thursday denied the city of Chicago's motion to dismiss a park preservation group's lawsuit aimed at blocking the proposed Lucas Museum, dealing a blow to the project and the goal of breaking ground along the lakefront this spring. U.S. District Judge John Darrah ruled Friends of the Parks makes a case that the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art would not benefit the public, and that the project may violate the state's public trust doctrine. Advertisement Darrah said Friends of the Parks had plausibly argued that the proposed museum would "impair public interest in the land ... and promote private and/or commercial interests," and he cited case law that says courts "must be skeptical with claims of public benefit." The ruling cast doubt on plans to begin construction on the project sometime this spring. Construction cannot begin until the court case has been settled. Advertisement Friends of the Parks contends the land selected for the museum site between Soldier Field and McCormick Place is held in the public trust because it is formerly part of Lake Michigan, and that the land should be protected and preserved for the state's residents. "We're thrilled that the judge has upheld what we've been saying all along, that our case does have merit," said Juanita Irizarry, executive director of Friends of the Parks. "Star Wars" creator George Lucas wants to house his collection of artwork and showcase exhibits and films at the futuristic-looking building. The museum has the approval of the Chicago City Council, the Plan Commission and the Chicago Park District, which has entered an agreement to lease the land near Lake Michigan at a cost of $10 for 99 years. The 300,000-square-foot museum will be privately funded and is slated to be built on 17 acres of lakefront property. The project is expected to cost more than $300 million. The judge also ruled that "plaintiffs sufficiently plead that the ground lease effectively surrenders control of the museum site and places the public land 'entirely beyond the direction and control of the state.'" The museum, designed to include several theaters, a library and an observation deck, will charge an admission fee but also will have several free areas. The plan also calls for nearly 4.6 acres of parkland and improvements at the site. Friends of the Parks' attorneys say the terms of the lease, which include a two-time option to renew, essentially mean the Park District is handing over the property to the nonprofit organization that will run the museum. The parks group also argued that a state law passed last year targeting museums on formerly submerged land should not serve as a green light for the project, and Darrah agreed they made a viable claim on that point. "We're pleased the case is going forward," Friends of the Parks attorney Tom Geoghegan said. "I think this is an excellent opportunity for the mayor to reconsider the location for this project." Advertisement A lawyer and spokesman for the city's Law Department said they were reviewing the judge's ruling. The Park District issued a statement that said the museum "is an unparalleled investment in the City's museum campus and our cultural and educational offerings, not to mention an incredible addition of green space to Chicago's lakefront." Geoghegan said the group is not opposed to the concept of the Lucas Museum, or its presence in Chicago simply the selected location. "Let's use the lakefront for what it is meant for," he said. "We don't think this building is appropriate on the lakefront." Geoghegan has said previously he wants to depose Park District officials as part of the legal discovery process to shed more light on how the city came to an agreement with the Lucas camp on the lakefront site. The judge's ruling kicks off a new phase in the case, creating the potential for those depositions to take place. Lawyers for the city and the Park District argue that the lease is not a transfer of public property and that the museum will have substantial public benefits. They argue that the museum will be an upgrade over what is now a parking lot primarily used for Bears games, and the grounds near the museum will be enjoyed by city residents and visitors. Friends of the Parks also questions the plans for parking near the proposed museum, arguing "it is very unlikely and certainly not guaranteed" that Lucas' pledge of $40 million for a parking garage near the site and a possible pedestrian bridge over Lake Shore Drive would cover the costs of the projects, leaving taxpayers on the hook. Advertisement At Friends of the Parks' annual meeting luncheon at the Chicago Cultural Center, group members and supporters celebrated the judge's decision. Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. > "We are still in it!" Irizarry told the gathering. Ald. Scott Waguespack, 32nd, who voted against the Lucas Museum and was among nine aldermen honored at the luncheon, said he and several others opposed to the location also are considering whether to file a friends of the court brief in the lawsuit. They also are thinking about pursuing a remedy in state court, where they would argue the project would obstruct a free, open and clear lakefront and would not bring sufficient economic development to the city. Waguespack said there are other sites more suitable for the Lucas Museum, including the former Michael Reese hospital site or University of Illinois at Chicago property that was under consideration as a possible site for the Obama library. He also worried about who would be left paying for proposed parking facilities near the museum. Friends of the Parks sued to block the museum in November 2014, after Lucas and the city announced plans for the lakefront project. A status hearing has been scheduled in the lawsuit for Feb. 17. Advertisement poconnell@tribpub.com Twitter @pmocwriter Hours after six bodies were discovered Thursday in a Gage Park bungalow, Noemi Martinez waited by the phone nearly 1,000 miles away in Texas, still not sure whether the victims were family members her husband had just visited over Christmas. "This is shocking, and I don't know what to think," she said. "We're trying to find out what's going on." Finally, about four hours after police found the bodies of five adults and one child around 10 years old, Martinez was resigned to the idea that they were her relatives. But she still had many questions about what happened inside the brick bungalow in the 5700 block of South California Avenue. "We're still trying to figure it all out," she said through tears. "We don't know what happened." Police say the six victims were found throughout the home around 1:05 p.m. after a co-worker of a man who lived there called 911, police said. The victims appeared to have been stabbed, but police were waiting for autopsies. The co-worker told police the man had not shown up for work Wednesday or Thursday, interim police Superintendent John Escalante said at a news conference near the home. From outside, an officer saw "what they believed to be a body" inside on the floor, he said. The officers entered and discovered the bodies in different locations in the home. Escalante said there were "signs of trauma to the bodies." Responding to a reporter's question, Escalante said there was no indication anyone inside had committed suicide, though police had not ruled out anything. Investigators were being careful and thorough as they "collect as much evidence as possible," he said. The Chicago Lawn District added patrols in the area, but Escalante said he did not think there was a threat to the community. The deaths were "contained within the residence," he said, without explaining. Martinez said a couple in their 60s lived downstairs in the bungalow with their son, in his 40s. Their daughter, in her 30s, lived on the second floor with her two children, one around 9 and the other in his teens. Martinez said by phone that she feared the entire family was dead, but she was having problems getting answers from police. Her description of the family -- one matched by neighbors -- does not match the description of victims given by police, who said five adults and one child had been found slain. Police could not explain the discrepancy Thursday night. Martinez said she and her husband planned to drive to Chicago as soon as possible. "My husband's mother is distraught. She has lost her brother. She's here in Texas, so we're driving her there as soon as we can. The police said they need us." The father of the two children who lived in the house is in Mexico, Martinez said. She described the grandparents as devoted to their children and grandchildren. The grandmother "was always a stay-at-home wife and mother who loved taking care of her grandkids," Martinez said. Their son "treated those boys like they were his own. They were his nephews, but people thought they were his sons. He was close to them." Through the years, the grandparents allowed relatives to stay in their spacious house until they could get on their feet. Martinez said she and her husband had stayed there. "We were close because we were together," she said. "My husband was just there with them for Christmas. He had a good time, and was just chilling with his uncle and cousins. Nothing seemed to be wrong. "They were great people, and we don't know who would want to harm them," she said. "Our entire family is in shock, and we can't believe this happened." A neighbor across the alley, Orlando Almanza, said his 13-year-old son played with the older of two boys. They went to school together at Carson Elementary School. "Those kids played soccer in the alley a lot," he said. "My son played with them a couple times." Teens on the block said they played with the older boy but hadn't seen him in a few days. "I was wondering when he was coming back," said a classmate, Aaron Villazana, 13. "Last time we saw him was Monday, and he left after an early dismissal. He was kind of sad-looking and I asked him why was he sad and he said he was just tired." Another classmate, Jesus Andrade, 13, said he noticed the older boy acting out of character lately when he tried speaking with him as he walked in the neighborhood. "He was just quiet, with his head down and not listening to what I was saying," Jesus said. The older boy had recently gotten his photograph taken for graduation at Carson Middle School. He enjoyed playing soccer and competed in a youth league on the Chicago Red Wings. Down the block, Rosa De La Torre wept on the porch of a home just outside the police tape after she spoke with investigators. One of the victims was her friend, the police confirmed to her. Her son Hugo De La Torre, 13, said she had been calling family members asking if they'd heard from the woman after news broke about the bodies being discovered. "My mom is just really sad because one of her friends is the victim," Hugo said. Another neighbor, Markita Williams, told reporters she knocked on the door Wednesday to get someone to move a van on the street but got no answer. She said her son was a friend of a child who lived in the home. The block is lined with bungalows, most of them red brick. Gage Park High School is a few blocks away. Lisa Adams, 31, lives about half a block from where the bodies were found. She moved on the block from Richton Park about 2 1/2 years ago. "Never had any problems," she said. "It's quiet over here. No problems. No shootings. None of that. "I thought a construction worker had gotten hurt at first," she said, because work is being done on the street. As police expanded the crime scene, students and families were guided around the tape. Later, when crowds thinned and eventually dispersed, Chicago police detectives combed through the back alley, peering into garbage cans and shining a flashlight in behind the home. Advertisement When a van arrived around 8 p.m. to bring taking the bodies away, an evidence technician in a white jumpsuit lifted open the door to the garage behind the home. Workers then carried a white body bag on a stretcher from the garage to the back of the van. Chicago Tribune's Brianna Gurciullo and Liam Ford contributed. A former Chicago man who was exonerated last year after spending 12 years in prison for a murder he did not commit has filed a federal lawsuit against the city of Chicago and at least 10 Chicago police officers alleging they framed him. Wayne Washington, 42, who now lives in Michigan, alleged that the officers fabricated evidence and coerced testimony of witnesses, leading to his wrongful conviction in 1996. Advertisement Washington "was stripped of the various pleasures of basic human experience, from the simplest to the most important, which all free people enjoy as a matter of right," the lawsuit says. "He missed out on the ability to raise his children, share holidays, births, funerals and other life events with loved ones, and on the fundamental freedom to live one's life as an autonomous human being." The lawsuit did not specify how much in monetary damages Washington was seeking. Advertisement Washington, a father of 10, was convicted of the 1993 shooting death of Marshall Morgan Jr., an Illinois Institute of Technology basketball standout. A Cook County jury was unable to reach a verdict against Washington and a mistrial was declared . He was later offered a deal to plead guilty to one count of murder in exchange for a sentence of 25 years in prison. He agreed to that deal in 1996. That same year, his co-defendant, Tyrone Hood, was convicted of murder and sentenced to 75 years in prison. Daywatch Weekdays Start each day with Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox. > In February 2015, the state's attorney's office threw out the convictions of both Washington and Hood. Washington had been released from prison several years earlier, while Hood was still imprisoned. He was then released from Menard Correctional Center after serving 22 years. Hood's case was one of the first re-examined by the state's attorney's Conviction Integrity Unit after the Tribune investigated the evidence and made inquiries with prosecutors in 2012. Morgan's father, Marshall Sr., was convicted of manslaughter in the 1977 shooting death of a friend who owed him money. He was questioned in the slaying of his son in large part because he was struggling financially in the months before the younger Morgan was killed and took out a life insurance policy on his son. He also became a suspect two years later in the killing of his fiancee, whose life he also insured. Authorities never charged Morgan in the deaths of his son or fiancee, but he was charged and convicted in the 2001 shooting death of a girlfriend and is serving a 75-year sentence. The Chicago Law Department did not respond to requests for comment on the lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday in federal court. Advertisement tbriscoe@tribpub.com Twitter _tonybriscoe The North Dakota Sheriffs and Deputies Association is on board with a groups proposed ballot measure to place crime victims rights into the state constitution. We as sheriffs of North Dakota work to protect and to serve, and that means for victims, too. Thats why it was important for us to choose to endorse Marsys Law for North Dakota, said Benson County Sheriff Steve Rohrer, of the North Dakota Sheriffs Association in a statement released Thursday. The North Dakota measure includes provisions allowing for notification of hearings in the judicial process and notification if the accused person escapes custody. It also calls for taking victims and their familys welfare into consideration when setting bail for the criminals. A similar law passed in Illinois in 2014. Other states in various stages of considering a version of Marsys Law include Hawaii, Montana, Nevada and South Dakota. Marsys Law is a victims bill of rights law first passed in California in 2008. It came about following the death of Marsalee Marsy Nicholas, who was stalked and killed by her ex-boyfriend in California in 1983. Nicholas brother was the main proponent of the law. House Speaker Mike Madigan answers questions from the media following a news conference in reaction to Gov. Bruce Rauner's second State of the State speech on Jan. 27, 2016, at the Illinois Capitol House Chambers in Springfield. (Anthony Souffle / Chicago Tribune) House Speaker Michael Madigan and his defenders often bristle at the suggestion that he is responsible for the condition of Illinois. They dispute the notion that Madigan is the superpower of state government. With the election season squarely upon us, Madigan's members who are running for re-election tiptoe on slabs of shifting ice. They don't want to acknowledge his power. They don't want to offend him. They don't want to defend him. They want to appear independent. Advertisement They can't have it all ways. Besides, his superpowers are in writing. Advertisement To fully grasp the influence of one person over state government, look no further than the 129 pages of House rules the day-to-day rules that govern how and when bills get introduced and passed. I'll sum it up for you: Everything is up to the speaker. Over the years, the House rules have been tweaked and massaged to accommodate his top-down approach toward governing. The House rules are now Madigan's personal handbook on how to control the process. Every bill, including spending and borrowing legislation, goes straight to Madigan's Rules Committee. It's nearly impossible to discharge a bill unless he agrees. If a bill gets assigned to a committee, it's a committee Madigan has chosen. He picks the majority of members, committee chairmen and vice chairmen. And he'll often swap out committee members if he wants to manipulate an outcome. He also approves if and when committees should meet. "Subject to approval by the Speaker" is a phrase sprinkled throughout the rules book, along with accommodations for the speaker to suspend the rules or change the order of business at virtually any time. There's little opportunity, if any, for members of the minority party to fight back with bills of their own. New additions to House rules include a provision allowing the House to rebuke gubernatorial executive orders. Gee, I wonder where that came from. The Senate's rules are half as long, and Senate President John Cullerton's leadership style is to collaborate more with his members anyway. So how much is Madigan to blame for the state's dismal condition? Based on House rules alone, a lot. Nothing gets to the governor's desk in this state without his imprint. Nothing. Advertisement If the speakership changed hands, rewriting House rules would be one of the first orders of business. It happened in 2002 when Republicans revolted against their leader, Lee Daniels, and it would most assuredly be part of the process if Democrats did the same. Life after Madigan would be more inclusive. Of course, Madigan has no intention of leaving at least not until the next gubernatorial election, when his daughter, Attorney General Lisa Madigan, might jump in the race. She said in 2013 she would not run for governor unless her father retired from office. The only other avenue for a post-Madigan General Assembly would be if he loses his House race in the 22nd District. He has a real opponent this time, Jason Gonzales. Madigan is drenched in power and his members tolerate it, even to their own detriment. The stringent House rules have allowed Madigan to block popular, progressive legislation that would qualify as "core Democratic principles," the phrase he often cites as justification for blocking Gov. Bruce Rauner's agenda. Madigan has ignored legislation to raise the minimum wage, pass a progressive income tax, institute term limits, reform the redistricting process, allow for an elected school board in Chicago and end the city's red-light camera program. He recently announced a task force to explore the unjust school funding formula after years of downplaying that problem, too. Madigan once told me he stopped reading Phil Kadner's column in the Daily Southtown because Kadner wrote repeatedly about the unfairness of the formula. More recently, Madigan couldn't be bothered to appoint House members to a school funding task force that, under Sen. Andy Manar, D-Bunker Hill, did yeoman's work trying to recalibrate the $30 billion spent on public schools annually. Now, suddenly, the speaker is interested in school funding. Democratic lawmakers and Springfield insiders try to spread the blame for the state's condition. Complacent Republicans are to blame. The Great Recession that ended in June 2009 is to blame. Rauner is to blame. It's not the longtime speaker's fault, they say. Advertisement But that's malarkey. It's in writing. Kristen McQueary is a member of the Tribune Editorial Board. kmcqueary@tribpub.com Twitter @statehousechick President Barack Obama delivers his State of the Union address before a joint session of Congress on Capitol Hill in Washington on Jan. 12, 2016. During the address, he said, "We have to end the practice of drawing our congressional districts so that politicians can pick their voters, and not the other way around." (Evan Vucci, AFP/Getty Images) Dear Mr. President, We were delighted that your final State of the Union address included a shoutout to one of Illinois' most urgent causes ending partisan redistricting. Thank you and amen. Advertisement Would you be so kind as to repeat that pitch, very slowly, during your homecoming tour next week in Springfield? "We have to end the practice of drawing our congressional districts so that politicians can pick their voters, and not the other way around," you told Congress, and the nation, last month. Advertisement You probably weren't surprised that the Democrats in the House chamber leapt to their feet and applauded, while the Republicans stayed seated. The Republican wave of 2010 gave the GOP control of dozens of state legislatures and with it, the power to draw congressional districts designed to elect more Republicans. That's one reason why they managed to win 54 percent of U.S. House seats in the 2012 election despite collecting only 49 percent of the popular vote. In 2014, they won 57 percent of the seats with 52 percent of the vote. When politicians draw legislative maps, their goal isn't fair representation it's partisan advantage. They rig the maps to control the outcome of the election, and in doing so, they rob voters of choices. This year, only 21 of 435 U.S. House districts are considered "tossups," meaning either party has a good chance of winning in November, according to the Cook Political Report. Another 37 lean left or right but not decidedly so. That leaves 377 seats, of which 207 are considered a lock for Republicans and 170 for Democrats. Almost nine out of every 10 seats is a gimme. Partisan mapmaking is a big reason for the polarization and gridlock in Congress. It's also a big reason for the polarization and gridlock in the Illinois General Assembly. In Illinois, Democratic lawmakers drew the current maps and like Republicans elsewhere, they took care of their own. Our congressional delegation is 10 Democrats and eight Republicans, though the statewide vote in the last election was 51 percent Democrat to 49 percent Republican. Advertisement The real disparity is in state House and Senate seats, where those lawmakers got to draw their own districts. Democrats hold 60 percent of seats in the state House, even though the statewide vote in 2014 was split almost 50-50, according to an analysis by CHANGE Illinois, which advocates for redistricting reform. Democrats collected 46 percent of the total votes for state senators but won 11 of the 19 races. The maps are so skewed that many districts had only one candidate on the ballot. In 2014, 49 percent of lawmakers elected to the House and 63 percent of those elected to the Senate had no opponent in either the primary or the general election. Voters had no opportunity to elect the representative of their choice. None. Mr. President, as you put it so eloquently in the State of the Union address: The politicians picked their voters, not the other way around. Voters in Illinois are working to claw back that power. They're trying for the third time in as many election cycles to pass a constitutional amendment that would put redistricting in the hands of an independent commission. Their state representatives, tellingly, have refused to put the measure on the ballot. That leaves the citizens to collect hundreds of thousands of signatures and to raise and spend $1 million or more to promote their cause and to fight the lawyers who are paid by politicians to try to kill the amendment. As a registered Illinois voter, Mr. President, you can sign that petition. We hope you do it while you're here. We hope you'll throw your support behind the Independent Map Amendment and admonish our lawmakers to do the same. Advertisement Partisan gerrymandering is bad for democracy, regardless of whether the goal is to color the map red or blue. It empowers party leaders at the expense of voters. It discourages competition and protects mediocre incumbents. How bad is it? All 118 seats in the Illinois House and 40 seats in the Senate are up for election this year. On the March 15 ballot, there are only 30 contested primaries. Think about that, Mr. President, when you stand before the General Assembly to deliver what your staff has billed as a "legacy speech." Scanning the crowd, you'll recognize many familiar faces: 52 of your former colleagues are still in office, 12 years after you left Springfield for Washington to join the U.S. Senate. Have they been re-elected, over and over, because they're doing such a bang-up job? Or is it because voters have never had another choice? Follow the Editorial Board on Twitter @Trib_Ed_Board and on Facebook. It is very disappointing that the president of North Dakota State University is courting students from India when there are likely students in North Dakota who possibly havent considered one of our local universities simply because no one has reached out to them. My father, Professor Oscar E. Manz, taught mainly civil engineering classes and was involved with numerous research projects during his career at University of North Dakota, which spanned over three decades. He found time, however, to visit almost all of the high schools in North Dakota often with the then dean of the school of engineering and mines, Alan G. Fletcher encouraging students to choose engineering as a career and to attend UND. Many of these young people did so and not only graduated with engineering degrees but often stayed in North Dakota. At least one of his students is now a professor at UND and numerous others have had very successful careers in engineering and related fields. The historic Art Deco St. Charles Hospital building in Aurora is being turned into senior hoursing. (Steve Lord, The Beacon-News) When Patricia Entile was born at St. Charles Hospital in Aurora, it was still in the original house near New York and Fourth streets that the Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart purchased in which to start the city's second hospital. She had no idea at the time that a new building would be built at the corner of Fourth and New York in 1932 a structure many consider an art deco masterpiece - for $500,000. She also had no idea she would end up graduating from nursing school in 1951, and spending more than 35 years working as a nurse in that St. Charles Hospital. Advertisement Many of those memories came rushing back to Entile Wednesday when she attended a groundbreaking on a project that will make that St. Charles Hospital live again this time as Aurora St. Charles Senior Living. As Entile stood in the former chapel now just a shell of what she said was a beautiful cornerstone of the building she said she was happy to be back inside for the first time in six years. Advertisement "It's a little bit touching," she said. "I'm really happy they're going to do something with it." That something is a $25 million project that David Block, of developer VeriGreen Residential Development of Chicago, said was a little "like catching lightning in a bottle." "Sometimes everything just comes together just right," he said. "Not often, but sometimes like this." The project is a mix of about $18 million in private funding, punctuated by a combination of federal and state historic tax credits and a public loan from the Illinois Housing Development Authority. When finished, the building will be fully renovated into 60 units, a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom apartments for independent living senior citizens. It would be a mix of subsidized and market-rate units, with military personnel getting preference on some units. In addition to VeriGreen, the main developer of the project, development help came from Northern Lights Development Corporation in Aurora, and Invest Aurora, the city's non-profit redevelopment corporation. The city of Aurora is loaning $500,000 to the developers, although the city is just passing through federal housing funds it has available. The city also helped by being one of the first to participate in the state's RiverEdge Redevelopment Zone, a program that is providing state historic tax credits to the developer. There are also federal tax credits being used the first time a project has ever been done combining federal tax credits with the state credits available through the RiverEdge program. Also helping is the Aurora Housing Authority. All that help allowed the developers to find private funding through the National Equity Fund, which cobbled together money from Chase, BMO Harris Bank and other private sources. Advertisement Aurora Mayor Tom Weisner said he sees the former St. Charles Hospital building, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, as "kind of a sleeping beauty." "And like Sleeping Beauty, it took a kiss from a prince to awaken it," Weisner said. "We had many princes involved " Rick Guzman, Aurora's assistant chief of staff, pointed out that the city is getting a $25 million project "without any locally collected taxes involved." In addition to all the partners, VeriGreen has been racing a deadline, because right now the RiverEdge Redevelopment Zone program is set to expire at the end of 2016 which means the project has to be done by then. VeriGreen is the development arm of Evergreen Real Estate Services, which will lease and manage the apartments once the renovation is finished. slord@tribpub.com Long ago I gave up on believing that any person from any political party would change much in government because it seems like everyone wants to be a dictator. I do not believe everything a politician says so therefore I am forced to vote on the person I most trust to lead our country responsibly, if not with integrity. Looking at the top four candidates from the Republican and Democrat parties I have some musings. If for my country I want things to stay on the same path as it has for 20 years or so, I would vote for Hillary Clinton. I personally do not trust anything Clinton says so she is just like the past few presidents we have had. I trust some of what the other top three candidates say even if I don't agree with their ideas. I simply have to say that I am intrigued with Bernie Sanders because his aura is so different than other politicians. If I want my country to take care of my minimal needs and all my neighbors are the same and we simply exist, Sanders would be my man. Donald Trump is entertaining, flashy, and bold; so I can appreciate the fact that he is destroying all these years of political correctness which has whittled away our freedom of speech. If my main desire for our country is protecting our borders and running this country like a business, Trump is my man. Ted Cruz firstly comes across my mind the same way I think about accountants. He is methodical and trustworthy though intimidating because he has an understated intelligence and you know deep down he thinks you are dumb. If I want this country to follow the rules, Cruz is my man. A Joliet man faces a felony charge after police say they found $250,000 worth of cocaine in his truck during a routine traffic stop in Peotone Township on Wednesday afternoon. Juan M. Hernandez, 36, of the 400 block of Elwood Avenue, was charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver after the Will County sheriff's gang suppression unit found 5 kilos of cocaine inside the Ford F-350 pickup Hernandez was driving, according to sheriff's office spokeswoman Kathy Hoffmeyer. Advertisement About 3:15 p.m., Hernandez did not come to a complete stop at a stop sign on Wilmington-Peotone Road near Route 50, Hoffmeyer said. "He was shaking," she said. "(The deputies) noticed his hand was shaking when they were asking for his identification." Advertisement At one point during the stop, Hernandez was observed reaching into his back seat and disappearing from view, suggesting he might be trying to hide something, Hoffmeyer said. That is when the deputy called for Roxy, a drug-sniffing dog, who made a positive identification of drugs inside the vehicle, according to a news release. In addition to the felony, Hernandez is also charged with disobeying a stop sign and no front registration plate, the release said. Bond was set at $1 million and Hernandez is scheduled to appear in court again on Feb. 26, officials said. Erin Gallagher is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown. Forensic experts sounded off Wednesday on the mounting evidence against Rodney Friesz, accused of murdering his neighbor, Eugene "Geno" Jassman, and setting fire to his brother's mobile home in 2014. Starting early Wednesday morning, a 14-member jury heard nearly eight hours of testimony from police officers and forensic witnesses, including employees from the North Dakota State Crime Lab. Forensic experts presented some of the evidence used in Friesz's case, including gasoline found on Friesz's shoes and a .22-caliber bullet that nearly matched a bullet fired from a rifle in Friesz's brother's home. Jurors also heard a recorded conversation between Friesz and Mandan Police detective David Bjorndahl, in which Friesz admitted that he shot and killed Jassmann. "Geno tried to kill me," Friesz says on the tape. Friesz also admits to shooting Jassmann with a .22-caliber rifle because he believed Jassmann was there to kill him. The jury spent a good portion of Wednesday afternoon watching a videotape of Friesz being interviewed by Bjorndahl. Friesz, in the taped interview, admitted that he shot Jassmann with an automatic rifle and that he used a gas can from the property to ignite the trailer. Before the videotape was shown, Bjorndahl testified that Friesz's story would change often during questioning. One version had Jassmann sitting on the couch 4 feet away from the suspect near a coffee table, another with Jassmann standing before he was shot and another had a fight erupting in the bedroom/hallway and moved into the living room before the shooting. In the video, Friesz identified a picture of the automatic rifle with a skull and crossbones on it as one he used to shoot Jassmann. He said he shot Jassmann in the head once. He said the gun was already loaded. Bjorndahl is shown on the video-taped interview taking pictures of Friesz's hands. In one statement, Friesz says he smashed a case to get the gun, but later states he used a stick. In the videotape interview, Friesz said he shot Jassmann and poured the gasoline on the floor to start a fire. He said Jassmann was still breathing when he went to collect the gas can from the yard to start the fire in the kitchen. Bjorndahl was briefly cross-examined by Friesz's defense team about Friesz's claims his drugs "were dusted." At the defense's request, the videotape interview will be further studied for review, and cross-examination of Bjorndahl will continue at 8:30 a.m. U.S. Rep. Kevin Cramer has launched an online straw poll to let North Dakota Republicans express their preference for a presidential candidate, after state GOP officials scrapped their customary informal caucus because of a change in national convention rules. North Dakota Republicans are being left out of the 2016 presidential preference process, so this straw poll will provide the next best thing, Cramer said in a statement Wednesday. Unlike Iowa, the North Dakota GOP does not have a binding caucus where party faithful cast ballots in local precincts to oblige delegates to vote for certain candidates at the Republican National Convention. Nor does the state have an early presidential primary election like New Hampshires next Tuesday. In the past, North Dakota Republicans have held a non-binding presidential straw poll in mid- to late spring, state GOP chairman Kelly Armstrong said. But a change in RNC rules requires that all presidential caucuses and primaries be binding, which conflicts with state party rules that allow delegates selected at the state convention to vote their conscience at the national convention, which this year is July 18-21 in Cleveland. Armstrong, a state senator from Dickinson who was elected party chairman in June, said that when party officials started putting the paperwork together last summer for the RNC, we realized we had a pretty big issue. The state partys 47 district chairmen decided there wasnt enough time to develop binding caucus rules by the Oct. 1 deadline, so they canceled the informal caucus, he said. Most of them knew making this decision wasnt necessarily going to be popular, but it really was the responsible thing to do, he said, adding they didnt want to risk the states delegates not getting seated at the RNC. As much as anything, it was really a bad timing issue for the state. Former state GOP chairman Bob Harms said North Dakota delegates have wrestled with the binding rule as early as 2012. He said he opposes a binding caucus or primary, in part because a candidate may drop out of the race afterward, and he sees unbound delegates from North Dakota as being more valuable if one candidate doesnt have enough delegates locked up by the national convention. Then were free agents, he said. Harms said the problem isnt with the state partys rules but rather with RNC rules that penalize or prohibit states like North Dakota from trying to compete in early primaries or caucuses. North Dakota holds its primary June 14, more than four months after New Hampshires. What we ought to be doing is changing the rules on the national level so we dont have to take the crumbs that the early states leave us, he said. Armstrong said he plans to form a committee after the November election to develop binding caucus rules. Cramer said the state party should have moved ahead with a binding caucus, though he said he understood the timing issue and doesnt blame Armstrong. I would have done it, even loosely, he said. Its about the process and the early momentum its created. While the results of his informal straw poll wont be binding, he hopes they will be instructive to the states delegates and attract enough attention to influence the crowded GOP presidential race. The online poll at www.northdakotastrawpoll.com requires participants to provide their name and email address which Cramer said wont be used for fundraising and a ZIP code to try to weed out those from outside the state who try to vote. At the very least, itll be a lot of fun, he said. The North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party will hold district caucuses June 7 to elect delegates to the Democratic National Convention July 25-28 in Philadelphia. The votes will bind all 18 delegates but not the five superdelegates, party operations manager Alison Tate said. (Reach Mike Nowatzki at (701) 255-5607 or by email at mnowatzki@forumcomm.com.) By Thomas Zhang, IT Director, Dezan Shira & Associates Editor: Samuel Wrest Foreign companies operating in China will inevitably face challenges with internet connectivity. Over the past five years, the countrys government has been especially active in its control of the internet, with all Google products, various social media channels, and numerous other websites falling victim to its extensive censorship program. In addition, the Middle Kingdom has one of the worst average internet speeds in Asia, ranking 84th in Akamais 2015 State of the internet Report, and monitors access to all non-domestic websites. The impact that this has on foreign firms should not be underestimated. Here, we discuss some of the key challenges that foreign companies face. Slow international internet speed For Chinese citizens who access domestic websites and participate in Chinas massive e-commerce market, the countrys internet can appear fantastic. Users can purchase a 100Mb optic fiber DSL internet line in their home, or can get 4G mobile network on their phone. This is in stark contrast to 10 years ago, when Chinese citizens could only use 2G mobile network and MMS was largely unaffordable. That said, for foreign companies who need to access cloud computing networks or non-domestic websites, Chinas internet has hardly changed the speed is slow, connections are unstable and latency is high. Technically speaking, there is a very small network bandwidth between China and overseas countries, and links have a high packet lost rate. This is largely why Akamai, in their 2015 State of the internet Report, ranked China 84th in the world. RELATED: Information Technology-based Solutions from Dezan Shira & Associates For foreign businesses in China, one obvious ramification of having slow international internet is the accessibility of application systems when transferring real-time data, such as on production monitoring systems or ERP systems. At Dezan Shira & Associates, we have serviced many U.S. and Europeans companies with offices or factories in China that experience operational problems precisely for this reason. Many popular services are not available Numerous social media websites and applications are not available in China, including Facebook, Twitter, and WhatsApp. With many Western companies relying on these channels for marketing and client services, the impact on their business can be huge. In addition, cloud file sharing and transfer platforms such as Dropbox and SendIt do not function well in China. This inevitably leads to data communication problems between operations in China and the overseas HQ, particularly those companies who deal in production and order data. The complexity of Internet connections While there are only a limited amount of internet Service Providers in China namely China Telecom, China Unicom, China Mobile and Great Wall Broadband selecting a suitable provider is still not an easy option. There are different product lines for family or business, different product types (ADSL based on telephone line, and ADSL based on optic fiber, shared leased line, or dedicated leased line), and different product definitions and prices. Some products will need to be paid monthly, while others will need to be paid yearly. This article is an excerpt from the China Briefing Magazine, titled Internet Challenges & Solutions When Doing Business in China . In this special edition of China Briefing magazine, we highlight how and why foreign companies will be negatively affected by Chinas internet, and provide methods to help solve these problems. We discuss ISP selection, internet connection types, CDNs and VPNs, and internal control systems. Finally, we examine the importance of network security in China and how it can help augment a companys internet connection. An Introduction to Doing Business in China 2015 Doing Business in China 2015 is designed to introduce the fundamentals of investing in China. Compiled by the professionals at Dezan Shira & Associates, this comprehensive guide is ideal not only for businesses looking to enter the Chinese market, but also for companies that already have a presence here and want to keep up-to-date with the most recent and relevant policy changes. Selling, Sourcing and E-Commerce in China 2016 (First Edition) This guide, produced in collaboration with the experts at Dezan Shira & Associates, provides a comprehensive analysis of all these aspects of commerce in China. It discusses how foreign companies can best go about sourcing products from China; how foreign retailers can set up operations on the ground to sell directly to the countrys massive consumer class; and finally details how foreign enterprises can access Chinas lucrative yet ostensibly complex e-commerce market. A Guide to Chinas Free Trade Zones In this issue of China Briefing magazine, we examine Chinas four Free Trade Zones and discuss the differences and strongpoints that exist in each of them. We begin by providing an introduction to the FTZs, and then take an in-depth look at the market access conditions, registration procedures and tax environments of each. Finally, we highlight some of the key considerations that foreign companies should be aware of when choosing an FTZ to invest in. A North Dakota man accused of storing more than 1,000 pounds of homemade explosives in his garage is now facing criminal charges. Court records show 28-year-old Ross Petrie, of Williston, is charged with a felony called release of destructive forces. An affidavit of probable cause says law enforcement officers began serving a series of search warrants at Petries residence Oct. 10 after being informed that a narcotics lab could possibly be in operation. According to the affidavit, authorities discovered it was actually an explosives manufacturing operation in the garage of a townhouse complex. Officials say they evacuated more than 10 people from the building in which Petries townhouse was located. You are here: Home Chinese President Xi Jinping met with senior officers at local military units in the eastern province of Jiangxi on Wednesday, urging the country's armed forces to follow the Communist Party of China (CPC). Xi, also chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), extended greetings to all military personnel in Jiangxi on behalf of the CPC Central Committee and the CMC. Stressing the commitment to build a strong army, Xi called on all military units to promote political faithfulness, reforms and rule of law among China's armed forces. Education and guidance should be enhanced to promote servicemen's awareness to listen to the Party and follow the commands of the CPC Central Committee and the CMC, Xi said, underlining the province's revolutionary tradition in forging the soldiers' spirit. Also, the CMC chairman told the military to better support poverty reduction in the province's less-developed areas and advance the civil-military integration. Xi paid a three-day visit to the province this week, days ahead of the traditional Spring Festival, or the Chinese Lunar New Year. The People's Liberation Army was regrouped into five theater commands on Monday. Xi presented military flags to top officers of the five theater commands at the inauguration ceremony on Monday morning, urging construction of a joint battle command system that is "absolutely loyal, resourceful in fighting, efficient in commanding and courageous and capable of winning wars." President Xi pays a three-day visit to Jiangxi. [Photo/Xinhua] Chinese President Xi Jinping has called for a change in local government development concepts on a visit to east China's Jiangxi Province. Xi, also General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, made the remarks during a three-day tour of the revolutionary base areas from Monday to Wednesday, which took him to Ji'an, Jinggangshan and Nanchang, just days ahead of Spring Festival, or the Chinese Lunar New Year. Chinese leaders traditionally visit ordinary people in both urban and rural areas ahead of the holiday. Xi visited Gansu Province and Beijing in 2013, north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and northwest China's Shaanxi Province in 2015. He asked officials to uphold and implement the newly identified development concepts -- innovation, coordination, green development, opening up and sharing, as well as to deliver structural reform on the supply side and industrial upgrades. He also urged local governments to protect the environment and strike a balance between economic growth and conservation. During his trip, Xi visited villages, businesses, schools, community groups as well as revolutionary base museums in Jiangxi, extending holiday greetings to all Chinese citizens. He also met with senior military officers stationed in the province, two days after the People's Liberation Army (PLA) was regrouped into five theater commands. New Development Concepts Development concepts, which must be adjusted to the changing environment and conditions of development, should guide the development mode and practices, Xi said during his tour in Jiangxi. Xi called on leading cadres at all levels to apply the new development concepts when pushing forward supply-side structural reform, boosting strong and emerging industries at the same time, upgrading traditional industries as well as developing modern service industries. Initiatives should be taken to the upgrade of industrial structure by closing down backward production facilities and focusing more resources on new industries, Xi said. Xi urged Jiangxi to make reforms, innovation and entrepreneurship engines for its development as the country's economy has entered a "new normal" featuring slower growth. During his trip, Xi visited Jiangzhong Medicine Valley, which is affiliated with Jiangxi-based Chinese pharmaceutical firm Jiangzhong Group, hailing its effort on developing new products and strict attention to the quality of raw materials as well as products. "Chinese medicine is a treasure of the Chinese nation. Therefore it is our duty to better protect it and tap its potential," Xi said, adding that all pharmaceutical enterprises must contribute to the health of Chinese people with quality products. While visiting the National Engineering Technology Research Center for LED on Si Substrate under Nanchang University, Xi stressed the key role of higher learning institutes in technological innovation and talent training. "Higher learning institutes must innovate their talent development schemes and teaching methods to cultivate more qualified personnel for the country's development," said Xi. Highlighting green development in the new concepts, Xi stressed environmental protection in Jiangxi's economic growth. "Jiangxi is a place boasting beautiful scenery. So it is a must to protect its ecological environment, which is the most important asset of Jiangxi," Xi said. Meanwhile, he called for improving people's livelihood as "sharing" is one of the five new concepts in development. Xi called for continued effort in upgrading public services and ensuring everyone can share in services. Poverty Alleviation During his trip to Shenshan Village, a poverty-stricken village in Jinggangshan City, Xi met with villagers and the village party chief to learn about the progress that has been made in poverty relief through "precision" measures. While visiting the house of Zuo Xiufa, offspring of a revolutionary martyr, Xi was glad to see that Zuo has shaken off poverty by using local bamboo resources to start his own processing business. "Endeavors of poverty alleviation must be carried out in a precise manner, with different measures rolled out targeting different characteristics of different people and households," said Xi. "The CPC serves Chinese people wholeheartedly. We are committed to supporting development of the old revolutionary base areas and making your life better day by day. Not a single family living in poverty is to be left behind on our path to combating poverty," Xi told the Shenshan villagers. Jinggangshan Sprit During his stay in Jinggangshan, the President honored revolutionary martyrs and presented them with flower baskets in Jinggangshan Revolutionary Martyrs' Cemetery. Xi also visited former residences of late Chinese leader Mao Zedong and Zhu De. "The Chinese nation is a nation that worships heroes, makes heroes and has numerous heroes in its history. The spirit of heroes still exists in the age of peace. We must uphold the spirit of heroes, who sacrificed their lives for the Party, the country as well as the Chinese people," Xi said when meeting with offspring of martyrs and moral models. Xi stressed that Jinggangshan is regarded as the cradle of the Chinese Communist revolution and the Jinggangshan Spirit is the greatest legacy that the city's history has passed on to today's generation. "We must carry forward the Jinggangshan Spirit in modern context," said Xi, calling on every and each Party member and leading official to take ideals and faith as a source of guidance in their daily work. Party members and leading officials should never lose the traditional virtues of frugality and honesty and must strive to better serve the people, added Xi. Military Loyalty Xi, also chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), met with senior officers at local military units, urging the country's armed forces to follow the CPC. Xi extended greetings to all military personnel in Jiangxi on behalf of the CPC Central Committee and the CMC. Stressing the commitment to build a strong army, Xi called on all military units to promote political faithfulness, reforms and rule of law among China's armed forces. Education and guidance should be enhanced to promote servicemen's awareness to listen to the Party and follow the commands of the CPC Central Committee and the CMC, Xi said, underlining the province's revolutionary tradition in forging the soldiers' spirit. Also, the CMC chairman told the military to better support poverty reduction in the province's less-developed areas and advance the civil-military integration. The People's Liberation Army was regrouped into five theater commands on Monday. Xi presented military flags to top officers of the five theater commands at the inauguration ceremony on Monday morning, urging construction of a joint battle command system that is "absolutely loyal, resourceful in fighting, efficient in commanding, courageous and capable of winning wars." In Liuzhou, South China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, clothes, shoes and spare household items are hanging on a pink wall. A local resident passes by the cartoon-decorated Wall of Kindness in Zhengzhou city, Central China's Henan province, Feb 2, 2016. [Photo by Hou Jianxun/China Daily] Everything on the "Wall of Kindness" is free to those who need it, giving the city's homeless and impoverished residents a chance to dress themselves in warm clothes amid the recent cold. The charitable initiative is the brainchild of Hong Jing, a local newspaper columnist, who estimates that the wall has helped nearly 100 people since it was launched with just three bags of spare clothes on Jan 30. "Many people have helped out, from a granny in her 70s or 80s to security staff and other members of the community. They are all participating enthusiastically," said Hong, who was inspired to launch the wall by the charity work she saw on a recent visit to the United States. "Warmth and love are needed by everyone. It is just a simple wall, but it allows anyone to donate their spare clothes and those who are in need can take them." In 2014, a South African named Max Pazak came up with the idea of a pop-up clothing swap shop that made it easier for people to donate and more dignified to receive. Since then, kindness walls such as the one in Liuzhou have sprung up in Chinese cities, including Zhengzhou, Henan province, and Qingdao, Shandong province. Wang Jie, founder of the Zhengzhou Wall of Kindness, said donors had taken to wrapping clothes in plastic bags and protecting them from the elements following recent snowfalls. Meanwhile, in Qingdao, hooks and hangers have appeared on the side of a building under the words: "If you need something, take it.""It is just like what you would do at home. You hang up your clothes when you have finished wearing them and you take them down again and put them on when you are going out," said Wang Lei, director of Chuangyi Workshop, a local charity organization that is spearheading the program in Qingdao. When clothes were first hung on the wall, passers-by thought they were for sale, said Wang, but after they learned the truth, people slowly started to come up and try them on. "This is a simple, immediate way of helping people and it makes my spare clothing useful to others," said Qingdao native Tan Jing, who was dropping her second load of clothing off at the wall in two days. Wang has been touched by people's generosity. "Some of the clothing is practically new. I don't even have to wash my hands after sorting it," she said. Jiang Tao, publicity director for the China Philanthropy Research Institute, said the initiative removes the stigma of people having to ask for charity. Australia has the world's highest diversity of parrots, but a new analysis by researchers at The Australian National University (ANU) has found the nation's record in conserving these beautiful birds leaves much to be desired. Professor Rob Heinsohn, from the ANU Fenner School of Environment and Society, said Australia was the third worst performing country when it came to the risks of parrot extinction. Professor Heinsohn co-authored a report that looked at factors causing extinction risk among parrots around the world. The study compared the circumstances of all 398 parrot species worldwide and then ranked their risk of extinction. "Our analysis shows that Australia is the third highest priority country for parrot conservation after Indonesia and Brazil, and by far the highest-ranked among developed countries," Professor Heinsohn said. "Australia's high ranking is a two-edged sword really. On the one hand it reflects the extraordinary number of unique parrot species we have here, but it also shows that a high proportion of them are threatened with extinction." Professor Heinsohn said extinction risk for parrots was linked to economic development. Parrots in fast developing countries were most endangered. "All but two of the countries in the worst performing 20 are developing countries. As wealthy nations, Australia at number three and New Zealand at 15 should be very concerned by this assessment," Professor Heinsohn said. "To date, we've only really applied band-aid solutions to keeping our rare parrots from going extinct. But that does not solve the underlying environmental problems that cause their low numbers." He said Australia needed more research and investment in parrot conservation. The authors were able to demonstrate that larger long-lived parrots are especially vulnerable as are those that depend on the world's dwindling forests. The research, led by George Olah also from the ANU Fenner School of Environment and Society, was published in Biodiversity and Conservation. The Australian National University contributed to the story. Robot Xiaoyi, which can sing, tell a story and chat with people, is on display at the Light of the Internet Expo in Wuzhen, Zhejiang province, Dec 14, 2015. [Photo by Zou Hong/China Daily] China's economic situation is one that is evolving more than it is declining. Recent reports revealed that the manufacturing sector is down. Of course it is. That's a major part of the country's evolution. And although the numbers aren't flattering, they don't call for dire predictions that China's economy might be facing a potentially catastrophic decline. Far from experiencing a decline, China's economy is trying to adjust to what amounts to "a new normal" with varying degrees of pain. From 2002 through 2008, annual growth averaged 12 percent. That overheated growth rate slowed to between 8 percent and 9 percent a year from 2008 through 2014, and it is currently averaging between 6 percent and 7 percent. The slower growth rate, along with the manufacturing reports are signs that China's enormous economy has passed the startup stage and is beginning to mature. As economies develop and become more massive in size, annual growth inevitably slows but it still grows. The annual growth in GDP in the US is around 2.2 percent and in the UK, it is 1.7 percent. Although the inevitability of China adjusting to a sustainable normalcy like in other large modern economies should be obvious, it does not diminish the impact of striking drops in the Shanghai Composite Index, which are painting a dismal picture for the future of China. However, the real question is whether the drops are due to a decline in China's economic health, or if investors have simply failed to accurately interpret China's current economic evolution. A contributing factor to large drops has been the Shanghai stock exchange's stunning expansion. The index by June 2015 had swelled to 2-1/2 times its previous size of less than two years prior. The daily trading turnover quadrupled in the same time period. To a certain extent, the government welcomed and even encouraged the rapid expansion. Not only did it result in an influx of fresh capital, but it also helped offset a brief decline in exports. A more liberalized approach and the introduction of a flood of complex new investment vehicles encouraged ordinary Chinese citizens as well as foreign investors to climb on the bandwagon. Many investors had the mistaken notion that the market would continue expanding indefinitely. Recently, currency reform has also clouded perceptions on China. China's devaluation wasn't substantial, but it was hard for anyone to know how far the devaluation would finally go. In the end, it did not go very far. In 2014-15, the euro's loss in comparison to the US dollar was far more dramatic than the renminbi. You are here: Home Flash South Sudan parliament has approved a bill regulating and restricting non-governmental organizations (NGOs), Radio Tamazuj reported Wednesday. The passed bill also included limiting the number of foreign aid workers employed by NGOs, the report said. According to the report "Article 18 of the bill limits the number of foreigners employed by any NGO in South Sudan to 20 percent." "Any Non-Governmental Organization shall ensure that not less than 80 percent of the employees are South Sudanese nationals at all managerial, middle and junior levels." UN agencies, the International Committee of the Red Cross, Red Crescent and South Sudan Red Cross are exempted from registration under the new NGO law. Meanwhile, the parliament passed the bill in its fourth reading in spite of objections from the opposition that 50 recently appointed members were not present, it noted. The bill further stipulated that registration as an NGO in South Sudan would require a "country agreement" with the government. Flash A Russian military adviser has been killed by mortar shelling from terrorists in Syria, local media reported on Wednesday, citing the Defense Ministry. "On Feb. 1, in a mortar attack by Islamic State terrorist group on a military garrison deployed at one Syrian army compound, the officer was fatally wounded," RIA Novosti news agency quoted the ministry as saying. "The Russian military advisor went to Syria under the task of assisting the Syrian army in the development of new weapons supplied under existing contracts of interstate military-technical cooperation," the report said. It said the officer was posthumously awarded, but didn't identify him or specify where the attack took place. The military adviser is the third Russian officer to have been killed since Moscow began airstrikes against targets of the Islamic State in Syria in late September. Moscow said the airstrikes came at the request of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, with Russian aircraft deployed at Hmeimim airbase in the war-torn country. Flash The Office of the UN Special Envoy for Syria issued a statement late Wednesday night, saying that the intra-Syrian talks are to resume in Geneva no later than Feb. 25 and possibly "much earlier." Hours ago on Wednesday the UN Special envoy for syria Staffan de Mistura announced that the date for the resumption of the talks had been set for Feb. 25. The latest statement from the Envoy's office said that in the interim period of the talks, the Special Envoy will undertake intense consultations with concerned stakeholders, including Syrian women and civil societies. "The Special Envoy expected to see progress on the implementation of a number of possible humanitarian initiatives, both within the talks and on the ground," the statement said, adding that "substantive discussions on these matters in Geneva were held up by unresolved procedural issues." "In recessing the talks the United Nations make it clear that the alleviation of the suffering of the Syrian people remains our top priority, and the Secretary-General has reiterated this very important point on several occasions," the office cited the Special Envoy as saying. "The United Nations is not prepared to hold talks for the sake of talks. Such talks can only be meaningful if they also deliver immediate tangible benefits to the Syrian people," emphasized the Envoy. "I sense a strong commitment on the part of many of our international partners to ensure that these humanitarian obligations are implemented. I shall call on the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) to address these and other matters, including the call for a national wide ceasefire to be launched in parallel to talks, in the upcoming ISSG meeting next week," he added. The office also confirmed that de Mistura will leave Geneva Thursday to attend the 2016 Supporting Syria and the Region Conference in London. Also on midnight Wednesday the Syrian opposition delegation, supposed to leave Geneva also on Thursday, issued a statement alleging that the United Nations Special Envoy has tonight "been forced by the Assad regime's murderous campaign of bombing to pause his efforts to end the Syrian people's suffering." "There will now be three more weeks of slaughter before we resume, unless the international community acts," it said, adding that every day until Feb. 25, "more men, women and children will be killed and more will be forced to flee Syria to save their lives." Flash The Syrian army succeeded in breaking a long-imposed siege on two adjacent Shiite towns in the northern province of Aleppo on Wednesday, according to the state news agency SANA. The army forces, backed by the local paramilitary group of the National Defense Forces, broke the siege on Nubul and Zahra in the northern countryside of Aleppo, SANA said. Meanwhile, a source in Aleppo told Xinhua that the army reached the two towns after capturing several key towns and areas in the past few days. Speaking on condition of anonymity, the source said both towns had been besieged by the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front and the Turkey-backed Ahrar al-Sham Movement for nearly four years. He added that Syrian warplanes used to drop food to the besieged people there. Reaching Nubul and Zahra, both inhabited by Shiite Syrians, came after the Syrian forces, backed by Hezbollah, captured the town of Hardatnain a day earlier, which enabled the army to get closer the aforementioned towns. The recent development is part of the ongoing campaign in the countryside of Aleppo, where Syrian ground units with Russian air cover are making notable progress against the Turkey-backed militant groups. The aim of the battles there is to separate the city of Aleppo from its northern countryside, where the rebels receive their supplies from Turkey, the source told Xinhua. This weeks orders from Gov. Jack Dalrymple to cut state agency budgets by more than 4 percent and drain most of a reserve fund to cover a $1 billion revenue shortfall arent slowing down a $5 million project to replace the official governors residence. The building project approved by the Legislature last spring is immune from the $245 million in general fund budget cuts announced by Dalrymple on Monday because the money for the residence is coming from the Capitol Building Trust Fund. The state constitution reserves the trust fund for construction and maintenance of public buildings on the Capitol grounds. Its the only thing it can be used for, said Jeff Engelson, investments director at the state Department of Trust Lands. Lawmakers voted to spend $4 million from the trust fund if $1 million in private donations could be raised for the project. A fundraising committee announced just before Christmas that it had secured the $500,000 in donations required before construction can start. The state is now negotiating a construction manager-at-risk contract with JE Dunn Construction Co., a national firm with headquarters in Kansas City, Mo., and an office in Dickinson, said John Boyle, director of facility management. JE Dunn received the top ranking among three applicants for what is essentially the general contractors job, Boyle said. The firm has worked on governors residences in six states and a number of state capitols, including restoration of the Minnesota State Capitol, he noted. They have a vast amount of resources and talent spread across the country that we can tap into, he said. JE Dunn has proposed charging a fee equal to 10 percent of the $3.5 million construction portion of the project to cover its general conditions, overhead and a 3.8 percent profit, Boyle said. The state is trying to negotiate that down to 9 percent, and if the two parties cant reach agreement, the state would have to start over with the second-ranked firm, Capital City Construction of Bismarck, he said. The other $1.5 million of the project will cover costs such as architects fees, furnishings, security and additional landscaping. Construction is still on track to begin this summer, with completion expected in late 2017, Boyle said. At 17,700 square feet, the residence and its public gathering space will dwarf the current 10,000-square-foot residence. The new residence will sit in the southwest corner of the Capitol grounds, just north of the existing 56-year-old home, which will be demolished when the new residence is ready. Lawmakers said the current residence has problems ranging from security to asbestos to a lack of handicapped accessibility and would have cost up to $3 million to repair and upgrade. The new residence was one of three projects appropriated money from the trust fund during the 2015-17 biennium, the others being a $1.4 million for signs on the Capitol grounds and $310,000 in electrical upgrades in the Capitols legislative chambers. The fund collects about 90 percent of its revenue from oil and gas royalties on state-owned trust land and also receives income from land rented for farming and ranching. Its $6.6 million balance as of Dec. 31 is projected to slip to roughly $2 million by the end of the biennium about $1 million less than what was projected last spring, mainly because of low oil prices, Engelson said. (Reach Mike Nowatzki at (701) 255-5607 or by email at mnowatzki@forumcomm.com.) Flash A 10-year-old Afghan boy who was declared a hero after fighting the Taliban has been shot dead by insurgents while on his way to school. Wasil Ahmad, who fought the Taliban alongside his uncle on many occasions, was killed on Monday near his home in Tirin Kot, capital of the southern Uruzgan province, said deputy police chief Rahimullah Khan. Wasil had been a local celebrity of sorts. Photographs widely circulated on social media show him holding an automatic weapon and wearing a uniform and helmet. Wasil's uncle was a former Taliban commander who changed allegiance to the government and was appointed local police commander in Khas Uruzgan district, Khan said. The use of child soldiers is illegal in Afghanistan, but the charity Child Soldiers International said both government forces and insurgents had been recruiting minors for years. The organisation's policy and advocacy director Charu Lata Hogg said the Afghan government, despite pledging to stop the recruitment and use of children by the Afghan security forces, was making "slow and tardy progress". She said: "There is a lack of political will to address this issue, and while it's within the framework of overall human rights violations, there is a specific commitment by the government to clean it up but sufficient measures are not being taken." In a June 2015 report presented to the UN security council's working group on children and armed conflict, the London-based charity said children were recruited by the Afghan national police and the Afghan local police. It said the recruitment was mainly driven by poverty, but also filial duty, patriotism and honour. The Afghan local police, set up with US and British funding to provide security at a district level, has been widely criticised for a range of abuses, including extortion, as in many places it operates much like an independent militia. The government has been urged to disband the force but relies on it to supplement the overstretched army and police. The report said that in May of last year the charity found that half of national police checkpoints in Tirin Kot "were staffed with visibly younger officers", who all acknowledged they were under 18 years old. "They had been performing all responsibilities of a police officer, which included securing checkpoints and engaging in combat for the last few years," the report said. The Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission laid blame for the boy's death with his family, the government and the Taliban. Spokesman Rafiullah Baidar said local police had hailed the boy as a hero after he battled a Taliban siege following the death of his father in fighting. "Possibly he took up arms to take revenge for his father's death, but it was illegal for the police to declare him a hero and reveal his identity, especially to the insurgents," Baidar said. "One side made him famous and the other side killed him both sides ignored the law and acted illegally." Afghanistan ratified the UN convention on the rights of the child in 1994, committing the country to end the recruitment and use of child soldiers. The Child Soldiers International report said that in the troubled Kunar, Logar and Zabul provinces "10% of law enforcement officials are suspected to be underage". Although statistics are not available, recruitment is believed to be highest where the insurgency is strongest, notably the southern provinces of Kandahar and Helmand, and provinces bordering Pakistan. Children are also used by the Taliban in active combat, as spies and as suicide bombers, the report said. It cited a number of attacks, including one last year on the French Institute in Kabul during a packed performance that killed at least two people and wounded another 20. Children recruited into the armed forces or insurgent groups are vulnerable to sexual abuse, Child Soldiers International said. Despite a decree from President Ashraf Ghani last February criminalising underage recruitment into the armed forces, the government has "failed to implement proactive mechanisms to identify, verify and release children" who had been recruited, the report said. BEMIDJI, Minn. -- Minnesota Lt. Gov. Tina Smith visited Bemidji on Wednesday to meet with business owners and find out what makes the city's economy run. During an open roundtable discussion at the Launchpad inside the Mayflower Building, entrepreneurs described the importance of having an economic development organization such as Greater Bemidji to help people start new businesses and fuel the local economy. "We have Greater Bemidji that has been very supportive," Choice Therapy owner Jason Brodina said. "They've created a culture of entrepreneurs here, and this building (the Mayflower Building) encompasses that. It's a little old school, innovative and creative. "If you had somebody who was here in the '90s and then visited today, they would say this is a different town" added Brodina. "We have a lot more resources in our city than people realize, it's getting people to see it and experience it." There are certain biases about medium-sized cities that stop people from really seeing what the assets are, Smith said, adding: "There is a conventional wisdom that says 'if you want to be an entrepreneur and grow a company, that you need to be someplace where there is a critical mass.' Yet, part of what you guys are telling me is that you don't need hundreds and thousands of people." A consensus from the business owners on the conventional wisdom regarding the city is improving the branding of Bemidji. The Wall Street Journal By Sarah Cook Feb. 3, 2016 12:48 p.m. ET The families of Chinas detained rights activists have little cause for celebration. During next weeks Lunar New Year, more than one billion Chinese will gather with relatives to celebrate the biggest holiday of the Chinese calendar. But the families of some of Chinas leading human-rights defenders wont be so lucky. In recent weeks, authorities announced a series of especially harsh charges and sentences against more than a dozen lawyers and activists. Several of these rights lawyers and activists had been detained in July 2015 as part of President Xi Jinpings crackdown not only against calls for political change but also against legal and Internet activism pursuing fair law enforcement. They had been awaiting their possible, though improbable, release after Jan. 9, the end of their six-month residential surveillance in a police-designated locationa form of detention without formal charges. But just days before the deadline, six lawyers, paralegals and administrative assistants were charged with subversion, a severe political crime that carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. Four others were charged with inciting subversion, a lesser offense that can draw a five-year sentence and is routinely used to punish acts such as criticizing the government online. The families of at least 17 detainees have received no news and have been left to imagine what the authorities have in store. Supporters and foreign observers expressed shock at the unusually severe charges and prospect of long prison sentences. They also lamented the implications on Chinas human rights and rule of law. That is too big a charge to put on such a little girl, said the husband of 24-year-old paralegal Zhao Wei. He hasnt seen his wife since she was detained last summer. Members from Civic Party, holding portraits of (L-R) Wang Qingying, Yuan Chaoyang and Tang Jingling, protest outside Chinas Liaison Office in Hong Kong, on Jan. 29. Photo: Bobby Yip/Reuters Shortly after, on Jan. 15, a Han Chinese activist from Xinjiang was sentenced to 19 years in prison. Zhang Haitao was charged with inciting subversion of state power and illegally supplying intelligence abroad. In addition to criticizing government policies in online articles, he had given interviews to U.S.-based radio stations, relaying observations of events in a restive region that is mostly off-limits to foreign journalists. Mr. Zhangs wife will now be raising their one-month-old son without his father. The latest blow came on Jan. 29. A Guangzhou court released the verdict for three mena lawyer, a writer and a teacherwho had been involved in human rights and pro-democracy activities over the past decade. Tang Jingling, Yuan Chaoyang and Wang Qingying were sentenced to between two-and-a-half to five years in prison after already spending 20 months in custody. Last months official decisions highlight two changes in the Partys authoritarian tactics. The regime is reviving its use of charges such as subversion after having shifted to less overtly political charges in the first years of Mr. Xis leadership. Authorities are also extensively using Article 73 of the Criminal Procedure Law to hold activists in isolated residential surveillance for six months. When the provision was adopted in 2012 to curb national-security threats and corruption, rights groups expressed fears that the new rule gave legal credence to the extralegal practice of secretly detaining activists for months without charge. The trends hint at how newer legal restrictions enacted in 2015 to protect national security could be used to punish peaceful dissent. Yet many Chinese activists and their families remain committed to promoting freedom and remain optimistic about Chinas future. Dear Father and Mother no matter how horrible the environment is, you must hang on and live, wrote Wang Quanzhang, one of the lawyers charged with subversion, in a letter he prepared in case he was detained. Wait for the day when the clouds will disperse and the sun will come out. Ms. Cook is a senior research analyst for East Asia at Freedom House and director of its China Media Bulletin. China Aid Contacts Rachel Ritchie, English Media Director Cell: (432) 553-1080 | Office: 1+ (888) 889-7757 | Other: (432) 689-6985 Email: [email protected] Website: www.chinaaid.org A sign sits above a HSBC bank. [Photo/CFP] China has the fiscal and monetary tools to resist any hard landing and the ability to cushion the impact in the short-term, said Douglas Flint, Group Chairman of HSBC. Flint was speaking at HSBC's Chinese New Year lunch on February 3, which is attended by Liu Xiaoming, Chinese ambassador to the UK. Flint's words came at a time when China's exports and manufacturing sectors are slowing, and weakening of the Chinese currency has caused some concern internationally. But Flint said he expects China to achieve sustainable growth in the long term, through measures such as reforming state-owned enterprises, further lowering trade and investment barriers, and spending more on the right infrastructure. He also expects China's 13th five year plan will signal the country's intention to stick to its intended course of reform. The latest plan, to be published in full in March, will lay out China's development plans between 2016-20. Flint said that other countries also have an important role to play by engaging with China, creating the conditions for trade and investment exchange, and actively participating in markets, and the UK has been amongst China's most enthusiastic and energetic of friends. "In recent years, channels of investment between the UK and China have grown rapidly, with many Chinese companies achieving success and investing in the UK and Chinese consumers now providing a vital market to British business." Last year's landmark visit to the UK by President Xi Jinping saw commercial deals signed totaling almost 40 billion pounds. "As a result, Chinese citizens will be flying in aeroplanes powered by engines made in Derby, they will be treated in hospitals built by British companies and their homes will be heated by gas provided by a British firm. Meanwhile in Britain, millions of homes will be powered by clean energy and areas from London to Leeds will enjoy regeneration, both because of Chinese investment." As the first western nation to sign up to the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the UK has signaled its commitment to helping provide infrastructure investment into the region, whilst also putting British businesses in prime position to benefit. To contact the reporter: cecily@mail.chinadailyuk.com Trucks manufactured by Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Co stand ready for shipment to Algeria at the port in Lianyungang, Jiangsu province. JAC exported more than 30,000 trucks to Africa from 2011 to 2015. [Photo/China Daily] Anhui Jianghuai Automobile Co, one of China's top 10 automakers, will soon have its first light-load truck assembly plant in Africa. To be based in Ain Temouchent province of Algeria, the plant will have a capacity to assemble 10,000 light trucks each year, after the completion of the first phase. The automaker, which is more widely known as JAC, declined to reveal when the plant will be finished and put into use, but said "it will not be long". The plant involved a total investment of $128 million and will be JAC's 19th vehicle assembly plant in the world and its first light truck plant in Africa. The company said it will be built through cooperation with Emin Auto, an auto dealer in Algeria. "It is only when sales in a certain market have reached a considerable amount that we can think about building a plant there," said Zhang Peng, deputy general manager of JAC International Co Ltd, a JAC subsidiary based in Hefei, the capital of Anhui province. Zhang summarized the JAC's localization strategy as "using international resources to do international business", and stressed that it is in agreement with Algeria's new rules for the auto sector. Amar Agadir, director of the investment division of Algeria's Industry and Mining Ministry, said at the signing ceremony of the JAC plant held recently in Algiers: "The country has released new rules to encourage international automakers to found localized ventures in Algeria in cooperation with local companies." JAC has witnessed rapid development since it first exported light trucks to Algeria in 2000. From 2011 to 2015, JAC exported 94,000 light-load trucks globally. More than 30,000 of the trucks were delivered to Africa, and about 23,000 were sold in Algeria. In addition, it also exported about 5,000 passenger cars and more than 2,000 mini trucks to Algeria in the five years. "About 3,000 passenger cars were sold in 2012 alone, after which the sales have been affected by the wars in neighboring Libya," said Wang Guanyong, who works in the publicity division of JAC. JAC has one flagship store and more than 40 other sales and service centers for light trucks in Algeria. Data from JAC showed Algeria has about 35,000 of its light trucks in use, making the automaker the No 1 international light truck brand in the country. "The plant will help us achieve higher market shares not only in Algeria but also in neighboring countries," said Zhang, adding that markets in southern Africa will still rely on whole-set importing from China. JAC's other 18 overseas assembly plants are mainly based in the Middle East, Southeast Asia, South America and Central Asia. British drink giant Diageo Plc's baijiu brand Shui Jing Fang drove the company's growth in China as it is expected to cut market spending on deluxe Scotch in the country. According to its interim results for the year ended Dec 31, its net sales in China increased 4 percent. The performance of Shui Jing Fang continued to improve with net sales up 81 percent. Its marketing spending was down 2 percent as a result of reduced spending on Johnnie Walker Black Label and Blue Label in China. In China, net sales of international spirits were down 40 percent, largely due to Scotch, which was down 42 percent as the effects of the government's anti-extravagance measures persist and competition increases, said the report. Ivan Menezes, chief executive of Diageo, said sales of Scotch in total were down in China. "It's mostly deluxe Scotch and it's primarily driven by a very conscious decision from us to back off the very high cost of investment" in the hotel bar and restaurant sector, said Menezes. He added that most deluxe Scotch is sold through contracts with hotels, bars and restaurants. "It is not profitable business and that segment of consumption is still declining in China, so we are backing off it." Sichuan Swellfun Co Ltd has appointed Fan Xiangfu as its general manager beginning Oct 5, to take over from James Rice. Fan previously worked in senior management positions for Guinness, Heineken and Carlsberg. There is potential for baijiu in the Western markets, in particular among younger people who are interested in foreign and exotic brands and tend to follow the "East meets West" trend, said David Zhang, senior drink analyst of Mintel Group Ltd. However, it is difficult to translate such trends into actual market performance. For Diageo, the key question is whom they would target as the consumers of their baijiu products, said Zhang. "It could become a niche choice among those trendy young consumers and high income Westerners looking for the next big thing. However, if it is looking to enter the mainstream market, it will take years or a decade," he said. According to Mintel's China Spirit Report of 2015, signs of gradual recovery were evident in 2015 after more than a year of adjustment. Retail value growth will be 4 percent in 2015 after a decline of 1.7 percent in 2014. A flagship Disney store in the Lujiazui area of Shanghai. The Shanghai Disneyland is set to open on June 16. [Photo/China Daily] Tickets for the theme park are set to go on sale from March 28 Tickets for Walt Disney Co's $5.5 billion Shanghai Disneyland theme park are being priced 20 percent lower than its site in Hong Kong, and slightly lower than in Tokyo, officials have revealed. They are set to go on sale from March 28, with the park itself due to open the gates to its six themed areas on June 16. During the grand opening period (June 16-30), daily entry has been set at 499 yuan ($75), while the regular weekday price of admission will be 370 yuan, very much on a par with other major theme parks in China. High-demand times, such as designated public holidays and weekends, will also be priced at 499 yuan. The regular price of a one-day visit to Disneyland Hong Kong is HK$539, while in Tokyo it will set you back the equivalent of 374 yuan. A ticket to the Disney park in Los Angeles costs $99. Elsewhere in China, Chimelong Seaworld Park in Zhuhai, Guangdong province, is priced 350 yuan on regular days, and 380 yuan on peak days. Disney said that the two-tiered pricing in Shanghai will allow the park to manage what it expects to be periods of strong demand at its newest destination. Kelly Ryner, the president of Thinkwell Asia, a Los-Angeles-based firm specializing in design and production of ventures like theme parks, said the fact Disney has priced its tickets to be more competitive in the Chinese marketplace speaks to the quality of its brand, and a strong commitment to the Chinese people. "You don't want the park so expensive that Chinese people cannot afford to go there," said Ryner. "It is smart to make it affordable, and to build love with the local people." Disney's sixth site worldwide, Shanghai is targeted to attract 25 million visitors annually, mostly from the prosperous Yangtze River Delta region. Chris Yoshii, vice-president and global director of Leisure Asia of AECOM (Hong Kong), said Asia's theme park market had a good year in 2015, with tourism and domestic business continuing to grow. [Photo/IC] China National Chemical Corp (ChemChina) offered Swiss agrochemical and seeds producer Syngenta more than $43 billion on Wednesday to acquire its entire stake. It is the biggest acquisition sought by a Chinese company in the global market. China observers say increased merger and acquisition activities by Chinese businesses in Europe and globally have helped with economic recovery and job creation. If the Syngenta acquisition goes ahead, it will be another significant Swiss deal after the sale of Addax Petroleum, a former Geneva-based company, to Sinopec in 2009 for $7.6 billion. The takeover bid comes hot on the heels of Chinese shipping giant Cosco consolidating its hold on the Greek port of Piraeus in January, when it agreed to pay 368.5 million euros ($402 million) for a 67 percent stake to help boost the moribund Greek economy. For ChemChina, the Swiss offer comes after it said at the start of January that it had bought Germany's KraussMaffei machinery supplier for 925 million eurosthe biggest outbound investment from China into Germany. For the latest offer, the two companies have agreed that Syngenta's board of directors will unanimously recommend ChemChina's offer to buy 100 percent of their company's equity. The offer price is $465 per share in cash, and the acquisition is subject to antitrust reviews and approval from countries involved. Syngenta is the largest European producer of hybrid seeds and crop protection products. The company said in a statement on its website that ChemChina is an ideal partner to accelerate Syngenta's next phase of development in China and other emerging markets. Ren Jianxin, chairman of ChemChina, said it would continue to work alongside management and employees at Syngenta to maintain the company's leading competitive edge in global agricultural technology. ChemChina will maintain Syngenta's operations, management and employees, and retain its headquarters in Basel, Switzerland. It will further enhance Syngenta's reputation by continuing to invest in its agricultural solutions and innovative capabilities, Ren said. Tian Zhihong, a professor of food security and grain trade at China Agricultural University in Beijing, said, "This deal would help ChemChina to become the world's biggest supplier of agrochemicals and pesticides, as well as competing with its US rival, Monsanto." Fredrik Erixon, director of the European Centre for International Political Economy in Brussels, said the huge deal would have an impact on the sector, but it was too early to say how it would reshape it. China's top economic planner has dismissed fears that efforts to shed overcapacity will generate massive layoffs, and said parallels should not be drawn with the late 1990s when 21 million workers lost their jobs. "The situation now is quite different from that in the late 1990s when loss-making State-owned enterprises underwent mergers and acquisitions," Xu Shaoshi, minister of the National Development and Reform Commission, told a news conference on Wednesday. "Even in the iron and steel industry, private companies make up half of the sector." Workers in the private sector could more easily move jobs, Xu said, responding to concerns that the events of 17 years ago could replay this year, a worry shared by local governments that have been asked to slash capacity. According to Xinhua News Agency, the iron and steel industrywhich employs 4.2 million workers and accounts for 4.5 percent of employment in industrial enterprises-will shed 400,000 jobs as it works to solve its overcapacity problems. In an earlier report from China International Capital Corp, it was estimated that overcapacity reduction in the five worst-affected industries-coal, steel, electrolytic aluminum, cement and glass-would cost 3 million jobs. This was based on the assumption that 30 percent of the 10 million-strong workforce in these industries would face the ax. China has promised to spend 100 billion yuan ($15.25 billion) a year for up to five years to address overcapacity in sectors such as steel and coal, while local governments will contribute another 100 billion yuan, Economic Information Daily reported. The coal industry alone will get around 140 billion yuan, and 1.8 million employees in the sector will be relocated, while 360 million metric tons of outdated production capacity will be removed, the report said. Xu said despite the economic slowdown, China had created 13.1 million new jobs last year, exceeding the 10 million target set in early 2015. The registered urban unemployment rate stood at 4.05 percent last year, falling within the official target of less than 4.5 percent. Meanwhile, the surveyed jobless rate, another job indicator, was 5.1 percent, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. A Nomura report said the still-expanding service sector should be able to accommodate some laborers from industries with overcapacity, but the government needs to make sure that laid-off workers get sufficient training to be re-employed in new positions. "We expect the government to use special fiscal funds to pay for a more concerted effort to look after those affected," it said. A farmer waters orange trees in Shunde district, Foshan, Guangdong province. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn] Du Yaobin, owner of Mazai flower farm in Shunde district, Foshan, Guangdong province, has had relatively stable exports of Spring Festival-themed plants since he started his business two decades ago. His exports are estimated at $1.5 million to $1.8 million for the Spring Festival season this year, declining by about 10 percent year-on-year by value largely due to the depreciation of the Malaysian currency. The Singaporean market, which accounts for 40 percent of Spring Festival-related exports of Mazai, has generated constant growth in the past few years, with relatively a strong Singaporean currency. Markets such as Vietnam and Indonesia have remained stable. "Singapore is the only country which allows mud to be imported together with plants, which makes it easier to keep plants fresh," Du said. "Overseas Chinese have strong interest in Spring Festival. I offer more than 300 types of plants for the festival, including Dracaena Sanderiana, Citrus SP and Anthurium Andraeanum." Spring Festival plants contributed for 20 percent of the $8 million exports by Mazai last year. About 70 percent of the farm's annual business came from the overseas markets. Damei flower farm in Shunde recorded 10 million yuan ($152 million) in exports this season, similar to the value for last year's season, with those to Singapore, dominated by Citrus SP, taking up 80 percent of such exports. "New species developed by local farmers such as Phalaenopsis Hybrids have been well received in overseas markets over the past few years," owner Wu Liexi said. "New products carry higher added-value, given the many years and risky nature of their development." Many parts of China, most notably Guangdong province, hold the custom of buying auspicious plants for the Spring Festival, or the Chinese New Year. BEIJING - China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC) said on Thursday the country will actively participate in and push forward regional free trade arrangements that feature high-degree transparency, openness and inclusiveness. An MOC statement said the ministry has noticed the signing of the the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and is weighing up this regional trade deal, which China has not signed. "The TPP is an extensive agreement. China is studying it and evaluation work is under way," according to the MOC statement issued after representatives of 12 nations including the United States and Japan signed the TPP at a ceremony in New Zealand on Thursday. "We hope the various free trade arrangements in the Asia-Pacific region will complement each other and jointly contribute to trade, investment and economic growth of this region," said the statement. President Xi pays a three-day visit to Jiangxi. [Photo/Xinhua] President Xi Jinping targeted poverty alleviation efforts when he made a pre-Spring Festival visit to Jinggangshan in Jiangxi province. The city was home to the first rural base set up by China's revolutionary forces nearly 90 years ago. "Measures and work to alleviate and eliminate poverty must be precise. Policies should be made according to the (needs of) households and individuals," Xi said while visiting households in the village of Shenshan on Tuesday. He began a three-day trip to the province on Monday and also visited Ji'an and Nanchang, the capital of Jiangxi. It was the president's third visit to Jinggangshan after trips in 2006 and 2008. Thirteen households out of the 54 in Shenshan are still mired in poverty. Alleviation efforts should be "spot on" and address the root causes, Xi said. The president visited the home of villager Zuo Xiufa, who runs a household business producing arts and crafts products from bamboo. Xi endorsed the family's efforts to prosper from bamboo and said he hoped the business would succeed. He said that as China strives to achieve moderate prosperity, the old revolutionary base areas should move ahead simultaneously. "No one should drop out," he told a huge crowd of villagers. Xi triggered applause when he said the Party and the government would help everyone. He also delivered greetings for the upcoming Year of the Monkey. Addressing provincial officials at a meeting, Xi called for the country's industrial structure to be optimized and upgraded. He referred to measures such as nurturing emerging industries, developing modern service sectors, eliminating outdated production capacity and giving resources to new industries. Zhu Lijia, a professor of public management at the China National School of Administration, said, "Poverty alleviation will be the most important of the top priorities in the next five years, otherwise expected moderate prosperity nationwide will be a blank check, or an empty promise." Reform measures should be categorized before being announced, and while past policies focused on groups, they should now target individuals, Zhu said. Islamabad will set up a special force of approximately 10,000 troops to protect Chinese people and enterprises along the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, a visiting senior Pakistani diplomat said on Wednesday. Syed Tariq Fatemi, Pakistani special assistant to the prime minister for foreign affairs, revealed the establishment of the force in reply to Beijing's security concerns over the increasing number of Chinese involved in more than 200 projects in the country, including 14,000 engineers and technicians. "We have decided to create a special force of highly trained military people who will be specially equipped and will have special organizations in concerned ministries backing them, "Fatemi said. "Their task will be to provide the necessary safety and security of Chinese working in Pakistan and the Chinese companies and industries set up there." The special assistant added that the move demonstrates the Pakistani government's strong commitment and that further steps would be taken as needed. He added that there are regular consultations about the issue with China, and that any problems will be addressed. The CPEC is an ongoing, $46 billion project invested in by China that will expand Pakistan's infrastructure by linking its southwestern port city of Gwadar to China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region via a vast network of highways and railways. Concerning the potential for differing opinions among local leaders on the routing of the CPEC, Fatemi said Pakistan had reached a national consensus and "to say there is controversy is wrong". Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif called a meeting in January to address concerns of different parties over CPEC routes, Fatemi said. Before the meeting, local media reported that political parties in Pakistan were divided over the different routes. The opposition voiced its concerns about the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz, the ruling party, favoring the eastern route of the corridor running through the PML-N's stronghold, Punjab. Lawmakers in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa region, which is on the western route, have urged the government to include other provinces in the megaproject. It was decided at the meeting that the western route of the corridor would be constructed on a priority basis. "Of course, all political parties want to push their agenda, all political leaders have their ideas, but everyone was fully supportive of this project at the end of the meeting and everyone was deeply appreciative of China's assistance in undertaking this massive transformation, which, according to the experts, is going to bring about a win-win situation for nearly 6 billion people in the region," he said. Patients wait in line for the registration windows to open at the Beijing Stomatological Hospital on Wednesday. The windows open at 7 am to sell tickets for treatment, and it is a common practice for people to use stools or other objects to reserve a place in the line. Photos by Zou Hong / China Daily High demand for medical services has provided golden opportunities for unscrupulous gangs to fleece unsuspecting patients at some of the nation's major hospitals. Despite an official crackdown, the law-breakers continue to operate, as Zhang Yi and Wang Xiaodong report. Wu Yutian arrived at Peking University First Hospital, a renowned establishment in downtown Beijing, at 2 am after a 60-minute bike ride in a bone-chilling November wind. When he entered the registration hall, Wu was annoyed to see a number of plastic bottles lined up in front of the registration windows, because in China, it's a common practice to place bottles in the line to reserve a space. Wu seethed as he looked at the bottles in the empty hall, convinced that they had been placed there by ticket scalpers. "They had been left there to reserve places in the line for appointment tickets, which are sold when the registration desk opens at 7 am. But until 5:30 am, there was not a single person guarding the bottles. I was outraged, thinking about how disappointed my wife, who was pregnant, would be when she arrived at the hospital at 8 am and I told her I had been unable to get a ticket," the 35-year-old said. "A ticket to see a senior doctor in the obstetrics department at Peking University hospital costs around 14 yuan ($2) but the scalpers sell them for 300 yuan," he said. Most hospitals require patients to reserve tickets for routine treatment. Larger hospitals usually operate a platform that allows patients to book online or by telephone, but those tickets usually have to be booked months or at least weeks in advance. Patients who want to see a senior doctor or require an immediate medical check usually have to buy tickets in person, which encourages scalpers to put chairs or plastic bottles in front of the registration window to reserve places in the line. Viral video A video clip that recently attracted widespread public attention on social media showed an unidentified woman at Guang'anmen Hospital, one of China's best-known centers for traditional Chinese medicine, in downtown Beijing. In the clip, shot by a member of the public on Jan 19, the woman denounced the apparent collusion between hospital security staff and scalpers, saying she had waited in line all day only to be told that the tickets had sold out. She complained that scalpers in the line, who arrived after her, had obtained tickets, and had offered to sell her one for 4,500 yuan, far more than that the original price of 300 yuan. President Xi pounds cooked glutinous rice to make Ciba with local villagers in Jiangxi on his three-day visit to the eastern province. [Photo/Xinhua] As the annual Spring Festival or Chinese New Year approaches, President Xi Jinping paid a three-day visit to East China's Jiangxi province. The tour took Xi to Ji'an, Jinggangshan and Nanchang, where he visited villages, enterprises, schools, local communities and revolutionary base museums, and extended holiday greetings to all citizens and military personnel. Besides, President Xi also made Ciba, a local festive snack, with residents. If you don't know what Ciba is, here is a handy guide. What is Ciba? It is a sticky traditional Chinese snack made with cooked glutinous rice paste. It may take the shape of balls or cakes with various seasonings. China expects the US and ASEAN leaders' meeting will not target China, and that the US will provide candid help to Asian countries, the Foreign Ministry said on Thursday when asked about the upcoming US-ASEAN leaders' meeting. "China is happy to see the United States further develop its relations with ASEAN countries," the ministry's spokesperson Lu Kang said at a daily press briefing. "Of course we expect the relationship to candidly help with peace, stability and development in the region. And we especially expect to see the US provide some concrete help for sustainable development of countries in the region." Lu was asked whether Beijing is worried about becoming the target of the US meeting with leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations that US President Barack Obama will host in California on Feb 15-16. This is the first time for the US to hold such a meeting with ASEAN countries. Lu said he has noticed that a high-ranking US official has said the meeting is not targeted at China. US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia Daniel Russel said on Feb 3 that "this summit is not about China. It's about the US and ASEAN". "This is not about China, this is not anti-China," Russel said. Still, he frequently mentioned the South China Sea issue in the interview with international news agencies. "We hope that after the meeting, media reports can also verify that it is really not targeted at China," Lu said. China and Cambodia have agreed that the South China Sea issue should be properly handled by China and ASEAN countries, Vice-Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin said in a briefing after a meeting between the governments of China and Cambodia on Thursday. The Chinese and Cambodian governments held the third meeting of the China-Cambodia Inter-Governmental Coordination Committee in Beijing on Thursday. The two governments confirmed that the South China Sea issue should be addressed through the "dual track approach", an approach where parties directly involved in the dispute address the issue through negotiation, said Liu. Pointing out that "there shouldn't be any turmoil or conflict again in Southeast Asia", Liu said China will help Cambodia and other ASEAN countries to maintain peace in Southeast Asia and "make sure there is a peaceful and stable environment for China". Also, the two countries will sign an inter-governmental document on cooperation in the Silk and Road Initiative, according to the vice-foreign minister. State Councilor Yang Jiechi, who co-hosted the meeting with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister Hor Namhong, said the bilateral relations have gained "significant development" in the past year, and he is willing to work with Hor Namhong and officials from China and Cambodia to push forward the China-Cambodia comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership. Hor Namhong, also the Cambodian minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation, said that China is Cambodia's most important friend, and his country will firmly consolidate and deepen its traditional friendship with China. The China-Cambodia Inter-Governmental Coordination Committee, which leaders of the two countries agreed in April 2013 to set up, "aims to press ahead with bilateral cooperation across the board and deal with major issues in cooperation in a coordinated way", said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The first meeting of the committee was held in Beijing in January 2014, and the second was held in Phnom Penh in December 2014. HARBIN -- Two officials in Northeast China's Heilongjiang province were sentenced to one year in prison on Thursday for dereliction of duty after a prisoner seduced and blackmailed a number of women while behind bars. The two defendants stood trial at Longjiang County People's Court. Wang Ge, former secretary of Nehe Prison's discipline inspection commission, and Liu Yang, an official with the prison's management unit, failed to supervise their subordinate staff and to carefully carry out relevant prison regulations, the court said. Wang Dong, a prisoner who has been incarcerated since December 2012 at Nehe Prison, used the cellphone messaging app WeChat to chat with several women who lived near the prison and "established romantic relationships with them" during incarceration. He extorted money from them by threatening to spread their nude videos and pictures. The blackmail came to light when one of Wang Dong's victims reported that she was being blackmailed to the police in late 2014. The case has caused a public outcry about lax supervision in Chinese prisons. Four former prison guards were handed jail terms from a year and four months to two and a half years in December last year. Elementary school students show their paper-cutting works. Approximately 50 Australian elementary school students from the elite Mosman Preparatory School began to celebrate the Year of the Monkey in Sydney on Feb 3. [Photo provided to Chinaculture.org] Australian lunar new year celebrations are picking up pace as returning school students attend cultural centers in an effort to learn about China's lunar traditions. Though official celebrations are due to kick off with the beat of drums on top of the iconic Sydney Harbour Bridge on Sunday evening, the city's China Cultural Center has opened its doors for locals to get ready to celebrate the Year of the Monkey. Approximately 50 Australian elementary school students from the elite Mosman Preparatory School began to celebrate the Year of the Monkey in Sydney on Feb 3, donning traditional dress and creating art works as they learned about Chinese culture. Members of the artistic group of Henan perform during a presentation as part of celebrations for the upcoming Spring Festival, or Chinese Lunar New Year, at the Theater of the House of Culture in Quito, capital of Ecuador, on Feb 2, 2016. According to local press, ancient dances and displays of martial arts delighted the audience by event presented by the artistic group of Henan province, in China, as part of celebrations for the upcoming Spring Festival, or Lunar New Year Chinese to be held on February 8 this year. [Photo/Xinhua] "Harmful cultural products" in China will soon be blacklisted, the Ministry of Culture announced on Wednesday. The "cultural products" include live performances, visual arts, computer games, publications, movies, TV and radio programs, etc., according to the ministry statement. The blacklist will target content such as pornography and details will be published on the ministry website and through mass media. No application for licenses or permits for blacklisted products will be allowed. Those involved in production and distribution of blacklisted products will face tighter scrutiny upon the review of their business applications. As a demonstration, the ministry produced a blacklist of 38 online animations and 120 songs from last year. The ministry also plans to blacklist businesses which operate without licenses twice or more, illegally obtain or counterfeit permits, or commit other offenses. This policy will be piloted in six provinces and three municipalities this year. Once on the list, legal persons and chief executives of the firms will be banned from involvement in similar businesses and companies will be excluded from competing for awards or bidding for government contracts. The blacklisted firms will be reviewed after five years and removed from the list if appropriate. The operators who disagree with their treatment can appeal. Related: China eases restrictions art imports, exports Cover of Van Gogh's Letters: The Mind of the Artist in Paintings, Drawings, and Words, 1875-1890. [Photo provided to China Daily] There are many questions about Dutch artist Vincent Van Gogh left unanswered: Was he really mad? What was he thinking when he was painting? What did he think of his madness? Why did he kill himself? Many movies, documentaries and books have been devoted to interpret his short but great life. The year 2015 was the 125th anniversary of the death of the artist. Many Chinese publishers released books in memory of him, and Van Gogh's Letters: The Mind of the Artist in Paintings, Drawings, and Words, 1875-1890 by Beijing United Publishing is one of them. The book includes a selection of Van Gogh's letters from 1875 when he was 22 until 1890, just before he died. Sitting at a small meeting room at Yanjiyou bookstore in Zhongguancun, Beijing, three of the four translators talk about the book. All of them are lovers of Van Gogh and his paintings. Most of Van Gogh's 903 letters were written to his younger brother Theo, and this book contains more than 150 carefully chosen letters. All the letters had been edited, says Yuan Yuan, one of the translators. "When we were translating the book, we checked the original versions of these letters which are usually longer. The parts about asking his brother Theo for money are deleted, and in almost every letter, he asked for money," says Wang Ying, another translator. Along with the letters, the book also contains more than 250 copies of the artist's manuscripts and drafts. An artist performs face changing of Sichuan opera at the gala in Veliko Tarnovo in Bulgaria, Jan 31, 2016. [Photo/Culturalink.gov.cn] A Chinese New Year concert and Spring Festival gala were held in Veliko Tarnovo, a former capital of Bulgaria, on Jan 31. The performances marked the opening of "2016 Happy Chinese New Year" in the southeastern European country. About 2,000 people attended the gala. Artists from Hebei province played traditional Chinese folk music and pipa (a four-stringed plucked instrument) performer Tu Shanxiang was featured. The artists also performed Bulgarian folk songs with the traditional music instrument. A lion dance, acrobatics and face changing of Sichuan opera were also included. The "Happy Chinese New Year" cast made a three-day stop in Varna, another city in Bulgaria, and will leave for the Czech Republic on Friday. A girl reads a book in a Xinhua bookstore in Yangzhou, jiangsu province. [Photo/IC] A Xinhua bookstore in Hulun Buir, Inner Mongolia autonomous region, has been criticized after a video was posted online showing employees making two children leave the store. The manager, Yao Fang, explained that before they were expelled, the children had been frolicking in the store for over half an hour. Gmw.cn said: For years, it has been a shared understanding that you couldn't stay long in a private bookstore but you could read quietly at the State-owned Xinhua bookstores, because in people's minds they opened their doors to everyone and provided a peaceful reading environment for everyone. Therefore, many may find it hard to accept that children were expelled from the Xinhua bookstore just because they were reading some books for free, especially it was only for a few minutes. The truth of this story might not be easy to be uncovered but it is less tolerable to hear a bookstore clerk say "if you don't buy, don't read". After all, it is reasonable for the customers to glance through potential purchases before deciding which ones to buy. It is also normal for some customers not to purchase anything even after perusing a variety of books. Thus it is really rude for any bookstore staff to say, you can't open a book before buying it. If it was truly the children's fault because they were capering around the store, then the parents should take the responsibility. All in all, bookstores should be confident about letting customers read for free. A little girl passes by a reform slogan. [Photo/IC] Zombie companies, referring to those that need constant bailouts in order to operate or indebted ones, owe their existence for a variety of reasons. Some met their sorry fate after being stripped of their performing assets, while others did so because the central and provincial governments left them to rot after they fulfilled the temporary purposes for which they were established. Still others are paying the price for not fully implementing reform and meeting market demands. Although zombie companies can temporarily reduce unemployment pressure, market rules demand them be given a decent burial because they are not only inefficient but also consume huge amounts of resources. Besides, the eradication of zombie companies will help the transformation and upgrading of the economic structure, which, in turn, will facilitate high-quality employment growth and social stability in the long run. Phasing out zombie companies is mandatory in the process of reform; it will also prudently solve the problem of overcapacity and promote supply-side reform. The recent executive meeting of the State Council, China's Cabinet, advocated eradicating zombie companies to help State-owned enterprises perform more efficiently. But in the process of eradicating the zombie companies, the most important task is to properly deal with their employees. First, before shutting down a zombie company - or merging it with a healthy enterprise or reorganizing it - the authorities should start job-transfer training programs for its employees so that they can get jobs in other companies. For those who are not suitable to seek re-employment, the company should terminate their labor contracts and pay them compensation according to the Labor Contract Law. Also, employees close to the retirement age should be encouraged to retire early, and the company should reserve funds to pay employees' basic subsistence allowance and social security fee. Second, before a zombie company enters bankruptcy liquidation, it should pay its employees compensation according to the Labor Contract Law, and its assets should be used to pay their unpaid salaries and social security fee to safeguard their rights and interests. Third, the company should complete the unemployment registration work for its laid-off workers, who should receive the unemployment benefits guaranteed by the law. For the period the laid-off workers get the unemployed benefits, their medical insurance premiums should be paid from the unemployment insurance fund. And the unemployment insurance authorities should take steps to keep the number of unemployed to the minimum by providing subsidies for enterprises that hire laid-off employees. Fourth, employment services and training should be strengthened to promote re-employment. The authorities should encourage laid-off workers to find jobs on their own or start their own businesses by offering them tax benefits and microcredit loans, as well as strengthening public welfare programs for them. And the government should inject more funds in re-employment training programs to help laid-off workers seek re-employment. Fifth, employees' social insurance needs to be strengthened, for which they should join the urban employees' social insurance project, with self-employed people joining the basic pension and medical insurance schemes. The authorities should also provide urban resident subsistence allowance for the impoverished families. Moreover, although the market should be allowed to play the deciding role in the eradication of zombie companies, the government should also play a key role in the process. The government should promote mergers and reorganization rather than bankruptcy liquidation when it comes to the eradication of zombie companies, in order to reduce the number of laid-off workers, and control the pace of the eradication process, depending on the regional economic development level and social tolerance capacity to avoid massive numbers of lay offs in a short period. The government should also supervise the process, especially the disputes related to employees' interests. The author is deputy director of Social Security Research Institute, Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security. LUO JIE/CHINA DAILY China is not alone in preparing to celebrate the Year of Monkey. China's "Monkey King" symbolizes a deeper cultural connection with its biggest neighbor, India. India is not just home to the world's largest number of monkeys but also has a monkey god, Hanuman, as the central character of one of its mythological stories and part of everyday cultural narrative. The Year of the Monkey should, therefore, offer China and India more avenues to address the arduous task of deepening mutual understanding and trust. For instance, the two neighbors signed a memorandum of understanding on co-producing films during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Beijing in May 2015 and Xuanzang was their priority project. The film is scheduled for a joint release to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Xuanzang, the famous Tang Dynasty (618-907) monk, returned from a 17-year pilgrimage to India in 629 AD with 657 volumes of Buddhist scripture. His pilgrimage was first fictionalized as Journey to the West during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) marking the revival of consciousness about the ancient Silk Road connecting China with India. In the Journey to the West, Sun Wukong, or the Monkey King, protects Xuanzang during his journey to India along with three other characters, Zhu Wuneng (or Zhu Bajie) the Pig, Sha Wujing (or Sandy) and Bailong, a dragon prince who acts as Xuanzang's steed, a white horse. The monkey does not just rank 9th in the 12-animal Chinese Zodiac but also is a prominent symbol in the lore and arts of various Asian religions, including Buddhism and Hinduism. Experts, from Glen Dudbridge to Wolfgang Mieder, have been debating whether China's mythical character Sun Wukong was inspired by Hanuman of the Indian mythological epic Ramayana. While these debates remain inconclusive, the two monkeys have evolved into very distinct popular characters. And there is no denying their close cultural connections. The Journey to the West and Ramayana both have been made into many films, TV serials, animations and operas, making the Monkey King a venerated figure even for younger generations. This provides the two neighbors an important constituency that should represent a combined symbol of rising China and India-a monkey is surely benign compared to a dragon (a popular symbol of China) and agile compared to an elephant (which symbolizes India). In his book, Views on India, China and on the Shores of Red Sea, published in 1835, Robert Elliott talks about of how he was startled to see monkeys, despite their value, being worshiped in India and how "two young (British) officers who fired at a monkey were drowned in the Jamuna (river), in the vain attempt to escape from the range of an exasperated multitude pursuing them to their destruction". Things are no different today and killing a monkey is still not seen as a solution to the monkey problem in urban or rural India. And as the Chinese version of monkey goes global with preparations for grandiose and colorful celebrations in China and overseas, it can also become another symbol of China's cultural connection with the rest of Asia. Hence, the monkey can become one of the many elements helping China and India come closer. The author is a professor at the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. On Tuesday, the Central Bank and China Bank Regulatory Commission jointly announced an adjustment to the policy on housing loans for individuals. According to the announcement, in cities without house-purchase restrictions, the minimum down payment for first-time home buyers borrowing from commercial banks will be lowered from 30 percent to 25 percent, and local governments are allowed to further lower housing loan down payments to 20 percent. As the housing market in most non-first-tier cities in China began to take a downturn in 2014, China's housing market faces a huge surplus of unsold homes, a decline in both sales and prices and slowing investment. Statistics show that the overall area of unsold homes nationwide had been accumulated to 696 million square meters at the end of November, 2015. Thus the adjustment is regarded as the first policy aimed at destocking the housing market nationwide. The adjustment will reduce buyers' financial burden in most cities except Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Sanya. And experts expect more favorable policies will be introduced in the following days, which may help the recovery of the housing market. US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally in Cedar Rapids, Iowa February 1, 2016. [Photo/Agencies] US senator Ted Cruz beat billionaire Donald Trump in Iowa's Republican caucus on Monday. Former secretary of state Hillary Clinton and Senator Bernie Sanders had to settle for a tie in the Democratic caucus. Beijing News says this signals a notable change in US politics: Seeing the results of the Iowa caucuses as a major indicator in the coming contests, candidates from both sides, including the Republican front-runner Donald Trump and the heavily favored Hilary Clinton, have fought strenuously for more votes. However, the eventual turnout seems to contradict the previous opinion polls: the conservative Ted Cruz defeated Trump and became the champion of the caucuses, Clinton just slightly came out ahead of Bernie Sanders, a self-proclaimed democratic socialist. Neither of the two winners managed to claim a landslide victory. True, the unexpected tumultuous contest has attracted a lot more zealous voters than previous elections. But that they voted overwhelmingly for the less experienced politicians, including Cruz, Trump and Sanders, points to the fact that they are more likely to endorse the campaign-runners who show contempt for those with governing experience. That is why Trump's outrageous proposals to build a wall on the southern border with Mexico and deport millions of undocumented migrants now in the US, and Sanders's ideals of "democratic socialism", have gained fresh momentum among many voters. Their popularity signals a notable change in US politics, as well as a big challenge to traditional leaders in both parties, who are supposed to fight back before the primaries are over. That being said, the victory of Cruz and Clinton may not be an accident, given they have the political and financial capabilities to mobilize grassroots voters, because choosing the right campaign strategy will be more important than repeating political stances during the rest of the election. Germany's Commerzbank received approval from Chinese regulators on Thursday to open a securities representative office in Beijing, which enables the bank to market its investment banking services to Chinese investors. Analysts are expecting a growing wave of Chinese overseas acquisitions, with ChemChina's proposed purchase of the Swiss agricultural chemicals firm Syngenta in a deal worth over $43 billion this week being the latest deal. Nick Johnston, Head of Commerzbank Corporate & Markets Asia, said that his team has already worked on some Chinese investment banking deals overseas and his team continue to see an increase in Chinese corporations wishing to invest in Germany and Europe, as well as needing to raise funds offshore. "China will remain one of the most important markets for our German and European clients; despite market volatility, a GDP growth figure of around 6 percent is still significant," Johnston said. Commerzbank supported China Construction Bank in 2014 with its debut offshore renminbi benchmark bond transaction on the Frankfurt Exchange. "The new representative office will enable Commerzbank to further support clients in and out of Asia with their expansion and financing plans," he said. The representative office received approval from China Securities Regulatory Commission. The office will not carry out investment banking services in China, but rather introduce its expertise to Chinese clients and assist them on outbound deals internationally. The Bank will have senior investment banking expertise on the ground in Beijing to introduce the Bank's capabilities and the business environment in offshore markets, especially in Europe. China is one of the leading foreign investors in Germany. Commerzbank is Germany's largest corporate client bank and it has four branches in Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong and Tianjin. The Bank has been represented for more than 50 years in Asia and 30 years in Beijing. Different from investment banking, which focus on investments like M&A activities, corporate banking focuses on routine banking activities for companies. "We continue to expect a robust development of the Chinese economy. We are confident regarding the long term growth in China, as the country has a large economy with considerable potential." said Stefan Otto, Regional Board Member for Asia for Commerzbank's Corporates International division. To contact the reporter: cecily.liu@mail.chinadailyuk.com US President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the Islamic Society of Baltimore mosque in Catonsville, Maryland, Feb 3, 2016. [Photo/Agencies] WASHINGTON - US President Barack Obama on Wednesday slammed anti-Muslim rhetoric and appealed for tolerance for millions of Muslims in the country during his first visit to a US mosque as president. "We've heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim-Americans that has no place anywhere in our country," said Obama in an address at the Islamic Society of Baltimore, Maryland. "You have seen too often people conflating the horrific acts of terrorism with the beliefs of an entire faith," he said, adding that the anti-Muslim rhetoric started since 9/11 attacks but more recently since the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California. "We've seen children bullied, we've seen mosques vandalized," said Obama. "That's not who we are." Though Obama did not specifically name anyone who, in his words, resorted to "inexcusable" anti-Muslim rhetoric in the political sphere, White House spokesman Josh Earnest on Tuesday took a clear jab at some Republicans who he said with "an alarming willingness" tried to "marginalize law-abiding, patriotic Muslim Americans". "It's just offensive to a lot of Americans who recognize that those kinds of cynical political tactics run directly contrary to the values ... in this country," said Earnest at Tuesday's briefing. With the looming threat of the extremist group Islamic State to US homeland security, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump had recently called for a ban on all Muslims entering the United States. Obama's address also came at a time when almost half of Americans think at least some US Muslims have traces of animosity toward the United States. According to a new Pew survey released on Wednesday, about 49 percent Americans think at least some US Muslims are anti-American. Chinese Ambassador to the US Cui Tiankai (left) talks to producer Mellissa Cobb (first right), and co-director Jennifer Yuh Nelson of Kung Fu Panda 3 at the Panda Night party at the Chinese embassy in Washington on Wednesday evening. [Photo by Chen Weihua/China Daily] The giant panda whether animated, in the zoo or in the wilds was the star at a party at the Chinese Embassy in Washington on Wednesday. Co-director Jennifer Yuh Nelson and producer Melissa Cobb of the movie Kung Fu Panda 3 joined Chinese Ambassador to the US Cui Tiankai and the Smithsonian's National Zoo wildlife ecologist Bill McShea, a panda expert at a reception for some 200 guests before the movie was shown in the embassy's auditorium. Cui, who visited the National Zoo's giant panda cub Bei Bei just last month, described the giant panda as a "goodwill ambassador". The cub Bei Bei was named last September when Peng Liyuan and Michelle Obama, first ladies of China and the US, visited the zoo. The zoo was also the first one in the US to house giant pandas in 1972, following President Richard Nixon's historic trip to China. McShea, the scientist, described the giant panda as a "rock star" at the zoo. "This is their birthday celebration," McShea said, showing a photo of crowds gathering outside the yard of the zoo's panda house. "My birthday is never like this," he said. McShea, who has made 30 trips to China for giant panda research, talked about the science. Yuh, who became famous for her directorial debut of Kung Fu Panda 2 in 2011, said people would be surprised how much time it took to make everything from costumes to flowers authentic. Luo Linquan (front row, in suit), Chinese consul general in San Francisco, takes a group photo with visiting Chinese top chefs at the headquarters of social media giant Facebook on Wednesday in Menlo Park, California. As a component of the "Happy Chinese New Year-China Alive event", Facebook hosted the Chinese chefs, inviting them to cook dishes at the company kitchen for three days during their ongoing Chinese Cuisine Week, which is dedicated to recognizing the Chinese culture and celebrating the upcoming Chinese Lunar New Year on Feb 8. Joining Luo was Debbie Frost, vice-president of international communications and public policy of Facebook (front row, second from left); Dave Poth, chief chef at Facebook (front row, third from left) and Sun Xiaochun, lead Chinese chef (front row, fourth from right). "Food keeps your stomach warm and your heart happy," Luo said. Poth was impressed by the professionalism his Chinese counterparts have demonstrated and said they don't even need translators to communicate. "Food is food, and it's universal," he said. PHOTOS BY CHANG JUN / CHINA DAILY A salesperson at the Yunhong Chopsticks store in Manhattan's Chinatown. The shop's most popular chopsticks with tourists are those that feature zodiac signs. AMY HE / CHINA DAILY These days, Yunhong Chopsticks' customers are mostly tourists - Americans from other states and Europeans from countries like France and Germany. The 6-year-old chopsticks shop at 50 Mott Street in Manhattan's Chinatown is tucked away between a Chinese restaurant and several other eateries and tourist traps. The store offers hundreds of pairs of chopsticks costing anywhere from a few dollars to thousands. Most of the chopsticks are wooden, decorated with symbols associated with Chinese culture - a dragon, phoenix, a lucky cat. Lately Western shoppers are keen on chopsticks with signs of the zodiac. "They really like the zodiac chopsticks - they like to pick out the ones that fit their own zodiac sign and gift others," said Zoe, a saleswoman in the shop who declined to give her last name. The eating utensils are mostly sold in sets of three to five pairs along with corresponding holders that are traditionally used at a dining table. The company does no advertising, Zoe said, but it does find itself on the radar of tourists who either come across it as they roam Chinatown or read up on the area before visiting. Yunhong Chopsticks has been featured in several editions of a New York City guidebook called 111 Shops in New York That You Must Not Miss. "We aren't aggressive about marketing, but people still end up coming here," Zoe said. Asked about the level of chopsticks competence most customers display, Zoe hesitated before saying that most of the store's non-Asian clientele might not really know how to properly use them, but are more interested in giving them as gifts (most are in ready-to-wrap boxes). There are also children's chopsticks and novelty sets designed for beginners. Dai Chengxin (2nd right), a Chinese students in Harvard, takes part in a rugby match. (File photo) Chinese living in the US are questioning the latest college admission reform initiated by Harvard. Affected by policies such as affirmative action and Senate Constitutional Amendment No 5, Chinese students are now worried that they will face discrimination under the new proposal that places more emphasis on work done with communities over academic performance. Although the goal of affirmative action is to provide admissions and jobs without regard to their race, creed, color, or national origin, many critics claim the policy favors those with weaker qualifications over better students. The Senate Constitutional Amendment No 5 faces similar charges. Chinese and other Asians attach more importance to exams. When it comes to social activities, these students are constrained to music-related ones, said Li Fu, a professor from the Portland State University. Zhong Ming, who has two children, said that large number of Chinese parents save money to give their children better education. However, it is much more difficult for Chinese to receive good education in the US, not to mention entering the mainstream society. As to why some universities are supporting this plan, some Chinese hold the view that due to low enrollment rate of native students, famous universities in the US want to find a way to diversify their enrollment. However, Li said that the reform itself is not discriminatory. Universities and colleges should pay more attention to students' responsibility to others and their communities rather than simply value their exam results, a report by Harvard said. The report, entitled Turning the Tide: Inspiring Concern for Others and the Common Good Through College Admissions by the Harvard Graduate School of Education, takes a major step in trying to change the college admissions process to make it more humane, less super-human. More than 80 stakeholders from first-tier colleges and universities, including admissions officers (like Harvard's), deans, professors and high school counselors have endorsed the proposal. Yale University will be adding an essay question on next year's application that will ask applicants "to reflect on engagement with and contribution to their family, community and/or the public good." A staff member in charge of student admission from Massachusetts Institute of Technology said that students spend too much time on exams and "we do not want those who only want to be enrolled in a prestigious school." Ron Keller, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn. A prosperous year of the Monkey! Dear readers of the China Daily, as newly arrived Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands it is my pleasure to wish all of you a happy, healthy and harmonious year. I am convinced the new year will show once more that the friendship between our two countries is flourishing. The absolute highlight in our bilateral relations last year, was the state visit of Their Majesties King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima to China. King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima cherish fond memories of the warm welcome China's high officials and people had prepared for them. This year, it is the wish of the Dutch diplomatic network in China to build on the high spirit of the Royal visit, and deepen our open and pragmatic partnership with the People's Republic of China. In the first six months of 2016, the Netherlands will hold the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Together with the EU delegation and the EU Member States we are convinced that we can make 2016, the year of the Monkey, a successful EU China year. We will foster the development of a solid and future proof EU China relationship. That is the core message the Netherlands wants to convey during its Presidency. In more general terms, the Dutch EU Presidency will focus on economic growth, creating jobs, ensuring a strong euro, promoting affordable energy and protecting the climate. Throughout history, a strong international orientation has been a distinct feature of the Netherlands. In the spirit of that enthusiasm to reach out to countries and cultures close to home and far away, we attach high importance to close cooperation with the people of China. Sino-Dutch joint scientific research is on the rise, cultural cooperation, the exchange of students and tourists are flourishing.To bring the Netherlands closer to China, in 2016 we will organize Dutch Days' events in various Chinese cities to enable the Chinese people to get a closer look at the rich Dutch culture. With great ambition we are looking forward to the year of the Monkey. I wish you all a happy, healthy and prosperous year. Gong Xi Fa Cai, Ji Xiang Ru Yi! Mr. Ron Keller Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands View of the exhibition area for UK during the 2014 China International Education Exhibition in Shanghai, China, Nov 1, 2014. [Photo/IC] It's a good time for Chinese students to study in the UK as the two countries are enjoying a "golden era" in bilateral relations, said Liu Xiaoming, the Chinese ambassador to the UK. Liu was addressing an audience on Wednesday night of about 1,400 Chinese students and scholars in the UK at the annual gala hosted by the Chinese Students and Scholars Association, which showcased music, singing, dancing, and other performances. Liu emphasized that 2015 was a milestone year for UK China bilateral relations, marked by what he called Chinese President Xi Jinping's "fruitful" state visit to the UK. "As the UK and China enter a golden era of relationship, a good environment is being created for Chinese students to study in the UK, and these good bilateral relations allow students in the UK to feel proud to be Chinese." Last year, 58,810 Chinese undergraduates started their study in the UK, representing a 59 percent rise since the 2009 2010 academic year, according to UK government statistics. In comparison, students from Europe, excluding those from the UK itself, totaled 57,190 last year. Liu said that the protection and emergency help service provided to Chinese students by the Chinese embassy is also increasingly good. Students who need assistance can call the simple number of '12308' to seek help. The embassy has also constantly sought new methods to dissimulate useful information to students, which would help them with their daily lives, using platforms such as social media or hosting events on campus, Liu said. "We use these methods to provide you convenience so that you will feel that your country is beside you, and allow your parents to not worry about you so much," Liu said. In addition, Liu reminded students that China's entrepreneurial environment is very good, and full of opportunities for young graduates. "Currently China's economy is experiencing a structural change, moving towards a highly advanced, industrialized model, which is more suitable with China's current stage of development. This provides good opportunities for overseas graduates who want to use what they have learnt to contribute towards China," Liu said. To contact the reporter: cecily.liu@mail.chinadailyuk.com Xu Liuping, chairman of China Chang'an Automobile Group Corp, speaks at the opening ceremony of its new Birmingham base. [Photo by Wang Mingjie/chinadaily.com.cn] Changan Automotive, headquartered in Chongqing, China, this week formally opened its new UK research and development center in Birmingham Business Park in Solihull, consolidating its Nottingham and Fen End bases into one location whilst also allowing for future growth. The automotive manufacturer is one of the first few Chinese companies to pioneer research and development centres in Europe to develop cutting-edge technology, giving it a key advantage in global competition. Changan has joint ventures with Ford Motor Co, Suzuki, PSA Peugeot-Citroen, Volvo and Mazda, as well as manufacturing its own mass produced small cars and light trucks in China. The company has seven R&D centres around the world, including four in Italy, Japan, the USA and the UK. The UK base, which was established in 2010 at the University of Nottingham, specializes in advanced powertrain technology design and development. Over 900,000 Changan branded automobiles were sold in 2015 and was once again the best-performing domestic own brand manufacturer in terms of passenger automobile sales, according to a report by Gasgoo Automotive News, a platform that specializes in providing China automotive marketing information to the global market. "Changan is a relatively new player in the global automotive industry but we managed to catch up and become China's top 1 in own-brand vehicles sales within the shortest period of time by utilizing the least resources," said Xu Liuping, chairman of China Chang'an Automobile Group Corp, at the opening ceremony of its new Birmingham base. Xu also said Changan remains top in R&D capabilities among automotive industry in the Chinese market for the last ten years. Whilst there has been a slight adjustment in the Chinese automotive industry in 2015, with overall growth of 2 percent in the whole industry, Xu is very pleased that Changan still managed to grow 40 to 50 percent on own-brand vehicle sales last year. Bob Sleigh, Leader of Solihull Council, welcomed Changan's relocation, saying "Our region and reputation as a global centre for excellence for the automotive sector will be enhanced by world-class company such as Changan UK." "Our region economy is one of the most dynamic economies in Europe and one of its strengths is its economic diversity. However, in one sector we are globally recognized the automotive sector. We are world class centre for automotive manufacture, research and development," Sleigh added. Sleigh said that Solihull region holds 25 percent of all the UK automotive production and 60 percent of automotive research and development output. Changan's new site will house the UK head office of its Engine, Powertrain, Transmission and Research & Development divisions as well as support functions. This move, which met with the support of its highly skilled and committed workforce, will also allow Changan UK access to some of UK's best automotive engineers and permit it to develop links with leading universities in automotive research as it continues in its drive to develop vehicles that people want to own, Xu says. Changan, one of the biggest car manufacturers in China, currently employs nearly 50,000 people worldwide and is affiliated to the state-owned China South Industries Group Corporation. In 2014, Changan sold 2.54 million vehicles including its joint venture sales. From January to May 2015, the company sold a total of 1.25 million vehicles, and Xu is very confident that it will exceed 2014's sales. Chinas Relations With the West: Straight Line Decline There are those who believe China's ongoing Party Congress will bode well for companies that do business in or with China. I am firmly convinced that the opposite is true and that it will used as yet another opportunity by China to show that it will not be cowered by the declining relations and sanctions/counter-sanctions between the United States / EU / Australia / Japan on the one hand, and China on the other. I see China using this Congress to let the world (domestic and external) know that it fully intends to fight back and fight back hard. In other words, this Party Congress will lead to China's decoupling from much of the world accelerating, not slowing down. (Photo : Photo by Adrian Dennis/WPA Pool/Getty Images) Britain's Prince William is pictured through a laboratory window while extracting the DNA from a mosquito during a visit to open The New Darwin Centre at The Natural History Museum on September 14, 2009 in London, England. Advertisement A stem cell scientist from London's Francis Crick Institute, Kathy Niakan, has been authorized to genetically modify human embryos in an experiment. This experiment will be similar to one that a group of Chinese scientists carried out a few months ago, which triggered a worldwide debate. British health and fertility regulators approved Niakan's application to modify the human genetic code. Niakan will be using a new method for the modification of the human gene and several people feel that it might break many ethical restrictions. Niakan is planning to use gene editing to analyze the growth of an embryo in its first week. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement Chinese scientists made a surprising first attempt at genetically modifying embryos last year. Unfortunately, their experiment was not successful. However, it opened great possibilities for future generations to alter and repair genes. A gene-function researcher at Sun Yat-sen University in Guangzhou, Huang Junjiun, and his colleagues, have shared how they modified the genes of embryos taken from a fertility clinic using the CRISPR-Cas9 technique. According to the scientists, this technique could potentially be used for treatment of HIV and muscle dystrophy as well as other inherited medical conditions. This could also be a breakthrough for future cure or prevention of diseases that people thought are incurable. The National Institute of Health in the US does not financially support this kind of research, although private funding is possible. Regulations and guidelines of research on embryos differ from one country to another. Niakan's research would enhance human understanding of in-vitro fertilization success rates through checking the earliest stage of human development. But critics believe that altering the genetic code through this method may eventually result in an appalling outcome. Advertisement TagsGene, embryos, Chinese Scientists Modifying Human Embryos Create Ethical Issues (Photo : Reuters) US and Filipino military officers salute during a naval ceremony at the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) headquarters in Manila. The two nations are in the midst of discussing joint naval operations in contested waters in the South China Sea. Advertisement The United States is open to joint naval patrols with the Philippines in disputed waters in the South China Sea, a US diplomat said on Wednesday, reiterating the Pentagon's earlier assertion that the US Navy will continue to carry out freedom of navigation patrols in the contentious territory. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement Philip Goldberg, US ambassador to the Philippines, told reporters that the two nations were already discussing the possibility of joint naval operations in the area. "But we are not going to make announcements about that beforehand because it is our view that we have every right under international law to exercise freedom of navigation in the South China Sea and we will continue to do so," Goldberg said. "Collaborative Presence" Manila had apparently requested combined naval sorties with the US in the contested waters after China began landing commercial aircraft on Fiery Cross Reef, one of three artificial islands on which Beijing has built airfields. "There is a need for more collaborative presence in the South China Sea," Peter Paul Galvez, spokesperson for the Philippine defense department, said last month. "Thus, in addition to freedom of navigation operations of the US, we are also suggesting that we patrol the area together." Philippine foreign affairs secretary Albert del Rosario said last week that US and Philippine officials discussing the joint patrols are considering a particular area within the country's exclusive economic zone. Goldberg, however, declined to give a definite response when asked by reporters to further comment on the proposed operations. Defense Treaty "I don't want to prejudge how we will carry out the defense relationship," he said, referring to the US security agreement with the Philippines. "But we have a deep interest in assuring freedom of navigation in those waters." Goldberg made the statement four days after the US guided missile destroyer USS Curtis Wilbur entered waters near the Paracel Islands in direct defiance of China's claims that the territory falls within Chinese borders. Beijing quickly expressed its disapproval of the maneuver, and called on the US to stop its incursions into what it sees as China's territory. Washington has sought to deter China's creeping seizure of strategic areas in the South China Sea by increasing sea patrols and providing more military aid to allies like the Philippines. In January, the Philippine supreme court cleared the way for a defense treaty that allows the US to deploy aircraft, naval ships and thousands of US Marines to Philippine shores. The US military now has access to at least eight military bases in the Philippines where it can rotate aircraft, vessels and troops under the 10-year defense pact. One of the US Navy's former bases in the Philippine Islands, in Subic Bay north of the capital Manila, is about the size of Singapore. In 2012, after a tense confrontation with Filipino defense forces, China took control of a shoal just 240 kilometers from the main Philippine island of Luzon. (Photo : Getty Images/Chung Sung-Jun) South Koreans (above) watch file footage of a North Korean missile launch on a television screen at an electronics retail store in Seoul, South Korea. Beijing has urged restraint amid rising tensions over North Korea's announcement of a rocket launch later this month. Advertisement The Chinese government has urged restraint amid rising tensions over North Korea's announcement that it intends to launch a rocket to put a satellite into orbit. In defiance of repeated warnings from the United States and its allies, Kim Jong Un's government has informed the United Nations (UN) agency responsible for navigation safety that it plans to launch a long-range rocket later this month. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement The UN agency, the International Maritime Organization (IMO), said Tuesday that it received official notice of the launch from North Korean authorities, who said the rocket is intended to put a satellite into orbit. The IMO reports that Pyongyang's notification is for a multi-stage rocket launch between 7am and noontime local time, at a yet undetermined date between February 8 and 25. Serious Concern "We are seriously concerned about that," Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said on Wednesday when asked by the press to comment on North Korea's plans. He said North Korea has the right to make peaceful use of space, but this right is subject to UN resolutions. "We hope all sides show restraint and take prudent action to avoid any moves that may increase the tensions on the [Korean] Peninsula," Lu added. The US and its allies have long maintained that North Korea's satellite launches are veiled tests of its long-range ballistic missile technologies, and Pyongyang has been warned that a rocket launch so soon after its detonation of a nuclear weapon would be seen as further provocation. South Korean intelligence officials have told the New York Times that the North's previous rocket launch -- which put a weather-forecasting satellite into space -- was actually a test for a missile that could deliver a 1,300-pound warhead as far as the west coast of the United States. Some analysts now claim that the renovations on North Korea's Sohae Satellite Launching Station indicate preparations for a rocket more powerful than any that the country has tested so far. The UN has passed a series of resolutions banning North Korea from developing nuclear weapons and ballistic missile technologies. Although Pyongyang has described its satellite program as peaceful, it relies on long-rang missile technology that is prohibited under previous UNSC resolutions against the country. China's Special Envoy IMO spokesperson Natasha Brown has said North Korea's notification describes the rocket's payload as an observation satellite called Kwangmyongsong, or Lodestar. If the launch goes as planned, the rocket's first stage will fall off the west coast of South Korea. The second stage will fall into the waters west of the Philippines. Tokyo and Seoul have expressed outrage over Pyongyang's plans. South Korea's presidential official Cho Tae-young warned on Tuesday of "searing consequences" for the North should it push through with the launch. In Tokyo, defense minister Gen Nakatani has ordered missile defense units -- including a fleet of Aegis destroyers -- to the Sea of Japan. The country's defense forces have likewise arrayed Patriot missile batteries onshore to shoot down any North Korean rocket that threatens Japan. China has meanwhile sent a special nuclear envoy to Pyongyang. China's Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Affairs Wu Dawei arrived quietly in Pyongyang on Tuesday to discuss the nuclear issue with officials of Kim Jong Un's government. Wu arrives while North Korea is said to be preparing celebrations for Kim Jong-il's birthday on February 16, which will be followed by a large gathering of the ruling Worker's Party in May. Some analysts speculate that Kim wants to demonstrate advances in his nuclear and ballistic missile programs ahead of the two events. Advertisement TagsChina-North Korea relations, North Korea nuclear technology, United Nations (UN) (Photo : Getty Images) A Chinese billionaire has donated 300 million yuan to the country to bolster its cyber security defense. Advertisement Philanthropist and chairman of Chow Tai Fook Enterprises Ltd. Henry Cheng on Tuesday donated 300 million yuan (US $45.6 million) to China Internet Development Foundation (CIDF) to back cyber security training. The Hong Kong jeweller made the donation during a CIDF-hosted ceremony in Beijing. Cheng, who is also a National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference standing committee member, allocated the donation for education and training purposes. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement According to China's Cyberspace Administration deputy director Wang Xiujun, the donation will be used to reinforce the protection of networks, programs, computers and data from breach or unauthorized access. Wang further emphasized that maintaining cyber security needs professionals, and aid and investment are needed both from the government and private sectors. Meanwhile, the Vice Minister of Education Lin Huiqing praised the initiative and further emphasized the need for support to enhance and stabilize cyber security across China. The ceremony was graced by a number of state administrators, engineering university representatives and other renowned public figures. Despite having approximately 700 million Internet users, China still lacks expertise in terms of cyber security. CAC official Zhao Zeliang revealed that every year, there are only about 8,000 students who graduate from courses related to cyber security. He further emphasized the need for educational institutions to upgrade and improve the quality of their courses. Last month, reports surfaced that a new Chinese military outfit will lead China to strengthen cyber warfare, online espionage abilities and cyber security. The growing prowess of China's cyber security is causing conflict between Beijing and the United States. Officials in Washington have repeatedly accused China of state-sponsored attacks and breach data on US government agencies and companies. Advertisement TagsCyber Security, china, philanthropist, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises Ltd., China Internet Development Foundation, Henry Cheng (Photo : Photo by Franco Origlia/Getty Images) Pope Francis has only good things to say about China, but analysts said this is part of the overall agenda of the pontiff to thaw chilly relations with the mainland. Advertisement Pope Francis' has expressed his great admiration for China, adding that he would very much like to visit the world's most populous country someday. In an interview with Asia Times, the Pope said he has been a great admirer of China ever since he assumed the papacy and vowed to exert all efforts to improve Sino-Vatican ties. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement "For me, China has always been a reference point of greatness. A great country. But more than a country, a great culture, with an inexhaustible wisdom," the pope said at the start of the interview. Ambitious agenda Political observers said Pope Francis' impassioned praise of China is part of his ambitious agenda to use his political and personal clout to thaw chilly relations with the mainland Despite his ardent desire to visit Beijing, no pope has ever done so and reaching that goal would take some time, analysts said. Diplomatic ties between Beijing and the Holy See has been cut off since China's Communist Party assumed power in 1949. Tensions In the following years, there had been repeated tensions over the Vatican's efforts to appoint bishops to the 'underground' Catholic Church in China. But China has pushed its insistence to intervene in the activities of the Catholic Church in Beijing, accepting only a state-approved Catholic Church known as the 'Patriotic Association.' Despite this, analysts said there has been a warming of relations between the two sides in recent years as shown by China's gesture of goodwill to the Pope. Emotional In 2014, the Pope was allowed to fly through Chinese airspace on the way to South Korea and the Pope felt overwhelmed by this show of goodwill by China. "I confess that I felt very emotional, something that does not usually happen to me. I was moved to be flying over this great richness of culture and wisdom," said the pontiff during the interview. The leader of the world's 1.2 billion Catholics did not forget to send the customary thank you telegram to Chinese President Xi Jinping and took advantage of the interview to extend his greetings to the President and the people of China, wishing them a very happy Chinese New Year. Sino-Vatican ties Lu Kang, China's foreign ministry spokesman, said that the government is fully aware of the good things Pope Francis has been saying about China in the media and that Beijing has been exerting efforts to improving China-Vatican ties. "We are still willing to have constructive dialogue with the Vatican based on this principle, meeting each other halfway, and keep pushing forward the development of the process of improving bilateral relations," he said. "We also hope that the Vatican can take a flexible, pragmatic attitude to creating conditions for improving ties," he added. Advertisement TagsPope Francis, Holy See, Beijing, Communist Party, Sino-Vatican ties (Photo : Getty Images) China's tourism bureau is convincing establishments across the country to adapt the suggested 2.5-weekend scheme during summer months to give time for families to bond and boost local tourism. Advertisement China's State Administration of Tourism is considering creating a two and a half day weekend in the country by summer. This is to give families more time to bond and boost local tourism. Several municipalities and provinces such as Chonqing, Hebei and Jiangxi are urging companies to implement a 2.5-day weekends. The new initiative will cover all sectors including government, joint ventures, state-owned and private companies and allocate incentives to permit employees to go home by Friday noon and report back to the office on Monday. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement Since it was announced last November, it has received mixed reactions and even the State Council says it could stimulate advantageous conditions, as it provides longer family time among families. Also, Beijing Tourism Society's deputy-secretary general Liu Simin revealed it could encourage more weekend getaways. However, Liu cited three points of the new policy's limited scope, suggesting that it will only be of benefit to some certain group of people. First, he said, it is merely a suggestion and not a compulsory rule to follows. Second, the plan is conditional. And lastly, it is only applicable during summer months and not for the whole year round. "Because of these stipulations, the coverage of the 2.5-day is going to be very limited," he noted. Meanwhile, Chongqing's Tourism Bureau vice director Qin Dingbo has made it clear that not all companies are required to adapt the 2.5-weekend scheme. "This means the program can't effect companies legal obligations, production or overall business," he noted. As for state-run establishments, the extended leave program can be adjusted based on the company's needs so as not to cause negative impact on its efficiency. Under the new law, the 40-hour working hour is still to be complied, so employees basically need to make up for the hours during the week. In 1995, China initially implemented the country-wide 2-day weekend policy. Advertisement Tagstourism, china, long weekend, Summer (Photo : YouTube Screenshot) China's web service company Baidu has expanded its mapping service network to neighboring countries including Japan, Thailand, South Korea and Singapore to cater for Chinese outbound tourists. Advertisement Chinese web services company Baidu is expanding its mapping service platform outside China to address the increasing demand of Chinese tourists going out of the country. A representative from the company said the company has launched both desktop and mobile mapping services in several neighboring nations including South Korea, Singapore, Thailand and Japan, hoping Chinese travelers would stop patronizing Google Inc. mapping application, according to China Daily. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement According to the company's spokesperson, these four nations welcome the most number of Chinese tourists yearly. The service has been launched in time with the Spring Festival, which will commence on Feb. 8, to assess and evaluate users' reactions and use. During the Spring Festival, approximately 6 million Chinese tourists are anticipated to travel overseas with the four countries mentioned earlier among their top 10 destinations, according to Ctrip.com International Ltd., the biggest online travel agency in China. Using Baidu's new service, tourists can plan their routes and destinations ahead. Furthermore, added services like navigation and local restaurant booking are expected. Analyst Zhang Xu, from Analysys International in Beijing, believes that Baidu will nail the launching and poach Chinese Google users. He further said that most of the tourists from the mainland have been utilizing Baidu map when at home. If the service become available in other nations, Zhang believes it will surely become the first option, as it offers a Chinese language version for those who cannot speak English. Currently, Baidu accounts for 70 percent of the mapping service market in the country, sporting about 300 million active users per month. Zhang further said Baidu still has a lot of things to do to compete with Google, particularly the maps' accuracy. Advertisement TagsBaidu, Baidu Map, Google Maps, Spring festival, Maps (Photo : Christian Keenan/Getty Images) Two handicapped travelers have sued Juneyao Airlines for not allowing them to board their flight. Advertisement Two handicapped Chinese men are suing a Chinese budget airline for not allowing them to board their flight last November, because they were deemed 'unable' to fly without being accompanied. The lawyer for the two men, who are both paralyzed from the waist down, said that the case against Juneyao Airlines wasn't only fighting for the two men who were denied flights, but also for the rights of more than 85 million handicapped Chinese people, according to Thepaper.cn. Like Us on Facebook Advertisement The two men, surnamed Zhan and Sheng, bought their flight tickets on Nov. 14 last year. They were heading to Dalian in Liaoning province after attending an event held in Sanya, Hainan Island. After arriving at the airport five days later, they were told that they will not be allowed to fly without being accompanied by others. Both men told airline staff that they can travel on their own, based on their previous experiences. The airline staff, however, canceled both their flight tickets and instead refunded their money, stating the reason is because the passengers were accompanied by none and couldn't travel on their own. The staff added that even if the two men did not agree, the refund has been made effective since then. Because there were no more flights to Dalian on that day, the two men then bought tickets to Beijing via Air China. They stayed a night there before boarding the train to Dalian. The lawyer, who represented Juneyao, said the airline company was willing to give generous compensation to both passengers. However, Juneyao declined the passengers' request for a formal apology. China's aviation regulations require airlines to provide the best care to handicapped passengers, so that they will enjoy the same rights to air travel as able-bodied people. Advertisement TagsJuneyao Airlines, airline, airplane, flight The resurgence of socialism in America, especially among the young, seems to be based on a widespread form of wishful thinking and historical ignorance. Most people who support Bernie Sanders, for instance, do not realize that most of his ideas have been tried alreadyand discarded as unworkable. Similarly, many Christians who support Sanders dont realize that for centuries socialism has been considered incompatible with Christianity. Since the mid-1800s every Catholic pontifffrom Pius IX to Benedict XVIhas forthrightly condemned socialism. Protestants dont have a single leader to make that judgment call, of course, but we too have determined that based on Scripture socialism is incompatible with biblical principles. Yet despite the obvious disconnect between Christianity and socialism some people go even further and claim that Jesus himself was an advocate of socialism. A solid, thorough rebuttal to this baffling notion can be found in Lawrence W. Reeds essay, Rendering Unto Caesar: Was Jesus A Socialist? I first heard Jesus was a socialist and Jesus was a redistributionist some forty years ago. I was puzzled. I had always understood Jesuss message to be that the most important decision a person would make in his earthly lifetime was to accept or reject him as savior. That decision was clearly to be a very personal one an individual and voluntary choice. He constantly stressed inner, spiritual renewal as far more critical to well-being than material things. I wondered, How could the same Jesus advocate the use of force to take stuff from some and give it to others? I just couldnt imagine him supporting a fine or a jail sentence for people who dont want to fork over their money for food-stamp programs. Wait a minute! you say. Didnt Jesus answer, Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesars, and unto God the things that are Gods when the Pharisees tried to trick him into denouncing a Roman-imposed tax? Yes indeed, he did say that. Its found first in the Gospel of Matthew, 22:1522, and later in the Gospel of Mark, 12:1317. But notice that everything depends on just what truly did belong to Caesar and what didnt, which is actually a rather powerful endorsement of property rights. Jesus said nothing like It belongs to Caesar if Caesar simply says it does, no matter how much he wants, how he gets it, or how he chooses to spend it. The fact is, one can scour the Scriptures with a fine-tooth comb and find nary a word from Jesus that endorses the forcible redistribution of wealth by political authorities. None, period Read more. You can also get this essay in many other forms, including iBooks & Nook, PDFF, Kindle and audiobookall for free at this link. Kentucky's governor wastes no time; signs 'informed consent' abortion law at office door 04 February, 2016 by Gregory Tomlin , | FRANKFURT, Ky. (Christian Examiner) Gov. Matt Bevin was elected on a promise that he would dismantle Planned Parenthood's operations in Kentucky and curtail the abortion industry as much as possible in the state. On Feb. 2, he showed he was willing to keep his promise and in an unusual way. On Tuesday, legislators delivered to Bevin's office Senate Bill 4, an "informed consent" law which requires women seeking an abortion to have a consultation with a doctor, either face-to-face or with a video conference, and no less than 24 hours before having an abortion. The video conference option was reportedly added to remove objections to women having to travel to a doctor and to smooth the path to the bill's passage. According to one Republican lawmaker, SB 4 which passed by a 33-5 vote in the Senate clarifies that women may not simply call a doctor and inform them of an intended abortion. Now, the woman must be told about the procedure, its risks, the probable age of the child, child support laws and agencies that can assist with care or adoption services should the women carry the child to term, Sen. Julie Raque Adams [R-Louisville] said. Adams said she was grateful lawmakers were "steadfast in their determination to care, not only for the wellbeing and health of women, but for the unborn." When the bill was brought to the governor's office, Bevin offered the legislators instrumental in its passage a choice. They could wait and arrange a ceremonial signing around the time pro-abortion activists were scheduled to protest at the Capitol, or they could sign it immediately. "We could do this ceremonially at that time or we could do it for real at that time," Bevin told the crowd of legislators pressing into his office. "You all tell me. Can it wait nine days?" He asked. Adams, however, deferred to Bevin and he decided to sign the bill immediately. "I'm grateful for the chance to be able to sign meaningful legislation, and today was a day when a meaningful piece of legislation was put in front of me," Bevin said later. Bevin's signing of SB 4 comes on the heels of his controversial closure of one of the state's Planned Parenthood clinics. He ordered the clinic shut down because it was performing abortions without a license. Planned Parenthood contends it believed it was acceptable to perform abortions while it waited for its license, which it only applied for on Nov. 19 nearly two weeks after Bevin took office Nov. 8. According to the abortion provider, the administration of Gov. Steve Beshear had blessed the clinic's operation even without having the license in hand. Bevin, however, told his staff to see to the clinic shutdown until all of its legal paperwork was in order. SB 4 was not without opposition. Sen. Reginald Thomas [D-Lexington] said he was one of five senators who voted "no" on the legislation because the bill was unnecessary. "It's obvious these women understand, given their age and education, what it means to be pregnant," Thomas said. "To require these women to have a conference ... to explain the obvious is just ridiculous. I see no reason, no purpose for this legislation," Thomas said. The American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky also vehemently opposed SB 4 because, the liberal group claimed, it created an "unnecessary barrier to safe and legal abortions." "This afternoon the Kentucky General Assembly a body which increasingly decries 'big government' placed itself firmly in between Kentucky women and their medical care providers. Instead of respecting and protecting the rights of women in the Commonwealth to consult with a medical professional privately and on their own terms, lawmakers are now dictating care and medical advice from Frankfort," Derek Selznick, director of the ACLU of Kentucky's "Reproduction Freedom Project," said in a statement. "Some have said the addition of a telehealth (video conference) option in the bill makes this legislation neutral and non-burdensome; that is incorrect. We know through the work on KentuckyWired that thousands of Kentucky families don't have ready access to high-speed internet necessary to use live, real-time communication services like Skype." Selznick concluded that the bill opens the door to "unprecedented government meddling" in women's health care. The ACLU of Kentucky plans a protest Feb. 23 to protest the "attacks on women's reproductive health" by the state. During Bevin's campaign for governor, he said during a debate that Planned Parenthood's Indiana and Kentucky branch received public funding for its abortion services and profited from its fetal organ tissue harvesting. "I find it problematic that Planned Parenthood receives public funding and then turns around and makes political donations to its political supporters. For example, my opponent Jack Conway, who is pro-abortion, has received $5,000 in political contributions from Planned Parenthood. Why should an entity have the ability to receive hundreds of millions in public funding and then turn around and give money to politicians who continue to fund them?" Bevin asked. "I have pledged to defund Planned Parenthood. Federal taxpayer dollars appropriated to Planned Parenthood flow through the governor's administration. As governor, I will direct my Secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services not to distribute federal taxpayer dollars from that department to Planned Parenthood clinics. Instead, I will redirect these funds to other health clinics who do not provide abortion services or return them to the federal government," Bevin added. The provisions of SB 4 go into effect in July. More Muslim-Americans involved in violent extremism in 2015 than any year since 9/11 04 February, 2016 by Tobin Perry , | CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (Christian Examiner)More Muslim-Americans were involved in violent extremism in 2015 than any other year since 9/11, says a University of North Carolina sociology professor. "Even the numbers of disrupted plots remain much lower than the public debate would lead us to believe. And yet it remains the focus of so much of the security discourse in American politics." In his report, "Muslim American Involvement with Violent Extremism" Charles Kurzman asserts that 81 Muslim-Americans were associated with violent extremism in 2015more than double the total of 2014. The total number of Muslim-Americans involved in violent extremism since 9/11 is 344, an average of 26 per year. The report, released earlier this week, is the seventh annual report released by Kurzman. Despite the increase in Muslim-American involvement in terrorism during 2015, Kurzman told Religion News Service that the threat posed by Muslim extremism has been "exaggerated." "The demonization of Muslim-Americans in some American social and political spheres has created a hostile climate far out of scale with the actual number of Muslim-Americans involved in violence," Kurzman told RNS. To put the statistics in perspective, Kurzman said more than 220,000 Americans have been murdered since 9/11. Only 134 of those people were murdered during mass shootings. He noted that last year's 19 fatalities related to Islamic extremism in the United States were perpetrated by three people. "Even the numbers of disrupted plots remain much lower than the public debate would lead us to believe," Kurzman said. "And yet it remains the focus of so much of the security discourse in American politics." Three quarters of the 81 Americans associated with Islamic extremism in 2015 were arrested or identified in the first half of the year. The report also stated that 41 Muslim-Americans have traveled to Syria since 2011 to join the work of the Islamic State. Twenty of those Americans have died, 16 are still in Syria and five were arrested upon their return to the United States. A total of 16 of these 41 Muslims traveled to Syria in 2014. Only two did so in 2015. The report also said that 23 Muslim-Americans were arrested in 2015 for allegedly planning to travel to Syria. Only 13 were arrested for that the previous year. Kurzman says he used social media postings, media reports and court records to determine those numbers. Hyepin Im is the president, CEO, and founder of Korean Churches for Community Development (KCCD), a non-profit organization whose aim is to help churches by connecting them to resources and partners that could help them to create a bigger impact and positive influence in their communities. Im is passionate about creating a platform for Asian Americans, and the Korean American church in particular, on which the good works they do for the community are able to shine, so that churches influence and contribution to their respective communities are recognized, appreciated, and thus, churches can become active stakeholders and decision makers in communities. There are thousands of churches in Los Angeles alone, but if one of them were to shut down, would any members or leaders of that community know? she posed. Would any of them feel that the loss of that church was indeed a loss to the community? Im pointed to Matthew 5:16, which reads, In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. Korean churches are very good at doing good deeds and serving others, but I think that they often forget an important part letting those good deeds be seen by others. The people around them cant glorify the Father for what theyve been doing if their works are not recognized by the community, she explained. Her journey in connecting churches with the community started when she herself lived as a daughter of ministers, and saw that her parents lacked resources to help their congregation in practical ways. Members of their congregation, as immigrants to the U.S., had urgent needs of employment, housing, and others, but the most her parents could do was connect them with the few people they knew. These limited resources left Im wondering, There must be a better way. Ims perspective on the churches role in community work was radically changed and expanded when she was able to do venture capital work under Reverend Mark Whitlock, who was in charge of the economic development ministry at First African Methodist Episcopal Church (FAME). This church also strived to provide for the practical needs of their congregation, but in a completely different way from her own church. They had a separate non-profit, a set structure and system through which they were able to help people get assimilated into society, Im explained. The greater community recognized, appreciated, and welcomed this churchs presence, and in that way, this church was making an impact on the community. They were looked upon as being leaders and stakeholders, so that when community leaders were making important decisions, their input was asked for. Im believes that this is the influence that the church should have in the community. In every church and in every individual, there are specific gifts and talents that God has placed within us. We were meant for good works and to glorify Him through those works, she said. When God-given talents are known and recognized, it not only blesses the individual, but it blesses other people who get to partake in the benefit of those talents. She continued saying that the Korean American churches all over the nation are doing much to benefit their communities, including community service activities such as cleaning up trash in their neighborhoods and doing ministry with the homeless. Most Korean churches dont have to do more they are already doing a lot to benefit their communities. But I think what they can do is simply tweak the way they reach out to the community by talking to community leaders directly about what might be some community needs, or letting them know about the community service events that theyre holding, she said. In that way, the leaders recognize and appreciate the presence of these specific churches and the way they help the community, and these leaders are able to connect churches with specific resources in order to help them to contribute to the community even more effectively. And when the churches contributions to the community are recognized, their voice will be heard by the communities leaders, allowing them to be influential in making decisions for the community, Im emphasized. We need Esthers who can accurately represent our community and be the voice for the churches and for the Korean Americans, she said. And that can only be done as leaders increasingly acknowledge the role and presence of the Korean Americans in the community. The church cant be an influential figure in the community if were not invited to the decision-making table. This is the source of Ims deep passion behind the work of KCCD. KCCD aims to be the platform through which churches can be connected to those leaders, non-profits, and resources for churches to be able to contribute to their communities effectively and on a greater scale. KCCD aims not only to be the voice for the Korean American churches in the political sphere, but also be the bridge by which churches can also speak up to community leaders. KCCD, which was founded in 2001, has been actively striving to take on such a role by providing various services for the church and the community, including homebuyer education, healthy marriage education, financial literacy, small business training, foreclosure prevention, workforce training, to name a few. Currently, KCCD stands as the main organization by which the Korean churches voice is represented in the political sphere. Im described that in most of the political functions she has attended, there were no other Asian Americans to be seen, and that only recently she saw another Asian American, Eugene Cho, at the past few annual Easter Breakfast Prayer meetings at the White House. In order to continue this legacy and to create an even greater representation of Asian American Christians in the political sphere in the future, KCCD has also been investing in the younger generation by inviting them to events such as the National Lighting the Community Summit in Washington, D.C. This past May, 16 young adults went to the White House with other Asian American leaders for the Summit, during which they were able to advocate for issues such as mental health and at-risk youth; human trafficking; My Brothers Keeper, a federal initiative meant to empower young men of color; immigration reform; and affirmative action. Everything is political, and the sooner that young people realize that, they can have that much of a greater and more significant impact on the community, Im said. You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:14-16 A pastor of China's largest officially-approved Protestant church with over 10,000 members has been arrested and sent to a "black jail," which falls outside of the nation's penal system, according to media reports. Pastor Gu Yuese of Chongyi Church from Hangzhou city had opposed the Chinese government's campaign to remove crosses across Zhejiang province since 2014. He was held in good repute by the Communist party before he vocally protested the removal of crosses. Gu was removed from his position as the leader of the church 10 days before he was detained. The charges brought against the pastor are embezzlement of church funds, but Bob Fu of China Aid, a Christian human rights group, told the BBC that it was a "political revenge." "In the past two weeks 18 crosses were removed and destroyed... Overall at least 1,800 crosses of churches were demolished since the campaign started," he said. Fu said in a statement that "His arrest marks a major escalation in the crackdown against those who oppose the forced demolition of crosses. He will be the highest-ranking national church leader arrested since the Cultural Revolution." Some 40 Christians from Hong Kong also published an open letter saying that Gu's arrest was related to his protests against government crackdown on churches in the area. The southeastern province of Zhejiang is the land of many churches, and has witnessed a systematic crackdown on crosses since 2014, which escalated a few months ago with many new regulations. According to a Reuters report, under President Xi Jinping, China is conducting the worst domestic crackdown on human rights in two decades, much of which has been against Christians. Nearly 1,000 human rights activists were detained last year alone -- almost as many as in the previous two years combined. Gu's wife Zhou Lian Mei has also been arrested along with him and released a statement addressed to their congregation, asking for prayers and spiritual encouragement. "Chongyi Church is also experiencing unprecedented, chilling trials," Mei wrote. "Everyone must equally rely on the Lord's grace to confront [this hardship] and triumph over it... Increasingly, we feel God's good intentions in this storm. It will refine every impurity in our ministry team to the greatest extent and compel us to love the Lord and people more purely." Last year in August, police arrested Pastor Bao Guohua and his wife, along with other church employees, on charges of embezzlement and disturbing law and order. They were also involved in opposing the removal of crosses from buildings. Zhang Kai, a Christian lawyer in China, and his intern Liu Peng were also arrested last year for giving legal counseling to Christian churches protesting the cross removal campaign. They were detained a day before David Saperstein, US ambassador-at-large for international freedom, was scheduled to meet them. Living Way Community Church, located in Los Angeles, celebrated its 16th anniversary on Sunday with a special worship service. Living Way began in January of 2000 with just 20 people in the home of Pastor James Yim, who planted the church and currently serves as the co-lead pastor. Today, the church has grown to consist of some 260 members on an average Sunday, with various ministry opportunities and active outreach and missions programs. I think I say this every anniversary, but we made it through another year, not because of us, but in spite of us, Yim said. Because we serve and worship a great and awesome God who is faithful and merciful and gracious. Hahri Shin, who has been attending Living Way for about a year and a half, became a Christian through the church, and shared through a testimony during the service how the Living Way community has allowed him to grow. A Philadelphia native, Shin moved to Los Angeles in 2014 and wouldnt have identified himself as being religious at the time. Though Shins family was religious, he shared that he felt religion was more about how one is perceived by others or how to carry oneself. As a result, Shin said, he found it easy to distance himself from God, and eventually found himself tangled in issues such as alcholism, drug use, and depression. I was pretending to be someone I wasnt because I wanted [peoples] love and approval, Shin said. I would do anything and everything to fill a void in my heart, which I thought could be filled with earthly desires. It only took one visit to Living Way for the word of God to grab a hold of my heart, Shin said. Where there was an emptiness in my heart, its now overflowing with Gods love. Indeed, Yim affirmed during his sermon that Christs blood removed the sins of all people, and gives access to the most holy God. As he preached from Hebrews 10, he also emphasized that a community of believers are called to a certain dynamic of community, different from that of the world, as he focused on verses 24 and 25: And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another -- and all the more as you see the Day approaching. Christs work on the cross doesnt only radically transform our relationship with God -- Christs work on the cross radically transforms our relationship with each other, Yim said. The author of Hebrews encourages Christians to continue to meet together, because you cant stir someone to love and good deeds in absenture, Yim said. Not only must believers continue to meet together in community, but they must seek God for ways to encourage each other -- it is a responsibility for all Christians according to the text, Yim said. Your attendance here, no matter how frequent, does not make you a part of this body -- and I say that lovingly, he continued. Church is not a gathering of Christians to sit and listen to preaching. Church is a gathering of men and women who have made a covenant with each other, in light of their covenant with Christ, to do life together. Thats the church. As the president of an institution with evangelical in its name, Ive had many opportunities to reflect on the mixed legacy that comes with that word. If you dont explain what you mean, others will fill in the meaning for youand today, all too often, they will treat it as a synonym for narrow-minded, fundamentalist, intolerant, or even hatemonger. The hard truth is that those of us who have borne the label evangelical have not always put our best footor our best gospelforward. We may have held to orthodoxy, but it has not necessarily been beautiful or full of grace. What should we do? We could abandon the word altogether and leave it to its narrowest, most reactive partisans. Or we can reclaim it with fresh descriptions of what evangelical faith really can and does mean. To paraphrase Charles Dickens just a bit, we have a far, far better gospel and a far, far better Savior to offer this world than what they have heard from us at times. It is time to embrace the call to be boldly, broadly, and beautifully evangelical. Being Evangelical The word evangelical today most often refers to an expression of Western Christianity that has generated considerable attention and controversy since World War II. But theres a larger context we should bear in mind. The social reformers of 19th century America count in many ways as evangelicals, as do the revivalists who preceded them in the 18th century. All of these have roots in what we today call the pietistic movement, one of the most powerful responses toand dimensions ofthe Enlightenment era in both Europe and America. The pietists, very broadly ... 1 Are science and religion really opposed? You're less likely to think so if you're religious, says a new study from the Pew Research Center. According to the study, "Some 73% of adults who seldom or never attend religious services say science and religion are often in conflict. By contrast, among more religiously observant Americans - those who report that they attend religious services on a weekly basis - exactly half (50%) share the view that science and religion frequently conflict." Further, while the study predictably showed that religion played a "strong role in views about evolution and perceptions of scientific consensus," it also found that "majorities of all major religious groups say government investment in science pays off in the long run." It may be, then, that religion plays more nicely with science than some would have us believe. Adam Marshall What is 'Hygge' and Where Can I Find it? Over the last few years, more and more Americans are discovering the Danish concept ... You have reached the end of this Article Preview You have reached the end of this Article Preview To continue reading, subscribe to Christianity Today magazine. Subscribers have full digital access to CT Pastors articles. 1 New Film 'Stained Glass Rainbows' Explores the Conflict Between the Bible & Homosexuality CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., Feb. 3, 2016 / Is it possible to be both Christian and gay? Is homosexuality a sin? Can a person be ex-Gay? How do you hold up the truth of Scripture yet love people who fall short of that standard? Stained Glass Rainbows helps bridge the gulf through its dialogue and confronts the controversy of faith through the hearts and minds of people on both sides of this uncivil war. Stained Glass Rainbows is now available for streaming on Google Play, Vudu, Amazon Instant Video, Vimeo On-Demand, and others and is also available to purchase on DVD. A companion Study Guide will help small groups address this important issue. What audiences are saying: Kent C. Williamson delivers "Another drink from the firehose!" Stained Glass Rainbows is "a long-awaited, much needed contribution addressing the challenge to speak truth in love without judgment and condemnation, but with understanding, compassion and care." "Kent C. Williamson is making a courageous move as a filmmaker to tackle the 'untouchable' Gay issue in his new film Stained Glass Rainbows." -- Steve Greisen, President of Exploration Films "Stained Glass Rainbows is a powerful documentary that every evangelical should see." -- Christian Radio Host Steve Noble - Called2Action "Stained Glass Rainbows is the only film I know that gives fair attention to different perspectives on homosexuality in an entertaining fashion. For persons and communities interested in watching a film about homosexuality that offers multiple perspectives while holding their attention, this is it." -- Theologian Robert Gagnon, author of The Bible and Homosexual Practice: Texts and Hermeneutics "You hooked me with the first line of the film wow!" -- Justin Harlan, film reviewer Stained Glass Rainbows was seven years in the making and was filmed on location from Washington, DC to Orlando, to Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, New Haven, Connecticut, and Charlottesville, Virginia. Learn more about the Film: Stained Glass Rainbows; a Documentary Film by Paladin Pictures, Inc. Produced & Directed by: Kent C. Williamson Edited by: James Burgess Release Date: February 2, 2016 This film has not been rated. Share Tweet Contact: Kent C. Williamson, 434-817-2700CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va., Feb. 3, 2016 / Christian Newswire / -- Paladin Pictures announces the streaming release of Stained Glass Rainbows; an important and timely film that explores the conflict between the Christian faith and the Gay community. By interviewing all sides of the issue, filmmaker Kent C. Williamson attempts to answer the question, How do you love your gay neighbor as yourself?Is it possible to be both Christian and gay? Is homosexuality a sin? Can a person be ex-Gay? How do you hold up the truth of Scripture yet love people who fall short of that standard? Stained Glass Rainbows helps bridge the gulf through its dialogue and confronts the controversy of faith through the hearts and minds of people on both sides of this uncivil war.Stained Glass Rainbows is now available for streaming on Google Play, Vudu, Amazon Instant Video, Vimeo On-Demand, and others and is also available to purchase on DVD. A companion Study Guide will help small groups address this important issue.What audiences are saying: Kent C. Williamson delivers "Another drink from the firehose!" Stained Glass Rainbows is "a long-awaited, much needed contribution addressing the challenge to speak truth in love without judgment and condemnation, but with understanding, compassion and care.""Kent C. Williamson is making a courageous move as a filmmaker to tackle the 'untouchable' Gay issue in his new film Stained Glass Rainbows." -- Steve Greisen, President of Exploration Films"Stained Glass Rainbows is a powerful documentary that every evangelical should see." -- Christian Radio Host Steve Noble - Called2Action"Stained Glass Rainbows is the only film I know that gives fair attention to different perspectives on homosexuality in an entertaining fashion. For persons and communities interested in watching a film about homosexuality that offers multiple perspectives while holding their attention, this is it." -- Theologian Robert Gagnon, author of The Bible and Homosexual Practice: Texts and Hermeneutics"You hooked me with the first line of the film wow!" -- Justin Harlan, film reviewerStained Glass Rainbows was seven years in the making and was filmed on location from Washington, DC to Orlando, to Cincinnati, Pittsburgh, New Haven, Connecticut, and Charlottesville, Virginia.Learn more about the Film: www.StainedGlassRainbows.com Stained Glass Rainbows; a Documentary Film by Paladin Pictures, Inc.Produced & Directed by: Kent C. WilliamsonEdited by: James BurgessRelease Date: February 2, 2016This film has not been rated. One Life to Give by Author Rick Blaisdell-One Year Later Contact: Rick Blaisdell, 802-376-5043 CHESTER, Vt., Feb. 4, 2016 / Following its' display at the International Christian Retail Show in Orlando, FL from June 28-July 1, 2015, (one of the largest exhibitions of Christian books, with attendees and buyers from more than 50 countries participating), One Life to Give will finish its summer tour in Nashville, TN. This book will be featured at the Fall Christian Product Expo on Sept. 21st -23rd, 2015, just in time for the Christmas buying season. "This book will move one beyond complacency into the supernatural workings of a 'supernatural' God. With true-life testimonies that came from the real moments, the author engages readers to consider that you being only one person CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. This is why he wrote the book. His testimony bears the witness of a chosen vessel moved by God beyond his own borders to share the love and compassion of Christ around the Globe. Readers will be inspired by the many supernatural and mighty works of God displayed throughout, as this book ignites a passion for the Gospel to be preached around the world" (CBM) In only six months from its release date on January 21st, 2015, by Christian publisher Xulon Press, One Life to Give has rapidly spread across America. Foreign bookstores in much of Europe, Australia, Japan, China, and India already have it listed as well. Its history includes two Christian radio station interviews; the first in March with Vermont's own The Light Radio Network, followed by Upstate New York's ALIVE Radio Network in April. Soon after, in early May, Blaisdell participated in a nationwide Independent Bookstore Day celebration in his hometown bookstore, Misty Valley Books. In late May, One Life to Give was on display at the Book Expo America Trade Show in NYC. In June, the author co-hosted a Writers Seminar where his book was included with the Seminar Resources. On October 14-18, this very uniquely written autobiography went international with its appearance at the Frankfurt International Book Fair in Frankfurt, Germany! During that same time, period, the author co-hosted a second Writers Seminar held in Brookfield, VT on Oct. 17th. Since then, an internet ad and promotional campaign began for the Pre-Christmas buying season, followed by the creation of ads for Cyber Monday through New Year's Day. Blaisdell has also been instrumental in assisting another new author preparing her manuscript for publishing. In Rick's own words, "This has been an amazing year for a local author in a small Vermont town." or facebook Retailers may order One Life to Give through Ingram Book Company and/or Spring Arbor Book Distributors. This paperback book and the e-book version are available online through onelifetogivebook.com, amazon.com, Shop CBN, barnesandnoble.com. apple iBooks Share Tweet Contact: Rick Blaisdell, 802-376-5043CHESTER, Vt., Feb. 4, 2016 / Christian Newswire / -- Vermont Pastor/Author Rick Blaisdell's new book, One Life to Give-Living Water for Thirsty Souls, continues to make its presence known in the world of Christian non-fiction.Following its' display at the International Christian Retail Show in Orlando, FL from June 28-July 1, 2015, (one of the largest exhibitions of Christian books, with attendees and buyers from more than 50 countries participating), One Life to Give will finish its summer tour in Nashville, TN. This book will be featured at the Fall Christian Product Expo on Sept. 21st -23rd, 2015, just in time for the Christmas buying season."This book will move one beyond complacency into the supernatural workings of a 'supernatural' God. With true-life testimonies that came from the real moments, the author engages readers to consider that you being only one person CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE. This is why he wrote the book. His testimony bears the witness of a chosen vessel moved by God beyond his own borders to share the love and compassion of Christ around the Globe. Readers will be inspired by the many supernatural and mighty works of God displayed throughout, as this book ignites a passion for the Gospel to be preached around the world" (CBM)In only six months from its release date on January 21st, 2015, by Christian publisher Xulon Press, One Life to Give has rapidly spread across America. Foreign bookstores in much of Europe, Australia, Japan, China, and India already have it listed as well.Its history includes two Christian radio station interviews; the first in March with Vermont's own The Light Radio Network, followed by Upstate New York's ALIVE Radio Network in April.Soon after, in early May, Blaisdell participated in a nationwide Independent Bookstore Day celebration in his hometown bookstore, Misty Valley Books. In late May, One Life to Give was on display at the Book Expo America Trade Show in NYC. In June, the author co-hosted a Writers Seminar where his book was included with the Seminar Resources.On October 14-18, this very uniquely written autobiography went international with its appearance at the Frankfurt International Book Fair in Frankfurt, Germany!During that same time, period, the author co-hosted a second Writers Seminar held in Brookfield, VT on Oct. 17th.Since then, an internet ad and promotional campaign began for the Pre-Christmas buying season, followed by the creation of ads for Cyber Monday through New Year's Day.Blaisdell has also been instrumental in assisting another new author preparing her manuscript for publishing. In Rick's own words, "This has been an amazing year for a local author in a small Vermont town." www.onelifetogivebook.com or facebook www.facebook.com/rick.missions Retailers may order One Life to Give through Ingram Book Company and/or Spring Arbor Book Distributors. This paperback book and the e-book version are available online through onelifetogivebook.com, amazon.com, Shop CBN, barnesandnoble.com. apple iBooks Christian Standard Media's VBS Program, Deep Sea Discovery, Honored as Top Pick 2016 Deep Sea Discovery Leads Kids to Know God is with Me Wherever I Go Contact: Teresa Callahan, 513-728-6852 CINCINNATI, Feb. 4, 2016 / This is the second year in a row that Christian Standard Media's (formerly Standard Publishing's) Vacation Bible School program has been awarded the top spot by children's ministry expert Lynda Freeman, creator of the popular kidmin resources blog, About The Children's Department. "Deep Sea Discovery is an excellent option for VBS with a strong focus on serving, evangelism, solid Bible content and application," wrote Lynda Freeman from About The Children's Department. "I'm very happy to see a strong focus on evangelism in each lesson each lesson has a specific portion which points children to Jesus and explains the plan of salvation." For nearly forty years Lynda Freeman has been one of the leading consultants, trainers, and evaluators of resources for children's ministry. Her knowledge and insights have made her one of the most prolific contributors to "best practices" among those who work with children. "About The Children's Department has for years been the one-stop website for reviews and comparisons of curriculum untainted by conflicts of interest and truly guided by a careful eye to what really works in children's ministry. It's an honor for our VBS 2016 program to once again have been chosen as the Top Pick," said Peter M. Esposito, CEO, Christian Standard Media. The full About The Children's Department VBS 2016 Top Pick review of Deep Sea Discovery is posted here: www.aboutthechildrensdepartment.com/2016/01/vbs-2016-top-pick-deep-sea-discovery.html At Christian Standard Media's Deep Sea Discovery VBS, children dive into God's word to see how He has been with His people every step of the way. Hands-on service projects and sea science will help children experience a VBS like no other. Children will KNOW God is always with them, EXPLORE God's presence in their lives, and SERVE God by serving others! "I love the focus in each lesson and each station on pointing children to God and challenging them to take what they learned out the doors of the church to live it in their everyday lives," said Lynda Freeman in her review of Deep Sea Discovery. "I am delighted to see a strong Bible content and an intentional effort to help children not just walk away from VBS with more 'head knowledge,' but rather a focus on helping children remember, understand and live God's Word in their everyday lives!" The Deep Sea Discovery program consists of a comprehensive kit and over 40 additional resources. The kit is packed with everything needed to plan and lead a VBS or family ministry event. It includes the Director's Guide, Opening & Closing Leader's Guide, Planning Disc Set, Music and Video Disc Set (fully reproducible), all Leaders Guides, Leader's Cards, Student Books, Age-Level Resources Disc Set, Decorating Resource Pack, and four Poster Packs. Besides all of the print resources included in the kit, the discs also offer churches the freedom to use digital copies of all the director's guides, leader's guides and cards, publicity resources, and an extensive supply of extra resources and activities to allow for more customization, including special needs adaptations. Christian Standard Media's Deep Sea Discovery VBS program also features partnerships with kid-favorite worship artist, Yancy, for original VBS music written and produced exclusively for Deep Sea Discovery, as well as with Beth Guckenberger of Back2Back Ministries, who contributes real-life missions stories for the program's hallmark "Service with a Lasting Purpose" VBS component. Dive into more details at Christian Standard Media LLC is committed to continuing the nearly 150-year tradition as a Christian mission-driven leader in true-to-the Bible resources that educate, encourage, and enrich adults, youth, and children. From the founding of a journal devoted to New Testament Christianity in 1866 to the first publication of Vacation Bible School (VBS) materials with a five-week, all day program in 1923 to its contemporary publication of its award-winning 2015 VBS Christian Standard Media will continue the legacy of serving church communities worldwide. The mission, "to provide true-to-the Bible resources that inspire, educate, and motivate people to a growing relationship with Jesus Christ," has guided the company's rich history and now infuses Christian Standard Media's drive to remain a trustworthy Christian ministry partner in a rapidly changing world. The company is based in Cincinnati, Ohio. For more information, visit Share Tweet Contact: Teresa Callahan, 513-728-6852CINCINNATI, Feb. 4, 2016 / Christian Newswire / -- Christian Standard Media is proud to announce the selection of Deep Sea Discovery as About The Children's Department's Top Pick VBS 2016.This is the second year in a row that Christian Standard Media's (formerly Standard Publishing's) Vacation Bible School program has been awarded the top spot by children's ministry expert Lynda Freeman, creator of the popular kidmin resources blog, About The Children's Department."Deep Sea Discovery is an excellent option for VBS with a strong focus on serving, evangelism, solid Bible content and application," wrote Lynda Freeman from About The Children's Department. "I'm very happy to see a strong focus on evangelism in each lesson each lesson has a specific portion which points children to Jesus and explains the plan of salvation."For nearly forty years Lynda Freeman has been one of the leading consultants, trainers, and evaluators of resources for children's ministry. Her knowledge and insights have made her one of the most prolific contributors to "best practices" among those who work with children."About The Children's Department has for years been the one-stop website for reviews and comparisons of curriculum untainted by conflicts of interest and truly guided by a careful eye to what really works in children's ministry. It's an honor for our VBS 2016 program to once again have been chosen as the Top Pick," said Peter M. Esposito, CEO, Christian Standard Media.The full About The Children's Department VBS 2016 Top Pick review of Deep Sea Discovery is posted here:At Christian Standard Media's Deep Sea Discovery VBS, children dive into God's word to see how He has been with His people every step of the way. Hands-on service projects and sea science will help children experience a VBS like no other. Children will KNOW God is always with them, EXPLORE God's presence in their lives, and SERVE God by serving others!"I love the focus in each lesson and each station on pointing children to God and challenging them to take what they learned out the doors of the church to live it in their everyday lives," said Lynda Freeman in her review of Deep Sea Discovery. "I am delighted to see a strong Bible content and an intentional effort to help children not just walk away from VBS with more 'head knowledge,' but rather a focus on helping children remember, understand and live God's Word in their everyday lives!"The Deep Sea Discovery program consists of a comprehensive kit and over 40 additional resources. The kit is packed with everything needed to plan and lead a VBS or family ministry event. It includes the Director's Guide, Opening & Closing Leader's Guide, Planning Disc Set, Music and Video Disc Set (fully reproducible), all Leaders Guides, Leader's Cards, Student Books, Age-Level Resources Disc Set, Decorating Resource Pack, and four Poster Packs. Besides all of the print resources included in the kit, the discs also offer churches the freedom to use digital copies of all the director's guides, leader's guides and cards, publicity resources, and an extensive supply of extra resources and activities to allow for more customization, including special needs adaptations.Christian Standard Media's Deep Sea Discovery VBS program also features partnerships with kid-favorite worship artist, Yancy, for original VBS music written and produced exclusively for Deep Sea Discovery, as well as with Beth Guckenberger of Back2Back Ministries, who contributes real-life missions stories for the program's hallmark "Service with a Lasting Purpose" VBS component.Dive into more details at VacationBibleSchool.com . Order your kit by February 28th and get free shipping!Christian Standard Media LLC is committed to continuing the nearly 150-year tradition as a Christian mission-driven leader in true-to-the Bible resources that educate, encourage, and enrich adults, youth, and children. From the founding of a journal devoted to New Testament Christianity in 1866 to the first publication of Vacation Bible School (VBS) materials with a five-week, all day program in 1923 to its contemporary publication of its award-winning 2015 VBS Christian Standard Media will continue the legacy of serving church communities worldwide.The mission, "to provide true-to-the Bible resources that inspire, educate, and motivate people to a growing relationship with Jesus Christ," has guided the company's rich history and now infuses Christian Standard Media's drive to remain a trustworthy Christian ministry partner in a rapidly changing world. The company is based in Cincinnati, Ohio. For more information, visit ChristianStandardMedia.com VacationBibleSchool.com , or call 800.543.1353. UNC excavation crew in Galilee region of Israel uncover first known depictions of biblical heroines An excavation team in Israel has discovered the first known depiction of two biblical heroines from the Old Testament. World to reach 8 billion people in November, India to unseat China as most populous in 2023: UN By Nov. 15, the worlds population is projected to reach 8 billion, and by 2023, India is projected to surpass China as the worlds most populous country, according to a new report from the United Nations. Single, non-religious young adults are most unhappy Americans post-COVID-19: report Young adults under 35 who are single and non-religious report the highest levels of unhappiness since the COVID-19 pandemic began and since 1972, when the General Social Survey began measuring levels of happiness among Americans, a new analysis from the Institute of Family Studies suggests. Asteroid with 'weird orbit' making return trip near Earth next month, and this time, it may get closer A relatively small asteroid about 100 feet (30 metres) in diameter, which flew past Earth two years ago at a safe distance of about 1.3 million miles (2 million km), will once again fly by our planet, only this time, it may get much closer. According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)'s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Asteroid 2013 TX68 can come as close as 11,000 miles (17,000 km) away from the Earth when it makes a second fly-by on March 5 this year. It could, however, also go as far as 9 million miles (14 million km) away from our planet. Space scientists are having a hard time projecting what distance the asteroid will do its fly-by due to its "weird orbit." "This asteroid's orbit is quite uncertain, and it will be hard to predict where to look for it," Paul Chodas, the director of NASA's Center for Near Earth Object Studies, explained in a statement posted on the space agency's website. "There is a chance that the asteroid will be picked up by our asteroid search telescopes when it safely flies past us next month, providing us with data to more precisely define its orbit around the sun," he added. In addition to this, Asteroid 2013 TX68 was only tracked for a short time after its discovery, making it hard for space scientists to determine its precise orbit around the sun. The asteroid was first spotted on Oct. 6, 2013 by the NASA-funded Catalina Sky Survey as it approached our planet on the nighttime side. It passed the Earth's daytime side after its discovery and could no longer be observed. Nevertheless, NASA assured that Asteroid 2013 TX68 will not bring about the apocalypse here on Earth. The space object actually has a 1-in-250-million odds of making closer contact with our planet in September 2017. "The possibilities of collision on any of the three future flyby dates are far too small to be of any real concern. I fully expect any future observations to reduce the probability even more," Chodas said. Attitudes to Islam divide Americans along party lines Americans are divided over whether their next president should be careful not to criticise Islam or if he should speak bluntly about extremism, even if it means criticising the religion as a whole. The new data was released on Wednesday by the Pew Research Centre, the same day Barack Obama visited a mosque for the first time in his eight-year tenure. Half of Americans say the next president should "be careful not to criticise Islam as a whole when speaking about Islamic extremists". On the hand 40 per cent said the next president should "speak bluntly about Islamic extremists even if the statements are critical of Islam as a whole". The split is along political lines with 70 per cent of Democrats and 80 per cent of 'liberal Democrats' saying the president should err towards caution. By contrast 65 per cent of Republicans and 70 per cent of 'conservative Republicans' would prefer the next president to be blunt. A similar pattern emerges with divides along religious and race grounds. Most black Protestants (62 per cent) and those without a religious affiliation (65 per cent) says the president should be careful not to criticise Islam. However most white evangelicals (61 per cent) want the president to speak bluntly about Islamic extremism. The research also shows a significant proportion of Americans think many of the US Muslim population is anti-American. Forty-nine per cent think "at least some" US Muslims are anti-American with 11 per cent thinking "almost all" are. About 14 per cent think "about half" are. Four in ten (42 per cent) thought "few" Muslim in the US are anti-American. There is a similar split along political lines, with 54 per cent of Democrats thinking few Muslims in the US are anti-American whereas only 29 pe cent of Republicans thought the same. However when it comes to violence in the name of religion, most Americans think the problem is to do with people rather than the religion itself. Two-thirds said the bigger problem is violent people using religion to justify their actions whereas only a fifth (22 per cent) said the problem lay in religious teaching. But when those who said religion was the cause of violence were asked which religion they considered to be problematic, Islam was the most common answer. The survey also found 60 per cent of Americans think there is a "lot" of discrimination against Muslims in the US and 76 per cent think that discrimination is on the rise. Australian churches invoke ancient right of 'sanctuary' to protect asylum seekers Ten Australian churches, including Brisbane Cathedral, have offered sanctuary to asylum seekers facing deportation to offshore refugee camps. The action marks a stand against the nation's immigration rules, despite risks of penalties against them. The Anglican Dean of Brisbane, Peter Catt invoked the historical principle of sanctuary by offering refuge to those facing deportation back to a Pacific island camp in what he described as "tantamount to state-sanctioned abuse". The High Court ruled that Australia's policy that sends asylum seekers to government-funded offshore processing centres is constitutional. Among the 260 refugees facing deportation, who were brought to Australia from Nauru predominantly for medical reasons, are 37 babies born in the country and 54 other children. The deportation "fundamentally goes against our faith", Catt said. "We offer this refuge because there is irrefutable evidence from health and legal experts that the circumstances asylum seekers, including children, would face if sent back to Nauru are tantamount to state sanctioned abuse," he said. "Our church community is compelled to act, despite the possibility of individual penalty against us. It is an extraordinary step. It is a step that will attract the attention of church communities around the world." The symbolic impact may be the most significant, as only around 30 of the asylum seekers concerned were living in the community and able to go to the church. The vast majority were being held in mainland Australian detention centres pending the High Court decision. Ninety-five per cent of the children held at the Wickham Point detention facility, one of the major mainland centres, have showed risks of post-traumatic stress disorder, according to a medical report commissioned by the Australian Human Rights Commission. "We were deeply disturbed by the numbers of young children who expressed intent to self-harm and talked openly about suicide, and by those who had already self-harmed," said Dr Hasantha Gunasekera, part of the team who wrote the report. The UN has also expressed concern over the ruling, and implored the government to "refrain from transferring all concerned individuals to Nauru". However, public opinion is broadly with these tough policies. The headline of one of Australia's major newspapers, Sydney Daily Telegraph, on Thursday morning was "Turn Back the Kids". Immigration Minister Peter Dutton has defended the policy, stating that the number of children in detention had decreased substantially because of the government's policy. He told the Australian Broadcasting Corp (ABC) that no child would be "put in harms' way". "Many of the advocates you speak of are completely opposed to any border protection measures at all," he said. The concept of sanctuary that the churches are offering is one yet untested in Australia. It was "certainly alive in the middle ages", Catt told ABC. Church authorities could "really grant [people] safety against the civic authorities", he said. "It was a way of saying I'm entering into God's territory, away from the civic authorities that are oppressing me, and the oppressors generally accepted that the church could offer sanctuary to people." He continued: "Sanctuary was a concept that was certainly alive in the Middle Ages when people could go to a church, and particularly to a cathedral, and claim sanctuary and the church authorities could really grant them safety against the civic authorities." Although it is yet to be tested under Australian law, he said: "My hunch is that if the authorities chose to enter the church and take people away, it would probably be a legal action. "So this is really a moral stand and it wouldn't be a good look, I don't think, for someone to enter a church and to drag people away." British attitudes toward refugees are hardening British attitudes toward accepting refugees have hardened, according to a BBC poll. The proportion of people who say Britain should allow fewer refugees into Britain has risen from 31 per cent in September 2015 to 41 per cent in January 2016, according to a survey by Comres. Only 24 per cent of the 2,204 questioned said the UK should accept more refugees. This has dropped from 40 per cent in September, around the time that photographs of two-year-old Syrian Alan Kurdi, who drowned while trying to cross the Mediterranean, were published. However over half of those surveyed supported refugees living near them once they are brought to the UK. Unsurprisingly, there was a significant disparity of views depending on region and age. In the West Midlands 50 per cent said fewer refugees should be resettled in the UK. However in London, 60 per cent of adults thought more refugees should be accepted. In the North East, only 15 per cent thought more refugees should be able to come whereas that figure was 31 per cent in the South East. Those under the age of 34 were "significantly more likely" to say Britain should accept more refugees than those aged 65 and over. Many will point to incidents such as the atrocities in Paris and the New Year's Eve attacks in Cologne to explain this shift. However almost two-thirds (65 per cent) of those surveyed said the attacks on women in the German city should not affect willingness to accept migrants into the UK. Additionally 69 per cent thought the incident received more news coverage because the perpetrators included migrants. Nevertheless 61 per cent said accepting refugees from countries such as Syria and Libya puts Britain's security at risk and over half (56 per cent) said Britain's economy cannot afford to accept any more. A spokesman for Migration Watch, which campaigns for stricter immigration controls, told the BBC: "The poll results come as no surprise and underline the public's concern both with levels of migration and the seemingly endless flow of asylum seekers, many of whom turn out to be economic migrants simply looking for a better life." However Krish Kandiah, founder of fostering charity Home for Good, insisted there was "still a great appetite to help children". "As I travel around the UK I find people who are desperate to give hospitality to refugee children. Behind the figures in the poll are people, and millions of them still support welcoming refugees to the UK," he said. "Focusing on that, and what we know is achievable in the UK to help people in dire situations, should be the priority." The figures comes as world leaders gather for a conference in London today on fundraising for Syria. U.K. Unitarian church votes unanimously to offer baptism to transgenders: 'There was no controversy' The New Chapel Unitarian and Free Christian Church has become the first church in the United Kingdom to offer baptism to transgenders. The decision was passed by the congregation with a unanimous vote. Jean Clements, worship leader at the church in Tameside near Manchester, said the accommodation was proposed after church leaders met with a family who wanted their 10-year old girl to be baptised in her new gender, the BBC and Christian News reported. "I felt saddened by the fact that this family were being shunned by many mainstream churches,'' said Clements. "I would like to thank one courageous girl for inspiring me to think carefully about this issue in the first place.'' Despite the baptism's controversial nature, Clements said the whole issue proved less contentious to the congregation, thus the unanimous decision. "It felt entirely natural. There was no controversy when they voted at our annual general meeting. They spent more time discussing the autumn fair and whether we might move it to the summer. Now that was controversial,'' she said. Derek McAuley, the chief officer of the Unitarian General Assembly, meanwhile, said it is possible that other Unitarian congregations will follow suit. There are approximately 170 Unitarian congregations in the U.K, The Independent reported. The Church of England has also disclosed plans to add a ceremony to its services for "transgender" persons who seek to be re-baptised in their new gender identity and under their new name, according to reports. Chris Newlands, the vicar of Lancaster Priory, said he proposed the addition to the General Synod last year after being approached by a girl who identifies herself as a boy who wished to be baptised again under her male name. He said he submitted a motion for the issue to be considered by the denomination as a whole. "It was approved by the parochial church council, the Deanery Synod and the Blackburn Diocese, and is set to next be debated by the General Synod," Newlands said. Meanwhile, some church members expressed belief that the proposal [to add a ceremony or provide service] runs counter to Christian values. "To recognise all people is something the church should be doing, but to have a service of blessing for someone to change their gender is a new idea," said Andrew Symes of the Anglican Mainstream. "The Christian faith has always taught that people are created male and female...It [providing the services] would be something that would go against the teachings of the church up till now." The Unitarian congregation is "a multi-generational community who are very willing to accept change and progress,'' said Clements, adding that, "Unitarians as a whole are proponents of "freedom" and "tolerance." 'Designer babies' now possible as U.K. allows scientists to genetically modify human embryos The Holy Bible is clear: God created human beings. In the United Kingdom, however, scientists have been allowed to tinker with God's highest form of creation. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) in the U.K. has given its go ahead to a research application from the Francis Crick Institute which plans to use new "gene editing" techniques on human embryos. This is the first time in the nation's history that scientists have been allowed to genetically modify human embryos. This decision is seen to usher in more scientific researches seeking to alter the DNA or genetic makeup of embryos. The British authority, however, clarified that implanting genetically altered embryos to women remains prohibited under the law. The scientists expressed hopes that the experiments will improve human understanding of the earliest stages of embryo development. Researches seeking to explore modifications on the human genome will have to use excess embryos donated by couples who have had in-vitro fertilization treatment. In a statement posted on her institute's website, Dr. Kathy Niakan, a group leader at the Crick, explained that the experiments her team will perform seek to understand how human embryos develop successfully. The research will specifically look at the first seven days of a fertilised egg's development. Ronald Green, a Dartmouth College professor and author of "Babies by Design: The Ethics of Genetic Choice," however, warned that these researches might lead into the production of so-called "designer babies." "I am absolutely certain this is coming. By the end of this century, I am absolutely confident that we will have the tools for someone with the means to use this information to change the child they can have through this process," Green told CNN. Sarah Norcross, director of the Progress Educational Trust, for her part, described the British decision to allow genetic modification on human DNA as "a victory for level-headed regulation over moral panic." "The decision allows basic scientific research into early embryo development and miscarriage to continue," Norcross told CNN. Sexual transmission of the (normally) mosquito-borne Zika Virus, which has been considered the culprit in a spate of birth defects see in Brazilian newborns recently, was recently confirmed by health officials in Dallas, Texas. Although the possibility that Zika can be sexually transmitted has been known for some time, confirmation of such an occurrence in a municipality like Dallas is certainly a big cause for worry. Although the virus was first discovered in Uganda in 1947, it has remained relatively low profile (as viruses go) until early last year, when a rash of microcephaly cases in babies born in Brazil in late 2015 and early 2016 has pointed to Zika as the likely cause. Those born with microcephaly are characterized by having abnormally small heads and pronounced brain damage, and while Brazil normally sees roughly 150 cases of microcephaly each year, Brazilian authorities are presently investigating about 4,000 reported cases of the disease. Although it is believed that Zika has played a significant role in the emergence of the microcephaly epidemic in Brazil, a firm connection has yet to be made. The grave threat to the health of fetuses seems to be the greatest obvious risk posed by Zika at this time. Thankfully, the risks to the rest of the population appear to be mild. When Zika prompts symptoms in an adult, those are typically no worse than fever, muscle/joint pain, malaise, and/or headache. Treatment typically involves no more than getting rest, staying hydrated, and treating any pains/fever with typical over-the-counter remedies. Symptoms are said to last between a few, to several, days. Unfortunately, with viruses like this, the possibility of mutation into more virulent strains is ever-present. That is a big reason why the prospect of widespread transmission through sexual contact is such a concern. By Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large Former Catholic seminarian arrested in California in foiled attempt to have sex with infants, toddlers A former Catholic seminarian from Ohio was arrested by authorities in San Diego, California on Friday for allegedly seeking to have sex with infants and toddlers in Mexico. Joel Wright, 23, of Columbus, Ohio, previously tried to go to Tijuana to adopt a child, according to the Associated Press. He was arraigned on Saturday on charges of traveling with the intent to have sex with a minor and attempt to engage in illicit sexual conduct in a foreign country, the Christian News Network reported. The complaint by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of California showed that he was the focus of an undercover investigation that started last November. The Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) got a tip from a person in Mexico about an ad on Craiglist on the adoption of infants. Wright initially said he was seeking to meet a woman to marry and adopt a child but the conversation changed to his intent to have sexual conduct with children. An undercover agent posed as a Mexican tour guide and conversed with Wright through email after authorities got the tip. "I have not gone all the way before, but I have made it very close in the past, so I do have experience," he answered to the question of whether he had engaged in the act before. He then booked a flight to San Diego to meet the friend of the tour guide that would take him to a hotel in Tijuana and meet female infants. Wright was arrested upon arrival at San Diego's Lindberg Field. "This investigation opens a window into a secret world where sexual predators prey on young children around the globe," said Dave Shaw, special agent in charge for HSI San Diego. "Paedophiles who mistakenly believe they can escape justice by committing child sex crimes outside the U.S. should be on notice that HSI will seek to vindicate the rights of those victims regardless where they live." He added, "Fortunately, in this instance, our perseverance and diligence prevented the sexual exploitation of yet another innocent victim." Wright became a student at Pontifical College Josephinum in Columbus but lost his status at the Catholic seminary for leaving campus without permission. "We're shocked and saddened by the heinous nature of the allegations," said John Allen, vice president for advancement at Pontifical College Josephinum. Germany opens first asylum centre for gays who are targeted for persecution by Muslim refugees Germany has opened its first shelter for gay migrants in Nuremberg amid claims of growing abuse victimising the LGBT people inside the camps they were put in. The new facility in southern Germany's Nuremberg can host up to eight people. It is being leased and managed by the gay and lesbian group Fliederlich, Agence France-Press reported. "No one has moved in yet but it's a question of a day or two, the accommodation is ready," Michael Glas, the group's manager said. "Four people from Iran, Iraq, Syria and Ethiopia have made requests for a bed in the small two-story house." Glas said the initiative to come up with a separate facility for homosexuals was prompted by the reports of 20 refugees who said they felt threatened in their current shelters."Some Muslims are offended by the presence of homosexuals or transgender people in refugee shelters.'' He added that homosexuals who were persecuted in their home countries for being gay continue to be targeted in refugee camps in Germany. "Prejudices don't disappear when one crosses the borders.'' The facility in Nuremberg is reportedly one of four similar facilities across Germany expected to be established for homosexual migrants over the next few months. Berlin plans to open an even larger centre in March with 120 beds, while Munich and Frankfurt are also considering similar options, International Business Times reported. Stephan Jakel, manager of gay association Schwulenberatung in Berlin, said the organisation has been receiving numerous reports about discrimination and crimes against LGBT people as well and decided to come up with a shelter intended only for them. "They were frightened and scared after being beaten or spat on, and one survived a murder attempt. We heard a lot of horrible stories," Jakel said. Fliederlich Chairman Ralpf Hoffmann said gay and lesbian refugees come under "constant stress" because some Muslims "see the presence of homosexual or transsexual people in the lodging as an affront." From August 1 to Dec. 31, 2015, the Lesbian and Gay Federation in Germany recorded 95 cases of abuses against homosexuals, including physical violence, sexual attacks and threats, AFP reported. Germany took in 1.1 million asylum seekers in 2015, mostly from war-ravaged countries like Syria, Iraq and Africa. Joel Osteen recalls father's death and how God used that tragedy to propel his ministry God has a plan for everything. Even when He took Joel Osteen's father back in 1999, He still managed to do something good. "When my father went to be with the Lord back in 1999, I felt like I was being pulled back," Osteen recalls on his blog. "I could feel the pressure, the tension. Not only did I lose my father, I lost a great friend. I didn't know what was going to happen to the church. But in the middle of that difficulty when it seemed like my best days were behind me, at just the right time, God released me like a bow, and shot me forward to a new level of my destiny." Because of his father's passing, Osteen admits that he got to his destination "more quickly than I should have." He did not even have the formal training, the experience, and the qualifications needed for the ministry. He knows things could not have happened without the hand of God. "I've learned when God is ready to shoot you forward, He doesn't ask for your permission. He doesn't check with the critics; He doesn't get approval from your friends, family members or co-workers. He doesn't look at your bank account, your degrees, your confidence or your connections," he says. "When it's your time, God simply propels you into your destiny." For people who feel like they are being pulled back right now, Osteen assures them that it is okay to feel tension. It might seem like they cannot get ahead, but they should keep in mind: "You're being pulled back for one reason, and that's so God can shoot you further! Get ready because this is a year when God is going to launch you forward!" To further encourage people, Osteen shares the Bible verse Ephesians 3:20. It says: "Glory to God, who is able to do far beyond all that we could ask or imagine by his power at work within us." 'Love and Hip Hop New York' season 6: Why can't Amina Buddafly let Peter Gunz go? "Love & Hip Hop: New York" has been full of drama, but nothing can be more intense than the one involving the love triangle involving Amina Buddafly, Peter Gunz, and Tara Wallace. In last week's episode, "Ups & Downs," the couple Buddafly and Gunz worked their marriage out since the latter is notorious for his cheating ways. Just as they decided to iron some kinks in their union, Gunz' ex, Wallace, drops a huge bomb by revealing she's pregnant with his child. In the latest Monday night episode, Gunz decided he would confess the devastating truth to his wife. It can be seen that the rapper had a hard time bringing the news to his wife and even admitted that he feared he would lose her once she learned about it. When Gunz broke the news, Buddafly totally lost it as seen in the video from VH1. But even with all the cheating that Gunz had done, it seems that Buddafly is sticking to her man. The German-born star is not letting go of her husband and divorce is not even an option. While most people would raise their eyebrows, Buddafly pours her heart out in an interview and explained why she just can't let Gunz go. According to Buddafly in a video interview released on Friday, explaining is hard to do because not a lot of people know what Gunz really is. The side of Gunz being shown on TV is not the side she's come to love deeply. Viewers only get to see the side of Gunz that always messes up, she said. "But there's more to him," she added. "I don't give up fighting for what I love." She even said that if a person hangs out with him for an entire day, that person will likely change his opinion about Gunz. Anyone would find it hard to understand how Buddafly feels for her husband, but she also admitted that it would be "hard to convince people that he's a good guy." More interestingly, Gunz is even Buddafly's "favorite person in the world." Now that Buddafly knows about Gunz and Wallace, what's next for the controversial couple? Find out in "Love & Hip Hop: New York" every Monday at 8 p.m. EST on VH1. Methodist membership set to fall to lowest since 1819 Methodist Church membership in the UK is set to fall below 200,000 for the first time since 1819, according to figures presented to the Methodist Council last week. The Church's Statistics for Mission report also revealed that baptisms in 2014-15 were down substantially on the previous year and that 80 per cent of local churches were not making new members. While the number of adult baptisms was slightly up at 708, the number of under-13s receiving baptism was down 12 per cent at 8,265. Just 120 churches accounted for more than a quarter of all the baptisms in the denomination. Just over half of all local churches (2,374 out of 4,650) reported no baptisms during the course of the year. Methodist membership in local churches stood at 201,714 as of October 31, 2014. The Council heard there was "every likelihood" it would dip below 200,000 in the 2015-16 reporting year. While the number actually attending services is greater, counted on a Sunday in October 2014 as 219,700, this compares with 224,500 in October 2013. The report speaks of the need to respond to decline by identifying evangelism as "the main thing" and encouraging each local church to increase its numbers by one person a year. It also refers to the place of Methodist Fresh Expressions, which encourages non-standard manifestations of Church in homes and other settings. A spokesman for the Church told Christian Today it had "long faced a numerical and demographic challenge". Membership numbers were over 800,000 in 1906 and over 600,000 in 1980. He said: "The majority of our current members are of retirement age. With some families having not come into contact with faith for a generation or more, there is a significant task to undertake in educating people about church life and the particular set of values that underpin Methodism." However, he added: "The picture is not all bad, with a growing number of younger people becoming involved with the Church. Industrial chaplains, street pastors and other outreach work is taking the love of God to new places, often by working in partnership with other denominations. "Undeniably Church is changing and we are having to reflect this in how we are organised but the need for faith is as great now as it has ever been. The value of a church to its community is enormous." Not fit for purpose? Just imagine society without the Church We all get annoyed with the Church at times. Either our local congregation or the whole institution. If it was up to us things would be different and better. It's not just those inside the Church either. There are those outside who find themselves poorly treated or who simply want to be a critical friend and offer some suggestions for improvement. These kinds of critique can be good. We need to be constantly looking to improve the way we serve people and honour our calling. In fact, as I wrote recently, we also need to heed voices of wisdom that come from outside the Church. So in this spirit I read an article entitled, 'Is The Church Of England Fit For Purpose?' with interest. As an active member of the C of E, I was keen to see what we could do better. The author, Casper ter Kuile, is someone whose work I've found interesting in the past. He makes some good points, but in some ways I feel he's failed to see the wood for the trees. Let's leave aside the lack of nuance in the critique about the Church's treatment of minorities, ("absurd and cruel... a hateful force in society"). The main argument is that the Church is punching well below its weight and needs to radically alter its vision. "The Church no longer knows what it's for," says ter Kuile. He then goes on to list things the Church should be doing such as, "building community... and [helping us] make meaning in our lives". If this sounds a bit like motherhood and apple pie, that doesn't make it invalid. He lists a number of people and organisations he feels are helping the Church fulfill these missions in a small way whose work should be built upon. That sounds great. I've got two concerns, though. Firstly, the Church exists primarily to worship and bear witness to Jesus. What follows on from this is a radical manifesto to change the world, but we never do the latter without the former. To an extent, ter Kuile acknowledges this. "No doubt Anglican leaders would further point to the purpose being the worship of God," he says, "perhaps embodying the example of Jesus. Others might talk of mission, discipleship, and witness." But, he goes on, "The problem is, to most non-church goers, none of this means anything." I agree, this terminology would sound like nonsense to many of my atheist friends. But that's not because it's inherently meaningless drivel. In fact, it's just 'insider language'. I don't know a single clergyperson who'd stand up on a Sunday (or indeed any other time of the week) and launch into a monologue about mission, discipleship and witness. These are all helpful concepts to those of us who understand them and we shouldn't ditch them simply because they don't make sense to everyone. The task we have as a Church is to make these concepts meaningful in our lives and in the lives of our congregations which then makes them attractional to those outside. If we are doing discipleship correctly, the Church will be an attractive place to be and the Christian life will be an attractive one to follow. There is of course a problem that some churches do have with the way they're perceived namely that they have become irrelevant to the average non-churchgoing person who prioritises a lie-in, time with the family or shopping instead of attending a church service. We need to hear the critique of being more relevant and important in the life of our communities. But we mustn't cut off the branch on which we sit. What is it that makes churches unique? As Christians, we believe it is that we are the body of Christ. Churches are places where we worship the creator of the universe, where we celebrate the sacraments, where we sing together, bear each others burdens and live our lives in service to one another. This isn't merely another community association. We are the Bride of Christ. What of the article's second critique? Despite highlighting some of the exciting projects he's aware of, the presumption is that the Church isn't actually doing much already to help in "building community" or helping people "make meaning in their lives". I'd argue that's exactly what lots and lots of churches are doing. A small snapshot of the work of the Church of England (before we even get round to the wider Church of all denominations) would show some of the following: - The Church has been at the forefront of the provision of food banks and other emergency food supplies. Hundreds of thousands of people across the country are reliant on these vital lifelines the majority of which are provided by churches. - The campaign against exploitative lending has been fought by churches, and since 2013 has been spearheaded by the Archbishop of Canterbury. We now have a cap on the total cost of credit in law for the first time in British history partially thanks to the Archbishop's initiative. - The Church has played an important role in the growth of Credit Unions and other forms of ethical, local credit. Without support from the churches, this important but neglected area of the financial system would be less well-known and able to help fewer people. Churches also host credit unions, post offices and community shops in many places. - The Living Wage campaign was begun in churches and other civil society groups in east London. Without the support of churches, it's doubtful that the campaign would ever have got off the ground. In the last 15 years, hundreds of millions of pounds has gone to people in low pay as a result. - The Church has played a leading moral and practical role in the response to the refugee crisis. There are countless examples, large and small, of churches playing a key role in the response to the biggest social need of our generation. Churches serve up to 10 million people a year with their social provision, churches have been found to be the most diverse institutions in the UK, churches are pioneering employments skills training, and homeless provision and helping small businesses start up and so on and so on. Could we do more? Of course we could. We shouldn't be satisfied until the Kingdom comes and justice and mercy is seen in all the earth. However, we're doing a lot of amazing work that goes unreported, and without which the country would be a far, far worse place. Ultimately I don't disagree that the Church should be doing all it can to build community and help people find meaning in their lives. However, we can only do more of that with more people coming through the doors. That will involve us continuing to worship, pray, evangelise and develop more ministries of social transformation and outreach. We're doing what we can. Those on the outside looking in should come and join us! Follow Andy Walton on Twitter: @waltonandy Syria talks: 'Bombing does not help' Cameron told as world leaders pledge funds David Cameron launched a donor conference in Westminster today pleading other countries to help address the "a critical shortfall in life-saving aid". However, the Middle East head for Christian Aid and a former Ambassador to Lebanon, said the "real push" must be towards building peace. "We can't lose sight of the fact this conference is about Syria and the plight of the people of Syria," Frances Guy told Christian Today. "I have spoken to many refugees and what they are all saying is, 'Stop the bombing and give us money to start re-building.'" Guy's comments came hours after the latest round of peace talks broke down. The UN-brokered discussions between the Syrian regime and opposition parties are expected to resume on February 25 but Staffan de Mistura, the UN's special envoy at the talks, acknowledged little progress had been made. UN chief Ban Ki-moon said the talks were "undermined by the continuous lack of sufficient humanitarian access, and by a sudden increase of aerial bombings and military activities within Syria". He urged the warring sides to "get back to the table, not to secure more gains on the battlefields". Speaking to Christian Today during the conference, Guy said the "pledges so far have been generous" but the focus must be on reaching a peace settlement. On the first day of the two-day conference, the EU pledged over $3.3 bn (3bn; 2.3bn), Germany $2.6bn, the UK $1.7bn and the US $925m. The goal is to reach $9bn (6.2bn) for refugees affected by the Syrian war and also for those in Syria. However Guy pointed out the policy of bombing targets in Syria, which is employed by many of the 60 countries present, has meant "the situation has got much worse and violent" especially since the Russian bombing campaign began. However any "bombing does not help", she said. "I would like to ask Mr Cameron how much the bombing campaign in Syria costs compared to how much aid we've given," she said. Patricia Mouamar, a Lebanese aid-worker for World Vision, agreed with Guy. Although today's funding pledges "will definitely make a big difference", she told Christian Today the "main thing we need to be focusing on" is building peace. "All the refugees I spoke to shared one thing in common," she said. "They all want to go back to Syria." Today's conference focuses on education and jobs for the 4.6 million Syrian refugees living in neighbouring countries. Mouamar, who works daily with Syian refugees in Lebanon, said "education is definitely a particular need for child refugees". She said less than half of Syrian child refugees are receiving schooling and "a whole generation of children is being left behind". These children are the future Syrian leaders, she told Christian Today. "What kind of generation are we leaving behind?" Westminster Abbey to host Gucci fashion show Westminster Abbey is to host Gucci's cruise collection fashion show in its cloisters in June, sparking mixed reactions in the church. The high-end label's runway will be the 11th-century abbey's cloisters, just metres from where countless royals have been wed, according to the Independent. Rev Peter Owen-Jones, the vicar and BBC television presenter, told the Independent he was dismayed at the Abbey's decision, calling it "part of the Disneyfication of all the traditional sacred spaces in the land". The abbey's cloisters have been available for corporate hire for a while and "so far the reaction has been positive", according to a spokesperson for the abbey confirmed the deal. However, Owen-Jones said: "It confuses what the Church is for. Is the central icon of Christianity there to offer spiritual sustenance and love or is it just part of the marketplace of capitalism? "We are in the process of selling our soul for a pair of trousers." Owen-Jones was not alone in his critique, as the fashion editor of the New York Times, Vanessa Friedman, remarked on Twitter: "Anyone else think the context is a little weird for a clothes show?" Some members of the clergy have been more supportive, including April Alexander, a member of the General Synod, who said: "I think it's a good thing to share those beautiful cloisters with as many people as possible, especially if, I guess, many of these people are not normal churchgoers." Alessandro Michele, Gucci's creative director, shared his excitement for the upcoming show, exclaiming that the location was "magical". The Abbey just last month was involved in the Lumiere London festival of light. However Owen-Jones sees the planned fashion show as crossing a line: "I think when those boundaries are crossed, the very purpose of having a building like that at the centre of our culture is wounded...to my mind this will only exacerbate the problems facing the church." Why does Nepal have one of the fastest growing Churches in the world? Nepal has one of the fastest growing Christian populations in the world, according to figures on World Christian Database. The Himalayan country had zero recorded Christians in the 1951 census. In 1961 that figure had grown to 458. However by 2001 there were nearly 102,000 and a decade later in 2011 that had more than tripled to 375,000. Bishwa Mani Pokharel, news chief at Nepal's Nagarik newspaper said the figure was likely to be even higher, according to a report on NPR. The extraordinary growth of the Church has been linked to Nepal's turbulent 20th century history. In 1950 Nepal was a Hindu kingdom closed to foreigners. However a civil war in the 1990s and the end of the monarchy in 2008 has meant the state has moved from a closed kingdom to a secular republic. Proselytism remains illegal but this is rarely enforced. Christian groups have stepped in to the gaps is state social provision and many preach the gospel alongside their work. Climbing for Christ (C4C) is one such charity who pledge to go "where others cannot or will not go". "They found some sick people and broken families and talked to them and prayed for them, and miraculously these people were convinced and began to follow Christ," said Tej Rokka, pastor of the C4C partner ministry, Savior Alone Redeems Asians. "They distributed some food for the people, and clothes. Because of that, people began to listen to them." The Hindu caste system may also provide an unintentional incentive to convert. People from lower castes suffer systematic discrimination and Christianity offers a way to escape. "It's the only way out," says Gary Fallesen, C4C's founder and presient. "Socially there's nothing they can do to change that and then we come along and we share about Jesus and the love he has for them." The system still exists, Fallesen says, but no longer has power over them. However, the country's leaders are not happy about this Christian boom. The release of the country's first constitution in September was clouded with debate over whether to return to a Hindu state. When the parliament did eventually decide to promote a secular constitution, water cannon and tear gas were needed for police to dispel protesters. While the official figure of 375,000 Christians is still tiny compared to the overall population of 27.8 million, the growth has been exponential and the freedom of religion clauses in the new constitution have encouraged the country's burgeoning church. This lawsuit alleges that Google benefits unfairly from consumers responses to Googles CAPTCHA. Plaintiff, a Massachusetts resident, responded to a two word CAPTCHA prompt when signing up for a Gmail accout. She alleged that only one of the two words serves a security purpose, and Google included the second word to decode words that Googles OCR failed to recognize. Google earns revenues from these transcriptions and offers its services to companies such as New York Times (among others). In other words, she alleged that Google benefited unfairly from her time and energy spent on the second of the two CAPTCHA words! She brought the lawsuit in Massachusetts, and it was transferred to California due to the choice of law clause in Googles terms of service. Previous blog post. The California court then dismisses the claims on its (lack of) merits, without leave to amend. Massachusetts Claims : The Massachusetts claims fail because the consumer agreed to a California choice of law clause, and failed to argue persuasively that the contractual choice of law clause should be trumped by policy concerns of other states laws. Specifically, she argued that California should not enforce a choice of law clause because it would negate unwaivable rights under Massachusetts law, or that Massachusetts law should be enforced because it is more protective of consumers. The court declines, saying that there are no material differences between Massachusetts and California law. CLRA Claim : The CLRA claim failed for several reasons. First, plaintiff failed to identify a misrepresentation. She cant show concealment. To the extent she argued that explanatory text on the CAPTCHA page was misleading by omission (for wrongly implying that the entirety of the CAPTCHA was necessary to prevent automated signups), any omission was not material. Plaintiff also failed to allege reliance or damages. Here the court notes that Googles profit is not Plaintiffs damage. (Cf. the online advertising cases.) Finally, the court says that the CLRA does not even apply to a purely online service (to the extent CAPTCHA is even a service). UCL Claim : The UCL claim also fails. The unlawful prong relies on the CLRA and Massachusetts law claims so they fall as well. As to the unfair prong, the court flatly rejects the argument that Googles behavior is somehow unfair. Indeed, Google provides beneficial services and sometimes this is subsidized by user actions: Googles behavior is also not immoral and oppressive because the harmif anyof typing a single word without knowledge of how Google profits from such conduct does not outweigh the benefit. Googles profit is not the only benefit the Court considers in this balancing testcompleting the prompt also entitles users to a free Gmail account. Moreover, users transcriptions increase the utility of other free Google services such as Google Maps or Google Books. Plaintiff has failed to allege how these numerous benefits outweigh the few seconds it takes to transcribe one word. [emphasis in original] The fraudulent prong fails for two reasons. First, theres no misrepresentation. Second, plaintiff fails to allege economic injury. She argued that she gave Google more than she was prepared to give (i.e., she was willing to transcribe one word, but not two), but the court rightly laughs this argument off. Finally, the court also dismisses the quasi-contract claim. __ This lawsuit vaguely reminded of the lawsuit against Yelp alleging that Yelp should pay compensation to reviewers. The court has no patience for this lawsuit, and questions whether it should have been brought in the first place. At oral argument, apparently the court pressed counsel for plaintiff on whether if granted leave to amend, plaintiff could allege that she would not have completed the CAPTCHA had she known the second CAPTCHA word was solely for Googles benefit. Counsel was unable to answer this question in the affirmative, because counsel had not conferred with plaintiff on this point. The court says this probably should have occurred prior to the lawsuit being filed (and pursued in two states). Nevertheless, the court says that an affirmative answer would def[y] common sense. In other words, the lawsuit fails the common sense test. Ouch. __ Erics comments: This ruling ranks as one of the most interesting Internet law rulings so far in 2016. As pitched by the plaintiffs, Google stole a small amount of time and attention from a large number of people for Googles own commercial gain. Yet, the court says so what? When the amount of attention consumed is so trivial (the time it takes to decode a single word), this judge wont go out of her way to find legal recourse. (Hence, the refusal to allow the plaintiffs an amended complaint). As Venkat notes, this result parallels the Yelp-reviewers-as-employees lawsuit, which also got zero traction in court. More generally, this case reinforces that not every asymmetrical economic benefit exchanged online must be compensated. Parties in a mutual exchange rarely get the exact same amount of value from the exchange, but the fact that one party derives more value from the exchange than the other shouldnt create a federal case. So many privacy and consumer protection class actions nowadays fundamentally attack asymmetrical economic exchanges. Plaintiffs are going to have to show more than benefit asymmetry to win in court. The case is also interesting because it says completing a CAPTCHA isnt either a good or a service for purposes of the applicable statute. Normally, we think of goods and services together defining the complete universe of marketplace offerings. This case indicates that theres a tertium quid of interactions between vendors and customers that arent either goods or services and thus fall outside the normal legal regulations applicable to marketplace exchanges. I dont fully understand the contours of this tertium quid but I bet defendants will be citing it in future cases. Case citation: Rojas-Lozano v. Google, Inc., 15-cv-03751 (N.D. Cal. Feb. 3, 3016). Complaint. (h/t @boothsweet) Related posts: Court Says Yelp Reviewers Arent Employees (Forbes Cross-Post) Gmail Terms of Service Apply to reCAPTCHA During Account FormationRojas-Lozano v. Google YouTube Wins Another Case Over Removing And Relocating User Videos (Forbes Cross-Post) Court Blesses Instagrams Right to Unilaterally Amend Its User AgreementRodriguez v. Instagram Why should Christians care about theology? Pretentious. Irrelevant. Cerebral. Complicated. Dense. These were some of the words that were fired at me when I asked a crack team of Christian aid and development experts what they thought about theology. If theology were a person, she doesn't sound like one you'd invite round for dinner very often, let alone someone you'd want to spend a lifetime with. Maybe you feel the same way, so in this two-part series, let me give you nine illustrations to inspire you to think differently. Not only about considering the subject of theology, but to see it as a life-giving and essential companion to your flourishing as a Christian disciple. 1. Theology helps us to discover another dimension I can still remember the acrid smell of the mothballs at the back of my parents' old cupboard. It had been there as long as the house had been in my family three generations at least and maybe longer. As a primary school child it seemed reasonable enough to investigate if, behind the old coats and clothes, there was a gateway to another world, just as CS Lewis described. Another magical world that intersected with our own. In fact, the gateways to Narnia were not limited to the back of a wardrobe in Lewis' chronicles. In one book it is a piece of art, in another it is the beauty of nature and in the Last Battle even death itself becomes an entry point to another realm. For many of us, coming to know God and entering into His Kingdom began not simply by walking through a new doorway, but with an experience of beauty, a glimpse of God's glory in nature or sadly a brush with death. Some mystics describe these experiences as thin spaces; places or circumstances where we become more aware of the presence of God than usual. If you think a breathtaking panoramic sunset or the magnificence of a Da Vinci can elicit awe from our consciousness, then how much more can a direct encounter with the revelation of God? Art and nature are echoes of God's revelation, but theology deals with the source material. In beauty and creation there is a background trace of the radiance of God but in theology we deal with the raw radioactive core of the deep truths of God. Through creation and beauty, we are given a glimpse of the glory of God but theology allows us to linger over the details. Admittedly some theologians have turned theology into thick space a place where God seems more inaccessible and difficult to understand but it shouldn't be like this. Theology should be the thinnest space; an opportunity to come closer to God by understanding what He wants us to know about Him. 2. Theology is the answer to our spiritual thirst As we travelled I felt like I was going to melt. Opening the window of the van made things worse; it felt like a jet of hot air was being blown in my face. When we arrived the red dust on the ground made it seem as if the sun had scorched the very earth. It was 50 degrees centigrade in the shade. As we headed towards the church at the centre of a village 50 miles outside of Ougadougou, Burkina Faso, my body craved but one thing water. It felt like every cell in my body was screaming out just for a sip. I am grateful for the sensation of thirst; it alerts me to the need my body has for hydration. Without thirst I might forget to drink. Back to CS Lewis who explained that our spiritual instincts are the same: "Creatures are not born for desires unless satisfaction for these desires exists. A baby feels hunger; well, there is such a thing as food. A duckling wants to swim; well, there is such a thing as water. Men feel sexual desire; well, there is such a thing as sex.. If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world." Built into humanity is a thirst for God. It is why in every culture there is religion. The ubiquity of worship was eloquently summarised by the award-winning but troubled American author David Foster Williams: "In the day-to-day trenches of adult life, there is actually no such thing as atheism. There is no such thing as not worshipping. Everybody worships. The only choice we get is what to worship... Look, the insidious thing about these forms of worship is... that they are unconscious. They are default-settings." If we were born to worship God then our minds were designed to contemplate Him. The curiosity we see in a child is a reaching out into the world to discover something beyond himself. This drive persists to a greater or lesser extent throughout our lives. What we are looking to find in the most enthralling novel, the most moving piece of music, the most important relationships and the most gripping films is a way to understand who we are and why we are here. Just as a mathematician craves the beauty of solving an equation and cannot be fully at rest until it is solved, so our minds long to resolve our place and purpose in the universe. Just as thirst drives us to seek water, so our curiosity about the world is in part a homing beacon to draw us to God. When we study theology our brains are doing what they were made to do. Like a fish was born to swim, and an eagle was born to soar, so your brain was built to reflect on the riches of theology. 3. Theology keeps our passion strong We started dating about two weeks before she left to teach in Germany for a year. This was way before email, Skype and social media made distance evaporate, so we took to writing a handwritten letter a day. Every single day. As these epistles were exchanged across Europe, our love grew. When I wasn't reading or writing letters (or trying to complete a Chemistry degree), I would spend a long time just staring at her photograph. I kept it in my wallet so I could show people who the most important person in my life had become. I would delight in the shape of her face; the sparkle in her eye. Close examination of the photo did not feel like academic study, and I didn't feel obligated to set aside a regular time to look at it. Theology is as much a labour of the heart as it is work of the mind. Theology is about the devotion of the lover not just the toil of the worker. Theology is like dessert at the end of the meal, not the vegetables that you know you ought to eat. Theology should have the same place in our lives not as a text book, but the photograph. In 2014, the Imperial War Museum in London recreated a trench from the First World War to help remember the horrors of that conflict which saw millions of young lives lost. Amid the mud and stench, rats and shell-fire, soldiers would often pull out a locket containing photos of their loved ones to help ward off despair and to inspire hope and courage for the next assault. In the same way, in shifting and often difficult times for Christians we need a clearer view of our God, a more accurate picture of Christ, and a clearer glimpse of the Spirit to give us courage and faith until we are reunited. 4. Theology destroys prejudice and misrepresentation First the words wounded me, and then I realised they were infuriating me. The boys in the playground were taunting me and calling me names. Before they knew me, they were prepared to make public their judgments about me from the colour of my skin. I know many people who have faced far worse abuse than the school yard racism that I encountered, but my limited experience helped me to understand a little of what it means to be on the receiving end of prejudice. I am pretty sure all of us hate it when people make assumptions about us; attributing character flaws or making derogatory verdicts. For me it was just a few bruises on my body and a big dent in my confidence. For others it means threats to their life and liberty. The most frustrating thing to me was that I wasn't given the opportunity to answer back, to help correct the lies they were telling about me, my family, my intellect, my habits or my body. I wanted to set the record straight and let the truth be told eliminating the mockery and the misunderstanding. I wonder if that is why God hates idolatry: enshrined in the 10 commandments is the clearest ban on the construction of idols possible. Idols are a human attempt to represent God. They attribute physical and moral features to Him without letting Him speak and explain who he really is. They are an offense to God because they are a misrepresentation of who He is. Theology is iconoclastic; it demolishes false perceptions. Theology rips the gag from the mouth of God to allow Him to speak and explain who He is and what He is like. Theology is liberating because it seeks to listen to God rather than dictate to Him. Theology seeks to destroy prejudice and misrepresentation of God, and let the truth be known. This is the first in a two-part series on the power and place of theology in our lives. Tune in next time to discover how theology not only is vital for our faith to grow, but also how it equips us to make a difference to a world in need. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The Grey House apartments opened for leasing this week with some of the highest rents in the city. A one-bedroom apartment in the newly opened complex at River Oaks District starts at $2,250. A two-bedroom goes for $3,340, and a three-bedroom -- there are only three -- starts at $5,700. The property is opening at a time when Houston is being flooded with thousands of new units. One analyst recently compared the local multifamily market to the office market of the 1980s when an massive economic crash resulting from low prices left developers with vacant towers across the city. Some landlords are offering two-month rental concessions and waiving security deposits as they anticipate a slower year ahead. Grey House is offering a one month concession. "We're really focused on maintaining the integrity of what we've built," said marketing director Colin Moussa. "This product is very unique ... The customer really sees the value of living here." Located at 4444 Westheimer within the same development as luxury boutiques, soon-to-open restaurants and a plush new cinema, Grey House residents will have access to a concierge, two screening rooms, a 2,000-square-foot fitness center with a separate yoga room and two lap pools. The property -- which was named after the gray buildings and bungalows surrounding the campus of the Menil Collection -- has 279 apartments. The first tenants will move in next month. Read more about the opening of Grey House at HoustonChronicle.com. Back in the studio days, Eddie Mannix was an executive at MGM and a famous mob-connected "fixer" for the stars. If a star needed an abortion - if a star got drunk and killed somebody with a car - Mannix would handle it. He'd suppress the scandal, work with the police and, if necessary, come up with an entirely false and palatable story for the newspapers. If he was your friend, he was your best friend, and if he was your enemy, you made sure your life insurance was paid up. Mannix is at the center of "Hail, Caesar!," a loose riff on the studio era, set in the early 1950s. But the Mannix here is not really Mannix but a jumping-off point for a fun and sloppy Coen brothers lampoon that compresses real characters, reimagines others and brings together some of the period's many styles and currents. "Hail, Caesar!" can be enjoyed by anyone, but the more you know about the era's movies, the more you'll appreciate it. The studio here is Capitol Pictures, but it's patterned on MGM, with Mannix taking orders from a Mr. Schenck in New York (that is, Nicholas Schenck). When we meet him, his studio is funneling money into its latest biblical epic, "Hail, Caesar!," a sort of combination of the real-life films "Ben-Hur" and "The Robe." The Coens give us scenes from the film-within-the-film, which capture both the magnificence and absurdity of filmmaking at this time. The magnificence was in the Technicolor camera work and the completely uncynical way in which stars were presented as glorious - such as when George Clooney, as a dimwitted actor playing a centurion, sits on a horse, framed against the sky. More Information 'Hail, Caesar!' Rated PG-13: for some suggestive content and smoking Running time: 106 minutes xxx See More Collapse A more ironic take on the era comes when the centurion, in the desert, cuts through to the front of a line of slaves to get water - and then melts at the sight of Jesus, seen only from behind. Clooney is very funny, playing the scene with a completely unconvincing look of astonishment and transformation. What makes it funnier is that this is a stock scene that can be found, in one form or another, in every biblical epic of the era. The Coens' "Hail, Caesar!" is a flimsy construction that depends on a zany spirit and the charm of individual scenes to hold it together. There are times when this begins to feel like a dubious strategy, but each time the movie rights itself. And if you keep your eyes open, there is always something to notice: Frances McDormand in a subtle tribute to MGM's longtime editor, Margaret Booth, or a boardroom adorned with nothing but framed photos of Wallace Beery. In the biblical epic, you also might note the palm trees of a type that don't grow in the Middle East. At the center of most scenes, Josh Brolin walks that distinct Coen brothers line between absurdity and realism, sarcasm and pathos. Somehow the Coens get to have it both ways, so that we see Mannix as a satirical figure and yet believe in his passion for the movie business. As the film star, Clooney has the fun of playing a frivolous, happy airhead in the off-screen scenes - a motormouth with nothing to say - and a screen idol in the film-within-a-film. If he ever dreamed of being Kirk Douglas, here he gets his chance. One of the Coens' most inspired, bizarre touches is to cast Tilda Swinton as rival gossip columnists, twins who hate each other. She's quite funny - blithe and vindictive in one incarnation, insecure and vindictive in the other. And Ralph Fiennes enlivens a couple of scenes as a refined gay director trying to direct a cowboy actor in a drawing-room comedy - the studio era described in a single sentence. Michael Olivas, a UH law professor who also heads the school's Institute of Higher Education Law and Governance, will temporarily take the top spot at the downtown campus, the university announced on Wednesday. Olivas will take over for William Flores, who became president of UH Downtown in 2009, on an interim basis, the news release said. Flores will remain a tenured faculty member. With concerns about the Zika virus swirling, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has established a 31-member task force to assess and make recommendations for state responses to infectious diseases. The committee is similar to one created by Gov. Rick Perry in 2014 in response to three Ebola cases in Texas. Last year, the Legislature passed House bill 2950 to establish a permanent committee. A spokesman for Abbott indicated concerns about the Zika virus' potential spread in Texas sped up the process of naming the committee members. JACKSON, Mississippi -- Mississippi lawmakers will consider more than $275 million in incentives starting Thursday for a Hinds County tire plant and a Gulfport shipyard that could cumulatively invest more than $1.5 billion and create 3,500 jobs. Gov. Phil Bryant called a special legislative session Wednesday, a day after a lawmaker told The Associated Press that such legislation was imminent. "It's the biggest economic development project in Mississippi history," Bryant told AP on Wednesday afternoon after officials met with lawmakers behind closed doors to discuss incentives. "We're going to put 3,500 Mississippians to work." State Senate President Pro Tem Terry Burton, R-Newton, said the two projects are projected to total more than $1.5 billion in capital investment. Gulfport Mayor Billy Hewes said Topship will add up to 1,000 workers to those it already employs. The tire plant will employ up to 2,500. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Joey Fillingane, R-Sumrall, said the state would borrow about $275 million to subsidize the developments, with most money going to the tire plant. The Clarion-Ledger has reported the plant would be built by German firm Continental AG. The remainder of the money would go to the Topship shipyard in Gulfport operated by a unit of Louisiana-based Edison Chouest Offshore. The total cost of tax breaks and incentives would be significantly more than $275 million, although a full projection wasn't immediately available. State Sen. John Horhn, D-Jackson, said Hinds County would also borrow money for the plant. The document issued by Bryant outlining permissible legislation for the session also includes property tax breaks, an agreement by municipalities not to annex the site, and other incentives. "I think it has the potential to be a great project for Hinds County," Horhn said, although he added he wanted to make sure there were adequate opportunities for minorities, small businesses and in-state residents to benefit. Hewes said Topship already has hundreds of workers after leasing land in 2015. The Mississippi State Port Authority bought 116 acres from Huntington Ingalls Industries after that shipyard closed a plant that made composite components for destroyers. "Any time you have a substantial number of jobs and people who want to invest millions in your community, it's wonderful," Hewes said. Continental, Edison Chouest, Hinds County officials and the port authority haven't responded to AP inquiries. The Mississippi Development Authority, the state's industrial recruiting agency, has declined comment. Lawmakers must vote on industrial incentives when Mississippi borrows to pay for land, infrastructure or subsidies. State law typically requires a company to invest at least $300 million, or $150 million if the company creates 1,000 or more new jobs, to receive the richest incentives. In 2013, Mississippi granted Yokohama Rubber Co. Ltd. a projected $330 million of incentives, including up to $130 million the state borrowed. The state Public Service Commission voted 3-0 Tuesday to allow Energy Mississippi to offer a special electrical rate to an unnamed industry. Cecil Brown, Democratic Central District public service commissioner, said the company seeks to locate at a 915-acre site in western Hinds County. Hinds County has assembled a site and supervisors rezoned the land just north of Interstate 20 to heavy industrial use at a special Jan. 18 meeting. Of that land, 635 acres is held in trust for public schools. Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann said he couldn't comment Tuesday when asked whether the state is working on swapping that land for other land elsewhere as the law allows. The site near Bolton first drew notice when the state sought a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to fill wetlands in July 2014. The documents showed a plan for construction of a 5.2 million square foot industrial building and operations center, a 23-acre parking lot, detention ponds and nearly 2 miles of railroad spur. James Peden, a lawyer representing nearby residents, said the Hinds County Economic Development Authority has an option to buy an additional 280 acres north of the school land. Peden said talks have been going on concerning the site for at least 18 months. He said that as part of the January rezoning, county supervisors agreed to require a 150-foot buffer zone on the north and east sides of the property to protect nearby homes from intrusion. Records show the Hinds County Economic Development Authority has spent more than $30,000 in the past year recruiting what's called Project Potter. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jeff Smith, R-Columbus, said that's the code name for the effort. As Zika virus continues to run roughshod through Latin America, public health officials have confirmed four ways the virus can be passed from person to person. Mosquito bite: The vast majority of cases are thought be passed on by mosquito. The mosquito bites an infected person, making a meal of Zika-infected blood. The virus incubates in the mosquito, which then bites another person and passes on the virus. So far, only one mosquito, Aedes aegypti, is a confirmed carrier of Zika in the Western Hemisphere. Researchers are less sure whether the Aedes albopictus mosquito can also transmit the virus, although it can transmit similar viruses, such as dengue and chikungunya. There have been reports that Zika virus has been found in the saliva of Aedes albopictus mosquitoes in Asia, suggesting the American versions of those mosquitoes could transmit the virus as well. Both types of Aedes mosquitos are found on the Texas Gulf Coast. Some researchers in Brazil also claim that Culex mosquitoes, which transmit West Nile Virus, can carry Zika, but these claims have not been substantiated. Sexual contact: There have been only two documented cases of Zika transmission through sexual contact, both in the U.S. In 2008, an American scientist studying mosquitoes and malaria in Africa returned to Colorado and infected his wife. And this week, Dallas County health officials confirmed a traveler returning from Venezuela infected a second person who had not traveled out of the country. Such cases are likely happening in Latin American countries, but cannot be distinguished from mosquito-transmitted cases in the midst of a large outbreak. It's not clear how long after infection the virus can be transmitted sexually. Doctors in Tahiti documented the presence of the virus in semen during a 2013 outbreak. Sexual transmission is believed to be much less common than transmission through mosquito bites. Blood transfusion: Brazilian officials this week confirmed two cases of Zika infection through blood transfusion. U.S. blood banks currently have no way to test for the Zika virus in donated blood. Officials have asked people who have traveled to affected regions not to donate blood for at least 28 days after returning. For those who donate, collection centers are asking them to call back if they become ill in the next two weeks so the donated blood can be pulled out of circulation. As testing becomes more widely available, blood banks may begin testing blood for Zika as they now do for West Nile Virus, especially if the virus begins to circulate in the U.S. Mother to child transmission: Zika virus has been found in placental blood and in amniotic fluid, and in the spinal fluid of babies born with microcephaly, a birth defect linked to Zika infection. Researchers are trying to determine how likely an infection during pregnancy is to affect the fetus. The risk of microcephaly is thought to be greatest during the first trimester of pregnancy, although there is some evidence that infection in the latter trimesters may be linked to hearing or vision problems in infants. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Jesse Kersh, the Spring man accused in the grisly slayings of three young people at a Corvette shop in League City more than three decades ago, made his first court appearance Thursday in Galveston, stating that he intends to plead not guilty and fight the murder charges against him. Wearing teal jail fatigues, Kersh took the stand for about a half-hour as he sought to get his $150,000 bond lowered. The 58-year-old and his sister portrayed him in testimony as a lifelong Texan who had remained in the area and not fled even as law enforcement officers investigated him as a person of interest in the cold case. Asked his intention by his attorney, Kersh responded, "To plead not guilty." District Judge John Ellisor said he would issue a timely ruling. Kersh's attorney, Kevin Rekoff, said he would not comment on the facts of the case, but said that he anticipated examining the evidence that prosecutors would turn over. "Then we can start the investigation, " Rekoff said. "We really are at a disadvantage. " The hearing Thursday in state district court focused on Kersh's request to lower his bond amount so that he could get out of jail and use $60,000 he has in his bank account to pay for forensic, law-enforcement and other experts in mounting a defense. While no formal plea was entered and Kersh has not been arraigned, he said he planned to mount a defense and not accept a plea deal. Kersh's sister and mother both attended the hearing. Kersh also revealed several details about his life:that he had worked for more than a decade as a contractor focused on high-speed Internet systems for the hospitality industry, a job that took him around the country. He was laid off in 2013 but was working as an independent contractor, he said. He said he lived in a house in Spring with his ex-wife, who is from England, and has traveled multiple times to that country. Prosecutor Kevin Petroff declined to comment on the facts of the case. FBI special agent Richard Rennison also declined to comment. Rennison had questioned Kersh in the case eight years ago. Kersh was arrested last week at a Spring restaurant and charged with the 1983 murders of Beth Yvette Wilburn, 25, the co-owner of Corvette Concepts in League City; her boyfriend and neighbor Thomas Earl McGraw Jr., 28, an oil field worker; and James Craig Oatis, 22, an electrician from Houston, who had been hired to install a fluorescent light at the shop. Kersh is being held in the Galveston County jail. Kersh's attorney noted in a court filing that his client had no felony convictions. No trial has yet been scheduled. The case had been cold for decades as police, the FBI and Texas Rangers investigated. Many suspects were considered over the years and ruled out. Authorities have shared few details about what led to the recent break in the case but have said witness interviews, ballistic reports and DNA testing of material under Wilburn's fingernails all provided clues. Police also said in a probable cause affidavit that a witness had come forward in 2013 and disputed Kersh's assertion that he had never owned a .22-caliber handgun like the one used in the slayings, and in fact said that Hersh had asked for his assistance in manufacturing a silencer. The three victims were slain on the evening of Nov. 2, 1983. Police said autopsy reports indicated Wilburn had been stabbed 114 times and had four gunshot wounds, McGraw was stabbed 15 times and had seven gunshot wounds and Oatis had 10 gunshot wounds. Wilburn's business partner, Bob Currie, discovered her bloody body on the office floor after he came to open the shop the next morning. Currie could not be reached for comment. Emily Foxhall Authorities on Thursday identified the three persons who died in an apparent murder-suicide that occurred this week in the Meadows Place community of Fort Bend County. Virginia Minh Trang Luu, 25, and James Thien Nguyen, 16, each died of a gunshot wound to the head, the Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office said in a news release. A 31-year-old woman was sentenced Wednesday to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty to making pornographic videos of two young female relatives under the age of 10 performing sexual acts. Vanessa Patricia Ganung, of Willis, pleaded guilty to first-degree sexual performance by a child, a felony, before a judge in state District Court, according to Montgomery County prosecutors. "It is very rare to find a woman doing this," said prosecutor Mary Nan Huffman. "This is the first female defendant that's been prosecuted by our Internet Crimes Against Children task force." According to investigators, a relative of the girls discovered the pornographic videos on the woman's cellphone and immediately went to the nearest law enforcement agency to report it in 2013. The video images had been sent to an adult male, investigators said. Both girls are living with relatives in Wisconsin and doing well, Huffman said. If Ganung had not accepted the plea agreement, she was facing a possible life sentence. Her sentence will expire in 2056, and she will then have to register as a sex offender for the rest of her life, authorities said. Ganung's attorney, Bert Steinmann, said his client was remorseful and crying when entering her plea. "This case was unusual to us in that it was not only a female accused of this type of crime, but (a relative) of the children involved," he said. He described the plea deal as "fair" for his client while providing "justice for the public at large." He could not discuss the man who received copies of the video, as that case remains under investigation. Ganung said in court that she had been molested as a child but did not say by whom, said Huffman, the prosecutor. collage.jpg Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton (left) and Bernie Sanders will meet in a debate Thursday night. (AP photos) WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are in a tug-of-war over who's the best standard-bearer for progressive values as they road test lines of argument for the first one-on-one debate of the Democratic campaign. The race for the Democratic nomination, once seen as a sure thing for Clinton, took on new vigor this week after Sanders held the former secretary of state to a whisper-thin margin of victory in Iowa's leadoff caucuses. The tone of their back-and-forth has become increasingly sharp this week, and the candidates agreed to add four more debates to the primary season schedule, including Thursday's faceoff in Durham, New Hampshire. In a tussle over their very political identities, the two candidates are engaged in an ongoing argument over who is more committed to -- and capable of -- carrying out a liberal agenda on health care, income inequality, worker rights and more. Sanders, favored in New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary, said Wednesday that Clinton's record is "just not progressive" on any number of issues, including her vote as a senator to authorize the war in Iraq. Clinton called that a "low blow" and pressed her counterpoint that she's the candidate with the ability to actually implement progressive changes. "Good ideas on paper are important, but you've got to be able to translate them into action," she said. The two made their rival cases in interviews and appearances around New Hampshire and in back-to-back appearances at a town-hall style forum on CNN on Wednesday night. Polls find Sanders holding a commanding lead over Clinton in New Hampshire, and he was eager to lower expectations for how he would finish. He cast himself as an underdog going up against "the most powerful political organization in the country." Clinton, for her part, has signaled her determination at least to narrow the gap before Tuesday's vote. And her prospects are much stronger after Iowa, as the race moves on to states with more diverse electorates that are to her advantage. The two campaigns even skirmished over why Sanders was doing so well in New Hampshire polls. Sanders' campaign accused Clinton's of insulting New Hampshire voters by suggesting that they only support the Vermont senator because he's from a neighboring state. That was after Clinton's campaign manager referred to New Hampshire as Sanders' "backyard." On the broader issue, Clinton offers herself to voters as "a progressive who gets things done," part of her pitch that she's the one with the practical skills to implement a progressive agenda. Sanders counter-argument is that it will take a "political revolution" to achieve goals such as universal health care, a fairer tax system and an incorruptible campaign finance system. Asked earlier in the week if Clinton was a progressive, he said: "Some days, yes. Except when she announces that she is a proud moderate. Then I guess she is not a progressive." Sanders added that it was hard to take on the establishment "when you become as dependent as she has through her super PAC and in other ways on Wall Street or drug company money." Clinton said she found it amusing that the senator thinks he can be the "gatekeeper" of who's progressive. The Durham debate will be the first faceoff for Clinton and Sanders since former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley dropped out of the race after a poor showing in Iowa. Clinton's razor-thin win in Iowa was the latest twist in an election campaign that, until recently, had been overtaken by the unusually crowded Republican field. GOP candidates, who are scheduled to meet again in a debate Saturday, took New Hampshire by storm ahead of the primary. Donald Trump, who finished second in the Iowa caucuses, took fresh aim Wednesday at caucus winner Ted Cruz, the firebrand Texas senator who appears to be running behind in the Granite State, and is hoping for momentum to carry him into South Carolina later this month. For other Republicans like former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, New Hampshire may be their last stand as they try to chisel establishment support away from Florida's junior Sen. Marco Rubio, who finished a strong third in Iowa. The Democrats meet again on Feb. 11, then on March 9 for a debate that has long been on the schedule. Under an agreement announced Wednesday, there will also be a March debate in Flint, Michigan, where the city's water contamination crisis has been attracting national attention, and two debates in April and May on dates still to be determined. -9718cd0026c86ea7.jpg Revelers by the thousands are once again expected in the downtown Ocean Springs area for Friday night's Ocean Springs Carnival Association night parade. (File photo/Gulflive.com) OCEAN SPRINGS, Mississippi -- The ninth-annual Ocean Springs Carnival Association night parade will roll through Ocean Springs downtown beginning at 7 p.m. Friday. Heather Eason of the OSCA said they are expecting in excess of 40 units to participate. The route is the same as the Ocean Springs Elks day parade -- starting on Front Beach, east on Porter Avenue, north on Washington Avenue and then east on Government Street until it disbands at Ocean Springs Upper Elementary. This year's parade is being called "A Knight Parade," with a medieval theme. The OSCA held its annual carnival ball two weeks ago, during which the 2016 royal court was announced. Court members will be riding in Friday's parade. King Ocean/Duke of Gulf Tides: Raymond Moore Queen Springs/Duchess of Sandy Islands: Eva Beidelman Duchess of Fisherman's Net: Kathy Hart Duke of Fisherman's Net: Tracy Hart Duchess of Southern Breeze: Jennifer Linton Duke of Southern Breeze: Jeff Rollins Duchess of Gulf Tides: Jessie Triegle Duke of Sandy Islands: Clark Levi Duchess of 1699 Discovery: Lauren Thurman Duke of 1699 Discovery: Stopher Haug In addition, The Mississippi Press' Warren Kulo will be the Grand Marshal. Streets along the parade route will be closed by the Ocean Springs Police Department at 5:45 p.m. and reopen at the conclusion of the parade. OCEAN SPRINGS, Mississippi -- Jackson County sheriff's deputies have arrested a 55-year-old man who they say sent threatening and harassing messages to a church in Ocean Springs. Multiple news outlets say Vincent Salvador Drummond, of Ocean Springs, faces a charge of cyberstalking. Sheriff Mike Ezell said in a news release deputies began investigating the incident Dec. 18 after they got a report of "electronic communications of a threatening and harassing nature against the pastor, staff and parishioners" of the church. The sheriff did not identify the church. Drummond is in the Jackson County jail awaiting an initial court appearance. A coalition led by owners of property that includes Rollover Pass and land on either side of the man-made channel connecting East Galveston Bay to the Gulf of Mexico says it is prepared to fight a last-ditch legal battle to prevent the state from closing and filling what has been a hugely popular public fishing site and the focus of environmental, economic and public safety concerns since it was created more than 60 years ago. "We're going to fight it as long as we can, any way we can," Wayne Stupka of the Gulf Coast Rod, Reel and Gun Club said of plans to mount a legal challenge to recently agreed-upon plans by Galveston County and the Texas General Land Office to use the county's eminent domain authority to force the Beaumont-based club to sell the 16-acre tract as a prelude to 1,600-foot Rollover Pass being plugged and filled. "We're not going away, and we plan to go to the fullest extent we can to keep the pass open for the people," said Ted Vega of the Gilchrist Community Association, a Bolivar-based group that works in partnership with the landowners to maintain the site and help fund its legal costs. Attorneys representing the landowners this week responded to Galveston County's initial offer of $1.05 million for the tract, countering with an offer to donate the property to the county if the county would agree to sign a 99-year agreement to use the area as a public park and keep the pass open. "I'd like to think the county would take us up on this very generous offer, but I suspect they won't," Stupka said. If Galveston County pursues litigation to force sale of the property, the landowners will challenge it. "Our attorneys believe there are a number of legal grounds on which to contest this," Stupka said. Eminent domain Under terms of a memorandum of understanding between the county and GLO adopted this past month, the state agency would pay costs associated with purchasing the land, including legal fees. As the GLO does not have authority to use the power of eminent domain, Galveston County, which is granted that power when the land in question is obtained for public use, would be the government entity to use that option for forcing the sale. The state land office, using more than $5 million specifically appropriated for the purpose by the Texas Legislature, would move forward with plans to close and fill the channel, then build a recreational area that includes a Gulf fishing pier and other outdoor recreation facilities on the site. The move by Galveston County to begin the legal process of obtaining the land through eminent domain authority, approved Jan. 19 by a 4-1 vote of the county's commissioners court, could be the final legal hurdle in what has been a long-running effort by state officials to close the artificial pass and stem what state studies indicate is significant environmental damage and millions of dollars in economic costs caused by the channel. In December, a federal court turned down a legal challenge by attorneys for the Gulf Coast Rod, Reel and Gun Club to overturn a Corps of Engineers permit issued to the Texas General Land Office allowing the pass to be closed. Efforts to close Rollover Pass have simmered since the 1950s, when the Gulf Coast Rod and Gun Club donated an easement to the Texas Game Fish and Oyster Commission for creation of a "fish pass" between East Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico. The club, which at one time held more than 1,000 members but today has only a handful, had purchased the land expressly for the purpose of creating the pass. Such a channel, proponents said, would benefit the bay system by allowing high-salinity water from the Gulf into the bay's often-fresh eastern end and creating a bay/Gulf exchange through which fish, shrimp, crabs and other marine life could easily migrate as part of their life cycle. While the club granted an easement to the state's fish and wildlife agency for the channel, with the state agency responsible for channel maintenance, it retained ownership of the land and opened it to no-cost public access. The channel, dredged through the lowest and most narrow area of Bolivar Peninsula, was named after Rollover Bay on the bay side of the cut. Almost immediately after it was completed and opened in 1955, the cut became a highly productive and popular public fishing spot. It also saw unanticipated problems. The channel was designed to be 80 feet wide and 8 feet deep. But the velocity of water during tide changes was much stronger than anticipated and within months the channel had eroded to 500 feet wide and 30 feet deep. The pass was quickly plugged and rebuilt using steel sheets to line the channel, preventing sides from eroding. The pass was reopened in 1958. Almost immediately, a group titled The Texas Taxpayers Association began pushing for closure of the pass, citing costs to taxpayers of maintaining the pass. In the late 1970s, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, formerly the Texas Game, Fish and Oyster Commission and the agency behind creation of Rollover Pass, proposed closing the channel, citing studies that indicated the influx of high-salinity Gulf water into the east end of East Bay had altered the bay's salinity gradient resulting in significant decline in oyster production, loss of salinity-sensitive aquatic vegetation and associated declines in the bay's ecological health. Also, the pass was funneling millions of cubic yards of sand - as much as 150,000 cubic yards, annually - from the beach front into East Bay. That sand siphoning greatly exacerbating erosion along the beach front. The flood of sand pouring through the pass piled into the Intracoastal Waterway, causing millions of dollars in additional dredging costs to keep the commercial waterway open. Multiple efforts Public and political pressure killed the 1979 TPWD proposal to close the pass and did the same in 1996 when then Texas Land Commissioner Garry Mauro, citing environmental and economic costs, proposed closing the pass. The current effort to close the pass began in 2009 when then Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson convinced the Texas Legislature to fund a study on the feasibility of closing Rollover Pass and fund such closure if studies proved it warranted. The state-funded study indicated the pass was costing Texas taxpayers millions of dollars, including about $660,000 a year in dredging costs in the Intracoastal Waterway and damaging East Bay's fisheries. The study also cited cost of maintaining and repairing the Highway 87 bridge over the channel and the threat to public safety that the bridge posed. Hurricane Ike in 2008 severely damaged the bridge, almost destroying it and cutting off the only roadway exit off the peninsula. Temporary repairs to the bridge cost more than $600,000. Opposing studies Studies funded by Rollover Pass supporters disprove claims of Rollover Pass causing environmental damage to East Bay, said Jim Blackburn, a Houston attorney with extensive experience in environmental law who represented the pass landowners in challenging the federal permits authorizing closure of the pass. Recent increases in freshwater inflow into the bay, especially through the Intracoastal Waterway, ameliorate any increase in salinity caused by Gulf water coming through Rollover Pass, he said. "I think if they close the pass, fishery yield in East Bay will decline," Blackburn said. "For sure, East Bay will change significantly. And do we want to take that chance with a bay that's a good, healthy productive ecosystem the way it is?" The Patterson-lead state land office vigorously pursued closure of the pass. That position has continued under the agency's current head, Texas Land Commissioner George P. Bush, with the agency asserting "cost to taxpayers, risk to the local community in the next storm and continuous damage resulting from significant erosion is too great to continue as-is." The fate of Rollover Pass will be decided in the coming weeks, Stupka said. "This is pretty much our last stand," he said. "What's at stake? Just one of the most important places the average person - families and especially kids - can drive up to and go fishing or enjoy just being outdoors. Rollover Pass has been a special place for more than 60 years. We're going to do whatever we can to try keeping it that way." Ted Cruz Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks during a campaign event on Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016, in Greenville, S.C. (Rainier Ehrhardt/The Associated Press) WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Voters might want take all those presidential polls coming out of wintry New Hampshire with a grain of road salt. The Iowa caucuses showed that survey-takers had a tough time pinning down the state's fickle electorate, and pollsters face of the same challenges in next-up New Hampshire. A polling primer: IOWA'S SURPRISE Most poll-takers took it on the chin when Donald Trump's lead in pre-election polls ended with a Ted Cruz victory at the Iowa caucuses. Marco Rubio's strong third-place showing among Republicans seemed to sneak up on pollsters, too. They did better at capturing a tight race on the Democratic side that favored Hillary Clinton. Ultimately, she squeaked out only the slimmest of victories over Bernie Sanders. Those with good memories will recall that it's not a rare occurrence for pollsters to miss the mark in Iowa. POLLING CHALLENGES In general, election polls are trickier than most surveys, and polling on caucuses is tougher than in primary states. On top of that, the whole polling business is facing big challenges caused by people's increasing reliance on cellphones, declining survey response rates and growing difficulty in identifying likely voters. "Polling is much harder to do well than it was four and eight years ago," says Cliff Zukin, a Rutgers University professor and former president of the American Association for Public Opinion Research. In December, Zukin wrote an election primer warning that "2016 will present election polls with a very challenging environment." Indeed. ___ TIMING Voters in Iowa debated their options until the last minute -- even switching sides mid-caucus. But most polling ended several days before the caucuses, missing late movement. Caucus-goers who said they decided late tended to break toward Rubio and Cruz. Among the 45 percent of caucus-goers who decided in the final week, 29 percent went for Rubio, 27 percent for Cruz and just 14 percent for Trump, according to polls conducted by Edison Research for The Associated Press and the television networks as Iowans entered the caucus precincts. "Polls are very good at telling you the situation when you take them," says Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Poll. "They're less accurate about telling you what the situation will be next Thursday. They're god-awful about two weeks from Tuesday." ___ TURNOUT For all the talk about record turnout in Iowa, only a sliver of the state's voters attend caucuses, making it difficult to nail down who will show up. "When you have low-turnout elections, a little volatility could have a major impact," says Patrick Murray, director of the Monmouth University Polling Institute. And the 2016 race has been nothing but volatile. Also, conventional wisdom had it that high turnout Monday would signal lots of new caucus-goers showing up for Trump. It turned out that a big share of the increase in turnout came from sporadic caucus-goers who were motivated to come out as the Rubio and Cruz organizations worked off of newly developed lists of past caucus-goers going back decades, says Murray. ___ INDECISION In races with lots of candidates and lots of information, it's harder to predict which direction undecided voters will ultimately tip. That's always the case in politics-obsessed Iowa and New Hampshire, but it was an even bigger factor with this year's crowded and cacophonous field. "The level of indecision is unprecedented in any election that I've ever polled," says Murray. He talked about running into the same voters in New Hampshire on multiple occasions, and "every time I talked to them they were leaning toward a different candidate." ___ EVANGELICALS Pollsters undershot on turnout among evangelicals in Iowa. A whopping 64 percent of GOP caucus-goers were evangelicals, and a third of them favored Cruz, compared with 22 percent for Trump. One of the final major polls of the Iowa campaign, by The Des Moines Register and Bloomberg, had Trump leading Cruz by 5 percentage points, based on a pool of likely caucus-goers that included 47 percent evangelicals. The poll-takers did say that if evangelical turnout hit the same high levels as 2012, the race would be tighter, with Trump ahead of Cruz by just 1 point. In the end Cruz got 28 percent of the Iowa vote, Trump, 24 percent and Rubio, 23 percent. Even if Anthony had a year to analyze and dissect each piece...(he couldn't tell if it would)... stand the harsh light of public exposure. WUWT insider Willis Eschenbach tells you all you need to know about Anthony Watts and his blog, WattsUpWithThat (WUWT). As part of his scathing commentary , Wondering Willis accuses Anthony Watts of being clueless about the blog articles he posts. To paraphrase: Click here to read more. Today, The HSUS and HSI released a report documenting that trophy hunters have killed approximately 29,000 American mountain lions within the last decade in western states, with almost all of the kills achieved by chasing the cats with packs of dogs and shooting the quarry out of trees. Photo by www.access2hunt.com 2.3K shares For years, the trophy-hunting crowd has treated the world as its playground. Theyve viewed rare creatures as collectibles, assuming that lavish spending on guides, outfitters, and foreign governments entitled them to do as they please in shooting up wildlife. This week, members of Safari Club International the Arizona-based group that promotes competitive trophy-hunting activities across the globe are gathering by the thousands in Las Vegas for their annual convention. But this time they face blowback from an American public more alert to the havoc they create and from businesses and government authorities that are putting up some roadblocks and making their killing sprees a little less biologically diverse than theyve been in the past. In 2014, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service banned imports of elephant trophies from Tanzania and Zimbabwe. Since the shooting of Cecil in July, 45 major airlines, including Delta, Virgin Atlantic, and United Airlines, have banned the transport of any trophies of the Africa Big Five. Just over a month ago, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services conferred threatened and endangered status for African lions across their range an administrative action that should reduce the flow of lion trophies into the United States from more than 700 a year to a trickle. And just last week, South Africa banned the exports of leopard trophies in 2016, following findings that trophy hunting is detrimental to these big cats survival. Walter Palmer was to trophy hunting what Michael Vick was to dogfighting the face of the enterprise and an individual whose misdeeds provided a wake-up moment for society on long-running abuse that had for years escaped careful scrutiny. Palmers misdeeds in Zimbabwe threw back the curtain on a bizarre subculture of elites who spend their time and treasure killing large numbers of rare big-game animals. SCI encourages this slaughter by offering accolades and awards to its members. As author and animal advocate Matthew Scully once described it, the Safari Club awards program is sort of a frequent slayer scheme; the more you kill, the more credits you gain within the fraternity. Walter Palmer won a continental award for killing a dozen animals in North America. When caught with Cecil, he was on his way toward claiming the Africa Big Five award, which requires the killing of an African elephant, an African lion, a rhino, a leopard, and a Cape buffalo. Over the past 10 years, American trophy hunters have killed 5,552 African lions and brought their parts back home. From 2005 to 2014, they brought home more than 1.2 million trophies of more than 1,200 different kinds of animals. This class of Americans is not only a menace to other countries wildlife, but also to native species in our own continent, such as wolves, bears, mountain lions, and bobcats. Today, The HSUS and HSI released a report documenting that trophy hunters have killed approximately 29,000 American mountain lions within the last decade in western states, with almost all of the kills achieved by chasing the cats with packs of dogs and shooting the quarry out of trees. The five states with the highest body counts are Idaho (4,833 lions), Montana (4,407), Colorado (3,414), Utah (3,200), and Arizona (2,893). SCI secures much of its annual budget by doing auction-based and other forms of fundraising at this convention and others. According to 2015 online auction postings, SCI earned over $2.7 million from last years 314 mammal hunt auctions alone. According to SCIs financial statement, in 2014, $14.7 million of its $23.8 million annual revenue (62 percent) was generated by that years convention, between the auctions, tickets, and other fundraising activities associated with the get-together. With this money, SCI works to open up trophy-hunting seasons for wolves, fight efforts to restrict the hunting of African elephants and lions, and lobby Congress to enable its hunters to import endangered polar bear trophies into the United States. The group has also pushed for trophy hunting on National Park Service lands, and is currently fighting a proposal by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to restrict the baiting of brown bears and the snare-trapping of black bears on Alaskan refuges. What happens in Vegas may stay in Vegas. But the Safari Club folks staying in Vegas this week slay creatures just about everywhere else. The city shouldnt give them a meeting place where they can develop their plans to loot the worlds wildlife in order to win accolades within the world of competitive trophy hunting. And lawmakers and wildlife authorities shouldnt tolerate their destructive, selfish, colonial, and competitive hunts any longer. At 10 o'clock on the morning on Sept. 24, 1847, Hugh Gallagher found Mary Gallagher stealing potatoes from one of his fields. Assisted by his wife, Sarah, he cut off one of the woman's ears with a reaping hook, and nearly the other. The field was on Arranmore Island, five miles off the coast of Donegal, northwest Ireland, and the mutilation of Mary Gallagher was but one brutal incident in the country's Great Famine. A result of the loss of the potato crop to blight and the inadequate relief policies of the government of the United Kingdom, Ireland's Great Famine was the last great subsistence crisis in Western Europe. In the space of five years, a country of more than 8.5 million people lost a quarter of its population to starvation, disease and emigration. A history professor at Centenary College has secured a coveted fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities to research the history of this catastrophe. Breandan Mac Suibhne is among 80 scholars nationwide (and only 10 in the field of European history) to receive one of these prestigious fellowships. The faculty at Centenary College set high academic standards for students. "Most studies of the Great Famine tend to be burdened by the desire to tell the whole story, or they tend to focus on what was done to and for the poor by landlords, charities or the state," Mac Suibhne said. "I am interested in what the poor did to and for each other. Certainly, many poor people exhibited selfless generosity. They shared food with those less fortunate and sheltered evicted families. They protested against government policies. But there is a less heroic side, too. Some people took advantage of neighbors, 'grabbing' their land or lending money to them at exorbitant rates. Some people denied food to family members. Indeed, people killed for food. And those stories need to be told, if we are ever to fully comprehend the condition to which many Irish people were reduced in the mid-19th century." A graduate of University College Dublin and Carnegie Mellon University, Mac Suibhne has written on various aspects of modern Irish history. He is editor of Society and Manners in Early-Nineteenth-Century Ireland, an annotated edition of the travel writing of John Gamble, medical doctor and man of letters, and co-editor, with David Dickson, of Hugh Dorian, The Outer Edge of Ulster: A Memoir of Social Life in Nineteenth-Century Donegal, the most extensive lower-class account of Ireland's Great Famine. Mac Suibhne has been teaching at Centenary College, New Jersey since 2010. Class size is small and professors know their students on a first-name basis. "That is one of the reasons students come here," he said. "It is a safe, small, relaxed institution. It is a great place to study, to learn and to grow. But students also come for the quality of the education. Centenary's faculty includes graduates of some of the finest Ph.D. programs in the United States. The faculty set high academic standards for students, and, in this small institution, professors have the time to help their students to achieve those standards." "This award is a testimony to the academic rigor of small liberal arts colleges. It is the opportunity to work with teacher-scholars of this caliber that makes Centenary College a first-choice for students across the region," said James Patterson, provost of Centenary College. NEH has awarded more than 63,000 grants since 1965, totaling $5.3 billion, and has leveraged $2.5 billion in private matching donations. That public investment has led to the creation of books, films, museum exhibits, exciting discoveries and more. "NEH provides support for projects across America that preserves our heritage, promote scholarly discoveries, and make the best of America's humanities ideas available to all Americans," said William D. Adams, NEH chairman. Founded in 1867 by the Newark Conference of the United Methodist Church, Centenary College of New Jersey is an independent, coeducational liberal arts and career studies college distinguished by an accomplished faculty, small class size and diverse student body. Centenary is the only baccalaureate and master's degree granting institution in northwest New Jersey. Centenary College's main campus is located in Hackettstown, with its equestrian facility a few miles away in Washington Township, Morris County. The Centenary College School of Professional Studies offers degree programs for adults online, designated corporate sites, and in Parsippany and Edison. The School of International Programs recruits international students for study at Centenary and Centenary students for study abroad. To share stories and facts about Centenary College, go to #centfact on Twitter. To learn more about Centenary College of New Jersey, visit centenarycollege.edu. -- John Saccenti Women of childbearing age, 15 to 44, are advised not to drink if there's any possibility of pregnancy, federal officials said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report said that women who aren't on birth control shouldn't take a drink. More than 3 million women are in danger of having their babies born with fetal alcohol syndrome disorder. "A woman was considered at risk for an alcohol-exposed pregnancy during the past month if she had sex with a male, drank any alcohol, and did not (and her partner did not with her) use contraception," the CDC report said. Texas Children's Hospital won an award for its reboot of its alarm management system, the medical nonprofit ECRI Institute announced Tuesday. The health devices achievement award honors health care institutions that improve strategic management of health technology. A Clear Lake-area couple who were fatally hit by a car Wednesday evening as they tried to cross a Friendswood road have been identified. Lina Kuehn Owen, 66, was pronounced dead at the scene, and Larry Wayne Owen, 64, died later at a hospital, Friendswood city officials said. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The vice president of the Bandidos Motorcycle Club will soon get his day in court, as lawyers fight to convince a judge that he should be released on bond pending the outcome of charges that could send him to federal prison for life. John Xavier Portillo has been held behind bars for three weeks since he and two other Bandidos leaders were arrested on racketeering, drug dealing and other charges. Court papers filed this week show Portillo has a detention hearing set for Feb. 16 in San Antonio, where the indictment was handed up against him as well as Bandidos President Jeff Pike and Justin Forster, national sergeant of arms. Pike lives in the Conroe area and was granted bail by a federal magistrate judge in Houston. He recently pleaded not guilty to the charges. While Pike keeps a low profile and has not been arrested in decades, all five previous Bandidos presidents have done time. Pike was the only one who had not been arrested while in office. Forster, who like Portillo lives in the San Antonio area, remains in custody. While members of the Bandidos, which began in the Houston area in the mid 1960s, contend they are a club, law-enforcement officials call it a criminal gang. The Bandidos have 1,500-2,000 members and 42 chapters in Texas, according to the federal indictment. The group is described in the indictment as, "a highly organized criminal organization which adheres to a hierarchical chain of command both nationally and locally." The indictment describes simmering tensions between the Bandidos and the smaller, lesser-known Cossacks Motorcycle Club over who could claim Texas as its territory. That beef allegedly roiled into a series of beatings and assaults around the state as Bandidos and their supporters allegedly attacked Cossacks. The indictment does not mention the May 17 melee at the Twin Peaks roadhouse in Waco, which left nine people dead, two dozen wounded, and 177 arrested, but authorities contend the series of attacks clearly set a stage for the violence. Pikes' lawyer, Kent Schaffer, has said that the tension between the Bandidos and Cossacks is well-known, but while the groups get in bar fights, they don't commit federal crimes. "The federal prosecution is designed to take heat off law enforcement involved in the assault in Waco," he said, noting there are many questions about the actions of authorities who were there that day, including how many of the dead were shot by police. Jeb Bush has now asked an audience to applaud for him. Bush delivered a speech in Hanover, N.H., in which he said the next president "needs to be a lot quieter, but send a signal that we're prepared to act in the national security interest of this country to get back in the business of creating a more peaceful world." This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate The longest-running conflict in the Western Hemisphere may be quietly inching to a close as Colombia's government and leftist Front of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia rebels push to meet a self-imposed deadline for peace. The rebel group has been in the country for over 50 years. UN Security Council set up a United Nations political mission in Colombia, approving a team of international observers to monitor disarmament should the Colombian Government and the FARC stick to their March 23 target date. But what is catching the attention of many isn't the deal itself, but the women behind the rebel group. The female warriors of the FARC have played a key role in the rebel group. Their roles switch between aiding soldiers, gathering intelligence and serving as informants. Some fight right alongside the men in combat against government troops. They are taught to fire AK-47 assault rifles and are trained to assemble and plant homemade landmines. On the other hand, woman soldiers act like any other young woman. They paint their nails, listen to Katy Perry, help each other do their hair and have affectionate 'companions.' However, they are many restriction that comes along with being a woman soldier. Women in the rebel group aren't allowed to be married, nor are they allowed to get pregnant. Colombia has been investigating more than 150 forced abortions within the rebel group, according to BBC. The rebel leaders believe pregnancy hinders a woman's strength and fighting ability. Some women have left FARC, after the group reportedly took away their babies when they choose not to abort. "We have evidence to prove that forced abortion was a policy of the FARC that was based on forcing a female fighter to abort so as not to lose her as an instrument of war," Colombia's attorney general Eduardo Montealegre said. Although women in combat are rare in other countries is it very common in Colombia. According to an unidentified special forces officer who spoke with The Washington Post, the female guerrillas are the most savage and brutal interrogators. His name was withheld because he works under cover. "The women are the worst; if you get captured, you pray it's by the male rebels," he said. "They're more ideological than the men. They're merciless." There are an estimated 8000 rebel fighters, around a third of whom are women, whose aim is to install a Marxist regime. One of the FARC's most renowned female commanders was Nelly Avila Moreno, known as Karina. During the 1990s, she was in charge of hundreds of rebel fighters in Colombia's northwestern province of Antioquia. The FARC have been at war with the government since fighting broke out in 1964, killing around 200,000 people, according to the BBC. Take a look at the gallery to find out more about the FARC's woman warriors and history over the years. Check out the Houston Chronicle's Cruz News each morning for fresh updates from the Houston-based presidential campaign of Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. 'Dirty trick' Ted Cruz's Republican rivals are heaping on heavy criticism over some campaign controversy in Iowa. An hour into the Monday's caucuses, a Cruz campaign leader tweeted that contender Ben Carson was dropping out of the race, and the campaign itself messaged supporters, asking them to inform Carson fans that the doctor was out and they should caucus for Cruz. That was based on a CNN report which said Carson would fly home to Florida Monday night. It did not say he was leaving the race. Carson held a press conference to say that the Cruz campaign's "dirty tick" hampered his performance. Donald Trump tweeted that Cruz was a "fraud" and that the Iowa vote should be nullified. The small scandal is nothing unusual in American presidential politics. But it could weaken Cruz's self-professed image as a political outsider who doesn't play the dirty game. Read the full story in the Houston Chronicle. Nuking Denmark Trump's call to nullify the Iowa vote came in a harshly worded morning Twitter tirade--the kind that has become characteristic of the billionaire mogul. Cruz shot back on Wednesday, saying Trump's allegedly impulsive Twitter antics made him unfit to hold the nuclear codes. Courting fans of fallen rivals When GOP presidential contender Rand Paul dropped out of the race on Wednesday, the Cruz campaign swept in to court his supporters, Politico reports. Cruz staff and volunteers swiftly went on dialing sprees to offer the backers of Paul's defunct campaign a place in the following of the Texas senator. According to the Texas Tribune, there were a few quick results: Texas state Sen. Don Huffines, R-Dallas, and state Rep. Jonathan Stickland, R-Bedford, came on board the Cruz crew. This routine will become crucial and familiar as the early primary drags on. A handful of GOP contenders are expected to drop out of the race after next week's vote in New Hampshire. Their support will be vital assets for the leading candidates in later state votes. 'The revolution is at hand' Bloomberg Politics took a deep dive into the paradigm behind this exceptional election cycle, which it suggested was partly the product of the antsy Tea Party movement that burst into being after 2009.s It's not a fresh claim this race has long been characterized as an attempted overthrow of party leadership by so-called "anti-establishment candidates" and their throngs of supporters, disillusioned with Washington politics. That's been the claim, but Monday night was validation. "The Iowa result was nothing less than a revolt, and the message to Republican leaders unmistakable: Drop dead!" Bloomberg wrote. "A Republican electorate increasingly composed of working-class white voters who suffer disproportionately from stagnant wages and dim prospects appears to have lost faith in party leaders more interested in pursuing high-end income tax cuts and immigration reform." But it's not just that Cruz, Trump and Marco Rubio (once a Tea Party firebrand, now the relative establishment candidate) finished on top of the GOP primary. Hillary Clinton, with long roots in Washington, also finished Iowa in a virtual tie with her once-unlikely opponent, Bernie Sanders, who also promises a dynamic shake-up of how Washington runs. All around, voters seem drawn to promises for sweeping changes. Three-man race emerges The first New Hampshire poll to log reactions to Iowa's Monday caucuses put Rubio ahead of Cruz days before the nation's second primary vote. The two are within a single point 15 percent and 14 percent respectively lagging far behind Trump's 36 percent support, according to figures from the Suffolk/UMass-Lowell poll released Thursday. That represents a boost Rubio earned with his strong third-place Iowa finish. A strong Rubio finish in New Hampshire would likely solidify his standing as a GOP front-runner. Cruz, on the other hand, has long maintained that he doesn't hope for a New Hampshire win. But The New York Times reports he still boasts a strong and loyal fan base in the Granite State. Ahead of the Iowa vote, most polls gave Trump a five-to-seven point lead over Cruz, and put Rubio in the single digits. But on Monday, Cruz came out four points over Trump and Rubio took almost a quarter of the vote. The point: polls are just approximations. Only Tuesday will tell how New Hampshire votes. Ted Cruz's Republican rivals are calling foul on a message the Cruz campaign spread to supporters in the early hours of Monday's Iowa caucuses. Experts call the controversy a fairly standard example of campaign politics, but one that likely will attract heightened attention because of its thorough documentation. Cruz already apologized Tuesday for telling supporters to spread the word that Ben Carson was leaving the presidential race, and that his followers should caucus for Cruz. Nevertheless, Carson held a Wednesday afternoon press conference to denounce what he called "a dirty trick." And on Fox News Wednesday, he said he thought Cruz's move hampered his Iowa performance. Donald Trump, in a Wednesday morning Twitter tirade, accused Cruz of "fraud" and called for nullification of the Iowa caucus results, which experts called silly and impossible. "Any attacks here will be amplified by the GOP establishment which wants to stop the Cruz campaign at all costs," said Mark Jones, a fellow in political science at Rice University's Baker Institute. "It is likely to get more coverage and play than would normally be the case." It started when CNN reported around 5 p.m. Monday that Carson would return to his Florida home after the Iowa vote. About 20 minutes later, Cruz campaign co-chair and Iowa state representative Steve King tweeted, "Carson looks like he is out. Iowans need to know before they vote." Then the Cruz campaign issued a message, asking supporters to "Please inform any Carson caucus goers of this news and urge them to caucus for Ted Cruz." On Tuesday morning, several listeners called into Iowa talk radio station WHO 1040 a.m. and said that Cruz speakers at some precinct caucuses were telling voters Carson was out. "The concern is not illegitimate," said Steve Jarding, a veteran Democratic campaign manager who teaches campaign management at Harvard University. "It's not necessarily uncommon that you have quote-unquote 'dirty tricks' go on in American politics. But this is well documented." The Cruz campaign and its GOP allies attempted to shift blame to CNN, saying it published a vague report they say was widely misinterpreted to suggest Carson was leaving the race. "Ted Cruz came out and apologized," said Luke Macias, founder of Macias Strategies which consults for Republican campaigns in Texas. "I have not seen CNN issue an apology." In its apology statement, the Cruz campaign said it should have sent a follow-up note to supporters once news came out clarifying that Carson was not leaving the race. "At best, it was a well-intentioned mistake," Jones said. "Or it was simply hardball politics." Jarding said the issue could sow problems for Cruz, who pitches himself as a political outsider who doesn't play the typical dirty politics game. Just last week he attracted widespread criticism for mailing faux citations to Iowa voters, telling them they had violated voting standards and encouraging them to caucus on Monday. The Cruz campaign called the mailers a legitimate attempt to increase voter turnout, but opponents called them deceptive. "It's exactly what people don't like about politics," Jarding said. "And part of Cruz's message is that he's not your same old politician." AUSTIN -- Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Wednesday took on the controversial "Return of Kings" organization -- a group whose members have advocated legalization of rape -- over planned Saturday rallies in seven Texas cities. "This pathetic group and their disgusting viewpoints are not welcome in Texas," Abbott said. "I've spent much of my career protecting women from such vile and heinous acts, and it won't be any different on my watch as Governor," said Abbott. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate AUSTIN -- The Texas Legislature's 2013 move to kick Planned Parenthood affiliates out of the state Women's Health Program led to a reduction in birth control access and a possible increase in pregnancies, according to a new study. The research, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, found the program experienced a 35.5 percent reduction in claims for long-acting contraceptives and a 31.1 percent reduction in claims for injectable contraceptives after the move. The changes appeared to be linked to the move because counties with Planned Parenthood affiliates appeared to be more affected. Those counties also saw a 1.9 percent point increase in childbirth covered by Medicaid, according to the study. The study was conducted by University of Texas scientists in conjunction with the Texas Policy Evaluation Project, a research group that is funded in part by supporters of abortion rights. Opponents criticized the study as biased. State Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound, argued that it did not take into account other types of women's health programs that have started since 2013. The Houston Chronicle noted last week that the move significantly affected women's health access, despite a commitment by Texas lawmakers to continue the same level of services. Today, the state spends more money on the program and has increased the number of providers greatly, but serves at least 10,000 fewer women. The state currently is working on a separate effort to remove Planned Parenthood from the state Medicaid program altogether. The Chronicle reported last week that move will be far less damaging than the Women's Health Program removal, because Planned Parenthood provides only about 1 percent of most Medicaid family planning services. The organization made up about 40 percent of the Women's Health Program. AUSTIN -- The Travis County District Attorney's Office has transferred its investigation of a controversial no-bid contract to another law enforcement agency better able to handle the complicated case. Travis County Public Integrity Unit chief Gregg Cox disclosed the move to the Houston Chronicle, saying his office had shifted to an "assisting role" in the probe of the $110 million contract given by the Texas Health and Human Services Commission to Austin technology company 21CT. "I can't say anything more other than to say that the investigation is still moving forward and, in fact, is moving forward even more actively," Cox said. Health commission officials previously have said that the FBI has been involved in probing the deal. On Thursday, an FBI spokeswoman would not confirm that her agency had taken the lead in the investigation, or even that it has had any involvement at all. The spokeswoman, Michelle Lee, said a bureau policy prevented her from confirming or denying the existence of any investigation. The Travis County probe began in December 2014 after the health commission canceled an extension of the contract amid questions about favoritism. Five high-ranking officials since have resigned, and lawmakers have approved reforms to the contracting process. The contract, signed in late 2012, was meant to help the state identify Medicaid fraud in real time, instead of after the fact. It was given through a no-bid state purchasing program that was designed for much smaller projects. A health commission spokesman declined comment on the development. A 21CT spokesman did not immediately return a message seeking comment. Attention, teachers, principals, state chiefs, civil rights advocates, district superintendents, board members, and others who care about federal K-12 policy: The U.S. Department of Education wants your help in crafting regulations for the Every Student Succeeds Act . Specifically, the Education Department wants nominations for a negotiated rulemaking committee, according to a notice slated to be published in the Federal Register Thursday . (More on just what negotiated rulemaking means below). Under ESSA, the department must use this process for three different areas of the law: standards, assessments, and supplement-not-supplant (a financial portion that deals with how federal dollars can be used relative to local spending). The department will appoint at least one representative from each of these groups to the negotiated rulemaking committee: state administrators and state boards of education; local administrators and local boards of education; tribal leadership; parents and students (including historically disadvantaged kids); teachers; principals and other school leaders (including charter leaders); paraprofessionals; the civil rights community (including representatives of students with disabilities, English-language learners and others); the business community; and federal administrators. And the committee could consider regulations for assessments including: Just how it would work to have local districts substitute a nationally recognized test to be used for high school accountability instead of the state examfor instance, which tests are nationally recognized. How 8th grade math tests should work for advanced students Assessments for students with disabilities and English-language learners Computer adaptive tests And it will consider how supplement-not-supplantwhich has been revised under the new law, to allow for more flexibility for districtswill work, including the timeline for compliance. The department is looking for nominations for committee members. If youre interested in submitting a name, youll have about three weeks to let the department know. The committee will meet at least twice, March 21 to 23, and April 6 to 8. Theres an optional third meeting from April 18 to 19. All those meetings are open to the public. So save the date. So whats negotiated rule making? Its federal bureaucrat speak for putting a bunch of interested parties (or stakeholders in bureaucratic jargon) in a room together to hash out an agreement on how key parts of the law should be implemented and regulated. If the process fails, which it often does, the administration just proceeds with the normal regulatory process. ESSA puts a twist on this processif negotiated rulemaking fails, Congress will have a couple weeks to review the regulations on standards, assessments, and supplement-not-supplant before they take effect. Will getting to agreement be a slam dunk? Probably not. Advocates have really different ideas about how the department should regulate on ESSA . State chiefs and governors, for instance, want a light touch that leaves room for local flexibility, while the civil rights community wants the department to use its authority to make sure historically disadvantaged kids are protected. Oklahomans are conservative bunch, by and large. Yet, support for one costly government intervention in the state is widespread: public preschool for 4-year-olds. Oklahoma was the first state to begin such a program and is still one of just four states and the District of Columbia to fund it. Ive been curious about Oklahoma since I began covering early education in 2012, and I finally had a chance to visit in November in my capacity as an early-education reporter for The Hechinger Report. I saw what universal preschool looks like up close in one a state with a pretty high childhood poverty rate and it was fascinating. While Oklahoma is not at the top of the charts for reading or math scores nationally, it is one of the best at public preschool. It meets nearly all of the National Institute for Early Educations quality standards, including fully certified teachers paid on par with K-12 teachers. But even when prekindergarten classes were in the same building as higher elementary grades, the pre-K classrooms felt distinct. Yes, there was academic instruction. But there was also play, sing-alongs and make believe. Read the full story in The Hechinger Report , and check out the companion piece by PBS News Hour . Photo: Prekindergarten students in Muskogee, Oklahoma make art. Lillian Mongeau/The Hechinger Report The summers final Live on the Waterfront concert was held Wednesday evening at Prince Arthurs Landing. The popular series in Thunder Bay has completed nine weekly shows that began on July 13. Wednesdays concert was unique as it was held one hour later in the evening to mesh with the 10 p. Disability issues have received little more than incidental attention during this presidential campaign season. But RespectAbility, a 3-year-old advocacy organization, is pushing to raise the topics profile this year. About 1 in 5 American adults has some sort of disability , according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That means that people with disabilities are the nations largest minority group, said Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi, the president of the the organization. So far, though, only five of the candidates remaining in the race as of Feb. 3Jeb Bush, Ben Carson, Chris Christie, Hillary Clinton, and Bernie Sandershave responded to a wide-ranging 16-item questionnaire developed by the organization. RespectAbility is not grading the candidates on the substance of their promises and proposals; just answering all of the questions earns a full 100 percent. Only Democrats Clinton and Sanders have received a 100 percent score. (Of note: the Clinton campaign in January released a proposal for addressing autism from birth through adulthood. ) On the Republican side, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bushs responses are the most comprehensive, and he received a score of 94 percent. Question Touching on Special Education Issues RespectAbilitys questionnaire for candidates covers issues such as barriers to employment, health care, affordable housing, medical marijuana, and federal benefits, such as Medicaid and Supplemental Security Income. The question that comes closest to touching on special education reads: Many people who are born with disabilities, especially minorities with learning and mental health differences, are not diagnosed and/or their disability issues go unaddressed. This leads to school dropouts and a school to prison pipeline. Do you have a plan to enable students with disabilities to get the services they need to succeed in school and life? In response, Bush said that children deserve the right to go to school and learn without fearing pain and isolation. Carson, a retired neurosurgeon and GOP candidate, said that the government should allow Individuals with Disabilities Education Act money to be used for tutors and other training programs. Christie, a Republican candidate and currently the governor of New Jersey, touted many of his states programs, including programs that support integrated employment and transition services. Former Secretary of State Clinton said she would fight to ensure that the federal government pays for more of the costs of educating students with disabilities. Back in 1975, when the law that was to become the IDEA was first proposed, Congress said it would pay 40 percent of the average per-pupil expenditure for students with disabilities. But the federal contribution to special education costs has never exceeded 18.5 percent. Sanders, a senator from Vermont, said that in addition to increasing federal funding, he would expand early-childhood education and provide more money to the Education Departments office for civil rights, which oversees enforcement of the IDEA. The organization plans to continue pressing candidates for responses, said Lauren Appelbaum, its communications director. She believes more candidates will get on board; Christie has directed his staffers to answer the questions that were left unaddressed, and Republicans Ted Cruz, John Kasich and Donald Trump have also said they will respond. Our goal is to get all the candidates thinking about these issues, talking about these issues, and coming up with plans, Appelbaum said. Photo: RespectAbility fellow Justin Chappell interviewing Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, a Democrat, on the campaign trail.courtesy of RespectAbility Mike Hanley, Alaskas education commissioner since 2011, abruptly resigned Wednesday, according to local reports . Hanley came under fire in recent weeks for the rollout of the states standardized test, called the Alaska Measures of Progress, according to the Associated Press. District results plummeted, and the contractor tasked with grading the exam released its results weeks later than anticipated. Hanley said last week the exam will soon be replaced. State officials couldnt confirm to an Associated Press reporter whether Hanley had resigned on his own or whether he was being forced to step down. I appreciate Commissioner Hanleys past few years of service, said John Harmon, a member of the states board of education and early development. He is a man of great integrity, and I wish him well. I spoke with Hanley last month on a story about oil revenue shortfalls . In recent decades, the state gathered almost 90 percent of its money from oil revenue, allowing politicians to mostly eliminate its sales and income taxes. (The state regularly sent out out annual checks to taxpayers worth up to $2,000 from dividends.) But then oil prices tumbled faster than state officials anticipated, and legislators made a series of budget cuts to the states mostly rural schools. This year, officials in The Last Frontier state predict theyll have to cut two thirds of its budget, and the governor has proposed installing an income tax. Schools are expected to be hit hard. During our conversation, Hanley said that in the past year, he has laid off more than a third of his departments staff and shuttered its statewide preschool program to cope with revenue losses. Theres a push this legislative session to close schools with fewer than 25 students in them, a move that superintendents warn could eliminate several towns across the state where one-room school houses serve as community anchors. Generally speaking, when oil money was flowing well, we decided we didnt need sales or income tax revenue, and we ended up with a sole source of revenue, Hanley said at the time. Were now looking at that and saying its not a very healthy economy when you have a one-legged stool. Legislators have done the best they can to protect our schools, but Im not sure how much longer theyre going to be able to do that. Hanley previously served as an Anchorage elementary school principal. Dont miss another State EdWatch post. Sign up here to get news alerts in your email inbox. And make sure to follow @StateEdWatch on Twitter for the latest news from state K-12 policy and politics. British Columbia Launches new Registration System for Immigration to Canada Through BC PNP CIC News Aa Accessibility Font Style Serif Sans Font Size A A The province of British Columbia (B.C.) has launched an innovative new points system for immigration to Canada through the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program (BC PNP). The Skills Immigration Registration System (SIRS) will be used for prioritizing newcomers through most BC PNP categories and fast-tracking their arrival to the province. In addition, the government of B.C. has asked the federal government for a significant boost in the number of immigrants who can come to the province through the BC PNP. The province is asking for its allocation to be increased from 5,500 to 9,000. The SIRS: Operates on an Expression of Interest (EOI) / Invitation to Apply (ITA) model; Is aligned with British Columbias labour market and development priorities; Comes into effect immediately; Prioritizes candidates who have obtained a job offer from a B.C. employer; Is used for portions of the BC PNP Skills Immigration and Express Entry streams; Benefits individuals with previous work experience in Canada; Brings into play factors that are not typically seen in other points systems, such as the skill level, wage rate, and location of the job offer; and Guarantees an ITA to individuals who are awarded a certain number of points. Why the SIRS? The government of B.C. has been quick to point out the rationale behind the new system, with Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training and Minister Responsible for Labour, Shirley Bond, stating that We need to bring high-demand skilled workers and investment-ready entrepreneurs to B.C. to continue to grow our diverse economy. Weve heard from the businesses that are helping drive our economy to be the best in Canada. They tell us that having immigration programs be timely and efficient to bring the right people into B.C. is what they need to keep their businesses growing. And for those skilled immigrants applying to the BC PNP, they need a transparent system thats easy to understand and gets them working in B.C. as soon as possible. Our government believes the targeted changes weve made to the BC PNP will keep our economy moving forward. How does the SIRS work? Following the implementation of other EOI systems across the Canadian immigration landscape, B.C.s SIRS system gives candidates a registration score that determines whether they are invited to apply. Once a candidate submits a registration through SIRS, he or she will receive a registration score and will be entered into a selection pool for the category in which he or she has registered (candidates may register under one category only). The registration, which is free of charge, will remain in the selection pool for a maximum of 12 months from the date of submission. Periodically, the BC PNP will invite the highest-scoring registrants from each category to apply for provincial nomination. Which BC PNP categories are covered by the SIRS? Registration under the SIRS is mandatory for certain BC PNP categories, some of which fall under Express Entry B.C., British Columbias enhanced immigration stream that is dedicated to nominating candidates who are eligible to enter the federal Express Entry pool. Upon submission of their application at the federal level, these candidates benefit from processing times of six months or less. The SIRS is also used for certain categories that fall under the BC PNP Skills Immigration stream, a base stream. Candidates who receive a base nomination have their applications processed outside Express Entry. The route from a successful BC PNP base nomination to permanent residence is a two-step process. Candidates must first satisfy the criteria for the stream, apply, and receive a nomination certificate. Next, with this certificate in hand candidates may apply to the federal government, which will oversee the necessary medical and security background checks before granting permanent resident status. To learn more about base and enhanced provincial nomination, click here. Candidates under the following categories are assessed and prioritized under the SIRS: Skills Immigration Skilled Worker Skills Immigration International Graduate Skills Immigration Entry Level and Semi-Skilled Skills Immigration Northeast Pilot Project Express Entry B.C. Skilled Worker Express Entry B.C. International Graduate Candidates eligible under one of the following categories do not need to register under the SIRS and may apply directly to the BC PNP: Skills Immigration Health Care Professional Skills Immigration International Post-Graduate Express Entry B.C. Health Care Professional Express Entry B.C. International Post-Graduate The only exception to the job offer requirement under the BC PNP is if the candidate has a graduate degree from a B.C. university in the natural, applied or health sciences. However, candidates under this International Post-Graduate category do not register under the SIRS. To learn more about eligibility requirements for the various BC PNP streams and categories, click here. How can I determine my score under the SIRS? While the scoring system may appear relatively straightforward on first viewing, there are in fact certain complexities across the factors. Of the 200 points available, 120 are for economic factors and 80 are for core human capital factors. The SIRS points system, however, awards bonus points (within the total of 200) for a range of factors relating to a candidates job offer, education history, and previous work experience. To assist potential candidates for immigration to Canada through the BC PNP, the experienced IT team at CanadaVisa.com has developed an exclusive SIRS Calculator. By answering a few simple questions, users are able to determine what their score might be if they were to register under the SIRS. One of the positive upsides for candidates who register under the SIRS is that individuals who achieve or exceed the following registration scores for their chosen category will be guaranteed an ITA in the next draw following their registration. Candidates are not required to meet the threshold for their category in order to receive an ITA; candidates may be selected with a score lower than the score listed for their category below. Category Guaranteed ITA points threshold Skills Immigration Skilled Worker 135 Skills Immigration International Graduate 105 Skills Immigration Entry Level and Semi-Skilled 95 Skills Immigration Northeast Pilot Project 95 Express Entry B.C. Skilled Worker 135 Express Entry B.C. International Graduate 105 A target to aim for One of the more frustrating aspects of other Expression of Interest systems used for the purposes of immigration to Canada, such as Express Entry, is that candidates do not have a defined points target to reach for. While educated guesswork based on previous draws may help, candidates cannot be sure what the points requirement for the next draw might be, says Attorney David Cohen. This new system from British Columbia, however, presents potential candidates with a target to aim for. Moreover, these targets for specific categories are very much reachable. British Columbia is projected to have the highest job and population growth of any Canadian province over the coming years, with around one million new openings expected before 2022. The government of British Columbia has taken the correct measures to ensure that the province is using its PNP in a dynamic and responsive way. One example of this is by opening registration under the SIRS to individuals who obtain job offers in semi-skilled positions, as well as those who have job offers in skilled positions. To find out if you are eligible for any of over 60 Canadian immigration programs, including the British Columbia Provincial Nominee Program, please fill out a free online assessment today British Columbia profile Population: 4,667,000 (January, 2015) Largest city: Vancouver Capital city: Victoria Official language: English (de facto) Economy: B.C. has the highest percentage of service industry jobs in Western Canada, comprising 72% of industry. The largest section of this employment is in Finance, Insurance, Real Estate and Corporate Management. Many areas outside metropolitan areas, however, are still heavily reliant on resource extraction. GDP per capita is CAD $50,121 (2013). Location: West coast of North America. The Canadian province of Alberta is to the east, the states of Washington and Montana (U.S.) lie to the south, the Pacific Ocean and the state of Alaska (U.S.) lie to the West, and the Canadian territories of Yukon and Northwest Territories lie to the north. Climate: The coast, as well as Metro Vancouver and certain valleys in the south-central part of the province, experience mild weather, encouraging outdoor recreation and long growing seasons. The interior has some of the warmest and longest summer climates in Canada. Colder climates, similar to other regions of Canada, are found in the central and northern areas of the province. 2016 CICNews All Rights Reserved Angela Browning is not a politician. Shes a paralegal and the mom of three boys in elementary school in Floridas Orange County school district. When I asked her for her title, she told me to call her a recess mom. Browning is a leader in a movement made up of moms who want their kids to have 20 minutes of unstructured time to play during the school day. Now there are groups of recess moms in a little over a third of Floridas 67 counties. Browning said this all began last fall when she and a friend were talking about how their kids dont always get recess at school. They started a petition to ask their local school board to mandate it. But, she says, that didnt go anywhere. And, after being told there wasnt time for daily recess given the growing demands on schools to raise test scores, she decided to take the issue to the state legislature. Now she writes and calls lawmakers frequently and makes the more than 250-mile trip to the state capitol every week to drum up support for mandatory recess for elementary students. So far, the legislation she helped to write has unanimously passed two state House subcommittees. But its gone nowhere in the state Senate. Both chambers have a Republican majority. According to the Education Commission of the States , only three states require recess for elementary students: Connecticut, Missouri, and Virginia. Indiana requires daily physical activity that may include recess. And, New Jersey lawmakers recently passed legislation requiring recess for elementary students, but Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican, vetoed it. Browning granted us a phone interview Wednesday afternoon to talk about her efforts. Heres a lightly edited version of our conversation: Education Week: Why do you think its so important for kids to have 20 minutes of recess every day? Browning: Recess is a critical part of the day, and it is a research-based part of the day. This is a time in the day where children truly get a break from the rigor and the curriculum of the classroom. Its value is in the lack of structure. It is that childs only period of the school day where they get to make their own choices and their own decisions. Its really important to remember that this isnt just about running around on a playground and being silly. Children learn through play. It is developmentally appropriate for children to play. During the school day when they interact with their peers at recess, thats where they learn social skills and leadership skills and where they cultivate those relationship-building skills that are so incredibly important as our children grow up. Education Week: As you know schools are under more pressure to meet academic benchmarks. Some say a state recess mandate will take away valuable learning time. What are your thoughts on that? Browning: They need to read the research. There are very few subjects on which all of the experts agree, and recess is one of them. Every expert that has studied the subject of recess has found that when children get a break in the day, academics improve because a child needs a break from instruction so that they can come back to the class and focus better. Studies show that they are better able to retain information when they get an unstructured break. So, of course, the focus is on academics in the school day, but this break improves academics. It improves test scores. It really is extremely counterproductive to deny these kids a break because youre just tiring them out. Education Week: Florida law already mandates that students in elementary school get 150 minutes of PE a week. Why do you think these students also need recess? Browning: PE is incredibly important, and it needs to be a part of our childrens school day. But it is a class. It is structured. It is led by a certified teacher. There are lesson plans associated with PE. Children are required to follow directions, sit still, pay attention. There are Florida Standards attached to that class. Our teachers are held accountable in that class for their students to show learning gains. So PE is not a break. Its akin to us telling an adult in the workplace, its time to take your break now, go run laps out in the parking lot. Education Week: This legislation would also prohibit schools from taking away recess as a form of punishment. In many districts taking away recess has been a longstanding tool of discipline. Why are you against that? Browning: All of the research says specifically that recess should not be withheld from children for academic or punitive reasons because we dont use something that is an absolutely critical part of the day and a crucial part of their development as a discipline tool anymore than we would take away a childs lunch period because they were misbehaving. A child needs to eat, and this child needs a break. Without question, that is the number one complaint that we hear from parents. My child lost their recess today because they were talking in class or they were fidgeting in class or someone else was fidgeting, so the whole class lost recess. Part one of that problem is its generally the children who are chatty in class or cant sit still who need that break the most. Photo of Angela Browning, Courtesy Angela Browning Photo by Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images The Companion to Raymond Aron, edited by Jose Cohen and Elisabeth Dutartre-Michaut (Palgrave Macmillan, 304 pp., $110) Liberalismdefined broadly as a democratically elected regime with a limited government and a market economy that protects individual rightsremains a hotly contested political persuasion in France. Today, liberalisme is associated with savage capitalism and the Anglo-Saxon model. If someone calls you a liberal in a Left Bank cafe, he likely means it as an insult. Such attitudes have deep roots. Over the course of the twentieth century, liberalism had few defenders in Paris and was overshadowed by seductive varieties of nationalism, existentialism, structuralism, surrealism, and Marxism. It wasnt until the end of the century that the non-liberal alternatives were spent and interest in liberalism was renewedat least among scholars. It would be nearly impossible to speak about French liberalism today if Raymond Aron had not kept the flame alight while other philosophical fashions tried to blow it out. Therefore, The Companion to Raymond Aron, edited by Jose Cohen and Elisabeth Dutartre-Michaut, is a welcome new addition to the work on Aron available in English. It brings to light Arons characteristic mode of political reflection, which remained close to political actors realistic options and the concerns of citizensrather than elaborating the sort of high-minded theoretical schemas that often typify French thinking. Arons life tracked the short twentieth century. He was born in 1905 just prior to the Great War and the Bolshevik Revolution. He died in 1983 just prior to the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union. In between, his political judgment was extraordinary. Calling him the Thucydides of the twentieth century isnt an overstatement. After studying in Germany just prior to the rise of Hitler, Aron adopted the position that Nazism had to be unequivocally opposed. After Paris fell to the Wehrmacht, Aron went into exile in London to join General Charles de Gaulle and the French Resistance. After the war, he consistently championed Western democracy over Soviet totalitarianism. He endorsed the Cold War strategy of undermining and outlasting the Soviet Union. He favored decolonization of French North Africa. During the events of May 1968, he rejected the students fantastical utopianism. Throughout his career he championed the basic liberal values of Western civilization. Compared with Jean-Paul Sartre, who got almost all of these questions wrong, Aron looks prophetic. Of course, no good deed goes unpunished. Aron paid for his good judgment with isolation from French intellectual circles. The Left regularly derided him as a Cold Warrior, especially after his most famous book, The Opium of the Intellectuals (1955), exploded the cherished myths of the Left, the proletariat, and the revolution. Soon thereafter, the French Right abandoned him because he favored Algerian independence. Arons caustic analysis of the psychodrama of May 1968 once again placed him firmly outside the fashionable trends of his time. Sartrea former schoolmate and friend, whom he had introduced to German existentialismquipped that Aron was unworthy to teach. Others censured Aron for the icy clarity of his analyses, which supposedly lacked compassion. It became a commonplace in French intellectual circles that it is better to be wrong with Sartre than to be right with Aron. In that light, Arons intellectual fortitude and independent-mindedness were truly remarkable. It was only near the end of his life, in the late 1970s, with publication of Alexander Solzhenitsyns work on the Soviet gulag and the revelation of the horrors of Communism in Cambodia and Vietnam, that French opinion shifted in Arons favor. He now appeared to have been right all along about the nature of Communismand much else. Claude Levi-Strauss called Aron a teacher of intellectual hygiene. The Companion to Raymond Aron is an excellent introduction to the main events of his life and the core themes of his work. The various authors reveal how and why Aron became recognized as one of the worlds most thoughtful analysts of the moral, political, economic, military, and sociological dimensions of modern democracy. His interests ranged from nuclear strategy to Tocqueville. Primarily known outside France as an analyst of international relations, Aron was one of the first to develop the idea of totalitarianism. He argued that the Nazi and Stalinist regimes were without precedent in human history because they were based on secular religions. Each expressed a notion of providential destiny: for the Nazis, the victory of a race; for the Soviets, the victory of a class. These totalizing ideologies were what made these regimes so dangerous. Aron concluded that Marxist-Leninism as an ideology is the root of all (in the Soviet regime), the source of falsehood, the principle of evil. Ultimately, the Soviet regimes attempt to make man into an angel in fact create a beast, while the Nazis experience showed that man should not try to resemble a beast of prey because, when he does so, he is only too successful. The lessons that Aron drew from the twentieth century were that history is tragic, human freedom fragile, and theories of historical determinism pernicious. In his defense of liberal principles, Aron described himself as an adherent of democratic conservatism. Compared with the totalitarian regimes, we are all the more conservatives because we are liberals who want to preserve something of personal dignity and autonomy. Aron sought to distinguish politics as a prosaic activity from the quest for salvation. Modern society is a democratic society that must be observed without transports of enthusiasm or indignation, he once remarked. It is not the ultimate fulfillment of human destiny. Arons outlook was characterized by modesty about what politics could achieve and what one should thereby expect from it. His liberalism fits into the French historical tradition more than the classical liberalism of England or the United States. For instance, Aron did not stress ideas of natural rights, which are the root of American liberal principals. The recent terrorist attacks in Paris raise profound questions for both France and the Western democracies. How can the West develop a foreign policy that addresses the threats of Islamic terrorism and the reality of evil in the world but doesnt get trapped trying to transform other regimes through nation-building and social engineering? Arons hostility to philosophies of historysuch as recent claims about the end of history and the democratization of the worldis a powerful reminder that a hard-headed realism about what needs to be done can be combined with a balanced notion of how much can be achieved through political action. The presence in Europe of large numbers of Muslims citizens along with immigrants from the Middle East and Africa means that domestic and foreign policy are closely intertwined. How can France, which has the largest Muslim population in Europe, simultaneously preserve its own traditions and values and address increasing cultural and religious diversity? How can France integrate its Muslim population while simultaneously taking military action in the very regions from which its immigrant population hails? These are enormous questions, but Aron provides some helpful guideposts. His skepticism about historical determinism casts doubt on the reigning secularization thesisor dogma. This thesis holds that, as society modernizes, citizens will slowly lose their religious convictions, and those that cling to them will agree to do so exclusively in private. Reading Aron helps to break such spells. A broad understanding of his work would temper optimism about what laicite (or secularism) can do to transform Europes Muslims. Europeans in generaland the French in particularneed to come to terms with the fact that Islam is not likely to follow Christianitys historical trajectory in Europe. Only then can realistic approaches to religious diversity begin to be developed. Un microbuz special a fost transmis de Uniunea Europeana si Fundatia Soros Moldova Centrului de zi pentru copiii cu dizabilitati din Cahul How One Man Went From Marine to Jail Break Mastermind Last week, three men escaped from an Orange County jail, sawing through metal grates and using bed linens as ropes, according to the Associated Press. The dramatic escape was said to be led by one man with a military background, Hossein Nayeri, who served in the US Marines. Nayeri's descent into hell -- from soldier to wanted fugitive -- was short and hard. And his story, while far from over, is fascinating and terrifying for this reason. A Descent Into Hell Just a decade ago, Hossein Nayeri had no felony record when he was charged for a drunken driving accident that killed his best friend. The court was lenient with him after friends and family begged on his behalf. Nayeri was depressed after the death and psychiatrists said he was plagued with guilt. He is said to have kept a picture of his deceased friend on the wall and to cry every day. He drifted away from family. And he fled while out on bail. Nayeri was caught and placed on probation, which he repeatedly violated. In 2011, he was charged with domestic battery, false imprisonment and making criminal threats but pled to a lesser misdemeanor charge. Fleeing and Eluding In 2012 he fled police during a traffic stop in Orange County and escaped by ditching his car. Reportedly only one week later, prosecutors say, he was involved in a scheme to kidnap a medical marijuana distributor. Nayeri and two others are charged with torturing the man and severing his penis -- but before he could be caught, Nayeri fled again, this time out of the country. In 2013 Nayeri fled to Iran and was then arrested in Prague as he was traveling to Spain to meet with family. He was being held in the Orange County jail on kidnapping, burglary, torture and other charges and was set to go to trial on February 23. Presumably, the looming trial prompted his recent escape. Now he will be facing many more charges and is unlikely to be treated with any of the previous leniency courts showed. Charged With a Crime? If you or anyone you know is charged with a crime, talk to an attorney immediately. Do not run away from police on a traffic stop or try to escape when you are in custody. Do not take a page from Hossein Nayeri's book because, as you can see, legal problems trigger bigger troubles when avoided. Many criminal defense attorneys consult for free or no fee and will be happy to assess your case. Get guidance and advice. Related Resources: General Motors Co has asked a judge to reject efforts by a lawyer who first publicly exposed a faulty ignition switch in GM vehicles to undo a settlement fund resolving 1,380 death and injury lawsuits. In a separate filing, the lead counsel for people suing over the defect called attempts to undo the settlement fund both disappointing and disingenuous and joined GM in asking U.S. District Judge Jesse Furman of Manhattan to reject motions filed last week by Georgia-based lawyer Lance Cooper. Cooper said that one of the lawyers leading federal switch litigation, Robert Hilliard, struck the settlement mostly to enrich himself and his own clients, an allegation Hilliard denied. Furman is overseeing federal litigation that hit GM after its 2014 recall of 2.6 million vehicles over defective ignition switches that can slip out of place and have been linked to nearly 400 injuries and deaths. Cooper had accused Hilliard of working with General Motors to cut a mutually beneficial deal and strategy. GM and the lead counsel for plaintiffs both denied that claim. The settlement was announced in September, alongside a separate resolution with shareholders over GMs recall. GM said it would take a $575 million charge related to those settlements. Cooper has asked Furman, who oversees federal switch lawsuits, to rescind approval of the settlement fund, and to remove Hilliard and co-counsel Steve Berman and Elizabeth Cabraser from lead roles in the litigation. Coopers motions were filed days after the abrupt dismissal of a first bellwether, or test, trial when evidence surfaced calling the plaintiffs testimony into question. Cooper said that lead counsel bungled that case and excluded other attorneys from the process. Lead counsel said they had worked tirelessly and cooperatively for all plaintiffs. Although the bellwether fell apart, they defended their selection and said that their work on that case would ultimately benefit other plaintiffs. GM and lead plaintiffs counsel also said Cooper waited more than a month to object to Furmans order, despite a 14-day cutoff for such filings. Cooper could not immediately be reached for comment and a GM spokesman said the filing spoke for itself. Hilliard and Berman said the motions were baseless sideshows. This is a legally fallow attempt to undermine years of hard work and cooperative effort, Hilliard said. (Reporting by Jessica Dye; Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Grant McCool) Private U.S. property/casualty insurers net income after taxes grew to $44.0 billion in the first nine months of 2015 from $37.8 billion in nine-months 2014, with insurers overall profitability as measured by their rate of return on average policyholders surplus growing to 8.8 percent from 7.6 percent, according to ISO, a Verisk Analytics business, and the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America (PCI). Insurers combined ratio improved to 96.9 percent for nine-months 2015 from 97.7 percent in nine-months 2014. Net written premium growth increased to 4.1 percent for nine-months 2015 from 4.0 percent for nine-months 2014. Net investment income increased to $34.8 billion for the first nine months of 2015 from $34.5 billion a year earlier, and realized capital gains increased slightly to $8.9 billion from $8.8 billion, resulting in $43.7 billion in net investment gains for nine-months 2015. Insurers overall had another strong quarter. Surplus and premium to surplus continue to hover near historic levels, underscoring insurers rock-solid financial foundation and ability to serve consumers, said Robert Gordon, PCIs senior vice president for policy development and research. However, premium growth continues to be sluggish for commercial lines. Additionally, some industry statistics were monitoring indicate that the combined ratio for personal auto insurance has worsened, driven by increases in both accident severity and frequency. In the first three quarters of 2015, insurers continued to face a difficult investment environment. Their annualized investment yield was just 3.1 percent, significantly below long-term averages, and that is unlikely to improve in the immediate future, said Beth Fitzgerald, president of ISO Solutions. To succeed today, its critical that insurers have the analytics and information they need to make the best possible underwriting decisions. Third-Quarter Results The property/casualty insurance industrys consolidated net income after taxes rose to $13.1 billion in third-quarter 2015, up from $11.8 billion in third-quarter 2014. Property/casualty insurers annualized rate of return on average surplus increased to 7.8 percent in third-quarter 2015 from 7.0 percent a year earlier. Net written premiums rose $5.3 billion, or 4.1 percent, to $136 billion in third-quarter 2015 from $130.7 billion in third-quarter 2014. The industrys combined ratio worsened to 95.7 percent in third-quarter 2015 from 95.5 percent in third-quarter 2014. Source: Verisk Analytics Many years ago, a lawyer argued that the long-standing Texas rule prohibiting recovery of damages for loss of use of personal property, unless the property was a total loss or destroyed, was unfair. City of Canadian v. Guthrie, 87 S.W.2d 316 (Tex. Civ. App. 1932). His clients one-eyed, underfed mare lived a simple life. One night, however, she was caught roaming the city streets in search of food and was placed in the city pound. Her owner failed to pay her board bill. Thus, she was put out of her misery. As the Court of Appeals then put it, when Panhandle Petes pistol popped, she petered, for which the pound-keeper paid Pete a pair of pesos. Her owner protested her death and sued for damages, including $350 for the loss of her services in his occupation of hauling. The Court rejected that claim, holding that although damages occasioned by the loss of the use and hire of an animal are recoverable where the animal is injured, no such damages are recoverable for the total loss or death of an animal. Rather, the measure of damages in the case of a wrongful killing of an animal is its market value, if it has one, and if not, then its actual or intrinsic value, with interest. That rule, the owners attorney argued, made it cheaper to kill a mare in Texas than to cripple her. On January 8, 2016, the Texas Supreme Court in J & D Towing, LLC v. American Alternative Insurance Corporation, 2016 WL 91201 (Tex. 2016), changed nearly a century of law and ruled for the first time that the owners of automobiles and other damaged personal property which are a total loss may recover loss-of-use damages. J & D Towing, LLC (J & D) owned only one tow truck, a 2002 Dodge 3500 purchased in April 2011 for $18,500. On December 29, 2011, the tow truck was rendered a total loss as a result of the negligence of the defendant. The defendants carrier offered to settle J & Ds property damage claim for $10,299.12 if J & D retained the truck or $16,715.61 if the carrier retained the truck. Believing the truck was worth between $19,000 and $20,000 at the time of the accident, J & D refused to accept the settlement offer. On February 29, 2012, the defendants liability carrier settled with J & D for $25,000, the policy limits for property damage. Around March 8, 2012, J & D used that money to purchase another truck and resumed its business. J & D then filed an underinsured motorist (UIM) claim with its own carrier, American Alternative Insurance Corporation (AAIC), requesting compensation for the loss-of-use of the truck. It claimed that the funds from the settlement with the defendant were insufficient to compensate for these damages, rendering the defendant an underinsured motorist. AAIC denied the claim and cancelled the policy. J & D thereafter sued AAIC to recover any and all loss-of-use damages to which [it] may be entitled. J & D presented to a jury various calculations of the loss-of-use damages J & D claimed it incurred between December 29, 2011 and March 8, 2012. Aggregating the totals of those calculations, J & D asked the jury to award loss-of-use damages in the sum of either $27,866.25 or $29,416.25, with the difference being whether the jury awarded damages for a nine-week period or a ten-week period. AAIC challenged the availability of loss-of-use damages in its motion for summary judgment arguing that the UIM policy only covers damages that J & D is legally entitled to recover from the defendant. Because Texas law did not permit recovery of loss-of-use damages in total-loss cases, and because J & Ds vehicle was a total loss, J & D was not legally entitled to recover loss-of-use damages. The Trial Court denied both motions. At trial, the only question submitted to the jury concerned the proper amount of loss-of-use damages. The jury awarded J & D $28,000. After the jury returned its verdict, the Trial Court held a brief hearing to determine the amount of the credit to which AAIC was entitled in light of the settlement with the defendants liability carrier. The Court concluded that J & Ds truck was worth $19,500 at the time of the accident and thus AAIC was entitled to a credit of $5,500 the amount of the settlement that did not cover the value of the truck but instead partially compensated J & D for its loss-of-use damages. The Trial Court entered judgment for J & D in the amount of $22,500 plus interest and court costs. AAIC appealed with the issue being whether Texas law in total loss cases allowed recovery of loss-of-use damages. AAICs position was that Texas law has never allowed recovery of loss-of-use damages in total-loss cases. The Court of Appeals agreed, reversing the decision. The Supreme Court reversed the Court of Appeals, holding for the first time, that the owner of personal property that has been totally destroyed may recover loss-of-use damages in addition to the fair market value of the property immediately before the injury. Until this decision, a person whose vehicle was totally destroyed could only recover the market value of the lost vehicle, while a person whose vehicle was repaired could also recover the loss-of-use of the vehicle. Hanna v. Lott, 888 S.W.2d 132 (Tex. App. Tyler 1994, no writ); Pasadena State Bank v. Isaac, 228 S.W.2d 127 (Tex. 1950); Mondragon v. Austin, 954 S.W.2d 191 (Tex. Civ. App. Austin 1997). One argument against recovering for loss-of-use when the vehicle is a total loss is if the owner rents a vehicle for two weeks before buying a replacement vehicle, the insured is not really out anything that would justify his recovery of the reasonable rental value for the time it took to buy a new vehicle. The insured can buy a car that has two weeks fewer miles on it, and potentially is two weeks newer and would have a higher resale value. Rental prices generally exceed the depreciation value, but once youve crossed that line, it blurs a bright line test. A defendant would argue that he would be paying more than actual damages if liable for loss-of-use, because the plaintiff is getting the free use of a vehicle for two weeks. The law didnt even make an exception when the owner could not secure financing and was therefore unable to replace the property. Hanna v. Lott, supra. The Supreme Court in J & D Towing, LLC noted that a majority of jurisdictions within the United States permit loss-of-use damages in partial-destruction cases, but prohibit them in total-loss cases. However, the Court noted that case law and treatises have shifted away from the distinction, because the owner of total-loss personal property may suffer loss-of-use damages to the same extent that the owner of repairable personal property, and that the distinction was illogical. The Supreme Court didnt specify whether the change in the law was prospective or retroactive in nature. However, in Texas, the general rule is that you must read an opinion to see whether there is language in it that limits the applicability of the holding to subsequent cases. If you dont see that sort of limitation, it is generally assumed that the case applies retroactively. For example, in Guillot v. Hix, a case involving when a cause of action for workers compensation subrogation accrues argued by Gary L. Wickert, the Supreme Court specifically stated: Our holding today may bar actions which have not been filed in reliance upon the rules established by our prior decisions. We therefore make our holding applicable only to injuries which occur today and hereafter. Injuries which occurred before today remain subject to the rules in Fidelity, Brandon, and Campbell. Guillot v. Hix, 838 S.W.2d 230 (Tex. 1992). The J & D Towing, LLC decision should apply retroactively to all pending losses or cases, not just prospectively, because this is not a change in prior law as declared by the Texas Supreme Court. Until now, only appellate courts have weighed in. This was the first time the Texas Supreme Court has ruled on the issue. Zodiac Cabin & Structures Support LLC has been fined $1,316,000 for workplace safety and health violations following an explosion at its carbon fiber production plant north of Spokane. Seventeen workers were injured in the oven explosion at the Newport, Wash., facility last July. A nearly six-month investigation by the Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) concluded that the explosion could have been prevented if Zodiac had used required safety interlocks and safeguards to ensure that the curing oven was used safely and as advised in a consulting engineers report. L&I cited the employer for 17 willful violations for knowingly and willfully exposing workers to the risk of serious injuries. The investigation found the company used defective equipment and didnt ensure safe procedures were used when processing flammable materials in its industrial curing oven. Each violation carries the maximum penalty of $70,000. Had this explosion occurred during the day when many more workers were present, there could have been many more injuries and possibly even deaths, said Anne Soiza, L&I assistant director of the Division of Occupational Safety and Health. As it is, 17 people were injured and their lives put at risk from an incident that was highly predictable given the operating conditions. Along with the willful violations, L&I cited the company for 18 serious violations, all with the maximum penalty of $7,000 because of the high potential for death or permanent serious harm. Due to the danger of an explosion, specific safety interlock controls and other safety procedures were supposed to be in place before the highly flammable resins were used in the 90-foot drying oven. Those controls were not in place, despite the fact that Zodiac had advice from its contracted consulting engineer detailing the steps needed to ensure safe operation prior to using the flammable uncured resins. The investigation found that flammable resins had been run through the oven a number of times prior to the explosion. L&I also discovered that 11 days before the incident, the plant was evacuated due to flammable vapors that created a risk of explosion in the same operation. Four of the serious violations cited were for not ensuring effective energy control procedures were in place to protect workers when they had to reach inside the curing oven for cleaning, service or maintenance. The company was also cited for eight confined space serious violations related to employees entering the 90-foot oven to perform cleaning, service or maintenance. Working inside a confined space area, such as the oven, without safety precautions can be deadly to both workers and would-be rescuers. Confined space hazards can include suffocation, toxic atmospheres, entrapment and other dangerous conditions that are fully preventable. An additional six violations were related to failing to prevent ignition of flammable vapors and protect workers from inhaling harmful vapors and chemicals, such as from solvent and formaldehyde. As a result of the willful violations, Zodiac Cabin & Structures Support LLC has been identified as a severe violator and will be subject to follow-up inspections to determine if the conditions still exist in the future. The employer has 15 days to appeal the citation. Penalty money paid as a result of a citation is placed in the workers compensation supplemental pension fund, helping workers and families of those who have died on the job. Source: Washington Department of Labor & Industries Immigrant Rights: What to Do When Stopped by Immigration Agents or Police There is a lot of confusing information about rights in this country. It is difficult for Americans to know their rights or to respond appropriately when stopped by authorities. This is all the more true for immigrants, who are less likely to speak English as a first language or to understand how to interact with law enforcement. But it is extremely important to know your rights, as well as your responsibilities. Learning what you can and should do when you encounter authorities could mean all the difference between a positive or a negative experience, and can have a serious impact on your life. So let's look at this guidance for immigrants, adapted from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Know Your Rights campaign. Stopped for Questioning No matter what your immigration status, an encounter with authorities will always go better if you stay calm, keep your hands visible, and do not resist or argue. Even if an officer violates your rights, avoid fighting. You can address errors in another setting, not on the street, as that is likely to lead to an arrest. So, what are your rights then? They are as follows: You have the right to remain silent but if you wish to exercise this right you must say so. You have the right to refuse to consent to a search of your person, car, or home -- but an officer with a "reasonable suspicion" that you have a weapon can pat you down without a warrant. Authorities need a warrant to search your home -- if they show up with one, check it carefully. Officers may only search for the thing or person specifically sought in the warrant. You have the right to know whether you are under arrest and, if not, to calmly leave. You have the right to a lawyer if you are arrested. Ask for one immediately but understand that you may not meet with the attorney immediately. Do not speak to authorities until you talk to a lawyer and definitely do not sign any documents that you do not understand. You have constitutional rights regardless of immigration status. Your Responsibilities in an Encounter The ACLU suggests that your responsibility in a police encounter is to stay calm and be polite. You do not have to talk but you should not lie or present false documents. Likewise, do not interfere with police or obstruct justice but do remember the details of your encounter with police and file a written complaint or contact the ACLU if you believe your rights were violated. Consult With Counsel If you are stopped by authorities and arrested or placed in immigration detention, speak to a lawyer before you make any decisions. Many immigration attorneys consult for free or no fee and will be happy to assess your case. The law is complicated. Get help. Related Resources: Tyga & Kylie Jenner Split Rumors After Party with Models, Scott Disick and Chris Brown Tyga may have just fueled another breakup rumor with on and off again girlfriend, Kylie Jenner. The rapper threw a lavish party at his place on February 2 and invited a lot of young models. Scott Disick and Chris Brown were even there but the reality star was nowhere in sight. After Tyga's cheating scandals, it seems like his relationship with the 18-year-old has never been the same and this could possibly be one of their time outs again. Tyga Throws Wild Party With Hot Models, Scott Disick And No Kylie Jenner https://t.co/JHKBnrAaNo Hollywood News (@HollywoodNewsA1) February 3, 2016 Tyga had a bunch of young model types at his place last night around 9:30." an insider told E! News. "Scott Disick and Chris Brown were there. The group the reportedly continued the party to 1OAK in West Hollywood but didn't stay long before the group dispersed, with some models returning to Tyga's house. At the club the crew was at a large table and all the girls were surrounding the guys, the source continued. Some of the girls went back to Tygas [after they left]. Although the 26-year-old rapper wasn't drinking, he was seen smoking with Brown while Disick was allegedly full on trying to hook up with one of the young models. Scott was with one girl the whole time, holding her hand and leading her around the house, the source revealed. They were laughing, smiling, and it was obvious Scott was into her. Theyd disappear for a while and come back. Even though the 32-year-old self proclaimed Lord was spotted looking cozy with Kourtney Kardashian as they shopped together in Calabasas, California, his behavior at Tyga's party showed that he was single and ready to mingle with some strangers. After all the tears and heartaches, Kardashian shared a peek of their previous status by posting an old photo of the pair on Instagram, showing to her followers that they are at least doing so much better than the previous months. FBF with the baby daddy before he was a baby daddy, she captioned the post. 2016 The Classical Art, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. TagsTyga, Scott Disick, Kylie Jenner Saxophonist Pharoah Sanders to Perform John Coltrane Tribute at PDX Festival This Year George Cables, Billy Harper andRavi Coltrane perform at The Jazz Foundation of America Presents the 14th Annual 'A Great Night in Harlem' Gala Concert to Benefit Their Jazz Musicians Emergency Fund Saving Jazz, Blues and R & B....One Musician at a Time at The Apollo Theater on October 22, 2015 in New York City. (Photo : Theo Wargo/Getty Images for The Jazz Foundation of America) Saxophonist Pharoah Sanders has been added to the PDX Jazz Festival program, an annual gala held in Portland. Sanders will use his time to help pay tribute to Mr. John Coltrane at the festival, which will be held from Feb. 18-28 in the booming Oregon city. Per a release, Sanders will perform in a star-studded ensemble including saxophonist Ravi Coltrane, pianist Geri Allen, drummer Andrew Cyrille, bassist Reggie Workman and harpist Brandee Younger and will premiere to the world the first performance of "Universal Conscioussness." The debut of the composition and the group is set for Feb. 27 at the Newmark Theatre. If you aren't in the know, Sanders has continued a nearly six-decade long career that has included performances with pianist McCoy Tyner and the late multi-instrumentalist Ornette Coleman. He has also appeared alongside blues and rock icons such as Santana, John Lee Hooker and Bill Laswell. A Grammy-winner, too, he was recently selected for the NEA Jazz Master award beside vibraphonist Gary Burton and fellow sax player Archie Shepp. They will be performing at the awards ceremony, too, in Washington D.C. in April. According to the festival's website: "Just over a decade ago Ravi lovingly paid tribute to his mom, producing and playing with her on Translinear Light. A number of concerts ensued, which serves as the inspiration for his 2016 festival program titled Universal Consciousness. He'll also pay tribute to his father as guest soloist with the Africa Brass Ensemble under the direction of Charles Gray and featuring the Orrin Evans Trio. He also leads the effort to restore the John Coltrane Home in Dix Hills, Long Island and presides over important reissues of his parent's recordings including the newly restored A Love Supreme; The Complete Masters." For now, the groups only appearance is at PDX but the night should prove to be an astounding world premiere for Sanders and co. Check out Pharaoh Sanders below if you haven't in the meantime. 2016 The Classical Art, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. TagsPharoah Sanders, Ravi Coltrane, John Coltrane Riccardo Muti Tour of South Korea Leads to Injury 74-year-old Chicago Symphony Orchestra music director, Riccardo Muti, could not have been more confident going into last week's concerts in South Korea -- predicting that the attendees at the Seoul Arts Center would not soon forget the CSO's performance there. It seems that that hubris might have led to his having to cancel his upcoming February residency back in the Windy City. While the shows went off without a hitch, a minor accident between the final January 29 concert and Muti's return home led to his needing an emergency hip operation and some time off. Going into the final two concerts of his recent tour of South Korea, famed Italian composer Riccardo Muti told the Korean Times that attendees at the Seoul Arts Center should be prepared to be blown away: "I know that Korea is a country dedicated to music. "There are so many artists who come from Korea, and there are many orchestras, not only in Seoul, but in other parts of the country. "But the Chicago Symphony, I think, will make an impression that will not be forgotten too easily even by the Korean people." According to the Chicago Sun Times, however, it seems that it was Muti that might have ultimately lost his footing -- causing him to have to cancel all his concerts with the CSO this month: "A mishap described as a "minor accident" has broken Chicago Symphony Orchestra music director Riccardo Muti's recent streak of good health and forced him to withdraw from his February concerts in Chicago. "The maestro, 74, is recovering from a hip operation that followed the accident...No further details were furnished." With any luck Mr. Muti will have a very healthy and happy convalesce leading to a quick and confident return to form in March. 2016 The Classical Art, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. TagsRiccardo Muti, Tour, South Korea, Injury, Chicago Symphony Orchestra Traffic cameras a cash cow for Linndale The City of Akron has halted use of traffic cameras locally under pressure from state lawmakers. View of traffic cameras at the intersection of the Avenue of Peace and Memphis Avenue in Linndale, OH, Monday, March 23, 2015. (Marvin Fong, Plain Dealer Publishing Co.) AKRON, Ohio -- Facing pressure from state laws that punish cities that use unmanned speed cameras, Akron scrapped its cameras in December, Beacon Journal columnist Bob Dyer writes. They no longer run in school zones. Akron had reformed its speed camera program several years ago after facing lawsuits over the cameras, limiting their use in school zones and providing a 5 mph tolerance buffer. But a state law passed in 2014 promises to strip money from cities caught using traffic cameras. Court appeals of the new traffic camera law, filed by Akron and four other cities across Ohio, are still pending. Akron Teamsters consider occupying federal building: Upset with changes to federal pension laws, a group of Akron Teamsters considered protest options this week, including occupation of the U.S. Treasury Department building, the Beacon Journal reports. As many as 48,000 retired Teamster union members face cuts to their retirement income under an application filed by the Central States Pension Fund, which manages pensions for 400,000 retirees nationwide. Akron General was doomed without Cleveland Clinic merger, CEO says: Akron General CEO Tim Stover told the Akron Press Club that his hospital would likely have perished without a merger with Cleveland Clinic, WKSU reports. "We had to find a partner, but in my mind, the partner was always about the clinical lift, it was not about the financial lift," Stover said. Cleveland Clinic has been able to pay off about $150 million in debt after taking over Akron General for $100 million, the station reports, and is also planning to invest about $43 million to improve the Akron hospital. Valentine's Day wedding appointments open in Akron: Akron Municipal Court will continue its tradition of marrying couples en mass on Sunday, Feb. 14. Judge Annalisa Williams is scheduled to marry 10 couples between 1:30 and 4:30 p.m. and has room for five more, according to a court press release. The fee for the Valentine's wedding ceremony is $25. Marriage licenses are required ahead of time. For information about the ceremony contact the court at 330-375-2059. Sagamore Hills cop of the year a product of Police Explorers youth program: Growing up in the Nordonia Hills area, Sagamore Hills Patrolman Dan DeCrane spent many of his after-school afternoons in police cars. DeCrane wasn't in trouble, though; he was an early apprentice in the department's Police Explorers youth program, which introduces students in the area to law enforcement. DeCrane now oversees the program and was voted the department's top officer of the year, The News Leader reports, completing a full circle in his fourth year on the force to inspire others to follow in his tracks. NORTHFIELD CENTER, Ohio -- The mother and two young girls who died after a house explosion led to the discovery of a suspected murder-suicide are so badly burned that investigators are unable to determine if they suffered any injuries before the explosion. The Summit County Medical Examiner on Wednesday released a preliminary autopsy that said investigators are still searching for a cause of death. They have not pinpointed when they died, according to the records. The body of 43-year-old Jeff Mather showed some indications of smoke inhalation. His wife, Cynthia, 43, and their daughters, Alyson, 12, and Ruth, 8, had no indication of smoke inhalation, the records say. Toxicology results are still pending. No official rulings have been made in their deaths. Jeff Mather was found dead next to a charred gas can Jan. 11 inside the family's home at 7486 Skyhaven Road. Mather set the fire on the first floor of the home. The other three were on the second floor of the home when the fire started. They fell through the second floor when it collapsed. The Ohio Fire Marshal officially ruled the fire arson. The medical examiner previously said they are investigating the incident as a murder-suicide. Jeff Mather had previously attempted suicide in December after his role changed at his job at Swagelok in Solon, the records say. He told authorities that he had been depressed for a few months. Prior to that, Jeff Mather had no history of mental illness, marital or financial problems, according to the records. Cynthia and Jeff were married for about 20 years. Mather, a deacon for 13 years at The Rock Community Church in Garfield Heights, spent three days in a Willoughby mental health facility before returning to work Jan. 4. Cellphone records showed Cynthia Mather told family members things were going poorly with her husband after his return to work. Zurabel.JPG Paul Zuravel (right) sits in trial at Stow Municipal Court Wednesday next to his attorney, Daniel Milarcik. (John Harper, cleveland.com) AKRON, Ohio -- A judge will decide Thursday morning if Stow Mayor Sara Drew followed the constitution when she wrote a letter banning resident Paul Zuravel from City Hall last year. If the letter is valid, a jury will determine if Zuravel was trespassing when he went back to pick up document. Zuravel was arrested when he showed up at Stow City Hall July 2 to pick up planning documents, which he was he needed approved to split his lot and add to his property in Stow. He pleaded not guilty to charges of trespassing and stood trial before a jury on Wednesday. Several employees at City Hall, including Drew, the city's planning director and head engineer, testified about an April 2015 incident in which Zuravel was put in the back of a police car, but never arrested or charged in a disturbance. Zurabel's attorney, Donald Milarcik, then asked Stow Municipal Judge Lisa Coates to dismiss the city's case against Zurabel on grounds that Drew's order to stay away from city property was unconstitutional because it lasted indefinitely. The mayor testified that she was trying to preserve peace at City Hall, where employees had complained about heated exchanges with Zurabel, a regular at city planning and council meetings. He has complained that the city has treated him unfairly in considering development proposals he has submitted. Prior court rulings have found that cities aren't allowed to restrict access to individuals just because they are deemed a nuisance. The attorney representing Stow in court argued that Zuravel had created a disturbance at City Hall after an employee heard him mention a concealed carry weapon permit while entering the men's restroom. Testimony on Monday produced no evidence that Zurabel directly threatened anyone at City Hall, and it was unclear what context he had mentioned the gun permit. Police found no gun on Zuravel's person during the April 30 debate and Zuravel's attorney claimed he was talking to someone else about applying for a concealed carry permit. If Coates doesn't dismiss the case, a jury will delegate over the trespassing charges. CLEVELAND, Ohio - Each year, about 1,000 people join Ohio's most infamous driving club: State troopers nab them speeding 100 mph or more. Troopers caught 5,345 drivers who hit those speeds from 2010 through 2014, according to a Plain Dealer analysis of Ohio State Highway Patrol tickets. One of the fastest speeds recorded came in 2013, when a Kent man drove nearly 150 mph on the Ohio Turnpike before he plowed into a minivan, killing an elderly couple. The tickets underscore the problem of excessive speed on the state's highways, one of the greatest fears of authorities and travelers. The citations also highlight a worrisome trend: Following a slight drop in 2010, the subset of drivers stopped for speeding 100 mph or more has climbed 23 percent, going from 942 in 2011 to 1,160 in 2014. Statistics for 2015 were not available. And those numbers do not include high-speed stops by local police, who patrol city and county roads. The Plain Dealer analysis of the state patrol data alarmed traffic safety advocates. One has even called for stiffer fines, a license suspension and even jail time for drivers caught driving 100 mph or more. "I won't jump up and down when someone is driving 75 on the turnpike,'' said Ric Oxender, a lobbyist with the Ohio Conference of AAA Clubs. "But at 100 mph, that's a guided missile.'' The number of drivers caught exceeding 100 mph on Ohio roads has steadily increased from 2011, according to a Plain Dealer analysis of Ohio State Highway Patrol data. The newspaper analyzed 2.7 million tickets that troopers wrote. The analysis did not include traffic tickets given by local police. That leads to a question few can definitively answer: Why are so many people driving faster than ever? Some highway safety advocates point to increased speed limits. In 2013, after much debate, Ohio moved its limit on its interstate highways from 65 mph to 70 mph. The move came two years after speeds were changed on the turnpike. Some aggressive drivers saw the changes as a signal that they could speed even faster with the higher limit, authorities said. The analysis mirrors that: Troopers wrote 509,414 tickets in 2011. Two years later, they wrote 597,933, an increase of 17 percent. Other drivers, out of rage, arrogance or a lack of regard for others, simply refuse to slow down. Some blame their cars, saying the ride is so smooth that they can't even tell they're speeding. And there are some who simply want to know how fast their cars can go when pushed to the maximum. Kara Macek of the Governors Highway Safety Association, a Washington, D.C., agency that advocates traffic safety to states, called that outrageous. "There is no need for anyone to drive more than 100 mph, unless in an emergency,'' she said. The issue of speed, particularly excessive speed, has gained statewide attention. Last year, 1,094 people died in Ohio traffic accidents, an increase of 9 percent over the 1,008 fatalities in 2014. Authorities say high speed is involved in one-third of the state's fatalities. It definitely played a role in the deaths of Wilbur and Margaret McCoy. State troopers attempted to stop Andrew Gans' Infiniti M56 on Thanksgiving 2013. He sped by two officers on the westbound lanes of the turnpike and averaged 149 mph across 30 miles before he rear-ended a minivan, killing the McCoys, both 77, of Toledo, according to interviews and published reports. Gans was not seriously hurt. In May 2015, a Sandusky County judge found Gans, 26, of Kent, not guilty by reason of insanity of aggravated vehicular homicide charges in the crash. The accident took place near Fremont. Gans told authorities that he needed to speed in order to elude demons who were out to get him, reports said. "You are talking about really scary driving,'' said Russ Rader of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety in Arlington, Va. "All of the modern safety equipment built in vehicles is all for naught at those speeds.'' Take the case of Scot Sayre. On Sept. 24, 2012, Sayre, of Wayne, N.J., bolted westbound on the turnpike in a Volkswagen four-door, going 115 mph before a trooper stopped him near North Ridgeville, records show. It was one of the fastest speeds recorded in Lorain County. He paid $232 in fines and costs in Elyria Municipal Court for the violation, a minor misdemeanor. Under state law, the maximum fine for the charge is $150, plus court costs. The fines vary among municipal courts. Had he been stopped in Sandusky, Sayre, for example, would have had to pay $175 in fines and costs. In Fremont, he would have had to pay nearly $200. Oxender, the AAA lobbyist, said the fines for driving more than 100 mph should be increased dramatically. He added that jail and a license suspension also should be considered to deter drivers. The Plain Dealer analysis found that troopers wrote two of every three tickets to male drivers. Men also got four of every five tickets written for driving 100 mph or more. The patrol's ticket database does not include stops made by local police who enforce traffic laws on many portions of interstates. State troopers can patrol all of Ohio's roads, but they often focus on state routes, highways and the turnpike. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reports men typically drive more miles and often engage in far riskier driving behavior than women, including failing to wear seat belts and driving while under the influence. "To some degree, everyone speeds, and most of us get away with it,'' said Macek of the Governors Highway Safety Association. "You do it so often that you get immune to it. But to drive 100 mph? That's troubling.'' A look at the tragic outcome of Andrew Gans' 2013 excessive speeding: THE source for news of bluegrass and old-time music events in Ireland - and more Send in news or queries to the Bluegrass Ireland Blog (BIB) by e-mail , please; we can't send a direct reply to a comment on a post. The BIB does not do reviews or accept posts with 'marketing messages'. Thinking of touring in Ireland? Look at the BIB's THINKING OF TOURING IN IRELAND? page. Karen Fish Reviews New Arrivals: Late 20th Century Photographs from Russia & Belarus at the BMA New Arrivals: Late 20th Century Photographs from Russia & Belarus, curated by Rena Hoisington, Curator of Prints, Drawings & Photographs at the Baltimore Museum of Art, contains only a small number of prints but the aesthetic pleasure to be mined here is expansive. The exhibition highlights fourteen photographers who worked in Russia, Belarus, Lithuania, and the Ukraine. All told there are twenty works, many from the 1980s, that were collected personally by Brenda Edelson who served as the museums program director from 1973-85. Boris Savelevs Girl in a Box (1991) Another exhibition, Photo Manifesto: Contemporary Photography in the USSR, organized in Baltimore in the early 1990s, made an impression on Edelson and was the impetus for her collection. That earlier exhibition showcased many of the photographers also seen here. In 2012, Edelson donated forty-seven of her photographs to the Baltimore Museum of Art. The work spans from 1959 to 2000, compelling years by any standard, artistically and/or politically, for the Eastern Block. In the 60s and early 70s, this region was off limits, closed behind the iron curtain. It is illuminating to see creative work that was produced during this time of tremendous societal and political change, work that was mostly hidden from Western audiences. While the subject matter in New Arrivals is limited, it is not banal. The way the show has been hung invites one to consider an intimate view and brings the far-away close. The photographs are not large, but conventionally sized and draw one into a world that would have been unfamiliar to Americans at the time and the image of Lenin holds center stage. The Soviet Union only began to open to the West in the 1980s, but there are small moments highlighted in a year, a country, and the mundane everyday that we recognize and empathize with. Photography is all about showing a perspective, framing and isolating putting a mat around something that the photographer wishes to bring to significance, a view that begs to be considered and seen separate from all the busy lack of structure the world generally offers. These photographs are a window into countries that were just beginning to open, and to what artists at that time were considering as their society was changing. There are three prints by Alexander Slyusarev that bring to mind one of the American masters of photographic modernism, Minor White. White worked from 1937-76 and produced photographs of landscapes that made the viewer notice composition first, abstraction that was buried in the shapes of the ordinary world. White did this often by employing high contrast shadow and light, focusing on the strong compositional shapes the world offers up. It isnt unusual to view a White photograph and first see an abstract composition only to notice the trees, snow, grasses, fence, and shadow upon further inspection. These techniques are also recognizable in Slyusarevs work creative innovations and techniques that both artists employed although separated chronologically and geographically. Alexander Slyusarevs Untitled(1980) Slyusarevs snowy staircase beside a dark wall punctuated with snowballs has the same the strength of composition as Whites photographs. Additionally, there is a street scene that works a representation of pure shape and also reads as what it literally is a kiosk among trees when one looks closely. The viewer sees or recognizes the abstraction first and then the actual forms become recognizable. In another photograph, a portrait of a mans head in the foreground beside a distant smokestack reminds one just how powerful portraiture can be. The portrait makes us curious and at the same time shows us something weve never quite seen before but oddly recognize; the portrait captures essence. The power of a portrait is often derived from this recognition we see something familiar in a strangers face and it catches us off guard. We are surprised by the connection. There is a quiet group of photographs by Igor Savchenko from Belarus that spur curiosity precisely for the reason that there are no heads to be seen. They are investigations of gesture and anonymity. The sequence is titled Alphabet of Gestures, and consists of toned gelatin silver prints from the early 1990s. These are photographs of photographs, called counter-documentary works. Savchenko might have appropriated found photographs, anonymous snapshots, or used old family photos. We dont know and it doesnt matter because the work investigates the anonymity of the past. The gestures here are emblematic. He re-photographed other photographers prints and zoomed in on the imagery of held hands, hand gestures, and poses. In the process, we lose the context of the original photograph. Instead, these ambiguous images focus the viewer on something new: a gesture that bring his or her own context to the viewing. The series is quietly compelling in ways that are hard to identify. It calls to mind a found fragment, a partial view, intimacy, and importance without the usual story. They could be any of our distant relatives the floral dress, the womens figures in stripes, seated together with only the torso and lap viewable. In the purest sense, the photographs are a glimpse into that magical world the image can conjure. They render the past somehow graspable. We recognize the hands, the intimacy implied as our own, or those of lost relatives. Different fashions for sure, but the essential hand holding we all still do ourselves. Finally, there are four photographs of a statue of Vladimir Lenin by Sergey Kozhemyakin. While the statue of Lenin is the focal point of each print, it is not the subject. Rather, the content of these prints is the way the photographer plays with the presentation of that very recognizable image. What is notable is the way in which the Lenin statue is simply a starting point, the image either scratched or darkened and finally rendered unrecognizable. This is about manipulation: symbolism for sure, but also it is play, creative thinking, using sequence to explore a sociological and political reality artistically. Sergey Kozhemyakins Transformation of the Image (1990), one from series of four Kozhemyakins photographs are more than powerful symbolism enacted through the artistic process. They are charged with the knowledge that these sorts of photographic manipulations would have been serious crimes in a previous time. They would have even been dangerous to produce and, much more so, to show before Western influence and broad openness swept the region. Standing before this work, one considers the ways in which state images, and other political historical images, have been creatively manipulated to indicate and invite the viewer (whether a Russian or a U.S. citizen) to consider all that has changed in the collective consciousness. The photographs that Brenda Edelson collected arguably make our big world smaller and more intimate. Though similar to photographs American photographers were printing around the same time, the subject matter and perspective separate us as much as they draw us together. They enlarge the BMAs photography holdings because as a collection they allow us a rare glimpse into a region that was previously off limits and secret. This is a quiet little show, and the work insists that we look closely. In doing so, we remember how the visual image prompts consideration of presentation, subject matter, and translation of the human experience. This show proves that it is through art, vehicles of literature and visual work, that we come to know a region and a people that we previously hadnt considered. Art, at its best, can translate all the intangibles that make the world so fabulously gritty and real. It isnt difficult to imagine some of these photographs tucked away in our own shoebox of dusty prints, though we are decades and countries away. New Arrivals: Late 20th-Century Photographs from Russia & Belarus is on exhibit at the Baltimore Museum of Art through March 20, 2016. Top Photo Credit: Galina Moskaleva. Untitled. 1996. From the series Children Who Have Had Thyroid Operations. The Baltimore Museum of Art: Gift of Robert and Brenda Edelson, BMA 2012.512 <><><><><><><><><> Author Karen Fish received a BFA in photography & painting from Arcadia University and did her graduate work at the Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University. Shes published two books of poems, The Cedar Canoe (University of Georgia) and What Is Beyond Us (Harper/Collins). Currently, she serves as the chair of the Writing department at Loyola University Maryland. Over the years her work has appeared in The New Yorker, Poetry, The American Poetry Review, The New Republic and Slate. Cape Town Treaty - Spain accedes to Aircraft Protocol - 1st March 2016 effective date 2 February 2016 Spain has deposited its instrument of accession to the Aircraft Protocol dated 27th November 2015, as confirmed on 1st February 2016 by publication in the "Boletin Oficial del Estado". According to the treaty timetable, the Aircraft Protocol, together with the Cape Town Convention as it applies to aircraft objects, will come into force for Spain on 1st March 2016. Download PDF The Doe Meik Swe bus company is a subsidiary of the Moe Ko San Company which is owned by KNU Brigade 7. Doe Meik Swes operation manager, Saw Truman said: We have already rented the gate in Pathein for this bus line, [but] we will only start our operation in March due to some work requirements, He said that the company aims to provide secure and easy transport for passengers, as there has been an increase domestic travel since 2012 and Karen people living in border areas will be able to travel more. The Moe Ko San Company applied for a licence to run a bus company and submitted the relevant documents to the district and state transport departments in May 2015. The company was then granted a licence in mid-December 2015. Since 24 January Doe Meik Swe has been running a service from Myawaddy to Yangon and from Myawaddy to Taungoo using eight Hiace 15-seater buses. The fare from Myawaddy to Yangon is 15,000 kyats, from Myawaddy to Taungoo it is 13,500 kyats and from Myawaddy to Pathein the fare will be 20,000 kyats, according to Doe Meik Swe officials. The KNU and Burmese government signed an initial bilateral ceasefire agreement on 12 January 2012. Subsequently, the Moe Ko San Company was founded in August 2013 to support the relatives of members of KNU Brigade 7. The Moe Ko San Company has offices in Myawaddy and Hpa-An. As well as having a bus company it also has interests in home supplies, electrical supplies and solar power showrooms. Translated by Thida Linn Edited in English by Mark Inkey for BNI While the Street debates the chances of a recession, some market watchers are deliberating the type of correction the market is in. Corrections that do not precede a recession are a buying opportunity, and in this scenario, equities will pare most losses in about eight months, Glenmede's Jason Pride said Wednesday on "Closing Bell." However, if the correction is a precursor to a recession then there are more lows to come, he said. The director of investment strategy pegs current market conditions at the expansion phase of the business cycle. Nonetheless, he contends that this expansion phase is risky business that could lead to a "more difficult scenario." "The economic signals are a little more marginal than the last correction that we saw July/August," Pride said. "The manufacturing sector is weak, we are seeing China and we are seeing energy." Deutsche Bank's chief U.S. economist, Joseph LaVorgna, said recently that the chances of a recession, although most likely a shallow one, are at 40 percent. The results are higher than a recent CNBC Fed Survey, where found the probability of recession at 24 percent. Santorum first announced the decisions in a Fox News interview on Wednesday night. The former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania also endorsed Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida for the GOP nomination. He called Rubio a "born leader," saying he had an "optimistic" message. Republican Rick Santorum suspended his 2016 presidential campaign Wednesday following a poor showing in the Iowa caucuses. Santorum's departure comes after Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky dropped out earlier Wednesday. Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee also suspended his campaign this week. Nine Republican candidates remain in the race. Santorum, who won the 2012 Iowa caucus, finished near the bottom of the pack on Monday as conservatives gathered around Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas. He gathered only about 1 percent of the vote. Santorum's campaign committee had roughly $13,000 on hand at the end of 2015, according to Federal Election Commission data released this week. The Associated Press contributed to this report. watch now watch now watch now Squeezed by falling oil prices, Russia is talking about privatizing its major companies to close its budget shortfall. Nigeria is seeking a World Bank loan to cover its $11 billion budget gap. Even Saudi Arabia has been drawing down reserves and discussing selling a stake in its national oil company Saudi Aramco. There's no doubt the oil producing nations and energy companies are feeling the pain of a 75 percent drop in oil prices in the past 1 years. Now their actions are being viewed as the early signs capitulation is coming. Oil prices have been volatile for weeks but especially in recent sessions. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were slightly lower, just above $32 barrels Thursday. But oil moved several percent intraday, after rising 8 percent Wednesday and 5-plus percent moves lower Monday and Tuesday. In the past week, a number of Russian oil officials have said they would talk to OPEC about a production deal, and the oil minister of cash-strapped Venezuela has been traveling from producing nation to producing nation, calling for a meeting between OPEC and non-OPEC countries. Saudi Arabia has said it would only cut back if all producers do, and Iran has said it will not cut back until it restores its exports In the private sector, the pain is being felt from the smallest producing companies to the largest. ConocoPhillips stunned Wall Street on Thursday when it became the first big oil company to slash its dividend. It cut its quarterly payout by two-thirds and shaved another 17 percent from its capital spending plan after reporting a $3.5 billion loss. BP earlier this week announced a loss of $6.5 billion in 2015, its largest ever annual loss. Shale drillers are also suffering. Last week, Continental Resources said its output would fall by about 10 percent this year and it joined others in cutting its capital budget. "That is capitulation. I know now that all companies are in capitulation. Nobody's pretending anymore," said Oppenheimer energy analyst Fadel Gheit. Read MoreDay of reckoning for oil producers: Yergin Conoco's dividend cut was a big deal for the industry and sends a strong message for a sector that has treated its ability to pay dividends as sacrosanct. "These companies were supposed to be cash cows that guaranteed income flow. You're not going to be getting it. The whole model is being upended," said John Kilduff, a partner with Again Capital. "The dividend is at risk for most companies," Gheit said. "Even if oil prices go to $40 or $50, it's not going to save the dividends." Gheit said he expects to see more bankruptcies and mergers, as companies struggle to survive a long stretch of weak prices. All of this talk, however, is not reducing the amount of oil on world markets, with the U.S. continuing to show strong buildups in inventories and an unrelenting production level of about 9.2 million barrels a day. It's also not alone as Saudi Arabia continues to produce at high levels. Russia, in fact, pumped 10.88 million barrels a day last month the most since the fall of the Soviet Union. Even Iraq has upped production, reaching an output level of 4 million barrels a day last month. "I think we're now into the desperation zone," said IHS Vice Chairman Dan Yergin. "What you saw coming down the road is now here, countries not only running out of money but running out of resilience. Virtually every country now is saying we really have to reform. We don't have the succor of high oil prices." All this pain among producers may be nearing a threshold where a real capitulation will not be far behind and oil can bottom because supplies will stop increasing. But even if oil prices are beginning to bottom, it is expected to be a long slow process, and prices are expected to remain at low levels for a long while. "All this chatter tells you we've reached a pain threshold these guys can no longer handle," said Peter Boockvar, market analyst at Lindsey Group. Venezuela, a country that has already seen a government ousted because of economic hardship, has been trying to spark talks between OPEC and non-OPEC nations in an effort to stanch the bleeding. Qatar is cutting back on spending after seeing its first shortfall in 15 years, and Kuwait, Abu Dhabi and Oman have all cut back on power subsidies. Africa's producers are suffering more, with the continent's second largest producer, Angola, introducing austerity measures as it copes with a shortfall in oil revenues. What Saudi Arabia does will ultimately be the key. It drove the change in OPEC policy to market-based pricing in late 2014 in order to maintain its market share. As a low-cost producer and biggest OPEC exporter, it has previously used production cuts to influence the market, but it has said it will not reduce its output if the cutback is not shared with OPEC and non-OPEC producers. But like other producers, Saudi Arabia needs a high price per barrel to meet its budget requirements, an estimated $70 per barrel more than current market prices. "The Saudi plan is working. There's a lot of damage being wrought in the U.S. exploration and production sector. This is why you're not going to get a deal in the short term. The Saudis are going in for the kill," said Kilduff. The U.S. industry, made up of dozens of independent oil companies, would not be willing or able to go along with a plan to cut back, so the only way to slow shale is with low prices. "Saudi Arabia has an objective, and their objective has not been met. They have to bring shale production down significantly, not by a half million, but by a million barrels a day. Yes, it's coming down but not as fast as predicted," said Gheit. U.S production peaked at 9.6 million barrels a day last spring, but it has held steady at about 9.2 million or 9.3 million since. "I always thought the first quarter was going to be the bottom. We are waiting to see that. The trend in U.S. shale, that is the key. If it looks like that is going down faster, that will be the bottom. The longer oil stays low, around $30 or lower, then the quicker we get to a bottom," said Chris Weafer, senior partner with Macro-Advisory. Weafer said the market also needs a realistic view of how much oil Iran will be able to export, now that sanctions have been lifted. Citigroup energy analysts, in fact, said they believe it's likely oil prices have reached their lows, but they expect oil to stay in a low range between the upper $20s and mid to upper $30s for months more, before finally turning higher in the second half of the year. One part of their thesis is that Iran is not being as aggressive as expected in returning crude to market. It has promised an immediate 500,000 barrels a day, then another 500,000 later in the year. "We're seeing some of these signs of stress among producing companies and producing countries, and that has all sorts of effects on supply, but mostly to pull it back," said Citigroup energy analyst Eric Lee. "I think the key message we're trying to say here is it is still likely (the oil price is) going to zigzag around," said Lee. He said oil could trade lower than current levels but he believes it's likely to hold in a new range with a floor of around $27 per barrel for Brent and $26 for WTI. "We're close to a floor," said Lee, noting it now depends on how much pain producers can take. "At the same time financial market positioning was very, very short, very stretched when we got down to $27. We see, as these shorts cover, we pull back to these levels," he said. "Positioning seems to suggest these levels are a little more neutral." Ed Bastian, who will become Delta Air Lines ' chief executive in May, has a message for those wondering how he will run an airline that has set the benchmark for success in recent years: Don't expect any major changes. "There are no substantive changes we're anticipating," the airline president told CNBC on Thursday, one day after Delta announced the management transition. "It has taken 10 hard years to get the product and to get the service levels and customer satisfaction to where they are. Our goal is to improve it," Bastian said. Edward Bastian, Delta Airlines Shizuo Kambayashi | AP Delta is doing so well it made $5.9 billion in 2015, the airline's most profitable year ever. It caps a six-year run in which the airline has become the benchmark for service and profitability. Current chief executive Richard Anderson, who will give up day-to-day oversight of Delta and become the airline's executive chairman, is widely credited with lifting the carrier to new heights. And while Anderson deserves a lot of credit, the reality is Delta has soared to new heights thanks to a very strong executive team. watch now watch now Sign-ups by customers in Obamacare for the third open-enrollment season beat last year's tally by a modest amount, officials revealed Thursday. A total of about 12.7 million people signed up for Obamacare plans nationwide during open enrollment for 2016, which ran from Nov. 1 through last Sunday. That's one million people higher than the 11.7 million people who selected plans by the close of open enrollment in February 2015 an increase of 8.5 percent. A woman sits with an agent and speaks on the Affordable Care Act to purchases a health insurance plan. Joe Raedle | Getty Images "We're happy to report it was a success," said Sylvia Burwell, secretary of the U.S. Health and Human Services Department. She noted that the federal Obamacare marketplace, which serves residents of 38 states, alone signed up 4 million new customers in plans sold by private insurance companies. All told, HealthCare.gov signed up more than 9.6 million customers. "We knocked the lights out this year," said Kevin Counihan, CEO of HealthCare.gov. The remaining customers in the national tally came from the Obamacare exchanges run by 12 individual states and the District of Columbia. About 85 percent of the customers on Obamacare exchanges nationwide received federal subsidies that help reduce the cost of their monthly premiums. That aid is available to people with low and moderate incomes. Burwell also pointed out that more than 17.6 million people have gained health coverage since the Affordable Care Act went into effect, driving the national uninsured rate to below 10 percent. In addition to creating the Obamacare exchanges, which sell individual insurance plans to people, the ACA also funded expanded Medicaid programs by the states for more of their poor residents, and allowed adults under age 26 to be covered by their parents' health plans. With the new enrollment tally on Obamacare exchanges, Burwell said, "We again see that the ACA is helping millions of people, and has become a crucial part of health care in America." Burwell told reporters that the enrollment tally announced Thursday shows that Obamacare plans is a product that people "do want and need." She said that while "some have questioned whether young people would enroll," in Obamacare, "they are." "This year, we have 2.7 million [HealthCare.gov] customers ages 18 to 34, and the percentage of new customers in that age range is higher than last year, while the overall percentage of plan selections for customers that age remains stable," she said. The total number of people enrolled in Obamacare plans this year is expected, as in past years, to drift down over the course of 2016 as customers exit the market because they obtain coverage elsewhere, or stop paying their monthly premiums. Burwell said before the start of this enrollment season, that she expected about 10 million people to be in Obamacare plans by the end of 2016. That would be modestly higher than the 9.3 million people who were enrolled in Obamacare plans as of last September. Officials said Thursday they still expected to meet Burwell's target for 10 million paying customers by next December. "The simple answer is, yes, we feel very good," said Andy Slavitt, acting administrator of the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which oversees Obamacare. "We do feel good about being able to hit our target." Caroline Pearson, senior vice president of the Avalere Health consultancy, said, "While exchange enrollment will meet the administration's modest 10 million person goal, it does appear that growth in this market has slowed." "Efforts to expand participation in the long term will be important to sustain robust plan participation and support continued improvement in the risk pool," Pearson said. Call it the domino effect. Under pressure from worker advocacy groups, government agencies and conscientious consumers, six major retailers last year promised to end on-call scheduling, a practice through which companies wait until the last minute to tell workers whether they're needed, depending on how busy their store is that day. (Think of a hardware store, for example, which might need more hands ahead of a major snowstorm.) The headlines were a big win for critics of the custom, which was condemned for limiting workers' ability to plan ahead for child care, pick up shifts at other jobs, and earn a steady wage. An employee folds clothes at a Gap store in San Francisco, Calif. Getty Images Now, some six months after retailers began publicly pledging to the end the use of on-call scheduling, comes the next step making sure they weren't empty promises. Gap , which told New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman in August that it would stop using on-call scheduling at its five brands, told CNBC that it completed its phase-out of this practice in September. The company is still in the process of ensuring employees receive their schedules 10 to 14 days in advance, which will be completed early this year. Abercrombie & Fitch likewise told CNBC it has discontinued on-call scheduling across its brands in New York, but continues to work toward implementation across the remainder of the U.S. And Urban Outfitters , which in October expanded its promise to end on-call shifts in New York to include the entire U.S., totally eliminated the practice across its portfolio on Monday, a spokeswoman said. The three other major retailers that told Schneiderman they would stop using on-call scheduling Victoria's Secret parent L Brands , J Crew and Pier 1 Imports did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Across the industry as a whole, labor experts say the broader push to do away with on-call scheduling remains a work in progress. Though many retailers are making honest efforts to move away from the practice particularly as worker rights become more important to consumers implementing such widespread change across a portfolio of stores can be difficult. Challenges include technology shortfalls, and finding a means to better staff their stores for the ebbs and flows of traffic. Meanwhile, there are staunch opponents who argue the government should step aside and leave scheduling decisions to retailers and their employees namely, the industry's trade group, the National Retail Federation. "This topic of employee experience is top of mind," said Steven Kramer, CEO of employee management platform WorkJam. Who's pushing for change Though pressure has been building across the country to end on-call scheduling, two epicenters have been largely behind the movement. In San Francisco, the local chapter of Jobs With Justice, a national workers' rights group, was instrumental in the city's passing the Retail Workers Bill of Rights. This legislation, which became law in December 2014, not only requires employers to give workers two weeks' notice about their schedule, but also mandates how they must notify employees about changes. In New York, the Attorney General's Office sent inquiries to 14 retailers the majority of which were dated April 2014 asking for details regarding whether or not they utilized on-call scheduling. Though there is no law in New York explicitly prohibiting on-call scheduling, the office has been working within the framework of regulation 12 NYCRR 142-2.3. It states that an employee who shows up for work at the employer's request shall be paid "at least four hours, or the number of hours in the regularly scheduled shift, whichever is less, at the basic minimum hourly wage." Eight other states and Washington, D.C., have similar laws. In New York, eight of the retailers to which the Attorney General sent inquiries about on-call scheduling Burlington , , Crocs , Ann (now part of Ascena ), Sears , Williams-Sonoma , Target and J.C. Penney said they had never used or already discontinued this practice. As for the six others who promised to do so, a spokeswoman for the AG said the office has had open communications with them about how to change their corporate policies to enable the change. That includes making extra shifts voluntary for workers, and promising there will be no retaliation for employees who do not volunteer for those shifts. The Attorney General's Office said that at this time, it has no reason to believe that the retailers it's been working with are not following through with their commitments. However, it will soon ramp up its work to corroborate their efforts, which will include check-ins with the companies and worker advocacy groups. It was through these advocacy groups and workers themselves that the office compiled its initial list of companies to investigate. Though the AG's office declined to go into detail about the next steps it will take to end on-call scheduling, the spokeswoman said it will continue to be engaged in the issue. Elsewhere, campaigns to follow in its and San Francisco's footsteps are taking shape, including proposed legislation in Washington, D.C. "I am proud of the work my office has done to secure agreements with several major retailers to end their use of on-call scheduling and create a more predictable work environment," Schneiderman said in a statement to CNBC. Not just a flip of the switch Because the price of labor typically accounts for the largest chunk of a retailer's expenses, businesses have used on-call scheduling as a means to cut costs, by sending workers home when store traffic is slow, and flexing up when they receive an unforeseen burst in traffic. But while this cuts back on their short-term expenses, many argue it does not benefit retailers in the long-term. John Orr, senior vice president of retail at Ceridian workforce management, said retailers who use this scheduling strategy often end up with an unhappy workforce, which leads to a higher turnover rate. That higher turnover rate then results in more time spent searching for new employees and getting them trained and often, poor customer service. "They're thinking they're saving money but it's poor planning," Orr said. "If you're planning better, you don't need that extra fudge factor." A report issued last year by the Economic Policy Institute argues the negative side-effects of on-call shifts take an even broader toll on the economy. The non-partisan group said at least 10 percent of the workforce is assigned to irregular or on-call hours, and these employees are more likely to have work-family conflicts. This has the potential to hinder their children's education and future, said Leila Morsy, who co-authored the report. "I don't think that companies on their own are going to choose to care for their employees over making a quick profit," Morsy said. "There needs to be legislation in place." watch now Unreal. Starbucks in Saudi Arabia refused to serve women. Note on their door, plus official response from company. pic.twitter.com/d4tCSqqQOv The Starbucks cafe in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia has a sign on the front door barring women from entering. Starbucks will accept their money, but only if the womens' "driver" places the order on their behalf. From the Express Tribune: The notice, in Arabic as well as English, reads, "Please no entry for ladies, only send your driver to order. Thank you." The Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, the most influential law enforcing authority in the Kingdom, ordered the cafe's management not to admit women, according to Emirates 24/7. See sample pages from this book at Wink. They say that truth is stranger than fiction, so that may explain why The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities almost fooled me into believing it's real. Were it not for the authors being well-known fiction writers writers like Alan Moore, China Mieville, Cherie Priest, Helen Oyeyemi I would have considered this a legitimate study of an eccentric, pseudoscientific collection of oddities. Even the introduction, which gives the history of Mr. Lambshead in a completely deadpan tone, in no way gives away the "joke" that everything is fiction. Essentially, this compendium of bizarre fictional Victoriana brings together more than 50 of the most talented writers and artists of modern fantasy and weird fiction in a collection of the odd, esoteric, and occasionally frightening. Some pieces are written like a museum catalog, while others are stories "inspired" by the collection. The creators have taken full advantage of a long history of eccentric Victorian collectors and unbelievable inventions to assemble a cabinet in book form, stuffed to the brim with curiosities that may only exist in the imagination, and yet feel strangely real. The stunning yet bizarre imagery sprinkled throughout the book mirrors the various styles of illustration, printmaking, and early photography that would have been found in the kind of 19th-century tome Cabinet takes as a model, reinforcing the otherworldly feeling of reading a history book from an alternate universe, where automatons educate our children and gorillas are raised by crocodiles in the sewer. Amber Troska The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities by Ann Vandermeer and Jeff Vandermeer Voyager 2012, 320 pages, 7 x 9.5 x 1 inches (softcover) From $35 Buy a copy on Amazon watch now Shipping is key to the smooth running of the global economy. With about 50,000 merchant ships trading across the seas, the shipping industry is responsible "for the carriage of around 90 percent of world trade," according to the International Chamber of Shipping. However, the industry's environmental impact is not insignificant. In 2012, international shipping was responsible for 796 million tonnes of CO2 emissions around 2.2 percent of global emissions according to the International Maritime Organization. "Shipping impacts the world in many positive ways by enabling trade around the world," Mads Stensen, global sustainability manager at Maersk, told CNBC's Sustainable Energy. "But despite all the positive impacts, you also have negative impacts, especially environmental impacts," he added. David Hecker | Getty Images Europe | Getty Images With this in mind, manufacturers are looking at ways to mitigate the environmental impact of big ships -- as well as make savings. One idea being looked at is adding a "scrubber" an exhaust gas cleaning system to the huge engines that power the vessels. "The system can remove, for example, sulphur emissions from the exhaust gas," Stensen said. Stensen went on to add that Maersk was looking to modify and update its fleet to help boost its efficiency and sustainability. These include upgrading engines, propellers that are more fuel efficient, and increasing the capacity of the vessel so more containers can be carried on board. At Maersk, cutting edge technology is also helping the company to improve efficiency. Its Eco Voyage Tracker (EVT) was developed internally and allows the company to monitor its fleet across the world's oceans at all times. "It's also a tool that helps the vessel plan the most optimal voyage that's the 'eco-voyage' part of it," Niels Bruus, head of fleet performance at Maersk, said. Other innovations taking place in the industry are looking to the past for inspiration. Last year CNBC spoke to SkySails, a German company that says it has developed a "kite wind propulsion" system for large cargo ships. According to SkySails, one kilowatt hour of their wind power costs only six cents for ships to use, "about half as much as one kilowatt hour from the main engine." The design idea of "counter-constraint" is to create things in such a way as to get around some constraint for example, open source hardware works without patents or copyrights. A brilliant example of counter-constraint is Italian designer Enzo Mari's "democratic furniture" manual, autoprogettazione? [PDF], which explains how to make beautiful furniture out of unfinished lumber and nails, made almost entirely with squared-off cuts (no fancy mitering or curves that you can't easily make with a handsaw). The folks at Crapfutures have been building many of Mari's designs (shown above, a ping-pong table), and using the projects to talk about counter-constraint in design practice. The book is full of beautiful stuff we've already made two ping-pong tables and a couple of chairs from his instructions. Taking Mari's lead, it is possible for anyone without sophisticated tools or machinery to sidestep the usual trip to Ikea. Well, almost anyone you still need basic building skills. The Enzo Mari example also relates to another constraint we've discussed, that of education. We've used his book to teach students the kinds of skills that are becoming rarer these days thanks to over-digitalisation, the consequential focus on 3D printing and laser-cutting, and the rapid shift toward sealed-box design. counter-constraints [Crapfutures] autoprogettazione? [Enzo Mari] (via Bruce Sterling) The Trans Pacific Partnership is a secretly negotiated agreement between 12 countries, including the US, Canada and Japan, which establishes punishing regimes for censoring and controlling the Internet, as well as allowing corporations to nullify safety, environmental and labor laws that limit their profits. The corporations and governments that backed TPP dismissed criticism of the secret negotiations process (even members of Congress and Parliaments were not allowed to know about the substance of the negotiations, though corporate lobbyists were), promising that there would be a "debate" after the TPP was finished (that is, when it was too late). Early this morning (US time), representatives of 12 countries gathered in New Zealand to sign TPP. We never got the debate. Now, each of those 12 countries' legislatures will have to ratify the signatures, passing bills that turn the secretly negotiated terms into the law of each land. The US Congress agreed to "fast track" TPP, with even Tea Party stalwarts surrendering their right and responsibility to evaluate the agreement's specifics to the Obama administration's bureaucrats. The fight's not over. This is the largest "trade agreement" in history, and that makes it the most fragile. Politicians will lose their jobs over this, one way or another (though the politicians that back TPP will doubtless walk into cushy industry sinecures in exchange for their willingness to shill). Here's how to join the fight. Of course, the signing is a totally meaningless bit of theater. The real fight is over ratification. The various countries need to ratify the TPP for the agreement to go into effect. Technically, the TPP will enter into force 60 days after all signers ratify it or, if that doesn't happen, within two years if at least six of the 12 participant countries ratify it and those six countries account for 85% of the combined gross domestic product of the 12 countries. Got that? In short, this means that if the US doesn't ratify it, the TPP is effectively dead. The US needs a majority of both houses of Congress to approve it, similar to a typical bill. And that's no sure thing right now. Unfortunately, that's mainly because a group of our elected officials are upset that the TPP doesn't go far enough in helping big businesses block competition, but it's still worth following. Inevitably, there will be some debate during the ratification process, though there are enough rumors suggesting that no one really wants to do it until after the Presidential election, because people running for President don't want to reveal that they're happy to sell out the public's interest to support a legacy business lobbyist agenda. But, even that debate will likely be fairly limited and almost certainly will avoid the real issues, and real problems, with the TPP. Either way, today's symbolic signing should really be an exclamation point on the near total lack of transparency and debate in this process. The 90 day window was a perfect opportunity to have an actual discussion about what's in the TPP and why there are problems with it, but the administration showed absolutely no interest in doing so. And why should it? It already got the deal it wanted behind closed doors. But, at least it can pretend it used these 90 days to be "transparent." Countries Sign The TPP Whatever Happened To The 'Debate' We Were Promised Before Signing? [Mike Masnick/Techdirt] (Image: The TransPacific Partnership (TPP) -WORST Thing Happening on Earth Right Now (Excluding Fukushima) ) A UN panel has concluded that Julian Assange is being "arbitrarily detained," reports the BBC Assange has been holed up in the Ecuadorean embassy in London since 2012, knowing that he will be arrested if he leaves. Originally detained in connection to rape and sexual assault claims out of Sweden, Assange says the claims are false and crafted to disrupt his whistleblowing work. Downing Street said the panel's ruling would not be legally binding in the UK while a European Arrest Warrant remained in place. "We have been consistently clear that Mr Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the UK but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorean embassy," he added. "The UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Mr Assange to Sweden." The Swedish foreign ministry said in a statement that it noted the UN panel's decision "differs from that of the Swedish authorities". Danny Santulli's siblings, cousins hold vigil for him in Peace Park An end to hazing was the point of a Wednesday candlelight vigil in Peace Park organized by Danny Santulli's siblings and cousins. Best of Business 2022: Learn Who Won Our 15th Annual Reader Poll Local professionals chose their favorite business and professional services, products, healthcare, dining and more. Find out who their top picks are. Natalie Birch, a physician assistant (right), checks patient Verlene Smiths ears during an exam at the newly opened Christ Community Health Services location on Austin Peay Highway in Raleigh. SHARE Maria Jimenez (standing) helps a patient check in Feb. 3, 2016 at the newly opened Christ Community Health Services clinic in Raleigh. By Kevin McKenzie of The Commercial Appeal Abdominal pain on Wednesday drew Verlene Smith to the new Christ Community Health Services clinic in a shopping center across Austin Peay from the struggling Raleigh Springs Mall. As a 34-year-old resident of the Raleigh-Frayser area, Smith said she hasn't had a primary care doctor. "I will be having one," Smith said, at Christ Community's new Raleigh Health Center. Following the same mantra that businesses do, "location, location, location" helped guide Christ Community's decision to open its newest health center in Raleigh, said Lance Luttrell, chief operating officer. "For us, location is just as important, but it's not because it's the popular place to go," Luttrell said. "It's really because there is nobody else there. When we looked at the northeast corner of Memphis, there really was no other significant primary care in that area." One important sign of the need is that the emergency room of Methodist North Hospital, about 1 1/2 miles from the new clinic, has logged more visits than any other in Memphis in at least one recent year. ZIP code-level data, ZIP code 38128 in this case, helps guide the location decision, Luttrell said. The data is provided through the federal Health Resources & Services Administration, part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which helps fund federally qualified health centers such as Christ Community. Another area nonprofit primary care provider, the Memphis Health Center, also receives funding as a federally qualified health center. Christ Community's Raleigh Health Center, with 14 examination rooms, will start up a dental clinic in July, Luttrell said. "We looked at it and there's like two dentists in the whole area and that region has about 100,000 people," he said. Outfitting and equipping the 16,000-square-foot former retail location at 3481 Austin Peay cost about $2.5 million, an expense Christ Community is working to help meet through fundraising, Luttrell said. A new annual $650,000 "access point" grant from HRSA will help cover costs of treating uninsured patients, providing the operating support to open the new center, he said. Christ Community closed one location last July, at 1211 Union where its family medicine residency program was housed until it was transferred to another faith-based health care provider, Resurrection Health. That closed clinic, in the Medical District area, was not in an underserved area and didn't receive the federal subsidy like the Raleigh clinic, Luttrell said. Data showed that a large number of Raleigh residents have been drawn to Christ Community's Broad Avenue Health Center, he said, although its Frayser Health Center is available at 969 Frayser Boulevard. With an annual revenue of about $25 million, Christ Community operates seven medical clinic locations, three of which include dental clinics, and one stand-alone dental clinic. The organization has a staff of about 300, including about 50 doctors, nurse practitioners and physician assistants. On Wednesday, Natalie Birch, a May graduate of Christian Brothers University's physician assistant program, prepared to track down the cause of Smith's pain at the Raleigh clinic. "A lot of people don't have primary care providers here," Birch said. "I see a lot of people who really need it." Memphis U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen and Shelby County Mayor Mark Luttrell are scheduled to attend a ribbon-cutting at the Raleigh health center at 10 a.m. Tuesday. Christ Community's Lance Luttrell said he's not related to the mayor. February 2, 2016 Concerned citizens listen to a presentation during a public meeting hosted by the Overton Park Conservancy and held in the auditorium at the Brooks Museum. The purpose of the meeting was to hear suggestions from the community on how to solve the problems of heavy traffic and lack of parking in the park. (Nikki Boertman/The Commercial Appeal) The original plan for Overton Park did not include a zoo. Plans changed not long after the park opened when a bear was muzzled and chained to a tree in the park. It was a black bear. Pandas and Grizzlies wouldn't arrive in Memphis for nearly a hundred years. Soon other people brought animals to the park "and lined the cages up next to the bear, creating a public menagerie," historians Beverly Bond and Janann Sherman wrote in "Memphis: In Black and White." One thing led to another and the menagerie became the Memphis Zoo, one of the most popular zoos in the country. I thought about that impromptu moment in Memphis history Tuesday evening at Overton Park as I listened to urban planners talk about ways to keep the bear from destroying the tree, and vice versa. "This is a well-loved park loved so much that we sometimes hurt the park," Steve Auterman, an architect, planner and designer for Looney Ricks Kiss, told me and 250 other park lovers. "Our goal, with good design and collaborative planning, is to develop workable solutions that will make the park better for everyone." Everyone, including the zoo lovers and park lovers. The zoo's overflow parking has scarred the Greensward and wounded the zoo's relationship with the park it shares. Both are regrettable and fixable. That's what I heard at Tuesday's public meeting, held at the Brooks Museum of Art and hosted by the Overton Park Conservancy. It was a reasoned, respectful, collegial, farsighted and hopeful discussion. It's too bad zoo officials declined to participate. "The Memphis Zoo is not an official partner of this plan because we believe our specific parking needs will not be addressed by their study," zoo president Chuck Brady wrote in an email to zoo members before the meeting. I doubt the comprehensive, long-range plan that Auterman and his colleagues are developing for the entire park will meet the zoo's specific parking preferences. In other words, it likely won't recommend turning the 12-acre greensward, the park's public gathering centerpiece, into a permanent parking lot for the zoo. It shouldn't. Overton Park wasn't created for the zoo. It also wasn't designed for a car-dependent culture, or a city whose population has grown seven times since the park opened in 1901. The zoo's million-plus annual visitors aren't the only reasons the popular park is regularly overrun with Cougars, Impalas, Rams and hundreds of other motor vehicles. The park's narrow lanes and limited entrances weren't built to accommodate everyone who uses the museum, the art college, the veterans plaza, the Shell, the dog park, the lake, the trails and the greensward, not to mention the zoo. As the consultants explained Tuesday evening, overflow parking isn't the only challenge facing the 342-acre park. Partial sidewalks, narrow lanes, popular venues and busy highways on the perimeter cause problems for drivers, bikers and pedestrians, not to mention next-door neighborhoods and people just passing by. An expanding zoo and the city's monster maintenance lot on the southeast corner have created more challenges. The consultants, who include Alta Planning + Design, and Kimley Horn and Associates, are familiar with the challenges. They've worked on even larger, even busier urban parks with zoos in St. Louis, San Diego and Chicago. "It's a common problem," Auterman told us Tuesday evening. "We've learned how to move a lot of people around in limited public spaces." The consultants are moving as fast as they can. They are seeking public comments via an online survey. They plan a second public meeting Feb. 18. They've already met with all of the park's stakeholders, including zoo officials. "As an Overton Park neighbor," Brady wrote, "we have provided study consultants with the information they need so they truly have our perspective and a universal look at the issues at hand." That's exactly what we need, a universal plan. I hope Mayor Jim Strickland and zoo officials will give the consultants time to develop one. We need more than a plan that either solves the zoo's parking problem or saves the greensward. We need a comprehensive and collaborative plan that preserves all of Overton Park for generations to come. Overton Park Survey The Overton Park Conservancy is seeking public comments on parking, access and other issues to help consultants develop a long-range plan for the park and its partners. To take the online survey, visit overtonpark.org.

Memphis Symphony Orchestra

SHARE By John Beifuss of The Commercial Appeal A $50,000 grant from the prestigious Andrew W. Mellon Foundation will help the Memphis Symphony Orchestra develop a program that coordinators say is intended to attract young musicians from Latin, African-American and other "underrepresented" communities to the orchestra. Announced Wednesday, the grant will enable the symphony to plan a "musician diversity fellowship" program, to recruit emerging professional musicians from conservatories and music schools to spend a year or two with the orchestra here, to participate in full performances, community events and so on. "We hope that some of them would fall in love with the city and want to stay here," said Rhonda Causie, a longtime MSO supporter and administrator, who is leading the fellowship's planning team, with the assistance of Belinda Anderson, whose job title Vice Chair of Diversity and Inclusion testifies to the organization's determination to attract musicians of all types. Causie said much of the work of the symphony these days is "about community engagement," so it is crucial to recruit minority players. "People, frankly, need to see musicians who look like they do, so they know this is music that speaks to everybody. The reality is we've failed to connect to a lot of people in the past." The hope is to develop, establish and sustain a Memphis Symphony Orchestra diversity fellowship program that is "unique and substantial" enough to become a known commodity in the symphony world, according to MSO board chair Gayle S. Rose. She said the grant represented "a real investment in Memphis" from the Mellon Foundation, which has "an emphasis on diversity in the arts." Once established, the diversity fellowship would require ongoing financial support, which could come from Mellon or other agencies. Based in New York, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation is a private entity endowed by the Mellon family of Pittsburgh, with wealth originally accumulated by banker-industrialist and former Secretary of the Treasury Andrew Mellon, who died in 1933. Mellon grants can be as large as millions of dollars for a single project. Photos by Michael Donahue/The Commercial Appeal TOP: King cake from Kay Bakery; CENTER: King cake at La Baguette French Bread and Pastry Shop; BOTTOM: King cake from Kroger. SHARE King cake from Johns Pantry and Bakery is rounder than most. Gibsons cinni-mini doughnut gets a Mardi Gras theme. King Cake at La Baguette French Bread and Pastry Shop. Feb. 2 2016 PHOTO BY MICHAEL DONAHUE King Cake at Kroger. Jan. 26 2016 PHOTO BY MICHAEL DONAHUE By Michael Donahue of The Commercial Appeal I'm miffed if I don't find the baby in the king cake. You probably can find several of the little plastic babies from Fat Tuesdays past in my desk drawer at work. I've been known to cut one of the cakes almost to shreds trying to find the them. Now I don't have to worry about finding the baby; most bakeries stick them on the cake in plain sight. Apparently, people don't want to find the baby in the esophagus. "Our insurance doesn't cover it," said John Moberly, baker/owner of John's Pantry and Bakery, where king cake babies are found on top of the cakes along with the gold chocolate-filled doubloons and Mardi Gras beads. "Broken teeth, choking no, no. We can't do that." King cakes, which are sold before Lent, usually are decorated in three colors: green, yellow and purple. Green stands for "faith," yellow for "power" and purple for "justice." The baby stands for Jesus. The cake is named after the three kings Gaspar, Melchior and Balthasar. Moberly offers several types of king cakes, but they all have the same rich egg dough. "It's smooth, light," said baker Patrick Goode. "It's just easy to work with. It's my favorite dough." The dough is the same type his grandmother used to make her homemade cinnamon rolls, Moberly said. "If it's good enough for my grandmother, it's good enough for my waist line." I tried the honey-almond Bavarian cream filling, which was delicious. The filling is "light, fluffy," Moberly said. Cream cheese, which some bakeries use, is "much denser." You also can get strawberry, peach, raspberry and coconut filling. Green, purple and gold large crystal sanding sugar is sprinkled on the cakes, which are circular unlike most king cakes, which are oblong. Their cake is made "in the manner of Maurice's bakery in New Orleans," Moberly said. "It went along with other yeast bread products we were doing." La Baguette French Bread and Pastry Shop general manager Gene Amagliani describes their king cake as a Danish flavored with a cinnamon and cream cheese filling. "It's a laminated dough with butter in between the dough layers," he said. "It's made like a croissant would be made." The cakes are topped with house-made white glaze flavored with German vanilla, and green, yellow and purple sugar sprinkles. Queo Bautista inherited Kay Bakery's king cake recipe when he bought the bakery 20 years ago. "The cake is more like a German coffee cake," he said. "It's more like bread." The filling, which includes cinnamon, sugar and raisins, is "more like an icing," said Bautista, who recently made 43 king cakes for one customer. Bautista spreads filling onto the dough after he rolls it out. Then he rolls the dough into a tube, places it in a pan and cuts a slit lengthwise into the dough. Then he turns the whole thing inside out to create the oval-shaped cake. The baby is hidden inside the cake, Bautista said. "We do it the traditional way." John's Pantry, La Baguette and Kay Bakery customers should order their king cakes 24 hours in advance, but if you want to just grab one off the counter, try Kroger. I love their cakes, which remind me of a cinnamon roll with icing. The cake is covered with an apricot glaze while the cake is hot, said Melina Dube, who works in the bakery at the Kroger Olive Branch store. The green, yellow and purple icing, which is the same as they use for their Danish and their rolls, is applied about 45 minutes later. Colored sugars go over that. If you don't want a king-size king cake, you can buy a rectangular King Cake Donut at Gibson's Donuts. "That's really the cinni-mini, which we usually do," said co-owner/manager Britton DeWeese. The cinni-mini is a "small version of our cinnamon rolls. King cakes are typically cinnamon bread twisted up, so I slapped some vanilla icing on the cinni-mini, Mardi Gras sanding sugar, stuck a baby in it, and it's technically a king cake." John's Pantry is at 8046 Willow Tree Lane, 901-308-2404. La Baguette French Bread and Pastry Shop is at 3088 Poplar, 901-458-0900. Kay Bakery is at 667 Avon, 901-767-0780. Kroger locations include 7427 Goodman Road in Olive Branch, 662-895-1460. Gibson's Donuts is at 760 Mt. Moriah, 901-682-8200. (Courtesy of Shout! Factory) Stax soul singer William Bell is among the musical legends in the Memphis music documentary Take Me to the River. SHARE Actor Vernon Wells, post-apocalyptic adversary of Mel Gibson in "The Road Warrior," is among the guests who will be at this weekend's Tennessee Comic Con at the Memphis Cook Convention Center. Courtesy of Warner Bros. By John Beifuss of The Commercial Appeal A four-year labor of love that celebrates Memphis music, past and future, the documentary "Take Me to the River" becomes available this week on DVD and Blu-ray from Shout! Factory, a label that specializes in classic, cult and music-related material. The movie also can be viewed via iTunes, Amazon Instant and other video-on-demand options. The release could be the first in a series: A second "Take Me to the River" film, set in New Orleans, is currently underway. Created and produced by Cody Dickinson of the North Mississippi Allstars and California-based filmmaker/musician Martin Shore, "Take Me to the River" offers a unique, cross-generational take on the legacy and influence of Memphis blues, soul, rhythm-and-blues and hip-hop. The film brings together such artists as Otis Clay and Lil P-Nut, Bobby "Blue" Bland and Yo Gotti, and Bobby Rush and Frayser Boy in various Mid-South studios (Royal, Electraphonic, Zebra Ranch) to record new versions of classic songs. The sessions become rousing mini-concerts that also offer history lessons (sometimes abetted by narrator Terrence Howard), as such participants as Stax vocalist William Bell and West Coast rapper Snoop Dogg (one of the project's few out-of-towners) discuss the importance of music to their communities and to the civil rights initiatives that have used popular music as an unofficial soundtrack. Bonus features on the DVD/Blu-ray include an extended conversation with Bell and Snoop Dogg; footage of Howard interviewing former Stax co-owner Al Bell; and a previously unseen recording session that teams rappers 8Ball & MJG with members of the Bar-Kays. ("My roots run deep, like blues on Beale Street," raps 8Ball.) Inevitably, "Take Me to the River" which officially debuted at Austin's South by Southwest festival in 2014 and earned a Memphis theatrical run later that year functions as a testament to Memphis talent and a reminder that we should appreciate artists while they're still here to enjoy the recognition. Participants in the film who are no longer with us include Bland, Clay, "wah-wah" guitarist Charles "Skip" Pitts, Howlin' Wolf collaborator Hubert Sumlin, and Hi guitar genius Mabon "Teenie" Hodges. The film also remembers Isaac Hayes, Hi records mastermind Willie Mitchell (whose grandson, music producer Lawrence "Boo" Mitchell, is a key participant in the movie), and Dickinson's father, Mid-South music eminence grise, Jim Dickinson. "Memphis music is an international treasure, and it's an honor to protect and preserve it, but I also feel like it's a duty," Cody Dickinson said. "Losing Teenie in the process of making this movie was just so sad. The last time I saw Teenie, we had just played onstage with Snoop Dogg (in Austin), and he had the biggest smile on his face ... He was just loving life." But even as the film pays tribute to the elders, "We're not just rehashing the past here," Dickinson said. "We're looking back with respect but also forging into the future." To that end, Dickinson and Shore currently are shooting "Take Me to the River: New Orleans," a follow-up film that celebrates the Mississippi's other great city for music (and food and culture). Like Memphis, New Orleans has lost many great musicians in recent years: Allen Toussaint, Eddie Bo, Snooks Eaglin, and so on. But, of course, many remain, and "Take Me to the River: New Orleans" is bringing together such artists as to name only a few Irma Thomas, "Big Chief" Monk Boudreaux, multiple Nevilles, Louisiana-raised Toto vocalist Bobby Kimball (who began his career in New Orleans) and representatives of the city's vibrant hip-hop community. "We're using collaboration to tell a story about the rich history of these places," Dickinson said. "Music is a powerful communicator." As exciting for Dickinson as the filmmaking is the fact that "Take Me to the River" has been embraced as a teaching tool in some schools thanks to an "education initiative" developed with the Berklee City Music program of the Berklee College of Music in Boston. The initiative provides free materials to teachers in schools in mostly struggling neighborhoods, to help them use the dynamic medium of film to introduce students to music history and composition. According to Shore, 75 percent of the profits from sales of "Take Me to the River" will be donated to the Soulsville Foundation, the Church Health Center and the HART Fund of the Blues Foundation. Jay Maidment/Screen Gems, Sony via AP This image released by Screen Gems shows Jess Radomska in a scene from Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. SHARE This image released by Screen Gems shows Lily James in a scene from "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies." (Jay Maidment/Screen Gems, Sony via AP) By John Beifuss of The Commercial Appeal More droll than drool (though blood and other seepages do occasionally drain from the cavities that pockmark undead faces), "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" revitalizes two moribund and previously unaffiliated genres, the period costume romance and the walking-dead action thriller. Based on the best-selling 2009 parody novel credited to Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Seth (the latter next penned "Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter"), the movie demonstrates the durability of both Austen's 1813 "comedy of manners," with its appealing depictions of ritualized social behavior, and the more recent zombie apocalypse adventure, with its appalling depictions of riotous social chaos. The movie also is funnier and more coherent than its rather labored joke title might lead one to expect. It's a disarming surprise, and it ought to please devotees of both "Masterpiece Theatre" and Fangoria. Set in what might be called a Merchant-Ivory-Romero milieu, "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" opens with early 19th-century England in a state of siege, thanks to the import from "the colonies" (sure, blame America) of a plague that transforms its victims into the living dead. London has been isolated via defensive fortification (as a political parable, the movie affirms the virtues of walls and moats, and defines "coexistence" with the enemy as ''appeasement"); meanwhile, the gentry occupy stately country manors surrounded with spiky iron wire, while their daughters on the lookout for zombies as well as for husbands are trained in "the deadly arts of the Orient." These Regency lovelies slip daggers into their garters before meeting for tea in their drawing rooms; clean their firearms while exchanging romantic gossip; and speak more Japanese and Chinese than French, as a consequence of having trained with Shaolin monks and other masters of the martial arts. Much of the humor comes from the incongruity between the formal behavior and polysyllabic speech of the respectable citizenry and the gruesome slapstick absurdity of the zombie violence (which is not as extreme as viewers of "The Walking Dead" might expect: Due to its PG-13 rating, the movie is as corseted as its womenfolk). Even with all the undead action, the story is much the same as Austen's, with the proud Elizabeth Bennett (Lily James also Disney's most recent "Cinderella") declaring "I shall never relinquish my sword for a ring," even as her mother (Sally Phillips) works to find a husband for Elizabeth and Elizabeth's four sisters, the prettiest of whom (everyone agrees) is Jane (Bella Heathcote). The prettiest lips in the film, however, belong not to Jane but to her suitor, young Mr. Bingley (Douglas Booth), who resembles a 1960s British pop idol. Other eligible prospects include Collins (scene-stealing Matt Smith), an obsequious ninny of a parson; Wickham (Jack Huston), a soldier with interesting theories about the zombification process; and, of course, Mr. Darcy (Sam Riley), an ace zombie killer whose prideful nature provokes Elizabeth's scorn until his integrity lowers her defenses. Darcy's aunt is Lady Catherine, described as "the most deadly swordswoman in all of Great Britain"; she is played by Lena Headey ("Game of Thrones"), in an eyepatch that adds sinister glamour. "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies" was directed and scripted by Burr Steers ("Igby Goes Down"), a former actor for director Whit Stillman (who this year debuted his own more faithful Austen adaptation at Sundance). For the most part, Steers eschews the chaotic editing and digital-effects overload that wreck many similar action-horror epics (for example, 2013's "Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter"). Steers' film is wry and his touch is deft, if not as impressive as Elizabeth's, as demonstrated when the young lady snatches buzzing carrion flies from mid-air. Maybe she can repeat this stunt in the sequel. "Sense and Sensibility and Zombies," anyone? PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES Opens Friday at the CinePlanet 16, Collierville Towne 16, Cordova Cinema, DeSoto Cinema 16, Forest Hill 8, Hollywood 20 Cinema, Majestic, Olive Branch Cinema, Palace Cinema, Paradiso, Stage Cinema, Studio on the Square, Summer Quartet Drive-In. Rated PG-13 for zombie violence and brief suggestive material. A jury acquitted former MPD officer John Smith of rape Wednesday evening, but found him guilty of official oppression. SHARE By Kayleigh Skinner of The Commercial Appeal A jury acquitted former Memphis police officer John Smith of rape Wednesday evening, but found him guilty of official oppression, attorney Charles Mitchell said. Smith, 55, was sentenced to the maximum of two years for the oppression charge. However, he has spent nearly five years in jail awaiting trial. Since he's being credited with time served, Smith will be processed out of the jail soon, possibly by Thursday, officials said. Official oppression, a class E felony, is described in part in Tennessee law as a public servant acting under color of office who "intentionally subjects another to mistreatment or to arrest, detention, stop, frisk, halt, search, seizure, dispossession, assessment or lien when the public servant knows the conduct is unlawful..." The incident in question happened on Oct. 26, 2009, at South Third and Belle Haven in the Barton Heights neighborhood. The 20-year-old victim told police that she was walking in that area when Smith stopped her and asked for her identification. She told officials that Smith then pulled her behind a building and said she had to have sex with him or go to jail. She testified that she said no, but Smith forced her to the ground and raped her. Smith, who was stationed at the Raines precinct, resigned five months later on April 9, 2010. Authorities took him into custody 20 days later following his indictment by a grand jury. A series of delays led to his trial beginning five years and nine months after his indictment on the rape charge. The delays were related to mental evaluations, his firing of his defense lawyer, an attempt to fire a second lawyer and a request to represent himself, which he eventually withdrew. Although he had been released on bond after the initial arrest, Smith failed to appear on a disorderly conduct charge and was taken back into custody Feb. 12, 2011. He has remained in jail since. Staff reporter Jody Callahan contributed to this story. By Yolanda Jones of The Commercial Appeal Editor's note: The headline on this story has been updated to reflect that Memphis police are not yet classifying the attacks as the work of a serial rapist. A rapist who robs his victims has attacked at least five women since last year, Memphis police said. The attacks began last fall. The latest was Tuesday. A victim was attacked on E.H. Crump Boulevard and Mississippi Boulevard on Sept. 26. Police said the suspect demanded money and sexually assaulted the victim. Then two days later on Sept. 28, a woman was attacked in the 3500 block of Lamar. Police said around 4 a.m., the suspect robbed and sexually assaulted the victim. On that same day around 5 p.m., police said the suspect then robbed and attacked a woman as she left work at a store in the 4500 block of Poplar. The victim said the suspect stole her purse and then hit her in the head with a gun when she resisted. The suspect fled in a red Toyota Camry. On Oct. 17, a woman reported that she was also robbed in the 500 block of South Mendenhall. The latest attack occurred around 4:30 a.m. Tuesday. A woman told police that a man abducted her at gunpoint near James Road and Skylake in the Raleigh area. He then drove to a secluded area and raped her. She was later released, and treated at an area hospital. In three of the attacks, the suspect robbed and raped the victims. In the other two incidents, he robbed the victims but did not sexually assault them. Police have a vague description of the attacker described as a black man, 25- 30 years old, 6 feet tall with a fade hair style. He may be driving a red or maroon Toyota with tinted windows. By Ryan Poe of The Commercial Appeal Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam said Wednesday that 2016 isn't the year to repeal the state's controversial Hall tax on interest and stock investment income, which gave Memphis $14.5 million in revenue last year. Haslam released a $34.8 billion budget this week that sets aside much of a record $746 million surplus for education and infrastructure projects, despite a push from some Republican lawmakers including Sen. Brian Kelsey of Germantown to use the surplus to do away with the tax. "I think finding a long-term solution is something we should be working toward," said Haslam, who was at The Commercial Appeal's office Wednesday to talk about his budget. "I just think that coming in today and saying we're going to do away with that isn't realistic." Kelsey, whose district includes much of East Memphis and Germantown, recently said he will again propose eliminating the tax, which generates about $350 million annually in revenue, including $180 million to $190 million for state government. But this year, he said, he'll add a provision recommended by Comptroller Justin Wilson that would let local governments vote on whether to continue collecting or, possibly, have the state collect their portion of the revenue. Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland told local lawmakers Jan. 4 that the city could stop lobbying against a repeal of the tax if the law lets the city make up its lost revenue. Opposition to the Hall tax repeal was one of six legislative priorities for the city. "Mayor Strickland and I are closer to one another's positions than I think people may have thought we were before that meeting," Kelsey said in an interview last month. Kelsey had in January proposed repaying cities the five-year average that they received from the tax. But the change may not help Kelsey's effort win Haslam's approval. Haslam said he wouldn't support any bills that would make some communities "whole." "To say we're going to keep them whole means we're going to have somebody from one of our poorest municipalities subsidizing one of our wealthier municipalities, and I just can't go for that," he said. Haslam said the Hall tax gives people an incentive to move out of the state, and he supports efforts to "shave" the tax, especially to give tax relief to senior citizens. But taking away a revenue stream that generates that amount of money every year would mean cuts somewhere, he said. "It's just hard to suck that much out of the budget at one time and do something about it," he said. Follow more politics and policy coverage from the InforMemphis team on Twitter and Facebook.

Commissioner Melvin Burgess, left, and Commissioner Steve Basar talk during the Shelby County Commission meeting in 2015. (Brad Vest/The Commercial Appeal)

By Linda A. Moore of The Commercial Appeal Members of an ad hoc committee convened to find a solution to Shelby County School's $1.5 billion retiree benefits shortfall noted on Wednesday that before they can settle on a plan, they'll call in an expert to help them whittle the amount owed. The committee, which included members of the County Commission, school board and county government, will call on Tony Saunders, chief restructuring officer for Wayne County, Michigan and a member of the Detroit Financial Review Commission, to review the overall OPEB obligations and make recommendations on how to shrink it. The ad hoc committee was formed after the Tennessee Attorney General opined last month that Shelby County government was not responsible for the $1.1 billion in OPEB (other post-employment benefits) obligations that belonged to the former Memphis City Schools. The remaining $4 million belongs to legacy SCS. The opinion did not say directly who was responsible for MCS' liability, but many in county government have argued that the city of Memphis is responsible. The city's lawyers have said Memphis is not responsible. City Council Chairman Kemp Conrad said no one from the council would take part in the ad hoc committee. "I wish somebody with the city would have come so we could get some information from them," said County Commissioner Melvin Burgess, the ad hoc committee chairman. "But nevertheless, we've got to move forward." Retiring the current $1.5 billion would require payments of $119 million a year, said Harvey Kennedy, county chief administrative officer. "Quite frankly we can't pay our way out of that liability at $119 million a year," Kennedy said. He wants the school system to look at its benefits package, something school board chairwoman Teresa Jones said the board is already addressing. Even if the county were able to increase its contribution to SCS for OPEB by $50 million, it would then be required to give a total of $10 million in matching funds to the municipal school districts, Kennedy said, and it would not be able to make SCS use the money for OPEB. No date was set for the committee's next meeting. By Yolanda Jones of The Commercial Appeal A Shelby County Sheriff's Office deputy assigned to juvenile court has been indicted after he was accused of assaulting a 15-year-old. Willie Jones, 36, was arrested and charged with official misconduct, official oppression, child abuse, and assault stemming from an incident last month. According to Shelby County Sheriffs Office spokesman Chip Washington, detectives responded to Juvenile Court on Jan. 21 regarding an assault case. Detectives spoke with an investigator who said the suspect was involved in an altercation with a 15-year-old boy. Washington said detectives reviewed a video that showed the teen walking into the control center at juvenile court, picking up a piece of paper, shaking it and leaving. The suspect then confronted the teen, shoving him in the chest and then striking him in the head with his fist several times. Two other deputies had to step in and separate the two. Jones was indicted on the charges Wednesday and arrested. He was released Thursday after posting a $10,000 bond. He has been relieved of duty without pay. Let this serve as a reminder that this type of behavior will not be tolerated in any way, especially from one of our employees who is charged with the care and protection of our juveniles, said Shelby County Sheriff Bill Oldham. By Kayleigh Skinner of The Commercial Appeal Last year Dellarontay Readus helped inspire the city with his story of triumph and perseverance as people rallied to send him off to college with a new computer, gift cards, a bike and other gifts. Now the Shelby County Schools graduate and current computer science student at Stanford University has plans in place for his summer break he will intern with Microsoft. The 18-year-old was studying Japanese last week when he learned he landed a position in the "Explore Microsoft" program, a 12-week internship beginning in June. Readus and his fellow interns will relocate to Seattle for the summer and work in a variety of computer science positions in a "rotational experience that enables you to gain experience in our different software engineering roles," according to Microsoft's website. "Great doesn't even begin to describe the internship honestly," Readus said. "Oh, it's amazing, everything that they do and how many opportunities you will have after it." He thinks he earned the internship after impressing Microsoft officials in three 45-minute interviews, but also credits his hometown with networking connections. In 2014, Dr. Stephen P. Walker, senior pastor St. Jude Baptist Church on East Trigg in South Memphis, noticed Readus in a food line and suggested he get in touch with Cassandra Webster, executive director of Memphis Challenge. The group works to identify talented minority students, get them to college and then back to Memphis to work. Webster said an alumnus of the program now works at Microsoft and she put Readus in touch with him so he could learn more about the internship. "I think he put in a good word," Readus said. Readus has achieved academic success despite a lifetime of challenges. By the time he was a senior in high school, he had moved 21 times and attended 10 different schools by tenth grade. He was very close with his mother, Lynn Readus, who was blind since birth. She died unexpectedly in August, weeks before he was to move to California to begin classes at Stanford. The education he's received so far has been "astounding, because they make sure you learn everything you need to learn." When asked if his prestigious new internship paid, Readus replied: "Oh lord, yes." Gov. Bill Haslam speaks to The Commercial Appeal in a meeting in Memphis on Wednesday. By Jennifer Pignolet of The Commercial Appeal Governor Bill Haslam said Wednesday he has no doubt the state of Tennessee funds its K-12 school system adequately, particularly in the wake of a budget proposal announced Monday that would add $261 million in education spending next year. But on the issue of funding equity whether each district receives an amount that is fair to them based on their student populations could be another story, he told The Commercial Appeal in an editorial board meeting. Both issues are the center of a pending lawsuit Shelby County Schools has filed against the state, dually arguing that schools are underfunded and that the money that is available is not doled out fairly. An additional suit filed in east Tennessee raises the adequacy issue only. Haslam said he is "mindful" of the equity issue, but that the accusation of inadequate spending was not motivation for the additional funding this year. "It's a record amount of money that will come from the state to Shelby County," Haslam said. "Now will it solve their budget issues? Maybe not. But ... I don't know how, if we make a record investment, it won't help them." The SCS lawsuit, filed in Davidson County in August last year, mimics a series of lawsuits filed in Kansas that initially prompted the state legislature to put additional money into education, only to have it rolled back three years later. A dozen years later, the schools are still fighting for more money. Haslam acknowledged he can't promise the new level of funding would hold assuming the legislature approves it this year after he leaves office. "The way democracy works is 10 years from now there'll be a new governor there and there'll be pretty much a new legislature," Haslam said. "Nobody can guarantee anything 10 years from now in a democratic society." Haslam said he does not know if the new funding will appease the districts that have filed suit or encourage them to drop the issue. "I have no idea the answer to that question," he said. "We just have to do the right thing. When you make a record investment in education, I'm not certain how anybody can say we're not committed to doing what we can." SCS attorneys for the lawsuit said in a statement their suit is on hold while the state rules on whether to dismiss the lawsuit out of Hamilton County. "We are currently in the discovery stage of the litigation, and are now evaluating the proposed funding increases announced by the Governor," the statement said. "We remain hopeful that an amicable agreement can be reached with the State of Tennessee on these funding matters." SCS board member Chris Caldwell, who chairs the board's budget and finance committee, said this week that a decision on how to move forward with the suit would be a board decision, but added he didn't think SCS would receive enough money to fulfill the demands of the lawsuit. Caldwell also said the school district will likely still have a budget gap to close this year, and that while any amount helps, the earmarked funding will inhibit how the money can be spent. That could leave the district with many needs still unmet. Haslam said most of the money, about $197 million of the $248 million that is recurring, is earmarked intentionally. "We want to be very specific where we see some weaknesses in our approach," he said, adding that technology and extra teachers for English language learners were two top priorities. The spending, which follows a $150 million increase last year, also includes $105 million for teacher salaries. Haslam said the school districts will have discretion to spend that money on salaries or benefits if they already pay at least the state average for teacher salaries. Another $45 million will go toward paying for teachers' 12th month of health insurance during the year. "Money is not the answer to all our education challenges but it's got to be a part of it," Haslam said. SHARE By Daniel Connolly of The Commercial Appeal Collierville leaders anticipate no property tax increase and a pay raise for the town's employees as work begins on a budget for the coming fiscal year. "It's going to be a relatively bland budget year," Administrator James Lewellen said. Officials will work out details of the spending plan between now and July 1, when the new budget year begins. Lewellen said he wasn't sure how much of a raise employees might get. The prediction of an uneventful budget process in the fast-growing suburb stands in contrast to last year, when the town's Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved raising the property tax rate from $1.53 to $1.78 per $100 of assessed value. The increase was part of the process of supporting a bond issue to pay for a new high school. A portion of sales tax revenue will also support the school bond issue. In addition to the town property tax, Collierville residents pay a Shelby County property tax of $4.37 per $100 of assessed value. Though this year's budget cycle may be short on controversy, officials will still have numerous items to work through the general fund expenditures in the current year's budget total $48.5 million, and various departments are requesting changes. Thursday afternoons have been blocked out for work sessions on the budget; the first such meeting is scheduled for 2 p.m. Thursday and focuses on capital improvement projects, such as road-building. Lewellen said the town charter requires him to give the Board of Mayor and Aldermen a draft budget by May 15. A public hearing on the budget and second reading of the property tax rate is set for May 23. If all goes according to plan, the board will adopt this year's budget and cast a third and final vote on the property tax rate at a June 13 public meeting. John Stamps, one of six members of the Collierville Board of Mayor and Aldermen, said he expects this year's budget to essentially be an extension of last year's, but he's interested to know more details. "I'll be learning as we go along," he said. SHARE By Ron Maxey of The Commercial Appeal DeSoto County public school students and teachers will have a week to celebrate Thanksgiving under a tentative calendar approved by board members for the 2016-17 academic year that starts in August. The Thanksgiving break will run from Nov. 21-25. Christmas break will begin Dec. 19 and end Jan. 2, and spring break will be March 13-17. Teachers will begin the school year on Aug. 1, with students returning Aug. 3. The last day of classes for students is May 22, and teachers will end the school year on May 25 of next year. Board members approved the calendar Monday, but it could be modified if classes are required to be in session on certain dates for state testing. The Mississippi Department of Education hasn't released its calendar of testing dates. Superintendent Cory Uselton said Wednesday that the extended Thanksgiving break was favored in a survey of all 42 of the district's schools. He said it gives students and teachers time to travel if they want for the holiday. The calendar also designates four scheduled holidays as makeup days if classes are needed to offset days canceled because of winter weather. State law requires 180 days of student attendance. The four dates are Dec. 19 (the first day of Christmas break), Feb. 17 (a professional development day for teachers and a student holiday), Feb. 20 (Washington's Birthday) and April 17 (part of the two-day Easter break). Additionally, days can be made up if needed on May 23-24, the two days between the scheduled last day of classes for students and the last day for teachers. Class cancellations are most likely to come after the first of the year, but Uselton said the Dec. 19 makeup day provides a makeup option in case something causes a class cancellation early in the school year. "During (Hurricane) Katrina, for example, a day was missed in August," he said. The early August start date is a return to past practice. A state law in 2012, backed by Gulf Coast legislators who wanted to help tourism with late-season vacations, required schools to start no earlier than the third Monday of August. Many North Mississippi school superintendents, including retired DeSoto Superintendent Milton Kuykendall, pushed successfully to return to an early August date. Legislators acquiesced and returned control over start times to local districts. To see the complete tentative calendar, go to desotocountyschools.org.

Kenath Dwayne Peal

SHARE By Ron Maxey of The Commercial Appeal A Horn Lake man has been sentenced to 20 years for child exploitation after investigators found him in possession of child pornography. Kenath Dewayne Peal, 57, will serve five years with the remaining 15 years of his sentence under post-release supervision by the Mississippi Department of Corrections. He must also pay $1,000 to the Mississippi Children's Trust Fund, $1,000 to the Mississippi Crime Victims Compensation Fund and must register as a sex offender. Peal once was a star on the Memphis wrestling circuit under the name "Nightmare" Ken Wayne. Peal was sentenced after pleading guilty to DeSoto County Circuit Judge Robert P. Chamberlin Jr. Peal was arrested Sept. 9 by investigators with the Attorney General's Cyber Crime Unit and the DeSoto County Sheriff's Department. Investigators found Peal had numerous images and videos of child pornography. The arrest was made through the Attorney General's Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. "We will continue to work with the task force to put these kinds of criminals behind bars, and we thank Judge Chamberlin for the sentence and the DeSoto County Sheriff's Office for their assistance on this case," Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood said in a prepared statement. SHARE David Parker, R-Olive Branch (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis) By Ron Maxey of The Commercial Appeal DeSoto County cities and other municipalities across Mississippi would receive millions more per year in local sales tax revenue under a bill touted by state Sen. David Parker, R-Olive Branch. The proposal, introduced by Parker and co-sponsored by 16 other senators, would over a three-year period increase by 1.5 percent the amount of revenue returned by the state to cities where the revenue is generated. Cities currently get back 18.5 percent, and the bill would increase the percentage by one-half percent a year for three years until reaching 20 percent. Parker says the additional local revenue would make possible badly needed infrastructure repairs for roads, bridges, water and sewer upgrades. "This increase in funding to municipalities isn't an answer to all their infrastructure problems," Parker said, "but infrastructure is a long-term challenge and this provides a longtime budget increase." Figures from the state Department of Revenue, based on FY2014 numbers adjusted for growth, estimate that in Parker's hometown of Olive Branch, the bill would increase the local sales tax rebate to $8.8 million a year from the current $8.6 million once the three-year phase-in is complete. For DeSoto County's other incorporated municipalities, the estimated numbers would be: $14.3 million for Southaven, up from $12.9 million; $4.3 million for Horn Lake, up from $3.9 million; $3.2 million for Hernando, up from $2.9 million; and $67,353 for Walls, up from $61,080. Parker said the bill is based on his belief that local governments know better how to address funding needs in their communities than the state. "This increase in funds would allow them to make local decisions on how best to use it," Parker said, "whether as a supplement to their budget or using the increase toward a bonding measure for major infrastructure projects." Local mayors say Parker's proposal would simply restore cities to their former funding levels from sales tax rebates. "It's just returning what the state took away years ago," Hernando Mayor Chip Johnson said, noting that cities once got back 20 percent of locally generated sales tax. "But we appreciate Sen. Parker understanding that the cities need the money." Johnson said Hernando would have no problem putting the added revenue to work if Parker's bill is approved. "We'll be paving roads with every cent of it for the first few years," Johnson said. "We have $1.5 million a year in paving needs and only $300,000 to $400,000 to spend on it." Johnson added that it's important for citizens to understand the measure would increase local revenue without a tax increase. As for state funding priorities, such as education, suffering from a loss of revenue if the money goes back to cities, Johnson said there are plenty of ways for the state to make up the loss. "The state gives out so many exemptions," he said. "If they'd just take away some of those, they could easily make up the loss." Horn Lake Mayor Allen Latimer agreed with Johnson that Parker's bill simply restores what cities once received. "It's just giving back what we used to have," Latimer said. "I don't know any mayor who doesn't support that." SHARE By Petula Dvorak There are few holes deeper than those in the heart of a 13-year-old girl. For many, it is an age of painful yearning, of a life lived in imaginary cloud worlds, away from acne and algebra and all that awkwardness. It used to be 13-year-olds would cry into their pillows. Or write in rainbow-covered journals, with rainbow pens. Their pain was private. Still, most endured, and survived. But Nicole Madison Lovell found something we all wanted when we were 13: an audience. There are people out there who listen to sad, lonely girls, tell them they are beautiful and smart. They were right there in Nicole's bedroom. She asked them if she was cute. She flirted with them. She showed them coquettish pictures of herself. She was a social-media-savvy tween when she told them all about her first kiss. Her imaginary cloud world wasn't private. On Facebook, Instagram, Kik, in chats and groups, she wasn't the kid with the liver-transplant scars, or the baby-fat girl bullied in her seventh-grade classes. She was a flirting, dating teen with lip gloss and great lines. And Nicole did not survive. She left her house at midnight last Wednesday, shoving a nightstand against her bedroom door and leaving with a water bottle and a "Minions" blanket. Her body was found in North Carolina on Saturday, right across the Virginia line. A Virginia Tech engineering student has been charged with her abduction and killing. We still don't know what evidence led police to 18-year-old David Eisenhauer, a track star from Columbia, Maryland, who ran for Virginia Tech. A second arrest Sunday was just as shocking. Natalie Marie Keepers, 19, is accused of helping Eisenhauer get rid of Nicole's body. She's an engineering student from Laurel, Maryland, who once interned at NASA. Police told Nicole's mom, Tammy Weeks, that they think the sweet-faced girl met Eisenhauer online. The details of that are still unclear, but here's what we know for sure: Nicole led an active, imaginary life online, meeting people on Kik, a messaging app that has been the bane of law enforcement officials for the past couple of years. The app grants users anonymity, it allows searches by age and lets users send photos that aren't stored on phones. It's popular with tweens and teens and predators. "Unfortunately, we see it every day," said Lt. James Bacon, head of the Fairfax County, Virginia, Police Department's child exploitation unit. That unit caught a State Department senior counterterrorism official, Daniel Rosen, trying to arrange a tryst with a child using Kik. He pleaded guilty to stalking and voyeurism and is serving a 32-month prison sentence. He hasn't been the only one using this app to hunt victims. "Kik became the latest thing," Bacon said. "It's attractive to predators because of its anonymity. You can make a Kik account and you can make yourself out to be anyone you want to be." And because Kik is based in Canada, law enforcement officials have had a tough time getting the company to cooperate on cases, Bacon said. This shadow world may be where Eisenhauer met Nicole, police told her mother. "It was some off-the-wall site I never heard of," Weeks said in an interview with The Washington Post. In the digital age, any parent can be Tammy Weeks. Smartphones have made it easier to keep tabs on our children and much, much harder. Teens have been outmaneuvering their parents for decades. Back in my day, we told our parents that we were spending the night at Melanie's house when we were really at the Echo and the Bunnymen show an hour away, Ferris Buellering our way through adolescence. But a lot of times, our parents won, because they caught us sneaking out. Or they called Melanie's mom. This world? The predators aren't just hiding behind the Galaga machine at the arcade. They're in our kids' pockets, in their backpacks, in their bedrooms. It's not OK to play the Luddite. Bumbling dad with the remote control only the kids can figure out needs to die along with dad jeans. Know your kids' digital lives. Prowl their email, their laptops and their phones. "Have your kids' passwords," Bacon said. "Have a working idea of how to use your kids' phone. Mom and Dad bought it for them, for crying out loud. They need to know how to use it." Remember iPhone dad? He's the poor guy who had a two-year legal battle in Dallas after he was arrested on a property-theft charge for taking away his daughter's iPhone when she used it in a horrid way. He was right. Be like iPhone dad. Bacon said he tells parents to never let their kids have in-depth, online conversations with strangers. If your kid has crossed the line, ask your phone carrier to have your kid's phone mirrored to your phone. "Every text, every picture they send, Mom and Dad can see on their device," he said. My kids hate it when I do that. Too bad. Not long ago, I was going through the search history on my 11-year-old son's laptop. Nerf guy, Lego, Nerf, Cats vs. Cucumbers, Curves. Wait! Curves? I clicked on that one, my stomach lurching at the thought of a porn conversation with my tween. "Curves the Hot Wheels Track Builder Challenge!" Whew. But who knows what the next day will bring? And that's chilling. Because Nicole had no idea about the potential dangers lurking at the edges of her online fantasy world. Remember what the lieutenant said: The police see it every day. Petula Dvorak is a columnist for The Washington Post. Select Commodity All Ajwan Alasande Gram Almond(Badam) Alsandikai Amaranthus Ambada Seed Amla(Nelli Kai) Amphophalus Antawala Anthorium Apple Apricot(Jardalu/Khumani) Arecanut(Betelnut/Supari) Arecanut(Betelnut/Supari) Arhar (Tur/Red Gram)(Whole) Arhar (Tur/Red Gram)(Whole) Arhar Dal(Tur Dal) Ashgourd Astera Avare Dal Bajra(Pearl Millet/Cumbu) Bajra(Pearl Millet/Cumbu) Balekai Bamboo Banana Banana - Green Barley (Jau) Bay leaf (Tejpatta) Beans Beaten Rice Beetroot Bengal Gram Dal (Chana Dal) Bengal Gram(Gram)(Whole) Ber(Zizyphus/Borehannu) Ber(Zizyphus/Borehannu) Betal Leaves Bhindi(Ladies Finger) Bitter gourd Black Gram (Urd Beans)(Whole) Black Gram Dal (Urd Dal) Black pepper BOP Bottle gourd Bran Brinjal Broken Rice Broomstick(Flower Broom) Bull Bunch Beans Cabbage Calf Capsicum Cardamoms Carnation Carrot Cashewnuts Castor Seed Cauliflower Chapparad Avare Chennangi Dal Cherry Chikoos(Sapota) Chili Red Chilly Capsicum Chow Chow Chrysanthemum Chrysanthemum(Loose) Cinamon(Dalchini) Cloves Cluster beans Cock Cocoa Coconut Coconut Oil Coconut Seed Coffee Colacasia Copra Coriander(Leaves) Corriander seed Cotton Cotton Seed Cow Cowpea (Lobia/Karamani) Cowpea (Lobia/Karamani) Cowpea(Veg) Cucumbar(Kheera) Cummin Seed(Jeera) Custard Apple (Sharifa) Dalda Dhaincha Drumstick Dry Chillies Dry Fodder Dry Grapes Duck Duster Beans Egg Elephant Yam (Suran) Field Pea Firewood Fish Foxtail Millet(Navane) French Beans (Frasbean) Galgal(Lemon) Garlic Ghee Gingelly Oil Ginger(Dry) Ginger(Green) Gladiolus Cut Flower Goat Gram Raw(Chholia) Gramflour Grapes Green Avare (W) Green Chilli Green Fodder Green Gram (Moong)(Whole) Green Gram Dal (Moong Dal) Green Peas Ground Nut Oil Ground Nut Seed Groundnut Groundnut (Split) Groundnut pods (raw) Guar Guar Seed(Cluster Beans Seed) Guava Gur(Jaggery) He Buffalo Hen Hippe Seed Honge seed Hybrid Cumbu Indian Beans (Seam) Indian Colza(Sarson) Isabgul (Psyllium) Jack Fruit Jaffri Jamun(Narale Hannu) Jarbara Jasmine Jowar(Sorghum) Jute Kabuli Chana(Chickpeas-White) Kacholam Kakada Kankambra Karamani Karbuja(Musk Melon) Kartali (Kantola) Khoya Kinnow Knool Khol Kodo Millet(Varagu) Kulthi(Horse Gram) Lak(Teora) Leafy Vegetable Lemon Lentil (Masur)(Whole) Lilly Lime Linseed Lint Litchi Little gourd (Kundru) Long Melon(Kakri) Lotus Lotus Sticks Lukad Mahedi Mahua Mahua Seed(Hippe seed) Maida Atta Maize Mango Mango (Raw-Ripe) Marasebu Marget Marigold(Calcutta) Marigold(loose) Mashrooms Masur Dal Mataki Methi Seeds Methi(Leaves) Millets Mint(Pudina) Moath Dal Mousambi(Sweet Lime) Mustard Mustard Oil Myrobolan(Harad) Neem Seed Niger Seed (Ramtil) Nutmeg Onion Onion Green Orange Orchid Ox Paddy(Dhan)(Basmati) Paddy(Dhan)(Common) Papaya Papaya (Raw) Patti Calcutta Peach Pear(Marasebu) Peas cod Peas Wet Peas(Dry) Pegeon Pea (Arhar Fali) Pepper garbled Pepper ungarbled Persimon(Japani Fal) Pigs Pineapple Plum Pointed gourd (Parval) Pomegranate Potato Pumpkin Raddish Ragi (Finger Millet) Raibel Rajgir Ram Rat Tail Radish (Mogari) Raya Resinwood Rice Ridge gourd(Tori) Ridgeguard(Tori) Rose(Local) Rose(Loose) Rose(Loose)) Round gourd Rubber Sabu Dan Sabu Dana Safflower Sajje Same/Savi Season Leaves Seemebadnekai Seetafal Seetapal Sesamum(Sesame,Gingelly,Til) Sesamum(Sesame,Gingelly,Til) She Buffalo She Goat Sheep Snake gourd Snakeguard Soanf Soapnut(Antawala/Retha) Soji Soyabean Spinach Sponge gourd Squash(Chappal Kadoo) Sugar Sugarcane Sunflower Sunhemp Suram Surat Beans (Papadi) Suva (Dill Seed) Suvarna Gadde Sweet Potato Sweet Pumpkin T.V. Cumbu T.V. Cumbu Tamarind Fruit Tamarind Seed Tapioca Taramira Tender Coconut Thinai (Italian Millet) Thogrikai Thondekai Tinda Tobacco Tomato Toria Tube Rose(Double) Tube Rose(Loose) Tube Rose(Single) Turmeric Turmeric (raw) Turnip Walnut Water Melon Wheat Wheat Atta White Peas White Pumpkin Wood Yam Yam (Ratalu) Select State Select Market WikiLeaks' founder Julian Assange will accept arrest by the British police if a United Nations panel on arbitrary detention rules against him, according to a tweet by the whistle-blowing website. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention is widely expected to announce its decision Friday on an application by Assange over his confinement in the Ecuador embassy in London since 2012. The move late Wednesday by Assange apparently aims to bring his detention at the embassy to an end, whatever the outcome, while also putting pressure on the relevant governments to reciprocate and abide by the decision of the UN panel, if it is favorable to him. WikiLeaks has published leaked diplomatic cables and other information that embarrassed several governments and international businesses. In 2012, Assange was granted asylum by the government of Ecuador and has since been under the protection of the country's embassy in London. He is wanted by police in Sweden for questioning about allegations of sexual offenses. U.K. police have said that they would arrest Assange to meet the extradition request from Sweden if he leaves the Ecuador embassy. Assange and his supporters fear that from Sweden, he could be transferred to the U.S. to face charges under the country's Espionage Act. "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," Assange wrote in the Twitter message. However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me, he added. Although the publication of the documents were politically embarrassing to the U.S. government, it was a protected act of free speech and political expression, according to the complaint to the UN Working Group. The U.S. commenced investigating Assange and WikiLeaks, and "instigated a series of search and seizure and surveillance measures, which do not appear to be regulated by any meaningful due process in which Mr. Assange is able to assert his rights," it added. The Human Rights Council of the UN General Assembly in September 2013 requested states to take into account the views of the Working Group and, where necessary, to take appropriate steps to remedy the situation of persons arbitrarily deprived of their liberty. States were also asked to inform the Working Group of the steps they have taken. POLICE are to start using drones to monitor traffic and hunt down criminals, according to reports. Testing will begin in the next two weeks to see how the remote-controlled aircraft can help offices monitor traffic and track down criminals, Le Figaro has reported. Les Echos, meanwhile, reports that tests have already taken place in Oise. The gendarmerie will be equipped with a fleet of microdrones that are capable of fulfilling a wide range of missions, the newspaper reported yesterday. It added that the first drones are likely to be commissioned as early as next month. Authorities hope the drones will allow police to fly into and film in hard-to-reach areas, without having to call on a police helicopter. Photo: Pete / Flickr It has to my mind convincingly been shown that the principle of parliamentary sovereignty has been recognised as fundamental in this country not because the judges invented it but because it has for centuries been accepted as such by judges and others officially concerned in the operation of our constitutional system. The judges did not by themselves establish the principle and they cannot, by themselves, change it. So wrote the late Lord Bingham in his magisterial The Rule of Law. He was defending parliamentary sovereignty against the view that it is a construct of common law and can thus ultimately be trumped by the courts. If you hold this view, the primacy of EU law over UK law is, as it were, one which is leant rather than given. What Parliament lends, Parliament could take back. As Daniel Hannan points out today on this site, it could do by scrapping Articles Two and Three of the 1972 European Communities Act, under which those powers were leant. But whether it does so or not, there is no need to put the principle of parliamentary sovereignty beyond doubt by passing a declaratory act, as David Cameron hinted to Boris Johnson in the Commons yesterday, and as a Guardian report suggests this morning. This is because such an act would make no difference to the continuing debate in which Bingham was engaged. Either Parliament is sovereign, in which case such an act would be useless, or it isnt and the courts are, in which case such an act would also be useless. The Prime Minister is also considering vesting the UK supreme court or another official bodywith powers akin to those of the German constitutional court, which has the right to assess whether legal acts by the EUs institutions remain within the scope of the powers of the EU, according to the paper. But if EU law retains its present primary then any declaration by such a court would have no authority. Even if one disagrees with this view, it would surely be contradictory for the Prime Minister to seek simultaenously both to uphold parliamentary sovereignty while also giving a court the power to determine when it applies. The long and short of it is that if Cameron wants to end the primacy of EU law he should champion scrapping Articles Two and Three or else, of course, leaving the EU altogether. I am sure that Boris grasps the point. I wrote on Sunday that the Prime Minister would produce a constitutional rabbit from a hat, and he is duly displaying its twitching ears with the rest, presumably, to follow later. Perhaps Oliver Letwin or Michael Gove will be able to square the circle, but these ideas are not encouraging. (According to todays Times (), the latter believes that the constitutional court scheme is unworkable.) Dan, improving on my Watership Down analogy, asked whether the creature would be a fierce General Woundwort rather than a deceptive Cowslip. Perhaps we would have done better to suggest Roger Rabbit. SUBSCRIBE Sign up with your email address to receive news and updates straight in your inbox. 040216COCOA COULD SUPPORT ABG SAYS MINISTER By Aloysius Laukai The ABG minister for the Department of Primary Industry, NICHOLAS DARKU says that Bougainville sees Agriculture as one driving force for the economic recovery of the region. Speaking at the opening of the two-days Bougainville Cocoa project inception meeting, Minister DARKU said that Bougainville should look into other commodities such as Oil Palm, Coffee, Fisheries and forestry as other means of making rural communities have money in their pockets and at the same time supporting the growth of Bougainvilles economy. MR. DARKU said that Bougainville should develop these Agricultural commodities to raise its much needed funds than wasting time talking about PANGUNA that may not open in the near future. He said the Panguna case was very complex and the government has wasted enough time talking about restarting Panguna. MR. DARKU called on all the youths of Bougainville to go into farming so that they can contribute to the economic recovery of the region. He said that as the Minister for Agriculture he wants no room for laziness in our societies. Ends 040216DONA WANTS LOOK INTO BOUGAINVILLE By Aloysius Laukai So much for Look North POLICY by previous Governments, the Chairman of the Central Bougainville Combined Chairmen, JOHN DONA is calling for leaders to look back to Bougainville. He says that Education institutions such as the Vocational and Technical institutions must be fully funded to take in all Bougainville students currently leaving Bougainville in search of such services. MR. DONA said from Arawa that the bulk of Bougainville students should remain on Bougainville and be educated to develop Bougainville. He said only few students are accepted to Universities and other tertiary schools in Papua New Guinea whilst the rest are left to roam the streets of our towns. MR. DONA said that institutions been established by the Regional Member, JOE LERA must be linked to our Education system so that they can be sustained under our Education system. He said creating institution outside the system could be costly to maintain in the future. Ends Close If you thought that Zika was a mosquito-borne disease, then think again. Health officials Tuesday reported the first known case in Texas, which has been transported through sexual contact Dallas County Health and Human Services confirmed it through the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. They found that the unidentified person got it after a sexual encounter with a traveller who had returned from Venezuela, although the patient hadn't travelled abroad. The Texas Department of State Health Services had not confirmed it immediately but admitted that it could be the reason. The WHO declared that it is a public health emergency, according to Reuters. With more than 4 million people in the Americas under threat, experts confirm that a "vaccine for the virus is months, if not, years away." It causes severe birth defects in babies, as thousands born with microcephaly have been reported in Brazil since October. "We should all be worried about microcephaly," Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff stated. Such babies are born with brain defects and extremely small heads linked to the virus. "Most important, we need to set up surveillance sites in low- and middle-income countries so that we can detect any change in the reporting patterns of microcephaly at an early stage," said Dr. Anthoy Costello, WHO's director for maternal, child and adolescent health. As Brazil is this year's Olympic Games host in Rio de Janeiro, fear of the virus dominated talks at a recent Olympic committee hearing, according to The New York Times. In Asia, Indonesia, Hong Kong, the Philippines and Singapore have got into an overactive mode to fight off the mosquito. "We are ramping up research, not just on Zika, but also on all other viruses in the mosquito vector such as dengue and chikungunya, and doing checks on carriers across the provinces gradually - this is related to entomology," said Dr. Oscar Primaldi from Indonesia, according to The Strait Times. See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare Close Should the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approve clinical trials to shift DNA from healthy human eggs to affected embryos? The U.S. National Academy of Medicine believes it should. This is a divisive gene-therapy technique that will permit supplanting an embryo's mitochondria with healthy ones from the egg of a second woman, reports Scientific American. Even if the process can prevent DNA mutations from transmitting the illnesses, there is some public worry about the security and safety of mitochondrial replacement and the whole concept of three genetic parents. There could be a number of problems from incompatible mitochondrial and nuclear DNA from different women. A number of tests on mice, fruit flies and other animals showed that a blend of both forms of DNA from people with diverse genetic makeups will expose the patients to "reduced growth, early death, fast aging and reduced reproductive ability", according to Nature. "It's unlikely we'll find any cure once the child is born already with these mutations," said Shoukhrat Mitalipov of Oregon Health & Sciences University. "The best way is to prevent it." Some scientists advise that it should be limited to just male embryos, to prevent the inheritance of mitochondria from mothers. If it is found to be safe after an initial testing period, it might have the potential to be transferred to female embryos too. However, the research won't happen this year, as it is under review by the FDA. "It is ethically acceptable to go forward, but go slowly and with great caution," said Jeffrey Kahn, a bioethicist at John Hopkins University. "Mitochondrial DNA disease can be extremely devastating, and for the women who are at risk of passing it on to their children, they have no other option by which to pursue having a child that's genetically related to them." See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare Close The American Red Cross has issued new blood donation guidelines for people who have traveled to areas where Zika, a virus that can be transmitted via a mosquito bite, has been confirmed. Health officials are now asking blood donors to implement a self-deferral period of at least 28 days if they have visited Latin America or the Caribbean. People who have symptoms of a Zika infection, which include a mild fever, rash, joint pain and conjunctivitis (red eyes), should inform the Red Cross within two weeks. In about 80 percent of Zika cases, symptoms will not show up, which is why it is important to wait the full 28 days before donating. "The American Red Cross is dedicated to providing the safest, most reliable blood products possible to patients in need," said Susan Stramer, vice president of scientific affairs at the American Red Cross. "The Red Cross continues to use safety measures to protect the blood supply from Zika and other mosquito-borne viruses." The Red Cross has cautioned people that risk of infection through blood is extremely low in the U.S, especially since the virus has not been confirmed within the states. The Red Cross also reassured the public that they only take blood from people who are "healthy and feeling well at the time of donation." The Canadian Blood Services has also issued similar guidelines, stating that people who have traveled to areas that do not include Canada, Europe and the continental U.S., should wait 21 days before donating. The United Kingdom's National Health Service is also recommending donors who have traveled to a Zika area to wait 28-days. "The safety of the blood supply is paramount and it is important we implement any precautionary blood safety measures agreed here as a result of an increasing prevalence of infectious diseases found around the globe," The NHS Blood and Transplant spokesman said in a statement. The American Association of Blood Banks, which issued a statement saying that the virus does not last in the blood for more than 28 days, noted that the new voluntary guidelines should lower the summer blood supply by 1.17 percent and the winter blood supply by 2.27 percent. Blood banks currently test for several diseases, which include HIV, hepatitis, West Nile virus and the malaria parasite. The World Health Organization (WHO) declared Zika a public health emergency due to the association between the virus and microcephaly, which is a birth defect that occurs when an infant is born with an abnormally small head. Although researchers have not found a cause-and-effect relationship, they stated that the evidence so far points to a strong link between the two. Countries and territories that have confirmed cases of Zika are: Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Cape Verde, Colombia, Costa Rica, Curacao, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guinea, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Puerto Rico, Saint Martin, Suriname, U.S. Virgin Islands, Venezuela, American Samoa and Samoa. See Now: What Republicans Don't Want You To Know About Obamacare The Logic Of Hunger Striking Palestinians: When Starvation Is A Weapon By Ramzy Baroud 04 February, 2016 Countercurrents.org By Friday, January 29, Palestinian journalist Mohammed al-Qeq had spent 66-days on hunger strike in Israeli jails. Just before he fell into his third coma, a day earlier, he sent a public message through his lawyers, the gist of which was: freedom or death. Al-Qeq is 33-years of age, married and a father of two. Photos circulating of him online and on Palestinian streets show the face of a bespectacled, handsome man. The reality though is quite different. He's in a very bad situation. He fell into his third coma in recent days, and his weight has dropped to 30 kilograms (66 pounds), Ashraf Abu Sneina, one of al-Qeq's attorneys, told Al Jazeera. Al-Qeq was arrested under yet another notorious Israeli law called the administrative detention law. Ominous predictions of al-Qeqs imminent death have been looming for days with no end in sight to his elongated ordeal. Unfortunately for a man who believes that the only tool of defense and protest he has against apartheid Israel is his body, the Red Cross and other international groups took many days to so much as acknowledge the case of this news reporter who had refused food and medical treatment since November 24, 2015. Al-Qeq, works for Saudi Arabias Almajd TV network and was arrested at his home in Ramallah on November 21st. In its statement, issued more than 60 days after he entered into his hunger strike, ICRC described the situation as critical, unequivocally stating the reality of Al-Qeqs life being at risk. On January 27, the European Union also expressed its view of being especially concerned about al-Qeqs deteriorating health. Under the administrative detention law, Israel has affectively held Palestinians and Arab prisoners without offering reasons for their arrests, practically since the state was founded in 1948. In fact, it is argued that this law which is principally founded on secret evidence dates back to the British Mandate governments Emergency Regulations. After Israel occupied the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem in 1967, it clutched at straw in its desperate efforts to find whatever legal justifications it could for holding prisoners without trials. These efforts were eventually articulated in the Israeli Law on Authorities in State of Emergency in 1979. This law was some sort of compromise between the internal intelligence (Shin Bet), the state and the court system, with the ultimate aim of providing the facade and apparent backing of a legal cover for what is considered in international law and most country laws as illegal. The Shin Bet was thus allowed to use whatever coercive measures including physical and psychological torture to exact forced confessions from Palestinian prisoners over the course of six months, renewable by a court order without trial or charges. Khader Adnan, 37, from Jenin, was held under administrative detention law for years. Israeli intelligence had no evidence to indict him of any particular charge, despite accusations that he was a valued member of the Islamic Jihad organization. He was set free on July 12, 2015.This occurred only after he too resorted to undergoing several hunger strikes, and two particularly long ones: early in 2012 a hunger strike lasted for 66 days, and another, in May 2015, lasted for 56 days. Each time, Adnan reached the point where death, as is the case for al-Qeq, was also becoming a real possibility. When we asked him what compelled him to follow that dangerous path twice, his answer was immediate: repeated arrests, the savagery of the way I was arrested, the brutality of the interrogation and finally the prolonged administrative detention- without trial. Administrative detentions are like legal black holes. They offer no escape routes and no rights for the prisoner whatsoever, but wins the interrogators time to break the spirit of the prisoner, forcing him or her to surrender or even admit, under torture, to things that he or she never committed in the first place. It is our last and only choice, says Mohammed Allan, 33, from Nablus, who underwent a hunger strike for so long that it resulted in brain damage, and nearly cost him his life. When you feel that all the doors are sealed, and you stand there humiliated and alone, knowing in advance that the court system is a charade, one is left with no other option but a hunger strike, he says. First, I made my intentions clear by refusing three meals in a row, and by sending a written note through the Dover (Hebrew for a prisoner who serves as a spokesperson for a prison ward). Then, the punishment commences. It is like a psychological warfare between the prison authorities, state and legal system apparatuses against a single individual, which, according to Allan lasts for 50-60 days. Almost instantly, a hunger striker is thrown into solitary confinement, denied access to a mattress and blanket and other basic necessities. Only after six weeks or so, do Israeli prison authorities agree to talk to lawyers representing hunger strikers to discuss various proposals. But within that period of time, the prisoner is left entirely unaided, separated from the other prisoners and subjected to an uninterrupted campaign of intimidation and threats. Mental torture is far worse than hunger, says Allan. You cannot even go to the bathroom anymore; you cannot stand on your own; you are even two weak to wipe the vomit that involuntarily gushes out of your mouth into your beard and chest. Allan almost died in prison, and despite a court order that permitted prison authorities to force-feed him (a practice seen internationally as a form of torture), doctors at Soroka hospital refused to act upon the instructions. In mid-August 2015, Allan was placed on life support when he lost consciousness. His severe malnutrition resulted in brain damage. A third freed hunger striker, Ayman Sharawneh, originally from Dura, Hebron, but who has been deported to Gaza, describes hunger strikes as the last bullet in a fight for freedom that could possibly end in death. Sharawneh, like Adnan and others we talked to, was bitter about the lack of adequate support he received while dying in jail. All organizations, Palestinian or international, usually fall short, he says. They spring into action after the prisoner had gone through many days of torture. He says that 2 years and 8 months after he was deported to Gaza, he is experiencing severe pain throughout his body, particularly in his kidneys. While undergoing the extended hunger strike I started to lose my hair, suffered from constant nausea, sharp pain in my guts, threw up yellow liquid, then dark liquid, then I could hardly see anything. I had an excruciating headache and then I began to suffer from fissures all over my skin and body. He agrees with Adnan that individual hunger strikes should not be understood as a self-centered act. Mohammed Al-Qeq is not striking for himself, says Adnan. He is striking on behalf of all political prisoners, whose number is estimated by prisoners rights group Addameer at nearly 7,000. According to Adnan, the issue of hunger strikes should not be seen as a battle within Israeli jails, but as part and parcel of the Palestinian peoples fight against military occupation. While the three prisoners affirmed their solidarity with Al-Qeq, they called for a much greater support for the hunger-striking journalist and thousands like him, many of whom are held indefinitely under administrative detentions. The list of well-known Palestinian hunger strikers exceeds Al-Qeq, Adnan, Allan and Sharawneh and includes many others, not forgetting Samir Issawi, Hana Shalabi, Thaer Halahleh and Bilal Thiab. But what all of these former hunger strikers seem to have in common is their insistence that their battles were never concerned with the freedom of individuals only, but of an entire group of desperate, oppressed and outraged people. (With reporting by Yousef Aljamal) Dr. Ramzy Baroud has been writing about the Middle East for over 20 years. He is an internationally-syndicated columnist, a media consultant, an author of several books and the founder of PalestineChronicle.com. His books include Searching Jenin, The Second Palestinian Intifada and his latest My Father Was a Freedom Fighter: Gazas Untold Story. His website is: www.ramzybaroud.net. Bangalore Racist Attack: A Reflection Of Sickeningly Racist Indian Society By Saswat Pattanayak 04 February, 2016 Countercurrents.org Torching down of vehicle in Bangalore of a Tanzanian woman on Sunday, who was also paraded naked by a lynch mob, is just a reflection of how sickeningly racist Indian society is. A racist lot, a casteist lot - but even worse, violently a in-denial lot. This has happened way too many times now to invoke any shock. Students from Gabon and Burkina Faso were attacked by Delhi's dilwales a year and half ago - lynch mob with iron rods and broken glass pieces left African youths bloodied, while Indians shouted Bharat Mata Ki Jai - that disgusting slogan identified exclusively with right wing Hindu hooligans. Four African nations were again attacked nine months ago in Bangalore (Bengaluru, or else get Mumbaiied)- an utterly sexist, racist hellhole masquerading as cosmopolitan IT hub. Its police and administrators are more concerned about global images and impressing Thomas Friedman than protecting human beings. Even as video footages of attacks were made available, the police denied any assaults ever taking place. The law minister of Aam Aadmi Party (political formation by the so-called noncorruptible meritorious) likewise had taken a gang of fellow Delhi residents to conduct a midnight raid, vigilante-style, on African residents - women from Uganda and Nigeria were beaten up by people without uniforms while the police watched on and the minister continued making racist remarks against Africans. And the boss of the party Arvind Kejriwal gave a clean chit to his party and the concerned minister - and his party won a historic mandate in the following years popular elections. Racist, casteist Indian fanatics have a pattern of such conducts - they torch down vehicles routinely - Most infamously when Australian Christian missionary Graham Staines and his family were burnt down by a Hindu extremist Dara Singh, in Orissa - boastful of Jagannath, apparently a god of the universe. Its another matter, the dimension of that universe must be appallingly tiny. Likewise, Hindu caste supremacists have a habit of stripping, beating and parading Dalit women to teach them a lesson every single year throughout Indias history. Because of international diplomatic concerns, the latest incident involving Tanzanian woman being paraded naked will thankfully gain due media coverage, but when will the Hindus admit the historical pattern in their conducts towards Dalit women (who are paraded and assaulted, without any media outrage) that was merely extended this time to the African woman? Atithi Devo Bhava, much? In May last year, 15 Dalit women were beaten and paraded naked in Uttar Pradesh. In West Bengal, a 20-yr old Dalit woman was tied to a tree and raped by upto 15 men as punishment for illicit liaison. Inside casteist India, a crime is committed against a Dalit every 18 minutes. Casteism, racism, xenophobia, misogyny and rape culture - if India, according to its liberals ranging from Javed Akhtar to Dibakar Banerjee is a historical land of tolerance, then these are things India has been tolerating for decades now. Its high time the charade of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (world is one family hindu cowcrap) is shed. The bhakts are not in ABVP alone. Bhakts of all-was-well-before-Modi India are even more dangerously fanatical. While the right-wing bhakts have been justifying Indian greatness (sic!) for a couple of years, its the left-liberal bhakts who have been in denial of its intolerance for decades now. Since patriotism triumphs over politics and religions, to all those who are proud Indians today hoping for climax of modi, or comeback of golden years -torch vehicles, parade women, and drop the pretense: All rise; Bharat Mata ki Jai. Saswat Pattanayak is a New York-based journalist, atheist, feminist, LGBT ally, black power comrade and academic non-elite. The Day In 1937 When Casco Workers In Bridgeport Sat Down On The Job By Andy Piascik 04 February, 2016 Countercurrents.org It was an event that lasted less than a day and involved only 50 people directly. It was organized, led and carried out by everyday workers and thus contradicted the mainstream narrative that only big people make history. Many of the participants were women so their actions were thus further dismissed, even ridiculed. Yet as the great historian Howard Zinn might have put it, mostly unknown and forgotten people occupied the Casco factory in Bridgeport in 1937 and struck a blow for themselves and workers in the city as a whole. In the long history of class conflict in the United States, the decade of the 1930s was a particularly contentious period. In Bridgeport, as in virtually every other part of the country, workers fought back against plant closures, unemployment and poverty as well as for democratization of the workplace. And as the Park City was one of the nations great industrial hubs, it was only natural that the sit-down strike was one of many tactics Bridgeport workers utilized. The sit-down strike is a tactic used most effectively by the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) three decades before the action at Casco. The idea of a sit-down is to stop production by occupying the workplace, rather than by withdrawing from it, as leaving the workplace and striking from the outside leaves open the possibility of employers bringing in replacements (scabs). The sit-down was revived to great fanfare and with remarkable success when autoworkers began a long occupation of General Motors plants in Cleveland and Flint on December 30, 1936. Set on Bridgeports West End next to the railroad tracks, Casco (Connecticut Automotive Specialty Company) opened in 1924. Workers there made products for cars including pop-out cigarette lighters that were then a relatively new feature on many automobile dashboards. Tensions between workers and management had been escalating for some time prior to the sit-down strike. Management was actively soliciting workers to join its company union, the Casco Employees Association (CEA), while at least several hundred workers had signed cards with the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE), one of the rapidly growing affiliates of the newly-formed Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO). Alarmed at the growth in the plant of the UE, and in an apparent attempt to cripple the workers organizing efforts, Casco President Joseph Cohen issued an order the morning of April 6, 1937 that the plant would temporarily close at noon that day for inventory. Caught off guard, 850 of the 900 workers left at noon including many who undoubtedly would have remained had they known that 50 of their co-workers had decided to occupy the plant. The 50 sit-down strikers announced that they intended to remain until a set of demands that included management recognition of the UE as their bargaining representative were met. Supportive workers who had left formed picket lines outside the plant on Railroad and Hancock Avenues, sent word of the action to the families of those inside and contacted organizers from the UE. Cohen and other company officials responded by declaring that the factory was closed and would not reopen until their demands were met. They also announced hundreds of layoffs. While refusing to accept that reductions were necessary, the workers and the UE immediately countered with a plan to prevent any layoffs by temporarily reducing the hours of all. Cohen unconditionally rejected the proposal, saying, as quoted in a story in the Bridgeport Post, Positively no. Ill run my own plant. Cohens words cut to the heart of what was at stake. At Casco, as elsewhere, the sit-down strike was a direct challenge to managements control of production. A plant occupation starkly poses the question, a question workers in many places in 1937 had begun to seriously consider, of whether owners and managers are necessary or even desirable. Cohens unease was the unease that haunts all business owners, whether of small-ish operations like Casco or of the massive empire of General Motors: that through collective action, and especially workplace occupations, workers would come to envision and, more importantly, act on constructing a society without bosses. Meetings of the parties carried into the evening. On Railroad Avenue, meanwhile, Casco workers and others continued picketing in support of the strike. In anticipation of a potentially lengthy standoff, they also tied mattresses and food to ropes that the occupiers pulled up through open windows. A photographer from the Bridgeport Post and Bridgeport Telegram was allowed inside and took two photos that appeared in both papers the following day. Early on the morning of April 7th, an agreement was reached. A significant wage increase would be implemented and management agreed to recognize the UE (soon to be a major force in Bridgeport as the representative of workers at GE, Westinghouse/Bryant Electric and many other city shops). All talk of layoffs ceased, the occupiers would not be disciplined and the plant would remain closed while management took stock and made way for new production lines. On virtually every count, it was a resounding victory for the workers. As in Flint and many other instances, the Casco workers utilized collective action to make significant gains. That should be celebrated all these years later as much as the Casco workers themselves undoubtedly celebrated in the days after the occupation. Still, there are also nagging questions that began to present themselves in 1937 that plague workers to this day. Wittingly or not, for example, organizers from even radical unions like the UE helped pull workers away from the very awareness and possible action owners like Cohen feared. The objectives of the UE and the CIO as a whole were state-sanctioned exclusive representation as embodied in the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), class peace and collective bargaining agreements predicated on the corporations right to rule. Strikers taking over plants was fine as a temporary tactic but long term, labors vision and its relationship with workers was ultimately not so different from that of the business class, as became more apparent over time. Not long after the Casco strike, for example, the UE and other CIO unions signed contracts that almost without exception forbade work stoppages that they did not authorize. Also included in the standard CIO contracts were management prerogative clauses that ceded all decisions about production, including the right to permanently close the plant, to the company. That does not diminish what the Casco workers accomplished in 1937. On the contrary, it is in their spirit that we struggle for a way out of a framework that workers today are trapped in. Andy Piascik is a long-time activist and award-winning author who writes for Z, Counterpunch and many other publications and websites. He can be reached at andypiascik@yahoo.com 040216AITA LEADERS RETURN POLICE FIRE ARM By Aloysius Laukai The leaders of AITA village this afternoon returned the fire-arm, M16 A2 Assault Rifle which they took when they took over the Police vehicle in Aita on Tuesday. The Police vehicle dedicated to the Family and Sexual Violence Unit was taken over by the youths when Police went into the area to investigate the situation following the hit and run of a youth there. Local member for RAU, THOMAS KERIRI apologized to Police and the ABG Minister for Police, Correctional Services and Justice, WILLIE MASIU accompanied by the Minister for Finance and Planning and Treasury, ALBERT PUNGHAU and the Minister for Education, THOMAS PATAAKU. He said that his youths were under pressure that time and did not mean to undermine the work of Police MR.KERIRI thanked former BRA Strongman and peace-builder, GLYN TOVIRIKA for assisting in the return of the weapon. Police Minister in accepting the Weapon thanked the youths of AITA and their leaders for responding quickly and returning the Police vehicle and today the fire-arm. On the incident a TWENTY THOUSAND KINA would be paid to the relatives of the deceased by the vehicle owner whilst the driver is under Police custody awaiting investigations. This also means that the AITA ROAD BLOCK has been removed. Ends NEWDAWN PIC of the Police Minister WILLIE MASIU accepting the firearm from the former member, Glyn Tovirika. Jedediah Smith, famous mountain man, trapper, explorer and map maker, may not have been the first white man to enter the Nevada area some Spanish conquistadors most likely had crossed the same deserts and mountains before him but Smith certainly was the first to spend any significant time exploring the region. He made two trips across Southern Nevada and one across sections of the central part of the state when all of it was just a blank area on any maps of the day. SHARE By Richard Gootee of the Courier and Press Four people three of them Evansville residents were arrested in Posey County Wednesday after two drug busts by Indiana State Police, investigators said. The first bust happened after 28-year-old Kayla R. Rhodes-Powell was pulled over for a traffic stop in Mount Vernon for a defective license plate, according to a state police news release. The trooper who made the stop just after 8 p.m. reportedly smelled marijuana and called for a K-9 unit. During a search of the vehicle, troopers reportedly found "small amounts" of both marijuana and meth. A passenger with Powell, identified as Jessy Durham, 28, was also arrested. Both face preliminary charges of possession of methamphetamine and marijuana. State troopers also conducted a drug investigation at a home in the 900 block of Vine Street in Mount Vernon about 10 p.m. During a search of that home, authorities reportedly found marijuana, several small bags containing meth and a ledger that is believed to show illegal drug activity, according to a state police release. The resident of that home was identified as 39-year-old Katie Gaff. She was preliminarily charged with maintaining a common nuisance, dealing methamphetamine and possession of both marijuana and paraphernalia. She also had an active warrant in Vanderburgh County, according to the release. A man who was allegedly inside Graff's home when troopers arrived was arrested as well, investigators said. He was identified as Nathan F. Crowley, 39, and listed by investigators as an Evansville resident. He faces a preliminary charge of visiting a common nuisance. SHARE Steven Freeman By Gleaner Staff A Morganfield, Kentucky man has been charged with murder after a crash Wednesday night in Union County left a teen dead. The Kentucky State Police said Steven Freeman, 22, Morganfield, was driving a Mitsubishi car near the U.S. 60 Bypass and Kentucky 2091 around 8 p.m. when he struck 17-year-old Damon W. Collins of Morganfield, who was riding a bicycle. Police said after striking Collins, Freeman drove to a nearby parking lot, and a passenger in his vehicle flagged down authorities, according to Union County Sheriff's Deputy Kyle Dame. During the investigation, the passenger in Freeman's vehicle told authorities that they'd hit someone, Dame said. Collins, who was a senior at Union County High School, was flown from the scene to St. Mary's Medical Center in Evansville, where he died of his injuries. Freeman was charged with murder, driving on a suspended license and operating a motor vehicle under the influence. He is being held without bond in the Union County Detention Center. Officials with the Union County School District said they have made counselors available to faculty and students to assist them with processing and grieving the loss. "As a district, it's a tragic loss and an emotional time for his family and our students," said Steve Carter, assistant superintendent of district-wide services. "Our crisis response team met with faculty (Thursday morning) to prepare them to handle the students" with their grief, questions and general reactions to Collins' death. "This was a shock," Carter said. "We know that the days ahead are going to be difficult, but we know that by being there for each other, we will get through this time." JASON CLARK / COURIER & PRESS Seth Harvey a senior at Memorial High School receives a blessing of the throat on St. Blaise's feast day by Rev., Paul Ferguson during the Diocese of Evansville National Catholic Schools Week Mass at St. Benedict Cathedral in Evansville Wednesday. SHARE JASON CLARK / COURIER & PRESS Holly Earhart a senior at Memorial High School drinks from a challis after receiving it from Rev., Pascal Nduka (left) while taking part in communion during the Diocese of Evansville National Catholic Schools Week Mass at St. Benedict Cathedral in Evansville Wednesday. JASON CLARK / COURIER & PRESS Area Catholic school students kneel down during communion during the Diocese of Evansville National Catholic Schools Week Mass at St. Benedict Cathedral in Evansville Wednesday. By Megan Erbacher of the Courier and Press If you try to embrace your will instead of God's will, you'll never find true peace and happiness, the Most Rev. Charles C. Thompson told a packed St. Benedict Cathedral Wednesday morning. During National Catholic Schools Week Mass, Thompson, bishop of the Diocese of Evansville, told students in grades 5, 8 and 12 from all 26 diocesan schools that they should "seek the will of God." "Hopefully the bottom line is that people realize that it is Christ who saves that personal relationship that leads us to joy and true happiness," Thompson said. "Not only in this life, but more importantly in the afterlife. So what I hope they take from here is that Christ makes the difference in our lives, in our relationships, in our world." Educators and community members also gathered inside the Lincoln Avenue church to celebrate the 42nd Annual National Catholic Schools Week. Since 1974, the focus has been to celebrate Catholic education throughout the U.S. Schools commemorate the week with open houses and other activities, such as spirit week. National Catholic Schools Week starts the last Sunday in January. This year it's celebrated Jan. 31 through Feb. 6. "We've done a lot of reflecting on what it means to be catholic," said Christ the King eighth-grader Ava St. Pere. "And why our education is so much more important and special than it would be if we were just at a public school." St. Pere, 14, said at a Catholic school, students don't have to hide their faith. "We can talk about it," she said. "And we can learn more about it." Chris Basham, 14, added that students can freely express their faith and how they feel about God. Thompson asked, and was pleasantly surprised, if all 21 Christ the King eighth graders knew the Works of Mercy: visit the sick, visit the homeless, clothe the naked, feed the hungry, bury the dead, shelter the homeless and give to the poor. "Our teacher made us go over it in case the bishop asked for it," Basham said. Students even made posters to portray them. "It was more than that," St. Pere said. "It taught us what we should be practicing." Basham reiterated Thompson's message and said it's vital to have God at the center of your life. "He really is the one thing that can help you achieve true happiness," he said. Christ the King Principal Kristen Girten said the weeklong celebration provides an opportunity to "stop and appreciate the wonderful gift that we have with catholic education." On Wednesday, students entered the cathedral through the Holy Doors of Mercy, which Thompson opened in December at the beginning of the Extraordinary Jubilee of Mercy. Dioceses across the world designated Holy Doors as part of the Jubilee. The Diocese of Evansville has them at St. Benedict and at the Minor Basilica of St. Francis Xavier in Vincennes. This year's Catholic Schools Week Mass occurred on the Feast of St. Blaise, patron saint of throat ailments. So those in attendance also had their throats blessed. President Barack Obama speaks to members of the Muslim-American community at the Islamic Society of Baltimore, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, in Baltimore, Md. Obama is making his first visit to a U.S. mosque at a time Muslim-Americans say they're confronting increasing levels of bias in speech and deeds.(AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) SHARE CATONSVILLE, Md. (AP) President Barack Obama sought Wednesday to correct what he called a "hugely distorted impression" of Muslim-Americans as he made his first visit to a U.S. mosque. He said those who demonize all Muslims for the acts of a few are playing into extremists' hands. Inserting himself into a debate that has ricocheted in the presidential campaign, Obama told parishioners at a mosque outside Baltimore that he'd heard from young Muslims worried they'll be rounded up and kicked out of the country. He said Muslims, too, are concerned about the threat of terrorism but are too often blamed as a group "for the violent acts of the very few." CANVASS PODCAST: Fighting for Islam "We've seen children bullied, we've seen mosques vandalized," Obama said, warning that such unequal treatment for certain groups in society tears at the nation's fabric. "That's not who we are." For Muslim advocates, Obama's visit was a long-awaited gesture to a community that has warned of escalating vitriol against them that has accompanied the public's concern about the Islamic State and other extremist groups. Although Obama has visited mosques overseas, he waited until his final year in office to make such a visit at home, reflecting the issue's sensitive political implications. In this year's Republican presidential campaign, Donald Trump has called for banning Muslims from the U.S. temporarily and Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio warned of "radical Islamic terrorism." Muslim-American advocacy groups have warned of growing antagonism that has followed recent attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California, by those purporting to act in the name of Islam. "We have to understand: An attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths," Obama said. He said it fell on all Americans to speak up. For Obama, the visit reflected a willingness to wade into touchy social issues that often eluded him earlier in his presidency. For years, Obama has fought incorrect claims that he's actually a Muslim and was born in Kenya, beliefs that polls suggest remain prevalent among many Republicans. Obama, a Christian, was born in Hawaii. Obama, acknowledging that uncomfortable chapter in his own story, noted that Thomas Jefferson had also been accused of being a Muslim. "So I was not the first," Obama said to laughter from a hundred or so Muslims who gathered for his speech. "No, it's true. Look it up." Obama challenged Hollywood to start casting Muslims in roles "that are unrelated to national security." Drawing a parallel with African-Americans' struggle for broad societal acceptance, he noted, "there was a time when there were no black people on television." With no plans to ever again appear on a ballot, Obama faces less pressure to avoid political controversy, and seemed to relish the possibility that his visit would raise eyebrows among some of his most entrenched critics. Ahead of his visit, White House officials acknowledged the visit could spark controversy but suggested that would help make his point about ignorance and religious bias. Still, the president was pointed in acknowledging that concerns about violence emanating from some corners of the Islamic world were not ill-founded. He denounced what he called an "organized extremist element" twisting selective Islamic texts in a way that ends up reflecting negatively on the overwhelming majority of law-abiding Muslims. "It is undeniable that a small fraction of Muslims propagate a perverted interpretation of Islam. This is the truth," Obama said. He added, "It's real. It's there." But Obama said suggestions that Islam is at the root of the problem only play into terrorist propaganda, weakening U.S. national security as opposed to strengthening it. He said IS and other extremist groups are desperately working to legitimize themselves by masquerading as religious leaders and holy warriors. "We must never give them that legitimacy. They're not defending Islam," Obama said. "The vast majority of the people they kill are innocent Muslim men, women and children." Ahead of his speech at the suburban Islamic Society of Baltimore, Obama met with Muslim university chaplains, community activists and public health professionals to discuss religious tolerance and freedom. Among the participants was fencer Ibtihaj Muhamma. The White House said she'll make history at the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games as the first United States Olympian to compete in a hijab. Nearly half of Americans think at least some U.S. Muslims are anti-American, according to a new Pew Research Center poll released Wednesday. Two-thirds of Americans said people, not religious teachings, are to blame when violence is committed in the name of faith. However, when respondents were asked which religion they consider troubling, Islam was the most common answer. "We never thought that when we held our first prayers in the small room nearly a half a century ago that we would be hosting the president," said Muhammad Jameel, the mosque's president. "Today is a new starting point. It is also a continuing journey a journey steeped in American history and tradition." ____ Associated Press writers Kevin Freking and Josh Lederman in Washington and AP Religion Writer Rachel Zoll in New York contributed to this report. SHARE By Brian Slodysko Indiana corporate leaders warned that the failure of the Republican-controlled Legislature to enact a law protecting gay, lesbian and bisexual people from discrimination could rebound on business, making it harder to recruit talented employees and sell the state as an attractive place to live. Majority Republicans abandoned efforts to strengthen gay rights on Tuesday, saying a compromise proposal had satisfied neither gay-rights advocates nor religious conservatives. "We took a beating from all sides in trying to do this," Senate Republican leader David Long said. "This effort was unfortunately hampered by well-organized extreme messaging from groups representing both sides of this discussion many of them from out of state. Neither of those sides were truly seeking a solution." Indiana faced a backlash last year after it passed a law allowing those who oppose gay rights for religious reasons to withhold services such as providing flowers or cakes for same-sex weddings. The law prompted an uproar that included calls to boycott the state. It was later revised, although the Legislature wanted to revisit the issue this year. The backlash may have contributed to the loss of a dozen conventions costing Indiana some $60 million, the tourism group Visit Indy said in a report last month. The decision on Tuesday was a new blow to business efforts to burnish the state's reputation, business leaders said. "Indiana's economic competitiveness and the Hoosier brand have potentially been compromised again," said Indiana Competes, a coalition of several hundred state organizations and business including major manufacturer Cummins Inc., pharmaceuticals giant Eli Lilly and Co. and the NCAA governing body for college sports. LGBT groups said it was too early to know if there would be another backlash, although they were not aware of any boycott efforts. The group Freedom Indiana said it was disappointed by the setback. "We've said from the outset that doing nothing was not an option," the group said in a statement. "Today, lawmakers did nothing to help protect LGBT people in our state, but our work is only just beginning." Some evangelical Christians welcomed the demise of the legislation, saying it would have whittled away religious freedom. American Family Association of Indiana director Micah Clark said the bill was a "fatally flawed concept." The intense debate came as Republican Gov. Mike Pence is struggling to recover from criticism of his leadership. His popularity dipped during the boycott last year, and he faces a tough election rematch in November with the Democrat he narrowly beat four years ago, John Gregg. In a short statement Tuesday, Pence spokesman Kara Brooks said, "Governor Pence respects the outcome of the legislative process and appreciates the civility with which this issue was debated." Gregg accused Pence of failing to provide leadership as the Legislature considered the issue. SHARE By Zach Osowski INDIANAPOLIS -- The Indiana General Assembly will take a two-day break before the second half of the 2016 session after closing the first half with a flurry of bills. All told lawmakers approved 265 bills, 149 in the Senate and 116 in the House, which will now switch chambers for further discussion. The bills ranged from tax code revision to ISTEP fixes to road funding to tougher drug penalties. What was once a short session aimed at technical correction bills has morphed into a quick sprint to try and get important policy items passed. Among the biggest bills approved so far are road funding bills. Three road bills passed, two in the Senate and one in the House, to try and fix Indiana's crumbling infrastructure. The two in the Senate, both backed by Gov. Mike Pence, are more temporary fixes, with Senate Bill 333 extending four years and Senate Bill 67 giving municipalities a one-time cash infusion for local roads. The House's plan, HB 1001, provides long-term road funding, but raises the state's fuel tax and cigarette tax. House Speaker Brian Bosma said the state needs a long-term solution, and HB 1001 provides that. "Everyone in the building acknowledges that we have a serious road funding issue that needs to be addressed," Bosma said. "The question is: do we try to get ourselves by until the next election, or do try to address this for the next generation? My preference in the latter." Pence has said he doesn't want to raise taxes to pay for new roads, and would rather take out bonds to pay for his plan. The money provided to locals with SB 67, authored by Sen. Brandt Hershman, R-Buck Creek, has a counterpart in House Bill 1110, written by Rep. Todd Huston, R-Fishers. Both bills would draw from excess local income tax reserve. Huston's bill would give the money to county governments while SB 67 would give money to counties as well as towns and cities. SB 67 mandates 75 percent of the money to go towards infrastructure needs, while HB 1110 offers no such stipulations. Vanderburgh County would get more than $6 million under Huston's plan. Rep. Gail Riecken, D-Evansville, said HB 1110 could be a big boon for Vanderburgh County if it gains approval in the Senate. She said local governments should have options in how they spend their money. "I think there should be some flexibility," Riecken said. "I think locals are going to prioritize that, but it is local money and there's going to be different uses all over the state." Fighting meth production was another key goal of legislators, who passed four bills. Two of them are identical and would bar those convicted of a drug-related felony from buying Sudafed. Senate Bill 80 would mandate that pharmacists question anyone trying to buy Sudafed to determine if they really need the medication. House Bill 1390, authored by Rep. Ben Smaltz, R-Auburn, would allow "patients of record" customers known to a pharmacist to continue buying pseudoephedrine as usual. Anyone new to a pharmacy would be offered smaller doses of Sudafed or other alternatives. If they want a big box of Sudafed, they would need a prescription. "(Smaltz's) bill is good and it's probably as far as we can get at this point," Riecken said. "We need to do something to stop the cooking." She said she didn't have an issue with pseudoephedrine being a prescription-only, which had been discussed this session. Ultimately, too many legislators thought it would be an inconvenience for everyone to have to get a prescription. Lawmakers also approved several bills relating to ISTEP, including one promising to do away with the test all together. Bosma and others have repeatedly called ISTEP a broken brand, citing the 2015 test as proof. House Bill 1395, by Rep. Robert Behning, R-Indianapolis, would kill ISTEP after the Spring 2017 test and replace it with another standardized test that lawmakers said needs to be shorter and less obtrusive on class-time. Under the law, a 26-member panel would look for an alternative to ISTEP. The state-wide assessment will continue under the new guidance of testing company Pearson for the next two years at least. The second-half of the session starts Monday. The return of border checks and passport controls could cost Europe as much as 100 billion euros ($110 billion) over a decade, a new study has found. Young adults like Mr Teng are more mobile than any other age group. They are old enough to leave the parental home but have not yet acquired a family of their own to tie them down. They can fit their lives into a small bag--especially now that their book and music collections are stored in the cloud--and catch the next bus to adventure. A global Gallup poll found that 19% of 15-29-year-olds wanted to move permanently to another country--more than twice the proportion of 50-64-year-olds and four times the share of over-65s who felt the same way (see chart). Young adults are more footloose within their own country, too. The average American moves house 6.4 times between the ages of 18 and 45 but only 2.7 times thereafter, the census shows. And in developing countries, young people are 40% more likely than their elders to migrate from the countryside to a city. Such mobility is a good thing. In the absence of a war or flood, it is voluntary. People move because they think they will be better off elsewhere. Usually they are right. If they are wrong, they can always return home. Moving tends to make people more productive, especially if it is from a poor country to a rich one. Michael Clemens of the Centre for Global Development, a think-tank, estimates that if a typical migrant from a poor to a rich country is allowed to work, he can earn three to five times more than he did at home. (And this assumes that he learns no new skills, though he probably will.) To win such a prize, migrants will take huge risks. A study by Linguere Mbaye of the African Development Bank found that those heading from Senegal to Europe were prepared to accept a 25% chance of dying in the attempt. Continue Reading Below Advertisement The museum is a heavily guarded building built right into the side of a mountain, about 100 miles north of Pyongyang. It reportedly stores thousands of items gifted to the country over the past century by its very few "friends," mostly other dictators of impoverished, failed regimes. Among the rumored prized treasures of North Korea's friendship museum are a sword donated by Gaddafi, a cigarette box courtesy of Tito, a train carriage thoughtfully gifted by Mao, an ashtray bequeathed by Mugabe, and a bear's head generously provided by Ceausescu. Shockingly, North Korea appears to have little interest in enshrining the bayonet that stabbed Gaddafi in the ass until he bled out. Continue Reading Below Advertisement And those are just the most valuable of North Korea's treasures. Delve deeper into the Kim dynasty's hall of prizes, and you'll apparently get to see a briefcase donated by Fidel Castro and a clock from CNN founder Ted Turner. Just, like ... a basic clock. Brisbane-based Serenity IT Solutions has deployed Simplivity systems to three schools within the state with another six more schools being targeted for similar work this year. Serenity IT Solutions director Mona Taimana told CRN: "We recently deployed Simplivity systems to St Andrews Anglican College [in] Peregian Springs, Somerset College, Mudgeeraba and Kimberley College, Carbrook last year. This year we are planning on doubling the number to another six schools." Taimana did not reveal the names of the new schools, but added that each Simplivity deployment was worth around $100,000. Once all the relevant information is gathered in the form of a pre-flight questionnaire and hardware is installed in racks as per customer requirement depending on customer site, the actual deployment will take about two to three hours, he added. He said it took three people to deploy the system in each school, comprising of a specialist from Simplivity, a representative from Serenity IT Solutions and a person from the customer. Taimana said Simplivity technology replaced the storage, compute, backup and WAN acceleration [for disaster recovery] solutions in the schools, providing highly available clustered storage as well as compute in the form of hypervisor nodes. Based in Massachusetts, Simplivity is a fast-growing startup in the area of hyper-convergence infrastructure, competing with the likes of Nutanix. Serenity IT Solutions was formed in 2009 by Taimana and his business partner Michael del Manso. The companys clientele is 90 percent schools. Microsoft Wednesday US time confirmed that it will acquire SwiftKey, a London-based company that makes smart prediction technology for easier mobile typing. Microsoft did not disclose how much it spent for SwiftKey; but according to a report by the Financial Times the company paid around US$250 million. SwiftKey is best known for its software keyboard and software development kit, which the company says powers more than 300 million Android and iOS devices. The companys app learns users unique writing styles and offers suggestions as they type on their mobile devices. But beyond the companys benefits for mobile devices, it also touts artificial intelligence technology to predict users word choices. SwiftKey contains a tool called Greenhouse that features an array of experimental Android apps - including SwiftKey Neural, a keyboard that uses artificial neural networks to predict language. These artificial intelligence capabilities, which Microsoft has utilised before with its Windows 10 digital assistant, Cortana, could help with varying applications, including speech recognition, automatic email replies and fraud prevention. In addition to artificial intelligence capabilities, Microsofts acquisition of SwiftKey will help in its push to provide software and services on multiple mobile platforms, including iOS and Android. Harry Shum, executive vice president of technology and research at Microsoft, stressed that SwiftKey aligns with our vision for more personal computing experiences that anticipate our needs versus responding to our commands. [Swiftkey] directly supports our ambition to reinvent productivity by leveraging the intelligent cloud, said Shum in a blog post. This acquisition is a great example of Microsofts commitment to bringing its software and services to all platforms. Well continue to develop SwiftKeys market-leading keyboard apps for Android and iOS as well as explore scenarios for the integration of the core technology across the breadth of our product and services portfolio. Microsoft has continued to extend its services over various platforms, mainly through acquisitions. In 2014, Microsoft acquired email startup Accompli, which it eventually rebranded into its Outlook for iOS and Android platforms. In February last year, the company acquired Sunrise, a calendar app also for the iOS and Android platforms. This article originally appeared at crn.com Cloud News Google Partners Aren't Concerned About Search Leader's Departure Joseph Tsidulko Share this The retirement of Google's search leader signals a changing of the guard in Mountain View, Calif., some Google partners told CRN, but they don't worry that Amit Singhal's departure will reverberate through the Internet giant's channel. Singhal, senior vice president for search and one of Google's most prolific and accomplished engineers, posted on his Google Plus account Wednesday morning that he'll be leaving the company Feb. 26 to spend more time with his family. Google, a subsidiary of parent company Alphabet, still makes the lion's share of its profits by selling advertising through search queries. [Related: Sources: Google, Verizon In Talks About Strategic Hybrid Cloud Partnership] A couple of Google channel vets told CRN they don't believe Singhal's departure will have any impact on the company's burgeoning channel, or its enterprise business. "The wheels are in motion," said Dj Das, founder and CEO of Third Eye Consulting, a Google partner based in San Francisco. "Amit did his part very well. Now another team can augment search further with machine learning and the show will go on." Allen Falcon, founder and CEO of Cumulus Global, a partner based in Westborough, Mass., pointed out that leadership changes come somewhat frequently in Mountain View, "so this is part of the continuum." Falcon noted that the company's partner ecosystem is already starting to see positive results from some recent leadership changes, most notably Diane Greene, who's taken over Google's entire cloud operation, the segment of the business that most directly affects the company's channel. Singhal will be replaced by John Giannandrea, who currently leads Google's artificial intelligence efforts, a clear sign Google is working to make its search algorithms more intelligent by incorporating methods like machine learning. Cisco Systems partners also recently learned the company would soon lose a preeminent engineer. Pankaj Patel, the leading technologist for the networking giant, said last week he plans to step down in the second half of the year. Networking News Partners Applaud Cisco's $1.4 Billion Purchase of IoT Superstar Jasper; Expect IoT Sales To Ramp Up Mark Haranas Share this Partners are hailing Cisco's $1.4 billion purchase of cloud-based Internet of Things provider Jasper Technologies as a way to drive new IoT sales and recurring revenue. "No question, it will help drive IoT sales," said Brian Ortbals, vice president of Advanced Technology at World Wide Technology, a St. Louis-based solution provider and Cisco Gold partner, ranked No. 11 on CRN's Solution Provider 500 list. "We heard time and time again Cisco's desire to move to an IoT platform strategy, and certainly you look at what Jasper provides and some of their reference solutions -- they're a key piece in an overall platform strategy. It makes perfect sense." Privately held Jasper Technologies, named in CRN's 10 Coolest IoT Startups Of 2015, delivers a cloud-based IoT service platform aimed at helping enterprises and service providers launch, manage and monetize IoT services on a global scale. Cisco touts Jasper, based in Santa Clara, Calif., as the industry's leading IoT service platform in terms of the number of enterprises and service providers it serves. [Related: CRN Exclusive: Brocade CTO Bets On Hyper-Converged Partnership With Nutanix To Drive Channel Sales] Jasper develops and provides a Software-as-a-Service platform with recurring revenue IoT business that manages and drives a range of connected devices and services for more than 3,500 enterprises and 27 service provider groups globally, said Rob Salvango, Cisco's vice president of Cisco's Corporate Business Development, in a blog post. "Jasper recognized early on that in order to support its enterprise customers, it needed to tightly integrate with service provider networks. This strategic decision was game changing -- it helped them create an expansive recurring revenue-based business model that offers more breadth and reach than any other IoT player today," said Salvango in the post. Jamie Shepard, senior vice president of strategy and health care at Lumenate, an Addison, Texas-based Cisco partner, said the acquisition will help his company better align itself with Cisco to drive IoT revenue. "Cisco is giving us an opportunity to walk into the world's most sophisticated firms, no matter where they are, and help architecture [an IoT] solution," Shepard said. "They're giving us a great mechanism to have bigger, deeper discussions, and that's going to continue to drive our Cisco practice." In a statement, Cisco CEO Chuck Robbins said the acquisition will accelerate how customers recognize the value of IoT. "Together, we can enable service providers, enterprises and the broader ecosystem to connect, automate, manage and analyze billions of connected things, across any network, creating new revenue streams and opportunities," said Robbins in the statement. Jasper's IoT service platform automates the management of IoT services across devices and enables companies to create new business models. The acquisition allows San Jose, Calif.-based networking giant Cisco to offer a complete solution that is interoperable across devices and works with IoT service providers, application developers and partners. Matt Duncan, director of GDT Labs at General Datatech, a Cisco Gold partner ranked No. 45 on CRN's SP500, said the acquisition is "good news for everybody," because more IoT vendor integration is better for business. "The more places to integrate, the better. The more tools we have, the better," said Duncan. "It helps us a lot, because we're having a lot of conversations with customers in the IoT space, [talking about] what it means to them to monetize these efforts in different ways. We're exploring those option internally for ourselves as well as for our customers." Cisco is paying $1.4 billion in cash and assumed equity awards, plus additional retention-based incentives, for Jasper. The hefty price tag caught some partners off guard. "[The price] is no drop in the bucket, that's for sure," said Michael Girouard, executive vice president of sales at TekLinks, a Birmingham, Ala.-based solution provider and Cisco Gold partner. "Chuck [Robbins] wanted to move fast -- he said he was going to move fast. They've made some investments in IoT organically and inorganically. This is a pretty bullish move by Cisco." Jasper CEO Jahangir Mohammed will run Cisco's new IoT Software Business Unit under Rowan Trollope, Cisco senior vice president and general manager, IoT and Collaboration Technology Group. The acquisition is expected to close in the third quarter of fiscal year 2016. In October, Cisco unveiled its plan to purchase IoT data analytics specialist ParStream. News HPE Acquires Data Protection Software Developer Trilead Joseph F. Kovar Share this Hewlett Packard Enterprise has acquired a small data protection vendor that in some ways competes with more well-known applications like Veeam. Trilead, an Altendorf, Switzerland-based developer of low-cost data protection software for VMware vSphere and ESXi and Microsoft Hyper-V virtualized environments, put a statement on its website home page that it was acquired by HPE. Neither the timing of the acquisition nor the purchase price was addressed in the statement. [Related: 19 Software Solutions For Cloud-Based Data Protection] The Trilead statement read: "We are thrilled to announce that Trilead is now a part of Hewlett Packard Enterprise and its family of global and industry leading Information Management & Governance solutions. Its been an exciting adventure for all of us at Trilead, thanks to our dedicated community of partners and customers. There is a lot more to come and we look forward to continued enhancements under the Hewlett Packard Enterprise brand." An HPE spokesperson, in response to a CRN request for more information, emailed a statement: "To further accelerate our focus on virtualization, we acquired Trilead, a provider of backup solutions targeted exclusively on virtualized environments. This acquisition is consistent with HPEs broader strategy to invest in growth areas that are core to the business." The Trilead software is available in three versions. The Free edition backs up virtual machines while they are running, and allows drag-and-drop copying of files between VMware, Windows, Linux and FreeBSD servers. The Pro edition adds tape backup, incremental backups, offsite backup copies, file-level restore, cloud backups and replication. The Enterprise edition adds several advanced cloud backup and restore features, encryption, and support for certain other products including EMC XtremIO and VMware Virtual SAN (VSAN). The Pro edition is priced at $790, while the Enterprise edition is priced at $1,460. The prices are based on one license per installation regardless of the number of virtual machines or processors used. However, the company currently provides only email-based support. Chris Case, president of Sequel Data Systems, an Austin, Texas-based solution provider and longtime HPE channel partner, told CRN that he has not heard of Trilead before, but its acquisition by HPE appears to be an SMB data protection play for the vendor. "Not knowing how it scales, it might be an SMB play," Case said. "Trilead offers free support. HPE offers nothing for free." Case said Trilead appears to have many of the capabilities of Veeam, the Baar, Switzerland-based developer of one of the leading data protection suites for virtualized environments. "Trilead has Hyper-V and VMware capabilities, and offers things like replication and scheduling," he said. "But it licenses on a per-installation basis. One license for an entire environment. With Veeam, in a 50-processor environment, say, 25 servers each with two processors, you need 50 licenses." Case said Trilead does not seem to compete with HPE Data Protector, the enterprise-class data protection application owned by HPE. Trilead is the second investment HPE has made in the storage software industry. HPE on Jan. 12 said it has acquired an equity stake in Scality, a developer of object storage software. HPE appears to have partnered with Trilead in the past. The company, back when it was known as Hewlett-Packard, included Trilead as part of a software bundle in its EVA 6000 array. A Decade Of Downloads It's been a decade since Salesforce introduced an online app store enabling partners to sell unique solutions enhancing Salesforce's core CRM software. Today, AppExchange hosts more than 2,800 partner apps that have been installed 3.5 million times. Eighty-five percent of the Fortune 100 have installed at least one AppExchange App, and 79 percent of Salesforce customers use partner apps, according to the CRM leader. For those following the cloud-focused startup back in 2006, AppExchange telegraphed a revolutionary vision that Salesforce would successfully implement over the coming years -- moving beyond a single Software-as-a-Service technology to becoming an enterprise-grade platform for the creation of novel and diverse solutions. Since then, hundreds of independent software developers have built their businesses by selling on AppExchange unique tools backed by deep expertise in particular markets. And Salesforce relies on those third-party developers to keep meeting the rapidly evolving needs of its customers. To mark its 10th anniversary, Salesforce shared with CRN the most downloaded AppExchange apps (Salesforce doesn't make available total number of downloads) for each of 12 business categories, from education to banking to government to retail. Theres a lot of talk around faith and the Bible during the election season, sprinkled in and around the debates and discussions over the issues at hand. Even though church and state are separate in theory, there are still many areas where they overlap, both to the praise and the outrage of Americans. Recently, Jimmy Kimmel brought Jesus on his show to read actual quotes from presidential candidates. The candidates werent mentioned by name, but many can be assumed by the nature of the quotes. Relevant shared the video, saying many Christians will find the shows irreverent description of Jesus offensive. But the truly interesting part is that the segment ends up being less funny and more of an indictment of the current political climate. This election season has seemed to be more dramatic than in years past, perhaps due to the popularity (or infamy) of several key players due to their family names or former positions. What this video does, in my opinion, is use humor as a way of shifting our perspectives from the drama and debates and polls to instead thinking about the candidates through the lens of our faith. When you hear these quotes read from a man dressed as the stereotypical storybook Jesus, it makes you stop and think. When you hear this Jesus saying, the fact is that we need appropriate vetting and I dont think that orphans under 5 should be admitted into the United States at this point or the other thing is, with the terrorists, you have to take out their families, its shocking. We know based on the Bible that Jesus would not say those things. Scripture instead says things like, Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. (James 1:27) The Old Testament says you shall not murder (Exodus 20:13) and the New Testament says Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you (Luke 6:27). We can clearly see the disconnect here. While the candidates are trying to communicate their faith to appeal to the voting Christians in our country, their words arent lining up with what the Bible says. It can be easy to ignore, but when we see segments like this, although meant to be funny, the message is loud and its clearly one that doesnt align with what Jesus and the Bible say. Maybe the humor of late-night television is more poignant and thought-provoking for Christians than we might have thought. Maybe segments like this one, although satirical in nature, are communicating serious concerns about how our faith and our politics intersect. Crosswalk.com editor Ryan Duncan shared another example of how late-night TV brought faith to the forefront: For Zach Hoag of A Deeper Story, watching The Tonight Show has become a new spiritual discipline. In Hoags eyes, many Christians have forgotten what its like to experience true, authentic joy. Instead, we have replaced the idea with a muted self-denial that ignores our problems. Jimmy Fallon, with his jokes, creative sketches, and optimistic laughter, reminds Hoag that the joy of the Lord is something far more powerful. Another Crosswalk.com editor, Carrie Dedrick, shared in light of the terrorist attacks in Colorado Springs and San Bernardino how Stephen Colbert defended the offering of thoughts and prayers, explaining, The reason you keep people in your thoughts and prayers is admittedly not to fix the problem, but to find some small way to share the burden of grief. These television hosts, although not preachers, pastors, or spiritual leaders, are prompting us both in humor and in sentimental statements to engage with our culture in the light of our faith, and I, for one, am grateful for the reminder. Publication date: February 4. 2016 Rachel Dawson is the editor of BibleStudyTools.com Crystal Cruises has signed an option purchase agreement for a ship that last sailed in 1969, the SS United States, pending a technical feasibility study. The agreement is between Crystal and the SS United States Conservancy, which currently owns the ship. The liner ran regular service form 1952-1969, and has had various plans and owners since then. Crystal CEO and President Edie Rodriguez said it was her intention to return the ship to the sea as Americas flagship, rebuilding it as modern luxury vessel. She added Crystal has gone out and hired experts to manage the project, which will be led by retired U.S. Coast Guard Rear Admiral Tim Sullivan. While also managing newbuildings in Europe for ocean and river ships, Crystal intends to refit the SS United States for cruise service, pending a feasibility study. Crystal will also pick up the tab for the next nine months as the ship continues to sit in Philadelphia, costing some $60,000 a month in dock fees and insurance. The 64-year-old ship has been docked relatively untouched in Philadelphia for the last 18 years, and is in need of a complete, major rebuild and overhaul. Rodriguez said the cost for the project would be in excess of $750 million. She said the ship could return to service as soon as 2018. By comparison, Regents Explorer, a new luxury vessel being built at Fincantieri, will carry about 750 passengers at an estimated cost of $450 million to build. Crystal also announced in 2015 it would take delivery of its first new ocean going ship in 2018, with two more ships set to follow. A decade ago, under ownership from Genting Hong Kong (Crystals parent company), Norwegian Cruise Line also intended to rebuild the SS United States and conducted similar studies, only to abandon the project. Genting, meanwhile, has moved into an ownership position with the Lloyd Werft shipyard in Germany, which was involved in Norwegians American-flag projects in the 2000s. Rodriguez said at the press conference the shipyard would be determined after the technical feasibility study. Genting bought Crystal in 2015, putting down money not only for the brand and two existing ships, but a major expansion program including three newbuild ocean ships, four newbuild river boats, an existing river ship, a small 62-passenger yacht and three planes, plus a new office in Miami and expanded staff. The SS United States does present an American-built hull, which could be attractive for a cruise line looking to operate U.S.-flag service. The announcement was widely welcomed by mainstream media on Thursday in New York, with no shortage of press at an event hosted at the Manhattan Cruise Terminal, TV time for executives and no doubt, a major media hit for the Crystal Cruises brand in the middle of wave season. What is social engineering? Social engineering is the art of exploiting human psychology, rather than technical hacking techniques, to gain access to buildings, systems, or data. For example, instead of trying to find a software vulnerability, a social engineer might call an employee and pose as an IT support person, trying to trick the employee into divulging his password. Famous hacker Kevin Mitnick helped popularize the term 'social engineering' in the '90s, although the idea and many of the techniques have been around as long as there have been scam artists. Even if you've got all the bells and whistles when it comes to securing your data center, your cloud deployments, your building's physical security, and you've invested in defensive technologies, have the right security policies and processes in place and measure their effectiveness and continuously improve, still a crafty social engineer can weasel his way right through (or around). How does social engineering work? The phrase "social engineering" encompasses a wide range of behaviors, and what they all have in common is that they exploit certain universal human qualities: greed, curiosity, politeness, deference to authority, and so on. While some classic examples of social engineering take place in the "real world"a man in a FedEx uniform bluffing his way into an office building, for examplemuch of our daily social interaction takes place online, and that's where most social engineering attacks happen as well. For instance, you might not think of phishing or smishing as types of social engineering attacks, but both rely on tricking youby pretending to be someone you trust or tempting you with something you wantinto downloading malware onto your device. This brings up another important point, which is that social engineering can represent a single step in a larger attack chain. A smishing text uses social dynamics to entice you with a free gift card, but once you tap the link and download malicious code, your attackers will be using their technical skills to gain control of your device and exploit it. Social engineering examples A good way to get a sense of what social engineering tactics you should look out for is to know about what's been used in the past. We've got all the details in an extensive article on the subject, but for the moment let's focus on three social engineering techniques independent of technological platforms that have been successful for scammers in a big way. Offer something sweet. As any con artist will tell you, the easiest way to scam a mark is to exploit their own greed. This is the foundation of the classic Nigerian 419 scam, in which the scammer tries to convince the victim to help get supposedly ill-gotten cash out of their own country into a safe bank, offering a portion of the funds in exchange. These "Nigerian prince" emails have been a running joke for decades, but they're still an effective social engineering technique that people fall for: in 2007 the treasurer of a sparsely populated Michigan county gave $1.2 million in public funds to such a scammer in the hopes of personally cashing in. Another common lure is the prospect of a new, better job, which apparently is something far too many of us want: in a hugely embarrassing 2011 breach, the security company RSA was compromised when at least two low-level employees opened a malware file attached to a phishing email with the file name "2011 recruitment plan.xls." Fake it till you make it. One of the simplest and surprisingly most successful social engineering techniques is to simply pretend to be your victim. In one of Kevin Mitnick's legendary early scams, he got access to Digital Equipment Corporation's OS development servers simply by calling the company, claiming to be one of their lead developers, and saying he was having trouble logging in; he was immediately rewarded with a new login and password. This all happened in 1979, and you'd think things would've improved since then, but you'd be wrong: in 2016, a hacker got control of a U.S. Department of Justice email address and used it to impersonate an employee, coaxing a help desk into handing over an access token for the DoJ intranet by saying it was his first week on the job and he didn't know how anything worked. Many organizations do have barriers meant to prevent these kinds of brazen impersonations, but they can often be circumvented fairly easily. When Hewlett-Packard hired private investigators to find out which HP board members were leaking info to the press in 2005, they were able to supply the PIs with the last four digits of their targets' social security number which AT&T's tech support accepted as proof of ID before handing over detailed call logs. Act like you're in charge. Most of us are primed to respect authority or, as it turns out, to respect people who act like they have the authority to do what they're doing. You can exploit varying degrees of knowledge of a company's internal processes to convince people that you have the right to be places or see things that you shouldn't, or that a communication coming from you is really coming from someone they respect. For instance, in 2015 finance employees at Ubiquiti Networks wired millions of dollars in company money to scam artists who were impersonating company executives, probably using a lookalike URL in their email address. On the lower tech side, investigators working for British tabloids in the late '00s and early '10s often found ways to get access to victims' voicemail accounts by pretending to be other employees of the phone company via sheer bluffing; for instance, one PI convinced Vodafone to reset actress Sienna Miller's voicemail PIN by calling and claiming to be "John from credit control." Sometimes it's external authorities whose demands we comply with without giving it much thought. Hillary Clinton campaign honcho John Podesta had his email hacked by Russian spies in 2016 when they sent him a phishing email disguised as a note from Google asking him to reset his password. By taking action that he thought would secure his account, he actually gave his login credentials away. 5 types of social engineering Phishing, as we noted above, which also includes text-based smishing and voice-based vishing These attacks are often low-effort but widely spread; for instance, a phisher might send out thousands of identical emails, hoping someone will be gullible enough to click on the attachment. Spear phishing, or whaling, is a "high-touch" variation of phishing for high-value targets. Attackers spend time researching their victim, who's usually a high-status person with a lot of money they can be separated from, in order to craft unique and personalized scam communications. Baiting is a key part of all forms of phishing and other scams as wellthere's always something to tempt the victim, whether a text with a promise of a free gift card or something much more lucrative or salacious. Pretexting involves creating a story, or pretext, to convince someone to give up valuable information or access to some system or account. A pretexter might manage to find some of your personally identifying information and use it to trick youfor instance, if they know what bank you use, they might call you up and claim to be a customer service rep who needs to know your account number to help with a late payment. Or they could use the information to imitate youthis was the technique used by those HP PIs we discussed above. Business email frauds combine several of the above techniques. An attacker either gains control of a victim's email address or manages to send emails that look like they're from that address, then start sending emails to subordinates at work requesting the transfer of funds to accounts they control. How to spot social engineering attacks The security company Norton has done a pretty good job of outlining some red flags that could be a sign of a social engineering attack. These apply across social and technological techniques, and are good to keep in the back of your mind as you try to stay on guard: Someone you know sends an unusual message: Stealing or mimicking someone's online identity and then mining their social circles is relatively easy for a determined attacker, so if you get a message from a friend, relative, or coworker that seems off, be very sure you're really talking to them before you act on it. It's possible that your granddaughter really is on a vacation she didn't tell you about and needs money, or that your boss really does wants you to wire a six-figure sum to a new supplier in Belarus, but that's something for you to triple-check before you hit send. Stealing or mimicking someone's online identity and then mining their social circles is relatively easy for a determined attacker, so if you get a message from a friend, relative, or coworker that seems off, be very sure you're really talking to them before you act on it. It's possible that your granddaughter really is on a vacation she didn't tell you about and needs money, or that your boss really does wants you to wire a six-figure sum to a new supplier in Belarus, but that's something for you to triple-check before you hit send. A stranger is making an offer that's too good to be true: Again, we all laugh at the Nigerian prince emails, but many of us still fall for scams that trick us by telling us we're about to get something we never expected and never asked for. Whether it's an email telling you won a lottery you didn't enter or a text from a weird number offering you a free gift card just for paying your phone bill on time, if it feels too good to be true, it probably is. Again, we all laugh at the Nigerian prince emails, but many of us still fall for scams that trick us by telling us we're about to get something we never expected and never asked for. Whether it's an email telling you won a lottery you didn't enter or a text from a weird number offering you a free gift card just for paying your phone bill on time, if it feels too good to be true, it probably is. Your emotions are heightened and you have to act now: Social engineering scammers play on strong emotionsfear, greed, empathyto inculcate a sense of urgency specifically so you don't stop to think twice about scenarios like the ones we just outlined. A particularly pernicious technique in this realm is a tech support scam, which preys on people who are already nervous about hacks but not very tech savvy: you hear from an aggressive person who claims to be from Google or Microsoft, tells you that your system has been compromised, and demands that you change your passwords right awaytricking you into revealing your credentials to them in the process. How to avoid being a victim of social engineering Fighting against all of these techniques requires vigilance and a zero-trust mindset. That can be difficult to inculcate in ordinary people; in the corporate world, security awareness training is the number one way to prevent employees from falling prey to high-stakes attacks. Employees should be aware that social engineering exists and be familiar with the most commonly used tactics. Fortunately, social engineering awareness lends itself to storytelling. And stories are much easier to understand and much more interesting than explanations of technical flaws. Quizzes and attention-grabbing or humorous posters are also effective reminders about not assuming everyone is who they say they are. But it isn't just the average employee who needs to be aware of social engineering. As we saw, social engineers focus on high-value targets like CEOs and CFOs. Senior leadership often resists going to the trainings mandated for their employees, but they need to be aware of these attacks more than anyone. 5 tips for defending against social engineering CSO contributor Dan Lohrmann offers the following advice: Train and train again when it comes to security awareness. Ensure that you have a comprehensive security awareness training program in place that is regularly updated to address both the general phishing threats and the new targeted cyberthreats. Remember, this is not just about clicking on links. Provide a detailed briefing roadshow on the latest online fraud techniques to key staff. Yes, include senior executives, but dont forget anyone who has authority to make wire transfers or other financial transactions. Remember that many of the true stories involving fraud occur with lower-level staff who get fooled into believing an executive is asking them to conduct an urgent action usually bypassing normal procedures and/or controls. Review existing processes, procedures, and separation of duties for financial transfers and other important transactions. Add extra controls, if needed. Remember that separation of duties and other protections may be compromised at some point by insider threats, so risk reviews may need to be reanalyzed given the increased threats. Consider new policies related to out of band transactions or urgent executive requests. An email from the CEOs Gmail account should automatically raise a red flag to staff, but they need to understand the latest techniques being deployed by the dark side. You need authorized emergency procedures that are well-understood by all. Review, refine and test your incident management and phishing reporting systems. Run a tabletop exercise with management and with key personnel on a regular basis. Test controls and reverse-engineer potential areas of vulnerability. Social engineering trends ISACAs latest report State of Security 2021, Part 2 (a survey of almost 3,700 global cybersecurity professionals) discovered that social engineering is the leading cause of compromises experienced by organizations, while PhishLabs Quarterly Threat Trends and Intelligence Report revealed a 22% increase in the volume of phishing attacks in the first half of this year compared to the same period in 2020. Recent research by Gemini has also illustrated how cyber-criminals use social engineering techniques to bypass specific security protocols such as 3D Secure to commit payment fraud. Ned Gerard / Ned Gerard In a boost for Connecticuts largest manufacturer, Poland has restarted negotiations with Stratford-based Sikorsky for the sale of up to 70 Black Hawk helicopters, according to U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, who said he has been pushing for the move. I met with Polish Minister of Defense (Tomasz) Siemoniak last year and vigorously made the case that the U.S.-Poland relationship would be much stronger if Poland went with the higher-performing Black Hawk, Murphy said in a statement. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Even as its distribution and assembly manufacturing moves to New Jersey at a cost of some 40 jobs, Omega Group has committed to keeping its headquarters offices in Connecticut, eyeing locations in Stamford where it has long been based as well as Norwalk. Omega Group, currently housed at One Omega Drive in Stamfords Riverbend commercial park, makes thermocouples a temperature gauge used in applications ranging from household thermostats to gas turbines as well as sensors to measure pressure, flows of liquids and gases. The company was acquired in August 2011 by Spectris, a U.K.-based controls and instruments maker, for $475 million. Omegas decision to keep its base in Connecticut comes even as the state absorbs the ramifications of General Electrics headquarters departure, with Gov. Dannel P. Malloy telling state lawmakers Wednesday the state must intensify efforts to deal with its fiscal crisis and by extension build confidence by corporations to maintain their operations here. In an interview with the Advocate, CEO Jim Dale confirmed the companys plans to consolidate distribution and remaining assembly work in southern New Jersey, where he resides, saying it was inefficient to run mirror distribution operations in both states. With two major (distribution) locations in the Northeast, its a lot of coordination, Dale said. We find ourselves shipping parts back and forth (and) we carry thousands of parts. You want to optimize investment. Despite all that, Omega plans to stay in Connecticut, where the company employs about 140 office personnel. Weve been in this area for 50 years and are very committed to staying here, Dale said. Omegas late founder Betty Hollander was a minor local legend after starting the company in 1962 at her kitchen table and building it into a major manufacturer, while also serving on numerous corporate and nonprofit boards. She is the only woman among more than 50 people inducted into IndustryWeeks Manufacturing Hall of Fame. At a time when women faced pervasive discrimination in many industries, Betty utilized her steady work ethic and sharp business acumen to grow Omega from a firm focused on manufacturing a single line of thermocouples to a globally recognized business that produces over 100,000 state-of-the-art products for measurement and control, former U.S. Sen. Joe Lieberman wrote in a blog after Hollanders passing in April 2011. One long-time employee in Omega's shipping department remembers that, no matter how busy she was as CEO, Betty would always take the time out to get to know all of her employees personally. Betty was just incredible, said Sandy Goldstein, CEO of the Stamford Downtown Special Services District. There were very few (causes) she didnt touch. Omega has maintained its headquarters in Stamford to this day, building Riverbend Center in the mid-1990s in the citys Springdale neighborhood, eventually totaling 12 buildings and more than 600,000 square feet of space on 40 acres. In addition to Omegas corporate headquarters, tenants today include the Advocate and satellite campuses for Sacred Heart University and the University of Bridgeport. Alongside its Spectris sibling instrument manufacturers Microscan and Red Lion Controls, Omega contributed $78.4 million in revenue to the parent company in the first half of 2015, a 6 percent increase from a year earlier (excluding the impact of foreign exchange rates, sales were down slightly) and accounting for 20 percent of total Spectris sales. Omega spent much of the past year implementing a new software system to better track operations and inventory. Alex.Soule@scni.com; 203-964-2236; www.twitter.com/casoulman This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate BRIDGEPORT Black voters played a huge role in returning Joe Ganim to the mayors office. And their political leaders are not going to let Ganim forget it. A handful of prominent African-American Democrats huddled this week with the mayors chief of staff, Danny Roach, over concerns about what they say is a lack of diversity in City Halls top jobs. The black leaders are also troubled by changes Ganims administration has made since the Dec. 1 inauguration that allegedly weaken the citys Small & Minority Business Enterprise office. I was very honest with Joe, Ralph Ford, one of those black leaders, said, recalling a conversation with then-candidate Ganim during last years battle to unseat incumbent Bill Finch. Its not like the old days when you white boys go in the back room, come out and tell us what youre going to do for us. I know its only been two months (since Ganim took office Dec. 1), but the bottom line is were seeing a trend, Ford said. Were not going to repeat what we just went through for the past eight years. Critics: Caucasians better paid Four years ago Ford endorsed Finch for a second term. But since then Ford and other minority Democrats, for reasons real or imagined, felt they and their neighborhoods were ignored by Finch. Ganim took full advantage of that, campaigning hard in those communities. And his message about second chances resonated among those voters. In an interview Wednesday, Ford complained that out of Ganims top level staff, the ones making the really big money are all Caucasian, except for one or two people. Thats a concern. Fords list included Roach, who earns $129,778; Finance Director Ken Flatto, who makes $124,000; FBI Agent Ed Adams, director of governmental accountability, whose salary is $90,000; and Special Projects Manager Tom Gaudett, who earns $85,000. Ganim's city attorney and communications director are also both white. Roach said the administration has tried hard to make sure the new hires reflect Bridgeports diversity. Out of the nine people working in the mayors office on a regular basis, six are minorities, Roach said. But, Ford argued, some of those positions are office workers rather than the top earners with major decision-making authority. We were good enough to be your partners in this campaign, where are we now in terms of the administration? Ford said. Democratic Town Chairman Mario Testa, who is running for another term, noted Ganim has African-Americans and Hispanics in other powerful jobs, including running the budget, chief administrative, labor and minority contracting offices. This is a minority city, so definitely we have to get qualified people in key positions, Testa said. The mayor needs a little additional time. Cutting, gutting accusations One of Ganims closest advisers, both in the campaign and now on the payroll, is state Rep. Charles Stallworth. Stallworth joined Roach in meeting with his fellow black politicians. When Ganim was sworn in, the returned mayor hired Stallworth as the $98,000 director of community outreach and diversity. Since then, Stallworth has also been put in charge of the minority business office. The problem, Ford said, is Ganim, as part of an ongoing restructuring of departments, gutted that office and Stallworth, with the legislative session in Hartford just starting, has a lot to juggle. Hows he going to run that office and do community stuff, too? Ford said. The minority business program was something Finch was proud of. At one point during last years campaign, Finch boasted that 100 out of 101 subcontracting opportunities on four school construction projects were awarded to minority- or women-owned businesses. Ganim had brought in another campaign adviser Christine Bartlett-Josie, of New Haven to manage the office. But Bartlett-Josie and the administration had a parting of the ways after just a few weeks. Roach characterized Bartlett-Josie as a temporarily contracted employee. Bartlett-Josie did not return a phone call seeking comment. Though Ganim did let go of two staffers in the minority business office, Roach said they were replaced. There are two full-time people in that office and Charlie in oversight responsibility, Roach said, denying the department was gutted. He said a fourth city employee helps out as needed. Councilwoman Mary McBride-Lee and Library Director Scott Hughes joined Fords meeting with Roach. But both refused to discuss any concerns for this article. I dont have anything to talk to you about, Hughes said. McBride-Lee signaled her continued loyalty to Ganim, despite any current tensions. I do want to give him the benefit of the doubt, McBride-Lee said. I like him a lot. Christian Abraham / Christian Abraham FAIRFIELD Nearly 500 students attending six Marinello Schools of Beauty around the state will be out of a school as of Friday, Feb. 5. The state Office of Higher of Education sent out a notice Thursday, saying the schools are closing all six campuses. One of them is located in Fairfield. Others are in Hamden, Meriden, East Hartford, Niantic, Torrinton and Willimantic. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Governor Dannel P. Malloy warned Connecticut residents of possible snowfall overnight that could make for a dangerous Friday morning commute. Gov. Malloy said roads, particularly during the morning rush hour commute, may experience hazardous conditions with areas expecting differing levels of snowfall. "We are monitoring the fast-changing weather forecast closely and will continue to do so throughout the night," Gov. Malloy said in a release. "We are urging motorists to be cautious during their morning commutes tomorrow the timing of the snow could create slick road conditions." We encourage everyone to be safe, allow extra time to travel to and from work, and reduce speeds as conditions warrant," Gov. Malloy said. The National Weather Service issued a winter weather advisory Thursday for southwest Fairfield County and western Long Island from 1 a.m. to 10 a.m. Friday, with 3-5 inches of snow and morning rain expected in some areas. The NWS also said wind speeds will reach 10-20 miles per hour, with gusts up to 30 mph. Visibility may be limited to a quarter to a half a mile at certain times. Periods of sleet or freezing rain will be a factor in morning travel before snow sets in during the day. WTNH is anticipating overnight rain to change to snow for many areas of Connecticut between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. Friday and anywhere between 1-3 inches of snow throughout the morning for southwestern Connecticut. Not just for commuters Its interesting to note the increases in non-commuting passenger trips, because it proves that the New Haven line is not just for people going to and from work. James Redeker, Connecticut Transportation commissioner, regarding a report that the line had 40.3 million passenger trips in 2015, a two percent increrase over the prior year. Non-commuting, discretionary ridership was up 2.9 percent in 2015. High priest We found two human skulls and bones that appear to have come from the remains of two people. NORWALK A fugitive task force raided a Muffin Lane home on Wednesday, seizing drugs and cash and a arresting an occupant of the home, but not the fugitive they were seeking. Norwalk police and the U.S. Marshals Violent Fugitive Task Force conducted the operation, setting up a perimeter around the home. When officers knocked on the front door, a man ran out the back and into a wooded area, Lt. Terry Blake said. 'Joe Biden can have them': Mastriano vows to bus migrants to Delaware politics Amid Ian cone-troversy, season could see quiet conclusion | WeatherTiger As hurricane season counts down, less than 10% of historical U.S. landfall activity remains ahead, with under 2% occurring in November. Lifestyle | Daily Life | News | The Sydney Morning Herald Were sorry, this feature is currently unavailable. Were working to restore it. Please try again later. Dismiss Call for action: The front page of today's Daily Mail Today the Mail asks a question of profound significance to our destiny as a sovereign nation and the fate of our children and grandchildren. Who will speak for England? It's a question inspired by one of the most dramatic moments in the history of Parliamentary democracy. The date was September 2, 1939, the day after Hitler invaded Poland. Tory PM Neville Chamberlain had just made an ambivalent statement to the House, proposing no immediate action. On his backbenches, anti-appeasement stalwart Leo Amery was incensed. As Labour's deputy leader Arthur Greenwood rose to reply for the Opposition, the Tory MP bellowed across the floor: 'Speak for England!' And Greenwood did just that, voicing anger over the premier's reluctance to honour Britain's treaty obligations to Poland. Bowing to the mood of the House, Chamberlain declared war on Hitler the next day. Nobody is suggesting there are any parallels whatever between the Nazis and the EU. Indeed, the Mail would argue that one of the Union's great achievements, along with Nato, has been to foster peace in Europe. But as in 1939, we are at a crossroads in our island history. For in perhaps as little as 20 weeks' time, voters will be asked to decide nothing less than what sort of country we want to live in and bequeath to those who come after us. Backlash: The Prime Minister, pictured yesterday, has muzzled Eurosceptic ministers Are we to be a self-governing nation, free in this age of mass migration to control our borders, strike trade agreements with whomever we choose and dismiss our rulers and lawmakers if they displease us? Or will our liberty, security and prosperity be better assured by submitting to a statist, unelected bureaucracy in Brussels, accepting the will of unaccountable judges and linking our destiny with that of a sclerotic Europe that tries to achieve the impossible by uniting countries as diverse as Germany and Greece? For make no mistake. After the failure of Mr Cameron's renegotiations and this week's draft deal shows there's no other word for it than failure, since it changes nothing of any substance in our relationship with the EU this is the stark choice facing us in the coming referendum. For months, we have been bombarded with propaganda from one side: the side that speaks for Brussels. In a brilliantly organised campaign, big business leaders, universities, 'elder statesmen' and the Civil Service under the direction of its head, 'Sir Cover-up' Jeremy Heywood have been corralled into making the case that it would be a catastrophe if Britain left the EU. Changing their tune: Former Tory leader William Hague, right, and Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, left, have both spoken out against Europe in the past - but are now set to declare for the 'in' campaign Needless to say, their apocalyptic interventions have been zealously reported by the supposedly neutral BBC, that former champion of the disastrous euro, which struggles to conceal its contempt for the 'out' camp. Meanwhile, the Conservative Party has thrown off all pretence of impartiality, proselytising for the EU in defiance of most of its rank-and-file members, who have grave doubts about Brussels. More shamefully still, Eurosceptic ministers have been muzzled banned from speaking on the most momentous issue of our time, even now that we know the terms Mr Cameron is willing to accept. Formidable: Eurosceptic Iain Duncan Smith As we report today, an edict has even gone out requiring all Cabinet ministers to filter their statements and quotes on Europe through Downing Street. So we ask again: who will speak for England (and, of course, by 'England', like Amery in 1939, we mean the whole of the United Kingdom)? Not the leader of the Opposition, certainly. Indeed, at Prime Minister's Questions yesterday, Jeremy Corbyn didn't even mention the Number One subject of the hour, preferring to grill Mr Cameron about a shortage of therapeutic radiographers in the NHS. Don't bank on Boris Johnson either. True, the London mayor never known for his courage is happy to play flirtatious footsie with the 'out' campaign. But what's the betting that at the first whiff of a plum Cabinet job, Boris will do the PM's bidding, keep his doubts to himself and possibly even sign up to the 'remain' campaign? He wouldn't be the first Eurosceptic leopard to change his spots. Look at former Tory leader William Hague. Only a few years ago, he heaped ridicule on the idea of a 'red card' for EU legislation, under which nations would have to club together to block a proposal from the Commission. He quipped that this would make it almost impossible to veto any proposal, even if Brussels advocated the slaughter of the first-born. How hilarious, Mr Hague especially as today you are pledging support for Mr Cameron's deal... which includes a red card that would give us a veto only with the support of 14 other nations! Or look at Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, a once-outspoken Eurosceptic who now says he cannot envisage campaigning against any deal backed by the Prime Minister. There are even worrying signs that ministers such as Michael Gove, Business Secretary Sajid Javid and possibly Culture Secretary John Whittingdale, once passionate campaigners against the EU's excesses, are finding the allure of office more appealing than the duty to speak up for their country. And how disappointing that Theresa May, who spoke so powerfully against mass immigration last year, appears to have been bought off by the EU's professed willingness to crack down on sham marriages and make it easier to turn away migrant criminals. Divisive: Eurosceptic Ukip leader Nigel Farage is charismatic but is seen by many as a clown With a tsunami of migrants flooding across Europe, can such tinkering with the small print really be enough to silence her reservations? Extraordinary if so, because let's face it, there is nothing in Mr Cameron's draft deal that will make one jot of difference to the numbers pouring in. No, the depressing truth appears to be that only a handful of diehard Eurosceptic ministers will find the courage to speak out. No one doubts that men such as Chris Grayling and the formidable Iain Duncan Smith are politicians of principle. But they can hardly be described as crowd-pulling orators. Arthur Greenwood: Spoke for England in 1939 Which brings us, sadly, to the dismal ragbag of policy-wonks, cranks and nonentities (almost all male) in the feuding factions of the 'out' camp. To date, they've seemed less concerned with arguing the case for withdrawal than with fighting each other for the public funds and airtime that will come with official recognition. As for figureheads, yes, there is the magnificent Lord Lawson. But he is 83. And yes, the other great Eurosceptic Nigel, Mr Farage, is a charismatic tub-thumper, who deserves credit for the fact that we're having a referendum at all. But he is also divisive, and is seen by many as a clown. Voters deserve better than this. They are crying out for an informed and lively debate on the crucial issues. Instead, they're being treated to a one-sided, stage-managed charade of scaremongering, spin... and censorship. What are the Cabinet Eurosceptics so afraid of that prevents them from speaking out? Is it really only their career prospects? If so, that's contemptible. It's also foolish. For with no end in sight to the eurozone's agony and Brussels paralysed by the migration crisis history is likely to vindicate and reward those with the courage to speak out, win or lose. And if his case is as strong as he insists, why does Mr Cameron muzzle his critics and whip them into submission? Surely he should welcome robust opposition to the EU's draft deal if only to beef up his negotiating position by letting our partners know the strength of anti-Brussels feeling at home. Whatever the truth, the frankly pathetic level of the debate so far is a grotesque offence against British democracy. George Osborne wont thank ITVs Tom Bradby usually so well behaved, hes admired by Prince William for raising the subject of drugs a decade after the Chancellor lived down allegations that, in his 20s, he took cocaine with Natalie Rowe, a dominatrix. Says Bradby in a magazine interview: I dont think people care much about whether their politicians took drugs when they were younger. George Osborne turned the question back on me once and said, So have you ever done drugs? And I quite happily said, Er, no, actually his implication being that Osborne had done so. George Osborne (right) wont thank ITVs Tom Bradby (left) for raising the subject of drugs a decade after the Chancellor lived down allegations that, in his 20s, he took cocaine with Natalie Rowe, a dominatrix Sir Tim Rice has been snubbed by Sir Mick Jagger after asking the Rolling Stones crooner to collaborate with him on an Abba-style musical based on his songs. Says Sir Tim: I think he wants to go out and do it himself, but theres going to come a time when even hes got to slow down. Of course, still-frisky Sir Mick, 72, might say the same of portly Sir Tim, 71. Responding to the High Court decision finally to issue a death certificate for Lord Lucan more than 40 years after his disappearance veteran ITV news anchor Alastair Stewart mischievously remarks on Twitter: Oh no, not Lord Lucan too; what a frightful few weeks referring, obviously, to the deaths of David Bowie, acting star Alan Rickman and Sir Terry Wogan. Stewart wouldnt say anything so controversial on his syrupy news show. After Lord Lucan was officially declared dead, veteran ITV news anchor Alastair Stewart mischievously remarks on Twitter: Oh no, not Lord Lucan too; what a frightful few weeks Frances commentators largely agree that David Camerons so-called EU agreement is inconsequential. Or, as some put it, tout ca pour ca?! meaning, all that fuss, just for this. Geopolitical expert Bernard Guetta said he now understood why British Eurosceptics think they have a chance of winning the referendum IS it time for Labours shadow Commons leader Chris Captain Underpants Bryant to climb into satin boxing shorts and enter the ring against the BBCs champion TV interrogator Andrew Neil? Their mutual dislike is now palpable. After another skirmish yesterday over the EU referendum, Bryant, cheekily assuming that hed won an argument, remarked: I accept your apology. Neil replied: You must be mishearing. The day I apologise to you, Hell will freeze over. Robert De Niro's His latest film, a comedy called Dirty Grandpa, which he appears in with Zac Effron, left, is damned by critics as tasteless, unfunny and creepy Once a Hollywood legend, Robert De Niro, 72, seems to have lost his way. His latest film, a comedy called Dirty Grandpa is damned by critics as tasteless, unfunny and creepy. Despite his forceful, brooding image, De Niros a sensitive soul. He flounced out of an interview recently with Radio Times correspondent in America, Emma Brockes, when she questioned him about his acting. Negative all the way through! he said of her queries, asking for her recorder to be turned off. Political commentator Matthew dAncona, 48, advises his readers that David Camerons bid to reform British membership of the EU might promote the PM from the ranks of good prime ministers to the pantheon of the great. Of all the gin joints in all the towns in all the world, she walks into mine. And not only that, but I've run out of nicotine patches. That wasn't quite the lament uttered by Humphrey Bogart in the classic 1942 film Casablanca. On the contrary, languidly rising cigarette smoke played as big a part in one of the most iconic of all movie scenes as Bogart's gravelly voice and white tuxedo. His character, Rick Blaine, was a nightclub owner, who held his cigarette in the time-honoured way of the 40-a-day smoker, between forefinger and thumb. Rick, like Bogey, was a man's man, that cigarette told us. Sizzling: Sean Connery in Dr No, proving again that some of the sexiest characters in film are smokers There's a video on YouTube that purports to show a version of Casablanca, edited to cut out the smoking scenes to avoid having the film re-classified. It cuts from the famous map-of-Africa opening credits straight to 'The End' flashing up. It was intended as a joke, but now the World Health Organisation (WHO) has brought it closer to reality, arguing this week that films showing smoking should be given an adult rating. In their report, Smoke-Free Movies, the WHO cites statistics claiming that 44 per cent of all Hollywood films contain smoking. The movies, they say, represent the 'last frontier' in tobacco promotion. They inform us that on-screen smoking is the spark for more than a third of all new adolescent smokers. In short, they want it stubbed out. I sympathise. I know that smoking is deadly and that while Rick Blaine lives for ever, Humphrey Bogart, a smoker at least as enthusiastic as Rick, died aged 57 from oesophageal cancer. Moreover, I have never been a smoker myself, at least not since my early teens, when I routinely raided my father's supply of Villiger cigars, and lay in the bath smoking them like a pubescent Winston Churchill, with the window wide open to dispel the evidence. I have told my own three children again and again that smoking kills and is simply NOT COOL. Transformation: Olivia Newton-John's previously virginal Sandy struts up dirtily smoking Except it is. Or, at least, as practised by Audrey Hepburn's Holly Golightly in 1961's Breakfast At Tiffany's, it is. Even though her cigarette in its improbably long holder is used to comic effect, setting fire to a woman's hat at a party, she still carries it off because she's Audrey Hepburn. Then there's the almost gravity-defying cigarette dangling from Jean-Paul Belmondo's lips in the stylish 1960 French film Au Bout De Souffle; how can anyone say that isn't cool? As for the cigarillo jutting fiercely from between Clint Eastwood's gritted teeth in The Good, The Bad And The Ugly, it's so cool he even removes it slowly and almost sensually to set off a cannon. This is the WHO's problem. Even if mainstream movie-makers were to show some social conscience unlikely and agree to cut down smoking in new films, nothing can be done retrospectively about the cigarettes in those thousands of old films. Compile a list of the 20 sexiest characters in screen history and you'll almost certainly find 20 smokers. Sean Connery in Dr No, telling us for the very first time that his name is 'Bond . . . James Bond', naturally does so at the baccarat table with a ciggie between his lips. The almost impossibly handsome Marlon Brando as Stanley Kowalski in the 1951 film of Tennessee Williams's A Streetcar Named Desire? Puffs like a chimney. So it is no coincidence that smoking also features in so many of the most immortally elegant images ever committed to celluloid. There aren't many sexier screen moments than in the 1942 romance Now, Voyager, when Paul Henreid lights two cigarettes in his mouth and hands one of them to Bette Davis. Not for nothing is it one of cinema's most imitated gestures, even if it ended up being more of an irritation for Henreid, who, by all accounts, was stalked for the rest of his long life by women asking him to do the same for them. In dozens of movies made in Hollywood's golden age, playboys and femmes fatales alike used cigarettes as props. In Gilda (1946), the ravishing Rita Hayworth could not possibly have smouldered quite so dangerously without a cigarette between her lips. Femme fatale: Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct. That insouciant ciggie held aloft as she uncrosses her legs, to reveal a marked absence of underwear, really does help the scene sizzle Still, that's one old movie the WHO could seize upon for its campaign, for Gilda is told by the Argentinian washroom attendant that she smokes too much. 'Only frustrated people smoke too much and only lonely people are frustrated,' he says. She, of course, responds with icy hauteur. Just as icy, just as sexy, is 19-year-old Lauren Bacall in To Have And Have Not (1944). 'Anybody got a match?' she drawls, leaning languorously against a door frame. Humphrey Bogart's world-weary fisherman turns and throws her a pack. She lights her cigarette, tosses away the match, and says: 'Thanks'. It is a scene containing just five prosaic words, but Bacall, Bogart and the cigarette make it electrifying. No wonder they were soon in the grip of an off-screen affair. Posing: Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast At Tiffany's But it's not as if we have to go back 70 years to find smouldering femmes fatales. Think of Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct as, undoubtedly, a great number of men have. That insouciant ciggie held aloft as she uncrosses her legs, to reveal a marked absence of underwear, really does help the scene sizzle. Or picture Uma Thurman's Mia, sitting across a restaurant table from John Travolta in Quentin Tarantino's 1994 masterpiece Pulp Fiction, teasing and seducing him between amused puffs of her cigarette. Is there, in fact, any item that has been used throughout the entire history of the cinema to create so many different situations, convey so many moods? It's used to help characters meet, to fall in love, to fall out of love, to bully, to amuse, to intimidate, even to humiliate. In 1967's The Graduate, there's an unforgettable scene in which Dustin Hoffman's unworldly Benjamin tries to take the initiative with Anne Bancroft's predatory Mrs Robinson, who has just lit a cigarette, by kissing her in the hotel room. She has to wait until the kiss is over to expel the smoke from her mouth. Without any dialogue, it tells us everything we need to know about how hopelessly out of his depth poor Benjamin is. If Mrs Robinson's cigarette highlights Benjamin's gauche innocence, one fag in Grease (1978) serves the opposite purpose. In her leathers, Olivia Newton-John's previously virginal Sandy struts up flamboyantly, dirtily, smoking. 'Sandy!' cries John Travolta's Danny, astonished by her transformation. She rolls her tongue around her mouth, lasciviously. 'Tell me about it. . . stud,' she purrs, throwing the cigarette butt on the ground and grinding it out with her high heel. It's hardly surprising his 'chills' start 'multiplyin'. So let the WHO do their best to impose what we might call a cigarette filter. Part of their case is that smoking in modern movies is out of all proportion with its prevalence in society, and it's hard to argue with that. But smoking on-screen used to reflect society exactly. A mother-of-seven who had a mini-stroke just weeks before her wedding says her big day was ruined by her runaway niece - who violently attacked her after drinking 12 pints of cider. Leissa Williams, from Mountain Ash, South Wales, invited troubled 22-year-old Shileen Cotter to the evening reception of her third marriage to Brian Williams, 48. But the 49-year-old bar worker later regretted her decision after the tearaway launched a vicious, drunken assault on her guests. Shileen later turned on her aunt - punching the bride, pulling her hair and ripping her white wedding gown. Speaking for the first time about the horrific incident, Leissa said: 'Our wedding was supposed to go without a hitch - it was important to me that all our closest friends and family were there to celebrate with us.' A mother-of-seven who had a mini-stroke just weeks before her wedding says her big day was ruined by her runaway niece - who violently attacked her after drinking 12 pints of cider, pictured Leissa and Brian Williams Shileen Cotter, 22, drunkenly attacked her aunt at her wedding reception after drinking 12 pints of cider Leissa and Brian 'wanted quite a minimal guest list' because it was 'only a small venue' and they didn't want to cause 'any stress'. The pair, who met on a dating website, had been together for three months when Brian popped the question. 'By the time we came to meet up I was sure it was love and I knew Brian felt the same when he told me "I love you", at the end of our first date,' she said. 'He had never been married before but to me he seemed he would be the perfect partner. 'He has two grown up children from a previous relationship and my seven kids loved him straight away. He was laid back and kind and would do anything to make me and the children happy. I am more outgoing and don't suffer fools gladly but Brian is forgiving and gentle.' Leissa, who had a health scare before the wedding, said although they 'don't have much in common' she knew Brian was the man for her. Shileen turned on her aunt Leissa - punching the bride, pulling her hair and ripping her white wedding gown, pictured her horrific face and head injuries Leissa ended up with two black eyes and numerous cuts to her face after the brawl with her niece Leissa and Brian 'wanted quite a minimal guest list' because it was 'only a small venue' and they didn't want to cause 'any stress'. The pair, who met on a dating website, had been together for three months when Brian popped the question 'I'd suffered a mini-stroke just weeks before the big day and I wanted to enjoy myself without too much effort or the likelihood that things could go wrong,' she said. Leissa was in 'two minds about inviting Shileen' but thought it was a 'nice thing to do' because of her turbulent childhood. She even let her bring a friend for company. 'I've known her since she was in her mum's belly - me and her mum were great friends as well as relatives by marriage. I was married to Shileen's mum's brother,' she said. 'Shileen had always been a handful - when she hit her teens she'd run away and come to my house where I'd try and talk some sense into her and send her home.' She added: 'She was a law unto herself - she bunked off school and was always causing a nuisance and having a row with someone or another.' Things took a turn for the worst for Shileen when her mother found a new partner. Leissa said: 'Shileen was left to her own devises while they went out to the pub or drank at home. She was given total freedom which she abused terribly. Before long she was in trouble with the law.' Leissa said she 'always took pity on her' and made sure that Shileen knew 'there was always a warm welcome' at her house. 'I didn't take any nonsense but she could come to me and she knew that,' she said. Even after Leissa's marriage to Shileen's uncle broke down she stayed in touch with her niece and used to invite her over regularly. It was during this time that both of Shileen's parents passed away and she sadly endured the heartbreak of birthing a still born baby. Leissa said: 'It sounds unkind to say that I pitied Shileen but I really did feel sorry for her.' Things took a turn for the worst for Shileen when her mother found a new partner. Leissa said: 'Shileen was left to her own devises while they went out to the pub or drank at home. She was given total freedom which she abused terribly. Before long she was in trouble with the law' Leissa, who had a health scare before the wedding, said although they 'don't have much in common' she knew Brian was the man for her Leissa's pretty sleeveless white lace wedding dress was ripped to pieces following the fight Leissa and Brian pictured before the horror of the evening reception, surrounded by their loved ones Leissa soon regretted inviting her niece to her wedding and knew there was something wrong with her the minute she arrived at the evening reception. 'It was clear she wasn't in a fit state. She was swaying and slurring and soon she started to pick fights outside,' she said. 'It was about 10.30pm when she started to really make trouble. 'She was throwing glass bottles at the wall - smashing them for a laugh and my son told her to calm down. Then she started arguing with him and held a smashed bottle up to threaten him with. A friend of mine managed to calm her down but that wasn't the end of it. 'Soon she was yelling at some kids across the road who had just come out of the kebab shop. She yelled over the road at them: "What are you staring at? Keep looking and I'll stick that fork in your eye". And as it escalated she hit one of the girls.' Leissa said the evening then 'descended into chaos' with Shileen fighting with 'anyone in her eyeline'. She knew she had to intervene. 'When my daughter's friend came into the club in fits of tears I decided enough was enough and went outside to tell Shileen to go home,' she said. It was at this point Shileen launched a sustained attack on her aunt. Leissa recalls: 'I walked straight up to her and said if you won't leave I'm going to call the police. I told her to shape up - that this was no way to act at my wedding. 'My poor husband didn't know what he had married in to - I was embarrassed and just wanted her to leave. When she continued kicking off I started to walk away, making to call the police.' It was then that Shileen leapt at her. 'She pounced on my back, hitting me over the head and screaming at me,' she said. 'I fell to the ground and she carried on hitting me, she was yelling: "Calling the police are you?!" Leissa soon regretted inviting her niece to her wedding and knew there was something wrong with her the minute she arrived at the evening reception Recalling the attack, Leissa said: 'She pounced on my back, hitting me over the head and screaming at me. I fell to the ground and she carried on hitting me, she was yelling: "Calling the police are you?!" Leissa was comforted by her friends and Brian as she gave officers her official statement. 'Photographs were taken of my injuries - cuts and bruises and a big lump on my head - and I was able to go home and take a long hot shower,' she said 'She even grabbed my hair and smashed my head into the wooden door frame of our reception venue. Her eyes were so black with nothing behind them, it was like she was possessed or on drugs - she was not the Shileen I knew.' When the pair were finally separated and the police were called, Leissa was left 'bloodied and crying'. She said: 'My special day was ruined by a girl I had known her whole life.' Leissa was comforted by her friends and Brian as she gave officers her official statement. 'Photographs were taken of my injuries - cuts and bruises and a big lump on my head - and I was able to go home and take a long hot shower,' she said. 'I hung up my ripped dress and thanked my lucky stars that I wasn't more injured. She went for me like a savage animal. Who knows what she was capable of.' The incident had a profound affect on the early days of Leissa and Brian's marriage. 'Brian and I tried to enjoy our honeymoon period but things between us weren't right,' she said. 'He blamed me for inviting Shileen knowing that she could be trouble. 'And I had to spend our mini-moon in Weston Super Mare walking around with two black eyes. People were staring accusingly at my new hubby. It was mortifying, we spent most of the time in our room watching tele. Poor Brian didn't dare touch me the whole weekend because I was so bruised and battered.' In the end Brian forgave Leissa for inviting Shileen and supported her in pressing charges. 'I just hope that this will teach her a lesson,' she said. 'I know she's had a rough life but that's no excuse for how she behaves. The incident had a profound affect on the early days of Leissa and Brian's marriage. 'Brian and I tried to enjoy our honeymoon period but things between us weren't right,' she said. 'He blamed me for inviting Shileen knowing that she could be trouble' Leissa said: 'I hung up my ripped dress and thanked my lucky stars that I wasn't more injured. She went for me like a savage animal. Who knows what she was capable of' The incident had a profound affect on the early days of Leissa and Brian's marriage. 'Brian and I tried to enjoy our honeymoon period but things between us weren't right,' she said 'I'm just so lucky that Brian has been there for me so we can still look back on our special day and smile. Before 10pm the day had gone just as we'd planned with lots of lovely moments to treasure. We were so happy I could never have imagined the way it would all end.' At Magistrate's Court in Merthyr Tydfil, South Wales, Shileen's defence said that she had been 'in and out of court since her youth but she was trying to turn her life around'. Damian Jones, defending, said Shileen had been recently diagnosed with mental health difficulties but she had managed to gain employment at a meat factory. Leissa said: 'I spent years giving Shileen the benefit of the doubt but from now on that stops. 'I sometimes feel guilty about seeing this attack go through court but when I think that she has never even apologised that guilt completely disappears. She could have ruined my marriage before it even began. 'I hope that in the future she can turn her life around and find some happiness. I don't wish ill of her I am just so glad that she is not in my life any more.' Shileen managed to avoid jail after admitting two counts of common assault: her 16-week custodial sentence was suspended for 12 months. She has been banned from contacting Leissa and magistrates have ordered that she carry out 200 hours of unpaid work and must pay 300 compensation. Ladies, it might be time to start shopping in the boys' aisle. Research has found that women have to pay more for clothes on the high-street than men do for the equivalent garment. The so-called 'pink tax' hit the headlines last month after it was revealed that female-targeted beauty products come with a higher price tag. An investigation found the average cost difference of gender-targeted razor blades, shower gels and face moisturiser is around 36 per cent. As the debate rages on it seems its not just grooming lotions where the discrepancy lies - it's also in clothing stores. Big-named labels are cashing in and are disguising price inequalities via minor design alterations and selling items in multi-packs. In some cases, the product description explains the differences but they appear identical to the naked eye. Here, FEMAIL looks at some shops that are charging women more for clothes than men. TOPSHOP Women's denim shirt: 34 / Men's denim shirt: 28 / Price difference: 6 Topshop's oversized denim shirt, pictured left, is priced at 34, while the near identical Topman version, right, is 6 cheaper at 28 Crafted from 100 per cent pure cotton, Topshop's bright bleach denim shirt comes with a button front and single chest pocket. The 34 blouse is described by the brand as 'oversized' and it is said to look good 'tucked into jeans'. Meanwhile, Topman stock a near identical top for 28 - 6 cheaper than the female version. While the buttons vary and the stitching across the chest is absent, the shirt is near-identical. The colour, material and washing instructions are exactly the same. MailOnline has contacted the brand for comment. RIVER ISLAND Women's skinny jeans: 40 / Men's skinny jeans: 30 / Price difference: 10 River Island's women's black skinny jeans, pictured left, are priced at 40, while the male version, right is 10 cheaper at just 30 Black skinny jeans are a wardrobe staple but at River Island it seems women are paying 10 more for this style must-have. The label's 'Amelie' reform mid-rise trousers, which are priced at 40, feature a button and zip fly fastening and five pockets. Meanwhile, the copycat cropped male 'Danny' version is a whopping 10 cheaper. The female jeans are 92 per cent cotton while the male ones are 98 per cent, however to the naked eye the difference can not be seen. A spokesperson for River Island told MailOnline that the brand 'do not wish to make a comment on at this time'. NEW LOOK Women's Breton top: 8.99 / Men's Breton top: 7.99 / Price difference: 1 A female Breton top at New Look, pictured left, costs 8.99, while the male version, right, is 1 cheaper at 7.99, right A Breton top is a style classic but at New Look female customers have to pay 1 more to stay on trend. The brand's women's line features a round necked top with a thin navy and white striped pattern, short sleeves and a casual fit. It is priced at 8.99. However, a similar men's version - featuring a bolder pattern - comes in slightly cheaper. The men's T-shirt is 100 per cent cotton while the women's is a mix of cotton, linen and polyester. A spokesperson for New Look told MailOnline that the label 'will not be commenting'. COS Women's white shirt: 55 / Men's white shirt: 45 / Price difference: 10 COS' female white shirt, pictured left, is priced at 55, while the male version, right, comes it at 10 cheaper A tailored white shirt is a timeless classic. COS's straight-fit women's blouse is described as a versatile style with neat proportions. It is made of 100 per cent cotton, has a narrow collar and a hidden-button fastening. Meanwhile, the high-street label's men's classic slim-fit shirt is just 45 - making it 10 cheaper. Although the pearlescent buttons are visible, the material, cuffs and care instructions are identical. A spokesperson for COS said: 'COS offer both mens and womens shirts at an entry point of 45. A number of elements such as fabrics and design also affect the end price of all garments.' NEXT Women's white T-shirt: 10 / Men's white T-shirt: 6 / Price difference: 4 A white V-neck T-shirt at Next will set women back 10, pictured left, while a similar male version, right, is priced at just 6 A white V-neck T-shirt can be worn on its own as a statement piece or layered underneath other garments. At Next, a women's casual white top is priced at 10. It is made of 73 per cent Tencel Lyocell and 27 per cent cotton, which the label believe make it gentle on the skin Meanwhile, the men's cotton and polyester mix version is 4 cheaper and looks near-identical, save for a slight colour variation. MailOnline has contacted Next for comment. LEVI'S Women's 501 jeans: 85 / Men's 501 jeans: 75 / Price difference: 10 Female customers at Levi's have to pay 10 more for their 501s, pictured left, than the men do, right They are the world's most iconic pair of jeans thanks to their straight fit and signature button fly. However, Levi's 501 Original Fit denim - which comes in an array of washes - will cost women 10 more than they will men. Both pair's of trousers are 100 per cent cotton and are machine washable. MailOnline has contacted Levi's for comment. MARKS & SPENCER Women's white vest: 6 / Men's white vest: 12.50 for three / Price difference: 1.84 A woman's white vest at Marks & Spencer, pictured left, costs 6, while the male version comes in a price-savvy multi-pack, right Marks & Spencer's men's three-pack of pure cotton sleeveless vests costs 4.16 each. There is no multi-pack option for the near-identical female range, meaning a woman who wants to bulk buy the top would have to pay 5.50 more than a man. Both vests are described as being a regular fit, feature a round neck and are machine washable. MailOnline has contacted Marks & Spencer for comment. CALVIN KLEIN Women's grey boxers: 23 / Men's grey boxers: 18 / Price difference: 5 A pair of women's grey boxers, pictured left, costs 23, while a similar male version, right, is 5 cheaper Calvin Klein's smalls come with a bigger price tag for the brand's female customers. The lingerie label's grey heather boxer short are priced at 23, sits low on the hips and are made of a cotton blend. Meanwhile, a similar men's version are 5 cheaper at just 18. They are described as being a classic cut and 95 per cent cotton. MailOnline has contacted Calvin Klein for comment. WOMEN'S CLOTHES Topshop denim shirt: 34 River Island skinny jeans: 40 New Look Breton top: 8.99 COS white shirt: 55 Next white T-shirt: 10 Levi's 501 jeans: 85 Marks & Spencer white vest: 6 Calvin Klein boxers: 23 Total: 261.99 Advertisement As anyone with Pucci tastes on a Primark budget knows, charity shops can be a goldmine for designer bargains. But is any fashion-conscious woman really prepared to rummage through cast-offs to recreate this season's looks for a bargain price? With high street retailers continuously putting up their prices, we challenged a fashion-savvy FEMAIL writer to style a working week's worth of clothes for just 60. We sent Unity Blott, 26, from London, to the Childrens Air Ambulance shop in Muswell Hill, London, to see if she could select five super cheap outfits she could wear throughout the week, be that at the office, lounging around at home or on a date night. We sent FEMAIL writer Unity Blott to the Children's Air Ambulance charity shop to see if she could select five super cheap outfits she could wear throughout the week. The first was casual chic and consisted of a H&M top, which she felt was classic and versatile and was priced at 4.45 - much cheaper than its original price tag of 30 Speaking ahead of the challenge, Unity said: 'I love fashion and clothes and usually shop at Reiss, Selfridges, Zara and Topshop so I was certainly up for the challenge. 'I rarely venture into charity shops and I didn't want to create the trendiest or most over-the-top outfit I could piece together, but "real" outfits that real women would actually wear in real life on a variety of occasions.' Unity's first outfit was casual chic and consisted of a H&M top, which she felt was classic and versatile and was priced at 4.45 - much cheaper than its original price tag of 30. 'Stripes are so transitional and can be worn from day to night. I paired this with jeans but I would also wear it with a simple black pencil skirt for work or shorter skirt for a night out.' The jeans were from New Look and cost 4.95 and the Kurt Geiger shoes were a real steal at 20. 'I feel this look is simple enough to be worn to the office, out for dinner if teamed with a blazer or just around the house, without the heels, of course,' she said. Her next look, left, consisted of the same jeans and a cosy H&M knit jumper, which set her back 6.95 and she felt was an ideal outfit for lounging around the house. For day three, right, Unity chose an outfit she feels would resonate with older readers; the Zara top was 5.95 and M&S skirt 3.45 For the end of the week, Unity chose dressier garments, including a 8.95 Zara dress, which she teamed with the trusty 20 Kurt Geiger shoes Her next look consisted of the same jeans and a cosy H&M knit jumper, which set her back 6.95. 'I would definitely wear this for chilling around the house or if I was going out shopping,' she said of the relaxed look. For day three Unity chose an outfit she feels would resonate with older readers; the Zara top was 5.95 and M&S skirt 3.45. She said: 'I am only 26 but for the sake of the experiment, I wanted to select clothes that could be worn by a variety of women. This skirt is definitely not something I would usually wear myself but it is demure and the hemline is ideal for older ladies.' For the end of the week, Unity chose a 9.95 dress, also by Zara, that she felt would be perfect for date night For the end of the week, Unity chose dressier garments, including a 8.95 Zara dress and 9.95 dress, also by Zara. 'I absolutely love the 9.95 dress, it reminds me of something the Duchess of Cambridge or Kim Sears would wear and it is perfect for wearing from the office to a fancy dinner.' So will Unity become a thrift store regular? 'I only found one outfit I absolutely loved but my challenge proved there really is something for everyone for every kind of occasion. 'There was also plenty of occasionwear but I struggled to find good quality shoes in a good fit. The Kurt Geiger's were a real bonus but a rarity.' Crashing through windows and bravely battling off sharks, the Milk Tray Man was the most sweet-toothed of action heroes. And more than four decades after the character delivered his first box of chocolates, Cadbury's has unveiled the latest man to don the famous black polo neck. Fireman Patrick McBride, 39, from Liverpool, saw off competition from more than 20,000 other aspiring Milk Tray Men after being put forward by his wife, healthcare worker Elaine, 34. FEMAIL's Suzanne Baum, 41, from North London, was the lucky lady to meet him. Here's how she got on... FEMAIL's Suzanne Baum, 41, from North London, was the lucky lady to meet the new Milk Tray Man, Patrick McBride, 39, from Liverpool, who saw off competition from more than 20,000 others Patrick McBride, from Liverpool, saw off competition from more than 20,000 other aspiring Milk Tray Men The last date I went on was with my husband who I have been happily married to for 18 years, so the prospect of meeting another man for a drink was rather nerve-wracking. This wasn't any old man This was a man whom I - like thousands of other females - has fantasised over for years. Few women would deny not finding the Milk Tray Man attractive; the polo-necked guy styled as a James Bond kind of character, leaping off bridges on to moving trains and diving into shark infested waters, used to be everyone's idea of an all-action hero. Charming and handsome, he was adored by women after he first appeared in adverts in the late 1960s so, before I met him, I was intrigued to see whether the new Milk Tray man would live up to expectations? Patrick McBride (left), 39, from Liverpool, who has been announced as the new Milk Tray Man, on a speedboat on the River Thames in London - heading to meet our FEMAIL writer 'His good looks are only too obvious but it was his charm, kindness and surprising modesty that really impressed me,' said Suzanne, who enjoyed an afternoon with him Broad, good-looking and with an obvious six-pack hidden beneath his black polo neck, Patrick McBride is without doubt the perfect Milk Tray package. Having ticked all the right boxes for Cadbury's - who revealed him as the new man this week following a nationwide search which saw over 20,000 applications - I can understand why! Having spent an afternoon with the 39-year-old firefighter from Liverpool, who towered over me, he is without doubt the right man to win the coveted title and bring the Milk Tray man into the 21st Century. His good looks are only too obvious but it was his charm, kindness and surprising modesty that really impressed me. Just like the iconic escapades of the Milk Tray men of the 1960s to the 1990s who went to extreme lengths to deliver a box of chocolates to their woman, Patrick is soon to embark on his mission to follow suit and I was the first lucky lady to be at the receiving end. Having dreamt of dating the Milk Tray man in my teens, I couldn't believe that my dreams had finally come true. Just like the iconic escapades of the Milk Tray men of the 1960s to the 1990s who went to extreme lengths to deliver a box of chocolates to their woman, Patrick - a former firefighter, is soon to embark on his mission to follow suit Unfortunately ladies, Patrick is a happily married man and pointed out that his wife Elaine had nominated him for the role. It was the bravery and courage displayed every day as a firefighter as well as his down to earth nature that impressed the judges. I was expecting some rather cheesy chat-up lines when I met Patrick beside the River Thames and was mildly disappointed that he didn't appear scaling the walls of the nearby Houses of Parliament. Having auditioned for the role by lifting a bystander into a fireman's lift, I waited eagerly for my turn but-like a true gentleman-he instead guided me to a nearby park bench. She met Patrick beside the River Thames and was mildly disappointed that he didn't appear scaling the walls of the nearby Houses of Parliament but he made up for it with his charm Overly excited by the fact that I was in such close contact with the Milk Tray Man, I was keen to know if a date by the River Thames was his idea of fun? After all, the Milk Tray Man is all about romantic gestures so surely our date was the perfect way to spend an afternoon? 'I've done lots of romantic gestures over the years but for me, I love buying flowers for my wife and going on picnics with her,' he explained. As for the female attention, how on earth is he going to cope with it? 'I'm sure the warm welcome I will get is going to be fantastic but I've no doubt that for many women they'll only be after my chocolates!' I'd happily take both I think, quickly reminding myself he is certainly off limits and I am a happily married mum-of-three. Patrick said: 'I would say I am a very thoughtful person and it is all about giving small gestures of kindness when you can that helps a relationship' I was keen to know what Elaine thinks of his new role. 'My wife's so happy for me. She's made up. I think it will sink in when the billboards are up and the ads are on TV. I think she'll be pleased she's married to the Milk Tray Man. 'I would say I am a very thoughtful person and it is all about giving small gestures of kindness when you can that helps a relationship.' This may sound a bit contrite but he genuinely was so considerate towards me during our date. I am pretty sure that had he been allowed to wear his coat over the polo neck, he would have offered it to me. Patrick is no stranger to exciting flying, having taken a helicopter ride through the Grand Canyon whilst on Honeymoon with Elaine. I suspect that jumping out of a plane will not faze him; after all, no mission has ever been beyond the Milk Tray Man. As we headed our separate ways at the end of our date, I couldn't help but blush when Patrick handed to me a box of Milk Tray from his metal briefcase. A study has revealed that nine out of 10 parents are concerned and anxious about their children going to sleepovers. A poll of over 1,000 Australian parents with kids aged three to 17 found that the main concern of parents was their children's safety when staying at a friend's house, with 54 per cent The second biggest worry was not knowing the parents who were hosting the sleepover, with 42 per cent reporting that was a concern. The third biggest concern was that an older sibling might be a bad influence with 28 per cent of parents saying they worried about that. Anxiety inducing: Most parents worry about their children attending sleepovers Dr Justin Coulson, one of Australia's leading parenting experts, said that most parents were worried about the physical safety of their children, and that sexual or physical abuse might occur if they were not there to supervise. 'But there's also concern about children being exposed to things that are against parents' own values,' Dr Coulson said. 'For example, having a movie playing that they wouldn't show their children. Or perhaps other parents drinking alcohol around children when a parent wouldn't do that in their own home.' Concern of the influence of an older sibling at a sleepover was also a very real worry for many parents Dr Coulson said, with parents worried that an older brother might become sexually involved with a younger children or show them inappropriate material like pornography. Better safe than sorry: Parent expert Dr Justin Coulson says safety is the number one concern for parents There are things parents can do however. Dr Coulson says it's not unreasonable to ban sleepovers until children are a certain age. This doesn't mean children can't be at their friend's houses- just pick them up later in the evening instead of letting them sleep over. The poll showed that most parents would allow their child to have their first sleepover once the child turns eight, but 8 per cent of parents ban sleepovers no matter what age their child is. When it comes to parties, Dr Coulson suggests talking to the parents who are hosting, especially if you don't know them well. 'We have to realise that once our children are old enough to have friends there are other people parenting our children sometimes,' he said. 'Talk to your children': What is going to make parents less worried, according to Dr Coulson, is communication and trust with their children 'When you're dropping your kids off at a party, have a chat to the parents about the rules of house. If there's anything you don't feel comfortable with, explain that,' Dr Coulson suggested. 'If you don't want it to be uncomfortable, you can expose some vulnerability. Let parents know about bad experiences that you may have had with previous sleepovers. It gives a nice rationale behind your concerns so they understand. By doing this youre taking away the possibility for parents to think youre judging them.' But above all else, what is going to make parents less worried, according to Dr Coulson, is communication and trust with their children. 'The most important thing of all is if youre worried about sleepovers, talk to your child,' Dr Coulson said. 'Give them rules and explain why the rules are in place, make sure they know your expectations. Say to your kids, this is what I expect and heres why.' Talk more: Dr Coulson suggests having honest conversations children about expectations when they attend sleepovers Whilst these conversations can be difficult, Dr Coulson believes that they lead to a better, happier family, and less anxiety for parents and children. 'Problem solve with your kids; ask them "if you were at a sleepover and this happened, what would you do?"' he said. 'When theyre little you want to cocoon them but as they get, you need to pre-arm them.' Dr Coulson said another thing parents can do to ease their anxiety is get to know the parents of their children's friends better. Trust that your children are going to be safe when staying away from home is the key to a stress free school years. 'Its all about relationships. When you know the family of your children's friends well, you feel more comfortable,,' he said. 'But it's becoming increasingly difficult to build those relationships.' Digital tools: Online sites can be a way to connect with other parents and get to know them better Friends forever: Ensuring you know your children's friends and their families means everyone is happy with playdates and sleepovers Dr Coulson says connecting with other parents in person and online can be extremely helpful, and recommends using sites like schoolparents.com.au, where you can find the parents whose children go to the same school as yours. 'It's a fantastic platform, and the only portal in the country that focuses connecting families based on the school that their children attend and the class theyre in,' Dr Coulson explained. 'You can communicate with specific parents directly, get to know them and what they look like. You have the advantage of being connected to a small handful of parents of the kids your children are going to school with.' In the end, anxiety and worry will be lessened if parents know where their children are going and what the rules are. 'It comes down to trust,' Dr Coulson said. At 10 o'clock on a Friday night in March last year Jennifer Groesbeck veered off a road in northern Utah as she drove back from dinner at her father's home and hurtled into the icy waters of the Spanish Fork river. What caused her to swerve remains a mystery but, unluckily, the front wheel of her car caught the edge of the bridge's concrete wall, causing the vehicle to flip over it and crash down into the river. It landed upside down in the shallows with such force that the windscreen was blown out and the roof crushed as if it had been cardboard. Out of sight from the road, the red Dodge hatchback sat in chest-high foaming water for 14 hours until it was spotted by an angler, who reported seeing a hand dangling out of a broken window. Jennifer Groesbeck, above with her partner and 18-month-old daughter Lily, veered off a road in northern Utah and hurtled into the icy waters of the Spanish Fork river. Out of sight from the road, the red Dodge hatchback sat in chest-high foaming water for 14 hours until it was spotted by an angler Four local police officers arrived first, their sense of urgency captured by the body camera one of them had switched on and whose footage has since been watched thousands of times on the internet. They dash into the water - so cold that a total of seven policemen and firemen were later treated for hypothermia - and desperately try to get inside the crushed vehicle. Then, about two minutes into the body camera footage, its microphone picks up the faint sound of an adult voice, sounding urgent. It is unintelligible on the footage but appears to be a plea for help as Officer Jared Warner responds: 'We're helping, we're coming.' Something very odd had just happened, although the emergency responders weren't to realise it at the time. With visibly new urgency, the rescuers turned the waterlogged car on to its side and discovered the 25-year-old driver was long dead. Local police officers arrived first, their sense of urgency captured by the body camera one of them had switched on. Then, its microphone picks up the faint sound of an adult voice appearing to make a plea for help. Above, late mother Jennifer Groesbeck who lost her life in the crash, left with her daughter that survived, Lily But there was a baby in the back seat, Mrs Groesbeck's 18-month-old daughter, Lily. Upside down and strapped into a child seat that had kept her out of the water and - crucially - kept her clothes dry, she had remained there for an age, her face suspended just above the churning river. Unconscious and suffering from hypothermia, Lily was successfully revived at hospital. Her miraculous survival made headlines around the world, and it wasn't until later that the four policemen discussed those frantic minutes and realised there was something very puzzling about them. If the mother had died in the initial impact of the crash and the baby was unconscious, whose was the female voice they each swore they had heard coming from the car? One of those policemen, Tyler Beddoes, believes he knows the answer: Lily was saved by a heavenly guardian who had comforted her during that bleak, freezing night in the half-submerged car and then called for help as her life hung in the balance. The 25-year-old driver, above with her daughter and partner, was dead but there was a baby in the back seat, Mrs Groesbeck's 18-month-old daughter, upside down and in a child seat that had kept her out of the water In a new book, Proof Of Angels, Beddoes - an officer with ten years' experience - describes how the rescue has solidified a religious faith he previously hadn't really felt. One doesn't have to be a sceptical atheist to wonder whether someone might be trying to find a religious message here that isn't warranted. Beddoes is a Mormon, a religion that believes we all have a guardian angel. The Lily Groesbeck case, nevertheless, defies any easy explanation. One impressionable or superstitious officer could decide to believe he heard a mysterious voice. But four witnesses are harder to dismiss, especially with video footage capturing a muffled voice and the officer's response to it. Quizzed later, each of the rescuers concurred in what they had heard. If the mother had died in the initial impact of the crash and the baby was unconscious, whose was the female voice they each swore they had heard coming from the car? Was Lily, above, saved by a heavenly guardian who had comforted her during that bleak, freezing night in the half-submerged car and then called for help? Officer Bryan Dewitt said: 'We were down on the car and a distinct voice says: 'Help me, help me.' ' Jared Warner, the policeman who was in the video saying they were doing their best, said a few days later: 'All four of us can swear that we heard somebody inside the car saying 'Help'.' 'I think it pushed us to go harder a little longer. I don't think that any one of us had intended on flipping a car over that day.' Beddoes soon became the spokesman for the four, as his colleagues grew wary of being labelled as naive - or mad. But it appears that more people believe in angels than we might imagine. An online survey in the UK by the Bible Society and ICM reported that 31 per cent believed in angels and 5 per cent insisted they have seen or heard one. In the U.S., a 2008 survey by Time magazine found 69 per cent of Americans believed in angels, with almost a third of them saying they had directly encountered one. Mystical experiences are widespread, but are a taboo subject even in a more religious country like the U.S., say academics. Certainly, claims that some unexplainable presence - supernatural or otherwise - has come to people's aid at times of dire peril are so frequent that scientists have given the phenomenon a name: the Third Man Factor. Inevitably, religious types have been more likely to explain this presence as angels, although even some non-believers have discovered a new spirituality after the event. In a new book, Proof Of Angels, Beddoes - an officer with ten years' experience - describes how the rescue has solidified a religious faith he previously hadn't really felt. The Lily Groesbeck case defies any easy explanation The experiences are reportedly so intense that not only do most know the gender of their 'angel' from their voice, but also feel their presence so strongly that some recall the pressure of their hand being held. The 'angel' is always benevolent and guiding, often giving specific instructions that the person insists he or she would never have considered. In many cases, including with Officer Beddoes, the experience is so profound it has been life-changing. Those who claim to have experienced a Third Man include the victims of shipwrecks, bank heists, car crashes and shark attacks. Climbers, divers, even astronauts and polar explorers have told strikingly similar stories about encountering an invisible companion at a moment of intense physical hardship and mental stress. Ron DiFrancesco, a financial trader at New York's World Trade Centre on 9/11, was on the South Tower's 84th floor when the second hijacked plane hit the 81st floor. As others were overcome by smoke as they tried to escape down a staircase, he lay down - only for something to grab his hand and lead him to safety through the flaming building. Climbers, divers, even astronauts and polar explorers have told strikingly similar stories about encountering an invisible companion at a moment of intense physical hardship and mental stress DiFrancesco recalled an 'insistent' male voice accompanied by a vivid sense of a physical presence which he called an 'angel'. He was the last person to leave the tower before it collapsed. Stephanie Schwabe, a German scientist, was cave-diving in the Bahamas in 1997 when she mislaid her safety line - the only way she'd find her way back to the surface. With just 20 minutes of oxygen left, Ms Schwabe, whose husband had died in an undersea accident months earlier, sat on the cave floor and cried with rage and frustration. Suddenly the cave grew light and she vividly felt the presence of another being. She was convinced it was her husband and she heard his voice urging her to calm down. She did so and, after scrutinising the cave, found her white line with just five minutes oxygen left in her tank and swam to safety. In 1983, scientist James Sevigny was hurled 2,000ft down a Canadian Rockies mountain by an avalanche, breaking his knees and his back. He curled up in the snow to die, like his companion nearby, when he felt someone behind him and heard a female voice urging him to get up. It gave him a stream of practical advice that got him back to his campsite. For two years, he couldn't talk about his experiences. 'It made me cry. It was so powerful. I just couldn't tell many people,' he said. The aviator Charles Lindbergh reported sensing a presence in his cockpit during his famous solo transatlantic flight in 1927. And in 1933, British explorer Frank Smythe narrowly missed becoming the first man to scale Everest when he pushed on alone as the rest of his party gave up. He recalls handing a piece of Kendal Mint Cake to his companion - only to realise there wasn't one. The feeling he was with someone 'was so strong that it completely eliminated all loneliness I might otherwise have felt', he recalled. John Geiger, a Canadian writer who has documented hundreds of 'Third Man' cases, says people have usually been very specific about their 'companion'. More people believe in angels than we might think. A survey in the UK by the Bible Society reported that 31 per cent believed in angels. Pictured above: Jennifer Groesbeck with her partner and 18-month-old daughter Lily And it hasn't always been solitary people. Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton wrote of experiencing a benign 'divine presence' walking unseen with him as he and two companions struggled over mountains in South Georgia in 1916. 'What was remarkable is that all three men independently said they had a very powerful sensation that there was another with them,' says Geiger. Similarly, Harry Stoker, a celebrated World War I Royal Navy submarine commander, described sensing an invisible fourth man after he and two others escaped from a Turkish PoW camp. Curiously, so did both of the others. Very occasionally, large numbers of people have claimed to see angels. Proof Of Angels recounts the bizarre case of the 1986 Cokeville elementary school hostage crisis in Wyoming, where a deranged ex-policeman and his wife took 136 children and 18 adults hostage. When their homemade bomb accidentally detonated, miraculously only the two intruders were killed. The children claimed to have been helped by white-clad angels. The angels, they said, had told them to go near the window just before the bomb went off - an act that ensured they escaped with only minor injuries. Little children in a Bible-bashing community may not be the most reliable witnesses. But what has made the Third Man syndrome so credible, says Geiger, is that so many of those affected haven't been superstitious types but level-headed adventurers and military types. Sometimes, people believe they have sensed not their own guardian angel but someone else's. Whether it's a case of guardian angels or simply finding a side of our consciousness we never knew existed, perhaps we're not as alone as we think In 2008, 14-year-old Chelsea Banton lay dying of pneumonia in a North Carolina hospital room. Told there was no hope for her daughter, Colleen Banton had just instructed doctors to turn off her life support when she glanced at the room's security monitor and saw what she insists was an angel, complete with wings. Mrs Banton kept the machine switched on and Chelsea's condition started to improve within an hour - a recovery doctors were unable to explain. Scientists have yet to properly explain the Third Man phenomenon rationally. There are many theories, including extreme sleep deprivation. The concept is that the brain is divided into two halves, one which 'speaks' and the other which listens - this serves as a sort of neurological coping mechanism that kicks in when someone is suffering extreme physical and mental privation. But none of these explain why people feel such an overwhelming benevolence from their companion, say sceptics. Geiger notes that two of the factors - extreme cold and intense stress - common in many Third Man cases were present with the Utah policemen rescuing baby Lily. As to why they all agree on what they heard, he says it's possibly an instance of subconscious suggestion, in which one of them inadvertently puts the idea in the mind of the others. That's easy to imagine in some situations, but this particular rescue is surely different. There's that sound of a voice on the video footage, not to mention the obvious fact that at least one of the officers reacted to it immediately. There was no question of his imagining he heard it later. One day, science may provide an answer for why so many people suddenly feel they have a powerful and life-saving friend when they are most in need of one. Then again, the phenomenon may never be explained. Whether it's a case of guardian angels or simply finding a side of our consciousness we never knew existed, perhaps we're not as alone as we think. The future of the Swedish monarchy was on full display in Stockholm on Wednesday night, as both Crown Princess Victoria and her sister-in-law Princess Sofia showed off their growing baby bumps at an official dinner hosted at the Royal Palace. Princess Victoria, 38, who is heir to the Swedish throne, attended the dinner on the arm of her husband Prince Daniel, wearing a floor-length beaded lace gown, which featured a low-cut neckline, which she accessorized with an elegant tiara and royal sash. Meanwhile Princess Sofia, opted for a lengthy gold gown, which swept below her feet and trailed out behind her as she walked. She also added a dazzling tiara, and a pale blue sash, to her ensemble, while her husband Prince Carl-Philp looked dashing in a white bow tie and tails. Scroll down for video Mothers: Princess Sofia, left, and Crown Princess Victoria, right, both showed off blooming baby bumps at an official dinner at the Royal Palace in Stockholm on Wednesday evening Leading the way: Princess Victoria, 38, who is heir to the throne, is expecting her second child with Prince Daniel in March First-time parents: Princess Sofia, 31, and Prince Carl-Philip, 36, revealed in October that they are expecting their first child together one month later, in April The glittering royal event is the first official dinner to be hosted by King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia this year, and was held at the Royal Palace in Stockholm. In a post shared on the Swedish royal family's official Instagram account, a spokesperson for the palace explained that attendees included family and friends of the King and Queen, as well as diplomats and other political representatives. 'The King and Queen give this year's first official dinner at the Royal Palace,' a caption on a photo of the three royal couples read. 'Invited guests were selected diplomats, representatives from the parliament and the government, official agencies, sciences, sports, businesses, arts, and people the Royal Family have met during their travels.' Glamorous: For the glittering occasion, Sofia donned an appropriately glamorous dress design, opting for a gold sequin-covered design, which fell below her feet and trailed out behind her as she walked The cherry on top of the cake: Princess Victoria topped off her beaded lace dress with a beautiful tiara and a pale blue sash Happy and healthy: Both women looked thrilled to be in attendance at the event, and both were more than happy to show off their bumps to the cameras Royal affair: The event was the first official dinner hosted by King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia at the Royal Palace in Stockholm this year It is possible that Princess Victoria invited some of the people that she met during her travels to Peru earlier this year. The royal attended the inauguration of a Nordic-Latin American Contact Seminar in Lima along with her husband back in October, not long after her brother and his wife had shared the news about their pregnancy. Victoria announced her own news in September on the royal family's official website. The princess, who had been the subject of numerous baby rumors over the summer, declared herself 'happy' at the prospect of becoming a mother again. 'Their Royal Highnesses Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel are happy to announce that the Crown Princess is expecting their second child,' read the statement. Announcements: Sofia and Carl-Philip, pictured left last month, announced their pregnancy via Facebook, while Victoria and Daniel, pictured right in October, released their news via an official statement Another addition: Crown Princess Victoria already has a child, three-year-old Estelle, who is second in line to the throne 'The birth is expected to take place in March of 2016.' Meanwhile Prince Carl-Philip and Princess Sofia shared their own happy news via an official statement released on Facebook just a few days before Princess Victoria's Peru trip, in which they said: 'We are so happy and excited to announce that we are expecting our first child. We are very much looking forward to it.' The couple's baby will fifth in line to the Swedish throne; while Princess Victoria is currently first in line, her eldest child Princess Estelle, three, is second. Estelle's baby sibling will be the throne's third successor when he or she is born, putting Prince Carl-Philip back into fourth position, just above his unborn child. When your daughter comes home from school and disappears up to her bedroom, most parents might hope she is getting on with her homework. But when 15-year-old Beth White closed her door, she did not get stuck into her GCSE textbooks. Instead, while her mother Clare, an office manager, was downstairs, she calmly removed her school uniform, stripped down to her underwear and snapped pictures with her smartphone in the wardrobe mirror. Beth White, 17, from Stockport, Greater Manchester, began sending boys sexts when she was just 15 After selecting the most flattering, Beth set about airbrushing away any spots, freckles or unsightly dimples. Then, the final, crucial step: She cropped off her head, and any identifiable features, and sent the picture to a boy she was dating at school - the one whod sent her a similarly racy picture of himself the night before. Hot, came his reply five minutes later. When can I see more? Welcome to the world of young love in the age of the smartphone. Although Beth and the boy had only been dating a few weeks, they both deemed it wholly appropriate to swap pictures of themselves that would be seen as X-rated in any public forum. And parents who may view their behaviour as the preserve of promiscuous, troubled teens on the fringes of society, be warned. Beth is an ambitious, middle-class young girl, from a supportive and loving family. If you have a teenager, they could be doing the same. Not convinced? Bear in mind that even Eton College has banned photo sharing mobile phone app, Snapchat, over concerns it was being used to exchange explicit pictures and texts. Snapchat has become the preferred method for swapping the images as it allows users to send pictures or videos, known as Snaps, because they disappear from the recipients phone after a maximum of ten seconds - thus avoiding detection by parents and teachers. A Bristol study recently found sexting has fast become the norm in teenage courtship, with almost half of 13 to 17-year-old girls saying they have been sent explicit pictures and videos, and two in five admitting to sending them back. One in four 13 to 17-year-old girls sent explicit pictures and video because they felt pressured to do so (stock) Disturbingly, one in four said it was because they felt pressured to do so. And its even against the law. Sending a naked image of someone below the age of 18 counts as an offence of distributing an indecent image of a child. The sender could receive a police caution, or even end up on the sex offenders register. Now 17, and studying dance and performing arts before taking up a university place next year, Beth, who lives near Stockport, Greater Manchester, admits her sexting phase was just that - something she grew out of. Sadly, it left her with a distorted view of courtship, romance and boys, and she feels a whole section of her childhood has been lost for ever. These days if you dont have the stereotypical big bouncy breasts, you are made to feel you are not good enough. You dont only have to look good with your clothes on, you are supposed to look good with them off It started when a boy I was seeing sent me a close-up of his private parts, she remembers. I wasnt surprised because Id been sent something similar by a stranger on Snapchat when I was 14. By the time I was 15, half the girls in my year were getting similar images. He asked me to send one back a few times. After a couple of weeks, I gave in because I didnt want him to lose interest and ask someone else. While a few years ago, a picture of a girl in her knickers was enough to titilate a teenage boy, times have moved on - worryingly so. He kept asking to see more, but I didnt send one as Id seen other girls called sluts for doing so. But then I realised my picture had become common knowledge because the boys friends started teasing me about it in the dinner queue at school, calling me frigid because I wouldnt go further. I was angry - I couldnt win. Although such pictures are sent back by girls in the hope of securing compliments, they have raised the bar for how girls think they should look. Beth recalls: One girl I knew didnt even realise her picture had been shared, but I saw a group of lads ripping her to shreds at a party, saying her boobs were not good enough, as if she was on a porn website. It was horrible to hear. But these days if you dont have the stereotypical big bouncy breasts, you are made to feel you are not good enough. You dont only have to look good with your clothes on, you are supposed to look good with them off, too. Such shots are used by both genders as bargaining chips in a complex game of sexual politics, carried on almost entirely under the radar of parents and teachers. As Beth says: No one ever found out and I never told my mum at the time. Jake Land, 21, from Buxton, Derbyshire, a part-time actor, began sexting when he was 15. He received around 100 pictures from five girls, all under 16, at school, and only had a proper relationship with one Thankfully she was bright - and mature - enough to learn the rules of the sexting game, and never suffered the humiliation of her image being shared around the school. When we split after a few months I was glad I still had his picture on my phone. It meant he was less likely to share mine because I would have shared his, too, says Beth. Many boys, see sexting as a safe, hassle-free alternative to dating. Part-time actor Jake Land, 21, says it was his introduction to the female physique when he was 15. He received around 100 pictures from five girls, all under 16, at school, and only had a proper relationship with one. Jake, from Buxton, Derbyshire, says: You can set the picture to supposedly disappear in between two and ten seconds, so compared with texting, it feels much less risky. Children aged ten to 13 are now the biggest risk group because they have more sophisticated phones (stock) About 60 per cent of boys in his year were also sending and receiving such images, but none came to the attention of adults, he adds. The process followed a set pattern: Flirty messages would be exchanged, followed by selfies, standing semi-clothed in front of a mirror. Jake says it rarely took a lot of effort to persuade girls to take things further. Lying down would be the next stage, showing more intimate views. Jake, currently single, says: Girls seem to know from pop videos and porn what they are supposed to do. A few years ago, a boy might have been happy to be sent a picture of a pair of breasts, but not any longer. Its the next day thats the awkward bit. If youve been sexting a girl the night before, you might hide at school to avoid her. But as soon as youd get home, it would be: Right, phone out again. Jake says he regrets sexting because it made his life more complicated when he should have been concentrating on his schoolwork - and he was also very worried that the pictures he sent would get out I regret it because it made life more complicated at a time when I should have been concentrating on my school work. It was dangerous and it made me feel constantly paranoid that pictures would get out. I have matured. It seems really superficial now. Id want to get to know a girl properly before asking for pictures like these. A-level student Flo Thompson, 16, from Hendon, north London, says sexy pictures are almost expected before a relationship moves to the next level. As a girl you agree because you want to be BAE to him - which means Before Anyone Else [teenspeak for absolute favourite]. But its a facade because I airbrush my pictures and use apps to trim my thighs. Then I worry I wont be good enough when they see me in the flesh. Yet girls still yearn for a simpler, more romantic way of communicating with boys. Her schoolmate Louisa Trent, 17, says: When you are alone with boys, they expect you to do stuff you are not necessarily ready for because thats the impression they have from your pictures. Its a facade because I airbrush my pictures and use apps to trim my thighs. I worry I wont be good enough when they see me in the flesh For young people today, it feels like everything is happening in the wrong order. People my age should be asking each other for dates and getting to know each other first. Andy Phippen, professor of social responsibility at Plymouth University, who has done wide-ranging research on sexting, says tales like all these are typical. He doubts there is a school in the country which has not been affected. Ninety-five per cent of sexting in this age group is never heard about. It is part of the courtship ritual. A boy might send a message like: Send me a picture and I might go out with you. Teenagers have always wanted to explore their sexuality, and technology has simply enabled them to do it more easily. But playing Devils Advocate, why would they not? Adults, from pop stars to our MPs do it [Labour MP Simon Danczuk, 49, has been suspended by his party for sexting a 17-year-old girl]. One thing that has changed is that young people dont show their faces in the pictures to get anonymity. If the pictures surface, it means they can say: You cant prove its me. Yet given the constant stream of these images which are turning up for general viewing on the internet, plenty of young people only learn to protect their identity too late. According to the Internet Watch Foundation, huge numbers of images are getting copied and shared. Pictures of younger children - 7.5 per cent they find are children of 15 or under - are shared between paedophiles. The number of images removed by the web watchdogs has doubled from around 31,000 in 2014 to more than 60,000 last year. Even more worrying is that now children are getting camera phones younger, it is easier for paedophiles to exploit their naivety. Jon Brown, head of strategy at the NSPCC, says: Children aged ten to 13 are now the biggest risk group because they are being given more sophisticated phones, without the maturity to handle sexting requests or knowing where a request is coming from. Add to all this the easily accessible stream of hard-core pornography online, and very young children are left thinking sexting is entirely normal. Combine that with the hormones that are coursing through the veins of a teenager, and it becomes a potent mix, says Jon. For Beths 42-year-old mother Clare, the discovery that her daughter had been sexting came as a complete shock. She speaks for a generation, when she says: When I was 15, and a boy liked you, his friends told your friends that he fancied you. Childhood as I knew it has virtually disappeared. Its so sad that children feel the need to do this. They are not children for long nowadays, and even if it is everywhere, I dont think parents or schools should let this become the norm. For Beth, who doesnt currently have a boyfriend, it is already too late. She has never known a time when trading body parts has not been part of courtship. I wouldnt do it again. Thankfully I grew up and learned to say no. It makes me wish for the old-fashioned ways of meeting boys, like my mum describes. And she has these words for any other girls who get similar requests. If boys tell you everyone does it, tell them, you dont. Tell them you have more respect for yourself. (Some names have been changed) The former fiancee of Scot Young was all smiles as she stepped out with her new boyfriend to attend a fashion store opening in London. Socialite Noelle Reno, 33, who was in a relationship with the tragic business tycoon for five years, is now dating 34-year-old City trader Nick Perks. The pair looked happy and relaxed in each other's company at the opening of the new Manolo Blahnik store in the Burlington Arcade on Wednesday evening. Socialite Noelle Reno, who was in a relationship with the tragic business tycoon for five years, is now dating 34-year-old City trader Nick Perks Clearly dressing up for the evening affair, American-born fashion entrepreneur Noelle looked stylish in a coral leaf-print body con dress, a leather biker jacket and nude suede heels. The former model pulled her blonde hair into a tight updo and kept her make-up to a minimum. Meanwhile, Nick followed his new girlfriend's fashionable lead in a smart, all-black outfit and matching shoes. The pair are believed to have been an item since Christmas. A source told The Mail On Sunday: Everyone is delighted that Noelle is managing to move on. 'She is taking it one day at a time, but so far, so good. Clearly dressing up for the evening affair, American-born fashion entrepreneur Noelle looked stylish in a coral leaf-print body con dress, a leather biker jacket and nude suede heels The former model pulled her blonde hair into a tight updo and kept her make-up to a minimum Noelle is said to be 'immensely proud' of Nick's current project raising 30,000 for Unicef by climbing Mount Everest in March. It isn't the first time the pair have been seen in public together - they were inseparable last month when they attended a birthday party together for socialite Lisa Tchenguiz. They were kissing and very cuddly, an insider added. They were dancing really close. Its great to see Noelle looking so happy again. Scot Young, a bankrupt property tycoon, fell to his death in December 2014 from a window of the 3 million fourth-floor London apartment that he and Noelle shared. Meanwhile, other guests are the opening of the boutique included supermodel Yasmin Le Bon. The 51-year-old mother-of-three went for a smart-casual look in a pretty lace pencil skirt and khaki parka jacket. The Queen was given a sentimental gift for her great grandchildren as she met patients and bereaved relatives at a hospice near her Norfolk estate. During her visit to officially open the hospice, she met Jack Plummer, nine, from King's Lynn, whose mother Amee Walton died from a brain tumour aged 29 in 2013. He presented the Queen, who was wearing a teal Peter Enrione collared dress and coat with a Waterford brooch and hat by Rachel Trevor-Morgan, with two teddy bears - one for Prince George and one for Princess Charlotte - on behalf of bereavement charity Nelson's Journey. Scroll down for video Watched by Lorna Vyse (centre) from Nelson's Journey, Jack Plummer presents Queen Elizabeth II with two teddy bears as a gift for her great grandchildren, George and Charlotte, during a visit to The Norfolk Hospice at Hillington, near King's Lynn During her visit to officially open the hospice, she met Jack Plummer, nine, from King's Lynn, whose mother Amee Walton died from a brain tumour aged 29 in 2013 The youngster who proudly handed over the gifts to the royal attached a note to each bear which read: 'To Charlotte. Please look after this bear like Nelsons Journey did to me. From Jack.' The writing was in pink, whilst he wrote George's using a blue pen. The Norfolk Hospice, Tapping House, recently opened its new 3.4 million facility based in the village of Hillington, a little over three miles from the Sandringham Estate where the Queen spends much of winter. The youngster who proudly handed over the gifts to the royal attached a note to each bear which read: 'To Charlotte. Please look after this bear like Nelsons Journey did to me. From Jack' Queen Elizabeth II was all smiles on a visit to The Norfolk Hospice at Hillington, near King's Lynn The Queen was wearing a teal Peter Enrione collared dress and coat with a Waterford brooch and hat by Rachel Trevor-Morgan The Queen met patients, trustees, volunteers and medical professionals working at the hospice, which has been serving its local community - close to her Sandringham Estate - for over 30 years Queen Elizabeth II talks to patient Christina Hutson (left), watched by staff members Emma Shaw (second left) and Nicola Child, during a visit to The Norfolk Hospice at Hillington, near King's Lynn A report earlier this year revealed that The Prince of Wales received armfuls of presents for his grandchildren, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, during his official travels last year. Well-wishers gave the proud grandfather everything from practical gifts like baby booties and a wooden rattle to two giant lollipops. And Prince Charles, 67, received what is probably one of his most unusual presents - a packet of fairy dust when in New Zealand. The items were named among a list of official gifts received by members of the Royal Family during royal engagements both at home and abroad during 2015. During Charles and Camillas visit to New Zealand in November they were given a pair of booties, an organic wool hat, and a vest and blanket for Charlotte by an unnamed individual. David Carter, the speaker of the New Zealand parliament, presented the royal couple with a woollen poncho for Charlotte and a woollen tank top for George. There were more gifts for the children when the couple visited the Republic of Ireland in May last year. A member of the public presented two giant lollipops and a ceramic money box for each of the children, while an unnamed individual gave a wooden rattle for the baby princess. Queen Elizabeth II meets nurses Sarah Wallis and Daniela Reynolds (right) during a visit to The Norfolk Hospice The Norfolk Hospice, Tapping House, recently opened its new 3.4 million facility based in the village of Hillington, a little over three miles from the Sandringham Estate where the Queen spends much of winter Lyndsay Carter (partially hidden) CEO of the Norfolk Hospice, introduces Queen Elizabeth II to volunteer gardeners (from third left) Marianne Charles, Paul Davey, Alan Twite and Michael Moore during her visit to the hospice in Kings Lynn A recent royal gift list revealed that Prince George and Princess Charlotte were gifted booties, lollipops and moneyboxes by wellwishers who gave Prince Charles the presents to pass onto them During Charles and Camillas visit to New Zealand in November they were given blanket for Charlotte by an unnamed individual and large lollipops for both of their grandchildren (stock images) The items were named among a list of official gifts received by members of the Royal Family during royal engagements both at home and abroad during 2015 also included a wooden baby rattle for Princess Charlotte (stock image) Official gifts can be worn and used, but are not considered the royals personal property. The royals do not pay tax on them. They can eat any food they are given and perishable official gifts with a value less than 150 can also be given to charity or staff. Gifts cannot be sold or exchanged and eventually become part of the Royal Collection, which is held in trust by the Queen for her successors and the nation. The rules on official presents were tightened following the Peat inquiry in 2003 into the sale of royal gifts and the running of St Jamess Palace. The Duchess invited an inmate to do some decorating at a royal residence after watching his painting in action. While taking a tour through the workshop of Bounce Back - a charity that trains prisoners in construction skills - Camilla spoke to prisoners practising their skills. Camilla visited Brixton Prison to learn more about its rehabilitation programmes in her role as patron of the National Literacy Trust. The Duchess of Cornwall asks an inmate to paint the royal residence after being impressed with his skills during a visit to Brixton Prison The charity has a large workshop with mocked up rooms, windows and doors where prisoners can learn painting and decorating from scratch in order to prepare them for work on the outside. Darren, 41, who has completed a course with the charity and is now mentoring new recruits, said he told the Duchess he had learnt a lot with the scheme. He said: 'She even asked me if I would come and do the palace! I think that was a joke but of course I said yes and that I would come and meet Charlie.' He said the course would help him when he leaves prison. He added: 'I was a bricklayer before but I didn't really know anything about decorating. 'Even if I don't do it as a job I will be able to do up my own place.' Camilla visited Brixton Prison to learn more about its rehabilitation programmes in her role as patron of the National Literacy Trust and was also given a tour of the premises The royal also visited The Clink - HMP Brixton's fully functioning restaurant Camilla asked a table of regular diners 'Do you come here often?' as she took a tour through the kitchen and the dining room The Duchess of Cornwa was learning more about its rehabilitation programmes After seeing a chef at work in the kitchen, the Duchess spoke to diners and waiters who wear matching check waistcoats As well as training inmates inside, Bounce Back is a social enterprise employer and works with industry partners to help participants find work when they are released. The charity also teaches prisoners how to manage self-employment, benefits and tax to ease the move into paid work. The Duchess of Cornwall also handed out a book recommendation to some prisoners after attending their reading group. After sitting in on a discussion with author Stephen Kelman on his book Pigeon English, Camilla suggested 'Anatomy of a Soldier' by Harry Parker to the group of prisoners. The discussion was being recorded for Books Unlocked - a programme on National Prison Radio which airs to prisons all over the country - and Camilla also revealed that she listens to BBC Radio 4's Book at Bedtime but only gets to read when she is in Scotland. Ensley, 38, a prisoner involved with the National Prison Radio, said: 'I asked her what she would recommend and she suggested this book about a soldier who lost both his legs in Afghanistan. 'I am most definitely going to be taking up her recommendation of Anatomy of a Soldier.' The Duchess of Cornwall signs the Clink's visitors book during a visit to Brixton Prison, in south London, where as a Patron of the National Literacy Trust, she was learning more about its rehabilitation programmes The Duchess of Cornwall walks with Governor Giles Mason (left) and Deputy Lt of Greater London, Kevin McGrath (right) in A-Wing, during a visit to Brixton Prison, in south London The charity employs prisoners at an on-site high-end restaurant open to members of the public where they work a 40-hour week which counts towards a City & Guilds NVQ Camilla looked chic wearing a dusky blue jacket and skirt and black suede boots The Duchess of Cornwall walks with Governor Giles Mason (left) and Deputy Lt of Greater London, Kevin McGrath (right) during a visit to Brixton Prisones He said that a visit from both Camilla and the author of the book being discussed was 'nerve-wracking' but 'good'. He added: 'Books Unlocked is really important because of the knowledge and because you have so much time - it's an escapism. 'It's a way to get outside. You can get anywhere with a book. You can lose yourself even though you only have a really small space in the prison.' The Booker Prize-funded scheme Books Unlocked aims to address the literacy problem in prisons, where 60% of prisoners can struggle with basic reading skills, by distributing Man Booker Prize-shortlisted titles. Over the last year, more than 2,000 books have been sent out and the chosen books are then serialised by National Prison Radio on the daily show Books Unlocked, which features interviews with the authors and discussions with prison reading groups. Later, at The Clink - HMP Brixton's fully functioning restaurant - Camilla asked a table of regular diners 'Do you come here often?' as she took a tour through the kitchen and the dining room. The charity employs prisoners at an on-site high-end restaurant open to members of the public where they work a 40-hour week which counts towards a City & Guilds NVQ. After seeing a chef at work in the kitchen, the Duchess spoke to diners and waiters who wear matching check waistcoats. The Booker Prize-funded scheme Books Unlocked aims to address the literacy problem in prisons, where 60 per cent of prisoners can struggle with basic reading skills, by distributing Man Booker Prize-shortlisted titles Mr Warner said he was keen to employ more former inmates who had worked in The Clink after Mr Wyde's success and said the Duchess was keen to hear about the project One table featured regular customer Armen Lloyd, 54, who works in recruitment advertising and uses the restaurant as a location for corporate hospitality. He said: 'We have never had a bad experience here. 'She asked me what it was like going here and what the food was like. 'She said 'Do you come here often?', which was funny.' Mr Lloyd said he visits the restaurant two or three times a month and often brings clients for Christmas dinners. He added: 'It's very good food, the service is excellent, it's a good cause and, if I am truly honest, it's a cheap date!' A graduate of The Clink, Ross Wyde, 33, sat at another table with his current employer, Ben Warner - the founder of cafe chain Benugo. The Duchess later attended a reception, in her role as Patron of The Poppy Factory The Duchess of Cornwall attended the reception to mark the charity's work in placing 500 wounded, sick and disabled veterans into employment Camilla looked chic in a trendy navy blue dress as she posed with staff Mr Wyde was the first ex-offender from the scheme to be employed by Benugo and now works at the branch inside the Ministry of Justice after being released in 2011. He said: 'She asked me about housing issues and what it was like to find a job.' After taking a seat with the pair, Camilla - wearing a dusky blue jacket and skirt and black suede boots - was served tea and biscuits by one of the prisoner waiters before meeting more front-of-house staff. Mr Warner said he was keen to employ more former inmates who had worked in The Clink after Mr Wyde's success and said the Duchess was keen to hear about the project. He said: 'She was particularly interested in people coming out of prison if they don't have a family to go to. 'But having a proper job with a proper salary can help stop reoffending.' The Duchess later attended a reception, in her role as Patron of The Poppy Factory, to mark the charity's work in placing 500 wounded, sick and disabled veterans into employment at Admirality House. The Duchess shared a joke with a veteran as she sipped a glass of water at the reception Advertisement A striking collection of photos has been released showing the future ambitions of Syrian refugee girls living in Jordan. The International Rescue Committee, headed by former Foreign Secretary David Miliband, set up the photoshoot for girls living in Zaatari Refugee Camp or in Mafraq in the north of Jordan. It was a part of the organisation's 'Vision not Victim' programme that helps to give young refugees the skills and support they need to build a better future. The International Rescue Committee, headed by former Foreign Secretary David Miliband, set up a photoshoot for girls living in Zaatari Refugee Camp or in Mafraq in the north of Jordan, to act out the careers they hope to have. Rama, age 13, whose vision is to be a doctor It was a part of the organisation's 'Vision not Victim' programme that helps to give young refugees the skills and support they need to build a better future. Left: Haja, age 12, whose vision is to be a future astronaut and right, Merwa, age 13, whose vision is to be a painter The photographs were taken by 'Vision not Victim' founder Meredith Hutchison. Every girl designed and directed her own shoot, posing as her future self. International Development Secretary Justine Greening said: 'These photographs show the children who will one day rebuild Syria. 'The UK is urging the world to make a choice in education to ensure that the conflict does not rob Syria's children of a future. 'By giving them an education, they have the opportunity to become the doctors, lawyers and architects of tomorrow.' Haja, aged 12, dreams of being an astronaut. She said: 'Ever since we studied the solar system in primary school, I have wanted to be an astronaut. I would imagine myself up in the sky discovering new things.' Another girl, Muntaha, aged 12, dreams of being a photographer. She said: 'Since I was a young girl I loved taking people's photographs. 'I loved going to different events and documenting what was happening - both the good and bad.' The girls, who range between the ages of nine and 17, like, Amani, above, age 10, whose vision is to be a aircraft pilot, designed their own photoshoots to envision their lives in the future. The photographs were taken by 'Vision not Victim' founder Meredith Hutchison Man of the girls have experienced conflict and are inspired by the experience, like Wissam, age 15, who hopes to be a pharmacist said: 'As the war started, I watched this pharmacist help the injured. When I saw this I knew that this was an important job and what I wanted to do' Hiba, age 9, hopes to be a future paediatrician. International Development Secretary Justine Greening said: 'These photographs show the children who will one day rebuild Syria. The UK is urging the world to (..) ensure that the conflict does not rob Syria's children of a future Malack, age 16, whose vision is to be a policewoman. Justine Greening added: 'By giving them an education, they have the opportunity to become the doctors, lawyers and architects of tomorrow.' The girls participated in the IRC workshops in northern Jordan Merwa, age 13, has the vision to become a painter. Above, Merwa shares her vision photographs with her father in their home. During their workshops the girls built leadership and communication skills and imagined their future personal and professional lives The young girls were able to act out roles they would take in their dreams jobs, like Muntaha, age 12, left, whose vision is to be a photographer She said: 'Since I was a young girl I loved taking people's photographs.' Fatiman, age 16, right, hopes to be an architect More than 600,000 Syrians have fled to Jordan since the onset of the Syrian civil war. The International Rescue Committee is providing humanitarian assistance, medical care and other support to refugees living in urban areas.Fatima, age 11 whose vision is to be a surgeon Amani, 10, said: 'I love planes. Even before I had ever been on a plane, I knew I wanted to be a pilot.' Bassima, aged 17, dreams of being a future dairy chef. She said: 'I have always found great pleasure in cooking. When I was young, I spent a lot of time in the kitchen with my mother - learning how to create different dishes. I was really good at it.' Wissam, 15, said: 'Our neighbour in Syria had a pharmacy, and when I was younger I would go next door and help.. 'As the war started, I watched this pharmacist help the injured. When I saw this I knew that this was an important job and what I wanted to do. Albert Einstein was involved in the formation of the IRC in the 1930s. The organisation assisted refugees fleeing persecution in Hitler's Germany, Mussolini's Italy and Franco's Spain. The IRC began its work in Jordan in 2007 with refugees from Iraq. With the arrival of refugees from Syria in 2012, they ramped up operations to include primary health care, mobile outreach, and programs for the most vulnerable. Sarah, age 15, who hopes to be a fashion designer The IRC runs centers for women and girls in northern Jordan that offer skills trainings, counseling and recreational activities, and cash assistance. Right, Nesrine, age 11 whose vision is to be a policewoman, left: Nour, age 18 whose vision is to be a lawyer in the future Fatima, age 12, above, whose vision is to be a teacher. The IRC provides temporary care and shelter in both Zaatari, where these girls are currently living, and Azraq refugee camps for unaccompanied and separated children. Mona, above, age 10 whose vision is to be a physician. The IRC also runn mobile health clinics for refugees and vulnerable Jordanians living in particular harsh conditions, providing primary and reproductive health care, health education and referrals for severe conditions Advertisement As far as glamour goes, the Vienna Opera Ball is up there with the BAFTAs and the Met Ball. The glittering gala is one of the most exclusive events in the Viennese social calendar and every year, Austria's most important men and women descend on the Wiener Staatsoper in Vienna, to rub shoulders with stars like Kim Kardashian and Hilary Swank. To kick-start the festivities, 186 debutantes and their partners dance the opening waltz, under the watchful gaze of the older guests, which this year included Hollywood star Brooke Shields, 50, who attended the glamorous gala on the arm of Austrian businessman Richard Lugner, 83. Making an entrance: Debutantes dazzled as they were introduced into high society at the glittering Vienna Opera Ball on Thursday night Dancing shoes: The debutantes are pictured performing their traditional dance during the opening ceremony of the Opera Ball in Vienna, which is one of the most glittering European events of the year The evening's entertainment: Members of the Wiener Staatsballett, the state ballet, also performed at the grand setting before hundreds of celebrities and members of high society In the past, reality star Kim, who is now married to rapper Kanye West, and model-turned-actress Carmen Electra, have both accompanied the billionaire to the glamorous event, which sees some of Austrian society's most eligible young women making their debut as adults. The 18-24 year olds spend weeks rehearsing for their opening dance, which lasts just four minutes, and tensions certainly run high backstage which is captured in this candid behind-the-scenes photoseries. But while the moment is fleeting, it is also hugely popular - hundreds of thousands of people tune in to watch the dance played out from living rooms across the globe. Dressed in the traditional white debutante gowns, with diamante tiaras and long-sleeved white gloves, the image of the young women is a throwback to early 20th century Europe. Taking part is still seen as a rite of passage for some young Austrian women - it is their introduction into society. Indeed, in past years, one of the organisers said: 'It is a rite, a dream, a message the symbol of a world and an era that is worth reintroducing to todays young people. Beautiful ballerinas: The performers were dressed in all-white ensembles to match the gowns worn by the debutantes themselves Form an orderly queue: The event is hugely popular - hundreds of thousands of people tune in to watch the dance played out from living rooms across the globe and the creme de la creme of society attend Popular: The Wiener Staatsballett is one of the main attractions of the glitzy events, which draws in the most stellar crowd Dancing queens: The female ballet dancers looked chic in their all white ensembles as they line up to perform on the dance floor Anyone who is anyone... The ball is well and truly the highlight of Vienna's social calendar and draws celebrities from around the world A-list attendee: Actress Brooke Shields attended on the arm of Austrian billionaire Richard Lugner (left), 83, who pays for a celebrity beauty to accompany him to the glittering event every year Celebrity favorite: Brooke, 50, who is pictured with Mr Lugner and another glamorous attendee, follows in the footsteps of Kim Kardashian and Carmen Electra, who have both attended the event on the arm of the Austrian billionaire in the past Practice makes perfect: Debutantes are seen lining up and running through their dance ahead of the opening ceremony Keeping up with tradition: The debutantes and their partners run through the steps for their dance backstage to ensure no slip-ups Training: The 18-24 year olds spend weeks rehearsing for the dance, which lasts just four minutes and all eyes are on them Taking a break: The excitement appears to have been too much for one young gentleman, who fainted during the opening ceremony Fashionable: Dressed in the traditional white debutante gowns, with diamante tiaras and long-sleeved white gloves, the image of the young women is a throwback to early 20th century Europe 'The best way to bring the values of a tradition back to life is to make them more current, allowing them to be discovered in their deepest meaning even by those who, in the tumult of todays society, appear to have neglected them, or, far worse, to have forgotten them altogether.' The grand event didn't come without a drama after health issues unexpectedly forced French screen legend Alain Delon to cancel his appearance at Vienna's glitzy Opera Ball on Thursday night, local media reported. 'Alain Delon's cardiologist said he wasn't fit to travel,' German fashion designer Florian Wess, who had invited the one-time heartthrob star to the event, said Thursday. 'It's a real shame that Mr Delon can't come. But we understand the situation, he's 80 after all and you've got to be careful at that age,' he told the APA news agency. Instead, Delon's son Anthony, also an actor, will attend the opulent shindig at the State Opera in the Austrian capital, Wess revealed. The ball is the highlight of Vienna's social calendar and draws celebrities from around the world. She can't get enough: Pamela Anderson, 48, also attended the ball - having accompanied Mr Lugner as his date to the event in 2003 Lights, camera, action! The blonde bombshell wore a revealing strapless dress, showing off her ample cleavage as she ascended the stairs The cream of the crop: Conductor Sascha Goetzel, Soprano Olga Peretyatko and Opera singer Placido Domingo arrive on the red carpet of the Vienna Opera Ball 2016, at the State Opera; the most glamorous event of the year Busy: After the opening ceremony, guests crowded the glamorous venue, mingling with their fellow attendees and greeting the debutantes My lady... Pamela received a kiss from a charming admirer while being introduced to come of her fellow guests Getting ready: Tensions run high backstage as the women apply last minute make-up ahead of their big moment Down to the last detail: Taking part is still seen as a rite of passage for some young Austrian women - it is their introduction into society Final checks: One of the men can be seen running through a final list of preparations before heading out into the crowd A pensive moment: A young woman waits nervously backstage ahead of her grand entrance with her fellow debutantes Young elite: Only the most eligible men and women need apply to take part in the exclusive ceremony Final adjustments: Debutantes wait backstage prior the opening ceremony of the traditional 60th Vienna Opera Ball One final touch: Last minute touch-ups are made on the stairs as the high society youths prepare to make their dazzling entrance A helping hand: Two debutantes help another female friend adjust her dress as they make finishing touches to their glamorous outfits The event's 60th edition is set to open on Thursday evening with a performance by renowned tenor Placido Domingo. The celebrity guest list features American actress Brooke Shields and former Playboy model Pamela Anderson, who will rub shoulders with Austria's political elite, including Chancellor Werner Faymann. In the UK, these traditions have been almost entirely forgotten, but Vienna's long history with balls means that it still a large part of becoming an adult in Austria. Although the Opera Ball is the best known, with tickets starting at 220 and a box as much as 16,300, the city hosts more than 450 of them every year. More adults are using cannabis since laws were introduced to legalize the drug, experts have revealed. Meanwhile fewer teenagers are turning to the drug, there has been a decrease in marijuana-related arrests, but an increase in admissions for addiction treatment. A team of scientists led by Dr Jane Maxwell from the University of Texas at Austin and Bruce Mendelson, of the Denver Office of Drug Strategy, reviewed data looking at how marijuana laws have affected rate of use of the drug. In recent years a number of states have legalized possession and use of small amounts of cannabis, while several others have 'decriminalized' the drug. Scroll down for video There has been a rise in adults using cannabis in the last 10 years, experts said. They attributed the rise to the fact 23 US states now have laws legalizing the drug in some form As of June last year 23 states and the District of Columbia currently have laws legalizing marijuana in some form. Cannabis is legal of recreational use in Washington state, Oregon, Alaska and Colorado as well as the District of Columbia. The drug is legalized for medical use in California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Montana, Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health reveal that, over the past decade, marijuana use has increased significantly among adults aged 18 to 25, and those aged 26 and older. Dr Maxwell and Mr Mendelson note these trends could have begun before 2012, when Colorado and Washington became the first states to legalize the drug. Meanwhile, cannabis use by young people aged 12 to 17 has not seen the same increase. However, young people's perceptions of the risks of using marijuana have decreased, suggesting they may be more likely to using the drug in the future. Studies have consistently shown the potency of cannabis is increasing. Data from California suggests that marijuana is more widely available, and that more drivers are testing positive for it, the authors said. Initial reports from Colorado and Washington state also provide evidence on the impact of legalizing the drug. In Denver, marijuana-related hospital admissions, emergency department visits, and calls to poison control centers have all increased. Cannabis is more widely available in California, where it is legalized for medical use, and more drivers are testing positive for the drug. Marijuana-related hospital admissions and ER visits have all increased in Denver, Colorado, where the drug is legal for recreational use At the same time, arrests for marijuana use and, or possession and admissions to substance use disorder treatment programs have decreased. Furthermore in Seattle, data reveals reduced rates of treatment admissions and police involvement, along with an increased prevalence of frequent cannabis use. The authors said: 'As more states enact laws allowing the medicinal use of marijuana and relax penalities for the personal use of marijuana, attention should be paid to the experiences of the states to date, and changes in their laws to handle unanticipated problems.' They added: 'Data is needed to understand the relationship between the patterns and amounts of use in terms of consequences as well as data on the health conditions of those receiving medical marijuana and the impact of higher potency.' The authors note there is a lack of data on the characteristics of users of medical cannabis, their medical conditions and use patterns. There is also a knowledge gap regarding adverse effects of medicinal marijuana, and the adverse events users may suffer by using different variations of the drug. They said more studies are needed to understand the relationship between the patterns and amounts of use in terms of consequences, as well as on the health conditions of those receiving medical marijuana and the impact of higher potency. Women living in countries ravaged by the Zika virus should not use birth control or abortions to stop the illness from spreading from mothers to children, according to a Catholic archdiocese. The Vatican has stayed remarkably silent on Zika, despite the virus rapidly spreading across swathes of devoutly Catholic Southern and Central American countries. This has left it up to local bishops to make the call on whether to temporary allow contraception, with one stating: 'Nothing justifies an abortion.' Scroll down for video Women living in countries ravaged by the Zika virus should not use birth control or abortions to stop the illness from spreading from mothers to children, according to a Catholic archdiocese. Pictured, a Brazilian baby with microcephaly The Zika virus, which causes babies to be born with unusually small heads and undersized brains, has spread through Latin America after first being diagnosed in Brazil last year. Many of these countries outlaw or limit women's access to abortion and contraception, with governments advising women not to have sex for years if they want to lower the chances of their children being born with the virus. But critics have argued this is unrealistic, and that women should be given access to birth control to stop the spread of the illness. Reverend Luciano Brito, a spokesman for the Catholic Archdiocese of Olinda and Recife, said Catholics should avoid using birth control, regardless of Zika. According to the New York Times, he said: 'Nothing justifies an abortion. Just because a fetus has microcephaly won't make us favorable' to changing the rules. The Catholic catechism says that any method of contraception - including abortions - that can 'render procreation impossible' is 'intrinsically evil'. Thee Vatican has stayed remarkably silent on Zika, despite the virus rapidly spreading across swathes of devoutly Catholic Southern and Central American countries. Pictured, a Brazilian baby with microcephaly The only exception to this rule is 'natural family planning', which sees women only have sex at times in their menstrual cycle when they are less likely to succeed. It only has a 25 per cent success rate. Catholics are awaiting guidance from the Church on what they should do, with some countries advising women to simply not have sex until the threat of Zika has died down. El Salvador has told people not to have sex until 2018 However, the Vatican declined to comment when contacted by the BBC. Reverend Father Frank Pavone, national director of U.S.-based anti-abortion group Priests for Life, said Catholics should not use birth control regardless of the Zika virus. 'That prohibition doesn't change based on circumstances,' he told CNN. 'So couples have a responsibility to live according to the church's teachings in whatever circumstances they find themselves.' Not all Catholic leaders agree, with other reverends saying families should be able to use contraception in exceptional circumstances like the ones seen in countries hit by the virus. Reverend James Bretzke, a professor of theology at Boston College, said: 'The polemical approach, that contraception is devious or demonic in origin or the smoke of Satan, may ultimately not be the best pastoral approach. 'In Catholic Church teaching, some would say it would be acceptable to try to prevent conception in cases like this.' The Zika virus, which causes babies to be born with unusually small heads and undersized brains, has spread through Latin America after first being diagnosed in Brazil last year Nicaragua, the Dominican Republic and El Salvador all ban abortions, while Paraguay, Guatemala, Honduras, Venezuela and Suriname only allow pregnancies to be terminated to save a woman's life. Brazil - which has seen more than 4,000 cases of microcephaly caused by the Zika virus, only allows abortions to save mothers' lives or in cases of rape. International charity Women on Web is offering to send women in the early stages of pregnancy the pills who live in areas affected by the mosquito-borne disease so they can induce a home medical abortion. However, Brazilian authorities are blocking them and women inEl Salvador, the Dominican Republic and Nicaragua face jail sentences if caught taking them. The alternative is giving birth to a child who will need care for the rest of their life, who may not be able to walk or talk - an added strain for families already struggling on the breadline in some of the world's poorest and most violent countries. Most governments in the region have advised women against getting pregnant for at least two years, as fears grow that the virus, first discovered in Uganda in 1947, is causing children to be born with unusually small heads, and undersized brains. It has yet to be definitively confirmed that the virus and the birth defect is related, but the World Health Organisation has warned of a global crisis. Two people became infected with the Zika virus after receiving a blood transfusion from a donor who tested positive for the disease, health officials in Brazil today confirmed. They are thought to be the first cases of transmission via a blood donation during the current outbreak and it comes just days after officials in Texas revealed the first case of sexual transmission. The health department of Campinas, an industrial city near Sao Paulo, said a hospital patient with gunshot wounds became infected with Zika after multiple blood transfusions in April 2015. Officials said they determined that one of the people whose donated blood was used in the transfusion had been infected with Zika. Scroll down for video Health officials in Brazil have confirmed a patient who received a blood transfusion in April last year, contracted the Zika virus, pictured, after it emerged the donor tested positive for the disease Zika is borne by the Aedes aegypti mosquito (pictured) and is typically transmitted through bites. However, the report of a case transmitted via blood transfusion comes after officials in Texas confirmed on Tuesday the first sexually transmitted case of the virus during the current outbreak - and only the second ever recorded Marcelo Addas Carvalho, the doctor who is the director of the blood centre at the University of Campinas near Sao Paulo, said genetic testing confirmed that a second man who received a blood transfusion using blood donated by another man infected with Zika in March 2015 became infected with the virus, although he did not develop symptoms. Brazil's Health Ministry said the first patient died of his wounds, not from the Zika infection. It said it was reinforcing instructions to blood banks that people infected with Zika or dengue not be permitted to donate blood for 30 days after their full recovery from the active stage of Zika infection. The Brazil cases, along with a reported case of sexual transmission of the virus in Texas add a new dimension to efforts to limit Zika's spread. Though it is thought to be the first case of the virus being transmitted this way during the current outbreak, it is not the first record of instances of Zika being found in donated blood. During an outbreak in French Polynesia several years ago, scientists noted multiple cases where donor's were found to test positive for the Zika virus. Though this case in Brazil will likely raise concern, experts say the virus is transmitted by mosquito bite in the vast majority of cases. 'Transmission of the virus through blood transfusion is very rare and not an important factor in the epidemic. Governments and society in general should focus on eliminating the mosquito, which is the main form of transmission,' Dr Carvalho said. Reassurance came after health officials in Texas reported on Tuesday that a person in Dallas became infected after having sex with another person who had traveled in Venezuela, where the virus is circulating. FIRST CASE OF US TRANSMISSION OF ZIKA IS CONFIRMED IN TEXAS A patient diagnosed with the Zika virus in Texas became infected after having sexual contact with another sufferer, health experts said on Tuesday. It marks the first case of sexual transmission of the virus in the US, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed. Dallas County health officials said the patient's partner fell ill after visiting a country where Zika is rife. While six people in Harris County, close to Houston, have contracted the disease after traveling to affected regions, this is thought to be the first case of a person becoming infected on US soil, having not traveled. Zachary Thompson, director of Dallas County Health and Human Services, said: 'Now that we know Zika virus can be transmitted through sex, this increases our awareness campaign in educating the public about protecting themselves and others. 'Next to abstinence, condoms are the best prevention method against any sexually-transmitted infections.' Sexual transmission of the virus is very rare. It was found in one man's semen in Tahiti, and there was report of a Colorado researcher who caught the virus overseas and apparently spread it to his wife back home in 2008. More often however, sufferers become infected after being bitten by a mosquito carrying the virus. Advertisement The suggestion that though rare, the virus can be transmitted via blood transfusions, adds weight to an appeal made by the Red Cross on Tuesday for prospective donors who have visited Zika outbreak zones to wait at least 28 days before giving blood. While issuing the advise, the Red Cross noted the risk of transmitting the virus through blood transfusions remained 'extremely' low in the US. The 'self-deferral' notice for blood donors should apply to those who have visited Mexico, the Caribbean, or Central or South America during the past four weeks, the Red Cross said in a statement. The Washington-based nonprofit disaster relief agency also asked that donors who give blood and subsequently develop symptoms consistent with Zika within 14 days of donating to notify the Red Cross so the product can be quarantined. The World Health Organization declared the current outbreak of Zika virus, predominantly in South America, a global public health emergency, earlier this week. WHO director-general Dr Margaret Chan said she was moved to do so, after growing evidence the virus can trigger potentially life-threatening birth defects in newborn babies. Brazil has reported 3,700 suspected cases of microcephaly. More than 30 people in the United States have been confirmed to have Zika after traveling to an affected country. In assessing the level of threat, Dr Chan said 18 experts and advisers looked in particular at the strong association, in time and place, between Zika infection and a rise in cases of microcephaly - where a baby is born with a small or incomplete brain. Dr Chan said: 'The experts agreed that a causal relationship between Zika infection during pregnancy and microcephaly is strongly suspected, though not yet scientifically proven.' The virus has also been linked to the serious autoimmune disorder, Guillian-Barre syndrome that can cause paralysis. Since the current outbreak emerged last year, the Zika virus has been reported in more than 30 countries and territories, largely in Central and South America. The most common symptoms of infection are flu-like, such as aches and fever. About 80 per cent of people infected show no symptoms whatsoever, said Susan Stramer, a microbiologist for the Red Cross. Evidence has linked the virus to microcephaly, a devastating birth defect that can cause unusually small heads and permanent brain damage. Brazil has so far reported 3,700 suspected cases of microcephaly There is no blood test for the disease. Still, 'the risk of transmission through blood donation continues to be extremely low in the continental US,' the Red Cross said in its statement. Ms Stramer said even in Hawaii, which is currently experiencing an outbreak of another mosquito-borne tropical disease, dengue fever, the risk of contamination of the blood supply from Zika is low because there has been no known transmission within the islands. The travel-related donor self-deferral notice, the first measure of its kind taken by the Red Cross for a mosquito-borne disease, came a day after the American Association of Blood Banks, an accrediting organization, called for action, Ms Stramer said. Yesterday, experts warned the Zika virus is likely to be entrenched within the US by April or May. As the mercury rises, so too does the risk the mosquitoes which carry the virus, will reach American shores. Zika is borne by a mosquito that craves human blood, feeds during the day and lives under beds and inside closets. The states at greatest risk of the virus are those on the Gulf Coast, but all areas where mosquitoes are typically a problem could see localized outbreaks. Futhermore, it is almost impossible to declare an area of the US safe from Zika, because travelers arriving back from an affected region could spark a local outbreak. Until now, the best weapon against disease-carrying mosquitoes in the United States has been outdoor pesticide fog sprayed by truck and airplane. Experts have warned the Zika virus could be rife in Southern US states by the spring. The states at greatest risk are those along the Gulf Coast - Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida (dark red). Meanwhile other Southern states, where mosquitoes are typically a problem could also see cases. But, with travelers returning from affected regions it is impossible to declare an state safe from the virus The virus, which is commonly found in parts of Africa and South East Asia spread to Latin America via French Polynesia. Last year more than 1.5 million people in South America became infected, before the virus jumped to the Caribbean, Mexico and Texas towards the end of 2015 But health experts fear the typical approach will do little to eradicate the Aedes aegypti mosquito that carries Zika. Controlling that mosquito requires pesticide sprayed under beds, on the walls and in closets, said Gonzalo Vazquez-Prokopec, who studies disease transmission patterns of mosquitoes at Emory's School of Public Health's Department of Environmental Sciences. 'We know fogging is not effective,' Vazquez-Prokopec said. Though there could be localized US outbreaks, most likely along the Gulf Coast, federal officials said they hope the wide use of air conditioning, window screens and regular garbage collection will mitigate the risk. If it's (US outbreak) going to happen, I think it will happen in the warmer months, likely in April and May Dr Peter Hotez, of the National School of Tropical Medicine There has been one report of transmission within the United States, but experts believe that will increase as the weather warms up, the local mosquito population multiplies and many more travelers return to the country. 'All it takes is one of those individuals who arrives back in the United States at the stage where they have virus in their blood,' said Scott Weaver, an expert in mosquito-borne viral diseases at the University Texas Medical Branch's Galveston National Laboratory. At that point, he said, a single mosquito biting the affected person could spread the disease to others. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said on Monday the risk of transmission now is 'quite low', but as temperatures rise, 'we want to make sure that we have got a strategy to try to limit the spread of this disease when that happens'. 'If it's going to happen, I think it will happen in the warmer months, likely in April and May,' said Dr Peter Hotez, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. Zika thrives in impoverished areas, spreading widely in garbage-filled neighborhoods and in homes and apartments with no screens on the windows, conditions that are present in many Gulf Coast communities in the United States, Dr Hotez said. A pregnant woman in Spain has tested positive for the Zika virus, in what is thought to be Europe's first case. Spanish officials confirmed today the woman is among seven people identified as being infected with the virus after visiting affected countries. The virus has been linked with a surge in the number of babies born with abnormally small heads. As a result, it is most dangerous for pregnant women - and expectant mothers have been warned not to travel to affected areas. A pregnant woman in Spain has tested positive for the Zika virus, in what is thought to be Europe's first case to affect a pregnant woman Zika, carried by mosquitoes, has recently rampaged through the Caribbean and Latin America. However an estimated 80 per cent of people infected have no symptoms, making it difficult for pregnant women to know whether they have been infected. The Health Ministry said in a statement today that the woman, who had travelled to Colombia, was presumably infected during the trip and is in her second trimester of pregnancy. 'One of the patients diagnosed in (the northeastern region of) Catalonia is a pregnant woman, who showed symptoms after having travelled to Colombia. 'She is one of seven cases in Spain and all are in good condition.' The 41-year-old woman, of Latin American origin who lives in Spain, is 13 or 14 weeks pregnant, regional health official Joan Guix told a news conference. She will undergo detailed medical tests to see if there is a risk to the foetus. Ms Guix said there was only a small possibility of problems and a scan at 15 weeks would show whether the baby was developing normally. Zika has been linked to about 4,000 cases of microcephaly in Brazil - in which a newborn's head is smaller than normal and the brain may not have developed properly. However, experts say no cases of microcephaly associated with Zika virus infections have been seen in neighbouring Columbia as yet. Dr Ed Wright, senior lecturer in medical microbiology at the University of Westminster, said there was not enough evidence to definitively link the two. 'Whether that link stands up to scientific scrutiny is something scientists and healthcare professionals are urgently trying to determine,' he said. 'Collection of accurate, reliable epidemiological and clinical data over the coming weeks and months will hopefully provide the answers we need so at risks groups can be given appropriate advice and support.' This was supported by Dr Clare Taylor, general secretary for the Society for Applied Microbiology, who said: 'Brazil appears to be the only country currently where Zika is associated with microcephaly.' The ministry says the number of cases diagnosed so far are within expectations and do not pose a risk for the virus to be spread in Spain. World Health Organisation officials have predicted that as many as four million people could be infected with Zika this year. The virus, which causes symptoms including rash, fever, conjunctivitis and headache, has now been linked to birth defects in children born to mothers infected while they are pregnant. The Zika virus has been linked with a surge in the number of babies born with abnormally small heads. As it is most dangerous for pregnant women, expectant mothers have been warned not to travel to affected area Earlier this week the World Health Organisation said the outbreak should be considered a 'public health emergency of international concern'. This puts the disease in the same category as Ebola, which killed more than 11,000 people in West Africa. Dr James Logan, senior lecturer and director of the Department of Disease Control, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, said European cases were to be expected. 'These imported cases are not surprising and we are likely to see more in other countries in the weeks to come,' he said. 'It is important to note, however, that Zika was picked up abroad and not in Spain.' Professor Laura Rodrigues, a fellow of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences and from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, warned the virus could potentially affect areas where dengue fever is present. This again could have implications for pregnant women travelling to tropical and sub-tropical climates. She said: 'I think it's sensible for someone to who is pregnant, or planning to get pregnant, should avoid travelling to countries with Zika. 'If a woman may be pregnant then they should consider the risks.' Experts have called for urgent research to determine whether the virus can cause microcephaly, still birth or other complications in pregnancy. Dr Louise Sigfrid, from the University of Oxford, said: 'There is an urgent need for rapid research to ascertain if Zika virus infection in pregnancy can cause microcephaly, still birth or other complications in the baby. 'Moreover, research to establish what the actual risk is that a baby will develop complications if a woman is infected with Zika virus at different stages of the pregnancy.' Drinking two energy drinks a day increases a healthy person's risk of suffering serious heart problems, including palpitations and fast heart rate Drinking more than two energy drinks a day can trigger serious heart problems, experts have warned. Seventy per cent of patients aged 13 to 40 attending an emergency department in South Australia complaining of heart palpitations had consumed an energy drink, scientists found. Their findings identified a direct link between energy drink consumption and hospital admissions for heart conditions, co-author Dr Scott Willoughby, from the University of Adelaide said. 'Of the patients surveyed, 36 per cent had consumed at least one energy drink in the 24 hours prior to presenting at hospital, and 70 per cent had consumed some sort of energy drink in their lifetime,' he said. 'Eight of these patients had consumed a large quantity - more than five drinks - with one patient having consumed 12 energy drinks with alcohol. 'Those patients who were heavy consumers of energy drinks were found to have a significantly higher frequency of heart palpitations than those who consumed less than one per day. 'And, importantly, fast heartbeat and heart palpitations were seen in energy drink consumers who were healthy and had no risk factors for heart disease.' Dr Ian Musgrave, who also took part in the study, said there has been increasing concern that the consumption of energy drinks may lead to harm. Energy drinks have become enormously popular in the past decade and half are consumed extensively by people who wish to reduce fatigue, increase wakefulness, and improve concentration and performance,' he said. 'In line with the growing popularity and consumption of these drinks, there has been increasing concern among health practitioners and researchers. 'The major stimulant in these drinks is caffeine, which is generally safe when consumed at the recommended levels. 'However, some people appear to be more sensitive to the effects of caffeine, and the combination of ingredients in these energy drinks may pose a further threat to those who consume large quantities. 'Different brands of energy drinks contain different ingredients, but most of them combine high levels of caffeine with large quantities of sugar as well as vitamins and herbal extracts. A new study found 70 per cent of patients visiting an emergency department with heart palpitations had consumed an energy drink - 36 per cent of them in the 24 hours prior to presenting at hospital 'When vitamins and herbal extracts are combined together, they can create a toxic combination. 'Furthermore, the drinks are even more harmful when consumed with alcohol. 'Anyone feeling unwell after consuming energy drinks should seek medical advice,' he says. Researchers says it is not yet clear exactly what ingredients in energy drinks lead to adverse heart reactions and more research into this is urgently needed. The main ingredient in antacids, calcium carbonate, could help prevent cancer spreading by neutralizing the pH in the diseased tissue, making it more alkaline, experts believe The main ingredient in antacids could help stem the spread of cancerous tumors, experts have revealed. Nanoparticles of calcium carbonate halted the growth of a tumor in its tracks, scientists at Washington University in St Louis discovered. They do so by altering the pH of the diseased cells, making them less acidic and more alkaline. Lead author Dr Avik Som, said: 'Cancer kills because of metastasis. 'The pH of a tumor has been heavily correlated with metastasis. For a cancer cell to get out of the extracellular matrix, or the cells around it, one of the methods it uses is a decreased pH.' In other words the cancer cells work to make surrounding cells more acidic, in order to invade them and spread. The scientists used two novel methods to create nanoparticles from calcium carbonate. In doing so they set out to discover new ways of raising the pH of the tumor, and do so only in the tumor environment. In water, the pH in calcium carbonate increases as high as nine. But, when injected into the body, the team found the calcium carbonate on increases the pH to 7.4, the normal pH in the human body. However, the researchers discovered working with calcium carbonate presented a number of challenges. 'Calcium carbonate doesn't like to be small,' said Dr Som. 'Calcium carbonate crystals are normally 10 to 1,000 times bigger than an ideal nanoparticle for cancer therapy. 'On top of that, calcium carbonate in water will constantly grow, like stalactites and stalagmites in a cave.' Therefore, Dr Som and his team joined forces with colleagues at the university's School of Engineering and Applied Science, to create two unique solutions. The end result was a solvent made of albumin to keep the calcium carbonate nanoparticles from growing, allowing them to be injected into the body intravenously. Commonly, nanoparticles have been made with gold and silver. Cancer kills when it spreads - known as metastasis (pictured is metastatic lung cancer). One of the ways diseased cells spread is by altering the pH of neighboring tissue to make it more acidic. Researchers hope their discovery will pave the way for new chemotherapy drugs to combat the spread of the disease However, neither are present in the human body, and there are concerns about them accumulating in the body. 'Calcium and carbonate are both found heavily in the body, and they are generally non-toxic,' Dr Som said. 'When calcium carbonate dissolves, the carbonate becomes carbon dioxide and is released through the lungs, and calcium is often incorporated into the bones.' Dr Som and the team injected the calcium carbonate nanoparticles into the mouse fibrosarcoma model daily, which kept the tumor from growing. However, when they stopped injecting the nanoparticles, it started growing again. Going forward, the researchers plan to determine the optimal dose to prevent metastasis, improve targeting to tumors and determine if it could be used with chemotherapy drugs. THE LIFE AND DEATH OF SOPHIE STARK by Anna North THE LIFE AND DEATH OF SOPHIE STARK by Anna North (Orion 8.99) This hotly tipped U.S. debut is tremendously good. Its narrated by various friends, relatives and lovers of the titular Sophie Stark, a highly talented, maverick filmmaker who, in the course of her all too short career, made various strange, acclaimed arthouse films and whose sudden death has prompted those who knew her to reminiscence on the times they spent with her. Rather like the medium of film itself, the various testimonies combine like different camera angles trained on a single inscrutable subject, for, although Stark had several intense close relationships, its clear no one really knew her at all. Yet she remains a fascinating and sympathetic character: obtuse, magnetic, lost and uncompromising. North is interested in the personal sacrifices made by an artist totally committed to telling the truth of things - Stark is constantly using her friends and family as subject matter in her films and then losing their friendship when they dont like what they see. A beautifully-told novel about a singular woman and the slippery power of art to simultaneously reveal and obscure a multiplicity of stories. MY NAME IS LUCY BARTON by Elizabeth Strout MY NAME IS LUCY BARTON by Elizabeth Strout (Penguin 12.99) From the matter-of-fact opening sentence of this novel by the greatly admired American novelist Elizabeth Strout, you know you are in safe hands. The narrator is recounting a period in her life when she spent several weeks in a New York hospital, and her semi-estranged mother came up from Illinois to sit by her side. There is nothing remotely complicated in the way Strout conveys this scenario: her concise writing is a masterclass in deceptive simplicity. As her mother talks idly about people back home, mainly as a means to gossip about their failing marriages, the eponymous narrator remembers her upbringing in impoverished circumstances, the cruelty meted out to her brother by her father and the way her family has never quite forgiven her escape to New York in her early 20s. Gradually she moves onto her own foundering marriage and her slowly blossoming career as a writer in a city ravaged by Aids, and suddenly you realise you have the story of an entire life before you. Strout writes with an exacting rhythm, with each word and clause perfectly placed and weighted and each sentence as clear and bracing as grapefruit. Its a small masterpiece. ELEMENTAL by Amanda Curtin ELEMENTAL by Amanda Curtin (Scribe 8.99) You can almost taste the salt on your tongue and feel the sea on your skin in this windswept saga which partly takes the form of a long letter written in 1972 by a grandmother to her granddaughter. As a youngster at the turn of the century in a remote, Scottish fishing village, Meggie Tullock lived and worked in constant battle with the elements, with her parents, beloved sister and tyrannical grandfather. A festering family secret eventually drove her to emigrate to Australia with her husband Magnus on the eve of World War I. Yet tragedy and disaster seem destined to afflict the headstrong members of Meggies family wherever she goes, almost as though a well-intentioned but reckless gene runs deep within the family DNA. Curtin piles it on a bit, and a final chapter set some years later in 2011 adds a mawkish coda that undermines the visceral, sinewy force of the story that came before. SEA FEVER By Sam Jefferson SEA FEVER By Sam Jefferson (Bloomsbury 8.99) Water has swirled through storytelling since Homer narrated The Odyssey. But in this book, maritime historian Jefferson looks at how the sea itself has sculpted some of the greatest writers and their seafaring prose. Its no surprise that those authors, including Melville, Conrad and Louis Stevenson, had a close relationship with the ocean - but the true adventures of some of these writers were often more exciting than the fiction. Joseph Conrad was involved in smuggling guns into Catalonia for rebels and took part in the dramatic rescue of a small Danish brig. Jack London spent his youth as an oyster pirate. Hemingways reckless machine-gunning method of staving off sharks is a scene straight out of The Old Man And The Sea. A BABY AT THE BEACH CAFE The Quick Reads series, sponsored by Galaxy, celebrates its tenth anniversary with six very different titles, covering every subject from terrorism to romance. The brief, accessible novels or short story collections by bestselling writers are aimed at readers who may struggle with longer books, who have given up the habit of reading for pleasure or who arent confident in their literacy skills. A BABY AT THE BEACH CAFE Lucy Diamond takes us back to her favourite location of Carrawen Bay in Cornwall where her heroine, Evie, has finally found love with the chef, Ed, at the beach cafe she has inherited. Now heavily pregnant with their first child, Evie resents having to take things easy, especially when Ed appoints Helen to act as temporary manager. Theres friction between the two women, but it will take the arrival of Evies baby for the adversaries to share the secret sadness that haunts Helen and for the healing process to begin. Its a touching story that will strike a chord with many women. I AM MALALA On a more muscular theme, former SAS hero Andy McNab occupies the territory he knows best in ON THE ROCK When British Intelligence receive information that a Islamist terrorist cell is planning to blow up a military parade in Gibraltar, they call in special forces operative K and dispatch him to the area to take out the terrorists before they can detonate the bomb. But K must then infiltrate the organisation to root out the mastermind - at considerable danger to himself. Real-life violence scarred Malala Yousafzai when the schoolgirl was shot through the head by the Taliban for defying the order that girls should not attend school. In this specially abridged version of her memoir I AM MALALA she recalls her upbringing in Pakistans Swat Valley and the growing tension as fundamentalist beliefs took hold in the region. Her extraordinary courage and strength shine through as she fought to survive her injuries and became an ambassador for peace with a maturity beyond her years. TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE Murder and mystery are on the agenda for Scottish Detective Jimmy Perez, best known from the TV series Shetland, in TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE by Ann Cleeves. He responds to a call from his ex-wife whose new husband, a GP, is under suspicion when a local teacher, Anna Blackwell, dies from an overdose. Could Tom have been having an affair or was Anna, a devoted single parent, murdered by someone in the village? There are lots of clues to unravel and a surprise ending. THE ANNIVERSARY THE ANNIVERSARY is a collection of ten short stories by well-known authors, perfect for dipping into on the bus or train to work. Fanny Blakes divorced and hard-up taxi driver Josie learns that money doesnt always buy happiness, while Elizabeth Buchans Fifties housewife and mother, Ellen, nostalgically recalls the special wartime role she played as a code-breaker. Jenny Colgans lead character interviews an elderly couple with a bittersweet story of lasting love, and Veronica Henry shows that Elviss lyrics can inspire romance in the most unlikely of settings. As an extra treat, The Hairy Bikers contribute some tasty recipes. Last but never least, THE DOUBLE CLUE is another perfect collection, this time of four stories by Agatha Christie starring her Belgium detective, Hercule Poirot. Whether hes investigating a shooting in an English village, a curse from an Egyptian tomb, a stolen emerald necklace or a missing banker, his little grey cells, aided by Christies superb plotting and timing, tease the reader into a satisfying and unpredictable conclusion. THE PERSUADERS by James Garvey (Icon Books 12.99) Our minds are no longer our own. People are constantly telling us what to think, what to feel, how to vote, what to buy. Advertisers, politicians, spin doctors, lobbyists, market researchers, public relations 'professionals'...and let's not forget journalists...they are all trying to get into our heads, and once they're in, they want to stay there and keep everyone else out. Inside our brains, it's a war of nerves. James Garvey is a philosopher. His brain, though enormous, is as under attack as everyone else's, and he doesn't like it. So he has written a book about the business of persuasion, for a business it is, maybe the largest and most profitable business the world has ever seen. Philosopher James Garvey explains how foods have 'meanings' in the advertising world. Butter, he says, represents plenty, and it must be rich and golden. What's more chicken is less masculine than steak In nearly every hour of your waking life, he says, people are trying to change your mind. 'Estimates vary from several hundred to several thousand persuasive messages encountered by the average adult each day, and almost none of it consists in giving you good reasons in support of a conclusion.' We think of ourselves as rational beings, who are more than happy to listen to a good argument and make our minds up accordingly. But we're wrong. The persuaders aren't interested in rational argument. They prefer to tap straight into our emotions. So we are very rarely reasoned with, but we are often nudged, prodded, incentivised and sometimes blatantly lied to. Garvey tells the story of the first Gulf War in 1990, when Saddam Hussein walked into Kuwait, confident that the world would look the other way. And initially it was so. In the U.S., public support for military intervention was weak. People remembered Vietnam and had no desire to go through all that again. But in autumn 1990, a 15-year-old Kuwaiti girl stood up before the Congressional Human Rights Caucus and gave evidence of atrocities she had seen committed by Iraqi troops. She had been volunteering at a hospital and seen them remove babies from incubators, take the incubators and leave the babies to die on the cold floor. 'I am glad I am 15, old enough to remember Kuwait before Saddam Hussein destroyed it, and young enough to rebuild it.' This four-minute deposition, still view-able on YouTube, was shown on the evening news and changed public opinion in the US. But it was a put-up job. The girl hadn't used her real name, she said, to protect friends and family back home. What she neglected to mention was that she was a member of the Kuwaiti royal family, the daughter of the Kuwaiti ambassador to the U.S. Chicken is less masculine than steak The hearing had been organised with the 'help' of a PR company working for a Kuwaiti-financed group that was lobbying Congress for military intervention. Much later it emerged that Iraqi soldiers had never taken incubators and allowed babies to die on the floor. You could call it propaganda, you could call it a steaming fat lie, but what does it matter? The story had done its job. Garvey is excoriating about public relations and lobbying, 'an industry that's better at 'education' than any university system, and an industry that specialises in ensuring that laws that might harm its clients' interests never see the light of day'. Nor is he impressed with advertising, which tirelessly promotes consumer dissatisfaction, even though most of us have enough stuff and don't need any more. I loved his descriptions of the 'meanings' of certain foodstuffs in the advertising world. Butter, he says, represents plenty, and it must be rich and golden. 'A strange sense of mystery cloaks cheese - the subtle appreciation of cheese is on a par with the appreciation of art.' Chicken is less masculine than steak. 'The act of cutting meat and tearing it with our teeth is more important to us than the meat's meatiness.' Not all of Garvey's arguments are as entertaining or compelling as these. As a philosopher, he is too often drawn to the abstract for my taste. But his central message is fierce and timely. 'I think the rise of the darker side of public relations and lobbying is more than coincident with the decline of real democracy in the West.' THE LOVERS by Rod Nordland (Hodder 16.99) One day in 2010 two teenagers fell in love. Nothing unusual about that - except that this was in Afghanistan, where falling in love can be fatal. Ali and Zakia were born in the Bamiyan valley. As children, they worked together in the fields, but as they grew up, Ali fell in love with his childhood friend. He asked her to marry him, but she told him it was impossible: they came from different tribes with a centuries-old tradition of mutual hostility. Heartbroken, Ali joined the Afghan National Army. By the time he returned to his village two years later, he had given up on his love for Zakia, but as soon as she saw him, she walked boldly up to him and accepted his proposal. One day in 2010 two teenagers fell in love. Nothing unusual about that - except that this was in Afghanistan, where falling in love can be fatal. Ali and Zakia now fear from their lives because they are from different tribes Months later, when their lives were in great danger, Ali asked Zakia what had made her love him. You were gentle, she said. And you spoke to me with kindness. Those are rare qualities in a culture where men often dont address their wives by name, but Zakias choice of husband was not her own. Her father would decide that, and the consequences of defying him could be appalling. Ali persuaded his father to make a formal request for Zakias hand in marriage; he asked three times, and each time was refused. But Ali and Zakia were lovers by now, and there was no going back. When Zakias family discovered the affair, she fled to a womens shelter. It was from there that the New York Times foreign correspondent, Rod Nordland, received an email in February 2014, asking if he would write about Zakia and Alis plight. He took the next flight to Bamiyan, little suspecting that he would become, as he puts it, an inadvertent Friar Laurence in their Romeo and Juliet love story. Afghan notions of honour regard women as the chattels of their male relatives, whose loss must be avenged by death. Zakias family vowed to kill the young couple. Nowhere, as they would discover, was safe. When the account of Zakia and Alis story appeared in the New York Times, the response was overwhelming. Readers offered money and help. Ali was passionately devoted to Afghan poems and legends about doomed lovers: both he and Zakia saw their relationship as a great love story The local media picked up their story and soon they were celebrities in Afghanistan as well as the U.S. Their high profile gave them some protection, but it also meant they were instantly recognisable, and more than once their hiding place was betrayed. Then, too, they were frustratingly hard to help. Ali was passionately devoted to Afghan poems and legends about doomed lovers: both he and Zakia saw their relationship as a great love story, whose outcome destiny would decide. There is no fairytale ending. As interest in the story dwindled, so did the offers of asylum. Besides, Ali and Zakia were reluctant to leave Afghanistan. In spring 2015, now the parents of a daughter, Ruqia, they were back in Alis village. Their future remains dangerous and uncertain. Zakias family lives nearby and, as Norland points out, there are many cases where families have waited for years before exacting vengeance. International visitors to India using the electronic Tourist Visa (eTV) facility will soon get SIM cards on their arrival in the country. The move is not only aimed at attracting more foreign tourists to make India a global holiday destination, but also to address security concerns, officials privy to the development said. The proposal was made by the Ministry of Tourism to give a boost to the sector in the country by sending a message that international tourists can plan a hassle-free visit to India. The sim card move is aimed at attracting more foreign tourists to make India a global holiday destination The idea has got the nod from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and an inter-ministerial committee comprising officials from the tourism, home, telecom and finance ministries has been formed to finalise the modalities. Sources said there is a view that only BSNL SIM cards should be provided since its a state-owned telecom company, but a final decision is awaited. It will make things hassle free for international tourists as its not easy to procure a SIM for foreigners in the country. It can also be helpful from the security point of view, said a government official. It is proposed that the SIM cards will be part of the tourist kit that will also include maps, tourism booklets and information about tourist destinations, guidelines relating to dos and don'ts, and details of who to contact in an emergency. The eTV facility by the Electronic Travel Authorisation enables the prospective visitor to apply for an Indian visa from his or her home country online without visiting the Indian mission and also pay the visa fee online. Once approved, the applicant receives an email authorising him or her to travel to India, and he or she can travel with a print-out of this authorisation. On arrival, the visitor has to present the authorisation to the immigration authorities who would then stamp the entry into the country. In April 2015, the Union home ministry replaced the visa on arrival scheme with electronic Tourist Visa. The old name led to a presumption that visa was granted on arrival but that was not the case. One had to apply online and the authorisation was done electronically. The e-tourist visa is currently given to citizens of 113 countries and government plans to raise it to 150 countries by March 31, 2016. The facility is available at 16 airports across the country. According to an official estimate, during January-November of 2015, a total of 3,41,683 tourists arrived on e-tourist visa compared to 24,963 during the corresponding period of previous year, registering a growth of 1268.8 per cent. At a time when Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was hard-selling Bengaluru as a preferred destination for investments owing to its cosmopolitan nature, safety, and start-up ecosystem to international delegates at a global investors meet, the police were doing the opposite refusing to take complaints from African students who were beaten up mercilessly by an unruly mob. The Bengaluru police refused to acknowledge that a Tanzanian woman was stripped and paraded naked, and blamed the Africans for their language issues and communication gap. Shockingly, this happens to be the sixth recorded incident against African students in the last year in Bengaluru that required police intervention. A file photo of African students who were arrested in 2011 for allegedly assaulting policemen in Bengaluru Inaction In another sign that the Congress government in Karnataka is in a deep slumber, three days after the attack on the Tanzanian woman, a complaint was registered and arrests were made, that too after the media exposed the lackadaisical attitude of the police. An unruly mob had set a Sudanese national Mohammed Ismails car on fire after his car mowed down a woman on Sunday While more than 30 people were involved in Sundays mob attack on the helpless African students, so far five accused - namely Lokesh Bangaru, Venkatesha, Bhanuprakash, Rehmatullah and Saleem Pasha - have been arrested, and the search is on for another 10 miscreants. It is alleged that there were two incidents on Sunday, the first being a road accident in which a Sudanese national, Mohammed Ismail, rammed his car into a two-wheeler killing the pillion rider on the spot. The mob beat him up and set his car on fire. Thirty minutes later, a car driven by a Tanzanian woman and her two friends happened to pass through the accident spot and the mob targeted them as well. The woman alleged that she was stripped and paraded naked and the handful of policemen present on the spot refused to intervene. Eventually, her car was also set on fire by the mob. In all, five students were assaulted by the mob. The police seem to be working in silos and have refused to admit any lapse on their part to contain the mob. Both Siddaramaiah and top cops are maintaining that the woman was not stripped and paraded naked. Karnataka Director General of Police Omprakash provided their own picture of the incident. Initially we could not record her statement because of the confusion. Her (the Tanzanian woman's) shirt was found removed, which she realised subsequently and told the same to me when I spoke to her today. "She did not tell me that she was stripped and paraded. People have reacted in a similar manner to accidents elsewhere. We cannot treat this incident as a racial attack, said Omprakash. Differences People in the city blame the cultural differences and lifestyle between the African students and local residents for the rising number of such incidents. In a majority of the incidents, we found out that the African students have landed in trouble whenever they are in an inebriated condition. They also need to be cautious, as they have to abide by the law of the land. We have been sensitising them on these matters. Many of them are overstaying in Bengaluru despite expiry of their visa. First they need to sort out all of these, said a senior police officer. The African students also admitted the lapses. The students come across as more outspoken, boisterous and defend their actions. Many of them cannot speak fluent English and havent felt the need for learning the local languages. There are cultural diversities within different nationalities of Africa. A Kenyan is quite different from a Senegalese and they are used to playing loud music. At times our boys are also at fault because of their unruly behaviour. We have tried to educate them on the Indian law system and lifestyle. Bengaluru happens to be the preferred destination for us for educational needs irrespective of these developments, said John Patrick Njuama of the Union of African Communities of Bengaluru. Locals alleged that whenever the Congress is in power in Karnataka, the police follow a relaxed regime towards their work. The transfer business within the police department, with the officers eyeing lucrative posts, is another deterrent for the government to initiate action against the erring cops. The BJP leaders alleged that the law and order situation in Bengaluru had collapsed because of the poor administration under the Congress rule. I have never seen a worsened law and order situation in Karnataka, particularly in Bengaluru. I wish Siddaramaiah and his Cabinet colleagues focus on retaining the image of the city. I am pained by the development in this city, said Union Law Minister DV Sadananda Gowda. MEA team to reach Bengaluru today By Mail Today Bureau Few days after a Tanzanian woman was attacked in Bengaluru, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has decided to send a team comprising the Tanzanian High Commissioner and senior MEA officials to Bengaluru. The decision was taken at a meeting convened by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, who has described the incident as shameful. Terming the incident an isolated one, MEA Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said it was the result of a chain reaction following a road accident in which a woman was killed. Pedestrians walk past the spot where a mob attacked a Tanzanian woman and set her car ablaze He said the incident should not be generalised. The ministry has received the report from the state police commissioner, who has assured that stringent measures were being taken to prevent occurrence of such incidents, Swarup said. We condemn the incident unequivocally. A team is leaving for Bengaluru on Friday, which will have the Tanzanian High Commissioner John W H Kijazi, who is also the Dean of the African Diplomatic Corps, along with ministry officials including Joint Secretary (States), Swarup added. Meanwhile, taking suo motu cognisance of the incident, the National Commission for Women (NCW) has sent a notice to Karnataka government, seeking a report and immediate action on the matter. NCW member Sushma Sahu condemned the incident and said: We are trying to promote the country globally and for that we have to ensure safety of people coming from other countries. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) targeted the Congress for covering up the incident and also questioned Rahul Gandhis silence over the incident. Such a big incident has happened and so much time has passed, still Rahul and Congress are silent for something that has happened under the very nose of their government there. This shows how they play hypocritical politics, Union Minister and senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said. (With PTI inputs) Community leaders led mob, say cops By Mail Today Bureau What triggered the murderous and shameless attack on the African students last Sunday in Bengaluru? According to the police account, minutes after the car allegedly driven by the Sudanese student Mohammed Ismail rammed into Shabana Taj (35) killing her on the spot, her husband informed his relatives - and soon men from the community gathered along with local leaders. They surrounded the African students and trashed them mercilessly. Initially, a few local residents tried to intervene, but were warned by the community leaders against interfering in the issue. At the same time, a few boys from the local mechanic shop set the car ablaze that was being driven by Ismail. The beat policemen who were present near the spot were of little help as the mob swelled, admitted a local police officer posted at the Hesaraghatta Road. Taking advantage of the situation, a few local residents, who held a grudge against the African students for their fast and modern lifestyle, joined the mob and attacked other African students, who came there. Had the community leaders shown restraint by involving the police, the situation would not have aggravated. Nevertheless, once we complete the probe, we will decide whether to implicate the community leaders in the case for instigating the attacks, the officer said. Crime Branch to take over probe Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara handed over the Tanzanian woman attack probe to Bengaluru City Crime Branch By Mail Today Bureau An embarrassed and visibly upset Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara, who recently took over the reins, on Thursday handed over the probe into the attack on a Tanzanian woman to the Bengaluru City Crime Branch (CCB). There is no question of any delay tactics. Communication gap and language issues were hindrances for the police. We will not spare anyone. The case will now be probed thoroughly by the CCB, Parameshwara said. He added: This is not an incident of racial attack. Bengaluru does not have that kind of mindset. It is clearly a response to an accident, which can happen anywhere. He said a few of the claims of the Africans were exaggerated. Contrary to media reports, she was not paraded naked. Her dress was deliberately torn by miscreants, who took advantage of the situation. Her complaint does not mention about being paraded naked, he added. Sushma Swaraj will co-chair the 9th Joint Commission meeting to discuss key bilateral and regional issues External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will travel to Colombo on Friday for a two-day visit to the nation. She will be holding talks with the Sri Lankan leadership during which the issues of fishermen and rights of minority Tamils are expected to figure prominently. On her second visit to Sri Lanka within a year, Sushma and her Sri Lankan counterpart Mangala Samaraweera will co-chair the 9th Joint Commission meeting to discuss key bilateral and regional issues. Gandhis move SC to quash HC summons Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi moved the Supreme Court seeking the quashing of the criminal case and summons issued against them and five others on several grounds. This also included the complaint of BJP leader Subramanian Swamy in the National Herald case, which they called a political move aiming to defame them. Besides the Gandhis, Suman Dubey and Sam Pitroda have also approached the apex court against the December 7, 2015, high court order refusing to quash the summons issued to them in the case. Amit Shah's Kerala game plan BJP chief Amit Shah was in poll-bound Kerala on Thursday to assess the partys situation in the state. Describing the current political climate in Kerala as conducive for the BJP to come to power, he urged the party cadre to make special efforts to woo various sections, including minorities, to ensure its victory in the coming Assembly elections. He also addressed the BJPs Kerala core committee meeting. Evicted MP writes to LS Speaker Angry over his eviction from an official bungalow, Congress MP Adhir Chowdhury has sought permission of the Lok Sabha Speaker to move a privilege motion against the authorities. You would be moved to know that...a former Union Minister and fourth-term MP living in total darkness on a winter night along with his seven-year-old daughter, said Chowdhury in a letter to Sumitra Mahajan, seeking permission to move the motion in the Budget session. Arun Jaitley launches YouTube channel Finance Minister Arun Jaitley launched the official YouTube channel of his ministry to disseminate information on a real-time basis. The channel will feature videos on the major schemes, events, meetings, press conferences and other exclusive ones relating to the ministry. Actor Anupam Kher claims that he was denied a visa by Pakistan for the third time recently Having grown accustomed via television to the daily diatribe that passes as the Nation Wants To Know, I was surprised to experience it in the 'at your doorstep' model. A correspondent of the daily diatribe called long-distance from Mumbai to ask if I had a response to Pakistan refusing a visa to actor Anupam Kher. Company Frankly, I thought, 'What a shame that Pakistan should deprive itself of Khers company at the Karachi Literature Festival (Jaipur are you listening?)', but equally that - since I will be there - I will miss him too. Kher is wonderful company when not screaming about returning awards, and I have admired him over the years. His charming wife, Kirron Kher, has been a cherished guest at our parties. Curiously I did not get to see the Kher performance on the world without Pakistan visa, but as I drove to the airport for departure to Karachi via Dublin, a young and persistent correspondent wanted to know whether I would boycott the lit fest in support of the actor. On not getting the right response, decibels and all, the young man asked how I could fail to boycott when the enemy had treated a citizen colleague in a ham-handed manner. I sensed the story that was yet a twinkle in his eye and a torrent in his throat: Salman Khurshid betrays Anupam Kher. Kher had not exactly reached out to me for Gandhian support of satyagraha, but repeating that incensed the man further. At this point I began to enjoy the conversation a bit more than I enjoy the channels shouting matches. So I launched my version of the Agni missile: To tell you the truth, your channel has on several occasions chastised me for not supporting the PM and this time I must do just that. He made an unscheduled visit to PM Nawaz Sharifs family event and hugged him, held his hand and gave him a pagri, the ultimate respect according to our ancient traditions. I cannot repudiate our PM by boycotting the fest for a lesser soul than the PM. No hugs and kisses, no hats and bats but I will go, I said somewhat peremptorily. But I fail to understand the logic, was the retort. What does this have to do with the PM? I was repeatedly asked. If I had provoked him a little I might even have been rewarded with a, What does the PM have to do with Pathankot? Conversation The conversation began with a request for a camera byte and ended up with a plea for an audio reaction. I explained to my interlocutor that my impression was that his channel adhered to the philosophy that the unsuspecting should be lured to the channel to be told what the channel thought, and not to hear what they had to say. You mean that you will not boycott the enemy who has insulted a fellow citizen because he supports PM Modi and is a Kashmiri Pandit? That is terrible, to involve Pakistan in our internal matters, I chided him. Sure I will if the PM declares it an enemy country and your channel stops paying ludicrous former Pakistani colonels and air marshals for their appearances, I could not have been more direct. But we pay Indians too, I was told, as though that would silence me. But I assume my next barb was unexpected: I wish you were recording this conversation, I told the correspondent, You could then have used it as a spoof - not that your daily doze of self-righteous pontification is not spoof enough. However, you are welcome to quote me but please be fair in your choice of the words. A little bird tells me the conversation might have been recorded. I hope they have the guts to use it. Democracy One thing, of course, was made clear - that the said channel had the view and it does not hesitate to attack other views. So take it from me that your view of the world undermines our democracy (I could have used a harsher term) by insisting that there should be no other view than yours. By the way is this your job compulsion or do you really believe what you are saying? My intention was to search for some element of humanity, but all I got was: So can I then sum up your position...? The virtual interrogation was over. I must now await a verdict (as usual, in absentia) and then a popular demand for an ISIS-style public execution. And to think, as I told the correspondent, his boss is (sic) a friend. Presumably he is a friend of Anupam Kher as well. With friends like these, who needs enemies? Would it be rude to suggest that this applies to our PM as well? How does our PM do a kutti with Mian Saheb? Ask for the pagri and shawl back? Or simply call off the presently postponed talks agreed at Ufa and Lahore? Meanwhile, thanks to the channel, Kher is a greater impediment to India-Pakistan talks than Hafiz Saeed and Maulana Masood Azhar. Is another award due? Expelled Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh and his protege Jaya Prada have prompted calls for the Supreme Court to re-examine India's anti-defection law, which sees MPs disqualified for crossing the floor. The Rajiv Gandhi government introduced the law as several defections were witnessed in the 1980s. It was intended to bring stability to the structure of political parties and strengthen parliamentary democracy by prohibiting defections. On February 2, 2010, Rajya Sabha MP Singh and Rampur MP Jaya prada were expelled from the SP for anti-party activities. Giving them relief, the SC on November 16, 2010 ruled that no action should be taken against them under the anti-defection law. The bench then referred the question to a constitution bench to establish whether an expelled member could be disqualified under the law, if she/he chooses to defy a party whip. The matter has been listed for hearing on Friday. The prime question for consideration will be: can anti-defection law be invoked only against those who either defect from their party or defy its whip while still in the party? Will it be applicable to someone who has been expelled? Singh and Jaya Prada had sought an interim stay on any possible action against them over voting in the Womens Reservation Bill, which their erstwhile party, the SP, is fiercely opposed to. They feared they might be disqualified for not abiding by the party whip in Parliament, in view of the apex court verdict in G Viswanathans case in 1996. As per the interpretation of the anti-defection law by the Supreme Court in that case, a member elected or nominated by a political party continues to be under its control even after his or her expulsion. Harish Salve and KK Venugopal, the senior counsel for the two ex-MPs, had argued that the anti-defection law could be evoked only against those who either defect from the party or defy its whip while being in the party. But, in their case, they contended, the MPs did not defect from the party but were expelled - and as unattached members they were not amenable to the partys whip. They also pled before the Supreme Court that the provisions of the Tenth Schedule, which deals with disqualification of MPs, are not applicable to the expelled members of a political party. The struggle to find income has been all too familiar for investors over the past few years as interest rates have stayed sluggish. But there are some superstar funds out there consistently producing a strong yield, regardless of market conditions. And if the latest research is correct, it seems relatively small, boutique firms could be the best place to invest for income. Income stars: The best income funds have been revealed in the Sanlam list Sanlam Private Wealth's bi-annual income study reveals the best all-rounders within the UK Equity Income sector on a five-year basis. The top three on its 'White List' of best performers all come from smaller firms: Unicorn, Chelverton and Premier. By contrast, topping its out-of-favour 'Black List' are investment giants Schroders, Allianz and BlackRock. The study looks at funds in the UK Equity Income sector with a market cap of more than 20million. They are assessed based on seven criteria, including performance, volatility and the income paid out, with the most recent period of performance receiving a greater weighting. The wealth manager noted that the second half of 2015 was a 'challenging environment' for UK equities, with the market largely in a downward trajectory from the start of June. As the volatility rumbled on, wider economic events such as the General Election and the bubble in the Chinese equity market exacerbated negative investor sentiment. Charles Brand, Sanlam's head of portfolio management, noted that the UK Equity Income sector, a perennial best seller, outperformed both the UK equity market and the UK Equity All Companies sector last year. He urges investors to look at fund managers' long-term track records rather than purely at the income they are currently producing. 'Investors seeking income from the stock market in 2016 must be sure to consider not only headline yields, but also the sustainability of dividends. 'The price volatility that we highlighted in our mid-year review has continued, adding to the challenge of finding suitable stocks. 'For this reason, many investors prefer to hand this task to a fund manager with a proven track record and the Income Study highlights the funds with managers who have been the most successful at producing income for investors over the long term and who have generated strong returns regardless of market conditions.' White knights: Unicorn put in a magical performance, while it was a return to glory for Fidelity's MoneyBuilder The White List is made up of funds that have established their ability over five years to produce superior total returns, according to the Sanlam research. Unicorn UK Income tops the table this time around, aided by lower-than-average volatility. Coming a close second was former champion PFS Chelverton UK Equity Income, which offered an impressive 4.6 per cent dividend at the end of last year. Chelverton also offered a net income of 31.7 per cent over a five year view - bigger than any of its rivals on the White List. The shooting star was Fidelity's MoneyBuilder Dividend fund, managed by Michael Clark, which has returned to the white side after a period of exile on the Grey List (home to investment managers 'with an out-of-favour style or an early warning signal for a fund in decline'), thanks to 'solid recent returns and low volatility over the last five years'. The fund, which bagged fourth place, is different to many of the other top performers in that it doesn't operate a strong bias to mid and small caps. Another triumphant return was Hugh Yarrows Evenlode Income fund, where better performance in the second half of the year helped it re-enter the White List after only six months of exile. However, its 21.9 per cent five year income figure was the lowest of any on the White List. Strong recent performances in 2015 saw the Miton Income fund and the Santander Equity Income fund enter the White List, with the latter having the highest historical 12-month yield. Grey area: Old Mutual's UK Equity Income offering slipped out of favour, as did JO Hambro's Stephen Messages fund has experienced 'one of the more dramatic falls in our rankings since the last study', the compliers noted, moving it from the White List to the bottom half of the Grey List, after its concentrated portfolio style experienced its first tough year since 2011. It was a similar story for the usually top performing JOHCM UK Equity Income fund, manged by Clive Beagles and James Lowen. However, Sanlam noted that despite the two funds underperforming the UK Equity Income sector over the year, both outperformed the broader UK equity market itself. With his MoneyBuilder fund finding its way on to the White List, manager Michael Clarks other mandate in the space, the Fidelity Enhanced Income fund, has also made good progress moving up through the ranks of the grey list. Blacklisted: This list is for 'consistent underperformers' which offer investors a poor income proposition According to Sanlam, the Black List is for 'consistent underperformers and, unless remedial action is being taken, a sign for investors to look elsewhere'. The Schroder Income Maximiser fund tops the table, despite having by far the highest net dividend yield of any funds in the study. On a total return basis, the fund lost 6.9 per cent last year and made a relatively modest 2.6 per cent the year before. One fund still trying to battle its way out of the Black List is Mark Wharrier's BlackRock UK Income fund, which would have made you an income of just 19.70 on top of 100 invested the past five years - the second lowest of any fund in the study. Other household names struggling last year included the HSBC Income fund and the F&C UK Equity Income fund, while the Scottish Widows UK Equity Income fund came in last place again. Dividend losers: commodities and supermarkets On a sectoral basis, the big commodity juggernauts were hit hardest, although the price drop across the sector could represent an opportunity for intrepid investors. Sanlam noted the most high profile casualties were large dividend paying commodity companies, with Glencore and Anglo American both pre-announcing dividend cuts for 2016. However, the wealth management firm suggested price drops in the sector could represent an opportunity, creating 'superficially attractive dividend yields' although it added that 'some investors now question the longer-term sustainability of these dividends'. Another area rife with cuts was the supermarkets, with Tesco's lack of a final dividend in particular making the biggest dent last year. Sainsburys and Morrisons also had a tough time, continuing to lose market share to discounters such as Lidl and Aldi. When every little doesn't help: Tesco's dividend cut weighed heavily on UK investors Dividend winners: Banks and mid-caps On the right side of dividend cuts were the banks, with Lloyds Banking Group making an appearance on the dividend register for the first time since the financial crisis. Lloyds made up 1.3 per cent of the dividends paid in the UK last year, more than 1billion. After that, another bank, HSBC, was the second largest contributor to total dividend growth, which Sanlam said 'reinforced the sectors resurgent importance for income investors'. And once again, the mid-sized companies in the FTSE 250 enjoyed superior dividend growth to their larger counterparts in the FTSE 100, increasing payouts by a headline level of more than 30 per cent. Loss: Tata Steel blamed its poor trading on cheap imported Chinese steel Tata Steel plunged to a loss as it blamed cheap imports from China and a string of EU failures for disappointing trading. The Indian firm owns some of the UKs biggest steel plants and has been forced to lay off thousands of workers as it desperately attempts to turn the business around. Karl-Ulrich Koehler, chief executive of the firms European operation, said recent events had led to a perfect storm and this caused the deterioration of our financial performance in the last quarter. He said: Growing European steel demand continues to be undermined by a flood of imports into the region. The industry has been devastated by a deluge of cheap steel which has mainly come from China. Lower growth from the Asian powerhouse left it with an excess of steel and it has been exporting this to Europe. Chinese steel shipments have leapt more than 50 per cent last year, while imports from Russia and South Korea jumped 25 per cent and 30 per cent respectively. The European Steel Association has identified that Chinese steel is being exported at prices below the cost of production, a practice known as dumping. Koehler said: This unfair trade is undercutting domestic producers and harming the European steel industry which employs many thousands of people. Tata Steel claims this is what was behind it tumbling into the red to the tune of 190million from a profit of 58million over the third quarter. While it does not break out a UK figure, European earnings fell to 68million from 133million for the same period last year. Steel prices are at a ten-year low due to the record amount of Chinese exports and the crisis has been compounded by UK firms paying some of the highest energy costs and green taxes in the world. At the end of last year Tata announced plans to cut 1,200 jobs, with 900 lost at Scunthorpe and 270 in Scotland. At the time, it seemed like a good deal. Chris Hill-Scott agreed to accept a bicycle in exchange for his share in a business that he and two university friends were struggling to get off the ground. The business, which was developing a mobile phone app that could guess the next words that users typed, had been a struggle. The three were working long hours, for no pay. Hill-Scott wanted out to pursue a career in photography. Because his friends Jon Reynolds and Ben Medlock didnt have any spare funds, they offered the bike. Bad call: Chris Hill-Scott said the deal was the biggest mistake he has ever made On Wednesday this week, though, that deal made in 2008 was filling 29-year-old Hill-Scott with regret. The biggest mistake I have ever made, he said on social network Twitter. Reynolds and Medlock had just sold the app, now called SwiftKey, to Microsoft for a reported 174million. Reynolds and Medlock are each thought to have made 25million on the deal. And though his pals are now millionaires, Hill-Scott designs websites for the Government. Reynolds, now SwiftKey chief executive, and Medlock, its chief technological officer, revealed the Microsoft deal on their website, and thanked those who had stuck by them along the way. They said in a joint statement: At times like this, people tend to focus on founders. However, the heart of our company is the awesome team who chose to share this journey with us. We want to take this opportunity to thank them for their dedication and hard work. We never would have come this far without you. Reynolds and Medlock were aged just 22 and 28 respectively when they came up with the apps algorithm as an answer to their growing frustration with touch-screen keypads which garbled words. Their technology, which uses artificial intelligence, now features on more than 300million devices worldwide and is licensed by some of the biggest mobile brands, including Samsung. They have a team of 150 staff with offices in London, San Francisco and Seoul, in South Korea. Since launching SwiftKey, Reynolds and Medlock have also helped Stephen Hawking to upgrade his computer-generated voice by applying predictive language software to his system and enabling him to speak faster and continue to give lectures. Swift riches: Jon Reynolds and fellow millionaire Ben Medlock sold Swiftkey to Microsoft SwiftKey works by understanding how words fit together in context and by continually learning to improve its knowledge. This means it can predict your next word when typing, but also radically improves the accuracy of auto-correcting words when you mistype. The app lets you type by sliding your fingers across the screen, which can speed things up. It can also store your preferences online so they can be used on all your gadgets, and is constantly updated with phrases as new words become popular. It even remembers slang and nicknames which are preferred by the user. The company estimates its software has saved its users 10 trillion keystrokes, which amounts to more than 100,000 years of typing time. SwiftKeys acquisition is the latest in a trend of huge US companies buying up British artificial intelligence ventures. Google bought DeepMind for 400million a programme which develops artificial intelligence for computer games in 2014. And last year Apple bought VocalIQ, which makes software to help computers and people converse more naturally. Reynolds said: The UK has become a great place to build a tech business. A US judge has ordered the publication of a secret report detailing HSBCs attempt to crack down on money-laundering, in a stunning victory for a disgruntled customer. Both the bank and the US government have fought to keep the findings under lock and key. But a federal judge has ruled the public has a right to see the 250-page document compiled by an independent monitor who was placed inside the bank. The judge cited the First Amendment of Americas constitution which protects free speech and freedom of the press. Secrets: HSBC has been ordered to publish an internal report detailing its attempts to crack down on money laundering This extraordinary twist came about after a legal spat HSBC had with a customer in America. Hubert Dean Moore Jr, a 52-year-old chemist from a suburb of Philadelphia, had demanded to see the money-laundering report after HSBC sold his mortgage debt to another bank without telling him. In November, Moore urged the judge to release the report: HSBC and the US government had resisted. Last month, the case was contested in court. Moore represented himself against HSBCs lawyers. The verdict was only revealed this week, when Judge John Gleeson said: I find that the report is a judicial record, and that the public has a First Amendment right to see the report. The order to unseal the findings of the external monitor former prosecutor Michael Cherkasky could heap fresh embarrassment on HSBC, which has been fighting to restore its reputation. The judges ruling may also alarm other scandal-hit banks including Standard Chartered which have struck deals with the US government to keep such reports private. The biggest fear for both HSBC and Standard Chartered is that they could lose their licence to trade in America. Cherkasky was hired by US lawmakers to ensure the bank had cleaned up its act. It was a condition of the High Street giants 1.1billion money-laundering settlement with US regulators in 2012 when it was accused of allowing billions of dollars for Mexican drugs cartels and terrorists to pass through it. The banks systems were so slack that US lawmakers memorably described it as the bank of choice for drug gangs and criminals. HSBC signed a deferred prosecution agreement with prosecutors in which criminal charges would be dropped after five years as long as it did not repeat these failings or violate any other laws. As part of the plea bargain, the monitors report was meant to be kept secret a decision backed by the US government. The judge dismissed arguments that publishing the document would undermine the US Department of Justices ability to assess whether HSBC has complied with the terms of the deferred prosecution agreement as nervous staff become less co-operative with the monitor. Judge Gleeson also rejected claims that disclosing the monitors findings could give criminals a roadmap to exploit weaknesses in HSBC. Michael Mason-Mahon an HSBC investor in London who has worked with Moore on his challenge said: This is a monumental victory for a courageous customer. HSBC has been given until February 12 to submit any redactions before the report is unsealed. The US government has appealed for a 30-day extension. The findings could be explosive: in June Federal prosecutors said HSBC was under serious money-laundering and sanctions risk because it had not tightened up its controls to safeguard the flow of money. Standard Chartered struck a similar deferred prosecution agreement with US lawmakers in 2012 when it received huge fines for violating sanctions against Iran and other states. Campaigners calling for an end to the 'freeze' on state pensions suffered by some 550,000 retired expats believe there is hope of a compromise, although the Government has refused to budge on the issue so far. More than half of the one million pensioners living abroad don't receive annual increases in their state payouts - meaning someone who retired when the basic rate was 67.50 a week in 2000 would still get that, rather than the 115.95 received by everyone else now. But whether an expat's pension is frozen or not depends entirely on where they move to, because the Government has struck individual deals with some countries but left around 150 others out in the cold. This means people retiring to Canada, Australia, India, Africa and many parts of the Caribbean lose out on state pension increases, while those living in EU countries, the US, Jamaica, Israel and the Philippines get their full whack. FIND A FULL LIST OF COUNTRIES AFFECTED BELOW Moving abroad: Pensioners living in EU countries and the US are among those who get their full state pension, but those living in many other countries have them frozen The rules mean that someone could have paid into the system their whole life, but would still receive a reduced state pension just because they choose to retire abroad to one country over another. Elderly people can experience severe financial hardship if they still choose to go abroad, while in other cases they are unable to join families overseas or return to their homeland after working in the UK because they can't afford it. Read individual stories below. Campaigners estimate the bill for unfreezing state pensions for those living abroad would cost 580million in the first year, 44.5million in the second, 45.6million in the third, and so on. But they argue that the cost would be offset because the Government estimates it saves 4,300 a year for every pensioner who moves abroad at retirement, because they don't use the NHS and care services or take other benefits. Hope of a compromise deal with the Government Before Christmas, campaigners discussed a compromise deal with the Government which would involve a partial uprating - existing frozen pensions would be increased only from their current lower levels from now on, but future expats would all get their full entitlement no matter where they live. 'THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD DO MORE FOR COMMONWEALTH COUNTRIES' Abhik Bonnerjee Abhik Bonnerjee, aged 73, moved from India to Glasgow in 1960 and worked in the shipbuilding, steel and food industries for 38 years, before returning to his home country. He had made all the required NI contributions to get a state pension, and reached retirement age in 2008 when it was 87.30 a week. If it wasn't frozen at that level, Abhik would get 28 per cent more, at the current 115.95 level. He is concerned about losing his home and feels he might have to move back to the UK. 'The situation makes me very, very angry,' he said. 'The government should be doing more, especially for Commonwealth countries and MPs cant explain why they are not.' It is estimated this would cost 30million in year one, 30.8million in year two and 31.5million in year three. The International Consortium of British Pensioners and its allies submitted cost and potential savings figures this month to the Cabinet Office, which is expected to get officials to crunch the numbers to see if they add up. The group remains hopeful of movement on this front, despite a subsequent statement by the Department for Work and Pensions which reiterated its longstanding stance on frozen pensions. A DWP spokesperson, said: 'We have a very clear position on this policy - which has remained consistent for around 70 years: the UK state pension is payable worldwide but is only uprated abroad where we have a legal requirement to do so or a reciprocal agreement is in place. There are no plans to review this.' Expats who come back to the UK, whether for a short visit or for good, get their state pension uprated back to the full amount again if they apply to the DWP service centre. People who are entitled to second state pension top-ups as well as the basic payout have these frozen too if they move to one of the affected countries. The frozen pension system will remain unchanged despite the big state pension overhaul for those retiring from April, which will see a single-tier rate of 155.65 introduced for those who qualify. What do campaigners against frozen pensions say? Sheila Telford, director of the International Consortium of British Pensioners, believes those who paid National Insurance should get a full uprated pension according to their contributions regardless of where they live. She pointed out the countries where pensions are frozen appear random, with those moving to Canada losing out but those living south of the border in the US unaffected. 'It's a matter of social justice,' she told a meeting at the Houses of Parliament on Tuesday. 'Just because it's been policy all these years doesn't mean it's right for it to continue. Where are pensions frozen? Whether an expat's pension is frozen or not depends entirely on where they move to, because the Government has struck individual deals with some countries but left around 150 others out in the cold. Read the full list of countries affected below. 'We will never go away. It's wrong for people to be denied a pension they paid for. We believe there are so many people who would like to move overseas or return to their country of origin.' She added: 'It's great to have the numbers crunched by the DWP to see if they make sense.' 'I WORKED AND CONTRIBUTED TO MY STATE PENSION ALL MY LIFE' Rita Young Rita Young, aged 78, lives in Peterborough in the UK, after retiring in 2002 from a career in market research and as a community volunteer. Her son moved to Australia for work some time ago and has a family there, and since being widowed Rita has wanted to join them - but she is unable to afford it because her state pension would be frozen. She feels that this is an injustice, as if her son had moved to a different country like France or the US she would have gone there. 'I worked and contributed to my state pension all my life. It doesn't seem fair that the government can just stop uprating it because I want to be with my family,' she said. The cause has attracted support across the political spectrum, with MPs from several parties attending the meeting earlier this week. Tory MP Roger Gale, who chaired the event, said there wasn't a backbench MP who didnt understand the issue was unfair. 'It's nonsense. There are too many cases of people having to leave family and move back to the UK and be a "burden" on the state.' He added: 'Every major party is to blame. You don't need to be a rocket scientist to know it's unfair. It comes down to hard cash.' Gale said Governments have always been afraid of a retrospective challenge going 30 years back that adds up to astronomical figures, and he warned even a compromise over a partial uprating would still involve significant sums of money. He was hopeful following recent talks with Oliver Letwin, who runs the Cabinet Office, but he warned that it was hard to quantify possible savings from people either moving abroad or staying there who wouldn't have otherwise, and that the DWP and ultimately also the Treasury would have to be persuaded. 'Oliver Letwin is sympathetic. He wants to help,' said Gale. The shadow pensions minister, Labour MP Angela Rayner, also attended this week's meeting and declared full support for the campaign to unfreeze pensions. She said: 'How can we be at this position? It doesn't make sense. It's not fair. 'People are in poverty when they don't need to be. Over 550,000 people are affected by this. They fought for this country, worked hard, paid taxes, paid NI. Something has to be done. It's about us doing the right thing and finding a way for people in twilight years to be treated with respect and dignity. I will work tirelessly.' Cenio E. Lewis, High Commissioner for St Vincent and the Grenadines, highlighted the issue of people who emigrated to the UK to work from the 1950s onwards and now want to retire to their country of origin. He said he found it hard to explain to people from his country why those going back to Barbados and Jamaica could get their state pensions uprated, while they could not. 'It's almost like a lottery. It's deterred some from going home,' he said. 'Were having to subsidise the British government by making contributions to their pensioners based overseas and welcome the option of partial uprating. This is an issue which needs sorting out.' Lending on the UK's eight biggest peer-to-peer platforms doubled in 2015, taking the total sum lent since 2005 to just over 4.4 billion. The number of investors has grown to 128,000 over the past decade, taking the amount lent per head to 34,375 on average. The increasing popularity of this form of alternative finances - which sees lenders' money matched with individuals and small businesses in need of loans - comes just ahead of the arrival of the innovative finance Isa in April, which will allow peer-to-peer returns to be taken tax free for the first time. Growing strong: P2P lending doubled in 2015 taking the total put into platforms since 2005 to 4.4bn Low saving rates and poor customer service among traditional banks has seen savvy 'savers' flock to the peer-to-peer loan industry to earn much better levels of interest on their money than on offer from standard savings products. Borrowers have benefited too, turning their backs on the banks and looking to peer-to-peer loans to fund their businesses or personal projects. The latest data from the Peer-to-Peer Finance Association - made up of the UK's eight biggest firms, including Zopa, RateSetter and Funding Circle - shows the number of borrowers has almost doubled to 273,000. The industry is set for another boost from April when the innovative finance Isa launches, allowing savers to put some of their tax-free savings allowance into peer-to-peer loans - meaning the returns they generate will also be free from tax. As things currently stand, lenders pay tax on their returns at their marginal rate of tax. While it has yet to be confirmed how exactly existing P2P investments will be treated by the taxman, it is believed that the tax-free returns status will only apply to new money. This would mean the returns from existing monies on platforms could be taken tax-free, unless the loans are sold and repurchased. A spokesman for RateSetter told This is Money: 'Due to government legislation you won't be able to transfer existing peer-to-peer investments into the new innovative finance Isa. However, you should be able to transfer money between an innovative finance Isa and any stocks and shares or cash Isa provided, of course, that the notice period allows it. 'While direct transfers are not permitted, you could move money across into the wrapper by either selling out early or moving repayments into your holding account, essentially withdrawing your money, and then transfer this money into an Isa wrapper.' The figures from the P2PFA reveal that Zopa was the biggest lender in the last quarter of 2015, with cumulative lending of 1.2billon, followed by 1billion for Funding Circle and 962,039,000 from RateSetter. HOW MUCH MONEY IS BEING SAVED AND LENT ON P2P PLATFORMS? Platform Cumulative lending New lending Net lending to consumers Net lending to SMEs Net lending on property Number of current lenders Number of current borrowers Zopa 1,236,813,000 155,585,000 80,722,000 0 0 53,016 113,586 Funding Circle 1,007,208,000 162,937,000 0 72,138,000 24,181,000 42,854 15,479 RateSetter 962,039,000 153,516,000 35,573,000 23,442,000 9,534,000 26,493 138,525 MarketInvoice 510,396,000 82,858,000 N/A N/A N/A 202 1,631 Lendinvest 496,243,000 75,478,000 0 0 28,140,000 2,154 996 Thincats 146,540,000 3,149,000 0 201,000 4,911,000 1,774 337 LandBay 20,622,000 9,378,000 0 0 9,375,000 763 122 LendingWorks 18,774,000 4,470,000 2,785,000 0 0 1,054 2,911 Total 4,398,635,000 647,371,000 119,080,000 95,781,000 76,141,000 128,310 273,587 Source: P2PFA Christine Farnish, chair of the P2PFA, said: 'Year-on-year, peer-to-peer lending continues to grow and have a strong impact across all markets. 'The growth demonstrates that more lenders and borrowers believe our industry to be a real alternative to traditional lenders. This is only enhanced by our members' approach to transparency and strict business conduct rules. '2016 is another important year for the industry as we look forward to the April launch of the innovative finance ISA.' Rhydian Lewis, chief executive of RateSetter, said: 'As an industry, we're getting to the point where banks and large institutions are taking notice. With the innovative finance Isa just weeks away, we're looking forward to further growth in 2016.' WHAT IS AN INNOVATIVE FINANCE ISA? The peer-to-peer industry has campaigned for the past few years to allow P2P investments to be included in an Isa wrapper and from 6 April 2016, it will finally happen. The Treasury is also considering including crowdfunding investments within the new product. For the 2016/17 tax year, the tax-free allowance for cash Isas, stocks and shares and innovative finance Isas is 15,240. Savers can choose to mix-and-match between the three. The Treasury is yet to release the full details but, according to RateSetter, savers will only be allowed to hold one innovative finance Isa at a time each year. It is not yet known if peer-to-peer providers will offer standalone products or the wrapper will just let savers choose to take particular returns from platforms tax-free. But assuming the former scenario is the case, the one Isa rule would mean that if you opened an innovative finance Isa with RateSetter on 6 April, you would have to wait a year before you could open one with, say, Zopa. RateSetter also believes you should be allowed to hold an innovative finance Isa alongside a Help to Buy Isa. However, whether those saving for their first home would choose to hold both at the same time is uncertain. While the returns in an innovative finance Isa may be potentially higher than the returns from a cash or Help to Buy Isa, the saver would be taking on more risk. Lending tends to go to more risky individuals or businesses, and while most peer-to-peer platforms hold reserve funds, you do not get the Financial Services Compensation Scheme protection that you would get if a cash Isa provider went bust. will 'haunt' her for the rest of her life A boy aged six was left fighting for his life in hospital after he drank cleaning fluid by mistake. Sonny Arthur thought he was drinking lemonade but the bottle contained a small amount of caustic soda his mother had been using to clean a shower at their home. Sonny spent three days in intensive care and seven weeks later still has to be fed through a tube because of the terrible scarring to his oesophagus resulting from the burns he suffered. When Sonny was rushed to the hospital, he was immediately put in an induced coma because he was having trouble breathing The schoolboys parents have publicised the incident, which Sonny was lucky to survive, in a bid to help raise awareness about the risks posed by toxic substances around the home. His mother Vikki, 45, said: We heard this almighty scream and Sonny came running down from upstairs. We thought he had hit his face because his mouth was starting to swell up. He went to drink some water and he looked at us, then he started vomiting. It was the most horrific vomiting I have seen. It will haunt me for the rest of my life. Sonny suffered his life-changing injuries at his home in Hatfield Peverel, Essex, on December 17. His mother had mixed the caustic soda, which is highly alkaline, with water in a plastic bottle while cleaning the shower. She had emptied what remained down the drain when she finished but left the bottle in the cubicle. Her husband Ian moved it when he took a shower. Sonny later came in and gulped down the few drops of liquid left inside. Mrs Arthur said: We have six children, so Im used to cuts and grazes and bumps and bruises but not this. We are very careful parents, were not cavalier about anything. I told him not to go into the bathroom because I had cleaned it but I didnt say, Dont touch the bottle and of course he didnt put two and two together. Why would he? Sonny the Arthurs youngest child was rushed to Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford and later transferred to Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, where he was placed in an induced coma. Fumes from the chemical had damaged his lungs, leaving him struggling to breathe, and his oesophagus had narrowed in two places as a result of being burned by the liquid. [The doctors] said, Just to warn you, this is bad, said Mrs Arthur. It was almost like they were trying to prepare us for the worst. Fortunately, Sonny responded to treatment and by New Years Day was well enough to be allowed home from hospital. However, he will have to be fed through the tube for at least a year and must return to hospital every two weeks to have his damaged oesophagus stretched. Mrs Arthur added: Its hard to determine how much scarring there is because they cant get a camera down there. Its going to be a long, slow journey. Hes a tough little kid. Hes so brave. Sonny with his mum Vikki at their home before Christmas. Vikki said they are expecting a long road to recovery for him as he will more than likely remain on a feeding tube for at least a year Mr Arthur said after the incident: I think it is a lesson for other parents that this can happen. But hes come through and thats the main thing. Mr and Mrs Arthur were already familiar with Great Ormond Street because one of their daughters, Abbie, 16, has been in and out of the hospital since she was 15 months old. She suffers from a rare genetic condition that stopped one side of her head forming properly in the womb. Abbie had been discharged from the hospital, following a major operation, just two days before Sonnys accident. Another 14 have resigned while 32 have stayed on at the company The group returned to work, but seven employees still violated the policy Seven Muslim workers at an Wisconsin manufacturer have been fired after they continued to violate company policy by praying during unscheduled breaks. The move comes two weeks after Ariens Company in Brillion, Wisconsin, told staff they would not be allowed back to work unless they agreed that they could only worship twice a day during two 10-minute breaks. The terminated employees were among 53 disgruntled Somalis who walked off the job on January 14 following the announcement from company bosses. The staff members asked to leave carried on taking unscheduled breaks, despite an ultimatum by CEO Dan Ariens, while 14 others have resigned since the walkout. Seven Muslim workers at Wisconsin manufacturer Ariens Company have been fired after they continued to violate company policy by praying during unscheduled breaks The other 32 Muslim employees who came back to work have been following the new break rules. Muslims are required to pray five times a day - at daybreak, noon, mid-afternoon, sunset and evening. 'We would have liked for more of the employees to stay, however, we respect their faith, we respect the work they have done for Ariens Company and we respect their decisions,' the company said. The former employees are working with the Council on American-Islamic Relations to determine their next steps, which could include legal action against the company, said Jaylani Hussein, the organization's executive director. 'It came out of nowhere and the company did not want to listen to some suggestions and options to make the current breaks more flexible to align with the prayer schedule,' he said. Ariens, which has 1,500 employees worldwide, has set up designated prayer rooms for Muslim workers in Brillion, the company said. Brillion is about 25 miles south of Green Bay. The company said letting the workers pray during unscheduled breaks disrupted production schedules. Speaking to Daily Mail Online earlier this month, Ariens said he would refuse to allow the employees back to work unless they accepted his decision to ban extra prayer breaks. Ariens, whose family set up the business more than 80 years ago, denied he was being insensitive to their religious needs. He reveals 'other non Muslim workers' complained to him privately about the exceptional time given to the 53 Islamic staff to be able to meet their religious obligations during shifts. 'It just throws 800 people in disarray. Think of the unfairness. Everybody gets two ten minute breaks, but some additional 50 people are getting more breaks of maybe five or twenty minutes.' But the banned Muslim workers hit back saying they had been technically forced out of their jobs and insulted by the company's management. An Imam who leads prays at his Mosque with many of the workers said Ariens, if allowed, was setting a dangerous precedent which might lead businesses around the U.S. to review the procedure of allowing Muslims time during work to pray. CEO Dan Ariens (pictured earlier this month) told Daily Mail Online he would refuse to allow the employees back to work unless they accepted his decision to ban extra prayer breaks Ariens says some prayer breaks took key workers away from production assembly lines for up to twenty minutes. Speaking in the boardroom of the company's Wisconsin headquarters, he said: 'We know those breaks aren't always (taking) five minutes for prayer because you can't physically walk to one end of the plant. 'It is 365,000 square feet so it may take you ten, fifteen and we know in some cases twenty minutes. 'If they were to stay with those five minute breaks, it would cost us about a million dollars per year. 'Let's say an assembly line has ten people on it, if two walk off the job, the other eight are standing there because they work in a sequence. It is impossible and it is not a free for all. We work as a team.' Nearly 200 workers, mostly Somali immigrants, were fired from a Cargill Meat Solutions facility in Fort Morgan, Colorado, on December 31 after staging a walkout to protest what they said were insufficient prayer accommodations. A Muslim prays at the Islamic Center of Wisconsin in Appleton, Wisconsin. Some of the employees at the manufacturer claimed they were using prayer to avoid work Ruth Madoff turned to drugs and alcohol after her husband was caught masterminding America's biggest ever Ponzi scheme, a source claims. She once had a $80million fortune, four homes and frequented only the finest stores in the world. But seven years ago, her happy life of luxury came crashing down when Bernie admitted orchestrating the decades-long, $65billion fraud. Scroll down for video Ruth Madoff turned to drugs and alcohol after her husband was caught masterminding America's biggest ever Ponzi scheme, a source claims (pictured in October last year) With her husband sentenced to serve 150 years in jail, and the majority of the family's wealth seized to pay back his ripped-off investors, Ruth Madoff began to spiral into a vicious circle of marijuana and drink, Page Six reports. A source told the paper that she would often wander around her luxury Upper East Side apartment, in New York, stoned and knocking back thousands of dollars worth of wine from the family's collection. 'Ruth had a network in place to deliver pot up to the apartment,' the source told the paper. 'If she didn't have anything to smoke it in, she would order someone out to a bodega for rolling papers because she felt unsafe leaving the apartment herself.' After getting high, Ruth, now 74, would satisfy her 'munchies' by eating bags of Funyuns chips. Happier times: Ruth and Bernie Madoff once had a $80m fortune, four homes and frequented only the finest stores in the world Madoff (above leaving court in 2009) pleaded guilty in 2008 to masterminding the decades-long that cost investors an estimated $17 billion Before Bernie was sentenced - while still under house arrest - the couple would drown their sorrows with thousands of dollars of expensive wine from their extensive collection every night, the source claimed. 'I think they figured it was better to drink it than let the government take it away,' they said. The couple also lived in constant fear of revenge attacks by Bernie's ripped-off clients. Everything coming into the home would be searched for a potential bomb, and Bernie even began wearing a bullet-proof vest. Madoff pleaded guilty in 2008 to masterminding the decades-long scheme that cost investors an estimated $17billion. The 77-year-old is serving an 150 year sentence at a federal prison in North Carolina for fraud and money laundering. Since his arrest, the US Marshalls have seized the Madoff's $7million yacht and four multi-million-pound homes - in Manhattan, Long Island, the Cote d'Azur and Palm Beach, Florida - all auctioned off to compensate victims. U.S. authorities have also sold more personal items seized from Madoff and members of his family including 14 pairs of Madoff's boxer shorts, which sold for $200 in 2011. Six pieces of Madoff jewelry, including a gold money clip and diamond bracelet, are currently being auctioned off online. Total bids have already reached almost $100,000. Ruth Madoff began to spiral into vicious circle of marijuana and booze after her husband's arrest, a source claims 'We're hoping that we can collect another $3 to $4 billion so we could be in the $14 or $15 billion range,' Irving Picard, who is leading the legal team on the case, told ABC News in October. Ruth is said to have tried to prevent some of the family's more personal mementos being seized by destroying home videos and pictures. Seven years on, and some of the pain may be behind her but life is very different for Mrs Madoff. Instead of New York's Fifth Avenue or the designer stores of Paris and Rome she was recently found in the far more modest furniture store Ikea. She was given $2.5million, most of which is assumed to have gone towards legal bills, and now drives around in a Toyota Prius. She has denied knowing anything about her husband's Ponzi scheme, though she did help raise the $10million that was required for his bail after he was arrested. Mrs Madoff has recently moved to a $3,000-a-month rented condominium as she forges a new life for herself. She had been living alone in a four-bedroom home owned by her late son Andrew in Greenwich, Connecticut. A neighbor said Mrs Madoff now only returns to the $1.8m house to pick up the mail and instead spends all her time at a two-bed condo where few people recognize her. Even in Greenwich, one of the most affluent towns in America and home to dozens of Wall St. traders and brokers, she goes unrecognized. The former multi-millionaire would get high on marijuana and then satisfy her 'munchies' on bags of Funyuns chips (file photos) Shunned by family and friends, and once described as the most hated woman in New York, she has deliberately avoided any controversy to avoid provoking the anger of her husband's many victims. Many claimed she must have known about her husband's fraud - and her silence in the weeks after his arrest added to the feeling that she was somehow complicit. But she was never charged and she always maintained her innocence while supporting her husband by raising his $10m bail money with his brother Peter. The Madoffs are still married but it is claimed that it is always Bernie that calls Ruth from jail - never the reverse. Bernie's lawyer Ira Sorkin revealed that the 77-year-old appears to be doing well in prison despite having a 'little bit of a heart problem'. The thing that troubles him, Sorkin reveals, is the fact that his wife and grandchildren still don't visit him, having stopped several years ago. Madoff apparently 'regrets' what he put his family through. Despite these comments, it seems that Madoff has not been very forthcoming with expressing his remorse and only made a brief reference to the estimated 20,000 investors, many of whom lost their life savings, says ABC. He has also tried to shift the blame, telling New York magazine that he was not a 'horrible person' but simply 'allowed himself to be talked into something'. This lack of admission has led some to dub him a 'sociopath'. Seven years on and instead of New York's Fifth Avenue or the designer stores of Paris and Rome she was recently found in the far more modest furniture store Ikea (pictured) Former FBI criminal profiler Brad Garrett has called him a 'poster child' of an anti-social personality who 'clearly functions without a conscience'. While Award-winning actor Richard Dreyfuss, who plays Madoff in the up-coming ABC series documenting his fall from grace, said he was 'amoral. Speaking to the New York Daily News he said: 'He was not only amoral, he was a sociopath, which means that ultimately, if you scratch the surface, he didn't give a hoot in hell about anybody including his family. 'Nothing. Nothing penetrated him. And I think when his sons died, he went, 'Oh, well.'' Madoff's son Mark committed suicide in 2010 while his brother Andrew died of cancer in 2014. It also seems he is having an easy ride in prison and is treated with great respect by other inmates, former fellow inmate John Mancini told ABC News. Mancini, who was convicted for the illegal sales of pain medication in 2006 said many came to him for financial advice and that he was given a 'plum job' in the prison commissary, selling snacks to other inmates. Fellow inmates included New York mafia boss Carmine Persico, and the Israeli spy Jonathon Pollard, with whom he attended Jewish services. Both have since been released. The humble avocado has become an Instagram star but its popularity may be driving up the price. A supply crisis in the avocado market is believed to be behind a recent price hike that has left Australians paying up to $7 for a single piece of the fruit. And it might be April before the price returns somewhere near to the $3-$4 people are used to paying. A quick look at Instagram reveals a sea of green-filled breakfast and brunch delights made from the fruit - from smashed avocado on toast to salads and egg-filled concoctions. Scroll down for video Instagram posts of avocados are all the rage on social media on a daily basis Style.co.uk reports that there are more than two million posts with the hashtag #avocado, while #avocadolove and #avocadoporn are getting a huge amount of hits too. Instagram is full of pictures of avocado on toast posted alongside captions such as: 'Just when you've been dreaming of avocado on toast all night.' Full of protein and omega 3 fatty acids, the avocado is a firm favourite with heath food gurus such as Gwyneth Paltrow. Celebrity chefs including Nigella Lawson and Jamie Oliver have also jumped on the avocado bandwagon by raving about the health benefits of the green fruit. Many people on Instagram dream of 'of avocado toast all night' it would seem The popular fruit has more than two million posts with the hashtag #avocado The fruit has more than two million posts with the hashtag #avocado Before and after: There's any amount of ways you can use an avocado in a recipe Just eating it for its 'creamy goodness' is enough for some people Instagram is a sea of green-filled breakfast and brunch delights Celebrity chef Nigella Lawson's love for avocados may be one reason why they are becoming so expensive More people are discovering avocados, NZ Avocado spokeswoman Midge Munro said. As we educate people and more celebrity chefs use them on TV, people are understanding how to use them and they're understanding the amazing health benefits, so more people are wanting them. TV chef Jamie Oliver is also a huge advocate of the fruits and uses it much more in his dishes today The fruit has become so popular that this person even wrote a haiku in honour of it But Lawson did come in for some criticism for making a very simple dish of avocado on toast It may not look like much but smashed avocado and toast is sweeping the nation For this avocado lover, the ripe fruit can only mean happiness The simple avocado has taken off in recent years as the trendy fruit to use in recipes Avocado prices will not return to normal until April, after poor weather and bush fires led to a season shortage and escalated prices Both Nigella Lawson and Jamie Oliver have opened up about their love of avocado on toast. Jamie Oliver says on his website: 'Theyre perfect first thing in the morning, smashed on toast with salt and pepper, or as a late night snack of chips and guacamole.' Avocado prices are set to normalise in April when the market is expected to recover from the poor weather and bush fires that led to a season shortage. Although 225,000 trays are currently on their way to retailers to temporarily ease prices, wet weather in New Zealand and bush fires in Western Australia left production and transport suffering. A number of 225,000 trays of avocados are currently on their way to retailers to temporarily ease prices But wet weather in New Zealand and bush fires in Western Australia left production and transport suffering Current prices for avocados in supermarkets are about $4 each, but Harris Farms is selling Australian-grown avocados for $6.99 each. During the past 20 years, Australia's avocado production has increased from 18,000 tonnes a year to nearly 68,500 tonnes in 2015. The fruiting period of an avocado varies on the region it is grown, but can take up to 18 months from the time the trees start to flower, through to harvest. In Queensland, which provides 60 per cent of the produce, avocados take seven months to fully develop. Avocado demand has soared in recent years due to the its purported 'super-food' qualities and the rise of a popular hipster cafe staple - smashed avocado on toast A Japanese region has launched a bizarre tourism campaign comparing itself to Australia to try to attract domestic tourists. The campaign for Yamaguchi Prefecture even offers up local version of Australian icons such as Uluru, the Great Barrier Reef and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. But tourists who head to Yamaguchi instead of Australia for the attractions may be disappointed, if the marketing images are anything to go by. The Japanese version of Uluru is shown as some grey rocks in a field, the bridge attraction is a pedestrian walkway and the sporting arena compared to Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium is a local park. Spot the similarities: Australia (left) has much in common with the Yamaguchi Prefecture in Japan (right) according to a website advertising the Japanese area The tourism website for Yamaguchi claims it has many sights similar to iconic Australian locations such as the Sydney Harbour Bridge One of those is the more than 300-year-old Kintai Bridge, pictured here, which is claimed to be the region's answer to the Sydney Harbour Bridge One of Australia's most famous icons is Uluru, in the Northern Territory According to the Yamaguchi website, Akiyoshidai park (pictured) is their version of Uluru, and features many rock formations and caves - including the longest in Japan On a website for the area, a page describes how people can 'Enjoy the Australian mood in Yamaguchi Prefecture'. In what is perhaps a translation error, the page is titled 'Special delusion Australia journey'. The idea appears to have been triggered when someone noticed a vague resemblance between Yamaguchi's shape on a map and that of Australia. Yamaguchi is in the south of Japan's main island on Honshu and is much smaller than Australia - it can be driven across in about two hours. Strangely, the website chose to compare Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium (left) to the park pictured on the right. From the image, they don't quite seem the same One thing that Yamaguchi definitely does have that Australia does too is Emus WHAT'S IN YAMAGUCHI? The prefecture is at the south-west end of Japan's main island, Honshu About 1.5 million people live in Yamaguchi (at May 2011) It covers about 6,111 square kilometres - compared to Australia's 7.692 square km The average high temperature in January is about eight degrees, and about 31 in January January's average low temperature is about about negative one degree, compared to about 22 degrees in August Yamaguchi city was reportedly the first city in Japan to celebrate Christmas Two of its impressive temples - Pagodas - are considered Japanese national treasures About $290,000 can buy an eight-room home in Yamaguchi city. Compare that to Sydney, where last year, the median house price topped $1 million. Advertisement But, according to the website, there are a lot of comparable sights. First up on the list of attractions in Yamaguchi, which is home to about 1.5million people, is the Hachigamine 'stadium' on its eastern side - compared to Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium. Where Suncorp Stadium can host more than 52,000 people to watch sports, the picture of Hachigamine provided by the tourism website shows a forlorn field of grass. Just south of the park, however, is Yamaguchi's answer to the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Instead of one large steel arch, the Kintai Bridge was built in 1673 - more than 300 years ago - and is made up of five smaller arches of stone and wood. While not as large as the Sydney Harbour Bridge, it is beautiful and detailed, and pictures show it looking stunning in any season, surrounded by forest-clad hills. Next up is Yamaguchi's version of Uluru. Instead of being a single large rock formation, Akiyoshidai is a park consisting of many rock formations and caves - including the longest cave in Japan. Sydney has the Opera House, but Yamaguchi has got an alternative to it The building in the centre background is Shimonoseki Aquarium - supposedly Yamaguchi's expressionist architecture answer to the Sydney Opera House Even the trees in Yamaguchi are similar to in Australia, according to the website. Where Australia has Baobab trees in parts of WA and NT, Yamaguchi has Camphor trees, similar in appearance and up to 1,000 years old. While translation makes some of the website hard to read, there even appears to be emus in Yamaguchi as well. Finally, the area has what it sees as its own version of the Sydney Opera House - an aquarium boasting 'expressionist architecture', and and answer to the Great Barrier Reef - the world's largest reef of Japanese Daisy Coral. Australia has Baobab trees (left) while Yamaguchi has 1,000-year-old camphor trees When art specialists in the Italian police force levered open 45 crates in a warehouse in Geneva last month, they couldn't believe their eyes. There, before them, lay a vast collection of Roman and Etruscan treasures. Among them were two exceptional sarcophagi of a young woman and an elderly man, lying on their sides. Both in splendid condition, they date from the second century BC and the Etruscan period the Italian civilisation that predated imperial Rome. More dazzling finds poured forth from the plain crates, stamped with the logo of an obscure company: vases, decorated with Roman gladiators and gryphons; terracotta pots; busts; and chunks of fresco from Pompeii. Prosecutors in Geneva, working with the Italian police, have said the artefacts were 'exceptional pieces from clandestine excavations' - that is, tomb-raiders' loot. It's thought they were looted from tombs in Tarquinia, one of the great Etruscan cities 50 miles north-west of Rome and a rich hunting ground for tomb-raiders for decades. Such shadowy figures, with overtones of Indiana Jones, give this story a particularly racy fascination. British antiquities dealer Robin Symes is believed to have stashed 45 crates worth of ancient treasures in a warehouse in Geneva (pictured, a statue found in Geneva) Police believe the British man who deposited the artefacts there was one of the most notorious crooked dealers in the antiquities world, Robin Symes (right) For 15 years, these antiquities have been hidden from the world, ever since they were deposited in a concrete and steel warehouse in the Geneva Freeport effectively a mini-tax haven where valuable goods can be stored without officially entering Switzerland. The man who deposited them there, police say, is not only a Briton, but one of the most notorious crooked dealers in the antiquities world, Robin Symes. 'Symes is a sort of Bond villain, a suave, corrupt figure smoothing around elite drawing rooms,' says Melik Kaylan, an antiquities theft expert in New York, who writes for the Wall Street Journal. With his tailored cream suits, striped shirts and debonair manner, Symes, 76, looks the epitome of the charming, multi-millionaire antiquities dealer. Despite a double brain haemorrhage in 1979, his voice remains deep, clipped and imposing. For decades, Symes was Britain's leading antiquities dealer, flitting around London in a chauffeur-driven silver Rolls-Royce and maroon Bentley. He shuttled between a Greek island villa, an Athens flat, a New York apartment and a Chelsea house with a swimming pool lined with classical statues. Symes's gallery in Ormond Yard, an exclusive square in St James's was a magnet for collectors, including the oil billionaire, J. Paul Getty. 'Robin looked perfect although his style was a bit manufactured with slightly dyed hair,' says Nicky Haslam, the society interior designer who has known Symes for decades. For 15 years, the antiquities have been hidden from the world, ever since they were deposited in a concrete and steel warehouse in the Geneva Freeport (pictured, a priceless reclining lady figure) Vases decorated with Roman gladiators and gryphons (pictured); terracotta pots; busts; and chunks of fresco from Pompeii 'He clearly knew his stuff. His gallery was the holy grail for collectors all beige suede, with bronze cabinets and wonderful lights, the first really American-looking gallery.' But, 17 years ago, a tragic accident led to Symes's downfall and, ultimately, all the way to that treasure-crammed Geneva warehouse. On July 4, 1999, he was in Italy with his companion of 30 years, Christo Michaelides, heir to a Greek shipping fortune and a partner in Symes's 125 million antiquities business. They were dining with an American banker and antiquities collector, Leon Levy, and his wife, Shelby White, in a rented villa in Terni, Umbria. After dinner, Christo went in search of cigarettes and never returned. He was found on the floor after he struck his head on a portable radiator falling down some steps. He died in hospital the next day. After Michaelides's death, his family fought a court case, claiming half of the antiquities business a share worth 43 million. Symes countersued and lost his claim that Michaelides was only an employee, not a partner. Since that summer night, more and more of Symes's dirty linen has been aired. His greatest error was to lie about the proceeds from three sales, as he desperately fought to conceal how much money he had. Seven lawyers who had originally acted on his behalf proceeded to give evidence against him. He testified in court that he had sold an Egyptian statue of the Greek god, Apollo, for 1.1 million. It turned out he'd sold it to a sheikh for 3.1 million. Another Egyptian statue supposedly sold for 2.5 million went for 5.5 million. He also claimed he'd sold some art deco furniture for 2.8 million; he actually sold it for 9.7 million. The greatest treasure returned by Symes' old clients was a life-size, ivory head of Apollo (pictured), thought to be worth 30 million and dating from the first century BC For decades, Symes was Britain's leading antiquities dealer, flitting around London in a chauffeur-driven silver Rolls-Royce (pictured, one of the artefacts he is said to have hidden in Geneva) In 2005, Symes was sentenced to two years in Pentonville Prison for what the judge called 'a serious and cynical contempt of courtto conceal that he had deliberately taken the proceeds [and] used them for his own purposes.' The judge also accused him of 'numerous lies on oath', which Symes later admitted in court. Even in prison where Symes served seven months he kept up the high life. One titled friend was so upset by his flimsy prison writing paper that she commissioned some expensive paper for him: plush blue bond, with embossed lettering, in a darker blue shade, which read: 'PENTONVILLE, CALEDONIAN ROAD, N1.' The cheeky writing paper chimed with Symes's lovable rogue side. 'He was as dodgy as anything that was part of his charm,' says Nicky Haslam. 'There was always a bit of a nod and a wink with him.' Facing legal costs of 5million, Symes declared himself bankrupt. Claiming he couldn't afford his lawyers, he had applied unsuccessfully for legal aid. During the trial, he lived above the bar of a Wiltshire pub, with no carpet and a single bed. At Christmas, though, he couldn't resist the old siren lure of luxury, and installed himself in London's Savoy Hotel. He said he had friends who supported him through his bankruptcy. But Symes never disclosed all his assets. During the case, he admitted storing antiquities in five warehouses. It later emerged that he had secreted them in 33 warehouses, from Geneva to London and New York. It eventually emerged that Symes had stored his many artefacts in 33 warehouses, from Geneva to London and New York Symes's gallery in Ormond Yard, an exclusive square in St James's was a magnet for collectors, including the oil billionaire, J. Paul Getty (pictured, one of the artefacts discovered in Geneva) Among the assets he failed to declare, were, presumably, those astonishing 45 crates of antiquities, stored in the warehouse in Geneva, the city where Symes lived before the trial. Last month, the contents of the crates were returned to Rome, where they will soon be displayed at a press conference. But they could be just the tip of the iceberg. At one stage, Symes had a huge Aladdin's cave of antiquities before the trial, private investigators found he had squirrelled away 17,000 relics, thought to be worth 125 million. However many pieces he managed to sell before his conviction, it would have been hard to sell them all. Some of the remainder must account for what was found in Geneva last month. By the time liquidators came to sell off the remnants of Symes's collection, at Bonhams in Oxford, in 2009, he was a discredited man. The 250 lots in the sale, including old masters and a Picasso, had to be sold at rock bottom prices because, as Bonhams said, 'the liquidators make no warranty to title' in other words, the antiquities might have been stolen. It was impossible to know where the treasures came from because all the paperwork had been destroyed not quite what you expect of a reputable antiquities dealer. What a steep fall from grace it had been almost as steep as Robin Symes's rise to eminence from tragic beginnings. He was born in 1939 in Overy, near Dorchester-on- Thames, Oxfordshire. When he was a toddler, his mother was stabbed to death by a soldier. At 21, he married Laetitia Atkinson in Surrey, and they had two sons, Quentin and Innes, born in 1961 and 1963 respectively. But having lost his mother, he was to lose his wife, too. Last month, the contents of the crates (pictured) were returned to Rome, where they will soon be displayed at a press conference At one stage, Symes had a huge Aladdin's cave of antiquities before the trial, private investigators found he had squirrelled away 17,000 relics, thought to be worth 125 million Laetitia died, aged only 54, in 1995, of alcoholism after being diagnosed with schizophrenia and nymphomania. Two years later, Quentin died, aged 35, a victim of heroin addiction. His surviving son, Innes, now 52, lives in Bristol, where he is director of a building company, Symes Construction. Talking to me yesterday from his home, Innes said: 'This is the first I've heard about the Geneva story. I haven't seen my father for ten years. We lost touch a long time ago. I've got no idea where he is.' What a troubled family the Symeses seem to be. The dramatic turning point in Robin Symes's life came when he met Christo Michaelides in 1967. Married at the time, with two children, Symes was running a gallery and art publishers on London's King's Road with his wife, Laetitia. Then, one day, 22-year-old Michaelides walked into the gallery with an antiquity to sell. Michaelides had a girlfriend, but that didn't stop the two men setting up home together soon after. Symes admitted that 'we loved each other', but always said 'we never had a sexual relationship'. Their business relationship, though, prospered. Buoyed by the Michaelides shipping fortune Symes dealt with the art side, Christo the money side their antiquities business quickly became the most successful in London. The only problem was that many of those antiquities had been looted from ancient sites. 'Symes is a sort of Bond villain, a suave, corrupt figure smoothing around elite drawing rooms,' said antiquities theft expert Melik Kaylan (pictured, statue of a reclining man found in Geneva warehouse) In 2006, an investigative journalist, Peter Watson, wrote a book, The Medici Conspiracy, in which he accused Symes working in cahoots with a crooked Italian dealer Giacomo Medici of selling those looted relics to leading museums. The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and the J. Paul Getty Museum have all returned such treasures in recent years. The greatest of all was a life-size, ivory head of Apollo, thought to be worth 30 million and dating from the first century BC. The head was seized by Italian police. A fragment of fresco from a villa near Pompeii like the one that's just been found in the Geneva warehouse was also recovered. Pietro Casasanta, a leading Italian 'tombarolo', or tomb-raider, admitted he unearthed the Apollo head in 1995 at the Baths of Claudius, a Roman site just north of Rome. Casasanta sold the ivory head to a middle man, Nino Savoca, for 7 million. Savoca sold it on to a London art dealer who, according to Casasanta, speaking years later, was 'a homosexual whose partner died recently' in other words, Robin Symes. After Symes came out of prison a decade ago, his business activities went quiet. But he remained the suave figure of the early days. 'He was fun exactly the same, ever so slightly more parchmenty in the skin,' says Nicky Haslam, who had dinner with him in London's Chelsea three years ago. 'He had the same, funny, self-assured, devil-may-care approach. He didn't seem broke.' He adds: 'When I heard the news about Geneva, I wasn't surprised. I was only surprised it was on such a huge scale.' After Symes came out of prison a decade ago, his business activities went quiet. But he remained the suave figure of the early days (pictured, a vase discovered among Geneva crates) In 2005, Symes was sentenced to two years in Pentonville Prison for what the judge called 'a serious and cynical contempt of court' (pictured, a priceless artefact discovered in Geneva) What will happen to Symes today, now his hoard has been uncovered? 'He has had every chance to come clean about this,' says Melik Kaylan. 'Ultimately, you have to share information on what came from where. Historical scholarship has a morality. Basically, he's one of the world's experts, with hands-on knowledge he should turn gamekeeper and start sharing his knowledge.' If past form is anything to go by, though, Symes will keep his mouth firmly shut. The ringleader of an international child abuse network was investigated for 'raping' a young girl by the child protection agency he worked for, but was cleared and then later promoted. A female worker at Families SA welfare agency told a royal commission into child protection systems in Adelaide on Wednesday that she walked in on Shannon McCoole moments after he allegedly sexually abused a six-year-old girl in state care. McCoole, who sparked the royal commission into South Australia's state care after he was jailed for multiple child sex and child pornography offences, used his position as a carer to abuse children and take photos of them to be uploaded to his international child porn website. A female worker at Families SA welfare agency told a royal commission in Adelaide on Wednesday that she walked in on Shannon McCoole (pictured) after he allegedly sexually abused a six-year-old girl in state care Australian police discovered McCoole's organisation with the help of European police in May 2014, shortly before he was arrested for offences against seven children, six of whom were in his care. The youth worker had flagged McCoole's actions a year before he was arrested after she saw an incident in June 2013 involving a young girl at a state care home, the ABC reports. She told the commission she was putting a boy to bed when she heard McCoole nearby in the six-year-old girl's bedroom. The worker said she heard McCoole lower his voice and whisper 'tickle' and heard 'very uncomfortable' laughter coming the six-year-old. 'It was an uncomfortable, contrived, attempt at laughing as though she was possibly being tickled and she was uncomfortable with it and was attempting to laugh it off,' she said. McCoole was jailed for multiple child sex and child pornography offences and used his position as a carer to abuse children and take photos of them to be uploaded his international child pornography website Australian police discovered McCoole's organisation with the help of European police in May 2014, shortly before he was arrested for offences against seven children, six of whom were in his care She then heard the girl say 'stop, don't tickle me there'. The youth worker went to the girl's room and McCoole brushed past her at the door. 'I saw (the girl) on all fours on top of her blankets and she as staring at the doorway and then looked up at me,' she told the commission. 'She appeared to be in great shock and not moving and not speaking to me. At the time I was confused, he was supposed to be reading her a story, it was very dark, she was supposed to be in bed, not on top of the bed and I was unsure of what was going on.' The little girl then told the worker that her bottom hurt as she put her to bed. He was later jailed for 35 years for offences against seven children, six of whom were in his care, between 2011 and 2014 McCoole was a Families SA youth worker as well as the administrator of a child pornography website before he was caught and charged for his crimes against children under his care The worker said McCoole attempted to intimidate her by following her around the house so closely she could feel his chest on her back. She told the commission it took several days to make a report because she was still processing what she saw and was terrified. McCoole was suspended for three month while the incident was investigated, but he was later reinstated and promoted to a senior youth worker role. He was later jailed for 35 years for offences between 2011 and 2014. A Catholic high school teacher has pleaded not guilty to having sex with and sending explicit messages and photographs to a student. Erica Suskie, 43, appeared in court alongside her husband, Paul, to make her plea and give her fingerprints before being released. Suskie, who was a substitute teacher at Catholic High School for Boys, in North Little Rock, Arkansas, allegedly had sex with the boy outside of school when she was supposed to be homeschooling him in algebra. Catholic high school teacher Erica Suskie, 43, appeared in court with her husband, Paul, as she pleaded not guilty to having sex with a student Substitute teacher Suskie allegedly had sex with the boy outside of school when she was supposed to be homeschooling him in algebra The alleged victim was a family friend of Suskie's, according to an affidavit obtained by KATV. In a police interview, the boy claimed that the teacher asked his parents if she could teach him algebra from her home, and that is how the sexual assaults started. He would run errands for her at her house and have sex with her there, as well as at her parents' home, the affidavit says. The alleged incidents all took place between April and October 2015. In a separate police interview, another person - whose name has been redacted from court documents - said Suskie told him that the boy 'lied about there being a sexual relationship in an effort to impress his friends'. However, the unidentified man told police that the alleged victim had shown him text messages and a photograph the boy claimed Suskie had sent him 'to prove they had a sexual relationship', the affidavit said. Accused: Suskie is also alleged to have sent explicit text messages and a photograph to the student Suskie was a teacher at Catholic High School for Boys (pictured), in North Little Rock, Arkansas, for a year An underage friend who was interviewed by investigators also claimed he had seen the lewd text messages and image from Suskie. Suskie will appear in court again on March 16. She and her attorney declined to comment to KATV on Wednesday. Catholic High's principal Steve Straessle said Suskie was a volunteer substitute teacher for about a year until the allegations emerged in October last year. Mr Straessle said the accused teacher passed a background check and was approved by the Catholic diocese. 'Catholic High addressed this issue three months ago and took all appropriate and necessary actions then to ensure the safety and security of our students,' the principal said. Suskie is charged with first-degree sexual assault. See more news and stories from New Zealand at www.dailymail.co.uk/nz The dance track will premiere on George FM on New Zealand Prime Minister John Key's son Max, an aspiring DJ, has revealed he will be dropping his first track later this month. The 21-year-old announced on Instagram on Wednesday that he would be releasing his first single 'Forget You', on his first show for New Zealand radio station George FM. Max split from his girlfriend Amelia Finlayson, 18, last month and many have been quick to suggest that the 21-year-old may be referencing the break-up in his song title. Scroll down for video New Zealand Prime Minister John Key's son has revealed he is releasing a dance track this month The aspiring DJ made the announcement on his Instagram page saying the single will premiere on George FM The track is titled 'Forget You' and fans have suggested it may be a reference to his breakup with girlfriend Amelia Finlayson (right) 'As announced on @georgefmnz, I'm proud to say I'm releasing my first single "Forget You",' Max wrote. 'Previewing on my first show on George fm nights, Tuesday the 16th at 10pm and available for purchase and download from the 19th. 'I can't wait to drop this,' he posted. In the days leading up his announcement, Max had teased fans by saying he had a 'huge announcement' to make. Max and Ms Finlayson were dating for just over a year and recently shared loved-up holiday snaps to their combined 33,000 Instagram followers. The couple has recently holidayed with Max Key's parents over the Christmas period Mr Key and Ms Finlayson had been dating for just over a year, and Ms Finlayson is believed to have initiated the break-up The pair celebrated Christmas together in Hawaii with Prime Minister John Key as well as Max's mother Bronagh and his sister Stephanie. Ms Finlayson, who made it to the finals of Miss Auckland in 2015, confirmed that the paid had split on Monday but then said she had 'nothing else to add,' Scout reported. The split came just six months after New Zealand prime minister John Key came under fire for appearing in his son's video documenting their lavish overseas holiday. Titled 'Max Key & Amelia Finlayson in Summer Paradise', the four-and-a-half minute clip documents Mr Key's family holiday in New Zealand and Hawaii. The New Zealand prime minister faced fierce backlash for his appearing in the video as it was released at a time when the government was being criticised for a lack of affordable housing. Tristram Hunt, a former TV historian, warns that many floating voters feel that Labour no longer represents them, or understands their lives Labour is seen as unpatriotic and will not win another election until it learns to embrace England, a senior MP warns today. In a devastating analysis, former education spokesman Tristram Hunt says voters at the last election felt we didnt value England, and were not on the side of the English. Mr Hunt, a former TV historian, warns that many floating voters feel that Labour no longer represents them, or understands their lives. He suggests Labour got it wrong on immigration, saying the party needs a much greater honesty in how we navigate Englishness and politics particularly when it comes to questions of immigration. And he says Labours review of Britains constitutional settlement should be accompanied by an English referendum to settle issues such as whether England should have its own distinct parliament. Nobody who campaigned in Scotland during the referendum could fail to be shaped by the experience, he says. It was to reconnect with the power and wonder of democracy, to see an entire nation debate and debate again its culture, its identity and every single aspect of its future. I want that for England. I want the English to experience the same kind of democratic awakening as we have seen in Scotland. And I want Labour to lead it. Jeremy Corbyn has faced accusations of a lack of patriotism after refusing to sing the national anthem at a Battle of Britain memorial service in St Pauls Cathedral last year. Labour sources have said he will sing the anthem in future following a public backlash. Shadow defence secretary Emily Thornberry provoked anger in 2014 when she posted a picture on social media of a house draped with three England flags with a white van parked in the drive, accompanied by a sarcastic message. In a thinly-veiled dig today, Mr Hunt will say: We in the Labour Party need to go much further than simply a grudging acceptance of populist English culture, and instead learn to embrace it. But he will stress that Labours English problem predates Mr Corbyns leadership, citing polling from last summer which found that 57 per cent of people in England believed Labour puts the interests of other people before the interests of England. Our sense of Englishness matters to us more and more, and the Labour Party has fallen on the wrong side of that cultural divide, he says. The need to re-engage with England has intensified following Labours collapse in Scotland and the growing threat of Ukip in its traditional strongholds in the North. Electoral experts warn it may be impossible for Labour to win power again unless it can increase its level of support in Ebngland, including in the south. He suggests Labour got it wrong on immigration, saying the party needs a much greater honesty in how we navigate Englishness and politics particularly when it comes to questions of immigration A review of Labours election defeat by Ed Milibands former policy chief Jon Cruddas found that socially conservative Labour voters were the most likely to have deserted the party. Mr Hunt says: They value home, family and their country. They feel their cultural identity is under threat. They yearn for a sense of belonging and national renewal. Tradition, rules and social order are important to them. And, tragically, they feel that Labour no longer represents them, or understands their lives. In short, they felt we didnt value England, and were not on the side of the English. Labour is backing a new constitutional convention in the wake of the referendum on Scottish independence. The review will look at whether more power should be devolved to the English regions, or whether an English parliament should be established. Russia must end bombing attacks on Syrian civilians, US Secretary of State John Kerry warned today. Speaking as a global donor conference in London secured promises of more than 7 billion for Syrian refugees, Mr Kerry said all sides must let humanitarian agencies in to help stranded people. Mr Kerry today said he had a 'robust' discussion with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov ahead of talks hosted by Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond on the continued bitter fighting. Scroll down for video John Kerry, pictured at today's pledging conference in London, called on the Russians to end the bombing of civilian areas in Syria Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, pictured left today with Mr Kerry, backed the remarks on the sidelines of today's conference in London Russian President Vladimir Putin has been under fire since entering the Syrian civil war in support of the Assad regime and Mr Kerry today urged the Kremlin to stop bombing civilian areas A civil war has waged in Syria since 2011 and more than four million people have been displaced by the fighting, which also set the stage for the emergence of the ISIS terror group. Mr Kerry said today: 'It could not be more clear 'That is an obligation that is not tied to talks, it is an obligation accepted by all parties in the United Nations resolution. Russia voted for that, Russia has responsibility - as do all parties - to live up to it.' Mr Kerry said he had a 'robust' discussion on Thursday morning with Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov. 'We discussed - and he agreed we need to discuss - how to implement a ceasefire and also how to get access by both parties,' said Mr Kerry. 'The opposition needs to provide access for humanitarian assistance and the regime in Syria needs to allow access.' Mr Hammond held talks over breakfast with Mr Kerry, along with foreign ministers of Germany, France, Italy, the UAE, Qatar and Turkey, at Lancaster House in London. Mr Hammond said they had discussed 'the stabilisation and reconstruction of Syria once Assad has gone and the new Syria can be built' as well as efforts to get the suspended peace talks in Geneva back on track. He added: 'We are all very keen to keep momentum in that dialogue and we've been discussing this morning ways in which we as a group of like-minded countries can support the parties to that dialogue, to enable them to keep talking in what are very difficult circumstances. 'We recognise that it's difficult for the regime to be at the table talking to the opposition, it's difficult for the opposition to talk to the regime when their people at home are being killed through bombing and other forms of attack. 'But we have to continue with this process because it is the only way to get a solution to the disaster which is engulfing Syria.' As the pledging conference at London's Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre concluded, Prime Minister David Cameron said the money raised would 'save lives, will give hope, will give people the chance of a future' He added: 'That, I think, is a good and vital day's work.' David Cameron, pictured on stage at today's summit with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, hailed the more than 7billion in pledges as a 'good day's work' The meeting heard from leader's around the world today, including from left UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, and British Prime Minister David Cameron United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon hailed the conference as 'a great success', adding: 'Never has the international community raised so much money on a single day for a single crisis.' Mr Cameron said that the conference had sent out a clear message to the people of Syria and the region: 'We will stand with you and we will support you for as long as it takes to secure peace in Syria, to restore stability to the region and to give Syrian refugees a chance to go back and rebuild their homes and their country.' He urged Russia to use its influence to bring an end to violence against civilians and help foster a ceasefire. 'We must urgently redouble our efforts to prevent the intolerable levels of violence against civilians, ensuring all parties in the conflict bring an immediate end to the ongoing violations of international humanitarian law,' said the Prime Minister. 'And we look to Russia to use its influence with the regime to end indiscriminate attacks, especially barrel bombing. Russia should support steps towards a ceasefire as envisaged by the Vienna process and mandated by the UN Security Council. 'The difficult negotiations of recent days only show how challenging the road ahead will be.' Mr Cameron said one million children currently not in school would be given access to education by the end of the next school year. 'This is not just morally right. It is vital for long-term stability. We cannot have a generation of refugees left out of school, unable to get work, vulnerable to extremism and radicalisation,' he said. Countries in the region have agreed to open up their economies to create new jobs and the move will be backed by 27 billion of loans from international financial institutions and access to European markets. 'As a result there will be over one million new jobs in the region for refugees and residents alike,' Mr Cameron said. Earlier, a 17-year-old Syrian refugee pleaded with world leaders at today's donor's conference in London to fund the education of hundreds of thousands of children displaced by war. Mazoun Almellehan was introduced by Malala Yousafzai and told world leaders, gathered in London by David Cameron, that Syria's refugee children were not lost and still had dreams. She told them: 'We have not lost hope. Syria will never be the same as before the war I hope it can (be) better. 'Will you help us? Will you fund the education we need to make our hopes and dreams come true?' Mazoun Almellehan, 17, made a passionate plea to world leaders gathered at the conference in London to help Syria's refugee children learn so they could fulfil their dreams She was introduced by human rights campaigner Malala Yousafzai, left today at the event, who said the Syrian teenager was her 'inspiration' Mr Cameron opened the conference with a promise Britain would spend another 1.2billion on aid, more than doubling Britain's overall commitment to millions of displaced refugees to around 2.3billion. Germany's Angela Merkel pledged 1.7billion by 2018, while Norway offered 840million. US Secretary of State John Kerry met with Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond as the talks opened to discuss the 'stabilisation and reconstruction' of a post-Assad Syria. Ms Almellehan told the delegates about how she had loved learning before the war came to Syria and forced her into Jordan's camps for three years. And she thanked the King of Jordan for providing safety and classrooms - but warned teenage girls were leaving education for marriage. She said her dream was to be a journalist and she wanted to write the story of how 'all the Syrian children come home to lift up their country' adding: 'I hope that story begins with you today.' She said: 'Girls must get education. Their parents thought they were protecting their daughters but education is the best protection for girls. 'If a mother is not educated, how can she help her children? If young people are not educated who will rebuild the country? More than 4.6 million Syrians have fled the country since the civil war broke out five years ago, with the vast majority finding refuge in neighbouring countries, pictured right 'We need education because Syria needs us. Syria needs engineers and teachers and doctors and journalists. 'Without us who will bring peace? 'I shared the same message as my friend Malala: Education is power. Education is the future.' Ms Almellehan told the conference about how she grew up in Syria with her two brothers and her sister. She said her father had been a teacher until the war came and it was too dangerous for him to work and her to go to school. Her passion for education led Malala to describe her as 'my inspiration' in her introduction. Ms Almellehan continued: 'Education makes us who we want to be. 'You know this is the truth. Education was important for you in your life, it is important for your children it is important for Syrian children to. 'Some people call us the lost generation. We are not lost. We have not lost our love of learning, we have not lost our dreams for our future.' Among those listening as Ms Almellehan made her plea were Lebanese Prime Minister Tammam Salam, left, Jordan's King Abdullah II, centre, and Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet. Also in attendance at today's conference were Queen Rania of Jordon and Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned. David Cameron, pictured today arriving at the Queen Elizabeth II conference centre, announced Britain would be doubling its contribution to the Syrian aid campaign to more than 2billion German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is co-hosting the London conference also made a large pledge at the London gathering, pictured today on stage at the QEII with Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg, left, and Mr Cameron, right Mazoun, left at the conference today, was introduced to speak by Malala Yousafzai, also pictured at the London gathering of world leaders Opening the one day conference at the Queen Elizabeth II conference centre in Westminster, Mr Cameron called on world leaders to deliver the 'greatest possible pledge' of support to alleviate the suffering of Syrian refugees. Opening an international conference in London, the Prime Minster said it was time for a 'new approach' to the crisis. He urged the 70 other nations at the talks to follow Britain, which has committed a further 1.2 billion over the next four years. At the same time he called for assistance for Syria's neighbours - Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan - to enable them to open up job opportunities for the estimated 4.6 million refugees in their countries. He also appealed for a commitment to ensure that all the refugee children in those countries had a school place by the end of 2016. He said: 'If ever there was a moment to take a new approach to the humanitarian crisis in Syria surely it is now. Queen Rania of Jordon arrived at the conference today, left, as did Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned, from Qatar, right The morning session of the conference heard from a string of foreign dignitaries today, including Lebanese Prime Minister Tammam Salam, left, Jordan's King Abdullah II, centre, and Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu 'We are facing a critical shortfall in life-saving aid that is fatally holding back our humanitarian efforts. 'After years of conflict we are witnessing a desperate movement of humanity as hundreds of thousands of Syrians fear they have no alternative than to put their lives in the hands of evil people-smugglers in search of a future.' UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said: 'Even if, by some miracle, the conflict ends tomorrow, the enormous humanitarian and development needs will continue for years and even decades. He said that only a political settlement could end the suffering of the Syrian people and expressed concern that peace talks in Geneva had stalled after two days after President Bashar Assad's forces launched a fresh offensive against rebels, backed by Russian air strikes. 'It is deeply disturbing that the initial steps of the talks have been undermined by the continuous lack of sufficient humanitarian access, and by a sudden increase of aerial bombing and military activities within in Syrian,' Mr Ban said. Mr Cameron, pictured today on stage with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, is expected to continue his EU talks on the margins of the conference - but at times the pair appeared far apart At other moments the two leaders - who are co-chairing the conference almost appeared to first bump as the proceedings continued 'The situation is not sustainable. We cannot go on like this. There is no military solution. Only political dialogue will rescue the Syrian people from their intolerable suffering.' Ahead of the conference, International Development Secretary Justine Greening challenged world leaders to match Britain's generosity. She said: 'We are expecting and hoping that other countries around the world will join us in upping the amount of resourcing they are prepared to put against this crisis. 'These are people who now have been away from home, many of them living in desperate circumstances now, for years.' She added on the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: 'It's not just about what the UK can do, we want to also play a role in getting the rest of the international community to really take responsibility and work to help countries like Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey, who are so generous in hosting these refugees, to be able to cope with that more effectively.' Ms Greening also said: 'Critically, the reason we're hosting this conference in London is that Britain can't do this all on her own. 'What we want to see today are more countries around the world joining our support not just in pledging more but in helping us to take these new steps on jobs, on getting children back into school so that we can not only make sure that day-to-day needs of refugees are met.' Ahead of the talks, Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond held talks with US Secretary of State John Kerry, along with foreign ministers of Germany, France, Italy, the UAE, Qatar and Turkey, over breakfast at Lancaster House in London. Mr Hammond said they had discussed 'the stabilisation and reconstruction of Syria once Assad has gone and the new Syria can be built' as well as efforts to get the suspended peace talks in Geneva back on track. Human rights campaigner Malala Yousafzai was among the first to arrive, left, as David Cameron, centre, and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, right, also arrived at the summit German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrived with a pledge of money, while the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah, centre, and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, right, were also attending Prince Charles meets the Emir of Kuwait, Sheikh Sabah at Clarence House during his visit to London for the Syria donors conference David Miliband, pictured left, is visiting London for the conference. He has warned that Britain leaving the EU would make the refugee crisis worse for the UK He added: 'We are all very keen to keep momentum in that dialogue and we've been discussing this morning ways in which we as a group of like-minded countries can support the parties to that dialogue, to enable them to keep talking in what are very difficult circumstances. BRITAIN SIGN OFF ON DEAL TO GIVE TURKEY 250MILLION Britain last night signed off on a deal to hand 250million to Turkey despite little evidence it has kept its side of an agreement to stem the flow of migrants into Europe. EU leaders finalised the plan to give 2.3billion to Turkey to spend on the two million refugees camped there, with Britain stumping up the second largest contribution after Germany. The sum was pledged in November in return for Turkey helping to tackle the migrant crisis, but so far there has been little sign of change. An average of nearly 2,000 people a day landed on the Greek islands from Turkey in January, compared with 1,694 in the whole of the same month in 2015. Officials in Ankara are reportedly now demanding a 1.5billion top-up to the 2.3billion figure. Advertisement 'We recognise that it's difficult for the regime to be at the table talking to the opposition, it's difficult for the opposition to talk to the regime when their people at home are being killed through bombing and other forms of attack. 'But we have to continue with this process because it is the only way to get a solution to the disaster which is engulfing Syria.' Mr Kerry called on all sides in the civil war - as well as president Assad's Russian backers - to provide immediate access for humanitarian agencies and end to attacks on civilians, as demanded by United Nations resolution. 'It could not be more clear,' said Mr Kerry. The new money, which will come from existing foreign aid budgets, will also go towards creating jobs for refugees by helping set up businesses in the camps and the cities where many have moved. The Government will also urge neighbouring countries to set up public works schemes to provide refugees with jobs. But critics will warn it might not be wise to increase aid spending in the region so dramatically when studies have found much of the money being spent is wasted. Today's conference at the Queen Elizabeth II centre was met by some protests against the Iranian regime. Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is at the meeting One of protesters held up a placard of Iran's leaders, including Hassan Rouhani, right Last month the National Audit Office revealed some British aid to Syria has been stolen by armed groups there. 'The items stolen vary, but food baskets are particularly targeted,' it said. And it warns that the Department for International Development does not know how much of the millions poured into crisis zones such as Syria ever reaches its intended targets. Some 70 countries will attend today's conference in central London, among them German Chancellor Angela Merkel and John Kerry, the US Secretary of State. Today's conference, called Supporting Syria and the Region, is co-hosted by Britain with Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the United Nations. It will aim to raise billions of dollars in international aid, with the current UN appeal standing at 5.4billion. It comes after last year's UN appeal for 2billion was 60 per cent under-funded. The conference will also aim to build economic opportunities, creating jobs for refugees and host country citizens alike. Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond met refugees at the Al Zaatari refugee camp in Jordan, pictured, earlier this week as Britain launched a diplomatic effort ahead of the conference The Prime Minister will pledge an extra 1.2billion to support those fleeing Syria to neighbouring countires like Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey (pictured: Zaatari camp, Jordan) The money will be spent on things like job creation and building schools for refugees Its aim is to put all refugee children in education by 2017, along with vulnerable youngsters in host countries. In addition, the conference will aim to improve the lives of those still in Syria by funding food, shelter and healthcare, and rebuilding health facilities. The summit is expected to send out a strong joint message stressing that all sides in the Syrian conflict must respect humanitarian efforts. US President Barack Obama spoke by phone to Mr Cameron on Tuesday, telling him America would soon announce 'significant new contributions' to help tackle Syria's humanitarian crisis. The goal is to encourage people to stay in the local region, rather than head for Europe The camp at Al Zaatari is now roughly the same size as the English city of Bath, stretching for miles near the border with Syria The White House said Mr Kerry would announce the aid at the summit. A coalition of more than 90 aid agencies and humanitarian organisations including Oxfam and Amnesty International is pressing for governments to go further with a new funding plan. Former foreign secretary David Miliband, who now heads the International Rescue Committee, said: 'Syrians are facing a war without law and a war without end. 'The latest harrowing scenes from the besieged town of Madaya and the rising pressure on neighbouring states need to spur political leaders to act. 'The relentless suffering of the Syrian people should be a global call to action for humanitarian assistance to alleviate suffering and for political action to bring the war to an end.' The meeting comes as King Abdullah of Jordan which has seen an influx of hundreds of thousands of refugees warned his country could no longer cope with the pressures of accepting so many people. They have been ordered to hold their tongues while Prime Minister makes case for Britain to remain in the EU The row about the gagging of Eurosceptic ministers intensified last night amid astonishing claims that Downing Street aides are using computer software to flush out those who privately criticise David Cameron's EU deal. A Tory source said officials were trawling off-the-record comments made to the media by frustrated ministers who have been banned from criticising the renegotiation in public. The source said phrases are compared with a database of ministers' speeches and public utterances in order to identify those being disloyal to the Prime Minister. 'People tend to rely on the same phrases when they are talking,' the source said. 'It is surprisingly effective.' A government source last night denied the claim, saying it was 'not true' that officials routinely try to track down ministers briefing against Mr Cameron. The source acknowledged their speeches are all vetted by No 10 officials, but denied the information was used for this purpose. However one Eurosceptic minister last night told the Daily Mail that he had taken to 'using phrases I wouldn't normally use' after being caught out giving off-the-record comments. The row comes amid growing anger at the gagging of Eurosceptic ministers, who have been ordered to watch in silence as Mr Cameron and other pro-EU ministers make the case for Britain to remain within the European Union. The Prime Minister effectively launched his campaign to keep Britain in the EU on Tuesday, saying he was 'not equivocal at all' about backing continued membership on the basis of the draft deal struck with Brussels. A government source last night denied the claim, saying it was 'not true' that officials routinely try to track down ministers briefing against Mr Cameron (right, with European Council President Donald Tusk) But he warned Eurosceptic ministers in the Cabinet on the same day that they face being disciplined if they criticise the proposed deal before it is finalised. Former defence secretary Liam Fox yesterday warned that the process was unfair and risked causing long-term resentment. Dr Fox said at least 'four or five' Cabinet ministers were 'certain' to join the Out campaign once the shackles were removed. He added: 'The agreement has been that no-one will make the case for or against until there is a final agreement at the European Council. 'That would be fine if it applies equally to both sides. The danger is always that the rules that apply are seen to be different for one side of the argument than the other. 'If the Prime Minister has already decided that the draft deal is enough for him to campaign, to go out there selling the deal, then it should be for others who don't agree with that to make their own case. David Cameron (right, with Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg) effectively launched his campaign to keep Britain in the EU on Tuesday 'I think the danger of treating the two sides differently is that it will make it more difficult for us to come together after the referendum.' Yesterday, No 10 was confronted by at least one senior minister over the need to 'play fair'. The Prime Minister's aides were urged to lift the ban on the Eurosceptics speaking out but refused point blank. Mr Cameron said support for the renegotiation was 'part of being in government' and would not end until a deal with Brussels has been concluded. He insisted he was 'not asking people to twist themselves in different directions and say things they don't believe' but warned they would have to remain silent until the deal is completed. 'We are all committed to this renegotiation,' he said. 'All ministers, even if in the end a minister might want to campaign for the other side, to leave, against the Cabinet all ministers want that renegotiation to be successful . We are still in that renegotiation it is not finished.' Government sources yesterday acknowledged that No 10 is vetting ministers' speeches that touch on Europe. Some have been ordered to 'tone down' criticism of the European Union. Prime Minister David Cameron delivers his statement on proposed reforms to allow the UK to remain in the European Union in the House of Commons Press releases and answers to parliamentary questions are also being scrutinised to put the best possible gloss on the relationship with the EU. Despite pledging that the Conservative Party would remain neutral in the campaign, Mr Cameron used the party's database this week and emailed supporters to argue that his deal with Brussels delivers 'substantial progress' and 'real change'. Tory MP Bernard Jenkin criticised the move, saying: 'The Prime Minister seems to be making rules for ministers and for the party that only apply to those whom he wants to keep quiet.' There is also a growing row over the refusal of No 10 to commit to holding a Cabinet meeting as soon as a Brussels deal is secured. Under rules laid down by Mr Cameron, the ban on ministers speaking out remains until he has formally completed his deal at the European summit on February 19, then formally presented it to Cabinet. Gregory Anderson, a former editor for Yahoo, is now suing the company claiming he was the victim of anti-male bias when he was fired in 2014 A former commercial editor for Yahoo is now suing the company, claiming he was fired because of gender bias that favors females. Gregory Anderson, who was sacked as the editorial director for Yahoo commerce back in November 2014, said women were prioritized for jobs despite better qualified men applying for them. He has also accused female managers at his old firm of manipulating workplace reviews in order to benefit women, and of not giving him proper notice of their decision to fire him. Scroll down for video Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer has come under fire in recent months as her plans to revive the struggling internet giant, including huge staff layoffs, have failed to impress investors. In Anderson's legal complaint, filed in California earlier this week, he claims that shortly after Mayer joined the firm in 2012 she brought in a quarterly performance review process. According to Anderson, employees were assigned figures relating to their performance at work which were then used to rank staff against one another. Anderson goes on to argue that this review process was completely opaque, with staff not being told who was assessing them, or why figures were being changed. His lawsuit, seen by the Silicon Valley Business Journal, says: 'Employees did not know who was making the final decisions. 'This manipulation of the QPR process permitted employment decisions, including terminations, to be made on the basis of personal biases and stereotyping.' Anderson claims that a gender bias exists within the business, and that female managers were able to manipulate the review process in favor of women. Anderson claims a quarterly review process brought in by Marissa Mayer (pictured) when she started at Yahoo in 2012 was manipulated by female managers He also says that female staff were recruited to senior positions even though there were better qualified men seeking the role. Anderson was fired alongside approximately 600 other Yahoo employees after they were told they had ranked in the bottom 5 per cent of company employees, according to the review system. At the time he was sacked, Anderson was attending Michigan University after being chosen for its Daniel B. Burke Knight-Wallace Fellowship, an absence he said was agreed with Yahoo. However, two months later he was fired by a female manager, a decision which he told the New York Times left his family stranded. He argues that Yahoo breached California state law which requires employers to give 60 days of advanced notice if it is laying off more than 500 workers at a time. He also claims that the company has so far failed to provide any of the negative quarterly reviews that his termination was based on. Anderson added that, prior to the review process being brought in, he had received a promotion, a pay raise and praise for his work during four years with the company. Yahoo responded with a statement that says: 'As noted in our Diversity Report, fairness is a guiding principle of our annual review and reward process. Anderson says the review process was used to justify firing 500 employees, including him, without giving them proper notice or providing the paperwork on which the decision was based (Marissa Mayer, pictured) 'Our performance-review process was developed to allow employees at all levels of the company to receive meaningful, regular and actionable feedback from others. 'We believe this process allows our team to develop and do their best work. 'Our performance-review process also allows for high performers to engage in increasingly larger opportunities at our company, as well as for low performers to be transitioned out.' Yahoo shares plunged as much as 9 per cent during trading today after Mayer's plans to overhaul the tech company, including more staff cutbacks, failed to impress investors. On Tuesday Mayer had unveiled plans to cut 15 per cent of Yahoo's workforce, and cut services including Smart TV and online magazines. A statement from the company said it was also pursuing 'strategic alternatives' for the future of the business, raising the prospect of a sale or merger. Analysts at FBN Securities saw Yahoo's plan as a signal that the company is 'receptive to receiving offers' from prospective buyers, and considered Verizon and Microsoft to be likely suitors. Shocking failings in the way the NHS treats dying patients have been exposed by watchdogs. Four in ten hospitals have been rated as inadequate or requiring improvement when it comes to end-of-life care. Inspectors found that one terminally ill woman was dragged out of bed for a wash at Colchester Hospital University Trust as nurses failed to realise she was dying. Four in ten hospitals were rated as inadequate or requiring improvement when it comes to end-of-life care At the same trust, an elderly patient was pressed by three doctors to sign a Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) Order despite desperately wanting to be saved. Reports by the Care Quality Commission on 176 hospitals also revealed how doctors were described as not human by relatives and accused of acting without care or compassion. Families were callously told their loved one was dying by a junior doctor in a corridor. DNR orders had also been routinely slapped on patients files by junior doctors without bothering to consult patients, relatives or consultants. The watchdog has now inspected two-thirds of Englands hospitals in an Ofsted-style system that began in 2013. Each is given an overall rating from outstanding down to inadequate and a separate grade for how they treat the dying. In once case, medics at The Royal London Hospital, East London, pictured, had simply written futile on the do not resuscitate form So far, 67 have been classed as requires improvement and seven inadequate on their end-of-life care. The Royal London Hospital, East London, was one which showed a callous attitude to DNR orders and was judged inadequate. CATALOGUE OF CALLOUS TREATMENT Doctors broke bad news to relatives that patients were about to die like they did not care. Inspectors at Kettering General Hospital, Northamptonshire, were told how they just blurted it out, like it was a job to them Water was placed out of patients reach at this hospital and they were left in pain for too long In many hospital trusts specialist doctors and nurses providing end-of-life care worked only nine to five, not weekends or bank holidays Nurses on some wards had not been trained to look after dying patients At the Royal London Hospital, East London, half of Do Not Resuscitate forms had not been filled in properly Nurses at this hospital were heard referring to patients within their earshot by bed numbers and discussing which were dying Advertisement In one case, medics had written futile on the form. The orders are meant to be thorough, giving reasons why patients should not be revived, and signed by colleagues and relatives. Inspectors also raised concerns staff had not replaced the Liverpool Care Pathway. This withdrew fluid and food from the dying with the aim of easing their last days. But a campaign by the Mail highlighted how it was causing harrowing suffering and it was abolished in hospitals in 2014. Inspectors found no specific evidence it was still in use but some nurses at the Royal London Hospital said they had not had new advice and were trained to use only the pathway. Professor Sir Mike Richards, chief inspector of hospitals at the CQC, said some trusts had no idea of how many patients were likely to die each year, making it impossible to ensure staffing levels were adequate. He said the best hospitals have a trust-wide strategic group led by a surgeon but making sure they are thinking about care at the end of life for anybody who may die in every part of the hospital, from the medical ward to A&E. Claire Henry, chief executive of the National Council for Palliative Care, said: This is about attitudes and priorities. We have had too many such reports and it is now time for action. But during 2 hour Commons grilling, Cameron promised new laws for Boris He demanded the PM outline new rules to protect British sovereignty London Mayor Boris Johnson has flirted with both In and Out campaigns Mr Johnson, pictured at The Ivy restaurant last night, has demanded answers from the PM on sovereignty and received a promise of new laws in return David Cameron is set to unveil new laws making clear the sovereignty of Britain and the House of Commons at the same time as he seals his EU deal in a bid to win Boris Johnson's support. The London Mayor has insisted the Prime Minister has achieved little more than the 'best of a bad job' in his talks with Brussels and warned there was a 'lot more to do'. But in a bid to win Mr Johnson's support, Mr Cameron promised swift moves to legally confirm British law was superior to that made by the EU. The Prime Minister is expected to make clear the British Supreme Court outranks the European Court of Justice - making it similar to Germany constitutional court. A new bill could also be produced making clear the Commons reserves the right to scrap laws implementing EU rules in Britain that was first passed in 1972 - restating existing constitutional convention. Securing the support of Mr Johnson would likely guarantee Mr Cameron faces few truly 'big beasts' in the referendum race to polling day, expected on June 23 if the remaining talks go well. Mr Cameron first floated some of the ideas at a Chatham House speech in November and Justice Secretary Michael Gove has been tasked with drawing up the new laws. Mr Gove himself is the centre of speculation today after The Times reported he was torn between the case for leaving and loyalty to Mr Cameron. Mr Gove's spokesman said the minister would not decide until a deal was struck: 'Like the prime minister, he has not ruled anything out.' In other developments today, International Development Secretary Justine Greening backed Mr Cameron's rules which currently bar eurosceptic ministers from taking to the campaign trail for Leave. She told the BBC: 'I happen to agree with the Prime Minister, I think this is a good deal, I hope we can seal the deal when he goes to Brussels later this month. 'But in the meantime we have Cabinet collective responsibility and indeed the deal isn't finally agreed yet. 'In the end it won't just be for Cabinet ministers to say where they stand on this, it will be for everyone in our country.' She added: 'I would like us to be able to stay in a Europe where we have a better, renegotiated deal. For me it's about interest and influence - it's in our interest because it matters for jobs and it's about influence because the discussions that happen around the table at the European Union are absolutely relevant to our lives day-to-day here in Britain and we should be at that table if we possibly can be and get a good deal.' Mr Johnson, left, clashed with the Prime Minister over British sovereignty, right, in Parliament yesterday, both pictured during the debate When asked what he liked about the Prime Minister's renegotiation deal yesterday, Mr Johnson said: 'The Prime Minister is making the best out of a bad job. 'Let's wait and see where this whole thing goes.' Speaking at Westminster, Mr Johnson later said one of the measures he was seeking was a law to 'assert the sovereignty of this House of Commons'. Mr Cameron immediately revealed that work to produce new legislation was underway, with Justice Secretary Michael Gove taking the lead. Securing the backing of Mr Johnson is considered crucial by Number Ten since it would leave the Out campaign without a high profile leader. Eurosceptics are already reeling from the news that Theresa May is almost certain to side with Mr Cameron. The leading contenders to front the Out campaign now are Leader of the Commons Chris Grayling, ex-defence secretary Liam Fox and ex-shadow Home Secretary David Davis. Work and pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith a passionate lifelong Eurosceptic will also speak out in favour of leaving. The 'sovereignty' bill is expected to be introduced at the same time as the PM completes his negotiations with Brussels later this month - shoring up a deal which has been condemned by Eurosceptics as a 'slap in the face for Britain'. This could then provide Mr Johnson with a chance to formally back the In camp. Yesterday Mr Johnson continued to flirt with the idea of supporting so-called Brexit - saying that David Cameron (pictured) had a 'lot more to do' to win him over One option is to ask the UK's the Supreme Court to act as a 'constitutional longstop' if the European Court of Justice passes laws the UK Parliament does not like. The ECJ could then be asked to look at the issues again. In a speech in November, Mr Cameron said he wanted to see whether the UK could adopt rights similar to those of Germany's Constitutional Court in reviewing whether European directives and European court rulings overstep the EU's powers when applied domestically. Number Ten confirmed that plans will be brought forward 'within weeks'. Government officials have privately voiced doubt on whether the plan will work. They point out that, if ministers were to ultimately ignore EU law, they could be hit with massive fines running into millions of pounds. The German Constitutional Court the model for the changes - has never disapplied EU law in practice. One insider said: 'This might buy Britain some time in its dealings with the ECJ. It is hard to see it protecting us completely.' Michael Gove, the Justice Secretary, has said trying to formulate a new law is 'complex'. He is expected to publish his proposals alongside the long overdue British Bill of Rights, which will replace Labour's Human Rights Act. Home Secretary Theresa May tells anyone who will listen that the reason for her failure to curb immigration is the free movement of people between the 28 EU member states. At the Tory conference in October, in one of her most powerful speeches, she warned that the dramatic increase in net migration 330,000 last year was a threat to 'social cohesion'. So many Tories hoped she would throw her usual caution to the wind and become figurehead of the Leave campaign in the referendum. Their hopes rose after she was spotted having lunch several times with Liam Fox, the former Tory Defence Secretary, who is vociferous in wanting Britain to quit. A decisive intervention by Mrs May would have electrified the stuttering campaign, which is devoid of star quality or even a de facto leader. Scroll down for video The splits and apparent lack of leadership in the 'Out' camps are a gift for David Cameron, who wants to stay in the EU But in a short statement, which delighted Downing Street, she has lamely hailed the watered-down package David Cameron presented this week as 'the basis for a deal'. The narrow, unambitious and, in many ways, meaningless reforms the Prime Minister is seeking should be a godsend to the Out campaign. Yet without a persuasive and likeable leader leading a coherent effort, the argument to leave will founder. So who else could rise to the challenge? Sajid Javid, the Business Secretary, who has flirted with Brexit, has frustrated his supporters by keeping his head below the parapet. Javid owes his rapid rise to Cabinet seniority, in only his second Parliament, to his mentor and friend George Osborne, the Chancellor, a key figure in Cameron's pro-EU team. Boris Johnson dropped artful hints again yesterday when he said 'there is still a lot more to do' before the Cameron deal wins his support. He also refused to say if there was anything 'positive' in the proposals. But perhaps a more telling response comes from one of Johnson's most trusted supporters, who told me yesterday. 'He's not going to [head the Leave campaign] as yet, but there are still people working on him.' The prospect of a big Cabinet job from Cameron when he stands down as London Mayor in May may be more tempting for Johnson than leading a principled Leave campaign in the first national referendum on Europe since 1975. Home Secretary Theresa May (left) claims her failure to curb immigration is down to free movement within the EU. Euroscpetics' hopes rose when she was spotted having lunch several times with Liam Fox (right), the former Tory Defence Secretary, who is vociferous in wanting Britain to quit WHO ARE THE RIVAL 'LEAVE' GROUPS? VOTE LEAVE HQ: An office in Westminster Tower overlooking the Parliament. MONEY: Former Tory treasurer Peter Cruddas has given 1 million. He has predicted that 20 million will have to spent by the time voters go to the polls. Elliptically, he has said: 'There are some big businesses, big business names that are with us, but they haven't declared yet.' BACKERS: Spread betting millionaire tycoon and former Ukip treasurer Stuart Wheeler. RUN BY: Matthew Elliott, a key figure in the referendum campaign to successfully reject plans to abandon the traditional first-past-the-post electoral system in favour of the Alternative Vote system. Also Dominic Cummings, a controversial former ministerial adviser who was the architect of an embarrassing stunt last November when anti-EU protesters used fake ID to get into a meeting being addressed by Mr Cameron and heckled him before being removed. Jon Moynihan is one of the group's most media-friendly faces. A regu-lar at Royal Ascot in top hat and tails, where he supports his wife, the New York milliner Patricia Underwood, he is a former executive chairman of PA Consulting, who once managed the catalogue of pop groups including The Who and T Rex before working for the War On Want charity in India. STAFF: 40. LEAVE.EU HQ: A second-floor Bristol office belonging to tycoon Arron Banks. Its gaudy website has a crudely designed spoof slogan copying BBC-TV's The Great British Bake Off artwork and an unfunny cartoon of Cameron and an elephant. MONEY: Has spent 2.5 million in advertising and leafleting tens of thousands of homes. It claims to have 400,000 supporters who have registered via Facebook, Twitter, or have been signed up by the 70-strong call centre staff. BACKERS: Arron Banks, a former Tory donor who switched to Ukip before the last election after being insulted as a 'nobody' by William Hague and has given Ukip 1 million. In turn, he's insulted Ukip's only MP, Douglas Carswell, calling him: 'Borderline autistic with mental illness wrapped in.' OTHER SUPPORTERS: Toby Blackwell, whose family founded Blackwell Books, and Jim Mellon, a friend of Nigel Farage and whose wealth (made in investment in emerging markets, notably Russia) is estimated at 850 million. STAFF: A call centre manned by employees who already work for Arron Banks. A strategy team has been imported from the U.S. who have worked on more than 25 American referenda campaigns. BUSINESS FOR BRITAIN HQ: The business arm of Vote Leave and based in the same Westminster office. BACKERS: The main player is John Mills, 77, Labour's biggest donor. Having founded the JML catalogue company, he donated 1.65 million to Labour in the form of shares in his company. His younger brother is married to Tessa Jowell, former Labour Cabinet minister. LOW POINT: Mocked for its first publication, Change Or Go, which ran to an impenetrable 1,030 pages. CONSERVATIVES FOR BRITAIN BACKERS: Led by Lord (Nigel) Lawson who, despite his strong anti-EU views is seen as too much associated with an older generation to galvanise the campaign. Critics cruelly reminded him that he backed Britain's entry into the doomed Exchange Rate Mechanism (intended as a precursor to the euro single currency) in 1990. Two years later, on Black Wednesday, Britain was forced into a humiliating withdrawal from the system. The debacle cost the Tories their reputation for economic competence for a generation. Lord Lamont, who was Chancellor at the time, and around 100 other Tory MPs are backing the group, which also has office space with Vote Leave. Daniel Hannan, the articulate Tory MEP, is one of its most persuasive supporters. GRASSROOTS OUT HQ: Run from the constituency office of Peter Bone, Tory MP for Wellingborough. A major rally is planned in Manchester tomorrow. Backed by Leave.EU after Vote Leave refused to support it. BACKERS: Cross-party support from Labour MP Kate Hoey, Tory MP Tom Pursglove, aged 27, and 34 other Tory MPs, Nigel Farage and the Democratic Unioninst Party in Ulster. LABOUR LEAVE BACKERS: Several Labour MPs. AIM: 'We believe that the debate about our country's future in the EU has been dormant within the Labour Party for too long. We need to have a full dialogue within our membership and with our natural supporters.' Advertisement Big-hitters such as Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond and the Chancellor are also making it clear they will be unashamed cheerleaders for the 'Stay' campaign. So far, alongside siren voices from the BBC, the Bank of England and business outfits such as the CBI, they have left the Leave campaign miles behind. One of the main problems is that the absence of a single big hitter calling for Britain to quit the EU is exacerbated by the growing schism in the fractured Leave camp. At present, several rival groups are clamouring for media attention and seeking to gain authority as the leading voice. In an attempt to pull them into a united front, two multi-millionaire businessmen met for a discreet lunch recently at one of London's most fashionable private members' clubs. Although insurance tycoon and Ukip supporter Arron Banks and consumer goods entrepreneur John Mills (the Labour Party's most generous donor) are from opposite sides of the political spectrum, they are the key figures campaigning to persuade the British people to vote to leave the EU. Banks, a former Tory donor, is founder of the Leave.EU campaign group, while Mills is the leading figure in Business For Britain which is an offshoot of the other leading Out group, Vote Leave. On the menu at the 5 Hertford Street Club in Mayfair was a plan to bury their differences and work together. Up for grabs in the next six weeks is the choice by the Electoral Commission of whether Vote Leave or Leave.EU is the officially 'designated' body to lead the campaign to quit the EU. Sajid Javid (pictured), the Business Secretary, who has flirted with Brexit, has frustrated his supporters by keeping his head below the parapet Javid owes his rapid rise to Cabinet seniority, in only his second Parliament, to his mentor and friend George Osborne (right), the Chancellor, a key figure in Cameron's pro-EU team The winner will be given the same amount of airtime as the rival In campaign, as well as an estimated 7 million from the public purse to deliver leaflets to 25 million homes. But on Tuesday, Vote Leave rejected the chance of joining Leave.EU, dealing yet another blow to the Out camp. For weeks Vote Leave, which concentrates on the economic case for leaving, has rejected overtures from Leave.EU, which is focusing on regaining control of our borders to limit immigration. A glance at Vote Leave's operations grid from last month illustrates much that is wrong. Rather than concentrating its fire on the Stay campaign, under the heading 'Enemy Activity' the grid listed the launch of Grassroots Out (GO) one of the 41 different groups that have sprung up to fight to leave the EU. Is it any surprise that this motley bunch of mini-organisations are struggling against the hugely powerful, unified and well-financed Britain Stronger In Europe grouping. This is backed by former Marks & Spencer boss Lord (Stuart) Rose, Lord (Peter) Mandelson, former head of the Army Sir Peter Wall and ex-Prime Ministers Sir John Major, Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. Compare this well-oiled machine to the launch of GO in Kettering last month. Even though almost 2,500 people turned up for speeches by Labour MP Kate Hoey, Liam Fox one of 35 Tory MPs backing GO, Northern Ireland's DUP MPs and Ukip leader Nigel Farage, it hardly gained any TV or radio coverage. And in the background, the Leave campaign's civil war simmers. Big-hitters such as Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond (left) and the Chancellor are also making it clear they will be unashamed cheerleaders for the 'Stay' campaign Last week it was revealed there had been an attempted coup at Vote Leave with a bid to oust the group's two leaders, campaign director Dominic Cummings (the volatile former adviser to Justice Secretary Michael Gove) and chief executive Matthew Elliott. There have been rancorous disagreements with legal letters sent to Vote Leave following unfounded allegations that some Leave.EU members are 'racist and homophobic'. The manoeuvring continued yesterday with the announcement that former Tory Chancellor Lord (Nigel) Lawson was taking over as chairman of Vote Leave. Lord Forsyth, who was one of Margaret Thatcher's favourite ministers, is also joining the board. Elliott and Cummings will relinquish their executive roles but continue to attend board meetings. Of course, the splits and apparent lack of leadership, are a gift for David Cameron. No doubt, too, such anarchy has been a disincentive for high-profile figures such as Boris Johnson, Sajid Javid and Justice Secretary Michael Gove to pluck up the courage to champion the Leave campaign. For the campaign desperately needs a figure of the stature of Gove. Friends say he wants to be seen as an 'honest and principled politician', which suggests he might, possibly, back the Leave camp. But yesterday his friends were saying he still hadn't 'made his mind up', even though Downing Street has been trying to bounce him by briefing that he is already signed up to Cameron's pitiful package. Until recently, two of the Leave campaign's biggest hitters Lord Lawson, 83, and the charismatic but ever-divisive Nigel Farage were at daggers drawn. Boris Johnson (pictured) dropped artful hints again yesterday when he said 'there is still a lot more to do' before the Cameron deal wins his support In October, Farage called Lawson a 'snob' for dismissing the importance of his own role as Ukip leader in the campaign. When Lawson was announced as head of Conservatives For Britain, who are campaigning for an Out vote, he was dismissed as a 'has-been' by Leave.EU. They have now buried the hatchet and will share a platform in a debate with the Stay side later this month. But still, leading Tories who want Britain out of the EU are increasingly frustrated by this rudderless campaign. Last week, Chris Grayling, the Leader of the Commons who is expected to speak out irrespective of the damage it may inflict on his Cabinet career attempted unsuccessfully to create yet another campaign group to try to bring unity to the Out camp. There are two weeks to go before the crucial summit, which will be stage-managed, to show Cameron fighting through the night to secure the best deal for Britain. Public smoking bans do save lives by reducing the number of people exposed to passive smoking, according to the most comprehensive study of such measures ever carried out. The bans are responsible for a major drop in heart disease cases, according to the worldwide research. A team of Irish researchers examined 77 studies from 21 countries. In one study from the University of Liverpool, experts found that heart attack rates for men fell by just over 40 per cent following Englands smoking ban, which was introduced in 2007. Some 33 out of 44 studies reviewed on heart disease found a significant reduction following the introduction of smoking bans. Researchers also found that the greatest reduction in hospital admissions for heart disease following smoking legislation was among non-smokers. Public smoking bans do save lives by reducing the number of people exposed to passive smoking, according to the most comprehensive study of such measures ever carried out Review author Professor Cecily Kelleher, from University College Dublin, said: The current evidence provides more robust support for the previous conclusions that the introduction of national legislative smoking bans does lead to improved health outcomes through a reduction in second-hand smoke exposure. We now need research on the continued longer term impact of smoking bans on the health outcomes of specific sub-groups of the population, such as young children, disadvantaged and minority groups. The researchers were writing in the respected Cochrane Library, a collection of health databases. Professor Peter Weissberg, medical director of the British Heart Foundation, said: This review strengthens previous evidence that banning smoking in public places leads to fewer deaths from heart disease and that this effect is greatest in the non-smoking population. The smoking ban in England made the practice illegal inside pubs and other public buildings So, in public health terms, this has been a successful piece of legislation. Smoking is bad for smokers and for those around them. Reduced exposure to smoke leads to fewer fatal heart attacks. The smoking ban in England made the practice illegal inside pubs and other public buildings. Experts have suggested extending its scope, with several recent proposals that smoking be banned in public parks. The Christian owners of a bakery who lost a discrimination case over a so-called gay cake may have had their human rights breached. A high-profile appeal by the bakers, ordered to pay 500 for refusing to make a cake iced with a pro-gay marriage slogan, was halted yesterday by a dramatic intervention from Northern Ireland's top lawyer. Attorney General John Larkin said there was a 'possible incompatibility' between the province's equality laws and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Appeal: Daniel and Amy McArthur of Ashers Baking Company arrive at Belfast High Court yesterday, left. Right, gay rights activist Gareth Lee, left at court, who had ordered a cake with a pro-gay marriage slogan A Belfast court ruled last May that the gay customer, Gareth Lee, had been discriminated against on the grounds of his sexual orientation. But Ashers Baking Company, and the McArthur family who own it, appealed against the controversial finding that they had acted unlawfully, claiming that it ignored their entitlement to religious views. And Mr Larkin said yesterday there were issues around a potential conflict between anti-discrimination legislation and the rights to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, and expression. Bakery general manager Daniel McArthur, 26, insisted the firm had treated Mr Lee like any other customer but said the family had been expected to compromise their deeply held religious beliefs. Christian groups and lawyers had warned that the ruling meant businesses would be stripped of the right to run their concerns in line with their most fervently held views. The row began in May 2014 when Mr Lee, a gay rights activist, tried to order a cake carrying a gay marriage slogan together with images of Sesame Street puppets Bert and Ernie and the logo of the QueerSpace pressure group. Refused: The pro-gay marriage cake design He paid in full when placing the order at Ashers' Belfast branch, but two days later the company phoned him to say it could not be processed. Backed by the Northern Ireland Equality Commission, which paid almost 39,000 in legal fees, Mr Lee took legal action. A year after ordering the cake, a court ruled he had been discriminated against on the grounds of sexual orientation as well as his political beliefs. District Judge Isobel Brownlie accepted that Ashers had 'genuine and deeply held' religious views, but said the business was not above the law. She ordered the bakers to pay agreed damages of 500. The McArthur family challenged the decision with financial backing from the Christian Institute. The appeal was due to be heard yesterday but Belfast's Court of Appeal will now hear the Attorney General's representations before a new hearing on May 9. In a statement, Mr McArthur said the Attorney General's decision to get involved showed the case 'raises matters of crucial importance'. He said: 'While the delay means it will be exactly two years to the day that the order was placed which led to the case, we are patient people and will now await the next stage in the process and remain confident that our case is right and just.' He previously said his firm 'does not discriminate against anyone' and had objected to 'the message on the cake and not the customer'. He said: 'As a family, we believe we should retain the freedom to decline business which would force us to promote a cause with which we disagree. We were simply unwilling to endorse a campaign for a new law that so clearly goes against what the Bible says about marriage. And for that we were punished.' Dr Michael Wardlow, chief commissioner for Northern Ireland's Equality Commission, expressed disappointment at the delay. He added: 'This is not simply about some form of religious intolerance or closing down of Christian expression because in all of this the other person who has a right in this, who seems to have been forgotten, is Gareth.' I was wrong: Britain's most outspoken gay rights campaigner courageously admits he shouldn't have condemned the Christian cake makers By Peter Tatchell, Human Rights Campaigner for the Daily Mail There hasnt been such a momentous disagreement over cake since the meltdown over a Baked Alaska on The Great British Bake Off a few years ago. And even that didnt end up in court. The Appeal Court yesterday suddenly adjourned the case of the Christian-run Ashers Bakery in Belfast over its refusal to produce a cake, iced with a slogan supporting same-sex marriage, ordered in May 2014 by a gay customer, Gareth Lee. He wanted the words Support Gay Marriage and the logo of a gay group, QueerSpace, piped on to the cake. Ashers refused. On religious grounds, they oppose same-sex marriage. Along with most gay and equality campaigners, at first I condemned the bakerys stance. It seemed a clear instance of homophobia and prejudice. In addition, Ashers had misleadingly advertised that they were willing to decorate their cakes with designs of a customers choosing. But then they rejected Mr Lees wording. Strict Christian family: Daniel McArthur, managing director of Ashers Bakery, and his wife Amy outside court I supported his legal claim against Ashers, and I applauded the subsequent verdict last year, when the bakery was found guilty of discrimination and fined 500. But now I have changed my mind. Ashers didnt turn Mr Lee away because he was gay, but because they were profoundly opposed to the pro-gay marriage message he wanted them to provide. In a free society, a business should not be compelled to assist the promotion of an idea that it opposes. Much to my disappointment, Ashers do not support gay equality. They are against gay marriage. I disagree with them utterly but I respect their right to accept or reject ideas, according to their own beliefs. Discrimination against people for their sexuality, race, gender, age and so on is indefensible. But discrimination against an idea is different. People have a right not to assist ideas they disagree with. Compelling them to do so is a negation of freedom. Intervention: Attorney General John Larkin I will always defend gay human rights. But I also defend other human rights, such as freedom of conscience, expression and religion. Indeed the adjournment came after an intervention by Northern Irelands Attorney General John Larkin, who said there was possible incompatibility between the provinces equality laws and the European Convention on Human Rights. While I believe that Christian bed and breakfast owners and civil partnership registrars were wrong to deny service to gay people, this case is not the same. It is about the refusal to facilitate an idea namely, support for gay marriage. Ashers is run by the McArthur family, who took the bakerys name from a line in the Book of Genesis: Out of Asher his bread shall be fat and he shall yield royal dainties. The McArthurs, of course, are a strict Christian family. It was their Presbyterian Christian beliefs that underpinned their stance against gay marriage. When Mr Lee walked into the shop and requested the cake, he gave the order to Karen McArthur, whose son Daniel is the bakerys general manager. Mrs McArthur didnt reject the request at once. She says she didnt want to cause a scene. But the McArthurs discussed it as a family later, and told Mr Lee, with apologies, that they couldnt take the order because they opposed gay marriage. Mr McArthur said this week: If my granny had come into the shop and placed that order, we would have said no to her. This sums up the reason for my change of mind. The McArthurs rejected Mr Lees message because they reject equal marriage rights for gay couples. And in a democratic society theyve got a right to do that, however misguided I think they are. What they dont have any right to do is to turn away Mr Lee, or anyone else, from their shop for being gay. It is now clear that they were not doing that. When a writ from the Northern Ireland Equality Commission was first served against Ashers, I saw it as a straightforward case of homophobic prejudice, fuelled by an intolerant interpretation of religious faith. Acting on their beliefs, they declined to make the cake. While I accept that the McArthurs are sincere when they call themselves Christians, I think they are confused and mistaken. They oppose gay love and marriage. Yet Jesus never once condemned homosexuality. But I mustnt let my fiercely held principles blind me to the full picture. This is difficult to write, but I now believe the court was wrong to penalise Ashers and I was wrong to endorse its decision. The lawsuit against the bakery was well intended. It sought to challenge homophobia. But the court erred by ruling that Gareth Lee was discriminated against because of his sexual orientation and political opinions. I disagree. Refusing to write a message on a cake in support of same-sex marriage is not discrimination against someones sexuality it is discrimination against an idea. The law was never intended to force people to facilitate views to which they objected. That would be iniquitous and beg some dangerous questions. Should a Muslim printer be obliged to publish cartoons of Mohammed, or a Jewish one the words of a Holocaust denier? Will gay bakers have to accept orders for cakes with homophobic slurs? If the current Ashers verdict stands, it would leave businesses unable to refuse to decorate cakes, print posters or emblazon mugs with bigoted messages. Discrimination against people should be unlawful but never discrimination against ideas and opinions. Britains largest elderly care charity has encouraged pensioners to sign up for expensive energy tariffs in return for 6million a year, according to an investigation. Age UK linked up with power giant E.ON last year to recommend a special energy package for pensioners typically costing 1,049 a year, which was 245 more than on the companys cheapest 2015 rate. There are around 152,000 customers signed up to the two year deal, meaning pensioners have overspent 37million in a year, according to The Sun. An investigation has revealed that Britains largest elderly care charity Age UK has encouraged pensioners to sign up for expensive energy tariffs in return for being paid 6million a year by power giant E.ON (file photo) The newspapers investigation found that Age UKs annual accounts show the charity has received payments of at least 6million a year from E.ON. This equates to 41 for every person who signed up to the E.ON deal. While the payments are not illegal, it is thought the government will look into the allegations. Energy Secretary Amber Rudd said: People expect a fair deal when it comes to energy bills, not a rough deal. I take very seriously this allegation that Britains pensioners are being misled. Business Secretary Sajid Javid said: Businesses caught cheating customers should have the book thrown at them. If theres wrongdoing here, we will not fail to act. Tory MP Dr Dan Poulter, a member of the Commons energy select committee, said his research suggested the claims were true. He added: You have got to trust a charity that is purporting to support the best deal and get the best deal for vulnerable older people. That is something that I believe E.ON has exploited. Perhaps the charity is not that commercially savvy. It has not necessarily got the best deal for its customers and I think there is a moral obligation for the charity and on E.ON to recompense some of the most vulnerable energy consumers. Beth Porter, 73, from Frant, East Sussex, said she regretted taking out a two-year fixed deal with E.ON. I fell for this so-called good deal, she told the BBC. As a pensioner of fixed income, I really cannot afford to receive notice of my latest dual fuel bill and find it was double what Ive usually been paying. This year, Age UK warned that a third of older people are anxious about high heating costs and has criticised Big Six power firms for overcharging. Caroline Abrahams, Age UK director, said: With wholesale costs representing about half the total cost of energy, passing on some of the reduction to customers could make a big difference to the affordability of their bills. Age UK linked up with E.ON last year to recommend a special energy package for pensioners typically costing 1,049 a year, which was 245 more than on the companys cheapest 2015 rate (file photo) And a fortnight ago, Tom Wright, the charitys chief executive, was appointed to head the Governments fuel poverty commission. However, the charity has trumpeted the costly E.ON deal in leaflets and brochures as great value which helps save energy and money. Last month, E.ON announced new tariffs as a result of lower wholesale costs - charging 939 a year for a typical energy user. It is more than 100 cheaper than the previous version launched last February but is still 170 more expensive than E.ONs current cheapest deal. People will be stunned. Most will assume a tariff done in association with Age UK would be in their best interests E.ON-Age UK customer Ray Noble Last week, Age UK chief executive Tom Wright, 53, who earns more than 180,000 a year, was announced as a non-executive director of the Financial Conduct Authority, where he will be regulating companies and helping to protect consumers. E.ON chief executive Tony Cocker, 56, pulled in 908,000 last year and pocketed a 510,000 bonus the year before. He came under fire for receiving the annual bonus despite his firm being slapped with a 12million fine for misselling to hundreds of thousands of customers. Ray Noble, 69, from Milton Keynes, was on an E.ON-Age UK deal until 2013 when he was automatically switched to a standard tariff. The writer and academic told The Sun: The assumption that I had was that this was the best deal that they could make for people who were living on pensions. Its really deceptive. Im really annoyed to find out now that it probably wasnt the best tariff to be on. People will be stunned. Most will assume a tariff done in association with Age UK would be in their best interests. E.ON chief executive Tony Cocker (pictured left) pulled in 908,000 last year and pocketed a 510,000 bonus the year before. Pictured right is Age UK director Caroline Abrahams. The charity has rejected the allegations An Age UK spokesperson said: We strongly reject the allegations and interpretation of figures in this article. Age UK has worked with E.ON for the past 14 years, openly and above board, and they have been generous supporters of our charity over and above the number of customers on the tariff. We launched the most competitive, fixed two year energy tariff available anywhere on the market on 20th January this year, with no exit fees. Energy prices change all the time and we have always advised older people to look out for new good deals and we will continue to do so. A E.ON spokesperson added: We always work to make sure our tariffs, for all customers, are competitively priced and that is further evidenced by the fact that our current Age UK tariff was the UKs cheapest product of its type in the UK when it was launched, a two year fixed deal, and when we launched our current one year fixed product, it was also the cheapest in the UK. Crucially, any of our customers can switch to any of these products at any time, based on the suitability of their meter, without any charge being applied. Harpooned by a fellow Etonian speared by the Mogg! Thin gruel watered down, was Jacob Rees-Moggs verdict on David Camerons precious EU draft deal. It was uttered with magnificent grandeur the Earl of Grantham giving a thumbs-down to his anchovies on toast. For once there was no drollery in Mr Rees-Moggs patrician voice. He was angry. Yet he did not let his ire flare. Fury suppressed can be more impressive and less vulgar than screaming indignation. Scroll down for video Jacob Rees-Mogg, pictured, waved a wrist with disdain towards Prime Minister David Cameron over his deal Rees-Mogg claimed Mr Cameron, pictured, had 'a fortnight in which to salvage his reputation as a negotiator' Mr Cameron had a fortnight in which to salvage his reputation as a negotiator, concluded the Mogg (Con, NE Somerset), waving a wrist with disdain. Ouch. This went beyond policy. This went to the Cameron character and it came from a former Eton contemporary who was a new squit when the 18-year-old Cameron was in his pomp. Bogwashed by a bloke who could have been his fag. Mr Cameron had had to forego lunch, so many MPs wanted to ask about his European Union renegotiation. What with PMQs, his stint at the despatch box lasted almost three hours. The drama was mainly on the Tory side. Mind you, the very first question at PMQs had been from John Mann (Lab, Bassetlaw) who asked: Is that it? Is that the best he can do? I love old Mann. So wonderfully blunt. I have known terriers with tidier manners. Mr Mann alleged that the much-vaunted Tory economic miracle depended on a million new immigrants. Why should British workers support this dismal EU deal? Mr Cameron evaded that tricky point. The EU session had begun with the customary pro-Brussels effort from Kenneth Clarke (Con, Rushcliffe) and a sceptical one from Sir William Cash (Con, Stone), dry as coffin dust. Liam Fox (Con, N Somerset) livened things up by arguing his tone tense and tremulous that ruddy Europe would still have the final say over our lives. The referendum choice would basically be whether we want our own laws, said Dr Fox. He has been one of the few Tory grandees to show much bravery by taking a sceptical position so far. Sycophants were out in force. Behind Mr Cameron sat Sir Michael Ellis (Northampton N), sucky-suckier than anything yet invented by Sir James Dyson. He kept nodding to everything Mr Cameron said, as did new Tory MP Suella Fernandes (Fareham), round-eyed in adoration. She outgrovelled the 2015 intakes other Mr Keen, Alan Mak (Havant). If Matey Mak is not careful, yes-woman Suella will beat him to the coveted position of bag-carrier to the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Rubber Bands. Boris Johnson (Con, Uxbridge & S Ruislip) was at the back of the Chamber where Eurosceptic horse-whisperer Bernard Jenkin (North Essex) murmured into his right ear. Labours Alan Johnson tried to smoke out Boriss position by mentioning that Boriss father and younger brother Jo were pro-EU. Speaker Bercow, improperly, added to the teasing, trying to provoke a contribution from Westminsters own Achilles. Mayor Boris did eventually manage to say something that was faultlessly opaque. Mr Cameron, fluttering eyelashes, said we may have to wait a bit longer for Boris to decide if he is an innie or an outie. Sarah Wollaston (Con, Totnes) frightens the Cameroons by being coolly resistant to political bribery. She called the EUs offer grudging and threadbare and said if this was what they gave us when we threatened to leave, what would it be like if we voted to stay? Fair point. Imagine agreeing to use the same mobile phone provider for life. Youd be ripped off, wouldnt you? That could be what we effectively do if we vote to Remain. You may wonder why given that the vast majority of Tory activists want to Leave so many Tory MPs were supporting Mr Cameron yesterday. Well, the PM let slip something interesting. He mentioned the forthcoming constituency boundary reviews. Rebels should not give them a second thought, he said airily. Blackmail artfully flighted, floated outside the left stump, just enough to unsettle waverers. Appeal: Daniel and Amy McArthur of Ashers bakery outside Belfast High Court yesterday There hasnt been such a momentous disagreement over cake since the meltdown over a Baked Alaska on The Great British Bake Off a few years ago. And even that didnt end up in court. The Appeal Court yesterday suddenly adjourned the case of the Christian-run Ashers Bakery in Belfast over its refusal to produce a cake, iced with a slogan supporting same-sex marriage, ordered in May 2014 by a gay customer, Gareth Lee. He wanted the words Support Gay Marriage and the logo of a gay group, QueerSpace, piped on to the cake. Ashers refused. On religious grounds, they oppose same-sex marriage. Along with most gay and equality campaigners, at first I condemned the bakerys stance. It seemed a clear instance of homophobia and prejudice. In addition, Ashers had misleadingly advertised that they were willing to decorate their cakes with designs of a customers choosing. But then they rejected Mr Lees wording. I supported his legal claim against Ashers, and I applauded the subsequent verdict last year, when the bakery was found guilty of discrimination and fined 500. But now I have changed my mind. Ashers didnt turn Mr Lee away because he was gay, but because they were profoundly opposed to the pro-gay marriage message he wanted them to provide. In a free society, a business should not be compelled to assist the promotion of an idea that it opposes. Much to my disappointment, Ashers do not support gay equality. They are against gay marriage. I disagree with them utterly but I respect their right to accept or reject ideas, according to their own beliefs. Discrimination against people for their sexuality, race, gender, age and so on is indefensible. But discrimination against an idea is different. People have a right not to assist ideas they disagree with. Compelling them to do so is a negation of freedom. I will always defend gay human rights. But I also defend other human rights, such as freedom of conscience, expression and religion. Indeed the adjournment came after an intervention by Northern Irelands Attorney General John Larkin, who said there was possible incompatibility between the provinces equality laws and the European Convention on Human Rights. Customer: Gareth Lee, pictured arriving at court yesterday, and, right, the rejected cake design While I believe that Christian bed and breakfast owners and civil partnership registrars were wrong to deny service to gay people, this case is not the same. It is about the refusal to facilitate an idea namely, support for gay marriage. Ashers is run by the McArthur family, who took the bakerys name from a line in the Book of Genesis: Out of Asher his bread shall be fat and he shall yield royal dainties. The McArthurs, of course, are a strict Christian family. It was their Presbyterian Christian beliefs that underpinned their stance against gay marriage. When Mr Lee walked into the shop and requested the cake, he gave the order to Karen McArthur, whose son Daniel is the bakerys general manager. Mrs McArthur didnt reject the request at once. She says she didnt want to cause a scene. But the McArthurs discussed it as a family later, and told Mr Lee, with apologies, that they couldnt take the order because they opposed gay marriage. Mr McArthur said this week: If my granny had come into the shop and placed that order, we would have said no to her. This sums up the reason for my change of mind. The McArthurs rejected Mr Lees message because they reject equal marriage rights for gay couples. And in a democratic society theyve got a right to do that, however misguided I think they are. What they dont have any right to do is to turn away Mr Lee, or anyone else, from their shop for being gay. It is now clear that they were not doing that. Changing his mind: Peter Tatchell When a writ from the Northern Ireland Equality Commission was first served against Ashers, I saw it as a straightforward case of homophobic prejudice, fuelled by an intolerant interpretation of religious faith. Acting on their beliefs, they declined to make the cake. While I accept that the McArthurs are sincere when they call themselves Christians, I think they are confused and mistaken. They oppose gay love and marriage. Yet Jesus never once condemned homosexuality. But I mustnt let my fiercely held principles blind me to the full picture. This is difficult to write, but I now believe the court was wrong to penalise Ashers and I was wrong to endorse its decision. The lawsuit against the bakery was well intended. It sought to challenge homophobia. But the court erred by ruling that Gareth Lee was discriminated against because of his sexual orientation and political opinions. I disagree. Refusing to write a message on a cake in support of same-sex marriage is not discrimination against someones sexuality it is discrimination against an idea. The law was never intended to force people to facilitate views to which they objected. That would be iniquitous and beg some dangerous questions. Should a Muslim printer be obliged to publish cartoons of Mohammed, or a Jewish one the words of a Holocaust denier? Will gay bakers have to accept orders for cakes with homophobic slurs? If the current Ashers verdict stands, it would leave businesses unable to refuse to decorate cakes, print posters or emblazon mugs with bigoted messages. Discrimination against people should be unlawful but never discrimination against ideas and opinions. Advertisement Guinness are not only pushing their world famous stout in their new ad but also opening the world's eyes to prejudice - with an anti-racism advert. The new ad, filmed entirely in black and white, will take viewers back to 1930s New York. Entitled 'Intolerant Champion', it tells the story of jazz musician John Hammond who was born at the turn of the century - before the civil rights movement. In 1930s New York, black and white musicians rarely played together - and many music venues permitted white audiences only. Scroll down for video Entitled 'Intolerant Champion', the new Guinness advert tells the story of jazz musician John Hammond (played by actor Timothy Renouf, left) who was born at the turn of the century - before the civil rights movement In 1930s New York, black and white musicians rarely played together - and many music venues permitted white audiences only, meaning black people had to find somewhere else to dance Although he was white, John Hammond had a burning passion for music of black origin, including jazz, the blues and gospel. So he toured the bars and clubs of Harlem, seeking original, undiscovered talent to feature on his radio show. The timing of the ad is particularly pertinent - as many Hollywood actors looks set to boycott the Oscars after the recent race row. To this day, black musicians and actors face struggles to get the same recognition and opportunities as their white peers. Hammond, however, was undeterred by the prejudices voiced by many people in the industry - and went on the become a remarkable talent scout. He was responsible for discovering musicians such as Billie Holiday, Count Basie and Aretha Franklin. He signed them to Columbia Records, giving them a platform to be heard and enjoyed by black and white audiences all over the world. However, Hammond stood alone in championing black musicians - and trying to create opportunities for black and white musicians to work together. Although he was white, John Hammond had a burning passion for music of black origin, including jazz, the blues and gospel. So he toured the bars and clubs of Harlem, seeking original, undiscovered talent to feature on his radio show The timing of the ad is particularly pertinent - as many Hollywood actors looks set to boycott the Oscars after the recent race row. To this day, black musicians and actors face struggles to get the same recognition and opportunities as their white peers In his memoirs he reflects 'I heard no colour line in the music' - and it was his pivotal role in bringing together black and white musicians that is his lasting legacy. With a voiceover by Danny Glover, US actor, producer and humanitarian, the ad offers viewers a little snapshot into the hustle and bustle of Hammond's world. Scenes of the city show music loves of all backgrounds united in their love for music - and celebrating the great sounds playing out over the airwaves. Scenes of the city show music loves of all backgrounds united in their love for music - and celebrating the great sounds playing out over the airwaves With a voiceover by Danny Glover, US actor, producer and humanitarian, the ad offers viewers a little snapshot into the hustle and bustle of Hammond's world Marketing Director Stephen O'Kelly said: 'John Hammond' continues a series of stories from Guinness that feature ordinary people achieving extraordinary things. 'John Hammond, in his search for great music, brought black and white musicians together, over-coming divides and creating a fantastic music and social legacy that continues to this day.' The music is a remix of 'Sing Sing Sing' from the Swing Kids film score by James Horner. In his memoirs Hammond reflects 'I heard no colour line in the music' - and it was his pivotal role in bringing together black and white musicians that is his lasting legacy The music is a remix of 'Sing Sing Sing' from the Swing Kids film score by James Horner. It is a song that was originally made famous by the Benny Goodman Trio - the first major mixed race band to gain recognition in America It is a song that was originally made famous by the Benny Goodman Trio - the first major mixed race band to gain recognition in America. Ad director Jake Nava said: 'It's fair to say that John Hammond is an unsung hero and his lasting legacy on the world of music is a story that has been largely untold. You might think the high-minded listeners of Radio 4s Today programme would not be beyond the lure of a headline name. But it seems that the introduction of Nick Robison to the presenting line-up last year has seen a huge surge of listeners for the show. The BBCs flagship current affairs programme saw its audience rise by 267,000 during the last three months of 2015, covering the period when Robinson took over from Jim Naughtie. Nick Robinson, pictured, has seen the numbers of listeners to the Today programme increase by 250,000 This boost is similar to the increase seen by Mishal Hussain, pictured, when she joined in 2013 According to figures released yesterday by Rajar, which monitors radio listening in the UK, Today averaged an audience of 7million each week day during the final quarter of last year, up from 6.8million during the previous three months. It mirrors the boost enjoyed by the show when Mishal Husain, 42, was introduced as a presenter during final few months of 2013, although this increase eventually wore off. Robinson, formerly the BBCs political editor, 52, did not have the most auspicious start when he first presented the prestigious programme in November. He was left with a damaged vocal cords after treatment for lung cancer and was still recovering when he made his debut broadcast, with listeners taken aback by his croaky voice. However, after taking a short break from duties, reportedly to shake off a cold that exacerbated the problem, he returned as has proved a popular addition with listeners, as shown by the impressive numbers. Robinson had long coveted the role of Today presenter. It was reported after he was announced as Naughties replacement that he had a deep personal connection to the show stretching back more than three decades to when he was involved in a car crash that killed his friend Will Redhead, son of former Radio 4 Today presenter Brian Redhead. He became close to Redhead after the crash, applying for his first journalism job after being encour-aged by the respected broadcaster. He has previously credited him with inspiring his love of radio and the media. Hillary Clinton came under fire from both her opponent Bernie Sanders and Anderson Cooper over her ties to Wall Street during her appearance Wednesday at a New Hampshire town hall event. 'I do not know any progressive who has a super PAC and takes 15 million from Wall Street. That's just not progressive,' Sanders said of Clinton as he hit the stage first on Wednesday. Clinton then provided the most awkward moment of the night when it was her turn to speak and she was asked by Cooper about taking Wall Street money for paid speeches after leaving the State Department. 'Well, I don't know, that's what they offered,' she said, shrugging off the $675,000 she received from Goldman Sachs as the audience laughed. She then added; 'Every Secretary of State I know has done that.' Scroll down for videos Bernie Sanders sought to shore up his credentials with black and faith-based communities in the early moments of Wednesday night's CNN town hall in New Hampshire while taking on Hillary Clinton Hillary Clinton talked about her faith - and defended her progressive record, when she got her turn at Wednesday's Democratic town hall in New Hampshire Both Clinton and Sanders are appearing at the CNN town hall this evening, taped live in Derry, New Hampshire Sanders got personal, talking about his days as a track star and his religious beliefs as well as an arrest in college related to his work in the civil rights movement Clinton and Sanders both smacked each other around a bit on who's actually a 'progressive,' with Sanders reminding those watching that Clinton had once claimed to be a moderate while Clinton slapped back suggesting that Sanders doesn't have ownership over the liberal mantle. 'I was somewhat amused today that Sen. Sanders has set himself up to be the gatekeeper of who's a progressive,' Clinton told the audience. Sanders, reminding the audience that Clinton has also identified herself as a moderate, suggested she couldn't have her cake and eat it too. The Democratic candidates took turns at the New Hampshire town hall answering questions from the audience and CNN's Cooper. Early on, Sanders' political ideology took front and center, with Cooper asking Sanders if he truly identified as a capital-D Democrat. 'Sure,' he said, as he ticked a number of leadership positions he held in Congress within the Democratic Party, even though he was not a member of the party. Sanders is one of two Independent lawmakers in the upper chamber. He and Maine Senator Angus King caucus with the Democrats, however. 'So, of course, I am a Democrat running for the Democratic nomination,' Sanders said tonight. The lawmaker was responding to criticism from a Hillary Clinton supporter, after he had noted that Clinton can't call herself a moderate and a progressive at various times it the election. 'All that I said, which is simply true, I think it was in November in Ohio, you may recall this ... Secretary Clinton said, some people call me and I'm paraphrasing. Some people call me a moderate and I proudly say I am a moderate that's what she said,' Sanders said. The senator said the former New York senator cannot have her cake and eat it too. 'Some of my best friends are moderates, I love moderates,' Sanders said. 'But you can't be a moderate and progressive. They're different.' When Clinton was asked about it, she used the 'amused' line. 'I'm not going to let that bother me,' she said of Sanders questioning her liberal bonafides. ' 'I know where I stand, I know who stands with me, I know what I've done, but I don't think it helps for the senator to be making those kinds of comparisons because clearly we all share a lot of the same hopes and aspirations for our country that we want to see achieved and I don't think it's appropriate that Planned Parenthood endorses me or the Human Rights campaign endorses me, you know, they are thrown out of the progressive wing and put into the establishment,' Clinton said. The Democratic candidates took turns at the New Hampshire town hall answering questions from the audience and CNN's Cooper 'That's just not a thing we need to do,' she continued. Cooper later pressed Sanders to go further and definitively declare Clinton a faux progressive. ''I have enormous respect for Hillary Clinton,' he said and stated that it is 'unfortunate that in politics, the media often wants' candidates to blast each other. 'And you're asked this question....beat her up, tell me something terrible about her, attack her, because that will make the news.' Sanders said to cheers, 'I have tried my best to not do that.' 'I have never run a negative ad in my life and I look forward to never running a negative ad in my life, OK? I don't think people deserve that.' He echoed Clinton's remarks in her Monday evening victory speech in Iowa, when she said she looked forward to having a real debate on the issues with her opponent, and he said, 'That's what politics is all about, a debate on the issues.' 'Secretary Clinton has a long and distinguished public career, so I respect her. I thought she did a good job as secretary of state.' Clinton meanwhile gave a frank answer when asked if she could promise not to commit the military to be the world's police force . 'No I can't Michael,' she told the audience member who posed the query. 'I mean I -- I'd like to be able to say I could, but here's what I can say. I have learned and have been, you know, really in the crucible of making a lot of hard decisions over the last years,' she continued. 'And military force must always be a last resort not a first choice. That is one of the biggest differences between me and the Republicans,' Clinton added. Sanders, on the Iraq War, the 'progressive community was pretty united,' he said, and yet, 'Secretary Clinton voted to go to war.' Young Bernie Sanders As a Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) officer at age 20. He led students in a multi-week sit-in to oppose segregation in off-campus housing owned by the University of Chicago 'Like in any school, where you see big kids picking on little kids, you know, and I resented that, I always did.' Sanders said tonight of his formative years. He's pictured at a news conference in New Hampshire yesterday Trade is another area where Clinton's lacking, he said, referring to how long it took her to publicly reject President Barack Obama's 12-nation trade deal, signed into effect on Wednesday. 'Reluctantly, and after a lot of pressure on her, she came out against the TPP, and I'm glad that she did. Obama also needs a lesson in progressive politics, according to Sanders, who told Cooper in response to a question about whether the Democratic president had let down the movement, 'In some areas, for example in the trade area. 'Right now, I think they signed today the TPP in New Zealand. It is a continuation of bad trade policies. The president supports it, I strongly disagree with it.' He credited Obama with rescuing the economy, however, and said 'we have come a long way' since the recession. That's not to say Sanders is unwilling to work across the aisle to pass his agenda as president. 'It is not accurate to say that 'it's my way or the highway' ', he told a local lawmaker who characterized his position that way. He said he comprised significantly to pass veteran's legislation when he was in the house and said there were years in Congress when he had more amendments passed than any other member 'because I reached out where there was common ground with Republicans.' 'So I think I have a history of being able to work with Republicans when there is common ground,' he said. Pivoting he said, 'But here is the truth, and it's an unpleasant truth, and I know that not everybody here will agree with me,; he said. ' 'In my view we have a congress today that is much more interested in doing the bidding of the wealthy and the powerful, Wall Street and the drug companies and the fossil fuel industries rather than the needs of the American people.' Sanders also said that change has always come from the bottom on up' whether that's with women, gays, civil rights or environmental issues. 'And what we need right now, is a very profound and deep movement in this country, he said, because it's not good enough to say, ' 'I'm sorry, my kid is not going to have to graduate college 100,000 in debt. That's wrong.' ' 'Those are the kinds of movements that we need, and that's how we will bring about real change in this country,' he declared. Both of the candidates were questioned about the role religions played in their respective candidacies. Here, Clinton opened up and used it to make a greater point to how she's survived nearly 40 years in the public domain. 'It's not anything I've ever talked about this much publicly. Everybody knows that I've lived a very public life for the last 25 years. So I've had to be in public dealing with some very difficult issues,' Clinton said. She added: 'I read that parable and there was a line in it that became just a lifeline for me. It basically is, 'Practice the discipline of gratitude.' Be grateful for your limitations, know that you have to reach out to have more people be with you to support you advise you. Listen to your critics, answer the questions, but at the end, be grateful.' Clinton talked about her grade school friends, and her religion, as a way to keep her ego in check. 'I've had to deal and struggle with a lot of these issues about ambition and humility about service and self gratification, all of the human questions that all of us deal with. But when you put yourself out into the public arena, I think it is incumbent upon you to be as self conscious as possible,' Clinton said. 'This is hard for me. I never thought that I'd be on a standing on a stage here asking people to vote for me for president,' she added. On faith, Sanders called it a 'guiding principle in my life,' Sanders, who is Jewish, told CNN's Anderson Cooper who brought up the Vermont senator's assertion that he doesn't practice an organized religion. Sanders said he wouldn't be running for president of the United States had it not been for his 'strong religious spiritual feelings.' 'If we have children who go hungry, if we have people who can't afford their prescription drugs - you know what that impacts you, that impacts me,' Sanders continued. The democratic socialist said what he doesn't like is a 'spirituality' that allows one to say, 'I got it, I don't care about other people.' 'So my spirituality is that we are all in this together and when children go hungry and veterans sleep out on the street it impacts me,' he said. Sanders' concern for the least fortunate and his work to reduce income inequality is well known. Less known is his 1960s era participation in civil rights demonstrations. He led a multi-week sit in and was once arrested at the University of Chicago in a protest over its segregated housing units on campus. 'Don't tell anybody,' he joked tonight as Cooper asked him about the 1963 incident. Cooper was curious as to what 'motivated a 20-year-old white kid from Brooklyn to do that.' 'You know it's hard to say what motivated me,' Sanders said. 'Like in any school, where you see big kids picking on little kids, you know, and I resented that, I always did.' Sanders said of his formative years, 'Injustice bothered me very very much.' At college Sanders said he 'wasn't a great student, I have to admit it.' 'In fact I learned more off campus,' he declared before adding, 'shouldn't say this to other students though.' He joked, 'Do your homework, study.' Indulging a sort of nostalgia not generic to his campaign for presidency, Sanders also talked tonight about his days running track. 'When I was a kid, I was a long distance runner. I was a cross-country runner, and I've had good endurance and good strength my whole life,' he said in response to a question from an audience member about his plans for a second term. Cooper interjected during Sanders' answer to point out that he would be 83 at the end of his presidency if he's elected twice. 'Let's not be ageist here,' he cautioned Cooper., To the inquiring town hall attendee he said, 'We'll take one term at a time,' Sanders gotta get to the first term first.' Sanders said thankfully he is in 'good health,' though one can never know what tomorrow will bring, and said, 'If I am fortunate enough to win the general election and we do well, yes, I would like to run for reelection.' Advertisement One of them had a gun battle with a scarecrow. Another set his own trousers on fire while demonstrating a Molotov cocktail. Then there was the poor chap who managed to load his rifle with his own moustache. They might well be plotlines from the new Dads Army movie which is about to hit the big screen. In fact, they are real stories from a new book about a much-loved military institution which has been a national joke for years and is about to become a laughing stock once again in cinemas across Britain. Yet, had the moment come, the Home Guard would have done their duty and they would been cannon fodder. At best, they might have delayed an invading army for a few hours. But then that was all that was expected of them. These incredible vintage photographs give a fascinating insight into the haphazard capers of the Home Guard and show just how close to reality British sitcom Dad's Army really was. Pictured: Members of the Home Guard receive rifle training in an undated photograph The historic images have emerged in a new book charting the overzealous, trigger-happy capers of the Home Guard, with comparisons drawn to those documented in the BBC show. Above: An instructor demonstrates how to use the 'cup discharger' for grenades Norman Longmate, who was a real-life Private Pike having joined his local unit aged 17, researched some of the most farcical tales of the wartime volunteer service for his book - 'The Real Dad's Army'. Pictured: Members of the Home Guard are seen alighting from a taxi The book offers an insight into the life of the Local Defence Volunteers. Above: In South Wales, Sgt Bill Davies sets out to mount guard And as these photos show, there was no shortage of enthusiasm and pride among the men who made up the ranks of the Home Guard. They may not be the nimblest soldiers as they go through basic training. No one is going to mistake them for elite crack troops as they learn how to bayonet a sack of potatoes or set up a road block. But they were mustard keen. Indeed, they remain one of the most remarkable recruitment stories in British military history. In a single week during Britains darkest hour the summer of 1940 a quarter of a million men answered the call of the Secretary of State for War, Anthony Eden, to join the newly-formed Local Defence Volunteers (LDV). Within a month, their numbers had risen to a staggering 1.5 million. The idea had been to enrol all men between the ages of 17 and 65 who were not already in the Armed Forces to free up regular troops for more important duties. An early problem was a lack of weapons. Many were reduced to parading with pitchforks while the more inventive transformed domestic vehicles into armoured cars. A lot of World War I veterans, it transpired, had managed to hang on to their Webley revolvers and were determined to put them to good use once again. The Home Guard was set up in 1940 to serve as a secondary defence force. It was made up of volunteers who were ineligible for the military either because they were too young, in reserved occupations or too old. Pictured: The Home Guard train in the correct use of a bayonet If the Nazis invaded Britain their role was to try to slow down the advance of the enemy, even by a few hours, to give the regular forces time to regroup. Pictured above: Sir Archibald Sinclair, Secretary of State for Air, inspects one of London's Home Guard 'flying squads' The new book comes ahead of the release of a Hollywood film about Dad's Army. Pictured: Home Guard grenade throwing practice NORMAN LONGMATE: THE 17-YEAR-OLD HOME GUARD RECRUIT WHO HAS RELEASED BOOK ON ESCAPADES Norman Longmate as a 17-year-old recruit to the Home Guard Norman Longmate joined the Home Guard at the tender age of 17. The fresh-faced teen was part of the 3rd Sussex Battalion, Home Guard and served for a year before eventually being called up into the Army at the age of 18. Born in 1925, Norman had a difficult start to life. His family were hard up, as his father had lost everything when his photographer's business went bust. They lived in a cramped council house and when all the family were at home, someone had to sleep on the sofa. 'I spent over two and a half years in the army, where I worked as a clerk, started as a Private, and was promoted to Corporal,' he said. 'After basic military training in Scotland, I was initially posted in and around London, where I spent VE Day, and shortly afterwards was sent to Denmark for two years.' After leaving the military service, Mr Longmate went to Oxford to study Modern History and then completed two years postgraduate research. He later went on to work as a journalist as the lead writer on the London Evening Standard for three months. He was then offered a more permanent post as a features writer at the Daily Mirror in 1953. The father-of-one, who now lives in London and is aged 90, has been working on his book 'The Real Dad's Army' in recent years. Advertisement After Dunkirk, the village barber carried on during periods on guard duty. He is seen above cutting the hair of a small child as others watch The Home Guard are pictured in an English pub in this undated image which has emerged in the new book, 'The Real Dad's Army' Winston Churchill, who created the Home Guard, is seen wielding a Thompson machine gun (left), and author of the new book Norman Longate (right), who joined 'Dad's Army' at the same age as the fictional character 'Pike', is seen right aged 17 DAD'S ARMY: THE DIY BATTLE CAMP WHERE VOLUNTEERS LEARNT THE ART OF 'UNGENTLEMANLY WARFARE' The Home Guard was set up in 1940 to serve as a secondary defence force, after Anthony Eden broadcast an appeal for volunteers over the radio. Within a month of the secretary of state for war's appeal, more than one-and-a-half million people had put themselves forwards to serve. The War Office had little resources to train the keen servicemen, so issued a canvas armband and left them until their own devices. However, Picture Post magazine took the issue into its own hands, and set up a battle camp in the grounds of Osterley Park, west London. The training camp, as depicted in the BBC sitcom's second episode called 'Battle School', was funded by the magazine's proprietor Edward Hulton. Picture Post magazine set up a battle camp in the grounds of Osterley Park, west London, which was run by Tom Wintringham (right) Recruits were taught how to use guns, rifles and grenades and were taught the arts of self-defence, camouflage, patrolling, stalking and scouting. Every week, volunteers would spend a few hours learning the essentials of street fighting and guerilla warfare, with experts from the Boy Scouts Association to Labour MPs all on hand to issue advice. The school, which was headed by Marxist and Spanish Civil War veteran Tom Wintringham, was hugely successful for three months and gave the Picture Post plenty of stories. Wintringham's training methods were mainly based on his experience in Spain, and he even brought in veterans who had fought alongside him. The soldier and military historian went on to write several articles in the Post about the Home Guard, using the motto 'a people's war for a people's peace'. Eventually, the War Office agreed to take over the school and it continued to build on the work started by the Post. While it is no longer in use, it's legacy lives on in the BBC's Dad's Army - with those stories from the Post providing the show's writers with realms of material for the sitcom which ran for nine series from July 1968 to November 1977. The Home Guard battle camp was set up in the grounds of Osterley Park, west London. It is pictured above in more recent years Advertisement There was another reason for creating the LDV. So many civilians were hell-bent on doing their bit, that some had already started forming their own private militias. At least, this way, there could be some sort of order. Within weeks, there was a change of name. Winston Churchill did not like the acronym LDV already mocked by the regulars as Look, Duck, Vanish. He declared they would be renamed the Home Guard. Eden was furious, not least having commissioned a million armbands saying LDV. But Churchill stood firm. Many would display great heroism. Two received the George Cross which ranks alongside the Victoria Cross as the highest award for gallantry off the battlefield. Several were killed in air raids and accidents including a Tory MP and the Home Guard was credited with shooting down numerous enemy aircraft and flying bombs. As Home Guard veteran, Norman Longmate, 91, recounts in his new book, The Real Dads Army, they also did wonders for the spirits of a battered nation: The boost it gave to morale at home was enormous, reflecting the countrys sense of having been pushed about by Hitler long enough, and its burning desire to have a crack at Jerry. As well as haphazard tales, the book also documents serious incidents. Pictured: A postmen group of Home Guard are seen during training 'The Real Dad's Army' book is out now. Pictured: The Home Guard test the effect of a Molotov cocktail on a dummy tank towed by a car The Home Guard learn how to shoot down aircraft (left) while, others practice shooting down a German parachutist using a teddy bear But there were plenty of priceless moments, too, like the troops who mistook a hedgehog for the head of a cunningly-camoflagued German paratrooper. Many Home Guard units found their main battle was not with Jerry but with the Scouts over use of the village hall. Its pure Dads Army, as is the story of the Captain Mainwaring figure who tried to arrest a courting couple in Newquay, Cornwall. Do you know you have been in a prohibited area? he barked. Back came a furious female voice in the darkness: Oh no he hasnt! The Real Dads Army book by Amberley Publishing is out now, 10. The new Dads Army film is released tomorrow. The new book gives a fascinating insight into the haphazard escapades of the Old Guard - and highlights how true-to-life television series Dad's Army was. Pictured: The BBC show, starring James Beck as Private Joe Walker and Arthur Lowe as Captain George Mainwaring Cruise ships are the perfect breeding ground for gastroenteritis outbreaks because people are coming together in a confined space, a medical expert says. With three cases of gastro breaking out aboard cruise ships in as many months, lecturer in medicine Vincent Ho said the environment on the vessel was 'very similar to residential facilities, nursing homes and schools where people are in close contact'. Dr Ho, from Western Sydney University, said there were a number of ways for people to spread the highly contagious illness. Scroll down for video Cruise ships are the perfect breeding ground for gastroenteritis outbreaks because people are coming together in a confined space. A photo of a sign above a door on P&O's Pacific Eden in December Norovirus affects people in confined environments in particular and is the strand of gastro that infected passengers aboard Carnival Australia's Diamond Princess in Sydney. 'Certainly people can be infected by the food, by touching the food, not properly handling the foods,' Dr Ho, who is also a clinical academic gastroenterologist, told Daily Mail Australia. 'Norovirus, although the initial source is likely from food, it might be from people joining the ship, for example, people coming onto the ship or people touching one another. 'This is why it's important for people to wash their hands. Hygiene is just so important.' Lecturer in medicine Vincent Ho recommended people to avoid eating uncooked foods like cold sandwiches or salads like this rice paper roll onboard the Diamond Princess Dr Ho said the cruise ship environment was 'very similar to nursing homes and schools where people are in close contact'. Above is a photo of a piece of plastic found inside a sandwich on P&O's Pacific Eden back in December On Thursday, passengers aboard Carnival Australia's Diamond Princess were at the centre of the latest incident of gastro, with three cases of the illness breaking out aboard cruise ships in as many months It was revealed 158 people were struck down with the illness after the ship docked in Sydney on Thursday morning Dr Ho recommended people to avoid eating uncooked foods like cold sandwiches or salads and to tell staff as soon as possible if they were experiencing symptoms of gastro so they could be quarantined to prevent further infections. TIMELINE OF GASTRO OUTBREAKS ON CRUISE SHIPS Diamond Princess, February 2016 More than 150 passengers struck down with norovirus gastroenteritis on board the Princess Cruises ship, Diamond Princess, after a 12-day return trip from Sydney to New Zealand. Pacific Eden, December 2015 At least 60 people on board P&O's Pacific Eden cruise ship were struck down with gastro on the Sydney to Cairns return voyage over Christmas, with passengers labelling the vessel a 'floating disaster'. Explorer of the Seas, December 2015 A gastro outbreak affected more than 180 passengers aboard Royal Caribbean's Explorer of the Seas cruise ship during a two-week return trip from Sydney to New Zealand. Radiance of the Seas, October 2015 More than 170 passengers reported feeling sick with a stomach bug during an eight-day cruise from Sydney on Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas. Dawn Princess, December 2014 A 13-day cruise around New Zealand on Carnival Australia's Dawn Princess ship left almost 200 passengers with a stomach bug. Advertisement 'People should avoid sharing food or eat from the same utensils,' he told Daily Mail Australia. 'Using an alcohol-based sanitiser would be highly recommended, which most cruise ships would have.' Unfortunately Dr Ho said there was no treatment for gastro except for adequate hydration. 'Make sure someone who is ill is well hydrated symptomatic,' he said. Usual symptoms of gastro include fever, nausea, watery diarrhoea and projectile vomit. Dr Ho said the incubation period from the time someone contracts a virus to the onset of symptoms is 24 to 48 hours. 'They are at risk of infecting and can pass the virus from one person to another,' he said. 'The key things about [gastro is] most people can make a good recovery in a few days. Dr Ho added it was rare for someone to be hospitalised with gastro. The latest case of gastro outbreak happened on a 12-day cruise travelling to New Zealand. It was revealed 158 people were struck down with the illness after the ship docked in Sydney on Thursday morning. Travellers reported seeing people throwing up in the swimming pools and running down hall ways with their hands clamped over their mouths. The Diamond Princess is the latest cruise ship in Sydney Harbour to have been hit by an outbreak of gastroenteritis. It follows an outbreak on the P&O ship Pacific Eden during a Christmas cruise, when about 50 of 1,500 passengers fell ill Over the Christmas period, passengers on the P&O cruise ship Pacific Eden labelled it a 'floating disaster' after about 50 of the 1,500 people on board were taken ill with norovirus. In mid December, 182 passengers out of the 3566 on board Royal Caribbean's cruise ship Explorer of the Seas were also struck down by a stomach bug. Travellers reported seeing people throwing up in the swimming pools and running down hall ways with their hands clamped over their mouths People should avoid sharing food or eat from the same utensils, according to Dr Ho. Above is a stock image of a cruise ship buffet A Florida couple has been arrested after allegedly kidnapping a woman, holding her captive and raping her, police say. Brandon Forbes, 34, was arrested on January 23 and charged with two counts of sexual battery, battery, and false imprisonment after being accused of keeping a 33-year-old woman hostage in a North Lauderdale home where he repeatedly raped her, a police spokesperson said. Raiza Rosado, 23, was arrested a week later and was hit with two kidnapping charges, according to the Broward Sheriff's Office. Scroll down for video Brandon Forbes (left), 34, was arrested on January 23 and charged with two counts of sexual battery, battery, and false imprisonment. Raiza Rosado (right), 23, was arrested a week later and was hit with two kidnapping charges The couple are accused of keeping a 33-year-old woman hostage in a North Lauderdale home (pictured), where Forbes allegedly repeatedly raped her The pair met the victim on January 16 at Miami Beach, and the victim willingly spent the night with the couple at their house, WFLA reported. The following day, Rosado told the victim that she and Forbes 'meet people and commit robberies', an arrest affidavit said. When the victim tried to leave the home, she was aggressively told not to, the arrest affidavit said. She was then bound by the legs and arms and prevented from leaving the house for five days, police said. '[Forbes]' actions, combined with the knowledge hat they commonly commit robberies, placed the victim in fear to leave the residence,' police told PEOPLE. At one point during the victim's captivity, Forbes tried to have sex with her, and later told Rosado that he had sex with the woman, which prompted an argument between the couple, according to the affidavit. The couple then ended up attacking the woman, bruising her right eye after striking her multiple times with a cloth belt. The pair met the victim on January 16 at Miami Beach, and the victim willingly spent the night with the couple at their house. But in the morning she was aggressively told not to leave, according to an arrest affidavit. Pictured above is Forbes The woman was released by the couple after five days, when the couple took her to a train station on January 22. Pictured above is Rosado '[Forbes and Rosado] then carried the victim upstairs, placed a sock in her mouth and covered her head with a black sheet,' the report said. [They] placed the victim in a bedroom where she remained throughout the night.' On another occasion, the woman was forced to perform oral sex on Forbes and then he raped her, the police report said, according to NBC Miami. The woman was released by the couple after five days, when they took her to a train station on January 22. She then promptly called the police and Forbes and Rosado were later arrested. The victim told police that she believed Forbes was holding a gun in his pocket throughout her captivity, because at multiple times he had his had in his pocket and appeared to be holding something. At one point when the suspects were struggling with the woman, one said to the other, 'Want me to get the silencer?', implying they had a gun, police said. Police said the woman's injuries were consistent with her claims, and that she identified the couple in a double-blind photo array. Tyler Tomer, 29 (pictured), is accused of faking cancer and collecting $22,000 A Connecticut man was arrested Wednesday accused of faking cancer to collect fundraising money. Investigators said Tyler Tomer took at least $22,000 from supporters who had raised the money in the belief that he suffered from stage three brain cancer. After the money was deposited into Tomer's bank account, the con-artist made hundreds of purchases at fast food restaurants and bars and for recreational activities, police said, according to WSFB 3 Connecticut. Tomer, 29, told police 'he needed money, and things got out of control,' WSFB reported. Several benefits had been set up for Tomer, including a GoFundMe page and a fundraiser arranged by a Kansas City restaurant where his former fiancee worked. Efforts to raise money for Tomer were also made by his old high school, Sheehan High School in Wallingford, Connecticut, located in the town where he grew up. The organizers of an August 20, 2014 benefit at Johnny's Tavern in Kansas City, where Tomer's former fiancee worked at the time, wrote on a Facebook page: 'Hey Johnnys family, one of our own, Tyler Tomer was diagnosed with Stage 3 brain cancer 2 months ago.' Tomer, pictured here in a recent mugshot, reportedly spent much of the money he received from well-meaning supporters at fast food restaurants and bars A Facebook page for an August 20, 2014 event held for Tomer's fake cancer battle 'It's a Meningioma tumor located in the tissue lining that protects the area of the brain that connects to the brain stem and spinal cord. He is currently in his second round of chemo and plans to start another round next month.' The owners of Johnny's Tavern promised that they would donate 30 percent of sales during the benefit, and wrote that the staff would donate all tip money. 'All the money raised goes directly into Tyler's account where he has been paying tens of thousands of dollars already for his treatments,' the organizers wrote. Daily Mail Online spoke to a man who said he attended some benefits held for Tomer in Kansas City. The man declined to discuss whether he believed at the time that Tomer was sick with cancer, saying he doesn't want to 'jeopardize the prosecutors' case.' 'I want him to be prosecuted. The guy looked sick to me every day, but that's all I can tell you,' the man said, and added that he never gave money to Tomer. Police said Tomer shaved his head and took weight loss pills while the scam was ongoing, according to WSFB. Women were barred from a Starbucks in Saudi Arabia and told to send 'their driver' to get a coffee for them instead after religious police noticed a 'gender barrier' wall had collapsed, reports claim. Signs in Arabic and English were put up on doors to the coffee shop telling women not to enter. The posters read: Please no entry for ladies, only send your drivers to order. Thank you. Banned: Women are said to have been barred from a Starbucks in Saudi Arabia and told to send 'their driver' to get a coffee for them instead (pictured) after religious police noticed a 'gender barrier' wall had collapsed Furious: Signs in Arabic and English were put up on doors to the coffee shop. One woman who wasn't allowed into the Starbucks tweeted: '#Starbucks store in Riyadh refused 2 serve me just because I'm a WOMAN' One woman who wasn't allowed into the Starbucks shop wrote on Twitter: #Starbucks store in Riyadh refused 2 serve me just because I'm a WOMAN & asked me 2 send a man instead. It has been claimed that the countrys Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, the most influential law enforcing authority in the Gulf Kingdom, ordered the cafes management to ban women, according to Arabic language daily 'Al Weaam'. The commission is said to have issued the notice after its inspectors spotted the collapse of a gender-separation wall during a routine walk around a market in the capital Riyadh. It is understood that management told police the wall had collapsed on a number of occasions because of regular customer stampedes. Saudi Arabia is known for its gender segregation, with women requiring a male guardian approval to travel or work outside of the home. In public spaces such as restaurants, beaches, amusement parks or banks, women are required to enter and exit through special doors. Disgust: News of the ban drew condemnation on Twitter as a photograph of the sign spread on social media A Starbucks spokesman told Cosmopolitan.com that the Riyadh store was undergoing a renovation to build a divide that will accommodate single people as well as families. He denied the claims a gender-separation wall had collapsed. In a statement the company said: Starbucks in Saudi Arabia adheres to the local customs by providing separate entrances for families as well as single people. She had been struggling to sleep last Friday when Brandon performed the song Sophia Torres, 4, was diagnosed last May with childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia Brandon Waterhouse, a nurse at Texas Childrens Hospital sang 'A Whole New World' to comfort a A male nurse gave one young leukemia patient some much need additional care in the form of a song. Sophia Torres, 4, was diagnosed last May with childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia and has been struggling ever since, but recently got her spirits lifted thanks to Brandon Waterhouse, a nurse at Texas Childrens Hospital. Unable to sleep on Friday night, Brandon sat down with the little girl and gave her a performance she will never forget as he sang 'A Whole New World' from the Disney film Aladdin. Scroll down for video Performance: Brandon Waterhouse, a nurse at Texas Childrens Hospital sang 'A Whole New World' to comfort a leukemia patient In need: Sophia Torres, 4, was diagnosed last May with childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia 'Its been a difficult journey for Sophia. Weve been her basically eight months, staying here at the hospital,' Sophia's father Jose said in an interview with KHOU. The care his daughter has received has been excellent though according to Jose, who decided to post the video of Brandon performing to Facebook. 'We are shocked, surprised that this video went viral. We felt happy and just amazed!' he said. Helpoing hand: Sophia had been struggling to sleep last Friday when Brandon performed the song Jose wrote in his caption alongside the video; 'Nurse Brandon singing to Sophia. It's beautiful to see this and it shows that he loves his career. Making children smile one at a time. Keep on singing!' Sophia meanwhile is still fighting, and the family is holding a blood drive to honor her at Terrace Elementary School on February 12, with details available here. Price-hiking pharma CEO Martin Shkreli (pictured outside court on Wednesday) has lost $40million since his arrest Price-hiking pharma CEO Martin Shkreli smirked as he arrived in court on Wednesday as it emerged he has lost $40million since his arrest. Prosecutors said most of Shkreli's stock was in his old company KaloBios, which has seen its share prices plummet from $40 to barely $2 a share in just months. Shkreli - who bought the rights to a drug used to treat HIV before increasing the price of it 5,000 per cent - used the same trading account to secure his $5million bail. Prosecutor Winston Paes told Brooklyn Federal Court that the court may have to look into securing money from the Former Turing Pharmaceuticals boss by other means, the New York Post reported. Shkreli's attorney Benjamin Brafman told the court he would keep an eye on the bail package. In December, the former hedge fund manager was charged with securities fraud and conspiracy related to another pharmaceutical company he previously ran, Retrophin. He has called the charges 'baseless and meritless'. Shkreli was branded 'the most hated man in America' last year after hiking the price of life-saving drug Daraprim by more than 5,000 per cent. Daraprim is the only approved medication for a parasitic infection which mainly strikes patients with weakened immune systems, including those with cancer and AIDS. Company presentations released on Tuesday show that as early as last May, Turing planned to turn Daraprim into a $200-million-a-year drug by dramatically increasing its price. Turing purchased the six-decade-old drug from Impax Laboratories in August for $55million and promptly raised its price. Shkreli (pictured outside court on Wednesday) smirked as he arrived in court on Wednesday as it emerged he lost millions of dollars in investments Prosecutors said most of Shkreli's (pictured outside court on Wednesday) stock was in his old company KaloBios, which has seen its share prices plummet from $40 to barely $2 a share in just months Shkreli (pictured outside court on Wednesday) was branded 'the most hated man in America' last year after hiking the price of life-saving drug Daraprim by more than 5,000 per cent Shkreli said in an email to one contact: 'We raised the price from $1,700 per bottle to $75,000. Should be a very handsome investment for all of us.' But anticipating a possible backlash, the company warned in an internal memo: 'HIV patient advocacy may react to price increase ... HIV community is highly organized, sensitive and action-oriented.' The price increase left some patients with co-pays as high as $16,000, according to the committee's review of more than 250,000 pages of documents from New York-based Turing. Turing said on Tuesday that it is 'committed to ensuring that no patient will ever be denied access to Daraprim because of cost'. He has also faced anger for buying the sole copy of Wu-Tang Clan's Once Upon a Time in Shaolin, but then threatening to wipe out contributions on the album by Ghostface Killah. Assange is a co-founder of WikiLeaks, an organisation that has published hundreds of thousands of Julian Assange, 44, says he may leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London on Friday A United Nations panel has ruled that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is being 'arbitrarily detained' in the Ecuadorian embassy in London by the UK and Sweden, according to reports. Assange, 44, has been holed up in the embassy since June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning over allegations of rape. Assange argues that that his time in the embassy has constituted unlawful detention, and has filed a request for relief with the UN. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has ruled in agreement with Assange, and is due to announce its verdict tomorrow, the BBC reports. A WikiLeaks statement released on Twitter said that Assange awaits official confirmation on the BBC's claim that the UN panel has ruled in his favour. However, even with the UN panel ruling his detention 'unlawful', it will not have any influence on the decision of British and Swedish authorities. British police have said they still plan to arrest Assange if he leaves the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, regardless of the UN panel's ruling. Police said Thursday that earlier announced plans to take Assange into custody on an outstanding arrest warrant were still in place. In addition, the UK Foreign Office told the BBC it still had an obligation to extradite Mr Assange should he leave the Ecuadorian embassy. In his complaint to the UN, Assange, argues that he had been deprived of his fundamental liberties, including lack of access to sunlight or fresh air, adequate medical facilities, as well as legal and procedural insecurity. Assange said earlier today that says he would leave his hideout in the Ecuadorian embassy in London and accept arrest if he loses. 'Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal,' Assange said Thursday in a statement posted on the Wikileaks Twitter account. 'However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me.' The statement by Assange posted to the WikiLeaks Twitter account on Thursday Showing support: Dame Vivienne Westwood, shows her passport as she visits Assange at the Ecuadorian Embassy on Thursday afternoon Left, the logo of WikiLeaks, an organisation co-founded by Julian Assange. Right, Assange speaks from the Ecuadorian embassy in London in 2012 A spokesperson for the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs declined to comment on Assange's statement. 'We will wait for the UN announcement on Friday before making any comments,' the spokesperson told Daily Mail Online. Assange could not be reached for a comment. Two Swedish women accused the Australian of rape in August 2010. Assange denies the rape allegations. Assange fears Sweden will extradite him to the United States, where he could be put on trial over WikiLeaks' publication of classified military and diplomatic documents, one of the largest information leaks in U.S. history. Julian Assange has been inside the Ecuadorian embassy in London since 2012 The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention is currently considering a request for relief by Assange, who argued in a submission that his time in the embassy constituted arbitrary detention. Assange made international headlines in early 2010 when WikiLeaks published classified U.S. military video showing a 2007 attack by Apache helicopters that killed a dozen people in Baghdad, including two Reuters news staff. Later that year, the group released over 90,000 secret documents detailing the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan, followed by almost 400,000 internal U.S. military reports detailing operations in Iraq. Those disclosures were followed by the release of more than 250,000 classified cables from U.S. embassies. It would go on to add almost three million more diplomatic cables dating back to 1973. Prince Charles has been revealed as one of Britains most successful living artists after raising millions of pounds for charity by selling prints of his paintings. Copies have been sold through the shop at his family residence, Highgrove House, and since 1997 the watercolour paintings have brought in 2million for The Prince of Waless Charitable Foundation. Added to that is the estimation by an art dealer who previously handled sales of the Princes lithographs that they raised at least 4million. Scroll down for video Prince Charles has become one of Britains most successful living artists after raising millions of pounds for charity by selling prints of his paintings. In 2013 he appeared in a documentary about Royal artists (pictured) Work of art: This painting of the Prince's family residence, Highgrove House, was painted by Charles in 1999 It means the total amount, which has gone towards a wide variety of good causes, is believed to be more than 6million, according to Robert Mendick at the Daily Telegraph. When compared to other living fine artists, who earn an average of 10,000 a year according to a recent survey, Prince Charles finds himself in an elite group. He has made around 200,000 a year from art sales over the past 25 years. The lithographs on display in the Highgrove shop are priced at around 2,500, while the Belgravia Gallery, which previously handled sales, offers limited edition prints for up to 15,000. The Prince only paints with watercolours and never sells the originals. He has painted for decades, inspired in the 1970s and 80s by his art master at Gordonstoun in Scotland Robert Waddel. Mainly focusing on landscapes and nature scenes, his favourite locations include the Queens estate at Balmoral and Sandringham House. The Prince has often shared his love of art with the public and in 2013 contributed to a television documentary, Royal Paintbox on Royal artists throughout history. Popular: Copies have been sold through the shop at his family residence, Highgrove House, and since 1997 the watercolour paintings have brought in 2million for The Prince of Waless Charitable Foundation A Provencale landscape painted HRH, whose work is often inspired by his passion for nature The Prince paints many scenes of his beloved Scotland, including this one of a cottage on the island of Stroma He sees his watercolours as part of his legacy, and in the documentary said: 'We walk away and shuffle off our mortal coil, but these things live on.' In the 1980s The Prince began inviting artists to accompany him on official tours overseas and record their impressions, a tradition that has continued to this day, and he has founded an arts school to nurture the art of drawing from observation. The Prince's Drawing School was founded by His Royal Highness and artist Catherine Goodman in 2000, and it is now one of the few institutions that offers specific and sustained tuition to people wishing to learn how to draw. Clarence House has said in the past: The Prince has been an enthusiastic amateur artist and keen collector and Patron of the Arts for many years. The Prince likes to paint whenever his schedule allows - whether on private holidays, or during a spare moment on an overseas tour - and finds it a most absorbing occupation. A sheriff's department involved in the conviction of Steven Avery received a bomb threat on Wednesday, where the caller said 'Justice for Avery' A Wisconsin sheriff's office that was featured in the hit Netflix series Making a Murderer experienced a bomb threat on Wednesday evening, causing an evacuation of the area, police said. A caller allegedly directed the threat 'Justice for Steven' - an apparent reference to the series' focus, Steven Avery - to the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department, Manitowoc County Police said. The sheriff's department plays a large role in the ten-part documentary, as Avery's attorneys accused members of the office of manipulating evidence and framing Avery for murder. Police said the threat on Wednesday stated that there were bombs inside the building and a vehicle containing bombs in the parking lot. An all-clear was eventually given and no bombs were found, according to ABC News. The bomb threat came as a retired police sergeant backed Avery's innocence saying the murder was the job of the infamous serial killer Edward Wayne Edwards, and a lawyer who helped free Avery in 2003 claimed that Avery developed into a 'sadistic, violent killer'. The convicted murderer insists he is innocent and the Netflix series about his trial has led to thousands to call for his release from prison. Prior to his current conviction, Avery, 53, a Wisconsin native, spent 18 years behind bars for a sexual assault he did not commit. He was released in 2003 after DNA evidence proved his innocence but he was convicted in 2007 of killing 25-year-old photographer Teresa Halbach. Manitowoc County Police police said that the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Department prompted an evacuation of the area Police said the threat on Wednesday stated that there were bombs inside the sheriff department's building (pictured) and a vehicle containing bombs in the parking lot Michael Griesbach former Deputy Attorney General of Manitowoc, who worked to free Avery in 2003, claims that the Netflix documentary series is deeply biased against the prosecution during the trial for the murder of Halbach. Griesbach, who is writing a book about Avery titled The Innocent Killer, pointed specifically to an incident where Avery doused a cat in gasoline and threw it into a fire, according to The Mirror. He said: 'With the Netflix Making a Murderer series, the cat throwing incident gave the impression this was nothing more than a juvenile prank. 'In fact, he was 22 at the time, and he covered the cat in gasoline and threw it into the fire to watch it burn. 'This doesn't directly imply he is a murderer, but the mutilation of animals is often a precursor to more serious things later in life.' Avery is now serving life in prison for the murder of Halbach. 'A young woman's life ended in an exceptionally brutal, even sadistic, fashion at the hands of a violent killer,' Griesbach said. The law expert criticised the Netflix series for brushing over moments in Avery's past, including a time when he rammed his cousin Sandra Morris off the road and held her at gunpoint while her baby sat in the vehicle. Griesbach said that if the baby wasn't in the car, the incident could have been more gruesome, adding that he believes Avery's actions were 'sexually motivated'. 'They made it seem like he did that because she was starting bad rumours about him,' Griesbach said of the producers. Meanwhile, Michael Griesbach former Deputy Attorney General of Manitowoc, who worked to free Avery in 2003, claims that the Netflix documentary series is deeply biased against the prosecution during the trial for the murder of Halbach. He is writing a book titled 'The Innocent Killer' about Avery He added: 'In fact, he was watching her with binoculars for months and had been sexually gratifying himself whenever she drove by. 'The night he ran her off the road, he was holding a gun at her and wouldn't let her go. He only let her free when she said the baby was in the car and it was freezing.' Griesbach also said that Avery's violent nature was clear when examining how he treated women in his life, pointing out that when Avery was imprisoned the first time, he threatened to kill his then-wife Lori Mathieson in a letter. Meanwhile, retired police sergeant John Cameron believes that the murder was actually the job of infamous serial killer Edward Wayne Edwards Avery's girlfriend when he was arrested in 2003, Jodi Stachowski, broke off their engagement in 2007 and has since come forward to call Avery a 'monster' who threatened to kill her. Griesbach also said that there's a lot of evidence pointing to Avery orchestrating Halbach to be at his property at the right time. 'He actually called for Teresa to be there, and he used a dialing code, which in the US hides the identity of a phone number,' he said. He added: 'Steve had hired Teresa before, and on her assignment he came out of the shower wearing just a towel, she was unnerved by the incident and mentioned it to a friend.' In his book, The Innocent Killer, Griesbach tried to look at how Avery had become an 'unhinged' and 'messed up' man. 'He wasn't brought up like we would want people to be brought up, but the wrongful conviction played a role in how he became this type of person,' he said. 'I think prison did make him more unhinged, and he was pretty unhinged to begin with.' Meanwhile, retired police sergeant John Cameron told Radar Online that evidence in the Avery case shows Avery and his nephew, Brendan Dassey, were pawns in a scheme of another murderer, the infamous serial killer Edward Wayne Edwards. 'Steven Avery is completely innocent,' Cameron, from Great Falls, Montana, said. 'He was set up by Edwards!' Edwards lived just an hour away from the brutal crime scene of Halbach's murder, which eerily mirrors one of his own killings. Edwards, who was convicted five murders and sentenced to death in 2011, died of natural causes while on death row in Columbus, Ohio, weeks later. Avery was convicted in 2007 of killing 25-year-old photographer Teresa Halbach. He has maintained his innocence through the years Averys nephew Brendan Dassey, who was 16 at the time, then confessed to sexually assaulting Ms Halbach and cutting her throat on his uncles orders - but later said the confession had been coerced by investigators Halbach's last known whereabouts were at the Avery familys auto salvage yard in Manitowoc County, Wisconsin, where she had gone to photograph a minivan for Auto Trader magazine Though only convicted of five killings, he is suspected of many more. Cameron believes that Edwards targeted Avery and his nephew as the men to frame for Halbach's murder following Avery's release from prison after the false conviction. He said he believes that Edwards was waiting outside Avery's junkyard to lure Halbach to a secluded corner of the lot before shooting her and leaving her corpse in her vehicle. 'He had done exactly the same thing in California in 1955 when he kidnapped and murdered a doctor's 14-year-old daughter called Stephanie Bryan,' Cameron told Radar. 'He hid her body for three months and then planted the girl's property in a man named Burton Abbott's basement and in his garage,' 'Abbott was convicted on circumstantial evidence but always protested that he was framed. He was executed at San Quentin minutes before a stay of execution was delivered,' he added. Cameron interviewed Edwards' ex-wife Jeanette White in 2011, who said she was with her husband in San Francisco in 1956, just miles from where Bryan was killed. She also told Cameron that Edwards had sent the judge presiding over Abbott's trial an anonymous note to persuade him of Abbot's guilt. 'When I first started watching Making a Murderer, I couldn't believe what I was seeing it's the same kind of setup,' Cameron told Radar Online. 'Only this time, he not only set up Avery, he also got the cops who wanted him to be guilty.' Cameron also claims that a shadowy figure appears behind Wisconsin prosecutor Ken Kratz in the sixth episode of Making a Murderer. 'It looks like Edwards to me,' said Cameron, who said Edwards would show up at court hearings and funerals during high-profile murder cases. 'He got off on that.' Cameron claims that a detective working on Avery's case reported a new anonymous note that was sent to Wisconsin investigators during the Avery case. He said that it was similar to the one Edwards sent the judge in the Abbott trial. 'It contained information only the killer could know,' Cameron said. 'The letter is referred to as "cryptic" by the judge, and contained specific details of how Teresa was killed and burned in a smelter. This letter was handwritten in the same way, and I believe it came from Edwards.' In a rush to convict Avery, however, the letter was disregarded, Cameron added. A disgraced Malaysian diplomat who defecated outside a women's home before indecently assaulting her was sentenced on Thursday to nine months home detention. Mohammed Rizalman bin Ismail, who was a military attache at Malaysia's Wellington embassy in New Zealand at the time of the attack in November pleaded guilty to indecent assault after denying initial charges of attempted rape and burglary. Rizalman had followed Wellington woman Tania Billingsley to her home in May 2014. He waited about 30 minutes outside, during which time he defecated on Ms Billingsley's patio, and then entered the house and walked into her bedroom naked from the waist down. Scroll down for video Muhammad Rizalman bin Ismail followed a woman home, defecated outside her house, then indecently assaulted her A struggle followed in which Rizalman grabbed her shoulders. 'You terrorised Ms Billingsley ... She was a young woman, alone in her room, who was entitled to feel safe and secure in her bedroom,' Judge David Collins told Rizalman during sentencing. 'No woman should have to endure the terrifying circumstances experienced by Ms Billingsley when you breached the sanctity of her bedroom.' Collins said Rizalman's actions were 'premeditated', however, Billingsley was not touched in a sexual way even though Rizalman had hoped she would agree to sex. 'You mistook a smile for a sexual advance, you deliberately followed her and waited outside her home for a long period of time,' the judge said. Rizalman is to serve nine months confined to a house, but not the Malaysian High Commission, and will be deported at the completion of his sentence. Rizalman was sentenced to nine months home detention in the High Court in Wellington on Thursday Rizalman arrived in New Zealand in September 2013, but his behaviour changed in 2014, the New Zealand Herald reported He admitted to purchasing synthetic cannabis from a Wellington shop, where he behaved inappropriately towards a shop assistant. On May 8, 2014, he tried to "pick up" another woman in town. In December last year, the Malaysian man told Crown prosecutor Grant Burston that he believed in black magic and that a spell would help him find love if he defecated outside a woman's house, according to stuff.co.nz. He also said he believed a superior officer had put a spell on him. After being arrested by police for the incident in 2014, Rizalman returned to Malaysia and it was reported he had claimed diplomatic immunity. Later, a formal extradition request was sent by New Zealand and Rizalman agreed to return to face court. A man plagued by a chronic drug addiction has left homeowners an anonymous note apologising for two decades of crime - and passed on some handy tips to keep like-minded burglars away. The former drug addict hand-delivered the letter to households in Melbourne's outer east as a means of making amends for his past actions. 'I hope that the observation and points I have raised will help you to minimize the affect (sic) it has on your family,' the letter read, according to the Herald-Sun. 'Unfortunately crime is a very real part of our lives.' A man plagued by a chronic drug addiction has left homeowners an anonymous note apologising for two decades of crime The former drug addict hand-delivered the letter to households in Melbourne's outer east, which was filled with gems on how to keep like-minded burglars away The reformed thief claimed to have spent six years of his life locked away for crimes he committed while under the grips of drug abuse, but said he had since found 'a solution to the drugs.' Now left with the responsibilities of being a father and raising a young family totally 'drug and crime free', he said he hoped to now be a 'productive member of society.' He said it was not his intention to 'make people over-paranoid or more distrusting', but rather to raise awareness for preventable robberies. The letter explained that it was important to not leave spare car or house keys sitting in vehicles - particularly while stopped at service stations - as it makes the job incredibly easy for robbers. Padlocks on garages and sheds were also encouraged, and he stressed the importance of locking up back doors and access doors as a priority - treating the car port the same as the house. The letter explained that it was important to not leave spare car or house keys sitting in vehicles The man, who says he is now totally 'drug and crime-free' said thieves were often scared off by alarm systems The man - who claimed that most of his crimes were purely 'opportunistic' - also pointed out the dangers of leaving cash or valuable items hanging around in plain sight. He then advised buying a security system. 'Alarm systems are cheap these days and are the best form of deterrence. Even if a burglar does enter, they wont hang around long if an alarm is sounding,' he wrote. His final point was to check out local pawn shops if property was stolen, as they are often a quick selling spot for desperate thieves. Leisa Jane, from Rowville - about 35 kilometres southeast of Melbourne, told Leader she had seen someone on a motorbike hand-deliver the letter on Monday. She shared it on Facebook with the caption: 'I have to say it put a smile on my face and wish him the best of luck.' A father who admitted to shooting dead his two-year-old daughter and the girl's mother in an early morning attack as they headed to daycare has been pictured following his arrest. Daron Boswell-Johnson was was arrested on Wednesday by Prince George's County Homicide detectives and charged with killing second-grade teacher Neshante Davis, 26, and their child, Chloe, at 7am on Tuesday, NBC News reports. Neighbors heard shouts then gunshots outside Davis's home in Cheverly, Maryland. They found Davis dead on the pavement and Chloe critically wounded in her car seat. She died later in hospital. Daron Boswell-Johnson (center) is accused of shooting dead his two-year-old daughter and the girl's mother on Tuesday Boswell-Johnson was arrested on Wednesday and seen being escorted by detectives while wearing a white jumpsuit Neshante Davis, 26, (left) was about to drop off her two-year-old daughter Chloe (right) at daycare then head to work shortly before 7am on Tuesday when Chloe's father Daron allegedly shot them both dead Boswell-Johnson fled the scene leading to a day-long manhunt as police chased a number of viable leads and the community reeled in mourning. 'This is absolutely unacceptable in any civilized community that a child should be killed in this way,' said State's Attorney for Prince George's County Angela Alsobrooks at a press conference on Tuesday. Davis's mother Carlen Turner broke down in tears at a vigil in the church where her daughter grew up, Cheverly's Community Temple Bibleway Church, on Tuesday night. 'She was my baby and I'm going to miss her and Chloe is my baby,' Turner told Fox 5 News. Davis, a second grade teacher, was found dead on the pavement. Chloe was found critically wounded in her car seat, and died later in hospital. Police have detained Daron Boswell-Johnson, Chloe's father Davis' mother Carlen Turner (pictured) broke down in tears at a vigil in the church where Davis grew up, Cheverly's Community Temple Bibleway Church, on Tuesday night, saying: 'She was my baby' Crowds wept at the vigil as the community reels in shock. Davis was an avid churchgoer Melonie Parker, who mentored Davis at the church's Bible study class, said the shooting has left the community in shock. 'Who can shoot a child?' she asked in an interview with NBC on Tuesday. 'How could you look a child in their face and shoot a child? I don't understand.' Davis was lauded in her role as a teacher at Bradbury Heights Elementary School. Police believe that Boswell-Johnson had gone to confront Davis over child-support issues, according to ABC News. Boswell-Johnson faces two counts of first- and second-degree murder following the incident. He is set for a preliminary hearing on February 29. Protesters clashed with riot police in Athens today as protests against pension reforms during a general strike turned into violent chaos. Some 40,000 people had joined anti-government protests in the Greek capital, and although initially peaceful, sporadic clashes between anarchist protesters and police outside Parliament and in other parts of the city centre soon escalated. Police used tear gas and stun grenades against the dozens of hooded anarchists, while street vendors, tourists, and onlookers ran to safety as the violence broke out. Scroll down for video A protester throws a molotov cocktail aimed at riot police during clashes in the Greek capital, as a large protest during today's general strike turned violent In flames: Police forces run while demonstrators throw stones and petrol bombs towards them during a massive protest in front of the Greek parliament on Thursday Big march: Some 40,000 people had joined an anti-government march in the Greek capital to protest pension reforms that are part of Greece's third international bailout Greece was crippled by a 24-hour general strike against a bailout-related overhaul of the country's ailing pension system. Protests were also held in at least a dozen other Greek cities and towns, where several rallies were joined by protesting farmers driving their tractors. Unions are angry at pension reforms that are part of Greece's third international bailout. The government, which is led by the left-wing Syriza, is trying to overhaul the pension system by increasing social security contributions to avoid pension cuts, but critics say the reforms will lead many to pay up to three quarters of their income in pension contributions and taxes. Opposition to the reform has been widespread, uniting a disparate group of professions, including farmers, artists, taxi drivers, lawyers, doctors, vets, engineers and seamen. Fight: A riot policeman clash with protesters in Athens city centre as unrest spread in the Greek capital A protester uses a fire extinguisher against riot policemen during a protest amid a 24-hour nationwide strike Riot policemen try to avoid a petrol bomb thrown by protesters, as tens of thousands of people march through central Athens to protest planned pension reform Clashes have broken out between Greek police and youths throwing fire bombs and stones A riot policeman falls down as protesters throw a petrol bomb during the violent clashes on Thursday Thursday's general strike is the most significant the government of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, which is in coalition with the right-wing Independent Greeks, has faced since coming to power a little more than a year ago. The disruption was wide-ranging. Schools and many private businesses were closed while transport, including flights and ferries, faced delays and cancellation. The strike also stopped the flow of thousands of migrants and refugees travelling from the Greek islands where they make landfall. State-run hospitals were functioning on emergency staff, while farmers maintained their blockades of highways that have forced motorists into lengthy detours. The strike comes as international bailout inspectors met Labor Minister George Katrougalos to discuss the pension reforms. The central Athens hotel where the inspectors were staying was heavily guarded by police. Police used tear gas and stun grenades against the dozens of hooded anarchists, while street vendors, tourists, and onlookers ran to safety as the violence broke out Hiding: Bystanders look on behind iron shutters of an arcade in central Athens on Thursday Running riot: Masked protesters hold hammers and stones as the peaceful protest turned violent in Athens Hiding: A masked protester throws a petrol bomb at riot police in central Athens Shut down:Thursday's general strike is the most significant the government of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, The Greek government has to meet a series of conditions to get money from its third international bailout, which is worth around 80 billion euros ($89 billion). Having cleared the first set of conditions, it is now discussing the next batch of reforms required. Once cleared, it will be due further funds from the bailout as well as a promise to discuss the size of Greece's debt burden, which despite years of austerity still stands at a staggering 175 percent of the country's annual GDP. The pension reform is difficult for Syriza, which, while still in opposition, had led protests against pension reforms. However Tsipras was forced to ditch his earlier stance when faced with the stark choice of signing up to a third bailout or the country having to leave the euro currency. Syriza's difficulties with the pension reform plan were evident in the party's statement that it was backing Thursday's strike. Athens pensioner Yannis Kouvalakis said Tsipras' government had 'fooled' Greeks by promising to reverse austerity cuts. 'Because they are from the left, what happened? Was the situation saved?' he said. 'Things got worse.' Greece was crippled by a 24-hour general strike against a bailout-related overhaul of the country's ailing pension system on Thursday Opposition to the reform has been widespread, uniting a disparate group of professions, including farmers, artists, taxi drivers, lawyers, doctors, vets, engineers and seamen Members of the PAME Communist-affiliated hold a banner reads in Greek 'Social Security' during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens Claim: Neil Berriman (pictured) the son of the nanny murdered in Lord Lucan's home, insists she was killed by a hitman on the long-lost peer's orders The son of the nanny murdered in Lord Lucan's home has insisted a hitman killed her after being hired by the long-lost peer because he 'was used to having everything done for him'. Neil Berriman claims his mother Sandra Rivett never recognised her attacker despite having a good look at him before he went on to savagely beat Lady Lucan. The 49-year-old has now vowed to solve the mystery of what happened on the night of November 7, 1974, when Lord Lucans subsequent disappearance attracted endless conspiracy theories. It came as Lord George Bingham was finally granted a death certificate 42 years after his father vanished following the murder of Ms Rivett. She was discovered in the basement of the family's Belgravia home in central London after being bludgeoned to death with a lead pipe, with Lord Lucan the prime suspect. The widely-held belief is that he mistook the 29-year-old for his wife. But Mr Berriman told the Daily Mirror: 'Lord Lucan was used to having everything done for him thats why Im sure he hired a hitman. Lady Lucan said it was him but you have to remember she had been hit over the head repeatedly. 'Sandra looked her attacker in the face for a good few seconds. This meant she did not know her killer. 'If it had been Lord Lucan, even in the dark, he would have recognised her. Lady Lucan had blonde hair and my mother had red.' Mr Bingham, 49, who has now inherited the title as 8th Earl after applying for his father's death certificate under the Presumption of Death Act, said he supported the theory. He said a man mistaking a woman for one he had been married to for 12 years was a 'difficult story to believe'. It is not the first time the hitman claim has been made. Sir Rupert Mackeson, 74, a baronet who was on the fringe of Lord Lucans Clermont gambling set, told an ITV documentary in 2013 that a loan from the peers rich society friends paid for the hitman. He also claimed that Lord Lucan was later killed in a hit to stop him revealing the truth to police after the plan went wrong. Sir Rupert said: 'Lucan hired a hitman to kill his wife and then he himself was killed. 'Thats the truth of what happened and it is widely known in circles close to Lucan. His accomplices were worried that, with Lucan being an alcoholic, it would be easy for the police to get the true story out of him once he was arrested.' But Mr Berriman said he will continue to fight for justice for his mother. Speaking outside court, he accused the Met Police of withholding information about Lord Lucan, who he claims was alive as recently as 2002. Lord Lucan, who went missing in 1974, has been declared dead by the High Court. His son George Bingham (right, with wife Anne-Sofie Foghsgaard) has now been granted a death certificate Sandra Rivett, nanny to Lord Lucan's three children, was found murdered at the family home on November 7, 1974 When asked what he thought had happened to Lord Lucan, Mr Berriman replied: 'He escaped.' He claims he will prove it, along with his belief that Lord Lucan died abroad some time in the past 15 years. Yesterday, High Court judge Mrs Justice Asplin granted Lord Lucan's death certificate at a hearing. Speaking immediately afterwards Lord Bingham said: 'I am very happy with the judgement of the court in this matter. It has been a very long time coming.' But he added: 'We must not forget a person died and I have sympathy for Neil and his family. 'It is still a mystery what happened. We do not know how this lovely lady died in 1974, but Neil lost a mother and I lost a father. We still do not know how he met his end. The new Earl of Lucan then told the press to look for 'another Loch Ness Monster' now that his father has been certified dead. Speaking outside of the High Court, he said: 'I am relieved frankly. It is a sensible verdict after 41 years.' Yesterday's hearing was attended by Neil Berriman, the son of Sandra Rivett who was found murdered at Lord Lucan's family home on the night the peer went missing Speaking outside court, Neil Berriman accused various parties - including the Met Police - of withholding information about Lord Lucan, who he claims was alive as recently as 2002 Lord Lucan (left) vanished after the nanny to his children, was found murdered at the family home at 46 Lower Belgrave Street (right) in central London on November 7 1974 'This doesn't mean any person has escaped prosecution for the murder of Sandra Rivett.' 'The ruling does not mean that he or any other person will escape prosecution. But a person must remain innocent until found guilty in a court of law.' At a hearing in December, Miss Rivett's son Neil Berriman was given permission to intervene in the case. Both he and Lord Bingham were seven when Ms Rivett was killed. Mr Berriman was born Gary Roger Hensby (Sandra Rivetts maiden name) in Southsea, Hampshire, in 1967 and was immediately put up for adoption. Aged six months, he was placed with Audrey and Ivan Berriman, and grew up in Petersfield, Hampshire, only learning of his real identity after his adoptive mother had died. 'Lord Lucan was used to having everything done for him thats why Im sure he hired a hitman Sandra Rivett's son Neil Berriman But today Mr Berriman said he was 'very pleased' Mr Bingham would be inheriting the title, praising him for his 'passion for closure.' Mr Berriman confirmed he withdrew the objection he made last year to Lord Lucan being officially recognised as dead, but said he would continue to seek justice for his mother. 'I made my decision to withdraw the objection because I feel my life for the last five years has been a roller coaster ride of depression and stress, opening one door to find another shut in my face,' he said. 'The truth may be harder to get to than we think.' The judge made the declaration that Lord Lucan is presumed dead on the basis that she was satisfied that he had not been known to be alive for a period of at least seven years. The new Lord Lucan, a former merchant banker who got married in London last month was represented in court by his brother in law Michael Bloch QC who is married to his sister Lady Camilla. Lord George Bingham applied for the certificate under the Presumption of Death Act, which came into effect in 2014, so he can inherit the title as 8th Earl George Bingham, pictured as a young boy with his father, the missing Lord Lucan and his mother Even though Lord Lucan was officially declared dead by the High Court in 1999, there have been reported sightings in Australia, Ireland, Africa and New Zealand, and even claims that he fled to India and lived life as a hippy called 'Jungly Barry'. Lord Bingham argued that the 1999 declaration had not proved death 'for all purposes' and the new Presumption of Death Act allowed for a 'more complete process'. He said he wanted to praise the efforts of Mr Berriman in seeking justice for his mother. 'To some extent it has been a jaunt, but at other times it has been very difficult and I would be very grateful if we could now move on and look for another Loch Ness Monster,' he said. 'It is time to say farewell to a very distant past. 'There were a few accounts at the time and I personally find it difficult to believe a man who has been married to someone for 12 years could murder them in close quarter combat. 'I would think in the circumstances it is quite possible he saw his life at an end regardless of guilt or otherwise, being dragged through the courts and having his life and career destroyed. It is still a mystery what happened. We do not know how this lovely lady died in 1974, but Neil lost a mother and I lost a father. We still do not know how he met his end Lord George Bingham 'That may have pushed a man to end his own life.' On the night of the peer's disappearance, the nanny's attacker also turned on Lord Bingham's mother, Lady Lucan, beating her severely before she managed to escape and raise the alarm at a nearby pub. Lord Lucan's car was found abandoned and soaked in blood in Newhaven, East Sussex, and an inquest jury declared him the killer a year later. At a preliminary hearing before Christmas, it was claimed in court that a member of Lucan's gambling set had contacted a private detective to tell him he had evidence that Lucan took his own life soon after the murder. But few further details were forthcoming. The Daily Mail revealed earlier this month that the information referred to came from Philippe Marcq, who says he was told about the suicide by Stephen Raphael, a close friend of Lucan's. Mr Marcq claimed that Mr Raphael told him that in the early hours of the morning after the murderous attack, Lucan travelled to a private zoo in Kent, where he shot himself and was fed to a tiger. 'I was stunned when Stephen told me this, absolutely stunned,' says 73-year-old Mr Marcq, who now lives in semi-retirement in Wiltshire. 'But I believed what he told me 100 per cent. He was telling me very seriously and him telling me was a sign of considerable trust. 'I felt sworn to secrecy. It was a secret I could not betray and, until now, I have not. I want to put the story to rest once and for all.' Popular salad mixes sold at Coles and Woolworths have been urgently recalled after they were linked to a salmonella outbreak which has affected 28 adults and children. Victoria's Department of Health has warned consumers not to eat prepackaged lettuce from Tripod Farmers after a number of products were found to contain the bacteria. At least two people were taken to hospital after suffering severe diarrhoea and vomiting but no one has died, Medical Advisor Dr Finn Romanes told media. The brands affected include Coles 4 Leaf Mix, Woolworths salad mix, SupaSalad Supamix and Wash N Toss salad mix. The diet food delivery service, Lite n' Easy, has also issued a warning to customers not to eat meals which contain salads. The meals they named as effected are beef rissoles with salad, thai salad and chicken and caeser salad. Scroll down for video Popular salad mixes sold at Coles and Woolworths have been urgently recalled after they were linked to a salmonella outbreak, pictured Wash N Toss salad mix and Coles 4 Leaf Mix were affected Tests from two batches of three of these mixes have tested positive for Salmonella anatum bacterium, the health service revealed. And at least 10 of the cases that have been interviewed identified consumption of bagged lettuce mixes produced by Tripod Farmers, ABC reported. Dr Romanes said the links between the product and illness in Victorians had been made because of a higher than usual number of cases of the Salmonella strain. 'Normally we only see a handful of cases of this strain each year, but so far this year there have been 28 adult cases of Salmonella anatum - mostly adults - notified to the Department,' he said. Tripod Farmers said each harvest is hand picked, washed and delivered with a fresh quality guarantee on its website Coles sent a full list of all the products potentially linked to the salmonella outbreak which has affected 28 adults and children 'As a result of following up the food histories of a number of people we have discovered a common source - the Tripod Farmers lettuce. 'Tests of three products from two batches have also tested positive for Salmonella anatum bacterium.' Coles said its recall is not affecting Western Australia, Queensland and Tasmania. Products with best before dates leading up to and including February 14 will be urgently recalled. But it is unclear exactly how many salad mixes will be involved in the recall as they are 'widespread' in Victoria. 'We know that the lettuce products involved, that there are a number of products, and that the distribution of those products is very widespread particularly in Victoria,' he said. Coles (pictured) said its recall is not affecting Western Australia, Queensland and Tasmania A spokesman said: 'Coles has taken immediate steps to remove from sale a selection of pre-packaged lettuce products in Victoria, New South Wales, Noerthern Territory and South Australia following a number of cases of Salmonella infection potentially linked to these products.' Tripod Farmers said each harvest is hand picked, washed and delivered with a fresh quality guarantee on its website. Salmonella is an infection caused by bacteria from the Salmonella genus which mainly causes gastroenteritis. The severity of symptoms depends on the number of bacteria ingested, age and general health. An emotional Hillary Clinton alluded to her past public scandals as she revealed that a parable from the Bible has helped her through difficult times. In a deeply personal answer to a question about her faith from a rabbi at the Democratic town hall with Bernie Sanders in Derry, New Hampshire, on Wednesday evening, Clinton spoke about how she keeps one phrase in her mind during challenging moments. 'It's not anything I've ever talked about this much publicly,' she said as she spoke about what was clearly a subject close to her heart. Scroll down for video Hillary Clinton alluded to her past public scandals as she revealed that a parable from the Bible has helped her through difficult times Clinton, pictured with CNN's Anderson Cooper, spoke about how she keeps one phrase from a Biblical parable in her mind during challenging moments 'Everybody knows that I've lived a very public life for the last 25 years. So I've had to be in public dealing with some very difficult issues. 'I read that parable and there was a line in it that became just a lifeline for me. It basically is, "Practice the discipline of gratitude". 'Be grateful for your limitations, know that you have to reach out to have more people be with you to support you advise you. Listen to your critics, answer the questions, but at the end, be grateful.' Clinton, who is narrowly leading the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, said she aims to remain as 'self-conscious as possible' during her run for office. 'This is hard for me,' she said. I never thought that I'd be on a standing on a stage here asking people to vote for me for president. 'I've had to deal and struggle with a lot of these issues about ambition and humility about service and self gratification, all of the human questions that all of us deal with. But when you put yourself out into the public arena, I think it is incumbent upon you to be as self conscious as possible.' Clinton came under fire from both Bernie Sanders and Cooper (pictured together) over her ties to Wall Street during the town hall event Meanwhile Sanders, who was behind Clinton by a whisker in the Iowa caucases, said faith was a 'guiding principle' in his life. Sanders, who is Jewish, told CNN's Anderson Cooper he wouldn't be running for President of the United States had it not been for his 'strong religious spiritual feelings'. 'If we have children who go hungry, if we have people who can't afford their prescription drugs - you know what that impacts you, that impacts me,' Sanders said. The democratic socialist said what he doesn't like is a 'spirituality' that allows one to say: 'I got it, I don't care about other people.' 'So my spirituality is that we are all in this together and when children go hungry and veterans sleep out on the street it impacts me,' he said. Clinton came under fire from both Sanders and Cooper over her ties to Wall Street during the town hall event. 'I do not know any progressive who has a super PAC and takes $15million from Wall Street. That's just not progressive,' Sanders said of Clinton. Clinton shrugged off the $675,000 she received from Goldman Sachs for a speech and said: 'Well, I don't know, that's what they offered.' A heavily pregnant woman is fighting for her life today after being found with a dead body above a London pub where Celebrity Big Brother star Daniella Westbrook has a bar job. Scotland Yard has launched a murder investigation after the couple, believed to be in their thirties from Bulgaria, were found at the Bill Nicholson pub in Tottenham - a favourite with Spurs fans. Drinkers claimed the woman, who is six months pregnant, may have had her throat cut in a row and is in a critical condition in hospital. The man, who may have been threatening to leave Britain, is alleged to have died from multiple stab wounds. Crime scene: Police sealed off the Bill Nicholson pub in Tottenham today after a pregnant woman was found critically injured in a flat above with a dead body Day job: Danniella Westbrook lugs a hoover around the Bill Nicholson pub in Tottenham where she worked on match days before entering the Big Brother house The flat's landlord broke down the door and called the police at 11.30am yesterday after concerns about the couple. Suleyman Kardez, 20, who runs a neighbouring shop told the Evening Standard: 'She was pregnant. 'He wanted to move back to Bulgaria. He said he'd booked a ticket back on Monday. It's very sad.' Kebab shop owner Dogan Karkas, 20, added: 'I've heard someone got stabbed and has been there for a few days.' Police said body of a man, believed to be in his mid 30s, was discovered on Wednesday in a flat above the Bill Nicholson pub on Northumberland Park, Tottenham. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Celebrity Big Brother star Danniella Westbrook works at the pub on match days - pulling pints and collecting glasses, as well as cleaning the bar. The woman, thought to be her mid 30s was also found at the property with multiple and life-threatening injuries - she is currently in a critical but stable condition in hospital. One resident who drinks at the Tottenham supporting pub named after the club's legendary former manager, which is close to White Hart Lane, said it only opens on match days, and that there are never any problems as it is a quiet area. Time away: The former EastEnders stay pokes out her tongue at a fellow celebrity on CBB last night Wishing to remain anonymous, another man said: 'We are all really shocked. It is a community pub.' The man said he saw the police and emergency services arrive at the premises at around 11.45am. And believes the couple who live at the back of the property are Eastern European, saying their relationship was 'troubled,' as they were 'always arguing'. 'Someone that lives there said the man suffered many stab wounds and the lady had her throat cut,' he added. Police were called to the scene at around 11.30am by the London Ambulance Service to reports of two injured individuals. The identities of the man and woman are still unknown. A post-mortem examination for the man is yet to take place. No arrests have been made and enquires are still ongoing. German Chancellor Angela Merkel's popularity ratings have plunged to five-year low in the wake of the refugee crisis engulfing her country. In the latest poll by broadcaster ARD, a massive 81 per cent of Germans do not think she has a handle on the asylum seekers problem. It came as the government said more than 91,000 asylum seekers arrived last month, underlining the pressure the country faces to diminish the influx of migrants. On a personal level Mrs Merkel lost 12 points from a poll conducted last month and now has an approval rating of just 46 percent. Scroll down for video Feeling the strain: Angela Merkel's popularity ratings have plunged to five-year low, with a massive 81 per cent of Germans saying she has not handled the migrant crisis engulfing the country well She has slipped from number one to number three of the most popular politicians behind foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and finance minister Wolfgang Schauble. Furthermore, Germans are strongly in favour of new restrictions on migrants: 88 per cent of respondents are in favour of reducing social benefits for 'integration-reluctant' refugees those who refuse to attend language or assimilation courses. And the classification of the Maghreb states of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia as safe countries of origin was welcomed by a large majority 78%. Sixty-three per cent thought that a limit to how many refugees should be allowed in was a good idea. Mrs Merkel has seen her political capital squandered in the past few weeks as a series of ugly incidents involving migrants have served to unite people against her. The Cologne sex attacks of New Year's Eve, when hundreds of women were targeted by mobs of immigrant men who molested and robbed them, was a watershed moment for her 'open-door' refugee policy. Then came evidence that police forces nationwide were suppressing immigrant crime or simply not pursuing migrant offenders. Disgrace: Mrs Merkel has seen her political capital squandered in the past few weeks as a series of ugly incidents involving migrants have served to unite people against her, including this video showing three Afghan migrants attacking two pensioners on a Munich subway train A video which surfaced at the weekend of three Afghan men assaulting a pensioner on a Munich subway train while passengers look helplessly on fuelled even more resentment against her. 'The people no longer stand behind the government's refugee policies,' said the best-selling daily paper BILD. 'The Chancellor until a few months ago the driving force of her CDU party has fallen massively in favour with the voters.' In the same ARD poll, the Alternative for Germany party which outraged many last week with a call for police to open fire on asylum seekers illegally crossing Germany's borders now stands at a 12 per cent approval rating. That is the highest it has ever been in the broadcaster's monthly take on the national mood. There are vital regional elections in German states next month in which Mrs Merkel is expected to be seriously punished at the hustings by voters. The Interior Ministry said today that 91,671 people were registered as asylum seekers in January. That's lower than the 127,320 who arrived in December. Officials have said that winter weather was the driving force behind the decline. In all, Germany saw nearly 1.1 million people arrive last year and officials are keen to ensure that the figures are lower this year. Chancellor Angela Merkel insists that diplomacy is the key to a solution, and has resisted pressure for unilateral measures such as a cap on refugee numbers. His US-style burger restaurant sold out of food every night in its opening week in Sydney and young entrepreneur Jack Fonteyn believes he knows why. 'The thing that sets American burgers apart is the quality of the meat. That's a massive part of what makes a great burger,' the 27-year-old owner of Jacks in Newtown told Daily Mail Australia. Australians are currently obsessed with the US-style snack. Hundreds lined up for hours for Sydney's 'one day only' In-N-Out pop up in January and on Wednesday Carl's Jr opened their first ever Australian store at Bateau Bay on the New South Wales Central Coast. While many are keen to see the US chains branch out to Australia, this young Sydneysider has been ahead of the trend, opening 'Jacks Newtown', a US-style burger joint of his own in late 2015 when he noticed the gap in the market. 'I've been thinking about it and planning it for about three years,' he said. Scroll down for video While many have been left stumped by the hysteria around the burgers, Fonteyn says every element of burgers in the American chains are meticulously thought out to create a gourmet taste sensation unlike the standard Australian burger Jacks is praised as Australia's answer to US's Shake Shack with a premium burger which took more than six months to perfect, to ensure the meat is 'the same quality as a high grade steak' His US-style burger restaurant sold out of food every night in its opening week in Sydney and young entrepreneur Jack Fonteyn believes he knows why Australians are currently obsessed with the US-style snack. Hundreds lined up for hours for Sydney's 'one day only' In-N-Out pop up in January Jacks Newtown pictured on its opening day with a line down Missenden Road in Sydney's inner west 'I worked with Anthony Puharich from Vic's Meat for about six months to perfect the gourmet burger experience with high quality beef and the right burger composition. They settled on 'the perfect 80:20 meat ratio' for a mouthwatering meal. The brains behind Jacks knew American Burgers were missing from the Australian food scene before the nationwide fascination kicked off. While many have been left stumped by the hysteria around the burgers, Fonteyn says every element of burgers in the American chains are meticulously thought out to create a gourmet taste sensation unlike the standard Australian burger. Jacks is praised as Australia's answer to US's Shake Shack with a premium burger which took more than six months to perfect, to ensure the meat is 'the same quality as a high grade steak.' Social media has exploded as foodies share images of the overflowing burgers - boasting thick juicy patties, generous helpings of gooey cheese, a warm potato-based bun and specially made sauce. Crinkle cut chips and flavoured custard shakes complete the unique American food experience. Much in the style of US burger chains, Jacks purposely only has four items on the menu to ensure each is done to perfection. However, they are planning a secret menu which will be only spread by worth-of-mouth. The brains behind Jacks knew American Burgers were missing from the Australian food scene before the nationwide fascination kicked off Word has spread quickly and people are even travelling to taste the burgers - going to great lengths to try the cheeseburgers after spying the mouthwatering photos on Instagram In the opening week Jacks Newtown sold out nightly and listed their official opening times as 'until sold out' in the initial months as they tried to find their feet while being inundated with customers Social media has exploded as foodies share images of the overflowing burgers - boasting thick juicy patties, generous helpings of gooey cheese, a warm potato-based bun and specially made sauce The brain child of 27-year-old Jack Fonteyn, Jacks is nestled in the Inner West near Sydney University and purely through word of mouth has quickly become a must visit eatery. A huge part of the venture with Jacks Newtown is to fill a gap in the market and merge the American food culture with the Australian social culture - creating a quintessentially Aussie set up with a unique food experience. Fonteyn did his research, eating his way across the US to draw inspiration, particularly from hot spots like Shake Shack, Denver's Smash Burger and New York's Superiority Burger. Even the specialty burger is inspired by America but 'at the end of the day and Australian take on it.' The owners were overwhelmed when the Missenden Road eatery opened in October and immediately attracted huge hype, with queues down the block as word spread that Sydneysiders could finally taste a US burger without the airfare. Social media has exploded as foodies share images of the overflowing burgers - boasting thick juicy patties, generous helpings of gooey cheese, a warm potato-based bun and specially made sauce The early closing came as the staff was unwilling to compromise when it came to making burgers from absolute fresh produce everyday. In the opening week Jacks Newtown sold out nightly and listed their official opening times as 'until sold out' in the initial months as they tried to find their feet while being inundated with customers. The early closing came as the staff was unwilling to compromise when it came to making burgers from absolute fresh produce everyday. Word has spread quickly and people are even travelling to taste the burgers - going to any length to try the cheeseburgers after spying the mouthwatering photos on Instagram. 'It's like nothing we could've ever dreamed of. We've had people travel hours to try one of our burgers which blows me away - from NSW's Dubbo, Wollongong and Newcastle,' he said. 'I hope Jacks is somewhere to fulfil your cravings and feel comfortable,' he said. Social media has played a big part to not only help them spread the word about Jacks but also get constructive feedback. The owners read everything -every comment and every post - as they find their way in the burger world. 'We're listening to everyone! We've added pickles, lunch times, new sauces. We're listening to our customers to get bigger and better.' Word has spread quickly and people are even travelling to taste the burgers - going to any length to try the cheeseburgers after spying the mouthwatering photos on Instagram Crinkle cut chips and flavoured custard shakes complete the unique American food experience An anti-abortion activist who was indicted last month for making controversial sting videos that claimed Planned Parenthood illegally sold fetal tissue for profit surrendered this morning to authorities in Texas. A grinning David Daleiden appeared in a Houston courtroom and posted $3,000 bond. Sandra Merritt, another activist also charged in connection with the videos, turned herself in Wednesday and was later released on a reduced $2,000 bond. Both are charged with tampering with a governmental record, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Daleiden, 27, also was indicted on a misdemeanor count related to purchasing human organs that carries up to a year in prison. Attorneys say the pair plans to plead not guilty. All smiles: David Daleiden, right, one of the two anti-abortion activists indicted last week, arrives with attorney Jared Woodfill for court after turning himself in to authorities Thursday Indicted: Daleiden, the founder of the pro-life Center for Medical Progress, is facing a felony charge of tampering with a governmental record and a misdemeanor count related to purchasing human organs Fighting words: Daleiden's attorney Terry Yates, right, said he plans to file documents to quash the indictments and is prepared to go to trial Daleiden speaks at a news conference outside a court in Houston, with a group of supporters behind him National scandal: Daleiden and another activist were responssible for making undercover videos that claimed Planned Parenthood illegally sold fetal tissue for profit Prosecutors have offered Daleiden probation to settle the charges against him, but attorney Terry Yates said Thursday that his client is not likely to accept the plea deal. Yates said he plans to file documents to quash the indictments and is prepared to go to trial if necessary. Merritt also has been offered probation in a settlement, but her attorneys didn't indicate Wednesday whether they would accept the offer to settle. Arrest warrants were issued for Merritt and Daleiden, the founder of the pro-life Center for Medical Progress, after they were indicted January 25, and their attorneys arranged a deal with authorities for their voluntary surrender. Harris County District Attorney Devon Anderson's office initially launched a grand jury investigation to look into Planned Parenthood after the undercover videos indicated that the nation's largest abortion provider could be illegally selling fetal tissue to make a profit. The grand jury cleared Planned Parenthood of misusing fetal tissue, opting instead to indict Daleiden and Merritt, who made the videos and are accused of using fake driver's licenses to get into a Houston clinic. 'We're glad they're being held accountable, and we hope other law enforcement agencies pursue criminal charges, as well,' said Eric Ferrero, vice president at Planned Parenthood Federation of America. The undercover video footage showed them posing as representatives of a bogus company called BioMax, which purportedly procured fetal tissue for research. Planned Parenthood has said the fake company offered to pay the 'astronomical amount' of $1,600 for organs from a fetus. The clinic said it never agreed to the offer. In response to the shocking videos, Texas and other Republican-controlled states tried to halt funding for Planned Parenthood. Republicans in Congress pushed for a funding cut. Pro-lifer: Sandra Merritt surrendered in Houston on Wednesday after being indicted on a charge of tampering with a governmental record, a felony Merritt and Daleiden posed in undercover videos targeting Planned Parenthood as representatives of a company called BioMax, which purportedly procured fetal tissue for research Emotional: Merritt hugs a supporter after her appearance at the Harris County Criminal Courthouse Wednesday The activists' attorneys have acknowledged the two used fake IDs but that their actions weren't meant to defraud or harm the abortion provider, and that they never intended to procure human organs. Defense attorneys also said the charges won't stand up in court and have asked Anderson to drop the case and resubmit the evidence to another grand jury on possible charges against Planned Parenthood. A wheelchair bound suicide bomber may have been responsible for the explosion which tore a hole in the side of a jet in Somalia, investigators have said. They said the suspected terrorist, thought to be part of the Al-Shabaab Islamist group, may have faked a disability to bypass security checks at Mogadishu airport. The suspected bomber is also thought to be the man who was sucked out of the plane after blowing a hole in the fuselage, shortly after the plane filled with more than 70 passengers took off from the Somali capital. The man who fell from the plane has been named by local officials as Abdullahi Abdisalam Borleh, 55, from Somaliland, but they did not confirm if he was the suicide bomber. Scroll down for video Horror at 14,000 feet: A explosion ripped a hole in the side of the Airbus A321 just five minutes after it took off from the Somali capital Mogadishu Blast: A hole measuring six feet by three feet tore through the Airbus A321 fuselage and an elderly passenger in his 60s was sucked out of the cabin Investigators have said he may have smuggled a bomb on board the plane in his wheelchair before moving to a different seat once on board, a Western diplomat briefed on the investigation told the Wall Street Journal. Investigators believe Somali based terror group Al Shabaab was behind the suspected bomb blast. But no group, including Al Shabaab, has yet claimed responsibility for the attack. The Airbus A321 was forced into an emergency landing in Mogadishu on Tuesday following the explosion on Tuesday. Traces of explosive TNT was found on the aircraft, according to two U.S. government sources who cited forensic tests. But one of them cautioned that such tests have a high false-positive rate and further tests are under way. Yesterday, a Somali computer programmer told how the blast shook Daallo Airlines Flight D3159 five minutes after take off, tearing a hole in the jet's fuselage and sucking an elderly passenger to his death at 14,000 feet. Survivor Hassan Mohamed Nur said the cabin went black and filled with thick smoke as passengers screamed in terror. Mr Nur said the passenger, an elderly man, caught fire before he was sucked from his seat and out of the Airbus A321. I saw the passenger, a man in his early 60s, get sucked out of the plane,' he told MailOnline. 'There was a huge bang. A big hole appeared in the side of the jet and the man disappeared through it. One minute he was sat in his seat, the next it he was gone. Hed been sucked out of the plane. People were screaming. We all thought we were going to die. The charred body of a man, who may have fallen from the plane, was found in Balad, 18 miles from Mogadishu. Survivor: Hassan Mohamed Nur described the terror on board Daallo Airlines Flight D3159 Airline officials say two passengers were hurt in the blast, shortly after take off on Tuesday. Somalia's Minister of Aviation later confirmed their names as Abdirashid Abdi Ismail and Ismail Ali Osoble. One of those injured was an elderly man from Finland, who is in a stable condition in hospital in Mogadishu. The Somali government says an investigation has begun. The plane has been moved from the runway to a private hangar for inspection by forensic experts to inspect, Mr Mohamoud added. He said that foreign technical experts were involved in the inquiry. The Daallo Airlines flight bound for Djibouti in the Horn of Africa was able to fly back to Mogadishu and land safely and 74 passengers on board were evacuated. The pilot Vlatko Vodopivec, 64, from Serbia said: 'When we heard a loud bang, the co-pilot went back to the cabin to inspect the damage and I took over the commands as the procedure demands. 'Smoke came into the cockpit, but it was mostly concentrated in the back of the aircraft.' He added: 'I think it was a bomb. Luckily, the flight controls were not damaged so I could return and land at the airport. 'Something like this has never happened in my flight career. We lost pressure in the cabin. Thank god it ended well. 'It was my first bomb; I hope it will be the last. It would have been much worse if we were higher.' Two unnamed U.S. government sources said they believe a bomb caused the blast explosion - although Somali civil aviation authority officials say they had found no evidence that a criminal act had caused the explosion. Mr Nur added he does not believe the blast was caused by a bomb. I blame the cause the bad weather. Imagine if the cause was a bomb, could the plane make a safe landing within 15 minutes after take off? he added. Awale Kullane, Somalia's alternate U.N ambassador, who was on board the flight, said he 'heard a loud noise and couldn't see anything but smoke for a few seconds'. Carnage: In the blast, which ripped open the side of the cabin, one passenger told MailOnline how thick smoke filled the plane and passengers screamed in the chaos Blast: The full force of the blast can be seen from the outside of the Airbus A321 Daallo Airlines flight D3159 after it was safely landed at Mogadishu Damage: A blast blew a huge hole in the side of the plane just five minutes after it took off from Mogadishu Mr Kullane said he realised 'quite a chunk' of the plane was missing when visibility returned. Pictures of the aftermath were posted on social media showing frightened passengers putting on oxygen masks. Another survivor Mohamed Ali said he heard a bang before flames opened a gaping hole in the plane's side. 'I don't know if it was a bomb or an electric shock, but we heard a bang inside the plane,' he said, adding he could not confirm reports that passengers had fallen from the plane. One of the people on board the flight filmed the aftermath of the explosion where the remaining passengers at calmly until the aircraft returned to the airport. In a statement Daallo Airlines said the airbus was operated by Hermes Airlines and said the plane 'experienced an incident shortly after take-off'. 'The Aircraft landed safely and all of our passengers were evacuated safely. A thorough investigation is being conducted by Somalia Civil Aviation Authority,' the Daallo statement said. Athens-based Hermes Airlines provides planes on a 'wet lease' basis, meaning it leases insured planes staffed and serviced by its crew to other carriers. Somalia faces terror threats from ISIS-linked al-Shabaab, which is responsible for a number of atrocities in the country. Cabin crew moved the remaining passengers to the front and rear of the aircraft to keep it balanced for landing Two people are reported to have been injured after the fire broke out on the Daallo Airlines plane Djibouti-bound Daallo Airlines flight D3159 pictured after a blast blew a hole in the side of the cabin on Tuesday Aviation sources have suggested the aircraft was delayed leaving Mogadishu meaning the suspected bomb, if it was on a timer, went off at a lower altitude, giving the passengers on board a greater chance of survival. John Goglia, former member of the US National Transportation Safety Board, said only a bomb or a pressurisation blow out caused by fatigue could cause such a hole in the side of the aircraft. However, the black soot around the hole would indicate a bomb. He said the incident happened before the aircraft hit its cruising altitude which would reduce the possibility of a pressurisation event. A pervert who travelled 150 miles to have sex with an under-age schoolgirl was snared by online paedophile hunters and has now been put behind bars. Robert Crombie believed he had arranged to meet a 14-year-old girl he had been chatting to over the internet and sending explicit messages to. But Newcastle Crown Court heard when the 26-year-old got off the bus from Glasgow to Newcastle last May, with condoms in his bag, he was confronted by members of Dark Justice, who had already alerted the police. Scroll down for video Robert Crombie (pictured left and arriving at court, right) believed he had arranged to meet a 14-year-old girl he met on social media. The 26-year-old sent 'her' explicit photos and asked that she reciprocate Prosecutor Kevin Wardlaw told the court: 'He was arrested as a result of the actions of voluntary group Dark Justice, who seek to expose grooming of young people on the internet, through social media, with profiles purporting to be teenage girls.' Crombie, of Clyde Place, Glasgow, initially told police the illicit messages, and a picture of his erect penis, must have been sent to the girl by someone else but he later admitted attempting to meet a child after sexual grooming. Judge Robert Adams jailed him for 12 months and imposed a ten year Sexual Harm Prevention Order he must abide by. Crombie, who appeared to be in tears as the prison sentence was passed, must sign the sex offenders register for ten years. Crombie, of Clyde Place, Glasgow, travelled to Newcastle but when he arrived he was confronted by police and members of the vigilante group Dark Justice Newcastle Crown Court heard police were waiting at Gallowgate bus station to arrest Crombie (pictured) - who had claimed to be three years younger than his true age during the chats Judge Robert Adams jailed Crombie for 12 months and ordered him to sign the sex offenders register for ten years Judge Adams told him: 'You were found to be in possession of condoms, clearly indicating what your intention was, had Amy the 14-year-old actually existed. 'In this case, it is clear your intention was to have penetrative sexual intercourse with someone you believed was 14. 'Dark Justice, of course, were waiting for you when you arrived at the bus station, recognised you from your pictures, the police were informed and you were arrested.' The court heard Crombie had contacted the girl over social media last March and they soon exchanged phone numbers and started messaging on Whatsapp. Crombie, who claimed to be three years younger than his true age during the chats, sent the girl pictures of his face and one of his erect penis. Mr Wardlaw added: 'He invited her to reciprocate by sending naked images, images of her in a thong and in school uniform. 'He asked 'would you like to have sex' and made further requests to see her naked body.' The court heard Crombie agreed to travel from Scotland to see the girl in Newcastle on May 25 because she said her parents were away. The court heard that at the time of his arrest, Crombie (pictured), was on a suspended prison sentence imposed by Cambridgeshire Magistrates Mr Wardlaw said: 'On being made aware of the travel arrangements, members of Dark Justice attended Gallowgate bus station at 1.45pm and recognised him as he got off the bus from Glasgow. 'The police were notified, the defendant arrested and he was seen to be in possession of condoms on arrest. 'He travelled some distance in order to meet what he believed was a 14-year-old girl.' At the time of his arrest, Crombie was on a suspended prison sentence imposed by Cambridgeshire Magistrates for theft of a former girlfriend's mobile phone. He has a previous conviction for making a false representation in relation to him obtaining 5,000 from the same woman's late grandmother's bank account. Kieran O'Neill, defending, said Crombie suffers from learning difficulties, left school without qualifications and was vulnerable, living in a homeless hostel at time. Mr O'Neill said: 'He was a loner who had access to a computer. 'He had condoms with him, he was going to meet her. Whether or not he would have gone through with the offence, we will never know. 'He shows great remorse.' Mr O'Neill urged the court to suspend the inevitable prison sentence so Crombie could receive counselling and treatment. Judge Adams said Crombie's difficulties could in no way justify his behaviour. The judge added: 'I would be failing in my public duty if it was suspended.' Dark Justice are a vigilante group based in the north east of England who pose as under-age girls online to snare paedophiles. Men expecting to meet young girls are instead faced with members of the group who film the encounters and alert the police. They have so far secured at least 17 convictions and seen at least ten men jailed for their crimes. Rebecca Kelsall - the coroner recorded an open verdict at an inquest near Manchester after she was found dead in May 2015 A suicidal young mother was left to hang herself after she was let down by a 'bonkers' NHS care system worthy of a 'world in Alice in Wonderland,' a coroner has ruled at her inquest. Rebecca Kelsall, 31, had sought counselling for depression and thoughts of self harm but coroner John Pollard said rules within Britain's mental healthcare regime left her stranded without regular professional help. After calling a clinic to say she was too 'unwell' to make an appointment, the mother of two - who had relationship problems - drank vodka and took anti-depressants before hanging herself at her home in Greater Manchester. Inquiries revealed in the months before her death that Miss Kelsall had consulted an online therapist where she talked of killing herself but when it was agreed she needed a face-to-face meeting, she was told she could no longer use that E-therapy system due to 'procedure' - and she had to wait another four weeks for further help. She eventually saw a psychologist and again admitted having suicidal thoughts. But when she rang to say she was too ill to make a subsequent consultation staff were unable to ask why she was poorly due to 'policy' banning 'personal questions'. Instead she was dismissed from further treatment for failing to attend two meetings - without efforts being made to check on her welfare. At an inquest into Miss Kelsall's death, Mr Pollard condemned the healthcare system which treated her as 'flawed and poor' after he was told she was already dead when she was formally discharged for being absent at the second meeting. Healthcare professionals said under NHS rules patients can only escape dismissal if they can show 'exceptional circumstances'. Mr Pollard said: 'I believe that the fact somebody has already died and therefore cannot possibly attend their appointment is a pretty exceptional circumstance. This is very poor policy. This system has let her down. 'Here we have a vulnerable person with a history of problems, and because she doesn't turn up, the system simply says 'discharge her'. At an inquest into Miss Kelsall's death the coroner condemned the healthcare system which treated her as 'flawed and poor' after he was told she was already dead when she was formally discharged for being absent at the second meeting 'There was no concern that a woman with problems and a history of suicidal thoughts didn't attend. This seems to me to be a very flawed system. 'I can't understand why she was not asked why she was feeling unwell. If I rang the bank to say I wouldn't be going in that day, I wouldn't expect them to quiz me about it. 'But if I rang my doctor surgery, who should be solely concerned with my health, to tell them the same thing, I would expect them to ask me why I was poorly.' He said he would be writing to NHS bosses and the Care Quality Commission to express concern about Miss Kelsall's treatment adding: 'I can feel myself slipping into the world of Alice in Wonderland here. 'This is a bonkers system. I shouldn't have to use words like bonkers but I feel it's appropriate here. People like Rebecca need a system they can rely on. Rebecca, who was a mother of two, had confessed to having suicidal thoughts but when she failed to turn up for an appointment saying she was 'unwell' NHS administration staff made no effort to find out why - and dismissed her from treatment 'She could have easily remained on the E-therapy system whilst waiting for cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and the only reason she didn't is because the rules wouldn't let her. 'This is something I am very concerned about and hope it will be addressed.' The inquest heard Miss Kelsall had sought professional help online under the E-therapy system in September 2014. Rachel Jagger, a self-help coordinator for the website, said: 'We had a discussion about how she had been feeling tearful, how her sleeping pattern had changed and how she was finding it hard to cope from one day to the next. 'She reported feeling an intense eight out of 10 intention of self-harming but the next time we spoke her intention of self-harming had dropped to two out of 10 - though she was having suicidal thoughts once or twice a week. Rebecca pictured here on a night out: She had sought counselling for depression and thoughts of self harm 'On December 22, 2014, Miss Kelsall cancelled our chat due to her daughter being poorly and, in February 2015, she called to cancel because she was poorly herself. 'I told her that I would rearrange an appointment for her, but due to policy it would be the last time I could do so before she would be discharged...She told me she was struggling to complete the tasks online and agreed that it would be best to arrange a face to face CBT session. 'Unfortunately, due to our procedure we had to remove the option for her to access the online service because there would have been nobody available to support her. She was very concerned when we explained she would have to wait four weeks for this meeting.' Miss Kelsall later saw a doctor and was referred to psychologist Samantha Fox and had two consultations with her. Miss Fox told the Stockport hearing: 'She told me she had been experiencing low mood, which impacted her daily life and prevented her from going to work or socialising with her friends. 'This meant she was spending more time alone, giving her the chance to ruminate about things. Coroner John Pollard who condemned the mental healthcare system as 'bonkers' after a suicidal mother hanged herself when flawed NHS rules and red tape left her without professional help 'Miss Kelsall was measuring with mild to moderate anxiety and depression, so we decided that a low intensity intervention would be the best course of treatment for her. 'She told me she often felt anxious and panicky, which made her tearful. 'She talked to me about her problem with alcohol consumption, but that she felt it was something she was managing, and she also discussed her two failed relationships but never elaborated. 'I always felt it was difficult for her to discuss this matter, so I never knew much about it. 'I saw her again for the treatment session on April 22, 2015. She told me that at that time, she was not experiencing any thoughts of suicide, but that she had in the past. 'She told me she had been living with her aunt, and had started to work through some tasks I had set, which had ultimately helped her to get back into a routine. She told me she felt more 'on top' of her routine.' But Miss Fox said Miss Kelsall failed to attend two further scheduled appointments, leading to her being discharged from the service. When asked by Mr Pollard if the patient was contacted to find out why she was unwell, Miss Fox said: 'I do not believe that the admin department would ask a patient such a personal question about their health. 'If two or more appointments are missed, it is policy for us to send out a discharge letter. 'Unless there are extraordinary circumstances as to why they have been unable to attend, then they are notified that they have been dismissed from the service.' Miss Kelsall was found dead on May 31 last year after her family raised concerns for her welfare. There was no suicide note and the coroner recorded an open verdict saying she might not have been 'thinking clearly' at the time of her death. Her family were too upset to comment after the hearing. The moment a teenager is punched and kicked at an Apple store in front of horrified shoppers has been caught on camera. Shocking footage taken inside the Arndale Centre, in Manchester, shows the boy being dragged from the shop by another man before he is violently attacked. A crowd gather round as the young man falls to the ground with the force of the blow. The moment a teenager is punched and kicked at an Apple store in front of horrified shoppers has been caught on camera Shocking footage taken inside the Arndale Centre, in Manchester, shows the boy being dragged from the shop by another man before he is violently attacked The footage shows the man being punched in the face after he has been dragged outside the shop The attacker continued to punch and kick him as shoppers walk by. The young victim pulls on to his attackers trousers as he tries to get him to stop just as the footage comes to an end. The incident is believed to have happened on Saturday, January 23, at aorund 3pm. A staff member at the store said: 'There was a fight between a few guys. After it started they left the store and carried on fighting around the Arndale.' A crowd gather round as the young man falls to the ground with the force of the blow The boy had been attacked by three other males, one of whom had punched him and then chased him after he ran away, police said A Greater Manchester Police spokesman said that officers were called to the centre at 2.50pm to reports that a 16-year-old boy had been assaulted. The boy had been attacked by three other males, one of whom had punched him and then chased him after he ran away, police said. David Allinson, centre director at Manchester Arndale, said: 'An incident between customers occurred in the centre on Saturday, 23 January on the upper mall. 'Our security staff attended the incident and helped to move the group on.' Police are now appealing for witnesses or anyone who might have information about the incident to come forward. An infamous far-right, anti-Islam campaigner who helped lead a boycott against halal certification has been caught out ordering from a kebab store which locals claim is halal certified. Blair Cottrell has been aligned with both United Patriots Front and Reclaim Australia, groups known for 'outing' restaurants and suppliers with halal certified products, believing the practise funds Islamic terrorism. But on Wednesday, the Victorian nationalist was spotted at Karingal Kebabs in Frankston, south-east Melbourne - a kebab store which locals claim is halal certified. Blair Cottrell, aligned with anti-Islamic campaigners against halal United Patriots Front and Reclaim Australia, has been spotted ordering from a halal certified kebab store An administrator at Melbourne AntiFascist, who posted the images on Wednesday morning, claimed the far-right nationalist ordered a kebab mixed with hummus, garlic yoghurt and barbeque sauce Daily Mail Australia could not reach Karingal Kebabs to confirm that claim, and it is not specified on the takeaway joint's website. However, multiple locals have said it is halal certified. One of the images was later posted to a Facebook page that supports Neil Erikson, a fellow far-right campaigner. The image had been edited to say Mr Cottrell had ordered an orange juice and that the employee was Aussie. One of the images was later posted to a Facebook page that supports Neil Erikson, a fellow far-right campaigner. The image had been edited to say Mr Cottrell ordered an orange juice and that the employee was Aussie' A screenshot of a text message conversation allegedly between Mr Cottrell and a UPF member However, the administrator for Melbourne AntiFascist, who posted the images on Wednesday morning, said he had indeed ordered a kebab mixed with hummus, garlic yoghurt and barbeque sauce. We also understand although cant confirm that it was ordered as part of a combo with fries and an orange juice, the administrator said, adding that he ordered a big ol zub with extra tzatziki. Others in the comment thread pointed out Mr Cottrell was then pictured sitting with his unopened orange juice, which suggests he was most likely waiting for food to arrive. Blair Cottrell visits the kebab shop? Wait, what? Hahahahahahahahahaha, the Melbourne AntiFascist post said. The images were later shared by fellow anti-fascist page Slackbastard, who wrote: Bloody hell you know things are crook when even Der Fuhrer is happy to be halalified. When the images were shared to the United Patriots Front, one person mocked Mr Cottrell: I think all Muslims want to kill me and take over the world but I like there [sic] food. A screenshot of a text message conversation allegedly between Mr Cottrell and a UPF member appears to show him warn against sharing the images. It apparently shows Mr Cottrell warn against what the fellow member was about to do, potentially referring to sharing or posting the images. It has not been confirmed whether the takeaway joint at Frankston, south-east Melbourne is halal certified. Several locals claim it is The other person replied: Im being an actual Australian and eradicating poor behaviour from so called leaders. Mr Cottrell then allegedly replied: There will be consequences. Daily Mail Australia has attempted to reach both Mr Cottrell and Karingal Kebabs. Late last year Mr Cottrell became the face of anti-Islamic rallies, going so far as staging a fake beheading and drenched a council chamber floor with fake blood. Although he publicly declared he is not neo-nazi, Facebook posts later surfaced which showed him supporting Hitler, while making offensive rants against Jews, Muslims and women. Mr Cottrell was previously aligned with Reclaim Australia, before splitting to United Patriots Front. He was then ousted as leader but has maintained a following as an anti-Islamic campaigner. He has also posted to the Facebook page of Boycott Halal in Australia. A Senate inquiry in September last year found no direct link between halal certification and terrorism, ABC reported. Late last year Mr Cottrell became the face of anti-Islamic rallies, going so far as staging a fake beheading and drenched a council chamber floor with fake blood (pictured) Mr Cottrell is aligned with United Patriots Front, who last year protested against a proposed mosque at Bendigo in Victoria (pictured) Although he publicly declared he is not involved with neo-nazism, social media posts later surfaced which showed offensive Facebook posts supporting Hitler alongside rants against Jews, Muslims and women In one social media post, Mr Cottrell said: 'There should be a picture of this man [Hitler] in every classroom and every school, and his book should be issued to every student annually' Mr Cottrell also liked a quote by Adolf Hitler online He also said it was 'prejudiced' to call Hitler a 'nasty and evil person' A disturbing video purporting to show a prostitute still attached at the genitals to an elderly man who died while having sex has emerged online. The bizarre footage allegedly shows paramedics transporting the dead body with the woman still on top out of a building on a hospital stretcher. The pair are hidden under a blanket, but the possible woman does seem to be moving, as a crowd of people stand around and watch in horror. Men transport the alleged dead body with the woman still on top out of a building on a hospital stretcher The video appears to have first emerged on Chinese video sharing website Miaopai, before it was later shared by users on LiveLeak. It is believed that the incident took place in China, although the exact location is unknown. The duo were presumably taken to the hospital to be surgically separated before the man could then be brought to the morgue. Dying while having sex, although uncommon, can occur due to the strain of the activity. The pair are hidden under a blanket, but the woman, who can be seen on top, does appear to be moving This can lead to a sudden cardiovascular attack - something that is more common in males. People are also able to get stuck together while having intercourse - a rare occurrence known as 'penis captivus', where the vagina muscles clamp down on the penis much more firmly than usual. Dr John Dean, a UK-based sexual physician, previously told the BBC that when the penis is in the vagina it becomes increasingly engorged. He said: 'The muscles of the woman's pelvic floor contract rhythmically at orgasm. While those muscles contract the penis becomes stuck and further engorged.' The duo were presumably taken to the hospital before the man could then be brought to the morgue Finally the vaginal muscles relax, the blood flows out of the penis and the man can withdraw. He said that over the years, several of his patients have discussed their experience of getting 'stuck' - more out of curiosity than because it was a problem, however. One way in which doctors are able to separate people stuck together is by giving the woman an injection commonly used to dilate the uterus of pregnant women. It is not known what happened to this particular lady and how she was later separated, however. Since the video went viral Chinese media have reported that the bizarre footage may not be authentic and it has been suggested that the bulge under the blanket is in fact a large jacket. A New York police officer has been awarded $15million in damages after suing colleagues he claimed beaten him and falsely arrested him at his home. Larry Jackson, 45, from Queens had been at home celebrating his daughter's birthday in August 2010, when a 911 call was made after a gunman gate crashed the party. But when around 70 officers arrived, they mistook Jackson for the intruder, and are accused of beating him up, hitting him with their batons and using pepper spray. New York police officer Larry Jackson has sued the NYPD after 70 officers beat him and falsely arrested him when they responded to reports of a gunman at his home during his daughter's birthday party. Jackson says he tried to tell the officers that he was a serving police officer, but says his protests were ignored. He suffered a severe fracture to his hand and can no longer fire a gun as it was his shooting hand that was injured. He now fears he will have to retire from the police and after taking the NYPD to court, he was awarded the multi-million dollar payout by a federal jury in Brooklyn, the New York Daily News reported. His lawyer Eric Sanders told the website: 'The jury has sent a message to the Police Department that what happened was unacceptable. 'And that guy with the gun? No one ever bothered to look for him.' However, lawyers for the city say that Jackson was out of control and had been resisting arrest. A federal jury at Brooklyn Federal Court, pictured, awarded Jackson $15million in damages for his ordeal One officer told the court that he punched Jackson because he felt threatened and intimidated by him. And City lawyer Matthew Modafferi has now filed a motion to set aside the verdict after telling the court the amount of damages were excessive. He told the New York Post: 'The verdict is clearly excessive.' A news anchor has burst into laughter after the breakfast show featured a story on a disgraced Malaysian diplomat who defecated outside a womans home before indecently assaulting her. The emergency defecation situation was too much for New Zealand newsreader Hilary Barry, who continued to laugh through to the next report on the 3 News Paul Henry breakfast show, Nine reported. Mohammed Rizalman bin Islaim was a military attache at Malaysias Wellington embassy in New Zealand at the time of the attack in November, and pleaded guilty to indecent assault after denying initial charges of attempted rape and burglary. New Zealand newsreader Hilary Barry could not contain her laughter (pictured) while reporting on 3 News breakfast show Paul Henry She had been reporting on the 'emergency defecation situation' which saw disgraced Malaysian diplomat defecate on the doorstep of a Wellington woman before he walked into her bedroom naked from the waist down Rizalman had waited outside Tania Billingsleys Wellington home for 30 minutes, and defecated on her patio, before walking into her bedroom naked from the waist down. He told the courtroom he was in an emergency defecation situation. I think Im having one myself, the New Zealand newsreader said, unable to contain her laughter. She wiped away tears and then struggled to report on the news that followed, a tragic story of a man who was sucked out of a plane to his death after take off from Mogadishu, Somalia. Ms Barry continued to laugh, and between gasps said: Im not laughing at this. When she eventually got through the report, she laughed: Today could be the day I lose my job. Still, Id get to lie in. Rizalman was sentenced to nine months home detention. When she eventually got through the report, she laughed: Today could be the day I lose my job Fellow 3 News anchors could also not contain their laughter at the 'emergency defecation situation'. 'I think I'm having one myself,' Ms Barry laughed Advertisement Firebrand Republican front-runner Donald Trump has attacked President Obama's decision to visit a mosque yesterday claiming he 'feels comfortable there'. Mr Trump, who came second in the first state-by-state contest in Iowa, has previously challenged the President to produce his birth certificate to disprove rumours he was born in Kenya and whether he was Muslim. The billionaire businessman largely dropped his effort when Mr Obama, a Christian, showed his birth certificate which proved he was born in Hawaii. But he revived questions of the President's religion yesterday following Mr Obama's trip to the Islamic Society of Baltimore in Maryland. Questioned about that visit, Mr Trump told Fox News: 'I think that we can go to lots of places. I don't know, maybe he feels comfortable there. 'We have a lot of problems in this country. There are a lot of places he can go and he chose a mosque. I saw that just a little while ago. So that's his decision, it's fine.' Scroll down for video Donald Trump has chided the president for his decision to visit a mosque yesterday suggesting he feels 'more comfortable there' Mr Trump has long attacked the president over his religion hinting he is a Muslim and posed questions over where he was born This is not the first time Mr Trump has posed questions about the president's religious beliefs. At a town hall in New Hampshire in September, a man in the audience said Muslims were a problem facing the country and 'our current president is one' - a comment that prompted the businessman to laugh. In a speech to the Republican Jewish Coalition in December, Mr Trump questioned why Mr Obama was reluctant to use the phrase 'radical Islamic terrorism' and commented: 'There's something going on with him that we don't know about.' Most recently, at a rally in New Hampshire on Tuesday, he described the president climbing into Air Force One to celebrate Christmas 'or whatever he celebrates' in Hawaii. Meanwhile, the increasingly popular Republican candidate Marco Rubio said the president's trip to a mosque was another example of him dividing the country. He said the constant 'pitting people against each other' was 'hurting the country' and accused Mr Obama of 'implying that America is discriminating against Muslims.' In his first visit to a US mosque as president, Mr Obama condemned what he termed 'inexcusable political rhetoric' about Islam, in a thinly veiled attack on Mr Trump. The White House said the visit was intended as a defence of religious freedom and a statement against bigotry. 'The first thing I want to say is two words that Muslim-Americans don't hear often enough, and that is: thank you,' Mr Obama said at the start of his speech. 'Thank you for serving your community, thank you for lifting up the lives of your neighbours, and for helping keep us strong and united as one American family.' The president said he recognised Muslim-Americans were being 'targeted and blamed for the acts of a few'. 'Most Americans don't necessarily know, or at least don't know that they know, a Muslim personally' he said. 'Many only hear about Muslims and Islam from the news after an act of terror, or in a distorted media portrayal on TV or in a film. 'Since 9/11, but more recently since the attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, you have seen too often people conflating the horrific acts of terrorism with the beliefs of an entire faith.' You fit in here. Right here,' he said. 'You're not Muslim or American. You're Muslim and American.' US President Barack Obama speaks at the Islamic Society of Baltimore, in Windsor Mill, Maryland on February 3, 2016 against 'bigotry' In an address at the mosque, Mr Obama condemned what he termed 'inexcusable political rhetoric' about Islam Mr Obama was welcomed to the podium by a round of applause from the many Muslim-Americans in the mosque's audience Men and women in the audience held up their phones to record President Obama's historic speech on Wednesday President Obama went without shoes for his speech, out of deference to the mosque's traditions 'We can't give into profiling entire groups of people,' the president said, taking what appears to be a jab at Donald Trump's suggestion to create a database of all Muslims in the US His comments come in the wake of Mr Trump's call for a temporary ban on allowing foreign Muslims to enter the United States after the terror attack in San Bernardino, California, in early December, where 14 people were murdered and 22 seriously injured. Republican candidates Ted Cruz and Mr Rubio have also warned of 'radical Islamic terrorism'. Muslims make up about one per cent of the US population. The Islamic Society of Baltimore describes itself as one of the biggest Muslim organisations in America with thousands of affiliated families. Mr Obama has visited mosques in other parts of the world on official trips abroad, but this was his first in the US. The president noted that, in the current political climate, women wearing hijabs have been targeted, children bullied and mosques targeted. He said Muslims wrote to him saying they were made to feel like second-class citizens, while a 13-year-old girl from Ohio said she felt scared. 'These are children just like mine and the notion that they would be filled with doubt and questioning their place in this great country of ours, at a time when they've got enough to worry about it's hard being a teenager already that's not who we are. We're one American family and when any part of our family starts to feel separate or second class or targeted, it tears at the very fabric of our nation.' A Joakim Noah Chicago Bulls basketball jersey is held up toward President Barack Obama as he greets children from Al-Rahmah school and other guests during his visit to the Islamic Society of Baltimore on Wednesday The Islamic Society not only operates a mosque and a school, but groups like the Cub Scouts and Girl Scouts also use it as a meeting place A Girl Scout color guard carries the US flag before an address by President Obama on Wednesday Girls hold US flags while waiting for Preident Obama after he spoke at the Islamic Society of Baltimore on Wednesday Schoolchildren wave as the president passes their group at the Islamic Society of Baltimore on Wednesday Mr Obama greets attendees in an overflow room after speaking at the Islamic Society of Baltimore, in Windsor Mill, Maryland on Wednesday There was enthusiastic applause from the audience of about 100 Muslims. Mr Obama continued: 'An attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths and when any religious group is targeted we all have a responsibility to speak up We have to be consistent in condemning hateful rhetoric and violence against everyone, and that includes Muslims here in the United States of America. None us can be silent. We can't be bystanders to bigotry. We've got to show that America truly protects all faiths. 'I often hear that we need more clarity in this fight. That somehow if I would simply say these are all Islamic terrorisst that we would have already solved the problem by now. 'I agree that we need more clarity. Groups like ISIL are desperate for legitimacy...I refuse to give them that legitimacy. 'We must never give them that legitimacy. They're not defending Islam. The vast majority of the people they kill are innocent Muslim men, women and children.' He said bias against any segment of American society tears at the fabric holding the nation together and must be tackled 'head on.' 'We're one American family and when any part of our family starts to feel separate or second class, it tears at the very fabric of our nation' he said. People in the audience listen to remarks by President Obama at the Islamic Society of Baltimore mosque in Catonsville, Maryland Women watch as the president promotes his ideas for improving relationships with Muslim-Americans At the end of his speech, Mr Obama shared his ideas for promoting better relationships with Muslim-Americans. First off, he said Americans need to embrace 'our common humanity'. The second move was to remember the promise out founding fathers made to protect freedom of religion. Finally, Mr Obama said people should reject politicians that 'seek to manipulate prejudice or bias' and 'target people because of their religion'. For years, the president has fought incorrect claims he is a Muslim and was born in Kenya, beliefs that polls suggest remain prevalent among many Republicans. Mr Obama, a Christian, was born in Hawaii. During his speech, he noted that founding father Thomas Jefferson had also faced suggestions from opponents that he was Muslim. 'So I was not the first,' Obama said to laughter. 'No, it's true. Look it up. I'm in good company.' Young Muslim girls where white headscarves, blue dresses and blue sweaters to meet President Obama on Wednesday The Muslim congregants and schoolchildren were all smiles when President Obama came out to greet them A young Muslim girl wears a white head scarf and holds an American flag as she waits to watch President Obama's speech on Wednesday President Obama stops to greets children from Al-Rahmah school and other guests during his visit to the Islamic Society of Baltimore President Obama shakes hands with a young Muslim congregant at the Islamic Society of Baltimore on Wednesday With no plans to ever again appear on a ballot, Mr Obama faces less pressure to avoid political controversy. He appeared to relish the possibility his visit would raise eyebrows among some of his most entrenched critics. The event was also protested by a Muslim women's group, who criticized Obama's decision to visit in an opinion piece for the New York Times. Asra Q Nomani and Ify Okoye said they were protesting the visit to draw attention to what they believe is institutionalized sexism in the Islamic faith. At mosques such as the Islamic Society of Baltimore, men and women, as well as girls and boys, are kept separate in prayer. They believe this issue should be changed. 'As President and Michelle Obama argued decades ago in the context of the U.S. civil rights movement, separate is indeed unequal. 'To Muslim women's rights activists fighting for equal access to mosques as part of a broader campaign for reform from equal education for women and girls to freedom from so-called 'honor killings' the president's visit to a mosque that practices such blatant inequity represents a step backwards,' they wrote. Nearly half of Americans think at least some U.S. Muslims are anti-American, according to a new Pew Research Center poll released yesterday. Two-thirds of Americans said people, not religious teachings, are to blame when violence is committed in the name of faith. However, when respondents were asked which religion they consider troubling, Islam was the most common answer. President Barack Obama meets with members of Muslim-American community at the Islamic Society of Baltimore The Islamic Society's campus includes a mosque, and a school that runs from kindergarten through 12th grade. Above, President Obama meeting with members of the Muslim community at the mosque on Wednesday Copies of the Quran are seen on reserved chairs prior to a speech by US President Barack Obama at the Islamic Society of Baltimore A video shot in Russia has got UFO watchers excited after some claimed it was an alien vehicle plunging into the earth. The video was shot by Russian man Mikhail Litvinov who said he spotted the device leaving a huge plume of gas behind it as it plunged to earth on the outskirts of the central Russian city of Kemerovo. It quickly attracted thousands of views as people debated what it could be, with many pointing out it was too slow to be a meteorite, but producing too much of a gas trail to be an aeroplane. UFO? The video was shot by Russian man Mikhail Litvinov who said he spotted the device leaving a huge plume of gas behind it as it plunged to earth on the outskirts of the central Russian city of Kemerovo The gas is off-white in colour at the tail end but becomes blacker closer to the object. Speaking to Russian news site Komsomolskaya, Linvinov said: 'From my side I hope it was a shooting star.' Journalists from Russian news site Bloknot contacted Russian airborne forces who said that there were no registered incidents in the skies over Kemerovo at the time involving either crashed craft or meteorites. One online commentator said: 'It was going down so fast I reckon it was a Russian Rouble.' While another observed: 'It is certainly too slow to be a meteorite implying it is mechanical in origin.' One supposed expert pointed out that it was a 'cigar' UFO due to its long thin shape. These are apparently less widely known than 'saucers'. The first well-known UFO sighting occurred in 1947, when businessman Kenneth Arnold claimed to see a group of nine high-speed objects near Mount Rainier in Washington while flying his small plane. Arnold estimated the speed of the crescent-shaped objects as several thousand miles per hour and said they moved 'like saucers skipping on water.' This is how the term flying saucer was coined as, in the newspaper report that followed, it was mistakenly stated that the objects were saucer-shaped. Told MPs Do I want wine or do I want to raise my risk of breast cancer? Dame Sally urged people to 'do as I do' and consider results of drinking Britain's top doctor has been terrorising moderate drinkers into giving up wine and lecturing women to consider every sip of alcohol a deadly step towards breast cancer. But it appears Dame Sally Davies - the UK's 'nanny in chief' who only this week urged others to 'do as I do' - has relaxed her killjoy approach to booze at home. New photographs show the chief medical officer clutching a half-full champagne flute in the lounge of her 3milllion London townhouse. And having told Britons no amount of drinking is safe another social media image shows her spending time with husband Willem and daughter Isa on a table stacked with wine and beer. Contrast: Dame Sally Davies hugs her academic third husband Willem with her youngest daughter Isa on a table stacked with white wine and beer Isn't that a half empty bottle? Dame Sally poses in her 3m house with a nearly empty bottle of red on the side Daughter: Olivia Davies grins clutching an Aperol Spritz cocktail with the caption: 'I bin drinkin I bin drinkin' One more taken in Dame Sally's Islington home shows a near-empty bottle of red wine behind her - but it's not clear if the medic had been emptying it. Down town: Dame Sally admits to drinking at weekend, pictured here with a glass of something fizzy at home Her daughters Olivia, 24, who works for a Left-leaning think-tank, and medical student Isa, 20, also both enjoy a drink. One social media picture shows Olivia grinning next to an Aperol Spritz cocktail with the caption: 'I bin drinkin I bin drinkin' - famous lyrics from Beyonce hit Drunk In Love. The gender studies graduate has strong views herself, and told friends in a blog post: 'The thing they don't tell you is that without healthy thinking, healthy eating and exercise are completely pointless and, at worst, toxic.' Dame Sally's youngest daughter Isa also posed in a social media picture with two wine bottles while smiling broadly. Dame Sally's hardline views on alcohol have caused consternation and she encouraged drinkers to drink tea instead. On Tuesday, she told MPs she would like women who reach for a drink to ask themselves: Do I want my glass of wine or do I want to raise my risk of breast cancer? She added: 'And I take a decision each time I have a glass.' But her strong views don't stop there, saying cigarettes 'rot you from the inside' and called obesity 'as big a risk as terrorism'. Last month Dame Sally published strict new alcohol guidelines and urged men and women to have no more than 14 units a week six or seven glasses of wine and to take several days off. Dame Sally, who also owns a converted farmhouse with pool in the Aveyron region of south west France - famous for cheese, fois gras and wine, has made a virtue of her lifestyle. But it wasn't always that way because while at medical school in Manchester friends told MailOnline she enjoyed a drink and most un-Health Nanny-like, she experimented with cannabis in the 1970s. She later admitted: 'I never smoked, so I couldn't smoke joints, but I did have some cookies, until, on the third or fourth occasion, I had hallucinations and I have never touched it since'. Youngest: Isa Davies, a student also considering a career in medicine, clutches two wine bottles in this Dame Sally admits to enjoying a drink at weekends and previously said she and her third husband Willem Ouwehand: 'Work like crazy, but we live and we have parties here'. Puritan: England's chief medical officer Dame Sally Davies has reduced the government's recommended drinking guidelines Advising others on their drinking she said last year: 'If you have a bottle of wine a night have it over two nights'. This strict advice came as a surprise to those people who have been guests at her 3 million home in North London, where they have been offered fine vintages. The Chief Medical Officer goes for a two mile run some mornings followed by a pot of decaffeinated coffee and a breakfast berries and yogurt. Dame Sally's rise to the top has been extraordinary for someone who struggled at primary school and failed the 11-plus. Her parents moved her to a private school and she never looked back. After graduating and starting in medicine her first marriage put a temporary halt to the upward trajectory in her career path. Her husband was a diplomat, and she moved with him to Madrid when he became First Secretary at the British embassy in 1978. She learned Spanish and perfected her cookery skills. Returning to Britain, she disliked her role as an 'appendage' to her husband, and they divorced in 1982. The same year, she remarried but her second husband died, aged 38, of leukaemia six months later. In 1989, she married Dutch-born Willem Ouwehand, who is professor of experimental haematology at Cambridge University. The ringleader of the Paris terrorist attacks claimed he entered France among a multinational group of 90 jihadis who remain scattered throughout the area, it has emerged. Abdelhamid Abaaoud told a friend of his cousin in the days following the attacks that it was easy for ISIS terrorists of all nationalities, including the British, to flood into Europe by mingling with migrants. Posing as a Romanian vagrant, the 28-year-old Belgian also boasted of murdering 130 people 'like he'd just been shopping,' the woman revealed. His behavior after the carnage on November 13th will be of huge concern to those allowing thousands of foreign down-and-outs, including many Roma gypsies, into the French capital. Scroll down for video Abdelhamid Abaaoud (pictured) posed as a Romanian vagrant in the days following the Paris terror attacks, it has been claimed Abaaoud, the suspected ringleader of the attacks, was killed five days later during a raid (pictured) on a home in the suburb of St Denis He was tracked down to the address (pictured) by security forces after boasting to a woman named Sonia of killing dozens of people Referring to the rows of people killed standing or sitting outside cafes, Abaaoud told the woman - who later notified police that he was living in the suburb of St Denis - 'the terraces that was me'. Sonia said: 'He had a bobble hat on his head, orange trainers and a bomber jacket. For me he was a Romanian. Also, he was smiling, he did not look like a terrorist. 'He spoke about the attacks as if he had been shopping and had found a box of discounted washing up liquid. He was happy. That was it.' Sonia met Abaaoud two days after the attacks, on an industrial estate in Aubervilliers, a northern suburb of Paris where communities of Roma travellers from Romania set up shanty towns. Abaaoud was initially undisturbed as he slept on a mattress under a bush, but Sonia was determined to bring him to justice. She arrived with his cousin - another young woman called Hasna Ait Boulahcen - and the pair texted him the code number '1010' before Abaaoud greeted them. Abaaoud said around 90 jihadists of all nationalities - including some from Britian - had returned from Syria using false papers and were ready to spread further carnage. Abaooud, who is said to have visited London and Birmingham in the months leading up to the attack in France, also boasted he was preparing more on a police station and a nursey in La Defense, the business district to the west of Paris. A migrant holds her baby after arriving by ferry at the Greek eastern islands of Athen's port Thousands of people have made their way into Europe in the past few months despite freezing winter temperatures A man carries his child wrapped in a blanket after the pair arrived in Greece last night 'He told me they were going to do it on Thursday and I said to myself I have to stop them,' said Sonia. She dialled the emergency number set up by the Ministry of Interior in the aftermath of the attacks, and told security agents that Abaaoud had moved to a flat in the suburb of St-Denis, along with Hasna Ait Boulahcen. On November 18, police raided the flat killing Abaaoud, Hasna Ait Boulahcen and Chakib Akroh, another ISIS operative who had taken part in the terrace attacks alongside Abaaoud. Sonia has since gone into hiding, and changed her identify, but agreed to speak on RMC radio in Paris today. She said she felt abandoned by France - the country she risked her life defending, but added: 'Even if I live in danger, really, I'd rather it this way than have the death of innocent people on my conscience'. Refugees try to get into the Macedonian refugee camp of Gevgelija after arriving from Greece Despite the cold winter temperatures across much of Europe, waves of migrants continue to arrive A young boy stares at the camera while queuing to be allowed into a refugee camp in Macedonia Finland's president has warned the migration crisis poses a serious threat to Western values and called for tougher rules to stop refugees entering Europe simply for a better life. Sauli Niinisto used his parliamentary address to criticise Geneva Conventions, saying they allowed too many people to claim asylum when they weren't genuinely in need. 'Migration is a serious problem,' he said at the opening of the legislature's Spring term yesterday. 'Europe, Finland, the Western way of thinking and our values have all been challenged by it.' Scroll down for video Finland's president Sauli Niinisto says migrants are threatening Western values because too many are arriving in Europe without a genuine claim for asylum Mr Niinisto, a former lawyer, said that while a few years ago European countries regarded their values as 'unquestionable' they were now fighting to preserve them. In comments reported by Yleisradio Oy, he added: 'We must help those who are in distress or being persecuted. 'At the moment, however, we cannot help those who are merely seeking a better life or feel that their circumstances and future are difficult in their home countries.' Europe saw more than a million asylum seekers stream onto the continent last year, mainly by sea from Turkey, with figures indicating little sign of the flow ebbing so far this year. Mr Niinisto said the current Geneva Conventions on which Western states base their response to refugees were outdated and had allowed too many people to claim asylum. He said: 'It has also been suggested that the International Convention on Refugees should be amended. This would be a slow process, unlikely to solve what is an acute problem. 'The international rules were drawn up and their interpretation evolved under quite different circumstances. 'I feel sure that if these international regulations, and the national regulations based on them, were drawn up now, their content would be fundamentally more stringent, while still taking account of human rights and helping those in need.' Refugees continue their journey through Europe from the Macedonian camp of Gevgelija to Serbia. While some may have a genuine need for asylum from war, Mr Niinisto believes current international agreements allow for too many to seek refuge while simply looking for an easier life He added: 'We have to ask ourselves whether we aim to protect Europe's values and people, and those who are truly in acute danger or inflexibly stick to the letter of our international obligations with no regard for the consequences.' Last week the Finnish interior ministry announced that around 20,000 of the 32,000 asylum applications Finland received last year would likely be rejected and those people expelled. Helsinki is also in diplomatic negotiations with neighbouring Russia to stop more migrants from entering Finland via the Arctic region. It emerged earlier this week, that Finland's centrist Prime Minister Juha Sipila had backtracked from plans to house asylum seekers at his country house for security reasons. Sipila, a former businessman who has headed a centre-right government since May, vowed on state television in September to host refugees at his country home in Kempele, more than 500 kilometres (310 miles) north of the capital Helsinki. After his announcement, Finland registered an unprecedented flow of mostly Iraqi migrants, totalling over 32,000 in 2015, prompting some citizens to accuse Sipila of attracting them to Finland with his offer. Shocking CCTV footage shows how a shopkeeper was brutally beaten up by a hooded thug who had threatened him twice before. Muhammad Jawad Ali twice phoned police about the yob's menacing behaviour - but they refused to turn up to his shop because the case was not a priority. The man later returned and pinned the businessman against a shelf, repeatedly whacking him in the face and hitting him over the head with a bottle. Mr Ali, 30, who was left with four fractures to his face and had to take three weeks off work, has now spoken out about the brutal assault in a bid to find the unidentified attacker. Attack: Muhammad Jawad Ali was brutally beaten by a yob who had threatened his shop twice before Injuries: The 30-year-old shopkeeper suffered four fractures to his face after the incident last month The first time the man appeared at his shop in Glasgow, he loitered on the premises and threatened staff and customers, verbally abusing Mr Ali. Two days later, he came back and started menacing others with an umbrella. The shopkeeper called police both times, but they said they were unable to intervene and instead offered to turn up the next day for a conversation about the case. On January 3, the man came back and wordlessly started attacking Mr Ali, a father of one, before trying to run off with the cash register. Mr Ali said: 'The first time he came to the shop, I called the police and they said, "We can't come because he's not attacking you." I called two times on that day. 'Two days later he came again in the evening. He started getting rude and threatened customers, an old lady and me with an umbrella. He was standing here for an hour. Brutal: The attacker pinned Mr Ali to the shelves of his store and repeatedly punched him Reeling: CCTV footage shows that he was unable to stand properly after the vicious attack 'I called police more than three times on that day. They should have done something when I told them he was threatening us. 'The police said there's no case for them to turn up. They said they could not come until he attacked someone. They said they have different priorities. 'Days later he came back. He didn't say a single word. He kicked me in the back and I fell onto the bottles. 'He grabbed me and started punching me for no reason. Then he tried to grab the till but he couldn't take it. He threw it on the floor and just ran away. My blood was everywhere.' CCTV footage of the incident shows the yob repeatedly punching Mr Ali in the head and running away as the shopkeeper reels, unable to stand up normally. He was rushed to Glasgow Royal Infirmary with facial injuries, including three fractures to his cheekbone, a further to his nose and cuts to his mouth. He is now having trouble with his vision. Mr Ali described his attacker as white, of a skinny build, just over 6ft tall, clean-shaven and speaking with an Eastern European accent. Damage: The floor of the shop was spattered with blood in the aftermath of the beating Appeal: Mr Ali is now hoping to track down the unidentified man after revealing the CCTV footage Police said their enquiries are continuing to catch the thug and have urged anyone with information regarding this incident to contact them. Mr Ali said: 'After all this happened I thought they would get the guy, but no. I want to come back to work but I can't stand here by myself. 'Now it's been a month and nothing has happened. If he was caught I would be satisfied. I am destroyed from inside. My life is not secure.' A spokesman for Police Scotland said: 'We can confirm that a call was made to the police relating to a disturbance on two separate occasions in a shop in Glasgow in December. 'On both occasions it was reported that a man had been causing a disturbance within the shop. 'All incidents are graded in line with their priority level and as there were no officers in the area available to attend the store at the time, the shopkeeper was offered advice and guidance over the phone. 'The complainer was asked to call back if things escalated. He was then invited to make appointments with the police for the following day after both reports. The shopkeeper declined these appointments and stated that he no longer wished for police to attend. A 'pro-rape pick-up artist' who called for the legalisation of sexual attacks has been forced to cancel a series of events in the UK after claiming he could no longer guarantee the safety of those who wanted to attend. Daryush Valizadeh, who calls himself Roosh V, had announced events for 'heterosexual men only' across the UK on Saturday. But the 36-year-old American said that he had been forced to cancel the events - planned for London, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Manchester, Newcastle, Leeds and Shrewsbury - because he couldn't 'guarantee the safety of men attending'. On his Return of Kings blog, he said: 'I can no longer guarantee the safety or privacy of the men who want to attend on February 6, especially since most of the meetups cannot be made private in time. Global backlash: Anti-sexism campaigners have called for misogynistic 'pick-up artist' Daryush Valizadeh (pictured), who has argued for rape to be legalised if done on private property, to be banned from the UK 'The listing page has been scrubbed of all locations. I apologise to all the supporters who are let down by my decision.' He has has published 15 books on how to 'pick up women' and posts tips on his website on how to 'bang' women. Protesters had called for the meetings to be banned and a petition lobbying the police and Home Office to ban the UK events has more than 55,000 signatures. Katie Pruszynski, who started the petition on Change.org, said: 'He encourages men to ignore when a woman says 'no', he believes rape inside private property should be legal and he routinely refers to women as 'the enemy'. Valizadeh caused outrage after saying he wouldn't respond to female journalists because he didn't 'respect' them. He also angered people when he tweeted a sexist message with a picture of anchor, Candice Wyatt Daryush Valizadeh, known as Roosh V, has asked his followers to use code words to identify other men's rights activists attending his 'tribal meetings' Valizadeh's website publishes articles that claims women should not work, women should have their behaviour and decisions 'controlled by men' and has even encouraged males to record consensual sex a camera 'He believes sexual gratification is a man's right, wilfully disregarding the issue of consent.' She added in her post online: 'We will not accept this form of terror against women. Pro-rape advocates directly threaten our safety and normalise the abuse of women and girls.' In one of his posts, Mr Valizadeh said rape should be legalised 'if done on private property'. 'Less women will be raped because they won't voluntarily drug themselves with booze and follow a strange man into a bedroom, and less men will be unfairly jailed for what was anything but a maniacal alley rape,' he wrote. A Home Office minister was being summoned to the House of Commons at 10.30am to answer questions from MPs on the cancelled event after shadow women and equalities minister Kate Green asked an urgent question. Almost 2,500 people have signed a petition against the pro-rape campaigner's plans for a meeting in Cardiff Many of his self published e-books have been widely condemned as 'rape guides' by the media and politicians Jeffrey had previously been hospitalized after hearing 'dark voices' telling him to kill himself An arson attack burned the bodies of an Ohio mother and her two young daughters so badly last month that investigators cannot determine whether they had suffered any fatal injuries prior to the explosion. The bodies of Jeffrey and Cynthia Mather, both 43, and their daughters, eight-year-old Ruthie and 12-year-old Alyson, were found in the ruins of their Northfield Center Township home after an explosion tore through it on the evening of January 11. The fire was ruled arson by authorities, and Jeffrey Mather, whose body was found next to a charred gas can in a different part of the house to the rest of the family, was deemed to have died due to smoke inhalation. Officials said it could have been a murder-suicide. However, investigators are still searching for the official cause of death for Cynthia and their children, according to a preliminary autopsy report released on Wednesday by The Summit County Medical Examiner. Records show they haven't determined exactly when they died. The bodies of Cynthia Mather and her daughters, eight-year-old Ruthie and 12-year-old Alyson, were found in the ruins of their home after an explosion tore through it on January 11. Father Jeffrey's body was also found Jeffrey, who was a church deacon, had previously been hospitalized for three days in December, after taking a gun to a local park and telling a ranger there that he'd heard 'dark voices' telling him to kill himself. According to a police report released in January, he was found with a shotgun loaded with a single slug. Mather said he had been suffering from severe depression and had put the barrel to his head a number of times, but stopped when he saw park visitors walking nearby. He said he had prayed for help, and that a man had approached him and later called authorities. Mather helped found the Rock Community Church in Garfield Heights, where he was a deacon for 13 years. Prior to his death, he had had a job assignment change at Swagelok in Solon, which had apparently triggered his depression, according to WKYC. Jeffrey Mather had been hospitalized for three days in December after telling authorities that he had been suffering from severe depression and that 'dark voices' had told him to kill himself In the aftermath of the explosion, members of the family's community told the media that the family had been much liked in the area. 'They were super people, the mother was kind of like a mom to a lot of the kids in the neighborhood,' Mike Mahan, the Mathers' next-door neighbor, told Fox 8. 'She used to care for other kids coming from families that had problems, and Cindy would take them in and take care of them.' Danielle Nickschinski, who lived two doors up from the family and had baby-sat both Ruthie and Alyson, told AP reporters: 'They were very outgoing and nice. They always wanted to play.' The fire, which is being treated as arson, destroyed most of the Mathers' home, with only their dog escaping alive. Jeffrey's body was found in the back, next to a charred gas can. Officials say it may be a murder-suicide Nickschinski's father, Randy, told Cleveland.com that he, his son and another neighbor had kicked in the door to the Mathers' home to try to save the family, but were only able to rescue their dog. 'There was a lot of fire, a lot of debris,' he said. 'We were yelling, and nothing. We were just looking everywhere.' He entered the home twice looking for survivors. 'You'd do the same thing if you got kids,' he added. 'It's like a dream... It can't be happening. It's not happening.' Cynthia and her daughters were much liked by the community; Cynthia was described as 'a mom to a lot of kids in the neighborhood' while her daughters were said to be 'outgoing' and always happy to play The explosion destroyed the second floor of the Mathers' home. According to WKYC, Jeffrey Mather was found on the first floor of the house, in a back room next to a charred gas can. His wife was found on top of their daughters in a first-floor hall in the front of the house. The Cambridge student who went missing in Egypt is believed to have been murdered after his body was found with signs of torture and 'slow death,' including stab wounds, a severed ear and cigarette burns. Giulio Regeni's mutilated body was found naked from the waist down on the side of a highway in western Cairo, a prosecutor said. The Italian PhD student, 28, had been missing since January 25. Prosecutor Ahmed Nagi, who leads the investigation team on the case, said the cause of death was still being investigated. Scroll down for video Death: Cambridge graduate student Giulio Regeni, 28, originally from Italy, has been found dead in Cairo, reportedly having been tortured and suffered a 'slow death' according to Egyptian prosecutors Mr Nagi said 'all of his body, including his face' had bruises, cuts from stabbings and burns from cigarettes, adding that it appeared to have been a 'slow death.' Italy's Foreign Ministry said it had urgently summoned the Egyptian ambassador, seeking maximum cooperation in the investigation. The ministry said in a statement on Thursday that Italy renewed its request to launch an immediate investigation and include Italian experts. The statement also requested that the body be returned to Italy as soon as possible. It came amid conflicting reports from officials in Egypt about the circumstances surrounding Mr Regeni's death. Suspicions of a cover-up by security forces were heightened by quotes from a local police officer that foul play had been excluded. General Khaled Shalabi was reported by local media as saying: 'The first investigations suggest he was the victim of a car accident'. That came before the deputy head of criminal investigations in Cairo's twin province of Giza, Alaa Azmi, said Mr Regeni's body had been found in a ditch on Wednesday morning with 'bruises and cuts.' An initial investigation showed it was a road accident, he said, adding that the preliminary forensic report hadn't mentioned any burns. Murdered: The body of Mr Regeni was found on naked from the waist down on the side of a Cairo highway, bearing signs of torture, including stab wounds and cigarette burns 'We have to wait for the full report by forensic experts. But what we know is that it is an accident,' Azmi said. The University of Cambridge lists Mr Regeni as a student of its Department of Politics and International Studies. Mr Regeni's body was found following an online campaign searching for him after he went missing in what Italy's foreign ministry has called 'mysterious circumstances'. An Egyptian friend of Mr Regeni, who was from Fiumicello in the north-east of Italy, said that shortly before his death the student had been seeking contacts for trade union activists to interview as part of his PhD research. This political research had been the main focus when the friend was questioned by police following the Italian student's disappearance, he said. Yesterday another friend revealed that Mr Regeni had left his accommodation in a 'middle-class part of Cairo to meet a friend downtown'. 'The friend called him after he didn't show up. His cell was off then,' the friend told MailOnline, speaking on condition of anonymity. 'We briefly talked on the day of his disappearance, about two hours earlier. He was happy and cheerful, he was about to meet a friend. No indication of any worries whatsoever. 'I just feel terrible for his family, his girlfriend and all his friends.' Demonstrations: On the day Mr Regeni went missing, residents took to the streets to mark the fifth anniversary of the Arab Spring. Pictured, supporters of ousted President Mohamed Morsi march in Cairo The Egyptian authorities had intensified a crackdown on dissent ahead of the Jan. 25 anniversary, with police raiding apartments in downtown Cairo seeking signs of plans for organised protests and checking people's social media accounts. Egypt has seen years of upheaval since Mubarak's ouster in 2011, ending with the election of former Defense Minister Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi as president in 2014, after he led a 2013 military ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi amid massive protests against his rule. Following Morsi's ouster, el-Sissi launched one of the harshest crackdowns in years, jailing of thousands of Islamists and scores of liberal, pro-democracy activists. Human rights groups claim Egyptians are often detained by police on little evidence and beaten or coerced. Many have disappeared in the past three years but Egypt denies police brutality. In addition, Egypt has been battling a local Islamic State affiliate in the northern Sinai Peninsula, where Islamic militants stepped up attacks on security forces after the military ousted Morsi in 2013. Eighteen members of a violent gang that caused a 'wave of terror and enormous bloodshed' on the streets of Brooklyn have been charged. The suspects, all men aged 18 to 27, are members of the 'No Love City' gang based in Flatbush, Brooklyn. They face a string of charges including murder, attempted murder and possession of weapons. Each gang member faces up to 25 years in prison if they are convicted. Eighteen members of the 'No Love City' gang, including kingpin Kwyme Waddell have been charged The 76-count indictment includes the murder of a 25-year-old rival, Adetunji Ajakaye, and a shooting that left an innocent 60-year-old Brooklyn woman paralyzed as she walked home with groceries. The brazen 'No Love Gang' went on 'hunting expeditions' to track down and murder rival gang members and then bragged about shootings on social media. Brooklyn district attorney Ken Thompson said: 'These defendants caused a wave of terror throughout the streets of Brooklyn with no regard for human life.' 'Some of these shootings happened in front of children.' He added: What this indictment means to us is that our streets don't belong to violent street gangs or armed thugs. They belong to the people of Brooklyn.' Kwyme 'Big Homie' Waddell, 25, was identified as the gang's kingpin and accused of making phone calls from Rikers Island to order the beatings or shootings of rivals. Footage from one of the shootings show the gang opening fire in a courtyard where adults recline on benches and children play on scooters as he chases down a rival. That incident, in Coney Island Avenue in July last year, left a 50-year-old seriously injured after he was shot in the heart. As bullets flew, a terrified woman can be seen scarpering from the scene. The investigation covers a period from September 2013 until last month. Fifteen of the suspects were jailed without bail until a hearing on March 22. Another suspect is awaiting extradition from New Jersey, while police are still searching for Jarmel Blake, 24, and Jerome Myrie, whose age is unknown. Missing schoolgirl Tia Addison has been found safe and well, police said today. The youngster was last seen at home around 8.30pm on Tuesday evening in Gravesend, Kent. It was thought the 14-year-old had been heading to nearby Northfleet. Police issued an appeal for help to find her this morning saying they were growing increasingly concerned for her welfare. But officers confirmed she has now been found safe and well. A bomb alarm has been raised at Madrid's Barajas airport after a claim explosives had been placed on a plane to Saudi Arabia. The pilot on a Saudi Airlines flight to Riyadh raised the pre-take off alarm after finding a bomb threat onboard, reports claim. All 97 passengers were evacuated after crew found a note reading 'bomb aboard' pinned to the bathroom wall with a knife, local media reports. The pilot on a Saudi Airlines flight from Madrid to to Riyadh raised the pre-take off alarm after finding a bomb threat while on the runway at Barajas International Airport Spain's interior ministry says the flight was on the runway and had been due to take off just beforee 11am. The Saudi Airlines plane was quickly was diverted to a secure area of the airport, where the 97 passengers and 15 crew members were evacuated, El Mundo reports. The note with the threat was reportedly written in English, and read: You have a bomb. 11.30'. Spains Civil Guard has now downgraded the alert after a bomb squad examined the plane. An airline spokesperson told MailOnline that the general alert has been deactivated, but the local alert is still ongoing, meaning the alert remains around the plane, but the airport can function normally. All 97 passengers were evacuated after crew on the Saudi Airlines flight found a note reading 'bomb aboard' pinned to the bathroom wall with a knife (stock image) Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss has been filmed sleeping during Question Time while the Prime Minister spoke animatedly just a metre in front of him. Unfortunately for the deputy of the Nationals who is slated to announce his retirement soon - his entire snooze was broadcast on live TV. Sitting in the hot seat directly behind Malcolm Turnbull, who was speaking at length about the NBN, meant the 67-year-old was in full view of parliament and the TV cameras. Although at first the leader of the Nationals appeared to just be listening with his eyes closed, soon his head began to bob forward. Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss has been filmed sleeping during Question Time while the Prime Minister spoke animatedly just metres in front of him Before long the Infrastructure Ministers was in a deep sleep with his head lolling backwards and forward Although at first the leader of the Nationals appeared to just be listening with his eyes closed, soon his head began to bob forward Before long the Infrastructure Ministers was in a deep sleep with his head lolling backwards and forward making it undeniably clear he was spending his afternoon in parliament in peaceful slumber. Fortunately the deputy Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce was on hand to nudge Mr Truss awake. Mr Truss quickly saw the funny side of events, laughing openly and clearly amused once he registered what had happened. Social media was abuzz from those who spotted Mr Truss napping on the job. Unfortunately for the deputy of the Nationals who is slated to announce his retirement soon - his entire snooze was broadcast on live TV Warren Truss not only puts us to sleep but put puts himself to sleep, tweeted one user. Warren Truss has fallen asleep during Question Time when others are speaking...usually it's the other way around! tweeted Peter Van Oselen. Thursday feels, featuring the Deputy PM, tweeted Charles Croucher alongside footage of Truss snooze. This week the politician told the Nationals party room he would confirm his future plans by next month, Fairfax reports. Mr Joyce is understood to be eager to lead the party and is 'the front runner'. NSW MP Michael McCormack is rumoured to be planning to vie for the position. A Staffordshire bull terrier who was so emaciated that her spine and ribs poked through her skin was found tied to a gate after being abandoned by her owner. The neglected dog was discovered covered in sores in Middleton, Greater Manchester, by a dog walker. Although the dog was not wearing an identification tag, she was microchipped and the RSPCA was able to find that previous owners had given her the name Jazz. A Staffordshire bull terrier called Jazz who was so emaciated that her spine and ribs poked through her skin The neglected dog was discovered covered in sores in Middleton, Greater Manchester, by a dog walker Investigations revealed that Jazz had been through at least three homes - including an animal welfare charity - before being abandoned and left to suffer It comes after a homeless dog was found freezing to death outside a shop front in London. Investigations revealed that Jazz had been through at least three homes - including an animal welfare charity - before being abandoned and left to suffer. The neglected dog is now under veterinary care. RSPCA inspector Nichola Waterworth said: 'Thankfully she was spotted by the member of the public. It was a cold night and she was tied up alone. 'She's extremely thin and has pressure sores from where she's been laid down on a hard floor of some type. Her skin is flaky and her nails are overgrown. I suspect she's been living outside or perhaps in a shed or something like that, as she was very dirty and smelly too. 'Though a little nervous, she is a very sweet girl with a very waggy tail. 'It certainly seems as though this poor girl has had a rough life so far.' In a separate incident a pooch - nicknamed Jim - was found weighing half the amount he should in London. The animal, who is now on the mend, was found curled up and lifeless by a member of the public who rushed him to animal hospital run by Blue Cross. The ten-year-old Staffordshire bull terrier cross weighed half what he should be when he was discovered in Tulse Hill, south London. Another Staffordshire bull terrier, nicknamed Jim, was found starving and freezing to death, in a shop doorway in London The ten-year-old Staffordshire bull terrier cross weighed half what he should be when he was discovered in Tulse Hill, south London Mark Bossley, chief veterinary surgeon at Blue Cross, said: 'We were shocked by Jim's condition. 'He was severely emaciated and wouldn't have survived much longer had he not been found.' Jim's original owners weren't traceable because he wasn't wearing a collar and tag nor was he microchipped. The wife of long-lost peer Lord Lucan has been seen out in public for the first time since her husband was officially declared dead - 41 years after he disappeared following the brutal murder of their nanny. Dressed in trainers, tracksuit bottoms, pearl earrings and a tightly-belted smart camel coat, Lady Lucan was spotted walking near her home in Belgravia, London. Yesterday, her son Lord George Bingham was finally granted a death certificate for his father and has now inherited the title as 8th Earl. The wife of long-lost peer Lord Lucan has been seen out in public for the first time since her husband was officially declared dead - 41 years after he disappeared following the brutal murder of their nanny George Bingham, pictured as a young boy with his father, the missing Lord Lucan and his mother Lord Lucan disappeared after nanny Sandra Rivett was found murdered at his home in London on November 7 1974. She was discovered in the basement of the family's Belgravia home in central London after being bludgeoned to death with a lead pipe, with Lord Lucan the prime suspect. The widely-held belief is that he mistook the 29-year-old for his wife, with whom he was embroiled in an acrimonious separation. But Ms Rivett's son, who was put up for adoption by the nanny as a baby, has insisted a hitman killed her after being hired by the long-lost peer because he 'was used to having everything done for him'. Neil Berriman claims his mother never recognised her attacker despite having a good look at him before he went on to savagely beat Lady Lucan. Mr Berriman told the Daily Mirror: 'Lord Lucan was used to having everything done for him thats why Im sure he hired a hitman. Lady Lucan said it was him but you have to remember she had been hit over the head repeatedly. 'Sandra looked her attacker in the face for a good few seconds. This meant she did not know her killer. 'If it had been Lord Lucan, even in the dark, he would have recognised her. Lady Lucan had blonde hair and my mother had red.' Mr Bingham, 49, who has now inherited the title as 8th Earl after applying for his father's death certificate under the Presumption of Death Act, said he supported the theory. He said a man mistaking a woman for one he had been married to for 12 years was a 'difficult story to believe'. It is not the first time the hitman claim has been made. Sir Rupert Mackeson, 74, a baronet who was on the fringe of Lord Lucans Clermont gambling set, told an ITV documentary in 2013 that a loan from the peers rich society friends paid for the hitman. Yesterday's hearing was attended by Neil Berriman, the son of Sandra Rivett who was found murdered at Lord Lucan's family home on the night the peer went missing Lord Lucan, who went missing in 1974, has been declared dead by the High Court. His son George Bingham (right, with wife Anne-Sofie Foghsgaard) has now been granted a death certificate Sandra Rivett, nanny to Lord Lucan's three children, was found murdered at the family home on November 7, 1974 He also claimed that Lord Lucan was later killed in a hit to stop him revealing the truth to police after the plan went wrong. Sir Rupert said: 'Lucan hired a hitman to kill his wife and then he himself was killed. 'Thats the truth of what happened and it is widely known in circles close to Lucan. His accomplices were worried that, with Lucan being an alcoholic, it would be easy for the police to get the true story out of him once he was arrested.' But Mr Berriman said he will continue to fight for justice for his mother. Speaking outside court , he accused the Met Police of withholding information about Lord Lucan, who he claims was alive as recently as 2002. When asked what he thought had happened to Lord Lucan, Mr Berriman replied: 'He escaped.' He claims he will prove it, along with his belief that Lord Lucan died abroad some time in the past 15 years. Yesterday, High Court judge Mrs Justice Asplin granted Lord Lucan's death certificate at a hearing. Speaking immediately afterwards Lord Bingham said: 'I am very happy with the judgement of the court in this matter. It has been a very long time coming.' But he added: 'We must not forget a person died and I have sympathy for Neil and his family. 'It is still a mystery what happened. We do not know how this lovely lady died in 1974, but Neil lost a mother and I lost a father. We still do not know how he met his end. The new Earl of Lucan then told the press to look for 'another Loch Ness Monster' now that his father has been certified dead. Speaking outside of the High Court, he said: 'I am relieved frankly. It is a sensible verdict after 41 years.' Speaking outside court, Neil Berriman accused various parties - including the Met Police - of withholding information about Lord Lucan, who he claims was alive as recently as 2002 Lord Lucan (left) vanished after the nanny to his children, was found murdered at the family home at 46 Lower Belgrave Street (right) in central London on November 7 1974 'This doesn't mean any person has escaped prosecution for the murder of Sandra Rivett.' 'The ruling does not mean that he or any other person will escape prosecution. But a person must remain innocent until found guilty in a court of law.' At a hearing in December, Miss Rivett's son Neil Berriman was given permission to intervene in the case. Both he and Lord Bingham were seven when Ms Rivett was killed. Mr Berriman was born Gary Roger Hensby (Sandra Rivetts maiden name) in Southsea, Hampshire, in 1967 and was immediately put up for adoption. Aged six months, he was placed with Audrey and Ivan Berriman, and grew up in Petersfield, Hampshire, only learning of his real identity after his adoptive mother had died. 'Lord Lucan was used to having everything done for him thats why Im sure he hired a hitman Sandra Rivett's son Neil Berriman But today Mr Berriman said he was 'very pleased' Mr Bingham would be inheriting the title, praising him for his 'passion for closure.' Mr Berriman confirmed he withdrew the objection he made last year to Lord Lucan being officially recognised as dead, but said he would continue to seek justice for his mother. 'I made my decision to withdraw the objection because I feel my life for the last five years has been a roller coaster ride of depression and stress, opening one door to find another shut in my face,' he said. 'The truth may be harder to get to than we think.' The judge made the declaration that Lord Lucan is presumed dead on the basis that she was satisfied that he had not been known to be alive for a period of at least seven years. The new Lord Lucan, a former merchant banker who got married in London last month was represented in court by his brother in law Michael Bloch QC who is married to his sister Lady Camilla. Lord George Bingham applied for the certificate under the Presumption of Death Act, which came into effect in 2014, so he can inherit the title as 8th Earl Even though Lord Lucan was officially declared dead by the High Court in 1999, there have been reported sightings in Australia, Ireland, Africa and New Zealand, and even claims that he fled to India and lived life as a hippy called 'Jungly Barry'. Lord Bingham argued that the 1999 declaration had not proved death 'for all purposes' and the new Presumption of Death Act allowed for a 'more complete process'. He said he wanted to praise the efforts of Mr Berriman in seeking justice for his mother. 'To some extent it has been a jaunt, but at other times it has been very difficult and I would be very grateful if we could now move on and look for another Loch Ness Monster,' he said. 'It is time to say farewell to a very distant past. 'There were a few accounts at the time and I personally find it difficult to believe a man who has been married to someone for 12 years could murder them in close quarter combat. 'I would think in the circumstances it is quite possible he saw his life at an end regardless of guilt or otherwise, being dragged through the courts and having his life and career destroyed. It is still a mystery what happened. We do not know how this lovely lady died in 1974, but Neil lost a mother and I lost a father. We still do not know how he met his end Lord George Bingham 'That may have pushed a man to end his own life.' On the night of the peer's disappearance, the nanny's attacker also turned on Lord Bingham's mother, Lady Lucan, beating her severely before she managed to escape and raise the alarm at a nearby pub. Lord Lucan's car was found abandoned and soaked in blood in Newhaven, East Sussex, and an inquest jury declared him the killer a year later. At a preliminary hearing before Christmas, it was claimed in court that a member of Lucan's gambling set had contacted a private detective to tell him he had evidence that Lucan took his own life soon after the murder. But few further details were forthcoming. The Daily Mail revealed earlier this month that the information referred to came from Philippe Marcq, who says he was told about the suicide by Stephen Raphael, a close friend of Lucan's. Mr Marcq claimed that Mr Raphael told him that in the early hours of the morning after the murderous attack, Lucan travelled to a private zoo in Kent, where he shot himself and was fed to a tiger. 'I was stunned when Stephen told me this, absolutely stunned,' says 73-year-old Mr Marcq, who now lives in semi-retirement in Wiltshire. 'But I believed what he told me 100 per cent. He was telling me very seriously and him telling me was a sign of considerable trust. 'I felt sworn to secrecy. It was a secret I could not betray and, until now, I have not. I want to put the story to rest once and for all.' Two tires under the left wing of an airplane blew out during a landing at a Pennsylvania airport, airport officials say. The plane arriving from Orlando, Florida, attempted to land Wednesday evening when the tires blew out, a spokesman for the Lehigh Valley International Airport in Allentown says. Officials say the Allegiant Air jet managed to stop safely on the wet runway. Scroll down for video Two tires under the left wing of an airplane blew out during a landing at a Pennsylvania airport, airport officials say The plane arriving from Orlando, Florida, attempted to land Wednesday evening when the tires blew out, a spokesman for the Lehigh Valley International Airport in Allentown says A Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, passenger told The Morning Call: 'It was a big jolt. You heard the first tire go. 'And another jolt, you heard the second one go. We felt it and then we smelled it. 'It kind of felt like they slammed on the brakes a little too soon, but they did a pretty good job bringing the plane to a stop.' Its 152 passengers and six crew members were not hurt, NBC Philadelphia reported. The airline says the plane had been scheduled to return to Orlando. That flight was suspended and officials worked to get passengers to their destination. The airline says the plane had been scheduled to return to Orlando. That flight was suspended and officials worked to get passengers to their destination Its 152 passengers and six crew members were not hurt Allegiant told the Morning Call: 'We apologize for this inconvenience to our passengers and are offering $100 ... vouchers for use on future Allegiant flights." Airport officials say they don't believe there were warning signs before the landing. Allegiant says mechanics are examining the aircraft. According to the Orlando Sentinel, there were four flights with 'mechanical-related issues' in December 2015 which flew from Orlando Sanford International Airport. Bristol graduate was teaching English to Chinese but died after four days The family of a newly qualified teacher who died from carbon monoxide poisoning days after moving into a new flat on a dream gap year trip to China have urged travellers to carry gas detectors. Francesca Dingley, 22, originally from Enfield in north London, died in Chengdu, the south-western capital of China's Sichuan province, last February. The Bristol graduate was in Asia to teach English for a year with plans to get a teacher's job in the UK but was apparently killed by a faulty boiler. As an inquest into her death started today her father Mark Dingley said the tragedy had been 'wholly avoidable', as he urged all travellers to carry a carbon monoxide detectors with them at all times. Tragedy: Francesca Dingley, pictured centre with her father Mark and mother Chrissy, died in China from carbon monoxide poisoning Hearing: An inquest will today hear how the Bristol graduate, left and right, was in Asia to teach English for a year but was apparently killed by a faulty gas appliance. He said: 'Her life was tragically cut short by carbon monoxide poisoning, as the result of an incorrectly installed gas appliance. A simple carbon monoxide detector, costing less than 10, could have prevented this. 'As parents, we urge you to insist that your child does not travel abroad without one of these detectors. 'We think of our darling girl every day, but if this tragic occurrence raises awareness of the dangers of carbon monoxide poisoning and prevents another tragedy of this kind, then her death will not have been in vain.' Her mother, Chrissy, and I took her to Heathrow and we said our goodbyes not knowing that we would never see her again Francesca's father Mark Dingley Francesca's mother Chrissy added: 'Everybody should have one. 'If Francesca had been doing some gap year travelling and staying in dodgy hotels, we would've been more worried about her. 'The fact that she was working for a Western organisation lulled us into a false sense of security. 'Really, everyone should take personal responsibility.' Francesca, a Bristol University graduate, travelled to Chengdu, south-west China, in January 2015 as part of a TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) programme. She shared a flat with another teacher, Emily Flaherty, 27. But the flue for their boiler had not been correctly installed, causing the flat to fill with toxic fumes. After the pair failed to turn up for work on February 10, the alarm was raised. Miss Flaherty was taken to intensive care and has since recovered, but Miss Dingley could not be resuscitated. Chrissy, a former nursery administrator, said: If Francesca had been going on a gap year and travelling rather than working for a Western company, we would have been more concerned about her safety. It lulled us into a false sense of security. Dreams: Francesca (centre) pictured with her sister Gabrielle and brother James died in February last year and wanted to be a teacher Warning: Francesca's death has led to the Foreign Office advising other travellers to carry carbon monoxide testers costing around 10, which would have saved her life Education First (EF) has since adjusted its policies to include safety tests in China. Miss Dingleys family has agreed a settlement with the school and is suing the landlord in an attempt to raise safety standards. An EF spokesman said the companys founder would meet with the family, adding: We deeply regret this tragic situation. CARBON MONOXIDE: THE SILENT AND ODOURLESS KILLER GAS Carbon Monoxide is produced when fossil fuels burn without a good supply of air. It is a colourless, odourless and tasteless gas which is difficult to detect. And If that happens in a room without adequate ventilation, levels can build up dangerously. A mild case of CO poisoning can just cause a very bad headache. But inhaling high levels can quickly starve major organs like the heart, brain and nervous system of oxygen, and if someone is exposed to high levels of CO for too long, they can fall unconscious and die within minutes. Advertisement But Mark, an accountant, said EF had not sent the family a letter of condolence. There have been no criminal investigations as safety laws are different in China something the family described as frustrating. However, Francesca's death has led to the Foreign Office advising other travellers to carry carbon monoxide testers costing around 10. Already, the advice of the Foreign Office, and the Dingley's advice to friends, may have saved lives. 'A friend of mine, her son went to Croatia last year on a stag night,' Chrissy said. 'She knew what had happened to Francesca and got her son to take one with him - and it went off in the night. 'He was in the flat with 10 of his mates. 'Things like that give us a little bit of comfort, because it makes you think that her death was not in vain.' Last year David Cameron was urged to back new EU controls on gas boilers by the coroner who investigated how two British children died from carbon monoxide poisoning while on holiday in Corfu. David Hinchliff raised fears of 'future deaths' unless radical steps were taken. His call comes just 12 months after the Government rejected the idea of new Europe-wide safety rules on holiday accommodation. Geoffrey Cox, pictured at the Westminster Dog of the Year Contest, will have to make an apology in the House of Commons A Tory MP who earns hundreds of thousands of pounds as a barrister has been forced to apologise to the House of Commons for failing to declare 400,000 of outside income. Parliament's Standards Committee found that Geoffrey Cox QC had committed a 'serious' breach of rules but accepted he had not 'intended to hide' the payments. But The Conservative MP for Torridge & West Devon spent just one minute apologising to his colleagues in the Commons chamber and blamed the oversight on being too busy launching a new legal practice overseas. Mr Cox is one of the highest earning politicians, reporting an income of more than 800,000 from his legal work in 2014. He referred himself to the Parliamentary Commissioner in October after it emerged he had repeatedly missed the 28-deadline for reporting outside earnings. The biggest pay day for Mr Cox came on June 15 and 16 last year when he received 325,000 for 500 hours of legal work. Last month Mr Cox blamed his staff after it emerged he had claimed for a 49p bottle of milk on expenses. The claim was rejected by Commons authorities, as was a 2 claim for teabags in his constituency. In his apology in the Commons today, Mr Cox said he was standing down from the Standards Committee. 'The House has a right to expect its members, and particularly those on the Standards Committee as I was, that they will uphold its rules to the fullest extent,' he said. 'For this reason I have stepped down from the Standards Committee and I hope the House will accept my sincere and full-hearted apology for my failure to observe this important rule.' Ed Miliband, left, pledged to ban second jobs, which allow MPs to rake in a total of 7million a year in extra income. Gordon Brown, right, was the top earning MP in 2014 but he said his outside income went to his charity TOP EARNING MPs in 2014 George Galloway, former Respect MP, declared more than 300,000 in extra income in 2014 Gordon Brown (Labour): 926,000 Geoffrey Cox (Conservative): 820,000 George Galloway (Respect): 303,000 Sir Nicholas Soames (Conservative): 275,000 Sir Edward Garnier (Conservative): 275,000 Stephen Phillips (Conservative): 257,000 John Redwood (Conservative): 207,000 Sir Tony Baldry (Conservative): 190,000 John Hemming (Lib Dem): 187,000 David Blunkett (Labour): 178,000 Advertisement MPs are allowed to take on extra work as long as it is declared and does not involve lobbying Parliament. Ed Miliband pledged to ban second jobs, which allow MPs to rake in a total of 7million a year in extra income. Explaining his failure to declare the 400,000 of legal work last year, Mr Cox said: 'I failed to give this matter the due thought and priority it required and, for that reason, it is difficult to isolate the exact point at which I became aware that my entry was incomplete. 'When the House rose for the summer, I was conscious, generally, of the matter as one I needed to get down to checking but my intense schedule at the time, which included the final planning and launch during recess of an entirely new international law chambers based in Mauritius and Dubai, meant that it was not until reviewing my records between 20 September and 28 September that, to my dismay, I became fully aware of the scale of my oversight. 'I fully acknowledge that this was not acceptable and I have taken all necessary steps to ensure that it does not happen again.' In its report, the cross-party committee said: 'Mr Cox has already apologised to the Registrar and the Commissioner. 'We recommend that Mr Cox make an apology to the House for his failure to register payments in a timely fashion.' He said the head clerk at his barrister chambers retired through ill-health at the end of 2014 and that had led to the breakdown of the arrangements to make him aware of sums received which needed to be declared. Between January and August last year he received 11 payments of more than 400,000 in total, but did not register them until the end of September when he became 'fully aware of the scale of my oversight'. Mr Cox said his head clerk was with him for 29 years, and 'had full access to, and oversight of, the details of my professional practice including my personal bank accounts'. 'He acted in many respects as my personal confidential secretary, including managing many of my financial affairs, even meeting the bank manager on my behalf, and he would draw the receipt of payments to my attention on an ad hoc basis, acting as my prompt for registration. 'He was also in direct and frequent contact with my parliamentary office as manager of my diary,' the MP added. Speaking in the Commons later in the day, Mr Cox revealed he would be voting for Britain to leave the EU. 'I have concluded and it is the first time that I have said so that I shall be obliged to vote to leave the European Union,' he said. 'I believe it is a question of freedom - the freedom of this country to be true to itself, to follow the policies that this House and its executive believes are the best policies fitted and suited for the interests of this nation. David Cameron's former Tory leadership rival David Davis today launched a bid to lead the Out campaign in the EU referendum as he ridiculed the Prime Minister's EU renegotiation deal as 'so unambitious as to be a waste of time'. He said Mr Cameron's plan to curb EU migrants' access to benefits with an 'emergency brake' will have 'no impact whatsoever' and 'would not stop a push bike'. And in a direct attack on the Prime Minister, who yesterday urged Conservative MPs to ignore pressure from party members and to 'do what's in your heart' in the referendum, Mr Davis said: 'My response to him saying to MP's 'vote with your hearts' is vote with your brains.' Scroll down for video David Davis, pictured right, ridiculed his former leadership rival David Cameron, left, over his plans for an 'emergency brake' on EU migrants' access to benefits TWO HOURS ON THE RACK: THE SHARPEST BARBS THROWN AT DAVID CAMERON BY TORY MPS Tory Jacob Rees-Mogg led criticism by claiming the 'thin gruel had been further watered down' Conservative Jacob Rees-Mogg, MP for North East Somerset, said: 'The thin gruel has been further watered down. You have a fortnight, I think, in which to salvage your reputation as a negotiator.' Harwich and North Essex MP Bernard Jenkin, meanwhile, suggested the legal assurances contained in the proposals were the equivalent of 'male bovine excrement'. John Redwood, the Tory MP for Wokingham, also criticised the deal, insisting: 'As we are driven in the EU vehicle towards ever closer union and to political union how does it help to try and fit a couple of emergency brakes that lie within the control of the EU and not us?' Corby MP Tom Pursglove said: 'Whilst the Prime Minister is trying his best to renegotiate the position, would he not agree that the reforms as they stand do nothing to make the immigration system in this country fairer regardless of where people come from in the world?' Grandee Sir Bill Cash said: 'But now it will be stitched up by a political decision by the European Council and not by a guaranteed treaty change at the right time and this, I have to say to the Prime Minister, is a wholly inappropriate way of dealing with this matter.' Advertisement Mr Cameron unveiled his draft deal to reform Britain's membership of the EU earlier this week but was heavily criticised by Eurosceptic Tory MPs who claimed he had 'watered down' his initial demands for reform. The Prime Minister said he could 'hand on heart' tell voters he had met his promises set out in the Conservative party manifesto and said plans for an emergency brake would help him achieve his target of reducing net migration. But today Mr Davis launched a detailed criticism of the claims made by Mr Cameron, who he narrowly lost out to in the 2005 Conservative leadership election, saying the reforms would do 'almost nothing to address the very issues that the Government itself has identified'. In a speech in central London, which was widely seen as his pitch to lead the Out campaign in the upcoming EU referendum, Mr Davis said: 'The prime minister 's emergency brake on migrant benefits would not stop a push bike. 'And we now discover we would have to ask Brussels's permission to even use it. 'In any case, the whole concept of an emergency brake is flawed. 'Migrants are coming to Britain from Eastern Europe not to claim benefits but to earn more money. 'My figures show that they can readily earn three to four times as much working in low-skilled jobs in Britain. 'No amount of tinkering with our welfare rules will make a blind bit of difference to immigration numbers and the Prime Minister is being disingenuous to pretend otherwise.' The Haltemprice and Howden MP also dismissed plans for a 'red card' for national parliaments to club together to block unwanted legislation as 'feeble'. 'The 'red card' system only operates on draft laws, only works if there is a 'subsidiarity' argument, and needs the agreement 55% of EU Parliaments,' he said. 'This is the same as the old 'yellow card' system, that was also unworkable and which the Government has previously claimed is too difficult to satisfy. 'Since its introduction in 2009, it has only been used twice, one of those times being the proposal to create an EU public prosecutor's office, which went ahead anyway. 'The Government's feeble rebranding from yellow to red is a desperate attempt to put lipstick on a pig.' Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond dismissed Mr Davis' attack, saying people who wanted Brexit 'are obviously going to attack whatever the package contains'. Davis claimed that plans to curb EU migrants' access to benefits with an 'emergency brake' would have 'no impact whatsoever' The Haltemprice and Howden MP said George Osborne's new minimum wage, which will rise to 9 by 2020, will encourage even more EU migrants to come to the UK He suggested the UK would be able to act to bolster sovereignty over EU laws, telling the BBC: 'We have the power, quite separately from our European Union partners ... to do things in our own domestic legislation.' Mr Cameron was looking at 'how we deliver our commitment to a British Bill of Rights as part of that process', the Foreign Secretary said. 'Just because we have done a deal with the European Union - assuming we get to that deal - doesn't in any way inhibit us from passing domestic legislation to clarify things we want to clarify in our own law.' Despite concerns from legal experts, Mr Hammond said other lawyers believed 'there are ways to address this issue, maybe not the perfect solution but there are ways to assert the supremacy of our Parliament and to give us a much stronger position than we have had in the past'. Mr Cameron faced a further backlash in the Commons today as backbench Eurosceptics tore into his 'sham' EU renegotiation. John Barron, the Tory MP for Basildon and Billericay, labelled the 'red card' proposals as having 'more holes than a Swiss cheese' and warned that a failure to take the opportunity now to win back powers for the UK parliament meant sovereignty 'could be lost for a generation'. And he claimed plans for an 'emergency brake' helped fuel a 'negative narrative about immigrants' in a debate organised by backbench Tory MPs in response to Mr Cameron's EU deal. Meanwhile the leading Eurosceptic Sir Bill Cash said Mr Cameron's plans 'betray' the British people. The chairman of the European Scrutiny Committee said: 'These negotiations, when you cut through all the appearances, are a sham. That is the problem. This is the real issue.' He added: we have actually reached a point of no return. 'We have to say no, we have to leave. That is the position. I don't need to say any more. As far as I'm concerned, this is about the liberties of this country. It's about the liberties of our people. 'This is why I say we must leave the European Union.' Jacob Rees-Mogg also hit out at the Prime Minister's handling of the renegotiation, describing it as 'so narrow, so weak, so uninspired' that the Government was left with no option but to stick with the status quo inside the EU. THE SUPER SIX? WHO ARE THE TOP TORY POLITICIANS WHO STILL MIGHT JOIN THE BATTLE TO LEAVE EUROPE Iain Duncan Smith The work and pensions secretary and former Tory leader has long held deeply eurosceptic views. It drove his brief party leadership and he would probably be the most high profile signing for the Out campaign. In October 2003, he said: 'I will fight with all my strength to defend the British people's right to govern themselves. 'Conservatives want to build a New Europe not a single state with its own currency and constitution, but a Europe of sovereign, enterprising nations.' John Whittingdale Mr Whittingdale wrote to the BBC last year demanding the broadcaster stayed impartial during the referendum campaign. He said the corporation had to have a 'very robust' system in place to deal with impartiality. In 2013 he warned: 'If it was a choice of the [EU] membership under the present terms or coming out, then I'd vote to come out.' Priti Patel Ms Patel is the lowest ranked of those likely to back out but also one of the newest faces as she was first elected in 2010. In June 2014, she said: 'The status quo of EU membership is simply not an option. The British public want less Europe and more Britain. 'The British public want our political leaders to say 'No' to the unaccountable, federalist European agenda which has led to the widespread failures of the European Union we face today.' Theresa Villiers Northern Ireland Secretary Ms Villiers may not be the highest profile member of the cabinet but she has long been eurosceptic and was thought one of those most likely to quit if Mr Cameron had not given freedom to campaign. In 2011, after the Government handed a contract which could have safeguarded 3,000 UK jobs to a German firm: 'We are bound by European Union rules, which mean . . . we are not permitted to take into account the location of the factory in determining which bid is nominated. That is a consequence of our membership of the EU.' Chris Grayling Mr Grayling, who served as a minister in Mr Cameron's team since 2010, was the first minister to make plain he would campaign for out in a delicately worded Telegraph article that just stayed within the PM's rules. He said last year: 'I've made no bones about the fact that I sit on the Eurosceptic wing of the Conservative Party . . . If the British people decide to leave, then we leave. 'This is a strong country and we will prosper whatever the situation is. Boris Johnson The London mayor has famously flirted in and out of the Leave camp. He had appeared earlier this year to rule himself out of the Leave campaign but his strident attack on the PM's deal yesterday drew attention. Last year, he said: 'There is every reason to think, if we got the right free trade deal, that we would flourish . . . I think the price of getting out is lower than it's ever been.' Advertisement Bulgarian Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov told the World At One that 'further negotiations are needed', particularly on the measures to restrict access to benefits. 'It needs to be fair toward the UK citizens but it needs to be fair as well towards the citizens who are working, wherever it is in the European Union, and are doing the same type of job as everyone else and of course have their rights,' he said. In a hint that the proposals could undergo further changes before an EU-wide deal is reached, he said 'compromises' would be required. 'When we go a little bit deeper into the formulas of how the things will be regulated, other suggestions will be on the table and other approaches might be revealed. 'It is clear that everyone needs to make a compromise here but the main thing is to preserve the principle of non-discrimination.' Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, left, dismissed Mr Davis' attack, saying people who wanted Brexit 'are obviously going to attack whatever the package contains' but the pro-EU Alan Johnson, right, backed up Mr Davis' remarks by saying the emergency brake would have little impact on migration Former Labour Home Secretary Alan Johnson, a leading figure on the In campaign, agreed with Mr Davis' claim that plans for an emergency brake on migrants would have no impact. He said curbing migrants' access to benefits would not deter people coming to the UK in search for work and would not help cut net migration. 'The issue of in-work benefits isn't a draw factor and indeed in terms of, this is a two-way process, no country has more of its people working in other developed countries than Britain more than Poland, more than any other country in Europe,' he said. 'Go to a pub in Paris, go to a pub in Madrid you will hear English voices. 'It's not a draw for them, either, there's all kinds of factors why people choose to move around the European Union to work. I don't think that's one of them.' Meanwhile banking giant Goldman Sachs warned today that Brexit would cause an immediate 20 per cent drop in the value of the pound. This would make foreign holidays more expensive and would also increase the cost of petrol for drivers, the bank said, although the weaker sterling would benefit exporters. The bank, which is a financial backer of the Britain Stronger In Europe campaign, has predicted voters will back staying in the EU. Mohammed Abu Khudair (pictured) was bludgeoned, strangled and burnt to death in July 2, 2014 An Israeli teenager has been jailed for life and another sentenced to 21 years for burning to death a Palestinian boy in a sickening act which sparked the 2014 Gaza War. The two Israeli teenagers, whose names were withheld because of their age and adult ringleader Yosef Haim Ben-David, 31, had confessed to the brutal murder of 16-year-old Mohammed Abu Khudair. He was snatched from an East Jerusalem street in the early hours of July 2, 2014, and taken to a forest when he was beaten, strangled, doused in petrol and set on fire. Ben-David told police interrogators the killing was in revenge for the murders of three Jewish teenagers, who were kidnapped by Hamas members several weeks earlier. In November, the Jerusalem District Court ruled Ben David and the two youths had abducted the Palestinian at random. The youths then beat him unconscious in the back of a car being driven by Ben David, the judges said. One of the youths helped douse him with petrol while he was still alive, before Ben David lit a match and set him on fire. The incident raised tensions and a seven-week Israeli offensive against the Hamas-run Gaza Strip began on July 8 after cross-border Palestinian rocket attacks and an Israeli roundup of suspected militants in the West Bank. Ben-David lodged an insanity plea that has held up his formal conviction and sentencing. A court review of his psychological competence is scheduled for next week. The oldest minor was also accused of the attempted kidnapping of a seven-year old child, Moussa Zalum, for which he received the additional prison sentence. Palestinian youths clashed with Israeli Police near to the house of murdered Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdair, in Jerusalem after his death in July 2014 When the sentencing was handed down today, Mohammed's mother shouted 'the court has failed', YNet news reported. His father, Hussein, said: 'We don't accept the sentencing of one of the teenagers. 'We will go to the Supreme Court. We haven't slept since yesterday, waiting for the sentencing. Where's the main perpetrator? What's going on with him? He's responsible for it.' 'This is a still a grave punishment,' prosecutor Uri Korb told reporters, adding that the minor who received the 21-year term had helped with the abduction and beating of Abu Khudair but had not taken part in finishing off the youth. 'I hope that the message will be relayed that actions of this kind are revolting and that we as a society will not accept them,' Mr Korb said. He added that the state hoped to quash Ben-David's insanity plea, see him sentenced to life behind bars and 'bring closure of this in the near future'. Lawyers for the two teenage defendants did not immediately comment on their sentences. Life terms in Israel are often commuted to 25 years' imprisonment, with some inmates offered parole for good behaviour after serving two-thirds of their sentence. Tensions are still simmering, with a wave of Palestinian street attacks against Israelis now in its fifth month The Palestinian teenager, the fifth of seven children, has become a symbol for Palestinians in East Jerusalem and the occupied West Bank. His photograph appears on posters and his family home in the Shuafat neighborhood of East Jerusalem is full of plaques presented to his parents by various Palestinian groups. Bernie Sanders rushed to a man who fainted on stage as he gave a speech on gun control. The loud noise as he collapsed made Senator Sanders flinch and exclaim 'Oh my God' in front of the crowd, as he spoke in New Hampshire ahead of the state's primary elections. The candidate immediately rushed towards the man as others stood around, and the whole incident was being live streamed at the time. Scroll down for video Bernie Sanders flinched when he heard the loud noise as he gave a speech in New Hampshire on Wednesday Sanders looks over to see what has happened before immediately rushing to the aid of the man who collapsed The Senator stands by his side and then asks for a physician. The man lays on the ground for around 30 seconds before being led away by staff It happened just a minute into the stream, as he was talking about how his support for gun safety laws, which is always a divisive issue in American politics. Moments before the fall, he was saying: 'I may well have lost an election in 1988 running for Congress because I said military-type assault weapons should not be sold in the United States. 'The gun people said, "you can vote for anybody, don't vote for Bernie Sanders".' Sanders asked for a doctor when he arrived at the man's side. The man lay on the ground for 30 seconds before he was helped up and led off the stage. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders meet Thursday night in their first one-on-one debate of the Democratic campaign as each tries to show they are the better advocate for progressive values. The race for the Democratic nomination, once seen as a sure thing for Clinton, took on new energy this week after Sanders held the former secretary of state to a razor-thin margin of victory in Iowa's leadoff caucuses. Hillary Clinton (pictured with Bill) and Bernie Sanders meet Thursday night in their first one-on-one debate of the Democratic campaign Their comments have become increasingly sharp this week, and the candidates agreed to add four more debates to the primary season schedule, including Thursday's in New Hampshire. The candidates are arguing over who is more committed to, and capable of, carrying out a liberal agenda on health care, income inequality, worker rights and more. Sanders is favored in New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary as the state-by-state voting to collect delegates for the party's nominating convention picks up speed. Sanders, a senator from neighboring Vermont, said Wednesday that Clinton's record is 'just not progressive,' including her vote as a senator to authorize the war in Iraq. Clinton said she has the ability to actually implement progressive changes. 'Good ideas on paper are important, but you've got to be able to translate them into action,' she said. Sanders cast himself as an underdog going up against 'the most powerful political organization in the country.' He says it will take a 'political revolution' to achieve goals such as universal health care, a fairer tax system and an incorruptible campaign finance system. Clinton's prospects are much stronger after New Hampshire as the race moves on to states with more diverse electorates that are to her advantage. The attack that killed a 21-year-old university student was violent, unprovoked and lasted only six seconds, a court has heard. Joshua Hardy was sitting outside a McDonald's restaurant 'exceedingly drunk' after a valedictory dinner when Kyle Sirous Zandipour, 29, stomped him and kicked his head, prosecutors say. Mr Hardy, 21, was pronounced dead less than an hour after he was rushed to The Alfred Hospital in Prahan, south-east Melbourne. Scroll down for video University student Joshua Hardy (pictured), 21, was killed in a violent, unprovoked attack which lasted only six seconds, the Victorian Supreme Court has heard Mr Hardy (right) with his sister Rebecca (left) at a university function only hours before he died. After leaving a valedictory dinner he was 'exceedingly drunk', prosecutors say Mr Hardy had consumed a lot of alcohol while celebrating, but did nothing to provoke Mr Zandipour, Andrew Tinney, SC, for the crown, said. Mr Zandipour and his friend Matthew Bell had been drinking and playing video games when they encountered Mr Hardy outside the St Kilda Road fast food restaurant just after 1am on October 18, 2014. Mr Hardy lifted his leg as Mr Bell passed, causing him to stumble, he then stood and asked to use Mr Bell's phone, the court heard. Mr Hardy had consumed a lot of alcohol while celebrating, but did nothing to provoke Mr Zandipour, Andrew Tinney, SC, for the crown, said (pictured with sister) 'Like brother like sister' Rebecca (left) posted humorously on Facebook a month before he was tragically killed Mr Zandipour then swung Mr Hardy forcefully to the ground, kicked him several times and stomped on him, Mr Tinney said. Within minutes of coming into contact with Mr Zandipour, Mr Hardy lay mortally wounded, Mr Tinney said. An autopsy found a number of bruises, abrasions and lacerations to the right side of Mr Hardy's head, Mr Tinney said. Mr Zandipour, a bank worker, has pleaded not guilty a charge of murder. His defence barrister Remy van de Wiel told the Victorian Supreme Court jury that Mr Zandipour was entitled to defend himself because he believed he was about to be robbed. Mr Zandipour told police he had acted to protect himself and Mr Bell and had not intended to kill Mr Hardy, who he thought was on drugs. An autopsy found a number of bruises, abrasions and lacerations to the right side of Mr Hardy's head, Mr Tinney said Mr Hardy, who was 182cm, was a 'big strong man' and a competent athlete while Mr Zandipour is 170cm tall and does not play sport, Mr van de Wiel said 'I was intimidated by him, I thought he was out of control,' Mr Zandipour told police, Mr van de Wiel said. Mr Hardy, who was 182cm, was a 'big strong man' and a competent athlete while Mr Zandipour is 170cm tall and does not play sport, Mr van de Wiel said. 'You are entitled, if you believe you are about to be robbed, you are entitled to prevent that,' Mr van de Wiel said. 'It is our culture that you are allowed to do those things. In fact you should.' Mr Tinney said CCTV footage indicates Mr Hardy was 'still and helpless' on the ground when he was kicked. 'His only sin that night was to find himself in a helpless state as the result of the excessive consumption of alcohol,' Mr Tinney said. The trial continues. Mr Zandipour and his friend Matthew Bell had been drinking and playing video games before they went to the McDonald's on St Kilda Road (CCTV footage of the pair inside the fast food restaurant) Mr Zandipour's defence barrister Remy van de Wiel told the Victorian Supreme Court jury that he was entitled to defend himself because he believed he was about to be robbed Mr Hardy was sitting outside a McDonald's restaurant on St Kilda Road in Melbourne when he encountered Mr Zandipour, 29, and his friend Matthew Bell just after 1am on October 18, 2014 Mr Zandipour, a bank worker, has pleaded not guilty a charge of murder (drawing of him in court in December 2014) Mr Hardy's mother, Kim Hardy, and uncle, Shaun Hardy, speak following the appearance of Mr Zandipour outside the Melbourne Magistrates Court on October 24, 2014 Kim Hardy breaks down in tears as she speaks outside Melbourne Magistrates Court in October 2014, less than a week after he son's death The family of the accused murderer leave the Melbourne Magistrates Court after Mr Zandipour was charged with Mr Hardy's murder Two Georgia men were arrested after police say they caught them with over 500 pounds of marijuana worth $1.2 million. The Gwinnett Metro Task Force was tipped off about a suspicious U-Haul truck on Tuesday which they later tracked down at around 1:30pm on Tuesday. The truck was pulled over for a traffic stop and a Lawrenceville police K9 detected narcotics in the vehicle, prompting police to search, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution. The Loot: Two Georgia men were arrested after police say they caught them with over 500 pounds of marijuana worth $1.2 million (pictured above) The car's driver, Suwanee resident Mark Anthony Spaziano, 46, and passenger, Sugar Hill resident John Anthony Edney, 48, were arrested after police say they found 427 packets of marijuana weighing 504.3 pounds. Both Spaziano and Edney were arrested and charged with trafficking marijuana. Both are being held without bond at Gwinnett County jail. The Gwinnett Metro Task Force formed in 2012 to investigate drug and vice complaints in Lilburn, Lawrenceville, Duluth and Suwanee, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post. The car's driver, Suwanee resident Mark Anthony Spaziano (pictured left), 46 and passenger, Sugar Hill resident John Anthony Edney (pictured right), 48, were charged with trafficking marijuana A village is to be the first in the country to DNA test dog poo in a bid to trace owners who don't clear up after their pets. Residents in Alresford, Essex, say they are fed up with dog mess being left near to a primary school and outside their shops. Now the parish council has agreed to introduce the unusual approach to tackle the issue. The village of Alresford, Essex, is bringing in new rules to DNA test dog poo and track down owners The scheme will see suspected pets swabbed in a similar way to police checking the DNA of criminals. It will mean dog wardens will be handed the unpleasant task of taking poo samples to be sent away for DNA analysis by private company, Poo Prints UK. If they are caught, pet owners will be fined 50. But the scheme will only work if dog owners agree to have their pets swabbed, to have their DNA added to the database. Frank Belgrove, parish council chairman, said the move is the result of years of complaints from residents. He said: 'We've had a big problem outside the primary school and the shops. 'We think it is happening at night-time, so it is probably by commuters who are taking their pets out for short walks in the evening after they get back from work and not picking it up. 'This is one way we can start to tackle that.' He added: 'Hopefully we won't have to do too many of them. 'We think after one or two are caught, then people will start to realise they could quite easily be caught and given a 50 on the spot fine.' Residents of the village are angry at dog mess repeatedly being found near the primary school and shops Mr Belgrove also admitted the success of the scheme will depend on how compliant village dog owners are. 'A suspect can refuse, which they are perfectly entitled to do,' he said. 'But dog wardens can still prosecute if they have enough evidence, so its not entirely down to how compliant owners are. 'If they go to court they could get a fine of up to 1,000 and they would be force to give their dog's DNA, so perhaps a 50 on the spot fine would be preferable to that.' The move was approved by the parish council last night. Mr Belgrove also said the village PCSO has carried out patrols to catch rogue pet owners, but no one has yet been caught. He added: 'It is only a tiny minority of dog owners but it is affecting a number of areas in the village.' Similar DNA test systems are already in operation in the United States and Germany and have reduced dog fouling by up to 90 percent. The millionaire driver of a supercar that careened into dozens of race spectators in Malta is to blame for the accident which injured more than 20 people, a inquiry has found. Paul Bailey, a 55-year-old former businessman and friend of Jeremy Clarkson, was at the wheel of the Porsche Spyder when it ploughed into the audience in Malta last year. Footage of the October crash showed the 750,000 supercar spinning out of control on the tarmac, before smashing through safety barriers and into the thick mass of people. Driver Paul Bailey (pictured with his wife Selena) is to blame for the crash during the rally in Malta last year which injured more than 20 people, including a six-year-old girl Mr Bailey, a millionaire businessman from the East Midlands, was not a professional driver, an inquiry found A magisterial inquiry has now concluded Bailey, who is a car enthusiast rather than professional driver, did not have the 'necessary skills' to drive the vehicle at such speeds. Some 23 people - including a six year old girl - were injured when he hit the crowd at the annual Paqpaqli ghall-Istrina motorshow. Footage of the horrific crash showed bodies lay strewn across the tarmac while Mr Bailey was seen exiting the vehicle with his face covered in blood. The magistrates' report stated: 'While the driver is a collector of cars, he doesn't appear to have the necessary skills to drive such cars with such velocity,' the Times of Malta reported. It concluded there were no mechanical failures with the car - rather, it was the result of excessive speed and a lack of handling techniques and corrective measures. The inquiry also noted the 11-man race organising committee was responsible for 'secondary causes' as they were without a safety plan and neglected to conduct a risk assessment. Mr Bailey is believed to be the first person in the world to own the 'Holy Trinity' of hypercars - with a combined worth of more than 3million. He already owned the 866,000 McLaren P1 and in just one day added a Porsche 918 Spyder and the LaFerrari - tripling his hypercar collection in a matter of hours. The three vehicles, which all boast top speeds of more than 200mph, are all considered to be 'hypercars' - top-tier cars whose features, price and rarity sets them apart from 'regular' supercars. Mr Bailey, who lives in Rutland with his wife Selena, is believed to be worth more than 1million. The couple made their fortune when they sold the communications company they founded for 28million in 2012. This is the moment Mr Bailey's Porsche smashed through safety barriers after spinning out of control Footage of the accident showed the carnage of the scene in the moments after he crashed into spectators Bodies lie strewn across the ground as bystanders rush to help those who were hit by the vehicle Some 23 people were injured in the accident - including a six-year-old girl and two critically Mr Bailey is seen in this image lying on the ground clutching his head while covered in blood The Porsche Spyder - one of many supercars the billionaire owns - was left mangled after the crash At the time, he described his fleet of hypercars as 'totally amazing'. He said: 'I have been waiting, in real terms, about two years for the LaFerrari. Early images of these cars were snapped and emotions rose as delivery dates came closer. 'I was offered one of the first five UK cars but these did not have the level of personalisation that I have had. This is the first UK car with full personalisation and it was worth the wait. 'I live a very surreal life and being the first to own all three does not feel real. This is why I want to use and share the cars with enthusiasts. 'It is too early to say which is the best as they are all totally amazing. I will be able to better comment when I have driven them back to back on the race track.' Shocking footage of the accident showed hundreds of people were lining the sides of the track at the time of the crash. Moments after hitting the spectators, Mr Bailey emerges from the vehicle appearing disoriented, while blood covers his face and clothes. He soon collapses to the ground where he is comforted by a woman believed to be his wife. Amid the chaos, bodies can be seen lying across the ground and bystanders rushing to help pull the injured to safety. Witnesses described the 'chaos and screaming' as the car, which has a top speed of 210mph, skidded out of control, careening into the barriers and crowd. A bystander who avoided injury waves paramedics over to those who were badly injured in the crash Mr Bailey exits the Porsche in the moments after the crash clutching his head in apparent pain Mr Bailey, from the East Midlands, was admitted to hospital in Malta along with 23 others A woman believed to be his wife crouches over him as blood pours from a wound on his head The woman who was stabbed with a hypodermic needle on the platform of a New York City subway on Wednesday evening has described the horrific moment. Jenny Gonzalez, 37, she said was looking at her phone while waiting for the R train at 49th Street/7th Avenue in Midtown Manhattan at 7pm when a blond man walked into her. She felt a 'warm stinging pain' in her arm as a man pushed past her,' she told the New York Daily News. As a precaution, she went to Mt Sinai Hospital Queens in Astoria on her way home. Doctors examined the wound and concluded it is likely she was stabbed with a syringe needle. Scroll down for video The victim was waiting for the R train at 49th Street/7th Avenue (pictured) in Midtown Manhattan at 7pm when she felt a 'poke' in her arm as a man pushed past her 'I felt this sharp pain in my right shoulder,' Gonzalez said. 'It's like the feeling you get when you get like an injection, like a flu shot. That kind of warm stinging pain feeling. Somebody taking their two fingers and shoving you hard out of the way.' Police have launched an investigation to find the suspect, believed to be a man in his 40s. According to Gonzalez, he was balding with short blond hair. She said he was wearing ablue and white plaid shirt and blue jeans. Officers are now combing through surveillance footage to source new leads. Still shaken, Gonzalez urged New Yorkers to be more vigilant. 'Until these people are caught or theres a stronger police presence on the trains, be aware of your surroundings and pay attention. 'Your phone can wait, your friends can wait, the games can wait, it could have been a lot more serious.' She also said: 'I feel like if I wasn't distracted then I would have saw this guy and I could have prevented that from happening.' The incident comes amid a spate of slashings across New York City, many in subway stations, as figures show the rate of subway crime in January 2016 was 36 percent higher than in January 2015. The number of slashing incidents and stabbings was up 24 percent so far this year compared to the same period in 2015 - a troubling trend that police commissioner Bill Bratton dismissed as an 'aberration' during an interview Monday. Those injured include a 71-year-old grandma who was attacked on the 6 train at 7.15am on January 26. Damon Knowles, 21, has been arrested and charged with wielding the knife that left grandmother-of-nine Carmen Rivera needing 30 stitches in her face after the attack. Damon Knowles, 21, (left) has been arrested and charged with wielding the knife that left grandmother-of-nine Carmen Rivera (right) needing 30 stitches in her face after the early-morning attack on the 6 train last month Injured: In early January Amanda Morris (pictured), 24, was slashed by a stranger in Chelsea and Anthony Christopher Smith, 30, was cut in in the East Village just a little more than a week later THE GUARDIAN ANGELS BACK TO TACKLE NEW YORK'S SLASHINGS New York's storied crime-fighting gang The Guardian Angels are back on patrol on the city's subways for the first time in more than 20 years to combat the slashings. They fought against rampant crime in the 1980s until the mid-nineties. Now a terrifying spree of recent slashing attacks on the subways has prompted the red-beret wearing gang to resume their patrols as they fear the city is slipping back into its dark days of crime. 'Riders are coming up and asking us: 'Please, you've got to come back in force,' Curtis Sliwa, who founded the group in 1979, told The New York Post. 'I think it's become obvious that the police need help, the MTA needs help. They can't handle it.' Teams of 12 volunteers will now take morning or afternoon shifts to maintain a 24 hour presence on the carriages. Advertisement Also this year, a 29-year-old woman was slashed on the Atlantic-Ave-Barclays Center 3 train platform. Police said the suspect, Ras Alula Nagarit, was wielding a cloth-covered machete and yelled, 'I'll chop you up right on this f***ing train!' And on Monday, a 30-year-old man was cut in the face on board a 3 train in Brooklyn, making it the tenth knifing attack in the subway this year. Police say the suspect, a 37-year-old man, used a folding knife after both men boarded the train at the Junius Streer stop in East New York. There has also been a spate of above-ground slashings. Fear ripped through New York in December when Tony-award winning playwright David Henry Hwang was slashed in the back of the head as he carried groceries down a Brooklyn street. He said he felt like he got hit in the back of the head. He suddenly couldn't walk straight. 'I kept veering into a wall, then a parked car. And that's when I realized I was bleeding,' Hwang, the author of M. Butterfly, said. Hwang had been slashed with a blade by someone who came out of nowhere. The wound was so deep it severed an artery leading to his brain. The suspect is still at large. Police are also still searching for the suspect in another attack: 24-year-old Amanda Morris was slashed by a stranger as she walked down the street in Chelsea. Just a week later Anthony Christopher Smith, 30, was cut in the East Village. The suspect in his case is also at large. On Tuesday three people were slashed in one the space of just eight hours. At 3.15pm, an 18-year-old high school student was surrounded by four young men in Williamsburg. They slashed him in the left cheek and left eye. At 10.45pm, a 65-year-old businessman was walking to his car in the Bronx when a man ambushed him, demanded money, then slashed his hand. The 2013 performance was shared more than 138,000 times on Facebook Chris Baker knows his 13-year-old son Brenden is different from other kids, but it has nothing to do with his size. Brenden, who was born with a rare form of dwarfism known as Desbuquois syndrome, is 27-and-a quarter inches long and weighs 24 pounds. But on his 13th birthday Brenden proved that he has the biggest heart, giving up gifts to raise money for the local children's hospital that has helped him all his life. Scroll down for video Brenden Baker, who was born with a rare form of dwarfism known as Desbuquois syndrome, is giving up gifts to raise money for his local children's hospital on his 13th birthday (pictured here at his party last week) Brenden, who is 27-and-a quarter inches long and weighs 24 pounds, is one of only 32 people ever to be diagnosed with Desbuquois Syndrome 'He cares more about other people than he does himself,' Chris told ABC News. 'That's what amazes me about this kid. For most kids on their birthdays, they just want their presents. Not him. He's just different.' Brenden knew he wanted to help other children and, after getting the idea from his grandfather, set up a fundraising page for the Children's Miracle Network on GoFundMe. With only one day left in the campaign, Brenden has already surpassed his $3,000 goal. The teen, from Abilene, Texas, will fulfill his dream to present his hospital with a big check, but his success is hardly a surprise to the family who says Brenden has never cared about his size. Brenden is one of only 32 people in the world to ever be diagnosed with Desbuquois Syndrome, but that hasn't stopped him from embracing his love for dancing, acting and being on stage. Brenden knew he wanted to help other children and, after getting the idea from his grandfather, set up a fundraising page for the Children's Miracle Network, where he has already surpassed his goal of $3,000 'He is definitely a popular kid,' his family wrote on their website. 'He has a million girlfriends and counting. He just has that face that women fall in love with.' Brenden became a viral sensation in 2013 when a video of him performing with the Fly Dance Company in Houston was shared more than 138,000 times on Facebook. 'He doesn't let the world bother him at all,' Chris said. 'I've never seen him have a sad day in his life.' And with his birthday fundraiser, it seems Brenden is making sure he can help other children make every day a happy one too. Suspended deputy mayor Salim Mehajer has denied an Instagram photo of a leg adorned with a huge tattoo resembling his wife's face alongside her name belongs to him. Images have emerged from a high-end, trendy tattoo parlour Bondi Ink's Instagram page showing an extravagant leg tattoo from upper thigh to ankle which includes the letters 'SM', the name Aysha and the word millionaire. The tattoo design also includes a crown bearing a remarkable resemblance to the crown image used by the Mehajer's family business, dollar signs, guns, roses and the face of a woman resembling the Auburn councillor's wife Aysha Mehajer. However Cr Mehajer has issued a firm denial to the Daily Telegraph, even offering to physically prove the body art isn't his. Scroll down for video The photo of a tattoo shared on the Bondi Ink Instagram page includes a portrait of a woman's face (top), roses, the word 'millionaire' dollar signs and the number 21 Suspended deputy mayor Salim Mehajer has denied an Instagram photo of a leg adorned with a huge tattoo resembling his wife's face (pictured) alongside her name belongs to him The tattoo as shown from another angle, showing the word 'Aysha'. Salim Mehajer's wife's name is Aysha Salim Mehajer (pictured with wife Aysha on their wedding day) denies it is his tattooed leg in the photos 'You have the wrong person. Come visit me I'll show you my legs,' he told the newspaper. 'Come around next Friday. Give me a call.' The crown which is part of the leg tattoo is allegedly very similar to the crown engraved above Cr Mehajer's front door at his Lidcombe home, according to the Daily Telegraph. The photos were shared on the Bondi Ink Instagram page - a tattoo parlour in the Eastern Suburbs favoured by celebrities - and it's understood the tattoo was completed around 18 months ago. The tattoo parlour posted on the day of Salim and Aysha's wedding in August to congratulate them, writing 'congratulations, what a lavish wedding' alongside a candid photo of the pair on their big day. 'We are looking for VIP clients that would love to get 'big' pieces started now and finished by the end of Oct. We want to hear your story for filming!!!!' the Bondi Ink page also wrote alongside one of the tattoo images in 2015. The tattoo parlour posted on the day of Salim and Aysha's wedding in August to congratulate them, writing 'congratulations, what a lavish wedding' alongside a photo of the pair on their big day The photos were shared on the Bondi Ink Instagram page - a tattoo parlour in the Eastern Suburbs favoured by celebrities - and it's understood the tattoo was completed around 18 months ago The tattoo artist responsible says he did 'a fair amount of work' on Cr Mehajer who allegedly also has tattoos on his lower back and chest The tattoo artist responsible says he did 'a fair amount of work' on Cr Mehajer who allegedly also has tattoos on his lower back and chest. The controversial deputy mayor was described by the tattoo artist as a 'cool cat' but his tattoos have reportedly been kept a secret from Cr Mehajer's father. Salim Mehajer first came into controversy when his lavish 'wedding of the year' to wife Aysha made headlines, with the deputy mayor arriving at the Sydney ceremony via helicopter and illegally forcing the closure of roads to accommodate his wedding procession. Ever since he has been the subject of scrutiny and has faced a number of court battles pertaining to his business dealings, driving record and 'intimidation charges' Last week he was suspended from his role with Auburn council for four months for failing to disclose his financial interest in a property when voting on changes which would add $1 million to its value. He has launched an urgent appeal against his suspension. Daily Mail Australia has contacted Mr Mehajer for comment. Advertisement A refugees failed attempt to convince a court he was the lover, cat minder and tango partner of a dead 76-year-old home-owner has allowed the $750,000 terrace to finally go to market. Iraqi refugee Waleed Sadiq, 59, last year claimed in the NSW Supreme Court hed had a 17-year-long relationship with home-owner Christina Coombes before she died in 2013 from a stroke. But his bid to inherit the dilapidated home was rejected, and the two-bedroom inner-Sydney Paddington home will finally be sold at auction later this month, The Daily Telegraph reported. Scroll down for video The dilapidated two-bedroom home on Iris Street in inner-Sydney Paddington was the subject of a NSW Supreme Court case last year Iraqi refugee Waleed Sadiq claimed he'd had a 17-year-long relationship with home-owner Christina Coombes until she died in 2013 to a stroke Mr Sadiq was the only person to make a claim on the Iris Street property, and claimed hed been Ms Coombes lover, cat minder and dancing partner for 17 years. It was found the Woolloomooloo man never had a key to the home, and did not visit her in hospital or attend her funeral. Ms Coombes had bought the home in 1965 for 3200, about $82,529.34 accounting for inflation, data on Reserve Bank of Australia shows. Mr Sadiq, 59, attempted to claim ownership of the property in court but his bid was rejected and it was relinquished to However, Di Jones realtor Adam McKay said it could reap $750,000 despite its condition when it goes to auction on February 24, he told news.com.au. The median price for a two-bedroom home in Paddington is $1.3 million, according to data on Domain. The listing for the Paddington home recommends prospective buyers bring their builder and architect to a viewing because it begs total refurbishment. Much of the ceiling has cracked off in the derelict home with patched wallpaper, peeling linoleum flooring and murals painted throughout. The Iris Street home, nestled between Moore Park and the Victoria Barracks, not far from Centennial Park, is under the control of the NSW Trustee and Guardian. The listing for the Paddington home recommends prospective buyers bring their builder and architect to a viewing because it begs total refurbishment The Zika virus is usually transmitted by the bite of a mosquito Brazil's nationwide street carnivals could become an 'explosive cocktail' that will accelerate a global spread of the Zika virus, a medical expert has warned. The combination of huge crowds of people wearing little clothing and rain gathering on rubbish-filled streets will put participants in the celebrations held all over Brazil this weekend, at high risk. Dr Sergio Cimerman, Brazil's leading virologist, also warned that due to the carnivals being huge tourist attractions, there is also a risk of visitors becoming infected with Zika and carrying it to their home countries. The combination of huge crowds of people wearing little clothing and rain gathering on rubbish-filled streets will put participants in the carnival celebrations held all over Brazil this weekend, at high risk of Zika infection There is a risk of people being contaminated and the disease spreading and proliferating around the globe,' Dr Sergio Cimerman told the Independent. 'There will be large concentrations of people wearing skimpy clothing and forgetting to put on insect repellent, making them more susceptible to being bitten by mosquitos. 'There is likely to be rain, which combined with larger than usual amounts of rubbish on the streets where water will gather encourages mosquito breeding.' Health officials believe as many as 100,000 people have been exposed to the Zika virus in Recife, the area which has seen the highest number of cases, although most never develop symptoms. Carnival celebrations in the area and all over the country are continuing normally as planned. The Zika virus, which causes babies to be born with unusually small heads and undersized brains, has spread through Latin America after first being diagnosed in Brazil last year Ready to party: Revellers dance during pre-Carnival celebrations in Recife, Pernambuco state, Brazil In the last four months, authorities have recorded around 4,000 cases in Brazil in which the mosquito-borne Zika virus may have led to microcephaly in infants. The ailment results in an abnormally small head in newborns and is associated with various disorders including decreased brain development. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), the Zika virus outbreak is likely to spread throughout nearly all the Americas. This comes as Brazilian health authorities confirmed a case of transmission of Zika through a transfusion of blood from a donor who had been infected with the mosquito-borne virus. The health department of Campinas, an industrial city near Sao Paulo, said a hospital patient with gunshot wounds became infected with Zika after multiple blood transfusions in April 2015. Officials said they determined that one of the people whose donated blood was used in the transfusion had been infected with Zika. The blood center at the University of Campinas said a second person who donated blood in May developed symptoms and tested positive for Zika, though the recipient of the contaminated blood has not developed symptoms of the virus. Brazil's Health Ministry said the first patient died of his wounds and not from the Zika infection. It said it was reinforcing instructions to blood banks that people infected with Zika or dengue not be permitted to donate blood for 30 days after their full recovery from the active stage of Zika infection. Transmission of Zika through blood transfusions adds another dimension to the outbreak of the virus. Top scientist Galina Govina, 54, is locked in a battle at the High Court over the insurance bill A multi-millionaire tenant in a rented house who was handed a 128,000 bill for damage caused by a leaky pipe is locked in a landmark High Court battle, after refusing to pay up. In a test case which will send shivers down the spine of 'generation rent', top scientist Galina Govina is being asked to cough up for repairs to the 1m cottage - even though they were covered by an insurance policy. The physicist was away from the 2,800-a-month, four-bedroom thatched cottage she was renting in West Grafton, Wiltshire, over the festive period in 2010, when pipes burst during a cold snap, the court in London heard. Ms Govina, 54, who owns a 3m flat in Prince Consort Road, near the Albert Hall in Kensington, was 'very surprised' when she later received a bill for 128,089.71 for the damage from her landlady's insurance company. Now, in a case of huge importance to tenants in the UK, the micro-engineering specialist is furiously resisting insurer NFU Mutual's bid to get it's money back from her. Mr Justice Holgate heard the scientist say she had 'carefully read' the lease when she took the cottage on and knew she had to leave the heating on to prevent pipes freezing. But she insists she did just that and blames the disaster on a 'mechanical failure' in the heating system. Despite that, Andrew Butler, for Ms Govina, told the court NFU Mutual are claiming Ms Govina breached her tenancy agreement, and want her to reimburse them. The landlady of the property has already had her insurance claim for the 'substantial' flooding damage at the cottage paid out. Ms Govina is refusing to pay a penny, insisting the landlady's policy was there to protect her too from the financial consequences of accidental damage to the cottage. The barrister added: 'She contends that, on a proper construction of the lease, the insurance was for the benefit of both her and the landlady. 'The terms of the lease therefore preclude the insurers from looking to her for damages.' Galina Govina was away from the 2,800-a-month, four-bedroom thatched cottage she was renting in West Grafton, Wiltshire, over the festive period in 2010, when pipes burst during a cold snap A cold snap in December 2010 saw temperatures plummet across the country, while snow caused chaos across much of the UK. Lows of around -13C were recorded in Wiltshire. Justin Davis, for NFU Mutual, pointed out that Ms Govina paid nothing towards her landlady's insurance premiums. But Mr Butler insisted her share of the premiums was included in the rent she paid. Her rent 'would have been less' if the cover provided by the policy had given her no protection as a tenant, he argued. 'Ms Govina's position is that...liability for damage cause by insured risks is to be met by the insurers, not her.' The barrister warned that victory for NFU Mutual would create a dangerous precedent affecting the rights of vast numbers of tenants. 'This is a residential lease of a cottage in Wiltshire, entered into between private individual', he said. 'Such individuals do not generally have the means to satisfy extensive property damage claims, and do not carry insurance against loss caused to others in that way. 'It might be thought that a lease intended to leave a tenant with such a liability would say so in the clearest terms.' Mr Butler said Ms Govina was 'somebody who is intelligent and careful in her domestic arrangements'. 'She was not somebody who would be likely to have forgotten to leave a home heated in winter,' he told the judge. 'The only direct evidence as to whether the heating was turned off comes from Ms Govina herself. She denies doing so. 'Given her occupation, it is certainly likely that she would have been cognisant of the dangers.' Ms Govina, a mother of one, said outside court that she had been 'very surprised' to receive the bill from the insurance company. Mr Butler described the case as unique and said the scientist's plight should be 'a concern' to anyone renting their home. 'This was not an uncommon form of tenancy agreement. There hasn't really been a case like this before in a residential context. 'If the judge finds that the insurance policy didn't apply for both the landlord and the tenant, that would certainly be a point of concern for tenants.' Emails sent to Hillary Clinton's private email address on her home server contained references to undercover CIA officers, U.S. officials says. A Fox News report released earlier this week claimed the messages put 'sources, methods and lives' in jeopardy. An Observer column piggybacked on the Fox report and said the information contained in the emails was indeed 'colossally damaging to our national security and has put lives at risk.' And it said the 'emails included Holy Grail items of American espionage such as the true names of Central Intelligence Agency intelligence officers serving overseas under cover.' The emails did not reveal the identities of the officers, three officials told NBC News, contrary to previous reports such as the one in the Observer, which NBC specifically cited. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO Emails sent to Hillary Clinton's private email address on her home server contained references to undercover CIA officers, U.S. officials says. Clinton's seen here speaking at CNN's presidential candidate forum last night The references were blatant enough that those emails were retroactively classified by the State Department during its review of the former secretary of state's communications. In one instance a CIA officer was referred to as 'State' in an email to conceal the operative's true occupation. In another, an agent was deemed 'OGA' for other government agency - an alternative name for the CIA within the government. Clinton says she did not send any classified information, and that claim is held up in the emails chains that were forwarded to her. One email was even sent by a member of of the CIA director's staff, NBC reports. The messages are part of a grouping of 22 emails now considered 'top secret' that were kept back from a State Department docu-dump last Friday. The federal government said the emails were so sensitive they could never see the light of day. A top secret categorization means by definition that they include information that would case 'exceptionally grave damage to the national security' of the United States. Fox News said in a follow up report, released as voting began in Iowa in the Democratic primary, that the emails contained 'operational intelligence' and in storing them on her home server Clinton put 'sources, methods and lives' of CIA affiliates on the line. The Clinton campaign has doggedly accused the federal government of being too cautious with Clinton's emails, at least one of which in the last batch included information already available to the public via a news report. Responding to the widely circulated Fox report, spokesman Brian Fallon told NBC, 'This shows yet again how the leaking of selective details gives a completely false impression about what is actually contained in the emails forwarded to Hillary Clinton.' Fallon said, 'Whenever the full contents of these emails are learned, there is invariably less than meets the eye.' Clinton-backing congressman Adam Schiff, the ranking Democrat on the House's intelligence committee, says the communications could both be top secret and contain information that's already been revealed to the public. 'There are potentially programs that are talked about all the time in the press that fit within that category,' he said, according to NBC, helping to explain the conundrum. Clinton says she did not send any classified information, and that claim is held up in the emails chains that were forwarded to her. Still, the controversy is creating a black cloud over her presidential campaign. She's seen here posing for selfies yesterday in New Hampshire As NBC noted, Schiff may have been referring to details on drone strikes that are in the emails that while classified are talked about in Washington and elsewhere. Republican Congressman Mike Pompeo, who is also on the House intelligence committee, said in his expert opinion, the emails should remain classified. 'There is no way that someone, a senior government official who has been handling classified information for a good chunk of their adult life, could not have known that this information ought to be classified, whether it was marked or not,' he told Fox. 'Anyone with the capacity to read and an understanding of American national security, an 8th grade reading level or above, would understand that the release of this information or the potential breach of a non-secure system presented risk to American national security.' A Colorado mother-of-three is up and walking again after tragedy struck her family on what should have been one of the happiest days of their lives. Jill Schmucker, 35, was on the way to the hospital to give birth with her husband and two sons when their SUV crashed and flipped, slamming into a boulder before it rolled into a ditch in Bellvue, Colorado on January 17. It wasn't until after she had her baby, delivered in an emergency C-section, that Jill found out her husband had died in the crash. 37-year-old Tony Schmucker reportedly had a medical emergency while taking his wife Jill to a hospital on last month. Tony Schmucker died after the couple and their children got into a car crash It wasn't until after she had her baby, delivered in an emergency C-section, that Jill found out her husband had died in the crash Jill said they had only driven just down the road from their home when something happened to Tony. 'He had a seizure or some kind of brain stroke or aneurysm,' she told The Tennessean. 'They said it could be any of those.' After the crash, Jill realized Tony was unconscious and that she was pinned to her seat with a broken back. Her phone was missing but she knew Tony kept his cell in his pocket and had her oldest son Ryder, 6, look for it before instructing him to dial 911 and talk to emergency responders. Jill is now recovering from her crash and is thankful that Ryder, her four-year-old son Rollie and newest addition Leedan were unharmed in the accident. Jill is now recovering from her crash and is thankful that Ryder, 6, Rollie, 4, (both pictured here with the couple) and newest addition Leedan were unharmed in the accident Tony Schmucker (left) was hospitalized and died, while his wife Jill Schmucker (right) had a broken back and an emergency C-section 'I got several miracles, three perfect boys,' she told the paper. 'They were barely even bruised, and I'm here and I'm walking, which is a miracle.' 'I just didn't get that one last miracle that I would have loved to have.' Although Jill is still recovering from her injuries and cannot lift heavy items she has been able to feed and hold Leedan and says being there for her children is what keeps her motivated. And she plans to cheer extra hard for the Broncos during this Sunday's Superbowl in honor of Tony, who was a huge fan of the Denver team, and keep his memory alive for their boys. 'He was such a positive person,' she said. Louisiana dwellers are most likely to stay hanging on the line Just six words is enough to fill anyone with rage: 'Can I put you on hold?' No matter how jolly the muzak, it invariably feels like an unquantifiable eternity. To be exact, a survey has found, this listless waiting will take up around 43 days of your entire life. Americans spend between 10 and 20 minutes on hold each week, according to TalkTo. That adds up to 900million hours in a year, and 43 days in a lifetime. But how long you put up with it apparently depends on what state you live in. Americans spend between 10 and 20 minutes on hold each week, according to TalkTo. That adds up to 900million hours in a year, and 43 days in a lifetime A study by Markex released on Thursday found the people of Kentucky have the shortest temper when it comes to waiting. Ohio is the second most-impatient state followed by North Carolina, New York and West Virginia. On the other hand, the people of Louisiana are likely to hang on the longest, followed by Colorado, Florida, Illinois and Minnesota. Reflecting on the data, John Busby, the senior vice president of marketing and consumer insights at Marchex, said there are different reasons as to why the people of each state have a tendency to hang up quickly or not. Kentucky, North Carolina and West Virginia are all places that value politeness highly, he suggested, and so they end the call instead of waiting to vent their fury. New Yorkers, on the other hand, are simply impatient and live in a fast-moving city where a few minutes without progress is a near disaster. The study also looked at the speed of conversation in each state. Surprisingly, phlegmatic Oregon is home to the fastest speakers in the country, the study found. A study by Markex on Thursday found the people of Kentucky have the shortest temper when it comes to waiting. Ohio is the second most-impatient state followed by North Carolina, New York and West Virginia The bizarre finding flies in the face of stereotypes that pin East Coasters as highly-strung fast talking business people and the West Coast as laid back artsy types. In fact, only one state on the East Coast - Massachusetts - featured in the top five fastest-talking list, beaten out by Minnesota, Kansas and Iowa. The slowest talkers, perhaps predictably, reside in the south: North Carolina, Alabama, South Carolina, Louisiana, and Mississippi. Instead, New Yorkers took the title of 'most talkative' because they use the most words to get their point across. They were followed by California, New Jersey, Nevada and Maryland. Oklahoma is the most blunt state, apparently, using very few words to communicate themselves. Culture Secretary John Whittingdale has become the first cabinet minister to test David Cameron's rules on opposing EU membership by refusing to rule out backing Brexit. The Prime Minister has agreed to suspend the 'collective responsibility' rules and allow his ministers to publicly oppose him on the EU referendum - but only once he has finalised his negotiation and presented it to the Cabinet. But Mr Cameron's enthusiastic backing for a draft deal this week has led to claims he is gagging his eurosceptic ministers while racing ahead with his own campaign. Scroll down for video Culture Secretary John Whittingdale, right, tonight became the first cabinet minister to push back against David Cameron's EU referendum rules Mr Whittingdale's intervention comes hours after David Davis, Mr Cameron's former leadership rival, launched a bid to lead the Out campaign. The Culture Secretary told the House magazine: 'My position is that the Prime Minister is out there trying to negotiate the best deal he can for the country. 'I have a track record where I've been highly critical of the way the EU works and I have opposed measures for closer integration and it certainly needs reform. 'I hope the Prime Minister will get that agreement and then I'll look at it when he comes back with it.' Asked if he would he rule out backing Brexit, as Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond has done, Mr Whittingdale declared: 'I wouldn't.' In a speech today, Mr Davis ridiculed the Prime Minister's EU renegotiation deal as 'so unambitious as to be a waste of time'. David Davis today ridiculed Mr Cameron's deal as a 'waste of time' He said Mr Cameron's plan to curb EU migrants' access to benefits with an 'emergency brake' will have 'no impact whatsoever' and 'would not stop a push bike'. And in a direct attack on the Prime Minister, who yesterday urged Conservative MPs to ignore pressure from party members and to 'do what's in your heart' in the referendum, Mr Davis said: 'My response to him saying to MP's 'vote with your hearts' is vote with your brains. Mr Cameron unveiled his draft deal to reform Britain's membership of the EU earlier this week but was heavily criticised by Eurosceptic Tory MPs who claimed he had 'watered down' his initial demands for reform. The Prime Minister said he could 'hand on heart' tell voters he had met his promises set out in the Conservative party manifesto and said plans for an emergency brake would help him achieve his target of reducing net migration. But today Mr Davis launched a detailed criticism of the claims made by Mr Cameron, who he narrowly lost out to in the 2005 Conservative leadership election, saying the reforms would do 'almost nothing to address the very issues that the Government itself has identified'. In a speech in central London, which was widely seen as his pitch to lead the Out campaign in the upcoming EU referendum, Mr Davis said: 'The prime minister 's emergency brake on migrant benefits would not stop a push bike. 'And we now discover we would have to ask Brussels's permission to even use it. 'In any case, the whole concept of an emergency brake is flawed. 'Migrants are coming to Britain from Eastern Europe not to claim benefits but to earn more money. TWO HOURS ON THE RACK: THE SHARPEST BARBS THROWN AT DAVID CAMERON BY TORY MPS Tory Jacob Rees-Mogg led criticism by claiming the 'thin gruel had been further watered down' Conservative Jacob Rees-Mogg, MP for North East Somerset, said: 'The thin gruel has been further watered down. You have a fortnight, I think, in which to salvage your reputation as a negotiator.' Harwich and North Essex MP Bernard Jenkin, meanwhile, suggested the legal assurances contained in the proposals were the equivalent of 'male bovine excrement'. John Redwood, the Tory MP for Wokingham, also criticised the deal, insisting: 'As we are driven in the EU vehicle towards ever closer union and to political union how does it help to try and fit a couple of emergency brakes that lie within the control of the EU and not us?' Corby MP Tom Pursglove said: 'Whilst the Prime Minister is trying his best to renegotiate the position, would he not agree that the reforms as they stand do nothing to make the immigration system in this country fairer regardless of where people come from in the world?' Grandee Sir Bill Cash said: 'But now it will be stitched up by a political decision by the European Council and not by a guaranteed treaty change at the right time and this, I have to say to the Prime Minister, is a wholly inappropriate way of dealing with this matter.' Advertisement 'My figures show that they can readily earn three to four times as much working in low-skilled jobs in Britain. 'No amount of tinkering with our welfare rules will make a blind bit of difference to immigration numbers and the Prime Minister is being disingenuous to pretend otherwise.' The Haltemprice and Howden MP also dismissed plans for a 'red card' for national parliaments to club together to block unwanted legislation as 'feeble'. 'The 'red card' system only operates on draft laws, only works if there is a 'subsidiarity' argument, and needs the agreement 55% of EU Parliaments,' he said. 'This is the same as the old 'yellow card' system, that was also unworkable and which the Government has previously claimed is too difficult to satisfy. 'Since its introduction in 2009, it has only been used twice, one of those times being the proposal to create an EU public prosecutor's office, which went ahead anyway. 'The Government's feeble rebranding from yellow to red is a desperate attempt to put lipstick on a pig.' Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond dismissed Mr Davis' attack, saying people who wanted Brexit 'are obviously going to attack whatever the package contains'. He suggested the UK would be able to act to bolster sovereignty over EU laws, telling BBC Radio 4's World At One: 'We have the power, quite separately from our European Union partners ... to do things in our own domestic legislation.' Mr Cameron was looking at 'how we deliver our commitment to a British Bill of Rights as part of that process', the Foreign Secretary said. 'Just because we have done a deal with the European Union - assuming we get to that deal - doesn't in any way inhibit us from passing domestic legislation to clarify things we want to clarify in our own law.' Despite concerns from legal experts, Mr Hammond said other lawyers believed 'there are ways to address this issue, maybe not the perfect solution but there are ways to assert the supremacy of our Parliament and to give us a much stronger position than we have had in the past'. Davis claimed that plans to curb EU migrants' access to benefits with an 'emergency brake' would have 'no impact whatsoever' The Haltemprice and Howden MP said George Osborne's new minimum wage, which will rise to 9 by 2020, will encourage even more EU migrants to come to the UK Bulgarian Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov told the World At One that 'further negotiations are needed', particularly on the measures to restrict access to benefits. 'It needs to be fair toward the UK citizens but it needs to be fair as well towards the citizens who are working, wherever it is in the European Union, and are doing the same type of job as everyone else and of course have their rights,' he said. In a hint that the proposals could undergo further changes before an EU-wide deal is reached, he said 'compromises' would be required. 'When we go a little bit deeper into the formulas of how the things will be regulated, other suggestions will be on the table and other approaches might be revealed. Mr Cameron faced a further backlash in the Commons today as backbench Eurosceptics tore into his 'sham' EU renegotiation. John Barron, the Tory MP for Basildon and Billericay, labelled the 'red card' proposals as having 'more holes than a Swiss cheese' and warned that a failure to take the opportunity now to win back powers for the UK parliament meant sovereignty 'could be lost for a generation'. And he claimed plans for an 'emergency brake' helped fuel a 'negative narrative about immigrants' in a debate organised by backbench Tory MPs in response to Mr Cameron's EU deal. Meanwhile the leading Eurosceptic Sir Bill Cash said Mr Cameron's plans 'betray' the British people. The chairman of the European Scrutiny Committee said: 'These negotiations, when you cut through all the appearances, are a sham. That is the problem. This is the real issue.' He added: we have actually reached a point of no return. 'We have to say no, we have to leave. That is the position. I don't need to say any more. As far as I'm concerned, this is about the liberties of this country. It's about the liberties of our people. 'This is why I say we must leave the European Union.' THE SUPER SIX? WHO ARE THE TOP TORY POLITICIANS WHO STILL MIGHT JOIN THE BATTLE TO LEAVE EUROPE Iain Duncan Smith The work and pensions secretary and former Tory leader has long held deeply eurosceptic views. It drove his brief party leadership and he would probably be the most high profile signing for the Out campaign. In October 2003, he said: 'I will fight with all my strength to defend the British people's right to govern themselves. 'Conservatives want to build a New Europe not a single state with its own currency and constitution, but a Europe of sovereign, enterprising nations.' John Whittingdale Mr Whittingdale wrote to the BBC last year demanding the broadcaster stayed impartial during the referendum campaign. He said the corporation had to have a 'very robust' system in place to deal with impartiality. In 2013 he warned: 'If it was a choice of the [EU] membership under the present terms or coming out, then I'd vote to come out.' Priti Patel Ms Patel is the lowest ranked of those likely to back out but also one of the newest faces as she was first elected in 2010. In June 2014, she said: 'The status quo of EU membership is simply not an option. The British public want less Europe and more Britain. 'The British public want our political leaders to say 'No' to the unaccountable, federalist European agenda which has led to the widespread failures of the European Union we face today.' Theresa Villiers Northern Ireland Secretary Ms Villiers may not be the highest profile member of the cabinet but she has long been eurosceptic and was thought one of those most likely to quit if Mr Cameron had not given freedom to campaign. In 2011, after the Government handed a contract which could have safeguarded 3,000 UK jobs to a German firm: 'We are bound by European Union rules, which mean . . . we are not permitted to take into account the location of the factory in determining which bid is nominated. That is a consequence of our membership of the EU.' Chris Grayling Mr Grayling, who served as a minister in Mr Cameron's team since 2010, was the first minister to make plain he would campaign for out in a delicately worded Telegraph article that just stayed within the PM's rules. He said last year: 'I've made no bones about the fact that I sit on the Eurosceptic wing of the Conservative Party . . . If the British people decide to leave, then we leave. 'This is a strong country and we will prosper whatever the situation is. Boris Johnson The London mayor has famously flirted in and out of the Leave camp. He had appeared earlier this year to rule himself out of the Leave campaign but his strident attack on the PM's deal yesterday drew attention. Last year, he said: 'There is every reason to think, if we got the right free trade deal, that we would flourish . . . I think the price of getting out is lower than it's ever been.' Advertisement 'It is clear that everyone needs to make a compromise here but the main thing is to preserve the principle of non-discrimination.' Former Labour Home Secretary Alan Johnson, a leading figure on the In campaign, agreed with Mr Davis' claim that plans for an emergency brake on migrants would have no impact. He said curbing migrants' access to benefits would not deter people coming to the UK in search for work and would not help cut net migration. 'The issue of in-work benefits isn't a draw factor and indeed in terms of, this is a two-way process, no country has more of its people working in other developed countries than Britain more than Poland, more than any other country in Europe,' he said. 'Go to a pub in Paris, go to a pub in Madrid you will hear English voices. 'It's not a draw for them, either, there's all kinds of factors why people choose to move around the European Union to work. I don't think that's one of them.' Meanwhile banking giant Goldman Sachs warned today that Brexit would cause an immediate 20 per cent drop in the value of the pound. This would make foreign holidays more expensive and would also increase the cost of petrol for drivers, the bank said, although the weaker sterling would benefit exporters. The bank, which is a financial backer of the Britain Stronger In Europe campaign, has predicted voters will back staying in the EU. Sumner Redstone has stepped aside as executive chairman of Viacom, a day after resigning as chairman of CBS. The two moves on Wednesday and Thursday have settled a period of uncertainty surrounding the aging media mogul and the two corporations he headed up. Redstone will assume the role of Viacom chairman emeritus as the firm's chairman and CEO Philippe Dauman steps into the vacant position, adding executive chairman to his title. Les Moonves has taken the executive chairman role at CBS, where Redstone will also be chairman emeritus. However, unlike CBS, Thursday's move at Viacom has the potential to set off a board fight as Redstone's daughter Shari does not approve. And while CBS' stocks jumped on Wednesday, the news on Thursday sent Viacom's plummeting. Controversy: Sumner Redstone has resigned as executive chairman at Viacom, handing the role to CEO Philippe Dauman (right). But Redstone's daughter Shari (left, with her father) opposed Dauman's promotion While CBS' stocks jumped on Wednesday, the news on Thursday sent Viacom's plummeting Hours before the move was announced, Shari Redstone said she was against Dauman's promotion to the role because of his involvement in family affairs. Dauman is one of seven trustees that will control nearly 80 percent of the voting stakes at both CBS and Viacom after 92-year-old Redstone dies. Investment adviser SpringOwl had opposed Dauman's taking the chairman's job. Viacom director William Schwartz said the board considered the 'need for seasoned leadership' in appointing Dauman. Redstone is embroiled in a legal battle over his health and mental capacity. His resignation from CBS was effective immediately and CBS announced that Les Moonves has been elected the chair of the CBS board of directors while Redstone will stay on as chairman emeritus. Moonves was nominated for his new role by Shari Redstone, Sumner's daughter, and elected in a unanimous vote. The board offered the position of non-executive chair to Shari first, but she declined the position. Redstone's resignation comes as many had begun to question his mental and physical state, including an ex-girlfriend and a member of the board. New role: Les Moonves (left with wife Julie Chen in November 2013) has now been elected the Chair of the CBS Board of Directors after Redstone's resignation (Redstone and ex Sydney Holland on right) Good sign: CBS stocks jumped over sven percent after the renouncement was made about Sumner's resignation CBS stock jumped over seven percent as soon as the announcement was made on Wednesday. 'Mr. Moonves election by the Board follows the recent resignation of Sumner M. Redstone from his position of Executive Chairman, which was effective February 2, 2016, and his appointment to the role of Chairman Emeritus, CBS Corporation,' CBS said in a press release. 'Ms. Redstone, Mr. Redstones daughter, will continue to serve as Vice Chair of the CBS Board, a position she has held since 2005.' Moonves said in a statement after accepting his new position; 'I am honored to accept the chairmanship of this great company. 'I want to thank Sumner for his guidance and strong support over all these years. It has meant the world to me. 'I am particularly grateful that Shari Redstone has agreed to continue in her role as Vice Chair of the Company. Her business acumen and knowledge of the media space remain very important to me as we move forward, and I greatly appreciate her support and invaluable counsel. 'I would also like to thank our excellent board of directors, who have contributed so significantly to our success. The people of CBS have achieved much together and I believe the best is yet to come.' Ms. Redstone also released a statement after Moonves' appointment, saying; 'I have been fortunate to work with Les and he has clearly established himself as a creative and effective leader who understands both the challenges and the opportunities that are shaping todays media landscape. 'I am sure he will make a great chair and I look forward to working with him for many years to come.' The news comes a little over a week after Los Angeles Superior Court Judge David J. Cowan said that a doctor hired by the billionaire mogul's ex-girlfriend Manuela Herzer should evaluate Redstone's health and mental health. He based the ruling on the depositions of two doctors who have evaluated Redstone and believe he could undergo a short examination from another doctor. Cowan says the evaluation should last up to an hour and cannot be attended by Redstone's regular physician or attorneys handling the case. Cause: The news comes after a judge said that a doctor hired by the billionaire mogul's ex-girlfriend Manuela Herzer (above) should evaluate his mental health Redstone's ex-girlfriend and longtime companion Herzer has raised issues about the 92-year-old's health and decision-making capacity after she was suddenly expelled from his house in October. Redstone parted ways with Herzer after 20 years together, a woman who he briefly dated but then became one his closest friends and confidantes. She soon filed a suit asking to be restored as his caretaker arguing that he was 'mentally incompetent' describing him as a 'living ghost' and 'tragic figure.' Herzer, 51, was banned from the billionaire media mogul's Beverly Park mansion in October for reasons that remain unclear. She began dating the Viacom and CBS CEO - who is worth an estimated $6.4billion - in the 90s, and remained a close friend and confidante after the two split, moving to a house just down the street from him. Six weeks prior, Redstone had kicked out his live-in lover of four years Sydney Holland, 44, after learning she was having an affair. At the same, Redstone appeared to be getting closer to his family, with whom he has long had a tumultuous relationship. Vanity Fair spoke with a source who said at the time: 'All of a sudden on Monday there were a bunch of lawyers and house staff standing around, and she walked back in the house and it was communicated to her that Sumner doesnt want her there anymore.' The source then added that Herzer was shocked when she got the news, and quickly grew concerned as to who would care for the 92-year-old mogul. 'She doesnt know why shes not there anymore, and theres no one around. No family. Nobody responsible. Theres a driver and a nurse supposedly running the show,' they said. Redstone's daughter Shari disputed these claims however, and said there is nothing to worry about. 'Two of Sharis three children [Brandon and Tyler Korff] visited Sumner immediately; the third [Kimberlee Korff] called from the East Coast and is seeing him next week,' said Shari's spokesperson Nancy Sterling. 'Shari also flew out to see her father [last Wednesday] and everyone was excited to be able to spend time together again as a family.' In an interview with Vanity Fair earlier this year, Herzer said of meeting Redstone: 'I was so enamored. I could do no wrong. He was just for me the greatest thing since sliced bread. There was no age at that point.' She then added; 'This is the nicest guy Ive ever met... I felt a connection to him that was really like - I cant explain. It was this chemistry.' Redstone meanwhile said of Herzer: 'I have known Manuela for over 20 years. She and her children are family to me. Her house in LA is five minutes away from my house and I get to see her frequently. Manuela is one of the smartest women I have ever met.' An Emirates flight from Dubai to Newcastle had to be diverted to Turkey after passengers reported a burning smell coming from the toilets. The Boeing 777 left Dubai at 7.25am and was approaching the Black Sea at 34,000 feet when the pilot decided to land the aircraft following the reports. He contacted Air Traffic Control and landed without incident at Trabzon in northern Turkey around 9.30am. Scroll down for video The Emirates Boeing 777, similar to this aircraft, was forced to divert some two hours after it left Dubai en route to Newcastle after passengers reported a smell of smoke from one of the jet's toilets The aircraft departed Dubai at 07.25 this morning before he was forced to divert to Trabzon in northern Turkey Passengers on board the early morning flight said they witnessed a burning smell coming from the toilet. The aircraft was due to arrive in Newcastle at 11.20am. A spokesperson for Emirates said: 'Emirates flight EK35 departed from Dubai to Newcastle at 07:25 and was diverted to Trabzon, Turkey due to a technical fault. 'The flight landed uneventfully in Trabzon and passengers and crew were safely disembarked. 'A recovery flight has in the meantime been launched from Dubai to Trabzon, which will fly all passengers onwards to Newcastle as EK35, with a departure in Trabzon at 18:00 local time. 'Emirates apologises for the inconvenience caused. 'The safety of our passengers and crew is of utmost importance and will not be compromised.' The replacement aircraft has just taken off from Trabzon to bring the passengers to Newcastle. Dease says the couple told him they were planning to go to Panama City Said they walked into the Tuscaloosa hotel where he works and demanded cash Kyle Dease says he was held hostage in his Volkswagen Jetta by the suspects Police have linked them to several similar offences in Alabama and Georgia Police say a couple suspected in a series of robberies and abductions in Alabama and Georgia stole guns from a Missouri house a few days before the alleged crime spree. Joplin police Cpl. Chuck Niess told The Associated Press on Thursday that police in Joplin, Missouri, wanted to interview suspects Blake Fitzgerald and Brittany Nicole Harper about the January 22 break-in, 'but they obviously left the area.' The home reportedly belonged to a doctor and at least two guns were taken from the residence, according to AL.com. It is not known if the couple knew the doctor, who has not been identified. Police have linked the Missouri couple to a series of crimes in Alabama and Georgia, saying the offenses fit a similar pattern: People are robbed, kidnapped and let go unharmed, usually after a vehicle is stolen. Blake Fitzgerald (left) and Brittany Harper (right), are being hunted for a brazen crime spree in Alabama and Georgia. They are now accused of stealing guns from a Missouri home days before going on the run Kyle Dease, the night clerk at Microtel Inn and Suites in Tuscaloosa, says he was held captive for two hours Just this week, an Alabama hotel clerk, who was abducted at gunpoint, says the 'Bonnie and Clyde' captors revealed they were going to Panama City, Florida, to get married and he fears they'll 'go down shooting' if cornered by police. Kyle Dease, the night clerk at Microtel Inn and Suites in Tuscaloosa, claims he was held captive for nearly two hours in his own car by the couple on Sunday. 'They're making this up as they go,' Dease said. 'They're improvising at every little setback, and that's when people get hurt.' He doesn't believe the couple want to hurt anyone, adding 'even the nicest person in the world when backed into a corner will lash out.' Fitzgerald and Harper were last seen traveling south on Interstate 75 in a stolen silver Ford Edge (pictured) The couple are wanted after a crime spree in Alabama on Sunday, but authorities say they also struck a gas station in Georgia on Monday Police say the armed couple robbed the Murphy Express on Sam Nunn Boulevard on Monday night and abducted the female clerk FIRST TARGET: Fitzgerald and Harper are suspected of kidnapping a night manager from this Microtel Inn and Suites in Tuscaloosa and stealing his car He said Fitzgerald said he 'hated' using the gun and claimed he 'kind of lost a piece of himself every time he had to use it'. 'I want them to turn themselves in or get where they need to be and stop terrorizing people,' Dease said. The latest in the alleged crime spree happened when a gunman held up a young female clerk at a Murphy Express station along Interstate 75 in Perry, Georgia, at around 11pm on Monday. The suspect took money from the safe and cigarettes before forcing the clerk into an SUV where his female accomplice waited, authorities said. The couple drove about 15 miles before releasing the clerk unharmed on a highway overpass, said Perry police Lt. Ken Ezell. They were last seen traveling south on Interstate 75 in a stolen silver Ford Edge, police said. Ezell said on Tuesday afternoon he was preparing arrest warrants charging them with kidnapping and armed robbery in Georgia. SECOND TARGET: The suspects then drove to this McDonald's in Hoover, where they made an attempt to carjack and rob a restaurant worker, but they left empty-handed after she raised the alarm THIRD TARGET: The pair then drove to the Birmingham suburb of Vestavia Hills, where they allegedly kidnapped a woman from her home as she was having breakfast with her family FOURTH TARGET: Georgia police say the pair robbed the Murphy Express gas station (pictured) on Sam Nunn Boulevard at around 11.04pm on Monday night and abducted the female clerk 'As far as their motives behind things, there's really not one,' Ezell said. Perry Police Chief Stephen Lynn said the couple may be abducting their victims to delay reports being made to police. 'They haven't hurt anybody so far and that's great,' Lynn said. 'I hope we catch them before somebody does get hurt.' Fitzgerald is facing one count of first-degree burglary, one count of first-degree kidnapping and one count of first-degree theft of property in relation to the incident in Vestavia Hills. Harper is charged with one count of first-degree kidnapping and first-degree theft of property. In each case, Harper (pictured left and right) and her accomplice released their hostages unharmed Fitzgerald's lengthy criminal record includes more than 100 charges dating back to 2003, including rape Fitzgerald and Harper appear to be in a relationship, according to pictures on his Facebook page. The 31-year-old man also appears to have a young daughter Both are also charged with first-degree robbery in Hoover. In Tuscaloosa, both face robbery, kidnapping and theft charges. According to ABC3340, Fitzgerald's vast criminal record includes more than 100 charges dating back to 2003, including assault, rape and burglary. He was arrested in Missouri for robbing a 63-year-old woman at knife-point in 2013, Al.com reported, and was on probation stemming from a 2015 case in which he assaulted a man at a nightclub. Meanwhile, the U.S. Marshals Gulf Coast Regional Fugitive Task Force has been called in to assist with the hunt. Tuscaloosa police Lt. Kip Hart said a $10,000 reward was being offered for information that helped lead to an arrest and conviction. Anyone who spots the pair or the silver Ford Edge - with tags 2720AG7- is urged not to approach them, but immediately call police. A Virginia mother battling the Zika virus following a mission trip to Guatemala has spoken out about her eight-weeks-and-counting struggle with the virus. Heather Baker from McGaheysville, Virginia said she received confirmation from the CDC on Tuesday that she is the first person in the state confirmed positive with the virus. The mother-of-three said she contracted it during a trip in November to Zacapa, Guatemala, through what she believes was a bite from an infected mosquito. Scroll down for video Heather Baker (pictured in Guatemala with children she worked with) from Virginia said she received confirmation on Tuesday that she is the first person in the state confirmed positive with the virus Three days after she returned home, she began feeling like she was coming down with the flu before realizing something was wrong, according to WTVR. 'Body aches started, light sensitivity, fatigue, brain fog, just a variety of things, nothing completely severe - enough I knew something was wrong,' Baker said of the symptoms. Among other symptoms she said included swollen lymph nodes, joint pain, rash, low-grade fever, ringing ears and depression. While the symptoms were minor, Baker said they persisted beyond the one-to-two-week mark with it being more than eight weeks since the onset of her symptoms until the CDC confirmed she had Zika. 'I understand that most people a week or two later, they do feel better, I am eight weeks in,' she told WTVR. Baker said she contracted Zika virus during a mission trip in November to Zacapa, Guatemala, through what she believes was a bite from an infected mosquito Baker had previously traveled to Zacapa twice in 2014 where she helped special needs children while working with a Christian ministry called Hope of Life International, before making her fourth trip last November, according to WMRA. Keith Hummel, a doctor who saw her, said that Baker previously had several other serious illnesses, and that it could be that her immune system was not as strong, making her more susceptible to persisting symptoms. Now Baker has shared her story with the hopes of 'educating, raising awareness and preventing the spread of this virus,' she wrote in a Facebook post on Saturday. 'I challenge those who are pregnant or who plan to become pregnant to postpone travel plans to affected areas,' she wrote. 'Many airlines will refund ticket charges for that reason. There are links between Zika and severe birth defects in newborns. The mother-of-three said she has shared her personal story with the hopes of 'educating, raising awareness and preventing the spread of this virus' 'If you do travel to the countries where Zika is spreading, please use wisdom. Wear protective clothing and shoes. Use lots of bug spray.' Dr Mike Stevens, with Virginia Commonwealth University Health, told WTVR that 75 to 85 per cent of people with virus have no symptoms. He added that 20 to 25 per cent of those infected have symptoms lasting two to seven days before going away that include fever, rash, red eyes and joint pain. While she suffers from ongoing fatigue, Baker is able to work from home and is grateful for her three sons, who are homeschooled, who help around the house, according to WMRA. As for helping the children she works with in Zacapa, she will do what she can stateside but wants to return to Guatemala. 'If I had the finances and the green light, I'd be there next week,' she told WMRA. Experts have warned the Zika virus could be rife in Southern US states by the spring. The states at greatest risk are those along the Gulf Coast - Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida (dark red) The Zika virus is primarily spread through mosquito bites and is linked to brain deformities in babies. U.S. health officials on Tuesday said a person in Texas became infected with Zika through sex, in the first case of the illness being transmitted within the United States. More than 30 people in the United States have been confirmed to have Zika after traveling to an affected country. Although there has been only one report of transmission within the United States, experts believe that will increase as the weather warms up, the local mosquito population multiplies and many more travelers return to the country. However, experts warned today that the virus is likely to entrenched within the United States by April or May as temperatures rise. The states at greatest risk of the virus are those on the Gulf Coast, including Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida, but all areas where mosquitoes are typically a problem could see localized outbreaks. The World Health Organization declared the Zika outbreak an international health emergency this week after evidence linking the virus to microcephaly - a devastating birth defect that can cause unusually small heads and permanent brain damage. Brazil has reported 3,700 suspected cases of microcephaly. The outbreak is now affecting at least 25 countries and territories, most of them in Latin America and the Caribbean. It could infect up to four million people in the Americas, according to the WHO. Saudi Arabia is ready to send ground troops into Syria to fight ISIS because airstrikes alone will fail to defeat the evil militants. Brigadier General Ahmed Asiri said Saudi Arabia was now in a position to supplement its airstrikes with 'boots on the ground' as the battle against the extremists steps up a gear. The oil-rich kingdom has been taking part in the airstrikes since the U.S.-led campaign began in September 2014, but Asiri has said he believes 'alone [they] are not the perfect solution'. Brigadier General Ahmed Asiri said Saudi Arabia was now in a position to supplement its airstrikes with 'boots on the ground' as the battle against the extremists (pictured) steps up a gear 'We are determined to fight and defeat Daesh,' Asiri added, using the Arabic acronym for ISIS. He didn't elaborate on how many troops the kingdom would send. However, Saudi - already deeply involved in neighbouring Yemen's civil war - will only send in its forces if its coalition partners agree at a meeting in Brussels this month, convened by the United States is scheduled. The announcement came shortly after Russia said it suspects Turkey of planning a military invasion of Syria. Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov claimed the Russian military had noted 'a growing number of signs of hidden preparation of the Turkish armed forces for active actions on the territory of Syria'. He said images of a checkpoint on the Turkish-Syrian border taken in late October and late January show a buildup of transportation infrastructure that could be used for moving in troops, ammunition and weapons. Asiri said they were determined to defeat ISIS, but didn't elaborate on how many troops the kingdom would send. Pictured: Saudi troops fire shells towards Yemen in April last year The revelations came a day after U.N.-led peace talks in Geneva were suspended for three weeks, with the United States blaming both Syria's government and Russia for stalling the peace negotiations. Syrian government troops, backed by Russian airstrikes, have increased the pace of attacks on opposition forces in recent days as the talks faltered. Two active-duty soldiers from Fort Bliss, Texas, have been arrested in connection to the execution-style killing of a 16-year-old boy who was found shot dead in the desert over the weekend. US Army Private Tyler Shane Hall, 20, and Sgt Eric Duvall, 25, were taken into custody Wednesday and charged with murder for allegedly killing Michael Tapia. The teenager's body was discovered at around 5pm Sunday near Flagger Street in the El Paso suburb of Montana Vista. Two spent .223 caliber shell casings were found near the body. Hall also was charged with suspicion of possession of a controlled substance. In cold blood: US Army Private Tyler Shane Hall (left), 20, and Sgt Eric Duvall (right), 25, have been charged with murder in the drug-related shooting death of a 16-year-old boy Slain: The body of Michael Tapia, pictured here with his mother, was found on January 26 near El Paso, Texas, with a single bullet wound to the back of the neck According to court documents, Tapia was killed on January 26 in what investigators have described as a drug-related incident. An autopsy determined that the 16-year-old had sustained a single gunshot wound to the back of the neck. Hall and Duvall, both assigned to the 1st Armored Division, made their initial court appearance Thursday and were ordered held on $1million bond each. An arrest affidavit obtained by the El Paso Times states that the two soldiers were arrested after two witnesses came forward telling police that Duvall and Hall came by the house where Tapia had been staying and asked to see him. Hall accused the boy of stealing drugs from him and led him away, ignoring Tapia's offers to pay for the stolen narcotics. The pair returned to the house about an hour later without Tapia. The witnesses said Duvall was carrying an AR-15, according to the court documents. When they asked about the 16-year-old, Hall allegedly laughed and replied: I shot him in the head. I did a double tap on his head. Confession: Hall, left, allegedly bragged to witnesses that he shot the boy in the head for stealing drugs from him Duvall then allegedly corroborated Hall's statement, saying, 'We killed him.' Duvall has been in the Army for about five years, while Hall entered military service about a year and a half ago. Tapia's mother, Johanna Ochoterena, posted a status update on her Facebook page Wednesday addressing the arrests of her son's suspected killers. The family of Hae Min Lee, whose murder was the subject of the hit podcast Serial, have broken their silence as her convicted killer tries to get his conviction overturned. The high school student was found strangled to death and buried in a Baltimore, Maryland, park in 1999, and her ex-boyfriend Adnan Syed was charged with her murder. The 35-year-old Muslim was given a life sentence for her death in 2000 when he was just 19, but returned to court on Wednesday to argue that he deserves another trial and a new chance at freedom. Lee's parents refused to participate in the widely-acclaimed podcast that has raised questions over Syed's conviction, but have now broken their silence 17 years after the popular track athlete was killed. The family of Hae Min Lee (left), whose murder was the subject of the podcast Serial, have broken their silence as her killer Adnan Syed (right) returned to court in a bid to have his conviction overturned Deputy Maryland Attorney General Thiru Vignarajah read aloud the family's words from the steps of the Baltimore Circuit Court after Syed's appearance in front of a judge. In his statement he said the family is being forced to 'relive a nightmare we thought was behind us' as a result of the hearing. 'Our family has lived without a heart for over 17 years. And we continue to grieve every day in private. 'We are grateful to all the people who are there and will be there to support and to give Hae a voice. She is the true victim. 'We believe justice was done when Adnan was convicted in 2000, and we look forward to bringing this chapter to an end so we can celebrate the memory of Hae instead of celebrating the man who killed her.' The family have chosen not to attend the hearing which continued on Thursday. Hae (top circled) was found strangled to death and buried in a Baltimore, Maryland, park in 1999, and her ex-boyfriend Syed was charged with her murder. He was given a life sentence in 2000 Syed returned to court on Thursday (pictured) as prosecutors suggested an alibi witness is trying to help free the convicted killer rather than simply aid in the investigation Vignarajah suggested an alibi witness is trying to help free the convicted killer rather than simply aid in the investigation. Prosecutor Thiru Vignarajah on Thursday focused on a letter that alibi witness Asia McClain, now known as Chapman, sent to Adnan Syed days after his 1999 arrest on charges of killing his high school girlfriend. Syed's case had been closed for years when producer Sarah Koenig, a former Baltimore Sun reporter, began examining it in the podcast in 2014, drawing millions of listeners each week During cross-examination, Vignarajah asked repeatedly whether she'd written the letter weeks after she says she did, and how she came to know the details about the case she mentions in the correspondence. Vignarajah also questioned her about a claim by a friend of Syed who told police Syed had sent Chapman a letter from jail and told her to type it. Chapman is testifying for the second day in a hearing to determine whether Syed deserves a new trial. His attorneys have argued that he received ineffective counsel. Vignarajah is also trying to cast doubt on her testimony where she claims she saw Adnan at the library when he was supposedly killing his girlfriend. Syed's case had been closed for years when producer Sarah Koenig, a former Baltimore Sun reporter, began examining it in the podcast in 2014, drawing millions of listeners each week so many that the public radio podcast shattered Apple's iTunes store's record for downloads, reaching 5 million faster than any other podcast program. As of February 2015, it had been downloaded 68 million times, bringing international attention to the case. The hearing, scheduled to last three days before Baltimore Circuit Judge Martin Welch, is meant to determine whether Syed's conviction will be overturned and the case retried. 'We've waited a long time to get back into court and to put on witnesses that will prove our claim, and that's exactly what we're going to do this week,' said Justin Brown, Syed's attorney. Cologne has been placed on high alert as it prepares for ladies' night at a carnival just weeks after infamous sex attacks on New Year's Eve shocked the world. Festivities this year have been overshadowed by security concerns, prompting police to double the number of officers on patrol to more than 2,000 in an effort to reassure the public after an unprecedented series of robberies and sexual assaults mostly targeting women at New Year. Police say the attacks were mostly carried out by foreigners, fueling debate in Germany about the country's ability to cope with the huge number of migrants that have arrived over the past year. Scroll down for video Large numbers of police have taken to the streets in Cologne to prevent any repeat of the mass sex attacks High profile police patrols are taking place in areas that were out of control on New Year's Eve Authorities ordered the massive police presence to reassure partygoers and to act as a deterrent In the old town, three young women dressed as clowns said they weren't deterred by what had happened at New Year. 'There is a lot of security and everyone is looking out for each other,' said one of them, Julia Moser. Special safety points where people can go if they feel threatened have been set up at major squares. Henriette Reker, Cologne's mayor, has pledged to prevent a repeat of the New Year's attacks. Still, some revelers said the city felt emptier than in previous years, though the wet weather could have been to blame. Christa Schneider, a native of Cologne, said the mood seemed more sober than usual. Her group planned to avoid dark alleys and overly large crowds, she said. Private security guards have been drafted in to protect venues in advance of this evening's celebration The first day of the festival is known as Weiberfastnacht, when women traditionally take over the city Authorities ordered the extra security as a result of the outcry caused by the New Year migrant sex assaults The first day of Carnival is traditionally referred to as 'Weiberfastnacht' - a day when women symbolically take charge of the city. Josef Sommer, who heads the city's tourism agency, said he was confident the additional security measures would prevent a repeat of the New Year's assaults and allay latent fears of Paris-style attacks by extremists. 'Everyone can celebrate Carnival the way they're used to, with the exception perhaps that people should follow police advice to refrain from wearing costumes that include realistic replica weapons,' Sommer told The Associated Press. The New Year's assaults sparked a nationwide uproar, the removal of Cologne's police chief and a heated debate about integration at a time when Germany has seen huge numbers of refugees come into the country. Almost 1.1 million asylum-seekers arrived in Germany last year and most of the attackers in Cologne were described as being of Arab or North African origin. Cologne prosecutors said they have now received 1,037 criminal complaints from the New Year's controversy Police have warned partygoers from bringing realistic-looking replica firearms to the party Authorities have also increased the number of video cameras in the area and improved street lighting Cologne prosecutors say they have received 1,037 criminal complaints over the New Year's events, including 446 allegations of sexual assault, three of them rape. Criminal proceedings have begun against 50 individuals, of whom 11 are in custody, said Cologne prosecutor Ulrich Bremer. Most of the suspects are from Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, he said. Several are asylum-seekers. Cologne authorities have put in place additional video surveillance and street lighting to deter attackers and make it easier to catch any perpetrators. The city's new police chief, Juergen Mathies, said, however, that it would probably be impossible to prevent all crime, noting that last year's Rose Monday Carnival parade also saw 50 allegations of sexual assault, from groping to rape. Mathies told reporters that the situation in Cologne appeared to be calmer than in previous years, with police detaining seven people for various minor offenses. Adding to the overall tension, however, came news that police in Berlin and two western states conducted raids as part of an investigation against four Algerian men suspected of planning attacks in Germany and having ties to the Islamic State group. The German government confirmed that 91,000 asylum seekers arrived in the country in January Authorities have run training sessions for migrants in Cologne so they could understand what is happening Reports from the city centre say that very few migrants have taken part in the beer-fuelled festivities With no end in sight to the stream of migrants coming to Germany - the government said more than 91,000 asylum-seekers arrived in the country last month - public jitters about the long-term impact have given rise to increasing anti-immigrant sentiment. At the carnival, two German men in their 20s, who refused to give their full names, expressed frustration at the number of migrants coming to Germany, saying they feared a rise in crime and damage to the economy. Authorities and social welfare groups had organized Carnival `training sessions' for migrants to enjoy and understand the boisterous celebrations without coming into conflict with locals. However, few asylum seekers appeared to be taking part in the beer-fueled festivities Thursday, though some young Afghan and Roma men could be seen collecting discarded tin cans, which can be returned for a few cents each. Carnival is a lucrative event for Cologne, said Sommer, the tourism chief. But more importantly the city has an image to protect, he said. 'Cologne has an image as an international and tolerant city, where people from all cultures celebrate and have fun together.' Tourism officials in Cologne said the annual carnival was a major event in the city's calendar Cologne's mayor Henriette Reker was one of the women taking part in the Weiberfastnacht Some of those taking part in the festival get dressed in elaborate costumes from their favourite movies Employees at the Commonwealth Bank allegedly knew about a fraud scheme worth $76 million for five years before authorities were alerted. Professional poker player William Jordanou and accountant Robert Zaia are accused of faking documents to borrow millions of dollars for several property developments that never got off the ground. Commonwealth staff received secret commissions for their role in the alleged fraud, which was ignored by management at Australia's biggest lender, Fairfax Media reported. Professional poker player Bill Jordanou is accused of faking documents to borrow millions of dollars from the Commonwealth Bank Accountant Robert Zaia has also been implicated in the fraud allegations while CBA employees are accused of knowing about the scheme Funds were said to have been siphoned from client's accounts without their consent during the Ponzi scheme. Documents obtained by Fairfax reportedly revealed Commonwealth Bank's involvement in the fraud, alleging the bank was aware of the incident four years before they were reported to police. Fraud allegations against Mr Jordanou and Mr Zaia are said to have first emerged in 2007. CBA did not pass on any information onto the authorities until 2011. Mr Jordanou and Mr Zaia are not Commonwealth Bank employees. 'CBA has zero tolerance to bribery, corruption and facilitation payments across the business and will continue to cooperate with the Police and the legal process as this complicated issue unfolds in the courts,' a media spokeswoman told Daily Mail Australia. They've reportedly been charged with nearly 100 fraud and deception offences and are due to face court in February 2017. A man who was reunited with his 18-year-old daughter four months ago may now be engaged in a sexual relationship with her. In an episode of the Steve Wilkos Show called, 'I'm in Love with my Dad,' which will air on Monday, Macey, 18, confesses to engaging inappropriately with her biological father Gary - a claim he says is preposterous. 'I didn't know he was my dad until I was ten years old,' says Macey in a clip from Monday's episode provided to DailyMail.com. Shocking: In an episode of the Steve Wilkos Show called, 'I'm in Love with my Dad,' which will air on Monday, Macey (pictured right), 18, confesses to engaging inappropriately with her biological father Gary(pictured left) - a claim he says is preposterous 'The relationship I have with my daughter is absolutely out of this world,' says Gary, not knowing what his daughter is about to share. Steve Wilkos then asks Macey a question whose answer shocks the members of the studio audience and seems to shake her father. 'My dad and I are having sexual relations, yes,' she says, eliciting a guffaw from her much older father. 'What are you talking about?' her father says shortly after her alleged confession. A tearful and visibly upset Macey responds:' You don't want to lose me and you dont want anything to go wrong but it was a lot more than just father, daughter relationships.' Family: 'The relationship I have with my daughter is absolutely out of this world,' says Gary, not knowing what his daughter is about to share A tearful and visibly upset Macey says:' You don't want to lose me and you dont want anything to go wrong but it was a lot more than just father, daughter relationships' Wilkos then asks Macey,' you had oral sex with your father? She replies: 'yes' WHAT IS Genetic Sexual Attraction? Research by the British Medical Journal showed that half of those separated from relatives at a young age experience strong sexual feelings when they are reunited. Psychiatrists believe the natural repulsion brothers and sisters feel for one another as children acts as an inhibitor to committing incest. But those who miss out on this time can develop powerful, obsessive feelings for their sibling in adulthood. The same goes for parents and children. Genetic Sexual Attraction (GSA) is a term that describes the phenomenon of sexual attraction between close relatives, such as siblings, first and second cousins or a parent and offspring who first meet as adults. It is not the same as incest, though this is what it is called if a sexual relationship is then entered into. The term GSA was coined 30 years ago by American Barbara Gonyo. She wrote a book about the lust she felt for the adult son she had given up for adoption 26 years earlier. She never acted on her feelings. GSA is rare between people raised together in early childhood due to a reverse sexual imprinting known as the Westermarck effect, which desensitizes them sexual attraction. Experts believe that this effect evolved to prevent inbreeding. Advertisement 'You're crazy as hell, Gary says in response. Those who want to find out whether or not Macey and Gary crossed the line can tune into the Steve Wilkos show on Monday, February 8. Genetic sexual attraction is a seldom-talked about phenomenon that frequently occurs between children and their long-lost parents. It describes feelings of intense intimacy between two relatives who have been separated during the critical years of development and bonding, and then meet for the first time as adults. Essentially strangers, when an adult-child and their biological parent finally meet, the brain struggles to associate each other as family. Instead, they become captivated with one another, sharing similar physical features, likes and dislikes, which is coupled with complex feelings of intimacy. This can lead both parties to express their emotions sexually. The phenomenon was first identified by Barbara Gonyo in the Eighties, after she a wrote book called I'm His Mother, But He's Not My Son, which recounted her personal story of reuniting with the son she placed for adoption at 16. A sexual relationship with her son ensued, and Ms Gonyo says she fell in love - a byproduct of delayed bonding that normally takes place in infancy between new parents and their child, according to psychologists. Researchers believe that when family members grow up in close proximity, a inherent taboo is created through reverse sexual imprinting, which desensitises them to later sexual attraction. Called the Westermarck effect, researchers hypothesize it evolved so biological relatives would not inbreed. The city, which lies on Turkish-Syria border, is seen as strategic location ISIS thugs forced two parents to watch as they beheaded their 14-year-old son for missing Friday prayers, local media has reported. The terror group, who accused the boy of apostasy, or abandoning Islam, executed him in the northern Syrian city of Jarablus on Saturday. He is said to have been arrested by ISIS fighters after missing prayers at the central mosque, where fanatical preachers usually deliver propaganda filled speeches. ISIS thugs forced two parents to watch as they beheaded their 14-year-old son for missing Friday prayers, local media has reported (file photo of ISIS fighters) Local activist Nasser Taljbini told ARA News how the extremists beheaded the boy in front of a large crowd which included his mother and father. He added: 'Dozens of people attended the brutal execution, including the victim's parents who were forced to witness the beheading of their own son. 'ISIS is trying to prove that it is still powerful despite all the military defeats. The group is trying to terrorize people through conducting such public punishments.' Kurdish forces bombarded the city, which lies near the Turkish-Syrian border, with artillery shells and mortar fire last month, killing several ISIS fighters. It is seen as a strategic stronghold for ISIS, who use it to smuggle foreign jihadis into Syria from Turkey. The terror group, who accused the boy of apostasy, or abandoning Islam, executed him in the northern Syrian city of Jarablus on Saturday (file photo of ISIS execution) YPG [People's Protection Units - a Kurdish militia group] spokesman Nuraddin Gaban said their offensive destroyed an ISIS security centre, a Sharia Court and several military vehicles in Jarablus. He added: 'At least 21 terrorists were killed on Monday... We have intensified our military campaign against the terror group in the northern countryside of Aleppo in coordination with the U.S.-led coalition. Moore and Shaukat, from Walsall, deny terror charges being heard at the Old Bailey Images of a Muslim convert and his wife leaving the country to join ISIS have been shown to a jury showing them as they passed through security at Birmingham Airport. Alex Nash and his wife Yousma Jan were friends of another convert called Lorna Moore, 33, a trainee maths teacher, who was allegedly planning to take her children to Syria and is on trial for charges of failing to disclose information about acts of terrorism. The couple left the country on November 4 and CCTV images showed them as they arrived at Birmingham Airport driven by Moore's co-defendant Ayman Shaukat in a silver Mondeo Zetec. Julian Christopher QC, prosecuting, said it was a 'group of friends all intent on going out to Syria to fight for ISIS, and providing each other with help and support.' Nash and Jan shown waiting at a security checkpoint at Birmingham Airport, having been dropped off by Ayman Shaukat Shaukat was said to have played an 'instrumental role' and, 'it would appear that the only reason that he did not go out as well was his lack of a passport'. When police raided Shaukat's home they found he had a video on his laptop that was shot by a man with a West Midlands accent as he walked around a destroyed mosque near Idlib, Syria and warned about snipers. Detectives were later able to place the mosque in Qumaynas, 5.4km south east of the city centre. Nash and Jan had been caught on cameras as they arrived at the NCP Drop and Go car park and collected a ticket at the barrier and then as they walked towards the check-in desk for Turkish Airlines. As they waited to go through security, Nash held his brother's British passport and Jan could be seen collecting her belongings after she had walked through. Jan is shown picking up the pair's luggage as Nash is searched by security personnel at the airport The pair on CCTV shown at the Old Bailey walking away from the security checkout having passed through The prosecution pointed out that Jan normally wore traditional Islamic dress but had changed into Western clothing for the trip. Moore booked tickets for herself and her three children to fly from Stansted Airport to Palma de Majorca on November 15, 2014 but never caught the flight because police raided her home. She had an appointment with the Passport Office in Liverpool to obtain passports for her children on a one week service. A text message sent from Jan's mobile to Moore's mobile read: 'See you there [May the peace of Allah be upon you] xxx,' and Nash sent her a picture of their last sunrise over Walsall. Messages between Moore and a woman using the name Numayma between October 31 and November 6 showed that Moore was arranging to sell her TV and car and was seeking to rent out her house, saying it would be free soon. 'All of which suggest that she and her three children did not intend to be returning after a fortnight's holiday,' Mr Christopher said. Shaukat was asking Nash how the 'honeymoon' was and advised: 'Stay in touch, be very careful. Take care of your belongings, especially you phone,' adding again: 'Be very careful.' Shaukat joked that Gaziantep was 'trending' on social media because so many associates from Walsall had crossed into Syria from the town. But Nash and Jan were arrested by the Turkish authorities on November 6 and sent back to Britain after nearly three weeks in custody. Shaukat's Mondeo pulls up at the exit barrier of Birmingham Airport having dropped off Nash and Jan Trainee maths teacher Lorna Moore, 33, left, was born into a Protestant family in Belfast but converted to Islam. Ayman Shaukat, 27, right, is accused of helping people make the journey to Syria Moore never caught her flight, telling police she was too upset by officers searching her home on November 11, four days before her planned departure. She was told officers that her husband's sister lived in Palma and had invited her and the children to stay. Moore said she had tried to divorce her husband for treating her like a 'dog and a slave' but had been told to take her husband back by Muslim elders in Walsall in the West Midlands. But a recording found later on her mobile phone showed that she knew he was planning to go abroad to fight and had agreed not to tell the police, the Old Bailey heard. Moore denies having information she knew or believed might be of material assistance in preventing an act of terrorism and failing to disclose that information as soon as possible. Lorna Mooore arrives at the Old Bailey, in London Her husband, Sajid Aslam, 34, was allegedly driven to the airport by Shaukat, 27, a law graduate who was the treasurer for Walsall Islamic Centre, on August 23. Shaukat who had a flag associated with ISIS above his bed, is said to have shared radical material with a group of seven people including two women - who sought to travel to Syria to join ISIS, at least one of whom died in the fighting. He denies preparing acts of terrorism by helping Nash and Aslam leave the country to join ISIS. After he allegedly arrived in Syria, Aslam sent Shaukat a link to a Youtube rap song called 'I made it.' 'This is not Shaukat appreciating the musical talent of Cash Money Heroes, it is understanding the coded message,' Mr Christopher said. Although Moore 'knew what he was going to do, and so could have provided the police with information that might have been of assistance in stopping him, she failed to do so,' Julian Christopher QC, prosecuting, said. Moore and Aslam had helped Nash and Jan organise their Islamic wedding in the summer of 2014 and Aslam and Shaukat were the witnesses. The court heard Moore was born in Northern Ireland and raised as a Protestant and met Aslam in 2000 when they were both students at Manchester Metropolitan University. Aslam converted to Islam in 2002, and she did the same a year later, adopting the Islamic name of Ayesha. They got married shortly afterwards and had three children, buying a home in Walsall in 2007. However, their relationship broke down because of his 'bullying and controlling behaviour' and the couple went for guidance to the 'Muslim Council,' who told her that she had to accept him back or else she would go to hell. Moore denies failing to disclose information about acts of terrorism on or before August 24, 2014 that might be of assistance in securing the apprehension of Aslam. Shaukat denies two counts of preparing for terrorist acts in relation to helping Aslam and Nash as well as possession of information contrary to the Terrorism Act 2000 in relation to a copy of '39 Ways To Serve And Participate In Jihad' on a laptop external hard drive. Nash has admitted he was planning to go to Syria and pleaded guilty to preparing acts of terrorism. Advertisement Thousands of Syrians are being forced to flee their homes by an intensive Russian bombing campaign which has been targeting rebel forces opposed to Bashar Al-Assad. A huge military offensive this week severed the main rebel supply route into Syrias second city of Aleppo in a move that could change the momentum in the five-year civil war. President Al-Assads troops, backed by a deadly wave of Russian airstrikes, also managed to break a siege by the opposition on two regime-held towns. Scroll down for video Human rights workers claim Russian bombers are deliberately targeting civilian areas in the Syrian city of Aleppo to prop up the regime Aleppo, which is under rebel control is a major target for Russian bombers despite the absence of ISIS terrorists in the area Thousands of residents in Aleppo have been forced to abandon their belongings and flee towards the Turkish border The campaign forced a mass exodus of tens of thousands of civilians fleeing towards Turkey, raising fears that the migration crisis across Europe could get dramatically worse. A similar offensive early last year before Russias intervention failed, highlighting how months of airstrikes are having a significant impact on the battlefield. As the onslaught continued, the Russians accused Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond of issuing misleading statements that Russian aggression was strengthening Islamic State. The Russian Embassy said on Twitter that the truth was the opposite, adding: Syrian army advances with Russian support. The United Nations on Wednesday suspended the first peace talks in two years as war raged on the ground. Turkey, which has backed the Syrian rebellion, called for the United States to take a more decisive stance against Russian and said there was no point in peace talks while Russia attacked. Turkey said at a Syrian conference in London that up to 70,000 refugees from Aleppo were moving towards the border due to air strikes. Rescuers tried to pull survivors from the rubble following a Russian airstrike in the Al Qallasa neighbourhood on the outskirts of Aleppo Russias ambassador to the UK, Alexander Yakovenko, attended the conference but attacked Britain for not inviting dictator Bashar Al-Assad. He said in a statement: It is disappointing that the conference was invited to all but the Syrian government. This shows the continuation of the UK line on the isolation of the Syrian authorities. Rebels meanwhile said they hoped the failure of peace talks would encourage their foreign sponsors to send them better weapons. A spokesman for the Syrian Opposition High Negotiations Committee, called on the international community to intervene with Russia and stop its indiscriminate bombings. Syrian opposition leaders have described the bombing of Aleppo as 'indiscriminate' and called on the Russians to stop the airstrikes Opposition leaders claim the Russian air force has massively intensified its strikes against opposition strongholds in Homs and Aleppo The intensive bombing has also enabled Bashar Al-Assad's troops to break the siege on two regime-held towns Fara Atassi said they had received reports of a massive acceleration of Russian and regime military aggression on Aleppo and Homs. This included attacks on hospitals and critical infrastructure, he said, and the target was overwhelmingly civilians, who had been forced to desperately flee this aggression. Aid agency Mercy Corps said it was very concerned by the developing situation. David Evans, the organisation's Middle East program director said: 'We are cut off from Aleppo City. It feels like a siege of Aleppo is about to begin.' The agency has been trying to feed up to 500,000 people every month in the besieged city. Mr Evans continued: 'Innocent civilians are running for their lives. Right now, we are seeing tens of thousands of people make their way to the border with Turkey.' Saudi Arabia has said it is willing to send ground troops into Syria to fight ISIS. Brig. Gen. Ahmed Asiri told The Associated Press on Thursday that Saudi Arabia has taken part in coalition airstrikes against ISIS since the U.S.-led campaign began in September 2014, but could now provide ground troops. The United States is scheduled to convene a meeting of defense ministers from countries fighting ISIS in Brussels this month. He said: 'We are determined to fight and defeat Daesh (ISIS).' Tens of thousands of people have been forced to leave Aleppo because of the intensive bombing campaign by the Russian air force A Washington woman has been left devastated after she was told she could not accept $16,000 in donations she received for her terminally-ill daughter's sweet sixteen. Demicka Gilmore started a GoFundMe campaign in December to raise money for her daughter Tavi Gordon, whose osteocarcoma had already recurred three times since she was diagnosed at age 12. Gilmore, 41, was brought to tears as she saw the donations, which were also meant to go towards a Make-a-Wish foundation trip to London and a year of rent, rise and rise. But that all came crashing down when the mother-of-two, who was homeless when she started the campaign, found out she would lose her state benefits if she accepted any of the money. Demicka Gilmore, 41, started a GoFundMe campaign in December to raise money for her daughter Tavi Gordon, whose osteocarcoma had already recurred three times since she was diagnosed at age 12 Gilmore raised nearly $16,000 to go towards a sweet sixteen party and Make-A-Wish foundation for Tavi, but was then told she would lose state assistance if she accepted the money because it was counted as income Gilmore, who has had to give up her job as a data entry specialist twice to be with Tavi during her hospital visits and recovery, receives about $814 a month in Supplemental Security Income, which she also uses to cover the costs of her daughter's medical care, according to Fox News. Also known as SSI, the supplement program is designed to provide cash for the basic needs of food, clothing and shelter for disabled people with little to no income. Most donations on GoFundMe are classified as 'personal gifts', contributions where nothing is received in return and thus cannot be considered a taxable exchange by the IRS. But the laws are different when it comes to SSI, which considers any changes resources, income or living situation when determining eligibility. 'You must have limited income and resources in order to receive benefits,' Social Security Administration spokesman William Jarrett told the network. 'Generally, you can receive SSI if your resources are worth $2,000 or less...[including] real estate (except for the home you live in), bank accounts, cash, stocks and bonds.' It was a crushing blow to Gilmore, who said she had merely been trying to do something special for her daughter who had suffered so much already - as well as her intellectually disabled 21-year-old son. 'All I wanted by setting up the site was to get my kids and I out of homelessness...while also hoping to put some joy in my daughter's life,' she wrote in a post on Facebook. 'Something she hasn't had in a while.' Gilmore, Tavi and her son Demetrius were living in the basement of a church when she decided to set up the fundraising page to try and bring some joy and stability to her children's lives The aggressive bone cancer has forced Tavi to undergo an amputation of her left leg above the knee that leaves her wheelchair-bound as well as two surgeries on both of her lungs, where the cancer has since spread. It was after Tavi's first lung surgery that Gilmore quit her job to be home with her daughter, making sure she would be able to take her to the endless appointments and stay with her at the hospital. 'It was heartbreaking that she was going to have to go through another surgery,' Gilmore said. 'And facing cancer again, and then thinking about her health, and then me not being able to work again, and being at the hospital...It was really frustrating for me.' Just six months later, in March 2014, the family found out Tavi's cancer had returned to her right lung and she required a second surgery. Tavi was diagnosed with the aggressive form of bone cancer when she was 12. It has since become terminal By summer Gilmore was informed by her landlord that her rent was being raised. In October she moved her family to a motel that was paid for by an anonymous donor and Tavi's school, and the next month they stayed in the basement of a church that had offered help. Gilmore finally set up the fundraising page when she didn't know who else to turn to. 'Every month, we had been facing the possibility of being homeless, but I kept reaching out to different organizations and then the hospital was sending up to different organizations to get help,' she told Fox News. 'But at that time, it finally ran out, because I was running out of people to get help from.' Gilmore wrote on Facebook that she never planned to use the donations to pay for her daughter's medical needs, and that the donations were a one-time thing to help bring some light to her family. And after Gilmore asked GoFundMe to refund the $15,673 raised by more than 300 people, a Florida non-profit is stepping in to try and do just that. DirectlyTo, run by Alvin Kennedy and Kwesi Johnson, is now trying to replenish funds to cover the essential costs of Tavi's party and London trip, so far raising more than $7,000 with a $15,000 goal. Gilmore and her family are now living in Section 8 housing, available to low-income tenants, in Tukwila but Tavi's cancer has since become terminal. Now her doctors are trying to move up her party and Make-A-Wish trip to March instead of July, worried that something new could appear in her scans by then. Gilmore is hoping the trips will finally give her daughter, who she says also suffers from depression, some joy. 'It's very hard to see my daughter depressed,' she wrote on Facebook. 'Then to hear her say she doesn't enjoy anything or feel like herself anymore.' 'Just imagine hearing this from your child.' Donald Trump will face at least one more debate gut-check moment in the coming weeks after the Fox News Channel announced Thursday that a trio of the cable network's anchors including Megyn Kelly will moderate a third Republican presidential debate in Detroit on March 3. Trump boycotted the second one, last week in Iowa, declaring war on Fox over what he said was unfair treatment in an August 2015 Fox debate in Cleveland, Ohio, the first candidate faceoff of the election season. In that early contest, Kelly grilled Trump about his past treatment of female celebrities he didn't like. The Donald later was hammered for saying in a CNN interview that Kelly had 'blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of her wherever. In my opinion, she was off-base.' GETTING THE BAND BACK TOGETHER: Chris Wallace (left), Megyn Kelly (center) and Bret Baier (right) will moderate a third Republican debate for the Fox News Channel on March 3 in Detroit BOY, OH BOY-COTT: Donald Trump sat out the second Fox debate in Des Moines, Iowa over how the network treated him, and hasn't said whether he will do it again next month As the January 28 Fox debate loomed in Des Moines, Iowa, just four days before the state's presidential caucuses, Trump polled his fans on Twitter about whether he should boycott it ultimately choosing to hold his own competing event and raising a reported $6 million for veterans charities. The network issued a snarky statement in the meantime, suggesting that the billionaire was afraid to answer Kelly's questions head-on and would carry that attitude into the Oval Office. 'We learned from a secret back channel that the Ayatollah [Khamenei of Iran] and [Vladimir] Putin both intend to treat Donald Trump unfairly when they meet with him if he becomes president,' the statement read, adding that 'a nefarious source tells us that Trump has his own secret plan to replace the Cabinet with his Twitter followers to see if he should even go to those meetings.' Trump later claimed he received a personal apology from the network for that slight, but Fox's brass countered with news that the real estate tycoon had offered to show up at the debate anyway in exchange for a $5 million donation to his charity drive an offer the network refused. Fox's second debate went on as scheduled, but Kelly created a new round of controversy after the broadcast by observing that the candidates on stage seemed to be treating Trump like Voldemort the super-villain at the center of the Harry Potter saga. CH-CH-CHANGES: The Detroit debate stage will look different from the Des Moines set (shown) whether or not Trump is added back in at the center podium: Rand Paul (far left) dropped out of the race this week POCKET CHANGE: The billionaire Trump raised $6 million for veterans charities on January 28 while his rivals were debating in a Fox broadcast She had opened the event by describing Trump as 'the elephant not in the room,' and said the next day that she didn't know who Voldemort was only that he's referred to in the J.K. Rowling books as 'he who must not be named.' A Fox News statement described the circumstances: 'In an off camera exchange, Megyn asked Senator Ted Cruz about the fact that Donald Trump got very little mention from any of them during the debate.' 'She asked him (approximate quote) off camera: "You seem to be treating Trump like Voldemort 'he who shall not be named' did you plan that?'" Trump will be named one way or another as March 3 draws near since he leads national Republican polls and could mount another boycott effort. His absence from the January 28 debate stage likely cost Fox dearly as its TV audience dropped off by half compared with the Cleveland debate five months earlier. Kelly will be joined on March 3 by Fox anchors Bret Baier and Chris Wallace, the same co-moderators who worked the first two Republican debates. A Trump spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment about whether the GOP's front-runner will participate. A free speech society at the London School of Economics faces being banned over claims it is self-important and seeking to play the victim. The student union is due to debate a motion to ban the group later this month after a member complained they were ill-informed. The LSE Speakeasy society was set up in response to a growing culture of campus censorship at universities across the country. The LSE Speakeasy society was set up in response to a growing culture of campus censorship at universities across the country, but now the students' union is set to debate a motion to ban the group later this month A number of bizarre bans have been imposed by student unions on speakers, events and publications which they consider to be offensive. Organisers of the group say their aim is to have an open debate about whether bans are appropriate, but they now face calls to be banned themselves. Connor Naylor, 19, second year International Relations student and spokesman for the LSE Speakeasy, said: Originally, we thought the person calling for us to be banned was just joking. Now it turns out he is actually going ahead with it. We know that there are some individuals who oppose us. However, I find it hard to believe that people will not see the breath-taking irony of banning a free speech society. The motion has been proposed by law student Maurice Banerjee Palmer, 20, who said it would be hilarious to ban an anti-ban society. He told student newspaper The Beaver that the LSE Speakeasy was 'naive to the limits on freedom of expression' and 'pretty much endorses hate speech' a claim the group denies. He claimed they were ill-informed and self-important and said union bans may be valid to help stop discrimination which women, ethnic minorities and the disabled face in society. They [the LSE Speakeasy] seem to fall into a group of people who don't like a perceived focus on women and minorities, he added. They seem to be looking for a victim card to play and to confuse a loss of advantage with an act of oppression. 'The maligned SU measures are aimed at solving a problem which they don't seem to find serious and for which they explain no alternatives.' Law student Maurice Banerjee Palmer told student newspaper The Beaver that the LSE Speakeasy was 'naive to the limits on freedom of expression' and 'pretty much endorses hate speech' a claim the group denies When contacted by the Daily Mail, Mr Palmer said that despite his motion, he did not want to ban the Speakeasy but had raised the issue simply because he hoped it would prompt people to debate it. He said: I agree with many of the things that LSE SU Free Speech/Speakeasy say in principle. You can see that from my only other involvement in student politics. What I'm looking for is a bit of common sense in the debate. I dont deny that the current trend of what is being called campus censorship ought to be debated. But lets do it with a bit of accuracy and fairness. THE GROWING CULTURE OF CENSORSHIP ON UK CAMPUSES Once campuses were a hotbed of debate, but increasingly views which don't conform to widely-held views. It has seen more than 3,000 students sign a petition to stop Germaine Greer speaking at Cardiff University, for her perceived 'transphobic comments'. The University of Birmingham's Guild of Students banned people wearing sombreros and other 'racist' attire, while Edinburgh's Student Union banned dressing up as Mexicans, gangsters, mentally ill people and even rapper Chris Brow. The SU has also asked people using its safe space to not use hand gestures indicating disagreement. Spiked, which runs an annual analysis of free speech on campus, revealed that last year, 30 universities banned newspapers, 25 banned songs, 21 banned clubs or societies and 19 banned speakers of events. Advertisement He pointed out that he has himself in the past resisted campus bans, including one on meat products being sold on campus on Mondays, proposed last year. The Speakeasy plans to invite speakers who have been no-platformed or prevented from appearing by student unions. Organisers also hope to raise awareness of the history of free speech and hold debates on uncomfortable topics. According to an investigation by Spiked, an online current affairs magazine affiliated with the group, LSE is among the most ban- heavy universities in the country. The student union recently suspended the rugby club for a year because it gave out sexist and homophobic leaflets. The Sun newspaper was also temporarily banned in union shops and the student paper refused to publish an article about upcoming elections because it was too political. So-called trigger warnings were recently placed in front of the Palestine societys stall, saying their content may be upsetting. And the atheist society has been prevented from wearing T-shirts showing Jesus and the prophet Mohammed holding hands. Mr Naylor added: There is a clear appetite for what we are doing. Weve become representatives of the movement against censorship on campus. People want to speak up but often they dont for fear of going against the grain. We want to have a debate about campus censorship, no-platforming and safe spaces. We want to have a dialogue on that instead of accepting it at face value. Nothing should be dictated to us. We shouldnt be told what we should and shouldnt discuss. A spokesman for the SU said: Its unfortunate that it has gotten to this stage, as the Students Union did approve of the society which goes to show that in fact, we are facilitators of free speech rather than opposing it. Two teens have been charged with murder in the double homicide of two teenage girls who were found bludgeoned to death in a Los Angeles Park last October. Jose Antonio Echeverria, 18, and Dallas Stone Pineda, 17, have been arrested and were charged with murder on Thursday, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorneys Office. Pineda, who is also known as 'Trippy', has been charged as an adult. The bodies of 19-year-old Gabriela Calzada and 17-year-old Briana Gallegos were found on October 28 near a path in Ernest E Debs Regional Park in Montecito Heights. Scroll down for video Two teenagers have been charged in the double murder of Gabriela Calzada, 19, (left) and Briana Nicole Gallegos, 17, (right) who were found dead in Ernest E. Debs Regional Park last October Jose Antonio Echeverria, 18, and Dallas Stone Pineda, 17, have been arrested and charged with murder, according to charging documents. Pineda has been charged as an adult. Scene from the park pictured above The charging documents said that both Echeverria and Pineda are gang members and that the killings are gang-related. The pair used a gun to commit the killings, the documents said. Echeverria has also been charged in a January 29 attempted murder and for bring contraband into the LAPD's Metropolitan Detention Center on January 30, according to KTLA. The charges were filed one day after a police source told the station that an arrest had been made which confirmed information released by one of the suspects' mothers. The 17-year-old boy's mother was seen speaking to KTLA from behind a door as she said her son had been questioned a week after the victims' bodies were found last October, but was initially ruled out after giving a DNA sample. However, on Tuesday, she said her son was arrested as he got off the school bus. She added he was friends with both the victims, even dating Gallegos 'on and off' for two years, and that he was devastated after learning of their deaths. The 17-year-old suspect's mother spoke from behind a door telling of how her son was arrested on Tuesday as he got off the school bus. She said he dated one of the girls on and off for two years and is innocent In November, police had raided one of the suspect's home (shown above) before letting him go His mother, who has not seen him since he was arrested but spoke to him over the phone after he was placed in custody, maintains he did not commit a crime: 'All I've got to say is he's innocent.' Meanwhile Echeverria, the other suspect who is also known as 'Klepto', was arrested on the morning of November 7 before he was released the following night, according to inmate records. He was arrested again on Friday and has since remained in custody as he is being held on a $1.34 million bail, according to KTLA. It is not clear if the teen suspects have attorneys and prosecutors have recommended they be held without bail. The bodies of Calzada and Gallegos were discovered in October by a woman who was walking her dog in the park, located 20 miles northeast of downtown Los Angeles. After their bodies were found in October, the city's coroner's office identified Calzada's body Gallegos, pictured, was identified by friends on social media after pictures were released following her death Calzada (pictured left) and Gallegos (right) were fully clothed, showed no signs of sexual assault, and are thought to have been in the park for under a week Both women, who appeared to be friends, had wounds to their heads significant enough that they were hard to recognize, Leutenant John Jenal, a spokesman for the Los Angeles Police Department, said at the time. According to police, both were fully clothed, showed no signs of sexual assault, and are thought to have been in the park for under a week. The city's coroner's office had identified Calzada's body and Gallegos was identified by friends on social media. A cause of death for the girls has not yet been released. The deaths shocked people in the neighborhood surrounding the popular park, which has impressive views of downtown Los Angeles and surrounding areas. Police added officers on foot inside the park and in patrol cars in the area to assuage public fear. On Wednesday, police officials said additional suspects in connection to the case were still outstanding. This is the man at the center of a worldwide storm after advocating legalizing rape on private property - in a sweat-stained T-shirt at the door of his mother's house. Daryush 'Roosh' Valizadeh, 36, the self-proclaimed 'King of Masculinity' called police after receiving death threats from around the world and canceled a series of 'tribal meetings' in 45 countries set for this weekend. Valizadeh, who is at the center of public protests at home and in Canada, Australia and the UK, is on record as advocating women be banned from voting, describing a woman's value as dependent on her 'fertility and beauty', and stating that women with eating disorders make the best girlfriends. SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO Disheveled: Dressed in a t-shirt with sweat-stained armpits, and shorts, Daryush Valizadeh was seen for the first time since the storm erupted over his 'pro-rape' views At the door: Daily Mail Online was present as a Montgomery County Police officer arrived at Daryush Valizadeh's mother's home, where the 36-year-old lives in the basement. He had called 911 over threats Suburb: Valizadeh lives in the basement of his mother's cul-de-sac home in Silver Spring, Maryland a Talks: Officers who attended the 911 call asked him about the sequence of events. He told them that his article saying rape on private ground should be legal was 'satire' - but admitted he had only added the disclaimer yesterday In a highly-criticized blog he said that if a woman was raped on private property, it should be legal. Today he told police that it was meant to be a satirical article and that he had written it in early 2015 and had since put a disclaimer on the piece saying it was satire. But asked when he had added the disclaimer he admitted it had been placed only 'yesterday'. The internet geek, who has written a series of books teaching what he claims is the best way for men to use their testosterone to bed women, likes to portray himself as an global businessman. But as the international storm grew around him today, Daily Mail Online found him in hiding at the cul-de-sac where he ekes out his vile views on his laptop - and sells ads on his website, which cost $150 a day. Today, dressed in a stained T-shirt and shorts and living in the basement of his mother's home, he was concerned for his safety. He said he had received death threats from around the world. He played officers voicemails left on his phone and showed them emails. Some were from Britain, Australia and the US and warned him he would be 'shot, stabbed or have his home burned down.' One said: 'We will kill you if you come to our city' and others were filled with vitriol, he told officers. After dialing 911, two officers visited him and he greeted them in his work attire. One female officer only entered his doorway and he had to bring his laptop to the stoop and front hall to show her how his views on rape had backfired. He said he had only been aiming to gain attention but had not budgeted for the worldwide anger against him and feared for his safety. Valizadeh, who used the alias Roosh, said he was canceling the worldwide city weekend meetings of his followers after the threats. Valizadeh caused outrage after saying he wouldn't respond to female journalists because he didn't 'respect' them. He also angered people when he tweeted a sexist message with a picture of anchor, Candice Wyatt Many of his self published e-books have been widely condemned as 'rape guides' by the media and politicians He said he could 'no longer guarantee the safety or privacy of the men who want to attend'. In a statement he posted online, he apologized to his supporters and said they would be let down. Meetings had been planned around the US including Washington, New York and Los Angeles and across the globe. Valizadeh had said he would be attending a gathering in Australia, but backed down after a public outcry there which was echoed, particularly in Britain where 80,000 signed a petition calling on the government to ban him and his meetings using hate crime laws. He had banned homosexual men from attending as well as all women If a pretty girl approached a man attending, his advice online to followers was 'Get her number and then tell her to buzz off. Do not allow women to attend the meeting.' He had advised followers that feminists may attack them or male opponents, but they were not to strike back but follow the 'Gandhi principle of non violence' record incidents on cell phones. H graduated from the University of Maryland with a degree in microbiology and soon after started a local blog called DC Bachelor As he likes to be seen: This is the image Valizadeh likes to portray of himself - not the The Scottish city of Glasgow appeared was claimed to be the source of a particularly large backlash against the self-proclaimed King of Masculinity His first book called Bang was 'a textbook for picking up girls and getting laid.' He wrote several other books with the word 'Bang' in the title such as 'Day Bang'. In America, he was placed on a 'misogyny list' by the social justice organization Southern Poverty Law Center. Valizadeh celebrates and dwells on the title given to him when he visited Romania of 'World Don Juan.' He says: 'I didn't try to become infamous worldwide, but that has been the outcome, all because of my teachings and ideas. 'I've been falsely accused of crimes like rape and harassment by my enemies in an attempt to shut me down, but they are too weak to defeat me.' He has also complained about the abuse he has received over his views. One message was directed at Glasgow, Scotland, where he claimed 'I've received more threats from Glasgow than anywhere else combined. Is it some kind of convict resettlement zone?' One Twitter user who replied was comedian and BBC broadcaster Hardeep Singh Kohli, who said: 'It's a city with a moral compass and a degree of self esteem. Try it sometime...' Singh Kohli was suspended from his working with the broadcasters The One Show in 2009 over alleged 'inappropriate sexual behavior' towards a female colleague. No formal complaint was made and he apologized unreservedly for his behavior and later said: 'We all make mistakes and we all make misjudgments.' A neighbor of the self proclaimed lothario said she was disgusted at his views. Esther Eyere,33, a nursing student at Marymount University, said: 'I can't believe he can have views like that, especially about rape. It makes me sick.' The U.K. government has called for him to be 'ridiculed' and welcomed the cancellation of his meetings. Britain's Home Office Minister Karen Bradley told parliament today: 'The government condemns in the strongest terms anyone who condones rape and sexual violence. 'We should ridicule, we should show contempt, and we should show that these are the most ridiculous views. In an emotional memorial ceremony on Thursday, a Pittsburgh police dog was laid to rest before hundreds of mourners after the K9 officer was stabbed to death by a crazed drunk. Aren, a five-year-old German shepherd, had been with Port Authority police for almost four years when he was killed on Sunday by Bruce Kelley Jr, 37, who was later shot dead by police. Port Authority Police Officer Brian O'Malley - Aren's handled - was overcome with tears during the service, which was attended by about 350 people and a fleet of K9s. 'Aren was fluent in three languages the first being German, the second being English, and the third being Brian,' Indiana Township Officer Scott Palmer said at the memorial, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported. Overcome: Port Authority Police Officer Brian O'Malley breaks down during a memorial for his partner, K-9 officer Aren, at the Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in downtown Pittsburgh on Thursday K9 Officer Aren (left and right), a five-year-old German Shepherd, was stabbed to death on Sunday in Wilkinsburg by a suspect who was then shot dead by police. Aren's handler, Port Authority Sgt Brian O'Malley (right) worked in the department's explosive detection K9 unit Salute: K-9 Officers with their K-9 partners attend a memorial for Port Authority K-9 officer Aren, at the Law Enforcement Memorial along the north shore of the Allegheny River A huge turnout of about 350 people attended the emotion memorial. Aren was stabbed to death on Sunday Solidarity: Officers with their K-9 partners attend a memorial for Port Authority K-9 officer Aren In an emotional memorial ceremony on Thursday, a Pittsburgh police dog was laid to rest before hundreds of mourners after the K9 officer was stabbed to death by a crazed drunk Officer Palmer said that becoming a K9 handler is a life-changing experience. 'It changes your life,' he said. 'Not only do you know your dog, your dog knows you.' Another officer, Sgt. Greg Beveridge, of the Meadville police, said he couldn't imagine losing his own K9, Lilo. 'It's tear-jerking,' he said of Aren's death. 'I was driving down here and just kept thinking about if anything ever happened to this guy.' The memorial was held at East Busway in Wilkinsburg, close to where Aren was stabbed at the weekend. The incident began at about 4pm on Sunday when police spotted 37-year-old Bruce Kelley Jr and his father drinking in a gazebo in Wilkinsburg, authorities said. When police approached the men to write a ticket, younger Kelley lunged at the officer with a knife. The procession began on the East Busway in Wilkinsburg, near where Aren was killed on Sunday. Police ultimately shot and killed the suspect, Bruce Tyrone Kelley Jr. Photos of Port Authority Police Officer Brian O'Malley with his K-9 partner Aren are displayed as part of a memorial for Port Authority K-9 officer Aren Funeral attendees: Officers with their K-9 partners attend a memorial for Port Authority K-9 officer Aren Wilkinsburg councilwoman Vanessa McCarthy-Johnson told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that six officers were trying to get Kelley to put down the knife. Another officer was telling neighborhood residents to make sure their children were inside, she added. After a violent struggle with the man, officers tried tasering him, but because he was wearing heavy winter clothes, the taser was ineffective, police spokesman Jim Ritchie told the New York Daily News. McCarthy-Johnson said she heard bystanders yelling 'Don't kill him. Don't kill him' before Kelley was tasered. Scene: Bruce Kelley Jr and his father were allegedly caught drinking in public. Kelley Jr. allegedly pulled a knife and a struggle ensued, in which K9 Aren was stabbed to death. Police then shot Kelley, killing him The suspect then turned to the K9 officer and stabbed the dog several times, and cops fired multiple shots, killing the knife-wielding man. The dog was taken to a nearby veterinary hospital, but he died after being transported. Aren arrived at the Port Authority from the Czech Republic when he was about 13 months old. The Allegheny County Police are investigating the suspect's death. Aren is the eighth K9 officer to be killed since the start of 2016, with an average of two police dog deaths every week this month. Port Authority Sgt Brian O'Malley worked in the department's explosive detection K9 unit. Clive Palmer and Lisa Wilkinson have clashed in a fiery interview as the television host verbally pummelled the federal MP and mine owner. Mr Palmer has been in the public firing line after his Queensland Nickel business went into voluntary administration leaving the jobs of more than 200 workers on the line. While Mr Palmer has robustly defended himself against claims he had left workers in the lurch, questions are being asked about funds directed from Queensland Nickel to his Palmer United Party and involvement in any internal corporate dealings after he resigned his directorship. Scroll down for video Clive Palmer has been in the public firing line after his Queensland Nickel mining business went into voluntary administration leaving the jobs of more than 200 workers on the line. Today show host Wilkinson challenged Mr Palmer on Friday to respond to claims his company was in financial difficulties when about $6 million was directed to his political party. 'That's absolutely not true,' Mr Palmer said. The company was financially healthy at the signing of an audit report in September 2015, and the nickel price did not collapse until October, he said. Mr Palmer also strongly rejected suggestions he used an alias to 'hide' his identity in emails authorising capital expenditure. 'Everyone I have sent an email to knows it comes from me, who I am. As I travel around Australia I use many emails,' he said. The interview continued on the issue of donations made to PUP, with Mr Palmer and Wilkinson repeatedly talking over each other. Today show host Wilkinson challenged Mr Palmer on Friday to respond to claims his company was in financial difficulties when about $6 million was directed to his political party Wilkinson challenged Mr Palmer - 'a rich man' - to dip into his own pocket and pay out the entitlements of Queensland Nickel workers losing their jobs 'Look at the way you have treated me, trying to talk over me,' he said during the more than five minute exchange on the Nine Network. Then Wilkinson challenged Mr Palmer - 'a rich man' - to dip into his own pocket and pay out the entitlements of Queensland Nickel workers losing their jobs. 'The administrator made the decision he wasn't going to pay the entitlements, not me, not anybody else,' he said. 'I've been criticised in the press, it's a fabrication by the Murdoch press and media. It's untrue.' The exchange continued: While Mr Palmer has defended himself against claims he had left workers in the lurch, questions are being asked about funds directed from Queensland Nickel to his Palmer United Party Wilkinson: 'Please Clive, I don't work for Rupert Murdoch.' Palmer: 'Let me answer you your question, you will get a bonus from Rupert and the people who employ you.' Wilkinson: 'I don't work for Rupert Murdoch.' 'Australia thinks you're a joke at the moment,' she added. 'I don't think they do,' Mr Palmer said, before confirming he plans to recontest his Queensland seat of Fairfax at the federal election. David Davis has launched a bid to lead the Out campaign in the EU referendum Well, we did ask for it. The media had been complaining that no senior politician was putting the case for leaving the EU. Tory MP David Davis yesterday obliged. Professor Davis, let us perhaps call him, for his morning call to arms proved an academic affair so daringly unzingy as to be rather admirable. Whether or not it will have won Leave any votes may be another matter. The Haltemprice & Howden MP summoned us to a lecture hall just off Parliament Square. Eleven years ago, in the same building, DD launched his bid to become Conservative party leader. Immediately after that launch we journos hared up Whitehall to the loved-up launch of a shiny-faced no-hoper called David Cameron. In the same way, received wisdom now insists Leave hasnt much hope. Wrong again? Yesterdays first challenge: getting to the venue. Central London was on security alert owing to a conference at which world leaders were discussing Syria. The elite had ordained (at Heaven knows what cost) that the city should be gummed up by concrete roadblocks, high metal-mesh fences, metal detectors and hundreds of police with machine guns. Officialdom was having a wonderful day, bossing us around and telling the citizenry you cant do that. Just like the European Commission! A waggy-tailed police sniffer dog expressed interest in my rucksack which was duly opened for examination. Its handler examined my elevenses a packet of Sainsburys mini scotch eggs and took the brave, not necessarily accurate decision that they were not an explosive danger to public security. Eventually I found the venue and a spattering of researchers, one Tory MP and various Fleet Street mosquitoes. We were escorted to a basement with cinema seats and a screen the sort of place where you might expect to watch something filthy and continental. In a sense, this is exactly what followed. Mr Davis, in the course of a 45-minute lecture (some 22 pages of closely typed A4 paper), was soon showing us disturbing images: graphs showing Britains trade figures since the original EEC became the European Union. Non-EU rivals had done decidedly better. In 1975 the EU was the bright future, said DD. Now it is a crumbling relic from a gloomy past. We must raise our eyes to the wider world. Joblessness and financial ruin: that was todays EU, along with rampant migration and bureaucratic hassle. He argued that Britain was too big an economy for the EU to be able to boycott us if we opted for independence. To this end he produced a Dads Army-style graphic illustrating just how keen EU producers are to invade the British market. Its the inferiority complex that infuriates me, he said. Why were Mr Cameron and his Foreign Office negotiators so defeatist about our prospects once we became free of Brussels? Mr Cameron unveiled his draft deal to reform Britain's membership of the EU earlier this week but was heavily criticised by Eurosceptic Tory MPs who claimed he had 'watered down' his initial demands for reform One of the criticisms made of the Leave camp is that it has not described what Brexit would look like. Mr Davis began that process yesterday, arguing that jobs would be safer thanks to easier global trade. His lecture yesterday was, okay, unwieldy for broadcast soundbites but I dont suppose it was ever intended as such. It was unhysterical, donnish and it may have provided intellectual bullets for other EU outies to fire. The core message should surely be one of liberty: set us free from all that Brussels blether and the billions it costs. Did he fancy leading the Leave campaign? He claimed not. Did it matter that the outies had no supremo at present? The argument matters more than the person. He admitted he once believed in the EU and he had been wrong. When he was Europe Minister in the 1990s, all his Foreign Office staff had been Europhiles. They all wanted to be ambassadors in Europe or to work for the European Commission. Advertisement Shanghai Disneyland released the price of their tickets yesterday, with entry to the park in eastern China set to be the cheapest of all the parks globally. Entry to the theme park starts from 370 yuan (38) and rises during peak periods to 499 yuan (51), the People's Daily Online reports. Tickets will go on sale on March 28, nearly three months before the park's scheduled opening on June 16. MailOnline spoke with families in China who said they were cautious about the queues and would wait for some time before heading to the park. One mother said she would like to show her son Chinese animations first before taking him to Disneyland. The cheapest park: Shanghai Disneyland is set to open in June with ticket prices the lowest out of all of the theme parks Magical place: An aerial photo of the park in Shanghai, east China. Tickets for the park go on sale on March 28 A set of aerial photos of the theme park, taken on February 3, show the final stage of the construction of the 963-acre space. Both the 196-foot-tall castle, the loftiest of all Disneylands, and the resort hotel are nearly completed. According to reports, Shanghai Disneyland will be the cheapest out of all 12 parks and resorts worldwide. Previously, the closest park to Shanghai was Hong Kong Disneyland which is priced at HK$539 (55.98). While a one day ticket to Disneyland in California will set you back US$99 (67). The Shanghai Disneyland is nearly eight times the size of the its 126-acre Hong Kong counterpart, which is the smallest Disney theme park in the world. The new theme park is set to feature six themed lands aimed at the Chinese tourist including a Pirates of the Caribbean themed land and a Mickey Avenue. After the ticket prices were announced yesterday, some parents living in China told MailOnline they were concerned over crowds and the quality of service. Annie Xue, a mother of a seven-year-old said: 'I think the tickets are a bit expensive. To be honest, I fear the service I will receive might not be worth the prices. In addition, the park is bound to be packed [when it opens]. I'm likely to have to queue for two to three hours, and I'm concerned the service could not catch up with the demand. I'm not planning to go in the next two years, and my friends all say the same thing. They all worry it will be overly crowded.' Showing off Chinese culture: An aerial photo shows the new park which is set to open on June 16 this year with a Chinese twist Amazing park: The park will feature six themed lands designed for the Chinese tourist including a Pirates of the Caribbean land Li Jing, a mother of a two-year-old son from Shanghai said: 'The tickets are not expensive, but they're pricier than Chinese theme parks China Dinosaurs Park. 'I plan to take my son there when he's three, this way I'll be able to check the reviews of the park. I also wanted him to be more familiar with the Chinese culture. Now I give him Chinese animation to watch, such as A Journey to the West and Black Cat Detective. Because the new park is closer to us, we can go any time.' While Ross Harries, a British expat living in Shanghai said: 'I think around 500 yuan is what I expected it to be, but hearing the off peak prices will be 370 yuan and the cheapest in the world, I think it's worth waiting for the off peak prices. Especially considering the population of Shanghai, it will be less busy. So i'm likely to wait at least a month until the crowds die down.' In May last year, the first Disney store in China was opened in Shanghai. The store was so popular that it was forced to close only an hour after opening. The queue to get inside of the shop went for over a mile, the entire length of Oxford Street. People waited for up to three hours to get inside and purchase official Disney products. According to Chinese media, the shop opened at 1.14pm and the queue started forming at 5.30am. Waiting for entry: Huge queues formed outside of the new Shanghai Disney store, the only Disney store in China on May 20 last year When details of the Shanghai Disneyland were revealed in July, 2015, Bob Iger, the CEO of The Walt Disney Company, said the park would reflect China's own culture. Mr Iger said: 'The resort reflects Disney's legendary storytelling along with China's rich culture, and showcases some of the most creative and innovative experiences we've ever created,' The idea of creating a park in mainland China has been in the thinking process since the 1990s with the park eventually given the go ahead in 2011. Star Wars will also feature in the new park with a ride in Tomorrowland along with a Tron themed ride where thrill seekers climb aboard motorcycles. While the main fairy tale castle will get an update with a 196 feet tower, two rides and a table-service restaurant. Advertisement Two adorable toddlers have become an internet hit after they were pictured dressed as monks and praying at a Buddhist temple in China. With their heads shaven, the little boys, aged one and three respectively, wore traditional clothing and prayer beads as they explored the Er Fo Temple in Hechuan, Chongqing during a family holiday, reports the People's Daily Online. The photos were taken on January 1 by Zhou Lu, the father of the elder boy. He said he took the photos because the boys look like a character from a popular Chinese movie 'Monkey King is Back.' Adorable: Two toddlers aged three (right) and one (left) dressed as monks at the Er Fo Temple in Hechuan, Chongqing on January 1 Cute: One of the boys is pictured praying at the temple. Zhou Lu, father of the elder boy, took the viral pictures on January 1 in Chongqing Sweet: These two tiny toddlers dressed as monks in the Buddhist temple have quickly become overnight internet celebrities in China Their parents said they look like the character Liu Er, from the recent movie 'Monkey King is back' (left) when they dressed as monks (right) Both fathers of the two boys are photography lovers. After their trip to the temple, they posted the cute pictures on their personal accounts on WeChat and they quickly went viral. It wasn't long before the Hechuan tourism board noticed the images and they were soon shared on its official Twitter-like Weibo account. The Chinese internet users have dubbed the duo 'the cutest young monks' - despite they are not monks. Zhou Lu said he and his friend chose to take the pictures at the Er Fo temple in Chongqing because they thought it has a very 'cute-looking' Buddha statue, and they believe it fit with the theme of the photos very well. Inside Er Fo: The parents chose to take pictures in the Er Fo temple because they think its Buddha statue looks 'cute' and fits the theme One of the boys gives the sign for peace at the temple in Chongqing (left). Various images of the tiny 'monks' playing went viral in China Internet celebrities: Zhou Lu, the photography-loving father, posted the pictures of on WeChat and they were quickly shared Photographer Zhou Lu said the two boys look like the character Liu Er, from the recent movie 'Monkey King is back,' when they are dressed in their monk outfits. The 'Monkey King' has been an extremely popular Chinese character onscreen and off for years. He was first introduced to the world in the novel 'Journey to the West,' which was published in the 16th century during the Ming Dynasty (13681644). According to IMDB, the 2015 movie 'Monkey King is back,' is about the Monkey King saving a village from evil with the help and encouragement from a special child. The child who helps the Monkey King in the film is the young monk called Liu Er, who these little boys have been based on in the photos. The boys reportedly look like a character from the Chines movie 'Monkey King is back' (left). They were captured in a variety of poses Chongqing Zoo in south-west China has released images of its new addition, an adorable South China tiger. The female cub was born on January 18, the People's Daily Online reports. This is the ninth South China tiger cub at Chongqing Zoo, a species that is on the critically endangered list. New and cute: The latest addition to Chongqing zoo in Sichuan province sits in her incubator Staff at the zoo are still deciding what to call the tiny creature. According to state-run Xinhua, the baby cub is the ninth South China tiger at Chongqing Zoo. She is the eighth to be born using artificial insemination. At the time of the birth, the cub weighed 1,240 grams. After three weeks in incubation, the female cub now weighs 1800 grams and her keepers say she drinks around 300ml of milk a day. Hope for the future: The animal is a South China tiger, a breed which is on the critically endangered list According to World Wildlife Fund, the South China tiger is considered by scientists to be 'functionally extinct'. It has not been sighted in the world for over 25 years. The number of South China tigers in the country during the 1950s was estimated to be around 4,000. However the animal was hunted by locals as pests. This particular breed of tiger is one of the smallest tiger subspecies. Typically male tigers measure around 2.5 meters from head to tail and weigh around 150 kilograms. After adopting a young girl years ago, a couple from north-west China's Urumqi city had to do the unimaginable when they discovered she was a child trafficking victim. They gave their adopted daughter back to her biological parents on February 2 after finding out they had been searching for her for a number of years, reports Huanqiu.com, an affiliation of the People's Daily Online. The father saw a 'kid wanted' advert on a public account on China's Twitter-like WeChat social media platform, when they realised it was their daughter they phoned the police. Emotional: Nahua (red coat), Mr Mu (left) and adoptive father (right) in the emotional exchange on February 2 Online plea: Mr Mu posted pictures of his missing daughter on social media in a desperate bid to find her Reunited: Nuahua (right) and her biological father after they met for the first time in six years on February 2 After they informed the police of their shocking discovery, they decided in the end to let the girl - who goes by the false name 'Nahua' - go back to her biological family. In 2010, Nahua was reportedly kidnapped while she was playing outside her home by a human trafficking ring in China's north-western Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. At the time, her biological father, surnamed Mu, was a migrant worker, working as an electrician. His wife and daughter who then was two-years-old would travel to the city and come and stay with him. Mr Mu recalled that he let Nahua out of his sight for no more than two minutes before she was taken. After her apparent kidnapping, he desperately searched up and down the country for Nahua, and even had a fierce falling-out with his wife which led to their divorce just one year after the tragic incident. Tear-jerking: Mr Mu (right) with his biological daughter (centre) and an unknown man after they were reunited Helping hand: Bizarrely Mr Mu is seen clipping his daughters fingernails after six years apart from her Kidnapped: Mr Mu (left) recalled he let Nahua out of his sight for no more than two minutes when she was taken Mr Mu even sold his house in order to fund his travel throughout Xinjiang to find Nahua. He also gave up his job which paid 5,000 Yuan (522) a month. But Mu did not give up the search, and went from police station to police station in every city he could afford to visit over the past six years. According to the report, whilst Mr Mu was searching high and low for his daughter, she had been sold for 5,000 Yuan the same price as a month's work for Mr Mu to a couple in Xinjiang's Toksun County, north-west China. At the beginning of this year Mr Mu finally made some unexpected headway in his search for his daughter with the help of social media. He posted an online plea directed at the local authorities and internet users in general, to help him look for his daughter. In the post he included a picture, also noting that she had a very specific and easy-to-spot mole growing under one of her arms. Photo evidence: Mr Mu shows his biological daughter Nahua (not real name) a picture he had of her Heartbreaking: After such an emotional exchange it remains unclear if Nahua went back with her real father Urumqi authorities received a call a few weeks later from Toksun County, whose police chief said a man had called claiming his daughter matches the description posted online by Mr Mu. Police took samples of both Mu and Nahua's DNA, and found the pair to be a 99.9 percent match. It was reported that Nahua met her biological father for the first time in six years on February 2, it is unclear if he took her back with him. The couple who adopted Nahua told police that they were unable to bear any children, so they were offered the girl by a man identified by his surname, Wu, who claimed Nahua was the second child of his own sister-in-law. Mr Wu, now 65, was arrested in 2013 in relation to several child trafficking cases, and is currently serving an 11-year prison sentence. The police allegedly said he did not tell them about Nahua. Two Russians took a spacewalk Wednesday to install fresh experiments outside the International Space Station and gather biological samples stuck outside for years. But first, cosmonauts Yuri Malenchenko and Sergey Volkov gave a ceremonial send-off to a flash drive containing special messages from their motherland. The videos and messages relate to the 70th anniversary of Russia's Victory Day last year. The flash drive was attached to a small bundle stuffed with towels to provide some bulk. This photo shows Russian cosmonauts Yuri Malenchenko and Sergey Volkov installing fresh experiments outside the International Space Station during the second spacewalk of the year on Wednesday. The spacewalkers set off to retrieve biological samples that have been outdoors seven years 'There it goes,' Volkov said in Russian as he tossed the package overboard. 'Just beautiful,' he noted as it spun slowly, appearing to tumble toward Earth. 'That's perfect, guys,' Russian Mission Control radioed from outside Moscow. Nasa said the jettisoned package would pose no hazard to the orbiting lab. Flight controllers expect the bundle to harmlessly re-enter the atmosphere in a few weeks. With that accomplished, the spacewalkers set off to retrieve biological samples that have been outdoors seven years, and put out some new science trays. They also planned to test a new glue that might prove useful in years to come on the station's exterior. Nasa , meanwhile, is still trying to understand why water leaked into a U.S. astronaut's helmet last month. The 15 January spacewalk had to be cut short because of the problem, a repeat of what happened to an Italian spacewalker in 2013. That first incident was considerably more serious, involving much more water leakage. Nasa said the jettisoned package would pose no hazard to the orbiting lab. Flight controllers expect the bundle to harmlessly re-enter the atmosphere in a few weeks. With that accomplished, the spacewalkers set off to retrieve biological samples that have been outdoors seven years, and put out some new science trays The Russians use different types of suits, so the problem was not expected to resurface. As for US spacewalks, astronauts will go out only in an emergency until the leakage is understood and corrected, according to Nasa. Six men are currently living at the space station, including the first ever British astronaut Tim Peake. Major Peake sent a birthday message to his wife this week via Chris Evans' BBC Radio 2 breakfast show in the UK. 'SPACE SMELLS LIKE METAL...NOT SWINDON', CLAIMS TIM PEAKE Six men are currently living at the space station, including the first ever British astronaut Tim Peake. Major Peake answered questions from Radio 2 listeners this week from aboard the ISS. One listener, Adam from Swindon, wanted to know what space smelt like, and said he would 'like it to smell a bit like Swindon'. This made Major Peake laugh before he explain they only get to 'smell space' when people come in from a space walk. 'We open up the airlock, we kind of all jump in and get the first smell of space and really, it almost smells like a metallic, burnt smell,' he said. Advertisement He described his wife, Rebecca, as the 'most amazing person I know' and said she 'is an incredible mum to our two boys, I love her to bits.' He ended by telling Evans: 'She listens to your show so she'll be thrilled to hear this.' Major Peake also answered questions from Radio 2 listeners from aboard the International Space Station (ISS) during the show. 'Sometimes it feels pretty normal until you look out the window and you're reminded of what a unique situation it is and how bizarre it is to be up here watching the earth go by, and it goes by so quickly. We're doing 17 and a half thousand miles per hour,' he said. One listener, Adam from Swindon, wanted to know what space smelt like, and said he would 'like it to smell a bit like Swindon', which made Major Peake laugh before explaining they only get to 'smell space' when people come in from a space walk. 'We open up the airlock, we kind of all jump in and get the first smell of space and really, it almost smells like a metallic, burnt smell,' he said. 'I actually think it's off-gassing or ionisation from the excessive heat that comes from the sun when you're out on a space walk.' Six men are currently living at the space station, including the first ever British astronaut Tim Peake. Major Peake (pictured) answered questions from Radio 2 listeners this week from aboard the ISS. He told one listener that space smelled like 'metal', and Major Peake also wished his wife a happy birthday When quizzed about what he was going to miss the most when he came back to earth he said it would definitely be weightlessness. 'Because it is just so much fun being able to throw yourself around in all orientations, there's no up or down and you can move around pretty quickly and pretty efficiently,' he said. The quirkiest question came from a listener named Adam who asked: 'With gravity not around, is there potential for the ageing process to be put on hold and if so, how are your wrinkles doing?' Astronauts can have a rough ride back to Earth when they leave the ISS. Sometimes their landing capsule can blow off course, causing the crew to find themselves in hostile environments where it could be days before they are rescued. To prepare for this scenario, US astronaut Randolf Breznik recently joined his colleagues to brave two winter nights outside Moscow. Nasa astronaut Randolf Breznik (centre) recently joined his colleagues to brave two winter nights outside Moscow. Breznik, along with cosmonaut Sergei Ryazanskii (left) and Norishige Kanai (right) of Japan, were developing their survival skills ahead of their mission to the ISS next year Breznik, along with cosmonaut Sergei Ryazanskii and Norishige Kanai of Japan, were developing their survival skills ahead of their mission to the ISS next year. On the first night, the astronauts were forced to sleep in the open air, on a foot of snow, with temperatures dipping to 30 degrees Fahrenheit. To shield themselves for the elements, the astronauts created a teepee tent on the second night from the parachutes on their landing capsule, according to a report inABC News. They also created a make-shift ground mat by spreading pine branches beneath themselves to keep dry, as well as on the walls of the teepee. Randolf Breznik (left) and Sergei Ryazanskii (right) were forced to sleep in the open air, on a foot of snow, with temperatures dipping to 30 degrees F Norishige Kanai lights a flare while on a training exercise just outside Moscow. To shield themselves for the elements, the astronauts created a teepee tent on the second from the parachutes of their landing capsule Breznik said he wished it were colder, because that would mean it would have been dryer. 'I would have much preferred it if it was minus 20. This is wet and we would have preferred a lot colder,' he said. Space exploration is one of the only areas where Russia and the US still work together. In January, a Russian appraisal named the US as one of the threats to Russia's national security for the first time, a sign of how relations with the west have deteriorated in recent years. Relations between Russia and the West reached a low after Russian forces annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in March 2014. The US and the European Union have since imposed wide-ranging sanctions against Russian individuals and companies. COSMONAUT SURVIVAL KIT INCLUDED GLOVES, A GUN AND A FISHING KIT The NAZ-3 survival kit was designed in 1968 for the Soviet Soyuz spacecraft, which is still in use today. The kits had handguns to 'scare off wolves, bears and tigers' and fight off 'hostile foreign nationals' in the event of a crash landing Russia prepared its astronauts for every eventuality - so much so that its survival kits for space included fishing equipment. The kits also had handguns to 'scare off wolves, bears and tigers' and to fight off 'hostile foreign nationals' in the event of a crash landing. The NAZ-3 survival kit was designed in 1968 for the Soviet Soyuz spacecraft, which is still in use today. A report by The Appendix blog reveals the contents of a Soviet cosmonaut survival kit which includes matches, a radio, gloves, a compass and a medical kit. Back in 1960s, cosmonauts reported rough landings and apparently needed these kits to fend of attacks in unfamiliar environments. Later Soviet survival kits expanded to include fishing tackle, improved cold suits and fur-lined boots. The kit included the Soviet TP-82, a special combination gun with a detachable machete created for hunting, firing distress beacons and self-defence. American astronauts who trained as part of the Soyuz spacecraft crews for the International Space Station in the 90s also had to learn how to use the firearm. Russian cosmonauts still carry semiautomatic firearms in space. At any one time, there are usually one or two handguns on board the International Space Station. Advertisement But the ISS is one of the rare areas of US-Russian cooperation that has not been hit by the Ukraine crisis. 'It's nice not to have to think about those things,' Breznik said. 'That's the neat thing about the ISS. Because it shows what we can do no matter what's going on on Earth.' While cooperation on the station looks set to continue, it is likely that the next stage of space exploration - aimed at eventually putting someone on Mars - will be hit by deteriorating relations. Beyond 2024, when the work on the ISS is set to end, as the situation stands now it seems unlikely that the two sides will agree on any major projects. And experts say that without international cooperation, dreams of flying a manned mission to Mars will struggle to take off, or face lengthy delays at the very least. For those being blasted into space now, that is a bitter pill to swallow. They are hoping their governments can put aside current differences on Earth to bolster mankind's exploration of space for future generations. Randolf Breznik (left) said he wished it were colder, because that would mean it would have been dryer. 'I would have much preferred it if it was minus 20. This is wet and we would have preferred a lot colder,' he said Apple's iPhone 7 is set to banish the camera 'bump' - and could even use a new dual lens camera, it has been claimed. It is believed the larger of the expected two models will use a radical dual lens camera, and a Sony executive appeared to confirm the move. Sony Corporation's Kenichiro Yoshida stated that 'the takeoff of smartphones with dual lens camera[s] will be in the year of 2017.' during a financial call. Scroll down for video The iPhone 7 body will appear very similar to the design used for the iPhone 6, apart from a slimmer camera with no 'bulge' and no antenna bands on the rear. WHY WOULD APPLE DITCH THE HEADPHONE JACK? Getting rid of the headphone jack would help Apple shrink the iPhone 7's thickness considerably. Its latest smartphone, the Phone 6s, is 7.1 mm (0.27) thick but removing the 3.5mm jack could drop this by a further by one mm (0.04 in). Such a shift would also mean larger, stereo headphones using an internal battery would be able to draw power directly from the iPhone - or other devices, if the change is enforced across the Apple board. Elsewhere, Lightning-based headphones would experience less 'crosstalk', or signal interference. Advertisement MacRumours said: 'According to a source who has provided reliable information in the past, the iPhone 7 body will appear very similar to the design used for the iPhone 6 and 6s, with two significant exceptions. 'The first involves the rear camera, which protrudes slightly on the iPhone 6 and 6s. 'On the iPhone 7, the camera is said to sit flush with the rear casing, enabled by a thinner camera module.' The other significant change with the body of the iPhone 7 is the removal of antenna bands across the rear, allowing for a cleaner all-metal look on the back. Antenna bands at the sides and around the top and bottom edges are said to remain, however. Apple is also developing a radical wireless charging system for the iPhone, it has been claimed. The system would not require users to place the handset on a 'mat', but instead would be able to work over longer distances. According to Bloomberg, the system could be implemented in 2017. 'Apple is exploring cutting-edge technologies that would allow iPhones and iPads to be powered from further away than the charging mats used with current smartphones, the people said, asking not to be identified as the details are private,' it claims. 'The iPhone maker is looking to overcome technical barriers including loss of power over distance with a decision on implementing the technology still being assessed, they said.' Apple has previously made a patent application for a system to use an iMac personal computer as a hub for wirelessly recharging at a distance of about 1 meter using a technique called near-field magnetic resonance. Apple currently uses a similar technique, called induction, to charge its Watch. The wireless charging is just one of several radical new technologies Apple is expected to introduce. 'Apple is working with its longtime audio chip partner Cirrus Logic to adapt the audio chipset in the iPhone to work with the Lightning port, according to our source,' Fast Company says. Apple is also believed to be developing a more expensive pair of noise-canceling, Lightning-connected, earphones or headphones, possibly under its Beats brand, the site claims. Apple is expected to include an adapter with the handset to use older regular 3.5mm headphones. It is the latest in a long claims have emerged that Apple is set to kill off the headphone socket. Apple currently uses a similar technique, called induction, to charge its Watch. In order to shrink the thickness of a future handset, Apple is rumoured to be looking at ways to get rid of the standard 3.5mm headphone port. Now, more reports suggest the yet-to-be-announced iPhone 7 will feature a single, multipurpose lightning port that will double up as a headphone port as well as charger. There are rumoured plans to do away with the headphone jack, but now, developments for the iPhone 7 could be taking an even bigger leap Li-Fi. A Twitter user has revealed an image to show that the company may be testing Li-Fi technology for the iPhone 7, which would mean data transmission runs on visible light waves, instead of radio. Li-Fi is reportedly 100 times faster than Wi-Fi, and would be significantly more secure. This new wireless system hit speeds of 224 gigabits per second in the lab, and has the potential to revolutionize internet usage. The Li-Fi technology uses visible light between 400 and 800 terahertz (THz), and transmits messages through binary code The post tweeted by user @kyoufujibaya, 'Li-Fi testing is already imminent. May appear in the next iPhone 7 according to iOS code in iOS 9.1 firmware' The post tweeted by user @kyoufujibaya, according to The Huffington Post, reads, 'Li-Fi testing is already imminent. May appear in the next iPhone 7 according to iOS code in iOS 9.1 firmware.' In an image accompanying the tweet, the developer highlights where the code says, 'LiFi Capability,' indicating that this suggests Li-Fi testing plans for the next wave of iPhones. Scientists have taken to the streets in recent years to test the capabilities of Li-Fi, and it's recently undergone testing in offices and industrial environments in Tallinn, Estonia. This new wireless system hit speeds of 224 gigabits per second in the lab, and has the potential to revolutionize internet usage. Harald Haas from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland invented Li-Fi in 2011. Haas demonstrated that he could transmit more data than a cellular tower by flickering light from a single LED, according to ScienceAlert. The system works in a similar way to Morse code, using visible light communication (VLC), but operates at speeds that are too high to be detected by the naked eye. The Li-Fi technology uses visible light between 400 and 800 terahertz (THz), and transmits messages through binary code, giving it in-lab speeds fast enough to download 18 movies of 1.5 GB each second. 'We are doing a few pilot projects within different industries where we can utilise the VLC (visible light communication) technology,' Deepak Solanki, CEO of Estonian tech company, Velmenni, told IBTimes, UK. A FASTER, MORE SECURE WI-FI Lab tests have shown that Li-Fi can hit speeds 100 times faster than current Wi-Fi systems. Speed is not the only advantage of Li-Fi. The system uses visible light communication between 400 and 800 terahertz to transmit messages in binary code. Visible light cannot pass through walls, making Li-Fi a much more secure system, and less susceptible to interference. While the system seems promising, it won't likely replace Wi-Fi entirely, at least not anytime soon. Instead, researchers are now looking to retrofit devices with Li-Fi to use the two wireless systems together to optimize speed and security. Advertisement 'Currently we have designed a smart lighting solution for an industrial environment where the data communications is done through light. 'We are also doing a pilot project with a private client where we are setting up a Li-Fi network to access the Internet in their office space.' Since the light can't travel through walls, Li-Fi could also be a more secure option down the line, and suffer from less interference from other devices. The system works in a similar way to Morse code, using visible light communication (VLC), but operates at speeds that are too high to be detected by the naked eye. Since the light can't travel through walls, Li-Fi could also be a more secure option down the line, and suffer from less interference from other devices The system isn't likely to replace Wi-Fi entirely in the years to come, and ripping out the existing infrastructure isn't feasible. But the two could be used in partnership to create faster and safer networks. Instead, researchers are working on retrofitting current devices to be Li-Fi compatible. PureLifi, a company created by Haas and his team, is offering a 'plug-and-play- application for secure wireless access, ScienceAlert says. A French tech company called Oledcomm is also working with Li-Fi, and is installing its own system in local hospitals. The researchers found the prisoner's words conveyed extremely positive expressions that reflected the emotional processes of coping with their impending death. Some examples include: Richard Masterton, 43: 'Sending me to a better place. I am alright with this, you have to live and die by the choices that we make. I have made mine.' (Executed 20 January, 2016) Raphael Holiday, 36: 'I love you, love y'all, always going to be with y'all.' (Executed 18 November, 2015) Juan Garcia, 35: 'To the Solano family, I want to tell them to forgive me. While I am still alive I bring suffer to you all. The harm that I did to your dad and husband, I hope this brings you closure to all of you. I never wanted to hurt any of you all.' (Executed 6 October, 2015) Arnold Prieto (left) said: 'There are no endings, only beginnings. Love y'all, see you soon.' Lisa Colemen (right) said 'I just want to tell my family I love them; my son, I love him. The girls on the row, I love them and keep their heads up' Gregory Russeau, 46: 'I would like to thank my family and friends for what y'all have done for me. Thank you for being here with me that I do not have to transition alone. I have peace. To my daughter, I love you, to my grandbabies, sisters and brothers, I love you. I am ready to go home.' (Executed 18 June, 2015) Lester Bower, 67: 'I am not going to say goodbye, I will simply say until we meet again.' (Executed 3 June, 2015) Kent Sprouse, 42: 'I would like to apologise to the Moreno family and the Steinfeldt family for all of the trouble I have caused them. I would like to apologise to my family for all of the trouble that I have caused them. I would also like to thank my family for all of their support. I guess that's it.' (Executed 9 April, 2015) Licho Escamilla's (left) last words included: 'The State of Texas has refused to listen to God's children, they will have to take that up with God. Let everyone know it's not over,' while Kent Sprouse (right) said: I would like to apologise to the Moreno family and the Steinfeldt family for all of the trouble I have caused them' Milton Mathis (pictured) was executed in June 2011. His final words included: 'The system has failed me. This is a miscarriage of justice. There are people on death row that need help. I asked the Lord to have mercy on me and I hope He has mercy on these people carrying out this mass slaughter' Robert Ladd, 57: 'Teresa I am really sorry, please don't have hate in your heart. I really feel like this. I hope you can find peace in your heart and happiness. A revenge death won't get you anything.' (Executed 29 January, 2015) Arnold Prieto, 42: 'There are no endings, only beginnings. Love y'all, see you soon.' (Executed 21 January, 2015) Lisa Colemen, 38: 'I just want to tell my family I love them; my son, I love him. The girls on the row, I love them and keep their heads up.' (Executed 17 September, 2014) Ramiro Hernandez-Llanas, 44: 'I look into my family's eyes, and I see sadness. Don't be sad, I'm happy. I am sorry for what I have done. Be mindful that I am happy till the end.' (Executed 9 April, 2014) Jose Villegas, 39: 'I am ok. I have peace in my heart and ready for the next journey. I'm really ok.' (Executed 16 April 2014) Jose Villegas (pictured left) said: 'I am ok. I have peace in my heart and ready for the next journey,' while Ray Parker (right) said: 'To my beautiful daughter, the best thing that ever happened to me. I love you endlessly. I am you and you are me forever' Ray Jasper, 33: 'To the Christian hip-hop community, all the positive brothers I've done time with. To all the people that took the time to write a letter. Thank you. To my family, we are one. To my beautiful daughter, the best thing that ever happened to me. I love you endlessly. I am you and you are me forever.' (Executed 19 March, 2014) Jerry Martin, 43: 'I would like to tell the Canfield family I'm sorry; sorry for your loss. I wish I could take it back, but I can't. I hope this gives you closure. I did not murder your loved one, it was an accident. I didn't mean for it to happen. I take full responsibility.' (Executed 3 December, 2013) Kimberly McCarthy, 52 : 'This is not a loss, this is a win. You know where I am going. I am going home to be with Jesus. Keep the faith. I love ya'll. Thank you, Chaplain.' (Executed 26 June, 2013) Kimberly McCarthy (pictured left), said: 'you know where I am going. I am going home to be with Jesus. Keep the faith. I love ya'll,' while Ramiro Hernandez-Llanas (right) said: 'I am sorry for what I have done. Be mindful that I am happy till the end' Beunka Adams, 29: 'First, I want to let my mom know not to cry, there is no reason to cry, everybody dies. Everybody has their time, don't worry about me. I'm strong. To my family: my old man, my kids, daddy is sorry. I love each and every one of you.' (Executed 26 April, 2012) Franklin Alix, 34: 'I got your letter. It touched me and changed me. What happened was I been wanting to apologize to yall for your son. They told me not to do it in court. I wrote him a letter but they told me that they tore it up in court. I am not the monster they made me out to be.' (Executed 30 March 2010) Michael Sigala, 32 : 'I would like to ask forgiveness of the family. I have no reason for why I did it, I don't understand why I did it. I hope that you can live the rest of your lives without hate. I pray the Lord grant me forgiveness.' (Executed 2 March, 2010) Danielle Simpson, 30: 'I want to tell my family I love ya'll...I'm gonna miss ya'll. I'm ready, ready.' (Executed 18 November, 2009) However, there are also examples of statements that are mostly negative, where inmates profess their innocence. Others chose not to leave a statement. Michael Yowell (left) said: 'To Gerald: you're a zero.' He was executed on 9 October, 2013. Robert Ladd (right) said in his final statement: 'Teresa I am really sorry, please don't have hate in your heart. A revenge death won't get you anything.' He was 57 when he was executed Licho Escamilla, 33: 'Pope Francis, God's children has asked the State of Texas to switch my death sentence to life in prison. But the State of Texas has refused to listen to God's children, they will have to take that up with God. Let everyone know it's not over. (Executed 14 October, 2015) Michael Yowell, 43: 'To Gerald: you're a zero.' (Executed 9 October, 2013) Douglas Feldman, 55: 'I hereby declare, Robert Steven Everett and Nicholas Velasquez, guilty of crimes against me, Douglas Alan Feldman. Either by fact or by proxy, I find them both guilty. I hereby sentence both of them to death, which I carried out in August 1998. As of that time, the State of Texas has been holding me illegally in confinement and by force for 15 years. I hereby protest my pending execution and demand immediate relief.' (Executed 31 July, 2013) Milton Mathis, 32: 'The system has failed me. This is a miscarriage of justice. There are people on death row that need help. I asked the Lord to have mercy on me and I hope He has mercy on these people carrying out this mass slaughter.' (Executed 21 June, 2011) Lee Taylor, 32,: 'I am sorry that I killed him, but he would not have been in prison if he was a saint.' (Executed 16 June, 2011) Steven Woods, 31: 'You're not about to witness an execution, you are about to witness a murder. I am strapped down for something Marcus Rhodes did. I never killed anybody, ever. I love you, Mom. I love you, Tali. This is wrong. This whole thing is wrong. I can't believe you are going to let Marcus Rhodes walk around free. Justice has let me down. Somebody completely screwed this up.' (Executed 13 September 2011) It is said some performances can be wooden, but how about mechanical? A musical written and composed by computers is about to open in London's West End and if it's a hit, it could prove robots may one day take the place of human writers and composers. Called Beyond the Fence, the musical was conceived by machines and is based on a statistical study of what makes a Broadway hit. A musical written by computers is about to open in London's West End and if it's a hit, it could prove robots may one day take the place of human musicians. Here, Nick Collins from Durham University shows writer Benjamin Till 'Android Lloyd Webber', the algorithmic composition software used for the music The musical was modelled on a big data study of the 'recipe for success' in hit musicals. Experts at the Machine Learning Group at Cambridge University investigated everything from the importance of romance and death to a plot, its emotional structure, and cast size, in a range of shows. Using this information, the computer scientists were able to create a set of constraints to which the musical had to conform in order to give it the best chance of success. The musical (poster shown) was modelled on a big data study of the 'recipe for success' in hit musicals Researchers at Goldsmiths, University of London then used their 'What-If Machine' to make some of the creative decisions about the show typically made by humans. For example, this generated multiple central premises, featuring key characters, for the new show. The team then selected one as a starting point as the original idea for the musical - 'What if a wounded soldier had to learn how to understand a child in order to find true love?' With the premise in place, a plot was generated by another computer called PropperWryter, used by Dr Pablo Gervas of the Complutense University of Madrid. Taken together, all of these steps enabled the foundations for the emerging story to be identified at Greenham Common. The team then wrote a book and lyrics with the assistance of other computational tools, so that it fitted all the constraints laid out by machines. The music was the responsibility of Dr Nick Collins of Durham University, who created a computer composition system. Called Android Lloyd Webber, it was based on a machine listening analysis of musical theatre music, conducted by researchers at two London universities. More computerised music material was generated using the FlowComposer2 system created by SonyCSL in Paris. The result is a musical set in 1982 when Mary and her daughter George are celebrating one year of living at the Greenham Common peace camp. The group of women they have joined are all committed to stopping the arrival of US cruise missiles through non-violent protest. When Mary is faced with losing her child to the authorities, an unlikely ally is found in US Airman Jim Meadow. Experts at the Machine Learning Group at Cambridge University investigated everything from the importance of romance and death to a plot, its emotional structure, and cast size, in successful shows (chart shown) Computers are not currently capable of providing lyrics, meaning they were written by writer and actor Nathan Taylor and his husband, composer Benjamin Till. Human actors will perform the show, too. A rehearsal is shown above CREATING THE MUSICAL 'The original idea for this project - could computers write a hit musical - came about as an improbable mash-up between two of our recent award-winning shows, "Our Gay Wedding-The Musical" (Channel 4) and "The Joy of Logic" (BBC4),' said Archie Baron, Creative Director of Wingspan Productions. The process began with a predictive, big data analysis of success in musical theatre to create the recipe for a hit musical. Next, the team visited what's known as the What-If Machine at Goldsmiths, University of London to come up with a premise. They chose: 'What if a wounded soldier had to learn how to understand a child in order to find true love?' A plot structure for the musical was generated computationally as well as music, using a computer called Android Lloyd Webber. Advertisement She is torn between doing what is best for her daughter, while staying true to her ideals. 'Beyond the Fence is a powerful new musical about hope, defiance, unity and love,' its creators said. Project co-ordinator Catherine Gale, told The Guardian Beyond the Fence is a 'mad experiment' and while it's a machine-generated musical, it's 'not about taking humans out of the creative process at all'. For example, computers are not currently capable of providing lyrics, meaning they were written by writer and actor Nathan Taylor and his husband, composer Benjamin Till. Human actors will perform the show, too. Mid-way through rehersals before Christmas, Gale said the musical was starting to look 'quite traditional - it is not a crazy, avant garde, mad show.' 'Genuinely, we didn't know what was going to happen, we didn't know how it was going to play out.' The show will run at the Arts Theatre in London's West End from 22 February to 5 March 2016. The process of creating the musical has been documented by Sky Arts TV and will air in a programme titled 'Computer Says Show' to be broadcast this spring. The musical was commissioned by Sky Arts. But they can still be commonly found Almost 15,000 years ago, the population of Europe shifted and changed in ways that researchers have never identified before. Analysis of DNA taken from ancient teeth and bones uncovered evidence of a major turnover in the genetic makeup of people in the region at the same time as a major climatic change. It is so unprecedented, researchers have called it an unknown chapter of human history in which hunter-gatherer groups were replaced with a mystery population. Scroll down for video New analysis of remains of ancient Europeans, from as far back as 35,000 years ago, suggests a major turnover in the genetic makeup of people in the region at the same time as a major climatic change. It is so unprecedented, researchers have called it an unknown chapter of human history. Pictured are the ancient remains of a European found at the Dolnte Vestonice burial site in the Czech Republic That suggests non-African people headed east towards Asia and Australasia before the vast ice sheets receded across Europe, as individuals migrated eastwards in a single event some 50,000 years ago. The study was carried out by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Germany. Using genetic fragments extracted from ancient remains spanning almost 30,000 years, scientists reconstructed the DNA of people who lived in Europe between 35,000 years and 7,000 years ago. Focusing on mitochondrial DNA they were able to trace their maternal lines, and found that specific genetic markers present in the population suddenly disappeared at the end of the ice age. DNA was extracted from the teeth and bones of ancient human remains at burial sites across Europe. Pictured is les Closeaux at Rueil-Malmaison, Paris Basin in France This type of DNA is the genetic material from mitochondria which are power units of cells that generate their energy. In particular, fragments of DNA were used to rebuild the mitochondrial DNA of individuals from Italy, Germany, Belgium, France, the Czech Republic, and Romania during the period. Three of the earliest individuals, who lived in France and Belgium during the last Ice Age, were found to have a unique set of identifiable genetic markers, or haplotype. HUNTER-GATHERERS HEADED FOR SOUTHERN REFUGE The team wrote: Our demographic modelling reveals a dynamic history of hunter-gatherers, including a previously unknown major population shift during the Late Glacial period. The researchers believe that the small, initial population of Europe grew slowly until 25,000 years ago, and survived the Late Glacial Maximum (LGM). But they then have fled south when the ice sheet started to retract. This created a genetic bottleneck of hunter-gatherers and the loss of hunter-gatherer mitochondrial DNA after the LGM. The subsequent Late Glacial period was characterised by drastic climatic fluctuations, beginning with an abrupt warming during whats known as the Blling-Allerd interstadial, followed by drastic period of cooling during the Younger Dryas. Globally, the early warming phases of the Late Glacial are strongly associated with substantial demographic changes, including extinctions of several megafaunal species and the first expansion of modern humans into the Americas. The researchers add: In European hunter-gatherers, our model explains this period of upheaval as a replacement of the population by another source. Although the exact origin for this later population is unknown, the inferred demographic history suggests that it descended from another, separate [isolated population.] This is also known as a refugium, or a location where an isolated population from a once more widespread group seeks refuge in a new location. Advertisement But by the time the ice sheets had melted, these markers had disappeared from the European population. Analysis of DNA from the Europeans who lived after the Ice Age show they lacked the haplotype seen in the older Europeans. Today, this unique set of markers, called the M-haplotype, is commonly found in modern Asian, Australasian and Native American people, leading to theories that non-African people in Europe spread out in multiple waves to Asia and Australasia. The new findings suggest that all non-African people moved out in a single event, some 50,000 years ago. Further evidence showed that the M-haplotype was gone completely from Europe by 14,500 years ago. But the DNA analysis unveiled another secret. One of the biggest changes to the European population, the researchers said, was the takeover of the population at the same time. This coincided with the warming climate. We uncovered a completely unknown chapter of human history: a major population turnover in Europe at the end of the last Ice Age, explained lead author Professor Johannes Krause. There has been a real lack of genetic data from this time period, so consequently we knew very little about the population structure or dynamics of the first modern humans in Europe, said Krause. Our model suggests that during this period of climatic upheaval, the descendants of the hunter-gatherers who survived through the Last Glacial Maximum were largely replaced by a population from another source," explained Adam Powell, another senior author. Lead author of the study, Professor Cosimo Posth of the University of Tubingen, suggests that European hunter-gatherer populations would have headed south to find refuge from the harsh environmental conditions. The team wrote: Our demographic modelling reveals a dynamic history of hunter-gatherers, including a previously unknown major population shift during the Late Glacial period. The researchers believe that the small, initial population of Europe grew slowly until 25,000 years ago, and survived the Late Glacial Maximum (LGM). TRACING THE MATERNAL LINE Mitochondrial DNA analysis showed that a unique group of markers, the M haplotype, had disappeared from Europe after the last Ice Age. However, this haplotype is found in modern populations of Native Americans (pictured left) and Australasians, such as people from Papua New Guinea (pictured right) Mitochondria are the tiny power stations found inside cells, producing chemical energy in the form of the chemical ATP. These little organelles also have their own DNA, separate from the cells main stock, in the nucleus. Mitochondrial DNA is useful for tracing family links as it is only ever passed on from a persons mother, meaning the mothers blood line can be traced far back. But it also mutates at a fairly regular rate, meaning it can give an approximate date as to when individuals were more closely related. As differences in the sequence accumulate regularly over time, it can provide a rough indication of how far back genetic lineages split from one another. Advertisement But they then fled south when the ice sheet started to retract. This created a genetic bottleneck of hunter-gatherers and the loss of hunter-gatherer mitochondrial DNA after the LGM. The subsequent Late Glacial period was characterised by drastic climatic fluctuations, beginning with an abrupt warming during whats known as the Blling-Allerd interstadial, followed by drastic period of cooling during the Younger Dryas. Globally, the early warming phases of the Late Glacial are strongly associated with substantial demographic changes, including extinctions of several megafaunal species and the first expansion of modern humans into the Americas. DNA was taken from ancient remains in France, Belgium and Germany. Pictured is Hohle Fels, in the Swabian Alps in Germany. The cave has been the site of a number of important archaeological finds The researchers add: In European hunter-gatherers, our model explains this period of upheaval as a replacement of the population by another source. Although the exact origin for this later population is unknown, the inferred demographic history suggests that it descended from another, separate [isolated population.] This is also known as a refugium, or a location where an isolated population from a once more widespread group seeks refuge in a new location. The group said the next step will be to build up the picture with more DNA analyses, giving a complete view of the genomes of ancient Europeans The research is published in Current Biology. Advertisement It is set to become the spacecraft that takes humans to an asteroid and eventually Mars. But before that, in 2018, Nasa's Orion capsule will fly 43,000 miles beyond the moon and back in a vital test of its systems. Now, in a step towards that goal, its manufacturer Lockheed Martin says its has installed Orion into something known as the 'birdcage'. This is its structural assembly tool and will be used by engineers in Florida to test and outfit the spacecraft ahead of its launch in 2018. Scroll down for video It is set to become the spacecraft that takes humans to an asteroid and Mars. But before that, Nasa's Orion capsule will fly 43,000 miles beyond the moon and back to test its systems. Now, in a step towards that goal, its manufacturer Lockheed Martin says its has installed Orion into something known as the 'birdcage'. It is pictured here following unloading from Nasa's Supper Guppy aircraft ORION'S NEXT TEST Nasa's Orion stacked atop a 70 metric ton Space Launch System rocket will launch from a newly refurbished Kennedy Space Center in November 2018. The uncrewed Orion will travel into Distant Retrograde Orbit, breaking the distance record reached by the most remote Apollo spacecraft, and then 30,000 miles farther out (275,000 total miles). The mission will last 22 days and will test system readiness for future crewed operations. Advertisement 'The structure shown here is 500lbs lighter than its Exploration Flight Test-1 (EFT-1) counterpart,' said Mike Hawes, Lockheed Martin Orion vice president and program manager. 'Once the final structural components such as longerons, bolts and brackets are added, total crew module structural weight savings from EFT-1 to EM-1 will total 700lbs.' The Orion spacecraft arrived in Florida on Monday on Nasa's massive Super Guppy aircraft, which has a 156 feet wingspan. At the Kennedy Space Center, the crew module will undergo several tests to ensure the structure is perfectly sound before being integrated with other elements of the spacecraft. First it will undergo proof-pressure testing where the structural welds are stress tested to confirm it can withstand the environments it will experience in space. The team will then use phased array technology to inspect the welds to make sure there are no defects. Additional structural tests will follow including proof-pressure testing of the fluid system welds followed by x-ray inspections. Once the crew module passes those tests it will undergo final assembly, integration and entire vehicle testing in order to prepare for EM-1, when Orion is launched atop Nasa's Space Launch System (SLS) for the first time. Nasa's Orion stacked atop a 70 metric ton Space Launch System rocket will launch from a newly refurbished Kennedy Space Center in November 2018. The uncrewed Orion will travel into Distant Retrograde Orbit, breaking the distance record reached by the most remote Apollo spacecraft, and then 30,000 miles farther out (275,000 total miles) The Orion spacecraft arrived in Florida on Monday on Nasa's massive Super Guppy aircraft, which has a 156 feet wingspan. At the Kennedy Space Center, the crew module will undergo several tests to ensure the structure is perfectly sound before being integrated with other elements of the spacecraft Orion will undergo proof-pressure testing where the structural welds are stress tested to confirm it can withstand the environments it will experience in space. The team will then use phased array technology to inspect the welds to make sure there are no defects. Additional structural tests will follow including proof-pressure testing of the fluid system welds followed by x-ray inspections The test flight will send Orion into lunar distant retrograde orbit a wide orbit around the moon that is farther from Earth than any human-rated spacecraft has ever travelled. It will be be controlled remotely as it flies 43,000 miles (70,000 km) beyond the moon. The mission will last about three weeks and will certify the design and safety of Orion and SLS for future human-rated exploration missions. In December, a video released by Nasa revealed exactly how Orion's first major trip into space in 2018 will unfold. The video shows how the spacecraft will extend solar arrays measuring 62 feet (19m) once it reaches low Earth Orbit to help provide power for the spacecraft. It will then set course for the Moon by firing its interim cryogenic propulsion stage (ICPS) - a liquid oxygen-liquid hydrogen-based system which has never been used before. Orion will then perform a flyby of the Moon, harnessing the satellite's gravity to gain speed and propel itself to what is called 'distant retrograde orbit' (DRO), thousands of miles beyond the moon and almost half a million km from Earth. The craft will then burn its main engine - a manoeuvring system left over from the defunct Space Shuttle programme - to leave the DRO and head back. On its return trip, Orion will do another flyby of the moon and start approaching Earth. Just outside Earth's atmosphere, the crew capsule will detach from the service module and other parts of the craft, before initiating re-entry and splashing down in the Pacific Ocean. In this final part of the three-week-long trip, as shown in the video, the capsule will be ensured a safe landing by three parachutes. Once the crew module passes its structural tests it will undergo final assembly, integration and entire vehicle testing in order to prepare for EM-1, when Orion is launched atop Nasa's Space Launch System (SLS) for the first time. Pictured is the SLS in comparison to other rockets The final configuration of the SLS (left) will be the most powerful and biggest built. On the right is the separation of the three 13 by 14-foot Orion service modulefairings following lift off the Delta IV Heavy rocket in 2014 HOW DOES ORION COMPARE TO APOLLO 17? A 'new Apollo'? Orion bears a strong resemblance to the Apollo command module that carried Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin to the moon in 1969, but it is bristling with the latest technology The development of Orion has helped reawakened some of the atmosphere of exploration that surrounded Nasa during the Apollo missions that first landed mankind on the moon. But with almost exactly 42 years between the last Apollo mission, Apollo 17, which launched on 7 December 1972, and the first flight of Orion, the technology has moved on considerably. On the surface the two space capsules look the same - they are cone-shaped, and have a large heat shield to protect the astronauts from the intense conditions during re-entry to the Earth's atmosphere. However, Orion is larger, capable of carrying four crew members rather than Apollo's three. It will also have to carry far more supplies than Apollo ever did. The last Apollo mission saw a two man crew spend just three days on the moon's surface while a mission to an asteroid or to Mars could see astronauts spending up to 450 days in space. Like the Apollo Command Module, Orion has a Service Module attached that houses a single large engine, batteries and storage. However, Orion will carry a pair of solar arrays to help keep the capsule powered in space - technology that Apollo did not use. Orion also uses up-to-date computers, electronics, life support and propulsion systems. The electronics also have a far more sophisticated radiation shielding than the Apollo modules. Nasa has also used some hard lessons to improve the heat shield. Measuring 16.5 feet (five metres) across, it is the largest heat shield ever built for a spacecraft and has been covered in a new material called Avcoat. Nasa has also improved the parachutes, once used to land the Apollo spacecraft and slow the Space Shuttle, to help Orion land more safely in the water when it splashes down after a mission. Advertisement Nasa has been conducting several parachute tests over the last months. In August it even dropped a capsule model attached to some purposefully flawed parachutes in the middle of the Arizona desert. The simulated botch was intended to test whether the crew module would survive in case of parachute malfunctioning. In fact, despite the parachutes failing, Orion landed gently on the desert floor. As part of the test, engineers also studied a change to the risers, which connect the parachutes to the vehicle from steel to a textile material as well as the use of lighter weight suspension lines for several of the parachutes. Luckily even if the parachutes were to eventually fail, nobody would get hurt in Exploration Mission 1's unmanned capsule. However, in April 2023, Nasa expects to conduct Exploration Mission 2 following the same route but carrying four crew members. A third mission planned for 2026 will use a manned spacecraft to land on a small asteroid previously captured with a robotic arm. From there, things can only get bolder - Orion was conceived as the craft that would enable humans to finally explore Mars in the 2030s. and was founded by settlers from Europe La Colonia Tovar is situated close to the northern coast of Advertisement Pristine beaches, lush green hills and the stunning Angel Falls are the sights that you might usually associate with Venezuela. But near the northern coast of this South American country is a place that will surprise most travellers. La Colonia Tovar, an isolated town set in the tropics of the Venezuelan forest, resembles a traditional German alpine village. Its hilly roads are lined with distinctive buildings designed with dark wooden frames protruding from painted white walls, while its road signs, in Spanish, point to decidedly German destinations. Inside the restaurants, the food is German too and you will find items including Black Forest gateaux, bratwurst and apple strudel. There's even a brewery producing beer according to historic Bavarian laws for the annual Oktoberfest. This little town, home to some 16,000 people, might seem like a gimmick at first but delve deeper and you will discover that its inhabitants can trace their roots back to 1843. A group of immigrants from Germany's Black Forest founded La Colonia Tovar on April 8, which is now celebrated every year. It wasn't until 1964, when it was recognised by Presidential Decree, that the place really became a tourist attraction. Now, La Colonia Tovar is known as the Germany of the Caribbean. Scroll down for video La Colonia Tovar (pictured), an isolated town set in the tropics of the Venezuelan forest, resembles a traditional Germanic alpine village Many of the signs are in Spanish but there are also people who speak a patois derived from the German dialect spoken in the Black Forest The Church of St. Martin of Tours is said to be based on the church of St Martin in Endingen, Germany, where many of the settlers hailed from Around 16,000 people live in La Colonia Tovar and the surrounding area. Some are able to trace their roots back to the original settlers When the first Germans arrived in La Colonia Tovar, they wanted to keep their heritage intact so built their homes in the traditional style Many of the signs, in Spanish, point to destinations with German names (left) while some of the local women dress in dirndls (right) Although the architecture is largely German, the flora and fauna are definitely tropical as the palm trees by this wooden building shows Endingen, where the early settlers were from, was close to France and Switzerland, which might explain why some of the buildings in La Colonia Tovar resemble chalets The quirky appearance of La Colonia Tovar makes it appear as though it's a gimmick but its tourism value was recognised in 1964 Several busts of important military personnel, like the one of Venezuelan political leader Simon Bolivar above, can be seen around town Inside the local restaurants, the food is largely German and you will find items including Black Forest gateaux, bratwurst and apple strudel Every year, the town celebrates Oktoberfest with beers produced at the local brewery, according to Bavarian traditions from the 1500s The relatively remote location of the town meant that, for a long time, it developed independently of its surroundings and took little from its Venezuelan neighbours Today, the town is popular with tourists and there are numerous hotels and restaurants as well as small museums detailing its history As well as the old town and tourist spots, holiday homes have also sprung up around the town to take advantage of the mountain views Paris seems set to host far fewer UK lovers strolling down its streets this Valentine's Day. In the wake of the city's terror attacks, the French capital has fallen from being Brits' second-favourite Valentine's Day hotspot, to their eighth. According to the French tourism body, takings in Paris restaurants fell by 21.5 per cent, in hotels by 15.5 per cent and in cafes and bars by 15 per cent last year. And now it ranks behind Amsterdam, Rome, New York, Barcelona, Prague, Reykjavik and Venice, for romantic potential on February 15, according to a recent survey. In wake of the city's terror attacks, the French capital has fallen from being Brits' second favourite Valentine's Day hotspot, to out of the top five completely According to a TravelSupermarket study, Paris now ranks in eighth place for Valentine's Day destinations behind Venice, Barcelona and Prague Amsterdam has been revealed to be the number one destination for lover's this year, followed by Rome and New York, all of which have jumped in the rankings since 2015 TOP TEN POPULAR VALENTINE'S DESTINATIONS FOR BRITS IN 2016 1. Amsterdam 2. Rome 3. New York 4. Barcelona 5. Prague 6. Reykjavik 7. Venice 8. Paris 9. Budapest 10. Dublin Advertisement Reykjavik is the surprise new entry in the top ten, which was revealed by a TravelSupermarket study. It didn't feature at all last year. While candlelit Parisian dinners may not feature highly on people's Valentine's plans, there is an expected influx of lovers set to hit the canals of Amsterdam. The Netherlands city has been revealed to be the number one destination for lover's this year, followed by Rome and New York, all of which have jumped in the rankings since 2015. Also new to the top holiday choices are Dublin in 10th place, and popular stag spot Budapest weighs in at ninth place. New locations for lovers this year include Reykjavik, which ranked in sixth place in the recent study In addition to Paris suffering in the ranks, Disneyland Paris, which featured in seventh place of most popular destination for UK couples to spend Valentines Day, has slipped out of the top ten completely Sights such as the Colosseum and the spectacular Trevi Fountain (pictured) are high on lovers' lists to visit on February 14 TOP TEN POPULAR VALENTINE'S DESTINATIONS FOR BRITS IN 2015 1. Amsterdam 2. Paris 3. Rome 4. Venice 5. New York 6. Barcelona 7. Euro Disney 8. Marrakech 9. Tenerife 10. Prague Advertisement In addition to Paris suffering in popularity, Disneyland Paris, which came seventh in 2015's Valentines Day rankings, has slipped out of the top ten completely. Marrakech, ranking as the eighth most popular destination last year, has also dropped out of the top 10, which, rightly or wrongly, is probably due to its close proximity to Tunisia and because of Morocco's high threat from terrorism. The data was compiled according to searches on TravelSupermarket.com for couples leaving London airports for holidays of four nights or less between 11-13 February and coming back between 14-16 February. TravelSupermarket.com intimated that some couples might like to take another look at where they go for Valentine's Day, pointing out that the hotels there are actually offering some of the best deals. Prices start at 193.50 per person, it said, with many four-star hotels at three-star prices. Out of the other popular destinations, those which will also give you some 'bang for your buck' along with a double room, the website said, are Dublin, Amsterdam and Budapest. A group of between 10-15 'drunk' men were kicked off a flight at Manchester Airport yesterday for bad behaviour. Greater Manchester Police were called to assist airport staff and flight crew on the plane that was about to take off. It is believed the group had been drinking excessively prior to joining the flight out of terminal three. Manchester Airport confirmed that a group of passengers were taken off a flight yesterday Speaking to MailOnline, a spokesperson for the police confirmed they were called to the airport at 1.45pm after they had received 'complaints of bad behaviour and bad language.' They also said that no arrests had been made. It is not known what the airline in question was, or where the group were travelling out to. A spokesperson for Manchester Airport told MailOnline: 'We can confirm a group of passengers was taken off a flight today by police, following reports of disruptive behaviour.' The police were called to 'assist' airport and airline staff with a disruptive group of passengers that were planning on flying out of Terminal 3 One airline has sought to root out incidents involving drunk passengers by issuing life bans. Jet2 said it has handed lifetime bans to 50 travellers who were abusive or disruptive towards staff and holidaymakers last year. The figures provide a startling look at how often staff have to deal with out-of-control passengers amid increasing reports of air rage and calls for alcohol consumption to be banned on flights. It has become such a problem for Leeds-based Jet2 that it has launched a zero-tolerance campaign with severe penalties for those who dont behave. The airline said the number of passengers stopped from flying in 2015 is a substantial increase from previous years. Jet2 has suffered a number of frustrating and costly diversions this year while flying British tourists to all-inclusive destinations such as Spain and Portugal. In October, a 34-year-old passenger, Peter Vincent, was fined 950 after he was found guilty of singing loudly, using foul and offensive language, and threatening a senior crew member on a flight from Prague to Glasgow. Vincent, who was escorted off the plane by police when it landed in Glasgow, was also banned from Jet2 flights for life. Trio tied first on the In Plans to relocate 18 elephants from Africa to three of the 'worst zoos for elephants in North America' have been opposed by conservationists. The relocation would see the large wild mammals transferred from Swaziland to Dallas Zoo, Sedgwick County Zoo in Wichita, Kansas, and Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, Nebraska - which were all jointly rated first on the In Defence of Animals 10 Worst Zoos for Elephants list, last month. However, despite uproar from protesters, a US official has said the animal transfer - involving 15 female and three male elephants ranging in age - can be done humanely and is permissible under international law. African elephants from Swaziland are planned for relocation to three zoos in North America The US Fish and Wildlife Service last month approved the transfer of the elephants to the three zoos stating that the animals were threatened by habitat destruction and drought. Speaking to the NY Times, Gregg Hudson, the president of the Dallas Zoo, said that the partnership had not paid for the animals but that it was contributing $450,000 (308,600) over five years to a wildlife conservation trust in Swaziland for rhinos. He added that the large mammals were still in Africa while logistics and medical assessments were being completed and that a date for the transfer was not yet set, however they will be brought over in a Boeing 747 aeroplane. An elephant at the Sedgwick County Zoo, which is joint No1 on the list for its alleged plan to import young elephants from the African wild for zoo displays THE 10 'WORST ZOOS' FOR ELEPHANTS IN NORTH AMERICA 1 Dallas Zoo, Tex., Henry Doorly Zoo, Neb., and Sedgwick County Zoo, Kan. 2 Natural Bridge Zoo, Vir. 3 Oklahoma City Zoo, Okla. 4 Wildlife Safari, Ore. 5 Buttonwood Park Zoo, Mass. 6 San Antonio Zoo, Tex. 7 Oregon Zoo, Ore. 8 Monterey Zoo, Calif. 9 Buffalo Zoo, N.Y. 10 Southwick's Zoo, Mass. Hall of Shame Bronx Zoo, NY Dishonorable mention Edmonton Zoo, Alberta, Canada Source: In Defence of Animals Advertisement Associate director of the US Fish and Wildlife Services, Robert Dreher, said that he recognises the 'humanitarian concerns' of opponents of the elephant export. However, he said it does not threaten conservation of the species, which is being heavily poached, and that zoos educate the public about wildlife. 'We have looked hard at this,' Dreher said in South Africa's Kruger National Park. The American delegation also visited Gabon and Kenya to discuss ways to stop wildlife trafficking. In a statement, the Dallas Zoo said that Swaziland would have had to cull the 18 elephants 'to prevent further degradation of the land and to make room for critically endangered rhinos' in its wildlife reserves. It also said regional drought was threatening wildlife in the southern African nation. However, a group of conservationists said wild elephants often suffer health problems in zoos; there is no evidence that options for relocating elephants in other African parks were explored; and that the relocation has no conservation value. 'It's condemning these wild animals - sentient wild animals - to life imprisonment,' said Francis Garrard, director of South Africa-based Conservation Action Trust. He described the elephant project as a commercial venture for the zoos. Last year, Zimbabwe sent 20 elephants to zoos in China despite similar protests from some conservationists. An elephant at Henry Doorly Zoo, which is also No.1 on the list for the alleged plan to import young elephants from the African wild Last month, MailOnline Travel covered the release of international animal protection organisation, In Defence of Animals annual list of the 10 Worst Zoos for Elephants in North America. Now in its 12th year, the list exposes the places allegedly keeping Earth's largest land mammal captive in small, inadequate zoo exhibits that cause a lifetime of misery and can lead to premature death. In 2015, four more zoos in North America closed their elephant exhibits, three of which appeared on the 10 Worst Zoos for Elephants list in previous years. But three U.S. zoos are attempting a controversial plan to import young elephants from the African wild to be incarcerated for life in zoo displays. As a result, these three zoos - Dallas Zoo, Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo in Nebraska and the Sedgwick County Zoo in Kansas - tied for first place on the worst zoos list. The three zoos have defended their stance with regards to importing wild elephants from Swaziland for use in their exhibits. Previously, in a joint statement to MailOnline Travel they said: 'We strongly disagree with [the Defense of Animals] position, and the critical need for this project is clearly explained on our website, www.RoomforRhinos.org. Advertisement Egyptian authorities have sent a stern warning to holidaymakers who have a foolish desire to scale its famous pyramids - stay off or risk being banned from the country for life. That's what happened to 18-year-old German tourist Andrej Ciesielski, who illegally climbed the Great Pyramid of Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo, on a recent visit to the oldest of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. Ciesielski, from Munich, travelled to Egypt with the intention of snapping photos from atop the mammoth 4,500-year-old tomb, risking his life and imprisonment after he was detained and questioned by police. Scroll down for video Eighteen-year-old German tourist Andrej Ciesielski scaled the Cheops pyramid on a recent visit to Cairo even though it is against the law Once he reached the top of the 455ft monument, Ciesielski snapped stunning photos of the hazy desert landscape and tourists below Egypts Ministry of State for Antiquities confirmed the teenager has been banned from re-entering the country, reported Egyptian Streets, a news website. In a statement, Minister Mamdouh Eldamaty said the German Embassy in Cairo has been informed of the lifetime ban. Despite being banned from Egypt, Ciesielski still has his freedom. He could have been charged and sentenced to three years in prison for his stunt, which gained attention around the world and angered Egyptians. From atop the Cheops pyramid, the teenager snapped breathtaking photos of the Pyramid of Khafre and the hazy desert landscape below. Ciesielski was detained when he climbed down and taken to a police station for questioning, but was later released without charge This photo snapped by Ciesielski was taken at the edge of the Great Pyramid of Giza to show how steep the 4,500-year-old monument is Ciesielski said the photos were worth the risk of spending years in an Egyptian prison cell. It took eight minutes for him to reach the top of the 455ft Great Pyramid of Giza, which was once the tallest man-made structure in the world. He was detailed when he climbed down and taken to a police station for questioning. The rules against climbing Egypt's monuments have been put in place to protect them from excessive wear and tear. Tourists are seen arriving on horseback and in horse-drawn carriages. Ciesielski said police looked at his camera when he was detained The rules against climbing Egypt's monuments have been put in place to protect them from excessive wear and tear by visitors Ciesielski said: 'It took me about eight minutes to get to the top of the pyramid and I listened to music on the way up. 'After a few minutes climbing, I started to attract a bit of attention and some of the security shouted to me to come down in Arabic.' He added: 'I had asked locals what they thought of my attempt and they warned me that it was illegal to climb the pyramids, although I thought it would be fine, what with Egypt's dependence on tourists. 'I was told that I did risk prison, although on balance I thought the photos would be worth it. 'It was absolutely surreal standing on top of one of the wonders of the world and something that I will never forget. I wanted to experience Egyptian culture and I definitely managed that.' Ciesielski said: 'When I got back down, the police were quick to take me to the station and question me. They also had a look at my camera to see what I had been up to. It's a rare night when Ashlee Simpson and Evan Ross can steal some time away just for themselves. But on Tuesday evening the happily married couple left the kids at home as they partied together at 10ak in West Hollywood. Ashlee, 31, was seen patiently waiting in the back of their hired car for Evan, 27, to escort her into the nightclub. Scroll down for video A rare night out: Ashlee Simpson and Evan Ross seen on Tuesday evening at 10ak in West Hollywood The mother-of-two dressed in ripped skinny jeans and a long leopard print coat as she stood tall in open toe stilettos. Ashlee wore her long blonde hair down over her shoulders as she was seen being led by the hand as Evan ploughed ahead into the nightclub. The actor wore a broad brimmed hat, grey T-shirt, and very tight skinny jeans for the night out. So gallant! The happily married couple left the kids at home as they partied together, Evan pictured helping his wife out of the car Such the gentleman: Ashlee wore her long blonde hair down over her shoulders as she was seen being led by the hand as Evan ploughed ahead into the nightclub His finest: The actor wore a broad brimmed hat, grey T-shirt, and very tight skinny jeans for the night out The lovebirds were married last year at the Connecticut home of former Supremes singer - and Evan's mother - Diana Ross. The legendary singer even officiated the ceremony between Evan and Jessica Simpson's younger sister. In July the couple welcomed a daughter together, Jagger Snow. Lady in waiting: Ashlee, 31, was seen patiently waiting in the back of their hired car for Evan, 27, to escort her into the nightclub Ashlee was previously married to rocker Pete Wentz, whom she wed in May 2008. Seven months later she gave birth to son Bronx Mowgli. The former couple finalized their divorce in November 2011. Ashlee is the younger sister of Jessica Simpson, who is also the mother of two children. She famously shunned the limelight despite boasting two of Hollywood's biggest actors as parents. But Isabella Cruise - the adopted daughter of actor Tom and his ex-wife Nicole Kidman - made a rare public appearance on Wednesday evening as she stepped out with a female pal at Tyler Shields' star-studded Decadence exhibition at London's Maddox Gallery. Seemingly a fan of the photographer, the 23-year-old made an usual appearance on the social circuit and showed off a daring new hairstyle in the process. Scroll down for video Isabella Cruise - the adopted daughter of actor Tom and his ex-wife Nicole Kidman - made a rare public appearance on Wednesday evening as she stepped out with a female pal at Tyler Shields' star-studded Decadence exhibition at London's Maddox Gallery Not one to play it safe when it comes to her locks, the once red-haired star displayed new yellow-blonde tresses which conceded at the nape of her neck. She styled the daring 'do so that it fell in a heavy side-part to frame her face, which sported a pale make-up look offset with a kohl lined eye while outlining her nude lips in a dark brown shade. Isabella opted for an equally colourless ensemble as she posed for photos in a black cardigan with billowing sleeves. Changing it up! Seemingly a fan of the photographer, the 23-year-old made an usual appearance on the social circuit and showed off a daring new hairstyle in the process Just married: The newlywed showed off her engagement ring and wedding ring on the red carpet Continuing the all-black theme she paired the look with a simple long-sleeve tee and skinny jeans, while elongated her legs with chunky leather boots, and flashed her wedding and engagement rings. The event marks the first public outing Isabella - best known as Bella - has made since marrying British IT consultant Max Parker in a low-key but lavish wedding at London's swanky Dorchester Hotel on September 18. According to Page Six, Bella's mother Nicole didn't know her daughter was tying the knot - even though she was in London preparing for her appearance on stage for Photograph 51 in the West End. Bold: She styled the daring 'do so that it fell in a heavy side-part to frame her face, which sported a pale make-up look offset with a kohl lined eye while outlining her nude lips in a dark brown shade Layers: Isabella opted for an equally colourless ensemble as she posed for photos in a black cardigan with billowing sleeves Muted: Continuing the all-black theme she paired the look with a simple long-sleeve tee and skinny jeans, while elongated her legs with chunky leather boots 'The wedding was a Scientology ceremony, a source told the publication. Nicole wasnt there she didnt even know about it at all.' Neither she nor Bella's adoptive father Tom were at the ceremony, although both allegedly approve of the union, with the American actor footing the bill. Only a small group of close friends were present for the wedding, with Bella's brother Connor also not in attendance in a bid to keep the ceremony out of the limelight. Isabella is believed to have been introduced to her beau through mutual friends, with the pair beginning to date earlier this year. She won the heart of The Bachelor's Sam Wood, and legions of fans, with rich, chocolate locks. So when Macedonian beauty Snezana Markoski unveiled dramatically different tresses of a lighter auburn shade on Wednesday, not all of her admirers were happy about it. The 34-year-old took to Instagram four days prior to ask her 224,000 followers their views on her initial thoughts to go darker. Going over to the light side! The Bachelor's Snezana Markoski unveiled her new auburn locks on Instagram on Wednesday, but not all of her followers were happy with the change from dark 'You are gorgeous but I think dark suits you better,' said one follower. 'Think darker suits you more,' wrote another, though others were encouraging of the reality star's choice. 'Perfect for Summer! Good decision,' wrote one fan, while another wrote: 'Your hair looks amazing.' Pouting for a series of selfies, the mother-of-one looked dazzling as she posed in a gold sequinned jacket, with her chestnut hair cascading in soft curls over her shoulders. 'Perfect for Summer!' Despite some comments that they preferred her with darker tresses, many of her fans were encouraging of the change Consulting her fans: The mother-of-one reached out to her Instagram followers on Sunday to ask if she they thought she should go darker or lighter 'Sometimes us mums are allowed to sparkle a little too,' she wrote in the accompanying caption to a photo of her looking over her shoulder. Her new hue seems to come very close to matching her hazel eyes, making them pop even more than they did before. In another image where she is facing front on and looking just past the camera, the reality star plumped her lips, leading a few fans to accuse her of undergoing plastic surgery. 'Means I don't need to actually get it done!' She also responded to comments that she had had work done, saying it was good that people thought so With diplomacy as always, Snezana responded in the comments: 'I currently have no injectables in my face so if people think I do that's great! Means I don't need to actually get it done!' she wrote. On Sunday, however, Snezana took to social media to ask for fans' advice on her 'ridiculous hair dilemma', sharing what appeared to a rather dated photo. 'To go even lighter or darker? I'm thinking darker! Thoughts?' she asked. Snezana and Sam announced their engagement in early January and recently purchased a family home together in Melbourne where they plan to live with Snezana's 11-year-old daughter Eve. It's possibly one of oddest stories to come out of North Korea in recent months - an alleged plot by dictator Kim Jong-un to send balloons filled with used toilet paper across the southern border. And while discussing this bizarre development on KIIS FM's Kyle and Jackie O Show this week, controversial DJ Kyle Sandilands deployed his trademark politically-incorrect humour while skewering the tyrant. On Thursday's show, the 44-year-old shock jock performed an impersonation of the Supreme Leader, ordering his citizens to stock up on 'poo paper' to support their propaganda war against rivals South Korea. Scroll down for video Impersonation: KIIS FM's Kyle Sandilands, 44, performed an impression of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un on the Kyle and Jackie O Show this week, during a segment about the country's latest propaganda efforts While mimicking the son of the late Kim Jong-il, Kyle said: 'It's Kim Jong-un. We are going to war against South Korea. 'I want everyone to keep your poo paper so we launch over border. Bring your poo paper to border.' Dropping the act, Kyle then asks: 'Is that what's going on there?' Propaganda war: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is believed to have authorised sending balloons filled with anti-US propaganda - as well as used toilet paper, cigarette butts and dirty tissues - over the southern border Clearly amused by co-host's antics, Jackie 'O' Henderson, 41, replied: 'You're right. How do they get the message out for everyone to bring -' Kyle cuts in: 'On the loudspeaker!' Then he resumed his impression, 'Everyone must bring one bag!', before concluding: 'That's gold.' Double act: Co-host Jackie 'O' Henderson, 41, asked how Kim Jong-un would get his bizarre message out to North Korean citizens, to which Kyle replies: 'On the loudspeaker!' Laughs: Jackie was clearly amused by Kyle's antics on Thursday morning's show This week, it was reported that North Korea had intensified propaganda efforts against its rivals to the south by sending balloons filled with used toilet paper, cigarette butts and dirty tissues over the border. Along with the rubbish, the balloons contained politically-charged anti-American leaflets branding South Korean leader Park Geun-hye 'political filth', the Korea JoongAng Daily reported. A military official told the publication on Tuesday: 'When we opened up a bundle dropped on the ground, we found plastic bags filled with leaflets mixed with trash. 'There was concern that North Korea may have sent biochemical substances to harm our people, but after analyzing the content, it was just trash.' An unnamed police official also confirmed there was 'daily waste' in the balloons, adding: 'Between the leaflets, there was lots of filth difficult to describe in words.' They were rival girl bands throughout the 80's. And on Thursday Today Show host Karl Stefanovic introduced Bananarama with a song by The Bangles during the breakfast show's throwback segment. The national television mishap saw the network play The Bangles hit Eternal Flame as they announced the appearance of the 'musical legends. Scroll down for video Getting Out Of Hand! Today Show host Karl Stefanovic mistakenly introduced Bananarama with a song by their rivals, The Bangles, on Thursday morning during the show's throwback segment Karl, 41, came under fire on social media following the mistake, with many users questioning his music knowledge. One Twitter follower tweeted the program '@TheTodayShow someone better tell @KarlStefanovic the difference between The Bangles and Bananarama or else this could go bad!!' Another posted: '@TheTodayShow @KarlStefanovic not Bananarama. Manic Monday and Eternal Flame are The Bangles. Get it right!' Oops: During the introduction for the Bananarama's (L) the network played The Bangles (R) hit Eternal Flame Making it known: Following the mishap Karl came under fire on social media, with many users questioning his music knowledge But while appearing on the Channel Nine morning show Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward ignored the noticeable mistake and opened up about the reason they believe they have remained successful. 'We have had more hits but I think it is because we have been together for so long, it has been 30 years,' Sara explained. She added: 'I am surprised at how many younger people actually come to our concerts now.' The Bananarama's are currently Down Under as part of their Australian tour which celebrates their 30 year anniversary. Speaking out: Fans got passionate on social media and were quick to correct the host No worries: The TV host ignored the error and sung along to the tunes during the segment On tour: Bananarama's Sara Dallin and Keren Woodward are currently in Australia as part of their 30th anniversary tour In 1998 they received an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most successful female band worldwide with the most charting singles, all of which were international hits. At the time the group had four hits within the US Billboard Top 10 including a No.1 with Venus. To date they have had 32 Top 40 UK hits and have sold 30 million records from 10 albums. They kick off their gigs on Friday February 5. There was some snobbish carping when Harrow-educated Lewis actor Laurence Fox began stepping out with Swindon-born pop princess-turned-actress Billie Piper, but the couple, who will celebrate their 10th wedding anniversary next year, have proved sceptics wrong. Lets hope theres an equally happy ending for Laurences younger brother and fellow actor Jack. Jack Fox has revealed new girlfriend is Manx singer and actress Samantha Barks, 25, pictured above He revealed at the Louis XIII 100 Years party on Wednesday that his new girlfriend is Manx singer and actress Samantha Barks, 25, who rose to fame on BBC talent show Id Do Anything. Unlike his dashing brother, however, Jack, 30, might have to work on his romantic side. When I enquired what he has planned for his first Valentines Day with Barks, Fox replied dispassionately: I havent thought about it. Philip's murder mystery The Duke of Edinburgh assisted in the identification of the Romanov bones by giving a blood sample for DNA testing. And his efforts to unravel the mystery of the fate of the Russian royal family, who were murdered by Bolsheviks in 1918, do not end there. Prince Philip, who is a great-nephew of the last Tsar, also helped author Simon Sebag-Montefiore document their history in his latest book. The Duke of Edinburgh very kindly helped me. He saw me and talked to me about the family, Simon tells me at the launch party of The Romanovs at the Mandarin Oriental in Knightsbridge. I wrote to him out of the blue. The Government is seeking a new chair for the Low Pay Commission, which advises ministers on the National Minimum Wage. Theres no danger of a minimum wage at this quango. The salary? A generous 530.96 per day plus reasonable travel and subsistence allowances. Lady Alice Manners (left) and Lady Violet Manners were among the guests at Alice Naylor-Leyland's debut shoe collection Mrs Alice for French Sole Curiouser and curiouser! Alice's wonderland frolics THE OCCASION Alice Naylor-Leylands debut shoe collection Mrs Alice for French Sole, inspired by Alice In Wonderland, at Annabels nightclub in Mayfair. THE GUESTS Sofia Wellesley, wife of singer James Blunt, Lady Mary Charteris, Lady Violet Manners and her sister Lady Alice. Earl Spencers daughter Lady Kitty was head-to-toe in Ralph Lauren, right down to her sexy golden platforms, left. Right: Florence Brudenell-Bruce Amber Le Bon made an appearance at the event, held at Annabels nightclub in Mayfair SARTORIALLY CHALLENGED Rock god Bryan Ferry is known for being immaculate, but his eldest son Otis turned up looking rumpled in an extremely wrinkled shirt. I dont do ironing thats a wifes job! he announced. MOST OFF-MESSAGE GUEST Instead of wearing Alices fantasy shoes, Earl Spencers daughter Lady Kitty was head-to-toe in Ralph Lauren, right down to her sexy golden platforms. Its fantastic being famous I now get the most wonderful free clothes to wear, she declared. BIGGEST SHOE FAN Designer Charlotte Olympia Dellal joked shed rather go naked than wear naff shoes. MOST OFF-THE-WALL MOMENT Dakota Johnson had plenty of family support at the New York premiere of her latest movie How Top be Single. The actress, 26, was joined on the red carpet Wednesday night by her parents Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson, and half-brother Jesse Johnson from her father's relationship with Patti d'Arbanville. And even though her parents married and divorced twice, they're clearly extremely proud of their only child together and her success in Hollywood. Scroll down for video Family night out: Dakota Johnson was joined by her parents Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson, and her half-brother Jesse Johnson, at the premiere of How To Be Single in New York on Wednesday night Griffith, 58, is moving on following her divorce from Antonio Banderas while Johnson, 66, is married to fifth wife Kelley Phleger with whom he has three children. The exes have remained extremely close and are fully supportive of their children's endeavors. Jesse, 33, is also an actor and has had roles in the Netflix series From Dusk Till Dawn and the TV movie Killing Lincoln. Amicable exes: Griffith, 58, and Johnson, 66, started dating when she was 14 and he was 22. They married and divorced twice, splitting for the second time in 1995, and Dakota is the only child they have together Friends: The Working girl and Miami Vice stars have remained and are clearly extremely proud of their successful actress daughter Acting dynasty: Griffith, whose mom is Hitchcock blonde Tippi Hedren, showcased her fabulous figure in a stylish black ensemble with open-toed pumps Griffith looked fabulous in a stylish ensemble that paired skinny black satin pants with a black sparkly coat over a black turtleneck. She added a splash of color with some red nail polish visible through her peek-a-boo heels and a matching shade of lip stick. She wore her golden blonde hair straight in a slightly feathered cut and accessorized with some large rings on each hand. Proud papa: Johnson was delighted to be able to support Dakota whose Hollywood movie career is going from strength to strength Daddy's little girl: The Fifty Shades of Grey star seemed to be leaning on her famous dad for support as she faced the crowds Starry: The actress, 26, was simple and elegant in a dark beige gown with full sleeves that was embellished with silver stars Don wore a bespoke dark blue suit with a matching scarf wrapped around his neck. The actor and former Miami Vice star smiled broadly as he and his famous daughter held hands on the red carpet as they posed for photos. Dakota was simply gorgeous in a full-length dark beige gown embellished with silver stars and with full sleeves. She left her long brunette hair loose and used earthen tones in her make-up. Dakota, who is signed up to return for two Fifty Shades Of Grey sequels, stars in How To Be Single with Leslie Mann, Rebel Wilson and Alison Brie in a comedy about looking for love in New York City. Family united: The three are clearly extremely close and stuck by each other's side throughout the evening Sofia Vergara is planning on having children with her second husband of three months, Joe Manganiello. 'My husband is [four years] younger than me and he wants kids so we're trying to figure out what we're going to do,' the 43-year-old actress told Net-A-Porter's weekly digital magazine The Edit. 'The idea of doing it all again doesn't scare me but, hey, it's not like it's going to happen naturally, is it?' Scroll down for video The 43-year-old actress told Net-A-Porter's weekly digital magazine The Edit: 'My husband is [four years] younger than me and he wants kids so we're trying to figure out what we're going to do' The Hot Pursuit funnywoman explained : 'People will often say that I wear the same thing on the red carpet, but I know my body: it's very voluptuous and I've got the boobs of a stripper' Make-under: Photographer Sebastian Kim captured a surprisingly covered-up, understated Sofia for the stark, spread in The Edit 'I wouldn't mind another child': Sofia Vergara is planning on having children with her second husband of three months, Joe Manganiello (pictured Monday) The Modern Family diva was only 20 when she had son Manolo, 23, with her first husband, high school sweetheart Joe Gonzalez. 'It's funny to see some of my girlfriends raising young kids. In the US, women postpone motherhood, but in Latin America most of my friends have kids my son's age,' Vergara noted. It's a surprising response from the curvy Colombian, who's still locked in a bitter legal battle with ex-fiance Nick Loeb over their frozen embryos. Back in October, a judge ruled that the Onion Crunch king could move forward with his civil case to get custody of the female embryos, whom he views as 'his daughters.' 'My two loves': The Modern Family diva was only 20 when she had son Manolo, 23, with her first husband, high school sweetheart Joe Gonzalez Photographer Sebastian Kim captured a surprisingly covered-up, understated Sofia for the stark, spread in The Edit. The four-time Golden Globe nominee donned designs by Roland Mouret, Michael Kors, Wolford, Elie Saab, and Arme De LAmour. Vergara sported minimal make-up by Kayleen McAdams - whose sister is Oscar nominee Rachel McAdams - and her brunette locks coiffed by hairstylist Kylee Heath. Here comes the bride: The four-time Golden Globe nominee donned designs by Roland Mouret (pictured), Michael Kors, Wolford, Elie Saab, and Arme De LAmour Glam squad: Vergara sported minimal make-up by Kayleen McAdams (M) - whose sister is Oscar nominee Rachel McAdams - and her brunette locks coiffed by hairstylist Kylee Heath (L) 'People will often say that I wear the same thing on the red carpet, but I know my body: it's very voluptuous and I've got the boobs of a stripper,' the Hot Pursuit funnywoman explained. 'They're a 32DDD and because they're real, they're everywhere, so I need my dresses to have structure and under armor. There is so much going on under my dresses that I bleed at the end of award ceremonies. 'In 10 years I think it would be good to have a reduction. I don't think its even going to be an option not to [have surgery], because I'm going to start having back pains. I wouldn't make them too small just enough that I don't end up looking like an old stripper.' She continued: 'They're a 32DDD and because they're real, they're everywhere, so I need my dresses to have structure and under armor. There is so much going on under my dresses that I bleed at the end of award ceremonies' The Latina bombshell said: 'In 10 years I think it would be good to have a reduction. I don't think its even going to be an option not to [have surgery], because I'm going to start having back pains. I wouldn't make them too small just enough that I don't end up looking like an old stripper' Sofia currently plays Gloria Delgado-Pritchett on the seventh season of Modern Family, which airs Wednesdays on ABC. 'Watching myself age onscreen is awful!' the Wild Card star lamented. 'There is nothing more disturbing than watching an episode of Modern Family from the first season, then one from seven years later, but what can I do? Ill be sad when the wolf whistles stop. I'm already sad that men have started calling me "Senora." I get really p***** off: "What? It's Senorita!"' She is set to walk down the aisle soon with fiance James Packer after becoming engaged last month. Now, Mariah Carey has revealed in a recent chat on talk show The Lowdown with Diana Madison, the pair while be basing themselves in America. And while the couple have started settling into their new lives together in LA's gated community The Oaks, the 45-year-old added that she and her billionaire beau won't be expanding their broad to fill up the eight-bedroom mansion. What the future holds: Mariah Carey revealed recently she and fiance James Packer won't be having any more children and shoots down suggestions of a move to Australia, saying they plan to settle in the US The singer stated she was content with her four-year-old twins, Monroe and Moroccan, and that they would become 'jealous' if she was to have another child. 'No, those are my two babies and I think they will get too jealous...they get upset when I pat my dog,' she explained. When asked by the LA-based journalist if she would relocate to James' native country the diva with a residency in Las Vegas explained: 'isn't in his plans...I am an America'. Careful: The 45-year-old explained she was content with her four-year-old twins, Monroe and Moroccan, and that they would become 'jealous' if she was to have another child Tight lipped: Earlier in the week she revealed to E! News that she still hasn't told her children about her engagement to James, despite him having a close relationship with them Earlier in the week Mariah explained to E! News that she still hasn't told her children about her engagement to James, despite him having a close relationship with them. I haven't talked to them about it completely because they are so young so they don't really understand things yet,' she told the publication. 'So you have to go slowly and explain things and always make sure they know that this is only going to be good for them. Their lives are not going to change. Mariah said 'yes' to marrying James on January 21, after just eight months of dating. The Australian businessman proposed to the Grammy winner in her hometown in New York with an emerald cut diamond ring designed by Wilfredo Rosado. About to marry: Mariah said 'yes' to marrying James on January 21, after just eight months of dating Say what! Her diamond has been estimated to be worth a whopping $16 million The diamond has been estimated to be worth a whopping $16 million. This will be the third marriage for Mariah, who tied the knot with Tommy Mottola in 1993 before divorcing him five years later. She later wed Nick Cannon, the father of her twins, from whom she is yet to finalise her divorce. James has also been married twice before, tying the knot with Jodhi Meares in 1999 before moving on and saying 'I Do' to Erica Packer in 2007. He shares three children with Erica - Jackson, Indigo and Emmanuelle. He's been busy working on his superhero film Wonder Woman. But Chris Pine made time for a smouldering cover photo shoot in DuJour magazine's February digital issue. The 35-year-old actor plays the leading lady's sidekick, as her 'partner in crime who falls in love with her.' Hollywood hunk! Chris Pine, 35, was featured in a smouldering digital cover story for DuJour's February issue The Star Trek favourite looked every bit the hunk as he wore a vintage black leather motorcycle jacket. With a bit of facial scruff and his mane loosely brushed to the side, he channeled his inner James Dean for one look. In a series of black and white snapshots for his feature story, Chris captured the hearts of women across the globe. Pining for Chris! The Star Trek favourite looked every bit the hunk in several different styles for the feature story Heartthrob! In a series of black and white snapshots for his feature story, Chris captured the hearts of women across the globe But even more so after he revealed why he's just fine taking a backseat to Israeli actress Gal Gadots fearsome female lead. 'Action is so synonymous with violence and revenge and eye-for-an-eye,' Pine stated. 'The masculine footprint in the world is so violent and obviously it hasnt really gotten us anywhere.' 'A woman at the forefront naturally leads with this compassion, and [is about] giving life instead of taking life,' he added. Confident Chris! The Star Trek favourite explained why he's just fine taking the back seat to his fearsome female lead California cutie! The award-winning actor has been in London filming Wonder Woman, which released a first look last month 'To have a strong woman who represents those qualities, I think we can start injecting this world with a little bit more of the ideology of compassion, love and positive moral strength rather than something destructive.' The award-winning actor is currently in London shooting the film which released a half-an-hour special titled Dawn Of The Justice last month. He's also been busy promoting his latest flick The Finest Hour and his upcoming third installment in Star Trek Beyond will hit theatres July 22. Pine plays Steve Trevor in the film, which is slated for release in 2017. Action star! Chris has been busy promoting his latest film The Finest Hour and Star Trek Beyond which hits theatres on July 22 Despite being an exceptionally private person, Isla Fisher has made it known in interviews that she knows how to have a good time. But she kicked off a landmark birthday on Wednesday with a casual stroll through Los Angeles with a friend. As she turned 40, the Australian actress was seen to be talking and laughing as she spoke on the phone with various well-wishers. Birthday girl! Isla Fisher kicked off her 40th celebrations with a casual stroll through Los Angeles on Wednesday Dressed casually for the outing, the mother-of-three opted for a pair of faded blue skinny jeans and a black bomber jacket. She kept warm with a printed scarf that she wrapped loosely around her neck and gave her urban look an edgy touch with a pair of black lace-up boots. Appearing to be makeup free, the flame-haired actress' locks were free-flowing, while shielding her eyes with a pair of over-sized rounded sunglasses. Off-duty: Dressed casually for the outing, the mother-of-two opted for a pair of faded blue skinny jeans and a black bomber jacket Her fellow Hollywood gal pal Reese Witherspoon took to Instagram to wish her friend a happy birthday, sharing a photo that was taken of them 'twinning' at the 2013 Vanity Fair Oscars party. She wrote in the caption: 'Happy birthday to my sweet, sweet friend #IslaFisher! Youre the best mom, wife, actress.and hands down the funniest person I know.' She added: 'Sending birthday love today darlin'! Oh and yes I chose this picture because we are twinning in it.' Well-wishers: As she turned 40, the Australian actress was seen to be talking and laughing as she spoke on the phone Isla revealed her penchant for a good time when appearing on the UK talk show Graham Norton Show in 2012 alongside Baz Luhrmann while promoting The Great Gatsby. Arriving on stage for the show, the two Australia film identities were asked about the party they threw in Cannes during the coveted film festival. 'Was it last night you were at a big party?' asked the host. 'Just a few hours ago indeed,' laughed Isla. She smiled: 'The last I saw Baz we were dancing on top of a cake in the middle of a nightclub in Cannes.' It seems she is not above a spot of tit for tat Or perhaps Blac Chyna simply wanted to prove that anything TV teen Kylie Jenner can do she can do better after staging a lookalike modelling shoot in the Mojave Desert on Wednesday. The pair have been at loggerheads ever since the former's 28-year-old ex fiance Tyga started dating the reality television personality, with the latter convinced their relationships somehow overlapped. Scroll down for video The sincerest form of flattery? Blac Chyna appeared in a Kylie Jenner-esque photo shoot in the desert on Wednesday Original and best? Kylie will certainly think so after previously complaining about people stealing her idea Last October Kylie, just two months after her 18th birthday, made waves in the desert by posing in her underwear while draping herself over a Mercedes SUV. Former stripper Blac managed to look even more upmarket during her shoot, though this was thanks to the fact she was modelling in a black bodysuit while reclining on an even more expensive Bentley. The 27-year-old natural beauty looked like she was having a great time as she worked her body while a photographer took snaps of her from all angles. Exactly where the shoot took place is unclear, though she was spotted driving the Bentley from Los Angeles on Wednesday for a girls weekend in Las Vegas. Pylon on the pounds: Blac will have earned a pretty penny for posing next to her car in a bodysuit Blac and white: She added a dash of classic glamour by posing for a monochrome shot Nice bodywork: The former stripper was posing next to an expensive Bentley Alongside a video of her thrilling day at the desert, she explained she was taking part in a 'Dub cover shoot.' The magazine, which was founded in 2000, covers urban custom car culture and also features celebrities and their vehicles. Blac and Kylie's rivallry has went into overdrive since it emerged the mother of Tyga's son King Cairo has started dating Rob Kardashian. The fact her half-brother is now in a relationship with the former exotic dancer has caused much wailing and gnashing of teeth among her siblings. Hood ornament: She was careful not put a dent on her bonnet as she clambered on top of it Indeed he is so smitten he drove for 26 hours to make the 1,400 miles trip from Los Angeles to Texas to collect her following her arrest public intoxication and drug possession on Friday at Austin Airport. At the time of her shoot last year Kylie wrote on her website: 'I loved my first photo shoot with Sasha Samsonova so much, I just had to work with her again. 'This time, we drove all the way into the desert to make sure it was the dopest setting ever. And it was SO worth it.' Selfie obsessed: As if the modelling shots were not enough she treated her fans to a Snapchat session Daylight Rob-ery: Her beau will surely have got excited when he saw her exciting short film Little winker: She ended the exciting clip by smiling and giving a wink to the camera However Blac's interloping is not the first time the self-styled model has been left fuming due to someone chanelling her work. For she previously whined her 34-year-old half-sibling Kim Kardashian had ripped off her shoot in a deleted scene from Keeping Up With The Kardashians. She told Kourtney: 'She wants to do everything that I'm doing. I really feel that Kim is cramping my style. I feel like style wise we take things from each other.' 'I did this desert photo shoot and she did a desert photo shoot. And she takes everything and does it way cooler.' Wheely impressive ride: She looked like she was having a great time driving the luxury motor Natural beauty: But no doubt thinking man Rob is just as attracted to her brains He's one of the biggest names in Hollywood, but Chris Hemsworth has revealed that he sometimes worries about his career. The 32-year-old Australian actor - who started his career on the Australian soap Home and Away - cut a stylish figure at the TAG Heuer cocktail party in Sydney on Thursday night as he made the frank revelation. The global brand ambassador told reporters at the event: 'There is always that fear or anxiety about what's next and so on.' Scroll down for video Say what! Chris Hemsworth has revealed he often worries about his career and made the admission at the TAG Heuer cocktail party in Sydney on Thursday night It came after the Thor star admitted that every so often he has to pinch himself about his life. He explained that the anxiety and fear keeps him going, saying: 'It keeps me motivated, it keeps me wanting to achieve new things and try to be a part of different environments and different films and directors and so on.' Chris added: 'So I think its a motivation to keep pushing forward and try things but I dont know if you ever feel like you're at the top of it. The evening saw Chris attend the Australian launch of the Heuer 01 watch and marked his first appearance as the Swiss watchmaker's new ambassador. See Chris Hemsworth updates as he attends TAG Heuer cocktail bash in Sydney What a role: The hunky star is a global brand ambassador for the company Opening up: Chris said he often feels fear and anxiety about what's on the cards next for him, despite having already made it in Hollywood A face to sell that watch! The event marked his first appearance as the Swiss watchmaker's new ambassador It was held at the picturesque Royal Botanic Gardens and Chris looked dapper in a black suit with a white open-collar shirt. Of course, he was wearing a watch from the brand that featured a large black face and band, with his wedding ring. On the night, he joined a handful of Australian stars including Jodi Anasta and Tag Heuer CEO Jean-Claude Biver, 66. The pair had a good laugh on the red carpet and both appeared in high spirits. A good line-up: On the night, he joined a handful of Australian stars including Jodi Anasta and Tag Heuer CEO Jean-Claude Biver, 66 (pictured) Suave: Looking dapper, Chris was dressed in a black suit with a white open-collar shirt Night out: The Thor star appeared in high spirits on the evening as he flashed his dazzling smile That evening, he was also seen sitting down for a chat near the Sydney Opera House with Today's Sylvia Jeffreys. The father of three is known for films including Thor and Snow White and the Huntsman and has recently appeared in director Ron Howard's In The Heart of The Sea. The blonde heartthrob - who hails from Melbourne - has also recently been named a global ambassador for Tourism Australia. He and his actress wife Elsa Pataky jetted Down Under last week from the US. They are now based with their children, India Rose, three, and twins Tristan and Sasha, one, in Byron Bay. He made it: The father of three is known for films including Thor, Snow White and the Huntsman, and has recently appeared in director Ron Howard's In The Heart of The Sea Doing his thing: That evening, he was also seen sitting down for a chat near the Sydney Opera House with Today's Sylvia Jeffreys Doing well: The blonde heartthrob - who hails from Melbourne - has also recently been named a global ambassador for Tourism Australia No jet-lag here! He and his actress wife Elsa Pataky jetted Down Under last week from the US When it comes to taking to the spotlight, she never sets a foot wrong. Continuing her winning streak, Natalie Dormer made a stunning appearance at the Zoolander No.2 premiere, held at Leicester Squares Empire cinema in London on Thursday evening. The 33-year-old - who is famed for playing the racy Margaery Tyrell in Game Of Thrones - looked absolutely incredible in a plunging black gown. Scroll down for video Game Of Style! Natalie Dormer made a stunning appearance at the Zoolander No.2 premiere, held at Leicester Squares Empire cinema in London on Thursday The cleavage-baring ensemble, which boasted mesh panels down the sleeves and a flowing trail, highlighted her slender frame and ample assets perfectly. She wore her golden-tinted tresses I relaxed waves, while enhancing her striking facial features with flawlessly applied makeup. The British beauty joined the movies stars, Penelope Cruz, Kristin Wiig, Ben Stiller, Christine Taylor and Owen Wilson, at the glamorous screening. Racy: The 33-year-old - who is famed for playing Margaery Tyrell in Game Of Thrones - looked absolutely incredible in a plunging black gown A beauty: She wore her golden-tinted tresses I relaxed waves, while enhancing her striking facial features with flawlessly applied makeup Fine form: The cleavage-baring ensemble, which boasted mesh panels down the sleeves and a flowing trail, highlighted her slender frame and ample assets perfectly The UK premiere comes after the cast have already made appearances at screenings in Paris, Madrid, Rome, Berlin and Sydney over the past two weeks. The cast are expected to appear in New York for the US premiere of the comedy next week. Shortly after the screening, guests in the green room were treated to CIROC Blue Steel cocktails. A Limited Edition CIROC Derek Zoolander Blue Steel bottle was designed exclusively in collaboration with photographer Mario Testino. The new film sees Ben reprises his role as top male supermodel Derek Zoolander, with Owen as his best friend and fellow model Hansel McDonald. Beaming: The Hollywood actress radiated a gorgeous glow as she worked her magic in front of the cameras Spotlight ready: The Tudors star is known for her owning her public appearances in beautiful creations Latest venture: Meanwhile, Natalie has spent much of the past year shooting the supernatural horror film The Forest in Belgrade, Serbia Penelope is a new addition to the cast as Valentina Valencia, an Interpol special agent with a penchant for riding motorcycles. The sequel also sees Will Ferrell back as Jacobim Mugatu and Ben's wife Christine Taylor as journalist Matilda Jeffries. Meanwhile, Natalie has spent much of the past year shooting the supernatural horror film The Forest in Belgrade, Serbia. The Forest is set in the Aokigahara Forest in Japan, which is known as the Suicide Forest and follows Natalie's character, Sara who goes there in search of her missing twin sister. Zoolander 2 is released in cinemas on 11 February Her role: The Forest is set in the Aokigahara Forest in Japan, which is known as the Suicide Forest and follows Natalie's character, Sara who goes there in search of her missing twin sister Advertisement She knows how to make the most of her gym-honed physique. And Millie Mackintosh did just that when she hit the blue carpet in a stunning racy black evening dress for the premiere of Zoolander No. 2 on Thursday night. The fitness fanatic, 26, showed off every inch of her flawless figure with the plunging halterneck Balestra Couture gown from WilliamVintage, revealing plenty of cleavage at the Empire cinema in Leicester Square, London. Scroll down for video Stunning! Millie Mackintosh, 26, flaunted her flawless physique when she hit the blue carpet in a stunning racy black evening dress for the premiere of Zoolander No.2 on Thursday night And the body-confident beauty showcased even more of her assets with the low cut of the dress revealing lots of sideboob. The long, flowing garment had a thigh-high split which allowed the former Made in Chelsea star to show off her lithe limbs. Aside from intricate silver patterns adorning her hips, the rest of the dress was plain with a small train following her as she walked. Strutting her stuff: A pair of towering black heels accentuated her endless limbs, and she posed for pictures with self-assured sass A pair of towering black Gina heels accentuated her endless limbs, and she posed for pictures with self-assured sass. Cheeky Millie, who's married to rapper Professor Green, gave the audience a flash of her pert posterior as she lifted up the back of her dress. The reality star was elegance personified and oozed class with her subtle application of make-up. Showing what she's got: Millie was happy to reveal the backs of her gym-honed legs for the cameras All eyes on her: Millie milked her moment in front of the cameras, ensuring her dress was captured under every angle She wore her hair pulled back in a ponytail with some loose tendrils framing her face. Fine contouring emphasized her cheekbones and pink lippy completed her look. Following the premiere, which was sponsored by Ciroc vodka, Millie hopped along to Soho to attend the InStyle EE Rising Star party at new restaurant 100 Wardour St. With her choice of outfit, it looked like Millie was out to steal the spotlight from the film's A-list stars Penelope Cruz, Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Will Ferrell and Kristen Wiig. The Spanish actress looked stunning as ever in a slinky, metallic Atelier Versace gown with thigh-high split and towering high-heeled sandals. Return of the Mack: The reality star was elegance personified and oozed class with her subtle application of make-up Black and white: Portia joined Millie on the blue carpet in a contrasting white gown While Penelope had gone for a floor-length number, her co-star Kristin showed some skin in a strapless black dress with oversized orange bow. Leading man Ben looked smart in a dark trouser suit as he joined his wife and co-star Christine, who looked lovely in a black and red dress with sheer detailing. The UK premiere comes after the cast have already made appearances at screenings in Paris, Madrid, Rome, Berlin and Sydney over the past two weeks. Strutting her stuff: A pair of towering black heels accentuated her endless limbs, and she posed for pictures with self-assured sass Star quality: As she turned to the side to strike a pose her star tattoos were clearly visible Ladies in black: Millie cosied up to cook Gizzi Erskine and fashion blogger Doina Ciobanu, who wore a very revealing dress Smoulder: With a dress like that, no wonder Millie wanted to be seen in as many parties as possible The cast are expected to appear in New York for the US premiere of the comedy next week. The new film sees Ben reprises his role as top male supermodel Derek Zoolander, with Owen as his best friend and fellow model Hansel McDonald. Penelope is a new addition to the cast as Valentina Valencia, an Interpol special agent with a penchant for riding motorcycles. Hot metal: Penelope Cruz looked stunning in a metallic gown as she attended the UK premiere of Zoolander No.2 in London on Thursday night Tie me up, tie me down: Kristin Wiig showed off her figure in a black strapless gown with sweetheart neckline and oversized orange bow Mr and Mrs: The film's leading man, writer and director Ben Stiller attended with his real-life wife and co-star Christine Taylor The sequel also sees Will Ferrell back as Jacobim Mugatu and Ben's wife Christine Taylor as journalist Matilda Jeffries. Speaking in Australia last week, Ben admitted the long delay between the first film and the sequel had been down to the death of the original movie's co-writer Drake Sather, who died in 2004. Ben told the Sydney Morning Herald: 'As time went by, I think that's when it started to feel like, OK, there's a way to approach this but almost out of respect I felt like I couldn't just jump back into it. Here come the boys: Owen Wilson (left) Is back as male model Hansel McDonald, while Justin Theroux has co-written the screenplay The gang's all here: Penelope joins her co-stars on the blue carpet as they toasted the film's UK premiere Show us your best blue steel: Ben gathers his co-stars and premiere guests on the red carpet as they attempt to break the record for the world's longest selfie stick photo Hey up there! The photographic evidence of the world's longest ever selfie stick photograph 'Drake was one of the funniest, incredibly sardonic, smart stand-up comedians on the scene. 'So for me, when we finally got around to making [the sequel], I felt like there just had to be a sense of acknowledgment that the character in the movie wouldn't exist without his talent.' Zoolander 2 is released in cinemas on 11 February. Showing some skin: Game Of Thrones star Natalie Dormer took the plunge in a very low-cut black gown as she attended the screening All that glitters: Dutch model Lara Stone showed off her fabulous legs in a mirrored strapless mini dress and towering peep-toe heels Silver siren: Supermodel Jourdan Dunn looked fabulous in a Ralph And Russo dress with feathered bodice and sequinned pencil skirt Strike a pose: TV and radio presenter Myleene Klass pulled the 'fish gape' pose as she sidled on to the blue carpet in a pink PVC skirt and daring sheer top with plunging neckline Hands up: Millie arrived at the event with her model pal Portia Freeman She may not have been one of the silver screen stars of Zoolander No.2 but she was the real-deal catwalk queen of the night. Model Lara Stone dazzled on Thursday night, proving that Blue Steel was definitely in her blood as she headed to the Zoolander No. 2 afterparty, hosted by Ciroc, at Londons W Hotel on Thursday. Posing up a storm as she led the star-studded crowd, the statuesque beauty looked absolutely incredible in sparkling silver. Scroll down for video Catwalk queen! Lara Stone dazzled on Thursday night, as she headed to the Zoolander No. 2 afterparty, hosted by Ciroc, at Londons W Hotel on Thursday The former wife of British television personality David Walliams, looked extremely leggy in her tiny metallic sass & bide Silver Lining Gallery dress. The 32-year-old further elongated her 5ft 8in figure in towering heels, making the blue carpet walk look like light work. She showed male models Derek Zoolander and Hansel McDonald, played by Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson in the high-fashion sequel, a few things about posing as she joined the cast. Strutting her stuff: Posing up a storm as she led the star-studded crowd, the statuesque beauty looked absolutely incredible in sparkling silver Bold move: The former wife of British television personality David Walliams, looked extremely leggy in a tiny metallic dress Razzle dazzle em: Earlier on, she hit the red carpet for the London premiere of Zoolander No. 2 Model body: Lara was looking lithe in the tiny minidress with towering heels for maxmium height Silver star: She may not have been a silver screen star, but she was certainly sparkling Shortly after the screening, guests in the green room were treated to CIROC Blue Steel cocktails. A Limited Edition CIROC Derek Zoolander Blue Steel bottle was designed exclusively in collaboration with photographer Mario Testino. The follow up film sees Derek and Hansel finally on the inside of the industry and is known to feature cameos from Cara Delevingne and Justin Bieber. The UK premiere comes after the cast have already made appearances at screenings in Paris, Madrid, Rome, Berlin and Sydney over the past two weeks. Little help: Her dress needed a little extra adjusting as she walked the red carpet Awkward: The star negotiated her towering height as well as her dress in front of the cameras Fancy that: The leggy model was joined by fashion photographer Mario Testino High taste: Shortly after the screening, guests in the green room were treated to CIROC Blue Steel cocktails The cast are expected to appear in New York for the US premiere of the comedy next week. The new film sees Penelope Cruz as a new addition to the cast as Valentina Valencia, an Interpol special agent with a penchant for riding motorcycles. The sequel also sees Will Ferrell back as Jacobim Mugatu and Ben's wife Christine Taylor as journalist Matilda Jeffries. Zoolander 2 is released in cinemas on 11 February A beauty: Charlotte Tilbury was one of the many stars who attended the glitzy afterparty What a treat: Kimberly Wyatt seen enjoying some of the tasty CIROC Blue Steel cocktails Fine form: The former Pussycat Doll star looked fabulous in a chic off-white number and matching heels Biggest ever trade deal signed as US seeks to counter China The biggest trade deal in history was signed Thursday, yoking 12 Pacific rim countries in a US-led initiative aimed at wresting influence from booming China. The ambitious Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) aims to slash tariffs and trade barriers for an enormous 40 percent of the global economy -- but pointedly does not include Beijing. "TPP allows America -- and not countries like China -- to write the rules of the road in the 21st century," US President Barack Obama said after the pact was signed in New Zealand. Demonstrators and police come face to face as they close down streets in Auckland to protest against the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement on February 3, 2016 Michael Bradley (AFP) The deal -- whose birth was fraught by domestic opposition in the US and in other key players, such as Japan -- is a key plank of Obama's so-called "pivot" to Asia, as he seeks to counter the rising power of China. Along with a rebalancing of the US military machine towards the western Pacific, the TPP is recognition of the growing might of China, which has come to dominate the region, threatening American influence. Supporters of the deal say harnessing the power of free trade in such a dynamic part of the world is vital if the US is to fend off China's challenge to its supremacy. Trade ministers from 12 participating countries -- Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam -- signed the pact in Auckland early Thursday. Beijing was muted in its reaction to the deal, saying its officials were studying the 6,000-page document. A commerce ministry statement said China would "actively participate in and facilitate highly transparent, open and inclusive free trade arrangements in the region". Despite Obama's comments, the US has also sought to play down any overt anti-China rhetoric. US trade representative Michael Froman, in Auckland, said the agreement was "never directed against" any specific country and "it's important to have a constructive economic relationship" with China. Although the signing marks the end of the negotiating process, member states still have two years to get the deal approved at home before it becomes legally binding. "We will encourage all countries to complete their domestic ratification processes as quickly as possible," New Zealand Prime Minister John Key said. "TPP will provide much better access for goods and services to more than 800 million people across the TPP countries, which make up 36 percent of global GDP." However, ratification may prove far from easy, notably in the United States, where poisonous election-year politics are likely to stymie co-operation over a deal opponents have spun as a job killer. "It's highly unlikely (ratification) before the national elections in November," Tom Switzer of the University of Sydney's US Studies Centre told AFP. "In an election year, free trade is not a popular cause, and there are a lot of constituencies in both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party who are very much opposed to free trade or any kind of trade deal." In Japan -- the second biggest economy in the bloc, and one that was a relative latecomer to the process -- mainstream politicians and economists have generally supported the TPP as positive for Tokyo's export-driven growth even amid concerns over its impact on its prized agriculture industry. The Canadian government, which has changed since the deal was negotiated, signed up Thursday but has yet to decide whether to go through with ratification. While the 12 trade ministers were shaking hands in Auckland, thousands of protesters clogged the streets outside to voice their opposition. They argue the TPP will cost jobs and impact on sovereignty in Asia-Pacific states. American economist and Nobel Prize winner Joseph Stiglitz believes the TPP "may turn out to be the worst trade agreement in decades. "In 2016, we should hope for the TPP's defeat and the beginning of a new era of trade agreements that don't reward the powerful and punish the weak," he recently wrote in The Guardian newspaper. Factfile on the 12 nations of the Trans-Pacific Partnership New Zealand Prime Minister John Key (C) and Ministerial Representatives from 12 countries pose for a photo after signing the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement in Auckland on February 4, 2016 Michael Bradley (AFP) An activist holds up an American flag as demonstrators close down streets in Auckland to protest against the signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement on February 4, 2016 Michael Bradley (AFP) US accuses Damascus, Moscow of seeking military solution in Syria US Secretary of State John Kerry accused Moscow and Damascus of seeking a military solution to the war in Syria rather than a political one, after peace talks were suspended. Kerry's strongly worded remarks came hours after the peace talks were suspended and as the Kremlin, a staunch ally of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, vowed there would be no let-up in its controversial air campaign. "The continued assault by Syrian regime forces -- enabled by Russian air strikes -- against opposition-held areas, as well as regime and allied militias continued besiegement of hundreds of thousands of civilians, have clearly signaled the intention to seek a military solution rather than enable a political one," Kerry said in a statement. Syrian regime forces fire towards Islamic State (IS) jihadists south of the town of Al-Bab, in the northern province of Aleppo on January 14, 2016 George Ourfalian (AFP/File) The United States and France had earlier condemned the Russian bombing around Syria's second city of Aleppo and Kerry again called for an immediate end to the bombardment. "It is past time for them to meet existing obligations and restore the international communitys confidence in their intentions of supporting a peaceful resolution to the Syrian crisis," Kerry said, addressing the Syrian regime "and its supporters." He added: "During this pause (in the talks), the world needs to push in one direction -- toward stopping the oppression and suffering of the Syrian people and ending, not prolonging, this conflict." South Korea slams North rocket launch, vows to destroy any threat South Korean President Park Geun-Hye on Thursday said a planned rocket launch by North Korea could "never be tolerated," as her defence ministry vowed to shoot down any missile that threatened its territory. Pyongyang has announced it will launch a satellite-bearing rocket sometime between February 8-25, which is around the time of the birthday on February 16 of late leader Kim Jong-Il, father of current leader Kim Jong-Un. UN sanctions prohibit North Korea from any use of ballistic missile technology, and such a launch would amount to another major violation of Security Council resolutions following its fourth nuclear test last month. People watch a news report on North Korea's planned rocket launch as file footage from North Korea's 2012 launch of the Unha-3 rocket plays on a TV screen at a railway station in Seoul on February 3, 2016 Jung Yeon-Je (AFP) "The fact that North Korea said it will launch a long-range missile following its nuclear test is a threat to peace on the Korean peninsula and to the world, and should never be tolerated," Park said. The North insists its space programme is purely scientific in nature, but the United States and allies like South Korea say its rocket launches are aimed at developing an inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of striking the US mainland. South Korean officials routinely refer to them as "long-range missiles" rather than space rockets. The planned launch poses a dilemma for the international community, which is already struggling to find a united response to the North's January 6 nuclear test. -- Harsher sanctions -- North Korea is already subject to numerous UN sanctions over previous nuclear and rocket tests, and Park said its continued provocative behaviour showed these had been ineffective. The only solution, she argued, was to impose sanctions harsh enough "to make it realise that it will not survive unless it gives up its nuclear programme." Earlier in the day, the defence ministry in Seoul said it had issued orders to destroy any missile that might stray over South Korean territory. "The military is ramping up its air defence readiness so it can intercept a missile or any debris that lands in our territory or waters," ministry spokesman Moon Sang-Gyun told reporters. Japan has issued a similar "destroy" order for any North Korean projectile that infringes on its territory. Japan's public broadcaster NHK reported Thursday that North Korea may be preparing a ballistic missile test from a base on its east coast in addition to the rocket launch. Citing diplomatic sources it did not identify, NHK reported that it has been "confirmed that a mobile launch pad in North Korea's eastern coastal area was on the move." As a ballistic missile is on the launch pad, it is possible that Pyongyang is preparing a launch there, the report added. NHK did not say whether it was a long- or short-range missile. South Korea's defence ministry said it was unable to confirm the report. Factfile on North Korea's missiles Toshiba increases annual loss forecast to $6.0 bn amid accounting scandal Toshiba said Thursday it has expanded its full-year loss forecast to an eye-watering $6.0 billion, as one of Japan's best-known firms accounts for an embarrassing profit-padding scandal. Toshiba -- a vast conglomerate that makes everything from rice cookers to nuclear plants -- also pointed to a global economic slowdown, saying it was taking a big bite out of results across the company, including memory chip and computer sales. Its new loss forecast of 710 billion yen ($6.0 billion) for the fiscal year to March -- well up from an earlier 550 billion yen ($4.6 billion) net loss -- came as Toshiba said it lost 479.4 billion yen in the nine months to December, reversing a profit from a year earlier. Toshiba's new loss forecast of 710 billion yen for the fiscal year to March came as the company said it lost 479.4 billion yen in the nine months to December Yoshikazu Tsuno (AFP/File) The disappointing figures come after Toshiba announced last month it was inflating a damages claim against a group of former executives by a whopping tenfold in the wake of its accounting scandal. The company said it was now seeking around $27 million from five former top managers including three presidents for their role in the fraud. Japan's market watchdog last month slapped the firm with a record $60 million fine over the affair, which saw the company inflate profits by about $1.2 billion since the 2008 global financial crisis. A company-hired panel found top executives had pressured underlings systematically to inflate profit figures to hide poor results. North Korea leader chairs meet on abuse of power North Korea leader Kim Jong-Un has presided over a top-level meeting to discuss corruption and abuses of power by ruling party officials, state media said Thursday. In an unusual acknowledgement of systemic problems within the Worker's Party of Korea (WKP), the meeting identified a series of issues that needed urgent attention, the North's official KCNA news agency said. "It criticised mainly the practices of seeking privileges, misuse of authority, abuse of power and bureaucratism manifested in the party," it said. North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un delivers a speech at the Ministry of the People's Armed Forces in Pyongyang Solutions for "overcoming" such challenges were put forward, the agency said, without elaborating. The meeting brought together members of the WKP's central committee and those of another senior party committee that deals with military affairs. Kim opened the meeting and made a closing address, KCNA said. Corruption is believed to be endemic to nearly every stratum of North Korean society, where bribes are often required for everything from career advancement to access to basic foods and medicine. Last year, North Korea was ranked bottom -- with Somalia -- in the annual Corruption Perception Index compiled by Transparency International, which described the North's showing as "predictably disastrous." The North Korean media offers little coverage of corruption as a general issue, only raising it in individual cases, such as the 2013 purge of Kim's powerful uncle Jang Song-Thaek. US demands end to Russia strikes after Syria talks collapse The United States demanded Thursday that Russia immediately halt its bombing campaign in Syria after a bitter breakdown in peace talks exposed the deep rift between world powers aiming to end the five-year conflict. On the ground, nearly 40,000 people have fled an offensive this week by President Bashar al-Assad's regime north of the city of Aleppo, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor. Assad's forces also entered two Shiite villages that were under siege by rebels, prompting what state news agency SANA called "mass celebrations" in the streets of Nubol and Zahraa. US Secretary of State John Kerry addresses delegates at a donor conference entitled 'Supporting Syria & The Region' at the QEII Centre in central London on February 4, 2016 Nicholas Kamm (AFP) International donors were meeting in London on the Syria crisis just hours after the peace talks in Geneva were suspended Wednesday until February 25, with UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura saying "more work" was needed. The talks had been tipped as the most important push so far to end Syria's brutal conflict, which has killed more than 260,000 people and forced half the country's people from their homes since March 2011. Russia has been supporting the Assad regime with air strikes since September which it says are targeted at "terrorist organisations" such as the Islamic State group. US Secretary of State John Kerry warned Moscow to halt its bombing of the Syrian opposition in what he said was a "robust" phone call with Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov. "We discussed, and we agreed, that we need to discuss how to implement the ceasefire," he said, adding he and Lavrov would speak again later Thursday or on Friday. The Russian foreign ministry said Kerry and Lavrov had agreed to do everything possible to make the break in peace talks "as short as possible." French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius accused Syria and Russia of "torpedoing the peace efforts" with the offensive. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said the pause in the talks showed "just how deep, how difficult the divisions are". - 'Eating grass to survive' - The suspension of the talks came as donors gathered in the British capital aiming to raise billions of dollars in aid for Syria and to help its neighbours cope with millions of people who have taken refuge on their soil. Co-host British Prime Minister David Cameron urged a political transition away from Assad "however difficult that may be". Britain pledged 1.2 billion (1.6 million euros, $1.74 billion) to be spent between 2016 and 2020 on what Cameron called "the world's biggest humanitarian crisis". German Chancellor Angela Merkel, under growing pressure over her open door policy for refugees amid Europe's biggest such crisis since World War II, pledged 2.3 billion euros. And Kerry announced $890 million from the United States. "If people are reduced to eating grass and leaves and killing stray animals in order to survive, that's something that should tear at the conscience of all civilised people," he said. Some 4.6 million Syrians have fled to nearby countries -- Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt -- while hundreds of thousands have journeyed to Europe. Jordan's King Abdullah II told the conference his country of around 6.5 million people had "reached our limit" after taking nearly 1.3 million refugees. Lebanon's Education Minister Elias Bou Saab told BBC radio that his nation of four million people had taken 1.5 million Syrian refugees and was dealing with an "earthquake". Up to 70,000 more people from camps near Aleppo are now moving towards Turkey as a result of the recent aerial bombardments, according to Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu. "My mind is not now in London but on our border (and) how to relocate these new people coming from Syria," he told the conference. As well as drumming up aid, the meeting aims to allow more refugees to work in their host countries and boost their education. The UN is appealing for nearly $8 billion, while regional governments are seeking an extra $1.2 billion. Organisers have already agreed that participants should at least "double" their contributions from 2015, when they raised $3.3 billion. - Problems from the start - The Geneva initiative aimed to coax both sides into six months of indirect "proximity talks" under a November roadmap but there were problems from the start. The opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC) arrived reluctantly and several days late, insisting on immediate steps to allow aid to get through to besieged cities, a halt to the bombardment of civilians and the release of thousands of prisoners. Munzer Makhous from the HNC told AFP on Thursday that the pause in the talks was "the right decision" and called on the United States to help create "a balance" between the opposing delegations to avoid failure in a fresh round. "There needs to be pressure from the Americans on the Russians," he said in Geneva, hours before the HNC delegation was due to leave the Swiss city. "The balance needs to change, at least so it can be equal between the government and the opposition so each side can then make compromises," he added. Syrian regime advances on besieged Aleppo villages Syrian forces have broken a siege on the villages of Nubol and Zahraa as they press with their offensive on northern Aleppo province George Ourfalian (AFP) Millions of Syrians have been displaced by the bitter conflict which has also killed more than 260,000 people since March 2011 Amer Almohibany (AFP) (L-R) Norwegian PM Erna Solberg, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Kuwaiti emir Sheilh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah and British PM David Cameron listen as UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon during the Syria donor conference in London on February 4, 2016 Dan Kitwood (Pool/AFP) International donors are seeking $9 billion in aid to help Syria and its neighbours cope with millions of refugees Delil Souleiman (AFP) Russia regrets suspension of Syria talks: Kremlin Russia said Thursday it regretted the suspension of Syrian peace talks and expressed hope the negotiations could continue after the West accused Moscow of seeking a military solution to the war. "One can express regret in this regard but no one expected that everything will be simple and quick," President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. He said that the Kremlin hoped that it would "soon" become clear when and how the talks would resume. UN Syria envoy Staffan de Mistura has led efforts to start peace talks in Geneva Fabrice Coffrini (AFP) "It is unlikely that someone expected immediate results from the first round. This would probably be short-sighted," Peskov said. "Of course it is obvious that moving forward will be difficult and we are hoping that the break will be followed by another round of these truly difficult talks." UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura announced Wednesday the suspension of peace talks to end Syria's civil war as President Bashar al-Assad's regime secured a major battlefield victory against rebels and Russia vowed no let-up in air strikes. The United States and France condemned the Russian bombing around Syria's second city of Aleppo. The Syrian opposition has been outraged by Moscow's determination to press ahead with its bombing campaign during peace talks and accused Russia of targeting civilians. But Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Wednesday that air strikes would continue until "terrorist organisations" including the Islamic State (IS) group in Syria are defeated. Russia's defence ministry said earlier that a military adviser had been killed in Syria by IS shelling. Kerry demands Russia halt Syria bombing after talks suspended US Secretary of State John Kerry demanded Thursday that Russia stop bombing the Syrian opposition, implicitly blaming Moscow for the collapse in peace talks. Speaking in London ahead of a conference on the Syrian humanitarian effort, Kerry said he had called Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov for a "robust" discussion. In Geneva on Wednesday, UN envoy Staffan de Mistura suspended attempts to begin a dialogue between Bashar al-Assad's regime and the Syrian opposition. US Secretary of State John Kerry has called on Moscow to stop bombing the Syrian opposition Alberto Pizzoli (AFP/File) Alongside Britain's Foreign Minister Phillip Hammond, Kerry read out sections of UN Security Council resolution 2254, passed in December, calling for an immediate ceasefire. "Russia has a responsibility, as do all parties, to live up to it," he said. "So I had a conversation this morning with Foreign Minister Lavrov. We discussed, and we agreed, that we need to discuss how to implement the ceasefire." Kerry also said that both parties to the conflict -- the rebels as well as the regime and its allies -- must allow access to besieged areas for humanitarian aid. "So we had a robust discussion this morning about that. We will be continuing the discussion," Kerry said. "Foreign Minister Lavrov and I will talk again today or tomorrow as we further this process and find the way forward to be able to implement this resolution fully." - Keeping up 'momentum' - The Russian foreign ministry said the ministers had agreed to do everything possible to make the break in Syrian peace talks "as short as possible." According to the Moscow read-out, Lavrov also voiced concern about "unacceptable" preliminary conditions being put forward by "some representatives" of the Syrian opposition. Moscow added that the two top diplomats -- who are set to meet for talks in Munich on February 11 -- agreed to coordinate possible steps to bring humanitarian aid to affected areas by air. As part of a contact group known as the International Syria Support Group, Russia and the United States worked together to get the warring parties to the table in Geneva. But, while Washington and its ally Saudi Arabia remain close to the opposition, Moscow has continued to take Assad's side and its aircraft bomb opposition targets daily. This has contributed to the mood of distrust at the talks, and the United Nations has proved unable to get the sides into serious negotiations on a political settlement. "Staffan de Mistura has temporarily interrupted the talks in order to try to resolve some of the issues regarding the next steps," Kerry explained. After a breakfast meeting with a small group of European and Middle Eastern powers, Kerry and Hammond headed into a donors conference to raise money to aid Syrian civilians. Hammond said the day's focus would be on funding for the refugee crisis and the eventual rebuilding of Syria, but that delegates would not forget about the peace process. "We're all very keen to keep momentum in that dialogue," the British minister told reporters. "We recognise that it's difficult for the regime to be at the table, talking to the opposition," he said. "And it's difficult for the opposition to talk to the regime when their people at home are being killed." Kerry said he had called Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (pictured) for a "robust" discussion While Washington and its ally Saudi Arabia remain close to the opposition, Moscow has continued to take Assad's side and its aircraft bomb opposition targets daily Paul Gypteau (AFP/File) Russia urges N.Korea to avoid escalating tensions with rocket launch Russia urged North Korea on Thursday to avoid escalating tensions with a planned rocket launch, expressing "grave concern" over the announcement. The Russian foreign ministry said in a statement that it had summoned the North Korean ambassador in Moscow over Pyongyang's announcement that it will launch a satellite-bearing rocket sometime between February 8-25. Moscow said it had issued an "urgent appeal to refrain from actions that could further escalate tensions in the region" and called for "unconditional observance of the relevant United Nations Security Council Resolutions". A man watches a news report at a railway station in Seoul on February 3, 2016 on North Korea's planned rocket launch as the screen shows file footage of North Korea's Unha-3 rocket which launched in 2012 Jung Yeon-Je (AFP) It urged North Korea to return to talks over its nuclear programme and other issues. North Korea has notified three UN agencies that it plans to launch an earth observation satellite as early as Monday, just weeks after carrying out its fourth nuclear test. The call from Russia, which last year said it would strengthen military ties with Pyongyang, joins a global chorus of warning against the launch. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday called it a "deeply troubling development." Two Israelis jailed for burning Palestinian teen alive A court sentenced two young Israelis to life and 21 years in prison Thursday for the 2014 burning alive of a Palestinian teenager. The sentencing came amid a wave of Palestinian stabbings, shootings and car-rammings that erupted in October, including an attack in Jerusalem on Wednesday that killed a policewoman. The two Israelis sentenced were minors at the time of the chilling attack in which they and a third man snatched Mohammed Abu Khdeir, 16, from an east Jerusalem street then killed him. Relatives of Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdeir who was killed in 2014, hold posters bearing his portrait outside the Jerusalem district court during a hearing on February 4, 2016 Ahmad Gharabli (AFP) The youngest of the three -- given 21 years -- was said to have psychiatric problems and found to have remained in the car when Abu Khdeir was killed. Israeli settler Yosef Haim Ben-David, 31, is said to have led the assault but his lawyers say he suffers from mental illness and was not responsible for his actions at the time. The court has found that he committed the crime but is yet to rule if he is mentally competent. The two others were 16 when they killed Abu Khdeir in 2014 but are now 18. The court, which has not identified them because they were minors at the time, noted they were from ultra-Orthodox Jewish families. Abu Khdeir's mother, Suha, screamed when the sentences were announced in the packed courtroom. Both she and her husband Hussein criticised the decision to jail one of the Israelis to 21 years. He called for their homes to be demolished, as Israel regularly does for Palestinian attackers. "This is the life of Mohammed we are talking about," Suha Abu Khdeir said. "He did not deserve this." The Jerusalem District Attorney's office said that it had requested life imprisonment for the two but it hoped the sentences given would deter others. "The terrible tragedy that befell the family of the boy Mohammed Abu Khdeir cannot be reversed, but the verdict given today conveys a message to society's aversion to such acts," it said in a statement. - Revenge plot - Abu Khdeir's killing was part of a spiral of violence that led to a 50-day war in the Gaza Strip in summer 2014. He was kidnapped from Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem on July 2, 2014 and beaten, with his burned body found hours later in a forest in the western part of the city. A forensic report showed smoke in his lungs, indicating he was alive when set alight. It was seen as revenge for the killing of Israelis Naftali Frenkel, Gilad Shaer and Eyal Yifrach, who were abducted from a hitchhiking stop near the flashpoint West Bank city of Hebron. Israeli authorities said the suspects had decided to kill an Arab in revenge and equipped themselves with cable ties, petrol and other materials before randomly choosing Abu Khdeir. The court's actions came with tensions once again high. On Thursday, Israeli forces locked down the West Bank hometown of Palestinians who killed a 19-year-old policewoman and wounded another in Jerusalem on Wednesday, an attack analysts called an escalation after months of violence. The three Palestinians from Qabatiya near Jenin, believed to be 19 to 20 years old, were shot dead during the attack outside Jerusalem's Old City in which the border policewoman was shot in the head. Israeli authorities said the three assailants were armed with guns, knives and explosives, indicating they intended to carry out a major attack. - 'Widespread arrests' - The surviving officer was stabbed and is in a "moderate and stable" condition, the hospital said. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited her Thursday and spoke of intensified security measures. "Qabatiya is cordoned off. The (security forces) are carrying out widespread arrests," he said. "We have revoked very many permits to work in Israel and the attorney general informed me yesterday that he has slated several more terrorists' homes to be sealed and demolished." Residents and Palestinian police said all entrances to Qabatiya were locked down. Clashes also broke out between stone-throwing residents and soldiers. A 15-year-old was taken to hospital after being hit by an Israeli jeep and four people were wounded by Israeli gunfire, said Palestinian medics. The wave of violence since October has killed 26 Israelis, as well as an American and an Eritrean, according to an AFP count. At the same time, 164 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces, most while carrying out attacks but others during clashes and demonstrations. The violence continued on Thursday, when two 13-year-old Arab Israeli girls stabbed and lightly wounded a security guard at a bus station in Ramle, in central Israel. The two were arrested. Suha, the mother of Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdeir who was killed in 2014, reacts in a courtroom after the sentences were announced on February 4, 2016 at the Jerusalem district court Ahmad Gharabli (AFP) Israeli Yosef Haim Ben-David (C), who was charged along with two minors for the abduction and murder of Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdeir, is escorted by Israeli policemen at the district court in Jerusalem on December 20, 2016 Ahmad Gharabli (AFP/File) Russia strikes kill 21 civilians in Syria's Aleppo city: monitor At least 21 civilians, including three children, were killed Thursday in Russian strikes on rebel-held districts of Syria's Aleppo city, a monitor said. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the strikes on six neighbourhoods of the northern city had also wounded many, and that the toll could rise. The raids come as government forces press an offensive north of the city, backed by Russian warplanes, to encircle rebels in the east of Aleppo city. Syrian men inspect a damaged vehicle in the rubble following a reported air strike by Syrian government forces on the Sukkari neighbourhood of Syria's northern city of Aleppo, on January 16, 2016 Karam Al-Masri (AFP/File) Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman said it was first time his organisation had been able to confirm Russian air strikes on Aleppo city since Moscow began its intervention on September 30. Until now Russian strikes had been concentrated on Aleppo province, he said. Aleppo city has been divided between rebel control in the east and government control in the west since shortly after fighting there began in mid-2012. French culture minister woos Hollywood studios France is making a push this week to reel in blockbuster movie productions, pitching a new tax rebate for foreign productions to the heads of Hollywood studios. Eyeing dollar signs and publicity, countries around the globe are keen to attract big budget films to their patch -- and competition is fierce. "The financial stakes are high since there is a direct and an indirect impact ... for every euro spent on a shoot, three euros go toward social security, VAT (value-added tax) and so on," French Culture Minister Fleur Pellerin told AFP in an interview. Fleur Pellerin, French Minister of Culture and Communications, pictured at La Residence de France on February 3, 2016 in Beverly Hills, California, is pitching a new tax rebate for foreign productions to the heads of Hollywood studios Kevin Winter (Getty/AFP) "But beyond that, scenes shot in France will make people want to come see these landscapes and that has an impact on the local economy," she added. On January 1, France raised its tax rebate for international productions from 20 to 30 percent. It is now also available for big movie projects -- not just ones with budgets of up to $4 million. "We had some interesting tax credits for medium-sized productions," Pellerin said, adding that she would "now also like to attract shoots with budgets of $80 million to $100 million." The new incentive already seems to have garnered some positive reactions from possible contenders. "I just met with Lionsgate who told me that the tax credit hike was very interesting," Pellerin said of one studio. Pellerin said that France had a higher tax rebate scheme than London's 25 percent and that it was now more competitive than Belgium and Luxembourg. Certain Eastern European countries, however, do better in the sense that they do not have a tax rebate ceiling. France's ceiling is 30 million euros. With its move, Paris hopes to reverse a worrying development -- while the production of French feature films reached a record 189 last year, it came with the exodus of 36 percent of shoots, particularly big budget ones. Pellerin said the effect of the hike was "already being felt." "Some directors were going to shoot abroad and are now going to do so in France," she said. "Among American studios, there are decisions on shooting that will be taken and could be now be done in France," she added. This year, acclaimed director Christopher Nolan of "The Dark Knight" fame is to film parts of his World War II film "Dunkirk" in northern France. And according to Variety, the film industry's magazine of reference, Neil Jordan, who won an Oscar for "The Crying Game," will shoot the crime series "Riviera" in the south of France. Competition for film shoots is also fierce within the United States. Last year, California boosted its tax incentives in an attempt to make Los Angeles more attractive following a 20-year decline in film shootings in the face of competition from foreign locales or US destinations such as Georgia, Louisiana, New Mexico and New York. Still, despite the tax breaks, shootings stagnated in Los Angeles last year. During her US trip, Pellerin will also be meeting "streaming" giants Netflix and Amazon. Actor Fiennes defends Jackson role in race row Joseph Fiennes has defended his decision to play Michael Jackson in an upcoming comedy, despite a furore over the casting of a white British actor in the role of an American black superstar. Fiennes told AFPTV on Thursday that he was "shocked" at being chosen for the role, but insisted he had no qualms about taking on "a wonderful role" in what was "just a satire." Fiennes plays Jackson in the upcoming "Elizabeth, Michael and Marlon," a short and surreal comedy produced by British pay-TV channel Sky Arts which imagines Jackson, Elizabeth Taylor and Marlon Brando taking a road trip together in the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 attacks on New York. British actor Joseph Fiennes while promoting the movie "Risen" on February 3, 2016 in Rome Alberto Pizzoli (AFP) "Sky Arts who are dedicated to half-hour comedies this year have commissioned a series of comedies, one of which surrounds the road-trip of Michael Jackson, Elizabeth Taylor and Marlon Brando," Fiennes told AFPTV in Rome. "I was shocked that they would come to me for the casting. You have to ask them as to why they would want to cast me." The decision to give Fiennes the role has triggered suggestions that mainstream media have learned nothing from the row over the lack of black candidates for the major Oscar acting awards this year, for the second straight year. But he suggested critics getting worked up about his casting were overplaying the importance of the piece. "I felt this was a wonderful challenge, I read the script and it's very funny. "It's a satire, it's just a 20-minute satire. It's a sketch about a story that could have been a legend or could have been true. So we'll see what the audience make of it." - 'Blubbered like a baby' - Fiennes was in Rome to promote his latest film, "Risen", in which he plays a Roman officer investigating the disappearance of Jesus Christ's body after his crucifixion - the point at which Christian tradition maintains he was resurrected. The film has been given the blessing of the Vatican and Fiennes and his Swiss model wife Maria Dolores Dieguez met Pope Francis on Wednesday. The actor is a fan of the Argentinian pontiff, his low-key, modest style and his efforts to modernise the Church. "I like what he represents," he said. "I feel it's something tangible to me in the modern age. He's a man who carries his own suitcase. He's a man that doesn't want the pomp and the ceremony. He's stripping it down. "I don't know if that's his Jesuit roots, but I like that he's challenging, especially in today's world. I think it's wonderful that he represents an authenticity that speaks to the people. So he's an important man, he's deeply connected in a spiritual way." And Fiennes, best known for playing England's most famous playwright in 1998 movie "Shakespeare in Love," admitted that experiencing Francis's charisma at close hand had been an emotional experience. "I tried to maintain a face that was calm and cool but I blubbered like a baby," he said. "I don't know what it is, he's authentic!" British actor Joseph Fiennes (R) poses with Argentinian actress Maria Botto on February 3, 2016 to promote his latest film, "Risen", in which he plays a Roman officer investigating the disappearance of Jesus Christ's body after his crucifixion Alberto Pizzoli (AFP) British actor Joseph Fiennes poses with his wife Maria Dolores Dieguez and their children in St Peter's square before Pope Francis weekly general audience on February 3, 2016 at the Vatican Tiziana Fabi (AFP) Dauman named chairman at Viacom, Redstone exits US entertainment giant Viacom said Thursday that Philippe Dauman would take on the role of executive chairman as 92-year-old Sumner Redstone steps aside. The announcement comes a day after Redstone gave up his job as chairman at CBS Corp. and ends a period of uncertainty at the leadership of the two media giants controlled by Redstone and his family. Redstone will hold the title of chairman emeritus at Viacom, as well as at CBS. Philippe Dauman, pictured at the NASDAQ on April 22, 2013, will take on the role of executive chairman of Viacom Simon Russell (Getty/AFP/File) Dauman adds the title of executive chairman to the roles of president and chief executive, jobs he has held since 2006 at the conglomerate which operates Paramount studios in Hollywood as well as a range of television operations including Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and MTV channels. "Philippe has been instrumental with Sumner in every aspect of Viacom's success for nearly 30 years and most recently as CEO has taken on the tough task of navigating our future in a time of unprecedented innovation and disruption," said William Schwartz, who headed the board's nominating committee. "He has laid out a strategic long-term vision for the company that we fully endorse. We have complete confidence that his dedication to Viacom, his global experience and his determination to further our culture of creativity and innovation will continue to serve the interests of all shareholders and build long-term value." Redstone's fragile health and uncertainty about who would take over from him had caused shareholder anxiety at CBS and Viacom. Both companies -- in which Redstone and his family hold controlling stakes -- are facing threats from the shift of viewers to Internet-based on-demand services such as Netflix, Amazon and Hulu. Redstone has appeared frail in recent years, and his health was the subject of a court complaint filed by an ex-girlfriend who claimed he was unable to even make his own health care decisions. Manuela Herzer has portrayed the billionaire tycoon in court documents as a "living ghost" obsessed with sex and steak, who is out of touch with his surroundings. Redstone's daughter Shari said on Wednesday that even though her father's trust calls for her to succeed him as non-executive chairman at both firms, she chose to nominate Moonves at CBS to have "a leader with an independent voice." On Thursday, a spokeswoman said only that Shari Redstone would "continue to advocate for what she believes to be in the best interests of Viacom shareholders." Sumner Redstone led a 1987 hostile takeover of Viacom that pushed him into the national spotlight. Viacom in 2000 acquired CBS, but the two firms later split. Smirking Shkreli clashes with US congressional panel Pharmaceutical "bad boy" Martin Shkreli invoked his constitutional right against self-incrimination Thursday in a brief, contentious appearance before a US congressional panel. Shkreli, called to testify in a House oversight hearing on prescription drug prices, repeatedly declined to explain steep drug price increases he imposed as former chief executive of Turing Pharmaceuticals. Shkreli was asked what he would tell sick patients who can no longer afford the drug and whether he thinks he has done anything wrong. Entrepreneur and pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli listens during a congressional hearing on February 4, 2016 in Washington Brendan Smialowski (AFP) "On the advice of counsel, I invoke the Fifth Amendment and respectfully decline to answer your question," Shkreli told the lawmakers in each case. Shkreli wore a smirk and looked away from lawmakers much of the time, sparking bipartisan outrage. "It's not funny," said Maryland Democrat Elijah Cummings, the senior Democrat on the committee. "People are dying and they are getting sicker." Representative John Duncan, a Tennessee Republican and a veteran lawmaker first elected in 1988, said in all his years in Congress: "I've never seen an individual behave with such arrogance." Shkreli, 32, vaulted to notoriety in September 2015 after he raised the price of Daraprim from $13.50 to $750 per pill. Daraprim is a decades-old drug used to treat toxoplasmosis, a potentially fatal infection, and it is also used by HIV patients. In December, Shkreli was arrested and indicted for securities fraud for allegedly orchestrating a Ponzi scheme-like conspiracy at two hedge funds and another firm, prior to joining Turing. He is accused of lying to investors, moved money between investments to cover losses in other vehicles and siphoned off cash for personal expenses. Shkreli resigned as CEO of Turing the day after the indictment. Shkreli's attorney, Benjamin Brafman, a prominent criminal defense lawyer, told reporters after the appearance that it was a "frustrating morning for us." "Mr. Shkreli would like nothing more than to answer the committee's questions," Brafman said. However, invoking the Fifth Amendment was "appropriate" given his indictment on the fraud charge. "I would also tell you Mr. Shkreli did not intend to show any disrespect for any members of the committee, listened intently," he said. "Some of what you saw was nervous energy by an individual who very much would like to explain what happened, but has agreed to listen to his lawyer," said Brafman, whose high-profile clients have included Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the International Monetary Fund chief who resigned amid a sexual assault scandal. Shkreli stayed mum as television cameras followed him from the Capitol Hill hearing, but quickly took to Twitter after that to blast lawmakers. "Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government," he tweeted. Rwanda recruiting refugees to oust Burundi president: UN Rwanda recruited and trained refugees from Burundi, among them children, whose ultimate goal was to remove President Pierre Nkurunziza from power, UN experts told the Security Council. The panel said in a confidential report obtained by AFP on Thursday that they had spoken to 18 Burundian refugees who provided details of their military training last summer in a Rwandan forest camp. "They reported that their ultimate goal was to remove Burundian President Nkurunziza from power," said the report by the panel of experts for the Democratic Republic of Congo. UN experts say that Rwanda recruited refugees from Burundi for combat training, with the aim of removing from power President Pierre Nkurunziza, pictured here after being sworn in for a controversial third term, in Bujumbura on August 20, 2015 Landry Nshimiye (AFP/File) Burundi has repeatedly accused Rwanda of backing rebels intent on overthrowing the government in Bujumbura, allegations Rwanda denies. The refugees, who had crossed into the DR Congo, told the experts that they had been recruited in the Mahama refugee camp in eastern Rwanda in May and June 2015. The group was given two months of military training in Rwanda by instructors, some of whom were Rwandan military personnel, the report said. "Their training included military tactics and the maintenance and use of assault rifles and machine guns, as well as ideological and morale-building sessions," it added. Some were also trained in the use of grenades, anti-personnel and anti-tank mines, mortars and rocket-propelled grenades. Six of the 18 trained combatants were minors. The refugees told the experts that at least four companies of 100 recruits were being trained at the camp and that they were transported around Rwanda in military trucks, often with Rwandan military escorts. The Burundian combatants showed the experts fake identification cards from the DR Congo that were produced in Rwanda. The US-based advocacy group Refugees International said last month that Burundian men and boys were being recruited from Mahama camp and facing threats if they refused. "I haven't even seen the tiniest evidence of that so it becomes a lot of politicking," Rwandan President Paul Kagame said in December, calling the accusations "childish." UN experts also interviewed six Rwandan and Congolese nationals arrested on suspicion of arms smuggling at the Congolese-Rwandan border in October and November last year. Some of the suspected arms smugglers told the UN experts that the "weapons were to be used in support of an armed group in Burundi," said the report. Burundi has been in turmoil since Nkurunziza announced plans in April to run for a third term, which he went on to win. More than 400 people have died since then and at least 230,000 have fled the country. During a visit to Burundi last month, UN Security Council ambassadors met Nkurunziza, who again accused Rwanda of backing rebels. Saudi ready to join anti-IS ground op in Syria: general Saudi Arabia is ready to join any ground operation the US-led coalition against the Islamic State group in Syria might decide on, a general from the kingdom said on Thursday. "If there is any willingness in the coalition to go in the ground operation, we will contribute positively in that," Brigadier General Ahmed al-Assiri told AFP. Since late 2014 Saudi Arabia has been part of a US-led coalition which officially has 65 members and has been bombing the Islamic State Sunni extremist group which seized large parts of Syria and Iraq. A Saudi soldier looks through binoculars from a position at al-Dokhan mountain, on the Saudi-Yemeni border, in southwestern Saudi Arabia, on April 13, 2015 Fayez Nureldine (AFP/File) Assiri is spokesman for a separate Saudi-led Arab coalition which, since March, has conducted air strikes and ground operations in Yemen. That coalition supports the government there in its fight against Huthi rebels who seized much of the country and are backed by the kingdom's regional rival Iran. Iran is also one of the main allies of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whose regime has been fighting an insurgency for about five years. Saudi Arabia supports more moderate rebels against Assad's forces. US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter said in January that several members of the US-led coalition against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria are doing "nothing at all" to help destroy the jihadists. The United States has carried out the bulk of the roughly 9,800 air strikes launched in Iraq and Syria since the summer of 2014. Saudi Arabia carried out high-profile initial air strikes against the jihadists in Syria but participation by the kingdom and other Gulf members of the coalition declined when they began air strikes in Yemen. "We did not stop our operation in Syria in spite of the operation we have in Yemen," Assiri said. In November, the United Arab Emirates said it was ready to commit ground troops against jihadists in Syria. - Bearing the 'burden' - Quoted by the official WAM news agency, Emirati State Minister for Foreign Affairs Anwar Gargash said the UAE would "participate in any international effort demanding a ground intervention to fight terrorism". "Regional countries must bear part of the burden" of such an intervention, he said. The UAE belongs to the US-led coalition carrying out air strikes in territory under the jihadists' control in Syria and Iraq. It also has troops on the ground in Yemen as part of the Saudi-led coalition there. There have been growing calls for the anti-IS intervention to expand to a ground force. Russia launched its own strikes in Syria in late September and Iran has reportedly sent hundreds of troops to support Assad's regime. Critics -- including in the West and Sunni Arab Gulf nations -- have accused Russia of targeting moderate rebel forces as well as jihadists. Gargash also suggested the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen could be "an alternative model" to Western intervention in the region. US senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham have called for 100,000 foreign soldiers, most from Sunni regional states but also including Americans, to fight IS in Syria. Assiri's comment came as regime troops pressed a major Russian-backed offensive around Syria's second city Aleppo following the suspension of peace talks. Western nations accused Syria's regime of damaging the talks with its military offensive, and Washington on Thursday demanded Russia halt its bombing campaign in support of Assad's government. The growing offensive around Aleppo this week overshadowed peace and aid efforts, as regime forces sought to build on a series of important gains since Russia launched air strikes in September. President Ouattara says 'won't send any more Ivorians to ICC' President Alassane Ouattara on Thursday said he would "not send any more Ivorians" to the International Criminal Court in The Hague, where his longtime rival Laurent Gbagbo is currently on trial over deadly violence sparked by disputed 2010 polls. Speaking during a meeting with his French counterpart Francois Hollande in Paris, Ouattara said Ivory Coast now had "an operational justice system". More than 3,000 people were killed in five months of unrest after the 2010 presidential polls, when ex-leader Gbagbo refused to concede defeat to Ouattara. Ivory Coast's President Alassane Ouattara makes a statement following his meeting with the French President on February 4, 2016 at the Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris Stephane de Sakutin (AFP) Gbagbo and his former militia chief, Charles Ble Goude, who is also on trial, deny four charges of crimes against humanity over the violence. None of Ouattara's supporters have so far been charged by the ICC, prompting accusations by Gbagbo's camp of "victor's justice". But Ouattara dismissed the charge. "I don't know what that means, 'victor's justice'. Justice is the same for everyone." Speaking about the ongoing trial, he said Ivorians wanted the truth to come out. "Many are those in Ivory Coast who believe justice must be done. The sooner the better," he told reporters. But he added that future proceedings should take place in national courts in Ivory Coast. "I won't send any more Ivorians to the ICC," he said. "The ICC played the role it had to. After the electoral crisis, we had no justice system, the country was in tatters," he added. "Now we have a justice system that is operational and that has begun to judge everyone without exception. These trials will begin very shortly and I hope they will move faster than the ICC." New tarantula is named after music legend Johnny Cash Scientists scouring the fields of Folsom, California found a new kind of black tarantula which they have named after Johnny Cash, the American music legend who sang of the jailhouse blues. The eight-legged creature named Aphonopelma johnnycashi is all black, the way Cash often dressed when he strummed his guitar and sang songs like "The Man in Black" and "Folsom Prison Blues" in his bass-baritone voice. "I'm a huge Johnny Cash fan," said Chris Hamilton, lead author of the study in the journal ZooKeys which identified the tarantula as one of 14 new spider species discovered in the southwestern United States. This photo obtained February 4, 2016 courtesy of Chris Hamilton PhD, shows the Johnny Cash spider (Aphonopelma johnnycashi) Chris Hamilton (AFP) "But I didn't go into this searching for something I could name after him," he told AFP. Instead, Hamilton along with researchers at Auburn University and Millsaps College sought to closely examine tarantulas found throughout the southern United States, west of the Mississippi River. During a decade-long hunt, they collected nearly 3,000 specimens in multiple states. They found that the Johnny Cash spider was widespread, but had long been considered as another species, known as A. iodius. "It is quite similar looking," said Hamilton. "When we really started collecting lots of specimens from across the distribution and looking closely at their morphology, DNA, and ecological variables, we saw that these specimens were unique and certainly warranted being separated as a separate species." Given the deep black color of the males, combined with the location of the spider in Folsom, California -- home to a state penitentiary where Cash performed for inmates in 1968 -- "the name popped into my head. It just fit perfectly," Hamilton said. While researchers did not pick up the tarantula directly at or outside the prison, Hamilton said he "wouldn't be surprised" if the tarantulas roamed free in the area. "They are found all over that area of Folsom, California and the western foothills of the Sierra Nevadas." - New species in backyard - Prior to this study, more than 50 different species of tarantulas were known in the United States, but they were poorly organized and some were misidentified as being different species when they were actually the same. Now, Hamilton and co-authors say there are 29 US tarantulas in the Aphonopelma genus, 14 of which are new to science. "I'm not surprised that so many previously described species were found to be invalid," said Marshal Hedin, a professor of biology at San Diego State University who was not involved with the work but described it as "rigorous and much-needed." In the past, "researchers simply didn't have many characters to work with, and were sometimes perhaps overzealous," said Hedin, who also serves as the acting president of the American Arachnological Society. "This new study combines all of the powerful components of modern taxonomy -- large samples, digital studies of morphology, huge DNA datasets," he said, describing it as "remarkably comprehensive" and "significant for many reasons." - Unexpected diversity - Researchers also found unexpected diversity in tiny tarantulas, those about the size of a silver coin. "One of the most remarkable things that we discovered during this research was just how diverse the miniature Aphonopelma were in the United States (and most likely Mexico too)," Hamilton said in an email to AFP. "Eight of the new species belong to the miniature group," which is believed to have shrunk in size over time, though experts do not yet understand why, he said. In the meantime, researchers also have concerns about how climate change will impact America's big and hairy spiders, possibly forcing some north into cooler climes or higher elevations that may not be as favorable as habitat. "Two of the new species are confined to single mountain ranges in southeastern Arizona, one of the United States' biodiversity hotspots," said co-author Brent Hendrixson of Millsaps College. "These fragile habitats are threatened by increased urbanization, recreation, and climate change." Other new spiders identified during the project were given names that were suited to their habitat, including the Aphonopelma xwalxwal, found in the homelands of the Cahuila Native Americans, incorporating their word for spider, "xwalxwal." "As a Native American (Chickasaw Nation), I like to be able to tie Native American history to species that can be found in their ancestral ranges," said Hamilton. Roger Federer has knee surgery, will skip 2 tournaments BASEL, Switzerland (AP) Roger Federer has had knee surgery and will miss tournaments in Rotterdam and Dubai this month. "Roger Federer underwent successful arthroscopic knee surgery today in Switzerland to repair a torn meniscus," a statement on his official website said Wednesday. It is a rare injury setback for the 34-year-old Federer, who has had relatively minor back problems in 2008 and 2013. Roger Federer of Switzerland answers questions at a press conference following his semifinal loss to to Novak Djokovic of Serbia at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 28, 2016.(AP Photo/Vincent Thian) The statement did not specify which knee is injured, though it said it happened last Friday, one day after his Australian Open semifinal loss to Novak Djokovic. "My doctors have (assured) me that the surgery was a success and with proper rehabilitation, I will be able to return to the Tour soon," Federer said in the statement. His next scheduled tournament is in Indian Wells, California, starting March 7. "I apologize to my friends in Rotterdam and Dubai, as I was very much looking forward to playing those events," Federer said in a statement on his Facebook page. The organizer of the Rotterdam tournament, former Wimbledon champion Richard Krajicek, said he got the news on Tuesday. "Obviously, receiving this information yesterday evening is a major setback for us, as it is for the fans looking forward to his presence," Krajicek said. "We hope to have Roger back next year." Rick Santorum ends bid for the White House, backs Rubio WASHINGTON (AP) Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum ended his bid for the White House Wednesday and said he will support Florida Sen. Marco Rubio's campaign for the Republican presidential nomination. Santorum announced on Fox News Channel that he had decided, "The best way to do what I set out to do when we announced the run for president ... (is) by not furthering our campaign." He said Rubio shares his values and "is in a better position to do well in this race." He described Rubio as a "born leader" and praised his "optimistic" message. In this photo taken Jan. 19, 2016, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum meets with voters in Greenfield, Iowa. Santorum said Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, that he is suspending his second bid for the White House. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) Rubio "is the new generation and someone that can bring this country together," Santorum said, adding that the 44-year-old senator is "taking the wine I've been trying to sell and putting it in new wineskins." Santorum entered the race in May as a heavy underdog in a crowded Republican field featuring more than a dozen high-profile candidates many of them newcomers to presidential politics. His longshot status kept him off the mainstage in all of the presidential debates, his campaign never earning the numbers to put him up against heavyweight contenders like billionaire Donald Trump, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush. Santorum may have exceeded his own expectations by scoring a second-place finish in the race for the Republican presidential nomination four years ago before ultimately losing to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. He ultimately won 11 states in the GOP's 2012 primary election after an unexpected and narrow victory in the opening contest in Iowa, where he emerged as a conservative favorite after touring the state's 99 counties in a pickup truck. But he entered a more powerful and diverse 2016 field, causing his campaign to struggle. He is among the nation's most prominent social conservatives, having dedicated much of his political career to opposing same-sex marriage and abortion rights, while advocating for conservative Christian family values. Rubio said Wednesday he looks forward to teaming up with Santorum, telling reporters in New Hampshire that he has "tremendous respect for Rick." Harris pads fundraising edge in California Senate race LOS ANGELES (AP) California Attorney General Kamala Harris is gradually padding her fundraising edge in the state's U.S. Senate race. According to federal records and her campaign Wednesday, the Democrat collected about $1.9 million in two fundraising committees. Her main campaign account pulled in the bulk of the cash, about $1.5 million in contributions from October through December. After expenses, Harris ended 2015 with about $4 million in the bank, in advance of the state's June primary. That gave her a roughly 2-1 advantage in available dollars over her chief rival, fellow Democrat Loretta Sanchez, a 10-term congresswoman from Orange County. Sanchez reported ending the year with $2.1 million in the bank, after pulling in $388,000 in donations in the final three months of 2015. She also collected $475,000 for her Senate run by selling a home she used as her campaign headquarters. She's now leasing office space. Harris' edge in cash on hand, about $1.8 million, nosed up slightly since September, when she had a $1.7-million margin over Sanchez. Harris collected contributions from supporters at a significantly faster rate than Sanchez, but she also spent it more quickly. Harris reported operating expenses of $1.2 million in her main account, compared to $302,000 for Sanchez. Democrats are expected to easily hold the seat now occupied by retiring Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif. The party holds every statewide office and controls both chambers of the Legislature. Three Republicans in the Senate contest, state Assemblyman Rocky Chavez of Oceanside and former state GOP chairmen Duf Sundheim and Tom Del Beccaro, have trailed far back in the money race. Sundheim closed the year with $70,000 in the bank, with $14,000 in debts. Chavez closed his books for 2015 with $369 on hand and nearly $43,000 in debts. Parents: Drop wrongful-death judgment over missing NYC boy NEW YORK (AP) After 6-year-old Etan Patz disappeared in 1979, his father got a wrongful-death judgment against a prime suspect and sent the man a message each year: "What did you do to my little boy?" But Etan's parents asked a court on Wednesday to throw out that judgment against Jose Ramos, a convicted Pennsylvania child molester. They said they've become convinced their son's killer is more recent suspect Pedro Hernandez, who was tried on a murder charge last year, when jurors deadlocked. "After sitting through the trial and hearing all of the evidence, my wife and I the parents of Etan Patz now believe that Pedro Hernandez, and not Jose Ramos, was the perpetrator of this heartless crime," Etan's father, Stanley Patz, said in a sworn statement. FILE - In this photo combo, convicted child molester Jose Antonio Ramos, left, and Pedro Hernandez, right, are shown. Hernandez was charged and tried in 2015 for abducting and killing six-year-old Etan Patz in 1979. Etan's parents asked a court Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, to throw out a longstanding wrongful death judgment against Ramos. The parents say they are now convinced the killer is Hernandez, who faces a retrial after a jury deadlocked in one of the nations most infamous missing-child cases. (AP Photo/File) Hernandez, of Maple Shade, New Jersey, and Ramos deny killing Etan, who vanished while walking to his school bus stop and became one of the first missing children pictured on milk cartons. Etan was declared dead in 2001. Ramos was extensively investigated but never charged. Hernandez, who wasn't a suspect until 2012, confessed but later said his admission was false and was prompted by mental illness; he faces retrial this year. Stanley Patz has said before he found Hernandez' trial persuasive, but the family's move to clear Ramos is a rare step that adds another twist to the case's tortuous history. Hernandez' lawyer, Harvey Fishbein, called the Patzes' filing "a blatant assault on Mr. Hernandez' ability to receive a fair and impartial trial." Although it's unclear whether jurors would hear anything about the civil judgment, Fishbein noted Etan's mother, Julie Patz, is likely to testify for the prosecution, as she did at the first trial. The Manhattan district attorney's office declined to comment on the filing, first reported by the Daily News. Ramos is in prison and couldn't be reached for comment. A lawyer who has represented him said he hadn't been in contact with him recently. Ramos knew a woman who sometimes walked Etan home from school, and Ramos told federal authorities about interacting with a child he was all but sure was Etan on the day he vanished. Ramos has since denied having anything to do with Etan's disappearance. Manhattan prosecutors concluded the evidence against Ramos wasn't strong enough to charge him criminally, but the Patzes sued to make their own case against him. After Ramos stopped cooperating with questioning, a civil court in 2005 held him responsible, by default, for Etan's death. The court awarded his parents a never-collected $2.7 million. Legally, the civil judgment is separate from the criminal case. But the Patzes "think it's unjust for that judgment to stand, holding him responsible for something they believe he did not do, and they want the record correct," said their lawyer, Brian O'Dwyer. But he said the Patzes didn't feel bad about having blamed Ramos, noting Ramos didn't cooperate in civil court to assert his innocence. ___ Associated Press writer Jake Pearson contributed to this report. Reach Jennifer Peltz on Twitter @jennpeltz. See some of her work at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/jennifer-peltz. FILE - In this May 2015 file photo, Stan Patz, father of Etan Patz, speaks about his son, who disappeared in 1979 at a news conference in New York after a judge declared a mistrial in the trial of Pedro Hernandez, charged with murder in the missing New York city boy's case. Patz and his wife asked a court Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, to throw out a longstanding wrongful death judgment against convicted child molester Jose Antonio Ramos. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews, File) Interim sheriff: Reserve deputy program's return undecided TULSA, Okla. (AP) The fate of an Oklahoma county's reserve deputy program is still undecided after a member fatally shot an unarmed man last April, the agency's third sheriff in four months said Wednesday. Interim Tulsa County Sheriff Michelle Robinette, who took over the new role this week, told The Associated Press that the future of the roughly 120-member reserve corps will be determined after the completion of an outside review by a firm hired to examine how the agency is run. The review will be done by the end of the month, she said. Fourteen reserves left the volunteer program by October. Robinette said she doesn't know how many more have departed since then but that there have been "a lot of resignations and retirements." Interim Tulsa County Sheriff Michelle Robinette speaks to The Associated Press on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, at her office at the county courthouse in Tulsa, Okla. Robinette said the fate of the agency's reserve deputy program is still undetermined after a member fatally shot an unarmed man last April. (AP Photo/Justin Juozapavicius) Not having reserve deputies, who volunteer at numerous events, would dent morale and potentially the agency's budget, she said. "We provide security for a lot of different events in the county, and I don't have the reserves to send out there and I don't have the (full-time) people to pull off their shifts to cover it," Robinette said. "I'm kind of stuck because we're not going to get deputies to volunteer to do it on their own time. That's what the reserves did. That's what they had fun doing." Robinette, who has been with the agency nearly 21 years, will be interim sheriff until April, when a new sheriff will take over after a special election. The reserve program was suspended after volunteer deputy Robert Bates fatally shot an unarmed Eric Harris last April. Bates, who left the agency after the shooting, says he confused his stun gun and handgun and has pleaded not guilty to second-degree manslaughter. Shortly after Harris was killed, an attorney for his family released an internal 2009 sheriff's office memo that questioned the field training of Bates. The memo, given to news reporters, said officials at the agency knew that Bates was inadequately trained but pressured other officers to look away. The shooting and the release of the memo led to a grand jury investigation of the office. Jurors indicted Sheriff Stanley Glanz in September, accusing him of failing to release the internal report. Glanz faces two misdemeanor charges as a result of the indictment and resigned effective Nov. 1. Jurors also recommended ways the sheriff's office could improve record-keeping and transparency. Robinette said Wednesday that many of those suggestions have been implemented, including an anonymous reporting system for employees and the creation of a records unit. Cleric's lawyers want US suit backed by Turkey tossed Attorneys for a reclusive Muslim cleric living in exile in Pennsylvania asked a federal judge late Wednesday to dismiss a lawsuit that claims he orchestrated human rights abuses in his native Turkey, denouncing it as "pure political theater" by the Turkish government. Turkey is believed to be funding the U.S. civil suit against Fethullah Gulen as part of a crackdown on the cleric and his movement by President Recep Erdogan. The suit contends Gulen ordered sympathetic police, prosecutors and judges in Turkey to target members of a rival spiritual movement critical of his teachings. FILE - In this March 15, 2014, file photo, Turkish Islamic preacher Fethullah Gulen is pictured at his residence in Saylorsburg, Pa. Gulen is charged in Turkey with plotting to overthrow the government in a case his supporters call politically motivated. (AP Photo/Selahattin Sevi, File) His lawyers called it a baseless accusation. "This lawsuit is pure political theater and a misuse of American judicial resources. It is the brainchild of the Turkish government and part of a broad campaign to silence Mr. Gulen, one of the strongest voices for peace and moderation in the Muslim world," the attorneys said in a filing Wednesday night. They added: "The spy thriller allegations as they pertain to Mr. Gulen are pure nonsense." Gulen, who has lived in the United States since 1999, has criticized Erdogan, his onetime ally, over the Turkish leader's increasingly authoritarian rule. The suit was filed in December on behalf of three men who claim Gulen sympathizers in Turkish law enforcement planted evidence, fabricated search warrants, conducted illegal wiretaps and ultimately arrested and detained the men on trumped-up charges. It was filed by lawyer Robert Amsterdam six weeks after the Turkish government hired him to conduct a "global investigation" of Gulen, an Islamic moderate with as many as 4 million followers worldwide. Amsterdam said in a statement Wednesday that "the public is entitled to learn both the international scope and reach of the Gulen organization, which is headquartered in the United States, as well as the type of contemptible conduct in which the organization is willing to engage." The suit is part of a broad campaign against Gulen's movement in Turkey and abroad. The Erdogan regime has carried out a purge of civil servants suspected of ties to the movement, seized businesses and closed some media organizations. Gulen has been charged criminally with plotting to overthrow the government, and was placed on trial in absentia last month. With the backing of the Turkish government, Amsterdam also has focused on a network of about 150 publicly funded U.S. charter schools started by Gulen's followers. State and federal authorities have probed some of the schools amid allegations of financial mismanagement and visa fraud, though no criminal charges have been filed. The four remaining occupiers of a wildlife refuge in Oregon have been indicted by a grand jury today despite telling cops they will not leave while under the threat of arrest. Sean Anderson, 48, and wife Sandy, 47, from Riggins, Idaho, are still involved in the armed standoff with FBI agents alongside David Fry, 27, of Blanchester, Ohio, and Jeff Banta, 46, of Elko, Nevada. The group are now charged with felony conspiracy involving the use of intimidation to prevent federal officers from doing their work, a charge which carries a maximum sentence of six years. Today's indictments bring the total to 16, including leader Ammon Bundy and 11 others who are already in custody. Scroll down for video Sean Anderson, 48, and his wife Sandy, 27 (pictured) are among the four still involved in an armed standoff with the FBI in Oregon The indictment likely buries any chance that the foursome will leave on their own, raising the prospect of another armed confrontation a two weeks after LaVoy Finicum was shot dead. Also indicted today was David Fry (pictured), another of the holdouts who have pledged not to leave while under threat of arrest Fry's father, William Fry, was disappointed that his son has been charged, saying in an email: 'We were hoping for a more positive outcome.' He said his son is no different than those who believe 'our country is heading in the wrong direction'. 'He believes it so strongly he is willing to stand up with the hope that these actions might wake the nation up and lead others to get involved to change our country's course,' the father said. William Fry said he is still 'hoping and praying to welcome our son home safely'. The standoff began January 2, with the group demanding the federal government turn public lands over to local control and free two ranchers imprisoned for setting fires. Two conspirators traveled to the sparsely populated area of southeastern Oregon last October to warn the local sheriff of 'extreme civil unrest' if certain demands were not met, according to the indictment. Once the occupation began, the group brandished firearms to keep officials from carrying out their duties, threatened violence and intimidated locals 'to effectuate the goals of the conspiracy', the documents say. Defense attorneys have said at court hearings that their clients engaged in civil disobedience and are being punished for political speech. They say the only use of force during the standoff was by police, who shot and killed Arizona rancher Robert 'LaVoy' Finicum during a January 26 traffic stop. Standoff leader Ammon Bundy (left) and his brother, Ryan Bundy (right), have also been charged Shawna Cox (left), 59, and Jon Ritzheimer (right), 32, are also facing up to six years behind bars after being accused of using intimidation to prevent federal officers from doing their work Busted: Brian Cavalier, 44 (left), and Ryan Payne (right) were charged along with the others with conspiracy to impede federal officers Facing jail: Joseph O'Shaughnessy (left) and Peter Santilli (right) were arrested in Burns, Oregon Finicum's death led to protests this week by those supporting the occupation, while local residents rallied to urge the holdouts to leave, further dividing the strained community. Federal authorities fear those tensions could pop up elsewhere and have increased security at national wildlife refuges in southern Oregon, Northern California and Nevada and put the rest of the preserves nationwide on heightened alert. The additional security measures are in place at the Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge Complex, which straddles the Oregon-California border; Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in Nevada; and Modoc National Wildlife Refuge in Northern California. Preserves and other national sites run by the Fish and Wildlife Service are being extra vigilant, said Gavin Shire, the agency's chief of public affairs. 'Due to the evolving situation in eastern Oregon, all service stations are on alert and being advised to take appropriate caution,' Shire said in a statement. Assange finds surprising ally _ but it may not be enough LONDON (AP) WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has found a surprising ally a little known United Nations panel that has decided he has been unfairly detained in Britain while seeking to avoid extradition to Sweden to answer allegations of sexual misconduct. But it's not clear if the findings of the five members of the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, to be officially announced in Geneva Friday, will lead to a change in Assange's legal status. The sun-starved computer hacker has holed up inside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London for more than three years, and as things stand now he still faces arrest if he steps outside. Swedish officials said Thursday the UN panel report concludes Assange has been a victim of an "arbitrary detention," apparently because he has been unable to leave the embassy without fear of being immediately taken into custody by British police armed with a European arrest warrant. FILE - In this Thursday, Dec. 20, 2012, file photo, Julian Assange, founder of WikiLeaks speaks to the media and members of the public from a balcony at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said Wedneday Feb. 3, 2016 that he will accept arrest by British police if a U.N. working group investigating his claims decides that the three years he has spent inside the Ecuadorean Embassy doesn't amount to illegal detention. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File) British and Swedish officials have indicated they will not be swayed by the U.N. panel's report, which is not binding and has no legal authority. Swedish prosecutors want to question Assange over allegations of rape stemming from a working visit he made to the Nordic country in 2010 when WikiLeaks was attracting international attention for its secret-spilling ways. They haven't charged him with any crime so far, but Assange has refused to return to answer questions saying he fears the whole thing is an elaborate setup designed to send him to the United States to face espionage charges there. British police also accuse Assange of jumping bail. The unexpected panel finding in Assange's favor confounded some experts who have followed the case. Ove Bring, a professor of international law at Stockholm University, said he was very surprised. "First of all I don't think it's a detention. Secondly, it's not arbitrary," Bring said. He said Assange's situation "is definitely not a case of unlawful detention" since the WikiLeaks-founder has chosen to stay at the embassy. He could at any time have agreed to be questioned in Sweden, after which the prosecutor most likely would have been forced to abandon the case due to a lack of evidence, Bring said. Assange, 44, has demanded via Twitter that he be given back his passport held by British authorities in light of the U.N. panel's conclusion. The panel's finding, based on a claim filed by Assange and his lawyers more than a year ago, could increase pressure on prosecutors to drop proceedings against Assange. The panel consists of a Korean law professor, a Mexican human right expert, a law professor from Benin, an Australian judicial expert, and a specialist in international criminal justice from Ukraine. Per E. Samuelsson, a Swedish lawyer for Assange, told The Associated Press that prosecutors should "revoke" the arrest warrant and "set him free" in light of the panel's conclusion. Samuelsson said: "If it happens that way, it will be a victory." So far, there are no indications that prosecutors are ready to end an inquiry into rape allegations. Sweden's prosecution authority noted Thursday that the statement from the working group has no formal impact on the ongoing investigation, according to Swedish law. Sweden and Britain may also choose to appeal the panel's decision, a process that could take months. Two women accused Assange of the sexual misconduct in 2010, leading Swedish police to open an investigation and seek him for questioning. Last year, prosecutors dropped investigations of less serious allegations into alleged sexual assault as their statute of limitations expired, but were not willing to do so with the more serious rape allegation, which centers around a woman's claim that Assange had sex with her when she was asleep, which can be considered rape in Sweden. Assange has consistently denied the allegations but declined to return to Sweden to meet with prosecutors and eventually sought refuge in the Ecuadorean embassy near Harrod's department store in a posh neighborhood of central London. That has been his home since June, 2012. Swedish prosecutors say they have attempted to question Assange at the embassy since March last year but have been unable to do so because Ecuadorean authorities haven't permitted it. The seemingly-simple case has been greatly complicated by uncertainty surrounding Assange's legal status in the United States. The U.S. government has not revealed whether he has been indicted since grand jury proceedings are secret there but has indicated that sensitive investigations into Assange and WikiLeaks have been made. One of Assange's lawyers, Melinda Taylor, told The Associated Press Thursday he seeks guarantees from Sweden and Britain that he will not be sent to the United States. She said he may seek safe passage to Ecuador, which has given him political asylum. Ecuadorean Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino has said Assange could immediately go to Ecuador if he's given safe conduct by Britain. ___ Jan M. Olsen reported from Copenhagen, Denmark. Malin Rising in London, Jamey Keaten in Geneva and Gonzalo Solano in Quito contributed to this report. A view of the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, where Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is staying, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says he will accept arrest by British police if a U.N. working group investigating his claims decides that the three years he has spent inside the Ecuadorean Embassy doesn't amount to illegal detention. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth) A view of the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, where Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is staying, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says he will accept arrest by British police if a U.N. working group investigating his claims decides that the three years he has spent inside the Ecuadorean Embassy doesn't amount to illegal detention. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth) A view of the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, where Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is staying, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says he will accept arrest by British police if a U.N. working group investigating his claims decides that the three years he has spent inside the Ecuadorean Embassy doesn't amount to illegal detention. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth) NHL Capsules TAMPA, Florida (AP) Ben Bishop made 24 saves to get his 100th win with Tampa Bay and Nikita Kucherov scored his 21st goal to help the Lightning beat the Detroit Red Wings 3-1 on Wednesday night. J.T. Brown and Tyler Johnson also scored for the Lightning, who have won nine of 10. Gustav Nyquist had Detroit's lone goal. Petr Mrazek stopped 20 shots and had his seven-game road winning streak end. SABRES 4, CANADIENS 2 MONTREAL (AP) Jamie McGinn, Johan Larsson and Brian Gionta all scored in Buffalo's big third period and the Sabres rallied for a comeback victory over the slumping Montreal Canadiens. Marcus Foligno also scored for Buffalo, which played its first game since the All-Star break and led 2-1 heading into the final period. The Sabres, last in the Atlantic Division, are 6-4-0 in their last 10 games. Dale Weise and Alex Galchenyuk scored for Montreal, which has lost four in a row and is 1-8-1 in its last 10. FLAMES 4, HURRICANES 1 CALGARY, Alberta (AP) Sean Monahan had a goal and three assists to lead the Calgary Flames to a 4-1 victory over the Carolina Hurricanes. Calgary broke a 1-1 tie midway through the second period when Monahan set up goals 38 seconds apart by All-Stars Mark Giordano and Johnny Gaudreau. Dougie Hamilton also scored for Calgary, which ended a three-game losing streak and climbed to within six points of the third-place Anaheim Ducks in the Pacific Division. Health officials want more Zika samples, data from Brazil RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) Brazil is not sharing enough samples and disease data to let researchers determine whether the Zika virus is, as feared, linked to the increased number of babies born with abnormally small heads in the South American country, U.N. and U.S. health officials say. Without viruses from Brazil the epicenter of the ongoing Zika crisis laboratories in the United States and Europe are being forced to work with samples from previous outbreaks, and is frustrating efforts to develop diagnostic tests, drugs and vaccines. Scientists tell The Associated Press that having so little to work with is hampering their ability to track the virus' evolution. One major problem appears to be Brazilian law. At the moment, it is technically illegal for Brazilian researchers and institutes to share genetic material, including blood samples containing Zika and other viruses. FILE - In this Jan. 27, 2016, file photo, an Aedes aegypti mosquito is photographed through a microscope at the Fiocruz institute in Recife, Pernambuco state, Brazil. The mosquito behind the Zika virus seems to operate like a heat-driven missile of disease. Scientists say the hotter it gets, the better the mosquito that carries Zika virus is at transmitting a variety of dangerous illnesses. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana, File) "It's a very delicate issue, this sharing of samples. Lawyers have to be involved," said Dr. Marcos Espinal, director of communicable diseases in the World Health Organization's regional office in Washington. Espinal said he hoped the issue might be resolved after discussions between the U.S. and Brazilian presidents that included working together on Zika and developing new tools to stop the virus. He said WHO's role was mainly to be a broker to encourage countries to share. When asked whether the estimate of other scientists that Brazil had provided fewer than 20 samples was true, he agreed it probably was. "There is no way this should not be solved in the foreseeable future," he said. "Waiting is always risky during an emergency." WHO infectious diseases expert Dr. Sylvie Briand was more circumspect, saying on Thursday in Geneva that it wasn't necessary to have the latest strains because unlike more rapidly mutating viruses like the flu, for which up-to-date samples are needed to make a vaccine, no such shot exists for Zika. But not all experts were convinced. "That's crazy," said Michael Osterholm, an infectious diseases expert at the University of Minnesota. "What about developing diagnostics, and tracking virulence of the virus? There's a lot of issues you want to have the most current virus for." The obstacle to sharing emerged last May, when President Dilma Rousseff signed a new law to regulate how researchers use the country's genetic resources. But the regulatory framework hasn't yet been drafted, leaving scientists in legal limbo. "Until the law is implemented, we're legally prohibited from sending samples abroad," said Paulo Gadelha, president of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Brazil's premier state-run research institute for tropical diseases. "Even if we wanted to send this material abroad, we can't because it's considered a crime." The ban does not necessarily mean foreign researchers can't access samples. Some were shared with the United States, including tissue samples from two newborns who died and two fetuses recently examined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. But a U.S. official said that wasn't enough to develop accurate tests for the virus or help determine whether Zika is in fact behind the recent jump in the number of congenital defects. Given the drought of Brazilian samples, public health officials across the world are falling back on older viruses or discreetly taking them from private patients. The U.S. official, who shared the information on condition of anonymity as he was not authorized to speak publicly, said the CDC was relying on a strain taken from a 2013 outbreak in French Polynesia to perfect its Zika tests. U.S. researchers trying to sequence Zika's genetic code have been forced to work with virus samples from Puerto Rico for the same reason, he said. In England, researchers are using samples drawn from Micronesia, the site of an outbreak in 2007. The French are using samples from Polynesia and Martinique. In Spain, scientists have a Ugandan strain of Zika supplied by the United States. Even Portugal, Brazil's former colonial master, doesn't have the Brazilian strain; the National Health Institute in Lisbon said its tests relied on a U.S. sample from the 1980s, among others. Some researchers are bypassing Brazil's bureaucracy by getting samples sent to them for testing by a private lab, said Dr. Jonas Schmidt-Chanasit, an expert on mosquito-borne diseases at the Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine in Hamburg. "It's almost impossible to get samples from the country," Schmidt-Chanasit told AP, referring to Brazil. "It's not going via official government channels. Our source is simply the rich people who want a diagnosis." In public, health leaders have been eager to boast about their excellent collaboration. WHO's chief, Dr. Margaret Chan, said after Monday's meeting that Brazil and the United States were working "very closely" on studies. When asked about sample sharing, Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told AP: "I don't think it's an issue." Behind-the-scenes, it was another story. Four officials at the World Health Organization told AP that the Brazilians were starving international partners of up-to-date information. "WHO has gotten zero from them, no clinical or lab findings," one of the officials said. All four spoke on condition of anonymity because they were talking without authorization. Ben Neuman, a virologist at Reading University in England, said thousands of samples or hundreds at a minimum were needed to track the virus and determine how it's changing. "Science only works when we share," he said. The virus sharing problems aren't limited to Brazil, said Gadelha of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation. "This isn't a unilateral issue; it's a global problem," he said. More than a decade ago, WHO faced a similar problem when Indonesia refused to hand over bird flu samples, arguing that Western scientists would use them to make drugs and vaccines the country couldn't afford. Lawrence Gostin, director of WHO's Collaborating Center on Public Health Law and Human Rights at Georgetown University, said there are no rules that force governments to hand over viruses, tissue samples or other information. "If countries don't share, the only repercussions they face are public condemnation," he said. ___ Associated Press writers Maria Cheng and Raphael Satter reported this story from London and AP writer Joshua Goodman reported in Rio de Janeiro. AP writers Jamey Keaten in Geneva, Mike Stobbe in New York, Frank Jordans in Berlin, Ciaran Giles in Madrid, Barry Hatton in Lisbon and Jenny Barchfield in Rio de Janeiro contributed to this report. Paulo Gadelha, president of the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Brazils premier state-run research institute for tropical diseases, speaks during an interview in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. Until the law is implemented, were legally prohibited from sending samples abroad, said Gadelha, about sharing Zika virus samples with other countries. Even if we wanted to send this material abroad, we cant because its considered a crime. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo) Municipal Health Secretary Daniel Soranz, left, talks with Rio 2016 Director of Medical Services Joao Grangeiro, during a media briefing that included the Zika virus in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016. Grangeiro says athletes "will not be at risk at games time." He said organizers are following guidelines by the World Health Organiaztion, which has declared the spread of the mosquito-borne virus an "extraordinary event and public health threat." (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo) Cassiana Severino holds her daughter Melisa Vitoria, born with microcephaly at the IMIP hospital in Recife, Pernambuco state, Brazil, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. The Zika virus is spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which is well-adapted to humans, thrives in people's homes and can breed in even a bottle cap's-worth of stagnant water. The Zika virus is suspected to cause microcephaly in newborn children. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) Isabela Cristina, 18, who is six months pregnant, center, looks at her exams as she waits at a bus stop outside the IMIP hospital in Recife, Pernambuco state, Brazil, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. Isabela Cristina had Zika symptoms and was worried about the health of her baby, but her ultrasound scan and other exams were normal. The Zika virus is suspected to cause microcephaly in newborn children. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) PICTURED: Lion dance tradition thrives in Malaysia KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) The traditional art of the Chinese lion dance is nowhere near perishing in Muslim-majority Malaysia. As Lunar New Year approaches, lion dance troupes here are practicing their coordinated movements in the noisy routine that is believed to ward off evil spirits and garner good luck. It's a centuries-old tradition dating back the Han Dynasty, when lion dancers were mostly from martial arts schools who used their acrobatic kicks and jumps to ring in the new year. In this Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2016 photo, a completed lion head, top, and a lion head frame are photographed at a warehouse outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The traditional art of the Chinese lion dance is nowhere near perishing in Muslim-majority Malaysia. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) These days, it is kept alive by an ethnic Chinese minority that makes up 22 percent of Malaysia's 30 million people and by people like master craftsman Siow Ho Phiew (pronounced "See-ow hoe pew"). The 61-year-old Siow has been making the colorful, intricately designed lion's heads an essential component of the dance for more than three decades. He started his endeavor because it was expensive and difficult to import the lion heads from China. After he produced some, his friends started asking him to craft the heads for their lion dance troupes, too. Siow taught himself the three-step process: making a wooden frame, covering it with papier-mache and painting it to give the lion a personality, depending on the request of the customer. He also makes the lion's tail, another key component, and the colorful leggings worn by troupe members who form the animal's body that writhes during the dance. It became his full-time job and today Siow exports the beautifully crafted lion costumes all over the world and trains a group of artisans in the art form. Siow isn't worried that the tradition will die out. "This lion dance is a culture. It's not something new, it dates back for thousands of years," he said. "I believe that if it is good and beautiful art, I'm sure there will be people who will continue it." In this Monday, Jan. 4, 2016 photo, an artisan prepares the frame of a lion head at a warehouse outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. As the Lunar New Year approaches, lion dance troupes are practicing their coordinated movements in the noisy routine that is believed to ward off evil spirits and garner good luck. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) In this Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016 photo, an artisan tries out an almost finished lion head at a warehouse outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Lion dancing is a centuries-old tradition dating back the Han Dynasty, when lion dancers were mostly from martial arts schools who used their acrobatic kicks and jumps to ring in the new year. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) In this Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2016 photo, an artisan carries a paper mache lion head at a warehouse outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. As the Lunar New Year approaches, lion dance troupes are practicing their coordinated movements in the noisy routine that is believed to ward off evil spirits and garner good luck. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) In this Friday, Jan. 29, 2016 photo, Siow Ho Phiew, 61, paints a Buddha mask at a warehouse outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Lion dancing is a centuries-old tradition dating back the Han Dynasty, when lion dancers were mostly from martial arts schools who used their acrobatic kicks and jumps to ring in the new year. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) In this Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2016 photo, Siow Ho Phiew, 61, works on a lion head at a warehouse outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Lion dancing is a centuries-old tradition dating back the Han Dynasty, when lion dancers were mostly from martial arts schools who used their acrobatic kicks and jumps to ring in the new year. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) In this Monday, Jan. 4, 2016 photo, an artisan paints the intricate designs on a lion head at a warehouse outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The traditional art of the Chinese lion dance is nowhere near perishing in Muslim-majority Malaysia. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) In this Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016 photo, an artisan works on a lion head at a warehouse outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Lion dancing is a centuries-old tradition dating back the Han Dynasty, when lion dancers were mostly from martial arts schools who used their acrobatic kicks and jumps to ring in the new year. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) In this Monday, Jan. 4, 2016 photo, an artisan trims the eyebrows of a lion head at a warehouse outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Lion dancing is a centuries-old tradition dating back the Han Dynasty, when lion dancers were mostly from martial arts schools who used their acrobatic kicks and jumps to ring in the new year.(AP Photo/Joshua Paul) In this Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2016 photo, a lion troupe practices at a warehouse outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Lion dancing is a centuries-old tradition dating back the Han Dynasty, when lion dancers were mostly from martial arts schools who used their acrobatic kicks and jumps to ring in the new year. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) In this Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2016 photo, a lion dancer changes into his lion dance's costume at a warehouse outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The traditional art of the Chinese lion dance is nowhere near perishing in Muslim-majority Malaysia. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) In this Tuesday, Jan. 5, 2016 photo, Siow Ho Phiew, 61, center, works on a lion head with his artisan at a warehouse outside Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. As Lunar New Year approaches, lion dance troupes in Malaysia are practicing their coordinated movements in the noisy routine that is believed to ward off evil spirits and garner good luck.(AP Photo/Joshua Paul) In this Saturday, Jan. 30, 2016 photo, a lion dancer combs the eye brows of a lion head before a lion dance performance at a shopping mall ahead of the Lunar New Year celebrations in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. As Lunar New Year approaches, lion dance troupes here are practicing their coordinated movements in the noisy routine that is believed to ward off evil spirits and garner good luck.(AP Photo/Joshua Paul) In this Saturday, Jan. 30, 2016 photo, a lion dance troupe performs the lion dance at a shopping mall ahead of the Lunar New Year celebrations in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.The traditional art of the Chinese lion dance is nowhere near perishing in Muslim-majority Malaysia. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) In this Saturday, Jan. 30, 2016 photo, a lion dance troupe performs the lion dance at a shopping mall ahead of the Lunar New Year celebrations in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Lion dancing is a centuries-old tradition dating back the Han Dynasty, when lion dancers were mostly from martial arts schools who used their acrobatic kicks and jumps to ring in the new year. (AP Photo/Joshua Paul) Germany: over 91,000 asylum-seekers arrived in January BERLIN (AP) More than 91,000 asylum seekers arrived in Germany last month, the government said Thursday, underlining the pressure the country faces to diminish the influx of migrants. The Interior Ministry said 91,671 people were registered as asylum seekers in January, compared to 127,320 who arrived in December. Officials have said that winter weather was the driving force behind the decline. Germany, which has some 80 million inhabitants, has seen more migrants arrive than any other European country. Nearly 1.1 million came last year and officials are keen to ensure that the figures are lower this year. Chancellor Angela Merkel insists that diplomacy is the key to a solution, and has resisted pressure for unilateral measures such as a cap on refugee numbers. German Chancellor Angela Merkel looks on at the beginning of the weekly cabinet meeting at the Chancellery in Berlin, Germany, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn) However, the government has moved to toughen asylum policies and has gradually toughened its tone. Last weekend, Merkel said Germany expects Syrians and Iraqis to return home when Syria's civil war is over and the Islamic State group is defeated. On Tuesday, the Cabinet approved a package of measures that include using special centers to quickly progress migrants who have little realistic chance of winning asylum. It also means some Syrians may have to wait longer to bring relatives to Germany. Syrians were again the largest single group arriving in Germany in January, accounting for 35,822 of the total. They were followed by Iraqis and Afghans more than 18,000 came from each country and much smaller numbers of Iranians and Moroccans. The government plans to declare Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia safe countries of origin following a recent increase in new arrivals from North Africa, who have very little chance of being granted asylum. That would make it easier to return migrants to those countries, something Germany already did last year for several Balkan nations. A poll for ARD television released Wednesday showed that 81 percent of respondents don't believe the government has a grip on the refugee situation and that 61 percent were dissatisfied with its work in general. It found that 46 percent were satisfied with Merkel's work, down 12 points from a month earlier and her worst showing since 2011. Their race newly energized, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders head into the first one-on-one debate of the Democratic presidential contest Thursday night in a tussle over their very political identities. The two candidates are sparring over who is the best standard-bearer for progressive values and who can actually deliver on a liberal agenda of providing universal health care access, reducing income inequality, protecting worker rights and more. 'Good ideas on paper are important, but you've got to be able to translate them into action,' Clinton declared on the eve of the debate. I'M THE REAL PROGRESSIVE: Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont will try in Thursday's debate to hammer home the idea that his plans for America are furthest to the left I'M A DOER: Hillary Clinton, the former U.S. secretary of state and first lady, emphasizes her history in government and her pragmatism, despite her ideas being more moderate than Sanders' Sanders, for his part, said Clinton's record is 'just not progressive' on any number of issues, given her vote as a senator to authorize the war in Iraq and her campaign's reliance on money from Wall Street and drug companies. The race for the Democratic nomination, once seen as a sure thing for Clinton, intensified this week after Sanders held the former secretary of state to a whisper-thin margin of victory in Iowa's leadoff caucuses. The tone of their back-and-forth has become increasingly sharp, and the candidates agreed to add four more debates to the primary season schedule, including Thursday's faceoff in Durham. The debate is the last before Tuesday's first-in-the-nation New Hampshire primary, and Sanders holds a big lead in polls in the state. The two Democrats will debate again on Feb. 11 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In fresh evidence of the tightening race, Clinton reported that her campaign had raised $15 million in January $5 million less than Sanders and the first time she's been out-raised by her opponent. Her finance director called the numbers 'a very loud wake-up call' in a fundraising email to supporters. Heading into the debate, Sanders was eager to lower expectations for his finish in New Hampshire, casting himself as an underdog against 'the most powerful political organization in the country.' Clinton, for her part, signaled her determination to at least narrow the gap before Tuesday's vote in the state where her husband in 1992 placed second and styled himself the 'Comeback Kid.' Her prospects are much stronger in primaries and caucuses after New Hampshire, as the race moves on to states with more diverse electorates that are to her advantage. The two campaigns have even skirmished this week over why Sanders is doing so well in New Hampshire polls. His campaign accused Clinton's of insulting New Hampshire voters by suggesting they only support the Vermont senator because he's from a neighboring state. That was after Clinton's campaign manager referred to New Hampshire as Sanders' 'back yard.' THEY'RE WITH HER: Hillary Clinton's message has mostly caught on with older Americans and a smaller slice of younger voters who weren't alive when she was the U.S. first lady On a broader issue, Clinton offers herself to voters as 'a progressive who gets things done,' part of her pitch that she's the one with the practical skills to implement a progressive agenda. Sanders' counter-argument is that it will take a 'political revolution' to achieve goals such as universal health care, a fairer tax system and an incorruptible campaign finance system. Asked this week if Clinton is a progressive, he said: 'Some days, yes. Except when she announces that she is a proud moderate. Then I guess she is not a progressive.' Sanders added that it is hard to take on the establishment 'when you become as dependent as she has through her super PAC and in other ways on Wall Street or drug company money.' Clinton said she found it amusing that the senator thinks he can be the 'gatekeeper' of who's progressive. The Durham debate will be the first faceoff for Clinton and Sanders since former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley dropped out of the race after a poor showing in Iowa. PASSION: Most of the young, idealistic energy in the Democratic presidential primary is with Sanders Clinton's razor-thin win in Iowa was the latest twist in an election campaign that, until recently, had been dominated by the crowded and cacophonous Republican contest. GOP candidates, who debate again Saturday, were all over New Hampshire ahead of the primary. Donald Trump, who finished second in the Iowa caucuses, took fresh aim Wednesday at caucus winner Ted Cruz, the firebrand Texas senator who appears to be running behind in the Granite State and is hoping for momentum to carry him into South Carolina later this month. Roberts sold more than $250,000 in Microsoft stock WASHINGTON (AP) The Supreme Court's recent decision to step into a relatively unimportant case involving Microsoft's Xbox 360 gaming system revealed that Chief Justice John Roberts has sold between $250,000 and $500,000 in Microsoft stock in the past year. Federal judges violate the law if they take part in a case involving a company they own shares in, although Roberts declined through a court spokeswoman to comment on his situation. His decision, though, raises this question: If the chief justice can unload one of his two largest stock holdings (Time-Warner is the other), why does any justice continue to own individual companies' stock, knowing that doing so sometimes will force him out of a case? FILE - In this Sept. 19, 2014, file photo, U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts speaks at the University of Nebraska Lincoln, in Lincoln, Neb. The Supreme Court's recent decision to step into a relatively unimportant case involving Microsoft's Xbox 360 gaming system revealed that Roberts has sold between $250,000 and $500,000 in Microsoft stock in the past year. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik, file) "We're not talking about grandpa's stock in the family business where a justice might have some sentimental reason for holding onto the shares. These are major corporations who regularly come before the court," said Arthur Hellman, who specializes in judicial ethics at the University of Pittsburgh. Roberts himself backed a change in federal law to make decisions to sell more palatable financially. In 2006, Congress changed the law to prevent judges from getting socked with a big tax hit if they sell a stock to avoid a conflict of interest, then reinvest the money in government securities or certain kinds of mutual funds. Only three justices Samuel Alito, Stephen Breyer and Roberts even own individual stocks. Yet in the past few months, Alito has had to sit out a Supreme Court case and Breyer and Roberts acknowledged they overlooked stock ownership that should have precluded their participation in cases. Alito's ownership of up to $15,000 worth of shares in Wisconsin-based Johnson Controls Inc. caused him to miss the court's consideration of federal policy on electricity pricing. Johnson Controls owns a subsidiary that was involved in the high-profile energy case. Breyer took part in that case despite his wife's ownership of the very same stock. The routine check Breyer's office did to avoid conflicts failed to flag the Johnson Controls stock as a problem, Supreme Court clerk Scott Harris said in a letter to the parties after the argument. Breyer's wife, Joanna, quickly sold 750 shares worth about $33,000 after Breyer was alerted to the conflict. Breyer voted with the majority to uphold the policy that was being challenged by industry groups. In early October, Roberts took part in the denial of an appeal by Texas Instruments among 20 parties that appealed their share of the costs to clean up a hazardous waste site in Arizona. Roberts owns between $100,001 and $250,000 in Texas Instruments stock, and court spokeswoman Kathy Arberg acknowledged Roberts should not have been involved. Alito sat it out, without explanation. Fix the Court, a judicial ethics watchdog, first spotted Roberts' Texas Instruments conflict. The chief justice's sale of his Microsoft stock was the largest single stock sale by anyone on the court in at least the 10-plus years he has been there. In 2014, Alito got rid of shares in five companies worth at least $330,000, and perhaps as much as $900,000. The justices report their financial holdings in ranges, rather than exact values. Alito's investment portfolio has grown in recent years through inheritance and he has sought to reduce some individual stock investments. He still held stock in nearly three dozen companies as of the end of 2014, according to his most recent financial disclosure. Breyer and Roberts also have reduced some holdings. Breyer's largest single investment, worth from $1 million to $5 million, is his wife's stock in the Pearson media empire that her family started and built. Food industry looks to Congress as GMO labeling law nears WASHINGTON (AP) The food industry is pressuring Congress to act before the state of Vermont requires food labels for genetically modified ingredients. At issue is how food companies will deal with Vermont's law. They could make separate food packages just for the state, label all their items with genetically modified ingredients or withdraw from the small Vermont market. The law kicks in by July, but the companies have to start making those decisions now. The food industry wants Congress to pre-empt Vermont's law and bar mandatory labeling of genetically modified foods before it goes into effect. They argue that GMOs, or genetically modified organisms, are safe and a patchwork of state laws isn't practical. Labeling advocates have been fighting state-by-state to enact the labeling, with the eventual goal of a national standard. FILE - In this Oct. 5, 2012, file photo. froducts labeled with Non Genetically Modified Organism (GMO) are sold at the Lassens Natural Foods & Vitamins store in Los Feliz district of Los Angeles. The food industry is pressuring Congress to act before the state of Vermont requires food labels for genetically modified ingredients. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File) Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack brought the parties together twice this month to see if they could work out a compromise. But agreement won't be easy, as the industry staunchly opposes the mandatory labels. Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are divided, too, but agree that a compromise needs to be worked out before this summer. A look at the debate as the food industry and Congress wrestle with labeling of engineered foods: ___ WHAT'S A GMO, ANYWAY? Genetically modified seeds are engineered in laboratories to have certain traits, like resistance to herbicides. The majority of the country's corn and soybean crop is now genetically modified, with much of that going to animal feed. Corn and soybeans are also made into popular processed food ingredients like high-fructose corn syrup, corn starch and soybean oil. The food industry says about 75 percent to 80 percent of foods contain genetically modified ingredients. While there is little scientific concern about the safety of those GMOs on the market, advocates for labeling say not enough is known about their risks. ___ DUG IN The food industry has been battling the labeling advocates for several years, spending millions to fight ballot initiatives and bills in state legislatures that would require labeling of genetically modified foods. They have also challenged Vermont's law in court. Industry-backed legislation that passed the House last year would have blocked any such state laws. But that bill has stalled in the Senate. The Food and Drug Administration has said GMOs on the market now are safe, and the federal government does not support mandatory labels. But supporters of labeling counter that consumers have a right to know what's in their foods, and say Congress shouldn't be trying to pre-empt states. So far, Vermont is the only state set to require labeling. Maine and Connecticut have passed similar laws, but those measures don't take effect unless neighboring states follow suit. Several other states could consider labeling bills this year. ___ NEW TALKS Hours of talks with Vilsack haven't produced compromise. The former Iowa governor hasn't taken sides on the issue, but he has previously suggested some sort of digital labeling that consumers could access with their smart phones or in-store scanners. The food industry has had similar ideas, introducing voluntary digital labels last year that could provide consumers with detailed information about products. Information could also be accessed by an online search. Labeling advocates have frowned on digital labels, saying they discriminate against people who don't have smart phones, computers or the know-how to use them. "Consumers shouldn't have to have a high-tech smartphone and a 10-gigabyte data plan to know what's in their food," said Scott Faber, head of the national Just Label It Campaign, after Vilsack spoke publicly about the idea early last year. Those differences have brought the issue to an impasse, for now. Congress is still trying to find common ground. Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts, R-Kan., says he wants to take up a bill soon, before Vermont's law goes into effect. The panel's top Democrat, Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, and Republican Sen. John Hoeven of North Dakota have been working to find bipartisan compromise. "We're not there yet," Hoeven said earlier this month. ___ COMPANIES GO ON THEIR OWN As Congress has stalled on the issue, some companies are already prepared to deal with the Vermont law. Campbell Soup said earlier this month it now supports mandatory national labeling for products containing genetically modified ingredients, and that it will stop backing efforts opposing the disclosures. The company said about three-quarters of its products contain GMOs, and released a mock-up of the label it would use to comply if Vermont's law goes into effect. It says "Partially produced with genetic engineering" in small print at the bottom. Campbell Soup CEO Denise Morrison has been outspoken about the need for big food makers to adapt to changing tastes. ___ Viewer's Guide: Clinton, Sanders clash over economic divide WASHINGTON (AP) The face-to-face meeting between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders is rooted in an intensifying debate over who understands the great divide between rich Americans and everyone else. The theme has long been key to the contest between Democrats, but with Martin O'Malley's exit from the race this week, that contest is focused and dagger-sharp, and it's rooted in the emotional question of which candidate would represent cash-strapped, everyday Americans. But the real battle is for the votes of liberal Democrats who will decide whether Sanders or Clinton becomes the party's 2016 presidential nominee. The intensity is fed by the context: The debate Thursday night comes after Clinton scored a gossamer-thin victory in the Iowa caucuses. But a win is a win, and she wants it to stay that way through the New Hampshire contest Tuesday and beyond. Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., smiles as he answers a question from the audience alongside host Anderson Cooper during a democratic primary town hall sponsored by CNN, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, in Derry, N.H. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) Sanders, though, is the heavy favorite on his home turf in New England and not willing to let the former secretary of state chalk up a victory in New Hampshire as she did in 2008. Things to watch at the University of New Hampshire, which will be on MSNBC: ___ WHO'S A REAL PROGRESSIVE? Watch for Clinton and Sanders to take off running on this topic, which intensified over Twitter and in live appearances after Monday's Iowa caucuses. Clinton claims she's a "progressive who wants to make progress," a dig at what she suggests are Sanders' pie-in-the-sky ideas. Sanders, a socialist, scoffs at that as the height of hypocrisy. Most progressives he knows, he tweeted, did not support the Iraq war, while Clinton voted for it as a senator. And he's lately been going after her for supporting President Barack Obama's Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal. Earlier this week, he said she's perhaps progressive on "some days." Clinton shot back from the campaign stage that the charge was a "low blow," saying she's been "fighting the progressive fight" for years, including her drive to expand children's health insurance. Sanders sniped over Twitter on Wednesday: "Most progressives that I know don't raise millions of dollars from Wall Street" as Clinton, a former senator from New York, has done. ___ CLASH OVER CASH Look for Clinton on the defensive over cash payments she's received for speaking engagements. She struggled with a question Wednesday about why she accepted $675,000 for three speeches from Goldman Sachs. "Well, I don't know. That's what they offered." She then said she hadn't yet committed to running for president, suggesting that at the time, accepting that much was politically okay. The point, though, is whether she's vulnerable to being influenced by big-money interests who have compensated her so handsomely. Clinton later said her record shows that her public policy decisions haven't been influenced by outside interests on public policy. The question also highlights her wealth in a race in which the candidates claim to understand Americans who struggle to pay bills. ___ WOOING YOUNG AND NEW VOTERS Clinton acknowledged after Iowa that she has "some work" ahead to appeal to young and first-time voters whom Sanders has been able to rally. Look for her to highlight her plans to make college more affordable, help small businesses and improve Obama's health care law. In Iowa, Sanders' appeal with young voters was evident: More than 8 in 10 Democratic caucus-goers under 30 came to support him, as did nearly 6 in 10 of those between ages 30 and 44, according to surveys at the precincts. Clinton got the support of 6 in 10 caucus-goers between ages 45 and 64, and 7 in 10 of those 65 and over. ___ LOWERING EXPECTATIONS Clinton finds herself on even shakier ground in New Hampshire against Sanders' home-field advantage, and her campaign has cast her as an underdog against the Vermont senator. "I know that they tend to favor their neighbors," she said on CNN's "Situation Room" this week. "That's the pattern, the history of the primary. And Sen. Sanders is a neighbor." In 2008, Clinton won the New Hampshire primary even though the neighboring Massachusetts senator and Democratic patriarch, Ted Kennedy, had endorsed Obama. ___ LOOKING AHEAD This is a nationally televised debate, so Clinton and Sanders will be talking not just to New Hampshire voters, but to Democrats in coming primaries among more diverse electorates. After New Hampshire, the next-up primaries in Nevada and South Carolina are tests for how well Sanders can perform among Latinos, who are a strong presence in Nevada, and African-Americans, who make up a majority of South Carolina's Democratic electorate. In contrast, Iowa and New Hampshire are both overwhelmingly white and allow Sanders to capitalize on his strengths among urban white liberals and people on college campuses. Listen for Clinton's heavy emphasis on Obama's health law, which she says she wants to build on while Sanders would switch to a government-paid health system. She's also likely to hammer Sanders on his mixed record on gun control. ___ Follow Laurie Kellman on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/APLaurieKellman Tortured Italian student died 'slow death': Egypt official CAIRO (AP) The body of an Italian graduate student who disappeared last month has been found with multiple stab wounds, cigarette burns and other signs of torture and a "slow death" on a roadside on the outskirts of Cairo, an Egyptian prosecutor said Thursday. Giulio Regeni, a 28-year-old Cambridge University PhD candidate who had been researching labor rights in Egypt, went missing on Jan. 25, the fifth anniversary of the popular uprising that toppled longtime autocrat Hosni Mubarak. His body was found Wednesday. News of the slaying and evidence of torture spurred diplomatic tensions. An Italian government delegation cut short a visit to Cairo and Italy summoned the Egyptian ambassador in Rome, calling for a full investigation with participation by Italian experts. This image posted online after the Jan. 25, 2016 disappearance of Italian graduate student Giulio Regeni in Cairo, Egypt shows Reggeni in a graphic used in an online campaign, #whereisgiulio seeking information on his whereabouts. The body of the missing Italian student was found with signs of torture, including multiple stab wounds and cigarette burns, by the side of a highway on the outskirts of the Egyptian capital, an investigating prosecutor told The Associated Press on Thursday, Feb. 4, 2015. (#wheresgiulio via AP) Regeni's disappearance came at a time when Egyptian officials and media have often depicted foreigners as plotting against Egypt and particularly as seeking to foment unrest surrounding the Jan. 25 anniversary. In the days leading up to the anniversary, police were on high alert, conducting sweeps aimed at preventing any possible protest. Pro-democracy activists were arrested and some foreigners whose visas had expired were deported. Egypt is also battling an insurgency by militants who have sworn allegiance to the Islamic State group. The militants are mainly active in the Sinai Peninsula but have also carried out attacks in Cairo and elsewhere, including kidnapping and beheading a Croatian oil worker last year and setting off a bomb outside the Italian consulate in Cairo. On Thursday, Egyptian media accused "evil hands" of orchestrating Regeni's killing to damage Egyptian-Italian relations. The term is usually used to refer to Islamists, who have been targeted by a ferocious crackdown since the 2013 military ouster of Islamist President Mohammed Morsi. Authorities justify the campaign by pointing to the fight against the militants, who have killed hundreds of policemen and soldiers over the past four years. The Italian media pointed fingers at the Egyptian security forces. A business daily, Il Sole 24 Ore, said "the strong suspicion" was that Regeni was "killed by Egypt ... by the system, by the security apparatus." Regeni had been in Egypt since September conducting research on workers and labor rights a sensitive topic, since disgruntled workers were among the forces in the 2011 anti-Mubarak uprising and authorities still worry about worker discontent. The left-wing Italian newspaper il Manifesto said Regeni had been writing for it about labor issues, signing his articles under a pseudonym. "I imagine it was for security because the articles were about workers and unions," said foreign desk editor Simone Pieranni. "It's clear that when you speak about social rights and workers' rights in Egypt you are implicitly denouncing the lack of freedom." Pieranni said the newspaper would publish a final piece critical of the lack of press and other freedoms in Egypt under Regeni's own name on Friday. Regeni was last seen on Jan. 25 heading from his apartment to meet a friend in downtown Cairo. He entered the subway, which was packed with security personnel scanning bags and checking commuter's IDs. In the days following his disappearance, friends and colleagues launched a search, circulating Regeni's picture widely on social media. His body was found Wednesday in an empty lot along a highway in the 6th of October suburb on Cairo's western outskirts. He was identified by his Egyptian roommate, said prosecutor Ahmed Nagi, who heads the investigation team in the case. "All of his body, including his face" had bruises, cuts from stabbings and burns from cigarettes, Nagi said, adding Regeni appeared to have suffered a "slow death." Later Thursday, Nagi said an autopsy showed the cause of death was a brain hemorrhage. Asked about possible police involvement, he said: "We don't rule out any possibility." Earlier, the deputy head of criminal investigations in Cairo's twin province of Giza, Alaa Azmi, had cited initial findings he said indicated Regeni was killed in a car accident. For years, rights groups have accused Egyptian police of regularly torturing detainees. Over the past year, they have also accused them of using "forced disappearances" detaining suspected activists or Islamists in secret without reporting their arrest. The Egyptian Association for Rights and Freedoms documented 314 cases of forced disappearances in 2015, said lawyer Halem Henish. Most later turned up in prison, but at least five were found at the morgue, including one with signs of torture like burns and electric shocks. He said the group has documented 35 disappearances so far in 2016, including at least two of whom died. Meanwhile, in Regeni's hometown of Fiumicello in northeastern Italy, townspeople were "destroyed" by the news of his death, said Mayor Ennio Scridel. The town of 5,000 declared Sunday a day of mourning. "If you go into a bar, you see dark faces, silences, looks that let escape all the sadness of a small community like ours," Scridel told Sky Tg24. He described Regeni as "an extraordinary person, who comes from a good family." News of Regeni's death prompted Italy's economic development minister, Federica Guidi, to cut short a visit to Cairo and head home. Guidi had been heading a delegation of 60 business people to help companies set up business in Egypt. Italian Premier Matteo Renzi spoke with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi by telephone and pledged to coordinate efforts with Italian authorities to "unravel the mystery" surrounding Regini's death, el-Sissi's office said. The Italian news agency ANSA said a seven-person team of Italian and Interpol investigators was heading to Cairo on Friday to participate in the inquiry. Egyptian authorities have come under criticism for lack of transparency in several investigations, particularly the Oct. 31 crash of a Russian passenger jet over the Sinai Peninsula and the September killing of eight Mexican tourists and four Egyptian guides by a security forces helicopter that opened fire on their desert safari. In both cases, authorities banned media reports on the investigations. ____ Maram Mazen and Sam Magdy contributed to this report from Cairo. Colleen Barry contributed to this report from Milan, Italy. Hamza Hendawi contributed to this report from Baghdad, Iraq. People enter Cairo, Egypt's central morgue where the body of Giulio Regeni, A 28-year-old graduate student, is held, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. The body of the a missing Italian student was found with signs of torture, including multiple stab wounds and cigarette burns, by the side of a highway on the outskirts of the Egyptian capital, an investigating prosecutor told The Associated Press on Thursday.(AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty) Egyptian security forces stand guard outside Zeinhom morgue, where the body of Giulio Regeni, a 28-year-old graduate student, is held, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. The body of the missing Italian student was found with signs of torture, including multiple stab wounds and cigarette burns, by the side of a highway on the outskirts of the Egyptian capital, an investigating prosecutor told The Associated Press on Thursday. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty) Journalists try to photograph and film the vehicle belonging to the Italian ambassador after his visit to Zeinhom morgue, where the body of Giulio Regeni, a 28-year-old graduate student, is held, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. The body of the missing Italian student was found with signs of torture, including multiple stab wounds and cigarette burns, by the side of a highway on the outskirts of the Egyptian capital, an investigating prosecutor told The Associated Press on Thursday. (AP Photo/Nariman El-Mofty) The Latest: 'Like a siege of Aleppo is about to begin' LONDON (AP) The latest on fighting in Syria and Thursday's Syria aid conference (all times local): 8:30 p.m. The aid group Mercy Corps says intensified airstrikes and fighting around Aleppo have cut off the main humanitarian route into the Syrian city, and that tens of thousands of civilians are fleeing north toward the border with Turkey. Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, converse during the 'Supporting Syria and the Region' conference at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in London Thursday Feb. 4, 2016. (Toby Melville, Pool Via AP) David Evans, Mercy Corps' regional program director for the Middle East, said in a statement Thursday that "it feels like a siege of Aleppo is about to begin." The statement said that since Wednesday, the group's operations in northern Syria "have been effectively sliced in half." It cites information from team members on the ground in Syria. The aid group says it had been reaching up to half a million people in northern Syria with aid every month. ___ 7.40pm A Saudi military spokesman says the kingdom is ready to send ground troops to Syria to fight Islamic State group provided coalition leaders agree during an upcoming meeting in Brussels. Brig. Gen. Ahmed Asiri told The Associated Press on Thursday that Saudi Arabia has taken part in coalition airstrikes against IS since the U.S.-led campaign began in September 2014, but could now provide ground troops. The United States is scheduled to convene a meeting of defense ministers from countries fighting IS in Brussels this month. "We are determined to fight and defeat Daesh," Asiri said, using the Arabic acronym for IS. He didn't say how many troops the kingdom would send. ___ 4:50 p.m. Britain's prime minister says a major international donor conference in London has raised more than $10 billion to help millions of Syrians displaced by war. David Cameron, who co-hosted the one-day meeting attended by leaders from some 70 countries, says the funds include almost $6 billion pledged for 2016, with another $5 billion committed by the year 2020. He told reporters that the international community will stand with Syrians for "as long as it takes." The United Nations and countries in the region had said they needed $9 billion in assistance just in 2016 as the situation in and near Syria deteriorates. Similar aid conferences for Syria held in previous years have repeatedly fallen short, with last year's raising just half of the target and forcing cuts to aid programs. ___ 4:30 p.m. Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai says she is disappointed it is taking so long to end the war in Syria, but insists that shouldn't be an excuse to ignore the plight of the country's refugees. Speaking to the AP on the sidelines of an international donor conference in London Thursday, the 18-year-old education activist said "it's really disappointing" that the five-year-old conflict still rages going on, "but we are hoping that a time will come that peace will be restored." She said that whether it takes a year, five years or 10 years, "that should not be an excuse to ignore the lives of all Syrian refugees right now." Malala and 17-year-old Syrian refugee Mezon al-Melihan came to the conference to push for $1.4 billion for education for children in Syria and in refugee camps. Malala said she was encouraged by the pledges so far, which include $300 million from the United States for education programs in Jordan and Lebanon. She said the commitments gave her "great hope that the future of Syrian children will be saved and they will get the opportunity to go to school." ___ 3:00 p.m. The Russian military says it has "reasonable grounds" to suspect that Turkey is making intensive preparations for a military invasion of neighboring Syria. Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said Thursday in a statement that the Russian military has registered "a growing number of signs of hidden preparation of the Turkish armed forces for active actions on the territory of Syria." He said images of a checkpoint on the Turkish-Syrian border taken in late October and late January show a buildup of transportation infrastructure that could be used for moving in troops, ammunition and weapons. ___ 14:20 p.m. State media say two Syrian reporters and a photographer were injured when shrapnel from mortar shells struck a press bus north of the city of Aleppo. The reports blamed rebels for the mortar rounds. The area saw heavy fighting this week, as pro-government forces backed by Syrian and Russian warplanes captured several villages. Syrian state media says the journalists injured Thursday worked for Syria's al-Ikhbariya TV and the official news agency, SANA. An official at al-Ikhbariyeh says the three are in a stable condition. Meanwhile, opposition activists reported intensive air strikes on rebel-held areas of Aleppo, Syria's largest city. The Local Coordination Committees, a Syrian monitoring group, says eight people were killed in the strikes, while the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights put the death toll at 21. ___ 13:25 p.m. The International Committee of the Red Cross has distributed food to more than 12,000 residents of a besieged rebel-held town near the Syrian capital of Damascus. Marianne Gasser, the head of the ICRC delegation in Syria, said Thursday that the residents of Moadamiyeh are "hungry and they need us." The Syrian Arab Red Crescent joined the aid convoy, which also distributed medical items to more than 10,000 people. The situation in Moadamiyeh worsened late last year after the government closed the last access point into the city. Opposition activists have reported dozens of cases of severe malnutrition. Thursday's aid delivery is the second to a besieged area this week. Close to half a million people in Syria live in communities besieged by pro-government forces or rebel fighters. ___ 12:35 p.m. Turkey's prime minister says some 10,000 Syrians who have fled Syrian and alleged Russian bombing of Aleppo are waiting at the Turkish border, seeking refuge. Speaking at the international donors conference in London, Ahmet Davutoglu said up to 70,000 others who had been sheltering in camps north of Aleppo were moving toward the Turkish border. Turkey says it has taken in more than 2.5 million Syrians since the civil war began in 2011. Davutoglu said the country had so far spent $10 billion on Syrians who have been placed in refugee camps in the country. He said an estimated $20 billion more could be needed to care for those outside of the camps. Turkey's state-run Anadolu new agency reports that Davutoglu blamed the failure of the first round of Syrian peace talks in Geneva on continued bombings of "hospitals and schools in Aleppo and Latikia" by the Syrian government forces. ___ 12:15 p.m. Russia says that Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry agree that both the Syrian government and opposition need to take urgent steps to ensure that humanitarian aid delivered under U.N. auspices was able to reach regions blocked both by government and opposition forces. The Russian Foreign Ministry said Lavrov and Kerry agreed on Thursday to try to coordinate the delivery of humanitarian aid by military transport planes. The ministry says they also agreed to make the necessary efforts so that the pause in the Geneva talks was a short as possible, the ministry statement said. ___ 11:45 a.m. A 7-year-old Syrian girl with cancer has become the first of an estimated 1,000 refugees who are being brought to Italy on humanitarian grounds in a pilot project aimed at dissuading refugees from embarking on deadly sea crossings. Falak Al Hourani, her parents and 6-year-old brother arrived Thursday at Rome's Leonardo Da Vinci airport thanks to the "humanitarian corridor" project launched by the Rome-based Catholic Sant'Egidio Community and the Federation of Protestant Churches in Italy. The two groups lobbied the Italian government to grant a thousand humanitarian visas for refugees in camps in Lebanon, Morocco and Ethiopia and put up the estimated 1.3 million euros ($1.4 million) to process their visas, transport them to Italy and get them resettled here while their asylum applications are processed. ___ 11:25 a.m. The international aid group Mercy Corps says it was forced to suspend food distribution in several villages in northern Syria because of heavy airstrikes that accompanied a government military offensive. Mercy Corps said Thursday that escalating air strikes have displaced thousands more people. It says about 21,000 Syrians fleeing the fighting recently arrived at the nearby Turkish border. The offensive took place north of Aleppo, Syria's largest city. Mercy Corps says it feeds more than half a million people each month in Aleppo province. In recent days, pro-government forces have retaken several villages north of Aleppo. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an opposition monitoring group, said Thursday the offensive was backed by airstrikes hitting more than 500 targets. ___ 11:05 a.m. The United States will provide almost $900 million to help Syrians trapped by civil war and neighboring countries struggling with the crisis. Secretary of State John Kerry is announcing the contribution Thursday at an international donors conference for Syria in London. Some $600 million is going to life-saving assistance for Syrians, including food, shelter and camp supplies. That brings total U.S. humanitarian spending on the five-year-old war to $5.1 billion. Another $290 million will support education in Jordan and Lebanon, including for almost 300,000 Syrian refugees. ___ 10:55 a.m. United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says it is "deeply disturbing" that a fragile Syrian peace process is being undermined by increased bombing and the blocking of humanitarian aid to suffering civilians. Syrian government forces, backed by Russian airstrikes, have increased the pace of attacks on opposition forces in recent days, as U.N.-brokered peace talks struggled to get off the ground in Geneva. Ban spoke at an international aid conference in London, hours after the talks were suspended for three weeks. He said that "the coming days should be used to get back to the table, not to secure more gains on the battlefield." Ban said the U.N. hopes the one-day conference will raise at least $7 billion, twice as much as last year. ___ 10:30 a.m. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says the Syrian government and Russia must halt attacks on civilians and allow unfettered humanitarian access throughout Syria. Kerry says December's U.N. resolution on Syria, supported by Russia, was clear. Aid agencies need to be allowed to reach those in need and shelling of civilian targets must stop. Kerry spoke Thursday after meeting British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond and other top diplomats on the sidelines of Syria Donors Conference in London. On Wednesday, the U.N. suspended Syrian peace talks amid a renewed offensive by the government and Russia. Kerry said he spoke Thursday morning with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov by telephone about how to implement a ceasefire. Hammond said he recognized talking is hard for Syria's government and opposition. But he said negotiations were the only way to end the conflict. ___ 9:00 a.m. A monitoring group says more than 500 targets were hit from the air by Syrian and presumably also Russian warplanes during this week's government offensive which captured strategic areas north of the country's largest city, Aleppo. Rami Abdul-Rahman of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Thursday that the bombing campaign was one of the most intensive in months. Russia began launching airstrikes late last year to back its ally, Syrian President Bashar Assad. The Observatory is a group of opposition activists monitoring the five-year-old Syria conflict. As part of the recent offensive, pro-government forces on Wednesday broke a three-year-old rebel siege of two Shiite Muslim towns near Aleppo. On Thursday, residents embraced and cheered pro-government fighters entering the towns. ___ 7:00 a.m. Leaders and diplomats from 70 countries are meeting in London to pledge billions to help millions of Syrians displaced by war and try to slow the chaotic exodus of refugees to Europe. Thursday's conference aims to agree plans for economic and educational projects to assist 4.6 million Syrians who have sought refuge in Jordan, Lebanon and other neighboring countries. The U.N. and regional countries say they need $9 billion in assistance for 2016. Conference co-host Britain has pledged 1.2 billion pounds ($1.75 billion) in new aid by 2020, and Secretary of State John Kerry is due to announce a big U.S. commitment later. Organizers believe finding jobs and schools for refugees in the Middle East can help increase regional stability and keep displaced Syrians from fleeing to Europe. Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, left, and 17-year-old Syrian refugee Mazoun Almellehan during a press conference during the 'Supporting Syria and the Region' conference at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in London, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Leaders and diplomats from 70 countries are meeting in London Thursday to pledge billions to help millions of Syrians displaced by war, and try to slow the chaotic exodus of refugees to Europe. (Dan Kitwood Pool via AP) Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico speaks with British Prime Minister David Cameron during their bilateral meeting at the 'Supporting Syria and the Region' conference at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in London, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Leaders and diplomats around the world are meeting in London Thursday and pledging some billions of dollars to help millions of Syrian people displaced by war, and try to slow the chaotic exodus of refugees into Europe. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham, Pool) UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon speaks at the 'Supporting Syria and the Region' conference at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in London, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Leaders and diplomats from 70 countries are meeting in London Thursday to pledge billions to help millions of Syrians displaced by war, and try to slow the chaotic exodus of refugees to Europe. (Dan Kitwood Pool via AP) Lebanese Prime Minister Tammam Salam speaks at the 'Supporting Syria and the Region' conference at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in London, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Leaders and diplomats from 70 countries are meeting in London Thursday to pledge billions to help millions of Syrians displaced by war, and try to slow the chaotic exodus of refugees to Europe. (Dan Kitwood Pool via AP) Norway's Prime Minister Erna Solberg speaks at the 'Supporting Syria and the Region' conference at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in London, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Leaders and diplomats from 70 countries are meeting in London Thursday to pledge billions to help millions of Syrians displaced by war, and try to slow the chaotic exodus of refugees to Europe. (Dan Kitwood Pool via AP) UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon greets German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the 'Supporting Syria and the Region' conference at the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre in London, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Leaders and diplomats from 70 countries are meeting in London Thursday to pledge billions to help millions of Syrians displaced by war, and try to slow the chaotic exodus of refugees to Europe. (Dan Kitwood Pool via AP) France dismantles 25 migrant smuggling networks over a year PARIS (AP) France's top security official said investigators have dismantled 25 migrant smuggling networks in the country's north in the past year. Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said about 700 people were involved in the networks in the Calais region, temporary home to about 4,000 migrants camped in squalid conditions on the edge of the Channel in hopes of slipping across to a better life in England. Speaking Thursday to Europe 1 radio, Cazeneuve also defended his ban on protests in Calais, which he said was imposed in response to a demonstration in support of migrants that ended with a group of people breaking into the port and boarding a ship. He said the unrest showed the risks were too great of confrontations involving both pro-migrant activists, and extremists on the right. A migrant walks in the migrant camp in Calais, northern France, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. About 4,000 people from Syria, Sudan and other countries are estimated to be camped out in Calais as they try to reach Britain, some recently moving into new facilities but most still sleeping in what's been called Europe's biggest slum. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus) Refugees and migrants arrives by ferry from the Greek eastern islands at the Athens' port of Piraeus, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. The European Union's executive arm has agreed to double its contribution to a fund to help Syrian refugees in Turkey after EU member states baulked at paying billions from national coffers. (AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis) The Latest: Sweden expects 140,000 asylum-seekers this year PARIS (AP) The Latest on migrants seeking sanctuary in Europe (all times local): 1:15 p.m. Sweden's immigration agency says up to 140,000 people could seek shelter this year in the Scandinavian country that was one of the top destinations for asylum-seekers in Europe in 2015. Refugees walk towards the border with Serbia from the transit center for refugees near northern Macedonian village of Tabanovce, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Macedonia has lifted restrictions on the entry of refugees from the Greek border after Macedonian taxi drivers ended a five-day protest that had closed a key railway line, slowing migrant flows to Serbia. (AP Photo/Boris Grdanoski) The Migrationsverket agency says it expects that 27,000 of them could be unaccompanied minors. Agency chief Anders Danielsson said Thursday the 2016 forecast is based "on political decisions and actions at EU level and in Sweden." He added "it is hardly possible to speak of a forecast anymore." Last year, Sweden received nearly 163,000 arrivals. Some 35,400 of those were unaccompanied minors, with about 66 percent being Afghans. The country has experienced a sharp drop in newcomers since photo ID checks were introduced this month. ___ 12:15 p.m. Czech police say they detained a total of 8,563 illegal migrants in the country in 2015, 3,741 more than the previous year. Milan Majer, the chief officer of the police immigration unit, says most of them, almost 25 percent, were Syrian refugees. The Czech Republic isn't part of the so-called Balkan route used on the way to Germany and other rich Western countries as migrants flee war and poverty. In connection with the influx, Czech police say they arrested 118 migrant smugglers last year, 114 more than in 2014. ___ 10:50 a.m. France's top security official said investigators have dismantled 25 migrant smuggling networks in the country's north in the past year. Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said about 700 people were involved in the networks in the Calais region, temporary home to about 4,000 migrants camped in squalid conditions on the edge of the Channel in hopes of slipping across to a better life in England. Speaking Thursday to Europe 1 radio, Cazeneuve also defended his ban on protests in Calais, which he said was imposed in response to a demonstration in support of migrants that ended with a group of people breaking into the port and boarding a ship. He said the unrest showed the risks were too great of confrontations involving both pro-migrant activists, and extremists on the right. ___ 8:30 a.m. The German government says more than 91,000 asylum seekers arrived last month, underlining the pressure the country faces to diminish the influx of migrants. The Interior Ministry said Thursday that 91,671 people were registered as asylum seekers in January. That's lower than the 127,320 who arrived in December; officials have said that winter weather was the driving force behind the decline. In all, Germany saw nearly 1.1 million people arrive last year, and officials are keen to ensure that the figures are lower this year. Chancellor Angela Merkel insists that diplomacy is the key to a solution, and has resisted pressure for unilateral measures such as a cap on refugee numbers. However, the government has moved to toughen asylum policies. ___ The item timed at 1:15 p.m. has been corrected to show that 163,000 people arrived in Sweden in 2015, not 163 million. Refugees and migrants arrives by ferry from the Greek eastern islands at the Athens' port of Piraeus, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. The European Union's executive arm has agreed to double its contribution to a fund to help Syrian refugees in Turkey after EU member states baulked at paying billions from national coffers. (AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis) A migrant walks in the migrant camp in Calais, northern France, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. About 4,000 people from Syria, Sudan and other countries are estimated to be camped out in Calais as they try to reach Britain, some recently moving into new facilities but most still sleeping in what's been called Europe's biggest slum. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus) Pharmaceutical chief Martin Shkreli refused to testify Thursday in an appearance before U.S. lawmakers who excoriated him over severe hikes for a drug sold by a company that he acquired. While not saying a word during the hearing, the usually-outspoken 32-year-old took to Twitter immediately afterwards to call members of the U.S. Congress 'imbeciles'. Shkreli, widely scorned for hiking the price of a long-established and potentially lifesaving drug Daraprim by more than 5,000 percent, was called to testify in a House oversight hearing on prescription drug prices. However he exercised his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination due to separate security charges he is facing. Rep. Elijah Cummings, the top Democrat on the panel, berated Shkreli: 'I call this money blood money ... coming out of the pockets of hardworking Americans,' he said. Former Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO Martin Shkreli on Thursday called members of the U.S. Congress 'imbeciles' on Twitter moments after refusing to testify before a House of Representatives committee Shkreli, who smirked throughout the hearing, refused to testify before U.S. lawmakers who excoriated him over severe hikes for a drug sold by a company that he acquired Hearing: (L-R)Howard Schiller, interim CEO of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Nancy Retzlaff, chief commercial officer for Turing Pharmaceuticals LLC, and Martin Shkreli on Capitol Hill on Thursday All smiles: Martin Shkreli smiles while flanked by Nancy Retzlaff, chief commercial officer for Turing Pharmaceuticals LLC., during a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on Capitol Hill Invoking the Fifth: Shkreli refused to testify before U.S. lawmakers who excoriated him over severe hikes for a drug sold by a company that he acquired The former CEO waits on Capitol Hill Thursday, for the start of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform Committee hearing on his former company's decision to raise the price of a lifesaving drug Following the hearing, Shrekli posted this to Twitter, calling members of the U.S. Congress 'imbeciles' This post apparently addresses the way Shkreli was smiling at the hearing, with him claiming to have had legal advice on how to act in front of Congress The 32-year-old Shkreli faces separate criminal charges of securities fraud in connection with another drug company he owned. The lawmakers summoned him to answer for the decision that made him infamous: raising the price for Daraprim, the only approved drug for a rare and sometimes deadly parasitic infection. The brash entrepreneur and former hedge fund manager, who pleaded not guilty after his arrest in December in New York, has been out on $5 million bail. He walked into the packed hearing room well before the session began and met the crush of cameras. Even a few members of the House panel were swept up in the curiosity and snapped Shkreli's photo on their cellphones. He wore a sport jacket and button-down shirt, conservatively preppie attire. U.S. Representative Elijah Cummings reprimanded Shkreli for appearing to laugh during the Maryland Democrat's opening statement. 'It's not funny, Mr. Shkreli,' Cummings said. Entrepreneur and pharmaceutical executive Martin Shkreli waits for a car to pick him up after invoking his Fifth Amendment rights during a hearing of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee on Capitol Hill Shkreli was allowed to leave the hearing early after he repeated that he would not answer any questions at all Shkreli was subpoenaed to appear at a hearing of a House of Representatives committee on oversight and government reform looking at the prescription drug market, but refused to answer questions Shkreli and his lawyer Benjamin Brafman leave the House Oversight and Government Reform Committiee hearing on Wednesday on Capitol Hill Shkreli responded to questions by continuing to laugh, twirling a pencil and yawning. Cummings added a few minutes later: 'You can go down as the poster boy for greedy drug company executives, or you can change the system.' Shkreli was allowed to leave the hearing early after he repeated that he would not answer any questions at all. Representative John Mica, a Florida Republican, said he would consider asking fellow lawmakers to hold Shkreli in contempt for his behavior. 'I don't think I've ever seen the committee treated with such contempt,' Mica said. Turing Chief Commercial Officer Nancy Retzlaff told the House hearing that Turing acquired Daraprim because it was 'priced far below its market value' and that the company was committed to investing revenue into new treatments. The Federal Trade Commission and the New York attorney general are investigating Turing for possible antitrust violations. Different: A day earlier, former drug executive Martin Shkreli had much longer hair as he exited the U.S. Federal Courthouse in Brooklyn on Wednesday 'I am confident': Following the Capitol Hill hearing, the 32-year-old retweeted a bunch of posts put up by people who support him. He also retweeted one of his own messages from December After the hearing Shkreli, using his @MartinShkreli Twitter handle, said: 'Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government.' Speaking to press on Capitol Hill, Shkreli's lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, defended the behavior of his client, saying: 'A lot of what you saw was nervous energy and that Shkreli did not mean any disrespect.' Shkreli previously defended his decision to raise the price of Daraprim from $13.50 per tablet to $750 However, Shrekeli soon after sent out another tweet that seemed like an attempted justification for his smiling and smirking. 'I had prior counsel produce a memo on facial expressions during congressional testimony if anyone wants to see it. Interesting precedence,' he posted. Also appearing before the lawmakers is Turing's chief commercial officer and the interim CEO of Canada's largest drugmaker, Valeant Pharmaceuticals. Documents from Valeant and Turing show they have made a practice of buying and then dramatically raising prices for, low-cost drugs given to patients with life-threatening conditions including heart disease, AIDS and cancer, according to excerpts released this week by the House panel. The two companies' executives argue that commitment is to ensuring that cost isn't a deterrent for patients who need the drugs. Documents show how executives at both companies planned to maximize profits while fending off negative publicity over the price hikes. Presentations by Turing executives, part of the trove of documents, show that as early as last May, the company planned to turn Daraprim into a $200-million-a-year drug by dramatically increasing its price. Shkreli was arrested in December and charged with running his investment companies almost like a Ponzi scheme. He has pleaded not guilty and stepped down from Turing. He is pictured in New York on Wednesday Turing bought the 60-year-old drug from Impax Laboratories in August for $55 million and swiftly raised its price. Shkreli said in an email to one contact: 'We raised the price from $1,700 per bottle to $75,000. Should be a very handsome investment for all of us.' But anticipating a possible backlash, the company warned in an internal memo that advocates for HIV patients might react to the price hike. Valeant likewise identified revenue goals first and then used drug prices to reach them, committee staff said in a memo. It said Valeant believed it could repeatedly raise the prices of Nitropress and Isuprel without repercussions because they're administered by hospitals, which are less price-sensitive than consumers. Valeant used patient assistance programs to distract attention and justify its price hikes, according to the memo. Breaking it down: Officials walk behind a poster board detailing Martin Shkreli's alleged Ponzi scheme after a news conference in New York in December Cash money: Shkreli (above) said the parasitic infection that can cause serious and life-threatening problems which the pill treats could mutate, making research necessary Shkreli was arrested on charges of securities fraud last year and released on a $5million bond Shkreli, 32, sparked outrage last year among patients, medical societies and Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton after the big hike in the price of 62-year-old Daraprim. Shkreli was a trending topic on social media following the hearing. There are about 30 posts per minute about him on Twitter as of Thursday morning, according to analytics firm Zoomph. About 92,000 people were talking about Shkreli on Facebook. His appearance prompted outrage on Thursday from members of Congress. Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders), U.S. senator from Vermont and Democratic presidential candidate, tweeted, "The American people are fed up with the blatant profiteering of pharmaceutical company CEOs like Martin Shkreli. It must end." Brazilian company tells Neymar to come clean over transfer MADRID (AP) The Brazilian company that says it hasn't been properly compensated for Neymar's transfer to Barcelona wants him to come clean and put an end to his judicial problems in Spain and Brazil. The co-founder of Grupo Sonda, which invested in Neymar early in his career, issued a public message to the player in a news conference on Thursday in Madrid, saying he risks having his career tainted by a crime. "You are an exceptional player and I wouldn't like to see you going down in history marked by a crime," Delcir Sonda said. "Hopefully, you will show the same maturity that you have on the field and will put an end to your judicial problems in Brazil and Spain. No one deserves this." FC Barcelona's Neymar leaves the national court after testifying at an investigation into alleged irregularities regarding his transfer to Barcelona, in Madrid, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016. The court is looking into a complaint made by a Brazilian investment group which claims it was financially harmed when Barcelona and Neymar allegedly withheld the real amount of the player's transfer fee from Brazilian club Santos in 2013. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco) DIS, the investment group that belongs to Sonda, has claimed in court that it was financially damaged because Barcelona, Neymar, and Brazilian club Santos withheld the real amount of the player's transfer fee in 2013. DIS was entitled to 40 percent of the total transfer amount. Neymar and his father appeared before a judge in Madrid on Tuesday to testify in an investigation into the transfer. Former and current Barcelona presidents also were questioned by a judge this week, as well as representatives of Santos. They have all denied wrongdoing. The Brazilian club claims it also has been hurt in the transfer. Sonda said Neymar's father tried to re-buy Sonda's 40 percent stake in the player for about 4 million euros ($4.4 million). At the time, though, Neymar's value was already close to 60 million euros ($66 million), the group said. DIS paid nearly 2 million euros ($2.2 million) for its share on Neymar's rights. Sonda said he felt "cheated" because his family used to have a personal relationship with the young player and his father. "They thought we were fools," Sonda said, "but now they are the ones sitting in front of a judge having to explain themselves. We have full confidence that the Spanish judicial system will solve this." Sonda said it was impossible for the 23-year-old Neymar not to know about what was happening regarding his contract negotiations, as reportedly claimed by his father in court. He said the group also doesn't know whether there is any truth in his father's claim that Neymar has an offer of 190 million euros ($210 million) from another club. Neymar has also been facing problems with Brazil's tax office, which last year froze assets related to him valued at about 189 million Brazilian reals ($43 million) because of allegations of tax evasion. ___ Tales Azzoni on Twitter: http://twitter.com/tazzoni FC Barcelona's Neymar arrives with his father Neymar Santos, right, to the national court to testify in an investigation into alleged irregularities regarding his transfer to Barcelona, in Madrid, Tuesday, Feb. 2, 2016. The court is looking into a complaint made by a Brazilian investment group which claims it was financially harmed when Barcelona and Neymar allegedly withheld the real amount of the player's transfer fee from Brazilian club Santos in 2013. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco) Thai police: Slain Spanish man ID'd from body parts in river BANGKOK (AP) Police in Thailand's capital said Thursday they have identified a man whose body parts were found floating in the city's Chao Phraya River as a Spanish consultant, and also have identified suspects in his killing. Police Gen. Panya Mamen, who is leading the investigation, told reporters in Bangkok that police are gathering more evidence and searching for the suspects, and expect to solve the case within 48 hours. "We believe that there was more than one perpetrator and we believe that they worked as a team," he said. Police Gen. Panya Mamen talks to reporters at Royal Thai Police headquarters in Bangkok, Thailand, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Police in Thailand's capital said they have identified a man whose body parts were found floating in the city's Chao Phraya River as a Spanish consultant, and also have identified suspects in his killing. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit) Panya said the victim was a Spanish man who had traveled to Thailand a number of times, but only provided his given name, David, and gave his vocation as "consultant." He said police were able to match DNA from the seven body parts that were found and with samples that identified him as a man who had been reported missing. The parts began turning up at separate points along the river on Sunday, and only the man's left arm remains missing, he said. The man apparently was forced to turn over money to the suspects, and was then killed to silence him, said Panya. He said a witness had provided crucial clues for the investigation, but the person's identiy had to be concealed for now for safety's sake. AP EXPLAINS: The significance of Julian Assange's case LONDON (AP) There has been a flurry of activity and speculation in the case of Julian Assange, the outspoken WikiLeaks founder who has been squirreled away inside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London for more than three years to avoid questioning by Swedish authorities about sexual misconduct allegations. Assange says he fears being sent to the U.S. to face charges stemming from WikiLeaks' role in releasing secret documents and his legal team is seeking guarantees he won't be sent to the U.S. and put on trial there. He could receive a boost Friday with publication of a U.N. panel's report that finds he has been treated unfairly. Swedish officials say the report sides with Assange. FILE - In this Dec. 5, 2011 file photo, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange makes a statement to media gathered outside the High Court in London. Assange said Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, on WikiLeaks Twitter account that he will accept arrest by British police if a U.N. working group on arbitrary detention decides that the three years he has spent holed up in the Ecuadorean Embassy does not amount to illegal detention. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File) Here is a summary of where things stand: ___ ASSANGE'S LEGAL STATUS He is sought by Swedish authorities for questioning, but hasn't been charged with any crimes there. British police say they will arrest him if he walks out of the Ecuadorean Embassy in London. They reiterated that plan Thursday. It's not clear if there has been a secret grand jury indictment against Assange in the U.S. He says that extradition to the U.S. is his main legal worry. He denies allegations of sexual misconduct in Sweden. Some of the allegations have been dropped by prosecutors, but he still is wanted for questioning about a possible rape. ___ UN PANEL'S POWERS The U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention panel has no legal authority in the case, as British Prime Minister David Cameron's office pointed out Thursday. Its ruling has no legal impact on Swedish and British authorities. But the ruling provides a welcome public relations boost for Assange and WikiLeaks and may bring pressure to bear on Swedish and British authorities. If the Swedes decide not to seek Assange for questioning, the warrant for his arrest could be dropped. British police, however, could still arrest him for jumping bail, unless that charge was also dropped. And British police could still act if U.S. authorities are seeking his arrest and extradition, which would likely be a lengthy process. ___ UN PANEL'S ROLE The five-member Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, associated with the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Geneva, was founded in 1991 and generally is considered an authoritative body on international legal issues revolving around questions of whether people have been locked up without proper judicial oversight. It is only an advisory body for governments, and its decisions aren't binding on nations though its decisions can remind countries of their own commitments under international rules and law. WikiLeaks and Assange sought the panel's ruling more than a year ago and it has been investigating the case for some time. ___ Associated Press writers Sylvia Hui in London, Jamey Keaten in Geneva and Jan M. Olsen in Copenhagen, Denmark, contributed to this report. Christie vows to continue beyond New Hampshire WASHINGTON (AP) New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie says his Republican presidential rival Marco Rubio isn't qualified to be president and is vowing to continue his campaign regardless of the outcome of the New Hampshire primary. "He just doesn't have any experience," Christie said Thursday on ABC's Good Morning America. Christie argues that the 44-year old Florida senator is too young to serve, and his experience as a Senator leaves him ill-equipped to beat Hillary Clinton, should she win the Democratic nomination, and go on to lead the nation. The Latest: Trump says 'I don't care' about Iowa dispute DERRY, N.H. (AP) The Latest on the 2016 presidential campaign (all times local): __ 11:05 p.m. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks at a rally at Great Bay Community College, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in Portsmouth, N.H. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty) Donald Trump says the dispute over Iowa's caucus results, in which he finished second to Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is yesterday's news and he's more focused on the next race. Trump, who on Wednesday was accusing Cruz of election fraud and calling for an Iowa do-over, told CNN's Anderson Cooper that he's so focused on the Feb. 9 contest in New Hampshire that "I don't care about that anymore." Trump wrote on Twitter Wednesday that "based on the fraud committed by Senator Ted Cruz during the Iowa Caucus, either a new election should take place or Cruz results nullified." ___ 11:03 p.m. Bernie Sanders is ending the last Democratic debate before the New Hampshire primary with an anti-establishment declaration. Sanders says in his closing statement that he is running for president because "it is just too late for establishment politics and establishment economics." He is calling for a political revolution "where millions of people stand up and say loudly" that government is for all Americans and not just for a handful of wealthy campaign contributors. ___ 11:00 p.m. Hillary Clinton says she hopes New Hampshire voters bring both their hearts and heads with them when they vote in the state primary Tuesday. Clinton said in her closing statement in Thursday's debate that she doesn't want voters to choose between the candidate they support emotionally and the one they back intellectually. Clinton says she will bring her heart to the presidency, but "we have to get our heads together" to solve problems facing the country. She says those include fighting racism and sexism, addressing gay rights and combating income inequality. ___ 10:58 p.m. Hillary Clinton is promising a "top-to-bottom review" of the government, vowing to "get rid of what doesn't work." But she said during the Democratic presidential debate that she has no intention of eliminating entire government agencies, as some Republican presidential candidates are promising. The key to making the government function better, Clinton says, is to allow voters to weigh in. ___ 10:55 p.m. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders were asked to make a choice between immigration, gun control and climate change as their top priority. They didn't want to narrow it down. Clinton says she wants to work on an "ambitious, bold agenda" that includes putting half a billion solar panels around the country, improving the health care law, moving forward on paid family leave and improving education. Sanders says campaign finance reform needs to be a top priority for the next president and is vowing to demand that any nominee to the Supreme Court be willing to overturn the Citizens United ruling. He says he wants to make changes to health care and the "broken criminal justice system." ___ 10:50 p.m. Hillary Clinton is once again being questioned on her delayed opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership. Clinton said during Thursday's Democratic debate that she wanted to give President Barack Obama the benefit of the doubt and hoped the final version of the trade deal would put her concerns to rest. She says America must trade with the rest of the world but notes that the U.S. "failed to provide the basic safety-net support" for American workers. Bernie Sanders, meanwhile, says he believes in trade, but not any existing U.S. trade deals. Sander says he not only opposes the North American Free Trade Agreement with Mexico and Canada he protested against it. ___ 10:45 p.m. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders say Michigan's government has responded inadequately to the lead contamination crisis in Flint, and the federal government should get involved. Clinton said in Thursday's presidential debate in New Hampshire that the federal government needs to hold Michigan responsible, while also finding ways to remedy the "terrible burden" that people in Flint are facing, such as helping to pay for health care costs. She said she plans to visit Flint on Sunday. Sanders renewed his call for Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder to resign, saying there are "children being poisoned." He suggested that the crisis would have been addressed differently if it had happened in a white suburban community. ___ 10:40 p.m. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are stressing their differences on the death penalty. Clinton said at Thursday's Democratic presidential debate that she supports a federal death penalty, as long as it is reserved for "particularly heinous crimes." She adds that she has concerns about many state judicial systems. She says they do not provide defendants with proper counsel and fail to enforce high standards for evidence. That makes the application of the death penalty uneven and unfair, she says. Sanders says he agrees that some criminals commit "barbaric acts." But, he says, "In a world of so much violence and killing, I just don't believe that government itself should be part of the killing." ___ 10:30 p.m. Self-described "democratic socialist" Bernie Sanders says he can win a general election by exciting young people, the middle class and working-class people and driving up voter turnout. The Vermont senator says in Thursday's presidential debate that the rise in turnout will help Democrats keep the White House, gain seats in Congress and win governors' races. Sanders says, "Democrats win when there is a large voter turnout, when people are excited." He says Republicans win office when voters are "demoralized" and turnout is low. Hillary Clinton argues that she is the strongest candidate to take on the Republicans, and she hopes to persuade young people currently backing Sanders to come over to her side. ___ 10:25 p.m. Democratic candidate Bernie Sanders is arguing that concerns over the integrity of the Iowa caucus count are overblown. Asked at Thursday's Democratic debate in New Hampshire whether questions about the caucuses are still unresolved, Sanders noted the Iowa contest "is not like a winner-take-all thing" and urged the media not to blow the issue out of proportion. The Des Moines Register has labeled the election a "debacle" because of accounts of confusion and errors. The paper is calling for an audit of the results. Sanders says his team believes they may be entitled to at least two additional delegates, but he says, "No matter how it's recounted, it will break roughly even." ___ 10:20 p.m. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are tangling over whether the United States should restore diplomatic relations with Iran. Clinton says Sanders is wrong to support normalizing relations with a state sponsor of terrorism that she says is "destabilizing the region." Clinton says if the next administration normalized relations immediately, the U.S. would remove one of the biggest pieces of leverage it has. She says "you have to get action for action." Sanders says he never said the U.S. should normalize relations with Iran "tomorrow" but should try to "move forward." He points out that Clinton once called then-Sen. Barack Obama "naive" for wanting to talk to the nation's enemies. ___ 10:15 p.m. Bernie Sanders is dismissing Defense Secretary Ash Carter's assessment that Russia now poses a graver national security threat to the U.S. than any other nation. Asked to rank North Korea, Iran and Russia, Sanders is choosing North Korea as the biggest threat. He calls the East Asian nation "an isolated, paranoid country with atomic bombs." That makes them more dangerous, he says, than Russia or China. Still, Sanders says he disapproves of Russian President Vladimir Putin's "military adventurism" in his region. ___ 10:10 p.m. Bernie Sanders says the United States can't be the policeman of the world. The independent Vermont senator was asked during Thursday's Democratic debate to outline how he would approach foreign policy as president. He says "we cannot continue to do it alone. We need to work in coalition." But Hillary Clinton says the way they approach foreign policy is "a big part of the job interview with voters." She says her experience as a former secretary of state sets her apart from Sanders. She says, "I know from my own experience, you've got to be ready on Day One." Sanders says it is "not arguable" that Clinton has more experience in foreign policy issues, but voters must also assess the judgment of the candidates. ___ 10:05 p.m. Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders agree that they do not want to see large numbers of American ground troops return to the Middle East. Debating Thursday in the first one-on-one Democratic debate, the two describe the U.S. role as providing assistance, through supplies, weapons and special forces but not a massive ground force. Clinton says sending ground troops "is off the table." Sanders says his goal would be keeping the U.S. from getting "sucked into never-ending perpetual warfare within the quagmire of Syria and Iraq." He adds, "It must be Muslim troops on the ground that will destroy" the Islamic State group. ___ 9:55 p.m. Hillary Clinton dodged a request to release transcripts of her paid speeches. Clinton was asked during Thursday's presidential debate in New Hampshire whether she would release the transcripts of speeches she's been paid to give to Wall Street firms. She says: "I'll look into it. I don't know the status, but I will certainly look into it." On Wednesday, Clinton struggled when asked why she accepted $675,000 for three speeches from investment firm Goldman Sachs. Her rival Bernie Sanders calls Wall Street "an entity of unbelievable economic and political power." He says "the business model of Wall Street is fraud." ___ 9:50 p.m. Bernie Sanders says even though he's been critical of corporate America, he could work with corporations if he was elected to the White House. Sanders reiterated his disgust that some large multinational corporations like General Electric and Boeing have avoided paying U.S. taxes. He says if he's elected president, companies like that "are going to pay their fair share of taxes." He says that while some companies are good corporate citizens, "there are many corporations who have turned their backs on the American worker." He says he will do his best to "transform our trade policy" and take on companies that try to invest in low-income economies to make higher profits. ___ 9:45 p.m. Hillary Clinton says she could have done a better job "explaining my record" to voters who distrust her ties to Wall Street. Speaking at Thursday's Democratic debate in New Hampshire, Clinton says she warned Wall Street firms before the 2008 crash that their speculative practices could hurt the economy. She emphasized that her vow to take on the financial sector has industry titans nervous enough to bankroll attacks against her campaign. She says: "I have a record. I have stood firm, and I will be the person who prevents them from ever wrecking the economy again." Bernie Sanders is standing by his assertion that Clinton has disconcerting ties to Wall Street, and says he is better positioned to regulate the sector to protect average Americans. ___ 9:40 p.m. Bernie Sanders says he considered using the public financing system for presidential elections but concluded it was too antiquated and would be "a disaster." Sanders was asked why he didn't use the government's public campaign finance system as a way to curb the role of big money in politics. He says he could have had a super PAC but says he doesn't represent "corporate America or billionaires." Sanders says he went with a second option raising money from average Americans. It has turned out well for him: Sanders has received 3.5 million individual contributions averaging $27 apiece. The Vermont senator raked in $20 million in January, mostly online. ___ 9:35 p.m. Hillary Clinton is telling Bernie Sanders "enough is enough." Clashing at Thursday's Democratic presidential debate, Sanders said he is running a "transformational campaign" funded by individual supporters and not big-money interests like those who have formed a super PAC to back Clinton. The former secretary of state is lashing back, saying Sanders is misrepresenting her record in a manner that not "worthy of you. Enough is enough." Clinton says Sanders has been orchestrating a "very artful smear" against her. She says they should instead be talking about issues affecting the American people. Clinton says Democrats need to be united to take on problems facing the country. She says she has a better track record and opportunity to get the job done than Sanders does. ___ 9:23 p.m. Bernie Sanders says his liberal vision is worthy of the Democratic Party nomination even if he's spent his political career as an independent. At the Democratic presidential debate in New Hampshire Thursday, Sanders is stressing that he has always caucused with Democrats in the Senate. He confirms he "would like to see changes in the Democratic Party" to make it friendlier to working people. His rival Hillary Clinton is responding by noting that many elected Democrats in Sanders' home state of Vermont have endorsed her. ___ 9:20 p.m. Hillary Clinton says Bernie Sanders is making an "unfair" accusation when he suggests she's not a progressive. Clinton also says Sanders' definition of who is a progressive Democrat would leave out President Barack Obama and other party leaders. Clinton and Sanders have been squabbling this week over whether the former secretary of state is a liberal Democrat. Sanders has cited Clinton's previous statements that she's a moderate, saying she can't be both. Sanders says he does believe Obama is a liberal, despite his support for a sweeping Asia-Pacific trade pact that Sanders has called "disastrous." ___ 9:15 p.m. Hillary Clinton is taking aim at the costs of Bernie Sanders' proposals, saying at Thursday's Democratic debate that his numbers "just don't add up." She says she doesn't want to "plunge" the nation into another contentious debate over health care and thinks college should be affordable, not free. Sanders says there's no reason the United States can't make health care a right for people, not a privilege, and says Wall Street should pay to cut the costs of college. Sanders says the "middle class bailed out Wall Street in their time of need, now it is time for Wall Street to help the middle class." He adds that the notion that he would "dismantle" President Barack Obama's health care law is inaccurate. ___ 9:08 p.m. Hillary Clinton is attacking her Democratic opponent Bernie Sanders in her opening statement of their first one-on-one debate. Clinton said Thursday in the New Hampshire debate that she is "not making promises that I cannot keep." She addressed Sanders' campaign promise to provide universal health care for all and free college tuition. Clinton is also acknowledging that "the economy has not been working for most Americans." She also says special interests are doing too much to "rig the game." ___ 9:05 p.m. Bernie Sanders is using his opening statement in Thursday's Democratic debate to stress his vow to overhaul American politics and the economy. "The economy is rigged," he says. He adds that a "corrupt campaign finance system" is "undermining American democracy." ___ 9:00 p.m. The first one-on-one debate between Democratic presidential rivals Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders is underway in New Hampshire. The two took the stage in the MSNBC-hosted debate Thursday night with just days to go until the first-in-the-nation primary. The two faced off in the leadoff Iowa caucuses Monday, with Clinton grabbing a razor-thin victory. Sanders appears to be leading in New Hampshire preference polls. ___ 8:15 p.m. Former First Lady Barbara Bush says her son, Jeb, is "decent and honest, and everything we need in a president." She spoke Thursday night before a crowded town hall at a local school in Derry, N.H., receiving a standing ovation when she was introduced by former New Hampshire Sen. Judd Gregg. Before speaking of her son, she heaped praise Gregg and his state, saying the Bush family shares the "values and beliefs" of the people of New Hampshire. Barbara Bush took a shot at Donald Trump, without saying his name, noting her son "is not a bragger. We don't allow that." Jeb Bush noted his mother's popularity, joking he had not seen such a large crowed at his previous town halls. Bush could use the boost from his mother because his campaign is struggling in New Hampshire. He says he hopes voters "reset" the race and give him some momentum before the Republican contest shifts to South Carolina. ___ 8:00 p.m. Donald Trump is imploring his New Hampshire supporters to leave nothing to chance on primary day. He's telling a crowd in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to head to polls Feb. 9, "no matter where you are, no matter how you feel." Trump continues to dominate polls in the first primary state, but is showing clear signs of anger about his second place finish in the Iowa caucuses. He's telling voters not to assume a Trump victory in New Hampshire will be a sure thing. He says he wants to come out of New Hampshire's primary with a "mandate." ___ 7 p.m. Hillary Clinton's campaign for president is criticizing rival Bernie Sanders for what it argues are misleading campaign advertisements. The ads suggest the Vermont senator received the endorsement of two newspapers that have not backed his bid for the White House. Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook tells The Associated Press that the Sanders campaign "very clearly" isn't living up to the standards set by Sanders to be a candidate who "always tells the truth." The critique comes just hours before the two candidates will meet for their first one-on-one debate. Sanders said the ads are not misleading and that he never claimed to get endorsements he did not receive. He said on Wednesday the ads used "the actual words that those newspapers said. Somebody says something nice about you, you say it." ___ 6:30 p.m. Chris Christie says Republican primary voters in New Hampshire "should be concerned" about presidential rival Marco Rubio's position on abortion, suggesting he is out of step with the state's GOP electorate. Christie is betting his White House hopes on the Feb. 9 primary. He's trying to slow any momentum Rubio gained from his third-place finish in this week's Iowa caucuses and sway undecided voters his way in the closing days of the primary campaign. Christie argued Thursday that Rubio supports banning all abortions, including in cases of "rape, incest or life of the mother." Appearing on NBC, he added, "I think that's the kind of position that New Hampshire voters would really be concerned about." Rubio backs an exception for abortion when the life of the mother is in danger, and would support legislation with allowances for cases of rape and incest even though he says he personally doesn't support those exceptions. ___ 4:30 p.m. Donald Trump is telling New Hampshire police officers they won't need to be afraid of losing their jobs if he's elected president. The Republican presidential candidate paid a visit to police headquarters in Manchester Thursday afternoon. He tells several dozen officers, "You're not recognized properly. You will be recognized properly if I win." He says they won't need to be as fearful of he wins. "Remember that," he tells them. "You know what you're going through. You know you speak a little bit rough to somebody and all of a sudden you end up fighting for your job. Not going to happen anymore." He was introduced by Police Chief Nick Willard, who says that he's concerned about the "national narrative" on law enforcement. Trump also left his mark on the building. As he was walking into the headquarters building, he scrawled his name in market on an exterior brick wall. ___ 2:47 p.m. Jeb Bush's South Carolina director says the presidential candidate may finally appear on the campaign trail alongside his brother, former President George W. Bush. Brett Doster says "George W. Bush is the most popular Republican alive" and that the GOP in South Carolina is "eager" for the visit. South Carolina holds a Feb. 20 primary, 11 days after New Hampshire. Jeb Bush has a large organization in the state, which gave his father and brother hard-fought primary victories on their paths to the 1988 and 2000 nominations, respectively. Doster says plans are not final, but notes that George W. Bush is popular among a cross-section of important South Carolina GOP groups, from evangelical Christians to the military community and large veterans presence. ___ 2:30 p.m. Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson says he expects to continue his presidential campaign until, "Cleveland," an apparent reference to the Republican National Convention this summer. He tells Fox News Channel that that he had planned on paring down his campaign after a review a few months ago found irregularities and inefficiencies. A Carson spokesman said earlier that the campaign had laid off staffers, though he declined to say how many. The retired neurosurgeon is finally heading to New Hampshire on Thursday evening after finishing fourth in the Iowa caucus. Spokesman Larry Ross says Carson will be in New Hampshire through at least Sunday. The primary is Tuesday. ___ 2:15 p.m. Hillary Clinton's campaign says it raised $15 million for her primary campaign and an additional $5 million for the national and state parties last month. Campaign Manager Robby Mook said in a statement that 95 percent of the donations came in increments of $100 or less. And that more than 670,000 people have contributed to Clinton's presidential campaign. The statement of financial strength comes as Clinton battles Bernie Sanders in the New Hampshire primary after barely winning the Iowa caucuses on Monday. Sanders is heavily favored in the Granite State contest on Feb. 9 and raised $20 million last month. ___ 2:13 p.m. Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson is downsizing his campaign staff amid following his fourth-place finish in the Iowa caucuses, a spokesman confirms. Larry Ross gave no details on how many staffers are being laid off or how many will remain, but said the personnel cuts "were made to wisely and prudently position the campaign for the coming months." Carson last month accepted the resignation of his finance chairman, Dean Parker, who had been criticized for his spending on salaries and consultants. Carson's campaign paid about two dozen staffers during the last three months of 2015, newly released campaign finance records show. Those salaries totaled about $250,000, among the lower end of what campaigns had spent on payroll in recent months. ___ 2:10 p.m. Republican presidential candidate Jim Gilmore wants in on Saturday's upcoming Republican debate. He writes Thursday to ABC News that if the network modifies any requirements to appear in its coming debate, he should be included, too. ABC has announced that those allowed on stage will be the top vote-getters in an average of polls, as well as the top three finishers in the Iowa caucus. Earlier this week, former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina wrote to Republican National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus saying that, now that the field has winnowed, she should be allowed to debate with the front-runners. Fiorina recently appeared in an undercard debate with candidates who didn't make the polling cut off, but there is no such stage set for Saturday. Gilmore also debated on the undercard stage at last week's debate, his first such appearance since August. ___ 1:50 p.m. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump has a decisive response to a town hall attendee who suggested immigrants living in the country illegally are the backbone of the country. "I don't think so, darling," he says in response. Trump is taking questions at the historic Exeter Town Hall building in Exeter, New Hampshire, where his supporters are packed in like sardines. The young woman asking the question said that people working in the country illegally "do work that no one else wants to do and for a lot less." But Trump interjected. "Who told you to be here? Bernie?" he asks, accusing the woman of being a plant for Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. He says, "You know what the backbone of our country is? People that came here and they came here legally ... and they worked their asses off." ___ 12:46 p.m. And now, an analysis of the 2016 presidential race from an expert. Former President Jimmy Carter says Donald Trump is more "malleable" than Ted Cruz and as such might prove to be a more effective candidate over time. He adds that Hillary Clinton is likely to prevail over Bernie Sanders even though she faces a tough battle in New Hampshire. Carter spoke Wednesday in Britain's House of Lords, where he was supposed to talk about his impressive campaign against Guinea worm disease. But asked about the presidential race across the pond, Carter declined to predict the outcome of the primaries in either party, or to guess the winner in the general election. He made clear he would be backing the Democratic candidate. The 91-year-old, who told the group his last medical report was favorable, received a standing ovation. ___ 12:49 p.m. Chris Christie is laughing off suggestions that John Kasich is running a positive campaign and saying the Ohio governor's sunny-side-of-the-street routine amounts to a "face lift." Christie is telling reporters that Kasich is someone who's been known to speak his mind. He says he's never heard other governors refer to Kasich as "the prince of sunshine and light," mocking Kasich's own comments recently that he is the prince of light. Kasich, who can be a prickly personality, says he won't run a negative campaign. But the super PAC backing his candidacy is launching a new ad showing people covered in mud, meant to represent Kasich's rivals. The ad hits Jeb Bush and Marco Rubio for "going negative." It says, "doing whatever it takes to win is not presidential." __ 11:29 a.m. Republican Ted Cruz's presidential campaign has raised $3 million since winning the Iowa caucuses on Feb. 1. That's according to Cruz campaign manager Jeff Roe, who tweeted out the new fundraising numbers on Thursday. Roe says the Cruz campaign has raised $10 million overall since the beginning of the year. That includes 182,000 individual contributions averaging $55 each. Cruz was enjoying a big fundraising advantage over his Republican rivals even before the new numbers were released. His campaign closed the year with almost $18.7 million in the bank. That was roughly as much as Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush, John Kasich and Chris Christie combined. ___ 11:20 a.m. New Hampshire Sen. Kelly Ayotte is criticizing ABC News for its decision not to let Carly Fiorina on the debate state Saturday night. Ayotte, New Hampshire's top Republican elected official, says the decision "undermines" the state's role in the primary process. Ayotte is facing a tough re-election battle against popular Democratic Gov. Maggie Hassan and has not endorsed a candidate in the GOP race for president. ___ 10:45 a.m. Marco Rubio can't avoid joking about the heeled boots he wore in New Hampshire this month, especially when he's visiting a manufacturer known for its boots. Rubio is talking to about 200 employees of Timberland corporate headquarters in New Hampshire, and acknowledging the boots were by another manufacturer, Florsheim. He says: "Here's the good news though. After I wore those shoes, the Florsheim website ran out of the shoe. It was kind of my own personal stimulus package." "So, if you've got any with high heels let me know so I can promote the sales." ___ 10:15 a.m. Bernie Sanders is receiving the endorsement of Dick Harpootlian, South Carolina's former state Democratic party chair, in his bid for the White House. Harpootlian told The Associated Press on Thursday that he feels the Vermont senator is best positioned to bring needed change to the country and connects well with issues important to young people, like wages and insurance. Harpootlian, who supported then-Sen. Barack Obama over Hillary Clinton in the 2008 election, has known the Clintons for years but says he endorses based on his "gut" feeling, which he had for Obama. Harpootlian says he was prepared to sit this cycle out after Vice President Joe Biden opted not to run and would have quietly made a donation to Clinton if she won the nomination. But the trial lawyer says Sanders is "cut from the same cloth" as Obama and former President Bill Clinton. ___ 10:00 a.m. Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio is working to court Rand Paul supporters, despite their different approaches to issues like nation security. At a campaign event in Portsmouth, New Hampshire Thursday, Rubio is telling would-be Paul voters that he shares the Kentucky senator's views on how to prosecute drug crimes and address problems in the criminal justice system. Paul suspended his campaign Wednesday. Rubio says he'd seek his endorsement, despite Paul's call for limited U.S. military engagement overseas. Rubio hopes that his strong third place finish in Monday's Iowa caucuses will provide the momentum needed to do well in the Feb. 9 New Hampshire primary. ___ 8:30 a.m. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie says his Republican presidential rival Marco Rubio isn't qualified to be president and is vowing to continue his campaign regardless of the outcome of the New Hampshire primary. "He just doesn't have any experience," Christie said Thursday on ABC's Good Morning America. Christie argues that the 44-year old Florida senator is too young to serve, and his experience as a Senator leaves him ill-equipped to beat Hillary Clinton, should she win the Democratic nomination. Christie also dismisses preference polls ahead of New Hampshire's Feb. 9 primary, saying the results from this week's Iowa caucuses were not in line with some of the polls. Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, and Democratic presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton shake hands after a Democratic presidential primary debate hosted by MSNBC at the University of New Hampshire Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in Durham, N.H. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, reacts to Democratic presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton's answer to a question during a Democratic presidential primary debate hosted by MSNBC at the University of New Hampshire Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in Durham, N.H. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Debate moderators Rachel Maddow and Chuck Todd listen as Democratic presidential candidates, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, and former Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton answer questions during a Democratic presidential primary debate hosted by MSNBC at the University of New Hampshire Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in Durham, N.H. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, walks back on stage after a break during a Democratic presidential primary debate with Democratic presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton hosted by MSNBC at the University of New Hampshire Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in Durham, N.H. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, and Democratic presidential candidate, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spar during a Democratic presidential primary debate hosted by MSNBC at the University of New Hampshire Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in Durham, N.H. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Democratic presidential candidate, Hillary Clinton and Democratic presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt, shakes hands as they greet the audience before the audience before a Democratic presidential primary debate hosted by MSNBC at the University of New Hampshire Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in Durham, N.H. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Barbara Bush, right, mother of Republican presidential candidate, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, left, introduces her son at a town hall meeting at West Running Brook Middle School in Derry, N.H., Thursday Feb. 4, 2016. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) Barbara Bush, mother of Republican presidential candidate, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, introduces him at a town hall meeting at West Running Brook Middle School in Derry, N.H., Thursday Feb. 4, 2016. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) Republican presidential candidate, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie speaks during a campaign stop before next weeks earliest in the nation presidential primary, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, in Bow, N.H. (AP Photo/Jim Cole) Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson, center, and his wife Candy Carson, stand up to applaud the arrival of President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. The annual event brings together U.S. and international leaders from different parties and religions for an hour devoted to faith. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump gestures while speaking during a campaign stop at Exeter Town Hall in Exeter, N.H., Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa) Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter delivers a lecture on the eradication of the Guinea worm, at the House of Lords in London, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. (Neil Hall/Pool Photo via AP) Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas speaks during a campaign event at Robie's Country Store, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, in Hooksett, N.H. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola) Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., speaks during a Democratic primary town hall sponsored by CNN, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, in Derry, N.H. (AP Photo/John Minchillo) Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla. speaks during a town hall meeting in Laconia, N.H., Wednesday Feb. 3, 2016. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin) Republican presidential candidate Carly Fiorina speaks during a campaign event at the Aviation Museum of New Hampshire Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, in Londonderry, N.H. (AP Photo/David Goldman) Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter delivers a lecture on the eradication of the Guinea worm, at the House of Lords in London, Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. (Neil Hall/Pool Photo via AP) Spanish king's UK trip delayed amid talks to form gov't MADRID (AP) Spain's King Felipe VI is putting off a March state visit to Britain because of difficult negotiations among his country's political parties to form a new government following inconclusive December election results. The foreign ministry announced the decision Thursday, two days after Felipe asked Socialist leader Pedro Sanchez to try to form a government in negotiations that Sanchez predicted could last a month. Sanchez' party came second in the election. He must negotiate with two new upstart parties that made big inroads with voters upset at austerity, high unemployment and corruption. Spain's acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy poses for the media before the start of Popular Party meeting at the Spanish parliament in Madrid, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Spain's King has tapped Socialist leader Pedro Sanchez to try to form a government following an inconclusive December election in which the country's conservative Popular Party, led by Mariano Rajoy, came in first but failed to drum up enough support for a coalition or a minority government. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco) His effort started after the party of acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy won the most votes Dec. 20 but failed to form a government. The Latest: Planned Parenthood speaks on activists HOUSTON (AP) The Latest on the anti-abortion activists charged in the making of Planned Parenthood videos (all times local): 1:25 p.m. A Planned Parenthood official says "the wheels of justice have only begun to roll" in reference to the court appearance of an anti-abortion activist indicted after making undercover videos about the group. Davids Daleiden, center, one of the two anti-abortion activists indicted last week speaks to media and supporters after turning himself in to authorities Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in Houston. Daleiden and Sandra Merritt are charged with tampering with a governmental record, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. (AP Photo/Bob Levey) Planned Parenthood spokesman Eric Ferrero said in a statement Thursday that the group doesn't "expect this to be the last time these extremists are booked and fingerprinted." David Daleiden (dal-LY'-din) turned himself into authorities and posted bond on Thursday, a day after Sandra Merritt did the same. Prosecutors have offered both a chance to settle the felony charges with probation. Ferraro said the group is "glad they're being held accountable" and hope other law enforcement agencies pursue charges as well. ___ 12:45 p.m. About 30 people gathered outside a Houston courthouse to offer support to an anti-abortion activist indicted after making undercover videos about Planned Parenthood. David Daleiden (dah-LY'-din) spoke briefly to the crowd Thursday after turning himself in to authorities and posting bond. He's charged with tampering with a governmental record, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison, and a misdemeanor count related to purchasing human organs that carries up to a year in prison. Daleiden thanked his supporters, many who carried signs reading "We Stand With David." He said added that he believed that "if we stay the course ... we will bring about a day when there is no longer a price tag put on human life." Sandra Merritt, another activist also charged in connection with the videos, turned herself in Wednesday. Prosecutors have offered both a chance to settle the felony charges with probation. ___ 10:50 a.m. Prosecutors are offering to settle charges against an anti-abortion activist indicted after making undercover videos about Planned Parenthood with probation. But attorney Terry Yates said Thursday that his client, David Daleiden (dah-LY'-din), is not likely to accept the plea deal. Yates says he plans to file documents to quash the indictments and is prepared to go to trial if necessary. Daleiden posted $3,000 bond on Thursday. Sandra Merritt, another activist also charged in connection with the videos, turned herself in Wednesday. Both are charged with tampering with a governmental record, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Daleiden also was indicted on a misdemeanor count related to purchasing human organs that carries up to a year in prison. Prosecutors say they've also offered Merritt probation in a settlement, but her attorneys didn't indicate whether they'd accept. ___ 10:10 a.m. A second anti-abortion activist indicted after making undercover videos about Planned Parenthood has turned himself in to authorities in Texas. David Daleiden (dah-LY'-din) appeared in a Houston courtroom Thursday after posting a $3,000 bond. The other indicted activist, Sandra Merritt, turned herself in Wednesday and was freed on a $2,000 bond. Both have been charged with tampering with a governmental record, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Daleiden also is indicted on a misdemeanor count related to purchasing human organs. The videos alleged Planned Parenthood illegally sold fetal tissue to researchers for profit. The grand jury that indicted the two on Jan. 25 also investigated Planned Parenthood but concluded it committed no wrongdoing. ___ 6:25 a.m. A second anti-abortion activist indicted after making undercover videos about Planned Parenthood is expected to turn himself in to Texas authorities. Attorneys for David Daleiden (dah-LY'-din) say he's scheduled to appear in a Houston courtroom Thursday after posting bond. The other indicted activist, Sandra Merritt, turned herself in Wednesday and was freed on a $2,000 bond. Both were charged with tampering with a governmental record. Daleiden also was indicted on a misdemeanor count related to purchasing human organs. The videos alleged Planned Parenthood illegally sold fetal tissue to researchers for profit. The grand jury that indicted the two on Jan. 25 also investigated Planned Parenthood but concluded it committed no wrongdoing. David Daleiden, one of the two anti-abortion activists indicted last week, speaks with supporters outside the Harris County Criminal Courthouse after turning himself in to authorities Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in Houston. Daleiden and Sandra Merritt are charged with tampering with a governmental record, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. (AP Photo/Bob Levey) David Daleiden, one of the two anti-abortion activists indicted last week, speaks to supporters outside the Harris County Criminal Courthouse after turning himself in to authorities Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in Houston. Daleiden and Sandra Merritt are charged with tampering with a governmental record, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. (AP Photo/Bob Levey) Rev. Patrick Mahoney speaks to media with supporters of David Daleiden and Sandra Merrit outside the Harris County Criminal Courthouse Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in Houston. Daleiden and Merritt are charged with tampering with a governmental record, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. (AP Photo/Bob Levey) David Daleiden, right, one of the two anti-abortion activists indicted last week, leaves the courtroom after turning himself in to authorities Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, in Houston. Daleiden and Sandra Merritt are charged with tampering with a governmental record, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. (AP Photo/Bob Levey) Airline CEO: Explosive residue found in Somalia incident DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) The head of the airline whose jetliner was damaged in an explosion shortly after takeoff from Somalia said Thursday that investigators have found what appears to be residue from explosives, though he cautioned that the findings were inconclusive. Still, the preliminary discovery lends weight to the possibility that a bomb was to blame for the blast that tore through the Airbus 321 shortly after takeoff from the Somali capital Mogadishu. "There's a residue, they're saying, of explosives. ... There's a trace," Daallo Airlines CEO Mohammed Ibrahim Yassin said during an interview with The Associated Press at the carrier's corporate office in Dubai. "But that cannot really make 100 percent that it's a bomb," he added, saying that he expects initial findings to be released in a matter of days. Daallo Airlines CEO Mohammed Ibrahim Yassin speaks to The Associated Press at the carrier's office in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. The head of the airline whose jetliner was damaged in an explosion shortly after takeoff from Somalia said Thursday that investigators have found what appears to be residue from explosives, though he cautioned that the findings were inconclusive. (AP Photo/Adam Schreck) The plane's pilot, Capt. Vlatko Vodopivec, has said previously that he and others were told the explosion was caused by a bomb. Yassin too acknowledged that a bomb could have been to blame, saying "we cannot exclude anything right now." He declined to speculate who might be responsible. Somalia's government confirmed Thursday that a passenger who had been missing since the explosion had died. It identified him as Abdullahi Abdisalam Borle, but gave no details about how he died. In a statement issued after a Cabinet meeting, Deputy Prime Minister Mohamed Omar Arteh said the government would tighten the airport's security to prevent security threats. Local police have previously said residents of Balad, a town 30 kilometers (about 18 miles) north of Mogadishu, found the body of a man who might have been blown out of the Airbus 321 in the blast. Somalia's transport minister, Ali Jama Jangali, said preliminary information from an ongoing investigation had produced what he called a "suspicious" finding, although he added that it required further investigation in collaboration with international experts. No group has claimed responsibility for the blast. Somalia faces an insurgency from the Islamic extremist group al-Shabab, which has carried out deadly attacks in Somalia and neighboring countries. The Airbus A321 was carrying 74 passengers when the explosion struck. All but four of the passengers originally had tickets with Turkish Airways and were rebooked on the Daallo flight after cancelled flights left them stranded in the Somali capital, Yassin said. He suggested the Turkish Airlines' decision to scrap two flights may have been linked to intelligence it received about a possible security threat. "We think, you know, Turkish airlines got a sort of security alert that they haven't passed to us," he said. He added that it is not unusual for flights in and out of Mogadishu to be cancelled at short notice. A Turkish Airlines official said a number of flights out of Turkey were canceled this week, including on Tuesday, due to bad weather, and said there were no cancellations for security reasons. The official was not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity. Turkish Airlines spokesman Yahya Ustun also said the cancellations were because of the weather, saying an unspecified number of flights were grounded "due to operational reasons required in the framework of bad weather conditions." Daallo has temporarily suspended its operations in the Somali capital following Tuesday's incident but hopes to restart them soon, said Yassin, the airline's chief executive. He described security at Mogadishu airport as "good" and multilayered, and "much better than it used to be." Authorities and the airline will nonetheless intensify security checks in the wake of Tuesday's incident, he said. Daallo typically operates around 15 flights a week to Mogadishu from Somali and nearby international destinations. Its flight Tuesday was operated by Hermes Airlines, which is based in Athens, Greece, under a lease agreement. Hermes officials have not commented on the incident. Experts from Somalia and Greece are involved in the investigation into the blast. ___ Associated Press writer Suzan Fraser in Ankara, Turkey, and Abdi Guled in Mogadishu, Somalia, contributed reporting. ___ CEO Dauman takes over chair at Viacom, replacing Redstone LOS ANGELES (AP) Aging media mogul Sumner Redstone stepped down as executive chairman of Viacom on Thursday and was replaced by CEO Philippe Dauman, a move that immediately disappointed investors. Although the decision mimicked a similar move at sister company CBS, Thursday's action has the potential to set off a future board fight. Redstone's daughter Shari said Wednesday she was against Dauman's promotion to the role because of his deep involvement in Redstone family affairs. Investment adviser SpringOwl, which holds a stake of undisclosed size in Viacom, had also opposed Dauman's bid for the chairmanship, calling instead for an independent director. FILE - In this Oct. 3, 2011, file photo, Sumner Redstone arrives at the premiere of "Footloose" in Los Angeles. Redstone stepped down as executive chairman of Viacom on Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, and was replaced by CEO Philippe Dauman, a move that immediately disappointed investors. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, File) Dauman is one of seven trustees who will control nearly 80 percent of the voting stakes at both CBS and Viacom after 92-year-old Redstone dies. That fortune is worth around $4 billion. Shari Redstone and her son Tyler Korff are also trustees along with several other lawyers close to the family. Viacom shares, which had been trading as much as 6 percent higher earlier Thursday, immediately dropped to a level about 1 percent higher after the news was announced at around 11 a.m. Eastern time. Shari Redstone said in a statement Thursday she "is going to continue to advocate for what she believes to be in the best interests of Viacom shareholders." Viacom director William Schwartz said the board considered the "need for seasoned leadership" in appointing Dauman. The board voted 10-1 in favor of Dauman's ascension, with only Shari Redstone opposed, according to two people close to Thursday's events. The people requested anonymity because the vote was confidential. Sumner Redstone also participated in the meeting, which made him chairman emeritus, according to one of those people. Mario Gabelli, whose Gabelli Asset Management Inc. owns 10 percent of Viacom's voting shares, told CNBC on Thursday that Dauman has "bought himself six more months or nine more months to indicate how he plays his cards." The comments reflect investor dissatisfaction with Viacom, whose shares have fallen by almost half since July 2014. Gabelli suggested putting the company or its movie studio, Paramount Pictures, up for sale. "What exactly is he doing in the mobile world and what is he doing to get into the hit business and what is he doing to get into the TV series which are the hot areas?" Gabelli told CNBC. "Maybe now we'll get a different form of focus on what they're not doing." Redstone is embroiled in a legal battle involving his ex-girlfriend and former caregiver Manuela Herzer over his health and mental capacity. A court-ordered medical examination of Redstone is due in the court Friday. Viacom is also facing a shareholder lawsuit over Redstone's compensation as executive chair, given his apparent lack of involvement in company affairs. Redstone hasn't made even limited remarks on Viacom conference calls for more than a year since November 2014, in fact. Lucian Bebchuk, a Harvard law professor and director of its program on corporate governance, said the board conflict highlights the problems of companies with two classes of stock one set that holds voting power, and another that does not. He said in an email that Viacom's corporate structure is now "highly problematic and fraught with risks for public investors." "The company's CEO is unaccountable to public investors and accountable only to a person whose health prevents him from actively monitoring the affairs of the company," Bebchuk said. ___ Follow AP Business Writer Ryan Nakashima at https://twitter.com/rnakashi . His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/ryan-nakashima Large protest against Greek pension reform ends in violence ATHENS, Greece (AP) Tens of thousands joined anti-government protests in Athens on Thursday as Greece was crippled by a general strike against a bailout-related overhaul of the country's ailing pension system. Police said some 40,000 people joined the demonstrations, which were mostly peaceful before sporadic clashes between anarchist protesters and police outside Parliament and in other parts of the city center. Police used tear gas and stun grenades against the dozens of hooded anarchists. Street vendors, tourists, and onlookers ran to safety as the violence broke out, while a journalist was attacked by rioters and taken to hospital but was not in serious condition, police said. A riot policeman clash with protesters during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Sporadic clashes broke out in central Athens Thursday as tens of thousands marched to the Greek Parliament during a general strike called to protest planned pension reforms that are part of the country's third international bailout. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) Protests were also held in at least a dozen other Greek cities and towns, where several rallies were joined by protesting farmers driving their tractors. Unions are angry at pension reforms that are part of Greece's third international bailout. The government, which is led by the left-wing Syriza, is trying to overhaul the pension system by increasing social security contributions to avoid pension cuts, but critics say the reforms will lead many to pay up to three quarters of their income in pension contributions and taxes. Opposition to the reform has been widespread, uniting a disparate group of professions, including farmers, artists, taxi drivers, lawyers, doctors, vets, engineers and seamen. Thursday's general strike is the most significant the government of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, which is in coalition with the right-wing Independent Greeks, has faced since coming to power a little more than a year ago. The disruption was wide-ranging. Schools and many private businesses were closed while transport, including flights and ferries, faced delays and cancellation. The strike also stopped the flow of thousands of migrants and refugees travelling from the Greek islands where they make landfall. State-run hospitals were functioning on emergency staff, while farmers maintained their blockades of highways that have forced motorists into lengthy detours. The strike comes as international bailout inspectors met Labor Minister George Katrougalos to discuss the pension reforms. The central Athens hotel where the inspectors were staying was heavily guarded by police. The Greek government has to meet a series of conditions to get money from its third international bailout, which is worth around 80 billion euros ($89 billion). Having cleared the first set of conditions, it is now discussing the next batch of reforms required. Once cleared, it will be due further funds from the bailout as well as a promise to discuss the size of Greece's debt burden, which despite years of austerity still stands at a staggering 175 percent of the country's annual GDP. The pension reform is difficult for Syriza, which, while still in opposition, had led protests against pension reforms. However Tsipras was forced to ditch his earlier stance when faced with the stark choice of signing up to a third bailout or the country having to leave the euro currency. Syriza's difficulties with the pension reform plan were evident in the party's statement that it was backing Thursday's strike. Athens pensioner Yannis Kouvalakis said Tsipras' government had "fooled" Greeks by promising to reverse austerity cuts. "Because they are from the left, what happened? Was the situation saved?" he said. "Things got worse." ___ Derek Gatopoulos and Raphael Kominis contributed to this report. Protesters throw a petrol bomb at riot policemen during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Clashes have broken out between Greek police and youths throwing fire bombs and stones, as tens of thousands of people march through central Athens to protest planned pension reforms. (AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis) A riot policeman falls down as protesters throw a petrol bomb during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Clashes have broken out between Greek police and youths throwing fire bombs and stones, as tens of thousands of people march through central Athens to protest planned pension reforms. (AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis) Protesters run amid clashes with riot police during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Sporadic clashes broke out in central Athens Thursday as tens of thousands marched to the Greek Parliament during a general strike called to protest planned pension reforms that are part of the country's third international bailout. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) Riot police use tear gas as masked protesters hold hammers and stones during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Clashes have broken out between Greek police and youths throwing fire bombs and stones, as tens of thousands of people march through central Athens to protest planned pension reforms. (AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis) A masked protester throws a petrol bomb at riot police during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Sporadic clashes broke out in central Athens Thursday as tens of thousands marched to the Greek Parliament during a general strike called to protest planned pension reforms that are part of the country's third international bailout. The labor union's banner reads ''General Strike.'' (AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis) Bystanders look on behind iron shutters of an arcade as protesters clash with riot police during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Sporadic clashes broke out in central Athens Thursday as tens of thousands marched to the Greek Parliament during a general strike called to protest planned pension reforms that are part of the country's third international bailout. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) Riot policemen walk past a shuttered shop as a man sits amid clashes with protesters during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Sporadic clashes broke out in central Athens Thursday as tens of thousands marched to the Greek Parliament during a general strike called to protest planned pension reforms that are part of the country's third international bailout. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) Riot policemen try to avoid a petrol bomb thrown by protesters during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Clashes have broken out between Greek police and youths throwing fire bombs and stones, as tens of thousands of people march through central Athens to protest planned pension reforms.(AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) A protester uses a fire extinguisher against riot policemen during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Clashes have broken out between Greek police and youths throwing fire bombs and stones, as tens of thousands of people march through central Athens to protest planned pension reforms. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) Riot policemen try to avoid a petrol bomb thrown by protesters during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Clashes have broken out between Greek police and youths throwing fire bombs and stones, as tens of thousands of people march through central Athens to protest planned pension reforms.(AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) Protesting members of the PAME Communist-affiliated gather outside the Greek Parliament during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Unions called the strike to protest pension reforms that are part of Greece's third international bailout. The left-led government is trying to overhaul the country's ailing pension system by increasing social security contributions to avoid pension cuts, but critics say the reforms will lead many to lose two-thirds of their income to contributions and taxes. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis) Protesting lawyers shout slogans as their colleague holds up during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Unions called the strike to protest pension reforms that are part of Greece's third international bailout. The left-led government is trying to overhaul the country's ailing pension system by increasing social security contributions to avoid pension cuts, but critics say the reforms will lead many to lose two-thirds of their income to contributions and taxes. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) Protesting lawyers shout slogans during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Unions called the strike to protest pension reforms that are part of Greece's third international bailout. The left-led government is trying to overhaul the country's ailing pension system by increasing social security contributions to avoid pension cuts, but critics say the reforms will lead many to lose two-thirds of their income to contributions and taxes. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) Members of the PAME Communist-affiliated hold a banner reads in Greek ''Social Security'' during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Unions called the strike to protest pension reforms that are part of Greece's third international bailout. The left-led government is trying to overhaul the country's ailing pension system by increasing social security contributions to avoid pension cuts, but critics say the reforms will lead many to lose two-thirds of their income to contributions and taxes. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) Members of the PAME Communist-affiliated protest during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Unions called the strike to protest pension reforms that are part of Greece's third international bailout. The left-led government is trying to overhaul the country's ailing pension system by increasing social security contributions to avoid pension cuts, but critics say the reforms will lead many to lose two-thirds of their income to contributions and taxes. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) A member of the PAME Communist-affiliated shouts slogans during a 24-hour nationwide general strike in Athens, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Unions called the strike to protest pension reforms that are part of Greece's third international bailout. The left-led government is trying to overhaul the country's ailing pension system by increasing social security contributions to avoid pension cuts, but critics say the reforms will lead many to lose two-thirds of their income to contributions and taxes. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris) A woman passes a bridge over the closed central train station of Athens during a 24-hour general strike, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Services across the country have ground to a halt as Greeks walk off the job in a massive general strike that cancelled flights, ferries and public transport, shut down schools and pharmacies and left public hospitals with emergency staff. (AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis) A man walks past a docked ferry during a 24-hour general strike at the Athens' port of Piraeus, on Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Services across the country have ground to a halt as Greeks walk off the job in a massive general strike that cancelled flights, ferries and public transport, shut down schools and pharmacies and left public hospitals with emergency staff.(AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis) A man smokes a cigarette as he sits in front of the closed central train station of Athens during a 24-hour general strike, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Services across the country have ground to a halt as Greeks walk off the job in a massive general strike that cancelled flights, ferries and public transport, shut down schools and pharmacies and left public hospitals with emergency staff. (AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis) A man fishing during a 24-hour general strike at the Athens' port of Piraeus, on Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Services across the country have ground to a halt as Greeks walk off the job in a massive general strike that cancelled flights, ferries and public transport, shut down schools and pharmacies and left public hospitals with emergency staff.(AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis) A man walks past a docked ferry during a 24-hour general strike at the Athens' port of Piraeus, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. Services across the country have ground to a halt as Greeks walk off the job in a massive general strike that cancelled flights, ferries and public transport, shut down schools and pharmacies and left public hospitals with emergency staff.(AP Photo/Kostas Tsironis) Arkansas GOP, having embraced term limits, is now conflicted LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) More than two decades ago, Arkansas was among the first states to embrace the term limits movement by restricting how long lawmakers could serve in its Legislature. No one championed the movement more loudly than the state's Republicans, who saw it as a way to loosen the Democratic Party's generations-old grip on Arkansas' elected offices. But now that Republicans have turned the state red, things have gotten complicated. GOP leaders have decided that legislators should be able to stay longer after all. Term-limits purists insist on holding the line. The question may now be headed back to a state ballot for the second time in only two years, with the prospect of Arkansas swinging back and forth between three different sets of rules since 2012. "People want government to be more representative," said Tim Jacob, spokesman for a group gathering signatures to put tougher term limits before the voters again in November. "People don't want power bases built in our Legislature." In this Jan. 18, 2016 photo, Stuart Rubio, left, signs a petition to limit lawmakers terms before the Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade in Little Rock, Ark. More than two decades after Arkansas became one of the first states to limit how long lawmakers could serve in the Legislature, Republicans who once championed the issue are conflicted. GOP leaders now say they believe lawmakers should be able to stay longer than originally planned. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson) The conflict has split the ranks of conservatives, and created the awkward situation of top officials switching positions as practical politics vied with principle. The leaders of both legislative chambers, Senate President Jonathan Dismang and House Speaker Jeremy Gillam, are backing the longer incumbent-friendly terms, which were approved in a referendum in 2014. Republican Gov. Asa Hutchinson so far has stayed out of the fray. Fifteen states have adopted term limits for their lawmakers. Arkansas decided in 1992 to limit state senators to two four-year terms and House members to three two-year terms. Making statehouse offices temporary would "ultimately bring new faces and new ideas to state government," Hutchinson declared at the time, when he was chairman of the state Republican Party and Democrats held 90 percent of the Legislature's seats. But three years ago with Republicans in control of both the House and Senate, legislative leaders included a provision in a campaign reform referendum that allowed lawmakers to spend up to 16 years in one chamber. Voters approved the measure the following year. Republicans now control 88 of the 135 seats in the House and Senate. Gillam, a five-year House member who would have been booted next year without the extension, said he has learned the value of experience in getting meaningful legislation done. "I know I hear from people all the time they're tired of us being at the bottom of the country in education and economic development and health care and the list goes on and on. They list this as a factor," he said, referring to rapid legislator turnover. State Republican Party Chairman Doyle Webb said his party only disagrees on the length of the terms, not on limiting them. But Jacob's group, Restore Term Limits, scorns the loosened limits as deceptive, and has been bringing a mock wooden Trojan Horse to events around to the state to underscore the point. Philip Blumel, the president of the U.S. Term Limits organization in Washington, said the fight boils down more to between those in power and those who aren't. Those Republicans once led the charge for term limits, "once they're in power they find the prospect of competitive elections a lot less attractive," he said. The group needs to gather nearly 85,000 signatures from registered voters to get its proposal on the ballot. If approved, it would not only restore the old House and Senate limits but also cap the total number of years at 10, which would apply to members jumping from one chamber to the other. It would also prevent the Legislature from putting any further term limit revisions on the ballot. Blumel said he worried that if the effort isn't successful, Arkansas could become a model for how to ease term limits. "I think it opens the door to trouble in other states," Blumel said. ___ Follow Andrew DeMillo on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ademillo In this Jan. 18, 2016 photo, Stuart Rubio, left, listens to J El, right, explain a petition to restore lawmakers term limits before the Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade in Little Rock, Ark. More than two decades after Arkansas became one of the first states to limit how long lawmakers could serve in the Legislature, Republicans who once championed the issue are conflicted. GOP leaders now say they believe lawmakers should be able to stay longer than originally planned. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson) In this Jan. 18, 2016 photo, Nanette Edgeston-Green, right, gathers signatures on a petition to restore lawmakers term limits before the Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade in Little Rock, Ark. More than two decades after Arkansas became one of the first states to limit how long lawmakers could serve in the Legislature, Republicans who once championed the issue are conflicted. GOP leaders now say they believe lawmakers should be able to stay longer than originally planned. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson) Drug exec takes the Fifth on Capitol Hill, angers lawmakers WASHINGTON (AP) Infuriating members of Congress, a smirking Martin Shkreli took the Fifth at a Capitol Hill hearing Thursday when asked about his jacking up of drug prices, then promptly went on Twitter and insulted his questioners as "imbeciles." The brash, 32-year-old entrepreneur who has been vilified as the new face of pharmaceutical-industry greed was summoned by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which is investigating soaring prices for critical medicines. Four times, he intoned: "On the advice of counsel, I invoke my Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination and respectfully decline to answer your question." Pharmaceutical chief Martin Shkreli smiles on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, during the House Committee on Oversight and Reform Committee hearing on his former company's decision to raise the price of a lifesaving medicine. Shkreli refused to testify before U.S. lawmakers who excoriated him over severe hikes for a drug sold by a company that he acquired. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) Lawmakers erupted. Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland, the top Democrat on the committee, all but told Shkreli to wipe the smile off his face. "I call this money blood money ... coming out of the pockets of hardworking Americans," he said as Shkreli sat through the lecture. "I know you are smiling, but I am very serious, sir," Cummings said. "I truly believe you can become a force of tremendous good. All I ask is that you reflect on it. No, I don't ask, I beg that you reflect on it. " The former hedge fund manager with a frat-boy swagger has been reviled in recent months for buying Daraprim, the only approved drug for a rare and sometimes deadly parasitic infection, and unapologetically raising its price more than fiftyfold. Shkreli is out on $5 million bail after being arrested in New York in December on securities-fraud charges unrelated to the price increase. Shkreli, wearing a sport jacket and open-collar shirt, was dismissed less than an hour into the hearing, but not before chairman Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, shouted down a request by Shkreli's attorney to speak. Lawmakers instead took turns denouncing his conduct and attitude. Minutes after he left and even before the hearing had ended Shkreli thumbed his nose at the committee. "Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government," the former CEO of Turing Pharmaceuticals tweeted. Shkreli's attorney Benjamin Brafman later said in his defense: "He meant no disrespect, but in truth, statements made by some of the members of the committee were wrong, unfair and difficult to listen to without responding." Shkreli calls himself "the world's most eligible bachelor" and "the most successful Albanian to ever walk the face of this Earth." He strums his guitar on YouTube and paid a reported $2 million for the only known copy of an album by the Wu-Tang Clan. After Shkreli's departure, Turing's chief commercial officer and the interim CEO of Canada's largest drugmaker, Valeant Pharmaceuticals, received a bipartisan lashing from the lawmakers. Internal documents released by the committee show that Valeant and Turing have made a practice of buying and then dramatically raising prices for low-cost drugs given to patients with life-threatening conditions such as heart disease, AIDS and cancer. Chaffetz, an admitted "conservative guy" who accepts that companies need to make profits, said he was disgusted. And Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., told them: "This is a scandal, an absolute abuse of power, an abuse of the pharmaceutical industry." With Shkreli mum, it was up to Turing's Nancy Retzlaff to defend the Daraprim price rise. She said the company invests in research and development, as well as programs that help patients afford drugs. Turing tries to strike the right balance between those needs and rewarding shareholders, Retzlaff testified. "I don't believe my company has done anything wrong," she said. As early as last May, Turing planned to turn Daraprim into a $200-million-a-year drug by dramatically increasing its price, according to documents obtained by the committee. Turing bought the 60-year-old drug in August for $55 million. Shkreli said in an email to one contact: "We raised the price from $1,700 per bottle to $75,000. Should be a very handsome investment for all of us." As for Valeant, documents indicate the company believed it could repeatedly raise the prices of the lifesaving heart drugs Nitropress and Isuprel without repercussions because the medicines are administered by hospitals, which are less price-sensitive than consumers. ___ AP Business Writers Tom Murphy in Indianapolis and Matthew Perrone in Washington contributed to this report. Benjamin Brafman, right, attorney for pharmaceutical chief Martin Shkreli, foreground, speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, during a House Committee on Oversight and Reform Committee hearing on rising drug prices. Shkreli refused to testify before U.S. lawmakers who excoriated him over severe hikes for a drug sold by a company that he acquired. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) Pharmaceutical chief Martin Shkreli, left, huddles with his attorney Benjamin Brafman on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, during the House Committee on Oversight and Reform Committee. Shkreli refused to testify before U.S. lawmakers who excoriated him over severe hikes for a drug sold by a company that he acquired. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) Pharmaceutical chief Martin Shkreli, right, and Nancy Retzlaff, Chief Commercial Officer of Turing Pharmaceuticals, are sworn in on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, prior to a House Committee on Oversight and Reform Committee hearing on his former company's decision to raise the price of a lifesaving medicine. Shkreli refused to testify before U.S. lawmakers who excoriated him over severe hikes for a drug sold by a company that he acquired. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) US official:Classified email found from Powell, Rice tenures WASHINGTON (AP) The State Department investigator has found that former Secretary of State Colin Powell and the immediate staff of former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice also received classified national security information on their personal email accounts, a senior House Democrat said Thursday. Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's use of a personal email server has dogged her presidential campaign, and news that her predecessors in Republican administrations might have received such information on nonsecure servers could help her blunt the criticism that Republicans have leveled at her, hoping to impede her presidential campaignn . The State Department inspector general has told Rep. Elijah Cummings, a Democrat, that it has determined that two emails sent to Powell and 10 others sent to Rice's staff also contained classified national security information. Powell and Rice were top diplomats under Republican President George W. Bush. "My concern has been that Republicans are spending millions of taxpayer dollars singling out Secretary Clinton because she is running for president often leaking inaccurate information while at the same time disregarding the actions of Republican secretaries of state," Cummings said in a statement in which he accused the Republicans of using congressional committees to mar Clinton's candidacy. In a statement, Powell said the emails were from his executive assistant. He said they were forwarded messages that two U.S. ambassadors sent to members of the State Department's staff. "My executive assistant thought I should see them in a timely manner so sent them to my personal account," he said. He said that while the department now has said they are "confidential," which is a low level of classification, both messages were unclassified at the time and that there was no reason not to forward them to his personal account. "I have reviewed the messages and I do not see what makes them classified," Powell said. "The ambassadors did not believe the contents were confidential at the time and they were sent as unclassified." "While they have not yet clarified this point, the State Department cannot now say they were classified then because they weren't. If the department wishes to say a dozen years later they should have been classified, that is an opinion of the department that I do not share." Powell's office said two FBI agents visited Powell in December for a general discussion about email practices during his time at State. The discussion did not focus on any individual or specific item. Georgia Godfrey, chief of staff for Rice, said Rice did not use email as secretary nor have a personal email account. She said it's her understanding that the emails in question were sent to Rice's assistant, "reporting diplomatic conversations and they contained no intelligence information." Clinton, meantime, is facing new scrutiny from congressional Republicans as a fourth committee is pressing for general information about the handling of government documents, use of personal emails and the response to Freedom of Information requests during her time at the State Department. Rep. Jason Chaffetz, Republican chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, sent a Jan. 19 letter to Secretary of State John Kerry asking for information and documents, citing the panel's jurisdiction over implementation of FOIA requests. His request included material from the tenures of current and former secretaries of State. In an interview with the Politico news organization, Chaffetz said Clinton's use of a private email server for government business could ensnare her in his inquiry. Three other committees are already focused on the former secretary of state and her tenure the special House panel on the attacks in Benghazi, Libya, the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Homeland and Governmental Affairs Committee. ___ British Olympic Association providing guidance on Zika LONDON (AP) The British Olympic Association says it will provide medical guidance to athletes about the Zika virus ahead of the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. The mosquito-borne virus has been linked to an increased number of babies born with abnormally small heads in Brazil. BOA chief executive Bill Sweeney says his association is working with national sports bodies "to develop a specific guidance note, drawing on all the latest medical advice." In this Feb. 1, 2016 photo, a technician from the British biotec company Oxitec, inspects the pupae of genetically modified Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, a vector for transmitting the Zika virus, in Campinas, Brazil. The company said tests begun last April as part of a dengue-fighting program in the small southeastern city of Piracicaba suggested the release of the GM males reduced the wild Aedes larvae population in the target neighborhood by more than 80 percent. Brazil is in the midst of a Zika outbreak and authorities say they have also detected a spike in cases of microcephaly in newborn children, but the link between Zika and microcephaly is as yet unproven. (AP Photo/Andre Penner) He says the guidance is meant to "address any concerns" and enable athletes and staff "to fully focus on their own important preparations for Rio." Pollster warned University of Iowa of 'party school image' IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) A Republican pollster warned the University of Iowa a year ago that its public standing was suffering from an image as a heavy-drinking school where sexual assault was too common, according to a report obtained by The Associated Press that school officials have withheld from the public. Washington-based pollster Chris Perkins told university leaders that those perceptions meant the school was no longer considered safe by some parents and students, and had lost some credibility "as a serious academic institution." Perkins, who received the polling work under a controversial university no-bid contract with a GOP insider, recommended specific messages for a communications strategy to combat the image. "Iowans believe that cleaning up the party school image at the University of Iowa will result in attracting more students, gaining more research grants and overall improving the education system," Perkins wrote in the 52-page report, which was prepared for university leaders following a statewide poll of 1,000 residents in December 2014. FILE - In this Oct. 2, 2014 file photo, students walk across campus at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa. A pollster warned the University of Iowa in 2015 that its public standing was suffering from an image as a heavy-drinking school where sexual assault was too common. The university has refused to release the December 2014 report and others conducted by a Washington-based firm that received the work under a no-bid contract. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall, File) Earlier that year, protests erupted when the university's then-president, Sally Mason, said sexual assault could never be completely eliminated because of "human nature." The issue had become an increasing public concern in 2013, when the school started releasing public warnings about reported rapes involving acquaintances. The Princeton Review also named the university the nation's no. 1 party school in 2013. The university won't release documents detailing polls and focus groups conducted by Perkin's firm, Wilson Perkins Allen. The AP obtained the undated report from a university employee who requested anonymity because the school didn't authorize its disclosure. The school has said that releasing the information would help rival schools and "serve no public purpose." But the secrecy has been pilloried by open government advocates, including Iowa Freedom of Information Council executive director Randy Evans, who suggested this week that the school was illegally trying to hide embarrassing information. "If the research had found Iowans heralding the university's academic prowess or its cost versus value in Iowans' eyes, you probably would see billboards touting that," Evans said, adding that releasing the reports would show whether the university got a good deal for the polling. University spokeswoman Jeneane Beck said the polling data helped the university produce marketing materials and communication pieces. In his report, Perkins recommended that the university emphasize messages about "working to crack down on underage drinking and drug problems" and "prosecuting sexual assault and harassment criminals." He said the party school image could hurt student recruitment, and warned that perceived high debt loads for graduates and financial aid shortages were other concerns. The university hired former Iowa Republican Party chairman Matt Strawn in 2013 for social media outreach under a $24,900 contract below the $25,000 threshold requiring quotes from multiple vendors. That work has been performed by a subcontractor started by another former Iowa GOP official. Months later, the university obtained a waiver to give annual statewide polling work to Strawn without competitive bidding, even though his firm doesn't do such research. Strawn subcontracted with Perkins, who has worked for high-profile Republicans such as Ted Cruz and Tom DeLay. In all, Strawn's firm has been paid $320,000 from university donations. After the AP reported on the no-bid contract in December, the university president of its governing board said the "optics of this are not pretty" and that the work should have been bid. The university's former vice president for strategic communications, Joe Brennan, said Thursday that the polling helped inform a strategy to emphasize the school's contributions to Iowa's economy, health and quality of life. He said doing more to showcase what happens inside university classrooms and labs counterbalances the "party school" narrative. Multi-Ethnic Media Coalition wants full Hollywood diversity LOS ANGELES (AP) Organizations representing Hispanics, Asian-Americans and Native Americans, who joined with the NAACP in 2000 to increase minority hiring in the TV industry, are broadening their focus to the big screen. The Multi-Ethnic Media Coalition called Thursday on Sony, Warner Bros., Fox, Universal, Paramount and Disney to enter discussions aimed at bringing full diversity to on- and off-camera jobs, including the executive ranks. The uproar over this year's all-white cast of Academy Award acting nominees helped set the stage for the new effort, coalition leaders said. Latino representation in the nominees was only behind the camera, led by the Mexican filmmakers of "The Revenant": director Alejandro Inarritu and cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki. FILE - In this Saturday, Jan. 30, 2016 file photo, Taye Diggs, left, presents Viola Davis with the award for outstanding female actor in a drama series for "How to Get Away with Murder" at the 22nd annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall in Los Angeles. A coalition of advocacy groups is calling on major Hollywood film studios to broaden their diversity efforts to include Hispanics, Asian-Americans and Indians as well as blacks. (Photo by Vince Bucci/Invision/AP, File) "Now is the time, while there's a lot of attention focused on this," said Daniel Mayeda, co-chair of the Asian Pacific American Media Coalition, one of the umbrella group's members. While the movie academy hastily adopted new rules aimed at breaking up future white monopolies for the Oscars, the studios and their hiring practices are the root of the problem, he said. "We can have the most diverse set of awards voters, but we're not going to have any nominations or wins for people of color if there are no roles," Mayeda said. Alex Nogales, president and CEO of the National Hispanic Media Coalition, agreed. The Oscars and other awards "are the last in the line of this whole thing called show business. The real culprits are at the very top, with the film studios first and foremost," Nogales said. The battle isn't the same for every ethnic group. While all minorities struggle to gain a foothold in films, it's non-blacks who face the stiffest challenge. Last Saturday's Screen Actors Guild Awards offered a dramatic illustration: There were a number of minority winners, including Idris Elba, Uzo Aduba, Queen Latifah and Viola Davis, all of them black. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to diverse TV," Elba, who won two trophies, said onstage. Mayeda called their recognition "fantastic," but said the diversity discussion has become "a little binary, a little black and white." Don Cheadle made a similar point during a recent interview with The Associated Press. "Diverse doesn't just mean more black people," he said during the Sundance Film Festival last month. "Diverse means more representation from the entire diaspora of what the United States has to offer, not just one particular minority group." Nogales also lauded the winners. But he chides those who claim such instances represent progress for minorities in general, rather than one group in particular. "When I hear 'people of color' it angers me, because when I look at who they're talking about, it's African-Americans," he said. "C'mon, guys, let's be real here. African-Americans are doing much better than any other minority in front of and in back of the camera." Neither he nor Mayeda cast the demand for more inclusiveness as a zero-sum game that risks pitting one minority group against another. Instead, they said, the pressure is on the industry to expand opportunities for all. The NAACP has committed its support to the new initiative but was unable to take part in its announcement because of other commitments, the coalition said. The black civil rights group did not immediately respond to a request for comment. There's much work to do, Mayeda said, given how stubbornly the industry clings to tired practices. He cited minority characters that were either played by white actors Emma Stone as an Asian-American in "Aloha," Ben Affleck as a Hispanic in "Argo" or ethnic roles that were rewritten to accommodate white actors. Studios ultimately must change as America does or lose out, Mayeda said. The country's demographic shift to a non-white majority is predicted within three decades. "This is not affirmative action. We're talking about how you make more money. More people would buy tickets if you featured people who look like us or reflect modern society," he said. Coalition leaders said they are heartened by TV's increased diversity, from shows that feature minority casts ("black-ish," ''Jane the Virgin," ''Fresh Off the Boat") to more non-white writers and directors. But there is inequality: Three of the four major networks have a higher percentage of blacks in prime-time shows than exist in the general population, while all other minorities are underrepresented to varying degrees, The Associated Press reported last year. The coalition is calling on studios to do with films what the group has pressed them to do for TV, including tracking minority employment and implementing or expanding "pipeline" programs to develop minority writers, directors and others. ___ Brazil health official confirms Zika spread via transfusion RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) Two people in southeastern Brazil contracted the Zika virus through blood transfusions, a municipal health official said Thursday, presenting a fresh challenge to efforts to contain the virus on top of the disclosure of a case of sexual transmission in the United States. The two unrelated cases in Brazil may be the first of people contracting Zika via blood transfusions in the current outbreak, though the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, along with other health bodies, have said that Zika could be spread via blood transfusions. That concern led the U.S. Red Cross to announce that it is asking travelers to Zika outbreak countries to wait at least 28 days before donating blood. Canadian officials said that people who have traveled outside of Canada, the continental United States and Europe won't be able to give blood for 21 days after their return. A municipal health worker sprays insecticide in an open area of a sports facility, to combat the Aedes aegypti mosquito that transmits the Zika virus, in Recife, Pernambuco state, Brazil, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. With no hope for a vaccine to prevent Zika in the near future, authorities are focusing on the most effective way to combat the virus: killing the mosquito that carries it. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana) Brigina Kemp, a top health official in the Brazilian city of Campinas, told The Associated Press that a gunshot victim and a transplant patient each tested positive for Zika after receiving blood transfusions from different donors. Kemp said staff at the University of Campinas' hospital first noticed something was wrong in the middle of last year, when Brazil's first cases of Zika were beginning to be reported. Generally so mild that it only causes symptoms in about one out of five cases, Zika began to raise alarm bells after doctors here started to notice a possible link between the virus spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito and the birth defect microcephaly. The hospital staff noticed abnormal blood work on a young gunshot wound victim who had spent months at the facility. The patient received dozens of blood transfusions from 18 donors between February and May 2015, when he died. Because the region was in the throes of a dengue outbreak at the time, the staff suspected that disease, which is closely related to Zika, and tested him for it, Kemp said. But the tests came back negative and the blood sample was shelved. But when an organ transplant patient tested positive for Zika after developing a fever, the hospital's blood bank staff started looking for other possible Zika cases and tests on the gunshot victim's blood samples came back positive. Transfusions in the two cases were traced to separate donors who had Zika, both of whom reported having suffered symptoms days after they gave blood. The blood bank then informed Sao Paulo's Adolfo Lutz Institute, which also tested the samples and informed Campinas' health department of the results last month. The Health Ministry said in an email to The Associated Press, that while the case of the gunshot victim was not yet part of a scientific study, "the case is among multiple investigations under way into the behavior of the virus." Dante Langhi, president of the Brazilian Association of Hematology and Hemotherapy, told the AP that an academic paper about the transplant case was slated to be published shortly in a specialized medical journal. Langhi said he had been told that researchers investigating the transplant case had determined that the patient contracted Zika through the transfusion, and not through a bite by the Aedes mosquito that is the virus' main vector. "The situation must be evaluated and discussed by technical and government authorities," Langhi said. The Zika virus was first identified in Uganda in 1947 and subsequently spread to parts of Asia. Brazil's first case was recorded in the middle of last year, and the disease quickly spread across country and to more than 20 nations in the region, the Caribbean and beyond, leading the World Health Organization this week to declare an international emergency. Meanwhile, a Brazilian health workers union called off a strike set to start Thursday because it could affect the country's battle against Zika. The union's members include workers who go door-to-door in Rio de Janeiro trying to eradicate the mosquito. The union had threatened to strike if the national health ministry failed to meet demands for better work conditions by Thursday. In this Jan. 29, 2016 photo, a girl rides her bike through a flooded street in the Parque Sao Bento shantytown of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Authorities are focusing on the most effective way to combat the Zika disease: killing the mosquito that carries the virus. Brazil is in the midst of a Zika outbreak and authorities say they have also detected a spike in cases of microcephaly in newborn children, but the link between Zika and microcephaly is as yet unproven. (AP Photo/Andre Penner) In this Feb. 1, 2016 photo, Aedes aegypti mosquitoes that were genetically modified to produce offspring that don't live are trapped inside a container before being released into the wild by a technician from the British biotec company Oxitec, in Piracicaba, Brazil, as part of an effort to kill the local Aedes population, a vector for the Zika virus. "This mosquito really is a bear to deal with," said Thomas Scott, professor of entomology and epidemiology at the University of California, Davis. "It's almost like a cockroach of the mosquito world." (AP Photo/Andre Penner) In this Feb. 1, 2016 photo, a technician from the British biotec company Oxitec holds with a bag of blood to feed Aedes aegypti mosquitoes that were genetically modified to produce offspring that don't live, before releasing them into the wild as part of an effort to kill the local Aedes population, which is a vector for the spread of the Zika virus, in Campinas, Brazil. Brazil is in the midst of a Zika outbreak and authorities say they have also detected a spike in cases of microcephaly in newborn children, but the link between Zika and microcephaly is as yet unproven. (AP Photo/Andre Penner) In this Jan. 29, 2016 photo, Tamires da Costa, 16, who's four months pregnant, stands in a street with standing flood water next to her home in the Parque Sao Bento shantytown of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Thanks to Aedes aegypti modquito, the Zika virus quickly spread across Brazil and to more than 20 countries in the region, the Caribbean and beyond, leading the World Health Organization this week to declare an international emergency. Brazilian authorities say they have detected a spike in cases of microcephaly, which leaves infants with unusually small heads and can result in brain damage and a host of developmental and health problems. However, the link between Zika and microcephaly is as yet unproven. (AP Photo/Leo Correa) A health worker walks away from the home of Maria Cardenas, left, who was diagnosed with Zika, after he sprayed insecticide to kill mosquitoes on her property in Acacias, Colombia, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. With more than 20,000 cases confirmed in Colombia and fearing that the virus could affect more than half a million people, the government launched a nationwide prevention campaign. (AP Photo/Fernando Vergara) Company boss shot dead in warehouse raid A major manhunt is under way after a company director was shot dead during an armed raid on his drinks delivery firm's warehouse. Akhtar Javeed, 56, was pronounced dead after being found in the street outside his business in Digbeth, Birmingham, at about 6.40pm on Wednesday. West Midlands Police have declined to confirm whether anything was taken during the attempted robbery but have said the warehouse was specifically "targeted" by two masked men. Akhtar Javeed, 56, died after being shot during an attempted robbery at a warehouse in Digbeth Detectives also refused to comment on claims that Mr Javeed may have followed the raiders out of the building before being gunned down. Speaking yards from the scene of the murder in Rea Street South, Chief Superintendent Andy Parsons said officers were alerted by a 999 call from staff inside the business premises. Mr Parsons told reporters: "Officers and paramedics gave immediate first aid to assist Mr Javeed, who was rushed immediately to hospital where further medical assistance was provided. "Tragically however Mr Javeed was pronounced dead a short time later." Mr Javeed, from London, is believed to have run fast food supplies firm Direct Source 3 Ltd on weekdays and to have returned home at weekends. Syed Abbas, 30, who lives at a property which Pakistan-born Mr Javeed owns in east London, said the businessman's wife and children had the news broken to them on Wednesday night. Mr Abbas said: "Within 15 minutes of finding out his whole family went to Birmingham. They were crying and very upset." It is understood that Mr Javeed's wife, two young children and grown-up daughter live at the property in West Ham. As police appealed for witnesses who may have seen a car leaving the murder scene, a local business owner, who declined to be named, said he had handed in CCTV footage showing joggers from a local gym passing a road junction around 20 yards from the scene. But Nafeesah Abid, the director of a nearby accountancy firm, said the mainly industrial area around Rea Street South was not busy shortly before the raid. Ms Abid said: "I drove past in my car a few minutes before but I didn't see or hear anything. It's very sad, shocking and distressing." Norman Khan, 28, a car salesman, said he saw Mr Javeed lying in a pool of blood as paramedics battled to save his life. "All his face was full of blood and there was blood on the floor," Mr Khan said. "There were three guys standing there, I think they knew him. They said he had just been shot. "When he was in the ambulance they were trying to bring him back to life again. It was shocking." Issuing an appeal for witnesses, acting Detective Chief Inspector Martin Slevin, of West Midlands Police CID, said: "It happened at a time when other people may have been leaving work for the day and someone may have seen what happened or have important information about the suspects." Police and forensic officers at scene of the attempted robbery Akhtar Javeed was found fatally wounded in the street following the shooting Digbeth in Birmingham where company boss Akhtar Javeed was shot dead during an attempted robbery at a warehouse Two murder suspects remain on the run The Direct Source 3 Ltd warehouse is in the Digbeth area of Birmingham Vodafone reports sixth consecutive quarter of sales growth Mobile phone giant Vodafone has notched up its sixth consecutive quarter of revenue growth, lifted by a strong performance in the emerging markets. The group saw organic service revenue - a closely-watched measure of sales - rise 1.4% to 9.2 billion in the three months to the end of December last year, beating the 1.2% rise in the previous quarter. It was buoyed by "strong" service revenue growth in its India and South African businesses, which grew 2.3% and 7.2% respectively in the third quarter. Strong performance in emerging markets boosted the mobile phone giant The Newbury-based company also saw a brightening picture across Europe, with service revenues continuing to recover, down 0.6% in the three months to the end of December last year, compared to a 1% drop in the previous quarter. The group also confirmed that it was on course to hit full-year earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation of between 11.7 billion and 12 billion. Shares in the FTSE 100 company were up 2% in early trading as investors digested the financial update, which came just days after it confirmed talks were under way with cable firm Liberty Global over a joint venture in the Netherlands. Vodafone - which had decided to abandon talks with Liberty Global six months earlier over a possible asset swap - said the discussions were ongoing and stressed they "do not extend beyond the creation of a joint venture in the Netherlands". Vittorio Colao, Vodafone group chief executive, hailed the boost in service revenues over the third quarter, stating the business had taken "another step forward in the last three months". He added: "We continue to face regulatory and competitive challenges in many markets, but we are confident that the business is well positioned for the growth opportunities ahead." In Germany, service revenue fell 0.4% in the third quarter, compared to a 1.8% drop in the second quarter, while in Italy service revenue was down 0.3% over the period, compared to a 2% fall in the second quarter before. But in the UK, service revenue dipped 0.7% in the three months to December 2015, against a 0.5% decline in the second quarter, as a boost to its fixed service business was offset by a fall in mobile revenues. The company added 506,000 new European mobile contract customers to its books over the period alongside 311,000 broadband customers. Welsh Tory leader takes aim at ministerial pay and 'part-time parliament' Welsh government ministers would have their pay cut by 10% if the Conservatives win the next Assembly election, party leader Andrew RT Davies has promised. Wales's First Minister's salary will rise to 140,000 this May while their cabinet team will also get a wage boost. However, Welsh Tory chief Mr Davies believes the Senedd's top politicians should have their pay reduced - and wants to use the saved cash to boost young people's involvement in politics. Welsh Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies called the Assembly a 'part-time parliament' He is also calling for the Assembly to have shorter holidays and members to sit longer - branding the institution a "part-time parliament". Farmer-turned-politician Mr Davies will outline his proposals in a speech later in Cardiff. He is expected to say: "Wales should embrace organisations that encourage children and young people to get involved in the decision-making process and to support them in understanding their rights and responsibilities. "And denying young people that opportunity to learn, to influence and to develop is all the harder when, indeed, Assembly Members are set to benefit from a pay rise of their own. "That's why a Welsh Conservative government would cut ministerial pay by 10% across the board and plough every penny of that funding into giving young people a voice - reviving support for a national children and young people's assembly for Wales." Last year, an independent panel's decision to give AMs a pay rise sparked heated debate across Wales and prompted criticism from all parties. The Assembly's remuneration board insisted that higher salaries were justified given that Wales has more powers than ever before and the lure of better pay could also improve the calibre of candidates. While Mr Davies stopped short of calling for a pay cut across the board, he said he is against proposals to increase the number of AMs. And as well as a reduction in ministers' salaries, he wants the Assembly to sit more often and for longer hours. He will say: "Many commentators reach lazily for tried and tested arguments and call for more AMs here; but that's not going to improve engagement with the public. We need better politics - not more politicians. "At times, the Assembly gives the impression of being a 'part-time parliament'. "I've lost count of the number of occasions on which Welsh Government business has been wrapped up on a Tuesday by 5pm." Donnacha Ryan warns that Ireland must adapt without Paul O'Connell Ireland cannot "copy and paste" former captain Paul O'Connell's talismanic traits into their RBS 6 Nations campaign, according to Donnacha Ryan. Munster lock Ryan has warned Ireland's pack not to waste time trying to emulate O'Connell, who retired from Test rugby after the World Cup. Ryan insists Ireland's engine room can fire even without his former Munster team-mate O'Connell and Ulster powerhouse Iain Henderson, missing for the tournament with hamstring trouble. Donnacha Ryan, pictured, insists Ireland can cope without their former captain Paul O'Connell in this year's RBS 6 Nations Ryan could partner lineout specialist Devin Toner in Sunday's Aviva Stadium clash with Wales, as Ireland seek an unprecedented third-consecutive Six Nations title. "Paul was unique, but it's not as though we're playing with 14 players now," said Ryan. "Whoever comes in will do just as good a job. "If anything it will spur them on to try even harder and be just as aggressive. "There's no point doing a copy and paste of what Paulie did because he was unique. "We've got to bring our own traits and habits. "You just want to do your job and do it as well as you possibly can. That's all we're being asked to do." New captain Rory Best is now Ireland's most-capped current star after O'Connell's retirement, and 32-year-old Ryan has backed the hooker's leadership credentials. Ryan in fact believes Ireland still have a host of natural leaders to fall back on in O'Connell's absence. "Paulie might have been the spearhead and a big voice as well, but there was always a bedrock of guys behind him," said Ryan. "There's no shortage of leaders. It's infectious as well, and people lead by example. "It raises everyone's standard, and helps young guys coming in as they see the expectations." Wales will hope their totemic lock Alun Wyn Jones can control the set-piece action on Sunday, but Ryan is adamant Ireland can mix it with Warren Gatland's side in the tight exchanges. "Alun Wyn Jones is a Lions captain and a big unit," said Ryan. "You've got Luke Charteris and Bradley Davies off the bench. "They are all big and abrasive, heavy guys who have been going well. "But we have great talent there too. Devin Toner has probably been our most consistent player. "Mike McCarthy has been playing well for Leinster and Ultan Dillane has been tremendous, he is a real livewire. Investigator steps up probe into Spain murder A top investigator has released an artist's impression of a man seen in the vicinity of the murder of a Scottish man as his family mark what would have been his 30th birthday this week. Quantity surveyor Craig Mallon, originally from Lanarkshire, was killed with a single punch in Spain's Lloret de Mar in the early hours of May 19 2012 in a motiveless attack outside Rockefellers nightclub. He was in the Costa Brava resort with eight friends for his stepbrother Bryan's stag do and is believed to have been seen talking to a girl with long blonde hair a few feet from the door of the club not long before his death. Craig Mallon, who was murdered in Lloret de Mar, Spain Just seven hours after arriving in Lloret, he was assaulted and died in the street near Rockefellers. But the investigation into his murder went cold and the family of Craig, who was working as a project manager in Australia, turned to investigator David Swindle and his Crime Solutions firm for help. Now the former detective, best known as senior investigating officer in the case of Scottish serial killer Peter Tobin, has managed to secure a copy of the 600-page case file into Craig's murder for the family. It includes the artist's impression of a man seen at the scene, which he has had printed on posters and has released on social media. He said: "We got a mandate which enabled us to get hold of the 600-page case file, which included an artist's impression of quite a distinctive looking guy. "We've now released it on social media in different languages and we're trying to get access to CCTV from the night Craig was killed. "We have also enlisted a state-funded lawyer for Craig's family. We are analysing the case file for new leads and the lawyer is talking to a judge to try and progress the case." I hope you don't mind the gap: Sir Elton John performs for commuters Sir Elton John delighted commuters with an impromptu performance on a piano at London's St Pancras International station. Photographs and videos posted on Twitter show John playing a piano in the middle of the station, surrounded by a throng of surprised fans. The Rocket Man singer tinkled the ivories for a few minutes, before leaving a note on the piano which reads: "Enjoy this piano. It's a gift. Love, Elton John." Sir Elton stunned commuters and passers-by with his impromptu performance He posted a photo on his Instagram account, writing alongside the photo: "Surprise!! I popped into St Pancras International to christen the Yamaha piano which I donated to the station. Now everyone can have a play." In a second photo he posted - of the message he wrote on the piano - he quoted a line from one of his hits, Your Song. He wrote: " My gift is my song and this piano's for you." Following the piano performance he thanked his fans and left the station. Sir Elton is currently promoting his new album Wonderful Crazy Night, which is released on Friday February 5. Ruth Swailes told the Press Association: "A colleague and I were just walking through the station and there was a bit of a crowd, then everyone started clapping and cheering. Elton sat down and started playing Tiny Dancer. "He didn't sing, played for about five minutes, then got up and walked away, all very low key." Dismissed NHS whistleblower who exposed safety concerns handed 1.22m in damages An NHS whistleblower who was unfairly sacked after exposing concerns about patient safety has been awarded 1.22 million in damages by a hospital trust. Cardiologist Raj Mattu claimed he had been "vilified and bullied" and subjected to a 12-year "witch hunt" after making the claims at Walsgrave Hospital in Coventry in 2001. He was sacked in 2010, but Birmingham Employment Tribunal ruled that he had been unfairly dismissed. Dr Raj Mattu was unfairly dismissed by the University Hospitals of Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire Trust said it had agreed to pay Dr Mattu 1.22m. Dr Mattu told the Press Association: "The overriding feeling I and my wife have is relief that there is finally a full stop. For the first time in 15 years I can look forward and plan things for the future." Dr Mattu publicly exposed overcrowding and fears for patient safety at the hospital in 2001. A year later the 70,000-a-year doctor was suspended by the Trust on full pay after being accused of bullying. He was dismissed in 2010. The tribunal found that Dr Mattu was a whistleblower and had been "subjected to detriments" because of this, but they had been presented "out of time" and therefore could not be considered as part of the case. But it found the Trust was at fault by holding a disciplinary hearing against Dr Mattu while he was in hospital and could not attend. The Trust said: "While 1.22 million is a large amount, it is a significant reduction from the original claim and has finally resolved this matter. "We accept that it has been difficult for all involved and are relieved that this case has now been brought to an end." Dr Mattu trained as a registrar at hospitals in Sheffield and London after graduating in medicine, and worked at nine NHS hospitals before moving to Coventry's then Walsgrave Hospital. In a witness statement submitted to the tribunal, he accused his employer of endangering lives by allowing overcrowding on its wards. Describing his treatment by the Trust as a "tragedy", the cardiologist said: "My case turns on many events, which start in 1998 with my raising serious concerns about patient safety at the Trust. "These concerns progress and culminate in my publicly blowing the whistle regarding lies told by the Trust in an attempt to cover up the avoidable deaths of patients." Italian student missing in Egypt likely dead -Italian foreign ministry CAIRO, Feb 3 (Reuters) - An Italian student from Britain's Cambridge University who went missing last week in Cairo is likely dead, the Italian foreign ministry said on Wednesday. It said that it was still waiting for official confirmation from Egyptian authorities about the fate of Giulio Regeni, 28, who disappeared on Jan. 25, the five-year anniversary of the 2011 uprising that ended Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule. Tensions were high in Egypt in the run-up to the anniversary, with police detaining activists and warning people not to demonstrate. No significant protests took place. "The Italian government had learnt of the probable tragic end to this affair," the foreign ministry said in a statement issued in Rome. Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni had expressed his deep condolences to Regeni's family, the statement said. An Egyptian security source said the interior ministry would not comment on the case until the conclusion of its investigation. The Italian foreign ministry did not give any indication of how the student might have died or whether his body had been found. Italian news agency Ansa said his body had been found in a ditch in a Cairo suburb but gave no further information. A friend of Regeni said he disappeared after leaving his home in an upper middle class area to meet a friend downtown. Use of 'dictator law' rises in Thailand as junta's reforms falter By Amy Sawitta Lefevre and Andrew R.C. Marshall BANGKOK, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Thai junta chief Prayuth Chan-ocha is relying increasingly on a security measure dubbed "the dictator's law" to push through unpopular policies and kickstart stalled reforms, say critics, who warn it could spark further opposition to military rule. Prime Minister Prayuth has used the measure, known as Article 44, to fast-track projects ranging from power stations to special economic zones, often over the objections of activists and some members of the public. Prayuth has used Article 44 more than 50 times since seizing power in a 2014 military coup, and increasingly so since the middle of last year, said Narongsak Niamsorn of iLaw, a Bangkok-based legal monitoring group. "It gives him too much power and lacks checks and balances and accountability," said Narongsak. A spokesman for the military government said Prayuth was using Article 44 more often to get things done more quickly, before an election promised for 2017, to the advantage of all. "There is limited time left to govern and reform the country," said Colonel Winthai Suvaree. "All orders have benefited the people." Last month, activists decried orders to build 14 power plants across the country, despite health and environmental concerns. Also last month, Prayuth used Article 44 to remove seven officials from a government health promotion foundation, initially citing suspected graft. But he later apologised, and dropped the suggestion of corruption, after doctors complained of interference. "The more he does this, the more segments of society he's going to alienate," said Korn Chatikavanij, a former finance minister and senior figure in the pro-establishment Democrat Party. Prayuth seized power in 2014 promising to reform the tax and education systems, shake up the energy and telecoms sectors, revamp the police and judiciary, and tackle corruption, human trafficking and many other issues. Now, with the economy stuttering and many key institutions and sectors unreformed, that plan seems ambitious, with doubts about the effectiveness of even a junta crusade against corruption. In the 2015 Corruption Perception Index released last week by Berlin-based watchdog Transparency International, Thailand was placed 76th among 168 countries - the same as last year. Prayuth is under pressure to show results, which is why he is relying on Article 44, said one Western diplomat. "The junta feels that it came in on a platform of reform and very little has been reformed," she said, requesting anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter. "So they have used Article 44 to ... to show they are reformers." 'IT'S ABOUT POWER' Last week, Thailand released a new draft constitution which the junta saw as a powerful instrument of reform that would radically reshape their nation's chaotic political landscape. But critics of all political stripes have pilloried the draft, raising fears that it will be rejected in a referendum scheduled for July, which would delay a general election until late 2017. Among the institutions that have also proved difficult to reform is the police, a target of would-be reformers for decades. Apart from appointing a new police chief with close ties to the military, the junta has largely left the police alone. The same goes for the highly politicized judiciary and the military itself. Two committees looking into national reforms had "achieved nothing", said Korn, the politician. "So now it's really just about power," he said, referring to the military government's priorities. Panitan Wattanayagorn, a senior government adviser, denied the reforms had stalled and said Prayuth and his team had laid "complicated" groundwork for lasting change. "They see a real opportunity to move the country forward," he told Reuters. While reforms appear stalled, the economy is a major worry. In a report last month, the government blamed declining exports and a weak currency on the global downturn, and on the policies of the elected government it toppled. It stressed efforts to tackle human trafficking, over fishing and aviation safety, which came after prolonged international pressure, and attributed a rising number of tourist arrivals to its success at reestablishing stability. U.S. Republican questions timing of $1.7 bln Iran payment, hostage release WASHINGTON, Feb 3 (Reuters) - A powerful U.S. lawmaker on Wednesday demanded Secretary of State John Kerry provide an explanation of a $1.7 billion claim settlement paid to Iran just as Tehran released American prisoners last month. Republican Representative Ed Royce, chairman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, wrote that the timing of the settlement and the administration's failure to brief Congress "has led some to express concern that the payment represents a de facto 'ransom' for the release of American hostages." Royce asked Kerry to provide by Feb. 17 information including lists of all U.S. officials who participated in negotiations with Iran over the settlement agreement, the prisoner release and the nuclear agreement announced in July. He also asked for legal analyses of the dispute, a timeline of negotiations over the dispute and an explanation of how the interest payment in the settlement was calculated, among other information. On Jan. 17, the State Department said the United States and Iran had settled a longstanding claim at the Iran-U.S. Claims Tribunal, releasing to Tehran $400 million in funds frozen since 1981 plus $1.3 billion in interest. U.S. Republican lawmakers, who are strongly critical of Democratic President Barack Obama's Iran policy, have been questioning the payment for weeks. No Republican supported the nuclear agreement when Congress had the opportunity to review it last year. State Department officials were not immediately available to comment on the letter. After the settlement was announced, Obama said it was a better alternative than letting more interest accumulate while waiting for a legal judgment. Panama Canal expansion to be complete by end of June-operator By Elida Moreno PANAMA CITY, Feb 3 (Reuters) - A new set of larger locks for the Panama Canal will be complete by the end of June, the waterway's administrator said on Wednesday, after builders repaired cracks that had formed in the concrete walls. The consortium building a third, bigger set of locks on one of the worlds busiest maritime routes, headed by Italy's Salini Impregilo and Spain's Sacyr, is now in testing, the final step before the project is finished, said Jorge Quijano, who leads the Panama Canal Authority. Panama should start to benefit from the expansion in 2017, when the government foresees getting $1.4 billion in revenue, a jump of 30 percent compared to this fiscal year. The project was initially set to be completed in April. China charges former senior police chief with murder, graft BEIJING, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Chinese prosecutors have charged the former police chief of China's northern region of Inner Mongolia with murder, bribery and possession of fire arms and explosives, state media reported on Thursday. Zhao Liping was in charge of police in Inner Mongolia from 2005 until 2010 and had worked for almost three decades as a police officer. He was detained on suspicion of the murder of a woman last year. State media has previously said the woman was his mistress, whom he stabbed and shot and then burned the body after she threatened to expose his corrupt behaviour. The official China Daily, citing a statement from the state prosecutor, said Zhao also abused his position to "gain benefits for others" and took bribes. It gave no other details. The ruling Communist Party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said last year that Zhao took bribes, illegally owned firearms and was an adulterer. Party members are supposed to be upholders of public morality and are banned from having extra-marital affairs. Courts answer to the party and never challenge its accusations. It has not been possible to reach Zhao for comment and unclear if he has retained a lawyer. President Xi Jinping has vowed to root out corruption in the party since taking over as its chief in 2012, and as head of state in 2013, warning its survival is at risk if it does not address the problem seriously. Inner Mongolia, which covers more than a 10th of China's land mass and has the country's largest coal reserves, is a strategically located part of the country on the borders of Russia and Mongolia, and also politically sensitive. Julian Assange will leave Ecuador embassy, accept arrest if loses UN case - Wikileaks SYDNEY, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Wikileaks founder Julian Assange will leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he took refuge in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, on Friday and accept arrest if a UN panel investigating his case rules against him, he said in a statement on Thursday posted on the Wikileaks Twitter account. Billions pledged for Syria as tens of thousands flee bombardments By Estelle Shirbon and Kylie MacLellan LONDON, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Donor nations pledged on Thursday to give $11 billion in aid to Syrians by 2020 as world leaders tried to tackle the world's worst humanitarian crisis, while Turkey reported a new exodus of tens of thousands fleeing air strikes. With Syria's five-year-old civil war raging and another attempt at peace negotiations called off in Geneva after just a few days, a donor conference in London sought to address the needs of some 6 million people displaced within Syria and more than 4 million refugees in other countries. Underlining the desperate situation on the ground in Syria, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told the meeting that up to 70,000 Syrians were on the move towards his country to escape aerial bombardments on the city of Aleppo. Davutoglu accused Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's forces, backed by foreign fighters and Russian air strikes, of seeking to do the same to Aleppo as they did to the besieged town of Madaya, where dozens have starved to death. "What they want to do in Aleppo today is exactly what they did in Madaya before, a siege of starvation," he told a news conference at the end of the event. Turkey is already hosting more than 2.5 million Syrian refugees. Jordan and Lebanon are the other countries bearing the brunt of the Syrian refugee exodus. British Prime Minister David Cameron said donors had pledged a total of $6 billion for Syrians for 2016, and a further $5 billion to be spent by 2020, describing the total as the largest amount ever raised in a single day for a humanitarian crisis. U.N. agencies are appealing for $7.73 billion for this year, with governments of countries in the region asking for an additional $1.2 billion for their national response plans. "We have combined a renewed effort to address the shortfall in humanitarian funding with a new approach to provide the education and jobs that will bolster stability in the region," Cameron said. Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey, where a significant share of the money pledged will be spent, committed to ensuring all refugee children in their countries would have access to education, and to opening up their economies so adult refugees could work. "EATING GRASS" Such measures are seen as crucial by European countries keen to improve living conditions for refugees in the region so they are less likely to travel to Europe. A million migrants and refugees from Syria and other countries in the Middle East, Africa and Asia arrived on the continent last year, triggering a huge political crisis in the European Union. Cameron said the international community would help the three main refugee host countries to meet their commitments on jobs and education, including with $40 billion of loans from financial institutions and the opening up of European markets. "As a result there will be over 1 million new jobs in the region for refugees and residents alike," he said. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who is under intense pressure at home after a massive influx of refugees last year, said the EU would consider trade preferences for the host countries. The almost five-year-old conflict has killed an estimated 250,000 people and stoked the spread of Islamist militancy across the Middle East and North Africa. "With people reduced to eating grass and leaves and killing stray animals in order to survive on a day-to-day basis, that is something that should tear at the conscience of all civilized people and we all have a responsibility to respond to it," U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry told the conference. A U.N. envoy halted his attempts to conduct Syrian peace talks on Wednesday after the Syrian army, backed by Russian air strikes, advanced against rebel forces north of Aleppo, choking opposition supply lines from Turkey to the city. Kerry told the conference he had spoken to his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov about the situation. "We have agreed that we are engaged in a discussion about how to implement the ceasefire specifically as well as some immediate, possible confidence-building steps to deliver humanitarian assistance," he said. In one of several blunt attacks on Russia during the day, Davutoglu said those supporting Assad's forces were committing war crimes and called on the United States to adopt a more decisive stance against Moscow. PRESS DIGEST - Bulgaria - Feb 4 SOFIA, Feb 4 (Reuters) - These are some of the main stories in Bulgarian newspapers on Thursday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy. -- Deputy Prime Minister Meglena Kuneva took over the education ministry in a tight vote in parliament that outlined the ripples within the coalition government of Prime Minister Boiko Borisov (Trud, 24 Chasa, Standart, Monitor, Sega, Duma) -- Bulgaria asked the European Commission to step in to help restore the free movement of goods across the country's border with Greece blocked by Greek farmers, the foreign ministry said (Trud, 24 Chasa, Standart) -- Bulgarian authorities have cracked down on a organized crime group dealing in bringing in illegal migrants into the country and smuggling them to Western Europe, the interior ministry said Slovak Republic - Factors To Watch on Feb 4 BRATISLAVA, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Here are news stories, press reports and events to watch which may affect Slovak financial markets on Thursday. ALL TIMES GMT (Slovak Republic: GMT + 1 hour) =========================ECONOMIC DATA========================= Real-time economic data releases................... Previous stories on Slovak data............ Overview of economic data and forecasts......... =========================EVENTS================================= BRATISLAVA: Finance Ministry will release new growth forecasts. Related news: =========================NEWS================================== TEACHERS STRIKE: Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico refused to give in to pay demands by striking teachers on Wednesday, taking a hard line against a protest that failed to spark widespread support. Story: Related news: BONDS: Slovakia will auction two bonds maturing in 2018 and 2027 on Feb. 15, debt agency Ardal said on Wednesday. Story: Related news: CEE POWER: Czech and Slovak day-ahead power prices rose on Wednesday on forecasts of a drop in wind and lower temperatures, while spot prices in southeastern Europe fell on warmer weather and increase renewable sources generation, traders said. Story: Related news: ====================PRESS DIGEST============================== TEACHERS' STRIKE: As much as 51.7 percent of Slovaks support the ongoing teachers' strike for higher salaries and more money for schools while 60.6 percent of people back the demands of nurses who have quit their jobs in hospitals as of February in protest over low pay, a Focus agency opinion poll said. SME, page 1 Reuters has not verified the media reports, nor does it vouch for their accuracy. For Instant Views of key economic data click on For summary of economic data and forecasts For diary of forthcoming Slovak events For calendar of east European economic indicators TOP NEWS -- Emerging markets TOP NEWS -- Convergence watch For real-time stock market index quotes click in brackets: Warsaw WIG20 Budapest BUX Prague PX Prague office: +420 224 190 474 E-mail: prague.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (Reporting by Bratislava Newsroom) Body of Italian student shows signs of torture -Egyptian officials By Amina Ismail and Ahmed Mohamed Hassan CAIRO, Feb 4 (Reuters) - The body of an Italian student who went missing in Cairo was found half naked by the roadside with cigarette burns and other signs of torture, a senior Egyptian prosecutor said on Thursday. In Rome, Italy's Foreign Ministry summoned the Egyptian ambassador to express concern over the death of Giulio Regeni, who disappeared on Jan. 25, the fifth anniversary of the uprising that ended Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule. The body of the 28-year-old Cambridge University doctoral student has been taken to a Cairo morgue, a morgue worker and Egyptian security officials said. The officials said an investigation had begun. "What we are certainly doing is urging the Egyptian government to allow Italian authorities a joint investigation, to return the boy's body to his family as soon as possible, to collaborate. We want the truth about what happened," Italy's foreign minister, Paolo Gentiloni, told RAI state TV. Italy's Prime Minister Matteo Renzi later repeated the request for Regeni's body be returned as soon as possible and a source from his office said an Italian police team had been sent to Cairo to join the investigation. Regeni had disappeared after leaving home in a smart district of Cairo to meet a friend, according to another friend. His body was found at the start of the main road between Cairo and Alexandria, security officials said. Last year, Islamic State militants kidnapped a Croatian man from the outskirts of Cairo and later beheaded him, but such incidents are rare and there was a heavy police presence in downtown Cairo when Regeni went missing. Rights groups say Egyptians are often detained by police on little evidence and beaten or coerced. Scores have disappeared since 2013. Egypt denies allegations of police brutality. Although the cause of death is still unclear, Regeni's case could hurt Egypt's efforts to project an image of stability and attract more tourism and foreign investment after years of political turmoil and Islamist militant violence. The Italian Foreign Ministry's director general, Michele Valensise, "urgently" summoned Egyptian Ambassador Amr Mostafa Kamal Helmy after Regeni's body was found on Wednesday. The ministry said it expected "maximum collaboration at all levels in light of the exceptional gravity of what happened". Italian Industry Minister Federica Guidi cut short a two-day visit to Egypt on Wednesday after Regeni's death was reported. A copy of Regeni's CV, provided by another friend, indicated he spoke four languages and had won several scholarships. His research focused on trade unions in Egypt after the 2011 uprising that ended Mubarak's 30-year rule. WikiLeaks' Assange 'arbitrarily detained' in embassy, U.N. panel to say By Johan Ahlander and Guy Faulconbridge STOCKHOLM/LONDON, Feb 4 (Reuters) - WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been subject to 'arbitrary detention' during the 3-1/2 years he has spent in the Ecuadorian embassy in London to avoid a rape investigation in Sweden, a U.N. panel will rule on Friday. Assange, who enraged the United States by publishing hundreds of thousands of secret U.S. diplomatic cables, appealed to the panel saying he was a political refugee whose rights had been infringed by being unable to take up asylum in Ecuador. The former computer hacker denies allegations of a 2010 rape in Sweden, saying the charge is a ploy that would eventually take him to the United States where a criminal investigation into the activities of WikiLeaks is still open. His leaks laid bare often highly critical U.S. appraisals of world leaders from Vladimir Putin to the Saudi royal family. Britain said it had never arbitrarily detained Assange and that the Australian had voluntarily avoided arrest by jumping bail to flee to the embassy. But the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention ruled in Assange's favour, Sweden said. "Should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," Assange, 44, said in a short statement posted on Twitter. He had said that if he lost the appeal then he would leave his cramped quarters at the embassy in the Knightsbridge area of London, though Britain said he would be arrested and extradited to Sweden as soon as he stepped outside. Assange made international headlines in early 2010 when WikiLeaks published classified U.S. military video showing a 2007 attack by Apache helicopters that killed a dozen people in Baghdad, including two Reuters news staff. Later that year, the group released over 90,000 secret documents detailing the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan, followed by almost 400,000 internal U.S. military reports detailing operations in Iraq. More than 250,000 classified cables from U.S. embassies followed, then almost three million dating back to 1973. POLITICAL REFUGEE? In his submission to the U.N. working group, which is due to publish its findings on Friday, Assange argued that his time in the embassy constituted arbitrary detention. "(The) working group has made the judgment that Assange has been arbitrarily detained in contravention of international commitments," a spokeswoman for the Swedish Foreign Ministry said, confirming an earlier report by the BBC. He said that he had been deprived of fundamental liberties including access to sunlight and fresh air, adequate medical facilities and legal and procedural security. While the ruling may draw attention to Assange's fate, it is unlikely to immediately affect the current investigations against him. "We have been consistently clear that Mr Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the U.K. but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorean embassy," a British government spokeswoman said. "An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European Arrest Warrant in place, so the UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Mr Assange to Sweden," she said. Swedish prosecutors said the U.N. decision had no formal impact on the rape investigation under Swedish law. A U.S. Grand Jury investigation into WikiLeaks is ongoing. White House spokesman Josh Earnest said it was unclear what the impact "a pronouncement from the United Nations would have on the situation". "But, you know, but he's facing serious charges inside of Sweden. Sweden has asked the British for extradition, and ultimately those two countries will have to resolve the situation," Earnest said. STAY OR GO? Britain, where Assange is wanted for jumping bail, has spent over 10 million pounds ($15 million) on keeping guards outside the embassy for over three years, "There seems to me a real risk that if he left the embassy that he may expose himself to arrest or questioning," said Philip Lynch, director of the International Service for Human Rights in Geneva, an NGO. "A decision that effective confinement in the Ecuadorian embassy constitutes arbitrary detention - it doesn't necessarily lead to the conclusion that the underlying arrest warrants and extradition requests are unlawful." Per Samuelson, one of Assange's Swedish lawyers, said if the U.N. panel judged Assange's time in the embassy to be custody, he should be released immediately. "It is a very important body that would be then saying that Sweden's actions are inconsistent with the European Convention on Human Rights. And it is international common practice to follow those decisions," Samuelson told Reuters. Pakistan shelves plan to privatise power firms, but IMF approves new loan By Mehreen Zahra-Malik ISLAMABAD, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Pakistan has shelved plans to privatise its power supply companies and will miss deadlines to sell other loss-making state firms, reneging on promises it made to the IMF in return for a $6.7 billion bailout three years ago. Two government officials with direct knowledge of the situation said International Monetary Fund (IMF) officials who met Pakistani officials in Dubai this week to review progress on reforms were angered by the backtracking. But the IMF still agreed on Thursday to release the next $497 million tranche of that loan, leaving a further $1.1 billion left to be released. Announcing that its team in Dubai had agreed that the tranche should be disbursed, subject to approval by the Fund's executive board, the IMF went on to lament Pakistan's slow progress in some areas. "While many structural benchmarks have been met, measures pertaining to the energy sector reform and restructuring of loss-making public enterprises are yet to be implemented," the IMF said in a statement. For all the IMF's frustration over the privatisation delays, the government has pushed ahead on other reforms, Pakistani officials said. "The energy sector reforms are on track and we have been working consistently," Finance Minister Ishaq Dar told a joint news conference with IMF mission chief Harald Finger when asked about the decision to shelve the privatisation of power supply companies. Economists say Pakistan can expect the money to keep coming with little more than a reprimand as Western allies, and neighbours Afghanistan and India, fear an economic meltdown would further destabilise the nuclear-armed Muslim nation of 190 million, whose fragile democracy has been crippled by years of power shortages, corruption and militant violence. Still, a rebuke would send a negative signal to international financial markets about Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's government. "It was embarrassing and brutal," a senior Pakistani official present at the meeting in Dubai, told Reuters, describing the IMF's response when Finger was told that the government had decided not to sell nine power distribution companies because of fear of labour unrest. "It was nothing less than a dressing down. If the IMF still doesn't penalize us, then all I can say is, 'We're very lucky'," the official said. The other source, a senior finance ministry official who was also in Dubai, confirmed the account. The ministry did not respond to calls seeking comment. A spokesman for the IMF said earlier the Fund would not comment during a mission review. During the news conference, Finger did not address alleged tensions at the Dubai meeting, though he did acknowledge "complexities" in the process. The IMF loan helped Pakistan stave off a default in 2013, when dwindling foreign exchange reserves covered less than six weeks of imports. Reserves have since swelled to $20.5 billion in January from $11 billion in mid-2013. UNION UNREST The privatisation of 68 state-owned companies, which include loss-making enterprises like Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) and Pakistan Steel Mills, is a crucial part of the IMF deal and was meant to bring the country's finances back on track. Such enterprises drain about $5 billion every year from state coffers, around an eighth of the government's fiscal revenues last year of about four trillion rupees ($38.2 billion). The government has made some progress, including raising more than $1 billion by selling its entire stake in Habib Bank Ltd, but has struggled to find buyers for most of the companies and faced stiff opposition from labour unions. Protesters clashed with security officials on Tuesday over plans to privatise the national airline, leaving two people dead. Most PIA flights were grounded on Wednesday. The IMF's Finger said the Fund would not give a deadline for the privatisation of PIA, an apparent softening of its earlier insistence on a sell-off by a specific date. But both Pakistani officials said the IMF had made clear its frustration earlier in the week. "The IMF is asking the obvious question: 'Why didn't you start negotiations [with unions] earlier? Why wasn't this handled better at the political level?'," the senior government official said. Officials told the IMF that taking on the power companies' 400,000 unionised employees was fraught with risk, and that instead the government would bring in independent boards of directors to improve management. Pakistan will also miss a deadline to sell Pakistan Steel Mills by March, the Pakistani officials said. Problems dealing with the IMF could nudge the government toward other sources of help, like ally China, which plans to invest $46 billion in a China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), and is also leading a new Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. Turkey's Erdogan says Syria talks pointless while Russian attacks continue By Tulay Karadeniz ANKARA, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said Syrian peace talks in Geneva, which were suspended on Wednesday, were pointless while President Bashar al-Assad's forces and Russia continued their attacks in the country. U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura halted his efforts to conduct the talks after the Syrian army, backed by Russian air strikes, advanced against rebel forces north of Aleppo, choking opposition supply lines from Turkey to the city. "Russia continues to kill people in Syria. Could there be such a peace gathering? Could there be such peace talks?" Erdogan said in a speech in Peru, in comments published on the presidency website. "In an environment where children are still being killed, such attempts do not have any function apart from making things easier for the tyrant," he said. De Mistura announced a three-week pause in the Geneva talks, the first attempt in two years to negotiate an end to Syria's war. Another senior U.N. official said the Russian escalation was the main reason. Turkey is a main backer of the Syrian opposition and has long argued that there can be no peace in Syria without Assad's removal. Erdogan cast doubt on whether the talks would make meaningful progress even if they resumed. "They always convene, get together, eat, drink and then leave. Now they are giving a date for end-February. Let's watch. You will see that once it is Feb. 28 they will postpone again," he said at a university in Lima, the Peruvian capital. EXACERBATING REFUGEE CRISIS Russian air strikes have killed nearly 1,400 civilians since Moscow started its aerial campaign in support of Assad nearly four months ago, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitoring group said on Saturday. Moscow says there will be no respite in its air campaign, which it says targets "terrorists". Turkey has warned that Russia's actions risk exacerbating a refugee crisis, just as Ankara is trying to stem the flow of migrants to Europe under an agreement with the European Union. EU countries on Wednesday approved 3 billion euro ($3.35 billion) in funding to help Turkey improve living conditions for refugees in return for its help ensuring fewer leave for Europe. Also on offer to Ankara, which wants to revive relations with its European neighbours after years of coolness, is a "re-energised" negotiating process on Turkish membership of the EU. But Erdogan said not enough progress had been made. "They agreed that Turkey is a key country in solving the migrant crisis ... Our accession process has accelerated. But we still haven't seen the concrete steps that we have been expecting," he said, without elaborating. Italy summons Egyptian ambassador over suspicious Cairo death ROME, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Italy's Foreign Ministry on Thursday summoned the Egyptian ambassador to Rome to express concern about the suspicious death of an Italian man in Cairo and to urge a joint investigation, according to a statement. The ministry's director general, Michele Valensise, "urgently" summoned Egyptian Ambassador Amr Mostafa Kamal Helmy after the body of 28-year-old Giulio Regeni, a graduate student at Britain's Cambridge University, was found on Wednesday. He had disappeared on Jan. 25. His body showed signs of torture, officials said on Thursday. The ministry said it expected "maximum collaboration at all levels in light of the exceptional gravity of what happened". Afghanistan's Abdullah expects talks with Taliban in months By Paritosh Bansal and Sanjeev Miglani NEW DELHI, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Afghanistan expects to restart peace talks with the Taliban within six months, chief executive Abdullah Abdullah said on Thursday, pinning hopes on factions within the Islamist militant group he said might be ready to give up violence. Talks between Kabul and the Afghan Taliban have been on hold since efforts collapsed last year after it became known that Mullah Mohammad Omar, the movement's founder and leader, had been dead for two years, throwing the group into disarray. Abdullah said that Omar's death had left the Taliban deeply divided, making peace negotiations complicated, but there was reason to hope that talks to end 15 years of bloodshed in the South Asian country could resume. "There might be groups among the Taliban who might be willing to talk and give up violence," Abdullah told Reuters in an interview in New Delhi, where he held talks with Indian leaders on bilateral issues. "It should be sooner than six months," Abdullah said, when asked when he expected talks with the Taliban to begin. He said there had been some contact between Taliban factions willing to give up violence and Afghan security agencies, but he declined to give further details. His comments came ahead of a meeting between four powers - the United States, China, Pakistan and Afghanistan - in Islamabad on Feb. 6 to lay the ground for talks that Afghan President Ashraf Ghani's government wants to conduct with the insurgent group. China had a role to play in the Afghan peace process because of the challenge it faced in its Xinjiang province from the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, which was also fighting alongside the Taliban in Afghanistan, Abdullah said. Equally important were Beijing's close ties with Pakistan, Abdullah added, because that could help coax the Taliban to the negotiating table. The Afghan Taliban leadership, now headed by Mullah Akhtar Mansour, has long sheltered in Pakistan from where they have waged a deadly insurgency. EXTENDED FOREIGN TROOP PRESENCE China, Pakistan and the United States had agreed to use their influence to facilitate talks with the Taliban, Abdullah said. The countries are discussing issues including where to hold talks with Taliban factions who decide to come to the table and what to do about those who stay away, he added. Any talks with the Taliban will be led by the Afghans, he said. "How it moves forward and what it takes, nobody can judge at this stage," Abdullah said. Despite the ongoing effort to restart negotiations, the Taliban have ramped up their campaign of violence across Afghanistan from the start of the year, with suicide attacks and territorial gains in southern Helmand province. Last month they reiterated their demand for the release of political prisoners as a condition to rejoin talks. They have also asked to be removed from a U.N. blacklist under which senior leaders cannot travel freely and their assets are frozen. Abdullah said he expected U.S. forces to remain in Afghanistan beyond 2016 in some form and that an extended presence was necessary to support the government. A Pentagon report released in December said the security situation in Afghanistan deteriorated in the second half of 2015, with Taliban militants staging more attacks and inflicting far more casualties on Afghan forces. The outlook prompted U.S. President Barack Obama to announce in October that he would maintain a force of 9,800 troops in Afghanistan through most of 2016, instead of drawing down to an embassy-based presence by 2017. "The reality is that there is this number of troops and they are doing an effective job in support of our institutions, in equipping, in assisting, in training," Abdullah said. Congo, UN troops fire in air to stop clash between machete-armed villagers By Aaron Ross KINSHASA, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Villagers from two major ethnic groups in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo clashed with machetes and batons before dispersing when army troops and U.N. peacekeepers intervened and fired into the air, a U.N. spokesman said. The latest spasm of violence between Hutu and Nande villagers followed the killing of a Hutu civilian three km (two miles) away by presumed Mai Mai militiamen, U.N. mission military spokesman Amouzoun Codjo Martin told Reuters. At least six civilians have been killed near the town of Luofo in North Kivu province's Lubero territory, some 100 km (65 miles) from the Uganda border, in the past two days as tensions between the area's Hutu and Nande communities have risen. Martin did not confirm the ethnicity of the attackers in Wednesday's villager clash. However, local activists identified them as Nande. Local Mai Mai groups are dominated by Nande. Ethnic rivalries, foreign invasions and competition for land and rich mineral deposits among eastern Congo's dozens of rebel groups have stoked persistent conflict over the last two decades, costing millions of lives. The United Nations warned last month that a surge in kidnappings and general insecurity in North Kivu in recent months is preventing aid workers from delivering essential humanitarian assistance to the impoverished population. The Nande, who dominate commerce in North Kivu, are historic rivals of the local Hutu. Intercommunal friction has risen since Congo's army launched a military offensive last year against the FDLR, a Rwandan Hutu militia operating in eastern Congo. Wednesday's clashes followed the killing of at least five Hutu civilians in a neighbouring village on Tuesday by presumed Mai Mai fighters. Local activists said the murders appeared to be retaliation for a nighttime assault last month, blamed by authorities on the FDLR, that killed at least 14 Nande in the nearby town of Miriki. Poland relaunches inquiry into 2010 presidential jet crash in Russia By Wiktor Szary WARSAW, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Poland's new government relaunched an inquiry on Thursday into the death of President Lech Kaczynski in a plane crash in Russia in 2010, a move likely to strain Warsaw's relations with its former overlord, already fragile over the Ukraine crisis. An inquiry by the previous government returned a verdict of pilot error but the winner of Poland's October election, the Law and Justice (PiS) party led by Kaczynski's twin brother Jaroslaw, says an onboard explosion could have caused the crash. Speaking at a ceremony to announce the decision, Defence Minister Antoni Macierewicz also hinted at an explosion as a possible cause, saying the plane had "disintegrated" metres above the ground before crashing. "There is no doubt that these circumstances are not only a sufficient reason, but one that makes it compulsory to reexamine this tragedy," Macierewicz said. Though the PiS has never accused Russia of orchestrating the president's death it has said the Kremlin benefited from the crash, which also killed the central bank chief, top army brass and several lawmakers, triggering a period of political turmoil. PiS officials have also accused Moscow of prolonging its own investigation and withholding evidence, including the black box flight recorders and wreckage from the plane. Russia has kept the wreckage for nearly six years and says it cannot returned until its own criminal probe is concluded. Commenting on Poland's decision to relaunch the probe, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said: "I hope that this is not linked to politics. This hope is a faint one, but it still exists." Separately, the Polish prosecutors said on Thursday Russia had refused to help them bring charges against two Russian air traffic controllers involved in guiding the presidential aircraft. Poland has been one of the most outspoken critics of Russian policy towards a pro-Russian separatist rebellion in eastern Ukraine, joining Western allies in accusing Moscow of supplying help to the insurrection - something the Kremlin denies. REOPENING WOUNDS The crash took place near Smolensk, western Russia, close to the place where Stalinist secret police forces shot some of the 22,000 Polish officers and intellectuals they executed in 1940. For decades, Moscow blamed Nazi Germany for the mass executions. The massacre is an enduring symbol for Poland of its suffering at Soviet hands, and president Lech Kaczynski had been flying in to commemorate it. While the crash initially united Poles in grief, it has since given rise to bitter domestic political divisions. The late president's twin brother has repeatedly accused then prime minister Donald Tusk, now head of the European Council, of being indirectly responsible for the crash through negligence. Syrian army sees Aleppo encircled soon; rebels hope for more weapons By Tom Perry, Lisa Barrington and Tulay Karadeniz BEIRUT/ANKARA, Feb 4 (Reuters) - A Syrian army source said the city of Aleppo would soon be encircled by government forces as rebels pounded by Russian air strikes expressed hope that the failure of Geneva peace talks would encourage their foreign backers to send better weapons. Turkey, a major sponsor of the insurgency against President Bashar al-Assad, said there was no point to peace talks while Russia carried out attacks in Syria. Moscow confirmed a Russian military trainer was killed in Syria this week, but denied that Russian servicemen were fighting on the ground. The United Nations on Wednesday suspended the first peace talks in two years, halting an effort that seemed doomed from the start as the war raged unabated on the ground and government forces severed a major rebel supply route into strategically-important Aleppo, Syria's biggest city before the war began. Turkey said on Thursday that tens of thousands of refugees from Aleppo were moving towards the border due to air strikes. Four months of Russian air strikes have tipped the momentum Assad's way after rebel advances earlier in 2015 that posed a growing threat to his control of crucial areas of western Syria. With the help of Russian air power and allies including Lebanon's Hezbollah and Iranian fighters on the ground, the overstretched Syrian army is regaining ground on key fronts in the west, where Syria's most important cities are located. But vast swathes of the country are in the hands of armed rebels, including a mosaic of groups in the west, Islamic State in the east, and Kurdish militia in the north. The refugee crisis created by the five-year-long war moved back into focus as donors convened in London on Thursday, with U.N. agencies seeking billions in aid to help the victims of a conflict that has forced millions from their homes. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the first steps in peace talks were undermined by increased aerial bombing. U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura announced a three-week pause. "I think the special envoy decided to suspend the talks because the organisation did not want to be associated with the Russian escalation in Syria, which risks undermining the talks completely," a U.N. official told Reuters. Washington and Moscow's support for opposite sides in the five-year-old war, which has drawn in regional states, created millions of refugees and enabled the rise of Islamic State, means a local conflict has become a fraught global stand-off. Moscow accuses Washington, which is backing opponents of Assad, of supporting terrorists, while the U.S. State Department said the air strikes around Aleppo focused mainly on Assad's foes rather than the Islamic State militants Russia says it is trying to defeat. ALEPPO STRATEGIC PRIZE Aleppo, 50 km (30 miles) south of the Turkish border, is divided into areas of government and opposition control. Since the start of Russia's bombing campaign, the army and its allies have launched major offensives to the south of the city against rebels, and to the east against Islamic State. The army source said operations to fully encircle Aleppo from the west would happen soon. The army and its allies on Wednesday broke through rebel lines to the northwest of the city, reaching two Shi'ite towns loyal to the government for the first time in 3-1/2 years. If the government regains control of Aleppo, it would be a big blow to insurgents' hopes of toppling Assad after a war that has divided Syria between western areas mostly still governed from Damascus and much of the rest of the country held by armed groups. Residents thanked Assad, Iran and Hezbollah in celebratory scenes from the towns of Nubul and al-Zahraa broadcast by Hezbollah's al-Manar TV. The powerful Kurdish YPG militia, which controls wide areas of northern Syria, meanwhile added to the pressure on insurgents, capturing two villages near Nubul and al-Zahraa, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported. The Syrian Kurds have consistently denied opposition claims that they cooperate with Damascus. Rebel commanders said they hoped the peace talks' collapse would convince their foreign backers, states including Turkey and Saudi Arabia, that it was time to send them more powerful and advanced weapons, including anti-aircraft missiles. Assad's foreign opponents have been funnelling weapons to vetted rebel groups via both Turkey and Jordan. One rebel leader said he expected "something new God willing" after the failure of the Geneva talks. Another rebel commander said: "They are promising to continue the support. In what form, I don't yet know ... How it will crystallise, nobody knows ... We need to wait." Both spoke on condition of anonymity citing the sensitivity of the issue. MILITARY OPS DERAILED TALKS, U.N. SAYS While vetted "Free Syrian Army" rebels have received weapons including U.S.-made guided anti-tank missiles, their calls for anti-aircraft missiles have gone unanswered mostly because of fears they could end up in the hands of powerful jihadist groups such as the Nusra Front that are also fighting Assad. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said talks were pointless while Assad's forces and Russia pressed their attacks, while Saudi Arabia, another major sponsor of the rebels, said the Syrian government had refused to cooperate with the U.N. envoy. "Russia continues to kill people in Syria. Could there be such a peace gathering? Could there be such peace talks?" Erdogan said in a speech in Peru, in comments published on the presidency website. "In an environment where children are still being killed, such attempts do not have any function apart from making things easier for the tyrant," he said. Ban said: "It is deeply disturbing that the initial steps of the talks have been undermined by the continuous lack of sufficient humanitarian access, and by a sudden increase of aerial bombing and military activities within Syria." He said: "The coming days should be used to get back to the table, not to secure more gains on the battlefield." U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov had agreed on the need to discuss how to implement a ceasefire in Syria during a call on Thursday. A Russian defence ministry spokesman was cited as saying the Russian military trainer was killed in the shelling of a Syrian army training centre in Homs province. The defence ministry said the mortar attack took place on Feb. 1. "They (Russian military servicemen) are not taking part in ground operations," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. "We are talking about advisers. This is linked to teaching Syrian colleagues to operate equipment which is being delivered to Syria under existing contracts." Russia says it suspects Turkey of preparing incursion in Syria MOSCOW, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Russia has serious grounds to suspect Turkey of preparing for a military incursion in Syria, where Russian jets are bombing rebel and jihadi fighters, Defence Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said on Thursday. "The Russian Defence Ministry registers a growing number of signs of hidden preparation of the Turkish armed forces for active actions on the territory of Syria," he said in a statement. The ministry also hit out at Turkey's refusal to allow Russia to make an observation in early February over Turkish areas adjacent to Syria, saying "no specific explanation" was given by Ankara. "The Russian Defence Ministry regards these actions of the Turkish party as a dangerous precedent and an attempt to hide the illegal military activity near the Syrian border," it said. Turkey's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that agreement on the observation flight over Turkey requested by Russia under the Treaty on Open Skies could not be reached on the mission plan, so it did not occur. In November Turkish jets shot down a Russian plane flying in Syria, a move described by Russian President Vladimir Putin as a "dastardly stab in the back". Russian jets have been striking rebel and jihadi fighters for four months in Syria, including Islamic State militants as well as fighters backed by Turkey and Gulf Arab states, angering the Turkish government. Russia and Turkey trade accusations over Syria By Tom Perry, Jack Stubbs and Estelle Shirbon BEIRUT/MOSCOW/LONDON, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Russia said on Thursday it suspected Turkey was preparing a military incursion into Syria, as a Syrian army source said Aleppo would soon be encircled by government forces with Russian air support. Turkey in turn accused Moscow of trying to divert attention from its own "crimes" in Syria, and said Aleppo was threatened with a "siege of starvation". It said Turkey had the right to take any measures to protect its security. In another sign of the spreading international ramifications of the five-year-old Syrian war, Saudi Arabia said it was ready to participate in ground operations against Islamic State in Syria if the U.S.-led alliance decided to launch them. The United Nations on Wednesday suspended the first peace talks in two years, halting an effort that seemed doomed from the start as the war raged unabated. Washington said on Thursday however it was hopeful they would resume by the end of the month, and Russia said it expected that no later than Feb. 25. Donors convened in London to tackle the refugee crisis created by the conflict. British Prime Minister David Cameron said they raised $11 billion for Syrian humanitarian needs over the next four years. Turkey said at the conference up to 70,000 refugees from Aleppo were moving towards the border to escape air strikes. BORDER MARCH Footage online showed hundreds of people, mostly women, children and the elderly, marching towards Turkey's Onucpinar border gate, carrying carpets, blankets and food on their backs. Four months of Russian air strikes have tipped the momentum of the war Assad's way. With Moscow's help and allies including Lebanon's Hezbollah and Iranian fighters, the Syrian army is regaining areas on key fronts in the west. Russia's defence ministry said it had registered "a growing number of signs of hidden preparation of the Turkish Armed Forces for active actions on the territory of Syria". Any Turkish incursion would risk direct confrontation between Russia and a NATO member. "The Russians are trying to hide their crimes in Syria," said a senior official in Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu's office. "They are simply diverting attention from their attacks on civilians as a country already invading Syria. Turkey has all the rights to take any measures to protect its own security." In London, Davutoglu said the "humanitarian logistic corridor" between Turkey and Aleppo was "under the invasion of these foreign fighters and regime forces (with) the support of Russian warplanes". "What they want to do in Aleppo today is exactly what they did in Madaya before, a siege of starvation," he added. Davutoglu pledged that whatever the cost Turkey's door would remain open to all Syrians. It has already taken in more than 2.5 million. Relations between Russia and Turkey have deteriorated badly since Turkey shot down a Russian warplane near the Syrian border in November. ALEPPO, STRATEGIC PRIZE Aleppo, just 50 km (30 miles) south of the Turkish border, is a major strategic prize in the war and is currently divided into areas of government and opposition control. Many of the rebels fighting in and around the city have close ties to Turkey. This week, three days of intensive Russian bombing helped the army and allied fighters to sever a major supply line to the northwest of the city, in the process reaching two Shi'ite towns loyal to the government for the first time in 3-1/2 years. The army source said operations to fully encircle Aleppo from the west would be launched soon. A senior, non-Syrian security source close to Damascus said Iranian fighters had played a crucial role. "Qassem Soleimani is there in the same area," said the source, referring to the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' elite Quds force responsible for overseas operations. Residents thanked Assad, Iran and Hezbollah in celebratory scenes from the Shi'ite towns of Nubul and al-Zahraa broadcast by Hezbollah's al-Manar TV. The powerful Kurdish YPG militia, which controls wide areas of northern Syria, meanwhile added to the pressure on insurgents, capturing two villages near Nubul and al-Zahraa, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported. The Syrian Kurds have consistently denied opposition claims that they cooperate with Damascus. All diplomatic efforts towards ending the conflict have failed. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the latest steps in peace talks were undermined by increased aerial bombing. U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura announced a three-week pause. "I think the special envoy decided to suspend the talks because the organisation did not want to be associated with the Russian escalation in Syria, which risks undermining the talks completely," a U.N. official told Reuters. Mohammad Javad Zarif, foreign minister of Iran, called in London for the talks to resume and for an immediate ceasefire. But he said later that should not mean stopping military operations against "recognised terrorist organisations", naming the Nusra Front and Islamic State. REBELS HOPE FOR MORE WEAPONS U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov had agreed on the need to discuss how to implement a ceasefire in Syria during a call on Thursday. Rebel commanders said they hoped the peace talks' collapse would convince their foreign backers, including Saudi Arabia, that it was time to send them more powerful and advanced weapons, including anti-aircraft missiles. Assad's foreign opponents have been funnelling weapons to vetted rebel groups via both Turkey and Jordan. One rebel leader said he expected "something new, God willing" after the failure of the Geneva talks. Another rebel commander said: "They are promising to continue the support. In what form, I don't yet know ... How it will crystallise, nobody knows ... We need to wait." Both spoke on condition of anonymity. While vetted "Free Syrian Army" rebels have received weapons including U.S.-made guided anti-tank missiles, their calls for anti-aircraft missiles have gone unanswered mostly because of fears they could end up in the hands of powerful jihadist groups such as the Nusra Front, which are also fighting Assad. A Russian defence ministry spokesman said a Russian military trainer was killed in a mortar attack on Feb. 1. "They (Russian military servicemen) are not taking part in ground operations," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. "We are talking about advisers. This is linked to teaching Syrian colleagues to operate equipment which is being delivered to Syria under existing contracts." A Saudi general said the kingdom was "ready to participate in any ground operations that the (U.S.-led) coalition (against Islamic State) may agree to carry out in Syria". Brigadier General Ahmed Asseri, who is also the spokesman for the Saudi-led Arab coalition fighting Iranian-backed forces in Yemen, was speaking to Saudi-owned al-Arabiya TV. Iran's Zarif says any Syria ceasefire should exclude operations against Nusra, IS LONDON, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Any ceasefire in Syria should not include stopping military operations to combat terrorist groups, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Thursday. "Ceasefire, based on everybody's interpretation, does not include giving a breathing space to recognised terrorist organisations," he told an event in British parliament. "Having a ceasefire is different from letting up the fight against terrorism." He named the Nusra Front and Islamic State as such organisations. U.N. mission to Central Africa reports new alleged sexual abuse cases DAKAR, Feb 4 (Reuters) - The United Nations peacekeeping mission for Central African Republic said in a statement on Thursday it has identified seven possible new victims of sexual abuse and exploitation in the country by its peacekeepers, including at least five minors. Opinion poll suggests new obstacles towards government pact in Spain By Julien Toyer and Blanca Rodriguez MADRID, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Anti-austerity party Podemos would come second if a new national election was held today, overtaking the Socialists, who are currently leading talks to form a government, a survey showed on Thursday. The result in Podemos' favour is likely to weigh significantly on negotiations to build a left-wing coalition after an inconclusive December election created a political stalemate. The talks, which started on Wednesday, are already hampered by Podemos and the Socialists disagreeing on a series of fundamental questions, including a possible referendum on independence in Catalonia. Now Podemos may feel it has a stronger hand in the discussions and could be less prepared to strike difficult compromises. According to the survey by the Sociological Research Centre (CIS), the People's Party of acting Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy would come first with 28.8 percent of the vote, slightly up from 28.72 percent on Dec. 20 but still short of a parliamentary majority. The Socialists would drop from the second to third place, garnering only 20.5 percent of the votes compared to their previous 22.02 percent, while anti-austerity Podemos would rise to 21.9 percent from 20.65 percent. Newcomer liberal party Ciudadanos would be in fourth place with 13.3 percent compared to 13.93 percent in December. Socialist chief Pedro Sanchez said the CIS poll, which was based on 2,496 interviews and conducted between Jan. 2 and Jan. 11, before Rajoy declined to form a government and passed the baton to Sanchez, was outdated. Speaking to the journalists after a meeting with Ciudadanos leader Albert Rivera, Sanchez said there was "common ground" with the liberal party. However, Ciudadanos said it would not back a Socialist-led coalition unless the PP was part of it. With Sanchez and Rajoy ruling out again such a possibility on Thursday, this perspective however looks uncertain. Sanchez, who said he would need at least one month before he could seek the confidence of the parliament, is due to meet Podemos leader Pablo Iglesias on Friday. Given parliament's unprecedented fragmentation, the support of Podemos alone for a coalition would not be enough. The Socialists would need the backing of at least three parties and the abstention of several others to achieve a majority. Spanish king and queen postpone state visit to Britain MADRID, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Spain's King Felipe and Queen Letizia on Thursday postponed a March state visit to Britain because of the longer-than-expected process to form a Spanish government following an inconclusive general election in December. The Spanish royal household announced on December 3 the king and queen would pay a three-day state visit to Britain from March 8 to March 10, invited by Queen Elizabeth. However, the king has been playing a central role in political parties' negotiations to form a government six weeks after an indecisive general election and it looks like this process could continue for at least another month. Iraqi Kurdistan cuts public salaries to tackle economic meltdown ERBIL, Iraq, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Government workers in Iraq's Kurdistan are to have their salaries cut by up to 75 percent as the region grapples with an economic crisis brought to a head by plummeting oil prices Under the new measures, state employees will receive only a portion of their salaries, cutting the monthly burden of 875 billion Iraqi dinars ($800 million) on the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG). The unpaid portion will be treated as a loan to be repaid by the government when its fiscal health improves, in addition to the past five months of salaries that have not been distributed, the KRG said in a statement. KRG employees at the top end of the payroll will have their wages cut by as much as much as 75 percent, whereas those with a base salary of between 100,000-200,000 Iraqi dinars will be shaved by 15 percent. The new measures do not include Interior Ministry employees or Kurdish peshmerga fighters on the frontline with Islamic State. Kurdish forces have driven Islamic State militants back in the north with the help of U.S. air strikes. After a decade-long economic boom, the KRG began to suffer in 2014 when the Baghdad government slashed its share of the budget in response to the Kurds' moves to export oil independently through their own pipeline to Turkey. The war against Islamic State and an influx of more than 1 million people displaced by violence in the rest of the country, on top of the global slump in oil prices has compounded the problem, which is also the result of years of mismanagement and corruption. Congolese army attacked U.N. troops meeting Islamist rebels: U.N. By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Congolese troops killed two United Nations peacekeepers after civilians accused the Tanzanian U.N. troops of providing supplies to Islamist Ugandan rebels in east Congo, according to a confidential U.N. Security Council report. U.N. experts who monitor sanctions on Democratic Republic of Congo said the U.N. peacekeeping force MONUSCO initially blamed the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF), Ugandan rebels operating in Congo since the 1990s, for a May 5 ambush that killed two peacekeepers and several civilians and injured 26 U.N. troops. But the group of experts said it was not an ambush and that Congolese troops (FARDC) fired at peacekeepers near the Mayi Moya town in Beni after "they had been told by two civilians that the Tanzanians were providing supplies to the ADF." The experts wrote in a report, seen by Reuters this week, that the Tanzanian troops had met the ADF but the group is "not in a position to explain why." Tanzania's defense minister, Hussein Mwinyi, told Reuters he had not seen the U.N. report and therefore could not immediately comment. MONUSCO spokesman Felix Basse said he was unaware of the U.N. experts' report and declined immediate comment, while the FARDC spokesman General Leon Kasonga said he did not have any information about the incident. More than a decade after the formal end to regional conflicts in eastern Congo that killed millions of people, most from hunger and disease, dozens of armed groups are still exploiting its natural resources and attacking local people. The U.N. experts report casts doubt on a near blanket attribution of recent attacks near Beni on the ADF. The Congolese government and United Nations have blamed the ADF for murdering hundreds of civilians near Beni since 2014. They estimate the group's size to be a few hundred fighters. Independent analysts have pointed to mounting evidence that other armed groups are responsible for at least some of the attacks. Local residents have accused the Congolese army and peacekeeping units of complicity with the ADF, charges both forces deny. The U.N. experts are also investigating a Nov. 29 attack, which they believe was carried out by the ADF in collaboration with another armed group, on the town of Eringeti, during which one Malawian peacekeeper and several civilians were killed. Russia and Turkey trade accusations over Syria By Tom Perry, Jack Stubbs and Estelle Shirbon BEIRUT/MOSCOW/LONDON, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Russia said on Thursday it suspected Turkey was preparing a military incursion into Syria, as a Syrian army source said Aleppo would soon be encircled by government forces with Russian air support. Turkey in turn accused Moscow of trying to divert attention from its own "crimes" in Syria, and said Aleppo was threatened with a "siege of starvation". It said Turkey had the right to take any measures to protect its security. In another sign of the spreading international ramifications of the five-year-old Syrian war, Saudi Arabia said it was ready to participate in ground operations against Islamic State in Syria if the U.S.-led alliance decided to launch them. The United States welcomed the Saudi offer, which together with any Turkish incursion would further embroil regional powers in a conflict that pitches Sunni-backed fighters against Damascus and forces backed by Moscow and Shi'ite Iran. The United Nations on Wednesday suspended the first peace talks in two years, halting an effort that seemed doomed from the start as the war raged unabated. Washington said on Thursday however it was hopeful they would resume by the end of the month, and Russia said it expected that no later than Feb. 25. Donors convened in London to tackle the refugee crisis created by the conflict. British Prime Minister David Cameron said they raised $11 billion for Syrian humanitarian needs over the next four years. Turkey said at the conference up to 70,000 refugees from Aleppo were moving toward the border to escape air strikes. BORDER MARCH Footage online showed hundreds of people, mostly women, children and the elderly, marching towards Turkey's Onucpinar border gate, carrying carpets, blankets and food on their backs. Four months of Russian air strikes have tipped the momentum of the war Assad's way. With Moscow's help and allies including Lebanon's Hezbollah and Iranian fighters, the Syrian army is regaining areas on key fronts in the west. Russia's defence ministry said it had registered "a growing number of signs of hidden preparation of the Turkish Armed Forces for active actions on the territory of Syria". Any Turkish incursion would risk direct confrontation between Russia and a NATO member. "The Russians are trying to hide their crimes in Syria," said a senior official in Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu's office. "They are simply diverting attention from their attacks on civilians as a country already invading Syria. Turkey has all the rights to take any measures to protect its own security." In London, Davutoglu said the "humanitarian logistic corridor" between Turkey and Aleppo was "under the invasion of these foreign fighters and regime forces (with) the support of Russian warplanes". "What they want to do in Aleppo today is exactly what they did in Madaya before, a siege of starvation," he added. Davutoglu pledged that whatever the cost Turkey's door would remain open to all Syrians. It has already taken in more than 2.5 million. Relations between Russia and Turkey have deteriorated badly since Turkey shot down a Russian warplane near the Syrian border in November. State Department spokesman John Kirby declined to comment on Turkish military operations on the Syrian border, saying only: "They are working to secure that stretch of border, but I'm not going to comment on specific military activities of another nation inside their borders." ALEPPO, STRATEGIC PRIZE Aleppo, just 50 km (30 miles) south of the Turkish border, is a major strategic prize in the war and is currently divided into areas of government and opposition control. Many of the rebels fighting in and around the city have close ties to Turkey. This week, three days of intensive Russian bombing helped the army and allied fighters to sever a major supply line to the northwest of the city, in the process reaching two Shi'ite towns loyal to the government for the first time in 3-1/2 years. The army source said operations to fully encircle Aleppo from the west would be launched soon. A senior, non-Syrian security source close to Damascus said Iranian fighters had played a crucial role. "Qassem Soleimani is there in the same area," said the source, referring to the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' elite Quds force responsible for overseas operations. Residents thanked Assad, Iran and Hezbollah in celebratory scenes from the Shi'ite towns of Nubul and al-Zahraa broadcast by Hezbollah's al-Manar TV. The powerful Kurdish YPG militia, which controls wide areas of northern Syria, meanwhile added to the pressure on insurgents, capturing two villages near Nubul and al-Zahraa, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported. The Syrian Kurds have consistently denied opposition claims that they cooperate with Damascus. In the south, the Syrian army and its allies recaptured a town near the city of Deraa, building on gains made last week and also backed by instensive aerial bombardment. The seizure of Ataman would allow the government to reassert control over most parts of Deraa, near the Jordanian border. All diplomatic efforts towards ending the conflict have failed. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said the latest steps in peace talks were undermined by increased aerial bombing. U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura announced a three-week pause. "I think the special envoy decided to suspend the talks because the organisation did not want to be associated with the Russian escalation in Syria, which risks undermining the talks completely," a U.N. official told Reuters. Mohammad Javad Zarif, foreign minister of Iran, called in London for the talks to resume and for an immediate ceasefire. But he said later that should not mean stopping military operations against "recognised terrorist organisations", naming the Nusra Front and Islamic State. REBELS HOPE FOR MORE WEAPONS U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov had agreed on the need to discuss how to implement a ceasefire in Syria during a call on Thursday. The State Department said later Kerry would travel to Munich next week to seek an agreement on a ceasefire after assurances by Lavrov that Moscow was committed to a political solution in Syria. The State Department's Kirby, however, said that Russia's pledges to end the Syria conflict through political dialogue did not match its military actions on the battlefield, where it continued to bomb opposition positions. "We're certainly seeing, at least in the very recent past, discordant messages" by Russia, Kirby added. Rebel commanders said they hoped the peace talks' collapse would convince their foreign backers, including Saudi Arabia, that it was time to send them more powerful and advanced weapons, including anti-aircraft missiles. Assad's foreign opponents have been funnelling weapons to vetted rebel groups via both Turkey and Jordan. One rebel leader said he expected "something new, God willing" after the failure of the Geneva talks. Another rebel commander said: "They are promising to continue the support. In what form, I don't yet know ... How it will crystallise, nobody knows ... We need to wait." Both spoke on condition of anonymity. While vetted "Free Syrian Army" rebels have received weapons including U.S.-made guided anti-tank missiles, their calls for anti-aircraft missiles have gone unanswered mostly because of fears they could end up in the hands of powerful jihadist groups such as the Nusra Front, which are also fighting Assad. A Russian defence ministry spokesman said a Russian military trainer was killed in a mortar attack on Feb. 1. "They (Russian military servicemen) are not taking part in ground operations," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. "We are talking about advisers. This is linked to teaching Syrian colleagues to operate equipment which is being delivered to Syria under existing contracts." A Saudi general said the kingdom was "ready to participate in any ground operations that the (U.S.-led) coalition (against Islamic State) may agree to carry out in Syria". Brigadier General Ahmed Asseri, who is also the spokesman for the Saudi-led Arab coalition fighting Iranian-backed forces in Yemen, was speaking to Saudi-owned al-Arabiya TV. U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter welcomed the Saudi offer. On February 3, 2016, Lahore High Court ruled that the trial of Bhagat Singh in the Saunders murder case, in which he, along with Sukhdev and Rajguru, was hanged on March 23, 1931, needs to be heard by a larger bench. The case came up for hearing before a two-judge bench. The court thought that since the 1930 decision of Tribunal was delivered by a three-judge panel - all at the high court-level - the review of the judgement should be made by a larger bench. The decision followed a petition filed by Imtiaz Rashid Quereshi, founding chairman, Bhagat Singh Memorial Foundation, Temple road, Lahore, through senior advocate Farooq Hasan. The petition was heard by single judge Shujat Ali Khan in May 2013, who then sent it to chief justice of Lahore High Court for constituting a larger bench. As the case involves significant points of law, the two-bench judge that heard this petition on February 3, further referred it to the chief justice for constituting a still larger bench. In 1996, senior Supreme Court advocate and well-known writer AG Noorani had underlined in his book The Trial of Bhagat Singh the many chinks in the judgement related to this case, and had even termed it a judicial murder. Taking clues from such publications in India, the petitioner has now requested to see the records in Punjab Archives, Lahore, which holds 135 files related to this trial as "secret". These files are no less important than the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose files, which have seen much politics recently. But no Indian leader has ever taken up this issue with the Pakistan government to get the files released. Columnist Kuldip Nayar had tried, at a personal level, to get access to these files, but did not succeed despite his good relations with the Sharif brothers in Pakistan. Quereshi has further prayed that if the trial is found to be flawed then "appropriate steps be taken to rehabilitate the historical legacy of Bhagat Singh in a befitting manner." He has also sought to take over Poonch House - where the trial of Bhagat Singh was held - to convert it into "a museum of national history of Pakistan" and asked that streets be named after Punjab freedom fighter (All quotations from the petition of Imtiaz Quereshi filed in Lahore High Court.). Lahore lawyers have sought the advice of senior Supreme Court of India advocate Nafis Ahmad Sidiqi, who is the son-in-law of the great nationalist and poet Hasrat Mohani. Advocate Siddiqi is advising Lahore advocates in the proceedings of this case. It is very interesting that Pakistan's civil society is reclaiming the legacy of Bhagat Singh's freedom struggle. The location of his execution, now called Shadman chowk, was officially named "Bhagat Singh Chowk after the demolition of the jail there, and the decision has been stayed by the court due to opposition by Islamic jihadists. However, district coordination officer Noorul Amin Mengal, when transferred to Faisalabad (Lyallpur before 1947), had declared that Bhagat Singh's house and primary school there - Chak No. 105, Lyallpur Bange - will be treated as a heritage house. Millions of rupees have been sanctioned its renovation and upkeep. Remembering Mahatma Gandhi on January 30 has become an empty formality of laying wreaths and two-minute silences. Between the UN and India we celebrate so many "days" in our calendar - each has become an insignificant ritual with speeches. Violence For me, there will always be two Gandhis: The personal Gandhi who was difficult, smoothly autocratic, and took control of peoples lives - including benefactors like Hermann Kallenbach and Madeleine Slade; and the political strategist who changed the face of the Independence movement. Suppose, I ask, I confronted Gandhi with my views, how would the Mahatma have responded? He might have ignored my words. Or, he would have become angry, but chosen the path of discourse - without hate. India has drifted into becoming a society primed by hate and violence, which is splitting up the greatest experiment of a multicultural, multi-religious and multi-lingual society the world has ever known. In 2015 Assam governor PB Acharya said: "Hindustan is for Hindus." He should be removed - along with the partisan governor of Arunachal Pradesh, who is a BJP man. Salman Khurshid and Mani Shankar Aiyar are called unpatriotic. A sedition suit is filed against the Sarbat Khalsa. Journalist Santosh Yadav is arrested under Chhattisgarhs terror laws. The story of MF Husain should haunt our conscience. A manipulative abuse of the "law" exiled him. The law can be used and abused. Hindu fundamentalists are past masters at abusing it - just as they demolished Babri Masjid with pride and impunity. Institutionally, BJP sympathisers are put in places like the Censor Board, which censors a kiss as if it were unknown to humans. FTII in Pune has been drawn into an intransigent deadlock. The BJP government has taken over as many institutions as they can to promote Hindutva. Mindless censorship, which I have documented in my book Publish and be Damned, has become progressively worse. The Shiva Sena banned Rohinton Mistrys book, Habib Tanvirs Charandas Chor was on the hit list in Madhya Pradesh. Why silence Jaswant Singh on MA Jinnah, or Joseph Lelyveld on Gandhi, or Wendy Doniger on Hinduism or Jaishree Misra on Rani Jhansi or Vaasanthi on J Jayalalithaa, or the BBC on Nirbhaya? Films like Sadda Haq on terrorism in Punjab were liberated by the Supreme Court. Censorship is not just governmental, but also social. Films on Sikh leaders in Punjab, or those starring Aamir Khan in Gujarat. My list is huge. Murder What we are faced with is not censorship, but militant intolerance, which includes not just intimidation but cruelty and murder. At one level we witness moral policing and uncivil interventions (blackening Sudheendra Kulkarnis face at the release of Pakistani politician Khurshid Mahmud Kasuris book). On another level, uncivil society dispenses humiliation, violence and murder. What shocked the nation was the murder of distinguished rationalist, writer of 80 books and historian MM Kalburgi on August 30, 2015. It was one of those days when a part of India died. He reminded Lingayats that they were distinct from Hinduism and attacked idolatry and jangama priests. Do we murder people for their views? Just before that, on August 20, 2013, Narendra Dabholkar was killed. To complete the trilogy of madness, Govind Pansare was murdered on February 20, 2015. His daughter-in-law thought all these crimes were connected. Within days of Kalburgis murder, on August 31, 2015, Bhuvith Shetty of the Bajrang Dal tweeted: "Then it was Ananthamurthy and now MM Kalburgi. Mock Hinduism and die dogs' death. And dear KS Bhagwan you are next. Of course, he publicly claimed that the Bajrang Dal was not responsible for the crime. Protests All this seems to have triggered off what has been called the "intolerance" debate. Intolerance is a mild word for the viciousness that is being celebrated. The return of awards by Sahitya Akademi awardees was right. It is absurdly unjust to say that it was a publicity stunt. They were targeting the muted Sahitya Akademi for not taking a stand. Shashi Deshpande quit the Akademis committee. But, the return-of-award protests were not only linked to the Sahitya Akademi. Punjabi writer Dalip Kaur Tiwana, the Padma awardee, returned her award, as did eminent scientist PM Bhargava. Why? Because of Narendra Modi and the BJPs evasive statements and condemnation. Even Enoch Powells "River of Blood" speech in 1968 led to condemnation and expulsion by the Tories. Here, the rivers of blood did flow. The BJPs politics insults humanity and decency by not fully condemning its fundamentalist supporters. How will India confront this? Nobody believes Indias polity and society are equipped to deal with all this peacefully or wisely. It is fast becoming a country of communalism, hate and violence. The problem is not just state censorship. The poison is being inducted as a virus by Hindu fundamentalists. We are troubled by cartoons published abroad, not by what we have become. There has to be space for discourse. Not just rational discourse, but even emotional discourse. But while anger is a legitimate response, an undercurrent of hate and violence is not. In what seems to be the "scoop of the day", British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) has claimed that the United Nations panel looking at the case of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, would be ruling in his favour when it announces its decision tomorrow, that is Friday, February 5, 2016. "A UN panel has ruled in favour of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange after he complained he was "arbitrarily detained", the BBC understands. Mr Assange claimed asylum in London's Ecuadorean embassy in 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden over sex assault claims, which he denies. The Met Police says Mr Assange would be arrested if he does leave the embassy. He earlier said his passport should be returned and his arrest warrant dropped if the UN panel ruled in his favour. In 2014, Mr Assange complained to the UN that he was being "arbitrarily detained" as he could not leave the embassy without being arrested. The application claimed Mr Assange had been "deprived of his liberty in an arbitrary manner for an unacceptable length of time". The UN's Working Group on Arbitrary Detention is due to announce the findings of its investigation on Friday." WikiLeaks has claimed that BBC has "scooped" this bit of still unconfirmed information, thereby adversely impacting the importance of Friday's press meet to announce the decision of the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on Julian Assange. BBC is reporting claim that UN has found for Assange We are waiting official confirmation https://t.co/yIHlDNhzjJ pic.twitter.com/DeQHGnLqwK WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) February 4, 2016 Note what happened today. UN+Assange press confs tomorrow. UK already has verdict but not JA, public. So UK used BBC to 'scoop' UN, JA. WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) February 4, 2016 UN saying they will not confirm BBC #Assange report until Friday, 11am Geneva time https://t.co/3Lb3ohsd8J More: https://t.co/Mb6gXlhwsi WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) February 4, 2016 UK and Sweden accepted the jurisdiction of the UN WGAD and were parties in the case for its duration of 16 months. https://t.co/Mb6gXlhwsi WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) February 4, 2016 Moreover, British Prime Minister David Cameron's official spokesperson at 10 Downing Street has categorically stated that the panel decision is not legally binding in the United Kingdom and that Assange will be immediately arrested if he left the Ecuadorian embassy. "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," Assange had said earlier on WikiLeaks Twitter account. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me." US president Barack Obama visited a mosque in his country on February 3 for the very first time during his presidency, leading one to ask whether it was too little too late. Obama's move prompts one to also ask if Prime Minister Narendra Modi should or would follow Obama, with whom he apparently shares an excellent rapport, and visit a mosque in India? Obama's symbolic gesture is not fraught with risks because the US Constitution bars a president from running for a third term. Hence, Obama could have taken this political step as he did not have anything to lose. His intentions would not have been judged had he visited a mosque during his first term. Would Obama still have visited a US mosque had there been no bar on presidential terms is a matter of conjecture. More or less, the Muslims in India are facing the same situation as those in the US. They are feeling victimised and think intolerance in the country is on the rise. They are on the defensive because of the right-wing BJP coming to power and also owing to a polarising figure like Modi becoming the prime minister. The BJP had ruled the Centre for six years from 1998 too, but Atal Bihari Vajpayee, a moderate former RSS pracharak, as prime minister was more acceptable to the minorities, particularly the Muslims. Furthermore, issues like the killing of Mohammad Akhlaq in Dadri over the mere suspicion of storing and consuming beef, beef ban, ghar wapsi and provocative statements from a few Union ministers, BJP lawmakers, Sangh Parivar members and fringe elements have vitiated the atmosphere, instilling a sense of fear among the minorities. While the issues were also exaggerated and extrapolated by some motivated groups like the award wapsi section, Modi's late reaction to the controversial developments only added to the suspicion of the Muslims. In such circumstances, it is well in the interest of the nation that Modi emulates Obama and visits a mosque in India, though, like the US president he too had visited a mosque outside his country - the historic Sheikh Zayed Grand mosque, the world's third largest in the UAE, last August. At one point in time, the prime minister did consider visiting Indias oldest mosque, the Cheraman Juma Masjid, in central Keralas Kodungallur. However, that has not materialised as yet. What also go against Modi are his refusal to wear the Islamic skull cap (though he wears Sikh's turban and regional headgears) and hold Iftaar parties during Eid. However, on the other hand, the prime minister has taken several steps to reach out to the Muslim community. Unfortunately, they are either not highlighted or they get buried under the loud protests of a motivated section of the society. Last April, he sent a "chaadar" to be offered at Sufi saint Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti's dargah in Ajmer on the occasion of annual urs, has held separate meetings with Muslim clerics and leaders after becoming the prime minister; he heaped lavish praise on Islam during the book launch of historian JS Rajput and on India Islamic Culture Centre president Sirajuddin Qureshi saying the word ilm (education) is mentioned in Quran 800 times, second only to "Allah". Also, after objections from some Muslim leaders and organisations, the Centre made observing International Yoga Day on June 21 optional, did away with suryanamaskar and asked Muslims to take the name of Allah instead of Om or the shlokas. Modi has not only kept away from courting any controversy but has also censured the likes of Union minister of state for food processing industries Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti and disapproved of her Ramzade versus the Haramzaade remarks; he has retained several senior Muslim bureaucrats or brought them to the Centre, one of them being the former ministry of external affairs spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin, who finally took up an ambassadorial assignment. However, the moot question remains: will Modi be able to visit an Indian mosque? It will not be easy for the prime minister to do so, firstly, because of the objections from the BJP's ideological parent - the RSS - which is apparently against any kind of minority appeasement. Modi's visit to the Kerala mosque was cancelled ostensibly because the RSS had reservations. Secondly, Modi would not like to do a LK Advani, who visited Pakistan's founder Mohammed Ali Jinnah's tomb in Karachi in June 2005 and described him as secular and an ambassador of Hindu-Muslim unity. Advani was forced to resign as BJP's president following vehement protests from the RSS and right-wing outfits. Modi may also avoid going out of his way to assuage the feelings of Muslims in view of the upcoming assembly elections in states such as Assam, West Bengal, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. One month after India shared information of Pakistani nationals involvement in the Pathankot terror attack, Islamabad is yet to even register a case, leave alone initiate action against the handlers and the mastermind. Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif promised his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, prompt action and Islamabad, in the first week of January, announced the detention of several Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) activists along with closure of some JeM offices. Offence But 30 days later, Islamabad is yet to either produce them in court or share details under what section of the Pakistan Penal Code have they been detained and for what offence. A legal case would form the bedrock for sustained investigations that can be logically pursued in a court of law. Top sources in the government suspect Pakistans actions so far may be mere eyewash under intense global scrutiny. Had Pakistan followed due process of law, a first information report (FIR) would have been filed. An investigating officers detailed and proper investigations would have been initiated, too. Sharifs office had on January 13 claimed that considerable progress has been made in the investigations being carried out against terrorist elements reportedly linked to the Pathankot incident. A statement released by Sharifs office went on to say, Based on initial investigations in Pakistan and the information provided (by India), several individuals belonging to Jaish-e-Mohammed have been apprehended. The offices of the organisation are also being traced and sealed. Further investigations are under way. However, no details have been shared with investigators in India. Pakistan is also understood to have set up a special investigation team headed by Rai Tahir, additional inspector general of Punjab Polices Counter Terror Department, to probe the Pakistan link to the Pathankot attack, but this crack team hasnt made any headway. Maulana Masood Azhar hasnt been arrested despite contradictory claims made by Pakistan. India shared details of phone numbers and conversations the terrorists in Pathankot had with their handlers in Pakistan. However, the investigators claim they could not trace the phone numbers and called them either fake or unregistered numbers. Pakistan is yet to share details of any independent investigation it may have carried out based on the information provided by India. Conspiracy The terror conspiracy was hatched in Pakistan. The terrorists came from Pakistan. The training of the terrorists took place in Pakistan. So there is ample investigation to be done in Pakistan. Sadly, if a probe is being carried out, Pakistan has been reticent about sharing details. India requested Pakistan to specifically probe the role of Masood Azhar and his brother Rouf Azhar in connection with the Pathankot attack, but Pakistan has not pursued those leads. In fact, on January 26, Masood Azhar wrote in the Peshawarbased jihadi magazine al-Qalam threatening anyone trying to target him. "I have prepared an army that adores death. To uproot this army is not in the power of our enemies. God willing, this army will not let our enemies celebrate, or occasion for anyone to miss my presence," Azhar wrote. But India is still hopeful that the Pathankot probe will be different from what happened with the 26/11 attack investigations. Especially after a personal commitment not only from Sharif to Modi, but also from Pakistans NSA Lt Gen Nasser Khan Janjua to his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval. Evidence In the past Pakistan had dismissed concrete evidence provided by India as mere literature. Independent investigations carried out by Pakistans Federal Investigation Agency in the 26/11 attacks resulted in the arrest of seven accused. However, the Pakistan government case for voice samples was thrown by the Islamabad High Court due to non-prosecution. This has cast aspersions at Islamabads integrity since its government lost the 26/11 voice sample case because it did not pursue the case in court. All this even as Pakistan at the highest level was trying to assure India of speedy justice in the Mumbai terror attacks case. Pakistan has also repeatedly tried to reassure India that its all-powerful army is on board the peace initiative and terrorists will not be allowed to put a spoke in the peace process. While India looks forward to continuing with the dialogue process and has not announced calling it off, New Delhi is waiting for the right environment for talks in terms of concrete action by Pakistan on Pathankot. Heather Baker tells media outlets that she received a letter dated Feb. 1 from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirming that she has Zika virus. Baker thinks she contracted the virus in November while on a mission trip in Guatemala. She says the first symptom was a swollen lymph node on the side of her head. She then began experiencing joint pain, a rash and body aches. Zika is transmitted from infected mosquitoes to people, from infected pregnant mothers to babies and possibly through sexual activity. Babies born to mothers with the virus can have birth defects. Baker says she is managing her symptoms and trying to be cautious. AL-RAQQAH - Syria - Once the seed of an idea is implanted, no amount of bombing or war can remove that idea from existence, and ISIS is the living proof of this idea. Even though the bombs have been raining on their territory and they have lost some ground in Iraq, the ISIS Islamic creed still lives on, and it is their puritan Sunni pseudo Wahabi spirit that endures every day making a mockery of the bombing parties spending millions on destroying empty buildings. It is assumed they receive prior intelligence and warning before any bomb is dropped by the Americans, not so much the Russians who are bombing civilian targets indiscriminately. ISIS have a vast network of tunnels where they congregate in safety and they are highly mobile. It is only a matter of time before they wipe out the Kurd threat in the region, as there are many forces which want that particular group cleaned out and erased, a reporter on the ground revealed. Despite the huge and expensive bombing effort by many different nations over the past year, ISIS have actually gained ground in Libya and Africa, as well as Yemen and other parts of the middle East. This sure fire steadfastness under massive adversity is a very fruitful recruitment tool for the group because it proves to many that the enduring flame of the single idea is cast in invincible diamond encrusted stone. For the final year of a degree that combines Informatics and International Development Studies, Amina Abawajy decided shed get more involved in the Dal community. In doing so, shes made an impact on communities halfway around the world. Last fall, Amina discovered that a food crisis in Ethiopia, where both of her parents were born, had left 4.5 million people in need of emergency relief a number that was projected to rise to 15 million within a few months. As alarmed as she was to learn of the crisis, Amina was equally discouraged to realize that the story had been largely ignored and under-reported. She was inspired to raise both funds for the victims of famine and awareness of their plight within the Halifax community where she was born and raised. Even if its just in the local community, I wanted to bring light to the issue, Amina says. Her efforts began in October with the launch of a GoFundMe campaign, dubbed Not 15 Million, which has brought in more than $3,000 to date and earned coverage from local media outlets. Its our online presence, says Amina of the GoFundMe campaign. Its an easy method for people to donate. But its just one part of the initiative. Surpassing her goal In fact, while the online campaign has helped to extend the reach of the fundraising drive, Amina has arguably created even more awareness and has certainly generated more donations through hands-on activities such as bake sales, traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremonies and a major fundraising dinner hosted at Dal in January. The dinner, which featured authentic Ethiopian cuisine, was moved from its scheduled date due to a winter storm. This last-minute change convinced Amina that it might not be realistic to meet her goal of 200 attendees. She was happily surprised. The event was mind-blowing, she says. We had over 400 people. We had to bring extra tables. It was an incredible turnout. All told, Aminas fundraising activities have resulted in more than $26,000 in donations, well above her initial goal of $15,000. Those who came to the January dinner event got a glimpse of how the money is being put to use, with footage chronicling the first food delivery associated with the campaign. To Amina, effective aid means partnering with both non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and community leaders from the affected areas of Ethiopia. We believe that we need to respect the leadership, expertise and knowledge of the people in the affected communities. That was central to this project, Amina explains. With the NGOs were determining gaps in services and what theyve been able to do. With the community elders were determining what the needs are for that community. Were hoping to make an impact thats culturally relevant and culturally appropriate. The first food delivery addressed malnutrition in children and pregnant and breastfeeding women. It consisted of milk, dates and nutritional biscuits made in Ethiopia. Thats going back to the idea of supporting the local communities, Amina says. We were very excited to showcase that delivery at the fundraising dinner and show people where their moneys going and the impact it has. Building a respectful culture Leaning on the knowledge and ideas of the people affected by the famine is just one example of Aminas dedication to the principles of respect, inclusion and cultural understanding. She is also part of a committee for Dals Culture of Respect initiative, has volunteered at the Dalhousie Student Unions Sexual Assault and Harassment Phone Line and currently works at the Avalon Sexual Assault Centre. All these issues are important to me, so it wasnt a matter of if I would get involved, but how, Amina says. Amina is also president of Dals Girls Take Initiative student society, which has helped with fundraising events for the Not 15 Million campaign, and a member of the Women in Technology Society. If her goal was to get more involved, its difficult to see how Amina could have been any more successful. Its something I would advise any student to do. It builds a sense of community, a sense of belonging and a sense of the bigger picture beyond academia. San Francisco: Yahoo is laying off about 1,700 employees and shedding some of its excess baggage in a shake-up likely to determine whether CEO Marissa Mayer can save her own job. The long-anticipated purge, announced Tuesday, will jettison about 15 percent of Yahoo's workforce along with an assortment of services that Mayer decided aren't worth the time and money that the Internet company has been putting into them. The cost-cutting is designed to save about $400 million annually to help offset a steep decline in net revenue this year. Mayer also hopes to sell some of Yahoo's patents, real estate and other holdings for $1 billion to $3 billion. Products to be dumped include Yahoo Games, Yahoo TV and some of the digital magazines that Mayer started as CEO. She will also close offices in Dubai, United Arab Emirates; Mexico City; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Madrid and Milan. In an apparent concession to frustrated shareholders, Mayer also said Yahoo's board will mull "strategic alternatives" that could result in the sale of all the company's Internet operations. Analysts have speculated that Verizon, AT&T and Comcast might be interested in buying Yahoo's main business, despite years of deterioration. Mayer expressed confidence that her plan to run Yahoo as a smaller, more focused company "will dramatically brighten our future and improve our competitiveness, and attractiveness to users, advertisers, and partners." Shareholders have questioned whether she has figured out how to revive the Internet company's growth after three-and-half years of futility. Yahoo's stock shed 34 cents to $28.72 extended trading after details of Mayer's latest turnaround attempt came out. The stock has fallen by more than 40 percent since the end of 2014 as investors' confidence in Mayer has faded. "The investment community has given up on this becoming a resurrection story," said Douglas Melsheimer, managing director of Bulger Partners, a technology banking and consulting firm. "At this point, it needs to be managed for maintenance or very slow growth. Marissa is more of a visionary whose background lends itself to a more ambitious strategy. I don't think she is the one to navigate the company through job cuts or a restructuring." Ken Goldman, Yahoo's chief financial officer, said he got a "neutral" reaction after talking to some investors following Mayer's presentation. He also acknowledged that both Mayer and he had made some mistakes that they are now trying to correct with this overhaul. "None of us are perfect in all of our decision making, but I feel good about the plan that we put in place and believe it's the right one," Goldman told The Associated Press. Some of Yahoo's most outspoken shareholders, such as SpringOwl Asset Management, already have concluded that Mayer should be laid off, too. Mayer, a former rising star at Google who helped that company eclipse Yahoo, defended her performance. "Yahoo is a far stronger, more modern company that it was three-and-half years ago," she said in a video presentation Tuesday. She also lashed out at reports that Yahoo spent $7 million on its holiday parties in December, labeling the figure as an "untruth" that is more than three times the actual cost of the festivities. Even after the mass firings are completed by the end of March, Yahoo will still have about 9,000 workers three times the roughly 3,000 people that SpringOwl believes the company should be employing, based on its steadily declining revenue. "We would like to see a higher stock price, and we think Marissa and her current management team have become a hindrance to that," said Eric Jackson, SpringOwl's managing director. He declined to disclose the size of SpringOwl's Yahoo investment. Yahoo's revenue has been shrinking through most of Mayer's reign, even though she has spent more than $3 billion buying more than 40 companies, while bringing in new talent and developing mobile applications and other services designed to attract more traffic and advertisers. The decline has persisted while advertisers have been steadily increasing their digital marketing efforts. Most of that money has been flowing to Google and Facebook two companies once far smaller than the now 20-year-old Yahoo Inc. Yahoo's fourth-quarter report provided fresh evidence of the company's deterioration. After subtracting ad commissions, revenue plunged 15 percent to $1 billion compared with the previous year the biggest drop since Mayer became CEO in July 2012. Things continue to look bleak, as Yahoo forecast a net revenue decline of 12 to 17 percent this year. The Sunnyvale, California, company reported a fourth-quarter loss of $4.4 billion, reflecting the eroding value of its services. The amount included a $1.2 billion hit for acquisitions made under Mayer, including a $230 million decrease in the value of blogging service Tumblr, which the company bought for $1.1 billion in 2013. The torched Wagon-R in which the Tanzanian girl was travelling. (Photo: DC) Bengaluru: Four accused were arrested on Wednesday for stripping and beating up a Tanzanian girl student in Bengaluru. Police said they have recorded the girls statement and a criminal case has been registered. The incident took place on Hesaraghatta Road in Bengaluru on Sunday night after a Sudanese national ran his car over a 35-year-old woman, killing her on the spot. The Tanzanian student was travelling in another car, a Wagon-R, along with four others. The young woman, who arrived on the spot around 30 minutes later, was dragged out of the car and paraded naked after being stripped by the mob. Read: Bengaluru: Mob strips Tanzanian girl, torches her car as police watch We have Zero tolerance for mob mindset and have taken stringent measures in this case, said NS Megharikh, Bengaluru Police Commissioner on the incident. Following massive outrage on the social media, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj raised concern over the issue and spoke to Karnataka Chief Minister over the matter. We are deeply pained over the shameful incident with a Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru. I spoke to the Chief Minister Karnataka. He informed me that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested, Swaraj tweeted. We are deeply pained over the shameful incident with a Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru. Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) February 3, 2016 I have asked the Chief Minister to ensure safety and security of all foreign students and stringent punishment for the guilty. Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) February 3, 2016 African embassies are shocked at Sundays incident in Hesaraghatta, where a mob chased and thrashed a Sudanese student and beat up four more Tanzanians. The Tanzanian Embassy on Monday sought a detailed report on the incident from student leaders to pursue the issue diplomatically, Bosco Kaweesi, Legal Adviser, All African Students in Bengaluru had told Deccan Chronicle. Read: Africa angry, demands justice after mob strips Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru Five Tanzanian students, including two girls, from Acharya College were in the car. Everyone was attacked. The mob stood in front of the car, preventing it from moving forward. They were beaten up, their dresses were torn and they were humiliated by the unruly mob for no fault of theirs. Read: Road rage gets a foreign face The mob then set the car ablaze with all the students losing their valuable documents, like passports, ATM cards and cash. Injured students were sent out of the hospital because they could not pay the bills as their ATM cards were burnt, and they had no cash on their hands. They also could not contact their parents as their phones were robbed, Mr Bosco said. Bengaluru: A day after the DC expose on the plight of the Tanzanian girl student who was stripped off her clothes and humiliated by an angry mob after an accident in Hesaraghatta in which the girl and her four friends were not involved, the city police went into damage control mode. Read: Bengaluru: Mob strips Tanzanian girl, torches her car as police watch While responding to the External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj's queries, city police said that a criminal case had been registered and four people arrested, but failed to clarify that the four men in detention were charged with arson and were not part of the mob that had beaten up the young African woman from Dar es Salaam. Read: Africa angry, demands justice after mob strips Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru On Wednesday, police picked up the five Tanzanian students from their homes and took them to Peenya police station, where they recorded their statements before taking them to Sapthagiri Hospital for medical examination. The swift action by the police was carried out when the four victims including the girl were on their way to go public with their side of the story at the Alternative Law Forum. Read: Road rage gets a foreign face According to Mr Bosco Kaweesi, the legal adviser of the All African Student Association, the police took all the students to the hospital and kept them in a locked room for hours together with their phones switched off, while their fellow students along with journalists waited outside the hospital. "When our student leaders along with journalists reached the hospital, they were denied permission to interact with the victim students," said Mr Kaweesi. Read: Bengaluru mob violence: 4 arrested, Sushma asks CM to take strict action "The police are in damage control mode now," he said, adding, "The police had taken the statements from the victims on how they were all thrashed and the girl was stripped and shoved around but they have conveniently omitted the part where the girl approached the police to lodge a complaint on that fateful night and was turned away." "If the police can take her complaint on Wednesday, why didn't they do it on Sunday night," he asked. Read: Bengaluru police 'hijack' African victim students of hate crime from scribes Meanwhile, speaking to Deccan Chronicle, T.R. Suresh, DCP, North Division Claimed, "We have recorded the statement of the victim in which she has mentioned that her top was torn off and she was physically assaulted and humiliated by the mob. We have added the appropriate IPC section along with the arson case that has been registered at the Soladevanahalli police station." When asked why the police did not register the girl's complaint on Sunday night, the DCP said, "The police had rushed to the spot and rescued two African students, one of them was the driver of the second car and took them to NRR Hospital and then subsequently to the police station." Read: Tanzanian girl assault in Bengaluru: Cops toned down victims complaints The DCP did not comment on the condition of the Tanzanian woman who was stripped, humiliated and standing with the torn clothes and her other friends who were left to the mercy of the mob, seeking to revenge the death of Shabana Taj, the 35-year-old who was walking on the street in Hesaraghatta with her husband when she was run over by a car driven by a Sudanese student. Read: Tanzania issues note verbale after mob strips girl in Bengaluru Heavy police deployment continued today at the college campus in order to avert any untoward incident. (Photo: PTI) Pune: Parents of some of the college students who died in the drowning tragedy at Murud-Janjira beach on Monday have alleged "negligence" on the part of the college authorities in the aftermath of the incident. A condolence meet organized by the Abeda Inamdar College this morning saw the parents of the victims gherao P A Inamdar, president of the Maharashtra Cosmopolitan Education Society (MCES), the group that runs the college. The parents alleged that they were pushed out unceremoniously by the college authorities when they tried to seek an explanation for their "negligence". "I lost my daughter in the incident. On the tragic day, the college did not even notify me about the incident. It was us who bore the expenses of the ambulance vehicle in which my daughter's body was carried to the city. The college did nothing," Shakila Sayyad, mother of victim Safin Sayyad, said. She further said, "No one from the institute was present in the hospital when the bodies were brought there after being fished out." Narsimha Rao, relative of deceased student Rajlaxmi Pandugayala, alleged, "The parents and relatives who went to Inamdar to seek an explanation were ill-treated. We were unceremoniously pushed out of his office." Heavy police deployment continued today at the college campus in order to avert any untoward incident. Meanwhile, Savitribai Phule Pune University Vice- Chancellor W N Gade, who attended the condolence meet, said a detailed report would be sought from the college over the incident. "We would see whether the guidelines laid down by the varsity regarding educational tours were followed during the picnic," he said. He announced an aid of Rs 1 lakh to the victims' kin by the university. "A high-level committee would be constituted to ascertain the details of the incident and that the bereaved families would be provided assistance," Inamdar told reporters after the condolence meet. The Singapore government will have the opportunity to match any competing counter-proposals that may be superior to the proposal of the original project proponent. Hyderabad: While Singapore government is exerting pressure for selection of its companies as Amaravati development partner on nomination basis, the Andhra Pradesh government has made it clear that this is not possible. Instead, Singapore should participate in the bidding for the selection of the development partner, AP has insisted. The state government has decided to select the Amaravati development partner under Swiss Challenge method. At one stage, the state was inclined to select Singapore as development partner on nomination basis, but officials cautioned the government that this would lead to legal complications. Singapore, while sending proposals for being Amaravati development partner, had nominated a consortium consisting of three companies that it owned. Officials here took the view that the central government will object to the nomination process, and this would lead to legal complications. The state government conveyed this to the Singapore government and said it would go ahead with Swiss Challenge method as decided by the Cabinet. Singapore would do well to participate in the bidding process, AP said. Under Swiss Challenge method, the state government will take the proposals of Singapore government as a suo moto proposal and invite competing counter-proposals. The Singapore government will have the opportunity to match any competing counter-proposals that may be superior to the proposal of the original project proponent. In case the original project proponent matches or improves on the competing counter proposal, the project shall be awarded to the original (Singapore) project proponent. Otherwise, a bidder making the competing counter proposal will be selected to execute the project. Meanwhile, a senior official involved in the capital affairs said many international companies are coming forward to function as Amaravati development partner. If the Singapore government will not participate in the bidding, the government will select some other company in Swiss challenge method. Hyderabad: Hours after booking a case against MIM president Asaduddin Owaisi, the South Zone police registered a case against party Assembly floor leader Akbaruddin Owaisi for allegedly attacking a polling agent at Chandrayangutta. Meanwhile MIM Malakpet legislator Ahmed Balala and his aides, who allegedly attacked deputy Chief Minister Mohd. Mahmood Alis son Azam Ali, and MBT leader Amjadullah Khan, walked out from police custody after securing bail from a local court on Wednesday. Senior officials instructed the South Zone police to act tough on MIM workers who had run amok in the last hours of GHMC polling on Tuesday. According to South Zone officials, Chandrayangutta police on Wednesday registered a case against Mr Akbaruddin Owaisi and his men for allegedly attacking BJP polling agent Vijay Kumar. Jaganmet BJP candidate K. Mahender had lodged a police complaint alleging that MIM activists led by Mr Akbaruddin Owaisi had stopped and assaulted the polling agent. They had also allegedly snatched his cellphone. A case under various IPC sections for unlawful assembly, voluntarily causing hurt and criminal intimidation has been booked against Akbaruddin and his aides, said Chandrayangutta police station house officer N. Rama Rao. Earlier, Mir Chowk police had registered a case against Mr Asaduddin Owaisi and two others. Special teams set up, videos collected The case was registered under Sections 143 (unlawful assembly), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 341 (wrongful restraint), 427 (mischief causing damage), and 506 read with 149 of the IPC. Mr Balala was booked by the police based on two separate complaints from Mr Azam Ali and Mr Amjadullah Khan. Mr Balala, who remained in police custody overnight, secured bail from the Nampally criminal court by Wednesday morning. In another case, South Zone police officials said that Charminar MLA Ahmed Pasha Quadri was detained as a preventive measure and released on Tuesday. The complaint filed against Mr Quadri by Congress candidate Md. Ghouse was being inquired into, police said. Senior officials said they had collected evidence including videos of the various attacks and special teams had been formed in South Zone to probe each case. We are investigating all the cases. Action will be taken based on the findings of these probes, said Hyderabad police commissioner M. Mahender Reddy. Visakhapatnam: A Vizag resident has sent a demand draft for Rs 364 to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, asking him to buy a pair of footwear if he attends the ongoing International Fleet Review here so that he does not embarrass India again. The grouse of Mr Sumit Agarwal, who runs, a waste-to-energy plant, was that Mr Kejriwal embarrassed India by wearing a pair of sandals when he met French President Francos Hollande during his recent visit to India at Rashtrapati Bhavan. What is he trying to portray by wearing sandals, that India still remains the land of snake charmers and elephant riders? Though what he wears is his personal choice, when he holds public office and represents the state he needs to maintain dignity, decorum and protocol. We have Prime Minister Nar-endra Modi going around the globe to secure a permanent seat in the UNSC and Mr Kejriwal embarrasses India, Mr Agarwal said. He also wrote to Mr Kejriwal expressing his anguish over his wearing sandals to Rashtrapati Bhavan. It broke my heart to see you like this. Im deeply aggrieved. Its sad that the Delhi government does not even provide proper footwear to its employees whereas even microscale industries (such as mine), with their lifetime budgets far lesser than the Delhi governments daily budget, provide boots to their workers free of cost! he wrote. Mr Agarwal collected money from his friends and neighbours to send Mr Kejriwal. Out of the Rs 364, my contribution was Rs 49, as Mr Kejriwals first tenure as Delhi Chief Minister was 49 days. I collected the remaining amount from 18 to 20 persons. Some gave Rs 2, others Rs 5 and Rs 10, Mr Agarwal said, adding that some of them, including his family members, laughed at him. Sir, like you, Im a mechanical engineer, albeit not from an IIT or a reputed institution. Like you, Im a Marwari (Baniya) too. But, unlike you, I lack the raw charisma of the common man from the streets. So despite my earnest efforts, I could only gather Rs 364 for you, he wrote in the letter. Though such a modest amount is not enough for a Chief Minister, I believe any amount is good enough for someone who claims that he has no shoes despite having a monthly salary of -only Rs 2,10,000. Also, I paid the DD commission to the bank to avoid affecting the collections, the letter said. I humbly request your good self to kindly accept this small contribution and use it to buy a nice pair of black formal shoes. Should you need more money, kindly write back and I will go around the block (and the entire city if need be) asking for more, he wrote. Though the victory march of the Bharatiya Janata Party that began in 2014 was brought to a halt in 2015 with major setbacks in the Delhi and Bihar Assembly elections, there seems to be a reversal of that trend for the party in Assam. In the politically most significant Northeast state, the contest is going to be mainly between the two national parties, a strong BJP versus a weak Congress, with the regional political players in the state the All-India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) and the Bodoland Peoples Front (BPF, now in alliance with the BJP) playing marginal roles. The BJP has had a successful start. It has taken over the political space vacated by the Asom Gana Parishad (AGP), once the states ruling party, and with its alliance with the BPF there is a strong possibility of it winning the forthcoming Assembly elections. During the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP won seven of the 14 Lok Sabha seats with 36 per cent votes, the Congress won three seats with 29.5 per cent votes, AIUDF won three seats with 14.8 per cent votes, while the Kokrajhar seat was won by an Independent candidate. The AGP was completely marginalised, polling 3.7 per cent votes, only marginally higher than the 2.1 per cent votes of the BPF. Simple electoral arithmetic suggests that if the BJP manages to repeat its 2014 performance, it can win 70 of the 126 Assembly seats, well beyond the number required for forming the government. There is hardly any indication of the states political scenario having changed significantly in any way since 2014, and the BJP still remains much more popular than other political parties. That said, there has been some decline in the BJPs popularity on account of the Narendra Modi governments failure to act on its poll promises. For instance, the Land Boundary Agreement with Bangladesh, which saw several acres of land in Assam being given to Bangladesh, went against Mr Modis election promise of not giving an inch of Assams land to Bangladesh. Moreover, the governments decision to grant citizenship to Hindu Bangladeshis residing in Assam and elsewhere in India is seen as the BJPs attempt to shelter illegal Bangladeshi immigrants. But does this dissatisfaction with the Central government mean that the BJP may not be in a position to perform well in the forthcoming elections? Highly unlikely, even though it may result in some drop in the partys vote share as has been witnessed in other recent elections. The announcement of Sarbananda Sonowal as the partys chief ministerial candidate well in advance means that the BJP has learnt from the mistakes it made in Bihar and Delhi. Moreover, the BJP can hope to make up for its slight decline in popularity by its alliance with the BPF, which will help it consolidate the adivasi votes in the state. The BJP, in fact, has already played its card to woo the adivasi voters by supporting the proposal to include communities like Motok, Moran, Tai Ahom, Koch Rajbonshi, Sootea and Tea Tribes into the Schedule Tribe category, which at the moment are classified as Other Backward Classes. The BJP also has the advantage of contesting against a divided Opposition with most parties busy tackling their own difficulties. The Congress is facing a 15-year anti-incumbency. Its vote share declined by nearly 10 percentage points between the 2011 Assembly and 2014 Lok Sabha elections. Its support base has been eroded significantly. The strong 34 per cent Muslim voters spread across the three regions of the state but concentrated mainly in the Barak Valley (37 per cent) and Lower Assam bordering Bangladesh (46 per cent) have moved significantly towards the AIUDF. It is mainly due to the division of the Muslim vote between the Congress and the AIUDF that the former performed badly in this region, polling only 23 per cent votes. Post-poll study by the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) suggests that 40 per cent of Muslims voted for the Congress and 39 for AIUDF. The young urban voters, who once voted for the AGP in large numbers, also moved towards the BJP in a big way in 2014 35 per cent voted for the BJP, while only 29 per cent voted for the Congress. Among urban voters, 45 per cent voted for the BJP while 18 per cent voted for the Congress. What is bound to add to the Congress woes is the recent defection of a large number of sitting MLAs all have joined the BJP. The negative image of the Congress at the national level makes it difficult to attract new, popular politicians. If the non-BJP parties decide to contest the election separately without any alliance, it is likely to pave the way for a BJP government in the state. Even if the BJPs vote share declines by a few points from what it was in 2014, it may still be comfortably placed to win due to a divided Opposition. In fact, the BJP has managed to win three (Maharashtra, Haryana and Jammu & Kashmir) Assembly elections post 2014 Lok Sabha mainly due to the division of the non-BJP votes. United Opposition, like it was in Bihar, has been able to block the BJPs march to victory. Hence, the only roadblock for the BJP in Assam could be a Bihar-like alliance between the Congress and the AIUDF, which may consolidate the Muslim vote. If that happens, the BJP will try counter mobilisation by raising the issue of illegal Bangladesh migrants (mainly Muslims) more aggressively. This but may not be enough to counter the consolidation of the Muslim votes. Which party manages to form the government may only be known once the votes are counted, but one thing is clear the BJPs knock at the doors of the Assam Assembly is loud and clear. President Maithripala Sirisena says he will unite the nation, a process which has not been given prominence since independence. (Photo: AFP) Colombo: A Tamil-language version of Sri Lanka's national anthem has been sung at the country's independence ceremony, lifting an unofficial ban in another step toward post-civil war ethnic reconciliation. School children sang the national anthem in Sinhalese, from the ethnic majority group, and the minority Tamil language at the 68th anniversary of independence from Britain on Thursday. The move, despite opposition from nationalists, is seen an effort to reach out to the Tamils who fought a nearly 26-year civil war for an independent state. The civil war ended in 2009. President Maithripala Sirisena says he will unite the nation, a process which has not been given prominence since independence. Sirisena's hardline predecessor Mahinda Rajapaksa had imposed an unofficial ban on the Tamil version of the national anthem. People walk past the Greek Parliament next to a poster calling for a general strike in Athens (Photo: AFP) Athens: Thousands of workers marched across Greece Thursday as unions launched a general strike to protest an unpopular pension overhaul that has sparked a major backlash against embattled leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. Around 30,000 people joined protests in Athens for the 24-hour industrial action the third general strike in as many months that has stopped train and ferry services and grounded dozens of flights. Lawyers, truck drivers and farmers also participated in the walkout and many traders shut down their businesses in support. "They have massacred my generation. We can no longer get married or have children," said Dina, a 32-year-old underwear shop owner marching in Athens, referring to five years of austerity cuts under Greece's successive economic bailouts. White-collar staff such as lawyers, notaries, insurers and engineers have joined the protests en masse in action media have dubbed the "necktie movement." "It's true that the pension system requires reform but this reform cannot make it viable," lawyer Thomas Karachristos said. Hospitals will operate on an emergency footing, petrol stations will remain closed and taxis have been pulled off the streets. Greek farmers have formed protest hubs at dozens of locations on national highways, intermittently blocking traffic with tractors over the past two weeks. On Tuesday, they blocked freight trucks from travelling into Bulgaria and Turkey, causing long lines on the respective borders. Government 'strong and cohesive' The strikers are furious at government plans to lower the maximum pension to 2,300 euros ($2,500) per month from 2,700 euros currently and introduce a new minimum guaranteed basic pension of 384 euros. Tsipras's leftist administration also wants to merge pension funds and increase social security contributions by both employers and staff. Critics say the new system penalises those who dutifully pay their pension contributions over a lifetime of work and will encourage undeclared labour practises. But Greece must save 1.8 billion euros from state spending on pensions under a three-year bailout signed with the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund in July. The Tsipras government has warned the nation's pension system will soon collapse without the reform, which is expected to be put before parliament for a vote later this month, where the prime minister has only a razor-thin majority. However, the government has rejected claims that the disputed overhaul has cast doubt over its survival. The Tspiras government has only a majority of 153 deputies in the 300-seat parliament. "The government majority (in parliament) is strong and cohesive," government spokeswoman Olga Gerovassili said Tuesday. Actor Anupam Kher has now turned down the offer of Islamabads envoy to New Delhi, Abdul Basit, to issue him a visa to visit Pakistan. The offer came after the actor alleged that he had been denied the travel document by the neighbouring country. Thank you Mr @abasitpak1 for your call and offering me visa to visit Karachi. I appreciate it. Unfortunately, Ive given away those dates now, Kher posted on Twitter, after receiving a call from Pakistans High Commissioner to India. Islamabad, however, maintained its stand that the High Commission of Pakistan in New Delhi had not received any application from Kher seeking visa for his proposed visit to Karachi to attend a literature festival. Kher, who is known for his proximity with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), on Tuesday alleged that he had been denied visa despite being invited to attend the event. The Bollywood actor alleged that it was the third time he was denied visa to travel to Pakistan. He also said 17 others who had also been invited to attend the festival had been granted visa. The actor also suggested that the decision might have been influenced by his stand on the issue of Kashmiri Pandits and his support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. @AnupamPkher you are always welcome Sir. You are a great artiste; we respect and admire you, Basit posted on Twitter. Kher alleged that the Ministry of Interior of Pakistan government had not given the approval necessary for granting him the visa. Dear @abasitpak1, Reality remains that Pak Interior Ministry refused to grant NOC for my visa. 17 others invited also didnt apply for visa, tweeted Kher. The High Commissioner of Pakistan in New Delhi, however, denied the allegation. @AnupamPkher sorry Sir. I dont know who told you about this so-called NOC, we are still to receive your visa application and passport, he posted on Twitter late on Tuesday. Three days into the Delhi governments free medicine scheme and not much has changed for the distressed patients. They seem to have more woes now with doctors at Delhi government hospitals having strict instructions not to prescribe medicines unavailable at the hospital. When Rita Devi visited Lok Nayak Hospital on Wednesday, she was told by a helpless doctor to seek help from the chief minister. Rita Devis husband is suffering from an ear infection but his doctor at Lok Nayak Hospital refused to prescribe the antibiotic as it is not available at the hospitals pharmacy. I told him that I will buy it from outside but he said he is not authorised to prescribe what is not available at the hospital. When I pressed him further, he said he cant do anything and asked me to seek help from Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, she said. The rule existed before also but is being implemented more strictly now, leading to patients not being able to even avail those medicines from the outside. Doctors say that their hands are tied after the governments order and they cant risk prescribing medicines which are not available or out of stock. The government told us that there would be adequate stock and not to prescribe anything not available at the hospital. But, till date we have not received enough stock. This is causing more trouble to patients, said a doctor with the Lok Nayak Hospital. Deccan Herald had visited the hospital on day one of the roll out of the scheme and had reported that the patients are still struggling to find medicines at the hospitals pharmacy, despite claims by the AAP government that from February 1, there will be no shortage of medicines and consumables mentioned in the Essential Drug List. However, on the third day of the scheme, nothing much had changed. After standing in the queue for an hour, Manoj Kumar is returning with only one medicine, out of the two prescribed by the doctor. I told my doctor that the medicine is not available and he wrote another one, but even that is not available, said a disappointed Kumar. Similarly, Neha was asked by the chemist at the counter to buy the medicine for thyroid treatment for her father from outside as it is not available at the pharmacy. A senior official of the Central Procurement Agency (CPA) had earlier said the government has called a meeting of doctors and medical superintendents this week to update the Essential Drug List. Around 150 more drugs will be added to the list. Of the currently over 700 formulations of medicines, we will add another 150. Drugs which are rarely used will be done away with. The list will be so that the doctors do not require to prescribe beyond this apart from emergency cases. The existing shortage of medicines will be sorted in another two weeks, said the official. An annual function at Delhi Universitys Deshbandhu College took a tragic turn after a huge light and speaker stand came crashing down on the stage, injuring at least one student. The Tuesday mishap took place when at least 10 students were on stage during a fashion show event. One of the students suffered serious injuries on face and knee after the giant stand fell on him. He is a student of BCom in Sri Aurobindo College. Some other students from his college had a narrow escape. The student was rushed to Fortis Hospital, principal Ajay K Arora told Deccan Herald. Luckily, nothing serious has happened to the student. He will go through a small medical procedure tomorrow, he said. The freak accident, which was caught on camera, shows a huge metal stand coming down heavily on the victim, when he was walking the ramp. The southeast Delhi college had outsourced work to an event management company. Following the incident, an FIR was lodged at the local Kalkaji Police Station for causing grievous hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others. Police on Wednesday told DH that it is pursuing the case. We were waiting for the fest to get over today. No one has been arrested so far, a police officer said. The college however, refused to comment on the alleged negligence by the event management firm. It will not be appropriate to comment on the incident since the case is now with the police, Arora said. According to him, the victim is yet to give his statement to police. Dozens of college annual fests are lined-up this February. According to the university officials, most of the DU colleges rope in with the help of event management companies to organise their fest. Lack of early diagnosis of cancer remains the major concern among doctors in treating cancer patients here. On World Cancer Day, doctors said screening for cancer will help bring down the burden of cancer. With early diagnosis among patients, minimal treatment is required and the best cure can be achieved for such patients. Screening for breast cancer, cervical cancer, oral cancer, colonic cancer, early detection will yield better results, said Dr Sunil Kumar, assistant professor, surgical oncology at Institute Rotary Cancer Hospital, AIIMS. The trends show that cervical cancer has been overtaken by breast cancer. Lung cancer and oral cavity cancer also continue to rise according to the data pool in the country, said Dr Kumar. The other threat in treating cancer is the lack of awareness among patients and doctors in detecting cancer early, said medical experts. Despite the best efforts, the rural population still does not have adequate access to cancer treatment and screening procedures. The awareness level needs to be raised, said Dr Kumar. Tobacco use accounts for 22 per cent of cancer deaths globally and is a leading cause of the disease in the South-East Asia Region, according to the World Health Organisation. We must create awareness about harmful effects of areca nut (supari) chewing. Areca nut chewing causes submucosal fibrosis where mouth shrinks and carries a high risk of oral cancer. People consider areca nut chewing as a healthy habit and use it as mouth freshener. The debate on pictorial warnings is also misplaced. We should have a 100 per cent anti-smoking display and messages on all cigarette packs, said Dr A K Dewan, Medical Director, Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute and Research Centre. Reducing the use of tobacco should be focussed on in the health sector. We need to improve access to cancer treatment and services across the care continuum. We also need to work towards developing and enforcing strong policies to reduce tobacco and alcohol use and reducing exposure to environmental carcinogens, said Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director, WHO, South-East Asia Region. Delhi Polices Special Cell has recovered a consignment of 50 sophisticated pistols of .32 bore along with 100 magazines from a man on Tuesday. Police said, the arrested person was taking the illegal weapons to supply them to criminals in Delhi and NCR region. After receiving information about the presence of a network of illegal weapons in Delhi and NCR areas, surveillance was mounted by police. Sources revealed that a person named Savinder Kumar, 33, is an active carrier and supplier of sophisticated illegal arms to criminals and he is using cherry-coloured Chevrolet car of Delhi for the smuggling of illegal fire arms. On Tuesday specific input was received that Savinder would be coming near Sarai Kale Khan for delivering a consignment of illegal pistols. A team of 14 police personnel was formed to apprehend the criminal, and a trap was laid at the vantage point of Sarai Kale Khan. A Chevrolet Aveo car, numbered DL-8CL-3202, was spotted by the police team. When the driver got down from the car, he was apprehended by the team. He was identified as Savinder Kumar. On his cursory search one pistol of 7.65 bore was recovered from his possession. Tried to hoodwink Initially, he tried to hoodwink police by stating that he was having only one weapon but when policemen searched the car, they found a cavity under the boot of the car, where they found 49 other pistols with two magazines inside each of the weapon. A case under Arms Act was registered at police station, Special Cell, Lodhi Colony. After Savinder was detained by police, he was subjected to sustained interrogation wherein he disclosed that in order to earn easy money he started supplying illegal pistols. He is involved in this illegal trade for the last 18 months and during this period he brought six consignments of illegal fire arms from Dhanbad, Jharkhand. New car For transporting the consignments he purchased a cherry-coloured Chevrolet Aveo car and got a special cavity made under the boot of the car. Till date, he claims to have delivered about 400 semi-automatic high quality illegal pistols in Delhi, NCR and Western UP. About a year ago he also started a manufacturing/assembling unit of illegal fire arms in his village with the help of a Dhanbad-based manufacturer. For this purpose raw material and workers were especially brought from Jharkhand. This unit was operational for about one month. Efforts are on to apprehend the other members of this network. Further investigation is in progress. The three mayors said in unison that the municipal corporations will treat the Rs 550 crore as grants under the Third Finance Commission not as loan. The Kejriwal government is giving conditional funds to the corporations for disbursing salaries. Civic agencies arent a charity case but it is their constitutional right to get funds from the city government under Third Finance Commission. The mayors also said they are ready for a CBI inquiry as demanded by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, if only a CBI probe will be conducted against corrupt government departments and its MLAs. Kejriwal government is providing conditional funds but it is not alms but a constitutional right of the Corporations under article 243. It is a political gimmick of AAP-led Delhi Government to trap the Corporations into a debt as the CM is eying 2017 municipal elections, the three Mayors said. They demanded the Delhi government to release funds as per the Third Finance Commission and implement the Fourth Delhi Finance Commission recommendations as any amount of loan granted will not provide a permanent solution. They also informed that in the last financial year, the corporations were able to pay salaries on time by leasing out a part of Civic Centre building to the Income Tax department that generated a revenue of about Rs 1,800 crore. On the statement of CM that advertisement department of the corporations can earn ten times the revenue it is generating now, the mayors said, The government is free to take over the department and should provide us that five times more revenue. Chairman Standing Committee North Delhi Municipal Corporation Mohan Bhardwaj strongly condemned the claim of the government that it has removed 80 per cent garbage from roads across the city. Chairperson Standing Committee of East Delhi Municipal Corporation termed it a bundle of lies as not even a single truck of garbage has been disposed at Bhalaswa or Narela Bawana landfill sites. Only 236.3 Metric Tonne has been lifted in 55 trips in the last three days from East Delhi area. The EDMC lifted 3455 Metric Tonne of garbage in 873 trips in the last few days, she added. Municipal commissioners of North and East Corporations appealed to the employees on strike to resume their duties as the municipalities are in the process releasing salaries to all the employees till January. But striking associations said they want a permanent solution to this mess. We wont settle for salaries this time. We want a permanent solution to the issue of funds and we think reunification of the three corporations is the real solution, said Rajender Mewati, general secretary of United Front of MCD Employees. Doctors at civic body-run hospitals decided to continue with their indefinite strike as they did not see the amount being released by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal as a loan of over Rs 550 crore for the two municipal corporations as a solution to their recurring problem. Municipal corporation doctors wrote to Kejriwal that the health services be taken over by the state government to resolve the issue of pending salaries permanently. Doctors urged that the government bail out the municipal corporations at the earliest so that patients are not inconvenienced. Government sources said if the state government takes over the municipal corporation hospitals, over Rs 800 crore will be saved, as per annual expenditure. It is sad that we have been forced to strike over the non-payment of salaries. We have urged the government for taking over the health services to resolve the issue. We are aware that patients are suffering and as doctors we do not want patients to be harassed due to strike. A permanent solution should be worked out, said Dr R R Gautam, president, Municipal Corporation Doctors Association (MCDA). However, the over Rs 550 crore amount being released for the North Delhi Municipal Corporation and East Delhi Municipal Corporation was seen as inadequate. The amount that has been promised by the Delhi government will cover the salaries till January. But our question is what next? We have been agitating for the last one year over irregular payments but no permanent solution has been offered to us. We have decided to continue with the strike till the issue is resolved, said Dr Maruti Sinha, secretary, Municipal Corporation Doctors Association (MCDA). The six major hospitals which are on strike since Saturday are the North Delhi Municipal Corporations Bara Hindu Rao Hospital, Maharishi Valmiki Infectious Diseases Hospital, Rajan Babu Institute of Pulmonary Medicine and Tuberculosis, Kasturba Hospital, Girdhari Lal Maternity Hospital and Balak Ram Hospital and the East Delhi Municipal Corporations Swami Dayanand Hospital. Patients continued to suffer for the fifth day on Wednesday as OPD services and routine admissions remained paralysed. Doctors attended to only critical patients at the emergency of the hospitals. Doctors, nurses and paramedics joined other municipal employees under the united front over pending salaries on Saturday. Stable patients were discharged from hospitals. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said he will turn himself over to British police tomorrow if a UN panel rules he has not been arbitrarily detained, after spending years in the Ecuadoran embassy in London. "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," he said in a statement today. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me." Assange has been holed up in the Ecuadoran embassy in west London for more than three years in a bid to avoid extradition to Sweden over rape allegations, a charge he has denied. The Australian WikiLeaks founder fears he could eventually face extradition to the US to be put on a trial over the leak of hundreds of thousands of classified military and diplomatic documents. In September 2014, he filed a complaint against Sweden and Britain to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention claiming his confinement in the embassy amounts to illegal detention. Any decision by the group would not be legally binding, but other people have reportedly been released in the past on the basis of its rulings. Hailing the signing of one of the biggest multinational trade deals in history, President Barack Obama today said the Trans Pacific Partnership deal will bolster US leadership abroad and give it an advantage over other leading economies like China. The US-led Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), which was signed by 12 countries in New Zealand, would bolster American leadership abroad and support good jobs at home, Obama said. "TPP will bolster our leadership abroad and support good jobs here at home," he said. "Right now, the rules of global trade too often undermine our values and put our workers and businesses at a disadvantage. TPP will change that. It eliminates more than 18,000 taxes that various countries put on Made in America products," Obama said. "It promotes a free and open internet and prevents unfair laws that restrict the free flow of data and information. It includes the strongest labour standards and environmental commitments in history and, unlike in past agreements, these standards are fully enforceable, the President said. "TPP allows America and not countries like China to write the rules of the road in the 21st century, which is especially important in a region as dynamic as the Asia-Pacific," he said. Obama asked lawmakers to enact the deal into law as soon as possible so that the American economy can immediately start benefiting from the tens of billions of dollars in new export opportunities. "We should get TPP done this year and give more American workers the shot at success they deserve and help more American businesses compete and win around the world," Obama said. Negotiated over five years, the TPP was signed by Brunei, Chile, New Zealand, Singapore, Australia, Canada, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, the US and Vietnam. It aims to break down trade and investment barriers between countries comprising about 40 per cent of the global economy. Meanwhile, business leaders welcomed the deal. "We welcome the signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement, which presents a tremendous opportunity for American workers, farmers and businesses and for the entire US economy," said Doug Oberhelman, chairman and CEO of Caterpillar Inc and Chairman of Business Roundtable. "We continue to call on Congress and the Administration to quickly address the remaining industry issues to ensure the agreement provides maximum benefit, which will also enable greater likelihood of congressional approval this year," he said. "By opening markets and addressing long-standing and newer trade challenges for US businesses, farmers and workers, TPP will support much-needed US economic growth and the millions of American jobs tied to trade," said Tom Linebarger, chairman and CEO of Cummins Inc. Meanwhile, l35 leading public health and medical groups asked Congress to support a TPP provision that protects life-saving tobacco control measures from tobacco industry legal attacks under the agreement. Senator Sherrod Brown said while signing may be a victory for the corporations who negotiated this deal behind closed doors, it is a major loss for American workers. "TPP must still be approved by Congress. When TPP has its day on the Senate floor, I will do all I can to block this agreement, which will hurt workers in my state and across the country," he said. Several lawmakers including Tulsi Gabbard, Rosa DeLauro, Louise Slaughter, and Debbie Dingell joined AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka and representatives from MoveOn and the Sierra Club to oppose the TPP. "The American people have been left out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership from the very beginning and it shows in the resulting agreement. If this deal is enacted, the American people will be left behind as corporations benefit," Gabbard said. The 10 Army personnel, including an officer, who were buried under a mass of snow after being hit by an avalanche yesterday at a high-altitude post on Siachen Glacier in Jammu and Kashmir, have died. Army and IAF tried hard since yesterday to rescue the soldiers -- a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) and nine other ranks of Madras Regiment -- after their post was hit by the avalanche at the altitude of 19,000 feet close to the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan. Specialised teams with modern equipment, flown to Leh this morning, were also pressed into service along with sniffer dogs but all efforts to rescue them failed. "Demise of soldiers in Siachen is very tragic. I salute the brave soldiers who gave their lives to the nation. Condolences to their families," Prime Minister Narendra said, confirming the fears about their fate. "It is a tragic event and we salute the soldiers who braved all challenges to guard our frontiers and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty," said Lt Gen DS Hooda, Army Commander, Northern Command, in a message. Defence PRO based in Northern Command Col S D Goswami earlier said in statement in Jammu that "Rescue teams are braving adverse weather and effects of rarified atmosphere to locate and rescue survivors. However, it is with deepest of regrets that we have to state that chances of finding any survivors are now very remote." The glaciated area presents temperatures ranging from a minimum of minus 42 degrees Celsius in the night to maximum of minus 25 degrees C during the day. Heavy snow cutters and special equipment were used to clear and cut the ice blocks, as Army and IAF teams battled harsh weather conditions and difficult terrain to trace the missing soldiers. Col Goswami said blocks of snow had fallen on the post, burying it very deep. "To clear the same is a very difficult task", he said earlier in the day, adding that "building on yesterday's efforts, a very large rescue team has been deployed today to reach down till the post". Interestingly, Pakistan offered help in the rescue operation which was turned down by India. Pakistan's DGMO Maj Gen Amir Riaz called up his Indian counterpart Lt Gen Ranbir Singh earlier in the day to offer help, Army sources said. Lt Gen Singh declined the offer, saying adequate resources have already been put in place. The sources said such calls are routine whenever any mishap happens near the border. "We thanked them for the gesture but since our resources and teams are well placed and adequate, we have said that presently we don't require any help," the sources said. Jammu and Kashmir Governor N N Vohra spoke to Gen Hooda to convey his heartfelt sympathy to the bereaved families over the "tragic loss" of lives. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar also condoled the death of the soldiers. "My heartfelt condolences to the near and dear ones of our brave soldiers who were martyred in the line of duty in the most difficult terrain of Siachen," he said in Delhi. The Minister said it is the duty of the country to take care of their families. In another round of provocative remarks, JuD chief and Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed has warned India of more terror attacks. "You have only seen one attack on Pathankot. Matters could easily escalate," he said addressing a rally in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) group chief alleged that Indian troops were committing "genocide" on Kashmiris and added "don't they have a right to carry out Pathankot-style attacks for their defence?" Saeed, in the rally yesterday, also lauded Kashmiri militant leader Syed Salahuddin, who heads the United Jihad Council (UJC) that had claimed responsibility for the January 2 terror attack on the Indian Air Force base in Pathankot. Last month, Saeed had appeared on a private Pakistani channel's talk show despite Pakistan government's ban on the media coverage of militant groups like the JuD and LeT. Saeed made an appearance on a talk show on Channel 24 on January 27. He glorified his organisation's "public welfare" works and talked about how India and the US were "pressuring" the Pakistani government to take action against organisations like the JuD and Jaish-e-Mohammad, which is believed to be behind the Pathankot attack. Referring to the Pathankot terror attack, Saeed had dismissed the suggestion that the government was "patronising" some "non-state actors and banned organisations". The UN declared JuD a terror organisation and also individually designated Saeed as a terrorist in December 2008. The US has already put a USD 10 million bounty on his head. Saeed, who orchestrated the November, 2008, Mumbai terror attack in which 166 people were killed, roams around freely in Pakistan despite being a designated terrorist and has made many anti-India remarks and speeches. Men, take note! Women tend to send 'weak signals' rather than making the first move when it comes to online dating, researchers, including those of Indian-origin, have found. "Women don't like to send personal messages to initiate contact," said Jui Ramaprasad, an assistant professor at McGill University's Desautels Faculty of Management. In other words, "we still see that women don't make the first move," she said. Instead, they tend to send what the researchers call a "weak signal." Weak signalling is the ability to visit, or 'check out,' a potential mate's profile so the potential mate knows the focal user visited, researchers said. In a large-scale experiment conducted through a major North American online dating website, researchers examined the impact of a premium feature: anonymous browsing. Out of 100,000 randomly selected new users, 50,000 were given free access to the feature for a month, enabling them to view profiles of other users without leaving telltale digital traces. Compared to the control group, users with anonymous browsing viewed more profiles. They were also more likely to check out potential same-sex and interracial matches. However, users who browsed anonymously also wound up with fewer matches (defined as a sequence of at least three messages exchanged between users) than their non-anonymous counterparts. This was especially true for female users: those with anonymous browsing wound up with an average of 14 per cent fewer matches. "The offline 'flirting' equivalents, at best, would be a suggestive look or a preening bodily gesture such as a hair toss to one side or an over-the-shoulder glance, each subject to myriad interpretations and possible misinterpretations contingent on the perceptiveness of the players involved," researchers said. "Much less ambiguity exists in the online environment if the focal user views another user's profile and leaves a visible train in his 'Recent Visitors' list," they said. "Men send four times the number of messages that women do," said Akhmed Umyarov, an assistant professor at the University of Minnesota's Carlson School of Management. "So the anonymity feature doesn't change things so much for men," said Umyarov. Experiments of this sort could be used in a range of online-matching platforms to help understand how to improve the consumer experience though it's important that the experiments be done ethically, researchers said. "Even though people are willing to pay to become anonymous in online dating sites, we find that the feature is detrimental to the average users," said Professor Ravi Bapna, the Carlson Chair in Business Analytics and Information Systems at Minnesota. Canada's first Sikh Defence Minister Harjit Sajjan has been heckled in Parliament with an opposition member shouting that MPs needed an "English-to- English" translation as he spoke, an act dubbed as "racist". Veteran Conservative MP Jason Kenney sparked a controversy in the question period in Parliament with the heckle directed at Sajjan while the minister was responding about the military mission against the Islamic State. Kenney, a former defence minister himself, said MPs needed an "English to English" translation of Sajjan's responses. 45-year-old Sajjan was in November named Canada's Defence Minister as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's 30-member Liberal cabinet was sworn in. He is a combat veteran and has served in Bosnia and had three deployments to Kandahar, Afghanistan. He was born in India and moved to Canada with his family when he was five-years-old. Sajjan's fellow Liberals were quick to pounce on Kenney, describing his heckling on Monday as racist, the Huffington Post Canada reported. After question period, Liberal Kevin Lamoureux rose on a point of order asking Kenney to apologise for an "inappropriate comment" directed at the Defence Minister. Lamoureux charged that Kenney "stated from across his seat that we need to have English-to-English translation" while Sajjan was speaking. "I'm wondering if the member would do the proper thing and apologise or at the very least explain his comments," Lamoureux was quoted as saying. Indian-origin Liberal MP Ruby Sahota did not mince words, calling Kenney's refusal to apologise "unacceptable." "Shame on @jkenney for his racist remarks during today's qp toward #harjitsajjan. His refusal to apologise is unacceptable," she tweeted. Kenney rejected calls to apologise in the House of Commons. Later, he took to Twitter to explain why he made the comment, saying he found the minister's answer "totally incoherent." Another Indian-origin MP Raj Grewal said, "Kenney should apologise for his comments in question period today when Harjit Sajjan was speaking." Kenney responded to Grewal, saying he respects Sajjan -- "a fine, intelligent man" -- and featured him as "a role model in the Discover Canada Citizenship guide" when he served as immigration minister. "Unfortunately, I find his answers on ending combat against ISIS to be at best unpersuasive (and) at worst incoherent," Kenney wrote, adding he was sorry if his comment was "misconstrued in any way." Britain today said it will arrest Wikileaks founder Julian Assange if he leaves the Ecuadorean Embassy here, where he is holed up since June 2012 to avoid a European arrest warrant against him over allegations of rape in Sweden. "An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European arrest warrant in place, so the UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Assange to Sweden," a UK government spokesperson said. The UK government statement comes a day ahead of a ruling by the UN' Working Group on Arbitrary Detention on whether the time the 44-year-old Australian national spent inside the Embassy amounts to illegal detention. While, no official announcement has been made by the UN panel, the BBC reported that it understands the decision has been made in Assange's favour. Earlier, Assange had promised to surrender to the police if the UN panel rules that the three years he was holed up inside the Embassy does not amount to illegal detention. In a statement issued by Wikileaks on Twitter, he said: "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the UK and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday (February 5) to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and termination of further attempts to arrest me." Assange was granted political asylum by the Ecuador government in 2012. In 2014, he complained to the UN that he was being "arbitrarily detained" as he could not leave without being arrested. The UK Foreign Office, on the other hand, claimed Assange had voluntarily avoided lawful detention, saying it still had an obligation to extradite him. Scotland Yard also said the arrest warrant against Assange remains in place and he is likely to be arrested if he decides to step out of his hideout. Assange sought political asylum at the embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden as he feared being transported to the US to be quizzed over the activities of WikiLeaks that caused considerable harm to the US foreign policy interests. He is wanted for questioning in Sweden over rape and sex assault allegations against two women, which he has always denied. Last month, it emerged that Assange will be questioned by Swedish authorities over the allegations at his Ecuadorean embassy hideout in London. A delegation of agitating sanitation workers also met Jung at his residence and termed the amount offered by the AAP government as "insufficient". Tomorrow, they will be meeting the LG again. Besides releasing the loan of Rs 551 crore, the government has also disbursed the Rs 142 crore to the North Delhi Municipal Corporation as sought by it by way of stamp duty last week, a government official said. The associations of doctors and teachers said that a final call about continuing the strike will be taken after consulting the leaders of United Front of MCD Employees. "We have heard about the notices to resume work but we are agitating for a permanent solution which is yet to achieved and so our strike continues," said Rajesh Mishra, president of United Front of MCD Employees. Municipal authorities today warned striking workers to resume duty with "immediate effect" or face action as piles of garbage mounted and services at hospitals and MCD schools continued to be affected.The mayors of the civic bodies met Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and sought over Rs 300 crore to pay February-March salaries of the employees as the strike over non-payment of dues entered its ninth day.In its orders, commissioners of East and North municipal corporations, directed all their employees to resume their duty with immediate effect, be it any department viz engineering, health, sanitation, education, general administration, horticulture, etc.NDMC commissioner PK Gupta also warned that names of those who do not resume duty will be forwarded to the High Court for creating "nuisance" and accordingly for fixation of civil and criminal liability.Taking a defiant stand, the sanitation workers said they will continue the agitation till a "permanent solution" is reached at in ensuring timely payment of salaries and dues.Sisodia met Lt governor Najeeb Jung in the afternoon and briefed him on the steps announced by the government, including its decision to extend Rs 551 crore loan, by bringing "cuts" in the budget allocated for education.After meeting the mayors at the Delhi Secretariat, Sisodia tweeted, "They have assured me that they are making all efforts to get the striking employees back to work."The Deputy CM, in-charge of day-to-day governance in the absence of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal who is on a medical leave, also wrote to city Home Minister Satyender Jain asking him to examine the "functional and legal" feasibilities of taking over the health service of the MCDs.An MCD doctor's association has written to Kejriwal in this regard and has also sought impleadment in the ongoing case in the Delhi High Court involving the MCDs and the Delhi government.South Delhi mayor Subhash Arya told Sisodia that the MCDs will accept the loan "as an instalment of Rs 3,000 crore" yet to be paid by the government."Sisodia said he will talk to the LG and CM for the release of additional Rs 307 crore to North and East municipal corporations," North Delhi mayor Ravinder Gupta said.A government official indicated that the amount will be released for the purpose of paying the salaries of the workers as Kejriwal has already stated that he will ensure that all the employees get their dues till the time elections are held to the civic bodies. North Korea is great at making news. Given that it is the only country to test nuclear weapons in this century, it does not have to try too hard. Just as the world was getting over the euphoria of ringing in the New Year, North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test on January 6, 2016. The nuclear test created an earthquake with a seismic magnitude of 4.85 on the Richter scale and was immediately detected by the seismic monitoring stations of the Preparatory Commission of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Organisations (CTBTO). Pyongyang claimed that it had successfully tested a small H-bomb. If true, a successful test of a thermonuclear device signals a significant augmentation of the North Korean nuclear arsenal. A first cut analysis of the seismic data points to the likelihood that North Korea tested a fission device. A thermonuclear test will generally result in a much larger earthquake with magnitude measuring over 6.3 on the Richter scale. Definitive proof about the device tested will be available in the next few weeks following analysis of the fission products released by the nuclear test by the CTBTOs radionuclide monitoring stations located in South Korea, Japan, China and Russia. However, given the difficulty in detecting Xenon and Argon, it may not be easy to conclusively establish whether a thermonuclear device was actually tested. North Korea is not in Indias immediate neighbourhood. In a sense therefore the test does not pose an immediate danger to India. However, North Koreas missile and nuclear weapon proliferation record is worrisome to say the least. This concern arises from the strong historical links between North Korea and Pakistan in the areas of nuclear weapons and missiles. Pyongyang is known to have transferred missile and nuclear technologies to Pakistan, Iran, Egypt, Libya and Syria. There is hard evidence to establish clear links between Pakistan and North Korea in the area of missiles. Analysis by Bengalurus National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) of the liquid-fuelled North Korean Nodong missile and the Pakistan Ghauri missile clearly establishes that Ghauri is an exact copy of the Nodong missile. In recent years, Pakistan has been actively pursuing the plutonium path for miniaturising its nuclear warheads for fitting them into various tactical missiles. However, since Islamabad tested only uranium fuelled weapons in 1998, its claims of miniaturising a nuclear warhead to fit on its Nasr battlefield missile lacks credibility. Keeping these facts in mind, one way to interpret the North Korean tests is to view them as surrogate tests conducted by North Korea for Pakistan. By sharing its test data with Pakistan, it may be able to contribute in a significant way to the Pakistani miniaturisation programme for its battlefield nuclear weapons. This will also make Pakistani claims of a successful miniaturisation programme more credible to the international community and to India. The North Korean nuclear programme is intrinsically linked to the continued survival of the Kim dynastic rule. As far as the timing of January 2016 nuclear test goes, domestic politics holds the key. The January nuclear test is in the run-up to the seventh Congress of the Workers Party of Korea slated to be held in May 2016 and provides an opportunity to ruler Kim Jong-Un to strengthen his hold over the countrys political and military leadership. Repeated testing and analysis of the data gathered from the tests is crucial for carrying out improvements in any technology. With four nuclear tests, three of which were successful, North Korea will be in a much better position to begin miniaturisation of its nuclear warheads. With a modification of the three-stage Unha-3 space launch vehicle into a long-range ballistic missile, North Korea will be able to fit a 1000 kg nuclear warhead on the missile. Warhead capacity Analysis carried out by the Quo Vadis trajectory software developed at NIAS brings out the fact that such a missile can carry out a nuclear strike on Alaska and parts of northern Canada. Further reduction of the weight of the warhead to 800 kg will enable the missile to target parts of western United States including California. International responses to the North Korean nuclear and missile programme have been weak and ineffective. The Obama administration has largely ignored developments in North-East Asia given its focus on the Iranian nuclear programme, American withdrawal from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and more recently on the crises engulfing West Asia. This has left China with a more important role in defusing the crisis. Beijing has historically looked at Pyongyang as a buffer state and as a lever to exercise its influence over the China-Korea-US trilateral relationship. China has been reluctant to support any strong sanctions by the United Nations Security Council because of its fears that such actions could hasten the collapse of the Kim regime and result in influx of millions of refugees across the North Korea-Chinese borders. The test however casts serious doubts on Chinas ability to control its recalcitrant neighbour. This weakening of its position may make China more amenable for stronger international action against North Korea. The growing North Korean nuclear and missile capabilities have raised hackles in Seoul and Tokyo and could well result in an arms race in the Korean peninsula. In case North Korea develops the capability to target the American mainland in the next few years, South Korea and Japan will begin to have doubts about American extended deterrence in East Asia. It is therefore crucial that the international community moves beyond its usual round of statements criticising the North Korea nuclear test and takes hard measures, beginning with strong economic sanctions, which could make Pyongyang come to the negotiating table. New Delhi needs to monitor the development closely for links between North Korea and Pakistan given that the relationship could adversely affect Indias security. (The writers are faculty members, National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bengaluru) Eight months ago, on one of my first visits to the village of Peepli Khera (near Meerut in Uttar Pradesh), I saw a scene that captivated me, the way a character in a novel can sometimes captivate me. I was writing about a village that had bitterly split over the question of whether women should be allowed to work in factories. Seven women who refused to quit their jobs had been made outcasts. I had been sitting with their neighbours, who were passing on terrible rumours about the women. I was taking notes. As this was happening, one of the outcast women, Geeta, strode into the circle with her chin up, fiercely. She said, loud enough for the whole village to hear, We will not apologise. I had been in the village long enough to recognise the powerful force of collective punishment; there were times when I was interviewing a woman about the factory dispute and, mid-sentence, she would change her answer and begin to voice the opposite view, just because one of the village elders had walked into earshot. But Geeta, the leader of the band of outcasts, was not afraid. I could not understand it. I had driven to Peepli Khera from New Delhi after reading an article about the womens rebellion there. I realised quickly that it would be virtually impossible to do my job. As an outsider, a white person from the United States, I created a frenzy every time I set foot in the village. When I arrived to do interviews, an older man would be fetched, someone with the authority to speak to me. Someone would drag over a chair, an honour reserved for dignitaries or bureaucrats. And those I wanted to speak with, the women, would slide down to the ground, which was the only place they could sit when older men were present, or disappear into the dark interior spaces where they did their chores. It was like trying to interview a ball of mercury. The idea of exploring the subject of women and their place in economy came to me in a roundabout way. When I was preparing to move to India, a savage gang rape had transfixed the country, and the media narratives were about sexual violence. Rape is an incendiary topic in this country, though the incidence of reported rapes remains a fraction of what it is in the United States. A warning seemed to run through these stories: A woman ventures outside the protected space of her home and family, and something unspeakable befalls her. I found myself more interested in the reverse of that story: What kept the women inside in the first place? How did women spend their lives? At this point, I delved into shocking statistics. Despite Indias prolonged economic expansion, the percentage of women in the workforce remains dismally low and it is dropping. Over 70 per cent of women say they have to ask permission from a parent, husband or in-law if they want to go out to a clinic or to see a friend. Peepli Khera seemed like a good place to learn why this state of affairs had persisted. Life there was being rearranged in tangible ways by economic growth specifically, a booming meat export industry. In the summer, the increase in female employment had erupted into a raw power struggle, with the conservative male caste leaders demanding that the women quit. I thought we the photographer, Andrea Bruce; the interpreter, Ravi Mishra; and I would merely plant ourselves there and watch them duke it out. This was easier said than done. In the end, we made nine reporting trips to the village, arriving before dawn and staying until late at night. We collected firewood with the women, accompanied them as they went looking for work, and tagged along on court dates. We spent so much time there that the villagers began to regard us with sincere pity. Then they began to ignore us. This is when the work began to bear fruit. We became professional eavesdroppers. Four months in, we were in the village for a series of tense, clamorous late-night meetings, in which the elders grudgingly decreed that the women could return to work. Humiliated, shrunken That night, the headman, Roshan, pushed us out with his hands pressed against our backs; later he admitted that he did not want us to witness violence. We returned to New Delhi and learned that a group of villagers had assaulted Geeta and her friends, also leaving her husband badly injured. We returned to find our subjects utterly changed unhurt for the most part, but humiliated and shrunken. One teenage girl never forgave us for failing to protect her. In real life, stories do not have crisp endings, and the battle in Peepli Khera was no different: When we returned this month, it looked as if Geeta and her friends had gotten much of what they had wanted. They had held on to their jobs and avoided begging for forgiveness or paying a fine. Roshan was very sick, apparently with tuberculosis, and carried out long, expletive-laced conversations with the goddess Kali. How are you coming? Are you coming on a horse cart? Are you coming on the wind? he said to the goddess, then paused for her response. After a moment had passed, he remarked, They can go to hell. Geeta, meanwhile, is rebuilding her house - a full story above street level so she can look out over her neighbours roofs. I started to explain that the article was being published, but she was busy collecting a debt for the lending collective and had no time to talk. Ill say to her face, bring her in front of me and Ill say it to her face two months have passed and she will have to give the money up, she snapped into her phone. She waved goodbye every inch the cheerful, ruthless village power broker. That is the last image I had of her. Padmashree award-winning social activist Dr Sunitha Krishnan expressed a need for speedy justice delivery in cases pertaining to sexual assault cases of women. Speaking at a programme organised by School of Social Work, Roshni Nilaya, on Thursday, she said, Perpetrators of crimes should be convicted within a specific time frame. Delivering speedy justice is more important than the quantum of punishment. Crimes of rape should be looked at separately. Also, there should be a community alert system which permits display the photo of the culprits of sexual assault cases. Stating that sex trade is a social evil and also an organised crime, Krishnan said that 88 per cent of the sex workers are into the trade by force only the remaining 12 go by choice. Also, victims of sexual assault are treated as criminals although they are innocent. Society considers it a taboo to speak about sex workers. Funds of Rs 100 crore have been sanctioned by the Central government for the setting up of an Organised Crime Investigative Agency. The move of the government has come in the wake of the directions of the Supreme Court. A legislation against human trafficking is also being framed, she said. The problem of NGOs that work to ensure rehabilitation of sex workers is that there are no committed social work graduates to work with them. The lack of funds is another important reason, she rued. Rescue operations too have legal bindings and rescue teams have to follow security protocol. They cannot take the police, as their work is to rescue the sex workers and not carry out interrogation, explained Krishnan. On her being selected for Padmashree award, she said it was an acknowledgment for the work undertaken for sex workers and victims of sexual assault, who comprise the marginalised and excluded group. The award is also an indication that she is on the right path, she said. About Sunita Krishnan Born and raised in Bengaluru, Krishnan completed her graduation at School of Social Work, Roshni Nilaya in Mangaluru. She later went to Bengaluru and involved herself in movements in support of the rights of sex workers and against human trafficking. She was even jailed for protesting against a beauty pageant in Bengaluru. Owing to circumstances, she had to leave to Hyderabad. With the money collected from the sale of ornaments donated by sex workers, she rented a room for the rehabilitation of sex workers and their children. The organisation Prajwala came into being and, today, it is the biggest rehabilitation centre for sex workers and their children, in the world. There are 18 branches of Prajwala. The organisation has 250 staff among whom, 50 per cent are survival staff. So far, Prajwala has prevented 8,000 children from entering prostitution and during the last 20 years 15,600 girls were saved from prostitution, Sunita said. The organisation has filed Public Interest Litigations against various state governments, including Kerala and Telangana. Traumatic experiences of physical attacks, threats etc, have kept me going, she said. Krishnan was awarded doctorate for her thesis titled Study on Commercial Sex Workers. She has also produced several films in various languages, including Naa Bangaru Talli in Telugu, which has won national and international awards. Sunita Krishnan, who is also the alumna of Roshni Nilaya was honoured on the occasion. Deputy Commissioner A B Ibrahim has said that 16 teams have been formed for the effective implementation of Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act. The teams will keep a tab on the working of the scanning centres and hospitals in the district and check whether sex determination tests are being conducted during pregnancy. The teams should visit these centres twice in a month, instructed the officer. Speaking at a meeting, he said the teams should also diligently maintain the needed documents and follow the statutory requirements. Finding violation cases The focus should be on cases related to termination of pregnancy. The teams will visit hospitals where the number of termination of pregnancy is high and then find out where the scanning was done for the women. If any instance of violation of Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act is noticed, then action will be initiated against both, the hospital and the scanning centres, warned Ibrahim. The DC said that the teams should also look into the scanning centres that have been operating without permission from the authority concerned and submit a detailed report to the district administration on the illegally operated scanning centres along with the machineries used at the centres. The decision to form 16 teams was taken following a meeting chaired by Ibrahim to discuss ways to check the decline in sex ratio among children below six years of age in the district. The teams will include the district health officer, the women and child welfare deputy director, the surgeon of the district Wenlock Hospital, the resident medical officer, the Superintendent of Lady Goschen Hospital, the taluk medical officers, officials from various departments and members of NGOs. Report on statistics District Health Officer Dr Ramakrishna Rao said that the Mangaluru City Corporation officials, officials from the town municipal councils and taluk panchayats will submit a report on the number of private hospitals, clinics and scanning centres operating within their jurisdictions. In Form 1, the officials have to write the names of the nursing homes, addresses and the number of beds in the hospital. In Form 2, they have write the names of the scanning centres, the owners names, the addresses, and the number of scanning machineries at the centres, explained the officer. During a press meet later, the deputy commissioner said that the ratio of 947 girls for 1,000 boys in the age group below six years in the district as per 2011-12 census was a matter of concern. The prevailing system has failed to monitor the activities of scanning centres. Hence, 16 teams have been formed, he explained. The 16 teams have been empowered to conduct sting operations to record the evidences on violation of PCPNDT Act, the DC added. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday sought foreign investment for Indias road, port, railways and energy sectors that require an estimated Rs 31 lakh crore in the next five years for their facelift. Launching Indias first sovereign wealth fund called National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) here, Jaitley said that India presented a unique opportunity for several such funds from Canada, the US, the UK, Singapore and the UAE. He also held closed-door discussions with several potential investors including European investment banks and the Abu Dhabi investment authority. His meeting with foreign investment and pension funds came amid the buzz that the government was persuing some of them for long-term risk capital to finance Indias stalled infra projects and tackle the non-performing assets of banks. The essence of NIIF is that it can leverage and bring a lot of money into the infrastructure sector. With the kind of response that we have been getting from our interaction with various funds, I have the confidence that in the coming years, say 2016-17 and thereafter, NIIF will emerge as a major vehicle in the infrastructure sector in the country, Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das said. Sources in the Finance Ministry are of the view that one of the most important elements of dealing with large NPAs is to have a source of long-term stable equity risk capital that can get into some of the stalled projects, and be able to provide the equity support that they need. This will also help banks clean up their balance sheets. The Reserve Bank of India has been urging banks to clean up their balance sheets, including accounting for potential stressed assets. According to RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, this exercise is intended to put key stalled projects back on track. One of the major concerns of foreign funds before they start investing in India, is regulatory clarity. YouTube channelfor Fin Min also Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today launched the official YouTube channel of the Ministry with a view to disseminate information on a real-time basis. "Both at the ministerial level as well as at the level of secretaries and officials, there are a series of announcements and explanations with regard to where we stand in terms of the economy," he said after launching the platform. "Therefore a platform where this entire material should be available...Our officers will continue to keep updating information and material almost on the real time basis," he added. The initiative will help in disseminating information and activities easily to outside world through videos. Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis one-day visit to Assam, the situation in upper regions turned volatile on Thursday. While a newly formed militant group opened fire at two different places in Tinsukia district on Wednesday night and issued threats to adivasis, ethnic groups like the Morans and the Muttocks, who have been asking for ST status, have called for a bandh during the prime ministers visit. The Assam Police sounded a red alert as Modi is to visit Dibrugarh where he will inaugurate the Assam Gas Cracker Project at Lepetkatta on February 5. The Morans have been demanding ST status for a long time and they have called for a 48-hour Assam bandh from February 4 starting from 5 am. The community on Thursday held protest rallies at some areas in Tinsukia district. We are demanding Schedule Tribe status for our community for a long time and for three times a discussion was held with the central government, but it failed to meet our genuine demand, said Arunjyoti Moran, President of All Assam Moran Students Union. Meanwhile, thousands of adivasis, also known as tea tribes of Assam, took out massive rallies in Tinsukia to protest the attacks. Assam Police sources said two firing incidents rocked the district one aimed at former Congress MLA Durga Bhumijs residence in Doomdooma. The second incident occurred at Ultapool under Digboi police station. With dust hardly settling on the suspension of five UoH students that led to a dalit scholars suicide, Hyderabad is bracing for a similar confrontation at one more prestigious varsity campus. Authorities of English and Foreign Languages University (Eflu) have suspended 11 students and cancelled hostel admissions to eight of them. In a statement here on Thursday, Eflu Students Union called for a protest against the disciplinary action taken on them for holding a mass agitation way back in October. The protest will be marked by a series of peaceful rallies and cultural events objecting the apparent silence of democratic rights at the varsity through show-cause notices and disciplinary actions, while also condemning delays in holding the Students Union elections. The University took action against 11 students on November 5, accusing them of inciting violence on campus and engaging in anti-university activities. The varsity cancelled hostel admissions of eight students and reprimanded three of them, besides suspending the fellowships of four PhD scholars. It restricted entry to three of the students to the campus, allowing them between 9 am and 6 pm. The statement said the suspended students were not even summoned before the Proctorial Board that acted against them and no proof was furnished for their alleged crimes. With the varsity authorities not addressing their grievances, the students have decided to sleep in the open from Thursday. Union Ministers Prakash Javadekar and Piyush Goyal were among the passengers stranded at the Cochin International Airport on Thursday after the pilot assigned to fly the aircraft failed to turn up. The passengers had already been issued their boarding passes in a Jet Airways flight from Kochi to Mumbai, scheduled for a departure at 4.10 pm, when the airline announced that the pilot was not available. The airline announced a delay of over two hours. While Goyal stayed back and travelled in the same flight which took off at 6.15 pm, Javadekar left to New Delhi in another flight, sources in the airport said. More details about the pilots absence are awaited, the sources said. We have formally sought an explanation from the airline in connection with the incident, a spokesperson for the Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) told Deccan Herald. A Nagpur court on Thursday rejected grounds of leniency and sentenced two youths to death for the 2014 kidnapping and killing of a minor in Nagpur. Principal District and Sessions Judge Kishore Sonowane of the Nagpur court awarded capital punishment to Rajesh Dhanalal Daware (21) and his friend Arvind Abhilash Singh (25) for kidnapping and killing eight-year-old Yug Chandak on September 1, 2014. The accused, who are B Com students, were given a fine of Rs 15,000 each. The duo were convicted under IPC sections 364 (a) (kidnapping for ransom), 302 (murder), 201 (destruction of evidence) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy). Daware's 17-year old younger brother who assisted the accused in the conspiracy was already referred to Juvenile Remand Board (JJB). Protests The murder sparked off protests in Nagpur with people taking out candle light marches and campaigning on social media. "Close scrutiny of evidence against you proved that your identity was known to the child. You betrayed his trust for seeking revenge on his parents and mercilessly killed him out of greed for becoming rich, Judge Sonawane said reading out the verdict. You then buried his body near nullah at Patansawangi and placed a big stone on it. This all proves your cruel mentality...didn't' happened in spur of the moment, neither there was any provocation, the judge continued. It was, in fact, a deliberate and well-planned conspiracy hatched after thoughtful process that led to killing of an innocent child." About 26 injuries were found on Yug's body, including those on the neck. None of the 50 witnesses examined by the prosecution turned hostile. Additional Public Prosecutor Jyoti Vajani, Chandak family's counsel Rajendra Daga and Investigation Officer (IO) from Lakadganj Police Station Satyanarayan Jaiswal, had appeared before the court. A district court in Bengal on Thursday sentenced 11 people to death, including a former Trinamool Congress leader, for murdering a woman to grab her land in November 2014. The guilty verdict in the case, one of the fastest disposals in recent times, was passed on Wednesday and the quantum of punishment was announced on Thursday. Aparna Bag, the 38-year-old housewife, was killed when she tried to prevent the men from grabbing her land in November 23, 2014 at Krishnaganj in Nadia district, around 120 km from Kolkata. Aparna was shot to death when she tried to stop the men from taking over her land. The men were led by prime accused Lankeshwar Ghosh, who claimed to be a Trinamool leader. Trinamool leadership, however, denied Ghoshs claim and said he was not a member of the party. Besides Lankeshwar, others sentenced to death include Palash Ghosh, Sanat Ghosh, Shyamal Ghosh, Jhantu Ghosh, Goutam Ghosh, Paresh Ghosh, Joydeb Ghosh, Nepal Ghosh, Rajkumar Ghosh, and Basu Ghosh. All men were found guilty of murder under Section 302 of the India Penal Code, besides Sections 27 and 35 of the Arms Act and Section 9B of the Explosives Act. The police said that a manhunt is on for Manabesh Biswas, an accused who has been absconding since 2014. Aparna was killed when Ghosh and his gang tried to take control of the land, originally owned by the state refugee & refugee rehabilitation department. The 55 families that inhabit the land migrated from Bangladesh in 1971 and have been tilling it for decades. They claimed ownership via land deeds they had received from the government. On the morning of November 23, 2014, Ghosh and his men arrived on a tractor and tried to capture the land by force. When they faced resistance from the inhabitant families, they opened fire, injuring three women and a youth. Bag, who sustained bullet injuries to her chest and head, was taken to the district in Nadia, but was declared dead on arrival. The other two women who suffered injuries, Shyamali Tarafdar and Latika Tarafdar, along with 19-year-old Rajiv Mondal, recovered after surgeries. Local resident Dipankar Biswas lodged a formal complaint against 12 men but only 11 were arrested. The deceaseds daughters, Devika and Nilima, served as prime witnesses in the case. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday met Urban Development Minister Venkiah Naidu to complain against the selection of 20 smart cities which included none from Bihar. He sought changes in the selection parameters and inclusion of all the state capitals, including Patna. Kumar said all the 100 cities selected in stage-1 of Smart Cities Mission should get resource support from the first year. Nitish has written a letter to Naidu which says that there were policy infirmities in implementing centrally-sponsored schemes, including Smart Cities Mission and Swachh Bharat Mission. The letter states,Twenty cities were perfunctorily selected nationally, wherein none of the cities in Bihar were chosen. Kumar has lamented that parameters like regional imbalance, gaps in institutional capabilities and variation in current levels of development have not been taken into account. The exercise will widen the regional imbalance as the selected cities have relatively better infrastructure and strong institutions, he added. The Centre had to drop its proposal to curtail the Budget session in view of Assembly elections as it ran into a wall of protest by the Opposition parties on Thursday. The three-month long Budget session will begin on February 23 and continue till May 13 with a five-week recess for examination of the Budgetary proposals of the government by Parliamentary Standing Committees. President Pranab Mukherjee will address a joint sitting of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on February 23. The Railway Budget will be presented on February 25, the Economic Survey the following day. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will present the General Budget on February 29. In view of the elections to four states and one Union Territory the government was mulling scrapping the recess and concluding the session in one stretch by March end. This was opposed by political parties at an informal all-party meeting convened by Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu. We did not want any reduction in the sittings of the Houses or a session without a recess. The absence of a recess hurts the standing committee system, Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad told reporters. Soon after the all party meeting, the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs finalised the dates of the session and sent the recommendation to Mukherjee. The first part of Budget Session will end on March 16 and the second part will be convened from April 25 to May 13, Naidu told reporters. CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechury, who attended the all-party meeting, favoured a fixed calendar for Parliament sessions to remove any confusion. The Election Commission will then decide the dates for elections knowing when Parliament is sitting. The prime minister will also know about the sittings and will remain in House and not be abroad, he said. Earlier, Naidu had written to leaders of political parties in Parliament on the possibility of curtailing the Budget session to accommodate hectic campaign schedules of political leaders for the elections in Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Assam, Kerala and Puducherry. As the Union Home Ministry and the National Commission for Women sought reports from the Karnataka government on the assault on a Tanzanian woman in Bengaluru, the BJP on Thursday questioned Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhis silence. Accusing Gandhi and the Congress of playing hypocritical politics, the BJP said neither he reacted nor visited Bengaluru to find out about the victim. Rahul had criticised the BJP and the Modi government in Dalit student Rohith Vemulas suicide case and visited the University of Hyderabad twice to show his solidarity. Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju said they have sought a report from the state government and would be able to specify about the sad incident only after they receive it. For 200 years, India was enslaved by foreigners. We have been fighting racial discrimination. But in India itself, if there is racial discrimination, the government will take it very seriously. We will not allow racial discrimination in the country. This is a matter of shame for the entire nation, Rijiju told reporters. The National Commission for Women also swung into action and issued a notice to the Karnataka government and directed immediate action against the culprits. Condemning the incident, NCW member Sushma Sahu said it has sent a very wrong message. We are trying to promote the country globally and for that we have to ensure safety of people coming from other countries. After public outcry, the local police have arrested five people for their alleged involvement in the case. The BJP, meanwhile, accused the Congress of covering up the incident. Such a big incident has happened and so much time has passed. Still, Rahul and Congress are silent for something that has happened under the very nose of their government there. No action has been taken. This shows how much hypocrisy is there in them and how they play hypocritical politics, Union Minister and senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said. In an oblique attack on Rahul Gandhi, Naqvi said, It is shameful that those who are experts in creating a mountain out of a molehill have suddenly turned silent and their silence seems to justify such an unfortunate incident. Three militants were killed in an encounter between security forces and ultras in north Kashmirs Bandipora district on Thursday. Police sources said that on a specific tip off that three militants were hiding inside a house, a joint team of Armys 13-Rashtriya Rifles and Special Operations Group of the Jammu and Kashmir Police laid a siege around Khosa Mohalla, Hajin in Bandipora, 38 km from here, during the early hours. As the searches were underway, the militant hiding in a residential house started firing on forces, triggering off a fierce gunfight, they said. The encounter which raged throughout the day has left three militants dead while a residential house has also been damaged severely, they added. A senior police official while confirming the killing of three Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) militants in the gun battle said three AK-47 rifles and one grenade launcher were recovered from the encounter site. However, the identity of the slain militants was yet to be established. Deputy Inspector General (DIG) North Kashmir, Garib Dass told reporters that they were following these militants from the last several days. He said that since last three months there has been active movement of foreign militants in Bandipora district. Meanwhile, reports said, a heavy posse of police and paramilitary CRPF men have been called in to stem demonstrations in favour of the deceased militants. Huge participation of people in the funeral of slain militants over the last one year has become a major concern for security agencies in the Valley. Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi on Thursday approached the Supreme Court seeking direction to quash a complaint filed by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy in the National Herald case. In their separate petitions, the top Congress leaders also sought direction to set aside the December 7 order of the Delhi High Court directing them to face the criminal prosecution for the offences of cheating, breach of trust, misappropriation of funds and criminal conspiracy. In her petition, Sonia said she had deep roots in society as also the president of the Indian National Congress since 1998 and served as the chairperson of the UPA government in the Lok Sabha, and will suffer irreparable injury if the interim relief is not granted. Sonia also expressed her apprehension that the complaint filed by Swamy was to defame the Congress leaders and to use the court for political purposes. Contesting the charges of Swamy, Sonia contended the complainant had miserably failed in his attempt to show that the Associated Journal Ltd (AJL) was converted into a real estate company. The real object of the complainant is to ensure unwarranted adverse publicity rather than pursue a legitimate prosecution, she claimed, adding the complainant carefully ensured that no person was called from the Congress, whose members were allegedly cheated, or from amongst the shareholders of AJL, were called to depose in the case. The finding of the high court that the shareholders of the AJL were marginalised in the extraordinary General Meeting held in November 2011 was totally beyond pleadings and contrary to the record. She described the high courts conclusion that a political party could not donate or contribute to a publishing company as wholly fallacious, imaginary and unwarranted. Any creditor, be it a bank or a political party or a private person can waive or settle or assign a loan. It is conveniently not explained how such an insinuation would attract the allegations of cheating or fraud, the petitioner contended. Union Minister of State for Commerce Nirmala Sitharaman on Thursday said there was an urgent need to encourage local electronics units and local production of electronic goods since electronics was expected to be the largest import item in the country. Speaking at a two day-summit on electronics and semi-conductors organised by the India Electronics and Semi-conductors Association (IESA), the minister said: Today, after oil and gold, electronics is the third largest import item in the country. Imports stand at nearly at 80 per cent and may overtake oil and gold. There is clearly a demand-and-supply imbalance, Sitharaman said. The minister said there was a need to encourage local manufacturing of electronics goods. I will work on the National Manufacturing Policy to induce growth of manufacturing in the country. It is surprising that manufacturing contributes around 12 per cent to the national GDP, while IT and ITES contribute 50 per cent. This is another gap that needs to be addressed. Employment within manufacturing should also grow. The minister said the government had allocated $10 billion to set up two semi-conductor manufacturing units and it was up to the industry to take advantage of the funds and set up local units. The vision is to ensure that local manufacturing units meet domestic demand first and then think of exports. State Agriculture Minister Krishna Byre Gowda said his ministry was using technology to improve agriculture productivity. There are155 markets in the State. We have used information technology to integrate all these markets so that information flow across the State is uniform. If a farmer gets information that his produce is getting a higher price in a particular region, he can sell his produce there. If he doesnt have this information, he will be forced to sell it in his region only, where prices may be low. Today, we have a market that is uniform and transparent, Gowda said. Former IT&BT secretary M N Vidyashankar said the footfall for this years IESA summit was higher than last year. A fund of Rs 30,000 crore has been allocated towards encouragement of startups across the country including Karnataka. There is also a Rs 1.5 crore funding for new startups. Funding as such is not much of an issue these days. What we need are ideas that are scaleable to the next level. Such ideas will definitely find a market and a funder, he said. The GVK Emergency Management and Research Institute on Thursday set a 24-hour deadline for drivers and paramedics of the 108 ambulance service who are on strike to resume work or lose their jobs. On January 25, the company, which runs the Arogya Kavacha ambulance service, had asked its staff to sign a nine-point undertaking in a week to retain their jobs. The decision was taken a day after drivers and paramedics started protesting at the Freedom Park for better pay and regularisation of their service. Addressing a press conference here on Thursday, Abhinav K Jayaram, state head, GVK EMRI, said that 600 employees had signed the undertaking so far. As many as 200 signed the undertaking as soon as we asked them to. In the last few days, 400 others have come forward to sign it. We have terminated the service of 152 staff members after they went on strike, he said and accused them of instigating other employees. The protesting staff had opposed three points in the undertaking, wherein they cant strike work, approach the media or the government about their grievances. The GVK EMRI later altered these points and managed to get 600 staff members sign the undertaking. We have removed the statement which reads that they will not be allowed to strike work. Instead, we have now just said that the service is under the Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) and all rules under the Act are applicable to it. We also told them they can approach the government with their problems if the company fails to address their grievances within 15 days. Only if the government is unable to address them satisfactorily they can approach the media as per the altered undertaking, Jayaram said. Shrishail Hallur, state president, 108 Ambulance Drivers Association, said the protest would go on in districts. We have had a series of meetings with the Health and Family Welfare Minister U T Khader and Principal Secretary M Lakshminarayana. They have responded to us positively. The minister also promised to sanction additional funds in the next budget, he added. As they have not been given permission to protest in Bengaluru, the staff from the City will protest in Mandya. Hallur said that with assurance from the government, they would resume work. The Central government on Thursday night confirmed the death of 10 soldiers in an avalanche strike at Siachen glacier. Demise of soldiers in Siachen is very tragic. I salute the brave soldiers who gave their lives to the nation. Condolences to their families, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a statement. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar also condoled the death of brave soldiers who were martyred in the line of duty at Siachen. It is our duty to take care of their families, the ministers added. On Thursday morning, hopes began to fade even as the Army intensified efforts to locate soldiers from the Madras Regiment who had gone missing since Wednesdays massive avalanche in Siachen glacier. Even as the armed forces brought earth moving equipment and snow cutters to remove tonnes of ice that fell on the Indian post, officers gave up on the victims survival after remaining buried under snow for 48 hours in the world's highest and coldest battlefield. The rescue teams braved adverse weather and rarefied atmosphere to locate the missing men, in vain. The prevailing temperatures on the glacier range from a minimum of minus 42 degrees Celsius at night to a maximum of minus 25 degrees Celsius during the day. It is a tragic event and we salute the soldiers who braved all challenges to guard our frontiers and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty, said Lt Gen D S Hooda, Commander, Northern Command. The soldiers remained untraceable after an avalanche comprising huge blocks of ice and snow hit the army post at an altitude of 19,600 feet in the early hours of February 3. The post was manned by one junior commissioned officer and nine soldiers. Though the post was fibre-reinforced and had oxygen, survival was ruled out. This is the second human tragedy in the last two months after four men from 3 Ladakh Scouts were killed by an avalanche in the southern glacier in Siachen. Rejects Pak help Meanwhile, the Army rejected an offer of help from Pakistan Army, conveyed by its director general of military operations Maj Gen Amir Riaz. The latter had called up his Indian counterpart Lt Gen Ranbir Singh. Since our resources and teams are well placed and adequate, we said that we dont need any help, said an Army officer. When Pakistan had a similar tragedy in 2012 in which 130 Pakistan soldiers died, Islamabad too declined New Delhi's offer of help. Since 1984 when India occupied the dominating heights, close to 900 lives have been lost. Most of them died due to harsh climatic conditions and challenging terrain on the 76-km long glacier. Nevertheless, around 3,000 soldiers are deployed on the glacier. Majority of the posts in Siachen are located at over 16,000 feet, where soldiers are posted for three months. The highest is the Bana post at around 22,000 feet, and the deployment is only for 30 days here because of treacherous terrain and climate. Last year, on November 14, Captain Ashwini Kumar lost his life while 15 other soldiers were rescued after an avalanche struck a patrol party in the same area. On December 16, 2012, at least six Army soldiers were killed when a similar avalanche hit Hanif sub sector in Turtuk area of Siachen. Karnataka wants multinational companies functioning in India, and abroad, to invest money to improve infrastructure in Bengaluru. Bengaluru Development and Town Planning Minister K J George urged MNCs to include Bengaluru in their growth stories. While addressing delegates at a session on urban infrastructure at Invest Karnataka, the minister said advanced countries such as Japan and France had invested in various priorities of the Citys infrastructure, ranging from water resources to metro transport systems. Japan and France have contributed towards infrastructure in Bengaluru City. We welcome all MNCs to invest in Karnataka and Bengaluru, he added. Explaining the State governments initiatives towards infrastructure in Bengaluru, George said a 65-km peripheral ring road was being constructed at a cost of Rs 4,000 crore. Besides, sufficient underpasses, flyovers, and grade separators are being planned. A suburban railway project at a cost of Rs 9,000 crore is also planned, while work on the phase II of Namma Metro is under way, which will be accomplished in three years. In the last 50 years or so, Bengaluru has grown exponentially. Its population of 1.65 million people in 1971 has grown to 11 million people last year. Similarly, the City, which covered an area of 69 sq kilometres in 1949, spread across an area of 746 sq metres, as of 2007. With all this growth in land area and population, coupled with development, the Citys infrastructure took a beating on several fronts, especially the traffic situation. Hence, in a bid to decongest the City from its ever-increasing traffic snarls, the government is working on elevated road corridors in Bengaluru at a cost of $2 billion, for which it seeks investment assistance from global companies. According to Karnataka Road Development Corporation Managing Director K S Krishna Reddy, the elevated road corridors will be built along the existing roads. This would be the longest elevated corridor project in the country. The request for proposal will start in mid-2016. The aim of the project is to increase the average speed of traffic from 8-10 kmph currently to 20-25 kmph, Reddy said. Kannada film actor Bullet Prakash on Thursday lodged a complaint against popular actor Darshans brother Dinakar Thoogudeepa accusing him of issuing a threat to his life. According to police, Prakash had obtained permission from Darshan to produce his 51st film named Sultan and was advertising about it on all platforms. However, Dinakar had told Prakash that Darshan had already agreed to act in another film which would be his 51st movie and that Prakashs venture would be Darshans 52nd movie. There was a cold war ensuing between Dinakar and Prakash over the issue. Dinakar had abused Prakash during the muhurtam of a movie recently in which Duniya Vijay had acted. Prakash called up Dinakar on Wednesday evening and asked to meet him for a discussion. The meeting took place at Rajan Studio at Kempapura. During the conversation, the two lost their cool and abused each other. Dinakar and his friend Pista Seenu assaulted Prakash. They even issued a threat to his life, Prakash claimed in the complaint. The subsequent meeting between the two, mediated by the police, did not yield any result. Two recommendations for filing Special Leave Petitions (SLPs) before the Supreme Court against former chief minister B S Yeddyurappa, Energy Minister D K Shivakumar and IAS officer Dr Rame Gowda have been lying with the judiciary wing of the Lokayukta. The High Court had recently quashed 16 FIRs, in two writ petitions, one against Yeddyurappa and another against Shivakumar, Yeddyurappa and Rame Gowda. The first case, alleged illegal purchase of land under acquisition by Shivakumar in Benniganahalli and its denotification by Yeddyurappa, was quashed by Justice Anand Byrareddy on December 18, 2015. The Lokayukta police had charge-sheeted Shivakumar and indicted other officials, including the then Special Deputy Commissioner Rame Gowda. Though police had dropped charges against Yeddyurappa, the Lokayukta court had taken cognisance against him and issued summons. The second, pertaining to the 15 FIRs registered by the Lokayukta police on illegal denotification ordered by Yeddyurappa, was quashed by Justice Rathnakala on January 5, 2016. The High Court had quashed the FIRs, which were registered based on the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) report, stating, The High Court, in its writ jurisdiction ordering probe in respect of an allegation on the basis of CAG report is one thing and the Lokayukta police taking CAG report as a document to launch a criminal case is another thing. There is no semblance between two circumstances. Immediately after the High Court order, the Special Public Prosecutor for Lokayukta police had filed a report recommending filing SLPs. The matter was placed before the Chairman Legal Cell (CLC) and sources said the CLC cleared all the three recommendations. However, the files somehow are still with the judiciary wing. A senior official said that as a usual practice, a recommendation for filing of SLP would be placed before the additional director general of police (ADGP) Lokayukta and later forwarded to the government. Sources in the Lokayukta police wing confirmed that the recommendations have not reached them. A senior official with the judiciary wing said that the files have been with the judiciary wing for the last 20 days. Yeddyurappa, Shivakumar cases A complaint was filed to the Lokayukta seeking investigation against persons responsible for illegal denotification of land mentioned in the CAG report number-6 of 2010-11 and report number-3 of 2012. The Lokayukta had directed the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) to hold preliminary enquiry and submit a report. After the submission of the preliminary enquiry report, the Lokayukta had directed the police to proceed with the investigation. The Lokayukta police registered FIRs against Yeddyurappa and others. D K Shivakumar, when he was Urban Development minister, had purchased 4.20 acres of land at Benniganahalli in December 2003. The land was under acquisition and vested with the BDA. Rame Gowda, who was the then Special DC, converted the land from industrial to residential use in February 2004. After all these proceedings, then chief minister Yeddyurappa ordered denotification of the land in favour of the original land owner, who had passed away even before filing of the application for denotification. High Court: The High Court, in its writ jurisdiction, ordering probe in respect of an allegation on the basis of CAG report is one thing, and the Lokayukta police taking CAG report as a document to launch a criminal case is another thing. There is no semblance between two circumstances. The eighth annual Bengaluru International Film Festival saw many mainstream and independent Kannada movies being screened, but on the last day some directors pointed out that if given a choice, the audience would rather watch world cinema than regional makes, which is a bit disappointing. Although all the Kannada films were received with enthusiasm for straying away from popular narratives followed by star cast productions, there was a noticeable bias against homespun stories. Director Srinath Vasistha, whose film Salila caught some attention for its depiction of the water crisis (to be more specific, the impact of an increasingly industrialised world that does not blink twice to dispose of toxic waste into water bodies in rural areas), said that it is important for filmmakers to take part in film festivals but most people would rather catch a foreign language film than a Kannada one because of the stereotypes that surround the industry. But looking at the variety of stories the directors picked to showcase this year, it might soon become difficult to stay away from them. Instead of action thrillers that glorify an actor based on their (read as his) gender rather than his acting skills, issue-based movies cropped up in multiples. The lines that divide people based on their class, caste, gender and education were closely examined. Another film that talks about the water crisis, A Day in the City by Venkat Bharadwaj, looked at how water is more accessible to those in a position of privilege. This distinction between urban and rural spaces was another point that was emphasised in movies like Saalada Magu by Umashankar Swamy and Chiguru by Naganatha Madhavarao Joshi. Chiguru also talks of casteism in rural areas. Director Joshi said that while the caste system needs to be abolished, it is not just the responsibility of the Brahminical. Even a Dalit has to disassociate with the label, he added. In Saalada Magu, Kuvempus short story, Umashankar narrates how bonded labour is not just a physical condition but a mental one, one that plagues urban and rural areas. This is seen in Suneel Raghavendras Puta Thirugisi Nodi as well, which asks the big question what is the meaning of life, and makes it a multi-layered answer. Some directors like B Suresha, who made Devara Naadalli, had suggestions for the next festival. Right now, the festival is just about screening films, but it should be turned into a market-place as well; one where producers, distributors and directors come together, he said. They are hopeful that the government will encourage such a platform soon. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Home Minister G Parameshwara on Thursday said the attack on the Tanzanian woman student on Sunday was not a racist one. After a review meeting with officials, Parameshwara told reporters that the incident was in response to an accident that had happened earlier, in which a Sudanese driving a car in drunken state had killed a woman and injured her husband. Parameshwara stoutly denied that the Tanzanian woman was paraded naked. No such thing happened, he insisted. He said, The victim was not made to remove her clothes or paraded as reported in a section of the media. This has been made very clear by the victim herself in her complaint to the police. Parameshwara said he has submitted a report to Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi explaining the truth. The Home minister also revealed the name of the victim saying it was not against the law. Siddaramaiah, while replying to questions by the media at a different event, rejected suggestions that the incident was a racial attack. However, he said it has been taken seriously. He said no student gave a complaint or spoke about the incidents involving the Tanzanian woman for two days. The Home minister said that nearly 10,000 to 12,000 foreign students were enrolled in different colleges in Bengaluru. It is the responsibility of the government to provide the required security. The police have been instructed to discharge their duties, he added. He said the police have been instructed to pay special attention to areas where foreign students are staying in large numbers. The police would also explain the law of the land to students, he added. He said many foreign students were found overstaying and details about such students had been provided to the Foreign Affairs Ministry. Bangladeshis who have illegally entered Bengaluru are also being watched, he added. BJP MLA Suresh Kumar has charged that the State government was trying to hush up the case involving the attack on a Tanzanian student in the City recently. Addressing the media in Bengaluru on Thursday, Kumar attacked Home Minister G Parameshwara and the police department for failing to handle the case properly. This has dented the image of both Bengaluru and India, especially when the Global Investors Meet was on, he said. He demanded speedy investigation into the case and also action against the attackers. Condemning Parameshwara for having revealed the name of the student who was allegedly assaulted, Kumar said that his department had failed to maintain law and order in the State. Though the incident occurred on Sunday, the jurisdictional police did not take any action for nearly 72 hours. The police acted only after the student lodged a complaint. No woman should endure such atrocities, he said. The department should initiate confidence-building measures between locals and foreign students in areas where the population of the latter is sizeable, he suggested. When it was brought to his notice that a BJP member was one of the attackers, Kumar said, I am not aware of this. However, we will not stand for credentials of any persons, especially when there has been a heinous crime against a woman. A culprit is a culprit and stringent action should be taken against them. If any person is from BJP, then the party too will take necessary action, he added. A third man indicted in connection with massive federal raids on Colorado medical-marijuana businesses pleaded guilty Tuesday, a move that leaves only one suspect facing charges. Gerardo Uribe admitted in federal court in Denver to charges of marijuana possession and conspiracy to possess marijuana. In exchange for his plea, prosecutors agreed to drop the money-laundering and other financial charges that he had been facing, which could have resulted in a 20-year prison sentence. Instead, prosecutors will recommend that Uribe serve one year on probation, with 90 days of that coming in prison, according to the plea document. Uribe who owned the now-defunct VIP Cannabis dispensary, which was at the center of the raids is the third suspect to plead guilty and avoid major prison time. Two other suspects, Uribes brother, Luis, and a Colombian businessman named Hector Diaz, previously pleaded guilty. Diaz was sentenced to time served. Luis Uribe, whose plea agreement calls for a 45-day prison sentence as part of a year of probation, is scheduled to be sentenced formally next month. The only defendant still facing charges is attorney David Furtado, who federal prosecutors allege helped orchestrate a scheme to funnel money from Colombia through several bank accounts in Denver and into the purchase of a warehouse for growing marijuana. Furtado has claimed his actions were legal under state law and protected from federal prosecution. The November 2013 searches of VIP Cannabis and roughly a dozen other businesses and homes remain the largest-ever federal raids against Colorados medical marijuana industry. John Ingold: 303-954-1068, jingold@denverpost.com or @johningold DENVER At Grandmas House brewery in downtown Denver, Matthew Fuerst makes beer flavored with ingredients like Hatch green chiles that he chops by hand. He saves money on heating bills by pushing up space heaters against his fermenting tanks and covering the tops with blankets. He has invited homebrewers who want to break into the industry to use his expensive brewing system to try making larger batches. Fuerst is one of many transplants lured to Colorado by the states reputation as a place where beer drinkers spend hours on breweries sunny patios trying every imaginable twist on beer, often with dogs and kids in tow, a state whose governor is a former craft beer magnate who had an array of taps installed at the governors mansion. But Fuerst fears that idyllic lifestyle is in danger now that the worlds largest beer maker, Anheuser-Busch InBev, has staked a claim to Colorados craft beer paradise. Fuerst worries InBev could use its distribution leverage and buying power to squeeze other craft beers out of liquor store shelves, discount its own craft beer line and buy up raw materials after its purchase last month of Breckenridge Brewery. The purchase sent tremors through Colorados thriving community of homebrewers and beer purists, who join beer lovers around the country dreading increasing corporate consolidation in the industry. I think all of us know that if they could put us out of business they would and the actions that theyre taking right now are a threat to us, Fuerst said. Terms of the Breckenridge deal werent released. It follows InBevs acquisition of craft brewers Goose Island in Chicago and 10 Barrel Brewing Co. in Oregon in recent years and comes as the maker of Budweiser is trying to become even bigger by buying the worlds second-largest beer maker, SABMiller, to create a company that would make nearly 30 percent of the worlds beer. The makers of Corona and Heineken as well as equity firms have also been acquiring and investing in craft beer, the only part of the United States beer market thats still growing. Craft beer has captured more than 10 percent of beer sales in recent years and, according to the Brewers Association trade group, the country now has over 4,100 breweries, the highest number since 1873. More than two breweries open every day across the country. InBev says its not trying to push any brewers out of business and frames the real battle as between beer and the growing wine and liquor market. Everyone thats putting great beers out there and has a story to tell is going to thrive, said Felipe Szpigel, president of The High End, InBevs craft beer line. Eric Wallace, the co-founder of Longmont-based Left Hand Brewing, said he cant understand how a brewery that worked to bring back flavorful beer to the scorched earth left behind by mega brewers can turn around and join one. The fact that beer was being dumbed down over time, over decades is the reason that craft brewing was created and was born, he said. There are also rumors that another of Colorados original craft brewers, employee-owned New Belgium, could also be looking for a buyer. In a statement, founder Kim Jordan said its board has an obligation to have on-going dialogue with capital markets and that there is no pending deal. Sitting in the tasting room of Breckenridges new $36 million riverside brewery complex in Denver, which includes a farmhouse-style restaurant and a large patio where customers sometimes arrive by inner tube or bike, Breckenridge president Todd Usry said he once shared worries about corporate craft brewing. But InBev has assuaged them. I found out they wanted to participate in craft, not take craft over, Usry said. The reaction from beer drinkers has been mixed. Andy Romero, 36, of Denver, who traveled across town recently to pick up some more of Renegade Brewing Companys limited supply of imperial milk stout made with peanut butter cups in refillable glass containers, said he likes to support mom-and-pop operations but hes not too worried about the Breckenridge sale. As long as the beer is good, Im fine with it, Romero said. But Michelle Massure, 31, a former Colorado resident who likes to visit her favorite breweries on visits from Houston, was horrified at the thought of a big brewer ever taking over the Strange Craft Beer Company, where she enjoyed a tulip glass of a cherry wheat ale that she said tasted just like cherry pie filling. Ten small sampler glasses of beer were lined up between her and some friends on a wooden table at the tiny brewery tucked into an industrial strip mall next to Interstate 25. I dont want the big guy to have everything, she said. Denver Mayor Michael Hancock announced on Wednesday that he is endorsing University of Colorado Regent Michael Carrigan in the Denver District Attorneys race. Hancocks endorsement is the latest of several heavy backers to line up behind Carrigan as the crowded race takes shape before the primary election in June. Michael Carrigan is hands down Denvers best choice for our next District Attorney, Hancock said in a statement. He is a skilled lawyer, active community member and strong leader with the legal experience needed to ensure justice for Denvers residents. I am confident Michael will bring a balanced perspective to the DAs office to help make Denver a safer, better place. Carrigan has also received endorsements from former senator and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar and former Denver mayors Wellington Webb and Federico Pena. Carrigan, who was elected to the CU Board of Regents in 2004 and 2010, said he was honored to have the mayors endorsement and support. It is essential that Denvers next DA bring a smart, modern approach to our criminal justice system through collaboration, engagement and accountability, Carrigan said in a statement. A total of four candidates have entered the race to succeed District Attorney Mitch Morrissey, who is term limited in 2016. Morrissey succeeded Bill Ritter. State Rep. Beth McCann, the former manager of public safety for Denver, entered the race shortly before Carrigan in January 2015. McCann served as a deputy and chief deputy district attorney in the Denver office before being elected to the state legislature in 2009. Two current prosecutors with the Denver District Attorneys office have also put in their bids. Senior Deputy District Attorney Kenneth Boyd has worked in the office for nearly a decade. Boyd announced his campaign in early 2015. The last candidate to enter the race, Chief Deputy District Attorney Helen Morgan, has been a prosecutor with the Denver office for 21 years. Morgan entered the race in September. Jordan Steffen: 303-954-1794, jsteffen@denverpost.com or @jsteffendp [Canada must shut down the Athabasca oil sand mines to have any hope of meeting its commitment. Emissions from oil and gas are projected to increase by 28% (from 159 Mt to 204 Mt) over the 2005 to 2020 time frame. This is due mainly to increases in oil sands production. See Projected Emissions Trends for details. Des] By Justin Ling 1 February 2016 (Vox) In statistics released on Friday evening a prime time to break bad news the Canadian government admitted that it was way off its already modest CO2 emission targets. The numbers show that years of environmental efforts in Canada essentially had no impact. The projection, released by Environment and Climate Change Canada, shows that Canada is expected to pump out the equivalent of 768 megatons of CO2 by 2020, and 815 megatons by 2030. Those projections also do not include emissions from the forestry sector. Thats nowhere near the targets Canada set for itself at the Copenhagen climate talks in 2009. There, Ottawa pledged to reduce its CO2 emissions by 17 percent over 2005 levels by 2020. Instead, Canada will likely increase its CO2 emissions by roughly two percent. The numbers say that increase may be as high as five percent. The projections for 2030 are even further off. Canada pledged to reduce its emissions by 30 percent. Instead, its on track to to increase those emissions by nearly 17 percent. In a clear indictment of Ottawas ineffective environmental initiatives, the numbers released Friday are actually higher than projections from 2012 and 2013. Were getting results, former Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq said of the 2013 projections at the time. Canadas new minister of the environment and climate change Catherine McKenna conceded that the numbers were not good. The data are clear and confirm that more needs to be done, reads a statement from McKenna. McKennas office turned down an interview request on the numbers. [more] Canada Admits Theres No Chance Itll Reach Its Climate Change Targets Not Even Close Measuring Canadas Progress on Greenhouse Gas Emissions Under the Copenhagen Accord, Canada committed to reducing its emissions by 17% from 2005 levels by 2020.1 As economy-wide emissions in 2005 were 736 Mt, Canadas implied Copenhagen target is 611 Mt in 2020. Assessing progress in reducing GHG emissions is best done by comparing a with measures scenario against a without measures scenario that acts as a baseline where consumers, businesses and governments take no action to reduce emissions after 2005, Canadas base year for its Copenhagen commitment. This is the most appropriate approach, given Canadas growing economy, as it more accurately captures the real and verifiable level of effort that will be required to reduce emissions. Progress cannot be adequately measured by comparing expected future emissions against current levels, as this would not take into account factors such as the expected population and economic growth that will affect emissions between now and 2020. Projections presented in this report under the with current measures scenario include actions taken by governments, consumers and businesses up to 2012 as well as the future impacts of policies and measures that were announced or put in place as of May 2014. This scenario does not include further government action and policies that are proposed or planned but not implemented. (The policies and measures modeled in this report are listed in Annex 2.) The analysis indicates that, in a scenario where consumers, businesses and governments take no action to reduce emissions after 2005, emissions in 2020 will rise to 857 Mt. Under the with current measures scenario that includes actions since 2005 as well as the contribution from Land Use, Land-use Change and Forestry (LULUCF), Canadas GHG emissions in 2020 are projected to be 727 Mt, a total of 130 Mt less than under a without measures scenario. This highlights the significant expected impacts of actions made to date but also indicates the need for further efforts from all Canadians, as additional reductions of 116 Mt will be required to meet Canadas Copenhagen commitment (see Figure ES-1). In a Spring 2012 submission to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), Canada stated its intent to include the LULUCF sector in its accounting of GHG emissions towards its 2020 target, noting that emissions and related removals resulting from natural disturbances would be excluded from the accounting. It was also indicated at that time that a Reference Level or comparison against a 2005 baseline would be used for accounting. Based on these accounting approaches, the expected LULUCF contribution is 19 Mt, largely reflecting lower expected harvesting of trees in forest lands than in the past. This 19 Mt contribution is subtracted from total national emissions projections in 2020 as a credit towards reaching the target. Analysis of alternative accounting approaches remains ongoing. The gap between the Without Measures level of GHG emissions in 2020 (857 Mt) and the 611 Mt target now has been closed by 130 Mt. Upcoming federal policies, along with further provincial measures and actions from consumers and businesses, will contribute to the additional 116 Mt required for Canada to meet its commitments under the Copenhagen Accord. Canadas Greenhouse Gas Emissions Projections As shown in Table ES-1, under a scenario that includes current measures and the contribution from LULUCF, absolute emissions are projected to be 727 Mt in 2020, 1.2% below 2005 levels. Emissions from the oil and gas and buildings sectors are expected to increase, while emissions in the electricity sector are projected to decrease between 2005 and 2020. Emissions in the transportation, emissions-intensive and trade-exposed, agriculture, and waste and others sectors remain close to 2005 levels. Table ES-1: Change in GHG Emissions by Economic Sector (Mt CO2 eq) 2005 2012 2020 Change 2005 to 2020 Transportation 168 165 167 -1 Oil and Gas 159 173 204 45 Electricity 121 86 71 -50 Buildings 84 80 98 14 Emissions-intensive and Trade-exposed Industries 89 78 90 1 Agriculture 68 69 70 2 Waste and Others 47 47 46 -1 Expected LULUCF Contribution -19 Total with LULUCF Contribution 736 699 727 -9 Although emissions are projected to decrease by 9 Mt between 2005 and 2020 when the contribution of LULUCF is included, GDP is expected to increase by 32% over the same period, demonstrating that economic growth and emissions growth are continuing to decouple. In addition, as population is projected to increase, per capita emissions are expected to fall to 19.7 tonnes of CO2 eq per person in Canada in 2020, a decrease of 14% from 2005 levels. GHG emissions projections depend on a number of economic and energy variables and are subject to significant uncertainty, especially in the longer term. Modeling estimates are subject to consultations with various industry associations, other federal departments and provincial/territorial governments. Modeling assumptions also undergo a periodic peer review process. Updates to key historical and projected energy data and drivers as well as the evolution of technology and demographics will alter the future emissions pathway. To address the uncertainty inherent in projections, alternative scenarios that reflect different assumptions about oil and natural gas prices and production as well as different rates of economic growth have been developed. The greatest emissions are projected under a scenario aligned to the National Energy Boards high oil and gas prices with higher-than-average annual growth in GDP between 2012 and 2020 (2.7% compared with 2.2% in the reference scenario). Alternatively, the lowest emissions scenario includes slower GDP growth (average growth of 1.5% between 2012 and 2020) and the National Energy Boards low world oil and gas prices. As shown in Figure ES-2, these scenarios suggest that the expected range of emissions in 2020 could be between 716 Mt in the lowest emissions scenario and 781 Mt in the highest emissions scenario, not including contributions for LULUCF. This 65 Mt range will continue to change over time with further government actions, technological change, economic conditions and developments in energy markets. Oil and Gas Emissions from oil and gas are projected to increase by 28% (from 159 Mt to 204 Mt) over the 2005 to 2020 time frame. This is due mainly to increases in oil sands production. [] Emissions projections in the oil and gas sector are based on the National Energy Boards assumptions of oil and natural gas prices as well as estimates of anticipated production. Under these assumptions, emissions from upstream oil and gas production are estimated to grow from 135 Mt in 2005 to 181 Mt in 2020. This increase is driven by the growth in oil sands production, where emissions are expected to increase from 34 Mt in 2005 to about 103 Mt by 2020. Specifically, emissions from oil sands mining are projected to more than double over the 2005 to 2020 time period. Even more significantly, emissions from in situ production are expected to increase from 11 Mt in 2005 to 53 Mt in 2020. The emissions associated with the upgrading of oil-sands bitumen are expected to rise from 13 Mt in 2005 to 27 Mt by 2020. [more] Canadas Emission Trends 2014 Peter Clarke, EETimes 2/3/2016 10:00 AM EST The Taiwanese government has given foundry chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (Hsinchu, Taiwan) approval to build a 300mm wafer fab in China, according to reports that reference the Investment Commission of the Ministry of Economic Affairs. TSMC already operates one fab in China, but until the latest ruling the Taiwan government forbade Taiwanese companies from owning and operating fabs that process the more cost efficient larger wafer size. Taiwan announced a plan to invest about $3 billion in building a wafer fab in Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China in December 2015. The facility is planned for a capacity of 20,000 wafer starts per month and would begin volume production of 16nm FinFETs in second half of 2018, but the plan was subject to Taiwan government approval. At the time TSMC chairman Morris Chang said such a move would provide closer support to TSMC's customers there and further expand the companys business opportunities. Click here to read more ... Registration is open for a live webinar covering affordable manufacturing, design and intellectual property (IP) for ASICs aimed at outstanding intelligent Things. Montpellier, France and Broomfield, Colorado, 3rd February 2016 Cortus, a technology leader in low power, silicon efficient, 32-bit processor IP, and Aspen Logic, a provider of expert logic design and embedded processing development services announce an educational webinar on creating ASICs for IoT & M2M products. The presentation entitled Attention IoT Developers: Yes, your Things can stand out! will run live at 10:00 a.m. PST/ 6:00 p.m. GMT on Tuesday 16th February 2016. The webinar, with 45 minutes presentation and 15 minutes for Q & A, is aimed at engineers and managers with limited or no ASIC design experience who are developing Things for the Internet in categories such as: smart homes/cities, intelligent sensors, electronic shelf labels and wireless communication devices. At the Creative Think seminar held in July of 1982, an American computer scientist named Alan Kay offered a simple but very powerful message to the attendees: People who are really serious about software should make their own hardware. Nothing could be truer today in the world of the IoT. However, many IoT developers have little or no experience in ASIC or hardware design, so they make the safe choice and elect to use commercial-off-the-shelf products. What have been their results? Things are created that have little product differentiation from the myriad of other IoT products that are being rushed to market, thus producing disappointing sales. An application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) can be a reasonably-priced way of adding differentiation whether at the system-level, in analog circuit design or in a digital system. With IoT applications frequently requiring the use or digital, analog, RF and increasingly on-chip sensors, the silicon technologies used must support the mixing of these types of circuit. The good news for IoT designers is that mixed-signal technologies are generally well-proven, low-cost, mature processes that are both affordable and low risk. This seminar examines some of the key steps involved in creating a differentiated ASIC including; What EDA tools are required for developing custom ASICs that support mixed-signal designs? The important decision criteria for evaluating and selecting processor and system IP cores. What options are available for ASIC prototyping and production manufacturing? How to implement hardware security features from simple to very complex that will successfully defend IoT ASICs from unwanted attacks. Registration for the webinar is free of charge and is open now. For more information on the webinar and details of how to register, please visit: http://marketing.cortus.com/acton/media/9762/cortus-iot-and-m2m-design-webinar About Cortus S.A.S.: Cortus S.A.S. is a technology enabler for rapidly growing applications including Internet of Things (IoT), wearable electronic devices, smart sensors and security. It has specialised in 32-bit processor cores which can significantly reduce manufacturing costs while achieving good computational performance and meeting tight power constraints. Integrated circuits containing Cortus cores have been manufactured in high volumes for a wide range of applications including automotive, CMOS imaging, M2M controllers, IoT edge devices, secure execution, sensors, SIM cards, PayTV cards, smart metering and wireless. To date well over 800 million devices have been manufactured containing Cortus processor cores. Cortus headquarters are in Montpellier, France. http://www.cortus.com About Aspen Logic Inc.: For 24 years, Aspen Logic has delivered logic verification, design and implementation services targeting FPGA and ASIC devices to customers around the United States. Companies seeking support come from the defense, medical, industrial and other commercial sectors frequently with urgent needs because of missed deadlines, departure of key employees or a simple lack of experience navigating complex logic designs. Our logic development experience translates into your success. Ranveer Talks About His Days Of Struggle, Says You Have To Swallow Your Pride Three of Pakistans operators have hit out against the governments proposed sales tax on mobile handsets and SIM cards. Mobilink, Telenor and Warid have deemed the Federal Board of Revenues (FDR) device tax irrational, illogical, arbitrary and incoherent. They note that it not only goes against the countrys constitution, but would also be highly difficult to implement. Pakistan already taxes the import and supply of mobile handsets, but avoidance of this duty is common enough to be problematic. In an effort to combat this, the FDR has proposed extending import duty to SIM cards. However, the three operators which collectively have a market share of 64% - have written to the FDR explaining that meeting the new tax requirements would be costly for operators without delivering a benefit. They argue that there would be a boom in devices with fake IMEI numbers as consumers look for ways to avoid the tax, and that this in turn would create tracking challenges for law enforcement agencies. A joint statement from the operators read: The only solution for the government is to crack down on smuggling and charge sales tax at the import and supply stage. Pakistans Ministry of Information Technology recently suggested that the telecoms sector should receive tax relief after a year of falling revenue which has been ascribed to a prior tax hike. Q3 revenues were down 12% on the previous quarter to PKR102 billion ($98 million). A ministry committee founded to examine the impact of higher-rate taxes noted that high tax bills had adversely affected operator revenue and diminished their interest in acquiring further 3G/4G spectrum much to the chagrin of the government, which is keen to hold fresh auctions. You can leave a response , or trackback from your own site. by Kathleen Gilbert BEIJING, September 7, 2012, (LifeSiteNews.com) Escaped Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng is leading international opponents of forced abortion in calling upon the worlds largest company to end compliance with the Chinas one-child policy. Family planning police have targeted employees (569) Sign up below to have the hottest Catholic news delivered to your email daily! Close Sign up below to have the hottest Catholic news delivered to your email daily! Church Militant, we need to band together to protect our religious liberties and win the culture war! Assange is being investigated on allegations of sexual assault and rape of two women. He will accept arrest if a UN panel finds him guilty. Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks, is set to leave the Ecusdorian embassy on Friday. Assange will leave the embassy where he had taken refuge since June 2012, in order to avoid extradition to Sweden. He will accept arrest if he loses the case against him, being investigated by a UN panel. The statement was posted on the Wikileaks Twitter account today. "Should the U.N. announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," Assange wrote. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me, he added. Assange: I will accept arrest by British police on Friday if UN rules against me. More info: https://t.co/Mb6gXlz7QS pic.twitter.com/mffVsqKj5w WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) February 4, 2016 Assange had taken refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy in London back in 2012. He is wanted for questioning over allegations that include sexual assault and rape of two women in 2010, although he has denied the accusations. According to reports last month, Assange was to be questioned by Swedish authorities in the Ecuadorian embassy in London and Ecuadors President, Rafael Correa, confirmed that the country had struck a deal with prosecutors from Sweden to allow said questioning without the Wikileaks founder having to leave the embassy building. According to Correa, the Swedish authorities were to submit their questions to Ecuadorian officials, who would then cross question Assange on the same, said reports. Assange had taken refuge in the embassy in order to avoid extradition to Sweden. He was afraid that he could be transported to the US and questioned about Wikileaks activities, which had harmed US foreign policy interests in the past. Negotiations over questioning Assange by Swedish authorities had begun in June, 2015, between Ecuadors acting foreign minister Xavier Lasso and Anna-Carin Svensson, Justice Ministry International Affairs Chief of Sweden. Zuckerberg is aiming at 5 billion Facebook users by 2030, at the back of initiatives such as Free Basics and internet beaming drone - Aquila. Social media giant, Facebook, has high hopes for growing its user base in the future. According to a report by USA Today, Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg has claimed that Facebook is targetting 5 billion users by the year 2030. Just to give you some context, as of now, the population of the world is 7 billion and counting. Facebook currently has 1.59 billion users approximately. Zuckerberg made these comments at a company event celebrating the social media giant's 12th anniversary. The report goes on to say that Zuckerberg showed off Facebook's Aquila drone, which is a solar powered fixed-wing aircraft being designed to beam internet. The Aquila has a wingspan of a Boeing 737, but will weigh less than an average car. Being lightweight is extremely important as this propeller driven aircraft will be powered using solar panels and is expected to stay airborne for about 3 months. At the event, Zuckerberg also spoke about connecting the rest of the world's population by working in sync with telecom operators and governments of various countries. The company's Free Basics initiative is one such effort, which is attracting a lot of criticism in India. Free Basics is largely being viewed as Facebook securing its interests in the country, which has just recently surpassed US to become the second largest market for smartphones in the world. India's mobile internet user base is also growing at a fast pace and is expected to reach 371 million users by June 2016. This seems like a favourable environment for the popular social media platform to increase its user-base in the country. Let us know what you think of Facebook's tall claim of reaching 5 billion users by 2030. Do you think they will get there? The Vaio Phone Biz is only available in Japan for now and is priced at 50,000 yen. It comes with an aluminium build, Snapdragon 617, and support for Continuum. Vaio has launched a Windows 10 powered device in Japan called the Phone Biz. The device is priced at 50,000 yen, which is about Rs. 29,000. Unlike the plastic build of the Lumia 950, and 950 XL, the Vaio Phone Biz comes with a silver-finished aluminum build. The phone houses a 5.5-inch full HD display and is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 processor with 3GB of RAM. At the back is a 13MP primary camera with a 5MP front facing camera. The device comes with 16GB of onboard storage which can be expanded by up to 64Gb via a microSD card. The Vaio Phone Biz supports Windows 10's Continuum feature. It is not known if and when the phone will be launched outside of Japan. Microsoft may be dependent on other OEMs releasing Windows powered devices this year as rumours suggest that the Lumia 650 may be the only Lumia device to be launched this year. It is already speculated that Xiaomi will be showcasing a Windows 10 powered variant of its upcoming flagship, the Mi 5 at World Mobile Congress event in Barcelona. The phone may come with the same specifications as its Android powered counterpart like the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor and maybe even a 5.2-inch QHD display. It is possible that HP may also launch a Windows 10 powered device at MWC 2016. A device called the HP Falcon was spotted on GFXBench and the listing suggested that the device may come with a Snapdragon 820 processor and a 5.8-inch QHD display A few days ago, Vaio had announced three high-end laptops, the Vaio Z Flip, Vaio Z Clamshell, and the Vaio S. The Vaio Z comes with a 13-inch QHD display that can be flipped all the way around. It also has an aluminium casing and is powered by Intels i7 Skylake processor and there is also an option for an i5 processor. While it is an experimental project right now, Germany has just turned on what could be a big step in fusion-based energy. Scientists have begun testing a new fusion reactor, called the W7-X, in Greifswald, Germany. The reactor is based on the Stellerator design, as opposed to the Tokamak reactors that are usually used in fusion related research. While its too early to tell whether the project will result in usable fusion reactions, it is a big step in nuclear fusion research. The first experiment, conducted today, included the heating of hydrogen particles to a suspended plasma form. The facility though has ambitious plans for its research going forward. German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, pressed the button that started the first experiment. In a statement to the press, Merkel said, As an industrial nation we want to show that an affordable, safe, reliable and sustainable power supply is possible, without any loss of economic competitiveness." She added that the advantages of fusion energy was obvious. While fusion has been known to be a powerful source of clean energy, many have been skeptical of the possibility of a viable usage model being formed. The project in Germany, is one of the many experiments that have attempted to get fusion to work. This included tests by the EU-funded ITER facility and the US National Ignition Facility. There was even a project announced by Lockheed Martin, back in 2014. Avanti Communications , which provides satellite data communications services, said its loss for the half year narrowed. For the six months to the end of December 2015, the loss narrowed to $45.5m (31m) from $48m, on largely flat revenue of $31m compared with $31.1m in the same period a year earlier. Avanti won $40m of contracts mainly with government and large telecoms customers in the second quarter, which it reckons will make a strong contribution to second half revenue. The company said its expectations for 50% growth in continuing revenue at constant currency in the full 2016 financial year are supported by recent order wins. Chief executive officer David Williams said: Our growth prospects are supported by both our recent order wins and a very strong pipeline of near term opportunities that are in advanced stages of negotiation. Avanti is strongly capitalised with more than adequate cash headroom. In a pioneering market, the combination of a good product, good customers and a fully funded model assures us that Avanti has a successful trajectory ahead. At 1230 GMT, Avanti shares were down 9.8% to 124.50p. One of Sound Energy 's projects hit a major milestone on Thursday, with the revelation that the company's onshore Nervesa gas discovery had reached first gas. The AIM-traded upstream gas company with a focus on the Mediterranean said the Nervesa discovery was drilled successfully by the company in 2013, and benefited from a gas sales agreement with the Shell Group. "First gas at Nervesa is a landmark event for the company, providing energy to a robust domestic market and further underpinning our broader Mediterranean expansion", said chief executive James Parsons. A further announcement confirming production rates would be made after the initial clean-up phase was completed, and the stable flow rate had been assessed. Sound Energy's webcam would now depart Italy for Morocco, where it was approaching its first well at the Tendrara licence. Alba Mineral Resources was looking at a busy 2016 work programme on Thursday, with the company reporting encouraging results from its remote sensing study at the Amitsoq Graphite Project in southern Greenland. The AIM-traded resources firm said the remote sensing study was highly encouraging, highlighting several anomalies for a variety of commodities. There were numerous and continuous graphitic horizons suggested along the strike, and proximal to the Amitsoq graphite mine, Alba said. "The results from the remote sensing study are highly encouraging for a variety of commodities", said CEO Mike Nott. "The main commodity emphasis is graphite, and several anomolies suggest numerous and continuous horizons along strike and proximal to the Amitsoq graphite mine", he added. The iron oxide (FeO) anomalies were coincident with know graphite occurrences at the former Amitsoq graphite mine, the company explained, with two zones containing multiple lenses of interpreted bedded graphite occurring along strike 2.5km and 5.8km northeast of the mine. Additional FeO anomalies were interpreted to be favourable targets for platinum group metals, with orogenic lode gold and intrusion related copper-zinc mineralisation. Additionally, there were anomalies identified with geology similar to economic gold mineralisation at the nearby Nalunaq gold mine, where around 340,000 ounces of gold had been produced to date. Going forward, Nott said the next phase of exploration involved an airborne geophysical survey, followed by the ground checking of coincident alteration and geophysical targets. "If results are positive, then an exploration drilling programme to estimate the thickness and continuity of the graphite horizons will begin", he concluded. The UK mineral extraction industry contributes to the economy by underpinning 235bn in added value terms, representing 16% of the total economy, according to a report published by the Confederation of British Industry. In other findings, the report, produced by the CBI in partnership with the Mineral Products Association, noted that British minerals extraction generates a turnover of 15bn, and 5bn in Gross Value Added (GVA). The industry directly employs 34,000 people, and supports 4.3m jobs through its supply chain, it added. In its bid to highlight the critical nature of the business, the CBI said, A look at historical and current production patterns illustrates that minerals are essential, providing the foundations for every sector of the economy by supplying vital raw materials at the heart of UK growth. Transport for London has said some tube stations may open late, close early or may not open at all during this weekends strike. RMT members will strike from 9pm on Saturday for 48 hours over the issue of station staffing in Transport for London's Fit for the Future Stations programme. The strike only involves station staff, which means Tube services will be running but will affect when stations are opened. Its expected that London Underground services would be disrupted from early evening on Saturday and all day Sunday and Monday. TfL said it will be putting on extra buses to boost capacity on the transport network, but is warning they will be busy and is asking customers to bear with staff. Extra cycle hubs will also be available, and some existing cycle hubs in central London will have more cycles available than usual during peak times. Travellers are being advised to check its website and apps using its data to plan ahead. TfL ambassadors and volunteers will also be on hand to provide travel information and advice. London Underground chief operating officer Steve Griffiths said all the strike will achieve is to lose staff two days pay and a 500 bonus. We have delivered every commitment we made to our staff over our stations modernisation programme there have been no compulsory redundancies, work life balance has been protected and theres a job for anyone who wants to stay with no loss of pay. Around 900 station staff will be promoted or will move from fixed-term contracts to permanent roles, so there is clearly absolutely no basis whatsoever for this strike threat. Barclays has reportedly agreed to hand over internal documents to British prosecutors, a move that could end a drawn-out investigation into a 2008 fundraising involving Middle Eastern investors. Bloomberg cited people familiar with the matter as saying the bank is in the process of handing over communication documents to the Serious Fraud Office from the fundraising that it had previously said contained legal advice protected by attorney-client privilege. Regulators began investigating the British bank in 2012 over two emergency cash injections made mostly by Qatari investors during the financial crisis of 2008. The Financial Conduct Authority said in September 2013 that Barclays had acted recklessly and breached certain rules over disclosing some aspects of the Qatar deal, which enabled the bank to avoid a government rescue like its peers RBS and Lloyds. Barclays received 322m in secret payments from Qatari investors, which it said was for advisory services, but the regulator accused the bank of agreeing the payments in return for their support for a 5bn fundraising. At 1535 GMT, Barclays shares were up 5.7% to 175p. Retailer DFS Furniture reiterated its expectations for the full year as it reported good sales growth and cash generation in the first half. In the 26 weeks to 30 January, gross sales were up 7% on the same period the previous year. The company said Sofa Workshop, Dwell and DFS Netherlands have all contributed encouragingly to overall group sales. DFS said free cash flow was robust and its gearing ratio at the half year will be similar to the previous financial year at around 1.8x net debt/earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation amortisation, after the payment of the interim and full year dividends. The group said its strategy which includes a store expansion programme, continued development of its omnichannel proposition and enhancement of the product range was delivering results. DFS noted broadly stable general macroeconomic trends in the UK and said it was in a strong position to sustain its record of sales growth, market share capture and cash generation. The company said cash generation will underpin the announcement of a progressive interim dividend, in line with the policy stated at the IPO last year. Based on the trading performance over the first half, our expectations for the group's financial performance in the full year remain unchanged. The company also announced the retirement of finance director Bill Barnes in the summer, after nearly 13 years. Current commercial finance director Nicola Bancroft will become chief financial officer and an executive director from 1 August 2016. Vodafone was still looking to stabilise its operations in the third quarter of the year, posting some organic growth but reported contractions, with particular struggles in Europe. The FTSE 100 mobile network operator said it had a 1.4% increase in group organic service revenue to 10.28bn, though it was down 6.3% on a reported basis in the three months to 31 December 2015. Vodafone said its recovery in Europe was ongoing, with that market contracting by 0.6% on an organic basis and 7.1% on a reported basis. Its commercial progress in that region saw it add 506,000 net mobile contracts during the period, and 311,000 broadband customers. Fixed line service revenue specifically was up 3.7% in Europe, with the firm now marketing high speec broadband to 69m customers, with 29m on the network. Vodafone's Africa, Middle East and Asia Pacific (AMAP) region saw organic growth of 6.5%, but a reported contraction of 3.6%. "We have taken another step forward in the last three months, with the highlights being a strong performance in South Africa and improving trends in Germany and Italy", said group chief executive Vittorio Colao. "With seven million new customers in the quarter, we have maintained out good commercial momentum in mobile and are beginning to accelerate in fixed, as we launch converged services in more markets", he added. The company's Project Spring was also ongoing, with 4G coverage up to 84% in Europe and AMAP build targets achieved. Vodafone added 4.7m 4G customers in the quarter, and now had a total of 34.8m. "Customers are increasingly recognising the quality of our networks, leading to strong growth in data usage and benefiting from the significant investments in 4G and fibre that we have made over the last two years", Colao said. The Vodafone Group's board confirmed its previous guidance for the full year. Save my User ID and Password Some subscribers prefer to save their log-in information so they do not have to enter their User ID and Password each time they visit the site. To activate this function, check the 'Save my User ID and Password' box in the log-in section. This will save the password on the computer you're using to access the site. Note: If you choose to use the log-out feature, you will lose your saved information. This means you will be required to log-in the next time you visit our site. Circleville Pumpkin Show 2022: What you need to know if you plan to go Editorial: Here's why I'll be wearing red on Friday The first Friday of February is National Wear Red Day. People will be wearing red and local landmarks will be lit in red to raise awareness about how to prevent heart disease the leading killer of women. By CAROL K. NELSON Special to the Journal Nelson Every year on the first Friday of February, many buildings and landmarks around the Puget Sound are lit up in red. It's a nod to American Heart Month but also serves to sound the alert that heart disease claims the life of about one woman per minute, and that we must take action. I am a great advocate for financial health, but throughout the years personal health has always been very important to me. At the age of eight, I was devastated by the loss of my father to a heart attack. My siblings and I were suddenly left without a father, and my mother suddenly faced the challenge of raising seven children as a single parent. Heart disease, the leading killer of Americans, has a profound impact on all of us, but not everyone knows that heart disease is the leading killer of women. The good news is that about 80 percent of cardiac events may be prevented with healthy lifestyle changes. That's why this February I encourage you to give yourself permission to take of yourself and your heart health. I am currently volunteering as chair of the American Heart Association's Go Red For Women movement. It was launched more than a decade ago when it became evident that more women than men were dying from heart disease. Today, Go Red is the world's largest network of women fighting heart disease and stroke, and raising money for women-related research. The first Friday of February is National Wear Red Day. Local landmarks will be lit in red to raise awareness, and you can make a difference too. On Feb. 5 put on a red dress, tie or shirt and share with others why you are wearing red. Make a healthy lifestyle change if you need to. Encourage the women in your life coworkers, spouses, daughter and friends to make heart health a priority. All of us at KeyBank will be wearing red that day and if you're part of a company, I encourage your office to participate on National Wear Red Day in solidarity with other women in our community. You can find resources at heart.org/goREDseattle What does it mean to Go Red? Here's some advice from the American Heart Association. G: Get your numbers. Ask your doctor to check your blood pressure and cholesterol. O: Own your lifestyle. Stop smoking, lose weight, exercise, and eat healthfully. R: Raise your voice. Advocate for women-related research and education. E: Educate your family. Make healthy food choices for you and your family.Teach your kids the importance of staying active. D: Don't be silent. Show your support by volunteering or by donating time and money. Heart disease can manifest differently in women than in men, and much research remains to be done on women and cardiovascular health. The American Heart Association stresses the importance of an annual doctor's visit, and having a discussion with your doctor about your personal risk factors, which includes family history. Because my father died of heart disease at age 42, I know that I am at risk. Thankfully I have been diligent about my annual check-ups, and although it's not always easy, I try hard to make time for exercise and ways to reduce stress. As women, we are notorious for taking care of everyone else and putting ourselves last on the list. That's why I encourage you to give yourself permission to take care of yourself. We can win this fight against heart disease, but it starts with each of us. Carol Nelson is Pacific region executive and Seattle market president for KeyBank. Tell us what you think... The Daily Journal of Commerce welcomes your comments. E-mail: Phil Brown Phil Brown Phone: (206) 622-8272 (206) 622-8272 Mail: Daily Journal of Commerce 83 Columbia St.,Suite 200 Seattle, WA 98104 Previous columns: Silver Flag trains Support Airmen Approximately 10 Airmen from several units across the Air Force and Air Force Reserve participated in the 622nd Force Support Silver Flag contingency operations training exercise Jan. 23 through 28 here. The Silver Flag training facility is responsible for educating students in classroom and field training environments. The instructors gave detailed instructions and guided students to success in every aspect of support service. Technical Sgt. Latoya Patterson, 622nd Civil Engineer Group Force Support Silver Flag training instructor, gave students hands-on, real-world demonstrations of tent structures and equipment in the FSSF field training facility. Helping and caring for others is one of the most important parts of our job, said Patterson. Throughout the training week, students spent time learning about the physical set up for lodging and food service tent structures. Other Airmen focused on computer systems and accountability for maintaining deployed personnel. Force Support career fields cover a spectrum of skills and services that are vital to sustaining personnel during deployment, as well as home base operation. The training provides practice in a field environment so students are prepared for deployment responsibilities before deploying, said Tech. Sgt. Emily Ferguson, FSSF training instructor. My favorite part is seeing the students progress throughout the week, said Ferguson. I really like the hands-on shelter portion. Especially in a deployed environment, food service is important to the everyday mission, Patterson said. The Force Support Airmen construct a single palletized expeditionary kitchen. The SPEK is where food is prepared and served. They also have a field sanitation unit (a mobile temperature-controlled sink) to cleanse and sanitize kitchenware to keep an inspection-ready facility where Airmen are proud to eat. We are in charge of food operations, setting up the SPEK tents, the lodging tents; basically everything for deployment set up for field operations, said Staff Sgt. Carlos Morales, 366th Force Support Squadron food service shift leader. This is the best Silver Flag in the Air Force, said Morales. This training literally saved my skin. We work with really hot water in the SPEK. There are several aspects to FS. Another entity is PERSCO, personnel support for contingency operations. The three main functions of PERSCO Airmen are personnel accountability, casualty reporting and reach-back support for personnel actions. We are responsible for total force accountability in a deployed environment or during deployment exercises, said Tech. Sgt. Shea McMillan, 622nd CEG PERSCO instructor and support staff. Dobbins is different from all the other Silver Flag sites. We actually train and let students execute the mission. McMillan showed FS members how to use computer systems to take total force accountability by receiving and sending off members from a deployed location, including casualties. Although accountability of all personnel here is their top priority, PERSCO Airmen also assist service members with customs and immigrations processing, process Common Access Card replacements, coordinate with home stations to obtain reenlistment paperwork, and process emergency leave requests. We have the opportunity to develop a plan and execute that plan in a realistic training environment, said PERSCO student Master Sgt. Anthony Hoile, 178th Wing, Springfield, Ohio personnel systems manager and PERSCO team chief. We come up with a plan to create a base, create service member events and recreational activities. Force Support Airmen like Airman 1st Class Gina Discipio, 628th FSS customer support apprentice, are responsible for generating reports, making member, civilian and spouse IDs, as well as gaining and in-processing new members. I like that I get to see both sides of a deployment and how it affects military members and their families, said Discipio. I also like working with older, retired people because they like to give me life advice, and they always say stay in the military. With all the training and implementation that FS executes, there are very few things that the Dobbins Silver Flag staff considers unfavorable. I dont really have a least favorite part, said Ferguson. I would say working in inclement weather is the only thing that is a bit challenging. One of the hardest things is that sometimes we can be unappreciated, Patterson explained. Sometimes, people dont really know how much goes into doing a job like this. I have nothing to complain about. Circuit training was hard, Hoile said with a smile, about the workout the group participated in that morning. Instructors and students, alike, had only positive opinions of the FS training. Its very realistic, hands-on training that you cant obtain at your home station, added Hoile. The training here at this base gives more detail to what we should know, said Morales. We get real world application and Im always excited to come here. UN panel exonerates Assange, but cops waiting to pounce WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange may emerge from his refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy in London on Friday after over three years, as a United Nations panel examining his appeal will rule that his stay in the embassy amounts to ''unlawful detention'', the BBC reported. Assange had said that he would hand himself in to British police if his appeal to a UN panel falls through . If the appeal is successful, he said he would expect to be able to leave the embassy a free man. Assange, a former computer hacker who has been holed up in the embassy since June 2012, told the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention that he was a political refugee whose rights had been infringed by being unable to take up asylum in Ecuador (Ecuador grants political asylum to Julian Assange). There was no immediate confirmation of the BBC report as the UN the panel's opinion, which is not legally binding, was due to be published on Friday. The British police said Assange would face arrest if he leaves the embassy. This was confirmed by British Prime Minister David Cameron's spokesman, who said today that if Assange leaves the Ecuadorian embassy in London he would be arrested, reiterating his government's position since Asange first took rfuge in the embassy. In 2012 British foreign secretary William Hague had said, ''We will not allow Assange safe passage out of the United Kingdom, nor is there any legal basis for us to do so. The United Kingdom does not recognise the principle of diplomatic asylum.'' (Assange will be promptly nabbed if he steps out: UK) The spokesman said that any decision by a United Nations panel that is examining Assange's appeal would not be legally binding and that an arrest warrant for Assange would be put into effect if he left the embassy. The Australian, who jumped bail to take refuge in the embassy, is wanted in Sweden for questioning over allegations of rape in 2010, which he denies. ''Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal,'' Assange said in a statement posted on the Wikileaks Twitter account. ''However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me.'' (See: Assange willing to face arrest if UN panel upholds charges) The decision in his favour marks the latest twist in a tumultuous journey for Assange since he incensed the United States and its allies by using his WikiLeaks website to leak hundreds of thousands of secret US diplomatic and military cables in 2010, disclosures that often embarrassed Washington. Assange, 44, fears Sweden will extradite him to the United States, where he could be put on trial over WikiLeaks' publication of the classified military and diplomatic documents, one of the largest information leaks in US history. Exposing secrets He made international headlines in early 2010 when WikiLeaks published classified US military video showing a 2007 attack by Apache helicopters that killed a dozen people in Baghdad, including two Reuters news staff. Later that year, the group released over 90,000 secret documents detailing the US-led military campaign in Afghanistan, followed by almost 400,000 internal US military reports detailing operations in Iraq. Those disclosures were followed by the release of more than 250,000 classified cables from US embassies. It would go on to add almost three million more diplomatic cables dating back to 1973. The main source of the leaks, US Army soldier Chelsea Manning, was sentenced to 35 years in prison for breaches of the Espionage Act. 'Arbitrary detention' 'Arbitrary detention' In his submission to the UN working group, a body of outside experts, Assange argued that his time in the embassy constituted arbitrary detention. Assange says he is the victim of a witch hunt directed by the United States and that his fate is a test case for freedom of expression. He said that he had been deprived of his fundamental liberties, including lack of access to sunlight or fresh air, adequate medical facilities, as well as legal and procedural insecurity. Per Samuelson, one of Assange's Swedish lawyers, said if the UN panel judged Assange's time in the embassy to be custody, he should be released immediately. ''It is a very important body that would be then saying that Sweden's actions are inconsistent with the European Convention on Human Rights. And it is international common practice to follow those decisions,'' Samuelson told Reuters. Since Assange's confinement, WikiLeaks has continued to publish documents on topics such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, one of the world's biggest multinational trade deals, which was signed by 12 member nations today in New Zealand. WikiLeaks has said Sweden's handling of its founder's case has left a "black stain" on the country's human rights record. In September 2014, Assange filed a complaint against Sweden and Britain to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, claiming his confinement in the embassy amounted to illegal detention. "The only protection he has ... is to stay in the confines of the embassy; the only way for Mr Assange to enjoy his right to asylum is to be in detention," the submission said. "This is not a legally acceptable choice," it added, according to a file posted on the website justice4assange.com. A divisive figure, Assange has likened his confinement in the embassy, where he lives in a small room divided into an office and a living area, to living on a space station. Previously he lived in the more impressive surroundings of an English country mansion owned by one of his supporters, documentary maker Vaughan Smith. In October last year, British police ended a round-the-clock guard outside the embassy building but said they would strengthen a "covert plan" to prevent his departure. London police said at the time, "The operation to arrest Julian Assange does however continue and should he leave the embassy ... (police) will make every effort to arrest him." dpa ElectionsData With dpa ElectionsData you get access to a unique collection of data. Via a programming interface (Rest-API), your developers can access detailed information, candidate profiles and live results for all national elections in the European Union and important international elections, like the US Midterm elections etc. The data pool also includes all heads of state and government as well as about 20,000 elected members of parliament throughout the EU. In addition to their data (name, party, constituency or list position), we collect social media profiles and official websites of individuals and parties. Deputy Gerry Adams came face to face with a wax version of himself last week. The National Wax Museum unveiled the wax effegy of Adams this week and the Deputy was on hand to admire the handy work. His wax double will go on display in the Good Friday Agreement section of the museum. This section which pays tribute to the Peace Process is part of a larger section of the attraction The Time Vaults of Irish History. The Time Vaults of Irish History is devoted to important events in Irish History from the Vikings to the Good Friday Agreement including the 1916 Easter Rising Exhibit. The addition of Mr Adams' figure completes an exhibit featuring all the major political figures involved. Speaking to the Dundalk Democrat, Deputy Adams said: Someone in my office had set it up, but didn't fully realise that 12 people would arrive at Leinster House. As it turned out that couldn't be done as there were too many people and you're not allowed to do that sort of thing in Leinster House. Again, not realising what the process was I went over to the Wax Museum, where I met a very nice man called PJ Heraghty. They made a plaster cast of my face. It took an hour and half. It became quite hot on my face and became very heavy. PJ came back and took forensic measurements of the space between my eyes and ears. He then had to put in every single hair individually. My involvment was just those two engagements. Mr Adams is 6'1 and weighs 13 and half stone and he was on hand for the official unveiling. He says he didn't ponder coming face to face with his likeness to any great degree. First of all it was a very small room, it was very dark and there were a whole gaggle of journalists and TV cameras and so on and I actually have the chance to applaud it. Looking back on the photographs afterwards and reflecting back, it is bizarre. It's a bit of an odd experience. I said that thought PJ had improved me, I'm in need of improvement,' quipped Deputy Adams. It was described as the Good Friday Agreement Section and it's more accurate to describe it as the peace process section. For example Ian Paisley is in it and he was against the Good Friday Agreement. Subsequently he went on to make peace. Tony Blair's not in it. David Trimble's not in it. John Bruton is in and he had nothing to do with the Good Friday Agreement, and John Major didn't have anything to do with the Good Friday Agreement. Deputy Adams said he sees this chapter of his life and his ongoing role in the southern Irish politics as a continuum' and not different chapters. Deputy Adams also launched a new book on tweets - My Little Book of Tweets - which he himself describes as only a wee bit of craic. It's a distraction and a wee bit of light relief and hopefully others will have the same view of it. It's a small book and shaped in a similar size to a mobile phone. Deputy Adams says he is a big fan of Twitter and the ability to share the lighter side of life. I enjoy the feedback and the interaction that takes place. I like the immediacy of it. Without getting too deep about it I like the sense of independence. I don't have to rely on others to reflect accurately what I say. If I make a mess, I make a mess. There moderate, that's no interlocutor. I do like the more quirky side of it, Deputy Adams says: I very rarely block people, but on occasion I have when I have received some obscene and abusive commentary at times. This comes from people who are very hositle or who have issues in their lives. That aspect you just have to be detached from. The only reason my account has got attention is because it's light hearted and frivolous, and a bit of a distraction, and I make no apologies for that. In every solemn or serious event there will be something that will catch your eye. That's just being human. I'd be savouring little moments like that whether I tweeted them or not. The account was originally opened in Deputy Adams' name when he was elected to Leinster House. It wasn't used and I didn't use it. I didn't understand it. I was told this is the way to go. I said I don't want to be sticking out the usual polemic statements, why would people want to be reading that stuff.I said ' I will do it, but it will be my account. I wasn't trying to reach out to any particular sector or generation. I just discovered when I tweeted about getting locked out. First I said I was going to climb the water pipe and then I said I needed a 'glazier'. That caught people's attention and it was a bit of a revelation. A lot of people who come back at me are young people, but that wasn't part of some grand plan. I think it's good to debunk politics and make fun of yourelf. We all make mistakes and get caught in funny situations. My Little Book of Tweets is out now. We work hard and we strive for promotion; we get promoted and receive financial reward. Do we then pause in content and admire the view before considering our direction? Not likely. Most career-minded individuals will tilt their heads back and start looking up at the next rung of the ladder. After all, we are conditioned to think this is healthy. And it is but to what extent and to what expense? Very few people, if asked, would have a clear idea about when they will reach their equilibrium in life or when the time will come to stop clambering and take stock. According to Forbes, reaching the point at which you realise your salary no longer makes up for the boredom and emptiness you feel is one of the top 5 reasons to stop and take stock: Hang on here I have this money, but I hate how I spend my life making it. They begin to rethink their priorities and their abilities, and then they open their eyes to new ways they can make the money. I had to ask myself: is this all there is? With 27 years experience in the corporate banking sector, Neil Gibbins understands exactly what it means to reach this point. From managing over 100 people and multimillion dollar budgets, Neil gave up his career to realise his potential as (you [unlikely] guessed it) a handyman. By 2003, Neil had given up his suits for overalls after joining Hire-A-Hubby as a franchisee servicing the Gladesville and Ryde districts of Sydney. Neil said I had enjoyed the work but it eventually got to the point where I had to ask myself: is this all there is? I wanted greater satisfaction in my work and a job that gave me the flexibility. During my corporate banking career, I worked long hours. I was missing out on time with my two young boys. It wasnt a tough decision at all. The challenge for me was to find something I loved doing and to get paid for it After feeling the push to rethink priorities and abilities, Neil gave careful consideration to his next move. A random one it may seem, but growing up in the country, Neil was no stranger to manual tasks. Neil said, the challenge for me was to find something I loved doing and to get paid for it. I have always had a passion for building things. It wasnt a tough decision according to Neil, but that doesnt mean it came without risks the most obvious one being financial. According to Neil, there was a major financial risk transitioning from a senior corporate position with a stable income to the unknown. But I knew it was the right decision for me at the time, said Neil. Over 10 years later, Neil is well positioned to tell us how it went. A drastic sea change it may have been, but he notes above all, that his corporate career was by no means a waste. My corporate experience has definitely helped build my business, said Neil. I have control over everything I do with my business Neils franchise business has gone from strength to strength since 2003. Nothing like the 100 plus employees he used to manage, but his own entrepreneurial skills have seen the business expand, now having a number of staff members employed to meet the needs of customers. On an upward trajectory, some might ask: is there a risk of defeating the objectives Neil initially set out to achieve? Neil said I have control over everything I do with my business. I determine my own hours and holidays. It is hard work but its very rewarding and I benefit directly from my efforts. I left the corporate world to build a career that worked for my family. If I have to work long hours one day, I dont see it as a burden because I choose to do it, Im in control of my time, Neil added. For others who find themselves at odds with how they spend their lives making money and who think self-employment could be the answer, Neil has some tried and tested advice: Identify a passion and aim to make it your profession; have a plan in place for where you want to go; and ensure you have some working capital as a buffer. If you have confidence in your business, you have every chance of hitting the ground running, Neil said. The funds will be used to construct and operate a bulk-liquids terminal A US$ 341 million facility to Sonker, an Egyptian company providing hydrocarbon storage and bunkering, will support a significant upgrade of the countrys oil and gas infrastructure and will contribute to the energy security of Egypt. As part of a consortium, the EBRD is extending a US$ 72 million senior loan and a US$ 22 million mezzanine loan to the company, while the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, is providing a US$ 70 million senior loan along with a US$ 22 million mezzanine loan and mobilising US$52.5 million from other investors. In addition, the Commercial International Bank (CIB) of Egypt, the countrys largest private-sector bank, is availing with US$ 28 million and the equivalent of US$ 44 million in Egyptian pounds loan as well as a US$ 30 million Credit Support Instrument Facility. Sonker operates oil and gas storage and bunkering facilities at the Ain Sokhna Port on the Red Sea. Installing the necessary infrastructure is crucial for energy security in Egypt as it will increase storage and handling capacity for imports of gasoil, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and liquefied natural gas (LNG). The company will use the funds to construct and operate a bulk-liquids terminal for the import and storage of gasoil, LPG in the third basin of Ain Sokhna Port. The new infrastructure will accommodate the docking of two floating storage and regasification units and the handling of LNG imports to the nearest national gas grid. The loan will also support Sonker in adopting the highest standards of corporate governance and business conduct through the implementation of an environmental and social action plan and the upgrading of safety standards to prevent any oil contamination. The Egyptian government is taking quantum leaps towards achieving a more resilient and sustainable economy. Foreseeing the growing local demand for energy, the Egyptian authorities, supported us in developing this first bulk-liquids terminal on the Red Sea, as a successful public-private partnership project, said Ossama Al Sharif, Sonker's Managing Director. Al Sharif added: The Sonker Project will ensure a constant supply of energy to our burgeoning economy and will certainly transform the Red Sea area into a regional hub for trading petroleum products, not only for the Egyptian market, but also for East Africa and Europe. Eric Rasmussen, EBRD Director for Natural Resources, said We are pleased to support Sonker, an independent private company in the Egyptian energy storage and bunkering industry. The investments will increase energy security by increasing capacity and introducing the highest quality and environmental standards. A more efficient operation will reduce cost and benefit the environment. IFCs financing will help create vital energy infrastructure for Egypt at a time when the demand for power is growing, said Nada Shousha, IFC Country Manager for Egypt. Our aim is to spur job creation and minimise infrastructure gaps by increasing private sector participation in the economy. We also hope to send a positive market signal to international and domestic private sector investors. Heba Abdellatif, Head of Debt Capital Markets at CIB, said: CIB is committed to supporting Egypts liquid-storage capacity for petroleum products and views this project as being of strategic importance to ensure continuity of supply and minimise the cost of imported products. We believe that the cooperation between IFC, their partner financial institutions, the EBRD and ourselves present a template for project financing, given the large foreign currency funding requirements, and signals a positive outlook for the Egyptian economy. The EBRD has invested more than 1.6 billion in Egypt through 31 projects (including regional ones) since it started working in the country at the end of 2012. The Banks investments include the natural resources sector, the financial sector, agribusiness, manufacturing and services as well as infrastructure projects such as power, municipal water and wastewater, and contributions to the upgrade of transport services. Sonker Bunkering Company S.A.E. (Sonker) is a private storage and bunkering company incorporated in Egypt for the purpose of realising the project. It is beneficially owned by the Amiral Holding Group (Amiral), the Egyptian Ministry of Finance and the Egyptian Ministry of Petroleum. IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. Working with more than 2,000 businesses worldwide, we use our capital, expertise, and influence to create opportunity where its needed most. In FY15, our long-term investments in developing countries rose to nearly $18 billion, helping the private sector play an essential role in the global effort to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity. For more information, visit www.ifc.org CIB is Egypts premier and largest private sector bank and has a dominant market share among domestic private sector banks capturing 8.54% of total loans and 7.84% of total deposits as of end of 2014. CIB specializes in structuring and arranging large ticket project financings, syndicated debt, as well as the arrangement of corporate bonds and securitizations. CIBs track record in arranging syndicated loans is unparalleled in the domestic market having arranged more than EGP 45 billion and USD 25 billion of syndicated loans, EGP 10 billion of corporate bonds and EGP 11.3billion of securitized notes over the last 10 years. CIB also specializes in providing Agency and Security Agency services in project financings and syndications. For more information, visit www.cibeg.com Over the past couple of months, multiple Colleges in the Eastern Michigan University system have passed resolutions of No Confidence in the EMU Board of Regents. These groups include the Colleges of Education, Arts & Science, Technology, and Health & Human Services. Yesterday, the entire Faculty Senate did the same. You can read their resolution HERE. In their resolution of No Confidence, they specifically call out EMUs continued association with Gov. Snyders failed experiment on Detroit school children known as the Education Achievement Authority (EAA). The EAA only exists at this point because of the intralocal agreement it has with EMU. Without it, it simply would not exist. However, the Board of Regents has stubbornly clung to this hideous experiment despite a constant drumbeat of disgust and opposition from EMU faculty, staff, students, and alumni. The Faculty Senate ends their powerful resolution with this: Resolved that the Faculty Senate, given the Boards gross violation of its own code of ethics and failure to be a faithful servant of our University, has no choice but to vote no confidence in the Eastern Michigan University Board of Regents. Its a powerful statement on behalf of ALL of the faculty members at EMU, one of the nations premier normal schools, colleges and universities that educate educators. The Board of Regents is scheduled to meet tomorrow but there does not appear to be any discussion of the EAA on their agenda. UPDATE: The following item was added to the Board of Regents agenda late yesterday: Section 21 Interlocal Agreement between the Board of Regents of Eastern Michigan University and the School District for the City of Detroit. This huge move comes the same day as a final admission by Michigan Republicans that their experiment has failed. Heres Senate Majority Leader Arlan Meekhof: Gov. Rick Snyders controversial Education Achievement Authority will come to an end as legislators consider a $715 million plan to rescue the Detroit Public Schools, according to Senate Majority Leader Arlan Meekhof. Its gone. Were not going to do the EAA again, Meekhof told The Detroit News on Wednesday, a day before his Government Operations Committee was to begin a public debate on the Detroit schools legislation. [] Meekhof, R-West Olive, said moving away from the EAA is one of several accommodations that Republicans will make in order to help get Democrats on board with the larger plan. [] I think youll see the bills are very reasonable, because several things that the Democrats have asked for, weve included, Meekhof said. They dont close any schools, they dont punish any teachers, the emergency managers gone and it doesnt affect collective bargaining. This is a vivid example of how the Democratic caucus in the state legislature is leveraging the discord among Republicans to enact positive change in our state and they should be commended for it. At long, long last, it appears the fat lady is singing the funeral dirge of one of the most horrendous obscenities inflicted on the children of Michigan by our Republican legislators and their hideous policies. Except for the poisoning of their drinking water, of course. Democratic presidential candidates to hold March debate in Flint Democrats announced yesterday that they are adding two presidential debates to the schedule and one of them will take place on March 6th, just before the Michigan primary. Details about the time, location, and who will moderate have not yet been released. Michigan Democratic Party Chair Brandon Dillon released this statement about the debate in Flint: America has witnessed the man-made public health disaster inflicted upon the city of Flint, and we applaud Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders for their efforts to shine a light on the crisis, especially when our Republican governor has done everything he can to keep Michigans citizens in the dark. Holding a presidential debate in Flint will bring further into focus the issues faced by working families here in Michigan and around the country. Not to be outdone, Republicans are in the final stages of arranging their own Michigan debate to take place in Detroit on March 3rd. Former Flint Emergency Manager Darnell Earley says hell testify before Congress but may plead the 5th At yesterdays House Oversight and Government Reform hearing in Washington, D.C., former Flint Emergency Manager Darnell Earley was a no-show despite having been invited by Republican Committee Chair Jason Chaffetz. He is suddenly interested in testifying after all, according to his attorney: Earleys attorney A. Scott Bolden said Wednesday his client was issued the subpoena 6 p.m. Tuesday by members of Congress requiring him to testify 9 a.m. Wednesday that was completely unenforceable. Bolden, however, said Earley would respect and honor another subpoena if the congressional committee gives him a reasonable time to respond. The subpoena may have been issued the day before the hearing but Earley was invited days before and simply refused to appear. If he does testify, Bolden said, he might exercise his Fifth Amendment rights, depending on what questions he is asked. Transparency! (By the way, Gov. Snyder says that he, too, would seriously look at testifying before Congress if invited to do so.) Detroit water department offered lower water rates to Flint then later jacked them up The Detroit News is reporting that the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department initially tried to woo Flint officials to stay on the DWSD system in the run-up to the decision for Flint to join a regional water coalition, the Karegnondi Water Authority (KWA). However, once the decision was made, they cut them off and then offered to let them stay on until the KWA system was operational at an increased rate: The governor just said Thanks for meeting and taking so much time on this , [former Flint Mayor Dayne] Walling recalled. Are you willing to consider one last, best offer (from Detroit)? Kurtz and I just looked at each other and said Well listen. Detroit officials returned with an immediate 48 percent rate reduction from $20 to $10.46 per 7,500 gallons and a 20 percent savings over the Karegnondi proposal in a 30-year period. Late last month, former Detroit water system Public Affairs Director Bill Johnson described the deal as giving Flint everything they asked for. [KWA CEO Jeff] Wright, who helped spearhead the Karegnondi project, said the lack of rate guarantees beyond the first year made the offer worthless. [] In early 2014, with the shutoff looming, Detroit prepared a rate proposal for continuing to provide Flints water for the first two months after the shutoff. But the proposed rate was more than 10 percent higher than what Flint then paid. In other words, the DWSD, under the control of Detroit Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr decided to extort even higher water rates than their already exorbitant rates when it had Flint in a vulnerable position. Despite already discussed problems with using the Flint River as their sole water source, Flint Emergency Manager Darnell Earley told them thanks but no thanks. And that set Flint on the path toward the poisoning of its drinking water with lead. Widespread reports of water-induced rashes in Flint now under investigation by state and federal officials By now, youve probably seen the pictures or at least heard the stories of men, women, and children in Flint developing horrible rashes after coming into contact with Flint water after the switch to the Flint River. Stuff like this: The problem isnt isolated to this one poor, sweet boy. Because of that, state and federal officials are now investigating: The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services has begun to investigate the rashes that have plagued many Flint residents since the city changed its water source to the Flint River in 2014. A key message that I have for folks is that were taking the rash concerns very seriously because we know that this obviously is a worry, Dr. Eden Wells, chief medical executive of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, told the Free Press Tuesday. [] The state will get help from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as well as the federal Environmental Protection Agency in doing the investigation, which involves enhanced testing, home visits and surveys, said Wells, who also is clinical associate professor of epidemiology at the University of Michigan. Bernadette Burden, a spokeswoman for the CDC, said Tuesday that the agency will provide technical support to the state as it develops protocols and questionnaires. Were providing information to them. This is very much a process thats evolving, Burden said. Flint is rapidly becoming a city full of modern-day Jobs. State Senate approves $30 million for Flint, Republicans reject Democrats proposal of $60 million This morning the state Senate approved a $30 million assistance for Flint residents in a unanimous vote: The Michigan Senate on Thursday unanimously approved $30 million in new general fund state spending to reimburse Flint residents for lead-contaminated water they have not been able to drink. The action was unexpected, coming just one day after Gov. Rick Snyder announced he would recommend funding for the consumption and consumer use credit next week as part of a budget presentation. Senate Majority Leader Arlan Meekhof, R-West Olive, called the $30 million proposal a common sense move and urged support on the floor. The $30 million first suggested by Gov. Snyder would be used for a partial refund of Flint residents water bills: The Snyder administration estimates that water for drinking, bathing and cooking constitutes about 47 percent of the Flint water bills in question. The state funding would cover 65 percent of those water costs but would not help cover sewer payments. However, Republicans rejected a Democrats amendment to provide twice that The floor vote was unanimous, but the floor debate was at times contentious. Senate Minority Leader Jim Ananich, D-Flint, said he appreciated the quick consideration of the bill but argued that $30 million in funding will not be enough to cover all residential water bills dating back to April of 2014, when the city switched to a new source. Ananich proposed a failed amendment to boost the funding from $30 million to $60 million, a figure he said he arrived at through conversations with Flint Mayor Karen Weaver. We have the ability to do this right, and we should. We have the ability to reimburse the entire amount of the water that we now know is unsafe, Ananich said. No good business person would expect only a partial refund for a product that was not only unfit for use but actually poisoned them. The bill now heads to the House where, perhaps, the amount will be raised. Congressional Republicans stalling federal assistance to Flint Democratic Senators Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters are threatening to derail a Senate energy package if Republicans dont stop putting roadblocks in front of federal assistance (which is ironic given the ludicrous graphic released yesterday by the Michigan Republican Party blaming the Obama administration for not doing enough): Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D) quickly dismissed a GOP offer to resolve a battle over the Flint, Mich., drinking water crisis, calling the proposal a non-starter. I personally feel its an insult. Its being done to embarrass us, the Michigan senator said, adding that its a slap in the face. Stabenow was referring to an amendment that Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) filed to the wide-ranging energy bill thats currently being debated by the Senate. Inhofes proposal would pay for the emergency Flint funding that Democrats are pushing for by using rescinded funds from a Department of Energy alternative vehicles program. Stabenow said that while she and other lawmakers are negotiating in good faith that she was amazed that this would be offered. Now we are hearing in an amendment to the people of Flint, well, youve got a choice. You can either drink the water, have safe water or you can have a job, she added. [] Stabenow warned earlier Wednesday that without some funding for Flint, Democrats were prepared to block the legislation or stop senators from getting votes on other amendments to the energy bill. Well, if they dont work with us, I think its a big question of whether they get cloture, she told reporters at the time. If they want an energy bill, then they need to help us. Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.) told reporters on Wednesday afternoon that both sides were still talking, but has suggested that he couldnt support moving forward with the energy bill without getting aid for the water crisis in his home state. Peters and Stabenow have proposed an amendment to the energy bill that would give up to $600 million to combat the drinking water crisis. Second poll finds Gov. Snyders approval rating sinking fast A new poll shows that two-thirds of Michiganders thing Gov. Snyder is doing a terrible job managing the Flint water crisis: The rise of autonomous war machines is outpacing policies and technological countermeasures, weapons and robotics experts warned last week at theWorld Economic Forum. Autonomous weaponry potentially is a US$20 billion industry that has taken root in 40 countries, saidBAE Systems Chairman Roger Carr. He was one of four panelists at the session titled What If: Robots Go to War? The other panelists were Angela Kane, senior fellow at theVienna Center for Disarmament and Non-Proliferation; robot ethics expert Alan Winfield; and Stuart Russell, a computer science professor atUC Berkeley. Lethal autonomous robotics, or LARs, have no emotion or sense of mercy, Carr said. The panel stressed the need for human operators to oversee LARs, which cant fully comply with laws limiting all-out war. The next 18 months or so will be critical, warned Kane, because some actors will use the technology irresponsibly and possibly even maliciously. The First Autonomous Weapon Whilekiller robots very well may be an existential threat to humanity, autonomous weapons already have been used on a large scale. The U.S. is believed to be the first country to have launched an autonomous weapon, according to Richard Stiennon, chief research analystIT-Harvest. That weaponized artificial intelligence, Stuxnet, was designed to take down power plants and other large-scale industrial sites. The only reason we havent seen this yet in the private cybercrimes space is that traditional attacks, such as spearfishing and man in the middle, are a lot less expensive and take a lot less work, he told TechNewsWorld. States actively researching or testing autonomous weapons include China, Israel, Russia, South Korea, the UK and the U.S., according to theCampaign to Stop Killer Robots. Nation-State Involvement The sophistication of cyberattacks seems to be moving at warp speeds, said Brian Arellanes, CEO ofITSourceTek. One of the things weve realized, in sitting on different panels and engaging the community, is that there are nation-states that are heavily funding these hacker organizations, he told TechNewsWorld. So its not just one individual operating as a lone wolf anymore, though there remains that threat. Nation-states increasingly have been turning to hacker collectives to wage war and play spy games. Its becoming a much more complex landscape, so it makes it harder, especially for private sector companies, to fight these cyberterrorists, said Arellanes. Its imperative to highlight the potential for bad actors to hack and control LARs and other military equipment. I cant help but think of William Gibsons novel Neuromancer where he described all of this in graphic detail, IT-Harvests Stiennon said. its quite amazing that someone who is not a technologist has the imagination to see this coming. Amnesty International and African Resources Watch (Afrewatch) on Tuesday issued a report alleging that the supply chains of major electronics companies including Apple, Sony and Samsung included cobalt mined by child laborers in Africa. The companies have failed to make basic checks to halt the practice, the report claims. The report traces the harvesting and sale of cobalt in the poverty-stricken Democratic Republic of Congo where children as young as seven work the mines for use in lithium-ion batteries that power smartphones and electric cars. The extracted cobalt is sold to Congo Dongfang Mining, which is a unit of China-based Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt. Amnesty would like to see the home state countries U.S., China, Japan, etc. conduct human rights due diligence on their cobalt supplies, report author Mark Dummett told TechNewsWorld, to identify the source of the cobalt, monitor working conditions, and address human rights abuses. Amnesty International contacted 16 companies listed as customers of the battery manufacturers that reportedly sourced processed ore from Huayou. One company admitted the relationship, four companies said they were not sure if they were buying from the company or the DRC, six companies said they were investigating the claims, and five companies denied sourcing from the firm. Two multinational firms denied sourcing cobalt from the DRC. Amnesty said none of the firms contacted could provide documentation to prove where their cobalt originated. DRC a Huge Supplier of Cobalt Half the worlds cobalt comes from the DRC, and Huayou Cobalt sources more than 40 percent of its cobalt there, according to Amnesty. There were at least 80 documented cases of artisanal miners dying in the southern DRC between September 2014 and December 2015, the report notes. There were 40,000 children miners in the DRC in 2014, according to Amnesty. Miners typically put in 12-hour shifts for US$1 to $2 a day, based on researchers interviews with a total of 87 current and former workers, including 17 children. Huayou sold cobalt to three battery component makers Ningbo Shanshan and Tianjin Bamo of China, and L&F materials from South Korea who bought $90 million worth of cobalt from Huayou in 2013, Amnesty said. Companies Insist on Compliance Underage labor is never tolerated in our supply chain and we are proud to have led the industry in pioneering new safeguards, Apple wrote in a letter to Amnesty International, which was provided to TechNewsWorld by Apple spokesperson Ben Kobren. We not only have strict standards, rigorous audits and industry leading preventative measures, but we also actively look for any violations, the letter continues. Any supplier hiring underaged workers must fund the workers safe return home, fully finance their educations, continue to pay their wages, and offer them jobs when they reach legal age, Apple told Amnesty. Apple has been auditing workers for 10 years, and out of 1.6 million workers covered in 633 audits in 2014, a total of 16 cases of underage workers were found and all of them were addressed successfully, Apple maintained. Ningbo Shanshan was not one of Daimlers suppliers, according to spokesperson Andrea Berg. The company neither sourced directly from the DRC nor from suppliers in the DRC, she told TechNewsWorld, adding that its supplier standards impose strict obligations on working conditions, social and environmental standards, and business ethics. These standards are an integral part of the contracts that Daimler concludes with its suppliers, she told TechNewsWorld. Samsung SDI does not have any transactions with Huayou Cobalt, the company said in a statement provided to TechNewsWorld by spokesperson Joann Cho. The company operates its S-Partner Certification Program as a way to diagnose and improve corporate social responsibility issues across its supply chain, it said. For all suppliers, Samsung SDI conducts written evaluations and on-site inspections in areas such as human rights, labor, ethics, environment, and health and safety on a two-year basis, and awards them with certification, the company noted. Everyones Problem The DRC is listed in the U.S. Department of Labors Worst Forms of Child Labor report, and goods made under those conditions are listed in the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act. An effective lasting solution to a complex problem such as this is going to require a collaborative approach with government, civil society, subject matter experts and multiple industries, Deborah Albers, vice president of social and environmental sustainability at the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition, told TechNewsWorld. Companies must operate in full compliance with the laws of the countries where they operate, the EICC said, and the fight against the use of child labor is the responsibility of everyone involved in the process. Alternative energy has become a real growth engine during the last several years. It seems to bounce up and down, depending on the leadership in the White House. President Obama is a supporter, so growth has been relatively strong in recent years. The big question is, what will happen under a new president? That is a question every investor and industry worker is asking. We all want to work and invest in a growth sector. Many people have hitched their wagon to the growth engine in the energy space, and that has been a good call. Will the Growth Engine Slow? However, worries that things will change and growth will slow are starting to set in. What happens will depend in large part on who we elect as president. Energy is important, but it is just one of many important factors we must focus on going forward. In general, voters wont focus on one issue, like energy, when there are multiple problems like security, economic growth and jobs. That said, growth in energy, especially alternative energy, will continue. The question is, will it be at the same rapid pace or will it slow? If you are working for or invested in the right companies in the alternative energy space, you likely will continue do well. Choosing Growth Companies How do you choose the right growth-oriented companies? That question is easier to ask than to answer. Alternative energy is an industry driven by innovation, reinvention and politics. The hot companies and new technologies always will capture the attention of the media and industry watchers. That means those companies should be the focus for investors and workers. The life span of a hot opportunity in the energy space may be short. A company or technology that is new and hot today may give way to the next hot company or technology in the blink of an eye. That happens in every industry. Consider the mobile phone marketplace. Motorola led the space early on. Then in the 1990s, Nokia and BlackBerry took the No. 1 position, sending Motorola to the basement. In the 2000s, Apples iPhone and Googles Android OS took the lead, sending Nokia and BlackBerry to join Motorola in the basement. Leadership Changes Things change quickly. Leadership changes quickly. Sometimes leaders stay leaders by creating the next growth wave to ride. Most times they do not they ride that wave up and then down again. Consider the iPhone, which has been under scrutiny for slowing growth. Apple remains a beloved company in the eyes of its customers. However, its growth lately has not been quite up to what analysts predicted, so thestock has been hit and some media outlets have been trashing it. There are two distinct sectors to balance: the customer and the investor. Sometimes they are on the same growth track, but other times they take different paths. Expect the same thing to happen in the energy space. Investors can use the lessons they learned from the wireless wars in the energy arena. Choose the right companies and technologies to work for or to bet on with your investment dollars. Energy Tables Turn Quickly The hottest energy industry segments are solar, wind, hydro, biomass and geothermal energy. There will be plenty of winners and losers in each. Determining which to bet on is the biggest challenge. Stay alert the tables can turn quickly. That might happen with the change in leadership in Washington. However, even if the new president has an alternative energy focus, the industrys volatile growth will continue. Alternative energy will continue to grow its the pace of growth that is the big unknown. Be prepared to make a series of strategic moves. Staying alert in the rapidly growing and changing alternative energy space will help you stay on the winning side of the growth curve. (Perlanproject.org)Airbus Perlan 2 glider After a stable first test flight last September, sailplane Airbus Perlan 2 glider is slated for a second test flight this June in Argentina to attempt an optimal cruising altitude of 90,000 feet. Airbus Perlan 2 is set to fly at the edge of the Earth's atmosphere for its second test flight. If proven to be successful, it will greatly contribute to the development of commercial hypersonic aircraft and even to the future aviation on Mars, Forbes reports. Airbus Group Inc.the title sponsor of the said projectChairman and CEO Allan McArtor told Forbes that the test in June, if it goes as planned, will be the highest altitude that a powered or otherwise winged vehicle has gone in sustained level flight. This project, McArtor emphasized, could contribute to NASA and other space agencies' "situ" flight data of an atmosphere similar to Mars'. "Airbus recently filed a patent for hypersonic passenger aircraft that will go to suborbital space and back down again," McArtor added. According to DailyMail UK, the Perlan Project aims to "open up a world of new discoveries related to high-altitude flight, climate change and space exploration." The Perlan 2 is an engineless sailplane designed to glide on air currents that can reach into the stratosphere. Its flight speed at that altitude could reach to more than 400mph in an air density of less than two per cent of that of the sea level. It will carry a two-person crew who will be able to breathe pure oxygen via a rebreather system. The airbus will also be equipped with scientific instruments to explore and study climate change and the upper atmosphere. The Perlan Project began in 1992 by Einar Enevoldson as a scientific research for aeronautical and atmospheric exploration with the use of sailplanes. The first Perlan mission, which uses the Perlan I set an altitude record of 50,972 feet. (Photo: LWF / M. Renau)A Syrian family living in an unfinished building in Al Mafraq. Many refugees have to trade their food vouchers to pay the rent in early 2016. World leaders have attended a donor conference in London with an urgent plea for billions of dollars in aid for refugees from war-torn Syria who face worsening conditions and diminishing peace prospects. The Feb. 4 conference was overshadowed by the suspension of peace talks in Geneva the day before, and intense fighting on the ground in Sryia. A Syrian government offensive, backed by Russian air strikes, is continuing north of Aleppo, the BBC reported. The European Union and its member States said they pledged more than 3 billion ($3.4 billion) to assist the people inside Syria as well as refugees and the communities hosting them in the neighboring countries for the year 2016. The EU said the crisis emanating from the war in Syria is "the worst humanitarian crisis since World War II." "There is a critical shortfall in life-saving aid," said UK Prime Minister David Cameron. Germany pledged $2.6bn (1.9bn; 2.3bn) and the UK $1.7bn in new refugee aid. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said an estimated 70,000 Syrians fleeing the bombing were moving towards Turkey. The Lutheran World Federation said that a lack of education, protection, and assistance with livelihoods are the most pressing needs of Syrian refugees. A call to action by the LWF and 41 humanitarian organizations who are assisting refugees from Syria urged donors to put extra funding into these areas. The paper was published to coincide with Supporting Syria and the region conference on Feb. 4 in London "Warring parties continue to violate UN Security Council resolutions and international humanitarian law by deliberately and wantonly attacking civilians and civilian infrastructure, including homes, markets, schools and hospitals" the paper reads. Having exhausted their financial reserves, a lack of funding forces refugees to "accept exploitative work, driving impoverished parents to send their children into exploitative child labor," said the LWF paper. The situation forces "desperate women and girls into survival sex and early marriage, and leading men, women and children to return to Syria, or try to reach Europe through informal channels, at great risk to their lives," the paper explains. The 42 non-governmental organizations behind the paper include the church aid groups such as the LWF, Christian Aid, Cafod International, Caritas Germany, Tearfund and World Vision as well as Save the Children. Among their proposals they said: "We urge donors to ensure that investments in livelihoods benefit host communities and other refugee communities, including Palestinians, as well as Syrian refugees to enable social cohesion. "This should also include a thorough market analysis to understand the labor markets in host countries," they said. (NASA)NASA logo The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) denied, Tuesday, that a hacking group was able to access one of the space agency's drones. On Sunday, in a post on Pastebin, an Anonymous hacking collective-affiliated group called AnonSec claimed to have breached NASA. The data they have uploaded online contained 150 GB-worth of drone logs, emails, and numbers of 2,400 staff. AnonSec also claimed that one of NASA's Northrop Grumman Global Hawk drone was controlled semi-partially by the group when it was flying over the Pacific, Forbes reports. The claims prompted an investigation by NASA but the space agency, however, brushed off the hacktivist's claim. NASA told Forbes: "Control of our Global Hawk aircraft was not compromised. NASA has no evidence to indicate the alleged hacked data are anything other than already publicly available data. NASA takes cybersecurity very seriously and will continue to fully investigate all of these allegations." Indeed, the space agency has more than 30,000 datasets on its Open Data websites. It is also possible that this public information could be used by hackers as their data collected from internal systems. According to the same report on Forbes, the group admin said that they chose to penetrate the cybersecurity of the agency just "for the thrill of hacking NASA." They added, "We initially bought access for fun because we wanted to look around NASA systems. Then once we propagate through the network we eventually stumbled upon a couple Flight Research Centers." BGR also reported that the AnonSec's reason is also because of the space agency's climate engineering and geoengineering work, citing cloud seeding as one of their examples. It can also be remembered that there was also a breach in NASA before that gained worldwide media attention. In 2001, British hacker Brit Gary McKinnon penetrated the agency's network because, as what he claimed, he was searching for evidence of UFOs. Considered to be the Ten Best UFO Photos Ever Taken I am sure that we could add more pictures to this list but these are considered ten o... In 2015 the European Investment Bank (EIB), the EUs long-term lending institution, fostered projects in Finland with loans totalling EUR 1.62bn this is an all-time record high EIB commitment in Finland. Today, the EIB provided a EUR 230m loan to Finavia Corp., the Finnish airport operator, for the expansion of Helsinki Airport. This investment will enable the international hub to serve 20 million passengers by 2020. EIB Vice-President Jan Vapaavuori said, opening the press conference: The European Investment Bank is firmly committed to supporting long-term investments that improve lives, unlocks economic opportunities and strengthens services by backing projects that benefit nearly everyone in Finland. 2015 was a record year for the EIB in Finland - we provided loans amounting to EUR 1.62bn. The EIBs lending in Finland last year focused on projects modernising education infrastructure in Helsinki and Vantaa and supported the construction of the hospital in Jyvaskyla and the renovation of the university hospital in Oulu. The EIB also directed a substantial part of its financing towards investments in Finnish industry, such as the construction of a new large-scale bio-product mill in Aanekoski, Valmets research and development activities related to pulp, paper and power-generation technologies, Elisas large-scale rollout of 4G/LTE mobile networks and Kioskeds innovation of advertising platforms and mobile technologies for real-time bidding. Strategic infrastructure projects, such as the construction of the motorway between Hamina and Vaalimaa, the Tampere tunnel and the wastewater treatment plant in Blominmaki also received EIB backing. Finnish small and medium-sized enterprises and midcaps also benefited from EIB support in 2015. Todays EUR 230m loan to Finavia co-finances the development of Finlands main hub to alleviate peak congestion, cater for future growth in traffic and improve passenger service standards. The future Helsinki Airport will have more space, better services and more digital innovations. The investment will increase the capacity of the airport for the future. This is of great importance as international traffic in one of Europes main gateways to Asia is estimated to grow at an average annual rate of over 4%. EIB Vice-President Jan Vapaavuori said: The European Investment Bank has made supporting strategic transport infrastructure one of its priorities. Helsinki Airport is the key international gateway in Northern Europe and an important part of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T). We are therefore pleased to support Finavia in developing Helsinki Airport, as its increased capacity will benefit both passengers and airlines, so maintaining the strong competitive position of this hub. Kari Savolainen, CEO of Finavia, said: Helsinki Airports geographical location is an undisputed asset. Flying via Helsinki means choosing the shortest and fastest route between Europe and Asia. It is predicted that air traffic between Asia and Europe will increase strongly in the coming years. In order to keep up with international competition, we will be developing and improving the operations and services of Helsinki Airport even further. I am pleased that the European Investment Bank has a strong belief in Helsinki Airports future and is joining us to invest in the airports growth and its position as one of the leading transfer hubs in Europe. More specifically, this investment includes the expansion of the terminal with two additional piers, enlargement of the baggage handling systems (BHS) by 50%, the development of various associated landside and airside infrastructure, and an increase in apron capacity and wide-body aircraft bridges. The EIB strongly supports job creation and the Helsinki Airport expansion programme is likely to result in an increase of up to 5 000 new jobs. This project is a continuation of the EIBs successful cooperation with Finavia. Including the current operation, the EIB has provided four loans to Finavia, e.g. for Finavias share of the Ring Rail Line project connecting the centre of Helsinki with the airport. The EIBs support makes the companys financing more cost-efficient and extends the maturity profile of its debt. A top-level European Investment Bank Group delegation, led by EIB Vice-President Pim van Ballekom, is in Ankara today and tomorrow for talks with Turkish Government representatives. The discussions are intended to further strengthen and broaden the scope of EIB Group financing in Turkey. Vice-President van Ballekom met with Mr Mehmet Simsek, Deputy Prime Minister, Ms Fatma Guldemet Sar, Minister of the Environment and Urbanisation, and Mr Cavit Dagdas, Acting Treasury Undersecretary. During the visit, Vice-President van Ballekom presented the EIBs activities and annual figures for Turkey in 2015. In 2015, EIB Group financing in Turkey amounted to EUR 2.3bn, a 12% increase over the previous year. In order to promote innovation and economic growth in the country, the EIB maintained its strong support for SMEs, which accounted for 56% of total financing (EUR 1.3bn). EIB loans also supported other crucial sectors of the Turkish economy such as research and development, industry, transport and climate action. Infrastructure projects financed under the EIB facilities will benefit from technical assistance for project preparation and implementation funded by the EU. In addition, a new EUR 100m loan for small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) was signed with Turkiye Snai Kalknma Bankasi (TSKB). EIB Vice-President Pim van Ballekom said: The EIB is one of the largest international investors in Turkey. In 2015, we increased our financing, supporting investments in all the main productive sectors. I am particularly proud of the range and quality of the projects financed: SMEs, urban transport, research and development, investments mitigating climate change, all of which are essential for the process of modernising the country. This two-day visit provides an opportunity to reaffirm the excellent cooperation between the EU bank and the Turkish authorities in charge of various economic fields. Since 2010, the bank of the European Union has financed nearly 130 projects in Turkey, corresponding to a total investment of EUR 12.8bn and making a significant contribution to job creation and infrastructure modernisation. Today at the Supporting Syria & the Region London 2016 Conference, the President of the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group Werner Hoyer will lay out how the EIB will support international efforts in Turkey, the Middle East and North African countries affected by the refugee crisis. Werner Hoyer will add that the activities of the EIB Group could be increased in partnership with donors and provided the right conditions to underpin loans with grants are in place. This would support the goals of the conference and international efforts to provide economic opportunities, jobs, and education in the region. The EIB, whose shareholders are the 28 governments of the EU, is the largest international financial institution active in the Mediterranean and the Middle East region, with unparalleled experience of more than three decades investing in both public and private sector projects in the region, from energy, transport, and health and water supply infrastructure, to support for small business, youth employment and microfinance. Speaking ahead of the conference, hosted in London by the UK, Germany, Norway, Kuwait, and the United Nations, EIB President Werner Hoyer said, Our response must be ambitious. It must also be concerted among all partners. The EIB is ready and perfectly placed, thanks to our three decades of experience, to support the efforts of Europe and the international community as a whole in tackling this grave and urgent crisis. This is why today, as the largest financial institution active in this region, we have announced our readiness to work closely with our partners to further increase our already substantial activities. In light of the urgent need and its importance for the European Union, the EIB as the EU bank can step up its efforts over the next five years in Turkey and the Middle East and North African countries provided the necessary conditions are in place. He added, These countries in the frontline urgently need our support. We need to do more to help them. It is in everybodys interest that families fleeing violence and persecution are not pushed farther and farther from home, forced to risk dangerous journeys and an uncertain future. For them, for us, for the stability of this region and for the European Union, the EIB has a major role to play. If we get further grant resources we can do more of what we do best. We can help mobilise private capital for the economic development of the region in a number of ways, for example by supporting services now under intense pressure such as water supply, schools and education and health services and in increasing opportunities for jobs and entrepreneurship. In the coming five years the EIB plans to lend over EUR 15 billion (over USD 16.5 billion) in its ten Mediterranean partner countries and in Turkey. Increasing this further could be done, in partnership with donors and partner countries, combining EIB expertise and ability to leverage scarce resources with grant funding. The EIB as the EU bank is ready to step up its efforts even further by offering to lend an additional EUR 3 billion (of which about EUR 2 billion in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt alone) over the course of the next five years within its current mandates and own balance sheet. Depending on the availability of additional resources, including trust funds and grants, and on the basis of new mandates, the EIB could still do substantially more. President Hoyer said, Beyond an additional EUR 3 billion, I would like to make an even more ambitious proposal to our shareholders, the EU member states, to step up activities in Turkey and the MENA region further by a further EUR 5 billion between now and 2020. That would mean a total additional amount over five years of up to EUR 8 billion, an increase of more than 50% compared to our current plans. We would need our governing bodies to agree, and success would depend on a number of factors, including the availability of further grant money pledged by partners and the capacity by these countries to absorb new loans and financing through new projects. But this long journey can only begin if we outline a bold vision. Any increase in the EIB Group activity beyond current plans requires approval by the EIBs governing bodies. The grant-loan ratios would need to be significant given the indebtedness and expectations of the countries in question as well as the likely risk of the transactions involved. If this were provided, backed by the necessary grants loans and guarantees, total EIB Group financing to Turkey and the MENA region over the next five years could be up to EUR 23 billion. The EIB Group believes that it will be essential to partner with other international financial institutions including the World Bank Group, national development banks, donors and international organisations as well as private sector specialists and NGOs, in order to build on the respective strengths of each partner and collectively ensure maximum impact of donor funds for the benefit of refugees and local host-country populations. The core economic challenges for the region will be to enhance economic resilience and boost employment opportunities in the respective countries. The efforts of EIB will therefore focus first and foremost on private sector support to these countries (SME, corporate, microfinance) as well as support for education and improvements to basic services and essential infrastructure. Background and more information: The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union owned by its Member States. It makes long-term finance available for sound investment in order to contribute towards EU policy goals. In the wider region affected by the Syrian conflict, EIB loan signatures in 2015 in non-EU countries were 4 billion EUR (Turkey, Jordan, Egypt, Israel, Morocco, Tunisia, Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo). This corresponds to approximately half of the EIB lending outside of the EU. Committed EIB loan exposure end 2014 in EUR million Turkey 18,352 Jordan 400 Lebanon 753 Egypt 3,299 Sum of all countries above 22,804 Tunisia 3,691 Algeria 453 Morocco 4,499 Sum of all countries above 31,447 The table below shows EIB lending in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Egypt between 2011 and 2015 in million EUR. Total EIB lending over those five years exceeded EUR 13 billion. Sector TURKEY EGYPT LEBANON JORDAN TOTAL Agriculture, fisheries, forestry 520 - - - 520 Energy 1,022 805 - 119 1,946 Industry 614 - - 81 695 Services 544 - 10 11 565 SMEs 5,108 270 185 - 5,563 Solid Waste 58 - - - 58 Telecommunications 520 - - - 520 Transport 1,735 450 75 - 2,260 Urban development 500 45 - - 545 Water, sewerage 244 134 - 50 428 TOTAL 10,865 1,704 270 261 13,100 Flagship EIB projects/activities: Jordan : EIB loan blended with EU investment grants, in favour of the Wadi Al Arab Water System II project aimed to address water scarcity in the fourth most water-scarce country in the world, further exacerbated by the significant influx of Syrian refugees in the country. : EIB loan blended with EU investment grants, in favour of the aimed to address water scarcity in the fourth most water-scarce country in the world, further exacerbated by the significant influx of Syrian refugees in the country. Turkey : Greater Anatolia Guarantee Facility (GAGF) launched as an EIB Group product in partnership with the Republic of Turkey and the EU Commission to enhance access to finance for SMEs and micro-enterprises in the less developed regions of Turkey. EIB loans and EIF guarantees are matched by own resources of partner local banks. : launched as an EIB Group product in partnership with the to enhance access to finance for SMEs and micro-enterprises in the less developed regions of Turkey. EIB loans and EIF guarantees are matched by own resources of partner local banks. Egypt and Lebanon : Based on EU funds risk capital resources, the EIB is the cornerstone investor in the Euromena Fund which, amongst others, invested in an Egyptian company that provides IT solutions. It has developed an e-learning solution for the Syrian refugees that has been successfully implemented under a pilot phase in a refugee camp in Lebanon. : Based on EU funds risk capital resources, the EIB is the cornerstone investor in the which, amongst others, invested in an Egyptian company that provides IT solutions. It has developed an e-learning solution for the Syrian refugees that has been successfully implemented under a pilot phase in a refugee camp in Lebanon. The EIB is also preparing a EUR 71.5 million microfinance facility for its Southern Neighbourhoods region, which would emphasise projects in Jordan and Lebanon. It will be financed with a contribution from the European Commission and EIBs own resources. The project should be ready to go ahead as of April 2016. www.eib.org/femip Speech of EIB President Hoyer Caracas, Feb 4 (EFE) - Venezuelan Oil Minister Eulogio Del Pino said he held a "productive" meeting Thursday in Doha with his counterpart from Qatar, holder of OPEC's rotating presidency. Del Pino's meeting with Mohammed Saleh Al Sada was part of a tour of oil-producing nations - including both members and non-members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries - that is aimed at drumming up support for actions to "stabilize the market," his portfolio said in a statement. Two weeks ago, Venezuela urged oil ministers from both OPEC and non-OPEC nations to come together for an extraordinary meeting. "The goal of this tour is to talk to ministers directly to hear their opinions and try to reach a consensus. The idea is not only to hold the meeting, but for all the countries to attend with the intention of reaching agreement," Del Pino, who is also president of state-owned oil company Petroleos de Venezeula, said Wednesday. Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zangeneh has backed Venezuela's proposal. Russia, for its part, said it was "unlikely" that an agreement would be reached at the next OPEC summit to reduce crude production and reverse the downward trend for oil prices. Several factors, including a supply glut, a slowing Chinese economy and the expected return of Iran to global oil markets after the lifting of economic sanctions, are continuing to drive down crude prices. The price of Venezuela's crude basket, which had fallen for more than a month, rose $2.53 last week to $24.16, while the OPEC Basket climbed $2.66 to $26.17. Venezuela, the world's fifth-leading crude exporter, produces around 3 million barrels of oil per day and exports roughly 2.5 million bpd, mostly to the United States and China. The nation's oil revenues account for around 95 percent of export earnings, which have fallen roughly 70 percent due to the drop in international crude prices. Relacionados South Korea foreign minister to speak with Chinese counterpart on Friday Lima, Feb 4 (EFE).- An organization comprising Peruvian Amazon communities plans to file a complaint against state-owned oil company Petroperu over a crude spill caused by a pipeline leak, the group's president told EFE Thursday. The Regional Organization of Indigenous Peoples of the Northern Amazon of Peru, or ORPIAN -P, will file the complaint with the Agency for Environmental Assessment and Enforcement, or OEFA, alleging a lack of maintenance work on the North Peruvian Pipeline and failure to respond in a timely manner to the leak. The spill occurred on Jan. 25 at a spot some three kilometers (1.86 miles) from the Chiriaco River in Villa Hermosa, a municipality in the southern Peruvian region of Amazonas. ORPIAN -P's president, Edwin Montenegro, toured the area with other members of his organization and said some 2,000 barrels of crude had leaked. The delegation found crude over a four-kilometer (2.5-mile) stretch of the Inayo stream, which empties into the Chiriaco, and discovered numerous dead fish floating on the surface of the water. "Tremendous damage was done because water from the Inayo is used for farming and there's a risk of the spill spreading further if it rains in the area," Montenegro told EFE. Petroperu repaired the pipeline on Jan. 28, three days after the leak occurred, the OEFA said in a statement on Tuesday. That agency said the spill damaged nearby cacao crops and extended along a 3.5-kilometer (2.1-mile) section of the Inayo, contaminating both banks of that waterway. OEFA inspectors said some 200 barrels of crude and 400 sacks filled with oil-covered foliage and vegetation had been collected as of Tuesday. Petroperu reported the incident on Jan. 27, saying "the hydrocarbon has not affected any river or waterway in the area, being totally contained." The company said the leak had been triggered by ground displacement, noting that the terrain in that humid area is steep and the soil is prone to saturation by rainwater. February 4, 2016 | When the Tri-Valley Learning Corporation asked for a 30-day extension of their petition Tuesday night at the... http://www.elkgrovenews.net/2016/02/egusd-staff-report-raises-serious.html February 4, 2016 | When the Tri-Valley Learning Corporation asked for a 30-day extension of their petition Tuesday night at the Elk Grove Unified School District (EGUSD) meeting, they may have had an idea things would not be going their way. Tri-Valley Learning , which is seeking to open the K-8 Golden State Charter School with funding from the EGUSD, would have heard a staff report denying their petition. Tri-Valley Learning currently operates schools in four California districts. The EGUSD staff report found three significant deficiencies in denying the petition. Those were listed as follows: A. Petitioners are demonstrably unlikely to successfully implement the program set forth in the petition; B. The charter school presents an unsound educational program for the pupils to be enrolled in the charter school; and C. The Petition does not contain reasonably comprehensive description of the essential elements of a charter school petition. The report notes that part of their determination came from a Public Records Act request to the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District (LVJUSD) and the three other districts Tri-Valley Learning operates seeking all correspondence. The most damaging finding in the report involves Tri-Valley Learning's financial condition and reporting. Saying they would approach Tri-Valley Learning with caution, EGUSD staff said "The financial status of the corporation does not indicate that it can implement the proposed charter school in Elk Grove. The primary reasons for this are a) the corporations inability to provide June 30, 2015, audited financial statements, b) excessive debt service and c) excessive management costs." The LVJUSD also issued a Notice of Violation (NOV) to Tri-Valley Learning on four items. They include charging students from abroad administrative fees above what is allowed under Federal Law, failure to reimburse Pas Positas College, poor outreach efforts to recruit a diverse student population, and failure to meet two audit deadlines. With regards to diversity recruiting, the reported noted in its NOV the LVJUSD asked why Tri-Valley "is able to dedicate staff to travel to China to recruit foreign students, but cannot effectively recruit a local student body that reflect community demographics." Former Tri-Vally Learning board member Dick Corso told Elk Grove News in an email that while he is pleased with the education his son is receiving from the charter school in Livermore, he recently resigned from the board over what he characterized as ethical issues. Some of the concerns Corso raised were included in the EGUSD report, most notably excessive charges on exchange students, no compliance to LVUJSD oversight, and failure to repay Las Positas College. Ely, Cambridgeshire is best known for its majestic cathedral dubbed the 'Ship of the Fens' because it dominates the flat landscape. The city, which is the second smallest in England, is about 14 miles north-northeast of Cambridge and about 80 miles by road from London. 17:55, 17 OCT 2022 Event encourages lobbying in Tynwald Lobbying is the best way to change legislation on the Isle of Man. That's the message from the organiser of an event addressing people's 'parliamentary representation'. MHKs and political party representatives struck up the debate with the public at the South Douglas Old Friends Association last night. It's suggested that there's a disconnect with the way the Tynwald system works because there's no party politics - Steven Moore believes that heightens the importance of lobby groups: Media Steven Moore Re: Stupid Swiss Bureaucracy It's not just Switzerland, really. My husband and I were married in the Netherlands 14 years ago. He's Dutch, I'm a US citizen. He'd been living in the US for more than 5 years, and had given up his Dutch registration. For us to be married in the Netherlands, I had to send them a copy of my birth certificate - this is not so hard in the US, you just write to where you were born and they send a copy after money changes hands. Of course I sent them the wrong copy on the first try because they want the version that has your parents' names on it. All of the documents had to be certifed by the department of state of the state in which I lived. It's called an Apostille, and basically it says that the document is an offical document of the government. So we had to to this for my birth certificate twice, of course since I had the wrong one the first time. The hardest part was that both my husband (then fiancee) and I had to prove that we were not married at the time. Try to do that in the US....it's really impossible. After calling a guy in the Hague 3 or 4 times (and getting up at 4am to do it from the US), we settled on a letter that would have to be notorized and then sent to the department of state in my state for an Apostille stamp. Because my husband wasn't registered in the Netherlands, he had to do one too. Now the US embassy (In the Netherlands at least) will certify this for you for about 100. So anyway, we had to establish a Fedex account to send the crap (we were in the US), I got to know the department of state in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania quite well, and I made a lot of phone calls to the Netherlands at 4AM. A few years later, we were in the Netherlands for the holidays, my husbands' passport was about to expire and the Dutch didn't want to renew my husband's passport because they didn't recognize his US Visa (it was an H1B, used to work in the US.). They did after about 3 days of phone calls faxes and foot stomping. So theres a lot of pain-in-the ass bureaucracy where ever you are. And it's just as bad in the USA. Re: Study medicine in Geneva Quote: Armen Again I cannot thank you enough for helping me I would really be a very ignorant londener without you all. Another question I have is, is that would I be able to just come when I'm 18 and start studying or would I needed to have completed some swiss high school exam or have some relevent certificates to have specific A Level certificates, because in England, it isn't standard practice to do Bacc's at the end of high school; is it necessary to have an International Bacc? Regarding the 100,000 loan that will hang over you for the rest of your life if you train in the UK: No, it won't. It may seem a lot of money now, but even if you do somehow manage to rake up that much debt, over tie you will of course pay that back, buy a house, a car, travel, and do all the things that doctors do get to do once they have left universtiy and started to earn ( and once those torturously long hours of the first years have been completed.) BUt why London? If it means you can live cheaply at home, then fine. But if you are going to be paying for accomodation, that is the last place I would be applying to in the UK. There are some escellent med courses run through universities in other cities, where your living expenses will be much cheaper. Finally, why Switzerland? No, you don't need to have the IB. However, you do need to meet the requirements for the course you wish to study, and, as you have already been infored, there are limited places availabe. ie: not everyone who meets minimum educational qualifications will necessarily be accepted.Regarding the 100,000 loan that will hang over you for the rest of your life if you train in the UK: No, it won't. It may seem a lot of money now, but even if you do somehow manage to rake up that much debt, over tie you will of course pay that back, buy a house, a car, travel, and do all the things that doctors do get to do once they have left universtiy and started to earn ( and once those torturously long hours of the first years have been completed.)BUt why London? If it means you can live cheaply at home, then fine. But if you are going to be paying for accomodation, that is the last place I would be applying to in the UK. There are some escellent med courses run through universities in other cities, where your living expenses will be much cheaper.Finally, why Switzerland? Our ability to cope with stress depends on how efficiently our body and mind regulate their response to it. Poor recovery from extremely stressful encounters can trigger post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, or even chronic somatic dysfunction (such as pain and fatigue) in some people. Insight into the multi-level sequence of events -- from cellular changes to brain function, emotional responses, and observed behavior -- will help medical professionals make more informed decisions concerning interventions. A new Tel Aviv University study published in PLOS ONE provides it. Researchers have used cutting-edge genetic research and brain imaging technologies to determine that the brain function responsible for regulating our stress response intertwines with molecular regulatory elements to produce a personal profile of resilience to stress. Their findings may lead to a future blood test that would facilitate preventive or early intervention in professions prone to high stress or trauma (combat soldiers and policemen, for example). The research was led jointly by Prof. Talma Hendler of TAU's Sagol School of Neuroscience and the Director of the Functional Brain Center at Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center and Dr. Noam Shomron of TAU's Sagol School of Neuroscience and Sackler School of Medicine. Research for the study was conducted by TAU doctoral students Dr. Sharon Vaisvaser and Dr. Shira Modai. The biological complexity of stress "We can't look at one measurement at one point in time and think we have the whole picture of the stress response," Prof. Hendler explained. "This is perhaps the first study to induce stress in the lab and look at resulting changes to three levels of the stress response -- neural (seen in brain imaging), cellular (measured through epigenetics), and experience (assessed through behavioral report)." "We found that vulnerability to stress is not only related to a predisposition due to a certain gene," said Dr. Shomron. "The relevant gene can be expressed or not expressed according to a person's experience, environment, and many other context-related factors. "This type of interaction between the environment and our genome has been conceptualized lately as the 'epigenetic process.' It has become clear that these processes are of an utmost importance to our health and well being, and are probably, in some cases, above and beyond our predispositions." The research for this study was conducted on 49 healthy young male adults. Researchers integrated the analysis of fMRI images of brain function during an acute social stress task and also measured levels of microRNAs -- small RNAs that exert potent regulatory effects -- obtained in a blood test before and three hours after the induced stress. Dr. Vaisvaser explains, "Twenty minutes after the stress drill ended, we had two groups: the sustainers, those still stressed, and the recovered, those no longer stressed. The sustainers either didn't go back to baseline or took much longer to do so." The researchers found that a specific alteration in the expression of the microRNA miR-29c was greater among the stress sustainers, implying a marker of slow recovery. Intriguingly, this change corresponded with modified connectivity of a major stress regulation node in the brain, the vento-medial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC). The researchers were able to interpret functions in the brain through RNA molecules tested in the blood. They found that miR-29c played a mediating role, linking the enhancement of vmPFC connectivity with the anterior insula, a core node in the saliency network, sustaining the feeling of stress. From basic research to practical treatment "We all need to react to stress; it's healthy to react to something considered a challenge or a threat," said Prof. Hendler. "The problem is when you don't recover in a day, or a week, or more. This indicates your brain and'or body do not regulate properly and have a hard time returning to homeostasis (i.e., a balanced baseline). We found that this recovery involves both neural and epigenetic/cellular mechanisms, together contributing to our subjective experience of the stress. "Knowing the brain metric that corresponds to such genetic vulnerability will make it possible to develop a personalized plan for brain-guided treatment based on a blood test." "If you can identify through a simple blood test those likely to develop maladaptive responses to stress, you can offer a helpful prevention or early intervention," Dr. Shomron added. "Conducting a collaborative interdisciplinary study is a great challenge," said Dr. Vaisvaser. "But the challenge is worth it, opening up new ways of looking at dynamics between concurrent factors contributing to the overall experience of stress." The researchers are currently taking the study forward to look for the dynamic oscillations in the epigenetic markers of people suffering from stress disorders to confirm whether they can be modified via brain-targeted treatments. ### Tel Aviv University (TAU) is inherently linked to the cultural, scientific and entrepreneurial mecca it represents. It is one of the world's most dynamic research centers and Israel's most distinguished learning environment. Its unique-in-Israel multidisciplinary environment is highly coveted by young researchers and scholars returning to Israel from post-docs and junior faculty positions in the US. American Friends of Tel Aviv University (AFTAU) enthusiastically and industriously pursues the advancement of TAU in the US, raising money, awareness and influence through international alliances that are vital to the future of this already impressive institution. DNA evidence lifted from the ancient bones and teeth of people who lived in Europe from the Late Pleistocene to the early Holocene -- spanning almost 30,000 years of European prehistory -- has offered some surprises, according to researchers who report their findings in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on Feb. 4, 2016. Perhaps most notably, the evidence shows a major shift in the population around 14,500 years ago, during a period of severe climatic instability. "We uncovered a completely unknown chapter of human history: a major population turnover in Europe at the end of the last Ice Age," says leading author Johannes Krause of the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History in Germany. The researchers pieced this missing history together by reconstructing the mitochondrial genomes of 35 hunter-gatherer individuals who lived in Italy, Germany, Belgium, France, the Czech Republic, and Romania from 35,000 to 7,000 years ago. Mitochondria are organelles within cells that carry their own DNA and can be used to infer patterns of maternal ancestry. "There has been a real lack of genetic data from this time period, so consequently we knew very little about the population structure or dynamics of the first modern humans in Europe," Krause says. The new data show that the mitochondrial DNA of three individuals who lived in present-day Belgium and France before the coldest period in the last Ice Age -- the Last Glacial Maximum -- belonged to haplogroup M. This is remarkable because the M haplogroup is effectively absent in modern Europeans but is extremely common in modern Asian, Australasian, and Native American populations. The absence of the M haplogroup and its presence in other parts of the world had previously led to the argument that non-African people dispersed on multiple occasions to spread across Eurasia and Australasia. The researchers say the discovery of this maternal lineage in Europe in the ancient past now suggests instead that all non-Africans dispersed rapidly from a single population, at a time they place around 50,000 years ago. Then, at some later stage, the M haplogroup was apparently lost from Europe. "When the Last Glacial Maximum began around 25,000 years ago, hunter-gatherer populations retreated south to a number of putative refugia, and the consequent genetic bottleneck probably resulted in the loss of this haplogroup," explains first author of the study Cosimo Posth of Germany's University of Tubingen. The researchers say their biggest surprise, however, was evidence of a major turnover of the population in Europe around 14,500 years ago, as the climate began to warm. "Our model suggests that during this period of climatic upheaval, the descendants of the hunter-gatherers who survived through the Last Glacial Maximum were largely replaced by a population from another source," says Adam Powell, another senior author at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History. The researchers say the next step is to construct a more comprehensive picture of the past by analyzing the complete genomes of these ancient individuals along with additional specimens representing more times and places. ### The researchers received support from the Baden-Wurttemberg Foundation, the DFG, the European Research Council, the Wenner-Gren Foundation, the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences of CSUN, and the RBINS. Current Biology, Posth et al.: "Pleistocene Mitochondrial Genomes Suggest a Single Major Dispersal of Non-Africans and a Late Glacial Population Turnover in Europe" http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2016.01.037 Current Biology (@CurrentBiology), published by Cell Press, is a bimonthly journal that features papers across all areas of biology. Current Biology strives to foster communication across fields of biology, both by publishing important findings of general interest and through highly accessible front matter for non-specialists. For more information please visit http://www.cell.com/current-biology. To receive Cell Press media alerts, contact press@cell.com. Scientists have for the first time reengineered a building block of a geometric nanocompartment that occurs naturally in bacteria. They introduced a metal binding site to its shell that will allow electrons to be transferred to and from the compartment. This provides an entirely new functionality, greatly expanding the potential of nanocompartments to serve as custom-made chemical factories. Scientists hope to tailor this new use to produce high-value chemical products, such as medicines, on demand. The sturdy nanocompartments, which are polyhedral shells composed of triangle-shaped sides and resemble 20-sided dice, are formed by hundreds of copies of just three different types of proteins. Their natural counterparts, known as bacterial microcompartments or BMCs, encase a wide variety of enzymes that carry out highly specialized chemistry in bacteria. Researchers at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) devised synthetic shell structures derived from those found in a rod-shaped, ocean-dwelling bacterium, Haliangium ochraceum, and reengineered one of the shell proteins to serve as a scaffold for an iron-sulfur cluster found in many forms of life. The cluster is known as a "cofactor" because it can serve as a helper molecule in biochemical reactions. BMC-based shells are tiny, durable and naturally self-assemble and self-repair, which makes them better-suited for a range of applications than completely synthetic nanostructures. "This is the first time anyone has introduced functionality into a shell. We thought the most important functionality to introduce was the ability to transfer electrons into or out of the shell," said Cheryl Kerfeld, a structural biologist at Berkeley Lab and corresponding author in this study. Kerfeld's research group focuses on BMCs. Kerfeld holds joint appointments with Berkeley Lab's Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging (MBIB) Division, UC Berkeley and the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory at Michigan State University (MSU). "That greatly enhances the versatility of the types of chemistries you can encapsulate in the shell and the spectrum of products to be produced," she said. "Typically, the shells are thought of as simply passive barriers." Researchers used X-rays at Berkeley Lab's Advanced Light Source (ALS) to show, in 3-D and at the atomic scale, how the introduced iron-sulfur cluster binds to the engineered protein. The study is now online in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. Enzymes inside natural BMCs can convert carbon dioxide into organic compounds that can be used by the bacteria, isolate toxic or volatile compounds from the surrounding cell, and carry out other chemical reactions that provide energy for the cell. In this study, researchers introduced the iron-sulfur cluster into the tiny pores in the shell building block. This engineered protein serves as an electron relay across the shell, which is key to controlling the chemical reactivity of substances inside the shell. Clement Aussignargues, the lead author of the study and postdoctoral researcher in the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory in Michigan, said, "The beauty of our system is that we now have all the tools, notably the crystallographic structure of the engineered protein, to modify the redox potential of the system--its ability to take in electrons (reduction) or give off electrons (oxidation). "If we can control this, we can expand the range of chemical reactions we can encapsulate in the shell. The limit of these applications will be what we put inside the shells, not the shells themselves." He added, "Creating a new microcompartment from scratch would be very, very complicated. That's why we're taking what nature put before us and trying to add to what nature can do." To design the metal binding site, Kerfeld's group first had to solve the structures of the building blocks of the nanocompartment to use as the template for design. These building blocks self-assemble into synthetic shells, which measure just 40 nanometers, or billionths of a meter, in diameter. The natural form of the shells can be up to 12 times larger. The iron-sulfur cofactor of the engineered protein, which was produced in E. coli bacteria, was very stable even when put through several redox cycles--a characteristic essential for future applications, Aussignargues said. "The engineered protein was also more stable than its natural counterpart, which was a big surprise," he said. "You can treat it with things that normally make proteins fall apart and unwind." A major challenge in the study was to prepare the engineered protein in an oxygen-free environment to form tiny crystals that best preserve their structure and their cofactor for X-ray imaging, Kerfeld said. The crystals were prepared in an air-sealed glovebox at MSU, frozen, and then shipped out for X-ray studies at Berkeley Lab's ALS and SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory's Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Lightsource (SSRL). In follow-up work, the research team is exploring how to incorporate different metal centers into BMC shells to access a different range of chemical reactivity, she said. "I'm working on incorporating a completely different metal center, which has a very positive reduction potential compared to the iron-sulfur cluster," said Jeff Plegaria, a postdoctoral researcher at the MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory who contributed to the latest study. "But it is the same sort of idea: To drive electrons in or out of the compartment." He added, "The next step is to encapsulate proteins that can accept electrons into the shells, and to use that as a probe to watch the electron transfer from the outside of the compartment to the inside." That will bring researchers closer to creating specific types of pharmaceuticals or other chemicals. ### Other scientists involved in the study were from MSU, The Pennsylvania State University and Brooklyn College. The work was supported by the U.S. DOE Office of Science, MSU AgBio Research and the European Union's PEPDIODE project. The ALS and SLAC's SSRL are both DOE Office of Science User Facilities. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory addresses the world's most urgent scientific challenges by advancing sustainable energy, protecting human health, creating new materials, and revealing the origin and fate of the universe. Founded in 1931, Berkeley Lab's scientific expertise has been recognized with 13 Nobel prizes. The University of California manages Berkeley Lab for the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Science. For more, visit http://www.lbl.gov. The DOE Office of Science is the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States and is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, please visit science.energy.gov. More information about Cheryl Kerfeld's research group: http://www.kerfeldlab.org/. Championed by Amgen's Senior Vice President for Research, Sasha Kamb, and former Editor-in-Chief of Science and F1000Research International Advisory Board member Bruce Alberts (University of California, San Francisco), the Preclinical Reproducibility and Robustness channel is open for everyone to publish and discuss confirmatory or non-confirmatory scientific research results. In an increasingly competitive global environment for funding and employment, research scientists feel pressured to 'publish or perish'. This heavy burden sees a lack of encouragement to carry out and publish research that tests, confirms or contests preclinical research findings. This means that much follow-on research builds on study data that have not been confirmed or reproduced, and which inevitably results in significant research wastage. Rebecca Lawrence, Managing Director, F1000 said: "Until now, there hasn't been a dedicated place to discuss why some studies can't be reproduced in a fair and controlled environment. The F1000Research editorial policies and transparent publishing model are well suited to provide such an environment through the provision of all the source data, and open and transparent publication of the whole peer review and post-publication commenting process." To address the issue of research reproducibility, in mid-2015 the UK's Academy of Medical Sciences (AMS), and leading funding bodies for biological and medical research - the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), the Medical Research Council (MRC) and the Wellcome Trust - held a symposium to explore the challenges associated with the reliability and reproducibility of biomedical research in the UK, and opportunities for improvements. Dorothy Bishop, Chair of the steering committee for the resulting report, titled Reproducibility and Reliability of Biomedical Research, said: "Tackling the reproducibility issue will need a mixture of 'top-down' and 'bottom-up' approaches, but a strong community effort is essential to underpin the problems that are felt on the ground by practising scientists." Bishop welcomed the new F1000Research platform. "This new channel facilitates many of the strategies that our report concluded as important: open methods, open data, post publication peer review and collaboration." The Preclinical Reproducibility and Robustness channel will provide an environment for reinforcing the acceptability of being open about the results of researchers who are attempting to assess the robustness of major scientific findings, whether they are confirmatory or not. Amgen will be the first to publish three studies on the Preclinical Reproducibility and Robustness channel, which will encourage global discussion centred on the original research and Amgen's non-confirmatory studies, and accelerate understanding of the underlying science. The challenges of reproducibility affect both pharma and academia. Larry Tabak, Principal Deputy Director, National Institutes of Health (NIH), the largest funder of academic biomedical research in the US, said: "Recently the NIH has put considerable effort into improving the reproducibility of the work it funds". These efforts include developing a training module on enhancing reproducibility of research findings and promoting and ensuring increased transparency for all NIH-funded clinical trials on clinicaltrials.gov. Tabak went on to say "this effort led by Amgen shows there is an appetite from industry to engage in a constructive dialogue about preclinical studies, and this new channel is something we support and encourage our researchers to contribute to." Brian Nosek, Executive Director of the Centre for Open Science and one of the lead coordinators of the Reproducibility Project: Cancer Biology, said: "Trying to build on irreproducible results is wasteful and inefficient. This channel offers an opportunity to identify reproducibility challenges early, and dramatically accelerate the accumulation of knowledge and translation of basic science into effective clinical interventions." Alberts, a co-founder of the 'Rescuing Biomedical Research' project, and formerly president of the National Academy of Sciences, strongly supports this use of F1000Research to enhance the self-correcting nature of science. He said: "Essential for the advance of science is the ability of a scientist to attempt to reproduce the published findings of another scientist and then readily publish his or her results. In recent years, it has become painfully obvious that the biomedical sciences urgently need an improved mechanism for openly and rapidly publishing non-confirming results, in a way that allows contentious issues to be efficiently exposed and discussed by scientists without editorial bias. To me, the F1000Research publishing platform is ideally suited to do this, and I very much hope that the new channel will be widely used for this purpose". Kamb said: "In discovery research, we dedicate a huge amount of resources to reproduce, and hopefully extend, published studies, and in many instances we can't. The goal of Amgen and our industry peers is to ensure potential therapies with strong clinical rationales move more quickly through the discovery pipeline. We, like the entire scientific community, depend on fundamental discoveries made around the world and communicated via publications, and we can restore balance to the publication process by removing some of the bias against non-confirming dataset publication. This will improve efficiency and speed in translating basic discoveries into new medicines by decreasing the waste from redundant, non-publicized attempts to build on non-robust findings, and allowing us to focus more on the real breakthroughs." ### For more information: Andrew Baud, Tala (on behalf of F1000), +44 (0) 20 3397 3383 or +44 (0) 7775 715775 About F1000Research F1000Research is an open science publishing platform for life scientists that offers immediate publication and transparent peer review, avoiding editorial bias and ensuring the inclusion of all source data. This process helps scientists to avoid the traditional, anonymous, pre-publication peer-review process that can cause long delays before new results become visible. All articles must pass an initial in-house quality check prior to publication on F1000Research. Following open, invited peer review where the referee's name and affiliation and the referee reports are published alongside the article, authors can make revisions that are then published as new article versions. Since its launch in January 2013, F1000Research has published more than 1000 articles across the life sciences, written by 4,000 authors. For more details on F1000Research go to http://www.f1000research.com When we look at the night sky, we see stars as tiny points of light eking out a solitary existence at immense distances from Earth. But appearances are deceptive. More than half the stars we know of have a companion, a second nearby star that can have a major impact on their primary companions. The interplay within these so-called binary star systems is particularly intensive when the two stars involved are going through a phase in which they are surrounded by a common envelope consisting of hydrogen and helium. Compared to the overall time taken by stars to evolve, this phase is extremely short, so astronomers have great difficulty observing and hence understanding it. This is where theoretical models with highly compute-intensive simulations come in. Research into this phenomenon is relevant understanding a number of stellar events such as supernovae. Using new methods, astrophysicists Sebastian Ohlmann, Friedrich Roepke, Ruediger Pakmor, and Volker Springel of the Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS) have now made a step forward in modeling this phenomenon. As they report in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, the scientists have successfully used simulations to discover dynamic irregularities that occur during the common-envelope phase and are crucial for the subsequent existence of binary star systems. These so-called instabilities change the flow of matter inside the envelope, thus influencing the stars' distance from one another and determining, for example, whether a supernova will ensue and, if so, what kind it will be. The article is the fruit of collaboration between two HITS research groups, the Physics of Stellar Objects (PSO) group and the Theoretical Astrophysics group (TAP). Prof. Volker Springel's Arepo code for hydrodynamic simulations was used and adapted for the modeling. It solves the equations on a moving mesh that follows the mass flow, and thus enhances the accuracy of the model. Two stars, one envelope More than half the stars we know of have evolved in binary star systems. The energy for their luminosity comes from the nuclear fusion of hydrogen at the core of the stars. As soon as the hydrogen fueling the nuclear fusion is exhausted in the heavier of the two stars, the star core shrinks. At the same time, a highly extended stellar envelope evolves, consisting of hydrogen and helium. The star becomes a red giant. As the envelope of the red giant goes on expanding, the companion star draws the envelope to itself via gravity, and part of the envelope flows towards it. In the course of this process the two stars come closer to one another. Finally, the companion star may fall into the envelope of the red giant and both stars are then surrounded by a common envelope. As the core of the red giant and the companion draw closer together, the gravity between them releases energy that passes into the common envelope. As a result, the envelope is ejected and mixes with interstellar matter in the galaxy, leaving behind it a close binary star system consisting of the core of the giant and the companion star. The path to stellar explosion Sebastian Ohlmann of the PSO group explains why this common-envelope phase is important for our understanding of the way various star systems evolve: "Depending on what the system of the common envelope looks like initially, very different phenomena may ensue in the aftermath, such as thermonuclear supernovae." Ohlmann and colleagues are investigating the run-up to these stellar explosions, which are among the most luminous events in the universe and can light up a whole galaxy. But modeling the systems that can lead to such explosions is bedeviled by major uncertainty in the description of the common-envelope phase. One of the reasons for this is that the core of the giant is anything between a thousand and ten thousand times smaller than the envelope, so that spatial and temporal scale differences complicate the modeling process and make approximations necessary. The methodically innovative simulations performed by the Heidelberg scientists are a first step towards a better understanding of this phase. ### Scientific Publication: Ohlmann, S. T., Roepke, F. K., Pakmor, R., & Springel, V. (2016): Hydrodynamic moving-mesh simulations of the common envelope phase in binary stellar systems, The Astrophysical Journal Letters, 816, L9, DOI: 10.3847/2041-8205/816/1/L9 http://arxiv.org/abs/1512.04529 Astrophysics Data System: http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2016ApJ...816L...9O Video: https://youtu.be/4iw_E2akn4M The simulation video visualizes the evolution of the density during a time span of 105 days. As the core of the red giant and the companion draw closer together, the gravity between them releases energy that passes into the common envelope. The turbulent instabilities that occur during this phase become clearly evident. (Video: Sebastian Ohlmann / HITS) Press contact Dr. Peter Saueressig Head of Communications HITS Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies phone: +49 6221 533245 fax: +49 6221 533298 peter.saueressig@h-its.org Scientific contact Sebastian Ohlmann Sebastian.ohlmann@h-its.org Prof. Dr. Friedrich Ropke friedrich.roepke@h-its.org Physics of Stellar Objects group HITS Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies phone: +49 6221 533270 fax: +49 6221 533298 http://www.h-its.org HITS The Heidelberg Institute for Theoretical Studies (HITS gGmbH) was established in 2010 by SAP co-founder Klaus Tschira and the Klaus Tschira Foundation as a private, non-profit research institute. HITS conducts basic research in the natural sciences, mathematics, and computer science, processing, structuring, and analyzing large amounts of data in the process. The research fields involved range from molecular biology to astrophysics. The shareholders of HITS gGmbH are the HITS Foundation, the University of Heidelberg, and the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT). HITS also cooperates with other universities and research institutes and with industrial partners. The single most substantial source of financial support for HITS is the HITS Foundation of the Klaus Tschira Foundation, its primary external funding agencies are the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, the German Research Foundation, and the European Union. New Rochelle, NY, February 4, 2016--A family physician reports the case of a transgender woman whose testosterone levels rose unexpectedly while on feminizing hormones, leading eventually to a diagnosis of a rare, virilizing form of testicular cancer. The complex medical and psychosocial factors related to the care of transgender patients that contributed to the delay in diagnosis are examined in the study published in LGBT Health, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is part of a new Special Issue on LGBT Populations and Cancer and is available free to download on the LGBT Health website. In "A Transgender Woman with Testicular Cancer: A New Twist on an Old Problem," Carolyn Wolf-Gould, MD and Christopher Wolf-Gould, MD, A.O. Fox Memorial Hospital, Oneonta, NY, provide a detailed account of the 28-year-old transgender woman's care, beginning when she requested feminizing hormone therapy from a family physician who was relatively new to the care of transgender patients. Despite initiation of appropriate testosterone-blocking and feminizing hormone therapy, and no evidence of a testicular mass at the initiation of treatment and 13-month follow-up, the patient's testosterone levels began to rise and continued to do so. She denied the presence of a testicular mass; however, a cancerous mass was discovered on examination at her 24-month visit. Drs. Wolf-Gould detail the factors that contributed to the delay in detection of the cancer. These included a failed attempt to access insurance coverage for vaginoplasty and the patient's emotional response to this setback, transportation and distance challenges that caused her to miss appointments, and anatomical dysphoria-- the patient's reluctance to examine her testes despite awareness of change within her scrotum. This case underscores the need to remove barriers to care for transgender patients, develop better evidence-based treatment guidelines, and create venues for medical providers to learn appropriate biopsychosocial care for this underserved population. The authors discuss screening recommendations for patients whose anatomy does not match their gender identity. "This case illustrates the complexity of attending to the biopsychosocial needs of transgender patients due to numerous barriers to care including the scarcity of resources for case consultations and provider education," says LGBT Health Editor-in-Chief William Byne, MD, PhD, James J Peters VA Medical Center, Bronx, NY, and Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY. ### About the Journal LGBT Health, published bimonthly online with Open Access options and in print, brings together the LGBT research, health care, and advocacy communities to address current challenges and improve the health, well-being, and clinical outcomes of LGBT persons. Spanning a broad array of disciplines, the Journal publishes peer-reviewed original research, review articles, clinical reports, case studies, legal and policy perspectives, and much more. Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the LGBT Health website. About the Publisher Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative medical and biomedical peer-reviewed journals, including Transgender Health, AIDS Patient Care and STDs, AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses, Journal of Women's Health, and Population Health Management. Its biotechnology trade magazine, Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry's most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm's more than 80 journals, newsmagazines, and books is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website. NEW HYDE PARK, NY - A new study by researchers at Cohen Children's Medical Center of New York (CCMC) suggests that more than one-quarter million school-age children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or other developmental disorders wander away from adult supervision each year. More than 26% of children with special needs in the study had wandered away from a safe environment within the past 12 months, say the researchers, with public places being the most common location for it to occur. Children between the ages of 6 to 11 were more likely to wander than those ages 12 to 17. Appearing Thursday in the online scientific journal PLOS ONE, it is the first published study to report the prevalence of elopement, or wandering, using a nationwide sample of school-age children with developmental disabilities, such as ASD, intellectual disability (ID), or developmental delay (DD). "Wandering has become a greater concern; said Andrew Adesman, MD, chief of developmental pediatrics at CCMC and senior investigator of the study. "Not only does it pose a significant risk to the safety and well-being of children with developmental disabilities, but fear of wandering can be a daily source of stress and anxiety for parents of affected children." In 2013, a 14-year-old Long Island boy with autism wandered out of his classroom and past a school security guard. The teen's body was found several months later on the shore of the East River. "As the prevalence of autism spectrum disorders in the United States continues to rise, there is a need to better understand the behaviors that may compromise the safety and well-being of these children," said Bridget Kiely a research assistant in the division of developmental and behavioral pediatrics at CCMC and principal investigator in the study. Using data from a 2011 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey of parents and guardians of more than 4,000 children ages 6 to 17 with special health care needs, researchers divided the children into three groups: those with ASD only; ASD with ID and/or DD; and just ID and/or DD. Researchers found that children with ASD (with or without associated cognitive delays) were more likely to wander off than children with cognitive impairment but no ASD. Across all groups, wanderers were more likely to not realize when they are in danger, to have difficulty distinguishing between strangers and familiar people, to show sudden mood changes, to over-react to situations and people, to get angry quickly, and to panic in new situations or if change occurs. "The kids who are most likely to wander are the kids who are least likely to respond appropriately to police or rescue personnel - potentially further jeopardizing their safety;" added Dr. Adesman. "First responders need to recognize that children or young adults with an autism spectrum disorder may over-react to some well-intentioned interventions and may be unresponsive to simple commands or questions" In terms of prevention strategies, the researchers also found that caregivers of children with ASD and ID/DD were more likely than those in the other two groups to use fences, locks, alarms, electronic tracking devices or other measures to prevent wandering. ### About the Steven and Alexandra Cohen Children's Medical Center of New York Opened in 1983, the Steven and Alexandra Cohen Children's Medical Center of New York is home to about 675 pediatricians, including 200 full-time physicians, and a total workforce of more than 1,200, including more than 500 nurses. For the ninth consecutive year in 2015, CCMC was ranked among the best children's hospitals in the nation in U.S. News & World Report's 2014-15 "America's Best Children's Hospitals" survey. The Neuroendocrine Tumor (NET) Research Foundation today announced that it has received a major gift from the Margie and Robert E. Petersen Foundation to launch the most ambitious research effort ever undertaken to control and cure neuroendocrine cancers. Automobile publishing giant Robert E. Petersen passed away from this form of cancer, which is diagnosed in an estimated 12,000 Americans each year. It is the same disease that claimed the life of Apple founder Steve Jobs. The $15 million gift will provide $5 million a year for three years in funds and endowment to support research and investigators dedicated to a cure. "A gift of this magnitude will greatly intensify the research that can be conducted in this rare disease space. With very little public funding for this type of research, a private gift of this magnitude is nothing short of transformational," said Ron Hollander, NET Research Foundation Executive Director. "We are so grateful to the Margie and Robert E. Petersen Foundation. This is an exciting time for cancer research, as new treatments like Immunotherapy are having breakthrough results for many forms of cancer. We will be reaching out to researchers throughout the US and beyond to bring the best ideas and investigators to the cause of curing neuroendocrine cancers." Robert E. Petersen started and published magazines such as Motor Trend and Hot Rod Magazine and founded the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles. He passed away from neuroendocrine cancer in 2007. As he and his family experienced almost ten years ago, there is still too little known, few effective treatments and no cures available for these rare cancers. "With this gift to catalyze our efforts, we must now build and sustain this new level of intensity until we see our cause through to completion," said NET Research Foundation Board Chair, Carol Branaman. NETs are rare and originate from specialized cells called neuroendocrine cells. NETs can occur throughout the body, but primary sites include the gastrointestinal tract, pancreas, rectum, lungs, and appendix. More than 100,000 people in the US are living with neuroendocrine cancers and the number of those diagnosed is increasing by more than five percent annually. Because symptoms often mimic those of other conditions, the majority of NET patients are initially misdiagnosed and the time from onset of symptoms to proper diagnosis often exceeds five years. To date, there are few clues as to what makes these tumors form, change, and grow. For ten years, the NET Research Foundation has built, connected, and supported a growing community of researchers dedicated to breakthrough scientific research in the quest to cure neuroendocrine cancers. Since its inception, the NET Research Foundation has awarded over $12 million in large-scale, multi-year research grants to leading scientists at renowned research institutions, and 7 of the top 10 US cancer centers. The Margie and Robert E. Petersen Foundation gift will allow the NET Research Foundation to take the next step forward to advance its vital mission. ### Only 2 percent of patients with life-threatening bleeding after serious injury receive optimal blood transfusion therapy in England and Wales, according to research led by Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) and NHS Blood and Transplant Only two per cent of patients with life-threatening bleeding after serious injury receive optimal blood transfusion therapy in England and Wales, according to research led by Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) and NHS Blood and Transplant. The study estimates that nearly 5,000 trauma patients sustain major haemorrhage in England and Wales each year and that one-third of those die. The research spotlights how delays in blood transfusion practices may contribute to this high death rate. Globally, bleeding following injury is estimated to be responsible for over two million deaths per year. Current treatment strategies focus on the rapid delivery of red blood cells, plasma and other clotting products. However, the logistics of providing the correct quantities in the right proportion during the first minutes and hours of emergency care can be extremely challenging. Professor Karim Brohi, Chair of Trauma Sciences at Queen Mary University of London, and a Trauma Surgeon at the Royal London Hospital Major Trauma Centre, said: "Bleeding is the leading cause of preventable death in trauma. The rapid and consistent delivery of blood, plasma, platelets and other clotting products to trauma patients is essential to maintain clotting during haemorrhage and has been shown to halve mortality. However, we found that only two per cent of patients with massive haemorrhage received the optimal type of blood transfusion for their resuscitation. "There is a clear opportunity for clinicians to improve the delivery of blood and clotting products during resuscitation for major haemorrhage." The study, published in the British Journal of Surgery, is the first to describe patterns of blood use and outcomes from major trauma haemorrhage on a national level. Looking at 22 hospitals in England and Wales, the researchers studied 442 patients who had experienced major trauma haemorrhage as a result of their injuries. Mortality from bleeding tended to occur early, with nearly two-thirds of all deaths in the first 24 hours. An unexpectedly high number of deaths (7.9 per cent) occurred once the patient left hospital, the reasons for which are unclear. Overall, only two per cent of all patients with massive haemorrhage received what might be considered the optimal transfusion of a high dose of clotting products in conjunction with red blood cells during the first hour of arrival within the Emergency Department. The average time to transfusion of red blood cells was longer than expected, at 41 minutes. Administration of specific blood components to aid with blood clotting such as plasma, platelets and cryoprecipitate was significantly delayed, occurring on average 2-3 hours after admission. The incidence of major haemorrhage increased markedly in patients over 65 years, who were twice as likely to suffer massive haemorrhage as a result of an injury compared to younger groups. The causes for this increased incidence were unclear and the researchers say further investigation is needed to examine the role of associated medical problems and prescribed medication. Transfusion procedures may also need to be adapted for older patients. Professor Brohi added: "The rapid delivery of the right mix of blood components in an emergency environment is extremely challenging. Some transfusion components have to be thawed and at present aren't always available for the patient quickly enough. More research is also needed into techniques and devices to control bleeding earlier - even at the scene of injury." Dr Simon Stanworth, at NHSBT/Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust, indicated the importance of the study as a baseline recording of practice: "This study tells us about the challenges of early delivery and administration of blood patients to a group of patients with life-threatening injuries. Whilst the reasons for these delays are varied between hospitals, NHSBT is looking at ways to improve the availability of blood components, for example, using promoting and assessing different types of plasma, such as extended pre-thawed or liquid plasma, which would be more readily available for timely use. This area of the optimal products remains a high-priority for NHSBT and indeed all Blood Transfusion Services. " Study limitations include the data not being complete for all patients, such as timings of transfusions. The study was also undertaken at an early stage in national trauma network reorganization. ### The study was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) under its Programme Grants for Applied Research Programme (RP-PG-0407-10036). For more information, please contact: Joel Winston Public Relations Manager (School of Medicine and Dentistry) Queen Mary University of London j.winston@qmul.ac.uk Tel: +44 (0)20 7882 7943 / +44 (0)7970 096 188 Notes to the editor Research paper 'Mortality from trauma haemorrhage and opportunities for improvement in transfusion practice' S. J. Stanworth, R. Davenport, N. Curry, F. Seeney, S. Eaglestone, A. Edwards, K. Martin, S Allard, M. Woodford, F. E. Lecky and K. Brohi British Journal of Surgery 2016 About Queen Mary University of London Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) is one of the UK's leading universities, and one of the largest institutions in the University of London, with 20,260 students from more than 150 countries. A member of the Russell Group, we work across the humanities and social sciences, medicine and dentistry, and science and engineering, with inspirational teaching directly informed by our research - in the most recent national assessment of the quality of research, we were placed ninth in the UK (REF 2014). We also offer something no other university can: a stunning self-contained residential campus in London's East End. As well as our home at Mile End, we have campuses at Whitechapel, Charterhouse Square and West Smithfield dedicated to the study of medicine, and a base for legal studies at Lincoln's Inn Fields. We have a rich history in London with roots in Europe's first public hospital, St Barts; England's first medical school, The London; one of the first colleges to provide higher education to women, Westfield College; and the Victorian philanthropic project, the People's Palace based at Mile End. QMUL has an annual turnover of 350m, a research income worth 100m, and generates employment and output worth 700m to the UK economy each year. The Centre for Trauma Sciences The Centre for Trauma Sciences has started a new five year European wide clinical trial in this area, which will build on the results of the current study. The National Institute for Health Research The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) is funded by the Department of Health to improve the health and wealth of the nation through research. Since its establishment in April 2006, the NIHR has transformed research in the NHS. It has increased the volume of applied health research for the benefit of patients and the public, driven faster translation of basic science discoveries into tangible benefits for patients and the economy, and developed and supported the people who conduct and contribute to applied health research. The NIHR plays a key role in the Government's strategy for economic growth, attracting investment by the life-sciences industries through its world-class infrastructure for health research. Together, the NIHR people, programmes, centres of excellence and systems represent the most integrated health research system in the world. For further information, visit the NIHR website (http://www.nihr.ac.uk). San Antonio -- February 2, 2016 -- NASA announced that a miniature solar particle research spacecraft to be built by Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) will launch aboard NASA's Exploration Mission 1 (EM-1) rocket in 2018. The CubeSat to study Solar Particles (CuSP) is one of a dozen shoebox-size payloads, called CubeSats, that will hitchhike into interplanetary space aboard EM-1, the first unmanned test flight of NASA's giant new Space Launch System (SLS). The SLS rocket is designed to eventually carry astronauts to the Moon and Mars aboard the Orion spacecraft. Equipped with three miniaturized but highly capable scientific instruments, the CuSP microsatellite will observe interplanetary magnetic fields and energetic particles in the solar wind. Dr. Mihir Desai of SwRI's Space Science and Engineering Division is principal investigator of CuSP and leads the development of the Suprathermal Ion Spectrograph, which will detect low-energy solar energetic particles. The Miniaturized Electron and Proton Telescope, developed by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, will measure high-energy solar energetic particles. The Vector Helium Magnetometer, being built by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, will measure the strength and direction of magnetic fields. "This is a valuable opportunity to add to our knowledge of solar energetic particles and space weather by taking advantage of the SLS launch," Desai said. Space weather, caused by interactions between the solar wind and the Earth's magnetic field, can stress power grids and impact space technology. "CuSP will observe solar events in interplanetary space and give us significant insight into what drives space weather, helping scientists to improve their simulations." Originally known as CuSPP, for CubeSat to study Solar Particles over the Poles, the satellite was designed to fly in low-Earth orbit, studying solar particles near Earth's poles. When NASA announced plans to fly CubeSats on SLS test flights, the team realized they had an opportunity to conduct interplanetary space weather research for a fraction of the usual cost. With a small amount of additional funding by NASA's Heliophysics Technology and Instrument Development for Science program, the team is reconfiguring CuSP for interplanetary operations. ### Editors: Image to accompany this story: http://www.swri.org/press/2016/cusp-spacecraft-observe-solar-energy-particles.htm Irvine, Calif., Feb. 4, 2016 -- If you find yourself toggling over to look at Facebook several dozen times a day, it's not necessarily because the experience of being on social media is so wonderful. It may be a sign that you're not getting enough sleep. In a recently completed study, researchers at the University of California, Irvine demonstrated that lack of sleep - in addition to affecting busy college students' moods and productivity - leads to more frequent online activities such as browsing Facebook. "When you get less sleep, you're more prone to distraction," said lead researcher Gloria Mark, a UCI informatics professor. "If you're being distracted, what do you do? You go to Facebook. It's lightweight, it's easy, and you're tired." Sleep deprivation can lead to loss of productivity throughout the economy. It can cause workplace mishaps and make drivers fall asleep at the wheel. Experts in the field of human-computer interaction want to know how sleep loss impacts people so they can design better technologies and products. "There have been lots of studies on how information technology affects sleep. We did the opposite: We looked at how sleep duration influences IT usage," said Mark, who will present the findings at a leading computer-human interaction conference in May. She and her colleagues collected data from 76 UCI undergraduates - 34 males and 42 females - for seven days during the spring 2014 quarter. The study controlled for students' gender, age, course load and deadlines and relied on sensors to objectively gauge their behavior, activities and stress levels. Students' computers and smartphones were equipped with logging software, and time stamps recorded when subjects switched from one application window to another and when they spoke on the phone or texted. They were asked to fill out a sleep survey each morning and an end-of-day survey at night. Participants also filled out a general questionnaire and sat for an exit interview. Periodically throughout the week, they received probing questions from researchers regarding their mood, the perceived difficulty of whatever task was at hand, and their level of engagement in their work. Central to the study was a concept known as "sleep debt," the accumulated difference between the amount of sleep needed and the amount experienced. Mark said the study's findings show a direct connection among chronic lack of sleep, worsening mood and greater reliance on Facebook browsing. She also found that the less sleep people have, the more frequently their attention shifts among different computer screens, suggesting heightened distractibility. ### Mark's UCI collaborators on the study, funded by the National Science Foundation, were Yiran Wang from the Department of Informatics and Melissa Niiya and Stephanie Reich from the School of Education. About the University of California, Irvine: Currently celebrating its 50th anniversary, UCI is the youngest member of the prestigious Association of American Universities. The campus has produced three Nobel laureates and is known for its academic achievement, premier research, innovation and anteater mascot. Led by Chancellor Howard Gillman, UCI has more than 30,000 students and offers 192 degree programs. It's located in one of the world's safest and most economically vibrant communities and is Orange County's second-largest employer, contributing $4.8 billion annually to the local economy. For more on UCI, visit http://www.uci.edu. Media access: Radio programs/stations may, for a fee, use an on-campus ISDN line to interview UC Irvine faculty and experts, subject to availability and university approval. For more UC Irvine news, visit news.uci.edu. Additional resources for journalists may be found at communications.uci.edu/for-journalists NOTE TO EDITORS, PHOTO AVAILABLE AT: https://news.uci.edu/feature/uci-researchers-link-compulsive-facebook-checking-to-lack-of-sleep/ Contact: Brian Bell 949-824-8249 bpbell@uci.edu Researchers at the University of Delaware are one step closer to developing an online map that would help Mid-Atlantic fishermen avoid catching Atlantic sturgeon. The research team, led by Matthew J. Oliver, Patricia and Charles Robertson Professor of Marine Science and Policy, found they could make useful predictions about sturgeon locations using satellite measurements of ocean color and temperature. They reported their findings Feb. 3 in the journal Methods in Ecology and Evolution. The researchers believe this to be an important step toward helping both fishermen and the vulnerable fish. If they can reliably predict where sturgeon or other "species of concern" are congregating or migrating, they can relay this information to fishermen through a daily fishing forecast, similar to a weather forecast. Fishermen sometimes accidentally catch sturgeon while targeting other species. Known as bycatch, this occurrence affects the species and can impact a fisherman's allowable catch of other fish. "This gets us closer to using habitat preferences as a guide to help fishermen be successful while reducing harm to non-target species," said the paper's lead author, Matthew Breece, a doctoral candidate in UD's School of Marine Science and Policy, which is housed in the College of Earth, Ocean, and Environment. "It's surprisingly accurate, and we see a lot of options for making it even better." Sturgeon select seascapes Where exactly sturgeon swim in the marine environment is a big unknown in the coastal ocean. On land, researchers use features of the landscape to predict where a species will be found. The UD team set out to do something similar using "seascapes," or zones of the ocean that can be readily identified. The research team studied the Delaware Bay and nearby coastal waters in Delaware, Maryland and New Jersey. By analyzing 10 years of satellite data, the researchers classified adjoining ocean areas with similar color and temperature. Their analysis identified six seascapes that form strips roughly parallel to the coast and can be anywhere from one mile to 20 miles wide. Local currents, tides and winds affect the seascape's location, which can vary as much as 10 or more miles in a single day. The researchers combined these time-dependent seascape maps with locations of individual sturgeon. They determined locations using tags implanted in sturgeon that can be detected by a set of 94 stationary acoustic sensors arrayed along the coast. According to Breece, the maps show that sturgeon seem to prefer a narrow corridor identified as Seascape E, which generally sits near the coast but sometimes expands into open waters south of the Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean. Half of the sturgeon detections were in that seascape, even though it covered only 35 percent of the available area, indicating selection for environmental factors over geography. To test this hypothesis, the team deployed an autonomous underwater vehicle called a glider in 2013. The glider was equipped with telemetry detectors that enabled the researchers to actively look for the tagged sturgeon. "We expected to see the sturgeon closer to shore. For 7-10 days the glider did not detect any sturgeon, despite being in regions of the water where we had seen sturgeon in the past," said Breece. "I actually thought the glider might be broken or the sensors might be damaged." As soon as the glider arrived in Seascape E, however, it started detecting tagged sturgeon -- 62 of them actually -- some from as far away as South Carolina. "That's when it sunk in that the sturgeon were cuing in on this particular seascape, even though it moves around," Breece said. The scientists aren't sure why the sturgeon prefer this seascape. Sturgeon are typically bottom feeders, eliminating the idea that they may be chasing prey that is moving with the seascapes. "It could be a foraging preference, or it could be that the seascape acts like a 'turn signal,' telling the sturgeon that it's time to turn toward the Delaware River and return home to spawn. We don't know," Breece said. Future research will focus on characterizing the water properties in the preferred seascape and exploring whether other cues in the water can be read from satellite or oceanographic data. "We still have work to do before this is ready for fishermen," Oliver said. "But this gives us the scientific basis to build something really useful and to expand from sturgeon to other species." ### Co-authors on the paper, titled "Dynamic Seascapes Predict the Marine Occurrence of an Endangered Species: Atlantic Sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus oxyrinchus," include Oliver, Dewayne Fox (Delaware State University), Keith Dunton and Mike Frisk (Stony Brook University), and Adrian Jordaan (University of Massachusetts Amherst). The research was funded in part by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Mid-Atlantic Regional Association Coastal Ocean Observing System Observing System (MARACOOS) and the Lenfest Ocean Program. The Huffington Foundation has endowed a new chair at University of Houston to honor the research professor who has urged her readers to dare greatly. The foundation has pledged $2 million over four years to fund the Brene Brown Endowed Chair in the Graduate College of Social Work (GCSW). "I'm deeply grateful to The Huffington Foundation for their confidence in my work, and to the college for their ongoing support and leadership," Brown said. "My commitment is to be the best possible steward of this gift by expanding the reach of my research and work, and by mentoring Master of Social Work and Ph.D. students interested in this area of study. This is such an honor and I'm so thankful for the opportunity." Brown, the author of three No.1 New York Times bestsellers--Daring Greatly, The Gifts of Imperfection, and Rising Strong--began her work at the GCSW in 2002, researching vulnerability, courage, shame and worthiness. Her appearances in TED and TEDx talks, created a global conversation around the topics addressed in her groundbreaking research. Currently her research focuses on the role courage plays in leadership and culture change. Brown also is the founder and CEO of The Daring Way, a training program for helping professionals, and CourageWORKS, an online learning community developed to provide accessible learning, grounded in her research to a global audience. Brown is a UH alum, earning a master's degree and doctorate in social work from the GCSW. She received her bachelor's degree in Social Work at The University of Texas at Austin. "Brene's groundbreaking scholarship and leadership crosses boundaries and resonates with an audience broader than social work, and for that we are proud. Just as we are proud to call her a social work colleague, GCSW alumna and professor--one of our own," said Alan Dettlaff, dean of the college. "Her work has inspired millions to live authentic lives, to be brave and courageous, to take risks, and to believe in their fundamental worth and value. We are grateful to the Huffington Foundation for their generosity and vision as we work to educate the next generation of social workers with innovative approaches and ideas." The Huffington Foundation Endowed Chair will provide the annual resources for Brown's research to attract world-class students pursuing training in Grounded Theory methodology and multiply the impact of her work as a greater number of students are trained in her groundbreaking research on vulnerability, shame, courage and worthiness. ### SAN ANTONIO (Feb. 4, 2016)--Brain cell death in Alzheimer's disease is linked to disruption of a skeleton that surrounds the nucleus of the cells, a researcher in the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio said. The finding is expected to open new avenues of study of how to prevent the earliest biological events that result in Alzheimer's. The nucleus is the control center of cells. A mesh-like scaffold called the lamin nucleoskeleton surrounds this control center but is disordered in Alzheimer's, said Bess Frost, Ph.D., assistant professor of cellular and structural biology at the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio. Dr. Frost was trained at Harvard Medical School and in November started her new laboratory at the UT Health Science Center's Barshop Institute for Longevity and Aging Studies. Confirmed in human cells Dr. Frost and two co-authors showed--for the first time--that lamin dysfunction can cause the death of brain cells, which are called neurons. The team made this finding in a fruit fly disease model initially and confirmed it in postmortem brain tissue of people who had Alzheimer's disease, whose families donated their brains to research. "Human brain donation is a very critical part of this work," Dr. Frost said. "It was important to show that what we found in the fly is really relevant to human disease." Dr. Frost and her colleagues used a technique called super-resolution microscopy to analyze the fruit fly and human specimens. They found peculiar features that looked like tunnels in the lamin of Alzheimer's-affected specimens. Seems to be Alzheimer's-specific The team also studied a fruit fly model of Huntington's disease and did not find any problems with the lamin. "So, at least compared to one other neurodegenerative disease, lamin dysfunction seems to be specific to Alzheimer's disease," Dr. Frost said. The findings, made while Dr. Frost was at Harvard and Brigham and Women's Hospital, are in in the journal Current Biology and were posted online in January. Dr. Frost encourages people to consider brain donation, whether or not they have a neurodegenerative disease. Comparing healthy, normal brain tissue to diseased brain tissue is a very useful tool for neuroscientists, she said. New Alzheimer's institute A state-of-the-art tissue biorepository will be part of the Institute for Alzheimer and Neurodegenerative Diseases announced by the Health Science Center last September. The biobank will be linked to a database containing the health history of each donor. Dr. Frost said she is very excited that the institute is being launched and plans to be involved once it is operational. Dr. Frost is establishing her laboratory with support from The University of Texas System Rising STARS Award. STARS stands for Science and Technology Acquisition and Retention. ### News online For current news from the UT Health Science Center San Antonio, please visit our online newsroom, like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or view us on YouTube. About the UT Health Science Center at San Antonio The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, with missions of teaching, research and healing, is one of the country's leading health sciences universities. Its schools of medicine, nursing, dentistry, health professions and graduate biomedical sciences have more than 32,200 alumni who are advancing their fields throughout the world. With six campuses in San Antonio and Laredo, the university has a FY 16 revenue operating budget of $801.8 million and is the primary driver of its community's $30.6 billion biomedical and health care industry. For more information on the many ways "We make lives better," visit http://www.uthscsa.edu. Shareholders in any financial institution with a large investment bank must have blanched in January when Deutsche Bank issued a profit warning. It wasnt so much the large and hilariously misnamed one-off litigation and restructuring charges in the final quarter of last year that led to Deutsches first full-year loss since 2008 that alarmed shareholders. More worrying were the poor underlying results, including an operating loss for the quarter of 600 million, when the analyst consensus had been for a 900 million profit, making for an 1.5 billion miss. The lead culprit appeared to be far-lower-than-expected revenues in the corporate banking and securities division. Its a painful reminder to investors who have pressed banks to restructure and reduce their investment banking divisions just how hard this is to execute and that while customer revenues can evaporate swiftly, fixed costs are harder to shift, shedding them requires more of those pesky supposedly exceptional costs and that risks take longer to manage down than revenues. The odds on a further dilutive capital raise at Deutsche, something its highly regarded new CEO John Cryan had been trying to avoid, just shortened. Investors in Barclays, which looks set to continue dismantling its investment banking operations outside the UK and the US, especially in Asia as well as in other emerging markets, should brace themselves. Troubling message Investors took rather less notice through results season of the performance of JPMorgans investment bank in the last quarter of 2015 and throughout last year, but in some ways it carries an even more troubling message. It did nothing wrong. The corporate and investment bank division reported net income of $1.7 billion on revenue of $7.1 billion for a return on equity of 10%. What might give investors pause is that return, which does no more than match cost of equity for a large globally significant bank, comes from the outright market leader in a strong year for large parts of the investment banking business. According to Dealogic, M&A revenue reached $23.4 billion in 2015, the second highest level on record and while equity underwriting revenues declined from a strong 2014, earnings from the primary market in investment-grade bonds were a record $10.4 billion in 2015. JPMorgan led the overall investment banking revenue league tables with an 8% market share and close to $6 billion in revenue, being the market share leader in debt capital markets, equity capital markets and syndicated loans, while second only to Goldman Sachs in M&A advisory revenues. Customer revenues from secondary market trading in fixed income and equities held up well, as investors positioned for the shift in Fed rates. Profits were boosted by expense-reduction efforts in the CIB division, where JPMorgan has taken out $1.3 billion of costs since 2014. Default risk was low on the relationship loans JPMorgan holds on balance sheet to support its investment banking clients, given low rates. Market risk was also contained in 2015. If the global market leader cant make more than a 10% return in a year of strong revenues and low credit and market risk costs, what will the rest do if 2016 sees lower client revenue in the funk period that usually follows bear market falls, default rates rise off their lows and market risks require more capital amid heightened volatility? Credit Agricole is the latest European mutual group to be pushed into a radical reorganisation, as regulators and investors look ever less favourably on complex cooperative structures. After a press leak in mid-January, the French group confirmed it has started to evaluate the sale of the central listed entitys 25% stake in the 35 caisses regionales, potentially transferring it into a new vehicle to be 100%-owned by the regional banks. Its a response to concerns over a bewildering structure in which, since its IPO in 2001, Credit Agricole SA owns 25% of its majority shareholder, the regional banks. Regulators are thought to be increasingly uncomfortable with that. The loop has also contributed to keeping CASAs shares (in contrast to rival Natixis) way below book value despite recent efficiency drives and a post-crisis refocus on core businesses, including corporate and investment banking. Credit Agricole says the move would have no impact on the groups solvency or tax burden, but would reinforce financial flexibility at CASA improving the latters quality of capital, and helping it reach its regulatory capital target (150 basis points above the ECB minimum, or 11% tier-1, compared with a reported 10.4% in September 2015). The change will allow a return to pure cash dividends next year, after three years of a choice between cash or scrip. All in all, its good news, says Alex Koagne, banks analyst at Natixis. Guillaume Lucien-Baugas at Moodys adds that from a ratings perspective, and under French law, CASA continues to benefit from the strength and solidarity of the group as it did after the 2008 crisis, when the regional banks offered capital support. The new structure will be more in the spirit of Basel III rules on minority equity stakes, according to Lucien-Baugas. Messy The sale will entail the end of the switch mechanism in which CASA benefits from the groups equity via a guarantee covering 54 billion of risk-weighted assets. The switchs expiry in 2017 makes it a doubtful, as well as messy, element of the capital make-up. The sale of the regional bank stake could boost CASAs capital ratio by eliminating almost 10 billion of risk-weighted assets that are not covered by the switch, because of the regional banks growth since the switch was put in place just over four years ago, says John Raymond, senior analyst at CreditSights. This could mean an improvement in CASAs tier-1 ratio by around 30bp, notes Koagne assuming the sale is at book value. The announcement said independent judges would determine a fair price for the stake, which was valued at almost 17 billion in CASAs 2014 balance sheet. At around 16.9 times earnings, that was way above the 10.6 times average for European banks, according to Berenberg research in September. At a time when worries about commodities have also weighed on French banks, bearish investors have focused on a potential dilution of earnings as a result of the sale. The end of the switch mechanism will eliminate a large fee a 9.5% coupon on a 5 billion deposit. Yet the sale removes the strong earnings of the regional banks, a contribution to CASAs income statement of around 1 billion a year, according to KBW. Recommendation Berenbergs James Chappell previously called the convoluted group structure the root of CASAs problems but he tells Euromoney he will maintain a sell recommendation in January. In his view the sale will have no capital benefit, but a 30% dilution of earnings (KBW puts the earnings dilution at 550 million, or 13% of 2017 estimated earnings). Though subject to discussions within the group and with regulators, the market expects more details on the deal on March 9, when chief executive Philippe Brassac unveils a new four-year plan. But some say Credit Agricole is just joining other European cooperative groups forced to do away with complexity and opacity. Natixis, the listed subsidiary of BPCE, Frances other big mutual group, got rid of its 20% share in its parent in 2013. Unlike Natixis, CASA maintains the central liquidity and treasury management function for the regional lenders despite a plan under Brassac, shortly after arriving as CEO last May, to shift this to a different vehicle. CASA will further continue to own a large retail banking operation in Italy under Cariparma and in France under LCL (formerly Credit Lyonnais). But the direction is the same elsewhere in the eurozone. On January 1 this year, Dutch mutual group Rabobank merged its 106 local banks with its central institution and now operates under one licence, publishing one set of financial results. Pohjola Bank, in Finland, has been through a similar change. DZ Bank, a central cooperative institution in Frankfurt is merging with Germanys last regional mutual group, while reform to cooperative banks in Italy could spark mergers there too. Cooperative banks across Europe are under pressure to simplify their organisational structure and make their capital and liquidity situation clearer, says Lucien-Baugas at Moodys. The Foreign Exchange Joint Standing Committee (FXJSC) was established in 1973 and has remained an important forum for discussion between industry practitioners, regulators and central bankers. However, the committee came under fire during the recent benchmark scandal, with allegations that officials at the BoE had failed to escalate concerns over improper market behaviour. The chief dealers subgroup of the FXJSC, which was the principle area of concern, has long since been disbanded, but a more recent review has also wound up a buy-side sub-committee, bringing representatives of buy-side firms on to the main committee. The broader membership of the FXJSC has also changed. Michael Cross, former head of the BoEs FX division, had chaired the committee for six years, up until his departure from the central bank last year. The new chairman is Chris Salmon, executive director for markets at the BoE. Other recent departures include JPMorgans Troy Rohrbaugh, Brian Welch of the Association of Corporate Treasurers, and Andrew Rogan of the British Bankers Association. An updated membership list has not yet been published, but it is understood the net membership of the committee has grown, with senior representation from the major dealers. New terms The FXJSC held its first meeting of the year at the BoE on January 28 and ratified the new terms of reference, which had been drawn up by the central bank last year. The terms state that membership should comprise senior practitioners from financial and non-financial institutions, brokers, market infrastructures, industry associations and public authorities. Members are invited to contribute with a view to furthering the interests of the wholesale FX market, rather than representing the interests of their individual institutions, the terms of reference state. Membership is dependent on relevant expertise and is therefore determined on an individual rather than a firm basis. The new terms of reference also commit the FXJSC to contributing to the production, review and maintenance of the global FX code of conduct, which is being developed by the FX Working Group (FXWG), an international body of central bankers appointed last year by the Bank for International Settlements. An FXWG workstream led by Salmon is developing proposals to promote and incentivize adherence to the code of conduct, which will address some of the gaps in existing rulebooks. The FXJSC and other regional FX committees are also expected to review early drafts of the new code, before its being finalised by May 2017. The FXJSC has usually convened six times per year, and the new terms of reference commit it to meeting at least quarterly. However, the next meeting will be held sooner than usual, in mid-February, because of the need to discuss the code of conduct. The BoE declined to comment. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) has ordered a probe after receiving complaints about alleged derogatory remarks against dalits and adivasis posted on social media by a student at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), Delhi. Media reports indicate that the matter was brought to the attention of the National Comission of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes after some students raised the issue with IIMC authorities. The Indian Express quotes a high-ranking MIB official as saying that Joint secretary Mihir Kumar Singh, (also the administrative joint secretary for IIMC), has been asked to inquire into it and submit a report to the ministry by February 10. The alleged issue stems after the recent suicide of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula in the University of Hyderabad. According to the complainant, a student at IIMC shared a Facebook post criticizing the community for making the issue political and for taking advantage of reservations. Read more news about (marketing news, latest marketing news,internet marketing, marketing India, digital marketing India, media marketing India, advertising news) Officials in Canada have issued a reminder that from March 2016 visa-exempt foreign nationals who fly to or transit through Canada will need an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA).There are exceptions including citizens of the United States and travellers with a valid visa, but those who will need an eTA are urged to make sure they know about the requirements and not to leave it until the last minute.The eTA has been introduced to avoid people being turned back when they arrive in Canada as they are effectively screened before they arrive. In 2012/2013, the most up to date figures available, the total number of visa exempt foreign nationals who arrived in Canada and were deemed inadmissible for entry at air ports of entry was 7,055."This resulted in significant expense, delay and inconvenience for these foreign nationals, other travellers, the airlines and the Canadian government. Reasons for refusal can include membership in terrorist organizations, espionage, participation in war crimes or crimes against humanity, international human rights violations, membership in organized crime groups, criminality, or issues endangering public health, such as tuberculosis," said a spokesman for Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC).Students and temporary workers from eTA required countries who received their student or work permit before August 2015 and intend to travel from and return to Canada by air will need an eTA. However, those who applied after that date do not need an eTA as it will have been automatically granted and linked electronically to their passport when the work permit was issued.The eTA is electronically linked to a passport and is valid for five years or until a passport expires, whichever comes first. It can be applied for online and costs $7 and it will be obligatory from 15 March 2016."Most applicants can expect to get an email response within minutes of applying. You should get your eTA as soon as you begin to plan your trip to visit Canada," said the CIC spokesman."Last minute applications can be made on any device with an internet connection, including mobile phones. Applying for an eTA is a simple online process. To apply you must have a valid passport, credit card, and email address," the spokesman added.The full list of nationalities that require an eTA and exemptions can be found on the CIC website and it includes most countries including the UK, Australia and France. CIC has indicated that esoon after March 2016i citizens from Brazil, Bulgaria, Mexico and Romania may be eligible to apply for an eTA when travelling to Canada by air.To be eligible for an eTA they would need to show that they have held a Canadian visa in the last 10 years or hold a valid US non-immigration visa.The number of visa exempt foreign nationals travelling to Canada on a temporary basis per year is significantly larger than the number of visa required travellers. For example, visa exempt foreign nationals, excluding US citizens, represent approximately 74% of foreign nationals who arrive by air in Canada. Hi Everyone, I have a problem with my visa and i want to discuss it with you guys. I got a offer letter from a company in UAE. Then the company owner applied for my visa. On 12 December 2015 i received the labour visa approval, and 15 december i received my work visa. But the problem is that on my Visa My Name was written totally wrong, mean the visa was issued to someone else name, but Passport number, picture, date of birth, nationality and company name is mine. I told to my boss that name is written totally wrong on visa. Then He submitted again for the visa name updation on 22 december 2015, but immigrations officers are not replying at all. Now my boss is saying that go to your embassy and ask them to take up with their consulate in Dubai for rectifying the error. So My Question is that how long Ministry of Labour take to update the name on visa. OR Should i go to the local embassy of my country? JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. The U4 network Reverberations of Revolution: Political Upheaval Seen from Afar (1750-1850) invites proposals for the conference The Power of Things: Revolutionary Objects, Icons and Images Across Borders, which will be held at Ghent University (Belgium) on 16 September 2016. The goal of the U4 network is to explore how writers, artists and intellectuals responded to and represented revolutions taking place in other parts of the world in a variety of genresnovels, essays, poetry, spectacles, art works, journalism, caricatures, everyday objects, historiography and life-writingand how discussions of these uprisings influenced domestic political discourse and debate. In our Fall 2016 meeting, we will explore how the objects and images of revolutions are interpreted, disseminated and transformed abroad. Whether it takes the form of a fetish, a souvenir, a propagandistic object or a fashion accessory, the material culture of revolution can be as powerful as its intangible ideas, memories and discourses. We will examine how revolutionary objects and images travel to new cultural contexts and how they acquire new meanings and social functions. Possible subtopics include but are not limited to: the appropriation and re-signification of the fashions of revolution (Garibaldi shirts, bonnets rouges, cockades, the Wedgwood Anti-Slavery medallion, etc.) in new cultural contexts efforts to support or frustrate revolutions abroad by boycotting material things (e.g. sugar) the way in which foreign journalists, writers and artists react to and interpret iconic visual representations of revolution (appropriation of Jacques-Louis David or revolutionary caricatures in other places, etc.) the appropriation of French revolutionary pornography in other cultural contexts representations and re-signification of revolutionary objects (guillotine, etc.) in other cultural contexts the way in which objects act as catalysts of revolution (e.g. the animal grease used in cartridges for British rifles as a catalyst for the Indian rebellion) the appropriation of the iconography, myths and signs of counter-revolution the circulation and fetishisation of revolutionary souvenirs or memorabilia the foreign revolution/revolutionary as spectacle or entertainment We invite proposals for individual 20-minute presentations or complete panels that explore these and related issues in European and non-European revolutions that took place between 1750 and 1857. Proposals for individual paper submissions should consist of an abstract (max. 250 words) and a short CV. Proposals for panels should provide a brief explanation of the goals of the panel and its link to the conference theme (max. 250 words), accompanied by 250-word abstracts and brief CVs of all speakers. Proposals for alternative presentation formats (e.g. roundtables, impulse sessions, interviews, performances, or other innovative formats) are also welcome. Please submit all proposals to Elizabeth Amann (elizabeth.amann@ugent.be) by May 1, 2016. At the office here, we banter about invasive species and all the hoopla surrounding the subject. That got me thinking deeper about the subject. Who determines if a species is invasive? How far back in time do you go? Is there an official list and what criteria do you use? I think most of us have heard about some plant species, insect or animal that is characterized as invasive, meaning not native or not naturally here. Here are some crazy species that were not here at some point, but could qualify as invasive according to my thinking. Invasives or not? Dandelions came over from Europe as a food plant in the 1800s. I think most people would tell you they are native. They are seen everywhere. But, once again, when did the clock start ticking, the last decade, this year, or a century ago or more. Ring-necked pheasants have been here a long time since the 1800s so most people would claim them as native. However, they were introduced from China way back when. So, what are they? Starlings and house sparrows seem to have been here a long time so they must be native. They were introduced around the early 1900s. Are they native or invasive? Nightcrawlers in your lawn would seem to be native, but they arrived from Europe in the late 1700s. So, are they native or invasive? Horses would be considered by most people as native but were actually brought over by the Spaniards in the 1500s. So, are they native or invasive? Canadian Hemlocks were brought down by the last glacier episode. Could their remnant populations in wooded ravines be considered invasive or native? Zebra mussels, a recent arrival to the Great Lakes, a menacing nuisance clinging onto boats, etc, would undoubtedly be an invasive species. The emerald ash borer (this one really sickens me as an invasive) has created a collapse of the ash tree in Ohio. However, the native red ash borer, already here seemed to have reached equilibrium with the ash trees. My favorite example is the Colorado Blue Spruce. Seen just about everywhere, many folks would likely characterize them as native. However, the name should be a dead give away that it isnt. The Monarch butterfly is getting a lot of attention by lots of people now, and rightfully so. However, my question is, if the butterfly life cycle is tied so heavily to the milkweed plant, and 200 hundred years ago Ohio was 95 percent forested and weeds were extremely rare under the forest canopy, should we consider them a native or an invasive? Identifying invasives Thus, you should now understand the craziness of all of this. What is and what isnt invasive and what criteria is being used. So, when you get into a discussion or see lists of invasive species published by whomever, lets remember many of those plants or creatures not on the list should be considered in my book. CLARKS MILLS, Pa. Farm income and the commodity markets are on the minds of most farmers and that was made clear at an AgChoice Ag Forum Jan. 27 in Clarks Mills, Pennsylvania. Farmers from across Mercer and Lawrence counties listened as Kurt Barth, from Brock Associates, talked about global and farm economics. Farm income Barth said net farm income was down 38 percent in 2015. The drop in cash receipts was attributed to both crops and livestock. Brock Associates research showed that in 2013, crops earned more income than livestock. Crops were reported as having raised $220 billion and livestock production totaled $183 billion. In 2014, livestock earned more income. Brock Associates research showed $212 billion earned from livestock production and $210 billion in crops. However, the numbers fell in 2015: $191 billion was earned in crops and $187 billion in livestock. Debt Barth said the research by the USDA Economic Research Service confirms farm debt is increasing. He said the real estate debt is expected to rise by 6.1 percent to $208 billion and non-real estate is to rise by 6.5 percent to $159 billion. Barth added there is concern about the debt-to-asset ratio increasing. USDA ERS data showed that it has increased since 2013, from 11.3 percent in 2013 to 12.8 percent in 2015. Land values Barth said its no secret that cropland values are going to fall, in part due to the crop prices. He said land values in the Corn Belt dropped 2.3 percent, and overall, U.S. per-acre land values dropped 0.7 percent to $4,130. He expects land values will fall further before they go back up. The research from Brock Associates used a formula based upon the USDA projected 2015 gross farm income as of November 2015, to determine that land values in the United States should be closer to $3,314 than the $4,130 value. The research also showed that cropland is 25 percent overvalued, by historical measures. Grain marketing All that grim economic news means it is more important than ever to have a marketing plan for grain, Barth said. Market decisions require four steps: what to do, meaning sell or not; how much to sell; how to do it, using the basis; and finally, keeping a journal of why a farmer does what he does. Barth recommends writing down why the farmer sold and what the farmer sold. Goals In establishing the marketing plan, producers need to establish a realistic goal, identify the decision-making environment and identify beliefs. Barth said to have a price and basis outlook for both the short term (now through six months) and long term (six to 18 months out). He also recommends writing an outlook down and updating it as needed. Production costs Producers should also consider the cost of production. Farmers should determine the fixed and variable costs and remember that not everyones costs are the same. Also when developing a marketing plan, consider risk-bearing ability. Barth said a highly leveraged producer will look differently at grain marketing than a producer with a low debt-asset ratio. Emotional decisions And finally, avoid emotional decisions. Barth said one surprising thing is that this can actually be gender based. He said women make fewer emotional decisions when it comes to selling grain than men. Other points from Barth: The dairy market needs more export demand before prices can begin to recover. Barth said he is not optimistic about Class III milk prices without greater export demand. Barth said it is a good time to purchase fertilizer due to low natural gas prices. It is definitely time to make a nitrogen purchase, if its on your list. BEVERLY, Ohio Fort Frye FFA is holding its strawberry, barbecue sauce and cheese sale fundraiser. Orders are due Feb. 15 and can be placed by calling Fort Frye High School at 740-984-2376. The chapter will hold its annual banquet at the St. Bernards Catholic Church, Beverly, Ohio. BELOIT, Ohio Members of the West Branch FFA chapter traveled to Fort Worth, Texas, Feb. 3-7 to attend the Fort Worth Stock Show and tour the Fort Worth stock yards. Students also shadowed a vocational agriculture student at Northwest High School and observed many of the schools student-operated farms. ASHLAND, Ohio Over the past couple months, the Crestview FFA has been working on a community service project called Meals of Hope. The goal is to promote and stop hunger within the local community. Meals of Hope is set to take place Feb. 19, which will be the conclusion of the chapters FFA week activities. During this project, the high school student body will come together to pack 50,000 meals. To reach the goal of packing 50,000 meals, the chapter will need to raise $12,500. To learn more about this project and to get involved, visit http://crestviewffa.kintera.org/, or contact Joel Albright, at albright.joel@crestviewschools.net. SUMMITVILLE, Ohio As a boy, Henry Bergfeld grew up around sheep. His family raised sheep on their Westmoreland County farm in southwestern Pennsylvania, and so did many of the local farmers. In fact, one of his first jobs was shearing sheep, and he traveled to various farms in the area, offering to shear sheep for a few bucks. But he found his real passion in the beef barn at the county fair: Black Angus. I saw these black cattle that I really liked, he said, so in 1952, he bought his first heifer for $475, with money he had raised from sheering sheep. The heifer later gave birth to a bull calf, and the calf became his first beef steer project. Going Angus From that point, his love of the Angus breed was born. He not only showed cattle, winning various contests along the way, but he also became a well-respected judge of cattle. He won a district judging contest in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania, and the contest judge, a Penn State beef specialist, encouraged Bergfeld to study animal sciences at Penn State University. At first, Bergfeld found college life difficult, particularly the studying and academics. But with some help from the staff, and his determination, he completed his degree and graduated in 1963. One area where he did excel not surprisingly was the colleges livestock judging team. The team enjoyed several high placings at contests across the country, and individually, Bergfeld won at least three major contests, including the Keystone International Livestock Exposition, at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. But more than winning, he also made friends and industry connections that have lasted a lifetime. Industry recognition On Jan. 23, at the Ohio Cattlemens Association annual awards meeting in Columbus, he received the Beef Industry Excellence Award. The award recognizes his lifetime commitment to the Ohio beef industry. Bergfeld was nominated for the award by former Ohio Department of Agriculture Director Fred Dailey. Dailey, who raises cattle near Mount Vernon, met Bergfeld in the early 1980s, when he was manager of the Summitcrest cattle farm, of Summitville, Ohio. Dailey said he was quickly impressed with Bergfelds knowledge and ability to manage such a large operation. Anyone who can manage a ranch thats over 20,000 acres, and three different states, and have some of the top cows in the country youve got to be impressed with, Dailey said. Today, Bergfeld is probably one of the top five cowmen of the United States, and well-recognized internationally, Dailey said. But his reputation and the reputation of the cattle he managed took time to build. After college, Bergfeld worked three years for Stewart Brothers Seeds, of Greensburg, Indiana, where he helped manage the companys beef herd. He continued to win cattle shows, and soon found himself getting job offers, one from a ranch in New York, another from Michigan State, and a third which he accepted at the Summitcrest Performance Angus ranch, in Summitville, Ohio. Bergfeld met Fred Johnson proprietor of the Summitcrest ranch, at a cattle show in 1965, and in 1966, Johnson offered him the job of farm manager. It was a job he would hold for the next 39 years, helping the operation grow from about 250 head and one location, to additional ranches in Iowa and Nebraska, and at one time, as many as 2,500 head of cattle. Major step Bergfeld already knew a lot about beef and even a fair amount about crops, but becoming manager at Summitcrest was a big step. For one thing, I was younger than the main core of the help, Bergfeld said. I had to gain their respect. And, he had to do something about demand. He knew Summitcrest could produce as good of cattle as anyone, but to appeal to the western states cattlemen, they needed to get involved out West. So, over time, Summitcrest expanded to include farms in Iowa and Nebraska, producing and selling cattle in those states, and building its name among western producers. But another big step was improving the consumer demand for quality Angus beef. Other breeds were competing with Angus at the time, and Bergfeld and his cattle friends knew they needed to raise the bar. We all knew that we had carcass quality the other breeds couldnt compete with, he said. In response, key Angus producers at the time, including Mick Colvin and Harold Etling, of Wayne County, formed Certified Angus Beef a brand that distinguished high quality Angus beef. Building demand Although the CAB brand took a few years to catch on, it ultimately became the largest and most successful brand of beef in the world, providing a solid marketing opportunity for quality Angus cattle. As a past CAB board member, one of Bergfelds biggest accomplishments was helping to keep the organization headquartered in Wooster, Ohio where it stands even today. Drug testing. Other major achievements included working with Dailey, to establish the states first major livestock show drug use program, and working to establish the Ohio Beef Expo. The drug use policy helped level the playing field for livestock exhibitors, and became model legislation for other states. Bergfeld helped form the Beef Expo when he was president of Ohio Cattlemens Association. He knew Ohio had an opportunity to showcase eastern states cattle, and the show continues to grow today, above any expectation. Genetic improvement And, of course, Bergfeld helped improve genetic quality of the Angus breed. When he started, everything was based on show results, and what you could visually determine about the cattle. But over the years, the Summitcrest herd became a leader in genetic recordkeeping, EPDs, and the exporting of Angus embryos. At one time, the herd was also a national leader for pathfinder cows a program that distinguished the best cows, based on multi-year sets of data. Today, Bergfeld and his wife, Dona, live on a ranch that borders the Summitcrest farm known as Pine Hill Farm. The couple keep about 45 head of Angus cattle, and are still active in the Angus beef industry. HARRISBURG, Pa. The Pennsylvania Environmental Quality Board (EQB), an independent board responsible for adopting environmental regulations, passed the revisions to the oil and gas drilling regulations by a vote of 15 to 4. The rulemaking updates the environmental controls employed by both the conventional and unconventional industries. In addressing surface activities at well sites, the board says the amendments improve protection of water resources, add public resources considerations, protect public health and safety, address landowner concerns, enhance transparency, and improve data management. Industry opposition Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association President Louis D. DAmico, however, voice strong objections to the boards adoption of the final oil and natural gas regulations. In a prepared statement, he called the process of developing the regs an exercise in deception, misinformation and disregard of the law by the Department of Environmental Protection that escalated under Gov. Wolf. DEP has offered no legitimate explanation for applying the provisions of Act 13 intended for the unconventional industry to conventional oil and gas producers, the statement continued. The industry association decried the EQBs decision not to vote separately on the conventional and unconventional rulemakings, which DAmico said was required by Act 126 of 2014. He said the regulations will stifle energy production in Pennsylvania. The rules will now be delivered to the Independent Regulatory Review Commission and the House and Senate Environmental Resources and Energy Committees for review. Shropshire A Full-Time position is available for an assistant herdsperson on a family dairy farm in mid Shropshire. We have a 250 dairy herd rearing own replacements together with a b... After a spectacular run as the centrepiece of the gold medal winning UK Pavilion at the 2015 Milan Expo UK Trade and Investment (UKTI) and the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, announced yesterday that the stunning structure, The Hive, will take up its new home within Kew Gardens from June 2016. Soaring 17 metres in the air, The Hive is an immersive, multi-sensory experience inspired by UK groundbreaking scientific research into the health of bees. Showcasing British creativity, innovation and leadership in overcoming global challenges, this magnificent aluminium structure will draw visitors into the space via a wildflower meadow, as though they were worker bees returning to the hive. The wildflower meadow will serve to build understanding and appreciation of these habitats, and their significance for insect pollinators. Hundreds of glowing LED lights bring this 40 tonne lattice structure to life, while a beautiful symphony of orchestral sounds fills the air, with an atmospheric undercurrent of buzzes and pulses. Triggered by vibration sensors within a real beehive, the sound and light intensity within the pavilion increases as the energy levels in the living hive surge, giving visitors an incredible insight into the ever moving life of a bee colony. As visitors wander through this continually changing space, they will begin a journey, exploring the vital role of bees and other pollinators in feeding the planet - of the 100 crop species that provide 90% of food worldwide, 70 are pollinated by bees. Crucial links between food security and pollinators will come alive, as Kew scientists share their solutions for pollinators under pressure, from their innovative research into the plant chemicals in pollen and nectar that enable bees to overcome disease, to the development of high quality wildflower seeds by Kews UK Native Seed Hub. Richard Deverell, Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew said: "We are truly delighted to announce The Hives move to Kew, both for its magnificent aesthetic appeal and for the resonance it has with our work I can think of no better home for this remarkable marriage of architecture and science. "The Hive creates a powerful, immersive space for us to explore the urgent issues we face in relation to pollinators, their intimate relationships with plants and their vital role in helping us feed a rapidly growing population. To be able to bring those stories alive here at Kew a centre of scientific knowledge and expertise and one of the planets most biodiverse city landscapes is a true honour." Lord Maude, Minister of State for Trade and Investment, said: "The UK Pavilion at the Milan World Expo 2015 was an outstanding success. It was visited by over 3.3 million people in just 6 months, with a further 450 million people viewing it across the worlds media and online, and it received multiple awards, including the Expos gold medal for best architecture and landscape design. "Our business legacy is already secured with over 800 million in business wins from the global Grown in Britain and Northern Ireland business programme. As a physical legacy, it is fantastic that more of the UK public will have the opportunity to experience the Hive for themselves in the perfect setting at Kew. The Expo focused on sustainable ways of feeding a growing global population whilst protecting our environment: I cannot think of a better home for it now that the Expo is over." Lord Gardiner of Kimble, Lords Spokesman for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: "Pollinators like bees and other insects are integral to our natural environment, and play a vital role in our food industry. The Hive is an extraordinary structure, which symbolises how the UK champions the protection of bees and nature. I am delighted to see it make a return to the UK at Kew, where it will continue to amaze the public and raise awareness of how vital pollination is." New report backs farmers' calls for better waste crime policies In December, the public prosecutor of Milan (Italy) laid some fairly explosive evidence before the UKs Southwark Crown Court in connection with an ongoing Nigerian corruption investigation. If the evidence can be substantiated, it may have widespread political and international ramifications for those involved in a remarkably long running and murky saga. In the Crown Court, Mr Justice Edis was asked to discharge a restraint order, obtained earlier by the director of public prosecutions pursuant to a request for mutual legal assistance from the public prosecutor of Milan (italy). The order restrained distribution of a payment made into a civil court of $85 million. The monies represented the balance from $200 million that the UKs commercial court had ordered Malabu Ltd, a Nigerian registered company, to pay into court as a condition of it defending a claim for unpaid commission brought by Energy Venture Partners (EVP), a BVI company controlled by a Mr Obi. Mr Obi claimed he and EVP were due the commission following Malabus disposal of an offshore oilfield license, OPL 245, which it surrendered in 2011 to the government of Nigeria in exchange for payment of $1,092,040,000. The government simultaneously granted a new license to a consortium, formed between subsidiaries of Eni and Shell, which provided the $1 billion in surrender monies and an additional $207 million. When Malabu refused to pay Mr Obi and EVP a commission on the transaction, they sued, and the UK commercial court judge awarded EVP a fee of $110.5 million. The award was 8.5 percent of the $1.2 billion in total payments to Malaubu for OPL 245, based on a commission agreement between Malabu and EVP, and a finding that without Mr Obis involvement and his connections, Malabu would have had difficulty putting the deal together on its own. At the Crown Court hearing on Malabus application to discharge the restraining order, the public prosecutor of Milan produced evidence obtained from U.S. authorities suggesting that out of the proceeds of $1.2 billion, $10 million had been paid to Bayo Ojo San, a former Nigerian attorney general, and a massive $523 million had been paid to a Mr Aliyu, who was alleged to be associated with important Nigerian politicians. The public prosecutor of Milan also produced incriminating wiretap evidence which the judge summarized as follows: It suggests that the [Nigeria] president was personally involved in whatever was being discussed and that he wanted everything signed by tomorrow. In the second [recording] Bisignani is talking to an unknown man and telling him Mr Fortunato and the lady have said they want this to do this today or the day after tomorrow. The lady is said to be the Nigerian oil minister. The significance of this is that it suggests that the president was involved. If the suspicion that Aliyu is a close associate of his is made good then the fact that $523 million of the proceeds of the April 2011 sale went to Aliyu may have direct relevance to the question of whether those proceeds went in part or were promised in part to Nigerian public officials (para 18). Edis J, who emphasized that he was not making any findings of fact based on the evidence, considered the case to be remarkable for the lack of assistance provided by any of the parties (excepting the legal representatives). He pointed out that the public prosecutor of Milan had provided no indication about how the investigation was proceeding or when the next stage might be reached. The judge pointed out that because Malabu had not sought to file any evidence, the public prosecutor of Milans inferences that the distribution of $523 million had been corrupt remained uncontradicted. The judge upheld the restraint order. He found there were reasonable grounds to believe that some or all of the $85 million still held by the court would go to persons who are or were Nigerian public officials, under an agreement reached while they were in office. The judge said he could not assume that the administration in power in Nigeria from 2011 until 2015 had rigorously defended the public interest of the people of Nigeria in all respects despite assurances, given in 2011, that the transaction was legitimate. The judge noted that those assurances must have been given without knowledge of how the proceeds had actually been distributed. At a time when Nigeria is reportedly seeking a World Bank loan of $3.5 billion to plug a budget deficit, theres every incentive for the new government to pursue an investigation into the Malabu transaction. According to evidence submitted by an NGO to the Crown Court, the UK authorities considered a successful prosecution unlikely in the light of the Nigeria governments assurances that the 2011 surrender and grant of the OPL 245 license was legitimate (a UK investigator described these assurances as having sprinkled holy water on the transaction). Whether the U.S.-sourced evidence on the distribution of $528 million of the proceeds and the wiretap evidence of alleged political involvement has desanctified it remains to be seen. * * * A copy of Mr Justice Ediss decision in the case between Malabu Oil and Gas Limited and the Director of Public Prosecutions in the Southwark Crown Court released December 15, 2015 is here (pdf). ____ Alistair Craig, a commercial barrister practicing in London, is a frequent contributor to the FCPA Blog. I don't believe in destiny, but I also can't deny that every good thing in my life seems to have started with something that could have gone terribly wrong. My ridiculously happy marriage of ten years? Wouldn't have happened if I hadn't screwed up big time in a relationship that managed to bring me to New York City. My job as a tenured law professor? Ditto. And the fact that my eleventh novel, THE EX, is being published? Yes, I've got a story for that one, too. The Ex In March of 1995, I was a twenty-six-year-old Deputy District Attorney. Fresh out of a plumb clerkship with a federal appellate court judge, I had turned down high-paying, prestigious law firm offers because I wanted to be a prosecutor. No, scratch that. I just knew I had to be a prosecutor. I had shown up to my first day of work wearing an ivory silk blouse, double-breasted navy suit, and practical round-toed pumps. A string of pearls completed my uniform. Super-serious trial lawyer, reporting for duty. I was handed three misdemeanor case files, all scheduled for trial that day. Odds were, one would no-show, one would plead guilty, and one would go to trial. I was going to have a trial! But I didn't get a trial that day, or the day after, or even once by the time March 1995 came around, seven months later. A few minutes after my earnest hands grabbed those case files, the supervisor of the misdemeanor unit showed up in a panic. CSU needed another lawyer and, well, oops, he forgot. He looked quickly at the two new attorneys starting that day: me and a guy I'll call Jason, both of us strangers to him. "Send her to CSU," he decided. CSU? Crime Scene Unit? Cool stuff unit? Crazy shit unit? Sounded like it might be awesome. It wasn't. It was the child support unit, and it wasn't even in the courthouse. "Three months," I was told. "Six max." I couldn't help but notice that the entire unit was staffed by women, and the vast majority of the "work" involved rubber stamping documents (literally, I had a stamp with my signature on it). Then as my seventh month of service was ending and I was preparing to mail out resumes, the First Assistant (next in charge after the District Attorney himself) called me into his office on a Friday afternoon. To say he had a reputation as a womanizer is an understatement. Great, I thought. I'm about to get sexually harassed on top of everything else. But that's not what happened. He had a special project for me. Police had just arrested a man for killing his girlfriend. In the course of confessing to the crime, the man also confessed to several other murders, including the strangling death of a woman named Taunja Bennett, five years earlier. The problem was, two other people had already been convicted of that crime. Naturally, police were skeptical. But then the man led detectives out to the Columbia Gorge, pointed to five years' growth of blackberry bushes, and said, "I threw her purse over there." Sure enough, beneath the dense tangles of knotted vines, police found a weathered and battered purse. The victim's identification was still inside. The man's self-incrimination didn't stop there. He also claimed to be the author of a series of confessional letters that had been mailed to and published by a local investigative reporter, all signed with a Happy Face. And now, while Jason was still trying shoplifting and DUI cases, I was working on the Happy Face Killer investigation. My job was to draft the documents that would explain to a judge why we needed to release the two defendants who'd already served five years in prison for a crime they didn't commit. How'd the First Assistant know to ask me? My supervisor in the child support unit had reminded him that he had a young lawyer across the street with federal clerkship experience, meaning I could write a lot, and quickly. Halfway into a long weekend of work, I found my imagination wandering. How do we know, I asked, that the Happy Face Killer doesn't know the two original defendants? Couldn't the three of them have acted in concert? We eventually discarded the theory, but the idea stuck with me: What if? As four more years in the office passed, I continued to ask, "What if?" By the time I left the District Attorney's Office (to follow a boy to New York, see above), I had fictionalized that case in so many ways that I had the plot for what eventually became my first novel. Working on the Happy Face Killer case and a book plot weren't the only good things to come out of that weekend. The First Assistant with the bad reputation became my close friend, mentor, and loyal champion within the office, proving that you can never judge a book by its cover. Since then, I have continued to re-imagine actual cases by asking myself, But what if this, and what if that? In my new novel, THE EX, I imagine an all too imaginable mass shooting in New York City, with surprising causes and consequences. And I continue to draw everyday on my experience at the District Attorney's Office. The people. The culture of the courthouse. The dialogue and the voices. The unexpected allies for a woman working in a man's world. The way that one odd decision- send her to CSU-can be life changing. The Ex by Alafair Burke is published in February by Faber & Faber (12.99) I've frequently been asked how I came to translate Robert Merle's Fortune de France, labeled by Wikipedia as "virtually untranslatable," since Merle's thirteen-volume epic is sprinkled with so many antiquated French words that no translator in his right mind would undertake such a project. Moreover, the novels are situated in a farming region in southwestern France, and are the fruit of a great deal of historical, cultural and agricultural research that finds its way very subtly into the warp and weave of this "swashbuckling" saga. So it's pretty evident that any translator of this novel had to be both an academic and a person whose life experience exceeded the boundaries of academic life. Heretic Dawn My own encounter with Merle's work occurred purely by chance. In the late 80's, a student of mine returned from study in Grenoble with a gift: Robert Merle's Malevil. I fell in love with this work, and began translating it for my daughter, Chloe. When I'd completed about half the novel, I sent my translation to Merle, who immediately wrote back, explaining that, alas! a translation of this work existed, but was already out of print. "However," he wrote, "I loved your translation, and wonder if you'd be interested in translating a more recent work of mine." Of course, I jumped at the idea and, a week later, received a copy of Fortune de France in the mail. I believe my entire life was unconsciously spent preparing me for this work. I was lucky enough to have learned Old French as part of my doctoral studies in the 60's. On the other hand, of the five years I spent in France in my twenties and thirties, three were spent in a tiny farming village in Burgundy, where I learned to work the land and discovered not only this very un-Parisian (agri-) culture but encountered a patois that was very similar to that of the Merle's world. Translating Fortune de France thus became a work of recognition rather than of discovery. I finished my translation in 1994 and but when I sent it off to him, he explained, "you're very courageous, not to say 'don quixote-esque' to have done this work without contract!" Since he'd bought back the rights to his novel from his publisher there was no one in France to "push" the sale of the book abroad. I now understood why no one in his right mind would have undertaken this project!!! My translation languished in a desk drawer for eighteen years. In the intervening years Merle and I became good friends and he even took my daughter to lunch in 1995 to celebrate her 21st birthday, but no one ever seemed interested in having his work translated into English, despite its popularity throughout Europe (over 5 million copies sold!). Finally, Adam Freudenheim and Daniel Seton at Pushkin Press, had the imagination and courage to undertake the publication of Merle's epic, and have now made the first three volumes available to the English-speaking world. Maybe I wasn't so crazy after all! Heretic Dawn by Robert Merle, translated by T. Jefferson Kline, published by Pushkin Press at 9.99. As we make it out of January, and the days are gradually getting lighter and brighter, now is the time to get your finances fighting fit. Paying the bills and spending our hard earned cash is one of life's necessities, but with a savvy approach to your finances, you would be amazed at how you can make your budget go that little bit further. Spring Clean Your Finances In 2016 Here are five top tips from American Express on how to take control of your finances in 2016. 1. Review your bills and contracts Many of us stick with the same contracts for our phones, gas and electricity just because it's easy. By taking the time to look at what else is on offer, you might be surprised to see how other companies stack up - especially if you've been with your provider for a long time. Take a moment this month to compare competitor offers and don't be scared to switch for a saving, or to ask your current provider what else they can offer. 2. Check out cashback credit cards Not only do credit cards offer you more security by insuring your purchases, but cashback cards, such as the American Express Platinum Cashback Credit Card, can ensure you get credit back on what you buy; which can really mount up over the course of a year. From washing machines to holidays, getting up to 1.25% cashback (and up to 5% in the first 3 months) can make a big difference to your spending power. 3. Couple up There are ways of increasing the rewards you can earn, without spending more. Taking advantage of family tickets, two for one offers, and even getting a supplementary cashback credit card on the same account, for a partner, friend or family member, can all make a difference to your spending. It means all your spending is taken into account, boosting what you could save and what you can earn. 4. Check out loyalty cards Are takeaway drinks and shop-bought sandwiches too good to give up? American Express research recently found the average commuter spends over 1000 a year on treats and extras, showing just how quickly coffees and croissants can make a dent in your pocket. Make the most out of your morning coffee routine by signing up to a loyalty scheme with your favourite coffee shop or breakfast spot. And keep an eye on the loyalty rewards you have available to spend. 5. Vouchers and offers Sign up for newsletters to ensure you're in the loop on the benefits and discounts that many of your current service providers include in their services. Everything from free travel insurance to discount lunches can help you save money in both the long and short term. For example, American Express Cardmembers can take advantage of a regular supply of AmEx Offers from high street favourites such as House of Fraser and Hawes and Curtis. The TPP Apparel Coalition has applauded the signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Today's signing is an important step that sets the stage for ratification by each of the TPP countries. Timely ratification and seamless implementation is important so that our industry and the millions of American workers they employ can take advantage of the benefits of the TPP, the coalition said according to a press release by the US Fashion Industry Association (USFIA).The TPP Apparel Coalition supports the TPP agreement and the provisions that generate new trade and investment opportunities for the benefit of workers, businesses, and families. These opportunities include buying and selling goods and services, sustaining and growing well-paying US jobs, and providing high added value for the US and TPP economies. The TPP Apparel Coalition has applauded the signing of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Today's signing is an important step that sets the stage # This ground-breaking trade agreement will join together consumers in the US and 11 other TPP partners. Representing 40 percent of the world's GDP, the TPP will help apparel brands and retailers reduce costs, enter new markets, and support trade-based jobs.The deal was signed in Auckland, New Zealand today. (SH) Fibre2Fashion News Desk India Stefano Pilati, the head of design for Ermenegildo Zegna Couture, has quit the Milan-based men's wear brand Ermenegildo Zegna.The brand made the formal announcement about Pilati's exit on Wednesday, confirming rumors that had been swirling this week. Ermenegildo Zegna became the third Italian men's house to lose its designer in a week. The brand said Pilati's departure was by mutual agreement. Stefano Pilati, the head of design for Ermenegildo Zegna Couture, has quit the Milan-based men's wear brand Ermenegildo Zegna. The brand made the # Gildo Zegna, the chief executive of the Zegna Group, said in a statement, referring to Pilati's departure: We wanted to develop a strong point of view in fashion, and for Zegna to be a show not to missed in Milan. We have reached this objective faster than expected, Gildo Zegna, CEO of the Zegna Group, said in a statement.Pilati said, We have reached the conclusion that the mission he entrusted me with has been fulfilled and he was ready to move on to other projects I had put aside in order to achieve our common goals with Zegna Couture.Pilati joined the Trivero, Italy-based firm in 2013 after exiting Yves Saint Laurent in March 2012. He was named creative director of Agnona, and head of design at Ermenegildo Zegna, with responsibility for that brand's fashion show as well as for the Ermenegildo Zegna Couture collection. The designer has worked in senior design and fabric development positions for a number of Italian design houses, including Miu Miu, Prada and Giorgio Armani.(SH) Fibre2Fashion News Desk India The Zimbabwean government has provided free cotton seeds of good quality to the farmers, according to an announcement released by the country 's major cotton ginning company, Cottco. The government provided for all the inputs requirements for the new season for free to cotton farmers. This step was taken in an effort to revive the cotton sector which was once the country's biggest source of export revenue, Cottco said. The government's free inputs scheme has seen 4,156 tonnes of planting seed being disbursed to farmers which translates to 245,000 hectares, said the company. The Zimbabwean government has provided free cotton seeds of good quality to the farmers, according to an announcement released by the country's # This move by the Zimbabwean government comes at a time when the cotton farming sector was already declining over the years due to poor funding by the cotton industry players who have become cautious and risk opposed following a spate of poor yields. As the global production and stocks continues to exceed demands, the global lint prices continues to be bearish. International lint prices have also remained subdued threatening the viability of the cotton sector. In 2011 Zimbabwe produced 268,000 tonnes of cotton which decreased to 135,000 tonnes in 2013-14 and further to 100,000 tonnes in the year 2014-15. However, it is also believed by analysts that the government's efforts might fail to revive the sector due to late start of the planting season owing to unpredictable rainfall caused by the El Nino phenomenon. The El Nino phenomenon is likely to reduce yields compared to the volumes of the seed taken by farmers, said Cottco. (NA) Fibre2Fashion News Desk India Government of Ghana has secured money from the export trade agricultural and industrial development fund (EDAIF) to resuscitate the distressed Volta Star Textiles Limited, while it searches for investors, Ghana news agency reported. Minister of trade and industries, Dr Ekwow Spio Garbrah, stated this during the third day of his working visit to the Volta region, where he met management and workers of the company. Volta Star Textiles, mainly makes grey baft for Ghana Textile Printing (GTP) company as an off-taker. Workers of the factory, have been on indefinite strike over non-payment of their salaries for 10 months. Government of Ghana has secured money from the export trade agricultural and industrial development fund (EDAIF) to resuscitate the distressed Volta # 'Let me on behalf of government, the sole shareholder, and the people of Ghana apologise for the inconveniences to you, workers,' the Minister told the agitated workers. The EDAIF grant would clear all backlogs and pay salaries to put the factory back into production soon, he added. The Minister previously said comprehensive efficiency tests, including worker-machine ratio and other productivity assessments, would be carried out in the factory during his meeting with management and staff of the company. The minister further expressed regret that reports from management did not appear to have conveyed the real situation on the ground to his office and he expressed hope that the search for investors would yield results soon, to put the factory back to business. (NA) Fibre2Fashion News Desk India While India's cotton output is expected to fall seven per cent to 352 lakh bales this season, a Textile Ministry initiative to increase cotton yield with high density cropping on 1000 acres in Telangana has shown encouraging results.Textile Commissioner Kavita Gupta said the initial feedback has been very encouraging and all indications are that the yield would increase to 800 kg/hectare from the average current level of 540 kg/ha. While India's cotton output is expected to fall seven per cent to 352 lakh bales this season, a Textile Ministry initiative to increase cotton yield# We would be gradually increasing the high density cropping coverage to 5,000 acres next year. Similarly, in Nagpur we are going to replicate Israel model of drought resistance cotton crop which will consume less water compared to the normal variety, she told reporters in Mumbai.Earlier this week, Gupta said a five-member committee headed by KR Kranthi, Director, Central Institute for Cotton Research, has been formed to study latest developments in global cotton farming and submit a report in six months suggesting best practice that could be adopted in India.The Cotton Advisory Board has forecast output to fall seven per cent to 352 lakh bales (of 170 kg each) in crop season which started in October 2015 due pest attack in Punjab and Gujarat and severe drought in Karnataka.India's cotton exports which had run into rough weather after China cut its imports, recently got a boost with Pakistan ordering large shipments following the devastation of its cotton crop. Earlier this week, Gupta said Pakistan was likely to overtake Bangladesh as the largest importer of Indian cotton.In the December quarter, India exported 16.6 lakh bales of cotton to Pakistan against 3.8 lakh bales in the same period last season. (SH) Fibre2Fashion News Desk India Malaysia's eagerness for the Trans Pacific Partnership deal became apparent almost a week before the formal signing of the agreement in Auckland, New Zealand today. The Malaysian Parliament approved the country's participation in the 12-nation trade bloc on January 27 with 127 votes in favour of the agreement, while 84 voted against. A day later the Senate also gave its approval for the country to sign and ratify the trade deal.International Trade and Industry Minister Mustapa Mohamed signed the landmark trade pact on behalf of Malaysia in Auckland today. Malaysia's eagerness for the Trans Pacific Partnership deal became apparent almost a week before the formal signing of the agreement in Auckland, # He said the textile , electrical and electronics, palm oil and rubber industries were also among sectors that were keen to exploit opportunities arising from an expanded market and lower tariffs under the new pact.We believe market access is very important for Malaysia especially with countries we don't have free trade agreements such as the US, Canada, Mexico and Peru. Market access is indeed one of the reasons we are in the TPP, he said at a joint press conference with 11 other signatories to the deal.The US-led trade deal is aimed at spurring trade in the Pacific region.Signatories include Brunei, Chile, New Zealand, Singapore, Australia, Canada, Malaysia, Japan, Mexico, Peru, the United States and Vietnam.The 12 countries have two years to ratify the agreement before it comes into force in 2018. (SH) Fibre2Fashion News Desk India HON PM BAINIMARAMA SPEECH AT OPENING OF ADMINISTRATION OFFICE OF CABONI MULTI-SPECIES HATCHERY Bula vinaka and good morning to you all.It is a great pleasure to be here with you in Ra as part of my Tour of the West and to officially open the New Administration Office for Fisheries Multi-Species Hatchery.I have been visiting villages in the West to see with my own eyes our projects to improve school, highways and other infrastructure. We undertake all these projects with one goal in mind: to create more opportunities for all Fijians.We create opportunities by clearing the obstacles from your path, by giving your children better schools, and by investing in economic activity. I am committed to making sure that the resources of our growing economy are distributed fairly, so that all Fijians benefit.Ladies and gentlemen,Fishing is not just an industry in Fiji, not just a way of providing food. Fishing is a part of our culture, a part of what makes us Fijian.Recently, the Ministry of Forests and Fisheries did just that when it ordered a halt to the practice of some owners of customary fishing rights demanding that commercial fishers pay good will fees before they could acquire permits from the Divisional Commissioners. The Ministry ended these payments in order to make sure that everyone is treated fairlythat fishermen and women, who are trying to make an honest living are not exploited. We will make further announcements of a new policy in this respect. The policy will ensure that the people with the qoliqoli rights will get to share in the proceeds from the fishing licences. At the same time, we will develop an ordered and modern approach to issuing licences that protects our fish stocks to guarantee sustainability of the fishing industry.Ladies and gentlemen,As we pursue our vision of a Fiji of equal opportunity, sometimes we develop projects that directly affect only one village, knowing that if we complete enough of those projects we will empower people across Fiji. But some projects bring tangible benefits to the entire country, as well as the local area, and this is one of them. This New Multi-species hatchery in Caboni will create jobs and generate economic growth throughout this entire region. And it has the potential to help us protect our environment, improve our food security, boost exports, and empower women and rural communities.The Caboni Yaqara Multi-species Hatchery will provide tilapia fry for fish farms and young prawn and fish species to reseed the overfished reefs. This means we can increase our food supply while sustaining the marine species we depend on. Our environment will benefit, our coastal fishing communities will benefit, and all the people of Fiji will benefit.In addition, the Department of Fisheries has been working with the Department of Women to establish fishing projects or fish farms as a form of employment and source of income. In this way, government is empowering women, developing communities and injecting more vigor into the economy. It is also encouraging the production of fresh-water species that can relieve pressure on inshore fishing and improve nutrition in rural areas.Today we mark the first step in this project by opening the Administration Office. My Government has invested more than $1.6 million in this project because of its potential to improve food security, alleviate poverty and generate supplementary income for the people of Fiji.This year my Government has granted another $700,000 for the construction of staff quarters, a 3-phase power supply that will provide enough power to run the entire hatchery, and a new borehole to supply water. Eventuallyand soonwe will see a full hatchery, including knock-down tanks and raceways.Aquaculture can be a boon to Fijis future. We want to feed our people and conserve our marine biodiversity. And we also would like to export more. And, of course, we want to conserve the natural beauty of our country and the richness of our marine ecosystem. The research, education and training conducted at this facility will help us do that. This will be our starting point for a world-class, sustainable aquaculture industry in Fiji.Ladies and gentlemen,Fiji is not the same country we were at our independence, or even the same country we were ten years ago. We are making our own future. And that is why I am asking the people of Fiji to help us adopt a new flag.I have served under our current flag with pride as a military officer and as your Prime Minister, and I love it. That flag has taken us from our colonial past to today. But I would like us to have a flag that takes us into the futureto where we are going rather than from where we have been. The new flagalways with our beloved Fiji bluecan stand for the kind of people we are, the kind of nation we aspire to be, and the kind of country we will leave to these children.We have established a transparent process for choosing a new flag, and I ask you all to participate. We are accepting design submissions until February 29, and then we will select five designs to put before the people. There will be a national consultation during which time you will be able to tell us which design you like best.I believe we will love whichever design we choose as much as we have grown to love our current flagbecause it stands for Fiji. The new flag will tell the world that Fiji is a modern country, a leader in the Pacific, and a country on the move.Ladies and Gentlemen,I believe that we are wise to invest in aquaculture in the face of the tremendous pressure on our marine fish stocks caused by the increase in the world population. Our coastal ecosystem must be in balance if it is to be healthy, and that means we must help it. Aquaculture is one way to do that.It now gives me a great pleasure to declare this new Multi-species Administration Office open.Thank you - Vinaka Vakalevu. This is probably the best news of the day! After setting the screen on fire with Imtiaz Ali's Tamasha, ex-flames Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone are all set to come together and all credit goes to none other than Sajid Nadiadwala! We hear that producer Sajid Nadiadwala, who produced Tamasha, is all set to reunite Ranbir and Deepika on-screen one more time According to Deccan Chronicle, Sajid Nadiadwala's script is ready with him, which he has pitched it to the actors. And surprisingly, the duo (Ranbir and Deepika) has agreed to work together. "Mr Nadiadwala has pitched them some interesting story ideas. Now, it all depends on which script they eventually agree on. Both Ranbir and Deepika have agreed to team up again, but this is just in the initial stages as both actors are busy with prior commitments," says a source close to Mr Nadiadwala. You must be wondering that Ranbir is already pre-occupied with so many projects as he has Anurag Basu's Jagga Jasoos to finish, for which he will by flying to Morocco next month. Then he will be busy with shooting for Ayan Mukerji's film and then Raj Kumar Hirani's Sanjay Dutt biopic. Don't worry! We hear that Sajid is thinking longterm and he will make this grand announcement, just when people will start wondering when they will get to witness the crackling chemistry of Deepika & Ranbir again on-screen. A source related to this project says, "This will be Sajid's big announcement for next year". We're surely waiting for that! On the other side, Deepika is currently busy with her first Hollywood project with popular star Vin Diesel. Indonesian property developer Lippo Karawaci is believed to have pulled its liability management exercise on Wednesday after volatile markets made it impossible to achieve its size and pricing targets. The company and its lead managers have yet to confirm the demise of an exchange offering for the group's 2019 notes and a concurrent new 2023 bond offering. But a number of non-syndicate bankers, fixed-income analysts and investors said company insiders told them of its postponement early on Wednesday. The news, if confirmed, will not come as much as a surprise to the wider market since the deal had clearly been struggling after the syndicate increased the potential coupon on the new issue from 8.75% to 9% and boosted the take-out price for the 2019 notes to encourage more bondholders to tender their bonds. The Ba3/BB-/BB- group originally launched the consent solicitation and exchange offer on January 18 in the hope of extending the maturity profile of its dollar-denominated debt and improving its cash flow. However, it could hardly have picked a worse time for the exercise given the increasing volatility, which has buffeted global credit markets over the past few weeks. "It's not really the borrower's fault. When they made the decision to do this a couple of months ago they weren't to know how volatile the credit markets would turn out to be. January and February are normally very good months to issue debt," Lucror Analytics credit analyst Trung Nguyen told FinanceAsia. Trung added that the cancellation would be a disappointment for Lippo but not a crushing blow for its balance sheet. "They still have a few years before these bonds mature so they can always come back again when they'll hopefully not be forced to pay such a high premium because markets are bad." The bond offering in question concerns a $250 million 7% May 2019 issue in the name of Theta Capital with a guarantee from Jakarta-listed Lippo Karawaci. Bondholders who participated by the early bird deadline of January 29 stood to receive 102.25% for their existing bonds and an equivalent allocation in a new 2023 issue, which was initially marketed at the 8.75% level. This new bond would also incorporate a further $100 million in new financing that Lippo hoped to use to expand its hospital business. At the close of the early bird deadline, the company announced that it had received acceptances of 36.75% from eligible bondholders, equating to $91.884 million of principal. It then tried to incentivize remaining holders of the 2019 notes by increasing the payout price if they placed bonds into the exchange by the final February 4 deadline. This was increased from 100.875% to the early bird price of 102.25%. On Wednesday, brokers were quoting the 2019 bonds on a bid/offer price around the 98%/99.5% level. The group also raised the indicative yield on the new 2023 deal to 9%. In doing so, its hand had been forced by the secondary market trading performance of its existing debt. When it first launched the consent and exchange solicitation its outstanding 7% April 2022 bonds were trading on a yield-to-worst of about 7.98%. However, as of February 3, brokers were quoting yields ranging from 8.3% to 8.4%, some 30bp to 40bp wider. The new 2023 bond would have extended the maturity curve of the group's debt by another year. However, revised pricing only boosted the prospective yield by 25bp. One banker suggested Lippo might have got the new issue away had it launched a new five-year bond rather than a seven-year. "Investors are very skittish right now and they just don't want to move down the curve especially where lower rated double-B credits are concerned," the banker stated. Consent solicitation proceeds Trung said that Lippo is still likely to be fairly happy since the consent solicitation can still proceed even if the exchange and new issue do not go ahead. This part of the liability management exercise is believed to have achieved the necessary two-thirds majority and required quorum to amend the indentures of the existing 2019 notes so they are in line with the rest of Lippo's dollar-denominated debt. According to the offering circular, Lippo Karawaci had $838 million in debt as of end-September 2015. At that point it also had cash and equivalents of $108 million and recorded a nine-month net profit of $30.3 million. Like most Indonesian property companies its balance sheet has been hit by a combination of weak property sales, which are denominated in rupiah, and rising debt service and re-payment costs, which are largely dollar-denominated and have ballooned in tandem with the rupiah's decline. Last summer, the Indonesian government sensibly restricted other property companies from accessing the international debt markets, mindful of what had happened to corporate balance sheets when a similar but more devastating set of circumstances unfolded during the Asian financial crisis. S&P Capital data shows that the next bond the group will need to re-pay or re-finance is an October 2016 bond issued in the name of LMIRT Capital with a guarantee from Lippo Karawaci. This has $105.29 million of principal outstanding. Earlier this month, Standard & Poor's revised the outlook on Lippo's BB- rating to negative citing delays transferring assets to Singapore-listed Lippo Malls Indonesia Retail Trust (LMIRT). The agency said the delays are weakening the group's cash flow but believes they will go ahead and provide the required buffer. It concluded that the group's debt to Ebitda is likely to remain just below its downgrade trigger of 5x. Moody's noted that the group's rating is also supported by its diversified business profile, which enables its income to be well-balanced between recurring income (56.4% in the nine-months to September) and non-recurring income from its real estate development. Fallout Lippo Karawaci's problems do not bode well for the rest of the Indonesia high-yield universe given it is considered one of the better-positioned credits. With the exception of PT Cikarang Listrindo, the whole of the Indonesian high yield universe is currently trading below par. At the very bottom of the pack is Indika Energy's 6.375% 2023 bond, which was trading Wednesday on a bid/offer spread of 30%/37%. However, Trung believes Lippo's likely demise will have minimal impact on the rest of the Asian high-yield universe. "It would be difficult for those borrowers to have accessed the debt markets anyway," he commented. "What Lippo's cancellation has shown is just how weak the market is right now." Dealer managers for consent solicitation plus the exchange offering and new issue are Citi, Deutsche and UBS. HATFIELD, England, February 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Eisai enter into a new agreement with Esteve, a Spanish pharmaceutical company with a comprehensive neurology franchise, to co-promote Fycompa (perampanel) in Spain from February 2016. Eisai and Esteve will launch the new indication for the adjunctive treatment of primary generalised tonic-clonic (PGTC) seizures in adults and adolescents (12 years) with idiopathic generalised epilepsy (IGE) in Spain in early 2016. Perampanel is also indicated in Spain for the adjunctive treatment of partial onset seizures, with or without secondarily generalised seizures, in patients with epilepsy aged 12 years and older.[1] "We are pleased to further strengthen our relationship with Esteve under this new agreement to co-promote perampanel. This collaboration will ensure that we maximise access to our products for people with epilepsy [per indication] in Spain," comments Gary Hendler, President and CEO, Eisai EMEA. "The new collaboration with Eisai under the agreement to co-promote perampanel in Spain will further consolidate our presence in neurology, one of our priority areas, and allow us to continue our efforts to bring epilepsy treatments to patients who need them," says Joe Sullivan, Managing Director of Esteve Farma. Epilepsy is a common neurological condition that causes recurrent seizures in the brain.[2] It is usually diagnosed in children and people over 65 years of age, although it can affect anyone.[2] Currently, up to 22,000 people are diagnosed with epilepsy each year in Spain, of whom around one third have seizures that are not completely controlled by their anti-epileptic therapy.[3] The new agreement with Esteve in Spain demonstrates Eisai's commitment in the therapeutic area of epilepsy and further exemplifies the company's contribution to addressing the diversified needs of and increasing the benefits provided to patients and their families as shown by its human health care mission. *** ENDS *** Notes to Editors About Fycompa(perampanel) Perampanel is a highly selective, non-competitive AMPA (alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid)-type glutamate receptor antagonist. AMPA receptors, widely present in almost all excitatory neurons, transmit signals stimulated by the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate within the brain and are believed to play a role in central nervous system diseases characterised by excess neuroexcitatory signalling including epilepsy. Perampanel is indicated for the adjunctive treatment for partial onset seizures, with or without secondarily generalised seizures, in patients with epilepsy aged 12 years and older and for adjunctive treatment of primary generalised tonic-clonic seizures, in patients with idiopathic generalised epilepsy. About Epilepsy Epilepsy is one of the most common neurological conditions in the world, affecting approximately six million people inEurope, and an estimated 50 million people worldwide.[4] It is a collection of syndromes that have many possible causes but often the cause is unknown. Epilepsy is a chronic disorder of the brain that affects people of all ages. It is characterised by abnormal discharges of neuronal activity causing seizures. Seizures can vary in severity, from brief lapses of attention or jerking of muscles, to severe and prolonged convulsions. Depending on the seizure type, seizures may be limited to one part of the body, or may involve the whole body. Seizures can also vary in frequency from less than one per year, to several per day. For the majority of idiopathic generalised epilepsy patients, a primary generalised tonic-clonic (PGTC) seizure begins with or without an aura, which is followed by rigid muscle. This leads to violent muscle contraction (clonic phase) and a loss of consciousness. As this is a serious event, it is seen as a major hindrance on daily life. While the seizure generally only lasts a few minutes, the patient will often feel confused or drowsy for a short period of time before returning to normal.[5],[6] PGTC seizures can also result in risk of injury and sudden unexplained death in epilepsy (SUDEP).[7] About Eisai EMEA in Epilepsy Eisai is committed to developing and delivering highly beneficial new treatments to help improve the lives of people with epilepsy. The development of AEDs is a major strategic area for Eisai inEurope, theMiddle East,Africa,Russiaand Oceania (EMEA). In the EMEA region, Eisai currently has four marketed treatments including: Fycompa (perampanel) Perampanel is indicated for use as a once-daily, adjunctive therapy for both primary generalised tonic-clonic seizures with idiopathic generalised epilepsy and for adjunctive treatment of partial onset seizures, with or without secondary generalised seizures, in patients with epilepsy aged 12 years or older (perampanel) Perampanel is indicated for use as a once-daily, adjunctive therapy for both primary generalised tonic-clonic seizures with idiopathic generalised epilepsy and for adjunctive treatment of partial onset seizures, with or without secondary generalised seizures, in patients with epilepsy aged 12 years or older Inovelon (rufinamide) for the adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome in patients >4 years. (Rufinamide was originally developed by Novartis) (rufinamide) for the adjunctive treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome in patients >4 years. (Rufinamide was originally developed by Novartis) Zonegran (zonisamide) as monotherapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults with newly diagnosed epilepsy and as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults, adolescents and children aged six years and above. (Zonegran is under license from the originator Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma) (zonisamide) as monotherapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults with newly diagnosed epilepsy and as adjunctive therapy in the treatment of partial seizures, with or without secondary generalisation, in adults, adolescents and children aged six years and above. (Zonegran is under license from the originator Dainippon Sumitomo Pharma) Zebinix (eslicarbazepine acetate) as adjunctive therapy in adult patients with partial onset seizures, with or without secondary generalisation (Zebinix is under license from BIAL) About Eisai Co., Ltd. Eisai Co., Ltd. is a leading global research and development-based pharmaceutical company headquartered inJapan. We define our corporate mission as "giving first thought to patients and their families and to increasing the benefits health care provides," which we call ourhuman health care(hhc) philosophy. With over 10,000 employees working across our global network of R&D facilities, manufacturing sites and marketing subsidiaries, we strive to realise ourhhcphilosophy by delivering innovative products in multiple therapeutic areas with high-unmet medical needs, including Oncology and Neurology. As a global pharmaceutical company, our mission extends to patients around the world through our investment and participation in partnership-based initiatives to improve access to medicines in developing and emerging countries. For more information about Eisai Co., Ltd., please visithttp://www.eisai.com About Esteve Esteve is a leading pharmaceutical chemical group based in Barcelona, Spain.Since it was founded in 1929, Esteve has been firmly committed to excellence in healthcare, dedicating efforts to innovative R&D of new medicines for unmet medical needs and focusing on high science and evidence-based research. ESTEVE has a strong partnership approach to drug discovery, development and commercialisation. The company works both independently and in collaboration to bring new, differentiated best-in-class treatments to patients who need them. The company currently has a team of about 2300 professionals, and has subsidiaries and production facilities in several European countries, USA, China and Mexico. For further information, please visit http://www.esteve.com References 1. Fycompa, Summary of Product Characteristics. Available at: http://www.medicines.org.uk/emc/medicine/26951 (Accessed January 2016) 2. Epilepsy Research UK. What is Epilepsy? Factsheet. Available from URL: http://epilepsyresearch.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/1_what_is_epilepsy.pdf (Last accessed November 2015) 3. Garcia-Ramos R, et al. Neurologia. 2011; 26:548-55.http://apps.elsevier.es/watermark/ctl_servlet?_f=10&pident_articulo=90090775&pident_usuario=0&pcontactid=&pident_revista=495&ty=109&accion=L&origen=zonadelectura&web=www.elsevier.es&lan=en&fichero=495v26n09a90090775pdf001.pdf (Last accessed November 2015) 4. Pugliatti M et al. Estimating the cost of epilepsy in Europe: A review with economic modeling. Epilepsia 2007: 48(12) 2224 - 2233 5. Epilepsy Foundation. Types of seizures. Available at: http://www.epilepsy.com/learn/types-seizures . (Accessed November 2015) 6. Epilepsy Foundation. IGE Summary. Available at: http://www.epilepsy.com/information/professionals/about-epilepsy-seizures/idiopathic-generalized-epilepsies . (Accessed November 2015) 7. Smithson WH et al, Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep 2014 Dec; 14(12):502 TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 02/03/16 -- EEStor Corporation (TSX VENTURE: ESU) ("EEStor" or the "Company"), today announced its audited financial results for the three months and year-ended September 30, 2015. All amounts are expressed in Canadian dollars. Due to a late start in the annual audit and a longer than expected audit process, the Company was unable to meet the deadline for the filing of its annual financial statements and related documents; accordingly the securities of the Company were ceased traded by the Ontario Securities Commission and halted by the TSX Venture Exchange. The Company has now completed the annual filings and expects the cease trade to be lifted and the trading in its shares to resume shortly. Financial Results The loss for the year from continuing operations attributable to the Company amounted to $2,212,248 (2014 - $2,537,207) before its share of an impairment charge against the assets of EEStor, Inc. in the amount of $3,694,891 (2014 - $Nil) resulting in a total loss from continuing operations of $5,907,139 (2014 - $2,573,207). Final net loss for the year totaled $10,134,190 (2014 - $3,201,925) with $5,887,251 (2014 - $2,601,207) attributable to the Company and $4,246,939 (2014 - $600,718) attributable to the minority interest in the subsidiary. For the three months ended, the loss from continuing operations attributable to the Company amounted to $324,084 (2014 - $728,986) before its share of an impairment charge against the assets of EEStor, Inc. in the amount of $3,694,891 (2014 - $Nil) resulting in a total loss from continuing operations for the quarter of $4,018,975 (2014 - $728,986). Final net loss for the three months ended was $7,736,992 (2014 - $925,548) with the amount of $3,978,088 (2014 - $735,986) and attributable to the Company and $3,758,904 (2014 - $189,562) attributable to the minority interest in the subsidiary. About EEStor Corporation EEStor Corporation's mission is to be the provider of leading edge capacitor and energy storage solutions and related technologies. The Company operates on the principle and belief that a fundamental breakthrough in high voltage capacitance and related energy storage will be the catalyst for positive environmental and economic change globally. The Company's current business strategy is focused on licensing and partnership opportunities across a broad spectrum of industries and applications building on its recent technology achievements in the capacitor industry. The Company holds an approximate 71.3% as-converted equity and voting interest and certain technology rights to a solid-state capacitor and related energy storage technologies currently under development by EEStor, Inc. The acquisition of the controlling interest in EEStor, Inc. aligns the businesses of both companies and now allows EEStor Corporation to benefit from other revenue streams that should be available to EEStor, Inc., including applications throughout the capacitor industry and not limited to high density energy storage applications. EEStor, Inc.'s capacitor and energy storage technology is still under development and a number of further development milestones must be achieved before commercial viability can be fully established. There are significant risks associated with the development of new technologies such as EEStor, Inc.'s capacitor and energy storage technology and readers are directed to the "Risk Factors" disclosed in EEStor Corporation's most recent Annual Information Form filed on SEDAR. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Contacts: Ian Clifford Chief Executive Officer EEStor Corporation Tel. 416-535-8395 ian.clifford@eestorcorp.com LOWELL, MA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/03/16 -- In the news release, "TRC Announces Second-Quarter Fiscal 2016 Financial Results" issued earlier today by TRC Companies, Inc. (NYSE: TRR), we are advised by the company that the fourth and fifth bullet sentences of the Second-Quarter FY 2016 Vs. Second-Quarter FY 2015 Highlights should read "Net income of $3.9 million; Adjusted net income(2) up 18% to 4.7 million" and "Diluted EPS of $0.13; Adjusted diluted EPS(2) up 15% to $0.15." Additionally, the second to last sentence of the second paragraph should read "NSR, adjusted EBITDA, and adjusted net income were up 12%, 13% and 18%, respectively, compared with the same period of fiscal 2015." Please also be advised that the figures to Adjusted net income(2) and Adjusted diluted earnings per common share(2) from the Non-GAAP Results table have been updated as well. Complete corrected text follows. LOWELL, MA -- Feb 3, 2016 - TRC Companies, Inc. (NYSE: TRR) Second-Quarter FY 2016 Vs. Second-Quarter FY 2015 Highlights NSR(1) up 12% to $111.4 million Operating income of $6.7 million; Adjusted operating income(2) up 16% to $7.9 million EBITDA of $9.5 million; Adjusted EBITDA(2) up 13% to $10.7 million Net income of $3.9 million; Adjusted net income(2) up 18% to $4.7 million Diluted EPS of $0.13; Adjusted diluted EPS(2) up 15% to $0.15 TRC Companies, Inc. (NYSE: TRR), a recognized leader in engineering, environmental consulting and construction-management services to the energy, environmental, infrastructure and pipeline markets, today announced financial results for the fiscal second quarter ended December 25, 2015. "During our second quarter, we delivered strong financial results on top of the transformative acquisition of Willbros Professional Services (WPS), which closed November 30," said Chris Vincze, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "NSR, adjusted EBITDA, and adjusted net income were up 12%, 13% and 18%, respectively, compared with the same period of fiscal 2015. Results for the second quarter of fiscal 2016 included one month of performance from the Willbros acquisition." Three Months Ended ------------------------- December 25, December 26, % (In millions, except per share data) 2015 2014 Change ------------ ------------ GAAP Results Net service revenue(1) $ 111.4 $ 99.8 12% Acquisition and integration expense $ 1.2 $ - N/A Operating income $ 6.7 $ 6.9 -2% Net income applicable to TRC Companies, Inc. $ 3.9 $ 4.0 -2% Diluted earnings per common share $ 0.13 $ 0.13 0% Non-GAAP Results Adjusted operating income(2) $ 7.9 $ 6.9 16% Adjusted net income(2) $ 4.7 $ 4.0 18% Adjusted EBITDA(2) $ 10.7 $ 9.5 13% Adjusted diluted earnings per common share(2) $ 0.15 $ 0.13 15% Six Months Ended ------------------------- December 25, December 26, % (In millions, except per share data) 2015 2014 Change ------------ ------------ GAAP Results Net service revenue(1) $ 211.5 $ 192.5 10% Acquisition and integration expense $ 2.1 $ - N/A Operating income $ 14.4 $ 12.9 12% Net income applicable to TRC Companies, Inc. $ 8.4 $ 7.5 13% Diluted earnings per common share $ 0.27 $ 0.25 8% Non-GAAP Results Adjusted operating income(2) $ 16.5 $ 12.9 28% Adjusted net income(2) $ 9.7 $ 7.5 30% Adjusted EBITDA(2) $ 21.5 $ 17.8 21% Adjusted diluted earnings per common share(2) $ 0.31 $ 0.25 24% (1) TRC believes net service revenue (NSR) best reflects the value of services provided and is the most meaningful indicator of revenue performance. (2) Excludes acquisition and integration expenses of $1.2 million and $2.1 million for the three and six months ended December 25, 2015, respectively. Comments on the Results "Overall, our business performed well. In particular, demand for electrical transmission and distribution services resulted in an 11% increase in Energy segment NSR, with segment profit up 17% year over year. In addition, transportation-related spending by our municipal and state clients drove a 26% increase in Infrastructure segment NSR, while project execution and cost control drove a 96% increase in segment profit. In our Environmental segment, a slowdown from certain oil and gas clients and the completion of a large pipeline permitting project led to a 2% decline in NSR and a profit decline of 6%. Even so, other service areas within the Environmental segment remain solid," said Vincze. Business Outlook "TRC is the national leader in the environmental permitting of pipeline projects. The acquisition of WPS represents the execution of our strategy to establish a premier pipeline and related facilities engineering, consulting and construction management capability. Now two months after closing, we have functionally integrated our two organizations, migrating the new business onto our payroll system, benefits, IT networks and ERP platform, while building the leading full-service pipeline consulting and engineering company in the nation," Vincze added. "Our strategic growth initiatives are progressing through the first half of fiscal 2016, as demonstrated by our results. Demand for our Energy segment services from our utility clients remains robust. Our Infrastructure segment backlog continues to grow, and the new transportation bill improves the outlook for this segment. Although we expect to see a slowdown from our oil and gas clients, services related to environmental remediation, construction, transaction support, the retirement of coal plants and the need to transport natural gas should contribute to revenue in our Environmental segment going forward. These factors and the need to ensure the integrity of our national pipeline infrastructure also should support our new Pipeline Services segment. We believe the oil and gas market is a good long-term investment, and we have positioned TRC to be a leader in this industry." Conference Call Information TRC will webcast its financial results conference call on Thursday, February 4, 2016 at 9 a.m. ET. To listen to the live webcast and access the accompanying presentation slides, visit the "Investor Center" section of TRC's website at www.TRCsolutions.com. The call also may be accessed by dialing (877) 407-5790 or (201) 689-8328. A webcast replay will be available on the Company's website for approximately one year. About TRC A pioneer in groundbreaking scientific and engineering developments since the 1960s, TRC is a national engineering, environmental consulting and construction management firm that provides integrated services to the energy, environmental, infrastructure and pipeline services markets. TRC serves a broad range of commercial, industrial and government clients, implementing complex projects from initial concept to delivery and operation. TRC delivers results that enable clients to achieve success in a complex and changing world. For more information and updates from the Company, visit TRC's website at www.TRCsolutions.com and follow TRC on Twitter and StockTwits at @TRC_Companies and on LinkedIn. Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements in this press release may be forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. You can identify these statements by forward-looking words such as "may," "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "estimates," or other words of similar import. You should consider statements that contain these words carefully because they discuss TRC's future expectations, contain projections of the Company's future results of operations or of its financial condition, or state other "forward-looking" information. TRC believes that it is important to communicate its future expectations to its investors. However, there may be events in the future that the Company is not able to accurately predict or control and that may cause its actual results to differ materially from the expectations described in its forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned that all forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from those discussed as a result of various factors, including, but not limited to, the uncertainty of TRC's operational and growth strategies; circumstances which could create large cash outflows, such as contract losses, litigation, uncollectible receivables and income tax assessments; regulatory uncertainty; the availability of funding for government projects; the level of demand for TRC's services; product acceptance; industry-wide competitive factors; the ability to continue to attract and retain highly skilled and qualified personnel; the availability and adequacy of insurance; and general political or economic conditions. Furthermore, market trends are subject to changes, which could adversely affect future results. See the risk factors and additional discussion in TRC's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2015, and other factors included from time to time in the Company's other subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. TRC Companies, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations (in thousands, except per share data) (Unaudited) Three Months Ended Six Months Ended -------------------------- -------------------------- December 25, December 26, December 25, December 26, 2015 2014 2015 2014 ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ Gross revenue $ 157,743 $ 143,228 $ 293,202 $ 266,253 Less subcontractor costs and other direct reimbursable charges 46,361 43,390 81,657 73,796 ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ Net service revenue 111,382 99,838 211,545 192,457 ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ Interest income from contractual arrangements 27 22 42 44 Insurance recoverables and other income 1,031 641 1,773 5,485 Operating costs and expenses: Cost of services (exclusive of costs shown separately below) 93,676 82,599 176,660 163,789 General and administrative expenses 8,046 8,395 15,167 16,433 Acquisition and integraton expenses 1,240 - 2,118 - Depreciation and amortization 2,780 2,641 5,044 4,906 ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ Total operating costs and expenses 105,742 93,635 198,989 185,128 ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ Operating income 6,698 6,866 14,371 12,858 Interest income 137 - 137 - Interest expense (461) (21) (489) (52) ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ Income from operations before taxes 6,374 6,845 14,019 12,806 Income tax provision (2,439) (2,848) (5,596) (5,328) ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ Net income 3,935 3,997 8,423 7,478 Net loss applicable to noncontrolling interest 2 5 6 9 ------------ ------------ ------------ ------------ Net income applicable to TRC Companies, Inc. $ 3,937 $ 4,002 $ 8,429 $ 7,487 ============ ============ ============ ============ Basic earnings per common share $ 0.13 $ 0.13 $ 0.27 $ 0.25 ============ ============ ============ ============ Diluted earnings per common share $ 0.13 $ 0.13 $ 0.27 $ 0.25 ============ ============ ============ ============ Weighted-average common shares outstanding: Basic 30,968 30,329 30,805 30,157 ============ ============ ============ ============ Diluted 31,369 30,531 31,347 30,458 ============ ============ ============ ============ TRC Companies, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (in thousands, except per share data) (Unaudited) December 25, June 30, 2015 2015 ------------ ------------ ASSETS Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 9,450 $ 37,296 Restricted cash 199 122 Accounts receivable, less allowance for doubtful accounts 152,608 138,346 Insurance recoverable - environmental remediation 40,422 40,927 Restricted investments 6,582 6,701 Deferred income tax assets 15,414 16,057 Income taxes refundable - 412 Prepaid expenses and other current assets 23,902 10,499 ------------ ------------ Total current assets 248,577 250,360 ------------ ------------ Property and equipment 71,018 64,594 Less accumulated depreciation and amortization (48,607) (50,885) ------------ ------------ Property and equipment, net 22,411 13,709 ------------ ------------ Goodwill 101,697 37,024 Intangible assets, net 51,888 9,304 Long-term deferred income tax assets 2,583 2,867 Long-term restricted investments 17,102 18,385 Long-term prepaid insurance 24,809 25,929 Other assets 23,131 5,303 ------------ ------------ Total assets $ 492,198 $ 362,881 ============ ============ LIABILITIES AND EQUITY Current liabilities: Current portion of long-term debt $ 22,242 $ 50 Current portion of capital lease obligations 33 166 Accounts payable 33,202 31,999 Accrued compensation and benefits 44,858 47,233 Deferred revenue 16,350 10,612 Environmental remediation liabilities 8,673 8,695 Income taxes payable 230 3,271 Other accrued liabilities 46,243 42,170 ------------ ------------ Total current liabilities 171,831 144,196 ------------ ------------ Non-current liabilities: Long-term debt, net of current portion 96,563 55 Income taxes payable and deferred income tax liabilities 1,863 1,647 Deferred revenue 63,567 68,579 Environmental remediation liabilities 450 489 ------------ ------------ Total liabilities 334,274 214,966 ------------ ------------ Commitments and contingencies Equity: Common stock, $.10 par value; 40,000,000 shares authorized, 31,039,895 and 31,036,413 shares issued and outstanding, respectively, at December 25, 2015, and 30,485,510 and 30,482,028 shares issued and outstanding, respectively, at June 30, 2015 3,104 3,049 Additional paid-in capital 192,847 191,321 Accumulated deficit (37,510) (45,939) Accumulated other comprehensive loss (83) (88) Treasury stock, at cost (33) (33) ------------ ------------ Total shareholders' equity applicable to TRC Companies, Inc. 158,325 148,310 Noncontrolling interest (401) (395) ------------ ------------ Total equity 157,924 147,915 ------------ ------------ Total liabilities and equity $ 492,198 $ 362,881 ============ ============ Investor Contact: Andrew Blazier Senior Associate Sharon Merrill (617) 542-5300 trr@investorrelations.com Company Contact: Thomas W. Bennet, Jr. CFO (978) 970-5600 tbennet@trcsolutions.com Sponda Plc Stock Exchange Release 4.2.2016, 08:31 a.m.Notice to Sponda Plc's Extraordinary General MeetingNotice is given to the shareholders of Sponda Plc to the Extraordinary General Meeting to be held on Monday 29 February 2016 at 11:00 am Finnish time in the Helsinki Hall of the Finlandia Hall, Mannerheimintie 13 e, Helsinki (entrance from doors M4 and K4). The reception of persons who have registered for the meeting and the distribution of voting tickets will commence at 10:00 am.A. Matters on the agenda of the General MeetingAt the General Meeting, the following matters will be considered:1. Opening of the meeting2. Calling the meeting to order3. Election of persons to scrutinize the minutes and to supervise the counting of votes4. Recording the legality of the meeting5. Recording the attendance at the meeting and adoption of the list of votes6. Authorizing the Board of Directors to decide on a Rights OfferingThe Board of Directors proposes to the Extraordinary General Meeting that the General Meeting authorize the Board of Directors to decide on issuing new shares through a rights offering whereby the shareholders have the right to subscribe for the new shares in proportion to their current shareholdings in the company.Sponda Plc has on 4 February 2016 signed agreements with Forum Fastighets Kb and Foreningen Konstsamfundet r.f. regarding the purchase of shares in Ab Mercator Oy, which owns six real estate properties, and shares in Ab Forum Capita Oy, which manages the real estate properties. Funds received by the company based on a possible share issue decision made by virtue of this authorization may be used, e.g for the partial funding of this acquisition. The completion of the acquisition is not conditional on the completion of the share issue.The Board of Directors proposes that the aggregate number of new shares issued on the basis of the authorization may not exceed 80,000,000 shares, corresponding to approximately 28.26 % of all the existing shares in the Company. The issuance of shares will be carried out in accordance with the shareholders' pre-emptive rights, i.e. the new shares will be offered to the shareholders for subscription in proportion to the shareholders' existing holdings. The Board of Directors decides on all other terms and conditions of the issuance of shares, including allocation of the shares between shareholders in a potential secondary offering.The authorization is proposed to be in force until 31 August 2016. The Board of Directors proposes that this authorization will not replace the authorization given to the Board of Directors to decide on a share issue in the Annual General Meeting held on 16 March 2015.7. Closing of the meetingB. Documents of the General MeetingThe aforementioned proposals on the matters on the agenda of the General Meeting as well as this notice to the General Meeting are available on Sponda Plc's website at http://investors.sponda.fi/EGM2016. Other documents of the General Meeting required by the Companies Act are available on the above-mentioned website as of 8 February 2016 at the latest. The proposals for decisions and the documents required by the Companies Act are also available at the meeting. Copies of these documents and of this notice will be sent to shareholders upon request. The minutes of the meeting will be available on the above-mentioned website as of 14 March 2016 at the latest.C. Instructions for the participants in the General Meeting1. Shareholders registered in the shareholders' registerEach shareholder who is registered on 17 February 2016 in the shareholders' register of the company held by Euroclear Finland Ltd has the right to participate in the Extraordinary General Meeting. A shareholder whose shares are registered on his/her personal Finnish book-entry account is registered in the shareholders' register of the company.A shareholder, who is registered in the shareholders' register of the company and who wishes to participate in the General Meeting, shall register for the meeting no later than on 24 February 2016 at 4:00 pm by which time the registration shall be received by the company. Shareholders can register for the meeting by one of the following means:a) on the company's website http://investors.sponda.fi/EGM2016; b) by telephone, +358 (0)20 7765 432 or +358 (0)20 7765 454, weekdays Mon-Fri between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm; c) by email to ilmoittautuminen.sponda@castren.fi; d) by telefax, +358 (0)20 7765 001 / Registration Sponda; or e) by regular mail to Castren & Snellman Attorneys Ltd, Registration Sponda, PO Box 233, 00131 Helsinki, Finland.In connection with the registration, a shareholder shall notify his/her name, personal identification number or business identity code, address, telephone number, as well as the name of a possible assistant or proxy representative and the personal identification number of the proxy representative. The personal data given to Sponda Plc is used only in connection with the Extraordinary General Meeting and with the processing of related registrations.By request, a shareholder, his/her representative or proxy representative must be able to evidence his/her identity and/or representation right at the meeting venue.2. Holders of nominee registered sharesA holder of nominee registered shares has the right to participate in the General Meeting by virtue of such shares, based on which he/she on the record date of the General Meeting, i.e. on 17 February 2016, would be entitled to be registered in the shareholders' register of the company held by Euroclear Finland Ltd. The right to participate in the General Meeting requires, in addition, that the shareholder on the basis of such shares has been temporarily registered into the shareholders' register held by Euroclear Finland Ltd at the latest by 24 February 2016 at 10 am. As regards nominee registered shares this constitutes due registration for the General Meeting.A holder of nominee registered shares is advised to request without delay necessary instructions regarding the registration in the temporary shareholders' register of the company, the issuing of proxy documents and registration for the General Meeting from his/her custodian bank. The account operator of the custodian bank has to register a holder of nominee registered shares who wants to participate in the Extraordinary General Meeting temporarily into the shareholders' register of the company at the latest by the time stated above.3. Proxy representative and powers of attorneyA shareholder may participate in the General Meeting and exercise his/her rights at the meeting by way of proxy representation. A proxy representative shall produce a dated proxy document or otherwise in a reliable manner demonstrate his/her right to represent the shareholder at the Extraordinary General Meeting. In the event that a shareholder participates in the General Meeting by means of several proxy representatives representing the shareholder with shares at different book-entry accounts, the shares by which each proxy representative represents the shareholder shall be identified in connection with the registration for the General Meeting.Possible proxy documents and powers of attorney are requested to be delivered in originals to Castren & Snellman Attorneys Ltd, Registration Sponda, PO Box 233, 00131 Helsinki, Finland before the end of the last date for registration.4. Other instructions and informationPursuant to Chapter 5, section 25 of the Companies Act, a shareholder who is present at the General Meeting has the right to request information with respect to the matters to be considered at the meeting.On the date of this notice to the General Meeting, 4 February 2016, the total number of shares in Sponda Plc and votes represented by such shares is 283,075,462.The participants to the meeting are welcome to have coffee and confectionery after the meeting.In Helsinki, 4 February 2016Sponda Plc Board of DirectorsFurther information: Tuula Kunnas, Chief Legal Counsel, tel. +358 20 431 3384Sponda Plc is a property investment company specializing in commercial properties in the largest cities in Finland. Sponda's business concept is to own, lease and develop retail and office properties and shopping centres into environments that promote the business success of its clients. The fair value of Sponda's investment properties is approximately EUR 3.1 billion and the leasable area is around 1.1 million m. LONDON, February 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- - An on-Line Competition to Make the Impossible Nearly Possible Launches - If money and practicalities were no object, what experience day would you most like to do? This is the question a leading activity gift voucher company is asking as part of a new social media-led competition with the prize of 200 gift voucher to be spent on a real experience day. (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160203/329355 ) New year, new promises, new horizons, new resolutions and all the things that you can do - that's how many traditionally see the start of the year. But IntotheBlue.co.uk, ever the mavericks of the experience day industry, has turned all that on its head, concentrating on what you can't do in 2016. The popular experience day company has launched its impossibleexperiences campaign in a bid to discover what crazy things people would love to do if they could when money, time and reality were of no consequence. Having created a bespoke social wall, IntotheBlue is inviting readers to Tweet or post on Facebook using impossibleexperiences with their own fantasy experience days and activities that'll appear on the wall. The crazier, the more eccentric, flamboyant, whacky and funnier the experience the better and all those who appear on the wall are in with the chance of winning a 200 IntotheBlue activity gift voucher. The voucher is to be spent on any of the very real 1000+ experience days that already exist on the company's wide-ranging website, from indoor parachuting and vintage bi-plane flying, to West End theatre breaks and chocolate making workshops. To get the creative juices flowing the IntotheBlue team has kicked off impossibleexperiences by publishing some incredulous ideas on the Impossible Experiences homepage, including a weekend break in London's only underwater hotel deep down in the Thames, the chance to go wild in the aisles after being locked into a department store overnight and even bagging your big break in music with a 30 minute slot at Glastonbury... With 2016 well underway, IntotheBlue thinks it's time to forget the resolutions and good intentions and go way beyond the bounds of possibility and celebrate what you can't do. Further information: IntotheBlue's impossibleexperiences competition is now open and will run until 29/02/2016 The impossibleexperiences activities and social wall are now live on the IntotheBlue.co.uk website. To enter, simply Tweet or post on Facebook using the impossibleexperiences hashtag with your idea. Press contact: Tom Hale, IntotheBlue.co.uk, tomhale@intotheblue.co.uk, +44(0)1959-578100 AMSTERDAM, THE NETHERLANDS -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- Acapture is proud to announce that it is now processing payments for TravelBird. With Acapture's payment solution, which supports global card acquiring, over 150 currencies and over 60 of the world's most popular alternative payment methods, TravelBird's international customer base will be able to pay for holidays in their own currency using their preferred method. "This is a hugely satisfying deal for Acapture," said Rudolf Booker, CEO and founder of Acapture. "We've designed our payment platform to be the best choice for ambitious companies looking to maximize conversions internationally. TravelBird is already active in 12 countries. Its decision to choose our payment solution shows that forward-thinking, fast growing companies with global ambitions see Acapture as the ideal payment provider." Acapture's platform will allow TravelBird to not only handle international card payments but also accept many of the most popular payment methods in regions where cards are not prevalent, such as iDeal, PayPal, SEPA, Sofort, direct debit, online banking in Scandinavia and more. Backed up with the card processing, global acquiring and cross-border knowledge of its parent company Payvision plus its in-house fraud management tools, Acapture ensures secure, smooth and fast processing for international transactions. "By putting our travelers in touch with the best online deals with a minimum of hassle, we are re-shaping the supply chain," said Symen Jansma, CEO and founder of TravelBird. "To bring this service to the people, we needed a payment solution that truly optimized our operational processes as the stepping stone to further growth. After shopping around, we found that Acapture were the one PSP who combined the flexibility and speed we needed to do so." As travel bookings are the largest single component of all ecommerce business, with the industry's worldwide revenue due to hit USD830 billion by 2017, Acapture makes no secret of its interest in the online travel market. This interest is further underlined by its latest whitepaper, which presents an in-depth investigation of the online travel agency sector (www.acapture.com/online-travel-agencies). The PSP looks forward to working alongside TravelBird and using its solution to help more online travel companies to achieve their cross-border goals in future. About Acapture Acapture, a new global omnichannel PSP, designs solutions that eliminate the obstacles modern online merchants face in their payment processing and support cross-border growth. Acapture's system features SlicePay for simplified allocation of funds to multiple parties from a single transaction, flexible reporting for improved data analysis, a one day integration using one RESTful API, a streamlined reconciliation process, 20 ecommerce platform plugins and the ability to handle 60+ of the most popular alternative payment methods and 150+ transaction currencies. Combining simplicity, flexibility and reliability, Acapture offers the most effective payment platform for maximizing international sales, particularly in the world's top 25 emerging markets. Website: www.acapture.com About Payvision Group Payvision Group combines the experience of an established payment industry leader with the flexibility of a start-up. Parent company Payvision is one of the world's fastest-growing global acquiring networks. For over 10 years, it has been providing banks, PSPs, ISOs and their merchants with one global acquiring platform, a high-end reporting interface and a solid risk management solution. Housing Payvision and Acapture under its umbrella, Payvision Group bridges the gap between the old and new school of payment providers, offering the ideal solution for the omnichannel era. Payvision Group is headquartered in Amsterdam, with offices in New York, Utah, San Francisco, Madrid, London, Toronto, Singapore, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Macau and Auckland. Website: www.payvision.com About TravelBird TravelBird is an online travel provider that offers 6 inspirational deals each day and fixed offers in thematic categories. The company owes its success to a simple formula: surprise and inspire customers with the best travel deals and provide a no-hassle booking process. Founded in Amsterdam in 2010, TravelBird currently has over 600 employees, has a booking turnover of EUR95 million and is active in 12 countries. Every day, 19,000 travelers enjoy their holidays with TravelBird. Website: www.travelbird.com Contacts: Acapture David Martin B2B Content Writer d.martin@acapture.com www.acapture.com Paris, 4 February 2016 - Following a tender bid, the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission, CEA, and its industrial partners at the Centre for Computing Research and Technology, CCRT, have invested in a new petaflop[1] (#_ftn1) supercomputer of ~1.4 Pflops, designed by Bull, the Atos brand for technology products and software. Three times more powerful than the current computer at CCRT, it will be installed in the CEA's Very Large Computing Centre[2] (#_ftn2) in Bruyeres-le-Chatel, France, mid-2016 to cover expanding industrial needs. This new supercomputer, called COBALT, has a peak computing/performance capacity of ~1.4 Pflops, will be three times more powerful than the current computer and three times more energy efficient. A private storage system, external to the computer, with a storage capacity of 2.5 Pbytes[3] (#_ftn3) with a throughput of 60 GB/s shall enable users to store their data. It shall have 2304 Intel Xeon E5 processors (Broadwell) with a total of 32,256 cores at 2.4 Ghz and 18 hybrid nodes with Nvidia Pascal processors, for remote computing and visualisation. The partition dedicated to the France Genomique[4] (#_ftn4) project shall in turn, be equipped with 4032 Intel Xeon E5 Broadwell cores at 2.4 Ghz and 4 very large memory nodes at 3TB/node. An InfiniBand EDR interconnect solution (100 GB/s vs. 40 GB/s currently) forms the core of this new computer and will allow it to increase capacity based on the needs of its partners for the coming 4 to 5 years. The mandate of the CCRT is to support digital simulation development, particularly in the industrial world. Established in 2003, based on a unique partnership model in France, it has demonstrated its capacity to respond sustainably to the needs of industry partners. It offers a wide range of high performance computing (HPC) competencies, tailored to the growing needs of its partners, combining security and flexibility in its use of resources. Teams from Airbus D&S, Areva, EDF, Herakles, Ineris, L'Oreal, Safran Tech, Snecma, Thales, Thales Alenia Space, Techspace Aero, Turbomeca, Valeo and CEA shall have the highest class computing resources at their disposal, necessary for developing their projects in the future. Research into the lifetime of power plants, the design and safety of nuclear reactors, the development of aircraft and helicopter engines, optimisation of car ventilation and air conditioning systems, the design of radar systems, environmental risk analyses, studying proteins and decoding the genome, predicting the performance of cosmetics or even the search for new materials are all areas in which numerical simulation is growing rapidly. Philippe Vannier, Executive Vice President Big Data & Security at Atos concludes: "The renewed confidence of the CEA and CCRT in Bull technologies is something we are very proud of at Atos. This project is a new milestone accomplished within our exascale programme which aims to develop a new generation of supercomputers by 2020 capable of achieving performance levels in the order of exaflops, a billion billion calculations per second, while at the same time significantly reducing energy consumption." About CEA The French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission is a public body established in October 1945 by General de Gaulle. A leader in research, development and innovation, the CEA is active in four main areas: low-carbon energies, defense and security, information technologies and health technologies. The CEA's Military Applications Division ("DAM") takes charge of defense and security missions. About Bull Bull is the Atos brand for its technology products and software, which are today distributed in over 50 countries worldwide. With a rich heritage of over 80 years of technological innovation, 2000 patents and a 700 strong R&D team supported by the Atos Scientific Community, it offers products and value-added software to assist clients in their digital transformation, specifically in the areas of Big Data and Cybersecurity. Bull is the European leader in HPC and its products include bullx, the energy-efficient supercomputer; bullion, one of the most powerful x86 servers in the world developed to meet the challenges of Big Data; Evidian, the software security solutions for identity and access management; Trustway, the hardware security module and Hoox, the ultra-secure smartphone. Bull is part of Atos. For more information: www.bull.com (http://www.bull.com/) About Atos Atos SE (Societas Europaea) is a leader in digital services with pro forma annual revenue of circa EUR 12 billion and 100,000 employees in 72 countries. Serving a global client base, the Group provides Consulting & Systems Integration services, Managed Services & BPO, Cloud operations, Big Data & Cyber-security solutions, as well as transactional services through Worldline, the European leader in the payments and transactional services industry. With its deep technology expertise and industry knowledge, the Group works with clients across different business sectors: Defense, Financial Services, Health, Manufacturing, Media, Utilities, Public sector, Retail, Telecommunications, and Transportation. Atos is focused on business technology that powers progress and helps organizations to create their firm of the future. The Group is the Worldwide Information Technology Partner for the Olympic & Paralympic Games and is listed on the Euronext Paris market. Atos operates under the brands Atos, Atos Consulting, Atos Worldgrid, Bull, Canopy, Unify and Worldline. For more information, please contact: CEA : Nicolas Tilly +33 1 64 50 17 16 - nicolas.tilly@cea.fr (mailto:nicolas.tilly@cea.fr) Atos : Jose de Vries +31 6 30 27 26 11 - jose.devries@atos.net (mailto:jose.devries@atos.net) [1] (#_ftnref1) 1 petaflop: a quadrillion operations per second. [2] (#_ftnref2) The Very Large Computing Centre is a facility capable of hosting supercomputers, with all the IT resources and services tailored to high performance computing. [3] (#_ftnref3) 1 petabyte: a quadrillion bytes of memory. [4] (#_ftnref4)The CCRT hosts the data processing infrastructure of the France Genomique project. The latter groups together and pools the resources of the main French genome and bioinformatics platforms. This announcement is distributed by NASDAQ OMX Corporate Solutions on behalf of NASDAQ OMX Corporate Solutions clients. The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: ATOS via Globenewswire HUG#1983685 CANBERA (dpa-AFX) - The U.S. dollar lost ground against its major opponents in early European trading on Thursday. The greenback fell to a 2-1/2-month low of 1.1167 against the euro, near 2-month low of 1.3711 against the loonie and near new 4-week lows of 0.6705 against the kiwi and 1.4663 against the pound, from its early highs of 1.1070, 1.3797, 1.6641 and 1.4563, respectively. The greenback slid to a 1-month low of 0.7218 against the aussie, off its previous high of 0.7154. The greenback edged down to 117.34 against the yen and 1.0017 against the franc, pulling away from its prior highs of 118.24 and 1.0074, respectively. If the greenback extends slide, it may find support around 0.99 against the franc, 116.00 against the yen, 1.13 against the euro, 1.48 against the pound, 0.73 against the aussie, 0.675 against the kiwi and 1.36 against the loonie. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. Regulatory News: Nordea Bank AB (STO:NDA) (OSE:NODA) (HEX:NDA1V) (CSE:NDA) The Board of Directors of Nordea Bank AB (publ) invites shareholders to the Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Thursday 17 March 2016 at 13.00 at City Conference Centre, Folkets Hus, Barnhusgatan 12-14, Stockholm according to the attached notice. Proposal for simplification of legal structure As communicated in the Q2 2015 report, Nordea is working on simplifying its legal structure. Today 4 February the Boards of Directors of each of Nordea Bank (NBAB), Nordea Bank Danmark (NBD), Nordea Bank Finland (NBF) and Nordea Bank Norge (NBN) signed cross-border merger plans with the purpose to change the subsidiary banks of NBAB to branches of NBAB and to present the cross-border merger plans to the AGM for approval. The mergers are planned to take place by early 2017. The proposed changes in the legal structure depend on AGM approval, approvals and a satisfactory outcome of the discussions with regulators and authorities in each country and that the mergers are not impeded, wholly or in part, by applicable laws or any other reason deemed significant by the Board of Directors of NBAB. The key risks to completion of the mergers are the many external dependencies, including dependencies on FSAs and tax authorities. A branch structure will make it possible for us to truly operate as One Nordea. It will strengthen governance and is part of the simplification of our processes. It leaves the bank with a more efficient and straightforward structure and decreases administrative complexity. The branchification will contribute to making us more competitive to the benefit of our customers, says CEO Casper von Koskull. The branchification will only have minor effects on capitalisation levels. There will be no effect on the consolidation of own funds or the level of capital requirements. We do not expect the change to significantly affect the amount of corporate tax paid by the Nordea Group, and Nordea will continue to pay tax in the countries in which it operates. However, the overall financial effects of completing the mergers could entail additional net costs that are not insignificant depending on the final outcome of regulations, mainly the proposed build-up of the Swedish Resolution Fund over the next 4-5 years. It is our firm belief that the long-term benefits of branchification will outweigh the costs, and we will going forward have a special focus on ensuring a level playing field in the Nordics, says Casper von Koskull. The notice of the Annual General Meeting is published today at www.nordea.com and on 11 February 2016 in the Swedish official gazette. An announcement that notice has been given will be published in Dagens Nyheter and Svenska Dagbladet on 11 February 2016. The information provided in this press release is such that Nordea is required to disclose pursuant to the Swedish Financial Instruments Trading Act (1991:980) and/or the Swedish Securities Markets Act (2007:528). This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160204005624/en/ Contacts: Nordea Bank AB (publ) Claus Christensen Head of Group Communications +45 25 24 89 93 or Rodney Alfven Head of Investor Relations +46 8 614 78 80 PITTSBURGH, PA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- MEMS & Sensors Industry Group (MSIG) members and invited guest speakers will address the most pressing design, integration and supply-chain challenges and opportunities affecting the growth of MEMS and sensors over the next decade during MEMS & Sensors Technical Congress 2016 -- this year hosted in Munich, Germany. "With the promise of trillions of connected devices by the close of this decade, there is great opportunity for those in the MEMS and sensors industry. But there are several technical challenges that still remain unsolved such as technology transfer, integration, packaging/test and use of new materials for emerging technologies such as flexible, printed electronics for applications in automotive, consumer, health and even agriculture," said Karen Lightman, executive director, MEMS & Sensors Industry Group. "At MEMS & Sensors Technical Congress, we will address these challenges to enable the industry to maximize its success. For two days, conference attendees will learn from the experiences of others as they explore some of the most critical issues in our industry." KEYNOTE AND FEATURED SPEAKERS MEMS & Sensors Industry Group Welcome -- Karen Lightman, executive director Keynote: Beyond ADAS - Highly and Fully Automated Driving -- Dr. -Ing. Dirk Wisselmann, senior engineer "Automated Driving" in the BMW Chassis and Driver-Assistance Development, BMW Group The Problem is Water -- Addressing the Technical Challenges to Commercializing Agricultural Applications of MEMS & Sensors -- Walter Schmidt, founder & CEO, PlantCare AG Evolution of MEMS & Sensor Packaging to Serve Smart System Integration -- Christophe Zinck, senior application engineering manager, ASE Group The Challenge of Interfaces in Development of Multi-Disciplinary Sensor and MEMS Products -- Farzad Parsaie, founder and executive, SAND Microsystems MEMS and Sensors Challenges and Opportunities for the Next Decade -- Claire Troadec, MEMS & semiconductor manufacturing analyst, Yole Developpement Interesting Times for Sensors in Automotive -- Richard Dixon, principal analyst, MEMS & Sensors, IHS Climbing the Value Chain - From MEMS Devices to Products -- Andrew Baker-Campbell, technology consultant, The Technology Partnership Standardized Technology Platforms: The Next Step Towards Faster Time to Market, Easier Industrialization and Higher Integration -- Pascal Langlois, CEO, Tronics Group MEMS Technologies for Future Wearable Platforms: Opportunities and Challenges -- Rajashree Baskaran, senior technologist, Intel Corp PANEL Enabling the Next Decade of Growth -- A Supply Chain Perspective on Overcoming the Technical Challenges to MEMS & Sensors Moderator: Peter Merz, MEMS business manager, X-Fab Semiconductor Foundries AG Panelists: Michael Murray, general manager, High-Performance Inertial, Analog Devices; Yannick Pilloux, business development manager for MEMS, Plasma-Therm; Markus Sonnemann, vice president of engineering (MEMS Pre-Development Department), Robert Bosch GmbH TOUR OF FRAUNHOFER EMFT Christoph Kutter, executive director, Fraunhofer Research Institution for Microsystems and Solid State Technologies EMFT (Fraunhofer EMFT), will give attendees a guided tour of his research and development organization, which is leading innovation in sensor materials, silicon technologies, flexible electronics and microdosage systems -- and which supports integration and testing of electronic systems. During his presentation, Printing and Hybrid Integration Technologies for Trillion Sensor Applications, Mr. Kutter will reference MSIG's recent TSensors Summit as he addresses the MEMS and sensors industry's progress toward achieving a trillion sensors by 2020. BREAKOUT SESSIONS Breakout Sessions will actively engage attendees in one of three topic areas identified in the 2015 MSIG Membership Survey as the most critical issues facing the MEMS and sensors industry. Breakout session groups will focus on addressing these issues in the next two-five years in order to speed industry advancement and growth. Breakout sessions include: Challenges of Technology Transfer -- Moderators: Mary Ann Maher, president and CEO, SoftMEMS, and Dirk Ortloff, project manager XperiDesk, camLine Common Challenges of MEMS, Sensors and Semiconductors -- Moderators: Jim Knutti, president and CEO, Acuity Incorporated, and Eric Pabo, business development manager, EV Group Emerging MEMS and Sensors for the TSensors Era -- Moderators: Philippe Monnoyer, head of Microelectric Systems, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland, and Jason Weigold, president, MEMStaff ABOUT MEMS & SENSORS TECHNICAL CONGRESS 2016 MEMS & Sensors Technical Congress is a one-of-a-kind technical conference with a focus on discussing critical MEMS and sensors supply chain challenges. As the only event of its kind in Europe, MEMS & Sensors Technical Congress provides a place for neutral discussion of pre-competitive issues affecting MEMS and sensors manufacturing and brings together foundries, equipment vendors, research groups, large companies, start-ups, buyers, suppliers, and other stakeholders for solutions knowledge, networking and resources to support the imminent MEMS and sensors' commercialization needs of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and systems integrators. Premier sponsors include: Platinum Sponsor -- EV Group; Gold Sponsor -- SPTS Technologies; Silver Sponsor -- NXP; and Bronze Sponsors -- Analog Devices, Applied Materials, ULVAC and X-FAB MEMS Foundry. Supporting sponsors include: CEA-Leti, PNI Sensor and VTT. MEMS & Sensors Technology Congress will be held March 7-8, 2016 at Sofitel Munich Bayerpost, Munich, Germany. March 7 will feature sessions at Fraunhofer EMFT and a tour of the facility. For more information, please contact MSIG via phone: +412.390.1644, email: info@memsindustrygroup.org or visit MEMS & Sensors Technical Congress at: http://mtceu2016.memscongress.com ABOUT MEMS & SENSORS INDUSTRY GROUP MEMS & Sensors Industry Group is the trade association advancing MEMS and sensors across global markets. Nearly 200 companies and industry partners comprise MEMS & Sensors Industry Group, including Analog Devices, Applied Materials, ARM, Bosch, EV Group, GE, GLOBALFOUNDRIES, HP, HTC Corporation, Huawei, Goertek, Infineon, Intel, InvenSense, Jawbone, Kionix, Knowles Corporation, Lenovo, NXP, OMRON Electronic Components, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., SONY Electronics, SPTS Technologies, STMicroelectronics, Texas Instruments and TSMC. For more information, visit: www.memsindustrygroup.org. MEMS & Sensors Industry Group and the MEMS & Sensors Industry Group logo are registered trademarks of MEMS & Sensors Industry Group. All other product and company names are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders. Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=2959216 Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=2959219 PRESS CONTACTS Ellen Saksen director of marketing MEMS & Sensors Industry Group Phone: +1 412-390-1644 Email: Email Contact Ingrid Daschner Finn Partners Phone: +49 (0)89 89 40 85-11 Email: Email Contact LAKE SUCCESS, NY -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE: BR) today reported financial results for the second quarter of its fiscal year 2016. Results for the three months ended December 31, 2015 compared with the same period last year were as follows: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Second Quarter Fiscal Year 2016 Results: ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- - Recurring fee revenues increased 8% to $399 million - Total revenues increased 11% to $639 million - Adjusted Operating income increased 19% to $80 million - Operating income increased 19% to $70 million - Adjusted Net earnings increased 16% to $46 million - Net earnings increased 16% to $40 million - Adjusted Diluted earnings per share increased 19% to $0.38 - Diluted earnings per share increased 18% to $0.33 - Closed sales decreased 0.2% to $48.5 million ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Commenting on the results, Richard J. Daly, President and Chief Executive Officer, said, "I am pleased with the second quarter results which demonstrate the strength of our well-balanced business. During the second quarter, total revenue grew 11%, driven by continued solid recurring revenue from new sales, the acquisitions we made during fiscal 2015, and healthy event-driven activity. The second quarter results keep us firmly on track to achieve our full year guidance and our three-year objectives." Mr. Daly added, "We also delivered strong sales in the second quarter which included the signing of Barclays for Europe and Asia to the Accenture Post Trade Processing platform. Our sales pipeline remains robust and keeps us well positioned to achieve our closed sales guidance for the full year. Given our solid results, our 98% revenue retention, and our continuing sales momentum, I remain highly confident in Broadridge's ability to achieve our long term objectives." Financial Results for Second Quarter Fiscal Year 2016 Revenues for the second quarter of fiscal year 2016 increased 11% to $639 million, compared to $575 million for the prior year period. The $64 million increase was driven by (i) higher recurring fee revenues of $29 million, or 8%, (ii) higher distribution revenues of $26 million, or 15%, and (iii) higher event-driven fee revenues of $19 million, or 52%. The positive contribution from recurring fee revenues reflected gains from acquisitions (5pts) and Net New Business (4pts), partially offset by negative internal growth (-1pt). The higher distribution revenues of $26 million includes $12 million from acquisitions. The Company defines Net New Business as recurring revenue from closed sales less recurring revenue from client losses. Operating income for the second quarter ended December 31, 2015 was $70 million, an increase of $11 million, or 19%, compared to $59 million for the prior year period. The increase is due to higher revenues, partially offset by higher operating expenses including $2 million of increased amortization from acquired intangibles. Operating income margins increased to 11.0% compared to 10.3% for the comparable prior year period. Adjusted operating income margins increased to 12.5% compared to 11.6% for the comparable prior year period. For the second quarter of fiscal year 2016, Net earnings increased 16% to $40 million, compared to $35 million for the prior year period, primarily due to higher revenues. Adjusted Net earnings increased 16% to $46 million compared to $40 million for the same period last year. Diluted earnings per share increased to $0.33 per share compared to $0.28 per share for the same period last year. Adjusted Diluted earnings per share were $0.38 compared to $0.32 per share for the same period last year. Acquisition Amortization and Other Costs, net of taxes, decreased Diluted earnings per share by $0.05 and $0.04 for the three months ended December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively. In addition, during the second quarter, the Company repurchased 0.1 million shares of Broadridge common stock at an average price of $56.65 per share. Analysis of Second Quarter Fiscal Year 2016 Investor Communication Solutions Investor Communication Solutions segment Revenues for the three months ended December 31, 2015 increased $68 million, or 17%, to $472 million compared to $404 million in the second quarter of fiscal year 2015. The increase was attributable to higher recurring fee revenues which contributed $23 million, higher event-driven fee revenues which contributed $19 million and higher distribution revenues which contributed $26 million. Higher recurring fee revenues of 12% were driven by: (i) contributions from our recent acquisitions (8pts); and (ii) Net New Business primarily driven by increases in revenues from closed sales (5pts); which were partially offset by (iii) negative internal growth as a result of lower fund fulfillment revenues (-1pt). Higher event-driven fee revenues were the result of increased mutual fund proxy and corporate actions communications activity. Global Technology and Operations Global Technology and Operations segment Revenues for the three months ended December 31, 2015 increased $6 million, or 3%, to $180 million compared to $174 million for the three months ended December 31, 2015. The increase was attributable to: (i) higher Net New Business primarily driven by increases in revenues from closed sales (3pts) and (ii) contributions from a recent acquisition (1pt), partially offset by (iii) negative internal growth (-1pt) due to contract renewals and lower trade activity levels partially offset by increased non-trade activity levels. Other Pre-tax loss decreased by $4 million in the second quarter of fiscal year 2016. The decreased loss was mainly due to lower compensation expenses and lower acquisition related expenses, partially offset by an increase in interest expense. Financial Results for the Six Months ended December 31, 2015 Revenues for the six months ended December 31, 2015 increased 9% to $1,234 million compared to $1,130 million for the comparable period last year. The increase was primarily driven by: (i) higher recurring fee revenues of $63 million, or 9%, (ii) higher distribution revenues of $38 million, or 11%, and (iii) higher event-driven fee revenues of $23 million, or 31%. The higher recurring fee revenues of $63 million reflected contributions from acquisitions (4pts) and gains from Net New Business (4pts). The higher distribution revenues of $38 million include $19 million from acquisitions. Operating income for the six months ended December 31, 2015 was $129 million, an increase of $13 million, or 11%, compared to $116 million for the three months ended December 31, 2014. The increase is due to higher revenues, partially offset by higher operating expenses including $5 million of increased amortization from acquired intangibles. Operating income margins increased to 10.5% compared to 10.3% for the comparable prior year period. Adjusted operating income margins increased to 12.0% compared to 11.5% for the comparable prior year period. For the six months ended December 31, 2015, Net earnings increased 10% to $74 million compared to $67 million for the comparable period last year, primarily due to higher revenues. Adjusted Net earnings were $86 million compared to $77 million for the same period last year. Diluted earnings per share increased to $0.61 per share compared to $0.54 per share for the comparable period last year. Adjusted Diluted earnings per share were $0.71 compared to $0.62 per share for the comparable period last year. Acquisition Amortization and Other Costs, net of taxes, decreased Diluted earnings per share by $0.10 and $0.08 for the six months ended December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively. Fiscal Year 2016 Financial Guidance The Company continues to anticipate: Recurring fee revenue growth in the range of 10% to 12% and total revenue growth in the range of 8% to 10% Adjusted Operating income margin of ~18.4% Effective tax rate of ~34.8% Adjusted Diluted earnings per share growth in the range of 8% to 12% Free cash flows in the range of $350 million to $400 million Closed sales in the range of $120 million to $160 million Our guidance does not take into consideration the effect of any future acquisitions, additional debt or share repurchases. Explanation of the Company's Use of Non-GAAP Financial Measures The Company's results in this press release are presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States ("GAAP") except where otherwise noted. In certain circumstances, results have been presented on an adjusted basis and are not generally accepted accounting principles measures ("Non-GAAP"). These Non-GAAP financial measures should be viewed in addition to, and not as a substitute for, the Company's reported results. With regard to statements in this press release that include certain Non-GAAP financial measures, the adjusted operating income and adjusted earnings measures are adjusted to exclude the impact of certain costs, expenses, gains and losses and other specified items that management believes are not indicative of our ongoing performance. These adjusted measures exclude the impact of Acquisition Amortization and Other Costs which represent the amortization charges associated with intangible asset values as well as other deal costs associated with the Company's acquisition activities. The Adjusted Operating income margin and Adjusted Diluted earnings per share fiscal year 2016 guidance provided above is adjusted to exclude the projected impact of Acquisition Amortization and Other Costs. We provide information on our Free cash flows because we believe this helps investors understand the amount of cash available for dividends, share repurchases, acquisitions and other discretionary investments. Free cash flows is a Non-GAAP measure and is defined by the Company as Net cash flows provided by operating activities less capital expenditures, software purchases and capitalized internal use software. The Company believes Non-GAAP financial information helps investors understand the effect of these items on our reported results and provides a better representation of our operating performance. These Non-GAAP measures are indicators that management uses to provide additional meaningful comparisons between our current results and prior reported results, and as a basis for planning and forecasting for future periods. Reconciliations of such Non-GAAP measures to the most directly comparable financial measures presented in accordance with GAAP can be found in the tables that are part of this press release. Earnings Conference Call An analyst conference call will be held today, Thursday, February 4, 2016 at 8:30 a.m. ET. A live webcast of the call will be available to the public on a listen-only basis. To listen to the webcast and view the slide presentation, go to www.broadridge-ir.com. The presentation will also be available to download and print approximately one hour before the webcast. Broadridge's news releases, current financial information, SEC filings and Investor Relations presentations are accessible on the same website. About Broadridge Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. (NYSE: BR) is the leading provider of investor communications and technology-driven solutions for broker-dealers, banks, mutual funds and corporate issuers globally. Broadridge's investor communications, securities processing and managed services solutions help clients reduce their capital investments in operations infrastructure, allowing them to increase their focus on core business activities. With over 50 years of experience, Broadridge's infrastructure underpins proxy voting services for over 90% of public companies and mutual funds in North America, and processes on average $5 trillion in equity and fixed income trades per day. Broadridge employs approximately 7,400 full-time associates in 14 countries. For more information about Broadridge, please visit www.broadridge.com. Forward-Looking Statements This press release and other written or oral statements made from time to time by representatives of Broadridge may contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Statements that are not historical in nature, and which may be identified by the use of words such as "expects," "assumes," "projects," "anticipates," "estimates," "we believe," "could be" and other words of similar meaning, are forward-looking statements. In particular, information appearing in the "Fiscal Year 2016 Financial Guidance" section are forward-looking statements. These statements are based on management's expectations and assumptions and are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed. These risks and uncertainties include those risk factors discussed in Part I, "Item 1A. Risk Factors" of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2015 (the "2015 Annual Report"), as they may be updated in any future reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release and are expressly qualified in their entirety by reference to the factors discussed in the 2015 Annual Report. These risks include: the success of Broadridge in retaining and selling additional services to its existing clients and in obtaining new clients; Broadridge's reliance on a relatively small number of clients, the continued financial health of those clients, and the continued use by such clients of Broadridge's services with favorable pricing terms; changes in laws and regulations affecting Broadridge's clients or the services provided by Broadridge; declines in participation and activity in the securities markets; any material breach of Broadridge security affecting its clients' customer information; the failure of Broadridge's outsourced data center services provider to provide the anticipated levels of service; a disaster or other significant slowdown or failure of Broadridge's systems or error in the performance of Broadridge's services; overall market and economic conditions and their impact on the securities markets; Broadridge's failure to keep pace with changes in technology and demands of its clients; Broadridge's ability to attract and retain key personnel; the impact of new acquisitions and divestitures; and competitive conditions. Broadridge disclaims any obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements that may be made to reflect events or circumstances that arise after the date made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, other than as required by law. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Statements of Earnings (In millions, except per share amounts) (Unaudited) Three Months Ended Six Months Ended December 31, December 31, ------------------- ------------------- 2015 2014 2015 2014 --------- --------- --------- --------- Revenues $ 638.9 $ 574.6 $ 1,233.7 $ 1,130.4 --------- --------- --------- --------- Operating expenses: Cost of revenues 464.5 414.0 903.1 820.5 Selling, general and administrative expenses 104.2 101.5 201.3 193.7 --------- --------- --------- --------- Total operating expenses 568.7 515.5 1,104.4 1,014.2 --------- --------- --------- --------- Operating income 70.2 59.1 129.3 116.2 Non-operating expenses, net 8.9 7.5 16.3 14.6 --------- --------- --------- --------- Earnings before income taxes 61.3 51.6 113.0 101.6 Provision for income taxes 21.1 16.9 39.2 34.4 --------- --------- --------- --------- Net earnings $ 40.2 $ 34.7 $ 73.8 $ 67.2 ========= ========= ========= ========= Basic earnings per share $ 0.34 $ 0.29 $ 0.62 $ 0.56 ========= ========= ========= ========= Diluted earnings per share $ 0.33 $ 0.28 $ 0.61 $ 0.54 ========= ========= ========= ========= Weighted-average shares outstanding: Basic 118.5 120.2 118.4 120.0 Diluted 122.0 124.4 121.9 124.2 Dividends declared per common share $ 0.30 $ 0.27 $ 0.60 $ 0.54 Amounts may not sum due to rounding. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (In millions, except per share amounts) (Unaudited) December 31, June 30, 2015 2015 ------------- ------------- Assets Current assets: Cash and cash equivalents $ 305.1 $ 324.1 Accounts receivable, net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $4.2 and $3.8, respectively 409.8 444.5 Other current assets 113.3 92.8 ------------- ------------- Total current assets 828.2 861.4 Property, plant and equipment, net 106.0 97.3 Goodwill 975.4 970.5 Intangible assets, net 191.2 195.7 Other non-current assets 252.7 243.2 ------------- ------------- Total assets $ 2,353.6 $ 2,368.1 ============= ============= Liabilities and Stockholders' Equity Current liabilities: Accounts payable $ 113.0 $ 115.9 Accrued expenses and other current liabilities 248.0 320.4 Deferred revenues 67.5 72.6 ------------- ------------- Total current liabilities 428.4 508.9 Long-term debt 754.5 689.4 Deferred taxes 47.6 61.7 Deferred revenues 80.4 75.2 Other non-current liabilities 101.1 105.1 ------------- ------------- Total liabilities 1,412.0 1,440.3 ------------- ------------- Commitments and contingencies Stockholders' equity: Preferred stock: Authorized, 25.0 shares; issued and outstanding, none -- -- Common stock, $0.01 par value: Authorized, 650.0 shares; issued, 154.5 and 154.5 shares, respectively; outstanding, 118.5 and 118.2 shares, respectively 1.6 1.6 Additional paid-in capital 884.0 855.5 Retained earnings 1,134.8 1,132.0 Treasury stock, at cost: 35.9 and 36.3 shares, respectively (1,040.8) (1,040.4) Accumulated other comprehensive loss (38.0) (20.9) ------------- ------------- Total stockholders' equity 941.5 927.8 ------------- ------------- Total liabilities and stockholders' equity $ 2,353.6 $ 2,368.1 ============= ============= Amounts may not sum due to rounding. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. Segment Results (In millions) (Unaudited) Revenues Three Months Ended Six Months Ended December 31, December 31, 2015 2014 2015 2014 -------- -------- -------- -------- Investor Communication Solutions $ 471.7 $ 403.9 $ 901.4 $ 798.3 Global Technology and Operations 180.3 174.3 357.0 336.9 Foreign currency exchange (13.0) (3.6) (24.7) (4.8) -------- -------- -------- -------- Total $ 638.9 $ 574.6 $1,233.7 $1,130.4 ======== ======== ======== ======== Earnings (Loss) before Income Taxes Three Months Ended Six Months Ended December 31, December 31, 2015 2014 2015 2014 -------- -------- -------- -------- Investor Communication Solutions $ 46.1 $ 34.7 $ 80.0 $ 72.4 Global Technology and Operations 29.4 32.2 59.8 58.1 Other (15.7) (19.3) (29.6) (37.1) Foreign currency exchange 1.5 4.0 2.8 8.2 -------- -------- -------- -------- Total $ 61.3 $ 51.6 $ 113.0 $ 101.6 ======== ======== ======== ======== Amounts may not sum due to rounding. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. Reconciliation of Non-GAAP to GAAP Measures (Unaudited) (In millions, except per share amounts) Three Months Ended Six Months Ended December 31, December 31, ------------------ ------------------ 2015 2014 2015 2014 -------- -------- -------- -------- ($ in millions) Adjusted Operating income (Non-GAAP) $ 79.7 $ 66.9 $ 148.2 $ 130.4 Acquisition Amortization and Other Costs (9.5) (7.9) (18.9) (14.3) -------- -------- -------- -------- Operating income (GAAP) $ 70.2 $ 59.1 $ 129.3 $ 116.2 ======== ======== ======== ======== Adjusted Operating income margin (Non-GAAP) 12.5% 11.6% 12.0% 11.5% Operating income margin (GAAP) 11.0% 10.3% 10.5% 10.3% Three Months Ended Six Months Ended December 31, December 31, ------------------ ------------------ 2015 2014 2015 2014 -------- -------- -------- -------- ($ in millions) Adjusted Net earnings (Non-GAAP) $ 46.5 $ 39.9 $ 86.1 $ 76.6 Acquisition Amortization and Other Costs, net of taxes (6.3) (5.3) (12.3) (9.4) -------- -------- -------- -------- Net earnings (GAAP) $ 40.2 $ 34.7 $ 73.8 $ 67.2 ======== ======== ======== ======== Three Months Ended Six Months Ended December 31, December 31, ------------------ ------------------ 2015 2014 2015 2014 -------- -------- -------- -------- Adjusted Diluted earnings per share (Non-GAAP) $ 0.38 $ 0.32 $ 0.71 $ 0.62 Acquisition Amortization and Other Costs, net of taxes (0.05) (0.04) (0.10) (0.08) -------- -------- -------- -------- Diluted earnings per share (GAAP) $ 0.33 $ 0.28 $ 0.61 $ 0.54 ======== ======== ======== ======== Six Months Ended December 31, --------------------- 2015 2014 ---------- ---------- ($ in millions) Free cash flows (Non-GAAP) $ 5.7 $ 55.0 Capital expenditures, software purchases and capitalized internal use software 36.9 15.8 ---------- ---------- Net cash flows provided by operating activities (GAAP) $ 42.6 $ 70.8 ========== ========== Amounts may not sum due to rounding. Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc. Reconciliation of Non-GAAP to GAAP Measures Diluted Earnings Per Share Growth and Operating Income Margin Fiscal Year 2016 Guidance (Unaudited) Earnings Per Share Growth Rate (1) FY16 Guidance ------------------------ Adjusted Diluted earnings per share (Non-GAAP) 8% - 12% growth Diluted earnings per share (GAAP) 7% - 12% growth Operating Income Margin (2) FY16 Guidance ------------------------ Adjusted Operating income margin % (Non-GAAP) ~18.4% Operating income margin % (GAAP) ~17.3% (1) Adjusted Diluted EPS growth (Non-GAAP) is adjusted to exclude the projected impact of Acquisition Amortization and Other Costs. Fiscal year 2016 Non-GAAP Adjusted Diluted EPS guidance estimates exclude Acquisition Amortization and Other Costs, net of taxes, of $0.18 per share. (2) Adjusted Operating income margin % (Non-GAAP) is adjusted to exclude the projected impact of Acquisition Amortization and Other Costs. Fiscal year 2016 Non-GAAP Adjusted Operating income margin guidance estimates exclude Acquisition Amortization and Other Costs of $34 million. Note: Guidance does not take into consideration the effect of any future acquisitions, additional debt and/or share repurchases. MONTPELLIER, France, February 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- MedinCell and Sandoz will develop and commercialize long-acting injectable products based on BEPO' technology with a primary focus on oncology The alliance is part of MedinCell's network strategy to significantly improve current standard of care, reduce total costs to payers and therefore make treatments widely available worldwide MedinCell, a leading innovator developing best in class enabling pharmaceutical solutions for Global Health, announced today that it has entered into a non-exclusive collaboration agreement with Sandoz, a Novartis company. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160201/327836LOGO ) Both parties will join forces to develop and commercialize long-acting injectables with a primary focus on oncology. The first product has been selected and development efforts are underway. Under the agreement, target APIs (Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients) will be formulated using the proprietary MedinCell BEPO' technology platform. BEPO may allow less frequent drug administration and potentially improved patient tolerability, which may reduce both direct and indirect drug costs. The alliance will benefit from BEPO's disruptive characteristics: superior controlled drug release, low cost of goods and rapid formulation development. BEPO's versatile platform is compatible with many small molecules, peptides and biologics. Both parties will have access to GMP-grade polymers through the newly formed joint venture between MedinCell S.A. and Corbion N.V., CM Biomaterials. About BEPO' Based on a combination of co-polymers, solvent and API, the BEPO' technology can provide a controlled release of drug for days, weeks or months from a fully biodegradable depot that forms after subcutaneous injection or local delivery of the formulated API. As a game-changing technology, BEPO' combines many advantages compared to alternative drug delivery technologies, including improved patient compliance, efficacy and tolerability, as well as versatility, speed of development and low manufacturing costs. See how it works: http://www.medincell.com/technology/controlled-release-drug-delivery-technology/ MedinCell: Innovations for Global Health The MedinCell team acts every day for Global Health by developing innovative technologies that improve worldwide access to medicine and enable better treatment quality for all. MedinCell and its network of partners are developing the next generation of best-in-class medicines that combine low manufacturing cost with efficiency and compliance-related attributes. Based in Montpellier, France, MedinCell is a self-funded and employee-owned entity operating both commercial and non-profit activities. For more information: http://www.medincell.com Contact: David Heuze - david.heuze@medincell.com / +33-(0)6-83-25-21-86 WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Meat products maker Tyson Foods Inc. (TSN) is capitalizing on the benefits of its diverse portfolio and its branding power. The company's brands include Tyson, Jimmy Dean, Hillshire Farm, Sara Lee, Ball Park, Wright, Aidells, and State Fair. The company is a recognized market leader in chicken, beef and pork as well as prepared foods, encompassing bacon, breakfast, sausage, turkey, lunchmeat, hot dogs, pizza crust and toppings, tortillas and desserts. The company is due to release its first-quarter results before the bell on Friday, February 5, with analysts polled by Thomson Reuters estimating earnings of $0.89 per share on revenue of $10.10 billion. Analysts' estimate typically exclude certain special items. For fiscal 2016... Tyson Foods projects adjusted earnings per share in the range of $3.50 - $3.65, consistent with the company's goal of averaging at least 10% annual earnings per share growth over time. The company expects sales to be about $41 billion in fiscal 2016. Domestic protein production is expected to increase about 3% from fiscal 2015 levels. The company expects disruptions related to export bans to continue in fiscal 2016. Wall Street analysts have a consensus earnings estimate of $3.62 per share on revenue of $39.88 billion for fiscal 2016. In fiscal 2016, Tyson expects to increase share repurchases under its share repurchase program. During the first quarter of fiscal 2016 as of November 20, 2015, the company has repurchased about 4.4 million shares for $200 million, excluding shares repurchased to offset dilution from equity compensation plans. Beginning in fiscal 2017, Tyson anticipates to increase annual dividends by approximately $0.10 per year. Q4 Overview Fourth-quarter net income attributable to company was $258 million or $0.63 per share compared to $137 million or $0.35 per share, last year. Adjusted earnings per share attributable to Tyson was $0.83, for the quarter. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings per share of $0.88. Sales were $10.51 billion versus $10.10 billion generated a year ago. Analysts expected revenue of $10.34 billion for the quarter. Adjusted sales were $9.76 billion compared to $9.78 billion, last year. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de Transmission assets to be sold to TC Westermost Rough OFTO Limited. Westermost Rough Ltd ("WMR"), a wholly owned subsidiary of DONG Energy A/S (50%), the UK Green Investment Bank plc (25%) and Marubeni Corporation (25%) today announced that it has signed an agreement for the sale of its transmission assets to TC Westermost Rough OFTO Limited.TC Westermost Rough OFTO Limited is the licensee entity incorporated by the consortium comprised of Transmission Capital Partners Limited Partnership and International Public Partnerships Limited.The transmission assets hold an asset value of GBP 157 million (DKK 1,5 bn). The assets include the onshore substation, export cables and the offshore substationThe divestment takes place pursuant to the Offshore Transmission Owner (OFTO) regime.Following a competitive tender, TC Westermost Rough OFTO Limited was selected in May 2015 by Ofgem, the regulator for gas and electricity markets, as preferred bidder for the WMR offshore transmission license.The Westermost Rough offshore wind farm is located in the UK North Sea, approximately 8km off the East coast of Yorkshire near Withernsea, Yorkshire. The offshore construction began in 2014. In August 2014, the first turbine was erected and first power was generated in September 2014. Full power output was achieved in May 2015. The farm's 35 Siemens 6MW wind turbines have a capacity of 210MW and ensure clean renewable energy for more than 150,000 UK households.The information provided in this announcement does not change DONG Energy's previous financial guidance for the 2016 financial year.For additional information, please contact:Media Relations Martin Barlebo +45 9955 9100Investor Relations Allan Bdskov Andersen +45 9955 9769DONG Energy is one of the leading energy groups in Northern Europe, headquartered in Denmark. Around 6,700 ambitious employees are engaged in developing, constructing and operating offshore wind farms; generating power and heat from our power stations; providing energy to residential and business customers on a daily basis; and producing oil and gas. Group revenue was DKK 71bn (EUR 9.5bn) in 2015. For further information, see www.dongenergy.comAttachment:https://cns.omxgroup.com/cds/DisclosureAttachmentServlet?messageAttachmentId=545381 OTTAWA, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- Itinerary for the Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, for Thursday, February 4, 2016: Calgary 9:10 a.m. The Prime Minister will participate in a roundtable with oil and gas producers with with Ministers Carr and Hehr and Premier Notley. Ministers' regional office 220 4th avenue SE 5th floor, suite 570 Calgary, AB Notes for media: - Photo opportunity only. 10:45 a.m. The Prime Minister will participate in a roundtable with oil and gas industry goods and service providers with Ministers Carr and Hehr and Premier Notley. Ministers' regional office 220 4th avenue SE 5th floor, suite 570 Calgary, AB Notes for media: - Photo opportunity only. 1:20 p.m. The Prime Minister will tour the YWCA with Minister Hehr, Premier Notley and MP Kang. YWCA Calgary 320 5th avenue SE Calgary, AB Notes for media: - Media should arrive no later than 12:50 p.m. - Media should arrive at the ground level/parking entrance. 2:00 p.m. The Prime Minister will hold a media availability. YWCA Calgary 320 5th avenue SE Calgary, AB Please note: all times are local. Contacts: PMO Media Relations: (613) 957-5555 Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- - Nutritional High International Inc. (the "Company" or "Nutritional High") (CSE: EAT) (OTCQB: SPLIF) is pleased to announce that it has filed Form F-1 with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, undertaken as a condition of the US$1,000,000 financing from Kodiak Capital Group, LLC. ("Kodiak Capital" or "Selling Stockholder") (previously announced in the press release dated January 6, 2016). The Company also wishes to announce the completion of a debt settlement in the amount of $141,135 in exchange for 2,822,700 common shares of the Company at a price of $0.05 per share, and the closing of a tranche of a non-brokered private placement (the "Private Placement"), consisting of 800,000 units ("Unit") for aggregate gross proceeds of $40,000 at a price of $0.05 per unit. Preliminary Filing of Form F-1 Nutritional High has filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") the Preliminary Prospectus, dated February 3, 2016 (the "Prospectus" or the "Registration Statement") that is subject to completion, in connection with an offering ("Offering") of up to 29,178,000 common shares in the capital of the Company ("Common Shares"). The Registration Statement is being filed to register for resale up to US$1,000,000 in common shares of the Company pursuant to an equity purchase agreement ("Purchase Agreement") that the Company has entered into with Kodiak Capital. The purchase price of the shares that may be sold to Kodiak Capital under the Purchase Agreement will be equal to a 25% discount to the closing bid price for the Company's common stock as reported by Bloomberg Finance, L.P., of the 5th trading day immediately following the date in which the Put Shares (as defined in the Purchase Agreement) have been deposited into the Kodiak Capital's brokerage account, but at a price that is equal to no less than CDN $0.05. Kodiak Capital is an "underwriter" within the meaning of Section 2(a) (11) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended ("Securities Act"). The Selling Stockholder may offer all or part of the shares for resale from time to time through public or private transactions, at either prevailing market prices or at privately negotiated prices. The Offering is subject to regulatory approval, including the approval of the Canadian Securities Exchange. The Registration Statement relating to the Offering has been filed with the SEC but has not yet become effective. The details of the offering (including the terms of the Offering) are subject to change based on market conditions at the time the Registration Statement becomes effective. The Securities may not be sold, nor may offers to buy be accepted, before the Registration Statement becomes effective. Neither this news release, nor the Registration Statement shall constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy the Company's securities, nor shall there be any sale of the Common Shares in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such jurisdiction. A copy of the Registration Statement can be obtained upon request by contacting Investor Relations at the contact information below. "This injection of capital will help us achieve our goals a lot quicker" says David Posner, CEO of Nutritional High. "Kodiak continues to believe in the overall viability of the company and we appreciate their support. 2016 is looking to be a great year for us operationally so I look forward to updating our shareholders with our progress over the coming quarters. Our number one focus is to build shareholder value and that is exactly what we look to achieve everyday" Closing of Private Placement and Debt Settlements The Company has closed a non-brokered Private Placement, consisting of 800,000 units ("Unit") for aggregate gross proceeds of $40,000. Each Unit is comprised of a Common Share and one half (1/2) Common Share purchase warrant ("Warrant"). Each whole Warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one Common Share at a price of $0.07 per Common Share for a period of 18 months after the Closing Date. All securities issued pursuant to the private placement will be subject to a four month hold period under Canadian securities laws. The Company has entered into debt settlement agreements (collectively the "Debt Settlement") on January 28, 2016, to convert $141,135 of debt into Common Shares at a conversion price of $0.05 per Common Share. Of the total debt the Company intends to have converted, all is being converted by arm's length parties. About Nutritional High International Inc. Nutritional High is focused on developing, manufacturing and distributing products and nationally recognized brands in the hemp and marijuana-infused products industries, including edibles and oil extracts for nutritional, medical and adult recreational use. The Company works exclusively through licensed facilities in jurisdictions where such activity is permitted and regulated by state law. For updates on the Company's activities and highlights of the Company's press releases and other media coverage, please follow Nutritional High on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Google+. NEITHER THE CANADIAN SECURITIES EXCHANGE NOR OTC MARKETS GROUP INC, NOR ITS REGULATIONS SERVICES PROVIDER HAVE REVIEWED OR ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE. This news release may contain forward-looking statements and information based on current expectations. These statements should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results. Such statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those implied by such statements. Such statements include submission of the relevant documentation within the required timeframe and to the satisfaction of the relevant regulators, completing the acquisition of the applicable real estate and raising sufficient financing to complete the Company's business strategy. There is no certainty that any of these events will occur. Although such statements are based on management's reasonable assumptions, there can be no assurance that such assumptions will prove to be correct. We assume no responsibility to update or revise them to reflect new events or circumstances. Company's securities have not been registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or applicable state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold to, or for the account or benefit of, persons in the United States or "U.S. Persons", as such term is defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act, absent registration or an applicable exemption from such registration requirements. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of the securities in the United States or any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. Additionally, there are known and unknown risk factors which could cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information contained herein. All forward-looking information herein is qualified in its entirety by this cautionary statement, and the Company disclaims any obligation to revise or update any such forward-looking information or to publicly announce the result of any revisions to any of the forward-looking information contained herein to reflect future results, events or developments, except as required by law. Contacts: Transcend Capital Inc. Etienne Moshevich Investor Relations 604-681-0084 et@transcendcapitalinc.com Nutritional High International Inc. David Posner CEO 647-985-6727 dposner@nutritionalhigh.com BOSTON, MA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- Each year, the data centers that power social media, streaming video, cloud computing, and connected devices use more than 90 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity -- enough to power New York City twice over -- and their consumption is still growing rapidly. The companies like Google, Amazon, Facebook, and Apple that run them have the most advanced data analytics tools at their disposal, as well as high-minded public commitments to sustainability. However, they are reliant on obsolete data tools for calculating emissions due to the electricity they purchase from the power grid. A new analytical tool from Lux Research finds that data centers frequently use far more coal, and thus have much greater emissions, than previously thought. Today, operators rely on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Emissions & Generation Resource Integrated Database (eGRID) to estimate their emissions. However, eGRID divides the U.S. electricity grid into just 24 broad regions, and is updated only infrequently -- the most recent information available is from 2012. "Our team of data scientists analyzed the North American electric grid, improving the accuracy of carbon reporting by a factor of 80. The results show that many sites are far more reliant on coal than reported -- notably, they include many large data centers," said Ory Zik, Lux Research Vice President of Analytics and the team leader of Lux's energy benchmarking. "For example, we found that Google underestimates its dependence on coal in four out of seven data centers, in particular at its Berkeley County, S.C. location," he added. The new Lux Grid Network Analysis (GNA) divides the grid into 134 regions, instead of just 24, providing more granular insight, and makes use of U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) data that is updated monthly, as opposed to three-year-old annual data. Applying the Lux GNA to U.S.-based data centers shows where operators are coming up short in their sustainability reporting: Google misses the mark in four out of its seven data centers. Google uses eGRID to estimate its electricity emissions, but four of Google's seven major U.S. data centers rely more on coal than the data reported by eGRID implies. As a result, Google's emissions are likely larger than they estimated by 42,000 MT CO2e per year -- the equivalent of 8,500 additional SUVs on the road. Amazon estimates are off in over 20 centers. Amazon is less transparent about how it calculates its emissions, but its 23 Virginia-based cloud services data centers use about 43% electricity from coal -- not 35% as inferred using eGRID. This difference amounts to 85,000 MT CO2e per year more -- some 5,000 households' worth of emissions. The changing grid drives the need for better tools. Investments in renewable energy are growing exponentially, while natural gas is displacing coal, changing the composition of grid generation. The right prioritization of what to do and where, begins with better analytics. With the tools now available, it's time for data center owners to bring to their energy decisions the same data-driven rigor they use in the rest of their businesses. Lux's energy benchmarking further defines the analysis of data center coal usage and is part of the Lux Research Analytics service. Resource Information for System Knowledge (RISK) Resource scarcity, price volatility, and increased social and environmental pressures all threaten supply disruption and unplanned price spikes -- but for most companies, the impact of resource dependence remains increasingly hard to evaluate. Lux Research's Resource Information for System Knowledge (RISK) platform guides companies through this treacherous landscape. RISK provides the necessary support to help companies benchmark their global operations from the perspectives of profitability, resilience, and sustainability. Companies using the platform can determine where substitution strategies can be deployed, and foresee where breakthrough innovation can have the most impact. RISK and Data Centers Organizations make decisions that involve complex value chains (in the case of data centers, largely the electricity grid) and complex resource interactions (for data centers, the interaction of distributed generation and the grid). Companies need to think about resources outside the four walls of their facilities to mitigate resource cost, risk, and environmental impact. For data centers, only about 12% of their carbon emission is within the four walls of their facility; the rest of the losses (and emissions) come from resources procured from elsewhere. Download the complimentary White Paper, "How Dirty is Your Cloud?" About Lux Research Lux Research provides strategic advice and ongoing intelligence for emerging technologies. Leaders in business, finance and government rely on us to help them make informed strategic decisions. Through our unique research approach focused on primary research and our extensive global network, we deliver insight, connections and competitive advantage to our clients. Visit www.luxresearchinc.com for more information. Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=2959288 Contact: Carole Jacques Lux Research, Inc. 617-502-5314 carole.jacques@luxresearchinc.com NEW YORK, NY -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- Total revenue grew 2.4%, up 11.1% on a constant-currency basis Digital revenue grew 18.0%, up 25.2% on a constant-currency basis OIBDA was $137 million versus $102 million in the prior-year quarter Net income was $28 million versus a net loss of $41 million in the prior-year quarter Warner Music Group Corp. today announced its first-quarter financial results for the period ended December 31, 2015. "We delivered another strong quarter, thanks to great music from our artists and excellent execution from our worldwide team," said Stephen Cooper, Warner Music Group's CEO. "Subscription streaming is a major driver of our growth and streaming revenue remains on a trajectory to become our largest revenue source." "We achieved robust growth in revenue, OIBDA, margin and cash flow," added Eric Levin, Warner Music Group's Executive Vice President and CFO. "I am also pleased with our recently announced plans to redeem $50 million of our senior notes with cash on hand, which will further strengthen our balance sheet." Total WMG Total WMG Summary Results (dollars in millions) For the Three For the Three Months Ended Months Ended December 31, December 31, 2015 2014 % Change ------------- ------------- -------- (unaudited) (unaudited) Revenue $ 849 $ 829 2% Digital revenue 348 295 18% Operating income 62 23 - Adjusted operating income(1) 62 37 68% OIBDA(1) 137 102 34% Adjusted OIBDA(1) 137 116 18% Net income (loss) 28 (41) - Adjusted net income (loss) (1) 28 (27) - Net cash provided by operating activities 61 35 74% (1) See "Supplemental Disclosures Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures" at the end of this release for details regarding these measures. Revenue grew 2.4% (or 11.1% in constant currency). Growth in Recorded Music digital, licensing and artist services and expanded-rights revenue as well as growth in Music Publishing digital revenue was partially offset by declines in Recorded Music physical revenue and Music Publishing mechanical, performance and synchronization revenue. On a regional basis, as-reported revenue grew in the U.S., Latin America and Asia, offset by currency-related declines across Europe. Digital revenue grew 18.0% (or 25.2% in constant currency), and represented 41.0% of total revenue, compared to 35.6% in the prior-year quarter. Streaming revenue growth more than offset declines in download revenue. Operating income was $62 million compared to $23 million in the prior-year quarter. OIBDA increased 34.3% to $137 million from $102 million in the prior-year quarter and OIBDA margin rose to 16.1% from 12.3% in the prior-year quarter. The increase in operating income, OIBDA and OIBDA margin is largely the result of the increase in revenue and the revenue mix. Adjusted OIBDA rose 18.1% and Adjusted OIBDA margin rose 2.1 percentage points to 16.1% from 14.0%. Net income was $28 million compared to a net loss of $41 million in the prior-year quarter. Net income improved as a result of the increase in revenue and OIBDA, currency-related gains on the company's Euro-denominated debt and a $3 million income tax benefit versus a $9 million income tax expense in the prior-year quarter. Adjusted operating income, Adjusted OIBDA and Adjusted net income (loss) exclude the impact of PLG-related expenses, other cost-savings initiatives and expenses related to moving the company's corporate headquarters. See below for calculations and reconciliations of OIBDA, Adjusted operating income, Adjusted OIBDA and Adjusted net income (loss). As of December 31, 2015, the company reported a cash balance of $278 million, total debt of $2.986 billion and net debt (total long-term debt, including the current portion, minus cash) of $2.708 billion. There was no balance outstanding on the company's revolver at the end of the quarter. Cash provided by operating activities was $61 million compared to $35 million in the prior-year quarter. The change is largely a result of improved OIBDA. Free Cash Flow, defined below, was $43 million compared to negative $2 million in the prior-year quarter, reflecting the improvements in cash provided by operating activities and lower capital expenditures, which, in the prior-year quarter included amounts related to moving the company's corporate headquarters. Recorded Music Recorded Music Summary Results (dollars in millions) For the Three For the Three Months Ended Months Ended December 31, December 31, 2015 2014 % Change ------------- ------------- -------- (unaudited) (unaudited) Revenue $ 737 $ 714 3% Digital revenue 322 272 18% Operating income 98 52 88% Adjusted operating income(1) 98 58 69% OIBDA(1) 152 111 37% Adjusted OIBDA(1) 152 117 30% (1) See "Supplemental Disclosures Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures" at the end of this release for details regarding these measures. Recorded Music revenue grew 3.2% (or 11.8% in constant currency). Strength in digital, licensing and artist services and expanded-rights revenue was partially offset by a decline in physical revenue. The decline in physical revenue was driven by the ongoing shift to digital, currency exchange rates, and a higher level of physically centric releases in the prior-year quarter. Digital growth reflects a continuing shift to streaming revenue and a $24 million contribution from the Sirius XM settlement. Licensing revenue benefited from higher sync activity and timing of neighboring rights distributions. The improvement in artist services and expanded-rights revenue was due to the timing of concert tours. On a regional basis, as-reported Recorded Music revenue saw strength around the globe with Europe the most significant exception driven largely by currency exchange rates. Domestic Recorded Music digital revenue was $169 million or 57.7% of total domestic Recorded Music revenue. Major sellers included Coldplay, Ed Sheeran, Enya, Johnny Hallyday and Jess Glynne. Recorded Music operating income was $98 million up from $52 million in the prior-year quarter and operating margin was up 6.0 percentage points to 13.3% versus 7.3% in the prior-year quarter. Adjusted operating margin rose 5.2 percentage points to 13.3% from 8.1% in the prior-year quarter. OIBDA rose to $152 million from $111 million in the prior-year quarter and OIBDA margin rose 5.1 percentage points to 20.6%. Adjusted OIBDA was $152 million versus $117 million in the prior-year quarter with Adjusted OIBDA margin up 4.2 percentage points to 20.6%. The improvement in OIBDA and OIBDA margin were largely driven by higher revenue and revenue mix. Music Publishing Music Publishing Summary Results (dollars in millions) For the Three For the Three Months Ended Months Ended December 31, December 31, 2015 2014 % Change ------------- ------------- -------- (unaudited) (unaudited) Revenue $ 116 $ 119 -3% Digital revenue 27 24 13% Operating (loss) income (13) 0 - OIBDA(1) 5 17 -71% (1) See "Supplemental Disclosures Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures" at the end of this release for details regarding these measures. Music Publishing revenue declined 2.5% (or increased 6.4% in constant currency). Growth in digital revenue was offset by currency-related declines in performance and synchronization revenue as well as declines in mechanical revenue reflecting the ongoing shift to digital. Music Publishing operating income was a loss of $13 million compared with $0 in the prior-year quarter, a result of expenses related to the Happy Birthday settlement, revenue decline, revenue mix, severance costs and timing of distributions in the prior-year quarter. Music Publishing OIBDA declined by $12 million or 70.6% to $5 million, while Music Publishing OIBDA margin declined 10.0 percentage points to 4.3% from 14.3%, a result of the same factors that impacted operating income. Financial details for the quarter can be found in the company's current Form 10-Q, for the period ended December 31, 2015, filed today with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This morning, management will be hosting a conference call to discuss the results at 8:30 A.M. EST. The call will be webcast on www.wmg.com. About Warner Music Group With its broad roster of new stars and legendary artists, Warner Music Group is home to a collection of the best-known record labels in the music industry including Asylum, Atlantic, Big Beat, Canvasback, East West, Elektra, Erato, FFRR, Fueled by Ramen, Nonesuch, Parlophone, Reprise, Rhino, Roadrunner, Sire, Warner Bros., Warner Classics, Warner Music Nashville and Word, as well as Warner/Chappell Music, one of the world's leading music publishers, with a catalog of more than one million copyrights worldwide. "Safe Harbor" Statement under Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 This communication includes forward-looking statements that reflect the current views of Warner Music Group about future events and financial performance. Words such as "estimates," "expects," "anticipates," "projects," "plans," "intends," "believes," "forecasts" and variations of such words or similar expressions that predict or indicate future events or trends, or that do not relate to historical matters, identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are made as of today, and we disclaim any duty to update such statements. Our expectations, beliefs and projections are expressed in good faith and we believe there is a reasonable basis for them. However, we cannot assure you that management's expectations, beliefs and projections will result or be achieved. Investors should not rely on forward-looking statements because they are subject to a variety of risks, uncertainties, and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from our expectations. Please refer to our Form 10-K, Form 10-Qs and our other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission concerning factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in our forward-looking statements. We maintain an Internet site at www.wmg.com. We use our website as a channel of distribution of material company information. Financial and other material information regarding Warner Music Group is routinely posted on and accessible at http://investors.wmg.com. In addition, you may automatically receive email alerts and other information about Warner Music Group by enrolling your email address through the "email alerts" section at http://investors.wmg.com. Our website and the information posted on it or connected to it shall not be deemed to be incorporated by reference into this communication. Basis of Presentation The company maintains a 52-53 week fiscal year ending on the last Friday in each reporting period. As such, all references to December 31, 2015 and December 31, 2014 relate to the three-month periods ended December 25, 2015 and December 26, 2014, respectively. For convenience purposes, the company continues to date its financial statements as of December 31. The fiscal year ended September 30, 2015 ended on September 25, 2015. For convenience purposes, the Company continues to date its balance sheet as of September 30. Figure 1. Warner Music Group Corp. - Consolidated Statements of Operations, Three Months Ended December 31, 2015 versus December 31, 2014 (dollars in millions) For the Three For the Three Months Ended Months Ended December 31, December 31, 2015 2014 % Change ------------- ------------- -------- (unaudited) (unaudited) Revenue $ 849 $ 829 2% Cost and expenses: Cost of revenue (449) (445) -1% Selling, general and administrative expenses (276) (296) 7% Amortization expense (62) (65) 5% ------------- ------------- -------- Total costs and expenses $ (787) $ (806) 2% ------------- ------------- -------- Operating income $ 62 $ 23 - Interest expense, net (45) (46) 2% Other income (expense), net 8 (9) - ------------- ------------- -------- Income (loss) before income taxes $ 25 $ (32) - Income tax benefit (expense) 3 (9) - ------------- ------------- -------- Net income (loss) $ 28 $ (41) - Less: Income attributable to noncontrolling interest (1) (1) 0% ------------- ------------- -------- Net income (loss) attributable to Warner Music Group Corp. $ 27 $ (42) - ============= ============= ======== Figure 2. Warner Music Group Corp. - Consolidated Balance Sheets at December 31, 2015 versus September 30, 2015 (dollars in millions) December 31, September 30, 2015 2015 % Change ------------- ------------- -------- (unaudited) (audited) Assets Current assets: Cash and equivalents $ 278 $ 246 13% Accounts receivable, net 408 349 17% Inventories 41 42 -2% Royalty advances expected to be recouped within one year 135 130 4% Prepaid and other current assets 60 60 0% ------------- ------------- -------- Total current assets $ 922 $ 827 11% Royalty advances expected to be recouped after one year 202 195 4% Property, plant and equipment, net 217 220 -1% Goodwill 1,625 1,632 0% Intangible assets subject to amortization, net 2,423 2,514 -4% Intangible assets not subject to amortization 119 119 0% Other assets 105 114 -8% ------------- ------------- -------- Total assets $ 5,613 $ 5,621 0% ============= ============= ======== Liabilities and Equity Current liabilities: Accounts payable $ 161 $ 173 -7% Accrued royalties 1,131 1,087 4% Accrued liabilities 297 296 0% Accrued interest 47 58 -19% Deferred revenue 202 206 -2% Current portion of long-term debt 13 13 0% Other current liabilities 36 24 50% ------------- ------------- -------- Total current liabilities $ 1,887 $ 1,857 2% Long-term debt 2,973 2,981 0% Deferred tax liabilities, net 286 302 -5% Other noncurrent liabilities 228 242 -6% ------------- ------------- -------- Total liabilities $ 5,374 $ 5,382 0% Equity: Common stock - - - Additional paid-in capital 1,128 1,128 0% Accumulated deficit (713) (740) -4% Accumulated other comprehensive loss, net (192) (167) 15% ------------- ------------- -------- Total Warner Music Group Corp. equity $ 223 $ 221 1% Noncontrolling interest 16 18 -11% ------------- ------------- -------- Total equity 239 239 0% ------------- ------------- -------- Total liabilities and equity $ 5,613 $ 5,621 0% ============= ============= ======== Figure 3. Warner Music Group Corp. - Summarized Statements of Cash Flows, Three Months Ended December 31, 2015 versus December 31, 2014 (dollars in millions) For the Three For the Three Months Ended Months Ended December 31, December 31, 2015 2014 ---------------- ---------------- (unaudited) (unaudited) Net cash provided by operating activities $ 61 $ 35 Net cash used in investing activities (18) (37) Net cash used in financing activities (6) (3) Effect of foreign currency exchange rates on cash and equivalents (5) (7) ---------------- ---------------- Net increase (decrease) in cash and equivalents $ 32 $ (12) ================ ================ Supplemental Disclosures Regarding Non-GAAP Financial Measures We evaluate our operating performance based on several factors, including the following non-GAAP financial measures: OIBDA OIBDA reflects our operating income before non-cash depreciation of tangible assets and non-cash amortization of intangible assets. We consider OIBDA to be an important indicator of the operational strengths and performance of our businesses, and believe the presentation of OIBDA helps improve the ability to understand our operating performance and evaluate our performance in comparison to comparable periods. However, a limitation of the use of OIBDA as a performance measure is that it does not reflect the periodic costs of certain capitalized tangible and intangible assets used in generating revenue in our businesses. Accordingly, OIBDA should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for, operating income (loss), net income (loss) and other measures of financial performance reported in accordance with U.S. GAAP. In addition, OIBDA, as we calculate it, may not be comparable to similarly titled measures employed by other companies. Figure 4. Warner Music Group Corp. - Reconciliation of OIBDA to Net Income (Loss), Three Months Ended December 31, 2015 versus December 31, 2014 (dollars in millions) For the Three For the Three Months Ended Months Ended December 31, December 31, 2015 2014 % Change ------------- ------------- -------- (unaudited) (unaudited) OIBDA $ 137 $ 102 34% Depreciation expense (13) (14) 7% Amortization expense (62) (65) 5% ------------- ------------- -------- Operating income $ 62 $ 23 - Interest expense, net (45) (46) 2% Other income (expense), net 8 (9) - ------------- ------------- -------- Income (loss) before income taxes $ 25 $ (32) - Income tax benefit (expense) 3 (9) - ------------- ------------- -------- Net income (loss) $ 28 $ (41) - Less: Income attributable to noncontrolling interest (1) (1) 0% ------------- ------------- -------- Net income (loss) attributable to Warner Music Group Corp. $ 27 $ (42) - ============= ============= ======== Operating income margin 7.3% 2.8% OIBDA margin 16.1% 12.3% Figure 5. Warner Music Group Corp. - Reconciliation of Segment Operating Income (Loss) to OIBDA, Three Months Ended December 31, 2015 versus December 31, 2014 (dollars in millions) For the Three For the Three Months Ended Months Ended December 31, December 31, 2015 2014 % Change ------------- ------------- -------- (unaudited) (unaudited) Total WMG operating income - GAAP $ 62 $ 23 - Depreciation and amortization expense (75) (79) 5% ------------- ------------- -------- Total WMG OIBDA $ 137 $ 102 34% ============= ============= ======== Operating income margin 7.3% 2.8% OIBDA margin 16.1% 12.3% Recorded Music operating income - GAAP $ 98 $ 52 89% Depreciation and amortization expense (54) (59) 9% ------------- ------------- -------- Recorded Music OIBDA $ 152 $ 111 37% ============= ============= ======== Recorded Music operating income margin 13.3% 7.3% Recorded Music OIBDA margin 20.6% 15.5% Music Publishing operating income (loss) - GAAP $ (13) $ - - Depreciation and amortization expense (18) (17) -6% ------------- ------------- -------- Music Publishing OIBDA $ 5 $ 17 -71% ============= ============= ======== Music Publishing operating income (loss) margin -11.2% 0.0% Music Publishing OIBDA margin 4.3% 14.3% Adjusted Operating Income (Loss), Adjusted OIBDA and Adjusted Net Income (Loss) Adjusted operating income (loss), Adjusted OIBDA and Adjusted net income (loss) is operating income (loss), OIBDA and net income (loss), respectively, adjusted to exclude the impact of certain items that affect comparability. Factors affecting period-to-period comparability of the unadjusted measures in the quarter included the items listed in Figure 6 below. We use Adjusted operating income (loss), Adjusted OIBDA and Adjusted net income (loss) to evaluate our actual operating performance. We believe that the adjusted results provide relevant and useful information for investors because they clarify our actual operating performance, make it easier to compare our results with those of other companies in our industry and allow investors to review performance in the same way as our management. Since these are not measures of performance calculated in accordance with U.S. GAAP, they should not be considered in isolation of, or as a substitute for, operating income (loss), OIBDA and net income (loss) attributable to Warner Music Group Corp. as indicators of operating performance, and they may not be comparable to similarly titled measures employed by other companies. Figure 6. Warner Music Group Corp. - Reconciliation of Reported to Adjusted Results, Three Months Ended December 31, 2015 versus December 31, 2014 (dollars in millions) For the Three Months Ended December 31, 2015 Recorded Music Total WMG Music Publishing Operating Operating Operating Total WMG Income Income Loss OIBDA ----------- ----------- ----------- ----------- (unaudited) (unaudited) (unaudited) (unaudited) Reported Results $ 62 $ 98 $ (13) $ 137 Factors Affecting Comparability: PLG Professional Fees and Integration Costs - - - - PLG Restructuring Expense - - - - Cost-Savings Initiatives - - - - Corporate Headquarters Consolidation - - - - ----------- ----------- ----------- ----------- Adjusted Results $ 62 $ 98 $ (13) $ 137 ----------- ----------- ----------- ----------- Adjusted Margin 7.3% 13.3% -11.2% 16.1% For the Three Months Ended December 31, 2014 Recorded Music Total WMG Music Publishing Operating Operating Operating Total WMG Income Income Income OIBDA ----------- ----------- ----------- ----------- (unaudited) (unaudited) (unaudited) (unaudited) Reported Results $ 23 $ 52 $ - $ 102 Factors Affecting Comparability: PLG Professional Fees and Integration Costs 3 3 - 3 PLG Restructuring Expense 1 1 - 1 Cost-Savings Initiatives 4 2 4 Corporate Headquarters Consolidation 6 - - 6 ----------- ----------- ----------- ----------- Adjusted Results $ 37 $ 58 $ - $ 116 ----------- ----------- ----------- ----------- Adjusted Margin 4.5% 8.1% 0.0% 14.0% For the Three Months Ended December 31, 2015 Music Recorded Publishing Music OIBDA OIBDA Net income ----------- ----------- ----------- (unaudited) (unaudited) (unaudited) Reported Results $ 152 $ 5 $ 28 Factors Affecting Comparability: PLG Professional Fees and Integration Costs - - - PLG Restructuring Expense - - - Cost-Savings Initiatives - - - Corporate Headquarters Consolidation - - - ----------- ----------- ----------- Adjusted Results $ 152 $ 5 $ 28 ----------- ----------- ----------- Adjusted Margin 20.6% 4.3% For the Three Months Ended December 31, 2014 Music Recorded Publishing Music OIBDA OIBDA Net loss ----------- ----------- ----------- (unaudited) (unaudited) (unaudited) Reported Results $ 111 $ 17 $ (41) Factors Affecting Comparability: PLG Professional Fees and Integration Costs 3 - 3 PLG Restructuring Expense 1 - 1 Cost-Savings Initiatives 2 4 Corporate Headquarters Consolidation - - 6 ----------- ----------- ----------- Adjusted Results $ 117 $ 17 $ (27) ----------- ----------- ----------- Adjusted Margin 16.4% 14.3% Constant Currency Because exchange rates are an important factor in understanding period-to-period comparisons, we believe the presentation of revenue on a constant-currency basis in addition to reported revenue helps improve the ability to understand our operating results and evaluate our performance in comparison to prior periods. Constant-currency information compares results between periods as if exchange rates had remained constant period over period. We use results on a constant-currency basis as one measure to evaluate our performance. We calculate constant-currency results by applying current-year foreign currency exchange rates to prior-year results. However, a limitation of the use of the constant-currency results as a performance measure is that it does not reflect the impact of exchange rates on our revenue. These results should be considered in addition to, not as a substitute for, results reported in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Results on a constant-currency basis, as we present them, may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies and are not a measure of performance presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Figure 7. Warner Music Group Corp. - Revenue by Geography and Segment, Three Months Ended December 31, 2015 versus December 31, 2014 As Reported and Constant Currency (dollars in millions) For the Three For the Three For the Three Months Ended Months Ended Months Ended December 31, December 31, December 31, 2015 2014 2014 ------------- ------------- ------------- As reported As reported Constant (unaudited) (unaudited) (unaudited) US revenue Recorded Music $ 293 $ 241 $ 241 Music Publishing 43 41 41 International revenue Recorded Music 444 473 418 Music Publishing 73 78 68 Intersegment eliminations (4) (4) (4) ------------- ------------- ------------- Total Revenue $ 849 $ 829 $ 764 ============= ============= ============= Revenue by Segment: Recorded Music Physical $ 248 $ 293 $ 268 Digital 322 272 256 ------------- ------------- ------------- Total Physical & Digital 570 565 524 Artist services & expanded- rights 83 76 68 Licensing 84 73 67 ------------- ------------- ------------- Total Recorded Music 737 714 659 Music Publishing Performance 43 45 40 Mechanical 20 23 21 Synchronization 25 25 23 Digital 27 24 23 Other 1 2 2 ------------- ------------- ------------- Total Music Publishing 116 119 109 Intersegment eliminations (4) (4) (4) ------------- ------------- ------------- Total Revenue $ 849 $ 829 $ 764 ============= ============= ============= ------------- ------------- ------------- Total Digital Revenue $ 348 $ 295 $ 278 ============= ============= ============= Free Cash Flow Free Cash Flow reflects our cash flow provided by operating activities less capital expenditures and cash paid for investments. We use Free Cash Flow, among other measures, to evaluate our operating performance. Management believes Free Cash Flow provides investors with an important perspective on the cash available to fund our debt service requirements, ongoing working capital requirements, capital expenditure requirements, strategic acquisitions and investments, and any dividends, prepayments of debt or repurchases or retirement of our outstanding debt or notes in open market purchases, privately negotiated purchases or otherwise. As a result, Free Cash Flow is a significant measure of our ability to generate long-term value. It is useful for investors to know whether this ability is being enhanced or degraded as a result of our operating performance. We believe the presentation of Free Cash Flow is relevant and useful for investors because it allows investors to view performance in a manner similar to the method management uses. Because Free Cash Flow is not a measure of performance calculated in accordance with U.S. GAAP, Free Cash Flow should not be considered in isolation of, or as a substitute for, net income (loss) as an indicator of operating performance or cash flow provided by operating activities as a measure of liquidity. Free Cash Flow, as we calculate it, may not be comparable to similarly titled measures employed by other companies. In addition, Free Cash Flow does not necessarily represent funds available for discretionary use and is not necessarily a measure of our ability to fund our cash needs. Because Free Cash Flow deducts capital expenditures and cash paid for investments from "net cash provided by operating activities" (the most directly comparable U.S. GAAP financial measure), users of this information should consider the types of events and transactions that are not reflected. We provide below a reconciliation of Free Cash Flow to the most directly comparable amount reported under U.S. GAAP, which is "net cash provided by (used in) operating activities." Figure 8. Warner Music Group Corp. - Calculation of Free Cash Flow, Three Months Ended December 31, 2015 versus December 31, 2014 (dollars in millions) For the Three For the Three Months Ended Months Ended December 31, December 31, 2015 2014 ------------- ------------- (unaudited) (unaudited) Net cash provided by operating activities $ 61 $ 35 Less: Capital expenditures 10 24 Less: Net cash paid for investments 8 13 ------------- ------------- Free Cash Flow $ 43 $ (2) ============= ============= Media Contact: James Steven (212) 275-2213 James.Steven@wmg.com Investor Contact: Lori Scherwin (212) 275-4850 Investor.Relations@wmg.com ALISO VIEJO, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- WiSilica, the company that is creating smart environments, today announced the closing of a $3.35 million Series A round led by FirstFloor Capital, with Anchor Asia Management, Aurotek and several of the company's original angel investors also participating. WiSilica's IoT platform and software fabric enables millions of devices to easily connect to the Internet of Things by using the power of Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) protocols, along with mesh technology to work autonomously without bridges or connectivity, to the Cloud. The complete end-to-end IoT solution allows connected devices to understand their environment and use predictive intelligence to improve the user experience, reduce cost and improve efficiency. The funding will enable WiSilica to support growing customer demand for its platform and support expansion across multiple applications and markets, including the smart home, lighting, energy management and across industries. WiSIlica will also expand its team of 50 people, mainly focused on R&D with offices in Southern California and India, to continue developing its innovative hardware, software and Cloud IoT platform and technology, while broadening its compatibility, security and privacy features. "WiSilica has great potential to transform the Internet of Things by creating more smart environments," said Fahmi Hamzah, principal and executive director of FirstFloor Capital. "Our fund strategy is to look at technology that provides simple and rapid platforms for customers, and WiSilica's platform addresses this need at a global level. It's clear that WiSilica is poised for significant future growth, and FirstFloor Capital is proud to be part of it." The Internet of Things has made huge advances across numerous IoT applications, but with it brings tremendous amounts of complexity. Around the world, securing the IoT is a key issue, along with flexibility, adaptability and scalability. WiSilica's smart environment IoT platform addresses this complexity -- working with legacy devices and new products designed for the IoT, and sets new benchmarks for IoT success in areas including real-time presence and awareness, secure connectivity, data analytics opportunities, cost savings and highly responsive user experiences. "We founded WiSilica two years ago with the goal of solving the complexity with the Internet of Things," said Suresh Singamsetty, founder and CEO of WiSilica. "We now have a flexible and secure platform, where customers can use technologies such as Bluetooth Low Energy, machine learning and geolocation with more precision than ever before, which presents huge efficiency opportunities for businesses. We have a rapidly growing design pipeline encompassing a wide variety of exciting IoT applications, all based on our smart environment IoT platform that can easily connect with the existing smartphone ecosystem and our mesh networking technology." About WiSilica WiSilica is a leading provider of IoT solutions with its open platform that easily, flexibly and cost-effectively bridges objects, location and people to create smart environments that have predictive intelligence. WiSilica simplifies the challenges with today's IoT by enabling connected devices to understand contextual elements such as user behaviors, sensor inputs and proximity. The result is a true smart environment under de-centralized control, in which customers can connect energy, public infrastructure and healthcare systems with intelligent devices managed by mobile apps and the Cloud. About First Floor Capital First Floor Capital is a venture investment firm that invests in high-growth technology companies in industries serving information technology, mobility, communications, and life sciences. The firm focuses on companies with unique competitive advantages, sustainable value propositions, and strong management teams. Its strength and global network enable the firm to help portfolio companies to expand routes to international markets and establish strategic partnerships to accelerate growth. The First Floor Capital team acts as a trusted partner and helps their entrepreneurs and teams to build truly world-class companies. Media Contact: Jeremy Hyatt Green Flash Media for WiSilica 949-357-0141 Email Contact VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- Zadar Ventures Ltd. (the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: ZAD)(FRANKFURT: ZAV) announces that it has entered into a standstill agreement with a private Nevada LLC to negotiate an option to purchase a 100% interest in two prospective Lithium projects near Silver Peak, Nevada in North America's only producing lithium brine basin, the Clayton Valley Basin. One of the projects is located immediately adjacent to the Rockwood Lithium Mine and Processing Plant complex in North Clayton Valley and covers approximately 425 hectares, including a gravity low anomaly interpreted to represent a basinal low permissive to host brines containing elevated concentrations of lithium. This project's merit is supported by a USGS test hole (Drillhole CV-2) located approx. 600m from the eastern claim boundary that reported a 55ppm Li maximum content from analyzed water samples. The other project lies approximately 18 kilometres southeast of Silver Peak, Nevada and covers over 330 hectares of an isolated and un-drilled basin which has the potential to host a similar lithium brine environment by virtue of its proximal location to the possible source of the lithium within the Clayton Valley system. This later project has also been the subject of a suite of initial gravity surveys and shows a basinal feature, which if closed, could host brines with elevated lithium concentrations. The Company intends to have an executed definitive agreement by Feb 25th 2016 and more information on the projects and Zadar's plans to advance these projects will be released after this event. This news release has been reviewed and approved by Paul D. Gray, P.Geo., who is the Company's qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. Zadar Ventures Ltd. is a Resource Company focused on the acquisition and exploration of economically viable green energy resources in jurisdictions favorable to mining and industry. For more information we invite you to visit the company's website at www.zadarventures.com Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Contacts: Zadar Ventures Ltd. Paul D. Gray President, CEO 604-682-1643 www.zadarventures.com Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - February 4, 2016) - Silver Dragon Resources Inc. (OTCQB: SDRG) (the "Company") reports that the Board of Directors (the "Board") has rejected an offer (the "Offer") from Shengda Industrial Group Ltd. ("Shengda") to receive an all cash consideration in five installments over the course of several years with the last payment being made in 2019 for the Company's 20% equity interest in Inner Mongolia Guangda Mining Ltd. ("Guangda'), a wholly owned subsidiary of its Foreign Cooperative Joint Venture in China, Sanhe Sino-Top Resources & Technologies, Ltd. ("Sino-Top"), for RMB161,922,820 (approximately USD$25 Million). See press release dated January 13, 2016. The offer did not include the Company's equity interest in the remaining four properties, Zhuanxinhu, Shididonggou, Aobaotugounao and Yuanlinzibeishan held by Sino-Top as did the Memorandum of Understanding signed with Shengda Mining Co., Ltd. (SZSE:000603) ("Shengda Mining"). See press release dated November 3, 2015. The Company retained Watts, Griffis and McOuat Limited, a Toronto-based consulting firm, to provide an independent review of the valuation of the Dadi and Laopandao projects held by Guangda using the same data and using the same Chinese valuation guidelines to provide a third party fairness opinion to the Board of Directors (the "Board") with a basis for comparison to assess the valuation and the offer received from Shengda. The initial report suggests that the valuation may be fair however the terms and conditions may not be. The Company's Board has reviewed the valuations, terms and conditions of the Shengda offer and the fact that the Company lost 20% Equity interest in Sino-Top in 2014 for not meeting its contribution obligation to the joint venture, however subsequently Shengda did not make its contribution to Sino-Top as per the agreement and therefore as a result the Board has concluded by resolution to make a counter offer to both Shengda and Shengda Mining, which counter offer includes the following terms and conditions: Consideration of RMB265,000,000 (approximately USD$40 Million) for the Company's 20% interest in Sino-Top which includes all Six (6) properties. Paid in two installments, 50% on closing and 50% on approval by all appropriate regulatory authority including the China Securities Regulatory Commission and Ministry of Commerce no later than December 31, 2016. If the Company's counter offer is accepted by Shengda or Shengda Mining the Board by resolution shall seek approval of the matter at a Special Meeting of Stockholders to be scheduled at that time. Consummation of the sale of the Company's 20% interest in Sino-Top which is all of its interest in Sino-Top is subject to determination of the final sales price of Sino-Top, execution of final transaction documents, obtaining any required approvals including the approval of the Company's shareholders and the approval of appropriate regulatory authority including the China Securities Regulatory Commission. About Silver Dragon Silver Dragon Resources Inc. is a mining and metal company focused on the acquisition, exploration, development and operation of gold and silver mines in proven mining districts globally. Silver Dragon's objective is to acquire mining assets that contain promising exploration targets, have highly leveraged, out-of-the-money deposits, and/or are producing properties with significant untapped exploration potential. It is management's objective to grow Silver Dragon into a significant precious metal producer. For more information, please visit the Company's website at: www.silverdragonresources.com (available in Chinese). Safe Harbor Statement This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding the Company's objectives. Forward looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, but not always, identified by the words "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "estimates," "projects," "aims," "potential," "goal," "objective," "prospective," and similar expressions, or that events or conditions "will," "would," "may," "can," "could" or "should" occur. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking statements by the Company are not guarantees of future results or performance, and that actual results may differ materially from those in forward looking statements as a result of various factors, including, but not limited to, lack of sufficient financial resources; variations in market conditions, including prices of metals, currency and our stock; the nature, quality and quantity of any mineral deposits that may be located; the Company's ability to obtain any necessary permits, consents or authorizations required for its activities; the Company's ability to successfully complete hedging establishment and off-take negotiations; risks of operating in China; the Company's ability to produce minerals from its properties successfully or profitably, to continue its projected growth, or to be fully able to implement its business strategies and other risk factors described in the Company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which may be viewed at www.sec.gov. Contact Silver Dragon Resources Inc. Marc Hazout, President (416) 223-8500 or Toll Free: 1-866-512- SDRG (7374) Email: info@silverdragonresources.com SOURCE: Silver Dragon Resources Inc. Copenhagen, 4 February 2016 - In response to market speculation about patent litigation in the US relating to lixisenatide, Zealand informs that it is not a party to the US proceedings. Zealand is aware of the patent litigation and other invalidity proceedings before the US Patent and Trademark Office, which are pending between Sanofi and AstraZeneca, and is keeping informed of their status and monitoring developments closely. With regard to the potential consequences for Zealand of this ongoing litigation, the company confirms its confidence that the practice by Sanofi of the rights licensed to it by Zealand does not infringe AstraZeneca patents that are valid and enforceable. In light of the strong intellectual property position of lixisenatide in the US and elsewhere, Zealand does not expect that the pending proceedings will affect the company or its outlook. Attachment: https://cns.omxgroup.com/cds/DisclosureAttachmentServlet?messageAttachmentId=545396 Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- Golden Arrow Resources Corporation (TSX VENTURE: GRG)(FRANKFURT: GAC)(WKN: A0B6XQ) ("Golden Arrow") is pleased to announce the results of assaying of an additional 14 drill holes in the Phase V drilling program at the Chinchillas Silver Project in Jujuy Province, Argentina. Previous results from the program were reported in news releases dated December 2nd, 2015, December 16th, 2015, January 11th, and January 20th, 2016. The drilling program is part of the Chinchillas Project pre-development activities, funded by Silver Standard, which are being undertaken to evaluate the feasibility of creating a combined mining business with Silver Standard's Pirquitas mine, as announced October 1st, 2015. The drilling program is on-going and additional results will be announced as assays are received. Selected highlights from these drill holes include: -- 151 g/t silver, 2.0% lead and 1.3% zinc over 61 metres in CGA-258 -- Includes 675 g/t silver, 4.4% lead and 3.4% zinc over 1 metre -- And 403 g/t silver, 3.7% lead and 1.2% zinc over 3 metres -- And 640 g/t silver, 8.6% lead over 2 metres -- 186 g/t silver, 1.1% lead and 0.5% zinc over 38 metres in CGA-259 -- Including 347 g/t silver, 0.8% lead and 0.6% zinc over 5 metres -- And 420 g/t silver, 5.5% lead and 0.7% zinc over 2 metres -- 203 g/t silver, 1.6% lead and 1.0% zinc over 21 metres in CGA-249 -- Including 388 g/t silver, 2.6% lead and 1.4% zinc over 6 metres -- 245 g/t silver, 0.5% lead and 0.5% zinc over 20 metres in CGA-255 -- Including 853 g/t silver and 0.6% zinc over 2 metres The Phase V drill program started on October 19th, 2015 and since then over 13,000 metres of drilling has been completed, with approximately 2,000 metres of the program remaining. The program is comprised mainly of infill holes in the Silver Mantos and Mantos Basement zones to upgrade the Mineral Resource categories, plus five geotechnical holes to support slope angle recommendations for the potential future pits, drilling to characterize ground waters in the project area, and condemnation drilling around the deposit. Table 1 below includes the assay results from 14 diamond drill holes totaling 1,550 metres in length, including one hole drilled to characterize ground water. A map of the drill hole locations is available on the Chinchillas map page on the Golden Arrow website at: http://www.goldenarrowresources.com/i/maps/4-NR5-Map-Feb-4-2016.pdf. Chinchillas Deposit Geology The Chinchillas deposit is a volcanic vent system in which explosive volcanic activity produced diatreme breccias and tuffs in the upper part of the vent and brecciated the underlying Ordovician basement meta-sediments. Silver-lead-zinc mineralization in the tuff and tuff breccia units is disseminated within thick mantos (layers), and in the basement is mainly within the fractures of the breccias. Mineralization occurs in four main zones: to the west is situated the Silver Mantos tuff-hosted zone and the Mantos Basement zone; to the east is situated the Socavon del Diablo ("Socavon") tuff-hosted zone and the Socavon Basement zone. The zones are described in detail in the most recent NI 43-101 Technical Report, filed under Golden Arrow's SEDAR profile dated November 2nd, 2015. Drill Hole Details Mineralized intercepts greater than 20g/t silver and 0.5% lead and 0.5% zinc are reported in Table 1. Holes CGA-248, CGA-249, CGA-250, CGA-251, CGA-252, CGA-254 and CGA-255 were drilled to infill the central-south part of the Silver Mantos zone. Assays from these holes confirmed near-surface mineralization with several intersections of substantial grade and widths, similar to those reported from earlier holes in the vicinity. Holes CGA-253 and CGA-256 were drilled to infill the northern portion of the Silver Mantos and test for an extension of high grade mineralization from hole CGA-193 (reported on December 16, 2015). CGA-253 returned no significant intercepts and those from CGA-256 were minor. Holes CGA-258, CGA-259 and CGA-261 were drilled to infill the Mantos Basement and all encountered mineralization at the expected depth, just below the contact with the tuff unit. Hole CGA-257 was a twin hole to CGA-40 and confirmed the mineralization with similar widths and grades. Holes CGA-260W and CGA-262W were located in the Socavon del Diablo area adjacent to the main creek and were drilled to allow the installation of piezometers to monitor ground water. Hole CGA-260W was drilled with a diamond drill and samples were therefore sent for analysis, with the results reported in Table 1. CGA-262W was drilled with a rotary drill and no samples were recovered or sent for analysis. Table 1. Drill Intercepts greater than 20g/t for Ag and greater than 0.5% for Pb and Zn ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- From To Length Ag Pb Zn TARGET HOLE Note (metres) (metres) (metres) (g/t) (%) (%) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Silver Mantos CGA-248 20 38 18.0 89 0.8 ---------------------------------------------------- 50 51 1.0 27 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------- 60 61 1.0 26 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Silver Mantos CGA-249 11 32 21.0 203 1.6 1.0 ---------------------------------------------------- including 22 28 6.0 388 2.6 1.4 ---------------------------------------------------- 36 41 5.0 21 ---------------------------------------------------- 46 48 2.0 1.0 ---------------------------------------------------- 48 50 2.0 58 4.1 ---------------------------------------------------- 56 62 6.0 32 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Silver Mantos CGA-250 13 40 27.0 102 0.5 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------- including 25 27 2.0 309 1.2 1.1 ---------------------------------------------------- 42 52 10.0 82 0.5 1.7 ---------------------------------------------------- 57 58 1.0 26 ---------------------------------------------------- 65 66.5 1.5 22 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Silver Mantos CGA-251 10 12 2.0 39 ---------------------------------------------------- 16 18 2.0 29 0.6 ---------------------------------------------------- 20 37 17.0 125 0.8 ---------------------------------------------------- 40 47 7.0 34 0.6 0.6 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Silver Mantos CGA-252 26 32 6.0 157 0.5 0.8 ---------------------------------------------------- 46 60.5 14.5 37 0.7 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Silver Mantos CGA-253 No significant mineralization ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Silver Mantos CGA-254 5 55 50.0 150 1.0 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------- including 30 33 3.0 700 3.4 1.8 ---------------------------------------------------- 61 76 15.0 46 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Silver Mantos CGA-255 7 9 2.0 0.6 ---------------------------------------------------- 9 21 12.0 65 1.2 ---------------------------------------------------- 27 47 20.0 245 0.5 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------- including 42 44 2.0 853 0.6 ---------------------------------------------------- 49 53 4.0 35 ---------------------------------------------------- 55 57 2.0 42 ---------------------------------------------------- 60 73 13.0 210 0.7 0.8 ---------------------------------------------------- including 65 67 2.0 895 2.2 ---------------------------------------------------- 73 74 1.0 1.1 ---------------------------------------------------- 75 82 7.0 48 ---------------------------------------------------- 82 84 2.0 0.7 ---------------------------------------------------- 84 88 4.0 22 0.6 2.4 ---------------------------------------------------- 88 91 3.0 1.2 ---------------------------------------------------- 91 108 17.0 22 0.5 1.3 ---------------------------------------------------- 108 116 8.0 0.8 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Silver Mantos CGA-256 50 54 4.0 85 ---------------------------------------------------- 136 138 2.0 22 1.0 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Silver Mantos CGA-257 17 31 14.0 240 1.3 1.1 ---------------------------------------------------- 32 34 2.0 43 ---------------------------------------------------- 35 40 5.0 69 0.6 1.2 ---------------------------------------------------- 43 70 27.0 73 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Silver Mantos CGA-258 10 40 30.0 36 ---------------------------------------------------- 86 92 6.0 1.4 ---------------------------------------------------- 92 96 4.0 0.6 2.8 ---------------------------------------------------- 96 103 7.0 47 1.1 2.4 ---------------------------------------------------- 104 105 1.0 0.6 2.0 ---------------------------------------------------- 105 106 1.0 33 0.6 1.8 ---------------------------------------------------- 106 108 2.0 0.6 2.3 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mantos Basement CGA-258 110 171 61.0 151 2.0 1.3 ---------------------------------------------------- including 115 116 1.0 675 4.4 3.4 ---------------------------------------------------- and 157 160 3.0 403 3.7 1.2 ---------------------------------------------------- and 166 168 2.0 640 8.6 ---------------------------------------------------- 173 174 1.0 51 0.5 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------- 174 176 2.0 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------- 177 197 20.0 110 1.2 ---------------------------------------------------- 199 207 8.0 97 1.5 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Silver Mantos CGA-259 54 60 6.0 0.8 ---------------------------------------------------- 81 82 1.0 154 1.8 15.3 ---------------------------------------------------- 82 94 12.0 1.1 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mantos Basement CGA-259 101 129 28.0 144 1.8 0.7 ---------------------------------------------------- including 125 127 2.0 740 2.9 2.4 ---------------------------------------------------- 131 136 5.0 37 0.6 ---------------------------------------------------- 139 141 2.0 36 ---------------------------------------------------- 142 143 1.0 102 ---------------------------------------------------- 145 183 38.0 186 1.1 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------- including 146 151 5.0 347 0.8 0.6 ---------------------------------------------------- and 163 165 2.0 420 5.5 0.7 ---------------------------------------------------- 184 185 1.0 31 1.1 ---------------------------------------------------- 188 189 1.0 69 ---------------------------------------------------- 191 192 1.0 33 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------- 194 196 2.0 25 0.8 ---------------------------------------------------- 202 206 4.0 37 0.7 ---------------------------------------------------- 215 216 1.0 36 0.7 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Socavon del Diablo CGA-260W 2 6 4.0 0.8 ---------------------------------------------------- 20 30.5 10.5 4.3 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Silver Mantos CGA-261 8 9 1.0 30 ---------------------------------------------------- 19 33 14.0 36 ---------------------------------------------------- 52 57 5.0 1.1 ---------------------------------------------------- 62 66 4.0 185 0.7 ---------------------------------------------------- 66 71 5.0 0.6 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mantos Basement CGA-261 83 102 19.0 73 1.6 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------- 103 115 12.0 207 4.4 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------- including 108 111 3.0 566 10.6 0.8 ---------------------------------------------------- 118 132 14.0 86 0.6 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------- 146 149 3.0 57 0.5 ---------------------------------------------------- 150 153 3.0 44 ---------------------------------------------------- 158 159 1.0 190 1.9 ---------------------------------------------------- 162 171 9.0 85 1.4 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Socavon del Diablo CGA-262W No samples ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Notes to Table 1: 1. The reported intervals are downhole lengths and are believed to approximate true width; this will be confirmed with geologic modeling. 2. All grades are uncut. Table 2. Drill hole location and orientation data ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Elevation Azimuth Inclination Final Hole Easting Northing (m) (deg) (deg) depth (m) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-248 3472669 7512320 4131 0 -90 66 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-249 3472733 7512311 4127 0 -90 62 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-250 3472786 7512287 4120 0 -90 68 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-251 3472638 7512313 4134 0 -90 65 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-252 3472690 7512264 4134 0 -90 62 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-253 3472755 7512583 4113 35 -50 100.5 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-254 3472708 7512342 4128 0 -90 80 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-255 3472727 7512372 4125 0 -90 131 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-256 3472736 7512564 4115 35 -50 145.5 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-257 3472718 7512279 4131 0 -90 110 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-258 3472611 7512374 4130 180 -50 220.5 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-259 3472585 7512438 4125 180 -50 224 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-260W 3473727 7512260 4068 0 -90 30.5 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-261 3472612 7512375 4130 270 -60 185 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- CGA-262W 3473727 7512253 4068 0 -90 10 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Methodology and QA/QC Analyses of the drill core were performed by Alex Stewart Assayers, in Mendoza, Argentina, an internationally recognized assay service provider. All samples were analyzed by method ICP-MA-39 that consists of a four acid digestion followed by ICP-OES detection. Silver results greater than 200 Ag g/t were re-analyzed by fire assay with a gravimetric finish on 50-gram samples. Lead and zinc results greater than 10,000 ppm were re-analyzed by a three acid digestion and ICP-OES detection. The Company follows industry standard procedures for the work carried out on the Chinchillas Project, with a quality assurance/quality control (QA/QC) program. Blank, duplicate and standard samples were inserted into the drill core sample sequence sent to the laboratory for analysis. Golden Arrow detected no significant QA/QC issues during review of the data. Qualified Persons The results of the Company's drilling program have been reviewed, verified (including sampling, analytical and test data) and compiled by the Company's geological staff under the supervision of Brian McEwen, P.Geol., VP Exploration and Development to the Company. Mr. McEwen is a Qualified Person as defined in National Instrument 43-101, and has reviewed and approved the contents of the news release. About Golden Arrow: Golden Arrow Resources is a Vancouver-based exploration company focused on creating value by making precious and base metal discoveries and advancing them into exceptional deposits. The Company is currently focused on its Chinchillas Silver Project located in the mining-friendly Province of Jujuy, Argentina. Exploration has progressed rapidly since the acquisition of the project in late 2011. The innovative transaction announced October 1st, 2015, positions the Company to maximize shareholder value by fast-tracking Chinchillas to production and becoming a 25% owner of the world-class Pirquitas silver mine. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD Mr. Joseph Grosso, Executive Chairman, President, CEO and Director Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. Such forward-looking statements concern the Company's anticipated results and developments in the Company's operations in future periods, planned exploration and development of the Chinchillas project, plans related to its business and other matters that may occur in the future. Statements concerning mineral resource estimates and the interpretation of drill results may also constitute forward-looking statements to the extent that they involve estimates of the mineralization that will be encountered if the Chinchillas project is developed. These statements are based on a number of assumptions which may prove to be incorrect, including, but not limited to, assumptions about the following: assumptions made in the Chinchillas Mineral Resource Estimate, including geological interpretation, grade, recovery rates, silver, zinc and lead price assumptions and operating costs; the availability of financing for exploration and development activities, including Silver Standard Resources Inc. ("SSRI") meeting certain milestones and exercising its election to proceed with the transactions contemplated under the Business Combination Agreement dated September 30, 2015 among the Company, SSRI and certain other parties; the Company's ability to attract and retain skilled staff; the Chinchillas project development schedule; the exchange rates of the Canadian dollar and United States dollar to the Argentina peso; market competition; ongoing relations with impacted communities; and general business and economic conditions. Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which could cause actual events or results to differ from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements, including, without limitation: risks related to precious and base metal price fluctuations; risks related to the transactions contemplated by the Business Combination Agreement; risks related to fluctuations in the currency markets (particularly the Argentinean peso, Canadian dollar and United States dollar); risks related to the inherently dangerous activity of mining, including conditions or events beyond our control, and operating or technical difficulties in mineral exploration, development and mining activities; uncertainty in the Company's ability to raise financing and fund the development of the Chinchillas project, including as recommended in the Chinchillas Mineral Resource Estimate; uncertainty as to actual capital costs, operating costs, production and economic returns, and uncertainty that development activities will result in a profitable mining operation at Chinchillas; risks related to mineral resource figures being estimates based on interpretations and assumptions which may result in less mineral production under actual conditions than is currently estimated and to diminishing quantities or grades of mineral resources as properties are mined; risks related to governmental regulations and obtaining necessary licenses and permits; risks related to the business being subject to environmental laws and regulations which may increase costs of doing business and restrict our operations; risks related to the Chinchillas project being subject to prior unregistered agreements, transfers, or claims and other defects in title; risks relating to inadequate insurance or inability to obtain insurance; risks related to potential litigation; risks related to the global economy; and risks related to the Chinchillas project being located in Argentina, including political, economic, social and regulatory instability. Should one or more of these risks and uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described in the forward-looking statements. The Company's forward-looking statements are based on beliefs, expectations and opinions of management on the date the statements are made. For the reasons set forth above, investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The information provided in this news release addresses the drill results from the Chinchillas project and is not intended to be a comprehensive review of all matters and developments concerning the Company. It should be read in conjunction with all other disclosure documents of the Company. The information contained herein is not a substitute for detailed investigation or analysis. No securities commission or regulatory authority has reviewed the accuracy or adequacy of the information presented. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements other than as required under applicable law. We advise U.S. investors that the SEC's mining guidelines strictly prohibit information of this type in documents filed with the SEC. U.S. investors are cautioned that mineral deposits on adjacent properties are not indicative of mineral deposits on our properties. Contacts: Golden Arrow Resources Corporation Corporate Communications 1-604-687-1828 or Toll Free: 1-800-901-0058 info@goldenarrowresources.com ATLANTA, GA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- Sage, a market leader for integrated accounting, payroll and payments systems, is proud to sponsor a dynamic, inspiring, creative and responsible day of business brainstorming. Today they announced that they are acting as corporate sponsor for the 21st Century Leaders' Goizueta Youth Leadership Summit. Tweet This:.@SageNAmerica to sponsor the 21st Century Leaders' Goizueta Youth Leadership Summit: http://bit.ly/1QGuG2R #21CLGYLA Taking place on Friday, February 5, and Saturday, February 6, on the campus of Emory University, the Goizueta Youth Leadership Summit is a two-day leadership training event for high school students hosted by 21st Century Leaders, Sage, and Emory University's Goizueta Business School. The first day is themed "Responsibility, Inc.," where an impressive line-up of responsible businesses (including Brian Preston, TedX speaker and founder of furniture company Lamon Luther, and White House Champion of Change in the Deployment of Solar Pete Marte of Hannah Solar) will speak to the students and explain why they put responsibility at the core of their businesses. This two-day summit exposes attending high school students to a new set of leadership workshops, networking opportunities and social activities with peers and professionals, focused on building business and entrepreneurial skills. But while they are learning these valuable business skills, they'll also be learning about building a business with purpose. "These young, impressionable adults are at a critical turning point -- soon to graduate high school -- and are poised to have enormous impact on the business landscape; we want to help make that impact responsible, as well as profitable," said Lawton Ursrey, senior customer success manager, Sage One, and Atlanta entrepreneur. "Social and environmental stewardship is not an opposing force to entrepreneurship; creating 'businesses with a purpose' is more important than ever. It's no longer just the right thing to do, it's the smart thing to do because the growing number of consumers with similar belief metrics demand it." Getting finances right is critical for any budding entrepreneur, and students attending the Youth Leadership Summit will have the opportunity to learn more about Sage One online accounting, which offers bookkeeping essentials for small business owners. Sage One offers everything entrepreneurs need to handle their cash flow, simplifying finances and keeping them on track. Sage supports budding entrepreneurs in other ways, as well, through efforts such as the Sage One Scholarship program, which offers future business leaders the opportunity to compete for a $10k scholarship to put toward their postsecondary education. The first two winners were just announced last week, and the contest is once again open to high school students graduating within the next 12 months or current college/university students enrolled full time at an accredited institution in the U.S. or Canada. Two prizes will be given: one to a student in Canada, one in the U.S. The deadline for the current contest is May 31, and more details are available here. Connect with Sage North America Sage Advice LinkedIn Twitter (@SageNAmerica) YouTube Facebook Google+ Instagram About Sage Sage is the market leader for integrated accounting, payroll and payment systems, supporting the ambition of the world's entrepreneurs. Sage began as a small business in the UK 30 years ago and over 13000 colleagues now support millions of entrepreneurs across 23 countries as they power the global economy. We reinvent and simplify business accounting through brilliant technology, working with a thriving community of entrepreneurs, business owners, tradespeople, accountants, partners and developers. And as a FTSE 100 business, we are active in supporting our local communities and invest in making a real difference through the philanthropy of the Sage Foundation. Sage -- the market leader for integrated accounting, payroll and payment systems, supporting the ambition of the world's entrepreneurs. www.sage.com 2016 Sage Software, Inc. All rights reserved. Sage, the Sage logos, and the Sage product and service names mentioned herein are registered trademarks or trademarks of Sage Software, Inc. or its affiliated entities. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. Media contacts: Aimee Ertley Sage T: 678-280-5556 Aimee.Ertley@Sage.com Kate Hewitt 21st Century Leaders T: 404-373-7441 kate@21stcenturyleaders.org The former Director and President of the London School of Economics will become the new President of the Berggruen Institute in Los Angeles The Berggruen Institute, an independent, non-partisan "think and action tank" (based in Los Angeles), today announced that Craig Calhoun will become the new President of the organization. Professor Calhoun will leave his current position as Director and President of the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) in the summer of 2016 to take on this new role. As President, Professor Calhoun will oversee all aspects of the strategy and operations for the Institute and will spearhead the launch of several new programs, including the Berggruen Philosophy Prize. The $1 million prize will be awarded to a living thinker whose ideas have had broad cultural or philosophical impact. Professor Calhoun is a world-renowned social scientist whose work connects sociology to culture, communication, politics, philosophy and economics. At LSE, Professor Calhoun led a number of significant advances, including a major initiative to strengthen faculty and research quality, which was followed by an excellent performance in global rankings. He also oversaw efforts to enhance interdisciplinary research and teaching, especially to address major global issues like climate change, urbanization and inequality. Prior to his post at LSE, he was University Professor at New York University, director of the Institute for Public Knowledge and President of the Social Science Research Council. He is the author of several books, including Does Capitalism Have a Future?, Nations Matter, Critical Social Theory, Neither Gods Nor Emperors and most recently, The Roots of Radicalism (University of Chicago Press, 2012). Announcing the appointment, Nicolas Berggruen, the founder and chairman of the Berggruen Institute, remarked, "Having headed LSE, Craig brings to us the world-class experience of leadership as well as scholarly achievement in the top ranks of global education. His aspiration over the years to establish 'an institutional location for practical reason in public affairs' is a perfect fit with our mission." "The Berggruen Institute offers an incredibly exciting opportunity. Like LSE, this institute seeks to use knowledge to improve society and deepen the capacity for international cooperation," said Professor Calhoun. "It has been an enormous honor to lead LSE and I am looking forward to this new challenge." For more information visit: http://www.berggruen.org/ Twitter Facebook Youtube Instagram View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160204005330/en/ Contacts: The Berggruen Institute Dawn Nakagawa, 917-379-6043 4th February Campaign will see all advertisements across major French channels subtitled in an attempt to encourage more Brands to subtitle their advertising Group IMD, the global ad delivery company, is supporting an evening of subtitled adverts across the 6 major broadcasters in France. The campaign seeks to drive change within the advertising industry by engaging nearly six million hearing-impaired individuals. Only 4% of French advertisements are subtitled, despite subtitling services launching in 2012. According to the Hearing Impaired Association: "A large community has been left isolated, pushed apart and ignored." The campaign will encourage broadcasters across Europe to incorporate subtitles in their advertisements and raise awareness of hearing-impaired individuals. The UK is currently leading the way with 15% of all its adverts subtitled. In contrast, there is almost no subtitling in the rest of Europe. Simon Cox, Chief Executive Officer of Group IMD, said: "This is a landmark campaign in the hearing-impaired community, demonstrating how much more needs to be done in Europe. We hope that this campaign will encourage more broadcasters and advertisers to air subtitled advertisements. It doesn't make marketing sense to ignore such a large audience." The project will see the global technology group join together with a number of partners including AACC (Association of Agencies for Advise and Communication), UDA (the French Advertisers Association), SNPTV (the Association of Major Broadcasters) and ARPP (French Clearance Company) to transform the viewing experience of nearly six million hearing-impaired individuals across the country. The campaign will run from 7:30pm until 11pm on the 4th February and Group IMD will use its subtitling service to help ensure that advertisements are accessible to all viewers. -ENDS- About Group IMD: Group IMD is a global technology business automating the workflow and delivery of advertisements from ad agencies production companies to broadcasters and the online video industry. Working in more than 100 markets with over 35 local offices, Group IMD's worldwide presence across Europe, Asia Pacific, Australasia, the Middle East and Latin America is changing the way advertising works. Founded in 1996, Group IMD has grown continuously to provide the world's most extensive, fully automated, cloud native, broadcast grade, video advertising platform: IMD Cloud http://www.groupimd.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160204005854/en/ Contacts: Instinctif Partners for Group IMD Tali Kramer or Lottie Whyte groupimd@instinctif.com +44(0)207 457 2074 WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - US Secretary of State John Kerry announced Thursday that the United States is providing nearly $601 million in additional life-saving humanitarian assistance for those affected by the war in Syria. This new funding brings U.S. humanitarian assistance in response to this conflict to more than $5.1 billion since the start of the crisis. Kerry also announced more than $290 million in U.S. development assistance for education to Jordan and Lebanon. The Syrian conflict is the largest and most complex humanitarian emergency of the near past, with more than two-thirds of Syria's pre-war population-17 million people-in need of humanitarian assistance. Through this humanitarian funding, the United States continues to provide food, shelter, water, medical care, humanitarian protection, and other urgent relief to millions of people suffering inside Syria and 4.6 million refugees from Syria in the region. It also helps mitigate the impact of the crisis on governments and communities throughout the region that are straining to cope with the mass influx of refugees from Syria. The humanitarian assistance supports the operations of the United Nations, other international organizations, and non-governmental organizations. Through these organizations, the United States is able to provide assistance in all 14 governorates of Syria, helping the people who need it most-and ultimately saving lives and alleviating suffering amid daily threats of violence and deprivation. Part of the new funding responds directly to the 2016 UN appeal of $8 billion for Syria and the region. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de Admiral Group plc will be announcing its 2015 Preliminary Results on Thursday 3 March 2016 at 7.00am. On the same day the Group will host an analyst presentation on the results at 9.00am at UBS, 1 Finsbury Avenue, London, EC2M 2PP. Those analysts wishing to attend are asked to contact Tom Blackwell at FTI Consulting on +44 20 3727 1051 or tom.blackwell@fticonsulting.com The presentation will be accessible via a conference call for those unable to attend in person. To register to participate in the conference call please also contact Tom Blackwell. A web cast of the presentation will be available live, and following the meeting, on the Admiral Group plc website at www.admiralgroup.co.uk For more information, please contact: Admiral Karen Maguire Investors & Analysts +44 (0) 29 2060 2075 James Carnduff Media +44 (0) 29 2043 4232 FTI Consulting Paul Marriott +44 (0) 20 3727 1341 Edward Berry +44 (0) 20 3727 1046 This announcement is distributed by GlobeNewswire on behalf of GlobeNewswire clients. The owner of this announcement warrants that: (i) the releases contained herein are protected by copyright and other applicable laws; and (ii) they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: Admiral Group PLC via GlobeNewswire [HUG#1983830] A0DJ58B02J639R12 Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. For further information: Jonas Wistrom, President and CEO +46 70 608 12 20 Mats Pahlsson, President Infrastructure Division +46 70 534 64 00 The conditions for the transactions between AF and the Norwegian engineering consultancy company Reinertsen are now fulfilled. The transactions were completed as per February 1, 2016 and increase AF revenues with MSEK 450, whereof MSEK 300 in Norway and MSEK 150 in Sweden. As previously announced, AF and Reinertsen agreed in December 2015 to merge their Norwegian businesses within Infrastructure, Buildings and Installations in one jointly owned company. The merged operations will be the foundation for growth in the Norwegian infrastructure market. Furthermore, it was agreed that AF was to acquire Reinertsen's Swedish Infrastructure business. All conditions for the completion of the transaction are now fulfilled and the mergers are concluded as per February 1, 2016. The businesses forming the jointly owned company - AF Reinertsen AS - has approximately 350 employees located in Trondheim, Oslo, Bergen, Lillestrom and Sandefjord. AF has an ownership of 51% and Reinertsen 49%. Kristian Reinertsen holds the position as CEO. The number of AF employees in Norway now amounts to approximately 650. The Swedish Reinertsen operation within Infrastructure, Buildings and Installations, acquired by AF to 100%, has 180 employees in Gothenburg, Stockholm, Malmo and Lulea. The operations in Sweden as well as in Norway are part of the Infrastructure Division. Corporate Communications AF AB (publ) AF is an engineering and consulting company for the energy, industrial and infrastructure markets, creating progress for our clients since 1895. By connecting technologies we provide profitable, innovative and sustainable solutions to shape the future and improve people's lives. Building on our strong base in Europe, our business and clients are found all over the world. AF - Innovation by experience Press release (PDF) (http://hugin.info/1253/R/1983847/727135.pdf) This announcement is distributed by NASDAQ OMX Corporate Solutions on behalf of NASDAQ OMX Corporate Solutions clients. The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: AF AB via Globenewswire HUG#1983847 Online printer offers discounts on classic printing products The online printer UNITEDPRINT SE with its most renowned brand print24.com - is offering attractive savings to its customers with its top teller weeks. Every Monday, one of the company's premium printing products, i.e. Flyers, Business cards, Letterheads and Postcards, will be on sale for 15% off and for one week. "Our customers expect us to provide the highest quality at the lowest prices. This is why we have chosen to drastically reduce the price of our top sellers, which are already a great value for money, each week," said Ali Jason Bazooband, print24.com's Managing Director Marketing. The sale will go on until March 2016. At the same time, the online printer will continue to spread its product campaign this year, adding new products and services to its range every week. print24.com is a UNITEDPRINT SE brand, a global and innovation-oriented e-commerce company for print and media. As one of Europe's leading online printers, UNITEDPRINT SE is represented in the marketplace by the renowned brands print24, Easyprint, Unitedprint, getprint, printwhat, FIRSTPRINT, DDK PRINT BIG, infowerk, and Unitedprint Shop Services (USS). The company employs a staff of over 700 people at 26 locations worldwide (in Germany, 21 other European countries, and in Brazil, China, Canada, and the US). In addition to the standard print products, the company provides its customers with high-quality products ranging from the textile printing, photo printing, advertising equipment printing and gastronomy sectors. Customers can also benefit from their 24-hour availability as well as their 30/60/90-payment model, which is unique in this sector. The original source-language text of this announcement is the official, authoritative version. Translations are provided as an accommodation only, and should be cross-referenced with the source-language text, which is the only version of the text intended to have legal effect. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160204005969/en/ Contacts: unitedprint.com SE Maria Lehmann 0049 (0)351 27225388 presse@unitedprint.com Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/tjrlxd/world_summit_on) has announced the addition of the "World Summit on Beauty Innovation (Vienna, Austria 9th-10th June 2016)" conference to their offering. Eastern vs Western Narratives in the Beauty Industry, Consumer Insight, New Product Development, Packaging, Digital Marketing and e-Commerce, Technology Innovation and Retail are on the Agenda. And much more, there will be round-table discussions, workshops, Leader of the Year Awards celebration and after-conference retail road trip in Vienna. On 9-10 June 2016 the leaders of the global cosmetic industry will meet in Vienna at the First World Beauty Innovation Summit. A unique gathering of world's best beauty industry guest speakers has been secured for this event. With a keynote from Amorepacific (Korea), speakers are coming from USA to Australia, from Singapore to UAE. Discussing the eastern impact on beauty largely represented by Asia as well as West to East crafting specific brands suited for the East. Don't miss the event, join the Leader of the Year Awards reception and attend the post event retail road trip in Vienna. For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/tjrlxd/world_summit_on View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160204005989/en/ Contacts: Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager press@researchandmarkets.com For E.S.T Office Hours Call 1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call 1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900 U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716 Sector: Cosmetics WESTCHESTER, Ill., February 4, 2016 - Ingredion Incorporated (NYSE: INGR), a leading global provider of ingredient solutions to diversified industries, announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement with Pingyuan County Juyuan State-Owned Asset Management Co., Ltd. to acquire the state-owned Shandong Huanong Specialty Corn Development Co., Ltd. in Pingyuan County, Shandong Province, China. The acquisition supports Ingredion's specialty ingredients business in China and has been approved by the Company's board of directors. It is subject to approval by Chinese government authorities as well as to other customary closing conditions. Details of the transaction have not been disclosed. "This acquisition is another step in executing our strategic blueprint for growth. It enhances our capacity in the Asia-Pacific region with a vertically integrated manufacturing base for specialty ingredients," said Jorgen Kokke, Ingredion senior vice president and president, Asia Pacific and EMEA. "China is a growing market for our specialty starches, and this acquisition provides a base for further expansion to accommodate future market growth in China and across Asia Pacific." Madame Wang Hong Xia, Pingyuan County Head, said, "We welcome Ingredion as an investor in Pingyuan County. Their investment provides excellent growth and development opportunities for the work force and local economy." Shandong Huanong Specialty Corn Development Co., Ltd. has 146 employees. ABOUT INGREDION Ingredion Incorporated (NYSE: INGR) is a leading global ingredient solutions provider. We turn corn, tapioca, potatoes and other vegetables and fruits into value-added ingredients and biomaterial solutions for the food, beverage, paper and corrugating, brewing and other industries. Serving customers in over 100 countries, our ingredients make yogurts creamy, candy sweet, paper stronger and face creams silky. Visit Ingredion.com (http://ingredion.com/) to learn more. ### CONTACT: Investors: Heather Kos, 708-551-2592 Media: Claire Regan, 708-551-2602 This announcement is distributed by NASDAQ OMX Corporate Solutions on behalf of NASDAQ OMX Corporate Solutions clients. The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: Ingredion Incorporated via Globenewswire HUG#1983871 TORONTO, ONTARIO -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- VVC Exploration Corporation ("VVC" or the "Company") (TSX VENTURE: VVC) announces that the court proceedings, described below, in Juarez Mexico may at some point impact the zoning of the Company's Samalayuca Copper project in the State of Chihuahua, Mexico: proceedings by the Court of the Indirect Amparo Trial number 291/2013 (hereafter the "Amparo") promoted by Ismael Acosta Lucero, Sergio Soto Melendez and Norma Lorena Gay Quintero in their capacity of President, Secretary and Treasurer, respectively, of the Ojo de la Casa Ejido Commissariat, Juarez Municipality, Chihuahua Mexico (hereafter the "Ejidos") against the acts of diverse authorities including the Environment and Natural Resources Ministry (hereinafter "SEMARNAT") This court proceeding was filed by the Commissioner for Ejidos (Ejidos are groups of farmer/landowners granted special status by the Government of Mexico) on behalf of an Ejido group whose land was included in Medanos de Samalayuca, a Natural Protected Area.. This land referred to in the court proceeding (Amparo) includes the entire mining claim of VVC's 67.5% controlled Samalayuca Copper Project (the "Kaity Claim"). VVC has worked for the last 2 years with SEMARNAT and it's subsidiary agency CONAMP (who are responsible for protected areas in Mexico) to change the zoning of the Samalayuca Copper Project (a substantial portion of which is included in Medanos de Samalayuca) to allow all of the claim area to be available for mining exploration and exploitation. This request has gone through extensive review and fact finding by CONAMP and the Protected area Advisory Board as well as the gathering of public comments on the proposed changes and their potential impact on the protected area by CONAMP. In late 2015, CONAMP provided a new zoning proposal which accepted the changes requested and sent the revised zoning to the parent agency SEMARNAT for final publication. This new zoning proposal provides that all of the Samalayuca Copper project claim be zoned for mining exploration and exploitation. VVC's representatives were told by the agency that this final publication should occur in the very near future. Based on consultation with Mexican Counsel and other information gathered in Mexico, VVC has concluded that the zoning status of the Company's Samalayuca Copper Project ("Kaity Claim") has not changed at this time. The Company will keep shareholders apprised of further development on this matter. VVC and its partners are committed to operating the Samalayuca Copper Project in a environmentally and socially responsible manner and will continue do so either in cooperation with CONAMP or through the normal mining permit channels should the property no longer be in CONAMP's jurisdiction. The Company and its partners have worked closely with the officials of CONAMP, the Ejidos, the local Municipality and the State of Chihuahua and look forward to continuing to do so. About VVC Exploration Corporation VVC is a Canadian exploration and mining company with projects in Mexico and Canada, which include a near production copper prospect in Chihuahua State, and gold and silver prospects in Sonora and Sinaloa States of Mexico. The Company also has grass-roots gold prospects in the Timmins area of Northern Ontario. VVC is aggressively seeking to convert its near production copper project, Samalayuca, to pilot, then full production. On behalf of the Board of Directors Michel J. Lafrance, Secretary-Treasurer Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release contains "forward-looking information" (within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws) and "forward -looking statements" (within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995). Such statements or information are identified with words such as "anticipate", "believe", "expect", "plan", "intend", "potential", "estimate", "propose", "project", "outlook", "foresee" or similar words suggesting future outcomes or statements regarding an outlook. Such statements include, among others, the court proceeding impacting the zoning, VVC continuing to work with CONAMP and SEMARNAT, publication occurring in the very near future and VVC being committed to operating in an environmentally, and socially responsible manner. Such forward-looking information or statements are based on a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions which may cause actual results or other expectations to differ materially from those anticipated and which may prove to be incorrect. Assumptions have been made regarding, among other things, management's expectations regarding future growth, plans for and completion of projects by Company's third party relationships, availability of capital, and the necessity to incur capital and other expenditures. Actual results could differ materially due to a number of factors, including, without limitation, operational risks in the completion of Company's anticipated projects, delays or changes in plans with respect to the development of Company's anticipated projects by Company's third party relationships, risks affecting the ability to develop projects, risks inherent in operating in foreign jurisdictions, the ability to attract key personnel, and the inability to raise additional capital. No assurances can be given that the efforts by Company will be successful. Additional assumptions and risks are set out in detail in the Company's MD&A, available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information or statements are reasonable, prospective investors in the Company's securities should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements because the Company can provide no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Forward-looking information and statements contained in this news release are as of the date of this news release and the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise this forward-looking information and statements except as required by law. Contacts: VVC Exploration Corporation Patrick Fernet Director Phone: (514) 631-2727 E-mail: pfernet@vvcexploration.com PALO ALTO, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 --IoT Data Analytics & Visualization Summit - Verimatrix, the specialist in securing and enhancing revenue for multi-network, multi-screen digital TV services around the globe, today announced its presence at the upcoming IoT Data Analytics & Visualization Summit on Feb. 9-11 in Palo Alto, the first event dedicated to showcasing how companies can strategically capture insights in order to achieve true value from their Internet of Things (IoT) initiatives. Steve Christian, SVP of Marketing at Verimatrix, is featured as a speaker within the "Addressing Data Privacy and Security Concerns" session to emphasize the importance of anticipating and adapting to the security threats that arise as connectivity across devices continues to strengthen. During his presentation, "Debating 'Make vs. Buy' Strategy for Managing Secure IoT Analytics," Christian will examine the security vulnerabilities that device and systems vendors become susceptible to as they aggregate and analyze sensitive customer data. He will underscore the importance of determining whether or not the expertise, data capture capabilities and computing infrastructures they have available in-house are agile and scalable enough to not only uncover and use detailed customer behavior, but also keep abreast of regulatory and legal data privacy regulations, which vary county-by-country. Christian's session, takes place at 11:40 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 10. Verimatrix's involvement at the IoT Data Analytics & Visualization Summit kicks off a series of IoT-related events in 2016. Christian will be speaking on the topic at IoT World taking place in May in Santa Clara, as well as the IoT Security Summit in October in Boston. Attendees that register for IoT Data Analytics & Visualization receive a 25% instant discount with code "VERIMATRIX25." Click here to register for the show and set up a meeting with the Verimatrix team. About Verimatrix Verimatrix specializes in securing and enhancing revenue for multi-network, multi-screen digital TV services around the globe and is recognized as the global number one in revenue security for connected video devices. The award-winning and independently audited Verimatrix Video Content Authority System (VCAS) family of solutions enable next-generation video service providers to cost-effectively extend their networks and enable new business models. The company has continued its technical innovation by offering the world's only globally interconnected revenue security platform, Verspective Intelligence Center, for automated system optimization and data collection/analytics. Its unmatched partner ecosystem and close relationship with major studios, broadcasters and standards organizations enables Verimatrix to provide a unique advantage to video business issues beyond content security as operators introduce new services to leverage the proliferation of connected devices. Verimatrix is an ISO 9001:2008 certified company. For more information, please visit www.verimatrix.com, our Pay TV Views blog and follow us @verimatrixinc, Facebook and LinkedIn to join the conversation. VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA/COAST SALISH TERRITORY -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- The BC Government and Service Employees' Union (BCGEU) signed a Solidarity Accord today, affirming its support of the Save the Fraser Declaration, an Indigenous law signed by representatives of well over 100 First Nations banning tar sands transport through their territories. The addition of the 65,000 member union (about a third of whom work in direct government service) to a growing alliance of tar sands pipeline opponents, puts additional pressure on the BC government as it prepares to respond to a recent Supreme Court ruling requiring it to make a decision on Northern Gateway and to consult First Nations before doing so. "We agree with the recent ruling of the BC Supreme Court that the Province has not met its duty to consult First Nations on Enbridge's Northern Gateway," said Paul Finch, Treasurer of the BC Government and Service Employees' Union. "Provincial decision-making on Northern Gateway is an issue that impacts BCGEU members, and we believe deeply that staunch opposition from First Nations cannot be ignored by governments in dealing with these types of proposals. We are proud to support the Save the Fraser Declaration, which demonstrates the resolve of First Nations in refusing consent for Northern Gateway." The Solidarity Accord, which has also been signed by other labour unions such as Unifor and the BC Teachers' Federation, as well as business, environmental and community groups, was spearheaded by the Yinka Dene Alliance, whose members' territories represent 25% of the proposed Northern Gateway pipeline route. "We have never wavered from upholding our own laws and our conclusion that the risks are too great to allow Enbridge's Northern Gateway and similar tar sands projects to cross our territories," said Chief Stanley Thomas of Saik'uz First Nation. "It has been heartening to see how strongly we are supported by people throughout Canada," said Nak'azdli Chief Fred Sam. "To have the BC Government and Service Employees' Union standing alongside us is a welcome reminder of that." Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, President of the Union of BC Indian Chiefs, stated: "BCGEU's endorsement of the Save the Fraser Declaration is indicative that more and more Canadians are committing to respect the laws and authority of First Nations and their efforts to protect the environment, fisheries and the health and safety of all BC communities from Enbridge's Northern Gateway and other tar sands projects. Premier Clark and Prime Minister Trudeau be advised: the proposed Enbridge Northern Gateway is dead, dead, dead. We call on you to stand with us, and to work with us to come up with alternatives for real change." Contacts: Media Contacts Geraldine Thomas-Flurer Yinka Dene Alliance Coordinator (250) 570-1482 Grand Chief Stewart Phillip President, Union of BC Indian Chiefs (250) 490-5314 Chris Bradshaw Communications Officer BC Government and Service Employees' Union (604) 369-8411 Date: 4th February 2016 Not for distribution, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States or any jurisdiction in which such distribution would be unlawful. Issuer: FCE Bank Plc Post Stabilisation Notice BNP Paribas (co-ordinator) Contact: Rupert Lewis, Telephone number 00 44 207 595 8222, hereby gives notice that no stabilisation was undertaken by the Stabilising Manager(s) named below in relation to the offer of the following securities. +------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Issuer: | FCE Bank Plc- dual tranche | +------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Guarantor (if any): | | +------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Aggregate nominal amount: | EUR 750m & EUR 600m | +------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Description: | FRN due 11/8/2018 / 11 Feb 2021 | +------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Stabilising Manager(s) | BNPP/CS/DB/RBS/SMBC Nikko/Unicredit | +------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Stabilisation started: | | +------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ | Stabilisation last occurred: | N/A (no stabilisation occurred) | +------------------------------+--------------------------------------+ This announcement is for information purposes only and does not constitute an invitation or offer to underwrite, subscribe for or otherwise acquire or dispose of any securities of the Issuer in any jurisdiction. This announcement is not an offer of securities for sale into the United States. The securities referred to above have not been, and will not be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933 and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an exemption from registration. There has not been and will not be a public offer of the securities in the United States. This announcement is distributed by GlobeNewswire on behalf of GlobeNewswire clients. The owner of this announcement warrants that: (i) the releases contained herein are protected by copyright and other applicable laws; and (ii) they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: BNP Paribas Primary New Issues via GlobeNewswire [HUG#1983833] R38 Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de DALLAS, TX -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- ITS, an insurance consulting and services firm specializing in the design, implementation, and utilization of technology across all segments and lines of business, is pleased to announce the promotion of Chris Belle to president. Belle has a long history with ITS, having held several positions within the firm, most recently as senior vice president of services. As president, he will be responsible for managing the operations of ITS's various practice areas. Belle's focus going forward will include client services and relationships, the development of current and new ITS staff, and market expansion of the company's services and products. "Chris's contributions over the past ten years have resulted in the creation of an impressive suite of services and tools for project management, business analysis, testing, and data migration," said Mike Vana, president of JMV Services, Inc., the parent company of ITS. "In addition to our acclaimed services in the areas of Property & Casualty (P&C), Life & Health (L&H), Data Services and Training & Development, I'm excited to deliver our new products and programs to the market, which currently include the ITS Test Automation Platform (ITAP) and the ITS Data Migration Platform (IDMP) with additional launches planned for this calendar year," said Belle. Belle is an insurance professional with more than 25 years in management and technology consulting, including 20 years in the P&C insurance industry. He has a strong background in both waterfall and agile methodologies and received certifications as a Project Management Professional (PMP) and as a Certified Scrum Master (CSM). An expert in both insurance and the supporting technologies, Belle has worked with many insurance companies and vendors in the selection, design, development, and implementation of enterprise insurance systems. Belle also volunteers for IASA, participating at both regional and national levels, and having previously served as president of the IASA Texas Chapter. For more information about ITS or the company's products and services, please visit www.insurancetechnologyservices.com or send an email to info@insurancetechnologyservices.com. About Insurance Technology Services (ITS) Based in Dallas, Texas, ITS is an insurance consulting and services firm specializing in the design, implementation and utilization of technology to optimize critical business processes and achieve exceptional results. With practices focused on property and casualty (P&C), life and health (L&H), data services, and training and development, ITS serves insurance organizations of all sizes across the country. ITS provides implementation support (including project management, business analysis, testing and data conversion), process improvements (including PMO establishment, quality assurance and production support), and change management (including training, organizational change planning and business process reengineering), as well as proprietary insurance platforms for automated functional testing and data migration. ITS helps insurance organizations manage and reduce risk by deploying agile teams with exceptional insurance and technical expertise to streamline implementations and boost the capabilities of existing IT staff. For more information, contact Chris Belle, President of ITS, at 512-731-7761 or chris.belle@insurancetechnologyservices.com. Media Contact: Jennifer Overhulse St. Nick Media Services (859) 803-6597 jen@stnickmedia.com LONDON, February 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Yellowfin caught by thePNA Western and Central Pacific free school purse seine fisheryis now eligible to carry the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) ecolabel. The sales and marketing of the PNA MSC certified yellowfin tuna will be done through the PNA global marketing company for its MSC certified tuna,Pacifical. TheParties of the Nauru Agreement(PNA) is the first major free school purse seine yellowfin tuna fishery to achieve MSC certification. The certified fishery catches around 140,000 tonnes of yellowfin tuna a year, accounting for half of all yellowfin caught within PNA waters. "Healthy tuna populations are essential for both the environment and fishing economies,"says Nicolas Guichoux, Global Commercial Director at the Marine Stewardship Council."The MSC Fisheries Standard provides a robust set of requirements to assess the sustainabilityof tuna fisheries.By achieving this Standard, the PNA has shown a huge commitment to securing a sustainable future for its oceans and fishing industry." "This is a very progressive step for the tuna industry,"says Mr. Maurice Brownjohn, PNA Commercial Director."The PNA looks forward to working withbrands, restaurantsand retailersto increase the supply ofMSC labelledsustainable tuna.PNA tuna sold with the MSC ecolabelalso carries the Pacifical logo in clear representation of the end market's commitmenttothe PNA island nations as custodians and protectors of a truly valuable marine resource throughout centuries and the generations to come." Meeting the robust requirements of the MSC Fisheries Standard means that yellowfin stocks are being fished sustainably and in a way which maintains a healthy, thriving marine environment. This certification follows an expedited assessment by SCS Global Services of yellowfin caught by the already-certified PNA skipjack fishery,. This means that the strict requirements already in place for skipjack are now extended to include catches of yellowfin, including yellowfin tuna found in free school skipjack sets.The MSC Chain of Custody Standard requires that free swimming MSC certified catch is segregated from FAD associated catch, which is not certified. The same conditions and validity period of the MSC certificate for the PNA free school skipjack will apply for yellowfin. The current certificate is valid until December 2016. To remain certified after this date the fishery will need to be reassessed to the MSC Fisheries Standard."The PNAwill undertake all necessary measures to ensure thatnext year'sreassessment is successful,"concludesMr. Maurice Brownjohn. Pacifical MSC certified tuna is now available in 12 different countries around the world. This includes Australia, where the leading brand, John West, announced just yesterday its strong brand commitment and cooperation with Pacifical MSC certified tuna to bring MSC certified skipjack tuna to the country's shelves. Australian consumers will now have access to over100 million cans of MSC certified tuna, sustainably sourced, free-school tuna, the largest offering of MSC tuna ever in the world. It is expected that the increased future supply of MSC certifiedyellowfincould lead to more demand for this premium sustainably caught tuna from buyers in Italy, France and Spain, and not only from the canned segment, but also the frozen tuna market. Notes for editors: About the Marine Stewardship Council The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) is recognized as the world's leading certification program for sustainable, wild-caught seafood. In collaboration with fisheries scientists and marine experts, the MSC has developed two global, science-based standards. The MSC Fishery Standard evaluates the sustainability of fisheries and the MSC Chain of Custody Standard ensures that any seafood carrying the blue MSC ecolabel is traceable to a certified fishery.http://www.msc.org About the PNA The Parties to the Nauru Agreement (PNA) control the world's largest sustainable tuna purse seine fishery. PNA Members, located within the Western Central Pacific Ocean, are Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Tuvalu. In 2011, the PNA skipjack tuna caught without using FADs was certified by the Marine Stewardship Council as sustainable, creating the world's largest sustainable tuna purse seine fishery. http://www.pnatuna.com About Pacifical Pacifical is the global marketing company jointly set up by 8 PNA countries in 2011 to promote PNA and actively trade their MSC certified sustainably caught free school skipjack and yellowfin tuna to consumers around the world. All products sourced from MSC certified skipjack and yellowfin tuna from PNA waters carry the Pacifical logo as clear representation of the end market's commitment with the PNA region and recognition to those nations managing the stock on a daily basis. http://www.pacifical.com Visit our social media pages: Facebook -http://fb.com/mscecolabel LinkedIn -https://www.linkedin.com/company/marine-stewardship-council Twitter -http://twitter.com/MSCecolabel YouTube -http://www.youtube.com/user/sustainableseafood For media enquiries please contact: The Marine Stewardship Council Jo Miller jo.miller@msc.org +44(0)20-7246-8900 / +44(0)7515-329614 Pacifical Cynthia Asaf cynthia@pacifical.com +31-162-71-4041 PUNE, India, February 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- According to a new market research report "eClinical solutions Market by Product (CDMS, EDC, CTMS, eCOA, Analytics, RTMS, eTMF, Safety), Delivery Mode (Web Hosted, On-premise, Cloud-based), Clinical Trial Phases, End User (Pharma/Biopharma Companies, CROs, Hospitals) - Global Forecast to 2020", published by MarketsandMarkets, This report studies the market over the forecast period of 2015 to 2020. The market is expected to reach USD 5.98 Billion by 2020, at CAGR of 12.1% from 2015 to 2020. Browse 70 market Tables and 49 Figures spread through 160 Pages and in-depth TOC on "eClinical solutions Market" http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/eclinical-solutions-market-553.html Early buyers will receive 10% customization on this report. Based on type of product, the global eClinical solutions Market is divided into nine segments, namely, electronic data capture (EDC) and clinical data management systems (CDMS), clinical trial management systems (CTMS), clinical analytics platform, randomization & trial supply management systems (RTMS), clinical data integration platforms, electronic clinical outcome assessment (eCOA), safety solutions, electronic trail master files (eTMF), and others (regulatory information management solutions, coding systems, and core laboratory integration solutions). The eClinical solutions Market has also been segmented on the basis of delivery mode-- into web-hosted (On-demand), licensed enterprise (On-premise), and cloud-based (SaaS) solutions. Bases on clinical trial phase, the market are divided into four segments phase I, phase II, phase II, and phase IV. On the basis of end user, the global eClinical solutions Market has been segmented into pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies, contract research organizations, consulting service companies, medical device manufacturers, hospitals, and academic research institutions. Inquiry before Buying: http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_Buying.asp?id=553 A number of factors such as growing adoption of software solutions during clinical research and trials, increasing R&D expenditure by pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical companies, growing government funding to support clinical trials, and rising number of life science companies and CROs are propelling the growth of the eClinical solutions Market. In addition, increasing clinical research in emerging Asian countries, increasing outsourcing of clinical trials to CROs, and developments of cost effective modules are offering high growth opportunities for market players. On the other hand, high implementation cost, dearth of skilled research professionals, and lack of awareness of clinical data sciences software in research community are restricting the growth of the global eClinical solutions Market. North America is estimated to be the largest regional segment in the global eClinical solutions Market in 2015, followed by Europe. However, the Asia-Pacific market is expected to grow at the highest CAGR of 16.1% from 2015 to 2020. A number of factors, including increasing government funding to support clinical trials, presence of less stringent regulatory guidelines compare to developed nations to conduct clinical trials, availability of large patient base and faster patient recruitment for clinical trial, and growing number of pharmaceutical companies and CROs are stimulating the growth of the eClinical solutions Market in the Asia-Pacific region. Oracle Corporation (U.S.), Medidata Solutions, Inc. (U.S.) PAREXEL International Corporation (U.S.), BioClinica, Inc. (U.S.), CRF Health (U.S.), DATATRAK International, Inc. (U.S.), ERT (U.S.), eClinical Solutions, Inc. (U.S.), Merge Healthcare Incorporated (U.S.), and OmniComm Systems, Inc. (U.S.) are some key players operating in the global eClinical solutions Market. Browse Related Reports: Healthcare Analytics/Medical Analytics Market by Application (Clinical, PHM, Financial (RCM, Claim & Fraud), Supply Chain & HR), Type (Predictive), Delivery model (On-premise, Cloud), End-user (Payer, Hospital, Ambulatory, ACO) - Global Forecast to 2020 http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/healthcare-data-analytics-market-905.html Bioinformatics Market by Sector (Molecular Medicine, Agriculture, Forensic, Animal, Research & Gene Therapy), Segment (Sequencing Platforms, Knowledge Management & Data Analysis) & Application (Genomics, Proteomics & Metabolomics) - Global Forecast to 2020 http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/bioinformatics-39.html About MarketsandMarkets: MarketsandMarkets is world's No. 2 firm in terms of annually published premium market research reports. Serving 1700 global fortune enterprises with more than 1200 premium studies in a year, M&M is catering to multitude of clients across 8 different industrial verticals. We specialize in consulting assignments and business research across high growth markets, cutting edge technologies and newer applications. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. M&M's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. The new included chapters on Methodology and Benchmarking presented with high quality analytical infographics in our reports gives complete visibility of how the numbers have been arrived and defend the accuracy of the numbers. We at MarketsandMarkets are inspired to help our clients grow by providing apt business insight with our huge market intelligence repository. Contact: Mr. Rohan Unit No. 802, 8th Floor, Tower - 7, Magarpatta City SEZ, Hadapsar, Pune - 411013, Maharashtra, India. Tel: +1-888-6006-441. Email: sales@marketsandmarkets.com Visit MarketsandMarkets Blog @ http://mnmblog.org/market-research/healthcare/healthcareit Connect with us on LinkedIn @http://www.linkedin.com/company/marketsandmarkets Sam Tseng and Alan Crowe will play an essential role in growing the registrar's business NEWPORT BEACH, California, Feb. 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Uniregistry, a domain name registrar, is proud to announce the hiring of two domain name industry veterans to its team. Effective immediately, Sam Tseng and Alan Crowe are joining Uniregistry's registrar team as account executives, where they will have a key role in growing the company's registrar business. Tseng joins Uniregistry after 12 years with traffic monetization platform DomainSponsor/Oversee.net, where he served as director of sales. He is particularly excited about working with the growing "not-com" domain name space. "I want to utilize my experience and knowledge in the domain name industry to carry forward the growth of Uniregistry," said Tseng. "There are plenty of exciting opportunities to help clients grow their domain name portfolios." Crowe is a familiar face around the Uniregistry offices. He was previously a broker for DomainNameSales, a subsidiary of Uniregistry. Crowe has 8 years of experience in the domain name industry, getting his start at GoDaddy in 2008. He joined DomainNameSales in 2012 and was one of the original employees of the company. "It's amazing to be a part of a company that I have been with from its inception. I was able to see the birth of the registrar and now I get to be a part of that team," said Crowe. "Working in a different division is interesting, but the vision is the same throughout the company. The vision is to be the very best registrar, the very best sales organization and the very best registry." Uniregistry opened its retail registrar in 2014, which introduced a user interface that revolutionized domain name management. Uniregistry currently offers one of the largest inventories of domain name extensions available in the industry. The company's registrar offers tools built for more effective domain name portfolio management. Last month, Uniregistry launched the critically acclaimed Uniregistry app, which allows customers to manage and register domain names on-the-go. The company will also launch its highly anticipated Uniregistry Market this month, which will revolutionize the way customers buy, sell and manage domain names. You can learn more about Uniregistry's registrar service at Uniregistry.com. About Uniregistry Uniregistry is a domain name registration company creating innovative and intuitive products for users to connect on the Internet. Uniregistry opened its retail registrar in 2014, which introduced a user interface that revolutionized domain name management. Uniregistry currently offers one of the largest inventories of domain name extensions available in the industry. WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Senate Democrats blocked advancement of bipartisan energy legislation on Thursday amid a dispute over federal funding to address the drinking water contamination crisis in Flint, Michigan. The Senate voted 46 to 50 in favor of limiting debate on the Energy Policy Modernization Act, well short of the 60 votes needed to move forward. Most Democrats voted against the procedural motion after Republicans rejected a proposal to provide up to $600 million in aid to Flint. In remarks on the Senate floor ahead of the vote, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., accused Republicans of abandoning the people of the city. 'One-hundred thousand people in Flint, Michigan have been poisoned, and Republicans do nothing,' Reid said. 'Nine-thousand little children - all under the age of six - have been poisoned, their brains attack by the contaminated water. Still, Senate Republicans refuse to help.' 'Whenever their states have been hard hit, Republican Senators run here, to the Senate floor, and demand federal aid. And they should,' he added. 'The federal government should help in times of disaster. But there has to be a bit of consistency from Republicans. We must be fair to all Americans.' Meanwhile, Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Tex., argued it is premature to provide hundreds of millions of dollars in aid to Flint when Michigan officials have not fully assessed their needs. 'The fact of the matter is the state of Michigan and the city of Flint don't yet know what it will take to fix the problem, or how much it will cost,' Cornyn said. According to the Detroit News, Michigan Sens. Debbie Stabenow, D-Mich., and Gary Peters, D-Mich., have asked for more time to negotiate with Republicans on the proposed federal aid. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de Washington D.C.--(Newsfile Corp. - February 4, 2016) - The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that a Miami-based brokerage firm agreed to pay a $1 million penalty to settle charges that it violated anti-money laundering rules by allowing foreign entities to buy and sell securities without verifying the identities of the non-U.S. citizens who beneficially owned them. During SEC examinations of E.S. Financial Services, which is now named Brickell Global Markets, the firm twice failed to provide required books and records identifying certain foreign customers whom they were soliciting directly and providing investment advice. Federal law requires all financial institutions to maintain an adequate customer identification program (CIP) to ensure financial institutions know their customers and do not become a conduit for money laundering or terrorist financing. An ensuing SEC investigation found that E.S. Financial's CIP failed to obtain and maintain documentation to verify the identities of certain non-U.S. customers who traded through a brokerage account opened by a Central American bank affiliated with the firm. As part of the settlement, E.S. Financial agreed to retain an independent monitor to directly review its anti-money laundering/CIP policies, procedures, and practices for the next two years. "While no fraud occurred in this instance, our investigation found there were significant holes in the framework of E.S. Financial's CIP that left the firm susceptible to illegal activity by customers who were not fully known," said Eric Bustillo, Director of the SEC's Miami Regional Office. "Firms must stick to the CIP rules that require a broker-dealer to establish, document, and maintain procedures for identifying all customers and verifying their identities." According to the SEC's order instituting a settled administrative proceeding: During approximately a decade, E.S. Financial maintained a brokerage account for a Central American bank that was purportedly trading for its sole benefit. E.S. Financial allowed 13 non-U.S. corporate entities and, in turn, 23 non-U.S. citizens who were their beneficial owners, to execute more than $23 million in securities transactions through the Central American bank's brokerage account. E.S. Financial worked directly with these non-U.S. citizens as if they were E.S. Financial customers, but did not collect, verify, or document any information regarding their identities as required under anti-money laundering/CIP regulations. The SEC's order finds that E.S. Financial willfully violated Section 17(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 17a-8, which require a broker-dealer to comply with the reporting, recordkeeping, and record retention requirements in regulations implemented under the Bank Secrecy Act, including the requirements in the CIP rule applicable to broker-dealers. The order also finds that E.S. Financial willfully violated Exchange Act Rules 17a-3 and 17a-4 which require broker-dealers to create and maintain customer account records and furnish them to SEC representatives upon request. Without admitting or denying the findings, E.S. Financial consented to the order and agreed to cease and desist from committing or causing any future violations. The SEC's continuing investigation has been conducted by Scott A. Lowry, under the supervision of Thierry Olivier Desmet. The examination that led to the investigation was conducted by Ileana Rodriguez and Debra Williamson, and supervised by Nicholas A. Monaco and John C. Mattimore of the Miami Regional Office. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. SCOTTSDALE, AZ--(Marketwired - February 04, 2016) - Zippy Shell is now making moving and storage much simpler and more affordable for Arizona residents with the opening of its first metro Phoenix location. The concept is unique for a few reasons: the shell is delivered with an empty metal cage container to your location; you load it and lock it. The shell is then picked up and the container is then stored at a secure, climate-controlled facility and will be returned whenever you need it back, or shipped to your new destination. Longtime residents Kevin and Kathryn Blackwell have purchased the franchise rights to Zippy Shell for the entire state of Arizona, and plan to open additional locations in Tucson and Flagstaff. "Zippy Shell's prompt and convenient service model, and competitive pricing structure impressed us from the start," said Berekk Blackwell, Zippy Shell Arizona president & CEO. "We look forward to passing along this value to families, college students and anyone else needing storage and moving services during life's transitions." The Blackwell family has more than 20 years of franchising experience. Kevin Blackwell founded Kahala Corp., an international Franchisor of quick service brands. At the time he sold his interest in Kahala, the company had more than ten brands, including Cold Stone Creamery, Blimpie Subs, TacoTime, Samurai Sam's and others. Kahala grew to more than 3,000 units operating in 23 countries. Hector Reyes, managing partner of Zippy Shell Arizona, previously served as district manager for PODS (Phoenix, Tucson and Las Vegas) for seven years. "I am excited to bring my experience to Zippy Shell and help customers have a smooth and seamless moving and storage experience." The new Zippy Shell Arizona locations join over 50 Zippy Shell locations across the country, and strengthen the Zippy Shell presence on the West Coast. "Zippy Shell is building a strong and competitive presence with their nationwide moving and storage network and we're excited to be a part of it," adds Kathryn Blackwell. "Our doors are open and we're ready to help our Arizona residents." About Zippy Shell Zippy Shell USA, LLC, member of the Entrepreneur Magazine's 2015, "Best 500 Franchises,' is a national organization, dedicated to enhancing the portable self-storage and moving industry. The company includes Zippy Shell, ZippyU (student storage), Zippy Shell Storage Operations (ZSSO) and related properties. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., Zippy Shell currently has 56 independently operated, corporately operated or jointly operated facilities in 106 markets. Zippy Shell is an exclusively licensed trademark of Zippy Shell USA, LLC. For more information, visit the Zippy Shell website at www.zippyshell.com. Image Available: http://www.marketwire.com/library/MwGo/2016/2/4/11G081565/Images/Trailer_w_containter_2015-f8711826644eaef5bab43246ffec9eef.jpg For more information, please visit: www.zippyshell.com 602.717.1885 For downloadable images, please contact: Summer Manning 602.717.1885 SManning@duenorth-llc.com RZESZA"W, Poland, LONDON and HONG KONG, February 4, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- G2A.com created a strong presence at the recent Gaming Istanbul GIST 2016 Developers Conference held in Istanbul on 3rd February 2016. The theme: Gaming Bridge of Eurasia, points to the geographical location of Turkey and seeks to establish Turkey and specifically Istanbul, as the bridge builder of gaming interaction. (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160204/329726 ) (Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160204/329727 ) G2A Head of Global Public Relations, Jacqueline Purcell joined Sami Hamid to welcome and open the conference. She spoke about the rapid innovation evidenced at G2A on a daily basis. "400 energetic gamers and world class professionals engaged in rapid innovation mode - it's like being in a Hollywood movie." Patryk Kadlec, Head of Business Development at G2A spoke on Why the Gaming Companies have to Invest in New Technologies, presenting a case study on G2A 3D+, an all in one 3D printing solution for the gaming industry. Patryk showed samples of 3D printed gaming icons and was inundated with interest after his presentation because many participants had never seen 3D printed merchandising. Patryk invited developers to attend the G2A stand at GIST: "If you want to see 3D printers in action then come to the G2A stand and we can make it all real for you," he said. G2A 3D+ Announces Amazing Interactive Customised Merchandise at Taipei Game Show 2016 For more information visit: http://3dplus.g2a.com/ G2A's Marcin Kryszpin, Head of Oculus Team, spoke in the Virtual Reality category presenting a case study from a VR Developers Perspective, about The Challenges of Virtual Reality and how G2A is a trend setter in developing solutions and innovations in VR. G2A LAND Free Download from G2A.COM. Planned for Q1 2016 G2A'slong term partner PAYPAL, represented by Matt Komorowski, Head of Sales Central and Eastern Europe, gave a brilliant presentation of the role that PAYPAL plays in supporting the gaming industry. His speech title: Click Less, Play More: Payments in Digital Gaming. Matt shared statistics that enabled the audience to have a global view about how much needed to be done in the field of safe payments: "There are 1.2 billion people over the world playing games [1], the digital gaming market reached 61billion dollars.[2] At PayPal we are proud of making payments easier and safer for consumers, as well as helping developers provide a smooth gaming experience. Letting people spend less time paying, more time playing." Matt commented that the G2A Shield and G2A Pay innovations are both great developments that protect and give a trustworthy customer experience. Other speakers from as far afield as the USA, spoke on cutting edge developments in the gaming industry including: Games Culturalisation, The Players Journey and The Future of Local Multiplayer Games - Big Screens and Social Interaction amongst the brilliant futuristic presentations on gaming developments. -------------------------------------------------- 1. Newzoo, Global Games Market Report, 2013 2. SuperData,Worldwide digital games market: 2015 total, 2016 http://www.g2a.com http://www.g2a.co https://www.g2a.co/presentation/index.html ALISO VIEJO, CA -- (Marketwired) -- 02/04/16 -- NVISION Eye Centers, one of the leading providers of LASIK and cataract surgery in the U.S., has successfully performed its first CentraSight procedure, which involves implanting a mini telescope into one eye to treat end-stage age-related macular degeneration (AMD). NVISION performed the first-of-its-kind procedure on Thursday, January 14 at the Box Canyon Surgery Center in Las Vegas. Highly regarded ophthalmologist Dr. Paul Casey performed the procedure, and is not only pleased with the outcome, but also thrilled with how well his patient is recovering. "The surgery involves removing the cataract and placing a tiny telescope in the eye," said Dr. Casey, who practices at both of NVISION's Las Vegas offices and is part of CentraSight's initial care team. "Everything went smoothly and the telescope device was implanted successfully. The procedure could not have gone more seamlessly." The first-of-its-kind telescope implant is integral to CentraSight, a new patient care program for treating patients with end-stage age-related macular degeneration, the most advanced form of AMD and the leading cause of blindness in older Americans. AMD is the leading cause of blindness in adults over the age of 60 and nearly 15 million seniors in the United States are battling severe vision loss because of the disease. Patients with end-stage AMD have a central blind spot or missing area in their vision that makes it difficult or impossible to see faces, read or perform everyday activities. Smaller than a pea, the telescope implant uses micro-optical technology to magnify images which would normally be seen in one's "straight ahead" or central, vision. The images are magnified and projected onto the healthy portion of the retina not affected by the disease, making it possible for patients to see or discern the central vision object of interest. "I am deeply honored to be among the first to perform this revolutionary procedure," said Dr. Casey. "To restore vision to this wonderful patient by utilizing groundbreaking technology is both exciting and humbling." The procedure employs the expertise of a variety of medical professionals, including retina specialists, who confirm the AMD diagnosis; low-vision optometrists and occupational therapists, for pre- and post-op training and rehabilitation; and skilled surgeons, who perform the surgery. "I could not be more pleased with Dr. Casey and his team," said patient Bonnie James. "They took a great deal of time to speak with me before and after the procedure and made sure I felt completely comfortable. It takes a lot of talent to perform this procedure successfully, and Dr. Casey went above and beyond." For more information about NVISION Eye Centers, please visit www.NVISIONCenters.com. ABOUT NVISION EYE CENTERS: NVISION Eye Centers is the premier provider of LASIK and cataract surgery in the U.S., with 26 centers in California, Nevada, Oregon and Arizona. An innovative leader in ophthalmology, NVISION is dedicated to providing the best patient experience through the use of the latest technology and treatment by the most talented and experienced surgeons in the industry. NVISION was founded in 2010 by Tom Tooma, M.D., one of the earliest pioneers of LASIK who has performed more than 100,000 procedures throughout his esteemed career. With more than 1,900 eye doctors referring their patients and trusting their own eyes to NVISION surgeons, NVISION Eye Centers is the Eye Doctors' #1 Choice. For more information, visit www.NVISIONCenters.com or call (877) 455-9942. Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=2960054 MEDIA CONTACT: Leslie Licano Beyond Fifteen Communications, Inc. 949.733.8679 leslie@beyondfifteen.com Urmila Matondkar is not an easy person to know, and Ive known her for 20 years. Not a single visit to Mumbai would be complete without a visit and a lavish meal at her place. Her homes, the first one and later the larger more swanky one, were warm and well-appointed. Her parents would be there to chat with me, and then over a hearty meal Urmila and I would laugh and bitch about everyone and anyone, uncensored. Shes also a great mimic and does amazing takeoffs on everyone from Asha Bhosle to Shabana Azmi. Azmi, who has worked with Urmila when the latter was still a child in Masoom and Bhavna, says Urmila was a born actress. There was plenty of time at the dinner table for gabbing sessions. The meals would last quite a while. Because, boy oh boy, Urmila really tucked in, and was not the least apologetic about it. She would warn me that she takes time to eat and then proceed to demolish all the dishes with her amazing appetite. So the biggest mystery about Urmila, among the many mysteries that qualified her life, is this: where did all that rich food go? Certainly not to her hour-glass figure. To top it all, Urmila claimed she never went to the gym, and that's was hard to believe. But another voracious eater Priyanka Chopra also claimed the same. So its hard to decide what to believe, the slim figures or the emptied out plates. Urmila is great fun to be with. Our abiding rapport began when Ram Gopal Varma introduced me to her over the phone during one of my visits to Mumbai. Urmila immediately invited me home for lunch. Since then, our mutual warmth and love grew to include her family and mine into our circle of camaraderie. Coincidentally, Ive been in Mumbai on several of her birthdays. Ive seen the entire building where she lives lined up with bouquets from friends, fans and producers. Now the bouquets are no longer there, as Urmila is no longer the celluloid diva she used to be. But the aura remains. No fan, no journalist would ever dare to misbehave with her. She was a Queen, and she remains one. I remember her walking into Kamal Haasans premiere of Abhay in a sensuous slit dress and furs. All the shutterbugs who were clicking Raveena Tandon ran to click Urmila. She was a head-turner. She still is, but the roles have dried up. The queue of directors eager to narrate their scripts to her is no more to be seen at her doorstep. The roles may not return, nor would she return to them. Her days of glory, while they lasted, were much talked about. There was Rangeela, Ram Gopal Varmas only romantic film; Satya, where in spite of Manoj Bajpai, she held her own, especially during that lilting Lata Mangeshkar melody Gila gila paani which was cut out of the film; Kaun, where her horror act was chilling; Pinjar, which was a masterly adaptation of Amrita Pritams novel about a rape victim during the Partition, and many more revered films. Perhaps her transformation from typical Bollywood heroine to a more meaty actress was marked by films such as Ek Haseena Thi, where she played hero to Saif Ali Khans villain; Pyar Tune Kya Kiya, where she was heart-breakingly poignant as a victim of unrequited love; Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Mara, which saw her as a daughter trying to cope with a father suffering from Alzeihmers, and Khubsoorat, where she played the Plain Jane who transforms into, well, Urmila Matondkar. Today Urmila is on her own. I dont know of any man in her life, and we never spoke about it. Though she was a great pal, there was always a line which no one was allowed to cross. Happy birthday, Urmila. You are very special. New Delhi: Amid outrage over the alleged assault and stripping of a Tanzanian woman in Bengaluru, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju today said the incident is a matter of shame and no racial discrimination will be tolerated in the country. "For 200 years, India was enslaved by foreigners. We have been fighting racial discrimination. But in India itself, if there is racial discrimination, the government will take it very seriously. "We will not allow racial discrimination to take place in the country. This is a matter of shame for the entire nation," the Minister of State for Home told reporters in New Delhi. A 21-year-old Tanzanian student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of "mistaken identity" after a woman was mowed down by a car in Bengaluru on Sunday night. Five persons have been arrested in this connection. PTI Chennai: The Madras High Court today issued notice to the state government on a plea challenging appointment of advocates and others as members of Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission, allegedly due to their political affiliation to AIADMK. The First Bench, comprising Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice MM Sundresh, before which the petition filed by Advocates Forum for Social Justice affiliated to PMK came up, directed government to file its counter by 31 March. Forum president K Balu alleged that the appointments were made without following any procedure transparent in nature and in an arbitrary manner without laying down any guidelines and without following the mandatory law laid down by the Supreme Court. The petitioner alleged that the members appointed belong to one particular community and prayed to declare the appointments vide government order dated 31 January as illegal and consequently set aside the appointments. The petitioner also sought an interim stay on the operation of the government order issued by the Personal Administrative Reforms (M) Department during the pendency of the petition. Advocate General AL Somayaji for the state and Niraimadi, Government Advocate, appearing for TNPSC, received the notices respectively. PTI Panaji: The son of a retired Army officer, who was arrested by Goa Police after he was found loitering suspiciously at the Vasco Railway Station, had been gathering information about bomb blasts which have taken place across the country in the past, a senior police official said on Thursday. However, police have not been able to link him to any terror plot as per the investigations that have taken place till now. "The police have managed to decode the emails and documents of accused Sameer Sardana and has found that he was collecting information about past bomb blasts in the country," a senior ATS official said. The ATS and Intelligence Bureau, which have been interrogating the 44-year-old chartered accountant, cracked the password of his laptop which he had refused to divulge during questioning, the official said on condition of anonymity. "(However), we have not been able to link him to any terror plot as per the investigations that have taken place till now. But inquiries are on," the official said. Sardana is based in Mumbai and has worked for MNC firms like Accenture with postings in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Saudi Arabia, the official said. Police investigations have also revealed that he is a Hindu by birth but has been practicing Islam. He is the son of a former armyman from Dehradun, and was apprehended by the ATS on Monday. Police had found five laptops in his possession and had sent them to cyber crime cell for examination. Sardana was booked under section 41 of the CrPC which deals with preventive arrest. According to police, Sardana was living in a railway dormitory, 35 kms from here, since 22 January and has been extending his stay. He was questioned after he was constantly seen sitting on railway platform and busy on laptop for hours together, police had said. Goa Police are on alert after a letter purportedly written by Islamic State, threatening to kill Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, was received on 13 January by the state secretariat, which was handed over to the ATS. Police had detained a Syrian, a Nigerian and a Yemeni last week for overstaying and they were probed from the terror angle. PTI New Delhi: Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Thursday met the aggrieved family of six-year-old Divyansh Kakrora who was found dead at a water reservoir in Ryan International school even as his parents alleged their child's death was a "murder" and the arrests made were mere formality. Sisodia, also the Education Minister accompanied by District Magistrate and SDM went to the meet the family at their residence in Sultanpur area, and assured them of full support in their pursuit for justice. The Education Minister had earlier in the day said that the school management should also be held responsible for the child's death. "Why there is no action against management? School mgmt is not there to earn huge money without any accountability," he tweeted. Why there is no action against management? School mgmt is not there to earn huge money without any accountability. https://t.co/5KAyEAK9Iv Manish Sisodia (@msisodia) February 4, 2016 Meanwhile, the family of the deceased child today took out a candlelight vigil in Vasant Kunj area on Thursday. "My son's death is not a case of negligence but murder. The arrests made today were merely a formality. Therefore, we are demanding a CBI probe. If they were to be bailed out than why were they arrested?" said Divyansh's father Ramheet Meenaa, a paramedical staffer at AIIMS. "Did the police ask them why did they inform us four hours after the death. They obviously wanted to destroy the evidences. The principal and others are involved and they are not speaking out. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal called me and said that he is coming to meet us," he added. His mother, said, "This should not happen to any other child. Those involved should get stringent punishment. If there is no safety in such a reputed school what will happen in other schools. Why the school had given my child a gold medal if he was a hyper kid?" The principal and four other staff members of the South Delhi school were arrested on Thursday, five days after the student was found dead in a water tank on the campus, triggering outrage. Those arrested were released on bail later. The school authorities had told the police that the boy was last seen before the seventh period, which was around 12.20 pm. They later found him floating in the reservoir and rushed him to a private hospital where he was declared brought dead. It was the hospital authorities and not those of school who had informed the police about the incident. After preliminary investigation, the police had registered a case of negligence causing death at the Vasant Kunj North police station. Later in the day, the Delhi government had also ordered a magisterial probe. The initial postmortem report of Divyansh suggested he died of drowning and no external injuries were found, police said. The police had questioned the school authorities, including the principal, for five days. While his parents have been accusing school of conspiring against their child, principal Sandhya Sabu had claimed that Divyansh was a "hyperactive" child who had "tendency" of running away from the classroom. "This child was a special child, who was hyperactive. He had the tendency of running away from the classroom. We understand what the parents are going through at this moment of loss. The allegations (on school) are absolutely wrong," she had said. PTI Raipur: Two Naxals, including a hardcore Jan Militia commander who was carrying a reward of Rs 1 lakh on his head, were on Thursday gunned down and another injured in two separate gun-battles in Chhattisgarh's insurgency-hit Bastar division. A 22-year-old cadre Kunjam Linga, who was active as Jan Miltia Commander under Jagargunda Area Committee of Maoist was killed in a skirmish with a joint team of security forces in the restive forests of Chintagufa police station area in Sukma district, Sukma Additional Superintendent of Police Santosh Singh told PTI. Acting on an intelligence input about the presence of a group of 8-10 ultras in Tekalpara area of Chintagufa, a composite team of 206th battalion of CoBRA (Commando Battalion for Resolute Action), CRPF's 150 battalion, District Reserve Group (DRG) and district force had launched a combing exercise in the region, he said. Sensing the presence of security forces near Tekalpara, a group of armed Naxals opened indiscriminate firing on the forces triggering a gun-battle between both the sides. On finding Naxals escaping from a spot taking the cover of thick trees along a nullah, another team of police, positioned on the other side of rivulet launched retaliatory action on them, the ASP said. However, the Naxals managed to flee taking the advantage of dense jungle, he added. During the search, body of a rebel besides one muzzle loading gun was recovered from the spot, the officer said. Later, an injured Naxal Sodhi Mang - a Jan Militia member was spotted hiding behind a rock and was arrested, he said. Police noted that the arrested Jan Miltia Commander Kunjam Linga was a prominent cadre of the region who was carrying a reward of Rs 1 lakh on his head. According to the officer, he was allegedly involved in several deadly Naxal incidents including Kasalpada ambush in Chintagufa (2014) in which 14 security force personnel were killed and as many others injured. He was also allegedly involved in the attack on Special Task Force (STF) party last year in Pidmel (Sukma) in which seven personnel were martyred and 10 others injured. In another incident, a Naxal was killed in an exchange of fire between a team of District Reserve Group (DRG) and ultras in Bastar district. The skirmish took place in the forested hill of Korli under Mardum police station limits this morning, Inspector General of Police, Bastar Range SRP Kalluri told PTI. While a team of DRG led by Sub Inspector PK Shukla was carrying out a search operation in the interiors of Mardum, located around 400 kms away from the state capital Raipur, an encounter broke out with Naxals in the hills of Korli, he said. After a brief exchange of fire, Naxals fled to the dense forests, he added. Later the body of a Maoist and one muzzle loading gun rifle were recovered from the spot, the official said. A total of 26 ultras have so far been killed in separate gun-battles in the Bastar region this year, the IG said. PTI It was a dark day for India as all the ten Army personnel trapped after a massive avalanche struck their high-altitude military post on Wednesday in Siachen Glacier were on Thursday declared dead, according to reports. Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted on the demise of the personnel, calling their death "very tragic". Demise of soldiers in Siachen is very tragic. I salute the brave soldiers who gave their lives to the nation. Condolences to their families. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 4, 2016 Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar also condoled the death of the soldiers. "My heartfelt condolences to the near and dear ones of our brave soldiers who were martyred in the line of duty in the most difficult terrain of Siachen," he said in Delhi. The Minister said it is the duty of the country to take care of their families. Reports said that Congress president Sonia Gandhi also expressed shock and deep distress on the confirmation of the demise of the ten Army personnel. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi also tweeted, saying he was "very sad to know that 10 of our brave soldiers lost their lives." Very sad to know that 10 of our brave soldiers lost their lives in an avalanche in Siachen. My thoughts &prayers are with their families Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) February 4, 2016 A Defence spokesman had earlier said that chances of finding any survivors were "very remote" after the deadly avalanche hit an army post that was manned by the armymen attached to Madras battalion at an altitude of 19,600 feet. "Rescue teams are braving adverse weather and effects of rarified atmosphere to locate and rescue survivors. However, it is with deepest of regrets that we have to state that chances of finding any survivors are now very remote," Defence PRO(Northern Command) Col SD Goswami had said in a statement in Jammu. "It is a tragic event and we salute the soldiers who braved all challenges to guard our frontiers and made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty," Lt Gen DS Hooda, Army Commander, Northern Command, had said in a message. Jammu and Kashmir Governor had spoken to Gen Hooda to convey his heartfelt sympathy to the bereaved families over the "tragic loss" of lives. As rescue efforts were on Thursday scaled up with induction of specialised teams, sniffer dogs and equipment, Pakistan offered its assistance but it was declined. Director General of Military Operations Lt Gen Ranbir Singh declined his Pakistani counterpart's offer for help in rescuing the Indian soldiers, saying adequate resources have already been put in place. Army sources in Delhi had said Pakistan's DGMO Maj Gen Amir Riaz called up Lt Gen Singh earlier in the day and offered help. They had said such calls are routine whenever any mishap happens near the border. "We thanked them for the gesture but since our resources and teams are well placed and adequate, we have said that presently we don't require any help," the sources had said. The offer of help came over 30 hours after the avalanche in Northern Glacier sector in Ladakh region in the world's highest battlefield hit the post early Wednesday. The glaciated area presents temperatures ranging from a minimum of minus 42 degrees Celsius in the night to maximum of minus 25 degrees Celsius during the day, Col Goswami had said. The Siachen Glacier in the Karakorum range is known as the highest militarised zone in the world. Thousands of Indian and Pakistani troops contest an area at altitudes above 20,000 feet where they must deal with altitude sickness, high winds, frostbite and temperatures as low as minus 60 degrees Celsius. Military experts say the inhospitable climate and avalanche-prone terrain have claimed more lives than gunfire. In 2012, at least 140 people including Pakistani soldiers and civilians were killed when an avalanche struck an Army camp in the strategically important Gayari sector. An estimated 8,000 troops have died on the glacier since 1984, almost all of them from avalanches, landslides, frostbite, altitude sickness or heart failure rather than combat, local media reports have said. The strategic importance of the glacier is widely seen as insignificant. Until 1984, neither side had troops permanently stationed there. Both countries agree on a need to demilitarise the glacier, but attempts to reach any agreement have been unsuccessful. With agency inputs New Delhi: A suspected Islamic State operative arrested for allegedly conspiring to carry out terror strikes in India was on Thursday remanded to NIA custody till 19 February by a Delhi court. Azhar Iqbal, who was arrested from Madhya Pradesh by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), was produced before District Judge Amar Nath during in-camera proceedings and according to sources, NIA sought his custodial interrogation for 15 days. They said NIA told the court that Iqbal was required to be interrogated to ascertain the identities of his other associates and know about their funding pattern. The sources also said NIA told the court that the accused was required to be taken to various places in the country for the purpose of investigation. Iqbal, a resident of Barkheda Raisen, Madhya Pradesh, was arrested by the NIA as part of the agency's crackdown on sympathisers of the Islamic State. On 25 January, 12 ISIS suspects arrested from across the country were sent to 13 days in NIA custody after the court was informed that they were allegedly planning to carry out attacks ahead of the Republic Day. The 12 accused were Abdul Ahad, Imran, Mohd Afzal, Mohd Sharif, Mubabiir Mushtaq Sheikh, Mohd Alim, Syed Mujahid, Suhail Ahmed, Asif Ali, Njmul Huda, Mohd Obaidullah Khan and Mohd Hussain Khan, the sources said. These arrested accused were allegedly in regular touch with active members of IS in Syria through internet chat via social networking applications, sources said. Earlier, two suspected terrorists -- Abu Anas and Nafees Khan, both aged 24 years -- were remanded to NIA custody for 13 days on the allegations that they had Islamic State links. They were arrested under several sections of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. PTI by Dr Mahati Chittem India is witnessing a significant rise in chronic diseases which is resulting in a tremendous medical and public health innovation and intervention. These efforts notwithstanding, a majority of Indians still do not have access to authenticated, mainstream medical information or care. Consequently, issues such as late presentation, non-adherence, increased costs of care, and poor prognoses remain. A major concern with an illness such as cancer is the social stigma and negative perceptions of the disease. In spite of the advances in medical technologies and the promise of bolstering the medical education centres in the country, cancer is still considered to be a death sentence. When structural barriers to care are added to these negative psychosocial perceptions, it results in a debilitating public health concern of patients reporting at late stages when curative treatment is not possible.. Researchers at the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) Bhubaneshwar, Dr Sanghamitra Pati and colleagues, explored this issue using qualitative techniques among cancer patients and reported that financial constraints, low levels of medical literacy especially about the signs and symptoms of cancer, and lack of or minimal awareness about treatment options and facilities led to patients presenting with a late stage cancer in Odisha. This study suggested to us that the pathways to care are not always straightforward and are definitely not justly spread across rural and urban centres and/or across different sections of society. Our team in the Department of Liberal Arts at IIT Hyderabad explores a variety of topics within chronic disease management including disease labeling, patient-physician communication and relationship, family-centric decision-making, self-management and adherence, end-of-life issues, and psychological outcomes of cancer. All our research uses mixed methods (ie, in-depth qualitative interviews and questionnaire-based quantitative methods) with an overarching aim of providing evidence-based suggestions for patient empowerment and, in the end, optimal patient care. Through a range of channels (eg, journal articles, YouTube channel, conference presentations, workshops) we communicate our research findings to a wider audience of care providers, care recipients, academicians, and researchers. In this article, I'd like to focus primarily on the issues of disease communication in India that is, the frequent practice of not openly and/or honestly discussing the life-threatening diagnosis and prognosis with the patient and how this can be addressed through patient empowerment techniques. In an attempt to protect the patient from the traumatic news of a cancer diagnosis, family caregivers request physicians not to inform the patient of the true diagnosis. Physicians comply with this socioculturally-driven request at the outset and, usually overtime, gradually encourage families to allow for open discussions about the disease. Meanwhile, patients are given an alternate, less threatening disease explanation (eg, bad stomach ache) or euphemisms such as tumour or lump are used in place of the word cancer. Through my PhD research in the Department of Psychology at the University of Sheffield, UK, of which two articles are published in the journal of Psycho-oncology (publication dates of 2013 and 2015, respectively), we reported that the way a person makes sense of their illness varies if they know their true diagnosis or not. Those who do not know that they have cancer report negative illness beliefs and higher levels of psychological distress. Now this is a troubling finding because it goes against the main reasons why caregivers do not disclose a true cancer diagnosis and oncologists who initially support the caregivers wishes. Further, this leaves the patient at a loss as they are not only alienated/isolated (due to collusion) but also have no opportunity to develop essential coping strategies through the course of the illness treatment to survivorship or palliation. Therefore, this brings to question the motivations for and basis of these disease-related decisions, and establishes the need for honest triadic (ie, physician-family-patient) communication. While our research only evidences a correlation between nondisclosure and poor outcomes, it does not examine the exact reasons for these findings. Therefore, it is not safe to embark on communication skills training that focus on truth-telling and one should, instead, explore the sociocultural underpinnings for this unique phenomenon and its subsequent impact. Our research, however, highlighted the need to empower patients to take charge of their illness when they feel ready to and in whatever way they deem best for themselves. One such technique is question-asking. Research emerging from the 1990s from colleagues in the west and Asia-Pacific suggests that a technique called question prompts may encourage patients to be able to actively participate in their care. While using question prompts has shown mixed results in Japan, this might not be the case in India where question-asking is acceptable and, sometimes, expected in the medical encounter. Further, patients do not necessarily have to ask physicians all their questions and can use this technique for their social network (e.g., family members, nurses, other patients). Thus reducing the burden on the physician as the primary information provider as well as improving the communication between the patient and their social network. With staggering cancer statistics of 1.8 million cancer patients, 683, 000 deaths due to cancer, more than a million new cases each year, and poor oncologist-to-patient ratio of 1:2000, patient empowerment will be a welcome relief for all stakeholders. However, the true spirit of patient empowerment is to have patients choose their definition of empowerment. Therefore, we make no assumptions of all patients wishing to engage in question-asking and to take control of all or some aspects of their illness. Merely asking patients what they would like to do, so in a sense reversing question-asking to patients, could be a simple way of empowering patients. Not using a one-size-fits all communication style in the medical encounter on the part of the physician may help patients feel satisfied and cared for. Skills-building techniques for families to identify and respond positively to psychological distress in their patient can make patients feel comfortable enough to speak about their illness instead of skirting the topic. Sensitising the public about the impact of stigma on patients can reduce the fear-inducing experiences of chronic illnesses. What is important to recognise and understand is that in the centre of any medical care is the patient and they really should be treated fairly, honestly and allowed to make decisions for themselves even if the decision is not to decide! The author is an Assistant Professor of Health and Medical Psychology in the Dept of Liberal Arts at IIT Hyderabad who has been working in the field of chronic diseases for 13 years. Remember Inderjit Singh Mukker? The 53-year-old from Chicago was handed a brutal beating in September last year after his assailant pulled up to Mukkers vehicle and yelled out, Terrorist, go back to your country, Bin Laden!. Mukker's case was just another instance of a Sikh person being beaten up for Osama Bin Laden's sins. But he was Sikh and not Muslim, I hear you say. Does it matter? But he was not even from West Asia, you fire back. Again, did that matter? How is this relevant, you now ask with palpable frustration. Now, were talking. The frightening idea that such incidents could become de rigueur in Donald Trumps America (perish the thought) notwithstanding, or even the Idi Amin-esque precedent it could set with en masse deportations, it really is time to turn that mirror around and look at ourselves. The assault, beating and stripping of the Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru on 31 January was apparently in retaliation to a Sudanese student driving over a 35-year-old woman at the same spot sometime earlier. The geographical distance between Sudan and Tanzania is unimportant. The very same thing could even have happened to a Zimbabwean on the same grounds skin colour. It is shocking that people wear liberalism as a sign of modernity, yet revert to ultraconservatism when actually faced with difference So wrote African-American PhD student at the Delhi School of Economics, Diepiriye Kuku in Outlook in June 2009. The author alluded to Indias disdain for dark skin and added, I have been denied visas, apartments, entrance to discos, attentiveness, kindness and the benefit of doubt. But, we're not racist. After all, we too were once colonised. Remember "Dugna lagaan"? What do you mean it was a movie? Diepiriyes story is unfortunately, far from unique. But you already knew that. You also already knew about the time in May 2011 when Bengalurus pubs and bars decided to pay a tribute to Indias colonial past and ban Africans from their premises. Dogs and Indians not allowed revisited? You probably also knew that a year later, Hyderabad took a cue and implemented a similar policy. That some African nationals indulge in drug peddling, phishing and counterfeiting currency is known. But then, so do some Germans, some Albanians, some Americans and yes, even some Indians (shocking, isnt it?). Tarring an entire community, a nationality, or in this case, an entire continent with the same brush is what saw former Delhi above-the-law minister Somnath Bharti lead a group that conducted a midnight raid on some Ugandan women and assault them. That said, its not always some sort of physical violence that greets Africans in India. Very often, its just kaaliaor kallu if one is feeling affectionate. No, we're not racist. After all, its not just Africans that experience the phenomenon of being branded peddlers and criminals if male, and prostitutes if female. Just ask people from the Northeast. Indias Northeast, in case it wasnt clear Ethiopians and Somalis have it tough in any case. So why should we care about this latest case? Its obviously not because shes Tanzanian because (read the paragraphs above) . Is it the part that a woman was assaulted and stripped in public? Clearly not, since this sort of thing happens again and again and again and again and again in this country of ours. So what then? Is it because we, as a country, have a problem? Certainly not. In fact, were not even remotely prejudiced. We treat everyone the same way. Everyone that is different, I should probably clarify. The 'others'. How they become 'others' can depend on class, caste, religion, region, political leanings, wealth, nationality, appearance, or in this case, skin colour. But, whether it's an old man in Dadri, Dalit children near Faridabad, two men from Nagaland in Gurgaon, a woman in Birbhum district or now, this woman in Bengaluru, we treat them all with exactly the same amount of courtesy. Meanwhile, take a moment to read how the Tanzanian High Commission website describes the experience of higher education in India. After referring to a welcoming atmosphere, non-discriminative approach, the brief invites Tanzanian students to visit India and be a part of an educational system that lives on the values of quality, growth and truthfulness. Theyve still got hope. The question is do we? Or would we rather sit around patting ourselves on the shoulders about how 'tolerant' (how I have grown to equally loath the word and the debate about it) we are. And anyone who says we arent, can go walk into oncoming traffic. In fresh trouble for former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao on Thursday gave sanction to the CBI to prosecute Chavan in the Adarsh scam case. "Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao today gave his sanction to CBI to prosecute former Chief Minister of Maharashtra Ashok Chavan, under section 197 of CrPC, for offences under sections 120-B (conspiracy) and 420 (cheating) of IPC in the Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society case," an official in the Governor's office said. "The Governor had recently sought the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers and was advised by the Council of Ministers to grant the sanction(to CBI)," he added. This development comes just days after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday night arrested former MP Sameer Bhujbal, nephew of NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal, in a money laundering case in Mumbai. That arrest had come hours after the ED conducted multiple searches in Mumbai in connection with its money laundering probe against former Maharashtra PWD minister Chhagan Bhujbal and others. The CBI had approached the Maharashtra governor seeking sanction to prosecute Chavan in connection with the Adarsh Housing Society corruption case in late January. CBI sources in New Delhi had said the agency had approached Rao after it got "fresh evidence" against Chavan in the case. In December 2013, the then Governor K Sankaranarayan had refused sanction to CBI to prosecute Chavan in the Adarsh housing scam, leaving the agency with no choice but to close the case against him. Chavan, who had to resign as Chief Minister after the scam surfaced in 2010, was among the 12 persons who were chargesheeted by the agency in connection with the case. CBI had alleged that Chavan suggested inclusion of civilian members in Adarsh Housing Society meant for war veterans and widows of defence personnel, to secure flats for his relatives. CBI had first approached a trial court seeking to drop Chavan's name as an accused on the ground that the Governor had refused to sanction his prosecution. As the CBI court rejected it, the agency moved the Bombay High Court. The High Court too dismissed CBI's application last November observing that the Governor had refused sanction for prosecution for conspiracy charges under the Indian Penal Code but Chavan could still be prosecuted under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Chavan reacted to this development in the case in a way which seems to be turning into Congress leaders' standard response whenever any allegations of corruption are made against them. "This is clear political vendetta of the BJP govenrment against me," Chavan said. "CBI's re-application to the Governor to prosecute me (in Adarsh scam) is illegal. I'll react in detail after consulting my legal advisors," ANI further quoted Chavan as saying. Other Congress leaders reacted in a similar way, alleging that BJP was seeking revenge and there were no new grounds to prosecute Chavan. "The state government has given permission...It's worrisome because this it's not constitutionally correct and we will challenge it in court," Congress leader Sachin Sawant told CNN-IBN. "What is the new ground (for prosecuting Chavan) that has been found now which wasn't found then? Congress fully backs Ashok Chavan," Congress Tom Vadakkan said. On the other hand, Mumbai BJP chief Ashish Shelar said this was a judicial process and the Maharashtra government had nothing to do with it. "Governor is an independent authority... BJP has nothing to do with it," Shelar said. With inputs from PTI This is how Oxford dictionary defines the term liberal. Liberal: (adj) willing to respect or accept behaviour or opinions different from one's own; open to new ideas. John Locke, the 17th century English philosopher and political theorist, whose work Two Treatises of Government is generally considered to be the first exposition of liberalism, must be feeling quite despondent these days: Tossing and turning in his decidedly ancient grave. It took the worlds largest and most populous democracy to finally undermine and radically subvert the group of political, social and economic theories that qualify under the blanket term liberalism the pivot on which values of individual liberty, equality, economic freedom and rule of law are based. Anupam Khers Pakistan visa row has again proved, if more confirmation was needed, that in India liberalism is a warped, bogus concept; its self-styled practitioners a bunch of morally decrepit scoundrels who flout all universal ethical standards with impunity. Our liberals claim a permanent seat on the moral high horse yet they do not believe in basic tenets of fair play, equality and justice. In their nature of emitting blood-curdling collective howls and tearing the prey apart with biased criticism, unsubstantiated allegations and witch-hunt sans morals, logic or legality they resemble more the coyotes of North America. And like these feared wolves, they also hunt in packs. Notice how they swooped down in unison on Anupam Kher when the actor claimed that Pakistan had denied him a visa. Before the arrival of even the first morsel of fact, these so-called liberals first ridiculed Khers claim, made him the butt of vicious jokes, tore apart his character, insinuated that his Padma Bhushan was ill-gotten and in a final act of insult, said his words were plain lies: Kher didnt get a Pakistan visa because he never applied for one. As if all the other 17 invitees to the Karachi Literature Festival who got their visas which includes Congress leader Salman Khurshid did. At this point, lets take a look at the facts. Amid the furore following Khers series of tweets that Pakistans Ministry of Foreign Affairs had singled him out and red-flagged his name from a list of 17 invitees, Pakistan High Commissioner Abdul Basit said: No visa application was submitted to us, this is what the reality is. PTI, however, quoted Ameena Syed, the spokesperson for the Karachi Literature Festival, as saying in Karachi that KLF had been advised by the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi to tell Kher not to submit a visa application as he would not be issued one. "That is all we have been told. They told us that the remaining 17 guests invited from India should be asked to submit applications as they would be issued visas," she said. Our liberals, however, for reasons best known to them, chose to believe the Pakistan high commissioners claim over Khers and Syeds statements. How dare the damn Pakistanis not allow a visa to the famous non-resident of Kashmir valley? quipped one. Another one said Kher is reducing himself to new lows each day. Yet another one ridiculed the actor by saying Pakistans high court should immediately step in. Their jubilation over the eventuality was hard to be missed. As if on cue, Congress jumped into the fray. Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari on Wednesday morning advised Prime Minister Narendra Modi to help Kher out by speaking to his friend Nawaz: If the #posterboyof "tolerant" India is so keen to go to Pak his friend PM Modi can surely talk to his drop by friend Nawaz & facilitate it? Manish Tewari (@ManishTewari) February 3, 2016 So who was lying? Kher, or the Pakistan High Commission? Things became clear when on Wednesday morning Basit called up Kher, expressed regret over denial of visa and promised to take the matter up on a priority basis. What followed was deathly silence. Our liberals have retreated to their caves. The moral activism that accompanied cancellation of Ghulam Alis concert is miraculously absent. The moral indignation that exploded into our collective consciousness post the ink attack on Sudheendra Kulkarni is, not surprisingly, missing. The eminent writers, forever vocal against the ghost of intolerance stalking the living daylights out of them since 16 May, 2014, have responded with deafening silence. The entire ecosystem of our liberal brigade, instead of criticising Pakistan, are either busy justifying our neighbours intolerant attitude or better still, in a stunning act of moral reversal, have instead blamed Kher for being singled out by Pakistan. As if by protesting against the canard of intolerance, Kher brought this eventuality upon himself. This crass hypocrisy and jaundiced viewpoint turns inward all notions of natural justice. This left-liberal secular lobby that still holds an iron grip over the English language narrative in India through various channels nurtured carefully over several decades, has, by their Machiavellian application of ethical standards, given rise to another dangerous trend. This blatant double standard and discrimination, selective application of outrage in matters concerning freedom of speech and expression have, in effect, given rise to what writer Amit Chaudhuri calls Wahhabi Hinduism. If there has been a recent frenzy on social media, a clamour for change, raw anger and abuse against our medias political and cultural priorities, then these liberals who have less integrity than even pimps are to be directly blamed for it. Just as the news broke that Maharashtra Governor C Vidyasagar Rao has sanctioned the CBI to prosecute former state Chief Minister Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh Housing Society scam, the Congress launched a blistering attack against the BJP and Modi government, saying "this is nothing but vendetta politics". By coming out with a stock response, the Congress is trying to equate the Adarsh scam with the National Herald case, the probe against Robert Vadra, CBI investigation against Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh, ED raids against P Chidambaram's son Karti and other such in a seemingly endless list. In each of these instances, the main opposition party dutifully came out with the same reflexive response. In doing so, the Congress leaders conveniently forgot that it was not Narendra Modi but the erstwhile Congress-led UPA government that ordered a CBI inquiry into the Adarsh scam. The Congress leadership's decision to drop Chavan as the Maharashtra Chief Minister was based not on any high moral ground but because preliminary investigations indicated that Chavan had much to explain, including the fact that two of his kin owned flats in Adarsh Housing Society. The CBI recently sought sanction for Chavan's prosecution under Section 197 of the CrPC on the basis of a Justice Patil Commission of Enquiry report and the observations of the Bombay High Court. The Governor had sought the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers and was advised by the Council of Ministers to grant the sanction. Congress's other charge is that "Governor's decision has never been reviewed this way in the past". During UPA regime, in 2013, the then Governor K Sankaranarayan had refused to let Chavan be prosecuted and cited lack of sufficient evidence to deny sanction to the CBI. The investigative agency then approached a trial court seeking to drop Chavan's name as an accused on the ground that the Governor had refused to sanction his prosecution. Ashok Chavan, however, did not get any relief as the special court rejected the CBIs plea to drop his name from the list of accused in the Adarsh scam case. A Special CBI court observed that even though Governor Sankaranarayanan had rejected CBI's plea, the former Maharashtra CM could still be tried under the Prevention of Corruption act as he has been accused of criminal misconduct. A petition filed in High Court said that both Governor Sankarnarayan and Ashok Chavan's father were contemporaries as Union ministers and that the latter met the Governor on 15 October, 2013, at Raj Bhavan. The application said consequent to this hour-long meeting, the Governor rejected the CBI's plea of sanction. The Bombay High Court upheld the trial court's verdict and dismissed CBI's application last November, observing that the Governor had refused sanction for prosecution under the Indian Penal Code but he can still be prosecuted under the Prevention of Corruption Act. The court also dismissed Chavan's appeal to recall an earlier order refusing to delete his name from the multi-crore scam, saying there is enough evidence to prosecute him. Chavan moved the Supreme Court against the Bombay High Court's order. While all this was happening, questions were raised in some quarters about role of the then CBI Director Ranjit Sinha, who, it was alleged, was pursuing the case for dropping of Chavan's name as an accused. Many argued that in this case, the Governor's sanction was not even necessary to prosecute the former Maharashtra CM. Given clear directions from courts, what happened thereafter was a procedural follow-up. It looks as though for the Congress, the report of a judicial commission appointed by Congress government (Prithviraj Chavan's government rejected the commission's report which indicted four former chief ministers Ashok Chavan, Vilasrao Deshmukh, Sushilkumar Shinde and Shivajirao Nilangekar-Patil, two of state's former urban development ministers and 12 IAS officers) and two judicial pronouncements, mean nothing. The stock response of political vendetta is the same as has been in National Herald case. A probe in pending corruption cases or any fresh investigations against any senior Congress leader, or any of their close relatives, Robert Vadra for instance, becomes immediately a case of political vendetta. If the government of the day does not act, then Congress or any other party concerned would later argue that if there was a case why didn't they pursue it when they were in power. The Vajpayee government's decision in 2004 not to go to the Supreme Court to challenge High Court's order in Bofors case is one such example. Consider the following After Delhi High Court rejected Congress's plea to quash lower court's order for personal appearance of Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and other senior Congress leaders in National Herald Case, the Congress paralyzed Parliament for several days. Reacting to turn of events, this is what Rahul Gandhi said "One hundred per cent political vendetta. This is pure political vendetta coming out of the PM's office. It is their way of doing politics." Ashok Chavan is now a Congress MP in Lok Sabha. As such, the issue could find some resonance in Parliament when it opens for the budget session later this month. After all, crying 'political vendetta' is the easiest way to gain sympathy from public and support from opposition parties. New Delhi: The Supreme Court, examining the powers of Governors, today took strong note of a submission that all decisions of the Governor are not open to judicial review and said it cannot be a mute spectator when democratic processes are slaughtered. If democracy is slaughtered, how can the court remain silent, a five-judge Constitution bench headed by Justice J S Khehar said when the counsel for a BJP MLA of crisis-hit Arunachal Pradesh referred to the powers of the Governors to drive home of the point that courts cannot review all the decisions of the Governor. The bench, meanwhile, summoned dispatch records, having details of correspondences of Arunachal Pradesh assembly from October to till date, on February 8 as it was not satisfied with documents produced by an official of the assembly. The bench, also comprising Justices Dipak Misra, M B Lokur, P C Ghose and N V Ramana, wanted to ascertain certain comm Communications between the office of Assembly Speaker Nabam Rebia and Governor J P Rajkhowa on issues like convening or advancing assembly session and disqualification of rebel Congress MLAs. Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, appearing for some rebel Congress lawmakers, supported the Governors decisions saying that summoning the assembly session cannot be termed undemocratic and does not frustrate democratic process. Rather, locking out the assembly building and shying away from it are undemocratic acts. It is not compulsory for the Governor to take aid and advice of the Chief Minister and his council of ministers in summoning the assembly session, he said, adding that certain constitutional schemes empower the Governor to act on his own in exceptional and special circumstances. By summoning assembly session, the Governor is simply setting in motion the democratic process, the lawyer said and asked how can it be termed illegal by those who lost majority support and shied away from the House. He said that the locking up of the assembly building was not a simple and democratic act. The court would resume hearing tomorrow on a batch of pleas filed by Rebia and other Congress leaders against the Gauhati High Court order in the case. Earlier, the bench had said that Governors are political appointees and their actions are open to judicial review as nowadays even judges are considered for such an assignment. Yesterday, BJP MLA Tage Taki had questioned the delay on part of the Congress in moving the Gauhati High Court against the Governors decision to advance the assembly session. If such a grave mistake was committed by the Governor then why did the then ruling party allow the matter to precipitate further and move the court at the last minute, senior advocate Vikas Singh, appearing for Taki, had said. The Nabam Tuki government, which had initial support of 47 MLAs in 60 member house, allegedly lost the confidence motion by 33 votes in the assembly session held in a community hall in the state capital of Itanagar. The bench is also examining the authority of the Governor as to whether he can advance the assembly session without the aid and advice of the Chief Minister and his council of ministers. The court would tomorrow resume hearing on the petitions seeking examination of powers of Governors. Congress party, which has 47 MLAs seats in the 60-member assembly, suffered a jolt when 21 of its lawmakers rebelled. Eleven BJP MLAs backed the rebels in the bid to upstage the government. Later, 14 rebel Congress MLAs were disqualified. The Governor then called assembly session on December 16 in which Deputy Speaker revoked disqualification of 14 rebel Congress MLAs and removed Rebia from the post of Speaker. This sitting was held in a community hall. The court is also considering fresh pleas against imposition of Presidents Rule in the state and would hear them on February 8. PTI By KA Antony As the revelations made by Saritha S Nair before the judicial commission now inquiring the solar scam scandal pose a major threat to the poll prospects of the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) in Kerala, stories of two other women that had upset the UDF apple cart in the past elections come to the fore. The first one to deal a heavy blow to the UDF during the 1996 elections was the story of a 16-year-old schoolgirl from Suryanelli in central Kerala, who was allegedly kidnapped and raped by as many as 37 men for a period of 40 days. The Suryanelli sex scandal rocked Kerala politics after senior Congress leader PJ Kurien was alleged to have sexually assaulted the girl. After the arrack ban in Kerala, the UDF government led by AK Antony was expecting a second term. But with the screams of the Suryanelli girl playing spoilsport, the UDF had to face a humiliating defeat in the Assembly elections that followed.The number of seats won by the UDF in that election went down to 59 from 90 seats won in the previous election. Though the victim recognised Kurien from his photograph in a newspaper, the crime against him could not be proved. A special court in 2000, however, found 35 of the 37 accused as guilty. Kurien once again was in the thick of controversy after Dharmarajan, the prime accused in the Suryanelli case, who went absconding after the court had sentenced him to life term imprisonment, revealed in a TV interview that the Congress leader was involved in the sex scandal. But Kurien got some relief as Dharmarajan, soon after his arrest, retracted the allegation. The second woman to shatter the hopes of UDF in the 2006 Assembly election was Rajeena a victim of the sensational Kozhikode ice cream parlour sex racket case involving industries minister and Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) leader PK Kunhalikutty. This time also the UDF was reduced to 42 seats against LDFs 98. Kunhalikutty had to resign as industries minister following Rajeenas revelation that the minister had raped her. The ice cream sex scandal formed the major campaign point for the LDF. Various women's organisations like Anweshi led by former Naxal leader K Ajitha, campaigned vigorously against Kunhalikutty leading to his defeat from the IUML stronghold of Kuttippuram twice represented by him before. Some other prominent IUML leaders like ET Mohammed Basheer, MK Muneer and KPA Majeed also tasted defeat in the 2006 Assembly elections. Like Kurien, Kunhalikutty was in the dock once again in 2011 after Rauf, his co-brother alleged that the minister was still paying money to the victim to hush up the case. The Kerala Police ordered a fresh investigation following a complaint by the Opposition leader VS Achuthanandan. Though the special investigation team gave clean chit to Kunhalikutty, a petion from Achuthanandan demanding an investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is pending before the Supreme Court. The UDF now faces almost the same situation as in 1996 and 2006 with Saritha and Biju Ramesh a bar owner who has accused the government of accepting bribes to renew liquor licences coming up with fresh allegations against Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, his cabinet colleagues, MPs, MLAs and Congress leaders, almost on a daily basis. Ajitha, who was at the forefront in the fight to get justice for the victims of the ice-cream parlour sex scandal case, said that she has a very bad impression about present-day Kerala politics. "Politics, especially UDF politics have taken an ugly turn. From ministers to ordinary Congress leaders, everyone is neck-deep in scandals and corruption. I have some faith in the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) even though not all of its leaders are perfect. But it is the Left that takes a stern stand against the fascism unleashed by the Narendra Modi regime. Fascism is showing its ugly teeth every day all over India. Though the present day CPI(M) is basically bankrupt in terms of ideology, I feel that the Left would make a better choice this time," she said. Novelist and screen play writer CV Balakrishnan said the bar bribery issue and the new liquor policy of the UDF government will have an adverse impact on the coming elections. We cannot rule out the allegations raised by Biju Ramesh. This government will have to pay a heavy price for the closure of bars after asking the owners to shell out huge amounts for upgradation. Official figures say that over 18,000 bar employees lost their jobs due to the prohibition which was introduced without conducting a proper study. Everybody in Kerala knows the new liquor policy was part of the ego clashes in the Congress leadership in Kerala, he said. K Govindaraj, a political observer said, There is no doubt that UDF faces a similar situation as Saritha is coming out everyday with more and more evidence to prove Chandy and his men had a role in the solar panel scam. The new politics is based on market economy and middlemen. This has led to issues like the solar and bar bribery scams. I am of the opinion that both Saritha and Ramesh will ensure the rout of the UDF in the coming Assembly elections, said O Raveendran, a Life Insurance Corporation employee who watches Kerala politics keenly. Noted writer N Sasidharan said although he did not want to make any prediction on the election results, the way the government and its chief minister had failed to counter Sarithas allegations, would make people feel ashamed. Enough is enough. Stop your perverse, self-serving blame game, now. Our salaries and lives are more important than your politics. This should be unequivocal message from the striking corporation workers in Delhi to both the AAP and the BJP. As garbage accumulates on the streets of the National Capital, students are sent back from corporation-run schools and hospitals refuse to entertain patients, a temporary compromise on the salary issue won't work anymore. There has to be a permanent solution. The city is suffering as a collateral damage from the strike, which enters its ninth day on Thursday. It cannot afford to be indulgent about its politicians. A solution is possible only when there is dialogue and continuous engagement among the political players. As things stand now, there's no such hope. The AAP, which runs the Delhi government, and the BJP, which controls the three corporations, have taken mutual acrimony to such levels that it is difficult to expect them to get into a mature conversation. As the recent developments show they have turned callous about the city and the people they represent. On Wednesday, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal offered a Rs 551 crore loan to the East and North civic bodies to help them tide over the salary crisis. North was promised Rs 142 crore as stamp duty dues. The corporations were quick to refuse it saying they want their legitimate dues cleared, not a loan. The striking employees refused to call off their strike saying they want a permanent solution not a deferment of the crisis. The government's grant would take care of their salaries till 31 January this year. After that what? Do we go on another strike for Februarys salaries? They ask. Kejriwal would like to believe that the BJP-led central government is creating a situation for the imposition of central rule in Delhi. He also wants fresh elections for the corporations. In his address from Bangalore on Wednesday he wanted to know wheres all the money allotted to the corporations going? He claimed that the three MCDs were reluctant to get their accounts audited. The mayors reacted saying they had no problem with audit of accounts since theres no wrong-doing involved. At this point it is difficult to find out who is telling truth. One point, however, is clear. The poor financial condition of the civic bodies is a legacy issue. It began much before Kejriwals government took charge of Delhi. The trifurcation of the unified Delhi corporation in 2012 resulted in heavy financial burdens on all three, at least the North and East corporations which do not have enough sources of revenue. South houses big business establishments and posh residential houses. The revenue it earns is just adequate for it. The corporations have been in the red for some time now, it has just reached a point where it is not manageable anymore. What the present situation requires is a mature approach from all involved. Both parties have shown they are incapable of it. The Congress, which is partly responsible for the crisis, has escaped flak as the other two are busy running each other down. Will the AAP call for an all-party meet to discuss the issue and find a conclusion to the issue? Looks impossible. Will the BJP government, which has major say in Delhis affairs, step in and seek a solution. No. There is political capital to be made out of miseries of people. So no party will take the initiative. In the situation of such deadlock, citizens have to take matters into their own hands. Kejriwal himself was a product of this line of thinking. He is in power today because he highlighted the people-politician disconnect and advocated fiercely that people should take the fight to the politicians. Being a peoples chief minister that is what he still claims to be its imperative that he allows people to have their say in the corporation matter. If it means election, so be it. Politicians have taken it too far. Its not acceptable anymore. There has to be an answer from them for what is happening in Delhi. New Delhi: Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu on Thursday expressed confidence that the GST bill as well as the ones on bankruptcy and real estate will get the approval of Parliament during the Budget Session beginning 23 February. "I am always optimistic. I am not pessimistic like others ... I am optimistic that GST, real estate development bill and bankruptcy bill will be passed during this session," he told reporters on the sidelines of India Investment Summit in New Delhi. The minister also appealed to the opposition parties, especially Congress, to let the Parliament approve these legislations as they were in the larger interest of the country. "I appeal to all parties... that as the country is moving forward, we need these legislations in the larger interest of the country. I appeal to them and I seek their cooperation for passing these legislations in the budget session," Naidu said. The Congress has stalled the passage of the constitution amendment Bill in the Rajya Sabha, derailing the government's plan to roll out GST from 1 April, 2016. "We are already in touch (with Congress) and we have been in touch (and) we will be in touch in future also. There is a regular interaction which we have with other friendly parties. "Even about the (timing of the budget) session, I have consulted lot of our senior opposition party leaders and we continue our interaction with them," Naidu said. On the three demands of Congress with regard to the GST bill, he said: "We have already addressed these issues...and the same has been communicated to the Congress party." The three demands are a cap on the GST rate in the Constitution itself, removal of the proposed 1 percent additional tax on inter-state movement of goods and setting up a judicial panel to adjudicate disputes among states. Budget Session of Parliament commences on 23 February. While the first part of the session will end on 16 March, the second part will be take place from 25 April to 13 May. PTI London: Prime Minister David Cameron said on Wednesday he would seek to assert the sovereignty of the British parliament over European Union laws as he concludes his renegotiation of ties with the bloc. Cameron is trying to finalise the details of a set of reforms he hopes will be backed by other EU leaders at a summit on 18-19 February, though Britain's largely eurosceptic press and some lawmakers in his ruling Conservative party say he has sought far too little. It is unclear how such a declaration of sovereignty would work and how it would be received in the EU, though British media said it could bring London Mayor Boris Johnson, a potential successor to Cameron, behind the 'in' campaign. Replying to a question from Johnson, who has refused to say whether he will campaign for Britain to remain in or to leave the EU in a planned referendum, Cameron said: "Asserting the sovereignty of this House is something that we did by introducing the European Union Act 2011." "I am keen to do even more to put it beyond doubt that this House of Commons (the lower house of parliament) is sovereign. We will look to do that at the same time as concluding the negotiations." In an interview with the BBC, Cameron refused to answer directly whether ministers were working on a law that would assert the sovereignty of the British parliament and be published alongside a possible EU deal. "We already have asserted that parliament is sovereign," Cameron said. Reuters PARIS French President Francois Hollande has sounded out an environmentalist to join the government in a cabinet reshuffle widely expected soon, a source said on Wednesday. Europe 1 radio said Hollande had offered an enlarged Environment Ministry to the former television presenter and climate change adviser to Hollande, Nicolas Hulot. Newspaper Liberation said Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, who is widely rumoured to be preparing to leave to head the Constitutional Council, would be replaced by current Environment Minister Segolene Royal, Hollande's former partner with whom he has three children. A source close to Hulot told Reuters that Hollande and had been in contact with him. "The offer exists, that's for sure," the source added. With 15 months to go before the next presidential election, a reshuffle could open a new chapter in Hollande's five-year term after his ratings have returned to record lows due to high unemployment and divisions among his own Socialists. A senior Socialist party official said earlier on Wednesday that nothing had been decided yet on the reshuffle and that all options were still on the table. Hollande's leftist justice minister, Christiane Taubira, resigned from the government last week over his proposal to strip convicted bi-national terrorists of French citizenship as part of a constitutional reform. Government spokesman and Farm Minister Stephane Le Foll said on Sunday that if there were a ministerial reshuffle it would not be until Feb. 10, when lawmakers are due to vote on the constitutional reform. (Reporting by Emmanuel Jarry; Additional reporting by Elizabeth Pineau; Writing by Leigh Thomas; Editing by Alison Williams) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Islamabad: In another round of provocative remarks, JuD chief and Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed has warned India of more terror attacks. "You have only seen one attack on Pathankot. Matters could easily escalate," he said addressing a rally in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The Jamaat-ud-Dawah (JuD) group chief alleged that Indian troops were committing "genocide" on Kashmiris and added "don't they have a right to carry out Pathankot-style attacks for their defence?" Saeed, in the rally on Wednesday, also lauded Kashmiri militant leader Syed Salahuddin, who heads the United Jihad Council (UJC) that had claimed responsibility for the 2 January terror attack on the Indian Air Force base in Pathankot. Last month, Saeed had appeared on a private Pakistani channel's talk show despite Pakistan government's ban on the media coverage of militant groups like the JuD and LeT. Saeed made an appearance on a talk show on Channel 24 on 27 January. He glorified his organisation's "public welfare" works and talked about how India and the US were "pressuring" the Pakistani government to take action against organisations like the JuD and Jaish-e-Mohammad, which is believed to be behind the Pathankot attack. Referring to the Pathankot terror attack, Saeed had dismissed the suggestion that the government was "patronising" some "non-state actors and banned organisations". The UN declared JuD a terror organisation and also individually designated Saeed as a terrorist in December 2008. The US has already put a $10 million bounty on his head. Saeed, who orchestrated the November, 2008, Mumbai terror attack in which 166 people were killed, roams around freely in Pakistan despite being a designated terrorist and has made many anti-India remarks and speeches. PTI BEIJING/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama came under pressure on Thursday to ensure the safety of blind Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng who briefly took refuge in the American embassy and whose later desperate pleas for asylum from a Beijing hospital bed threaten to fan U.S.-China tensions. Chen, a self-taught legal activist, left the U.S. Embassy on Wednesday shortly before U.S. Secretary of State Hillary of Clinton arrived in Beijing for talks aimed at improving economic and strategic relations between the two superpowers. But within hours, Chen changed his mind about a deal that U.S. officials had said would allow him to relocate with his family and pursue his studies at a university. In phone calls to friends and reporters, he has said he fears for his life. U.S. officials defended their handling of the case, but Republicans and Chen's supporters were critical, saying the White House must ensure Chen's safety. He had spent six days in the U.S. embassy after a dramatic escape from house arrest in a village in rural Shandong province on April 22. Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney said if the reports were accurate, the U.S. embassy "failed to put in place the kind of verifiable measures that would ensure the safety of Mr Chen and his family. "If these reports are true, this is a dark day for freedom, and it's a day of shame of the Obama administration," Romney said during an event in Virginia on Thursday as he campaigns for the November election. Bob Fu, the president of Texas-based religious and human rights group ChinaAid, told reporters in Washington he had spoken to Chen the previous night and he was weeping and asking for help to bring him and his family to the United States. Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, chairwoman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, said: "It should have been obvious to U.S. officials all along that there is no way to guarantee Mr Chen's safety so long as he is within reach of the Chinese police state." "The Administration must support Mr Chen's freedom to choose where he and his family can live in safety," the Florida Republican said in a statement. Some rights activists were also critical. "We have learned that when people come to the United States embassy they are not in fact 100 percent safe," said Reggie Littlejohn, president of the advocacy group Women's Rights Without Frontiers. "They can be turned over to the Chinese authorities from whom they were attempting to escape," she told a news conference in Washington. Fu of ChinaAid said Chen had told him that while he was at the embassy, U.S. officials conveyed a message that if he didn't leave that day his family would be returned to the village where his family had lived "in hell" for years. Fu quoted Chen as saying: "I felt great pressure to leave." Fu said Chen faced a "One way street," adding: "He has to make a choice that day that if he didn't walk out that day he will lose his family." DECISION TO LEAVE Chen, 40, is a legal activist who campaigned against forced abortions under China's "one-child" policy. U.S. officials say Chen left the embassy of his own free will and was taken for treatment at a Beijing hospital because he wanted to be reunited with his wife and children. They said he wanted to remain in China and never asked for asylum. "He knew the stark choices in front of him," U.S. Ambassador Locke told reporters in Beijing on Thursday. "He knew and was very aware that he might have to spend many, many years in the embassy. But he was prepared to do that ... "And he was fully aware of and talked about what might happen to his family if he stayed in the embassy and they stayed in the village in Shandong province." "He made it very, very clear from the very, very beginning that he wanted to stay in China, that he wanted to be part of the struggle to improve the human rights within China," Locke said. China's Foreign Ministry declined to comment on Chen's request to leave the country and repeated its criticism of the way the United States had handled the issue as "unacceptable". China has demanded an apology from the United States. Clinton and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner were scheduled to hold further talks in Beijing on Friday. Washington had hoped the talks would secure more cooperation from China on trade and international flashpoints such as North Korea, Iran and Syria. Chen told Reuters on Thursday from hospital, where he was being treated for a broken foot, that he had changed his mind after speaking to his wife, who spoke of recent threats made against his family. "I feel very unsafe. My rights and safety cannot be assured here," he said. "I hope the U.S. will help me leave immediately. I want to go there for medical treatment." A pack of camera crews and reporters was waiting outside the hospital, kept away from the entrance by police. "TRAIN WRECK" John Bolton, a former U.N. ambassador under President George W. Bush and now an informal adviser to the Romney campaign, told Fox News the situation was "a train wreck in process." White House spokesman Jay Carney said the administration was aware that Chen and his wife had had a change of heart and that State Department officials were in discussions with Chen, his wife, and Chinese officials. Carney pushed back against critics who have suggested that U.S. diplomats, seeking to defuse the situation with Beijing, had pressured Chen into his original decision to stay in China. He said Chen never sought political asylum while in the embassy. "And at every opportunity he expressed his desire to stay in China, reunify with this family, continue his education and work for reform in his country. All of our diplomacy was directed at putting him in the best possible position to achieve his objectives," Carney said. "There was no pressure of any kind placed on him by U.S. officials." The Chen case came at an tricky time for both nations: Obama is anxious to portray an image of strength in his dealing with foreign countries as he prepares for the election and China is engaged in a leadership change later this year. The carefully choreographed power transition in Beijing has already been jarred by the downfall of ambitious senior Communist Party official Bo Xilai after he was caught up in a scandal linked to the apparent murder of a British businessman. At the bilateral talks on Thursday, Clinton urged China to protect human rights but made no specific mention of Chen, whom she had spoken to on Wednesday after he left the embassy. Chinese President Hu Jintao made no mention of the Chen case in his remarks but stressed that the two nations needed trust. "It is impossible for China and the United States to see eye-to-eye on every issue, but both sides must know how to respect each other," he said. (Additional reporting by Ben Blanchard, Don Durfee, Lucy Hornby and Michael Martina in Beijing; Brian Rhoads, James Pomfret and Tan Ee Lyn in Hong Kong; and Arshad Mohammed and Paul Eckert in Washington.; Writing by Mark Bendeich and Claudia Parsons; Editing by Jonathan Thatcher, Nick Macfie and David Storey) Islamabad: Pakistan on Thursday said that it is in touch with India on finalising dates for the postponed Foreign Secretary-level talks. "Both sides are in touch regarding the date of Foreign Secretary-level talks. We will let you know when it is finalised," Foreign Office spokesman Qazi Khalilullah said on Thursday during weekly briefing. The agenda of the talks will be discussed after date for the Foreign Secretary-level talks is finalised, he said. India and Pakistan last month mutually agreed to a short deferment of Foreign Secretary-level talks after the Pathankot terror attack. Talking about the visa controversy relating to actor Anupam Kher, he said High Commissioner in India spoke to the actor and offered him a visa to attend the Literature Festival to which he was invited. "However, Kher replied that he would not be able to visit Pakistan due to other commitments," the spokesman said. Responding to a question, Khalilullah said the dossiers on India's alleged involvement in fomenting terrorism in Pakistan have already been shared with the US and the UN. To another query, he said that questions about Dawood Ibrahim have been asked several times in the past and reiterated Pakistan's position that he was not present in the country. "You may be aware that Indian authorities have admitted at the Ministerial level that Dawood Ibrahim's whereabouts were not known to them," he said. Ahead of Solidarity day being observed in Pakistan on Friday to support right of self-determination of people of Kashmir, Khalilullah said, "India continues to violate the human rights of and brutalise Kashmiris in the occupied Kashmir. Pakistan has always condemned these atrocities." "Kashmir Solidarity Day, to be observed tomorrow, reminds us of the Indian atrocities and the need for Kashmir dispute to be resolved in accordance with the UN Security Council Resolutions and aspirations of the people of Kashmir," he said. Khalilullah also said the meeting of the Quadrilateral Coordination Group on Afghanistan talks was scheduled for 6 February and will be held in Islamabad as planned. He said Pakistan and Afghanistan were in touch at various levels regarding the use of Afghan soil by certain elements involved in the terrorist attack on Bacha Khan university. The spokesman said that Pakistan does not differentiate between good and bad terrorists and it was at the heart of Operation Zarb-e-Azb against militants. PTI SEOUL/TOKYO International pressure grew on North Korea to call off a planned rocket launch, seen by some governments as another missile test, while Japan put its military on alert to shoot down any rocket that threatens its territory. North Korea notified United Nations agencies on Tuesday of its plan to launch what it called an "earth observation satellite" some time between Feb. 8 and 25. Pyongyang has said it has a sovereign right to pursue a space programme, although the United States and other governments suspect such rocket launches are tests of its missiles. Japan's defence minister, Gen Nakatani, told a media briefing on Wednesday he had issued an order to shoot down any "ballistic missile threat". Tension rose in East Asia last month after North Korea's fourth nuclear test, this time of what it said was a hydrogen bomb. A rocket launch coming so soon after would raise concern that North Korea plans to fit nuclear warheads on its missiles, giving it the capability to launch a strike against South Korea, Japan and possibly targets as far away as the U.S. West Coast. North Korea last launched a long-range rocket in December 2012, sending an object it described as a communications satellite into orbit. South Korea warned the North it would pay a "severe price" if it goes ahead with the launch. "North Korea's notice of the plan to launch a long-range missile, coming at a time when there is a discussion for (U.N.) Security Council sanctions on its fourth nuclear test, is a direct challenge to the international community," the presidential Blue House said in a statement. Russia's Foreign Ministry said Pyongyang was demonstrating "an outrageous disregard for the universally recognised norms of international law," while France said the launch would merit a firm response from the international community. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged North Korea not to use ballistic missile technology, which is banned by Security Council resolutions. 'EXTREMELY CONCERNED' China, under U.S. pressure to use its influence to rein in the isolated North, said Pyongyang's right to space exploration was restricted under U.N. resolutions. China is North Korea's sole main ally, though Beijing disapproves of its nuclear programme. "We are extremely concerned about this," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang told a briefing on Wednesday. "In the present situation, we hope North Korea exercises restraint on the issue of launching satellites, acts cautiously and does not take any escalatory steps that may further raise tensions on the Korean peninsula." Reports of the planned launch also drew fresh U.S. calls for tougher U.N. sanctions that are already under discussion in response to North Korea's Jan. 6 nuclear test. A spokeswoman for the International Maritime Organization, a U.N. agency, said it had been told by North Korea of the plan to launch a satellite. The Washington-based North Korean monitoring project 38 North said commercial satellite images of North Korea's Sohae launch site taken on Monday showed activity consistent with preparations for a launch within North Korea's given timeframe, but no indications that this was imminent. North Korea said the launch would be conducted in the morning one day during the announced period, and gave the coordinates for the locations where the rocket boosters and the cover for the payload would drop. Those locations are expected to be in the Yellow Sea off the Korean Peninsula's west coast and in the Pacific Ocean to the east of the Philippines, Pyongyang said. South Korea told commercial airliners to avoid flying in areas of the rocket's possible flight path during the period. (Additional reporting by Ju-min Park in Seoul, Ben Blanchard in Beijing and David Brunnstrom in Washington; Editing by Dean Yates and Jonathan Oatis) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. Colombo: Lifting an unofficial ban, Sri Lanka's national anthem was today sung in Tamil at a ceremony here to mark the the country's independence day, in an effort to achieve reconciliation with the ethnic minority community. School children rendered the Sinhala and Tamil versions of the national anthem at a colourful celebration at the Galle Face Green park to mark the 68th anniversary of Sri Lanka's independence from Britain. The move, despite opposition from some quarters, is being seen as an effort by the government to reach out to the Tamil minority after the nearly 26-year war with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) that ended in 2009. About 100,000 people were killed during the civil war. "A new journey begins by reinstating the singing of the national anthem in Tamil," said Deputy Minister for Public Enterprise Development Eran Wickramaratne. Deputy Foreign Minister Harsha de Silva in a Facebook post said: "A first in my lifetime. After many years the Independence Day celebrations came to a close with the national anthem sung in Tamil." A first in my lifetime. After many years the independence day celebrations came to a close with the national anthem sung... Posted by Harsha de Silva on Wednesday, February 3, 2016 President Maithripala Sirisena since becoming President in 2015 by defeating Mahinda Rajapaksa, under whose leadership the Sri Lankan forces defeated the LTTE, has begun several actions to win back the Tamils in the reconciliation process. Rajapaksa had imposed an unofficial ban on the Tamil version of the national anthem. At last year's Independence Day celebrations a 'Declaration of Peace' was read out paying respects to all ethnic groups killed in the civil war with a pledge not to allow violence to recur. The Peace statement was delivered in all three languages by school children. PTI WASHINGTON Russian air strikes around the Syrian city of Aleppo have almost exclusively targeted opponents of the Syrian president rather than Islamic State militants, and were partly responsible for Wednesday's pause in peace talks, the State Department said. State Department spokesman John Kirby told a briefing the strikes around Aleppo had led to reports of more civilian casualties, displacement of Syrian citizens and the possible obstruction of humanitarian assistance routes. "It is difficult in the extreme to see how strikes against civilian targets contribute in any way to the peace process now being explored," Kirby told reporters. Kirby said the U.N. special envoy had paused the Geneva peace talks in part because of the disruption of humanitarian aide and civilian deaths. U.N. envoy Staffan de Mistura announced the three-week pause less than a week after formally opening them on Friday but both sides denied they had ever begun. He made the decision after the Syrian army, backed by Russian air strikes, advanced against rebel forces north of Aleppo, choking opposition supply lines from Turkey to the city. Kirby said the Russian air strikes in and around Aleppo had been aimed almost exclusively at opponents to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and not Islamic State militants. He reiterated the longstanding U.S. appeal for Russian forces to "focus their military energy" in Syria on Islamic State militants and "not on the opposition or on innocent civilians." Kirby said he was not blaming the suspension of talks exclusively on Russia, but he indicated it was a factor. "I said in part because of the obstruction of humanitarian aid and in part because of the continued violence that's being wrought by the regime, supported by Russian military activity. I did not say it was in total," he said. Kirby also insisted the peace talks had gotten under way, despite the quick pause. "There was a beginning," he said. "Now, how deep did it go? How much dialogue there was? I don't know. But they were there, and they got a start." (Reporting by David Alexander; Editing by Eric Beech and Grant McCool) This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed. By Seema Guha When Afghan leaders come to India they are generally forthright about Pakistan and its support of the Afghan Taliban. But this time around, Afghanistans Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah was much more circumspect in his interaction with reporters on Thursday. Ahead of peace talks between the Afghan government, Pakistan, US and China in Islamabad on Saturday, Abdullah Abdullah did not want to queer the pitch. When quizzed about Pakistan and the Taliban, he merely said: "Many Taliban leaders are in Pakistan," at the same time he acknowledged that "Pakistan is crucial for talks, but talks and terrorism can't go along." At one point he could not help adding that those who encouraged terror groups must know that "they come back to haunt you." That was a not so subtle dig at the blow back of terror to Pakistan. "Afghanistans main challenge and focus is on the security situation," Abdullah Abdullah said. The Taliban has been steadily getting control of more and more territory ever since the American and Nato forces left Afghanistan in December 2014. Every other day government forces and ordinary people in Afghanistan come under attack. Much of this is because the Taliban too is preparing for a time when it is ready to come to a political settlement and sit across the table from a position of strength. While the international community is worried about the ISIS or Daesh now complicating the situation in Afghanistan even more, Abdullah Abdullah made short shrift of these worries. "Daesh is a new phenomena but in Afghanistan it does not have a reach. It is very different from the Daesh in Syria and Iraq. Here it is mainly a change of flags from Taliban to Daesh in certain areas," the chief executive said. Ironically the Taliban, driven by factional fighting after the death of its supreme leader, the one-eyed Mullah Omar, will not attend the. The Afghan government for now is putting no conditions on talks. Nor are they talking of the "good" Taliban as opposed to the "bad." The negotiations will be a long complex process, aiming at bringing all those who wish to give up the gun join the political process. "In this preliminary stage we are not setting conditions..we are expressing our desire for talks and a peaceful settlement of the problem. There are no red lines at the moment. But finally we would want those who are for peace, sever links with violence and fight for their gaols and aims politically," Abdullah Abdullah said. Pakistan is key to the talks and the international community is well aware that without Pakistans involvement, Taliban would not be in the negotiating table. Pakistan which was in the doghouse when US and NATO forces were deployed in Afghanistan, has been steadily gaining ground after December 2014 when the bulk of the foreign forces left. Islamabad is being wooed by the US, for exactly the same reason as the Afghan leadership: to give the Taliban a share in the future political settlement which will end decades of violence in the war-torn nation. Having built up the Talibs in the early years, the Pakistan army, more so its spy agency the ISI, know the Taliban leadership. Though the American and the Chinese have been reaching out to sections of the Taliban, it is only Pakistan that knows the people who call the shots. So Pakistan remains at the centre of the efforts to get the Taliban on board. Both Afghanistan and the US need General Raheel Sharifs co-operation in this. Pakistan has been a difficult neighbour to Afghanistan. Though the two countries share a common religion and Pasthuns live on both sides of the Durand Line yet relationship has been uneasy after the Taliban was ousted from power in 2001. Afghanistans dilemna is how to handle Pakistan. Kabul desperately needs Islamabad for a political settlement. Yet Pakistan wants to make sure that its friends in the Taliban are accommodated in any future political settlement that evolves in Afghanistan. In short it wants to make sure that its friends weild power and countries like India do not spread themselves out in Afghanistan. "Strategic depth" is something the Pakistan military has long sought in Afghanistan. President Ashraf Ghani realized soon after coming to power in 2014 that he needs to mend fences with Pakistan. His predecessor Hamid Karzai was unpopular with Islamabad, more so because the former president had excellent ties with India. Ghanis first trip abroad was to Pakistan and he broke protocol to call on General Sharif at GHQ in Rawalpindi and win over the army chief, who is in charge of Pakistans Afghan policy. Yet despite the initial warmth, Pakistan and Afghanistan soon had problems, with each charging the other of harbouring terrorists. Pakistan has claimed that the attack on the Bacha Khan University, where 19 students were killed by terrorists was directed by elements based in Afghanistan. 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Our mission of empowering people with information and the impact it has had on this world cannot be overstated. Singhal who has been responsible for the all important ranking algorithm behind Search, will leave the company on February 26 to pursue philanthropy. He was named Google Fellow in 2006 for his engineering work on the early search engine. Google has been focusing its efforts and emphasizing on artificial intelligence and machine learning. Giannandrea led Googles machine learning efforts, applying the technology to products such as image recognition for Google Photos search and the smart reply for Google Inbox. After successfully launching 4G LTE in Kerala, Mysore, Kolkata and Delhi & NCR, Vodafone is all set to launch its 4G services in Mumbai on February 10th, Wednesday. According to ET, it will launch its 4G services in Bengaluru on February 11th, Thursday. The company already said that testing has commenced successfully and it has started rolling out 4G-Ready SIMs in these circles. Sunil Sood Managing Director and CEO of Vodafone India will be present at the Mumbai launch event. It will be based on 1800MHz FDD-LTE band 3, which the company acquired last year. The company had promised to roll out 4G services in Mumbai and Bengaluru by March 2016 in the first phase. We will have to wait for the company to announce its plans for the second phase of the roll out. With this, Vodafone 4G services will be present in 5 circles of Kerala, Karnataka, Mumbai, Delhi & NCR and Kolkata, which today contribute to 30% of industry revenues and close to 50% of Vodafone India data revenues, said the company at the 4G launch event in Delhi last week. Here is the new FoneArena Daily video for today that gives you a quick roundup of todays technology news. httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23AeMCOqjRk After the teaser last month, LG today confirmed that it will unveil the flagship G5 smartphone on February 21st, ahead of Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2015 in Barcelona. Xiaomis flagship Mi 5 smartphone will be announced on Feburary 24th, now a back panel made out of glass has been leaked and sources say that it belong to the Mi 5. OnePlus today announced that the OnePlus X will permanently be invite-free in India starting tomorrow. Googles senior vice president for Search, Amit Singhal, who joined Google in 2000 is leaving the company after a 15 year long stint. He will be replaced by John Giannandrea, currently vice president of engineering and head of artificial intelligence. VAIO Corporation today introduced VAIO Phone Biz, its first Windows 10 phone with a 5.5-inch 1080p display, Octa-Core Snapdragon 617 SoC, 4G LTE and Continuum support in Japan. It is priced at 50,000 yen ($424 / Rs. 28,740 approx.) and will go on sale sometime in April. Late last month, we got news that the Samsung Galaxy A9 Pro was in the works and would be the flagship product in the A series from Samsung. A new import listing not just confirms its existence but also indicates that the smartphone is in the final stages of testing. The Samsung Galaxy A9 Pro has been imported into India for testing. A total of 4 units have been imported into India from South Korea out of which 1 unit reached Bangalore while the other 3 went to Delhi. The device model number is SM-A9100 and the device was imported into Delhi and Bangalore on 28th January and 2nd February respectively. The value also seems to have been increased between the two dates. The phone was reported to have a value of Rs 17,271 per unit in Delhi and Rs 24,179 in Bangalore. The Galaxy A7 2016 itself was priced at over 30k in India so we expect the A9 Pro to be priced much higher than the import value on both these listings. The listing also confirms that the screen size of the device will be 6 inches. The display on the A9 pro is expected to be a 1440p panel compared to the 1080p panel on the A9. It could also have 4GB of RAM instead of the 3GB RAM on the A9. Initially, some reports suggested that the A9 Pro could be a China only variant however now, rumours indicate that the device could be a higher end variant of the A9 or just a Windows Phone variant of the same. Source | Via It's a good time to be a salmon farmer. For a sushi lover, however? Not so much. The reason for the price increase is mainly because of an outbreak of parasitic sea lice among Norway's salmon farms. As a result, salmon production in Norway is poised to drop 5 percent in the early part of 2016. Norway is the supplier for about half of the world's salmon, a fish that has become popular in food establishments. It can be eaten raw in sushi or smoked as hors d'oeuvres. "Consumers will have to pay more for salmon in the future than they've done so far because we don't expect any growth in production, at least within the next two years," said Paul Aandahl, an analyst at the Norwegian Seafood Council. Since October of last year, the export of salmon soared to as much as 53 percent to 61.64 krone per kilogram, or $3.25 a pound - the highest price in three decades, according to the Seafood Council and Nordea Bank in Oslo. But it does not stop there. Those figures are expected to surge to about $5.30 a pound this year, and about $5.50 a pound by 2017, said Kolbjiorn Giskeodegard, a senior analyst for Nordea, a financial services company in Stockholm, Sweden. The European Union was flooded with a surplus of about 100,000 tons of extra salmon since the import ban. It can be recalled that the EU placed a ban on exports to Russia because of its activity in Ukraine. This meant that the country of almost 145 million people was not able to purchase salmon from Norway. As a result, European consumers got used to eating salmon at cheaper rates, with their consumption rising to 1.1 million tons, Seafood Council data showed. The US, on the other hand, had 30,000 tons of extra salmon from Canada. "Prices in the key European and US salmon markets fell 10 to 20 per cent in 2015, mainly due to massive oversupply," he said. He also added, "In 2016, we see lower supply from Norway and Chile as we now estimate three per cent lower global harvesting." Therefore, consumers can expect limited supplies of the fish in grocery stores, or smaller pieces of salmon on their sushi. Even the nation's biggest banks are struggling to compete on a level playing field against U.S. Bancorp (USB -2.81%). The main sources of the $422 billion bank's competitive advantage are its size, low cost operations, and debt rating. 1. Lower capital requirement Not all banks are created equal when it comes to the amount of capital they must hold to satisfy regulators. Eight of the nation's biggest banks get the short end of the stick in particular. These "global systematically important banks" must reserve 1% to 4.5% more capital relative to their risk-weighted assets than U.S. Bancorp does. When the Federal Reserve released these rules last year, JPMorgan Chase's (JPM -0.19%) G-SIB surcharge topped the list at 4.5% -- though it has since purportedly dropped to 3.5%. That was followed by Citigroup (C -0.82%) at 3.5%, Bank of America (BAC -0.44%) at 3%, and Wells Fargo (WFC 0.11%) at 2%. The impact on profitability from the G-SIB surcharge is substantial. Every additional percentage point in capital that a bank must reserve against its assets translates roughly into a decline of 1 percentage point in return on equity -- this holds true only in the leverage range in which most banks operate. So if Bank A and Bank B both earn 1% on their assets, but Bank A can leverage its equity by a factor of 10 versus Bank B's 9, then Bank A will generate a 10% return on equity compared to Bank B's 9.1%. This is one reason that U.S. Bancorp earns a higher net income relative to its equity than its too big to fail peers. It reported a 14% return on average common equity in 2015. This compared to Wells Fargo's 12.7% and JPMorgan Chase's 11%, both of which are extraordinary firms. It's also why U.S. Bancorp's stock trades for a higher multiple to book value than any other big bank, as its superior profitability can be expected to translate into higher shareholder returns over the long run. 2. Cost advantage "When you're in a commodity business, the only way to thrive is to be a low-cost producer," wrote Duff McDonald in his biography of JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon. "And when you're selling money, you're in a commodity business." This is sewn into the fabric of U.S. Bancorp's DNA. "Being a low-cost provider gives one a tremendous strategic advantage," former CEO Jerry Grundhofer told Bank Director magazine's Jack Milligan 16 years ago. "It allows you to deal with challenges, be competitive on the asset and liability sides of the balance sheet, and take care of customers." Warren Buffett has said the same about the insurance industry, which is analogous to banking for these purposes: The insurance industry is cursed with a set of dismal economic characteristics that make for a poor long-term outlook: hundreds of competitors, ease of entry, and a product that cannot be differentiated in any meaningful way. In such a commodity-like business, only a very low-cost operator or someone operating in a protected, and usually small, niche can sustain high profitability levels. This is why the efficiency ratio is arguably the most important metric that an ordinary investor can use to compare banks. It's calculated by dividing a bank's noninterest expenses by its net revenue. A low ratio is better than a high ratio because it means that a bank's operating expenses consume less of its revenue. This leaves more to distribute to shareholders, repurchase stock, and fund growth. U.S. Bancorp is the most efficient bank in its peer group. Its efficiency ratio last year was 53.8%. Meanwhile, the notoriously efficient Wells Fargo's came in at 57.8% while JPMorgan Chase's was 63%. "If our efficiency ratio rose to our peer group average, our return on equity would fall from 14% down to below 9%," U.S. Bancorp's CEO Richard Davis told me. 3. Debt rating A bank's debt rating serves as a unique competitive advantage because it weighs on costs. But while the efficiency ratio reflects operating expenses, debt ratings impact the cost of funds -- that is, how much it costs a bank to borrow money. A low debt rating has a particularly pernicious impact on long-term debt. I once estimated that Bank of America's comparatively low debt rating equated to $2 billion more in annual interest expense from long-term debt relative to Wells Fargo. That's a lot when you consider that Bank of America earned only $15.9 billion last year -- and that was its best performance in almost a decade. U.S. Bancorp understands this completely. It also understands that the cost advantage gained from a high debt rating can be used to compete more aggressively on loan terms and thereby acquire market share from competitors. As Davis noted on the bank's third-quarter conference call: [Our best in class debt ratings] allow us to benefit from pricing. And again, this is an audience that understands this, but if we're going to the markets and we can receive 5-year money at a 40 to 60 basis point benefit from our peer group, that's 5 years we get to price things better by 40% to 60% -- basis points and/or at least take half of it and put it into price. We only deal with high-quality customers, so we're not using it for subprime or near-prime purposes. We're using it for the best customers to win them and keep them, but we're unabashed about saying that we'll use pricing as a tool at this moment in time. This is a powerful advantage for a bank that prides itself not just on efficiency, but even more so on its ability to generate positive operating leverage, which stems from growing revenue faster than expenses. The net result of these three competitive advantages is that U.S. Bancorp appears primed to outperform every other bank in its peer group over the foreseeable future. This could change, but there's no reason to think that it will change for the worse so long as its current group of executives remain at the helm. Duke Energy (DUK -2.26%) is in the midst of transforming itself from a traditional utility with a regulated arm and a non-regulated arm filled with fossil fuel plants into a utility of the future. It recently sold some power plants, it bought a natural gas distributor, and it's planning to spend billions on renewable energy. As we look ahead into 2016, does this transformation set up investors for a rising dividend? Payouts are already high The challenge for Duke in raising its dividend right now is that its already consuming a large percentage of the company's income. You can see in the chart below that the dividend has grown 10% over the last five years while earnings have flattened out. The payout ratio, or the dividend divided by earnings per share, has risen to 93%, a very high percentage of earnings. DUK Payout Ratio (TTM) data by YCharts So, any question about whether or not Duke will be raising its dividend further must start with the question, will it be growing earnings? And that's not straightforward to answer for Duke Energy right now. Can Duke Energy grow? The problem for Duke Energy in the near term is that demand growth for electricity in its regulated markets are terrible. After the third quarter, rolling 12-month retail sales volume growth was just 0.3%. Residential sales were down 0.2%, despite it having 1.3% more customers in the period. Warm weather, energy efficiency, and the growth of rooftop solar have become both short-term and long-term challenges for the company, and those trends don't appear to be receding. The Carolinas and Florida, in particular, have been fairly insulated from the growing residential solar boom, but that's likely to change in the next few years as customers fight for the ability to generate their own electricity (especially in Florida). This dynamic is what drove Duke Energy to buy Piedmont Natural Gas (NYSE: PNY), a deal that's expected to close by the end of this year. That'll give the company some exposure to growing natural gas consumption and diversify it away from electricity. But with it facing so many rising challenges in its regulated electric utility business, I'm not sure the Piedmont acquisition will be enough to bring Duke significant growth. Is now the time to raise the dividend? All things considered, I don't think now is the time for Duke Energy to raise its dividend. Demand is weak, it's in the middle of the Piedmont buyout, and with the market moving toward natural gas and renewables, it will need billions in capital to execute its strategy. With $43 billion of debt already on its balance sheet, it may be time for Duke to start deleveraging and taking a more conservative approach to its business before it starts having to add debt just to pay its dividends. If youve ever been to New York City you know all about the hot, crowded, slow-moving, and -- more importantly -- aging subway system there. Its nearly 112 years old. And its more congested than ever. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) reported 1.75 billion trips were made in 2014, with numbers expected to have grown even more in 2015. The American Public Transportation Association (APTA) has estimated a 1.3 % increase in MTA riders in 2015 and that overall nearly eight billion trips were taken on U.S. public transportation in the first nine months of 2015 alone. While the Big Apple only ranks seventh in the world in terms of annual subway ridership with Beijing holding the top spot at 3.4 billion rides (almost double NYC) and Tokyo ranking number two at 3.2 billion rides--the big question is why is the biggest city in the U.S. so behind the times with its underground rail system? Aside from limited train arrival countdown systems or a handful of touchscreen displays for lost tourists, the majority of the equipment dates back to the 1930s. The President of the MTA, Tom Prendergast, couldnt agree more that upgrades are long overdue. Shopping malls and restaurants in subway stations in Beijing, Prendergast said earlier this month at the New York Transit Museum as he described some of the features enjoyed by subway riders who don't live in New York. Heated seats for passengers on trains in Seoul, Korea. Train platforms separated from the tracks by glass panels in Hong Kong...but here in New York were stuck behind. And that ends today. Prendergast and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo have a $140 billion budget and a new plan in place that will hopefully transform New York City subways into the 21st Century. Let people walk in there and say, Wow! This is the MTA? This is a train station? Amazing! Cuomo said. Their vision includes underground stations with Wi-Fi, subway cars and buses with USB charging posts, and a new payment system that will be mobile and contactless. That means that by 2018 youll be able to use your smartphone, your bank card or other media across our entire network, added Prendergast. According to a new report from McGraw Hill Financial Global Institute, nearly two-thirds of the worlds population will live in urban areas in 2050. Cuomo and Prendergast said the MTA is working with outside experts to make sure that stations are designed with a more modern look and that they hope to finish upgrades by 2020. News Corp's revenue fell for the fourth quarter in a row, hurt by a stronger dollar and dwindling advertising revenue in its core news and information services business, which includes Dow Jones and the Wall Street Journal. The company, which is controlled by media mogul Rupert Murdoch, said total revenue fell 4.3 percent to $2.16 billion in the second quarter ended Dec. 31. Analysts on average were expecting revenue of $2.13 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. Revenue at News Corp's news and information services unit declined 8.1 percent to $1.40 billion. The unit, which accounted about 65 percent of total revenue, also owns the New York Post and The Sun. Newspaper and magazine publishers have been under unabated pressure to offset a decline in print advertising dollars by shoring up their digital business to attract advertisers and by boosting subscriptions. News Corp's segment advertising revenue fell 12 percent in the latest quarter. The company's total revenue also took a $141 million hit due to foreign currency fluctuations. Net income available to shareholders fell 56 percent to $62 million, or 11 cents per share. Excluding items, its earned 21 cents per share, missing analysts' estimates of 20 cents. (Reporting by Anya George Tharakan in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza) Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Market data provided by Factset. Powered and implemented by FactSet Digital Solutions. Legal Statement. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. 2022 FOX News Network, LLC. All rights reserved. FAQ - New Privacy Policy Democratic presidential hopefuls Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders both agree that more should be done to rein in the large financial institutions that exert so much influence over both the U.S. economy and the American political system. But the two candidates, who will square off tonight in New Hampshire in the fifth debate between Democratic rivals, take very different approaches toward the measures they believe will help prevent another financial crisis. The question is whether their proposals are even necessary in the wake of reforms already initiated by Congress namely the massive Dodd-Frank banking reform legislation passed in 2010 and, equally important, whether their plans have a snowballs chance of becoming law should either Clinton or Sanders win the general election in November. The answer to the former is almost universally yes, that despite the sweeping nature of Dodd-Frank and its effectiveness in some areas in reducing risk taking by big banks, theres still an inordinate amount of wealth and power concentrated among a handful of banks. The latter question can either candidate push through their reforms raises quite a bit of skepticism. In any case, its an important subject. This matters for American families because a well-functioning financial sector allows families to buy houses, cars and to send their kids or themselves to college and much more, said Phillip Swagel, an economics professor at the University of Maryland. Swagel said his concern is that the two candidates have reduced the complex topic of Wall Street reform to easily digestible sound bites. Post-crisis regulatory changes were needed, and parts of Dodd-Frank are useful -- more capital, more transparency for derivatives transactions, among others. A lot has been done, and it would be useful to figure out what is working and what is not to assess the costs and benefits. This is an important policy area, and yet Secretary Clinton and Senator Sanders are treating financial regulation as an area for slogans, said Swagel. Specifically, Clinton has called for a risk fee on the largest banks, or those with more than $50 billion in assets, designed to discourage those banks from taking on too much debt and participating in the kinds of risky activities that contributed to the 2008 crisis. In addition, Clinton, unlike Sanders, would focus much of her attention on areas of the banking system that have stealthily gained influence in recent decades, the so-called shadow banking sector that includes dark pools, hedge funds and high frequency traders. Sanders has said in no uncertain terms that as president he will focus his energies on breaking up the largest U.S. banks, the likes of Bank of America (NYSE:BAC), J.P. Morgan Chase (NYSE:JPM), Wells Fargo (NYSE:WFC) and Citigroup (NYSE:C). The Vermont senators stump speeches and campaign web site are rife with messages and statistics focusing on the extraordinary accumulation of wealth and economic sway held by the six largest U.S. banks. Sanders, unlike Clinton, strongly supports reinstating the Glass-Steagall regulations that once outlawed banks from gambling with their clients money. Clinton (and many economists) doesnt believe Glass-Steagall would have prevented the 2008 crisis and reinstating it, she says, would have little or no impact on the murky shadow banking sectors that have grown exponentially in influence in recent years. Swagel said Clintons proposals offer clear examples of areas of the financial system that ostensibly need reform, but then stop short of explaining why those areas pose risks how her proposals would reform them. Clintons rhetoric leans far left but her proposals are mainly symbolic and not impactful, he said. Sanders plans are also short on detail, Swagel said. Senator Sanders would break up the big banks he hasnt quite said how, but thats his aim. Dennis Kelleher, president and CEO of Better Markets, a Washington, D.C.,-based investor advocacy group formed in the wake of the 2008 crisis, said Congress already has the ability to break up so-called too big to fail banks under Dodd-Frank. There is massive authority under Dodd-Frank if anyone wanted to end too big to fail, he said. Kelleher said much of the Wall Street reform rhetoric emanating from all of the candidates campaigns Democratic and Republican hinges on a hypothetical future Congress amenable to passing new regulations to rein in the big banks. Given Wall Streets sway over the political process, he said hes skeptical thats going to happen. Instead, the candidates should focus on reforming Wall Street under existing laws. Every candidate owes the American people a detailed explanation of how to regulate Wall Street under existing authorities, he said. Its inexcusable that any too big to fail banks remain. Clinton and Sanders are expected to sharpen their attacks on one another in tonights debate following Clintons narrow victory over Sanders in Mondays Iowa caucuses. Clinton has suggested that Sanders, a self-described socialist, is making unrealistic promises he cant keep as president. Sanders, who has mostly refrained from personal attacks, has OKd campaign ads criticizing the role Wall Street money plays in influencing political candidates, clearly a shot at Clintons close financial ties to Wall Street. Zika virus is "now spreading explosively in the Americas," World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Dr. Margaret Chan said on Thursday (Jan. 28), and 3 million to 4 million people in the Americas could be infected by the virus this year alone, according to the latest WHO estimates. However, U.S. officials have said that the virus is likely to cause only small outbreaks in this country. Officials' main concerns about the virus are over its possible links with two severe conditions: microcephaly, which is a birth defect that causes a baby to be born with a small head and brain and face lifelong cognitive impairments, and Guillain-Barre syndrome, a condition in which the immune system attacks the nervous system, sometimes leading to paralysis in children and adults. To understand how the Zika virus spreads to new regions, and how researchers can tell whether a region is likely to experience large outbreaks or small ones, Live Science asked the experts what sequence of events has to happen in order for the virus to become established in a new region. Here's what they said: How exactly do mosquitos spread the virus? The Zika virus is spread by certain species of mosquitoes in the Aedes genus, most often the species Aedes aegypti. For local transmission to occur in a new region, for example in the United States, a female A. aegypti mosquito in the United States would have to bite a person who became infected with the Zika virus abroad, and then came to the U.S. The person would have to have active virus in his or her blood. Then, that same female mosquito would need to bite someone else, and expose that person to the virus. Humans who are infected with Zika have sufficient amounts of the virus in their bloodstreams to infect a mosquito that bites them for anywhere from three to 12 days after they are initially infected, said Laura Harrington, a professor and chair of the entomology department at Cornell University in New York, who has studied the Aedes aegypti species of mosquitoes. [Zika Virus FAQs: Top Questions Answered] After that bite, it can take approximately 10 to 15 days (depending on the outside temperature) before the female mosquito can transmit the virus to the next person, Harrington said. Slightly more than 30 cases of the virus have been reported to date in the United States, all of them considered "travel-related," said a spokesman for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Americans who have contracted the virus were infected while traveling overseas, but there have been no cases of Zika virus being transmitted inside the United States to a person who has not been traveling, which would be called local transmission. The mosquito can't immediately infect another person, because the virus typically first enters the mosquito's gut when the insect bites someone, Harrington said. From there, the virus infects the mosquito's gut tissue and a variety of other organs, taking days to make its way to the mosquito's salivary glands, from where the virus can be injected into the next host that the mosquito bites, she explained. But once a female mosquito has the Zika virus in her salivary glands, and is capable of transmitting it to humans, the insect is able to do so for the rest of its life, Harrington told Live Science. Her research has found that such a female mosquito tends to live about 15 days. Parts of the United States, especially the southernmost states, have A. aegypti mosquitos. This species is considered aggressive, prefers to bite people during the day, and can live both indoors and outdoors. People cannot catch the Zika virus by being around an infected person. [The 9 Deadliest Viruses on Earth] Only two countries in the Americas Canada and (continental) Chile do not have the species that can spread the virus, according to the WHO. Another unique quality of this mosquito species is that it feeds once every other day on human hosts, which is more often than other mosquito species do. "This is really unusual and significant, because it leads to much greater potential for this mosquito to infect the people it feeds on, more so than any other mosquito," Harrington said. A. aegypti has the ability to use human blood for both energy and egg production, and that makes this mosquito more fit, Harrington said. And a fitter mosquito means that it can live longer, breed more and infect more people with the Zika virus. Concerns about U.S. spread Some infectious disease experts say it's only a matter of time before the continental United States sees small outbreaks of Zika that involve local transmission of the virus on U.S. soil. So far, the CDC has issued an interim travel advisory that currently affects 24 countries and territories where Zika virus transmission is ongoing. These locations are Barbados, Bolivia, Brazil, Cape Verde, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Martinique, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Saint Martin, Samoa, Suriname, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Venezuela, and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. But local transmission of Zika virus will probably happen in the U.S. this spring or summer, said Dr. Peter Hotez, a pediatric infectious disease specialist and dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston. The Gulf Coast of the United States is especially vulnerable to the spread of Zika virus as warmer weather approaches from May through September, when mosquitoes are most active, Hotez said. [7 Devastating Infectious Diseases] The Gulf Coast which runs from western Florida, through the southern parts of Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas has two Aedes species of mosquitoes known to carry the Zika virus, as does Tucson, Arizona, Hotez said. The extreme poverty in some locations along the Gulf Coast may make individuals in this region more prone to a Zika outbreak, he said. Some residents might lack screens on their windows and doors to protect against mosquitoes, and some areas have inadequate garbage collection, meaning discarded tires and containers may become reservoirs for standing water that attract mosquitoes to breed, Hotez told Live Science. He said his overwhelming concern with the Zika virus relates to its possible link to the cases of microcephaly showing up in some babies born to mothers in areas of Brazil, Hotez said. The exact mechanism for how the virus may lead to this birth defect is not known. However, one plausible explanation is that the virus gets into a pregnant woman's blood after she has been bitten by an infected mosquito, is transferred to the placenta, and then invades and damages brain cells in the developing fetus, Hotez said. The United States will continue to see an increase in cases of Zika virus that are travel-related, and some of those infected people will be pregnant women, predicted Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee. He said he also suspects the U.S. will very likely get some "bursts of localized transmission," of Zika virus, however, not widespread transmission of the infection. "We have the Aedes species of mosquito in the U.S.," Schaffner said, and local transmission is most likely to occur in Southern states, he predicted. But Schaffner said that it is very unlikely that Zika virus will establish itself in the same way that it has rapidly spread in South and Central America. "People in the U.S. spend more time indoors in air conditioning than people do in Central America and the Caribbean," he said. (Using air conditioning is a preventive strategy recommended by the CDC to limit mosquito exposure.) However, tracking the virus' spread is going to be difficult because many people who become infected do not develop any symptoms, Schaffner noted. About 80 percent of people infected with Zika virus get no symptoms. And people who do develop symptoms typically have mild ones, such as fever, rash, joint and muscle pain, red eyes and headaches. These symptoms may last a few days to a week. "It's basically a transient illness, but the two central nervous system complications the microcephaly and Guillain-Barre syndrome are both serious consequences that are extremely concerning," Schaffner said. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Originally published on Live Science. Copyright 2016 LiveScience, a Purch company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Brazil's health minister on Wednesday urged Latin American countries to work together in the fight against the Zika virus and said U.S. experts would arrive next week to begin work on finding a vaccine. Alarm is mounting over the virus' spread. The World Health Organization (WHO), which declared a public health emergency, says the virus has been transmitted in at least 32 countries, from South America to the Western Pacific. Brazil's top health official Marcelo Castro said the region needed to "exchange information, make alliances and discuss what coordinated action we can take to control this epidemic." Brazil, which has been hardest hit by Zika, said on Tuesday that 4,074 cases of infants with severe birth defects could be linked to the mosquito-borne virus, for which there is no vaccine. "On Feb. 11, U.S. technical experts will arrive in Brazil to hold a high-level meeting where they will determine the first steps and timetable for developing this vaccine," Castro said going into a meeting of regional health ministers in Montevideo. n a 16-point statement issued later, the ministers agreed to share more information on the virus, strengthen public awareness campaigns at border crossings and airports as well as to bolster training of medical staff on how to prevent and treat Zika. Zika has been linked to a birth defect known as microcephaly - in which babies are born with abnormally small heads and underdeveloped brains - and is spreading rapidly in the Americas. There is, however, no proven link and the absence of microcephaly in other Zika-hit countries was confusing, said Colombia's Health Minister Alejandro Gaviria. "We have 20,000 confirmed cases of Zika," Gaviria told reporters outside the meeting. "Yet we don't have a single confirmed case of microcephaly. If you extrapolate the rates in Brazil to Colombia, we should have tens, even hundreds of cases." The rapid spread of Zika through the Americas has led governments to issue travel warnings advising pregnant women not to travel to infected zones. Some airlines have also offered refunds to passengers. Echoing Brazil's reassurances that there was no risk of canceling the summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro this year, Gaviria said the Colombian government was not worrying for now about a slide in tourist numbers. Drugmakers globally are racing to produce a vaccine for Zika, but producing a safe vaccine is strewn with hurdles and full regulatory approval could take years. Carissa Etienne, the Pan American Health Organization's (PAHO) director, earlier said the body needed $8.5 million to help countries tackle the health emergency. next Image 1 of 3 prev next Image 2 of 3 prev Image 3 of 3 Every day, more than 10,000 new campaigns are launched on GoFundMe.com, but for one Washington woman, the almost $16,000 she received in donations through the crowdfunding website left her at risk of losing the funding she uses to feed, shelter and clothe herself and her two children. Demicka (pronounced Deh-mee-kuh) Gilmore, a soft-spoken data entry specialist who lives in Tukwila, Wash., turned to GoFundMe in December 2015 to raise money for a surprise sweet 16 birthday party for her daughter, Tavi Gordon. At the time, Gilmore, 41, was homeless and staying in the basement of a local church with her other child, son Demetrius Gilmore, 21, and Tavi. Gilmore started a campaign on GoFundMe to raise $10,000 for the party and to help cover extra costs, including for her familys upcoming Make-a-Wish trip to London. Tavi suffers from osteocarcoma, an aggressive cancer of the bone that has recurred three times for the 16-year-old. But little did Gilmore know when she started the fundraiser that, while donations received through the website are generally considered gifts, for individuals who receive Supplemental Security Income (SSI) a federal program that helps eligible low-income individuals deemed disabled cover costs for basic needs any amount of money raised through the site is considered a type of resource. Gilmores social security caseworker declined to comment for this article, but Gilmore said she was informed that if she accepted the donations, that money would be interpreted as income and Gilmore would lose her SSI eligibility, which helped cover all medical costs for Tavi. By then, Gilmore said her overall monthly income, which included SSI and child support from Tavis father, was about $814 a month. Gilmore also supports Demetrius, who has an intellectual disability and receives SSI assistance. Demetrius had struggled to find a job due to his disability, Gilmore said, and, until August 2015, she had not been receiving child support from his father. To make it clear I was not trying to cheat the system or anything like that ... it is not my character even in times of struggle, Gilmore wrote in an email to FoxNews.com. All I wanted by setting up the site was to get my kids and I out of homelessness, and not be in struggle mode any longer, while also hoping to put some joy in my daughter's life something she hasnt had in a while. While stories abound of comparatively wealthier individuals receiving surprise tax statements for donations obtained through GoFundMe, Gilmores dilemma sheds light on how causes that are meant to be altruistic can sometimes backfire on those who are most in need. After Gilmore was forced to have GoFundMe refund the thousands of dollars to the more than 300 friends and strangers who donated, a Jacksonville, Fla.-based nonprofit began trying to re-raise those funds to give Tavi the birthday party and London trip her mother wants her to have. Meanwhile, Gilmore and her children have secured section 8 housing, and Tavis cancer has become terminal. She suffered like many others suffer When Tavi was diagnosed with osteosarcoma at age 12, she began a slew of treatments, including 18 courses of chemotherapy over 30 weeks, and eventually an amputation of her left leg above the knee that has left her reliant on a wheelchair. Throughout her daughters cancer battle, Gilmore has leaned on her faith, and she has maintained temporary jobs that have left her without a steady stream of health insurance. But getting Tavi to doctors appointments was not only a time commitment, Gilmore said, but it was also a challenge. Throughout her daughters chemotherapy treatment, Demicka would take Tavi to Seattle Childrens Hospital, about 25 minutes away, using a contracted transportation company, and they lived in a multi-floor building apartment building that required climbing three flights of stairs to get to their apartment. That was really painful to watch her limp around, Gilmore told FoxNews.com in a phone interview. With the stairs she had to hold on to me and hop up, and that put that stress on my back. As Gilmore went from one temporary job to the next, and Tavi who also suffers from clinical depression kept up with her classes online in the hospital or from home. Tavis cancer has since recurred three times. Her doctor, Doug Hawkins, a professor of pediatrics and associate division chief of hematology and oncology at Seattle Childrens, said about one-third of children with osteocarcoma will see their cancer recur even with the best of treatment. [Tavi] suffered like many others suffer with nausea and vomiting, and she had to have feedings by an NG tube and have blood transfusions, Sue Ehling, a nurse practitioner who treats Tavi at Seattle Childrens, told FoxNews.com. Thats all pretty typical. I think what makes them unique was their financial situation, and the mom being a single mom raising two kids. It just got progressively harder and harder for them. You have to be available for all your appointments, said Ehling, who added that Tavi was admitted to the hospital three times in a row and had to attend follow-up clinical appointments over a two-week period. Its a lot, Ehling said. Hawkins, who described Gilmore as incredibly loving, said caring for a child with recurrent cancer becomes an all-consuming task to take care of them. We need to do what we can as a society to help patients and their children who are under these incredibly difficult circumstances, he told FoxNews.com. Tavis recurrences have required three surgeries on her lungs, where the cancer had spread. Prior to Tavis first lung surgery, on both the left and right, in September 2014, Gilmore quit her data entry job so she could stay home with Tavi. It was heartbreaking that she was going to have to go through another surgery, Gilmore said, and facing cancer again, and then thinking about her health, and then me not being able to work again, and being at the hospital ... It was real frustrating to me. That month, as Gilmore stayed by her daughters side in the hospital for the surgery, she called the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) to request food stamps. The following March, a CT scan of Tavis chest during a checkup at Seattle Childrens revealed the cancer was back in her right lung, so she underwent her second surgery in April. At that point, rent was $825, and in August 2015 when Gilmore had only begun to receive back-pay in child support from Demetrius dad her landlord raised it to $850. Gilmore said she had been receiving some nonprofit support, but the money wasnt enough. Some of her immediate family lives in Washington but none of them were able to offer her financial support. My mom is on Social Security, and my sister was taking care of her three kids and one is on Social Security, Gilmore explained. In September, Tavi had a third surgery on her lungs to eradicate the cancer. And in October, Gilmore moved her family from their apartment into a motel that she said an anonymous donor and Tavis school had helped paid for them to sleep at from Nov. 2 to Nov. 17. God, at that point, was my source of strength, Gilmore said. Next, Gilmore said the city of Tukwila contacted Pastor Jan Bolerjack at Riverton Park United Methodist Church, who took in Gilmore, Demetrius and Tavi, and let them sleep in the basement of the Tukwila church, where they stayed until Dec. 19, 2015. Bolerjack could not be reached for comment. Feeling like she had nowhere else to turn, Gilmore decided to start the online fundraiser while staying at the church. Every month, we had been facing the possibility of being homeless, but I kept reaching out to different organizations, and then the hospital was sending us to different organizations to get help, Gilmore said, but at that time, it finally ran out because I was running out of people to get help from. [The money] was nothing I worked for Six days after setting up the GoFundMe page on Nov. 22, Gilmore saw the amount raised through the campaign surpass $10,000 and eventually soar to nearly $16,000 all thanks to more than 300 friends and strangers who were touched by Tavis plight and Gilmores hopes for her daughter. I was in shock and overwhelmed with joy, said Gilmore, who at that point posted a video update on GoFundMe, telling her donors that when she had seen the outpouring of support she had started crying. But as the page racked up more donations, Gilmore said she learned through separate calls to her SSI caseworker as well as the Washington Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) that if she took the donated money, she would lose SSI eligibility, and thus Tavis food and medical benefits. Whether an individual stands to benefit or suffer a penalty from using crowdfunding sites like GoFundMe depends on the nature of the donations as well as the amount. But in Gilmores case, due to SSI, the amount was more relevant for that outcome. Christopher Floss, a tax and income attorney at Chicago-based Hoogendoorn & Talbot LLP, said that, under IRS laws, the rule that determines whether money raised through a crowdfunding site must be claimed to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is straightforward. The concept itself is pretty simple, Floss told FoxNews.com. If youre going to get anything in return for your contribution specifically, if what you get in return for your contribution is greater than or equal to the gift, the IRS is going to look at that as a taxable exchange. So in that event, the receiver of the income would have to declare that as gross income. Floss said he wasnt personally familiar with Gilmores case, but that, taking SSI out of the equation, her income tax liability seems null. It sounds to me like this is a bunch of pure gifts by disinterested people who are not receiving anything in return, so that, to me, says these are just gifts, Floss said. According to GoFundMes terms and conditions, and GoFundMe media director Kelsea Little, most donations received through the site are considered personal gifts, not taxable income. That influx of donations has amounted to what Little said are millions of campaigns being hosted on the site for people raising money to cover medical costs, vacations, and even basic living needs after a personal tragedy. But whether Gilmores donations were gifts is irrelevant because SSI laws are separate from Internal Revenue Service (IRS) laws, SSA spokesman William Jarrett told FoxNews.com in an email. People who receive SSI must report any changes in income, resources and living situation, or they may risk losing SSI eligibility. You must have limited income and resources in order to receive benefits, Jarrett said. Generally, you can receive SSI if your resources are worth $2,000 or less, he said. Resources that we count in deciding if you qualify for SSI include real estate (except for the home you live in), bank accounts, cash, stocks, and bonds. Barbara Silverstone, executive director of the National Organization of Social Security Claimants Representatives (NOSSCR), an association of attorneys and advocates for the disabled, said that monthly $2,000 cap referenced by Jarrett hasnt changed in nearly 20 years. Thats very low, Silverstone told FoxNews.com. Their income also cant be higher than their SSI amount, which is also low. Even with the amount you count as resources, these people are living so far below the poverty level even when theyre receiving SSI. Silverstone said Gilmore may have been able to reap the benefits of the GoFundMe donations if a friend who is not receiving SSI had created the GoFundMe page and thrown Tavi a party. But Social Security doesnt always give the clearest information to the claimants, she added, so it was possible that that wasnt even explained as an option. Another option would have been for Gilmore to forgo SSI eligibility for a month and spend all the GoFundMe donations in that month-long period, and then reapply for the program with updated records, which most applicants are afraid to do based on the potential delay of income, Silverstone said. To avoid losing her SSI benefits, Gilmore said the SSA told her she would need to supply a list of all GoFundMe donors and the amounts they had submitted, and that the DSHS advised her to shut down the fundraising page by the end of December 2015. I was confused, Gilmore said. I didnt understand why it was considered income when it was nothing I worked for. Ann Mohageri, the Seattle region communications director for the SSA, said she advises all SSI participants to ask their caseworkers about any eligibility stipulation theyre unsure about. I dont know in [Gilmore's] particular case, but in their case the medical care is probably worth far more than the actual dollar benefit, Mohageri told FoxNews.com. Whats more important to you? Were not going to make you choose. You can choose what you want, but you cant have both. Gilmore left the page alone, not touching the money until she could explore all her options, and then asked GoFundMe to refund all $15,673 that donors had raised, which they did on Jan. 16, 2016. In a statement to FoxNews.com, Little, the GoFundMe spokeswoman, said the company worked very closely with the Campaign Organizer (Gilmore) to help resolve the situation in the way that worked best for her and her family. No good deed goes unpunished A handful of U.S. news outlets covered Gilmores story, and Jacksonville-Fla.-based DirectlyTo, a 501(c)(3) caught wind of it, and reached out to Bolerjack at the Riverton Park United Methodist Church to connect with Gilmore. Through their organization, DirectlyTo founder Alvin Kennedy and executive director Kwesi Johnson help individuals jump-start philanthropic campaigns. What stood out about Gilmores story to Kennedy was that she was at risk of losing her medical funding for Tavi, but also because they have personal experience being misled by crowdfunding websites like GoFundMe. Johnson and Kennedy, both 35, explained they started a campaign through GiveForward.com, another crowdfunding site, to raise money for a friend suffering from multiple myeloma, which is a cancer of the bone marrow. They wanted to help him pay for goods and services like a stationary bike, a special chair, and food for healthy and organic meals. But the friend had been in between jobs and had been receiving government assistance, so his resources cap, like Gilmores, was limited. Meanwhile, Johnson was concerned about the sites model, which is similar to that of GoFundMes, as neither is a licensed nonprofit. If Im donating, why isnt this a tax write-off for me? Kennedy recalled thinking. In part, thats where the idea for DirectlyTo came about, and now the site functions as a place where people who want to donate to a particular cause or person can work one on one with DirectlyTo founders to do so. Donors can receive a tax write-off for their contributions. With DirectlyTo, Kennedy and Johnson are trying to re-raise the money Gilmore lost when she had to refund the GoFundMe donations, and then they will use it to help her cover essential costs and fund Tavis party and London trip, both of which are tentatively planned for spring, Gilmore said. Since launching the campaign Wednesday, Jan. 13, about 75 backers had raised almost $5,000 of its $15,000 goal as of Thursday morning. Johnson said he and Kennedy consulted a tax attorney before setting off to re-raise the returned donations. As the saying goes, No good deed goes unpunished, and we didnt want to be punished for doing something we could do for this young lady, Johnson told FoxNews.com. Gilmore said Tavis most recent lab test results were relatively better but that her emotional state has gotten worse. Shes more depressed than theyve ever seen her, Gilmore said. Tavis mental health counselor could not be reached for this story. Gilmore said Tavis doctors at Seattle Childrens have requested that she move up her Make-A-Wish trip to London from July to March. [Tavis doctors] are worried about something else coming up on the scans by July, she said. Tavis surprise birthday party which will include a truck with video games and which Gilmore wants to take place at their local community center may also take place in March. Gilmore said she hadnt yet started planning the Make-A-Wish trip, but that for Tavis birthday she hopes her daughter receives one simple yet essential gift. Love, Gilmore said, because I know that shes depressed that she doesnt have close friends and she feels lonely. I hope that it shows that she does have people that care for her. Just as radar warns of approaching storms, so does the flood of migrants entering Europe warn us of a deluge yet to come, not only for Europeans, if they continue to allow unrestricted immigration, but for the United States. Reports that women in Cologne, Germany, have been groped and robbed by men described by authorities as having "a North African or Arabic" appearance should be warning enough, but there are other and more ominous warnings that suggest worse lies ahead, unless the problem receives immediate attention and action. And it's not just Cologne. The Gatestone Institute, a nonpartisan, not-for-profit international policy council and think tank, is in possession of what it describes as a "leaked German intelligence document," which says, "We are importing Islamic extremism, Arab anti-Semitism, national and ethnic conflicts of other peoples, as well as a different understanding of society and law." Last October, reports Gatestone, Andrew Parker, the director general of Britain's Security Service, said that "'the scale and tempo' of the danger to the UK is now at a level he has not seen in his 32-year career. British police are monitoring over 3,000 homegrown Islamist extremists willing to carry out attacks on the UK." On Wednesday, President Obama visited a Baltimore mosque. According to The Daily Caller, the mosque "has deep ties to extremist elements, including the Muslim Brotherhood." That mosque is not alone, as a map on the paper's website reveals. Explaining the president's visit, White House spokesman Keith Maley said, "The president believes that one of our nation's greatest strengths is our rich diversity." I doubt terrorists believe that. I don't believe that diversity, as practiced in America, exists in any country with a Muslim majority. Benedicte Bjornland, head of the Norwegian Police Security Service, recently warned against further Muslim immigration. When U.S. politicians suggest a similar approach, they are denounced as "bigots" and "Islamophobes," but in Norway and Sweden, two of the most liberal nations in Europe that have welcomed Muslim immigrants, that charge will be difficult to make stick. What we are witnessing is the complete breakdown and failure of multiculturalism. Dictionary.com defines multiculturalism as "the preservation of different cultures or cultural identities within a unified society, as a state or nation." That definition contains a glaring contradiction. A society cannot be unified if it preserves different cultures and cultural identities within itself. That's why our national motto is translated "out of many, one." To the multiculturalist it appears to be, "Out of one, many." History demonstrates that no nation can long survive if it forgets why it exists. Our failure to inculcate American traditions, beliefs and history, even in the native born, not to mention immigrants, is rapidly destroying the country bequeathed to us by our forebears. Leftists in Europe and the U.S. have promoted multiculturalism, believing that once Muslims experience our freedoms and dedication to equality they will want to be like us. It doesn't appear to be working and anyone familiar with the Koran and its "kingdom of this world" instructions knows it likely won't. European leaders, from Germany's Angela Merkel, to Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven, have deliberately closed their eyes to what they see unfolding in their countries, and in others. President Obama is doing the same thing with his trip to the Baltimore mosque. Our enemies see our weakness and failure to understand their objectives, which include destroying the West and establishing a worldwide caliphate. This is not top secret information. Not all Muslims are terrorists, to be sure, but large numbers of radical Islamists profess allegiance to the faith and they are more than willing to wreak havoc in pursuit of their goals. An ancient proverb reminds us: "There are none so blind as those who will not see." This has not been a good week for Hillary Clinton. She prevailed over Sen. Bernie Sanders in the Iowa Democratic presidential caucuses by less than four tenths of one percent of all votes cast, after having led him in polls in Iowa at one time by 40 percentage points. In her statement to supporters, standing in front of her gaunt and listless looking husband, she was not able to mouth the word victory or any of its standard variants. She could barely hide her contempt for the Iowa Democrats who disserted her. Sanders isnt even a Democrat. According to official Senate records, he is an Independent Socialist who votes to organize the Senate with the Democrats, and sits on the Senate floor with them. Clinton, of course, is the heiress to the mightiest Democratic political apparatus in the land. Hence the question: What do the Iowa Democrats know that caused thousands of them to flee from her? They know she is a crook. On the Friday before Mondays caucuses, the State Department, which Clinton headed in President Obamas first term, revealed that it discovered 22 top-secret emails on the private computer server to which Clinton diverted all her governmental email traffic. This acknowledgement marks a radical departure from previous State Department pronouncements and is a direct repudiation of Clintons repeated assertions. She has repeatedly asserted that she neither sent nor received anything marked classified using her private email server. The State Department, until last Friday, has backed that up by claiming that while the substance of at least 1,300 of her emails was confidential, secret or top secret, they were not marked as such when she dealt with them. These are word games. First, under the law, nothing is marked classified. The markings are confidential or secret or top secret, and Clinton knows this. Second, under the law, it is not the markings on the email headers that make the contents state secrets; it is the vulnerability of the contents of the emails to impair the governments national security mission that rationally characterizes them as secrets. Clinton knows this because she signed an oath on Jan. 22, 2009 recognizing that state secrets retain their secrecy status whether marked or unmarked by any of the secrecy designations. She knows as well that, under the law, the secretary of state is charged with knowing state secrets when she comes upon them. Yet, in order to further Clintons deceptive narrative, the State Department has consistently claimed that it retroactively marked at least 1,300 emails as state secrets. It did this until last Friday. Last Friday, the State Department revealed that 22 emails it found on Clintons private server were in fact top secret, and were in fact marked top secret, and were in fact sent to or received from President Obama. This is a revelation that substantially undermines Clintons political arguments and is catastrophic to her legal position. Politically, Clinton has lost the final argument in her public arsenal -- that she did not recognize top-secret data unless it was marked as top secret. She has also lost the ability to claim, as she has repeatedly, that she neither sent nor received anything marked classified, as meaningless as that phrase is. Legally, the ground under Clinton continues to crumble. The more she denies, the more she admits. How can that be? That is so because her denials are essentially an admission of ignorance, forgetfulness or negligence, and, under the law, these are not defenses to the failure to safeguard state secrets entrusted to the secretary of state. They are, instead, recognition of that failure. Late Monday afternoon, before the Iowa caucuses convened and after Clintons political folks had lobbied their former colleagues at the State Department to re-characterize what they found and revealed late last week, the State Department reversed itself and claimed that the 22 emails were not marked top secret. It was too little and too late. The cat was out of the bag and Iowa Democrats knew it. Few really believed that the State Department would state publicly that the 22 emails were top secret and then state publicly that they were not, without a political motivation and irrespective of the truth. All this is infuriating to the FBI, which perceives these word games as mocking its fidelity to the rule of law. Sanders presence in the Democratic primaries will continue to give Democrats who mistrust Clinton a safe political haven. But he is not Clintons real worry. Her real worry is an FBI committed to the rule of law and determined to fortify national security by gathering the evidence of her mishandling state secrets. Lets be as blunt about this as the FBI will be: Causing state secrets to reside in a nonsecure, nongovernmental venue, whether done intentionally or negligently, constitutes the crime of espionage. And there is more. When asked about the consequences of Clintons brazen exposure of state secrets to anyone who knows how to hack into a nonsecure computer, an intelligence operative winced as if in pain when he remarked that the nations then chief diplomat surely compromised the sources, methods, and lives of her colleagues. Even Democrats who see Clinton as a symbol of their long-time wish for a progressive female in the Oval Office are beginning to recognize that anyone who has jeopardized American lives for political gain is unworthy of their votes, unworthy of their trust and unworthy of public office. Democratic presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders will face off in four more debates under an agreement reached by the campaigns and the national party on Wednesday. The additional debates will held in Flint, Michigan on March 6, and two other cities in April and May, with details to be determined later. Clinton has sought a debate in Flint to bring attention to the city's water contamination crisis and Sanders said he wanted it to be scheduled before the Michigan primary on March 8. Clinton and Sanders are meeting Thursday in a debate at the University of New Hampshire just days before Tuesday's first-in-the-nation primary. Clinton narrowly defeated Sanders in Monday's Iowa caucuses but Sanders has maintained a solid lead in New Hampshire. It will be the first debate since former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley dropped out of the race, leaving just Clinton and Sanders competing for the nomination. The former secretary of state wanted to debate Sanders in New Hampshire as she tries to close her deficit against the Vermont senator. Sanders, meanwhile, has vowed to take his campaign all the way to the party's summer convention and requested three extra forums to ensure the party will have debates throughout the spring. Two other Democratic debates are already on the calendar: Feb. 11 in Milwaukee and March 9 in Miami. In a sign of growing tensions, leaders of the rival campaigns have traded snippy statements over the details of the three debates. Sanders' campaign wanted one of the debates to be held in California and another in Brooklyn, New York, and questioned why Clinton, a former New York senator, might be reluctant to debate in her adopted home state. Clinton's campaign accused Sanders' team of playing games. Sanders said Wednesday in an interview with CNN that he got commitments to debate in Michigan and California but could not reach an agreement on holding one in New York City. "New York City is our largest city. I would have loved to have a debate in that city. But Secretary Clinton has not agreed to do that," Sanders said. "But I believe we are looking at a debate, perhaps, in Pennsylvania or somewhere else." DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz, a Florida congresswoman, said the times and locations for the final twodebates will be determined at a later date and the party will work closely with both campaigns as they finalize the remaining details. The head of the Transportation Security Administration thinks a disproportionate focus on quickly moving passengers through airport checkpoints led to systemic problems with the agencys security screening process. Last year, a leaked classified DHS Inspector General report found that TSA screeners failed to detect weapons being smuggled through various airport checkpoints by auditors 67 out of 70 times. And in his remarks before an aviation club luncheon in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, Administrator Peter Neffenger said those startling results called into question the ability of the TSA to accomplish its mission. Since inheriting the top job in the plagued agency just under eight months ago, Neffenger said TSA is now in a significantly better place thanks to a series of reforms introduced by his leadership team and Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson. I am confident that I have the attention of the workforce, that they take it seriously, and that they really want to do the job to the best that they can because they see events around the world they don't want that to happen here. That encourages me. Neffenger told Fox News in an interview following his speech. I'm certain that they'll do better, I'm certain that the IG is going to go out and test us again. I hope he does because those results are very valuable to us. The retired Coast Guard Vice Admiral stopped short of saying that the problems at TSA are fixed, instead he admitted the agency can always get better. Among the reforms being worked into the mix, TSA brass is retraining its entire workforce, including management. In addition to those efforts, the agency has opened a brand new TSA academy. Newly hired agents will now be required to undergo training at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers in Glynco, Ga. There, agents will learn the ins and outs of screening passengers and observing suspicious behavior in varying environments. The training will also include simulations of disaster scenarios like active shooter incidents. In discussing the biggest security challenges within airport environments, Administrator Neffenger told Fox News that non-sterile zones or areas where travelers have not yet been screened are of primary concern. He alluded to last years terror attack in San Bernardino, Calif., and the threat of active shooter-type situations when describing the dynamic terrorism picture painted by homegrown extremists and ISIS-sympathizers. We are reengaging with local law enforcement to ensure that they're on the lookout for anybody who might do something outside the sterile area of the airport, Neffenger said. We're comfortable that we have a lot of procedures in place to help us identify individuals coming into the system, and, of course, identify prohibited items that you don't want to get through. But the real question is outside the sterile area, what do you know? That worst case scenario played out at Los Angeles International Airport on November 1, 2013 when a disturbed gunman shot and killed TSA Officer Gerardo Hernandez in the line of duty near a security checkpoint inside one of the airports terminals. In light of a recent reporting by Reuters that claimed an airplane mechanic planted the bomb responsible for the downing of the Russian MetroJet airliner over Egypt this past October, Neffenger also acknowledged the potential insider threat at U.S. airports. The TSA chief said his agency is taking active steps to enhance background screening of airport workers and vendors just as much as it is stepping up efforts to inspect the traveling public. Right now we have 900,000 or so people that are badged in some level of access to airports across the nation, Neffenger told Fox News. They are recurrently vetted I mean, on a daily basis against terrorist databases for any information that may indicate that they are people that we need to be concerned about. Neffenger said that his agency is also working more closely with the FBI to put airport workers and vendors through recurring criminal background checks. He added that those who hold credentials to enter sterile areas of airline terminals will also be subject to stepped up physical screening as well. If you're walking around in an airport environment and you carry an access badge, there's an expectation that, at some point during any given work day, you're going to get stopped and checked somebody's going to check your badge, somebody's going to check the things that you're carrying, they may even do a pat down, Neffenger said. They're going to verify that you are the person that you say you are and that you're not doing anything you shouldn't be doing. Ben Carson, who as recently as November was leading Donald Trump in Iowa and seen as a contender for front-runner status in the Republican primary battle, announced Thursday hes slashing his campaign staff on the heels of a fourth-place finish in the Hawkeye State. The retired neurosurgeon confirmed the campaign shake-up Thursday afternoon, while telling Fox News hes staying in the race. We will be able to continue the campaign right until Cleveland," he said, referring to the Republican National Convention site. The downsizing comes just days before the New Hampshire primary. The Washington Post first reported that Carson plans to cut more than 50 staff positions, most at his national headquarters in Alexandria, Va. His senior staff reportedly will remain in their positions, with the bulk of cuts happening at the field operative level, as the campaign devotes its resources to New Hampshire and South Carolina. The changes likely reflect a drop-off in fundraising since Carson fell out of the top tier. Carson has $6.6 million cash on hand, according to the latest financial reports, falling behind Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz. Carson has seen his poll numbers drop steadily since mid-November, after a series of rocky debate performances and campaign missteps. In Iowa, Cruz and Rubio rose as Carson fell; Cruz won the Iowa caucuses on Monday, while Rubio placed a close third behind Trump. The latest UMass/7News and Harper polls have Carson at 4 percent and 3 percent in New Hampshire, respectively. Carson has spent the last several days accusing the Cruz campaign of spreading false rumors on the night of the Iowa caucuses that he was dropping out of the race. Cruz, for his part, said his representatives were merely disseminating a news report on Carson leaving the campaign trail for Florida Carson did in fact fly to Florida after the Iowa caucuses, but did not drop out of the race. Cruz has apologized, but Carson continues to criticize the Cruz campaign. With Carson now cutting down his campaign operation, hes casting the changes as a bid to improve efficiency. He suggested the cuts and field reorganization were planned before the Iowa caucuses. I would hope people would recognize that trying to create efficiency is a characteristic that they would like to see in their leaders, Carson told Fox News. The campaign said in a statement: This step in the reorganization involved many components; we realigned responsibilities, made changes to the campaigns infrastructure and reprioritized expenditures. While our campaign organization must become leaner, we will also strive to make it even more effective. The New Hampshire primary will take place Feb. 9. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton proved Wednesday to be unabashed about accepting millions of dollars in speaking fees from Wall Street firms amid an increasingly competitive race with self-proclaimed "democratic socialist" Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. At a CNN town hall in Derry, N.H., moderator Anderson Cooper asked the former secretary of state, "Did you have to be paid $675,000?", a reference to her fees for three speeches to Goldman Sachs. Clinton responded, "I don't know. That's what they offered." Clinton went on to say that she accepted the Goldman money after she left the State Department in 2013, when, as she put it, "I wasn't committed to running" for president. An Associated Press analysis of public disclosure forms and records released by her campaign found that Clinton made $9 million from appearances sponsored by banks, insurance companies, hedge funds, private equity firms and real estate businesses. Clinton made her comments amid an ongoing battle with Sanders over their respective progressive credentials following Clinton's narrow victory in Monday's Iowa Caucuses. I dont know any progressive who has a super PAC and takes $15 million from Wall Street, said Sanders, whose campaign has been driven by modest contributions and has risen in the polls on his promise of more equality for the middle class. For her part, Clinton dismissed criticism that shes not a true progressive and is part of the political establishment. Im not going to let that bother me. I know where I stand, said Clinton, who argued that the Sanders campaign tagging her as an establishment candidate because she was endorsed by Planned Parenthood was inappropriate. I am a progressive who gets things done, Clinton added, before wondering aloud how Sanders came to be a progressive gatekeeper. She also disagreed with several aspects of Sanders platform, questioning his call for a "political revolution" and his plan to provide universal health care through expanding Medicare. Clinton has said she wants to improve on ObamaCare, not dismantle it. Despite their philosophical disagreements, both Democratic candidates were in harmony on wanting to keep Republicans out of the White House. "These guys play for keeps, Clinton said, while Sanders reserved most of his GOP-related ire for Donald Trump. Everybody in this room doesnt want a right-wing Republican in the White House, he said. I want Trump to win the nomination. And frankly, I think we could win against him. Though Sanders is running an insurgent campaign, he cited his time on Capitol Hill to answer questions about whether Congress would approve some of his campaign promises and whether Democrats or Republicans better serve veterans. I have a history of working with Republicans when there was common ground, Sanders said, pointing out that he was a member of the Senate Committee on Veterans Affairs. However, Sanders acknowledged that he and other members of Congress should have done better recognizing and fixing problems with patient care at VA facilities. Clinton and Sanders agreed on the need to stop the ISIS terror group with the help of a coalition of nations, including Middle Eastern allies. Sanders continued to trumpet his opposition to the war in Iraq, which critics say led to the rise of ISIS. Clinton, who voted to authorize the Iraq War, said Wednesday, I did make a mistake" in doing so. Clinton also acknowledged she must do more to appeal to young people -- a voting bloc Sanders won handily in Iowa, saying I accept the fact that I have work to convey what I want to do for young people ... They don't have to be for me. I will be for them." Clinton and Sanders won't clash face-to-face until Thursday's debate at the University of New Hampshire. On Wednesday, each answered about an hours worth of questions from voters and moderator Cooper. Most polls have Sanders holding a substantial lead over Clinton in New Hampshire. The most recent Fox News poll, from late January, shows the Vermont senator with a 22-point cushion. Fox News.com's Joseph Weber, Fox News Channel's Ed Henry and the Associated Press contributed to this report. The former pharmaceutical executive who generated national outrage after he raised the price of a once-cheap life-saving pill to $750 was unapologetic and showed his contempt for lawmakers Thursday -- invoking his Fifth Amendment rights and rolling his eyes, as one congressman asked if he was even paying attention. After his brief appearance on Capitol Hill, Martin Shkreli even took to Twitter to call lawmakers imbeciles. Known for speaking his mind, the usually talkative 32-year-old declined to answer questions at the House Oversight Committee hearing, invoking his Fifth Amendment right at least a half dozen times. At one point, he chuckled, rolled his eyes and turned his head, prompting Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., to demand, Are you even paying attention? Its not funny, Mr. Shkreli, Cummings said. People are dying. I have never seen the committee treated with so much contempt, Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., said. Shkreli's lawyer Ben Brafman said his client wasn't being disrespectful but that his eyerolls and smirks were the result of nervous energy. Brafman told Fox News that his client isn't a villan but instead "a hero." After walking out of the hearing Shkreli tweeted: "Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government." Problems with the prescription drug market price increases, lack of transparency in pricing and regulatory roadblocks for generic drug alternatives were the focus of the hearing. Cummings, who said he pushed for the hearing for seven months, has said there is something about this issue that just gnaws at me 24-7. On Thursday, Cummings submitted a dozen letters for the record from medical associations, consumer groups and coalitions that explain how the skyrocketing prices for critical medications are preventing some of the nations most vulnerable patients from receiving the drugs they need. Shkreli faces separate criminal charges of securities fraud in connection with another drug company he owned. The lawmakers summoned him to answer for the decision that made him infamous: raising the price for Daraprim, the only approved drug for a rare and sometimes deadly parasitic infection. The brash entrepreneur and former hedge fund manager, who pleaded not guilty after his arrest in December in New York, has been out on $5 million bail. He walked into the packed hearing room well before the session began and met the crush of cameras. Even a few members of the House panel were swept up in the curiosity and snapped Shkreli's photo on their cellphones. Also appearing before the lawmakers is Turing's chief commercial officer Nancy Retzlaff and the interim CEO of Canada's largest drugmaker, Valeant Pharmaceuticals Howard Schiller. Documents from Valeant and Turing show they have made a practice of buying and then dramatically raising prices for, low-cost drugs given to patients with life-threatening conditions including heart disease, AIDS and cancer, according to excerpts released this week by the House panel. The two companies' executives are stressing their commitment to ensuring that cost isn't a deterrent for patients who need the drugs. Turing has taken new steps to ensure affordable access to Daraprim "for every single patient who needs the drug, regardless of ability to pay," Retzlaff said. "To our knowledge, no patient needs to pay $750 per pill for Daraprim," she said. About two-thirds of patients get it through government programs that benefit from a discounted price of a penny a pill, Retzlaff told the panel. Valeant has "heard very clearly" public concern over drug prices and is responding, Schiller said in his testimony. He noted the company has created a price rebate program that discounts Nitropress and Isuprel up to 30 percent in deals with big hospital purchasing groups. The two drugs most often are used by hospitals and other healthcare providers as part of procedures subject to their own price caps, Schiller testified. The documents show how executives at both companies planned to maximize profits while fending off negative publicity over the price hikes. Presentations by Turing executives, part of the trove of documents, show that as early as last May, the company planned to turn Daraprim into a $200-million-a-year drug by dramatically increasing its price. Turing bought the 60-year-old drug from Impax Laboratories in August for $55 million and swiftly raised its price. Shkreli said in an email to one contact: "We raised the price from $1,700 per bottle to $75,000. Should be a very handsome investment for all of us." But anticipating a possible backlash, the company warned in an internal memo that advocates for HIV patients might react to the price hike. Valeant likewise identified revenue goals first and then used drug prices to reach them, committee staff said in a memo. It said Valeant believed it could repeatedly raise the prices of Nitropress and Isuprel without repercussions because they're administered by hospitals, which are less price-sensitive than consumers. Valeant used patient assistance programs to distract attention and justify its price hikes, according to the memo. Fox News' Michelle Macaluso and The Associated Press contributed to this report. Members of the Idaho House voted 52-17 to ban cities and counties from regulating plastic bags, a popular trend in cities across the country. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Clark Kauffman, R-Filer, now heads to the Idaho Senate for consideration. Kauffman told colleagues his proposal would prevent patchwork regulation across Idaho and give consumers consistent shopping expectations. Id say this is a business-friendly bill and Id ask for your support, Kauffman said. Rep. Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, spoke against the plan, telling House members the proposal would strip local control. If the measure wins approval from the Senate and is signed by Republican Gov. Butch Otter, individual businesses would still be able to stop using plastic bags in their stores. Click for more from Watchdog.org Bernie Sanders won a virtual victory in Iowa with help from the press. This wasnt intentional, but it was a gift nonetheless. Sanders was surging until the awful attacks in Paris and San Bernardino blunted his momentum. He seemed to have little to say about terrorism. At one debate after the massacre in France, Sanders began with a couple of sentences about fighting terror and then switched to income inequality, his signature subject. Running against a former secretary of State, Bernie suddenly seemed smaller. But for all the saturation coverage of those twin attacks, for all the focus on homeland security and American anxiety, the media moved on. Terrorism faded from the headlines. It was, once again, yesterdays news. And that enabled Sanders to resume his uphill climb against Hillary Clinton. This is not to take anything away from what Sanders has accomplished. As a septuagenarian socialist little known outside of Washington, he has taken on the Clinton machine and fought Hillary to a draw so far. He has generated excitement and huge crowds and tapped into a sense of anger and frustration on the left the way that Donald Trump has done so on the right. He has raised truckloads of money. And he's become a better candidate, tightening his answers and leavening them with a little humor. The senator took a swipe at the media establishment in his remarks after the Iowa caucuses, which Clinton won by a miniscule margin but which represented a massive comeback by Sanders. And he has a point. Even as he transformed himself into a serious contender, the press gave him short shrift. He was on the cover of Time but barely a presence on television news. As recently as December, his campaign complained about a Bernie blackout after a Tyndall Report study found that Sanders had drawn 10 minutes of coverage on the network evening newscastscompared to 234 minutes for Trump. That included 20 seconds for Sanders on ABCs World News through the end of November. Hows that decision looking now? But there is an unintentional benefit for the Vermont lawmaker. With the media having collectively decided that he cant win the Democratic nomination, there hasnt been much scrutiny of his proposals. With some exceptions, his plans to raise taxes on the middle class and adopt government-run health care have not been challenged (except, increasingly, by Clinton and her surrogates). That wont change unless and until the media decide that Sanders, whos expected to win New Hampshire easily, has a realistic shot at the nomination. Then hed be covered as a potential president, which would also bring more focus on his age (74), religion (hed be the first Jewish president) and other matters. There is some chatter about whether the media are now penalizing Hillary by discounting her Iowa win, eked out by a few coin tosses. From the coverage of Mondays caucuses, youd think Clinton was on the ropes, says the Washington Posts Dana Milbank. Not on the ropes by any means. But theres nothing wrong with acknowledging that in a normal year, Hillary should have clobbered Bernie. And theres a reason she suddenly wants to debate him a lot more, in last nights CNN town hall and tonights hastily added MSNBC debate. The downside for Sanders is the media still treat him as a gadfly. The upside is that unlike other hot candidates, hes not getting the full body frisk. A prominent Black Lives Matter activist has made a late entry into the Democratic race for Baltimore mayor. DeRay Mckesson filed to run Wednesday, the deadline for candidates in Maryland's April 26 primary. He joins a dozen contenders, including former Mayor Sheila Dixon, who will seek to succeed Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. In Baltimore, as in other heavily Democratic cities, the primary has long determined the general election winner. The city has not had a Republican mayor since Theordore McKeldin, who served from 1963 to 1967. Rawlings-Blake opted not to run after last year's unrest over the death of Freddie Gray in police custody, saying she wanted to focus on seeing the city through the trials of six officers charged in the case. Mckesson, a Baltimore native, has been a prominent figure in protests over Gray's case, as well as the August 2014 death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. Mckesson told The Baltimore Sun that he expects to release a platform within a week, and acknowledged that his late entry into the race would mean he'd have some catching up to do. "We can't rely on traditional pathways to politics and the traditional politicians who walk those paths if we want transformational change," he told the paper. Mckesson's prominence in the Black Lives Matter movement has made him a sought-after endorsement in this year's race for the Democratic presidential nomination. He has met with both Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders, as well as White House Senior Adviser Valerie Jarrett. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Two Republican lawmakers introduced a bill Thursday requiring women to register for the draft in a move meant to take the decision out of the hands of the military so it can be debated in Congress. Reps. Duncan Hunter of California and Ryan Zinke of Montana said their joint legislation is aimed at provoking a fuller discussion of the Pentagons decision to open all combat jobs to women. Top generals for the Army and Marines said earlier this week that women should be required to register for the draft now that combat jobs are being opened to them. If this administration wants to send 18, 20-year-old women into combat, to serve and fight on the front lines, then the American people deserve to have this discussion through their elected representatives, Hunter said in a statement. Hunter and Zinke, both veterans, say the decision to open the combats jobs ignores research from the Marine Corps and special operations forces. They also say the decision was made without considering whether women should be drafted and potentially serve on the front lines. Its wrong and irresponsible to make wholesale changes to the way America fights its wars without the American people having a say on whether their daughters and sisters will be on the front lines of combat, Hunter said. The U.S. military has been an all-volunteer force since the 1970s, but young men must register for the Selective Service in case the draft is reactivated. Under Hunter and Zinke's bill, women between the ages of 18 and 26 would be required to register either 90 days after the enactment of the legislation or 90 days after the defense secretary certifies to Congress that all combat specialties are open to women. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Russia seemingly has ignored Secretary of State John Kerrys appeals to stop bombing civilians and allow critical humanitarian aid to starving Syrians and is instead escalating its military involvement, deploying four of its most capable fighter jets to Syria, two defense officials confirmed to Fox News. The decision to send the Su-35S jets poses yet another hurdle for Kerrys efforts to proceed with peace talks. The Su-35S is Russias most advanced warplane, capable of air-to-air and air-to-ground missions, one official familiar with the jet said. Already, continued Russian airstrikes against Syrian opposition fighters, some backed by the CIA, were enough to derail proposed peace talks in Geneva Wednesday. Despite backing two U.N. resolutions in support of a ceasefire, Russia reneged on its promise to stop bombing civilians in Syria, a prerequisite for the U.N.-backed talks in Geneva. "[T]here will be a ceasefire," Kerry predicted Tuesday in Rome. We expect a ceasefire. And we expect adherence to the ceasefire. And we expect full humanitarian access. Two days later, the Russian bombing hasnt stopped and thousands of Syrians remain starving. Kerry said he was assured by his Russian counterpart the Russians would stop bombing. "I talked to Foreign Minister Lavrov a couple of days ago and I specifically discussed a ceasefire with him, and he said they are prepared to have a ceasefire," Kerry said. But Kerrys counterpart responded the next day saying the strikes would continue. "Russian strikes will not cease [in Syria] I dont see why these airstrikes should be stopped," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday in Oman. Hours later, the U.N. talks fell apart. Kerry continued calling on Russia to stop bombing Thursday in London. It could not be more clear. That is an obligation that is not tied to talks. It is an obligation accepted by all parties in the United Nations resolution. Russia voted for that, Russia has a responsibility, as do all parties, to live up to it, he said. The Russians have carried out 270 airstrikes since Monday, according to its defense ministry. On Wednesday, a United Nations special envoy suspended the peace talks, which include participation from Russia and Iran, just hours after they began. "It is not the end and it is not a failure of the talks, said U.N. Special Envoy to Syria Staffan di Mistura. The State Department denied the peace conference was a waste of time. Its not a charade because they were there and because there was a beginning, State Department spokesman John Kirby said Wednesday. The top U.S. general in Iraq said the U.S. wants to avoid a confrontation with Russia, despite Russia bombing U.S.-backed rebels. I wouldn't characterize it as a proxy war. I would say that we are pursuing different goals," Lt. Gen. Sean MacFarland told reporters, speaking from Baghdad earlier this week. Meanwhile, hundreds of thousands of Syrians are starving inside the country, besieged by Russian airstrikes preventing humanitarian aid from reaching them. The U.N. chief humanitarian coordinator says close to 500,000 Syrians are cut off from food assistance surrounded by Bashar Assad's forces. Fifty-one people have died of hunger in Madaya, a town of 20,000, located an hour outside Damascus and just 10 miles from Lebanon and 40 miles from the Israeli border. Aid workers who arrived with the first and only food convoy last month said they have never seen such devastation. "We saw people who are clearly malnourished, especially children, we saw people who are extremely thin, skeletons, that are now barely moving," said Yacoub El Hillo, the U.N. resident and humanitarian coordinator in Syria to Reuters. There are currently no plans for the U.S. military to help the U.N. get food to the hundreds of thousands trapped in Syria. "There are no plans for that at this time, said Col. Steve Warren, a U.S. military spokesman for the coalition based in Baghdad. We'll, of course, support them if asked and able, but our focus is the defeat of ISIL. "We haven't seen a catastrophe like this since World War II," said Kerry in Rome. [I]n recent months its people have been reduced to eating grass, he added. A Washington Post editorial blamed Secretary Kerry's compromise with Russia in the pursuit of peace talks, in part, for the prolonged starvation crisis: "Unfortunately, the Obama administration's handling of the Syrian crisis appears to be enabling those very war crimes." In a statement late Wednesday, the State Department said the peace talks in Geneva were paused and would resume later this month. The number of fighters in the Islamic State's army largely "remains the same" as it did a year ago, a U.S. official briefed on the latest intelligence estimate tells Fox News. Officially, ISIS is estimated to have between 20,000 and 25,000 fighters based on the new intelligence estimate, as first reported by USA Today. A year ago, ISIS was estimated to have between 19,000 and 31,000 fighters. The new estimate means that despite more than 10,000 U.S.-led coalition airstrikes against ISIS starting in August 2014, ISIS largely has maintained the size of its force due in part to an emerging practice of forced conscription and an influx of new members, including foreign fighters flocking to ISIS self-declared caliphate. Meanwhile, there are now an estimated 5,000 ISIS fighters in Libya, a defense official told Fox News. It is getting harder to get into Syria and fighters are being directed to Libya, the official said. Territory, however, has been taken back from the vast terror network in that time. The U.S. military estimates that 40 percent of its territory in Iraq has been retaken. The progress is not so defined in Syria, where just 5 percent of ISIS-controlled land has been retaken. Previous estimates claiming up to 20 percent of ISIS-controlled Syria had been reclaimed have been revised significantly. ISIS, meanwhile, has proved resilient to troop casualties. Despite tens of thousands of ISIS fighters killed in airstrikes, ISIS is turning to "forced conscriptions" of military-aged males among the population under ISIS control to make up for the losses, according to the U.S. official. These conscripted forces are "less capable" fighters, according to the official. New foreign fighters also serve as reinforcements in Iraq and Syria, but the flow has been reduced compared with a year ago, according to the official who said supply lines have been significantly cut off by airstrikes. One major supply line cut off in November is Highway 47, connecting the Islamic State's de facto capital in Raqqa, Syria, to its Iraqi headquarters in Mosul. This has forced ISIS to use unpaved side roads to reach cities under its control. The top U.S. commander in Iraq could not estimate when an operation in Mosul would take place, when asked at a press conference Monday. Lt. Gen. Sean MacFarland would not rule out additional forces from the U.S. and its allies to train Iraqi troops, but said that decision is up to the commander-in-chief, President Obama. Officials have put this number in the "hundreds" and said they would not be taking part in direct combat to take Mosul. Col. Steve Warren, a U.S. military spokesman in Baghdad, told reporters last week that 10 Iraqi brigades would be needed to recapture Mosul. Currently, the U.S. has helped train nearly 20,000 Iraqi troops. A separate official told Fox News it would be six months before 10 Iraqi bridges could be fully trained. The chairman of the House Foreign Relations Committee demanded Wednesday that Secretary of State John Kerry explain a $1.7 billion settlement paid to Iran that some Republicans have described as a "ransom" tied to last month's release of five American prisoners. Rep. Ed Royce, R-Calif., complained in a letter to Kerry that his committee was not consulted about the payment. The Obama administration claimed the agreement was made to settle a dispute with Iran over $400 million in frozen funds that dated back to 1979. The remaining $1.3 billion was described by the Obama administration as "interest". "It is unclear how this $1.7 billion payment is in the national security interests of the United States," Royce wrote. Royce's letter included 10 questions to Kerry about the settlement. Among them are how the administration calculated the $1.3 billion "interest" on the payment, a timeline of negotiations over the payment since this past summer's nuclear deal, and why the money was not used to "compensate American victims of Iranian terrorism who have been awarded judgments against Iran." Royce's letter also asks for a list of U.S. officials who participated in negotiations with Iran over the payment, the prisoner release and the nuclear agreement. The White House announced the payment on Jan. 17, the same day that Iran released five American prisoners, including Washington Post reporter Jason Rezaian, former Marine Amir Hekmati, and Christian pastor Saeed Abedini. At the time, Obama defended the amount paid by the U.S., saying it was "much less than the amount Iran sought." The president added that the one-time payment was preferable to letting more interest accumulate while waiting for a judgement from the Iran-US Claims Tribunal, which is based in The Hague and was created in the deal that ended the Iran hostage crisis in 1981. "I have a larger concern that in choosing to resolve this relatively minor bilateral dispute at this time, the Obama Administration is aggressively moving towards reestablishing diplomatic relations with Iran," Royce wrote. "Such action would clearly violate the Presidents pledge to 'remain vigilant' in countering the threat Iran poses to the United States and our allies in the region." State Department spokesman John Kirby confirmed to Reuters that Royce's letter had been received. "As with all Congressional correspondence, we'll respond as appropriate," Kirby said. Royce's letter gives Kerry until Feb. 17 to respond to his questions. A rare 500-year-old work by Dutch Renaissance artist Hieronymus Bosch, previously attributed to the painters workshop, has been identified at the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City. The painting, "The Temptation of St. Anthony," was purchased from a New York gallery in 1935, and has mostly been in storage at the Nelson-Atkins Museum, according to the Kansas City Star. The last time the oil-wood panel was on display at the museum was 2003. Related: Ancient 4,500-year-old boat discovered in Egypt There are only 25 paintings known to be by Bosch in existence, only five of which, including the latest find, are in the U.S. "The Temptation of St. Anthony," a 15-by-10-inch panel dating from 1500 to 1510, is the Nelson-Atkins' sole Bosch. Related: Archaeologists uncover 'Buddha post hole' in Nepal Experts from the Het Noordbrabents Museum in Den Bosch, the Netherlands, which is Boschs hometown, noticed the painting in a 2003 catalog, the Kansas City Star reports. They contacted the Nelson-Atkins last year requesting a high-resolution photo and an infrared reflectogram of the panel. The attribution of the work was made by the Bosch Research and Conservation Project, which sent a team to Kansas City to study the painting and concluded that it could "be ascribed to Bosch with confidence." Related: Tombs of ancient rabbis possibly discovered in Galilee According to the Nelson-Atkins, investigators were able to detect Boschs typical technique of sketching an underdrawing over the ground layer of his oak panels using a coarse brush with thin paint. Bosch also often changed his designs, and a change in the shape of the jug in the St. Anthony panel was apparent. The work is on loan to the Het Noordbrabents Museum for an exhibition opening Feb. 13. The show in Holland marks 500 years since Boschs death in 1516. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Rising global temperatures may be blamed for fewer male loggerhead turtles being born, which could lead to a gender imbalance that puts increased pressure on this already endangered species. Florida State Universitys Mariana Fuentes and a team of Brazilian researchers set out to study how temperatures were impacting Brazilian loggerhead turtles at a time when 2015 marked the second year running where temperatures reached a record high. It was already established that the sex of marine turtle hatchlings was influenced by incubating temperatures, with warmer temperatures producing a higher number of female hatchlings. A similar trend has been found with some crocodiles. Related: High temperatures make some lizards change sexes Were concerned were going to have a feminization of marine turtles, Fuentes, a co-author on a study of the findings in Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, said in a statement. This study came from the need to understand the current sex ratio being produced at loggerhead nesting grounds to establish baseline parameters as climate change progresses and to identify beaches that produce a higher proportion of males. The finding is the latest evidence that global warming is already taking a toll the natural world. Not only are plants and animals shifting their ranges to stay ahead of the rising temperatures, plants are blooming earlier in the spring and some species are even changing biologically including some lizards that change sex to beat the heat. Related: Bumblebees endangered by inability to adapt to climate change In the loggerhead study, researchers found an exceptionally strong female bias 94 percent in all nesting areas used by loggerhead turtles in northern Brazil. But, scientists were also able to identify nesting beaches in southern Brazil that were producing a higher proportion of male hatchlings 47 percent which is essential to sustain the population. Scientists examined 25 years worth of data for 21 nesting beaches throughout coastal Brazil, about 373 miles worth of nesting areas, making it the most comprehensive of its kind. Its worrying that you could have an extreme skew in gender one way, Fuentes said. Any changes in population structure can have real repercussions. The sex of marine turtle hatchlings is influenced by temperature, with optimal hatching temperatures falling between 75.2 degrees to 93.2 degrees. But, temperatures below 85.1 degrees tend to yield more male turtles and temperatures above that mark typically yield more female turtles. Related: 2015 was hottest year ever, with records set around the globe While the turtles study were only in Brazil, Fuentes and her team believe they are applicable in other regions because all turtles have temperature-dependent sex determination. Fuentes plans to expand the research into Florida in the coming year by examining the gender structure of loggerhead turtles in the Panhandle. The loggerhead turtle, including a species known for migrating 7,500 miles between nesting beaches in Japan and its feeding areas in the Gulf of Mexico, has been listed under the Endangered Species Act since 1978. Their numbers are on the decline in many parts of the world because of threats that include being captured in fishing gear, coastal development, increased human use of nesting beaches pollution and harvesting food and other uses. Ever since Apple and Google made their operating systems encrypted by default in 2014, the feds have complained that the move will make it harder for them to root out terrorist activity. Access to sensitive data, they argue, will "go dark." A report out of Harvard earlier this week pushes back on that assertion and argues that fears are overblown. Encryption does not mean the Web goes "dark" for investigators. Instead, it creates "pockets of dimness" while opening up other avenues for spying, they conclude. "Despite all the noise, few of the headline-grabbing and anxiety-provoking (for government, at least) moves by device and operating system makers from 2014 have materialized into real-world default encryption that is beyond the reach of government actors," the study says. The Berklett Cybersecurity Project of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University pulled together a group of security and policy experts from academia, civil society, and the U.S. intelligence community to examine the issue. While they acknowledge that encryption presents challenges for the FBI, Defense Department, and others, it's not the end of surveillance as we know it. "We question whether the 'going dark' metaphor accurately describes the state of affairs," the report says. "Are we really headed to a future in which our ability to effectively surveil criminals and bad actors is impossible? We think not." Why is that? For one, it's not good business, they say. "Companies typically wish to have unencumbered access to user datawith privacy assured through either restricting dissemination of identifiable customer information outside the boundaries of the company (and of governments, should they lawfully request the data)," the report says. "Implementing end-to-end encryption by default for all, or even most, user data streams would conflict with the advertising model and presumably curtail revenues." Meanwhile, software fragmentationparticularly on Androidcan be a hindrance to encryption adoption. "In order for end-to-end encryption to work properly, both a sender's and receiver's messaging apps must be able to support it, and not all do," the report says. "If the ecosystem is fragmented, encryption is that much less likely to become all encompassing." The feds also need to look ahead. Phones aren't the only things connected to the Internet. A vast new world of gadgets are coming onlineaka the Internet of Thingsand they are ripe for spying. "The audio and video sensors on IoT devices will open up numerous avenues for government actors to demand access to real-time and recorded communicationsm," the report suggests, pointing to things like smart TVs, Internet-connected toys, and voice-controlled applications. Finally, the report points to everyone's favorite security buzzword: metadata. "Metadata is not encrypted, and the vast majority is likely to remain so. This is data that needs to stay unencrypted in order for the systems to operate: location data from cell phones and other devices, telephone calling records, header information in email, and so on," it says. "This information provides an enormous amount of surveillance data that was unavailable before these systems became widespread." This article originally appeared on PCMag.com. Research by mobile advertising analytics company Marchex has ranked Americas "fastest talkers" and the results may surprise you. Marchex analysts studied more than 4 million phone calls between 2013 and 2015 using technology that monitors speech, silence, ring tones and hold times to analyze speech patterns. The results, released this week, show that Americans are talking faster than ever speaking between 110 and 150 words per minute, on average. Somewhat surprisingly, the nations fastest talkers came from Oregon, followed by Minnesota, Massachusetts, Kansas and Iowa (New York only ranked at #38). Americas slowest talkers were from North Carolina, followed by Alabama, South Carolina, Louisiana and Mississippi. Related: iPhone 7 rumored to wow with killer camera, reports say The slowest talkers as measured by words per minute come primarily from the South, explained the Marchex Institute, on its website. The fastest talking population comes from Oregon, and is followed closely by its neighbors in the Pacific Northwest, most of New England, the upper Midwest (states surrounding Minnesota and Iowa) and Florida. While New York may not be one of the fastest-talking states, its residents do talk the most, according to the research. For every 5 words a slow talking state utters, a fast talking state will utter 6, noted the Marchex Institute. After New York, California, New Jersey, Nevada and Maryland are Americas biggest talkers, while residents of Oklahoma, Kansas, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Iowa talk the least. Related: Smaller iPhone, new Apple Watch could be coming this year The West and South from California to Texas also speak a lot on the phone, along with central states Illinois, Ohio and Missouri, said Marchex. If you want to have a conversation that is straight to the point, then focus in on residents from the middle. Most states in between Idaho to the West, Wisconsin to the East, Oklahoma to the South and all the way up to Canada use fewer words to get the point across than everyone on the coasts. According to the Marchex data, A New Yorker will use 62 percent more words than someone from Iowa to have the same conversation with a business. Researchers also examined how tolerant residents of all 50 states are when placed on hold. Kentucky is the most impatient state, according to the study, which measured how often people are willing to wait on hold before hanging up. Other "impatient" states include Ohio, North Carolina, New York and West Virginia. In contrast, the most patient state was Louisiana, followed by Colorado, Florida, Illinois and Minnesota. Related: iPhone 6s Plus review The study also urged businesses to improve their customer service over the phone, predicting that Americans will waste over 900 million hours waiting on hold in 2016. A recent survey commissioned by text message service TalkTo found that more than 50 percent of consumers spend between 10 and 20 minutes per week on hold, which amounts to 13 hours per year and almost 43 days in a lifetime. The four armed activists who on Wednesday night were surrounded by the FBI at a wildlife refuge in eastern Oregon have remained on the site despite the arrests of group leader Ammon Bundy and others Jan. 26 on a remote road outside the refuge. Wednesday's tense standoff between the FBI and the four occupiers was being livestreamed on the Internet. Ammon Bundy led the group that seized the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 2 to oppose federal land policies and has repeatedly asked the holdouts to go home. The Associated Press has not been able to contact the remaining occupiers, but they have said in online statements and interviews that they want assurances they won't be arrested. Like most of the occupiers, none of the holdouts is from Oregon. Here are details about them: ___ JEFFREY BANTA The 47-year-old has lived in Elko, Nevada, the last several years and worked in construction most of his life, his ex-wife said. Banta graduated from Yerington High School in the rural town of Yerington, about 70 miles southeast of Reno, said Angela Ellington Banta, who still lives there. His father, Willard Banta, 73, said all of his children grew up hunting and fishing at an early age. "I had them out in the hills with me as soon as they were old enough to walk and out of diapers," he said Wednesday. The elder Banta said he had talked to his son "once or twice" since the standoff began but declined to provide details. "He just said, 'I'm all right,'" Willard Banta said. "I'm wondering if he is going to make it out. I'd like to see my son come home. I hope he does, but I have my doubts." Jeffrey Banta and his ex-wife have two children, the eldest a 23-year-old woman who is married and has a child living in the Reno area. Ellington Banta said she doesn't really know what her ex-husband has been doing in recent years and doesn't want to discuss the standoff because she has "two kids who have been really affected by all this." ___ DAVID FRY The 27-year-old from Blanchester, Ohio, formed an online friendship with Robert "LaVoy" Finicum and helped the Arizona rancher self-publish a novel. Finicum became a recognizable spokesman for the armed group before he was shot and killed by police in a confrontation last month. Fry traveled, apparently unarmed and against the advice of his father, to the refuge, where he often posted online updates. He told Oregon Public Broadcasting in mid-January that he planned to say goodbye to Finicum and return home before his father got back from a vacation. Within two weeks, Finicum was dead, shot as authorities moved in to arrest Bundy and others on a remote stretch of road outside the refuge. Fry has rejected Bundy's call to leave, saying federal authorities might be forcing him to make the request. "We're still here," he told an online talk show Monday that airs on YouTube channel Revolution Radio. "I never saw myself as a leader. ... We're waiting for some kind of miracle to happen." In Ohio, Fry has several convictions for disorderly conduct, as well as possession of drugs and drug paraphernalia. ___ SEAN AND SANDY ANDERSON The husband and wife moved from the town of Janesville, Wisconsin, within the last several years to Riggins, Idaho, where Sean, 47, opened a store for hunting, tactical and survival gear. Sandy, 48, worked at a gas station. Idaho County, where they live, and Harney County, 290 miles away where the refuge is located, are similar in many ways. Both have large portions of land managed by federal agencies and populations chafing at restrictions put on that land. Idaho County Sheriff Doug Giddings said the Andersons are good residents, though he didn't know as much about Sean as he did about Sandy. "She's a good person, she's just upset with the government," he told Oregon Public Broadcasting. Sean Anderson is facing misdemeanor charges in Wisconsin for resisting an officer, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of THC, the intoxicating chemical in marijuana. He also has pleaded guilty to a series of misdemeanors in recent years: domestic abuse in December 2010, disorderly conduct in 2008, criminal trespass in a dwelling in 2002, and disorderly conduct in 1999. A friend of the couple, Lindsey Dipo, told the Lewiston Tribune newspaper that the couple recorded their will on Dipo's cellphone before departing for Oregon. A New Jersey appeals court can now decide whether a former Rutgers University student convicted of spying on a roommate who later committed suicide will be retried, be resentenced or have his conviction invalidated. Dharun Ravi (DAHR'-uhn RAH'-vee) was convicted in 2012 of bias intimidation and invasion of privacy. He faced up to 10 years in prison but received 30 days in jail. The case raised issues about cyberbullying and homophobia on college campuses. Ravi secretly broadcast online images of Tyler Clementi in an intimate encounter with another man. Clementi later jumped off the George Washington Bridge. Clementi's parents attended Wednesday's proceeding. Ravi's attorneys argue a change in state law since the trial should invalidate his conviction. The state contends the judge erred by giving Ravi too lenient a sentence. A ruling is expected in three or four months. Two U.S. soldiers stationed at Fort Bliss in Texas were charged Wednesday with the murder of a local teenager. Tyler Shane Hall, 20, and Eric Duvall, 26, both with the 1st Armored Division, were charged with the murder of 16-year-old Michael Tapia, whose body was found late Sunday afternoon in a remote desert area east of El Paso, according to Leslie Antunez, spokeswoman for the El Paso County Sheriffs Office. As a result of the investigation, it is believed that the murder was narcotic related, Antunez said in a statement. She would not discuss who was the buyer or seller. The El Paso Times reported that Hall also was charged with suspicion of possession of a controlled substance more than 4 grams and less than 200 grams. An autopsy found that Michael Tapia suffered a single gunshot wound to the back of the neck. It was not immediately clear if either man has an attorney. Bond for each was set at $1 million. Both suspects are active duty military and currently stationed at Fort Bliss. Fort Bliss spokesman Mike Brantley said because the incident occurred off base, the adjudication of the case is in the hands of civilian authorities. Fort Bliss officials are cooperating with El Paso authorities who have jurisdiction in this case, Brantley said. Because this is an ongoing criminal investigation, we cannot comment further about it. Neither Hall nor Duvall has been booted from the military. They are still soldiers in the U.S. Army, Brantley said. Chicago police on Thursday found the bodies of four men, one woman and a child inside a home on the city's South Side in what police said was being investigated as an apparent multiple homicide. Interim Chicago Police Superintendent John Escalante said it appeared to be an isolated incident and there was no wider threat to the community, but police added extra patrols in the neighborhood as a precaution. Asked whether it could have been a murder-suicide, he said it was "a possibility." Standing in the street in the Gage Park neighborhood, Escalante told reporters that police checked the house Thursday afternoon after receiving a call from a co-worker worried about someone who lived there. The person had missed two days of work, which was "highly unusual and very suspicious," Escalante said. Police arrived at the single-family brick home just after 1 p.m. They looked inside and saw one body, entered and found five more bodies. The bodies had signs of trauma, but authorities have not determined the cause of death. Authorities were still working to identify the dead. Escalante said it's probable they were all family members and police were trying to locate relatives. The child is thought to be 10 to 12 years old. A relative of the family who lived in the home said Thursday evening that the family seemed happy. "They were a normal family. Everything was fine," Noemi Martinez, 29, said from Dallas during a phone interview in Spanish. She said her husband was a nephew and cousin of the home's residents. Martinez said the father worked at a factory in Chicago and the mother was a housewife. They were originally from the Mexican state of Guanajuato and had lived in Chicago for about a decade, Martinez said. "Right now we just want to know who did this. They didn't deserve this. We don't understand what happened," she said. Escalante said the investigation would take time but emphasized there was no imminent threat. "At this time we don't believe that there is any threat to the surrounding community or any known threat right now to the immediate neighborhood," he said. In the neighborhood, three teenage boys said they were worried about a classmate at Rachel Carson Elementary School who lived in the home. They feared he was among the dead. "His favorite sport was soccer," Aaron Villazana said of his friend, and Emmanuel Hernandez chimed: "He'd get out of school and play soccer. ... He liked sharing." "I just saw him three days ago. He was walking by. He told me, 'How are your basketball games going?'" said Jesus Anderade. Earlier, Rosa De La Torre's 13-year-old son comforted her as she sat down and sobbed near the home of her friend, whom she thought could be among the victims. Another neighbor, Lettie Magas, 68, lamented what she said has been an increase in crime in recent years. "I feel safe as long as it's daylight out, but I won't come out at night, no way," Magas said. Many homeowners in St. Cloud, Fla., have reportedly found catfish placed in their mailboxes and yards, raising some concern that the apparent prank may indicate a new trend in the quiet neighborhood. The incidents were first reported on Monday when a mailman reportedly spotted a 12-inch fish left in a mailbox. The fishs body was intact, but had traces of blood around the mouth, indicating that it may have been caught in a nearby lake. Its just a fish in my mailbox now, but is something going to happen in the future where someone throws a brick through my window? Maddison Fertic, a homeowner, asked Fox 35 Orlando. It just make you wonder." Homeowners said they are going to report the incident to police. St. Cloud is roughly 35 miles south of Orlando. Click for more from Fox 35. A former Oklahoma Highway Patrolman charged with sexually assaulting three women during traffic stops is due in court. Eric Roberts is due in Creek County District Court Thursday morning for a preliminary hearing on 11 criminal counts, including second-degree rape, indecent exposure, sexual battery and embezzlement. The allegations came to light when a woman filed a federal lawsuit alleging Roberts raped her following a traffic stop. Two more women later made similar allegations. Roberts has pleaded not guilty to all charges and is free on bond. Roberts was suspended in July 2014 and resigned two months later following his arrest. The head of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol has said Roberts turned off his dashboard camera during six traffic stops, including two referenced in the federal lawsuit. A black man who was shot and paralyzed by a Florida sheriff's deputy in 2013 was awarded $23.1 million by a civil jury Wednesday. The six-woman, two-man jury ruled after 3 hours of deliberation that Palm Beach County Sheriff's Sgt. Adams Lin violated Dontrell Stephens' civil rights when he shot him. Lin, who had stopped Stephens, now 22, for riding his bicycle into traffic, testified that he shot Stephens four times because he reached for his waistband with his left hand and then flashed a dark object that he thought was a small handgun. Stephens testified that he was raising his hands when Lin opened fire for no reason. Video from the dashboard camera in Lin's patrol car showed Stephens' left hand was empty and a cellphone was in his right hand. An appeal is expected and Lin's attorneys could ask Magistrate Judge Barry S. Seltzer to reduce the damages. The jury apparently rejected Lin's claim that he had made an "objectively reasonable mistake" when he shot Stephens. The jurors declined comment as they left the courthouse as did Lin and his attorneys. Lin sat stoically as the verdict was read, while Stephens wept as he was wheeled into the courtroom minutes later. He declined comment. Jack Scarola, Stephens' lead attorney, said the verdict is a victory not only for his client but for law enforcement officers who have been unfairly stigmatized by unjustified violence against young black men by a small minority of their colleagues. He said the verdict will help restore faith in the justice system among the African-American community. "This will help good police officers do their duty and be far more effective in their communities," Scarola said. The sheriff's office released a statement later Wednesday night calling the verdict both shocking and disappointing. "Based upon Mr. Stephens' actions, Sgt. Lin reasonably mistook a cell phone that Mr. Stephens held in his hand for a firearm, and fearing for his life, he shot Mr. Stephens," the statement said. "Sgt. Lin then saved Mr. Stephens life due to the fact that he had extensive medical training as a result of serving his country as a member of the U.S. Army while on deployment in Afghanistan in 2008. He did so by rendering first aid to Mr. Stephens until EMS arrived." Under Florida law, the Legislature has to approve any lawsuit payment against a government agency that exceeds $200,000. In the past, legislators have been reluctant to do that, even in non-controversial cases. For example, it took about three years for the Legislature to approve a $3.5 million settlement for a Jacksonville teenager who was paralyzed when a large branch from a city-owned tree broke off and hit him in the head, paralyzing him. The city, admitting fault, had asked for him to be paid. In another case, it took more than four years for the Legislature to approve a $10.7 million settlement for a teenager who was permanently disabled when a speeding sheriff's deputy plowed into her car. A jury had awarded her $30 million. Stephens' attorneys had said from the beginning that they would seek more than $5 million to cover his medical treatment and future care, but they did not mention the amount they would seek for pain and suffering until closing arguments to the jury Wednesday. Attorney Darryl Lewis told jurors Stephens will have more than $6 million in medical and care expenses during his lifetime, and that he deserved at least $18 million for his pain and suffering. An expert testified that he could spend more than 50 years in his condition. Lin, 38 and a 12-year veteran of the sheriff's office, testified that he stopped Stephens for riding his bicycle into traffic and because he didn't recognize him from the neighborhood. Stephens, who admitted smoking marijuana earlier that morning and once served 90 days in jail for a felony drug conviction, had been riding to a friend's house after a trip to a convenience store. In the dashcam video, Lin speeds up his patrol car to catch Stephens as he pedals down a West Palm Beach residential street. Stephens sees Lin and turns into the parking lot of a duplex, hops off his bike and puts it down, his right hand holding his cellphone. Stephens moves behind a car and both men are now outside the camera's view. Stephens testified Lin already had his gun drawn and shot him after he raised his hands. Lin denied that, saying he only drew and fired after Stephens flashed his cellphone like it was a gun. Scarola told the jury that Lin must have already had his gun pointed at Stephens because he couldn't have seen the cellphone, perceived it as a gun, drawn his own gun and fired in the two seconds Stephens was out of view of the dashcam video. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Every few months, it seems, a new poll comes out saying more millennials are falling away from religion. One organization is working to reverse that trend and prove the vast potential of todays youth: Passion. Passion is a religious organization that actively draws youth to recognize the power of Jesus Christ in a multiplicity of ways. Founded in 1997 by Louie Giglio, the group holds an annual Passion conference that this year hosted over 40,000 college students. The conferences feature appearances by many of the most renowned Christian pop artists, including Chris Tomlin, Charlie Hall, David Crowder, Matt Redman, Christy Nockels, Kristian Stanfill, and the Passion Band. Passion is responsible for a massive amount of charity work as well, particularly in raising millions of dollars to help end modern slavery and human trafficking. LifeZette sat down with Kristian Stanfill, 32, one of the artists deeply most involved with this mission. Stanfill describes Passion as having "zeroed in on the college moment, the university moment. Because it is this great intersection of questions and calling and 'what am I going to do with my life ... what do I believe?'" He added that he hopes "Passion can come in and put on the table that you were made for something so much bigger than what this world wants to sell you." When asked about Passion and its work with college students, he elaborated on the power of youth: "College students are a powerful force. It's really amazing when you see a load of college students catch that fire and they go back to their college campuses. It's just a revival waiting to happen," he said. "When we sent those 40,000 college students back to all their different campuses, it's kind of like a flinging of arrows." He is so right: Young people have the greatest ability to influence one another. And one of the most profound ways they do so is by the power of example. "When something catches on, on the college campus, it kind of has this viral thing that happens. It goes out past the campus and into the rest of the world," Stanfill aptly pointed out. He said one of the most beautiful parts of Passion is simply seeing "college students awaken to Jesus." When asked about his work with young people and the many temptations they face in today's culture particularly when it comes to losing their faith he responded in a way that will surprise many: "I think (our young people) are underestimated." He added, "These college students put their money where their mouth is and they say we're going to free people from slavery, and we're going to build hospitals, and we're going to go in and free people from human trafficking." Today's young people are incredibly zealous and energetic they just need to be inspired. Stanfill disagreed that all millennials today are losing their faith and lack "power." In fact, he said, "We've seen the exact opposite. People say they 'don't have a lot of recourses.' Well, they are the most resourceful people we've ever seen and we have the numbers to back it up." When it comes to living out faith on a daily basis, or having a spiritual life, or living for others young people today have the strength and potential to actively participate. "I think, if anything, (young people are) an underestimated age group," Stanfill said. "I think the power and the potential in the college moment and the college student are phenomenal." More from LifeZette.com: 'Help! My Son Can't Concentrate' The Unbearable Neighbors You Dont Want: Keeping our families safe from the wildlife that lives around us Raising Children After Losing My Mom Veterans Finally Get the Support They Deserve Los Angeles County authorities were scrambling Wednesday to recapture a murder suspect who was accidentally released from jail last weekend and have warned potential targets of his release. Los Angeles County Department Cmdr. Keith Swesson said finding Steven Lawrence Wright, 37, is the No. 1 priority of the Major Crimes Division. Wright was accidentally released from the Inmate Reception Center on Saturday afternoon. Deputies didnt realize the mistake until more than 24 hours later on Sunday night when the manhunt was launched. This is a critical incident because an accused murderer is now out on the street," Swensson said, adding that dozens of investigators are focused on tracking down Wright. Wright had been behind bars since April 2011 following his arrest in the shooting death of a 47-year-old man that year in Pasadena, California. At the time, police said Wright belonged to the Altadena Blocc Crips, and that the victim belonged to a rival gang. Wright had been found guilty of the killing in 2014 but his conviction was overturned last year after a judge found the trial wasn't fair. Wright was set for a preliminary hearing in a new murder trial next month, when he also was set to be sentenced for an attempted murder conviction. The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors announced a $20,000 reward for information leading to Wrights capture. "Eventually we're going to catch him. We just want to catch him before something happens," said Sgt. Tim Duerr, a longtime investigator in the Major Crimes Bureau tasked with finding Wright. Duerr said investigators were able to confirm sightings of Wright in the Los Angeles area since his release but not in time to nab him. Investigators also have talked to Wright's family members, who have said all he wants to do is be with his loved ones, Duerr said. "That's what we hope," he said. "Obviously we're going to take everything at face value." Wright was released because of a paperwork error. Wright was in court last week after being called to testify in a murder trial but was charged with contempt of court and sentenced to five days in jail when he refused to cooperate. A court clerk incorrectly wrote down the case number of Wrights murder charged next to the details of his sentence, when it shouldve been his contempt charge, Swesson said. The clerk did write the correct information on the second page of Wright's paperwork, but three sheriff's staff members missed it, he said. The sheriff's department is conducting a review to prevent future accidental releases. Accidental releases at the department declined from 21 in 2014 to six last year, a 71 percent drop, Swensson said. The Inmate Reception Center processes more than 100,000 releases annually, Swesson said according to the Los Angeles Times. The Times reported that deputies accidentally released Johnny Mata, who was held on suspicion of murder for a killing in Baldwin Park in 2013. He found caught in Mexico about a year later. Wright's attorney, Stacie Halpern, described her client as intelligent and respectful, and she said she doesn't think he'll hurt anyone while he's free. "He doesn't come off as a stupid gang-banging idiot," she said. "He's older, he's mature. He's not a typical low-level thinker." As for his accidental release, Halpern said she's still stunned. "This is one of the more bizarre things that's happened in my 16 years of practice," she said. "It's interesting the county could make such a big blunder." The accidental release comes on the heels of a brazen jail break in Orange County when three inmates escaped using a makeshift rope among other tools. All three inmates were recaptured. The Associated Press contributed to this report. All eyes on New Hampshire. Sanders and Clinton square off at a debate tonight one day after they both participated in a town hall. Its a fight among Democrats over who is more liberal. Tonight there is a last minute debate between Sanders and Clinton at the University of New Hampshire in Durham. John Wagner and Abby Phillip in The Washington Post write today, The two Democratic presidential hopefuls sparred Wednesday over whether Hillary Clinton is enough of a "progressive," while she and Bernie Sanders both sought to manage expectations in a race that has now shifted to very different terrain. With less than a week before the New Hampshire primary, and polls showing sizable leads here for Sanders, the Clinton team sought to emphasize the advantages that the senator from Vermont has as a next-door neighbor. Sanders's camp countered that Clinton should be stronger in the Granite State, given her win here as a presidential candidate in 2008. On the campaign trail, on Twitter and in a town hall broadcast Wednesday night by CNN, the biggest issue of the day was Sanders's questioning of Clinton's progressive credentials.The exchange was sparked by a day-old jab from Sanders, who told reporters in Keene that she is a progressive "some days," except when she "announces she is a moderate." Dan Balz also in the Washington Post writes, Hillary Clinton has two large tasks to accomplish in the days ahead. The first and most immediate is to narrow the gap in New Hampshire with Sen. Bernie Sanders, who has long led the polls here. The second is to sharpen and elevate a message still built more on resume and determination than on vision and inspiration. The first could prove to be easier than the second, but the second could be the more important to her candidacy in the long run. Jonathan Easley writes in the Hill, Hillary Clinton on Wednesday night defended accepting huge speaking fees from Goldman Sachs, arguing that it wont influence the way she treats the banking industry. Speaking at CNNs Democratic presidential forum, anchor Anderson Cooper pressed Clinton on whether it had been a mistake for her to reel in more than $200,000 per speech for three speeches to the Wall Street giant. "Look, I made speeches to lots of groups. I told them what I thought. I answered questions," Clinton said. But did you have to be paid $675,000?, Cooper asked. Well I dont know, Clinton responded. Thats what they offered. The crowd burst into laughter as Clinton explained that every secretary of State I know has done that. Cooper shot back that usually the secretary of State is not preparing to run for president. To be honest I wasnt committed to running, Clinton said. I didnt know whether I would run or not. Clinton said she would not be influenced by the money. On the Republican side, its all-out war between several candidates, as New Hampshire becomes all important. Reid Esptein and Heather Haddon in the Wall Street Journal today writes, For three current or former Republican governors still running for president, next Tuesdays primary is a make-or-break contestand a strong finish by Florida Sen. Marco Rubio could render them all also-rans when the campaign moves beyond New Hampshire. With stakes so high, the signs of stress were evident here Wednesday. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, sixth in the Real Clear Politics polling average of New Hampshire, declared the GOP primary here a two-man race between him and Mr. Rubio. Ohio Gov. John Kasich, frustrated by persistent questions about his appeal to core conservative Republican voters, insisted he is fighting for every vote. And former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush waged a two-front battle, arguing on television that he is superior to Mr. Rubio while his campaign aired a two-minute television ad attacking Donald Trump. Messrs. Christie, Kasich and Bush are fighting to appeal to the partys more centrist voters and business-focused donors, groups whom Mr. Rubio hopes to win after his better-than-expected third-place finish in Iowa on Monday. The governors each need a solid showing here after each getting less than 3% support in Iowa. 1200EST -- NJ Gov Christie holds a meet and greet. Village Pizza of Newport, Newport, NH. LIVE via LiveU 1200EST -- Donald Trump holds a rally. Exeter Town Hall, Exeter, NH. LIVE 1230EST -- Sen Rubio holds a town hall meeting. Saint Anselm Institute of Politics, Manchester, NH. LIVE via LiveU 1315EST -- Sen Cruz attends an addiction and recovery meeting. Emmanuel Baptist Church, Hooksett, NH. LIVE via LiveU 1330EST -- OH Gov Kasich speaks at Concord High School. Concord, NH. LIVE via LiveU 1330EST -- Donald Trump meets business owners. Great Property Management, Exeter, NH. LIVE via LiveU Theres a major investigation underway right now into the explosion on board an A321 passenger jet in Africa that left one man sucked out of the fuselage. Its believed to be the work of terrorists. Theres a hearing into high drug prices on Capitol Hill today with the House looking into some drug companies pricing tactics. Oil prices are up sharply despite more supply. Most global stocks up today. Credit Suisse posted a nearly $6billion loss and is cutting 4,000 jobs. Shell reported a 60% drop in profits. Is the overheated art market cooling. Two major works failed to sell at an auction. For more news, follow me on Twitter: @ClintPHenderson A Superstorm Sandy monument in Highlands, N.J., mockingly dubbed Shorehenge, has some residents calling for its removal because is seen by some as an eyesore, out of place on a beach and blocking the view of the distant New York City skyline. NJ.com reported that the 200-ton monument, which was designed by Tod Williams-Billie Tsien Architects, is 15 feet tall with 2-foot thick concrete slabs and was built for free. The state Department of Environmental Protection informed the borough in November that that the monument was not permitted under the Coastal Area Facilities Review Act, which oversees development on the state's coastline. Builders reportedly thought they had the permits they needed at the time. The monument, a gift from the Tilt-Up Concrete Association, a trade group that promotes the tilt-up construction technique, was put up in September and has been questioned by residents for its aesthetics. Its canopy alone weighs nearly 350,000 pounds and its placement above four walls has been called an unprecedented feat of engineering by contractors. Some nearby residents fail to see the engineering significance. It looks like someone had a construction project going, ran out of money and left, one resident told NJ.com. A dedication plaque on the structure reads, "In honor of the spirit of our community. Hurricane Sandy, October 29, 2012." Most Highlands businesses and homes were destroyed or damaged by Superstorm Sandy. NJ.com reported borough attornies sent Tilt Up a letter ordering the group to remove the structure, but Tilt-Up has not responded, the report said. Click for more from Fox 5. The Phoenix City Council voted Wednesday to end the longstanding tradition of prayer before meetings and replaced it with a moment of silence, preventing an address by a Satanist group and averting a lawsuit over constitutional rights. A moment of silence was offered as an alternative to a measure that would have allowed the mayor and councilors to take turns to select who gives the invocation. The latter wouldnt have blocked The Satanic Temples prayer scheduled for Feb. 17, city attorney Brad Holm said. Testimony from both sides of the motion included residents who invoked scripture, the U.S. Constitution and their own deity as well as warning against the dark forces of evil. More than 50 people spoke to sway the decision. The decision led to outrage from some people in the room. One pastor began to cry as she tried to push for Christian prayer to be used before council meetings, according to the Arizona Republic. I am not for the silent prayer, said Pastor Darlene Vazquez. I want those who believe in one true God to pray. It breaks my heart to hear what is going on. Stuart de Haan, a Tucson lawyer who belongs to the Satanic Temple, said late Wednesday that the group wanted the same right to pray as dominant religious groups. The Tucson-based group doesn't worship any deities, including Satan, de Haan said, but it is opposed to religious tyranny. The council's decision ensures everyone is treated fairly, de Haan said. "I encourage any Satanist to go have their moment of silence or anyone else," he said. No members of the Satanists spoke at the hearing, according to the paper. Councilwoman Thelda Williams offered the alternate motion that passed, later saying she didnt think the city should waste money defending a lawsuit it would most certainly lose. Councilmembers Sal DiCiccio, Michael Nowakowski and Jim Waring questioned whether Holm was giving them sound advice regarding a potential lawsuit over constitutional rights. They said they support opening prayers by people who contribute to the betterment of the city and appeared shocked to learn that the original measure wouldn't have the desired effect in keeping the Satanists from delivering a two-minute prayer. "What is going to happen is: There's no other compromise," Nowakowski said. "We're ending prayer. To me, that's wrong." DiCiccio vowed to take the issue to voters. The city Commission on Human Relations said Monday in a statement that de Haan's group should be allowed to deliver the invocation because the defense of religion requires fair treatment of all. The commission also urged the council to "reconsider the inclusion of any religious invocation at public meetings." The Associated Press contributed to this report. Officials at an Oklahoma school district said they wanted to send a clear warning to protect against potential attacks, so they put up signs on Monday alerting that staff members could be carrying guns. The signs were erected at public schools in Okay, according to the Muskogee Phoenix. The town's police department was reportedly disbanded in 2014, and even though sheriff's deputies are available, Superintendent Charles McMahan says that may not be enough. "We don't want to be a soft target," he told the newspaper. One sign reads, "ATTENTION: Please be aware that certain staff members at Okay Public Schools can be legally armed and may use whatever force is necessary to protect our students." Other nearby school districts have not enacted such a policy. Porum Public Schools Superintendent Curtis Curry said, "we just don't think it's safe." Under the policy approved in August for Okay, employees who wish to carry firearms must receive training and Board of Education approval. The principal of Okay High School, Mark Hayes, reportedly pushed for the new gun policy. "There have been numerous shootings in the country, and we want to keep our students safe," he told the Phoenix. "These are our kids." Okay is roughly 9 miles north of Muskogee, and 50 miles southeast of Tulsa. Click for more from the Muskogee Phoenix. A man in Texas applied for a job at a taco restaurant, then promptly stole a car from the parking lot on Tuesday, police say. Who goes and applies for a job and then steals a car in the parking lot? Kilgore Assistant Police Chief Roman Roberson said, according to KLTV. Courtney Wheat, 30, was arrested the next day. He had applied to work at a Taco Bueno in Kilgore, some 120 miles east of Dallas. Brandon Jones told KLTV he left his Datsun 280ZX running because he'd just needed to go back inside the restaurant to grab a kid's meal for his son. "I saw my car just dip down and I knew someone was in my car." Jones said after he raced outside, he tried and failed to break the car's window. A manager reportedly sped after the car, but could not catch up. A worker told Jones that the suspect "'just put in an application,' and I was like, 'are you serious?'" Here's your sign- Last night a man entered a local eating establishment to get a bite to eat. Unfortunately, he left his... Posted by Kilgore Police Department on Wednesday, February 3, 2016 Cops said they tracked down the suspect at a nearby Budget Inn and arrested him. It's not clear whether the restaurant will actually hire him. The couple linked to a Bonnie-and-Clyde-style crime spree across multiple states also stands accused of stealing guns from a Missouri house before robbing businesses and kidnapping victims in Alabama and Georgia, police said Thursday. Cops in Joplin, Missouri had wanted to interview suspects Blake Fitzgerald and Brittany Nicole Harper about the guns that vanished after a Jan. 22 break-in, "but they obviously left the area," Cpl. Chuck Niess told The Associated Press. Police have linked the couple to a series of crimes, saying the offenses fit a similar pattern: People are robbed, kidnapped and let go unharmed, usually after a vehicle is stolen. The latest crime linked to the couple happened when a gunman held up a young clerk at a Murphy Express station along Interstate 75 in south Georgia late Monday, taking money from the safe and cigarettes before forcing the clerk into an SUV where his female accomplice waited, authorities said. The couple drove about 15 miles before releasing the clerk unharmed, Perry police Lt. Ken Ezell said. Fitzgerald and Harper have been charged with robbing and abducting a hotel clerk in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and taking his car to the Birmingham area. They reportedly told that clerk they hope to make it to Florida to get married and start a new life. The clerk was let go in the upscale suburb of Vestavia Hills, where a woman was briefly abducted by two people who stole her family's Ford Edge -- the vehicle police believe was seen in Georgia late Monday. Fitzgerald and Harper have been charged in that case, and are suspected in an attempted robbery of a McDonald's manager in neighboring Hoover, Alabama, the same morning. "As far as their motives behind things, there's really not one," Ezell said. Missouri records show that in 2013, Fitzgerald and an accomplice were charged with burglarizing a Joplin woman at knifepoint in her home and making off with her purse, jewelry, electronics and a car. Fitzgerald entered an Alford plea -- not admitting guilt but acknowledging that prosecutors had sufficient evidence for a conviction -- and was sentenced to a suspended seven-year prison term. Details of the Missouri burglary were reported Wednesday by the Alabama news site Al.com. The Associated Press contributed to this report. The wife of a disgraced Illinois police officer who staged his suicide to appear he was gunned down in the line of duty, sparking an intensive manhunt, pleaded not guilty Wednesday to charges she assisted her husband in siphoning money from a youth program. Melodie Gliniewicz, 51, of Antioch, pleaded not guilty in Lake County court to two counts of money laundering and three counts of disbursing charitable funds without authority for personal benefit or use. Her husband, Fox Lake Police Lt. Charles Joseph Gliniewicz, died Sept. 1. Authorities say he shot himself because he feared discovery of embezzlement from the Fox Lake Police Explorer Post, a program for teens interested in law enforcement careers. His death touched off a manhunt involving hundreds of officers and raised fears that several killers were on the loose. Melodie Gliniewicz's lawyer entered the not guilty pleas on her behalf Wednesday. After Judge George Strickland explained she faced a potential sentence of up to seven years behind bars, she acknowledged she understood. The next court appearance for Gliniewicz, who is free on a $50,000 bond, was set for Feb. 26. Neither she nor her lawyer, Don Morrison, spoke to reporters as they left the courthouse. In a statement after her indictment last week, attorneys for Gliniewicz vehemently denied that she took part in her husband's scheme. Immediately after Joe Gliniewicz's death, he was hailed as a hero and praised for his work with the youth program. Melodie Gliniewicz's tearfully told hundreds of people gathered at a candlelight vigil that Gliniewicz had been her "hero" and her "rock." Lake County prosecutors said in announcing the indictment of Melodie Gliniewicz that money from the explorer's account was used for expenses including more than 400 restaurant charges and a trip to Hawaii. Authorities released incriminating text and Facebook messages in November showing a frantic Joe Gliniewicz discussing the money and ways he could evade discovery. An official with knowledge of the investigation identified Gliniewicz's wife and one of his sons, an Army soldier stationed in North Carolina, as the recipients of those messages. The official spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the probe publicly. But investigators said last week they did not find evidence to charge the couple's son, 23-year-old son, Donald "D.J." Gliniewicz. A Wisconsin manufacturer came under fire Wednesday for dismissing seven Muslim employees for violating a company break policy that doesnt provide extra time for prayer and may face a lawsuit from a civil liberties group. Ariens Co. terminated workers in a dispute that began in January when it moved to enforce a rule of two 10-minute breaks per work shift. The enforcement led to about a dozen Muslim staffers to walk off the job in protest. At least 32 of the workers involved in the dispute have abided by the companys policy. Fourteen others resigned and seven were fired on Tuesday, according to Ariens spokeswoman Ann Stilp. "We would have liked for more employees to stay, but we respect their decision," Stilp told The Associated Press. However, a spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations contends the company only wanted to weed them out. "There is a lot of flexibility to keep these employees if the company is willing to do that," Jaylani Hussein said of the employees, who joined the company last summer through an employment services contractor in Green Bay. The Brillion company allowed the Muslim employees to leave their work stations a third time to accommodate prayers at first. The company then claimed the prayers disrupted production at the lawn mower and snow blower manufacturer. CEO Dan Ariens said told WLUK-TV Tuesday that production is returning to normal and said reports of Ariens forcing employees not to pray wasnt the case. He also said the company has had longstanding religious accommodations for Muslim workers, including a prayer room. A lot of our Muslim employees have figured out how to pray within our break times, he said. Stilp said the company had taken extra time to overcome language and culture barriers and be flexible with the workers, bringing in interpreters and consulting with the Islamic Society of Milwaukee to help mediate. CAIR has been involved in discussions with one of the largest beef producers in North America, Cargill, over Muslim prayer accommodations at a meat processing plant in Colorado. The company changed a policy to allow workers fired in a dispute over the prayer policy to reapply for their jobs in 30 days, rather than six months. The prayer policy, however, still hasn't been resolved, Hussein said. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Federal authorities are closely monitoring the investigation into an explosion aboard a Daallo Airlines flight over Somalia and are looking at Somali Al Qaeda affiliate Al Shabaab as a leading suspect, a law enforcement source told Fox News on Wednesday. The FBI would not comment on the incident on Wednesday, and the TSA would not comment on any enhanced security measures the agency will be undertaking in light of the incident. On Tuesday, an explosion and fire blew a gaping hole in a commercial airliner over Somalia, forcing it to make an emergency landing after a passenger apparently was sucked out of the cabin, officials and witnesses said. The Airbus A321 plane, operated by Dubai-based Daallo Airlines and headed to Djibouti in the Horn of Africa, was forced to land minutes after taking off from the Mogadishu airport, Somali aviation official Ali Mohamoud said. Authorities in the Balcad region, about 19 miles north of Mogadishu, later said they found the body of a man believed to have been sucked out of the plane, Reuters reports. "The dead body of the passenger is being transported to Mogadishu," a police officer at the Mogadishu airport said. "He dropped when the explosion occurred in the plane. Passengers have reported that after the blast at 11,000 feet, a man with burning clothes was sucked out of a hole in the fuselage. Somalia's civil aviation director, Abdiwahid Omar, also said a person was missing after the plane landed and the body had been found, according to Reuters. The police officer said the man was around 55 years old. Daallo Airlines confirmed Wednesday that one passenger is missing, while the Somali Aviation Authority chief said they have not yet established what caused the blast. "I think it was a bomb," said the Serbian pilot, Vladimir Vodopivec, who was quoted by Belgrade daily Blic. "Luckily, the flight controls were not damaged so I could return and land at the airport. Something like this has never happened in my flight career. We lost pressure in the cabin. Thank god it ended well," the 64-year-old pilot said. Vodopivec went on to say that fortunately the flight controls were not damaged, so he was able to return to Mogadishus airport and make an emergency landing. He also claimed authorities have told him it was most probably a bomb. An aviation expert who looked at photographs of the hole in the fuselage said the damage was consistent with an explosive device, according to The Associated Press. Two people were slightly injured as 74 passengers and crew of the plane were evacuated after the plane made a safe landing, Mohamoud said. Somalia faces an insurgency perpetrated by the Somali Islamic extremist group Al Shabaab, which is responsible for many deadly attacks across the nation. Al Shabaab -- whose name means The Youth in Arabic -- was forged in the years of anarchy that engulfed Somalia after warlords ousted dictator Siad Barre in 1991. Inspired by a Saudi-style Wahabi, or ultra-orthadox version of Islam, Al Shabaab now numbers an estimated 7,000-9,000 fighters. It controlled Mogadishu, and briefly aligned Al Qaeda in 2012 in a bid to impose Shariah law on Somalia's urban centers, but infighting over tactics doomed the deadly union. Now based in Kenya and Somalia's rural areas, Al Shabaab is on the run, but still deadly. In June 2014, Al Shabaab fighters stormed the Kenyan village of Mpeketoni, about 60 miles from the Somali border and murdered 48 people for not being Muslim. The following month, they attacked the palace of President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud in Mogadishu, and entered the heavily fortified compound before government forces killed the militants. The deadly terror sect also was responsible in September 2013 for the infamous attack at the Westgate Shopping Center in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi, where 67 people were killed and more than 175 wounded. The group has publicly vowed to carry out terror attacks in Kenya in response to that countrys military actions in Somalia, and appears to be making another move into the Somali capital. Security at the Mogadishu airport is normally extremely tight as the terror group controls territory within sight of the airport and under the flight path for departing aircraft, sources in the area told Fox News. The security is provided by the Somalis, along with assistance from Turkish authorities who manage the airport, the U.N. and African Union, and American advisors, working clandestinely, the source said. Awale Kullane, Somalia's deputy ambassador to the U.N. who was on board the flight, said on Facebook that he "heard a loud noise and couldn't see anything but smoke for a few seconds." When visibility returned they realized "quite a chunk" of the plane was missing, he wrote. Kullane, who was going to Djibouti to attend a conference for diplomats, also posted a video showing some passengers putting on oxygen masks inside the plane. The post was later removed from his Facebook page. "We don't know a lot, but certainly it looks like a device," said John Goglia, a former member of the U.S. National Transportation Safety and aviation safety expert. There are only two things that could have caused a hole in the plane that looks like the one in photos circulated online a bomb or a pressurization blowout caused by a flaw or fatigue in the plane's skin, said Goglia. The photos appear to show black soot around the aircraft skin that is peeled back, said Goglia. A pressurization blowout wouldn't create soot, but a bomb would, he said. Also, information about the event posted online indicate it took place during the takeoff phase of flight before the plane reached 30,000 feet, where there is maximum pressurization, Goglia said. That makes the case for a pressurization blowout even less likely, he said. Another passenger, Mohamed Ali, told The Associated Press that he and others heard a bang before flames opened a gaping hole in the plane's side. "I don't know if it was a bomb or an electric shock, but we heard a bang inside the plane," he said. On Dec. 11, 1994, a bomb blew a 2-foot hole in the floor leading to the cargo hold of a Philippine Airlines jetliner with 293 people aboard, but the pilot was able to make a safe emergency landing. One passenger was killed and 10 others were injured on the Manila-to-Japan flight. The plane was flying at about 33,000 feet when the blast occurred. The flight landed about an hour later at Naha airport on Okinawa in southern Japan. Ramzi Yousef, who was sentenced to life in prison for the Feb. 26, 1993 World Trade Center bombing in New York, was convicted in the bombing of the Philippine Airlines flight. Fox News' Matt Dean, Paul Tilsley and The Associated Press contributed to this report. It was hardly unexpected that the Syrian peace talks in Geneva would break off in recrimination. But the speed in which it happened only two days after the U.N. had declared them officially open was a stark indication of just how unattainable peace in Syria remains. On Wednesday, few hours after the government said it had broken a siege of two government-held villages in northern Syria and cut off one of the last rebel supply lines to Turkey, the U.N. announced a "temporary pause" in the talks, saying they would resume in three weeks. The opposition blamed the "criminal regime" of President Bashar Assad and its ally Russia. Assad's government blamed the "amateur" opposition and its Saudi and Turkish backers. U.N. mediator Staffan de Mistura blamed the international community for not doing its part. In the eyes of many observers of the 5-year-old war, the lack of progress in the talks was a reflection of the continued unwillingness by all sides to make any of the concessions needed to advance the peace process. A look at the talks and what to expect next: ___ WHY FAILURE WAS INEVITABLE Despite a U.N. Security Council resolution endorsing a road map for a peace process, the warring sides were still stuck on the same procedural issues and definitions that saw negotiations to end the conflict falter in 2014. The major stakeholders the United States and Russia have no mechanism to enforce such a road map. The peace talks were sold on the promise that they would be accompanied by a major push for a cease-fire, but as the parties convened in Geneva, there seemed to be no follow-up. On the contrary, the Assad government stepped up its offensive in northern Syria, backed by Russian airstrikes that pounded the rebels. Russia's military involvement, which began Sept. 30, has tilted the balance of power sharply in favor of the Assad government. Robert Ford, a veteran diplomat and former ambassador to Syria, told the U.S. House Armed Services Committee last month that Moscow's intervention has made it "infinitely harder to get the concessions needed from the outside of the table" for any talks to succeed. ___ THE REPERCUSSIONS With the diplomatic track thrown into uncertainty, the violence is likely to worsen. The opposition says it will not return to Geneva until the government halts its bombardment of civilians and lifts blockades that have led to starvation and suffering in rebel-held areas. Assad's backers in Russia and Iran insist that the war on "terror" will continue even if there is eventually a cease-fire. "The net result of holding the talks is to send a signal to the regime that it can continue with its Russian-supported military campaign without paying a diplomatic price, and it's a signal to the rebels that their interests are pretty marginal to big power diplomacy now," said Richard Gowan, a fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations. He said it also sends a message to the Islamic State group, which has used the war to take over territory in Syria, that the government and the rebels are not going to get their act together and really come after them seriously any time soon. ___ A SMOKE SCREEN FOR BATTLE? The rapid advances made by Assad's troops and allied militiamen in northern Syria during the talks were some of the most significant around the city of Aleppo in years. Troops closed in on the city, Syria's largest, getting nearer to their goal of completely encircling its rebel-held eastern part and cutting it off from supply lines to Turkey. Opposition activists reported more than 500 targets hit by Syrian and Russian planes in one of the most intensive air campaigns since Moscow's intervention began. "Quite simply, the Geneva talks have been a smoke screen," said an editorial Thursday in Lebanon's Daily Star. That echoed the sentiments of Syrian rebel groups and their backers, and contributed to the general feeling that the talks were a charade. ___ THE RUSSIA-TURKEY FACTOR As tensions continue to rise between Turkey and Russia, what Ankara does next is a wild card determining the direction of the conflict in the coming days and weeks. The rebels supported by Turkey have taken a major beating in the northern provinces of Aleppo and Latakia. Russian airstrikes along the coast have sent thousands of ethnic Turkmen fleeing toward safety in Turkey. On Thursday, the Russian military said it has "reasonable grounds" to suspect that Turkey is making intensive preparations for a military invasion of Syria. Turkey is determined to clear the Islamic State group from a stretch of territory it holds along the Syrian side of its border. By invading northern Syria, Turkey may be betting on strengthening its rebel proxies in the area and preventing the main Kurdish militia from filling any void created by the IS. But any Turkish incursion into Syria is risky and likely to lead to a clash with Russia. ___ EFFECT ON SYRIAN DONOR CONFERENCE The diplomatic setback and intensified military bombardments increased the urgency among world leaders meeting Thursday at a donors' conference in London to help millions of war victims. Those at the conference pledged more than $10 billion to help the 4.6 million Syrians who have sought refuge in neighboring countries, including Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. ___ EDITOR'S NOTE Zeina Karam, Associated Press chief of bureau in Beirut, has covered Syria since 1996. ___ Associated Press writer Karin Laub contributed to this report. German police conducted raids and arrested two suspects on Thursday in an investigation of four Algerian men who are suspected of planning attacks in Germany and having ties to the Islamic State group. The arrests were made in Berlin and at a refugee home in the western town of Attendorn, Berlin police spokesman Stefan Redlich said. The arrests were based on existing warrants in other cases, and a woman who isn't under investigation in the current case also was detained on an unrelated warrant, he said. The other two suspects, one of whom was at a refugee home in the central city of Hannover, weren't arrested. Authorities suspect that the four men had contacts with the IS group and say that one of them the man arrested in Attendorn was being sought by Algerian authorities for belonging to the extremist group. He is believed to have received military training in Syria. Redlich said the probe started in December and there was no specific trigger for staging the raids on Thursday, noting that searches in multiple locations require preparation. Investigators seized computers, cellphones and other material. "We hope for further information from the evaluation of the evidence as to whether this plan existed, how far along it was and how concrete, with what target," Redlich said. He wouldn't comment on where word of the possible attacks came from. It also wasn't immediately clear how long the suspects had been in Germany. The two men arrested on Thursday have used aliases, claiming to be Syrian and French, Redlich said. A look at what countries attending an international donor conference in London on Thursday are pledging to help the millions of Syrians displaced by civil war and neighboring countries struggling with the refugee crisis. The U.N. and regional countries say they need $9 billion in assistance for 2016 alone. Past aid conferences for Syria have failed to deliver last year's raised just half of its target. ___ BRITAIN The U.K. announced that it will commit 1.2 billion pounds ($1.75 billion) in new aid to be delivered over the next four years. The pledge takes the total British contribution since 2011 to 2.3 billion pounds. ___ GERMANY Germany has pledged 2.3 billion euros ($2.5 billion) in humanitarian aid for Syria through 2018, including 1.2 billion euros this year. ___ UNITED STATES The U.S. says it will contribute about $925 million, with around $600 million going to life-saving assistance such as food and shelter for Syrians. The rest will support education in Jordan and Lebanon, including for almost 300,000 Syrian refugees. South Korea said Thursday it has detected preparations by rival North Korea to fire a long-range rocket and warned that Seoul will shoot down any rocket parts flying over South Korean territory. North Korea told international organizations Tuesday that it will launch an observation satellite aboard a rocket between Feb. 8 and 25. South Korea, the United States and others call the plans a cover for a banned test of a missile that could strike the U.S. mainland. The launch announcement follows an outpouring of global condemnation over the North's fourth nuclear test on Jan. 6. Seoul and Washington have also denounced the rocket launch plan, but if North Korea's past patterns are any clue, angry warnings probably won't dissuade a coming launch. South Korean defense officials said Thursday that the North is pushing ahead with the launch plans at its Tongchang-ri launch site on its west coast. They refused to provide details because they said they involve confidential intelligence on the North. Recent commercial satellite images showed an increased number of vehicles at North Korea's Sohae launch station on Feb. 1, compared to a week earlier. This suggests that the North is preparing for a space launch in coming weeks, according to 38 North, a North Korea-focused website run by the U.S-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. However, the website said it was impossible to tell from the satellite imagery whether a space launch vehicle was present. South Korean and U.S. officials said a launch would threaten regional security and violate U.N. Security Council resolutions that ban the North from engaging in any nuclear and ballistic activities. Diplomats at the U.N. Security Council have already pledged to pursue fresh sanctions on North Korea over its recent nuclear test. South Korea's president on Thursday called for strong U.N. sanctions that will make North Korea realize it cannot survive if it does not abandon its weapons programs. There are questions, however, over whether any sanctions will force real change in the North because China, the North's last major ally and a veto-wielding U.N. Security Council member, is reluctant to join in any harsh punishment against the North. Beijing on Wednesday urged restraint over North Korea's announcement of its launch plans, and expressed skepticism over the U.S. calls for tough new sanctions. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, a former South Korean foreign minister, said the announcement "will further aggravate the profound concerns that the international community already has in the wake of the recent nuclear test," a spokesman said. In South Korea and Japan, there are fears about falling debris, although nothing landed in their territories during the North's most recent launches. Seoul officials estimated the first stage of the rocket would fall off the west coast of South Korea, more debris would land near the South's Jeju Island, and the second stage would land off the Philippines' east coast. Moon Sang Gyun, a spokesman at Seoul's Defense Ministry, said Thursday that South Korea would fire missiles to intercept any fragments of the North's rocket if they threaten to fall on its territories. Seoul issued similar plans before the North's previous rocket launches in recent years. North Korea has spent decades trying to develop operational nuclear weapons along with missiles capable of striking the mainland United States. North Korea's last long-range rocket launch, in December 2012, was seen as having successfully put the country's first satellite into orbit after a string of failures. Each new rocket launch improves North Korea's missile technology, which is crucial for its goal of developing a nuclear-armed missile capable of hitting the U.S. mainland. North Korea, an autocracy run by the same family since 1948, is estimated to have a handful of crude nuclear devices and an impressive array of short- and medium-range missiles, but it closely guards details about its nuclear and missile programs. This means there is considerable debate about whether it can produce nuclear bombs small enough to place on a missile, or missiles that can reliably deliver their bombs to faraway targets. A top Al Qaeda commander, who was speculated to have become the new leader of Islamic State in Yemen, was reportedly killed by suspected U.S. drone strikes in Yemen Thursday. Jalai Baleedi is believed to be the commander who was killed in one of the drone strikes, according to Reuters. Baleedi is suspected of leading Al Qaeda attacks in parts of southern Yemen. Baleedi was in a car with five other militants who were in the coastal province of Abyan, according to Reuters. Six other extremists were also killed in a drone strike, local residents told Reuters. The strike killed six men in a car traveling in a desert region in Yemen where Al Qaeda-affiliated militants are believed to be operating. As fighting has increased in Yemen amid a civil war and ongoing airstrikes from Persian Gulf nations, Baleedi is believed to have joined Islamic States branch in Yemen from Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. AQAP is believed to have taken territory away from the fighting Houthi rebels and Arab forces intervening in the civil war. U.S. drone strikes are targeting militants nearly every day along with the Saudi-led Gulf Arab Colaition which supports Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. Suspected U.S. drone strikes have killed some of the Al Qaeda-affiliates top leaders, including Nasser al-Wuhayshi last June. Click for more from Reuters. Turkish and Russian government officials engaged in a war of words Thursday with Moscow claiming that it has serious grounds to suspect Turkey is preparing for a military invasion of Syria. Meantime, Turkeys prime minister accused Russia of committing war crimes with its support of Syrian President Bashar Assads regime. "The Russian Defense Ministry registers a growing number of signs of hidden preparation of the Turkish Armed Forces for active actions on the territory of Syria," Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said. Western Syria has been rocked in recent days by Russian airstrikes and a government offensive around the countrys largest city, Aleppo. "The root cause of this problem is the war crimes committed by the Syrian regime, and the war crimes committed by Daesh, by ISIS," Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said on the sidelines of a fund-raising conference in London, according to Reuters. "Those who are helping the Assad regime are committing the same war crimes, he added. I am especially telling this today because Aleppo is under heavy attack by Russian airplanes. On Wednesday, the U.N. suspended Syrian peace talks amid the renewed offensive by the Syrian government and Russia. Turkey, a key supporter of Syrian rebels, said there was no point to the talks while Russia carried out airstrikes, Reuters reports. Russia said one of its military trainers was killed in Syria this week, but denied that it had boots on the ground there. The statements came as a Syrian army source told Reuters that Aleppo would soon be encircled by government forces, with the help of the airstrikes. A monitoring group said more than 500 targets were hit from the air by Syrian and presumably also Russian warplanes during this week's government offensive which captured strategic areas north of Aleppo. Rami Abdul-Rahman of the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Thursday that the bombing campaign was one of the most intensive in months. Russia began launching airstrikes late last year to back its ally, Syrian President Bashar Assad. With the help of Russia and allies including Lebanon's Hezbollah and Iranian fighters on the ground, Assads campaign is regaining ground in western Syria, home to several of the countrys most important cities, Reuters reports. A government takeover of Aleppo, 30 miles south of the Turkish border, would be a big setback to insurgents hopes to topple Assad. The city has been disputed between government forces and rebels since 2012. The international aid group Mercy Corps said it has been forced to suspend food distribution in several villages in northern Syria over the airstrikes and government military offensive. Mercy Corps said Thursday that escalating air strikes have displaced thousands more people. It said about 21,000 Syrians fleeing the fighting recently arrived at the nearby Turkish border. Mercy Corps says it feeds more than half a million people each month in Aleppo province. But in recent days, pro-government forces have retaken several villages north of Aleppo. As part of the recent offensive, pro-government forces on Wednesday also broke a three-year-old rebel siege of two Shiite Muslim towns near Aleppo. On Thursday, residents embraced and cheered pro-government fighters entering the towns. The Associated Press contributed to this report. While the U.N. tries to raise billions for Syrian relief, it is under growing fire for helping the Assad dictatorship carry out a brutal surrender or starve strategy against its opponents, who are also beset by the scourge of ISIS. Frustrated aid workers, academics and beleaguered Syrians are pointing to the U.N.s long-standing, cooperative ties with the regime of President Bashar Al-Assad in dispensing humanitarian aid inside the country as empowering the dictator to funnel relief supplies to his supporters, keep food and supplies away from desperate civilians who do not support him and use the relief to free up money for military campaigns against moderate and extreme opponents alike. As one group of besieged anti-Assad Syrian aid workers put it in an open letter to the head of the U.N.s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Stephen OBrien: For many of us in Syria, the U.N. has turned from a symbol of hope into a symbol of complicity. The rising frustration comes as a major donor meeting is getting under way in London, aimed at getting wealthy nations to contribute $9 billion this year for relief efforts in Syria and surrounding countries, where millions of refugees have fled. The U.S. has given some $4.5 billion to the effort since the Syrian crisis began in 2011, and Secretary of State John Kerry announced an additional $925 million contribution at the London meeting. For its part, the U.N. pushes back vehemently against any idea that its relief efforts help Assad. Civilians bear the brunt of the inhumane actions by all parties to the conflict, the government and armed groups, which the international community has failed to stop for nearly five years, declared an OCHA spokesperson in response to a question from Fox News. We and our partners continue to call for an end to the brutal violence, for those committing war crimes to be held accountable, and for the international community to take action. The voice of the United Nations humanitarian agencies has been loud, clear and unequivocal on this. Meanwhile, Assads forces, supported by Russian attack bombers, are instead drawing the noose of desperation even tighter. This week, they continued to blast away at relief corridors that provide intermittent aid to hundreds of thousands of desperate Syrians in the northern city of Aleppo, and sparked a sudden pause in U.N.-sponsored peace talks in Geneva that had nominally flickered into existence at the end of January. The Syria Institute, a Washington-based think tank, contends that no fewer than 46 Syrian communities with a collective estimated population of about 1.1 million are now under siege in Syria, with all but two sieges involving the Assad regime, though some communities also are besieged by ISIS. CLICK HERE FOR THE TALLY The Syria Institute population figures, produced in collaboration with a Dutch organization called PAX, do not include some 40,000 people estimated to be clinging weakly to life in the town of Madaya, where only one U.N. relief convoy has recently been allowed to enter, and where, according to a January 16 story in Foreign Policy magazine, U.N. officials had known about the towns desperate plight for months but downplayed it. Meantime, as U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Samantha Power noted last month, Out of a total of 113 relief convoy requests the U.N. sent to the Syrian regime, this U.N. member state approved and completed only 13. In 80 cases, she added, Syria did not even bother to respond to the United Nations within three months. Power called that part of a deliberate, systematic strategy aimed at killing and displacing civilians. The continuing offensive and the diplomatic pause put a shadow over a British-backed preliminary to the donor conference where Syrian and international non-government organizations issued a strong appeal to wealthy donor nations to demand an immediate end to siege tactics and demand unhindered access to humanitarian aid. Along with additional pleas to the donors to strongly and unconditionally condemn all attacks on civilian life and infrastructure, the non-government attendees also called on rich countries to provide long-term funding directly to Syrian civil society organizations, a pointed departure from the U.N.-coordinated global funding process that has dominated the relief effort so far. Civilians bear the brunt of the inhumane actions by all parties to the conflict, the government and armed groups, which the international community has failed to stop for nearly five years. OCHA spokesperson It sounds like the major donor partners increasingly understand the need for changes in the way things are done, said Simon OConnell, executive director for Europe of the major U.S. humanitarian organization Mercy Corps, which is deeply involved in getting aid to Syria without the involvement of the Assad regime. There is recognition that at least some of the assistance is not able to make it to some of those most in need. OConnell diplomatically pointed no fingers of blame in discussing the non-governmental appeal with Fox News, which he saw as a coming sea-change in the way that international aid is organized and delivered around the world. But other humanitarian workers have had no such qualms. In a toughly-worded article that appeared Monday on the website of the Council on Foreign Relations-sponsored magazine, Foreign Affairs, Dr. Annie Sparrow, a veteran international medical aid worker and assistant professor at Mount Sinai Global Health Center, declared that long-festering concerns over OCHAs lack of neutrality are growing. OCHA is the U.N. department that draws together global and international appeals for response at events like the donor mega-conference underway in London, and then helps redistribute the money to the sprawling U.N. array of agencies, funds and programs, as well as other aid groups. It also coordinates relief efforts on a regional and national basis, including in Damascus, where it meets in a committee with members of Syrian government departments, and all non-U.N. aid agencies working in tandem must be approved by the Assad regime. Characteristic of many agencies of the United Nations, OCHA places a premium on maintaining good relations with the Syrian government, a position fueled by its desire to stay in Damascus, Sparrow declared. She added that it is worth asking whether OCHAs bottom line is harming the agencys efforts to alleviate the catastrophic consequences of Damascus anti-civilian strategy. Among other things, Sparrow charged that some $1.7 billion of the U.N.s appeal for Syria is allocated for U.N. and national agencies operating from Damascus, all controlled by the government and providing aid almost exclusively to government territory. In non-government territory, the U.N. in Damascus must work through the Syrian Arab Red Crescent whose local branches are often non-partisan and perform countless heroics, but whose leadership has close ties to the Assad regime. Despite a 2014 U.N. Security Council resolution authorizing cross-border relief convoys into the northern half of Syria, she declared, citing a 2016 U.N. Humanitarian Needs Overview, U.N. agencies reached an average of 4 per cent of the civilians in besieged areas (about 16,500 people) each month with health assistance, 0.6 percent (roughly 2,500 people) with food, and less than 0.1 percent (fewer than 500 people) with nonfood items such as tents, blankets and soap. (The same U.N. overview notes vaguely that OCHA is aware of more than 185 Syrian NGOs working in humanitarian and development aid, including 75 that continue to deliver substantive quantities of assistance to Syria from neighboring countriesbut also says they work alongside U.N. cross-border operationsin other words, there is no U.N. connection.) More dramatically, Sparrow charges that OCHAs 2016 Humanitarian Response Plan for Syria, which asks international donors for $3.2 billion to provide aid to some 13.5 million people, is a watered down document in which the Syrian government revised the narrative, the budget and the programming, including any reference to the removal of land mines, a constant hazard to foraging civilians. According to the final Humanitarian Response Plan, Sparrow declared, there is no war in Syria, only a crisis and insecurity, which, incidentally, is not the governments fault. She also offered up samples from a draft version with tracking changes that removed touchy references. CLICK HERE FOR THE DRAFT VERSION Asked by Fox News to respond to the article, an OCHA spokesperson emailed that the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and its staff are impartial, neutral and independent. Suggesting otherwise is not only untrue but also irresponsible, and could be detrimental to the safety of the unarmed aid workers risking their lives every day to bring vital aid and protection to people in dire need. The United Nations provides humanitarian aid on the basis only of an objective assessment of need -- in this and all crises, she added. Our focus is and will always be on the quickest, fairest and most efficient way of safely bringing people aid and protection, and telling the world what is happening on the ground. Many Syrians, however, disagree. In their open letter last month to the head of OCHA, Stephen OBrien, members of anti-Assad non-government Syrian aid organizations -- medical workers, teachers, rescue workers and civil society activists-- declared that they were among those living under siege, and described their nightmare of being starved, deprived of medical supplies and in almost all cases bombed daily by the regime of Bashar al-Assad. What made the grim suffering more painful, they said is knowing that in many besieged areas, such as those around Damascus, U.N. warehouses full of lifesaving aid are often just minutes away. They accused OBrien of choosing not to deliver that aid to us . . . because the Assad regime is not giving you permission. This is hardly surprising since it is the regime imposing the sieges in the first place. By allowing the regime to veto aid to civilians in areas outside its control, you have allowed the U.N. to become a political tool of the war, they declared and urged him simply to defy the government. In reply, OBrien said he was deeply saddened and concerned, and called the siege conditions unacceptable, unconscionable and unlawful. Saying that he had personally accompanied cross border relief convoys, and stressing the personal risks U.N. aid workers had taken, he offered assurances that the U.N. is neither too close to any party nor acting in such a way to encourage the use of siege tactics. Repeating the mantra that only a political solution will solve the problem, he reiterated that it is our duty to act impartially, neutrally and independently. The fact, however, is that all U.N. agencies, and not just OCHA, are careful to show deference to national partners in the planning processes for their activities in acknowledgement of the primacy of national sovereignty -- and Syria is no different, except in the bloodthirsty and violent way that it treats much of its population. In its own country plan for Syria, for example, the United Nations Development Program declares that its country office, with full cooperation with national partners, will identify target areas and beneficiaries using available assessments of needs and prioritieswhich are unlikely to come from rebel enclaves. UNDP also says that some 933,000 people in Syria are already benefiting directly from cash-for-work schemes. The child aid agency UNICEF, in a Syrian country program that it considered at its most recent Executive Board meeting this week, declared that over the next two years, its programing will focus on interventions that enhance the resilience of families, communities and systems, and states that while working closely with all national partners, UNICEF will build positive coping mechanisms in communities. Overall, the UNICEF document said, The country program priorities and strategies have been aligned with the future priorities of the Government of the Syrian Arab Republic. The agency is appealing for $389 million to carry out its Syrian work. In response to questions from Fox News, a UNICEF spokesman said that its country program, including its humanitarian response, is informed by discussions and consultations with a range of partners, including national partners. This is normal practice, for operational and technical reasons. UNICEF delivers assistance based on the core humanitarian principles of neutrality and impartiality. After conducting more than 100 interviews with aid workers, volunteers and Syrian stakeholders over two years, a freelance journalist and a Ph.D. candidate at Cambridge University have come to the opposite conclusion about U.N. aid efforts. Despite their pretensions to neutrality, the two concluded, in an article published in the prestigious British journal International Affairs, that U.N. aid deliveries have consistently benefited the Assad regime. One reason, they argue, is that the Assad regimes authoritarian socialist development model had always involved various welfare policies aimed at ensuring food security and political compliance, such as subsidized bread supplies. In other words, by channeling most assistance through Assad-approved local partners, external donors have helped the regime fulfill some of its welfare responsibilities. The regime also shares credit for welfare provision without diverting resources from its military efforts. In some cases, the authors cite witness testimony that food aid is simply expropriated by the Assad military. On the other hand, the regimes refusal to allow aid convoys to reach dissident communities is the traditional harsh side of the same policy. As the two authors put it: While emergency aid can appear apolitical on the surface, the undeniable importance of food during wartime makes a position of neutrality untenable. By bringing external resources into life-or-death situations, they conclude, aid agencies inevitably become implicated in wars inner workings. The need to get aid to suffering populations regardless of the protocols of neutrality is one reason why Mercy Corps OConnell feels there is a growing argument for putting more resources in the hands of non-governmental and local Syrian organizations, as the NGO conference he attended strongly endorsed. Mercy Corps itself, he noted, is managing to get aid supplies --not always regularly -- to some 500,000 people per month in the Aleppo governate that is now under increasing Assad pressure. The current Assad offensive, he subsequently declared, is having a significant impact on Mercy Corps work, causing temporary suspension of aid operations in some villages; the aid organization is monitoring the situation closely. Before the suspension, OConnell told Fox News, We see areas where at times we have to vary our strategies for delivering aid. On certain days we are able to get through, and others, not. The current humanitarian system, he observes, is broken. George Russell is editor-at-large of Fox News and can be found on Twitter: @GeorgeRussell or on Facebook.com/GeorgeRussell World leaders pledged more than $10 billion Thursday to help fund schools, shelter and jobs for refugees from Syria's civil war, money that British Prime Minister David Cameron said "will save lives, will give hope, will give people the chance of a future." But participants at the aid conference in London acknowledged that prospects for ending the conflict have rarely been worse: Peace talks are suspended, fighting is intensifying, Russia and the West are at odds, and millions of Syrians are suffering from bombardment, homelessness and hunger. "The situation in Syria is as close to hell as we are likely to find on this Earth," said United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry was no more upbeat. "After almost five years of fighting, it's pretty incredible that as we come here in London in 2016, the situation on the ground is actually worse," he said. The one-day meeting, held under tight security at a conference center near Parliament, aspired to bring new urgency to the effort to help the 4.6 million Syrians who have sought refuge in neighboring countries including Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. Another 6 million people or more are displaced within Syria, and a quarter of a million have been killed. Previous calls for international donations have come up short, and the five-year war has driven a chaotic exodus of hundreds of thousands of desperate refugees to Europe. Thursday's pledges are intended to slow that migration, by creating school places and secure jobs for Syrian refugees in the Middle East, and economic support for the overburdened host nations. Cameron said participants had pledged almost $6 billion for 2016, and another $5 billion by 2020. The British leader called the conference - hosted by Britain, Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the U.N. - "a real breakthrough, not just in terms of money but in terms of how we handle these refugee crises." The tally falls short of the $9 billion the U.N. and regional countries said was needed for 2016 alone, but it was a significant improvement on half-hearted previous fundraising efforts. Last year's conference, in Kuwait, raised just half its $7 billion target, forcing cuts to programs such as refugee food aid. Aid groups welcomed the money, but slammed the international community for allowing the war to go on. Peter Maurer, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross, said the world had shown a "lack of political action and ambition to resolve the crisis." "Humanitarian aid is always just a quick fix, and never enough," he said. Cameron told reporters that the international community would stand with Syrians for "as long as it takes to secure peace," acknowledging that the goals of a cease-fire followed by a transitional government remained distant. Thursday's meeting opened hours after the latest U.N.-led bid to start peace talks in Geneva was suspended for three weeks - a sign of major difficulties. Kerry blamed Syria's government and Russia for the peace talks stalling. He said he and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov had spoken by phone Thursday and agreed to continue discussing "how to implement the cease-fire." Russia's Foreign Ministry said the two had also agreed to try to ensure the pause in the talks was as short as possible. Neither statement mentioned any concrete measures. The Syrian government, backed by Russian airstrikes, has increased the pace of attacks on opposition forces in recent days as the talks faltered. The U.N.'s Ban told the conference it was "deeply disturbing that the initial steps of the talks have been undermined by the continuous lack of sufficient humanitarian access, and by a sudden increase of aerial bombing and military activities within Syria." He said that "the coming days should be used to get back to the table, not to secure more gains on the battlefield." The stalled peace process increases pressure on donor countries to commit long-term aid to the war's victims. Aid workers warn of a "lost generation" of Syrians if some 700,000 refugee children who are not attending school don't get an education. Education campaigner Malala Yusafzai and 17-year-old Syrian refugee Mezon al-Melihan met with Cameron and other leaders to press for $1.4 billion for education for children in Syria and its neighbors. "Without education, who will bring peace?" al-Melihan said. Donor countries also want to see the refugees employed on infrastructure projects - which would also benefit the host nations - or in special business zones where Syrians and local people can work side by side. In return for opening up their economies to the newcomers, host countries are promised loans from international financial institutions and more access to European markets. Cameron said the move would create 1 million jobs in the region, "for refugees and residents alike." Syria's neighbors had warned the conference that the burden of so many newcomers was becoming intolerable. Jordan's King Abdullah said his country housed almost 1.3 million Syrian refugees, a fifth of Jordan's population. The Jordanian figure includes all Syrians in the country; the U.N. says it has registered 630,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan. "We have reached our limit," the king said. "Our country will continue to do what we can do to help those in need, but it cannot be at the expense of our own people's welfare." The exodus from Syria shows no signs of ending. Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu told the conference that 10,000 Syrians who have fled bombing in the city of Aleppo are waiting at the Turkish border, and as many as 70,000 others are on the way. Amateur video showed thousands, including women and children, running with their belongings toward the frontier. Turkey says it has taken in more than 2.5 million Syrians since the war began in 2011. More than 70 countries were represented at the conference, but there were few Syrians. Neither President Bashar Assad's government nor opposition groups participated. In Jordan's Zaatari refugee camp, home to 79,000 Syrians, some agreed with conference organizers that the best future for refugees was in their home region. "We don't want to go to ... foreign countries," said Abu Khaled al-Nassar, a refugee from the southern town of Daraa. "With all my respect to these countries, the traditions are different, and we live here in an Arab country, Jordan. We understand each other. "So we call on the donor countries to support us with investments in order to find jobs. We don't want to go to Europe - we will stay here, work and produce." By Didas Gasana February 3, 2016 Something of fundamental importance happened last week in the Ethiopian capital Addis Abbeba. At the AU summit of heads of states, the AU peace and security commissions proposal to send AU peace keepers to Burundi was unwelcome. Thats the basic message. But beneath the rejection lies a hidden message- that the world is waking up to the commercialization and politicization of a legal term genocide. This, assuming you know what underpinned the clamor for AU peacekeepers in Burundi, which has been aptly explained on this forum. At the center of the trajectory lies a debate- and consequent exporting of it, of a genocide- central of which is what has been referred to as the Tutsi genocide of 1994. After the military 1 and 11 trials at the ICTR and the BBCs untold story, the rejection of the AU PSCs proposal is yet another indictment of people benefitting from the genocide currency. In my earlier submissions, i presented a lot of legal literature on why the events of 1994 leave grey areas subject to a rational, legal inquiry. In this note, I intend to examine the events of 1994 from the RPA/F point of view. To get to this; we need to examine the character of the RPA from the onset of the invasion. It is almost a judicial notice that prior to RPA invasion, there was already deadly intrigue within the military ranks of the RPF Tutsi exile community in Uganda. It was clan rivalry that would result in the murder of the first commander, Major General Fred Rwigyema at the hands of Maj. Dr. Peter Bayingana and Maj. Chris Bunyenyezi. Why is this important? It is important because, as my good friend Kalyegira put it, if there was this level of bad blood and struggle for power within the RPF and it could result in the murder of their overall commander so soon into the war, what havoc would these ruthless men inflict on the Hutu civilians they encountered in villages as they made their way into Rwanda after October 1990? When the RPA invaded Rwanda, they made their rationale very clear. Reported the Uganda government-owned newspaper, the New Vision: The force which invaded Rwanda on Monday [Oct. 1, 1990] has the prime aim of overthrowing the government of President Juvenal HabyarimanaThey say they are not planning an immediate overthrow but a prolonged struggle which would mobilise the peopleThe RPF has an 8-point programme calling for, among other things, national unity, democracy, a self-sustaining economy and an end to corruptionThey said they had no plans as to who should be Rwandas president and that the people will choose. The RPA further said they were prepared for a protracted war: We dont mind about speed, we mind about getting to the people (New Vision, Oct. 4, 1990, p.1, 12). That was their first formal statement. Even the pro-RPF New Vision admitted that its aim is to overthrow the government of President Juvenal Habyarimana. There was no mention or allegation that the Habyarimana regime was massacring or planning to massacre the Tutsi. From there, we realize that had the RPF surely uncovered any plan by Habyarimana to exterminate the Tutsi, it would have been the number one point among the eight. Yet here was the summary of the RPFs philosophy and goals and there was no single point on averting a genocide or even anything remotely to do with human rights. Where then does genocide and death at a grisly, monumental level start, since we now know that at the time the RPF invaded Rwanda, there was no plan by the Hutu to massacre the Tutsi? Asks Kalyegira? In late April 1994, a Kampala radio station, 91.3 Capital FM invited the long-serving Rwandese ambassador to Uganda, Claver Kanyarushoke as a guest on their Sunday evening programme, Desert Island Discs. Kanyarushoke, a Hutu, arrived on a Thursday afternoon for the recording, dressed in a dark brown business suit. At the time, the Rwanda genocide was underway and bodies were floating down the River Kagera from Rwanda into Lake Victoria in Uganda and during the interview, William Pike, then New Vision MD and co-Managing Editor of 91.3 Capital FM, asked Kanyarushoke to explain the massacre of innocent Tutsi civilians. Kanyarushoke reminded Pike that under the 1993 Arusha peace accords between the Habyarimana government and the RPF guerrillas, Rwanda had been divided into two geographical areas of control, one for the Tutsi and the other for the Hutu. Since the world believed that the Tutsi-dominated RPF was a both a strong and disciplined force, fully in control of its area, Kanyarushoke asked, how were we to explain the fact that all the bodies floating down the river, without exception, were from the RPF-controlled region of Rwanda? What happened in April 1994? Stephen Kinzer, in his book about Rwandan President Paul Kagame, writes that the Habyarimana regime started killing opposition members and presumed RPA sympathizers; indiscriminately. May be or may be not. But the truth of the matter is that in early 1994, as Kalyegira aptly puts it, Kigali saw a sudden rise in violence and insecurity, with many people being killed. Leaders of the opposition Social Democrat Party and Liberal Party, as well as 2,300 other people, were gunned down in the months before April 6, 1994. The Ugandan newspsper, The Monitor published an interview on March 25, 1994, with Justin Bahunga, who was the Second Counsel at the Rwanda Embassy in Kampala. Bahungas answers give us a clue to what the world might be missing as to what happened in 1994. In whose interests would the government of Habyarimana cause insecurity in Kigali? Bahunga further added: If you want to rule, you cant rule by insecuritySo the only person who can cause insecurity is the one who wants to make a government fail.Less than two weeks later, President Habyarimana was dead in an assassination after a surface-to-air missile was fired on the presidential jet. Fighting broke out in Kigali and in many other parts of Rwanda. Let us read the news reports of the time, starting with the French news agency AFP, in a report from Kigali by Annie Thomas: Wednesday 13 April 1994, KIGALI Tutsi rebels fought their way into the Rwandan capital yesterday, sending the government, foreigners and thousands of residents fleeing in fear of a new wave of tribal bloodletting. Below is the whole story: Intense fighting rocked several parts of the city. The Hutu-dominated interim government fled its headquarters in the Hotel des Diplomates in the city centre for a more secure place, a Rwandan soldier in the hotel said. Unconfirmed reports said the week-old government had moved to the town of Gitarama, south-west of the city. As the rebels closed, residents emerged from hiding and tried to escape an expected wave of revenge killings by the Tutsi forces. Its going to be carnage, predicted a Nairobi-based Rwandan diplomat. The last foreign residents seeking to leave the city were escorted to the airport by French and Belgian paratroopers. France, Russia, Germany and the United States said they had evacuated virtually all their nationals from Kigali. In Kampala, Christine Umutoni, spokeswoman for the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), said its forces had entered Kigali and were about to join a battalion of 600 fellow rebels camped outside the city under a UN-sponsored peace plan approved by the government and the rebels in August. She said RPF forces were awaiting instructions to seize the capital, where she said government forces had dispersed, many of them surrendering with their arms to the RPF. The rebels entry into the city was later confirmed by the UN in New York. The RPF has around 20,000 soldiers, against an estimated 30,000 government troops. RPF radio said advancing rebel forces had signed an agreement with UN officials yesterday guaranteeing the evacuation of foreign nationals.At this juncture, we pause to reflect. Over the years, President Paul Kagame has railed against the UN and the world community for failing Rwanda in its time of great danger. Where was the UN? is a refrain we have heard countless times from Kagame in person and many of the top RPF leadership over the last 15 years. We now see, in the report, that the RPFs own radio station broadcast a news item saying they had signed an agreement with UN officials yesterday guaranteeing the evacuation of foreign nationals. The UN was cooperating with the RPF, not standing by indifferently as we have been told. Secondly, the first paragraph of this AFP report states that Tutsi rebels fought their way into the Rwandan capital yesterday, sending the government, foreigners and thousands of residents fleeing in fear of a new wave of tribal bloodletting.In other words, as the RPF advanced on Kigali, the former Habyarimana government fled. The second paragraph shows the government, still in disarray, fleeing to a more secure place. Clearly the RPF was in a stronger position and was rapidly gaining the upper hand in the days following Habyarimanas assassination. Thirdly, the AFP report said In Kampala, Christine Umutoni, spokeswoman for the Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), said its forces had entered Kigali and were about to join a battalion of 600 fellow rebels camped outside the city The RPF was in Kigali, according to its spokeswoman, within a week of Habyarimanas death. These news reports were written in the fast-moving atmosphere of the day, and so nobody can claim that because the AFP is a French state news agency, it was somehow doctoring its reports. However, just in case some detractors might dismiss the AFP report, is there any other we can turn to for an alternative angle to this story? Indeed there is. The Monitor, founded by Kevin Aliro, Wafula Oguttu, James Serugo, Teddy Seezi Cheeye, Richard Tebere, Davi Ouma Balikowa, and Charles Onyango-Obbo was a decidedly pro-RPF Kampala newspaper. There can be no question about it for those who know its history. Certainly there was a pro-RPF mood in Uganda in 1994, especially in central and western Uganda. So we can now go to a lead story in The Monitor of April 12, 1994, just six days after the shooting down of the Habyarimana plane. The story was written by Monitor reporters Steven Shalita and Dismas Nkunda: As the looting, indiscriminate killing by the Presidential Guard, regular troops and rampaging Hutu vigilantes went from bad to worse, there were indications that Kigali is about to fall to the rebel Rwanda Patriotic Army (RPA). Information reaching The Monitor from Kigali said an advance RPA force which had been infiltrated into the capital earlier were poised to take the Post Office and the Central BankThe RPA, which said it was going into the city to restore order and rescue the battalion of its 600 soldiers who had gone into Kigali as part of the peace process, had ben giving out a call for all foreigners to leave within 12 hours if they could Truckloads of reinforcements for RPA rebels could be seen moving to Kigali from their northern stronghold. By day break [April 11] RPA had easy prey of the Rwanda army. The RPA commander-in-chief Maj. Gen. Paul Kagame told Voice of America (VOA) that his troops had overrun government positions in Mutara, formerly a stronghold for the government forces In another interview with the BBC Swahili, Maj. Gen. Kagame boasted We are in Kigali and we have had very little resistance to get here. Hundreds of Rwanda government forces are said to be deserting to the RPA to secure positions in the subsequent government when the RPA topples the current interim government under the leadership of Theodore Sindikubwabo which was installed a few days ago. A member of the RPF Poliical Bureau (Maj.) Christine Umutoni yesterday told journalists at Speke Hotel [in Kampala] that the RPA will advance to crush any forces which stand in defence of the hoax government headed by Theodore Sindikubwabo, whether thos forces are local or foreign. If any foreign force comes our way, while we are advancing, we shall regard them as the enemy, she said. We are going to crush them. Though Umutoni could not commit herself to actual distances, she said the RPA forces are very, very close. So far, RPA has faced minimal resistance and has reported 3 casualties and no deaths. Reports from Kigali say that rampant massacres by Habyarimana loyalists have narrowed to specific targets, killing whole families of people opposed to their government. The targets include nearly every Tutsi and what has been described as moderate Hutus. Umutoni however told journalists that Kigali remains a horror town and condemned the United Nations for their passive role. The situation about massacres in Kigali now is very horrific, she said. The UN has failed to control the situation. Maj. Umutoni boasted that the RPA had been capable of taking power as far back as February 8. It was capable long agoeven February 8 when we were 30km from the town [Kigali]. Umutoni said the RPA was recruiting several more forces as it advanced to beef up its more than 20,000 strong man army. Commenting on the military strength of the RPA, she said their main source of armament is the Rwandese forces. Habyarimana has always been our quarter master. Even now we are going to use those very weapons he bought. Once again, we stop and reflect on this story by the Monitor. It is even more revealing than the AFP story. The reports by AFP and the Monitor showed : 1) The RPF in a position of increasing strength, advancing on Kigali and at various stages of taking control or having already taken control. 2) Hutu government troops either fleeing or surrendering to the RPF and the government in disarray. The RPF is reported to be at 20,000-strong while the rapidly crumbling government army, the FAR, is at 30,000, so the two armies are at nearly the same strength. We see, in fact, Christine Umutoni, the RPF spokesperson, boasting that the RPF was in a position to capture Kigali as far back as February 1994. Take a careful look at this Monitor news story: The overall RPF/RPA commander, Maj. Gen. Paul Kagame talks of the RPF overrunning government bases and positions and, according to the Monitor, boasting to the BBC World Service Kiswahili service that (in his own words) We are in Kigali and we have had very little resistance to get here.And then, we have the strange turnabout from Umutoni. She was the first RPF official to accuse the UN of doing nothing, and yet all other reports, including one by the RPFs own radio, were speaking of an agreement between the RPF and the UN to ease the humanitarian crisis. Umutonis comments at Speke Hotel in Kampala were the first indications of the dishonesty of the RPF. This is why it is so important for research and investigation to become a part of our societies. So much history is distorted and allowed to remain so, because we are not bothered about re-reading and re-searching what we have been told. Having now seen, both from the AFP and the pro-RPF Monitor, that the RPF was in a position of rising strength and the remnant of the Habyarimana army and government was in disarray and either fleeing or surrendering, we come to the all-important question: What then happened? Remember, the RPF stalwarts Gerald Gahima and Claude Dusaidi had just penned an ultimatum to the UN with a clear threat: There are no Tutsis left to save and there is no need for additional UNAMIR troops to Rwanda (this writer is in possession of their letter to that effect). It is clear that the RPF was in control, or gaining control, of Kigali and other towns and was unchallenged by the fleeing FAR government army. If, as we have seen too, the Hutu-dominated government was fleeing Kigali, the army also fleeing or surrendering, how then was this government, falling apart and fleeing, able to orchestrate a genocide that claimed more than 800,000 lives, with the 20,000-man RPF army in control or about to be, but not doing anything about it? If Christine Umutoni told that Speke Hotel press conference that the RPF was strong enough to take power as far back as Feb. 8, 1994, what then prevented the RPA from stopping the genocide, if, as they claim, they knew of a plan by Habyarimana to exterminate the Tutsi minority? The answer begins to appear when we go to the next news excerpt from 1994. Here once again is the The Monitors lead story in its April 15, 1994 edition, headlined: RPA in trouble?, written by Steven Shalita and Dismas Nkunda: The story by The pro-RPF Monitor What is happening? Eleven days have gone and Rwandese Patriotic Army (RPA) is still in a bloody battle with Rwandese government troops for Kigali. Parts of the Rwandese capital remain in the hands of The Presidential Guard, regular troops and paramilitary forces to former president Juvenal Habyarimana who was assassinated in a rocket attack on his plane April 6Anxiety has gripped supporters of the RPA/F cause who view their delay to capture Kigali as a sign of trouble. On Wednesday afternoon an RPF official told a Monitor reporter at Mulindi, the RPF headquarters, that Kigali would fall in 12 hours, but it did not happen. The rebels have besieged Kigali for almost a week now but have failed to take full control. There is an estimated force of 18,000 RPA men laying siege to Kigali on three fronts. Latest reports say that some strategic hills around Kigali such as Nyamirambo, are in the hands of RPF. According to a military analyst, the RPF is being cautious about destroying down-town Kigali. The Monitor was told that RPA was surrounding Kigali leaving only one outlet through Gitarama that could be used by fleeing soldiers. RPF spokesman Shaban Rutayisire told the journalist at Mulindi that It is a question of time and tactics so that we rout the murderous Rwanda army. The puzzlement that Kigali has not fallen is only deepened, because the entire interim cabinet fled Kigali on Tuesday. Interim President Theodore Sindikubwabo and 19 of his ministers fled to Gitarama, 50km, south west of Kigali. A Uganda military expert told The Monitor yesterday that with the murders of civilians estimated about 20,000 so far, most of them suspected to be pro-RPF and Tutsi, RPA has a political obligation to go in to stop the bloodletting Another source watching developments said The RPA was militarily ready to enter Kigali and there is no doubt they will win the fight within the week, but they were not politically ready. But, on the face of it, the death of Habyarimana and the blood that flowed the Kigali streets was an opportune time for the RPF to enter Kigali. He said that while RPA had support, it was not clear whether they had the majority of the people on their side; and now that they were bogged down in Kigali, the Hutu hardliners have been given time to mobilise the people with fears of Tutsi massacring them. There we have it. The story of the 1994 Rwandan genocide, in crystal clear light at last. There is no question that the RPF held the upper hand militarily by the beginning of 1994. That much Christine Umutoni was able to tell a public press conference at Kampalas Speke Hotel. And in case we might want to dismiss her observation as that from a junior official, we have Maj. Gen. Paul Kagames own direct and unambiguous words to the BBC Kiswahili service that We are in Kigali and we have had very little resistance to get here. Crucially, according to this Monitor news report, the RPF was so comfortably in control of Kigali a week after Habyarimanas death that they even left the road to Gitarama open so that it could be used by fleeing soldiers. Far from the FAR government army embarking on a mass murder of Tutsi, they were fleeing Kigali, as we have already seen and, in fact, even being helped by the RPF to escape. The comments by the Ugandan military expert to the Monitor fill in all the remaining blanks. Here is the critical passage in the story by the Monitor on April 15, 1994: Another source watching developments said The RPA was militarily ready to enter Kigali and there is no doubt they will win the fight within the week, but they were not politically ready. But, on the face of it, the death of Habyarimana and the blood that flowed the Kigali streets was an opportune time for the RPF to enter Kigali. He said that while RPA had support, it was not clear whether they had the majority of the people on their sideIt confirms that the RPF was militarily victorious but, being a minority ethnic group, moreover from a foreign, English-speaking country Uganda, they could have walked into Kigali, taken control, but how would they have governed politically? They had to develop their political standing. How? By resorting to the sinister tactics their mentor President Yoweri Museveni had employed so successfully in Luwero in central Uganda commit atrocities against the population and then blame them on your adversary and by that make the population believe it was your enemy who carried out the massacre, so that you gain the populations support, some have argued. And they are not entirely wrong. Many a times have I expounded Yoweri Musevenis under-graduate thesis at the university of Dar-El-Salaam where he dwelt on Franz Fanons theory of violence. If you have been following, then you know what is being talked about here. Enter Museveni Yoweri- The mentor A simple question can answer all this: If Museveni used the tactics of causing havoc in Luwero, dressing his NRA men up in UNLA uniform, in order to convince the population that it was the UNLA killing them, and it worked, leading many Baganda to support the NRA, and we read that Paul Kagame was deeply influenced by the tactics and success of the NRA in Luwero, would the RPF, made up of commanders who had served under Museveni in Luwero, not resort to the tactics they had seen work so well in Luwero when it came to Rwanda? Lets get a panoramic view of events: the RPF advances on Kigali and is within distance of gaining power by early February. When Habyarimana is killed on April 6, the government and the Hutu-majority army start to fall apart as the RPF rapidly moves in. The RPF moves in, takes control or near control, then..silence. It does nothing. It allows the Hutu soldiers to flee by way of the Kigali-Gitarama road. It cooperates with the UN in evacuating all foreign nationals. They leave. The RPF is now in charge of Rwanda. But they sit.and do nothing. For three months from April to July 1994, the RPF is in total charge of Rwanda, including the capital Kigali. A genocide starts to take place. Bodies are scatterd everywhere. Tens of thousands float down the Kagera River into Uganda. But this force of Tutsi exiles, most of them born in Uganda, away for 30 years, this force which says it knew of a plan by the Hutu government to massacre hundreds of thousands of Tutsi, is in full control of Kigali, as its own Paul Kagame and Christine Umutoni publicly boast, but it watchesand does nothing . It is obvious, given all this evidence, given the fact that the RPF was part of the NRA that fought in the central Ugandan region of Luwero in the 1980s, that what was going on from April to July 1994 may prolly have been war crimes by the RPF against the Rwandans so as to have it blamed on the Hutu to acquire the much needed legitimacy. Dont rush. Let us cast an eagles eye on this. Where have we heard of this guerrilla tactic before? Certainly in Luwero Triangle in central Uganda during the NRA war. In the aforementioned book, A Thousand Hills: Rwandas rebirth and the man who dreamed it, the American journalist Stephen Kinzer described Kagames formative years as a guerrilla in Luwero: Central Uganda is a good place to wage guerrilla war. Its heartland, known as the Luweero Triangle, comprises 3,000 square miles of savannah and tropical forests. Enough people live there to provide a social base for rebels, but there are also vast empty areas where fighters can move and hideThis was Paul Kagames home for five years. The way the NRA fought made a deep impression on Kagame. It decisively shaped his idea of what a guerrilla force should be and do. The lessons he learned proved invaluable to him when he began to forge, and later emerged to lead, the force that would liberate his homeland. So if The way the NRA fought made a deep impression on Kagame and it decisively shaped his idea of what a guerrilla force should be and do and furthermore it proved invaluable to him when he began to forge, and later emerged to lead, the force that would liberate his homeland, we must then go to Luwero to examine what these vital lessons were that left such a mark on Kagame that he would use years later in Rwanda. For the answer to that, we go ironically (given his fanatically pro-RPF stance) to an interview published on April 15, 2005 in the Daily Monitor by its then Political Editor Andrew Mwenda with the former President Milton Obote as he explained the Luwero killings. Said Obote, speaking in Lusaka, Zambia in Oct. 2004: Museveni has for the last twenty three years [2004] fought different enemies in different parts of UgandaIn all these wars, the adversaries are different, the theatre of war different, the period different. There are only two elements that are constant: Museveni on the one hand and massive atrocities on the other.It is Museveni who employs atrocities against civilians to achieve military victory, but in a more subtle way by ensuring that his adversary instead takes blame for Musevenis atrocities. This method of fighting, where you commit the atrocities in order to blame them and have them blamed on your adversary, was the central plank of the NRA war in Luwero. A report on this was published by the Shariat newsletter, a Kampala publication edited in the mid 1990s by Haruna Kanaabi and the late Musa Hussein Njuki. Said the Shariat, Jan. 24, 1995: On 6 February, 1981, Yoweri Museveni and a gang of his Rwandese cousins launched a war on the Republic of Uganda. They knew quite well that the people of Ankole where Museveni comes from could never support them in their madness which was a result of Musevenis insatiable lust for power. They went to Luwero which was a good choice because they knew it had more Rwandese than any other part of Uganda A few days ago through Capital Radios Desert Island Program, Lt. Col. Pecos Kutesa, Musevenis aide de camp in Luwero, revealed that they killed thousands and thousands of Obotes soldiers in Luwero. It is also true that they killed thousands and thousands of non-Baganda and some Baganda who could not support them. They blew up buses killing many civilians who were passing through Luwero [Museveni] kept the skulls of those he killed or caused to be killed to use in his campaignsHe knew that if he could keep on telling Baganda that the skulls are the creation of Milton Obote, he could remain a hero for as long as he showed the skulls of UNLA soldiers which he now claims to be of innocent civilians something he calls heroes. Obote put it more succinctly to Andrew Mwenda: At the burial of [UPC stalwart] Adonia Tiberondwa recently [on December 28, 2004], Maj. Gen. Kahinda Otafiire, for example, revealed that the National Resistance Army rebels used to wear UPC colours and then go into villages in Luwero and kill people in order to make the people think these were actions of the UPC government. Otafiire was boasting of the tricks NRA employed to win support in Luwero, but was also revealing the sinister side of Museveni and his insurgents Each time there was a reported case of mistreatment of civilians by the army, we arrested those responsible and punished them severely. The truth is that most of the soldiers in the army who were committing atrocities were Musevenis people. And whenever we zeroed in on them, they would run to join him in the bush in Luwero. Take the example of [Colonel] Pecos Kutesa. He had an interview with William Pike on Capital Radio in Kampala in [January] 1995 in a programme called Desert Island Discs. He told Pike that he was in UNLA but as an NRA infiltrator whose mission was to undermine the credibility of the army from within. Pecos Kutesas testimony is instructive of how Museveni personally orchestrated the killings of innocent people and the harassment of civilians not just in Luwero but other parts of Uganda as well during the 1980s. His testimony is also important because it fits very well with what Otafiire and Lt. Gen. Elly Tumwine have confessed. Let us listen to Pecos Kutesa, whose interview on Capital Radio Tim has kept as evidence. He told Pike that he used to be at a roadblock in Konge. As a lieutenant, he was the man in charge of that roadblock. According to Pecos Kutesas own testimony on Capital Radio, Konge roadblock was the most notorious in harassing civilians, robbing them of their money and killing some. Kutesa says reports reached army headquarters of his harassment of the civilians and Oyite Ojok summoned him to Kampala for disciplinary action. He ran to the bush. (Daily Monitor, April 15, 2005). From all the above quotes, we must ask ourselves the all-important question: If this is the way Musevenis NRA conducted itself in Luwero and according to Stephen Kinzers admiring book on Kagame, the methods of guerrilla warfare in Luwero we have just read about left a deep impression on Kagame, is there anything more to be said about the way the RPF fought its war under the command of the now Maj. Gen. Paul Kagame between 1990 and 1994? According to the Citizen newspaper in Jan. 1991, this is late Dec. 1990 and what do we already see, long before the 1994 genocide? Reports of bodies floating down the Kagera River from the RPF-held areas. Why do the international media, governments, historians, the ICTR in Arusha, and others not want to listen to this side of the story? Why are the Hutu being persecuted when this report plus the one on todays cover story clearly point to who it was who orchestrated that 1990-94 genocide in order to have it blamed on the Hutu? Keith Harmon Snow, a controversial war correspondent who has worked in 16 African countries, including conflict areas in Congo, Ethiopia, Rwanda, Uganda and Sudan and a former genocide and war crimes investigator for Genocide Watch, Survivors Rights International and the United Nations, who has worked at the International Criminal Tribunal on Rwanda, provides an insight in his essay in Global Research: The New York Times led the charge into Rwanda, and the Western media continued to beat the Tutsis as victims drum roll. There was, after all, a lot of money to be made. Wall Street vultures began drooling. Military and intelligence operatives like David Kimche (Israel) and Roger Winter (USA) jockeyed for position organizing logistics, maintaining supply chains, arranging weapons shipments to support our man Kagame and our proxy guerrilla army, the RPF. The Washington Post, Boston Globe, CNN, the Observer all described the RPF guerrillas as a highly disciplined army: if any woman was raped or civilian massacred, it was an accident, a rogue soldier, and said soldier would be duly punished (of course, they never were). Continues Keith: Paul Kagame put into practice what his teachers, the military strategists at the US Army Command and Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas (USA), taught him: psychological operations and how to overthrow a country. As the English-speaking Tutsis marched into Rwanda they conscripted and lured Tutsi youth to the freedom cause. These were young French-speaking Tutsis who were also subjected to Kagames ruthless modus operandi: many of them were tortured, killed, disappeared, but many survived the initiation into the RPF. Kagame and his elite Ugandan comrades didnt trust Tutsis who had stayed behind, and they clearly sacrificed the French-speaking Tutsis of Rwanda for the cause of absolute military power. Just as Museveni had infiltrated, massacred and terrorized Uganda (1980-1985), the RPF infiltrated soldiers disguised as civilians into Hutu villages, Hutu political parties, even into Hutu youth groups organized to defend Rwanda from the invading terrorist guerrillas. While the RPF used the airwaves to terrorize the people, scapegoat and stereotype enemies real and perceived, and whip up fear of Hutu power the same kinds of nasty propaganda, often sexualized, used by the Kagame regime to demonize its detractors from the West even today we only even hear about Hutu power hate radio, not extremist Radio Muhabura. Keith concludes: No such planning or organization of genocidal intent has been proven against the Hutu government of Juvenal Habyarimana which, in any case, was decapitated on April 6, 1994 or against the Interim Hutu government that briefly held sway after April 6, 1994, and the judges at the ICTR have found as such. There were indeed hundreds of thousands of French-speaking Tutsis raped, brutalized and massacred in what amount to very real acts of genocide in Rwanda, and these occurred over the now sacred 100 days of genocide. But there were also hundreds of thousands of Hutus killed, and far more Hutu than Tutsi. Dont remind me that Keith is a genocide denier. I have already heard of that. But how about Jonathan Cook- an award winner of the Martha Gellhorn Special Prize for Journalism whose latest books include Israel and the Clash of Civilisations: Iraq, Iran and the Plan to Remake the Middle East(Pluto Press) and Disappearing Palestine: Israels Experiments in Human Despair (Zed Books)? According to him, Paul Kagame, the hero of the official story of Rwandas genocide, was almost certainly the biggest war criminal to have emerged from those horrifying events. Kagame led the Tutsis main militia, the RPF . He almost certainly ordered the shooting down of the Rwandan presidents plane, the trigger for a civil war that quickly escalated into a genocide; on the best estimates, his RPF was responsible for killing 80% of the 1 million who died inside Rwanda, making the Hutus, not the Tutsis, the chief victims; and his subsequent decision to extend the civil war into neighbouring Congo, where many Hutu civilians had fled to escape the RPF, led to the deaths of up to 5 million more. From his own experience covering Israel-Palestine, he says: I can guess what happened. The reporters on the ground feared straying too far from the consensus in their newsrooms. Rather than telling their editors what the story was (the model of news production most people assume to be the case), the editors were creating the framework of the story for the reporters, based on the official narrative being promoted in political and diplomatic circles. Correspondents who cared about their careers dared not challenge the party line too strongly, even when they knew it to be a lie. Are we still in doubt at what happened? The Hutus have pleaded innocence but world opinion refuses to believe them. May be the world is right. I dont claim to be right or wrong but rather making a rational inquiry. In Dec. 2005, a British-based team of investigators, the Sanders Research Associates, published a report that questioned the basis for apportioning blame for the 1994 Rwandan genocide. We already discussed the Stam and Davenport report about the numbers of the dead; supported by the 1991 government census that clearly make the numbers of the Tutsi dead an impossibility. But there is as well the Sanders report, which stated thus: There is a stunning lack of documentary evidence of a [Habyarimana] government plan to commit genocide. There were no orders, minutes of meetings, notes, cables, faxes, radio intercepts or any other type of documentation that such a plan ever existed. The ICTR, needless to say, confirmed this in military trials 1 and 11. In fact, the documentary evidence establishes just the opposite. (View from Rwanda: The Dallaire Genocide Fax: A Fabrication, Sanders Research Associated Ltd., December 1, 2005). Of paramount importance is not only the fact that this story is being revisited but the fact that its export base is declining, as we saw last week in Addis Abbeba. But how about for the sake of historical clarity for the sake of a genuine co-existence between Rwandas bi-polar divide? Unless the right questions are asked, the past is blurred and the future is constructed on lies. Its nigh that right questions should be asked at 10 Downing Street and the Pentagon. Till then! Texas Chicken Breaks International Grand Opening Sales Record in New Zealand Texas Chicken has reported record-breaking sales for its newest location in Auckland, New Zealand. ATLANTA, GA - January 25, 2016 /24-7PressRelease/ - Texas Chicken, one of the world's most popular hand-battered fried chicken chains, has reported record-breaking grand opening sales for its newest location which opened in Auckland, New Zealand which opened in December. While guests in New Zealand have been able to enjoy the savory, hand-battered chicken since June 2015, the Auckland location is the second of a planned 20-unit footprint and is the country's first free-standing Texas Chicken restaurant to feature a drive-thru. The location recorded sales of nearly $80,000 USD in the first week, more than any other new Texas Chicken restaurant opening has recorded to date. "Globally, Texas Chicken/Church's Chicken is proving a favorite among an ever growing global consumer base," said Zack Kollias, Executive Vice President International Operations at Texas Chicken. "2015 was a very positive year for the expansion of our global footprint, thanks to strong demand for our great tasting products and a new, contemporary international design package which features elements steeped in our rich Texas history." "We can achieve these types of record-breaking numbers due to our operational simplicity, which is based on core products made exceptionally well. These products are then served by friendly, fast crew members at a good value, in a sleek, clean and modern restaurant," Kollias added. Fifty percent of Texas Chicken grand openings in 2015 were in the Asia-Pacific region. The brand has plans to further expand in the region in 2016. "We are seeing a strong appetite for the Texas Chicken concept among consumers and investors alike in the Asia-Pacific area," said Bill Schreiber, Vice President Worldwide Business Development at Texas Chicken. "We have proven once again why chicken is the world's most popular protein because--done right--there's nothing better." Franchisee George Constantinou believes the record breaking sales are a sign of great things to come. "Guests were ecstatic when we opened our first location in June 2015, but the response in Auckland confirms that New Zealanders are embracing our Texas Chicken concept in a big way," said George Constantinou. "We know that we have the best chicken and are happy to share it with all of our new customers in New Zealand." About Texas Chicken / Church's Chicken Founded in San Antonio, TX in 1952 by George W. Church, Church's Chicken, along with its sister brand Texas Chicken outside of the Americas, is one of the largest quick service chicken restaurant chains in the world. The brands specialize in Original and Spicy Chicken freshly prepared throughout the day in small batches that are hand-battered and double-breaded, Tender Strips , sandwiches, honey-butter biscuits made from scratch and freshly baked, and classic, home-style sides all for a great value. Church's Chicken and Texas Chicken have more than 1,650 locations in 25 countries and global markets and system-wide sales of more than $1 billion. For more information, visit http://www.churchs.com. Follow Church's on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/churchschicken and Twitter at wwww.twitter.com/churchschicken SOURCE Texas Chicken / Church's Chicken ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus Arbys Completes New Development Agreement with Franchisee, Turbo Restaurants, LLC February 04, 2016 // Franchising.com // Dallas/Houston, TX - Arbys Restaurant Group, Inc. (ARG), parent company of the franchisor of the Arbys brand, today announced that it has reached a new development agreement with franchisee, Turbo Restaurants, LLC, to open 15 new restaurants over the next five years in the Houston market. This is in addition to 15 new restaurants that Turbo agreed to develop in Dallas under a previous development agreement. Turbo has also committed to remodeling 12 Arby's restaurants in the Dallas market to the new Inspire restaurant design, which features multicolor wood materials, stainless steel, modern lighting and chalkboard graphics. The new openings equate to approximately 800 new jobs with Turbo in the two Texas markets. Guillermo Perales of Turbo Restaurants is among a select group of premier franchise restaurant developers in the country, and were excited about his commitment to expand with Arby's in Texas, as its yet another example of the momentum that is building with the Brand, said Greg Vojnovic, Chief Development Officer, Arbys Restaurant Group, Inc. With 61 Arbys restaurants in their portfolio, and now 30 more in the pipeline, they are better positioned than ever to deliver a deli-inspired Arbys experience to new and returning guests. These development commitments solidify our desire to bring Arbys restaurants to many new areas of town in both the Houston and Dallas markets, said Perales, President & CEO, Sun Holdings, Inc. We believe guests will love the new Inspire restaurant design and the abundance of new and exciting product offerings, including Sliders and the delicious Smokehouse Brisket sandwich. Based on the tremendous sales performance of our restaurants in Dallas, we are confident Houston will be successful, as well. Arbys remains on track with its goal to surpass $4 billion in total system-wide sales (SSS) by the end of 2018. Arbys achieved industry-leading system U.S. Same-Store Sales (SSS) growth of 8.1% in 2015 more than three times the growth rate of the Quick Service Restaurant (QSR) industry*. *Source: The NPD Group/SalesTrack Weekly reports same store sales collected weekly from 45 of the larger QSR chains during Q4 2015 ending December 27, 2015. About Turbo Restaurants, LLC. Founded in 1997, Turbo Restaurants, LLC is part of Sun Holdings Inc., a national holdings group that owns and operates nearly 650 locations in eight states and provides over 14,000 jobs. Sun Holdings Inc portfolio includes: Arbys, Krispy Kreme, Cicis Pizza and Golden Corral. President and CEO, Guillermo Perales, is the 8th largest restaurant franchisee and the largest Hispanic franchisee in the United States. Perales and Sun Holdings Inc have received numerous awards, honors, and recognitions. Sun Holdings is the largest Hispanic owned employer and the largest minority owned company in North Texas and has been recognized as one of the fastest growing companies in North Texas. Perales has been recognized as Entrepreneur of the Year on five occasions for outstanding leadership by Ernst & Young, Asociacion de Empresarios Mexicanos, TAMACC, Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, and the International Franchise Association and as one of the most powerful people in foodservice by Nations Restaurant News 2016 Power List. About Arbys Arbys, founded in 1964, is the first nationally franchised sandwich restaurant brand, with more than 3,300 restaurants worldwide. The Arbys brand purpose is Inspiring Smiles Through Delicious Experiences. Arbys delivers on its purpose by celebrating the art of Meatcraft with a variety of high-quality proteins paired with crave-able sides, such as Curly Fries and Jamocha shakes. Arbys restaurants feature Fast Crafted service, a unique blend of quick-serve speed and value combined with the quality and made-for-you care of fast casual. Arbys Restaurant Group, Inc. is the parent company of the franchisor of the Arbys brand and is headquartered in Atlanta, Ga. Visit Arbys.com for more information or socially connect with Arbys at: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram. SOURCE Arbys Media Contact: Jason C. Rollins APR 678-514-4219 jrollins@arbys.com ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus FirstLight HomeCare Receives 2016 Awards from Home Care Pulse Leading non-medical in-home care provider earns top honors for 51 franchise locations. February 04, 2016 // Franchising.com // CINCINNATI, Ohio - FirstLight HomeCare, a provider of quality, non-medical in-home care announced it has received several 2016 Best of Home Care Awards from Home Care Pulse, the premier third-party research and quality assurance home care management firm. The awards are given yearly and are presented to companies who believe strongly in providing the best in home-care services and have contracted with Home Care Pulse to effectively measure the quality of care they are providing. Awards are granted to businesses offering excellent in-home care, based on feedback from clients and caregivers. FirstLight HomeCare and selected locations were awarded seven Employer of Choice, 51 Provider of Choice, and one Leader of Excellence designation. "We are honored to receive recognition for excellence in home care service from our caregivers and our clients through the Home Care Pulse Best of Home Care Awards," said Jeff Bevis, FirstLight HomeCare Chief Executive Officer. "This is just our sixth year in operation, and we are very proud to congratulate our award winner in the Leader in Excellence category, Vince McMahon; our 51 Best of Home Care Provider of Choice winners; and our seven Best of Home Care Employer of Choice award winners." FirstLight award winners for 2016 include: Leader in Excellence Award winner Vince McMahon, FirstLight HomeCare of Westchester, New York Best of Home Care Provider of Choice Award Winners FirstLight HomeCare Daphne, Dothan and Huntsville, Alabama FirstLight HomeCare Peoria and Scottsdale, Arizona FirstLight HomeCare Little Rock, Arkansas FirstLight HomeCare Orange and San Ramon, California FirstLight HomeCare Boulder, Montrose, Pueblo and Wheat Ridge, Colorado FirstLight HomeCare Clearwater, Delray Beach, Orlando and Riverview, Florida FirstLight HomeCare Atlanta, Brunswick, and Conyers, Georgia FirstLight HomeCare Arlington Heights, Plainfield and Schaumburg, Illinois FirstLight HomeCare Plainfield and Valparaiso, Indiana FirstLight HomeCare Louisville, Kentucky FirstLight HomeCare Casco, Maine FirstLight HomeCare Silver Spring, Maryland FirstLight HomeCare Needham and Salem, Massachusetts FirstLight HomeCare Troy, Michigan FirstLight HomeCare Hazelwood, Missouri FirstLight HomeCare of West Omaha, Nebraska FirstLight HomeCare Glen Rock, New Jersey FirstLight HomeCare Montgomery, New York City and Westchester, New York FirstLight HomeCare Matthews, North Carolina FirstLight HomeCare Akron, Chardon, Clayton, Columbus, Fairborn, Westlake, andYoungstown, Ohio FirstLight HomeCare Warrington, Pennsylvania FirstLight HomeCare Greenville, South Carolina FirstLight HomeCare Franklin, Tennessee FirstLight HomeCare Richardson and Tomball, Texas FirstLight HomeCare Stephens City, Virginia FirstLight HomeCare Olympia, Washington Best of Home Care Employer of Choice Award Winners FirstLight HomeCare Little Rock, Arkansas FirstLight HomeCare San Ramon, California FirstLight HomeCare Plainfield and Schaumburg, Illinois FirstLight HomeCare Salem, Massachusetts FirstLight HomeCare Westchester, New York FirstLight HomeCare Olympia, Washington FirstLight HomeCare has provided complete non-medical in-home companion and personal care services for seniors, new mothers, those recovering from surgery and others in need of assistance since 2009. For more information about FirstLight HomeCare visit www.firstlighthomecare.com. About FirstLight HomeCare FirstLight HomeCare is a top rated non-medical in-home care provider that covers 165 territories in over 30 states and provides care for over 2,500 clients. The company has created a new standard in home care by combining best practices with innovative approaches to make them an emerging market leader in a rapidly-growing industry. Companion and personal care services can be provided at private residences, assisted living and retirement communities, nursing homes, adult-family homes or group homes. Clients include seniors, new mothers, individuals recovering from surgery, adults with disabilities and anyone who might just need a little extra care or assistance. To learn more, visit www.firstlighthomecare.com. SOURCE FirstLight HomeCare Media Contact: Heather Ripley Ripley PR 865-977-1973 hripley@ripleypr.com ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus Home Care Assistance Announces Opening of New Phoenix, AZ Office In-home care leader, Home Care Assistance, will provide home care for the growing senior population in Ahwatukee and surrounding areas February 04, 2016 // Franchising.com // Phoenix, AZ - Home Care Assistance South Phoenix, a premier provider of in-home care for older adults, is pleased to announce the opening of its newest office which will serve the greater Ahwatukee and Phoenix communities. This location is the 118th Home Care Assistance office in North America and it is opening during a stage of incredible growth and measured success. The office is located at 4025 E. Chandler Blvd., #54, in Phoenix, AZ. I am excited to share the unique and innovative programs offered by Home Care Assistance as a resource for the communities in Ahwatukee and the surrounding areas, said John Burkholder, Owner of Home Care Assistance South Phoenix. At Home Care Assistance, our mission is to change the way the world ages through distinct offerings such as our proprietary Balanced Care MethodTM based on the scientifically studied lifestyles of the longest living people on Earth and our Cognitive Therapeutics MethodTM, an activities-based program designed to delay the onset of cognitive decline. Home Care Assistance hires only the most qualified and compassionate individuals as caregivers to serve the evolving needs of the companys clientele; Home Care Assistance accepts only one out of every 25 caregiver applicants on average. Applicants undergo thorough screening including background checks, reference checks and work authorization. A proprietary Caregiver Personality Screening test assesses each applicants traits, such as kindness, honesty and conscientiousness. Jason Monroe, Operations Manager at Home Care Assistance South Phoenix, upholds these standards in the highly-selective hiring process. Along with his compassion and professional expertise, Jason matches clients with the caregiver best-qualified for his or her unique needs and preferences and treats every client as though he or she were a part of his own family. Nine out of ten seniors prefer to age in the comfort of their own home, yet thousands of seniors still move to facilities every year. A professionally trained and compassionate caregiver can provide the support to help each senior age safely and independently for as long as possible where they prefer: home. Home Care Assistance caregivers provide the following services to help seniors live well at home: hourly and live-in care, meal preparation, transportation, walking/transferring assistance, medication reminders, companionship and more. To learn more about what Home Care Assistance has to offer or to schedule a free in-home assessment, please visit www.homecareassistancesouthphoenix.com or call 602-416-4375 today. Home Care Assistance South Phoenix is located at 4025 E. Chandler Blvd. # 54 in Phoenix, AZ. About Home Care Assistance Home Care Assistance is the leading provider of home care for seniors across the United States, Canada and Australia. Our mission is to change the way the world ages. We provide older adults with quality care that enables them to live happier, healthier lives at home. Our services are distinguished by the caliber of our caregivers, the responsiveness of our staff and our expertise in Live-In care. We embrace a positive, balanced approach to aging centered on the evolving needs of older adults. A 2016 Franchise500 and Inc. 5000 Company, Home Care Assistance has received numerous industry awards including Entrepreneurs Fastest-Growing Franchises and Franchise Business Reviews Top 50. For more information about Home Care Assistance, our services and franchise opportunities, visithomecareassistance.com. SOURCE Home Care Assistance Media Contact: Kathryn Zakskorn Director of Franchise Marketing 650-462-9501 kzakskorn@homecareassistance.com ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus Rituals Reign During Tim Hortons RRRoll Up The Rim To Win RRRoll Up The Rim Is Back For Its 30th Year, And Guests Are Ready With Their Favourite Rolling Techniques And Good-luck Superstitions February 04, 2016 // Franchising.com // OAKVILLE, ON - After 30 years and 500 million prizes, the top rolling rituals of the RRRoll Up the Rim to Win contest are revealed: slow and steady thumb-rolling is the number one roll technique, according to more than 50% of guests, and more than one-third say finishing your entire coffee before rolling is the best good luck charm. So, drink up and get your thumbs ready, because starting today Tim Hortons guests have a one in six chance to instantly win more than 45 million prizes in RRRoll Up the Rim to Win. This year, guests can win one of 40 grand prizes of the all-new 2016 Honda Civic Sedan EX-T, recently named North American Car of the Year. Prizing also includes 120 LG 4K OLED TVs, 100 $5,000 CIBC prepaid cards, 25,000 $100 TimCards, and millions of coffee and donut prizes. With millions of cups to be rolled in this years RRRoll Up the Rim to Win contest, the thumb roll technique wont be the only one used. Other popular rolling methods include using your teeth (preferred by 24%) and the trusty flatten and roll (preferred by 12%). When it comes to superstitions, 52% of guests have good luck rituals, which range from finishing your whole drink before rolling (38%), to rolling the rim the same way every time (13%) and visiting the same location each time (8%). From day one, RRRoll Up the Rim to Win has been about thanking our amazing guests, says David Clanachan, President and COO, Tim Hortons Canada. Its great to see that, 30 years later, our guests have adopted their own rituals and continue to make RRRoll Up their own. Were back with great prizes and look forward to seeing the excitement and anticipation of coffee lovers across the country during our favourite time of the year! This year, theres a new way to win, with RRRoll Up at Home. Now, guests will have the chance to win when they purchase Tim Hortons at-home coffee products. From February 3, 2016 to February 29, 2016 guests who purchase any participating packaged coffee or hot beverage product for at-home brewing, including single-serve, canisters and bags, can take a photo of their receipt, upload it to www.rollupathome.com, and register to play the RRRoll Up at Home game for a chance to win one of 10,000 prizes, including free Tim Hortons packaged coffee for a year. Want to get in on the action online? The RRRoll Up Replay online game is back once again with chances to win more than 250,000 prizes, including grand prizes of an all-new 2016 Honda Civic Sedan EX-T, 10 LG 4K OLED TVs, 75 LG Watch Urbanes and 10 prizes of free Tim Hortons coffee for a year. Visitwww.rolluptherimtowin.com to play from February 3, 2016 until March 16, 2016. RRRoll Up the Rim to Win runs from February 3, 2016, until April 17, 2016, or while cup supplies last. Prizes may be claimed until May 8, 2016. Contest rules, odds of winning and prizing information can be found at participating Tim Hortons locations or at www.rolluptherimtowin.com. Social media fans can join the #RollUpTheRim conversation and share their own rituals and traditions on Twitter or Instagram using @TimHortons and on Facebook at Facebook.com/TimHortons. About the Tim Hortons Roll Up Rituals Survey Tim Hortons commissioned Research House to conduct an online survey of 1,500 Canadians aged 18 years of age or older, and 302 U.S. residents aged 18 years of age or older who reside in the greater metro areas of either Detroit, MI, Columbus, OH, or Buffalo, NY, who purchase coffee at Tim Hortons restaurants and participate in the RRRoll Up the Rim to Win contest. Responses from Canadians were collected between January 12 and January 18, 2016, and responses from U.S. residents were collected between January 11 and January 18, 2016. Tim Hortons Overview Tim Hortons, part of Restaurant Brands International, is one of North Americas largest restaurant chains operating in the quick service segment. Founded as a single location in Canada in 1964, Tim Hortons appeals to a broad range of consumer tastes, with a menu that includes premium coffee, hot and cold specialty drinks (including lattes, cappuccinos and espresso shots), specialty teas and fruit smoothies, fresh baked goods, grilled Panini and classic sandwiches, wraps, soups, prepared foods and other food products. As of September 30, 2015, Tim Hortons had more than 4,700 system wide restaurants located in Canada, the United States and the Gulf Cooperation Council. More information about the Company is available at www.timhortons.com. About Restaurant Brands International Restaurant Brands International Inc. is one of the world's largest quick service restaurant companies with approximately $23 billion in system sales and over 19,000 restaurants in approximately 100 countries and U.S. territories. Restaurant Brands International owns two of the world's most prominent and iconic quick service restaurant brands TIM HORTONS and BURGER KING. These independently operated brands have been serving their respective guests, franchisees, and communities for over 50 years. To learn more about Restaurant Brands International, please visit the Company's website at www.rbi.com. SOURCE Tim Hortons Contact: Hailey DeDominicis dedominicis_hailey@timhortons.com 905-337-5361 ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus sweetFrog Announces February Promotions sweetFrog Announces February Promotions RICHMOND, VA (PRWEB) February 03, 2016 - In celebration of National Frozen Yogurt Day, February 6, sweetFrog Enterprises is inviting customers to bring a friend for free, all day, at participating shops nationwide. In addition, the chain will be celebrating Valentines weekend, February 12-14, with their very own super bowl of frozen yogurt party. Customers nationwide will be able to fill a shareable 24-ounce, super bowl of froyo for just $8. National Frozen Yogurt Day gives us an opportunity to let our customers know how much they mean to us, said Matt Smith, chief marketing officer of sweetFrog. And, as the official treat of sweethearts, sweetFrog is always a great place to celebrate Valentines Day with your special someone. The first National Frozen Yogurt Day was celebrated in the early 1990s and focuses on fun ways to emphasize the healthier and leaner aspects of yogurt over other frozen treats. Named for a Christian martyr, Valentines Day has origins in the Roman holiday Lupercalia and dates back to the 5th century. About sweetFrog Frozen Yogurt sweetFrog (http://www.sweetfrog.com) is the fastest growing premium, self-serve frozen yogurt restaurant company in the country. sweetFrog currently has 344 stores including both company-owned, franchise and independently licensed locations either open or under contract in twenty-four states in the U.S, Dominican Republic, United Kingdom and Egypt. The company was founded in 2009 and is based in Richmond, Virginia. sweetFrog prides itself on providing a family-friendly environment where customers can enjoy soft-serve frozen yogurt, gelato and sorbets with the toppings of their choice. The company was founded on Christian principles and seeks to bring happiness and a positive attitude into the lives of the communities it calls home. SOURCE sweetFrog Frozen Yogurt Contacts: Matt Smith Chief Marketing Officer matt.smith@sweetfrog.net (804) 835-6796 10800 Midlothian Turnpike, Suite 300 Richmond, VA 23235 Pat Galleher sweetFrog Enterprises LLC +1 8043433441 ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus The Pizza Press Announces the Opening of Pasadena Location with Great Pizza Giveaway The fast-casual, build-your-own pizza franchise is celebrating the opening of its fourth location with a grand opening party and free pizza. Pasadena, CA - February 04, 2016 (PR.com) - The Pizza Press, a fast-casual, build-your-own pizza franchise, announces the grand opening of its fourth location at 1655 E. Colorado Boulevard. Located right across from the Pasadena City College Campus, the pizzeria will be unveiled to the community on Thursday, February 4th, with a Great Pizza Giveaway. The inaugural event is open to the public, and guests can enjoy handcrafted ice cream sandwiches, beer on tap, and free pizza for those who sign up online prior to the event. The rapidly expanding franchise features a 1920s newspaper theme, and welcomes customers to Publish Your Own Pizza by choosing from an extensive list of toppings, sauces, cheeses, and fixings. Other entree options include their signature pizza offerings such as The Times, The Tribune and The Chronicle. In addition, The Pizza Press is known for its large craft beer selection, and the Pasadena location is slated to feature at least 20 beers on tap, including rare finds and local brews. The Pizza Press encourages students from the nearby City College to visit the Pasadena location. Similar to the Orange and Fullerton locations, the brand plans to get involved in student life by partnering up with on-campus organizations and clubs. The 2,400 square foot space accommodates more than 50 guests and features several areas for students to study, such as a community table that is ideal for groups to gather and work on their homework and projects. Situated along Colorado Ave, the location faces a common walkway for students as well as the surrounding community. The street is also home to the world-famous Rose Parade, which takes place annually on New Years Day. Were thrilled to be opening this pizzeria in such an amazing location, said Weijun Jang, owner of the Pasadena franchise. Theres already a great selection of dining options in this area, and we are so happy to contribute to the variety of unique restaurants that Pasadena has to offer. Jang, who has successfully owned and operated 30 restaurants in China, is the newest franchisee to join The Pizza Press team. This franchise is the fourth of The Pizza Press locations, accompanied by pizzerias in Fullerton, Orange and Anaheim. The Pizza Press in Pasadena will be open from 10 a.m to 12 a.m. daily at 1655 E. Colorado Blvd. Pasadena, CA 91106. Those interested in attending the Great Pizza Giveaway can sign up online prior to the event to receive a voucher for a free pizza, which can be redeemed for either a custom or signature pizza of their choice. To sign up, please visit: www.pasadena.thepizzapress.com. For more information about The Pizza Press, please visit: www.ThePizzaPress.com or follow on Instagram and Facebook (@ThePizzaPress) for real-time updates. About The Pizza Press Founded in 2012, The Pizza Press is a fast-casual, build-your-own pizzeria. Guests are encouraged to Publish Your Own Pizza with their choice of unlimited combinations, or choose from popular signature pizzas named after regional newspapers including The Times, The Tribune and The Chronicle. The Pizza Press also carries a carefully curated selection of the finest craft beers from local and national breweries (available bottled and on tap). From its fresh ingredients and locally sourced craft beers to its specialty-designed signature pizzas and Publish Your Own concept, The Pizza Press is revolutionizing Americas favorite food. With four locations in Southern California, The Pizza Press plans to expand its franchise program with additional restaurants in Oregon, Utah and Texas. For more information about The Pizza Press, please visit: www.ThePizzaPress.com. SOURCE The Pizza Press Contact: Emily Webb Pizza Press 619-855-7230 ### Comments: Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus. Disqus DENVER In a former bakery south of downtown Denver, Matthew Fuerst makes beer flavored with ingredients like Hatch green chiles that he chops by hand. He saves money on heating bills by pushing up space heaters against his fermenting tanks and covering the tops with blankets. Hes invited homebrewers who want to break into the industry to use his expensive brewing system to try making larger batches. Fuerst is one of many transplants lured to Colorado by the states reputation as a place where beer drinkers spend hours on breweries sunny patios trying every imaginable twist on beer, often with dogs and kids in tow, a state whose governor is a former craft beer magnate who had an array of taps installed at the governors mansion. But Fuerst fears that idyllic lifestyle is in danger now that the worlds largest beer maker, AnheuserBusch InBev, has staked a claim to Colorados craft beer paradise. Fuerst worries InBev could use its distribution leverage and buying power to squeeze other craft beers out of liquor store shelves, discount its own craft beer line and buy up raw materials after its purchase last month of Breckenridge Brewery, which was part of the first wave of craft breweries to open in Colorado in the 1990s. The purchase sent tremors through Colorados thriving community of homebrewers and beer purists, who join beer lovers around the country dreading increasing corporate consolidation in the industry. I think all of us know that if they could put us out of business they would and the actions that theyre taking right now are a threat to us, said Fuerst, whose brewery is called Grandmas House. Terms of the Breckenridge deal werent released. It follows InBevs acquisition of craft brewers Goose Island in Chicago and 10 Barrel Brewing Co. in Oregon in recent years and comes as the maker of Budweiser is trying to become even bigger by buying the worlds second-largest beer maker, SABMiller, to create a company that would make nearly 30 percent of the worlds beer. The makers of Corona and Heineken as well as equity firms have also been acquiring and investing in craft beer, the only part of the United States beer market thats still growing. Craft beer has captured more than 10 percent of beer sales in recent years and, according to the Brewers Association trade group, the country now has over 4,100 breweries, the highest number since 1873. More than two breweries open every day across the country. InBev says its not trying to push any brewers out of business and frames the real battle as between beer and the growing wine and liquor market. Everyone thats putting great beers out there and has a story to tell is going to thrive, said Felipe Szpigel, president of The High End, InBevs craft beer line. Eric Wallace, the co-founder of Left Hand Brewing, which, like Breckenridge, has spread far beyond Colorado since it opened 22 years ago, said he cant understand how a brewery that worked to bring back flavorful beer to the scorched earth left behind by mega brewers can turn around and join one. The fact that beer was being dumbed down over time, over decades is the reason that craft brewing was created and was born, he said. There are also rumors that another of Colorados original craft brewers, employee-owned New Belgium, could also be looking for a buyer. In a statement, founder Kim Jordan said its board has an obligation to have on-going dialogue with capital markets and that there is no pending deal. Sitting in the tasting room of Breckenridges new $36 million riverside brewery complex in Denver, which includes a farmhouse-style restaurant and a large patio where customers sometimes arrive by inner tube or bike, Breckenridge president Todd Usry said he once shared worries about corporate craft brewing. But InBev has assuaged them. I found out they wanted to participate in craft, not take craft over, Usry said. The reaction from beer drinkers has been mixed. Andy Romero, 36, of Denver, who traveled across town recently to pick up some more of Renegade Brewing Companys limited supply of imperial milk stout made with peanut butter cups in refillable glass containers, said he likes to support mom-and-pop operations but hes not too worried about the Breckenridge sale. As long as the beer is good, Im fine with it, Romero said. But Michelle Massure, 31, a former Colorado resident who likes to visit her favorite breweries on visits from Houston, was horrified. I dont want the big guy to have everything, she said. This weekend, area families will have an opportunity to experience a culture half the world away and engage in traditions that date back thousands of years, as the Kennedy Center hosts its first Chinese New Year Celebration to usher in the Year of the Monkey. Whats more nearly all the events in the four-day festival are offered free of charge. We invite families to any of the performances or activities or to experience the entire weekend of celebration, said director of international programs, Gilda Martis de Almeida. Experiencing the arts inspires and enhances creativity but also promotes appreciation and respect for other cultures. This celebration not only features artistic techniques but also uplifts the spirit and creates friendship. A total of 200 artists will be participating in the weekend celebration. The festivities begin on Friday, with the Shenzhen Pop Music Show, featuring five bands that are currently very popular in China. The performances not only include traditional elements of the cultures music but also styles that will be familiar to American youth, including rap and hip-hop, with a unique Chinese flavor. On Saturday, the atrium of the Kennedy Center will be buzzing with activity throughout the day, with hands-on activities and craft-making for an immersion into the realm of Chinas festival celebration. An instructor will be on hand at each station and 80 volunteers will be on-site to offer guidance, explanation and interpretation to facilitate communication with Chinese artists. At one station, families will be introduced to the art of applying stage makeup for performers of the Beijing Opera as skilled artists demonstrate the elaborate and intricate designs used to convey the unique nature and temperament of each character. The symbolism of the colors used for the makeup dates back nearly 1,400 years to the masks worn by leading actors. A musical instrument petting zoo will introduce a fascinating range of wood-wind and percussion instruments such as the pipa, a stringed instrument in which each group of frets represents a state of being, the elements, or the seasons; the erhu that elicits transporting melodies from only two strings; and the bamboo flute with its delicate, hauntingly beautiful notes. Visitors will be treated to demonstrations by musicians and will also have an opportunity to try their hand at playing instruments. Children can dress up as a dramatic character with colorful and elaborate costumes and pose for a photo-op as a memento of the day. Take-home craft activities will include making lanterns, folding and cutting paper to produce intricate patterns, decorating a mask of the Monkey King, and creating decorative knots from red rope. Also featured on Saturday is a calligraphy demonstration in which masters of the art will create a plaque for guests with their name conveyed in Chinese symbols, and an intriguing painting exhibit will depict scenes of the daily lives of rural families in the Henan Province of China. On Sunday, visitors will be treated to the melodious, harmonic sound of the Shenzhen Lily Girls Choir, in which nearly 50 talented young singers will perform a sampling of traditional Chinese folk songs and movement. Mondays featured event on the Millennium Stage will present the awe-inspiring talents of the acrobats, actors and contortionists of the Henan Arts Troupe in an unforgettable display of strength, grace and flexibility as they perform the Beijing Operas legend of The Monkey King. In a tale that has been passed on for thousands of years, the clever, wily monkey manages to defeat the Emperors celestial troops who were sent to arrest him. In addition to a breathtaking display of the martial arts during the operas battle scenarios, highlights of the performance will include seemingly impossible poses accomplished by duets and groups of contortionists. The Lunar New Year festivities will climax with a concert by the world-renowned Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra on Monday evening. Throughout the weekend, the Kennedy Centers cafeteria will feature Chinese cuisine, including stir-fried long noodles, a New Years tradition symbolizing longevity. Collette Caprara is a local writer and artist. Fredericksburg's Washington Avenue mall is a gift that has kept on giving since it was established in the 19th century. It is a cherished city landmark where monuments tell some of Fredericksburgs historic past. Along with the residences that border it, the mall is a jaw-dropping bonus for tourists who thought the Kenmore mansion was all they would see. And every day, it is a public park for all the activities people enjoy in such a landscape. Today, remarkably, it is a point of contention, and the source of that contention is, remarkably, trees. We would suggest that this is a situation where reasonable people with conflicting interests can come together and reach common ground. That most certainly involves a meeting of the minds in a way that has not been done previously, in which the priorities of the various interests are stated and given proper perspective. The well-attended public meeting Monday made it clear that the situation must be addressed now. The result may well be a new plan that reflects the concerns of all involved and may require removal of some trees that have already been planted while proceeding with the artful design and environmental benefit that new plantings can provide. A key point in the debate here is ownership of the mall. The residents whose homes border the mall do not own it, and cannot dictate what they want. But they do have a vested interest in its appearance given that the malls existence likely played a key role in the investment they made to live along it, and the value of that investment down the road. If there were some sort of structure to be built in the grassy median that would obstruct sight lines or present a scale issue, certainly the homeowners would have the opportunity to express their NIMFYnot in my front yardconcerns. The pages of The Free LanceStar are often filled with stories about Fredericksburg-area homeowners rising up about issues from homeless shelters to subdivisions that might not be on their property, but nevertheless affect them directly. It is also worth noting that while the mall is indeed a historic district, it is set in a residential locale, so comparisons to the National Mall in Washington, Monticello or Mount Vernon are not really applicable. Nor is it the grand affair that is Monument Avenue in Richmond, which is mired in controversy of a different sort. The reality here is that we are talking about trees. They are beautiful, changing with the seasons. They are fresh air producers. They provide cooling shade on a hot, sunny day. Strategically chosen and placed, they can direct the eye and frame objects such as statues, though not necessarily from every angle. When theyre pruned well off the ground, low-level visibility is largely unobstructed. Advocates of the value trees provide, from city agencies to local nonprofit groups, play an important and admirable role in making sure trees are given prominence in the urban landscape. But here is the rub: Any decision, no matter how well intended, can be viewed as arbitrary or even wrong when those who are directly affected by it believe they have been ignored in the process. Theyll feel that something is being shoved down their throats. Invited from the beginning to have a role and input in the decision, they are more likely to be satisfiedespecially if there are tweaks in the final outcome that reflect their input. The vast amount of history, research and pure information that have come out about the Washington Avenue mall and trees in general is indeed instructive and enlightening. What was envisioned for the mallmore than a century ago or a decade agocan still serve as a worthy baseline for what is implemented today in the general publics best interest. It should be learned and accepted from this current war of words over the mall that yes, it belongs to everybody, and therefore yes, everybodys views on its future count. Once you hear that word cancer, youre never going to be the same, she said in a recent interview, a year after her surgery. You are struggling to be a cancer survivor. It is scary and lonely, since no one can do the treatment for you. It forces you to accept changes you arent prepared for and didnt want. It is painful, emotionally and physically. The day after her treatment ended, leaving her with a painful radiation burn, Kaminski stopped pretending. She stayed in bed. She felt herself shutting down. By the time she saw psychiatrist Dr. Jesse R. Fann, she had, she said, slipped down the rabbit hole. I wasnt suicidal, but I just didnt want to be, Kaminski said. I didnt want to be me. I didnt want any of this. As many as half of cancer patients could benefit from counseling, therapy Depression and anxiety about having cancer are common and normal, said Fann, director of psychiatry and psychology services at Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, the treatment arm of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Almost everyone experiences at least a fleeting sense of sadness. But about 15 to 25 percent of people with cancera rate two to three times that of the general population develop a clinically significant depression that can affect their ability to function on a daily basis, including going through treatment. And then theres everyone in between. Depression is a spectrum its not an all or none thing, said Fann, who estimates that as many as half of people with cancer have some degree of depression or anxiety (they often go together) that could benefit from counseling or other therapy. Yet about three-quarters of depressed cancer patients dont get adequate help, studies show. To remedy that, the American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer mandated that, starting last year, cancer centers that want its accreditation must screen patients for emotional distress at some point during their treatment. Fann, who is also a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at the University of Washington, called the new mandate a good first step, but he pointed out that screening once is not enough because depression can develop at so many different points. He recommends that doctors treating cancer patients be proactive about screening for depression throughout cancer treatment. A lot of it is just asking how people are doing emotionally and making it part of routine care, he said. There are also very helpful screening questionnaires that can be completed in just a couple of minutes either at home or in the clinic. Depression triggers, from diagnosis to ending treatment After diagnosis the first potential trigger the pain, fatigue and insomnia that can result from the cancer itself or as side effects of treatment can lead to or worsen depression. A number of medications that are used to treat cancer can exacerbate depression, including hormonal therapies such as tamoxifen for breast cancer or steroids used in conjunction with chemotherapy. Interferon, which is used to treat melanoma and some other cancers, is so notorious for inducing depression that anti-depressant medication is often prescribed proactively. Although it seems counterintuitive, ending treatment the point at which Kaminski hit bottom can deepen depression and add to anxiety, Fann said. Happiness that treatment is over is tempered by uncertainty over whether it was successful. Fatigue and problems with memory and concentration often linger. From a social standpoint, people feel pressured to get back to normal, ready or not. The costs for not addressing depression are high. Some research points to it as a risk factor for higher mortality. The mechanism for that is not fully understood, Fann said, but it may be because people who are depressed may be less likely to engage in self-care to exercise, eat well, adhere to treatment, take medications. Depression may also affect the immune system and the bodys hormonal balance. Depression has negative consequences, not just on quality of life but on other symptoms, Fann said. People who are depressed experience greater pain, greater fatigue, more sleep problems. The good news is that depression is treatable. Antidepressants can help and can be used safely by people with cancer, Fann said. Evidence also supports counseling approaches such as cognitive behavioral therapy, behavioral activation, problem-solving and mindfulness strategies a wide array of approaches that can be tailored to the specific patient. But like many others suffering from depression, cancer patients often have to be coaxed to seek that treatment. Despite some gains made over the last few decades to destigmatize depression, many still see it as a sign of personal weakness that can be overcome by sheer will or as a shameful character defect. I think theres a huge stigma, said Ron Robbecke, who suffered debilitating side effects from his treatment for chronic myeloid leukemia, or CML. Everybody thinks youre going nuts. Arent you big enough to handle a little depression? But I was looking for anything that might help. Read more of Ruth Kaminski's story here in her own words. Drs. Marie Bleakley and Soheil Meshinchi receive $1M to design targeted immunotherapies for childhood leukemia Today, Fred Hutch clinical researchers Drs. Soheil Meshinchi and Marie Bleakley were granted $1 million from Hyundai Hope on Wheels to develop new targeted immunotherapies to treat acute myeloid leukemia in children. The researchers aim to identify leukemia-specific proteins and engineer T cells disease-fighting cells of the immune system with receptors that recognize these unique, tumor-specific protein markers. At the end of the four-year grant, they plan to launch a nationwide clinical trial in children with AML to test whether these engineered T cells can effectively destroy the patients cancer with minimal side effects. We aim to identify and target unique, leukemia-specific proteins, proteins that do not exist in nature. And by doing so, well be able to target leukemic cells only and spare normal cells in order to minimize toxicity, said Meshinchi, a member of Fred Hutchs Clinical Research Division and a professor of pediatrics at the University of Washington. Meshinchi co-leads the project with Bleakley, an assistant member of the Hutchs Clinical Research Division and an assistant professor of pediatrics at UW. This is an exciting opportunity to leverage brand-new knowledge of the proteins that are unique to AML, employ high-throughput techniques to identify the rare T cells capable of recognizing fragments of these proteins and killing the leukemia, and use these discoveries to build novel therapies for patients who desperately need better treatment options, Bleakley said. This research builds on data recently generated by Meshinchi and nationwide collaborators in a five-year genomic sequencing project known as the TARGET AML Initiative. Funded by the National Cancer Institute, this project the largest genetic sequencing undertaking ever in childhood AML identified hundreds of tumor-specific variants in patients with this cancer. This new project would not have been possible without the collaborative environment at Fred Hutch that made it possible to merge newly discovered genomic data with cutting-edge immunological engineering in the Bleakley Lab, Meshinchi said. The research team will use the TARGET AML data to identify cancer-specific proteins and validate these proteins as immune-system targets. Led by Bleakley, the research team will engineer T-cell receptors that allow T cells to kill cancer cells bearing these markers. In the final stages of this project, the team expects to carry out preclinical tests of several T-cell receptors targeting the five most-promising leukemia markers, winnowed down from the more than 300 candidate markers they expect to validate in the first steps of the project. In preparation for a future clinical trial of their T-cell therapy, the scientists have already initiated discussions with the Childrens Oncology Group, a nationwide cooperative group that conducts clinical trials of new cancer therapies for children. Dr. E. Anders Kolb, chair of the cooperative groups myeloid disease committee and director of the Nemours Center for Cancer and Blood Disorders in Wilmington, Delaware, is a co-investigator on this project who will help to translate these laboratory findings into national clinical trials. Hyundai Hope on Wheels is a nonprofit organization supported by Hyundai Motor America and U.S. Hyundai dealers that funds pediatric cancer research around the country. According to the organizations website, it has funded more than $100 million in pediatric cancer research in the less than two decades since its inception. The nonprofit is a critical partner in advancing pediatric cancer research, Meshinchi said. The funding environment for research in pediatric cancer is extremely poor, he said. Hyundai Hope on Wheels and similar grants are critical in advancing pediatric cancer research. By Susan Keown / Fred Hutch News Service 4Patriots Donates State-of-the-Art Water Purification Systems to Flint, Mich., Daycare Centers In an effort to provide clean drinking water to the children of Flint, Mich., and those who care for them, 4Patriots is donating five of its Alexapure Pro water filtration systems to daycare centers in the city. -- 4Patriots officials announced today the donation of five state-of-the-art Alexapure Pro water purification systems to daycare centers in Flint, Mich., that have been hit particularly hard with a serious water contamination issue. "Our hearts go out to the children and adults who have been drinking lead-tainted water in Flint," said Allen Baler, Partner at 4Patriots LLC. "As this situation has unfolded, it's been excruciating to watch, and we wanted to relieve the stress and the physical impact of having a neurotoxin in one's tap water. We want to do our part to help protect the children of Flint and those who watch over them through these donations. "Realizing that children had the most to lose, we selected areas of Flint that have been most affected and centers that are considered the most in-need. The Alexapure Pro removes up to 99.99 percent of contaminants, including heavy metals like the lead that has been found in Flint's water supply." The water contamination problem is so severe in Flint that President Obama recently signed an emergency order that clears the way for federal aid to the city. And now the same thing appears to be happening in Sebring, Ohio, where high levels of lead have been discovered in some homes, schools were closed and children were being tested for lead poisoning. Residents are questioning how long it's been going on and why they weren't notified earlier. "While we would love to see the Alexpure Pro in every home with young children, we felt we could make the biggest impact by providing free filters to centers that serve large numbers of children, especially those children whose parents might not be able to afford bottled water at home," Baler said. The Alexapure Pro is a revolutionary tabletop purification product capable of transforming contaminated water from virtually any source into clean, safe, delicious water. Drinking contaminated water, regardless of the source, can cause serious illness and even death. With a 2.3 gallon-per-hour flow rate, the Alexapure Pro purifies water about three times faster than any of its competitors. Users will be able to access up to 5,000 gallons of fresh, clean water from it before the filter needs to be replaced. Priced at $197, that comes out to approximately 4 cents per gallon. Bottled water, usually originating from unknown sources, costs considerably more. No gas, electricity or water pressure is needed to operate the Alexapure Pro. It removes contaminants such as those found in Flint's water using only gravity, producing the most essential item to have now and during an emergency: clean, crystal-clear water. "Water contamination is an issue that is starting to come to a head in this country, and I suspect that this problem is much more widespread than what we've been led to believe," Baler said. "Many city governments don't have enough funds to fully protect their residents, so those citizens need to protect themselves. I know that I'm left wondering what's in my own tap water. "Lead is a neurotoxin, a poison and a very dangerous problem, especially for children. According to the World Health Organization, years later it can result in learning disabilities, shortening of attention spans and anti-social behavior. It is essential that everything possible be done to rid Flint water of this dangerous contaminant, and we at 4Patriots want to be part of the solution." In addition to complimentary shipping, those who purchase the Alexapure Pro water filtration system also receive a credit card-sized steel survival tool featuring 11 different functions, as well as a hardcopy book, "The Water Survival Guide." They are also able to acquire the Alexapure Go Bottle (priced at $47), which features the same advanced engineering of the Alexapure Pro and which can filter 300 gallons of water, can be stored in a backpack or bug-out bag, and is ideal for camping, hiking, biking or any other outdoor activities. Also available from Water4Patriots is the Survival Spring ($24.95), a nine-inch long, two-ounce straw made of BPA-free, food-grade materials that can filter up to 300 gallons of water and can easily be carried anywhere. Water4Patriots provides products that help people eliminate contaminants from their drinking water, including the Alexapure Pro tabletop water purifier, the Alexapure Pro Go Bottle and the Survival Spring straw. Each product purifies contaminated water from virtually any source into clean, safe, delicious water. For more information about us, please visit http://www.water4patriots.com Contact Info: Name: Tim Boyle Email: timm.boyle@4patriots.com Organization: 4Patriots LLC Source: http://marketersmedia.com/4patriots-donates-state-of-the-art-water-purification-systems-to-flint-mich-daycare-centers/102954 Release ID: 102954 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Babaloo Media Opens Doors, Offering Simple, Affordable, Turnkey Shopify Packages Company's three packages are cost-effective, potent ways for retailers to commission online e-commerce presences with Shopify, Babaloo Media reports Newark, DE -- February 4, 2016 (FPRC) -- The founders of Babaloo Media announced that the new service has launched and is now available to customers. Making it easier and more affordable than ever before for clients to commission customized Shopify storefronts, Babaloo Media offers three convenient, turnkey packages. With all three package levels springing from the decades of e-commerce, marketing, and design experience of the veteran Babaloo Media team, the company's clients can count on receiving optimized Shopify solutions that entice their own customers and deliver pleasant, relationship-enhancing experiences tuned for social media results. "Shopify has become a true titan in the world of e-commerce," Babaloo Media representative E.D. Wellsun said, "There are good reasons for that level of success, and the fact is that Shopify can be a great solution for just about any company looking to sell online. Until now, however, it has often been too complicated or expensive to take advantage of all that it has to offer. We're ready to change that with our brand-new service, and we are pleased to report that Babaloo Media is already off to a great start." Originally created in 2004 to provide the digital infrastructure for a small, online Canadian snowboard retailing business, the Shopify software-as-a-service platform has grown explosively since. In less than a decade, the company had acquired over 100,000 users of its service, with an initial public offering on the New York and Toronto Stock Exchanges following early last year. Today, Shopify reports that more than 200,000 merchants make use of its platform, with over $10 billion in goods changing hands through it annually. Even with that impressive slate of credentials and considerable social proof, coming on board with Shopify is not always as easy as might be hoped. Small retailers that look into the service sometimes find themselves torn between cookie-cutter arrangements that could leave them lost in the shuffle and expensive, high-end, custom services that seemed to be aimed at those with more in the way of resources. Babaloo Media was founded to provide much-needed assistance with what many regard as the best e-commerce platform of all. Backed by an experienced team of designers, marketers, e-commerce experts and social media mavens, the company was launched with a founding mission of making it simpler and more affordable to get started with Shopify. As can be seen at https://babaloomedia.com/compare-shopify-packs-buy-best-deals/ , an important outcome of that mission is the offering of three distinct Babaloo Media packages. Starting at the Economy level, clients can arrange for a high-quality, custom Shopify installation for only a few hundred dollars to be delivered within two and half weeks. Clients looking for even more value can step up to the highly popular Deluxe level, adding improved site optimization, a customized, premium theme chosen from those at https://babaloomedia.com/awesome-premium-shopify-themes-included/, and other distinctive features. Finally, those seeking the absolute best can choose the Ultimate pack, a level of service that includes a full search engine optimization starter kit, a custom home-page video, and further enhancements. All three new Babaloo Media turnkey Shopify packages come primed for business-building social media results and are now available to the company's customers. Each package also includes live chat support from the responsive, dedicated Babaloo Media team and secure portal access, placing them among the best available options for those looking to get started with Shopify. About Babaloo Media: Backed by a team with over twenty years of experience helping businesses succeed online, Babaloo Media makes it simple and affordable to take advantage of the power of the Shopify e-commerce platform, driving traffic, creating engaging shopping experiences, and leveraging the potential of social media for clients. Send an email to E. D. Wellsun of r 855-980-1790 Recent Press Releases By The Same User ShapeHost Launches New Spring Sale Offering Savings Of Up To 35% On VPS Packages (Tue 8th Mar 16) Paypro Finance Launches their Consumer Financing for Small Business Program (Mon 7th Mar 16) Kuber Ventures Publishes New Infographic To Show Difference Between EIS for Pensions and SIPP (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Pregnancy Exercise Publishes New Guide Into Training For Fitness While Pregnant (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Centex Hosting Launches Newly Redesigned Website To Herald Expansion Into VPS Hosting (Thu 3rd Mar 16) Royal Cliff Receives ISO 22000 Food Safety Management Certification (Wed 2nd Mar 16) Landscape Structures & Designs Inc. Promote Trees for Torontonian's Health Landscape Structures & Designs Inc. backs recent research showing that urban trees improve local health and well-being. -- Landscape Structures & Designs Inc. (www.LandscapeStructures.ca), an award-winning landscaping design and service company based in Toronto, is backing a recent study that found a marked link between local greenery and the health and well-being of Torontonians. The study originally published in Nature compared the prevalence of trees on a city block to how locals self-reported their own health status. It further compared those findings to other effects known to influence health perceptions, such as income, age, or wealth of the neighbourhood. (Source: Kardan, O., et al, "Neighborhood greenspace and health in a large urban center," Nature, last accessed January 31, 2016; http://www.nature.com/articles/srep11610.) "Ten appears to be the key number--10 trees in a city block," explains Sue Shorey, owner of Landscape Structures & Designs Inc. "At that point, people begin to have a better perception of their well-being and report lower issues with heart disease, cancer, diabetes, or mental health stresses." Results found that this improvement to health perception is comparable to individuals having an increase to personal income of $10,000 or higher and to moving into a neighbourhood with a higher median income. "In a way, this is not too surprising of a finding," notes Shorey. "People's neighbourhoods are just as much a part of their lives as their homes. If someone's home is rundown, cluttered, and not cared for, it becomes less appealing and not very habitable. Neighbourhoods are the same way--without proper environmental cultivation, they become deprived and less supportive to residents." The study adds to the growing body of work that supports urban greenery. Past research has shown that urban trees improve air quality, energy use, aesthetics, psychological well-being, and even promote reduced stress levels. "The difference greenery can make in an urban environment--not only to the atmosphere, but to its residents as well--is unmatchable," Shorey concludes. Landscape Structures & Design Inc. is an award-winning landscaping design and service company that has been operating in Ontario for over 20 years. By holding itself to the highest industry standards and using the best equipment and qualified professionals, the company works to provide and promote eco-friendly projects to improve the lives of homeowners across the province. More information can be found on the company's web site at www.LandscapeStructures.ca. For more information about us, please visit http://www.landscapestructures.ca/ Contact Info: Name: Tony Defeo Organization: Landscape Structures & Design Inc. Address: 3045 Southcreek Rd #27 Mississauga, ON Phone: 647-877-9423 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/landscape-structures-designs-inc-promote-trees-for-torontonians-health/103016 Release ID: 103016 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) MiniLing Targets Social Media by Offering Short, Human-Created Translations The site service, MiniLing.com, will offer users access to translations done by a pool of freelance linguists, according to the Director of Operations, Sam Vardanian. -- A new kind of translation and localization service is launching with the goal of helping businesses and organizations reach a global audience by offering fast, accurate translations done by humans. The site service, MiniLing.com, will offer users access to translations done by a pool of freelance linguists, according to the Director of Operations, Sam Vardanian. "There is just no comparison between human translation and machine translation, like that offered by Google or Bing," Vardanian said. "Human translations are accurate and are easily readable by native speakers, and they show that a company is taking its global audience seriously." There is an increasingly large audience for businesses willing to post in multiple languages. As of November 2015, nearly 75 percent of Internet users are native speakers of a language other than English, according to the website Internet World Stats. Even if a portion of those speak English as a second language, most will still communicate in their mother language. That leaves a huge number of users being left out when a company chooses to post to social media only in English, for example. Ahmad Ismail, the founder of MiniLing, said the aim is to make social media translation of short pieces of text simple, fast, accurate and affordable. "We believe that multilingualism is the only marketing tactic that will instantly broadcast your brand to millions of people," he said. "We've created an affordable service for clients who are serious about reaching the entire world." With billions of users on micro blogging platforms, businesses already understand the importance of social media marketing, Ismail said, but some might not realize that they're missing a large audience by posting only in one language. The company is going to offer monthly subscription options to make it easier for businesses to have their Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, SnapChat or any other short text posts localized into one or more languages. MiniLing platform was designed to be accessible online and via mobile devices, where users can submit text to a group of human translators based on language requirements. More information, including a signup form for the company's newsletter, is available at http://www.MiniLing.com or on twitter @minilingo. About MiniLing MiniLing is a mirco-translation and social media localization service based in New York. Contact: Mr. Sam Vardanian Director of Operations, MiniLing Inc. sam@miniling.com http://miniling.com New York, NY USA 1-855-238-0304 For more information about us, please visit http://miniling.com Contact Info: Name: Mr. Sam Vardanian Organization: MiniLing Phone: 1-855-238-0304 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/miniling-targets-social-media-by-offering-short-human-created-translations/102990 Release ID: 102990 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) "Las Vegas Low Voltage" Introduced Their High-Tech Las Vegas Security Surveillance Services. In order to cater to the Security Surveillance requirements of the Las Vegas businesses, the "Las Vegas Low Voltage" has come up with their high-tech security surveillance services in the Las Vegas and surrounding areas. -- Theft and vandalism are a constant threat that looms everywhere and businesses are always at such risk. People do look for professional security surveillance services in such cases and "Las Vegas Low Voltage" has emerged as one such security surveillance systems expert who has come up with latest surveillance equipment and techniques. Providing the state of art Las Vegas Security Surveillance systems, the company has offered the services in all of Las Vegas, North Las Vegas, Henderson, Summerlin and surrounding areas. Every commercial establishment needs to be completely proactive in order to prevent any sort of loss due to theft or sabotage. One way of doing it is to install the best surveillance systems. The representatives from "Las Vegas Low Voltage" understand the need for highly effective security systems and thus said that their company provides the best quality indoor or outdoor security surveillance system. Talking about the expert services that the company provides, the representatives said that they are specialists in Las Vegas security surveillance systems, surveillance cameras, audio and video systems, PBX phone systems (upgrading or downgrading business phone solution for better need accommodation), Data Wiring and structured cabling. Reportedly, the company provides expert services for data wiring, ranging from existing system's augmentation to performing a complete data connect overhaul. "We specialize in fulfilling the CAT5, CAT6 Ethernet cable wiring moving or installing needs of our clients", they said. Focusing more on the need of installing a high-tech security system for expert surveillance, the company representatives stated that it is always better to be prepared in advance than to repent later. They said that the company experts are highly experienced and skilled in professionally setting up and installing complete commercial surveillance systems. "We provide the accurate assessment, design, and installation of best Las Vegas Security Systems", they said. With such latest high-tech security surveillance equipment along with a team of highly expert and experienced professionals, the company has been providing expert security services for their clients. Constantly introducing the latest technologies to their services, the company has made sure that their client gets the best-in-class security and peace of mind. For more information about us, please visit http://www.lowvoltage.vegas/ Contact Info: Name: Las Vegas Low Voltage Organization: Las Vegas Low Voltage Address: 2480 North Decatur Blvd #180 Las Vegas, NV 89108 Phone: 702 309 1911 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/las-vegas-low-voltage-introduced-their-high-tech-las-vegas-security-surveillance-services/103075 Release ID: 103075 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Maryland Set Up With Concrete Foundation Quote Service by ESFS The home improvement service website ESFS released a statement today revealing their latest contractor quote service. The new quote collecting service assists residents of Maryland to find concrete foundation contractors. -- The home improvement service website ESFS released a statement today revealing their latest contractor quote service. The new quote collecting service assists residents of Maryland to find concrete foundation contractors. This latest partnership between ESFS and local Maryland building and construction companies focuses on concrete foundation laying, including poured concrete, concrete piers and concrete block foundations. "ESFS can match a client with multiple local businesses, whether the project is a new build or a foundation replacement," declared ESFS spokesperson Mr. Aird. "The scale of the structure is also immaterial, with even small additions to an existing structure or mobile home foundations available for quotes." Contractors installing concrete foundations in Maryland must be licensed, and ideally insured. Homeowners who hire contractors licensed with the Maryland Home Improvement Commission (MHIC) are eligible for up to $20,000 in damages caused by negligence or incomplete work. A contractor's status can be easily checked online at the MHIC website. All contractors partnering with ESFS are pre-approved and experienced, giving the homeowner a solid basis for grasping the normal price range of the work required. By filling out the simple form on the ESFS website, a homeowner can receive multiple no-obligation quotes that are easily compared. To start with ESFS has introduced 34 locations throughout Maryland for the foundation quote service. Both major and smaller cities are included, ranging from Frederick to Baltimore and Waldorf, and many locales in between. "ESFS aims to be the ideal channel between local construction businesses and homeowners that need a fast and accurate way to find the best, most affordable contractor for their job," Mr. Aird outlined. "To this end we hope to eventually serve every household in Maryland and across the nation." About ESFS.org ESFS stands for Easy Simple Fast Service and is an online service dedicated to providing customers with no obligation quotes for a variety of services including home repair and additions, interior design and decoration, cleaning, roofing and construction from pre-screened local contractors. For more information about us, please visit http://www.esfs.org Contact Info: Name: Matt Aird Organization: Easy Simple Fast Service Address: www.esfs.org Release ID: 103034 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) J. Renee Studios Launches Rebranded Website Jennifer is an award winning photographer, with numerous certificates and awards to her credit. She is a member of the Professional Photographers Association (PPA). -- Las Vegas wedding, boudoir photographer, Jennifer Johnson of J. Renee Studios is pleased to announce the re-branding of her photography business. She has been a respected photographer in the Las Vegas, Nevada locale for more than fifteen years. The new website ( http://www.jreneestudios.com) shows off her boudoir and wedding photography skills and experience. The photography studio is located in Centennial Hills. Previously, J. Renee Studios was known as J and J Photography. Jennifer is an award winning photographer, with numerous certificates and awards to her credit. She is a member of the Professional Photographers Association (PPA). Her specialties are boudoir photography as well as wedding photography. Wedding photography specialists must demonstrate creativity, as well as the technical skills which depend on lighting and placement of the subjects in the frame. J. Renee Studios professionals have the knowledge and experience to make each wedding image perfectly composed. In addition to a technically correct image, the photographer must be able to tell a unique and creative story about the special events of the day. Formal posed group images are not as popular today as those which show movement, fun and a more natural flow. Today's weddings tend to be more natural and fun. The photographer is able to capture the moments which are special during the entire day of celebration. Boudoir photography requires a different type of skills and creative abilities. An image of this type is focused on one person, usually female in a very intimate and beautiful setting. The image is less about action and fun than it is about the personality of the person in the image. This type of photography is often produced as a special gift from the bride to the groom on their wedding day. It is not intended for public distribution since the emphasis is not on a beautiful gown, but rather on sexy lingerie, or perhaps wearing nothing at all. For more information about us, please visit http://www.jreneestudios.com Contact Info: Name: Jennifer Johnson Organization: J. Renee Studios Address: 7570 Norman Rockwell Ln #210, Las Vegas, NV 89143 Phone: (702) 612-5255 Source: http://marketersmedia.com/j-renee-studios-launches-rebranded-website/103070 Release ID: 103070 For more information visit r Recent Press Releases By The Same User Agarwood Essential Oil Market Expected to Grow at CAGR 4.2% During 2016 to 2022"> (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Cyber Weapon Market by Type, Product, Application, Region, Outlook and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Landscaping and Gardening Expert Trevor McClintock Launches New Locally Optimized Website (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Sleep apnea devices Market is Evolving At A CAGR of 7.5% by 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Agriculture Technology Market 2017 Global Analysis, Opportunities and Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Global VR Helmet Market by Manufacturers, Technology, Type and Application, Forecast to 2022 (Fri 2nd Jun 17) Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banking Group has been admitted to the Official List of the Australian Securities Exchange and it is expected that trading will commence on a normal settlement basis on 17 February. Chief executive David Duffy called it a landmark day as the group moves towards independence for the first time in almost a century. With the IPO process successfully behind us, all of our energy will be dedicated to delivering industry leading service for our customers and improved and sustainable returns for our new and future shareholders from around the world. Chairman Jim Pettigrew welcomed new shareholders, adding that the group is a strong customer focussed franchise with a large and loyal customer base and a first class management team determined to deliver on our strategy. In January National Australia Bank valued the group at between 1.5bn and 2bn ahead of its flotation this month. That put shares at between 175p and 235p ahead of the IPO which was set for 2 February. However, on Tuesday the group delayed the initial trading of its shares on the London Stock Exchange by 24 hours. Parent company NAB said it would offload its UK subsidiaries on 8 February as it looks to focus on its Australian and New Zealand operations. Then yesterday, the IPO was priced at 1.80 per share, valuing CYBG at about 1.58bn, following the demerger. peter.walker@ft.com PCG said it would provide financial and intellectual support to the charity-led campaign, which seeks to provide a tax-free income for one year to seven people who have lost their income because of a serious or long-term illness or disability. Claire Ginnelly, managing director at PCG, said: We are happy to put our name to this worthwhile campaign. We wish it all the best in helping the families it is supporting and in hopefully helping many other families currently uninsured for loss of income by encouraging them to take out income protection. This is what we and our advisers do every day: the challenges of getting the message out about insuring the family income are well known - we are embarking now on a programmes of solutions to those challenges. As an industry we all have a responsibility to do our bit and if putting our name and some resources behind initiatives like Seven Families we are happy to do so. Roy McLoughlin, founding organiser of Seven Families, said: We at Seven Families would like to say a big thank you to Premier Choice Group for their support and kind donation. When talking at their recent conference I was very encouraged to hear genuine interest and debate regarding the merits of discussion with PMI clients about the devastation that loss of income can result in. Income protection is the natural cousin of PMI and we would like to ask all brokers to consider the message that Seven Families can help deliver. Other companies which fund the campaign include Aegon, Ageas Protect, Aviva, British Friendly, Canada Life, Cardif Pinnacle, Ellipse Exeter Friendly, Fineos, Friends Life, Hannover Re UK Life, LV, Royal London Pacific Life Re, PruProtect (VitalityLife), RGA, Scor, Scottish Widows, Unum and Zurich. Two convicted fraudsters have been returned to prison for failing to pay back the millions they gained by swindling investors. Shinder Gangar and Alan White were originally told to pay 2.28m and 686,996 after they were found guilty of operating a Ponzi fraud. But Gangar, 54, and White, 75, only paid 67,712 and 145,208 respectively. At a hearing in Leicester Magistrates Court today Gangar, a former accountant from Leicester, was sentenced to six years and White, of Nottingham, to three and a half years imprisonment for failing to comply with the confiscation order. Mark Thompson, head of the proceeds of the crime division at the Serious Fraud Office, said: The criminals have had ample opportunity to pay the order and broke several promises they gave to the court. The activation of their default sentences should serve as a warning to others of the consequences of failing to comply with confiscation orders. Gangar and White were partners in Dobb White & Co, a firm of accountants through which they marketed investment opportunities. But there was no underlying trading in investments and the fraud depended on the constant adding of new victims funds to finance the payments of interest to the existing victims. Clients money was instead syphoned away including to provide unsecured loans to acquaintances, to purchase properties and spend on speculative investment schemes. The defendants, who were based in the Midlands, targeted investors in the UK and the US. Together the victims lost more than $200m (137m). Clients were told by the defendants that famous names such as Lord Andrew Lloyd-Webber and Sir David Frost were investors in the scheme but this was exposed as a lie. Gangar and White were both found guilty in February 2008 of a number of offences arising from the Ponzi fraud they operated and were sentenced in April the same year to seven years and six months imprisonment. Two herbicide-tolerant sugar beet varieties have been entered into UK trials, offering growers a new herbicide to tackle troublesome weeds. The varieties could be commercially available in time for the 2019-20 beet season. Bred by KWS using standard breeding techniques, they have a natural tolerance to a specific ALS (acetolactate synthase) inhibitor herbicide and is being branded Conviso Smart. See also: Herbicide-tolerant OSR beats weeds Conviso sugar beet will enable growers to control a wide range of weeds, says Simon Witheford, KWS sugar beet product manager. These include many otherwise hard to tackle species, with greater ease and without risking crop safety or yield potential. It is the result of many years of research and development that will benefit growers in much the same way as previous advances, such as rhizomania and nematode resistance. It is exciting that we can provide a non-GM solution to weed control in sugar beet, adds Mr Witheford. The tolerance to ALS inhibitor herbicides is the result of a natural variation in the gene encoding the ALS enzyme. Once identified, this was then back-crossed into elite hybrid plants to produce high-yielding varieties suited to commercial cultivation. It was not forced by mutagens or mutagenic conditions and is not the result of GM breeding techniques. New herbicide Edward Hagues, Bayers root crop product manager, adds: The herbicide has performed exceptionally in trials demonstrating reliable control of a wide range of broad-leaved and grassweeds, and effective control of weed beet populations. In addition, the new herbicide offers greater flexibility in application timing compared with standard herbicides and requires fewer passes to achieve control, he says. An application supporting the herbicides registration in sugar beet is currently being evaluated by regulators. The herbicide is both new to the UK and to sugar beet. For the technology to be available to UK growers both the herbicide and varieties will need to gain registration through their respective regulatory bodies. Herbicide-tolerant varieties are not new in the UK, with Clearfield oilseed rape, which is tolerant to the herbicide Cleranda (metazachlor + imazamox). Story Highlights Medicaid expansion, state exchanges linked to greater reductions 45 states have had statistically significant declines since 2013 No states have had statistically significant increases since 2013 WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Arkansas and Kentucky have had the sharpest net reductions in their uninsured rates since the healthcare law took effect at the beginning of 2014, followed closely by Oregon. West Virginia and California round out the top five states with the greatest declines in the percentage of adult residents without health insurance. Seven of the 10 states with the largest reductions in uninsured rates have expanded Medicaid and established a state-based marketplace exchange or state-federal partnership, while the remaining three have implemented one or the other. The marketplace exchanges opened on Oct. 1, 2013, with new insurance plans purchased during the last quarter of that year typically starting on Jan. 1, 2014. Medicaid expansion among initially participating states also began at the beginning of 2014. As such, 2013 serves as a benchmark year for uninsured rates before the two major mechanisms of the healthcare law took effect: Medicaid expansion and marketplace exchanges. Through the end of 2015, nine states had uninsured rates below 7.0%: Massachusetts, Hawaii, Vermont, Rhode Island, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Connecticut and North Dakota. In the six-year span between 2008 and 2013, Massachusetts had been the only state to be at or below this rate in any year. No state has reported a statistically significant increase in its percentage of uninsured in 2015 compared with 2013. Nationwide, the uninsured rate fell from 17.3% in 2013 to 11.7% in 2015. States Not Embracing Health Law Less Likely to See Improvement The only states that did not have statistically significant reductions in their respective uninsured rates since 2013 are Virginia, Wyoming, Kansas, Delaware and South Dakota. Four of these five states neither established a locally managed and promoted exchange nor expanded Medicaid -- South Dakota is the exception, having implemented both. Of the 10 states with the smallest declines since 2013, half have not implemented either of these major mechanisms of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Four other states have implemented both -- Massachusetts, Hawaii, Delaware and Iowa -- and these were among the lowest six uninsured states nationwide in 2013, and thus they had less room for further reduction than most others. These data, collected as part of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, are based on Americans' answers to the question, "Do you have health insurance coverage?" These state-level data are based on daily surveys conducted from January through December 2015 and include sample sizes that range from 494 randomly selected adult residents in Hawaii to more than 17,000 in California. The data for 2013 were collected over the same 12-month period and yielded sample sizes similar to those in 2015 for each state. A full list of the 2013 and 2015 uninsured rates for all 50 states appears at the end of the article. For the eighth year in a row, Massachusetts had the lowest uninsured rate nationally, and Texas had the highest. In general, Southern, Southwestern and Mountain West states have the highest uninsured rates in the U.S. Implications Americans' attitudes about the health law known as "Obamacare" have shown little change since 2013. More Americans continue to disapprove of the law than approve of it, even as uninsured rates for nearly all states have declined since that time. Political identity is closely related to approval or disapproval of the ACA, so entrenched attitudes toward the Obama presidency are likely driving the stability in Americans' views of the ACA. The Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index does not provide estimates for the number of American adults who have gained insurance or the number who have lost insurance during the ACA era. Rather, it measures the net change in the uninsured rate, which reflects both effects simultaneously. As such, the national decline from 17.3% without insurance in 2013 to 11.7% in 2015 represents a net increase of about 13.7 million adults with health insurance over this two-year period. Medicaid expansion, one of the two major uninsured reduction mechanisms of the ACA, continues to slowly spread nationally. In addition to Alaska's implementation, effective Sept. 1, 2015, Montana cleared federal waiver approval and has officially expanded Medicaid effective Jan. 1, 2016; thus, the two have become the 29th and 30th states (plus the District of Columbia) to expand. Louisiana is in the process of expanding its coverage, and will become the 31st state to do so once the wider coverage is in effect. With 19 states still eligible to expand Medicaid, this mechanism for reducing the uninsured rate continues to have the potential to be effective. But in most of the remaining states, there is substantial political opposition to taking that step. Still, some states such as Utah continue to debate expansion, and a few others such as South Dakota and Virginia have included aspects of expansion in their fiscal year 2017 budgets. Unless most of the remaining states choose to expand, however, the marketplace exchanges that enable people to select and purchase their own plan directly from insurers will likely be the primary means by which the national uninsured rate might continue to decline in the immediate future. Survey Methods Results are based on telephone interviews conducted Jan. 2-Dec. 30, 2013, and Jan. 2-Dec. 30, 2015, as part of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, with a random sample of 178,072 adults in 2013 and 177,281 adults in 2015, aged 18 and older, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. The margin of sampling error is 1 to 2 percentage points for most states, but climbs as high as 4 percentage points for 2015 results for states with small populations such as North Dakota, Wyoming, Vermont and Alaska. All reported margins of sampling error include computed design effects for weighting. For data collected before Sept. 1, 2015, each daily sample of national adults includes a minimum quota of 50% cellphone respondents and 50% landline respondents. For data collected between Sept. 1, 2015, and Dec. 30, 2015, each daily sample of national adults includes a minimum quota of 60% cellphone respondents and 40% landline respondents. Additional minimum quotas are by time zone within region. Some states have chosen to implement state-federal "partnership" exchanges, where states manage certain functions and make key decisions based on local market and demographic conditions. For the purposes of this analysis, these partnerships are included with the state exchanges. States with Medicaid expansion that occurred after Sept. 1, 2015, were excluded from the "States with Medicaid Expansion and State Exchange/Partnerships" group. Four states -- North Dakota, New Jersey, Ohio and Arizona -- decided to expand Medicaid without also administering a state-based exchange or partnership. Learn more about how the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index works. Story Highlights 20% in New Hampshire very religious, compared with 63% in Mississippi Most religious states continue to be in South, along with Utah Least religious states in Northeast and Northwest, plus Hawaii PRINCETON, N.J. -- New Hampshire is the least religious state in the U.S., edging out Vermont in Gallup's 2015 state-by-state analysis. Mississippi has extended its eight-year streak as the most religious state, followed closely by neighboring Alabama. These state-by-state results are based on over 174,000 interviews conducted as part of Gallup Daily tracking in 2015, including more than 480 interviews in every state and more than 1,000 interviews in most states. Complete results and sample sizes are shown at the end of the article. Gallup classifies Americans into three religious groups based on their responses to a question measuring religious service attendance and how important religion is in their daily life. Very religious Americans are those who say religion is important to them and who attend services every week or almost every week. Nonreligious Americans are those for whom religion is not important and who seldom or never attend religious services. Moderately religious Americans meet just one of the criteria, either saying religion is important or that they attend services almost every week or more. Gallup began tracking several religious indicators on a daily basis in 2008. Some of these indicators have shown significant change over this time, most notably the percentage of Americans who report no formal religious identity when asked to name their religious preference. But the percentage classified as very religious on the basis of their attendance and view on the importance of religion has stayed remarkably stable. In 2008, 41% of Americans were very religious, 29% moderately religious and 30% nonreligious. In 2015, those same percentages are almost identical: 40%, 29% and 31%, respectively. Over the past eight years, New Hampshire and Vermont have vied for the bottom position on Gallup's ranking of the most religious states. This year, New Hampshire comes in two percentage points lower than Vermont, and those two states are significantly lower in religiosity than the next two states, also in New England: Maine and Massachusetts. New Hampshire is in the national spotlight this week as the presidential candidates focus on next Tuesday's primary in the Granite State. According to entrance polls of Iowa caucus voters, Ted Cruz's win in the GOP caucus on Feb. 1 in Iowa was driven by his strong appeal to highly religious or evangelical Republicans -- who turned out in large numbers. Although Iowa as a state has only average religiosity, it is still significantly more religious than New Hampshire, suggesting that Cruz will have fewer evangelicals to bring out to vote in that state's primary. However, the next contest in the GOP campaign, the Feb. 20 South Carolina primary, will take place in the nation's seventh most religious state. More broadly, as is usually the case, the overall most religious states are mainly in the South. In addition to Mississippi, Alabama and South Carolina, these include Louisiana, Tennessee, Arkansas, Georgia, North Carolina, Kentucky and Texas. Utah, with the majority of its population identifying as Mormons (the most religious group in the U.S.), is the only non-Southern state among the top states for religiosity. As has been the case since 2008, the least religious states generally are those in the two northern corners of the country. Rhode Island and New York join New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts and Maine in the Northeast, while Oregon, Washington, Wyoming and Alaska are among the least religious states in the Northwest. The one additional state among the least religious is Hawaii. Implications The basic geographic structure of religion in America is stable, with only minor fluctuations in religiousness at the state level from year to year. The most religious states continue to be in the South, along with Utah, while the least religious Americans tend to live in the Northeast, in the Northwest, and in Alaska and Hawaii. There are many explanations for the variations in religiosity by state, including the historical and cultural norms and patterns of each state, the types of people who choose to migrate to specific states and, to some degree, the demographic composition of the states. Religion today is significantly linked to politics in the U.S., with Republicans, on average, significantly more religious than Democrats, so it could be expected that more religious states would be more Republican. This tends to be true in general, with many of the most religious states classified as solid or lean Republican in Gallup's recent analysis of 2015 party identification data. However, there are exceptions to this pattern. Louisiana, Georgia, North Carolina and Kentucky are among the most religious states but are classified as politically competitive based on their party identification. Alaska, as another example, is one of the least religious states in the union, but is classified as solid Republican. And, as the most outstanding example of a disjuncture between religiousness and partisanship, New Hampshire is the least religious state in the union, yet is classified as a lean Republican state by Gallup and as a swing state by observers. These data are available in Gallup Analytics. Survey Methods Results for this Gallup poll are based on telephone interviews conducted Jan. 1-Dec. 31, 2015, on the Gallup U.S. Daily survey, with a random sample of 174,745 adults, aged 18 and older, living in all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia. For results based on the total sample of national adults, the margin of sampling error is 1 percentage point at the 95% confidence level. Margins of error for individual states are no greater than 6 percentage points and are 3 percentage points in most states. All reported margins of sampling error include computed design effects for weighting. Each sample of national adults includes a minimum quota of 60% cellphone respondents and 40% landline respondents, with additional minimum quotas by time zone within region. Landline and cellular telephone numbers are selected using random-digit-dial methods. Learn more about how the Gallup U.S. Daily works. Country United States of America US Virgin Islands United States Minor Outlying Islands Canada Mexico, United Mexican States Bahamas, Commonwealth of the Cuba, Republic of Dominican Republic Haiti, Republic of Jamaica Afghanistan Albania, People's Socialist Republic of Algeria, People's Democratic Republic of American Samoa Andorra, Principality of Angola, Republic of Anguilla Antarctica (the territory South of 60 deg S) Antigua and Barbuda Argentina, Argentine Republic Armenia Aruba Australia, Commonwealth of Austria, Republic of Azerbaijan, Republic of Bahrain, Kingdom of Bangladesh, People's Republic of Barbados Belarus Belgium, Kingdom of Belize Benin, People's Republic of Bermuda Bhutan, Kingdom of Bolivia, Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana, Republic of Bouvet Island (Bouvetoya) Brazil, Federative Republic of British Indian Ocean Territory (Chagos Archipelago) British Virgin Islands Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria, People's Republic of Burkina Faso Burundi, Republic of 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Principe, Democratic Republic of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom of Senegal, Republic of Serbia and Montenegro Seychelles, Republic of Sierra Leone, Republic of Singapore, Republic of Slovakia (Slovak Republic) Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia, Somali Republic South Africa, Republic of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands Spain, Spanish State Sri Lanka, Democratic Socialist Republic of St. Helena St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Pierre and Miquelon St. Vincent and the Grenadines Sudan, Democratic Republic of the Suriname, Republic of Svalbard & Jan Mayen Islands Swaziland, Kingdom of Sweden, Kingdom of Switzerland, Swiss Confederation Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan, Province of China Tajikistan Tanzania, United Republic of Thailand, Kingdom of Timor-Leste, Democratic Republic of Togo, Togolese Republic Tokelau (Tokelau Islands) Tonga, Kingdom of Trinidad and Tobago, Republic of Tunisia, Republic of Turkey, Republic of Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu Uganda, Republic of Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom of Great Britain & N. Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe gamershell.com expired on 08/21/2022 and is pending renewal or deletion. Backorder Domain Error. Page cannot be displayed. Please contact your service provider for more details. (29) A Pinch of Salt: To vote now or to vote later that is the question CORVALLIS Two Forest Grove residents pleaded not guilty to murder charges Tuesday afternoon in connection to Friday nights fatal shooting at Sharis Restaurant in Corvallis. Michael A. Deyette II, 43, and Brooklyn Shepard, 35, pleaded not guilty during separate arraignments Tuesday afternoon in front of Judge Locke Williams in Benton County Circuit Court. Deyette II was arrested Monday afternoon outside a house in Forest Grove on a Benton County warrant for murder, first-degree assault and unlawful use of a weapon in the killing of 29-year-old Jason Scott Williams of Corvallis. Shepard, who was wounded in the shooting, was arrested Monday evening. Deyette II pleaded not guilty to murder, conspiracy to commit murder, first-degree assault, unlawful use of a weapon against another, and second-degree criminal mischief. His security was set at $1 million. Court-appointed defense attorney Mike Flinn is representing Deyette II in the case. Chief Deputy District Attorney Ryan Joslin is representing the state in the case. Amie Matusko, assistant district attorney for Benton County, sat in for Joslin Tuesday. Flinn did not request a release for Deyette Tuesday, but told Williams that he may request to file motions against the indictment at a later time. Shepard pleaded not guilty to murder and conspiracy to commit murder. Her security was set at $1 million. Court-appointed defense attorney John Rich and attorney Holly Allen are representing Shepard in the case. Matusko is representing the state. Rich asked Judge Williams during the arraignment to release Shepard on her own recognizance, noting that she was shot in the incident, has four children and a mother in the area who was recently diagnosed with cancer. But Matusko disagreed. The proof is evident, Matusko said during the arraignment, adding that Shepard had a previous warrant for her arrest due to failure to appear. Court records were not immediately available Tuesday afternoon. Deyette II and Shepard remained in Benton County Jail Tuesday and are scheduled to appear in court Wednesday afternoon for bail review hearings. In murder cases, often theres no bail and no release opportunity, Joslin said Tuesday following the arraignments. The court in these cases initially set security at $1 million and the state has a right to ask for no bail, which we have asked. The court has to make a finding that the proof is evident or the presumption of guilt is strong. Investigative reports, including the probable cause affidavits for both Deyette II and Shepard, have been sealed in the case. Joslin said Tuesday the District Attorneys Office requested the documents be sealed to the public, citing an ongoing investigation. Its fairly common in more serious cases where the facts continue to develop and unfold to seal those, Joslin said Tuesday. Theres still some continuing investigation; you dont want to jeopardize that by making those facts public at this point. According to previous statements from the Corvallis Police Department, Shepard was arrested Monday evening on one count of murder on the theory that she may have aided and abetted in Williams killing. Shepard and Deyette are neighbors and are romantically involved, the police statement said. Williams was shot to death about 7:45 p.m. Friday in the parking lot of Sharis Restaurant, 1117 N.W. Ninth St. The Williams killing is the 14th homicide in Corvallis since 1990. The way Corvallis violinist Anthea Kreston tells this story, it tends to come out in a breathless rush, and that makes sense. Thats because these last few days before she moves to Berlin to take a gig with a big-deal international string quartet are whipping by in a breathless rush. So here are the essential details of the story, in one rush. We can fill in some of the details later. Twenty years ago, when she was a student, Kreston saw the Germany-based Artemis Quartet perform and loved it: It was as if my heart opened and my time stood still. Last year, the quartet suffered a grievous loss when one of its members died at age 53. The quartet eventually elected to carry on and issued an open call for a new fourth member. Kreston figured she had no chance, but decided to give it a shot. (Her husband, cellist Jason Duckles, offered considerably better odds.) Eventually, the ensemble called: Can you get to Berlin by Jan. 7 and be ready to play? Kreston arrived in Berlin for three long days of playing music. On Jan. 10, the three members of the quartet and Kreston broke for coffee. One of the quartet members said: Its clear to me that this is our choice, assuming that Kreston and her family are willing to move to Berlin. Fortunately, this is something to which Kreston and Duckles already have given considerable thought. Jason and I gave them a firm answer 12 hours later, Kreston said in a recent interview. And now, Kreston, Duckles and their two daughters, 4 and 6, are preparing to leave Corvallis for Germany. Kreston is scheduled to arrive in Berlin next Monday. Rehearsals start the next day for a European tour that begins in March. No wonder Kreston barely has time to breathe. The Corvallis musician, teacher and founder of the Majestic Theatres chamber music series will be honored at a farewell concert, scheduled for Friday night at the theater in downtown Corvallis. Originally, the concert was supposed to have featured the Amelia Piano Trio, an ensemble in which she plays with Duckles. Thats obviously out of the question now, and so the concert will feature the Columbia Piano Trio from Eugene. (The concert also will serve to introduce the new director of the Majestic chamber music series, Noel Seitz, a cellist who lives in Salem.) To really understand this story, you need to know something about the Artemis Quartet, an ensemble that dates back to 1989. The quartet is considered among the worlds top musical ensembles, and so the death of Friedemann Weigle after a long illness was big news and so was the announcement that it would search for a new member. The analogy doesnt completely fit, but its as if Ringo Starr had quit The Beatles in the late 1960s and the rest of the group decided to hold an open audition for a new drummer. Kreston had admired the Artemis Quartet for years, since seeing it playing on that day decades ago at a Juilliard seminar. The world of string quartets is a relatively small one, so Kreston and the quartet had lightly kept in touch over the years. When news of the open audition to fill Weigles position broke, Kreston knew it was the job of a lifetime. No one wouldnt want this. But it required a long conversation with Duckles: Jason, is this even worth talking about? Is this even worth poking with a stick? Duckles thought the stick wouldnt be necessary: From the start, Kreston said, he encouraged her to apply and was confident that shed get the job. So Kreston reached out to a member of the quartet with a message: Do you remember me? Im tall and have curly hair. Three weeks went by. And she got a message back: I remember you. What is Oregon? And what are you doing? A more formal application process followed, with Kreston required to provide video footage of herself playing, and Skype sessions with the quartets members. It was important to the quartet that Krestons family was on board with the move: If your home life isnt happy, the quartet isnt happy, they told her. Right before Christmas, she received another Skype request from the quartet. Jason said, Anthea, this it. And sure enough: She was among the eight finalists for the job. Could she be in Berlin by Jan. 7? And could she learn eight string quartets by that time? Yes. Yes, she could. The first round of the finals consisted of two hours in a room with the other members of the quartet, just playing music, no conversation. After surviving the cut, the second round consisted of three days of intense talk and playing, focused on just a couple of pieces. Kreston said the fit felt right from the start, both musically and in terms of personality. It just felt awesome, she said. Im feeling good. Im not hiding my personality. I had brought peanut butter from Oregon. I had bought a matching set of cup holders for their music stands. Im weird. Im goofy. On Jan. 10, the group members and Kreston broke for coffee, and she was offered the job. Twelve hours later, she was the new member of the Artemis Quartet. Now, as she and her family prepare to move out of Corvallis, the rushed pace of the last few months only seems to accelerate. It fits Kreston: I always love to have just a little too much on my plate. In some ways, we have no time to think, she said. We only have time to do. The Oregon Health Authority on Wednesday reminded parents that need to make sure their childs school or child care center has up-to-date vaccine records by Feb. 17 or their children cannot continue attending. According to an agency press release, under state law, all children in public and private schools, preschools, Head Start and certified child care facilities must have up-to-date documentation on immunizations or have an exemption on file or the child will be sent home. There are some new changes to the vaccination requirements this year: the state is now requiring a two-dose hepatitis A vaccine for children 18 months and older. The state is also requiring parents with children who have vaccine exemptions on file from before March of 2014 to submit updated documentation. Parents of children who have since received vaccinations will need to submit those vaccination records and parents who want a non-medical exclusion must turn in a Vaccine Education Certificate showing that theyve received education about vaccines, either from a health care practitioner or from the online vaccine education module. More information about exemptions can be found at the divisions vaccine exemption website at www.healthoregon.org/vaccineexemption. Charlie Fautin, of the Benton County Health Department, said this year the department has sent out 530 letters to local parents warning them of potential exclusion, up from 394 last year. But Fautin said the increase in letters is due to staffing limitations meaning that their records are not as cleaned up in the past. That means that its possible that more parents will receive letters for kids who are actually vaccinated but for whom there is some error in the record. We apologize for that, but again if parents feel the letter is erroneous they should provide the childs most current records to the school to update the database, he said. Foutin said each year only a small percentage of kids with letters are actually excluded. Thats because the vast majority of parents get their kids vaccinated as soon as they get their letter, then get those records to their school so the kids wont be excluded, he said. In addition, a percentage of notification letters are incorrect either because parents have not updated the school immunization records during the year and so the school has classified the kid as under-immunized when in fact they are not. In either case, its important that parents provide schools with current and up-to-date records. As you might have heard, Republicans in the Oregon Legislature have complained that their Democratic colleagues on the other side of the aisle have packed the agenda of the five-week session with a variety of far-reaching policy bills. The Republicans have a point. As we have noted before, the accelerated pace of the abbreviated sessions in even-numbered years makes it difficult for complicated proposals to get a proper hearing and makes it doubly difficult for members of the public to get involved. We agree that these short sessions are better suited for relatively small items: adjusting the budget, say, or tying up loose ends from the previous years session. But a Republican gambit on the sessions opening day Monday smacks less of principle than petulance. As legislators gathered for the opening gavel, Republican leaders rolled out a procedural move, noting that the state constitution requires that every bill be read aloud, in its entirety, before a vote regardless of how long it takes. To get around that rule, lawmakers must agree to suspend the rule by a two-thirds vote. Mike McLane, the House minority leader, suggested that this was the Republicans last-gasp attempt to serve as a check on the Democratic majority. The one party that is running the state without a check or a balance is trying to move very partisan, extremist legislation, McLane told The Oregonian. The fact that were making them slow down to read what theyre passing in compliance with the Oregon Constitution is not unreasonable. The Senate managed to delay a vote on its rules and dodged that bullet. The House wasnt as lucky, and Speaker Tina Kotek told representatives to be prepared for night and weekend sessions. House staff members said they never had heard of the rule. The chief clerk of the House said he was investigating whether to invest in a computerized program that could speed-read the bills because nothing conveys legislative dignity quite like an Alvin and the Chipmunks-style voice echoing through the House chamber. (If that doesnt pan out, maybe the House could hire some auctioneers.) Again, Republicans have a legitimate point. And theyve made it again and again in the run-up to the session. Thats their right. But this latest maneuver not only makes the point yet again, it rubs it in the face of the majority Democrats. And if Republicans think it will derail any of the Democrats plans for this session, they likely will be disappointed by the time the final gavel bangs down. Worse, its a bit of business that serves as a serious distraction from the work we ask our legislators to do during this highly compressed session. The work they tackle is hard enough without having to deal with listening to Alvins voice racing through the text of yet another bill. Welcome to my genealogy blog. Genea-Musings features genealogy research tips and techniques, genealogy news items and commentary, genealogy humor, San Diego genealogy society news, family history research and some family history stories from the keyboard of Randy Seaver (of Chula Vista CA), who thinks that Genealogy Research Is really FUN! Copyright (c) Randall J. Seaver, 2006-2021. More security : A call for more security, not only during Karneval BONN On Wednesday, officials released a Cologne declaration, calling for more police not only at Karneval time, but during the whole year. Teilen Teilen Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Tweeten Tweeten Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Drucken A Cologne declaration was released yesterday by officials from Cologne and other communities of North Rhine Westphalia (NRW). It calls for a stronger police presence and more video security in the aftermath of events that took place in Cologne on New Years Eve. Bonns Mayor Ashok Sridharan and City Director Wolfgang Fuchs also signed the document. The state should provide enough police to face the growing challenges in its communities. Fuchs said, It isnt just about Karneval, but about more security in general. He referred to part of the problem being a growing lack of respect for police and the Ordnungsamt, which are police-like patrols employed by the city, also enforcing rules and regulations. Further problematic, Fuchs said the state police have already passed on many responsibilities to the local communities. A main issue they now have to contend with is disturbance of the peace, which often involves violence and then police need to be called anyway. Spokesperson for the Interior Ministry, Wolfgang Beus, says the state is employing more police than ever before. Since 2015, they have hired 1477 new police, and in 2016 the number will jump to 1920. He said, We are hiring more police than the number who are retiring. Some who are shortly before retirement are also being asked to stay longer. The average age of the Bonn police is high so the state is sending younger police to counterbalance this. Police unions in Bonn complain of too few personnel, too many police being absent due to sick days, and an average age of 50. About 1250 police are assigned to Bonn and they say this is too few. Alone for security detail, they are short of 50 police. Bonn Police spokesperson, Frank Piontek says the police do show their presence regularly and are also involved in fighting street and drug crimes. He says city and state police work closely together to provide security. Merl setzt sich souveran mit 8:1 gegen Laurenzberg durch Clysters mit vier Treffern - Auch Friesdorf gewinnt Teilen Teilen Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Tweeten Tweeten Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Drucken Bonn. (ley) Versohnlicher Jahresausklang fur die Regionalliga-Fuballerinnen des SV Rot-Wei Merl: In der ersten Runde des Mittelrheinpokals setzte sich das Team von Trainer Martin Keil beim Aachener Kreisligisten SCB Laurenzberg souveran mit 8:1 (3:0) durch. In der Meisterschaft haben die Rot-Weien dank eines kuriosen Spielplans bis Anfang Marz Pause. Suzanne Clysters eroffnete den Torreigen bereits in der 4. Minute. Nicoletta Lemmer (26.) und Tanja Kendel (41.) sorgten noch vor der Pause fur die Vorentscheidung. In der zweiten Halfte trugen sich fur die Gaste erneut Clysters (53., 77., 82.) und Lemmer (63.) sowie Patricia Teixeira (72.) in die Schutzenliste ein. Personell gibt's bei den Merlerinnen in der Winterpause Veranderungen: Vom SC 07 Bad Neuenahr II stot Mittelfeldspielerin Nadine Kahlert zu den Rot-Weien; dafur wird Miljana Veselinovic den Klub wohl verlassen. RW Merl: Lippertz, Douiri, Schmitz, Becker, Lemmer, Kendel, Clysters, Streller, Benndorf (50. Teixeira), Boullier (53. Rawicki), Bitten (58. Wrobel). Auch die Landesliga-Frauen der DJK Friesdorf haben die nachste Pokalrunde erreicht. Beim Klassenkameraden KSV Heimersdorf setzten sie sich mit 2:0 (1:0) durch. Die Blau-Weien uberzeugten durch groes Engagement und hohe Laufbereitschaft; beide Treffer markierte Selda Kurak (5., 70.). Raid on Islamists : ISIS suspect arrested in NRW refugee shelter Das Erstaufnahmelager fur Fluchtlinge in Attendorn. Foto: Bernd Thissen BERLIN Authorities conducted a raid on suspected Islamists in Berlin, NRW and Hannover this morning. An Algerian man was arrested in a refugee shelter in the NRW town of Attendorn. Teilen Teilen Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Tweeten Tweeten Weiterleiten Weiterleiten Drucken In the early morning hours, police conducted a raid on members of the terrorist Islamic State, also known as ISIS. Algerian nationals had been under observation for weeks and they are believed to have planned attacks either in Germany or other parts of Europe. The main suspect, a 35-year-old Algerian man was taken into police custody Thursday morning in the North Rhine Westphalia (NRW) town of Attendorn. A second Algerian was apprehended in Berlin, and police are still searching for a 31-year-old suspect in Berlin and a 26-year-old suspect in Hannover. The suspects are thought to have ties to Syria but it is not known if they had been involved in the fighting there. The main suspect had been living in an emergency refugee shelter in Attendorn. He was also being sought by Algerian authorities for his involvement in ISIS. He is believed to have Syrian military training. A refugee shelter in Hannover was also searched in the raid. Authorities had been investigating the men for several weeks and their information became more concrete in the new year. Apparently, the suspects wanted to meet in Berlin to plan an attack. How far the planning had gone or if there was a target already decided upon, was not known. Berlins state bureau for criminal investigation is directing the investigation. Computers, cell phones and drawings have been confiscated. A woman in Berlin was also arrested but authorities say it was due to an arrest warrant unrelated to terrorism. bayonel3 at 4-02-2016 09:38 AM (6 years ago) (m) President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday addressed the European Parliament at Strasbourg, France. President Muhammadu Buhari on Wednesday addressed the European Parliament at Strasbourg, France. Below are excerpts from President Buharis address to the EU Parliament. President Buhari addressed the Parliament on key issues, bothering on the Nigerian Economy, Democracy, Chibok girls, Boko Haram, Immigration, Job Creation, Visas, Economic DEMOCRACY: Nigerians noted the huge contributions Europe made towards the realisation of acceptable, free and fair elections in our country. Today, I will, tell this August gathering that the European investments are beginning to bear fruits. I am one of the returns-on-the European-investments of a democratic Nigeria. Indeed, the present regime is the product of democratic choice consciously made by the people of Nigeria through the ballot box. Democracy has come to stay in Nigeria. Sooner than many of us would have imagined, Nigeria will be counted among the most stable, strong and virile democracies in Africa. There may be strifes and stresses but these can be contained by the safety mechanisms of an electoral democracy. The drama that took place at the National Collation Centre was a momentarily frightening situation, unleashed by desperate agents of the status quo, with the purpose of maintaining their grip on the national resources for their selfish interests. JONATHAN COMMENDED: As I have stated in other fora, the action of Nigerias former President, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, is commendable.For the first time in the history of Nigeria, a Presidential Candidate and sitting President, conceded electoral defeat in defiance of calls by strong forces and agents and benefactors of the regime not to do so. CHIBOK: In light of this, I wish to seize this opportunity to thank individual EU Member States for their various assistance towards the success of the Nigerian military onslaught against the Boko Haram terror elements. Many European Union Member States have pledged to support our efforts towards the rescue of the kidnapped Chibok School Girls. It may interest you to know that in a recent meeting, I had with parents of the Chibok Girls, I assured them that Government would not rest until all the Girls are rescued alive and reunited with their families. I remain fully committed to this pledge. BOKO HARAM: Indeed, all the Local Government Areas that were hitherto under the control of the Boko Haram terrorists in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe States in the North-Eastern flank of Nigeria, have been recaptured. MIGRATION FROM AFRICA TO EUROPE: Nigeria wishes to acknowledge and share the concerns expressed by the European Union with respect to the influx of migrantsfrom Africa,through the Mediterranean Sea, with its attendant loss of lives. In this regard, Nigeria will collaborate with the European Union to address illegal migration to Europe. JOBS: In this years budget, the Government has provided for over Five-Hundred Thousand graduate employment in the teaching profession alone.We are equally collaborating with the States and Local Governments, to strengthen Skills Acquisition Centres, in order to train the teeming youth in various vocational skills, so that they can be self-employed, and eventually, become employers of labour. VISAS: It is in the light of this understanding that I wish to propose the reciprocal visa waivers for holders of Nigerian Diplomatic and Official Passports attending official Meetings and Conferences in Europe. ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENTS (EPAs): The Economic Partnership Agreement (EPAs) between the European Union, African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP), collectively endorsed by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), is yet to be signed by Nigeria and few others. During Economic Partnership Agreement negotiations, Nigeria raised some pertinent technical issues that were yet to be addressed. OIL THEFT: Nigeria is facing the challenges of oil-theft and illegal bunkering in the Niger Delta as well as recovery of illicit funds. It is therefore expedient to raise these issues with you, Distinguished Parliamentarians. In this regard, Nigeria solicits the cooperation of the European Parliament to support the efforts aimed at stemming these vices. OPEN ECONOMIC BORDERS: Our attempt to restore security, curve corruption and fight crime will result not only in improving social stability in Nigeria but will re-open the doors for full economic relations with Europe and outside world, those who wish to invest in our country have vast opportunity and we intend to guarantee the security of people and investments brought to Nigeria. LAKE CHAD: During this all-important global event, I declared my countrys position on Climate Change.I reiterate, here, that it portends serious threats to Nigerias security and development. Nigeria is watching helplessly as Lake Chad is drying up. This has monumental consequences on the people living in the Lake Chad Basin, whose livelihood has, for generations, been dependent on the resources of the lake. These resources are fast dissipating, throwing communities out of jobs. It is pertinent to mention that all the Lake Chad contiguous states are facing the effects of Climate Change. Collectively we are under obligation to face these common challenges. Our collective efforts may not be enough as we are constrained by the dearth of funds,technology and manpower to initiate the right solutions. We are therefore, calling for quick global actions to address the issues. Indeed, these will serve in part, as panaceas to the issues facing the countries sharing the Lake Chad resources. Below are excerpts from President Buharis address to the EU Parliament.President Buhari addressed the Parliament on key issues, bothering on the Nigerian Economy, Democracy, Chibok girls, Boko Haram, Immigration, Job Creation, Visas, EconomicNigerians noted the huge contributions Europe made towards the realisation of acceptable, free and fair elections in our country. Today, I will, tell this August gathering that the European investments are beginning to bear fruits. I am one of the returns-on-the European-investments of a democratic Nigeria. Indeed, the present regime is the product of democratic choice consciously made by the people of Nigeria through the ballot box.Democracy has come to stay in Nigeria. Sooner than many of us would have imagined, Nigeria will be counted among the most stable, strong and virile democracies in Africa. There may be strifes and stresses but these can be contained by the safety mechanisms of an electoral democracy.The drama that took place at the National Collation Centre was a momentarily frightening situation, unleashed by desperate agents of the status quo, with the purpose of maintaining their grip on the national resources for their selfish interests.As I have stated in other fora, the action of Nigerias former President, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, is commendable.For the first time in the history of Nigeria, a Presidential Candidate and sitting President, conceded electoral defeat in defiance of calls by strong forces and agents and benefactors of the regime not to do so.In light of this, I wish to seize this opportunity to thank individual EU Member States for their various assistance towards the success of the Nigerian military onslaught against the Boko Haram terror elements. Many European Union Member States have pledged to support our efforts towards the rescue of the kidnapped Chibok School Girls. It may interest you to know that in a recent meeting, I had with parents of the Chibok Girls, I assured them that Government would not rest until all the Girls are rescued alive and reunited with their families. I remain fully committed to this pledge.Indeed, all the Local Government Areas that were hitherto under the control of the Boko Haram terrorists in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe States in the North-Eastern flank of Nigeria, have been recaptured.Nigeria wishes to acknowledge and share the concerns expressed by the European Union with respect to the influx of migrantsfrom Africa,through the Mediterranean Sea, with its attendant loss of lives. In this regard, Nigeria will collaborate with the European Union to address illegal migration to Europe.In this years budget, the Government has provided for over Five-Hundred Thousand graduate employment in the teaching profession alone.We are equally collaborating with the States and Local Governments, to strengthen Skills Acquisition Centres, in order to train the teeming youth in various vocational skills, so that they can be self-employed, and eventually, become employers of labour.It is in the light of this understanding that I wish to propose the reciprocal visa waivers for holders of Nigerian Diplomatic and Official Passports attending official Meetings and Conferences in Europe.The Economic Partnership Agreement (EPAs) between the European Union, African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States (ACP), collectively endorsed by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), is yet to be signed by Nigeria and few others. During Economic Partnership Agreement negotiations, Nigeria raised some pertinent technical issues that were yet to be addressed.Nigeria is facing the challenges of oil-theft and illegal bunkering in the Niger Delta as well as recovery of illicit funds. It is therefore expedient to raise these issues with you, Distinguished Parliamentarians. In this regard, Nigeria solicits the cooperation of the European Parliament to support the efforts aimed at stemming these vices.Our attempt to restore security, curve corruption and fight crime will result not only in improving social stability in Nigeria but will re-open the doors for full economic relations with Europe and outside world, those who wish to invest in our country have vast opportunity and we intend to guarantee the security of people and investments brought to Nigeria.During this all-important global event, I declared my countrys position on Climate Change.I reiterate, here, that it portends serious threats to Nigerias security and development. Nigeria is watching helplessly as Lake Chad is drying up. This has monumental consequences on the people living in the Lake Chad Basin, whose livelihood has, for generations, been dependent on the resources of the lake. These resources are fast dissipating, throwing communities out of jobs.It is pertinent to mention that all the Lake Chad contiguous states are facing the effects of Climate Change. Collectively we are under obligation to face these common challenges. Our collective efforts may not be enough as we are constrained by the dearth of funds,technology and manpower to initiate the right solutions. We are therefore, calling for quick global actions to address the issues. Indeed, these will serve in part, as panaceas to the issues facing the countries sharing the Lake Chad resources. Post Reply I scour the world wide web to bring you interesting stories from around the globe. +2348055557203 Posted: at 4-02-2016 09:38 AM (6 years ago) | Hero Kolkata institute developing Manipuri, Nepalese software News oi -GizBot Bureau After the success of Bangla software for Windows and keyboards, researchers here are now developing the same in Nepalese and Manipuri languages. The Society for Natural Language Technology Research (SNLTR), which is designing the software, is showcasing its Bengali software and keyboard at the 40th International Kolkata Book Fair here. SEE ALSO: 8 Ways Virtual Reality Will Make Life Worth Living According to an official at the SNLTR stall at the fair, the softwares developed in collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur, will be introduced later this year. "The demand for Bengali software is high. The Oi-Chiki (Santhali language) and Odia keyboards are also good. We are hoping to get bulk orders for the Nepali one," the SNLTR official told IANS. SEE ALSO: 10 Ways You're Unintentionally Killing Your Gadgets! A complete Bangla unit comprising the software CD, keyboard along with a spell-checker software sells for Rs.750, he said. Sjource IANS Best Mobiles in India Facebook, To stay updated with latest technology news & gadget reviews, follow GizBot on Twitter YouTube and also subscribe to our notification. Allow Notifications Idea Cellular launches 4G in Orissa News oi -GizBot Bureau Telecom operator Idea Cellular today launched its 4G mobile services in 12 major towns of Orissa. Among the 12 major towns being covered with Idea's 4G are Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Baleswar, Jharsuguda, Jatni and Khurda, the company said in a statement. "With revised capex guidance for financial year 2016 at Rs 75 billion, we are accelerating our 4G rollout to cover the length and breadth in the 10 telecom circles, including Maharashtra and Goa and North East that are slated for launch before March," Idea Cellular Deputy MD Ambrish Jain said. SEE ALSO: Internet security: 10 Rules You Should Follow to Keep Your Personal Data Safe from Online Snoopers The company will further expand services to 18 major towns in Orissa which will include Sambalpur, Brahmapur, Rourkela, Bhadrak, Rajagangpur, Sundargarh by March end, the statement added. By June 2016, Idea has plans to expand 4G network in 750 cities across ten telecom circles. With this launch, the company has expanded its 4G service footprint to eight telecom service areas. These service areas include four telecom circles of South India-- Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu and Chennai -- and three telecom circles of North India covering four states of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Haryana and Punjab. SEE ALSO: You're Killing Your iPhone With These 5 Charging Mistakes! Idea Cellular currently holds 1800 MHz 4G spectrum in these ten telecom circles. Additionally, Idea has recently signed an agreement with Videocon Telecommunications for acquiring 'Right to Use' 1800 MHz spectrum in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh (West). Post completion of this transaction, 4G services will be extended to 12 service areas, covering 75 per cent of Idea's revenue base in the country, the statement further said. Source PTI Best Mobiles in India Facebook, To stay updated with latest technology news & gadget reviews, follow GizBot on Twitter YouTube and also subscribe to our notification. Allow Notifications Pushkar-Gayathris Vikram Vedha showcases that a film can be made in any language or for any audience, can be told with the premise & outcome without deviating and keeping the narrative tight. Outgunned Muslim Troops in CAR Plead for Weapons by Nick Long February 02, 2016 Muslim soldiers in the Central African Republic's army are calling for more arms and ammunition to protect their home community in Bangui from a local militia. Residents of the area tell VOA they want the soldiers to be better equipped. The biggest market area in Bangui, known as the PK5 district, is where the few Muslims left in the capital after the ethnic violence of the past three years are now living. There was fighting around here in September, but since then the violence has subsided. Since the Pope came here in November, says this Muslim trader Mahamat Abdou, it's been calm. People can walk around and go into town and come back without problems. For most of the past two years it was too dangerous for Muslims to leave PK5 and Abdou says there are still areas they stay away from. Outside PK5, Muslims faced the threat of the largely Christian anti-balaka militia. Inside PK5, there was and still is a Muslim militia - not the Seleka, which overthrew the government three years ago, but a purely local group that effectively seized control of the district. Another trader, Ahmad Idriss, told VOA security has improved since the C.A.R.'s army deployed a company of Muslim soldiers who come from PK5 to their home area two months ago. 'We traders feel secure since the soldiers came, but the government should reinforce them and give them more arms as they have hardly anything,' said Idriss. The soldiers don't extort money, he added, and since they came the militia don't either. One of these Muslim soldiers told VOA privately that his unit has only a handful of rifles and has repeatedly come under fire from the heavily armed Muslim militia, who have backing from senior politicians. However, the United Nations mission MINUSCA is supporting them, he said, and recently deployed Egyptian troops to the area. Currently there seems to be an armed truce between the militia and other security forces in the PK5 district. The truce could break down when the government changes, after the elections slated for later this month. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address USNS Choctaw County Enters 5th Fleet Navy News Service Story Number: NNS160203-10 Release Date: 2/3/2016 12:52:00 PM From U.S. Naval Forces Central Command Public Affairs RED SEA (NNS) -- Auxiliary, Expeditionary Fast Transport ship USNS Choctaw County (T-EPF 2) arrived in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations (AOO) Feb. 3, the first ship of its platform to be forward deployed to the region following a routine transit of the Suez Canal. Choctaw County is a non-combatant vessel with a civilian crew. The ship will operate under Commander, Task Force (CTF) 53 to accomplish a range of missions in the U.S. 5th Fleet AOO and provide a range of flexible and adaptable capabilities in order to conduct theater security cooperation efforts, maritime security operations and provide crisis response. 'I'm thrilled to have Choctaw County in the 5th Fleet,' said Capt. Edwin D. Kaiser, commander of CTF 53. 'The ship gives us tremendous capacity and operational flexibility.' CTF 53 provides logistics support to the Naval Forces Central Command area of operations, including underway replenishment by Military Sealift Command-operated ships. U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) is responsible for approximately 2.5 million square miles of area including the Arabian Gulf, Gulf of Oman, North Arabian Sea, Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea. NAVCENT's mission is to conduct maritime security operations, theater security cooperation efforts, and strengthen partner nation's maritime capabilities in order to promote security and stability in the U.S. 5th Fleet AOO. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address USS Bataan Completes Sea Trials Navy News Service Story Number: NNS160203-11 Release Date: 2/3/2016 1:03:00 PM By Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Caleb Strong, USS Bataan Public Affairs NORFOLK (NNS) -- Amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5) completed sea trials Feb. 1 after conducting major shipyard maintenance over the past 12 months. Sea trials are conducted after ships complete major shipyard maintenance and tests the ship's systems and to make sure the ship is ready for deployment. 'Sea trials provided the ship with a series of tests and validations in order to test newly installed, modified or overhauled equipment,' said Chief Warrant Officer 3 Aaron Dowdy from Richmond, Virginia, the ship's repair officer. 'Major equipment that needed testing included radars, the ship's propulsion system and the countermeasure wash down system, which is designed to defend the ship against chemical, biological and radiological attack.' Thanks to cooperation between Bataan Sailors and shipyard workers, work was performed to further prepare the ship to answer the nation's call. 'Sea trial success comes from Sailors and shipyard workers quickly learning how to work together,' Dowdy said. 'It's been months of planning and training. When it came down to execution, the crew was ready, and they made it happen.' Bataan's crew has been working many months in preparation for sea trials. The ship's maintenance period started in February 2015 in BAE Shipyards with the ship going into drydock. The crew spent months prior to that identifying maintenance needs and requesting them through the ship's maintenance system. After months of hard work from the crew and the shipyard workers, the ship returned to Naval Station Norfolk in December. Now all their hard work has paid off. 'The necessary system checks and work by the crew during sea trials makes certain Bataan will be ready to rejoin the fleet and get the crew for their next deployment,' said Dowdy. 'After a long shipyard period, it feels great to get the ship back out to sea. I'm extremely happy with the way the crew has come together and performed.' Once sea trials are completed, the ship will begin its training and qualification cycle. Sailors, new and old, will train and then be tested to show they are ready for the ship's next deployment. 'Since returning from deployment in 2014, we set three priorities here aboard Bataan,' said Bataan's Commanding Officer Capt. John 'JC' Carter. 'Our first two priorities were taking care of the Sailor and taking care of the Bataan family. After a long deployment, these were at the top of the list.' 'Our third priority was taking care of the ship,' said Carter. 'This crew, along with quite a number of new Sailors who checked into the command this past year, have stepped up to the plate and seriously hit a home run. I couldn't be prouder of the accomplishments we've made during this maintenance period.' Bataan is scheduled to begin the basic phase of the Optimized Fleet Response Training Plan in order to prepare for future deployments. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Yemeni forces shoot down Saudi spy aircraft in Hajjah Iran Press TV Wed Feb 3, 2016 3:33PM Yemeni forces shot down a Saudi spy aircraft on Wednesday in the northwestern province of Hajjah. According to Yemen's al-Masirah television channel, the Yemeni forces managed to shoot down the aircraft in the Harad district of the province. The downing of the spy aircraft comes a few days after the Yemeni troops fired a surface-to-air missile at another Saudi spy aircraft in Sa'ada Province. The Yemeni forces also killed 15 mercenaries fighting for the regime in Saudi Arabia as they thwarted an attempt by the militants to advance in Moris district of Yemen's province of Dalea. Meanwhile, Yemeni forces killed a Saudi soldier near the military base of al-Hathir in al-Tuwal district of Saudi Arabia's border province of Jizan. The Saudi military base of al-Faridah in Jizan was also hit by Yemeni artillery shells. Saudi war machine takes more lives in Yemen On Wednesday, Saudi warplanes carried out airstrikes on various districts in Yemen's northwestern province of Amran, killing at least 15 people. Saudi warplanes also bombarded areas in the provinces of Ma'rib, Dhamar, Ta'izz and Sana'a. Yemen has been under airstrikes by Saudi Arabia since March 26 last year. The Saudi strikes have been meant to undermine the Houthi Ansarullah movement and bring fugitive former president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, back to power. Nearly 8,280 people, among them 2,236 children, have reportedly been killed and over 16,000 others injured. The strikes have also taken a heavy toll on the impoverished country's infrastructure, destroying many hospitals, schools, and factories. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US drone crashes near Turkey's Incirlik air base Iran Press TV Wed Feb 3, 2016 3:25PM A US drone has crashed near Turkey's Incirlik air base with officials blaming a mechanical failure for the rare incident. Turkish media said on Wednesday that the US Predator drone crashed on a field south of the country after leaving the Incirlik base. A spokeswoman for the United States Air Forces in Europe said an investigation has been launched into the cause of the crash. Captain Lauren Ott, who is based at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, would not elaborate on the mission of the drone, but said mechanical failure may have caused the incident. Turkey's state-run Anadolu Agency cited a witness as saying that he heard a large explosion after an object with flashing lights crashed into a field. Police reportedly cordoned off the crash site, which officials said was simply an unpopulated area in southern Turkey, while inspections continued on the wreckage. Incirlik is where the US has stationed its warplanes to launch attacks on purported positions of the Takfiri Daesh terrorists operating in Iraq and Syria. Many in Turkey have criticized the government for allowing the US and allies to use Incirlik for an overt mission in the two Arab countries, saying the airstrikes could cost Turkey dearly in the future. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US Confirms Involvement in Syria Airfield Expansion by Zana Omar, Carla Babb February 03, 2016 At the urging of an American contingent, Syrian Kurds are expanding an airbase on farmland in northeast Syria that could be used for military purposes, according to Kurdish and U.S. officials. Known as Abu Hajar airport, the airbase is located in the Rmelan area of northern Syria, and is controlled by the Kurdish People's Defense Units and the Syrian Democratic Forces. Neither has an air force. A team of Americans pitched the idea to Syrian Democratic Forces to extend the runway, a defense official told VOA on the condition of anonymity. The official Wednesday said the airfield is being extended from 700 meters to 1,300 meters. The extension would be long enough to allow C-130 transport planes to land on the strip and potentially supply those fighting Islamic State forces in the area. "We need runways over there. Our guys said, 'Hey, it might not be a bad idea to extend this runway,'" the official said. The official added that while Americans did suggest the runway extension, there are no Americans physically helping with the airfield improvement. Airbase use Talal Silo, a spokesman for the Syria Democratic Forces, told VOA the airbase previously was used to carry agricultural products in the region and is now being expanded for humanitarian and, possibly, military use. "This does not mean it is a military base," he said. "We will use it to receive humanitarian and reconstruction aid." Still, Silo told VOA that using the airbase for military purposes by the U.S. is a possibility because "we are a strategic partner to the U.S." "This is a normal thing to happen as a part of our strategic partnership with the U.S," Silo said. "In the past, we received three airdrops of ammunition from the Americans. In the future, we may come to an agreement with the U.S. to use the airbase for aircrafts. We will not oppose that." Two U.S officials denied any U.S. military involvement in the planning or extending of the airfield, but refused to confirm or deny reports of CIA involvement. Not 'US defense effort' Another U.S. official cautioned that the airfield expansion is "not a U.S. defense effort." 'The U.S. military has not taken control of any airfield in Syria and press reports to the contrary are incorrect," Colonel Pat Ryder, a spokesman for U.S. Central Command, which overseas military operations in Iraq and Syria, told VOA in a statement. "That being said, U.S. forces in Syria are consistently looking for ways to increase efficiency for logistics and personnel recovery support.' Still, the Kurdish military spokesman Silo said American military experts will soon come to train Kurdish forces. "These experts will need a lot of equipment that can be sent via planes," he said. Imagery and eyewitness accounts in Syria and Iraq have appeared to support increased involvement by the United States. Showed construction According to the global intelligence company Stratfor, low-resolution satellite imagery, taken December 28 and released last month, showed construction to extend the runway. A VOA reporter who visited the airbase over the weekend found that it is heavily protected by walls and forces belonging to Kurdish Protection Units and Syrian Democratic Forces. No journalists are allowed to enter the area. The airfield is 120 kilometers from the Qamishli airport a civilian airport controlled by the Syrian government that is reported being used by Russian military aircraft flying missions in support of the regime. No Russian presence There was no evidence of a Russian military presence at Qamishli airport when VOA visited, but Fesla Yusif, deputy leader of the National Council of Syrian Kurds, confirmed the presence of Russian forces there. Yusif said he is troubled by what appears to be an increasing U.S. and Russian footprint in northern Syria, which largely has been free of fighting or an IS presence during Syria's civil war. "Syria is in a very bad and uncertain situation," Yusif said. "International powers have increased their presence in the country without a clear strategy.' VOA's Rikar Hussein contributed to this report. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Operation Inherent Resolve Strikes Continue in Syria, Iraq From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release SOUTHWEST ASIA, February 4, 2016 U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today. Officials reported details of the latest strikes, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports. Strikes in Syria Remotely piloted aircraft conducted two strikes in Syria: -- A strike near Ayn Isa struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle. -- A strike near Mara struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle. Strikes in Iraq Attack, fighter, ground-attack, and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 20 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of the Iraqi government: -- Near Habbaniyah, two strikes struck a large ISIL tactical unit, destroying three ISIL vehicles and four ISIL vehicle-borne improvised explosive devices and denying ISIL access to terrain. -- Near Kisik, a strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL vehicle. -- Near Mosul, five strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed 16 ISIL fighting positions, two ISIL vehicles, an ISIL assembly area, ISIL engineering equipment and an ISIL checkpoint. -- Near Qayyarah, six strikes struck four separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed six ISIL assembly areas, two ISIL command and control nodes, six ISIL vehicles, seven ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL mortar tube, an ISIL anti-air artillery piece, an ISIL weapons cache and an ISIL heavy machine gun. -- Near Ramadi, four strikes struck a large ISIL tactical unit and destroyed ISIL engineering equipment, an ISIL vehicle, an ISIL tactical vehicle, eight ISIL heavy machine guns, two ISIL rocket-propelled-grenade systems, an ISIL mortar system, an ISIL recoilless rifle, an ISIL staging area and 11 ISIL fighting positions. -- Near Sinjar, a strike destroyed an ISIL front-end loader. -- Near Sultan Abdallah, a strike suppressed an ISIL fighting position. Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target. Part of Operation Inherent Resolve The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, the region, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations, officials said. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Iraq include Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States. Coalition nations that have conducted strikes in Syria include Australia, Bahrain, Canada, France, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US drone attacks kill 12 in Yemen Iran Press TV Thu Feb 4, 2016 10:44AM At least 12 people have been killed in two US drone strikes in Yemen's southern provinces. Six of the fatalities all of whom were reportedly al-Qaeda militants were killed in a US drone raid in the Maraqesha district of Abyan Province early on Thursday. Among the dead was Jalal Belaidi, alias Abu Hamza, a senior commander of the al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), the Yemen-based branch of the militant group. At least six people were killed in another US drone attack in Shabwa Province of Yemen, a security official said. The drone targeted a vehicle belonging to al-Qaeda militants in the Rudum district of the province late on Wednesday, killing all the occupants, the unnamed official said. The US carries out drone attacks in Yemen and several other Muslim countries, including Pakistan and Afghanistan. Washington claims the attacks target al-Qaeda militants, but local sources say civilians have been the main victims of the raids. US drone strikes add further complexity to the convoluted situation in Yemen amid a Saudi war going on in the impoverished country. The AQAP has exploited the volatile atmosphere and the breakdown of security in Yemen since the beginning of the Saudi war to tighten its grip on areas in the southeast of the country. The Takfiri Daesh terrorist group, too, has gained ground in and around the main southern city of Aden. Ansarullah fighters, along with allied army units, are fighting Takfiri militants as well as Saudi-led forces in the war on Yemen. Saudi Arabia started the war last March in a bid to bring fugitive former Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi back to power. On Thursday, Saudi warplanes bombarded various areas across the Yemeni capital, Sana'a, killing and injuring an unknown number of people. Saudi assaults have so far claimed the lives of some 8,300 people and injured over 16,000 others in Yemen. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Prague Releases Suspected Lebanese Arms Trader Wanted By U.S. February 04, 2016 by RFE/RL A Czech court has set free a suspected Lebanese arms trader wanted by Washington in an exchange to free five Czech citizens held in Lebanon. The Prague Municipal Court on February 4 ordered the release of Ali Fayad, wanted in the United States for arms and drug smuggling, as a Czech Air Force plane left Beirut with the five Czech citizens aboard. Czech Defense Minister Martin Stropnicky told media that the five Czech citizens 'are returning home safe and sound on condition that Fayad will not be extradited to the United States. The cases are linked.' His acknowledgement of the exchange deal, which is sure to anger NATO-ally Washington, was the first official comment on a case that has fascinated Czech and Lebanese media for months. The affair, as complicated and full of mysteries as a paperback thriller, touches not only on Czech, Lebanese, and U.S. interests, but also deposed Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych and the Colombian guerilla group FARC. At the center of the story is Fayad, a Lebanese who holds a Ukrainian passport and was arrested at Washington's request while visiting the Czech Republic in 2014. According to Czech press reports citing unnamed security sources, Fayad is wanted by U.S. authorities for conducting smuggling operations across Europe and in Colombia. Washington accuses him and two accomplices, also jailed in Prague, of planning to exchange Ukrainian weapons for cocaine from FARC in a deal with U.S. agents posing as members of the Colombian guerrilla group. Fayad has reportedly also served previously as a manager in Ukraine's state-controlled arms export company Ukrspecexport and prior to that as an adviser to Yanukovych, the former pro-Moscow president of Ukraine. Intense Speculation Until recently, Czech authorities had looked set to extradite Fayad and his two associates to the United States. But the cards were scrambled in July when five Czechs, including a lawyer from Fayad's defense team, Jan Svarc, were allegedly kidnapped while visiting Lebanon. Lebanese media reported that the group was picked up in Beirut by a van driven by Fayad's half-brother, Saib Munir Taan, and that the van was later found abandoned in the Bekaa Valley near the Syrian border with no trace of its occupants. Just why the five Czechs were in Lebanon has been the subject of intense media speculation in Prague. The Czech daily MF Dnes has quoted unidentified official Czech sources as saying that Svarc was the intermediary for an offer by alleged Lebanese intelligence officers to provide information to Czech intelligence officials regarding the disappearance of another Czech national in Libya last year. The Czech civil intelligence branch reportedly refused the offer, but a journalist who is an expert on military affairs and considered close to the military intelligence branch accompanied Svarc to Beirut along with two reporters from Czech regional TV stations and an interpreter. That could suggest that supporters of Fayad somehow orchestrated a hostage situation in which Prague could be pressed to make an exchange deal. However, such a scenario is just one of many being speculated upon in the Czech press, with no clear picture yet to emerge. Fayad's defense team has said that there was nothing unusual about Svarc's trip to Beirut and that Svarc had visited Lebanon repeatedly to secure documents for Fayad's defense. Czech media attention now looks likely to remain riveted upon the exchange and how the Czech government so abruptly reversed what had been its official position following the presumed kidnapping. The exchange comes a day after Foreign Minister Lubomir Zaoralek said: 'We don't make deals with terrorists. That is our long-term position.' How Washington will view the about-face on its extradition request remains to be seen. One of Fayad's two associates was also released on February 4. RFE/RL's Kristyna Foltynova in Prague contributed to this report Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/prague-lebanese-ali- fayad-released-extradition-us/27532663.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Moldovan Protest Leader Accuses U.S. Of 'Unification' Plot, Hails Soviet Past February 04, 2016 by Eugen Tomiuc and Merhat Sharipzhan One of the pro-Moscow leaders of recent antigovernment protests in Moldova has made anti-U.S. remarks that appear to be aimed at tapping into east-west tensions to whip up support for early elections that could boost Kremlin influence in his country. Socialist Party chairman Igor Dodon accused Washington of pressing for the 'terrible scenario' of the unification of Moldova and Romania and urged a return 'home' of tiny, politically fraught Moldova 'back in the U.S.S.R.' through membership of the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union. Dodon and some unlikely allies are currently fighting for fresh elections that polls suggest would favor pro-Moscow forces, potentially bolstering Russia's influence in a state that borders the European Union and NATO. Street protests peaked in late January after lawmakers approved a new pro-European government led by Prime Minister Pavel Filip but have ground mostly to a halt aside from a small tent camp in the capital, Chisinau. The tensions, which included the storming of parliament by angry demonstrators, follow a year of political turbulence since revelations in late 2014 that more than $1 billion -- or around one-eighth of Moldova's gross domestic product -- disappeared from the banking system. In an interview with Russian daily Komsomolskaya Pravda on February 3, Dodon claimed that Moldovan authorities had received 'carte blanche from the West to use force' in their efforts to maintain control. Dodon added that despite 'hatred, and a passionate desire to overthrow the government,' he and the leaders of the pro-Russian Our Party and the pro-European Dignity and Truth party leading public protests cannot reach a common position. Dodon suggested the pro-Russian protest camp is advocating patience in order to avoid provocations, while its pro-European counterparts are more impatient to force change. 'Nobody wants blood, but the clock is ticking,' Dodon told Komsomolskaya Pravda. He blamed the United States and its NATO ally Romania for abetting the political crisis plaguing Moldova, one of Europe's poorest countries. 'Why invest [money] in tiny Moldova, why get involved in her problems and save her from starvation?' Dodon asked rhetorically, adding, 'Now the Americans have another, much more terrifying project, called 'Unirea 2018'' -- Romanian for Unification 2018 -- 'the merger of Moldova with Romania to mark the centenary of the Grand Unification of 1918.' The U.S.S.R. incorporated the former Romanian province of Bessarabia during World War II, turning most of its territory into the Soviet republic of Moldova but also granting part to Soviet Ukraine. Both Moldova and Ukraine became independent in 1991. The topic of unification is an emotionally charged one between the two countries, which share a common history and language. Dodon warned that any Moldovan unification with Romania would trigger a regional conflict pitting Romanian and Ukrainian troops on one side against Russian troops -- currently stationed in Moldova's separatist region of Transdniester -- on the other. 'This is what the United States is hoping for,' Dodon said, without offering details, adding that such a 'tragedy' would spread conflict well into the European Union -- with whom Moldova signed an association agreement in 2014, much to the annoyance of Moscow. Dodon said the only way back to the 'fairytale times' of Soviet prosperity is through the Eurasian Economic Union, which includes Belarus, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan along with Russia. 'We want to go home,' Dodon said. 'Back in the U.S.S.R.' Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/moldova- socialist-party-dodon/27532627.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US Vice-Ambassador Explains Why Poland Won't Be Getting New NATO Bases Sputnik News 17:45 04.02.2016(updated 19:44 04.02.2016) Despite the Pentagon's announcement that it has plans to quadruple its spending in Europe to contain an 'aggressive' Russia, Poland won't be getting new permanent NATO bases, according to US Deputy Ambassador to Poland John C. Law. On Tuesday, US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter rolled out the Pentagon's plans for its 2017 budget, outlining $583 billion in spending. The budget proposes the quadrupling of US military spending for Europe from its current $789 million to $3.4 billion. For its part, Polish media reacted to the announcement with the hope that Washington had made up its mind on stationing additional forces and equipment in Europe, and specifically, on the construction of new permanent NATO bases in Poland. Late last month, during a visit to NATO headquarters in Brussels, President Andrzej Duda said that he wanted to see 'as permanent a presence as possible,' so that the 'potential attacker' knows that any attack on NATO member states would be a futile venture. But the US has been looking to avoid further aggravating tensions with Moscow. For now, Washington continues to recognize that new NATO bases in Eastern Europe, including Poland, would be a breach of the 1997 NATO-Russia Founding Act, which prohibits the permanent stationing of 'significant forces' in former Warsaw Pact states. On Wednesday, in an interview for Polish radio station RMF 24, John C. Law, the US Deputy Chief of Mission to Poland, reiterated that unfortunately for Warsaw, the Pentagon's planned spending increases do not mean that the US will be building new bases in Poland. 'It's not about the lack of will to ensure equal security for all; it's about the belief that there are other, more effective ways to ensure this security,' the official said, responding to his interviewer's question about whether the new spending was a sign that Washington had decided to change course ahead of this summer's upcoming NATO summit. Assuring listeners that Poland would get its fair share of the security to be provided by the Pentagon's spending spree, Law noted that the money would go to improving existing NATO infrastructure in the area, including the Lask Airbase in central Poland, where a detachment of US Air Force units has been permanently based since 2012. For instance, the deputy ambassador noted, the base's runway may be upgraded to accommodate more planes. 'Secondly, funds are allocated for additional military exercises. Some people think that exercises are only symbolic, but they would be mistaken. They are not just symbolic, and will make our countries' armies work better as a team.' 'The third area concerns the better distribution of the equipment needed for these exercises. The president mentioned yesterday that the equipment and supplies should be arranged closer to the areas where they would be needed in case of conflictThis would give us the opportunity to respond quickly, which is one of the components of the commitments we made during the [2014] NATO summit in Wales.' With his interviewer complaining that permanent bases would also have a symbolic importance for Poland, indicating 'a kind of break from its status as a second-class member of the NATO alliance,' Law responded by pointing out that today, as far as Washington is concerned, the strategic situation differs from the one which existed in the 1950s or 1960s, and that large permanent bases no longer make sense. 'The current threatsare different. We are talking about so-called hybrid warfare, about cyberattacks; this differs from traditional threats,' the official noted. In this situation, Law said, 'we believe that the best potential for deterrence is a rapid response capacity to provide quick, skillful, fast-moving forces wherever they are needed. Two weeks ago, without prior notice, we moved an American battalion equipped with Patriot missiles to western Poland to conduct exercises with Polish troops. This, in my opinion, is the best example of this capability to act quickly and transfer the necessary equipment.' Ultimately, the deputy ambassador noted, 'one of the most important things that we must reaffirm in Warsaw, at the symbolic first summit in an Eastern European NATO state, is that we are following up on the direction taken at the Newport summit in the direction of building such [rapid response] capabilities.' Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US: Slight Decrease in IS Fighters in Iraq, Syria by Carla Babb February 04, 2016 A U.S. defense official says there has been a decrease in the number of Islamic State fighters in Iraq and Syria, while numbers of IS militants in Libya have increased. The U.S. now estimates there are between 19,000 and 25,000 IS militants in Iraq and Syria, the official told VOA Tuesday, slightly lower that previous estimates of 20,000-31,500 fighters in the area. The numbers, however, do suggest that the Islamic State has been able to replenish its ranks, despite the heavy losses. Defense officials say airstrikes have decreased the terror group's strength and hindered its movement capabilities. Thousands have been killed by the bombings and hundreds more have died from fighting on the ground. At the White House, Press Secretary Josh Earnest said the drop in the number of IS fighters in Iraq and Syria is a testament to opposition fighters and aggressive U.S.-led coalition action. In Libya, a defense official confirmed the number of Islamic State fighters has risen to about 5,000, as VOA has previously reported . Earlier U.S. estimates had put the number at between 2,000 and 3,000. Earnest said the U.S. is aware IS wants to exploit weaknesses in Libya and well as Afghanistan. Admiral Michael Franken, U.S. Africa Command's Deputy for Military Operations, warned VOA in December that Sirte, Libya, had become the 'divided nucleus' to Raqqa, Syria, the so-called caliphate's headquarters. VOA National Security correspondent Jeff Seldin and White House correspondent Mary Alice Salinas contributed to this report NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Belarus Concludes Preliminary Purchase Agreement for Russian Su-30 Fighters Sputnik News 18:29 04.02.2016 Russia-made Sukhoi Su-30 multirole fighters will replace outdated Mikoyan MiG-29 fighters in the Belarusian Air Froces, according to Belarus deputy defense minister. MINSK (Sputnik) Belarus has reached a preliminary agreement with the Russian Irkut Corporation to acquire Sukhoi Su-30 multirole fighters for its Air Force, the country's deputy defense minister said Thursday. According to Igor Lotenkov, as quoted by the SB Belarus Segodnya newspaper, these aircraft will replace its outdated Mikoyan MiG-29 fighters. '[The Air Force's] capability to destroy air targets after the acquisition of the Su-30s will increase, while extensive tactical range of the [Su-30] jets will enable the Air Force to perform combat missions from any airport in the country,' he said. The Su-30 fighter is a two-seat derivative of the earlier Su-27 Flanker with an extended operating range, capable of air-to-air and air-to-ground strikes and equipped with a wide variety of precision-guided munitions. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Recent PLA restructuring partially aimed at Taiwan: analyst Central News Agency 2016/02/03 15:47:52 Hong Kong, Feb. 3 (CNA) China unveiled Monday five new military theater commands -- the East, West, South, North and Middle theater commands -- the latest move in a high-profile military reform program. The establishment of an army force unit in the East theater command in Fuzhou, in the eastern province of Fujian, seems to be aimed at Taiwan, a military analyst said Wednesday. China that day completed the reorganization of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) under the five military battle zone commands, replacing the current seven military area commands headquartered in Beijing, Nanjing, Chengdu, Jinan, Shenyang, Lanzhou and Guangzhou, Hong Kong's Ta Kung Pao newspaper reported Wednesday. The East theater command was ranked top among the five military zone commands and is headquartered in Nanjing. Hong Kong-based military analyst Leung Kwok-Leung () said that as it faces the Pacific Ocean, the PLA's East theater command will be tasked with tackling issues related to the island chains in the region and the dispute between China and Japan over control of the Diayoutai Islands in the East China Sea -- known as the Senkaku islands in Japan and the Diaoyu Islands in China. As long as China requires the deployment of army forces in the region, the only possibility must be aimed at Taiwan, according to Leung. Before the latest restructuring of the PLA, the Xiamen-based 31st Group Army belonging to the Nanjing Military Region was believed to target Taiwan, Leung said. The establishment of the army force unit of the East theater command in Fujian will enable the PLA to train forces based on the situation across the Taiwan Strait and fully devote itself in case of a military conflict, according to Leung. Meanwhile, the 1st Group Army, headquartered in Huzhou, which also belongs to the Nanjing Military Region, could also be deployed in case of such a military conflict, Leung added. The 31st Group Army has troops, fleets of helicopters, amphibious armored vehicles and landing craft, and is aimed at maintaining standard combat preparedness for landing attacks. In addition to army forces, Leung said, should a military conflict take place in the Taiwan Strait, military ships belonging to the PLA's East Sea Fleet based in the Zhoushan Islands will also be brought in as support. (By Stanley Cheung and Evelyn Kao) ENDITEM/J NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address S. Korean politicians urge DPRK to drop rocket launch plan People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 17:05, February 03, 2016 SEOUL, Feb. 3 -- South Korean politicians on Wednesday called for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to drop its rocket launch plan. Won Yoo-Cheol, floor leader of the ruling Saenuri Party, told a party meeting that the DPRK is challenging the international society in about a month after its fourth nuclear test violating the U.N. Security Council resolutions. He urged the South Korean government to closely monitor signs of the DPRK's rocket launch and to make utmost efforts in discouraging Pyongyang from conducting 'further provocations.' The main opposition Minjoo Party also called on the DPRK to immediately stop a plan for 'provocative acts,' saying that the pre-announcement of the launch was in clear violation of U.N. resolutions that causes harsh criticisms and sanctions from the international society. The bipartisan calls came amid surging tensions on the Korean peninsula after Pyongyang's claim on Jan. 6 that it had tested its first H-bomb, the fourth in total of its nuclear detonations. The DPRK on Tuesday informed international organizations of its plan to put an earth observation satellite, called Kwangmyongsong, into orbit between Feb. 8 and Feb. 25, triggering harsh criticisms from its neighbors. Under U.N. Security Council resolutions, the DPRK is banned from launching any rocket by using its ballistic missile technology. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address White House condemns DPRK's satellite launch plan, urging swift int'l response People's Daily Online (Xinhua) 09:00, February 03, 2016 WASHINGTON -- The White House on Tuesday condemned the new satellite launch plan of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), urging a swift response of the international community to what it called 'another irresponsible provocation.' 'I feel confident in telling you that the international community would regard a step like that by the North Koreans(DPRK) as just another irresponsible provocation and a clear violation of their international obligations,' White House spokesman Josh Earnest told a daily news briefing. The DPRK has informed three United Nations entities of its intentions to launch an earth-observation satellite between Feb. 8 to 25, a U.N. spokesman said Tuesday. But the DPRK side has not yet confirmed the plan. Earnest said the United States has worked closely with China, South Korea, Russia and Japan to convey to Pyongyang the need to 'end their provocative actions.' Also on Tuesday, the US State Department urged the international community and the UN to respond quickly and impose new sanctions against Pyongyang. 'The UN Security Council has a role to play by holding it (the DPRK) accountable by imposing a tough, comprehensive and credible package of new sanctions and by ensuring vigorous enforcement of the resolutions already adopted,' State Department spokesman John Kirby said on a daily news briefing. 'This latest announcement further underscores for the international community to send the North Koreans(DPRK) the swift firm message that their disregard for the UN Security Council obligations will not be tolerated,' Kirby said. The Obama administration has been mulling additional sanctions against the DPRK in response to its recent nuclear test. The DPRK said it successfully tested a hydrogen bomb last month. However, this was met with scepticism by US and South Korean officials and nuclear experts. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Japan will destroy North Korea missile in case of threat: Tokyo Iran Press TV Wed Feb 3, 2016 2:26PM Tokyo has ordered ballistic missile defense units in the Sea of Japan and onshore to shoot down any North Korean missile that would threaten its territory. Japan's Defense Ministry said on Wednesday that it would destroy any North Korean missile if it threatened to fall on its territory, after Pyongyang announced it planned to launch a space rocket this month. "Today the defense minister issued an order" to destroy such a missile if it "is confirmed that it will fall on Japanese territory," the Japanese ministry said in a statement. Defense Minister Gen Nakatani, who issued the order, cited the "possibility that North Korea will launch a missile it calls a 'satellite' within coming days." North Korea notified UN agencies on Tuesday that it is launching an earth observation satellite sometime between February 8 and 25. Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said his administration would work with the United States and others to urge North Korea to refrain from the launch. South Korea also urged its northern neighbor to immediately call off the plan, saying it is in violation of UN Security Council resolutions. Seoul warned that North Korea would pay a "severe price" if it goes on with the plan. China, which is viewed as one of the main backers of the government on Pyongyang, has also raised concerns about the launch, calling on North Korea to exercise restraint. Tokyo's Wednesday order, which will be effective until February 25, will be carried out by Japan's ballistic missile defense system, the Japanese Defense Ministry said. The system which is stationed aboard warships includes PAC-3 surface-to-air anti-ballistic missiles, and similar SM-3 systems. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address North Korea to pay severe price for missile launch: South Iran Press TV Wed Feb 3, 2016 5:41AM South Korea has warned the neighboring North of a "severe price" if it proceeds with a plan to launch a long-range missile later this month. On Tuesday, North Korea gave a shipping warning to the International Maritime Organization (IMO) over its plan to launch an 'earth observation satellite' some time between February 8 and 25. An IMO spokesman said North Korea informed the UN agency that it will launch the 'Kwangmyongsong' satellite. The International Telecommunication Union also said that the agency was notified by Pyongyang that it planned to launch a satellite with a functional duration of four years in a non-geostationary orbit. South Korea's Presidential Blue House said in a statement on Wednesday that Pyongyang is not going to launch an observation satellite but a long-range missile, adding that Pyongyang should immediately call off the launch as it is a clear violation of UN Security Council resolutions. 'North Korea's notice of the plan to launch a long-range missile, coming at a time when there is a discussion for Security Council sanctions on its fourth nuclear test, is a direct challenge to the international community,' said the Blue House. 'We strongly warn that the North will pay a severe price ... if it goes ahead with the long-range missile launch plan,' it added UN resolutions ban North Korea from any use of ballistic missile technology. In December 2012, the UN imposed sanctions following the country's previous rocket launch. Also on Wednesday, Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe condemned the North Korean plan. 'If North Korea goes ahead and launches the rocket, it would clearly violate UN Security Council resolutions and pose a serious provocation,' Abe told the parliament. Meanwhile, Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani said that PAC-3 surface-to-air missile defense systems were deployed to three bases in and around the capital, Tokyo. Nakatani also said that Tokyo will take "every possible measure" to deal with any threat linked to Pyongyang's possible ballistic missile launch. North Korea says it has a right to pursue scientific programs through launching rockets. The US and its regional allies, however, believe that the launches are part of Pyongyang's efforts to build an intercontinental ballistic missile. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address DPR Korea's intention to launch a satellite 'deeply troubling' - UN chief 3 February 2016 United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today said the intention of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to launch a satellite in the coming weeks is a "deeply worrying development." According to a statement issued by Mr. Ban's spokesperson, this "will further aggravate the profound concerns that the international community already has in the wake of the recent nuclear test." The statement is referring to an underground nuclear test announced by the DPRK on 6 January, which the United Nations at the time deplored, calling it "a grave contravention of the international norm against nuclear testing." Today, the Secretary-General also called upon the DPRK to refrain from using ballistic missile technology and work for peace and stability on the Korean peninsula. "He stands ready to help to reduce tensions and facilitate reconciliation and dialogue," the statement added. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russian-Indian Missile to BeTest Fired From Su-30MKI Jet Before End 2016 Sputnik News 15:53 04.02.2016(updated 17:28 04.02.2016) A supersonic BrahMos cruise missile will be tested from a Su-30MKI fighter jet for the first time in the second half of 2016. MOSCOW, (Sputnik) A supersonic BrahMos cruise missile will be tested from a Su-30MKI (NATO reporting name: Flanker-H) fighter jet for the first time in the second half of 2016, the head of Russian-Indian BrahMos Aerospace enterprise, Sudhir Mishra, said Thursday. According to Mishra, around three or four varieties of the missile will be launched first to test integration. After this, dummy and technology tests will be carried out before testing the actual missile on land and naval targets. 'We should be able to reach to that stage in the second part of 2016 The day BrahMos is successfully test-fired from Su-30MKI, the whole aeronautics community would be saluting us for achieving a very, very difficult milestone in missile and aeronautical technology,' Mishra told the Economic Times news outlet. BrahMos, a word combining Brahmaputra and Moskva, is a short-range supersonic missile, which has been used by the Indian Navy since 2005. The missile has a range of 180 miles and can carry a conventional warhead of up to 660 pounds. BrahMos Aerospace was formed by India's Defense Research and Development Organization and Russia's NPO Mashinostroyenia. It produces weapons systems using Russian and Indian technology. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Indian Air Force to Spend Up to $22Mln on Security Across 54 Bases Sputnik News 15:39 04.02.2016(updated 16:13 04.02.2016) The Indian Air Force will spend the equivalent of up to $22.1 million to ensure security at its bases after an attack on one near the Pakistani border, Indian media quoted a senior air force official involved in the process as saying Thursday. NEW DELHI (Sputnik) The decision was made after three servicemen were killed on January 2 in a militant attack on the Pathankot air base. 'We estimate that about Rs 100-150 crore [$14.7 million to $22.1 million] each will be required for new security measures for 54 major bases. This will be the first stage to be followed by upgrade of security of other installations,' the official told The Economic Times. Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar's security audit points to the need for smart surveillance systems, unmanned aerial vehicles and advanced intrusion detection systems, the publication states. 'The requirements of each base are unique and there will not be any standard upgrade. Depending on the specific requirements of the base, a plan will be drawn,' the official added. The Indian Foreign Ministry called on Pakistan to deliver 'prompt and decisive action' based on the evidence provided to it by India about the terror attack, suggesting that the assailants were Pakistani Kashmir-based Jaish-e-Mohammed militants. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US House passes bill restricting removal of Iran sanctions Iran Press TV Wed Feb 3, 2016 1:34AM The US House of Representatives has approved a bill aimed at hindering the implementation of Iran's historical nuclear agreement with the P5+1 group of countries. On Tuesday, members voted 246-181 to pass the 'Iran Terror Finance Transparency Act,' which curbs President Barack Obama's ability to remove certain sanctions waiting to be removed in accordance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The bill was almost passed last month, but voting on the measure was canceled after nearly one third of lawmakers did not show up in time to cast their votes. The measures, being pushed by the Republican party, are not expected to become legislation as Obama has vowed a veto, arguing that they would derail the agreement. Iran and the five permanent members of the UN Security Council the United States, France, Britain, China and Russia plus Germany started to implement the JCPOA on January 16. After JCPOA went into effect, all nuclear-related sanctions imposed on Iran by the European Union, the Security Council and the US were lifted. Iran in return has put some limitations on its nuclear activities. The nuclear agreement was signed on July 14, 2015 following two and a half years of intensive talks. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iraqi Kurdish president calls for independence referendum Iran Press TV Tue Feb 2, 2016 11:6PM President of Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) Masoud Barzani has called for a non-binding independence referendum. 'That referendum does not mean proclaiming statehood, but rather to know the will and opinion of the Kurdish people about independence and for the Kurdish political leadership to execute the will of the people at the appropriate time and conditions,' said Barzani in a statement published on his website on Tuesday. He added that "the situation is now suitable" for Kurds to decide about their fate. 'If the people of Kurdistan are waiting for someone else to present the right of self-determination as a gift, independence will never be obtained. That right exists and the people of Kurdistan must demand it and put it into motion,' Barzani noted. Over the past few years, Iraq's Kurdish region has attempted to increase its semi-autonomy by constructing an independent oil pipeline to Turkey and conducting other oil exports. But the presence of the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group in Iraq and Syria and a global decline in oil prices have brought the region close to insolvency. "Our region has witnessed too many disasters and change is on the way and the Kurds haven't caused any of it. The Kurds have only been the victims while others have brought disasters and conflict to the region," he said. In the past, Barzani has made similar calls for a referendum without setting a specific timetable or date. 'The same way that Scotland, Catalonia and Quebec and other places have the right to express their opinions about their destiny, Kurdistan too has the right, and it's non-negotiable," he said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Second Batch of F-16 Fighter Jets Arrives in Iraq Sputnik News 18:18 03.02.2016(updated 19:51 03.02.2016) Iraq will get more F-16 fighter jets from the US, according to the US Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman. WASHINGTON (Sputnik) The Iraqi air force has received two additional F-16 fighter jets, Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman Col. Steve Warren told reporters on Wednesday. 'I can confirm that a second batch of F-16s has arrived here in Iraq,' Warren stated in a briefing. 'It's quantity of two, which brings the total count of F-16s here in the Iraq air force up to six.' In 2012, Iraq signed a contract to buy its second set of 18 F-16 fighters from the United States, part of a deal to purchase 36 of the jets to rebuild its air force, according to the country's defense ministry. Warren explained that the lack of trained Iraqi pilots limits US ability to deliver the jets to the country. In January, the US Department of State has approved a potential $1.95 billion sale of additional weapons, munitions and equipment for Iraq's fleet of F-16 fighter jets. The requested order included 24 air-to-air AIM-9M Sidewinder missiles, 150 air-to-ground tactical Maverick missiles and more than 16,000 warheads, among other equipment, according to the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iraqi Kurdish Leader: Time 'Ripe' for Independence Referendum by Sharon Behn February 03, 2016 Iraqi Kurdistan's regional President Masoud Barzani has announced that the time has come for Kurdistan to hold a referendum to decide on declaring unilateral independence from Baghdad. "The time is ripe for the people of Kurdistan to decide their future," Barzani said in a statement released Tuesday. He said while the result of the referendum would not lead to an immediate break with Baghdad, it would prepare the ground to declare an independent state "at an appropriate time and circumstance." Any move toward independence could be fraught with challenges: There are deep divisions among Kurdish political factions that support Barzani's continued hold on the presidency and others who oppose him. Economic pressures Kurdistan is also suffering from a severe economic crunch, with many public salaries now months in arrears. Baghdad cut funding to the region in 2014 after the Kurds, seeking economic independence, built an oil pipeline to Turkey and began exporting oil without Baghdad's approval. Stephen Cook, senior fellow for Middle East Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, says economic pressures could have played into Barzani's decision. "The Kurdistan Regional Government is in serious financial straits because of low oil prices and the perennial fighting with Baghdad over money," Cook told VOA. "This could be seen as an effort to extract money from the central government in Baghdad," he said. A KRG team on January 31 met with Iraqi government officials to discuss reforms aimed at resolving the economic crisis that both are facing, Reuters reported. Iraqi Kurdish forces are seen as Washington's strongest local partners in the fight against Islamic State extremists, although Kurdish Peshmerga are still heavily reliant on coalition forces' help to keep the militants at bay. Putting U.S. on notice Cook said Barzani may also have wanted "to put the Americans on notice that the Kurds are not going to ask for permission to establish an independent state." Because Barzani also enjoys a relatively positive relationship with Ankara, Cook said Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan could be prepared to work with an independent Kurdistan while continuing to attack Syrian Kurds, who Ankara believes are linked to independence-seeking Kurds in Turkey. Kurdistan is officially made up of three northern provinces, but during the fight against IS, Kurdish forces have spread beyond that to control areas that are disputed with Baghdad, such as parts of the oil-rich region of Kirkuk. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Turkish warplanes bomb northern Iraqi village Iran Press TV Thu Feb 4, 2016 2:11PM Turkish fighter jets have bombarded a village in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, as Ankara continues with its operation against militants of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). According to a report by Iraq's al-Sumaria satellite TV network, the warplanes targeted the village in the northern province of Dohuk on Thursday. There has been no immediate report of casualties in the aftermath of the aerial attacks. Witnesses, however, said the airstrikes inflicted heavy damage on the village while many of its residents reportedly left their homes fearing fresh attacks on the area. In mid January, the Turkish military said its jets carried out airstrikes against the PKK militants, destroying their compounds in northern Iraq. Turkey's aerial campaign inside the Iraqi territory has repeatedly drawn fire from Baghdad, which has denounced Ankara for violating the country's sovereignty. The Iraqi government is also urging Turkey to pull out troops from a base in the Arab country's north. Turkish forces have killed hundreds of the PKK militants since mid-December, said the military. Ankara launched airstrikes against PKK positions in Iraq and Turkey as well as purported Daesh targets in Syria after a deadly July 20, 2015 bomb attack attributed to Daesh terrorists left over 30 people dead in the southeastern Turkish town of Suruc, across the border from the northern Kurdish Syrian town of Kobani. A shaky ceasefire between Ankara and the PKK that had stood since 2013 was declared null and void by the militants following the Turkish airstrikes against the group. The PKK has been fighting for an autonomous Kurdish region in southeastern Turkey since the 1984. The conflict has left tens of thousands of people dead. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address South Korea threatens to shoot down any rocket by North Iran Press TV Thu Feb 4, 2016 10:21AM South Korea says the North's planned rocket launch would never be "tolerated," threatening to destroy any projectile or debris that falls on its territory. South Korean President Park Geun-Hye said on Thursday a rocket launch by Pyongyang following 'its nuclear test is a threat to peace on the Korean peninsula and to the world, and should never be tolerated." Park called for strong UN sanctions to force Pyongyang to abandon the programs. Diplomats from UN Security Council also called for fresh sanctions against North Korea. On Tuesday, Pyongyang informed international organizations that it will launch an observation satellite aboard a rocket between February 8 and 25. South Korea, the United States and others warned the North, saying such a move would be a cover for a banned test of a missile that could strike the United States. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) confirmed that Pyongyang had informed the UN agency about its plan to launch the 'Kwangmyongsong' satellite. South Korea's Defense Ministry said on Thursday it's using Aegis-equipped destroyers, aircraft, sophisticated radars and other surveillance assets to monitor the launch preparations. "The military is ramping up its air defense readiness so it can intercept a missile or any debris that lands in our territory or waters," ministry spokesman Moon Sang-Gyun said. Japan issued a similar warning, saying it will destroy any North Korean projectile that infringes on its territory. Citing diplomatic sources, Japan's public broadcaster NHK said Pyongyang may be also preparing for a ballistic missile test from a base on its east coast along with the rocket launch. The report claimed that "a mobile launch pad in North Korea's eastern coastal area was on the move." US officials also warned against the launch and said it would threaten regional security and violate UN Security Council resolutions. North Korea, however, accuses the US of plotting with regional allies to topple its government. Pyongyang says it will not relinquish its nuclear deterrence unless the US ends its hostile policy toward North Korea and dissolves the US-led military command in South Korea. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Micromanaged Democracy: Russia's Ruling Party Schools Candidates On Campaigning February 03, 2016 by Robert Coalson Elections for Russia's State Duma, as well as a large number of local contests, are scheduled for September. And the ruling United Russia party wants to make sure its candidates are prepared for any awkward encounters with voters or journalists. The party has created a largely closed section on its website with videos instructing potential candidates how to talk about prickly issues like the long reign of President Vladimir Putin, the confrontation with the West, and the difficult economic situation. The videos can only be viewed by registered users who state they plan to participate in the elections, but the RBK news agency on February 2 published a report on their content. According to RBK, on the subject of Putin, United Russia candidates are supposed to emphasize the 'lawlessness' of the 1990s, which the party says was overcome after Putin was elected president in 2000. Russia at that time was 'not only on its knees, but on the edge of the abyss,' the party-approved narrative goes. Secondly, candidates should emphasize that 'there are no other leaders in the country.' As for the anti-Putin opposition, the party takes the predictable line that 'the United States wants to take over the world with the aid of 'Orange Revolutions' and now has Russia in its sights.' It warns candidates to be wary of attempts by the opposition to foment separatism, especially in the Caucasus, Siberia, and the Far East. A video stating that Russia 'is the world champion of freedom of speech,' is hosted by Dmitry Kiselyov, head of the state media conglomerate Rossia Segodnya. He says that 'obstacles to journalism and public speech as a means of self-expression are what led Ukraine to the state it is in now.' Ukraine is struggling to overcome economic problems and interference by Russia, which seized Crimea in 2014 and backs separatists who control parts of two eastern provinces. 'Mistakes Of Bureaucrats' As for talking about the economy, the United Russia videos give little advice but generally support the recommendations of Sergei Glazyev, a leftist economic adviser to Putin. RBK asked United Russia Duma deputy Vyacheslav Nikonov about the lack of instruction and he said the party has not yet developed its economic platform. When confronted with specific questions about top leaders and 'the mistakes of bureaucrats' -- most of whom would likely be from the ranks of the party, which dominates Russia's political environment at all levels -- would-be candidates are urged to insist that they are running for office 'partly in order to get rid of such ballast.' In another swipe at the 1990s, Duma deputy Irina Yarovaya urges candidates to tell voters that 'during the time when there were elements of sinister competition in the parliament, when the times were most difficult for the country, at those times, our party was not yet there.' According to RBK, more than 11,000 people have registered to access the site. Elections in Russia are highly managed and noncompetitive, and the liberal opposition has been pushed to the margins since Putin came to power. But United Russia seeks to attract as many votes as possible, both to score points with Putin and to minimize the extent of manipulation needed to achieve the Kremlin's aims. Following regional balloting in September 2014, a journalist with the daily Kommersant, Maria Karnaukh, wrote that elections held 'in all of the country's 84 regions resulted in victory for the United Russia party. [I]n the race for governors' seats, the ruling party candidates scored an average of 77.2 percent.' United Russia currently controls 238 of the 450 seats in the Duma, Russia's lower parliament house, with all the others held by three nominal opposition parties that routinely vote with United Russia. The party also holds 2,840 of 3,787 seats in the country's regional legislatures. Almost all of Russia's regional governors are United Russia members and, in most cases, head the party's regional sections. The party's chairman is Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev. Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-videos-putin- ruling-party-schooling-candidates/27530316.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Silent and Deadly: High Tech Russian Subs Give NATO Pause For Thought Sputnik News 19:18 03.02.2016 Top ranking NATO officials are becoming concerned with technologically advanced Russian submarines operating in the North Atlantic. According to Vice Admiral Clive Johnstone, Commander of NATO's Maritime Command, his subordinates report 'more activity from Russian submarines than we've seen since the days of the Cold War', HIS Jane's points out. NATO is currently facing 'a level of Russian capability that we haven't seen before,' he added. According to the vice admiral, Russia has managed to achieve 'technology leaps that [are] remarkable, and credit to them' through 'an extraordinary investment path not mirrored by the West.' The new Russian submarines have better systems and longer operational ranges, he added. Furthermore, it has become apparent that Russia has also worked hard on improving the expertise of its naval submarine crews, Dave Majumdar, the Defense Editor of The National Interest, remarks citing a report by the US Office of Naval Intelligence. As a result, NATO personnel have 'seen a rise in professionalism and ability to operate their boats that we haven't seen before', Johnstone adds. The current level of Russian submarine activity in the North Atlantic is 'very different from the period of quiet submarine activity that perhaps we've seen in the past,' Vice Admiral Johnstone concludes, claiming that 'that is a concern.' Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia to Oust 'Shady' Soviet Military Equipment Repair Plans in Africa Sputnik News 18:38 03.02.2016(updated 19:42 03.02.2016) Russia plans to stamp out 'shady' repair and upgrade plans for Soviet-era military equipment offered to African nations, a high-ranking official in the Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation (FSMTC) told RIA Novosti on Wednesday. MOSCOW (Sputnik) Russia plans to stamp out 'shady' repair and upgrade plans for Soviet-era military equipment offered to African nations, a high-ranking official in the Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation (FSMTC) told RIA Novosti on Wednesday. 'We have the ability to push aside the 'gray schemes' offered by our competitors from Eastern Europe, Ukraine and China in repairing and modernizing Soviet (Russian) military equipment,' the FSMTC official said. The official stressed that African clients understand that repairs must be carried out legitimately. 'They want to work with Russia. Many African countries have refused, for example, to work with Ukraine because of the poor quality of the parts [they supply]. This relates to helicopter and aircraft equipment, [and] air defense systems,' the FSMTC official specified. The official added that the continent's rich hydrocarbon resources could be used to settle payments under repair agreements. Rosoboronexport, Russia's state arms exporter, said in January that it had received orders exceeding $22 billion in 2015 from foreign partners, noting growing interest in the Middle East and North Africa. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russian Navy Commanders to Discuss Future of Military Shipbuilding Sputnik News 17:18 04.02.2016(updated 17:27 04.02.2016) Navy's deputy commander-in-chief f said that Russian Navy high command and representatives of leading shipbuilding enterprises will discuss the outlook for submarine and above-water shipbuilding during a conference in Saint Petersburg. ST. PETERSBURG (Sputnik) The Russian Navy high command and representatives of leading shipbuilding enterprises will discuss the outlook for submarine and above-water shipbuilding during a conference in Saint Petersburg, the Russian Navy's deputy commander-in-chief for armament said Thursday. 'The look of deep-sea surface ships, including potential Leader class destroyers and next generation submarines, as well as the look of separate test pieces of weaponry, starting from robot-assisted equipment and finishing with radar systems and illumination devices, will be topics of discussion,' Vice Adm. Viktor Bursuk said. St. Petersburg is currently hosting the conference, 'The Future Face of the Maritime Structure of the Naval Fleet for the Solution of Tasks in Oceanic and Maritime Zones.' Nearly 50 heads of military industrial enterprises, design bureaus and over 200 Navy admirals and officers are taking part in the conference. According to Bursuk, the conference is a good opportunity for the military and manufacturers to exchange views and experience of using the new ships and submarines and to discuss future needs. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Top Gun 2016: Russia's Super-Advanced Fighter Jet Enters Service This Year Sputnik News 13:39 04.02.2016 Russia has developed a fifth generation fighter jet, the T-50, which is due to enter service by the year-end and will be equipped with a brand-new aircraft cruise missile, media reports said. The fifth generation T-50 fighter jet, also known as the PAK FA, is set to enter service with the Russian Armed Forces later this year. The plane is expected to be equipped with highly advanced X-74M2 cruise missiles, according to the Russian military news network Zvezda. The X-74M2 is a supersonic missile which has a speed of more than Mach 4, which means that the missile is capable of reaching targets in just few seconds, preempting the possibility of its detection by enemy aircraft radar systems, according to Zvezda. 'It is like a lightning dagger blow you can never avoid,' Zvezda said, adding that by carrying such a missile on board, the T-50 'nullifies all attempts by NATO to achieve air superiority.' Apart from the X-74M2, the T-50 will be equipped with another sophisticated missile, the X-58USHK, which will be placed inside the fighter's fuselage. This anti-radar missile will have a flight speed exceeding Mach 3.5, Zvezda said, touting the X-58USHK's characteristics, including its relatively small size. Additionally, the T-50 will be equipped with the tactical X-35UE air-to-ship missile, which weighs about 145 kilograms and is capable of hitting targets at a distance of 260 kilometers while remaining invisible to radars. For air-to-air combat, the T-50 is expected to carry four beyond-visual-range missiles in its two main weapons bays and two short-range missiles in its wing root weapons bays. The T-50 is a single-seat, twin-engine jet fighter, and the first operational aircraft in Russian service to use stealth technology. It was designed by the Sukhoi Design Bureau. The aircraft will be used to achieve air superiority and assist in ground attacks. Besides its ability to fly at speeds well above Mach 2, the T-50 boasts other, even more important, features such as invisibility to radar and powerful weapons. It is equipped with advanced avionics and a cutting-edge phased array radar system. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Why Does Saudi Arabia Consider Iran So Great a Threat? by Heather Murdock February 03, 2016 'Business is always good here," store clerk Mohammad Ali said, pointing to the rows of clothing in his shop in the Saudi capital. But a month after Saudi Arabia severed formal relations with Iran, the calm in Riyadh belies a growing fear in the region. The two regional giants are often at odds, but now, with no diplomatic ties, they are teetering between peace talks and escalating proxy wars in Syria and Yemen. For many Saudis, victory for Iran's allies in either conflict would threaten the kingdom militarily and psychologically. Yet as Iran rejoins world markets after an international nuclear agreement, some Saudi analysts say the new dynamic presents not just a threat, but an opportunity. "We are in the same boat," said Mohammad al-Sabban, a former senior adviser to the Saudi minister of petroleum. "Either we have to sink together or we have to swim together." The quarrel In this quiet, ancient market, locals say the quarrel between Saudi Arabia and Iran has little to do with the people who would be harmed, in either country, if the conflict escalated. The current row is an extension of a decades-old rivalry and, some argue, the product of a rift within Islam between Shi'ite and Sunni Muslims more than a thousand years ago. Iran is the world's most powerful Shi'ite-led nation and Saudi Arabia is arguably the strongest Sunni-led state. Throw in ethnic differences Arab versus Persian and the split widens. Last month, Saudi Arabia executed a prominent Shi'ite sheikh, causing anger across the Shi'ite world, especially in Iran. After protesters attacked Saudi Arabia's embassy in Tehran, the kingdom, along with Kuwait, Bahrain, Sudan and the United Arab Emirates, downgraded or cut formal ties. The Iranian government condemned the attack, saying more than 100 people have been arrested. Still, people here blame Iranian leaders for the incident. "Iran is our neighbor," said essential oil seller Abu-Talal Sultan, sipping a small glass of tea. "It's their government's political agenda. They don't even care for their own people." But Sultan added that Iranians and Saudis are more alike than different. "We are all Muslim," he said. Military map Iran gives direct support to the Syrian government in its war against rebel factions and Islamic State militants, and it is widely believed to support Houthi rebels battling Yemen's Saudi-backed government. Saudi analysts view these as Iranian attempts to build up allies in the region. With Shi'ite militias in Iraq, and Egypt's growing alliance with Russia, which also supports Damascus, the possibility of Iranian hegemony in the Middle East has become a threat comparable to a "1939 moment," according to Jamal Khashoggi, a prominent Saudi journalist, making a comparison with Germany's bid to overrun Europe in World War II. Over the past year, Saudi Arabia has felt sidelined as Iran's global importance has grown, according to Hamad al-Shehri, an academic adviser for the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs. While negotiating a nuclear deal intended to curb Iran's nuclear program in exchange for relief from economic sanctions, Iran's relatively new leadership preached moderation and cooperation. But Saudis were incredulous that the West did not take a strong stand against Iranian involvement in Syria, Yemen and other regional conflicts, al-Shehri said. "The United States are our allies," he said. "We wanted them to send a clear message to the Iranians to stop their interfering and to stop supporting smuggling weapons to those militias." For Saudis, he said, the threat of a future nuclear weapon in Iran is not nearly as immediate as the threat of the ongoing wars in the Middle East. Economic worries, opportunities Within three months, Iran could be exporting 500,000 barrels of oil per day, and possibly 1 million more by the end of the year, according to al-Sabban, the former senior adviser to the Saudi oil minister. This oil will be entering an already flooded market that has driven down prices to below $30 a barrel a blow to all oil-producing countries, including Saudi Arabia. "That will have an impact," al-Sabban said. "If you add it to the existing oil glut, or oil surplus, definitely that will impact prices." On the other hand, the economic co-dependency of competing in the same market may force both countries to compromise, said John Sfakianakis, who has advised the Saudi government and serves as chief economist for several Saudi banks. The only way for oil-producing countries to raise prices globally, he said, is to reduce production. Saudi Arabia has said it will not unilaterally reduce production, lest it lose market share to competitors. "Saudi Arabia is not going to budge," Sfakianakis emphasized. This means oil-producing nations will have to work together, or they will all continue to suffer, al-Sabban said. Saudi Arabia could also reap economic benefits through trade with Iran, according to Khaled Almaeena, a veteran Saudi journalist. "Especially now that Iran has joined the world community," Almaeena said in his office overlooking the Red Sea. Repairing diplomatic relations is more complex than trade for mutual benefit. On Tuesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif called on Saudi Arabia to end its "hostile policies" toward Iran. In Saudi Arabia, Almaeena and other analysts say it is Iranian policies that must change to move forward. "Good relations between Saudi Arabia and Iran provided Iran also comes to its senses is good for the Muslim world," Almaeena said. "It is good for the Arab world." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Head of Syrian opposition in Geneva to join peace talks Iran Press TV Wed Feb 3, 2016 3:53PM The head of a Saudi-backed Syrian opposition group has joined ongoing UN-brokered peace talks in Switzerland. Riad Hijab, head of the so-called High Negotiations Committee (HNC), arrived in Geneva on Wednesday, according to a message the HNC posted on its Twitter page, after the foreign-backed group canceled a meeting with Staffan de Mistura, the UN special envoy for Syria, on Tuesday. 'We presented the demands that we wanted to demand. At this moment, there is no reason to repeat ourselves with De Mistura,' HNC member Farah Atassi said. Hijab is set to take part in an internal HNC meeting before the group decides its next steps in the negotiations. 'With Hijab here, the HNC can better demonstrate a unified position in representing the opposition,' an unnamed Western diplomat said in Geneva. This is while De Mistura has warned of a total failure of the talks, saying in that case 'there will be no more hope." Syria's ambassador to the UN, Bashar al-Ja'afari, who represents the Syrian government in the peace talks, has also called the opposition "not serious." In his latest comments on the meeting in Geneva on Wednesday, he said the preparatory phase of the talks which formally began on Monday is likely to take longer than what was thought. 'It seems the first phase of preparations will take a much longer time expected and we don't know yet when we will finish,' Ja'afari said, adding that the official discussions have not taken off yet. The ongoing Syria talks are to be held in an 18-month timetable under a resolution unanimously approved by the UN Security Council in the hope of ending the foreign-sponsored carnage in the Arab country. The foreign-sponsored Syrian conflict, which began in March 2011, has reportedly claimed the lives of more than 260,000 people, and displaced almost eight million others. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Russia to Operate in Syria Until Local Terrorist Groups Defeated - Lavrov Sputnik News 12:31 03.02.2016(updated 15:14 03.02.2016) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Russia will continue its operation in Syria until terrorism groups in the Arab Republic are defeated. MUSCAT (Sputnik) Russia will continue its operation in Syria until terrorism groups in the Arab Republic are defeated, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Wednesday. 'Russian airstrikes will not cease until we truly win over terrorist groups: Daesh, Jabhat al-Nusra [banned in Russia] and such. I see no reason to stop these airstrikes,' Lavrov told reporters. Syria has been in a state of civil war since 2011, with the army loyal to President Bashar Assad fighting several opposition factions and militant groups, including the Nusra Front (Jabhat al-Nusra) and Daesh, banned in a range of countries including Russia. The Russian Aerospace Defense Forces have been conducting an aerial campaign against the terrorist positions in Syria since September 30, following a request from President Assad. According to mid-January data from the Russian General Staff, the Russian forces carried out over 5,600 sorties and 97 cruise missile launches during the first 100 days of the counterterrorism operation in Syria, having destroyed thousands of terrorist targets, including several hundred militants, dozens of command centers and depots. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Syrian Army Cuts Militants' Supply Routes in Aleppo Source Sputnik News 07:44 03.02.2016 Syrian army in cooperation with local militia has cut off main supply routes of terrorists in the northern Aleppo province, a source in militia said Wednesday. DAMASCUS (Sputnik) According to the Syrian army, the soldiers continue their offensive to the north of Aleppo near the Turkish border. 'The army and our soldiers have cut Mayer-Anadan and Azaz Aleppo routes. Thus, the path for delivery of ammunition and reinforcements from Turkey to the northern outskirts of Aleppo has been cut for the militants,' the source told RIA Novosti. Terrorists operating in the region flee in large groups, which led to the liberation of two besieged Syrian settlements in the area on Tuesday, according to the Syrian troops. Syria has been in a state of civil war since 2011, with the country's government fighting a number of opposition factions and radical Islamist groups, including Islamic State, which is prohibited in many countries, including Russia Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Turkey preparing for military action in Syria: Russia Iran Press TV Thu Feb 4, 2016 2:42PM The Russian Defense Ministry spokesman says Moscow has serious grounds to suspect Turkey of preparing for a military incursion into Syria. "The Russian Defense Ministry registers a growing number of signs of hidden preparation of the Turkish Armed Forces for active actions on the territory of Syria," Igor Konashenkov said on Thursday. "We are recording more and more signs of concealed preparations by the Turkish military," he added. Meanwhile, Russia's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova dismissed Ankara's claims that the Russian warplanes violated the Turkish airspace, saying such "ungrounded" allegations served as a cover-up for Turkey's increased military activity on the Syrian border. "None of the planes from the Russian aerial group have violated Turkish airspace. None of them," Zakharova said during her weekly press briefing on Thursday. "We've repeatedly said about problems on Syrian-Turkish border. But it seems all that ungrounded accusation against Russia used as pretext by Turkey for its own military build-up," Zakharova said. The Russian official said that Ankara has repeatedly failed to respond to Moscow's requests to provide any proof for its allegations. "All our requests on details on the information have no answer," she said. On January 30, Turkey's Foreign Ministry said that "a Su-34 plane belonging to the Russian Federation air force violated Turkish airspace" despite radar warnings. Following the incident Ankara summoned the Russian ambassador to "strongly protest and condemn" the violation. The ministry, however, did not specify where the incident took place. Moscow and Ankara have been at loggerheads over developments in Syria since a foreign-backed militancy erupted in the Arab country nearly five years ago. Turkey seeks the overthrow of the Syrian government while Russia has been supporting Damascus in the fight against terrorism. Tensions between Moscow and Ankara sharply escalated on November 24, 2015 when Turkey downed a Russian Su-24 fighter jet over Syria, claiming that it had entered Turkish airspace, an accusation strongly rejected by Moscow. Of the two pilots aboard the warplane, one was rescued with the help of Syrian army, but the other was killed by militants fighting the Syrian government. Russia suspended all military deals with Turkey and imposed a number of economic sanctions on the country. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN chief urges Syria warring sides to negotiate Iran Press TV Thu Feb 4, 2016 1:27PM UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has called on Syria's warring sides to resume dialog after the suspension of the UN-brokered peace talks between the parties. 'The coming days should be used to get back to the table, not to secure more gains on the battlefield,' Ban told an international donor conference entitled "Supporting Syria & The Region" in London on Thursday. The UN chief further underscored the need for negotiations as the only way to resolve the foreign-sponsored conflict gripping Syria. 'The situation is not sustainable. We cannot go on like this. There is no military solution. Only political dialogue will rescue the Syrian people from their intolerable suffering," he added. The remarks came one day after Staffan de Mistura, the UN special envoy for Syria, announced a halt to the Syria peace talks in the Swiss city of Geneva until February 25, arguing there was "more work to be done.' Syria's ambassador to the UN, Bashar al-Jaafari, who has represented the Syrian government in the peace negotiations, blamed the opposition for the 'failure' of the Geneva discussions. "It is deeply disturbing that the initial steps of the talks have been undermined by the continuous lack of sufficient humanitarian access, and by a sudden increase of aerial bombing and military activities within Syria," the UN chief said. Meanwhile, an international donor conference for Syria, co-hosted by Britain, Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the UN, started in London on Thursday. World leaders along with officials from international organizations, aid agencies and civic groups are meeting with an urgent plea for USD 7.73 billion to cope with the Syrian emergency this year plus USD 1.2 billion to fund national response plans by countries in the region. The conference will focus particularly on the need to provide better access to education and jobs for refugees in Syria and neighboring states. The Syrian conflict, which began in March 2011, has reportedly claimed the lives of more than 260,000 people, and displaced almost eight million others. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Militant rocket attacks leave 17 dead, dozens hurt in Dera'a Iran Press TV Thu Feb 4, 2016 6:10AM More than a dozen people have been killed and scores of others injured in rocket attacks by foreign-backed Takfiri militants on residential areas in the Syrian city of Dara'a. Health officials said 17 civilians lost their lives and 101 others were injured when rockets fired by militants struck several neighborhoods across the city, Syria's official SANA news agency reported. Head of Health Directorate in Dara'a Abdul Wadood al-Homsi said most of the wounded were women and children, and that one of them was in a very critical condition. The projectiles also caused substantial damage to several houses. Separately, three civilians were injured in a rocket attack by Jaysh al-Islam militants on Harasta, a suburban city northeast of Damascus. Ten other people were injured when projectiles struck a number of neighborhoods in the northwestern city of Aleppo, some 355 kilometers (220 miles) north of Damascus. Peace talks halted The attacks came amid a fresh bid for peace which a UN envoy halted on Wednesday. Staffan de Mistura said the halt is 'not a failure of talks,' adding they will be resumed on February 25 as he pledged to remain 'determined and realistic' in the face of challenges. The Syrian government delegation blamed the opposition for the 'failure' of the Geneva peace talks. 'There is a failure. It's a failure of everybody, except the government of the Syrian Arab Republic, because we responded positively to the invitation,' Syrian Ambassador to the UN Bashar al-Ja'afari said. 'Every time he (de Mistura) called on us we responded positive and we went to meet with him. While the others arrived six days late, and they refused to engage with him at the Palais des Nations,' he added. Ja'afari said the Syrian government will need to decide whether to return to peace talks, accusing the opposition of pulling out because it was losing the fight on the ground. On Wednesday, Syrian armed forces broke a three-year siege imposed by foreign-backed militants on the towns of Nubul and al-Zahraa with an estimated 60,000 population. The Syrian army advanced against militants north of Aleppo, choking their supply lines from Turkey to the city. The US and France accused the Syrian government of undermining talks to end the war, with Secretary of State John Kerry saying Moscow and Damascus sought a military solution to the conflict. Kerry called for an immediate end to Russian bombardment in Aleppo, which has facilitated army advances in the second Syrian city. 'The continued assault by Syrian regime forces -- enabled by Russian airstrikes -- against opposition-held areas... have clearly signaled the intention to seek a military solution rather than enable a political one,' he said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address U.S., France Charge Russia, Syria With 'Torpedoing' Peace Talks February 04, 2016 by RFE/RL The United States and France charged Russia and the Syrian regime with stymieing peace negotiations with an unrelenting campaign to retake opposition-held territory even during the talks. Throughout two days of fitful negotiations in Geneva on February 1 and 2, Syrian ground forces backed by Russian air strikes were waging an intense campaign to retake rebel-held territory around the strategic city of Aleppo in Syria's north, and on February 3 they succeeded in cutting off the rebels' supply line from Turkey. The campaign, undeterred by the talks, was cited as the reason that the largest opposition coalition refused to fully join the negotiations, and 'military activities' were also cited by United Nations Syrian envoy Staffan de Mistura as a principle reason for suspending the negotiations on February 3. French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius accused the Syrian government and its allies of 'torpedoing' the peace talks and said 'neither [Syrian President] Bashar al-Assad's regime nor his allies clearly want to contribute in good faith' to the negotiations. 'We condemn the Syrian regime's brutal offensive with support from Russia to surround and suffocate Aleppo and its hundreds of thousands of residents,' he said. U.S. State Department spokesman John Kirby said the Russian air strikes around Aleppo have almost exclusively targeted opposition groups represented at the peace talks rather than Islamic State or Al Nusra militants that both sides are fighting, and thus were partly responsible for forcing a suspension of the peace talks. The air strikes have prompted reports of more civilian casualties, displacement of Syrian citizens, and the obstruction of humanitarian aid shipments, he said. 'It is difficult in the extreme to see how strikes against civilian targets contribute in any way to the peace process now being explored,' he said. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry late February 3 released a statement saying the Russian air strikes and continued attacks by Syrian government forces signalled their intention to pursue a military rather than a political solution to the Syrian conflict. Kerry called on Russia and Syria to halt their bombardment of opposition-held areas, especially Aleppo, and end sieges of civilians, as required by a UN resolution, to allow the resumption of the peace negotiations. 'It is past time for them to meet existing obligations and restore the international community's confidence in their intentions of supporting a peaceful resolution to the Syrian crisis,' Kerry said. While UN envoy de Mistura did not specifically cite the fighting around Aleppo, a senior aide told Reuters that he suspended the negotiations until February 25 'because the organization did not want to be associated with the Russian escalation in Syria, which risks undermining the talks completely.' 'The stepped up air strikes gain the government ground, but also aim at humiliating the opposition on the ground and in Geneva,' the aide said. Russia and Syria denied causing what is being billed as a temporary break-up of the negotiations but which could prove to be their dissolution. The head of the Syrian government delegation in Geneva, Bashar Ja'afari, blamed the break-up on 'a failure of everybody except the government of the Syrian Arab Republic.' He said opposition groups were preparing to walk away from the talks because they were losing the fight on the ground, and the UN moved to suspend the talks to cover up that fact. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov blamed opposition groups for demanding an end to the fighting and the delivery of humanitarian aid to besieged towns as 'preconditions' to joining the talks. 'Their attempts to frustrate the negotiating process under an excuse that Russia continues its military operation in Syria are absolutely unacceptable,' Gatilov said, insisting that Russia is bombing only 'terrorists.' 'We have repeatedly said that anti-terrorism efforts are a matter of top priority for us and for the Syrian authorities,' he said. Gatilov added that when the negotiations resume, they should include opposition groups that were excluded previously such as the Syrian Kurds, who hold large swathes of Syrian territory in the north. Opposition groups said they would not return to the negotiations until the fighting stops and humanitarian aid is delivered to starving residents of besieged towns. 'We are waiting for the United States to stop leading from the back, and the Russians...to stop adding fuel to the fire,' said opposition spokeswoman Farah al-Atassi. With reporting by AP, Reuters, dpa, and TASS Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/us-france-charge-russia- syria-with-torpedoing-peace-talks/27531123.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Kerry Warns Russia To Halt Syria Bombing After Peace Talks End February 04, 2016 U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has warned Moscow to halt its bombing of Syrian rebel groups, after UN-mediated peace talks between Damascus and the opposition broke down in Geneva. Kerry told his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, in a phone conversation on February 4 that an existing UN Security Council resolution already called for an immediate cease-fire in Syria in order to allow humanitarian aid through to besieged cities. Kerry, speaking at a donors conference on Syria in London, also said he and Lavrov had agreed the need to discuss how to implement a cease-fire. 'I had a conversation this morning with Foreign Minister Lavrov. We discussed, and he agreed that we need to discuss, how to implement the cease-fire and also how to get [humanitarian] access by both parties,' Kerry told reporters. World leaders are meeting in London to raise $9 billion for those affected by the nearly five-year-old Syrian conflict. Around 70 leaders are attending the February 4 conference, which aims to agree plans for economic and humanitarian aid to assist 4.6 million Syrian refugees living in neighboring countries. German Chancellor Angela Merkel pledged to spend $2.6 billion by 2018 to aid Syrian refugees as the international meeting got under way. Britain has pledged around $1.75 billion in new aid by 2020, and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is due to announce a big U.S. commitment. On February 1, international charity Oxfam criticized many countries involved in Syria, including Russia, for not helping the victims of the conflict, which has killed at least 250,000 people and forced millions to flee the country. Based on reporting by Reuters, AFP, AP, and BBC Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/syria-donors-conference/27531543.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Turkey Planning Military Invasion in Syria - Russian Defense Ministry Sputnik News 16:51 04.02.2016(updated 18:29 04.02.2016) What is happening on the Turkish-Syrian border gives grounds to think that Turkey is preparing a military invasion in Syria, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said. "We have good reasons to believe that Turkey is actively preparing for a military invasion of a sovereign state the Syrian Arab Republic. We're detecting more and more signs of Turkish armed forces being engaged in covert preparations for direct military actions in Syria," Konashenkov told media. The current activity at the Turkish-Syrian border suggest that Turkey prepares to invade Syria, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said Thursday. He also said that earlier the Russian Defense Ministry provided the international community with irrefutable video evidence of Turkish self-propelled artillery units shelling Syrian settlements in the northern part of Latakia province. "We're perplexed by the fact that the usually talkative representatives of the Pentagon, NATO and of the groups allegedly protecting the rights of Syrian people remain silent despite our calls to react to these actions," Konashenkov remarked. He also pointed out that the Russian Defense Ministry has intensified all types of surveillance activity in the Middle East. "So if someone in Ankara thinks that cancelling a Russian observation flight would help conceal something, that is just the mark of an amateur," Konashenkov said. Turkey's refusal to allow a Russian inspection flight over its territory is an attempt to conceal Ankara's illegal military activity on the border with Syria, the Russian Defense Ministry said Thursday. Ankara has not allowed Russian inspectors to conduct a scheduled inspection flight over the Turkish territory under the Open Skies Treaty on February 1-5. 'Such steps, taken by a NATO member-country, undermine confidence- and security-building measures in Europe,' ministry's spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said. 'We are considering Turkey's move as a dangerous precedent and an attempt to hide its illegal military activity on the border with Syria,' Konashenkov stressed. Turkey supplies weapons and recruits to the terrorists in the northeastern regions of Syria, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said Thursday. "I would like to point out another instance of provocative actions perpetrated by Turkey on the Syrian border. On this image you can see a checkpoint at the Turkish-Syrian border in the Reyhanli-Sarmada region. This very checkpoint is being used during nighttime to smuggle militants and weapons from the Turkish territory to the terrorists who seized control of the cities of Idlib and Aleppo in the Syrian northeast," Konashenkov told media. He also remarked that the US and NATO partners label these caravans as 'humanitarian convoys'. He pointed out that Turkish journalists who attempt to determine the nature of the cargo that is being transported by said convoys often end up imprisoned by the authorities. Konashenkov also compared the photographs of the cargo truck parking areas in one of the border regions between Turkey and Syria where the Syrian side is currently being controlled by the terrorists, taken on October 26, 2015 and on January 30, 2016. "These parking lots were actually expanded and even outfitted with security measures by someone. Also, these lots look like they see a lot of traffic. During peacetime, that would look like a sign of an increase in trade turnover between the two neighbors. But during war, this is how one prepares transport infrastructure for the imminent military invasion," he explained. According to Konashekov, such lots can be used to facilitate swift advance of military columns carrying weapons and munitions to the battlefield, and also to rapidly deploy and extract military personnel. "There are plenty of similar sightings on the border between Turkey and Syria, including the presence of the military hardware and personnel. Therefore, even though Ankara cancelled our observation flight, that won't help conceal the illegal Turkish military activity in the region," he concluded. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address At London conference on Syria, UN chief calls for access for aid, protection for civilians 4 February 2016 Heads of State and Government met in London today at an international conference on Syria, with United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon laying out three main objectives: raising $7 billion in immediate humanitarian aid, mustering long-term support, and protecting civilians. "The crisis in Syria is about to enter its sixth year. The international community bears a heavy responsibility for failing to end it," he said of war that has killed over 250,000 people, sent over 4 million fleeing the country, displaced 6.5 million internally, and put 13.5 million people inside the country in urgent need of humanitarian aid. "The situation is not sustainable. We cannot go on like this. There is no military solution. Only political dialogue, inclusive political dialogue, will rescue the Syrian people from their intolerable suffering," he added, blaming lack of humanitarian access to besieged civilians and increased air raids and military activities for undermining UN-brokered peace talks. He called on world powers to press the parties to engage seriously in negotiations. Today's conference was co-hosted by the UN and the Governments of the United Kingdom, Kuwait, Germany and Norway. The talks in Geneva between the Government and opposition, which are not face-to-face but indirect, involving 'close proximity diplomacy' with UN mediators envoy shuttling between the sides in different rooms, were suspended by UN Special Envoy for Syria Staffan de Mistura yesterday just two days after he declared their official start. "It is deeply disturbing that the initial steps of the talks have been undermined by the continuous lack of sufficient humanitarian access, and by a sudden increase of aerial bombings and military activities within Syria," Mr. Ban said of the talks, now scheduled to resume on 25 February. "The focus on the people of Syria is also being lost amid petty procedural matters. "I agree fully with my Special Envoy that we should not have talks for the sake of talks. The coming days should be used to get back to the table, not to secure more gains on the battlefield," he added, calling on the UN Security Council and the International Support Group for Syria (ISSG) to press the parties to engage seriously. The ISSG - the International Syria Support Group comprising the Arab League, the European Union, the United Nations, and 17 countries including the United States and Russia laid the groundwork for the Geneva talks at a meeting in November. Laying out three objectives for today's meeting, Mr. Ban mentioned first the obligation to meet the enormous humanitarian needs at least $7 billion for this year alone, twice as much as last year. "Despite the generosity of some donors, the international community has failed to keep pace with these needs," he stressed. Second, the international community must lay the foundations for long-term international support, since even if "by some miracle" the conflict ends tomorrow, the enormous humanitarian and development needs will continue for years and even decades." The United Nations stands to lead and coordinate this effort," he declared. "Syrian and other refugees need the chance to work and provide for their families. Today, let us commit to getting all Syrian children into school, within months, not years. Offering hope is the best way to slow the exodus of educated Syrians and prevent the radicalization of a lost generation." Third, ways must be found to protect civilians. "All sides in this conflict are committing human rights abuses of a shocking scale and depravity. Palestinian refugees, already vulnerable, are doubly dispossessed and in a desperate position. We must end sieges and bring food to starving people," Mr. Ban said. "Today, let us change the narrative. Let us, by and with our solidarity and generosity, and compassionate leadership, bring true hope to the people of Syria and the region," he concluded. UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Stephen O'Brien noted that while donors generously contributed $1.25 billion to last year's Syria humanitarian appeal, that was just 43 per cent of the needs. "We can do better," he stressed, referring to this year's appeal for nearly $3.2 billion for the 2016 Syria Humanitarian Response Plan inside Syria and $4.5 billion for the Regional Refugee and Resilience Plan for response, resilience and stabilization in neighbouring countries. "Let us show the people of Syria we are their partners. We have not forgotten them, and let us give them hope for the future by taking the unprecedented step of meeting 100 per cent of this year's appeal." Amidst all the carnage the warring parties display a complete disregard for international humanitarian and human rights law, Mr. O'Brien said, calling on "all influential governments here in this room" to do more to persuade the sides to fulfil their basic legal obligations. "This vicious cycle of death and destruction risks being seen as the new normal in Syria. But death, suffering, wanton destruction and disregard for the law should never be seen as 'normal'. Every time we think we have reached the nadir of human suffering in this crisis, it continues to sink deeper and deeper before our eyes. "The recent pictures of emaciated, starving children in the besieged town of Madaya shocked the collective conscience of the world," he added, paying tribute to the thousands of mostly Syrian staff and volunteers of the UN, the Syrian Arab Red Crescent, non-governmental organizations and hospital staff who carry out their duties in the face of political pressure, violence and intimidation. They are true humanitarian heroes. I especially pay tribute to the 82 colleagues who have lost their lives in the line of duty," he said. UN Development Programme (UNDP) Helen Clark stressed that alongside the enormous humanitarian relief effort there must be increased investment in building the resilience of people and communities within Syria, and within the neighbouring countries hosting refugees. "The need for investment in both relief and resilience is well reflected in this year's UN appeals," she said. "There is now also strong and welcome recognition of the need for more support for the neighbouring countries who have accommodated over four million Syrians." In an opinion piece issued ahead of the opening of the Conference, the UN Special Envoy for Global Education, Gordon Brown, said that "perhaps the answer we need and the bold plan we want can be found 70 years in the past.," and called for a massive scale-up of resources and actions similar to post-War 'Marshall Plan' to address the chaos of 12 million Syrians displaced from their homes. "We know the face of failure. From South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the Afghan-Pakistani border, pinprick policy solutions have led to ever-lengthening conflicts and aborted attempts at reconstruction," he observed, but added that in enacting the post-war Marshall Plan, and more recently in fighting the global recession, delivering African debt relief and addressing climate change, the world has shown itself capable of uniting in great, transformative acts of statesmanship. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Leaders Pledge Billions for Syrian Refugees by Luis Ramirez February 04, 2016 U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has pledged nearly $1 billion in new U.S. aid for Syrian refugees at an international donors conference and is calling for the Syrian government and Russia to halt attacks on rebel-held areas in order to let humanitarian aid through. The conference opened Thursday in London with donor nations exceeding their goal of $9 billion. British Prime Minister David Cameron said pledges had surpassed $10 billion by the end of the day. Britain, along with Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the United Nations, are hosting the Syria Donors Conference, the fourth to be held. Kerry called this a "critical engagement," saying Syria's political and humanitarian crisis is a "moral imperative." He said the United States is providing an additional $601 million in assistance to the Syrian people, plus $290 million in development aid specifically for education to refugee children in Jordan and Lebanon. The $10 billion figure is more than double the $4.5 pledged last year, reflecting the urgency the migrant crisis has caused among Western governments. The amount pledged aims to support people in Syria as well as in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey, neighbor countries that are strained by the exodus of refugees fleeing the fighting. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Anne Richard discussed the agenda ahead of the conference with VOA. "This year there are more ambitious goals, which are to do more to educate children, to get jobs for the refugees, to bring development resources to bear, to help people get to safety not just in the region, but beyond as well." Prime Minister Cameron said there is a "critical shortfall" in life-saving aid that he said is holding back the international community's humanitarian efforts. "If ever there was a moment to take a new approach to the humanitarian crisis in Syria, surely it is now," he said. Migrant crisis That urgency is fueled by a migrant crisis that saw 1 million people, largely from Syria, move into western Europe in 2015. Projections are the numbers will swell to 4 million this year. Overwhelmed, some European countries have announced measures to reduce the number of asylum seekers and are now focusing on containing the flow of refugees. "After years of conflict, we are witnessing a desperate movement of humanity as hundreds of thousands of Syrians fear they have no alternative to put their lives in the hands of evil people smugglers in search of a future,' Cameron said. Geneva peace talk suspended The troubled peace process overshadowed the conference and lent more urgency to the need to address the conflict at its root. The meeting got under way hours after fragile peace talks in Geneva were suspended amid protests by the opposition over the Syrian government's escalating offensive against rebels around the city of Aleppo, where a human rights monitoring group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said 40,000 people fled this week alone. U.N. special envoy Staffan de Mistura issued a statement late Wednesday saying indirect talks would be temporarily paused until February 25, but could resume sooner. "It is not the end, and it is not the failure of the talks," de Mistura told reporters. The U.N. envoy said the Syrian government and the opposition delegates remain "interested in having the political process started." The opposition is represented by the Saudi-backed High Negotiations Committee, which joined the talks behind schedule only after U.S. and U.N. officials convinced them that their preliminary demands would be addressed. The group has demanded an end to airstrikes on civilians by the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and Russia, as well as a lifting of sieges that are blocking the flow of humanitarian aid to rebel-held areas. It also wants the government to release thousands of detainees. The head of the opposition delegation, Riad Hijab, said the group would not return to Geneva "until we see positive steps" on these issues. In London Thursday, Kerry called on both the Syrian government and Russia to halt attacks on opposition-held areas to permit the delivery of humanitarian aid. The U.S. official said he looks forward to talks resuming later this month. After meeting with British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond on the sidelines of the donors conference, Kerry told reporters he held what he described as a robust discussion with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the need to implement a cease-fire and allow for humanitarian shipments. "It could not be more clear. That is an obligation that is not tied to talks. It is an obligation accepted by all parties in the United Nations resolution. Russia voted for that, Russia has a responsibility, as do all parties, to live up to it," said Kerry. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Turkey Considers Expanding Fleet of Surveillance Jets Sputnik News 19:46 04.02.2016(updated 20:33 04.02.2016) Turkey's military is considering the purchase of two additional airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) airplanes from the United States in a response to increased tensions in the region, according to a media report on Thursday. WASHINGTON (Sputnik) AEW&C aircraft can detect air, sea and ground vehicles at long ranges and direct traffic in a battle zone. The capability could be useful in monitoring conditions related to the civil war in neighboring Syria. 'We are faced with a different threat concept the than the concept we assessed when we ordered four aircraft,' Defense News quoted Turkey military's reasoning behind the likely decision to purchase more surveillance aircraft. 'New [threat] deliberations may force us into a new acquisition.' In December 2015, Boeing delivered the fourth and final surveillance plane to Turkey, but the country could exercise an option to buy another two aircraft. The skies over neighboring Syria are becoming increasingly crowded as the air forces of the US-led coalition and Russia intensify their respective efforts to destroy the Islamic State. The terror group, also known as Daesh, is outlawed in the United States and Russia, among other countries. Turkey has recently came under intense criticism for allegedly purchasing oil from the Islamic State that the terror group has been stealing from Syria and Iraq, as well as supplying it with weapons. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Poroshenko: Economy Minister Should Stay At Post February 03, 2016 by RFE/RL Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has said that the economy minister, who earlier resigned citing political pressure and corruption, should stay at his post and push ahead with reforms. Economy Minister Aivaras Abromavicius submitted his resignation earlier on February 3 out of frustration that major government reforms were being blocked. The Lithuanian-born Abromavicius told reporters in Kyiv that there was a 'sharp escalation in efforts to block systemic and important reforms.' He said in a statement to reporters that he had 'no wish to be a cover for open corruption or puppets under the control of those who want to establish control over state money in the style of the old authorities.' He singled out Ihor Kononenko, a senior lawmaker close to President Petro Poroshenko, saying Kononenko had lobbied to get his people appointed to head state companies and at top government positions. Kononenko rejected the allegations as 'completely absurd' and accused Abromavicius of trying to shift the blame for his own failures atop the Economy Ministry. 'I would like to make clear that each and every member of this cabinet for the last 14 months has been doing everything in their power and sometimes even more,' Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk told a cabinet meeting. Abromavicius, a 40-year-old former asset manager, was one of several foreigners appointed to official posts as part of Ukraine's attempts to pull the country away from its Soviet past, recover from Russia's seizure of Crimea, and kick-start a reform process. His departure leaves two foreign-born ministers, U.S.-born Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko and Georgia-born Health Minister Aleksandr Kvitashvili. Former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili, who has since taken on Ukrainian citizenship, is governor of the Odesa region and has played an oversize public role in Ukrainian politics. Abromavicius's resignation comes amid parliamentary anger with Yatsenyuk's government and infighting among political interests tied to powerful tycoons. There has also been growing public discontent that the pro-Western government has not delivered on promises to stamp out corruption, raising the prospect of a ministerial reshuffle. In a tweet upon news of the resignation, U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt described Abromavicius as 'one of [the] main reformers' and said, 'Reforms must continue.' The government is 'a fire and Yatsenyuk himself is in the ring of fire,' political analyst Volodymyr Fesenko told Reuters news agency. He also suggested there is currently insufficient support in parliament for an alternative to Yatsenyuk. Meanwhile, Ukraine's eurobonds slumped on the news of Abromavicius's resignation over concern among investors that Kyiv's commitment to implement reforms might fade, threatening to derail a $40 billion aid-for-reforms deal championed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), United States, and European Union. Initial government estimates show Ukraine's economy shrinking by more than 10 percent last year. The country has struggled economically since pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych was ousted in a popular revolt in February 2014. His departure was followed by Russia's occupation and annexation of Crimea in March 2014 and a conflict between government forces and Russian-backed separatists in the country's east that has killed more than 9,100 people. With reporting by AFP, Reuters, and Bloomberg Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/ukraine-economy-minister-resigns/27529578.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Ukrainian Economy Minister Resigns; West Deeply Disappointed by Isabela Cocoli February 03, 2016 Ukraine's economy minister tendered his resignation Wednesday, citing political pressure and corruption. Aivaras Abromavicius said the country's leadership had routinely blocked his reform efforts and that the economy ministry was at the mercy of corrupt vested interests. 'Neither me, nor my team have any desire to serve as a cover-up for the covert corruption, or become puppets for those who, very much like the 'old' government, are trying to exercise control over the flow of public funds,' he said. The Lithuanian-born Abromavicius said Ukraine needed a total reset of power. Referring to ousted Ukrainian president Viktor Yanukovych, he said the country's present state is "not just because of Yanukovych," but because of "the total lack of reform over 20 years." President Petro Poroshenko said Wednesday that Abromavicius should remain in his post and push ahead with reforms. But the president has no direct say over cabinet appointments. In announcing his resignation, Abromavicius said Igor Kononenko, a Poroshenko ally in Ukraine's parliament, had lobbied to have loyalists appointed to key positions in state-owned enterprises, and even to the post of deputy economy minister. Speaking to Ukraine's Espreso TV channel Espreso, Kononenko categorically denied Abromavicius' accusations and said he would resign if they were proven. Ukraine's anti-corruption bureau said it would investigate Abromavicius' accusations against Kononenko. Abromavicius's resignation may be reviewed by parliament as early as Thursday. A group of ten ambassadors, including those from the United States, Britain and Canada, said in an open letter that they were "deeply disappointed" by Abromavicius' resignation. "During the past year, Abromavicius and his professional team have made important strides -- implementing tough but necessary economic reforms to help stabilize Ukraine's economy, root out endemic corruption, bring Ukraine into compliance with its IMF (International Monetary Fund) program obligations, and promote more openness and transparency in government," the ambassadors wrote. "Ukraine's stable, secure and prosperous future will require the sustained efforts of a broad and inclusive team of dedicated professionals who put the Ukrainian peoples' interests above their own." Abromavicius, a former investment banker, advocated deregulation and wide-scale privatization in Ukraine. He was appointed to the cabinet 14 months ago along with other political newcomers from the private sector, including U.S.-born Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko. VOA's Ukrainian Service contributed to this report NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address MEPs Condemn Russia's 'Unprecedented' Abuses Against Crimean Tatars February 04, 2016 by Robert Coalson and Crimean Desk, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service The European Parliament in Strasbourg has overwhelmingly adopted a resolution condemning Russia for its treatment of the Crimean Tatar population in the Ukrainian region of Crimea, which was annexed by Moscow in 2014. 'I think it is fitting and adequate that this parliament comes together in a joint resolution to highlight the human rights situation in the occupied Crimean territories,' MEP Reinhard Butikofer, of Germany's Green Party, told RFE/RL on February 4. 'In particular, the Crimean Tatars have been persecuted from the very beginning of the Russian invasion." The resolution 'strongly condemns the unprecedented levels of human rights abuses perpetuated against Crimean residents, most notably Crimean Tatars, who do not follow the imposed rule of the so-called local authorities.' It also calls on Russia to grant international institutions and human rights monitors 'unimpeded access' to the region. Crimean Tatars, who were deported en masse from Crimea by the Soviet authorities in 1944 and only allowed to begin returning home in the late 1980s, number about 240,000 on the Black Sea peninsula and comprise about 10 percent of its population. The overwhelming majority of Crimean Tatars have refused to recognize Russia's annexation of the region, which followed a military occupation and a referendum deemed illegitimate by 100 countries in a UN vote. Tensions have been particularly high since last autumn, when Crimean Tatar-led activists on the mainland side of the administrative line between Crimea and the rest of Ukraine blocked cargo transport to the peninsula. Unknown activists also repeatedly sabotaged power pylons supplying electricity to Crimea, causing widespread outages. Crimean Tatar activists said they were determined to draw attention to human rights violations on the peninsula and the disappearances of Crimean Tatars who they say have been abducted by Russian security forces. Under pressure from the activists, the Ukrainian government made the trade blockade official in November. In recent days, the Russia-installed authorities in Crimea have stepped up their pressure even more. In the early morning hours of February 2, men identifying themselves as officials of Russia's Federal Migration Service knocked on Elzara Abdulzhelilova's door in the Crimean city of Feodosia for a 'passport check.' Abdulzhelilova is the daughter of longtime Crimean Tatar national leader Mustafa Dzhemilev, a deputy in the Ukrainian parliament who Russian authorities have barred from entering Crimea for five years. She told RFE/RL that the officials wanted to take her son, Erol, away 'for a talk,' but that they left after her lawyers advised her by telephone that they did not have the authority to do so. 'In our view, they did not have a legal basis for carrying out these actions,' Nariman Dzhelyal, deputy chairman of the Crimean Tatar executive body, the Mejlis, told RFE/RL. 'One of the officers reportedly said as he was leaving that they'll 'find another way' to get to the relatives of Mustafa Dzhemilev.' In January, Dzhemilev's wife, Safinar, was summoned to the prosecutor's office for questioning. Dzhemilev's son, Khaiser Dzhemilev, is serving a 3 1/2 year prison term in Russia on a conviction stemming from the shooting death of a friend in 2013. Mustafa Dzhemilev maintains his son's innocence and says he is being held by Moscow 'as a hostage.' The same day, Crimean Tatar authorities reported 'mass searches' of homes in the Dzhankoy district of Crimea. Those searches followed similar actions by police on January 28 in the Lenin district. On January 29, police raided the Islamic cultural center in Simferopol, the Crimean capital. Agents of Russia's Federal Security Service have carried out raids at the homes of several Mejlis members since the beginning of the year. On February 1, police raided the Simferopol headquarters of the company SimSitiTrans, which is owned by the father of the vice president of the World Congress of Crimean Tatars, Lenur Islyamov. Islyamov coordinated the cargo blockade against the peninsula and served as the spokesman for the activists. 'This pressure has been going on now for two years,' Islyamov told RFE/RL. 'It is moving from a 'soft' scenario to a harsh one. Under various pretexts, they want to take away everything that I have. They understand that they can't get to me, so they are going after my weak spots.' Islyamov, the owner of Crimea's Crimean Tatar-language ATR television station, has been the object of an arrest warrant in Crimea since November. ATR was forced to stop broadcasting in Crimea in April 2015. 'Let them take everything they want,' he added. 'Let them take away all our homes and property. I don't care. We will get it back. When we are able to come back, we will get everything back. This only makes us stronger.' Based on reporting by RFE/RL Brussels correspondent Rikard Jozwiak and the Crimean Desk of RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service Source: http://www.rferl.org/content/crimean-tatars- human-rights-european-parliament/27532399.html Copyright (c) 2016. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Ukrainian Forces Intensify Military Activity in Lugansk Region - LPR Sputnik News 06:13 04.02.2016 Ukrainian forces are assembling devices for artillery fire correction in southeastern Ukraine, a representative of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People's Republic (LPR) told RIA Novosti. LUGANSK (Sputnik) Kiev launched a special military operation in Ukraine's southeastern Donetsk and Lugansk regions in April 2014, after local residents refused to recognize the new Ukrainian authorities, which came to power as a result of a coup. 'In the region of the Lozovoe village, fortification constructions were found meant for the adjustment of artillery fire,' a spokesman of LPR people's police said, citing intelligence data. Intensified movement of motor vehicles with personnel and ammunition has also been detected in the Lugansk region, close to the line of contact between Ukrainian government forces and LPR militia, according to the LPR spokesman. 'So the military-political leadership of Ukraine continues its policy of a military solution in the southeast of the country,' the spokesman told RIA Novosti. According to LPR, Ukrainian forces have also been disrupting the activities of a checkpoint on the border between the self-proclaimed republic and the rest of Ukraine, by not allowing people to cross into LPR in order to ignite public discontent and direct it against Lugansk authorities. The self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics (DPR and LPR), established in Ukraine's southeast after the May 2014 independence referendums, have been calling for more autonomy from Kiev. In February 2015, a peace agreement was signed between the two sides in the Belarusian capital, Minsk. The deal stipulates a full ceasefire, a weapons withdrawal from the line of contact in eastern Ukraine, an all-for-all prisoner exchange and constitutional reforms, which would give a special status to DPR and LPR. Both the Ukrainian government and the self-proclaimed republics in the southeast have been accusing each other of violating the Minsk peace deal. Sputnik NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Melbourne's coffee queues are the new frontline in etiquette school, with some cafes banning customers from ordering their caffeine hit while using their mobile phone. But it's not cafes in the hipster belt banning the technological appendage. Cafe 655 in the industrial chic part of West Melbourne has taken a stand, putting up a sign in January. The red sign that says "Please do not use mobile phones in this area" and features a phone crossed out costs $7.25 at Bunnings and is cheaper than shipping out customers to a finishing school in Switzerland. Craig Pearce and Jessie Familetti at the counter. Photo: Simon Schluter Husband-and-wife cafe owners Craig Pearce and Jessie Familetti grew tired of customers gesticulating "coffee, coffee" while yapping on their phone, holding up the queue and spreading documents on the counter like it was their own desk. "A percentage of people think it's acceptable to talk and make hand gestures instead of interacting," Pearce said. Pearce, a former Australian Army infantry soldier, is instilling discipline and stamping out rudeness but doesn't go to the extreme of the Seinfeld Soup Nazi's "No soup for you". James English of Mister Close with a note discouraging mobile use. Photo: Simon Schluter Instead, customers are told that they will be served when they are off the phone. Some coffee fiends are perplexed at the edict, questioning whether their phone signal affects the Eftpos machine, but polite customers step away to continue talking or texting. Coffee lover Josephine Cole was stunned at the ban, declaring: "Is that even possible? A cafe is not a theatre." Despite the tough love, Melbourne's cafes are friendlier than others. The Bella Natural Food Co in Terrigal, NSW, has a 50-cent surcharge for rude customers who contribute to wrong orders while on their phone. And the Cornucopia Museum Cafe in Darwin toyed with the idea of making customers donate $2 to charity. Advertisement Another mobile-exclusion zone in Melbourne is Mister Close cafe. Owner James English has a handwritten note on the cash register saying: "We can't and won't serve you if you are on the phone. We need to engage." English said the constant reliance on phones for communication or playing games pointed to a wider social problem. "The disengagement of our society is what I find prevalent," he said. And hospitality workers aren't robots on a production line of lattes and espressos. "People in the service industry need to engage and deserve the respect." Far from being bad for business, the edict wins him compliments from customers, especially those who work in the retail industry and wish they could put up a sign. While customers zone out when using their phone, they forget that the barista is there to serve them and pressing questions await about the type of coffee, the size of the takeaway cup, whether they want sugar and what their name is. "We need to serve them as fast and efficiently as possible," English said. Phone dependence is like an X-ray into the psyche and photographing the queue, the barista or the latte art has contributed 93,510 photos to Instagram with the #melbournecoffee hashtag and it grows by the minute. If the glare from Melbourne's tribe of tattooed baristas isn't enough to put away the phone, defer to Britain's king of society etiquette, Debrett's, the essential guide for multi-hyphenated-surnamed English beauties since 1769. Its mobile-phone etiquette states: "It is always rude to pay more attention to a mobile than a person in the flesh, so mobiles should always be put away when transacting other business for example in shops." Cafes realise social media posts are free advertising for businesses and the Cafe Owners & Barista's Association of Australia has advice on improving their mobile-phone strategy. Back when mobile phones were closer to the size of bricks, their intrusion irritated baby-banning restaurateur Paul Lynch who owned Lynch's in South Yarra. In 2002, he told Fairfax Media: "I have a note on the menu saying that the use of mobile phones will interfere with the cooking of the corned beef." A street-wise barista could tell customers that their phone signal interferes with the bouquet of single-origin coffee beans. Until the 1950s, the Brisbane suburb of Sunnybank was largely agricultural. Today, most of the farms are gone but Sunnybank is still feeding Brisbane. Home to the city's largest Asian community, there's a correspondingly large number of authentic Asian restaurants and fresh-food vendors to explore. Go hungry! Restaurants Landmark Restaurant Landmark restaurant is one of the city's best-loved yum cha venues. Photo: Robert Shakespeare This monolithic restaurants seats 400 and is one of Brisbane's most well-known and best-loved yum cha venues. The buzz starts building about 10.30am when people loiter outside waiting for their yum cha dates to turn up. Dim sum-laden trolleys trundle across the patterned carpet, beneath massive modern chandeliers, hawking prawn and pork sui mai, pillowy barbecued pork buns, chicken feet in black bean sauce and more. Seafood, as exemplified by the tanks of fish and shellfish, is also a speciality. Finish off with a traditional egg tart. Shop 101 Sunnybank Plaza, 358 Mains Rd (corner McCulloch Street), 07 3344 3288 Vietnam Corner Get slurping: Sit up at a shared wooden table at Mappen Japanese Noodles. Photo: Robert Shakespeare The menu is biblical in proportion, but barbecue is a speciality, in both Vietnamese and Hong Kong style. Crisp-skinned roast duck comes shredded to roll inside pancakes with a house-made hoi sin sauce or in a fragrant broth with slippery noodles and vegetables. Try "three treasures" a combination of char siu pork, rectangles of roast pork with crisp crackling, and duck. There are also traditional Vietnamese vermicelli salads and rice dishes such as a sweet-salty barbecued pork chop with meat cake and pork skin. Shop 140 Sunnybank Plaza, 07 33442233 Fortune Well Sichuan Advertisement Spice addicts should head to this restaurant that specialises in hot and spicy Sichuan food. The menu rates the heat scale of dishes from mild to "extremely spicy" for those who like the challenge of dialled-up heat. Not half as as dangerous as it looks, kung pao chicken stir-fried chicken, with lots of red chilli, peanuts and Sichuan pepper is one of the most popular dishes. Ma po tofu soft cubes of silken tofu with chilli and minced pork rates highly too. Shop 42 Sunny Park, 342 McCulloch Street, Sunnybank, 07 3345 6789 Mappen Japanese Noodles Kung pao chicken is a hot order at Fortune Well Sichuan. Photo: Robert Shakespeare This authentic-looking Japanese hole-in-the-wall eatery with shared wooden tables with stools certainly isn't the the newest, but with generous servings under $7 and regular specials of noodles at $5 and under, it's certainly one of the best-value Japanese eateries around. Order your preferred dish, noodle type and choice of hot or cold from the counter along with a choice of extras such as tempura prawns, seaweed toppings and fried bean curd. Popular is the kake udon with tempura. Shop 86 Sunnybank Plaza Drinks Sino Tea Hot cakes are sandwiched with sweet or savoury fillings at Hot Cake House. Photo: Robert Shakespeare Formerly Hazel Tea Shop, there's a mind-blowing number of teas and add-ons at this modern tea shop. Luckily, the massive menu is posted outside so you can have your order ready before you go inside. Tea comes as traditional black or green but diverges from there into a range of flavours, as well as milk tea. You can get adventurous with extras such as tapioca pearls, strawberry and lychee jelly or red beans, or go old-school with a traditional oolong. Shop 18 Sunnybank Plaza Supplies Meat Bank The affable staff are happy to mince or slice to order at this popular butchery where everything is presented just so. Along with all the mainstream cuts you can buy thinly cut bulgogi beef, or buy it pre-marinated in a Korean sauce. There's pork neck and trotters, oxtail and pork galbi (Korean-style pork ribs), too. The beef short ribs are top quality, perfect for marinating and slow cooking. Wagyu, with a marble score of six-plus, comes pre-sliced, or ask Mr Lee to cut you a piece of the highly marbled eight-plus he keeps out the back, for a deluxe steak dinner. Shop 64 Sunnybank Plaza Sunrise BBQ & Butcher A row of golden lacquered ducks hanging in the window marks the location of this barbecue and butcher shop. As well as roast duck, Sunrise specialises in other barbecued meats, including char sui pork, roast chicken and Chinese pork sausage. You can buy duck to take away, either as a whole or half, chopped if you prefer, while barbecued pork and roast suckling pig are sold per kilo. There's also a small selection of fresh, uncooked meat as well. Shop 122 Sunnybank Plaza Welcome Fresh Supermarket Unusually located in the car park, this supermarket may be small but it's packed with everything the home cook or lover of Asian food could want. As well as fresh fruit and vegetables including many unusual Asian greens, there are dried foods from shrimp to beans, various types of fungi, sauces, vinegars and spices, and fridges full of fresh noodles and won ton wrappers. There's also a wide range of freshly made heat-and-eat meals, from spicy bean curd and pork hock to steamed buns. Shop 91 Sunnybank Plaza Sweets Hot Cake House Rather than the American version (pancakes), this typical Taiwanese-Japanese street snack is light and crisp with fillings sandwiched between the two layers. They pump the hotcakes out at a cracking pace here, so they really are hot and fresh. At just $2 each they're a great snack and come in more than two dozen flavours, from the traditional "original custard" to Belgian chocolate volcano. Savoury options include the popular black pepper, cheese and corn. Shop K3 Sunnybank Plaza Meet Fresh Taiwanese Desserts The current trends for desserts that are less about sugar and more about interesting texture are exemplified in Asian desserts, thanks to ingredients such as sago pearls, taro balls, jelly and beans. There are dozens on offer at this dessert bar, the sole Queensland outpost of a popular Taiwanese chain. There's plenty for the adventurous such as sweet tofu with toppings of peanuts or lotus seeds as well more mainstream offerings like a seasonal mango crushed ice with with mango sorbet and coconut sago in coconut milk. Shop 123 Sunnybank Plaza Also try Arguably Brisbane's best pho at Pho Hien Vuong Pasteur, shop 319, Market Square, 319-341, Mains Rd. Miso spicy-men at Hakataya Noodles, shop 278 Sunnybank Plaza. Special chicken soup at the Cube Hotpot, shop 90c Sunnybank Plaza. Xiao long bao at Taste Gallery, shop 20b Market Square. Experience Sunnybank runs free food tours of the suburb, with tastings from various vendors priced at just $2, experiencesunnybank.com.au SHARE Lender to pay $1.2 billion settlement By Deon Roberts CHARLOTTE, N.C. Wells Fargo has agreed to a $1.2 billion settlement to resolve a long-running mortgage dispute with the U.S. government, a move that slashes the bank's 2015 profit by $134 million. The deal involves civil fraud claims brought in 2012 against the San Francisco-based bank, which the government had accused of "reckless" underwriting practices that led to thousands of federally insured loans defaulting. The government said Wells Fargo's false certifications that the loans met requirements for federal insurance resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in insurance payouts. Wells Fargo, which had fought unsuccessfully in court to be released from the claims, said it reached an agreement in principle on Monday with the Department of Justice, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and two U.S. attorneys in New York and California. The settlement is expected to lower Wells Fargo's 2015 profit to $22.9 billion, or $4.12 per common share. The bank, which has a large presence in Charlotte, initially reported profit of $23.03 billion, or $4.15 a share, last month. Those results were down slightly from a record $23.06 billion a year ago. The bank, which disclosed the accord in a securities filing Wednesday, also noted there's no assurance that it and government will agree on the settlement's final terms. In its lawsuit, the government alleged more than 10 years of misconduct by Wells Fargo related to its participation in the Federal Housing Administration's direct endorsement lender program. Under that program, lenders are given authority to certify that mortgages meet requirements for federal insurance. If a federally-backed mortgage defaults, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development must make insurance payouts to the holder of the loan. The government said Wells Fargo failed to comply with the program's basic requirements and certified loans even though the bank knew they were not eligible for federal insurance. Wells Fargo has previously denied the allegations and has said it believes it acted in compliance with federal rules. Wells Fargo has also argued that a landmark $25 billion mortgage settlement in 2012 involving it and other lenders addressed the civil fraud claims the government made the same year. Wells Fargo said Wednesday the $1.2 billion accord will resolve allegations about conduct that occurred between 2001 and 2010 involving its FHA program, as well as other potential civil claims relating to the bank's FHA lending activities for other periods. SHARE Phil Neighbors, with Mayor Dwain Morrison, gives the invocation to start a San Angelo City Council meeting. As president of the San Angelo Chamber of Commerce, Neighbors frequently attended city meetings. PHOTO COURTESY OF PAUL ALEXANDER Phil Neighbors relaxing while fishing in Mexico. Phil Neighbors speaks at the opening of the Business Resource Center in 2013. Phil Neighbors in a light moment during a mission trip to Costa Rica in 2012. By Federico Martinez One of San Angelo's greatest champions has died. Phil Neighbors, 64, president of the San Angelo Chamber of Commerce, died at 4:08 p.m. Wednesday after suffering a heart attack Sunday. He had been hospitalized in critical condition at Community Medical Health since suffering a heart embolism over the weekend. "He was San Angelo's No. 1 cheerleader," said Mayor Dwain Morrison, who often worked and traveled with Neighbors to promote the community. "He did more for this community than most people will ever realize. "He was a good man, a good friend and will definitely be missed." Neighbors is survived by his wife, Susan, and their children, Janet Abernathy and Jeff Neighbors. The family said a funeral will be held Saturday. Details will be released Thursday. "Dad officially passed at 4:08 p.m.," Jeff Neighbors announced on his Facebook page, where he thanked the public for their many prayers. "He graciously took the decision away from us to take him off the machines. He was surrounded by Janet Abernathy, Bryan Abernathy and Susan Hall Neighbors and his four grandchildren. "Today my father, who led me to Christ, is playing racket ball with Him in heaven." Friends and co-workers on Wednesday expressed shock over Neighbors' sudden death. "We are deeply saddened by the tragic news regarding President Phil Neighbors," Chamber Chairwoman Jamie Akin said in a brief statement. "Our hearts and prayers go out to Phil's family, friends and to the Chamber staff during this difficult time." Sandra Pomroy, the Chamber's vice president of operations, called Neighbors a "great man and great boss." "He was a gentle giant and very humble," she said. "It seemed like he was always everywhere." Chuck Shore, executive vice president for First Financial Bank of San Angelo, said Neighbors was instrumental in attracting new businesses and visitors to San Angelo. One of his greatest successes was the creation of the annual Showdown in San Angelo drag boat races, which Phil and his Chamber committee spearheaded, he said. "He had a way of pulling things together," said Shore, who is the chamber's Chairman-elect. "He was very well-respected in the chamber, not just locally, but nationwide. "We lost an awfully good man today." Neighbors was hired as chamber president in 2006. He was admired for more than his tireless efforts to promote San Angelo. Several community leaders praised his ability to make time for family and his deep faith in God. "I feel very fortunate to have known Phil," said Jeff DeLoach, board chairman of the chamber in 2015 and publisher of the Standard-Times. "He was not only dedicated to serving this community through his daily efforts of leading the San Angelo Chamber of Commerce, he was also driven by his love of God. "His leadership at his church with the college program, and regular mission trips to Mexico, is something Phil shared with me a number of times. Just as I appreciated his strong work ethic, I admired Phil's character most. Knowing and working alongside Phil the last several years, along with witnessing his Godly example, has made me a better man." Mayor Morrison said he last saw Neighbors on Saturday when the pair attended a ribbon-cutting for a new business. "Phil's grandsons were playing ball games all day," the Mayor said. "But in between games he showed up in his play clothes for the ribbon-cutting. That's the kind of man he was. He always made time for his family." Neighbors began his chamber career in July 1976 on the staff of the West Texas Chamber of Commerce in Abilene, with primary responsibilities in economic development, tourism development and water resources. He also spent six and a half years as chief executive officer of the Kerrville Chamber, and 13.5 years as president of the San Marcos Area Chamber of Commerce before coming to San Angelo. A native of Pomona, California, Neighbors was a 1974 graduate of Angelo State University, with studies in government and English. He was a 1994 graduate of the U.S. Chamber's Institute for Organization Management at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Neighbors was an active member of Southland Baptist Church, where he worked with college and career young adults and served as a deacon. In San Angelo, Neighbors served on the boards of Howard College-San Angelo Foundation, the San Angelo Metropolitan Planning Organization and the Concho Valley CARES Coalition. He is immediate past chairman of Workforce Development Board of the Concho Valley and chaired the Angelo State University Small Business Development Center Advisory Board, as well as the Project Janus board. Neighbors served on many boards and committees, including the South-West Texas/Border Region Small Business Development Center Advisory Board. He was Vice Chairman of the Texas Association of Workforce Boards and a member of the Texas Economic Development Council, where he chaired committees and conferences. He served as 2006 Chairman of the Board of the Texas Chamber of Commerce Executives Association, which honored him with its distinguished service award in 1990. Neighbors received the Chairman's award from the San Marcos Chamber in November 1997 and was named Outstanding Chamber Executive of the year by the Texas Association of Business in January 2000. By Ngan Ho of the San Angelo Standard-Times A Tom Green county judge ordered further psychological re-evaluation for a San Angelo man charged with vehicular manslaughter. Malcolm Guy McBurnett, 68, was indicted in May 2013 in the March 2013 death of Donald Di Pietro, 28, a Marine sergeant who was stationed at Goodfellow Air Force Base. McBurnett's lawyer, Fred Brigman, appeared on the behalf of McBurnett before 391st District Judge Tom Gossett on Wednesday, during McBurnett's third competency hearing since July 2013, and requested that further psychological evaluation be performed on his client. Results from McBurnett's most recent evaluation from a hospital in Kerrville indicated McBurnett is competent, but until the court finds him competent he cannot stand trial. Brigman had objections to the Kerville competency finding, telling Gossett that in interaction with his client, McBurnet's answers to his questions were "irrelevant." "He doesn't know all the facts of it," Brigman told Gosset. On the night of March 9, 2013, McBurnett had been drinking at the Party Ranch bar, 5233 Christoval Road, just before putting his stalled pickup in neutral and pushing it into the road with the help of Allen Lee Schmidt, 50, according to court documents. McBurnett was behind the wheel attempting to start his car when Di Pietro crashed into the side of the pickup in his motorcycle and cracked his helmet, according to court documents. Road marks indicated that Di Pietro applied his brakes about 80 feet from the truck but was unable to stop, according to police. Di Pietro was pronounced dead at the scene. Police determined McBurnett was intoxicated the night of the incident and that the lights on his truck were not turned on, according to the San Angelo Police Department. In April 2013, Di Pietro's father, Don Di Pietro, filed a lawsuit against the bar owner Tracy Lawson, McBurnett and Schmidt. In October, 340th District Judge Jay Weatherby ordered McBurnett to pay $2 million to Di Pietro, and the Party Ranch was shut down as a result of the incident. In August 2014, jurors found Schmidt guilty of manslaughter in Di Pietro's death. He was sentenced to 10 years probation and fined $10,000, the maximum fine. At least one prior mental health evaluation, conducted by a hospital in Vernon, Texas, from July through November of 2013, has deemed McBurnett competent. After that finding he was booked back into Tom Green County Jail, then released for further treatment March 27, 2014. He was booked back into the Tom Green County Jail on Monday after the Kerville competency finding. McBurnett also has received evaluation from North Texas State Hospital, according to court records, although the outcome of that evaluation was not available. If the court finds McBurnett competent, he faces charges of intoxication manslaughter with vehicle, manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide. Both manslaughter charges are second-degree felonies punishable by two to 20 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000. The criminally negligent homicide charge is a state jail felony punishable by 180 days to two years in state jail. Prosecutor Richard Villarreal said that the court has not determined McBrunett's competency to stand trial. "He has always been incompetent until the judge finds him competent," Villarreal said . Villarreal had no objection to continued psychological evaluation of McBurnett. Adam Sauceda/Standard-Times Encino Landscape Inc. employees work on the Red Arroyo Trail project between Unidad Park and San Angelo City Park on Wednesday. SHARE By Rashda Khan The Red Arroyo trails and dog park project is far behind schedule, but the end is in view, according to city staff. After receiving numerous inquiries from constituents, the San Angelo City Council included a project update at Tuesday's meeting. City Engineer Russell Pehl said the trails portion of the project, which runs from Knickerbocker Road to Southwest Boulevard, is scheduled to be complete by the end of February. The dog parks a small one by the parking lot off Millbrook Drive, and a larger one opposite it should start shortly after the completion of the trail project and be done in about two months. That doesn't necessarily mean the dog parks will be available for use by summer. Encino Landscape Inc., of Cleveland, Texas, won the Texas Transportation Commission bid on the trails project and started work in November 2014. The company was supposed to complete the project within a year, but "currently it's extended well beyond that," Pehl said. He blamed weather for causing most of the time delays. "They're working in a flood plain," Pehl said. "Any time it rains, the area floods and that delays work." However, Pehl reported to council all the trails and bridges across the Red Arroyo are complete, parking lots are complete, benches along the trails were in place, and seven out of the eight trailheads are done. The contractors are about 65 percent done with the restrooms and 90 percent done with the final grade work. The biggest holdup at the moment is that "a lot of the ponds constructed as part of this project are still full of water," Pehl explained. There are five soil removal ponds and two stormwater ponds. These ponds need to be dry for work to progress. "Part of the problem of building in a flood plain or flood way is that per FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) we have to mitigate for any improvements made in there, so for impeding flow we need to be able to offset the flow," Pehl said. "It's mass balance. We brought in a lot of fill to build these bridges and trails so these ponds are counterbalancing as per FEMA requirement." The city's engineer said he's been in discussion with Encino contractors and TXDOT and there are two possible options: The contract can be suspended or delayed so that the water in the ponds has time to evaporate, or they can go ahead and pump the ponds, let them dry a few weeks and progress with construction. Pehl said the project was funded through TXDOT and it would be their decision to either delay the project or pump the ponds. However, John DeWitt director of transportation planning and development in the San Angelo district of TXDOT, replied to an email query "This is for COSA (the city of San Angelo) to decide." About 80 percent of the $3.9 million trails project is funded by a Transportation Enhancement Grant, which is federally funded and managed by the state. The remaining 20 percent is funded by the city. "We paid our money to TXDOT, they awarded the contract," Pehl said. "This gives the Texas Department of Transportation oversight. All we can do is advise and monitor, but we don't have any real teeth." City staff repeatedly emphasized that the city is not in control of the contract or the project. When contacted again, DeWitt wrote back: "City's call on the ponds." Councilman Rodney Fleming said there are lots of people who want to use the dog parks this summer. "If we don't release them (the contractors) until this summer and then it takes two months to build the dog parks, it'll be after summer time before any one can use the dog park," Fleming said. He wanted to know why that portion of the project couldn't be started earlier. "With the liquidated damages, I don't want to get in the way of the contractor right now," said Parks and Recreation Director Carl White. TXDOT began charging Encino liquidated damages about $970 per day on November 9, 2015. This is the amount of money the contractor loses per day as penalty for not meeting the deadline. According to TXDOT staff, 49 days of liquidated damages have been charged through Jan. 31 for a total of $47,350. "We need to get this done. Lots of people want to use this park," Fleming said, adding a bit later, "When it's 100 percent completed, this will be something we should be proud of as a city." Federico Martinez/Standard-Times The Goodfellow Air Force Base Color Guard presents colors at San Angelos National Prayer Breakfast held Thursday morning at the McNease Convention Center. SHARE By Federico Martinez Keynote Speaker Carol Kent's story of personal tragedy and redemption inspired more than 450 people who attended San Angelo's National Prayer Breakfast on Thursday morning. Kent, an award-winning Christian author, shared the story of how her son's seemingly promising future came to a nightmarish halt when he shot and killed a man. The incident forced Kent to reconsider her preconceived notions of what it means to be a Christian. "We thought he had a life where he would live happily ever after," Kent told the audience at the McNease Convention Center. "But then came the call one night that my son Jason was in federal prison in Florida for murder. I had difficult choices to make. "I had to learn what forgiveness really meant and how no matter the situation we all must find a purpose." For Carol Kent and her husband, Gene, it meant coming to terms with their son's actions and reconsidering the true meaning of forgiveness, not just for their son, but for all God's children. "I needed to learn to act like Jesus before I could start telling people about Jesus," Kent said. Her words resonated with many who attended the prayer event. "It's very difficult to be willing to forgive and let go of all the hurt.," said James Aaron, a San Angelo accountant who was in attendance. "Her message was powerful and inspirational. "It was a reminder that people listen more to how somebody lives their life than their words." The annual San Angelo event began in 1994, said Charles Bonds, the program's moderator. The program is an opportunity to fellowship and learn from speakers like Kent, he said. Bonds also sits on the event's advisory council. San Angelo resident Regina Winn said she always enjoys the event because it's an opportunity to be surrounded by other Christians. "I like attending because it's one place with one mind," Winn said. "The speakers are always very uplifting." Kent told the audience how her son had always excelled in school and upon graduation was accepted into the Naval Academy. One day, Jason called his parents to announce that he was planning to marry a woman who was divorced something the Kents frowned upon because of their religious beliefs at the time. "We had two choices get on board or risk creating a rift that might never be healed," she said. Things started to sour after their son's wife began receiving threats from her ex-husband. Fearing for his family's life, Jason confronted the man in a parking lot and shot him, Carol Kent said. A few years after Jason's imprisonment, his wife decided to seek a divorce and informed Carol and Gene Kent that she was moving to start a new life and would not allow them to have any further contact with their two granddaughters. For nearly a decade the Kents were estranged from their grandchildren, until they became adults and re-established contact. Their son, who likely will spend the rest of his life in prison, has started his own in-prison ministry. Their story didn't get the happily-ever-after ending the family had scripted many years ago, Kent said, but the family has used the experiences to grow as Christians and help other families in similar situations. "The last thing I want to challenge you with is to choose purposeful living regardless of where your journey takes you," Kent said. SHARE By Jennifer Rios Karen Freeman, who wasnt allowed in the courtoom during Daniel Uvalles capital murder trial, got to face the man who killed her daughter after he was found guilty. She held back tears as she talked about what was taken from her a beautiful, intelligent daughter and the opportunity to see her grow up, get married and have children. Im not going to give him the satisfaction of seeing me cry, she said after the trial. Jurors spent about 50 minutes Thursday deciding Uvalle was guilty of capital murder. They had the option of handing down a first-degree murder verdict instead, which is punishable by five to 99 years in prison rather than the life sentence Uvalle received. Uvalle, 18, will become eligible for parole after 50 years. 391st District Judge Tom Gossett appointed defense attorneys Melvin Gray and Fred Brigman to continue with the case through the appellate process. He has a right to do that, and if I were him I probably would, Gray said about the possibility of an appeal. Melvin said he would give his recommendation to his client, but ultimately the decision is up to Uvalle. My client obviously was hoping for a better verdict, but at any rate he did get a finding that will allow him at some point to make parole, Gray said after the trial. It took jurors less than an hour to reach their verdict. I very, very much appreciate their time and attention and work, 51st District Attorney Allison Palmer, who prosecuted the case, said after the trial. She was pleased with the outcome and hopes it brings some measure of closure to the families of Tabitha Freeman and Alvaro Carrillo Jr., the two 22-year-olds who were fatally shot Sept. 1, 2013, at Greenwood Apartments. But theres still more to be done, she said. Thursday morning jurors heard a taped police interview in which Uvalle told police he tried to defuse the situation that led to the double homicide one in which he said he took no part. This is your brother, dont do it, he says he told Johnny Garcia, a man witnesses pointed to as the gunman. In the tape, Uvalle said Garcia threatened to kill Uvalle the night, and that it was Garcias beef with Carrillo that led them to the apartment twice that day. Uvalle didnt know why the two were arguing. In the interview he also seemed surprised that Freeman died in the shooting. Uvalle, 17 at the time of the deaths, told San Angelo Police Detective Brian Elkins he freaked out after the shots were fired and that he took off running. Garcia was chasing me, trying to kill me, he said on the tape. Uvalle said he was scared of what would happen to him legally. He was also afraid for his girlfriend, whose home he went to after the shootings, he said. When Elkins continued to question him on what happened after he left the apartments, Uvalle later changed his story first explaining that he left the apartment with Garcia, who dropped him off on a street so Uvalle could walk to Grape Creek, then saying Garcia dropped him off in Grape Creek at Uvalles girlfriends house. Uvalle said he didnt carry a handgun into the apartment the first time he and Garcia went in that it was another one of Garcias friends. In testimony Wednesday, one witness did describe at least one additional person who was at the apartment, but whose role in the situation was unclear. Elkins, both in the video and in court Thursday, brought up text messages sent from Uvalles phone to his girlfriend in the hours leading up to the shootings. One read: OK, Im gonna kill some (expletive). I love you, OK babe. I didnt mean to put that, Uvalle said in the video. Others included We already punked them, were going to merc them, Elkins said. He testified that merc was short for mercenary, and on the tape, Uvalle defined the word as to kill someone. Carrillos cousin Antonio Prieto Jr., 33, works across the street from the courthouse and sat in on the trial whenever he could. Prieto said Chickadee the familys nickname for Carrillo had a great sense of humor and could make anyone laugh. His family felt justice was served, but Carrillos death is one of those empty voids that will never get filled again. It was unfortunate that this had to happen to all the families involved, Prieto said. All week there were 20 to 50 people in the courtroom, the vast majority family and friends of the victims. We dont see each other that much, but were a big family that love each other unconditionally, Prieto said. Tabitha Freeman was the only family her mother had in the United States, but she was surrounded by friends in the courtroom. Karen Freeman, who was mentally and physically exhausted after the trial, felt she and Carrillos parents were robbed of the opportunity to sit in the courtroom, but she is bracing herself for the next trial. All were potential witnesses but were not called to testify. I promised my baby girl justice, and were done with phase one and weve got one more to go, Freeman said. Garcias capital murder trial is scheduled for May 18. Palmer has waived the death penalty in his case, but because he was 18 at the time of the incident, he could face life in prison without parole. SHARE By Anita Kumar WASHINGTON Despite their differences, Hillary Clinton and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders have plenty of things in common. Here are five of them: Obama's 3rd term Clinton and Sanders are embracing President Barack Obama. Clinton reminds voters that as secretary of state she worked alongside him and wants to build on his successes. Sanders calls him a friend. Keystone XL pipeline Sanders and Clinton oppose the Keystone XL pipeline, which would carry oil from Canada to the U.S., saying the project would hinder efforts to combat climate change. long time in Washington Sanders and Clinton have been part of Washington for decades. Sanders has served 34 years in elective office, a quarter of a century of that in Congress. Clinton came to Washington just two years after Sanders, as first lady, then as a senator from New York and as secretary of state. Planned Parenthood Clinton and Sanders want to boost funding for Planned Parenthood, the health care provider that performs abortions and is under attack by Republicans who want to stop government financial support. Those emails Both think the public is making too much of Clinton's use of a personal email account as secretary of state. Sanders, who memorably dismissed questions about Clinton's emails at the first debate last fall, said Tuesday in Iowa that he didn't regret giving his rival a pass. FILE - In this Thursday, Dec. 20, 2012, file photo, Julian Assange, founder of WikiLeaks speaks to the media and members of the public from a balcony at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said Wedneday Feb. 3, 2016 that he will accept arrest by British police if a U.N. working group investigating his claims decides that the three years he has spent inside the Ecuadorean Embassy doesn't amount to illegal detention. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File) SHARE A view of the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, where Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is staying, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange says he will accept arrest by British police if a U.N. working group investigating his claims decides that the three years he has spent inside the Ecuadorean Embassy doesn't amount to illegal detention. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth) By GREGORY KATZ and JAN M. OLSEN, Associated Press LONDON (AP) WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has found a surprising ally a little known United Nations panel that has decided he has been unfairly detained in Britain while seeking to avoid extradition to Sweden to answer allegations of sexual misconduct. But it's not clear if the findings of the five members of the U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, to be officially announced in Geneva Friday, will lead to a change in Assange's legal status. The sun-starved computer hacker has holed up inside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London for more than three years, and as things stand now he still faces arrest if he steps outside. Swedish officials said Thursday the UN panel report concludes Assange has been a victim of an "arbitrary detention," apparently because he has been unable to leave the embassy without fear of being immediately taken into custody by British police armed with a European arrest warrant. British and Swedish officials have indicated they will not be swayed by the U.N. panel's report, which is not binding and has no legal authority. Swedish prosecutors want to question Assange over allegations of rape stemming from a working visit he made to the Nordic country in 2010 when WikiLeaks was attracting international attention for its secret-spilling ways. They haven't charged him with any crime so far, but Assange has refused to return to answer questions saying he fears the whole thing is an elaborate setup designed to send him to the United States to face espionage charges there. British police also accuse Assange of jumping bail. The unexpected panel finding in Assange's favor confounded some experts who have followed the case. Ove Bring, a professor of international law at Stockholm University, said he was very surprised. "First of all I don't think it's a detention. Secondly, it's not arbitrary," Bring said. He said Assange's situation "is definitely not a case of unlawful detention" since the WikiLeaks-founder has chosen to stay at the embassy. He could at any time have agreed to be questioned in Sweden, after which the prosecutor most likely would have been forced to abandon the case due to a lack of evidence, Bring said. Assange, 44, has demanded via Twitter that he be given back his passport held by British authorities in light of the U.N. panel's conclusion. The panel's finding, based on a claim filed by Assange and his lawyers more than a year ago, could increase pressure on prosecutors to drop proceedings against Assange. The panel consists of a Korean law professor, a Mexican human right expert, a law professor from Benin, an Australian judicial expert, and a specialist in international criminal justice from Ukraine. Per E. Samuelsson, a Swedish lawyer for Assange, told The Associated Press that prosecutors should "revoke" the arrest warrant and "set him free" in light of the panel's conclusion. Samuelsson said: "If it happens that way, it will be a victory." So far, there are no indications that prosecutors are ready to end an inquiry into rape allegations. Sweden's prosecution authority noted Thursday that the statement from the working group has no formal impact on the ongoing investigation, according to Swedish law. Sweden and Britain may also choose to appeal the panel's decision, a process that could take months. Two women accused Assange of the sexual misconduct in 2010, leading Swedish police to open an investigation and seek him for questioning. Last year, prosecutors dropped investigations of less serious allegations into alleged sexual assault as their statute of limitations expired, but were not willing to do so with the more serious rape allegation, which centers around a woman's claim that Assange had sex with her when she was asleep, which can be considered rape in Sweden. Assange has consistently denied the allegations but declined to return to Sweden to meet with prosecutors and eventually sought refuge in the Ecuadorean embassy near Harrod's department store in a posh neighborhood of central London. That has been his home since June, 2012. Swedish prosecutors say they have attempted to question Assange at the embassy since March last year but have been unable to do so because Ecuadorean authorities haven't permitted it. The seemingly-simple case has been greatly complicated by uncertainty surrounding Assange's legal status in the United States. The U.S. government has not revealed whether he has been indicted since grand jury proceedings are secret there but has indicated that sensitive investigations into Assange and WikiLeaks have been made. One of Assange's lawyers, Melinda Taylor, told The Associated Press Thursday he seeks guarantees from Sweden and Britain that he will not be sent to the United States. She said he may seek safe passage to Ecuador, which has given him political asylum. Ecuadorean Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino has said Assange could immediately go to Ecuador if he's given safe conduct by Britain. ___ Jan M. Olsen reported from Copenhagen, Denmark. Malin Rising in London, Jamey Keaten in Geneva and Gonzalo Solano in Quito contributed to this report. SHARE By Suzanne Carter Hahn Robert Gates' new book is titled, "A Passion for Leadership." The topic is compelling. Leading candidates in both parties seem deeply flawed. The world is on fire, and its fire department missing in action. Many have been surprised, if not shocked, by Gates' candor regarding presidents, both past and present. And he's had an up-close-and-personal view for about 50 years. In this time of political chaos, among the top GOP contenders are an impulsive billionaire/reality show host, a knife-wielding neurosurgeon, three establishment like governors, three freshman senators (one hated by the entire Senate) and a partridge in a pear tree. (No, that just seems to fit.) The two Democratic contenders include one carrying tons of baggage trunks stuffed full of old records and bags crammed with new ones. The other is a self-described socialist who has convinced many he can lead the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave. As we look at the lineup wondering what they might bring to the table, Gates' insights may be helpful. Now retired, Gates has worked in the administrations of eight presidents. He was in the CIA 21 years, and was the youngest deputy national security adviser in our nation's history. He was director of CIA under George H.W. Bush when he came under fire for his involvement in the Iran/Contra scandal. In 2006, Gates was selected for defense secretary by George W. Bush, and in 2008 was asked by President Obama to stay on in that position. Gates is highly respected by both parties and is known for his straight talk and his intellect. In addition, he is a former president of Texas A&M University that counts for a lot way out in our part of flyover country. Gates believes that political experience is valuable. He made the point by telling a brief story about Eisenhower: "When Ike issued his first order in the Oval Office, he was surprised when no one saluted and jumped to comply. He had to develop a new skill set." Gates was asked who he felt were our greatest presidents. His list: Washington, Lincoln, both Roosevelts, Truman, Eisenhower and Reagan. The question then turned to what qualities are most important for a great leader. Gates began by quoting Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., appointed to the court by Theodore Roosevelt. Legend has it that Holmes said of TR: "He has a second-class intellect, but a first-class temperament." However, many close to Holmes said he had never stated the idea so succinctly, but often had expressed his belief that a president's temperament can give him special advantages. We think of FDR and his fireside chats during World War II. Reagan's "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" George W. Bush on the firetruck with a bullhorn after 9/11. Each had the ability to connect with real people. Each was able to persuade the public to follow their lead. They knew how to use what TR called "the bully pulpit." Gates discusses the importance of a president's choice of close advisers. They must be strong and trusted individuals people he will listen to and take advice from. At least one willing to tell him when he's wrong and who is not afraid to give him the bad news. And there will be bad news. Often, that person, not he, will be the smartest in the room. When asked if that had been a problem in the present administration, Gates responded: "Once in a meeting of about 20 staffers in the Oval Office, the president told those in the room that he could do each of their jobs better than they." No further comment. Gates concludes that successful leaders hold their people accountable for results, good or bad. They diagnose problems, and try to change the paradigm for success. His example, the Department of Veterans Affairs. If the government cannot ensure that vets get timely medical attention, they should get vouchers for private care. Good leaders work to make their employees proud of their contribution and make them aware of how their work fits into the bigger picture. Their subordinates are empowered, and treated with respect and dignity. Everybody wins. Gates believed that leadership is crucial at all government levels from city councils to mayors and governors. An example of failures at all levels? The water supply in Flint, Michigan. The full impact on generations of citizens? Impossible to calculate. Gates points out that presidents may have different character assets. He praised the elder Bush for his ability to bring people together, and the younger Bush for his courage. Although in his second term President Obama is criticized for waffling on foreign affairs decisions, Gates praised his first-term decisions. Gates said, regarding Afghanistan, "I never doubted Obama's support for the troops, only his support for their mission." And of that period, he wrote that Obama had the ability to make tough decisions. Despite opposition, Obama made the final call to take out Osama bin Laden. So what are we to make of the current state of the union? The plot thickens daily. Will another GOP billionaire enter the fray? Will the GOP convention be brokered? Oh, right brokers no longer exist. How about a third-party run? What happens if a candidate is indicted? Can anyone bring the country together? If we knew how to pull it off, maybe we could draft Robert Gates. Suzanne Carter Hahn lives in San Angelo. SHARE By Harold Byler Donald Trump has received much criticism over his plan to completely stop Muslim and Syrian immigration into this country until we can figure out a way to sort out the embedded terrorists. People are saying that Trump's plan is dumb, stupid, reckless, dangerous and unconstitutional, that he is overstepping his bounds and cannot do that! While a president doesn't have the authority that Obama has claimed, to let in anyone he wants for any reason, a president does have the statutory authority to keep anyone out, for any reason he thinks best. Existing statutory law, 8 U.S. Code 1182, states: "Whenever the President finds that the entry of any aliens or of any class of aliens into the United States would be detrimental to the interests of the United States, he may by proclamation, and for such period as he shall deem necessary, suspend the entry of all aliens or any class of aliens as immigrants or nonimmigrants, or impose on the entry of aliens any restrictions he may deem to be appropriate." This code was written in 1952 and passed by a Democrat-controlled Congress, and signed by a Democratic president. In addition, American statutory law requires asking immigrants seeking asylum what their religious beliefs are. The Supreme Court has held consistently, for more than a century, that constitutional protections that normally benefit Americans do not apply when Congress decides whom to admit and whom to exclude as immigrants or other entrants. This is called the plenary power doctrine. The court has repeatedly turned away challenges to immigration statutes and executive actions on grounds that they discriminate on the basis of race, national origin and political belief, and that they deprive foreign nationals of due process protections. It has never given the slightest indication that religion would be exempt from the general rule. There are precedents for Trump's plan. The very first U.S. immigration law was the Chinese Exclusionary Act of 1882. In 1891, Congress passed a statute that made "people who practice polygamy" inadmissible. Then there was the anarchist Exclusion Act of 1903. Further support for his plan is Jimmy Carter's halting of Iranian travel to the U. S. in 1980, as part of a war that Jimmy Carter prosecuted against Iranian Muslims, ordering 50,000 Iranians to report to INS and ultimately deporting more than 15,000, citing the 1952 law. On Aug. 4, 2011, President Obama issued Proclamation 8697, Suspension of Entry as Immigrants and Nonimmigrants of Persons Who Participate in Serious Human Rights and Humanitarian Law Violations and Other Abuses. This Proclamation 8697 was passed by a Democratic Congress. A president can stop immigration and travel of any class of immigrant or nonimmigrant for any reason he determines to be detrimental according to long-standing immigration law. All those claiming that it's unconstitutional, illegal and un-American to halt Muslim travel to the U. S. need to reframe their arguments to a discussion of merits instead of political correctness. Trump is not dumb. He is very smart and maintains a highly-qualified research and advisory staff. Harold Byler lives in Brady. SHARE The 1960s was a bad time. I am a child of the Sixties. I protested against discrimination, I saw Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and agreed with what he was attempting. During this awful time, protests were rabid against the Vietnam War. My young husband was there, as were many other families' loved ones. We here at home had to tolerate these protests. We hung yellow ribbons for our fighters in this foreign country. Every day we dashed to the mailbox hoping to find a letter, and at night we watched the CBS News to find what bit of information we could. As I was residing on military property, I had many wives of color going through the same distress we all were. We did not see color. We were families all supporting each other as best we could. Keep in mind, all this was in combination with the unrest of discrimination. We wives and other family members had dinners together, we pierced each other's ears, cut each other's hair, gave perms (many disasters), our kids played together. I remain in contact with some of the families to this day. Many spouses did not return, or, like mine, they came back different human beings. They came back to being spit on, degraded. Many employers would not hire them. We did not know at this time what PTSD was. But we families found out and many found out the hard way. I share some of this story and history to tell you all I am ashamed of the way many citizens speak of the President of the United States of America. Pure hatred, scary comments. I ask myself, "What would Dr. King do and say if he were alive today"? I have resided many places, but I must admit having arrived in Tom Green County I hear the worst of insults and pure disrespect of our president. Has he not done anything to please these people? He is educated, politically savvy and experienced, "A natural born U.S. citizen." His wife is a beautiful, educated first lady, their children are awesome, very smart, never a reason to cast hatred toward them, no controversy as with the Bush daughters. No extramarital affairs, a loving family complete with two "first dogs." So again, I ask: What is the issue? I actually hear people refer to him using the n-word. I will tell you the issue he is black. This is the underlying issue of today. We are not looking at human beings as themselves. We see color. If we are fortunate enough to finally elect a woman as leader of this country, I can only imagine what she will face. I have heard dreadful comments regarding a woman president. When did this country get so mad? Why do we have to have labels for anyone? I long for the bygone days when we all lived together, loved each other and prayed for each other, even during some of the worst days and years in history. Improving Accountability Criticizing Unions Boosting Public Workers Pay Investing in Infrastructure Judging by their State of the State addresses, most of the nations governors are full of good cheer. This is likely, in part, because their states fiscal status has improved since a few years ago.Many of the governors are in their second terms and used their start-of-the-year speeches to tout how much better off their states are: low unemployment, strong job growth, economic development victories, heightened investment (or anticipated investment) in education, balanced budgets and well-stocked rainy day funds.Some governors, however, offered a somewhat gloomier outlook . States that have suffered from the dramatic drop in oil prices -- such as Alaska, Oklahoma and New Mexico -- and states with special budget problems -- such as Kentucky and Illinois -- have little to celebrate.We read all of the speeches delivered as of Tuesday (31 of the 43 that will ultimately be presented). Here are the highlights of governors managerial concerns going into this year.One concept that came up frequently was accountability.Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts used that word when he referred to a needed culture change in the states Department of Corrections. Before he took office, "dozens of convicted criminals, many of them violent [were] released from prison early because of errors in sentencing calculations."Unsurprisingly, accountability was also a particularly pressing topic for Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, who spent a significant part of his speech discussing and taking responsibility for the Flint water crisis.No citizen of this great state should endure this kind of catastrophe, he said. Government failed you: federal, state and local leaders by breaking the trust you placed in us. I am sorry most of all that I let you down. You deserve better. You deserve accountability.He promised to release his 2014-2015 e-mails regarding Flint, to work hand in hand with Flint's mayor to "rebuild the trust that has been broken," and to cooperate with investigations.While state employees were generally praised for their good work, employee unions took a beating from the governors of Illinois and New Jersey. In his speech , Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner complained about unions compensation demands being out-of-touch with reality.He said that, adjusted for the cost of living, Illinois has the highest paid public employees in the nation. He also said one of the most critical actions needed in his state is constitutional pension reform, noting that the state has one of the nation's worst unfunded pension liabilities.New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, a Republican presidential candidate, criticized selfish public-sector union leadership and spoke against a proposed constitutional amendment to guarantee state pensions. We cannot deny funding for health care, education, criminal justice, the poor, our environment, our children and our infrastructure to pander to pensioners. We cannot soak every taxpayer for the benefit of the privileged few.Several of the governors are concerned with making sure their states have a sufficient workforce (the subject of a recent Governing article ). Their way of doing that is offering more money.Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal, for example, defended his proposal for giving a 3 percent raise to teachers and state employees. As agency budgets were cut in recent years, he said the remaining employees worked overtime and deserved to be rewarded. There are four agencies that had over a 20 percent annual turnover rate, with the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities losing almost one third of their employees last year. System-wide, the turnover rate last year was 18.4 percent.Similarly, Kentuckys new Republican governor, Matt Bevin, spent a good part of his speech talking about needed budget cutbacks but also promised increased compensation for social workers and corrections workers to alleviate extreme turnover issues.The need for investment in infrastructure is on the minds of many, including New Yorks Andrew Cuomo, Nebraskas Pete Ricketts, Indianas Mike Pence and Hawaiis David Ige. But only a few governors specifically addressed deferred maintenance of roads and bridges, including Tennessees Bill Haslam and Californias Jerry Brown. Brown was the only one to quantify the backlog, which he labeled as a $77 billion problem. "At some point, sooner rather than later, we have to bite the bullet and enact new fees and taxes for this purpose," said Brown . "Ideology and politics stand in the way, but one way or another the roads must be fixed."The biggest surprise from the speeches so far hasnt been what governors said -- but what they didnt say.There were few mentions of evaluation, data analysis or evidence-based practices -- topics we think are of great importance. The word efficiency, which had been a mainstay of State of the State speeches in recent years, garnered only modest attention. Another surprise is that cybersecurity was mostly mentioned as an economic development opportunity, rather than a critical issue that needs state attention. There was an exception, though: Idaho Gov. Bruce Otter discussed the work of his Cybersecurity Task Force and the growing threat of hackers exploiting our state computer systems. Officials from Detroit's teachers union blasted Detroit Public Schools on Wednesday after the district blocked the union's environmental experts from investigating possible mold growth, water damage and other problems inside nine schools."Our members are demanding that we give them specific answers as to what's going on in their schools," Ivy Bailey, interim president of the Detroit Federation of Teachers, said at a news conference outside Spain-Elementary Middle School.The DFT has asked a judge to force the district to give inspectors access, union attorney Robert Fetter said.A spokeswoman for DPS said the union did not provide it with enough advance notice. She also said allowing the inspectors inside could complicate the district's efforts to make building repairs.The union and its parent group, the American Federation of Teachers, brought industrial hygienists from New York, Washington, D.C., and Connecticut to Detroit to identify health and safety problems in buildings.The poor conditions of aging Detroit schools have been in the spotlight in recent weeks, with teachers staging mass sick-outs to call attention to the problem. The DFT sued DPS last week in Wayne County Circuit Court, saying the conditions are hazardous to students' health.The sick-outs closed dozens of schools last month. Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, after touring a handful of schools, order the city inspections. So far, inspectors have visited more than three dozen schools, noting problems such as rodents and busted ceiling tiles.They found 16 violations just at Spain. A health inspector wrote, "Mold growing under wood flooring in the gym, with possible diffusion of mold spores throughout the building was observed."Bailey and other union officials praised the city's efforts. But Bailey said the DFT wants to conduct its own tests to figure out, for example, the exact type of mold inside Spain and whether it's dangerous to teachers and students.The American Federation of Teachers, the DFT's parent group, brought in three teams of environmental experts to inspect nine schools Wednesday and Thursday. Armed with cameras, they were prepared to snap photos, test for water leaks and take mold samples.They planned to visit Spain, Thirkell Elementary-Middle, Mann Elementary, Carleton Elementary, Detroit International Academy, Dossin Elementary-Middle, Gardner Elementary, Noble Elementary-Middle and Sampson-Webber Leadership Academy. But an attorney for DPS told the union no.District officials say they're working to address building maintenance issues."Detroit Public Schools has been, and will continue to work closely with the City of Detroit, which has regulatory jurisdiction over the District's 97 school buildings as it relates to compliance with property maintenance and safety regulations," DPS spokeswoman Michelle Zdrodowski said in an e-mail. "The AFT/DFT has access to the inspection reports completed by the city."Additional teams of people in the school buildings complicate the District's efforts to fully comply with state and local regulations. Further, the DFT/AFT were seeking to have teams of unknown individuals come into our school buildings without proper or reasonable prior notice to administration and staff."Fetter said banning the inspectors violates state labor law and the DFT contract. He filed an emergency motion late today in circuit court to force DPS to permit the inspections.The DFT is distributing surveys to school employees to collect information about building problems.Spain teacher WaSeana Ballard said that in the last six months, it seems like more students are coming down with headaches and respiratory problems."We just want to make sure our school stays (open), and is safe," she said.After the news conference, a preschool teacher stepped outside to show reporters a sample of water taken from the sink in her classroom. She held an 8-ounce, partially filled plastic water bottle with several mysterious greenish-black specks settled on the bottom. The Poster Child: Alaska Looking Long in Louisiana Cuts, Cuts, Cuts A Local Problem, Too Then There's New Mexico and Wyoming Oil prices are now at their lowest level in 12 years -- below $30 a barrel. That's great news for consumers, but not for the states that depend on oil tax revenues.The falling price of oil, which has declined more than 60 percent since June 2014, has some states scrambling. With no end in sight, states that are more dependent on the industry simply can't replace the revenue by withdrawing from their substantial rainy day funds.Oil, natural gas and mining account for about 10 percent or more of gross domestic product in eight states: Alaska, Louisiana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Texas, West Virginia and Wyoming. Last year, total tax revenues in the eight states declined by 3.2 percent, according to a new analysis by the Nelson A. Rockefeller Institute of Government. In contrast, the remaining 42 states reported a 6.5 percent increase in total tax revenues.Although most of these states tend to budget conservatively, the good years for oil had an impact on their finances."As oil went up in price, so did budgets and spending," said Roy Eappen of Wells Fargo Securities. "I think now they're realizing -- if they didn't before -- that they can't assume oil is going to bounce back."As these states consider changes to address the revenue shortage, their potential solutions vary widely -- from a complete financial overhaul to minor budget tweaks.Alaska'ssituation is the most precarious because it's the only state that directly funnels much of its oil revenue into its operating budget. Until recently, high oil revenues paid for up to 90 percent of the state's operating costs and allowed Alaska to beef up its rainy day reserves to about $17 billion -- enough to cover more than two full years of state expenses.But in 2015, the state withdrew $2.8 billion from its rainy day savings to close a budget gap. This year's budget relies on a $3.4 billion withdrawal despite cutting about $1 billion in spending. In the past year, the state's total tax revenue has dropped by two-thirds. Last month, Standard & Poor's downgraded the state's credit rating from a top-rated AAA to AA+ and warned it could be downgraded again.In response, Gov. Bill Walker has proposed completely revamping Alaskas revenue system . His fiscal 2017 budget, which starts July 1, includes the states first income tax in more than three decades. While small -- about 1.5 percent for most Alaskans -- the tax likely won't be popular with residents.Walker's budget proposal would also restructure the states $47 billion Permanent Fund, a low-risk investment fund that's fed by about one-quarter of the state's oil revenue and pays an annual dividend to residents. The state would seize the fund, increase the amount of oil revenue going toward it by half and put the fund's investment earnings toward future operating budgets. The other half of oil revenue would be used for residents dividends. This years payments were about $2,000; under Walkers proposal, payments would likely be cut to $1,000.InLouisiana, the drop in oil prices has merely exacerbated the states longstanding structural budget issues. Many say the states budget imbalance started during its building boom and revenue surge following Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Instead of socking the money away in a rainy day fund, the state cut income taxes. Between that and the economic downturn, the state has struggled to meet revenue expectations ever since.The previous administration tended to rely on one-time fixes to balance the budget. But that approach won't work for Gov. John Bel Edwards, who just inherited an estimated $750 million shortfall in the current fiscal year, which ends June 30. Next years shortfall is projected to be up to $1.9 billion.Edwards recently announced across-the-board cuts to address the current budget gap and has asked lawmakers to consider long-term solutions for next years budget, including raising the tobacco tax and reducing business tax credits and personal income tax deductions.Like Alaska and Louisiana, Oklahoma and West Virginia are considering spending cuts to address the oil shortfalls. But unlike them, they aren't considering longer term solutions. The governor in West Virginia made across-the-board cuts of 4 percent for most state agencies to address a $250 million-plus gap. While officials in Oklahomaalready made across-the-board spending cuts for the current fiscal year and are eyeing more cuts to close a projected $900 million gap in fiscal 2017.In North Dakota and Texas, some of the biggest pressure is localized.Williston, N.D., the epicenter of the states boom since the discovery of the Bakken Shale deposit in 2009, is seeing signs of an economic slowdown. Still, slowing down from warp speed is relative. For example, Williston only recently lost its top ranking in the state for the amount of sales tax it collected. For the first time in four years, Fargo -- which has more than five times the population of Williston -- collected more sales taxes than the boomtown.West Texas began feeling the slowdown in oil production last year. So far, lower oil prices and weaker production have caused property tax values to drop 6 percent compared with a year ago. Layoffs have caused weaker consumer spending, which is impacting sales tax revenues, according to a Moodys Investors Service analysis.Still, the state governments are also feeling the slowdown and making adjustments.North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple on Monday ordered state agencies to cut their budgets 4 percent to offset the projected shortfall of more than $1 billion. North Dakota is the second most dependent state on oil revenue, after Alaska, but it has taken steps to buffer itself from that volatility. For example, North Dakota caps the flow of severance tax revenue -- the tax imposed on the production of oil and minerals -- into the general fund to about 4.4 percent. Excess funds get diverted to local governments and special funds.In Texas, total tax collections declined 6 percent in just the first four months of fiscal 2016. Texas diverts much of the oil revenue into its rainy day fund. Still, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar cut the states revenue expectation in October by 2.3 percent to $110.4 billion over its current two-year budget cycle. But Wells Fargos Eappen notes that Heger also set the budget well below what the real revenues have been. This created an additional cushion against oil price revenue shocks, even beyond the downward revenue adjustment in October, said Eappen.New Mexico is considering withdrawing from its rainy day fund to fill a $145 million hole in this year's budget. Lawmakers are also reconsidering a $230 million spending increase in Gov. Susana Martinez's fiscal 2017 budget. Wyomings governor, on the other hand, is setting aside unspent appropriations from this year to plug in next years estimated shortfall of $150 million. Gov. Jerry Brown on Wednesday gave cities and counties more time to develop local regulations on the commercial growing of medical marijuana, amid concern that a March 1 deadline had many rushing to ban cultivation.Last year, Brown signed into law a system that will regulate, license and tax those who grow and sell medical cannabis. But a mistake in the bill's drafting set a March 1 deadline for cities to either adopt stronger rules or face living with the state restrictions that allow cultivation.As a result, nearly 100 cities have banned commercial cultivation, the sale of marijuana or both -- mostly in recent months -- according to industry officials.Among those that have enacted cultivation bans are Burbank, Pasadena, Thousand Oaks, Yorba Linda, Long Beach and Newport Beach. Some counties have also banned cultivation.On Wednesday, Brown signed a bill that eliminates the deadline."The governor supports allowing local municipalities a reasonable amount of time to come up with regulations that work for their communities," said Deborah Hoffman, a spokeswoman for the governor.Eva Spiegel, a spokeswoman for the League of California Cities, said the action would allow local officials to revisit the issue and potentially make changes in their ordinances.Supporters of medical marijuana urged cities to act."We are calling for locals to repeal the bans in favor of meaningful land regulations that will enact the statewide licensing standards ... in order to protect public safety, the environment and patients' rights," said Ellen Komp, deputy director of California NORML, a cannabis legalization group. The responsibility of the Ministry of Health and Quality of Life as the custodian of the public health to ensure that persons with a mental disorder are treated with respect, dignity and compassion was highlighted this morning by the Minister of Health and Quality of Life, Mr Anil Gayan, at the opening of a Mental Health Conference at the Nurses Network Building in Coromandel. The two-day Conference is organised by the British High Commission in Mauritius in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Quality of Life and the Nursing Association for the nursing staff of the public sector as well as for professionals of the tourism and hospitality industry, representatives of the Passport and Immigration Office and Non-governmental organisations, police officers, social workers and prison welfare officers, among others. It aims at promoting better cooperation between mental health service providers and stakeholders of the tourism sector, increasing the understanding of mental illness of nursing staff and the stakeholders for the provision of better professional service, and improving the assistance that the British High Commission can offer to distressed and vulnerable British nationals. Recalling that in Mauritius, there are programmes to enhance access to mental health services and to integrate those services within the specialist, primary and community health settings, the Minister stressed that mental health care must be an inclusive component of overall healthcare. He added that psychiatric services have been decentralised to regional hospitals not only to improve the conditions of people suffering from mental health illness across the country, but also to fight against the stigma and discrimination still attached to mental health conditions. I further believe, stated Mr Gayan, that we must sensitise people that seeking treatment for mental illness is not a shame and everybody has the right to treatment as the consequences of untreated medical illness can be devastating resulting in disability, unemployment, violence, suicide, homelessness and other social ills. The Minister also welcomed the Conference on Mental Health as Mauritius has to create the appropriate environment to cater for any unforeseen health requirement which tourists may encounter, including mental illness. He underscored that the way to deal with passengers and tourists who potentially are suffering from a mental illness requires tack, skills, and understanding and that it is important that stakeholders of the travel, tourism and hospitality sectors be drilled to the possibility or the likelihood of a passenger having a mental condition. For his part, the British High Commissioner, Mr Jonathan Drew, said that in order to engender real change on mental health issues, a multidisciplinary approach and building capacity and understanding are required. According to Mr Drew, Mauritius does not cope with only its population but it also welcomes around one million tourists annually, of which 100,000 are British. This means that we have to deal with not only Mauritian culture but also international cultures, he affirmed. (TNS) -- Amazon.com is launching a national movement to eradicate the fear math imparts in many U.S. students.The initiative orbits around the slogan "With Math I Can" and an eponymous website. It was developed by an Amazon division devoted to providing tech-based resources for K-12 education. TenMarks, an online math instruction company that Seattle-based Amazon bought in late 2013, is getting top billing in the campaign's launch: Amazon says that teachers using that company's services helped inspire the initiative.The campaign wants to change the way students think about their frustrations with math, a subject that more than half of young adults say they're not good at.Instead of saying "I'm not good at math," Amazon wants these students to pledge to say, "I will learn from my mistakes" or "I will persevere at math," and to adopt what the company calls a "growth mindset," focusing more on the embracing the process of learning than on concrete success at solving individual problems.The website will offer what Amazon calls a "powerful set of free resources" for teachers. There's no ad campaign involved, although Amazon will do a big push in social media and has an accompanying video.In addition, Amazon enrolled several nonprofits devoted to education, such as the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, ASCD (formerly known as the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development) and Character Lab. Two school districts in California and one in New Jersey have also hopped on board.Amazon didn't disclose how much it cost to set up the initiative.The move comes amid wider concerns amid government officials and technology industrialists about the adaptability of the U.S. workforce to an economy where manufacturing jobs have given way to positions requiring more complex math and science skills.Last week, President Obama proposed spending more than $4 billion over three years to increase student exposure to computer science. What it Changes Improved Accuracy, if Nothing Else Saturday Night Lives recurring skit, The Californians , combines two state stereotypes. One is the Kardashian-esque lifestyle of self-absorbed affluence, complete with marital infidelity and copious drinking of white wine during the day. The other is Californians peculiar obsession with finding the perfect combination of freeway changes needed to shave a few minutes of commute time from their traffic-plagued existence.But a proposed change in state regulations could slowly chip away at the latter characterization. And once fully implemented, it may spread to planning and transportation agencies across the country.The change is simple, if subtle. The state will change how it measures the environmental effects of new housing, transportation and other development projects.Projects will now have to focus on how much driving they create, rather than how much traffic they create in their immediate vicinity.For example, a mid-rise development in an urban neighborhood will bring in new residents for its apartments and customers to its ground-floor restaurants and shops. Those residents and customers might worsen in traffic in the surrounding area.Previously, thats what state-mandated environmental reports on new projects studied, and its what city councils had to acknowledge to overcome objections of the projects neighbors.Now, though, those reviews ask a different question: will the projects residents drive more or less than if the project werent built at all?By being in an urban neighborhood, residents might be able to drive a bit less, by walking to bars, shops, and restaurants near their home, rather than driving, or having the chance to take transit to work. The project could, in essence, reduce overall driving even while it exacerbates nearby traffic.The change is the states way of saying it wants to reduce driving and the effect it has on air quality and the states carbon footprint.To use planning jargon, the state is shifting from focusing on Level of Service, a measure of roadway congestion in a given area, to Vehicle Miles Traveled, or how many overall miles of driving a project creates (or reduces) for its users.The change would happen when new projects are reviewed through the California Environmental Quality Act. It will likely make it easier to build homes in urban areas rather than new suburban subdivisions. And it could clear environmental roadblocks from things like transit projects, bike lanes and pedestrian improvements, according to the states proposal on the pending change.As a result, people will have better transportation options, the document reads. It also means that CEQA will no longer mandate roadways that focus on automobiles to the exclusion of every other transportation option. It will no longer mandate excessive, and expensive, roadway capacity.The proposed changes which havent been enacted yet stem from a 2013 law. The proposals are coming from the Governors Office of Planning and Research and are open to the public to comment until October 10, at which point the decision will be made whether the make a formal change to state environmental law.The changes could also make it easier in California to build projects within a half mile of a transit station. Any project that generates 15 percent fewer vehicle miles per person than the regional average would sail through its environmental reviews.But the broad, philosophical change on how to measure a projects effects isnt just happening in California.The federal government, through the Federal Highway Administration, recently told Streetsblog it was looking into ways it could encourage other governments to take the same leap as California.Ron Milam, a transportation consultant in at the California firm Fehr & Peers, said a handful of governments beyond California are quietly considering a similar shift.Theres a continuing focus on climate change and greenhouse gas reductions, and as long as those variables are in play its going to garner some interest, he said.That governments are now focusing on how much driving a project creates, rather than how much congestion it creates, isnt altogether surprising, said Roy Kienitz, a D.C.-based consultant at the Eno Center for Transportation and the former under secretary for policy at the U.S. Department of Transportation.Like most major policy changes, he said, the shifting focus began with a handful of leading experts, and slowly made its way through the profession and is finally into government agencies.The (departments of transportation) in the middle of the country arent thinking of this, he said. Its reaching out from the bleeding edge and into the cutting edge.A change from congestion to measuring the use of cars, Milam said, leads to entirely different conversations about how to build out a city.When agencies measure traffic, developers and engineers try to change the road network to accommodate all the new drivers. They end up proposing widened roads, or additional turn lanes, to move all the new people through the same area without backing things up.But if they measure car use, it leads to changes to the original project to make residents less car-dependent overall.Developers instead build denser projects with a diversity of amenities on site offices, retail, yoga studios or they try to locate their projects near transit. The idea is to build a project so that it makes future residents less likely to use their cars.It more or less changes by 180 degrees what you do, Milam said. Now, its about working with a developer and a city or county to modify a project that will generate less car trips.Kienitz, though, said the shift might not make as big a difference as some experts expect.Focusing on traffic delays typically leads to big projects like e road widenings, grade separations, and intersection modifications. But in recent years, tightening public budgets have already made those things more rare anyway, Kienitz said. The primary effect of a shift would likely be something communities are embracing anyway: fewer road-widening projects.You still see a lot of those project in fast-growing places like Texas and Arizona, he said, but how much of that work is getting done in California, anyway?He also said that, as Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said this week , the fight over whether it makes sense to increase highway capacity to address congestion is mostly a settled issue; however, thats less true when it comes to improving performance of key intersections in dense areas.Intersections are different, Kienitz said. I dont think theres a consensus that on a failing intersection, you shouldnt do anything. That consensus exists with highways.Mostly, Kienitz said, improving congested intersections is an unsettled issue. And itll still be unsettled regardless of whether you measure it with auto use or traffic delays.One other advantage of the switch is that that it may be a more useful tool to understanding traffic, David Schrank, research scientist at the Texas A&M Transportation Institute, which authors an annual scorecard of traffic delay in major metro areas.Level of service is typically expressed as a letter grade a report card on how a stretch of road is performing. Vehicle miles traveled, meanwhile, is more direct. It measures how much someone drove yesterday, and how much theyre expected to drive tomorrow.If I tell you, your level of service went from D to C, youd say, Great, whats that mean? Schrank said. Versus, if I tell you your daily driving decreased by 5 miles or whatever, thats useful.One reason vehicle miles traveled is suddenly becoming more widely used metric for analysis, Schrank said, is that data collection is improving. Twenty years ago, we might not have been capable of relying only on VMT as a measurement tool, even if engineers had been willing to.This is evolving, he said. Thats not to say sometime in the future, with more data, we wont change paths again. (TNS) -- The Otsego County Industrial Development Agency's hopes of scoring state funding to begin connecting rural homes to broadband this year have been delayed once again after state regulatory action, county officials were advised Wednesday."We're at the mercy of the process," said Alexander "Sandy" Mathes, the executive director of Otsego Now, the umbrella group that includes the IDA. "There's not much more we can do at this point."The IDA has been partnering with the Middleburgh Telephone Company and Otsego Electric Cooperative on the funding application. Mathes said his agency has been poised to request a slice of the $500 million in grant money the state had planned to make available, but the program has been stalled again.The latest speedbump for broadband came as a result of the state Public Service Commission's decision to approve the proposed merger of Charter Communications and Time Warner Cable, which provides broadband and cable service to some Otsego County communities.As a condition to that approval, the PSC required Time Warner and Charter Communications to install line extensions to an estimated 145,000 "unserved and underserved" houses in its franchised territory.An additional condition is that the company must provide at least 100 megabits per second (Mpbs) service statewide by the end of 2018 and 300 mbps by the end of 2019. The highest speed now offered by Time Warner north of New York City is 50 Mpbs.Still another potential wrinkle is that while the state has approved the proposed merger, it still must pass muster with federal regulators.Noting she comes from a rural community, county Rep. Kathleen Clark, R-Otego, the chairwoman of the Board of Representatives, voiced frustration over the fact many rural residents will now have to wait years for broadband service."The children that go home from school and can't access the internet are at a serious disadvantage throughout this state, and it means that every student at that high school will now have to wait four more years." she said.Time Warner and Charter Communications will now have 90 days to figure out where they want to extend service in order t o reach the state targets. After that is done, the grant money is expected to be made available across the state. Mathes had said recently that Otsego County stood a strong chance of getting the money it needs to bring broadband to rural residents.Jim Becker, a Middleburgh Telephone Company executive, estimated there are 19,000 homes in Otsego County that are in unserved or underserved areas.Becker said he believes it is unlikely that Time Warner will want to extend services into sparsely populated rural areas where it is more expensive to run broadband lines to homes.He said his family-owned company, one of the few remaining independent telecommunications firms in New York, has been wiring houses in rural upstate New York for 118 years, and will be able to reach the houses in areas that Time Warner decides to pass up."I just don't see them doing the whole county," Becker said in an interview. "They are bottom-line driven." (TNS) -- A pair of bills set for hearings Thursday could deliver more state funding for rural broadband grants, but skeptics believe grant criteria created by one of the bills could be too limiting to help many residents in remote areas.Assembly Bill 798, introduced in late January by Reps. Romaine Quinn, R-Rice Lake, and Ed Brooks, R-Reedsburg, would increase annual funding for Wisconsins Broadband Expansion Grant Program from $1.5 million to $10 million. A companion bill introduced last week, however, would direct the states Public Service Commission to give priority in awarding grants to projects that promote economic development or municipalities that achieve a certification proposed in the bill.The companion, AB 820, creates a Broadband Forward certification for municipalities that is intended to limit fees and streamline the application process for service providers. To be eligible, municipalities must enact an ordinance that designates a single contact for applicants to work with and provide a timeline for consideration of applications, specific criteria for approval or denial of applications, and enables electronic filing.It would also prohibit application fees exceeding $100 and bar municipalities from discriminating against providers seeking access to public right-of-ways.Rep. Dave Considine, D-Baraboo, said he wants to hear whether access to high-speed broadband Internet at educational buildings is considered economic development at Thursdays hearing before the Assembly Committee on Mining and Rural Development. But Considine said hes largely concerned that the bill would place too many restrictions on local governments.Im scared that were dictating a whole lot as a state to local municipalities, he said. While I support rural broadband like crazy and wanted to sign on just based on the title, I think theres enough restrictions in there that make me hesitate.Quinn and Brooks both said the legislation is intended to reduce fiscal and bureaucratic barriers companies face in providing service to rural areas.There arent a lot of people fighting to provide service in rural areas, but it does give assurance that these communities are making a good-faith effort to get broadband, Brooks said.Quinn, whose district is in rural northwestern Wisconsin, acknowledged that even $10 million a year falls well short of fixing the states rural broadband infrastructure, but called the proposal a conversation starter. He said he doesnt see the economic development provision as an obstacle for residents in underserved parts of the state, but added hes open to amending the bill if testimony warrants.Obviously, hailing from a rural district, our intent is not to prevent people from getting service, Quinn said. The bills intent is to make sure everyone is ready to go and everyone is able to attain this money.Bill Esbeck, executive director of the Wisconsin State Telecommunications Association, lauded the bill for prohibiting unreasonable fees on service providers. Some of the Telecommunications Associations member companies have seen right-of-way access fees as high as $5 per foot, making already expensive projects less feasible, he said.When you have a project that is looking to invest in a fiber route thats 10,000 feet long, a $50,000 invoice from a local government seems to cross the line between reasonable and unreasonable. This will absolutely improve the efficiency of those investments, Esbeck said.Brooks said hes confident AB 820 can pass before the end of the legislative session, but said the funding increase may fall to the next biennial budget because of the fiscal items currently before the legislature. (TNS) Issues discussed at the state Legislature dont always stay at the state Legislature.Two prominent Seattle tech leaders had a heated conversation Tuesday on Twitter about proposed bills that would restrict, and in some cases ban, non-compete clauses from employee agreements. A bill proposed by Rep. Derek Stanford, D-Bothell, would make the provisions unenforceable in the state. Another , proposed by Rep. Matt Manweller, R-Ellensburg, would start by banning the provisions for hair- and nail-salon employees and a few other employees and add different industries over time.The issue, though it may start with the service industry, has particular impact in the technology industry. Non-competes are standard fare across the states tech giants.The WTIA, the Association of Washington Business and a few other business groups testified against the bills in Olympia on Monday, according to Geekwire.Businesses and the associations that support them say non-competes are essential for keeping companies secrets and intellectual property safe from competitors. Supporters of non-compete clauses say Washingtons tech industry is growing well and the current non-compete laws have not caused problems.But others think they are holding the region back from becoming a bigger technology powerhouse.Chris DeVore, managing director of Techstars and co-founder of Founders Co-op, has said that he believes non-competes stifle innovation. The logic is that employees are less likely to leave big companies and start their own ventures if they are afraid of getting sued.Those in favor of banning non-competes have used Californias laws as an example state public policy there generally does not allow the clauses, and Silicon Valleys tech industry is booming.DeVore and WTIA CEO Michael Schutzler, who also has served as executive of several companies around the area, got into the issue on Twitter Tuesday morning in a conversation that involved DeVores asking for evidence of the benefits of non-compete policies; Schutzler defended them.The conversation ended with a healthy amount of snark. Heres the full back-and-forth:. "We absolutely must ask ourselves how to keep the old incumbent companies from holding back progress" Chris DeVore (@crashdev)Chris a mountain of evidence that says you're wrong. Stanford bill is solution seeking a problem. Michael Schutzler (@CEOsherpa)Ill put my evidence against your corporate backers any day, hows this for a start: Chris DeVore (@crashdev)We will have to agree to disagree. Evidence says ICT not hampered by current laws. Michael Schutzler (@CEOsherpa)Please cite actual evidence, not claims of such Chris DeVore (@crashdev)I have 30+ years experience on this. You don't. ICT is not Jimmy Johns. Michael Schutzler (@CEOsherpa)Ooh. Yours is bigger, huh? Pretty happy to go toe-to-toe on what makes entrepreneurial ecosystems function Chris DeVore (@crashdev)You're the one claiming there is a problem in WA. Where's the beef? Michael Schutzler (@CEOsherpa)Still waiting for that evidence, I offered a pretty widely-cited piece from a well-regarded foundation, whatcha got? Chris DeVore (@crashdev)That study is (a) old and (b) about Boston and (c) the inverse of your proof. Where is WA evidence? Michael Schutzler (@CEOsherpa)Of course, more study is needed is the incumbents favorite dodge; why is the most innovative state in the US? More study! Chris DeVore (@crashdev)Which companies did you serve as CEO? How much capital did you raise? How many engineers did you hire? Michael Schutzler (@CEOsherpa)Ooh, thats a big one youve got there! How many entrepreneurs have you helped when your name wasnt on the door or cap table? Chris DeVore (@crashdev)22 companies with my own money. Another 100+ as advisor and mentor. Michael Schutzler (@CEOsherpa)You are myopic. Apparently on non-competes and active angels. I'm at with 9mile labs. Good luck at TS. Michael Schutzler (@CEOsherpa)Thanks for the name-calling, that definitely elevates the debate. Glad to know 9Mile has such a strong supporter in you. Chris DeVore (@crashdev) 1. California Proposes Another Drone Law 2. New Mexico Pushes for Campaign Finance Transparency 3. New York, California Propose Bans on Encrypted Cellphones Assembly Bill 1681 is an unconstitutional effort to force people to give up their passwords to government. Let's all stand up and fight it. Christopher Price (@chrisprice) January 22, 2016 4. Virginia Reviews State Agency Data Collection Rules 5. Illinois Looks at Limiting Police Cellphone Surveillance 6. New Jersey Proposes 3-D Gun Ban, Cybersecurity Commission 7. Student and Employee Data Privacy in Minnesota Nationwide, state legislators are increasingly looking at the opportunities and problems associated with technology. While some states struggle with the growing trend of hobby drones, others focus their attention to the rise of at-home manufacturing and the ability to "print" a gun. Others still have privacy on their minds as law enforcement agencies come to terms with new capabilities and threats. The following proposals are only a fraction of a larger tech-centric policy discussions happening in the United States, but they offer an interesting look into some of the issues facing lawmakers today.In California, legislation to further regulate drones has been a topic of much discussion. After the FAA launched its own regulatory registration rules in late 2015, a Southern California lawmaker proposed a rule that would require drone owners to not only register their units, but insure them as well.The Drone Registration/Omnibus Negligence-prevention Enactment (DRONE) Act , proposed by Assemblyman Mike Gatto, D-Glendale, was announced in January 2016 and would require hobbyists to obtain a physical or electronic license plate for identification purposes; pay a small insurance fee at the time of purchase for any future damage or injury associated with the drone; and would require drones of a certain size to be equipped with GPS and emergency shutoff capabilities.If cars have license plates and insurance, drones should have the equivalent," Gatto said, "so they can be properly identified, and owners can be held financially responsible, whenever injuries, interference or property damage occurs.New Mexico Rep. Jim Smith introduced legislation to update the Secretary of States campaign finance system to improve the transparency around elected officials and contributions to their bids for office. Under House Bill 105 , the state would be required to update its electronic filing systems to provide data in open, structured formats for easy search and download as well as providing cross-checking and compliance features.On Feb. 1, the proposed legislation cleared its first big hurdle -- not a single legislator spoke out or voted against the reform in the House Government, Elections and Indian Affairs Committee, KOB 4 News reported . It now moves to the House Appropriates and Finance Committee.Lawmakers in New York are gunning for easier access into smartphones sold or leased in the state after Jan. 1, 2016. Assembly Bill A8093 , introduced last June but re-introduced in January because the Assembly took no action in 2015, would mean cellphone manufacturers and operating system providers would need to be able to unlock or decrypt the units they sell. The bill would also impose a stiff civil penalty of $2,500 for each phone sold or leased in which the seller or leaser was aware the units could not be decrypted or unlocked.Lawmakers argue that law enforcement should have a way around the encryption in devices like Apples iPhone and Microsofts Android smartphones in cases of criminal activity, as they can play a key role in the prosecution. In fact, on Jan. 20, California Assemblyman Jim Cooper introduced Assembly Bill 1681 , which nearly mirrors the New York bill.Many have said that the rule would allow law enforcement expanded and unnecessary access to privately owned devices and the potential for government overstep.In Virginia, lawmakers have offered a bill for consideration that focuses on data collection and public privacy.Under the proposal, referred to as the Government Data Collection and Dissemination Practices Act , data would not be collected by various state agencies secretly or without a clear need for its collection or by fraudulent or unfair mean, and it would not be used by an agency that was not current or accurate. The targets of data collection would be notified about the purpose of the information gathering and would be given the opportunity to amend, correct and erase inaccurate, obsolete or irrelevant information, and agencies holding personal information would need to take precautions to prevent its misuse.The bill cites that an individuals privacy is directly affected by the extensive collection, maintenance, use and dissemination of person information, and that technology has greatly magnified the harm that can occur from these practices.Lawmakers in Springfield, Ill., have focused on regulating tools that allow police to surveil the cellular phones of private citizens. Under the Citizen Privacy Protection Act , introduced in late January, law enforcement would solidify limitation on the use of devices, like the Stingray, which mimics cellular towers to connect with mobile phones for data collection and tracking purposes. Agencies would need to meet probable cause requirements, obtain a court order, or provide that the subject being sought by police has committed, is committing or will commit a crime. The bill also provides that if the court finds by a preponderance of the evidence that a law enforcement agency used a cell site simulator to gather information in violation of the limits in the act, then the information shall be presumed to be inadmissible in any judicial or administrative proceeding.New Jerseys Senate Bill 363 takes aim at firearms produced using 3-D printing, additive manufacturing, computer-controlled milling or laser-cutting technology, which is untraceable by metal detectors or X-ray machines. So called ghost guns, or untraceable firearms produced under the radar of Department of Justice registration rules, have exploded onto the scene with the advent of at-home manufacturing technologies. If signed into law, the bill would make it a second-degree crime to possess, sell, offer for sale, give, assign or otherwise transfer any such firearm or firearm component. The rule would also come with the potential for offenders to be fined up to $150,000 and five to 10 years in prison. Senate Bill 808 proposes the creation of a six-member New Jersey Cybersecurity Commission under the Department of Law and Public Safety, and an appropriation of $50,000. Under the legislation, the commission would be tasked with evaluating New Jerseys informational infrastructure in an advisory role. The appointed commission would also be responsible for bringing the private and public sectors together, providing recommendations related to securing state networks, offering strategies to bolster the cybersecurity industry in the state, and providing cyberhygiene and awareness.With the critical need for secure business data, this bill attempts to cultivate conditions to attract and retain, as well as secure a competitive advantage for, cybersecurity companies in the marketplace," the legislation text reads. "Because occupations in the cybersecurity industry are among the fastest growing in the economy, this bill also seeks to capitalize on New Jerseys dedication to education by coupling it with investment in cybersecurity."Introduced in late January, House Bill 2385 would prohibitfrom forcing employees or prospective employees to grant access to their personal social media accounts. Also, an employer could not force the employee to alter settings that would render privately posted material public. If the bill were signed into law, it would open employers who violated these terms to legal action on the part of the employee or potential employee.Similarly, House Bill 2386 would prohibitfrom forcing students to supply their access information to personal social media accounts. The legislation would also prohibit school employees from forcing students to alter the settings of their accounts to make information visible to the public, and thusly administrators, teachers and other staff. The bill did outline acceptable actions, which included accessing already public information, requiring students to produce content reported to the institution, among other actions. The proposed bill would open violating institutions up for legal action on the part of the affected student. Home Motorcycles & Bikes Top 10 Best Motorcycle GPS Trackers Of 2022 Reviews & Buying Guide Motorcycles & Bikes Top 10 Best Motorcycle GPS Trackers Of 2022 Reviews & Buying Guide This article may contain affiliate links. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Motorcycles are excellent vehicles for travel and adventure both on and off-road. It is an investment you need to keep safe from those who would love to take that treasure off your hands. Wheel-locking systems may not be enough for those with enough mechanical ability to hot-wire it, and in some cases, one or two people could simply load it onto a truck without unlocking anything. You dont want to wait months for the police to try to get it back. You want to know where it is right now. A GPS tracking system is the perfect security investment for your motorcycle, and we have reviews of the best motorcycle GPS trackers here for you. Top 10 Best Motorcycle GPS Trackers You Should Buy Of 2022 Reviews 1 AMERICALOC GL300W Mini Portable Real-Time GPS Tracker. XW Series Leta start with this Americaloc mini portable GPS tracker. This is a mid-range GPS tracker both regarding cost and ability. It comes in about the size of a heavy keychain, so if you are looking for something tiny, this is not it. It is detectable by someone who knew what they were looking for but depending on where you attached it to your motorcycle, it may take them a bit of time to identify it. There are diverse opinions in the reviews about its battery life. It appears that it will last at least 3-4 days, but there are sometimes problems when recharging it. Make sure to follow the instruction guide that comes with this tracker. You also need to recognize that this service is run by a tech that is not as widespread as most cellphone GPS trackers. While is advertises real-time the reality is that it updates once per minute, thirty, or ten seconds depending on your setting. This setting will affect battery life, and depending on where it is, the updates may not be entirely accurate. It is not a bad tracker, but you need to have realistic expectations for it. Pros GPS Tracker for vehicles, people, assets GPS Tracker for vehicles, people, assets This GPS tracker has the longest battery life version with extended multicarrier coverage. Battery life is measured in weeks. This GPS tracker has the longest battery life version with extended multicarrier coverage. Battery life is measured in weeks. Alerts: movement, parked, speeding, device on/off, low battery, entering or leaving zones Alerts: movement, parked, speeding, device on/off, low battery, entering or leaving zones Real-Time Tracking and 1 year of tracking history. Track from any computer, tablet or phone or just download our Android and iPhone APP. Real-Time Tracking and 1 year of tracking history. Track from any computer, tablet or phone or just download our Android and iPhone APP. Works in the US, Canada, Europe and in almost every country in the world Works in the US, Canada, Europe and in almost every country in the world 1-minute location updates while moving. Can be configured for location updates every 60, 30 or 10 seconds with no additional cost. Cons Slightly bigger than something described as mini. Slightly bigger than something described as mini. Sometimes faces battery charging issues Sometimes faces battery charging issues Behind cellphone GPS technology and occasionally is off a block or so in tracking Behind cellphone GPS technology and occasionally is off a block or so in tracking No mobile app and website can be buggy 2 Spy Tec STI GL300 Mini Portable Real-Time Personal and Vehicle GPS Tracker Spy Tecs GL300 GPS is about the same size as the Americaloc, but about half the price. As with most GPS devices, there is a monthly subscription fee that can quickly add up over time. In practice, this GPS seems to function a little more smoothly than others, with many short-term satisfied customers. For this GPS to work well for you, you need three things. First, you need to be using it in an area covered by T-mobile, or else you may have accuracy problems. Second, you need to be able to recharge it every few days. Finally, this is a short-term solution. The charging cable seems to break down over months, not years, and the customer and tech service can be a pain to deal with. If you are looking for a long-term GPS, you may want to take a pass on Spy Tec. Pros Perfect for tracking vehicles, people, or assets Perfect for tracking vehicles, people, or assets Compact size can go anywhere Compact size can go anywhere Tracks with Google Maps in real-time over the Internet Tracks with Google Maps in real-time over the Internet Get text or email when a person leaves an area (geo-fencing) Cons Inconsistent customer service Inconsistent customer service Works primarily in T-mobile coverage areas Works primarily in T-mobile coverage areas Problems with charging cable Problems with charging cable Short life span 3 Amcrest AM-GL300 V3 Portable Mini Real-Time GPS Tracker for Vehicles Here is another low-end GPS tracker for your motorcycle. What makes this one of the best motorcycle GPS trackers is that it works with mobile apps from Google and Apple, so you can track your motorcycle from your phone and not just your computer or a webpage. It comes with lots of tracking options as well. You can create zones and be alerted if your motorcycle moves outside of it. You can set speed alerts or other proximity alerts, which will be pushed to your phone via text and email. The Amcrest is a solid package for taking care of your needs, and there is no contract required to use it. How you use it will determine the battery strength, and, like other devices in this low-cost range, the batteries are a weak point, particularly if not re-charged correctly. Also, it relies on 2G coverage and does not connect with all carriers. To get your moneys worth out of this motorcycle GPS tracker, make sure to inquire about coverage in your area and this tracker, and be sure to read the instructions about recharging your GPS. Pros Works with apps from Google and Apple store Works with apps from Google and Apple store This GPS device allows you to create zones that you specifically want to monitor, such as your home to you know when your loved one leaves or returns. Set maximum speed alerts and proximity alerts for your vehicles to suit your needs. This GPS device allows you to create zones that you specifically want to monitor, such as your home to you know when your loved one leaves or returns. Set maximum speed alerts and proximity alerts for your vehicles to suit your needs. Receive text, push and email notifications straight to your personal device. Receive text, push and email notifications straight to your personal device. Long-lasting Stay connected with a longer battery life of 10-14 days on a full charge. Long-lasting Stay connected with a longer battery life of 10-14 days on a full charge. Access the reports from your GPS device from your PC, Mac or smartphone. Access the reports from your GPS device from your PC, Mac or smartphone. No contract required Cons GPS Tracker is limited to 2G and will only work in areas where there is 2G coverage. GPS Tracker is limited to 2G and will only work in areas where there is 2G coverage. Batteries can be faulty leading to short lifespan of the device 4 GPS Tracker Optimus 2.0 This low-end tracker has a better performance record than some of the others, making it one of the best motorcycle GPS trackers on the market. This GPS has a monthly subscription fee but no contract required and it comes with apps you can use to track your motorcycle from your phone. There is no limit to how much data you can save on the secure databases, and so will update you every 30 seconds while your motorcycle is moving, or you can upgrade it to update you every 10 seconds. Fortunately, there are only two reported issues from the reviews of this GPS tracker. It is slightly larger than some of the other models, making it a bit more challenging to hide securely. It also sends out false reports occasionally if the cell service is interrupted. Pros No Contract No Contract Adjustable position report frequency from 30 Seconds while moving. Adjustable position report frequency from 30 Seconds while moving. iPhone and Android App iPhone and Android App Email and Text Message notifications for Movement, Speeding, Leaving or Entering Areas, etc. Email and Text Message notifications for Movement, Speeding, Leaving or Entering Areas, etc. Unlimited Tracking Data Saved During Service Unlimited Tracking Data Saved During Service SIM Card and Data Plan all Included SIM Card and Data Plan all Included Easy to install and use Cons Will occasionally send out false reports if it loses cell service Will occasionally send out false reports if it loses cell service Slightly larger than other models Which of the best motorcycle GPS trackers have the best batteries? 5 Trackmate Mini 3G H GPS Tracker for Vehicles Unlike the previous models of the best motorcycle GPS trackers, the Trackmate does not rely on a rechargeable lithium battery. Instead, it is hardwired directly into the motorcycle battery itself. This has the benefit of preventing the GPS from turning off when the battery dies at inopportune times. The downside of this setup is that installation is more difficult, and while the device is easily concealable, it also has wires running between it and the battery. This connection can cause your motorcycle battery to run down if you do not monitor it closely, causing both the device and motorcycle to fail to operate. This is a 3G tracker and has better accuracy than the previous 2G GPS trackers, making this one of the best motorcycle GPS trackers on the market. Pros On/Off Detection, Speed Indicator, and Live Map Tracking. On/Off Detection, Speed Indicator, and Live Map Tracking. Numerous alerts such as low-battery, tampering and towing. Historical location reports available. Numerous alerts such as low-battery, tampering and towing. Historical location reports available. All-Weather Resistant and Waterproof. All-Weather Resistant and Waterproof. STAY IN TUNE: Unique system Tracks via AT&T and T-Mobile networks, simultaneously. STAY IN TUNE: Unique system Tracks via AT&T and T-Mobile networks, simultaneously. EASILY CONCEALABLE: 3.4 X 1.75 X 0.50 , 2oz. No visible external light. Cons Can drain the motorcycle battery Can drain the motorcycle battery Challenging to install since it is hardwired to the motorcycle battery 6 MotoSafety Mwaas1P1 Wired 3G GPS Car Tracker The MotoSafety Mwaas1P1 is another hardwired GPS tracker that you can use on your motorcycle. It also uses 3G service and, as long as you are in the United States, typically does an excellent job of tracking through mobile apps. It sends detailed reports, particularly useful for tracking teen drivers, such as speeding, hard braking, and curfew notices. You must subscribe to a monthly fee, but there are no contracts. Overall, this is one of the best motorcycle GPS trackers. There are about 10% of customers though who encounter significant issues trying to get this GPS to function properly. Many of these are being used in cars, rather than motorcycles. However, since this GPS is hardwired into the vehicle system, the fault seems to be a compatibility issue, between the GPS and the vehicle. There are no reports of which vehicles are incompatible or why. You take a small risk with this GPS that it may not be compatible with your motorcycle. Otherwise, this is one of the best motorcycle GPS trackers. Pros Monitor driving activity using Google Maps. Monitor driving activity using Google Maps. Use GPS to review driving routes, set geofences around key locations and know when the vehicle is in use after curfew. Use GPS to review driving routes, set geofences around key locations and know when the vehicle is in use after curfew. No contracts or cancellation fees. No contracts or cancellation fees. Track anywhere with free GPS tracking mobile apps with real-time email & text message alerts. Cons Has some issues updating consistently Has some issues updating consistently Only works in the United States 7 ATian Vehicle Car personal GPS/GSM/GPRS/SMS Tracker The ATian GPS Tracker is one of the less expensive of the best motorcycle GPS trackers available. It comes with both a Lithium-ion battery and power supply to be installed to the motorcycle battery. Be warned though, that it will drain both rather quickly if you use it continuously. The lithium-ion battery, for example, is only rated up to 29 hours of continuous use, meaning you have to recharge it daily. This GPS is not waterproof so some kind of external cover may be necessary to keep it working correctly. It comes with a remote control though, to turn it on and off without getting on the motorcycle yourself. The biggest challenge with this GPS is that they do not provide a SIM card in it. Being foreign made, they have adapted to the global cellular service challenge by forcing you to get your own SIM card for it. This means that, although there is only a minimal service fee for using this GPS, you have to pay a cell service company to use it. With the frequent false alerts reported in the reviews on this GPS, that cell service bill can cost you a pretty penny. Pros Single Locating Single Locating Auto track continuously Auto track continuously Track with limited times upon time interval, Smart track upon time and distance interval Track with limited times upon time interval, Smart track upon time and distance interval The tracker will update the positions automatically to web server once the vehicle changing driving direction over preset angle value to form a smooth trajectory consistent with the actual road, this function works only in GPRS /GSM mode Cons Drains motorcycle battery Drains motorcycle battery May often send false alerts May often send false alerts Requires a SIM card and the additional cost of that cellular service. Looking for a higher end GPS for your motorcycle? 8 AES RGT90 GPS Tracker The difference (besides the price) between the AES RGT90 and some of the other best motorcycle GPS trackers that operate with a lithium-ion battery, is that the folks over at AES implemented a sleep mode into their device. That saves you hours and hours of battery use wasted when your motorcycle is simply sitting in your garage. That is how they are able to get 90 days worth of use out of their battery. The other reason that this GPS tracker costs so much is that it has the broadest range of the best motorcycle GPS trackers extending all through North America and over 100 other countries as well. By comparison, most other trackers have difficulty even covering the USA alone. Pros Works Anywhere in the USA, Canada, and Mexico, plus over 100 other countries Works Anywhere in the USA, Canada, and Mexico, plus over 100 other countries Internal battery Operates GPS tracker up to 90 days on a single charge. Recharges by Micro USB for better convenience. Charge using any USB Charger. Internal battery Operates GPS tracker up to 90 days on a single charge. Recharges by Micro USB for better convenience. Charge using any USB Charger. Covert, Discrete, Waterproof Magnetic Case Covert, Discrete, Waterproof Magnetic Case Goes to sleep when the vehicle is parked for 5 minutes or more. Displays the last location before going into Sleep Mode. Access anytime via text. Goes to sleep when the vehicle is parked for 5 minutes or more. Displays the last location before going into Sleep Mode. Access anytime via text. Track on your phone or on the website. You can also receive GPS coordinates via SMS Text. Cons Phone app is not the easiest to use Phone app is not the easiest to use Relies on magnetic attachment What is the best reviewed of the best motorcycle GPS trackers? 9 Goome 3G/WCDMA/GSM/GPS GM36W The Goome has the least amount of negative reviews of the best motorcycle GPS trackers on the market. It also has the fewest reviews in total, so take that with a grain of salt. Many of the reviews commented that they got more value than they expected from this GPS. It is easy to install and very accurate, and the company offers global service. The only problem the reviews have reported is that the app associated with this tracker is in Chinese and can be difficult to navigate. Even so, most customers were able to use this GPS quite well directly through SMS communication between their phones and devices. Pros Support 3G/WCDMA/GSM/ Network Support 3G/WCDMA/GSM/ Network Waterproof features, level IP67 will prevent water damage the inter electric components. Waterproof features, level IP67 will prevent water damage the inter electric components. Geo-fencing, playback history tracks, speeding alarm, low power &battery alerts, etc. Geo-fencing, playback history tracks, speeding alarm, low power &battery alerts, etc. OTA Upgrade Program, Anti-theft OTA Upgrade Program, Anti-theft One year free trial for North America customers Cons App is Chinese and hard to navigate App is Chinese and hard to navigate Can be difficult to find to purchase What is the least expensive best motorcycle GPS tracker on the market? 10 MOTOsafety OBD GPS Tracker Device Here is the least expensive of the best motorcycle GPS trackers you can find. This GPS, like several of the others reviewed, was made with teen drivers in mind. It gives comprehensive reports on driving stats, but it is not meant to be long-lasting. If you are looking for a short-term GPS tracker, and you are living in the US, this is an inexpensive option for you. If you are looking for a GPS for security reasons, you may want to see another option. Pros Monitor driving activity using Google Maps. Monitor driving activity using Google Maps. Get a complete driving report cards that score safe driving habits such as speeding, harsh braking, and rapid acceleration to improve driving habits. Get a complete driving report cards that score safe driving habits such as speeding, harsh braking, and rapid acceleration to improve driving habits. 3G vehicle tracking coverage that updates every minute in the US, Canada, and Mexico 3G vehicle tracking coverage that updates every minute in the US, Canada, and Mexico Track anywhere with the free GPS tracking mobile apps and real-time email & text message alerts. Track anywhere with the free GPS tracking mobile apps and real-time email & text message alerts. Use the GPS tracking to review reports such as driving routes, set geofences around key locations (school, home, or friends house) and know when the vehicle is in use after curfew. Cons Inconsistent updating Inconsistent updating Only works in the US So, how do these reviews line up? Best Motorcycle GPS Trackers Buying Guide Best Value The MOTOSafety OBD GPS Tracker is the least expensive option if you are looking for a short-term tracker for your motorcycle. It is made for tracking the driving habits of teenage drivers. The Trackmate is a more expensive device, but it has a lower monthly subscription cost and is hardwired into your motorcycle, so you dont have to worry about recharging the battery. The ATian GPS tracker is inexpensive as well, but you may end up paying more for your SIM card (not included) usage. Accuracy The AES is the most expensive of the best motorcycle GPS trackers but can provide you with some of the best accuracy across the greatest number of countries. The ATian is one of the least expensive devices but can offer service in any country you can get a SIM card to use in it. The Goome GPS also provides excellent service if you can navigate the Chinese app or use SMS to connect to the device. Durability How long do the best motorcycle GPS trackers last? The most durable of these trackers are the ones that are hardwired into your motorcycle battery. The lithium-ion battery is one of the earliest failing points on these devices, and if it doesnt have one, it lasts that much longer. You also want one that is waterproof, to prevent moisture from damaging the electronics. The Trackmate is a great hardwired GPS that is recommended for motorcycles and is waterproof. It is one of the more durable of the best motorcycle GPS trackers. There is one exception to the battery rule, and that is the AES RGT90 GPS tracker. This tracker, because of its sleep mode, causes less wear on the battery and ends up lasting much longer than any other GPS with a lithium-ion battery. Conclusion You can get inexpensive GPS trackers if you are only interested in short-term use. If you want something to last longer, you need to spend a little more money. You also need to be able to install it to your motorcycle battery. It is also important to watch for the subscription costs. The device may be inexpensive, but most subscriptions are around $20 each month. Some may require cell phone contracts (although most do not). Also, the more expensive GPS trackers have better service (3G instead of 2G) and a much wider area of coverage. If youre looking for the best motorcycle GPS trackers, the reviews suggest checking out the AES RGT90 and the Trackmate Mini 3G H GPS Tracker. A Danish businessman has hailed Kevin Magnussen's return to F1. In 2014, the Danish bank Saxo Bank entered F1 as a sponsor with Lotus. Now, Danish driver Kevin Magnussen has joined the same Enstone based team just as it returns to being the works Renault outfit. Lars Seier Christensen is no longer the chief at Saxo Bank, but Christensen has revealed himself as a "personal sponsor" of another F1 driver, new Haas recruit Romain Grosjean. Speaking about Wednesday's news from Paris, Christensen told the Danish broadcaster DR Sporten: "Kevin really deserves it. He is an excellent driver who has worked hard for it, and it's also a super thing for all the Danish fans. "It's a difficult thing to get back into F1 after you've been there, which can only be an indication that he really wanted it and that he and the team around him worked hard for it." Christensen, however, is actually cheering louder for a French driver, Grosjean, with DR Sporten claiming that Saxo Bank may also have followed him to Haas. "I am one of Romain Grosjean's personal sponsors," he said. "I think one day in the right car he can be world champion, and the same is true for Kevin." (GMM) Albemarle Corporation, a premier specialty chemicals company and leader in the production of lithium and lithium derivatives, has been granted approval by the Environmental Assessment Commission (CEA) of the Antofagasta Region to increase its currently authorized lithium brine extraction rate at the company's facility in the Salar de Atacama, Chile. The increase will enable the company to meet the accelerating demand for lithium, especially high purity lithium compounds required for the production of lithium batteries. In addition, the company announced that it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Chilean Government defining the terms of a partnership for an increased lithium quota consistent with the principles and goals of the Lithium National Commission, as established in its final report issued in January 2015. The MOU provides Albemarle with sufficient lithium to support the production, over a 27-year period, of 70,000 MT annually of technical and battery grade lithium carbonate and 6,000 MT annually of lithium chloride at Albemarles two manufacturing facilities in La Negra, Antofagasta, as well as at a third lithium carbonate facility that Albemarle will commit to construct under the MOU. The MOU provides for commission payments to the Chilean Government based on sales price/MT and Albemarles support of research and development in Chile in lithium applications and solar energy. In addition, the MOU recognizes the principle of community value sharing and acknowledges the cooperation agreements that Albemarle has entered into with local, indigenous communities under which Albemarle provides financial support for social, environmental and economic development. Finally, the MOU provides Albemarle with an exclusive option for an additional lithium quota in connection with the development of lithium hydroxide production directly from brine. The definitive agreement is expected to be executed by the end of the first quarter 2016. Electricity is increasingly being generated from fluctuating renewable sources. Solar and wind energy generation depends on the weather and is subject to significant fluctuations. At times, renewable energy production thus temporarily exceeds regional demand. Hydrogen produced according to the power-to-gas method can play a role in resolving this challenge and decarbonizing the transport sector. By converting electricity to gas, solar and wind power become storable. If required, hydrogen can be reconverted or used as environmentally compatible fuel for fuel cell vehicles. In collaboration with engineering partner IAV, the Zentrum fur Sonnenenergie- und Wasserstoff-Forschung Baden-Wurttemberg (Centre for Solar Energy and Hydrogen Research Baden-Wurttemberg, ZSW); the Reiner Lemoine Institut (RLI); and Wasserelektrolyse Hydrotechnik (HT) are researching cost-effective methods of producing hydrogen with the help of automotive technology. In the ecoPtG project, the researchers and engineers are developing an alkaline water electrolyzer with an output of 100 kW. They aim to demonstrate that CO 2 -neutral hydrogen can be produced in a cost-effective manner and intend to facilitate the storage of electricity. High investment costs have been barrier to market entry, especially in the case of smaller electrolyzers. The partners set up the ecoPtG project to change this situation. Using a straightforward concept, simplified production processes and affordable materialssuch as plasticsthey intend to make the envisaged alkaline 100-kilowatt electrolysis fit for the market. To achieve this aim, the project partners are predominantly using automotive technology, focusing on power electronics, steering and sensor technology as well as production process components for temperature control and media loops. In the automotive industry, many of these components, which also meet electrolysis requirements, are mass-produced cost-effectively using various drive technologies. The ecoPtG project has been designed to investigate ways of transferring these technologies to hydrogen production. Peripheral parts such as the control unit or power electronics drive the costs up and are thus a major hurdle preventing industrial use of smaller electrolyzers. We know these parts from vehicle development where they are already produced in large volumes at low costs. IAV wants to use this know-how in the ecoPtG project with successful integration of vehicle technology in electrolyzers. Our aim is to develop a modular low-cost electrolyzer in the 100 kW class for the production of 4-35 kg hydrogen per day. Dr.-Ing. Christopher Severin, Head of Department for System Development and Combustion Concepts at IAV Based on a resolution of the German Parliament, the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology is providing a total of 4.75 million in funding for ecoPtG. The team reports on their host-guest system of Ta:TiO 2 |BiVO 4 as a photoanode for use in solar water splitting cells in an open-access paper in the journal ACS Central Science . BiVO 4 acts as a visible light-absorber and Ta:TiO 2 acts as a high surface area electron conductor. The hostguest nanowire architecture allows for simultaneously high light absorption and carrier collection efficiency for efficient solar water oxidation. Although metal oxides that absorb visible light are attractive for use as photoanodes in photoelectrosynthetic cells, their performance is often limited by poor charge carrier transport. Researchers from UC Berkeley and colleagues have now addressed this issue by using separate materials for light absorption and carrier transport. Harnessing energy from sunlight is a means of meeting the large global energy demand in a cost-effective and environmentally benign manner. However, to provide constant and stable power on demand, it is necessary to convert sunlight into an energy storage medium. An example of such a method is the production of hydrogen by photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting. The direct splitting of water can be achieved using a single semiconductor; however, due to the voltage requirement of the water splitting reaction and the associated kinetic overpotentials, only wide-band-gap materials can perform overall water splitting, limiting the efficiency due to insufficient light absorption. To address this issue, a dual-band-gap z-scheme system can be utilized, with a semiconductor photoanode and photocathode to perform the respective oxidation and reduction reactions. This approach allows for the use of lower-band-gap materials that can absorb complementary portions of the solar spectrum and yield higher solar-to-fuel efficiencies. In this integrated system, the charge flux is matched in both light absorbers of the photoelectrochemical cell. Therefore, the overall performance is determined by the limiting component. In most photoelectrosynthetic cells, this limiting component is the semiconductor photoanode. Resasco et al. Many materials that can perform the reaction exist, but most of these candidates suffer from issues, ranging from efficiency to stability and cost. The Berkeley system uses TiO 2 nanowires as the host for guest nanoparticles from BiVO 4 . BiVO4 is a newly introduced material that is among the best ones for absorbing light and performing the water splitting reaction, but does not carry charge well while TiO 2 is stable, cheap and an efficient charge carrier but does not absorb light well. Together with a unique studded nanowire architecture, the new system works better than either material alone. The authors state their approach can be used to improve the efficiencies of other photoconversion materials. Schematic of the photoanode architecture. The nanowire morphology provides an increased path length for absorption of visible photons by BiVO 4 , as well as a pathway for efficient electron transfer. The small size of the BiVO 4 particles maintains close proximity of the semiconductor liquid junction for holes to carry out the oxygen evolution reaction. Type II band alignment allows electron transfer from BiVO 4 to TiO 2 . Credit: ACS, Resasco et al. Click to enlarge. The authors acknowledge funding from the Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation and the University of California, Berkeley. Resources A number of recent calls to the Green River Police Department have centered around the discovery of dead deer on residential properties and in city streets. While some may believe the number of dying deer is unusual, according to Mark Zornes of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department, this is not out of the ordinary. Wildlife in town, deer included die throughout the year, but death tolls do rise in the winter expectably. In Green River, reasons of death can range from the typical starvation, to illness and human interaction-related injuries, such as getting hit by a car. The deer deaths in... A woman who pleaded guilty to welfare fraud was ordered to pay the money back as part of her probation conditions. Natasha York, of Green River, also known as Natasha Ann Crooks, appeared in the Third District Court of Judge Richard Lavery at a sentencing hearing to public welfare benefits fraud. In exchange for Yorks guilty plea to public welfare benefits fraud, York was placed on five years supervised probation. Under the plea agreement and Wyoming Statute 7-13-301, Yorks charge will be dismissed if she successfully completes her probation. This statute is designed for first-time of... Sculpture will commemorate 50 years years of business for the Community Fine Arts Center. The CFAC in Rock Springs is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The CFAC is a unique collaboration of the city of Rock Springs, the Sweetwater County School District No. 1, and is a department of the Sweetwater County Library System. Due to this cooperation, residents and visitors alike can enjoy a variety of cultural activities such as performances, concerts, and the permanent art collection owned by the school district. In addition, changing displays of fine art as well as classes and worksho... Searching for the positive in everyday life Greenwich resident Kendra Farn was with her mother until the very end but it wasnt an easy journey. Her mother was diagnosed with Alzheimers in 1998 at age 60, just two years before her husband, Farns father, passed away from a brain tumor We started seeing the typical stuff thats easy to write off as something else. She was losing her sunglasses and misplacing bills, things that were not typical of my mother, who was a school teacher and very organized, said Farn. Farn and her sister Alison Farn relied heavily on the Connecticut chapter of the Alzheimers Association to help get their mother the proper medicine, treatment and living facilities. She and her sister were both juggling full-time jobs and families of their own. In 2013, they, along with a few family friends, founded Celebrating Hope, a gala intended to raise awareness and funds for the Alzheimers Association Connecticut Chapter. This years gala is slated for 6:30 to 11 p.m. April 29 at LEscale in the Delamar Hotel in Greenwich. The groups first event in 2013 was a cocktail party at Richards with about 200 people in attendance. This year, at the Delamar Hotel, they expect more than 500 people to attend. We were busting at the seams last year, said Ginge Cabrera, co-chair of the event. Cabreras mother died from Alzheimers last March. Volunteers to put on Celebrating Hope has grown to about 50 people and expanded from Greenwich residents to greater Fairfield County. The group has developed sub-committees dedicated to spreading awareness leading up to the event. One, which Farn is heading this year, is called Paint the Town Purple. We are going to each store in town and saying What can you do? strictly from an awareness standpoint, she said. The participating storefronts will be decorated in purple for the six days leading up to the gala. Its so much bigger than this evening, and thats really what I think the excitement is, said Cabrera, also citing the student clubs that have popped up in area schools whose members wore purple to further the cause last year. The whole point of the gala, said Farn and Cabrera, is not the party but the opportunity to educate people about the disease and about the local Alzheimers Association services that can help. For my sister and I, they were a phone call away. Any question, no matter how small or big it is, anyone can pick up the phone and call the 24/7 hour help line and get help. And thats huge, said Farn. The name Celebrating Hope is so meaningful because there is so much hope on the horizon for where research is going with this disease. I really do feel that prevention can be found around the corner, but it needs a lot of funding and its very underfunded, said Cabrera. Alzheimers is the sixth cause of death in the United States. Farn said that many still think Alzheimers only happens to old people, though it affects younger and younger people each year. Farns grandmother also died from Alzheimers, which makes her worry not so much about herself or her sister, but about their daughters. If theres anything we can do to fight for a cure and push for awareness, then were going to do that for ourselves and for our daughters, she said. SFoster-Frau@scni.com; @SilviaElenaFF The first Saturday in February is World Pisco Sour Day. The cocktail is made from Pisco, a non-aged brandy, and while you may not have a bottle in your home bar just yet, it's high time you get one. Pisco is smooth and slightly fruity spirit and many Piscos have no added sugar or additives, unlike some other spirits and wines. In addition they are gluten-free and low in calories. And since we are on the cusp of a cocktail resurgence, be the innovator that you are and start to use this spirit the next time you have clients over. Pisco Particulars Pisco is made from a grape, which is grown on the Pacific coast of South America, solely in Peru and Chile. The grapes are first made into wine, then the wine goes through a distillation process, just like other spirits. Pisco wine is distilled in copper pots -- never -- so that no flavor is infused. The grape skins and stems are removed (unlike Grappa were all that stuff is left in because nothing goes to waste in Italy), so the remaining liquid has clarity and purity. Pisco does have natural flavor, though. There are eight different kinds of Pisco grapes and they each have different taste profiles, so depending on how they are blended, you can find many different flavors of Pisco. The Pisco grape dates back to the 1500s when the Spanish conquistadores brought the vines to South America to make wine. They got industrious and decided to distill the leftover grapes that they couldnt use to make wine. And Pisco was born. It is named after the city of Pisco in the Ica-Valley where the grapes were first grown, and no other country in the world can produce a brandy called Pisco. Related: Why the American Wine Industry Needs a Shakeup Peru In a Glass Peru's production of Pisco remains more artisanal since they dont alter the chemical or organic properties before bottling. And the Peruvians have been slightly more active about selling their heritage, tradition, and quality to the world. That may be why Peru currently exports around 151,000 cases of Pisco, which is three times more than Chile. About 47,000 of those Peruvian cases come to the U.S., via several producers. Diego Loret De Mola is one of them. He grew up in Peru but went to college in the States. He became a minerals and metals trader and ended up traveling back and forth to his homeland. In 2000, he was ready for a career change and on his farewell trip to see his clients, he tasted artisanal Pisco made by a local family and was blown away. We had a ton of Pisco growing up, but it wasnt great, says Loret De Mola. (I get that. As a Sicilian, we only drank my grandfathers homemade wine, which tasted like gasoline.) In addition, the country was finally beginning to see steps of an agricultural renaissance after being suppressed for so many years, thanks to a military coup that occurred from 1968 through 1980, says Loret De Mola. So he decided to take a shot. He made his first Pisco in 2001 at friends distillery and by 2002, he launched his company Barsol. He became a member of United States Bartenders Guild and began flying around the world trying to sell his product, because, to him, it was about educating bartenders. Today he ships about 15,000 to 17,000 cases to the U.S., making him the second-largest exporter of the Peruvian Pisco Related: How South Africa Built a Booming Wine Business Loret De Mola changed the Pisco game, says Jamie Johel, the bar manager at The National, in Greenwich, Conn., and a Peru native. He would say, I'm not giving you Pisco! I'm giving you Peru in a glass! Johel says. Loret De Mola is one of Piscos biggest cheerleaders. He is a firm believer in selling an experience. When you have a margarita you think of Mexico, drink a Chianti and you are back in Tuscany," he says. He, and Johel, want people to be transported back to the homeland theyre so proud of when they drink their spirit. And their homeland is benefitting. We are still working with the same 15 families we started out with and we have watched them now be able to afford to send their kids, says Loret De Mola. So Start Using Pisco We are in the midst of a cocktail resurgence, says Oliver Kroll, managing partner at the Gerber Group, which runs famous bars like Whiskey Blue and the W Lounge, and has three locations in Santiago, Chile. And with that, the Pisco Sour is reappearing on bar menus everywhere. Victor Morris, a bar owner in Lima, Peru, during the 1920s is credited with creating the drink. Recovered documents, like printed advertisements or his bars register, show that Pisco Sours were being served at the Morris Bar before anywhere else. So well tip our hat to him. And then it became the signature cocktail of Peru. Here at home, the demand is growing and good bartenders know how to make it properly and are suggesting it to their customers. Loret De Mola says, Remember 311 -- 3 parts Pisco, 1 part fresh squeezed lime juice, 1 part simple syrup. The best part is the half-ounce of whipped egg whites and the dash of bitters on top. Egg white? Citrus? #proteininaglass, says Johel. I had the pleasure of tasting one of Joehls Pisco Sours with Loret De Mola recently and the texture from the egg whites was amazing. But Pisco is being used in many different cocktails. Gerber Bars offers a Pisco Green, made with Chilean Pisco, basil and cucumber, says Kroll, who is a fan of Pisco Control C. For other Pisco recipes check here. Loret De Mola says, It makes me sad that many people will go through life and die and never taste this beautiful spirit. So try a good Pisco Sour this Saturday. It just might become your new favorite drink. Related: The Top Wine Trends Expected in 2016 Related: How Pisco Went From Obscure South American Drink to American Sensation Why the American Wine Industry Needs a Shakeup 3 Mobile Apps to Enhance Your After-Work Life Copyright 2016 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate STAMFORD The firm that signs off on the removal of asbestos in the citys 20 schools may have an inappropriate relationship with the company that assigns the work. AMC Environmental is responsible for testing for asbestos before and after remediation. The company is located at 622 Clinton Ave. in Bridgeport, the same address as AFB Construction Management, the firm that handles maintenance and repair contracts for Stamford schools. The Bridgeport building, which displays both companies names on a sign in the front yard, is owned by an eponymous limited liability corporation registered to Alfonso Barbarotta, AFBs chief executive officer. Barbarotta rejected suggestions Tuesday that it was improper for AMC to work in city schools on jobs assigned by AFB. They were established for years and years before we got here, said Barbarotta, who has worked with the Stamford school district since 1999. We didnt bring them in here. They were here long before us. Barbarottas contention is supported by district finance chief Hugh Murphy, who previously answered questions about AMC by email. AMC was hired years before AFB arrived by the city engineering department, Murphy wrote. However, records on file with the Connecticut Secretary of the State show AMC Environmental was incorporated in 2007. Barbarotta said the company was purchased by its current owners, Jason and Erin Pringle, from Anthony Vuozzo, a contractor who died in 2008. State records show Vuozzo as the owner of AMC Technologies, a Stratford firm that went defunct in 2009. Most recently, AMC has worked in the Stamford district as the on-site consultant for asbestos abatement at Stamford High School and Rippowam Middle School. The firms work in the district is funded through the districts 420 account, a line item for facilities maintenance managed by Barbarotta and AFB. City payment records obtained through the Freedom of Information Act state that AMC was paid about $291,000 over the past five years. Not all of that money was for work in the schools, city officials said. Lou Casolo, the citys top engineer, said Tuesday that his department has hired AMC in the past for small projects. A review conducted by The Advocate of the past five years of invoices filed by AMC to various city offices, however, showed that about 90 percent of the work AMC was paid for was handled by the districts facilities department, which AFB is contracted to run. Asked if AMC Environmental, owned by the Pringles, was affiliated with any of his companies, Barbarotta said no. They pay the rent to 622 Clinton Avenue Associates, Barbarotta said, adding that AMC under Vuozzo had longtime contracts in Stamford. In addition to Stamford schools, AFB manages schools in New Haven, East Haven and West Haven, Barbarotta said. AMC has no contracts in those districts. A woman who answered the phone at AMCs office last summer confirmed that AFB was her companys landlord. The woman, who declined to identify herself beyond indicating she and her husband owned the company, said the couple had worked on Stamford projects since 2007 Murphy told The Advocate that three other firms Hygenix Incorporated, Fuss & ONeill, and Belfor Property Restoration have done similar work in the district over the past five years. The bulk of that work, however, has been conducted under the auspices of capital projects run by the city engineering department outside of Barbarottas authority. Hygenix, based in Stamford, has done a significant amount of work in city schools on the removal of toxins such as asbestos and PCBs. Each of their invoices bears the stamp of city engineering and the date the documents were received. Similarly, Manchester-based Fuss & ONeill, which worked with the city on some of its Hurricane Sandy cleanup, has been contracted by the engineering department to oversee the removal of hazardous materials from schools such as Dolan, Cloonan, Turn of River and Northeast. Belfor, a Wallingford firm, has done mold remediation at Westover Magnet School and Westhill High School. When Barbarotta was asked if he had helped AMC secure any contracts in Stamford, Barbarotta gave an emphatic, God, no. Barbarotta has been accused of murky relationships with subcontractors in the past. Perennial Barbarotta foe and Trumbull First Selectman Tim Herbst accused the contractor in a 2013 report of concealing his relationship with Conveo Energy, a company Barbarotta pitched to the Trumbull Board of Education. In a defamation suit Barbarotta filed against Herbst last month, he said his affiliation to the energy company was well known and in no way concealed. Barbarottas involvement with the company, the complaint reads, was apparent from the distributed materials, which listed Conveos business address as AFBs own. Barbarotta insisted Monday that theres no conflict of interest between AFB and AMC, which now rents out Conveos old offices. The firm is simply his tenant, Barbarotta said. ESimko-Bednarski@scni.com; 203-964-2215; stamfordadvocate.com/news Advocate staff member Justin Papp contributed research to this report KENT It was a short-lived celebration in the Schaghticoke Tribal Nations long quest to form a Connecticut casino. The Kent tribe appeared this week to have finally taken a significant step toward establishing the states third casino, but the Secretary of States office admitted Wednesday the groups application to form a tribal business entity was accepted in error. Secretary of State Denise W. Merrill said the tribe met the requirements to form an LLC, but did not meet the criteria of a special act that would have allowed the group to pursue establishing a gambling facility. The Special Act created a unique situation that raised the bar for review, Merrill said in a statement. In this case, it looks like the application was received in error. In 99.99 percent of the cases, we have to receive and file an LLC application without regard to the stated purpose of the entity. Anyone can start a business and we believe it should be easy to do. It appears in this case that the application meets the standard to create an LLC, but not the requirements of the Special Act. We are looking into what additional action should be taken. Schaghticoke Tribal Nation Chief Richard Velky released a celebratory statement Tuesday night after he believed the state accepted the tribes application for a limited liability corporation, which would be known as Confluence of Rivers Business Entity LLC, to pursue the development of a commercial casino in Connecticut. We view this as a significant economic development opportunity, Velky said in the statement. Our objective will be to maximize economic opportunity for the residents of Connecticut, and to maximize revenue gained by the state of Connecticut. Velky could not immediately be reached for comment Wednesday after the state reversed its decision. The General Assembly passed the special act last year that allowed a tribal business entity to pursue opening a third casino in Connecticut. However, the provision is limited to the Mohegans and Mashantucket Pequots, which are both federally recognized tribes. Kent First Selectman Bruce Adams, whose town has fought federal recognition of either faction of the Schaghticoke tribe, said Wednesday his community remains opposed to a gaming facility. The town of Kent does not have any interest in such a possibility, Adams said. The Legislature approved the special act to allow for a third gaming facility in the state as an effort to protect jobs and revenue from a planned casino in Springfield, Mass. Sites in East Hartford, East Windsor, Hartford and Windsor Locks have been proposed by the Mashantucket Pequot or Mohegan tribes. The General Assembly would need to approve a proposed gaming hall. The Schaghticoke Tribal Nation previously proposed building a casino in Bridgeport and the greater Danbury area or a bingo hall on its reservation in Kent. For years, the tribe has been unsuccessful at winning federal recognition that could help lead to establishing a casino on its land in Kent. The Schaghticokes had fought for years to overturn the 2005 federal decision to deny sovereignty to the tribe. In 2004, the Bureau of Indian Affairs granted sovereignty. But later that year, after state officials and members of Congress criticized the decision, the recognition was reversed. The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a petition in 2010 by the tribal nation for a review of the federal BIA denial. Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and the states congressional delegation led by U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal have opposed new rules by the BIA that would have made it easier for tribes like the Schaghticokes and the Golden Hill Paugusetts to win federal recognition. Under new rules released last year, tribes previously denied recognition will not be able to reapply and cannot use centuries-old state recognition to qualify for federal recognition, which would allow them to operate casinos on tribal land. The Schaghticokes are not federally recognized and therefore do not have authority to pursue a casino under federal law, Blumenthal said Wednesday in a statement. Their reliance on Special Act 15-7 seems misplaced as that state legislative act limits the operation of the third casino to a business entity controlled by the two federally recognized tribes in Connecticut the Mashantuckets and the Mohegans. stuz@newstimes.com; 203-731-3352 This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate SAN ANTONIO Return of Kings, a group that promotes the legalization of rape, listed San Antonio as one of seven cities in Texas where sympathizers are planning to convene on Feb. 6 for an "International Meet Up Day," according to the group's website. See: 'Return of Kings' cancels 'International Meet Up Day' after widespread criticism It's unclear whether anyone will actually show up to the local event on Saturday, which is set to meet up "in front of main door of the Alamo" at 8 p.m. More than 150 other sites in more than two dozen countries around the world are also on the list. Several of those places have launched protests against the group. Australia's top immigration official called an emergency meeting earlier this week to decide whether to allow the group's figurehead into the country. RELATED: Offensive statements about women made by Return of Kings The U.S.-based group's leader, Daryush Valizadeh, a self-proclaimed "pick-up artist," has published blogs calling for the legalization of rape on private property because he believes it would put a stop to rape. From one of his posts: "I propose that we make the violent taking of a woman not punishable by law when done off public grounds... If rape becomes legal under my proposal, a girl will protect her body in the same manner that she protects her purse and smartphone. If rape becomes legal, a girl will not enter an impaired state of mind where she cant resist being dragged off to a bedroom with a man who she is unsure ofshell scream, yell, or kick at his attempt while bystanders are still around. If rape becomes legal, she will never be unchaperoned with a man she doesnt want to sleep with. After several months of advertising this law throughout the land, rape would be virtually eliminated on the first day it is applied." Other Texas cities on the list include Austin, Dallas, Denton, El Paso, Houston and Nederland. RELATED: Report: Texas Republican state Rep. on message board: "Rape is non-existent in marriage" After news of the planned rallies spread Wednesday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott denounced the group as "pathetic" and called their views "disgusting" in a statement. RELATED: Dallas teens forced 15-year-old to have sex with 6 men per day, according to police According to instructions for attendees posted on the group's site: "To identify your fellow tribesmen, ask the following question to a man you suspect is there for the meetup: Do you know where I can find a pet shop? If you are asked this question, answer in the affirmative: Yes, its right here. You can then introduce yourself and get details about where to proceed at 8:20. If you ask someone for the pet shop and they appear confused or actually try to direct you to a real pet shop, theyre not there for the meetup." kparker@mysa.com Twitter: @KoltenParker Nobody really talks about it as much as they should. Photo: Hill Street Studios/Blend Images There are several well-established outlets for chefs and other restaurant workers who need to deal with the crushing stress and demanding hours of their jobs: Alcohol and illegal drugs are big. So are screaming fits, or simply walking off the job in the middle of service. Those are the cliches, anyway, and they arent exactly healthy or sustainable methods for coping. Now, though, a growing number of people working within the industry say its time to pay attention to this problem and give workers access to programs that actually promote mental and physical wellness. The exact circumstances surrounding the sudden death of acclaimed chef Benoit Violier, thought to be a suicide, remain unclear, but his passing has nevertheless put renewed focus on the stress that people in the hospitality industry must face in order to do their jobs, as well as the toll it takes. Violiers death follows several other high-profile suicides, including that of Chicago chef Homaro Cantu, who died last year, or even Bernardi Loiseau, who took his own life in 2003. Just this week, the Times published a story with the headline Top Chefs Death Shines Light on a High-Pressure World. Beyond suicide, its common for even the most prominent figures in the industry to talk openly about the way stress affects them. In a 2008 New Yorker profile, David Chang said that the pressure of growing his Momofuku company took such a toll that he developed shingles. Will Guidara, a co-owner of Eleven Madison Park, told the same magazine in 2012 that he was prone to throwing his back out when the emotional strain of the job became too much. And a few weeks ago, Mission Chinese Foods Angela Dimayuga told Grub shes determined to build a system that fixes kamikaze kitchen culture. Signs are everywhere that this is a workforce that needs more release than others, yet many people continue to just push through. Anthony Rudolf is the former director of operations at Per Se and the founder of Journee, an education center in Chelsea for restaurant employees. He says of workers mental health, Nobody really talks about it as much as they should. He also points to another seemingly admirable, but potentially toxic, trait among restaurant workers: the mentality of courage the idea that everything is okay and you can just muscle through it. Journalist Kat Kinsman created an informal survey to ask restaurant workers and others in the food industry about their mental health; at the moment, shes received 800 responses. More than 90 percent of those said their jobs are at least partly responsible for mental-health problems. Almost 20 percent of respondents blamed their jobs entirely. Thirteen percent of the people who responded to Kinsmans survey said they ended up losing their job as a result of mental-health issues. And two-thirds said they wouldnt talk openly about the issue for fear of looking weak. Advocates say the time to do something about the problem is now: We really need the industry to make a decision as a whole that this is something worth addressing and talking about, says Sarah Ory, the co-founder of the Heirloom Foundation, a group that aims to create a more holistic lifestyle for hospitality workers, which includes promoting mental health. But, Ory says, the slower that people are to address the problem, the more friends were going to lose. Awareness, right now, is part of the push for both Ory and Kinsman, who created Chefs With Issues, a site dedicated to promoting acceptance of mental-health awareness in the industry. One of Kinsmans ideas is to create a free hotline for cooks who might need to call a therapist at one oclock in the morning after a long shift. For her part, Orys ultimate vision includes several different facets. First, suicide and substance abuse should be discussed more openly. She is also recruiting chefs all over the country to help spread the word about the mission. She wants to give grants to organizations to train hospitality workers on how to live healthier lifestyles. And, lastly, she wants restaurants to limit working hours and offer progressive benefits packages, and if they dont, she would like to see government regulations mandating it. In addition to health care, shed also like to see a couple of perks that are not commonly offered: paid vacation time and paid family leave (she praised Chang for offering these). In an industry famous for razor-thin margins, the idea of shouldering the costs for these programs is not exactly appealing to many owners. Lots of people dont want to hear that, but I think its an investment that needs to be made, Ory says. Still, many restaurateurs are already rethinking their business models, and at least one chef Grub spoke with says he could see it working at his restaurant, though he doesnt offer these types of benefits now. One huge hurdle, Ory explains, is that there is no reliable data showing a mental-health problem specifically among restaurant workers. She and her board of directors want to give money to nonprofits who carry out programs to help workers, but without academic research to show that this is a problem, nonprofits say their hands are tied. Heirloom is now trying to raise money to pay for such studies, but fund-raising is difficult because an appreciation of the problem is so low among the general public. Ory is hopeful, though: Heirloom is about to celebrate its second anniversary, and donations are up by 48 percent from year one to year two. The group is also trying to connect with officials at the James Beard Foundation to urge the group to put resources toward chefs wellness. Another area of progress is at culinary schools, which are now also paying more attention to their students well-being. The Culinary Institute of America has changed in recent years to want to encourage a balanced lifestyle, its vice-president told BuzzFeed. Their programs now include meditation classes and counseling. Some restaurant groups, and outside organizations, have also offered various solutions, including increasing paid leave, allowing vacation time, and raising wages for back-of-the-house employees. Meanwhile, Rudolf says he hopes his own center, Journee, can serve as an alternative to decompressing after service at a bar. He wants Journee to serve as a meeting spot in order to create a way for people to connect in a more healthy, productive environment. If you are in the US or Canada, and are planning to purchase a Google Chromecast or Chromecast Audio, here is some good news: Google has announced that those who buy either device will be getting $10 Play Store credit. The offer started yesterday, and runs through February 24. Another point worth mentioning here is that the deal is only valid for purchases made through the Google Store. The $10 credit needs to be applied by May 31, and redeemed by the end of this year. Aside from Google, third party retailer Best Buy is also currently offering a $10 gift card with each purchase of Chromecast or Chromecast Audio. Source | Best Buy Haiti - Justice : Swearing-in of two new judges of CSPJ Wednesday at the Court of Cassation, the President Michel Martelly, accompanied by Senate Vice President, Sen. Ronald Lareche and Vice-president of the Lower House, the Deputy Jacques St-Louis, attended the official ceremony of swearing in of two new judges of the Superior Council of the Judiciary (CSPJ), Me Rene Sylvestre and Me Liez Edouard, respectively Government Commissioner at the Court of Cassation and barrister at the Bar of Miragoane. Under Article 7 of the Law of 13 November 2007 creating the CSPJ, the Head of State gave notice of their swearing in the presence among others of Me Jules Cantave, President of the Court of Cassation, of judges and parliamentarians. Addressing the two new judges, the Head of State declared "I rely on your valuable contribution and I formulate you my best wishes for every success in fulfilling your mandate and in fulfilling your mission," adding "I hope that the presence of these new members will contribute to the revitalization of the Superior Council of the Judiciary." The appointment by presidential decree and the official installation of these two new judges to replace judges Thiers Malette and Patrice Cadet completes again the CSJP. HL/ HaitiLibre Published on 2016/02/03 | Source "One More Happy Ending" Yoo In-na had a heated romance with Kim Min-jun. Jang Nara was surprised that Kwon Yul's wife was right in front of her and was nervous about why they broke up. Advertisement On the episode of the MBC drama "One More Happy Ending" on the 3rd, Ko Dong-mi (Yoo In-na) had a good time with Myeong Poong-nam (Kim Min-jun). Mi-mo (Jang Nara) was sick of movie dinner dates with Hae-joon (Kwon Yul) and Ko Dong-mi was in love with a man she met through second-hand sales. Myeong Poong-nam helped Ko Dong-mi vent her sorrow of not being with a man for 3,000 days by preparing various events for her. They shared a fierce kiss and Myeong Poong-nam even showed her some magic tricks. Han Mi-mo was jealous of Ko Dong-mi, who was on a roll at this relationship thing, then called Hae-joon over. Later she found out that Hae-joon's ex-wife was Woo Yeon-soo (Hwang Sun-hee) and went to get a health inspection. Woo Yeon-soo said, "I'll tell you the reason we broke up. I was mad because I said let's get married and he said 'alright'. Then I said let's break up and he said 'alright'". "He never wanted me or was desperate for me. That was always my job". Han Mi-mo was nervous. Published on 2016/02/04 | Source ZE:A member Kim Dong-jun has joined KBS' new Monday & Tuesday drama, 'Neighborhood Lawyer Jo Deul-ho'. He is now determined to solidify his stance as an actor. Advertisement 'Neighborhood Lawyer Jo Deul-ho' with its premiere date set in March is a humanity drama that talks about law close to our daily life while delivering fun and touching stories to drama fans. While Park Shin-yang (Jo Deul-ho), Kang So-ra (Lee Eun-jo), Ryu Soo-young (Sin Ji-wook), Park Sol-mi (Jang Hae-gyeong) have been cast, the drama is already receiving impressively great reaction. Kim Dong-jun will play Kim Yoo-sin, who becomes to establish a strong friendship with Park Shin-yang's role, Jo Deul-ho, while he was trying to clear up his father's charge, who served his prison time unfairly. While Kim Yoo-sin is a tough manly guy, he becomes soft hearted and obedient with Jo Deul-ho. The KBS new Monday & Tuesday drama 'Neighborhood Lawyer Jo Deul-ho' will meet the drama fans in March soon. Harlow is a former New Town in Essex with a population of 86,000. Located in the upper Stort Valley, it was built in the decades after the Second World War to ease overcrowding and London and provide homes for people bombed out during the Blitz. It includes Britain's first pedestrian precinct and first modern residential tower block, The Lawn. Old Harlow, the historic part of the town, was mentioned in the Domesday Book. David and Victoria Beckham's former home, Rowneybury House, nicknamed 'Beckingham Palace', is nearby. 15:19, 20 OCT 2022 A senior pharmaceuticals salesman who was sacked by his employer for combining a work trip with a jazz festival has won his case for unfair dismissal. Daniel Girardi was dismissed by his former employer, Allergan Australia Pty Ltd in 2015, after having a meeting with management to discuss an expenses claim. Girardi had travelled to Mount Gambier in early May 2015, on the same weekend when his wife and son were attending a jazz festival, and submitted a $670.48 travel-related expenses claim for meals and accommodation. His employer said Girardi lied about the purpose for the trip to Mount Gambier and sought to justify it after the event when called upon to support the expenses claim. Allergen argued that the main reason given for the trip, being to attend a meeting of healthcare professionals (General Practitioners) in Mount Gambier, was a fabrication and a vain attempt by Girardi to justify his visit to the South East as being work related. His employer also alleged that Girardi failed to follow correct procedures in that he did not obtain prior approval for the trip and the alleged expenses. Therefore his employer said that given the applicants role as a senior territory business manager who largely worked autonomously, Girardis conduct was serious misconduct warranting dismissal. Despite attending an urgent meeting on June 11 with his manager to discuss his expenses, which ended on the basis that Girardi was to provide additional details to support his expenses claim, on the morning of 12 June 2015, without waiting for any response from the applicant, Girardi was advised of the termination of his employment by email. When considering if Allergen had a valid reason to fire Girardi, the Fair Work Commission looked at three key elements. Namely, a breach of policies, the alleged misleading of the employer about the facts leading to the final warning and the justification for the Mount Gambier trip, and the loss of trust and confidence held by Allergan in Girardi. However, the Fair Work Commission upheld Girardis unfair dismissal claim, finding that his employer had breached a key component of the Fair Work Act, by not giving him an opportunity to respond after the June 11 meeting. Therefore, the commissioner considered the dismissal of Mr Girardi to be harsh and unreasonable and ordered Allergen to pay him compensation of $21,938.00. Amber Sharp, Partner at Marque Lawyers, says employers need to follow procedure fairness and avoid knee-jerk reactions when considering if workers have broken company rules by mixing business with pleasure. Employers must consider whether there is a sufficient connection to the workplace or impact on the employer /employee relationship, Sharp told HC Online. While the commissioner found Girardis conduct fell short of serious misconduct, but nevertheless provided a valid reason for dismissal, his employer demonstrated serious shortcomings in reaching and finalising its conclusions and the dismissal decision. The commissioner said it was unreasonable for Allergen to view Girardis trip as a complete fiction, and that his employer had failed to undertake the kind of investigation necessary to reach an informed decision. Girardis Mount Gambier trip did achieve a limited work purpose, the commissioner said, however represented a recklessly organised and largely unproductive exercise that facilitated some work being done during a trip that otherwise suited Mr Girardi for personal reasons. The FWC documents stated that while Girardis misconduct impacted upon the necessary trust and confidence in the employment relationship, in the circumstances it was not the kind of serious wilful behaviour warranting dismissal without notice, as set out in the Fair Work Act. The demonstrated actions of Mr Girardi are properly described as being very poor judgement on his behalf, combined with a lack of openness and integrity with the employer, FWC documents stated. Sharp says employers are entitled to summarily dismiss workers who commit serious misconduct, including conduct that causes a serious and imminent risk to the reputation, viability and profitability of the employers business. Employees can be disciplined for out of hours conduct that brings the Company into disrepute, impacts on the employees ability to perform their role, or seriously damages the relationship between the employer and employee, Sharp says. She advises HR managers to implement workplace policies that outline expectations around appropriate behaviour, and ensure that this covers after-hours conduct as well as conduct away from the workplace. Make express that this includes out of hours conduct such as attendance at work related events (Christmas party, client functions) and conduct outside of work that can impact on the reputation of the business, Sharp says. Classic cases of employees winning unfair dismissal claims against out-of-work conduct include Rose v Telstra [1998], where an employee was sacked because of fighting with another colleague after hours when staying at a hotel related to a work assignment. Telstra argued the conduct brought the employer into disrepute and was likely to cause damage to the relationship of employer and employee. The then Australian Industrial Relations Commission didnt accept that Telstra had satisfied the bar of a sufficient connection with work or reputational damage, Sharp says. In another case, The Full Federal Court affirmed that a Commonwealth employee who was injured while having sex in a motel room while on a work trip was entitled to worker's compensation for the injuries she sustained (Comcare v PVYM [2012]). While the line between business and pleasure is not always clear, HR managers can help minimize risk to their organization by ensuring clear policies are in place and following procedural fairness when disciplining employees. Screening of Stevens Overburden Feb. 16 at ASU Filmmaker Chad Stevens will screen his award-winning documentary Overburden Feb. 16 at Appalachian State University. The presentation is part of the Sustainability Film Series on campus. The film will be shown at 7 p.m. in I.G. Greer Theater. Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. Admission is free. Overburden is a powerful new film that shows human stories from coal country including stunning events that will either divide or unify a community, its coal workers and their families. The films trailer is online at http://overburdendocumentary.com/trailer. Stevens worked on the project for more than 10 years. The story, unfolding over eight years, follows a fiery, pro-coal right-winger and a tenacious, environmentalist grandmother as they join forces to take on the most dangerous coal company in America. According to The Guardian, the coal industry is in a terminal decline, leaving these communities facing an uncertain and dire future. Overburden is the first film of its kind to document the end of the age of coal and celebrate the heroes who are standing up to rebuild their fractured communities. Bill McKibben, author of The End of Nature, called the film A remarkable document, powerful testimony to the absurd destruction that coal has brought to the mountains of Appalachia, and testimony also to the remarkable women and men who have done their best to deal with an almost impossible trauma. Overburden premiered at Full Frame Film Festival. The film received the Special Jury Price for Documentary at the Amsterdam Film Festival and a jury award from the Banff Mountain Film Festival. Stevens is an Emmy-winning filmmaker, editor, journalist and assistant professor of visual communications at UNC Chapel Hill. Previously, he was a producer and editor at MediaStorm, where his work focused on a range of topics from PTSD to the aftermath of genocide in Rwanda. Stevens, along with Deep Gap resident Rory McIlmoil, who appears in the film, will be available for questions and answers after the screening. The Sustainability Film Series is sponsored by the Office of Sustainability and Department of Geology at Appalachian. University Documentary Film Services is a co-sponsor of this event. For more information, contact Tom Hansell at [email protected] or Brian Zimmer at [email protected]. Dr. Spiceland to Tell Secrets of Tweetsie Feb. 11 High Country Writers welcomes Dr. David Spiceland as guest speaker on Thursday, Feb 11 at the Watauga Public Library at 10 am. The program is free and open to the public. Dr. Spiceland has been researching ETWNC, Tweetsie, which was a part of Boone history for 20 years. He has uncovered rare artifacts and details that have been right in front of our eyes, says Spiceland. I love history, and I love railroads. I hope I can answer questions about the railroad and find others who agree that this is a story worth telling. Since coming to Boone and Appalachian State 24 years ago, Dr. Spiceland had many interests including the FCCs Fairness Doctrine (his dissertation topic) and the railroad that came to Boone and left too soon after a major hurricane barreled through North Carolina. Surprisingly there are railroad stories connected with the Tweetsie that can still be discovered. David Spiceland is an Associate Professor at ASU in the Department of Communication in Electronic Media and Broadcasting. His future plans include a video detailing the abandonment of the East Tennessee and Western North Carolina railroad (Tweetsie) and a book on the John Wayne Western, Red River. High Country Writers is an organization which fosters the growth and creativity of writers of all genres offering its members support, constructive criticism and professional development. The meetings are held at 10 am at the Watauga County Library on the second and fourth Thursdays of each month. Guests are welcome. Meetings are canceled when the Watauga County Public Library is closed for inclement weather. For more information about the organization, membership, and calendar of events, please visit the HCW website at http//:highcountrywriters.tripod.com. Free FAFSA Help Across NC on Feb. 20 College financial aid officers and specialists will be available throughout North Carolina on Saturday, February 20th to help high school seniors, their families, and college students complete and submit their Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form online. These free FAFSA Day programs will be available at host sites open from 9:00 a.m. until noon. Completion of the FAFSA is required to be considered for any federal and most state financial aid for college, including scholarships and grants. FAFSA Day and other related events are sponsored by the collaboration of College Foundation of North Carolina, the North Carolina Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators and State Employees Credit Union. Pre-registration is strongly encouraged. Go to CFNC.org/FAFSAday or call 866-866-CFNC toll-free for a list of event sites and register for the one nearest you. More than 65 sites will be available the morning of Saturday, February 20. During the week following FAFSA Day (February 22-26), State Employee Credit Union branches will be ready by appointment to help students and families with FAFSAcompletion. Families also can get help with the FAFSA the evening of Tuesday, February 23 at Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Greensboro. A February FAFSA Phone-In. also sponsored by CFNC, is another option for students and parents who have only a few questions on completing the FAFSA. Every Tuesday night in February between 5 p.m. 8 p.m., financial aid specialists will be available to help at the toll-free number, 866-866-CFNC (2362). To be fully prepared to complete the FAFSA at one of these February FAFSA events, participants should either file their 2015 federal taxes in advance or bring the following: (1) both the students and parents federal 1040 tax forms for 2015 (or W-2 forms and other income and asset documents if completed tax forms are not available); (2) the students and one parents FSA ID obtained in advance from the U.S. Department of Education website,fsaid.ed.gov; and (3) a FAFSA on the Web Worksheet with as much information entered as possible. The online Worksheet is available at www.fafsa.gov. Early completion of the FAFSA helps students take advantage of all of the financial aid opportunities available for North Carolinians, said Marcia Weston, of the N.C. State Education Assistance Authority and CFNC coordinator of the FAFSA Day program. Students and parents dont need to worry if they arent sure how to answer all of the questions on the form. Thats why we have arranged to have experienced college aid professionals and financial specialists to help at each site. Weston also stated, Filing 2015 federal taxes early makes FAFSA completion easier. Most of those who file well in advance of FAFSA Day can then take advantage of the automatic transfer option to enter their tax information directly onto their FAFSA. She continued, If a student or parent hasnt yet filed taxes, they can enter estimated income information on the FAFSA, and updated tax information can be transferred to the FAFSA at a later date. More information is available on college and career planning on the College Foundation of North Carolina website, CFNC.org. Families will find college cost estimators, lists of scholarship, grant and loan opportunities, information about North Carolinas 529 college savings plan, career descriptions and requirements, virtual tours of more than 100 of the states college campuses and online college admission and financial aid applications. About CFNC College Foundation of North Carolina (CFNC) is a free service of the State of North Carolina that helps students plan, apply, and pay for college. CFNC is a joint effort of Pathways, the N.C. State Education Assistance Authority, and College Foundation, Inc. Pathways , created by the N.C. General Assembly in 1999, is a state-wide initiative to increase the college-going rate of North Carolinians by providing: comprehensive college and career planning resources; electronic applications and transcripts accepted by all 110 North Carolina colleges and universities; and, information on student financial aid and college affordability. Pathways is administered by The University of North Carolina General Administration in collaboration with the N.C. Department of Public Instruction, the N.C. Community College System, and the N.C. Independent Colleges and Universities. The North Carolina State Education Assistance Authority (NCSEAA ), established in 1965, is the State agency that promotes access to higher education by administering financial aid and savings programs, informing students and families about paying for college, teaching educators about financial aid administration, and advocating for resources to support students. College Foundation, Inc. (CFI) , a nonprofit corporation serving North Carolina students and families since 1955, administers a large portfolio of education loans, several major grant and scholarship programs for students attending N.C. colleges and universities, and the tax-advantaged 529 college savings program on behalf of the N.C. State Education Assistance Authority. CFI also delivers information to North Carolina students and families about paying for college, assists colleges and universities with financial aid services, and provides technology support for CFNC.org. State Employees Credit Union (SECU) is a not-for-profit financial cooperative owned by its members. SECU has been providing employees of the State of North Carolina and their families with consumer financial services for 77 years. With more than 1.9 million members, SECU provides services through more than 250 branch offices, 1,100 ATMs, 24/7 Contact Centers and a website, www.ncsecu.org . CFNC offers resources toll-free at 1-866-866-CFNC and at CFNC.org. Free iLasik Seminar at Graystone Eye Feb. 9 Graystone Eye and Refractive Surgeon, R.E. Trey Oursler, will host a free seminar on Tuesday, February 9th at 6 pm on the lower level of their Hickory office. Graystone Eye is located in the McDonald Crossing business park near the intersection of McDonald Parkway and Tate Boulevard. Participants will learn about vision correction procedures including iLASIK, advanced technology lens replacement options, and KAMRA, a new option that reduces dependence on reading glasses. All participants over the age of 18 will receive a certificate valued at $500 toward either procedure, and be eligible to win a $1000 discount certificate to be given away at the end of the presentation. For further information or to register for this event, call 828-304-6611, or go online at www.graystonelasik.com. February Programs at Elk Knob State Park Winter Edibles Come learn about some of the edible plants you can find in the mountains in winter. Meet on Saturday, February 6th, 2:00 pm at the park office. The Science of Snow For humans, snow can be pretty, fun, annoying, dangerous and many other things. What does it mean for the natural world? How does it form such intricate shapes? Cut out a scientifically correct flake and learn how to preserve real ones. Come find more about this magnificent crystalline wonder. Meet Saturday, February 27th, 2:00 pm at the park office. Share this: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Pocket The Crossnore School Board of Trustees voted to assume leadership of The Childrens Home, a human services agency for children in crisis located in Winston-Salem. The affiliation creates an organization that will provide highly effective trauma-informed care within a wide range of services available at both locations. Most importantly, the affiliation combines the efforts of both organizations to create a sanctuary of hope and healing for children in western North Carolina who are suffering from the effects of trauma caused by abuse and neglect. Brett A. Loftis, JD, Chief Executive Officer of The Crossnore School, will assume executive leadership of the combined efforts of The Crossnore School and The Childrens Home, including administrative, operational, and programming functions. Integration of services across both campuses will take place in the coming months while the governing Boards of both organizations work together to determine the appropriate governance structure for combined services to support healing children. Together, The Crossnore School and The Childrens Home leadership teams will evaluate opportunities relating to programs, facilities, land, and staffing at The Childrens Home. With the foster care system in crisis, The Crossnore School has sought ways to expand services to include additional programs for more children. Chief Executive Officer Brett Loftis feels expansion is the greatest priority for The Crossnore School, along with leading the states child advocacy legislative agenda, and training more agencies in the Sanctuary Model of care. The Crossnore Schools Strategic Planning Committee has worked tirelessly to investigate ways for these three priorities to become reality in western North Carolina, and this affiliation with The Childrens Home is an important first step. Today in North Carolina there are more than 10,000 children in foster care. Our current residential capacity at The Crossnore School is 83, and will rise to more than 100 with the opening of three new cottages this spring. That number is certainly meaningful in the lives of the children we serve, but is not enough in the scope of all the children who need help, says Brett Loftis, CEO of The Crossnore School. The goal of our strategic planning process has always been to serve more children. This affiliation with The Childrens Home will expand our capability to provide more services for more children. Our ultimate goal is to become the premier provider of childrens services in western North Carolina. Our board and staff undertook a lengthy and deliberate process to determine how The Childrens Home can continue to provide the best care for the thousands of abused and neglected children in our region, says Katheryn Northington, board chair of The Childrens Home. The Crossnore School has long been recognized for its innovation and leadership in providing hope and healing for children. We believe this is an opportunity for The Childrens Home to realize its full potential and re-focus our programming on the changing needs of children and families. Additionally, the Board is pleased that the leadership of the Western North Carolina Conference of The United Methodist Church has expressed their confidence in and enthusiasm for this partnership. For more than a century, both organizations have worked to transform the lives of thousands of children through therapeutic treatment programs provided in group home, single-family foster care, and educational settings. Combining efforts across two campuses provides a greater continuum of care to offer children in need. The Crossnore School Board of Trustees is thrilled with the results of our strategic planning process. We are excited that The Childrens Home is uniting with us to increase our capacity to serve more children in crisis from North Carolina, says John Blackburn, board chair of The Crossnore School. The Childrens Home is placing their trust in us, and we are grateful for this opportunity to work together. For more information about this exciting affiliation, please contact Holly Barrett, Director of Communications at (828) 733-4305 or [email protected] The Crossnore School About The Crossnore School: The Crossnore School is a non-profit residential foster care home for children in crisis. Located in the quaint town of Crossnore, NC, the School is nestled on 85 acres in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains. The mission of The Crossnore School is to provide a Christian Sanctuary of hope and healing where students in need rise above their circumstances and excel both in school and in life. For more information about The Crossnore School, please visit www.crossnoreschool.org. About The Childrens Home: Founded in 1909 by the Methodist Church, Western North Carolina Conference, The Childrens Home has served more than 10,000 children and their families across North Carolina by providing safety, love, education, and therapy in times of critical need. Located on 212 acres of rolling pastureland in Winston-Salem, NC, The Childrens Home offers a unique environment that is serenely therapeutic, educational, inspirational, and most importantly, alive with potential. Through meaningful participation and one-on-one relationships with staff professionals, children facing severe disruptions in their lives begin to heal in mind, body, and spirit. For more information about The Childrens Home, please visit www.tchome.org. Share this: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Pocket State Rep. Jonathan Jordan visited the Ashe County office of Appalachian District Health Department to receive his annual flu immunization. Jordan, who represents Ashe and Watauga Counties, is making this visit to raise awareness of the importance of getting immunized. Jordan was joined by Beth Lovette, Health Director, for the visit. Talking Points for Flu General: Influenza (flu) is a serious disease that can lead to hospitalization and sometimes even death. Every flu season is different, and influenza infection can affect people differently. Even healthy people can get very sick from the flu and spread it to others. The seasonal flu season in the United States can begin as early as October and last as late as May. The best way to prevent the flu is by getting vaccinated each year. Local Cases of Flu: The most recent report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) shows increasing flu activity for the United States. The proportion of visits due to Influenza-like Illness in Region 4 (Southeastern US) was at baseline at 1.6% for week 2 (ending 1/16/2016). The baseline for the region is 1.6%. February as Peak Month for Flu Activity: The CDC monitors flu activity by month and from the years 1982-83 through 2013-14, flu activity most often peaked in February (14 seasons) in the United States. In North Carolina, hospital-based Public Health Epidemiologists reported 19 positive influenza results out of 664 samples tested during week 3 (ending 1/23/2016); 8 positive influenza A (unknown), 6 positive influenza B, and 5 positive influenza A (H1) (Source: NC DHHS). Flu Vaccine: The best way to prevent the flu is by getting vaccinated each year. It is not too late to get a flu vaccine. According to the CDC, as long as the flu virus is circulating, vaccination is appropriate. Once someone is vaccinated, it will take about two weeks to develop antibodies in the body to protect against flu. In fact, Representative Jonathan Jordan received his flu vaccine from the local health department to demonstrate the importance of this preventive measure. [See photo] Signs & Symptoms and What to Do: Signs & Symptoms A 100oF or higher fever or feeling feverish (not everyone with the flu has a fever) Cough Sore throat Runny or stuffy nose Muscle or body aches Headaches Fatigue (tiredness) Some people may have vomiting and diarrhea, though this is more common in children than adults. If you do become sick, call your healthcare provider or the health department for recommendations. To Protect You and Your Family From Flu: Get your flu vaccine! Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it. Wash your hands often with soap and water. If soap and water are not available, use an alcohol-based hand rub. Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth. Germs spread this way. Try to avoid close contact with sick people. If you are sick with flulike illness, CDC recommends that you stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone except to get medical care or for other necessities. (Your fever should be gone without the use of a fever-reducing medicine.) While sick, limit contact with others as much as possible to keep from infecting them. Walk-in appointments to get your flu vaccine are available at the health department and the vaccine is available at local healthcare providers and pharmacy locations. For more information about the flu, go to www.flu.nc.gov or www.cdc.gov/flu or contact Appalachian District Health Department at (828) 264-4995. Source: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Share this: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Pocket By Jessica Isaacs | [email protected] Do you love classical music? Are you making plans for the weekend? If you said yes to both of those questions, youre in luck. The Ashe Arts Center in West Jefferson will play host to an intimate performance on Saturday night by the Harmonia Baroque chamber ensemble. The term baroque refers to aspects of European culture (in this case, music) which grew popular in the 17th and 18th centuries. The ensembles core group of musicians have been performing together since 1999 and include Michael Bell on harpsichord, Alicia Chapman on haubois (oboe), Nancy Schneeloch-Bingham on traverso (baroque flute) and vocalist Priscilla Porterfield. They will be joined on stage by Corinne Cassini on cello, Douglas James on theorbo and two students from ASUs Hayes School of Music: Chandler Fadero on violin and Nicholas Allion on cello. We have a good relationship with the music and theater departments at ASU. We have some folks here in our county, like Michael Bell, who play with the ensembles, said Ashe County Arts Council Program Director Rebecca Williams. Its nice to have that cross-county relationship, and we enjoy working with Harmonia Baroque. They come every year or so to perform, and its wonderful to provide classical music here in our Arts Center. Chapman said the performance will cover selections ranging in date from 1632 to the 1780s that hail from various parts of Europe. It is truly a musical journey. We will start in Italy, pass through Germany, France and England and arrive in Scotland, she said. It covers just about every taste a person can have. Its a musical feast in the most adventurous sense of the word. Harmonia Baroque Harmonia Baroque will perform with replicas of the instruments for which the music was written, giving you special insight into the characteristics and qualities of the period. We are a very small gallery space, so the audience will be up close and personal with the musicians. Its all acoustic, so theyll be able to hear the instruments and see them being played, Williams said. Youll get a little history lesson on the music and when it was played in the 17th and 18th centuries. Chapman said the ensemble uses instruments appropriate for the time period in order to create a more authentic musical experience. The composers were so well-versed in the characteristics of these early instruments, and it produces a very different sound than when we try to play them on contemporary instruments, said Chapman. The composers would write in special keys, write special technical patterns that were very idiomatic for these instruments. Authenticity thats our interest and what we hope to bring. We cover a very big period of time, and some very interesting composers that some people may have never heard before. We like introducing seldom heard composers in our concerts. The personal atmosphere offered by the gallery space will also lend to the authenticity of the performance. Playing at the Ashe Arts Council is the perfect environment, Chapman said. This music was played in a small, intimate setting with a lot of interaction between the performers and the audience members. It was more like having a concert in your living room. The program includes selections by Giovani Platti, Evaristo Dall Abaco, Jean-Baptiste Lully and Henry Purcell, concluding with a traditional Scottish piece called Atholl Brose. The musicians say they look forward to another great experience at the Ashe Arts Center. We have been traveling to Ashe County to play for a number of years, so we know the people who are coming to hear us play, Chapman said. They are very supportive and adventurous. Our audience in Ashe embraces the group and our music very warmly and they appreciate any new composer from the baroque period that we bring to them. Doors to the Arts Center will open at 6:30 p.m. for the 7:30 p.m. performance. Call ahead at 336-846-2787 to guarantee a seat or get your tickets at the door. Admission will cost $12 for adults and $5 for students. The Ashe Arts Center and the Ashe County Arts Council are located at 303 School Avenue in West Jefferson. The free concert will be repeated in Rosen Concert Hall at Appalachian State University on Sunday, Feb. 7 at 4 p.m. Coming Soon to Ashe Arts Check out these other programs coming soon to the Ashe Arts Center. Call the office for more details on any of these events. Four Women, Five Elements: Reception Feb. 12 All four women artists in this group have work that deals with nature and the elements in terms of both material and subject. Join the arts council for refreshments and meet the artists. The reception will take place from 5-7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 12. The Harris Brothers: Feb. 13 Sponsored jointly by the Ashe County Arts Council and the Blue Ridge Music Center, this 7:30 p.m. show on Saturday, Feb. 13 will feature brothers Reggie and Ryan Harris. Born and raised in western North Carolina, their repertoire consists of any number of musical styles including traditional roots music, blues, mountain music, vintage country and a little bit of rock and roll. Tickets will cost $16 for adults and $5 for students. The King Bees: Feb. 27 The Ashe Civic Center will come alive with the sounds of the blues when the King Bees take the stage at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 27. Rob Hound Dog Baskerville and Penny Queen Bee Zamagni have been stingin and swingin to the blues since 1987. The concert will feature John Ambrose, a veteran of the legendary Detroit R&B gospel scene, on drums; and Phil Stinson, the High Countrys king of the 88s with a rollicking style that captures classic sounds from New Orleans greats to Jerry Lee Lewis, on piano. The King Bees founded the New River Blues Festival and have performed in Paris, Rome, the Lincoln Center and at countless international festivals and Mississippi juke joints. Tickets will be $16 for adults and $5 for students. Share this: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Pocket The following information is provided by local law enforcement agencies. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Compiled by Jessica Isaacs The following were provided by the Watauga County Sheriffs Office. Jan. 21 ARREST: A male suspect, 43, of 324 Thomas St. in North Wilkesboro, was charged with OFA failure to pay monies. He was held under a $5,000 secured bond and was scheduled to appear in court on Jan. 28. ARREST: A male suspect, 28, of 253 Flowers Branch Road in Deep Gap, was charged with felony embezzlement, misdemeanor breaking and entering and larceny. He was held under a $10,000 secured bond and is scheduled to appear in court on Feb. 15. Jan. 26 INCIDENT: Unauthorized use of motor vehicle was reported at 106 Wade Moretz Road in Deep Gap. INCIDENT: Breaking and entering a motor vehicle, larceny from a motor vehicle and forgery using/uttering were reported at Skateworld, 100 U.S. Highway 421 N in Vilas. INCIDENT: An unattended death was reported at 1390 Brownwood Road in Deep Gap. Jan. 27 INCIDENT: Overdose was reported at 201 Edgecliff Lane Apt. 2 in Boone. INCIDENT: Assault on a female and vandalism were reported at 234 Isenhour Road in Vilas. INCIDENT: Calls for service were reported at 1391 Highland Hall Road in Boone. Jan. 28 INCIDENT: Drug violations equipment/paraphernalia, possession of marijuana and DWLR were reported at Fletchers Cycle Center, 8483 U.S. Highway 421 N in Vilas. INCIDENT: Larceny was reported at 154 Pond Road in Boone. INCIDENT: A person was reported missing along U.S. Highway 321 S near Tweetsie Railroad in Boone. ARREST: A male suspect, 24, of 3210 Kellersville Road in Banner Elk, was charged with felony PWIMSD Heroin and misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia. He was held under a $15,000 secured bond and is scheduled to appear in court on March 18. Jan. 29 INCIDENT: Fraud was reported at 247 Scene-A-Rama Drive in Boone. INCIDENT: Contempt of court/perjury/court violations were reported at 211 SPI Road in Deep Gap. Jan. 30 INCIDENT: An unattended death was reported at 313 N Pine Run Road in Boone. INCIDENT: Assault and battery, communicating threats and injury to real property were reported at 220 Sunrise Ridge in Vilas. ARREST: A male suspect, 20, of 196 Clyde Williams Drive in Boone, was charged with DWI alcohol and/or drugs and is scheduled to appear in court on March 3. ARREST: A male suspect, 34, of 220 Sunrise Ridge in Vilas, was charged with assault and battery, communicating threats and injury to real property. He was held under a $1,500 secured bond and is scheduled to appear in court on March 3. Jan. 31 INCIDENT: Assault on a female was reported at 9189 N.C. Highway 105 S Unit 12 in Banner Elk. INCIDENT: Simple physical assault was reported at 768 Fallview Lane Unit 1 in Boone. INCIDENT: Driving after consuming <21, simple possession of a schedule II controlled substance and simple possession of a schedule VI controlled substance were reported at Skateworld, 100 U.S. Highway 321 N in Vilas. INCIDENT: Breaking and entering was reported at 201 Edgecliff Lane Apt. 4 in Boone. ARREST: A female suspect, 20, of 173 W Howard St. Apt. 217 in Boone, was charged with driving after consuming ARREST: A male suspect, 24, of 107 Thora Drive in Jamestown, was charged with felony possession of a schedule II controlled substance, possession of a schedule I controlled substance and misdemeanor drug violations. He was held under a $5,000 secured bond and is scheduled to appear in court on March 3. Feb. 1 INCIDENT: Vandalism was reported at 162 Old Reece Road in Banner Elk. INCIDENT: Breaking and entering was reported at 2029 and 2031 Dutch Creek Road in Banner Elk. INCIDENT: Assault on a female and communicating threats was reported at 2843 Watauga River Road in Sugar Grove. INCIDENT: Injury to personal property, injury to real property and assault on a female were reported at 722 Slabtown Road in Zionville. ARREST: A male suspect, 42, of 1767 Burkett Road in Boone, was charged with contempt of court/perjury/court violations. He was held under a $1,091 bond and is scheduled to appear in court on Feb. 18. ARREST: A male suspect, 35, of 338 Brook Hollow Road in Boone, was charged with larceny and is scheduled to appear in court on March 1. Feb. 2 INCIDENT: Larceny auto parts and accessories and vandalism were reported at 256 Pottertown Road in Todd. INCIDENT: Assault on a female was reported at 9189 N.C. Highway 105 S Unit 12 in Banner Elk. INCIDENT: Calls for service were reported at 356 Old Turnpike Road Unit 1 in Boone. INCIDENT: Larceny was reported at 105 Windy Gap Road Apt. 1 in Blowing Rock. ARREST: A male suspect, 52, of 344 Locust Lane in Boone, was charged with two counts of OFA and all traffic (except DWI). He was held under a $1,000 secured bond and is scheduled to appear in court on March 3. At some point, someone has to recognise that, here and now, we cannot fulfil all of our obligations under international agreements, he said. Anyone who knows how to pronounce the word asylum is allowed into Europe and Finland, President Sauli Niinisto stated in his address at the opening ceremony of the new parliamentary session on Wednesday. International rules were drawn up and their interpretation [has] evolved under quite different circumstances. I am sure that if these international regulations, and the national regulations based on them, were drawn up now, their content would be fundamentally more stringent, while still taking account of human rights and helping those in need. Europe cannot withstand uncontrolled migration for much longer. Our values will give way if our capacity to cope is exceeded. It so happens that good intentions are creating a bad situation for everyone, he argued. Policy-makers, in particular, have expressed their exasperation with remarks such as these in the aftermath of the opening ceremony, although Niinisto rushed to clarify that he is not urging Finland to breach international agreements. He emphasised according to Verkkouutiset that he sought mainly to call attention to how difficult adherence to international rules has become for member states of the European Union. A number of policy-makers took to social media to comment on the remarks of Niinisto some voicing their support, others their disapproval. I was astonished listening to the address of the President. The President attacked on international human rights and proposed that we no longer abide by our obligations to [promote and protect] human rights, Emma Kari (Greens) wrote on Facebook. The President also indicated that human rights treaties are outdated and would not be adopted today. Well, the human rights treaties of the UN were drawn up in the midst of the latest similar humanitarian crisis. The difference was that the ones in need of help were Europeans. The ones fleeing were white Christians, she continued. Jouni Hemberg, the executive director at Finn Church Aid, told Helsingin Sanomat that he was terrified by some parts of the address. Erkki Tuomioja (SDP), an ex-Minister for Foreign Affairs, was more understanding of Niinisto and estimated that it was not his intention to suggest Finland ignore human rights treaties. He also acknowledged that the address left many mystified. We are rightfully and understandably frustrated with the fact that some, if not the majority, of refugees are migrating for reasons other than the need for protection defined in international treaties. The attempts to curb this influx cannot be based on denying human rights or approving, even indirectly, any kind of hate speech or violence. They also cannot threaten the safety of even a single refugee in need of protection, Tuomioja wrote on Facebook. He added that it should naturally be possible to revisit, develop and amend international agreements. The Refugee Convention should not be amended, but it is necessary to oblige the European Union to process asylum seekers more efficiently and rationally and shoulder the burden together instead of violating the treaties already in place by moving the problem from one border to another, he explained. Niinisto similarly called attention to the importance of finding a joint solution to the problem. It has also been suggested that the International Convention on Refugees should be amended. This would be a slow process [that is] unlikely to solve what is an acute problem, he estimated in his address. Europe is still seeking a balanced solution to the problem. Many governments are acting unilaterally, pursuing their own narrow interests or engaging in a display of defiance while issuing threats. At some point, someone has to recognise that, here and now, we cannot fulfil all of our obligations under international agreements. Most of the national proposals put forward are based on this realisation, he said. Niinisto urged the EU to face the facts and introduce a joint system to control its external borders and accelerate deportations to curb the flow of migrants thereby creating a safe space for those in the worst distress. The EU, he suggested, must nonetheless choose whether to protect its values and the people who are truly in danger or to inflexibly adhere to the letter of international obligations with no regard for the consequences. An English translation of the address is available on the official webpage of the President. Aleksi Teivainen HT Photo: Antti Aimo-Koivisto Lehtikuva Source: Uusi Suomi I represent the school of thought that one should be very precise in regards to questions of war and peace, he writes. Ex-Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen (Centre) envisions in his new, self-published book Ulkopolitiikka (Eng. Foreign Policy) that the increasing co-operation between Finland and Sweden will eventually evolve into a bilateral union. Finland can according to him never be sure whether or not the resources of its neighbour are at its disposal in time of need if the co-operation is based on voluntariness. A bilateral agreement on a defence union would solve this problem and establish the automation required for the use of joint resources, he explains. He acknowledges that a defence union between two countries is not functional or even possible without a joint foreign policy. The union should therefore be a genuine union between two nation states, he argues. Vanhanen considers it necessary to enhance bilateral co-operation with Sweden despite admitting that his vision is unlikely to be realised in the near future. This co-operation should be perceived as a route and instrument to possibly closer, binding co-operation, he proposes. As the significance of national borders is, in a way, diminishing in the world of people, we should not rule out the scenario that some day the foreign and defence policies of our countries become part of the same whole, writes Vanhanen. This will not take place in the lifetime of the current generation, but it is good to recognise that history has not ended. Vanhanen stresses on several occasions that Finland should refrain from isolating itself in foreign policy matters. Sweden is ultimately the only country that is really close with us. We are edging closer to Estonia, but it will take time to reach the same level [of co-operation], he says. The ex-Prime Minister also believes the European Union, similarly to Finland and Sweden, is en route to closer co-operation especially due to the crisis in Syria. The events that have transpired in Syria speak in favour of strengthening the foreign policy of the EU, he estimates. It is paradoxical that the ones who are the most eager to criticise the asylum policy are advocates of a weaker union, while the migrants continue to take advantage of the weakness of and lack of unanimity within the EU. Many have simultaneously called for the abolition of the Schengen system. Without the official co-operation and exchange of information it has brought about, the situation would be even worse, he points out. The front-line of our defence is defined by foreign policy the foreign policy of the EU as well as the efforts to strengthen our joint asylum policy. Vanhanen also calls attention to the significance of maintaining stability in the Baltic Sea Region but refuses to rule out the possibility of joining Nato. Applying for Nato membership remains a genuine alternative in my view, if our stabilisation policy is unsuccessful because of the actions of others, he explains. If Russia upsets the stability of our adjoining territories, it will tip the scale not in favour of Russia but in that of Nato, writes Vanhanen. Aleksi Teivainen HT Photo: Markku Ulander Lehtikuva Source: Uusi Suomi The victim was chased onto the tracks where he was kicked and punched unconscious before being robbed A teenager knocked a Luas customer onto the tracks while his friend kicked him in the head during a violent robbery, a court has heard. Lewis Smith (19) of Glenshane Grove, Tallaght, Dublin pleaded guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to robbery of Joseph Benson at City West Luas, also in Tallaght on April 17, 2015. He has 12 previous convictions including burglary and criminal damage. Mr Benson has no recollection of the incident, but an eye witness later told gardai that the man was waiting for the Luas when "all of a sudden" one of two teenagers standing nearby shouted "get him" before they both started kicking and punching the man. Chase The victim tried to run away but the pair chased him. Smith tripped Mr Benson and he fell onto the tracks where his accomplice continued to kick the man in the head while he lay on the ground. Garda Stephen Murray told Eilis Brennan BL, prosecuting that Smith's co-accused went through the victim's pockets and took his phone. Judge Sarah Berkeley was shown CCTV footage of the attack after Mr Benson requested, through prosecuting counsel, that it be shown in court. Gda Murray agreed with George Burns BL, defending that Smith's cousin had been attacked in a similar way to Mr Benson on New Year's Day in 2014 in Tallaght. That man had been beaten to death. Mr Burns told Judge Berkeley that his cousin's death had a massive impact on him and he picked up a significant number of charges in an 18-month period. "He more than appreciates what the consequences could have been for Mr Benson and that he is lucky to be alive and not have any ongoing serious injuries," counsel said. His client had written a letter for the court and a letter of apology to Mr Benson. Gda Murray confirmed that Mr Benson only recalled waiting for the Luas to go home after work. His next recollection was opening his eyes to find himself on a bed in hospital being taken in for x-ray. He felt dizzy and found it difficult to breathe. He then noticed that his phone was missing. Mr Benson spent three days in hospital undergoing various scans and x-rays due to the seriousness of the attack. A victim impact report stated that Mr Benson was no longer the "happy and outgoing" man he had been. He was afraid while walking in public places and "feels like he is living in a shell". He said he had come to Ireland 17 years ago to escape war in his native Liberia and spent days hiding in a boat to do so. He had hopes of starting a new life in this country and before the attack felt that this had been accomplished. "I never thought I could be randomly attacked. It changed my whole outlook on my life and my safety," Mr Benson stated. Judge Berkeley remanded Smith in custody until April 4, next for sentence. She ordered a report from the Probation Service for that date. David McDonagh is charged with trying to sell stolen cars (INM) A Dublin man who allegedly tried to deceive two people into buying stolen cars which had been advertised for sale on the internet has been sent forward for trial. David McDonagh (40) would have made more than 12,000 from the sale of the two stolen cars. He is facing trial in the Circuit Court on the charges. The accused, with an address at St Margaret's Park in Ballymun, appeared before Blanchardstown District Court charged with two counts of making gain or causing loss by deception. It is alleged Mr McDonagh induced two named men to purchase a stolen vehicle, one for 4,200 and the second for 8,450. The cars were advertised for sale on an internet site. The incidents allegedly took place at McDonald's car park in Blanchardstown on April 6 and at Blanchardstown Retail Park on April 16 last year. Consent Mr McDonagh is also facing two counts of using a vehicle without the consent of its owner as well as two counts of handling stolen property on the same dates. A State solicitor said the book of evidence was ready and had been served on the accused who goes forward to the present sittings of Dublin Circuit Criminal Court. Judge David McHugh gave Mr McDonagh the formal alibi caution and assigned defence solicitor John O'Doherty and one junior counsel on free legal aid. A notorious gang boss who was brutally beaten in a vicious assault in an English jail will never recover from his injuries, it is feared. Brendan Kinlan (45), who once ruled the gangland scene on Ireland's east coast from his base in Bray, Co Wicklow, remains in a critical condition in an English hospital. He was savagely attacked at Lindholme Prison in Yorkshire at 8am on Tuesday, January 5. It has now emerged that medics at a Leeds hospital attempted to take him off a life support machine at the weekend, but were unsuccessful as his condition is so serious. "It looks like he will never get better at this stage," a source said. Gardai are unaware why Kinlan was attacked in the English jail, but it is not linked to criminal activity in Ireland. Kinlan was jailed for eight years in April 2012, at Leeds Crown Court after a jury found him guilty of possession of over 2m worth of amphetamines, which was discovered by police after he crashed his van to avoid hitting a pheasant. South Yorkshire police have arrested an inmate at the jail for the attack, but he was later released without charge and returned to the prison. Vehicle Kinlan's three-day trial heard how he was on the M1 near Wakefield, West Yorkshire, when his vehicle spun out of control and hit the central reservation before spinning back across the road and ending up on the hard shoulder. Despite the small white van being badly smashed on October 24 last year, Kinlan walked away unharmed. Leeds Crown Court heard that Kinlan told an off-duty postman, who stopped at the scene of the crash that he "was trying to swerve to miss a pheasant". Following the accident, Kinlan, originally from Bray but living in Middlesbrough at the time of the offence, was left with a car that he couldn't drive and unable to continue with his delivery of "a massive consignment of controlled drugs". When police came to the crash scene and took Kinlan's details, they realised they didn't match the details for the van. This would prove a problem for him in subsequent days as he tried to retrieve his cargo from the vehicle. Gardai believe the drugs were destined for the Irish market. Kinlan's associates are suspected of a spate of murders linked to a gangland reign of terror. Kinlan was previously questioned by gardai, although never charged, over the double murder of 'Fat' Freddie Thompson gang members Darren Geoghegan (26) and Gavin Byrne (30), who were killed by their own mob in an internal power struggle. A man found guilty of raping his daughter for nearly a decade has been let out of prison to view the remains of his late wife. Patrick O'Brien (79) was sentenced to 12 years in prison with three suspended in 2013 for the systematic rape and sexual abuse of his daughter Fiona Doyle at their home in Dun Laoghaire from 1973 to 1982. His wife Breda (69) died from cancer on Tuesday in Bray. She had been questioned by gardai following allegations by Ms Doyle that she had aided and abetted in the abuse. Decision The Director of Public Prosecutions was due to make a decision in the coming days on whether or not she should face charges. Just after 1pm a Prison Service van collected O'Brien from Arbour Hill and conveyed him to a funeral home in Bray. The rapist was protected from view by prison staff and gardai. The van arrived at Colliers Funeral Home in Bray at 1.30pm and left for the prison at 2.20pm after collecting the convicted paedophile from the property's rear exit. The last time O'Brien was seen before he was sent to prison in 2013, he was using a walking frame. The sex abuser was then accompanied to court by his late wife Breda, who stayed by her husband's side throughout. When asked why so much effort was afforded to keeping O'Brien out of public view, both the gardai and the Irish Prison Service said they do not comment on individual cases. Under 2007 Prison Rules governing the transport of prisoners to and from jail it states that such measures as are practicable shall be taken to ensure that he or she is not exposed to public view and is protected from insult, curiosity or publicity of any kind. Victim Ms Doyle said she regrets her mother died without an official decision being reached about whether she would be prosecuted or not. She said she would still like to know what the DPP's decision would have been and hopes to get some communication in due course. "I know there are other girls out there. Same story as mine. I want to give others hope as well," she said. During the trial, Ms Doyle told the court she believed that her mother knew that her father was sexually abusing her. After the court decision, Ms Doyle told a press conference she had written to the Garda Commissioner asking that her mother be investigated. "I had wrote to the DPP in January and I expressed my concern that the file had gone to them in October. "So when I wrote in January I said that I was concerned at the length of time they were taking to make the decision, and my biggest fear is that she would die before I get their decision. "I feel lost. What do I have now? Nothing. Sick "I heard last week that she was sick and that she had got lung cancer and was at home with only days left," she said. The case sparked controversy when O'Brien was initially given a 12-year sentence with nine years suspended due to his age and ill-health. However, this was subsequently appealed by the DPP and the sentence was revised to 12 years with three years suspended. The gaping hole in the fuselage of the Airbus 321 The pilot of a passenger plane that was damaged in an explosion and fire over Somalia described how the crew jumped into action to fly the plane back to Mogadishu airport. They battled to keep the passengers calm even as smoke enveloped the cabin and wind rushed through a hole blown through the fuselage. Serbian captain Vlatko Vodopivec said he and others were told the explosion aboard the Airbus 321 jetliner was caused by a bomb, a suspicion endorsed by Somali government officials yesterday. "It happened at about 11,000 feet," Vodopivec said. "It was my first bomb; I hope it will be the last." One person died as the blast tore a hole in the fuselage. It is understood he was sucked through the hole in the plane. Captain Vodopivec (64) has flown for several European and African companies in a long piloting career. "When we heard a loud bang, the co-pilot went back to the cabin to inspect the damage and I took over the commands as the procedure demands," he said, adding that the engines and hydraulics functioned normally so he had no problem flying the aircraft back to Mogadishu. Smoke "Smoke came into the cockpit, but it was mostly concentrated in the back of the aircraft," he said in a telephone interview from a UN military base in Mogadishu before he was to fly to Athens, Greece. "The stewardesses did a great job calming down the passengers and following the emergency procedure. "We were told a person was sucked out of the plane, but that is still not confirmed," he added. Cellphone video taken aboard the plane pans from 73 passengers, some wearing oxygen masks, in seats toward the back of the airliner in flight, and then swivels to the empty front area with a hole in the side of the cabin. The video was taken by Awale Kullane, Somalia's deputy ambassador to the United Nations, who later said on Facebook that he "heard a loud noise and couldn't see anything but smoke for a few seconds." When visibility returned they realised "quite a chunk" of the plane was missing. Daallo Airlines said in a brief statement that the Airbus A321 plane was operated by Hermes Airlines. It said the plane "experienced an incident shortly after take-off". "The Aircraft landed safely and all of our passengers were evacuated safely. A thorough investigation is being conducted by Somalia Civil Aviation Authority," the Daallo statement said. Mohamed Hassan, a police officer in Balad, an agricultural town 30km north of Mogadishu, said residents had found the dead body of a man who might have fallen from the plane. Patrick (Paddy) Bradley was born in Athboy, Co Meath in 1893, one of a family of 10 children who lived on a modest farm of land. At the age of 20 he moved to Dublin where he worked at the Great Southern Railway depot in Inchicore. He joined the IRB in 1913 and took part in the strike of that year as a committed trade unionist. During the strike Paddy attended James Larkin's address from the balcony of the Imperial Hotel and around this time he befriended James Connolly, becoming one of the first recruits to join Connolly's Irish Citizen Army (ICA). Friendship A strong friendship developed between the pair and Paddy would later assist Connolly in making ammunition for the Rising. Paddy also attended rifle training at Liberty Hall and joined street marches at night to learn street fighting tactics. He later took part in operations in the Dublin mountains. When the Rising started on Easter Monday Paddy was assigned to the College of Surgeons Garrison, off St Stephen's Green. He is recorded as having fought at a number of locations during Easter week, including at Little's public house at Cuffe Street and the Royal College of Surgeons, under the command of Michael Mallin. The rebels at the latter outpost took part in the defence of St Stephen's Green against British forces stationed at the Shelbourne Hotel. Paddy was transferred for a brief period during the week to James Connolly's Dublin brigade at the GPO to assist in the ammunition supply. He was arrested on Monday May 1, two days after the surrender order was issued by Pearse, and imprisoned. Execution He later recounted that he was deeply saddened at the arrest and subsequent execution of Connolly, as he saw himself as closer to Connolly than to any of the other Rising leaders (though he also developed a loose friendship with Eamon de Valera). After his arrest he was sent to Stafford Prison in England and then on to Wormword Scrubs. He was later transferred to Frongoch internment camp in Wales. His friend Eamonn Dore recalled: "Bradley was restless and confrontational during this period of confinement and challenged the authorities every chance he got. I believe the grief he suffered after the shooting of Connolly played a big part in his frustrations." Paddy was released in December 1916 and returned to Dublin. He joined the Irish Volunteers and remained an active member until 1918, at which time he left Dublin. He worked in Co Laois, where he met his wife-to-be, and eventually moved to Newport, Co Tipperary, where he married in 1920. He was a strong supporter of de Valera's politics and became an active member of Fianna Fail. Paddy had a brother Luke, who also played an active role in the Rising. Paddy Bradley died in 1972. Details submitted by Patrick Bradley (grandson) Francis Sheehy-Skeffington was the most unlikely martyr of Easter 1916. The lovable eccentric known as 'Skeffy' to his friends may have been an Irish nationalist, but he also hated violence and regarded the Rising itself as morally wrong. Whenever someone accused him of being a crank, he would reply: "Yes, I am. A crank is a small instrument that makes revolutions." Skeffy turned out to be right, but not in the way he had imagined. His murder in cold blood by a half-crazed army officer was a scandal that shocked people on both sides of the Irish Sea. It was also a key event in turning public opinion against the British authorities who put down the rebellion with such indiscriminate brutality. Born Francis Skeffington in 1878, the Cavan man specialised in championing unpopular causes. He was a socialist and vegetarian pacifist, who took the highly unusual step of expanding his own surname when he married the suffragette Hanna Sheehy in 1903. Imprisoned Skeffy scraped a living as a freelance journalist. Hanna was the main breadwinner, but lost her teaching job in 1913 after being imprisoned for breaking windows in Dublin Castle during a protest. Almost everyone in Dublin knew him, at least by sight. A small man with a bushy red beard, Sheehy-Skeffington dressed in knickerbockers and knee-length socks with a badge reading 'Votes for Women' on his lapel. His many famous friends included the writer James Joyce, who affectionately nicknamed him 'Hairy Jaysus'. While Skeffy might have seemed harmless, he took his political beliefs very seriously. When the First World War broke out in 1914, he was sent to jail for making anti-recruitment speeches on the streets. Although his sentence was six months, he promptly went on hunger-strike and ended up serving just a few days. Skeffy was on good terms with many of the 1916 Rising's leaders but felt they were making a terrible mistake. On Easter Monday, he tried in vain to save a young British soldier who was bleeding to death outside Dublin Castle. The following day he went into Dublin city centre, hoping to form a vigilante group that would stop the looting of shops. It was a typically naive idea and he was soon forced to admit defeat. Disaster struck as Sheehy-Skeffington walked home to Rathmines. He was arrested by British soldiers at Portobello Bridge, apparently for no other reason than that they did not like the look of him. He then fell into the hands of Captain J.C. Bowen-Colthurst (inset), who had recently been fighting on the Western Front and was probably suffering from shell shock. In fact, Bowen-Colthurst was even more dangerous than his fellow officers realised. He took Skeffy out as a hostage with his raiding party that evening, during which he shot dead an unarmed 17-year-old boy returning from church. He also arrested two journalists, even though they were known supporters of the Crown. Although Skeffy was extremely upset, he still expected to be released soon. Instead, at Portobello Barracks on Wednesday morning, Bowen-Colthurst summoned up a firing squad and had all three of his prisoners executed. One of the bullets was embedded in a brick which can be seen today as an exhibit at the National Museum of Ireland. Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington, who had been busy taking food to rebels in the General Post Office, did not find out about her husband's death for over 48 hours. She then had to watch as Bowen-Colthurst's men later tore her home apart in search of incriminating documents. By then it was beginning to dawn on Bowen-Colthurst's superiors that he was wildly out of control. Anxious to avoid bad publicity, Prime Minister Herbert Henry Asquith invited Hanna to 10 Downing Street and offered 10,000 in return for her silence. She refused and Bowen-Colthurst was eventually brought before a court martial. He was found guilty but insane, spent 20 months in a psychiatric hospital and then emigrated to Canada, where he died in 1965. Atrocity Sheehy-Skeffington's murder was arguably not the worst British atrocity of Easter 1916. Soldiers from the South Staffordshire Regiment were also accused of shooting and bayoneting 15 innocent civilians at North King Street. According to one eye-witness, the killers behaved "like wild animals or things possessed". It should also be remembered that J.C. Bowen-Colthurst was actually an Irishman himself whose family owned Blarney Castle in Co Cork. Because Skeffy had been such a popular character, however, his sad story captured the public imagination. As a symbol of British oppression, it also helped change the Easter Rising's image - from a military fiasco to a moral victory. The Sheehy-Skeffington name lived on. Their son Owen, just seven years old when the Rising took place, went on to become a lecturer in French at Trinity College and a member of the Seanad. In 2014, Francis's granddaughter Micheline won a landmark equality case against NUI Galway after the university had denied her a promotion. Francis Sheehy-Skeffington never expected to be a 1916 martyr - but in 2016 he can also be celebrated as a man who was ahead of his time. GLADE SPRING, Va. Kay Sutherland knows a camera isnt the only way to capture a special mo-ment. She resorts to her paint brush instead. The artist paints live events such as weddings, parties and receptions on location, capturing events a camera cannot match. Using bold colors and paint strokes, Sutherland creates large-scale artwork of events as they happen. Its spontaneous. Its happening right then and there, and that fuels my creative energy, said the Wytheville, Virginia, artist. When shes not painting a live event, Sutherland works from her studio at Reed Creek Mill in Wytheville, overlooking a picturesque dam that she describes as a painters dream. There she creates one-of-a-kind paintings, some of which she will exhibit during February at the Town Square Center for the Arts in downtown Glade Spring, Virginia. A reception for the guest artist is 6 to 8 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 5. Shes calling her show, Golden Moments, because many of her recent works were done in gold tones while painting landscape, floral and still life scenes. The first time she applied oil paints to a canvas 30 years ago, Sutherland knew painting would become her passion. Throughout the years, her style has evolved into impressionism. She practices impasto, an art term used to describe thickly textured paint that is almost three dimensional. One of her greatest strengths as an artist is her love for painting outdoors. The plein air artist a French expression meaning in open air is enamored with painting on location, a style French impressionists like Monet and Pissarro began a century ago. And, there are few things as rewarding to her as capturing the spirit of an outdoor wedding ceremony. People are so dressed up and theyre happy. If I can catch that mood, theres nothing like it. Sutherland said her wedding paintings usually as large as 30 x 40 inches require about four hours from start to finish, a process thats nearly as entertaining for the wedding guests to watch as the ceremony itself. Her paintings evolve as the event unfolds. She arrives early to the ceremony to pre-paint as much of the background as possible. During a wedding ceremony, Sutherland stands by her easel off to the side where she is not a distraction. At one wedding, I was a little too close to the audience, and I looked up and everyone was watching me paint instead of looking at the minister. But, for the most part, she tries to blend in when possible. After having a chat with the bride before the ceremony, Sutherland has a pretty good idea what she will include in the painting, and what she will leave out. The artist often takes creative license to make the wedding party happy. Apparently, theres no such thing as a bad hair day for people in the wedding paintings. And, if you want to add a person to the paint-ing, thats no problem either. The artist loves the unexpected things that can happen while painting a live wedding. Sutherland painted the wedding of two Philadelphia lawyers in Charlottesville whose dog was the ring bearer, carrying the rings around its neck. Of course, the dog had to be included in the painting, she said. Sutherland doesnt shy away from any opportunity to paint, even if it means setting up her easel on the sidewalks in downtown Wytheville. Shes also painted on location while traveling abroad to places such as Paris, Germany, Austria, the Vatican in Rome, and Giverny, the home of impressionist artist Monet, one of her greatest inspirations. People ask me what inspires me to paint, and I say breathing. I just love it, Sutherland said. I love painting people, especially those having fun. Painting is my voice and once I found my voice, I couldnt stop talking, she said, laughing. The Town Square Center for the Arts is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Thursdays, Fridays and Satur-days. Visit their Facebook page or call 276-429-1276. This weekend might be the last warm one we have in awhile We are in danger of becoming a nasty, majoritarian society where the rights of the individual count for less and less There are two significant things about the recently-revived debate about Section 377 and the decriminalisation of homosexuality. The first is that the debate is taking place at all. At a time when most liberal democracies are either legalising gay marriage or legitimising civil unions, it is extraordinary that India still insists on treating homosexuals as criminals. It is as extraordinary that the abolition of this medieval provision should be regarded as controversial. But it is the second factor that really worries me. The more I participate in debates on the issue on TV and social media, I am struck by the failure of our society to recognise first principles or to understand the deeper issues involved. We have now become a society that judges each issue without reference to any principles and makes every decision on the basis of noise, hype and pressure. Lets take the defining characteristic of liberal democracy. Throughout the debate we have heard homosexuals referred to as a minuscule minority. Obviously this is not true. But even if they were a tiny minority, so what? The point of a liberal democracy is that it protects the rights of all individuals, not just those of the majority. After all, the majority rarely needs protection. It wins elections and calls the shots. But in todays India, there is a nasty and triumphant majoritarianism. Many minorities feel under attack. It is not just Muslims, but as the recent Hyderabad University suicide demonstrates, it is also Dalits and others. Homosexuals may be a minority (though, sadly, one that our Founding Fathers neglected) but that does not exclude them from the protection and legitimacy granted to all individuals in a liberal democracy. Then, there is the general misunderstanding about the purpose of criminal law. The law exists to protect individuals, not to oppress them. The guiding principle is that the law only intervenes if somebodys actions harm somebody else. In the case of consenting adults engaging in homosexual acts, it is hard to see who is being harmed. Yes, there are some laws that punish behaviour even when there is no direct harm. Take, for instance, the laws against drugs. But these are usually justified on the grounds that people who take drugs will harm society by their behaviour. When no harm seems likely to result, most liberal societies have relaxed these laws. For example, possession of marijuana is slowly being decriminalised all over the West. To use the criminal law to arrest homosexuals, we need to demonstrate that homosexual acts in private will harm society. As homosexuality is legal in most liberal democracies and there has been no damage at all, this is impossible to do. In fact, by reference to those examples, we can prove the exact opposite. Then there is that against our tradition argument. This has been used a lot lately to justify everything from refusing women entry to temples to imposing dress codes. Usually the proponents and beneficiaries of this argument are heterosexual men. The it is not our tradition argument is a dangerous one. Not all traditions are good or worth keeping. Dowry is a tradition. Sati was a tradition. Not allowing women to own property was a tradition. The history of human development is the history of the battle against regressive traditions or against those that have ceased to be relevant. But heres the thing: homosexuality is not even against Indian tradition. There are references to homosexuality in ancient Indian texts and homosexual love is depicted in Indian art and at such places as the temples of Konark. The origins of Section 377 lie not in any Indian tradition but in the British Raj. There are few (if any) instances of Indian laws that punish or arrest homosexuals before the British introduced Article 377 in the 19th century, using the Christian phrase against the order of nature, effectively lumping consenting adult homosexuals with paedophiles and those who committed bestiality. The British themselves recognised how idiotic this was and legalised homosexuality in the UK half a century ago. But such is our mystifying blind adherence to the laws of our former colonial masters, that not only do we keep Section 377 on the statute books, we even pretend that it stems from our own Indian traditions. And the final worrying aspect of this debate is the manner in which religious bodies have now joined the case. A Muslim organisation and a church association told the Supreme Court that they were opposed to the decriminalisation of homosexuality. No doubt, as time goes on, the likes of Baba Ramdev will also assert their view that homosexuality is a sickness. The majoritarianism of the Hindutva brigade has never been a secret. But there is something deeply disturbing about the sight of minority religious bodies leaping into a battle that does not even directly concern them only so that they can continue to oppress another minority: Indias homosexuals. What it proves is that India has now become a society of hyperbole and prejudice and not one of principle. We are a country where discrimination is so rampant and so widely accepted that even minorities want to discriminate against other minorities. Section 377 criminalises perfectly decent members of society for no good reason and has contributed to destroying the lives of many, otherwise law-abiding homosexuals. That alone is reason enough to strike it down. But what the banality and prejudice of the arguments for retaining it tell us is even more worrying. We are in danger of becoming a nasty, majoritarian society where the rights of the individual count for less and less. The battle over Section 377 is a symptom of a much larger problem. The views expressed are personal. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Artist Kashinath Salves house in Thane is a testament to his abiding passion: printmaking. Stacked on the floors and under his bed are neatly bundled collections of prints. And even though the 71-year-old artist seems frail and has been homebound since mid-2015 (post a spinal cord surgery), his eyes light up when we speak of platographic prints. Over the last three years, Salve pooled his savings, travelled across the country, meeting artists and creating limited-edition prints of their works. His single-handed efforts to popularise this lesser-known form of printmaking caught the attention of Ravindra Mardia, curator of the Worli-based ICAC gallery, who helped him organise an exhibition and publish a coffee table book documenting the discipline. 111 Platographic Expressions, the title of the book and the exhibition, is the fruit of Salves efforts and features art prints by artists like Akbar Padamsee, Satish Gujral and Krishen Khanna. The book profiles the artists whose works are featured, explains the process involved and even has photos of the artists signing the prints. The idea is to create awareness about these prints. Even though they are reproductions, they are signed by the artist and are affordable to those who cannot buy an original, says Salve, explaining, So, while an original by a master might cost several crores, a platographic print at the exhibition costs a fraction of that, at around Rs 60,000 to Rs 1,20,000. Salve poses with a print at his Thane residence (Photo: Praful Gangurde) Salve has been dedicated to printmaking over the course of his extensive career (three decades as a professor of painting and drawing at the Sir JJ School of Arts, three-time State Award winner). He also worked alongside some of the printmaking greats like Krishna Reddy and Jyoti Bhatt. After his retirement in 2001, Salve realised that students lacked facilities to pursue printmaking in the absence of a press, inks, chemicals and rollers. It spurred him to run a basic workshop at the Robert Money Institute on Grant Road. However, things came to a halt once the building went for redevelopment. Salves eventual aim from this exhibition is to help people learn the craft: With the funds generated from the sale of the prints and the book, I hope to start a printmaking studio in the city, says Salve. So far, the exhibition has seen sales of 40 portfolios of five prints each. Post this exhibition, the show will head to Baroda, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, and Paris. Platography vs Lithography Considered to be an alternative to lithography (where drawings are transferred to a stone), platography is a European art that involves the image being transferred and drawn on aluminium or steel plates. Consequently, the image is printed on a hand-operated machine, and each print is considered a limited edition. While lithography a dates back to the 18th century, platography is a mere decade old. Grab a copy 111 Platographic Expressions is available at ICAC Art Gallery, Atria Mall Worli Price: Rs 2,500 SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Last year, actor Kangana Ranaut represented India on an international platform, when she was invited to be part of the Women In The World Summit, in London. Now, the actor will attend the opening ceremony of the International Fleet Review (IFR), in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh. She is the guest of honour for the event. A source close to Kangana says, The prestigious event, hosted by the Indian Navy, will be held today and tomorrow (February 5 and 6). It will be attended by several dignitaries, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and defence minister Monohar Parrikar. For the opening ceremony today, Kangana will share the stage with Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu and the governor of Andhra Pradesh, ESL Narasimhan. Tomorrow, she will be part of a sailing event, where she will sail with PM Modi and President Pranab Mukherjee, among other dignitaries. Read: I am total badass, not Sati Savitri, says Kangana Ranaut Apparently, Kangana had blocked her dates for this event four months back. The mega event will also be attended by nearly 10,000 officers and sailors, along with their families, adds the source. Read: My contemporaries planted stories against me, says Kangana Ranaut When contacted, the actors spokesperson confirmed the news, saying, Kangana will attend the event in Visakhapatnam. She is glad to be part of it, as she has the highest regard for the Indian Armed Forces. From his Instagram and Facebook updates, its evident that he has been living out of a suitcase for a while to promote his upcoming film, Jai Gangaajal. He has been to Bhopal, Indore, Nagpur, Pune and Kolkata all in a weeks time. But its not just the film thats keeping director-actor Manav Kaul (39) on his toes these days. He also has his first book Theek Tumhare Peeche (an anthology of 14 short stories) launching next month. When we caught up with him at a diner in Versova, during his two-day break, before he sets out for yet another promotional tour, Kaul admitted that he has never been this busy. In fact, his life was a far cry from performing arts. We were a middle class family living in Kashmir, but during the riots in the 90s, we shifted to Madhya Pradesh. There, we became a lower middle class family. My parents expected me to open a tea stall or a paan shop, says Kaul, adding that although he was interested in theatre, he could never think of pursuing the arts academically. After living in Mumbai for over 18 years with a string of noted films (Kai Po Che! in 2013 and City Lights in 2014) and plays (Shakkar ke Paanch Daane in 2004 and Peele Scooter Wala Aadmi in 2006) to his credit, Kaul, today, is a name to reckon with in cinema as well as theatre. Kaul with actor Amit Sadh in a still from Kai Po Che! But he is excited about all that he is currently up to. He says he was stunned when he was approached to publish his short stories. My first reaction was, Are you serious? Scripting plays was my job. I knew people were going to see that on stage. Writing short stories was my way of relaxing; it was absolutely personal, says Kaul, who began writing the short stories back in 2001, when he also took a sabbatical from acting. Kaul confesses he was never interested in being in front of the camera. It was a way of earning some easy money. After 2002, I worked in a few films here and there, because that would mean free travel. I acted in 1971 (2007) because that meant staying in Manali for two months. I wrote my play Bali Aur Shambhu there, he explains, adding that although he was living hand-to-mouth back then, those were the most productive years of my life. During his early years in the city, Kaul jokes that he lived in almost every suburb between Mira Road and Andheri. It was also around the same time that he started visiting Prithvi Theatre, and enrolled himself for late thespian Satyadev Dubeys workshops. He credits the legend for paving his way into theatre. He selected me for one of his plays. After that, I would simultaneously work in six-seven plays. Then I formed my group, Aranya, which completed 12 years last month. I dont know why he chose me; I had a heavy Kashmiri twang in my Hindi. My Hindi spellings are still quite atrocious. I have asked the publishers not to edit my writing, but only correct my spellings, he smiles. But ask him about the state of Hindi literature today, and the smile disappears. Society gets the art it deserves. Ask yourself if there is any recognition for Hindi writing. Is the government doing anything for Hindi playwrights or writers? If people like Chetan Bhagat, they get Chetan Bhagat, he says, adding that theres an equal dearth of good directors in theatre and cinema today. Kaul, who will conduct a workshop at National School of Drama (NSD), Delhi, this weekend, is of the opinion that workshops should be conducted on direction, and not acting. He would like to direct films in the future and insists that he will not make mainstream, commercial films; his cinema will be an extension of his brand of theatre unabashed, layered, experimental and honest. The social media writer A short story by Kaul on his Instagram account (Instagram.com/Manavkaul) Kauls Instagram feed is filled with photo stories from his everyday life and travels. He calls himself an Instagram writer. What you read on Instagram is my instinctive writing. I am planning to publish a coffee table book with a compilation of those snippets, he says. Read on Theek Tumhare Peeche will be on stands in March. Publisher: Hind Prakashan Price: Rs 98 You can pre-order the book on amazon.com Anil Ambanis Reliance Infrastructure (RInfra) on Thursday signed the agreement to sell its unlisted cement subsidiary, Reliance Cement Company, to Birla Corp for Rs 4,800 crore, a valuation analysts said was high. In dollar terms, the acquisition by the MP Birla group flagship firm is pegged at about $140 a tonne, while the industry estimates the cost of building a new cement plant at less than $110 a tonne. Reliance Cement has an integrated capacity of 5.08 million tonnes at Maihar in Madhya Pradesh and Kundanganj in Uttar Pradesh, and a grinding unit of 0.5 million tonnes at Butibori in Maharashtra. Under this transaction, Birla Corporation will acquire the 100% shareholding of RInfra in RCCPL. The transaction is subject to approval of the Competition Commission of India and other applicable regulatory approvals, RInfra said in a statement. The company had earlier said the cement plant sale would be used to partly reduce its consolidated debt of around Rs 21,500 crore. SBI Capital Markets was the financial adviser to RInfra. It is an expensive transaction but this is the price at which deals will happen this year, said Murtuza Arsiwala of Kotak Institutional Equities. Once the revival in the economy happens, which many say is likely in a years time, then this price, too, would shoot up, he added. Birla Corp has interests in cement and jute, with cement constituting over 90% of the companys revenue. The company has a total operational cement capacity of about 10 million tonnes with units in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. RInfra is one of the largest infrastructure companies developing projects through various special purpose vehicles in several high-growth sectors and has a strong presence in industries such as power, roads, metro rail, cement and defence. Pharma exports rose 17% to `55,724 crore during the April-November period compared to a year-ago, even after a string of import alerts over quality issues and ban of 700 drugs by the European Union. The ban alone was expected to impact $1 billion worth of pharma exports. During the first half of the current financial year, pharma exports are up by 17% in rupee terms and about 10% in dollar terms, PV Appaji, director-general, Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council (Pharmexcil), a body under the commerce ministry, told HT. Our efforts on the GVK issue have shown results. The stand has shown the confidence on our companies and products. No significant impact on trade has been noticed and in fact, sales have started picking up. In July last year, the EU banned the marketing of around 700 generic medicines for alleged manipulation of clinical trials conducted by domestic pharmaceutical research company GVK Biosciences. Defending GVK, India cancelled a meeting with EUs chief trade negotiator in protest against an import ban, dealing a blow to the proposed free-trade accord between the European trade bloc and Asias third-largest economy. Indian drugmakers, including Sun Pharma, Dr Reddys, Cadila and IPCA Laboratories, received warnings from the US health watchdog or import alerts in 2015. While large firms like Sun Pharmaceuticals, Dr Reddys and Lupin account for around $3 billion of exports to the US, the rest comes from dozens of mid- and small-sized drug makers. Hence, the impact on exports is not much visible, a commerce ministry official said. However, the government is still concerned about the yearly report. While the half-yearly trends have been positive, we are being cautious until the financial year closes in March 2016, the official added. In 2014-15, pharma exports grew at a slower pace of 2.2% to $15.2 billion against $14.9 billion in the previous fiscal. While it is good news that no major impact has been witnessed, real impact may come later, said Hitesh Sharma, national leader, life sciences, Ernst & Young. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Inviting foreign capital in sectors like roads, railways and energy, finance minister Arun Jaitley on Thursday met sovereign wealth funds from Singapore and the UAE and pitched a stable policy regime and resilience of Indian economy amid a global slowdown. Opening the two-day India Investment Summit 2016 in New Delhi, the minister highlighted opportunities the country presents to investors and sought investment in sectors like road, highways, oil and gas, urban infrastructure and railways. He also held closed-door discussions with several potential investors including European investment banks and sovereign funds of countries like Singapore and the UAE. One of the greatest challenges before India was to re-establish the credibility of Indian markets and in order to establish the credibility of Indian economy it was important that we not only reform but continue reform only in one direction, he said in his inaugural address at the summit. Also, decision making has been expedited and conditions that made investment process difficult, sliced away, he said. India during the last 19 months of the BJP government has opened gates for investment, he said. The government, he said, has ensured that decision making becomes faster, policy changes and improvements including structural reforms, which are to take place, the pace of those reforms is consistent and direction is one way itself. And therefore in last 19 months we have opened gates of India for investment. We have eased out processes. And several conditionalities which made investment process more difficult, those conditionalities have also been sliced away, he said. We have been actively working on ease of doing business. Jaitley also hoped that the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill as well as a the bankruptcy law are passed in the Budget session of Parliament. We worked full time to draft a very effective bankruptcy and insolvency law which was introduced in Parliament in the last session. A joint committee is working overtime almost on day-to-day basis endeavouring to produce a report by the first week of March, which will enable us for approval and passage in the coming session, he said. Showcasing investment opportunities India offers, Jaitley said with one-sixth of the world population and largest the largest middle class, there are huge opportunities. When people start noticing an economy, when people start investing in an economy, and that happens when the credibility of that economy is established. Credibility is established by stability of policies, by consistent action in allowing it to grow and I think in the midst of this otherwise global slowdown, it is a great opportunity that India has which we are fully trying to realise, he added. British techniques and procedures in end-to-end digitisation and online delivery of government services were discussed at the first meeting here of a joint working group between India and Britain as part of the Narendra Modi governments e-governance project. Official sources said the meeting last week of the India-UK Joint Working Group on Public Administration and Governance Reforms was co-chaired by Devendra Chaudhry, secretary, department of administrative reforms and public grievances, and Andrew Heyn, director (Civil Service Group). Key issues included strategy and vision on digital services, building capability within the civil service, local government reforms and workforce planning. The Indian delegation also met Mathew Hancock, minister of the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General. As part of the objective of minimum government with maximum governance, India has sought international collaboration and has memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with China, Malaysia, Singapore, Brazil and South Africa (trilateral) and the UK. The MoU with Britain was signed before Modis visit here in November, the sources said. It envisages cooperation in areas such as sharing good governance practices in public administration, user-led service design, reducing bureaucracy in service delivery, government process re-engineering, building and developing staff capability, public grievance redress mechanism and local government reforms. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Financial crunch and corruption are cited as the major reasons for the prevailing condition in municipal corporations but it is fast becoming evident that the political stakes of ruling parties precipitated the crisis even as the civic workers strike entered its ninth day on Thursday. Even the bailout package announced by the Aam Aadmi Party government failed to break the ice with the civic workers who demanded a permanent solution to the problems plaguing the civic bodies. The MCD workers have boycotted work for the fourth time in the past one year. The political overtones were not lost on Wednesday when chief minister Arvind Kejriwal announced the bailout package for the civic bodies. Kejriwal warned of similar issues cropping up again in the future only till AAP was not elected to power in the civic bodies. The statement comes close on the heels of the chief minister demanding the Centre to dissolve the municipal corporations and hold fresh elections as the present dispensation led by the BJP has failed to run the MCDs. Management of an organisation which cant pay salaries to employees, doesnt hv rt to continue. MCD shud be dissolved. Hold fresh elections (sic.), Kejriwal had tweeted last week after the MCD strike started. Read: CM Kejriwals Rs 550 crore loan offer fails to end Delhis civic strike Other AAP leaders have gone on record in the past suggesting the BJP has failed the MCDs and the civic bodies should be brought under the Delhi government, as is the case in other states. Municipal polls are due early next year. While employees of the three municipal corporations have joined the strike, the North and East corporations are the only two which have been facing financial crunch post trifurcation in 2012. Barring few areas falling under the North and East DMC, the areas in North and trans-Yamuna areas are dominated by unauthorised colonies and JJ clusters--areas where AAP has maximum groundswell of support. Watch | MCD workers protest by corpse procession in Delhis Geeta Colony Three of the six ministers in the Arvind Kejriwal Cabinet are from east Delhi, besides Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel. All of these leaders have been targeted by the protesters during this strike, with sanitation workers dumping garbage outside their residence and offices. Government sources said the AAP government stepped down from their stated position of not offering any financial assistance further only after the High Court deferred its decision on the MCD issue for another ten days on Tuesday. The government was expecting a decision, and possibly that would have pinned down the blames on the civic bodies. In a similar standoff over funds for dengue prevention, the court has directed that while the government would provide more funds, its spending would be monitored by the state government. With the court not pronouncing its verdict, the government was forced to announce a bailout package, an official said. Read: MCD workers strike spills over to Delhi roads, hits morning traffic SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON When discussing the rural-urban divide in India, scholars say there is a huge contrast between Bharat that lives in the villages and the India that lives in cities. You could take that as a cue and say that Indias technology capital has two sides: A prosperous, globalised Bangalore and its uneasy underbelly, Bengaluru. Though the city has officially changed its name to the latter, ironically, it is becoming less of a celebration of its original identity and more a mark of cultural fault-lines that pop up time and again, like it did this week when a 24-year-old Tanzanian woman student was stripped and beaten in an apparently racist incident. Though Karnatakas home minister called it an isolated incident and not a racist attack, the stereotyping involved in the incident clearly suggested so. The woman was targeted after a Sudanese ran over a local girl much earlier. A whole nation, Uganda, stands between Tanzania and Sudan. There can be little doubt of the racist urge simmering in the technopolis. Bangalore now has Audi and BMW showrooms in its colonial-era lanes, and its startup billionaires are chronicled in Forbes and other symbols of global affluence. But only small drops of the wealth trickle down to its lowly inhabitants, who may not hold the passports that spell a real ride up the economic ladder such as an engineering degree or English language proficiency. An estimated 12,000 foreign students study in Bangalore, which has a thriving set of educational institutions. The colleges also attract students from other parts of India, especially the Northeast. They both have become targets in the past. Small incidents have only served as sparks to ignite simmering discontent though the official triggers may not have communal or racist origins. Read: Bengaluru police ask Tanzanian woman to switch off phone, not comment The students, cutting corners to save money, often end up in suburbs where the losers of the Great Bangalore Dream live. Cultural differences and suspicions can be common. This can lead to a tinderbox situation, like it did in Delhi last year, when Aam Aadmi Party leader Somnath Bharti faced charges of racism after leading a vigilante raid in the Khirki village inhabited by African students. In March last year, three African youths, including a girl were thrashed in a Bangalore suburb in an incident that locals linked to drunken behaviour. Separately in the same month, city police said 540 African nationals had overstayed their visas, as they launched a hunt to track them down. Also last year, an Australian couple was allegedly harassed because the man sported tattoos of Hindu goddess Yellamma. He was let off after an apology in an clash involving local politicians. A Rwandan student later told a newspaper: We are called names sometimes. Travelling alone in buses is out of the question. Some people, mostly men, get angry just by looking at us. Such anecdotal evidence drums up support for the widely held belief that Indians can be racist towards Africans, even when the colour of their own skin is brown or darker. In a Twitter poll run by this writer this week, 65% of 465 respondents said they believed Indian were racist. Cosmopolitan Bangalore is often held up as an example of cultural diversity, thanks to its bustling public sector, technology companies and fashionable main streets where a babble of languages greet the tourist. But it has always had pockets of cultural chauvinism, just like Mumbai. Kannada Chaluvali, a local political outfit, is often in the news for invoking local language interests in fiery protests by its cadres who wave yellow-and-red flags. In 2014, an engineering student from Manipur was attacked by men who demanded he speak in Kannada or get out. In 2012, violence between Bodo tribals and Muslims in faraway Assam cast their shadow on Bangalore, leading to thousands of people from the Northeast trying to flee the city before things cooled. Bangalore also occasionally sees Hindu-Muslim tensions, though they are subdued compared to northern states. The biggest of the old tensions have been between Tamilians and Kannada hardliners, mainly over the sharing of Cauvery waters between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. As many as 16 people died in 1991in anti-Tamil violence in Karnataka in protests against the orders of the Cauvery Water Tribunal. Bangalore and nearby Kolar Gold Fields, not far from the Tamil Nadu border, account for most of the Tamilians in Karnataka, estimated to be nearly 4% of the population. In protests involving Cauvery waters, Tamil TV channels have been occasionally blocked. A few years ago, I was sitting next to Manohar Parrikar on a flight. The defence minister was then Goa chief minister and was travelling economy, dressed in trademark half-sleeve shirt, trousers and chappals. When we landed, he waited for his suitcase to come on the conveyor belt, and then pushed the trolley on his own. No retinue of personal attendants accompanying him, nothing that would remotely suggest a VIP culture. His parting shot as he exited the airport, all of you think only Arvind Kejriwal is an aam aadmi chief minister. Some of us also lead simple lives, but Goa is too far away from Delhi for you to look at us! There is little doubt that the Parrikars and the Manik Sarkars suffer from the tyranny of distance, Panaji and Agartala are not quite on the news radar. By contrast, Kejriwal has been a beneficiary of what is best described as doorstep journalism since he lives within a few kilometres from most television OB vans. He is also a casualty of it since every move of his is examined with a microscope. Now, as he completes a year in office next week, the rigorous post-mortems will begin once again. Certainly, no other chief minister has been subject to this kind of scrutiny even though Delhi is, at one level, a glorified municipality. But it isnt just geographical proximity that determines the extra attention paid by the national media to the Delhi chief minister. The fact also is, much like prime minister Narendra Modi, Kejriwal also sharply polarises public opinion. Social media a soapbox of opinion, real and manufactured is split wide open on Kejriwal: Either you admire him or despise him, the space for a rational dialogue is missing. Perhaps, like Modi again, Kejriwal relishes the divide: By claiming to be a victim, he can consolidate his appeal within his followers. Like Modi, Kejriwal too was elected as a change agent, someone who was challenging the status quo in Indian politics. The question is: Has Kejriwal managed to change the political discourse in a meaningful manner or is he just another power-hungry neta looking to build his own empire? His recent splash with an odd-even car scheme has mirrored the best and worst of Kejriwal. On the positive side, he has forced a wider, much needed citizen engagement on pollution and the public health emergency that confronts our cities by making it a core agenda. And yet, by going ahead with the idea without seeking to overhaul the public transport infrastructure, he can be accused of taking a short-cut: Not surprisingly, an easing in traffic congestion has not been matched by a significant decline in pollution levels. Maybe he is, as he has openly confessed in the past, a man in a hurry. Barely has he settled into his seat in Delhi that he is eyeing power in Punjab. While scaling up a start up like AAP is his prerogative, there is the real danger that his larger ambitions will lead to a neglect of his primary task of governing Delhi. Maybe, one year in power in Delhi has convinced Kejriwal that his political space to attempt any genuine change in the national capital is extremely limited. There is little doubt that the Centre has treated the AAP government with a mix of contempt and hostility, an unhappy scenario that can only result in constant confrontation. And Kejriwal by targeting the prime minister personally has made his position even more vulnerable. You cannot call the prime minister a psychopath and expect a conducive atmosphere to be created. Which is why the one year anniversary of the Kejriwal government might be a good time to press the reset button. Delhi is Indias fastest growing city, it is also a metropolis that is at the heart of the new India challenge: where migrant populations in jhuggis co-exist with traditional elites, where middle class aspirations collide with freebies and entitlements, where the poor live on the desperate margins amidst rising affluence, you need effective urban management or else risk mounting chaos. As the recent garbage crisis has shown, you cannot have a multiplicity of authorities who are working at odds with each other: Delhi, like any modern city-state, needs a strong governance model based on a clear chain of command. You cannot have an unelected Lieutenant Governor playing referee between civic authorities controlled by different political parties. This calls for a structural change that must provide the elected government with greater powers: Why should the city police, for example, not report to the chief minister rather than a Union home minister? Or why should senior bureaucratic appointments and transfers be under the LGs purview? But with more power comes greater responsibility too. Mr Kejriwal must realise that he is no longer the streetfighter, anti-establishment crusader at Ram Lila Maidan, but a chief minister who must govern by managing conflicts within and outside. The manner in which Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan, for example, were removed only suggests that AAP too is trapped in a high command culture that is unable to manage contrarian opinion. And the faux pas over the removal of its law minister Jitender Tomar makes the moral high ground taken by the AAP government on corruption appear a trifle hollow. On the flip side, the Modi regime must give up its visceral hatred for Kejriwal. He maybe a political opponent, but he cannot be a pariah with whom the Centre refuses to engage. The prime minister, who talks of a federal spirit, has kept a distance from a chief minister who is located closest to 7 RCR. And the BJP which once dubbed AAP as a dharna party has, ironically, staged a dharna almost every week against the Kejriwal government! Post-script: With an advertising budget of Rs 526 crores, the Delhi government is reportedly planning an ad blitz for its first anniversary. Does an Aam Aadmi government really need to embrace a khaas aadmi political culture? Rajdeep Sardesai is a senior journalist and author The views expressed are personal SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON An ATM cash van robbery attempt witnessed a gunfight at West Delhis Uttam Nagar on Wednesday night. Three bike-borne assailants allegedly opened fire at the security guard of a cash van that had stopped to refill cash at an ATM booth in Uttam Nagar. Several rounds of fire were exchanged between the assailants and the guard of the cash van and the ATM booth, before the police intervened. The guard of the ATM sustained a bullet injury after one bullet grazed past his face. The guards, however, managed to foil the robbery bid and one of the assailants was arrested. A PCR call was made by a passerby after rounds of firing were heard. The police rushed to the spot and managed to overpower one of the assailants. They had planned to rob the cash van that had stopped to refill cash in the ATM machine. However, they could not succeed. We are yet to identify the other two assailants. Investigation is on, police said. There have been several instances of similar ATM heist attempts in lure of easy cash. In November 2015, the driver of a cash van disappeared while transporting Rs 22.5 crore in hard cash for refilling Axis Bank ATMs across south-east Delhi. In 2012, five armed robbers made off with a private banks cash van carrying Rs 5.25 crore in south Delhis Defence Colony, after intercepting the vehicle and shooting at the guard. The British School in the high-security Chanakyapuri area was put under security lockdown for an hour on Thursday noon after an unknown caller threatened to kill everybody in the institution. The locality houses diplomatic missions, including those of the United States, France and Russia. Similar threatening calls were earlier received at the British Schools in Geneva, Dubai, Tokyo and the Hague. Security was stepped up in the area November after 129 people were killed in the Paris attacks. The school receptionist said the caller spoke in fluent English and asked for the principal . He called the receptionist a b**** when she asked him to leave a message. He claimed to have an AK 47, deadly bombs, including an RDX, which would kill everyone in the school. There were 800 people, including students and employees, at the time. In a 17-second rant, he claimed it would be a bloody day and repeatedly called the receptionist as a b****. He hung up before she could respond. The receptionist informed the police and school authorities. The reception got the call on the landline at 12.54 pm. We cordoned off the area and carried out an intensive security drill. Our teams checked the entire school and the adjoining areas. No such person or weapons were found, said deputy commissioner of police (New Delhi) Jatin Narwal. Students and teachers were locked inside for more than an hour. The doors were locked from inside, blinds pulled down, lights switched off and no one was allowed to talk. No one could even use telephones or computers, a student told HT. He called it a traumatic experience. We were told that it is not a mock drill. We felt things were happening for real till it was finally declared as a hoax call and we were allowed to move, he said. The DCP said the call was dismissed as a hoax after the police team was sure there was no threat. Since the call was generated either through Face Time or Skype or some other website using the internet and not a telecom service provider, it will be difficult to trace the location from where it was made, police said. Police said they sought expert help to identify the caller. Investigation in the matter is on, police said. The school issued a statement reading, We remained in lockdown until the school security staff and the police had finished sweeping the grounds and declared the school safe. Students and staff were dispersed in a controlled, orderly and calm manner. It also said the school will ramp up security arrangements. The schools Dubai branch got a hoax call on Thursday, the Tokyo branch last Thursday and the one in the Hague on January 16. Read: Hoax call delays flight at Delhi airport again Bomb hoax call: Case against three in Hoshiarpur SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Hitting out at the Narendra Modi government, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday alleged that the ruling BJP was using the municipal strike in the Capital to make a case to impose Presidents Rule in Delhi. Taking potshots at the Centre, he said that the central government was always quick in declaring certain decisions taken by the AAP government in Delhi as null and void. But when it came to providing financial assistance to the ailing civic bodies, which technically report to the Centre, the blame was being shifted to the Delhi government. Demanding a CBI inquiry into the salary scam in the civic bodies, Kejriwal said: An impression is being created as if Delhi government was responsible for the financial mess in the MCDs, which are being ruled by the BJP for the past 10 years. There are huge scams in the MCDs. A situation is being created through the strike of the municipal workers to show that there is a crisis in Delhi. Read more: CM Kejriwals Rs 550 crore loan offer fails to end Delhis civic strike The Modi government has dictatorial tendencies. Someone told me they are trying to create a situation to impose Presidents Rule in Delhi the way they imposed it in Arunachal Pradesh, the chief minister said in Bengaluru. Kejriwal, who is in Bengaluru for naturopathy, said his government had allocated double the amount of funds to the three civic bodies in the current fiscal compared to the previous year. He said the funds had either been diverted or siphoned off . If the CBI could probe us then why not the MCDs? We had ordered inspection of accounts of the civic bodies. When the divisional commissioner wanted to audit their spending, the MCDs refused to cooperate. The state government is fully entitled to scrutinise accounts of the MCDs as per section 486 of the DMC Act, Kejriwal said. While the BJP leaders accused the chief minister of being politically active in Bengaluru, AAP leaders said the fact that Kejriwal himself chose to announce the bailout package showed his commitment to residents. The political opponents might think he is on a sabbatical but the chief minister has been involved in handling the civic crisis. Even when he was an activist, he has worked for the cause of sanitation workers in areas like Sunder Nagri in east Delhi, an AAP leader said. In Delhi, on the eighth day of the civic strike, the workers dumped garbage on roads in several areas in east and north Delhi and blocked arterial roads such as Vikas Marg and NH-24, causing traffic snarls. Watch | MCD workers protest by corpse procession in Delhis Geeta Colony A group of protestors carried out a sadh-buddhi-yagna at the municipal headquarters We hope that the move will bring some common sense to the Arvind Kejriwal government and he will be able to take better decisions. Before municipal employees, we are residents of Delhi, we are the ones who voted for him in the elections. He should keep that in mind, said Rajinder Mewati, general secretary, United Front of MCD employees. More than one lakh municipal workers in the national capital have been on an indefinite strike since January 27, seeking immediate release of funds for their salaries and arrears. The deadlock continues nine days later even after Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal announced a Rs 551 crore loan to civic bodies to pay striking workers on Wednesday. Here is a look at the 9 days of MCD strike. Day 1 - Jan 27 Workers: Corporation workers start an indefinite strike and threaten to re-run last years mess when sanitation workers struck work streets littered with garbage, choked sewers and poorly-maintained roads. Demanding their pending salaries, workers of the civic bodies burnt an effigy of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal on January 27. (Sonu Mehta/ HT photo) Govt: The Delhi government says it has already given all estimated funds to pay salaries to the municipal corporations, but asks the Centre to probe the books of the three BJP-ruled civic bodies for corruption. AAP and BJP starts a blame game over the issue. Day 2 - Jan 28 Workers: The workers litter the streets with garbage in many parts of the city including deputy CM Manish Sisodias office as strike enters day 2. Abrupt halt in the collection of garbage becomes evident with tonnes of garbage scattered along the roadside at many places in east and north Delhi. A man tries to cross a garbage-strwen road in east Delhis Laxmi Nagar on the second day of the municipal strike. (Arun Sharma/ HT photo) Govt: Kejriwal demands dissolution of the BJP-ruled municipal corporations and fresh elections to the civic bodies. Day 3 - Jan 29 Workers: The municipal commissioners write to Sisodia and seek Rs 1,500 crore as immediate relief. Govt: AAP shoots back and says the civic bodies were themselves responsible for the financial mess. Here is a graphic which shows the details of money that civic bodies are demanding and Delhi govt claims it has released. Day 4 - Jan 30 Workers: Doctors from six hospitals and several dispensaries run by the north and the east municipal corporations join the protest. Strike sends 2,000 consultants, 5,000 resident doctors and 13,000 nurses off service. Employees of the municipal corporations protest the non-payment of salaries at Laxmi Nagar Chowk in east Delhi on day 4. (Sushil Kumar/HT Photo) Govt: Govt forms a task force to clean up the garbage and asks the municipal corporations to make their accounts public. Day 5 - Jan 31 Workers: Strike by over 60,000 sanitation workers of the BJP-ruled municipal bodies enters fifth day. Govt: Delhi ministers, AAP MLAs and hundreds of party workers hit the streets to clear the garbage dumped on several roads across the city. A total of 123 machines (loaders/JCB, trucks/tippers, maintenance vans and so on) along with requisite manpower deployed in the cleaning drive. Here is a graphic which shows the daily work figures of MCD workers and what the Delhi govt is doing to clear the mess Day 6 - Feb 1 Workers: The MCD employees continue to boycott work. Representatives of municipal employees unions meet Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung, seeks his intervention. They demand an immediate relief of Rs 5,000 crore. Govt: Govt urges Jung to ensure the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) pays outstanding taxes to three municipal corporations. The DDA, however, says it has no pending service charges/ property tax. The following graphic shows how the strike has affected nearly 12 lakh poor students as municipal schools remain shut. Day 7 - Feb 2 Workers: The striking employees continue with their agitation by dumping garbage at major intersections and burning effigies of the Delhi government. Sanitation workers and engineers lead a protest from the municipal corporation headquarters at the Civic Centre to Rajghat with bowls in their hands, begging for money. Nearly 2,000 consulting doctors, 5,000 resident doctors and 13,000 nurses from all municipal hospitals are on strike since January 30. (ARVIND YADAV / HT PHOTO) Govt: Delhi chief secretary KK Sharma convenes a meeting with the three municipal commissioners and the state finance secretary. The North Delhi Municipal Corporation releases salaries of all the employees for the month of November. The East Delhi Municipal Corporation too starts paying salaries. Day 8 - Feb 3 Workers: Thousands of sanitation workers hold demonstrations, block major roads including the National Highway 24 that connects the city to Uttar Pradesh. The south corporations employees continue with their protests despite a recent order of the corporation, threatening to take action against those who did not turn up at work without a valid reason. Schools run by the east and north municipal corporations of Delhi continue to be deserted. Govt: Kejriwal announces Rs 551-crore loan to civic bodies to pay striking workers. He takes potshots at the Centre and demands CBI inquiry into the salary scam in the civic bodies. Day 9 - Feb 4 Workers: Civic workers strike enters its ninth day. Vehicular traffic comes to a standstill in several stretches as agitating employees hit the streets to express their ire. Supreme Court refuses to entertain a plea seeking its intervention in the ongoing stir. Govt: Sisodia calls for an emergency meeting of officials. With the strike by municipal employees entering its ninth day, a delegation of agitating sanitation workers met Lt Governor Najeeb Jung on Thursday and said the fund offered by the AAP government for paying their salaries were insufficient. While the MCD workers refused to call off their strike, they claimed that the L-G has assured them of looking into their demands. Today we met Lt Governor Najeeb Jung and told him that the funds offered by the Aam Aadmi Party government is not sufficient to pay our dues. Therefore, we are going to continue the strike, said president of Swatantra Mazdoor Vikas Sanyukta Morcha Sanjay Gehlot. The LG has assured us that he is trying to address the issue, Gehlot said. Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal had on Wednesday announced a loan of Rs 551 crore to two BJP-ruled civic bodies, East Delhi Municipal Corporation and North Delhi Municipal Corporation, to pay salaries to their employees. The principal, a teacher and three non-teaching staff members of south Delhis Ryan International School in were arrested on Thursday, days after a Class 1 student was found dead in a water tank on campus. The five accused were, however, released on bail later on Thursday. The police had earlier registered a case of negligence against the school authorities and asked the principal, Sandhya Sabu (50), to join their probe. The arrests have been made following our probe results which confirmed the negligence of the five school staff. We had promised the aggrieved family a fair probe and a speedy justice, which we have provided them, joint commissioner of police (southeastern range) RS Krishnia told Hindustan Times. The five people have been charged under Section 304A (death due to negligence) of the Indian Penal Code. It is a bailable offence, the police said. Two hours after he went missing from the classroom, Divyansh Kakroras body was found floating in a water tank in a room below the amphitheatre. The six-year-old died from drowning, the post mortem report said. Read| No country for little ones: Ensure child safety with strong responses The parents had accused the school of neglect. The water storage room was not manned nor was it locked, an initial probe revealed. The school failed to inform them about the students death and it was the hospital that alerted them, police said. The school said it followed all the procedures and administered first-aid to the student before taking him to hospital. Their (school staff) arrests confirm that our fight for justice is on the right track. We want to thank the Delhi Police, media, and other agencies who have been supporting us from day one of our fight. Our only concern is that the arrested persons have not got the punishment compared to their negligence which claimed our sons life, Kakroras father Ramhet Meena said after the arrests. We will seek the deputy chief ministers (Manish Sisodia) intervention for a CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) probe into our sons death. Our fight for justice will continue, he said. The Delhi government had on Sunday ordered all the 3,500 schools in the city to submit a declaration of safety within a month. A government task force would inspect schools to verify the claims and those found submitting wrong information on steps taken for students safety would face action, deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said. Read: After 6-yr-olds death, Delhi schools to face safety compliance test It was a most unsavoury backdrop to the meeting of business czars and political luminaries which was underway in Karnataka. As Make in India was talked about and the state projected as an attractive investment destination, a Tanzanian girl was reportedly stripped and paraded naked in retaliation for a Sudanese national having run over another woman. Such ugly racist incidents are not new to a city which is touted as the Silicon Valley of India, home to a vast IT industry. Earlier, it was northeasterners who bore the brunt of ugly racist rage from locals for no reason other than that they are different. It does not stop at that: Women are routinely harassed in the supposedly progressive city. Although in the Bengaluru case, a few people have been arrested, the law-enforcement seems particularly lax in pursuing punitive action. Earlier, there was a horrific incident in Delhi when a Ugandan woman was attacked in which a former AAP minister was involved. Instead of taking swift action against the culprits, all manner of allegations about the morality of African women were bandied about. The simple truth is that a large proportion of Indians are racist and have pre-conceived notions about people of other races. Women from the West are harassed in tourist destinations on the grounds that they have inferior morals to Indians. All this does not paint a very bright picture of a young and modernising nation. India is a preferred education destination for many African countries since they find the standards are good here and the fees are more affordable than in Europe or the US. These incidents will make many think twice before heading here. In addition, we keep talking about education as a route to soft power in Africa. But when it comes to treating African nationals with dignity and respect, we seem to fall back on old prejudices and ignorance. The government of Karnataka should have wasted no time in acting, instead we see one of its ministers quibbling over what exactly transpired in the case. Many African students have reported difficulties in finding accommodation, having to face taunts and racial insults, being overcharged in shops and restaurants and simply being ostracised by the local populace. This really does not cover India in glory nor does it help in our Africa outreach which was to gain momentum after the mammoth heads of state meeting last year. Now the issue has taken on diplomatic tones with Tanzania issuing a note verbale. This means the issue will snowball leaving no one in any doubt that neither observing law nor common decency comes easily to many Indians. Admission in nursery or pre-school is based on the points scored by a child on different parameters set by individual schools. For last few years, schools have enjoyed autonomy in deciding the criteria for admission though Directorate of Education could intervene if a parameter was discriminatory or unfair. On January 6 this year, Delhi government identified and scrapped 62 such parameters based on which schools were selecting students for admission. The move led to panic among schools and parents as the application process had already begun by then. The biggest blow to schools, however, was the removal of management quota under which students were admitted directly by the management as per their discretion. Schools reserved 20% seats under this quota. 5% quota for children of the staff was also done away with though schools could make it a criterion and award points for it. Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal called this quota a scam and a way to loot people. The government also said that the number of seats open to general category shrunk because of this quota. Schools challenged the order in Delhi high court following which the court asked the schools to come up with 10-11 criteria they would like to keep. Impact on nursery admissions The application process started on January 1 and closed on January 22. The first list of selected children is supposed to be uploaded on school websites on February 15. The schedule of admissions has remained unaffected till now. However, removal of management quota meant more seats were available for children applying in the general category. Read more | HC stays AAP govts order to scrap management quota Seat break-up 25% seats reserved for the economically weaker section under the Right to Education Act 2009 20% seats reserved in the management quota 5% seats reserved for the children of staff 50% seats left for the general category Some schools reserve additional seats aligned with their ideology thereby shrinking the general seats further. For example, a school in west Delhi has 102 seats. But only 48 seats are available for admission after meeting the admission criteria. 26 seats are reserved for the EWS, 25 for management and staff and three for children with special needs. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Generally speaking, most professionals feel some level of job-related stress, but when a renowned three-Michelin star chef at the pinnacle of the culinary world commits suicide, one is forced to stop and take notice. The reason why Benoit Violier, who was recently thrust into international spotlight and hailed in the media as the worlds best chef, committed suicide, is complex and still not clear. There is no sincerer love than the love of food, Benoit Violiers Instagram page proves that. See some of his beautiful signature dishes below. (Instagram) Violier, 44, was found dead in his home on Sunday. He ran the prestigious Restaurant de lHotel de Ville in the small Swiss town of Crissier. But, whats worth noticing is that Violiers alleged suicide came just days before the release of the 2016 Michelin Guide, the worlds most prestigious culinary guide once described as the only one that counts by legendary French chef Paul Boc. Read: Overworked? Heres how to deal with work stress The Swiss police are still investigating Violiers death: They say they are 99% certain it was suicide with a firearm. He appears to have taken his own life with a firearm, the Swiss police said in a statement. The 44-year-olds Swiss restaurant came top of the French La Liste ranking of the worlds 1,000 best eateries. (Instagram) Even if that is the case, we may never know exactly why the French-born chef, ranked as Switzerlands number one by the prestigious Gault et Millau guide in 2013, decided to shoot himself. Violiers apparent suicide has shocked the restaurant world, which has been left scratching its head over why someone who has been crowned the best chef in the world take his own life. PRESSURE TO PERFORM According to chefs closer to home, the constant pressure on restaurants to perform and maintain positive reviews can have serious consequences. Violier moved to Paris in 1991, training with top French chefs including Joel Robuchon and Benoit Guichard. He said his time there taught him rigour, discipline and the art of the beautiful gesture. (Instagram) Mahesh Madhpal, sous chef-banquets, The Leela, New Delhi, hopes that the stress of his number-one ranking was not the cause for his suicide. In a surprise victory, Violiers restaurant was recently named the best in the world by La Liste, a French government-endorsed list of the 1,000 best restaurants across the globe. New Yorks famed Per Se came in second and Tokyos exclusive Kyo Aji took home the third spot in the list released by the French government in December 2015. In an indication of the standards he held himself to, Violier said: Nothing is ever definitive, everything must be repeated every day. (Instagram) The world of haute cuisine can be especially cruel. Here, the margin between success and failure can be as fine as a single, powerful critics review. And coveted ratings, such as Michelin stars, can literally mean life or death for a chef, says Madhpal. Read: Think work-from-home isnt stressful? Youre so wrong He adds that if restaurants dont perform well commercially, there are serious personal financial consequences. Your livelihood depends on it. Your children and family get affected, he said. Benoit Violiers passion for gastronomy was inspired by his mother from a young age, while he learned about wine, cognac and hunting from his father. (Instagram) Deepak Sood, chef de partie, Le Meridien, New Delhi, agrees that restaurants and their staff are under a lot of pressure to maintain positive reviews. He says that running even the smallest restaurant is often an extremely stressful business, and the industry is rife with broken dreams and bankruptcies. He says the increasing number of professional food bloggers and rise of peer-reviewed websites like Zomato have made life more difficult for those in the food and hospitality industry. There are now more opportunities for a negative review to damage a restaurants reputation. Dishes at LHotel de Ville included French classics such as pigs trotters with black truffle, and sea urchin in champagne sauce. Having worked at the restaurant since 1996, Mr Violier took it over along with his wife Brigitte in 2012. (Instagram) Quite often, I read things that people say online and feel its too hard these days to please everyone. Some of these reviews can make or break you, says Sood. Theres a lot of pressure on us to perform and if you have any kind of mental issues or trouble dealing with pressure, it can mount and have very serious consequences. FAMILIAR STORY Violier is not the first top chef to take his own life. His death is once again taking our attention to the extraordinary, sometimes unbearable pressures they face. Benoit Violier, the celebrated chef whose restaurant in Switzerland was deemed the worlds best eatery by French critics less than two months ago, was found dead at his home on Sunday. (Instagram) His death is eerily similar to those of Chicago chef Homaro Cantu, 38, who hung himself in April last year, and of 52-year-old French chef Bernard Loiseau, who used a gun on himself in 2003. Loiseau committed suicide after speculation that his restaurant La Cote dOr was going to lose one of its three Michelin stars. Read: Ten quick tips to avoid a burnout They tell you youre one of the very best, then, overnight, they tell you youre not, The Guardian had at the time quoted Guy Martin, of the three-star Grand Vefour in Paris. Violier and his wife Brigitte ran the Restaurant de lHotel de Ville outside of the city of Lausanne. (Instagram) Why? What have you done? How can the skills youve painstakingly developed, the creativity youve nurtured, the time and energy youve invested, disappear from one day to the next? Vefour had said. Talking of Violiers suicide, Sood feels that one has to be in a very dark place in ones mind to want to kill oneself. But a bad restaurant review shouldnt push you over the edge. Many of Benoit Violiers star culinary peers took to social media to express their grief and shock. (Instagram) He says, a restaurant job, particularly in an ambitious kitchen, can be all-consuming. The work starts in the morning and can stretch past midnight. Working weekends and holidays is often a given. In fact, low pay and long hours are, for some, a badge of honour, he says. Benoit Violier was originally from France but later took on Swiss citizenship. He was known for his hunting skills, and game was something that was often reflected on his expensive $370 menus, enjoyed by many heads of state and celebrities. (Instagram) According to him, many of the people in the industry have non-conforming personalities and enjoy competition and embrace both long, hard shifts and an excess of food and drinks all of which can exacerbate mental issues like depression. A RAZORS EDGE Todays chefs who must often be top-flight, profit-making businessmen as well as culinary artists are under particular strain, three-star chef Pierre Gagnaire was quoted as saying in The Guardian. According to a biography on his website, Mr Violier grew up in a family of seven children in the town of Saintes, in western France. (Instagram) What people dont often see, the three-star chef, whose first Michelin-starred restaurant went bankrupt, said some years ago, is that behind the facade of this profession is suffering and downright exhaustion. Were on a razors edge the whole time, because what we do is a combination of art and business. Read: Dont worry, be happy, as stress, anxiety could lead to dementia The constant fear of the fall from grace that might one day come, and resentment at the tyranny of a system that, many chefs, like Madhpal, feel, toys with hard-won reputations for reasons that all too often seem unclear or even arbitrary, can have a terrible psychological effect. It is unclear who will succeed Violier as chef at the Restaurant De LHotel De Ville Crissier-Suisse. (Instagram) And even if restaurant workers do want to seek help for mental issues, there are few resources designed especially for people in the field. This is not a profession that affords you the money to be able to go and seek out help, Madhpal says. Follow @htlifeandstyle for more. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON In an unlikely casting choice, BBCs Top Gear has announced Hollywood actor Matt LeBlanc as the co-host of the show. LeBlanc is best remembered as Joey Tribbiani from the cult show, Friends, in which he starred along with Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox and David Schwimmer. He will host Top Gear with Chris Evans, who is not a Hollywood actor, when it comes back on screen in May. Matt said in a statement, As a car nut and a massive fan of Top Gear, Im honoured and excited to be a part of this iconic shows new chapter. What a thrill! Read: Top Gears Clarkson, May, Hammond sign Amazons new car show Chris Evans said in a statement, Matts a lifelong fellow petrolhead and Im thrilled hes joining Top Gear. Acting out our craziest car notions on screen is a dream job and I know well both be debating some epic road trip ideas. We cant wait to share what weve been up to on screen later this year. He is already a familiar face to Top Gear viewers, having appeared as a guest twice on the show and the fastest celebrity to date around the Top Gear track in its reasonably priced car. The news came after the show - which is rebranding after former hosts Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond left earlier this year - was hit by major backroom departures. Clarkson was fired from the BBC for physically attacking a member of Top Gears production staff in March. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) may ask the external affairs ministry to nudge Malaysia and Mauritius into providing information required to complete the probe into the controversial Aircel-Maxis deal involving a former telecom minister. The ED tasked with fighting financial crime had sent a judicial request to the two countries seeking information needed to file a second charge-sheet in the case around a year ago. However, there has been no response. The first charge-sheet filed last month had accused former telecom minister Dayanidhi Maran of coercing a Chennai-based entrepreneur into selling his stake in telecom firm Aircel to Malaysia-based Maxis in 2006. Maran, a Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader and telecom minister in the UPA-I government, is also accused of receiving bribes in excess of Rs 740 crore from Malaysian firm, Maxis Communication Berhard. In its judicial request for assistance, the ED wanted details about individuals and firms linked to the money-trail in the case. A government source said the information was critical to file its supplementary charge-sheet. He added that ED would request the foreign ministry to take up its case with the respective governments. We are also ready to send our teams to the two countries to expedite compliance with our requests.. The CBI probe that investigated violation of the anti-corruption law in the same deal too had faced lack of cooperation from Malaysian authorities. The ED had got into the picture in 2012 after the CBI concluded that the Prevention of Money Laundering Act too was violated. A Tanzanian woman and three other students allegedly assaulted by a mob in Bengaluru have been asked by police to switch off their mobile phones and not to speak to anyone, a leader of the All African Students Union said on Thursday. Bosco Kaweesi, the legal adviser of the students union, told HT that police was trying to gag the victims to prevent the truth from coming out. The 21-year-old victim was allegedly stripped by the mob and also assaulted along with three of her fellow students from Tanzania. Their vehicle was also torched by the mob late on Sunday night, shortly after shortly after a Sudanese man mowed down a woman in the same area. Both the state government and police deny that the woman was stripped. They have also denied that the incident was a racist attack. A leader of the Tanzanian Students Association, who gave her name only as Helen, also accused the police of trying to hush up the incident which has turned into a major embarrassment for the government. Read More: Karnataka says attack on Tanzanian woman was not racist; 5 arrested Tanzanian woman assault case: Rahul seeks report from Karnataka govt Tanzanian student assault: 5 arrested; Rahul seeks report from Karnataka A hoax call about a bomb threat may soon lead to life imprisonment as the authorities consider invoking the Suppression of Unlawful Acts against Safety of Civil Aviation Act. Airports across India, including Delhi, receive threat calls almost every day and passengers often miss their connecting flights and lose their baggage in the chaos caused by flight delays. The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) is considering invoking the stricter law to deter hoaxes. Usually, the police register a case under the Indian Penal Code and the caller gets bail easily and if convicted the punishment is not more than two-three years. But under this act, the punishment can be extended up to life imprisonment and we will be writing to the state police to register cases under this act if a passenger puts airport security at risk, said a BCAS official. In the last month, the Capital received eight to 10 hoax calls. Sagar Malviyas flight to the US via Istanbul was delayed because of a security alert in January. The passenger from Mumbai is yet to find his luggage. Malviya, who missed his connecting flight because of the delay, reportedly didnt get any help from Turkish Airlines once in Istanbul. Malviya returned to Mumbai, but he is still trying to locate his baggage. I was travelling on January 2. After we had boarded the plane, the airline staff informed us that there would be a delay in takeoff because of a security alert. We were made to sit in the plane for five hours as the staff had noticed an unclaimed mobile phone, said Malviya, who returned two weeks later. Turkish Airlines staff did not offer any help to my query of missing my connecting flight from Istanbul, which I eventually did. They refused to take responsibility for my baggage. I had to stay there and buy clothes as the airline missed my baggage, he said. Turkish Airlines, however, said they handed over the baggage to the other airline. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Concerned over the alleged assault of a Tanzanian woman, the Centre on Thursday sought a report from the Karnataka government and action taken against the perpetrators of the crime. In a communication, the home ministry asked the state government to give a detailed report about the circumstances leading to the assault of the Tanzanian woman, action taken against those allegedly involved in it and steps taken for the protection of the victim. The ministry also said the report should be sent as early as possible for taking necessary action by the central government as the incident had happened involving a foreign national. The 21-year-old Tanzanian student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of mistaken identity after a woman was mowed down by a car driven by a Sudanese national in Bengaluru late on Sunday. She was reportedly dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends when she reached the accident spot mistaking them to have caused the fatal accident though a Sudanese was involved in it, police said. As the incident took a serious diplomatic turn, chief minister Siddaramaiah said five men had been arrested and that the minister for external affairs Sushma Swaraj spoke to him. A report would be sent to her, he said. Case has been registered, five of them (accused) have been arrested. Sushma Swaraj also spoke to me, I will also be sending her a report through my chief secretary, he told reporters. The chief minister added that he has asked the police to conduct an inquiry on why complaint was not taken immediately. Read more | Tanzanian student assault: 5 arrested; Rahul seeks report from Karnataka I have asked them to take action against officials if there is any fault on their part, he said. Swaraj had described it as a shameful incident and sought seeking stringent punishment for the guilty. Voicing concern over the incident, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi also sought a report from the Karnataka government, according to party general secretary Digvijaya Singh, in charge of Congress affairs in the state. State home Minister G Parameshwara told a press meet that more arrests would follow depending on the inquiry. The minister, who named the victim, also denied that the Tanzanian woman was paraded naked saying, No such thing happened. This is definitely not a racial attack, he added. Also Read | Bengaluru police ask Tanzanian woman to switch off phone, not comment Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tribute to the 10 Indian Army soldiers who were trapped under snow in the Siachen Glacier after an avalanche hit on Tuesday. Demise of soldiers in Siachen is very tragic. I salute the brave soldiers who gave their lives to the nation, he wrote on the microblogging platform Twitter. Earlier in the day, the defence ministry had said that chances of finding the soldiers are very remote. The operation was intensified on Thursday with the induction of specialised teams, sniffer dogs and equipment to trace the army personnel trapped at a high-altitude post after an avalanche. Specialised equipment was flown in to Leh today (Thursday) morning, the spokesperson said. He said that blocks of snow had fallen on the post. To clear the same is a very difficult task, he said. Snow cutters and special equipment have been put to use to clear and cut the ice blocks. Demise of soldiers in Siachen is very tragic. I salute the brave soldiers who gave their lives to the nation. Condolences to their families. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) February 4, 2016 The avalanche hit the post situated at 19,600 feet in the Northern Glacier sector in the Ladakh region on Wednesday. The missing personnel were attached to the Madras battalion stationed at the post. The Indian Army and the Indian Air Force teams are battling harsh weather conditions and difficult terrain to trace the missing soldiers. Read | Search on for 10 soldiers feared buried in Siachen avalanche Avalanches and landslides are common in Kashmir, which is divided between India and Pakistan and claimed by both entirely. The nations also dispute the undemarcated border through the Siachen Glacier at an altitude of nearly 19,000 feet (5,800 meters). Thousands of Indian and Pakistani troops are stationed on the freezing Himalayan terrain, where more troops have died from the gruelling conditions than from hostile fire. Last month, four Indian soldiers on foot patrol were killed by an avalanche in the same region. In 2012, an avalanche in the Pakistan-controlled part of the glacier killed 140 people, including 129 soldiers. The two countries have discussed ways to demilitarize the Siachen Glacier without success. With inputs from agencies The city police arrested the 18th accused in Dadri lynching case on Wednesday evening, cops said. The accused, who claims to be a minor, was nabbed from his hideout in Greater Noida and was sent to a juvenile home. Meanwhile, bail application of another accused in the case, identified as Arun, was rejected by the local court on Wednesday. The investigators found the accused hiding at one of his relatives place. He was nabbed in a raid. He claims to be a juvenile. However, a medico-legal test to confirm his age will be conducted soon to be produced in the court, said Anurag Singh, deputy superintendent of police, Dadri. On September 28, an angry mob beat up Mohammad Ikhlaq, 55, to death and injured his son Danish, 22, in Dadris Bisada village after a local temple announced that they had consumed beef and were storing it in their house. Ikhlaq had succumbed to his injuries while Danish survived with critical injuries. The political noise around the story grew stronger as Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and others visited the village following the incident. So far, 18 out of 19 accused, including two minors and a UP police home guard, have been arrested in the case following the statement of Danishs sister Shaista. The final accused in the case is absconding. A manhunt has been launched to nab him. He will be arrested soon. An additional chargesheet will be filed against the recently arrested accused persons, Singh added. Ikhlaqs elder son, Sartaj, is a corporal with the Indian Air Force. The family has been shifted to an accommodation provided by the Air Force in New Delhi. In pics: The unfolding of the Dadri lynching case SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Security forces are battling a group of militants in north Kashmirs Bandipora district, police said on Thursday. An official at police control room Bandipora said that a joint team of army and police had launched an operation in Hajin area of the district in the morning. The security forces cordoned Khush Mohalla of Hajin after a tip-off about the presence of militants. The official said that 2-3 militants were believed to be trapped inside a house in the Mohalla. The encounter comes five days after three militants were killed including a Lashkar-e-Toiba commander in an encounter with security forces in the neighbouring district of Kupwara in north Kashmir. A young Hindu woman from Uttar Pradesh has approached a Delhi court seeking protection from her family members who allegedly threatened to kill her after she married a Muslim man in her village. The 21-year-old, a graduate, told metropolitan magistrate Babru Bhan on Thursday that she married her lover, 23-year-old Mohamed Shoeb Akhtar, of her own free will. Accompanied by her advocate, SC Joshi, the woman said she and Akhtar were married in a Muslim nikah ceremony this month and have been staying with a group dedicated to helping hunted lovers as they were scared of her family. Inter-religious marriages often spark controversies in India and particularly in Uttar Pradesh where during last years assembly by-polls the BJP and its affiliates whipped up frenzy over the so-called love jihad issue, accusing Muslim men of trying to trick Hindu women into marriage and forcing them to convert to Islam. The Love Commandos group and its chairman, Commando Sanjoy Sachdev, told HT that the couple approached them through the organisations helpline. The woman alleged that UP police registered an FIR against Akhtar despite being informed on January 8 about their marriage plans. The complaint from her parents was filed only to harass them because her husband was a Muslim, she asserted. Im a resident of Maharajganj (district) and I came to Delhi on January 8 with Mohamed Shoeb Akhtar of my own free will in order to get married to him, said the woman in her statement before the magistrate. When the couple and Sachdev approached Delhis Paharganj police station for help, the officers asked her to record her testimony before a magistrate. Sachdev said the Love Commandos had written several letters to Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav to draw his attention to the false FIR lodged by UP police for alleged kidnapping of the woman. He said this was against the directions of the Supreme Court on such marriages. The police administration (is) committing contempt of the Honble SC and victimising lovers, said Sachdev in his letter to the CM. He said though the district and police officials in Maharajganj had received our communication dated January 8, 2016 even then they registered the FIR just to victimise the male lover, who belongs to a minority community. The letter went on to say that the young woman told the group the history of her paternal family is that of torturing females in love and she apprehends a danger to her life too. Police have arrested five persons in the case related to a Tanzanian woman who was allegedly attacked and stripped in Bengaluru following a road accident last week. Five persons have been arrested so far related to the incident, will ensure justice is done, Karnataka chief minister Siddarmaiah was quoted by ANI as saying on Thursday. The chief minister also said that he has asked police to investigate the matter and the state government has sent report to foreign ministry. Voicing concern over the incident, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi has sought a report from the Karnataka government on the incident immediately. Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately, party general secretary Digvijaya Singh said in a series of tweets on Thursday. Strongly condemn incident with Tanzanian lady in Bangalore. Police must act strongly against the culprits, Singh, who is in-charge of party affairs in Karnataka, said. Earlier on Wednesday, a top police official had said that a manhunt had been launched for the suspects. We have registered a case of riot and arson against the accused on victims statement in which she reported of being assaulted in a mistaken identity by a mob on the outskirts of the city, city police commissioner NS Megharik had told reporters in Bengaluru. Denying reports in a section of media that the victim was also molested, Megharik said the African woman had admitted being only assaulted by a frenzied mob after her three male friends deserted her at Soladevanahalli where the car in which they were travelling was burnt. Watch | Tanzanian student stripped, assaulted by locals in Bengaluru Read more: Bengaluru: Tanzanian woman beaten, paraded naked after road accident The incident occurred because the mob mistook the victims car being involved in a road mishap on same night (January 31) when a 20-year-old drunken Sudanese national (Mohammed Ahad Ismai) ran over a woman fatally. We arrested him after he was rescued from a raging mob, Megharik said. Police did not register a case soon after the road mishap and the mob attack, as the victim was not in the city for two days since Sunday. We have formed special teams to trap the culprits and render justice to the victim who declined to file complaint against the accused fearing attack again. The victims friends told police that on Sunday the furious mob had pulled them out of their car, assaulted them and molested her in which her clothes were torn. Meanwhile, the city-based Tanzanian youth association decided to seek its embassys help in registering an assault case and booking the culprits. Earlier on Wednesday, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj described the attack as shameful and expressed deep pain over the Sunday incident on Twitter. We are deeply pained over the shameful incident with a Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru. I spoke to the chief minister Karnataka. He informed me that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested, Sushma Swaraj tweeted. The minister sought a report from the Karnataka government and asked chief minister Siddaramaiah to ensure safety of foreign students. I spoke to the Chief Minister Karnataka. He informed me that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested. Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) February 3, 2016 I have asked the Chief Minister to ensure safety and security of all foreign students and stringent punishment for the guilty. Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) February 3, 2016 A 40-foot-long blue whale which had washed ashore in Maharashtras Ratnagiri was released in the Arabian Sea after a nine-hour-long operation, wildlife officials have said, in what is being hailed as the biggest rescue mission in the state involving the worlds biggest animal. The operation was carried out on Monday along the coast near Dapoli, about 215 km from Mumbai, with two shipping vessels towing the blue whale back into the sea. Read more: In pics: 40-foot long whale washed ashore on Juhu beach in Mumbai (HT Photo) The incident happened just a few days after the carcass of an equally big Brydes whale washed ashore at the Juhu beach in Mumbai, raising concerns among conservationists over the frequency of such incidents. (HT Photo) Last month too, at least 45 short-finned pilot whales had died after they washed ashore on a beach in Tamil Nadus Tuticorin district. Officials had managed to save 36 whales of the pod by towing them back to sea. (HT Photo) While this might the first time that a blue whale has been successfully rescued from along any coast of India, it is matter of grave concern that these mammals are washing ashore with such frequency. There is an immediate requirement to find out why these instances are happening, said N Vasudevan, chief conservator of forest, state mangrove cell. (HT Photo) Officials of the mangrove cell, members of the Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit, a German organisation researching marine life in Ratnagiri, and activists of a local NGO Sahayadri Nisarg Mitra Chiploon were involved in the rescue mission. We saw that the whale had no injuries on its body but was having difficulty breathing. A marine biologist examined the whale and said that it had a stomach infection. Following this, he gave the whale nearly five injections and its activities immediately increased, said Abhinay Kelaskar, project associate of the German group. Read more: Whale on Juhu beach: 5 reasons why sea creatures get washed ashore SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Pakistan said on Thursday that it is in touch with India on finalising dates for the postponed foreign secretary-level talks. Both sides are in touch regarding the date of foreign secretary-level talks. We will let you know when it is finalised, Foreign Office spokesperson Qazi Khalilullah said on Thursday during the weekly briefing. The agenda of the talks will be discussed after date for the foreign secretary-level talks is finalised, he said. India and Pakistan last month mutually agreed to a short deferment of talks after the Pathankot terror attack. Talking about the visa controversy related to actor Anupam Kher, he said the high commissioner in India spoke to the actor and offered him a visa for attending the literature festival to which he was invited. However, Kher replied that he would not be able to visit Pakistan due to other commitments, the spokesperson said. Responding to a question, Khalilullah said the dossiers on Indias alleged involvement in fomenting terrorism in Pakistan have already been shared with the US and the UN. To another query, he said that questions about Dawood Ibrahim have been asked several times in the past and reiterated Pakistans position that he was not present in the country. You may be aware that Indian authorities have admitted at the ministerial level that Dawood Ibrahims whereabouts were not known to them, he said. Ahead of solidarity day being observed in Pakistan on Friday to support the right of self-determination of people of Kashmir, Khalilullah said, India continues to violate the human rights of and brutalise Kashmiris in the occupied Kashmir. Pakistan has always condemned these atrocities. Kashmir Solidarity Day, to be observed tomorrow, reminds us of the Indian atrocities and the need for Kashmir dispute to be resolved in accordance with the UN Security Council Resolutions and aspirations of the people of Kashmir, he said. Khalilullah also said the meeting of the Quadrilateral Coordination Group on Afghanistan talks was scheduled for February 6 and will be held in Islamabad as planned. He said Pakistan and Afghanistan were in touch at various levels regarding the use of Afghan soil by certain elements involved in the terrorist attack on Bacha Khan university. The spokesperson said that Pakistan does not differentiate between good and bad terrorists and it was at the heart of Operation Zarb-e-Azb against militants. Lashkar-e-Taiba founder Hafiz Saeed has warned of more Pathankot-style attacks, prompting India on Thursday to say it is a matter of great concern that people like the alleged Mumbai attacks mastermind continue to enjoy freedom in Pakistan. Hafiz Saeed is an internationally designated terrorist; it is for Pakistan to put a stop to his activities, the ministry of external affairs said. It should be a matter of great concern to everyone that people like Hafiz Sayeed continue to enjoy freedom to indulge in their activities. Saeed on Wednesday praised the deadly attack on the Pathankot airbase that threatened to scuttle peace efforts between India and Pakistan. Read: Shoot-at-sight orders at 20 western IAF bases The leader of the banned Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) group encouraged further violence following the attack that left seven Indian Army soldiers dead. Addressing a rally of around a thousand people in the disputed Pakistan-administered Kashmir region, Saeed said: 800,000 Indian troops are committing genocide on Kashmiris. Dont they have a right to carry out Pathankot style attacks for their defence? You have only seen one attack on Pathankot. Matters could easily escalate. Crowds at the rally shouted slogans including The war will continue until the liberation of Kashmir and We are ready for jihad. Indian officials say the Pakistan based Jaish-e-Mohammed was behind the Pathankot siege. Read: Despite ban, Pak channel brings JuD chief Hafiz Saeed on talk show The airbase attack occurred just a week after Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid a surprise visit to Lahore, raising hopes for peace between the two countries. Further planned talks between the foreign secretaries of the two countries were subsequently postponed from January 15. Saeeds freedom and his frequent calls for jihad against India irk New Delhi, which considers JuD -- a UN designated terror organisation -- to be no more than a front for LeT, the militant group blamed for the 2008 Mumbai attacks that left 166 people dead. The alleged assault of a Tanzanian woman in Bengaluru was not a racist attack but the fallout of an earlier road accident, the Karnataka minister said on Thursday, as the state government launched a damage-control exercise to quell a brewing political storm. He also refuted the womans allegation that she was stripped by the mob. The home minister of the Congress-ruled state G Parmeshwara also told newsmen that there was no delay by police in taking up the case which took in a city with a history of racial attacks. Read more: Bengaluru police ask Tanzanian woman to switch off phone, not comment The 21-year-old Tanzanian student who was not identified -- was allegedly assaulted and stripped by a mob on the outskirts of Bengaluru on late on Sunday night, shortly after a Sudanese man mowed down a woman in the same area. Police have arrested five people in connection with the attack. The city police chief has said the woman victim had reported an assault but denied that she had been either stripped or paraded on the streets. Read more: Tanzanian student assault: 5 arrested; Rahul seeks report from Karnataka There are 12,000 foreign students in Bengaluru, their protection is our duty. These kinds of incidents should not happen, he said adding that the foreign ministry have been apprised of the incident. Watch | Karnataka Home Minister says attack on Tanzanian student not racist The High Commission of Tanzania also sent a note verbale, a diplomatic communication short of a formal letter of protest, to the Indian government over the incident. Some people in India have a racist attitude towards Africans. This is not the first instance of discrimination, John WH Kijazi, the Tanzanian high commissioner to India, told CNN-IBN. He, however, added it was not right to call all Indians racist. Meanwhile, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has asked the state government to explain the incident and send the report immediately. Congress general secretary Digvijay Singh on Thursday confirmed the news on his official Twitter account. Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately. digvijaya singh (@digvijaya_28) February 4, 2016 The BJP dubbed the reaction of Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi as a political stunt saying that the former is a seeking report only after seeing media reports on the issue. The law and order situation in Karnataka is really bad. These kinds of incidents are taking place time and again. This is not the first time...It is nothing but a political stunt, BJP leader Zafar Islam told ANI Earlier on Wednesday, external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj described the attack as shameful and expressed deep pain over the incident. We are deeply pained over the shameful incident with a Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru. Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) February 3, 2016 Read more: Bengaluru: Tanzanian woman beaten, paraded naked after road accident This is not the first time those viewed as outsiders by some local residents have faced attacks in the city. In March last year, four African students were badly injured in a scuffle after some locals objected to them entering a bar. More than 30,000 people from the Northeast fled Bengaluru in August 2012 after a handful of attacks sparked rumours of a larger conspiracy. I. . The Maharahstra governor gave permission to the CBI on Thursday to prosecute top Congress leader Ashok Chavan for his alleged role in the Adarsh housing society scam that became a symbol of corruption in the state and forced him to resign as chief minister in 2010. Chavan alleged the ruling BJPs vindictive attitude was behind governor C Vidyasagar Raos grant of approval to the investigating agency, which is probing alleged malpractices in construction and allocation of flats in the Mumbai high-rise, with homes meant for war widows going cheaply to politicians and military officers. The Congress leader was forced to step down from the chief ministers post in November 2010 after accusations emerged that three of his relatives had been given apartments in the 31-storey building, a scandal that contributed to the partys defeat in state polls four years later with a BJP-Shiv Sena combine taking power. The grant of sanction for prosecution and the CBIs decision to move the application has been done at the behest of the BJP, he said. In December 2013, the then governor K Sankaranarayanan had refused permission to the CBI to prosecute Chavan in the scam, leaving the agency with no choice but to close the case against the lawmaker. The UPA-appointed governor resigned after he was transferred to Mizoram by the Narendra Modi government in August 2014 and Rao replaced him in Maharashtra. The Governor had sought the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers and was advised by the Council of Ministers to grant the sanction, an official statement from Raj Bhavan, the governors official residence, said on Thursday. A CAG report five years ago showed the building erected on army land and originally created to help servicemen, ex-servicemen and their widows received several concessions ignoring rules, while officials and politicians instrumental in decision-making became members of the society. The CBI approached the governor last year seeking his consent to prosecute Chavan after it got fresh evidence against him in the case, following which Rao wrote to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis to get the opinion of his council of ministers. Fadnavis maintained the government had sought the view of the state advocate general and he clearly said such permission should be and could be granted. Legal experts say if Chavan, now a Lok Sabha member, is convicted in the case and sentenced to more than two years in prison, he can be disqualified as an MP and barred from contesting the 2019 general elections. The ban can continue for six more years even after acquittal which could put Chavan one of two Congress MPs elected from Maharashtra in the 2014 polls out of the reckoning and deal a blow to the party that is relying on his organisational and electoral skills to attempt a comeback. India on Wednesday blamed Pakistan for most of the terror attacks in the country but said it would stand by the neighbour if it takes action against terrorists operating from there. Home Minister Rajnath Singh also said if Pakistan takes concrete action against terrorists on its territory it will not only improve bilateral relations but also bring peace and stability in the South Asian region. Most of the terror attacks in India emanate from Pakistan and it will have to show some sincerity and take concrete steps to rein in the various terror groups operating against India from its soil. The government of India will stand by Pakistan if it takes decisive action against terrorists and their organisations, he said addressing the second edition of counter-terrorism conference organised by the India Foundation in collaboration with the government of Rajasthan. The Home Minister said for India, Mumbai (26/11) and Pathankot terror attacks have signified a tectonic shift. The Mumbai terror attack in 2008 brought terror across the seas to countrys economic capital, causing a large number of casualties among the innocent civilian population. Likewise, in the recent attack on Pathankot air base, there was a conscious effort to target sensitive assets of the country and also cause large-scale casualties, thus taking the dynamics of terror attack in India a notch higher, he said. Singh said the challenge of terrorism gets compounded when certain states use it as an instrument of their foreign policy. They make perverse distinction between good and bad terrorists. When the states begin covertly raising and indoctrinating bands of youth and equipping them with lethal weapons and weapon systems of mass destruction to promote their geo-political agenda, the magnitude of threat amplifies many times. It makes the task of defeating terrorism much more difficult, he said. The Home Minister said so long as some countries continue using terrorists as instruments to promote their geo-political agenda, the fight against terrorism will lack due resolve. The world must accept the reality without any loss of time that there is no good terrorist, he said. Meanwhile, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar while addressing the conference said India was in touch with Pakistan after the Pathankot attack and dialogue between the two countries on the terror assault would continue. Since Pathankot attack happened, we have been in touch with Pakistan. We have been in touch at my level and the NSA level because only by remaining in touch, we can expect them to progress on the basis of information which we have provided to them, Jaishankar told the Counter Terrorism Conference. The Odisha government headed by chief minister Naveen Patnaik will add a new initiative to its cradle-to-grave social welfare schemes. It has decided to offer free transportation of patients who die in hospitals to their homes. Doctors said there has always been provision for dead body carriers at district headquarters hospitals and other top medical facilities in the state, but one had to hire them and pay to the authorities on per kilometre basis. To be named Mahaparayan, the scheme will make body carrier vehicles -- with specific logo and colours -- available at all 30 district headquarters hospitals and three government medical colleges, SCB Medical College at Cuttack, VSS Medical College at Burla and SKCG Medical College in Berhampur, officials said. Vehicles will also be deployed at the government-run Sardar Vallavbhai Patel Post Graduate Institute of Paediatrics better known as Sishu Bhawan Acharya Harihar Regional Cancer Centre at Cuttack, Capital Hospital at Bhubaneswar and RGH in Rourkela. The scheme will be formally launched at a date and time fixed by the chief minister. The government has written to all districts about the scheme but a detailed guideline on when exactly the scheme will be implemented is still being formalised, said a senior health department officer not wanting to be quoted. Health minister Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak and secretary Arati Ahuja were not available for comment. The vehicles will be procured with money from the chief ministers relief fund and handed over to the district Red Cross societies. The district collectors will soon float tenders for the vehicles. A total of 40 vehicles are initially expected to be deployed at the hospitals for the purpose and may be increased depending on the load, he said. At least 10 patients die daily in each of the three medical colleges only. The BJD-led Odisha government has evolved several social security schemes for poor over the years to hook them to the party. Having a budgetary allocation over Rs 2000 crore, the schemes include Mamata Yojna for pregnant and lactating mothers and Harischandra Yojna for the last rites of the dead. Police are grappling to crack the murder of the grandmother and aunt of Ola Cabs CEO Bhavish Aggarwal in Ludhiana, nearly a week after the two women were found dead in their Ludhiana residence. Pushpawati Aggarwal (84) and her daughter-in-law Dr Sarita Aggarwal (55), a gynaecologist were found dead in their house at the Sher-e-Punjab Colony in Ludhiana on January 9. They are suspected to have been bludgeoned to death. Police sources said that a maid working for the family has come under the scanner after she made a call to police before the murders were suspected to have been committed. Police sources said the help, identified as Pooja, called up the PCR around 1 pm and told cops about the murders. The autopsy report revealed that the two women were killed between 1.30 pm and 2 pm. Also, it was Pooja who called up relatives of Dr Aggarwal and told them about the killings. Though police had detained Pooja for questioning they had to release her following protests by slum dwellers, who accused cops of harassment. Police have also grilled a driver, who was sacked by the family some months ago. Punjab Agricultural University police station in-charge sub-inspector Surinder Chopra said the investigation was on in the case. Bhavish Aggarwal launched the taxi aggregator -- popularly known as Ola -- in 2010 and is now one of the most successful start-ups in India. With elections in four states round the corner, major political parties on Thursday failed to reach a consensus on the schedule for the budget session. They, however, agreed to a government proposal to hold the first half of the session from February 23. The cabinet committee on parliamentary affairs that met soon after an informal meeting between the government and the Opposition decided to let the first half run till March 16 and the second largely utilised for passing non-budget legislation from April 25 to May 13. The session will commence on February 23. The rail budget will be presented on February 25, the pre-budget economic survey on February 26 and the general budget on February 29, parliamentary affairs minister Venkaiah Naidu said after the meeting. There were suggestions for curtailing the recess period due to assembly elections in four states. In 2011, the then government had decided not to refer bills to standing committees in the budget session when states were going to polls as there were demands to curtail the session, he said. In the informal meeting between the government and seven Opposition parties, many leaders favoured scrapping of the second half of the session. The Opposition leaders, however, wanted the government to take the initiative. Ministers Naidu and Arun Jaitley refused to do so, sources said. The government told the Opposition if it was keen to curtail the session, it would have to take the lead. Our focus area would be Assam. The Congresss stakes are high in four states. The Left has to fight in two states. But they want us to take the lead to curtail the session. Why should we do it? a minister said in the cabinet committee on parliamentary affairs meeting. In this meeting, there was virtually no discussion on the agenda the long-pending GST bill, the real estate bill or labour reforms. Sources said that was an indication the government had not been able to build a consensus on key bills. Congress sources told HT the party was unlikely to budge from its demand that three key changes be made in the GST bill. In light of the Pathankot attack last month, the Indian Air Force has issued shoot-at-sight orders to secure more than 20 key bases in the western sector to pre-empt a repeat of the terror strike. Security personnel have been ordered to shoot down intruders without issuing the standard warning. Fifty-four vital bases were identified in a special audit by the IAF where security will be upgraded at a cost of more than Rs 8,000 crore. It plans to tap smart technologies available globally for perimeter protection of huge bases. These upgrades will include smart fences, vibration detection systems, mini drones, thermal cameras and night vision equipment to detect intruders and respond swiftly in case of an attempted breach. However, a consistent problem the IAF has been dealing with is the unauthorised constructions that take place in in the vicinity. The IAF has raised the matter with the government again to ensure that the rules are implemented no construction within 100 metres of any airbase and within 900 metres of its ammunition depots. Read more: Shoot-at-sight orders at 20 western IAF bases Here is a look at some of the airbases where the orders have been issued: Halwara, Punjab: It was one of the first airbases to be built after Independence. The fighter base, located near Ludhiana, is home to IAFs front-line Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter planes. The IAF operated MiG-23s from here till 2009. Ambala, Haryana: It is one of the largest airbases of the air force. It is home to Jaguar deep-strike penetration aircraft and upgraded MiG-21 fighter planes. The 2 Corps, one of the three strike corps of the army, is also based in Ambala. Hindon, UP: Located just outside New Delhi, the airbase is home to C-130J Super Hercules special operations planes bought from the US. The annual IAF day parade is held here. Pathankot, Punjab: Six terrorists stormed the 18 Wing fighter base here on January 2 with the intention of destroying Russian-origin MiG-21 fighters and a mix of Mi-25 and Mi-35 attack helicopters parked there. Chandigarh: One of the main transport bases of the IAF, Chandigarh is home to IL-76 heavy-lifters and AN-32 medium lift cargo planes. The base plays a key role in supporting army deployments in the Ladakh sector. Avantipur, J&K: The fighter base is home to MiG-21 warplanes. Terrorists had made a failed attempt to storm it in October 2001. The Garud commando force was raised three years later. Srinagar, J&K: Another fighter base that is home to MiG-21 fighters. As terrorists have regularly targeted military installations in the state, the armed forces have to stay prepared for all contingencies. Leh, J&K: Hub of IAFs transport and helicopter operations. The base plays a crucial role in providing logistics support to troops deployed in forward posts along the disputed Line of Actual Control with China and Siachen glacier. Sarsawa, UP: Its a small base from where the IAF operates its helicopters. But the IAF is taking no chances until it implements its comprehensive plan to secure its bases with smart solutions. The Centre announced on Thursday a high-level team will visit Karnataka to probe the mob attack on a young Tanzanian woman, who was allegedly stripped, assaulted and paraded naked last week, an incident that prompted widespread revulsion with many on social media calling it racial assault. State home minister G Parameshwara added to the row when he blurted out the victims name at a press conference and contested her accusations, as Karnatakas Congress-led government faced a barrage of criticism from opposition parties and womens rights groups though police said they had arrested five suspects. The incident took place on Sunday night when the victim and three other Tanzanian students were travelling in their car near a spot in suburban Bengaluru where a Sudanese driver had run over a local woman minutes earlier. The external affairs ministry said those behind the violence would face stringent punishment and gave assurances to African countries about the safety of 5,000 students from the continent studying in India. A team is going to Bengaluru tomorrow which includes the high commissioner of Tanzania, who is also the dean of the African diplomatic corps, ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup said at a media briefing. Local police are facing flak for allegedly failing to stop the attack after the student said she pleaded with some cops at the spot for help, while one of the male victims told HT that officers had threatened them and asked them not to speak to anyone, particularly the media. There were also allegations that police initially refused to file an FIR. Read: Bengaluru police ask Tanzanian woman to switch off phone, not comment Asked why he revealed the name of the victim at the press conference, Parameshwara said, The media revealed the name first. So, I dont see anything wrong in revealing the name. Terming the incident a racial attack, BJP national spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi said Congress chief Sonia Gandhi should have reprimanded the state government and removed chief minister Siddaramaiah. Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi had sought a report from the state government on the issue, said senior leader Digvijaya Singh, whos in charge of the partys affairs in Karnataka. External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj, who termed the incident shameful, chaired a high-level meeting in the Capital that discussed a report sent by Bengalurus police commissioner about actions being taken against the attackers. Sources say the Centre is trying to ensure the incident does not cast a shadow over Indias growing engagement with Africa as African people also faced attacks in Delhi and Goa recently. Tanzanian high commissioner John Kizagi has said the woman and her friends were assaulted simply because they were black. Amid spiralling outrage over the attack, Union minister of state for home Kiren Rijiju said the incident is a matter of shame and no racial discrimination will be tolerated in the country. For 200 years, India was enslaved by foreigners. We have been fighting racial discrimination. But in India itself, if there is racial discrimination, the government will take it very seriously, he said. Read: Tanzanian woman was not stripped, attack not racist: Karnataka min (With agency inputs) Voicing concern over a Tanzanian woman student being allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in Bengaluru, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi has sought a report from the Karnataka government on the incident immediately. Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately, party General Secretary Digvijay Singh said in a series of tweets. Strongly condemn incident with Tanzanian lady in Bangalore. Police must act strongly against the culprits, Singh, who is in-charge of party affairs in Karnataka, said. The Tanzanian woman student was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a mob in a case of mistaken identity after a woman was mowed down by a car in the city. Read more: Hunt for suspects who attacked Tanzanian girl, Sushma deeply pained The 21-year-old Tanzanian, who is doing her Bachelor of Business Management course, was dragged out of the car in which she was seated along with her three friends on Sunday night. The car was stopped by the mob shortly after they reached the accident spot on Sunday night, according to All African Students Union in Bengaluru. Watch | Tanzanian student stripped, assaulted by locals in Bengaluru She was stripped by a section of the mob and pushed out of a slow-moving bus that was passing by as she tried to board it to escape, the Unions Legal Adviser Bosco Kaweesi had said. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had termed the incident as shameful. Read more: Bengaluru: Tanzanian woman beaten, paraded naked after road accident Swaraj had spoken to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and requested him to ensure stringent punishment to the guilty. Swaraj said Siddaramaiah informed her that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested. Official sources in New Delhi had said the High Commission of Tanzania has sent a Note Verbale to the External Affairs Ministry about the reported attack, requesting it to take necessary legal action against the guilty. According to the Bangalore police, the complaint by the Tanzanian girl was filed yesterday even though incident happened on Sunday. They have filed an FIR against some unknown persons in connection with the assault. Condemning the assault on the Tanzanian student in Bengaluru, former National Commission for Women (NCW) member Shamina Shafiq on Thursday expressed anger at countrys legal system, where the culprits get away easily without punishment. I am ashamed and appalled at such incident and no wonder that the kind of tardy justice system we have in this country, I think people have sorted out to such fallouts wherein they feel that they can do anything and get away. I am very angry with the system, which is not giving justice to the people who are at the receiving end, Shafiq said. . The Enforcement Directorate action against former Maharashtra minister Chhagan Bhujbal, his nephew and Sameer and son Pankaj is in connection with construction of Maharashtra Sadan in Delhi. The ED on Monday arrested Sameer Bhujbal in Mumbai after the agency conducted multiple searches in connection with its probe against Bhujbals and others. He was arrested after over six hours of questioning under the provision of the PMLA at the agencys office in Ballard Tiar in Mumbai. Heres all you need to know about the case: Who are the Bhujbals? Chhagan Bhujabal is a former deputy chief minister of Maharashtra. He started his political career with the Shiv Sena, left the party in 1991, joined the Congress and later joined the Nationalist Congress Party. His nephew Sameer is a former member of Parliament from Nashik while his son Pankaj is a NCP MLA. Why are the Bhujbals under scanner? In 2005, the Maharashtra PWD department, headed by Bhujbal entered into a deal with a builder Chamankar Enterprises under which the builder was handed over a prime Andheri plot owned by the government. In exchange, the builder would build the new building of states guesthouse- Maharashtra Sadan- in Delhi, rebuild a dilapidated guest house, High Mount at Malabar Hill, and build an RTO office on a part of the plot at Andheri. The deal was struck without inviting any tenders. The builder then sold development rights of the plot to another builder reportedly for Rs 850 crore. Chhagan Bhujbal is accused of receiving kickbacks in the deal. Certain contracts related to Maharashtra Sadan such as supplying furnitures and furnishings went to a firm run by Bhujbals kin. The PWD also entered into a deal with a well known infrastructure company to build a library at Kalina campus of Mumbai University in exchange of development rights on a 7000 square meter plot. The same company allegedly donated Rs 2.5 crore to foubdation run by Bhujbals. Read | Ex-NCP MP Sameer Bhujbal arrested on money laundering charges Why is the case by ED? Though Bhujbal is alleging political vendetta for the action against his family in the Maharashtra Sadan case, there are some allegations that raise doubts and put him under scanner. As per FIR filed by SIT, the money trail in the case had started from Origin Infrastructure that was established by Sanjay Joshi and Iram Tanveer Sheikh on July 26, 2005. Both were found employed in Bhujbals Mumbai Education Trust (MET). It further reveals that the Chamankar group, a contractor and also an accused in the case, had given around Rs 6.70 crore to Origin Infrastructure between December 2007 and March 19, 2013. Again Rs 74.10 lakh was given to Ideen Furniture between 2008 and 2012 that was established by Shefali and Vishaka, the wives of Bhujbals nephew Sameer and son Pankaj on May 22, 2006. Further, Origin had also given Rs 45 lakh to the Parvesh Construction, which was headed by by Sameer and Pankaj in 2013 leading to investigation agencies suspect that these trasanctions are kickbacks. What was the reason for ED probe? This was started when BJP leader Kirit Somaiya approached the Maharashtra Anti-Corruption Bureau seeking an inquiry against Bhujbal in the Maharashtra Sadan case in 2012. Anjali Damania a leader with the Aam Aadmi Party had also filed a PIL in the Bombay high court seeking an FIR against Bhujbal. Damania had alleged that between February 12, 2010, and January 20, 2012, Chamankar Enterprises gave Rs 74.10 lakh to Ideen Furniture, whose directors are Vishaka Bhujbal, wife of Bhujbals son Pankaj, and Shefali Bhujbal, wife of his nephew Sameer that was found mentioned in the FIR provided with money trail. Four days after a Tanzanian woman was allegedly stripped and beaten up by a mob on the outskirts of the city, triggering nationwide condemnation, there is still no clarity on the details of the incident. Karnataka home minister G Parameshwaras press conference on Thursday only added to the confusion as he contested the victims written statement and said she was not stripped. In a brief conversation at the office of DCP (North) TR Suresh, the Tanzanian woman told HT, My friend, Hasheem, approached two uniformed policemen who were standing and watching (the attack). The police threw him back into the crowd. Read | Tanzanian woman was not stripped, attack not racist: Karnataka minister Suresh quickly intervened as the girl was speaking and ushered her into his chamber to prevent her from revealing more. He also tried to dissuade her from speaking to a lawyer the All African Students Union had engaged. Why do you want a lawyer? he asked the woman in an intimidating tone, not noticing that this correspondent was within earshot. Even as the lawyer, Darshana Mitra, from the Alternative Law Forum, protested, Suresh said to the victim, This is not good for your case, madam. Are we not doing our job? He abruptly ended his harangue when he spotted this reporter. Azizi, one of the male victims who spoke to HT near the Acharya College where the victim studies, said the police threatened them and asked them not to speak to anybody, particularly the media. They told us that if we spoke to the media, the locals who attacked us, will find us again. They ordered us to switch off our phones and stay indoors, he said. When HT spoke to the girl, she said she was under no pressure to avoid the media. As she was in the company of Suresh and several other police officers when she said this, it can not be said with certainty if she was speaking without pressure. Bosco Kaweesi, legal adviser of the All African Students Union, said, The girl is under tremendous pressure. She doesnt know who to trust. There were contradictory versions on whether the police refused to register an FIR on the night of the attack. Helen, from the Tanzanian Students Association, said only one of the male victims went with her to register a complaint that night. Kaweesi, however, contested this version and said, All of them, including the girl, went to the police station. They have all been threatened by the police, he said. Home minister Parameshwara blurted out the womans name before live camera crews at the press conference in clear violation of Supreme Court guidelines that stipulate the identity of a sexual assault victim not be revealed. Showing apathy towards the plight of the woman, who has said the police just watched as the mob attacked her and her friends, Parameshwara said the cops did a good job. He read out the victims statement saying, They assaulted us. My clothes were torn and then proceeded to give his verdict saying the woman was not stripped. Asked why he revealed the named of the victim at the press conference, Parameshwara said, The media revealed the name first. So, I dont see anything wrong in revealing the name. He also denied that the girl was prevented from engaging a lawyer. Read Tanzanian woman assault case: Rahul seeks report from Karnataka govt Bengaluru police ask Tanzanian woman to switch off phone, not comment Development works for the Simhastha fair in Ujjain are on in full swing but the preparations are not devoid of complications. The Ujjain Simhastha is a mass Hindu pilgrimage and one of the fairs recognised as Kumbh Melas. During the Simhastha, Hindus gather to bathe in a sacred river. At Ujjain, it is held once every 12 years on the banks of Kshipra river. The fair will be held in April, this year. A huge number of writ petitions were filed in the Madhya Pradesh High Court over violations of norms in many development works being carried out by the state government ahead of the fair. Public interest litigations (PIL) on ten works were filed in the HC and the proposed works were scrapped by judges. On a PIL, stay on construction of Simhastha Authority office at Kothi Road was ordered by the HC as a park land was being used for which the authorities did not complete proper formalities. A watch tower and control room at Narsingh ghat of Kshipra river was proposed by the government but the HC bench scrapped the project on the grounds that no construction could come up in the green belt of the river. The Ujjain Development Authority had already floated tenders for the project. The Public Works Department (PWD) had initiated a project to build a new railway over-bridge in Freeganj area. However, the department changed the location against the City Master Plan. Based on this violation, the HC on a PIL scrapped the project. The HC bench also cancelled lighting contract for Simhastha fair costing around Rs21 crore. Gujarat-based HEL Infra Projects Ltd had moved a petition alleging huge irregularities in awarding the contract of lighting in the fair area. The court also directed the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) to conduct an inquiry into the tender allotment procedure. HC order forced the lighting work at the Simhastha venue to be withheld. Acquisition of 12 houses situated opposite the Mahakal Temple for widening of the road was declared void by the HC on the grounds that it did not follow proper procedure. Social worker Bakir Ali Rangwala, who filed most of the PILs, said officials work in a manner as they wish and have little concern towards the norms and guidelines. Many times the norms have been bended to benefit a particular person or a firm, he said. Rangwala said one end of Simhastha Bypass, constructed recently by the MP Road Development Corporation, was taken 100 metres away from the square at Nanakhera to save a piece of land and a building which was against the guidelines of Roads Congress (representative technical body of highway engineers in India.) The HC has given a decision against the MPRDC and we have filed a contempt petition in the matter, he said. Similar petitions on encroachments in Simhastha areas, nullahs culminating in Kshipra and sewage issues of temporary toilets are pending with the HC. Projects called off Watch tower and control room at Narsingh ghat Railway over-bridge in Freeganj area Lighting contract Acquisition of houses for widening of road A man deported from Saudi Arabia was arrested from Lucknow airport in a joint operation by the UP Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) and Telangana police on Tuesday night. Police said the accused, Abdul Aziz, 54, was wanted in India in a fake passport case. He was presented in the district court on Wednesday and taken to Hyderabad on transit remand the same day. IG (law and order) Bhagwan Swarup said, Aziz was lodged in a prison in Saudi Arabia in a crime case. After completing an eight-year jail term, he was deported to India by the Saudi Arabian government. He was arrested from Lucknows Chaudhary Charan Singh airport soon after he landed there from Jeddah. A resident of Hyderabad, Aziz was influenced by some radical groups and had gone to Bosnia and Chechnya allegedly to join a terrorist group in early 1990. However, he returned to Hyderabad after a few months and was arrested in a fake passport case there. An FIR under sections 120B, 153 A, 379, 420, 468 of the Indian Penal Code and sections of the Arms Act, Explosive Act and Passport Act was registered against him at the local police station in 2001. However, Aziz jumped bail and escaped to Saudi Arabia in 2003, where he was arrested in a crime case and put behind bars. The Saudi Arabian government deported him to India after his eight year jail term completed and he was arrested immediately after landing at the Lucknow airport, said the IG.Although Aziz is not wanted by the UP police, the ATS is investigating into his role in supplying fake passports to members of various terrorist outfits. Telangana police is also investigating into his links with terrorists groups active in India and abroad. Visaaranai Director: Vetrimaaran Cast: Dinesh, Murugadoss, Kishore, Samuthirakani Rating: 4/5 National Award-winning Tamil film Visaaranai, directed by filmmaker Vetrimaaran, will be Indias official entry to the Oscars in 2017. It will feature in the Foreign Language Film category. Here is the films review which was first published on February 05, 2016. Films about police brutality have been a hit with the masses, harassed and humiliated as they are by the men in khaki. And this was one important reason why a movie like Mohanlal starrer Drishyam in Malayalam and its Tamil remake, Kamal Haasan starrer Papanasam were applauded and appreciated. I saw how an essentially Tamil audience went into raptures every time Mohanlals character outwitted the cops. Vetrimaarans Visaaranai, coming as it does in a climate such as this, is bound to strike a chord with the ticket-paying public. Premiered at last years Venice Film Festival, Visaaranai or Interrogation is a power-packed work about police high-handedness on four hapless Tamil daily-wage earning labourers who have made the neighbouring state of Andhra Pradesh their home. In fact, they do not even have a hut, a makeshift tent in a public park serving as one. Read: Surrendered myself to Vetrimaaran for Visaaranai, says actor Dinesh Visaaranai (Interrogation) is a power-packed work about police high-handedness on four hapless Tamil daily-wage earning labourers who have made the neighbouring state of Andhra Pradesh their home. (Nikkilcinema) Based on the true and horrific experience of a Coimbatore-based autorickshaw driver, M Chandra Kumar -- who wrote a book, Lock Up, narrating his nightmarish 13 days in a small prison cell in Andhra Pradesh -- Visaaranai veers though a bit in its plot. Read: Vetrimaarans Visaaranai takes a brutal look at police atrocity A still from Visaaranai, a film produced by popular actor Dhanush and Vetrimaaran. (Dhanush & Vetrimaaran) While Kumar was never told what his crime was, Pandi (Dinesh) in the film and his other friends -- who are picked up the police one morning outside the provision store in Nellore where they work-- are forced to confess to a theft they did not commit. There are gruesomely bloody scenes of custodial torture, which the cops have to resort to, because they are under pressure to solve a robbery case in a high-ranking bureaucrats house. Finally, the four confess to the crime, and in the meantime, a special police force from Tamil Nadu, led by Murugavel (Samuthirakani), arrives at the Nellore police station. Read: Vetrimaarans Visaaranai bowls over audience at Mumbai fest There are gruesomely bloody scenes of custodial torture, which the cops have to resort to, because they are under pressure to solve a robbery case in a high-ranking bureaucrats house. (Nikkilcinema) Being a Tamil, Murugavel empathises with the four workers and takes them back to Tamil Nadu -- where unfortunately they get trapped in a web of intrigue spun by corrupt policemen and politicians. Watch Visaaranai trailer here: Set to fine unobtrusive music by GV Prakash, the Indian version of Visaaranai at 117 minutes is slightly longer than what was screened at Venice, 108 minutes. With razor-sharp dialogues, neat direction and wonderfully realistic performances (Samuthirakani and Dinesh in particular), Visaaranai is packed with bruised bodies bloodied with the baton and other forms of terrifying third-degree methods. Yes, this is reality at its harshest best, and Vetrimaarans work may not be suitable for a popcorn-munching, Coke-sipping audience used to colour and gloss, song and dance. But for a serious viewer of cinema, Visaaranai is a great work whose imagery will provoke him or her to mull over all that is seriously wrong with our country. ott:10:ht-entertainment_listing-desktop In a mammoth exercise, the government plans to measure the head circumference of every child born in the country to find out if there is any sudden rise of microcephaly a birth defect that causes abnormally small heads in newborns and is a symptom of Zika virus. Senior government officials said the current Mother and Child Health Tracking system may be enhanced to allow recording of microcephaly cases. We are still discussing it, said a senior health official from union ministry of health and family welfare. Read more: Worried about Zika? Heres how you can avoid the virus The tracking system allows the health department to monitor the number of pregnant women in the country and the pregnancy outcomes along with immunisation status of the child. The governments plan to watch out for microcephaly cases came a day after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared Zika to be a public health emergency of international concern. Currently, 23 countries have reported Zika transmission with most cases of Zika linked microcephaly cases reported in Brazil. WHO had said earlier that Zika virus is likely to reach countries that have aedes aegypti mosquitos breeding. Indian cities and villages are breeding grounds for the species which is responsible for dengue spread. Last year, more than 90,000 dengue cases were reported in India indicating the huge breeding of aedes species which also transmits Zika. A child who is born with a head circumference measuring less than 31.5-32 cm at birth is classified as a microcephaly case. A smaller head size restricts the growth of brain, leading to mental retardation. While the incidence rate of microcephaly in India is not known, the genetic disorder is seen in populations where there is marriage between close relatives. On Thursday, the state health ministry had a high-level meeting to discuss the preparedness. We will have to monitor every case of fever as Zika virus infection is known to cause mild fever, joint pain and conjunctivitis, said Dr Mini Khetarpal, chief of epidemiology, BMC. However in pregnant women, doctors suspect that Zika infection can cause microcephaly. The only way we could trace Zika infection in India is by identifying any sudden spurt in cases of microcephaly. For this, an active surveillance is needed which can be done by measuring heads of every child born, said Dr Pradeep Awate from Maharashtra health department. Apart from increasing surveillance, the health department has also asked states to increase vector control activities by reducing breeding grounds of the aedes aegypti mosquito. The National Institute of Virology and the NCDC laboratory in Delhi are equipped to test blood samples for any person suspected of having the infection. Mumbais Kasturba Hospital laboratory personnel will be trained by NIV to do the tests in the coming days. A Jet Airways crew member was arrested by a team from the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) at the Mumbai international airport early on Thursday after he was found to be carrying $3,90,000 (about Rs2.64 crore) in undeclared cash. According to a source, Rislie Agat, a crew member on Jet Airways flight 9W076 from Mumbai to Hong Kong, was carrying the cash in his check-in baggage. Agat was on duty when he was intercepted. The currency was concealed in five leather diary covers. He was intercepted at the customs counter after he had filled in his customs declaration form, in which he did not mention the foreign currency, said the source. Agat was arrested around 12.45am under relevant sections of the Customs Act. The flight to Hong Kong was scheduled to take off at 2.05am. We are investigating if he has done this in the past and if other people are involved, said an officer, who did not wish to be named. DRI officials are also trying to determine the source of the cash and the reason Agat was carrying it. An officer, who did not wish to be identified, said, Many airlines bar crew members from carrying currency apart from the allowance they are paid. One has to declare foreign currency at the customs counter and produce a receipt to show it has been bought from an authorised agent. There is no limit how much currency can be carried, but it has to be declared. Jet Airways said it is cooperating with the authorities. A spokesperson said, Jet Airways has a zero-tolerance policy towards actions of employees that contravene local or international laws. This is clearly stipulated in employee contracts and reinforced in training sessions. We take all necessary disciplinary action in accordance with company policy and procedures. Although the decision of governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao to sanction prosecution against state Congress president Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh scam spells trouble for the former CM, there will be a long legal battle before the CBI convicts him, if at all, in the case. Read more: Maharashtra governor sanctions CBI prosecution of ex-CM Ashok Chavan If Chavan is convicted in the case even by the lower court and sentenced to more than a two-year imprisonment, he can be disqualified as an MP and be barred from contesting the 2019 polls. The disqualification can continue for six more years after the acquittal in such a case under the Representation of Peoples Act. This could put the senior Congress leader, one of the two MPs elected from Maharashtra in 2014 polls, out of political reckoning and deal a blow to the party that is relying on Chavans organisational and electoral skills for a comeback. For starters, the governors sanction revising the stance taken by his predecessor K Sankaranarayanan in 2013 will have to stand legal scrutiny. Chavan, who has termed the sanction political vendetta and targeted the government for using the CBI for politics, said he will move court challenging the decision. Legal opinion is divided on whether revising the sanction by treating the two-member Adarsh committee report as fresh evidence is tenable. A former advocate general told HT that revising the sanction of the governor, a constitutional authority, sets a bad precedent, as there is nothing to stop revising of sanctions every time a new government comes to power. The commission report by itself cannot be considered as fresh evidence. It is recommendatory in nature, limited by the Commission of Inquiry Act, and was also rejected by the then government. The Srikrishna Commission report, for instance, was reopened after an injunction from the apex court. However, if the CBI can show new evidence by way of investigations on the basis of the report, the sanction can be considered valid, he said. Its a long shot to get Chavan convicted under the existing IPC sections. Applying Prevention of Corruption Act will be of use to prove quid pro quo. Lets see if the CBI can produce tangible fresh evidence, said a former IPS officer-turned-lawyer and activist, who has been at the forefront of exposing the scam. He said charging Chavan under the PCA would need the Lok Sabha speakers sanction, as he is a sitting MP. The main sticking points in the states recommendation to prosecute Chavan are the CBIs flip-flops in the case. The CBI, in January 2014, decided against reviewing the governors decision on grounds that it did not have fresh evidence to make such a plea. By January 2014, the Adarsh commission report was in public domain. Despite this, in March 2014, the CBI moved the HC, seeking to drop Chavans name from the charge sheet on the basis of former governors refusal. The change in CBIs stance first came in April 2015, after the new government came to power. BJP MP Kirit Somaiyas letters to the state, governor and CBI in March 2015 are being viewed as instrumental in it. It was Somaiya, who first charged the CBI for ignoring the commission report. The review application came in October 2015. However, the state is convinced it has a strong case. We were told by the advocate general the commission report and the HC ruling in 2014 that refused to drop Chavans name in the scam are sufficient to seek review of the sanction. The governor independently sought AGs opinion, said a BJP minister. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON India has been boasting of its unique ties with Africa, and rightly so. Since the first India-Africa summit in 2008, the country has committed billions in concessional credit and grants, aside from boosting ties with Africa over education, infrastructure development, public transport, clean energy, agriculture and more. Last year, the Barkatullah University in Madhya Pradesh conferred an M. Tech degree on Somalias president Hassan Sheikh Mohamud in a special ceremony, 27 years after he passed out of the institution. Nostalgia plays a vital part in strengthening ties between countries. But there is no nostalgia if despicable incidents shape ones memories. Incidents like the stripping of a Tanzanian girl and torching of her car, which smacks of both mob rule and racism, can poison the root of such goodwill. Not so long ago, Africans were targeted in Delhi and Goa. There is plenty at stake political and strategic -- if relations begin to sour. India has a fair amount to offer. Its the source of more than 80 percent of the drugs to fight AIDS in African countries. A large number of African students find it attractive to study in India, many of them on government scholarships. For education in English medium, India offers reasonably good quality education at a fraction of the price at American universities. A comment from Tanzanian president Jakaya Kikwete to former PM Manmohan Singh four years ago neatly encapsulated the challenge and the opportunity for India in Africa. The Chinese might build hospital buildings, but we need Indian doctors and nurses to serve there, quipped Kikwete after his meeting with Singh, who was visiting the east African country, underscoring how his country wants to tap both Asian rivals for its many needs. India has to do things differently in Africa. And helping Africa in capacity building has remained a crucial aspect of this strategy. Ensuring the goodwill of Africans is something India cannot do away with in succeeding in this objective. Keying into this, PM Modi had told officials who were briefing him about last years summit to always factor in the role African students in India will play in boosting ties. And then there was the fairly large credit India offered in grants and scholarships. To add strength to our partnership, India will offer concessional credit of $10 billion over the next five years. This will be in addition to our ongoing credit programme. We will also offer a grant assistance of $600 million. This will include an India-Africa Development Fund of $100 million and an India-Africa Health Fund of $10 million. It will also include 50,000 scholarships in India over the next five years, Modi said while addressing leaders from the 54 African countries at the summit. However, India cannot match China in terms of money power; the Chinese will swamp the continent with $100 billion in investments by 2020. Nor can it match the US in terms of the superpower clout it wields. But that is not the end of the story. The country has already overtaken the United States as the largest trading partner of Nigeria, Africas most populous country and one of the largest oil producers in the world. With oil prices falling and political instability rearing its head in west Asia, it makes immediate business sense to switch to spot purchases of African oil from long-term contracts with suppliers in the Arab world. Needless to say, it also makes strategic sense to invest in the energy sector in Africa, which now supplies 17 per cent of Indias total oil imports. Also, African countries could be partners in Modis ambitious plans for a solar energy revolution. Many Indian companies have subsidiaries in Africa, and have settled in with an ease thats the envy of Western rivals. Africa offers an attractive demographic dividend Kikwetes Tanzania, for example, has nearly half of its population in the 18-45 age group. By 2020, Africa will have some 226 million people between 14 and 25. Many business leaders, executive chairman of Alphabet Eric Schmidt among them, speak of the continents youth as its hope. Also Read | Tanzanian woman was not stripped, attack not racist: Karnataka min Inevitably, what India does in and for Africa will be compared with what China does. Beijing is aiming for a trade volume of $400 billion in the next five years. Indias trade is projected to be a relatively modest $90 billion this year. Winning their hearts and minds will be key in meeting these strategic objectives. But for that, we the people need to behave first. Also Read | Bengaluru police ask Tanzanian woman to switch off phone, not comment Also Read | Shameful, inhumane: Bollywood reacts to attack on Tanzanian woman (The writer tweets @jayanthjacob) SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Four days after he was admitted to the Fortis Hospital in SAS Nagar, Gurdas Singh Badal, father of Congress leader and former Punjab minister Manpreet Singh Badal and the younger brother of Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal, was discharged from the hospital on Thursday after doctors declared him fit. Manpreet Badal said, We are extremely grateful to the doctors, nurses and support staff of Fortis Hospital, SAS Nagar, for their excellent care during the treatment of my father. Everybody contributed to his smooth recovery. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Members of some Hindu organisations entered into a scuffle with security men at Pavilion Mall at Old Session Chowk here during their protest against the Bollywood flick Mastizaade on Wednesday afternoon. The members were trying to enter the mall. Meanwhile, heavy police force was deployed at the spot. The police pacified the protestors and the show of the movie - which stars adult entertainer-turned-Bollywood actor Sunny Leone, was cancelled. A sex comedy, the movie is directed by Milap Zaveri and produced by Pritish Nandy among others. It stars Leone in a dual role while Tusshar Kapoor and Vir Das are in the other in lead roles. Riteish Deshmukh too appears in a cameo Varun Mehta, president of a body named Hindu Takhat, said that they have objection over some scenes in the film, in which a man and woman were shown in indecent gestures in temple and that was intolerable. It hurt the sentiments of the Hindus, he said. Members of a body named Hindu Suraksha Samiti also reached the spot where the movie was being shown and staged protest. They tried to enter the mall, but the security men did not allow that and they got into a mild scuffle. Meanwhile, the police were called. Assistant commissioner of police (ACP) Gurpreet Kaur Purewal reached the spot with police force and intervened. The ACP pacified the protesters following which the show was cancelled. The Hindu organisations also demanded a criminal case against the producer, director and actors of the movie for hurting sentiments.The others who took part in the protest were Hindu Suraksha Samiti Punjab convener Bubby Tank, president Deepak Bhardwaj, Deepak Sachdeva, Chirag Thapar, Rajat Bhardwaj, Vipan Karwal, Chand Mal, Ram Kumar, Sunny Sahota. This is not the first time Sunny has run into some trouble in Ludhiana. In September last, the police had talked of summoning her and a condom manufacturing company over a TV commercial following a complaint of an NGO Raksha Jyoti Foundation. The NGO alleged that the TV commercial of a condom manufacturing company in which Sunny Leone is endorsing the brand is vulgar. The NGO has filed a criminal complaint which never turned into an FIR. The matter has since died down. With the aim to provide housing for all and to check mushrooming of unauthorised colonies, the Haryana cabinet on Wednesday approved the implementation of Deen Dayal Jan Awas Yojana. The cabinet also revised the area norms of licensed colonies of medium and low potential zones. These decisions were taken on the basis of recommendations made by a cabinet sub-committee constituted in February 2015 to take a holistic view of area norms for grant of licences for various types of colonies in low and medium potential towns by the town and country planning department. The previous Congress government had also launched an affordable housing policy in 2013 that was only meant for group housing. Modalities The scheme aims at development of high density plotted colonies in low and medium potential towns, wherein small plots are made available through a liberal policy framework. Under the scheme, all such projects will be required to be necessarily completed within seven years from the date of grant of licence. The projects will be allowed in the residential zone of the notified development plans of low and medium potential towns. In any residential sector, not more than 30% of the net planned area under residential zone, inclusive of the 20% area limit allowed for group housing projects, will be allowed for projects under this policy. The minimum and maximum net planned area for such projects will be five acres and 15 acres respectively. Not more than 10% of the licensed area should fall under sector roads. Area Norms A maximum per missible area of a plot will be 150 square metre with maximum floorarea ratio of two and ground coverage of 65%. The coloniser will transfer 10% area of the licensed colony for free to the government for provision of community facilities. The registration of independent floors in plots and stilt parking will be allowed. Allotment of 50% residential plots covering saleable area (excluding 50% area frozen by the department) will be undertaken in the first phase by the licencee or coloniser. A day after calling the house meeting a black day in the history of Jalandhar municipal corporation and murder of democracy in the hands of mayor Sunil Jyoti, senior deputy mayor Kamaljit Singh Bhatia on Wednesday called Jyoti non-cooperative, undemocratic and a dictator. Meanwhile, the mayor termed the absence of Bhatia and opposition councillors from the meeting as irresponsible and sad. This fresh salvo is likely to further strain the relations between the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state. Taking a dig at Bhatia, the mayor said it was sad that the deputy mayor didnt attend the house meeting. He never came to meet me at the time when the union workers were staging a dharna. It is also sad that the deputy mayor of the city didnt attend the house meeting. he said. Bhatia on the other hand held Jyoti responsible for the delay in the meeting due to the dharna. Bhatia said the democracy was also about facing the opposition and be answerable to them. Why will I boycott the house meeting? I am a member of the ruling alliance party. The mayor can hold the meeting at his place if he is not concerned about the views of others. He is non-cooperative, undemocratic and a dictator, said Bhatia. Possibility of hidden agenda Bhatia said there was a possibility that the dhar na by the union workers before the house meeting might be a hidden agenda of Jyoti for avoiding the discussion on various issues affecting the city. The statement was made on the lines of the house meeting held on February 1, which was boycotted by the opposition Congress councillors and also by the senior deputy mayor. A group some of the Congress councillors had even demanded to dissolve the MC house. It must be mentioned that the cold war between the mayor and the senior deputy mayor had reached chief minister Parkash Singh Badal, sometimes ago, who had then asked senior Akali leader Seva Singh Sekhwan to submit him a report on the corruption in the building branch of the municipal corporation, which was raised by Bhatia. Even though the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) are not contesting the February 13 Khadoor Sahib bypoll, Punjab deputy chief minister and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal targeted the two parties while campaigning for party candidate Ravinder Singh Brahmpura here on Wednesday. During rallies at Khadoor Sahib town, Goindwal Sahib, Jamarai, Mundapind and other places, Sukhbir mocked both parties for not fielding candidates for the byelection. On the Congress decision to boycott the bypoll at the eleventh hour, he said the party developed cold feet as it feared that its candidate would fail to save his security deposit. Punjab Congress president Captain Amarinder Singh ran away from the battlefield as he sensed defeat, Sukhbir added. Targeting former Congress MLA from Khadoor Sahib Ramanjit Singh Sikki, who had resigned from the assembly in protest against incidents of sacrilege, the deputy CM asked Sikki to explain why he was a member of a party that was responsible for Operation Bluestar and the anti-Sikh riots. Taking a jibe at AAP leaders, he said they were not aam (common) but khaas (special). Before coming to power in Delhi, AAP promised voters that its MLAs would neither draw salaries nor reside in government houses. But now AAP MLAs are enjoying all comforts, betraying the people who voted them to power, the SAD president claimed. With Khadoor Sahib and its neighbouring areas being a traditional Panthic stronghold, Sukhbir chose to recall the SADs history in his speeches. The party has a golden history of 90-95 years and it is your own party, whose workers have sacrificed a lot for Sikhs as well as Punjab. This is the party which has made the farmers life easy, even as the Congress has never contributed to the welfare of the people and development of the state, he said. Prominent among those who accompanied Sukhbir were Lok Sabha MP Ranjit Singh Brahmpura, former cabinet ministers Sewa Singh Sekhwan and Dr Upinderjit Kaur, and chief parliamentary secretaries NK Sharma and Pawan Kumar Tinu. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Few hours after admitting that three more doctors associated with the National Kidney Hospital were accused in the case and their roles were also under the scanner, the city police booked two of them in the case and later arrested them, here on Tuesday. However, after their formal arrest, the two -- Dr Suman Mittal, who is co-partner in ownership of the hospital and her husband nephrologist Dr Sanjay Mittal -- were granted bail on Tuesday late night. Deputy commissioner of police (DCP) Sandeep Kumar Sharma, the head of special investig ation team ( SIT), entrusted to probe the racket, confirmed the development and said they were released on bails as per the courts orders after being formally arrest. He said the SIT was yet to decide on the next date of questioning the couple. He also said the SIT would soon issue summons to the third doctor, Dr Puneet Grover, to record his statement in the case. On Tuesday, DCP along with other members of SIT, comprising ADCP (headquarters) Alka Meena, ADCP-1 J Elanchezhian, ADCP-2 Amrik Singh Powar and station house officer (SHO) Navdeep Singh had grilled the Mittal couple and Dr Rajesh Aggarwal. Dr Rajesh Aggarwal has not submitted all the documents sought by the SIT and has asked for two more days for to do the same, said DCP Sharma, adding that Dr Aggarwal was questioned regarding the Lucknow kidney scam as well. A local court had granted interim bail to Dr Sanjay Mittal and Dr Suman Mittal on January 30. The doctor couple of Sat Kartar Nagar locality had filed the bail application in the court on January 19 and the first hearing was held on January 28. The kidney racket was busted by the Jalandhar police on July 31, last year, in which the name of National Kidney Hospital near BMC Chowk had cropped up. Six transplant surgeries had come under scanner after the arrest of kingpin Junaid Ahmed Khan. Police have managed to get some vital clues in the January 29 double murder that had sent shockwaves in Ludhiana. Police sources said before city-based doctor Rakesh Aggarwals wife and mother were brutally murdered by unidentified killers at Sher-e-Punjab Colony on Barewal roadin Ludhiana, their domestic help had called up the police control room. Police sources said the help, identified as Pooja, called up PCR around 1 pm and told cops about the murders. The autopsy report reveals that the two women were killed between 1.30 pm and 2 pm. Also, it was Pooja who called up relatives of Dr Aggarwal and told them about the killings. Police suspect Poojas involvement in the crime. They are trying to ascertain why Pooja called up PCR before the crime took place. Also, they say Pooja had access to the house and was aware about family members routine. Police said they had detained Pooja for questioning but had to release her following protests by slum dwellers, who accused cops of harassment. Police have also grilled a driver, who was sacked by the family some months ago. Punjab Agricultural University police station in charge sub-inspector Surinder Chopra said the investigation is on in the case. The deceased were grandmother and aunt of Ola Cabs CEO Bhavish Aggarwal. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON As some right-wing Hindu organisations protested against Sunny Leones latest sex comedy, Mastizaade, in Ludhiana, it brought back memories of another complaint against her in the same city some months ago. In mid-September last, the Ludhiana police had talked of summoning the adult entertainer-turned-Bollywood actress, and a condom manufacturing company, over a TV commercial deemed vulgar by a local NGO. NGO Raksha Jyoti Foundation had filed a criminal complaint with police commissioner Paramraj Singh Umranangal. The police commissioner had marked an inquiry to an assistant commissioner of police, but the matter soon died down. Investigating in the matter, the ACP had reportedly summoned the actress, the company and the advertiser to record their statements with the police, but they did not appear. Ashwin Behal, who called himself national president of the NGO, had said that most of the media sources were promoting nudity and obscenity through their commercials these days which is very concerning for our society. Families feel ashamed and embarrassed when these advertisements pop up suddenly on television, he had complained, and added, The probability of young children engaging in sexual activities detrimental to them increases manifold after viewing uncensored advertisements displaying and promoting sex. Meanwhile, a show of Mastizaade , also starring Tusshar Kapoor and Vir Das, had to be cancelled on Thursday due to the protest. In a suspected case of honour killing, a 28-yearold married woman was found murdered in the motor room of a tubewell, while the body of her 30-year-old lover was found hanging from a tree near the motor room at Jalalabad village of Dharamkot on Wednesday. The deceased have been identified as Kulwant Kaur alias Kanto alias Khushi, 28, working for an orchestra, and Amarjit Singh, 30, a panchayat member, both residents of Jalalabad village. Kulwant Kaur is survived by her husband Jaspreet Singh and 5-year-old son Harmandeep Singh while Amarjit was unmarried. People close to Amarjit, seeking anonymity, said that Amarjit was having an affair with Kulwant Kaur for the past four-five years and the latter was living separately from her husband Jaspreet for the past more than two years after her extramarital affair came to light. They claimed that even their families knew about their affair. Moreover, Kulwant Kaur and Jaspreet Singh were planning for a divorce. Kulwant, who had recently returned from Dubai after a year, was living with her mother, two sisters and younger brother in Jalalabad village while her father, along with his elder son, was living separately in the same village. Cops said that somebody had used a hoe to attack the womans head. The hoe was recovered from the spot of the crime. Jaswinder told the police that Kulwant left home on Tuesday afternoon informing family members that she was going to Ludhiana for passport-related work and will return by night. It is a mysterious case for the police and they may get some information after post-mortem of bodies, DSP Gurmel Singh said. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON After being tormented by the terrorist attacks on the Pathankot airbase and Dinanagar police station, people of these border towns are once again in a grip of fear, as unwanted phone calls from Pakistan have spread panic among the locals living in Pathankot and Dinanagar. Fearing harassment by the police authorities in case they respond to such calls from across the border, people are keeping these calls under wraps. Meanwhile, they want the police and the administration to take action against these unwanted calls, as after the recent terror attacks, the frequency of such calls has been on the rise. Naval Kumar, a resident of Pathankot, told HT that on Thursday morning he got a call from a number starting with +92, which is the code of Pakistan, but he did not pick up the call that kept on ringing for a long time. Deepak Kumar, a resident from Dinanagar, also claimed that he got a call from a number starting with country code +92, which he left unattended. It may be mentioned here that during the terror attack on the Pathankot airbase, a call from Pakistan had come on the phone of a Dhaki Road girl, who was soon brought before the air force authorities, as Dhaki Road joins its boundaries with the air force station. Meanwhile, an ISI agent, who was making calls to Pakistan, was also held in the cantonment area on Sunday. Pathankot SSP RK Bakshi, when contacted, said he would request the locals to inform him in case they get calls from Pakistan. He said the locals need not be scared about this and approach the police in this regard. The police have registered a case against an unidentified person for robbing a Reserve Bank of India (RBI) official of Rs 20,000 and jewellery after giving him eatables laced with intoxicant in a Haryana Roadways luxury bus. The incident took place on December 27 when Kishore Kumar Sharma was coming from Delhi to Chandigarh. In his complaint to the police, Sharma said an unknown person approached him at a ticket counter in Delhi and asked him to buy a ticket for him. Sharma said the person was able to get a seat next to him. The person offered juice and some eatables to Sharma after which he fell unconscious. When he regained consciousness at the Sector-17 ISBT in Chandigarh, he found his two debit cards, `20,000, gold and silver rings stolen. The police said Sharma lodged a complaint after some days. An inquiry was conducted after which the police registered a case under Sections 328 and 379 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) at the Sector-17 police station. Past incidents May 1, 2015: Delhi resident Sukhwinder Singh was robbed of a gold bracelet, gold locket, Rs 30,000 and a Samsung Note-III mobile phone after being drugged in a Himachal Road Transport Corporation Roadways Volvo bus when he was coming from Delhi to Chandigarh. The police arrested a Ludhiana resident, Gagandeep Singh, in the case April 25, 2015: Businessman Parminder Singh, a resident of Sector 27, was robbed of a gold bracelet, gold ring, a diamond ring, `8,000, credit cards, debit cards, pan card, driving licence, Samsung Note-III mobile phone after being administered juice laced with sedatives. The incident took place when he was travelling on a Himachal Road Transport Corporation bus from Delhi to Chandigarh March 23, 2015: The Chandigarh police booked an unidentified person for drugging a lecturer of a private college and robbing him of his valuables, when he was travelling from Delhi to Chandigarh in a Volvo bus. The victim, Abhinav Sheoran, a resident of Defence Colony, Jind (Haryana), lost his gold bracelet, two mobile phones, Rs 1,000, driving licence and an ATM card While appointing retired army officers as principals of all nine meritorious schools, the Punjab government has diluted the criteria it had initially framed to select academics to head these schools, a dream project of Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal. Almost a week after the Punjab government gave the nod to the appointment of nine retired army officers as principals, it has come to light that the government did this after it failed to find suitable academics for the post. Officials associated with the project said the state government had decided that individuals having seven years experience as principal of a residential school, along with a postgraduate degree in science or commerce and a B Ed degree, would be eligible for the post. But most aspirants didnt meet the criteria. The government couldnt find eligible candidates even after relaxing the conditions. Finally, it decided in favour of retired army officers. Despite our having given several relaxations, we could not find people qualified for the post. Then, the CM said that ex-servicemen be appointed to the posts. Last year, a person from the education department had qualified and was appointed at the Jalandhar school, project director, residential schools, Punjab, Col KAS Bhullar (retd), said. However, top academics, while criticising the decision, asserted that the government should have preferred ineligible-but-competent and academically sound people over the retired army officers. Sardara Singh Johal, chancellor of Central University of Punjab, Bathinda, said, Educational institutes need experienced educationists. To be a colonel or major is no criterion for being a principal. If you want to establish discipline, it is right; but if you wish to teach students, educationists must be appointed. They can find many qualified and experienced teachers. Manjit Singh Kang, former vice-chancellor, Punjab Agricultural University, said, Meritorious students need meritorious teachers. If all principals are from the military background, it is not a good sign. Such people may be talented but other deserving people could have been appointed principals. Bhupinder Singh Waraich, state president, Democratic Teachers Front, said, When we have so many qualified teachers, there is no need to appoint a retired armyman. Government schools are struggling for infrastructure; the government should concentrate on this. Campaigning in Khadoor Sahib for the assembly bypoll, Punjab deputy chief minister and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Thursday urged the people to elect SAD nominee Ravinder Singh Brahmpura with a record margin of 1 lakh as the poll was a referendum on the policies and working of the SAD-BJP government. Stating that development in rural Punjab happened only during SAD rule, Sukhbir cited free power to the agriculture sector among other schemes. He termed SAD as a party of the people of Punjab and the representative voice of Sikhs worldwide. According to a press release issued by the SAD here, Sukhbir said that in direct contrast the leaders of the AAP party were outsiders and rank opportunists who created anarchy in Delhi. He also urged the people to compare the dichotomy in the statements of AAP head and Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal before and after he came to power. The SAD president also urged the people to stay away from the Congress and its former MLA Ramanjit Sikki who is playing politics over incidents of sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahab. Decrying the AAP and Congress for running away from the contest, he announced that once voted back to power, the SAD-BJP would build concrete streets and drains in all 12,000 villages of the state. Residents of Bawa Colony protested on Thursday outside the municipal corporations (MC) Zone A office by taking off their shirts and pants, demanding regularisation of the colony and registration of an FIR against the builder. They alleged that they were hoodwinked by the builder, who said the colony was authorised. Development charges were paid to the builder, they added. They also accused the MC of not taking any action. The residents alleged that the builder had sold them houses by claiming that the colony is authorised and development charges were paid to the MC. Protesters alleged that the staff of the building branch was hand in gloves with the builder concerned. Before staging the protest, the residents of the Bawa Colony during a press conference at the Circuit House accused the builder of cheating. They alleged that the builder had cheated them. The residents claimed that the builder had constructed around 180 houses at Bawa Colony, Baloke Road, Haibowal in 2003. He had claimed that the colony is authorised and the houses were constructed as per the approved map. The builder had also informed them the development charges were submitted, they claimed. General secretary of Bawa Colony Welfare Society, Rohit Sikka, said, I had filed an RTI application in 2010, while the MC provided some information that the development charges of only few houses were received. In 2011, assistant town planner SS Bindra ordered the demolition drive in the area without issuing any notice. When the residents had staged a protest, municipal town planner Hemant Batra and builder PS Bawa had visited the spot. The builder gave a cheque of `15 lakh and assured the MC to pay the remaining amount. However, the MC officials concerned did not inform us about the paid amount by the builder. Later, we got to know that the cheque given by the builder had bounced, but the MC had not taken any action against the builder, he said. He alleged, When the MC had not provided all required information under the RTI, the matter had reached to state information commission (SIC). The SIC commissioner had also directed the authorities concerned to lodge an FIR against the builder concerned. The residents also raised questions over the role of the assistant town planner (ATP) SS Bindra and other staff regarding this matter. They also claimed that if the houses were being constructed in unauthorised manner, where were the MC officials? ATP Bindra claimed that the case regarding bounced cheque is already pending in the local court. However, he denied allegations of being in cahoots with the builder concerned. He said that he had been transferred and he was not aware about any order to lodge FIR against the builder concerned. The protesters gave a memorandum to additional commissioner Ghanshyam Thori. MC commissioner GK Singh Dhaliwal could not be contacted for comment. A day after Punjab youth president of Shiv Sena Amit Arora was shot at by two motorcycle-borne men, members of Shiv Sena along with other like-minded organisations staged a protest in Ludhiana on Thursday. They gathered outside Christian Medical College and Hospital (CMCH) where Amit Arora has been admitted and held a protest march towards Chaura Bazar, asking shopkeepers to close down their shops. Chairman of Shiv Sena Punjab Rajiv Tandon, said, A few days ago, some terrorist outfits had pasted a threatening letter on the wall of our office. We have lodged a police complaint in this context. On Wednesday, Arora, a hosiery unit owner, had arrived at Basti Jodhewal Chowk from the Jalandhar bypass in his car. He was driving and was apparently waiting for someone when the two motorcycle-borne men fired at him and fled. Read: Shiv Sena youth leader shot at in Ludhiana Angry over her husbands alleged affair, a woman got the car of her neighbour set afire to deter the spouse from infidelity. This is what came out during the investigations into a case where a car was set afire in Sector 26 on January 23. The car belonged to secretary of Mansa Devi Shrine Board, Satyanarayan Verma, who is a relative of the woman with whom the accused woman suspected her husband was having an affair. The police had booked five people, including the woman, in two cases registered in this connection. All five accused were arrested on Tuesday, but they secured bail on Wednesday. The police claimed that Baltana resident Monika had doubted that her husband Ajay Chadha was having an extra-marital affair with a woman relative of Verma. So, she got the car set afire, the police said. The incident The car of Verma was parked outside his house in Sector 26 when some miscreants set it on fire at about 10:30pm. The blaze was controlled, but the car was badly damaged. After some days, Verma received a call from an unknown number and the caller threatened him of explosion. Verma then approached the police. The police put the mobile number on surveillance and identified the caller as Ajay. During interrogation, he confessed to have set the vehicle on fire at the behest of his employer Monika. When Monika was questioned, she said she arranged the arsoning to deter her husband from continuing with an affair with a woman in the neighbourhood. Interestingly, the police have also booked her husband Ajay Chadha in the case. Chadha and his wife Monika are residents of Baltana in Zirakpur and run a gymnasium there. Ajay (not Chadha) had disclosed to the police that he, along with Vikas and Sooraj, had put Vermas car afire. A case was registered at Chandimadir under Section 435 (mischief by fire or explosive substance) of the IPC. In a separate case of making a threatening call, the police have booked Ajay, Chadha and Monika for criminal intimidation under Section 506 of the IPC. Monika doubted that her husband was having an affair with a woman. So, she got the car of that womans relative burnt, said Chandimandir SHO inspector Baljeet Singh. Actor Radhika Apte, who last appeared in Ketan Mehtas Mountain Man, has joined Tamil actor Rajinikanth for the final schedule of upcoming Tamil gangster drama Kabali in Malaysia. Important scenes between Rajinikanth and Radhika, besides some action sequences will be shot in this schedule that will go on for nearly three weeks in Malaysia, said a source from the films unit. Radhika plays Rajinikanths wife in the film, which is being directed by Pa. Ranjith. Read: I have a strong role in Rajinikanths film, says Radhika Apte Kabali, which also features Malaysian actors, is loosely based on real-life don Kabaleeshwaran. Rajinikanth plays an ageing don in the film. Slated to release in May, the film also features Dhanshikaa, Dinesh, Kalaiarasan and Ritwika in important roles. ott:10:ht-entertainment_listing-desktop Tamil drama Visaaranai has got the thumbs up from the superstar himself -- Rajinikanth says the film will be one of the best films in world cinema. I have never seen a movie like Visaaranai in Tamil. This will be one of the best movies in world cinema, Rajinikanth posted on his Twitter page. The actor is currently shooting for his film Kabali. Inspired from real events, the film is based on a Tamil novel called Lock Up, and deals with police brutality and abuse of power. The book was penned by M Chandrakumar, who was an auto-rickshaw driver. Read: Rajinikanth, Radhika Apte in Malaysia for Kabalis final shoot The film, which is jointly produced by Vetrimaaran and Dhanush, releases in cinemas on Friday. It stars Dinesh, Samuthirakani, Kishore and Murugadoss in important roles. Directed by National Award winning filmmaker Vetrimaaran, the film had its world premiere at Venice International Film Festival last year. ott:10:ht-entertainment_listing-desktop World leaders pledged billions of dollars Thursday to help conflict-hit Syrians, at a London conference overshadowed by the collapse of peace talks in Geneva. The European Union, Germany, Britain and the United States were among those making major donations to areas including food aid, education and allowing Syrians displaced from their homeland to find work. But hopes that the package could make a major difference inside Syria were weighed down by the suspension Wednesday of peace talks in Geneva until February 25. The decision came as Syrian President Bashar al-Assads forces, supported by Russian air strikes, stepped up their offensive near the major northern city of Aleppo, forcing nearly 40,000 civilians to flee. Neighbouring countries including Jordan and Lebanon told the conference of their struggle to deal with the influx of millions of Syrians and urged nations at the conference to do more to help them. The mood among many leaders was bleak, reflecting frustration at the halt Wednesday of the so-called proximity talks in Geneva which were seen as the best hope for peace since the conflict erupted in March 2011. Reduced to eating grass After five years of fighting, its pretty incredible that as we come here in London, the situation on the ground is actually worse, not better, US Secretary of State John Kerry said. If people are reduced to eating grass and leaves and killing stray animals in order to survive, thats something that should tear at the conscience of all civilised people, he added. Among the biggest donors were the EU and its member states, which pledged more than three billion euros this year. Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose open-door policy for refugees has proved deeply controversial in Germany, offered 2.3 billion euros ($2.6 billion) by 2018. Britain announced 1.2 billion (1.6 million euros, $1.74 billion) and the United States $890 million. British Prime Minister David Cameron, who is co-hosting the conference, said a new approach was needed to address one of the worst humanitarian crises of our time. His government, which has agreed to take 20,000 Syrian refugees by 2020, argues that those displaced are best helped close to home and wants to support neighbouring countries in doing so. Empathy and courage Some 4.6 million Syrians have fled to nearby countries -- Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey, Iraq and Egypt -- while hundreds of thousands have journeyed to Europe. Jordans King Abdullah II said that one in five people living in his country was now a refugee and that it had reached our limit. Lebanons Prime Minister Tammam Salam called for empathy and courage. The United Nations is appealing for nearly $8 billion, while regional governments are seeking an extra $1.2 billion. Organisers have already agreed that participants should at least double their contributions from 2015, when they raised $3.3 billion. Among those drumming up donations was Pakistani Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, who is campaigning for $1.4 billion of donations to help educate children inside Syria and in refugee camps. The key thing about the future of Syria is the education of the Syrian refugee children and that is how we can ensure the future is strong, the 18-year-old said. Representatives of Syrian charities attending the event noted that many more colleagues had been unable to make it as they had not been granted visas. During one session, Rouba Mhaissen, founder of Sawa For Development And Aid, asked how many Syrians were in the room -- and only two people put their hands up. Fadi Hallisso, co-founder of Basmeh and Zeitooneh (Smile and Olive) which works with refugees in Turkey and Lebanon, stressed the importance of protecting Syrians as a priority. We are at the beginning of the right track but we have to watch to see that countries are committing to what they have pledged, he told AFP. But he added that he was not over-optimistic either because what is the point of constructing a school if it is bombarded? Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has said he will turn himself over to the police on Friday if a UN panel rules he has not been unlawfully detained. Australian national Assange was originally arrested in London in 2010 under a European Arrest Warrant issued by Sweden over a sexual assault claim he denies. He was granted asylum by Ecuador and entered the countrys embassy in London after the British Supreme Court ruled the extradition against him could go ahead, BBC reported. In 2014 he complained to the UN that he was being arbitrarily detained. On Twitter, Assange said he would accept a decision against him but hoped to walk free if it went in his favour. Assange: I will accept arrest by British police on Friday if UN rules against me. More info: https://t.co/Mb6gXlz7QS pic.twitter.com/mffVsqKj5w WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) February 4, 2016 Assange: I will accept arrest by British police on Friday if UN rules against me. More info: https://t.co/Mb6gXlz7QS pic.twitter.com/mffVsqKj5w WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) February 4, 2016 However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me, he added. Last October, Scotland Yard said it would no longer station officers outside the Ecuador embassy following an operation which had cost it 12 million pounds ($17 million). But it said a number of overt and covert tactics to arrest him would be deployed to arrest Assange. In December 2015, Swedish officials said they were optimistic about reaching an agreement with Ecuador which could pave the way for the questioning of Assange in London. Wikileaks posted secret American government documents on the internet and Assange said he believes Washington will seek his transfer to the US if he is sent to Sweden. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said he hoped a UN panels decision expected on Friday could lead to the end of his self-imposed confinement in the Ecuadorean embassy in London over a rape allegation in Sweden. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (UNWGAD) is expected to declare that his three-and-a-half years stuck in a cramped embassy office amount to illegal detention, the Swedish foreign ministry and Assanges lawyers said on Thursday. Assange, an Australian national who has been holed up at the embassy since June 2012 to avoid arrest, said he expects the British police to call off their attempts to detain him if the panel rules in his favour. Should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me, Assange said in a statement. But Swedens prosecution authority said the ruling had no impact on its investigation into a 2010 rape allegation against him, and the British government said it would have to arrest him as long as a European arrest warrant was in force. The ruling comes after WikiLeaks filed a complaint against Sweden and Britain to the UN group in September 2014, claiming his confinement in the embassy was unlawful. The Swedish foreign ministry said the government had received a copy of the panels conclusions. We can only note that the working panel has come to another conclusion than Swedish judicial authorities, a ministry spokesperson told AFP. Supporters rally Assange founded anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks in 2006, and its activities -- including the release of 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and 250,000 diplomatic cables -- have infuriated the United States. The main source of the leaks, US Army soldier Chelsea Manning, was sentenced to 35 years in prison for breaches of the Espionage Act. The UN groups report is due to be published at 0800 GMT. Assanges legal team will hold a press conference in London at which the 44-year-old himself will be present on Friday at 1200 GMT, WikiLeaks said in a statement, which did not detail if he would take part via video-link. Christophe Marchand, one of his lawyers from the Brussels-based law firm Jus Cogens, told AFP he hoped Britain would endeavour to free Assange after the ruling. Read | Assange continues to face arrest despite UN decision As news of the latest development filtered through, British fashion designer Vivienne Westwood visited Assange at the embassy in Londons elite Knightsbridge district. A small group of supporters also gathered outside the building, holding up protesters reading: Free Assange and The Truth Must Never Be Silenced. Rulings by the UN group are not legally binding, although the Justice for Assange support group claimed its rulings have influenced the release of prominent figures including Myanmars Aung San Suu Kyi and former Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed. Swedish prosecutors said on Thursday the panels ruling has no formal significance for the ongoing investigation under Swedish law. They are keen to make headway in the case that has been deadlocked for nearly five years by questioning Assange. A demonstrator holds a banner outside the Ecuadorean Embassy in London, where Wikileaks founder Julian Assange is staying. (AP Photo) He has denied the allegations against him. Fears of US extradition Assange sought refuge in the embassy in June 2012 to avoid arrest and extradition to Sweden, amid fears he could eventually be extradited to the US to be tried over the publication of the classified military and diplomatic documents. Ecuador has granted him asylum, but he has faced immediate arrest if he steps onto British soil and for years police were posted around the clock outside at a cost of millions of pounds. In October last year, British police ended the 24-hour guard outside the embassy but said they would strengthen a covert plan to prevent his departure. The British government said it was still under an obligation to arrest him. We have been consistently clear that Mr Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the UK but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest, a spokesperson said. An allegation of rape is still outstanding and a European Arrest Warrant in place, so the UK continues to have a legal obligation to extradite Mr Assange to Sweden. Read | UN rules in favour of Julian Assange over unlawful detention As Afghanistan pushes ahead with the slow, tortuous process of trying to engage with the Taliban, CEO Abdullah Abdullah believes Pakistan holds the key to a successful outcome. After all, Taliban leaders and some groups are based in Pakistan as the fighting continues and Afghanistan tries to convince all stakeholders that terrorism and radicalisation will not serve the interests of all countries in the region, he said. Pakistan is the country which can do the most in terms of influencing the Talibans attitude, I think Pakistan has the most influence, Abdullah said during an interaction with a group of journalists. Though there is no country that can control the attitude of every single Taliban fighter, in the overall picture, Pakistan is the country which has most influence. Days ahead of the next meeting in Islamabad of the quadrilateral process involving Afghan, Chinese, Pakistan and US officials, Abdullah said the main obstacle to the nascent peace process is that the Taliban have given no indication that they will renounce violence, sever links with terror groups and become part of the political set-up. Besides, the Taliban were more divided than ever following the revelation last year that their supreme leader Mullah Omar had died in 2013. The process had been further complicated by the emergence of the Daesh or Islamic State and its rivalry with the Taliban, the 55-year-old Abdullah said. Afghan boy Hizbullah, 10, walks as he looks for customers to buy his balloons on the streets of Mazar-i-Sharif on February 3. (AFP) We are keen to pursue the peace process, he said. But the complexities were evident because the Taliban launched a war for two years in the name of Mullah Omar and Taliban representatives made contacts with the government in his name even though the supreme leader had been dead during this period, Abdullah pointed out. After the news of Mullah Omars death became public, there had been no further contacts with the Taliban and the quadrilateral process is now working on a roadmap to take things forward. Abdullah was quick to dismiss any suggestion that India was in the dark about the peace process simply because it had no formal role in it. He said there were other forums, such as the 6+1 group on Afghanistan, that help Kabul keep New Delhi appraised of all developments. Describing India as a strategic partner, he said: India is a trusted friend who has stayed together with us and contributed to the well-being of millions of Afghans. He added: Indias position is that the process must be Afghan-led and Afghan-owned and India is fully in the picture...I dont think there is a desire to keep any country out (of the process). Abdullah praised Indias role in development and infrastructure projects, such as the construction of hospitals, the Salma Dam, the new parliament building and the push to connect Afghanistan with Irans Chahbahar port, and made a special note of New Delhis recent decision to provide four Mi-35 gunship helicopters. Abdullah refused to comment on reports of a link between the near-simultaneous attacks on the Pathankot airbase and the Indian consulate at Mazar-e-Sharif and Pakistans accusation that Pakistani Taliban fighters operate from Afghan soil but said: We know whats happening, we have suffered for years because of the activities of groups which we know where they are based. The issue is that there are enough lessons for all of us. There is one big lesson that these terrorist groups, regardless of who created them, who helped or supported them, (they) will turn against the states. SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON Saudi Arabian Airlines (Saudia), said a bomb scare that grounded its Riyadh-bound flight from Madrid on Thursday was a false alarm. Its just another hoax that all airlines are subjected to, a Saudia spokesperson told Reuters when asked about the incident. Its false but we must do all the necessary precautionary formalities. Saudias flight SVA 226 returned to Madrids Barajas airport after an alert was raised over a bomb threat, the interior minister Jose Fernandez Diaz said. A general alarm was raised at Spanish international airport Barajas with all passengers and crew evacuated from the plane and Saudias aircraft isolated at the airport. Spain said on Thursday that a pregnant woman who had returned from Colombia had been diagnosed with the Zika virus, in the first such known European case. One of the patients diagnosed in (the northeastern region of) Catalonia is a pregnant woman, who showed symptoms after having travelled to Colombia, the health ministry announced, adding she is one of seven cases in Spain and all are in good condition. The mosquito-borne virus -- thought to cause birth defects -- has seen an outbreak in the Americas and health authorities have warned it could infect up to four million people on the continent and spread worldwide. The disease starts with a mosquito bite and normally causes little more than a fever and rash. But since October, Brazil has reported 404 confirmed cases of microcephaly where the babys head is abnormally small -- up from 147 in 2014 -- plus 3,670 suspected cases. The timing has fuelled strong suspicions that Zika is causing the birth defect. The virus has also been linked to a potentially paralysing nerve disorder called Guillain-Barre syndrome in some patients. Spains health ministry nevertheless sought to ease concerns, pointing out that all seven patients had caught the disease abroad. Up to now, the diagnosed cases of Zika virus in Spain... dont risk spreading the virus in our country as they are imported cases, it said. So far in Europe, all those diagnosed with the disease caught it while travelling abroad, and none of them were pregnant -- until now. The news comes a day after South American health ministers held an emergency meeting in Uruguay on the disease. The meeting focused on ways to control the mosquito population spreading the virus, though reports of a US patient catching the disease by having sex fuelled fears that it will not be easy to contain. Brazil said it was sending more than 500,000 personnel out to clean up mosquito breeding grounds and advise people about the disease. The World Health Organization has declared the spike in serious birth defects an international emergency and launched a global Zika response unit. Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Jamaica and the US territory of Puerto Rico have all warned women not to get pregnant. There is no specific treatment for Zika, and several pharmaceutical companies are developing vaccines against it. Indian drugs company Bharat Biotech, for instance, said it was developing the worlds first Zika vaccine and was ready to test it on animals. French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi has also begun researching a vaccine. A United Nations panel has ruled that Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has been arbitrarily detained, the BBC reported on Thursday. No comment was immediately available from the United Nations in Geneva, where the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has been considering a request by Assange for a ruling. Assange, 44, is wanted in Sweden for questioning over allegations of rape in 2010, which he denies. He took refuge in the Ecuadorian embassy in London in June 2012 to avoid extradition. Earlier on Thursday, Assange has said he will turn himself over to British police on Friday if a UN panel rules he has not been arbitrarily detained, after spending more than three years in the Ecuadorian embassy in London. Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal, he said in a statement Thursday. The police said they would arrest him if he exited the embassy. However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me. Assange: I will accept arrest by British police on Friday if UN rules against me. More info: https://t.co/Mb6gXlz7QS pic.twitter.com/mffVsqKj5w WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) February 4, 2016 Assange founded Wikileaks in 2006, and its activities including the release of 500,000 secret military files on the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and 250,000 diplomatic cables have infuriated the United States. The main source of the leaks, US Army soldier Chelsea Manning, was sentenced to 35 years in prison for breaches of the Espionage Act. WikiLeaks has said Swedens handling of his case has left a black stain on the countrys human rights record. In September 2014, Assange filed a complaint against Sweden and Britain to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention claiming his confinement in the embassy amounts to illegal detention. The only protection he has... is to stay in the confines of the embassy; the only way for Mr Assange to enjoy his right to asylum is to be in detention, the submission said. This is not a legally acceptable choice, it added, according to a file posted on the website justice4assange.com. Read | Assange says will accept arrest if UN panel rules against him A senior al Qaeda operative in Yemen with a $5 million US bounty on his head was killed Thursday in one of two suspected American drone strikes in the war-torn country. Jalal Belaidi, alias Abu Hamza, a top commander of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), was killed along with two guards when their vehicle was hit in the Maraqesha area of Abyan province, a relative said. A tribal source also confirmed the death of Belaidi following contact with AQAP militants in the area. The United States is the only country known to operate armed drones over Yemen, home to AQAP, considered by Washington as the jihadist groups most dangerous affiliate. The US State Department said Belaidi was a regional AQAP emir, responsible for multiple provinces in Yemen. It offered a $5-million reward for information on Belaidi over his alleged involvement in plotting bomb attacks on Western diplomatic officials and facilities in the capital Sanaa in 2013. Born in Abyan, Belaidi served in the past as the leader of al Qaeda in Zinjibar, but he is said to have climbed the ranks of the jihadist group to became a top military commander. Another overnight drone strike killed six suspected members of AQAP in nearby Shabwa province, a security official said. The unmanned aircraft targeted a vehicle in Rodhoum area, killing its six passengers, the official said. The US has kept up strikes on jihadists during months of fighting between pro-government forces and Iran-backed Huthi rebels who control large parts of Yemen, including Sanaa. Loyalists backed by a Saudi-led coalition have recaptured Aden, Lahj and three other southern provinces from Shiite rebels since July. Jihadists gains Jihadists, including AQAP and the Islamic State group, have gained ground in the south, with al Qaeda fighters seizing the town of Azzan in Shabwa earlier this week. Azzan lies on the highway between Shabwas provincial capital Ataq and the city of Mukalla, the capital of the vast desert Hadramawt province overrun by jihadists in April. al Qaeda militants control Abyans provincial capital Zinjibar and the nearby town of Jaar. They move freely between Hadramawt, Shabwa and Abyan. The USs long-running drone campaign in Yemen dealt a blow to AQAP in June, when a strike killed the groups leader Nasir al-Wuhayshi. He was replaced by AQAP military commander Qassem al-Rimi. Islamists have been behind a surge in attacks on security installations and officials in Aden, which has been chosen as a temporary base for the government. On Wednesday, a suicide bomber attacked the convoy of Lahj police chief Colonel Adel al-Halemi in northeastern Aden. A guard and a 12-year-old boy were killed in the car bomb while Halemi sustained light wounds, security officials said. More than 5,800 people have been killed since the coalition launched an air and ground war against the rebels in March, according to the United Nations. The World Health Organization voiced concern on Wednesday over the reported sexual transmission of the Zika virus in Texas amid worries that such infections could make battling it even tougher. There is no vaccine or treatment for Zika. The virus, spreading quickly across the Americas, is usually transmitted by mosquitoes, but Dallas County reported on Tuesday that the first known case contracted in the United States was a person infected after having sex with someone who had returned from Venezuela. The WHO declared a global health emergency on Monday, citing a strongly suspected causal relationship between Zika infection in pregnancy and microcephaly, a condition marked by abnormally small head size that can cause permanent brain damage in newborns. Health ministers from across South America gathered in Uruguays capital, Montevideo, to discuss the public health emergency and how the region could coordinate its fight against the outbreak. Sexual transmission could add a new dimension to the threat Zika poses, but WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl stressed that almost a 100 percent of the cases are transmitted by the bite of a mosquito. This reported case in the U.S. of course raises concerns, Hartl said at the U.N. agencys headquarters in Geneva. This needs to be further investigated to understand the conditions and how often or likely sexual transmission is. But he said that for the WHO the most important thing to do is to control peoples exposure to mosquitoes. The WHO estimates as many as 4 million people could become infected in the Americas. Hartl called the Texas case only the second worldwide linked to sexual transmission, referring to media reports about a case of an American man who returned from Senegal in 2008 and is suspected of having infected his wife. The medical literature also has a case in which the virus was detected in semen. If you swap enough bodily fluid, most viruses can probably be sexually transmitted to some extent, said Ben Neuman, a virologist at Britains University of Reading. Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a public health emergency in four counties with travel-related cases of the Zika virus, and ordered state officials to increase mosquito control efforts in some of the southeastern U.S. states most heavily populated locales including Miami and Tampa. Scott directed state officials to pay special attention to mosquito spraying in residential areas. In addition, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which has urged pregnant women to consider delaying travel to locations with ongoing Zika transmissions, added Jamaica and Tonga to its travel alert. Despite already being on the CDCs travel alert, Mexicos health ministry downplayed Zikas threat to tourism on Wednesday, saying its 34 confirmed cases are far from tourist areas while conceding it was inevitable the virus would spread. The WHO said at least 26 countries in the Americas have a Zika outbreak, and countries such as Ireland, Australia and Canada have reported cases of travelers testing positive for the virus after visiting an infected area. Late on Tuesday, the Brazilian health ministry said the number suspected microcephaly cases that may be linked to the virus had increased to 4,074 as of Jan. 30, from 3,718 a week earlier. Researchers have identified evidence of Zika infections in 17 of these cases, either in the baby or in the mother, but have not confirmed that Zika can cause microcephaly. Warning for Europe The WHO warned member states in Europe on Wednesday that the risk of the virus spreading into the region increases with the onset of spring and summer. Now is the time for countries to prepare themselves to reduce the risk to their populations, said the WHOs Europe chief, Zsuzsanna Jakab. Every European country in which Aedes mosquitoes are present can be at risk for the spread of Zika virus disease. The Pan American Health Organization, the WHOs arm for the Americas, said it needed an estimated $8.5 million to help countries in the region respond to the Zika threat. Brazilian Health Minister Marcelo Castro said U.S. experts will travel to Brazil next week to start work on the development of a Zika vaccine and come up with a timetable for the effort. A number of drug developers and universities are attempting to produce a vaccine. Experts have said a vaccine is months or even years away. Japans leading drugmaker Takeda Pharmaceutical Co Ltd said it has created a team to investigate how it might help make a vaccine, a day after Frances Sanofi SA said it would launch a Zika vaccine program. Pfizer Inc, Johnson and Johnson and Merck & Co Inc said they were evaluating their technologies or existing vaccines for their potential to combat Zika. Indian biotechnology company Bharat Biotech said it was working on two possible vaccines. The rising number of cases has stirred concern ahead of the Olympic Games in August in Rio de Janeiro when Brazils second largest city will host tens of thousands of athletes and tourists from around the world. New Orleans has always seemed like a hot, sexy city with a lot of mystery and intrigue. I've never personally been to Louisiana. When I think of New Orleans, I think of "A StreetCar Named Desire", "Interview with a Vampire", music, ghosts, spicy food, ghosts, and the celebration of Mardi Gras. I don't know if I will ever be in town for Mardi Gras. I tend to like to go to places during a more quiet time, but New Orleans is a place I would like to see and experience for myself. Marriott.com and Starwood.com has great rates when booked directly. HinesSightBlog affiliate partner,has great rates when booked directly. Expect to pay $144 to $419 depending on the hotel you choose and availability. The JW Marriott is at the top tier for pricing and the best rates of all for New Orleans is that last week of March. Enjoy planning your trip. Ritz-Carlton. What would be my pick? Well, you know I love a I always check to see if I could afford that hotel first. This New Orleans property is not part of the special I mentioned, but you could find some great packages including $50 hotel credit per stay beginning at $279 per night. You know I love to find you a lux deal. Community Coffee Company, worked with me to provide you some insights on Mardi Gras. In fact, I sipped on their limited-edition, Mardi-Gras King Cake blend, while writing this post. It was a great afternoon indulgence. No sugar for me. Just my favorite Louisiana-based,worked with me to provide you some insights on Mardi Gras. In fact, I sipped on their limited-edition, Mardi-Gras King Cake blend, while writing this post. It was a great afternoon indulgence. No sugar for me. Just my favorite almond milk creamer that I'm still driving all over town to keep in stock. The origins of Mardi Gras in New Orleans can be traced to medieval Europe, passing through Rome and Venice to evolve into the ornately costumed festivities we see today. Theres a lot of tradition and heritage that have helped to produce the Mardi Gras scene as its currently celebrated. According to Community Coffee staff, here are some good things to know to enjoy Mardi Gras like a native. Number 10 How to spell krewe and flambeaux and Mardi Gras and, well, you get the point. Number 9 Technically, Carnivale is a season, and Mardi Gras is a day. But we tend to generalize and refer to the weeks of parades leading up to Fat Tuesday as Mardi Gras. Number 8 The Mardi Gras colors are purple, green and gold. Remember to coordinate your outfit appropriately. Number 7 The Captain of the Krewe is more important than the King. But the King gets all the while the Captain does all the work. Number 6 If you miss a doubloon thrown from a float, never reach down to pick it up. Always put your foot on it. If you go with your hand, you're either too late or you'll get your fingers stepped on. Number 5 If you bite into a plastic baby in a King Cake, that's a good thing. Number 4 Any beads shorter than two feet long are unacceptable unless they are made of glass -- the bigger and longer the beads, the better. Number 3 Once any beads have touched the ground, they are sullied and should not be picked up unless under the rarest of circumstances. Number 2 The vast majority of people in the French Quarter during Carnivale are from out of town. The Number 1 thing you must know about Mardi Gras season is that Community Mardi Gras King Cake coffee can help you celebrate anywhere. For a limited time you can have your cake and drink it, too. If you are in the Raleigh-area, LaFarm Bakery sells freshly-baked King Cakes as well as Lucettegrace in downtown Raleigh. Pastry chef, Daniel Benjamin, was getting his colors today on social media. And for even more hotel stays visit Hotels.com, our new partner for great hotels. FTC Disclosure: Community Coffee supplied the research behind this post and pitched it to me along with some complimentary coffee that I've enjoyed drinking for the past two weeks. This post contains affiliate links and I personally found the great travel deals. Enjoy your trip. glory Thank you! You've reported this item as a violation of our terms of use. This content was contributed by a user of the site. If you believe this content may be in violation of the terms of use, you may report it. The chief strategist for Sen. Rand Paul's now-defunct presidential campaign suggested today that Donald Trump's larger-than-life persona is to blame for Paul's poor showing in the 2016 Republican race. After Paul announced Wednesday morning that he was dropping out of 2016 race due to his performance in the Iowa caucuses, his chief strategist, Doug Stafford, held a conference call with reporters, telling them that Trump "took all the oxygen out of the room" and dominated the discussion, drowning out Paul's message, reported the Daily Caller. Stafford said Trump is a "larger-than-life outsider who commanded so much of the attention," which "really played into it being more difficult to get the message out than anyone anticipated." Paul faced a "brand new environment, for most involved in presidential politics we've never seen anything like it," said Stafford, admitting it was "very difficult to have what you believe is a stronger message and a stronger candidate but you can't break through because celebrity became the largest thing," reported Reason. The libertarian-minded Kentucky freshman senator came in fifth place in the Iowa caucus with about 4.5 percent of the vote, failing to reignite the movement that gave his father Ron Paul 21 percent of the vote in Iowa in 2012. "Voters shift from time to time and what's most important to them is hard to capture," said Stafford, adding that he thinks Paul "finished well... but just not well enough that he had a good enough chance for the nomination." Stafford said Paul was already back in Washington, D.C., for votes in the Senate. Paul does not plan to make an endorsement in the GOP presidential primary, but will likely end up backing whoever the party nominates for president, according to CNN. In announcing his withdrawal from the race, Paul said he plans to "continue to fight for criminal justice reform, for privacy, and your 4th amendment rights. I will continue to champion due process over indefinite detention." @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A 14-year-old teenager from Sydney is aspiring to become the first hijabi ballerina and hopes the world will help make her dreams come true. Stephanie Kurlow started learning ballet as a toddler, but when her family converted to Islam in 2010, the dance lessons had to stop. She had a hard time finding a school that would let her dance and practice her religion at the same time. She realized that she might not be able to pursue her dream career as a professional dancer. Dancing is not allowed in some Muslim cultures, and the teen also grew conscious of having to dance in her tutu and her hijab, the head scarf Muslim women are required to wear. "We thought there were no facilitations or services targeted at Muslim girls," she said via the New York Daily News. So Kurlow decided she will set up her own ballet school with the help of her mother. Also read: Muslim Model Mariah Idrissi Wears Hijab In H&M's Advertisement (VIDEO) "When there was nowhere for me to study ballet due to my outfit, [my mom] opened a performing arts academy that taught ballet, martial arts and aboriginal arts classes for girls like me, where no one questions children why they dress or look a certain way," Kurlow said. The Australian Nasheed & Arts Academy welcomed its first students in 2012. Now the young girl is hoping to get on with her professional training so that she can begin to teach other girls full time. "I plan on bringing the world together by becoming the very first Muslim ballerina so that I can inspire so many other people to believe in themselves and pursue their dreams," Kurlow wrote on her fundraiser page at LaunchGood. "My dream is to train in a full-time ballet school catered for aspiring young girls who want to train 30-45 hours a week so they can become a professional ballerina." The young ballerina is taking cues from Misty Copeland of American Ballet Theater who became the first woman of color to land a principal dancer spot. "I believe that one day all children and young people will have an opportunity to perform and create, without sacrificing their values, beliefs or looks, and my campaign is one step closer to achieving this," she said via Yahoo! Had such a fun photo shoot the other day! #wedanceasone A photo posted by s (@stephaniekurlow) on Sep 23, 2015 at 3:16am PDT Arabesque A photo posted by s (@stephaniekurlow) on Oct 5, 2015 at 3:33am PDT Had such a fun time shooting photos on a farm!!! Leave a comment below which picture you liked the best A photo posted by s (@stephaniekurlow) on Apr 11, 2015 at 12:02am PDT @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Make room in the Gilmore house. New characters descriptions hint at possibly two children born to Luke and Lorelai since "Gilmore Girls" went off the air eight years ago. The "Gilmore Girls" revival on Netflix will feature about a dozen new characters and two are described as "7-year-old Tim and his 5-year-old sister Gabriela," according to E! News. Given the eight-year time jump and the reunion of Lorelai (Lauren Graham) and Luke (Scott Patterson) in the series finale, the kids' ages would appear to fit the timeline. The character descriptions also revealed the casting of 9-year-old Korean-American twins Stevie and Kwan, the same names as the twins Lane (Keiko Agena) and Zack (Todd Lowe) welcome in the final season. There's also a Portuguese nanny named Clementina in the mix. Rory (Alexis Bledel) may be dating "a Michael Cera type" man, who is a pleasant 30-something named Paul and described as "a good boyfriend." If she's still pursuing her career in journalism, it could bring her into contact with Jim, an older high-end men's magazine editor. Other new characters joining the "Gilmore Girls" universe, according to E! News, include: - Berta and Alejandro, a Peruvian couple Alejandro is "a handyman and a solid family man." - Nat Compton, an incredibly miserable looking man who never smiles (he should give Kirk a run for his money). - 13-year-old Dewey - blue-collar Dwayne - good-looking, eager 20-something Damon The new season of "Gilmore Girls" is currently in production. Netflix announced 2016 for the premiere. Click here to read everything we know so far about the "Gilmore Girls" revival. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Germany's Interior Ministry announced on Thursday that the country recorded 91,671 asylum seekers in January - only 35,000 people less from the record in December, wherein a total of 127,320 were listed as migrants in the country - making the total number reach nearly 1.1 million for last year. With the given the numbers, the government is feeling the pressure to increase efforts to diminish the arrival of migrants, especially since the small decline is just associated with the winter weather, according to FOX News. Officials are focused on making sure that this year's numbers will be lower than in 2015, with Chancellor Angela Merkel eyeing diplomacy as the prime solution, while refusing to acknowledge that capping the number of refugees would help the issue, according to a previous HNGN report. Overall, the German government is on the move to toughen asylum policies. An asylum application involves the surrender of personal details, fingerprints and photographs by migrants over 14 years old upon their arrival in Germany. A temporary permission to stay is then granted until his or her scheduled interview, the result of which would ultimately decide if the applicant gets to stay or not. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A U.S. drone strike in south Yemen on Thursday has killed a top Al-Qaeda commander, according to a family member, Agence France-Presse reported. The chief, identified as Jalal Baleedi a.k.a. Abu Hamza, was a top leader of the Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) - a terrorist organization active in the war-torn country. Baleedi was believed to have been the mastermind behind the group's terrorist attacks on the Yemeni state that have claimed the lives of hundreds of soldiers and security forces amid the ongoing civil war in the country. Baleedi was also suspected of defecting from AQAP to lead Islamic State's Yemen operations. The airstrike targeted a car carrying Baleedi and five others in the Maraqesha area of Yemen's Abyan province. Six other Al-Qaeda militants were killed in a separate drone strike carried out in Shabwa province's al Rawda city - a remote desert location Al-Qaeda militants have been known to operate from - according to Reuters. The United States has been carrying out a series of drone strikes targeting jihadists during the ongoing war between forces loyal to the government of Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi and the Iran-backed Houthis, according to The Independent. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Update Feb. 2, 6:11 a.m. EST: BREAKING: Egyptian prosecutor says Italian student's body found with stab wounds, cigarette burns, signs of torture and "slow death" The Associated Press (@AP) February 4, 2016 Update Feb. 2, 5:43 a.m. EST: #BREAKING Italy confirms student's death in Egypt, summons ambassador: foreign ministry AFP news agency (@AFP) February 4, 2016 -- The body of missing Italian student Giulio Regeni was found partially burned on the side of a road outside the capital city of Egypt on Wednesday, according to The Associated Press. The remains of the Cambridge Ph.D. student showed signs of torture, according to Reuters. Regeni's body, which has been positively identified, has been taken to a morgue in Cairo. "The Italian government had learnt of the probable tragic end to this affair," the foreign ministry said, according to an earlier Reuters report. Italian Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni extended his sympathies to the student's family. On Jan. 25, the anniversary of the uprising that led to the end of Hosni Mubarak's 30-year rule, Regeni left "his home in an upper middle class district to meet a friend downtown," according to Reuters. There were no major protests during the anniversary or during the days leading to the anniversary of the autocrat's toppling, but there was a heavier police presence when Regeni went missing. Regeni was not politically active, according to The Telegraph. A similar incident occurred last year, according to Reuters, when Islamic State militants kidnapped a Croatian man who was later beheaded by the terrorist group, but acts of violence like this are not common in the area. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A United Nations (U.N.) panel ruled in favor of Julian Assange after he whined that he was "arbitrarily detained." The founder of Wikileaks claimed asylum at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London back in 2012 so that he could evade repatriation to Sweden over claims of sexual assault, which he has denied, according to BBC News. Before the panel made its decision, Assange said he would accept arrest from British authorities if the panel decides that his three-year stay in the embassy is not considered illegal detention. Assange declared on Wikileaks' official Twitter account that he would surrender himself Friday at noon if the U.N. panel declares that he lost his case against Sweden and the United Kingdom. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me," he said, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Previously, a lawyer working for Assange claimed that he is seeking passage to Ecuador if he manages to leave the embassy in the coming days. His decision will be based on how the British and Swedish authorities respond to the report made by a U.N. panel, said lawyer Melissa Taylor, according to the Associated Press. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Russia asked North Korea Wedndesday to halt its planned rocket launch this month, saying that it will breach international law. The message was delivered to the North Korean diplomatic mission in Moscow by Igor Morgulov, Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister. "We have to state that by intending to violate the requirements of the UN Security Council once again, the DPRK shows defiant disregard of the universally recognized norms of international law," the Foreign Ministry official said, according to Xinhua. The rocket will purportedly launch a North Korean "earth observation satellite" into orbit. The country has notified at least three U.N. agencies of this development, which could take place between Feb. 8 and 25, Reuters reported. Russia has also warned North Korea that by proceeding with the rocket launch, it would be escalating tensions in Northeast Asia. The Foreign Ministry has also mentioned possible consequences should the country defy the international call to stop the rocket launch. North Korea has been increasingly isolated in this particular issue. China has already expressed its concern, urging the country Wednesday to exercise restraint. Japan and South Korea - for their part - have raised their suspicion that the rocket launch is actually a long-range ballistic missile test, Business Standard reported. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. House Oversight Chairman Jason Chaffetz is launching a congressional investigation into the government's record-keeping, and he's obtained new information that could put Democratic presidential contender Hillary Clinton right in the middle. "The Oversight Committee has jurisdiction on the Federal Records Act, and we intend to pursue that," Chaffetz told Politico. "We also have jurisdiction on [the Freedom of Information Act], so if you're not providing emails, it begs the question of your compliance under FOIA. So, I'm not specifically trying to target the secretary, but when she creates her own private email system, she's ensnared herself." House GOP leadership - Speaker Paul Ryan and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy - have stressed that they believe the FBI and Justice Department should continue handling the potential criminal investigation into Clinton's private email server, but Chaffetz said he plans to press on. "I'm trying to be as cautious as I can. I don't think we should be any harder on her, but I don't think we should be any easier on her. It's bigger and broader than just Hillary Clinton," he told Politico. "The FBI should pursue any violations and criminal allegations," Chaffetz said. "I would argue we also have jurisdictional prerogative on Federal Records Act and FOIA [matters]. We're being very cautious. I don't want to overstep, but we're also trying to move forward." During Clinton's 2009-2013 tenure as secretary of state, she opted out of using a government-issued email account and instead decided to set up a private account and server in her New York home, which was not outfitted to handle classified information. She was required to turn over all work-related emails to the State Department upon leaving office. Without any oversight, she personally decided which emails were work-related, about 30,000 of them, and which could be deleted due to their personal nature, about 30,000 more, reported Slate. "Look, there were 60,000 emails. She got to decide which ones were private and which ones went to State Department," Rep. Jim Jordan of the conservative House Freedom Caucus told Politico. "Then the State Department got to further screen. We have yet to learn the date parameters, search terms, who had the final say over which emails to make available as public records." The State Department seems to be the worst offender in terms of using private emails to conduct government business, but Chaffetz says the problem also exists at the Department of Defense. "Anybody who would use a non-government server to interact on government business is in violation. That's just been known for a long time, that is the law. [Clinton] is by no means the only violator," he said. "I'm still looking at it from 60,000 feet, and wondering who's violating it, how are they doing it and how do we get them to be in compliance. The inspectors general keep issuing reports, and we're not ignoring those." The intelligence community inspector general has disclosed that Clinton's private server contained emails with information classified even higher than "top secret" names of CIA spies and assets, classified sources and classified methods. Being that foreign governments and hackers have almost certainly hacked Clinton's server, the classified sources' lives were likely jeopardized, according to Fox News. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Erwin Mena, a California man who posed as priest since the mid-1990s - officiating at masses, funerals, confessions, and at least one marriage, was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of grand theft. Mena, 59, was arrested in Elysian Park, Calif., without incident and is currently jailed, reported the Associated Press. He declined to comment when asked about his charges as he was escorted from LAPD headquarters, only saying "Not at this time." It's unclear whether he has an attorney. Operating under aliases such as "Padre" and "Menacastro," Mena has been charged with 22 felonies and 8 misdemeanors stemming from the con game he had been working for at least 20 years. One such scam involved him posing as priest at St. Ignatius of Loyola parish in Highland Park between Jan. and May of 2015. During that time, he traveled from parish to parish, selling CDs that he recorded and peddling a book he claimed to have written titled: "Confessions of a Renegade Catholic Priest." Another scam included having an organization lend Mena $16,000 to Mena to record and produce CDs about Pope Francis which turned out to be pirated and originally produced in Madrid. However, his biggest and most recent scam was the trip to see the Pope during last year's U.S. visit, reported the Los Angeles Times. He allegedly solicited between $500 and $1,000 from people who wanted the chance to see the holy father in person. At least two dozen people signed up in total. Churchgoer Nancy Resendiz expressed sadness over the fact that Mena chose to take advantage of the churchgoing community for so long, but noted something seemed off about him from the moment she met him. "Mainly some of the homilies he gave; some of the things he talked about just didn't seem right," she said, according to CBS Los Angeles. "People around here in the community Latinos, we give. We give to our priest. We give to our church. We want to help out. So, people out of their kind heart, they gave. And he took advantage of that," she added. Now with Mena in police custody, the archdiocese is working to reimburse his victims - both monetarily and spiritually. Any witnesses who testify in the criminal case against him could be reimbursed after the case concludes and anyone who received sacraments from Mena can receive them again, said Doris Benavides, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles archdiocese. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump was forced to take a break off his campaign trail and make an emergency landing in Nashville, Tenn., after the pilot reported engine problems, officials said. The Boeing 757 was en route to Little Rock, Ark., where Trump was supposed to attend a rally when the starboard engine experienced a mechanical issue, reported CBS News. One of the engines was allegedly stuck in neutral. In describing the incident to traffic control, the pilot declared an emergency but declined to ask for assistance. The plane landed at 4:40 p.m. at Nashville International Airport, according to the Federal Aviation Administration, noting that officials plan to investigate the incident, according to Reuters. Trump boarded a small charter aircraft that took him the rest of the way, a campaign spokeswoman said. He arrived more than an hour-and-a-half late due to the diversion. "That was a rough one," Trump said about the experience, according to CBS' Nashville affiliate WTVF-TV. "[It] was not easy with all the traffic and all the problems and mechanical and everything else." In the meantime, the plane remains at the airport for repairs. It is not yet clear whether the plane will be ready to fly Trump to the next primary in New Hampshire on Feb. 20. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The hits just keep on coming to Apple. In a series of weeks that has seen Apple learn that iPhone sales are slowing, a glitch that caused its Safari browser to crash and issue a recall of faulty power adapters that could unexpectedly shock consumers, a jury has added insult to injury, ordering Apple to pay $626 million in damages after determining that a variety of the computer company's software infringed on another company's patents. The jury's decision relates to a dispute between VirnetX Holding Corporation, an Internet security software and technology company with patented technology for secure communications like 4G LTE security, and Apple. The company argues that Apple infringed on its intellectual property by utilizing various forms of real-time communications over the Internet on iMessage, FaceTime and other Apple software that VirnetX said it had a patent for. The conflict between the two had been raging on since 2012 when a jury found Apple guilty of the same patents, ordering the company to pay $368 million for the offense, according to CNN. However, Apple soon appealed and had the ruling overturned after VirnetX failed to prove that consumers were buying Apple's products because of the copyrighted software. The case was sent back down to the East Texas District Court for a retrial, but things didn't pan out the way Apple had planned when a new jury on Wednesday determined that Apple owned even more money to VirnetX because it "willfully" violated the company's patents. Now Apple has little choice but to appeal, which it said it intends to do. "We are surprised and disappointed by the verdict and we're going to appeal," Apple said in an e-mailed statement, according to Bloomberg. "Our employees independently designed this technology over many years, and we received patents to protect this intellectual property. All four of VirnetX's patents have been found invalid by the patent office. Cases like this simply reinforce the desperate need for patent reform." Fortunately for Apple - and shareholders, it has a history of success in getting major verdicts overturned. A judge in the same district threw out a $533 million damage award Apple lost to Smartflash LLC in July after it accused the California-based company of infringing patents for accessing and storing songs, videos and games. Despite Apple's intentions however, the damage has already done, with Apple already revising its iMessage, FaceTime and VPN software in a bid to avoid anything covered by VirnetX's patents. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A team of researchers from the University of Miami has shed new light on stromatolites, the rare, microbial reefs that represent one of the world's most diverse ecosystems of living microbes. The growth and structure of these reefs could give scientists a better look into the emergence and evolution of life on Earth. Much like coral reefs, stromatolites are created by the buildup of limestone but instead formed by microbial mats, and the activities of microorganisms such as cyanobacteria results in grain accretion and the precipitation of cements. Not only do these microbial buildups hold the secrets to the ancient life of approximately 75 percent of the Earth's history, the microbes that they harbor created oxygen for the atmosphere that stimulated the evolution of higher organisms such as humans. Using three years of data collected from Shark Bay, Western Australia, where one of the few living stromatolite communities left in the world resides, the map revealed eight unique provinces of the rare microbial reefs, each with its own morphological structures. Many of these structures were previously unknown to scientists, and the results of the study alter previous growth models for Shark Bay stromatolites and reveal the importance of mineral precipitation for the formation of stromatolite framework. "The stromatolites in Shark Bay are a spectacular living laboratory that should be the best studied microbial system in the world," Pamela Reid, co-author of the study, said in a press release. "The time to study Shark Bay stromatolites is now as they are vulnerable to rising sea levels in the coming decades," added Erica Suosaari, lead author of the study. "Continued monitoring and detailed studies of the Shark Bay World Heritage site will be critical for management and conservation of this unique landscape, and will advance our understanding of early Earth." The findings reveal new insights into the morphological diversity of stromatolites as well as characteristics of the microbial communities and mineral precipitation in the stromatolites in Shark Bay, highlighting the importance of examining these unique microbial reefs to reconstruct ancient environments and understand how they interacted with early microbial communities. The findings were published in the Feb. 3 issue of Nature. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The Des Moines Register - Iowa's largest newspaper, which endorsed Hillary Clinton for president - published an editorial Wednesday titled "Something Smells in the Democratic Party," calling for a "complete audit" of the Iowa Democratic caucuses to ensure that the results are accurate. "The results were too close not to do a complete audit of results," the editorial board of the Register wrote, three days after Clinton narrowly edged out Sen. Bernie Sanders by 0.2 percentage points, a margin that would lead to recounts in other states. Questions have been raised over possible voter fraud and missing votes, and Andy McGuire, the chairwoman of the Iowa Democratic Party, has refused to work with Sanders' campaign to verify results, which only "confirm the suspicions," the newspaper wrote. The Sanders camp has already found inconsistencies as it makes its way from precinct to precinct checking results, and it is now attempting to obtain the math sheets and other paperwork that was supposed to be returned to the state party, according to Sanders spokeswoman Rania Batrice. "What happened Monday night at the Democratic caucuses was a debacle, period. Democracy, particularly at the local party level, can be slow, messy and obscure. But the refusal to undergo scrutiny or allow for an appeal reeks of autocracy," the paper wrote. "Too many questions have been raised. Too many accounts have arisen of inconsistent counts, untrained and overwhelmed volunteers, confused voters, cramped precinct locations, a lack of voter registration forms and other problems. Too many of us, including members of the Register editorial board who were observing caucuses, saw opportunities for error amid Monday night's chaos." To help settle the matter, the Register's editors ask the Democratic Party to "work with all the campaigns to audit results. Break silly party traditions and release the raw vote totals" as well as the results of coin tosses. But the party has avoided doing so. Unfortunately, a Democratic official told The Hill on Monday that a full recount is impossible because of the way Iowa caucuses are run. The process involves voters physically dividing themselves into groups around the room to show support for a candidate. They are then counted by precinct captains, and assigned delegates. In the event of a tie, a coin is flipped. The delegate-allocation system effectively keeps anti-establishment candidates like Sanders, who wasn't even a Democrat a few months ago, from winning the popular vote, according to Breitbart. A number of delegates were awarded by a coin toss, but the Register says that the results it found are different from the ones described by the party. The Register discovered that six coin tosses definitely occurred, and possible a seventh, with Clinton reported as winning all six. The party, however, claims that seven coin flips occurred and that Sanders won six. The Register concluded by saying that the "future of the first-in-the-nation caucuses demands" a full audit. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A team of scientists from the University of California, San Diego has successfully identified a pink flatworm-like animal that was previously known as a single species and baffled biologists for almost six decades. Making the discovery in the waters just off of Sweden, the team has used genetic analysis to identify four new species, all in the Xenoturbella genus. The most unique of these species is the X. churro, a 10-centimeter long purple worm that was named after its resemblance to the popular churro fried-dough pastry that lies at the base of the animal evolutionary tree and was discovered in a cold seep in the Gulf of California approximately 1,700-meters deep. In addition to X. churro, the team discovered three other species, including X. monstrosa, X. hollandorum and X. profunda. "The findings have implications for how we understand animal evolution," Greg Rouse, lead author of the study, said in a press release. "By placing Xenoturbella properly in the tree of life we can better understand early animal evolution." The first species to be found in the Xenoturbella genus was X. bocki, which was discovered back in the 1950s off the coast of Sweden. Although it was first classified as a flatworm, followed by a simple mollusk, in the recent years, the Xenoturbella have been classified as close relatives to vertebrates and echinoderms, or even as a distant relative on its own branch. "When Greg first spotted the worms gliding through a clam field in Monterey Bay, we jokingly called them purple socks," said Robert Vrijenhoek, co-author of the study. The team has analyzed almost 1,200 of the unique animal's genes to date, which has allowed them to definitively determine that they lie at the base of the evolutionary tree of bilaterally symmetrical animals. With no brain, gills, eyes, kidneys or anus and their only body opening being their mouth, they are classified as evolutionary simple members of the tree. The findings expand the diversity of the species from one member to five and can help us better understand the evolution of animal organ systems such as brains, guts and kidneys. The findings were published in the Feb. 3 issue of Nature. @ 2022 HNGN, All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. To reflect the demands of TDS Asia conference attendees, EyeforTravel Asia has expanded its scope of its Asian flagship event to cover the biggest challenges and opportunities in the travel arena. As, a result the venue of the conference has been upgraded to accommodate our growth, a bigger exhibition and better networking. EyeforTravel Asia Summit (including TDS Asia) will take place at their new home, the Marina Bay Sands Conference Centre in Singapore on the 15-16 of June. Whilst keeping an acute focus on how distribution channels are still revolutionising the travel space, this year's conference will deep dive into revenue management, new technology solutions, social media and marketing models that are powering travel brands to better engage their users. The hospitality Industry in Asia Pacific reached a record $12.8 billion value of transactions in 2013. In the first eight months of 2014, the Asia Pacific region welcomed 5% more international tourists (overnight visitors) over the same period in 2013, with more than 1.1 billion tourists expected by year-end, according to Cushman&Wakefield's Report. To shed light on the growth of the Asian market and how mobile is driving consumer engagement and numbers for travel brands, Tim Gunstone, Managing Director for EyeforTravel said "For travel brands in 2016, the channels for distribution and marketing are becoming more diverse." Tim goes on to say "It's important for travel brands to recognise their target audience and what tools they can use from data capture, CRM systems, social media and revenue management software to better manage costs and capitalise on the power of personalisation to really build on the traveller experience." To address these topics EyeforTravel Asia 2016 (June 15-16, Singapore, Marina Bay Sands) is here to provide insights. Key topics include consumer behaviour across Asia, Deep dive on China, Localisation and Talent management in the region, Revenue management, and the secrets to good Content Marketing, Social Media strategies, Analytics and a lot more. Learn more about the topics and what the different event rooms cover: http://events.eyefortravel.com/travel-distribution-summit-asia/ These sessions will be led by travels foremost thought leaders: IHG, Four Seasons, Booking.com, Hotel Quickly, Kempinski and more. EyeforTravel Asia Summit (15-16 June) is an intimate networking and discussion event that unites 400+ leading players from travel market from the hotels, airlines, online marketing and PR teams, data integrators, software developers, social media experts, tech innovators and government to examine the steps needed to develop and deploy a strong business model to create market traction and engage the connected traveller with their host of services. For the complete conference program and speaker line-up, visit: http://events.eyefortravel.com/travel-distribution-summit-asia/ or contact the travel Asia project team at [email protected] Register this year to save $400 with our launch discount which expires 6th February via the secure link: http://events.eyefortravel.com/travel-distribution-summit-asia/registration.php EyeforTravel is a community where the world's top online travel brands from hotels to airlines, online travel agents, cruise, car hire firms and more come to meet to drive forward growth and innovation in the industry. We aim to provide you with industry focused news, events, reports, updates and information. EyeforTravel Limited is a registered company. The Company Registration number is 06286442. It is also registered in England & Wales. Registered office is 7-9 Fashion Street, London E1 6PX, United Kingdom. Shreya Ganapathy Project and Research Director Asia and Middle East | EyeForTravel + 44 20 7375 7150 [email protected] Meredith Pistulka View source Singapore CapitaLand's wholly-owned serviced residence business unit, The Ascott Limited (Ascott), has strengthened its leadership position as the largest serviced residence operator in Southeast Asia with the clinching of seven new management contracts, adding over 1,500 apartment units to its portfolio. It has expanded in Bangkok in Thailand, Hanoi in Vietnam, and Petaling Jaya in Malaysia while venturing into Bandung in Indonesia, Penang and Shah Alam in Malaysia, and Nha Trang in Vietnam as demand for serviced residences heats up. It also celebrated the opening of Somerset Medini Nusajaya, Ascott's second serviced residence in Iskandar Malaysia. Mr Lee Chee Koon, Ascott's Chief Executive Officer, said: "Southeast Asia is Ascott's fastest growing market and second largest globally after China. We started the year strongly by increasing Ascott's portfolio in Southeast Asia to more than 15,000 apartment units across 80 properties in nine countries. Currently, about 40% of our apartment units under development globally are concentrated in this region. We continue to see strong growth opportunities in the Southeast Asian markets, underpinned by rapid urbanisation, a large young population and rising domestic consumption. The recently established ASEAN Economic Community that aims to integrate these markets and lower trade barriers will further increase foreign investments, fuelling demand for quality accommodation. In the year ahead, we can expect to see this robust growth trajectory across the other geographies as Ascott picks up momentum to double our portfolio to 80,000 units globally by 2020." He added: "Besides growing Ascott's presence in the capital cities, our entry into secondary cities such as Bandung, Penang, Shah Alam and Nha Trang will allow us to cater to the increasing demand for international-class serviced residences in these markets. Ascott will be the first international serviced residence company to set foot in these markets, as we have built a strong reputation for top quality and reliability, which are of utmost importance to travellers, expatriates and property owners. Many property owners around the world have chosen Ascott to manage their properties because we have the expertise in managing award-winning properties worldwide. These new properties will strengthen Ascott's position as the largest international serviced residence owner-operator in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam." Bandung is the third most-visited city in Indonesia after Jakarta and Bali, attracting business, meetings and incentives as well as leisure travellers. Penang and Shah Alam are both home to industrial parks housing multinational companies and popular with domestic and international tourists. The coastal city of Nha Trang is one of Vietnam's key tourist destinations and an emerging economic hub of South Central Vietnam. The new Somerset Ekamai Bangkok and Citadines Bayfront Nha Trang are slated to open at the end of 2016 while Somerset West Point Hanoi will open in 2017. Citadines Kings Bandung, Citadines Ara Damansara Petaling Jaya, Citadines Batu Maung Penang and Citadines Montfort Shah Alam will open progressively from 2019. Somerset Medini Nusajaya (now open) Somerset Medini Nusajaya is a short 15-minute drive from the Malaysia-Singapore Second Link and less than 30 minutes away from the Senai International Airport. As part of an urban wellness development, Somerset Medini Nusajaya is connected to a four-storey wellness centre, a five-storey corporate training centre with meetings and conventions facilities as well as retail outlets. The serviced residence is also next to the Gleneagles Medini Hospital. Just a few minutes' walk away from Somerset Medini Nusajaya is LEGOLAND Malaysia, where guests can enjoy more than 60 rides, slides, shows and attractions. Somerset Medini Nusajaya is also a 10-minute drive from Puteri Harbour where kids and adults alike can have fun at the Sanrio Hello Kitty Town and The Little Big Club Theme Park or unwind in one of the many restaurants and bars along the harbour. Somerset Medini Nusajaya marries contemporary design with the comfort and familiarity of home. Residents can choose from 310 units ranging from studios to three-bedroom apartments, and experience a balanced lifestyle through a variety of facilities such as the gymnasium, swimming pool and children's playroom at the 33-storey serviced residence. About The Ascott Limited The Ascott Limited (Ascott) is a Singapore company that has grown to be one of the leading international lodging owner-operators. Ascott's portfolio spans more than 200 cities across over 30 countries in Asia Pacific, Central Asia, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and the USA. Ascott has more than 78,000 operating units and over 57,000 units under development, making a total of more than 135,000 units in over 800 properties. The company's serviced apartment, coliving and hotel brands include Ascott The Residence, The Crest Collection, Somerset, Quest, Citadines, lyf, Preference, Vertu, Harris, Citadines Connect, Fox, Yello, Fox Lite and POP!. Ascott's loyalty programme, Ascott Star Rewards, offers exclusive benefits to its members when they book directly with Ascott for their stays at its participating properties. Ascott, a wholly owned subsidiary of CapitaLand Investment Limited, pioneered Asia Pacific's first international-class serviced apartment with the opening of The Ascott Singapore in 1984. Today, the company boasts over 30 years of industry track record and award-winning brands that enjoy recognition worldwide. For more information, please visit www.discoverasr.com. About CapitaLand Investment Limited Headquartered and listed in Singapore, CapitaLand Investment Limited (CLI) is a leading global real estate investment manager (REIM) with a strong Asia foothold. As at 31 December 2021, CLI had about S$122.9 billion of real estate assets under management, and about S$86.2 billion of real estate funds under management (FUM) held via six listed real estate investment trusts and business trusts, and 29 private funds across the Asia-Pacific, Europe and USA. Its diversified real estate asset classes cover integrated developments, retail, office, lodging, business parks, industrial, logistics and data centres. CLI aims to scale its FUM and fee-related earnings through its full stack of investment management and operating capabilities. As the listed investment management business arm of the CapitaLand Group, CLI has access to the development capabilities of and pipeline investment opportunities from CapitaLand's development arm. Being a part of the well-established CapitaLand ecosystem differentiates CLI from other REIMs. As part of the CapitaLand Group, CLI places sustainability at the core of what it does. As a responsible real estate company, CLI contributes to the environmental and social well-being of the communities where it operates, as it delivers long-term economic value to its stakeholders. Visit http://www.capitalandinvest.com/ for more information. Joan Tan Assistant Vice President, Corporate Communications +65 6713 2864 The Ascott Limited It looks like you've reached a page that doesnt exist (anymore). Please use the navigation or search above to find content on Hospitality Net. Go back to home El Mangroove in Costa Rica Spanning across 17 acres, and situated on 150 meters of beach front, El Mangroove is just 20-minutes from Daniel Oduber International Airport in Liberia, making it the closest beachfront resort to an international airport in Costa Rica. Autograph Collection Hotels is further expanding across the Caribbean and Latin America with the brands second hotel in Costa Rica. Exactly like nothing else, El Mangroove, located off the Gulf of Papagayo, is a sustainable boutique, lifestyle resort that boasts a modern design which incorporates Costa Ricas natural beauty through wood and water elements along with bamboo, stone and natural furnishings that merge all indoor and outdoor spaces. The hotel has 85 luxurious guest suites outfitted with every imaginable amenity, a pool stretching over 130 feet with sweeping views of the Gulf of Papagayo, live music and events in the evenings, on-site bicycles and a state of the art spa and fitness center that include outdoor wild-fit areas and multi-functional exercise decks. Spanning across 17 acres, and situated on 150 meters of beach front, El Mangroove is just 20-minutes from Daniel Oduber International Airport in Liberia, making it the closest beachfront resort to an international airport in Costa Rica. El Mangroove also features two unique and dining options on property. MAKOKO is the central restaurant located off the lobby serving breakfast and dinner with a farm-to-table and ocean-to-table inspired menu. MATISS is the oceanfront beach restaurant surrounded by sand on a teak deck with a laid-back atmosphere and a delicious Fresh, casual and contemporary menu. We are proud to welcome El Mangroove to Autograph Collection Hotels and into our family of properties and brands across the Caribbean & Latin America, said Tim Sheldon, President of the Caribbean & Latin America at Marriott International. This year we welcomed our 100th property in the region, and I am certain that El Mangroove will bring both a unique and culturally rich perspective to the expanding portfolio. Joining forces with a power house in the lodging industry like Marriott International is a true acknowledgement of our efforts and commitment to offering unique guest experiences, said Jose Monge, General Manager of El Mangroove. We are very excited about this new venture and look forward to the success of this hotel in the years to come under the Autograph Collection Hotels brand. Travelers can experience Papagayo Bay with the resorts boats, and enjoy fishing or surfing trips, beach hopping excursions, sunset tours, or whale & dolphin expeditions. In addition, paddleboards, bicycles and kayaks are found on-site to explore the bay or the artsy neighboring town of El Coco. In addition, its ample and exclusive meeting facilities are ideal for groups, with more than 3000 square feet of functional space, both indoors and outdoors. Despite the 2.8% decline in profit per room for the month of December, hotels in Frankfurt achieved a 12.6% increase in GOPPAR (Gross Operating Profit per Room) for the year, due to a number of key events driving growth in top line and bottom line revenue, according to the latest data from HotStats. Major Annual Events Keeps Frankfurt Hoteliers Smiling in 2015 Despite the 2.8% decline in profit per room for the month of December, hotels in Frankfurt achieved a 12.6% increase in GOPPAR (Gross Operating Profit per Room) for the year, due to a number of key events driving growth in top line and bottom line revenue, according to the latest data from HotStats. Performance peaked for hotels in Frankfurt in September, due to the ten-day Auto Show, during which period hotels achieved 82.9% room occupancy at an achieved ARR (Average Room Rate) of 185.84. As a result, Frankfurt hotels recorded a GOPPAR of 98.98 for September, well above the annual average of 52.66. However, the greatest margin of increase was achieved in June as the 2015 ACHEMA exhibition attracted more than 166,000 trade visitors to the city, driving a 36.4% increase in RevPAR (Revenue per Available Room) to 122.96 from 90.14 in 2014, contributing to a massive 81.4% increase in GOPPAR, to 72.87. This event was last held in the city in 2012 and will return in 2019. 2015 will be marked as a successful year for hoteliers in Frankfurt, with annual profit growth (+12.6%) achieved due to year-on-year increases in all months apart from January (-1.5%), May (-13.6%) and December (-2.8%) and despite the monthly peaks and troughs typical of an event-led city. Expo Drives Massive Profit Growth for Milan Hotels in 2015 A 16.4% increase in profit per room in December topped off a spectacular year of performance for hotels in Milan as the city benefited from hosting Expo 2015. Milan Expo attracted over 20 million visitors from more than 150 participant countries with approximately 5,000 events hosted over 184 days as it explored the theme of Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life. The event ran from 1 May to 31 October, and during this period hotels in Milan achieved a 29.1% year-on-year increase in RevPAR, which was primarily due to a 25.8% increase in achieved ARR (average room rate) thanks to several months of significant uplift recorded in May (+19.2%), June (+28.6%), September (+25.3%) and during the closing weeks of October (+32.3%). The greatest year-on-year growth in sector rates in the six month period of the Expo was in the groups segment, which increased by 65.8%, to 128.73 from 77.64 during the same period in 2014. Hotels in Milan successfully recorded a 19.5% increase in rooms departmental profit per available room for the year, to 108.63 from 90.92, due to strong growth in rooms revenue. In addition savings in unallocated expenses ,such as utilities down by 12.4%, contributed to the 36.3% annual increase in GOPPAR, to 62.28 from 45.70. Hotels in Warsaw Limp Home But Record Positive Overall Performance for 2015 Fortunately for hotels in Warsaw there is only one December in the year. A 4.8% increase in total revenue recorded at hotels in the city was cancelled out by a 2.4% increase in payroll and a 19.4% increase in overheads, resulting in a 5.1% decline in GOPPAR for the month. A significant contributor to the uplift in overheads was the 57.0% increase in Rooms Cost of Sales (the cost associated with online travel agents), to 4.27 per available room from 2.72 during the same period in 2014, representing 29.3% of the 5.29 net growth in rooms revenue, to 58.15 from 52.86 in 2014. Whilst hotels in Warsaw recorded RevPAR growth in all but one month of 2015 (January), contributing to a 3.89 net increase in this measure, the 25.5% year-on-year uplift in rooms cost of sales reduced this net increase by 0.84 per available room. That said, growth in ancillary spend, including food (+3.1%), beverage (+3.7%) and conference and banqueting (+2.0%), as well as some cost savings helped hotels in Warsaw to record a 6.0% increase in GOPPAR in 2015, a recovery from the 5.0% decline recorded in 2014. Click here to enlarge For an inside view of a local or regional market place in the hotel sector, bespoke HotStats reports are available. Terms and conditions apply. Visit www.hotstats.com to view a sample report. HotStats provides two reporting tools to hoteliers: Our unique profit and loss benchmarking service which enables monthly comparison of hotels performance against their competitors. It is distinguished by the fact that it provides in excess of 100 performance metric comparisons covering 70 areas of hotel revenue, cost, profit and statistics providing far deeper insight into the hotel operation than any other tool. Our latest innovation in daily revenue intelligence, MORSE. Amongst its reporting are daily and highly granular market segmentation metrics as well as distribution channel and source of booking analysis. It takes daily market intelligence to a whole new level. For more information contact: Enquiries +44 (0) 20 7892 2241 enquiries@hotstats.com The future Hotel RL Long Island City, planned for 38-15 9th Street, will have 180 guest rooms, a full service restaurant, rooftop public area, meeting areas, a fitness center and a business center. The property is located on the west end of the Queens borough, near the MoMA PS1 contemporary art museum, Queens Bridge Medical Center and the East River. RLHC (Red Lion Hotels Corporation) (NYSE:RLH) announces its third new-build Hotel RL - and eighth location overall - in Long Island City, New York, set to open in early 2019. "This diverse community is an ideal setting for the Hotel RL brand," said Brian Quinn, RLHC Senior Vice President and Chief Franchise Officer. "We see artistic components like the Living Stage as well as our Pacific Northwest coffeehouse experience in the lobby and advanced check-in technology appealing to business and leisure travelers alike in the northeast." In addition to its current Hotel RL locations in Baltimore Inner Harbor and Washington, D.C., the company announced a franchise agreement for a location at the St. Louis Airport and three company-operated locations in Salt Lake City, Utah, and Spokane and Olympia, Washington, all expected to convert in the first half of 2016. The future Hotel RL Long Island City, planned for 38-15 9th Street, will have 180 guest rooms, a full service restaurant, rooftop public area, meeting areas, a fitness center and a business center. The property is located on the west end of the Queens borough, near the MoMA PS1 contemporary art museum, Queens Bridge Medical Center and the East River. With an estimated 2.3 million residents, Queens is the second-largest borough in population of the five in New York City and the largest in area. Hosting various museums, cultural institutions and restaurants that serve its diverse communities, Queens has been touted as a top American destination. The stage is set for Kendrick Lamar to dominate the Grammy Awards in a way few hip hop artist have been able to. His 11 nominations are the most for a hip hop artist in a single year, and publications like Billboard have taken note. He appears on this months cover of Billboard magazine. In the cover article, Kendrick Lamar explains why he wasnt too upset by losing to Macklemore & Ryan Lewis The Heist in 2014. He says, Good Kid, M.A.A.D City is great work, but its not my best work. To Pimp a Butterfly is great. Im talking about the connection the record made. Good Kid, M.A.A.D City made a connection. But To Pimp a Butterfly made a bigger connection. Hes also acutely aware of his place in history, as only two other hip hop artists have ever won Album of the Year Outkast and Lauryn Hill. And hes not holding back his aims this year, declaring, I want to win them all. The Compton rapper also calls out some of his favorite peers in the hip hop community, naming, Chance the Rapper, Joey Bada$$ and Isaiah Rashad. Its no mistake these are all particularly young emcees, saying, these individuals, they show that we do have some sense. Our generation just needs the proper people to tell us about our problems, about our wrongs and our rights. Kendrick even speaks on his White House visit, one which he has avoided addressing in the past. No matter how high the pedestal you reach, we all still like a beat, Lamar explains about meeting someone so powerful. Even the president has got to hear that snare drum The whole thing is definitely worth reading. Kendrick-Billboard The Friends star will team up with Chris Evans when the BBC show relaunches Friends star Matt LeBlanc will be a host on BBC's Top Gear. The actor will join Chris Evans fronting the motoring show, becoming the first non-British host in the shows 39 years. It's scheduled to return to screens in July, following the departure of previous hosts Jeremy Clarkson, James May and Richard Hammond. LeBlancs has appeared on the show before; in 2012, he set the fastest time in guiding a reasonably priced Kia ceed around the track in 1 minute 42 seconds. Matts a lifelong fellow petrolhead and Im thrilled hes joining Top Gear," said his co-host Chris Evans. "Acting out our craziest car notions on screen is a dream job and I know well both be debating some epic road trip ideas. The BBC, meanwhile, will be hoping that his presence will help the show maintain its record-breaking success, both in Britain and around the world. One source at the broadcaster said: This takes Top Gear in a new direction. Le Blancs presence on the show will also be a boost when selling it internationally, particularly in the US where it is due to air on BBC America. The remaining slots are yet to be filled, but it's understood that Sabine Schultz, who appeared on the show before in schooling Clarkson at the Nurburgring in a Transit van, is likely to complete the line-up. The mosquito-borne Zika virus has reproductive-age women, families and governments across the Americas nervous, and for good reason. Some 4,000 babies have been born with microcephaly, a condition marked by an abnormally small head and potentially devastating brain damage, very possibly caused by the virus. Zika has been found in more than 20 countries and could infect as many as 4 million people. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has warned pregnant women in the United States against traveling to affected countries. The threat is so severe that the government of El Salvador told women to postpone pregnancy until 2018. Besides the obvious paradox (how exactly are women supposed to prevent pregnancy in a heavily Catholic country when the Church opposes condoms and birth control pills?), the response to the Zika epidemic from Latin American governments is striking: It distills the disregard so many of them have for women, for maternity, and for the complex and deeply personal calculations all women make when becoming mothers or choosing not to - often at the expense of public health. According to Gallup polling, people living in Latin America are less likely to say that women are treated with respect and dignity than people living anywhere else in the world. Violence against women is endemic - in Peru, for example, half of women say their first sexual experience was forced. Poverty remains feminized. Contraception access is improving, but remains low for adolescents and low-income women in particular. Half of pregnancies are unplanned. Despite the region's severely restrictive anti-abortion laws, there are an estimated 4.4 million abortions every year in Latin America and the Caribbean, 95 percent of them unsafe. Every year, a million Latin American women end up hospitalized and an estimated 2,000 die from unsafe abortions. Those are epidemics, too, and they've been met largely with a shrug. Take El Salvador. For every 100,000 women who give birth, 54 die from pregnancy-related causes. (By contrast, in Denmark the number is seven, France is eight and the United States is 14.) And unlike most of the world, maternal deaths in El Salvador have been increasing since 2003. Under the law in El Salvador, Zika exposure during pregnancy or a fetus with microcephaly would not be grounds for an abortion. Microcephaly has a variety of causes, of which Zika is suspected to be only one. But providers say that microcephalic children whose disorders appear to be caused by Zika have particular abnormalities, and those whose mothers were infected during the first trimester suffer the most severe brain damage. Many children being born in Latin America will have profound disabilities and will require care for the rest of their lives. The Salvadoran government expresses concern but offers little practical assistance to their mothers, and it certainly doesn't defer to women to make critical decisions about their pregnancies. Latin American women outside of El Salvador are unlikely to fare better. Ground zero of the Zika outbreak is Recife, a Brazilian city with widespread poverty. A few years back, in Recife, a 9-year-old showed up at the hospital with her mother. She was pregnant with twins after being raped by her stepfather. Under Brazilian law, her case was a trifecta of abortion exceptions: She was a minor, she was a rape victim and, as a tiny girl carrying two fetuses, the pregnancy endangered her life. The Brazilian courts granted her a legal abortion. Nevertheless, the influential Catholic Church stepped in - the local archbishop eventually generated an international spectacle when he excommunicated the girl's mother and the doctor who performed the procedure, but not the rapist stepfather. The doctor who performed that procedure and was excommunicated for it, Olimpio Moraes, still lives in Brazil. (It was his second excommunication and the Church never sent over the proper paperwork, he said, so maybe it didn't count.) The "pro-life" current of Brazilian politics and religion's influences compromise women's health beyond just abortion - according to Moraes, staunch opposition to abortion rights also means that many pregnant and birthing women get substandard care. The clearest example of that, he says, is misoprostol, a drug sold by the brand name Cytotec in Latin America, which induces both labor and abortion and is used to combat hemorrhaging after childbirth. The drug has lowered rates of maternal death around the globe significantly; it's also decreased illegal abortion deaths, since using misoprostol off-label is a much safer way to end a pregnancy than having a clandestine surgery. But the Brazilian government is so concerned about women terminating pregnancies illicitly that they've heavily restricted access to misoprostol. Enter Zika. The virus means women who already carry enormous weight with little assistance are being assigned even more reproductive burdens in countries where their labor is demeaned and their decisions denigrated and unsupported. The socioeconomic status of millions of women is unlikely to change in a few weeks. Their access to health care, including contraception and abortion, could - if there's the political willpower. Perhaps the virus will make Latin American governments realize the load with which they've saddled women is too heavy. Maybe a mosquito will tip the scales. Filipovic is a journalist and lawyer living in Nairobi, Kenya. She wrote this for the Washington Post, where this commentary first appeared. Subscribing to our services is a three step process. First you have to create an account and then you have to pick if you want to subscribe to digital and or print. Some people only want to be a digital subscriber to get access online and others want to also receive the print edition. If you are already a print subscriber and want online access, it is free, you simply have to create an online account and then attach your print subscription account number to the online account you create. As an existing print subscriber it is easy to get FREE access to all our online content. 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The United States is well known for its strict immigration policies, and that includes using very specific entry criteria for visitors and issuing a limited number of business visas each year. There are both immigrant and non-immigrant types of visas available depending on the length of the employees assignment, education, position and the area of work being performed. Several visa types require documentation of the employment contract, educational background, and technical expertise of the employee. Issues a Company may Face when doing Business in the US There are several areas where US immigration law may affect a foreign company doing business in the US. Some of these issues could arise due to recent changes or rulings on visa requirements and documentation. Changes to H1-B Visa Requirements The H-1B visa is the most common business visa for specialty or technical work categories. It has several requirements that must be met by the applicant including a proof of Bachelors degree, or demonstration that the work performed has technical components that would normally require a degree. Examples of specialty occupations include architecture, mathematics, law, accounting, and medicine. There is an annual quota on H-1B visas, to limit the number of foreign workers entering the US. As a part of the H1-B visa application, a worksite location must be listed in the Labor Condition Application (LCA). A recent ruling, by the United States Citizenship... Cyprus PIO: Turkish Cypriot and Turkish Media Review, 16-02-04 Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Republic of Cyprus Press and Information Office Server at TURKISH CYPRIOT AND TURKISH MEDIA REVIEW No. 23/16 04.02.2016 [A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS [01] Nami and Mavroyiannis in Brussels to discuss technical issues [02] Columnist argues that Cyprus is 15 billion euro away from settlement [03] A report in Afrika shows how building plots in occupied Cyprus changed hands [04] The breakaway regime is taking part in the Logistica Winter Fair for Fruits and Vegetables in Berlin [05] Turkey-Russia crisis led to the reduction of dairy product exports by the breakaway regime [06] Bozkir: Turkey may double trade with EU with new customs deal [07] Turkey sends back recalled Vatican Ambassador [08] Turkey to impose visas for Russian journalists [A] TURKISH CYPRIOT / TURKISH PRESS [01] Nami and Mavroyiannis in Brussels to discuss technical issues According to illegal Bayrak television (online, 04.02.16), the negotiators of the two leaders Ozdil Nami and Andreas Mavroyiannis are in Brussels to meet with officials from the EU commission. Officials from the UN will also be present at the meetings which will focus primarily on the EU harmonization process following a settlement. Both leaders, Mustafa Akinci and Nikos Anastasiades will be meeting twice this month. The first meeting will be on Monday, 8th February, while the second meeting will take place towards the end of the month, on the 26th. Speaking to "BRT" yesterday, Akinci's spokesman Baris Burcu said that the negotiating teams of the two sides are currently focusing on the chapters of Governance and Power Sharing, EU and Economy as well as Property. "Currently Mr Nami and Mr Mavroyiannis are reviewing the convergences reached on these issues as well as determining existing divergences. They are working hard to minimize divergences on the outstanding issues", he added. Pointing out that the negotiators of the two leaders will be travelling to Brussels on Thursday for contacts with EU officials, Burcu said: "The negotiators will be in Brussels tomorrow (today) to discuss technical issues. They will be holding contacts at the technical level as part of the work being carried out by the Ad Hoc committee established upon the instructions of the two leaders to prepare the Turkish Cypriot community for the EU Acquis. Officials from the UN will also be present during those meetings". [02] Columnist argues that Cyprus is 15 billion euro away from settlement Columnist Barcin Yinanc, writing in Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (online, 04.02.16), under the title "All we need is money in the Cyprus love song", argues in the following commentary that if the money for property compensations is found then the Cyprus problem is pretty much solved: "Ever since I started covering the Cyprus issue in 1990, I have heard two main things from Turkish officials, things which I considered the most rational and realistic approaches: 1 - The parameters of the solution are known to both sides, there's no need to discover America over and over again. What is needed is for the actors to take the bitter pill and go that last extra mile. 2 - The key is the property issue. Once that is solved, the others are (relatively) much easier. Some 26 years have passed since I wrote my first article on Cyprus and I have never come across a better environment for peace talks than today. Not surprisingly, the two points I mentioned above stand as key factors to a final agreement. A lot of headway has been made in the negotiations, which started last May following the election of Mustafa Akinci as 'president' of Turkish Cyprus. I am sure the personal chemistry between Akinci and his Greek Cypriot counterpart, Nikos Anastasiades, has helped the progress registered on issues such as how to share power and the nature of legislative and judicial institutions, as well as the political equality of the two communities. There is a convergence on the thorny issue of guarantees (that is, Turkey's guarantor status) and a rotating presidency, as well as territory (how much of the land under Turkish control would be returned to the Greek Cypriot side). An agreement on these three issues will take that special extra effort on the part of the political leaders on the island, as well as other stakeholders. If the property issue was solved, there is a fair amount of confidence among those on the Turkish and the Turkish Cypriot side that the issues left to the very end of the negotiation process could be overcome. So, the devil is in the property issue. The reason why the Annan Plan failed was the conviction among Greek Cypriots that they would get back their property, even in the absence of a peace deal on the island following the Loizidou decision by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). It was expected that the ECHR's 1996 decision, that Titina Loizidou had the right to return to her property and that Turkey had to pay her compensation, would force the Turkish side to seek a solution, but at that time it was dragging its feet. But the unintended consequence of the Loizidou decision turned out to be the main reason for Greek Cypriots' refusal to accept the Annan Plan. Then the ECHR took a decision in 2010 which changed the course of the property issue. Known as the Demopoulos decision, it reversed the understanding that restitution was the only principle in the property issue. The court ruling, that the issue could not only be solved through the return of property, but also through compensation and exchange of properties, established the essential framework of the solution today. Now the two sides seem to have registered the most important progress on the property issue, as they seem to have reached an agreement over certain guidelines which will determine whether the property in question should be subject to return, exchange or compensation. Since it is foreseen that the Turkish Cypriots will have the majority of the ownership of property in the territories under their control, a measure to safeguard the population balance, especially on the Turkish side of the island, there will be considerable compensation. It is estimated that 15 billion euros will be needed for compensation. Finding that amount of money seems to be the most important challenge in front of a peace deal, since Greek Cypriots will not say "yes" in a referendum if they are not convinced that the compensation mechanism will work in a timely and efficiently manner. So it seems Cyprus is 15 billion euros away from lasting peace." [03] A report in Afrika shows how building plots in occupied Cyprus changed hands Turkish Cypriot daily Afrika newspaper (04.02.16) reports on a 32-donum building plot that is located in occupied Keryneia, which was lent by the "government" of Irsen Kucuk when it was in power, to Rose & Akasan Enterprices Ltd. The plot was to be used for touristic purposes. According to the paper, as Ahmet Bastas, the owner of the firm had not constructed anything on the plot for a long period of time, the plot changed hands and was lent to Adali Tourism Firm ltd which is of Turkish interests. Aiming to fight for his rights Bastas applied to a "court". However, according to some documents obtained by Afrika, Bastas finally agreed to abandon his rights on the plot after receiving two million euros as compensation by the Adali Tourism Firm ltd. (CS) [04] The breakaway regime is taking part in the Logistica Winter Fair for Fruits and Vegetables in Berlin Turkish Cypriot daily Kibrisli newspaper (04.02.16) reports that the breakaway regime is participating with a 50-metre pavilion in the Logistica Winter Fair for Fruits and Vegetables which is taking place in Berlin, Germany between 3-5 of February. According to the paper, the "Turkish Cypriot Chamber of Industry" which has organized the breakaway regime's participation in the fair, is participating with four firms. The "minister of economy, industry and trade", Sunat Atun along with the so-called representative of the "TRNC" in Berlin Kemal Gokler visited the fair. More than 2,700 firms and 65,000 professionals from 120 countries are participating in this year's fair which is co-organized by Germany and Egypt. (CS) [05] Turkey-Russia crisis led to the reduction of dairy product exports by the breakaway regime Turkish Cypriot daily Havadis newspaper (04.02.16) reports that the crisis which occurred between Russia and Turkey and led to the reduction of Russian tourists who visit Turkey, had consequences on the breakaway regime as well. According to the paper, after the Russian crisis and the attack at the Sultanahmet area, tourist reservations in Turkey have been reduced and as a result the exports of dairy products of the breakaway regime to tourist locations in Turkey were reduced as well. According to Havadis, 50% of the milk produced in the occupied area of Cyprus was targeted to the Turkish market and as a result, tones of milk have remained unwanted. Speaking to the paper, the chairman of the "stockman union", Mustafa Darbaz, stated that 50-60 tons of milk produced cannot be sold due to the tourism crisis which occurred in Turkey and added that the breakaway regime faces a lot of problems in exports to Turkey due to this issue. (CS) [06] Bozkir: Turkey may double trade with EU with new customs deal According to Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (online, 04.02.16), the mutual trade between the European Union and Turkey may double to $300 billion thanks to coming updates to the Customs Union deal, Turkey's EU Minister and the chief negotiator with the bloc has said. "We have a Customs Union relation [with the EU]," Minister Volkan Bozkir told journalists on the sidelines of official meetings in Paris on Feb. 3. The Union and Turkey exchange some 14,300 items of goods, he added. "We conduct $150 billion in [mutual annual] trade," he said, adding that an update in the Customs Union deal with the EU was on the agenda. "Agriculture, services, public procurements will contribute to this, and we are heading for $300 billion in trade," he said, comparing the figure to the EU-U.S. trade volume, which stands at $700 billion. "Trade and investments will grow together," he said. The Minister was commenting on the changing paradigm in Turkey-EU ties. The two main elements in the change in the nature of the relations are the joint challenge against the refugee crisis and the struggle against terrorism, the Minister said. "Unfortunately, for years Europe, allowed some terrorist organizations to operate ? instead of [moving against] them," he said. On refugees and terrorism, the EU's initial approach was "a panic attack", leading it to offer Turkey money and support to improve refugee camps, he said. "We told them that we don't want money or anything else. If you think that this is a problem that could be resolved together, then make us feel like part of the family," he said. Bozk?r conducted meetings with French Secretary of State for European Affairs Harlem Desir at a working lunch on Feb. 3 in addition to his scheduled meeting with the members and chiefs of France's Foreign Ministry and EU Commission. Bozkir was also scheduled to join French business leaders at a dinner hosted by Turkey's Ambassador to France, Hakk? Akil, later or Feb. 3. He will also meet European Commissioner for European and Social Dialogue Valdis Dombrovskis and European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development Neven Mimica in Brussels as part of the visit that will last until Feb. 5. Meanwhile, Turkish state channel TRT (online, 03.02.16) broadcast that EU countries on Wednesday approved a fund worth 3 billion euros ($3.3 billion) for Turkey to aid mainly Syrian refugees in the country in exchange for Ankara ensuring to help stem the refugee flow after more than a million people reached the continent last year. The EU would provide 1 billion euros from its own budget; the rest is to be provided by 28 governments, with Germany being the top contributor at 427.5 million euros ($473 million) in 2016. The joint action plan also includes "accelerating the fulfilment of the visa liberalisation roadmap and re-energising the accession process with Turkey," the EU said in a press release. [07] Turkey sends back recalled Vatican Ambassador According to Turkish daily Sabah (online, 04.02.16), Turkey's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Tanju Bilgic made a statement late Wednesday in response to the Vatican's statement, which he hailed as 'a positive development' for both countries, while announcing that Turkey would send back its recalled Vatican Ambassador Mehmet Pacaci. "It was decided that our Ambassador to the Vatican, Mehmet Pacaci, who has remained in the capital for consultations since the General Audience held on April 12, 2015 in St Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, will return to duty." Stating that the Vatican - in a Feb 3 statement- acknowledged Turkey's repeated commitment to "make its archives available to historians and researchers of interested parties in order to arrive jointly at a better understanding of historical events and the pain and suffering endured by all parties regardless of their religious or ethnic identity," the Foreign Ministry said that Turkey's 2005 call for a joint history commission was also appreciated. The Vatican also condemned the assassination of Turkish Ambassador to the Vatican Taha Car?m in June 1977 by Armenian terrorist group ASALA, the Turkish statement added. The Turkish statement also pointed out that the Pope referred to the 1915 events as the "tragic events of 1915" instead of using 'genocide' to describe the events like he did last year. Pope Francis had previously called the 1915 events "the first genocide of the 20th century," which led Turkey to recall its ambassador to the Vatican and also summon the Vatican envoy in Ankara. [08] Turkey to impose visas for Russian journalists Turkish daily Hurriyet Daily News (online, 04.02.16) reports that ongoing tension between Turkey and Russia will soon be reflected in the sphere of journalism, as Ankara will begin imposing visas for Russian journalists starting from Feb. 15, the Hurriyet Daily News has learned from diplomatic sources. "Russian journalists planning to come to Turkey for short-term journalistic activities will first have to apply to the Turkish Embassy's Press Counsellor to get a necessary visa", diplomatic sources said. Information about Russian journalists and the duration of their visits will then be transferred to the Directorate General of Press and Information in Ankara for better registration. Russia had reinstituted visas for Turkish citizens beginning on Jan. 1 as part of its harsh sanctions against Turkey in the aftermath of the downing of a Russian warplane by Turkey over an airspace violation. Turkey had yet to respond to the move but has now decided to restrict free travel for Russian journalists to Turkey. Sources said the imposition of visas for Russian journalists was decided within the principle of reciprocity, as Turkish journalists willing to go to Russia for journalistic activities have long been subject to strict visa procedures. Another reason for the visa imposition was because Turkey has been observing increasingly biased news reported by Russian journalists who were not hesitant to distort the facts, sources said. Journalists from other countries will not be affected by this implementation but sources said a gradual change in the existent very-liberal procedure could take place in line with the principle of reciprocity. The procedure for journalists planning to stay more than six months was not changed. TURKISH AFFAIRS SECTION http://www.moi.gov.cy/pio (DPs/ ICh) Cyprus Press and Information Office: Turkish Cypriot Press Review Directory - Previous Article - Next Article Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-02-04 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at CONTENTS [01] EU Commissioner Moscovici sees first signs of Greece's stabilisation [02] Refugees and migrants continue to arrive on Lesvos despite the adverse weather conditions [01] EU Commissioner Moscovici sees first signs of Greece's stabilisation BRUSSELS (ANA-MPA/Chr.Vassilaki) - The European Commission's winter estimates show the first signs of stabilisation of the Greek economy, EU Commissioner Pierre Moscovici said on Thursday. He underlined that despite the fact that Greece will record recession in 2016, it will be smaller than expected in the autumn forecast, which, as he said, is a "positive development." Despite the difficult last year, these are the first signs of recovery, said the French Commissioner and added that "the improved forecasts should not stop the efforts or lose the last months' momentum." "The implementation of reforms is the key," he noted. Moscovici did not hide, however, his concern over the negative impact of a possible new resurgence of the Greek crisis on the world economy. Referring to the negotiations held in Athens between Greek authorities and the representatives of institutions, he said that the Commission will continue "its pressure to quickly complete the first program review", stressing, however, that "both sides share the responsibility." [02] Refugees and migrants continue to arrive on Lesvos despite the adverse weather conditions Refugees and migrants arrivals on Lesvos island continued on Thursday despite the gusty southerly winds and low temperatures prevailing in the area. 2,000 migrants and refugees, among them a large number of women and children, arrived from Wednesday until Thursday morning on the island. The ferry "Eleftherios Venizelos" is docked at Mytilene port to host 1,500 migrants and refugees until the conclusion of the Seamen Federation strike on Saturday and the ferry sets sail for Piraeus port. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-02-04 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at CONTENTS [01] Tsipras meets Merkel, Cameron on Syria donors conference sidelines [01] Tsipras meets Merkel, Cameron on Syria donors conference sidelines Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras had a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel here on Thursday, on the sidelines of the Syrian donors conference 'Supporting Syria and the Region'. According to an announcement issued by the Greek premier's press office, they discussed the progress of Greece's economic programme and management of the refugee crisis. Merkel and Tsipras agreed that February will be a crucial month for the management of the refugee issue and that all the parties involved, including the EU member-states and Turkey, must fulfill the commitments they have undertaken. Tsipras was also meeting UK Prime Minister David Cameron on Thursday afternoon and is afterward scheduled to meet European Parliament President Martin Schulz. When he addresses the donors' conference, the Greek prime minister is expected to highlight the need for a more long-term strategic approach, focusing on efficient and humane management of refugee flows. According to government sources, the answer is to cooperate with and assist the countries bordering Syria, which have to carry the burden of millions of refugees. "We must work for a strong resettlement programme in Europe and in other countries," the sources said, while at the same time exerting pressure for a political solution in the Syrian conflict that will end the attacks on civilians and tackle terrorism. Such a settlement would create conditions of reconciliation and for the return of Syrians to their homes, they added. Tsipras is expected to highlight the fact that Greece, despite being on the front line of the refugee flows, insists on facing the crisis with humanity, unlike others. He is also expected to ask what the fate of millions of Syrians would have been if Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon had decided to raise walls and refused to let them enter. He will noted that Greece has dealt with migration flows exceeding 900,000 people since July, of which 500,000 were Syrians, and that the cost of these flows was immense given that the coast guard had rescued more than 150,000 migrants and refugees. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 16-02-04 Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article From: The Athens News Agency at CONTENTS [01] 'Improved state of trust' in Greek-Turkish relations, Kotzias tells ANA-MPA [01] 'Improved state of trust' in Greek-Turkish relations, Kotzias tells ANA-MPA Greece and Turkey are engaged in sincere dialogue "and I think that the state of trust is better than it was a year ago," Foreign Minister Nikos Kotzias said in an interview with the ANA-MPA released on Thursday. Kotzias noted that relations between the two countries "have a series of problems that we must resolve," adding that this solution must be based on international law and on trust between the two people and their respective services, but primarily between the two prime ministers and foreign ministers. Regarding the refugee crisis and Ankara's stance on this issue, Kotzias pointed out that hundreds of thousands of refugees were entering Turkey and that the international community must provide support. "...first there must be financial support for Jordan and Lebanon, so that refugees don't leave the refugee camps and stay close to their homes, and secondly the agreements between the EU and Turkey must be implemented, such as the international agreements on readmission between Greece and Turkey, or Turkey and Pakistan," he said. Asked about the tension between Russia and Turkey, Kotzias noted that the war in Syria had brought many countries and groups into conflict, including different Islamic groups and countries. "As regards the latest incidents between Turkey and Russia, you know our country always wants to operate in a way that calms things down, in a correct and just way, and implements the principles of international law. From this standpoint, we are always open to contributing to a discussion between the more divergent opinions in this region." On the abolition of the guarantees and guarantor powers in Cyprus, the minister noted that Greece said they should be abolished "but I also said that Greece has no intention of remaining in such a regime - and it will leave - which is entirely new." He noted that the issue was now being discussed by the Americans, while the British have said that they will not seek guarantor status if Greece and Turkey reach agreement. He noted that China described the guarantor regime as "anachronistic" and Russia's UN representative had called it a "relic of colonialism" that should be abolished. "I think an idea of Greek diplomacy is for the first time progressing in the best way and we are in working and collaborating closely with the Cyprus government," he said. Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article Italian man has been cleared of a sexual harassment allegation after a court ruled his actions were driven by an immature sense of humour; and not sexual desire. The 65-year-old man was accused by a junior colleague of touching her sexually and by a second of spanking her, like a little girl... as if he were giving me a light slap on the behind, court documents stated. Despite the man admitting to the behaviour, judges in the Sicilian court in Palermo ruled that he was not touching his staff for sexual pleasure, declaring the contact as not lascivious. Objectively, it was brought on by an immature and inappropriate sense of humour, mixed in with a veiled abuse of power and an albeit improper way of establishing hierarchical relationships in the office, the judges said in their ruling. The courts decision has since been met with outrage; a well-known commentator declaring the decision as worthy of lawmakers in Saudi Arabia. The august assembly seems to suggest that the women who were felt up caused the real offence, he wrote in a front-page opinion piece in La Stampa newspaper. [The ruling] ignores the sensitivity and dignity of the working women and at the same time unfathomably permits the sexual violence, which was perpetrated even if on a small scale, the UIL labour union representatives said in a statement. According to The Daily Mail, a whopping third of Italian women between the ages of 16 and 70 are said to have suffered some sort of physical or sexual violence. h MNCs continuing to expand throughout the Asia-Pacific, HR is expected to effortlessly step into the role of managing a regional workforce. HRD talked with three global HR professionals about how they deal with this complex task. The myth of the Asian territory Theres a common perception to think of Asia as one homogeneous region, said Carolyn Moore, the former regional HR director of JWT Asia Pacific; Its not. Its so diverse. Its important to remember that each country has its own characteristics when it comes to languages, culture and social & economic development. You have Australia and Japan which are highly developed countries, through to Pakistan which is war-torn at the moment, Vietnam and Laos which are developing, and the new tiger economies. It adds layers of complexity to everything we do in HR. Striving for regional consistency Perhaps my greatest challenge as a global head of HR is finding the right balance between global and regional in initiatives and control, said Eileen Burnett-Kent, executive global head of HR at Orica. The key is to aim for some consistency throughout the region, getting agreement from local employees about which aspects stay the same across the board and which show some local variation. In the end, theres no substitute for getting out to listen to people, she said. Connect with them on a personal level and make sure you understand what theyre trying to achieve and vice versa. The need for flexibility and understanding APMEA is a highly diverse region, said Mike McCarthy, the group head of HR for Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa at MasterCard. This, in addition to differing cultural and legal frameworks, necessitates a great deal of flexibility based on an understanding of the differences and nuances present in each jurisdiction. It is important that both HR and the business exhibit a global outlook, treating regional staff as the local experts and openly listening to their suggestions, he added. PhotoAlto/Ale Ventura via Getty Images Doctor comforting patient during consultation OTTAWA A group representing several thousand Christian physicians is expressing concern that a new federal law on physician-assisted death could force them to perform, or refer patients to a physician who will perform, legalized euthanasia. Cardinal Thomas Collins, the Archbishop of Toronto, and Larry Worthen, the executive director of Christian Medical and Dental Society of Canada testified Wednesday evening before a parliamentary committee on physician-assisted dying. Advertisement The Supreme Court of Canada struck down the law against assisted suicide in 2015. (Photo: Shutterstock) The committee has until the end of the month to report back on how the federal government should respond to a 2015 Supreme Court of Canada ruling that Criminal Code provisions that prevented anyone from aiding or abetting someone in committing suicide breached an individuals Charter rights. The court gave the federal government one year to pass new legislation but recently extended that deadline to June. While the Supreme Court said it did not propose to compel physicians to provide assistance in dying and said legislatures needed to reconcile patients and physicians Charter rights, Collins and Worthen both said they believe legislation is needed to protect physicians who do not wish to patients end their lives. Advertisement We do not agree with assisted suicide and euthanasia. We think implementing them in the country is not a good path to go on, it will cause great harm, Collins told The Huffington Post Canadas Althia Raj on Sirius satellite radios Everything Is Political. What we are particularly stressing is the need, because there are very many people in our country who have profound reasons for not being able to go down that path that their conscience rights be protected. 'Great pressure' on doctors with religious objections Collins said he was concerned that shortly after the Carter v. Canada decision came down, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario had instituted a policy that placed great pressure on physicians who have personal or religious objections to euthanasia to make referrals to other doctors. The Colleges interim policy states: Where a physician declines to provide physician-assisted death for reasons of conscience or religion, the physician must do so in a manner that respects patient dignity. Physicians must not impede access to care, even if that care conflicts with their conscience or religious beliefs. There is already pressure put on people, subtle and more profound." Collins said the Colleges message that is even if you dont want to do it, make sure it happens. Well, doing it and making sure it happens are morally equivalent. And we think that is just not right. There is already pressure put on people, subtle and more profound, the cardinal said. Advertisement We just cannot do that and stay true to our belief, said Worthen, whose group represents approximately 5,000 medical personnel. It is resulting in doctors considering moving from the province of Ontario to try to be able to practice according to their conscience. Last month, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia also issued interim guidelines noting that physicians have the right to decide whether or not to perform physician-assisted dying. While the College said physicians who object to physician-assisted death are not obligated to make formal referrals, it also said physicians were required to provide an effective transfer of care for their patients by advising patients that other physicians may be available to see them. If we have a truly diverse and richly inclusive community, it is very important that people of conscience not be forced into doing things..." Worthen said he hoped the committee would put provisions in place that respect the constitutional protection of conscience and freedom of religion, so that his organizations members could practice medicine according to our beliefs right across the country. People who are deeply involved in helping others should not be pressured into doing that [physician-assisted death] or into making it happen indirectly. It is just not right, Collins added. If we have a truly diverse and richly inclusive community, it is very important that people of conscience not be forced into doing things. That is not a better Canada. Advertisement Also on HuffPost: Vegan food lovers (and others who can't digest dairy) across North America celebrated this week with the news that Ben & Jerry's would finally release ice cream flavours made with non-animal products. Canadians who fall into these categories, mind you, will have to wait a little while longer to try them out. "Unfortunately they are not available in Canada yet," a spokesperson for the company told The Huffington Post Canada. Advertisement While Ben & Jerry's ice cream is sold across the country, there has long been a discrepancy between what we and our southern neighbours get to eat. The new flavours are non-dairy takes on pre-existing options, which will now be made with almond milk. And yes, your favourite could just be included there's Chunky Monkey (chocolate and banana), Chocolate Fudge Brownie (self-explanatory), Coffee Caramel Fudge (as above) and P.B. & Cookies (chocolate sandwich cookie bits mixed with peanut butter). There is some good news, though Canadians are actually allowed to bring ice cream over the border for personal use, up to 20 kilos of the stuff. Just make sure you're out of the country more than 24 hours .. and don't exceed the personal exemption amount. Advertisement We'd also suggest checking out your local ice cream shop to see what they have on offer, since they might just be a bit more innovative with their flavours. Also on HuffPost Today, on World Cancer Day, the goal is to raise awareness of the disease in order to hopefully prevent as many cases as possible in the future. But the reality is, cancer continues to pervade people's lives, with statistics putting cancer deaths at 8.2 million people per year around the world four million of which are people aged 30 to 69 years old. Advertisement Death is an important part of the conversation when it comes to cancer, which is why specialists have become focused on ensuring patients know their options when it comes to palliative care. For Dr. James Downar, a critical care and palliative care staff physician at Toronto General Hospital, he's seen an increased recognition in the value of palliative care, and better adoption of it earlier on in the disease course. "Palliative care is often thought of as speciality of medicine that is only given to people at the very end, and thats not true anymore," he explains to The Huffington Post Canada. "Our intention is to help with symptoms and decision making, and that's often relevant much earlier than people realize." Dr. Pippa Hawley, the palliative care program medical leader at the BC Cancer Agency, would prefer the conversations that can help these notions start even before you get sick. That's why she's started holding Bucket List Festivals across B.C., fundraising events to help people figure out how to make the most out of their lives when their time is limited. Advertisement As former patient Ian Dunlop Reid wrote on his blog about one of the events, "The best thing I took away was a reconnection with my own life a reconnection that happened because I was forced to consider in a very practical way, my death." While difficult to approach, advanced care planning is what can make the difference between patients feeling like they have some autonomy over their plan, and losing control. Decisions that have to be made include everything from which life-saving measures they will allow to who makes the decisions for them, if they're not able to themselves. "In medicine, we tend to push forward regardless we tend to have the desire to use aggressive care until people tell us to stop," explains Dr. Downar. "At any stage of illness, you want to start the conversation with your doctor about values and whats important to you as a human being. People will get sicker, we wont be able to fix an illness the way we want to, and when that happens, its important to know their final time will be spent in comfort." Another aspect of the illness, according to Dr. Downar, is that statistically speaking, patients dying of cancer are younger than those dying of organ failure or frailty, and as such, are higher functioning until they're close to the end of their lives. This can create even more difficulties as they quickly lose hold of things they valued or felt were defining to them as individuals, whether it was being able to do their jobs or simply going to the washroom without assistance. In those cases, it's more important than ever, says the physician, to help them figure out ways to get meaning back for their remaining time. Advertisement "Sometimes it's thinking about other goals, helping them discover something more achievable," says Dr. Hawley. "And as they progress in their illness, people also get better perspective, and realize they can function perfectly well without those things they thought they needed." Of course, as physician-assisted dying becomes closer to becoming legal in Canada, it's also a topic about which many terminally ill patients are inquiring. From a healthcare perspective, this can make the palliative care conversation all the more important, in order for people to better understand every one of their options. "When people are first diagnosed with cancer or metastatic disease, they're frightened of what's coming, of being a burden on their families," says Dr. Hawley. "It's at that point they need to know the supports that are available and how they can access them, both for themselves and their families." These supports can include anything from home care visits by nurses or physicians or equipment like electric beds that can help ease the transition from being fully functioning to requiring assistance services that are often government-provided. Advertisement And according to the professionals, there is absolutely no reason to "tough it out" or feel like you're taking some kind of easier path when you accept help in the form of pain management. "People shouldnt feel like they need to choose between prolonging their life and being comfortable they can really choose both," says Dr. Downar. Most of all, the doctors stressed, patients need to know that their care team very much wants to have these conversations with them as soon as possible in order to best respect their wishes. "I hated seeing people get treatments they didnt want because they didnt know how to have the conversation about not having them," says Dr. Hawley. "People need to consider a palliative approach to care alongside disease-modifying treatments when they still might get better. If they wait until theyre absolutely dying, it could be too little too late." ALSO ON HUFFPOST Gucci is taking the fashion world to church. Possibly taking a cue from Hozier (okay, probably not), the Italian fashion label will be hosting the first-ever fashion show in Westminster Abbey, as revealed exclusively to the Telegraph. According to the Telegraph's Linda Armstrong, the historic gothic cathedral "represents a personal coup for Alessandro Michele, barely into his second year as Guccis creative director, who describes the news, after delicate negotiations with the Abbey, as 'magical.'" Advertisement Poet's corner, Westminster Abbey. Indeed, Michele seems to really love the city and venue that has hosted some of the world's most prestigious events and occasions, including the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in 2011. Prince William and Kate Middleton stand at of Westminster Abbey in London during their Royal Wedding ceremony on April 29, 2011. Advertisement "London is always on my mind and in my memories. Im obsessed with British culture, past and present," he tells the Telegraph. And while some find the venue inappropriate for a fashion show, the Telegraph defends the designer's choice of location. "Let's also not lose sight of the fact that attending Church, particularly weddings (see Victoria Beckham and co at Kate and Wills weddings) has always been a copper-plated excuse for wearing ones best." The brand's cruise 2017 collection will be presented at Westminster Abbey on June 2nd. Follow Huffington Post Canada Style on Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter! Also on HuffPost Prime Minister Justin Trudeaus response to a question about a much-debated pipeline on Wednesday sowed some confusion over a pledge he made during the election campaign to absolutely respect First Nations veto over pipeline projects crossing traditional territories. Trudeau spoke to media after meeting Alberta Premier Rachel Notley for a productive meeting at the provinces legislature. Advertisement The people of Alberta have provided Canada with its economic engine for many years, but today we are facing some very serious challenges, Notley said at the joint press conference. Veterans Affairs Minister Kent Hehr and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau with with Alberta Premier Rachel Notley at a roundtable meeting with oil and gas producers in Calgary on Feb. 4, 2016. (Photo: Larry MacDougal/The Canadian Press) The prime minister criticized the previous Conservative government for failing to understand that marginalizing community concerns, ignoring environmental science by refusing to engage with indigenous communities was not a way to fast track pipelines. Advertisement It was a way to ensure, in fact, things wouldnt get built. A reporter asked Trudeau if his cabinet would approve the Energy East pipeline if the National Energy Board gives the project a green light. We are in a situation where we are not going to predict or shortcut any of the processes going through, he said, without offering an explicit yes or no. Renewed relations and First Nations veto Trudeaus response prompted some to accuse the prime minister of backpedaling on a campaign pledge. The prime ministers office responded to the claims, telling The Huffington Post Canada on Thursday the government will reach out to First Nations where appropriate and engage in meaningful consultation when necessary. The government has made a clear commitment to building a renewed relationship with Indigenous Peoples, one that is based on a recognition of rights, respect, cooperation and partnership, said Cameron Ahmad, Trudeaus press secretary in an email. We believe that partnering with Indigenous communities on sustainable economic development strengthens local economies and benefits all Canadians. Advertisement Prior to Octobers election, Trudeau sat down with APTN for a virtual town hall hosted by anchor Cheryl McKenzie. During the sit-down, the conversation circled around issues related to the environment and pipelines. The topic of a First Nations veto was brought up. For some, theyll say no matter what the scientific evidence, they dont want that pipeline on their territories. Would no mean no under your government? McKenzie asked. Absolutely, Trudeau responded at the time. The notion of a First Nations' veto over such projects stems from an United Nations declaration protecting indigenous rights, which demands governments first acquire "free, prior and informed consent. Under the previous Conservative government, Canada was the only country in the General Assembly to not vote in favour of the landmark declaration's adoption in 2014. The veto clause was repeatedly cited as a point of contention by the Harper government. With projects that may impact First Nations traditional territories, the federal government is required by law to consult with communities that may be affected. Advertisement Also on HuffPost: Martin Shkreli, the indicted former pharma CEO who raised the price of a life-saving drug by 5,400 per cent last year, refused to answer questions in front of a congressional committee on Thursday morning, taking the Fifth Amendment on his lawyers' advice. But Shkreli followed up his appearance in front of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee with a tweet referring to congresspeople in a very pointed way. Advertisement Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government. Martin Shkreli (@MartinShkreli) February 4, 2016 Shkreli faced a barrage of criticism from House representatives over Turing Pharmaceuticals decision last year to raise the price of Daraprim by some 5,400 per cent. Daraprim is a drug used in the treatment of toxoplasmosis, a lethal parasitic disease. Turing later relented, offering a 50-per-cent discount on the new price that still amounted to roughly a 2,700-per-cent price increase over the original price. The price hike led to no small amount of public outrage at the time. .@MartinShkreli As the son of a world-famous infectious disease MD who saved continents, let me say: U are the personification of evil. Kurt Eichenwald (@kurteichenwald) September 21, 2015 I call this money blood money ... coming out of the pockets of hardworking Americans,'' Maryland Democratic Rep. Elijah Cummings told Shkreli Thursday morning. Advertisement Shkreli appeared to be enjoying his moment in the limelight. Business Insider reports that the 32-year-old appeared to be suppressing laughter during his appearance in front of the committee. theres something wrong with this guy pic.twitter.com/mdfaBG8E1q Sam Ro (@bySamRo) February 4, 2016 Outside of the hearings afterwards, Shkrelis lawyer told reporters his client had been unfairly singled out. People would eventually realize Shkreli is a hero, Business Insider quoted the lawyer as saying. Shkreli resigned as chief executive of Turing, and was fired from his job running another pharma, KaloBios, in December, when he was arrested in New York and charged with securities fraud and conspiracy, relating to another company he ran. Prosecutors allege Shkreli looted a pharmaceutical company, Retrophin, for $11 million in order to pay back angry clients at MSMB Capital, whose money he had lost in bad trades. He faces a possible 20 years in federal prison. Advertisement Shkreli has said he was unfairly targeted by prosecutors because of his decision to hike the price of Daraprim. Handout It's not often that journalists talk about themselves. As much as we convince readers on a daily basis that the subjects of our stories matter, we failed to convince you that we matter. It comes as no surprise then, that much of the mudslinging in recent weeks in response to reporters speaking out about the massive layoffs are based on a misunderstanding of what we actually do and why. Advertisement Here are three core themes. 1. If you wanted my support, you shouldn't have endorsed the ____ party. Journalists are not owners. Owners are rarely journalists. It's baffling that the employer-employee divide, a given in other industries, is ignored when people perceive the news. Editorial's interest to inform the public and the owner's demand for profit are often completely at odds with each other. The problem is, one has the upper hand. The symptoms of this discord manifest themselves in countless ways - clickbait, Kim Kardashian-style fluff pieces, inaccuracies, unpaid contributors, permalancers, editor resignations, bizarre political endorsements, layoffs, and even deteriorating mental health for journalists. As the public, who do you blame? In a recent podcast, Canadaland explored the notion: What if the slow collapse of Postmedia was always the plan meant to generate income for its vulture fund owners? Is the idea that management is in it for themselves and not for journalism really that unfathomable? Advertisement You, the public, are right to be offended. Mistakes are more common today because copyeditors have all been laid off. The quality of reporting in general has gone down because reporters must write more stories per day. There is less hard-hitting reporting -- the kind that we would rather do, I can assure you -- because we are afraid of losing our jobs. There is more cheap consumable content because management demands views. Even endorsements, at least the type we're seeing, so unapologetically at odds with both political merit and public opinion is unprecedented and a result of an owner's partisan ties. You, the public, are right to be offended. Whatever your personal experience with journalists and our work, know that we are trying. Those of us who have jobs are in a constant mental state of toeing the line, made up of serving the public, not offending management, and putting food on the table. No wonder our own interests -- job security, mental and physical health -- take a backseat. These aren't excuses -- the onus is and should always be on reporters to do better -- but your anger should be directed at those who deserve it. 2. Social media will replace journalists soon. Social media will replace journalists the way microwaves will replace cooks. Everyone owns a microwave, and rehashed leftovers, cheap TV dinners, or the odd brilliant creative recipe are quick, easy. But your favourite Tumblr or Twitter account will never have the nuance, complexity, depth and consistency of real journalism when it is allowed to exist. Just as a microwave aids a cook in his or her work, so does social media for a journalist. Advertisement Today there are too many examples of strangers being misidentified as creeps, pedophiles, bombers, terrorists, because of unrestrained, unverified content being shared and, most dangerously, believed on social media. Journalism isn't perfect, and skepticism (not cynicism) is healthy. But when people believe social media as fact, people die. Good journalism applies research and critical thinking. This takes time, funding, and independence in equal measure. Nothing will replace it. 3. Why should I pay? I'm glad to see (insert publication name) go. It's mind boggling when people make demands of journalists that they refuse to support with a single dime. Don't trust Monsanto-funded scientific research? Then help fund a different study yourself. As journalists, we would love to be immune to corporate interests. But our will is strained daily because our livelihood often has to rely on private, not public money. Advertisement Boycotting amalgamated outlets to hurt owners is only sound on paper. Their salaries and bonuses will be paid as is the corporate culture in North America. Journalists, employees and the public interest will continue to suffer at the front lines if small independent papers are allowed to completely die off. As one Toronto Star columnist said, our citizenship comes with the responsibility of keeping each other honest. Journalists are the people you hire to do this work for you. Every publication that folds, however "slanted" because it doesn't align with your view and therefore is deserving of death, is one less set of eyes on the world. There are those who will benefit from this obscurity. It will not be you. Follow HuffPost Canada Blogs on Facebook ALSO ON HUFFPOST: By David Dodge & Dylan Thompson Brown gold. Prairie pies. Monkey missiles. Whatever you call them, they're all over the place in feedlot alley near Lethbridge, the food processing centre of Alberta. Where you or I may turn up our noses at a pile of ripe, smelly manure, Stefan Michalski, director of operations at Lethbridge Biogas, sees a resource that can be turned into clean, green energy. Advertisement Michalski came to Alberta from Germany more than a decade ago with a dream, to tap the back-end of Alberta's agriculture industry and spin green energy from brown waste. While biogas is relatively new to Alberta, it's very common in Germany. "As of today, there's more than 8,000 plants in Germany alone," says Michalski. "It is a proven technology. It works even in Canada's climate, which we have a lot of sceptics always asking about, and it has been around for decades in Europe." Recipe for turning brown waste into green power Normally, manure is spread on farmland as fertilizer, but this can pollute runoff, cause odors and release tons of greenhouse gas emissions. Normally, food waste is simply landfilled which costs money and, like manure, releases plenty of methane, a potent greenhouse gas. Lethbridge Biogas takes the manure and food waste, mixes it together, heats it to 39 degrees Celsius and captures the methane (natural gas) to power twin 1.4 megawatt generators to produce enough power for 3,000 homes. Advertisement The 3.9 million litre digesters resemble giant, squat grain silos with dome tops. While it's easy to make jokes about cow manure, it's an essential ingredient for making biogas. "Manure from a process perspective is a very valuable input material because it carries the form of bacteria you need, but it is actually very low in energy," says Michalski. "So if you can balance that out and add organics that are higher in energy content, you can create an ideal mix with a higher output that manure couldn't deliver." Turns out food waste is very high in energy. It really makes you wonder when you see the food being dropped off (we saw vegetables, dog food, buns, coffee grounds and some messier stuff), but at least it's better to turn this food waste into biogas than to dump it in a landfill. Lethbridge is a food production hub, so there is plenty of organic waste from potato and vegetable processing as well as from local restaurants and stores. "Typically, we are cheaper than the landfill which is an incentive to do it here, not only because it makes more sense, but you want to create some diversion with an economic incentive," says Michalski. Many places in Europe have banned organic waste from landfills, thus ensuring the waste is used. Advertisement So how does Lethbridge Biogas make money? "First and foremost, we make power. Power still makes up about 60 to 70 percent of our revenue stream," says Michalski. In addition to selling electricity, Lethbridge Biogas also collects tipping fees for organic wastes, which provides 20 per cent of its revenue and the final 10 per cent comes from selling carbon offsets. "It is a small piece now but with the recent announcement of carbon tax and other initiatives around the Climate Change Leadership Plan, we think this is a piece that can grow," says Michalski. Reducing pollution Producing clean energy from waste is pretty cool on its own, but biogas production also helps cut pollution in several ways. When farmers spread manure in the fields, it releases methane, a greenhouse gas 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide. It can pollute local streams and runoff and let's face it, manure stinks. Advertisement The biogas production process takes the methane out of the manure and burns it to produce electricity, which reduces emissions almost 25 fold. Digestate, the leftover solids from the digestion process, is an even better fertilizer than manure, with fewer odors and significantly less pollution. "[The farmer] has a product now that doesn't stink as much," says Michalski. "A product that's better balanced, that has a better nutrient and phosphor-nitrogen ratio. He can deal with it the same way he dealt with the manure before." Lethbridge biogas collects the manure and returns it as a better product. "So for [the farmer], it's almost a no-brainer because he has to do nothing," says Michalski. Most biogas applications are smaller than the 2.8 megawatt Lethbridge Biogas power plant which makes it perfect for farm scale and a great tool for economic diversification. James Callaghan has 250 head of dairy cattle in Lindsay, Ontario and he built a farm-scale digester and a 500 kilowatt power plant. Ontario has almost 30 farm-scale biogas plants. Michalski says there is room for hundreds of the same in Alberta. A place for biogas Michalski says the biggest hurdle to developing a biogas industry in Alberta is the patchwork of regulation currently in place. Thanks to red tape and uncertainty, it took Michalski and his partners the better part of 10 years to get their plant going. Advertisement "Well, we need a place for bioenergy and biogas, in particular," says Michalski. "We need some regulatory mechanism and incentives to get there." LoweStock via Getty Images The historic Victoria, BC government building seen at sunset in the inner harbor of this beautiful city. Last month, lobbyists gathered in Vancouver for The Future of Lobbying, a one-day conference put on by B.C.'s Office of the Registrar of Lobbyists, Simon Fraser Institute's Governance Studies and Public Affairs Association of Canada (B.C. Chapter). Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but there does seem to be a future for the industry. In fact, if we're not careful, B.C. could be overrun by lobbyists. Advertisement Last year, there were 2,502 in-house and consultant lobbyists registered in the province, up from 1,451 four years ago. Whoever said the B.C. Jobs Plan wasn't working? While others do get some attention -- political staff, deputy ministers and the like -- that works out to 30 lobbyists for every MLA. In Ottawa, there are 3,008 lobbyists or nine per MP. As one of 14 panelists at the Vancouver conference, it fell on me to provide a bit of insight on the public's perspective towards the industry and a few ideas on how it might be improved. Someone has to rain on the parade of rainmakers. Not a tough task, though. There's no shortage of material. Advertisement Last month, Missouri state legislator, Bart Korman, tabled Bill 2059. If it becomes law, lobbyists in that state would be required to disclose any sex given by a lobbyist to a lawmaker or their staff each month. A dollar valuation will not be required when reporting sexual acts. Be thankful for small mercies. If the industry is an unavoidable evil of modern politics, it was then sacrilege time for the assembled. Closer to home, former B.C. lobbyist Marcella Munro found herself in a pickle after taking a post with Alberta's new NDP government. The Wildrose party was only too happy to blast her appointment by pointing to some of Munro's B.C. blog posts, including: "that saying no to projects like Kinder Morgan, to protect our environment and quality of life" are things to be celebrated. The posts were quickly taken down and replaced with Alberta-centric messaging. "My BMW 325i is my favourite possession" was Munro's new riff, telling the Calgary Herald: "there's no planet on which I could try to argue against the oilsands. I love all the good things petroleum does for me -- including driving too fast on Highway 2." Advertisement As the Herald's Don Braid put it: "If you have trouble reconciling the contradictions, you are most likely a regular human unconnected with the murky, interlinked worlds of lobbying, campaigning and government advocacy." If the industry is an unavoidable evil of modern politics, it was then sacrilege time for the assembled. First up: transparency. Reporting only intent to lobby - as the legislation currently requires - isn't good enough. The "if I'm really, really lucky the minister might open my email before he triple deletes it," isn't the best approach for reporting lobbying activities. It's meetings that count and lobbyists should be required to report who they've met with as well. Those on the other end of the bargain -- MLAs, political staff, deputy ministers -- should also disclose who is lobbying them. Good way to check to see if everyone's reporting matches up. Fees paid by clients should be disclosed, as is done in the United States. Last year, 11,169 lobbyists working Washington, D.C. billed US$2.4 billion, an average of $215,000 each. Advertisement A province-wide registry for municipal lobbyists is long over due. Contingency fee agreements need to be trashed, as is the case at the federal level today. Public agencies and local governments should be prohibited from hiring outside lobbyists. In B.C., some universities, local governments, professional bodies such as the College of Dental Surgeons of B.C. and federal agencies like Via Rail and Port Metro Vancouver have all retained lobbyists in the past. If there was an industry award for client development, it would have to go to Earnscliffe Strategy, who has represented Deloitte since 2013. The goal: to raise Deloitte's profile and awareness about the services they bring to government. Who knew it needed raising? Never let it be said that having a higher profile doesn't come with a price. For someone. In 2010, Deloitte billed the B.C. government a little less than $20 million. By 2015, their billings had risen to more than $50 million. Hope that wasn't a contingency deal. Follow HuffPost Canada Blogs on Facebook ALSO ON HUFFPOST: Earlier this year Vancouver-based entrepreneur Karina Hayat was asked how it felt to be a refugee in Canada at the young age of 11. "The most important message I could share from my experience growing up and coming over to Canada is that being a refugee doesn't last a lifetime. It's an experience that lasts but a few short years and opens the door to a life full of opportunities to learn, grow and succeed," she said. For Karina, those opportunities led her to start Prizm Media with her husband, Zeeshan Hayat. Prizm Media is a digital media and technology firm that connects consumers with products and services that are necessary for the management of chronic health conditions. Advertisement Her success story has resulted in many awards. In 2015, Karina was recognized as one of Business in Vancouver's Top 40 Under 40. She was also ranked 9th on PROFIT's W100 list of Canada's Top Female Entrepreneurs. Today, Karina is speaking from experience to provide her top four tips for success -- in work and in life: 1. Follow Your Passion Karina Hayat became an entrepreneur at a very young age. She remembers selling ice to members of the community in her home country of Guatemala. She always knew that she had an innate knack for business. But first, she needed to find her passion. Advertisement Fortunately, her answers came during college, when she was studying biology. During this time, Karina and Zeeshan Hayat saw a need to help people improve their health and lead healthier lifestyles. This led them to build Prizm Media. It wasn't long before Prizm Media became an industry leader in the health care space. Karina credits a large part of her success to the fact that every day she is doing something that benefits society. "If I'm having a rough day, feeling unmotivated, or am just overwhelmed, all it takes is to be reminded how many people we are helping through our work, and how necessary the business we've started is to the health care industry," she says. "If there is one thing you should consider when starting a business of your own, it is that you find something you are passionate about and never look back," suggests Karina 2. Work With Your Community and Help Them Grow Karina and Zeeshan Hayat have made it a priority to focus on further improving the technology within the health care industry. Karina and Zeeshan hope to personalize health and wellness for people through the use of machine learning and the analysis of data available from wearable and mobile devices. Advertisement The Hayats believe that to truly understand your community, you need to connect with them on a variety of different levels. Networking at conferences, attending charity events, and giving out food and blankets are ways to support and integrate with your community. When you do that successfully, your community will help you and your company. 3. Be Aware of Your Strengths and Weaknesses With three young children to take care of, Karina has mastered the art of multi-tasking. As any mother knows, there's absolutely no doubt that things can get pretty overwhelming at times. Karina's strategy? Believe it or not, it's to have a plan and not to have a plan at the same time. "In our family, a daily routine and schedule doesn't exist. For us, it's more about adapting to what's going on and being good about managing our time. It isn't a strategy for everybody, but it's been working for us," she says. The tech industry is always changing, and that lack of rigidity or entrenched procedures has become beneficial for Prizm Media. "Being able to evolve quickly and adapt to our audience in a very niche market has been hugely advantageous for us," suggests Karina. Advertisement 4. Don't Point Out a Problem Without A Solution "You need to accept that your life and business is going to change and evolve," says Karina. As a former refugee, Karina is no stranger to significant life changes and is not one to shy away from a challenge. Karina and Zeeshan have faced many obstacles on their pathway to success. This quickly taught them that there's no point in acknowledging a problem if you aren't willing to find a solution. Above anything else, this has been the Hayat's saving grace. Lead generation is incredibly dynamic, complicated and rapidly changing. Their ability to find creative solutions to every problem has allowed them to become thought leaders in the health care world and has enabled them to connect countless individuals to health products and services that will ultimately improve their quality of life. At the end of the day, Karina says that her experience as a refugee and entrepreneur are testaments to the idea that knowing yourself, following your passion, helping others and working hard aren't just buzzwords or feel-good mottos. These are simple ideas that remind us all to be conscientious and compassionate. "Once you have those things, success will always fall into place," says Karina Follow HuffPost Canada Blogs on Facebook MORE ON HUFFPOST: Rather than close the Global Affairs Canada's Office of Religious Freedom, Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion should seize the opportunity to transform it into a real force for change for all excluded minorities in developing countries. Rachana exemplifies an excluded woman who was in triple jeopardy due to her gender, poverty and disability. I met Rachana in the rural Indian state of Bihar, one of the country's poorest. She had contracted leprosy, a disease easily cured by a course of tablets, but the stigma against the disease in Bihar meant Rachana's family shunned her, excluded her from her home and prevented her from seeing her children. Rachana faced a triple jeopardy of exclusion and discrimination. (Photo: Lepra) Rachana's story demonstrates an opportunity for Canada to show global leadership. How? Well, by focusing on the most vulnerable populations in the world, who have been left behind despite recent advances in international development. In Plan's experience over the last 75 years, those most at risk of being left behind are often disadvantaged because of who they are or where they live. They do not benefit from development because of their gender, sexuality, religion, ethnic origin, or because they live in remote and conflict-affected areas. Advertisement Simply put, Canada is in the enviable position of being a credible voice for inclusion. A group of girls in rural Guatemala. (Photo: Plan International/Miguel Vargas Corzantes) The Office of Religious Freedom was established in 2013, and its mandate is about to lapse. It could serve a greater purpose if entrusted with a wider mandate as an Office of Inclusion, Diversity and Human Rights. The Office could go beyond shining a light on the persecution of religious minorities abroad and focus instead on applying the principles of our Charter of Rights and Freedoms to Canada's work overseas. Our Charter firmly enshrines equal protection under the law for everyone, regardless of such factors as gender, disability or ethnic origin. Our foreign assistance programs have been guided by these principles for decades. Canada was a pioneer in ensuring major actors in the development field adopted its bold agenda on gender equality. And here at home, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's new cabinet is one of the most diverse in the world, reflecting the Canadian mosaic. Simply put, Canada is in the enviable position of being a credible voice for inclusion. Canada's gender-balanced cabinet and the openness with which Canadians have responded to the Syrian refugee crisis are but two such examples and have brought us acclaim from around the world. Given that all marginalized people deserve the same support as those who are excluded based on their religious beliefs, the new Office could engage with relevant government departments, stakeholders, communities and leaders globally to address the social factors that are current barriers to economic development for such vulnerable groups. Canada has a historic opportunity to lead a new global push for inclusion and the Office can have a deliberate strategy to map out excluded groups and mandate to aid vulnerable individuals at home and abroad. Advertisement In September 2015, Canada endorsed the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a new set of benchmarks that will frame global development work over the next 15 years. The goals aim to "leave no one behind," including vulnerable people like Rachana. Make no mistake, remarkable progress was made under the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which guided and galvanized global efforts to meet the needs of the world's poorest and most vulnerable by their 2015 expiration date. After all, halving the number of children who die under the age of five since 1990 and ensuring twice as many mothers now survive childbirth were not easy tasks to accomplish. The MDGs can be credited for these significant achievements, among many others. But there's more to be done. In a way, the first global stab at eliminating global poverty, the MDGs, was an exercise in low-hanging fruit. The poor who received assistance were, for the most part, readily visible. The SDGs offer us an opportunity to reach out to vulnerable groups that may be hard-to-reach and hidden from view. A group of youth attend a community FGM abandonment ceremony in Mali. (Photo: Plan International/Seydou Dolo) At Plan, we have learned that in order to ensure development work is inclusive, we need to map where the poorest groups are, what access they have to education and healthcare and work with the Rachanas of the world to enable access. Seeking out these vulnerable people will require a concerted effort by governments, NGOs, and communities around the globe. But when achieved, these efforts will be richly rewarded. Not long ago in Mali, I had the privilege of meeting Fatimata - a health worker who has helped girls and women transform the opinions of their entire community against female genital mutilation. Meanwhile, in the rural highlands of Guatemala, the indigenous people are receiving good quality education for their children. Each of these groups fell out of mainstream education or health programs. Advertisement Happily, Rachana has been cured of her illness after locating and receiving medical attention at a leprosy clinic. She is now actively supporting others affected by leprosy in Bihar, and advises the International Federation of Anti-Leprosy Associations (ILEP). In his recent speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Prime Minister Trudeau said, "Everybody needs to benefit from growth to sustain growth." To some, this may sound like a cliche. However, the Prime Minister can realistically fulfill his ambitious vision if the Canadian government: ensures the world does not lose sight of vulnerable groups by supporting governments in developing countries to map excluded groups; develops and establishes specific strategies for vulnerable groups, once identified; sets targets and monitors progress, including supporting a global collection of data (segmented by sex, age, gender on excluded groups); and pushes for a UN summit on inclusion to identify available inclusion-related data measurement, what plans are in place to include the excluded and what progress is being made. Helping the estimated one billion people who are currently attempting to achieve a reasonable standard of living while earning below-subsistence levels is undoubtedly a daunting challenge. This is a pivotal moment for Canada in many ways, not the least of which being our status as a leader in global development. By establishing an Office of Inclusion, Diversity and Human Rights, Canada stands to lay the foundation for our overarching commitment to equality at home and abroad, and our identity as a universal advocate for human rights. Advertisement Marie Staunton is the Interim Chief Executive Officer of Plan International Canada. bodnarchuk via Getty Images young homeless boy sleeping on the bridge, poverty, city, street Leaving my office around 7 p.m. last week, I found a man by the door looking for information about our food bank. I gave him the details about our hours and encouraged him to come to our drop-in meal program. He thanked me, but explained he wouldn't be able to make it to any of our services because he would be at work. And there you have it. The very common experience of Torontonians who are working and still require assistance from food banks. This should be top-of-mind for those at Toronto City Hall, who seem to have lost their nerve when it comes to making meaningful change for people living in poverty. Advertisement There was great excitement following council's unanimous support in November for the city's first-ever poverty reduction strategy. Only three months later, the city's budget committee is proposing that $6 million is all the city can afford to spend to reduce poverty this year -- far short of the $75 million a cross-section of community leaders and organizations have urged council to consider in order to give this strategy teeth. This enormous disappointment prompted Councillor Gord Perks to ask the committee: "For whom is this budget affordable?" It is not, as he said, affordable for those on housing waiting lists or families in need of child care. And it is certainly not affordable for future generations of Torontonians. Poverty only gets more expensive, so this is not a good long game Mayor Tory and the budget committee are playing on the city's behalf. Community activists are holding a bake sale-themed rally next week to keep the pressure on councillors. The irony should not be lost on Torontonians. Canada's largest city has a world-class problem with poverty, and yet we seem ready to put our heads in the sand and hope that maybe, just maybe, it will go away. Advertisement Rest assured it's not going away. Far from an old-school approach to budgeting, we need leadership and new approaches to revenue generation unless we want to be paying for the growing costs of poverty for years to come. Toronto already has the awkward notoriety of being Canada's child poverty capital. We have more people waiting for social housing than everyone living in PEI. And more than half of our workforce is deemed to be precariously employed -- going without sick days, regular schedules or steady hours. Hence why so many working people spend their after-hours time looking for food banks. Relative to the provincial and federal governments, municipal governments have limited policy levers to pull on when it comes to poverty-related issues -- which is why this strategy is so important. It represents a long, thoughtful approach in which thousands of Torontonians showed up and took part, and city staff's final report includes recommendations for long-term, innovative building and immediate action. Community benefits agreements and procurement policies are a smart way forward and should be embraced -- making the money we spend achieve multiple goals. Setting targets to hire local people as part of capital works projects such as the Eglinton LRT is just a good way of doing business, getting income into communities, by employing local people to build infrastructure in their neighbourhoods. Advertisement Similarly, buying local food as part of procurement policies means support for local farmers and producers, a stronger local economy, a more sustainable food system and less environmental damage as we lessen our reliance on far-away foods. Those are among the recommendations in the poverty reduction strategy -- making better use of the money we are going to spend anyway. But it also included things like making our transit system more affordable for low-income people so they can get to work, to school or to the food banks they increasingly use. It included recommendations to champion a living wage standard across Toronto, and new child care spaces. The budget could be more affordable and real investments in poverty reduction could be made if council considered a range of revenue-generating tools. It's good news the budget committee passed a motion to study best practices in revenue generating. The results of the study will likely include options that have been left out of the equation so far: the $64 million from the Vehicle Registration Tax, increased property taxes (so they're comparable to surrounding municipalities) or increasing sin taxes (tobacco, alcohol and parking tickets). In not aggressively pursuing new options this time around, the budget committee is abdicating instead of leading on poverty reduction. The problem is not with the poverty reduction strategy. While not perfect, it is creative and dynamic. It is more than disheartening to have had the mayor lead the city into a significant discussion on poverty, and then not follow through when it matters most. Unanimous consent was the easy part. Advertisement How many more people will show up to work hungry before council decides to take a longer and a bolder view of what Toronto needs? How many kids living in poverty is actually too many for us as a city? Follow the money. It tells you about priorities. Follow HuffPost Canada Blogs on Facebook MORE ON HUFFPOST: C/O Like most people that call this city home, I am deeply troubled by Sunday's shooting deaths in Toronto's Chinatown and the eight other gun-related deaths the city saw in January. This is obviously unacceptable, and police must be supported in their efforts to investigate and prosecute those responsible for these horrific crimes. That being said, most people would be hesitant to draw any clear conclusions about why we have seen a high number of gun crimes over the past month. Mike McCormack, president of the Toronto Police Association, the union that represents police officers, feels differently. Advertisement Speaking to the press, he argued that it is the end of street checks, or "carding," that has led to increased violence in Toronto. He added that this has impaired the ability of police to investigate incidents like the Chinatown shooting "like we used to." (While McCormack echoed former Police Chief Blair in noting that carding has ended, provincial regulations to limit carding have not yet been finalized, and it is not at all clear that discriminatory police stops and questioning have ended. But that is a debate for another day.) The real problem with McCormack's argument is that it is meaningless without data. It has become commonplace in the debate surrounding carding for the police to point to anecdotal evidence to justify carding as an important intelligence tool or, in McCormack's case, to suggest that there is a correlation between carding and crime-solving. Yet, despite the Ontario Human Rights Commission's requests for data to support these claims, we have received nothing that shows that carding solves or prevents crime, or even reduces violence. Advertisement "Let's not be distracted by Mr. McCormack's comments. Discriminatory police street checks and other forms of racial profiling have to stop." In fact, research from the United States and Britain shows the exact opposite -- 99 per cent of the time, carding yields no evidence of criminal activity. What we also know is that homicides in Toronto have declined by approximately 35 per cent since 2009, and that gun violence is also declining, all this while Toronto Police have been placing less and less reliance on carding as part of their intelligence gathering activities. Data aside, a central goal of human rights laws and our Charter of Rights and Freedoms is to strike the right balance between security, on the one hand, and privacy, non-discrimination and dignity on the other. In this case, that balancing requires that police cease arbitrarily stopping racialized individuals and asking for, recording and storing their personal information in an intelligence database. There is never room for racial profiling in finding this balance. While Mr. McCormack may believe that this makes policing more difficult, it is simply what the law requires. These are the types of complex challenges police officers face every day on the job. Advertisement In the wake of the Forcillo verdict, the Toronto Star noted a rapid drop in public trust in the Toronto Police Service. Statements like Mr. McCormack's can only cause further damage to racialized communities and further erode their trust in police. Without that trust, police will be further behind in meeting their goals of proactive, intelligence-based policing. Indeed, research shows that people are less likely to cooperate with police investigations and provide testimony in court if they have negative perceptions of police. This lack of trust has profound consequences for the functioning of our justice system and has a negative impact on public safety for everyone. Perhaps this is why we have recently seen other major police forces, like the RCMP and the OPP, publicly acknowledge racism amongst their ranks and commit to addressing it. We need more of this, and less of Mr. McCormack's fear-mongering. Indeed, in a case in which we are currently intervening before the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, Roberts v. Toronto Police Services Board, we are asking the police to collect race-based data for all stops of civilians and incidents of use of force to identify, monitor and address patterns of officer behaviour that are consistent with racial profiling. It is unfortunate that the OHRC has to resort to litigation to seek data that would be so clearly in the public interest. Let's not be distracted by Mr. McCormack's comments. Discriminatory police street checks and other forms of racial profiling have to stop. Advertisement Follow HuffPost Canada Blogs on Facebook MORE ON HUFFPOST: By Andrea Harden-Donahue When TransCanada first announced its 4400km Energy East pipeline project from Alberta to Saint John, the spin was all about nation-building. At their first news conference, CEO Russ Girling compared Energy East to "bold ventures" such as the Canadian Pacific Railway that evoke civic pride. "Each of these enterprises demanded innovative thinking and a strong belief that building critical infrastructure ties our country together, making us stronger and more in control of our own destiny," said Girling, as quoted in a Macleans article. Many pundits and political figures, notably Premier Brad Wall, have bought this hook, line and sinker. Advertisement This spin is dependent on the idea that Energy East will see crude produced in the Prairies replace so-called foreign imports to Atlantic Canada. "It's inaccurate no matter how often the company repeats it. Energy East is an export pipeline, not a made-in-Canada energy solution." Myth-busting step 1: Understanding refinery capacity There are three refineries along the Energy East pipeline path: Suncor in Montreal with the capacity to refine 137,000 barrels per day (BPD) Valero in Quebec City which can refine 235,000 BPD Irving in Saint John which can refine 300,000 BPD If Energy East replaced every drop of oil in these refineries, with a total capacity of 672,000 BPD, a significant 428,000 BPD would still be for export. Energy East would be the largest tar sands pipeline in North America. Advertisement But here's the thing, Energy East won't replace every drop -- far from it. Back in 2014 we helped publish a report finding three projected crude oil supplies along Energy East's path towards 2020: Enbridge Line 9 reversal 250,000 BPD Atlantic Canada offshore 100,000 BPD U.S. light crude 200,000 BPD Enbridge Line 9 reversal has since been approved and is now is unfortunately flowing oil to Quebec refineries despite fierce community resistance to the old pipe, which endangers critical waterways, amongst other critical concerns. Valero has gone so far as to publicly state it has "no firm interest" in Energy East because it already has commitments for other sources -- notably Line 9. Same goes for Suncor. When it comes to U.S. imports, the fact is it is cheap light crude and a likely ongoing choice given refineries desire for the best bang for their buck. Advertisement This leads to the conclusion that 978,000 barrels of the 1.1 million BPD are destined for export. The report's conclusion is affirmed by TransCanada's recent filings to the NEB for Energy East indicating the project would see a doubling of oil tanker traffic in the Bay of Fundy, up to 281 a year. This means at least 800,000 BPD of Energy East's crude is destined for international markets. Not convinced yet? Let's consider what will be flowing through the pipe. It is a multi-use pipeline which will transport Albertan conventional oil, diluted bitumen and other unconventional oil from the tar sands and Bakken fracked crude from Saskatchewan and the U.S. The largest and growing portion of this is to be tar sands crude and given the state of refineries in Alberta, it will be unrefined, diluted bitumen. Bitumen produced in the tar sands is becoming increasingly landlocked with pipelines to the West and South being rejected, the high costs of shipping by rail and current export infrastructure nearing its limits. Outside of the very serious consequences of shipping this toxic mix 4400km to Saint John, the heavy bitumen mixed with light, toxic diluents to flow through the pipe requires special equipment to refine. The three refineries along the route can't, and don't appear to have clear plans to invest in the expensive equipment. Myth-busting step 2: Understanding where crude in Eastern Canada comes from This argument playing on Canadian patriotic sentiment is often combined with trumped up stats about where Atlantic Canada's oil currently comes from. Advertisement TransCanada consistently states that Eastern Canadian refineries are dependent on oil imports from so-called 'foreign countries.' In this promotion piece, they state Eastern Canada imports 634,000 BPD. They go on to source this NEB document stating "Leading importers include Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Norway, Algeria and Angola." This is an interesting tactic. If you look at their source, you can clearly see just over 300,000 BPD of this is actually imported from the U.S., not these so-called foreign countries. This is consistent with the useful take-down Environmental Defence's briefing provides comparing TransCanada import numbers to more up-to-date Statistic Canada numbers, concluding, "TransCanada's claim [that Eastern Canadian refineries import 86 per cent of their oil from foreign imports] is false. And it's inaccurate no matter how often the company repeats it. Energy East is an export pipeline, not a made-in-Canada energy solution." Further evidence of the extent to which TransCanada bends the truth to frame its narrative, the same slick document then goes on to put a price on the imports from these four countries, $8 billion, stating this is enough to cover the, "average annual salary of 15,000 Canadian teachers." What utter nonsense. Not only am I unconvinced Prairies crude flowing in Energy East would displace these crude imports, this is like suggesting the crude flowing through Energy East would be provided for free, allowing these funds to flow to more laudable recipients. Advertisement It goes on to say Canada spends $26 billion on oil imports per year, and how this is money that could "finance about half of Ontario's entire 2015-2016 health care budget," or "pay for New Brunswick's health care budget for 10 years." This is misleading, at best. If this was REALLY about Canadian oil for Canadians... Like Gordon Laxer argues in his new book, if this was really about a patriotic goal of achieving greater energy security by supplying Canadian oil to Canadians, why aren't we talking about diverting current exports from Newfoundland to the U.S. to meet Atlantic needs? As Laxer argues, existing production sits around 200,000 BPD which, combined with easy conservation and efficiency measures, can meeting Atlantic Canadian supply -- no need for a 4400km pipeline carrying some of the most carbon-intensive and threatening crude to waterways. Follow HuffPost Canada Blogs on Facebook MORE ON HUFFPOST: KILIS, TURKEY - JANUARY 29: Syrian refugee boy Hani Nachi (5) poses in front of a wall paintings at a kindergarten of a refugee camp in Kilis, Turkey on January 29, 2016. Hosting nearly 2,5 million Syrian refugees, Turkey provides better conditions them at refugee camps. (Photo by Kerem Kocalar/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images) Anadolu Agency via Getty Images The UK will invest at least an extra 1.2billion to fund education, jobs and humanitarian protection in Syria and the region, David Cameron has announced. The cash will invested over the next four years, and will be directed at projects in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey Advertisement The government made the pledge ahead of a meeting involving delegates from 70 countries and international organisations in London to debate support for the worlds biggest humanitarian crisis. The UK has already promised to spend 1.12billion in the region, making it the second biggest bi-lateral donor in the world and todays announcement will see an extra 1.2billion-plus being spent between 2016 and 2020, taking the UKs total investment to more than 2.3billion. Mr Cameron said: With hundreds of thousands of people risking their lives crossing the Aegean or the Balkans, now is the time to take a new approach to the humanitarian disaster in Syria. Todays pledge of more than 2.3billion in UK aid sets the standard for the international community more money is needed to tackle this crisis and it is needed now. Advertisement But the conference I am hosting today is about more than just money. Our new approach of using fundraising to build stability, create jobs and provide education can have a transformational effect in the region and create a future model for humanitarian relief. And we can provide the sense of hope needed to stop people thinking they have no option but to risk their lives on a dangerous journey to Europe. The Supporting Syria and the Region Conference will be co-hosted by the UK, alongside Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the United Nations. It will aim to raise billions of dollars in international aid, with the current UN appeal standing at more than $7billion. It will also aim to build economic opportunities, creating job opportunities for refugees and host country citizens as well as seeking to put all refugee children in education by 2017 along with vulnerable children in the three host countries. Advertisement In addition, the conference will aim to make lives better for those still remaining in Syria, by funding food, shelter and healthcare, and rebuilding health facilities. The conference is expected to send out a strong joint message reinforcing the importance of humanitarian rights in Syria. David Miliband has delivered a stinging rebuttal to claims that accepting more refugees would "overwhelm" Britain, as world leaders gather in London for talks on the Syria crisis. More than 70 countries will be represented at the conference co-hosted by Britain, Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the United Nations. Advertisement Speaking on Channel 4 News, the former foreign secretary claimed there was no evidence that the UK would be "overwhelmed" if it accepted more refugees: "I always say to people, if it was 25,000 [refugees] a year, that would be 40 per parliamentary constituency. "No one is going to tell me that my former constituency of South Shields would be overwhelmed by 40 [refugees] per year." David Cameron total pledged an additional 1.2bn to support refugees fleeing Syria's brutal civil war. The UN is appealing for 5.4bn to fund aid operations for the 13.5 million people displaced by the fighting and in need of assistance. It comes after last year's UN appeal for 2bn was 60% under-funded. Cameron said the contribution to be delivered over the next four years will take total UK support since the start of the crisis in 2011 to 2.3 billion and should "set the standard" for the rest of the international community. Advertisement David Milliband spoke out on refugee numbers as he appeared on Channel 4 News Miliband, 50, said that while the British approach has been "exemplary" in terms of aid, it is "sorely lacking" when is comes to refugee resettlement. "I think that in a way people say - so is that the number you would advocate? For a start that would at least match what the Canadians have done, who are half [our] population. "Now the only countries that are stepping up at the moment are Germany and Sweden, which has got its own problems. I think it's right to describe a British approach as exemplary in the international aid front, but sorely lacking when it comes to the refugee resettlement. The truth is you need both - not just from Britain but from countries right across the world." Last year, Ukip's Susanne Evans warned that the country's schools and hospitals will reach "breaking point" if the "flood" of refugees from the Middle East and North Africa continued. Advertisement Speaking on BBC's Question Time, she said: "While in an ideal world we would want to find some way to accommodate them, the simple fact is that we can't. "I'm sorry, we simply cannot take any more people." Currently the UK is on track to take 20,000 refugees from Syria by 2020 - and campaigners want it to take 3,000 children from Europe. The UK has already accepted about 1,000 refugees from Syria under the Vulnerable Persons Resettlement Programme, which the government expanded last year. The Prime Minister wants to use today's conference to focus support on the neighbouring countries most notably Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey which are currently home to 4.6 million displaced Syrians. Advertisement He argues that providing opportunities to work and access to services is essential to persuading refugees to remain in the region and preventing another mass influx of people into Europe. One of the aims of the conference will be to ensure there are school places for all refugee children in the region by 2017 as well helping the host countries to provide places for their own vulnerable youngsters. Officials said they would also be looking to open up new trade and business opportunities for the host countries - which have been straining under the pressure - so that they will see a boost to their own economies as well as helping the for refugees. Cameron has been pressing for the European Union to agree beneficial trade agreements similar to that which exists between the United States and Jordan which has generated 680,000 in trade for Jordan. "With hundreds of thousands of people risking their lives crossing the Aegean or the Balkans, now is the time to take a new approach to the humanitarian disaster in Syria," the Prime Minister said. Advertisement Among the key figures attending the conference will be UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon, German chancellor Angela Merkel and US secretary of state John Kerry as well as the Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and representatives of Russia and China. Cameron is expected to take the opportunity to discuss his EU reform plan in bilateral meetings with European leaders attending the event, including Belgian prime minister Charles Michel, Greek premier Alexis Tsipras and Slovakia's Robert Fico. Petrol bombs were hurled at riot police during the latest round of anti-government protests in Athens on Thursday. Troubled erupted as the country suffered another general strike in protest at an overhaul of the pension system, part of the third bailout package from Brussels. Athens police reported sporadic clashes between anarchist protesters outside parliament as more than 50,000 Greeks marched through the capital. According to AP, demonstrations were also held in other towns and cities across Greece, with unions decrying the left wing Syriza governments pension reforms, which include increasing social security contributions. Advertisement Critics argue the move could raise citizens contributions to around three-quarters of their total income, sparking protests from tens of thousands of working class Greeks. "They are raiding our souls not just our pockets," 70-year-old George Stathopoulos told Reuters. "They betrayed us." Pensioner Nikos Ghinis added: "They should be strung up here, in Syntagma Square," referring to the government. Thursday's action is the second general strike since Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras took power in January 2015. Looney Tunes voice actor Joe Alaskey has died at the age of 63. Joe, who provided voices for Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck and Tweety Bird for nine years, died on Wednesday (3 February), following a battle with cancer. Joey Alaskey at the premiere of 'Looney Tunes: Back In Action', where he voiced an array of the classic characters Advertisement Despite being best known for his voice work, the Emmy Award-winning star first began his career as a stand-up comedian and broadcaster, making the switch to voice acting later down the line. In addition to his work with Looney Toons, where he offered his voice talents for a host of the iconic characters, including Pepe Le Pew, Wile E. Coyote and Yosemite Sam, Joes voice has been heard in a host of other cartoon favourites. Joe voiced Grandpa Lou Pickles in more recent incarnations of the Rugrats franchise, as well as voicing Droopy the Dog in Tom And Jerry and Richard Nixon in the hit film, Forrest Gump - a role he landed thanks to his great ability to mimic voices. This ability also meant he was often called on to redub actors lines in films, particularly when it came to creating profanity-free versions for television. Advertisement Joe won an Emmy for his portrayal of Daffy Duck More recently, he provided the narration for the Discovery series Murder Comes To Town. On camera, Joe was the star of the cult film Lucky Stiff in the late 1980s, as well as enjoying a role in the short-lived space-themed sitcom Out Of This World, playing Beano Froelich. Julian Assange is being "arbitrarily detained" in the Ecuadorian embassy in London where he has hid from extradition over allegations of sexual crimes, the UN is about report. The Wikileaks founder pledged to hand himself over to police for arrest on Friday if the UN ruled against him when it formally reports. Advertisement But the Swedish foreign minister has now confirmed the UN will side with Assange, prompting speculation Assange had already had sight of its findings before he made his pledge, knowing he would not have to act on it. He is wanted for questioning in Sweden over alleged sexual offences against two women, which he has always denied, and is fighting against extradition. He has not left the Ecuadorian Embassy in Knightsbridge, west London, since June 2012 and was subsequently granted political asylum by the South American nation. Advertisement Julian Assange has said he will hand himself in on Friday if the UN approves his extradition A spokesperson for Sweden's foreign ministry said the UN's working group, whose decision has no legal effect, had "made the judgement that Assange has been arbitrarily detained in contravention of international commitments." Assange filed a complaint against Sweden and the UK in September 2014 which is being considered by a group of legal experts for the UN, who are expected to deliver their findings on Friday. The UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has made previous rulings on whether imprisonment or detention is lawful, although the group does not have any direct bearing on British and Swedish authorities. If the working group finds Assange's detention to be unlawful the UN is expected to call on the UK and Sweden to let him go free. Assange believes he will be transported to the United States to be quizzed over the activities of WikiLeaks if he goes to Sweden. Advertisement In a statement published by WikiLeaks early on Thursday morning, Assange said he expected to be able to walk free if the British and Swedish authorities fail to receive UN approval for extradition. Assange said: "Should the UN announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me." The statement was signed: "Julian Assange, Embassy of Ecuador, London." But the Metropolitan Police, which posted a permanent guard outside the embassy for years after Assange sought shelter there, said the ruling would not affect its efforts to arrest him and hand him over to Swedish authorities. Assange's friend, journalist Vaughan Smith - who gave him refuge at his home after the Swedish allegations were first made in 2010 - told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that Assange wanted to see "a resolution" to the case. Smith said Assange viewed himself as "a political prisoner", saying he had gone into the embassy to maintain his liberty. He told the BBC that he viewed Assange as a "sort of a dissident". According to the website justice4assange.com, the 44-year-old Australian has so far spent 1,885 days inside the embassy "under house arrest". Before entering the embassy, Assange had been held at home and in prison since December 2010. He spent months fighting extradition to Sweden through the courts and fled to the embassy after he exhausted his legal options. Assange no longer faces investigation for two counts of sexual molestation and one of unlawful coercion, as the five-year deadlines for prosecuting these crimes in Sweden have lapsed. Advertisement Lord Rose Daniel Leal-Olivas/PA Wire The leader of the campaign to keep the UK in the EU was accused of massive complacency today after claiming his side would romp to victory in the referendum. Lord Rose predicted the Remain camp would win the vote by a substantial margin during a lunch with journalists in Westminster this afternoon. Advertisement His comments were immediately seized upon by those campaigning for the UK to leave the EU, with Ukip leader Nigel Farage tweeting: Massive complacency from In Campaign's Lord Rose who says Remain will win by "substantial margin". He may be in for a shock. Massive complacency from In Campaign's Lord Rose who says Remain will win by "substantial margin". He may be in for a shock. Nigel Farage (@Nigel_Farage) February 4, 2016 During the lunch, Lord Rose said: "A win's a win. If we get 50.001 it's a win. I want to win, but we'll win by a substantial margin. The Britain Stronger in Europe chiefs optimistic tone comes despite a slew of negative headlines for David Camerons draft deal with the EU announced on Tuesday. Advertisement A Sky News poll of just over 1,000 viewers showed that just 31 per cent thought the proposals were a good deal for Britain. Almost half - 44 per cent - said they were now less likely to vote to stay in the EU. However, 37 per cent said it made no difference, and 19 per cent said they were more likely to vote to stay in. Lord Roses comments have taken the attention away for the increasing rancor between the rival Leave campaigns: Vote Leave and Leave.EU. Yesterday, it was announced former Chancellor Lord Lawson would be taking over as chief of Vote Leave after concerns were raised about how the group was being run. Leave.EU a group backed by Mr Farage and formed by Ukip donor Arron Banks indicated that the changes in the group might pave the way for a merger of the two bodies. Advertisement However, this afternoon Mr Banks put out a statement attacking Vote Leave and said: I am angry that this group is jeopardising this historic referendum through their dishonesty and unwillingness to embrace and work with all the Brexit groups. It's time they and the Conservative MPs associated with them decide if it's their career or their country which matters most to them, and then they can either fit in with the rest of us or quite frankly disappear." Martin Shkreli, the entrepreneur who sparked widespread opprobrium by hiking the price of a life-saving drug from $13.50 to $750 last year, pleaded the Fifth Amendment during a congressional committee on Thursday, silently smirking his way through proceedings. Despite members of congress launching a stinging rebuke of the businessman's practices, Shkreli refused to answer the committees questions, preferring to rant on Twitter afterwards about the imbeciles in Congress. Advertisement Shkreli listens on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, during the House Committee on Oversight and Reform Committee Shkreli is facing a federal criminal indictment unrelated to the price gouging accusations, however Thursday's House Committee on Oversight and Reform Committee hearing focused on his previous company Turing Pharmaceuticals' decision, to raise the price of daraprim by more than 5,000 percent. US Representative Elijah Cummings told of drug company executives lining their pockets at the expense of some of the most vulnerable families in our nation." Advertisement "It's not funny, Mr. Shkreli," he said as the businessman smiled. "People are dying and they're getting sicker and sicker." Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government. Martin Shkreli (@MartinShkreli) February 4, 2016 When Representative Trey Gowdy told the entrepreneur he could testify on the price increase without incriminating himself, Shkreli shot back: I intend to follow the advice of counsel, not yours. "I intend to follow the advice of my counsel, not yours" I love this guy @MartinShkreli Katie Sullivan (@kesullivan99) February 4, 2016 Gowdy: Is it Wu Tang Clanthe name of the group? Shkreli: On advice of counsel, I invoke my 5th amendment privilege This. Just. Happened. Ari Melber (@AriMelber) February 4, 2016 Advertisement Shkreli has gained a cult following in recent months after buying the only copy of a new Wu Tang Clan album for $2 million. Check out my slick escape from the photographers into my armored SUV. #smoothhttps://t.co/QUntgc0Roo Martin Shkreli (@MartinShkreli) February 4, 2016 For some women, the journey to motherhood can be a long and isolating process. Fertility struggles, the heartbreak of a miscarriage or going through an adoption means some wait longer than they'd hope to have a child. But enduring these challenges isn't something women should go through without friends to fall back on. This is something Sally Oddy, owner of MeetOtherMums - a networking site to support mums-to-be - found to be true when she decided to try for a baby. Advertisement Sally Oddy has been trying for a baby for nearly two years "I realised a lot of the existing support networks for mums require you to be pregnant or already have kids," Oddy from Leeds told HuffPost UK Parents. "Us 'invisible mums' are a bit left out sometimes. I believe women become mums when they make the decision to have a child, whether they physically give birth or not. "It made me want to create a support and friendship networking site that welcomed mums of all ages at all stages, whether you have a biological child or not." Advertisement Oddy doesn't have any children of her own, although she and her partner have been trying for nearly two years. Having experienced a failed round of IVF, Oddy said what she really needed at that time was support from other women in the same position as her. "I just found no support for women making the decision to try for a baby," she said. "I think this is a massive issue for loads of women that often gets overlooked. "Women who are making this life-changing decision should be able to connect with like-minded women and talk it through with someone who really understands how tough it is." Instead of ignoring her feelings of isolation, Oddy wanted to do something about it. After speaking to other women, she realised there were many different types of mums entering parenthood - those who have had premature babies, those who are having their first child or are going through IVF - where women would benefit from meeting others who are going through, or have gone through, the same. Advertisement Sally Oddy wanted to connect other mums to stop women feeling isolated Oddy began brainstorming an online network of mums to find a solution, but it wasn't until her own mum passed away in January 2015 that she felt the urge to put her ideas into action. Filled with determination, but with little experience, Oddy found a website developer through People Per Hour and spent five months building a site that she hoped would unite women. MeetOtherMums launched officially in August 2015 matching people with others in their local area who were at a similar stage in their parenting journey. To register for the site, women enter their information on a profile - based on location, age and if relevant, children's age. Once logged in, they can add more detailed information on their profile such as their jobs, what magazines they read, or whether they intend to return to work. Once this information has been filled out, they will immediately get matched with others in their area and then decide who they want to connect with. Advertisement "It's a bit like a dating site for mummy friends," Oddy explained. "Members can also read our funny, honest and heartfelt guest blogs and join in the lively discussions in the chat forums. "If they can't find women in their area, women can search the national database for other mums that are sharing similar experiences to them (even as unique as Spanish-speaking mums of triplets) and create their own private groups for closed discussions." MeetOtherMums allows women to "match" with others at a similar stage in their parenting journey Just like typical dating sites, women will get notifications each time their profile matches with someone else. They can then send a "smile" or a "friend request" and get chatting. Users can simply talk online, create private groups or organise meet-ups in their area. "We have measures in place to monitor every new member to ensure they are all genuine mums looking to make friendships," Oddy added. Advertisement "If in doubt we phone them at the number provided to verify their identity." Since launch in August, Oddy said the site has had a fantastic response with women from all over the UK being "matched" straight away. "The site is going from strength to strength," she explained. "Since launch, we have developed more blog pages and now have regular bloggers contributing fantastically heartfelt, funny and interesting blogs every month. "This has made a massive difference to traffic and boosted our members joining." Tara Newns, a mum from Harrogate, has hailed the site a "game-changer" for mums and those hoping to become a mum. "When you become a mummy, you are thrust into a whole new world of (largely unspoken) experiences, feelings, worries, fears and - of course - joyous moments," she told HuffPost UK Parents. "It can feel as though you are the only one going through something that you are experiencing, sometimes you just need another opinion, a 'grown-up' chat, merely pointing in the right direction or just getting confirmation that you are doing the right thing and not going bonkers." Advertisement Newns said getting advice from those going through the same experiences has been a "lifeline" for her. "It's different to other forums that I am a member of as I know that the people are in my local area," she continued. "We are matched on similar interests and with similarly-aged children - removing any awkward 'mummy dates' with people that you would not normally spend time with, for the sake of your children (and believe me, I have endured a few)." Another mother from Cheshire, who wished to remain anonymous, found the site gave her the support she needed after suffering with mental health issues. Advertisement "I have suffered with depression on and off for many years and wanted to connect with similar people in my area so we could support each other when going though are low stages," she told HuffPost UK Parents. "I am a member of MeetOtherMums and found it wonderfully helpful. "It makes it so easy to ask questions such as where the best place is to go to with little ones through to illness advice. And because the advice comes from other mums it makes you feel more reassured. I would recommend MeetOtherMums to any of my close friends, it's a fab site." For Oddy, developing the site and increasing membership to maximise matches is her main priority. A new initiative she's launched to enable this is her #MumSquadChallenge, inviting mums across the UK to join the site and create local mum groups that support each other and help each other out. "Loneliness and isolation are very real issues facing mums through many stages of the parenting journey," she explained. "I simply dont want any mum in the UK to feel alone, to me its just not acceptable. "After failed IVF and years of trying, this passion drives me to work on MeetOtherMums when I get home from work every night." Advertisement To find out more about MeetOtherMums and the challenge, visit their website. A mum has called her daughter's school uniform policy "ridiculous" because she claims they "banned" her daughter from wearing boot-like shoes. Kasia Kowalska-Trela, 41, from Salford claimed her daughter Oliwia, 14, was told to find another pair of shoes from the school's lost and found cupboard, or face detention if she didn't comply. After recently paying 50 for the shoes, Kowalska-Trela was frustrated she had to buy a new pair. "There is absolutely nothing wrong with them, but the school classes them as boots," she told Manchester Evening News. Advertisement "Theyre half an inch higher than other shoes. Its ridiculous." Kasia Kowalska-Trela daughter's shoes Kowalska-Trela said her daughter used to wear Kickers shoes to school, which looked similar to her boots now, but the uniform policy changed "without anybody being told", to include a rule that students have to wear shoes that sit below the ankle. She said with her daughter needed a sturdy pair of shoes because she has to walk 30 minutes to school every day. "Theyre very modest, plain, old school leather shoes. Theyre not overly chunky," she said, according to ITV News. Advertisement Kasia Kowalska-Trela (far left) Kowalska-Trela claims her daughter wore the shoes for two months before the school noticed. However now they have been picked up and reportedly described as "inappropriate footwear". The mother told The Sun: "Oliwia is such a hard-working and obedient student and the rest of her school uniform is always immaculate. "The whole experience has been very stressful for her. HuffPost UK Parents has contacted the school for comment. In September 2015, a similar story came to light when more than 50 pupils returning to school were sent home for wearing "unsuitable shoes". Staff at the Djanogly City Academy, in Nottingham, pulled 100 students out of lessons just minutes after they turned up for school on 1 September. Those not wearing plain black leather shoes were rounded up and taken to the sports hall before 56 were sent home to change. Advertisement Headteacher Dave Hooker, said: "Being appropriately dressed, whether for school or work, is a lesson that will benefit all our students throughout their lives." Police are hunting a group of masked men who broke into an Asian family's home and reportedly screamed: "We are going to kill you, Isis scum." Three men, armed with a gun, a meat cleaver and a knife, smashed their way into the property through the rear door on Wednesday night. The men threatened and racially abused three of the occupants, but had their faces covered. The incident, which happened on Fairbrook Drive in Salford, is being treated as a hate crime by police. Advertisement Fairbrook Drive in Salford A long-standing Labour local councillor, John Warmisham, told Manchester Evening News: This is an appalling incident and will not be tolerated in Salford. It appears it was purely a nasty racist attack but at a level I have never heard of before. Apparently the family has been targeted for racial abuse before. A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Police told The Huffington Post UK: "Shortly before 10pm on Wednesday 3 February 2015 police were called to reports of a break-in at a home on Fairbrook Drive in Langworthy, Salford. Advertisement "Officers attended and found that three men had smashed through the rear doors armed with a gun, a meat cleaver and a knife and threatened and racially abused the three occupants. "No one was injured and nothing was stolen." Detective Sergeant Ben Cottam from GMP's Salford Division added: "This was an incredibly distressing incident for the victims. We have specialist support officers working with them through this stressful time and we will try to establish what happened. London's top police officer is to meet Lord Brittan's widow later this month to apologise for the Met's handling of a false rape allegation that still hung over him at the time of his death, according to reports. Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe, will reportedly visit Diana Brittan within weeks to discuss Scotland Yards failure to confirm the former home secretarys innocence before his death in January 2015. A source told the Guardian on Thursday that the meeting would go ahead. Advertisement Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe is reportedly set to visit the widow of Lord Brittan and to apologise for police's handling of his case Police concluded there was no charge to answer over a 45-year-old rape allegation four months before Lord Brittans death but failed to tell him. Lady Brittan was told eight months later. The newspaper said the meeting was arranged last year and scheduled at the earliest possible time. Lord Brittan officially remains under investigation by Operation Midland, which was launched after a man known as "Nick" claimed that three boys had been murdered and others sexually abused by a VIP paedophile ring. There were claims that sex parties were held at the exclusive Dolphin Square apartment block near the Houses of Parliament. Scotland Yard has said Operation Midland, launched in November 2014, would continue despite reports that it would be shut down. The inquiry centres around offending in Westminster more than 30 years ago. Advertisement Police concluded Lord Brittan had no charges to answer four months before his death, but did not tell him Lord Bramall, a D-Day veteran, who was also accused of abuse, has criticised the Met for failing to properly verify claims that he was part of a high-profile paedophile ring before his name was made public. The former armed forces chief has been told he faces no further action and has called for police to review the way they deal with claims of historical sex abuse. Allegations against the 92-year-old were dropped by police after a nine-month inquiry, but he had to clear his own name. Advertisement Lord Bramall, whose home was raided by police last March while he had breakfast with his terminally ill wife, said detectives "didn't bother" to get any corroboration for the claims before launching the inquiry, leaving him to prove the allegations were not true. Lord Bramall alleged that officers did not speak to witnesses who cast doubts on the allegations against him until 10 months after he was first spoken to. Speaking to BBC Radio 4, he said that had the allegations not been so serious, he would have roared with laughter. He said: "Allegations had been made about me. I said, 'what are they?'. All they said was the allegation was I had abused an under-age male 40 years ago." Referring to one specific claim, he added: "Hardly, if the man's a field marshal, he's likely to choose Remembrance Sunday to have a sex party. "I just don't see how a level-headed policeman could have believed a word of it without corroboration, which he didn't bother to get. "It was I that had to prove I couldn't have done it. The same with the sex pool parties ... absurd business of the policeman saying, 'can you swim?'. And I said, 'yes, I can swim'." Lord Bramall described seeing the officer's face "light up" at this information. Former MP Harvey Proctor was accused of two murders and having a possible role in organising a third. Britain First is begging members for donations to fight Bedfordshire Police who are trying to ban the far-right group from returning to Luton in the wake of their 'Christian Patrol'. The group said the move would give the "Muslim bigots of Bury Park free rein to inflict violence and racism on outsiders." On 23 January, around 20 Britain First members marched through Bury Park carrying wooden crosses and confronting local Muslims about trying to "take over" Britain, in an incident condemned as "inflaming" tensions. A video of the event gained more than 25 million views on Britain First's Facebook page before the social network removed it. The footage is still viewable on YouTube where it has been watched more than two million times. In the days after the march Bedfordshire police said they had made no arrests, but announced they were investigating to see if any crimes had been committed. At a packed public meeting at Bury Park Community Centre on Wednesday police told the Luton community they were trying to ban Britain First from returning to the town. Advertisement Bedfordshire police are trying to ban Britain First from returning to Luton; pictured above is the far-right group's leader Paul Golding during its 'Christian Patrol' in Luton Assistant chief constable Mark Collins told the meeting: "We are making three commitments, the first being an investigation which will leave no stone unturned, the second is that we will be seeking an injunction to prevent Britain First from returning to Luton and thirdly that no members of the local community will be arrested over the events of last Saturday." Bedfordshire police unsuccessfully sought a court injunction to ban Britain First leader Paul Golding and his deputy Jayda Fransen from entering Luton and its surrounding area for a year, ahead of a march the party hosted on June 27 last year. However, it was granted an interim injunction that restricted Golding and Fransen's behaviour in the town. Advertisement The injunction banned Golding and Fransen, either by themselves, or by instructing or encouraging or giving permission to any other person from: Entering any mosque or Islamic Cultural Centre or its private grounds within England or Wales without prior written invitation. Publishing, distributing or displaying, or causing to be published, distributed or displayed any words or images, whether electronic or otherwise which having regard to all the circumstances are likely to stir up religious and/or racial hatred. Using threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour thereby causing harassment, alarm or distress to any person Carrying or displaying in Luton on Saturday, 27 June, 2015, at or in connection with the march by 'Britain First' any banner or sign with the words 'No More Mosques', or similar words or words to like effect. The police were also given the power of arrest should either party breach any of the terms of the injunction At that time Chief Superintendent David Boyle said: "This injunction was sought due to concerns that their presence in Luton could increase the possibility of disorder and anti-social behaviour in the town. "The terms which have been agreed today give us greater power to ensure that order is kept in the town during the demonstration. "I would like to be clear that it was never our intention to ban any demonstration and we will always facilitate peaceful protest where possible. Advertisement "We have a policing plan in place to ensure we meet the needs of those wishing to demonstrate." Britain First deputy leader Jayda Fransen confronts a local Luton resident during the 'Christian Patrol' Bedfordshire police told the Huffington Post UK on Thursday that the force is investigating any "potential breach" of the interim injunction and is "urging anyone with information or evidence in the form of photographs or video footage to contact CID South 101". During the Christian patrol Britain First members repeatedly told local Muslims that Britain was not their country, and in the words of charity Tell Mama, acted in an "intimidating" way aimed at "inflaming" tensions. Britain First however, saw it differently saying that they had faced "ferocious hostility from local Muslims". Video of the 'Christian Patrol', Britain First wrote, was a "shocking look into the Islamisation of our beloved country". Its activists, the party said, were pelted with eggs and verbally abused by Muslims who claimed to have "taken over" Luton. Advertisement In a subsequent email on Thursday Golding told Britain First members that "we are running out of time to get prepared for the new legal onslaught". The party, he said, needed to raise 5,000 to defend itself. So far Golding said it had raised 1,960. Golding noted that Bedfordshire's police first attempt to ban the party from Luton had left it with "egg on their faces" and that their recent march had "exposed that Bury Park in Luton is a no-go zone for non-Muslims" (A day after their march local Christian's handed out roses in the town, distancing themselves from Britain First's views, and calling for community cohesion). Golding wrote that no members of the local community, "even the ones who shouted racist abuse and who actually attacked some of our activists" would be charged. "Can you actually believe what you are reading," Golding's email read. Golding: "The Muslim bigots of Bury Park have been given free rein to inflict violence and racism on outsiders. Advertisement "Even if the law has been broken, the Assistant chief constable of Luton police will not arrest you if you are Muslim! "We did not expect this and we are totally unprepared for a new legal battle against Bedfordshire Police in the High court. "These taxpayer-funded parasites are going to try again to scupper our movement but, like last time, we will fight till our dying breath against them no matter what they throw against us. Muslim men confront Britain First members during their 'Christian Patrol' in Luton "They are hoping that we will be unable to defend ourselves again like last time and then the Muslim bigots of Luton will be able to form a Sharia Law enclave with the help of the police! Advertisement "Once again, our very existence is on the line as well as freedom of speech and democracy in our beloved Britain. "Please, please, please chip in to our urgent legal fighting fund and give us the tools we need to fight off this latest attempt to sabotage our movement." Golding's email ended by saying: "No wonder the Muslims in Bury Park were happy to shout "We Muslims are taking over!" on the video we put online of our action in Luton - they know the authorities will bend over backside to appease them!" At present there are two petitions against Britain First. One to ban them from Facebook and Twitter has over 900 signatures, and another to ban them as a political party has over 12,000. A response to the petition by the Home Office, published on 28 January, said while the government kept the list of proscribed organisations "under review" it would not confirm if it was considering banning Britain First. Advertisement After months of negotiations, a draft deal on the UKs membership of the European Union was presented this week. The deal, which still needs to be agreed by leaders of the 27 other EU states, sees changes in the so-called four baskets which David Cameron was pushing for: protection for non-eurozone countries; competitiveness; sovereignty; and benefits for migrants. Advertisement It is the last of these baskets which has generated much of the debate, with an proposed emergency brake on new migrants claiming in-work benefits if immigration is deemed to be too high derided as ineffective and weak by Camerons critics. The PM will be hoping to get the agreement of other EU leaders at a summit on February 18 and 19, and if he does get a collective nod, the referendum could take place on June 23. Tory backbencher Steve Baker chairman of Conservatives For Britain and heavily involved in the Vote Leave campaign told the Commons the Prime Minister was polishing poo by presenting the agreement as a good deal. London Mayor Boris Johnson said much more needed to be done in order to give powers back to the UK parliament, but during the Commons debate on the deal on Wednesday the Prime Minister seemed to offer an olive branch on the issue. Advertisement Former Cabinet Minister Ken Clarke, one of the countrys most high-profile pro-Europeans, told Commons People that nothing the Prime Minister achieved would please some of his critics. He also predicted Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith would campaign for the UK to leave the EU, and joked: If he said he was going to bring back a statue in gold, life-sized, of Iain Duncan Smith as tribute to the nation, Iain Duncan Smith, who used to act as a whip for the Maastricht rebels, would be Out. Im afraid thats true of most of the backbenchers. While many were getting their head round the detail of the deal, one of the Leave campaign groups Vote Leave was having a reshuffle of its leadership. Former Chancellor Lord Lawson has been brought in to head up the campaign after it was reported a number of MPs were unhappy with how the organisation was being run. Away from the EU, SNP MP Mhairi Black took the Government to task over a a perceived lack of information at a change in the age at which women can claim the state pension. Advertisement Theresa May has been urged to ban from Britain a "repulsive" pro-rape campaigner who planned to stage events across the country. Daryush Valizade, who also goes by the name Roosh V, has promoted the idea of legalising rape if done on "private property". Advertisement On Thursday morning he used his of Return of Kings blog to announce the meetings planned for "heterosexual men only" were cancelled. Valizade had not planned to attend the events. However MPs have urged the home secretary to preemptively ban the American from visiting the UK in future. MPs also made fun of "ludicrous" Valizade and his "sick minded" followers, implying the meetings planned for cities including London, Glasgow and Cardiff, were an attention seeking move designed to compensate for the size of his penis. Advertisement Speaking in the House of Commons today, Home Office minister Karen Bradley said Valizade's views were "absolutely repulsive" and had "no place in British society". "We should ridicule, we should show contempt, we should show these are the most ridiculous views," she said. "If we can see these are ludicrous comments, people will see they do not want to be part of this." Bradley said she could not comment on whether Valizade would be banned, but added May had a record of banning people when deemed necessary. "The home secretary has the powers to exclude any individual who is not a British citizen if she considers their presence in the UK is not conducive to the public good," she said. "This home secretary has excluded more people and has done more on the issue of tackling violence against women and girls than any home secretary in history." Advertisement She added: "The government condemns in the strongest terms anyone who condones rape and sexual violence or suggests responsibility for stopping these crimes rests with the victims. Responsibility always unequivocally rests with the perpetrator of these serious crimes." Labour's Chi Onwurah made fun of Valizade in the Commons MPs laughed as Labour's Chi Onwurah suggested Valizade was "so insecure in his own masculinity" that he felt the need to "augment the size of his ... following". Bradley added: "I join her in her comments about perhaps the reasons why this individual is doing what he is doing, ensuring he is getting publicity, in a way perhaps he needs for other reasons. I'll say no more." SEE ALSO:People Who Are Already Banned From The United Kingdom Conservative MP Simon Hoare urged the government to ban Valizade. "Everybody would welcome a proactive engagement form the home secretary and her department to not only exclude this man who frankly is an embarrassment to all men and to proscribe his organisation as well," he said. Advertisement Conservative Philip Hollobone said if anyone was "seeking to incite criminal activity" the government should have "absolutely no qualms" about excluding them. And Labour Christian Matherson added: "I can see no possible benefit to this individual being allowed into the UK now or in the future," he told the Commons. SNP MP Stewart Malcolm McDonald mocked men who agreed with Valizade and had planned to attend his events as "sick minded halfwits". And Lib Dem Greg Mullholand said his ideas were "a perversion of masculinity". In promoting the legalisation of rape if done in private, Valizade has argued: "Less women will be raped because they wont voluntarily drug themselves with booze and follow a strange man into a bedroom, and less men will be unfairly jailed for what was anything but a maniacal alley rape." On his Return of Kings blog, Valizade wrote this morning: "I can no longer guarantee the safety or privacy of the men who want to attend on February 6, especially since most of the meetups cannot be made private in time. Advertisement "While I cant stop men who want to continue meeting in private groups, there will be no official Return of Kings meetups." Russias ministry of defence warned on Thursday that Turkey is preparing a ground invasion of Syria. According to Reuters, defence spokesman Igor Konashenkov said there are a growing number of signs of hidden preparation for a land incursion by Turkish forces into its warn-torn neighbour. Earlier this week, Moscow requested an observation flight over Turkish land close to the Syrian border but was refused, sparking concerns Ankara is attempting to hide military activity. Advertisement The flyover, Russia argued, was legitimate under the international Treaty on Open Skies. Turkeys refusal, without explanation, led Russian officials to suggest there are "reasonable grounds to suspect intensive preparation of Turkey for a military invasion" of Syria. Turkish army tanks are stationed at a train station after their arrival from western Turkey, in Gaziantep, Turkey, Friday, Nov. 27, 2015 In response, Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu on Thursday accused Moscow, a longtime backer of the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad, of perpetrating war crimes. Advertisement "The root cause of this problem is the war crimes committed by the Syrian regime, and the war crimes committed by Daesh, by ISIS," Davutoglu told Reuters at a conference in London. "Those who are helping the Assad regime are committing the same war crimes, he added. I am especially telling this today because Aleppo is under heavy attack by Russian airplanes. Moscows warning is the latest escalation in tensions between to the two states. A Russian fighter jet was shot down by the Turkish air force in November, a move decried by Russian President Vladimir Putin as a stab in the back. Since late last year, Russian jets have been pounding Islamic State militants as well as anti-Assad forces in an attempt to bring the Syrian civil war to an end in favour of the regime. According to Moscow, Russian fighters carried out 237 missions in Syria in the past three days, focusing on targets in Aleppo, Latakia, Homs and Hama. Advertisement The whale found stranded on a Norfolk beach has died, rescuers have confirmed. The British Divers Marine Life Rescue said the giant mammal died at about 8pm. Experts had been attempting to save the animal after it was found on Hunstanton beach on Thursday morning, but resorted to comforting the whale after it became obvious a rescue was impossible. Advertisement The tide has risen around the beached whale Rescuers say there is little hope and it looks unlikely to survive The whale weighs between 25 and 35 tonnes according to rescuers The whale was breathing but not moving when the water rose over it, a spokesperson for the British Divers Marine Life Rescue told The Huffington Post UK. It is thought that the animal's muscles started releasing toxins that could cause organ failure. Before the tide rose, people were pouring water over it to keep it comfortable. British Divers Marine Life Rescue said it was no longer trying to keep the 14-metre long whale alive because it was too heavy to move and already close to dying. Advertisement It is expected to "expire in the course of the next 24 hrs" according to the operation's investigation manager. People poured water on the whale to keep it comfortable The rescuers told The Huffington Post UK they would have to "let nature take its course". There were hopes the rising water could help to free the animal which is estimated to weigh at least 25 tonnes but a reporter at the scene said she didn't think it "stood much of a chance". A spokesperson for British Divers Marine Life Rescue told the Huffington Post UK earlier in the day: "We can't do anything for it because it weighs between 25 and 35 tonnes so it is a very big whale. "The tide is on its way in so something may happen with that, but we have to let nature take its course." Advertisement The animal was about 1.5 miles out on the sand and the coastguard was helping with the operation, British Divers Marine Life Rescue said. BBC Radio Norfolk journalist Jill Bennett was at the scene and said the whale was alive and breathing. She told the station earlier on Thursday: "I'm standing on the beach between Old Hunstanton and Holme, about 50 yards (45m) away from the whale. "It's still alive and bedded well down into the sand. Coastguards and other agencies are putting water over it to keep it comfortable and stop its skin from drying out." Advertisement Hunstanton whale: Keep a safe distance away, says Coastguard https://t.co/BRZ6JH9IYkpic.twitter.com/7A0v56Q8FB BBC Look East (@BBCLookEast) February 4, 2016 "From time to time the whale is moving its tail. It's a very sad sight," said Bennett. "I have been speaking to Kieran Copeland from the Hunstanton Sea Life Sanctuary and he said unfortunately the situation does not look good." In January, five sperm whales became stranded and died on beaches in Hunstanton and Skegness. A millionaire Tory MP has been forced to apologise for failing to declare 400,000 of income but blamed the blunder on him being too busy setting up his law firm in Dubai and Mauritius. Geoffrey Cox, a practising barrister and the highest earning MP in Parliament, stunned colleagues by also suggesting that he simply hadnt noticed the money coming into his account because his clerk had fallen ill. Advertisement Standards watchdog Kathryn Hudson published a scathing report today on Mr Coxs failure to register his full earnings, declaring he had committed a serious breach of the Code of Conduct for Parliament. But the Commons Standards Committee which Mr Cox used to sit on and was forced to resign from decided only to ask him to apologise. No further sanction was applied. The controversy reignites the explosive issue of MPs second jobs, not least as a bumper 10% pay rise increased their annual salary from 67,060 to 74,000 last year. It will also fuel claims that MPs protect their own, as the Standards Committee refused to impose severe sanctions on the Tory backbencher, such as censure or suspension from the Commons. Advertisement Mr Cox is earns his huge extra income as a QC, but he partly blamed his failures on the distraction of having to set up new chambers in oil-rich Dubai and the Indian ocean island state of Mauritius. Speaking in the Commons with an apology that lasted less than a minute, Mr Cox admitted he had failed to give a proper record of his true income for a prolonged period. "The House has a right to expect its members, and particularly those on the Standards Committee as I was, that they will uphold its rules to the fullest extent," he said. "For this reason I have stepped down from the Standards Committee and I hope the House will accept my sincere and full-hearted apology for my failure to observe this important rule." Ms Hudson, the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards, said in her report: I do not consider that the breach was minor since it involved eleven late registrations with a total value of over 400,000. Advertisement The length of time during which Mr Cox failed to give this matter due attention was at least nine months, during which time as a member of the Standards Committee, he had the opportunity to consider a formal memorandum from me about late registration by another Member, and to receive periodic confidential updates about registration matters more generally. In his defence, Mr Cox had claimed he had a particularly intense schedule in the run up to the General Election, and referred to the sheer pressure of my legal practice, parliamentary and constituency responsibilities. He explained that this had included the final planning and launch during recess of an entirely new international law chambers based in Mauritius and Dubai. Ms Hudson, with a waspish verdict, wrote in her report today: He told me, and I can only agree, that he failed to give this matter the due thought and priority it required. The standards chief pointed to Mr Coxs defence that he had failed to keep his register of interests upto date because his long-standing clerk, who usually alerted him to when income from cases had arrived, had fallen ill. Advertisement It emerged that the Tory MP had relied on the head clerk of his Chambers to draw the receipt of payments to his attention, thereby prompting the registration of such payments. The illness and subsequent retirement of the head clerk had led to the breakdown of this system. One weakness in the arrangement Mr Cox has described is that it was customary for the head clerk to draw the receipt of payments to [Mr Coxs] attention on an ad hoc basis, acting as a prompt for registration, Ms Hudson wrote. The Parliamentary Commissioner noted the MP had already apologised for his error and had referred himself to her for investigation. But she concluded: Nevertheless, this was a serious breach of the Houses rules and the Committee may wish to consider whether any other action is necessary. The Open University For someone who left school at 16 with no desire to study A-Levels, engineer Michael Owen or Michael Owen BEng (Hons) HNC EngTech AMIMechE to state his full credentials has a pretty impressive string of letters after his name. With a natural leaning towards technical subjects (and a long-time fascination with motorcycles), engineering was an instinctive career choice for Michael but the prospect of spending years poring over books in dusty classrooms to gain the relevant qualifications was not an inviting one. Advertisement Michael was keen to start work and gain hands-on experience. So when he was offered an apprenticeship with the Science and Engineering Research Council at Daresbury Laboratory, he saw this as the perfect transition into the world of paid work. But although Michael relished this exciting opportunity on the engineering frontline, he also knew that if he wanted to excel in his field and stand out from his peers, he would benefit from the right qualifications. After completing a BTEC HNC during his apprenticeship, Michael soon realised that it was possible to combine academic study with doing the work he loved and in 2012, he signed up to the BEng degree course at The Open University. The flexible structure of the OU course not only enabled him to fit in his study around his work commitments, it also promised him a high-quality honours degree recognised by the Institute of Engineering & Technology. Advertisement We asked Michael, an engineer at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), to tell us how studying for a BEng with the OU has enhanced his work as an engineer as well as his career prospects and how being a working engineer enhanced his experience as an undergraduate. Why did you choose to go straight into the work force instead of taking the academic route of A-Levels and university? I enjoyed school and I did well in my exams but I wasnt very focused I was probably distracted by the usual events of teenage life. Most of my friends were older so they left school a year earlier than me and I felt a bit flat after that. One of my school reports probably summed it up when it said that I was using my intelligence to avoid work! As a teenager, I loved repairing and restoring bikes, motorcycles and scooters, so I already had an interest in mechanics. I wanted to find a career that combined theory and practice. I left school with 9 GCE O Levels, which qualified me to apply for an engineering apprenticeship and I was lucky enough to land one with the Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC) at Daresbury Laboratory in Warrington. The seven years I spent there were fun and informative. In fact, a better learning environment would be difficult to imagine; it provided me with a solid foundation for my future in engineering. Advertisement You completed a BTEC HNC during your apprenticeship. How did this tie in with your work at the time? The use of computers in engineering was in its infancy then and the skills I developed to operate computer-aided engineering systems were directly transferrable to my workplace. Studying modules like manufacturing technology and materials, together with pure and applied mathematics, all helped to develop my core engineering competences. The HNC also helped me by developing the knowledge to understand how something can be made, which materials to choose and why. What is your role at CERN? My current post is in the Engineering Department working on the On-Line Isotope Mass Separator (ISOLDE). The ISOLDE facility uses protons from CERNs accelerator complex to produce exotic nuclei of most of the elements. These are used for fundamental research in all kinds of scientific fields: nuclear physics, nuclear astrophysics, atomic physics, condensed matter physics, radiobiology, and elementary particle physics. What prompted you to take a BEng? Like many people, a big motivation for me is that feeling of progression. Working towards a BEng helped me to develop my professional competence. I wanted to gain a deeper academic understanding of my work projects and contribute at a higher level as my career progresses. Im very fortunate to work alongside experienced engineers and physicists who actively encourage my professional development. Ive spent over 20 years with my sleeves rolled up in a hands-on role, which is quite a contrast to some of the University Engineers that Ive met, who often have limited practical experience. The know-how that Ive developed over this time really complements the theories that I have learned while Ive been studying. Why did you choose to study with the OU? Ever since I completed my HNC, Ive wanted to fulfil my academic potential by doing a BEng. I was always aware of the Open University from the old BBC2 television programmes from way back. I started to seriously consider studying with them after meeting several colleagues who had already successfully completed their studies through the OU. Advertisement After looking through the OU syllabus, I decided that the BEng (Hons) was particularly appealing because it was recognised and accredited by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE). It fulfilled their academic requirements for professional registration as an Incorporated Engineer (IEng). The modular style of learning meant that I could break the degree into manageable sized chunks and progress at my own rate. I proposed my study plan to my supervisors and it was accepted. How did the OU help to support you through your studies? I started with a first year mathematics module taught by Mrs Cath Hogan who was based in Geneva. It was a great start to have tutorials in a classroom environment. Cath was an exceptional teacher and helped me to remain motivated in the early days when my study skills were more than a bit rusty. I was deeply saddened when I learnt that she had passed away after suffering with cancer. She supported me a lot when I considered stopping my studies. Living abroad, I didnt have the opportunity to attend any further face to face tutorials, but I felt like the OU helped by offering other support structures. I remember discussing a particularly tricky calculus problem with one of my tutors on the telephone during a revision session his patience was worthy of a knighthood! The OU offers comprehensive support to all students. I didnt use them all but there was advice for most problems. This ranged from developing good study-skills through to computer related issues and managing a home / work / life balance. They also offer a careers advisory service and more specific services for disabled students. How did your time as a student with the OU enhance your work as an engineer at CERN? I approached my studies with the OU with a positive and open state of mind. Work on the ongoing assignments and contact with students from all backgrounds and abilities helped me to see my life in engineering more objectively. Modules requiring self-analysis seemed to polarise opinion amongst students but I found that they helped me to identify my strengths and weaknesses and assisted me to find areas where improvements could be made. My understanding of the learning process and in particular my personal use of different learning techniques still helps me in my professional life. Advertisement Studying with the OU also helped me to prioritise and manage my time more effectively and pushed me to try out in practice things that Ive learned. One example is where I learned how to develop and build ion sources for nuclear physics. On several occasions, Ive taught engineers from other institutions how to implement these techniques. How did your TechEng registration help with your studies? IMechE professional registration gave me the opportunity to meet and listen to experienced engineers from diverse engineering sectors. Becoming an affiliated student member of IMechE also encouraged me to progress professionally through Career Path Development (CPD) training within the institution, which motivated me in both my studies and my work duties. For example, in December 2009, I attended the Hawksley lecture Powering the future. The following year this led me to study the Open Universitys module: Energy for a sustainable future. The inspiration that I received proved to be very beneficial and I passed the course with distinction. How did working as an engineer at CERN enhance your experience as an undergraduate student? Access to the CERN library, particular the engineering, computer-aided design and materials books, allowed me to gain deeper comprehension of the subjects I was studying. I would usually spend lunchtime in the CERN library. surrounded by eminent physicists and engineers. I hoped that some of their greatness could rub off and help me pass with distinction! Support and encouragement from my colleagues came in many forms and during my engineering project I was able to build a functioning prototype model. During this module I also developed my use of software for 3D drafting and simple stress analysis techniques. Advertisement How did you manage juggling your studies with a high-pressured job? Id like to say I was super-organised and did everything to a tight schedule, but that wasnt the case. I am prone to procrastination as much as the next person (more so if you ask my long suffering girlfriend) and things were sometimes fraught as deadlines loomed. I had to remain flexible and sometimes the workload could be stressful. But by gradually working towards the goal (slow progress is better than no progress, etc.) it was possible to meet most deadlines aided by the occasional extension from a sympathetic tutor or supervisor. Ironically, the things that were put on standby are more enjoyable to me now that I have more time having finished my studies. The mountains are still there to be climbed and my favourite rivers and lakes are still waiting to be fished. What effect has your qualification had on your career? Since graduating with a First-class Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) degree my professional development has led me to take over the responsibilities of a colleague who is a senior engineer in my work section. This allows my more experienced colleague to concentrate on a new project involving the use of radioactive ions for cancer therapy. Ive also recently been involved in the production of several engineering specifications and the preparation of documents to be used in the call for tender process. And I changed my IMechE registration to associate membership. What are your plans for the future? Over the past few weeks you may have noticed a selection of risque Valentine's suggestion placards lining the aisles of Tesco on particular food items. First there was whipped cream. Then, ahem, cucumbers. While many thought it was just Tesco being a little bit naughty, we can now confirm that - in a brilliant twist - the hilarious Valentine's suggestions are likely to be the work of mischievous shoppers. A Tesco spokesperson told HuffPost UK Lifestyle that the company hadn't added cucumbers and whipped cream to their Valentine's Day promotion. Advertisement Instead, they said: A couple of mischievous customers left us chuckling at their suggestions for a Valentines Day gift. We'd recommend flowers or chocolates instead." The hilarious suggestions have made headlines numerous times over the past week. First came the whipped cream suggestion, which was spotted by Spencer William Le Grys and shared on the Facebook group 'Shit London'. More than 1,500 people liked the image and applauded the culprit's sense of humour. Next came the cucumbers, accompanied by a sign labelling the cylindrical vegetable as "Ideal for Valentine's". Advertisement We wonder what the naughty Valentine's ninjas will label next... The five things you need to know on Thursday February 4, 2016 1) BEST OF A BAD JOBBIE? After Steve Bakers poo jibe, Bernard Jenkin yesterday talked of the whiff of bovine excrement around David Camerons draft EU deal. And theres no question that Eurosceptics, and much of the press, are superb bullshit detectors. Advertisement From the state of the emergency brake to the difficulty of getting a red card to stop Brussels, from dissembling about Tory manifesto pledges on migrant benefits and child benefit, many have sniffed the spin from No.10. And yet, Cameron is determined to suck up the backlash in the belief that he will win the EU referendum. After his two-hour statement yesterday in which backbench criticism was hardly scathing, he looked like the one who was asking Is that it? Cameron belatedly decided to change his tone and language yesterday, admitting Im not saying this is perfect. His stock answer to Eurosceps like Liam Fox was I have great respect for their views, with the implication that no matter how amazing his deal was, theyd be for Brexit. But Cameron also has a habit of lapsing into cockiness just when things are going his way. And his answer to David Winnick, warning his MPs not to back Brexit because of what your constituency association might say has prompted a backlash - and a Telegraph splash. Advertisement As for spin, Vote Leave arent immune however. The removal of Dom Cummings and Matthew Elliott from their board, while retaining their operational roles, seemed not to make much difference at all to their actual function. The PM has lined up the Euro Parliament, Juncker, even the German papers were praising him yesterday. 2) OUTING THE REAL OUTERS A bobble-hatted Boris yesterday said the PM was making the best of a bad job. Some saw it as more mischief, others as more bullshit. And theres one bit of stage management the Eurosceps have long predicted: they say Boris looks like hes going to come on board after the PM yesterday offered that pledge to do more on UK Parliamentary sovereignty. Again, critics smell a rat, not least given the UK doesnt have a constitution to match Germanys constitutional court. And No.10 admitted to us at Lobby that the 1972 European Act - which make EU law supreme over UK law - remains in place. Add in the fact that this 'new law' will be unveiled only at the time of the EU summit, even though it could be unveiled now, and you see why there's fresh irritation among some Tory MPs that they're being taken for fools. Michael Gove, whos tasked with delivering the beefed up sovereignty plan, is torn between personal loyalty to the prime minister and his conscience, The Times says. Advertisement IDS, who yesterday looked like he was sucking on a Toxic Waste supersour sweet, is of course a proper Outer. And he could break ranks rather than opine about his loyalty issues. Robert Peston said on ITV last night IDS could speak out before the summit, not after it. Meanwhile, the Mail has a cry of pain over the whole issue with its splash today, asking Who Will Speak For England?. Twitter instantly extracted the urine. The SNPs Pete Wishart Tweeted this morning Must get this into Business Qs today. But as it happens, Tristram Hunt is trying to speak for England. He has a speech today calling for a referendum on an English parliament and other ideas. My colleague Owen Bennett has an interview with David Davis, whos helping the Grassroots Out campaign tomorrow. DD urges MPs to vote not with their hearts but their heads: a not too subtle reference to Cameron's advice to his MPs to do whats in your heart. 3) JULIAN CALENDAR Julian Assange has kindly given us all his latest diary movements, announcing he will turn himself into the cops tomorrow - if a UN panel rules he has not been unlawfully detained in the Ecuadorian embassy. Given that he voluntarily walked into (indeed fled into) the diplomatic immunity of the embassy back in 2012, its kind of daft to even suggest hes been detained illegally or otherwise but hey ho. The news was broken this morning, on Twitter naturally, by Wikileaks. Last year, Swedish prosecutors dropped two sex assault claims against Assange - but he still faces the more serious accusation of rape. Advertisement Just imagine if the UN Panel had sent out an embargoed version of its ruling and word of that had reached Assange? And just imagine if it ruled in his favour? He'd have the perfect excuse for his latest PR offensive. The UN panel has no real legal force. Maybe justice will finally catch up with the quixotic Aussie, and he will be one day extradited to face his accuser. And maybe then the scales will fall from the eyes of some of his more naive supporters. (Hell, even his pals at the Guardian worked out that his dodgy sexual history was tarnishing their brand). Wilder conspiracy theorists will probably stand by him. But I wonder how Jeremy Corbyn, and his supporters, will react? BECAUSE YOUVE READ THIS FAR Forget Sad Nick Clegg. Watch one of the saddest ever political moments: Jeb Bush urging a bored audience to please clap. 4) OUTR-AGE UK The Sun has scored a direct hit on both Age UK and E.on after exposing the charity was paid 6m by the energy giant for a deal to sign up pensioners to its fixed rate tariff. Some claim its standard practice for price comparison websites to get a commission for passing on business, yet when a charity is involved then it looks quite different. The main allegation is that thousands of pensioners were not informed properly that they could switch to newer deals that would save them 245 a year. The paper reports Energy Secretary Amber Rudd saying "I take very seriously this allegation that Britain's pensioners are being misled and shes ordered Ofgem to look at it. Sajid Javid has piled in too. Advertisement The Sun is open that its investigation is a joint effort with The Big Deal, which is itself a private firm that runs a price negotiation website. It unveils a scheme today to get big energy firms to offer its readers their lowest prices. The Sun says it will make no money from the plan because any cash it gets will go to a charity that helps old people (presumably not Age Uk). The Big Deal will make a small profit too. 5) LABOUR PAIN Labour general secretary Iain McNicol will today tell Parliament that his party is set to lose 2m more from the Trade Union bill than previously thought. One estimate had put the cost at 6m, but in evidence to the specially created Lords committee charged with assessing the party funding element of the bill, McNicol will say the real figure is more likely to be 8m, the Times reveals. The main reason for the 90% drop in income is the speed with which the changes are planned, moving from an opt out system to an opt in system for the political levy trade unionists pay. Yet the Governments own risk assessment, unusually produced during the passage of the bill not beforehand, suggests it was fixing a problem that didnt exist. And the cross-party worries over the plans are growing. Former Tory Cabinet minister Lord Forsyth told me that hed looked at the opt-in plan in the 1990s and concluded it wasnt needed. I concluded it wasnt necessary to make a change because there was no evidence that anyone was being intimidated to remove themselves from the political levy, and no evidence of a problem. Forsyth is among those who warn its dangerous to unilaterally tackle another partys funding: Ive no desire to help the Labour party but I do want to see fairness across the system and I dont want us to get into an arms race in who can damage each others party most in terms of funding and support. Advertisement If youre reading this on the web, sign-up HERE to get the WaughZone delivered to your inbox. Chris Evans has finally confirmed the identity of one of his new Top Gear co-presenters, and its fair to say it's a bit of a curveball. READ MORE: Matt LeBlanc is set to join the Radio 2 DJ on the revamped version of the BBC Two motoring show. Yes, actual Joey Tribbiani from Friends is going to be presenting Top Gear. Amazing. Commenting on the shock appointment, Chris said: Matts a lifelong fellow petrolhead and Im thrilled he's joining Top Gear. Acting out our craziest car notions on screen is a dream job and I know well both be debating some epic road trip ideas. We cant wait to share what weve been up to on screen later this year." Matt added: As a car nut and a massive fan of Top Gear, I'm honoured and excited to be a part of this iconic shows new chapter. What a thrill! Advertisement Matt LeBlanc will join Chris Evans on 'Top Gear' The US actors appointment marks the first time the show has ever had a non-British host in its 39-year history. The announcement also provided some amusing moments from Twitter users: Confident that this will be a success. #TopGearpic.twitter.com/0gt4ZA9pIX Katie Gatens (@katie_gatens) February 4, 2016 FIRST LOOK at Matt LeBlanc presenting Top Gear... pic.twitter.com/56dawMlyM5 Laurence Mozafari (@Laurence_Moza) February 4, 2016 Not sure about the new Top Gear presenter pic.twitter.com/2OLZmzWqj8 Luke McGee (@lukemcgee) February 4, 2016 Advertisement Matt LeBlanc or Richard Hammond. Joey from Friends or the host of Braniac. Tough choice. #topgear Alex Fletcher (@alexanderfletch) February 4, 2016 I'm just pleased that Estelle finally got Joey a decent gig. pic.twitter.com/1HlFmN2WWm Greg James (@gregjames) February 4, 2016 Joey Tribbiani speaking to Chris Evans. Joey actual Tribbiani trying out the newest hatchback. Joey Tribbiani in a Reliant Robin. Emma Kelly (@TooManyEmmas) February 4, 2016 Wonder if Matt LeBlanc will dust off his 'Porsche-a' outfit for #TopGearpic.twitter.com/QuXjjhsRVq Elliot Wagland (@elliotwagland) February 4, 2016 not sure anything has made less sense that Joey Tribiani filling Jeremy Clarkson's stonewashed jeans on Top Gear Sam Diss (@SamDiss) February 4, 2016 Advertisement However, long-term Top Gear fans will remember that he hosted spin-off Top Gear: The Races, where he led fans through some of the most memorable racing moments from the previous 22 series. Hes also no stranger to getting behind the wheel, as Matt still holds the record for the fastest ever celebrity lap of the Top Gear track in regular feature Star In A Reasonably Priced Car, having been a guest on the show twice before. Ex-Formula One driver David Coulthard was also said to be part of the new line-up, but quit before the show even made it to air, choosing to front Channel 4s F1 coverage instead, after they poached the rights from the BBC. Advertisement A statement from the BBC said that Matt will join production of the new Top Gear immediately, with additional cast members will be confirmed shortly. The rebooted Top Gear is set to launch on Sunday 8 May 2016. Sometimes, you need a historian. As I sat in the packed meeting organized by the London for Bernie group, it was impossible not to feel inspired by the gathering: expat Americans celebrating Bernie's Iowa caucus success, UK supporters drawing comparisons with Corbyn, Labour and Momentum. Together we talked strategy and discussed substantive questions relating to Bernie's platform. But for me, it was the sense of history brought to the meeting by Larry Sanders and Owen Jones that made me feel most hopeful. Larry spoke movingly of his brother's political journey, while Owen put on his historian's cap and, in some detail, reminded Americans of our own progressive past. Ours is a rich history of radicalism, labour and union struggles, socialist thought and experiment, abolitionism, the Civil Rights and Black Power movements, anti-war activism, feminism, LGBT campaigns, and more recently, Occupy and Black Lives Matter. Search any of these relevant terms and you will find that Americans have been busy and impressive from the start. These battles have been researched and recorded by generations of historians and activists. The record is there, even if it has largely been suppressed by our mainstream media and our own political parties and leaders. When you tire of reading history, turn to our playwrights, novelists and poets; our blues, folk, soul and jazz artists; our sporting heroes. Look at our independent cinema or the dissident subtexts buried in classic Hollywood film. There are hundreds of gems to uncover along the way, small and large finds that will leave any American wondering how we have allowed so much to be erased from our vision of ourselves and our best efforts as a people and nation. Advertisement Let's take just one modest example. Yip Harburg, the great lyricist behind dozens of classic songs including the much-loved Over the Rainbow, was a socialist. Americans celebrate the song year after year, with every broadcast of The Wizard of Oz, but few of us pause to remember that Harburg was blacklisted for twelve years. We forget too that this son of immigrants also penned the anthem of the Great Depression, Brother, Can You Spare a Dime? And finally, if it's true that the favourite of evangelical Republicans, Ted Cruz, broke into a rendition of Over the Rainbow at an Iowa campaign event last year, then clearly he was unaware of two further facts: the song's long association with gay pride, and Harburg's atheism. Every so often, when I tire of the religious right and its repeated attempts to drag God into our political discourse - or more specifically, to undermine women's healthcare and reproductive rights - then I turn to one of Harburg's poems and smile: ATHEIST Poems are made by fools like me, But only God can make a tree; And only God who makes the tree Also makes the fools like me. But only fools like me, you see, Can make a God, who makes a tree. I thought about Yip Harburg as I sat listening to the speakers at the London for Bernie meeting. And it struck me that one of the most inspiring aspects of the Sanders campaign is that it has created a space for these lost histories of American hope and radicalism. In his own political career, Bernie Sanders has clearly drawn strength from these and his candidacy may help return them to our discourse. Traveling home on the tube after the meeting, I thought about how long I have been an expat. More than half my life. Seeing America from the outside, knowing something of its domestic and foreign policy abuses, gazing upon its deep and growing inequalities, regularly hearing the views and perceptions of non-Americans, I have become deeply critical of my homeland. But - and this too is part of the expat experience - I have also fallen more deeply in love with it. I love it like no other place. I love its history, its promise, its cultural daring and complexity. Advertisement In an interview for the Paris Review, James Baldwin articulated a profound understanding of the conflicted love of country that sometimes takes root in those who leave: I think that it is a spiritual disaster to pretend that one doesn't love one's country. You may disapprove of it, you may be forced to leave it, you may live your whole life as a battle, yet I don't think you can escape it. There isn't any other place to go--you don't pull up your roots and put them down someplace else. At least not in a single lifetime, or, if you do, you'll be aware of precisely what it means, knowing that your real roots are always elsewhere. If you try to pretend you don't see the immediate reality that formed you, I think you'll go blind. Since 9/11, such expressions of conflicted love for America, whether by residents or expats, have been largely shut down by our mainstream politics and media cultures. The suppression of our radical histories has proceeded apace. Activists who work to recover them are regularly derided by the love it or leave it brigades. But when that happens, we can reach into history and find Baldwin again: "I love America more than any other country in this world, and, exactly for this reason, I insist on the right to criticize her perpetually." (Notes of a Native Son, 1955) The terrible war being waged by the barbaric thugs of Daesh (ISIS) across the Middle East, and now North Africa too, continues almost unabated. Local populations are being terrorised and minorities, in particular, are facing unprecedented levels of persecution. Recently the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) reported that at least 18,802 Iraqi civilians were killed between January 2014 and October 31st last year. Another 36,245 poor souls were wounded. Thousands of others are thought to have died as a result of the secondary effects of conflict, such as lack of clean water, shelter and medical assistance. Millions are living in uncomfortable makeshift camps across the country - freezing in the winter, boiling in the summer - unable to return to their homes not just in the short term but probably for ever. Advertisement My charity, AMAR International Charitable Foundation, has been working in the region since 1991, and our teams thought they had seen it all, but even they are horrified by the levels of violence, the sheer viciousness of Daesh. Every day, these thugs are ripping apart the lives of thousands of men, women and children, and NGOs such as AMAR are desperately battling to pick up the pieces. Over the past 18 months, I have personally heard countless horrifying accounts from those whose lives have been utterly devastated. Families forced to flee their homes with just the clothes on their backs. Men and women who felt they had no other option but to flee their homeland and risk perilous journeys across the waves to Europe. Girls snatched from their families and kept as sex slaves in dark basements and blacked-out rooms. Children who watched as their parents and siblings were murdered in front of them. With such suffering, the UN's 'Interfaith Harmony Week', which is currently being observed across the world, may seem trivial to those forced to endure unending violence. But today, more than ever, we need to acknowledge the urgent need for inter-religious dialogue to tackle extremist ideologies and sectarianism. Advertisement "We are facing a wave of extremism and barbarism committed in the name of religion," Khaleel al-Dakhil, a Yazidi activist, commented at a religious tolerance conference organised by AMAR in December. "It is the duty of us all - firstly as human beings and secondly as Iraqis - to confront this with a culture of tolerance, love and respect. We urgently need to be open with each other, and to accept each other." Sunnis, Shias, Yazidis, Mandaeans, Turkmen, Assyrians, Chaldeans, Shabak - Iraq is a tapestry, woven with a rich variety of religious and ethnic groups who have, until now, coexisted peacefully for centuries. But over the decades, religious intolerance and ethnic hatred have damaged its very fabric. As our Patron, HRH The Prince of Wales warned in December, the country risks losing minorities such as Christians 'within five years' should emergency action not be taken immediately. As well as providing victims of sectarian violence with urgent emergency assistance, we must prioritise work to tackle the root causes of brutality and promote a more peaceful and tolerant society which incorporates all individuals. This is exactly what AMAR has been doing for the past year through its ground breaking religious tolerance programme. Engaging with diverse groups across society, our teachers are entrenching a greater sense of unity amongst Iraqis through classes on issues such as human rights, freedom of expression, and Iraq's history. Through education, we are slowly but surely sewing Iraq's tapestry back together. Advertisement We are determined that this scheme will be introduced across Iraq, and we know that the vast majority of Iraqi people will be right behind us. We also firmly believe that the model is one that could quite easily translate to any other country in the world - including the UK which now faces its own very real problems with religious radicalisation. "Fanaticism, violence and intolerance originate in the barriers between us," one young student from Basra told me when I was in Iraq in December. "We need to remove these barriers as soon as possible." Shutterstock / sabath I was diagnosed with testicular cancer in August 2015. The first two emotions I felt after being told were anger and relief. I wasn't angry because I was told I had cancer. I was angry because I should have been told almost two years earlier. Advertisement Over the previous 22 months I had seen two separate doctors and told them of the lump I had found. Both told me I was fine without carrying out any tests. The relief was because I now knew what I was facing and how we were going to deal with it. Ten days after my diagnosis, I was admitted to Royal Glamorgan Hospital for my operation. I wasn't really nervous about the operation, I just wanted to get that bad boy whipped out as soon as possible! I returned to the hospital at the end of September to see my oncologist to receive the scan results. He told me I had a 3.5cm Seminoma tumour, which was aggressive and invasive. The cancer had gone into my blood vessels, and there was a 30% chance of it spreading to my abdomen. To reduce this risk to just 3%, the oncologist sent me for a strong dose of Carboplatin chemotherapy. The chemotherapy took place at Velindre Cancer Centre in Cardiff. I really hope I don't have to go through chemo again. The feeling of constantly thinking you're going to be sick is something I don't want to experience again. I have nothing but respect for anyone who has to go through 3, 4 or 5 sessions of chemo. Advertisement Right now, I'm cancer free. I had my first lot of blood tests at Velindre at the end of January and so far I have heard nothing back. No news is good news. My family, friends and fiancee have been amazing. It's been a difficult year with my father being diagnosed with prostate cancer and me with testicular just four months after the birth of my daughter. I met Ben from Movember on Twitter the day after my diagnosis. Ben, who has had testicular cancer twice, runs a support and social group for other testicular cancer sufferers in his spare time in which we affectionately refer to each other as the "One Offs". For a complete stranger to be so helpful and generous is amazing. To be able to have someone to talk to for advice, and who's been through it themselves has been absolutely invaluable. To raise awareness of the condition which could have taken my life, I took part in a 'naked' photoshoot ahead of World Cancer Day on 4 February. It was really bizarre being butt naked in a room full of strangers, but it was a good laugh! If you think there's something wrong with you then you need to get it checked. Some men who find a lump can be a bit macho about it, but it could save your life. Wear a Unity Band on World Cancer Day, 4th February 2016, and be a part of the generation that transforms the lives of millions who are affected by cancer. Specially designed Unity Bands are available now from Cancer Research UK, the Movember Foundation, Anthony Nolan and Breast Cancer Care for a suggested donation of 2. Find out more at www.worldcancerday.co.uk Advertisement The papers this week are vicious in their damnation of the so-called 'Deal' from the EU. This supposed triumph of reform has been derided in colourful terms from a 'joke' or 'illusion' to 'polishing poo'. Far from a triumph, the deal is a presentational disaster, far worse than Downing Street could ever have imagined. Not even the expected new 'rabbit out of the hat' will work - a clever new relationship label or a German constitutional option reforming the 1972 Act - it'll be surprising an empty room. But this isn't even the final deal. President Tusk's letter to EU Leaders is shockingly non committal: 'The proposal is a good basis for a compromise... we should be prepared to discuss the possible incorporation of the substance of a few elements covered by the Decision into the Treaties at the time of their next revision'. Treaty change could have to wait to 2023 or even 2025 - so what we're being offered is an IOU - a vague promise of long off legal confirmation of weak measures now. Hardly taking firm control of our borders, economy or democracy. To stay on these terms in the EU is far riskier that Brexit. This draft is just the start of formal Council negotiations. It awaits the secretive and overpowerful COREPER (no point asking for minutes) of Ambassadors and officials to 'fix' things, and the legal and administrative 'sherpas' that will work through the technicalities in time for political leaders to finalise over a long dinner Thursday 18th February and into following day(s). Leaders will not want to be barbequed at home for giving away powers they were not sufficiently aware of. Advertisement Whilst the deal has been cynically designed to be weak and insubstantial enough to sail through this Council, the EU is full of nasty surprises, and there are strong rumours that a De Gaulle style veto could be on the cards that could rock the whole theatrical set up. Nor is the deal legally enforceable, experts say. One question the FCO does not want to answer is whether this deal would be enforceable without Treaty change. If you don't change the Treaties, then the current Lisbon treaty (Treaty on the Functioning of the EU) applies and the European Court of Justice can strike out elements of the deal made: particularly changes to benefits that would be seen to be discriminatory under Freedom of Movement and Discrimination rules. The first such case could unravel the deal. Nor is it clear whether a Heads of State deal is applicable to such use. The proposed package itself is not a watered down version of Mr Cameron's original demands, it is diluted beyond recognition. There will not be any EU treaty change, which means that no powers whatsoever will be relinquished by Brussels and returned to our shores. Economic governance is obsessed with not being sucked into the Eurozone's black hole, competitiveness merely restates what is happening anyway. On the biggest issue facing Britain - immigration, the deal offers nothing of substance. The Government has failed to deliver its promise to limit migrant benefits. The 'emergency brake' in migrant benefits is a sorry state of affairs. Firstly, it will not restrict migrant benefits for the four years promised in our party's manifesto. Secondly, the 'emergency brake' cannot be triggered by the UK - the decision is down to the EU. Britain can but beg the EU to implement the brake, and our public services would have to be provably in crisis to do so. Advertisement The 'red card plan' on sovereignty was the spin story Downing Street were desperate to deploy. The deal the Prime Minister has secured is, bizarrely, worse than the mechanism already in place. The present mechanism requires only a third of national parliaments to block EU law but the new system will require 55 per cent of national parliaments - 16 of the 28. David Cameron previously called such an idea "arcane", whilst William Hague was spot on about the 'red card plan' when he said, in 2008: "Given the difficulty of Oppositions winning a vote in their Parliaments, the odds against doing so in countries around Europe with different parliamentary recesses... are such that even if the European Commission proposed the slaughter of the first-born it would be difficult to achieve such a remarkable conjunction of parliamentary votes." The focus on the highly limited 4 areas of this deal deliberately obscure the fact that key areas of EU powers are left intact and unreformed: farming, fishing, foreign affairs and the External Action Service, the EU Army the EU will now demand, justice and home affairs, energy, environment, transport, culture, tourism, and so on. Mr Cameron promised the British people 'fundamental change' in our relationship with Europe. What was unveiled yesterday does not even get to the starting line. Oli Scarff via Getty Images This blog is an adapted version of the speech delivered by David Davis on Thursday 4 February on what leaving the EU would mean for the UK It has been over 43 years since Britain joined the European Economic Community. For all that time there have been calls for Europe to reform. For Europe to be more democratic, more competitive, more functional. And for Britain to lead that reform. Advertisement The result? If anything Europe has become less democratic, less competitive and more dysfunctional. And Britain has become more side-lined. The EU has been in decline for some time now. There is no change of course in sight. The risks involved in staying are clear for all to see - low growth, high unemployment, and waning influence. In 1975 the EU was the bright future, a vision of a better world. Now it is a crumbling relic from a gloomy past. We must raise our eyes to the wider world. The UK has been a persistent advocate of reforming and modernising the EU. Even a decade ago there was hope of radical reform, as the EU expanded from 15 nations to 28. Some thought the new members, only recently independent themselves, would shift the EU away from its centralising, statist destination, and towards a more democratic, more trade-focussed direction. Advertisement The hope was that Europe would become 'wider, not deeper'. With hindsight, this hope now looks ridiculous. The siren calls for 'more Europe' have only increased. The UK also proselytised for a 'two-tier' or 'two speed' Europe, with a loose decentralised group around a more centralised Franco-German core. With the Eurozone, we now have a de facto two-tier Europe, but one that works to the detriment of the non-Eurozone countries. Centred on Germany, the EU's largest and most powerful nation and the paymaster of Europe, the Eurozone constitutes a dominant majority. This is downright dangerous. The core Eurozone countries will not accept any curtailment of the decisions they need to make to save the Euro. At the same time, the non-Eurozone countries cannot accept decisions that are against their interests, imposed on them by the Eurozone core. It will only lead to conflict, conflict that can only be prevented by veto procedures that would be unacceptable to either side. Advertisement Economic growth on the continent has ground to a halt. Since the turn of the century, the EU has grown at a third of the rate of the global average, and the Eurozone has grown even more slowly than that. Europe's share of global GDP is falling, as is its share of global trade. This trend is expected to continue. When we last voted on our membership in 1975, trade with Europe was the vast majority of our total trade. This has fallen since then, and in 2008 the UK started to trade more with the rest of the world than with Europe. The fact is that Europe is becoming less and less important. The Euro has become a destroyer of jobs. Unemployment across the continent is running at almost 10%, with youth unemployment double that at 20%. For individual countries, these figures are even worse. Greece and Spain are suffering from youth unemployment rates of nearly 50%, and Italy almost 40%. Unemployment is destroying the prospects of a whole generation of young Europeans. The Euro is an experiment that has failed. In its short life it is already responsible for sovereign debt crises in several European countries, high unemployment, and dramatic trade imbalances across the Eurozone. Advertisement But then the European project has been a litany of failures. From economic catastrophe, the collapsing single currency experiment, a poor record on increasing trade, the damage done by merging home affairs, to the undoubted foreign policy failures. Foreign policy is an area that is riven with internal disputes and conflict, and is defined more by its failures than its successes. The rot was apparent in the Balkan conflict, the European Community's first real foreign policy challenge. The Community's internal squabbling only helped to push the region into conflict. It is not possible to run a functioning foreign policy that balances the conflicting concerns and interests of 28 separate countries. This was again painfully apparent during the recent Ukrainian conflict. While Putin was annexing the Crimea, fostering civil war, and shooting down civilian airliners, the EU was unable to agree on a robust course of action. Advertisement When it comes to foreign policy, it is clear that the EU's influence is far less than the sum of its parts. Then there is the Schengen Zone. The passport-less travel area once held up as the pinnacle of European integration is crumbling before our very eyes. The migration crisis that has brought more than a million refugees to Europe's shores, with many more expected to come, is a stake in the heart of a borderless Europe. The strength of any policy can only be judged by how it copes with crisis. Schengen, just like the Euro, is failing under the pressure. Even with justice, the EU causes conflict. From the faulty European Arrest Warrant, that has led to innocent Brits being detained for months overseas in terrible conditions without trial, to the slow steady creep of the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice, such as with the argument over prisoner votes, we are increasingly finding that our justice system is incompatible with the one on the continent. So the problems facing the EU are mounting up. Economic stagnation, high debt, high unemployment, high regulation, ineffective foreign policy and failing internal policies. Advertisement This is the backdrop to the Government's renegotiation of our term of membership. Government's Negotiation The Government has four pillars to its renegotiation: economic governance, ensuring that the Union operates for the benefit of all 28 members; competitiveness, and a target to cut the regulatory burden for business; sovereignty, and an opt-out for Britain from 'ever closer union'; and finally immigration, and the proposed 'emergency brake'. This renegotiation is a once in a generation opportunity. Unfortunately, the Government has wasted this opportunity with demands are so unambitious as to be a waste of time. The concessions outlined by the Prime Minister on Tuesday will have little, if any, impact on the nature of the EU. They will do almost nothing to address the very issues that the Government itself has identified. Take immigration. 265,000 people migrated to the UK from the EU in the last year. Many of them from poorer, Eastern European countries. Such high levels of migration are to be expected given the enormous wage differentials across Europe. There are six EU members where the average wage is less than a third of the UK's minimum wage, and a further eight countries where it is less than half. Given such incentives, it is surprising that more people are not making the journey. This has consistently been a top issue for voters for over a decade. The Government's answer? That an 'emergency brake' system be put in place, that would allow member states to partly deny in-work benefits to new arrivals for up to four years. Advertisement But the big caveat is that it would be necessary to prove that services were under strain, and secure the approval of a majority of other EU states. It is rumoured that a French negotiator told his British counterpart that they were, "happy to give the British anything they wanted, so long as it was nothing of substance." He must have had the emergency brake in mind when he said it. When you look at the figures, it is clear that even should the measure be introduced, the emergency brake will have no impact whatsoever. This is for three reasons. The first is that very few EU arrivals claim in-work benefits in their first four years. In the first year after arrival, only 10% of EU nationals claim tax credits. This number jumps to around 20% by the fourth year. Advertisement The second problem the Government faces is that 50% of migrants from the continent are single and childless, with a further 25% not single but also childless. This means that 75% of EU migrants will only be eligible for very low levels of in-work benefits, if at all. By the time the referendum takes place, a single earner without children on the minimum wage will be entitled to less than 10 per month in tax credits. Not even with a very generous leap of imagination can anyone believe that the loss of this amount would dissuade people from coming to this country. The third problem with the brake is that the Government's own policy to dramatically raise the minimum wage in the form of the national living wage will have the effect of abolishing in-work benefits. By 2020, when the living wage is due to be 9 per hour, and the personal tax allowance has risen further, in-work benefits will be minimal. And the minimum wage in this country will be an even greater multiple of the average wage of the poorest EU members. Advertisement The Government has said that 'no calculation has been done on how much the proposed brake will cut EU immigration'. This is hardly surprising given the number will be very close to zero. The Government has made a large number of headlines demanding an 'emergency brake' that won't have any impact at all. If my car's brakes worked in a similar manner, then there would be an almighty crash. Then there is the matter of Parliamentary sovereignty. The primary reason that I believe Britain should vote for Brexit is not economic, it is political. It is so that the United Kingdom, the first great liberal democracy of the modern era, the fifth largest economy in the world, can recover control of her own destiny. The renegotiation does not call for any repatriation of powers. It offers no confirmation of Parliament's sovereignty. All the Government has demanded is an exemption from 'ever closer union', and the Government's proposed 'red card' system to block unwanted laws. Advertisement Given the 'ratchet' nature of the European Union, the exemption from 'ever closer union' is not worth the paper it is written on. And the 'red card' proposal is worth even less. The 'red card' system only operates on draft laws, only works if there is a 'subsidiarity' argument, and needs the agreement 55% of EU Parliaments. This is the same as the old 'yellow card' system, that was also unworkable and which the Government has previously claimed is too difficult to satisfy. Since its introduction in 2009, it has only been used twice, one of those times being the proposal to create an EU public prosecutor's office, which went ahead anyway. The Government's feeble rebranding from yellow to red is a desperate attempt to put lipstick on a pig. Advertisement The other flaw in the proposal is that a blocking minority in the European Council is 35%. If this 35% cannot be reached then it is inconceivable that there will be simultaneous rebellions in 15 European Parliaments on the same issue. It is no surprise that William Hague once said that such a system would not work even if the European Commission "proposed the slaughter of the first-born". The red card is not, on any interpretation, a parliamentary veto. It returns no power to Parliament, does not help us protect our national interests and offers no protection from EU lawmakers. On the Government's calls for greater competitiveness, there has not been a single year that has gone by without European council meetings concluding with rallying cries to cut regulation and increase competitiveness. Yet year after year the regulatory burden increases and Europe's competitiveness declines. No specific regulations have been identified to be culled. No pro-competitive measures have been unveiled. Advertisement There is no reason to think that President Tusk's almost detail-less commitment to greater competitiveness will be any different to all the other commitments that have gone before. In summary, the Government's renegotiation boils down to a few vague measures that either won't have any effect, or will change so little as to not be worth the effort. The most common reaction from the press and the public seems to be, "is that it?" We have squandered our only opportunity to gain any meaningful reform for Europe. Given the disastrous direction of Europe, and the lack of meaningful change, in my view the safest option for Britain is to leave. If you are on a train, and you are aware of a steep slope ahead, then the safe option is absolutely not to sit tight, it is to get off. It is not just that exit from Europe is nothing to fear. For Britain to remain as a member of the European Union would be to constrain our future, to forgo control of our own destiny, and probably to give up on real opportunities. Advertisement Economic Consequences of Brexit So given that the safe course for Britain is to leave, it is vital to set out how we will leave, and what sort of relationship we can expect once we do. There are some who are nervous of laying out in detail how we see it playing out. I am not. This is the biggest question we will face in a generation. It is our democratic duty to make the consequences clear. The options are very good ones. And you cannot beat something with nothing, even if that something is membership of the creaking edifice that is the EU. In 2006 Professor Patrick Minford assessed that the net effect of the EU on costs and competitiveness was such that departure from it was likely to prove beneficial even if all the government managed to negotiate in Brexit was WTO terms of trade - ie. the minimum legally possible. At the time I thought that was an optimistic view of Brexit. However, that was before I took a hard look at the numbers. The starting point is to ask what benefits we derive from our membership of the EU, namely trade, investment and access to global markets. Advertisement It has long been claimed that membership of the EU increases trade among its members. This may be true for some countries, but not for Britain. The next graph shows UK exports to the first 14 other EU members. There are three very distinct periods. In the period before we entered the European Community our trade with the European nations was lower, with a noticeable increase as the UK moves towards membership. Then during the Common Market period the proportion of our trade going to the European nations remains fairly high, as you would expect given we were inside the external tariff barrier. Trade tariffs during the 1980's and 1990's were far high than there are today, before they were reduced by the World Trade Organisation and its predecessor the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. Advertisement Then during the Single Market period, despite all the costs incurred, the treaties signed, the regulations implemented, despite all the controversies of the European project, the proportion of British exports going to our European partners has if anything declined. This suggests that the only benefit we got was to be inside of Europe's tariff barrier. Once tariffs fell across the world we have derived very little trade benefit from the single market. The next three graphs tell the same story. They show the same three periods, but compare UK exports into Europe with the exports of seven non-EU OECD members. Advertisement The first graph shows how, prior to our entry into the European Community, we actually performed worse than our non-EU OECD competitors. Then, as the second graph shows, once we were inside the tariff barrier, our trade with Europe performed better, as you would expect. The final graph is the most telling. In the single market period grew if anything slower than our OECD competitors, despite our membership. On these figures our membership of the single market appears to have done remarkably little to increase trade between us and our European colleagues. Another benefit that we have supposedly derived from our membership is increased foreign direct investment in our economy. Advertisement It is certainly true that at the beginning of the Common Market period there was a spike in foreign investment in this country. However, since the barriers have come down we have received far less foreign investment than either Norway or Switzerland, both outside of the EU, even once we have accounted for their oil industry and financial services. So there seems to have been no discernible benefits to our trade or to foreign direct investment. The final supposed benefit of our membership is how the EU 'increases our influence on the world stage', and increases our 'clout', allowing us to secure more favourable trade terms across the world. Put to one side how our adding our 'clout' has not improved the EU's dreadfully weak foreign policy. We can test out how well that 'clout' has served our interest if we look at the EU's performance on trade agreements. Advertisement When negotiating trade agreements with other countries, the EU has to balance the interests of the 28 different member states. This has had dire consequences for the UK. To start with trade agreements negotiated by the EU take a very long time to conclude. We still don't have free trade agreements with China, India or the US. The talks with India have been ongoing for almost a decade. Our interests are not well represented in trade negotiations. The majority of free trade agreements that have been successfully negotiated by the EU are with North African or South American countries, with far more historical and cultural links to Mediterranean countries than to us. Advertisement The only Commonwealth country to enjoy a free trade agreement with the EU is South Africa, and that has more to do with Nelson Mandela than the UK's 'clout'. This is all a function of how marginalised Britain's interests are within the EU. It is no surprise than we have been outvoted in the Council more than twice as often as any other country. The consequence of this is that these trade deals are not tailored to our requirements. Much has been made of how hard it would be for a single country to negotiate successful trade deals on its own. But if we compare the EU's trade deals to those that Switzerland have negotiated, with its small population and limited global influence, then we see something interesting. Switzerland have seen an increase in growth rates in trade as a result of two thirds of their free trade agreements. The UK has only seen an increase in growth rates in trade from one third of the EU's free trade deals. So little Switzerland, with its population of eight million, is able to negotiate better trade deals for itself than the EU does on our behalf. Advertisement Does anyone seriously believe that Britain, the fifth largest economy in the world, would not be able to negotiate by itself at least as successfully as Switzerland? Just a damning is that the majority of these trade agreements do not include services. Services account for over three quarters of all the UK's economic activity. They have provided much of our economic growth in recent years, as well as most new employment. Our creative industries, our financial services and legal services are some of the best in the world. It seems certain that they would be included in any trade deal negotiated by the UK. So on trade, on investment, and on access to overseas markets the benefits we have supposedly derived from the EU are far less than commonly understood. As I said, I was initially doubtful of Professor Minford's assessment that we would be better off outside of the EU. But he is extremely likely to be right. Advertisement Those business groups such as Goldman Sachs and the CBI, who have warned of catastrophe should we leave, are likely to be wrong. It is not surprising that these business are making the argument to stay in. At the end of the day these businesses are arguing for their own, very narrow interest. Indeed, I think we should all raise an eyebrow at the tremendous concern that these companies are showing for our national welfare, given that at least six of Britain's ten biggest multinationals pay no corporation tax at all. Nevertheless, we should pay attention to their concerns. They have huge sunk costs in distribution and supply networks, and worry about losing access to existing EU markets. And whilst they are not job creators or particularly good innovators, they still represent an important component of our economy. These businesses can relax. There is no doubt that such access would continue in the event of British exit. No-one can reasonably say that the UK would cease to have access to European markets. Advertisement The worst case scenario is that the UK would revert to trade on a World Trade Organisation basis, with tariffs imposed on our exports into the EU. Let us leave aside cars and food for the moment. Everything else has relatively small barriers, and these are almost certainly negotiable down to zero. If Europe wants to stick to trading on a WTO basis, they are very badly positioned to do so. Everyone knows that the balance of trade is in Europe's favour. We currently import 59billion more from Europe than we export. We are Europe's largest export market, worth 289billion in 2014, larger than China. Advertisement Too see our importance to Europe, you only need to walk down the street. More than a quarter of all cars sold in this country are Mercedes, BMWs, Audis or VWs. And those are just some of the German brands. We are Europe's second largest, and fastest growing car market. This negotiation will primarily be about politics, and our European colleagues pre-eminently concerned about their national interest. We are too valuable a market for Europe to shut off. Within minutes of a vote for Brexit the CEO's of Mercedes, BMW, VW and Audi will be knocking down Chancellor Merkel's door demanding that there be no barriers to German access to the British market. And while they are at it they will be demanding that those British companies that they own will have uninterrupted access to Europe. We are talking Mini and Rolls Royce, owned by BMW, and Bentley, owned by Volkswagen. Premium brands with healthy demand across Europe. And this is not just German cars. The same will happen with Shell and Unilever in the Netherlands, EDF, EADS and the viticultural trade associations in France, Seat in Spain, and Fiat and the fashion designers in Italy. Advertisement The pressure from European companies for a free trade deal between the UK and the remaining member of the European Union would be huge. We have far more to gain than we have to lose, while the opposite is true for the EU. People have spoken, wrongly, about 3.3million British jobs being 'linked' to our membership of the EU. Well there are over five million jobs on the continent that are linked to trade with Britain. Access to our market is more important to Europe than our access to theirs. As Professor Minford has shown, we can afford to walk away from the table. Our negotiating position will be unified. The EU's position will be fractured by the competing interests of the 27 remaining members. Then there will be those countries, similarly Eurosceptic, that will want to see us achieve a good deal, should they too look to leave in the future. Advertisement All in, this would be a far easier negotiation than the one that the Government has just botched. And then there are the absolute benefits that Britain would gain. Our food imports would be cheaper outside of the common external tariff. We would be free to reduce our regulatory burden, making our businesses more competitive. We would be able to negotiate our own trade deals, opening up new markets. And then there is the City. The prevailing thought seems to be that the City would be damaged should we leave the EU. This is extremely unlikely, and it would be perfectly possible to negotiate proper protection for any significant areas at risk. There are two obvious examples where the City might gain. TTIP, the upcoming EU-US trade deal also looks likely to exclude financial services, due to French concerns. Any UK-US trade deal would not omit one of the UK's most important sectors. And then is the Financial Transaction Tax. Within the EU we would face the circumstance where French bonds sold in the City would have to have the tax charged on them, and then remitted to the French Treasury. Outside the EU, the city would continue to be free continue as before, such as trading in euro-denominated bonds, while ensuring that it is free of the threat of an FTT, as well as being free of all the other stifling European legislation. Advertisement In total, it is easy to see Britain could be better off out, even on such terms. And this is the very worst case scenario. Some people have suggested that we should look to Norway, or to Switzerland, to see what terms we can expect once we have left. The idea that we have to fit our future into some preset Procrustean bed created for far smaller countries is nonsense. The conventional options are laid out in the table, with a reminder of what they involve. We do not need to disappear into the details - always a problem with discussions on Europe - but let me outline what we should take from them. Advertisement The first one, EEA membership, often called the 'Norway option', works well for Norway but is not really appropriate for a major power like the UK. Sometimes pejoratively described as 'government by fax', the balance of power looks to be squarely on the EU side. The disparity is exaggerated - Norway is represented on 200 EU committees, it does not have the accept every ruling, half its financial contributions are voluntary, and many of the EU's regulations are copied from other international organisations' requests - organisations on which Norway is represented and we are not! Nevertheless, as it stands this model would not work for us. To make it viable it would need an arbitration court (not the ECJ), a dispute resolution procedure, and a number of other institutional changes. It would be possible to design and even negotiate such a structure, but it would take much more than two years. At the other extreme is Turkey. It is a member of the customs union, so avoids problems over rules of origin and so on, and it in theory avoids the free movement of peoples - although the current crisis highlights the weaknesses in that! However, it cannot allow negotiation of our own external trade agreements, and that is fundamental to our strategy, so that option does not work. The Swiss option, EFTA membership plus a host of bilateral treaties, is the best starting place and is informative in many ways. Advertisement It is not perfect for us however. It incorporates 'free movement of people' for the moment, although there is a clash coming on that, after a Swiss referendum was carried in favour of applying an emergency brake - a real one this time! However, understand the comparative negotiating position. Switzerland is a small country surrounded by the EU. Its trade is absolutely dominated by the EU - over 62% of its exports go to Europe. It runs a large trade surplus, and it is not big enough to be a critical market for any EU nation. The negotiation between the EU and Switzerland in the 1990s was marked by some hostility after it rejected EU membership, and yet it struck a decent deal. The optimum aim for us would be similar, but without the free movement of peoples. That would not be on the table. The EU negotiators would carp about it, but given the salience that the immigration issue will have in the referendum they will know that that is not an option. If you want a model of how this would look, go on the European Commission website and look at the Canadian Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement that the EU has just struck. Advertisement It eliminates all customs duties, which the website excitedly describes as worth 470million a year. A similar deal with Britain would save it five times that on cars alone. This would be a perfectly good starting point for our discussions with the Commission. At the same time these negotiations are going on Britain will need to undertake a massive programme of simultaneous negotiations to negotiate free trade agreements with target countries that will be key to a more global approach. Trade Targets If you read as many assessments of Brexit as I have, you can easily come to the conclusion that each side of the argument tends to get exaggerated. I am certain that the catastrophic predictions of the Europhiles are simply nonsense. That is why Toyota, Nissan, Airbus, even BMW, Opel and Volkswagen have now said that Brexit will not hinder their investments in Britain, sometimes in reversal of previous positions. On the pro Brexit side, too, there are a range of estimates from modestly to dramatically better off. The difference here depends most upon exactly what we choose to do with the country and its new found freedoms. The greatest improvements will come if we grasp the opportunities for free trade with both hands. That means immediately seeking Free Trade Agreements with the biggest prospective markets as fast as possible. There is no reason why many of these cannot be achieved within two years. We can pick up the almost complete agreement between the EU and Canada, and if anything liberalise it. We can accelerate our component of the TTIP deal with the USA. Advertisement In addition, we should find a way of improving the global trade performance of our economy. The companies that find it hard to export are the small and medium ones, for obvious reasons. They do not have the huger international sales and transport departments of the biggest companies. Diverting our current contributions to the EU will help to smooth the transition period following the referendum. The most effective policy would be to continue, in the short term, all of the EU's current spending within the UK. This means continuing to support agriculture, separate from the Common Agricultural Policy, as well as continuing research grants and regional funding. Advertisement But this would not come near to accounting for our total contributions - around 18billion gross and 9billion net. We could afford to fund a new Board of Trade, dedicated to helping British businesses create new links to countries with which we achieve trade deals. The funding would be available to set up an office in every major commercial centre and capital, completely separate from the Foreign Office, staffed with experts who know the language, the customs and the regulations and are on hand to help British businesses develop links in the country. Imagine an 0800 number and an email address where a small manufacturer in Lancashire can call Shanghai or Mumbai or Sao Paolo and find out in English how to negotiate the import regulation find a freight forwarder, hire a warehouse, translate a brochure, the simple things that stop too many small businesses from operating abroad. We must see Brexit as a great opportunity to refocus our economy on global, rather the regional, trade. This is an opportunity to renew our strong relationships with Commonwealth and Anglosphere countries. Advertisement These parts of the world are growing faster than Europe. We share history, culture and language. We have family ties. We even share similar legal systems. The usual barriers to trade are largely absent. The Prime Minister has repeatedly stated that we are a trading nation with global horizons. This is undoubtedly true. So it is time we unshackled ourselves, and began to focus policy on trading with the wider world, rather than just within Europe. We would also have the opportunity to reform our economy, pushing through the changes necessary to create a dynamic, modern economy. Competitive tax rates, a competitive labour market, and effective, rather than burdensome, regulation. After Brexit we can put all that right without asking Brussel's permission. The European Union was a noble vision. It was borne out of Europe's history. A history of war, conflict, tyranny and destruction. Two world wars ripped Western Europe apart. It is an entirely understandable, indeed an admirable, response to such horror to want to break down national barriers and increase bonds between peoples and countries. Advertisement Spain emerged from Franco's tyranny. Greece shook off the rule of the Generals. And after the Berlin Wall fell, whole swathes of Eastern Europe rediscovered democracy and liberty. Faced with such a history it is entirely understandable that the European Union came into being. It is a profoundly peaceful project, dedicated to protecting democracy across Europe. But this history is not our history. Britain has its own proud tradition of fighting tyranny, of protecting liberty and democracy both at home and abroad. For us, Europe has always been about trade. For the continent, it is about so much more. This does not mean either side is wrong. But the European Project is not right for us. With the migrant crisis enveloping large parts of the world with millions of people moving around, it is critical that both the new countries and their policy makers as well as NGOs understand mental health needs of migrants. Over the past half a century studies from Britain have shown that some minority ethnic groups are more prone to developing psychiatric disorders. These studies followed the pioneering work of a Norwegian psychiatrist Odegaard who demonstrated that rates of schizophrenia were higher among the Norwegians who had migrated to the USA in comparison with those who had stayed in Norway. Interestingly the increase occurred only 10-12 years after migration suggesting that rather than the actual stress of migration it were the subsequent social and economic factors. Among these the most researched groups are south Asians and African-Caribbeans. African-Caribbeans have been shown to have 7-14 times the rates of their British counterparts just like Turkish migrants to Germany and Guyanese migrants to the Netherlands. South Asians show little difference in rates of schizophrenia but south Asian women especially those aged between 18-24 are nearly 3 times more likely to attempt self-harm when compared with their age matched British peers. So what is it that causes such massive differences? Looking at possible causes we have to start with genetic causes. There seems to be limited data but it is clear that the rates of schizophrenia in the Caribbean countries are the same as that seen among white British. It had been argued that some individuals who are prone to develop psychiatric disorders are more likely to migrate but that has not been confirmed. Advertisement Cultures influence development, presentation and help-seeking. So are the cultures to blame? The answer as ever is both yes and no. we carry our cultures with us wherever we go. It has been demonstrated that migrants may experience culture shock on arrival as well as cultural bereavement at what they have left behind. Settling down in the new country may cause culture conflict with the majority culture but also within their own culture. Cultures have been broadly classified as ego-centric and socio-centric as well as masculine and feminine. The tension between these dimensions can lead to what can be described as cultural contraction (of one's own cultural values) and cultural expansion (feeling confident enough to accept and absorb ideas, attitudes and behaviours from the majority cultures). Although there have been some suggestions that early use of cannabis in vulnerable individuals may cause psychosis, the evidence for black and ethnic minority groups is not as robust. Another potential explanation that deserves better and deeper understanding is the role social inequalities and social determinants play especially in black and minority ethnic groups. In a study few years ago we found that discrepancy between aspiration and achievement was significant in some domains in BME groups. These discrepancies may affect the individual's self-esteem. Similarly parenting styles and separation from fathers was associated but we cannot be sure that it was causative. Thus early screening for mental illness and support is a must if a massive increase in mental illness in the future in these vulnerable individuals is to be avoided. Advertisement A head teacher in Darlington sparked a national debate last week after writing to parents to request they stop doing the school run in their pyjamas As a mother of two young children, I know how hard it can be to get everybody up and out of the door before 9am. When you have spent the morning battling to feed, dress and wash children who do not WANT to be dressed, fed and washed, by the time you arrive at the school you often have no idea what you are wearing. However, thanks to a simple technique called 'Being Late' I have managed to avoid ever taking my daughter to school in my slippers and dressing gown. Advertisement But if lateness is not the option for you - there are plenty of other ways you can ensure that you always arrive at the gate fully clothed and looking fabulous: 1. Do not have more than one child. The last thing you need is another human to feed, clothe, wash and get ready in the morning. 2. Don't bother going to bed. Spend the night preparing, cleaning and ironing your School Run Outfit instead. 3. Don't dress the children Avoid the eight-hour battle to get your kids dressed in the morning by simply allowing them to go to school in their pyjamas. Use this extra time to get dressed, shower and get a French manicure. 4. Cut out food I don't know about you but I spend more time shouting 'COME AND EAT BREAKFAST' than my kids spend actually eating their breakfast. Save valuable time by just not feeding them at all. 5. Be a celebrity If you are famous and wear designer pyjamas you will be deemed a 'hero,' like the beautiful Selena Gomaz, or be praised for showing 'your playful side,' like Chris Evans. Advertisement 6. Don't bother with shoes. Quite frankly, shoes are a major hindrance to my morning routine. I have two kids so that is FOUR shoes I have to find. Four shoes that are never in the PLACE WHERE WE KEEP THE SHOES. Then once I have located them, I have four feet to force into said shoes. So give kid's shoes a miss and use the extra time to clean and buff your new designer School Run Stilettos. As my toddler once told me; 'I don't need shoes, I can walk in my feet.' 7. Stop caring about teeth hygiene The only thing more annoying than trying to get your children into shoes in the morning is trying to get them to clean their teeth. So skip the brushing, and work on your own pearly whites instead. Your kids may have brown, rotten teeth by the time they are six, but YOU will have best smile at the school gate. 8. Consider home-schooling. Make pyjamas the uniform. Your school, your rules. 9. Employ a nanny for the morning shift And devote the entire morning to making yourself look amazing! 10. Go to bed in your clothes. Problem solved. Monday 6 October 2008. Woke up at 9am. Today is my mock GCSE History exam and I have the ultimate get-out excuse. Dad's funeral. Sat on the front row at the crematorium - I'm wearing a blue bomber jacket, an M.I.A. t-shirt and some Reebok Ex-O-Fit hi-tops. Dad wouldn't want us in suits. His death has been sudden - diagnosed with cancer only ten days before passing aged 55. He said he wanted a FUN-4-ALL not a funeral, so that's what we're giving him - complete with 700-person guestlist, compulsory double denim dress code and his wish of making every funeral-goer endure the 19-minute long version of Lynyrd Skynyrd's Freebird - his final bad joke to the world. Dad was a master of telling bad jokes, ones so awkward and cringey you felt compelled to slightly smirk. Advertisement Back at home in Chorleywood (a place just outside Watford that thinks it's a bit posh), the biscuit tin is passed around the living room like a teenagers first spliff, everyone cautious not to take too long with it. So far the family has dunked nearly four ASDA biscuit multipacks into puke-warm tea. The kitchen table has the local newspaper of the day strewn across it and today's headline is 'Chorleywood Voted The Happiest Place To Live In Britain.' Me and mum look at each other and laugh. That headline was the ultimate bad joke, which to me meant that somehow, somewhere - Dad was still with us. The morning after the funeral, the realisation of the day before set in. I woke up with my head glued to the pillow. I didn't leave Dad's bedroom for days. Advertisement Being 15, borderline obese and the boy whose dad died wasn't the easiest role to play in the happiest town in Britain. I soon found that grief was full of people crossing the road to avoid me, or telling me they knew what I was going through because their elderly gran/dog/parakeet had passed away peacefully the year before. Cue The X Factor sob story music - I was depressed. At the worst point I thought that if there is an "afterlife" where Dad is, maybe I want to be there too. However in the pits of depression, a skint bank balance and an additional three stone in weight - somehow grief kept throwing me funny moments. It began with neighbours hesitantly ringing our doorbell, whilst hurriedly running back to their own driveways after leaving a lasagne or similar baked dish on the doorstep for our discovery. Most came with sympathy letters, loving tokens of "we're here for you!" or "heat for 45 minutes at 180 and let us know if you need anything." Soon enough me and mum had 17 lasagnes, 4 shepherds pies and a sticky toffee pudding in the kitchen. We decided to start our own competition whereby we'd competitively judge our neighbours lasagnes by scoring them out of 10 for taste, appearance and the level of genuine sincerity in their sympathy note. It was like bake off - for lasagnes. Back at school I was given a small yellow card that meant I could get out of class if I felt I was struggling emotionally in a lesson. Soon enough I was walking in and out of classrooms whenever I liked, whether I was sad or not. Advertisement Grief gave me a weird sense of power. If I wanted to sit in the front seat of a car, that spot was mine. If I wanted five sugars in my tea, no one would bat an eyelid. I'm sure if I wanted someone's iPhone, they'd hand it over promptly and run away. Gradually I was using grief to do whatever I wanted, without ever having to share how I was actually feeling. My excessive weight gain and truancy made Mum put her foot down and arrange a bereavement counsellor to come to our home. She was an older lady, who I remember distinctly smelt like dusty curtains, cherry strepsils and Deep Heat. In our first session she asked a series of cliche questions that had obvious answers like, "Jack, tell me, do you miss your father?" Mid-way through our conversation she left her chair to walk towards a photograph of dad on the sideboard and suddenly, she farted. Our counsellor let the smelliest flatulence rip right out of her in the middle of our first session. Me and mum clenched our jaws, struggling to contain a belly laugh of disbelief. The counsellor left our house pretty swiftly with an "upset stomach", and as soon as the front door closed me and mum were howling with laughter. Laughter which turned into talking. Talking which turned into crying. Tears that eventually made me feel a lot better about my loss. We realised that my binge eating and mis-use of my get out of class card, wasn't just me bunking or being greedy, it was the only thing I had any control over in my life. Advertisement A lack of control is something that affects many people with depression. It leads to negative behaviours that make it even harder to overcome tough times. For me, I found that sharing how I felt and having an outlet for those experiences, were crucial in finding a positive mental outlook. Sunday 20 June 2014, Fathers Day. Me and my 85-year-old Nan sat in her council flat in Uxbridge recording hours of us chatting about losing dad as part of my debut comedy-theatre show Good Grief. We spoke about how she felt as an elderly person, an expectation that she should be somewhat desensitised to death and how people ask her about an elderly friend who has died but not her son - and actually she really wants to remember him. Even I was anxious to talk about Dad in front of Nan in fear of upsetting her, however regardless of the age difference I saw that sharing was ultimately what was important. We laughed about the awkward moments of grief, the time she told a lady in the post office to "piss off" when she was complaining about treading her ugg boots in a puddle. It was brilliant to laugh and share experiences with a woman who had been through one of the worst losses imaginable. And then in typical Nan style, she came out with the wisest words I've ever heard: "Laughter is a medicine but talking is the cure." A Shell veteran of 35 years requests the company pension fund he depends on to divest from fossil fuels and reinvest in clean energy. A geoscientist currently working for an oil and gas major quits to take qualifications in renewable energy. These are the stories the latest two commenters on my website tell. The great global energy transition will play out in countless small dramas like this. But reminders of the over-arching global narrative, that we are in a race against time, are remorseless. And setbacks in the post-Paris world can be expected in parallel with steps forward, as the last fortnight illustrates all too well. The oil price has fallen below $30 now: lower than it has been since 2013. The International Energy Agency warns that the oil market may "drown in oversupply" in 2016. The Saudis keep pumping, the warm weather is depressing demand, Iran is re-entering the global market now that nuclear sanctions are over, and so on. Carbon Tracker has exhorted fossil fuel companies to come clean on climate risks, whatever the oil price, in a short report to the World Economic Forum in Davos. We are far from alone in professing that the post-Paris world requires this. PWC leads the list of those also warning in January of stranded-asset risk in the oil and gas sector. The full disclosures that investors need in order to weight risk of stranded assets and other climate-related downsides should not be long coming. Michael Bloomberg has announced the membership of his elite Climate Risk Disclosure Task Force, which will include Unilever, Axa, Blackrock and JPMorgan. Anyone who reads the last few chapters of The Winning of The Carbon War can have little doubt about the likely tenor of their recommendations, due in March. Advertisement All of which should auger well for the progressive diversion of capital from fossil fuels to clean energy that is hard-wired into the Paris Agreement. Standard & Poor's estimates that $16.5 trillion of new investment in renewables, clean technology and green finance will be triggered by the terms of the treaty. The International Renewable Energy Agency estimates that global GDP will rise roughly 1.1% if renewables account for 36% of the world's energy mix by 2030, as they should if we are to be on track for the Paris goal of well under 2C of global warming. Progress reports in late January encourage faith in this trajectory. Solar power costs have dropped to a record low of 6 cents per kilowatt hour in Rajasthan, a price that matches electricity from coal and gas. Cost-down in storage is also looking encouraging, with the 3 gigawatts in operation or under development around the world prompting analysts IHS to predict a significant imminent rise in deployment. More than 50 major corporations have pledged 100% renewable energy use, and in Davos they announced they are half way to their collective target. Meanwhile, however, threats to progress on the Paris agenda pile up. The low oil price has pushed many stock markets into bear market territory - a fall of 20% or more from their most recent peak. This, plus the stuttering global economy, and fears of a Chinese financial meltdown, caused a degree of pessimism in Davos. Some analysts voiced fears of a slide into global recession of the kind seen in 2008. Fresh from their triumph in Paris, the French government is urging fellow governments to keep the momentum going on climate change, with the next target being signature of the treaty by world leaders in April. "Everything is done, yet nothing is done", said Laurence Tubiana, France's chief climate diplomat. She admits to being unsure what impact current fears about the global economy will have. Advertisement Some incumbency corporations and many investors barrel on as though nothing has changed. Shell's takeover of BG has received a green light from investors, with 83% of Shell shareholders voting for the deal. In order to do this, they would have had to to persuade themselves that they can afford to ignore both climate risk and the risk of a prolonged low oil price. Mark Van Baal, who leads a group of 1,000 small shareholders who voted against the deal, said: "There are a lot of better ways to spend 50bn. We are afraid of Shell being the new Kodak." The Shell retiree who commented on my website appreciates both points. He was Shell's first head of renewable energy. There is bad news everywhere for the oil and gas industry. 42 American shale drillers have now gone bankrupt. Some can't even give their assets away, Bloomberg reports. Harold Hamm, a pioneer of shale drilling, told the FT that companies are simply going to stop producing, so US oil production must fall steeply this year. People may be surprised by how fast, he says. Shell and the other majors endlessly repeat their mantra that gas is much better than coal, in global warming terms. But who can easily believe this any more? A massive gas leak, cause unknown, was discovered in a Californian storage well on October 23rd. It is still leaking unchecked, having become California's single biggest contributor to global warming. The Governor has declared a state of emergency over it. This is an extreme example, but the more scientists scrutinise gas leakage, right across the gas value-chain from wellhead to consumer end-use, the more worrying a picture they are finding, as my book chronicles. There is scant oversight of storage wells, and until recently very little monitoring of US fracking either. When the monitoring is finally done properly gas could yet end up worse than coal in greenhouse terms. And even if it doesn't, aiming to hit a 1.5C global warming ceiling with "highest possible ambition", as the Paris Agreement requires, means large-scale bypassing of gas en route direct from coal to renewables. Climate scientists are very clear on this. Consistent with his desire for climate change to be a meaningful legacy of his administration, President Obama is now launched a regulatory crackdown on methane emissions from oil and gas drilling on federal land. Energy industry groups have condemned the "avalanche" of regulations now descending on them, but the President seems to be on a roll with his climate mission. A US appeals court declined to block his carbon-constraint plan from power plants. States led by West Virginia "have not satisfied stringent requirements" to put a judicial stay on regulation, a judge has ruled. And in California, legislators have voted in a raft of measures expanding the solar market. Clearly the number two greenhouse-gas emitter is making some progress post-Paris. So is the number one emitter. China's carbon dioxide emissions likely fell 3% in 2015, a trend analysts say looks set to continue. Among other positive developments, the Chinese government has announced that it will allocate $4.6bn to shut 4,300 coal mines over the next three years. Some countries are pursuing energy policies totally inconsistent with the commitments they made in adopting the Paris Agreement. The UK leads this list. Bloomberg reports that British renewable energy industries are set to "fall off a cliff" as a result of the Conservatives' active effort to boost support forfracked shale gas and nuclear meanwhile withdrawing support from renewables and energy efficiency. Cuts to wind subsidies will mean the UK will lose at least one gigawatt of renewable energy generation over the next five years. To make the point, RWE has cancelled 1 billion of onshore wind investments, blaming policy setbacks. David Cameron's government is showering the energy incumbency with money. He announced a 250 million bailout to prop up the North Sea oil and gas industry, is intent on major giveaways to promote fracking, and has essentially written an open cheque in the multiple billions needed to force the Hinkley Point C reactor through. Advertisement Like Shell and its investors, the government seems incapable of reading some very clear writing on walls. A Conservative MP was forced by his constituents to resign from a Parliamentary shale gas group because it is funded by the oil and gas industry. This gives a clear feeling for the opposition shale drillers will encounter in the Tory shires, never mind the leakage rates of methane from their operations. As for Hinkley Point C, the drama is akin to watching a train wreck in slow motion. EDF, the aspiring operator, was supposed to finalise funding this month at a board meeting. The decision was delayed, amid fears that the company cannot afford the billions required. EDF's own workforce has begged it not to go ahead, openly voicing fears that this, the most expensive power plant in the world, will bankrupt the company notwithstanding the billions invested by the British and Chinese governments. Meanwhile, as the UK government flogs the doomed horses of shale and nuclear, and sabotages clean energy in an effort to give investors no choice but to join them, the CBI warns that the threat of a national power crisis is growing. All the while, the planetary thermostat reminds us of the clock ticking. 2015 shattered the global temperature record by a wide margin, the Met Office reported. The world's oceans warmed at an increasingly fast rate, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration warned. Sea level rise from ocean warming has been underestimated, German scientists professed. The science of climate change has become a matter of legal liability risk for oil and gas companies in recent months. Investigative journalists have uncovered evidence that they lied about the impacts of global warming in public whilst planning to adapt their infrastructure to its effects in private, as I describe in my book. In January, California's Attorney General launched an investigation into whether Exxon Mobil repeatedly lied to the public and its shareholders about the risk to its business from climate change. At issue is whether such actions could amount to securities fraud. California joins New York, whose Attorney General began investigating Exxon Mobil last November with a view to to possible criminal charges. Advertisement Shell is under suspicion too. In 1989, the company redesigned a $3-billion North Sea natural gas platform, fearing sea levels would rise as a result of global warming. In the 1990s, it joined the Global Climate Coalition, an oil, gas and coal lobby group dedicated to defusing concern about climate change and stalling the climate negotiations. The idea of expanding Heathrow airport first came about under Gordon Brown in the last Labour government, until it was kyboshed when the coalition government came to power in 2010. However, the idea again resurfaced last year when the Airport Commission recommended the plan to expand the airport. That being said, the expansion of Heathrow is actually one of two different options available when it comes to general airport expansion in the South East. MPs could instead opt to give Gatwick airport a second runway - with either plan offering a viable option. Unlike many Conservatives, I've actually always been in support of airport expansion in the South East, whether that be through the form of Heathrow or Gatwick. That's because increased airport capacity brings with it increased business opportunity and isn't that what being a Conservative is all about? Evidently, George Osbourne doesn't support that notion, as it begins to look increasingly likely that we're not going to get any form of South East airport expansion at this point. That view was recently echoed by Andrew Tyrie MP, who commented that the public was being left in the dark over airport expansion proposals. Whilst this back and forth between MPs and the government continues, the public are getting further and further away from increased airport capacity in the South East. Advertisement In general though, I just don't understand why the government are doing their best to stall on a plan that is sure to only boost the economy of the South East and the country as a whole. In fact, the only matter which could contributing to that said stalling is that this is a plan which was first put into action by a Labour government. Conservatives are very proud politicians with David Cameron and George Osbourne being no exception, so it is pretty clear why they wouldn't want to pick up loose baggage, if you'll pardon the pun, from the last government. However, their lack of willingness to do so could be starving UK business of a potential boost. Countries around the world are increasing their airport capacity at a rate faster than ever before, whilst the UK is stuck bickering over one airport expansion. If the UK wishes to remain a global economic player, we need to quickly get over this partisan bickering. Whether it's Heathrow or Gatwick, I'd just like to see some form of airport expansion put into traction and allow our economy to flourish as a result. That being said, I can still understand the side of the opposition to airport expansion. Whilst it allows more people and business in and out of our capital, it also brings with it increased noise pollution. Don't get me wrong, I really do feel sympathetic towards those living in proposed airport expansion zones, but as many have pointed out, it's not the end of the world. In fact, specialist sash windows are even available to counteract the increased noise pollution as a result of airport expansion. Sometimes, compromises need to be made for the sake of economic growth, whether that be for politicians or the everyday people that such an airport expansion would affect. The Conservatives are doing a fantastic job at putting Britain's economy back on track, but they can't continue to stand in the way of a plan that would undeniably boost British business and go some way to support exactly what they set out to do. Advertisement Yesterday, European Council President Donald Tusk published the proposed deal he has reached with UK PM David Cameron, ahead of the European Council in two weeks. The pace is quickening towards the UK's referendum on whether we are better off in the European Union or whether it is time to cut our moorings and drift free. However, we will not vote on Cameron's deal but on whether we are remain or leave the EU. Last week, despite a unanimous resolution at Labour Party Conference in favour of our EU membership and strong support for that position from Jeremy Corbyn, a small group of MPs launched a Labour Leave campaign. They claim to represent the true socialist voice in the EU referendum debate, which seems incompatible with the fact that their offices and website are provided by the right wing think-tank the TaxPayers Alliance. That aside, the disingenuous arguments they are using to back their campaign are misinformation. Advertisement At the same time, new Labour Shadow Europe Minister Pat Glass was in Brussels discussing the upcoming EU referendum with Labour MEPs. A total of 213 of Labour's 231 MPs have signed up to the Labour's official pro-Europe campaign, Labour IN For Britain. It was not always so. Pat was up front that in 1975 she voted not to join the European Economic Community. The Labour Party at the time was opposed to the Common Market and campaigned against UK membership. There were many relevant arguments made, but times have changed. The EU today is not the EEC of 1973. Just like Pat, the Labour Party's position has shifted on our EU membership. It has not happened overnight. It has come through the principles of redistribution and solidarity shown by the EU budget, in which resources are transferred from wealthier to less advantaged regions. For us in the North East, this is just one example of how we directly benefit from our EU membership, literally pound for pound. It has come through the changes in geopolitics brought about by the emergence of billion-person countries and trillion dollar economies. Despite these changes, cooperating with our neighbours has brought us over 70 years of peace - a fact that should not be taken for granted. It has come through the advances that working people have made through EU rules, fought for by trade unions across Europe: rights like a minimum four weeks' paid holiday; parental leave; flexible working; equal protection for part-time workers. It is a victory for Labour and our sister parties across Europe that the undermining of these rights is no longer under discussion as part of the EU renegotiation. Labour's EU referendum campaign is unambiguous - it is clear that we get more out of our EU membership than it costs us to be a member - we are for IN! IN: to create jobs and growth. IN: to continue investment in our region. IN: to protect hard won workers' rights and extend them to address today's exploitative workplace practices. IN: to protect our environment as pollution knows no borders. In: for our collective security and safety in an increasingly turbulent world. Our EU membership is crucial not just for economic reasons, it provides safety at work and at home, and helps to make our world more secure. Advertisement Imaged sourced through CC search You may not have heard, but in December, a ground breaking new law came into force making the act of coercive control, which is at the centre of most domestic abuse, an offence. This is a cause for celebration for many practitioners working with survivors of abuse, and finally an acknowledgement that domestic violence as a term, does not encompass all that is included within the act of domestic abuse. . Dr Jane Monckton-Smith Lecturer of Criminology at Gloucester and creator of DART, says that coercive control predicts the likelihood of homicide nine times more than violence. Advertisement It is hoped that this law will start the sea-change in culture needed to acknowledge that domestic abuse is not simply about violence, and therefore should not be labelled as such. Moreover, to end the ignorant 'why doesn't she just leave him' attitude. Dr Emma Katz, researcher and lecturer at Liverpool Hope University said at an Action against Violence and Abuse (AVA) seminar in London last week: "There is often too much focus on the physical side when most victims state the emotional is much harder to cope with. This is why it is so important we call it domestic abuse." Although this is great news and undoubtedly a step in the right direction, there is still a long way to go. One look at Binderman's Chart of Coercion demonstrates the complexity of coercive control, which resultantly will make it a very difficult offence to evidence and prosecute. This week is Sexual Abuse & Violence Awareness Week, and it is also LGBT History Month. Both of these events have intrinsic links with coercive control, as too often sexual abuse occurs within a controlling relationship, with research indicating that LGBT people are often silent sufferers of domestic abuse. There are still taboos around domestic abuse in these areas that need breaking down and more research to be done. The AVA seminar aimed to help practitioners in the field understand the new law, which is a new defence and deterrent in the armoury against domestic abuse. At the seminar, Policy Officer at AVA Joanna Sharpen said that the perpetrator of coercive control works from a rulebook which is ever changing, and that the victim is constantly trying to adapt to the new laws laid down by the perpetrator. Ways of evidencing were discussed, including asking the victim (where appropriate) to keep a diary and also looking to evidence on the mobile phone such as chat and call histories, geotagging on images and social media posts. It was also said that those investigating the case should look at speaking to friends, family, and colleagues who may have noted behaviour changes. All that when put together can build a strong picture of what is going on and can form part of the evidence. Advertisement Coercive control is such a subjective, individualised thing and the response needs to reflect that. Jenny Hopkins, CPS Chief Crown Prosecutor Champion for VAWG commented that one partner taking control in certain situations is quite normal in relationships (such as where to go for dinner). It becomes abuse when the control element becomes a set of rules that are punishable when broken. Dr Jane Monckton-Smith suggests that there should be a threat assessment done with the perpetrator alongside the risk assessment of the victim. There could be high risk markers in this assessment, as well as a look at the abuser psychology and their triggers to allow services to be more proactively preventative. There is no exhaustive list of behaviour captured within this new law. Perpetrators tailor their conduct to each victim. Something which may have little effect on one person may have a massive effect on another. There is a need to explain why things have an impact especially if the tactics are less self-explanatory for them to constitute good evidence. The law has strict restrictions around the circumstances that are considered for prosecution such as the victim had to have been living with the perpetrator, even if no longer together, or part of the same family at the time of the incident. This excludes many victims, who according to Jenny Hopkins would then still be covered under stalking legislation. Incidents must also be repeated or continuous, not one off events, but there is no time restriction between incidents, which is a step forward from previous legislation. The full Home Office guidance on the new law can be found here. The first arrests were made in January, and professionals from all sectors will be watching these cases to see just how this law works in practice. Action on DA is always going to be a murky subject to work with. But one thing that is clear, is that we all need to stop calling it Domestic Violence or DV, and call it the more inclusive Domestic Abuse or DA. This acknowledges there are multiple types of abuse involved, and that violence occurs more often than not alongside emotional abuse, which many victims say is the hardest part. Advertisement Recent changes in the law are extremely positive, but we also need to look at police procedure and attitude towards DA. Police questioning can no longer be simplistic, and must look to intentions, rather than a simple 'tell me what happened'. It also needs to be acknowledged that perpetrators of coercive control are highly manipulative, and so are more than likely going to attempt to manipulate all those involved in their prosecution. Professional knowledge and protocol as a whole needs to be updated, including paramedics, midwives, GPs and other individuals which may come into contact with a victim prior to them making that all important first call, to ensure victims needs are at the centre of the response. Today, world leaders gathered in Westminster will pledge financial support for efforts to meet the humanitarian needs of the Syrian people, and unveil measures aimed at providing longer-term assistance and opportunities for Syrian refugees and their hosts in Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. The UK, along with Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the United Nations (UN), is to be commended for convening this event. Funding has failed to keep pace with the growing needs of the 13.5million people inside Syria and 4.6million sheltering in the region who are reliant on aid. The consequences of this shortfall - compounded by intensified conflict, sharpening refugee restrictions, and deepening poverty - became profoundly apparent in 2015, when half a million Syrians were forced to board jerry-built boats and dinghies and seek safety within the European Union. If today's commitments are honoured, and agreements around work permits and education for Syrian refugees are properly implemented, then some Syrians may well begin to envision a future for themselves in the Middle East. Being able to work, provide for their families, and watch their children learn would be transformational for Syrians in exile: such an outcome, alongside a significant increase in support for relief operations in and around Syria, is a worthy aim of the London conference. Advertisement But what this event will almost certainly not do is offer civilians inside Syria hope that they will be spared the brutalities of the continuing conflict across their country, or that an end to that conflict may be in sight. Indeed, the welcome ambition and energy of today's efforts stand in stark contrast to the desultory manner in which the international community has sought to shield innocent Syrians from the horrors of the war, which enters its sixth year next month. To Syrian civilians, this is a war seemingly without end, and certainly without law. Given free rein by their sponsors in and outside the region, the parties to the conflict continue to bombard densely populated areas, lay ruin to homes, schools and hospitals, target and indiscriminately attack civilians, choke off desperately needed food, water and energy supplies, and disrupt the delivery of humanitarian aid. The intensity of the violence is such that an average of 50 families have been uprooted every hour of every day since the conflict began. A series of UN Security Council resolutions demanding an immediate halt to this appalling, illegal conduct have achieved little. The number of Syrians whom aid agencies can reach only sporadically and with difficulty now stands at 4.5million, an increase of more than a third since February 2014, when the first resolution was adopted. The number trapped inside besieged areas - some 400,000 people - has increased by two thirds. In Muadamiyat al-Sham, just outside Damascus and blockaded for years now, the International Rescue Committee's local health partners report that Syrians are dying for want of food. Viewed from such desperate places, the impact and promise of national and international commitments to secure an end to the violence, and a political solution to the conflict, have been minimal. Arab League initiatives, Kofi Annan's six-point plan, and successive peace conferences in Geneva all failed to achieve a breakthrough. The fledgling Vienna Process has only this week moved beyond talks around participation, and been accompanied by an increased flow of weapons into Syria, as well as heightened violence in many parts. Intransigence over the country's future administration has deepened in recent months, and relations between the warring parties' backers - notably Saudi Arabia and Iran - have significantly deteriorated. Advertisement As things stand then, it will likely be years before any peace agreement for Syria is reached, let alone realised on the ground. And rebuilding the country, as and when peace finally does break out, will take decades. This is why the commitments and compacts revealed in London today - with their emphasis on more durable humanitarian funding solutions, jobs and education for refugees, and significant support for Syria's neighbours - are so important. They reflect and constitute the beginning of a response to the reality that Syria and the region are grappling with a protracted crisis, the management of which will demand a long-term, comprehensive approach that brings together governments, the private sector, humanitarian agencies and development actors, all while respecting and vindicating refugees' and asylum seekers' rights under international law. The success of such commitments and compacts depends, obviously, on their implementation, and the extent to which they achieve meaningful improvements in Syrians' lives. The five-year anniversary of the conflict in March, the World Humanitarian Summit in May, the 71st session of the UN General Assembly in September, and President Obama's global refugee summit that same month all provide important opportunities for donors and aid agencies alike to assess progress, and work to overcome any obstacles that arise. But such funding and international goodwill will still only deal with the consequences of this crisis, not its causes. That will require states with influence over the belligerents putting the Syrian people ahead of geopolitical ambitions, bringing pressure to bear upon those who besiege, bombard and make a mockery of international humanitarian law, and working together to achieve a lasting solution to the conflict. I have been teaching English at Mohammad Shamel Public School in Lebanon since 2007. I started with teaching younger children, aged 6 and 7, and now teach 10 to 14 year olds, who come from different backgrounds and cultures; and since 2011, many are from Syria. In the five years since the start of the conflict much has changed in the way I teach. The crisis in Syria has led to over a million refugees entering Lebanon; our population here has grown by over a quarter. Over 50% of refugees in Lebanon are children. My country is small geographically, but is now shouldering one of the largest humanitarian burdens since World War Two. Schools across the country have been running double shifts to help ensure that all children, regardless of where they are from get an education. Advertisement I arrive early to prepare and run through my lesson plans, ready for a long day of teaching. Classes start at 8am and run through til 1.45pm. Then we have an hour's break before the second shift of children start at 2.45. Life at school is really busy now and it is a challenge to accommodate all the children and tend to their needs; with teachers running up and down our four story building all day long. After a morning teaching you'll find me huddling around the teachers' room with my colleagues, and yes we will be talking about the children. Our concerns are mostly about common problems with students who have been through so much, and ideas on how best to approach them. Most teachers, no matter where they are from, will speak of the challenges they face in the classroom. Many of their challenges will be the same as mine, however for me, supporting children overcome two significant barriers to learning - namely language and trauma - have become more acute since the start of the conflict. Lessons here in Lebanon are taught in English or French, with Arabic taught as a language. For Syrian children this makes learning difficult, as they are used to all lessons being taught in Arabic. The lack of English means they can fall behind and need extra support to keep up with their Lebanese classmates. Advertisement Falling behind in school is often compounded by the emotional roller coaster of anger, worry, sadness and frustration that comes from fleeing your home in order to escape violence. But despite these barriers, all are eager to learn, and recognise the semblance of normality and stability a school day brings, not just for them, but their parents too. But not all teachers are equipped to handle children who are so emotionally scarred by what they have been through. We need more help. A lot of Syrians and Lebanese are without work, and this impacts on the children. I think psychological help for more children and parents is needed to cope. I've attended a workshop on supporting students, but it is not enough. At the end of the day it is the children who matter the most. For them it's the hope that education brings a better life. One of my students, Fatima is from Syria. She came to Lebanon when she was in the third grade, now in grade 6, she has been learning English now for three years and is still eager to learn. She is confident speaking English, where once she wasn't and is progressing well in class. One day she wants to be a doctor so she can help injured people. You see, the war did not change Fatima's desire to learn, it only emboldened it in my opinion. It seems to have made her more determined to succeed, despite all odds. Advertisement It is very important for Syrian children to have an education. I don't see them as refugees. It is just a label that the society gave them. We are not looking into a dark future where people are divided into those who were refugees and those who were not. What they are now are children. Simply children. And all children have the right to learn and continue their education. For the world leaders meeting today, I want to remind them that education is a right for every child. It is the key for cohesive and inclusive societies and when the Syrian children I teach today return to their homeland, they will be ready to rebuild it, thanks to the education we give them today. Did you know the UK wastes 7 million tons of food per year which is almost half of the food and drink we could have consumed? That's enough to make you sick right, I mean the waste figure and not singularly eating 7 million tons of food. I was lucky enough to come across a Love Food Hate Waste project in Birmingham who is looking to help disadvantaged young people living in the city to waste less food and ultimately save money to spend on more important things, like food. The project is called Don't Go Hungry and they are doing a number of cool stuff in Brum. Such as setting up shared fridges and spice banks in community spaces, you can check out some of their work on Twitter by using the #LFHWBrum hashtag. Advertisement I found a spice banks in Moseley, the lady who was running the workshop kindly offered me to help myself but only if I used it to cook leftovers or stuff already in my fridge and then write about it. Challenge accepted, I basically live like a student in a small crappy flat with a fridge full of random stuff so I set out to make something off the cuff. Let me take you on a journey of cooking leftover mince and past it's sell by date onions. I looked in my freezer to see what I have, I bought a whole load of reduced mince beef for 4 a while ago, I just put separated it all and froze them separately, that will do! Ladies and gentlemen, in the spirit of the challenge I present to you my recipe for Black Country kebabs, with fried paprika onions and tomato salsa. Advertisement This is what you will need: 250 grams of Beef Cumin Turmeric Chili flakes Coriander powder Two onions Olive oil Two tomatoes Spring onion Paprika Sugar Sesame seeds Black pepper Sugar Serves two First things first, grab a freezer bag, throw in your mince beef in and had a pinch each of cumin, chili flakes, paprika and black sesame seeds. Add a splash of olive oil for binding and a few twists of black pepper, and then mash it all up in the bag. Pop that in the fridge for ten minutes and now up the onions. Once you have done that add them to a bowl with olive oil, two pinches of paprika and a pinch of sugar, mix together and ready them to be dropped into your wok or frying pan. Grab your lovely big meatball out of the fridge along with an oven tray and now make four flat patties, these will go into the oven for 25 minutes, flipping halfway through. Now it's to make your tomato salsa which is super easy. Roughly chop two tomatoes along with two spring onions and put them in freezer bag, splash of olive oil, pinch of chili flakes, black pepper and then give it a big jumble in the bag, done! Your kababs would have been in the oven for around 15 minutes now, give them a flip and add your onions to the wok which you'll cook for another ten minutes.. Advertisement And that's it, I served mine with a naan bread I brought from a local shop that has a naan oven who are ridiculously cheap and mint sour cream raita which is basically a case of mixing sour cream, a pinch of coriander powder and fresh mint off my little herb plant. The moral of the story is that food can be expensive and normal young people, especially those who live alone are genuinely struggling which makes the work of projects such as #LFHWBrum even more important. I think the spice bank is a fantastic idea and it's amazing what a pinch of this or that can do to any old meat you have in the freezer or the veg you have that is on the turn in the fridge. If you think a spice bank will go a long way in your community, reach out to the Don't Go Hungry team and I am sure they would be happy to give you guidance. The scenes in the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon of destitute Syrian refugees are sobering and heart wrenching. In freezing winter conditions, children with no shoes look forlorn and cry from the cold in their makeshift camp settlements. One in four people in Lebanon is a refugee, and in addition to the 1.5 million refugees in the country another 1.5 million Lebanese citizens are considered vulnerable. Many of these refugees are in debt, as residency renewal payments of US$200 per individual is needed to authorise stay- a sum many of these refugees can't pay for themselves, let alone for a family of six. In Jordan King Abdullah pleaded with the international community a couple of days ago, saying that Jordan was reaching boiling point over the thousands of refugees entering the country with almost 25% of the national budget spent on helping them. Advertisement Three major themes came out in our discussions and observations - lack of access to basic needs and services, the pressure on regional countries and NGOs to respond, and the absence of protection for civilians and aid workers. Disturbingly there has been a complete lack of respect for International Humanitarian Law (IHL) and targeting of civilians, hospitals, schools, and markets has become the norm. Refugees told us horrifying stories of how they were burnt out of their homes and witnessed the live execution of family members and children as young as three. Madaya is not the only area under siege with starving people. There are 19 areas under siege and millions of Syrians who have no reliable access to medical assistance or food. There has been a pathetic lack of international condemnation of the large scale abuse of IHL by all parties to the conflict. Advertisement The international community must focus on protecting civilians in times of war, and relieving the pressure on neighbouring countries who are facing a strain on their infrastructure due to the large influx of people fleeing conflict. Making an issue of the comparatively small number of refugees making their way to Europe is audacious in light of the numbers countries in the region are already hosting. Two million Syrian refuges reside in Turkey, and the Turkish government has provided nearly US$8 billion since the start of the crisis to accommodate refugees in the country in organised camps that have schools, playgrounds, food markets and livelihood services all made available to those living there. Despite this generosity however, nearly 80% of Syrian refugees in Turkey live in urban settings and struggle to make ends meet with many failing to access adequate health care services to cater to the many physical and mental traumas and wounds inflicted during the war. In addition to that, many charities that we spoke to said that despite the fact that more than half of Syria is now under the control of Daesh, many charities do not operate there, not due to lack of access but because of the fear of counter-terrorism legislation in the US and UK. NGOs are facing ever greater restrictions in terms of financial access, and local NGOs don't have the capacity to deal with complex compliance procedures required by many donors to access funds. Legislation addressing the financing of terror groups must also reflect the reality of working in conflict areas and ensure it is not undermining the humanitarian imperative to help those in need. The banking sector must do its part as well to ensure it is not part of the problem as it currently is. This has been an action point reiterated yesterday at the Syrian civil society conference that took place in London. The role of business in delivering solutions to society's current set of big and complex sustainability challenges has never before attracted so much attention. The spotlight on business's role began to intensify in September last year, when the largest-ever gathering of Heads of Government met at the UN General Assembly to ratify the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a 15-year global framework for sustainable development. Advertisement The unprecedented scope and ambition of the SDGs will require new levels of activity from the business community, and already many leading businesses are using the SDGs as a strategic framing device, to allow them to really focus on making a difference in their key impact areas. Particularly visible in the commentary around Davos was a strong hint of unease that big business in particular might not really understand [the need for transformation] The glare of the spotlight then became even brighter in Paris in December, where many businesses really did do their bit in gaining an historic climate deal, by signalling the intent for rapid - and much needed - decarbonisation of entire sectors. And then, last week, came Davos, where nearly 3,000 world leaders and investors gathered again, to discuss the rather obliquely titled 'Fourth Industrial Revolution', where tech and business join in perfect harmony to deliver solutions to societal, economic and environmental challenges, at scale. Advertisement So we can relax? Not really. Unleashing the power of business to act as agents of transformative change requires, well, transformation. And, particularly visible in the commentary around Davos was a strong hint of unease that big business in particular might not really understand this. Many commentators last week referred to 'Davos Man'. A shorthand for two things: a fairly dismal score on gender representation (82% of delegates were men), and a mind-set that believes that simply doing better business will save the day. There is a big difference between better and transformational. There were also questions about power. Is it right that the wealthiest 1% of the planet decide the fate of the other 99%? I'm oversimplifying of course, but look at representation from the global south (75% of delegates in 2015 were from Europe and the US). Even the Pope had to write a letter reminding the assembled decision makers not to forget the poor. Time then for business to demonstrate it can transform. Organisations don't only need to transform themselves, they can also take the lead in transforming whole systems. Here's what I think any business can do to move from misty eyed ambition, to actually getting on with being transformative; Advertisement Combine the best bits of power centralising (the ability to scale quickly, access to a gazillion gigabytes of data), and the best bits of power decentralising (the digital revolution giving us power to think and act on the issues we care most about), to define a strategy for dealing with your biggest social and environmental impacts which incorporates both these types of assets. Transformation requires understanding there isn't an 'either/or', there's an 'and.' Recognise that there isn't one single approach, but that multiple approaches are needed to create real change. All of our work at Forum for the Future on system innovation tells us that big change comes from a set of interventions; such as product innovation, creating consumer demand, reshaping markets, policy advocacy and more (refer to our Scaling Up Impact framework for more information) Be authentic and honest. About where you are now, and where you need to get to. Transformation towards sustainability is a journey, and no-one has a fully downloaded map Understand the limits of traditional philanthropy. Pouring money into treating the symptoms of the problems won't solve them. Investing capital to create self-sustaining enterprises and remove market barriers to scaling sustainable solutions, will. Create value for both yourself, and the wider system in which you operate. Trust me, the big environmental and social challenges we face will seep through the boundaries of your business, and have the potential to destroy value. But turning your gaze outside your business will allow you to understand these challenges, and create solutions, either on your own, or in collaboration with others, that will create value and better resilience. We live in an increasingly polarised world. Looking at your world, understanding the polarising pixels within it, and formulating a response is hard. But very doable. The SDGs, COP 21 and Davos all promise transformation; let's now just get on with it. Image credit: Kenny Louie / Flickr It's frequently said that on becoming a mother, life changes forever. However, does parenting mean everything must change for good? Defined by the oxford dictionary as 'The characteristics determining who or what a person or thing is:' Identity becomes compromised by the onset of 'Helicopter' parenting, a term first used by Dr Haim Ginott's in his 1969 book 'Parents and Teenagers', referring to "a style of parents who are over focused on their children". An expectant mother shared her concerns via babyandbump.momtastic.com stating 'I'm really afraid of losing my identity as I get swept into the "mom" role.' This got me thinking, is Motherhood in fact the most sneaky thief of a woman's identity? Advertisement Maternal Body Image Pregnancy undoubtably brings with it various physical changes and after giving birth it's common for women to want to engage in exercise and get fit. A Women's Health study published in 2009 stated that 'on average, mothers body dissatisfaction increased significantly from 0 to 9 months postpartum and the results showed a significant association between negative body image and poorer mental health, highlighting the importance of body confidence to women. As a health and fitness enthusiast I certainly felt the urge to focus on my fitness soon after giving birth and was at times criticised for this, however, with all the demands placed on new mothers, I found that taking a little time for myself, not only had physical benefits but allowed me to re-assess my psychological state and further develop a positive association with parenting. According to a survey taken by BabyCenter.com, 61% of new moms said they expected to be back down to their pre-pregnancy weight by their baby's first birthday and although I completely advocate regaining a fit and healthy lifestyle postpartum, perhaps the focus shouldn't be on how you look, but how the way you look is making you feel? The 2009 Women's Health investigation stresses the importance of 'finding ways to enhance a mother's body image and self esteem after delivery', and I think here is the crucial element. Exercise for mums shouldn't be about dropping a dress size but more about thinking and feeling confident in yourself, inside and out. Advertisement Forgoing Work For Family Many would argue that as the first few years of childhood see the fastest rate of brain development across the entire human life span, staying at home to nurture the development of your child is crucial. Figures released by the European Council in 2015 showed that British women are twice as likely as those in the rest of Europe to be stay-at-home mothers. However, the report sparked outrage as it recommended more must be done to encourage mothers back into employment, with campaigners arguing that the institution had "no right" to "lecture" mothers. Despite these result, a report released in 2013 by the Office for National Statistics showed that in the 20 years since records were first taken, the percentage of working mothers has increased dramatically. So with the number of working mothers on the rise but evidence from numerous institutions such as Princeton University confirming that 'early personality development show that the relationships a young child shares with caregivers are crucial', the question must be asked, should motherhood be synonymous with ending your career prospects? What is to become of stay-at-home mums once the children grow up, move out and lead lives of their own? Elizabeth Mcfarlane, describes how after she left her career as a TV directer she regarded herself as having her 'nose pressed up against the window of society, looking in' and often felt 'invisible, without a proper role to play'. This would suggest that the women who opt to remain out of the workplace postpartum are confining themselves to a future where the only option left is to become one of the aforementioned helicopter parents. However in a generation where bloggers, small businesses and working from home has seen a dramatic rise, perhaps technology is offering women an outlet for their individuality, meaning the era of the traditional 'stay at home mum' could fading for good? A Mothers Freedom I was reminded regularly during pregnancy of all the things I would never do again. Supposedly, I would never sleep again, never wear a bikini, drink, travel or save money and whilst some of these points may hold an element of truth, no-one informed me of how incredibly liberating motherhood can also be. I wasn't aware that by teaching a child how to sit, stand, walk, talk and explore I would also learn so much more about myself. Actress Idina Menzel, is quoted as saying 'Motherhood has helped me to stop overanalyzing things. It's been liberating because I used to be somewhat neurotic.' Similarly, professor Toni Morrison is quoted as saying about motherhood 'it was the most liberating thing that ever happened to me...Somehow all of the baggage that I had accumulated as a person about what was valuable just fell away.' The VW emissions scandal shows that the Department for Transport is just as feckless as HMRC in standing up to corporate interests Following last year's shock revelations that Volkswagen was using defeat device software to switch engines to a cleaner mode when they were being tested, authorities in the US, Germany and South Korea started legal proceedings against Volkswagen that could cost the company billions of pounds in fines. But as these governments step in to help consumers secure compensation, the UK government has been sat on its hands. Following a week dominated by 'sweetheart' tax deals with tech companies like Google, the Department for Transport has proven to be as feckless as HMRC when it comes to standing up against corporate interests. Advertisement Quite simply, the UK government has allowed VW to wriggle around the rules. Late last year, UK government officials said if a motor manufacturer has been shown to deploy defeat devices then that is illegal. Yet Secretary of State for Transport, Patrick McLoughlin has not so far used his powers to impose fines on VW, and there is no indication that investigations against VW by the Competition and Markets Authority or Serious Fraud Office will be opened. The longer government inaction continues, the more people will query bodies like the Vehicle Certification Agency: an Executive Agency of the Department for Transport that made over 80million from the auto industry for type approval in the last decade, including the 13million in 2014/15 alone. It's not actually in the VCA's interests to catch out the car-makers: their business model is to attract manufacturers to test their cars with them and generate as much income as possible, meaning that manufacturers are known to shop around Europe for the best deal possible - It's a clear conflict of interest. This financial interest has allowed the manufacturers leverage over a government agency that is supposed to protect the public interest. This same agency was unable to detect one the biggest scandals that the car industry has ever seen, and has gone on to affect over one million consumers in the UK alone - and the government's lack of appetite to take on a major corporation means that VW will walk away with no more than a red face. Advertisement And what of Volkswagen's part in this scandal? Paul Willis, VW's UK managing director, first told the Commons' Transport Select Committee he was sorry for VW's chicanery and he would do everything he could to regain the trust of consumers. VW is now challenging the definition of a defeat device on this side of the Atlantic in order to avoid any liability on the company's part. Meaning that US consumers will get $1000 worth of compensation and European consumers will get nothing. Well what a difference a few weeks makes. Before Christmas, Mr Willis appeared before my committee - having been briefed by his press team - giving us the mea culpa. Fast forward to February and contrition has been replaced by legalistic evasion. As I said in front of the Transport Select Committee last week, they are reduced to dancing on the head of legal jargon as to whether or not it was a defeat device, or whether it does or does not break European laws - and our government has done nothing but call them naughty. Volkswagen have perverted environmental regulations, they have treated European customers with disdain, and treated regulation as a charade. The slap on the wrist they've received from the government is risible. The Transport Secretary now needs to up his game. New EU proposals to overhaul regulations are a welcome development, but they need to be beefed up. Astonishingly, they have not even altered the legal definition of a defeat device to make it more robust. One of the things that impelled me to launch a makeup business in 2013 with products specifically formulated for older faces was the way in which the beauty industry utterly ignored me as a 65-year-old woman. Look Fabulous Forever has been stunningly successful because we dare to do things differently from most other beauty brands. Since the early Sixties when wonderful designers like Mary Quant, Barbara Hulanicki, and Ossie Clarke burst onto the fashion scene, both the fashion and beauty industries have been obsessed with youthful faces and bodies. Before that time, clothes and makeup were for grown ups and even Vogue magazine which is (nowadays) notoriously ageist, was happy to feature Mrs Exeter, a woman in her later years who was in their description of her in 1949, "Approaching 60, Mrs Exeter does not look a day younger, a fact she accepts with perfect good humour and reasonableness." What a contrast with the last 'Ageless' Vogue cover from 2015 featuring an air brushed 48 year old Stella Tennant looking like a moody teenager! Advertisement I am sure that some will point to the use of 80-year-old writer Joan Didion to sell sunglasses for Celine, or those funny little old ladies in the Dolce & Gabbana ads clutching their sparkly handbags or the images of Joni Mitchell in the Yves St Laurent as indications that there is a real shift towards increasing diversity. Really? Are these ads designed to be inclusive in order to attract my generation to buy their clothes or (call me cynical if you wish) to offer an amusing and even shocking contrast between the (beautiful and trendy) clothes and the old people wearing them? And what about Charlotte Rampling in the Nars advertisements and Dame Helen Mirren in those L'Oreal ads for skin care? Surely they show that large cosmetic companies are waking up to the power of the grey pound and the fact that women over 60 still want to wear gorgeous makeup and can well afford to? Actually no, I don't think these ads show that at all. Charlotte Rampling is a very beautiful 69-year-old with trademark hooded eyes. The images of her in the Nars advertisements have been so digitally altered that she is barely recognisable. If I didn't know they were of Rampling, I would assume they were of a strikingly attractive woman aged around 45. L'Oreal's portrayal of Mirren also bothers me as someone of a similar age. She's lit to look blonde despite the fact that her hair is actually white and they have dressed her in one ad in a black leather jacket and filmed her on a bridge walking past a handsome young guy. Mirren looks into the camera and raises an eyebrow as if to say 'I know I'm still hot - so I'm sure he fancies me.' Is that really why most 70-year-olds do their hair and makeup? To appeal to much younger men and to be thought of as sexy? Again, I don't think so. The fashion and beauty industries inhabit a world where images are necessarily glamorous and above all youthful and where they are not, those images are either digitally altered or used to shock and provoke. But, I would suggest, there is another way. At Look Fabulous Forever we have no desire to appeal to woman under 50. We are not obsessed with looking youthful and alluring to the opposite sex. So our images are honest and truthful depictions of women of a certain age looking like the bright, vital and fabulous people that they are. Advertisement Tricia Cusden is the founder of Look Fabulous Forever This February, HuffPost UK Style is running a month-long focus on our Fashion For All campaign, which aims to highlight moments of colour, size, gender and age diversity and disability inclusivity in the fashion and beauty world. Yui Mok / PA via AP UK police say they will still arrest Wikileaks founder Julian Assange despite a United Nations Panel ruling in his favour. A UN group has ruled that Assange's self-imposed three-and-a-half-year stint inside the Ecuadorian embassy is equal to being "arbitrarily detained" by the UK and Sweden. Advertisement "The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention considers that the various forms of deprivation of liberty to which Julian Assange has been subjected constitute a form of arbitrary detention," said Seong-Phil Hong, the head of the panel. "The Working Group maintains that the arbitrary detention of Mr. Assange should be brought to an end, that his physical integrity and freedom of movement be respected, and that he should be entitled to an enforceable right to compensation." .@Wikileaks founder Julian #Assange is being arbitrarily detained by Sweden & the UK - UN #humanrights panel finds https://t.co/Mk9z7RcqdD UN Human Rights (@UNHumanRights) February 5, 2016 "Their working group has made the judgment that Assange has been arbitrarily detained in contravention of international commitments," a spokeswoman for the Swedish ministry said. Advertisement Assange had previously promised to give himself up to British police had the UN ruled against him. Assange has been holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since August 2012, after being granted asylum as he fought extradition to Sweden to face accusations of sexual assault. Assange has voraciously denied the allegations, insinuating the allegations were politically motivated as retribution for his role in publishing troves of classified documents on the Wikileaks website regarding the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, U.S. government diplomatic cables and footage of helicopter strikes. Assange claimed he was under threat of being extradited to the U.S., where he may face serious charges over publishing classified information. After being pursued and arrested by police in relation to the Swedish assault allegations, Assange was granted asylum by Ecuador in 2012. He has remained in the embassy ever since. Assange had lodged a case with the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in 2014, claiming his treatment -- including being placed under house arrest and being forced into taking refuge inside the embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden, despite not having charges levelled against him -- constituted arbitrary detention. "Mr. Assange has an inalienable right to security, and to be free from the risk of persecution, inhumane treatment, and physical harm; Ecuador granted Mr. Assange political asylum in August 2012, recognizing that he would face those well-founded risks if he were extradited to the United States," his lawyers wrote in their application to the court. "The only protection he has from that risk at the time being is to stay in the confines of the Embassy; the only way for Mr. Assange to enjoy his right to asylum is to be in detention. This is not a legally acceptable choice." Advertisement On Thursday, Assange published a statement to the Wikileaks Twitter account saying if the decision went against him, that he would surrender to police. Assange: I will accept arrest by British police on Friday if UN rules against me. More info: https://t.co/Mb6gXlz7QSpic.twitter.com/mffVsqKj5w WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) February 4, 2016 Assange has said that if the decision is favourable towards him -- which it is -- he expected to be released immediately and compensated for his time in detention. Anadolu Agency via Getty Images ALEPPO, SYRIA - JANUARY 31: Turkmen children carry wait for food distribution at al-Ra'ee camp, southern Aleppo in Syria on January 31, 2016. Turkmen who fled their homes following attacks by Syrian and Russian forces, live under harsh conditions at al-Ra'ee camp. (Photo by Mustafa Sultan/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images) The federal government has announced it will provide a further $25 million in funding towards aid in Syria and Iraq as the refugee crisis continues to take a toll on the region. The funding will be drawn out of Australia's emergency relief fund, which is usually provided to disaster-stricken areas in the Indo-Pacific region. Advertisement Foreign Minister Julie Bishop announced the funding at the Syria Donors Conference in London on Thursday. It brings Australia's total assistance to Iraq and Syria to $258 million since 2011. On Tuesday, Bishop met with a small group of foreign ministers, including US Secretary of State John Kerry, to discuss the humanitarian crisis in Syria and how they can combat the Islamic State. John Kerry likened the scenes in Syria to the aftermath of World War II, and said the situation in Syria was getting worse, not better. In a media release on Thursday Minister Bishop said the latest additional aid funding from Australia "will support civilians affected by the worlds worst humanitarian crisis." Advertisement "In Syria, 13.5 million people require urgent humanitarian assistance. A further 4.6 million Syrians are refugees in neighbouring countries. An estimated 10 million people in Iraq also require urgent humanitarian support this year." The federal government will also deploy ten Australian Civilian Corps specialists to help protect Syrian refugees in Lebanon and Jordan, working with UN and NGO partners who provide water, camps and education to those in need. Of the $25 million in new funds, $20 million will go to Syrian aid partners and other aid groups working in the region including UNICEF, WFP, UNHCR and Australian NGOs. Iraq will receive the remaining $5 million, including $2 million provided to the United Nations Development Programme. Advertisement Southern Stock via Getty Images City apartments at night on ocean beach The great Aussie dream used to be about the family home, the picket fence, the quarter-acre block. But not any more, with population growth, higher property prices and an increased desire for inner-city lifestyle driving a surge in families trading traditional suburban life for high density living. BIS Shrapnel research, released Thursday, shows a record 19,450 apartment dwellings were commenced in Sydney in 2014/15, up from 8,300 in 2010/11. It's a similar story across other capital cities like Melbourne and Brisbane where apartment developments have also surged. Advertisement Construction activity has been so strong the Reserve Bank even issued a warning late last year about the wave of development, which has partly been attributed to foreign buyers. McCrinde Research social demographer Mark McCrindle concedes many foreign buyers are getting into the market, but said the lift in demand was also due to more Australian singles, couples and families opting for apartments. A record number of apartments were commenced last year in Sydney. Australia's booming population was underpinning the shift, he said, by pushing up demand for property of which apartments were an affordable type. Advertisement "In less than 2 weeks we hit the 24 million mark and that's an increase of a million people in just around three years, so it's pretty significant growth," he told The Huffington Post Australia. "Of course that sort of growth ends up in the capital cities with Sydney leading the charge ... we've got a unique situation in Australia where our capital cities in almost every state and territory hold the bulk of that state or territory's population. "That simply means that because the sprawl can only go so far we tend to shift from horizontal communities to the vertical ones and that's what we're seeing in almost all capitals at the moment." Australians were also getting more comfortable with the idea of living in a unit, he said, describing this shift in mindset as a "massive attitudinal change". "(An apartment) used to be for people who couldn't maybe afford that traditional Aussie dream, the detached house, or older people downsizing or young people renting but that's not the case now," he said. Advertisement Australia's population boom is helping to drive apartment growth. "They're choosing it for lifestyle reasons .. the unit developments now largely are taking place where there are built environments around cafe culture and close to art, restaurants and walkable communities." He said another attraction in many new developments was that residents "don't need to rely on a car and there's good access to public transport". "That does place housing in apartment living in a different category to a detached house in the suburbs." According to 2015 McCrindle research, Sydneysiders living in high density housing now represent 28 percent of the city's population while 13 percent live in medium density housing. Advertisement Seventy percent of Sydney residents either have lived, or currently live, in a unit and 50 percent of those who have never lived in an apartment would consider it, the research found. He said the shift was also being seen among families with children, who were taking advantage of unit developments designed to cater to kids. One high-profile example, he said, was developer Meriton which was now putting childcare centres into their new developments. More families with kids are opting for apartment living. BIS Shrapnel senior manager of residential property, Angie Zigomanis, said generational differences were also contributing to demand for flats, with many Gen-Y buyers opting to purchase apartments instead of houses. Advertisement He said house prices were so high in some capital cities that many of those born in the early 1980s to the early 2000s were "trading off" between property size, location, amenity and price. "They're finding that the apartment market is something that meets the compromise on size and they get the location and price that they want," Zigomanis told HuffPost Australia. However, he warned some households, especially those with kids, could get locked out of the market for units because developers were focused on courting investors who preferred one-bedroom units. "There's probably a a risk of a mismatch coming through at some point where building stock is more geared to investors rather than owner occupiers," he said. "You need a model where owner occupiers can come in and are more willing to buy off the plan so that demand can be met." Advertisement Forty-one percent of three-bedroom apartments in buildings of more than four storeys are occupied by families with kids, according to BIS Shrapnel. Families without children account for 29 percent, 18 percent are lone person households and 13 percent are share houses. Australia's enthusiasm for apartments is unlikely to slow in the short term. By contrast, in one-bedroom units singles account for 62 percent of occupiers, while 28 percent are couples without kids, 6 percent are families with children and just 4 percent are classed as a group household. Commsec chief economist Craig James said it was likely the nation's apartment boom would continue for some time. "Back in the old days you used to have developers and speculators putting up apartment blocks with the hope of selling them. These days banks require significant forward sales before they'll lend out the money so there's less chance of over supply," he told HuffPost Australia. Advertisement "What we are seeing is a strong amount of building because the population is growing above the decade average and we've been underbuilding in past years. Fairfax On 3 February 2016 the High Court of Australia dismissed an application which challenged the constitutional underpinnings of Australia's offshore detention regime. Offshore detention is a practice introduced by the Howard government in 2001 in response to the Tampa episode. The Norwegian cargo ship MV Tampa had rescued 438 people (mostly Afghan Hazaras) after their boat sank. It is startling to remember that, in the year to August 2001, the number of boat people who arrived in Australia was just over 4000. It is sobering to recall that judgment in the Tampa litigation was handed down at 2.15 in the afternoon (Melbourne time) on September 11, 2001. The next morning we read about, and saw footage of, the attack on America. Advertisement 11 September 2001 changed Australian asylum seeker policy profoundly. John Howard's use of the Tampa episode to make an issue about asylum seekers was carefully calculated: it was designed as an appeal to members of the right-wing of the Liberal Party who had drifted across to Pauline Hanson's One Nation party. But after the attack on America, there were no longer any terrorists, just "Muslim terrorists", no longer boat people, just "Muslim boat people". After the attack on America, John Howard started calling boat people "illegals". It's false, but the tag has stuck for the past 14 years. When Scott Morrison was Immigration Minister, he not only ramped up the use of "illegal" to refer to boat people, he ordered officers of the Department to refer to them as "illegal maritime arrivals" and he renamed the Department "Immigration and Border Protection". The obvious political purpose was to make it seem alright to mistreat boat people. After all, we punish criminals, and we need to be protected from them. Morrison's cynical political stunt was dishonest but effective. It is not the first time (and will certainly not be the last time) that plain dishonesty has been used by politicians to gain an advantage. After a while, though, politicians began to notice that the mistreatment of refugee children was not playing well. After all, it is difficult to see a young child behind razor wire and think of her as a criminal from whom we need to be protected. So the next piece of political cynicism was called into play. Politicians began to wring their hands in anguish at the idea that some boat people drown in their attempt to reach safety. Perhaps those politicians had not been paying attention: it has been widely known for decades that refugees perish in their attempts to escape persecution. Advertisement But Australia's politicians managed to use this fact to reach new levels of foolishness. The "Stop the boats" mantra was regularly accompanied by a stated concern that they did not want to see refugees drown. Offshore processing came to be seen as an expression of our deep humanitarian concern that refugees should not be exposed to the perils of the sea. The harsher the treatment in detention, the less likely it was that people would run the risk of drowning. In short, the message became: "We are so worried about you drowning, that we will punish you if you don't drown". To have its desired deterrent effect, offshore detention has to be harsh. Logically, the prospect of being sent to Nauru or Manus has to be seen as worse than the prospect of being persecuted at home, or the risk of dying in an attempt to find safety somewhere else. Prime Minister Turnbull seemed to welcome the High Court's decision, as a result of which 257 people will be returned to Nauru. Those people include a number of children, and babies who were born in Australia to refugee parents. Turnbull said that the High Court's decision upheld the existing framework as "legally and constitutionally valid". He said that the framework had kept Australia's border secure and prevented drownings at sea, and that "The people smugglers will not prevail over our sovereignty." All noble-sounding stuff, but he ducked the greatest moral challenge of his political life. A number of doctors have said plainly that detention on Nauru constituted child abuse. No-one familiar with the basics of the system could disagree. Turnbull had a choice: he could deliberately, knowingly send children to a situation amounting to child abuse, or he could begin to recast Australia's shameful refugee detention system. The problem facing all LNP politicians, and most Labor politicians as well, is this: for 14 years, both major parties have pursued a hard line on boat people. Their policies have been supported by the great lie, that we are being "protected" from "illegals". LNP politicians have repeated the "illegals" lie too often to keep count. Labor politicians have been too timid to stand up and contradict the lie. As a result, Australia's international reputation has been dragged down. Advertisement By David Patterson Professor of Computer Science University of California, Berkeley This ancient assassin, first identified by a pharaoh's physician, has been killing people for more than 4,600 years. As scientists found therapies for other lethal diseases--such as measles, influenza, and heart disease--cancer moved up this deadly list and will soon be #1; 40% of Americans will face cancer during their lifetimes, with half dying from it. Most of us ignore cancer until someone close is diagnosed, but instead society could zero in on this killer by recording massive data to discover better treatments before a loved one is in its crosshairs. Cancer is unlimited cell growth caused by problems in DNA. Some people are born with precarious DNA, and others acquire it later. When a cell divides, sometimes it miscopies a small amount of its DNA, and these errors can overwhelm a cell's defenses to cause cancer. Thus, you can get it without exposure to carcinogens. Cigarettes, radiation, asbestos, and so on simply increase the copy error rate. Speaking figuratively, every time a cell reproduces, we roll the dice on cancer, with such mutagens loading the dice to raise cancer's chances. Most cancer studies today use partial genomic information and have fewer than 1,000 patients. One wonders whether their conclusions would still hold if they used complete genomes and increased the number of patients by factors of 10-100. Advertisement Given cancer's gravity and nature, shouldn't scientists be able to decode full genomes inexpensively to fight this dreaded disease in a better informed way? Now they can! The plot below shows the dropping cost of sequencing a genome since 2001. Moore's Law, which drives the information technology revolution, improved 100-fold in 15 years, yet the wet lab costs to identify a genome have dropped 100,000-fold to $1,000 per genome, which is considered the tipping point of affordability for many. This graph should be a call to arms for computer scientists, as the war on cancer could require Big Data. If the 1.7 million Americans who will get cancer in 2016 were to have their healthy and tumor cells sequenced, it would yield one exabyte (1018) of raw data. The UC Berkeley AMPLab --collaborating with Microsoft Research and UC Santa Cruz--joined the battle in 2011, which we launched with a New York Times essay. We have been championing cloud computing and open-source software development ever since, which is natural inside computer science but counterintuitive elsewhere. The good news is that our collaboration developed software that has already helped save a life. A teenager went to medical specialists repeatedly and was eventually hospitalized for five weeks without a successful diagnosis. He was placed in a medically induced coma after developing brain seizures. In desperation, the doctors sent a spinal fluid sample to University of California, San Francisco for genetic sequencing and analysis. Our program first filtered out the human portion of the DNA data, which was 99.98% of the original 3 million pieces of data, and then sequenced the remaining pathogen. In just two days total, UCSF identified a rare infectious bacterium. After treating the boy with antibiotics, he awoke and was discharged. Although our software is only part of this process, previously doctors had to guess the causative agent before testing for a contagious disease. Other hospitals and the Centers for Disease Control now use this procedure. Advertisement The bad news is that genetic repositories are still a factor of 10-100 short of having enough cancer patients to draw statistically significant results. The reason to include so many patients is that cancer tumors are notoriously varied; most are unique, so it takes numerous samples to make real progress. Here are obstacles to collecting that valuable exabyte, despite the : Who would pay? Like the chicken-versus-the-egg debate, we don't yet have conclusive data that show how genetic information leads to effective therapies for most cancers. Thus, despite lower costs, insurance companies won't pay for sequencing. Although many believe it would yield bountiful insights, we can't prove it. If funding was found, would the hospitals share data? Researchers write grants to pay for the sequencing and consider the data private at least until they publish; one editorial even labels outsiders who wish to study such data "research parasites." Hospitals may also consider genetic data a proprietary advantage, as it might attract patients and researchers. If hospitals were willing, would they be allowed to share data? While a cancer repository will likely lead to breakthroughs, medical ethicists worry more about patient privacy. Consequently, cancer studies regularly restrict data access to the official investigators of the research grant. As Francis Collins, Director of the National Institute of Health, said at the Davos meeting about accelerating progress on cancer: "We need that big data to be accessible. It's not enough to say that we are in a big data era for cancer. We also need to be in a big data access era." To overcome such issues, the Global Alliance for Genomics and Health was founded in 2013 "to enable the responsible, voluntary, and secure sharing of genomic and clinical data." While 375 organizations have joined, and its working groups are active, progress has been slow. Perhaps the main impact thus far is that the community now largely believes that such data will eventually be shared. Advertisement To prepare for that revolutionary leap, we need to draft software experts immediately who can leverage advances in cloud computing and machine learning while protecting patient privacy to start building open-source tools that will enable scientists to make major inroads on cancer. The African American Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s failed more than it succeeded. Yet, in the popular history of the Civil Rights Movement, we never talk about its failures. Popular Civil Rights history makes the movement into a fairytale: Once upon a time there was racism; then Martin Luther King Jr. marched into town; he slayed the evil racism; and we all lived happily ever after. The End. Boiled down to its essentials, nearly every Civil Rights movie follows this basic script. It would be nice if this history were true, but just about all of it is false. Consider the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision. We like to say that this decision desegregated America's schools. But today in my city, Washington D.C., which is more than a third white, there isn't a white child in any of the schools in my neighborhood. For a while there was some progress toward desegregation, but that progress was reversed by a renewed commitment to segregated schooling. When we teach the history of the Brown decision, we need to say that it was the decision that failed to desegregate America's schools. Advertisement One way our popular Civil Rights history distorts the movement is by ignoring that it was a movement for economic justice. We have forgotten that the march where Martin Luther King Jr. gave his "I Have a Dream" speech was a march for "Jobs and Freedom." Among the demands of the march was for the government to provide "Jobs for All" and to require that employers pay a living wage. King was killed in Memphis while supporting black sanitation workers who were on strike for the recognition of their union, safe working conditions, and a decent wage. Today, African Americans continue to suffer from the highest rate of joblessness and low wages. We have not overcome the core economic challenges targeted by the Civil Rights movement. Protesting against police brutality at the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom Source: Marion S. Trikosko [photographer], U.S. News & World Report Magazine Photograph Collection, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, D.C. 20540. In the public domain. Occasionally, I hear people speak as if the Civil Rights concern about police brutality began with the killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. But this is not correct. It did not begin with the beating of Rodney King in Los Angeles either. Police brutality also was a key concern for the civil rights activists of the 1950s and 1960s. This is another area where the activists did not succeed in changing American society. There are three important reasons for acknowledging the failures of the Civil Rights movement. First, I think we are disrespectful to the activists who struggled and sacrificed for the movement when we misrepresent what they were fighting for. How is it an honor to Martin Luther King Jr. when we ignore the fact that he was deeply concerned about economic justice? How is it a tribute to the movement that we have erased its connections to the labor struggle? Advertisement The second reason we need to acknowledge the movement's failures is to recognize that there is much Civil Rights work still to be done. We can honor King more on Martin Luther King Day by working on the issues he fought for but did not complete rather than by doing some random community service. We may have had greater success in the struggle for a higher minimum wage and in the struggle against police brutality if we had continually recognized these issues as the unfinished business of the Civil Rights movement. The third reason is that we need to make clear to all Americans that racism did not end in the 1960s. For many years, until recently, a majority of whites believed that the country had done enough for blacks to achieve equality with whites. When we whitewash the Civil Rights movement and pretend that it conquered racism, it is easy for people to come to this conclusion. If we tell an accurate Civil Rights history where America's schools remain separate and unequal, where the struggle for jobs and decent wages fail, and where there is no progress in reducing police brutality, it becomes harder to believe the fiction that King conquered racism. It becomes clear that America needs many more changes before there is equal opportunity for all. Western Wall in Jerusalem , Israel Israel's historical experiences, coupled with decades of violent confrontations with Arab states and the Palestinians, have created a major psychological barrier embedded in the psyche of every Israeli, placing Israel's legitimate national security concerns at the center of its domestic and foreign policy. That said, no military might or even the expropriation of the entire West Bank will guarantee Israel's security, short of a sustainable Israeli-Palestinian peace. The Netanyahu government's linking of national security to the so-called "defensive borders" is disingenuous and misleading, designed to provide a cover for his and his cabinet's continued intoxication with seizing Palestinian territories. Advertisement In the age of rockets and precision missile technology, territorial depth can no longer guarantee Israel's security, as Hamas has been able to rain thousands of rockets on Israel, some of which have reached Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. The current 'knife Intifada' also reveals the absurdity of the argument that borders, any border, can provide air tight security. It is the occupation and the continuing expansion of the settlements that are behind these violent outbursts, and as long as the occupation persists, Israel will not know a day of rest. In December 2012, Gabi Ashkenazi, the former Chief of Staff of the Israeli army, reconfirmed the sentiments of many of his colleagues when he said: "Israel must recognize the limits of its power and cooperate with forces that support Israeli interests." This was aptly expressed by another top Israeli military commander, Shaul Arieli, who said, "We believe that peace will provide better security than anything else." Otherwise, all security measures, however coercive, elaborate, and sophisticated, cannot guarantee Israel's national security. Advertisement As a master tactician who uses fear to rally public support, Netanyahu is quick to point to the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza to suggest that the Palestinians cannot be trusted, as Hamas has been using the strip ever since as a launching pad for rockets, instead of building the foundation of their state. Sadly, many Israelis bought into this dishonest argument, even though it may appear to be valid on the surface. Only when one carefully examines how the withdrawal from Gaza was conducted would one understand the absurdity of this argument. The withdrawal from Gaza in 2005 was precipitous and unilateral. Then-Prime Minister Sharon knew that Hamas was by far more powerful than the security forces of the Palestinian Authority, and poised to take over. Sharon's main objective, however, was to rid Israel of the economic and security burdens that Gaza posed, and if his actions would divide the Palestinians, so much the better. Netanyahu knows only too well that any peace agreement must be based on certain provisions, mechanisms, logistics, and a timeline designed to ensure compliance based on reciprocity while nurturing trust in the process. This would allow for mutual mitigation of biases and selective perceptions over each other's intentions as they implement all the provisions of the agreement. The pullout from much of the West Bank must therefore entail a number of specific unilateral, bilateral, and multi-lateral measures that can, in contrast to the Gaza withdrawal, sustain and strengthen peace. Had Sharon put such measures in place, the result would have been entirely different today. These measures include: Advertisement Phased Withdrawal and Reciprocity To prevent a repeat of Gaza, the pullout from the West Bank must be implemented in phases over a period of five to eight years with an established timeframe between each phase based on specific reciprocal and confidence-building measures. During this period, both sides must develop people-to-people relations, including economic, cultural, and scientific ties, which can mitigate the psychological security hang-ups between the two sides. Maintaining Full Security Cooperation By virtue of the Israelis' and the Palestinians' past experiences, full security cooperation between the two sides remains a prerequisite. Progress made between Israel and the PA demonstrates that effective security cooperation is possible, even in an atmosphere of tension. The success of this cooperation was made possible by the PA's commitment to peace as well as Israel's willingness to fully collaborate with the PA's internal security and improve intelligence cooperation. A Demilitarized Palestinian State The newly-established Palestinian state should be demilitarized, with its security assured by the US. Regardless of their military prowess, the Palestinians will never be in a position to challenge Israel militarily, nor will they be threatened as long as they are at peace with their neighbors. Instead of wasting hundreds of millions of dollars on military hardware, future Palestinian governments should invest in economic development, education, health care, and infrastructure, while maintaining strong economic relations with Israel from which both sides can greatly benefit. Advertisement Preserving Credible Deterrence Israel will maintain a credible military deterrence that will dissuade current and future enemies from threatening it; if they do so, it will be at their own peril. For Israelis, "Never Again" is not just a slogan; they are bent, and rightly so, on doing whatever necessary to prevent history from repeating itself. In this regard, Israel and the United States can ensure that no single state or combination of states is able to overwhelm Israel militarily by maintaining a qualitative military edge. Reviving the Arab Peace Initiative In the context of Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations, Israel should accept the principles of the Arab Peace Initiative (API), which was proposed in 2002, and agree to convene with representatives of the Arab League to discuss its merits. This would open the door for negotiating a comprehensive Arab-Israeli peace agreement, beginning normal relations with the Arab states and by extension with all Muslim states. As the former head of the Mossad, Meir Dagan, stated in June 2011, "We must adopt the Saudi Initiative, we have no other way, and not because the Palestinians are my top priority but because I am concerned about Israel's wellbeing and I want to do what I can to ensure Israel's existence." An International Peacekeeping Force Israel's demand to keep residual forces along the Jordan River to prevent the smuggling of weapons and the infiltration of terrorists from the Jordan Valley is valid. However, such a force cannot be made of Israelis alone in order to prevent it from being seen as a continuation of occupation, only in a different form. Instead, an international peacekeeping force (with Israeli and Palestinian participation) will have to be stationed there for a mutually agreed-upon period of time. Advertisement The force should be assembled from specific countries that have a vested interest in maintaining peace, including Jordan, Egypt, and Saudi Arabia, and EU nations like Britain, France, and Germany, operating under the command of the United States. A Regional Security Umbrella Once a peace agreement is achieved and all security measures are in place, the United States could offer a security umbrella along the lines of what former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton proposed in June 2009, under which all nations in the region who are at peace with Israel (and with each other) could belong, to deter outside adversaries. Those who claim that this would be the wrong time for Israel to make such a move, given the Middle East's sweeping turmoil, are wrong. This is precisely the right time--Israel does not need a fire in its backyard or a fifth column at a time when it must focus on threats from Iran and ISIS, as well as the potential disintegration of Syria. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart famously wrote that he could not define pornography, "But I know it when I see it." A Brooklyn Criminal Court Judge recently decided that she could define a lewd act when he saw it and he knew it from a defendant's exposed penis. In June 2015, a New York City police officer allegedly observed Clarence Wade on a Brooklyn street corner with four others, blocking the sidewalk and yelling loudly a little past midnight during a weekday. The police officer allegedly repeatedly told Mr. Wade to quiet down and move on. Mr. Wade's alleged response was to approach the police officer aggressively, pull down his pants and expose his penis demanding that the police officer, well, perform oral sex--though the request was perhaps less artfully stated. Surprise! Mr. Wade was arrested and charged with Public Lewdness and Exposure of a Person in addition to Resisting Arrest and Disorderly Conduct. Recently, Mr. Wade's defense attorney filed a motion to dismiss the Public Lewdness charge because the complaint "fail[ed] to show that the defendant exposed his penis in a lewd manner or committed any lewd acts." The defense motion argued that "it is unclear whether the defendant exposed his genitalia, and then that no allegation of an overtly sexual lewd act has been presented." Advertisement The defense rested its argument in part on an appeal following the conviction of nude dancers in New York in 1978. The dancers had been convicted of Obscenity in the Second Degree. In People v. Ventrice, the court reversed the conviction reasoning "Since lewdness cannot be presumed from the mere fact of nudity, there must be a showing of lewd conduct from which the intention to act in a lewd manner can be drawn." The court noted that topless dancing had recently gained some First Amendment protection--this was still the late 70s--and that mere exposure of genitals without a lewd act was a form of free expression. Without addressing lewdness in the context of nude dancing, in Mr. Wade's case Judge Joy F. Campanelli ruled in People v. Wade that, yes, waving one's penis at a police officer on a public street combined with a less than inviting invitation to perform oral sex may indeed be lewd. In refusing to dismiss the charges, the Judge Campanelli applied a test for lewdness that is both objective, subjective and paradoxical. First, the decision noted that the state legislature has not defined what lewd means. Relying on a legal dictionary, the Court defined the term as "obscene or indecent; tending to moral impurity or wantonness." Next, the Judge applied an objective test: Could the "exposure or emphasis on private or intimate parts of his body offend the citizens' public sensibilities?" Finally, the subjective test: Are the acts "lewd as measured by the average citizen applying contemporary community standards?" The Judge held that the answer to both questions were yes. Whether a start-up or an established company, all businesses struggle with the best ways to create a productive and fulfilling environment for their employees. How does a business instill the right culture that gets results? FareHarbor, which provides software that simplifies online bookings for U.S. and international tour and activity companies, has done just that. In fact, Entrepreneur magazine ranked it #4 for mid-sized company culture, basing its award on the following criteria: collaboration, innovation, mission and value alignment, agility, communication, support, wellness, work environment, responsibility and performance focus. Anna Shen spoke to FareHarbor CEO Lawrence Hester about what it took to build a culture with loyal and happy employees, in a company that was just launched three years ago. A testament to success over the past few years: the business has grown from one account to 1,500, and now has 90 full-time employees, spanning four offices around the country. The company is headquartered in Honolulu. Advertisement Q. What exactly is the culture of FareHarbor? A. Our motto is DWIFT, which stands for "Do Whatever It F-----G Takes." From the beginning, that was the mindset. We began with the idea that we could do everything, which meant, we fired up the coffee, we did the invoicing, we had 24/7 support and would drop anything to help our clients out. We would always go above and beyond to help our clients and that has always been the mentality and we are holding on to that today. We emphasize that everyone can do everything around here, even taking out the trash. This shows that it doesn't matter what your title is. Even now, as we are getting fairly big, we are still willing to take out the garbage. It is important to show that on a Saturday night that if we need something to get done, for example, if a client is launching our product, all the management team is out there helping. Nobody says, "I'm not going to help because I am the head of this team." We are all expected to be there. Q. How are you keeping that culture alive as you grow? A. We treat new employees like family. But the biggest thing we do is share stories among employees. We do a lot of storytelling about how it was when it was just the beginning, with five of us. We tell them that we would "fake it till you make it." Also, when you see us, we are no frills, and we always put the client first. We've held on to the fact that it is a top-down effort. For example, when we had a large client going live (with the software), it was midnight on the east coast when we started. Every single employee was there typing in reservations, no matter what level they were in the company. Nobody was excluded. Nobody is too good to help, no matter how large or small, no matter what level they are in the company. Nobody has grown too big for their britches. Advertisement Q. When you built your company, did you look to others as role models? I've seen books on culture and how to create it, but I never made it past the first chapter. Our process has been organic. None of us have ever been in that situation, managing 90 people. We are still learning and that makes it exciting. Q. What are a few things you have done to help create a culture that employees love? A. Anyone can propose an idea, and in fact, next month, we are pairing people in different positions and asking them to give suggestions how they can better work together. This idea was proposed by someone who is a 22-year-old who has only been at the company for a few months. Everybody is approachable in the company. As for tools, we use HipChat not Slack. This tool helps make everyone more approachable and everybody is interacting with people all at one time. Everyone in the same lounge; it is an open playing field. Q. What will happen as the company grows? WASHINGTON, DC (Herald de Paris) -- According to the White House, on 4 February 2016 the much debated Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement, TPP, is due to be signed in New Zealand, at a Trade Minister level. However, in the United States, the Agreement is yet to be passed by Congress. The agreement is, in essence, a free trade agreement. Twelve countries came together with the aim of liberalizing trade and investment in the Pacific Rim. Each country came to the negotiating table with a clear strategy and list of gains it wished to see. As with any negotiations in any sphere of business, each country won some gains and compromised in others. The United States has been most concerned about high taxes imposed on its product overseas. As White House Spokesperson Josh Earnest explained directly to the Herald de Paris in a Press Briefing at the White House today, "Right now we've got 18,000 American goods that are facing taxes that are imposed by other countries and we believe we should cut those taxes." Likewise, for countries such as New Zealand and Australia, tariffs are a big issue and this agreement would provide immediate economic benefit for exporters, particularly from reduced tariff rates. The TPP also brings greater bargaining power to regional economies. Advertisement The US joined the TPP in September, 2008 and the first round of negotiations were held in 2010. It has been significaant work to get to this point. The TPP is there to aid in the setting of a new and higher standard for trade and investment in the Asia Pacific region, generating substantial long-term economic and strategic benefits for each of the countries involved. In basic terms to create a fairer platform for importing and exporting. Party to the Agreement are New Zealand, Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam. On one level, the TPP is a magnificent feat -- to have such diverse range of cultures and varying economies of scale to come together in any kind of progressive and positive agreement. It would be apt to say that, after 19 rounds of negotiation, all countries participating are keen to ratify the agreement. There are, of course detractors. In New Zealand, these seem mainly couched in not knowing enough about the agreement, and the fact that information about it is not being made publicly available. The irony is, if you have any research capabilities you can find the agreement in full, relatively easily, on the Internet in several countries. The process the US is goes through is that the TPP gets debated both in the corridors of power, and among the public. It is this democratic process that New Zealand opponents appear to be seeking, and wish for in their own country. However, ironically, according to the Internet, at the same time the New Zealand public are fearful of U.S. overreach in the agreement itself. Detractors say the TPP may reach beyond borders and into smaller countries' own regulatory processes. Advertisement The right kinds of food, how much to buy, plus all the other things (coolers!) you probably didn't think about. As talks aimed at ending the Syrian conflict got off to a shaky start in Geneva a few days ago and have now been suspended until February 25, Secretary of State John Kerry has urged "both sides to make the most of this moment." Kerry knows, of course, there are many more than two sides to the conflict. The Geneva talks are set up broadly to put President Bashar al-Assad's government and a dizzying array of opposition factions under the umbrella of the High Negotiations Committee (HNC) in some sort of dialogue, albeit indirectly to start. Some major players in the fight are not in the Geneva talks - ISIL for instance, and some of the major Kurdish groups. But there is also no formal role in the talks for Syrian civil society. Kerry is right that the initiative's goal should be creating "the basis for an inclusive, peaceful, and pluralistic Syria," but it's hard to see how any informed political deal can be found without direct input from those battling to hold what's left of Syrian society together. Negotiations for Northern Ireland's largely successful peace process in the 1990s involved the direct participation of civil society, notably the Northern Ireland Women's Coalition. Civil society provided vital input that helped end Ireland's sectarian violence. But for now Syria's civil society is left out of the rooms where its fate will be decided. United Nations Special Envoy to Syria Staffan de Mistura said he hopes that women's groups and other civil society players will eventually be brought in, likely in advisory roles. But activists should not be relegated to token players. For the talks to succeed, they should have a recognized, official role. So far there is no formal mandate for the HNC to consider recommendations from civil society. Putting civil society's concerns and proposed solutions at the heart of negotiations is essential to producing a sustainable deal. Hundreds of Syrian civil society organizations, local and regional, large and small, have signed onto a call broadly supporting the HNC position outlining what should happen in the talks. Organizations backing this call include The White Helmets, volunteer first responders who rescue and offer medical help to bombing victims. Local councils trying to introduce democracy and fight corruption, women's organizations, and groups of lawyers and writers also joined in. Over a thousand individual activists have publicly supported the initiative. The declaration urges "that there be no role for Bashar al-Assad and those responsible for persecuting the Syrian people" in any transitional body set up by the talks, a condition that the U.S. government appears to have backed away from. The civil society organizations also identify other preconditions to any successful outcome of the negotiations, including ending the barrel bombing of civilians, lifting the areas under siege, releasing all political detainees and full details on what happened to those forcibly disappeared. The human rights activists I met with last month in Gaziantep on the Turkish side of the Syrian border worry that there will eventually be a political deal that suits the major world and regional powers, but civil society priorities will be an afterthought. "Whatever happens it should be opposite of Iraq," said one, referring to the postwar mess in the neighboring country. If we're lucky the Geneva talks might prove to be the beginning of the end, but the chance of delivering a solid deal that will stick depends on the early involvement of the country's medics, students, engineers, and other civil society representatives. Syria's problems are too big to be left to politicians alone. Hillary Clinton exhibits an appalling enthusiasm for United States wars not in self-defense, i.e., legalized murders on an industrial scale that create enemies while destroying our liberties and prosperity at home. To William Tecumseh Sherman, war was "hell." To Abraham Lincoln, war was a "scourge." But to Hillary Clinton, war is a coveted instrument of foreign policy in which the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must. If she is elected President, the United States will be fighting gratuitous wars every hour of every day of her presidency. That should give pause. Alexis de Tocqueville admonished in Democracy in America, "All those who seek to destroy the liberties of a democratic nation ought to know that war is the surest and the shortest means to accomplish it." James Madison, the Albert Einstein of political philosophy, warned: "No nation could preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare. Advertisement Despite such hallowed wisdom, Ms. Clinton has supported every war initiated by the United States not in self-defense for more than twenty three years since she first occupied the White House as First Lady: Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria, ISIS, Al- Qaeda, Yemen, Somalia, and international terrorism generally. In 2008, she promised if elected president to "obliterate" Iran if it attacked Israel--even if the United States was unthreatened and Congress had not authorized war: "I want the Iranians to know, if I am the president, we will attack Iran... And I want them to understand that... we would be able to totally obliterate them [to retaliate for an attack on Israel]." In 2011, then Secretary of State Clinton championed a "humanitarian" war against Libya to overthrow Muammar Gaddafi after he had abandoned WMD, Libya had been removed as a state sponsor of terrorism, he had handsomely compensated the victims of the Lockerbie bombing, and he posed no threat to the United States. She has fiercely defended the war as "smart power at its best." That myopia could be analogized to Japanese Emperor Hirohito applauding World War II as a success by highlighting Pearl Harbor while leaving Hiroshima and Nagasaki unmentioned. As unfolded in Afghanistan after we ousted the Soviet Union by supporting the fanatical mujahideen, Gaddafi's ouster regressed Libya towards state-of-nature lawlessness. Militias spawned along tribal and ethnic lines. An ISIS satellite emerged in Sirte. Gaddafi's conventional weapons fell into the hands of terrorists. No central government took root. Our Ambassador was assassinated in Benghazi in a terrorist assault. Refugees by the millions fled from Libya across the Mediterranean to destabilize the European Union. Advertisement Ms. Clinton's "humanitarian" war precedent invited Russian President Vladimir Putin to invade Crimea professedly to protect Ukrainians of Russian ethnicity from persecution. As a United States Senator, Ms. Clinton voted to authorize President Bush's gratuitous war against Iraq to overthrow Saddam Hussein, who was a virtual cost-free Chinese wall against Iranian regional hegemony. She irresponsibly neglected to read the 90-page classified National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq that wrongly concluded Saddam possessed WMD. She supports continuing United States military engagement in Iraq on behalf of a Shiite government which is beholden to Iran, repressive towards Sunnis and Kurds, and a catalyst for ISIS. Ms. Clinton supports a reprise in Syria of her "smart" humanitarian war in Libya to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad through bombings and assistance to splintered Syrian rebels schooled in extremism, bigotry, repression, and violence. She supports continued military engagement in Afghanistan as far as the eye can see and beyond to prop up a corrupt, tribal, unpopular government. She supports the President's playing prosecutor, judge, jury, and executioner to kill any American citizen whom intelligence gurus decree is an imminent threat based on secret evidence unshared outside the executive branch. She supports presidential authority to invade the sovereignty of any foreign nation by using predator drones to kill persons suspected of complicity in international terrorism espied within its borders. Advertisement She supports confrontation with China over the South China Sea to assist erstwhile enemy Vietnam. She supports unilateral presidential wars unauthorized by Congress in violation of the War Powers Resolution and Article I, section 8, clause 11 of the Constitution. Since Libya under Gaddafi is her standard for initiating humanitarian wars, a President Clinton could be expected to attack North Korea to overthrow President Kim Jong-un before her inaugural address concluded. Private colleges may seem like daunting institutions with unattainable standards and a price tag that is too large to even consider for most students. But, according to research done by the Council of Independent Colleges, a higher proportion of first-generation and low-income students enroll at private colleges than at public universities. Additionally, more of these students graduate without debt than their counterparts at public universities. Kyle Giacomino, a first-generation student at the University of Denver who is double majoring in English and Communications, is one such student. You're a first-generation college student. What has this meant to you and your family? My thoughts about college have been interesting because I'm a first generation student, yet my parents have been very successful. My father started a company that makes products to extract natural gas from the ground. He built this business without a college education and it is incredibly strong. So I've seen what hard work can do, but my father always pushed me to get into college and study my passion. I don't think that there was ever a question that I wouldn't go to college, because my father still believes that college gives me the best opportunity to succeed. What has been your biggest challenge in college so far? Honestly my biggest challenge when entering college was just finding my way. I was good at a little bit of everything in high school (except for math), and I didn't really have any passions that I could follow. So finding out what I wanted to major in and do with the rest of my life was a struggle that weighed on my mind a lot. Advertisement Eventually I enrolled in DU's business school because my father was a businessman. But I didn't really have a passion for it. Then spring quarter rolled around, and I took a required English class. It was in this class that I really realized that I have a passion for writing about things that I care about and I love reading more than anything else. So I decided to become an English major. In my sophomore year, I took a popular culture class and I really enjoyed learning about how social media affects us and how there are so many different ways to see the world. So I made the decision to pick up Communications as a major as well. It took me a while, but I eventually found the things that I have a passion for, and now I wake up excited to go to class every day. What has been your biggest success so far? I think studying abroad has been my proudest achievement so far in my life. I got into DU without much knowledge of the world outside of Colorado. But going abroad changed all of that. I studied at the Queen Mary University of London, and once I got there, everything changed. I found myself alone in one of the biggest cities in the world, and I had to navigate it without anyone holding my hand. I had to do this with a few other places like Paris and Dublin as well. So the whole experience really brought me out of my shell and I realized that if I can do something like that, then I can do pretty much anything. What has the social and academic transition been like coming from high school? It has been difficult. In high school everything is made easy for you because you have counselors that track your progress for you. They also set up a plan with you so that you can succeed. People can also do this in college, but it isn't automatic like it was in high school and it's not very well advertised either. I certainly didn't know about it when I first got to DU, and I just thought that I had to do everything on my own. Academically, things are a little different. The biggest transition is definitely the fact that professors won't come to you if you're struggling. You have to go to them and talk about what you don't know. College is also mainly a lot of reading and then a lot of big projects, which took time to get used to. As for the social aspect, I didn't really have a problem with it because I joined a fraternity (Theta Chi) the fall quarter of my freshman year. So I've had a great group of friends to hang out with and they've really helped me figure things out. Advertisement Why did you choose to attend a private college as opposed to a public one? At first I didn't even know the University of Denver existed because I didn't know anyone who had ever gone there. But when I started looking at colleges in Colorado, the name popped up. I decided to take a campus tour and immediately fell in love with it. It didn't have all the hustle and bustle and confusion that comes with a larger university, and the campus was incredibly beautiful. It's been one of the best decisions that I've ever made. It's a completely different experience than if I had gone to a large university. I've only had one lecture with more than 50 students. The rest of the time, the classes consist of about 20 students. The professors are really accessible and willing to meet if I have any questions or if I just want to discuss something in greater detail. I can also walk through campus and recognize almost all the faces, which I think is something that is really unique and makes me feel at home. What advice do you have for first-generation students looking to enroll in private universities? My advice is to seriously consider it. I understand that many people struggle with the idea of the expense. But I definitely think it's worth it. The class sizes are smaller, you'll know more people on campus, and it just feels like a more intimate learning experience. I have a more in-depth education because I get so much one-on-one time with professors and classmates. Keep in mind that the sticker price usually isn't what you'll pay. In fact, the average student financial aid package is worth around $35,000. I also don't know anyone, including myself, that didn't receive some kind of scholarship to attend DU. I personally received a scholarship that pays for almost 30% of my tuition and I even have a few friends that were offered full ride scholarships. So it's definitely possible to do in a financial sense and I think that the benefits outweigh the costs. What do you plan on doing after you graduate? When I graduate I'll have a degree in English and Communications with a minor in business, so my future is pretty open. My plan is to network and intern as much as I can to experience different fields of work and see which ones I like more, although I already have a pretty good idea because through everything, writing has been my one constant passion. My dream job would be a book editor or a writer. Advertisement What is your greatest motivator for success? My motivation is two-fold. The first is this really funny idea that I have in my head that I want to be a great writer one day. I think that all English majors have the goal to write something significant and profound just like Hemingway, Steinbeck, Woolf, or King. I would personally like to write something more like science fiction, so I look up to authors like Vonnegut or Heinlein. Either way, one of my greatest motivators is to try to write something that one of these authors would be proud of. NASHUA, NH - FEBRUARY 03: Republican presidential hopeful Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) speaks at a town hall meeting at Elm Street Middle School on February 3, 2016 in Nashua, New Hampshire. The New hampshire primary is next Tueday, February 9, 2016. (Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images) I have been following Ted Cruz' political career closely ever since he orchestrated the government shutdown in the fall of 2013. His theatrical efforts were calculated to secure the support of bedrock conservatives for a future presidential bid. Yes, his ambitions were transparent even then. I condemned him at the time as a dangerous mix of P.T. Barnum and Joe McCarthy and I stand by that criticism today. At least in a technical sense, Cruz is now the front-runner for the GOP nomination. He scored a decisive and somewhat unexpected victory in the Iowa caucus and he now leads in the delegate count, albeit by a margin of one. It is therefore appropriate to ask: Does he have a path to the Republican nomination? I believe that he does. Advertisement In the month of February, he has two main objectives. He must survive the New Hampshire primary. And he must win in South Carolina. Let's look at these two contests. New Hampshire is not friendly territory. Cruz carried the day in Iowa on the strength of a hyper-mobilized evangelical base. New Hampshire, on the other hand, has a very different religious composition. A quarter of the population is Catholic. Mainline Protestants come next, and the largest two Protestant denominations are the United Church of Christ and the United Methodist Church. Ted Cruz' summons to "awaken the Body of Christ" in the name of an uncompromising conservative political agenda will not work with this New England audience. So, what does Cruz need to do? He might hope to finish first in a deeply fractured field, though if the polling is accurate outright victory seems to be only a remote possibility. More realistically, he should want to finish no worse than third. To do this, he will need to shift his message. For a New England electorate, he will likely downplay his religious appeal and emphasize other elements of his ultra-conservative platform. He will probably talk about his support for a balanced budget amendment and his opposition to bank bailouts. He will insist on the need to audit the Federal Reserve and sing vague but pleasing hymns to the magic of free markets. He must also campaign the New Hampshire way -- town hall appearances and small-group meetings with the voters. Advertisement Will he win New Hampshire if he does these things? Probably not. Time is short. But his goal in New Hampshire finally is not victory but the avoidance of humiliation. What he wants to do is to get to the next battlefield, which is South Carolina. Look for South Carolina to be the most feverishly contested primary to date. The voting will occur on Saturday, February 20, and it will be South Carolina that makes or breaks the Ted Cruz campaign. It is telling that after his victory in Iowa, Cruz paid a call on supporters in Greenville, South Carolina, in the Upstate region. South Carolina is a Ted Cruz kind of state. The religious demography is all in his favor. In Iowa, Cruz was the beneficiary of a record-setting turnout by evangelical voters, who made up 64 % of Republican caucus-goers. Evangelical Protestants, particularly Baptists, make up the largest part of South Carolina's religiously-affiliated population, and have historically proven to be foundational support for the Republican Party. Cruz must ensure that these voters turn out and support him in large numbers. He has a significant grassroots operation already in place. His main competitor for the South Carolina religious-right vote is Donald Trump (it is difficult to see the Ben Carson campaign remaining viable through February 20). My guess is that Cruz will be totally ruthless in his campaigning. He proved in Iowa that he could do that, and we shall more of it in South Carolina. We shall see attacks on "New York values" and whisper campaigns of the sort we saw directed against Ben Carson in Iowa. But if Cruz wants to use South Carolina as a launching pad for further success, he will need to move beyond narrow appeals to the religious right. My prediction is that he will play to one of his strengths -- his perceived reputation as a constitutional lawyer. He will single out in particular the two Supreme Court decisions that jointly upheld the constitutionality and legality of the Affordable Care Act, NFIB v. Sebelius (2012), and King v. Burwell (2015). Advertisement Both of these decisions were written by Chief Justice John Roberts. In their reasoning, they represent a conservative interpretation of the law, but one that is friendly to sustaining legislative intent. I can, however, foresee Cruz challenging these opinions relentlessly. A third case he will target, furthermore, is Obergefell v. Hodges (2015), the same-sex marriage decision authored by Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy, like Roberts, a Republican appointee. Cruz will criticize these decisions as betrayals of conservative principle. He will denounce them as representative of the timidity of the Republican establishment. He will, in other words, build a case for what he likes to call "constitutional conservatism" and use that to discredit the Republican establishment and thereby win South Carolina. And then he means to use South Carolina to propel him to victory in the Super Tuesday contests ten days later. In other words, Ted Cruz means to run to the right of John Roberts, perhaps the most conservative Supreme Court justice since the 1920's! The damage that such a campaign will cause to the American body politic will be significant. I am a firm believer that health care is a basic right. If I have a problem with the Affordable Care Act it is that the law does not go far enough in ensuring health care for all. I am also a strong defender of same-sex marriage and the Obergefell decision. Cruz is ruthless, however, and nakedly ambitious, and if it moves him closer to the Republican nomination, I can easily see him waging a scurrilous campaign against the Supreme Court. Cruz' goal is to carry South Carolina by a large enough margin that he should do well in Super Tuesday's southern primaries -- Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. If he prevails in those states, his road to the Republican nomination may well be clear. In many respects, I find Ted Cruz to be an even more troubling candidate than Donald Trump. Trump is a nativist and a xenophobe. But Cruz is something new on the American scene -- a religious zealot with a strong chance of becoming the nominee of one of America's two major political parties. He is half demagogue, half conspiracy theorist, and he means to be elected president. We should all be worried about that. I was always showing off in high school. I'd come in with pink streaks in my hair, ripped up Sex Pistols T-shirt, pack of Marlboro Lights rolled up in my sleeve and a pint of Hiram Walker blackberry brandy in the hip pocket of my Levis. I thought I was the queen of cool until I sat down too hard one day and almost cut myself a third butt cheek, a butt cheek soaked in brandy that is. OUCH! I saw myself as the bastard child of Johnny Rotten and Joan Jett. The problem was, if you cracked open my leather jacket, underneath was a nice Jewish girl from New Jersey who really loved Barbra Streisand and who could be drunk under the table by your average 4-year-old. When I was at parties, I'd pretend I was on my 10th drink because I didn't want anyone to know I was seeing triple on two screwdrivers. I also pretended that I knew everything about sex and would brag about my exploits. I made a point to make out with older boys from other schools in front of as many of my peers as possible. Everyone thought I was a full-scale horndog. The truth of the matter was, I was a virgin for two years longer then anyone would have guessed. I had no idea what to do with a penis and was too busy pretending I knew it all to ask any of my pals. I tried to ask my mom about sex once. She said, "Slova! Losing your virginity really hurts unless you're married to a Jewish man. Then ... it doesn't hurt at all." My pal Jenny talked me into joining a theatre group that was putting on a production of Cinderella to the music of David Bowie (rest in peace, Starman) and the B52s. I met a lot of older kids and 20-somethings, too. They were all into punk, or rather New Wave, which is what punk turned into after it started making money. That's where I met Cindy Butler. She looked like a punk rock Audrey Hepburn with crayon red hair. She was the first woman I ever met who wore leather pants. She played bass guitar in a punk band called Jade, and she was cast as one of the evil stepsisters. I thought she was just about the coolest person I'd ever met. She was 6 years older then me and still wanted to hang out! I would tell my parents I was going to the Jewish community center and would go to parties with Cindy instead. One night after we'd been jumping around on the dance floor like two pogo sticks, I went home and had a dream that I kissed Cindy, like a real Hollywood kiss kinda dream. I was perplexed. Lord was I naive. "What does this dream mean," I asked my pal Jenny. She just about laughed her ass off. She probably wanted to scream, IT MEANS YOU LIKE GIRLS, DUMBASS! US President Barack Obama speaks at the Islamic Society of Baltimore, in Windsor Mill, Maryland on February 3, 2016. / AFP / MANDEL NGAN (Photo credit should read MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images) Obama Bounces Back President Obama just had a very good month in the polls. Not spectacular, mind you, but still better than any month since January of 2015. Essentially, Obama regained the job approval polling ground he lost over the previous two or three months, and he is now positioned to continue improving in February as well. For the first time in a year, this movement is so noticeable it is easily visible on the big chart. [Click on graph to see larger-scale version.] January, 2016 The month of January is usually a good one for Barack Obama. January of 2016 was no exception. Other than a standoff with some anti-government yahoos up in Oregon, once again the main political news revolved around the presidential race -- which tends to push presidential news aside. Also, the end of last year had no knock-down drag-out budget battles, and Congress mostly slumbered throughout January. Advertisement The biggest January news for the president was (as always) the State Of The Union speech -- the last such speech Obama will give. Obama took the opportunity not to tout a whole bunch of policy proposals (that would then go nowhere in the current Congress), but instead chose to speak to his own legacy. He reminded America that he has indeed been a substantive president and gotten a lot of good things done. In most years, this produces an upward bump in presidential job approval polling. But this year Obama's improvement seems more of a lasting nature than just a temporary spike upwards. We'll have to wait until the February numbers are in to see if this is true or not, but either way Obama had a good month in January. I have a suspicion (this is based on no actual data, I should add) that one of the things helping to buoy Obama's ratings was the renewed focus on the Democratic nomination race. For a long period the focus was mostly on the Republican side (and mostly on Donald Trump), but Bernie Sanders finally got some attention towards the end of January. The media also focused some attention on Hillary Clinton's campaign, who seems to be fighting hard to talk up Barack Obama's legacy. Her campaign now centers around how she would continue (and improve) Obama's policies, and she's out there touting his successes on the stump. Her close embrace of the president (essentially arguing she'd be a third Obama term) may be reminding some of the public why they liked him so much in the first place. That's just a theory, but I do think it's probably having an effect, especially among Democrats. Advertisement For the month, Obama improved his job approval rating by a whopping 1.8 points, to wind up at 45.5 percent. His disapproval fell by 1.4 points and ended up at 50.2 percent. Compare this to last September (before his numbers started turning down), when Obama was at 45.6 percent approval and 50.3 percent disapproval. In one month, Obama regained almost all the ground he lost over the last three months of 2015, to put this another way. Overall Trends It's when you examine the overall trends, though, that things look even better for Obama. Here is an updated chart that shows the past year's movement in greater detail. [Click on graph to see larger-scale version.] Obama not only regained all the ground he lost, he wound up at a higher point than he hit in 10 out of the previous 12 months. But what's even better news for Obama fans is that the trend throughout January was clearly headed in the right direction, all month long. Obama's rolling daily average job approval and job disapproval numbers showed more absolute change within the month than they have in two years. His job approval started the month at 43.6 percent, and then rose over three points to end up the month at 46.9 percent. This is a daily high Obama hasn't seen since the summer of 2013, which is pretty notable. His job disapproval also shifted dramatically, starting at 52.0 percent which then fell steadily to end up the month at 48.6 percent. Again, Obama hasn't seen this number lower than 49.0 percent since August of 2013. The trendline was clearly rising all month long, which bodes well for Obama in February. He starts the month off with a daily job approval average roughly one-and-a-half points higher than his monthly January average, which is an excellent way to start any month. If he just maintains where he is now, he'll add almost as much in February as he managed in January. Of course, this all could be illusory -- it may just be an extended bump from the State Of The Union, and his numbers could head right back down again. But the safer bet is that the trend is a real one with some staying power to it. Historically, when Obama has a good January he has always followed it up with a good February. Advertisement In fact, Obama is now within reach of breaking through to being "above water" again in the polling -- the first time that's really been a possibility since the summer of 2013. Since that point, his approval number has been lower than his disapproval rating (or "below water"). Throughout most of last year, this gap hovered between four and six percent. It got worse at the end of the year, hitting 6.9 percent in November and 7.9 percent in December. This was better than 2014, when it was in double-digits for most of the year (hitting a high of 12 percent underwater). In January, Obama shrunk this gap from 7.9 percent down to 4.7 percent. In February, he could easily gain more ground. If his numbers do keep improving (perhaps as Hillary Clinton continues to remind Democrats why they voted for him), by March Obama could easily be within reach of turning that into a positive gap for the first time since 2013. So far, the media hasn't noticed that Obama is doing better in the polls. They've been consumed with the election news, and will likely continue to be. Barring any unexpected events, most two-term presidents usually improve in job approval throughout their final year, usually with a big spike upwards right after the election is over. If this pattern holds true for Obama, then perhaps January is just the start of a final upward trend. It's much too early to tell if this will turn out to be the case, but Obama enters February in better shape than he's seen since his second-term "honeymoon" period wore off. [Obama Poll Watch Data:] Sources And Methodology ObamaPollWatch.com is an admittedly amateur effort, but we do try to stay professional when it comes to revealing our sources and methodology. All our source data comes from RealClearPolitics.com; specifically from their daily presidential approval ratings "poll of polls" graphic page. We take their daily numbers, log them, and then average each month's data into a single number -- which is then shown on our monthly charts here (a "poll of polls of polls," if you will...). You can read a much-more detailed explanation of our source data and methodology on our "About Obama Poll Watch" page, if you're interested. Questions or comments? Use the Email Chris page to drop me a private note. Obama's Second Term Statistical Records Monthly Highest Monthly Approval -- 1/13 -- 52.7% Lowest Monthly Approval -- 11/13 -- 41.4% Highest Monthly Disapproval -- 12/13 -- 54.0% Lowest Monthly Disapproval -- 1/13 -- 42.6% Daily Highest Daily Approval -- 1/31/13 -- 52.5% Lowest Daily Approval -- 12/2/13 -- 39.8% Highest Daily Disapproval -- 12/2/13 -- 55.9% Lowest Daily Disapproval -- 2/24/13 -- 42.3% Obama's Second Term Raw Monthly Data [All-time high in bold, all-time low underlined.] Month -- (Approval / Disapproval / Undecided) 01/16 -- 45.5 / 50.2 / 4.3 12/15 -- 43.7 / 51.6 / 4.7 11/15 -- 44.4 / 51.3 / 4.3 10/15 -- 45.3 / 50.0 / 4.7 09/15 -- 45.6 / 50.3 / 4.1 08/15 -- 44.7 / 50.4 / 4.9 07/15 -- 45.7 / 50.0 / 4.3 06/15 -- 44.6 / 50.7 / 4.7 05/15 -- 45.4 / 50.0 / 4.6 04/15 -- 45.2 / 49.9 / 4.9 03/15 -- 44.9 / 50.8 / 4.3 02/15 -- 45.4 / 50.1 / 4.5 01/15 -- 44.8 / 50.5 / 4.7 12/14 -- 42.4 / 52.8 / 4.8 11/14 -- 42.0 / 53.4 / 4.6 10/14 -- 42.1 / 53.4 / 4.5 09/14 -- 41.5 / 53.5 / 5.0 08/14 -- 41.6 / 53.0 / 5.4 07/14 -- 41.8 / 53.6 / 4.6 06/14 -- 42.4 / 53.4 / 4.2 05/14 -- 44.0 / 51.7 / 4.3 04/14 -- 43.4 / 52.1 / 4.5 03/14 -- 42.9 / 52.8 / 4.3 02/14 -- 43.3 / 52.3 / 4.4 01/14 -- 42.7 / 52.7 / 4.6 12/13 -- 41.9 / 54.0 / 4.1 11/13 -- 41.4 / 53.9 / 4.7 10/13 -- 44.2 / 50.8 / 5.0 09/13 -- 43.9 / 50.8 / 5.3 08/13 -- 44.4 / 50.2 / 5.4 07/13 -- 45.3 / 49.2 / 5.5 06/13 -- 46.5 / 48.5 / 5.0 05/13 -- 48.3 / 46.9 / 4.8 04/13 -- 48.6 / 46.8 / 4.6 03/13 -- 48.5 / 46.3 / 5.2 02/13 -- 51.1 / 43.0 / 5.9 01/13 -- 52.7 / 42.6 / 4.7 Second Term Column Archives Advertisement First Term Data To save space, the only data and statistics listed above are from Obama's second term. If you'd like to see the data and stats from Obama's first term, including a list of links to the full archives of the Obama Poll Watch column for the first term, we've set up an Obama Poll Watch First Term Data page, for those still interested. Chris Weigant blogs at: Follow Chris on Twitter: @ChrisWeigant Suffer little children to come unto me. . . . Gospel according to St. Luke In Brazil it could be caused by the mosquito. In Flint it is caused by the politician. The one is not completely understood. The other is understood all too well. Both have inflicted untold harm on their victims and brought great sadness to them and their families. The victims are the children and parents whose lives have been altered in profound ways and no amount of science or money can compensate the children and parents for what they have lost. The effect on the children in Brazil is apparent as soon as they are born. The effect on children in Flint may not be known for years to come. In Brazil it is believed that there may be as many as 1.5 million residents infected with the Zika virus. In Flint it is an untold number of children who may have their development impaired because of lead poisoning. Brazilian babies with microcephaly from the Zika virus may have, among other things, abnormally small heads and their brains may have failed to develop properly. The difficulties these children may face include developmental delays, intellectual deficits or hearing loss. Birth defects suffered by Brazilian children are apparent for all to see as their parents are shown on the evening news holding their tiny malformed infants tenderly, not knowing what the future holds for them, their pitifully deformed infants and other members of their families. Zika families do not wonder what they or anyone else could have done to prevent the tragedy that has befallen them. It is just one of those things. Flint is very different but the affected population is the same. Advertisement Young children living in Flint are not in danger of suffering microcephaly nor any of the other consequences of the innocently malevolent mosquito. They are, instead, in danger of other developmental issues that may not manifest themselves for years to come. According to reports, as many as 8,000 Flint children under age 6 may have been exposed to lead in Flint's water. That exposure may have done irreparable damage to some of their nervous systems and brains. The children who have suffered the effects of exposure to lead may require extra help in school because of learning disabilities and may require treatment for medical problems that can go on for years. Fetuses and young children are especially vulnerable to the effects of lead in the water. No one could have done anything about the mosquito. Lots of people could have done something about the water. In 2014 when Flint's emergency manager began providing water to residents from Flint River to save money, residents detected changes in the taste, smell and color of the water. High levels of bacteria were discovered and city officials told residents to boil their water before drinking it. When residents complained about water quality to state officials, Michigan Governor Rick Snyder's people and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality ignored their complaints. Even after state officials knew there was a problem they did nothing. Lynna Kaucheck, a Food and Water Watch organizer said: "It's hard to believe that in 2016 people in the United States have to contend with poisoned drinking water, but that's the sad situation that many Flint residents are contending with. . . . [S]ome residents continue to receive water that is undrinkable, due to lead contamination." It has now been reported that in January 2015 fresh bottled water was provided for state employees working in office buildings in Flint even though residents had been told Flint tap water was safe to drink. A spokesman for the agency that manages state buildings said the bottled water was introduced after Flint failed to pass tests of water standards having nothing to do with lead in the water. In Michigan some Flint residents have begun a class action law suit against the government alleging that the "City has failed to provide drinkable water to Plaintiffs from April 2014 to present." No one knows how that suit will end many years from now. Advertisement How do you escape? Many people would say they'd mostly curl up with a good book, and so do we. Books are a way of getting away and seeing things from a new perspective no matter where you are, even more so if you don't have the opportunity to do so otherwise. This is the reality that faces over two million inmates in the U.S. penal system. Six reasons why we should give books to prisoners: 1. About 70 percent of prisoners have a reading level below Grade 4: Given the education and tools available it is a tragedy to know that 70 percent of inmates in US prisons are below the fourth grade reading level. This bears repeating -- 70 percent of inmates cannot read above what is considered appropriate for a 10-year-old. Organizations delivering books to prisoners are extremely important in offering opportunities for growth and education by matching up reading level and interest. 2. Lowers chance of reoffending - higher chances of success: Two out of three food stamp recipients are functionally illiterate and it's estimated that 46-51 percent of Americans have incomes well below the poverty level because of their illiteracy. Not only does reading offer more opportunities when it comes to work, raising literacy levels also has been shown to reduce chances of reoffending, by 92 percent in some cases. In short, prisoners who have available opportunities for education and reading are more likely to succeed and less likely to reoffend. Advertisement 3. Reading promotes empathy: Author John Green once said: "Great books help you understand, and they help you feel understood." Reading and writing work as an act of empathy. It creates situations to escape your everyday situation and step into someone else's shoes. Reading a book requires a person to buy in, to live another life, to gain perspective. 4. Promoting community: Have you ever bonded over a good book? Recommended a book to a friend? UC Books for Prisoners' volunteers interact with inmates by reading their letters, recommending and selecting books, and working within prisons to staff libraries. UC Books for Prisoners has sent over 115,854 books in 33,945 packages to 17,389 inmates. That is 17,389 inmates that have reached out and have been responded to by the community. There is life outside of prison and this form of community outreach helps keep morale high. 5. Fostering learning: Think about what you have learned from reading. Textbooks, newspapers, blogs, social media, and many other formats are all used as tools of learning. Oftentimes prisoners are portrayed working out in the yard or in their cells in popular media, but more of their time is being spend on self-improvement than ever before. It is a great advancement for inmates to have equal opportunity to work out their mind. 6. Accessible literacy should be a basic human right: Books foster connections between people, whether it be a writer from a century ago or a friend who really enjoys a good read. Every American should have the right to access books at their reading level and to develop those skills, not excluding inmates. Incarceration should not mean that a person be excluded from intellectual growth. Reading means potential - potential drives opportunity - opportunity allow for success and a more empathetic and successful society for us all. Advertisement LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 30: Queen Latifah arrives at the 22nd Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at The Shrine Auditorium on January 30, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Steve Granitz/WireImage) Over the weekend the Screen Actors Guild Awards took place at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. While the biggest story in Hollywood is arguably the Academy Awards' recent lack of diversity, for failing to nominate a single actor of color for the second year in a row, things were decidedly different when it came to the SAG Awards. The atmosphere was so heavy with change, it prompted two-time winner Idris Alba, who took home awards for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role for "Beasts of No Nation" and Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Television Movie or Miniseries for "Luther," to begin his presentation with "Welcome to the Diversity Awards." Advertisement In many ways that's what it was. A stark contrast from The Oscars with women and minorities being honored across multiple categories. Perhaps best noted by the cast of Orange is the New Black or maybe Amy Poehler and Tina Fey presenting the Life Achievement Award to Carol Burnett. Whatever the case, the Screen Actors guild managed to not only nominate many women and artists of color, but to award multiple actors of diverse sex, race, sexual orientation and more for their performances on screen. To be fair, The SAG Awards categories include Movies, Television, Cable, and online shows like House of Cards and Orange Is The New Black in its ceremonies, making many more diverse projects eligible for voting and awards. I spoke with many of the nominees and winners including Viola Davis, Idris Alba and Queen Latifah about #OscarsSoWhite and the subject of diversity as a whole on the carpet. Find out what they had to say below. Have a look and let me know your thoughts. MANCHESTER, NH - FEBRUARY 3: Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks to supporters during a Manchester GOTV organizing event with Gabby Giffords and Mark Kelly at Henry J. McLaughlin Middle School in Manchester, NH on Wednesday Feb. 03, 2016. (Photo by Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images) As the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) "free-trade" agreement was signed in New Zealand by representatives of the 12 participating countries, Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders strongly voiced his opposition and committed to doing what he can to kill the deal if he is elected president. Advertisement Rival Hillary Clinton has also stated opposition to the TPP, but will she also vow to kill it if elected? Sanders Vows To Kill TPP Saying that TPP follows in the footsteps of failed trade agreements like NAFTA, CAFTA, and Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR) with China, Sanders promised to "fundamentally rewrite our trade policies to benefit working families, not just the CEOs of large, multinational corporations." He said that supporters of these agreements have sold them as creating jobs, but over and over again, they have been proven dead wrong. President Bill Clinton sold NAFTA in 1993, saying it would create a million American jobs over a five-year period. Instead, NAFTA led to the loss of close to 700,000 jobs. Advertisement The conservative Cato Institute said that the trade deal with China would create far more export opportunities for America than the Chinese. Instead, the trade deal with China has led to the loss of 3.2 million jobs, and enormous, humongous and continuing trade deficits with that country. Since 2001, nearly 60,000 manufacturing plants in this country have been shut down and we have lost over 4.7 million manufacturing jobs. If the workers find new jobs at all, they are usually lower-paying. Sanders said at the press conference, "Trade is a good thing. But trade has got to be fair. And the TPP is anything but fair." Senders vowed to kill TPP if elected, saying, "As your president, not only will I make sure that the TPP does not get implemented, I will not send any trade deal to Congress that will make it easier for corporations to outsource American jobs overseas." Clinton Said She Opposes TPP, But Won't Lobby To Stop It Secretary Clinton voiced her opposition to the TPP in October, saying, "I appreciate the hard work that President Obama and his team put into this process and recognize the strides they made. But the bar here is very high and, based on what I have seen, I don't believe this agreement has met it." Advertisement However, Clinton also stated that she will not lobby against TPP, leaving many to wonder if her statement of opposition, coming just before the first debate, was serious or only for election purposes because of the unpopularity of the agreement. Then Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue said in a recent Bloomberg TV interview that he believes Clinton will switch to supporting TPP after the election. Inside Trade (paywall) reported that Donohue said that Clinton has publicly opposed the deal chiefly because Sen. Bernie Sanders opposes it. So the question is, will Clinton join Sanders in vowing to kill TPP if elected? Or will she change sides and implement it? From December's post," Does Clinton Really Oppose TPP? There Is a Test For That": Millions of voters, betrayed and cynical, have simply given up on the system. They haven't gotten anything from the system in a long time. They don't vote and they don't believe the things politicians tell them. Candidate Hillary Clinton might not need those voters to win the nomination and maybe not even to win the election. But if she wants "coattails" to bring in a Democratic House and Senate, be it in 2016 or 2018, she is going to have to earn their trust. Democratic voters are skeptical of promises. They want to see proof. They want to see action. They want to see changes. Or they will just stay home. And the terrible mess we are in will continue and worsen. So the gauntlet has been thrown down. Sanders has vowed to kill the TPP if elected. Clinton says she is opposed but has said she will not ask others to vote against it. But the TPP will be terribly destructive of jobs and wages. It will worsen the terrible inequality that is killing the middle class. Will Clinton vow to kill the TPP if elected? -- A close up shot of a little boy at school who looks distant and upset. When two sides enter into a negotiation, it is expected for the two sides to go back and forth on various points and details. One side will submit a proposal and the other side will reflect on the offer and then come back to the table to discuss what they like or do not like about the proposal. Our teacher's contract expired July 1st 2015 and it took until January 28th 2016 for CPS to make their 1st "serious offer" regarding our contract. The teachers that make up the bargaining team of the Chicago Teachers Union had been making proposals for months about how to help our schools, our students, and our teachers, while CPS had been unreceptive and/or unwilling to negotiate in good faith. But now almost 6 months after our contract has expired CPS submits one proposal and we are all of a sudden expected to take it, like it was the greatest gift ever presented to teachers?! Advertisement After the teachers of the big bargaining team went through each line of the proposal, they determined that it was not in the best interest of the students and teachers of Chicago to accept this offer. CEO Forest Claypool sent a threatening letter to Karen Lewis saying he now has no choice but to cut millions of dollars from schools. Wait, hold up. It is not like the big bargaining team declared they will refuse all offers from CPS. They just refused parts of this offer. So the logical next step would be to come back to the table and figure out how make a contract for all parties to agree on. Just because CPS claimed it was a "good offer" and leaked parts of the proposal to the press, making CPS look 'oh so generous' and teachers look 'oh so greedy', once again, does not mean it is a good contract. So instead of continuing discussions, CPS has essentially given the middle finger to thousands of educators in this city. This is a big middle finger to the hundreds of thousands of students and parents who will be damaged by these draconian cuts to schools across the city. All of this CPS madness comes from Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who controls the schools. The same Mayor who is liked by only 18% of the people of Chicago. The same mayor that appointed CEO Forest Claypool (who has no educational experience) after his other appointed CEO got arrested. Both Rahm and Claypool control an appointed puppet school board that meets behind closed doors and ignores all public input to make their real decisions. Advertisement So once again I come back to the "serious offer" that CPS made. In the midst of all this corruption, we educators are just supposed to trust CPS and just accept their offer? Teachers, unlike the Mayor, CEO, and Appointed School Board work with students and parents everyday. We teachers send our kids to CPS. We live in the city. We will do what is best for the kids. Yes, making sure a teacher is reasonably protected from the craziness that is CPS and paid fairly is still doing what is best for kids. A fair contract helps keep outstanding teachers from leaving this jacked up mayorally controlled undemocratic school system. So CPS, grow up, realize that in a negotiation there will be times when you hear "No". We teachers are the experts in knowing what our schools, students, and profession need. The contract negotiating process the Chicago Teachers Unions goes through with the big bargaining team and House of Delegates is Democratic. Just because the politics of this city are run by a "Yes, Rahm" mentality does not mean we will follow suit. ImpactAlpha.com -- When Bill Gates agreed a couple years ago to put a small piece of his personal fortune into a fund that invests in companies serving low-income customers in India, he invited the fund managers to return with a plan to scale up their investments and their social impact. The fund managers recently took such a plan to Gates, and have again come away with not only a check, but an endorsement from the world's richest man. Gates also co-chairs the world's biggest philanthropy, but his new personal investment in the Capria Accelerator Fund is about business, not charity. "I've been a long-term proponent of the view that any of society's problems that can be solved with market-based solutions must be solved that way," Gates said in a statement. He said he was excited to invest in Capria Accelerator "as a means to scale global efforts around impact investing." Advertisement Capria Accelerator is the second fund of two former software executives, including Will Poole, who once worked for Gates at Microsoft Corp. (The other manager, Dave Richards, worked for rival Real Networks and once testified against Microsoft in its antitrust trial.) Their first fund, Unitus Seed Fund, has made nearly two-dozen early-stage investments in companies providing education, health care and livelihoods for low-income Indians. The seed investments help the companies bridge "the pioneer gap" between small startup financing, often from friends or family, and venture-capital style institutional capital. The first fund tried to prove that businesses that meet the basic needs of emerging consumers can be compelling investments. Domestic consumption, including education and health care, is relatively immune from global market swings. "Businesses that service those fundamental needs, as the population grows and grows in prosperity, are going to do well," Poole says. "When we talk about emerging economies with young populations, simply the passage of time will cause those populations to gain purchasing power." But rather than just raise their own second fund, Poole and Richards set out to catalyze capital for such enterprises more generally. That meant supporting fund managers focused on helping build companies targeting low-income populations in developing countries. And that required attention to obstacles faced by first-time fund managers who, without a track record, struggle to find investors and close deals. Capria Accelerator will invest in such first-fund managers -- taking a stake in the general partnership -- and run them through a month-long training program and stake them to some capital to close their first few deals. That enables them to approach potential limited partners with both an anchor investor and a portfolio already under construction. Capria generally invests between $250,000 and $500,000 in each new fund manager. Advertisement The first three managers, one each from east and west Africa and one from Latin America, will arrive in March for a month of training in Seattle. They will prepare their first deals and get introduced to Poole and Richards' extensive network, though probably not to Gates. The three fund managers were selected from among 66 applicants from 24 countries; Capria is selecting a second cohort for the fall. "These guys have been working at establishing their funds for some time. They're tenacious guys, because it's tough going," Poole says. "Just like entrepreneurs building businesses, they are building financial services businesses" Pule Taukobong, co-founder of CRE Venture Capital in Johannesburg, says he wishes Capria had been around three years ago as he struggled to raise his first fund. In mid-2013, Taukobong quit his banking job in New York and spent eight months fundraising. He came away with only $20,000 -- less than his expenses. So he cashed out his pension, sold his house and bought stakes in eight companies on his own. He claims those companies have gone on to raise more $25 million in follow-on financing, generated $8 million in revenues and created 600 jobs. Now, he says, he has the track record to raise a seed-stage fund to invest in technology entrepreneurs in sub-Saharan Africa, including at least one-quarter women. He closed an initial round of $2 million last year and hopes to finish fundraising next month. "With Capria we would have had capital to start and been able to show a real portfolio," Taukobong said. "Not every fund manager should have to sell his house or liquidate his retirement fund, or you going to limit the number of people willing to do that." Advertisement There's some evidence that the conventional wisdom about first-time impact funds may be wrong. A benchmarking study by the Global Impact Investing Network and Cambridge Associates found that smaller funds tend to outperform larger ones, and first funds tend to be smaller. The 13 first funds under $100 million, the survey found, had a pooled rate of return of 12.9%. well above their comparable peers. Poole pitches the Capria Acclerator fund as "market rate" but with an elevated level of risk. That's where the fund's impact thesis kicks in. Capria's other investors include the Crystal Springs Foundation, the Sall Family Foundation and Mohandas Pai and Ranjan Pai, prominent Indian investors and entrepreneurs. The size of Gates' investment was not disclosed. "Most people will still think of the risk of a first-time fund manager in the emerging market and they will not make this decision on purely economic basis," Poole says. Capria expects to raise about $10 million over the next five years. Poole claims that may catalyze as much as $500 million in capital for businesses meeting the basic needs of low-income customers with higher-quality, lower-cost goods and services. The math is somewhat speculative, based on 10 funds that raise $10 million for their first funds, $25-30 million in follow-on funds, and bring other investors as well. But Bill Gates was sold. "Bill is all about scaleability," Poole said. "That was my pitch to him." Learning a second language is unproductive and a veritable waste of time. At long last I have come to my senses. After years expounding and arguing about the benefits of learning foreign tongues I have come to realize the truth and seen the light. I intone the mea culpa and offer my apologies. Allow me, if you will, to explain the rationale behind my about-face on the matter. Probably 95 percent of the world's 7500 million people speak only one language. They seem to get by being monolingual and are happy as larks speaking only Swahili, Bambara, Tagalog, Italian, Bubi and other languages. Many of these one-language humans are successful at their callings, lead happy lives, have families, travel, eat at their hearts' content, all oblivious to the fact that others speak different tongues and express themselves in different ways. So if so many people can make it through life speaking only one language or dialect, why should we not be able to go it alone in a sea of diverse tongues? Advertisement Those who claim that language-learning is important and beneficial never agree on which tongue should be studied. Some declare that English is a good language to learn while others prefer Spanish or French. In central Europe German must still be considered. Chinese is fashionable, and primordial if you want to visit China. The choices are appalling and daunting: over 6,500 languages to pick from; so many options are simply overwhelming. So: when in doubt do naught, or even nowt, abstain. Politicians, take President Obama for example, seem to manage quite well without foreign languages. Foreign politicians, the foolish ones, make the effort and invest valuable time acquiring a passing proficiency in English to talk to Obama. As a last resort he can reach out -outsource- and hire interpreters who will do the work for him. If we have interpreters and translators, why bother studying difficult foreign sounds? Take Obama, for instance again, and consider whether it would be to his advantage to invest the time and effort to learn, say, Spanish, -a language widely spoken in the US- when he is not going to run again for office. It would be foolish, of course. And when he meets foreign dignitaries he does not need to speak in their lingo because they have a smattering of English and, besides, they have nothing much to say. A handshake and a smile for the official photo is more than enough. Should we not emulate politicians? CEOs of important companies seldom bother to study languages. They have enough with their own. I have come to the conclusion that life is short and we should not waste a minute of it with the effort, time and money involved in language-learning. It takes years and years and the result is never satisfactory: native speakers will always mock our accent, mimic our ways and call us names. Sometimes they will even look down on us, to boot. The heck with them. Advertisement I am going to concentrate all my efforts in making money because I have read that money is the sinews of war and everything else, even if we only speak one language. Body language gives us plenty of possibilities to convey our thoughts and can be "spoken" in all countries. Do not ever try to learn Spanish if you only speak English, and do not attempt to speak English if you already speak the language of Cervantes. Let others make the effort. Let'em learn! I am sorry to have taken so long to realize this and I am quick to pass my new findings on to you to mend my past errors on this subject. I have turned into a convert scoff-language linguist. If you do not share my new views, you can always heed my old words on learning languages. Did I write the above in earnest? Am I in truth a wolf, a ravening one, in sheep's clothing? Let me in on your opinion, please, because perhaps I have left the blacktop for a gravel path. Computer keyboard with vote key Every election year, I see and hear about people being fired for what candidates they support and for political discussions at work. And every election year, I'm asked: is this legal? The answer is maybe. Mostly, it depends on what state you work in. A good example of the vagaries of state laws on political firings is the case where the North Carolina Supreme Court just decided that it was not a violation of the state's political coercion law for a sheriff to fire deputies for failing to contribute to his campaign. Advertisement But what about the First Amendment, you ask. I have free speech rights, don't I? The answer is no. You absolutely do not have the right to free speech at work unless you work for the government (and even then, not as much as you might think). The Bill of Rights only applies to government action. It sets out what our founders decided the government couldn't do to citizens. It does not apply to what corporations can do to its citizens. Still, not all political speech and activities are unprotected. Here are some instances where your political involvement might have some legal protection: Concerted activity: While employers can certainly prohibit general political discussions and political campaigning at work, the National Labor Relations Act says that private employers cannot prohibit discussions about workplace conditions. Therefore, if employees discuss why a candidate is better for them as workers, then the employer can't fire them for that discussion. On the other hand, employers can force you, as a captive audience, to attend meetings and listen to one-sided political pitches on behalf of candidates unless you live in Oregon, which has the Worker Freedom Act. New Jersey has a similar law. Labor Union Insignia: While employers can prohibit wearing of most political buttons, shirts and other campaign items, it can't prohibit union insignia. They could probably, for instance, prohibit a button that says, "Hillary," but not one that says, "AFSCME For Hillary." Advertisement Objecting to discrimination: If you object to illegal discrimination based on race, sex, religion, national origin, disability, pregnancy, age, or some other protected status, you are protected against retaliation by Title VII, the federal law prohibiting discrimination. Since there are prominent candidates who are Hispanic, black and/or female, discriminatory comments may arise. If you report to HR that your supervisor made racist or sexist comments about a candidate that offended you, then you should be protected against retaliation. If your employer limits political discussions by some, but not all employees, then they may run afoul of discrimination laws. Much of today's partisan politics is about religion, for instance. If your employer wants only one point of view expressed in your private sector job, the First Amendment won't help you but discrimination laws might. Political affiliation/activities: Not all states have laws prohibiting political affiliation discrimination or termination for political activities, but many do. So do some counties and cities. The Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 prohibits political affiliation discrimination against federal employees. In Michigan, the laws prohibit direct or indirect threats against employees for the purpose of influencing their vote. It also prohibits tracking of political activity. In Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Kentucky, employers are prohibited from posting or handing out notices threatening to shut down or lay off workers if a particular candidate is elected. In Oregon, it's illegal to threaten loss of employment in order to influence the way someone votes. In Washington State, it's illegal to retaliate against employees for failing to support a candidate, ballot position or political party. Some states, like California, Colorado, New York, North Dakota and Louisiana, say it's illegal to retaliate against an employee for their off-duty participation in politics or political campaigns. In Florida, it's a felony to "discharge or threaten to discharge any employee in his or her service for voting or not voting in any election, state, county, or municipal, for any candidate or measure submitted to a vote of the people." Activity outside work: Some states and localities prohibit employers for firing or disciplining employees for legal activities outside work. If you're involved in a political campaign and you work in one of these states, you can't be fired for your political activities as long as they are legal activities. Advertisement Contract: If you have a contract saying you can only be fired for cause, then check what is says constitutes "cause." It all depends on how it was drafted. Best read up before you give any press interviews that might offend your employer's customers if you think you're protected. Time Off to Vote: Most states, but not all, require employers to let you take time off to vote. Before you spout off at work (or anywhere) about something your employer, customers or coworkers might deem offensive, think about how little protection you have. Remember, there's no free speech in corporate America. If you're in one of the unlucky states that has little or no protection for employees, campaign season is a great time to ask candidates what they plan to do to protect workers. Cuban President Raul Castro attends an agreements' signing ceremony with French President Francois Hollande during a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, Monday, Feb. 1, 2016. Cuban President Raul Castro is paying a state visit to France, in the first European foray by a Cuban leader in two decades, as Cuba opens up its economy. (Etienne Laurent, Pool photo via AP) The Obama administration has continued its effort to expand contact between the U.S. and Cuba by easing restrictions on travel, exports, and export financing. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker spoke of "building a more open and mutually beneficial relationship." However, the administration expressed concern over Havana's dismal human rights practices. Although Raul Castro's government has continued economic reforms, it has maintained the Communist Party's political stranglehold. Indeed, despite the warm reception given the Pope last fall, the regime has been on the attack against Cubans of faith. Advertisement In a new report, the group Christian Solidarity Worldwide warned of "an unprecedented crackdown on churches across the denominational spectrum," which has "fueled a spike in reported violations of freedom of religion or belief." There were 220 specific violations of religious liberties in 2014, but 2300 last year, many of which "involved entire churches or, in the cases of arrests, dozens of victims." In contrast, there were only 40 cases in 2011. Even in the best of times, the Castros have never been friends of faith in anything other than themselves. The State Department's 2014 report on religious liberty reported that it was easier for Cubans to engage in some charitable and educational projects and import Bibles. However, "the government harassed outspoken religious leaders and their followers, including reports of beating, threats, detentions, and restrictions on travel. Religious leaders reported the government tightened controls on financial resources." Last year, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom was similarly critical. The number of believers is growing, but the regime attempts to closely control religious practices. The Commission explained: "Serious religious freedom violations continue in Cuba, despite improvements for government-approved religious groups." Never mind the papal visit, "the government continues to detain and harass religious leaders and laity, interfere in religious groups' internal affairs, and prevent democracy and human rights activists from participating in religious activities." Now CSW has issued its own report. There long has been discrimination against Christians in employment, university, and primary/secondary education. Communist Party members who convert and leave the party "face particular discrimination," including threats made against them and their families. Advertisement However, last year's increase in persecution "was largely due to the government declaring 2000 Assemblies of God (AoG) churches illegal, ordering the closure or demolition of 100 AoG churches in three provinces, and expropriating the properties of a number of other denominations, including the Methodist and Baptist Conventions." Indeed, many church groups suffered at the Cuban government's hands. For instance, Berean Baptists and Jehovah's Witnesses were stripped of their official registration, placing them outside of the law; the Vetero-Catholic Church was prevented from registering. Noted CSW: "Religious groups across the spectrum reported varying degrees of hostility from the government." This wide-ranging campaign was led by the Office of Religious Affairs. Noted CSW: In 2015, the ORA continued to deny authorization for a number of religious activities and in cooperation with other government agencies, issued fines and threats of confiscation to dozens of churches and religious organizations. The ORA also sanctioned the arbitrary expropriation of historic, registered church properties and the actions against the AoG churches. Through the ORA the Communist Party has been given general control over religious activities. Indeed, reported CSW, the Office "exists solely to monitor, hinder and restrict the activities of religious groups." It often blocks church activities, building repairs, and clerical travel. Last year the ORA worked with the Ministry of Housing to shut or destroy churches. Religious officials argue that religious activities should only be subject to government oversight, and only when there is a demonstrated need. However, in the Castro regime's view, "need" is entirely political. The regime also has increasingly targeted church leaders and congregants, for the first time in years jailing one of the former and detaining many of the latter. In early January two churches were destroyed, church members arrested, and three church leaders held incommunicado. In some cases pastors' homes were surrounded, nearby roads were blocked, cell phones were disrupted, and even children were held captive. One of the government's more odious practices, according to CSW, has been to threaten churches with closure if they "do not comply with government demands to expel and shun specific individuals." Failure to surrender can result in sustained surveillance, pressure on congregants to file complaints against church leaders, and approaches to denominational leadership. This attempt to socially isolate believers "has been utilized by the Cuban government since the earliest days of the Revolution." Advertisement The government's repression has triggered public demonstrations. In October hundreds of people marched in Santiago de Cuba, Contramaestre, and Guantanamo to protest the planned destruction of an AoG church in Santiago. Church members also organized a sit-in at the sanctuary. Unfortunately, the regime apparently learned its lesson. In early January the government initiated mass arrests and blocked phones in an apparent attempt to preclude similar protests with the demolition of two other churches. The regime's destructive activities have been justified under a legal decree issued last year nominally to enforce zoning laws. But in practice the measure is a subterfuge to shut down churches. Alas, there's no reason to believe that the regime plans to stop with AoG sanctuaries. Noted CSW, legislation approved in 2005 "imposes complicated and repressive restrictions on house churches, which likely constitute the majority of churches in Cuba." While not consistently implemented in the past, "church leaders have repeatedly expressed concern at its potential to close down a large percentage of house churches." The Castros have ruled Cuba for more than a half century. They obviously still fear losing control. CSW concluded that the ongoing crackdown was an attempt to limit calls for social reform which would complement ongoing, though limited, economic changes. Detentions initially were concentrated on "Cubans considered by the government to be political dissidents," including the Ladies in White movement, Catholic women who protest by dressing in white and walking city streets, carrying gladioli. The regime crackdown later "expanded to include other individuals associated with independent civil society, including human rights and democracy activists." The Obama administration was right to engage Cuba. After more than 50 years, the embargo serves no useful purpose. Continuing this failed policy will not bring freedom to the island in the future. However, even lifting all economic restrictions won't turn Cuba into a democracy. Only sustained pressure from within and without Cuba is likely to force the Castro regime to yield control to the Cuban people. Americans should forthrightly encourage freedom in Cuba. Religious believers here should be particularly vocal in supporting people seeking to live out their faith under Communist oppression. Some day autocracy will give way to liberty even in Cuba. As a longtime bastion for sexually dynamic Mustached Americans, UPS's hearty fleet of Teamster drivers have embraced Mustached Americana like few other professions in modern day corporate America. At the same time, however, the package delivery giant has maintained a two-party system of fairness, or lack thereof, amongst people of facial hair, choosing to discriminate against bearded Americans. Indeed, in spite of pleas from drivers and other employees to allow deeper levels of facial hair coverage -- ranging from beards to goatees to Fu Machu-style facial forestry units -- UPS has denied usage of anything beyond a Chevron-style mustache -- or a mustache that only covers the top of a man or woman's upper lip. Advertisement Thus due to its rigid policies that violate the civil liberties enjoyed by most most Americans and Delaware residents, today the American Mustache Institute placed UPS executives on notice that its rigid stance would face fierce opposition from the global facial hair community. Gentlemen, Recently, a change.org petition calling for UPS to amend their facial hair guidelines to allow for groomed beards to adorn the shamefully bare faces of their drivers was brought to our attention. We at the American Mustache Institute represent over 50,000 members worldwide, and are the leading globally-recognized facial hair advocacy group. That said, it is incumbent upon us to advocate not only for those choosing to engage in the Mustached American lifestyle, but for all of our brothers and sisters seeking freedom from the clean-shaven majority. It is our position that UPS has a unique opportunity to be at the forefront of the inevitable acceptance of those across the spectrum of face fur. We are prepared to offer the services and insights of our highly capable and good looking faculty to assist in the implementation of new guidelines regarding facial hair, and would be happy to do so free of charge. Furthermore, our marketing Fellows can be made available to help UPS tap into the highly desirable Male 25-54, classically good looking demographic. This is an amazing opportunity to not only highlight UPS's progressive culture and dedication to their employee's robust and hyper-attractive style of living, but to broaden their customer base with the delivery-shipping population of tomorrow. We urge you to consider the implications of the current draconian system in place. Trust that not only are bearded and mustached employees happier, more productive, and engage in significantly less turnover, the inherent increase in testosterone production makes them upwards of 36.2% more efficient than their bald-faced counterparts. Advertisement To ignore these facts would be, simply put, a poor business move. The opportunity to blaze a new, ruggedly handsome path is in front of you all. Be bold. Let them beard. You're welcome, By Daniel Oldis via DreamsCloud While your dreams may not be coming soon to an IMAX theater near you, technology has already evolved to the point of being able to recording a very simple dream and projecting it on a computer screen, complete with your dream images, your dream conversations and your movements within the dream. Combined technology developed at the University of California at Berkeley, NASA and the University of Texas at Austin, is currently capable of creating a movie (even one in virtual reality) of a simple dream such as seeing a friend, walking up to them, waving, saying "Hello" by name and shaking their hand. But if you're looking to jump into this new age of oneiric (dream) filmmaking, be forewarned, it will not be comfortable (nor cheap!). Advertisement To experience it, you'll need to sleep in an MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) scanner, wearing a brainwave headband with electrodes glued to your throat, legs, arms and wrists. Sound comfy yet? And prior to bedtime, you will need to train the computer software in speech patterns and words, and watch videos and photographs of friends, trees, houses, chairs -- things you may often dream about. You will need to rehearse movements such as walking, waving and shaking hands. And then after all of that, hope you dream of trees or chairs or friends (and not The Walking Dead); and all of that effort and discomfort for a somewhat grainy short film of your dream that may have little chance for an Oscar ("The nominees for the best celebrity fantasy dream are...") Still, it could be amazing to watch your dream in live action and share it to Facebook (depending on the dream, of course -- talk about privacy issues; Freud would turn over in his grave!). So, how is all of this possible? The answer is diverse technologies working together to create a story from tracking the visual, verbal and motor activity in dreams. Advertisement For mental image reconstruction, Jack Gallant, a UC Berkeley neuroscientist, uses MRI to decipher and reconstruct visual images (such as faces) in the brain and project them onto a computer screen. Training subjects by viewing photographs and videos and saving the brain patterns, the software is able to rebuild these images when the subjects internally visualize the same images. Gallant comments in the journal Current Biology, "We are opening a window into the movies in our minds ... imagine tapping into the mind of a coma patient, or watching one's own dream on YouTube." (1) Other researchers have found similar success. Yukiyasu Kamitani, a scientist at the ATR Computational Neuroscience Laboratories, in Kyoto, Japan, writes, "We were able to reveal dream content from brain activity during sleep, which was consistent with the subjects' verbal reports." (2) Yet, images are only part of a dream. We also speak in dreams and have conversations with other dream characters. Dream speech is detectable with electronic sensors placed on the voice box and other muscles involved in talking. As far back as 1971, scientists have documented that dream speech and conversation elicits corresponding sub vocal muscle potential. One researcher noted, "Approximately 4.5 percent of sleep time or approx. 20 minutes per night were accompanied by activity of speech muscles." (3) Sub vocal, sometimes called covert speech, are words and sentences that we hear in our head but don't speak out loud. Their detection and transcription by software is popular in many research labs (and NASA) focused on mind reading for medical and governmental ("spy vs. spy") applications. Advertisement Motorola has even patented its electronic smart tattoo, a skin micro-lab that can be placed over the vocal cords and possibly read our thoughts -- or conversations in dreams (4). The challenge for dream speech recording is the same as for visual image interpretation -- in order to recognize brain images or spoken words and sentences in dreams, the software needs to be trained on each person's voice and word patterns. Saying "Hello Jane" is fairly easy to train with common words: "Mother, you obfuscate..." is a bit harder. In addition to the visual images we see in dreams and the conversations with dream characters, the remaining piece for making dream movies is the physical body movements of the dreamer (often called the dream ego or the "I" in the dream -- or the star of our movies). If the dreamer walks, waves and shakes Jane's hand in the dream, the movie needs to show (from the dreamer's perspective) motion forward, arm raised, waving, hand extended and clasping Jane's hand. By placing the perspective from the dreamer's point of view, it creates a virtual reality feel to the movie. The technology behind bodily tracking of dreams is the electromyography (EMG) sensor. It is well established that bodily actions in dreams send related nerve signals to the muscles involved in the dream behavior -- though actual physical movement is generally suppressed in rapid eye movement (REM) dreams. Dream walking and running send signals to the legs and feet; waving, lifting and grasping sends impulses to the arm, wrist and hands; even listening to sounds in a dream sends signals to the middle ear. (5) Advertisement Also, heart rate rises with exertion in a dream -- which is a good way to get your cardio-workout while sleeping! The EMG sensors can detect this movement activity in all the muscles and trained software can decipher and reconstruct the dream behavior represented. At the University of Texas sleep lab experimenters are attempting to recreate rudimentary dream narratives from EMG data (6). None of the three techniques discussed alone will allow for a movie to be constructed from a dream story; technology for tracking visual imagery, dream speech and body movement need to be used together to form a movie from even the simplest dream. And eventually the technology needs to be affordable and convenient -- without extensive training -- so we can all watch a movie made just for us -- by us! For dreamers who do not want to wait for the ready-made DVD versions of their dreams, they can still employ their own dream memories in creating movies with software such as Media Molecule's new Dreams game for the PlayStation 4, set to release in 2016. According to Michael Rundle of Wired, "Dreams is essentially a crafting tool to let players suck out their subconscious for the rest of the world to explore ... intuitive controls will let players create logical rules and boundaries, so that when uploaded their dreams will form self-contained, shareable game worlds." (7) Dreams are among the most private and unpredictable products of our mind. Recording them or making movies of them invites many personal and ethical questions: What about dream hacking? What of socially unacceptable content (we can all get a little weird in our dreams)? What about dream interpretation -- will dream movies become an aid for self-discovery and therapists or an obstacle? Advertisement All new technology comes with risks and perhaps the more intimate the technology, the greater the risks. When you do accept your Oscar in the future genre of best "Dreamplay," please remember to thank all the people that made it possible: producer, actor, director, set designer -- all you, of course! DreamsCloud is the world's leading online dream resource, with an interactive database of more than 1.9 million dreams. Offering a 360-degree approach to dreaming -- including a real-time global dream map, dream journaling/sharing tools, a massive online dream dictionary of over 5000 dream symbols, and the largest group of professional dream reflectors -- DreamsCloud empowers users to better understand their dreams and improve their waking lives. They also offer a free app for iOS and Android called DreamSphere. Daniel Oldis, M.A. is a respected lucid dreaming author and expert. An English and Psychology college teacher, current work includes studies on social dreaming and inter-dream communication. Mr. Oldis is the Social Dreaming Advisor at DreamsCloud. References: (1) "Scientists use brain imaging to reveal the movies in our mind" by Yasmin Anwar; Berkeley News, Sept. 22, 2011: "Neural portraits of perception: Reconstructing face images from evoked brain activity" by Alan Cowen; Neuroimage, March 8, 2014 Advertisement (2) "Scientists 'read dreams' using brain scans" by Rebecca Morelle; BBC World Service, April 4, 2013 (3) The Psychophysiology of Thinking: Studies of Covert Processes by F Mcguigan; Elsevier, Dec 2, 2012 (4) "Motorola patents e-tattoo that can read your thoughts by listening to unvocalized words in your throat" by John Hewitt; Extreme Tech, January 7, 2014 (5) States of Consciousness: Experimental Insights into Meditation, Waking, Sleep and Dreams by Dean Cvetkovic and Irena Cosic; Springer Science & Business Media, Jun 22, 2011 (6) Thought Technology Ltd. provided some of the EMG sensors for these studies. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences created one doozy of a headache for itself when it recently announced an all-white cadre of Oscar nominees. And adding insult to injury, in two of the year's biggest films about African-American characters -- "Creed" and "Straight Outta Compton" -- nominations for those movies also went to whites. The lack of inclusion of African-American actors resulted in calls for boycotts by industry leaders Spike Lee and Jada Pinkett Smith. In response to this power of protest, Academy of Motion Pictures President Cheryl Boone Isaacs issued a statement promising more diversity. Only time will tell if this quick reaction results in greater inclusion. The irony of the Oscar incident, and its swift remedial promise is that similar, if not worse, forms of exclusion surround us every day. Yet these exclusions result in neither powerful calls for redress nor do such exclusions lead to any commitments for change. One need not go far to see the force and power of exclusion, despite our classical American rhetoric of equality, and the good ole American Dream that every child can one day become president. Advertisement As the Securities and Exchange Commissioner Luis Aguilar observed, "there is a persistent lack of diversity in corporate boardrooms across this country -- women and minorities remain woefully underrepresented.... the Alliance for Board Diversity compiled statistics about the composition of the boards of directors of Fortune 100 companies and found the majority of board members, 71.5%, were white men, and only 28.5% of the board seats were held by women and minorities." In all likelihood, even these facts would not have likely come to light had not a Latino not raised them. In politics, the presidency has been 98 % white and 100% male. The 2013 Congress for its part was 82% white and 81 % male, despite Blacks, Latinos, and Asians alone representing 30% of the overall population. Likewise, only 10% of governors are people of color, and roughly 10% of governors are women despite women representing roughly 52% of our overall population. Evidently, not all of us have come a long way, baby? Even in the hallowed halls of academia, which is supposed to represent the most enlightened of our collective thinking, the statistics are essentially the same, if not worse. In the legal academy, for instance, which is often accused the most liberal of all academic disciplines; the diversity figures are flat out embarrassing. Despite Latinos and Latinas, for instance, representing roughly 17% of the U.S. population and representing often-comparable percentages in student bodies, more than half of law schools do not have a single Latina or Latino on their tenure track faculty." Indeed, all but a handful of the country's over 200 law schools have a Latino or Latina dean; this is so despite preeminent diversity scholar Michael Olivas noting many law schools are located in urban areas, and the qualifications of the Latino/a professoriate are as good and in many instances superior to that of their white counterparts. . Advertisement If all of the above is true, where then are the protests and the swift promises for change? Much like with the Oscars issue, perhaps Scott Feinberg's observations apply with equal strength to the rest of society: "the root of the problem has less to do with the Academy than with the film industry as a whole. Very few people of color direct or star in major American movies because of decisions made by the studios for reasons of commerce and/or bigotry." Doctor comforting patient in office In his recent State of the State address, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo spoke not just as a political leader but as a son still grieving the loss of his father. "I have kicked myself every day that I didn't spend more time with my father at that end period," he said. The governor noted that he had the choice but that many in his state do not. "Their employer says, 'If you don't come, you're fired, you don't get paid." Advertisement Fortunately, there's a solution. Governor Cuomo announced that one of his top priorities this session will be passing 12 weeks of paid family leave. Hundreds of miles away in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Nancy Yarbrough welcomed those remarks. When her mother had two heart attacks, Nancy was determined to care for her. But she was horrified to discover family leave was unpaid, adding financial stress to the pain of losing "the one who brought you into the world, nurtured, and cared for you." Hard as it was to talk about her loss, Nancy felt the legislators in her state needed to understand. So she traveled to Madison January 26 to testify before the Senate Labor and Government Reform Committee about a paid leave bill like New York's. Nancy looked the senators in the eye and said, "I can't understand why I had to choose between paying my bills and being right beside my mother in her last days. I took a deep breath today and told my mother, this is for you." Senators from both parties were clearly moved by Nancy and by all the other stories they heard that day -- including several people forced back to work within days of giving birth because of living "paycheck to paycheck"; a father who was told to get into work instead of caring for his newborn because "You didn't have that baby, your wife did"; a mother whose unpaid leave meant she couldn't afford the funeral for her newborn baby. The Senators referred to their own family members, to the indelible mark left by grief. Advertisement I also testified that day. I talked about a group that had come to Madison 28 years earlier to try to persuade legislators to pass a state Family and Medical Leave Act -- unpaid time, but at least a guarantee of job protection and continued health insurance. That group was made up of children; each had a story of why their parents had needed time to care for them or another family member. They met with Secretary of Employment Relations John Tries. One of the kids was Noah Michaelson, then age nine, who'd had cancer when he was five. The only way he'd been able to bear the grueling treatments, he said, was having both his parents there, one to hold him and the other to tell him a story. Yet the kid in the next bed had no parent present during his treatments. What Noah didn't know at the time but now understood was that this child's parents would have lost their jobs and health insurance if they'd been at his side. Secretary Tries was moved by those children. When they'd all shared their stories, he told them, "We're so used to hearing from lobbyists, we forget about the people who are affected by the bills that we pass." Then he asked if any of the kids had a question. The youngest was my son, age 7, who'd once been hit by a car and couldn't fathom having to be in the hospital without his parents. He shot his hand up and asked, "Why wouldn't the governor sign this bill?" Thanks to the kids, the governor did sign. That bill helped pave the way for the federal Family and Medical Leave Act, signed 23 years ago on February 5. It was a great first step. But many kids -- and ailing parents -- still lie alone in the hospital. Nearly one in four mothers go back to work within two weeks of giving birth. Countless people fall into financial hardship simply for being good family members. And, as business experts remind us, that hurts businesses as well as families. Three states, California, New Jersey and Rhode Island, have already passed bills that grant workers access to paid leave through family and medical leave insurance funds. Our movement may double that number this year with wins in places like New York, Washington, D.C. and Connecticut. More wins are on the horizon. Advertisement Man in yoga position Mindfulness is quickly following yoga in becoming a billion-dollar industry. It's no surprise, then, that the popularity of meditation - one way to practice mindfulness - is also growing among CEOs and senior executives. Why are business leaders embracing meditation rather than, say, massage or ping-pong? Because there's something to meditation that appears to benefit CEOs more than recreation or relaxation do alone. As CEO of the TLEX Institute, Johann Berlin specializes in bringing mindfulness training to CEOs and corporate teams. He says he's seeing a growing interest among leaders in meditation as a way to build leadership skills - and achieve business goals. "Most of our new clients ... are not sold by mindfulness as a novelty. They want to see how these approaches ... are truly beneficial to existing priorities like retention, talent advancement, innovation." For example, one of Berlin's clients, a Fortune 25 company, has integrated mindfulness techniques into its high potentials program with the goal of creating agile and flexible mindsets as a foundation for leadership. Advertisement The research on mindfulness suggests that meditation sharpens skills like attention, memory, and emotional intelligence. I spoke with a number of executives about their experiences with meditation, and saw again and again how their observations about meditation in the workplace connected back to the findings of academic research. Meditation builds resilience. Multiple research studies have shown that meditation has the potential to decrease anxiety, thereby potentially boosting resilience and performance under stress. That's certainly been true for Alak Vasa, founder of Elements Truffles, who started meditating as a trader at Goldman Sachs and ITG. She claims meditation helped her keep fear and panic at bay, even under duress. "There was this one instance where the market tanked and there was panic on the desk. The trading desk was an organized riot. Thanks to my meditation practice, I was able to keep my composure and propose solutions to reduce the impact of the market crash." Jonathan Tang, founder and CEO of VASTRM fashion, first introduced meditation to his staff after 9/11. "In the aftermath of 9/11, the employees at my company were noticeably shaky and distracted. I decided to bring in a meditation facilitator to offer people the ability to sit silent for 20 minutes. The room filled up quickly as people really needed an outlet for peace. When the session was over, people who had never meditated before were filled with a sense of calm. It helped them be more present at work and even carried forth to being more present with their families at home." Meditation boosts emotional intelligence. Brain-imaging research suggests that meditation can help strengthen your ability to regulate your emotions. Advertisement Archana Patchirajan, successful serial entrepreneur and CEO and Founder of Sattva, shared that in her early years as a leader, she wanted things to happen in her way and on her timeline. "I didn't tend to understand what my team was going through. I would just get angry if they did not perform according to my expectations. " Given research that shows anger's impact on cardiovascular health, it is critical that leaders be able to manage their anger, and put themselves in others' shoes. "Thanks to meditation I have developed patience." Archana says. "I have a better relationship with my team. Best of all, I maintain my peace of mind." Dr. James Doty, a neurosurgeon at Stanford University's School of Medicine, also values meditation for its ability to cultivate emotional intelligence. A colleague had developed a cutting-edge medical device, but the company he had started to develop and sell the device was on the rocks. Doty, an early investor, became the CEO. At a meeting with vital - but disgruntled - stakeholders, he faced an angry, unreasonable investor. He credits his mindfulness practice with helping him respond with empathy: "I paused and slowly took a few breaths... This led me to actually listen and understand not only his situation, but what he wanted and expected. By not responding in an emotional manner, it resulted in his not only becoming supportive but also becoming an ally in making the company a success. The company ultimately went public at a valuation of $1.3B. " Meditation enhances creativity. Research on creativity suggests that we come up with our greatest insights and biggest breakthroughs when we are in a more meditative and relaxed state of mind. That is when we have "eureka" moments. This is likely because meditation encourages divergent thinking (i.e. coming up with the greatest number of possible solutions to a problem), a key component of creativity. Charly Kleissner credits meditation with helping him come up with new ideas and ventures that would otherwise not have occurred to him. "I co-founded the 100% IMPACT Network because of my meditation practice." Advertisement Chirag Patel, CEO of Amneal Pharmaceuticals and Ernst & Young 2011 Entrepreneur of the Year, credits meditation with helping him feel more connected to his clients. "In a business you start connecting to your customer as your family rather than merely a business transaction." The same goes for his relationships with his colleagues and staff. Meditation helps you focus. Research has shown that our minds have a tendency to wander about 50% of the time. Add in work interruptions, text messages, IMs, phone calls, and emails, and it's no surprise that employees have a hard time staying focused. But studies show that meditation training can help curb our tendency for distraction, strengthening our ability to stay focused and even boosting memory. Peter Cooper, founder of Cooper Investors, attributes his ability to invest wisely to his meditation practice. "Being an investor requires the distillation of large volumes of information into a few relevant insights. Meditation has helped me discard interesting but unnecessary information and focus on the few things that make a difference to long run investment performance." *** Importantly, meditation is not just "one more thing to do." If you're thinking that you have enough on your plate and don't need yet another thing, consider this advice that Arianna Huffington shared with me. "Although I've known its benefits since my teens, finding time for meditation was always a challenge because I was under the impression that I had to 'do' meditation. And I didn't have time for another burdensome thing to 'do.' Fortunately, a friend pointed out one day that we don't 'do' meditation; meditation 'does' us. That opened the door for me. The only thing to 'do' in meditation is nothing." Advertisement But as both research and experience show, doing nothing can have real results. ___________ I've written a book on this topic and why happiness is the secret to success, see emmaseppala.com/book ___________ Childhood memories of the homes in which we grew up can become distorted over time. What once seemed idyllic may, in retrospect, help us understand how bad news was kept from us so that, despite events like the Holocaust, we could develop a positive outlook on the world. Looking back can also lead to a greater awareness of what might have caused some of us to evolve into dysfunctional adults. The famous abolitionist, Frederick Douglass, claimed that "It is easier to build strong children than to repair broken men." Current memes floating around the Internet include statements such as: "When you're accustomed to privilege, equality feels like oppression." "I see those penis enlargement pills are working -- you're a bigger dick today than you were yesterday." "There is a stronger link between childhood trauma and addiction than there is between obesity and diabetes. Two thirds of addicts report being abused as children. That means that the War on Drugs is a war on traumatized people that just need help." It's rare that one gets to witness the contrast between a happy household viewed nostalgically through an adult's eyes and the collapse of an unhappy household in back-to-back performances. When these two scenarios (heavily laden with fantasy) are set to music, audiences become more keenly attuned to the challenge of composing a score that will provide a solid foundation for what's transpiring onstage. Will there be an even balance between the audience's aural and visual experiences? Or must one necessarily trump the other? * * * * * * * * * * For the final production of its 2015 fall season, the San Francisco Opera's leadership opted to think waaaaaay outside the box by offering its audience a double bill of two works based on Edgar Allen Poe's famous short story, The Fall of the House of Usher. The evening opened with the American premiere of Gordon Getty's one-act opera, Usher House, and closed with La Chute de la Maison Usher (music and libretto by Claude Debussy reconstructed and orchestrated by Robert Orledge) in a co-production with the Welsh National Opera that was first staged by David Pountney in Cardiff in 2014. As General Director David Gockley explains: Advertisement To stress how far opera production styles have progressed from a dramatic stage presentation surrounded by painted drops to a cinematic type of experience, it's safe to say that this double bill was an evening in which audiences left the opera house whistling the projections. I do not mean that in a derogatory manner. Between filmed projection and digital mapping, today's state-of-the-art technology and stagecraft allow audiences to experience music well-suited to guiding them through a slowly paced musical nightmare framed in a rich visual format. The following stills (taken from David Haneke's projections for Usher House) show how easily a dramatic scene might be depicted onstage without having to build three-dimensional sets. A raven taunts Edgar Allen Poe (Jason Bridges) in the opening scene of Usher House (Photo by: Cory Weaver) A scene from Gordon Getty's Usher House (Photo by: Stephen Cummiskey) A scene from Gordon Getty's Usher House (Photo by: Stephen Cummiskey) Edgar Allen Poe (Jason Bridges) with Madeline Usher (Jamielyn Duggan) in a scene from Usher House (Photo by: Cory Weaver) Doctor Primus (Anthony Reed) in a scene from Usher House (Photo by: Cory Weaver) Edgar Allen Poe (Jason Bridges) and Roderick Usher (Brian Mulligan) in a scene from Usher House (Photo by: Cory Weaver) Advertisement A scene from Gordon Getty's Usher House (Photo by: Stephen Cummiskey) A scene from Gordon Getty's Usher House (Photo by: Stephen Cummiskey) Edgar Allen Poe (Jason Bridges) kneels outside the doomed edifice of Usher House (Photo by: Cory Weaver) In the following clip, Daniel Knapp (San Francisco Opera's Director of Production) explains how projected images evolve in front of the audience with the use of only three scrims. What happens when animation is added to the mix? The audience is drawn into a more cinematic, psychological, and often dream-like style of storytelling perfectly suited to characters plagued with paranoia or who are descending into madness. Whether it feels as if the audience is being taken on a virtual tour of a decrepit gothic mansion or an acid trip, the visuals quickly assert their dominance over the music. When discussing musical theatre, people often ask which comes first: the music or the lyrics. But with the advantages of digital mapping and today's projection techniques, perhaps the question that should really be asked is: Which is stronger? The visual or aural experience? Advertisement As I sat through this double bill by two composers from radically different eras and musical genres, I was struck by a curious thought: If one took away the music and simply depended on the titles and projections to tell the story, would it matter? In the case of Gordon Getty, I think not. And, following the recent advice of U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson ("If you hear something, say something"), I can't help wondering if Getty is a much more talented orchestrator than operatic composer. Throughout Usher House, it was obvious that although his ominous orchestrations helped to set the mood, Getty had trouble establishing any kind of interesting vocal line for a text that was often argumentative or declamatory. Toward the end of his one-act opera, he finally hit on a gimmick in which a performer sings several notes before jumping a fifth higher. Had I not had a peculiar earworm haunting me from a skit entitled "She Doesn't Have The Range" that I had watched on YouTube earlier that week, I probably would not have connected the musical dots between those great British comedians (Matt Lucas and David Walliams) and the final scenes of Getty's opera. The music held up much more strongly in Robert Orledge's completion of Debussy's score for The Fall of the House of Usher. I found Debussy's music infinitely more operatic, theatrical, and accessible than Getty's and could only marvel at conductor Lawrence Foster's ability to bring both scores to life. The following stills give a sense of the much more ominous approach to Poe's story taken in Debussy's one-act opera. Advertisement A scene from The Fall of the House of Usher (Photo by: Stephen Cummiskey) A scene from The Fall of the House of Usher (Photo by: Stephen Cummiskey) A scene from The Fall of the House of Usher (Photo by: Stephen Cummiskey) A scene from The Fall of the House of Usher (Photo by: Stephen Cummiskey) A scene from The Fall of the House of Usher (Photo by: Stephen Cummiskey) The doctor (Joel Sorensen) with Roderick Usher (Brian Mulligan) in a scene from The Fall of the House of Usher (Photo by: Cory Weaver) Roderick Usher (Brian Mulligan) is dwarfed by architectural projections in The Fall of the House of Usher (Photo by: Cory Weaver) Brian Mulligan as Roderick Usher in a nightmarish scene from The Fall of the House of Usher (Photo by: Cory Weaver) Roderick Usher (Brian Mulligan) stares at the ghost of his sister, Madeline (Jacqueline Piccolino) in a hallucinatory scene from The Fall of the House of Usher (Photo by: Cory Weaver) A scene from The Fall of the House of Usher (Photo by: Stephen Cummiskey) Without any doubt, the evening was a total triumph for baritone Brian Mulligan (who had already performed this season as Enrico in Donizetti's 1835 opera, Lucia di Lammermoor, as well as tackling the title role of Stephen Sondheim's 1979 masterpiece, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street). Here's some footage from the evening's double bill. Advertisement * * * * * * * * * * As I entered the Orpheum Theatre for the opening night of the national touring production of A Christmas Story: The Musical, I had no idea that I would be battling two unexpected handicaps during the performance. The shrill impact of a group of heavily amplified screaming adolescents onstage combined with the sleep deprivation resulting from a smoke detector whose alarm merrily chirped all night long in my apartment (because its battery was running low) made it difficult for me to stay alert and focused. The fact that I had never seen the 1983 film upon which the musical is based further diminished my enjoyment. Christian Dell'Edera as Flick in A Christmas Story: The Musical (Photo by: Carol Rosegg) That's not to suggest to suggest there is anything wrong with A Christmas Story: The Musical, which has a book by Joseph Robinette with music and lyrics by the team of Benj Pasek and Justin Paul. The touring production is a faithful knockoff of the show that was directed on Broadway by John Rando and choreographed by Warren Carlyle. With Matt Lenz recreating Rando's staging (using sets designed by Walt Spangler and costumes by Lisa Zinni), there was much to delight an audience. Advertisement Chris Carsten led off as the show's narrator (Jean Shepherd), while the stars of the show included Myles Moore as young Ralphie, Joshua Turchin as his brother (Randy), Christopher Swan as "The Old Man," and Susannah Jones as Ralphie's mother. Although Avital Asuleen held center stage in the big number written for the boys' substitute teacher, Miss Shields ("You'll Shoot Your Eye Out"), I was much more impressed with the simple sweetness of the mother's solo, "Just Like That." Daniel Smith enjoyed his moments as a crotchety Santa Claus and Charles Pang shone briefly as the waiter in a Chinese restaurant. However, the evening's professional scene stealers proved to be a young tap dancer named Seth Judice and the two Bumpus hounds (played by Hoss and Stella). Set in suburban Indiana during the late 1940s (when all that nine-year-old Ralphie can think about is how badly he wants Santa Claus to bring him a Red Ryder Carbine Action 200-shot Range Model air rifle), the production does a nice job of capturing an era when families ate dinner together and no one had the option of using handheld electronic devices to isolate themselves from friends and neighbors. Boys did a splendid job of getting into trouble simply because they were boys. Mothers had their work cut out for them according to strict gender roles. Fathers could make utter fools of themselves without being totally humiliated by their families. Christopher Swan as The Old Man in A Christmas Story: The Musical (Photo by: Carol Rosegg) While the family depicted in A Christmas Story: The Musical is a far cry from any of Norman Rockwell's paintings, it shares many moments of tenderness and dysfunctional behavior. The scene in which Randy (who has always refused to eat a full meal) discovers the joys of Chinese food was a special delight for me. Nevertheless, I must admit to having two sobering thoughts during the performance. In the second act, there is a scene of abject gun worship which felt downright creepy in light of recent mass shootings throughout America. And I couldn't help but wonder how the tone of A Christmas Story: The Musical might shift if Lewis Black had been cast as the show's narrator! Susannah Jones, Christopher Swan, Cal Alexander, and Colton Maurer in a scene from A Christmas Story: The Musical (Photo by: Carol Rosegg) Although I know how annoying it is when outsiders, including the UN Secretary General, blindly, amorally, blame Israelis and Palestinians equally, both the Israeli Left and Right disgust me these days. Leftists throw around the f-word, "fascism," as loosely as Rightists throw around the t-word, "traitor." Such overstatements underestimate Israel's robust yet stable democracy. Combatants could easily reverse the usual targeting: there is something "fascist" in hypercritical liberals shutting down their own critics by crying "fascist," while hyperpatriotic conservatives betray Israel's democratic ideals by yelling "traitor!" Political debates need not be delicate waltzes but they shouldn't always become barroom brawls. It shouldn't take Hamas kidnapping our teenagers or Palestinian teens slashing our neighbors to remind us of our common fate and shared values. It shouldn't require our enemies' libels or the world's moral obtuseness to see how our viciousness not only emboldens Israel bashers but demoralizes Israelis. And it shouldn't be considered the norm to spend 364 days annually pummeling each other, with a 24-hour Yom Ha'atzmaut break hailing Israel as a "miracle." America's presidential campaign and Congressional deadlock show that partisan name-calling is not just an Israeli affliction. Round-the-clock coverage, an unfiltered blogosphere, and growing individualism followed by fragmentation into self-sustaining and self-referential intellectual, communal, cultural and political silos, have polarized politics throughout the West. Advertisement Still, it's despicable for political hooligans to call David Grossman, among others, a "mole," a traitor, especially because he's a grieving father whose tank commander son Uri was killed fighting in the 2006 Lebanon War. Shortly after that life-shattering loss, addressing the Yitzhak Rabin memorial that November, Grossman elegantly insisted that the "tragedy ... does not give me special privileges in the public discourse." He said what dissenting patriots say: that his "love for this country is difficult and complicated, but nonetheless unequivocal." He acknowledged, unlike some deluded Leftists, that "not everything depends on our own actions, and there are stronger forces ... like Iran, like extreme Islam," that "seek to harm us." Similarly, imagine the anguish of a Natan Sharansky, having suffered years in the Gulag, feeling compelled to write an op-ed in Ha'aretz explaining to the self-righteous fanatics of Breaking the Silence--the IDF veterans who crisscross the globe libeling the Israeli army - why their campaign differs from "that of the dissidents who fought for human rights in the Soviet Union," despite their repeated comparisons between the two. Sharansky, who heroically outmaneuvered the KGB, explained that "Soviet dissidents set out to democratize a dictatorial regime, to create the kind of representative institution with which Israel is already blessed.... Breaking the Silence, by contrast, sets out to bypass an existing democratic government and resolve a controversial political issue by means of international pressure." Ethics of the Fathers, 2:1, teaches that people find the "right path" by bringing "tiferet" to themselves and humanity, with tiferet variously translated as splendor, glory, honor, harmony. In that spirit, Sharansky helped broker this week's historic, constructive Western Wall compromise, creating an egalitarian prayer space near Robinson's Arch, reflecting the kind of leadership we need and rarely get. Advertisement In fairness, with enemies for neighbors, Israel faces more disruptions to its political equanimity than most democracies. That same rabbinic passage ends by urging people to remember three things to help avoid sin: God's seeing eye, listening ear, and readiness to record our deeds. Just as believing in that Eternal Overseer steadies many individuals, Israelis' political behavior is further inflamed by the earthly version of the opposite: the world's biased perceptions and jaundiced chronicling. Too many outsiders, including too many Jews, view Israel harshly, using binoculars to magnify any Israeli missteps while flipping the field glasses around to minimize our enemies' sins. Thus, this week, the UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, rationalized Palestinian terrorism - magnifying Israeli responsibility while minimizing Palestinian culpability. At the same time, Canada's new prime minister, Justin Trudeau, marked Holocaust Remembrance Day with a generic statement about "suffering," ignoring the inconvenient fact that Hitler mounted an anti-Semitic War against the Jews. (Trudeau apologized, Ban Ki Moon double-down on his rhetoric). This tendency to exaggerate Palestinian suffering and slight Jewish suffering emboldens Palestinians, frustrates many Jews, and further roils the Israeli debate. Encouraged by the attacks, radical leftists pile on, hoping, as Sharansky warned, to bully Israel with international opprobrium. Discouraged by the attacks, radical rightists give up, losing faith in the world, the Palestinians, and their fellow citizens who dare disagree with them. Even in a vibrant democracy, bullying into silence is despicable while so much polarization is destructive. The myopia of both extremes is often ridiculous: the Right, targeting the EU, wants to publicize the foreign governments funding NGOs; the Left, resenting Sheldon Adelson, wants to publicize private donors. True transparency demands full disclosure of all contributions, regardless of the source, regardless of the political leaning. More fundamentally, at their worst, leftists minimize the values of loyalty and seemingly value transparency only when scrutinizing others; rightists ignore any Palestinian suffering and seemingly fight bigotry only when Jews endure it. Words like fascist and traitor, accusations of acting like Communists or Nazis, occasionally have their place in political discourse - but only when appalling acts truly deserve such harsh labels. Invoking these analogies so sloppily, so freely, unnecessarily inflames the political culture while obscuring the evil of the Soviet and Nazi regimes. Those who call all their critics fascists, won't recognize the real ones. Advertisement The Iowa caucuses apparently taught us that "religion" (a reasonably vague term) is significant in American politics. In my recent posts, I've been musing about American religious life and particularly how much less religious, and particularly committed to local congregations we are then it might seem. This is further highlighted by the 34% of emerging adults who answer "None" to the question "What is your religious affiliation?" One primary reason for this departure from congregations? According to a five-year study by Barna Group president David Kinnaman emerging adults see the church as "antiscience." What would it look like if churches engaged science in ways that would resonate with 18-30 year olds? Just recently, I finished a research project studying emerging adults' attitudes on science and how these views are formed and changed called Science for Students and Emerging, Young Adults (or SEYA). After the whirlwind of work that constitutes a sixteen-month study in which our SEYA team discussed religion and science with approximately 650 emerging adults, surveyed about 150 of those, and I had one hour interviews with twenty-eight emerging adults --it's sometimes hard for me to summarize succinctly. Nonetheless, here goes... What are four surprises in the way emerging adults think about religion and science? First of all, as I've written elsewhere, around two-thirds perceive conflict that's "out there" in the culture between science and religion although about the same amount personally seek collaboration or independence between the two. Second, concerns about sexuality and gender issues have become a science and religion topic. (This is not something you'd find in standard religion and science textbooks.) Third, technology--like the effect of screen time, the possibility of AI, the promise of transhumanism--has become central to science and religion in the past decade or so. It's not just pure science anymore. (Big Bang cosmology, evolution, step aside.). Advertisement Fourth and most importantly, religion and science are becoming increasingly pluralistic. Talking about "religion and science" may sound like a conversation between two things, but 18-30 year olds see it differently. They have grown up in environments saturated with options and possibilities. And though pluralism is not certainly new, this experience has become increased through the explosion of knowledge on the Internet. Consider, for example, that the number of websites is hovering around one billion. This generation has been formed in an age of dazzling diversity of all kinds, including worldviews, religions, sexual identities, and racial-ethnic concerns. Life is open with greater possibilities than for past generations. Princeton sociologist Robert Wuthnow uses a phrase (which he borrows from Claude Levi-Strauss) to describe the lifestyle of many 18-30 year olds: bricoleurs--those who love to "tinker" or assemble of variety of disparate objects to create a composite. "A tinkerer puts together a life from whatever skills, ideas, and resources that are readily at hand." Spiritually, emerging adults often live as "spiritual bricoleurs," which "involves piercing together ideas about spirituality from many sources." Admittedly, it's also huge question whether "science" is one thing or whether there simply "sciences"; but I'll leave that aside. It is certainly clear that emerging adults are experimenting with various religious inputs, whether inside congregations or not. Put a slightly different way, they find it hard to decide on one religion in light of all the possibilities for spirituality, which makes it difficult to know which religion to bring to science. Their parents advised them "Every one has right to their own beliefs" without much guidance on how to decide among those alternatives. "I can't commit to any religion until I know more" was a common refrain in my surveys and interviews. Some call this a generational "choice phobia," but it may also be a statement of supreme humility. And this pluralism, even within churches, is not simply moving beyond religion and Christianity to any number of other religions, whether "world religions" or indigenous ones. It is about dividing religious practice in various slices. Analogically, this approach to religion is like an iPod or Pandora playlist instead of a vinyl LP: listeners find their choices from a variety of artists based on setting a mood or a feel. The music they listen to isn't bound by the sequence that the artist herself assembles. We have left the world of two-dimensional "science and religion" to something much more multi-dimensional and for which I frankly have no adequate term as a replacement. Malek Jandali is a critically-acclaimed Syrian composer and pianist. A naturalized American citizen, Jandali has used the power of music to impact the international community. A fearless opponent of the Syrian regime, Jandali was awarded the Global Music Humanitarian Award and was selected as one of the Great Immigrants of 2015 by the Carnegie Corporation of New York. Jandali is notorious for his work, "Ana Watani(I Am My Homeland)", a song he composed in 2011 to protest the Assad regime's killing of Syrian children. As a result of Jandali's song, regime forces brutally beat Jandali's parents at their home in Homs, attempting to punish them for their son's behavior. Advertisement I had the opportunity to speak with Malek Jandali about the recent projects of his. Growing up in Syria, Jandali studied at the Arab Institute of Music in Damascus, one of the world's most prestigious centers of learning. His roommate there was a man named Abdulrahim Alsiadi. While Jandali was one of the academy's most extraordinary pianists, Alsiadi was known for his ability to play the oud, a stringed instrument prominent in Arab music. After graduating from the academy, Jandali left Syria upon getting a scholarship to transition from pianist to a composer at the North Carolina School of the Arts in 1994. 3 years later, Alsiadi would join him in America, pursuing a PhD in American Studies at Rutgers University. Jandali and his old college roommate lived parallel lives, not really expecting to ever collaborate on music again. But after over almost two decades in America, Jandali and Alsiadi united once again with the idea of spreading music that could be the voice of the children suffering in the Syria. Jandali and Alsiadi recruited Juilliard-educated cellist, Laura Metcalf, to create The Malek Jandali Trio. Advertisement While media shows Syrian people as caught up in all of these acts of violence, The Malek Jandali Trio was created to show the world the Syrian people's humanity. "It is not something we learned at Fordham or Harvard. Even the illiterate Syrian man will respect the synagogue, mosque, and church because Syria is a symphonic environment," Jandali told me. "You will hear the call to prayer and church bells in harmony as you walk through the streets of Homs, Damascus and Aleppo...The Syrian people are naturally embracing of humanity. It is organic." Consisting of an oud that draws from traditional Arab elements and a piano and cello that derive elements from classical Western elements, Jandali's Trio showcases coexistence of cultures. Similar to the diversity of the Syrian people, Jandali describes these different music forms as "independent and maintaining our identities, yet unified in harmony." They have showcased their project,"The Voice of the Free Syrian Children," worldwide for audiences in Abu Dhabi, Germany, Croatia, France and Spain, where the Queen of Spain was in attendance. Advertisement "Our message really is a simple message...We just want humanity and peace," Jandali said, In a world where Syrian people are repeatedly dehumanized, Jandali wants the world to know,"We need to be conscious of humanity at this time...The Syrian children are more than numbers." Inspired upon hearing Syrian children singing for justice and humanity at a train station in Croatia, Jandali created four movements called,"Luminosity," which will be debuting at Carnegie Hall this Saturday, February 6th, to celebrate the tenaciousness of these children. Along with Luminosity, Jandali will also be launching his latest project,"Soho," telling the story of his journey from Syria to the SoHo neighborhood of New York City, which includes a Syrian-American community that has been in America since the late 1800's. Jandali's project has also showcased so many different types of children. As a result of a contest Jandali held, a 14 year old Korean-American boy will be opening the show on Saturday. After that, Jandali will also honor young musicians from Tunisia and Egypt. Speaking with Jandali, I was thoroughly impressed and at times taken back by just how sincere and simplistic his message was. Advertisement "How could the Assad regime be so bothered by a piano? Most of his songs do not even have word. How is this so influential?" I asked. This is more than music, Jandali explained. It is "not a concert...Not a project. It is a journey in time and around the globe. It is a journey to celebrate our humanity...Nobody can destroy my music. You can kill the musician but you cannot kill the music." Jandali's message is universal. Just like the psychological wound that Syrian children must endure, Jandali's music carries a lot of power though it cannot physically be seen. His album, "Soho" tells a story of the journey from Syria to America, beginning in 4000 BC when the Syrian people created the first musical note all the way up to Jandali performing in Carnegie Hall on Saturday. It draws on influences from Chilean poets to Sufi mystics like Rumi and Ibn Arabi, to African American poets like Rita Dove to even having a band from Croatia come to perform. After performing at Carnegie Hall, Jandali will continue on traveling the world, celebrating the voices of the Syrian children, in Mexico followed by a performance at Oxford Union for the Dalai Lama. Such is the power of a music. On Saturday, Malek Jandali's parents, now in America free from the hands of the brutal Assad regime, will be in attendance for their son's concert at Carnegie Hall. Malek will dedicate a song for them called,"Moonlight," based upon on Tala Al Badru, a hymn sung for the Prophet Muhammad(Peace be Upon Him) and his companions upon them arriving in Madinah, away from the persecution Muslims faced in Mecca. Advertisement Malek Jandali is a voice of inspiration and humanity. Syria is a humanitarian disaster which has been treated as a sphere of influence and discussion of politics. sen. hillary clinton speaks at ... As Americans prepare for a changing of the presidential guard in 2016 several candidates continue to vie for the position from both sides of the political aisle. With an overwhelmingly divided country on the economy, foreign affairs, and more recently racial issues, the next candidate will have to take seriously many of the sociopolitical concerns facing our nation. This poses a variety of questions as to who will be the next president and if one is chosen, who should African Americans in particular vote for? So, I have considered a couple of key reasons why I think African Americans should throw their support and vote to Hillary Clinton. This does in no way reduce the political efficacy and acumen of the other candidates from the Democratic or Republican Party, but I claim that Hillary Clinton should be the candidate for African Americans in the United States for seven key reasons. Advertisement First, Hillary has a long and impressive track record for supporting children and families. Her allegiance to humanity and the pivotal role that families play on a variety of fronts is impressive, consistent in her message, and evident in her own life walk. From her days of lobbying and pushing for universal health care to her focus on social and economic development and empowerment, Hillary has carved out a clear history of supporting the backbone of American democracy, and haven't turned her gaze away from focusing on strengthening families all across America. As a testament to this fact, Hillary Co-founded the Arkansas Advocates for Children and Families. She has been a strong voice for children, especially those living on the margins and languishing in the corners of desolation and poverty. She has relentlessly championed the cause of health care reform and have been a persistent voice in helping to increase access to a myriad of health care services for people in small towns, rural communities, and inner-cities. Hence, at every level of her professional political career, including her time serving under the Obama administration, she has maintained a steady position with respect to her stance on advocating and advancing the cause for women, minorities, and children. Second, Hillary at least has been trustworthy. While I know most Republicans and her other competitors would disagree, I feel Hillary will be and has been honest with the voters and will not try to engage in forces or activities that would dupe the American people. Washington is full of deals that have to be made in order to get the things you want. So, Hillary is no stranger to that political game. And she has the political savviness, wit, and tenacity to stand with bold proclivity against the powerful lobbyist, oligarchs, and plutocrats in Washington. Moreover, I think that African American people have come to know her and trust her from former President Clinton's era and her own work as First Lady, Secretary of State, and within the context of the broader society. Trust is a scarce commodity among most politicians, yet Hillary has tried to maintain consistency in this area among voters and even her adversaries. When faced with public scrutiny concerning a number of hot-button issues that manages to crop up from time to time, she remains poised and responds with honesty, frankness, and integrity. She's the type of leader that takes responsibility for her actions, and makes a concerted effort to address and rectify areas of concern. Advertisement Third, Hillary has a great degree of experience at almost all levels of government. Her professional prowess and informed upbringing makes her a formable candidate to be our next commander-in-chief. Her very important governmental roles, especially as Secretary of State has made her name as common as globalization is to the world market. She has devoted much of her life to public service despite the gusty winds and vitriolic nature of politics. She is the definition of resilience and perseverance. Her unyielding convictions about issues that matter domestically and abroad have been evident in both policy and in practice. Fourth, Hillary is committed to all people in the sense that "all lives matter". While she is well aware of the poison of prejudice, discrimination, and hatred, she has positioned herself as a humanitarian and "keeper of the people". Make no mistake about it, she has been very supportive and have spoken very candidly in support of the 'Black Lives Matter' movement. Hillary is not afraid of naming issues that affect black and brown people all across this nation from mass incarceration to unemployment, and makes every attempt to not just talk about it, but she believes that it is mission critical that we as a nation roll up our sleeves and become foot-soldiers for justice. I do not feel that Hillary would allow human atrocities at home or abroad to fester and engulf a people or a nation. She is committed to fairness, equity, empowerment, and progress. As such, she is a candidate that is willing to place herself in the shoes of others and respond with humility, compassion, and sincerity. She is a candidate of reason and possess a level head. Fifth, Hillary's personal appeal to women, minorities, and other groups is worth exploring. She has continued to motivate women to hold important positions as well as encourage them to vote and fight for the things they want and deserve in life. She has served as a symbol of strength and dignity in the wake of personal struggles with Bill Clinton during his presidency and other attacks on her character as a woman and as a leader within her own personal life and political career. Some have concluded that she has lost a number of white women voters, however, she probably has gained just as many more African American women voters. She has certainly shattered the glass ceiling and has challenged the notion of male privilege and dominance in every sphere of the human endeavor. And, even today, she continues to be a symbol of hope and inspiration to women of all racial persuasions. Sixth, Hillary is someone that many African American voters feel like they know and many of the recent attacks on her by the Republican establishment are only designed to destroy her character, reduce her significance as a formidable candidate, and to erode her chances of winning and becoming the first woman president of the United States. Most people of color and particularly African Americans can relate to what the right-wing establishment has tried to do to Hillary to destroy her image and her impact because of their own struggles with systems of oppression and marginalization. Seventh, and probably the most crucial is that neither Hillary nor African American voters can take anything or each other for granted. If Hillary is the candidate that wishes to secure the African American vote she must be explicitly clear that she wants their support and be willing to go further than her husband, and on some level do more than Obama could do because of his race and the perception of bias toward his race. Hillary is going to have to talk more specifically about ways in which she plans to codify into policy, issues that matters most to the black community, which are issues such as health care, substance-abuse, and perhaps most salient, criminal justice reform. She must go into the trenches, into the churches, community centers, boroughs, and engage with civic and faith communities and continue to extend her hand in friendship as she's done in the past. DERRY, NH - FEBRUARY 03: Democratic Presidential candidates Hillary Clinton speaks during a CNN and the New Hampshire Democratic Party hosted Democratic Presidential Town Hall at the Derry Opera House on February 3, 2016 in Derry, New Hampshire. Democratic and Republican Presidential are stumping for votes throughout New Hampshire leading up to the Presidential Primary on February 9th. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) In the last few weeks, as Bernie Sanders has inched closer to Hillary Clinton in the primaries, her more ardent supporters have responded by attacking the sexism of "Bernie Bros" and their online comments. Without question, there has been a disheartening amount of seemingly sexist comments made about Hillary from people who you would otherwise expect to at least support her unenthusiastically. But the response from the Hillary supporters has basically been a general blanket statement that goes something like this: "Bernie Sanders supporters hate Hillary because she's unlikeable as a woman, and her policies really aren't that different than his. If she were a man they'd be singing a different tune." Advertisement We are now no longer Sanders supporters, but a "sexist mob." It's a provocative and completely baseless claim. But it's working. The idea that Sanders supporters are somehow unique in having some online anger issues completely ignores the ever-present atmosphere of the Internet and how people interact with those they don't agree. From the sexist comments I've read, which there are a few, I offer this: I do not believe Sanders' supporters, many of which are young men like me, hate her because she is a woman. I believe they hate her for who she is and much of what she stands for. But in that hatred, some of the most immature supporters are using her gender as a way to express their vitriol and disapproval. Is this any better? Probably not. Is it different? Certainly, yes. Is it unique to Sanders supporters? Obviously, no. "We are now no longer Sanders supporters, but a 'sexist mob.' It's a provocative and completely baseless claim. But it's working." Labeling all of "us" a sexist mob like our beef with Hillary has to do more with her being a woman than our general fears about another moderate, left of center, establishment democrat in office isn't just unfair, it's a blinders-on-generalization to defend a flawed candidate. Proof of this is the simple fact that I and many Sanders supporters would vote for Elizabeth Warren if she were in the race over Hillary or Bernie. That's why there were dozens of petitions from thousands of progressive liberals urging her to run, and why there just as many now in hopes she becomes Sanders' vice president. Advertisement So when I see every article vehemently defending Hillary (SOME IN ALL CAPS LOCK) including that line about her and Bernie's policies being so similar, my mind is boggled. No matter how many times they say it, it will never be true. Unless, of course, you're talking about women's rights. Even putting aside the Clinton ties to Wall Street and her embarrassingly destructive policies for poor people and the shrinking middle class, my No.1 fear (and many of the people who I know who are voting for Bernie) is that we're putting in another War Hawk, someone even worse than Obama, who by the way dropped more than 23,000 bombs on predominantly Muslim countries in the last calendar year. If Clinton has proved anything over her last couple years in the political spotlight, it's that she is ready to be more aggressive, more violent and more unforgiving in her military worldview than any "liberal" president we've had in recent memory. I'd even go so far as to say that it is precisely our sexism, and our inherent gender biases that do of course exist, that soften the messages she has sent repeatedly loud and clear. If say, Jim Webb, made some of the comments she made, we'd have an awfully different impression of her. Here are a few simple examples: Via TIME magazine, January of 2014: As Secretary of State, Clinton backed a bold escalation of the Afghanistan war. She pressed Obama to arm the Syrian rebels, and later endorsed air strikes against the Assad regime. She backed intervention in Libya, and her State Department helped enable Obama's expansion of lethal drone strikes. In fact, Clinton may have been the administration's most reliable advocate for military action. On at least three crucial issues -- Afghanistan, Libya, and the bin Laden raid -- Clinton took a more aggressive line than Gates, a Bush-appointed Republican. After Obama took office and began the Iraq withdrawal, Clinton lobbied to keep a sizable force there. Advertisement Via The Guardian, November 2015: Hillary Clinton distanced herself from Barack Obama's strategy for defeating Islamic State extremists on Thursday in a sweeping foreign policy speech that called for greater use of American ground troops and an intensified air campaign. Via Global Research, August 2015: I want the Iranians to know that if I'm president, we will attack Iran. In the next 10 years, during which they might foolishly consider launching an attack on Israel, we would be able to totally obliterate them," Clinton said. She endorses using cluster bombs, toxic agents and nuclear weapons in US war theaters. She calls them deterrents that "keep the peace." She was one of only six Democrat senators opposed to blocking deployment of untested missile defense systems -- first-strike weapons entirely for offense. Via Salon, September 2015: Even so, her speech about the [Iran] deal highlighted what ought to be-but probably won't be-a deeply examined part of her ideology: her hyper-hawkishness. In the speech, Clinton spent most of her time "talking tough," as they say. She flatly declared that the deal did not signal "some larger diplomatic opening" and insisted that she would "not hesitate to take military action if Iran tries to obtain a nuclear weapon." (If the president of Iran casually threatened to bomb the United States, there would be hell to pay, but no matter.) She also pledged to to arm the already-well-stocked Israel even further, and to expand the American military presence around Iran. Never mind that multiple American intelligence estimates have concluded that Iran suspended its quest for a nuclear weapon long ago; we can always use more ships in the Middle East. Via The Nation, May, 2014: But we don't need a memoir to know that, comparatively speaking, two things can be said about her tenure at the State Department: first, that in fact she accomplished very little; and second, that both before her appointment and during her service, she consistently came down on the hawkish side of debates inside the administration, from Afghanistan to Libya and Syria. She's also taken a more hawkish line than Obama on Ukraine and the confrontation with Russia. The message is clear: Hillary Clinton is promising a "more muscular" foreign policy, as The Huffington Post put it. More muscular than 23,000 bombs dropped in 2015? More muscular than the drone strikes in Yemen that have left so many innocents dead and so many openings for the recruitment of Islamic extremists? More muscular than a government "quadrupling" the defense budget of Europe? More muscular than $610 billion spent in 2014? More muscular than spending more on military than the next eight nations combined? It sounds a lot like the tough talk we heard from Bill Clinton in the 1990s, right before he helped start a policy of mass incarceration that has destroyed low income and minority communities in America. I think I speak for all Bernie Sanders supporters when I say: No, thanks. Her language, her willingness to speak about killing more people we have no business killing, is reprehensible to us beyond forgiving. This is not a Republican telling you this. I believe Benghazi is a non-scandal if there ever was one. I believe Hillary's "emails" are essentially a non-issue. But for Bernie supporters, it's Clinton's promises of more war, more weapons, and more "strength" that sends shivers down our spine. In many of these Hillary defenses, a broad assumption is made that us American liberals must like Obama, and in turn like her, because she isn't so different. And since we don't like her, and we like Obama, it must be solely because she's a woman. So let me make this clear: Obama has been a good president, solving many massive domestic issues he faced when he came into office, no doubt. But he's also been far more violent, far less transparent, and far more divisive than he promised he would be. Only in the last year have I really seen shades of the president I voted for, and assuming that I "like" Obama and would "like" Clinton the same if she was a man is demonstrably inaccurate on both ends. "...for Bernie supporters, it's Clinton's promises of more war, more weapons, and more 'strength' that sends shivers down our spine." Then, the same democrats who claim us far left progressive Bernie supporters are criticizing Hillary like the GOP would, drop lines like this: "FIRST AND FUCKING FOREMOST, COOL, YOU LIKE BERNIE'S WISHES AND DREAMS APPROACH TO POLITICS. "FREE COLLEGE FOR EVERYONE AND A GODDAMN PONY." That sounds an awfully lot like the kind of GOP criticisms that have been lobbed at Bernie, too. Sanders has a message that he's managed to stick to, unrelentingly, throughout his entire political career: Poor people in our country are suffering unfathomable hardship, and it's about time the wealthiest nation on earth took care of them. Clinton's voting record doesn't prove she gives two shits about it. That is really the heart of it. His overwhelming support from my generation (in Iowa, 84 percent of under 30 voters caucused for him, when a year ago he only scored 7 percent amongst all voters in the polls), is a look into the future of our country. My generation isn't moderate, we are overwhelmingly liberal or independent, we're not scared of the word socialism, we are non-religious, party independent, and we aren't interested in waiting around for the 50/60/70/80 year old rich white politicians of either party to catch up and start cutting our military spending and putting it into a sweeping Medicaid program, college tuition programs and ripping apart our prison system. And all of those things make us just like our favorite Presidential candidate, Bernie Sanders. Our friends are in college debt, they're opioid addicts, they're in jail, or they're unable afford a house -- and some of that is because of policies the Clinton family has supported or even pushed. Hillary Clinton talks about fixing addiction but takes more money from Big Pharma than any candidate in this race. Asking us to forget that because Clinton is "more electable" or has been treated unfairly for being a woman while our friends cycle through rehab centers or overdose in dark hotel rooms is condescending and out of touch with the plight we feel. She has my vote if Bernie doesn't win the primary, which he maybe won't, but I'm certainly not going to concede their policies are similar or they are somehow equivalents. Five years ago, Hillary wouldn't have said most of the stuff Bernie said in the 1980s. And so much of her now far left progressive rhetoric is because she's seen how well it has worked for him. For long-time supporters of Sanders, this reality is as clear as day. He's been pulling people to the left since his days in Vermont, when many of his ideas that were called "radical" and "unattainable" became mainstays in today's government. Advertisement Worst of all, though, is that the "Bernie Bro" label for abusive online commenters that the Clinton camp throws around implies that all of Sanders' supporters are young, white, privileged men, which as The Intercept's Glenn Greenwald pointed out, simply isn't true. So to wrap this up, I will offer you some of his words: There are literally millions of women who support Sanders over Clinton. A new Iowa poll yesterday shows Sanders with a 15-point lead over Clinton among women under 45, while one-third of Iowa women over 45 support him. A USA Today/Rock the Vote poll from two weeks ago found Sanders nationally "with a 19-point lead over front-runner Hillary Clinton, 50 percent to 31 percent, among Democratic and independent women ages 18 to 34." One has to be willing to belittle the views and erase the existence of a huge number of American women to wield this "Bernie Bro" smear. But truth doesn't matter here -- at all. Instead, the goal is to inherently delegitimize all critics of Hillary Clinton by accusing them of, or at least associating them with, sexism, thus distracting attention away from Clinton's policy views, funding, and political history and directing it toward the online behavior of anonymous, random, isolated people on the internet claiming to be Sanders supporters. As for Hillary and her record on women's rights, which in the conversation of gender and sexism and having our first female president has been a major talking point for her campaign, I have one simple challenge: Find me a positive, progressive policy for women that Hillary Clinton has supported and Bernie Sanders hasn't. If you can, leave it in the comments. Advertisement Isaac Saul is an editor at the Positive News website A Plus. DOVER, NH - FEBRUARY 3: Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton speaks to supporters during a Dover 'Women for Hillary' GOTV organizing event in Dover, NH on Wednesday Feb. 03, 2016. (Photo by Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images) If you've been watching the psychotic roll out of the Iowa caucuses or just any of the latest election news, you may have noticed that Hillary Clinton's campaign has been appropriately blasting Rachel Platten's "Fight Song" when she takes the stage. It's interesting then that Platten's second biggest hit, "Stand by You" ironically embodies all the way young women are failing Hillary across the U.S. Hillary is playing her fight song, standing up and charging forward even though she's been knocked down so many times it's amazing she's not been forced to take subterranean shelter. And in response, are the young women of America standing by her? Are we, as Platten sings, ready to "walk through hell" with Hillary? No, we are fucking failing and letting her down. AGAIN. Advertisement Back in 2013, when Hillary was ending her tenure as Secretary of State, I remember talking to so many Democrat women my age about what it would be like if Hillary ended up running for president a few years later. At this point, while she had made some mistakes as Secretary of State and received criticism for her handling of Libya, the overall vibe was positive. Secretary Clinton was seen as a success and perhaps even more important "cool." Not only had she handled complicated foreign affairs with aplomb, she had taken selfies with Meryl Streep and become an Internet phenomenon with "texts from Hillary." The general attitude among these women was excitement. If Hillary ran, many of them said, they would "drop everything" and work for her campaign. I specifically remember one conversation with a Republican female friend who said if Hillary ran, she would even consider changing her party alliance. Where the f are these people now?! One could argue that Hillary back in 2013 didn't have the issues Hillary has today, namely the email scandal and Bernie Sanders. But that's exactly what's so frustrating. We support Hillary when it's easy. When she's in the background, rather than in the foreground, we are vocal fans. When she's successful in office, we cheer her on and say--she would be such a good president! But when Hillary then takes that leap and enters the fray, when she becomes embroiled in controversy and partisan wars, we shrink back in hesitation and leave her to fend off the wolves alone. It's infuriating that the same people I spoke to in 2013 are now incessantly posting Bernie memes on their newsfeeds and cheering on the Iowa face-off. Of course, not every young woman has to go to bat for Hillary and people have the right to change their mind. Bernie is indeed an excellent, respectable candidate and Hillary is one hundo p flawed. But I truly believe that women are not abandoning Hillary now because of emails--honestly, for better or worse, no one really cares--or because they've been radically charmed and awed by Bernie's platform. It's something less rational or fair than that. In the rotation of media skewering and national attention, Hillary has once again been cast as a harsh, soulless shrew and it's not attractive to fight for her anymore. We're embarrassed and so we're afraid. Advertisement But guess what? Hillary is out there tramping around some of the most suck parts of the United States working her ass off. She is subjected to a verbal ransacking every day. If Hillary wanted, she could be sitting on a desert island with Bill drinking pina coladas and lol-ing over this race. Instead, she continues to fight. The very least we can do is fight with her, speak up for her, and VOTE for her. This betrayal of Hillary is sickening and the stakes could not be higher. On the one hand, we have a future female progressive president. On the other, we have male republican candidates who are so hateful it's like they've dropped on this earth from some post-apocalyptic wasteland hell. In short, we should be responding to Hillary's anthem of "Fight Song" with some of the lyrics from Rachel Platten's "I Stand by You." Given the mayhem occurring around the world and the first votes in the 2016 Presidential election at home, my guess is the celebration today of the 15th anniversary of a milestone partnership between Colombia and the U.S. will be largely ignored. That's unfortunate because the recent history of our two countries offers important lessons in ways the U.S. can apply economic, military and diplomatic pressure in a bipartisan effort to successfully nation-build and fight terrorism in a state virtually overrun by narco-terrorism. Colombia is now one of America's strongest allies in the hemisphere, status that would have been unthinkable not too long ago. Advertisement In a few months, the Colombian government is expected to sign a peace agreement with the FARC, the large guerrilla, drug trafficking and terrorism organization that once controlled vast swaths of the country and inflicted enormous violence on Colombia for five decades. The peace agreement has its roots in Plan Colombia, a plan developed by the U.S. and Colombian governments in 1999 during a particularly violent period in Colombia's history. The goal was to strengthen Colombia's security forces to take on the drug trafficking organizations that were crippling the country and responsible for most of the illegal drugs flooding the United States. We did that by training Colombia's military, sharing intelligence with them and providing helicopters and fixed winged aircraft, so Colombian forces could reach the traffickers and their operations in remote regions of the country. Colombia's system of justice was literally under attack - guerrillas invaded the nation's Supreme Court in 1985, killing more than 100 people, including 11 members of that court - so we helped train and equip security forces to provide protection for those who administered justice. Plan Colombia helped the Colombian government take the fight to the FARC as well as to other paramilitary groups engaged in trafficking and violence. The fight was a long one, but four years ago negotiations began and the demobilizing and disarming of the FARC is now at hand. Advertisement The plan also enabled Colombia and the United States to look beyond security issues to strengthen their bilateral relationship. One result was a free trade agreement between the two countries that has expanded trade and investment. President Obama and Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos will recognize the 15th Anniversary of the launch of Plan Colombia in Washington today. There are three lessons relevant to future U.S. foreign policy engagements. First, bipartisan and sustained American commitment can make a difference in a failing state. With strong support from Democrats and Republicans, Plan Colombia was launched by President Bill Clinton, approved by a Republican-majority Congress in 2001 and continued by Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama. A second lesson relates to effective nation building, an issue much debated in Washington during U.S. engagements in Afghanistan, Iraq and other trouble spots. With equally strong backing by successive Colombian governments, Plan Colombia was conceived and implemented with Colombians taking the lead and investing in their own country and future. U.S. support was critical, to be sure, but it wasn't imposed on Colombians by the United States. As a result, it stands as the most successful example of U.S.-led state building in modern times. Finally, the Colombian experience shows how a successful campaign against terrorism can be conducted. The FARC was a formidable organization. Its armed forces had sophisticated weaponry, resolute guerrillas and drug traffickers, and billions of dollars from the illegal drug trade to wage their war against Colombian society. Despite those assets, a Colombian government and people willing to stand and fight for their country weakened them. The U.S. provided support, training and resources, but Colombians did the hard, painful work of taking back their country. Today in Washington, some of us will recognize what has emerged: a nation that persevered and prospered; a neighbor Americans can be proud to have supported. It will be unfortunate if we don't notice this achievement in American diplomacy, and a tragedy if we don't to learn from it. Advertisement DERRY, NH - FEBRUARY 03: Democratic Presidential candidates Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) speaks during a CNN and the New Hampshire Democratic Party hosted Democratic Presidential Town Hall at the Derry Opera House on February 3, 2016 in Derry, New Hampshire. Democratic and Republican Presidential are stumping for votes throughout New Hampshire leading up to the Presidential Primary on February 9th. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Congratulations, Bernie Sanders. Everyone bet the farm on Hillary. (Except Trump, of course, who promised to buy the farm.) But you showed the country that the mighty Clinton machine could be penned in by the call for a political revolution. You did good, Bernie. You reminded the country that we have to choose what kind of country we want to be--whether or not we can "get it done" in the next session of Congress. And you have reminded the Left that its role is to lead, not just to protest or to be the "experts" on progress for the American people. Any Left worth its salt has to bring political empowerment to those who lack it. After all, that's what a political revolution is. It's a transfer of power from a set of autocratic institutions to a new set of democratic institutions, maybe even to a set of anti-institutions. Advertisement Now comes the tougher stuff. You have to do more than show that Hillary is vulnerable. You have to show that you can shape and lead an expanding electoral majority, one that "crosses the Rubicon" beyond the Democratic Party and beyond the orthodox liberal Left. A closer look at the Iowa results reveals some of the choices and challenges you face. With all the campaign hoopla, the Ted Cruz upset, the closeness of the vote, and the rush into New Hampshire, little attention has been paid to what happened with independent voters in Iowa. My advice: Ignore that at your peril. Based on turnout and entrance polling, more than 71,000 out of the 358,000 Iowa voters were independents--or about 20 percent. 52 percent of those independents chose to caucus with Republicans, 48 percent with Democrats. On the GOP side, indies went 22 percent for Trump, 22 percent for Rubio, 19 percent for Cruz, 11 percent for Carson and 10 percent for Paul, with the remaining 14 percent split among six other candidates. There was no decisive Republican favorite for independents, even though a slim majority of them chose a GOP caucus. The Democratic side was a different story. Among independents, you, Bernie, were the runaway favorite--with 69 percent of the nonaligned voting for you, compared to 26 percent for Hillary, almost a 3 to 1 margin. These independents include many young people under 30 (who supported you 8 to 1) and who have little or no attachment to the parties. And if you compare the number of independent voters who supported you to the number who supported Rubio or Trump or Cruz, you outpolled each of them 3 to 1 as well. Independents become independents because we are repelled by the current political system--by the self-dealing and arrogance of politicians and political parties. We are 44 percent of the country today. We believe the economic system is rigged against ordinary people and we believe the political system is rigged in favor of the powerful. Many align with you because you are speaking out against those unconscionable barriers, though ironically, many will not be able to vote for you. Why? Because we live in states where independents are barred by the parties--including yours--from casting ballots. I am one of them. This is one systemic abuse of power you have yet to address, one that the popular Arizona attorney and community activist Daniel Ortega has called "another form of voter suppression." (In Arizona, 41 percent of Latinos are registered as independents and will be locked out of the presidential primary on March 22.) Advertisement Clearly, independent voters--at least in Iowa and likely in New Hampshire as well--have an affinity for your message, all of which causes us to ask whether, and to what extent, you have an affinity for us, even if you identify as an independent. The GOP edged out the Democrats on Monday night both in raw numbers and percentages of participating independents, but in 2008 Iowa was a different story. Fully 76 percent of participating independents voted in the Democrats' caucus that year. Forty-one percent of them chose candidate Obama, while Hillary garnered only 17 percent. (John Edwards took 23 percent.) That's when America first caught a glimpse of a new electoral majority that broke through the barriers of party, ideology and race. However, while independents ultimately propelled Obama to a victory over Clinton in the 2008 primaries and caucuses, and to a win over John McCain, the Democratic Party proceeded to squander that coalition. This drove independents into the arms of the GOP in 2010, where they powered the Republican takeover of the House of Representatives, a vote that was largely a reaction to the Democrats' "takeover" of President Obama. Two years later, in 2012, our effort to persuade Obama campaign advisors David Axelrod and David Simas to appeal to independents by advocating the simplest of electoral reforms was rebuffed by party leaders. What's the significance of this history? On Monday night, the GOP doubled its percentage share of independents as compared with 2008, while the Democrats' share shrank by more than half. Perhaps, this should be taken as a warning about the extent to which the Democratic Party has pulled back from building a bridge to independents, because it believes that "demographics are destiny," i.e., that certain groups are "naturally Democrats" and that the traditional liberal/left coalition will thereby thrive. Think again. For those of us who build mechanisms for transfers of power, e.g., independent movements for systemic reform, the Iowa results suggest to us that you should challenge your own party's "official policy" on independents and work to build those bridges. Democratic Party norms, like disenfranchising independents and tilting the presidential nominating playing field through the use of superdelegates, should not be exempt from your political revolution. Advertisement And then there is the issue of your relationship to African American voters, a community that must be part of any political revolution. While independents are a culturally, politically and racially heterogeneous grouping, Black America, as a whole, is rooted in the Democratic Party. In the run-up to the post-Obama era, it has been allied with the Clinton camp. Meanwhile, the American Left has a long history of being "mainly white." The Democratic Party has been happy to fuse the Left and the black community, along with labor, Latinos, environmentalists, gays and other identity groups when it's time to vote. Otherwise, best to keep everyone divided by identity politics and frightened by the power of the Right. The Clintons have fed off of progressives' panic about social conservatism for decades, tacking right (the old Bill) or left (the new Hillary) as needed. This pattern has resulted, among other things, in Black America being taken for granted, politically speaking. Very few black leaders have worked to bring new electoral options to African American voters. Jesse Jackson challenged the delegate allocation rules of the Democratic Party in 1984, rules that marginalized the insurgency he led. Dr. Lenora Fulani's 1988 independent presidential run created the beginnings of a national infrastructure aimed at offering the black community a new set of tools and partners to leverage its agenda, in and out of the Democratic Party. That infrastructure became key in the explosive disruption led by Ross Perot and the national Reform Party. It also helped to foment what became known as the Black and Independent Alliance, which propelled Michael Bloomberg to City Hall in New York and nourished Obama's upset victory in 2008. These days, the definition of "reaching out to Black America" has become equivalent to meeting with Black Lives Matter. Black Lives Matter wisely says it is withholding support from any presidential candidate, at least for now. But the political stakes for African Americans, as well as for Latinos and other communities of color under the gun of police misconduct, go well beyond the issue of justice to the issue of power. You did good in Iowa, Bernie. But here are some things you should do now. While you're in New Hampshire, go visit Tiani Coleman, head of New Hampshire Independent Voters. Ask her to help you tell the world you pledge to fight to make the electoral system fair for everyone. No one should be required to join a political party as a condition of voting. New Hampshire permits independents to vote. Half the states don't. When you head to Nevada, hook up with Catana Barnes, leader of Independent Voters of Nevada. Help her dramatize the fact that the Nevada caucuses exclude independents from casting ballots at all. And when you get to South Carolina, call Wayne Griffin, the independent City Councilman from Greer who ran Independents for Obama in 2008 and helped to shatter the Clinton firewall. Ask him to campaign with you in the black community and to offer African Americans a new kind of leverage in a new kind of political coalition that puts people ahead of party. In January, a poignant article titled " Black [American] Lives Don't Matter to Africans" was published on the African feminist blog, The Angry African. Written by Stephanie Kimou, the article details her account of growing up in America with African immigrants from Cote d'Ivoire and having to reconcile with her father's detachment and misunderstanding of the racialized state violence and racism that African-American women and men face in the United States. The article, however, touches on a deeper issue - and that is the historical and contemporary cultural and societal schisms between Africans and African-Americans. Much due to white supremacy and colonialism, the ubiquitous transference of negative and one-dimensional imagery about Africa has not only survived pre-colonial times but has manifested into modernity; its affects have caused many - including the Caucasian and African-American alike - to hold stereotypes and biases about Africa and the people who live there. Advertisement Stereotypes of Africans as "poor, HIV/AIDS-ridden, "war-induced", and primitive" are perpetuated and continue to affect some African-Americans conscious outlook on Africa as a continent of richness in cultures, languages, people and resources. Moreover, these stereotypes and stigmas are not only applicable to solely Africa and Africans, as there are also biases held by some Africans about their Diasporic counterpart; where African-Americans are viewed as 'lazy', 'criminals' or those 'who lack culture.' In the context of #BlackLivesMatter, the movement seeks to not only address systematic racial issues within the United States, but also the global implications of racism, as well as foster Pan-African unity and solidarity. In efforts to bridge the gap between Africans and African-Americans, 6 African millennials were asked to give their take on the #BlackLivesMatter movement and what it means to them. Maryline Dossou Togo Occupation: Editor/Journalist Age: 25 Insta: @melanin_monreaux_ Twitter: @BlmItOnMaryline Photo Credit: Gerard Nolan "I still consider myself African. Technically, I've been an American now for two years. Yet, I still find the term African-American to be improper when directed towards me. And I certainly wouldn't refer to myself as a Black American, but I don't make a big fuss about it for the simple fact that no one else cares. Whether I make it a point to introduce myself as African, or correct someone when they refer to me as an African American, the rest of this country sees me as Black. To them, I am Black before I am anything else. Advertisement "And so, to me, I am Black before I am anything else. Had Tamir Rice been an African youth, he would not have had enough time to proclaim, "Wait, don't shoot, I'm actually African!" It would not have mattered. That's how quickly they shot him. It did not matter in the case of Amadou Diallo, an immigrant from Guinea. We can choose to identify beyond blackness as whatever we choose, but on American soil, all of us of the African diaspora are Black first. Black lives do not simply matter on American soil, though. Black lives suffer in every corner of the world. It does not behoove us to create a fissure in this diaspora. We are great in numbers and more powerful if we stick together and look out for one another. We are an incredibly diverse group of people, but we all share one quality that is both our greatest struggle and our most beautiful distinction: we are Black first." Gift Nwanne Nigeria Occupation: Microbiologist concerned about health policy for Africa Age: 31 Insta: @gift.nwanne Twitter: @NwanneGift "Watching the racial tension and propagation of structural and institutional aggression from the continent of Africa, it has been with dismay that I see the level of racial bias against African- Americans just because of their skin color. As an African, I don't see the African-American being different from me because the slave trade in the 17th and 18th century separated my ancestors from theirs, so they are still my brothers and sisters across the continent. "Coming to the US, I have discovered that I am easily put in the same box as an African- American and would receive the same treatment if occasion arise because of my skin color. This has put me in a place where supporting a vote for the #BlackLivesMatter movement is supporting a vote for a just and equal treatment for me because I have been racially discriminated against the same way an African-American would be treated. Advertisement "I have a home to go to someday and I think African-Americans should feel the same way about a place that has now become home for them." Barbary Ntumy Ghana, living in London Occupation: Student and activist Age: 22 Insta + Twitter: @barbarantumy "It's about autonomy over our bodies and pushing back on the violence perpetuated against us. It's about the justice we deserve when our bodies and rights have been violated for centuries. It's about self-organization for our social and economic justice. "Neocolonialism and imperialism has separated some people from this truly global movement and that is quite sad. But it is also a warning that the #BlackLivesMatter movement has to be global. As an African, I'm willing to work with anyone who believes all Black lives matter from Baga in Nigeria to Baltimore in the United States. It's about the love and strength that we have in ourselves. When all Black lives across the globe matter, that is powerful union. We know that power concedes nothing without demand. When I say #BlackLivesMatter, I'm talking about the forgotten Black lives in the Congo; the Black lives we lost in the fight against Apartheid in South Africa; the Black lives that are left to drown in the Mediterranean Sea and the Black lives lost in the United States of America." Advertisement Dinnah Nabwire Uganda Occupation: Social Worker Age: 29 Twitter: @NabwireDinnah "Coming from Uganda, I have observed a growing trend of young white professionals in the country viewed, treated and paid as expatriates at the expense of very experienced men and women from the local context. Often perpetrated by local black people especially on grounds of quality education abroad, I still link this issue to the underlying colonial structures of white superiority as a symbol of innovation, civilization and knowledge and local communities as primitive. I also emphasize that this attitude still manifesting in most postcolonial settings and gradually demeans and weakens the ability of local communities to take leadership in establishing sustainable solutions for their own development problems. Therefore, I believe that #BlackLivesMatter simply calls you to the realization that "All lives don't Matter until every life matters!" Charles Rominiyi Nigeria Occupation: Program Manager/ Global Health Corps Fellow, The Grassroot Project Age: 24 Insta: @chuqmoney "As a first generation American and child of two Nigerian immigrants, race was never the topic of discussion at the dinner table. I had to learn about my position as a Black man in America through the trials of my maturation. The Black Lives Matter movement is an idea that must be conceived by every Black life on this planet. Unfortunately, that is not the case everywhere you go. "As a Black man living in America, I know that the affects of white supremacy and institutional racism have a very wide range. Africans are victims of the same mistreatment, exploitation, and acts of prejudice that African-Americans face, though it might not be as obvious. Advertisement The Black Lives Matter movement is an opportunity for Black people around the world to share experiences, reclaim culture, and form strategies that will help bridge the gap between African-Americans and Africans around the world to ultimately attain the equity that we deserve. My hope is to witness more institutional partnerships, educational opportunities, general dialogue between Africans and African-Americans to represent a true embodiment of why Black Lives Matter." Eden Hagos Ethiopia, living in Canada Occupation: Founder of Black Foodie Age: 26 Insta: @blackfoodie.co Twitter: edenthefoodie In December, Preet Bharara, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, sent a letter to the York City Department of Education stating, "the City is still not fully compliant, and children with disabilities and their families are being denied the right to equal access to a public school education."(1) This is not news to people with disabilities. Schools and companies often treat the ADA as a mere suggestion despite its enactment 25 years ago. Integrating people with disabilities requires not only strictly enforcing the ADA but also changing the perception of those with disabilities. This begins with changing our language. As Rosa's 11-year old brother Nick said so articulately when President Obama signed Rosa's Law eliminating the words "retarded" and "retardation" from government language, "What you call people is how you treat them." Certain words such as "retarded" are slowly being eliminated from our language, but there are far too many other words that appear to be entrenched in it. People may be offended when inappropriate language is brought to their attention. The perception is that the person complaining is acting as the "politically correct" police rather than that the term used just insulted a class of people. We changed how we refer to people based on race, religion, gender, and sexual orientation, but somehow it appears acceptable to use outdated language to refer to people with disabilities. Advertisement The "H-word" or "handicapped" should be the first to go. It allegedly derives from a beggar with a cap in hand or "hand-cap." Using the label reinforces the antiquated perception that providing access to people with disabilities is charity for beggars rather than equal access or a human/civil right. Yet the label "handicapped" appears on parking signs throughout the country rather than "accessible." The word should describe the nature of the location and not the person. "Hearing impaired' is another description that is offensive to many. Barbara Kelley, acting executive director of the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA) says, " 'Hearing impaired' has a negative connotation. 'Hard of hearing' or 'deaf' are the preferred terms but both need to be used together to include the full group as 'people who are deaf or hard of hearing'." Likewise, "wheelchair bound" implies that the person is tied to a wheelchair rather than using a wheelchair, and "suffers from" indicates that the person is a victim rather than that he or she has a disability. These negative terms not only pervade conversational language but are also reinforced by the media. The press regularly uses "the disabled" as a noun rather than "people with disabilities," which shifts the disability to a descriptive adjective. Person-first terminology acknowledges that the disability is an attribute, like hair or eye color, and not the whole of the person. New York State passed legislation requiring government agencies to use person-first terminology, but most of the government agencies are unaware of the ruling. See http://assembly.state.ny.us/leg/?default_fld=&bn=A04375&term=2007&Summary=Y&Actions=Y&Memo=Y&Text=Y Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication developed the NCDJ Disability Language Guide (http://ncdj.org/style-guide) to aid journalists with the appropriate phrases to use when reporting on people with disabilities. They recommend a more neutral description of the disability such as "He is hard of hearing." Yet journalists often fail to update their language. The AP Stylebook is sorely out of date. Advertisement Full integration will not happen with legislation alone. We need to overhaul our outdated language if the goal is to truly change negative perceptions about people with disabilities. #NoLabels Ehler: "It's funny, and it's not funny," he told me, "because we could appear to be a beneveolent society, and as soon as the guns are gone, overnight, we could have a society like that. The force of government can turn on citizens almost at the blink of an eye. It's called human nature. I have the force and you don't. Are we there? I don't know that we're there, but boy it could turn quickly. I really don't think Americans need to find that out. We don't need to create the conditions for it." There was a child we will call Meena. She lived in Pakistan. She was a child of energy and initiative. She was six years old when she attempted her first terrorist attack. She hated India but wasn't sure why, just knew that her uncles watched India testing bombs on the news and grumbled about how India hated Muslims. She also knew that men didn't do anything but sit and drink tea and complain. Girls had to take matters into their own hands. So she taped little firecrackers to a toy helicopter and launched it from her roof. She didn't really know which direction India was, come to think of it, or how the toy would find its way there. Anyway it lifted three feet in the air and then the firecrackers went off and covered her in ash. As she got older the violence around her became real. It came not from India, but from a new group--the Army of Jhangvi - that was hell bent on destroying people who looked like her. You see, Meena was a different kind of Muslim. She belonged to one sect (Shia) in a country that was mostly another (Sunni). She belonged to an ethnicity (Hazara) so she looked kind of East Asian; most people around didn't. And she was not from this place, she was from Afghanistan, she was living in Pakistan as a refugee. All these categories seemed stupid to her because how could you fit a person into such small boxes? But they made her guilty by association of many things. Of being spy for other countries run by people who were Shia. Of being a stain on the face of a proud nation, and a draw on its resources. Most frustratingly, of apostasy. Her people were called un-Islamic. Advertisement So the Army of Jhangvi started to target her people. Bombs went off in markets where people who looked like her shopped. The government, like her uncles, did nothing, while many of her people were destroyed. Again, she decided to take matters into her own hands. As she couldn't get to those who killed her people--infuriatingly, they attacked and then disappeared-- the best she could do was terrorize people like them. They belong to an ethnic group called Pashtun, so she decided she would terrorize any Pashtuns she could find. She plotted to stone a teacher in the middle of a big field so people could see his mutilated body, but her plot was interrupted. She had Pashtun neighbors who adored her for her wit, so she turned it on them and made fun of them mercilessly, then went searching her house for a gun. Advertisement She dreamt of joining the Taliban, maybe al-Qaeda, of earning their trust, and then turning on them. Bombs went off in front of her, and she saw strangers her age ripped apart. Then her best friend was killed by a bent piece of metal flying from an explosion. She learned that the way you influenced other people and protected your own was by sending shrapnel through civilians. She was wild with violence. She was extraordinarily smart. She did not have access to very good schools as a refugee, but she had drive. The uncles who watched TV all day decided she needed to get out of this place. They would send her "home," to Afghanistan, where she was from, but where she'd never been. They heard of a school there, which had sprung up in the unlikeliest of places, a desert slum in the capitol. Perhaps it would let her in. * It was called Marefat, and at Marefat, some magic happened. In class, students talked back. It wasn't about memorizing data and reciting it to the teacher. Obedience was rejected. Reverence was rejected. There was a student parliament so kids could practice being democrats, and one day every semester the teachers had to stand up to the criticisms of the student body. No one could tell anyone else what to do or believe unless they could explain why. The headmaster recognized this student from the thousands of others. He saw the violence in her eyes. He noticed the particular way she channeled tragedy. He'd done it too. He'd been a holy warrior, he'd left school in fifth grade and became a child soldier. He'd seen massacres and felt the same rage claw at his brain that he could see was clawing at hers. But in this school he had built, she was given a place where the rage could come out in essays and rhetoric, in plays and in paintings of massacres There was a library with books about all the things she wanted to know, in all the languages she wanted to learn. There were many outlets for expression: a radio station, a photography program, an art class. A gallery where students displayed and even sold their work, a million things to do, a million ways to be productive, to forestall the sense of futility a girl, a minority, a person without much opportunity was always on the verge of feeling--that sense that the only way to change your environment was to destroy a part of it. Here, even a girl, even a refugee, could see her impact on the world. Advertisement She seethed still, but the temperature in her dropped. Meena decided she wanted to be a doctor. So she could help people hurt by bombs. And, occasionally, poison people who annoyed her. *** Now she knows she's smart. She knows, from classmates, that girls can go to good schools, get scholarships to foreign countries, get good jobs. That some people welcome her crazy ideas, don't mind helping her express them in essays and poems instead of telling her to help her mom in the kitchen. At Marefat she's seen proof that oppressed people can win things for themselves without weapons. But around her the country is threatening to collapse back into the era when violence was normal, a thing you walked passed on the way to work like a familiar storefront. She's distracted; her people are getting massacred again. American troops are mostly gone, a few thousand of them remain but they're busy training the local army and occasionally going out on counterterrorism operations. They're not protecting people like Meena, her classmates, and the headmaster of her school. Now ISIS is in Afghanistan. And the Taliban has re-taken entire cities. Class size is shrinking because her classmates are disappearing, crossing borders to flee rising violence, pushed away by a shriveling economy. At Marefat, the headmaster keeps going, holding demonstrations so his people can speak out about the violence happening to them, and so that they might demonstrate to themselves that nonviolence can still be an option. The surviving candidates and political media exited Iowa early Tuesday morning for New Hampshire and beyond, but businesses can learn from what happened to Donald Trump in the Iowa caucuses. The Trump campaign offered "hoopla" that included customer marketing, branding and strategic advertising. As impressive as "Trump Force One" and his organization appeared, The Donald lacked political campaign experience in the high-stakes Iowa contest. Most importantly, Mr. Trump was unable to build a ground game to back up his high polling numbers. Put simply, businessman Trump had moved outside his "circle of competence" compared with politicians Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio. Advertisement Ordinarily, a second place finish might seem good enough, but Trump had raised media expectations that he would have a huge win in Iowa. When the Trump campaign failed to meet or exceed expectations, the perception grew that he lost. Trump's habit for calling others losers created a unique context for the label to boomerang. As I watched Iowa voters attend county caucus events, the late Tony Schwartz's description of politics as "a one day sale" rang true. As we can see from colleague Michelle Thies' photographs from the Shelby County caucus in Harlan, Iowa, voters are motivated to stand outside in a line and spend hours in order to participate. Trump's large Twitter following and steady social media use clearly activated some voters, yet data showed that Marco Rubio attracted the most first-time caucus-goers, including those deciding late in the process. Advertisement Trump, though, did something right in defeat. His concession speech was humble and brief. This may serve him well in future contests. In contrast, Cruz talked beyond the sale by going on and on. Likewise, Rubio was windier than needed. I think we can identify a number of lessons from the Trump experience in Iowa that also translate to insights for everyday business people: 1.Social media are useful in raising awareness and engaging with customers, but this activity should not be confused with results in politics or business. 2.Media strategies are important, from organic social media campaigns to paid advertising, but these do more to reinforce existing perception instead of changing hearts, minds and action. 3.Hoopla generates media and public buzz, but it must be followed with a ground game that keeps a close eye on intended behavioral outcomes. 4.When activating a consumer, emotions are important. Ted Cruz had an ideological connection with his supporters, and they came out in record numbers. Meanwhile, Marco Rubio captured the imagination of future-oriented voters. 5. The results narrative is a function of prior expectations established by the seller. Do not over-sell your expected results, as this leads to disappointment. 6. The words you use to sell a candidate, product or service may come back to haunt you. Avoid placing others in a negative light - the label may boomerang. 7.Talk less. Listen more. Trump didn't need to attend the final Iowa debate to talk more, but his absence sent the wrong message to voters deciding on the eve of the caucuses. Listening in a sales process means being there and demonstrating attentiveness. 8.Personal branding and name recognition are important early in a sales process. Conversion of shoppers to customers, however, is a time-consuming process that happens by building trust. Woman crying in bed The Call for Uniform Affirmative Consent Policies on All College Campuses I recently had an unpleasant surprise when a friend asked me, "How was it hooking up with ___________?" Feeling the familiar gut punch at the name and fighting flashbacks to the worst night of my life, I replied, "Well, he raped me. So not great." Advertisement My friend was deeply apologetic for having brought it up. They also were confused, because my rapist boasted and laughed about our encounter with friends, painting it as a fun, consensual hookup. Meanwhile, I was wrought with devastation. There was an obvious difference in the way my rapist and I had interpreted the incident, and his response gave little indication of any remorse for the irreparable damage done that night. A disturbing thought formed: What if he doesn't know what he's done? Is it possible that my rapist doesn't know he's a rapist? "Is it possible that my rapist doesn't know he's a rapist? " A recent New York Times article shed light on a rapidly changing landscape as universities undertake more responsibility for sexual assault prevention education. One of the topics addressed was affirmative consent -- a policy that defines consent as "yes means yes." Affirmative consent is a crucial starting point for bolstering efforts to prevent sexual violence on college campuses. I believe it's the responsibility of student leaders and college administrations across the country to adopt affirmative consent policies paired with significant discussion and mandated training on what that policy change means. Advertisement As one of the 1 in 4 women who are sexually assaulted during their college years and the Student Body Vice President at the University of Denver, I'm here to tell you: College students are simply not having safe and healthy conversations about sex and consent. For every confusing article published on the topic, and for the multitude of disconcerting questions raised when discussing consent and sexual assault, there are hundreds of thousands of college students who are equally perplexed. But instead of analyzing them from behind a newsroom desk, college students are living and breathing these difficult questions, often while under the influence. "Yes means yes," teaches students that you must proactively ask for and give consent. Alternatively, the outdated adage of "no means no" relies on refusal of what is already happening -- but for some, refusal is impossible, as they can be "frozen" when the brain's fear circuitry ignites extreme survival responses. Approximately 12-50 percent of rape victims experience this tonic immobility. I said no many times leading up to my own assault, but when it occurred, I was among those unable to fight back. If I had to guess what caused my rapist's possible lack of understanding, it would be that in absence of a "yes," there was also no shouting, "no!" In fact, there was nothing but immobilization. Without a clear guideline of what consent is, an uninformed individual may perceive this immobilization as consent. Advertisement That interpretation is unacceptable. If we rely on a resounding "no" to determine something is unwanted rather than a resounding "yes" to determine that something is wanted, we make it the job of the victim to prevent themselves from being raped, rather than the job of the partner to obtain consent. Media about affirmative consent has raised questions abound: is affirmative consent a good idea? Do students even want or need these policies? How do we know if students benefit from definitive definitions surrounding something as complicated as sex? I believe these quandaries prove that uniform affirmative consent policies are necessary. These questions will remain impossible to answer without giving students a clear definition. "Without a clear guideline of what consent is, an uninformed individual may perceive this immobilization as consent." Rather than being the end goal once we've addressed all of these confusing questions, affirmative consent could be the launching pad that helps us answer them. Advertisement On an organizing call with Vice President Joe Biden, I was inspired greatly when he said: We will only know victory when every woman who has had a hand wrongfully laid on her doesn't ask herself, "What did I do to deserve this?" and when every person who has physically wronged a woman does not even attempt to justify their actions. The vice president is undeniably right (and the notion applies to people of all genders and identities). And wouldn't that be easier to achieve if we started with a clear and concise consent definition at every university? If we're going to end rape on campus, we need to start by making sure everyone knows what rape is -- and when they're committing it. _______________________ O.J. Simpson is standing trial for the murders of Nicole Brown and Ron Goldman. Again. The mini-series, The People v. O.J. Simpson is taking us all back to the "Trial of the (20th) Century" and purports to show us what "really" happened. Sadly, a generation too young to have experienced the national obsession first-hand may view the multi-part prime-time drama as a documentary. It isn't. I spent much of first episode yelling at my television. I wasn't alone. Members of both victim's families, witnesses, prosecutors and detectives on the case, none of whom were consulted or even notified of the series production, attacked the show for factual flaws and inconsistencies. That's the nature of such "based on a true" story docu-dramas. Ask Oliver Stone about reaction to his movie, JFK. I don't pretend to be the definitive expert on the Simpson trial but I am a well-informed observer. I was the main anchor for CNN's gavel to gavel coverage of the trial. I spent more than 1,000 hours on live television watching, analyzing and dissecting each and every nuance of the case, much of which the jurors never saw. Were mistakes made? Of course there were, both in the investigation and the prosecution of the case. Co-lead detective Tom Lange, who along with his partner, had more than fifty years investigating homicides told me recently, in an interview for Inside Edition, that this case was like a turkey shoot. In most investigations, he said, there is exculpatory evidence pointing to someone else. In this case, there was none. Everything pointed to O.J. The opening scene of the film depicting the Rodney King beating and the Los Angeles riots which followed the verdict acquitting the police officers involved, implies a common thread flowing from that incident, through the Simpson case, leading to today's #BlackLivesMatter movement. While evidence of decades-long institutional anti-black bias is clear, the fact that Simpson would be the beneficiary of anti-police sentiment and payback is ironic. Cops loved him. They revered him. The LAPD was called eight times for allegations of domestic violence against O.J.'s ex-wife Nicole. He was never arrested. The thought of framing Simpson for a crime sounds absurd. All previous evidence against him was ignored. Advertisement Was LAPD detective Mark Fuhrman a racist? Perhaps. Did he plant evidence to frame O.J. Simpson? To hear Detective Lange tell it, "absolutely not." Fuhrman would have needed the cooperation of more than a dozen other cops to take a bloody glove from the crime scene and place it at Simpson's home. The glove discovered behind Simpson's guest house conforms to house guest Kato Kaelin's testimony that he heard a loud thump against his bungalow wall, initially making him think there had been an earthquake. Presumably, that thump was Simpson, sneaking back onto his property following the crime and dropping a glove when he bumped into an air conditioner in the wall. The beginning I started practicing yoga in 1995. A close friend invited me to a vinyasa yoga class and then a week later I took a class offered by the New York Road Runners Club taught by Beryl Bender Birch, whose husband Thom Birch was a gifted runner as well as yogi. Beryl and Thom inspired me and introduced me to the concept that practicing yoga was a great way to keep my joints and body healthy enough to continue running for years to come. I loved yoga instantaneously. To me, it was writing in motion: Here I was in a room where we flowed and breathed and magic happened in the midst. Yoga was a way for me to break out of my mind, the constant to do lists, the constant writing things as I lived them. In yoga, I just was. 1995 was by no means the yoga boom in NYC, and yet it was there for those who sought it. My journey continued at Yoga Zone, under the direction of Guru Alan Finger, which became Be Yoga and is now back to its original Yoga Works. Alan is the founder of the ISHTA method of yoga, or the Integrated Science of Hatha, Tantra, and Ayurveda. As with all things that I love, I immediately incorporated yoga into my schedule. No, I didn't have free time -- I was working full time and was a full-time graduate student. But the more I practiced, the more I felt I didn't have time not to practice yoga. While running provided me the space to dream and think, yoga helped me to ground. Three yoga classes a week evolved into five and ultimately, a daily practice. The peace of mind, gratitude, and overall good feelings yoga produced made me a more productive version of myself. Yoga freed me, before I realized that I felt bound. Advertisement Evolution of a yogi After a few years of practice, yoga became more than just an activity in my life. It was altering the way I lived, the decisions I made. Walking along the streets of New York City, even in the midst of dark and gloomy winter, I felt happier. I didn't worry as much. The shifts were subtle, but they were real. I was more conscious and careful with my friendships and relationships. Eventually, I wanted to understand what it was about this yoga that was changing my life, transforming me into a version of me that was softer, calmer, more open minded. Thus began the learning years, which consisted of trying every studio I could find tucked away in New York City, reading many yoga texts, to include BKS Iygenar's Light on Yoga, Patanjali's Yoga Sutras, the Bhagavad Gita amongst others, and partaking in teacher trainings. Many of them. It was fitting that my first teacher training -- two weeks of ashtanaga intensive at Omega Institute in Rye, New York -- was led by Beryl and Thom Berch. I loved power vinyasa as well as Iyengar yoga, but when I discovered ashtanga, the pattern and flow of it, the progressing from one series to the next, it was true love. Ashtanga was logical to me and its flow kept me challenged and inspired. I loved Mysore style ashtanga in particular, which involved one-on-one instruction as I made my way through the primary series. There was a sanctity in practicing yoga in a room full of students, each of us making our way through our own journey, all of us going at our own pace. After ashtanga training, I kept up my medley of yoga practices, visiting Cyndi Lee's Om Yoga, Jivamukti, Be Yoga, Dharma Metra, amongst other studios. Each one had its own flavor and vibe that pulled me in. There was nothing as hot, sweaty, and uplifting as Dana Strong's Sunday night at 6:30 p.m. Om Yoga class. Advertisement After some talks with the teachers at Be Yoga, I was convinced to join their extensive ISHTA teacher training program, to commence on Sept. 9, 2001. It would involve at least five nights a week of yoga classes and a few weekend lock in's a month, during which time we would meet Friday night and all day Saturday and Sunday to learn yogic philosophy, anatomy, Sanskrit, and the asanas, or poses. There was also 19 karma yoga, or volunteer hours, to fulfill. It would take up to a year and was the second teacher training (TT2) to be held at Be Yoga, under the direction of Alan Finger and his teachers. We had our introduction that Sunday afternoon, and amid laughter and a bit of fear and excitement, the 40 or so of us prospective yoga teachers had no idea of the growth, change, and unraveling that was ahead of us. Two days later, the World Trade Centers were hit -- on 9/11 -- and a whole new chapter began for us all. Yoga as a mode of survival and growth After 9/11, all of us who worked downtown, myself included, had a few weeks off while the city mourned and attempted to rebuild itself. I felt lost, disillusioned, and panicked. I had been stuck on the train headed downtown as the second tower was struck and was trapped for some time. 9/11 was tangible for me. It involved my friends and colleagues. It involved my city. My spirit and soul were damaged. I could never have anticipated the turn that yoga was going to take in my life -- the friendships it was about to introduce me to, the healing it would bring me. Teacher training evolved into a blend of therapy and introspection which prodded me to ask myself who I was, what I wanted, and what mattered to me in my life. The opening up of our bodies, minds, and souls was instrumental in helping me to redefine my goals in life, and what I sought. Almost a year later, racking up endless hours at the yoga studio immersed in study and instruction, I graduated from yoga teacher training. I had made so many new and wonderful friends -- friends who would play a key role in my future -- but beyond that, I was a new and better version of myself. My mentors were the first to note how significant my transformation was: I was calmer, lighter-hearted, and clearer on my life's direction. A few months later I took a leave of absence from work, and ventured to spend three months living with Roman Catholic Monks in monasteries, conducting research for a writing project; and a few months after that, I resigned from a decade-plus career in publishing to pursue my next career. Yoga taught me to breathe through the tight places in my body, my mind, and my life, and it taught me to flow -- to connect with myself and ultimately with the universe. I studied the yamas and niyamas and their profound ethical codes and learned to turn the world off and tune into myself via meditation and breathing. My dive into yoga enabled me to face my life with a deep-rooted conviction to be true to myself, and good to others as I pursued my path. Advertisement Many gurus, many paths Living in New York City in 2002, I had the luxury of studying with so many great yoga teachers. There was Govinda Kai, who assured me that "angels fly because they take themselves lightly" for the months I persevered at marichasana D. From Govinda I learned about persistence, patience, grace, and about showing up each day even if I didn't get to the next level. There was Eddie Stern who exuded a quiet holiness, and the joyful Pattabhi Jois on all of his New York City visits. Then there were the years of Mysore practice under the guidance of Christopher Hildebrandt, first at Karma Yoga and later at Yoga Sutra, which became our home away from home. Christopher's sense of humor merged with his nurturing instincts taught me to take chances -- to let go more, to find joy in the poses. The yoga classes I took with Sharon Gannon and David Life of Jivamukti yoga also impacted me enormously: their creativity and passion for living were contagious. There was a beauty in yoga, a grace, a glow that pulled me in. Yoga Bums, a studio run by my dear friend Rosemary Vargas, was the embodiment of all that yoga meant to us -- a shared space, a place to just be, a time out zone for us to tune in. There was the month I ventured to Mysore, India with a dear friend to practice Mysore ashtanga with the incredible Sheshadri at Patanjala Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga Shala. Eventually, I too taught yoga, taking joy in teaching kid's yoga and beginner's yoga -- a great feat for me and a lesson in slowing down. The I am not flexible myth Over the years, many people have said to me, "I am not flexible. Yoga is not for me." But yoga is not about our body movements. It teaches us to be flexible mentally. Emotionally. Intellectually. It instructs us to surrender into the moment as a means of surviving the sticky situations in life. Yoga teaches us to breathe and how to let our breath guide us -- to slow down, focus, listen. If we gain some flexibility in our bodies, wonderful. If not, how awesome to have a more expansive mind! But as with all practices, the more one perseveres, the more physically flexible one will become. Some twenty years later I still practice yoga on a daily basis. No matter where I live, or where I travel to -- nationally or internationally -- I always uncover a welcoming studio to practice. Yes, my life has evolved. Yes, I am busy. Yes, I run daily for these same twenty years. As I mature, so too does my practice. In recent years, while I continue to love ashtanga, I have also returned to a steady power vinyasa practice. I like to flow. I like to focus. I like to breathe in a way that enables me to lose all the minutia that sometimes masquerades as my life. I like to lose myself daily so that I may rediscover myself. Advertisement CHICAGO--The rumble of the train mixed with the squeal of steel wheels upon miles of steel track rises like the sound of Miles Davis' melancholy horn on the evening commute home. People stare at an assortment of periodicals, settling in, the angst of a day's work wearing more on some faces than on others. Thirtyish to middle-aged, most seem barely aware of the existence of humanity just shoulders, breaths apart. A woman below me on the Metra line sits with arms folded, facing the twilight of another ending workday in the city, this 9-to-5 shift now making its southbound exodus. Advertisement "All tickets!" I hand mine to the mahogany agent wearing a blue cap and holding a silver puncher that he fires rapidly before snaring another ticket, then another, and another... Sitting next to me, a woman with short, lollipop-like locs searches for her pass. She shakes out a book, pages flapping. Then she digs through a leather purse, exuding a momentary sense of desperation. She finds it, forks it over. Then just as quickly she retreats back to her own world. With iPhones and earphones, most seem plugged into one world and yet disconnected, from another. Some stab the digits of handheld gadgets. Or else they touch and slide. Others scan newspapers or pages of a book, nibble at candy or some other pre-dinner treat inside this evening time chamber as the train snakes toward our destinations. Suddenly, a door between cars slides open. A young man wearing a blue knit cap, his music muffled but spilling from his earphones, breaks the silence as he whisks through. But few, if any, seem to notice. At least no one bothers even to look up. From the train's windows, barren trees and neighborhoods, wooden fences and concrete viaducts flick by like a video stuck on fast forward--like the days of our lives that by middle age seem to move so much faster than when you were a child. Advertisement And as I take in the scene, played out week in and week out across this city--across other cities--and understanding full well the desire to use the ride home to unwind from a day's work, there still seems something eerie or sad, perhaps numbing, about it all. It has to do with the silence, notwithstanding the rickety train and the intermittent voice crackling over speakers, announcing stops. It has to do with the predominance of machinery amid the absence of human interaction between living breathing souls. And yet, nowadays, in spaces and places, we too often do not so much as speak to one another. Nowadays, some people value gadgets more than human life, like an idiot robber who, a few years ago, shoved an elderly woman to her death while fleeing after having snatched someone's iPhone. Maybe that's just life in the city in a day when it is not uncommon to not know your neighbor. Maybe that's life in a post-911, social-networking universe where text messages, Facebook posts and tweets seem to occupy the space once held by the social discourse and simple human engagement that used to transpire even between strangers. I understand. The world in some ways indeed seems colder now. I understand that sometimes it's better to keep to yourself, to mind your own business; the idea that the guy sitting across from you just might be a kook or worse; and that sometimes, you just want to be left alone and to get safely home. I understand all that. Advertisement Today's World Cancer Day holds special meaning to those of us at Susan G. Komen. While we first put down roots in the U.S. in 1982, we have worked in more than 60 countries since our founding to reduce breast cancer deaths in countries where the disease still carries stigma and shame, and where resources to treat it are scarce. We're encouraged by the fact that breast cancer mortality rates have dropped by 36 percent since 1989 in the U.S., and that 3.1 million women and men are surviving this disease every day. But breast cancer is still the most prevalent cancer in women worldwide, and its incidence is growing, with more than 1.6 million new cases expected this year. The burden is felt especially hard in low- and middle-income countries, where the nearest hospital may be a day's journey away. These women have not experienced the same gains as those in the western world. No matter the country or region, we have consistently learned through our work that conquering cancer is not only about research and therapies. It requires creative and innovative solutions to ensure that women and men everywhere have access to the advances that could save their lives. Advertisement Transportation is among those issues. I recently read about Zaina, a subsistence farmer and single mother of three in Tanzania. After being diagnosed with cervical cancer, she journeyed 350 miles from her home to an unfamiliar city and the country's only oncology facility. It was her only hope of survival, and her children's only opportunity to grow up with their mother. Roundtrip transportation from Zaina's rural home to Dar es Salaam (the capital of Tanzania and home to Ocean Road Cancer Institute [ORCI]) was made possible by Pink Ribbon Red Ribbon (PRRR) -- a private-public partnership founded in 2011 by Komen, PEPFAR, the George W. Bush Institute and UNAIDS to address the growing burden of breast and cervical cancer in sub-Saharan Africa. PRRR has helped hundreds of women travel from their homes to ORCI, their best (and only) option to receive cancer treatment. Since its founding, PRRR has made it possible for 6,000 women in Africa to be screened for breast cancer. Another 200,000 women throughout Botswana, Tanzania and Zambia have been screened for cervical cancer, and 98 percent of eligible girls in Botswana have received the lifesaving HPV vaccination -- thanks to PRRR partnerships. Today, another groundbreaking program called Breast Cancer Initiative 2.5 (BCI2.5) kicks off a campaign to reduce deaths from breast cancer by reaching 2.5 million women by 2025. This initiative began as a call for action in 2014, supported by Komen, the Union for International Cancer Control and the American Cancer Society. Since that initial pledge, BCI2.5 has been working with partners around the world, assessing needs, identifying priorities, defining a strategy and developing tools to meet this goal. Advertisement Cancer is a global disease, which means all of us must work globally to create a world where women are educated about this disease, and where they can access quality health care. It's a comprehensive approach to women's health, inclusive of breast cancer screening and prevention, that I believe will save lives and build healthier, reenergized communities worldwide. Author and photography by Julie Ann Fineman Mother Nature has favored mankind with immeasurable resources, and brilliant scientists have favored us with landmark discoveries. So it's a mystery why the most important aspects of life are so often overlooked. Our health, for instance. While technology and medicine are plausible solutions, some of us are looking closer to home: I believe sustainable local agriculture is the finest counterargument to industrialized food that affects the health of people worldwide. The quality of our food sets the tone for our quality of health -- and it directly impacts our environment. That's the reason this blog features a cooperative of farmers, chefs, ranchers, scientists, bakers, vintners, beekeepers and more who are striving to reassess and reassemble our food system -- one that has become an unsustainable food chain. Advertisement We Crave Sustainability, so our focus is on fresh, nutrient-rich, great-tasting food. Two people who share our views are Louis Maldonado and Tim Page. Until recently, Louis Maldonado was the chef at the San Francisco Bay area's own spoonbar in Healdsburg, CA. This innovator's specialty is American contemporary cuisine, and has an impeccable resume. In fact, Louis was a finalist on Bravo's hit TV series, Top Chef. Proving he knows what it takes to achieve heavenly flavor, ingredients reign supreme in Louis's food kingdom. He partners with local sustainable farmers and his farm-to-table approach has catapulted spoonbar to 3-star restaurant status. Enter Tim Page, a friend and colleague of Louis. This sustainable food distributor co-founded F.E.E.D. Sonoma, Farmers Exchange of Earthly Delights and collaborates with chefs like Louis. Tim and his co-founder, Michelle Dubin, gave life to F.E.E.D. to circulate fresh food to neighbors and local restaurants more efficiently.F.E.E.D. supports local farmers and the community's economy by opening new prospects for farmers in Sonoma County - and sustaining consistent deliveries to chefs and restaurants. Tim and Michelle started in 2010 with one truck from a farmer-owned property and a small crew that did rounds to each of the 14 original F.E.E.D. members. Their reach has grown tremendously and today they're one of the Bay Area's leading micro-regional produce aggregation and distribution services. Advertisement I recently got Louis and Tim together at spoonbar to discuss the culture of agriculture. These food gurus have known each other for two years and their personal relationship has grown right along with their professional success. They share a vision of strong communities who have better access to fresh food, so it seems they were destined to work together. Louis - who has sourced food from F.E.E.D. since the beginning - admits he didn't quite grasp what F.E.E.D. was all about at first. He started with a few local items and within six or seven months he saw the true "need for F.E.E.D." As he explored the boundaries of his food suppliers, Louis recognized the rich diversity of the Bay Area and how varying "microclimates" gave food a flavor unique to each region. Chefs and business owners have a broad selection of farmers and fresh food thanks to F.E.E.D. - which Tim describes as "almost a backyard farm." He points out that, "Only a small portion of Sonoma's produce is found locally." That's why F.E.E.D. has a critical role in building the financial groundwork for future farmers, as well as developing untapped farming operations. Tim says, "It takes people like Louis to embrace the foodie lifestyle and support it by buying locally." Louis says his way of thinking grew over time and he still strives to keep things simple, or what he calls "refined rustic." Focusing on a few main items has allowed Louis to see food in a whole new light: rather than completing a dish and moving onto the next, he takes time to perfect each component and produce a masterpiece. F.E.E.D. has also enabled Louis to access a diverse selection of food, which he says tests the agility and innovation of chefs. Recognizing that change is one of the few things promised, Louis encourages aspiring chefs to maintain an ability to adapt. This becomes particularly useful for peak-of-harvest foods. The difference in sweetness, acidity and other characteristics must be considered when preparing meals. He shared a couple of strategies that spoonbar has done to prepare for the closing of seasons, including freezing tomato water and storing it for the winter and immersing cherry tomatoes in olive oil to preserve them. It takes advantage of preservation techniques and captures the essence of fresh produce. Advertisement The relationship Louis and Tim share is fundamental for creating a sustainable food system. They play different roles, but each maintains a shared vision of providing quality food that will improve the health of people - and our planet. When they choose local food, restaurants, ranchers, and residents benefit because it puts the community in a better position for growth.. Louis recently handed over the spoonbar kitchen reins to Co-Executive Chefs Casey and Patrick Van Voorhis. These days you'll find Chef Louis Maldonado in the kitchen leading cooking classes at Mugnaini Imports in Healdsburg, California and the innovative and sustainable fare we've come to expect from Louis will be at the forefront of this great company.Founded by Andrea Mugnaini, an ambassador for wood-fired cooking, authentic Mugnaini ovens are the industry standard for performance, practicality, and longevity - and a true evolutionary step in wood-fired pizza ovens. The company has introduced Americans to the heartfelt Mugnaini Italian style of cooking and entertaining with a wood-fired oven. Mugnaini ovens are in the kitchens of leading culinary spots, too, including the Culinary Institute of America and Chez Panisse. News / Africa by Staff reporter Cape Town - President Jacob Zuma needs to have his day in court and his offer to repay some of the money spent on his Nkandla home should be rejected, the IFP and UDM said yesterday."The IFP sees this move as a sign that the president's legal advisors have at last accepted that the chickens have come home to roost," Inkatha Freedom Party chief whip Narend Singh said in a statement.He said it was a poor attempt at creating a smokescreen ahead of the state of the nation address next Thursday.The United Democratic Movement believed Zuma's offer should be rejected outright.Zuma's lawyers proposed in a letter to the Constitutional Court on Tuesday that it appoint the Auditor-General and finance minister to determine the "reasonable cost" of those Nkandla features not related to security."To achieve an end to the drawn-out dispute in a manner that meets the public protector's recommendations and is beyond political reproach, the president proposes that the determination of the amount he is to pay should be independently and impartially determined," he said in a statement.In her report, entitled Secure in Comfort, dated March 2014, Public Protector Thuli Madonsela recommended that Zuma pay back a reasonable portion of the R246m spent on upgrades to Nkandla not related to security such as the swimming pool, cattle kraal, and amphitheatre.The Economic Freedom Fighters had taken their bid to have Zuma repay the money to the Constitutional Court. It was expected to hear the matter next Tuesday. The Democratic Alliance and Public Protector had joined the court action.UDM leader Bantu Holomisa said Zuma's attempt to avoid further embarrassment and ridicule by the Constitutional Court should be rejected.He said South Africa deserved better than Zuma."In the meantime the ANC must do us a favour and call him back.He is a liability. Zuma has no respect for the people of this country," he said. Your greeting is an integral part of your customer service, as it allows you to connect with your customers and staff members. "Hello" is a perfect starting point because it is simple, friendly and asks nothing in return. It is the ultimate conversation starter, and because customer service is a conversation - not a lecture - "Hello" sets the stage for an experience of your business that is warm, professional and customer-focused. Here are the best ways to use your greeting as a way to create a tether between your business and your customers: Your greeting can be a differentiator. Get creative and think about the ways your business greets your customers and potential clients in person but also in written and online communication. Use language that expresses the concept of your business. Oscar, a new health insurance company introduces itself to new customers on its website homepage with "Hi, we're Oscar." At Ippudo, a ramen restaurant with outposts in 10 countries, the staff loudly greets every table as they are seated with a loud shout-out, in Japanese, of "welcome!" The way you reach out to your clients can be a unique reminder of your brand and the experience that you stand for. Internal Hello. Make sure your greeting standards for your customers are also echoed and utilized internally. I always say, it is hard speaking to strangers, so we must "warm up" by connecting with someone we know first. Your greeting is your first point of engagement with your staff. Use an internal greeting (stop to say hello and give a handshake or a high five) that helps to warm your team members up and get them ready for a productive workday of engaging your customers and clients. Advertisement Be the First. As a manager or leader you must be the first to say "hello" to the staff and to greet your customers. You can lift the spirits of your team members as they start their day by greeting them, asking about their morning, or checking in on their progress with a project or client. Your leadership and your positive energy will help buoy the team throughout the day. Remember: service is all about a conversation, so if you can start one with your team members, you will grease the wheels of friendliness and get them ready to serve with a smile. (IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation) News reports tell of desperate refugee journeys, as thousands flee the dangers and hopelessness of wars or hunger in leaky boats and other perilous means. Less in the news is a different face of the worldwide refugee crisis: over ten million people trapped interminably in camps that were designed only with emergency shelter in mind. The United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) calls it the protracted refugee situation. One of the most intractable is in eastern Africa, where millions live in a seemingly endless limbo. Refugee camps in Kenya are a vivid example of this often forgotten humanitarian drama. In the arid northern region lies Dadaab, a complex called the world's largest refugee camp. Most have fled Somalia. The Dadaab complex "celebrates" its 25th anniversary this year. A third generation now lives there: grandchildren of refugees who arrived decades ago. This human crisis strains national and international resources. Despite continuing efforts, prospects for resolving the situation are distant. The plight of refugees is woven through scripture and stories because such tragedies have happened time and time again in human history. Welcoming the stranger and helping those in need are a common call, a thread that links different traditions. But tales of strife also cut across traditions and many are embedded in stories and rituals. Not surprisingly, religious actors and issues are deeply embedded in Kenya's refugee challenge. But sorting out the different faith threads is complex, and translating that into constructive policy action still more so. Advertisement The most significant and contentious religious aspects of the Dadaab challenge are political. Refugees are inevitably caught up in the religious dimensions of regional conflicts and tensions. The Al Shabaab extremist group, that fuels conflict across the region, expounds an Islamist ideology. Most refugees in Dadaab are Muslims, and whenever there are incidents of violence in Kenya, suspicions fall on them. After the horrific Garissa University killings in April 2015 senior Kenyan leaders asserted that it was time to close the camps immediately, though they have since tempered their unrealistic call. The protracted refugee crisis is fueling and even creating religious tensions in the society far beyond Dadaab. Kenya's population is majority Christian but with significant Muslim communities, part of Kenyan society for centuries. Kenya has prided itself on harmonious inter-religious relations, but violence and the presence of the large refugee communities undermines them. Al Shabaab's tactics cast suspicion not only on Somali refugees but also Kenyan Muslims, who include ethnic Somalis. Coming on top of complex, deep ethnic divides, more religious tensions are something Kenya does not need. Wise leaders appreciate the risks and the rifts and various initiatives aim to recognize and address the tensions - among them are BRAVE, a Muslim-led youth initiative that earns its name with the courage that open discourse on the topic demands. Religious beliefs and practices are an important part of the refugees' daily lives and respecting this reality is a vital part of managing all refugee communities but especially protracted refugee situations. Camps like Dadaab are more than an emergency shelter. Schools are a high priority, symbolizing hope for new generations. Religious festivals are celebrated insofar as possible. Religious leaders among the refugees can play leadership roles, helping to forge communication links with administrators. Advertisement Humanitarian organizations from many corners of the world play vital roles as partners of UNHCR; some preceded UNHCR in Kenya. Management of refugee camps demands heavy logistic inputs to make sure food, water, and shelter are available. Many of the partner organizations that keep the Kenyan camps running, for example Jesuit Refugee Services, Islamic Relief, Lutheran World Relief, Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, and the National Council of Churches of Kenya, have strong religious links. Humanitarian conventions are crystal clear in outlawing proselytism and they are widely respected. But experience highlights the many ways in which spiritual insight and compassion enrich the contributions of each group. Their roles go well beyond meeting the refugees' most urgent needs. Organizations engage on refugee issues beyond UNHCR's official mandate, for example supporting refugees in urban areas whose legal status may be tenuous. The programs range widely, from basic services and care to trauma healing and attention to specific issues like domestic violence. Some bring religious links and experience explicitly to bear. An example is Islamic Relief's pre-schools that integrate Qu'anic and other curricula and teaching methods. A common feature of protracted refugee situations is tension with local communities. Dadaab is in one of Kenya's poorest, driest regions, beset by drought and disrupted by violence. People see vehicles transporting goods to the camps, bypassing them entirely, and view the refugees as privileged. Resentment is inevitable. The mandate for camp management is to serve refugees, not Kenyan citizens, but sensible planners are keenly aware that integrated responses are vital, for reasons of justice but also to guard against tensions. Some of the faith-inspired organizations are working to bridge the gulfs. The refugee challenge for Kenya poses a knotty set of challenges, both urgent and longer term. Immediate demands continue but longer term solutions are desperately needed. Refugees are caught in a dependency trap because they can rarely hold jobs in the host country. Few see realistic prospects that the great majority of refugees can return "home" anytime soon, and many have lived their entire lives in Kenya. They need to work towards a normal life in a stable and safe environment, quite possibly Kenya. Yet many Kenyans are unemployed and a youth bulge presages greater employment challenges ahead. Thus strategies for integration, however desirable, are difficult, and the complex links between religion, refugees, and security make them more so. Photo: Syrian refugee girl in a tent in the Jordan Valley Picture: UNICEF/Noorani "All the money in the whole world can not erase the death of one child." That was the sentiment of one delegate this afternoon at the Fourth International Humanitarian Pledging Conference for Syria in London. And yet, with the conference still underway here in Westminster and with delegate after delegate taking the podium pledging new funding to meet those affected and displaced by the war in Syria, it has become increasingly clear that these pledges -- many of them focused on the longer term and education, training and employment for the displaced -- do have the potential to not only save lives, but also build futures and contribute to the stability of the region. Coming on the heels of the breakdown of peace talks in Geneva aimed at ending Syria's five-year civil war, the billions currently being pledged is a sliver of hope that despite a lack of political solutions to actually end the war, the international community is committed to coming together to support the Syrian people and their increasingly generous neighbors. Speaking with the BBC this afternoon, Tom Fletcher, former UK Ambassador to Lebanon and Director of Global Strategy for the Global Business Coalition for Education described progress today so far as a "bright spot in a grim situation." Advertisement Over the last five years, the burden of the Syria crisis has been largely carried by neighboring countries in particular Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey who have opened up their borders, schools, hospitals, social services and budgets generously to an unprecedented influx of Syrian refugees. Since the onset of the conflict, Turkey has invested more than $6 billion in Syrian refugees. The United States by contrast, the largest single donor outside the region has contributed $4.5 billion. World Bank President Jim Kim said today of the burden these countries continue to bear, "fundamentally this is not a sustainable situation." What countries in the region are doing to provide for these refugees Donald Tusk, President of the European Council described as the provision of a "global public good" and called on the international community to do more to invest in this public good. A critical part of this "global public good" in these countries has been the provision of education. Despite repeated calls from campaigners and the United Nations Special Envoy for Education, Gordon Brown, for an increased focus on education for children and youth who have fled from Syria, educational opportunities in the region (as in other emergencies) have continued to be too low on the list of immediate priorities for most donors. Today for the first time however, education was front and centre of the humanitarian response agenda. United States Secretary of State John Kerry pledged the continued support of the United States describing the crisis as something that "should tear at the conscience of all civilised people." Kerry emphasised that of the $925 million US contribution, '$290 million is new funding specifically to support schooling for 300,000 refugee youth in Jordan and Lebanon.' Borge Brende, Norwegian Minister of Foreign Affairs and well known champion of education, pledged that 15% of Norway's contributions for Syria will be focused on education and challenged other donors to do the same. Advertisement On the eve of the conference, and echoing the call of campaigners to increase commitment to education for Syrian refugees and in emergency contexts more broadly, Prime Minister David Cameron doubled the commitment of the UK to 2.4 billion, and simultaneously noted that a "new approach" and a "future model for humanitarian relief" was needed that focuses on building stability, creating jobs and providing education. The call is for pledges today that will result in at least 1 million more children and youth in school this year -- at a total estimated cost of $1.4 billion. MANCHESTER, NH - FEBRUARY 04: Republican presidential candidate Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) holds a campaign town hall event at the New Hampshire Institute of Politics at St. Anselm College February 4, 2016 in Manchester, New Hampshire. Rubio is hoping to gather momentum in New Hampshire after placing third in Monday's Iowa caucuses, finishing one percentage point behind Donald Trump and four points behind the leader, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX). (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) The frequency of the "but I have black/Latino friends" argument and its continued use by politicians and pundits reveal the need for a more sophisticated discussion of diversity, discrimination, and difference. Since the Iowa caucuses on Monday conservatives have been playing the "friend" card: because 60 percent of the Republican vote in Iowa went to "two Cubans and a black man," voters must not be racist, or so the argument goes. Advertisement This election equivalent of "but I have black/Latino friends" has been repeated in the media coverage of the results, not only in conservative publications but also in mainstream media outlets like CNN. Furthermore, the implication of this argument is that progressives are racist because their candidates are white, while those 60 percent of mostly white Republicans are "colorblind." This understanding of racism and prejudice is harmful--implicit in the argument is that systemic discrimination no longer exists because white people are willing to vote for a non-white candidate. This is followed by the implication that if you are a white candidate, you are automatically not as appealing to minorities as a minority candidate. Research on racial perception shows that a diverse group of friends doesn't make one immune to prejudice. Cornell professor Noliwe Rooks sums it up best: "Friendship with black people -- and even being a black person -- does nothing to change racial bias. Indeed, almost one-third of black people hold similarly negative views." This means that the way white voters characterize Cruz, Rubio, or Carson does not necessarily extend to the unknown black and Latino citizens in this country. In other words, having these black and Latino "friends" does not preclude stereotypical views of minorities. Their supporters are not automatically excused from bias and prejudice simply because they voted for a non-white candidate. Furthermore, just because Cruz, Rubio, and Carson belong to racial minorities doesn't make them immune to prejudice and discrimination. When Ted Cruz proposes banning all Muslim refugees, that's exclusion. When Marco Rubio opposes paycheck fairness, that's sexism. And when Ben Carson equates homosexuality with pedophilia, that's homophobia. They all support closing mosques and building walls. Acting like their current, relatively successful candidacies are some sort of victory for diversity only halts conversations and helps people ignore their own possible biases. Advertisement Racism involves ideas and actions, not who you know. Racism is power based--prejudice flowing from someone in power to someone with a lack of power. Racism, as Ta Nehisi Coates put it, exhibits "broad sympathy toward some and broader skepticism toward others." I can't imagine these definitions would be very controversial these days. Yet our political discourse ignores these more nuanced understandings and continues to promote the idea that "racism" is dead/dying because we have a black President and Cuban candidates, despite all of the disparaging comments made about racial and religious minorities in recent months. Despite the popularity of racist policies. Despite the pervasive discourse of exclusion and discrimination. Ending prejudice, then, takes more than having a black friend. It takes more than the willingness to vote for a Latino candidate. In these early weeks of 2016, a thoughtful canvassing of world affairs and the challenges to our nation's foreign policy engagement doesn't paint a particularly pretty picture. Indeed, there are days when I consider the state of our planet and ask myself, "Can anything in the world go right?" Everywhere I look there seems to be turmoil, conflict and violence, and just when one global trouble spot seems to simmer down, another pops up in its place. The U.S. finds itself fighting fires in every corner of the globe, but increasingly it feels as if we're caught in a game of whack-a-mole. Advertisement As I wrote here on Huffington Post a few weeks ago, for many decades and presidential administrations now, our foreign policy has been drawn into the violent vortex that is the Middle East. The old saying "There are no optimists in the Middle East" is holding true now and seems as if it will carry relevance well into the future, as we look ahead to decades of chaos in the region. Presently, we don't appear to have any solid solutions for how to relieve the tension and mayhem that dominate the region. There's Syria, which is involved in a devastating civil war, closing in on five years now, which presents grave consequences for the world. The impact of the Syrian civil war stretches across the entire region and has sucked in all of the great powers of the globe, including the U.S. Refugees fleeing the escalating conflict continue to pour into Europe and other areas of the world. According to recent reports, half of Syria's pre-war population, or more than 11 million people, have been killed or forced to flee their homes. A civil war is also ongoing in Iraq, where the country's leaders continue to cope with the disintegration of the country and chaotic aftermath of the U.S.-led invasion, more than a dozen years ago, that ousted Saddam Hussein. And despite our successful negotiations over the Iran nuclear deal, which ended decades of economic sanctions against Iran in exchange for restrictions on the country's nuclear programs, there is still a great deal of harsh criticism and outright rejection of this accord. Some of this has come from our ally Saudi Arabia, which is struggling with the impact of low oil prices while it entertains grave doubts about the U.S. and our engagement with Iran, a country that it considers its chief and most dangerous rival in the region. I know I'm not alone in focusing much of my foreign policy gaze on the Middle East, which confounds and distracts us from other serious problems around the globe. On the African continent, major conflicts abound. Recent reports indicate the situation in the South Sudan is worsening, putting the country on the precipice of another civil war. A United Nations-brokered peace deal, penned in December to end the divide between Libya's two rival governments, appears to have already collapsed, as that country continues to suffer from the widespread chaos and unrest that has engulfed the country since the ouster, in 2011, of longtime dictator Muammer Gaddafi. Meanwhile, violence has escalated in Cameroon, Chad and Niger, with each country engaged in a vicious battle with the Islamic extremists Boko Haram, which has declared its allegiance to another terrorist group wreaking havoc on the region, ISIS. And the central African nation of Burundi is facing its worst crisis of violence and turmoil since a 12-year civil war ended there in 2005. Advertisement Asia continues to be dominated by a confident and powerful China, which increasingly has flexed its muscle through bold diplomatic initiatives, activist foreign and economic policies, and aggressive actions over territorial boundaries in the hotly contested South China Sea. On almost every major issue concerning the future of our planet, including nuclear proliferation, terrorism and climate change, the U.S. and China have become the major players. Indeed, I'm repeatedly impressed by the extent to which China has captured our attention. U.S. political and foreign affairs pundits have written about how China should address its faltering economy, which, according to some major media reports, is experiencing its weakest growth in recent memory. These pundits have also weighed in with further advice to China with respect to North Korea, which repeatedly rattles its sabers and gives the globe a glimpse, through missile tests and more, of its growing nuclear capabilities. They want to deal with the problem by getting the Chinese to apply more pressure on North Korea, advice that China continues to reject over fear that this course of action will cause greater instability in the region. For its part, the U.S. also seems to be pulling back from dealing with provocations from the North Koreans. Once upon a time there was Europe, a beacon of stability, at least relative to the Middle East and other more volatile regions of the world. Today, though, the continent faces the challenge of damaged economies, major political divisions and a growing refugee crisis, which has overwhelmed several countries. These issues and more have severely weakened Europe and threatened one of its greatest historic achievements, its open borders. Meanwhile, our relations with Russia have become increasingly strained over Russian President Vladimir Putin's aggressive policies in Eastern Europe and elsewhere. The West continues to wrestle with Putin, who not long ago brought East-West relations to the brink of major chaos by annexing Crimea and amassing tens of thousands of Russian troops in Ukraine. At the same time, the West struggles with the significant challenge of reinvigorating a declining global economy and putting it on the path of robust growth. Advertisement Finally, there is ISIS, which continues to strike terror into Europe and the U.S., as we in the West grapple with how to respond to a group determined to cause death and destruction by any means possible. Defeating ISIS will clearly take more resources and time than any of our nation's leading politicians have suggested. Looking at our foreign policy vis-a-vis all of these troubled spots leaves us with an unrelentingly gloomy outlook, but I'm encouraged that the U.S. remains the strongest, freest nation in the world. What's more, no nation will displace us in the near future from our position of preeminence. The question looms: Can the U.S. exercise the leadership necessary to create a freer, more safe and secure, and more prosperous world? We cannot control or even manage the world, but we can and should take the lead in trying to resolve many of its problems. There are far too many problems across our planet for us to solve alone. Our future--and the future of the world--depends on international cooperation and our network of partnerships. Moving forward, we must do a better job of strengthening our alliances, pooling our collective resources and coordinating our actions with like-minded nations. Identifying where the largest problems will be and where new conflicts will arise will undoubtedly continue to cause us major difficulty. My experience tells me that, even with all of the talent and resources at our disposal, we're just not very good at predicting the hot spots. Still, we must always be prepared for surprises that pop up. The bottom line is that the U.S. remains in an enviable position, and we have many reasons to be confident about the future. But a realistic view reveals the challenges, which can only be met if we successfully rally the support our allies and friends, and recognize that solving any one of these problems will require time, patience and fortitude, hallmarks of American leadership that will be vigorously tested every day. It seems we can't get through a decade without at least once having former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg remind us that, as a billionaire, he's as entitled as anyone to buy the presidency of the United States. And here he is again, declaring that he's two thinks from declaring candidacy and riding to America's rescue. We admit that it's a bit more complicated this time around -- what with Trump or Cruz barreling toward the GOP nom and Bernie bearing down on Hillary hard. It's possible, though difficult, to imagine a Cruz vs. Sanders face-off that leaves non-primary voters so freaked out it opens a teeny tiny window for a third-party candidate. But... Bloomberg? Pundits and scholars have already weighed in about how there's no way for Bloomberg to jump in and actually win. A few have said how it's Bloomberg's positions on guns and Big Gulps that will stop him. But most have pointed out how it's simply mathematical: Electoral College and pluralities and a GOP-controlled House and yada yada yada. Advertisement We don't think Bloomberg actually wants to run; we think he's in this for the attention. (Money, apparently, is no substitute to hearing your name tossed around the Sunday morning talk shows.) We don't really see any harm in it if it gets talking heads to talk about something besides Donald Trump for ten or fifteen minutes. And, besides, if this goes anywhere, we're hoping to reconnect with some very old friends we haven't heard from in a long time. Pull up a chair, kids, and let us tell you about the time your intrepid reporters Lester & Charlie were tangled in a highly secretive, not-yet-announced campaign of a candidate a lot like Bloomberg. Our job responsibility was to monitor chat room chatter about how game-changing this candidate, if he ever decided to run, could be. The stealth candidate's job was to deny everything. Which only got the 24-hour news cycle more jazzed up to talk about him. A circumstance that, according to our job responsibility list, instructed us to go back to the message boards to fuel the fire. It seems we can't get through a decade without at least once having former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg remind us that, as a billionaire, he's as entitled as anyone to buy the presidency of the United States. And here he is again, declaring that he's two thinks from declaring candidacy and riding to America's rescue. We admit that it's a bit more complicated this time around -- what with Trump or Cruz barreling toward the GOP nom and Bernie bearing down on Hillary hard. It's possible, though difficult, to imagine a Cruz vs. Sanders face-off that leaves non-primary voters so freaked out it opens a teeny tiny window for a third-party candidate. But... Bloomberg? Advertisement Pundits and scholars have already weighed in about how there's no way for Bloomberg to jump in and actually win. A few have said how it's Bloomberg's positions on guns and Big Gulps that will stop him. But most have pointed out how it's simply mathematical: Electoral College and pluralities and a GOP-controlled House and yada yada yada. We don't think Bloomberg actually wants to run; we think he's in this for the attention. (Money, apparently, is no substitute to hearing your name tossed around the Sunday morning talk shows.) We don't really see any harm in it if it gets talking heads to talk about something besides Donald Trump for ten or fifteen minutes. And, besides, if this goes anywhere, we're hoping to reconnect with some very old friends we haven't heard from in a long time. Pull up a chair, kids, and let us tell you about the time your intrepid reporters Lester & Charlie were tangled in a highly secretive, not-yet-announced campaign of a candidate a lot like Bloomberg. Our job responsibility was to monitor chat room chatter about how game-changing this candidate, if he ever decided to run, could be. The stealth candidate's job was to deny everything. Which only got the 24-hour news cycle more jazzed up to talk about him. A circumstance that, according to our job responsibility list, instructed us to go back to the message boards to fuel the fire. But more interesting than the TV chatter were the thoughts and hopes of the lonely people all over America who actually wrote to our unannounced candidate to tell him to run. Not for the hills. To run for president. These were people who felt completely abandoned by the political process. Conspiracy theorists like the one who was convinced that our country was so doped up on estrogen that "ALL OUR BOYS ARE GROWING BREASTS!" And a frustrated small-town activists in Texas who longed for a Nanny-State Executive to get their neighbors to clean up her neighbor's damn lawn. A proud supporter who announced she'd be thrilled to wear a bumper sticker for our guy -- if only she could figure out how to spell his name. And it didn't stop there. There was the guy who wrote to say that, as a Jew, our guy was pretty much unelectable -- unless he were to team up with a certain Austrian former governor whose father was affiliated with the Nazi party. You know, for balance. Then there was the pro-life, Roman Catholic, fiscally conservative homosexual who had almost despaired of ever finding "that special candidate" before he heard about our guy. And another who thought the perfect team would be our guy at the top of the ticket along with... Bill Cosby. Advertisement That was eight years ago. Do you know what happened to those lonely, abandoned, alienated voters who felt so marginalized then? They multiplied like rabbits. Now, in 2016, they are the stars of the electorate. These are the people who don't care what Trump says -- as long as he channels their anger. They're thrilled to hear that everybody in Washington hates Ted Cruz. They don't care that Sarah Palin makes no sense -- in fact they love it. Heck, they'd even still be loving poor Ben Carson if only someone had given him a cup of coffee to keep him awake for the debates. Watching the news now, and especially watching the meteoric rise of Trump, we have to suspect those lonely people who wrote to us long ago were all on to something. A viable candidate needs is a billion dollars and a penchant for psychopathy. And that got us thinking: If he runs, maybe our guy really should get on a ticket with Cosby. *** At a time when 65 percent of Americans believe the country is heading in the wrong direction, we stand solidly behind our schools. Our national optimism, even in pessimistic times, sees the schoolhouse as the workhorse of a better tomorrow, the bedrock of opportunity. By large margins we love our local schools and trust our teachers, according to the research. With a near unanimous voice, Americans say continuing to college is important to them. We also rest comfortably in the belief that our children's schools look, and feel like, schools of our youth. This is far from today's reality on the ground. A generation ago, the standard fare of K-12 education consisted of public schools with a smattering of private and parochial schools. Today, the genome of American schooling is dizzyingly complex. Public schools now come in a myriad of forms including pilots and magnets. Charter schools, likewise, come in many flavors, as do independent schools and religiously affiliated schools, along with a healthy dose of individual, and organizationally led, home schooling alternatives. No other country on earth has the extensive variation in schools and schooling that we do. In every niche of this vast ecology, schools are innovating. Advertisement With globalization, mass migration and growing inequality, America's schools are asked to do more than ever before. Our schooling diversity could be a game-changing asset, if we could learn how to mine it for gems of improvement. Alas, we are not learning from our diversity. A broad range of actors -- philanthropists, policy makers, academics, parents and, of course, educators -- are weighing in, often in less than optimal ways, on how to make our beloved American schools better. Yet, we pit one categorical solution over another. Some say the prescription for improvement is to redouble our efforts to make traditional public schools better. Others suggest we need to increase our efforts to create more magnet and pilot schools within the public context. Yet others conclude that schools would be made better if parents were allowed to invest public dollars in private or religious schools. Still others swear that we need to create many more charter schools; Exhibit A is the (Philanthropist Eli) Broad Foundation's plans for a truly massive investment to move half of the children in Los Angeles' public schools to charters. Whatever the prescription, the assumption is that one category of schooling is fundamentally better than all others. Charters for many have emerged as the silver bullet. If charters are better than public schools, then creating more charters will de facto enhance outcomes for America's children, so the theory goes. This is wrongheaded. There are many examples, across the country, of great schooling, in traditional public, charter, independent, religious, and home schooling categories. Likewise there are examples in each category, including charters, that are abysmal. If we put these examples under a microscope we will see complexity: rachitic charters alongside vibrant religious schools, along with underwhelming independent schools, along with public schooling facing a powerful undertow in ever more segregated, poor, and dystopic neighborhoods. Advertisement The current binary logic for improvement unfolding nationwide but above all in Los Angeles - charters vs. publics does not serve us well. How do we get beyond simplistic silver bullets and dubious binaries? How do we use the unique diversity that is the ecology of American schooling to the advantage of American children? One way forward comes from work spearheaded by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. In "Learning to Improve: How America's Schools Can Get Better at Getting Better," the authors, including one of us, suggest another path. First, we ought to become more adept at learning from practice to improve practice. Improvement science offers powerful tools now proven in disparate contexts - from enhanced aviation to safer operating room procedures. Improvement science can also be used to help schools arrange themselves to accelerate their learning and organizational improvement. In our country all education is local, so a local example will do. UCLA has created a laboratory of diverse schools from which we are learning and sharing the know-how. Our approach starts with practitioners who share significant traits. First, they have identified important problems of educational practice that they have in common. Second, they are eager to share their professional know-how to create engaging and effective learning environments for children. Third, they are in partnership with university researchers to study and take to scale successful practices. The network includes the UCLA Lab School, one of the oldest lab schools in the nation, the UCLA Community School in Pico-Union Koreatown [a pilot school], and four Tie-In [Together in Education] public schools in West Los Angeles. A new public Community School in South Los Angeles will be added to the Network and others will follow. The challenge in urban school reform is to find ways to make effective know-how transparent and shareable. We have seen that a collection of local teachers, in partnership with University scholars, can be masterful in figuring out how to solve thorny problems: for example, teaching English language learners the academic language to do 21st century math. Universities, working as facilitators, can help schools put useful knowledge in relief, adapt it and share it across sites. Our aim is nothing more and nothing less than schools learning from schools through purposeful collaborative networks of practitioners, academics and designers. The 21st century university should not only be creating original insights in its educational labs. It should also work to identify innovation in local communities of practitioners and bring it to scale. We believe that communities of schools working together will almost always come to better insights than academics or teachers working alone no matter how many philanthropic dollars are invested. Advertisement Public universities should be in the business of catalyzing local networks of diverse schools working on common problems. The challenge is to animate a deep commitment to urban schooling, working side by side with teacher practitioners to take joint responsibility and shared authority for outcomes in schools. In a brisk five years, the UCLA Community School saw a tripling in college going rates, in a population of largely poor, immigrant, first-generation students. The results: Over 90 percent of the last graduating class is now heading to college. Other university assisted schools are springing up across the country. The expertise exists in many schools of education to assist practitioners in bringing their know-how forward, improving it, and sharing it. The key to improvement lies not in placing a bet on one category or another, but placing a big bet on well-conceived practice and faith in practitioners. Local practitioners manufacture success and failure every day. Let's share successes and learn from the failures. The terror group's crude production, trade and revenue have been vastly over-estimated. It continues to depend on foreign financing to sustain its war machine, argues Luay al-Khatteeb. This post originally appeared on the Petroleum Economist, February 2016. IT WAS the story of 2015: not only was the so-called Islamic State (IS) unbearably brutal, but the terror-group was raking in vast sums of money by selling oil, using ingenious makeshift refineries and even exporting their petroleum -- a narrative that fit nicely with their Mad Max image of post-apocalyptic evil. To some, the terrorists' oil wealth was a sign that they were inching closer to statehood, complete with an oil minister who meticulously recorded the distribution of $2m a day to loyal henchmen. Media stories liked to depict IS as "the richest terrorist group in the world", with burgeoning oil wealth that makes it self-sustainable and all too powerful. Advertisement In the fog of war, these stories appeared at first to have some truth. The group briefly controlled potential production of 45,000 barrels a day in both Syria and Iraq in mid-2014, though this gradually diminished to around 25,000 b/d in early 2015. Before the frontlines stabilized, oil demand in areas surrounding the so-called caliphate remained high. Revelations and conspiracy theories peaked in late 2015, with Russia claiming an incredible 12,000 trucks were smuggling fuel into Turkey. This claim was overblown, given the low quality of the oil IS was able to recover. Nonetheless, it obscures a different and equally uncomfortable fact. Towards the end of 2014 a limited quantity of IS oil was being smuggled through middlemen into the Kurdish Region of Iraq and, according to a source close to the matter, and some of that oil was trucked into Turkey, via Dohuk. The Kurdistan Regional Government has angrily denied the claims. Russian satellite images, while not showing 12,000 IS oil trucks, do in fact show a roaring black economy. This includes Turkish border officials taking tariffs for trade, akin to the smuggling boom during the Iraq-sanctions period. Turkey has always denied that IS oil has crossed its borders. Calculations fail to add up Despite the claims surrounding the supposedly oil-rich caliphate, oil was not and is still not critical for IS. Its predecessor, the Islamic State of Iraq, managed to cause chaos for almost a decade without control over a single wellhead. A deeper analysis, based on my interviews with people very familiar with Syria's oilfields and their fate, is that there is no way IS could have operated them efficiently. Even at its peak, IS' oil business would not allow any surplus for significant exports. Advertisement Of course, some reports understood that IS was not running anything like an international oil company, and was selling oil at prices of just $30 a barrel when internationally traded benchmarks like Brent were sitting at much higher levels. But an analysis of the economics of the local Syrian market shows even that price to have been too high. The Syrian fields of Al Omar, Al Tanak and Al Ward were managed by Shell before the war. They contained 40% water content, and the operator netted 60,000-70,000 b/d after the oil was produced. Turning that oil into usable crude, with associated processes of de-gassing, removing sulphur, water and salinity, is not easy. Producers in many developing countries lack the intrinsic capability to do. So considering airstrikes on IS oil facilities began mid-2015, the thought of a nascent terror state pulling off this operation looks shaky. The oil under IS' control at Qaiyara in Iraq, like that in some Syrian fields now held by the group, is very heavy. It has an API (density) of 14-18, making the oil almost useless for refining into petroleum. I am reliably told that the heavy oil from Qayyara was until recently valued in local sales at about $4/b. At the same time, IS' oil operations lack enhanced oil recovery techniques, such as water injection, meaning production has struggled to reach 20,000 b/d. That makes sense: the Energy Information Administration pointed out last year that total Syrian production had collapsed to just 25,000 b/d, compared with pre- 2011 output of around 380,000 b/d. This crude, with a density of 36 API, has nonetheless netted IS little more than $10/b - hardly yielding the kind of oil bonanza some have assumed. This should make anyone skeptical of claims about the well-oiled IS machine, able to pay its fighters $2m a day to keep battling on myriad frontlines. That narrative presumes both far higher oil production rates (of 40,000 b/d) or a far higher price for IS oil (of around $30/b). Both are vast overestimations. Nor does this reflect the reality of maintaining the military mobility of enough men to advance deeper into Syria and Iraqi western deserts. Captured Iraqi and Syrian tanks and thousands of Humvees require quality fuel, and lots of it - not something you can make in a backyard refinery. Advertisement Even before US special forces killed IS oil minister Abu Sayyaf in May 2015, and captured data on the caliphate's oil trade, it should have been clear that the scale of this business was greatly exaggerated. Sayyaf himself may have exaggerated the volume of trade under his control, either to obfuscate or, more likely, to give his boss, Abu Bakr Baghdadi, the self-proclaimed caliph, optimistic reports. Stretched assets Occupation by IS has been grim -- in social terms, but also financial ones. In January last year, before the strikes on IS' oil business, per capita income for those in the caliphate in Syria was just $115 a month, making it one of the poorest areas of the world. Despite this, the war effort rolled on. We now know from analysis of internal IS communications that oil accounted for only 27% of the group's funds in the oil-producing province of Dayr az Zawr in Syria. Taxation of people living under IS' control, the appropriation of assets from those expelled from IS territory or murdered, and the sale of antiquities, were bigger sources of funding, at over 40%. Meanwhile, by the time IS had taken control of Raqqa and Mosul, economic activity had already been stalled for years: both cities were suffering under sanctions and conflict. Mosul had not achieved stability since the end of the US occupation. Raqqa's vital agriculture sector was in decline due to chronic drought throughout the 2000s, reducing an already low per capita annual income of $2,800 before the war. When the city fell to insurgents in 2013, government salaries had ceased, although they continued in the Iraqi city of Mosul. As inhabitants fled the cities, their departure reduced the potential for taxation too. The sale of antiquities has helped plug some of the financing gap - but experts suggest that such stolen material rarely fetches more than 10 or 20% of the price it would reach if sold through the official channels. Advertisement Yet the terror-group is not broken. While most accounts suggest the so-declared caliphate is experiencing total economic collapse, IS continues to replenish its manpower. The Soufan Group, a security advisory firm, recently estimated foreign fighter membership had doubled to more than 30,000 in 2015 -- a damning indictment of Turkey, which has not closed its border to stop this influx. Either these fighters are happy to accept substantial pay cuts, as IS' income diminishes, or another unaccounted-for source of funding is keeping them happy. That's a reasonable conclusion, given the overestimation of IS' oil finances, the small and shrinking tax-base and the low price IS garners from its sale of antiquities on the black market. Some might wonder to what extent Gulf Arab financing has continued to subsidize the caliphate. Certainly, IS was able to draw on some other sources of income between January 2015, when Raqqa's economy had reportedly collapsed, and mid-January 2016, when IS forces have been able to launch a major new Syrian offensive. The money is coming from somewhere. In one recent case, an anti-Christian, anti-Jewish and anti-Shi'a cleric was allowed to speak in a sermon in the main government mosque of Qatar, a Western ally in the fight against IS. Alternative finance avenues such as the dark web and the opaque movement of money during the Hajj pilgrimage need to be fully investigated. Turkey's unfulfilled promises to control its border area, pledged six months ago, must be addressed. Otherwise, we are left to assume that sympathy for the IS project, fueled by champions of sectarianism, runs disturbingly high. It would not be the first time that Western allies have pledged to fight Salafist terrorism, only for Washington to discover a greater tolerance of radicals than previously known. Hillary Clinton's now-famous complaint in a leaked State Department cable from 2009 that the Saudis were slow to combat terror financing emanating from the kingdom is just one example. In short, IS' ability to finance its expansion of terror relies on more than the smuggling of poor-quality oil or taxing people earning just $115 a month. IS-controlled oil assets have either been completely destroyed or left to function at a fraction of their capacity since mid-2015 in both Iraq and Syria. Advertisement Geneva III - set-up to fail Even before any negotiations got off the ground in Geneva, the basic conflicts between the participants were on full display. And, to no-ones surprise, less than a week after the start of the so-called proximity talks, Staffan de Mistura suspended the process until at least February 25. And even if the de Mistura manages to get everybody inside the same room sometime after February 25, the chances that the next round will produce any concrete and sustainable solutions are slim indeed. The reasons for this state of affairs are the same as before; Syria cannot be separated from the conflict in Iraq; the two most fearsome and efficient actors -- the Islamic State (IS) and Al Qaeda-groups -- are not (for obvious reasons) participating; and there is no long-term idea of how to defeat those actors militarily and there is still -- five years after the meltdown in Syria -- no serious ideas of how to put these two countries back together again, or if that is even a viable option; there is no attempt to seriously counter the fact that Russia, Iran and their allies are busy pushing for a military conclusion during the talks (the continued Russian air-war against the non-IS oppositional forces in Syria was a key-cause for de Misturas' decision to suspend the talks); the most efficient and -- for now at least -- the only reliable military force able to take on the Islamic State -- the Kurds -- was not invited either, thanks to Turkey; the very obvious fact that the countries meeting to challenge the Islamic State, are not even close to have a similar take on what is needed to bring the mayhem in Syria to an end. Turkey, for example, have been spending a lot more time going after the Kurds militarily than the IS, and it was the increasingly authoritarian President Erdogan who vetoed any sizable Kurdish participation in the talks. And, as stated, Russia is busy attacking everybody except the IS in order to stabilize President Assad, and break the back of the non-IS oppositional forces. By Brendan Fischer, Kim Haddow, and Mary Bottari Across America, corporate interests are taking aim at local government. With Congress gridlocked and a majority of state legislatures controlled by right-wing interests, cities have become laboratories of democracy for progressive policies like a higher minimum wage, LGBTQ protections, or parental leave. In response, corporate interests and groups like the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) have increasingly been turning to state "preemption" measures--some of them unprecedentedly aggressive--to override an array of progressive policy gains at the city or county level. "2015 saw more efforts to undermine local control on more issues than any year in history," said Mark Pertschuk, director of the watchdog group Preemption Watch. Advertisement Last year, state legislatures in at least 29 states introduced bills to block local control over a range of issues, from the minimum wage, to LGBTQ rights, to immigration, according to Preemption Watch. Seventeen states considered more than one preemption bill. And just a few weeks into 2016 state legislative sessions, it's clear that ending local authority will continue to be the go-to strategy for state legislators and their special interest allies, as a means of blocking earned sick days, minimum wage hikes, tobacco and fracking bans, pro-worker policies, or anti-discrimination laws. Bills to stop local fracking bans have been already filed this year in Colorado, New Mexico and and Florida. Minimum wage preemption bills have been filed in Washington and Illinois. Legislation has been filed in Indiana, Michigan and New Mexico to stop local action on fair scheduling ordinances. Advocates are tracking preemption bills targeting LGBTQ ordinances in South Carolina, Virginia, Oklahoma and Indiana, and expect to see bills in North Carolina, Mississippi and West Virginia. Unions are bracing for bills in a spate of states aimed at limiting municipal labor standard-setting. In Florida alone, lawmakers have already filed more than 20 bills seeking to preempt local authority on issues including oil and gas regulations, construction standards for abortion clinics and whether a town can declare itself a sanctuary city. Advertisement And in Oklahoma, legislators just introduced a wide-ranging bill to effectively undo home rule and local control. Under the proposal, local governments would be prohibited from doing almost anything that isn't specifically authorized by the state legislature. Troubling preemption trends emerged in 2015 Over time, bills interfering in local democracy have become wider in scope and more hostile to home rule. More industries and special interest groups now consider preemption a legislative imperative, using it not just to stop the advancement of policies they disagree with, but also to undo elections and repeal laws already on the books. These efforts to consolidate power at the state level and stop local progress are part of a long-term corporate-driven strategy. The Koch-funded ALEC and its local offshoot, the American City County Exchange (ACCE), have been central to this anti-local democracy effort. ALEC has long pushed bills like the "Living Wage Mandate Preemption Act" to block local governments from raising the wage. It has worked to preempt community-run municipal broadband in 19 states - which benefits ALEC funders like AT&T and Comcast -- and local anti-GMO policies, which benefits ALEC funders like CropLife America. A new trend that emerged in 2015 was the introduction of wide-ranging bills prohibiting local control over a broad set of issues, such as Michigan's "Death Star" preemption bill (HB 4052) which bars local governments from regulating everything from paid sick days and minimum wage to scheduling for retail stores and ban the box ordinances. Originally, the bill included language that could have eliminated local protections against LGBTQ discrimination. That section was not contained in the final law, but it did pass in Arkansas. North Carolina also considered a "Death Star" preemption bill last year, but too late in the session to move it. 2015 also saw narrowly-focused bills evolve into comprehensive attacks on local control. These so-called "Christmas Tree" bills start out as say, a ban on local plastic bag regulations, and are then hung with an array of other provisions crafted to override local lawmaking. For example, a law in Missouri enacted last year that blocked local government authority to enact paid sick days or raise the minimum wage started as a plastic bag ban. Advertisement Last year also saw the rise of "super-preemption" bills that not only block local governments from enacting regulations, but give corporations and individuals the right to sue cities or counties if they don't comply. Here is a snapshot of some corporate-backed efforts to override local control in 2015: Paid Sick Days and Minimum Wage Bills prohibiting local government from enacting paid sick day guarantees were enacted in Michigan, Oregon, and Missouri in 2015. Republican-controlled legislatures in Montana and Virginia also passed paid sick days preemption, but the state's governors ultimately vetoed the measures. Missouri Governor Jay Nixon's veto, however, was overridden by the Republican-controlled legislature. The spread of these bills can be tied to ALEC and its funder the National Restaurant Association (NRA), which represents big chain restaurants. At ALEC's August 2011 meeting in New Orleans, an NRA executive shared a paid sick day preemption bill that had recently been signed into law by Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, as well as an NRA target list and map of state and local paid sick leave policies. In the years following that meeting, similar paid sick day preemption legislation was enacted in sixteen states, in most cases introduced by ALEC members, and with backing from the state NRA affiliates. Last year--in addition to the five states that passed paid sick day preemption bills--legislation was also introduced in Alabama, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and South Carolina. Regulation of Fracking In recent years, dozens of cities in states like Ohio and Pennsylvania have banned hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, citing public health concerns about water contamination and earthquakes. Advertisement Yet after residents of Denton, Texas voted for an anti-fracking ballot initiative in November 2014, the oil and gas industry began to fight back. The industry quickly sued, and ALEC legislators in the state capitol responded with a deluge of bills to override local authority over public health--even though most Texans support local control over fracking. ALEC has acknowledged its role in promoting fracking preemption, and at the December meeting, of ALEC's local government-focused spinoff, ACCE, members were warned of the "epidemic" of "draconian" local restrictions against fracking, according to a report from the meeting. Jacki Pick of the Koch-backed National Center for Policy Analysis (and a talk show host on Glenn Beck's "The Blaze" network) warned that "the oil and gas industry will be destroyed unless conservatives act." Both Texas and Oklahoma adopted laws preempting local governments from regulating the oil and gas industry in 2015. Bills were also introduced in Florida and New Mexico. In Wisconsin, where the fine silica sand used in fracking is mined, the Republican-controlled state legislature also considered bills to override local frac sand mining regulation. LGBTQ Rights The religious right has also begun using a preemption strategy to override local protections for LGBTQ rights. "The push for LGBT nondiscrimination protections--laws that would cover both sexual orientation and gender identity in the areas of employment, housing and public accommodations--have stalled at the statewide level," said Andy Garcia, Program Manager at the Equality Federation. "As a result, efforts have shifted to the city and county level in the form of municipal nondiscrimination ordinances." Advertisement "Hundreds of these [nondiscrimination ordinances] have passed," Garcia said. "In Florida, for example, more than half the population is protected through these ordinances." Yet in 2015, at least six states took up bills to override these local protections. In Arkansas, the legislature enacted SB202, which reverses local nondiscrimination ordinances in Little Rock and Eureka Springs in the name of "uniformity." Yet because the state does not protect against discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, the law actually guarantees that there can be no protections. In Indiana, Republicans purported to add minimal LGBT protections to the state's non-discrimination statutes, but coupled it with complete preemption of any local non-discrimination ordinances. The preemption language was removed but some politicians are still seeking to reinstate it. Texas also considered legislation to override local non-discrimination ordinances, such as those in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth and Houston. That bill hasn't passed but could return in a future session. Similar bills were introduced last session in Mississippi, North Carolina, and West Virginia. Plastic Bag Bans After the Arizona cities of Tempe and Flagstaff enacted local regulations on plastic bags, the GOP-controlled Arizona legislature passed a law overriding local control. Advertisement As Tempe Councilmember Lauren Kuby wrote for PR Watch, plastic bag preemption was a hot topic at the most recent ACCE meeting, with a bag industry representative warning that local plastic bag regulations serve as "stepping stones to the regulation of all packaging." ACCE's Executive Director Jon Russell has also written in favor of states overriding local control over shopping bags--an odd position for the head of a group purportedly committed to strengthening local government. In 2015, Missouri also enacted a law to prohibit any local unit of government from banning plastic bags. Anti-Immigrant "Sanctuary Cities" Preemption 2015 also saw the spread of state bills to preempt so-called "sanctuary city" policies, proposals that also have their roots in ALEC model legislation. Many cities and counties prohibit law enforcement from inquiring into a person's immigration status and limit when people can be turned-over to immigration authorities. Advertisement Supporters say the policies are a means of promoting trust between immigrants and public officials: if immigrants fear deportation by coming in contact with police, they will hesitate to report crimes and testify as witnesses. "When some people cannot report crimes, all people are less safe, not just immigrants," said Christine Neumann-Ortiz, executive director of the Wisconsin-based Voces de la Frontera. "Social movements successfully partnered with local progressive leadership to win these policies, and anti-immigrant [state] politicians with little or no connection to the people affected by these policies are trying to obstruct important gains," she said. Last year, following the anti-immigrant fervor whipped-up by Donald Trump and the murder of a young woman by an undocumented immigrant in California, at least eight states introduced bills to preempt local "sanctuary city" policies. North Carolina's proposal became law. To varying degrees, the proposals reflect provisions of the ALEC "No Sanctuary Cities for Illegal Immigrants Act." Advertisement The ALEC task force that approved the bill in December 2009 included a lobbyist for Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), which had identified immigrant detention as a profit center important for its future growth (although CCA claims it did not vote on the legislation). The bill not only preempted local sanctuary city policies but also encouraged racial profiling by requiring police inquire into the immigration status of anybody they "suspect" is undocumented. A few months later the "No Sanctuary Cities for Illegal Immigrants Act" was introduced in Arizona as SB 1070. After the Arizona bill was introduced, 30 of the bill's 36 co-sponsors promptly received campaign contributions from donors in the for-profit prison industry. A similar law was subsequently enacted in Alabama. The more recent proposals--in Texas, Florida, Michigan, New York, South Carolina, Massachusetts, North Carolina, and Wisconsin--largely focus on preempting local sanctuary city policies. Virginia also introduced a bill that would hold a local government with "sanctuary city" policies responsible for any property damage caused by an undocumented immigrant. Some proposals, like North Carolina's law, also prohibit public officials from accepting foreign driver's licenses or passports as proof of identity, even to pick one's child up from school. Wisconsin legislators introduced a separate bill to override a Milwaukee ordinance providing local ID cards to immigrants and others. Gun Violence "Super-Preemption" Throughout the 1990s--with help from ALEC--the gun industry successfully pushed laws in almost every state prohibiting cities from regulating firearms. In recent years, the gun industry has sought to enact even greater barriers to local control with what Preemption Watch calls so "super-preemption" legislation. Advertisement These laws go beyond just blocking local regulations. These "super-preemption" bills additionally create what is known as a "private right of action" allowing individuals or groups the right to sue local governments and, in some cases, individual local officials, if they believe they are enforcing local firearms laws. In 2015, North Carolina and Nevada enacted firearms super-preemption laws, joining Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Wyoming, which adopted similar legislation in previous years. Firearms super-preemption bills were also introduced in Arizona, Iowa, Michigan and Texas. Additionally, bills were filed in six states to override local governments' ability to regulate knives, and the states' governors ultimately signed half of these into law. Reversing Trends in 2016 Some state lawmakers and advocates are looking to reverse the corporate-backed trend towards preemption. In Minnesota, House Bill 221 aims to reverse preemption and give rights back to local governments. In Oregon, the "Raise the Wage" initiative, one of two potential measures that could make it to the November ballot, would allow local jurisdictions to set their own thresholds above the statewide minimum by removing a pre-emption law. News / Local by Stephen Jakes Harare Residents Trust has warned motorists to be careful when approaching a police road block mounted at Crowhill Road indicating that the law enforcement agents target the turning point so as to fine motorists who forgetfully turn without indicating."ZRP seems to have a daily road block at the top of the Fairway Drive just on Crowhill Road," said the trust. "The police are fining drivers for not indicating when they are turning left onto Crowhill Road so remember to do this. They are also checking for fire extinguishers and triangles so make sure you have these and it is easier for all if they are visible so you don't need to get out of your car to show them to the police."The trust said residents must remember also to drive with their doors locked."There have been several complaints from residents regarding the behaviour of the policemen manning the road blocks. If you have any complaints, please obtain the name and number of the policeman concerned and you can report this to the Chief Inspector Jaravani at the Borrowdale Police Station or call Police General Headquarters Complaints desk (04) 703631 (24-hour)" said the trust. "Spokesperson Traffic Inspector Chigome Cell: 0782 951 537. Officers' Commanding, ZRP Traffic: Harare - Chief Superintendent Marufu (04) 777642 Cell: 0716 360 698." I'm used to having my name mispronounced, misspelled and well, generally mangled but this new version had me in stitches. My husband set up a service where our home voicemail gets transcribed and gets sent to us via email so we don't miss those all important phone calls while we are traveling. And, as any resident in New Hampshire can attest to these days, our phones have been ringing off the hook with political campaign solicitations -- you guessed it -- struggling to pronounce our name. So, this is how our last name of MAHADEVAN was transcribed in one of those emails recently: Medicaid Van! They got Medicaid Van from Mahadevan!? The email tried to correct itself later on second reference by saying Matt-Hayden. I don't know if that's better or worse. This recent catastrophe topped the "Muffin Devan" proclamation that one of my son's camp counselors in Ohio chose to broadcast as my son's last name at camp several years ago. I can only guess that maybe he had a muffin in his hand!? These days it is not only people who get it wrong -- machines, voice recognition softwares and a multitude of devices compete for that dubious honor as well. It's really not all that hard to say. It is spelled phonetically: Maha, pronounced as in Mahatma (I like linking anything to Gandhi); Dave, as in Dave; and Un, as in under. If you put it together, it's pronounced Maha-dave-un. To be fair, plenty of people do get it right or at least make a sincere effort. They just place the accent on the wrong letter or wrong syllable but they are well intentioned and don't offend me. Advertisement It's the ones that avoid the name altogether or are insensitive or actively tease that's hurtful. Several of my friends with seemingly simple names such as Goldsmith have said that even their names get mangled so I guess it's not a surprise that many names of Indian origin with a seemingly endless number of alphabets thrown in is intimidating to some people. Thankfully, hit television shows like Big Bang Theory with fictional characters such as Raj Koothrappalli are helping to bring ethnic names into pop culture vernacular. I also feel a certain contentment in the car when I regularly hear NPR journalists on air such as Meghna Chakrabarti, Indira Lakshmanan and Shankar Vedantam. A person's name from the moment of birth to the last breath becomes his or her identity for a lifetime no matter from which part of the world they hail. In fact, for some, the pride goes beyond a lifetime into second, third and fourth generation descendents who carry the name forward. For immigrants, on the other hand, who already undergo a sea change of identity issues, the name game only adds to the painful mix. Mispronouncing someone's name -- as trivial or fleeting as it may seem at quick office introductions or job interviews or school rosters -- not only chips away at a person's self image, it reduces them to embarrassment, leaves them scrambling for excuses, and sends ripples of doubt and dread throughout a lifetime that their culture and sense of belonging do not matter. Fortunately, my first name, Meera, is easy enough on the Western tongue but don't even get me started on my maiden name: Somasundaram. In 1990, one of my editors at an editorial internship at a St. Paul, Minnesota newspaper introduced me to someone in an elevator and that individual cracked a joke that it sounds like Soma- "syndrome" and everyone in the crowded elevator -- including me -- laughed. Ouch. I still remember that conversation vividly after all these years. Looking back, I wish I stood proud and corrected them but it was too intimidating for me as a college kid and I told myself that after all, I was at a sought-after internship and I kept quiet. I wonder how many people convince themselves not to speak up in similar situations. Advertisement Many people find it surprising that the last name of Somasundaram that I grew up with is actually my dad's first name. You see, in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, where I was born, there is no concept of first names and last names. Everyone gets one name. If there are two children at school with the same name, then those children simply add the first initial from their father's name and that's it. It wasn't until my father filled out immigration papers in India to come to the United States in 1979 that he was faced with the daunting question of a "sur name". Right then and there, I distinctly remember him at the advanced age of 45 deciding to take on an abbreviated version of his father's name as his first name. And, his own first name that was his identity well into his adulthood became his last name and therefore the last name of his wife and three daughters. My dad, who passed away two years ago, was conciliatory by nature and didn't express his hurt about his new identity outwardly but I could tell how his face lit up every time he visited India where friends and family called him by his given name with ease. In other words, he felt at home. I guess the warmth of the song, "Where everybody knows your name," held literal meaning and comfort for him. If only the elevator ride was long enough for me to explain this whole story behind my name. All through elementary, middle and high school in Minnesota where I grew up, I got accustomed to raising my hand and shouting "here'" during attendance roll calls even before the teacher called out my name because there would always be an awkward pause or silence when the teacher would go down a list of calling names and would inevitably stutter when it came to S and the whole class knew it was me. To avoid adolescent embarrassment, I shouted "here" and sank down in my chair. Fast forward about 25 years to when it came time for my husband and I to name our kids. We wanted to pick a name of Indian origin to honor our heritage but have it be a name that was easy enough to pronounce in the Western world in which my children would be raised. My teenage son's name, Ashwin, has been easy enough: easily pronounced Ash-Win and he gets by unscathed. His name passed what my friend Ben calls the playground test: would a kid in a playground bully or tease your child because of his or her name? I remember as a grade schooler, Ashwin relished that he could win at board games because he had victory itself in his name. Advertisement My 11-year-old daughter's name, however, two simple syllables as it is, gets butchered a lot. As my husband and I were cooing over her birth, we both fell in love with the name, Rekha. It is pronounced Ray-Ka as in a ray of sunshine I told myself. No one could get that wrong, right? I decided to test it out on the first non-family member to walk into my hospital room when she was born -- my own version of the playground test. A nurse came in and I saw her staring at the name card that was attached to the clear, plastic baby bassinet in my room. I asked her to try saying it and boom -- she said it wrong and my heart sank. She asked me politely, "Is it, Ree-ka?" As in Eureka? Yikes! I quickly and desperately muttered in my post-partum daze, "No, no -- think of a ray of sunshine." And, from that day, that phrase has become my mantra to tell my daughter to remember that she is my ray of sunshine anytime someone mispronounces her name. Iphone's Auto Correct isn't much better at this whole name game. Meera becomes meets; Rekha gets converted to rehab and Arul is the month of April. Ashwin gets largely spared. A few years back, I was talking to Ashwin about my days of growing up in Minnesota with that state's infamous Scandinavian heritage and told him that my teachers in school were mostly named Olson, Anderson, Johnson, Gustafson, Nicholson and so on. A light bulb went on in his mind and he quickly told me he is going to change his last name to 'Arulson.' My husband's first name is Arul. I can write a whole chapter at another time on his first name. In the meantime, the next time you see my son, just call him Ashwin Arulson. In the current, often hostile political climate in this country where cultural sensitivity is dismissed as political correctness by crass politicians, I hope my kids understand that teasing anyone's name is unacceptable and will feel proud of their heritage and confident enough to correct, teach and educate someone when they do get it wrong. And, hopefully their faces too will light up when someone makes them feel at home by getting their name right. Even a simple gesture of attempting to get it right is far better than joking about syndromes or breakfast food. Still, my family will try to hold onto our sense of humor whenever people -- or machines -- garble our names. It has even become a fun game for us to enter Indian-origin names and see what Apple reveals. We haven't tried Siri yet. Maybe that will be the next game we play in the car: Advertisement This post was written by TheToolbox.org editor and UNESCO Ambassador, Madison Salters, and was originally published on TheToolbox.org. The war engulfing Syria over last five years has displaced nearly 6.6 million people within the country's borders, with an additional 4.6 million forced to migrate. Facing dire conditions in their homeland: cities without running water, electricity, shelter, food or medical supplies, these people have little hope for a future in Syria until the conflict ends. While UN-led talks to broker a ceasefire at the Peace Conference for Syria commence in Geneva, for many, this measure will come too late. Statelessness is an irrevocable part of their narrative. Living over 5,000 kilometers away, young British actor Douglas Booth is doing something about it. Douglas rose to prominence through his portrayal of Boy George in Worried About the Boy, and has tackled diverse roles, from narcissist Anthony Marston to tragic romantic, Romeo Montague. Today, his most important role is the one he plays as himself: a UNHCR supporter. Advertisement "I always feel like if I can do something, I should. I can't live in blind ignorance." Sitting down with Douglas to discuss how he translates his passion for helping people into actionable change exposed him as sincere, in touch, and earnestly driven. He joked that his affinity for global advocacy must come from his favourite television programme, BBC News 24. When asked what brought him to UNHCR: "I'm really interested and engaged in current affairs. I think if I wasn't an actor I'd love to do something in that. I've always been very socially aware." So far, Douglas has supported UNHCR's Syria Crisis Appeal and the iBelong campaign, paying a visit to Lesvos, Greece to meet asylum-seekers currently in detainment limbo. He remarks that often, people live inside a bubble and that if something doesn't effect them personally it's trivialised. This attitude can be fundamentally changed to cope with the current crises by translating empathy into action, politically and personally. Advertisement "I think everyone would care if they knew the truth. There's not swarms of people coming over, that's not the case. Most of these people are displaced under dire circumstances... they go to neighboring countries that don't have the resources that [Europe] has, creating a high burden... They're not coming over here to take our jobs. They're a desperate minority." The majority of the 4 million plus Refugees (half of whom are children) have fled to seek asylum in Turkey, Lebanon, Iraq, Jordan, and Egypt. Only 10% of Refugees have gone to Europe. Refugees generally try to relocate close to home, in the hopes of one day returning. But Syrian Refugees resettled into neighboring countries now face unendurable constraints, as the conflict drags on. They are barred from the labour market, forced to sign over work privileges in exchange for residency. Destitute from years of unemployment, this poverty leads to negative coping mechanisms such as begging, child labour, and child marriage. These exacerbate viral stereotypes of dependency, criminality and cultural inferiority, making it more difficult to settle into a productive life. Education is disrupted for children, University visas are denied to teens, and Refugees (often suffering exhaustion and starvation) are barred enrollment into medical rubrics. Border countries do not have the resources and infrastructure that many Western countries do. Lebanon, home to 4.5 million, has given refuge to over 1 million asylum-seekers, a 22% population increase. Refugees could be better distributed to deal with the crises humanely. "Promoting compassion and awareness of what the situation actually is and why this is happening-- It's quite a big mission." Advertisement It's one that begins at home. Battling Mounting Xenophobia in the European Union "One of the things I'm most proud of in London is the diversity," Douglas mentions, beaming. However, diversity grows more problematic for an increasingly wary British public with similar sentiments widespread in the Western world. It's one of the most difficult issues to tackle when framing the crises: unwelcoming attitudes at home, especially in politics and media. "The media's energy [right now] is really xenophobic... I think that many young people don't know the real facts... I didn't. Disgusting words like 'bunch of immigrants' are being thrown around in the news. Cameron used 'swarm'..." The xenophobic rhetoric of the media has amped up over the last few months with French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo taking the iconic photo of drowned Refugee toddler, Aylan Kurdi, and re-imagining him as an adult sext-offender after the assaults in Cologne. With Greece barely able to cope with the number of migrants pouring in across the Mediterranean from Turkey on makeshift boats, the EU Interior Ministers have threatened to oust Greece from the Schengen region for its humanitarian measures, while not stepping up to offer enough aid, mobility, and resettlement options to alleviate the influx. In a poll by Focus Magazine, 40% of Germans surveyed want leader Angela Merkel to step down from her post because of her liberal welcome policy towards migrants-- a minority, but billed across media as a condemning figure. "Ultimately, what people hear on the radio is what registers in the backs of their minds. ...But we have to treat this as what it is: a crisis. We're in a crisis right now." So, Douglas contends, we have a responsibility to act. "We have reacted admirably, and generously, compassionately in the past when there have been atrocities," he says. Advertisement Until the war is over, Refugee advocacy groups call on Europe to build better infrastructure to address the crises, including resettlement plans that allow inclusion in labour markets and education. Once Refugees become a settled part of the European landscape, and no longer such an othered concept, the fear-mongering can disperse. In an article written by Douglas himself for UNHCR, he stresses, "No one chooses to be a refugee. No one hopes for war to find them, for friends and family to die, for their home to be destroyed, their education and plans for their future to be interrupted so brutally." They don't come to steal jobs or University placements. Desperation is the main motivating factor. There is, literally, no other choice for Refugees. The short answer to this is simple: No. Many Mormons casually refer to "hell" in the same way that other Christians do, as a place of punishment where sinners are sent by a wrathful God. Even The Book of Mormon mentions hell as a place of fire and pain (1 Ne 9:10 and Helaman 6:28), a place that can be avoided by obedience to God and His commandments. But this is largely a metaphorical place. We can feel we are in "hell" even in this world because we are disobedient to God and His commandments and feel the consequences of bad decisions. We can also feel that we are in "hell" in this world if we are separated from God and His abounding love for us. There is a second "hell" that Mormons believe in, but it is also not a place that God has created for sinners. Rather, it is a place where those who die in ignorance of Christ go because they do not have the knowledge to enter what Mormons sometimes refer to as "Spirit Paradise," the place where the righteous go after death to await their resurrection. If this sounds like a Catholic Purgatory, there are admittedly certain similarities. Mormons do temple work rather than saying prayers so that those in "Spirit Prison" can move to "Spirit Paradise" and associate with other believers. But again, Mormon theology on Spirit Prison has nothing to do with a place of fire and brimstone, except metaphorically, as spirits may feel anguish at being separated from Christ and from their loved ones who are believers. Advertisement In fact, Mormons believe that Christ Himself went to visit Spirit Paradise (D&C 76:73) during the three days after He was crucified and before he was resurrected, in order to organize missionaries to travel to Spirit Prison to convert those who had never had a chance to know of Christ. Sometimes Mormon missionaries who die on missions or who die just before going on missions are said to have been called to a different mission to preach the gospel to those on "the other side of the veil." The great work of the Millennium (the thousand years after the Second Coming of Christ), according to Brigham Young, will be temple work, continuing to do ordinances for every person who has ever lived on the earth. But the reality is that along with universal resurrection, Mormons believe that nearly everyone is eventually given a place in one of the three heavens--or degrees of glory, the telestial kingdom, the terrestrial kingdom, and the celestial kingdom. This is one of the things that I love most about Mormonism, that we believe in God as a loving Father, eager to give as much as He can to us, His arms always outstretched. God does not punish us. We punish ourselves in being separate from Him and His Love. Christ's Atonement is infinite and includes all of us, even if those who do not accept Him, even the most wicked. All are resurrected and are given as much as they will accept of the blessings of the Atonement. And before I get Mormons telling me I'm wrong, there is one more sense of "hell" that Mormons believe in, a place that is called "Outer Darkness." This is where the "sons of perdition" go**, those who have known Christ truly and have denied Him, as well as where Satan and his angels live who rejected Christ from the first. But within Mormonism, there is much debate about who might qualify for this place. I've heard both Cain and Judas are likely to be in Outer Darkness, but there is debate even there. There's no agreed upon list of those who are going to Outer Darkness, a place that is simply described in Mormon theology by its lack of the presence of God, Christ, or even the Holy Spirit. Rather than be a place of fire and brimstone, it seems more likely this is a place of cold and darkness, and perhaps even silence. Advertisement So, what are the three Mormon heavens like? The telestial kingdom is filled "liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers, and whoremongers, and whosever loves and makes a lie" (D&C 76: 103), with murderers and other people who were wicked in their lifetimes, but have since confessed Christ their savior, as all will at the end of days. Because God and Christ cannot visit this place due to lack of perfection, these people can only experience the presence of the Holy Spirit. But still, God seems to give them all that He can and the Doctrine and Covenants says that even this kingdom's gory "surpasses all understanding." The terrestrial kingdom is filled with "honorable men of the earth, who were blinded by the craftiness of men" (D&C 76: 75), good people who would choose not to do all the work that is required in the celestial kingdom. They are not as "valiant" in the testimony of Christ as those in the celestial kingdom, but they "receive of the presence of the Son, but not of the fullness of the Father" (D&C 76: 77). There is a perhaps apocryphal story of Joseph Smith having said that the terrestrial kingdom was so glorious that if we had a glimpse of it, we would gladly die to get there. The celestial kingdom is filled with "just men made perfect through Jesus" (D&C 76:69). They are those who want to spend all of their time becoming more like God, learning every detail of knowledge in every area of the universe, and going on to continue to serve others and even to have larger and larger families (D&C 76). Those in the celestial kingdom will spend time ministering to those in the terrestrial kingdom. They will spend the eternities doing the services to others which Christ demonstrated while He was on the earth. If the Mormon idea of the celestial kingdom doesn't sound like heaven to you, well, there are plenty of Mormons who debate about how desirable it is, as well. I have thought to myself on occasion (and heard other Mormons echo this thought), maybe I wouldn't choose to be in the celestial kingdom. Maybe I'd rather have a rest from continuing to work and serve, to learn and make mistakes and grow forever. Steamed Dumplings in a bamboo steamer with bamboo leaves, fresh green onions, soya sauce and rice -Photographed on Hasselblad H1-22mb Camera Chinese New Year -- which falls on Monday, February 8th -- is all about honoring friends and family and celebrating with delicious culinary traditions. The holiday is celebrated all across Asia, so usher in the Year of the Monkey with prosperity and good luck (plus a full belly!) with these 10 Asian-inspired dishes from some of NYC's best restaurants: 1. Photo provided by Fung Tu. Photo by Wagtouicz Fung Tu's Raw Bok Choy with House-Made Shrimp Paste is a delicious way to kick off your meal. 2. Photo provided by Uncle Boons. Photo by Aliza Eliazarov The Michelin-starred Thai restaurant's Massaman Neuh -- boneless beef ribs with massaman curry, potato, red onion, peanut and green peppercorn -- is divine. Advertisement 3. Photo provided by Noreetuh Noreetuh's Big-Eye Tuna Poke -- garnished with macadamia nuts, pickled jalapenos and seaweed -- strikes the perfect balance of fresh and bold. 4. Photo provided by BONDST Sophisticated and tasty, the Kamo Namban (braised duck) at BONDST makes for a warming meal with its soba noodles, mitsuba and enoki mushrooms. 5. Photo provided by Mission Chinese Food A twist on a Chinese favorite, the Beef Jerky Fried Rice with beech mushrooms, onions and sawtooth herb at Mission Chinese Food doesn't disappoint. 6. Photo provided by Bara Whole fish -- signifying togetherness and abundance -- is traditionally served at every Chinese New Year's meal. Bara delivers an exceptional version, offering a Whole Roasted Black Bass with ginger soy glaze and togarashi cucumbers. Advertisement 7. Photo provided by The Lucky Bee. Photo by Filip Wolak These delectable pockets of goodness from The Lucky Bee are filled with sesame and pork, then topped with Chinese black vinegar, ginger and a sprinkle of cilantro. 8. Photo provided by Momofuku Ssam Bar. Photo by William Hereford Momofuku Ssam Bar's Spicy Pork Sausage and Rice Cakes -- served up with broccoli and Sichuan peppercorn -- go great with the restaurant's signature wraps and buns. 9. Photo provided by Momofuku Noodle Bar Momofuku Noodle Bar delivers on its namesake in a serious way -- delectable Ginger Scallion Noodles dish are packed with pickled shiitakes, cucumber and cabbage. 10. Photo provided by Momofuku Noodle Bar The fried chicken at Momofuku Noodle Bar -- one southern style chicken and one Korean style chicken with mu shu pancakes, baby carrots, red ball radishes, bibb lettuce, four sauces and an herb basket -- is great for sharing with friends. Migrants wait with life vests while they are camping after being cheated by smugglers on January 29, 2016 in Kucukkuyu district in Canakkale, as they try to reach the Greek island of Lesbos. The migrants reported that the smuglers who proposed their services to help them cross the sea to the Greek island of Lesbos lied about the boat's size. They refused to get on the small sized boat they discovered on the boarding spot chosen by smuglers. / AFP / OZAN KOSE (Photo credit should read OZAN KOSE/AFP/Getty Images) On Monday January 25, British tabloid The Sun published the following headline: "Anarchy near the UK: British activists behind Calais ferry stampede." A day earlier, migrants in the refugee camp near Calais known as "The Jungle," along with several social groups, staged a protest demanding the respect for their right to freedom of movement and decent living conditions. Three days later, British Prime Minister David Cameron brokered new restrictions on immigration with Jean-Claude Juncker, the President of the European Commission. Cameron even probed Juncker on the possibility of denying certain kinds of public assistance for immigrants. I don't know what "anarchy" The Sun was talking about, but it does seem increasingly clear that the exponential increase of refugees and migrants is tearing at the seams of the European Union, which is neither as united nor as supportive as it has tried to appear. Advertisement A few weeks ago, Dimitris Avramopulos, the European Commissioner for Immigration, said that this is a very difficult time for Europe. "The European dream has vanished," he said. Beyond the fading of a dream, Europe is approaching a surveillance and security nightmare. Decisions are being made regarding who should be and who shouldn't be protected. Such exclusion from protection defines political xenophobia. In the face of such a humanitarian tragedy, European institutions have not provided humanitarian solutions to grant safe and legal access to refugees. It is not surprising then that the Danish Parliament, under pressure from the far-right, pro-government Popular Party (PPD), and with support from conservatives, liberals and social democrats, recently approved a law that seizes assets from refugees. Here in Spain, we've heard whispers of this particularly twisted legal measure, which entails the confiscation of valuables and money to cover the asylum seekers' expenses in the country. Similar practices have already been applied in Switzerland and in several German federal states such as Bavaria and Baden-Wurtemberg. Advertisement But the Danish government is also implementing other measures, including making cuts to benefits and grants so as to avoid "compromising" the sustainability of the Danish welfare and system. It also includes more hurdles for refugees to access family reunification programs. Refugees could be forced to wait as long as three years before beginning the process, a requirement that could well violate the European Convention on Human Rights as and other child protection treaties signed by Denmark and other European countries. But Denmark is not alone. Nor was Hungary when it made the news last autumn. This week, Europol estimated that around 10,000 minors were separated from their families last year and are now missing. It's strange that this figure --which may or may not be accurate-- hasn't been reported by humanitarian organizations working in the field. It's even more surprising that in the face of such a humanitarian tragedy, European institutions have not provided humanitarian solutions to grant safe and legal access to refugees. Creating a safe and legal corridor to Europe would regulate the influx of refugees, end the mafia's lucrative business, prevent the forcible separation of many families, and, above all, avoid thousands of unnecessary deaths. For now, these corpses testify to the institutional racism entrenched in European migratory policies. Asylum seekers from other countries, such as Iraq, Afghanistan and Eritrea are treated as second-class refugees. European institutions and member states, meanwhile, continue going down their obstinate path; they strengthen Fortress Europe by turning countries such as Greece, Macedonia and Serbia into checkpoint-states that control migratory flows to central Europe. In their effort to reduce the number of refugees, every conceivable measure seems to be fair game. Refugees are hosted in closed detention centers, and border controls are tightened. They even classify refugees and take the liberty of stripping some of them of their rights. In practice, this entails restricting the refugee quota almost solely to Syrians. Syrian refugees are then held in detention centers, and wait to be relocated to other European countries. Asylum seekers from other countries, such as Iraq, Afghanistan and Eritrea are treated as second-class refugees. The Greek government is being encouraged to return these refugees to their countries of origin via a classic carrot and stick approach: as long as Greece fulfills the role of checkpoint-state or border police for the rest of Europe, European institutions will ease Greece's deficit ceiling for the Stability and Growth Pact. If Greece fails to pull through, then it may be looking at expulsion from the Schengen area in three months. It wasn't only Hungary. It's not only Denmark. And it's not Greece, or many other examples that would fit this list. There is a spiral of crackdowns on freedom and a security hype driven by barbarism and fear currently haunting Europe. Freedom of movement is restricted and basic rights are crushed. Member states are blackmailed and forced to act as border police for the rest of Europe. Advertisement This is a fatal trend that forces us to rethink the European project. We need to find a plan B to combat the xenophobia that is gaining ground in Europe like an Orwellian nightmare. We need to find solidarity and unity, on the streets and across official institutions, in political and social organizations. Only then will we be able to build a project from the ashes of the European dream that would allow us to turn solidarity into equal rights. Rochelle Feinstein, GNORW, 2002, acrylic, hand-made pillow, photo collage, 106.7 x 106.7cm. Courtesy of On Stellar Rays, New York and the artist. Photo: Adam Reich. In Anticipation of Rochelle Feinstein In the pages of Art in America a few years ago, art critic Sarah Schmerler opined, "Somebody had better hurry up and give Feinstein the retrospective she so clearly deserves." The wait is now over, as the Centre d'Art Contemporain Geneve opens Rochelle Feinstein's retrospective exhibition, "In Anticipation of Women's History Month," curated by Fabrice Stroun and Tenzing Barshee. This is a retrospective with wings, so to speak, for it will travel to two other venues across Europe--Stadtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus, Munich, and kestnergesellschaft, Hannover--before alighting in New York, at the Bronx Museum of the Arts, in 2018. The retrospective coincides with the release of I'm with Her, a cohesive view of Feinstein's career, put out by black dog publishing in partnership with On Stellar Rays, in the form of an artist's book. An additional monograph, featuring new scholarly essays and conversations with the artist and the restrospective's curators, is due out later this year. Advertisement Rochelle Feinstein, Geography, 1994, oil, mixed media on linen, 106.7 x 106.7cm. Private collection, New York. Photo: Adam Reich. How would one settle Feinstein's self-reflexive, sometimes self-cannibalizing oeuvre--a practice spanning 25 years, which mines both the artist's personal history, art history, and popular culture, moving between the mediums of painting, photography, video, and assemblage--in an arrangement of works on walls? The short answer is: thematically and non-chronologically. The longer answer may be that Feinstein's art refuses to settle into a given path or groove, but rather roves between styles and subjects, and as such, the exhibition follows different threads of interest through her works. This pattern perhaps follows from the artist's own objective, stated succinctly in an interview in BOMB from 2010: "I committed to the idea that a painting done in 1995 could be partnered with something from 2009, an a-stylistic 'style,' each appearing to have been made contemporaneously, yet with huge variables of content sourced from many quarters." It's not a huge stretch that her entire body of work belongs to one single project--Feinstein herself considers the possibility. Yet as the exhibition's title wryly suggests, this historicization and celebration of the artist's work, and the degree of success to which a mid-career retrospective can signify, is still set somewhere on the horizon--we are caught ever waiting "in anticipation" of it. Rochelle Feinstein, We Love You, 2004, oil, aluminum paint on canvas, 121.9 x 162.6cm. Courtesy of On Stellar Rays, New York and the artist. Photo: Adam Reich. Advertisement At the start of the show, the painting We Love You (2004) greets the viewer with fragments of text drawn from the heartfelt adulations and insistent declarations of innocence written by Michael Jackson fans on homemade signs, in Feinstein's painting, floating and disembodied, in a sea of silver paint. Feinstein's investigation into the cult of Michael Jackson and the public love that surrounds him lends this first room its title: "I Made A Terrible Mistake," the phrase issued by the King of Pop in an apology following an incident involving the dangling of a baby over the balcony railing of a Berlin hotel. Love and regret are recurring themes in Feinstein's works, signaled by titles such as Like I love You and Boo Fucking Hoo, while Barry White's soothing baritone voice croons with lover's remorse in the video work WhiteHouse. These works articulate, as the curators put it, "the possibility of a fall from grace into grace," for the pop star, or for the artist. Not without certain ambiguous caveats, of course: next to a work that recounts the erasure of Michael Jackson's name from a school auditorium after his molestation allegations sits a painting titled Painting's Littlest Victims (2003), portraying two innocent-looking flowers, pansies, in a field of concentric circles framing them. Rochelle Feinstein, Paintings Littlest Victims, 2003, acrylic, photo on canvas, 101.6 x 96.5cm. Courtesy of On Stellar Rays, New York and the artist. Photo: Adam Reich. In an adjoining display on the same floor, Feinstein turns to look at her own work, in the project The Estate of Rochelle F. (2009-2011). After downsizing her studio space in 2008, Feinstein regarded the accumulation of painting supplies and materials as "usable 'assets' with unrealized potential," surplus materials from which she then made a body of work. Running along under the nine mixed-media paintings that comprise The Estate of Rochelle F. is A Catalog of the Estate of Rochelle F., a series of ink drawings and collages that document each of the works in the "estate," with caption information, Xerox reproductions, and "curatorial notes." Rochelle Feinstein, The Estate of Rochelle F., 2009-2011, installation view, Centre d'Art Contemporain Geneve, 2016. Photo: Gunnar Meier Photography. Advertisement Things get a bit more catty as the exhibition progresses. On the third floor, a 2013 diptych titled Today in History evidences many of Feinstein's interests in a tight package: geometry, repetition, personal effects, and a wonderfully ironic title. The two opposing compositions feature dramatically angled black and white stripes painted over and below a photograph, reproduced twice, of the artist's two cats, displaying terse feline demeanors. A few steps away from the canvases sits a modern chair, slightly shredded by cat claws. The work fairly bristles with energy. Rochelle Feinstein, Today in History, 2013, oil on canvas and digital prints on vinyl, 231.1 x 365.8cm. Courtesy of On Stellar Rays, New York and the artist. Photo: Adam Reich. This air continues with the suite of works called Love Vibe (1999-2014), centering on the phrase of idle adoration often heard in gallery settings: "Love your work." Feinstein's consideration of cliches continues with her many "wonderful" paintings--Wonderful Country, Mr. Wonderful, A Wonderful Place to Live--or with Same Shit, Different Day (1990), all abstract paintings with various takes on the modernist grid, which is just another cliche, it seems the artist is telling us. One blocky collage is knowingly titled Grids R Us (1992). Rochelle Feinstein, Love Vibe, 1999-2014, installation view, Centre d'Art Contemporain Geneve, 2016. Photo: Gunnar Meier Photography. Feinstein's work might sound simple, but each expression of simplicity comes stripped down from more complex origins, a shell hinting at the many layers beneath. Personal experiences are embedded under glib phrases. In the work Travel Abroad from 1999, the words "O Sole Mio" point to a busy patchwork painting, perhaps signifying a productive loneliness, while the repeated question, "Feinstein, is that a German name or a Jewish name?" rendered in German script over black, red, and gold stripes, carries with it a veiled threat. Advertisement Rochelle Feinstein, Travel Abroad, 1999, installation view, Centre d'Art Contemporain Geneve, 2016. Photo: Gunnar Meier Photography. Feinstein's refined sense of humor and irony, suffused with a measure of self-deprecation and balanced with a critical view of wider cultural moments, are showcased to great effect throughout her oeuvre and throughout the exhibition. Her wry use of language and form point up the absurdities and deeper truths of both. Rochelle Feinstein, In Anticipation of Women's History Month, 2013, acrylic, oil, smalt, buttons on canvas, 152.4 x 152.4cm. Haim Family Collection. Photo: Adam Reich. "In Anticipation of Women's History Month" runs from January 29 to April 24, 2016 at the Centre d'Art Contemporain Geneve, Switzerland; from June 7 to September 18, 2016 at the Stadtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus, Munich, Germany; from December 3 to February 2, 2017 at kestnergesellschaft, Hannover, Germany; and from June 27 to September 22, 2018 at the Bronx Museum of the Arts, New York. --Natalie Hegert By Nana Kuo, Senior Manager Every Woman Every Child, Executive Office of the UN Secretary General; & Ann McMikel, Vice President, Global Partnerships and Planning, American Cancer Society Keep your eye to the sky if you're in New York City tonight - the Empire State Building will be shining blue and orange in celebration of World Cancer Day. Cancer is a disease that has impacted many of us in some way, shape or form. It doesn't discriminate and knows no borders. And yet, the fight against cancer looks very different in some parts of the world than in others. If you compare cancer rates in the developed world to those in lower-income countries, you'll immediately see a glaring contrast. Humanity has come a very long way in fighting this disease, but those who live in the developing world do not often benefit from or have access to the prevention and treatment breakthroughs that are available. Advertisement One strong example of this disparity is the burden of cervical cancer. Every two minutes around the world, a woman dies of cervical cancer, a largely preventable disease. This may come as a shock to some readers. In the United States and other high-income nations, cervical cancer rates have steadily declined, as we have been able to largely contain the disease thanks to the availability of screening, the HPV vaccine and other factors. Sadly, not all women have access to diagnostic services, lifesaving vaccines or effective treatment options, and as a result the unequal burden of cervical cancer is stark. In the poorest countries, where 85% of the cervical cancer burden lies, women are unnecessarily losing their lives to this disease because we have failed to close deadly gaps in prevention, early detection and treatment that could spare their lives. It doesn't have to be this way. Investing in a world free of cervical cancer must be a global priority. The global cost of cervical cancer was $2.7 billion per year in 2010. This will rise to $4.7 billion by 2030. A new Harvard economic report commissioned by the American Cancer Society is currently underway to determine the exact price tag of what will be required over the next ten years to protect all women and girls in the developing world. Putting a dollar amount on this effort is critical so that it can become a reality. Consider that the U.S. spent $3.7 billion in 2015 to address the Ebola crisis. We know that financial commitments are necessary when it comes to protecting and saving lives. Among the costs necessary to reduce the disparity of this disease is funding the universal availability of vaccinations and treatment. It is critical that all young adolescent girls receive the HPV vaccine and every woman is screened at least once between the ages of 30 and 49 --and that she has access to pre-cancer treatment, when necessary, no matter where she lives. These services can be effectively and affordably incorporated into the delivery of women's healthcare services, so they aren't stand-alone activities. And because of the risk for acquiring HIV along with HPV, and vice versa, action on cervical cancer will be a double win for the fight against HIV/AIDS. Advertisement Last September, all of the world's governments adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which aims to usher in a life of dignity for all people. The Sustainable Development Goals include an objective of reducing premature deaths from non-communicable diseases by one-third. The United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, is leading this effort with the launch of the Global Strategy for Women's, Children's and Adolescents' Health, and the Every Woman Every Child movement behind it, which are helping to achieve this objective by supporting countries towards building stronger health systems, universal health care coverage and the scaling up of life-saving interventions to reduce preventable deaths - including those from cervical cancer. This year, and through 2018, the theme of World Cancer Day is "We can. I can." We are exploring how everyone - together and individually - can do their part to reduce the global burden of cancer. So what can we do to help close the global gap on the fight against cervical cancer? Educate yourself: Learn more about how cancer affects those in the developing world. The American Cancer Society's website and Cervical Cancer Action are great resources. You may also want to check out "Lady Ganga", a new documentary about one woman's battle with cervical cancer and her inspiring efforts to raise awareness of this disease throughout India. Raise awareness: Let others know that the global cancer disparity is an issue that is affecting millions of people and needs to be addressed. This could be as simple as sharing this post. Or, if you are in New York City, take a picture of the blue and orange Empire State Building and post it on social media with the hashtag #WorldCancerDay, #WeCanICan and #EWECisMe. Let your followers know what World Cancer Day is and why it's important. Commit to action: Organizations and countries can join the Every Woman Every Child movement and pledge to tackle cervical cancer and other issues affecting the health and wellbeing of women, children and adolescents. Advertisement Together, we can ensure girls and women have access to the vaccination, screening and preventive treatment that could save their lives. Let's fight this disease as one unified force, and one day bring an end to cervical cancer - and all cancers - once and for all. Amy Schumer accepts the Criticsa Choice MVP award at the 21st annual Critics' Choice Awards at the Barker Hangar on Sunday, Jan. 17, 2016, in Santa Monica, Calif. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP) Yes, she's raunchy, she's provocative...and her work is genius. And young women are listening to her. I am not the first to call her a role model. I agree with those who praise her, who thank her for being real, for telling it like it is, for openly criticizing media portrayals of women, for having an inspiringly authentic body. And I see more. Advertisement In a very clever, intricately woven body of work, Schumer calls upon us - the women of today - to build a new culture. She doesn't point fingers or place blame, she simply illuminates our responsibility to build the culture in which we wish to live. She leads by example, expressing a voice of realism and truth. Her work is not about complaining about the way things are, it's about reclaiming them and making them how we want them to be. One after another, her sketches on Inside Amy Schumer (Comedy Central) illuminate the glaring misunderstandings perpetuated by and about women today. Whether it's the media's double standards ("Julia's Last F**kable Day"), hip-hop's contemporary ass-obession ("Milk, Milk, Lemonade"), the ludicrous articles in so-called women's magazines ("Sex Prep") or our illusory perceptions of what we should look like ("New Body"), Schumer brilliantly satires the images of women idealized by our society, and the harmful ways in which we respond. She forces us to see the contradictions, the unrealistic standards, what is off about the way things are. But Schumer's true genius lies in her inspiring call for what can be. In each of these pieces (and many others) she does much more than simply point out what is "wrong" with today's culture. She uses her platform to unabashedly draw attention to how we, the women, perpetuate the very culture that oppresses us. And in this way, she calls upon us to create something new. Advertisement In her hit movie, Train Wreck, Schumer manages to reclaim female sexuality while simultaneously criticizing objectification and telling a very real, very relatable story of young single women in New York City. The lead character is a promiscuous 30-something (named Amy) who sleeps with who she wants to, when and where she wants - even making it all the way to Staten Island. In the words of my students, "It was so cool seeing a woman in the 'player' role for once!" But that's not how she reclaims female sexuality. That would be too simple; Schumer is more sophisticated than that. Later in the movie, Amy admits that she makes fun of her sister's family life because she thinks it's something she herself will never achieve...until she falls in love. And then, in the movie's most poignant scene, Amy dances with the Knicks City Dancers - the adult version of the high school cheerleaders we all hated back in the day, and still judge now - to show her man how much she loves him. The subtle genius in this scene is unmatched. Earlier in the movie, Amy harshly judged these same women - understandably, any empowered woman would do so, right? - but now she joins them. Yet her dancing is different, somehow less sexualized, more honest and real. Same as in "Milk, Milk, Lemonade" - not because she is any less attractive than the other women in the video - because she just doesn't sell her sexuality in the same way. Watch again. You'll see what I mean. She's a beautiful woman with great sex appeal, she's not afraid to demonstrate it...but she doesn't objectify herself. In the sketch "Gang Bang," Schumer faces the question of objectification head on. It's a double edged sword; on one hand, we don't want to be treated like objects. On the other, we want attention from men, and we feel especially validated by sexual attention. Or, better said, we feel bad when we don't get the (unwanted!) sexual attention we thought we were going to receive. Not too differently from my student Olivia, when she faces the ugly truth about catcalls: I think I was in seventh grade when a man in a car first honked at me. The sad thing is, I didn't feel disgusted at first. In fact, maybe I was a little excited, because I never thought I got any special attention from guys. Now I am sixteen years old, and there isn't one day that I can walk down the street and not get honked at or catcalled. --Olivia, 16 For women today, objectification has sadly become a way of life. I am not talking about the images we see around us - I am talking about the way we see ourselves. Images affect how we act and dress. Girls my age in particular are going through a stage of uncertainty and just want to fit in. Trying to be like the images we see, especially in the media, seems like the perfect way to fit in. I think the media shows us as brainless, pretty objects for boys to boss around and have sex with. --Eliza, 13 Amy Schumer brilliantly reminds us that we still - in our 20s, 30s, 40s and beyond - do all kinds of crazy things to fit these images. In doing so, we perpetuate the culture of objectification and continue to suppress our true self-expression. The Berggruen Institute, an independent, non-partisan "think and action tank" that is co-publisher of The WorldPost, announced this week that Craig Calhoun will become the new president of the organization. Professor Calhoun will leave his current position as director and president of the London School of Economics and Political Science in the summer of 2016 to take on this new role. Announcing the appointment, Nicolas Berggruen, the founder and chairman of the Berggruen Institute, remarked: "Having headed the London School of Economics, Craig brings to us the world-class experience of leadership as well as scholarly achievement in the top ranks of global education. His aspiration over the years to establish 'an institutional location for practical reason in public affairs' is a perfect fit with the mission of the Berggruen Institute." Advertisement Professor Calhoun is a world-renowned social scientist. His work joins sociology to culture, communication, politics, philosophy and economics. Prior to his post at LSE, he was a professor at New York University as well as director of the Institute for Public Knowledge and president of the Social Science Research Council. He is the author of several books, including "Does Capitalism Have a Future?", "Nations Matter, Critical Social Theory, Neither Gods Nor Emperors," and most recently, "The Roots of Radicalism" "The Berggruen Institute offers an incredibly exciting opportunity," said Mr. Calhoun. "Like LSE, this institute seeks to use knowledge to improve society and deepen the capacity for international cooperation. It has been an enormous honor to lead LSE, and I am looking forward to this new challenge." The Berggruen Institute was founded in 2010 with a mission to improve governance systems. With successful projects underway in California, Europe and China, the institute launched the Philosophy and Culture Center last fall. The new center expanded the scope of the organization beyond political governance to enhancing cross-cultural understanding, particularly between Asian and Western cultures. Central to its activities is the Berggruen fellowship program which funds research at campuses around the world including, Stanford, Harvard, NYU, Oxford, Tsinghua and Peking universities. Later this year, the Berggruen Institute will give away the Berggruen Philosophy and Culture Prize. The $1 million prize will be awarded to a living thinker whose ideas have had a broad cultural or philosophical impact on society. An independent and diverse jury composed of leading thinkers, including Nobel laureates Amartya Sen and Michael Spence, will award the prize. Fighting the Oakland, U.C. Berkeley & East Bay Regional Park District's War on Nature The hike along the trail at Robert Sibley Volcanic Regional Preserve in the Oakland hills is not only idyllic, but educational. Leave the parking lot and head east upon one of its trails, and eventually, the winding path upon which you walk, made beautiful by long vistas of towering stands of Monterey Pine and Eucalyptus trees, deliver you to an area known as "Round Top." Here, you will find a historical marker bearing witness to a time 12 million years ago when standing in that location would have been impossible; for standing at that location would have placed you inside an active volcano: a hot spot born of the collision of tectonic plates which would later push the volcano skyward as the Oakland and Berkley hills emerged from sea level. A modern visitor to the region would scarcely recognize the landscape or its inhabitants. At that time, the East Bay was a warm, wet and flat savannah, inhabited by camels, rhinoceros, three-toed horses, small mastodons with four tusks, and herds of antelope-like creatures, all of whom thrived in the East Bay 55 million years after the age of dinosaurs (when the area was still part of an ancient sea), but long before humans first arrived in the region an estimated 10,000 years ago. Fossil evidence, much of it unearthed during excavations for the Caldecott Tunnel, demonstrates that over the vast distances of geologic time, the San Francisco Bay experienced a variety of climactic shifts--cycles of ice ages and warming periods which caused land to alternatively dry out and then once again become submerged in water, changing not only the appearance of the region, but the plants and animals that lived there. Eventually, the area became distinguished by a Mediterranean climate--the wet winters and dry summers we still experience today--favoring plants which could wait out unfavorable conditions. This change caused various species of grasses and other plants to diversify and evolve into new species, leading to the creation of a coastal prairie in the region. Advertisement This never-ending transformation--of landscape, of climate, of plants and animals--has occurred, and continues to occur, all over the world, resulting from a variety of factors: global weather patterns, plate tectonics, evolution, natural selection, migration, and even the devastating effects of impacting asteroids. Close your eyes and randomly stick a pin on any location in a map, then do a Google search of that region's history and what you will invariably find is that at some point in time, that location looked very different than it does today, as did the plants and animals who resided there. Over 10,000 years ago, a sudden burst of monsoon rains over the vast Sahara desert transformed its dunes into a savannah which could sustain life, including people and giraffes who migrated into the area which today is once again a barren expanse of sand. Roughly 74 million years ago, Tyrannosaurs, Ceratopsians, and Sauropods roamed the continent of North America which was divided down its middle by a vast, ancient sea. In the distant past, the now frigid polar regions of the Earth were moist, temperate and blanketed by forests. The geographic and fossil records tell us that there is but one constant to life on Earth, and that is change. Humans--ourselves a force of nature given our cunning intellect and expert ability to bend our surroundings to our needs--can also alter environments, both for good and bad. When timber hungry fortune seekers arrived in droves to the San Francisco Bay Area during the Gold Rush, they clear-cut the Oak trees which gave the city its name and whose acorns served as staple to the tribes of people who themselves had arrived from elsewhere many thousands of years before. Early Oakland settlers looked about at the empty, blighted East Bay hillsides so prone to devastating fires which regularly swept across the sun-scorched, windswept grasslands and conceived of a plan; a plan which has bequeathed to us what is now one of the most spectacular and beloved natural beauties of the Bay Area: the forests of the East Bay hills. Distinguished by their lofty heights, the shady, other-worldly Edens created beneath their canopies and the dramatic, iconic silhouettes they create against a blue or fog drenched sky, Eucalyptus and Monterey Pine trees were some of the favored trees of Oakland's founders, who planted them by the millions. On the land which is now an Oakland park named in his honor (as are an Oakland elementary school and street) celebrated "Poet of the Sierras" and legendary naturalist, Joaquin Miller, set out to create an artistic haven for himself and his family, planting 75,000 trees, most of them those very species. Advertisement In terms of human history within the East Bay, Eucalyptus and Monterey Pine trees play a central and starring role. Today, they are a part of our heritage and quintessentially "Oaklandish." And yet, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf, U.C. Berkeley Chancellor Nicholas Dirks, and East Bay Regional Parks District General Manager Robert Doyle are planning to clear-cut as many as half a million of these trees growing on public lands, then spray their stumps in hazardous, cancer-causing chemicals made by Monsanto and Dow Chemical. Gone will be the sheltered walking paths lined by soaring, majestic trees that are visited by thousands of nature loving Bay Area residents every week. Instead, our public lands will be crisscrossed by paths lined with caution tape and chemical soaked tree stumps that serve as grave markers to forests and beauty that are no more. Commuters traveling East through the Caldecott tunnel will no longer behold the spectacular forests that blanket the hills above the southern bore, but instead an empty, blighted hillside rendered a tragic and heart-wrenching eyesore. Weekend picnickers to Tilden Park in Berkeley will discover that the trees which lined their paths and under which they picnicked are also gone. Just as alarming, the people and animals of the East Bay will be repeatedly exposed--twice a year, every year for a decade and perhaps in perpetuity--to herbicides that officials admit have the potential to cause "adverse health effects" on workers, residents, and recreational users of the parks. These chemicals have been found to cause DNA and chromosomal damage in human cells and increase the risk of Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma. They have been proven to cause severe birth defects when tested on poor animals including rats born with their brains outside their skulls. They are toxic to birds and aquatic species, and cause damage to the kidneys, liver and the blood of dogs. Not only do these herbicides contaminate ground water, but they can persist in the environment for years, and, ironically, alter the soil by killing fungi essential to the health of Oak trees, one of just a few trees proponents of the plan will not be clear-cutting, thereby imperiling even those few trees that will be left behind. Given the drastic nature of this plan and the harm it will engender, the question, of course, is why is this going to happen? East Bay public officials have embraced an agenda to return the East Bay hills to what they claim is their "native" appearance. A goal which, in light of the history of the East Bay, inevitably begs the question: which one? Once, the region was underwater. Then, it became a savannah. And for a very long time, there were no hills at all. What makes any one moment in time the "real" one or necessarily better or preferable to what is there right now? Each species on Earth, writes Biology Professor Ken Thompson, "has a characteristic distribution on the Earth's land surface... But in every case, that distribution is in practice a single frame from a very long movie. Run the clock back only 10,000 years, less than a blink of an eye in geological time, and nearly all of those distributions would be different, in many cases very different. Go back only 10 million years, still a tiny fraction of the history of life on Earth, and any comparison with present-day distributions becomes impossible, since most of the species themselves would no longer be the same." So under what pretense does an arbitrarily picked "single frame from a very long movie" chosen for the East Bay hills trump the others? Why should the appearance of the East Bay hills be returned and be forced to forever remain the way they looked at the one, particular and arbitrarily chosen moment in time which proponents of the clear-cutting plan prefer? Advertisement According to the report issued by FEMA, the federal agency funding this catastrophic destruction to the tune of $6 million, it is to eliminate forests on our public lands in order to promote their conversion to "grasslands with islands of shrubs." In other words, landscapes dominated by stands of trees that are among some of the tallest on earth and can grow up to several hundred feet high, are to be replaced by shallow grasses and the occasional bush simply because those plants grew in the region prior to the city's founding. Though this particular moment in time is deemed the preferred one by those who claim to know best on behalf of everyone else, how can the very high toll of its execution--the harm it will inflict upon those who live there now--the animals who rely on such trees for habitat, who will be displaced or forced to live in a toxic waste dump that will poison them and their food and water supply, the homeowners in the region whose families and pets will likewise be exposed to carcinogenic herbicides and the legions of visitors who visit the East Bay Regional Parks only to discover that those tasked with the trust of protecting our public lands have chosen instead to destroy them--be considered worth its cost for what is ultimately a pointless outcome, trying, in vain, to return selected areas of the hills to one of their various historical manifestations? How can such harmful and dramatic self-inflicted wounds possibly be justified, either scientifically or morally? Though Schaaf, Dirks, and Doyle embrace an agenda indistinguishable from that of the timber and chemical industries, that would, as FEMA itself admits, cause "unavoidable adverse impacts... to vegetation, wildlife and habitats, protected species, soils, water quality, aesthetics, community character, human health and safety, recreation, and noise," they are nonetheless claiming the mantel of "environmentalism" and calling their plan "environmental restoration." Underlying this and other equally shocking calls for environmental destruction across the globe is the environmental movement's embrace of "invasion biology," which regards any human induced outcomes in the world as by definition bad. The deep misanthropy underlying this troubling mindset has rendered its adherents incapable of distinguishing between human actions which are beneficial to the environment--such as the planting of trees and the creating of forests--and human actions which result in harm--such as chopping down trees and dumping thousands of gallons of toxic herbicides, and thus contributing to the poisoning of the Earth, the suffering of wildlife and the enabling of climate change. In embracing the latter, invasion biologists compel us to perceive threats to the environment where none actually exist, arguing that simply because humans were responsible for a particular outcome it must be undone. Given the vast influence of humans on virtually every corner of the globe, this philosophy compels us to declare war on the natural places all around us, and to continue to wage that war in perpetuity in order to maintain stasis of their preferred order. As the environmental movement continues to grow in influence, and as this particularly invasive philosophy continues to metastasize within it and increasingly define its agenda, we can expect that their calls for clear-cutting, ripping out vegetation, dumping herbicides and pesticides and, when it comes to those species they cruelly regard as "invasive," trapping, shooting, poisoning and otherwise brutalizing animals, will become ever more commonplace, especially as they gain influence with public officials as they have done in the Bay Area. Paradoxically, while they claim that they are working to undo the unnatural outcomes of humans influencing their environment, they don't see any conflict in inflicting their own will upon the environment whatever the cost, nor the irrationality of considering humans, a species which evolved on earth the same as every other species, as somehow outside the natural world. Given the pernicious nature of their agenda and the bad science and sloppy logic which underlies it (not the least of which is that Monterey Pines are by their own definition "native"), perhaps it should come as little surprise that they are often dishonest, as well, attempting to obfuscate their true motivation and the environmentally catastrophic nature of their plans by promoting them under more publicly palatable rationales. In the case of the East Bay hills, that rationale is claimed to be "fire abatement." On the EBRPD website, Doyle admits that while "Conversion from eucalyptus or pine will not be accomplished easily, with transition to a grassland/brush mix, oak/bay woodland, or other appropriate native, plant community a long-term goal," he also makes plain why that is the case: lack of money and public opposition to the plan "being the main factors in determining the pace of this transition." In other words, Doyle and his colleagues on the Board of the EBRPD have to concoct a plan to substitute their own will over the public's will whom they are supposed to represent, with 90% of the 13,000 citizen comments submitted to FEMA opposed to the plan. Indeed, overcoming public resistance in one of the most environmentally conscious areas of the country to the idea that decimating numerous healthy forests, cutting down hundreds of thousands of carbon sequestering trees, displacing multitudes of wildlife and spreading tens of thousands of gallons of toxic chemicals where both animals and people live is a sound idea, consistent with an environmental ethos that has historically been associated with the antithesis of such actions, is a challenge. And in the Bay Area, where almost 25 years later the tragedy of the 1991 Firestorm can make still the most stoic eyes misty, they hope that fear mongering about fire will do the trick, while simultaneously creating a public safety rationale that will make Uncle Sam foot most of the bill for the proposed decimation. And yet when chainsaws are taken to the East Bay forests, their decimation will actually increase the risk of fire in the region. Healthy, green trees are to be chopped down and chipped; their remains spread about shade-less, empty hillsides at a depth of two feet, creating tinder boxes of hot, composting and therefore highly combustible dried wood throughout the hills. With forests decimated and no plan to replant in clear cut regions, highly flammable brush species such as French Broom, thistle, hemlock and poison oak will move into the areas, simply substituting what clearcutting proponents claim is one fire hazard with another, but not without first exacting a devastating toll on the animals and people in the region. These plants will also be sprayed with herbicides, contributing yet more poison to our public lands. Whether dead after being sprayed with herbicides or dead during the long dry season, these plants will be more flammable than the forests they replaced. Tall trees which once served as windbreakers to slow the spread of fire will be destroyed, while areas once covered with lush forests will be turned into grassland, an ecosystem in which fire plays a recurring and key role. In fact, a report offering a mitigated plan of thinning the trees and reducing debris around the trees to eliminate fuels consistent with abatement techniques used in Australia where Eucalyptus trees are abundant was ignored by the city and was ultimately rejected by FEMA precisely because it conflicted with their true agenda of turning the area into "grassland with islands of shrubs." Schaaf and other members of the Oakland City Council sent a letter to FEMA urging it to reject calls for thinning in favor of a scorched earth, clear-cutting plan. Why? Because their plan is not and never was about fire. Advertisement When the means by which a particular end must be sought are so cruel and destructive, common sense compels a closer look at the goal itself. If the decimation of pristine forests and the deliberate poisoning of wildlife and people in the region is the only way to achieve a stated end, then the end itself must be problematic. And when the goals of Schaaf, Dirks and Doyle are considered in light of what we know about the ever evolving and changing nature of life in Earth, it becomes clear that they have not only declared war on the byproducts of nature--certain plants and animals which have traveled or been transported from their place of origin--but on the workings of nature itself: migration, natural selection, evolution, change. Invasion biologists and those who defer to them create phantom problems where none in fact exist; instructing us to not only regard inevitable natural forces as sinister and threatening (or gentle, carbon sequestering, habitat creating, shade giving, majestic trees as pernicious and evil), but to embrace often catastrophic and self-destructive means to reach an elusive and impossible goal: holding nature in stasis to preserve a particular and favored but arbitrarily chosen moment in time. Today's environmental movement now embraces an agenda pursuing the very outcomes it was born to combat. True environmentalists working to bring sanity back to a cause that has been hijacked by a philosophy that would be unrecognizable to its early founders , those who oppose plans to destroy the forests of the East Bay, San Francisco's Mount Sutro, or wherever campaigns of destruction are being waged against plants and animals unfairly maligned as unworthy of their continued existence simply because they did not evolve in the "right" place, must stop speaking the language created by invasion biologists to fear monger and thereby confuse the public and public officials into supporting their deeply misguided and dangerous agenda. True environmentalists must stop acquiescing to the idea that every human induced change to our landscape is necessarily bad, that the planting of trees by our ancestors which have since resulted in forests that provide beauty, carbon sequestration and animal habitat are as evil as the coal fired power plant belching greenhouse gases into our skies. We must reject the notion that "native" is by definition better, that such a label carries any relevant distinction, and that it is fair to the other species who share our planet to hold them to a standard we refuse to ourselves obey. We must reject the idea that it is wise to declare a hopeless war on that which we can never change: change itself. Otherwise, we will be struggling to save our wild places from these insane assaults in perpetuity, always debating merely the catastrophic means but never the catastrophic ends. "Non-native" and "invasive species" are terms that have entered the lexicon of popular culture and become pejorative, inspiring unwarranted fear, knee-jerk suspicion, and a lack of thoughtfulness and moral consideration. They are language of intolerance, based on an idea we have thoroughly rejected in our treatment of our fellow human beings--that the value of a living being can be reduced merely to its place of origin. And when we speak these words, repeat them and pay lip service to their perceived implication that we must revere the familiar and disdain the foreign, we should not only be ashamed to do so, but realize that we are opening the floodgates of expression to our darker natures and our most base instincts--impulses which have been responsible for the most regrettable moments in human history. If Schaaf, Dirks and Doyle have their way, that will invariably include what future, more enlightened generations of Bay Area environmentalists will regard as nothing short of an historical travesty: the willful decimation of what was once of the Bay Areas' most legendary and spectacular beauties--the East Bay forests. We must reject the myopia, illogic and bad science of invasion biology in favor of reason, common sense and a broader understanding and appreciation of the changing nature of life on Earth. And we must replace the language of biological xenophobia with the language of tolerance and compassion. It is time to drive the terms "invasive species" and "non-native" into a well-deserved extinction. Jennifer Winograd contributed to this article. A version of it first appeared on Death of a Million Trees. News / Local by Stephen Jakes Harare Residents Trust has expressed alarm following the city mayor, Bernard Manyenyeni's remarks that more water cuts must be expected by many owing residents."More water cuts are looming Harare as the Harare Mayor and Councillor Bernad Munyenyeni said more shutdowns on water supply are expected if the city is to be able to complete its maintenance work," said the trust. "This has come as an alarm to the HRT that if there is going to be a continued water shutdown what will be of the residents as cholera outbreak is already the talk of the day. How will residents cope if the council is operating in such a manner. It is no longer news that we experiencing drought in Zimbabwe boreholes are running dry where then is the council expecting residents to get water from?"In a facebook chat Manyenyeni said there were some refurbishments taking place and they expect final results in 12 months or so."You also need to know that each long shutdown is a great opportunity for smaller maintainance work which require (but don't justify) complete shutdowns," said Manyenyeni."There are water bursts which can go on for months because fixing them require shutdowns which are worse than the waters lost! !"Nicky Bennett responded saying "if that's the case so why rush to demolish people's homes when the running of your system is not adequate. Adding problems on top of problems? So how are people with demolished houses going to cope? Failure is failure. Water systems should be monitored always to avoid people having no water. So should people import water?"Desmond Kumbuka also said as residents they expect solutions not excuses."We endure these shut-downs, disruptions etc, but the quality of the water remains poor and we wonder what these "refurbishments" are meant to achieve. For years now, water in my area, Haig Park, Mabelreign comes in drops, dark, oily and ominous and clearly unfit for human consumption. But without fail, their bills come every month accompanied by threats or property seizures etc if one fails to pay. Quite honestly I, like many other residents, feel that Harare Municipality has become a delinquent institution engaged in day-light robbery from residents. The council is giving us a raw deal - they do not deserve a single cent of the money they extort from us every month," he said.Manyenyeni responded, "I trust you are paying your bills and I invite you to also visit such big project and ask pertinent questions. Blanket fury may be justifiable from an armchair but a fuller appreciation of council business is enriching."Kumbuka said "Its not as if a have choice on paying bills do I? - as for appreciating council business or visiting council projects - I have my own business to take care of and that is how I manage to pay the bills. I pay the council to provide me with a service and that is what I expect. I am justified to be angry, whether from a armchair or where ever, when that service is not forthcoming."Simeon Mawanza said "You have a point there Desmond. Residents have every right to demand better services particularly if they are paying their rates. His worship is out of order to try to down play a concern of a resident and patronize him. I also think council should be providing water bowsers during such long cut offs. If they cannot do so out of their own initiative then someone must approach the courts to compel them to do so. There is no place for arrogance in public service."Manyenyeni said "There is no arrogance but both sides are demanding their pound of flesh - simple. I expect a complaint resident to demand services and also appreciate where we are coming from. When we are getting half of the budget revenue - I am a lot more connected to someone who is playing their part!"Kumbuka said "Your worship, we appreciate that you do make this effort to be interact with residents - its commendable. It is also probably not your fault that the situation regarding service delivery is in such a deplorable state."Manyenyeni said the rates discussion has no emotions it is the one which defines the city."You will need to share that the rates for our high density suburbs is about 70 cents a day rising to $2 per day for the more affluent wards. No amount of goodwill and effort will revive the city services without the necessary cash streams especially when we know that the city is burdened by a quarter century of infrastructure deficit and serving ten times is design capacity and growing," he said. By Nehginpao Kipgen, PhD It has been 150 days since the killing of 9 civilians, including an eleven-year-old boy in Churachandpur, Manipur, Northeast India. The tribal or hill people, under the aegis of Joint Action Committee (JAC), continue to demand for justice while the dead bodies lie in the district hospital morgue. The deaths were a consequence of the three bills passed by the Manipur Legislative Assembly - the Protection of Manipur People Bill, 2015, the Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms (Seventh Amendment) Bill, 2015, and the Manipur Shops and Establishments (Second Amendment) Bill, 2015 - on August 31, 2015. The bills were passed in a special session of the assembly in response to the valley people's demand for the implementation of an Inner Line Permit system in the state. The bills were first sent to the state governor for his approval, but he then forwarded to the president for his review and ordinance. The fundamental problem of the bills is in its interpretation. While the valley people, who are predominantly Meiteis, view the bills as a mechanism to protect the state and its people from outsiders, the hill people (the Kukis and Nagas) see the bills as a threat to their rights over identity and land. For example, Clause 2(b) of the Protection of Manipur People Bill defines "Manipur People" as "Persons of Manipur whose names are in the National Register of Citizens, 1951, Census Report 1951 and Village Directory of 1951 and their descendants who have contributed collective social, cultural and economic life of Manipur." Making 1951 as the cut-off year would exclude many of the tribal population from the definition of "Manipur people." In that year, most of the hill areas were not accessible by road and the situation remains the same in some places even today. There is also a lingering apprehension among the tribal people that the state government would use the bills as a strategic political ploy to gain access over their land. The unwillingness on the part of the state government to implement the Sixth Schedule in the hill areas exacerbates the concerns of the tribal people. The argument of the state government and the valley people is that the bills are largely misunderstood and misinterpreted by the hill people. They claim that the bills are meant to check the migration of people from outside the state, and they would not disadvantageously affect the hill people. Another argument of the valley people is that there is a constitutional injustice that allows the hill people to buy and own land and properties in the valley but people of the valley (non-tribal people) are prevented from owning land in the hills. The politics surrounding the bills becomes so sensitive that it could further escalate into a major problem for the state as well as the central government, and more importantly between peoples of the hill and the valley. With public support in the hill areas, the JAC has made a charter of demands from the central government, including the immediate withdrawal of the three bills and separate political administrative arrangement for the tribal people within the Indian constitution. In conjunction with these demands, the JAC and leaders of Manipur tribals in Delhi have launched different forms of agitation in the nation's capital, and have also met several political leaders, including Home Minister Rajnath Singh, but with no concrete action other than verbal assurances. Now, the issue is in a delicate situation. If the central government does not act and the president does not give his assent, it is a matter of time the Meitei community would resort to several forms of agitation. An 11th grade student had lost his life in July last year. On the other hand, it is apparent that though the JAC's short-term demand is the withdrawal of the three bills and the protection of their land through constitutional safeguards such as the Sixth Schedule provisions, the long-term demand is a separate administration from Manipur which they believe is the only way forward to bring lasting peace and development in their region. Under the present circumstances, the central government cannot simply say it is a state matter when the bills have reached the president's desk, and when the issue involves constitutional matter, Article 371C. Though any amicable solution is easier said than done, there are some viable solutions. One option is for the state government to withdraw the bills and go back to the drawing board by consulting the agitating tribal leaders. The second option is to insert a clause in the bills which clearly states that they would not in anyway affect or apply on the tribal people and their land. *Co-authored by Nadia A. Margherio, Principal and Attorney, Sodoma Law, P.C. Actress and contributor to The View, Sherri Shepherd had made it clear: she wanted out of any legal responsibility for the child borne by a surrogate chosen by Shepherd and her ex-husband. Volatile divorces and custody battles aired in the public sphere due to celebrity status aren't unusual; what sets this case apart is its central issue, surrogacy, around which legal status becomes enmeshed in a complex set of rules and regulations in the absence of clear-cut laws. Just as I'd advise anyone planning to be married to cover their bases in the case of divorce, for anyone considering employing a surrogate with their spouse, Shepherd's case can serve as a primer for the scenarios they ought to consider -- and to address ahead of time. So what happened? Shepherd and her then husband, Lamar Sally, signed a surrogacy agreement, also known as gestational carrier agreement, with the company Reproductive Possibilities. A Surrogacy Agreement is a legally binding contract between the surrogate and the intended parents (IP's) that sets out the legal liabilities and responsibilities for the surrogate and the IP's during the pregnancy and after the child is born. Typically, fertility clinics will not begin the surrogacy process without confirmation that a Surrogacy Agreement has been duly executed between the IP's and the surrogate. Advertisement Shepherd and Sally coordinated with an agency to find a surrogate in Pennsylvania, Jessica Bartholomew, at which point they then took the next step and entered into an agreement with Tiny Treasures, an egg donation agency. The Egg Donor Agreement would release the egg donor of any legal responsibility to any child born as a result of the donated egg. This means that before the surrogate was ever inseminated the IP's would have duly executed three different contracts stating their intentions and legal obligations to the child upon conception. In Shepherd's case, when their surrogate was 20 weeks pregnant, and per the surrogacy agreement, Shepherd and Sally drafted the necessary paperwork that would allow the birth certificate to identify them as the legal parents of the child. However, by this point Shepherd and Sally were going through a tumultuous time in their marriage; they later separated, and Shepherd refused to sign the paperwork. In spite of a civil suit from the surrogate for a court order (otherwise known as a pre-birth order) to put Shepherd's name on the birth certificate, when the child was born the surrogate's name was listed. Sally, per the original agreements, assumed responsibility as the child's legal parent and eventually took the baby to California, where he continues to live and care for the child. Shepherd, on the other hand, has since refused to assume any legal responsibility for the minor child, including paying any child support or enrolling the baby on her health insurance, as required by the original agreement. The laws applying to surrogacy are different and at times, non-existent in each state. For example, in North Carolina where I practice, there is no statutory authority that governs or dictates the surrogacy process. Outside of a carrier agreement, it is presumed that if you give birth to a baby then you are the biological mother and would therefore be legally responsible for the child. Advertisement If you are married, and give birth, it is presumed that your husband is the biological father of the child. As such when parties decide to use Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) to create a family, and specifically a surrogate, it is vital to execute a carrier agreement to make sure the responsibilities of each party are clear and concise during the pregnancy and when the baby arrives. Since Shepherd executed a carrier agreement, among other legally binding documents, the terms of the contract would control who is responsible for raising the child. I suspect that the contract set out that both Sherri and her husband would continue to be legally and financially responsible for the baby regardless of their marital status. In my opinion, no individual should be able to utilize the benefits of medical technology to create a child, then turn their back on a child simply because they separate from their spouse at any stage during the surrogacy process. Instead, when a marital split does happen during gestation of or following the birth of a child by an agreed-upon surrogate, the next logical step would be for the parties to enter into a custody and child support order whereby the parties' parenting schedule and financial responsibilities would be clearly spelled out. Shepherd's actions and decisions to turn away from the child she took serious consideration to create and bring into this world, with the help of medical technology, is troubling to say the least. Now that Sanders' campaign has picked up steam, the rhetoric of democratic unity is taking its gloves off. Senator Sanders says that Mrs. Clinton cannot be both progressive and moderate. Well, that's campaign talk. That's a handler's line though Bernie's camp would never admit it. Once you get into the Oval Office things are known to change, and in getting there every candidate has to widen their base. The presidency itself is a tightrope walk, and if you want bi-partisan support and votes from the floor you can't lean too far either way. Sanders is challenging Hillary's ground, and has accused her of wanting it both ways. At the same time his communications director, Michael Briggs, has claimed that Sanders wants to build on President Obama's legacy, a legacy Sanders has not exactly embraced. (Sanders' slogan is "A Future We Can Believe In," while Obama's was "Change We Can Believe In," so there's that). Briggs prickled when asked to expound more on this claim but did not quite explain it. Mrs. Clinton isn't the only one stealing from somebody else's playbook. Advertisement Senator Sanders has been critical of Obama and there are reasons to be. But can he have it both ways while Hillary cannot? Last weekend in Iowa, Sanders welcomed Princeton Law Professor Cornell West on his campaign stage. West is the progressive African-American who has derided the president for the lack of progress for black people during his tenure and for the president's his penchant for drone attacks. But he has also called President Obama a "niggerized president," a term he explains as a black person who's intimidated by putting a spotlight on white supremacy. He has called Obama a "Rockefeller in blackface," "a brown-faced Clinton," and has said Obama has "a certain fear of free black men." If Sanders had West speaking at his rally to galvanize the black vote he lags in, it may not have been the perfect choice. Young voters will get on board, but older voters have a longer memory. Obama was handed a white man's mess and was expected to clean it up. He was met with a bigoted blockade from the right who obstructed his every idea and policy. America's boat wasn't listing, it was sinking, so we've come a long way under Obama, and many voters will take umbrage with West's insults. I think it may be Senator Sanders who is trying to have it more than one way now. I think saying that one cannot be moderate and progressive is like saying one can't be both a mother and daughter, or that we can't admit that on some issues we are liberal and on some we are conservative. If Sanders does not like what Obama has done in office, own it. Advertisement Senator Sanders endorsed Bill Press's book, Buyers Remorse, How Obama Let Progressives Down. It was an above the title blurb and I take that as a validation. Why not? Progressives were let down. So why is Briggs backing off on that now and saying it wasn't an "endorsement" and that Sanders only meant that people should read the book? That'd be campaign strategy. But can Sander's have it both ways? Questions about Sanders do not sit well with many progressives, I have found. For pointing out that Sanders' base is not diverse enough I have been called a shill, an idiot, a Lesbian (why is that an insult?) and a woman who "loves her some pussy." I guess because I like Hillary it must mean I'd go down on her. It's as if Sarah Palin's supporters invaded the progressive's Twitter feed and are writing the sound bites. I'm not decided when it comes to whom I want for president. I'm a progressive who leans toward the center, so I lean toward Mrs. Clinton. She has been endorsed by smart and solid liberals like Al Franken, whom I greatly respect, and by Cher, who also gets my vote. She's no shill. I like the fact that Hillary stuck her neck out years ago for health care reform and her plan was as close to single payer as we will get in the next ten years. She was before her time on that and took a clobbering. As First Lady, she wouldn't talk to Katie Couric about how she keeps the White House rugs clean and was involved instead in policy. She took a beating for that too. She is still standing, and has in the meantime served in the Senate and as Secretary of State. Now, the Republicans started the smear campaign that labeled Mrs. Clinton as sneaky and shady before the embassy in Benghazi was attacked. Still, up until that point, she had been pretty untouchable in her performance. They went after her server and her emails, even though Colin Powell admitted he used his private email, too. It has yet to be proved that Hillary leaked any classified information nor that she was some kind of international boob as Secretary of State. Advertisement Hillary is guarded and measured in her words. She flips both sides of the coin. She's running for president and that's her style. She's an enigma of sorts, but that doesn't bother me. She started out as a progressive in her early days and she's still rooted in liberalism. She's a private person and not warm to the touch. So what? I am not prepared to write her off or not give her my vote because of it. And I won't go along with the republican agenda regarding her. Sanders says he works across the aisle, and he has, but what he came up with for his effort in this divisive Congress is been a handful of good amendments, not a cache of meaningful bills. This congress has not been willing to negotiate nor legislate. And Sanders did not literally "help write" Obamacare as he claims. That insinuates he sat down and helped craft the bill with the committee, which he did not. He wrote a different bill actually, which was single payer. Obamacare is closer to Medicare while Sanders' current plan is 100% government single payer with no co-pay. He got a very important provision into Obamacare, however; $11billion for community health care centers, which was a great addition before the vote. Sanders bill was denied one. Actually, I wanted Elizabeth Warren to run for president. What happened? While Twitter was lit up weeks ago with talk of a deal between Clinton and Trump, why did no one question a deal between Sanders and Warren? Were two socialists on the menu too hard for us to choose from? Why is Sanders running as a Democrat when he says he a Socialist? He's not a Democrat, or can a Democrat also be a Socialist? That would be having it both ways. A political revolution is happening, I agree. But I would include in my revolution more than one serious female candidate for president. My progressive revolution would mean more than three women on the Supreme Court and one African American. There would be serious Latino women and men in the forefront. So, the current revolution isn't quite as radical as I'd like it to be. For making these observations about Senator Sanders I can count on being called a shill, an idiot, a Lesbian, and someone who loves me some pussy. But all that name calling makes a good case for my case. We don't have to be just one thing. In fact, we never are. Advertisement I am a daughter and a sister. An actress and a writer. A dog lover and cat lover. I am a morning person who likes to stay up late. I confess that I want a woman for president, and I think Hillary Clinton should be that woman. Not Fiorina. I am not just for any woman. Years ago I was a friend of Pat Schroeder, the Colorado Congresswoman, who ran for president. She was bright and funny and fully capable but didn't get far. She fell flat when she cried in public and the press played her tears as often as they played Howard Dean's victory yelp. Hillary has been called out for not showing us her tears. That makes her heart cold and dark. I understand why many women won't vote for Hillary and why others don't like her. They have every right. I myself feel cheated that Warren did not throw her hat in the ring. She lives in a cold weather state so I know she has one. I am disappointed it's Sanders and not Warren who is running. I'm weary of the bigotry in Congress, the hatred and disrespect. I'm weary of insulting comments from all sides. I'm annoyed that not enough has been said about the racism that reared up as Obama took oath. As our steward he brought us back from near death. If Sanders really wants to carry on Obama's legacy, explain it to me. Otherwise, don't say it. President Obama himself was a revolution. Breaking the color barrier on the highest level gave America some dignity. In spite of any policy, he gave us what he promised. Hope. Mrs. Clinton may be an island. She seems to stand alone, regardless of her husband and her PAC money. It's the contradictions about her that draws me to her. Her ambition has always been transparent. She is a dichotomy, but I find that presidential. Politician standing at podium "Is it a revolt?" asked Louis XVI upon being informed of the storming of the Bastille. "No, sire," sighed his minister "I fear it is a revolution." Indeed, in both parties, last night's Iowa caucuses proved that politics in the United States today is a revolution, not a revolt. Fortunately, while not a violent revolution a la France, it is every bit as serious for American politics and American life. Contrary to conventional wisdom, this election is not about ideology, issues, or items on a resume. This is an election of insurgency. Advertisement Since 2013 Armada has conducted a half a dozen surveys with American voters, both telephone and online, charting this phenomenon. Our most recent survey, conducted January 2-7, 2016 online of a large sample of 1,600 interviews was not done as a momentary glimpse or a snapshot of the primaries, but rather as a continuation of an in-depth study of the psychology of the American electorate. And it explains what we witnessed across Iowa, and what we are likely to witness as the primaries move forward. Our mulit-year series of survey data of the "Smith Project" clearly indicates a new paradigm has emerged. It is a shift in political tectonic plates, the death rattle of the old order and the coming of the new political order. The old rules that reflected an establishment-centered, ideological two-party duopoly are now under siege by an anti-establishment, anti-political class, anti-duopoly movement that is nonpartisan and to a great degree even non-ideological. But this is no small revolutionary cadre; it includes the overwhelming majority of American voters of every persuasion. This is another in the great and lasting upheavals in our political history, and like all upheavals, it has its own unique qualities. Based on research of political alienation among the American people growing to historic levels, in 2013 Patrick Caddell described publicly that the country was in a prerevolutionary moment. The upheaval and the explosion of discontent that have provided a launch-pad for outsider candidates from Donald Trump and Ted Cruz to Bernie Sanders are not, as so many establishment pundits suggest, just another episode in the long history of ad-hoc populist moments of discontent sure to fade away. Our survey data shows that the United States is in the midst of an evolving political revolution of historic proportions. In fact, this election could mark the beginning of the end of two-party duopoly in the United States. If you doubt that, read on. Current Findings (Because of the volume of data and information, we will be releasing on a periodic basis analysis of various components of the Smith poll. As this research reveals, these trends started years ago, but Iowa dramatized how real and right now this revolution is. Advertisement For each item below you may turn to the Appendix for the actual questions and results.) Research Findings and Highlights: 1) As we've seen in our polling since 2013, Americans believe our country is in decline (this year, by a two-thirds majority). They believe our kids will not have it as good as we have had it (56% believe the future in the United States will be worse for most children); we may be the first generation of Americans to pass on a country that is worse, not better off - the abnegation of the American Dream. The people believe the U.S. has a two-track economy, where most Americans struggle every day, where good jobs are hard to find, and where huge corporations get all the rewards (72% agree). Three-fourths of Americans believe America is a unique nation and that we should protect our unique character (See Appendix 1). 2) They know why this decline is happening. Eighty-one percent believe the power of ordinary people to control our country is getting weaker every day as politicians of both parties fight to protect their own power and privilege (81% of all voters - across the board - believe this). Even more (84%) believe political leaders are more interested in protecting their power and privilege than doing what is right. In addition, three-quarters of the American people believe that powerful interests, from Wall Street to Unions to interest groups, have used campaign and lobbying money to rig the system for themselves. The reason families in our middle class have not seen their economic condition improve for decades and economic growth is stalled is because of corruption and crony capitalism in Washington (72% agree). The perception of widespread political corruption shades virtually every response in this poll. That's because the voters feel corruption taints every action and interaction in Washington. Two-thirds of Americans disagree that the US government is working for the people's best interest. Indeed, 71% believe our government is not only dysfunctional; it is collapsing right before our eyes. (On our 0-10 Issue Scales, for later release, "Government ethics and corruption" ranks among the three top scoring issues.) And 7 out of 10 Americans believe that the government in Washington does not govern with the consent of the people. The state of alienation in our country is unprecedented - in size and scope (See Appendix 2). 3) The Democratic and Republican Parties are essentially useless in changing this situation. Americans overwhelmingly agree (78%-15%) that both political parties are too beholden to special interests to create any meaningful change. This attitude may not be reversible with the current generation of voters. This is the situation that creates opportunity -- make that the necessity -- for new choices in our political system. Eighty percent believe the federal government is its own special interest primarily looking out for itself. So who's going to look out for us? That's what the people ask in this election. Advertisement We have all noted the continual rise of Independents in party affiliation such that it represents a commanding plurality of the American people. Today in America, almost eighty percent of the hard core independents say they do not vote a party line. And consider these two statements: Our party system is very flawed. We need new citizen leaders within our political parties, instead of the same old party machine politicians, to restore the ideals of our parties. Both parties have failed us and it's time to move on from our two party system. We need to vote for independent candidates and let some new political parties come together to truly represent the American people. Altogether, 75% of all voters support these statements (38%, the first, and 37%, the second within the same question in our research). Indeed, only 15% say the "values and principals of my political party are so important that I strongly prefer to vote for the candidates of my party..." The voters are ready to move on from a party system that has failed the people and failed to measure up to the problems we face as a nation. So the people believe the real struggle for America is not between Democrats and Republicans, but between mainstream America and the ruling political elites of incumbent politicians, lobbyists, big business, big unions, big banks, big special interests and the big media. That's right. Our free press is no help. In fact, they (74%) see the biased and slanted coverage of the media as part of the problem (See Appendix 3). Advertisement 4) What can turn this situation around? Seventy-nine percent of all voters, all parties and all demographics say that we need to recruit and support more candidates for office, at all levels of government, who are ordinary citizens, rather than professional politicians and lawyers. And 56% say they wish there were a third party with a chance of success to fight for their interests. Think of that as the void between establishment Democratic and Republican politics and the change and reform the American people demand. In 2013, sensing increased alienation and frustration with the status quo of politics in Washington, we tested a hypothetical "Candidate Smith" to explore whether there was latent support for an alternative approach in American politics. And there certainly was. We didn't define Smith as Republican or Democrat, woman or man. We didn't define Smith's age, race or religion. This is how we described Candidate Smith: "Candidate Smith's beliefs are not based on liberal or conservative ideas, just fundamental American common sense. Smith says we can't change anything with the usual politics, the usual politicians, and the usual interest groups. We need new leaders from mainstream America, like Candidate Smith, who take on the political elites and special interests, and put the American people in charge again." While our poll shows that even the current leaders in the Democratic and Republican presidential primaries are perceived far more unfavorably than favorably, Smith's "favorable/unfavorable" numbers after reading that paragraph are a stunning 77% favorable and 11% unfavorable. Advertisement Without even knowing Candidate Smith, voters of all parties and demographics would choose Smith, running as an Independent, over Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. And Smith beats Ted Cruz, Marco Rubio and Jeb Bush, too. And we also tested Candidate Smith in both primaries. In the Republican primary, Smith tops the field winning 34% of the vote, while frontrunner Donald Trump's support drops 10 points from 37 to 27. In early January in the Democratic primary Clinton was winning 59% to 39% over Sanders. When Smith was tested as a prospective Democrat, Clinton's lead dropped 20 points to 39 and Sanders dropped a dozen to 18 with Smith a very close second to Hillary at 35%. As we will release later, it is important to note that not one of the Republican or Democratic candidates today is considered any more than "somewhat similar" to Smith. This defines the void between a "Smith candidate" and a Republican or Democratic candidate. Of course, as relative outsiders and addressing the anger and frustration of the voters, Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders capture some of the public mood. Indeed, many have said that Trump captures the "anger vote." If that were true, he would have over 80% of all votes and all voters. Among the current list of candidates, there is still a void. Yes, voters will dutifully make choices in the upcoming caucuses and primaries - but they yearn for better choices. Consider the support for a few of Smith's positions: Smith says no one candidate can fix our system or our country alone. What we need is for ordinary Americans to stand up, take responsibility and take control. Eight-one percent of voters agree. Advertisement Smith believes our economic policies of both parties have failed and we must grow the economy and provide real jobs and better wages for the middle class. Eighty percent agree. Smith says that America cannot succeed unless we take on and defeat the corruption and crony capitalism in our government. Seventy-six percent agree. Smith says we must fix our broken political system before we can go about solving the other important issues, like economic growth, education, national security or immigration. Two-thirds of all voters agree. Candidates talk about a mandate to lead. Smith's favorability rises to 81% of all voters when they have learned about his platform. That mandate is spelled out very clearly by the people's support for a Candidate Smith's broad Platform of Reform and Rejuvenation. And that cry for change and reform will result in Candidate Smiths at every level of government sharing a broad common theme of common sense, common purpose, and common destiny (See Appendix 4). 5) The power elite asks, "When will this be over?" Although this is seen as a chaotic and temporary situation by most of the political and media establishment, our research shows a strong, evolving tidal wave of discontent and growing pressure for real and dramatic change. The belief that politics works because voters ultimately will choose, even between just two candidates or between two parties, is illusory. Given nothing but those choices, make no mistake; most voters will make a choice. But that does not mean that their choice is an affirmation of what they desire. The question is this: will our next President have the real support of the American people? Real change is what that the establishment fears most and fights hardest against. It is ultimately a losing battle. Given the establishment's inherent advantages of controlling structures, rules and resources, the full potential of change may not be realized in 2016. But it will continue. This, in fact, is a revolution. I have had the good fortune to have known some very, very smart people in my life, including my youngest brother who was literally a genius. None of them ever said they were smart. For one thing, really smart people know what they do not know or understand better than the rest of us. Advertisement More importantly, and this is for Trump more than anyone, if you really are smart, you would think that you need not say it, that people would notice, if people noticing it were important to you. Truly smart people rarely require the attention or recognition by others of their intelligence that Trump seems to crave. Many are embarrassed when others comment on it. As Malcolm Gladwell (Outliers) and Daniel Goleman (Emotional Intelligence) have explained, beyond a certain IQ (130s) the most important success skill is "emotional intelligence": roughly, the ability to notice, evaluate, label and use emotional and psychological constructs to guide behavior and performance. It includes cooperation, grace under pressure, insight into others' needs, seeing yourself as others see you... and, yes, humility. In Built to Last (Porras and Collins), and Good to Great (Collins), the authors note that the the great leaders were not bombastic or charismatic, nor do they engage in what Veblen called "conspicuous consumption". They are clock-builders, not time-tellers. I become instantly skeptical when someone tells me they are smart, or have great interpersonal skills, or anything that cannot be easily tested. (By contrast, if you say you are a very fast runner, we could time you; if you say you are a great pianist, we could listen to you play.) But, if you say you are well-liked, or smart, or a great dealmaker, or highly intuitive.... Well, I would just doubt it until shown otherwise. Advertisement Trump keeps telling us that he is smart, terrific, and a great dealmaker. Perhaps he is. But, he has not volunteered his college transcripts or his SAT scores. Perhaps he will cut much better deals, as he calls them, with China. Perhaps his deal to have his clothing line made in China is lightyears better than any other similar deal for offshore manufacturing instead of creating jobs in the United States. We do not know. We have not seen that deal. All we know is that Trump is a great huckster. This post appeared first on CentSai Last summer, I thought I had met someone special. I thought we were going to last. I thought it would all be perfect. I was wrong, and it cost me dearly. Love is expensive. And when it ends, even more so. My last breakup cost me more than $8,000. For some, that may not sound like a lot, but for me, a traveling freelance writer, it hurt. Let me explain how quickly it happened. We met in Paris: He was from Dublin, and I was visiting my hometown. At the time, I was living in Guatemala where I had bought myself a guest house. As a freelance writer, all I needed was an Internet connection; I could work from anywhere. It was summer in the city of eternal romance. We spent it together. Advertisement I said I would consider moving to Dublin if and when things got serious. And they did quickly, too quickly, in hindsight! Exchanging my house in Guatemala to live rent free in Dublin seemed like a smart move at the time. I flew back to Guatemala in September to arrange a house swap from December until April. A man accepted the swap, but in December, the day before I was to move in to the apartment in Dublin, my boyfriend and I broke up, and I flew back home to Guatemala. I decided to honor the agreement, so my house, which usually yields $1,500 a month in rental income, was now occupied by the man who had agreed to the swap for four months. That's $6,000 in lost revenue right there, and I was left with an empty house in Europe to boot. In the summer of love, I had driven my BMW motorbike to Dublin which included an 18-hour ferry ride. Once there, I got it checked, paid taxes and bought insurance on my motorbike for a full year. The insurance won't give you a refund for unused premiums. The whole thing cost me around $500. Around the same time, I had bought two sets of plane tickets and entrance to a big party in Paris. Advertisement That would have been my awesome Christmas gift to my boyfriend. All it did was leave me $500 poorer. And when I saw the situation was getting toxic, I booked the next available flight back home for $1,000, when they usually cost $500. The grand total comes to $8,000, before you even consider the money I spent buying things for the house that I will never use, the ton of winter clothes I bought to survive the cold that I'll never wear, the higher cost of living in Europe when I could have lived anywhere cheaper, the toll my guest house business would take having no customer feedback for four months as the house swap continued. Realistically, we're probably looking at more than $10,000. But you know what? I don't really care. My time, my sanity, and my well-being, are worth a million times more. The costs of a breakup can include: Legal fees: If you are getting divorced, have kids or joint assets, like a house or a business. Counseling: Which may help get over the breakup more quickly. Medication: For sleeping, depression or anxiety, and pregnancy tests if you were trying, STD tests if one of you has been unfaithful... Cost of moving out: Maybe, it is just about renting a van and having a few friends help out, or maybe you will need to pay a deposit on your new digs, one-month rent in advance, or start paying double rent if he moves out of your place. Buying stuff: A sofa, a bed, pots and pans for your new place. Cost of being on your own: Before, you shared rent, you split the bills, now you can expect your living expenses to be much higher, as you go on living on your own, paying electricity and other utilities. Cost of dating: Once you are ready to date again, that is another expense to consider. My previous breakup cost me five figures, as I ended up buying my ex out of the house we'd bought together. Otherwise, I would have had to pay him rent for his share, and would have never really felt at home. How can you move on, and bring over a new boyfriend, when your ex owns half your house? How do you stop being in touch when you have joint assets? I am a huge proponent of "buying my peace of mind," for as much as it stings to fork out the money, it helped me move on quicker. Which is why you need an emergency fund; even if you are madly in love today, make sure you don't stay in a relationship just because of money. Or the lack thereof. I have seen friends stuck with their partners months after a breakup because they can't afford to get their own places. I am very grateful for having the means to go wherever I want, and my other half can be sure that if I am around, it is only out of love. If my approach seems cold, that is because when a breakup happens, I get into survival mode. Nothing counts but myself. Once I am safe, with a roof over my head and no one to bug me, I mourn the relationship and let the feelings take over. Advertisement But if you stick around, you will suffer needlessly. Put yourself first, spend whatever you need to in order to get back on your feet, then mend your broken heart. World Scout Jamboree is the most important event run by the World Organization of the Scout Movement for scouts 14-17 years old. WOSM is the biggest NGO in the world with tens of millions people participating. Gdansk is hoping to host the Jamboree in 2023. Every Jamboree is a great event, both for its participants and a hosting country. Usually 40 000 scouts from more than 160 countries take part in the two weeks' event along with other 65 000 visitors. What is especially important for us, in Gdansk, the city of freedom, where the Solidarity movement was born, are values promoted by the event and the scout movement. Participants of various origin, from different countries, cooperate to fulfill the idea of peace and brotherhood among the people and nations. The scouts take part in the Home Hospitality program offering a great opportunity to learn about the hosting country, its culture and heritage. I consider these values especially important in the current international situation of growing tensions. The upcoming World Jamboree will be held in the United States in 2019. The event with the history of 100 years has been organized only once in the Central and Eastern Europe - in 1933 in Hungary. Advertisement My dream is for Gdansk to become the host of the World Scout Jamboree in 2023. Currently we are the official candidate. We would like to organize the Jamboree on the Sobieszewska Island, with its wonderful nature and the infrastructure capable of hosting thousands of visitors. The place has many advantages. First of all, it has a diverse landscape, sea proximity and river estuary that make the Island a great place for flora and fauna. There is about 300 species of birds living here (two ornithological reserves!), 500 different plant species, beautiful dunes, meadows, ponds. This biodiversity is accompanied by facilities for camping and sport activities. And all these wonders lie within the big city borders! Just take a look at some pictures: Photo: Andrzej Otrebski/CC/Wikipedia Photo: Jerzy Pinkas The island is located in the close proximity to the city center and its beautiful old town, an exciting destination for tourists from all over the world. Nowadays Gdansk can be conveniently reached by a plane, train on car, because transport infrastructure in Poland - airports, railroads, highways - has been recently extensively developed. And the preparation for the new infrastructure investment on the island has already begun. We are going to build a new bascule bridge across the river, which will make travelling to and from the city center easier. I believe that Gdansk with its unique Sobieszewska Island are wonderful venues for a perfect Jamboree 2023. A great adventure for the participants, an amazing program of activities, friendly and helpful people - I'm sure it will be an unforgettable experience for everybody. Advertisement Photo: Jerzy Pinkas What's important, the national government has supported the initiative and Gdansk has a fruitful cooperation with the Polish member of WOSM - The Polish Scouting and Guiding Association (ZHP). In 2018 ZHP will host a meeting of 20 000 scouts from Poland in Gdansk - this event will be treated as a rehearsal before the 2023. The agreement with ZHP's scoutmaster Magorzata Sinica signed. Photo: Jerzy Pinkas Lech Walesa supported World Scout Jamboree in Gdansk. Photo: Jerzy Pinkas Currently there are two candidates for the World Scout Jamboree 2023 - Poland and South Korea. The decision will be made during the 41st World Scout Conference in August 2017 in Baku - Azerbaijan. There were many good questions directed to both Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton at the New Hampshire Town Forum on Wednesday. One of the most interesting was directed to Hillary Clinton by Julie Carnigan. She said, "I'm the proud mother of five girls, two of my own, three step-daughters. And unfortunately they are all 'feeling the Bern'. I would like to know what you would do to convince them to vote for you." Hillary thought a moment then said, "First of all, tell them I'm glad they're interested in politics, and I really mean that. I want them to be involved. I want them to feel like I felt when I was that age, some years ago, and getting excited and interested in politics for the first time." She went on to suggest they take a look at her record "starting as a young lawyer working for the Children's Defense Fund, taking on the problem of juveniles incarcerated with adults in South Carolina, trying to gather information to end segregated academies in the south." She added "I want them to know that I was a legal services lawyer, standing up for equality under the law, defending people's rights because I believe passionately that those of us who have the opportunity to serve should serve." Advertisement But the last thing Hillary said may be what those young women and others should focus on. "The final thing I would say is, it is still the case that there are challenges and obstacles to young women's ambitions. I'm going to try to break the highest and hardest glass ceiling. I hope it splinters completely and, and I hope for your daughters it opens doors that might not be open right now, regardless of whether any of them ever do anything politically. But in their lives, their profession, how they're treated. I hope it does give them more of a sense of empowerment. That's what I want for my daughter and my amazing granddaughter, and that's what I want for your daughters." Those young women need to understand though they might be living well today they and other women are still being held back in so many ways. Today the number of women leading Fortune 500 companies is at an all-time high 5%. According to Forbes there are still few women on its list of wealthiest Americans. "There may be no higher glass ceiling than the Forbes 400 where only 13% are women. The vast majority inherited their wealth -- and five of the 51 female billionaires share their ten-digit fortunes with their husbands." Let's consider the vast numbers of women not inheriting fortunes and not being married to wealthy men. Those women go out every day and earn a living to support themselves and their families. They are maids, waitresses, nurses, teachers, lawyers, doctors even CEOs of fortune 500 companies yet all face some insurmountable obstacles. Today they are still paid only 78% of what men doing the same jobs are paid. According to the National Committee on Pay Equity (NCPE) if we continue on the path we are on today it won't be till 2059 women receive equal pay for equal work. That is 43 years from now when Julie Carnigan's daughters will all be ready to retire. If that is the case and nothing changes they will receive less social security then the men they worked with, and less of other benefits. If they take the same percentage of their pay each year as the men do and put it in a 401k they will have thousands less when they retire. Advertisement These facts alone should make them take another look at Hillary. Consider why it would actually make a difference if we have a woman President. Whether you love Hillary or not, no one has questioned her brilliance. President Obama recently said, "Her strengths, which are the fact that she's extraordinarily experienced and, you know, 'wicked smart' and knows every policy inside and out, means she would be capable of governing the country on day one. I've gotten to know Hillary really well, and she is a good, smart, tough person who cares deeply about this country." Bernie knows his promises of free college and single-payer healthcare, which he says can only happen if you join his revolution, won't happen. Maybe it's time you voted for your own interests as a woman. The world still discriminates against women, African Americans, the LGBT community and other minorities. There is a quote Barney Frank (D-MA) shared with the LGBT community, "If you aren't at the table you will be on the menu". That goes for every group who isn't equally represented and women clearly aren't. In 2015 less than 20 percent of the Congress were women. In the Senate out of 100 members only 20 are women and in the House of Representatives out of 435 only 84 or 19.3 percent are women. Out of nine members of the Supreme Court only three are women. The current drought is obvious here at Uvas Reservoir in Santa Clara County, which usually contains a substantial amount of water at this point in the year.See how light rains in the following weeks raised the water level, which was still far below normal in late March:www.flickr.com/photos/ian_e_abbott/13364840095/in/set-721... By Peter Gleick, Brett Walton, J. Carl Ganter Water was a Top Risk on the 2015 Global Agenda In early 2015, participants at the World Economic Forum, a who's who of the political and business elite, ranked water crises as the top global risk. Water was also a key factor in the adoption by the United Nations General Assembly of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), a blueprint for international development over the next 15 years. Ensuring safe drinking water and sanitation for all by 2030 is one of six water goals for the SDGs. In December at the UN climate change conference in Paris, world leaders acknowledged the instrumental role that water will play in a warming planet. Water security was included in the response plans of most nations and was at the core of numerous debates and side agreements. Advertisement (Residents of Porterville, California had to find new sources of water when wells ran dry during the California drought. Photo: J. Carl Ganter, 2015, Circle of Blue) A Major Urban Water-Quality Disaster: Flint, Michigan Following the urban water-quality disasters in 2014 of toxic algae in Toledo, Ohio, and coal chemical contamination of the Elk River in Charleston, West Virginia, another major catastrophe occurred last year. In Flint, Michigan, a combination of a change in water source chemistry, inadequate water-quality testing and reporting, and an outrageous failure of management and governance resulted in dangerous lead contamination in some drinking water. This story, which began in 2014, unfolded in 2015, and will continue in 2016, highlights the need for far more investment in maintaining and upgrading urban water infrastructure, vastly improved political oversight and accountability, and an acknowledgement of the unaddressed environmental justice issues facing poor and disadvantaged communities. We note these kind problems are all too prevalent in many parts of the developing world, but receive extra media attention when they occur unexpectedly in richer nations. Advertisement Groundwater Supplies Became a Big Global Worry Thanks to several high-profile scientific assessments, the California drought, and growing public attention, unsustainable use of groundwater supplies became an international story. Satellite data showed that a majority of the world's largest aquifers are declining, and isotope dating revealed that a small fraction of the world's groundwater is being used in a renewable way. Coastal regions are battling to keep the ocean from seeping into freshwater aquifers that are used by cities and farms. In California's Central Valley, a farming powerhouse, some land is collapsing and a growing number of private and municipal wells are going dry as more groundwater is pumped and groundwater levels drop. The 2015 Vatican Encyclical, Laudato Si', on Water The official text of the Vatican's 2015 Encyclical Letter, Laudato Si' ("On Care for our Common Home") addressed many environmental challenges, including climate change, biodiversity, food, and the critical issue of freshwater. Woven throughout the Encyclical is attention to the social and equity dimensions of water, coupled with a deep concern for the poor. The water sections focus on the disparities in access, quality, and use of water between the wealthier, industrialized parts of the world and poorer populations. The Encyclical notes that the use of water is often exploitation of the resource, exceeding natural limits while still failing to satisfy the needs of the poorest (section 27). It also addresses the lack of access to clean drinking (section 28), the challenges for food production due to droughts, disparities in water availability and "water poverty" (section 28), the continued prevalence of water-related diseases afflicting the poor (section 29), contamination of groundwater (section 29), and the trend toward privatization and commodification of a resource the Vatican describes as an "basic and universal human right" (section 30). (Water jets from the surface of Saturn's moon, Enceladus. Photo: NASA Cassini Mission) Conflicts over Water Continued The long history of water-related conflicts continued in 2015. That history, chronicled and detailed at the Water Conflict Chronology, grew with several dozen more examples. By far the largest number of new cases occurred in the Middle East, where ongoing violence, civil war, and regional tensions put water in the cross hairs. There were numerous attacks on dams and other water infrastructure in the Tigris-Euphrates watershed. There was violence over access to water in Somalia and Nigeria, and attacks on water systems in Colombia and Ukraine. We anticipate the growing risks of violence over water access, attacks on water infrastructure, and both sub-national and international water tensions will continue to be a concern. Growing Links between Water and Energy Policy The realization that water and energy issues are often tightly linked has been dubbed the water-energy nexus. In 2015, these links drew the attention of policymakers and national leaders. China, facing serious water quality and availability challenges as well as energy and climate concerns, announced it would reduce water-wasting coal mining and the use of coal in electricity generation. India, too, is shifting to water-conserving wind and solar power. Mexico prohibited new groundwater supply permits for shale oil and gas development in the northern desert state of Coahuila. Researchers in California published major new studies on risks to surface and groundwater from oil and gas production and on risks and opportunities for agricultural users of wastewater. The state also shut down injection wells for dumping oilfield waste into groundwater. New evidence of the risks of earthquakes associated with oilfield reinjection of wastewater in Oklahoma also came to light and renewed debates about disposal policies. REPRINTED WITH PERMISSION REAL CLEAR DEFENSE Now Beijing wants to do for freedom of navigation in the South China Sea what it has long done for freedom of speech on mainland China: Suppress, deny, and obliterate it. Beijing's "closed sea" position as it harasses American warships and planes is this: The 1982 United Nations Law of the Sea Treaty established 200-mile Exclusive Economic Zones. Within these EEZs, Beijing insists that foreign shipping - both commercial and military - has restricted access. Never mind that the Law of the Sea Treaty conveys no such rights - it is very clear on this point. That hasn't stopped Beijing from using its growing military might to assert its bogus closed sea claims. However, if such a twisted definition of freedom of navigation were adopted, it would effectively close the Asia-Pacific to the US military and constrain two-thirds of global trade routes. Advertisement The question for this year's bumper crop of presidential candidates, of course, is this: Should America simply retreat back to Hawaii in the face of Beijing's pressure and in deference to a Rising China? Alternatively, should the US take all necessary steps to maintain freedom of navigation in the Asia-Pacific and thereby increasingly risk a "hot war" with its largest trading partner? The neo-isolationist case for retrenchment back to Hawaii is certainly seductive to a war-weary American public after failed campaigns in the Middle East and Afghanistan that have squandered billions of dollars and taken thousands of lives. So why expose this nation to unnecessary risk by sailing "freedom of navigation" patrols as America is now doing, thereby antagonizing a country that holds over two trillion dollars of US debt? In fact, I posed this question to experts I interviewed for the Crouching Tiger book and companion documentary film. Says Michael Auslin of the American Enterprise Institute on the slippery slope of unilateral withdrawal: In 1991-92, we pulled our troops out of the Philippines; and the Philippines were a central part of our Asian strategy. We had troops up in the Northeast in Japan, and we had troops in the Southeast in the Philippines. We had a very balanced strategy but we pulled our troops out. Did America's role in Asia come to an end? No. Did Asia go to war? No. Advertisement On the other hand, almost immediately we saw the Chinese begin to become much more assertive about their territory; and over the period of 20 years, [they] have moved to a position where they are de facto taking over islands that are disputed with other countries. So we simply have to ask, and maybe we don't know the answer: What's the red line? How far do you want to go before you say, you know what: things have changed. And that's a question we always face. We faced it in Europe in the 1930; we let a ton of territory go before one day we said, this is the red line. Maybe the same thing will happen in Asia. Will it be more difficult because of economic interdependence? Sure. But that's what we also said in 1914. We said the world can't to war. Europe can't go to war; it's too economically interdependent; and then we slaughtered ourselves for four years. And then we did it again twenty years later. On the economic risks of acceding to China's "closed seas" view of the Asia-Pacific, Princeton's Aaron Friedberg had this to say: Asia is increasingly the engine of world economic growth, and the United States has enormous economic interests and interests in maintaining its access for purposes of trade and investment. Asia is a major source of resources as well as markets. Increasingly, it's the center for the development of new technologies. If the United States were excluded from Asia and, in particular, if Asia were to be dominated by a country with hostile intentions or with interests that converge dramatically from our own, this would be damaging to our strategic interests as well. In this strategic dimension, the abiding fact here is that we are in an age of supersonic ballistic missiles; and nuclear warheads shot from the silos of China's Great Underground Wall or from the hills of North Korea can now reach Portland, Minneapolis, or Baltimore in minutes. As Michael Green of the Center for Strategic and International Studies reminds us: The Pacific Ocean is not a barrier to threats against us. North Korea is developing nuclear weapons, and they're developing ballistic missiles. Over the next decade, they want to put those nuclear weapons on ballistic missiles; and it's not to hit Europe. It's to hit the West Coast of the United States. To author Gordon Chang, "America's first line of defense is not Alaska and California but rather South Korea and Japan and Australia and Guam." These forward bases play important roles in an early warning matrix that helps the US missile defense system detect incoming threats. Advertisement News / Local by Melody Baya A TEACHER at Mpopoma High School in Bulawayo was yesterday remanded in custody after he appeared drunk before a magistrate court to answer to contempt of court charges.Nangisai Ngwenya, 34, of Nkulumane suburb, was dragged to court by his ex wife, Melody Tsanangura, 30, of Entumbane suburb for allegedly violating a protection order issued against him in 2014.The teacher was ordered not to visit his ex-wife's workplace or residence, but he went to the woman's house on January 16.Ngwenya appeared before Provincial Magistrate, Abednico Ndebele, facing contempt of court charges.He pleaded not guilty and was remanded in custody to tomorrow after the magistrate noticed that he was drunk."I'm going to remand you in custody to Friday when you would have regained your sober senses," said Ndebele.Ngwenya claimed that he had not violated the court order, but it was Tsanangura who had sought to reconcile with him.He did not say whether or not he had visited Tsanangura on January 16."She is the one who went to my family and asked for forgiveness after she dumped me and sought a protection order. That's when I moved back in with her in Entumbane in June 2015 up until December 25 when we began fighting again," said Ngwenya."I moved back with her thinking that she had reformed but it was not the case. She only wants me when I have money and when I'm broke she does not wish to see me."Prosecuting, Mufaro Mageza told the court that on January 16 at around 9PM, Ngwenya visited Tsanangura at her place of residence in breach of a protection order issued against him."The accused breached the term that states that he was supposed to stay away from complainant's place of residence and work place as ordered by the court," said Mageza. As we head towards another presidential election, it would be important for us not to lose sight of major decisions made by the Supreme Court in the last few years during the second Obama administration. And this is not the obvious thing that comes to mind during these highly energized times: namely with a new president comes the power to appoint Supreme Court justices. Politics and law strive to be inseparable when few believe that is ever possible despite what legal theorists and scholars say is a clear separation between legal reasoning and political rhetoric: the law has to maintain the artifice of self-reference, or referring to past precedents or 'tradition'; procedural, or accountable to devices, techniques, principles and rules specific to the legal world, for example stare decisis; and non-committal when it comes to the moral and political implications of a decision. For example upholding the Affordable Care Act that legalized universal healthcare in National Federation of Independent Business v. Sebilius did not indicate concern with the moral question of whether universal healthcare for all is a natural, God-given right. As a matter of fact the normally perceived conservative Chief Justice Roberts swung towards the liberals in a 5-4 vote that many could not predict. The legal judgement of the Court must transcend the whim and emotions of social debate on any given political topic and justify itself as constitutionally valid when interpreting current laws, overturning them or validating the creation of new laws. But as we head to a new election we can ask what exactly has the Supreme Court decided in the last few years with regard to the most important aspect of politics itself, namely voting rights? Who gets to vote is not a question one would think to ask in a peaceful, secular, legally stable constitutional democracy. Everybody gets to vote in America, right? These momentous SCOTUS decisions however throws the natural jubilation of America's democratic uniqueness into question. Yet the question remains: What groups have been affected the most by these massive judicial decisions given the changing demography of America? Advertisement Some may recall that President Obama won the 2012 election despite losing the white male vote by twenty points. Obviously the voting blocs of increasing majority minorities become significant when considering the political strategy of any serious candidate for President now and in the indefinite future. If Obama lost the majority of white male votes, then what did he gain in terms of minorities both male and female? He got the African-American vote by 93 to 6, the Hispanic vote 71 to 27, the Asian-American vote 73 to 26 and 'Other' 58 to 38. Blocs of minority votes do matter as do gendered identities across the board, as it is almost an a priori truth now when conceiving the possibility of winning the presidency. And yet we may look back on this time as the 'cunning of reason' to use the Hegelian phrase. Sometimes the passions that come to light in presidential politics conceal a deeper movement within the law whose consequences are not always of benefit to the larger social good. Two major Supreme Court decisions, which can never get as much natural attention as a presidential election, play out this tension of the progress and regress of civil rights, particularly for African-Americans. And they do so precisely at a time when it recognized as an indubitable demographic truth in contemporary American politics that the minority vote not only counts but is paramount. Some say that the 2013 SCOTUS decision in Shelby County v. Holder basically disemboweled a major section of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. States in the past with an egregious tradition of discriminatory practices and structures in their voting systems are no longer required to pass the Federal 'preclearance' threshold when revising their voting rules. Establishing voter ID laws would be an example that states can advance now as new voting restrictions as would the ceasing of same day registration. In Shelby, Chief Justice Roberts said, now famously, 'our country has changed.' And states cannot be treated unequally: they cannot be held to disproportionately different standards in terms of their right to expand their basic liberties to determine their own jurisdictional boundaries when it comes to establishing voting restrictions. Liberal critics of this decision say that this gives GOP legislative majorities in these states with 'sordid' pasts, predominantly from the South, the unrestrained freedom to reconfigure their voting rules to the possible detriment of certain minority groups, most notably African-Americans. The argument that the data about American demography from the 1960s do not apply to the present may seem objectively true on face value. However, the critics argue that objective representation of numbers of voters tells us very little about structural and institutional forms and patterns of racism and discrimination. In other words, perhaps, the Court was naive in its ascertaining of the historical present in determining the superfluous nature of federal oversight of states historically entrenched in racist institutions, structures and the very social fabric of the nation itself. Hence the past can come back in full force. Some instances of changes to the voting rules is the movement of sites that had high voter turn-out for poorer black communities to locations where public transit access is limited. Structural - and not just socio-economic - marginalization in the past can be reinvented in the present. Advertisement There are compelling arguments by critics of Shelby County v. Holder. However, by contrast to the majority opinion in Shelby, the Court offered a more favorable liberal ruling in its 2015 decision against racial gerrymandering, or redistricting to concentrate black voters in an already black majority in some sections of the Southern state of Alabama. In ALABAMA LEGISLATIVE BLACK CAUCUS ET AL. v. ALABAMA ET AL. the Court ruled in disagreement with the Alabama District Court's error-ridden assumption: the latter argued that race was not used inappropriately in attempts to redistrict voting sections to the advantage of one racial group (whites) over another or the disadvantage of one group (blacks) in relation to another. Instead, the Supreme Court argued in its majority opinion that Alabama's legislature attempted to redistrict black voters into single majority districts, thus denying them distributed electoral power. Furthermore, the District Court erred in its upholding of this racial gerrymandering by not looking at district-by-district changes, but state-wide changes to the redistricting plan. Placing blacks in to already black majority districts denies their influence within white majority districts pure and simple, particularly under the false pretense of creating more evenly balanced majority-minority lines. In rebutting the majority opinion, the conservative dissent epitomized by Justice Thomas restated the color blind necessity of the constitution. Indeed districts cannot benefit a certain racial group based on color in order to promote individuals of a single race to vote as a bloc representing group interests. In a deeper dig into the majority opinion, Justice Thomas pointed the finger at the real 'culprit' of racial segregation, which was not the Alabama legislature's redistricting plan but the Court itself. Most notably, Justice Thomas points to subterranean jurisprudential assumptions on voting rights and the 2006 amendments to section 5 of the 1965 Voting Rights Act enforced by the DOJ: the purpose of these ill-thought changes, according to the conservative justice, is to give minorities a chance to elect candidates of their own preference. But, for Justice Thomas, this flies in the face of creating free and equal citizens who should be untainted of racial consideration and bias. Furthermore, as he argued in previous concurring judgements joining Justice Scalia in majority opinions against affirmative action, no single individual of a racial group should be forced to speak for or on behalf of a group's interests or be expected to personify all the interests of an entire racial group. This would be a disaster for the concept of individual freedom. In light of these two major decisions during the second administration of the Obama presidency, it would behoove us to think about how we are to strike a balance between these not so obvious parallel trajectories: one is the obvious change in political demography in which a past majority bloc of individual voting power (the white male) no longer holds sway and the other the oscillations of the Supreme Court in its attempts to deal with the legacy of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 to avoid racial discrimination. Such discrimination in voting can take place at the hands of bad legislation, i.e. purposeful redistricting through the invalid use of race as a category, or faulty legal judgement in attempting to create balanced majority-minority state-wide lines that inadvertently results in greater disenfranchisement of a minority group. But it also persists in the false notion that our times are different and that institutional and structural racism are definitive things of the past. Voting for future U.S. presidents may very well be determined by how well we as a nation can strike this delicate but necessary balance between politics and law: that is to ensure freedom and equal opportunity for everyone's interests to be represented in their choice of leadership without being forced to represent those interests as legally constructed groups but as truly free and self-determining individual citizens. Each year during the month of February, we celebrate Black History Month to recognize the many extraordinary accomplishments and sacrifices that African-Americans have made for our nation. I proudly joined Congresswoman Joyce Beatty as an original cosponsor to a resolution which supports the principles of Black History Month and honors the outstanding contributions of African American service members, including the 88 African American Medal of Honor recipients. I am privileged to represent a congressional district that has been historically recognized as the epicenter of Black culture and politics. Our legendary neighborhood gave birth to the Harlem Renaissance, which has forever transformed the American fabric. We are fortunate to have dedicated people and organizations promoting our legacy. I still live on Lenox Avenue, just a few blocks away from my childhood home in Harlem. While I have not moved far, our country has. We have come a long way since 1965, when I marched with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from Selma to Montgomery. Today African-Americans occupy prominent positions in all walks of life, including the highest office in the land, giving kids in my neighborhood and all across the nation hope and inspiration. Advertisement Yet there are many challenges that African-Americans continue to face. Issues such as disparities in health and education, income inequality, high unemployment, voter disenfranchisement, mass incarceration, and persistent poverty continue to plague the community. Racism still exists. Even though our nation has made tremendous strides towards equality and fairness, our journey is far from over. Black History Month provides us with more than just a source of pride, but a reminder to reflect upon the leaders of the past and act upon the mission that lies ahead. While our country has made leaps and bounds, we must work harder to ensure Black lives do matter. Black history is American history, and Black progress is American progress. Watch a video of my interns asking me to say the first thing on my mind when given ten words related to black history: President Obama never wanted an endless war in Afghanistan, but that is exactly what America is currently facing. Just last week, the Washington Post reported that "Top U.S. military commanders... are now quietly talking about an American commitment that could keep thousands of troops in the country for decades." President Obama previously promised to have American troops out of Afghanistan by the time he left office, but last October he announced that the U.S. will keep close to 10,000 troops in Afghanistan through most of 2016 and retain 5,500 soldiers there by the time he leaves office. Now, keeping substantial numbers of U.S. troops in Afghanistan indefinitely is on the table. After decades of war, the United States learned the hard way that we could exit Vietnam and be stronger for it. A perpetual war in Indochina ended when we were chased out, with helicopters rescuing Americans from rooftops. Today in Afghanistan, we are at a crossroads similar to the one we faced in Vietnam. We must remember the lessons we learned and stop Afghanistan from becoming another endless war. In Afghanistan, there is no clear end game and no clear formula for success. This is the longest war in our country's history and another five or 10 or 25 years are not likely to bring about democracy, a stable government or a definitive end to the Taliban's threat to Kabul. The simple truth is that there is no military solution to the crisis in Afghanistan, only a political solution. And only the Afghan people themselves can determine the fate of their future. Simply perpetuating our military presence there is not the answer and more must be done to support the latest round of proposed peace talks with the Taliban to lay the foundation for lasting regional stability. We must embrace a smart, forward-thinking approach and work with our military leaders to create a clear plan to finally bring our troops home. U.S. forces are currently deployed in an astounding 147 countries across the world. Stretching our military so thin is not the right way forward. Looking at the world today, we know that we face real threats, but we also know that smart and strong American leadership starts with a clear-eyed approach that recognizes that another endless war is not the way to keep our country safe and strengthen global security. We have seen the power of American diplomacy with the leadership of President Obama and Secretary Kerry in securing a historic deal with Iran to prevent them from obtaining a nuclear weapon and avoid an unnecessary war. This was a major victory for global stability and a powerful example of why war must not be our first instinct. It's time to face the fact that the U.S. mission in Afghanistan has changed significantly since 2001 when Congress passed the authorization for the use of military force there. We simply cannot continue on the current path. To prevent this from becoming another endless war, Congress must work with President Obama to create a plan that supports regional stability and includes the clear exit strategy we have been waiting for. Congress should insist on clarity in our Afghanistan policy. If this or any future administration wants to expand our military footprint there, then Congress must debate and vote to approve or disapprove such action. President Obama promised the American people that he would bring our troops home from Afghanistan. It's time to fulfill that promise. Our troops and their families deserve nothing less. Jim McGovern is a U.S. Representative from Massachusetts and John Isaacs is the Executive Director of Council for a Livable World. Empathy is a profound religious virtue. It is the effort we make to try to see the world from another person's perspective. Sometimes empathy could use a little boost. Suppose, when it comes to racism, that I as a white person had some glasses that would help me see the world, and be seen, as an African American. Would that help build empathy and the compassionate conviction to make change? Advertisement Let's see. I mean, let's really see. Chicago Theological Seminary has made a video, seen above, to show what happens when you put on your #WhitePrivilegeGlasses and are able to see what happens when you are not white. Oh, no, you may say. I'm past all that. I don't even see race. That is a common reaction among White Americans when the subject of White Privilege comes up. Maybe you don't see race, but one clear message of the CTS campaign is, "Race sees you." Who I am as a white person occupies every social, political, economic, religious and personal space I occupy. And trust me, whether I want it or not, my whiteness takes up a lot of space. So? I didn't ask for that, thank you very much. It doesn't matter. You can't resign from white privilege. It is in the very warp and woof of the fabric of American society, and has been for centuries. Dr. Cheryl Townsend Gilkes the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Professor of Sociology and African-American Studies at Colby College, once gave a lecture to a class we team-taught at Chicago Theological Seminary. She drew a line on the board. "That," she said, "is the European-African axis." Then she put European above the line, and African below it. Cheryl documented over and over through examples from law, custom, religion, economics, and politics that the European-African axis is the basic structure of American society. Advertisement Now, as people of other races and cultures immigrate to the U.S., they are often shocked to find they are assigned a place above or below that line. In fact, a Muslim philosopher friend of mine pointed out to me that after 9/11, many Muslim professionals were shocked to find out they weren't white. As skilled professionals who had immigrated to the United States in a very different climate, they had mostly not experienced the kind of wholesale prejudice against Muslims that began immediately after 9/11 and is still going on today. These and other issues of how #WhitePrivilege works in and through American society are included in a CTS discussion guide. In this guide, we can see how #WhitePrivilege separates and arranges us all in a hierarchy that is systematically hidden from whites and all too visible to African Americans who suffer from it every day. This is an interview with Jennifer Wright, who offers Mindful Yoga Therapy (MYT) training to Veterans and their families. She started with eight Veterans, ranging from OEF/OIF to Vietnam War Vets. One of those Vets introduced her to The Joseph House, a treatment-based shelter for Veterans in transition where she has worked the last two years. Around the same time, she received an invitation from the much-loved local judge to work with the Veterans of the Hamilton County Municipal-Veterans Treatment Court. She offers the MYT practices in the courtroom, prior to the docket. Attendance is now mandatory, and is considered one of the three self-help meetings required each week. Since then, Interact for Health expanded the program through grant funds to capture data that supports the benefits of MYT when combined with behavioral treatment. MYT in Cincinnati has evolved to a mandatory complementary alternative medicine (CAM) intervention in both the Men's and Women's residential treatment programs at Veterans Administration Medical Center. Rob: What originally motivated you to do this work and what continues to motivate you? How, if at all, has that motivation changed over time? Advertisement Jennifer: My sister-in-law and both of my brothers are Marines. I'm motivated to support the people that committed to our country and constitution; yet I have Jennie, Mark, Mike, other family members and friends in my heart as I interact with active duty and Veterans of all ages. My yoga journey started long ago, when I started practicing in a post-9/11 environment while living in the DC area. I share the practices that helped and continue to help me process and manage my own stress. My 12-year DOD career was spent working at DARPA, the science arm for the Pentagon; and also at military laboratories. I have my own experience, and although never active duty, I can relate to transitioning out of a lifestyle (not just a career) and redefining the self: figuring out what is next. I worked Human Performance Optimization programs for a long time, and I still do. I do so now using a trauma-informed protocol that is designed to enable the individual to practice coping skills and complement the hard work of treatment, transition & recovery. I still take my job very seriously - just now I wear comfier clothes and the work is more immediate and directly impactful! Is there a standout moment from your work with the veteran population? There are several notable moments, and a few stand out to me for their beautiful simplicity. One of the men I worked with ended up at VA hospital where he had all day to monitor his BP and HR. He put his yoga practice to the test and had the added benefit of immediate feedback through the physiological monitoring. He used his breath practices to impact his outcome - to manage his pain, anxiety and anger during the whole process. He shared how he had a chance to discuss his coping skills with the medical staff. As he shared his real-world experience, I felt privileged to observe a proud and empowered man. Another Veteran was pretty banged up. Some of his injuries were visible, although mostly not. The first session, he arrived to class with a stern face and dark glasses to protect his sensitive eyes from any light. He is a tall and solid man. Due to multiple traumas, sitting, standing and moving with comfort was rarely accessible to him on any given day. Although he had difficulty getting to the ground, he was determined to relax on the floor during the resting practices along with everyone else and he wanted to get there with minimal assistance. Communication was challenged so I used an analogy to land like a C-130 rather than a Harrier. Grace and safety was communicated; I was able to assist him to the ground. Once settled in with yoga props, he would give a big thumbs up and release a big smile or sigh. It was especially amazing to watch him over the eight weeks throughout the hard work with his speech therapist, clinical psychologists and of course, MYT. He would arrive to MYT with a grin, his arms spread out and make the noise of a large, cargo plane - ready to land and to relax. Advertisement What did you know about veterans you are working with before you began teaching? What were some of the assumptions you had about this population and how have those assumptions changed? I went into working with Veterans feeling comfortable and in my element. Now, working Mindful Yoga Therapy with such a wide range of individuals reinforced how hard-headed some people can be...after all, people are people. Working with and witnessing people work their MYT program along side their recovery, therapy, or behavioral treatment has reinforced my understanding of humans, and especially military members as supremely resilient. I went in thinking that damage to the brain was permanent. My VA mentors, colleagues, education and new discoveries prove otherwise. What is unique about the Mindful Yoga Therapy for Veterans program as applied to Veterans Court? After getting over the initial chuckle of yoga mats in the courtroom, Hamilton County Vet Court is a unique and interactive environment. It starts with the motivating and compassionate judge, coupled with the well trained, kindhearted VA Veterans Justice Outreach, Court Clinic, Prosecutors and Public Defenders. Combine that with fun and relatable peer mentors, it is unlike anything I've experienced or seen in a traditional courtroom. Hamilton County Vet Court is treatment-based, and creates a comfortable and safe environment where supports (employment, transportation, wellness activities and others) are the foundation to sobriety and treatment. Advertisement We hold MYT prior to the docket. Feedback suggests that the pre-docket practice brings calm to the individuals and reduces anxiety. I observe it, and I receive the feedback that we create a visibly calmer courtroom. What has been the greatest challenge in your teaching experience and what tools have you developed for addressing that challenge? To me, the greatest challenge is working with men and women carrying sexual trauma. I lean on the advanced MYT trauma-informed protocol, my training and my experience. Trauma is held in the nervous system, and survival is sometimes rooted in living outside of the self. Since yoga is an invitation back into the body through self-awareness and self-acceptance, it is crucial to create a safe environment with the use of supportive language, postures and practices. It is my observation that some people are not ready to come back into the body. The reminder to me is to stay positive and to be a ray of light for if and when the individual is ready. The more effective way is to invite the individual to show up and breathe, as the breath is the foundation for everything that we do. In MYT we offer many variations and a goal is to empower people to work to his or her appropriate level. What advice would you give to anyone who is going to teach in the population you work with? Trauma is trauma, and whether it is combat or non-combat related, a trauma-informed approach is necessary; and when implemented correctly, it works. Advertisement If there is interest in working with Veterans, especially in a clinical setting, embrace the beginner;s mind, empty your cup and get smart by training-up on a trauma-informed protocol like MYT. Stay healthy personally by staying grounded and use other self-care techniques to not take on "stuff." Work your own practice! What are some of your ideas about or hopes for the future of "service yoga" in America in the next decade? There is a real need to support more Veterans and their families. Offering MYT practices (breath work, meditation, yoga postures, Yoga Nidra and gratitude) to active duty service members supports the research that shows how people armed with resiliency skills can experience and process trauma with self-soothing techniques and thus decrease the conversion to chronic stress and/or re-experiencing. I am committed to continuing the MYT protocol in the clinical setting so that we can better understand the positive outcomes, especially when implemented in conjunction with Cognitive Processing Therapy. With the support of the Interact for Health grant funds, we are gaining traction towards the recognition as an evidenced-based intervention. It is my hope that we are moving towards full adoption within the DOD and VA. War is not black and white. As the military and its agents return from war, there is a lot of "gray" to process. We owe it to the men and women to provide a whole range of skills to aid in the transition. Advertisement Editor: Alice Trembour Photo: Headshot courtesy of Paul Dirk Photography Stay connected with Give Back Yoga Foundation as we share the gift of yoga with the world, one person at a time, by following us on Facebook and Twitter, and by subscribing to our newsletter. We need to start engaging our business leaders and governments more in women's initiatives to lobby more investment into women. Young women need to stand up and fight for the economic emancipation of women and young girls, because the men will not do it for us, although men need to be involved in the conversations around women's issues. And women in high authority need to also help combat these issues. Taking real action In 2013, I founded a program called Born to Succeed to fill a gap in society by trying to curb the steep female youth unemployment rate in South Africa by increasing skills. Born to Succeed identifies ladies from the townships of Gauteng who have passed grade 12 but are unemployed. The program imparts soft skills, such as CV writing, interview strategies, personal image, and communications skills to assist them in finding jobs. It also provides entrepreneurial skills like writing a business plan, financial literacy, and funding a business, to inspire the ladies to start a business. Additionally, Siyathuthuka, a partner of Born to Succeed, provides computer end-user training and/or programming skills. The ladies are also assigned a mentor from my company's Women's Forum for 12 months, who helps them set goals and seek employment. We also educate the ladies on what to do in the workplace during an internship in order to increase their chances of being retained as a permanent staff member. Advertisement Born to Succeed has also partnered with companies that commit to providing 1-5 internship positions from their business. Where required, Born to Succeed sources second-hand laptops that ladies can use on the job. After completion of Born to Succeed program, participants are placed at these companies or in other places of employment. In 2013, we mentored 66 ladies from disadvantaged backgrounds, giving them access to corporate South African women and business leaders. The ladies who participated achieved 94% employment within a year after the program in areas such as hospitality, administration, arts and supply chain. One of the ladies built a similar program to Born to Succeed at her hometown church, and at least two successful small businesses have stemmed from Born to Succeed. In 2014, we had 35 participants of whom two have already claimed employment positions. The group graduated in August 2015, and we're eager to see the success of the group in the year following their graduation. In 2015, we recruited 50 ladies for the program, who will graduate in August 2016. I am so excited to be doing this project, because I have walked the journey with many of the ladies and have seen lives being transformed through my efforts. It makes me so happy to see a better South Africa. Advertisement Making hard choices The minimum requirement for Born to Succeed Ladies is to have passed grade 12 and be living in Gauteng. I sometimes receive requests to join the program from ladies who have not passed Grade 12 and from ladies living in other provinces. I redirect them to other appropriate non-governmental organizations (NGOs). For the first time this year, we funded a day trip for ladies from Eastern Cape, KwaZulu Natal and Free-State to attend the Born to Succeed Conference 2015 in Johannesburg. The aim is for the participant to execute a small workshop or simply share with friends and family in their hometown the lessons learned from the conference. Today, after receiving so many requests I cannot appease, I keep an inventory of different avenues people can reach out to given their current circumstance and the help they require. Effectively, I have had to learn that you cannot help everyone. When running an organization, one needs to remain focused and stick to the mandate, because too much dabbling can jeopardize the success of the organization or program at hand. My secret to funding The very first Born to Succeed in 2013 was funded by family and friends. It was a lot of work trying to chase after lots of people for their donations, but it was all worth it. I believe that all the hard work has paid off. The donation amounts from friends and family have grown, and corporations now have a track record to refer to when I approach them for funding. Today, Born to Succeed is not only funded by personal donors but also major corporations. This success has shown me that there is wisdom in starting small and persevering. If I had not started any of my initiatives three years ago because I didn't have funding, it would have been detrimental for all the people I have helped today. Lack of funding should never be a reason not to start something, especially something for a social benefit. Advertisement Accepting all kinds of help I have learned that not everyone is as passionate about education as I am. Therefore, I should never expect the same amount of effort I put in from the next person. I need to appreciate that little bit of effort and either improve the deliverable myself or hand over to another person I know can achieve the desired outcome. People have learned that Davos is more than a Swiss resort, it's where the World Economic Forum (@WEF) hosts an annual conference of world leaders. The 2016 agenda, "The Fourth Industrial Revolution," included, well, just about everything that's important in the world: The future of health, the future of work, the future of change. Leadership: what it takes and who can do it. Inequality--of gender, race, education, income. Food availability, security, and waste. Terrorism. Opportunities and risks posed by rapid developments in technology and science. The societal consequences of climate change. Ideas, ideas, and more ideas. We heard from several inspiring business leaders, and here are our top takeaways. Hope you'll chime in with yours. Advertisement 1. Employees Need to Step Up "Everything is in question. So how can you get your TEAM thinking about this. The biggest limiting factor today is not the technology, it's the humans in an organization, who are not used to questioning." Klaus Kleinfeld, CEO, Alcoa "Every major CEO today is very conscious of the role of technology and how it is creating a new platform of opportunity. Well-run companies anticipate this: they train their people, recruit their people, and have their culture reflect change. Some cultures are change-oriented, and some are not. That is the big variable here. Perfect example: You look at CEO Jeff Immelt, moving GE to Boston. It's because of the culture of Boston, the talent he'll get in Boston. People want to live and work in Boston, and GE will be able to attract those people into its workforce." John Studzinski, Vice Chairman, the Blackstone Group on CNBC at Davos. 2. Diversity Rules: we heard a few memorable comments on gender equality and social injustice among attendees of the conference itself. Mark Barry, Director of Sustainable Business, Marks & Spencer described "the great Achilles heel of Davos: its aged, white, male, Anglo-Saxon membership... Until that changes, it will starve itself of the broad talent, skills and knowledge that's needed to lead a complex world. So challenge Davos for the morality of its monochrome invite list, but also more pragmatically for how this will limit economic growth and prosperity in the future, too." 3. Stop spending money on things that don't work--but don't stop spending money! "Businesses are discovering that the costs of not doing things are becoming higher than doing things," as Unilever CEO Paul Polman said. "At Walmart, we are very familiar with skepticism. It's got to a point where we just ignore it. Doing the right thing is good for business. Where the population is not like-minded it doesn't matter. The decisions behind the scenes improve the products we're making." Doug McMillon, President & CEO, Walmart Advertisement 5. Think Big. As he traveled home, Salesforce Founder/CEO Marc Benioff tweeted, intriguingly: Asking myself after @Davos: Are there 10 things we can each do to incrementally transform inequality to equality? And if so, what are they? @Benioff 6. Fall in Love with the Problem You're in Business to Solve Four thousand miles from Davos, another CEO offered an answer as she addressed a Harvard Business School audience: "Be sure you are in love with the problem the business seeks to address. Not the product, not the service, but the problem you are solving. In the case of WeSpire,it's the problem of how do we use tech to inspire people to take positive action. How do you use technology to change behavior, and life, for the better." Countrywide Turkish Delights Turkey's number one treat may be lokum the sugar gel candy flavored with rosewater, orange, cinnamon, or lemon -- popularly called "Turkish Delight," but the nation stretching from the Aegean to the Black sea encompasses beaches, mountains, rolling plains, endless archaeological sites, an historic blend of East and West, and is a trove of rich and varied travel destinations. For travelers understanding the risks inherent in the region and avoiding southern and eastern borders near Iran and Syria, the country the size of Texas offers a wealth of places to explore . Here are some highlights of a visit to the land with a legacy of Hittite, Phrygian, Roman, Christian, Byzantine, Ottoman influences. Istanbul's Ataturk Bridge connects Europe and Asia ISTANBUL The quintessential introduction to the country is historic Istanbul straddling the Bosporus and combining the best of East and Western cultures. Still magnificent is Haghia Sofia (ayasofyamuzesi.gov.tr/en), its sanctuary the largest enclosed space in the world for nearly a thousand years after it was constructed by Justinian in the 7th century. In lush rooms among divans and filigree, Topkapi Palace exhibits the mammoth 96 carat Spoonmaker's diamond and the famous Topkapi dagger set with a triad of giant emeralds. Fishermen and seafood restaurants line the Galata Bridge which crosses the Golden Horn. In the Spice and Grand bazaars shoppers can haggle with peddlers over pashminas, peppers, gold bracelets, point-toe slippers. View of Haghia Sofia The Topkapi Dagger Galata Bridge fishermen INTERCONTINENTAL WATERWAYS Two interconnected waterways separate the continents of Europe and Asia. The narrow passage of the Dardanelles leads from the Aegean to the inland Marmara sea, a passage so strategic that thousands of lives were lost defending it at Gallipoli during World War I. Lined with mansions and palaces the Bosphorus joins the Marmara and Black Seas, dividing the "intercontinental" city Istanbul. Crossing the Dardanelles Advertisement A Gallipoli Graveyard RUINS The remains of extensive Roman metropolises and more Greek ruins than are found in Greece, provide marvelous insight into the prosperous civilizations which have flourished in the region through history. A reproduced model of the Trojan Horse leads to the nine-layer ruins of Troy. Marble boulevards lined with towering columns and statues remain from the ancient city of Ephesus, once home to over 250,000 residents. Walls of ancient Troy Replica Trojan Horse Ruins at Pergamum Ephesus Boulevard The Library at Ephesus The Ephesus Theater seated 25,000 CAVE TOWNS AND UNDERGROUND CITIES Cappadocia's limestone rock has been carved into dwellings, some in underground caverns complete with wine presses, pantries, chapels. Over 22 sites have been discovered so far, some up to 18 levels below the surface. Created by Christians as hiding places from Roman invaders, many have rooms that can be sealed by giant round rocks which were literally carved on site to hollow the room space. Among those open to the public, Derinkuyu and Kaymakli are most extensive. Cave Homes Underground Chamber Room in Esbelli Evi cave hotel UNIQUE TOPOGRAPHY "Fairy chimneys" is the term locals have given to the unusual rock formations prevalent in Cappadocia. Created when erosion wears away the soft basalt rock leaving a cap on top of the column. Mineral rich thermal springs near Pamukkale create the sparkling white travertine cliff face called the Cotton Castle where tourists can remove their shoes and soak or walk gingerly across the calcite surface. Some of the waters are channeled into hotel swimming pools where guests can swim and steam in therapeutic water naturally heated to bath tub temperatures. Fairy chimneys? The Crystal (or Cotton?) Castle Cliff Soaking in the Hot Spring Doga Thermal Health & Spa Natural Hot Spring Pool ROADSIDE "TRUCK STOPS" Stops for gas (priced about the same as in the USA) are attractive with local cafeteria style buffets serving yogurt soup, stuffed eggplant. and beef and lamb stew.. Every stop has its own array of souvenirs -- different items in different locales -- from key chains and note cards to whirling dervish bells and hand knit mittens, pashminas -- earrings and bookmarks, pottery and wooden stools, bins of fresh nuts, chunks of honeycomb, wide selections of candies -- Turkish delight, chocolate covered chestnut and pistachio, rose and strawberry jellies and of course the ubiquitous Turkish Delight. Many items cost less than a lira or two -- 33-66 cents -- so it's tempting to empty your pocketbook when filling up the car. Expressway Truck Stop Advertisement Truck Stop Souvenirs Truck Stop Cafeteria Truck Stop Shoppers ATATURK - Although a contemporary of Hitler, Mussolini, and Stalin -- Mustafa Kemal Ataturk was a benevolent dictator who fastidiously led his country to modernization and emergence as a republic. After a distinguished military career during World War I and the subsequent Turkish War of Independence, he led Turkey into the modern world, embracing women's rights, the Phoenician alphabet, land reform. Still beloved as the George Washington of his country (his adopted name Ataturk means Father of the Turks and it's forbidden for anyone else to use it), photos of him are found in almost every home, school room, office, and available public space. At 9:05 am November 10th, the entire nation pauses to commemorate the anniversary of his 1938 death in a moment of silence. Anit Kabir Ataturk Monument Ataturk Facsimile in Museum Ataturk Poster at Bus Stop CRAFTS Leather, ceramic, and carpet handicrafts are big popular local handicrafts. Elaborate showrooms present fashion shows of silky leather garments, demonstrations of silk spinning and carpet weaving, workshops on preparing and spinning local clay which is hand painted into intricate intricate ceramic designs. Turkey Leather Fashions Weaving Carpets Potter at Work Storefront Artist BEVERAGES Grapes thrive in the fertile volcanic soil and cool mountain climate, and wine has been made here for thousands of years. Efes is the "hoppy" local beer. Fresh pressed orange and pomegranate juices are served at street side stands. Thick Turkish coffee is an acquired taste, over a century ago even Mark Twain deplored its "muddy sediment". Local soft drinks can be flavored with poppy, rose, and tamarind. Turkish Wines Poppy Soda FOOD The lush Mediterranean climate produces lettuces, tomatoes, carrots, cucumbers. onions, oranges, apricots, pears Olives are a staple, in every incarnation -- red, green, black, stuffed, olive oil --served incongruously at breakfast along with selections of herbed, stringy, and salty cheeses. Fruit Stand Fresh Vegetables Cheese Selection Fish Shop Spice Stand Olive Oils A documentary is taking a new twist on climate change: THE AGE OF CONSEQUENCES, to be released in late 2016, investigates the impacts of climate change, resource scarcity, migration, and conflict through the lens of US national security and global stability. Through unflinching and eye-opening analysis, distinguished admirals, generals, and Pentagon insiders take us beyond the headlines of the European refugee crisis, the conflict in Syria, the social unrest of the Arab Spring, the rise of radicalized groups like ISIS, and lay bare how climate change interacts with societal tensions, sparking conflict. Whether a long-term vulnerability or sudden shock, the film unpacks how water and food shortages, extreme weather, drought, and sea-level rise function as accelerants of instability and catalysts for conflict. Left unchecked, these threats and risks will continue to grow in scale and frequency, with grave implications for peace and security in the 21st century. The production company, PF Pictures, has a rich history of collaborating with organizations to use film as a tool for social change and building synergy with strategic partners that rally their members around the film's message. The goal is to premiere the film at a top tier festival between April and November of 2016. Advertisement As Senator Bernie Sanders and Secretary Hillary Clinton argue about who is a progressive, it illustrates that the American political class really doesn't understand the term. A progressive is defined by incremental change toward liberal ideas whether they be fiscal or social reform. By that definition, both Sanders and Clinton fit the definition. But those who are schooled in politics know that the difference between Clinton and Sanders is really the difference between a progressive and a radical. A radical is someone who believes in fundamental fiscal and social reform that radically changes the current system and is often unwilling to compromise on those values. That describes Bernie Sanders. The argument is not about who is progressive but really about using political terms correctly. Sanders is a radical and Clinton is a progressive. Sanders is a radical because he wants to upend our political system to move as close to Nordic socialism as possible. Clinton stresses her record of incremental accomplishment toward a similar set of liberal ideas, that is being a progressive. If you believe that Sanders is going to be able to radically change the political system in America, then you should vote for him. If you believe that Clinton is going to be able to move the country further toward the liberal ideas that President Obama has advanced, you should vote for Hillary Clinton. Advertisement I understand the youth vote going for Sanders. I had a youthful indiscretion myself when I voted for the independent presidential candidate Congressman John Anderson in 1980. Anderson had no chance of winning but I was disillusioned with President Carter and could not fathom voting for Ronald Reagan. In the end Reagan prevailed and I regretted wasting my vote on Anderson. News / Local by Staff reporter Prominent Gwanda Residents Association Chairman Bekezela Maduma Fuzwayo previously with the Welshman Ncube led MDC is reported to be among officials who were summoned to Harare to drum up support for former vice president Joice Mujuru in Matabeleland South ahead of polls to be held in two years' time. Fuzwayo appears in a group picture taken at the Harare meeting.Although Fuzwayo has not confirmed joining-PF, sources indicate he was among officials summoned to Harare to drum up support for Mujuru in Matabeleland South ahead of polls to be held in two years' time.Fuzwayo's recent Facebook post also suggests that he could be on his way to the Mujuru camp."For the record, Madam Mujuru narrated the motivation and direction of the proposed new dispensation she would like us to follow."We raised all our issues as a region from the Gukurahundi era through the years of marginalisation, suspected election rigging right up to our cry for the devolution of power and principled democratic leadership," wrote Fuzwayo on his Facebook wall.He added: "An issue I wish we could realise as a region is that Mujuru's project has attracted a lot of buy in from our people on the ground."Our people want 2018 to be the definite time that Zanu-PF goes and for whatever reason we may want to know they believe that Mujuru is finally that person they have been waiting for to topple Zanu-PF." The January 2016 release of "Turning the Tide," a report shepherded by the Harvard Graduate School of Education and representing the input of colleges nationwide, was an important step forward in articulating the excesses, and stark inadequacies, of the college admissions process. Intended to de-stress student applicants, the report's recommendations address such things as standardized-test scores, which many colleges already treat as optional; advanced placement courses, which not every school offers; and a quality over quantity approach to extracurricular activity and service. All of that can't come a moment too soon. A survey by the Palo Alto Medical Foundation identified school, including concerns about college, as a key adolescent stressor. In addition, the 2013 survey of stress by the American Psychological Association revealed that teens are experiencing levels of stress on par with, and in some cases exceeding, that of adults. During the school year, young people say that their stress levels exceed what they think is healthy. The report also highlights feelings of being overwhelmed, sad, depressed and tired. As Sargunjot Kaur, a high school student writer, explains, "It's like a pressure cooker in here! No doubt, school is tough. For some, it's the worry of being able to get enough credits to graduate high school, while for others it's being able to get a 4.0 GPA and get into Stanford. No matter what our goals are, we all struggle with a tremendous amount of stress and pressure." Advertisement Is it any wonder that many students show up at college already being treated for mood disorders? Indeed, 86 percent of college counseling center directors note a steady increase in the number of arriving students on psychiatric medication, according to a 2014 report from the National Survey of College Counseling Centers. The same report states that 94 percent of counseling directors say they've seen an increase of students with severe psychological disturbances, including anxiety disorders, clinical depression and self-injury issues. To grasp the size of the problem, consider a new report from Penn State University that quantifies the almost crippling demand for mental health services on college campuses. Discussing the report, Tyler Kingkade, senior editor and reporter for the Huffington Post, states, "Data collected at 139 college and university counseling centers, from 2009-2010 through 2014-2015, reflects 'slow but consistent' growth in students reporting depression, anxiety and social anxiety. And 20 percent of students seeking mental health treatment, the report found, are taking up about half of all campus counseling center appointments." New York Times Op-Ed columnist Frank Bruni, commenting on the Harvard-led report in his piece "Rethinking College Admissions," says, "They're realizing that many kids admitted to top schools are emotional wrecks or slavish adherents to soulless scripts that forbid the exploration of genuine passions. And they're acknowledging the extent to which the admissions process has contributed to this." Could it be that the transition to college may be especially difficult for those who have simply been swept out in a riptide of societal - and perhaps parental - expectations, devoid of meaningful opportunities to identify and sample such passions? Advertisement Marie Schwartz, founder and CEO of TeenLife Media, recently told the Boston Globe, "Research shows that today's students are not emotionally prepared for college and life in general. They spend too much time in front of screens and aren't developing the skills that employers want. The point is getting kids out of their comfort zone when they're teenagers, so it's not such a shock later on. The upside is they can find something they had never thought about, and the experience could change their life." TeenLife Media provides the Web's most comprehensive directory of STEM, gap year, pre-college, overnight summer and community-service programs for students in grades 7-12. As Schwartz suggests, some of those experiences could be service oriented. That is the primary goal of The Aspen Institute's Franklin Project, which envisions a time when a year of service becomes a cultural expectation for all young Americans. The Franklin Project states, "We're focused on promoting a year of service as a civic rite of passage because it will connect individuals to something bigger than themselves and to the idea that citizenship requires more from each of us than is currently expected. A generation of Americans spending a year in full-time service will unleash a reservoir of human capital to tackle pressing social challenges, unite diverse Americans in common purpose, and cultivate the next generation of leaders." In his article "How America Can Get Its Mojo Back," Ron Fournier, senior political columnist and editorial director at the National Journal, quotes former Marine and current Massachusetts Congressman Seth Moulton as saying, "A lot of thinkers out there much smarter than I would say the reason we can't do [big] things ... is because we don't have national service, because we don't have a common experience." Service-oriented or not, gap year programming is becoming an increasingly popular vehicle to bridge the important divide between high school and college. A May 2014 TIME article, "Why Your High School Senior Should Take a Gap Year," acknowledges that the concept can be unnerving for some parents, "especially for those who have carefully cultivated a cradle-to-college track for their children. Many fear that once their son or daughter veers away from a formal education, they won't go back." Nevertheless, it offers some reassurance, stating, "Many educators tout taking a gap year, saying that kids who step off the academic treadmill after high school to work, travel, volunteer or explore other interests are more mature when they arrive at college and more engaged in their education going forward." Advertisement One such educator, Richard Enemark, Ph.D., a longtime independent-school head, agrees that it can be hard to convince parents of the value of gap year programming, telling me, "They don't always realize that a different path can actually enhance their child's ultimate success. In fact, gap year experiences often present an enormous advantage in credentialing young people in ways that are both emotionally and financially significant." To that point, a June 2015 Washington Post parenting piece, "Want to Help Kids Succeed in College? Let Them Take a Gap Year," quotes Parke Muth, a college admissions consultant, as saying of a gap year experience, "'It's an investment in the whole person,' one that allows kids to develop the maturity, independence and self-reliance necessary to make the most of a college education." As a Black father who has a Ph.D. in urban education, my educational level makes me part of a unique group. However, as an educator parent, whenever I visit a school for personal reasons; I always introduce myself, as "Stuart." What I do for a living should not be important in how administrators and teachers present their school to parents. The irony of this entire process of finding a Kindergarten for our son is that even though I am completely in favor of school choice, I didn't know how hard school choice was. When we moved to Phoenix three years ago, we decided to live in an area that advertises some of the "best schools in the state." We thought that being in the catchment area for an "A" school would mean that we didn't have to go through the process of school choice, that our choice was already made and paid for through our property taxes. Advertisement We were wrong. No matter what position one takes, concerning school choice, it is important to appreciate that every school is a "selective enrollment" school. Meaning, if you have the means to live in an area with high property taxes and good schools, you have made a selective, conscious choice. If you live in an area that is more economically challenged, your selective choice concerning public schools has been made for you. Acknowledging this unfortunate conclusion as an educator is problematic. Coming to this conclusion as a parent is tremendously stressful. After doing an extensive online search of schools, we "narrowed" our choices down to seven schools; two public, three charter, which included two campuses of one particular charter, and one Independent/Private school. One of the most important criteria was diversity. However, whenever I inquired about "diversity" in any of the Open Houses or interviews, the school officials instantaneously assumed I meant race. Race matters, but when I say diversity, I mean diversity which includes not just race, but ideas/thought, ability levels, socio-economic status, experiences, etc. In one funny incident when I asked if their Kindergarten classrooms were "mixed," the assistant principal nearly had a heart attack. What I was meant was if the classroom was mixed age/grade, like the other public school down the street. I think my laughter revived him, but I'm sure he may have needed CPR when he got back to his office. Once we made our list, we tried to obtain more data about each school besides test scores. What was extremely problematic, is that it took all of our research abilities combined to find the racial make-up, gender breakdown, student-teacher ratios, and Title I information (how many students receive free or reduced lunch) for each school. All of this information should be on the District website for each public school, and on every website for any other type of school. It is disappointing that parents are making choices based on a host of criteria that may or may not indicate what should be viewed as a "good" school. What parents need to be aware of is that it seems that schools are trying to hide important demographic information from their "audience." Advertisement Which brings me to another point. For those who lament the notion that schools are a "business," I'm sorry they are. Even if we did nothing but chose our neighborhood grade school, they are in the "business" of attracting us to their "product" and to highlight that their product is the best in the entire market. Longing for the days when we packed up and walked to school five miles each way up hill is a distant memory - and for many of us a false memory. Schooling has changed and we, as parents must quickly adapt, be equipped with important data, and use due diligence. Here are five things that signify school culture that I recommend that parents should look for in a "good" school (there are many more, but these stood out in my search). 1) How are you greeted at the main office? Is it with indifference or excitement? When you identify yourself as a parent, are they eager to show you around the school, and to meet with an administrator or someone else who could show you around, or do they make you schedule an appointment for another time, or worse go online to do so even when you are standing in their office? How do they value you and communicate that? It is likely that the respect and value you see in that office will translate into their value of your child. 2) When you do go on a tour, are there places they are not eager to show you? Make sure you see the library, cafeteria, gymnasium, playground or other common areas that they do not highlight. Look for the blind spots. 3) What is the connection between the parent association, other parents, and the school? In one instance, the parent association (at a public school) had tremendous influence. They were the moneymaker and strongest influence in the school. However, upon visiting their monthly parent meeting, besides the time being an impediment for many parents (8:45am on a weekday), it felt extremely unwelcoming for newcomers. Only one parent spoke to me, and no one asked me (other than the security guard who demanded that I sign in immediately) why I was there or what my purpose was. In comparison, at the selective enrollment public school parent meeting, the very diverse group of parents went around the room, informing me of their name, how many children they had in what grade, and were extremely open and welcoming. In addition, there did not appear to be conflict or division within the group, and the school administration showed true appreciation for their time and commitment to the school. Advertisement 4) After your initial visit, how does the school follow up? Are they eager to answer your questions? Are they interested in your family becoming a part of their community? What events does the school have that promote more than just academics? Are there fun events for the entire family as well as bonding events just for the parents? How the school builds community with all of its stakeholders, both within the school community and the community at large is important. Late last year, as I was making my way by Capital Bikeshare across the Washington National Mall on an unseasonably warm December night, the phone in my jacket pocket dinged. It was a text from a longtime pal of mine, Jack Democrat. Jack reads The Washington Post every day. He follows the 2016 presidential campaign closely. He is well-informed, erudite and like me a lifetime Democrat. Jack was replying to my invitation to meet up at a December 19th Saturday night debate watch soiree, sponsored by "DC for Bernie Sanders." He declined my invitation - and was not subtle in telling me why: Advertisement >>>> Hey Tad. I still think that if the Democrats nominate Bernie Sanders, they will lose in an historic landslide -- 45 to 49 states. He is way, way too far left for most of the American electorate. It causes me no joy to say this, but I even think Trump would beat Sanders by a decisive margin. Rubio might win all 50 states. Enjoy the holidays and the debate! Cheers, Jack <<<<< Jack Democrat isn't the only one. No less than a former chief of staff to President Obama, William Daley, drew the most direct historical analogy. If Bernie were to emerge as the nominee, he said, "You would be back to 1972," referring to Richard Nixon's huge victory over George McGovern. "I think it is a recipe for disaster." Today, in the aftermath of the Iowa caucuses, there are millions of Democratic voters who are thinking just like Jack Democrat and William Daley. Democratic voters who may like Bernie Sanders or Hillary Clinton to varying degrees, but who are most interested in nominating a candidate who will retain the White House for the Democrats. Democratic voters whose greatest concern is preventing any Republican president from choosing two or three Supreme Court justices during the next four years. And Democratic voters who - like Jack Democrat not advancing any elaborate explanation or analysis - simply take for granted that if our party nominates a candidate "too far left," we will lose in "an historic landslide." There's hard polling data to support this assessment as well. While 83% of Democratic-leaning voters see Hillary Clinton as electable, only 54% say the same about Bernie Sanders. Advertisement Indeed, the Hillary campaign overtly makes the point - even to the point of admitting that some voters may prefer her opponent. A January tweet sent followers to the tale of 19-year-old Alex Mendola of New Hampshire, who said: "If Bernie won the primary and lost the general election, I think that would be a disaster. So even if (I) don't like Hillary as much as Bernie, I feel more confident that she would win the general election." If Bernie Sanders is going to win the Democratic presidential nomination, we need to change the minds of Jack Democrat and Alex Mendola. If we don't, Hillary Clinton will win that nomination. Jack and Alex's thesis will never be tested. And we will lose perhaps our once-in-a-lifetime chance to elect the most progressive major party candidate in American history as President of the United States. If you are a Bernie supporter today, what you need is ammunition. Not to persuade your Democratic friends that Bernie is desirable - that's another argument - but to persuade them that he is electable. And you can. Because Jack and Alex are wrong. If the Democratic Party nominates Bernie Sanders as its candidate for president, he will win the White House in November 2016. Here are ten reasons why: * REASON #10: THE POLLS SAY OTHERWISE. The most obvious response to Jack and Alex's contention is that poll after poll shows something very different. In hypothetical November matchups between Bernie and various Republican nominees, it is not the case that he loses in a landslide. Nor is it the case that he loses in a squeaker. Bernie Sanders wins. Advertisement Moreover - and this is the most salient point for Democrats deciding whom to support in caucuses and primaries - Bernie often performs far better than Hillary against these hypothetical opponents. A single example. Here is the NBC/WSJ/Marist poll on January 10th: In Iowa, Bernie Sanders defeats Donald Trump by 13 points and Ted Cruz by 5 points, and ties with Marco Rubio. Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, defeats Trump by only 8 points, loses to Cruz by 4 points, and loses to Rubio by 5 points. The Sanders/Clinton disparity in New Hampshire was even more pronounced. There, Bernie defeats Trump by 19 points, Cruz by 18 points, and Rubio by 9 points. Hillary, however, defeats Trump in New Hampshire by just 1 point, loses to Cruz by 4 points, and loses to Rubio by 12 points. So if the primary criterion determining Jack and Alex's primary vote is the electability of the Democratic candidate in November, these polls - and there are many like them nationwide - unambiguously suggest that Bernie Sanders is significantly more likely to win the general election than Hillary Clinton. But these polls are not likely to seal the deal with Jack and Alex. And frankly, they shouldn't. The general election is still nine months away. Too much will happen during the next nine months - in both the dynamics of the presidential campaign and the world beyond. John McCain led Barack Obama by 3 points in exactly this same kind of hypothetical matchup in January 2008 - long before either had secured their party nominations. But in the actual November 2008 election, Obama beat McCain by 7 points. Advertisement Fortunately there are many other reasons to believe that if Bernie Sanders wins the Democratic Party nomination, he will also win the presidency in November. * REASON #9: LANDSLIDES ARE FOR INCUMBENTS. The scenario that Jack Democrat suggests - not just a Bernie Sanders loss but a landslide loss - is particularly unlikely if history is our guide. Why? Because since the White House was occupied more than 80 years ago by FDR, the only time we have seen such blowout elections is when the sitting president was running for president. Go ahead and google it for yourself. The only landslides - let's call that roughly 60%-40% - in modern times? Incumbent President Franklin Roosevelt over Alf Landon in 1936. Incumbent President Lyndon Johnson over Barry Goldwater in 1964. Incumbent President Richard Nixon over George McGovern in 1972. And incumbent President Ronald Reagan over Walter Mondale in 1984. We can't say many things for sure about the November 2016 election, but we do know for sure that the incumbent president won't be a candidate. Sure, what Jack Democrat and William Daley fear might happen. But if it does, it would be something that has never once happened in modern presidential politics. Advertisement * REASON #8: LANDSLIDES MAY BE A THING OF THE PAST. That last real landslide, in 1984, was nearly a third of a century ago now. Since then, our presidential contests have become dominated by the "red state/blue state" reality. George F. Will recently pointed out that in the 1976 presidential election, 20 of our 50 states were won by five points or less. This means that during the campaign they were essentially up for grabs. That number in 2012? Only four. At least 40 of America's 50 states - driven for the most part by sheer demographics -- seem virtually guaranteed now to go reliably red or blue. To choose just one example, here are the last six presidential election vote totals for the largest state in the union, California, with no less than 12% of the country's population and fully 55 of the 270 Electoral College votes needed to win the White House. 1992: 46%D - 33%R. 1996: 51%D - 38%R. 2000: 53%D - 42%R. 2004: 54%D - 44%R. 2008: 61%D - 37%R. 2012: 60%D - 37%R. Traditional battleground states like New Jersey, Illinois, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan (combined electoral votes: 80) have shown similar patterns of increasing Democratic dominance during the past quarter century. Other states like Massachusetts, Minnesota, and New York (combined electoral votes: 50) have been for the most part solidly blue for considerably longer than that. Sure, Marco Rubio might find some way to reverse this trajectory, and to win California. It's perhaps even possible that he or some other Republican could "win all 50 states." But it seems far, far more likely that whether the Democrats nominate Bernie Sanders, Hillary Clinton, or Kim Kardashian for president, they will start the general election race well north of 200 electoral votes. Virtually guaranteed. Advertisement * REASON #7: RECENT DEMOCRATIC DOMINANCE IN PRESIDENTIAL CONTESTS. It is tempting to conclude that the modern American presidency now runs in pretty regular cycles from party to party. Eight years of Obama (D). Eight years before that of Bush (R). Eight years before that of Clinton (D). Twelve years before that of Reagan and Bush (R). That's one way of looking at it. But let's try another. Since 1992, the GOP has won only one single non-incumbent presidential race. And when was that? In the year 2000, when - even with many Democrat-leaning voters casting their ballots for Ralph Nader - Al Gore still defeated George Bush by more than half a million ballots in the nationwide popular vote! (And, still in the minds of many, in the Electoral College as well.) The Nader experience, of course, is why the "Run Bernie Run" initiative launched by Progressive Democrats of America in 2014 called explicitly for Sanders to run for president as a Democrat. It is rarely wise to extend alternative history speculations beyond the boundaries of one's neighborhood bar. Still, it seems not wholly unreasonable to hypothesize that but for the twin 2000 peculiarities of the Nader candidacy and the butterfly ballots in Florida, the Democrats might have won the last six presidential elections in a row. Rather handily. That's another way of looking at it. Other than 2004 - when their candidate was the incumbent president - the Republican Party hasn't unambiguously won the White House since 1988. And even in 2004, with all the traditional advantages of incumbency, George W. Bush was only able to defeat John Kerry by 3 points. The track record of recent history suggests that the Democratic Party may now have forged a solid and enduring structural advantage in presidential contests. Demographics are destiny, they say, and - in national presidential elections at least - the demographics of the American electorate appear to be running more and more favorably toward the Democrats. * REASON #6: WE MAY BE AT THE DAWN OF A NEW WORLDWIDE PROGRESSIVE ERA. Or perhaps in the Western world. Or at least in the English and French speaking world! Advertisement Last summer a longtime far left backbench MP, Jeremy Corbyn, stunned the UK's political establishment by triumphing in the Labour Party leadership election. The consensus explanation the morning after? He moved people who had never before engaged in political action to show up and participate. (Sound familiar?) This was, however, was only a party election. And many British pundits make the case today (much like Jack and Alex!) that Mr. Corbyn remains wholly unelectable in a nationwide election for prime minister. Since Tory Prime Minister David Cameron was just re-elected last spring, it will be awhile before we know whether those voices are right or wrong. Yet in 2012 French voters ousted their center-right President Nicolas Sarkozy, and replaced him with Francois Hollande -- the leader of the French Socialist Party. And then just last fall our great neighbor to the north ousted their Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and replaced him with Justin Trudeau -- the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada. Perhaps we can't call this all a broad new transnational progressive wave quite yet. But it doesn't seem wholly irrelevant to the prospects for a candidacy of the left in this country. Doesn't it suggest that the winds of world history just may be blowing in our direction? Perhaps we can dare to dream that - after Bernie Sanders takes the oath of office in January 2017 - most everyone will be talking about an emerging new worldwide progressive era after that! * REASON #5: THE LIABILITIES AND LIMITATIONS OF HILLARY CLINTON. A narrative emerged this past fall, in whispers among the Democratic establishment, that Hillary Clinton may simply not be very skilled and gifted - as a politician. Policy expertise and public affairs acumen, which Hillary possesses in abundance, are not the same abilities one needs to perform successfully as a retail politician. If she's having this much trouble during the primary season, how do you think she's going to do against the Republican attack machine next fall? Advertisement There is, too, the giant unknown about the course of the ongoing FBI investigation into Hillary's practices as Secretary of State. Shortly after the New Year the FBI expanded its investigation beyond email - to examine whether the connections between Clinton Foundation donations and State Department actions might amount to "public corruption." Then, on the Friday before Iowa, the State Department revealed for the first time that Hillary Clinton's private server contained at least 22 emails classified as "top secret." And The Hill newspaper reported that former FBI officials had begun speculating that an indictment of the former Secretary of State might come "during the heat of the general election campaign." What if we choose her as our presidential nominee - and then this all blows up? Although it should bring us no joy to say this, a case can be made that so many years after Hillary Clinton first emerged onto the American scene, she is now both so damaged and so flawed that she is the one who might "lose in an historic landslide" in the November election. The verdict is arguably in. The jury appears to have spoken. Her husband is one of the most gifted politicians in American history. She is not. Fortunately, the Democratic Party has someone else running who is. * REASON #4: BERNIE IS UNELECTABLE AGAINST ANY REPUBLICAN CANDIDATE? Jack Democrat may be right that Marco Rubio, or another "establishment" Republican, may well have a better chance to win the November election. But for the past several months, in poll after poll, the two frontrunners for the Republican nomination have stubbornly remained the ultraconservative ideologue Ted Cruz and the chauvinistic demagogue Donald Trump. Every day it appears more and more likely that one of these two extreme figures will emerge as the Republican nominee. Brent Budowsky of The Hill has suggested that the "intensity of opinion" of their supporters - motivating them to actually show up -- means that they both may do even better than their polling numbers in the early states. But, Budowsky continues, if one of them is actually nominated, the chasm between their views and those of most Americans -- and the millions who would passionately turn out to vote not just for the Democrat but against the Republican -- may well lead to a landslide, for our side. Indeed, just like William Daley's fear that a Bernie candidacy would bring the Democrats "back to 1972," longtime Republican fundraiser Austin Barbour says: "If we're not careful and we nominate Trump, we're looking at a race like Barry Goldwater in 1964." Indeed, Bernie himself has said: "I would love, love, love to run against Donald Trump ... It would be a dream come true." Advertisement But it won't come true unless we make him our nominee. * REASON #3: BERNIE HAS DECISIVELY DEFEATED MANY REPUBLICAN OPPONENTS. Hillary Clinton has run only two general election races against Republicans in her life. For U.S. Senate, in the state of New York, in the fall of 2000 and again in the fall of 2006. She won them both. Yet it is fair to say in both that she faced only token Republican opposition -- non-heavyweights, candidates with perhaps 10% of her own virtually universal name recognition. Bernie Sanders, by contrast -- with hardly the same name recognition (even still) as the former FLOTUS -- has fought and won a full 14 general election campaigns against Republicans in the state of Vermont. That's 4 races for Burlington mayor, 8 races for the U.S. House, and 2 races for the U.S. Senate. Moreover, he has successfully won over Republican and centrist voters in many of these races. And that track record seems to be carrying over to his presidential campaign as well. Want to know the main reason Bernie performed better than Hillary against those various hypothetical Republican opponents ("Reason #10" above)? According to Marist polling director Lee Miringoff, because in each separate matchup he consistently did better with independents! Now there are several Facebook groups that exist exclusively for lifetime Republicans who intend this year to vote for Bernie Sanders. And others for independents. And others for longtime nonvoters. Because today, it's hardly only hardcore Democrats who feel ever more tightly squeezed by the economic realities of 21st century American capitalism. It's likely not only liberals who laughed darkly at the recent Onion headline: "Man Dying From Cancer Spends Last Good Day On Phone With Insurance Company." And it can't be only citizens "on the far left" who feel alienated and marginalized and completely disengaged from a broken American political system. So if the Democrats are looking for their most seasoned and proven candidate for the November election? The candidate who has run and won a great many November elections against Republican opponents? And the candidate who, right now, is showing by far the greater crossover appeal? Advertisement That candidate is Bernie Sanders. * REASON #2: THE TRIUMPH OF TURNOUT. There's a strong argument to be made that more and more elections today are won not by "tacking to the center," but instead by appealing to the base. That is arguably why the Republicans have built such significant majorities in statehouses, state legislatures, and the United States Congress -- because they do a far better job at motivating their base in these lower turnout elections. I know an awful lot of Republicans and I know an awful lot of Democrats. But how many authentic "independents" do you actually know who regularly find themselves genuinely undecided between Republicans and Democrats? It's hard to believe that there are all that many of these mythical unicorns. But there surely are, on the other hand, millions and millions of lifetime Democrats and lifetime Republicans -- who don't bother to show up when their candidates don't give them a clear, compelling, exciting reason to do so. It's worth recalling that the last time we chose a candidate based on electability we got John Kerry -- whose failure to generate any excitement cost us the 2004 election. When the Democrats have achieved electoral successes in recent years, the data indicate that these victories were driven by fired up women, powerfully motivated people of color, and unapologetic liberals - not by winning over swing voters. I know an awful lot of people who are filled with enthusiasm and zeal about the Bernie candidacy. These are the people who will give him not only their votes in November, but their money and shoe leather in September and October as well. But how many people do you know who feel the same kind of passion and intensity about Hillary Clinton? The fiery progressive Bernie Sanders could fire up the Democratic base in a way that few Democratic candidates have done in our lifetimes. The young people who have flocked in such waves to Bernie's rallies may actually vote in meaningful numbers this time. Why? Because Bernie is the first candidate who has ever spoken to them in a meaningful way about the multiple failings of what Harold Meyerson calls "the gig economy." "Young Americans," says Meyerson, "may have heard their nation once had a middle-class majority, but (they) have never experienced it themselves." The vastly higher voter turnout rates in so many other countries around the world shows just how many potential American voters are out there -- waiting to be mobilized. Bernie is the kind of authentic and inspirational candidate who could move millions and millions of Americans - both hard core Democratic base voters and new voters -- to show up in November 2016. Advertisement But that will only happen if we nominate him as our candidate for president. * REASON #1: THIS IS ONE WEIRD YEAR. If anyone tells you they have with complete certainty "figured out what's going on" in this election cycle, don't let them sell you a skyscraper at 57th and 5th. "Apparently this is an F you election," said the Huffington Post's Howard Fineman on the radio, with some exasperation, on the Friday before Iowa. No one really knows what to make of the twin ascendancies of a narcissistic business mogul in one party and an avowed socialist in the other. But surely, for all their differences -- one appealing to tribal insularity and the other to the better angels of our nature -- both candidates are tapping into a deep societal disaffection and alienation, profound uncertainty about rapid global change, bottomless socioeconomic worries and struggles, a dismissal of the tired old left/right spectrum, fear about the future, and a belief that Washington as it presently operates seems incapable of doing anything meaningful about any of it. This suggests strongly that the 45th American president will not be a conventional, centrist, incremental, insider politician. That president will likely be instead someone with a profound authenticity, someone who really gets those profound anxieties, and someone who is offering a vision equal in magnitude to the enormous challenges of our unfolding 21st century. Isn't the Democratic candidate with the best chance to win the November election the one who best fits that description? Advertisement * So there you go, Jack and Alex. If it turns out you actually prefer Hillary Clinton to Bernie Sanders, based on such things as ethics, character, temperament, honesty, policy positions, leadership capacity, and ultimate potential to improve not just American lives but the universal human condition - then in the primaries and caucuses you should vote for Hillary Clinton. But if, based on those same kinds of criteria, you find Bernie Sanders to be the superior choice - then you should vote for Bernie Sanders. Because if the framers of our constitution had anything in mind, it was that when you pull that curtain closed behind you, you ought to vote for who you want (today), not for who you think other people will want (nine months from today). Because as six-time presidential candidate Norman Thomas said, "I am not the champion of lost causes, but of causes not yet won." And most importantly? Because in the November election, Bernie Sanders can win. * The ancient origins, anatomical, linguistic and genetic distinctiveness of southern African San and Khoikhoi people are matters of confusion and debate. They are variously described as the world's first or oldest people; Africa's first or oldest people, or the first people of South Africa. They are in fact two evolutionarily related but culturally distinct groups of populations that have occupied southern Africa for up to 140,000 years. Their first-people status is due to the fact that they commonly retain genetic elements of the most ancient Homo sapiens. This conclusion is based on evidence from specific types of DNA. This evidence also demonstrates that other sub-Saharan human populations retain genetic bits and pieces of DNA from non-KhoiSan primordial humans. These pre-date their out-of-Africa colonisation of the balance of the world. Advertisement What is important in the debate on the origins of, and diversity among, population groups of Homo sapiens is to establish what cannot, and should not, be derived from the various DNA evidence used to support the KhoiSan-as-first-people hypothesis. This is that the KhoiSan, or any other groups of humans, can be assigned to evolutionarily meaningful "races" - or subspecies in biological classification. The DNA evidence, if interpreted incorrectly, could be used to support the findings of "scientific" racial anthropologists such as Carleton S. Coon. As recently as 1962, Coon "recognised" the KhoiSan as the Capoid race. He based this on the distinctive anatomical features of the Capoids from those he used to designate the Congoid race. These include golden brown rather than sepia-coloured skin, the presence of epicanthic eye folds, prominent cheekbones and steatopygia. Advertisement But, if correctly interpreted, the scientific evidence points quite to the contrary. Human evolution cannot be drawn like a tree If one were to compare the entire DNA genomes from representatively sampled human populations from around the world, the resulting relationships would look more like an evolutionarily reticulated chain-link fence. In other words, a network rather than a tree. This applies to even purportedly racially important anatomical features. This is because human population groups worldwide are highly homogeneous (99.5% similar) genetically and their anatomical features vary in an uncorrelated fashion over the landscape. These groups are, in evolutionary terms, very recent entities that have no biological or taxonomic significance. The DNA evidence used to discover the human genetic "footprints" that characterise the KhoiSan, and other diverging populations, is today easily put together. Forensic pathologists use it to determine an unidentifiable corpse's population group. This process has been popularised on television shows such as CSI and Bones. This DNA evidence comes from: Y chromosome polymorphisms inherited without recombination along male lineages; single nucleotide polymorphisms, or SNPs, from nuclear DNA; and most especially from mitochondrial DNA. Mitochondria are organelles within a cell that have their own independent DNA separate from that in the nucleus that determines an organism's external appearance and physiology. They are involved with cellular respiration and nothing more. Mitochondrial DNA allows the detection of direct genetically "ungarbled" connections among evolutionarily evolved human population groups. This is because a component of it evolves much faster than the bulk of nuclear DNA. Also, mitochondrial DNA is inherited maternally and is thus not intermixed with paternal DNA during reproduction. Some evolutionary genetic anthropologists ignore the overwhelming balance of evidence that there is no evolutionarily significant racial variation in either genes or anatomy. Instead they focus on these very few bits and pieces of DNA that, in evolutionary terms, change rapidly. This way they reach distorted conclusions about discernible "races" within the human species. Why there is only one race Recent DNA results used to detect human population genetic "footprints" is summarised in: Humanity's forgotten return to Africa revealed in DNA. The story it tells is as follows. About 140,000 years ago human populations from East or Central Africa moved southwards and "colonise" western southern Africa. The probable nearest living relatives of these source populations are: Advertisement the Hadzabe people from north-central Tanzania; and Mbuti pygmies from the eastern Congo. This migration gave rise to the present-day San hunter-gatherers. Much more recently - about 2000 years ago - there was a second movement of "colonists" from the north into southwestern Africa. They gave rise to the pastoral Khoikhoi people. This second group of "settlers" carried within its genome bits of Eurasian-sourced - and even some Neanderthal - DNA derived from European humans who had returned to Africa about 3000 years ago. Subsequent to this second colonisation, there was intermixing between the Khoikhoi and San. This gave rise to their close anatomical similarities despite the fact that they retained their marked cultural and linguistic differences. Much more recently - about 1700 years ago - there was a third major north-to-south migration. This time it was the Bantu-speaking, black Africans into south-eastern Africa. Those "settlers" that eventually became the Xhosa peoples moved westwards and encountered the Khoikhoi, whom they drove further west and intermixed with genetically. So, it is now possible for genetic evolutionary "anthropologists" to distinguish population differences among humans to infer the timing of their movements throughout the globe. Advertisement It is even possible to map one's genetic "ancestry", as South African President Nelson Mandela did, indicating that he possessed some KhoiSan DNA. The important point is that this evidence should not be used to assert that these differences, or shared bits of "ancient" DNA, support the identification of multiple human "races". In fact, it confirms the wise assertion by the pan-Africanist leader, Robert Sobukwe, that there was only one race: the human race. Google Rand Paul today and you'll find stories about him suspending his presidential campaign under "Breaking News." In one way it is; in another it isn't. It's really an old story, but those who don't know history have been doomed (again) to repeat it. Since William F. Buckley started National Review in the 1950s, libertarianism has been viewed as a subset of conservatism. Reagan affirmed this view in the 1970s, before rising to the presidency selling that same theory. But what caused Reagan to fail to shrink the federal government (it doubled in size during his presidency) is the same problem that doomed Rand Paul's presidential campaign. Libertarianism and conservatism are antithetical philosophies and any attempt to combine them will fail. Advertisement It is important to understand the philosophical differences here, because they do indeed dictate political positions today. I've written an entire book about this, but the crucial difference between libertarians and conservatives is this: true conservatives don't believe man keeps his natural rights when he enters society. Understood properly, they don't even believe they exist in nature at all. Both Hobbes and Burke said that man in the state of nature "has a right to everything," "even unto one another's bodies," added Hobbes. That puts them into a war of "everyone against everyone." Therefore, they believe the purpose of government is to ensure "the inclinations of men should frequently be thwarted, their will controlled, and their passions brought into subjection," as Burke wrote in Reflections on the Revolution in France. The chief difference between conservatives like Hobbes and conservatives like Burke are their opinions on the means to thwarting man's natural inclinations. Hobbes believed only absolute power centralized in a unitary sovereign could accomplish the goal. His philosophical heirs in American history included Alexander Hamilton, Abraham Lincoln and George W. Bush. Burke believed that power must be divided, between branches of government (king and parliament) and central and local governments. His philosophical heirs in American history are John Adams, Barry Goldwater and Ted Cruz. Advertisement But whether you're a Hobbesian centralist or a Burkean constitutionalist, as long as you are a conservative you part from libertarians in one very important area: you believe 100% of the power resides somewhere within the government. For constitutionalists, if the federal government isn't going to regulate it, then the state government should. Or the municipal. Or the town. Or your local school board. No power is left to the individual. Just as true conservatives see man's condition in the state of nature as a war so, too do they see the natural state of nations to one another, unless one nation dominates the rest. This explains why conservatives and libertarians can't agree on foreign policy. It is also why Thomas Jefferson and John Adams were such bitter political enemies after the revolution, when they had been allies during it. Jefferson, at least in his thinking and writing, if not always in his actions, was what we would today call a libertarian. Hipster libertarians would probably prefer "classical liberal," but there really isn't a difference. Yes, modern libertarians apply their principles better in theory than 18th century libertarians, just as free market proponents today apply Adam Smith's principles better than he himself did in 1776. But when Jefferson wrote that the purpose of government was to secure inalienable rights, he parted from every conservative in British and American tradition. The Declaration's preamble is a succinct summary of Locke's Second Treatise, where all of its philosophical roots can be found. We know this, because Jefferson said so, more than once. When Jefferson became president, he declared the purpose of government as to "restrain men from injuring one another, shall leave them otherwise free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned." This is the core libertarian political principle, unchanged in 2016. It's completely at odds with the purpose outlined by Hobbes and Burke. Advertisement Jefferson was expressing what libertarians today call "the non-aggression axiom" and it informed Jefferson's policy. Jefferson cut military spending by over 90% in his first term. He truly gutted the military, believing it should be only large enough to provide for defense, never offense. That's how he was able to eliminate all internal taxes and still pay down $57 million of national debt. This would horrify conservatives today, just as it did then, because conservatives don't believe in libertarian principles. As Russell Kirk told us in The Conservative Mind, even "back in the day," conservative John Randolph "wholly repudiated the common interpretation of the Declaration of Independence, denounced Jefferson as a Pied Piper, and turned his back upon political abstractions to seek security in prescription and in an unbroken vigilance over personal and local rights." What does this have to do with Rand Paul? Everything. Rand Paul failed even to equal his father's success precisely because he tried to combine libertarianism with conservatism. Where his father applied the libertarian principle of non-aggression, Paul applied constitutional conservative principles. Where his father said bring all foreign-based troops home, Rand Paul said "don't be too hasty to go to war." That pleased neither libertarians nor conservatives. Both the deployment of troops in nations who have not directly attacked us and forcing taxpayers to pay for anything not necessary for defense violates the non-aggression principle. But it doesn't violate conservative principles. Therein lies the rub. Where Ron Paul defended legalization of heroine, Paul merely said drug offenses should have lighter sentences. That turned off libertarians and conservatives, for different reasons. Libertarians staunchly oppose laws against drugs based on the non-aggression principle. Conservatives strongly support them, due to their belief that the role of government is to thwart those evil inclinations. Advertisement Right down the line, Paul's attempt to fit the libertarian message into a conservative framework killed his chances. His father said sanctions are an act of war; Rand Paul said they weren't. Ron was applying libertarian theory; Rand conservative theory. But conservatives did not want to hear Rand's sensible approach to Iran. So Rand got votes from neither. Ron Paul's campaign was exciting to both longtime libertarians and new converts precisely because it was so anti-conservative. Sure, Ron Paul said the word "conservative" as a matter of necessity, just as Republicans say the words "free market." But neither really mean it, deep down. Since the Democratic Party abandoned classical liberalism for progressivism, those classical liberal/libertarian ideas have tenuously resided within the conservative movement, like strangers in a foreign land. It's time libertarians ended their long experiment with converting the Republican Party. America needs a libertarian movement unhampered by the contradictory influences of conservatism. On February 3rd of this year, the first National Women Physician Day was celebrated. This day also marks the birthday of Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman physician in the U.S. As a woman physician, I understand and appreciate this privilege. We, women physicians have come a long way since Dr. Blackwell's graduation. But we still have a ways to go. We continue to face the challenges of the practice of medicine while being a woman. We still hear patients assume that we are the "nurses" and our male colleague are the doctors". We still get comments on our looks. We still get asked personal questions that male physicians "don't get asked. We are still seen as the "girls on the playground" of medicine. The number of women entering medical schools continues to rise despite such biases. Advertisement My first mentor in medical school, about twenty years ago, was a Cardiothoracic surgeon by the name of Dr. Sohaila Mohsin at the Aga Khan University in Pakistan. She was assigned to be my advisor and mentor. She was an extremely talented, humble and skilled surgeon who commanded a lot of respect among her colleagues. She practiced as a surgeon in Pakistan, a country where even the literacy rate is only 55 percent and even less among women. She was infinitely wise and would find time to meet with me in between procedures, mostly when she was scrubbing and would talk as the water poured through the tap and she meticulously engaged in the hand cleaning scrubbing rituals. Sometime she found time at the end of the clinic. However, half of the things she would say would be too hard for me to comprehend. I was just in awe of this woman who was a surgeon and seemed to know what she was doing. She had confidence and poise. What I internalized from her was that I could do it as well. She made me realize that being a competent and successful woman physician is possible. She seemed to hold it together and balance it all, work , family, academics and teaching. A first year medical student really knows nothing about real life in medicine. It is years of uncensored look at life and death with all its disappointments, failures, heart break and successes that teach you "real life". Years of training, apprenticeship and hands-on learning with high stakes is eye opening. It requires lots of decision making and negotiating difficult choices. Sometimes, its the choice between eating lunch and seeing the emergency case, sometimes its a choice between leaving your child at home with a fever, to go round at the hospital, other days its coming home late and picking up dinner that you feel guilty about not cooking. Women doctors spend more time in parenting and other household tasks. Being a working woman is an exercise in dealing with guilt. Guilt of not being there, guilt of not being a perfect wife, guilt of not being the perfect mom, guilt of missing games and recitals, and all the other things a woman is expected to do. Women physicians face unpredictable and long work hours. I still remember my anxiety returning to work after my maternity leave and handing my baby to my nanny as I left for the office. My heart was suddenly in two places, my baby and my work. Both I loved dearly. I remember how once I hadn't gotten much sleep due to the baby and seeing a patient who was having difficulty sleeping and empathizing with her symptoms as I struggled through my sleep deprivation. But this is what practice of medicine is like. Advertisement It is therefore not surprising that women physicians also tend to report more burn out rate than men due the myriad of responsibilities that they juggle on a daily basis. We try and try to do it all well. Women physicians tend to spend on an average about 5 minutes more than male physicians with patients.We are good listeners. We are sometimes, caregivers for our parents and children and our patients. We spread ourselves too thin. While biases among patients exist in regards to women physicians, many patients tend to prefer a female physician and a lot of female patients prefer to have a woman doctor. Women physicians also tend to be better at addressing emotional concerns of patients and are more likely to discuss those issues with their patients. It is a tremendous honor to be a woman physician, the cost of this which is paid dearly in years all through our lives. However, we lead our daughters by our example. We love our profession and we give it all. We are there listening to you intently. Advertisement So, my dear colleagues, give your self a pat on the back for how far you have come, hug yourself for all the care giving you do, and smile for the all sexist comments about being the "pretty girl doctor" but still maintaining your professionalism. You rock!! All of you, each one of you. I am glad you chose to be a doctor. The world is a better place for all you do!! Thank You to all my mentors and colleagues who guided and supported me through all these years of medical training and care. A lot has been said and written about caste discrimination in the aftermath of tragic suicide of Rohith Vemula. However, as always, the debate has had little substance and largely stuck in high pitch rhetoric to score in and settle political battles. Rohith's suicide is rooted in widespread corruption that prevails in our institutions of higher learning and politicization of student politics across the country. Student politics in India is no longer about the welfare and rights of the students - it is the training ground for political parties to groom and nurture talent. No wonder all major student parties have a political party as an ideologue and benefactor and student elections often involve violence, large amounts of illicit campaign monies and revolve around identity. It is easy and convenient to romanticize the issue of caste as a class struggle and history of injustice. The reality however is very different. Caste issues are now rooted in a fight to keep the entitlements and claim victimhood to continuously expand those entitlements. There have been huge protests across India, from Haryana to Andhra Pradesh, often violent by members of various communities seeking backward class status. Those protests tell us the grim reality of the current caste situation - caste and backward status is all about keeping and expanding entitlements and everyone wants in. I don't mean to imply caste based discrimination does not exist. It exists on a wide scale and we as a nation must be ashamed of it. It is one of the many social evils that exist in our country - dowry, female infanticide, preference for fair skin which has created a billion dollar fairness products industry, gender discrimination, under age marriages, child labor, bonded labor and the list can go on. However, caste discrimination is one social evil that has no real grassroots movements to reform and no serious government effort to root out the problem. Advertisement Caste discrimination struggle has leaders like Mayawati and Nitish Kumar whose very survival depends on keeping the Dalits oppressed, poor and uneducated so they can avoid accountability and win elections on identity politics. We have eliminated Polio, made a huge dent in underage marriages, outlawed female infanticide and take steps to enforce the law. We have been able to reform Hinduism to eliminate 'Sati Pratha' and many other incompatible practices. Caste discrimination continues to dominate because no one wants to eliminate it. It's a shame our intelligentsia often falls in politicians trap either out of seeking favors or political affiliations or for the thrill of romanticism that comes with being part of a struggle, even if misdirected. If one wants to have a serious conversation on caste, we need to focus on moving away from 'an entitlement based approach rooted in claims of victimhood' to creating the foundations of 'equality of opportunity for all'. This would involve: 1.Invest in primary education and infrastructure - Caste discrimination is a shameful thousands of year old legacy that we need to fight collectively as a society. The one and only way to fight discrimination is through education. We have done a terrible job in promoting consistent and quality primary education across the country. Education is the solution to not just caste based discrimination but most of our social ills. We cannot trust the government to build and operate quality schools as evidenced by the current shocking state of our primary schools. Solution lies in private sector involvement through charter schools and voucher system. Advertisement 2.Abolish reservation system - It is no secret that a vast majority of reservation benefits are appropriated by the so called 'creamy layer' within SC/ST categories. Reservation provisions were meant to be temporary for 10 years when our Constitution was adopted - however, the definition of who constitutes backward class has been vastly expanded and a temporary entitlement has become a permanently expanding political largesse. We have provisions for exclusion of creamy layer within the OBC reservations even though that definition is way too liberal, why do we exclude the SC/ST reservations from same restrictions. In addition, at the very least as a start, the reservation benefits must be confined to one generation 3.Establish need based scholarships - Children in a destitute upper caste family deserve government support more than the children of a SC/ST government employee. Our system however does the opposite - it not only favors the child of a backward class millionaire but it penalizes the child of a destitute upper caste family by imposing higher standards of entry into colleges and government jobs. This system is not only unfair, it is inhuman. We need to create a needs based scholarship and assistance program where poor families regardless of their caste or creed get government support to send their children for supplementary classes and tuitions, get mentorship and other so they can realize their potential. In short, criteria for admission to an institute of higher learning must be same for everyone regardless of their identity and government efforts must be directed to preparing those in need to meet those standards. 4.Abolish defamation laws - We don't need defamation laws and censor board and any other institution of moral policing. If we are serious about freedom of speech and free expression, we need to ask for removal of defamation laws, repeal of section 377 and other such regressive laws, strict action against goons of any political party who impose their moral views through violence and intimidation. Unless we can have a free and healthy debate without fear of getting sued or vandalized, we would never reach an optimum outcome. 5.Remove political parties from student politics and government from institutions of higher learning - Student politics should be what it was meant to be - decentralized college level student bodies working for the interests of students. One of the key ways to do this is to take government out of higher learning institutions. Those institutions should be run independently and government should support needs based scholarship rather than running those institutions. It is government involvement that creates incentives for favor seeking and corrupts student politics. Advertisement Hillary Clinton, former Secretary of State and 2016 Democratic presidential candidate, speaks during a Democratic Presidential Town Hall hosted by CNN and the New Hampshire Democratic Party at the Derry Opera House in Derry, New Hampshire, U.S., on Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016. Even with the close contest in Iowa and with Bernie Sanders favored to win New Hampshire on Feb. 9, Clinton remains the candidate with the best odds of capturing the Democratic nomination for president as the campaign moves into more favorable territory, starting Feb. 27 in South Carolina. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images Last night, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton separately took questions from a "town hall" in Derry, New Hampshire with Anderson Cooper moderating. Overall, both candidates did well, though I give the edge to Sanders (more on why in a moment). Sanders came across as passionate on the issues and concerned for ordinary Americans. He continues to speak of a political revolution, which to him doesn't mean tumbrels to the guillotine. It means getting more people involved in the political process, especially youth and the disadvantaged. He spoke eloquently of helping others. Memorable to me was his work to desegregate housing owned by the University of Chicago when Sanders was a student. When asked why he fought against racist policies, Sanders said he's always hated a bully -- and always fought for fairness and equality. He came across, in short, as an honest and decent man, a man of integrity, which is the word his wife used to describe him (she was sitting in the audience, and was asked to describe her husband with a single word). Advertisement Hillary came across as determined and competent and informed. She tended to meander during her answers, coming across as somewhat of a policy wonk or a technocrat. She rejected Sanders' talk of a revolution, preferring to build on President Obama's (and her own) legacy. For example, she wants to put the finishing touches to Obamacare, rather than going for Sanders' idea of a single-payer, "Medicare for all" system. She spoke briefly of breaking the ultimate glass ceiling for women -- her gaining the office of the presidency -- and how that would inspire women of all ages. She took her usual hardline on U.S. foreign policy, making no promises that she would reduce wars or for that matter spending on defense. In sum, if you're happy with the status quo, you'll get plenty of that with Clinton. If you want change, if you're tired of a "rigged" economy and a corrupt political process, Sanders is far more likely to act in your favor. Where I thought Hillary fell down was in her posturing as a progressive. The millions of dollars she has accepted in speaking fees from banks and investment houses, she suggested, would have no impact on her policy decisions, which is simply implausible. Powerful organizations don't give political candidates big money without strings attached to it, and of course Clinton knows this. It also seemed implausible when Clinton suggested she had not decided to run for president when she accepted those speaking fees. As if her "doubts" about running absolved her of responsibility for taking big money from Wall Street. It was all frankly unconvincing. Hillary Clinton is a fighter. She came across best when she spoke of the Republican right-wing attacks she'd had to endure over the last 25 years, and what they'd taught her about the political process. Her footing was less secure when she had to relate to other people. For example, a man suffering from advanced-stage cancer asked her about dying with dignity. Bill Clinton, the "natural" as Hillary called him, would have turned this into an empathetic "I feel your pain" moment. But Hillary got lost in the details, saying she would have to study up on the ethics of terminal care, the laws, the role of medical professionals, what other countries are doing (she mentioned The Netherlands), and so on. As she tackled the problem in a wonkish way, she seemed to forget the person standing in front her. Advertisement In sum, Bernie Sanders is driving the narrative, not Hillary Clinton. It's Bernie who's been talking about a rigged system, about economic fairness, about working for unions, about justice and prison reform, and it's Hillary who's been put on the defensive. So lately Hillary's been borrowing liberally from Bernie's script. She's now talking about "the deck being stacked" against ordinary people, and how she's going to fight for workers, and how much Wall Street is supposedly against her candidacy. As Bernie has gained in the polls, as his message has begun to resonate, Hillary has responded by trying to be more like Bernie. And it just doesn't ring true, at least for me. Advantage, Bernie. I am writing to announce the formation of a new pro bono group and a policy initiative that we hope many of our readers will support and help publicize. Gary Aguirre, Bill Black, Richard Bowen, and Michael Winston are the founding members of the Bank Whistleblowers United. We are all from the general field of finance and we are all whistleblowers who are unemployable in finance and financial regulation because we spoke truth to power and committed the one unforgivable sin in finance and in Washington, D.C. -- being repeatedly proved correct when the powerful are repeatedly proved wrong. Economists rely largely on "revealed preference" -- we think what you do matters more than what you say. For nearly seven years, every financial firm has known about my three colleagues. They are famous for their skills, courage, and integrity. Every financial firm claims that it now wants to make integrity their credo. Any financial firm that actually was committed to making integrity its credo, as opposed to its spin, would have long since hired my colleagues. Similarly, any government regulator, enforcer, or prosecutor that was serious about restoring the rule of law on Wall Street would have recruited us. Advertisement Our group publicly released four documents on January 29, 2016. The first outlines our proposals, all but one of which could be implemented within 60 days by any newly-elected President (or President Obama) without any new legislation or rulemaking. Most of our proposals consist of the practical steps a President could implement to restore the rule of law to Wall Street. As such, we expect that candidates of every party and philosophy will find most of our proposals to be matters that they strongly support and will pledge to implement. The second document fleshes out and explains the proposals. We ask each candidate to pledge in writing to implement the portions of our plan that they specify to be provisions they support. Again, we invite President Obama to do the same. The third document asks each candidate to pledge not to take campaign contributions from financial felons. That group, according to the federal agencies that have investigated them, includes virtually all the largest banks. The fourth document explains why we formed our group is and contains our bios. I am personally proud and honored to be associated with my colleagues in this endeavor. We are (and have been) actively reaching out to encourage other bank whistleblowers to join Bank Whistleblowers United. The founding members of our group share some common traits, but are also diverse in our views. Overall, the bank whistleblowers that tried so hard and paid such a large price for trying to protect the public from the most recent crisis are an exceptionally diverse group of people and we want our group to reflect that full diversity. We cannot, however, in good conscience fail to act now given the urgency of the problems caused by the collapse of personal accountability for Wall Street elites. Our economy and our democracy are both imperiled by that collapse and require urgent redress. Please help us to get our proposals to every candidate, the media, and the public. Please ask the candidates you support to go on record supporting our initiatives and our campaign financing pledge. Russ Fradin is a digital media industry veteran and an angel investor with more than 15 years of experience in online marketing. He is founder and CEO of Dynamic Signal, the leading platform for empowering employees to be effective brand advocates. It's early on a Monday morning, but your office is already buzzing. At first, this seems like a good thing -- your employees are hitting the ground running to start off the week -- but your excitement turns to dread when you overhear a conversation: "Can you believe what Joe from sales tweeted yesterday?" We've all cringed and laughed at articles about social media mishaps, and we've sworn that we'll never be one of those people. But now, Joe from sales is one of those people, and because his Twitter bio says he works for your company, this is now your problem, too. Advertisement For the past several years, it's been a goal of mine to help leaders prevent this from happening at their companies. A key ingredient to doing so is creating a social media policy -- precautionary guidelines that help keep your brand from becoming the focal point of Monday morning's gossip hour. The goal isn't to stifle your employees' personal social media freedom. Rather, it's to maintain consistent messaging and to limit your company's chances of facing a public relations nightmare. When creating your policy, here are five big things to keep in mind: 1. Don't assume all of your employees understand social media. The majority of your employees -- especially the younger ones -- will have a fundamental knowledge of why social media exists, but don't use that as an excuse to not spell it out for everyone. What one employee doesn't know could always come back to bite you. Our company is built on the backbone of social media, so you'd expect that most everyone we hire is a social media expert. But even for us, it's been important to provide education and training on the basics of social. Whether it's a salesperson who wants to learn about social selling or an engineer who wants to improve his or her presence on LinkedIn, these are important things in today's social environment, and we feel it's critical to support our employees in those areas. 2. Provide a definition of the landscape. Every social media channel is different; what goes viral on one platform could easily flop on a different one. An informal "Hey BFFs, who needs a job and wants to work with me at my awesome company?" might be suitable for Facebook, but that same post probably won't look so good on a more professional platform like LinkedIn.There is no hard and fast rule as to what goes where; it differs for everyone. Some people prefer to only post job-related content on LinkedIn, whereas others have no problem at all sharing it to Facebook. Our main recommendation is to be authentic and to apply common sense. If you're posting lots of personal anecdotes on Twitter and not getting any engagement, that's a good sign your followers don't care for it. We encourage experimentation and diversification. Advertisement 3. Maintain authenticity. The beautiful thing about social media is that every person has the opportunity to broadcast his or her voice. Like I said earlier, your social media policy shouldn't stifle that ability. Instead, it should help add a personable element to your brand -- a face to the name, if you will. My company prides itself on being unique and approachable, so in creating our policy, we wanted our associates' voices to truly be theirs. We are pretty relaxed when it comes to vocabulary and tone, but not every company can afford to be so lenient in that regard. If you don't need to hold such a tight rein, loosen your grip a little. Your employees will thank you kindly. 4. Define confidentiality. Not everything that happens within a company's walls is meant for public consumption. When creating your social media policy, be sure to draw a hard line in the sand as to what can be posted, tweeted and shared about (and what should be kept under wraps). It should be crystal clear to employees what is and isn't off limits. The vast majority of content we produce in our sales and marketing departments is pre-approved and distributed directly to employees in a way that encourages them to share it with their networks. Our employees know that if it's delivered to them, it's meant to be shared with the world. If it doesn't get to them through that workflow, it's off limits. Having these guidelines in place make confidentiality and compliance a nonissue for us 5. Make sure your employees see the value of their voice. Today, peer recommendations are the most effective form of marketing. If your employees have personal social media accounts -- and chances are they do -- empowering them to share content and spread the good word about your brand is essential. Consumers will almost always take the word of a friend or peer over some anonymous user review (or someone named pixiegurl247, for that matter) on Yelp. I am sure to communicate to my employees that their social presence has directly impacted traffic to our website and blog. In fact, sometimes their posts drive more than 90 percent of our traffic. Your employees' voices are potential powerhouses for your company -- but only if they know how to properly use them. Your social media policy should provide the exact guidance they need while still allowing them to be themselves. To further assist you in the process, be sure to check out this helpful template my company created. News / National by Stephen Jakes A political commentator Bryanne Munashe Mhuriyengwe has said it is known to all opposition political parties that the ruling Zanu PF has become un popular and is failing to solve national problems and what is left is for the opposition parties to proffer their possible solutions to such problems in order to wrestle power from the ruling party."It is a well known fact that Mugabe (President ) is now old enough to surrender the presidency to someone willingly or forcibly. It is also true that Zanu -PF policies are less popular economically, socially and politically. It is a well known fact too that all opposition parties in Zimbabwe aware of that and have successively tried to utilize that loophole," he said."It is a well known fact that Morgan Tsvangirai is the most successful and attractive candidate for 2018 in all opposition camps. That is a fact. No doubt. It is also a known fact that government led by Zanu-PF patrons prioritise minor issues at the expense of top matters. It is also a known fact that the purpose of opposition parties in any government is to proffer better policy alternatives. My question now is: What are opposition parties doing to address Zanu PF short-comings?"He said instead of telling us everything wrong that Zanu PF has done or not done, opposition parties must emphasise more on what they want to do for the people."That is progressive politics. The electoral college will never evaluate you basing on what you said about someone, but what you promise you will be to them. Do not indulge into the activities of the public, namely weighing political opportunities. The masses may not be educated yes, but they know very well to choose between life and death," he said. "My colleagues in opposition politics, lets work for the masses. They will identify us by what we do not what we said others did or did not do." It might be the dog days of January and February at movie theaters, but that doesn't mean the MovieFilm gang doesn't have plenty to talk about! First up, the '90s are alive and well with FX's The People vs. O.J. Simpson and Fox's The X-Files revival. Then , some thoughts on the new release The Finest Hours , Disney's harrowing true life Coast Guard rescue film. From there, it's on to some Listener Letters and reactions to the trailers for upcoming sequels Independence Day: Resurgence and Alice Through the Looking Glass . But that's not all, we also have plenty of headlines to discuss: The Fast & Furious saga races towards its planned conclusion, while the Terminator franchise, on the other hand, hits an unplanned conclusion. Meanwhile, '80s favorite Masters of the Universe might finally be getting the big budget blockbuster treatment, and Elizabeth Banks has signed on to play an unlikely role in the big screen version '90s kidvid fave Mighty Morphin Power Rangers. All that, plus Star Wars news, and much more. Advertisement RAVEENDRAN via Getty Images Chief Minister of the southern Indian state of Karnataka Siddaramaiah arrives to attend a Congress party leaders meeting in New Delhi on December 27, 2013. In the first major poll exercise after the party's drubbing in recent Assembly elections, Congress Party vice-president Rahul Gandhi held a strategy session with top leaders and Chief Ministers of 12 Congress-ruled states to make the party fighting fit for the up coming Parliament election. AFP PHOTO/RAVEENDRAN (Photo credit should read RAVEENDRAN/AFP/Getty Images) NEW DELHI -- Three days after a 21-year-old Tanzanian student was allegedly beaten and stripped on a street in Bengaluru, Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj said that she was "deeply pained over the shameful incident," and had asked the Siddaramaiah-led Congress Party government in Karnataka to ensure the safety of all foreign students. "I spoke to the Chief Minister Karnataka. He informed me that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested," Swaraj said in a tweet on Wednesday. Advertisement I spoke to the Chief Minister Karnataka. He informed me that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested. Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) February 3, 2016 Five persons have been arrested in connection with the horrific incident which played out on the night of Jan. 31. "Five people have been arrested. An inquiry is going on," G. Parameshwara, Karnataka's Home Minister, told reporters on Thursday, adding that more people are likely to be arrested as the investigation is carried out by City Crime Branch (CCB) over the next two days. "We have taken it very seriously," said Parameshwara , also pointing that any action will be taken against police officials if any lapses on their part in the incident. Advertisement Parameshwara refused to acknowledge the incident as a "racial attack," but rather a response to an accident which had occurred in the same area, around 30 minutes before the Tanzanian woman was attacked. He also said that refuted reports about the woman being stripped and paraded on the street. "There was no stripping and parading naked," he said. On Jan 31, a car driven by Sudanese student Mohammed Ismail hit two local residents, K Sanaullah and his wife, triggering the incident which has sparked outrage across the country. While K Sanaullah was injured, his wife died on the spot. Ismail was also injured and his car was set on fire by three or four people. The Tanzanian woman, who was traveling with other companions, was pulled out of their car by the angry mob, when they drove by 30 minutes after the accident. Her companions were also assaulted and their vehicle was torched. When the student tried to board a bus to escape, she was pushed out by other passengers. In a police complaint filed on Sunday, the Tanzanian woman did not mention that she was stripped, The Indian Express reported, but she said that her top was removed in a subsequent complaint filed on Wednesday following media reports. We were shocked by media reports on Wednesday and we summoned the woman to know what exactly happened. She appeared before the Soladevanahalli police and gave a new statement, saying she was stripped by a mob. We have added suitable sections of the IPC to the FIR that was registered earlier based on the complaint that her car was set on fire. We need to investigate further," T.R. Suresh, a senior police official, told IE. Advertisement But Parameshwara today said that the Tanzanian woman made no mention of being stripped naked in her complaint. Meanwhile, Congress Party Vice President Rahul Gandhi has also asked the Karnataka government for a report on the incident. Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately. digvijaya singh (@digvijaya_28) February 4, 2016 Advertisement Contact HuffPost India Also on HuffPost: Hindustan Times via Getty Images NEW DELHI, INDIA - OCTOBER 30: Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan talking to media persons after meeting the Congress President Sonia Gandhi about AAdarsh SocietyA at her Residence at 10 Janpath on October 30, 2010 in New Delhi, India. (Photo by Sushil Kumar/Hindustan Times) NEW DELHI -- The Central Bureau of Investigation will prosecute Congress Party leader Ashok Chavan for the offenses of cheating and conspiracy in the Adarsh Scam, which forced him to resign as the Chief Minister of Maharashtra in 2010. On Thursday, Maharashtra Governor C.H. Vidyasagar Rao, who was appointed by the Bharatiya Janata Party Central government in August 2014, gave the CBI sanction to prosecute Chavan. Advertisement Accusing the BJP government of "vendetta politics," Chavan said, "CBI's re-application to the Governor to prosecute me is illegal." The CBI can now prosecute him under section 197 of CrPC, for offenses under sections 120-B (conspiracy) and 420 (cheating) of IPC in the Adarsh Cooperative Housing Society case. The Adarsh Housing Society, a 31-storey building, which came up in the prime real estate area of Colaba, Mumbai, was originally supposed to be a six-storey structure to house war widows and heroes of the 1999 Kargil War. The scam revolved around politicians, bureaucrats and military officials flouting rules to acquire flats below market rates. Chavan's own relatives were allottees in the building. Advertisement In December 2013, when the Congress Party was in power, Maharashtra Governor K Sankaranarayanan did not grant sanction to prosecute Chavan. The UPA-appointed governor resigned after he was transferred to Mizoram by the Modi government in August, 2014. The Centre then appointed Rao, a senior BJP leader from Telangana, who had served as Union Minister of State for Home in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government. The BJP and Shiv Sena also came to power in Maharashtra in Dec. 2014. Besides the flouting of rules, which the public regards as routine, the most disturbing aspect of the Adarsh Scam was how ministers, politicians, top army officials and bureaucrats were making a beeline to get flats in a building mean for war widows. Some of the prominent names included Union Minister Suresh Prabhu, Former Army Chiefs Deepak Kapoor and N.C. Vij, Sanjoy Sankaran, son of former chief secretary D.K. Sankaran, diplomat Devyani Khobragade, and Congress Party leader Kanhaiyalal Gidwani, who died in 2012, and his two sons. Chavan is the head of the Congress Party in Maharashtra, which described the Adarsh Scam as a "myth" on Thursday. Advertisement Ashok Chavan is a Tall leader @Maharashtra. No vendetta @Dev_Fadnavis can reduce his height. #AdarshScam's a myth. pic.twitter.com/dCeYRxHxd9 Maharashtra Congress (@mahcongress) February 4, 2016 Advertisement Contact HuffPost India Harshvardhan Kadam Sometimes a fancy set of wheels isn't enough to turn heads. But add some cool art to the gleaming exterior and it will never fail to do the trick. Pune-based artist Harshvardhan Kadam has been painting art onto automobiles for years. He turns his love of mythological stories and figures into a custom look that is unique and edgy. Advertisement From a Mercedes Benz GLA to Maruti Suzuki and Toyota cars to humble surfboards, Kadam has worked on varied canvasses. "It is my love for mythology that makes me look towards each and every vehicle as a unique yanntra," Kadam told HuffPost India. Kadam also works on animation and live action films for studios. He is now working on a number of eclectic projects. Last year, the multidisciplinary artist who goes by the name inkbrushnme on social media, had decorated the streets of old Pune with his exquisite murals as a part of Pune Street Art Project. Advertisement Now, with a project to paint two Harley Davidson motorbikes in hand, Kadam shared some of the photos of his artworks on different vehicles. Harshvardhan Kadam When a Mercedes needs a leetle more swag. Harshvardhan Kadam When a Maruti Suzuki car was the perfect canvas. Harshvardhan Kadam Exhibitionism at its best. Andy Yen/Facebook Even this cab's got it. Harshvardhan Kadam Cuz when you go surfin' you better shine there. Harshvardhan Kadam Dark and mysterious. Advertisement Contact HuffPost India GHE For three years, Global Himalayan Expedition (GHE), a group that promotes 'impact tourism, has been bringing solar-powered light to desperate villages that dot the more remote areas of Ladakh. They have influenced approximately 2,000 lives with almost zero percent carbon footprint. Last year the team help bring solar-powered electricity to Shingo, a village in the Hemis national Park region situated at a trekking distance of 40 miles from the nearest motor-able road. "The village comprises 30 rooms and 60 residents (male and female). The villagers had been sending applications and requests for over 10 years to the local authorities, but to no avail," Paras Loomba, founder of GHE, told HuffPost India. Advertisement Today, it hosts 3 DC (ensuring zero electrical loss as there is no conversion to AC) solar Microgrids, 70 3W LED bulbs, 3 number of 20W street lights, and a DC LED TV (the first in the region). They also 'electrified' Lankarchey Brok, a Kargil village that has been surviving without electricity for 68 years in a quick turnaround period of two days. Ecstatic villagers at Lankarchey Brok, a Kargil village that had been surviving without electricity for 68 years In 2014, they set up solar Microgrids in an 11th century village called Sumda Chemo in the Zanskar valley. Loomba claimed that GHEs solar Microgrids provide homes with up to 10 hours of electricity per day with a backup of two days, and can run uninterrupted for 5 years as compared to generic solar lanterns that would typically supply 3-4 hours of electricity and last for a year or two at most. Advertisement A village GHE brought light to in 2014 After a year, an on-ground analysis by GHE showed that the Microgrids had completely eliminated usage of 1,600 litres of kerosene (approximately 4000kgs of CO2), relieving villagers from poisonous fumes generated through oil lamps use for lighting and cooking. It also allowed them to work for four additional hours, and contributed an income increase by at least Rs 2,00,000 (annually). A look at one of the 40 villages that GHE plans to light up this year Located at 14,000 feet, the village is a two-day trek from the nearest sign of civilisation, and was an outpost during the ancient silk route, but had never seen light in its 1,000 years of existence, said Loomba, who hails from an army background, and spent a decent amount of his childhood in the Himalayas. An ex-engineer, Loomba quit his corporate job in 2012 after completing an International Antarctica Expedition in 2012. Inspired by the programme led by Robert Swan, he claimed to have received a first-hand experience in climate change issues affecting the world. I came back to India to create a similar experience involving a social impact through a global audience in the Himalayan region), he said. Advertisement Solar panels after installation On discovering the excellent potential of the region for solar energy (Ladakh receives 300 days of bright sunlight every year) -- Loomba and his core team who had immersed themselves in the study of renewable energy started to set up affordable, renewable systems. This involved a detailed study of the region and its topography. The 2010 flash floods, lack of basic amenities and infrastructure, falling education standards, growing pollution, and migration to bigger cities was a testimony to the fact that the region needed attention. Hence, we identified Ladakh not only as a region to conduct our first expedition but also implement sustainable technological solutions for the remote communities facing the brunt of climate change for years, he said. Horses carrying solar equipment cross a mountain pass Every year, GHE invites 20 participants from across the world they have been receiving 800 1,000 applications annually after a stringent screening process to be a part of the expedition team. Most of the funding for the projects is derived from the registration fees, in addition to subsidies and sponsors. "Its very important to know the passion of the applicant for the cause because its not easy to trek 80-90 kilometres in such harsh climatic conditions in the world, criss-crossing routes marred with rains, narrow trails, -3 degree wind chills with heavy solar kits and other equipment with absolutely no communication and very limited medical facility." Advertisement The Leh-based 3rd Pole Education Base covered in snow Once the villages have been 'electrified' as Loomba puts it, GHE promotes home-stays in these areas through an online booking portal, www.greenhimalayanvillages.com. This provides an additional source of income for GHE operations and direct income for the villagers running these home-stays, said Loomba. In addition to developing specialised electrical energy efficient products for himalayan rural markets, and designing low power DC high Lumen LED lights to assist the project, the company also runs an Education Base powered completely by solar energy that encourages young blood to ideate and develop programmes around various themes of sustainability. The Leh-based 3rd Pole Base (one of 3 E-Bases in the world) has impacted over 800 students in the last three years, shared Loomba proudly, adding that they had also opened a robotics lab and a Disney playroom for the students. Children tinker at the robotics lab The team also created a world record by successfully traveling from Khardung la to Leh (the worlds highest motor-able road) on two electric bikes (sourced from Ahmedabad, and modified) charged exclusively through solar energy. If clean tech solutions can work here, they can work anywhere in the world, said Loomba. Advertisement This year, GHE aims to light up a 2,500-year-old cave monastery in Phutkal, in addition to 40 other villages, with an ultimate vision to bring light to 50 million people by 2025. Also See On HuffPost: ASSOCIATED PRESS In this Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2016 file photo, Indian soldiers keep guard at the perimeter fence of the Indian air force base in Pathankot, India, Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2016. Indian defense minister Manohar Parrikar had said on Tuesday that Indian forces have killed the last of the six militants who attacked the air force base near the Pakistan border over the weekend, though soldiers are still searching the base as a precaution. (AP Photo/Channi Anand, File) Indian Air Force has issued shoot- at-sight orders against anyone attempting to scale the walls of the bases under sensitive Western Air Command in the backdrop of the terror attack on Pathankot air base in Punjab. "All bases in the Western Air Command have been put on high alert. Shoot-at-sight orders have been issued against anyone attempting to enter the base by scaling the perimeter wall or through unauthorised access," a senior IAF officer said. Advertisement IAF has also asked the government to strictly impose the ban against construction within 100 metres of any air base and within 900 metres of its ammunition depot. Replying to queries about an insider possibly having had a role in the Pathankot attack, he said that NIA was investigating this angle but a preliminary probe by IAF has not found anything to substantiate such a suspicion. Describing the Pathankot attack as a "learning experience", the official said that IAF is in the process of finalising a Rs 8,000-crore comprehensive security proposal for its 54 main flying bases in the country. Advertisement That will include smart perimeter intrusion system, CCTVs, motion detectors, quadro drones, among other things. The cost will come to about Rs 100-150 crore per base, he said. The officer said, "These proposals were already in the pipeline. Because of financial constraints, we are doing it in a phased manner. Our first focus was to protect the main assets and then move to the perimeter wall." He said the government has told IAF that there will be no financial constraints for these works. "The proposal is being prepared. We hope to get it going as soon as possible," he said, adding that the IAF is fast-tracking the process. IAF has completed a special audit of all its 950 flying and non-flying establishments. He said that two teams from the Directorate of Air Staff carried out the audit of the bases. "No major weaknesses were found in the audit," he said, adding that similar audits are conducted every six months. Advertisement The official explained that no two air bases were the same and IAF will put in place a customised security system for each. ALSO READ: These Are The Soldiers Who Laid Down Their Lives In Pathankot Asked whether the western air bases will be given priority, he said that even the bases in the eastern sector are under threat and modernisation would be done on the basis of threat perception. IAF would also be raising more Garud commandos and the perimeter wall would continue to be manned by personnel of the Defence Security Corps, he said. The official added that another priority was to remove encroachments around the bases. Advertisement Contact HuffPost India Also on HuffPost: A village council in Uttar Pradesh let off an alleged rapist after he touched his victim's feet, according to a report in the Times of India. The charade in the name of instant justice was carried out right in front of the local police. A 30-year-old woman, working at a levelling project under the MNREGA at a forested area in Meergunj, was alone during the lunch hour on January 28 when the 32-year-old accused, Rohtash, allegedly dragged her to an isolated spot and raped her, the report said. The accused threatened to kill her if she raised an alarm. When she went to the Meergunj police station to lodge a complaint, police officials refused to take her seriously. They called up the village head instead, who called for a panchayat or council outside the police station. The accused, Rohtash, was asked to touch her feet and ask for forgiveness. Advertisement When he did, the panchayat declared him absolved of his guilt and even asked the survivor to stay mum on the crime. When the rape survivor called the superintendent of police, Brijesh Srivastava, he directed the Meergunj police to lodge a complaint. Advertisement Contact HuffPost India Also on HuffPost: Rajkummar rao/Twitter NEW DELHI -- Actor Rajkummar Rao says he is proud to be a part of Aligarh as he feels the movie doesn't take the conventional route of depicting gay characters on screen. Aligarh, also starring Manoj Bajpayee in the lead role, is based on the life of Aligarh Muslim University professor Shrinivas Ramchandra Siras, who was suspended because of his sexual orientation. He was later found dead in his room. Advertisement Rajkummar said it is high time the cliched representation of gay characters is done away with. "I am uncomfortable with how gay people are shown in comedies and films... I don't agree with it. I anyway have a problem with anything that is caricaturist or over-the-top in nature. Aligarh is an important film because it shows these people like anyone else," Rajkummar told PTI in an interview. The actor said there was not an iota of apprehension in him to come on board for the Hansal Mehta-directed drama as he fell in love with the script. "A good script is rare to come by. 80 per cent of what we get is plain boring or conventional. Aligarh is one of the most beautifully written scripts ever. I can't say no to a story like this nor can I do anything (bad) to my craft. I knew we were making something very important. This would make people talk about the issue. As an artiste there was no hesitancy on my part. We wanted to tell this story with full conviction." Rajkummar's character is inspired by journalist Deepu Sebastian, who covered stories related to Siras. Advertisement The actor said though he could not meet Sebastian during the film's shooting, he got to speak to the journalist over phone which helped him pick little nuances of the South Indian man, from his accent to his commitment to work. "My character is based on this guy called Deepu Sebastian. I spoke to him a number of times, tried to figure out his way of working. He was very open about everything, supportive and was all for the cause and the movie. "He shared many recorded interviews with me which helped me pick his accent. I got a commitment and energy from him that I tried putting in my character. I could not meet him at that time though. The actor said they finally met after the film's screening and Rajkummar was glad that Sebastian loved the film and his performance, even though a lot in the movie was fictionalised. "I met him after the first screening and the first thing he told me was 'I never kissed my editor!' I told him, 'It is okay no one will judge you on that'. Advertisement "He is a very sweet boy, he was very happy seeing the film. He liked my performance too. He was close to professor Siras, though he never met him personally. In the film, we have fictionalised this part." Talking about sharing screen space with Manoj for the fist time, the young star said, "Working with him was wonderful. Acting is about reacting to the other person. Manoj sir creates such magical moments on screen that it feels amazing working alongside him." This is Rajkummar's third collaboration with Hansal after Shahid (2012) and CityLights (2014) and the actor admits he takes it as a huge responsibility to deliver his best. "We just connect. It has happened to a lot of director- actor pairs like Hrishikesh Mukherjee worked with Amitabh Bachchan and Amol Palekar a lot, Martin Scorsese worked with Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio all his life... We also found our voice together. We understand each other really well and Hansal challenges me as an actor which is very good for me." Aligarh is slated to hit theatres on 26 February. Advertisement Contact HuffPost India Also see on HuffPost: Neha Gupta via Getty Images Sepia shot of a pregnant woman holding her belly. NEW DELHI -- At a loss of how to deal with the crisis of female foeticide, described by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as a "national shame," Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi recently suggested mandatory sex determination and registration of a foetus, which could be tracked to prevent abortion. Following a public uproar against the proposal, Gandhi's ministry clarified that this was a proposal that had come from the stakeholders and there was no plan yet to make this a policy. Advertisement This was an example of a classic malady of Indian policymaking--the propensity for reactionary legislation to cover up the state's inability to address endemic ailments. A number of public health specialists and activists have slammed the suggestion for its inherent presumption that all pregnant women are potentially guilty and the invasion of privacy involved in tracking them. 'Her Idea Is Totally Wrong' Objections to Gandhi's anti-feminist idea include: shifting the culpability of sex selection from the medical professionals to women and violating women's right to their bodies. "We have already criminalised sex selection so her idea is totally wrong. They will be checking women instead of doctors. It violates the whole feminist principle of women's right to their bodies," said Ranjana Kumari, who heads the Delhi-based Centre for Social Research. Advertisement So far, neither the law against sex selection nor cosmetic exertions like the #SelfieWithDaughter campaign have arrested India's dipping sex ratio, which stands at 918, dipping further from 927 in 2001, and reaching the lowest level since 1961. With the snowballing of ultrasonography technology since the nineties, states with skewed sex ratios have become worse, and sex selection has spread far and wide. Usha Ramanathan, a prominent civil liberties lawyer, said that interference by the Indian state in the lives of the people is becoming a "theme song," and instead of targeting the "managers of technology" (medical professionals and quacks in the case of female foeticide), Gandhi's proposal targets the "subjects of technology" the public. "You can't put a pregnant woman under surveillance," she said. "Instead of going after corporates and government institutions, it is easier to target people, who are the most vulnerable." In an interview with HuffPost India, Ramanathan said that Gandhi's proposal would drive institutional deliveries, but the conditions in government hospitals is so bad that women often lose their babies because of blood loss. Advertisement "So now a woman would have to prove...'no, no I wasn't getting an abortion. I was just bleeding'... such an idea sees everyone as potential criminals," she said. "Instead of asking why do we have a problem to start with, you are presuming the woman is a criminal and trying to get into her private life." 'Anger and Frustration' The skewed sex ratio is the root of problems ranging from poor health for mothers who get frequent abortions to the trafficking of girls to parts of the country with an acute shortage of brides. Official data on female foeticide is unreliable. In 2014, Madhya Pradesh accounted for the highest number (30) of the total 101 cases of female foeticide reported in 2014, according to the National Crimes Record Bureau. In 2006, the United Nations said that 7,000 female foetuses are aborted every day in India. Last year, Gandhi said that 2,000 girls are aborted in the womb, everyday. The Indian government does not maintain gender-wise data of foeticide. In 2011, however, a study published in British medical journal The Lancet found that at least 12 million Indian girls were aborted since 1981. Reports on how much the sex selection industry is worth varies from Rs15crores to Rs1000 crores, but there is lack of official data on the this figure or the on the nationwide number of arrests and prosecution for female foeticide. Advertisement "This view is coming out of her (Gandhi's) anger and frustration at not being able to implement the law," said Kumari. Also on HuffPost: News / National by Tendai Mugabe The Zanu-PF leadership should intervene and stop rogue elements that have intensified their nefarious agendas of destroying the party from within by abusing social media and discussing classified party secrets on public platforms.The sentiments by the Zanu-PF secretary for the Youth League Pupurai Togarepi come in the wake of frenzied tweeting by Higher and Tertiary Education, Science and Technology Development Minister Professor Jonathan Moyo who has been attacking fellow party members on social media.Togarepi told The Herald yesterday that Zanu-PF had mechanisms to deal with those who refused to toe the party line.The call by the Youth League followed similar concerns by other progressive organisations that have expressed displeasure over the abuse of social media by senior Government and party officials.Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association expressed its displeasure on the same issue and yesterday Police Commissioner General Augustine Chihuri weighed in saying abuse of social media might destabilise the country.In his official capacity as Zanu-PF First Secretary, President Mugabe last year voiced his displeasure over the abuse of social media. He said party members should not seek to undermine each other using the Internet.In an interview yesterday, Togarepi said the intentions of those abusing social media were not clear.Togarepi said Zanu-PF had plenty platforms and organs to discuss party issues such as the Politburo, Central Committee and National Consultative Assembly among others."It is unfortunate and we are very worried at the continued abuse of these social media platforms," he said."As Zanu-PF, we do not have a platform called Twitter, WhatsApp or Facebook."It is something we are worried about and we are struggling to stop our youths from abusing these platforms."The leadership of the party should sit down with those involved. If they refuse to listen, there are procedures to deal with them." The more worrying aspect, said Togarepi, was that the party does not know who controlled the servers of those social media platforms.As such, he said messages posted on social media could be used by the party's detractors to destroy the party in future."We don't know who controls the servers of these platforms and to us it is a cause for concern," he said.If put to good use, Togarepi said, social media platforms could be used to advance party programmes.He said it was worrying when such platforms were being turned into cannons of assault on fellow party members.He said President Mugabe spoke strongly against such abuse and bona fide party members should take heed. Hindustan Times via Getty Images NOIDA, INDIA - JANUARY 29: Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan speaks during the formal announcement regarding edutainment theme park KidZania in Delhi/NCR at the Entertainment City on January 29, 2016 in Noida, India. KidZania is an edutainment theme park with 21 operational centers across 18 countries. Its Delhi NCR park will be open to public in May 2016. (Photo by Burhaan Kinu/Hindustan Times via Getty Images) BHUJ -- Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) members today protested against the ongoing shooting of Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan's film Raees in the district, for his earlier remarks on "intolerance". Around 20-30 VHP activists had yesterday handed over a memorandum to district officers and demanded withdrawal of the permission given for the shooting of the film. Advertisement Today, they protested outside the district Collector's office pressing for the same demand. They shouted slogans against the actor and also burnt and tore his posters. "From the Collector's office they wanted to go to the place where the shooting is on, which is on the outskirts of the Bhuj city, but we have stopped them and dispersed them," Police Sub-Inspector (PSI) M B Parmar said. "He should think, living in this country which gave him name, fame and riches; if he goes on speaking about non-existent intolerance, the VHP will never forgive," Gujarat VHP general secretary Ranchod Bharwad said. "Today there is news that a Hindu temple was attacked and vandalised in Pakistan. Why are they not giving any statement on the intolerance there," he asked. Advertisement In December last year, workers of right wing organisations had staged protest against Khan in Gujarat, Rajasthan states and called for a boycott of his film Dilwale on the same issue. Shah Rukh Khan had entered the ongoing debate on intolerance on November 2 last year by expressing that there was "extreme intolerance" in the country. Advertisement Contact HuffPost India Also On HuffPost: YouTube NEW DELHI -- Four days after a Tanzanian woman was attacked on a street in Bengaluru, the government of Karnataka has refuted allegations that she was stripped and paraded naked, characterizing the incident as a mob reaction to an accident instead of a racist attack. "There was no stripping and parading naked," Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara told reporters on Thursday. "This is definitely not a racial attack. It was just a response to the accident by the Sudanese student. I don't think Bangaloreans have that kind of a mindset." Advertisement On 31 January, a car driven by Sudanese student Mohammed Ismail hit two local residents, K. Sanaullah and his wife, triggering the incident which has sparked outrage across the country. While K. Sanaullah was injured, his wife died on the spot. Ismail was also injured and his car was set on fire. The Tanzanian woman, who was traveling with other companions, was pulled out of their car by the angry mob, when they arrived at the spot around 30 minutes after the accident. Her companions were also assaulted and their vehicle was torched. When the student tried to board a bus to escape, she was pushed out by other passengers. Contrary to the Karnataka government, Tanzanian ambassador to India John W.H. Kijazi said that the attack on 31 January had a "racist element." "You see a black person, you run to him and beat him," Kijaz told ANI. "It means there is an element of racism." "Every black person is an enemy because an Indian lady has been killed by a black person?" he told Times Now. Advertisement Another student, who was also attacked by the mob on 31 January, said, "it was a clear case of racial attack." "They beat her severely," he told Times Now, referring to the Tanzanian student. "They tore her clothes for sure." Five persons have been arrested in connection with the horrific incident, so far. In a police complaint filed on Sunday, the Tanzanian woman did not mention that she was stripped, The Indian Express reported, but she said that her top was removed in a subsequent complaint filed on Wednesday following media reports. We were shocked by media reports on Wednesday and we summoned the woman to know what exactly happened. She appeared before the Soladevanahalli police and gave a new statement, saying she was stripped by a mob. We have added suitable sections of the IPC to the FIR that was registered earlier based on the complaint that her car was set on fire. We need to investigate further," T.R. Suresh, a senior police official, told IE. Om Prakash, Karnataka's top cop, contradicted Suresh. "She did not say that she was stripped and paraded," he told ANI. And Parameshwara today said that the Tanzanian woman made no mention of being stripped naked in her complaint. Advertisement On Thursday, Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj said that she was "deeply pained over the shameful incident," and had asked the Siddaramaiah-led Congress Party government in Karnataka to ensure the safety of all foreign students. Meanwhile, Congress Party Vice President Rahul Gandhi has also asked the Karnataka government for a report on the incident. Advertisement Contact HuffPost India News / National by Samantha Chigogo The Zimbabwe Liberation War Collaborators Association has thrown its weight behind war veterans leader Christopher Mutsvangwa, dismissing the petition that emanated from Mashonaland West recalling him.In a statement, Ziliwaco chairperson for Chegutu District, Siphiwe Chikukwa, said the petition that targeted Mutsvangwa was fraudulent, as such should be disregarded."As members of the War Collaborators Association, War Veterans, Ex-detainees and Zanu-PF members in Chegutu District would want to condemn in the strongest terms the untimely petition that was targeted at Ambassador Christopher Mutsvangwa who is our member in the Central Committee," she said."We, as Chegutu District do hereby stand by him. We say the dismissal is baseless and does not have signatures of the electoral college that voted him into the Central Committee which made him to be appointed a Politburo member."We kindly ask other districts in the province not to interfere with our district affairs as some of our members are crying foul as their signatures were forged."Chikukwa said they were aware that there were some "power hungry individuals" who were bent on destabilising the party.Meanwhile, Zimbabwe National Liberation Supporters Association (Zinalisa) has also come out guns blazing, attacking people in the party who promoted factionalism and insubordination.Zinalisa president Collins Chipare, said they supported President Mugabe's call for unity in the country in general and the ruling party in particular."We are urging all Zimbabweans of all social strata, race, creed, colour and tribe to desist from engaging and fuelling factionalism in the ruling party Zanu-PF that promotes disunity among our people." YouTube Wins Battle With German PRO For quite some time, the German performing rights organization GEMA has clashed with YouTube, but the popular video sharing service recently triumphed over GEMA in a lawsuit claiming that YouTube was responsible for the content which its users upload. _________________________________ Guest Post by Mike Masnick on Techdirt For many, many years, the big German music performance rights organization GEMA has been at war with YouTube over what rates YouTube must pay for any streamed music. It started with GEMA more or less arguing that a stream on YouTube was effectively the same as a purchased download on iTunes, and that it should get $0.17 per stream (yes, per stream). For anyone who understands even basic economics you'd recognize that's not even remotely in the realm of reality. The battle has gone on ever since, and unlike basically every other country in the world GEMA has refused to budge. Because of this YouTube has blocked most major label music from its service in Germany, while GEMA has filed a variety of lawsuits against YouTube in the country arguing that YouTube is somehow responsible for what YouTube users upload. In the latest round, YouTube scored a victory as a court rightly found that YouTube is a neutral platform and not liable for a user's uploads. According to David Meyer at Fortune: On Thursday, the higher regional court of Munich rejected GEMAs claim for damages to the tune of around 1.6 million ($1.75 million). If youre wondering, that figure represents royalties for 1,000 music videos chosen as examples, at a rate of 0.375 euro cents per view. The court upheld a judgement by the lower regional court in Munich, which said YouTube is just a host for uploaded video. Meyer also notes that GEMA will likely appeal, so it's not over yet. He also notes, of course, that the rate demanded, while still insane, is at least lower than what GEMA was originally asking for. Share on: The chief executive of one of the countrys largest online health insurance marketplaces has lashed out at insurers for throwing Obamacare under the bus.Peter Lee, executive director Covered California, made a series of attacks against UnitedHealth Group Inc. and other insurers in an interview with California Healthline this week. Lee told the publication that UnitedHealth seriously miscalculated rates and networks, leading to its loss of $425 million loss in 2015 on individual policies in the US and a likely loss of $500 million in 2016.Instead of saying, We screwed up, the said, Obamacare is the problem and we may not play anymore, Lee told reporters. It was giving an excuse to Wall Street and throwing the Affordable Care Act under the bus.Lee has been a strong supporter of health reform and the ACA since its inception, and has criticized UnitedHealth in the past. The company, which sat out the launch of Obamacare in 2014, entered the exchanges last year and participated in Covered California in the 2016 open enrollment season.Though Lee welcomed the company at the time, he now admits it is driving me bonkers, having fed this political frenzy that Obamacare doesnt work.Its total spin and unanchored in reality, he said.The statements come after UnitedHealth went public with their Affordable Care Act woes, including their multi-million dollar losses and the cutting of commission to brokers. It has even said it may not participate in the exchanges in coming years.During a November conference call, UnitedHealth CEO Stephen Hemsley told analysts, We cant really subsidize a marketplace that doesnt appear at the moment to be sustaining itselfI think that basically is an industrywide proposition.Lee is not the only person to suggest these problems are self-inflicted, however. An Urban Institute report issued last week suggested UnitedHealths premiums were substantially higher than its competitors in a number of markets across the country. The insurer also offered broader provider networks that tend to attract sicker policyholders who incur greater medical bills.Though other major insurers have not suffered the same degree of losses as has UnitedHealth, they have joined the carrier in its criticism and hesitancy to continue with the public exchanges.Anthem Inc. said last week that its exchange enrollment in 14 states was running 30% below expectations, and Aetna Inc. said Monday it lost up to $140 million on individual coverage last year. News / National by Crime Reporter A self-confessed Norton-based Satanist who was in the habit of raping and robbing women after luring them into believing that he would secure employment for them has been arrested.Trymore Musakanya (27) of Kingsdale, Norton, was arrested on Monday and is facing 15 counts of robbery and five counts of rape.Police investigations revealed that Musakanya would lure women before taking them into a bushy area where he would "confess" to them that he was a Satanist.He would then tell them that it's either they "join him" or donate blood before demanding their valuables and cash.Sources close to the investigations alleged that Musakanya targeted female job seekers in Norton, Pomona, Mabelreign and Ashdown Park in Harare, among other areas.He was still in custody yesterday and assisting police with investigations. He is believed to have committed more such crimes.Musakanya's luck ran out on Monday when one of the victims saw him walking in the Norton area and alerted the police, leading to his arrest.According to police, Musakanya confessed that he was a Satanist and that he had some blood and items that he uses for his cult at his house.This is not the first time police have arrested suspects who commit offences on the pretext that they are linked to Satanism.In July last year, a 29-year-old Mabvuku man raped two minors, forced them to swallow his semen and told the victims that the assault was an initiation into Satanism.Meanwhile, a 14-year-old boy was arraigned before the courts for allegedly breaking and entering into two houses in Waterfalls and stealing property worth $2 230.The boy, who is facing two counts of unlawful entry lives in Waterfalls, Harare.Presiding magistrate Ms Anita Tshuma, however, refused to place him on remand citing that she could not do so since there was no probation officer's report accompanying the docket.Ms Tshuma ordered the State to proceed by way of summons when they obtain all the necessary documentation to continue with prosecution.Allegations are that the boy gained entry into the two houses by breaking the toilet windows and the burglar bars using an iron bar.The State alleged that he stole mobile phones, electrical shaving machines and spanners amongst other items.The boy was apprehended after he was found hiding along Mukuvisi River in possession of some of the stolen property.Property worth $1 430 was recovered. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) gets to live yet another day, as Republicans fail to override President Obamas veto on repealing the arguably divisive law. Congress met Feb. 2 to vote over the issue, but the decision to overturn the veto fell short of earning two-thirds of the vote.Had the veto been successfully overruled, the repeal would annul much of the core components of the ACA - particularly the clauses that declare health insurance mandatory for most individuals and large companies, as well as the taxes imposed by the legislation. It would also rescind the laws option to allow states to expand Medicaid coverage to low-income households. The repeal would have additionally halted federal funding to Planned Parenthood."What we're proving today is if we have a Republican president next year, we will repeal Obamacare," said House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis.Ryan confirmed that the GOP will provide its own alternative proposal to the ACA sometime this year. He stressed that the alternative plan would lead to lower costs and "restore the doctor-patient relationship."Since the ACAs introduction six years ago, Republicans have tried and failed to come up with a viable replacement to the healthcare law.Democrats, citing estimates from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, said that 22 million Americans would lose their medical care had the Presidents veto been denied and the repeal pushed through."[Its] probably one of the saddest examples of a Congress run amok," Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md. said of the Republicans attempt to shoot down the ACA for the 63time.Van Hollen also criticized Republicans for attempting to cut off Planned Parentings federal money. The Selectmen are looking into a green energy supplier for the town's electrical needs. Cheshire Takes Next Steps in Electrical Aggregation CHESHIRE, Mass. The town will begin the process of choosing a preferably green electricity supplier through Colonial Power Group. Mark Cappadona, a Colonial Power Group representative, told the Selectmen on Tuesday that the state Department of Public Utilities has approved the town's ability to join an electrical aggregation other than what National Grid provides. This will allow Cheshire to choose an electrical power supplier from the marketplace. "You can take a look at energy, how long you wanted to go, and the color of the energy," Cappadona said. "You can tie in with the other Berkshire communities if you want ... all those choices can now be made or at least talked about." Last year town meeting passed a warrant article that started this process. Because of the increase in electricity rates, many towns and cities have joined municipal electrical aggregation plans, including some communities in Berkshire County that joined together for group purchasing power. Cappadona said he can begin the process by bringing different rates and providers to Town Administrator Mark Webber, who can relay these options to the Selectmen. Selectman Robert Ciskowski said all of the residents he has talked to showed an interest in green power. The other selectmen echoed this statement and asked that Cappadona limit the options to green energy sources. "The people I have talked to indicated that they really like the green power aspect," Ciskowski said. "We haven't taken a formal poll, but no one has said they do not want green power." Cappadona said green power would most likely come from local hydro and it would be both economically and environmentally responsible. He added that Cheshire can perhaps lock in a cost less than what the Berkshire County group is receiving though Hampshire Power because rates at the moment are historically low. He said Cheshire could see a rate that's a cent less than the other communities. He added although Cheshire could purchase power on its own to save money, it could sync its contract with the Berkshire County group. "You can say your rate will be lower for the 18 months until December of 2017, and because of the timing of your purchase you can save more but still be lined up with them," he said. "You can go back out to the marketplace with them so you get the benefit of program. Procrastination is a wonderful thing this time around." Webber agreed it would be best for Cheshire to go out on its own for now and meet up with the other communities at the end of the contract. He said, "we got lucky." Residents may opt out of any provider the town chooses; National Grid would continue to be the power distributor. Selectwoman Carol Francesconi said McAndrews-King Buick GMC dealer in Adams may be able to provide the Water Department with a three-quarter ton truck for a cheaper rate than the state bid. Although the water users approved the idea of purchasing of a $35,000 truck with a plow, some felt there may be a cheaper option. Francesconi said McAndrews-King's price is $33,863.05, however she did not know if this included strobe lights. Department of Public Works Director Peter LeFebvre said he would rather purchase from a local business but the truck needs strobe lights. "That's a must," LeFebvre said. "He is out in the travel lanes and parked," He said it would cost nearly $900 to install lights, this still would cost less than the state bid. Francesconi said she would provide McAndrews-King's with the needed truck specs and see if they can beat the price. Webber said the Sand Mill Road Bridge preliminary plans were approved by the state Department of Transportation District 1's bridge office and have been sent to the state. Last year, the bridge received a failing grade and was shut down. The town decided to repair the bridge on its own instead of waiting for the state. 'Need to Take Clearance From Govt': BCCI President on Whether India Will Travel to Pakistan For Asia Cup News / National by Stephen Jakes The leader of ZimFirst party Maxwell Shumba has attacked President Robert Mugabe saying he stood shamelessly in front of the well function nations to attack them at the United Nations summit without considering that he dragged his own nation's economy down the drain through misrule.Shumba described Zimbabwe as the Emperor has no clothes."Our Emperor has No Shame. At the recently concluded African Union summit the Emperor from Zimbabwe stood at the podium undressed as he took pot shots aimed at Presidents of well functioning economies," Shumba said. "In particular, the undressed emperor from Zimbabwe took a swipe against Obama for not providing health for all Americans. As is the norm, the senile and undressed emperor effectively practiced very well how to captivate a blind audience with his mastery of the English language and he succeeded."He said ululating and clapping profusely, the audience of unsophisticated and blind African leaders did not even realize that the subject of their admiration was undressed right in front of their eyes."The country he hails from has no health delivery system to talk about let alone compare with Obama's. It has an economy in comatose. Whilst he flies to Singapore for mere eye surgeries, his country continues to accumulate bad records, one after another. In his blindness he does not even realize that the country he claims to be his has become a poster child of how despotic African leaders put to waste natural and human resources," Shumba mocked."Africa now needs a new generation of leaders who feel the air whenever they go undressed (accountability). Africa needs new blood and new thought processes which focus on maximizing the continent's resources to develop their citizenry. The case has never been so strong as now when every thing is collapsing around the blind emperor."He said however, better days for Africa can be way ahead, but will start with Zimbabwe First. News / National by Staff reporter HIGHER and Tertiary Education minister Jonathan Moyo's political career appears to be on the edge as top government and Zanu-PF officials recently used State media to berate him ahead of a politburo meeting next Wednesday, where his conduct is likely to top the agenda.Since last week, Moyo has been receiving brickbats from top government and Zanu-PF officials angered by his use of social media platforms.President Robert Mugabe's spokesperson George Charamba set the ball rolling in a stinging interview aired on a private radio station last week. As Moyo fought back, Mugabe - who has consistently spoken against discussing party issues on social media - on Sunday called on warring factions to unite and stop abusing each other in public.Since then, Zanu-PF secretary for administration Ignatius Chombo, party spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo, war veterans leader Christopher Mutsvangwa and Police Commissioner-General Augustine Chihuri have joined the fray, warning against the abuse of social media in comments that could be seen as directed at Moyo.On Monday, Moyo said the Zanu-PF politburo will discuss social media abuse by party officials at its next meeting, while Chombo reiterated that the ruling party only had one spokesperson, a message widely believed to be directed at the Tsholotsho North MP.Charamba, in his admonition of Moyo, said he was speaking on behalf of Mugabe and the First Family, warning Moyo and the G40 group, before war veterans' leaders threatened to bar him from attending Zanu-PF meetings.Led by Mutsvangwa, who doubles as War Veterans minister, the former freedom fighters have come out guns blazing accusing Moyo of all manner of misdemeanours, including deserting the liberation war.Insiders said fissures have emerged within the G40 faction amid reports some of the group's alleged leaders, Zanu-PF political commissar Saviour Kasukuwere andSince last week, Moyo has been receiving brickbats from top government and Zanu-PF officials angered by his use of social media platforms.President Robert Mugabe's spokesperson George Charamba set the ball rolling in a stinging interview aired on a private radio station last week. As Moyo fought back, Mugabe - who has consistently spoken against discussing party issues on social media - on Sunday called on warring factions to unite and stop abusing each other in public.Since then, Zanu-PF secretary for administration Ignatius Chombo, party spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo, war veterans leader Christopher Mutsvangwa and Police Commissioner-General Augustine Chihuri have joined the fray, warning against the abuse of social media in comments that could be seen as directed at Moyo.On Monday, Moyo said the Zanu-PF politburo will discuss social media abuse by party officials at its next meeting, while Chombo reiterated that the ruling party only had one spokesperson, a message widely believed to be directed at the Tsholotsho North MP.Charamba, in his admonition of Moyo, said he was speaking on behalf of Mugabe and the First Family, warning Moyo and the G40 group, before war veterans' leaders threatened to bar him from attending Zanu-PF meetings.Led by Mutsvangwa, who doubles as War Veterans minister, the former freedom fighters have come out guns blazing accusing Moyo of all manner of misdemeanours, including deserting the liberation war.Insiders said fissures have emerged within the G40 faction amid reports some of the group's alleged leaders, Zanu-PF political commissar Saviour Kasukuwere and Indigenisation minister Patrick Zhuwao have been conspicuous by their silence."You can see that all is not well because the group's most talkative characters have suddenly gone quiet," a source said. "Some of them are actually approaching the other side in the dead of night providing details of the deeds by G40 and their plans."Mutsvangwa has dared Moyo to a legal fight."I can't wait for the discovery of evidence that should lay bare the claims and falsehoods of this Gregory Rasputin reincarnation in Zimbabwe. The courts will hear all that," Mutsvangwa said."The courts would love to hear all those pertinent briefs, verbal and written, that our Rasputin professor has been despatching and journalists will have a smorgasbord of titillating political gossip and with it the downright lies of garrulous machinations."Moyo, who normally uses micro-blogging site Twitter to lash out at opponents, is bracing for the war against him."Mutsvangwa thinks he can do to some of us what he did to Joice Mujuru with Charamba's and (The) Herald's help. Handei tione! (Let the action begin and see how it ends!)," he wrote yesterday.Mujuru, the former Vice-President, was removed from her party and government positions, on allegations she was behind a plot to unseat Mugabe unconstitutionally, while Charamba, the veteran leader's Press secretary, has emerged as Moyo's nemesis in the internecine struggles for power in Zanu-PF.Yesterday, former Zanu-PF Mashonaland West provincial chairperson Temba Mliswa also waded into the fight as the storm clouds gathered around Moyo.Mliswa defended the use of an army barracks for a war veterans' meeting, something Moyo took issue with, saying the former freedom fighters are the army's last line of defence and "an extended arm of the army".The former Zanu-PF provincial chairman said it was disingenuous for Moyo to complain about the abuse of The Herald to settle political scores, as the Tsholotsho legislator had done the same in a bid to discredit Mujuru and her supporters.It seems Moyo has also been frozen out by State media, as his statement hitting back at Charamba and Mutsvangwa went unreported, while The Herald has also described his penchant for social media as "frenzied tweeting".Moyo previously had unchallenged control of State media, but their lack of enthusiasm at his statement could indicate shifting attitudes. We work towards an equitable, gender-just, self-reliant and sustainable fisheries, particularly in the small-scale, artisanal sector We work towards an equitable, gender-just, self-reliant and sustainable fisheries, particularly in the small-scale, artisanal sector We work towards an equitable, gender-just, self-reliant and sustainable fisheries, particularly in the small-scale, artisanal sector We work towards an equitable, gender-just, self-reliant and sustainable fisheries, particularly in the small-scale, artisanal sector News / National by Staff reporter PRESIDENT Robert Mugabe should stop attacking NGOs which have kept the country afloat over the past 16 years of social and economic turmoil and, rather, commend them for covering up "your" mess, a local opposition party has said.The MDC party led by Welshman Ncube was responding to the veteran leader's utterances at African Union summit in Ethiopian, as well as upon his return last Saturday at the Harare International Airport, when he denounced NGOs operating in the country.Since 2002 when Zimbabwe was slapped with sanctions by the West for alleged human rights abuses and electoral fraud, Mugabe has regularly attacked NGOs claiming they were aiding efforts by the United States and Britain to remove him from power."The only time President Mugabe's rants at NGOs will be justified is when his government provides alternative provisions for the suffering millions," Kurauone Chihwayi the MDC national spokesperson said in a statement Tuesday."Right now we advise him to tuck in his tail between his legs and shut up as far as the operations of these organizations are concerned."Chihwayi said President Mugabe should be thankful to the donor community for providing humanitarian assistance to the country."NGOs have literally carried the nation in terms of humanitarian support in areas including the health and reproductive sector, food aid, advocacy work for human rights and many others," he said."Mugabe is missing the point completely in shooting his mouth off at the hand that literally feeds his nation."What President Mugabe should be ensuring is that meaningful steps are taken to safeguard the operating environment for humanitarian agencies in the country".Government has previously threatened to cancel operating licenses for NGOs which operate in rural areas, accusing them working with the opposition.First Lady Grace Mugabe recently told villagers in Binga to disassociate themselves from NGOs which she claimed were being pushed by the West to help remove her husband from power.Dangamvura-Chikanga legislator Esau Mupfumi also recently said all NGOs operating in the constituency should be vetted by his office. Whether in fashion modelling or in life, Monika Sta. Maria never stands still but always STRUTS ON Asias Next Top Model (AsNTM) Cycle 3 first runner-up Monika Sta. Maria has always had a life philosophy synonymous with the Lenovo VIBE ON spiritway before this proud Filipina model heard what the latter is all about. Simple hashtags on her official Facebook page such as #justkeepswimming and #dreamchaser have given us a glimpse of what this young, competitive, sweet beauty is all about. Unconsciously, she was already echoing Lenovos new overarching master brand position based on the belief that life rewards those who never stand still. Meet Monika Sta. Maria, one of the ambassadors of Lenovos new campaign platform for smartphones, VIBE ON. Making big strides at a young age At the young age of 23, Monika already has a long list of achievements under her fashionable belt. As a collegiate volleyball varsity player for the team De La Salle University (DLSU) Lady Spikers, a BS Psychology degree holder and a TV game show host in TV5's Game 'N Go, Marias achievements include being the winner of the 2012 Century Superbod pageant, and the first runner-up in the 2015 AsNTM. This millennial is so full of confidence that one would never have thought she was once someone who was afraid to come out of her shell. "I used to be such a shy person. I would always be so nervous speaking in front of the class," Monika narrated. But trying out for her schools volleyball varsity team changed her on the inside. "Never did I think I could survive collegiate volleyball competitions, but I just dared to go for it," she said. The center spiker got so much more than court playing time at UAAP Season 71 back in 2012. She shared that it was volleyball that taught her how powerful the mind can be, and how a person can learn to condition one's mind to push oneself through any obstacles and hardships to achieve one's goal. Apparently, it's more powerful than nerves. "I had to participate in a fashion show representing DLSU's new athletes. I did not feel nervous at all," Monika beamed. And thanks to her sports-toned physique, height, and natural stage presence, talent managers immediately noticed she belonged on the runway. Her VIBE ON spirit It was not all smooth sailing at the onset of Monika's modelling career. Hard work, long commutes and even a few rejections were part of the mix. She actually auditioned for the second season of AsNTM but didn't get through. Instead of giving up, however, she accepted it as a challenge and tried her luck again on the third season. "Other people have this mindset that if the first try doesn't work out, then it's not really for them. Me, I just showed up again for the third season's screening," she said. Her perseverance paid off and the rest, as they say, is history. It is her never-say-die attitude that makes her the perfect personification of Lenovo's new and vibrant VIBE ON campaign. Targeting predominantly the millennials, the VIBE ON brand aims to empower individuals who never stand still. "I felt what it was like to be in the bottom (of the competition). I almost got eliminated. It was really tough. But I reminded myself that as long as I wasnt eliminated yet, I still (had) a chance," she shared. "I keep striving for something better. When sometimes certain situations pull me down, I keep getting back so I can achieve my goals. I keep believing in myself, push through. Never giving up. Picture-perfect poses The Lenovo VIBE S1, a unique smartphone with two front cameras and a stylish curved-glass back design, must have been made for the likes of Monika Sta. Maria. "I really love the Vibe S1. I'm really happy about it," she gushed. . Its so useful for all my daily activities since I can use it for taking pictures especially selfie and groufie photos, posting on social media, organizing my schedule., and of course, calling, texting and chatting with all my friends! The VIBE S1 is the latest addition to Lenovos line up of smartphones under the VIBE ON campaign that empowers individuals to go their own way by providing smartphones with the latest technology and features they care about at a price they wouldnt expect. Its a smartphone that combines a fashionable exterior with the capability of taking creative selfies thanks to its dual selfie cameras an 8MP primary front camera that takes the sharpest photos and a 2MP secondary front camera that analyzes depth of field information to replicate human binocular vision. Together, these two cameras allows users to do selfies with a creative twist to it. "I like it that it's very sleek and stylish. And it's quite affordable, too," said Monika. Monika especially loves her Lenovo VIBE S1s capability to record moments clearly as she can take pictures even on low-light conditions all thanks to the BSI sensor that allows users to capture their best self in any lighting condition. Power to Strut On Monika believes that millennials like her can also have the power to strut on in life and succeed in whatever endeavor they choose to pursue. All that one needs to embrace is the belief that they can. Continue to believe if sometimes you feel you're at your lowest. You'll never know how far you can go unless you try and you're brave enough to take the journey," advises Monika Sta. Maria. Back to top Portugal--Concluding Statement of the Third Post-Program Monitoring Discussions A Concluding Statement describes the preliminary findings of IMF staff at the end of an official staff visit (or mission), in most cases to a member country. Missions are undertaken as part of regular (usually annual) consultations under Article IV of the IMF's Articles of Agreement, in the context of a request to use IMF resources (borrow from the IMF), as part of discussions of staff monitored programs, or as part of other staff monitoring of economic developments. The authorities have consented to the publication of this statement. The views expressed in this statement are those of the IMF staff and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMFs Executive Board. Based on the preliminary findings of this mission, staff will prepare a report that, subject to management approval, will be presented to the IMF Executive Board for discussion and decision. Lisbon, February 4, 2016 An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission visited Lisbon during January 27February 3, 2016, for the third Post-Program Monitoring discussionspart of the IMFs regular surveillance of countries with IMF credit outstanding above 200 percent of quota. The IMF mission was coordinated with the European Commission and the European Central Bank. At the end of the visit, the mission issued the following statement: The Portuguese economic recovery has been underway for three years, and the unemployment rate is now close to pre-crisis levels. The country has regained the confidence of foreign investors and has been able to borrow in international markets on very favorable terms and at long maturities. Looking ahead, however, growth prospects remain constrained by high levels of indebtedness and structural bottlenecks. High public debt leaves little scope for relaxation of the fiscal stance. Further reforms are also needed to raise the economys growth potential, mitigate downside risks, and alleviate the burden of private sector debt. In addition, bank balance sheets need to be strengthened to avoid further negative surprises. 1. In the third year of economic recovery, Portugals growth rate has leveled off at around 1.5 percent, in line with the euro area average. Portugals successful stabilization of the economy under the Economic Assistance Program paved the way for the ongoing recovery, a marked rebalancing of its sources of growth, and a sharp drop in unemployment. Given that the economy is still facing high debt levels and structural constraints, IMF staff expects growth to ease gradually as the impact of supportive external conditions fades. Risks to the outlook are tilted to the downside, underscored by the rise in sovereign risk premia, elevated uncertainty regarding global growth, and recent financial sector developments. 2. Portugal needs to build on the progress made in recent years in stabilizing the level of public debt through its successful fiscal adjustment. Looking forward, a continuation of these efforts would help maintain Portugals hard-won credibility and market confidence. In this context, the authorities commitment to medium term fiscal consolidation is welcome. 3. The 2016 Draft Budgetary Plan (DBP) implies a loosening of the fiscal stance. The structural primary balance is estimated to have deteriorated by 0.5 percent of GDP in 2015, and is projected to loosen by a further 0.8 percent in 2016. The authorities are targeting an overall fiscal deficit of 2.6 percent of GDP, higher than the 1.8 percent deficit projected in the 2015 Stability Program. IMF staffs assessment points to a higher overall deficit of 3.2 percent of GDP, reflecting the staffs macroeconomic and revenue projections. In addition to sufficiently ambitious budgetary targets, the authorities should consider maintaining appropriate buffers to guard against fiscal risks. These include the additional fiscal costs of proposals such as the 35-hour work week for public sector employees, and of the reconsideration of recent privatization and concession agreements, or of any contingent liabilities arising from the financial sector. 4. The banking systems balance sheets need to be strengthened to avoid further negative surprises and protect taxpayers. Recent developments underscore the need to continue to build on past efforts to improve bank profitability, asset quality, and governance. Banks should seek to restore profitability with a greater sense of urgency, by intensifying efforts to reduce operating costs, divesting from non-core and unprofitable activities, and improving asset quality. In this context, banks should also accelerate the reduction of non-performing exposures with the help of more ambitious capital plans. Efforts to strengthen banks internal governance should continue, allowing problems to be identified and addressed early on. 5. A more ambitious approach to corporate debt workouts is needed. A substantial share of banking system assets remains tied up in low productivity activities, holding back the economys growth potential. At the same time, limited incentives to deleverage for both banks and their clients have weighed on the pace of corporate debt reduction. Further progress in debt reduction would help free up credit for new and higher productivity firms. 6. The authorities intention to remove structural impediments to growth is welcome. In a monetary union, reforms to labor and product markets are essential to increase flexibility and competitiveness, while safeguarding against downside risks. Substantial progress has been made in this regard in recent years. A weakening of reform momentum going forward could diminish medium-term prospects for growth, employment, and income. As labor market reforms are critical to spur job creation, changes to policies that have made hiring and collective bargaining more flexible could adversely affect prospects for the unemployed. Efforts to strengthen the social safety net are welcome, although the recent increase in the minimum wage could make it more difficult for the low-skilled to find employment. The mission would like to express its gratitude to the Portuguese authorities, and our counterparts at the European Commission and the European Central Bank for a close and constructive dialogue. Portugal: Selected Economic Indicators (Year-on-year percent change, unless otherwise indicated) Estimate Projections 2014 2015 2016 2017 Real GDP 0.9 1.5 1.4 1.3 Private consumption 2.2 2.7 1.5 1.3 Public consumption -0.5 0.4 0.0 0.5 Gross fixed capital formation 2.8 4.6 3.0 2.5 Exports 3.9 5.0 3.9 4.8 Imports 7.2 5.9 3.8 5.0 Contribution to growth (percentage points) Total domestic demand 2.1 2.2 1.5 1.4 Foreign balance -1.3 -0.4 0.0 -0.2 Resource utilization Employment 1.6 1.2 1.0 0.5 Unemployment rate (percent) 13.9 12.3 11.5 11.0 Prices GDP deflator 1.0 1.8 1.5 1.4 Consumer prices (harmonized index) -0.2 0.5 0.7 1.2 Money and credit (end of period, percent change) Private sector credit -5.5 -3.0 0.3 0.6 Broad money -0.8 3.8 3.4 2.1 Fiscal indicators (percent of GDP) General government balance 1/ -7.2 -4.4 -3.2 -2.8 Primary government balance -2.3 0.3 1.4 1.6 Structural primary balance (percent of potential GDP) 3.5 3.0 2.2 2.1 General government debt 130.2 129.0 128.2 126.0 Current account balance (percent of GDP) 0.6 1.0 2.1 1.6 Nominal GDP (billions of euros) 173.4 179.1 184.4 189.4 Sources: Bank of Portugal; Ministry of Finance; National Statistics Office (INE); Eurostat; and IMF staff projections. 1/ In 2014, the general government balance includes one-off measures from SOE and banking sector support operations, CIT credit, and the upfront costs of mutual agreements totaling 3.7 percent of GDP. In 2015, the general government balance includes the fiscal cost of Banif (1.2 percent of GDP). Imperial Valley News Center Vermont Man Surrenders U.S. Citizenship and Consents to Removal from United States Washington, DC - A Bosnian-born Burlington, Vermont, man surrendered his U.S. citizenship because he lied about his military service during the Bosnian war and the court cancelled his certificate of naturalization. Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Departments Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Eric S. Miller of the District of Vermont, Special Agent in Charge Matthew J. Etre of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcements Homeland Security Investigations (ICE-HSI) Boston Office and Special Agent in Charge Andrew W. Vale of the FBIs Albany, New York, Field Office made the announcement. Edin Sakoc, 55, stipulated to the courts order of denaturalization and loss of citizenship based on a civil complaint alleging that Sakoc illegally and fraudulently obtained U.S. citizenship by giving false or misleading information to a U.S. official. According to court documents, when Sakoc sought refugee status in the United States in 2001, he misrepresented his wartime service in the Croatian Defense Council by denying that he served in a reconnaissance unit. Members of the public who have information about former human rights violators in the United States are urged to contact U.S. law enforcement through the Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Email links icon or toll-free at 1-800-813-5863, or through the HSI tip line at 1-866-DHS-2-ICE or to complete its online tip form at www.ice.gov/exec/forms/hsi-tips/tips.asp. HSI Burlington and the FBIs Albany Division investigated the case, with assistance from ICEs Human Rights Violators and War Crimes Center. The Criminal Divisions Office of International Affairs and its counterpart at the Prosecutors Office of Bosnia and Herzegovina provided valuable assistance. Senior Trial Attorney Jay Bauer of the Criminal Divisions Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Eugenia A.P. Cowles of the District of Vermont are prosecuting the case. News / National by Staff reporter There are growing fears within Zanu-PF that the ruling party's escalating factional and succession wars could soon witness body bags, with the tone of the infighting getting nastier and uglier by the day.Party insiders who spoke to the Daily News yesterday said they were "very worried" about the extent to which the two main factions battling for supremacy within the former liberation movement now appeared "to hate each other"."I think anyone who says that they are not concerned by the wars will be lying. The truth of the matter is that at the rate at which things are deteriorating, it may be a matter of time before we see body bags in places like Harare and the Midlands where factionalism is the new favourite hobby," a Zanu-PF official said.Yesterday, Higher Education minister Jonathan Moyo ratcheted up his return fire against War Veterans minister Chris Mutsvangwa (pictured), accusing the former diplomat of being a "petticoat thief" during Zimbabwe's struggle for independence.This came after Mutsvangwa, said to be a key member of the party faction loyal to embattled Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, accused the Tsholotsho North MP of having run away from the struggle, while also alleging that the former Information Tsar was embittered that his "traitor uncle" Ndabaningi Sithole - the founding president of Zanu - had been overthrown from the leadership of the party.Moyo shot back with interest yesterday, savaging his ministerial counterpart and under-fire Information permanent secretary George Charamba. He also cast serious political aspersions on the State daily newspaper, The Herald."Mutsvangwa thinks he can do to some of us what he did to (former Vice President) Joice Mujuru with Charamba's & Herald help. Handei tione!" Moyo thundered in an acerbic twitter post.He also accused Mutsvangwa of lying about him having deserted the armed struggle."It's a lie by some bloke famed for stealing & selling underwear of female cadres from the drying line at the camps!"Against a self glorified war vet & petticoat thief who'd steal female underwear at camps in the struggle to sell!" the sharp-tongued Moyo tweeted.Asked by his Twitter followers if his Zanu-PF camp had been toppled by the Mnangagwa faction given that he had been blacked out by State media, amid claims that Team Lacoste had now hijacked State information, Moyo retorted: "Do you mean information or disinformation?""Mutsvangwa: I speak for Mnangagwa ... & Charamba..' Ok. Nationalists are defending President Mugabe, Party & Country!" he added, suggesting that Mutsvangwa was not supporting Mugabe, but nefariously working to prop up Mnangagwa's mooted presidential ambitions.Moyo also reacted with venom on Monday to threats by the pro-Mnangagwa Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWVA) to deal with him.In a hard-hitting statement then, Moyo also savaged Mutsvangwa - describing him as a "rogue" factionalist and "desperate successionist", while once again describing Charamba as a "blithering idiot".And in a stunning claim, Moyo also accused Mutsvangwa and his war veterans followers in the leadership of the ZNLWVA of abusing the Presidential Guard military barracks in Harare's Dzivaresekwa high density suburb to plot their factional politics.The biting statement followed weekend threats by the ZNLWVA secretary general, Victor Matemadanda, to bar Moyo - who together with other senior Zanu-PF officials such as Local Government minister Saviour Kasukuwere and Indigenisation minister Patrick Zhuwao are seen as opposed to Mnangagwa - from attending forthcoming party politburo meetings."My attention has been drawn to a media statement by successionist elements in the Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association (ZNLWVA), first reported by ZBC News on Saturday evening, 30 January, 2016 and subsequently carried by NewsDay and the Daily News on Monday 1 February, 2016."The statement declares support for scurrilous and unprecedented political attacks on Cabinet ministers, including myself, who are also politburo members by the permanent secretary in the ministry of Media, Information and Broadcasting Services, George Charamba."In particular, the statement threatens to physically bar me from attending the next politburo meeting and purports to bar me from accessing the 16th Floor of Zanu-PF Head Quarters, which 16th floor does not exist except only in their ignorant minds," Moyo began his acerbic statement."Apparently, the said statement was issued after a provincial meeting of ZNLWVA held on Saturday, 30 January, 2016 at Dzivaresekwa Presidential Guard Barracks which was chaired by John Guta and officiated by ZNLWVA national chairman, Chris Mutsvangwa, and its secretary-general Victor Matemadanda."It is extraordinary and indeed scary that the Dzivaresekwa Presidential Guard Barracks was used as a venue for a meeting whose purpose was to plot and threaten physical harm against a Cabinet minister and politburo member appointed to both offices by His Excellency, the President."This was a gross and unacceptable abuse of a State facility. The fact that this unprecedented abuse of State barracks was officiated by (Chris) Mutsvangwa - a Cabinet minister and politburo member - not only raises eyebrows about what else was plotted, but also clearly demonstrates the extent to which Chris Mutsvangwa has gone rogue in pursuit of not just a factionalist agenda but also a desperate successionist plot," Moyo charged."It should be remembered that ahead of the 2015 Zanu-PF's National People's Conference, the same (Chris) Mutsvangwa availed his ministerial office to a shadowy youth group from which it made violent statements barring Cdes Saviour Kasukuwere, Patrick Zhuwao and myself from setting foot at the National Heroes Acre."Abusing a government ministerial office for that outrageous purpose was bad enough, but abusing Dzivaresekwa Presidential Guard Barracks in pursuit of a successionist plot is just going way too far."For the record, I wish to state that it is false and insulting to His Excellency, the President, to claim that he sent George Charamba to savage his Cabinet ministers and politburo members on public radio with all sorts of primitive insults such as "uneducated fools"; "little men" among other unprintable epithets."Cabinet ministers and politburo members are not civil servants, but are presidential appointees with whom His Excellency the President has direct communication as their boss."In the same vein and for the avoidance of doubt, I reiterate that only a blithering idiot will say or believe that I am working with Joice Mujuru's People First project which exists only in the media," he added."Finally, nobody should make the mistake of thinking for a moment that they can block me from attending a politburo meeting called and chaired by President Mugabe. That can never happen."Only the president can stop anyone from attending any meeting he convenes or chairs. For anyone else to seek to do that under any pretext whatsoever will be tantamount to usurping the president's prerogative and authority, something which is not different from a successionist attempt at a coup," he said in conclusion. Joshua Tree Search and Rescue has Openings for New Volunteer Members in 2016 Twentynine Palms, California - JOSAR is recruiting new volunteer members. No prior training or experience is required. Joshua Tree Search and Rescue provides extensive training in land searching, tracking, incident management and high-angle rope rescue techniques. You may participate as a rescue member, field searcher or in a support capacity for team operations and logistics. If you enjoy teamwork, helping others, and the beauty of Joshua Tree National Park, there will be a brief informational meeting Friday, February 5th from 7-9pm, at the park's Black Rock Visitor Center, 9800 Black Rock Canyon, Yucca Valley, CA 92284. (take Joshua Lane South from Hwy 62, Yucca Valley) We will discuss the many opportunities, requirements and time commitment for each level of participation. Women and men, 18 years of age or older, who are comfortable with heights, are physically fit, and comfortable working around injured people, are encouraged to apply. For more information, please email Dylan Moe at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. v or David Pylman at 714-747-5057. Reclamation Releases Environmental Document for Sacramento Valley Accelerated Water Transfer and Exchange Program Shasta Lake, California - The Bureau of Reclamation has released for public review the Draft Environmental Assessment for the implementation of an accelerated process for annual water transfers and/or exchanges, pursuant to Section 3405(a) of the Central Valley Project Improvement Act for Contract Years 2016 through 2020 (March 1, 2016, to Feb. 28, 2021). The accelerated process would continue previous accelerated water transfer programs, allowing timely water management between Central Valley Project contractors in the Sacramento Valley to meet agricultural demands and/or municipal and industrial or other water requirements. The Draft EA was prepared in accordance with the National Environmental Policy Act and is available at http://www.usbr.gov/mp/nepa/nepa_projdetails.cfm?Project_ID=24338. If you encounter problems accessing the document online, please call 916-978-5100 (TTY 800-877-8339) or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Comments are due by close of business Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2016, to Paul Zedonis, Northern California Area Office, 16349 Shasta Dam Blvd., Shasta Lake, CA 96019 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . For additional information or to request a copy of the Draft EA, please contact Zedonis at 530-276-2047. The document may also be viewed at Reclamation's Office at the above address. Innovative Brand Strategist Marty Neumeier to Lead 2-Day Brand Workshop Santa Barbara, California - AIGA Santa Barbara, the Central Coasts professional design association, is excited to present a 2-day workshop with Marty Neumeier, bestselling author of six books on design and innovation. Neumeier will lead an in-depth brand strategy session for creatives and marketing professionals, in which participants will learn the essential principles of brand strategy while applying them directly to their own brand or their clients brands. The event, scheduled to run February 19-20, is intended for designers, brand strategists, marketing managers, advertising planners, entrepreneurs, and CEOs. Participants will work on one specific entitya product, service, company, or new business concept. The workshop is both for people who want to transform their own brand, and those who want to apply the skills to client work. In this hands-on approach, participants will leave with a prototype for transforming a brand, said Neumeier. They will develop a plan to make their business more competitive, more profitable, and better aligned with its true potential. The workshop will cover several topics on branding and participants will walk away learning the new definition of branding, the role of trust in brand building, the difference between product, service, B2B, and B2C branding, the difference between purpose, mission, and vision and how to find your brands core purpose. We are very excited about bringing this brand workshop with Marty Neumeier back for its second year in a row, said AIGA Santa Barbara President Keir DuBois. Marty is a world-renowned brand strategist and author. Last years attendees came from all over the country and the world to participate in this highly focused workshop. The feedback, the collaboration, and the guidance was really phenomenal, shared Jennie Jacobs, marketing manager for a healthcare organization and 2015 workshop attendee. I think the small group setting, paired with so much one-on-one with Marty was a powerful experience. I learned so much about what guides a successful brand. The event is limited to 18 people. Registration for the event is open now at santabarbara.aiga.org/flip2016. Interested parties are encouraged to register before the workshop reaches capacity. Prices, application, agenda and more can be found at the website. About AIGA Santa Barbara: AIGA, the professional association for design, believes designers serve a critical role as communicators, educators and innovators. AIGA sets the national agenda for the role of design in economic, social, political, cultural and creative contexts. Founded in 1914, AIGA is the nations largest professional association for design, with 25,000 members. AIGA Santa Barbara is one of 70 chapters and has a Board of Directors consisting of 11 people, dedicated to developing diversified programs and connecting AIGA members with people in the community with design needs. AIGA Santa Barbara serves as a resource for local designers in all stages of their careers. About Marty Neumeier Marty Neumeier is an author, designer, and business adviser whose mission is to bring the principles and processes of creativity to industry. His series of whiteboard books includes The Brand Gap, widely considered the foundation of modern brand-building; Zag, named one of the top hundred business books of all time for its insights into brand strategy; and The Designful Company, a guide to building a culture of nonstop innovation. His latest book, The 46 Rules of Genius, lays out a universal map to innovation mastery. In 1996, Neumeier founded Critique magazine, the first journal about design thinking. He has worked closely with innovative companies such as Apple, Netscape, Sun Microsystems, HP, Adobe, Google, and Microsoft to help advance their brands and cultures. He also served on the AIGA national board and developed its first mission statement since it was founded in 1914. Today Marty serves as Director of Transformation for Liquid Agency in Silicon Valley, and travels extensively as a workshop leader and speaker on the topics of innovation, brand, and design. Bakersfield man sentenced for pointing laser at law enforcement chopper Fresno, California - A Bakersfield man who pleaded guilty late last year to aiming a high-powered laser pointer at a Kern County Sheriffs Department helicopter has been sentenced to 18 months in prison, following a probe by the FBI, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcements (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), and the Kern County Sheriffs Office. Jose Javier Rosas, aka Jose Javier Rosas Jimenez, 62, was sentenced Monday. The case was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of California. According to court documents, Rosas struck and tracked the law enforcement helicopter with a green laser pointer during the evening hours. As a result, the pilot experienced glare, flash blindness, a significant loss of night vision, watering eyes, and eye pain and was forced to divert attention from assisting in the search for a robbery suspect. Pointing a laser at any aircraft is a reckless action, which has potential to cause a catastrophic incident affecting both the air crew and community. In this case, the airmen were impaired by the laser but were able to safely divert from the planned operation, said Monica M. Miller, special agent in charge of the FBI Sacramento field office. Due to the risk to public safety, anyone who witnesses an individual shining a laser at aircraft or any vehicle should immediately report the activity to law enforcement to protect the safety of the community. As this sentence makes clear, Mr. Rosas actions put the life of this aircrafts pilot and the safety of the general public in peril, said Ryan Spradlin, special agent in charge for HSI San Francisco, which oversees HSIs enforcement efforts throughout northern California. In addition to the jail term, this defendant will face removal to his native Mexico upon completion of his prison time. HSI will continue to use its resources and unique enforcement authorities to protect our communities from those who engage in criminal activity that endangers our citizens. Reports of laser attacks on aircraft have increased dramatically in recent years as powerful laser devices have become more affordable and widely available to the public. Last year, there were nearly 8,000 laser strikes reported in the United States. In the Eastern District of California, which encompasses 34 counties in eastern California, there were more than 200 reported incidents. Aviators are particularly vulnerable to laser illuminations when conducting low-level flight operations at night. 13 charged after interdiction of panga carrying nearly 3,000 pounds of marijuana near Santa Barbara Los Angeles, California - Thirteen defendants made their initial appearance in federal court Monday to face drug smuggling charges following the interdiction in southern Santa Barbara County over the weekend of a Mexican panga carrying nearly 3,000 pounds of marijuana. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcements (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), along with the sheriffs departments of Santa Barbara, Ventura and Los Angeles counties, are investigating the incident which began unfolding early Saturday morning. According to the affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, the U.S. Coast Guard first spotted the vessel at Arroyo Quemada Beach just north of the city of Santa Barbara. Authorities believe three people were piloting the boat, and approximately 15 individuals were observed on shore helping to unload the bales of marijuana. The affidavit states that two vans and a pick-up truck drove to the beach separately, and bales of marijuana were loaded into the pick-up and one of the vans. The vehicles then left the beach at about the same time, but they went in different directions. One van, which was being used to transport the marijuana, was stopped in Camarillo; the second van, which was being used to transport people, was stopped when it returned to Arroyo Quemada Beach; and the truck, which was also being used to transport marijuana, was stopped in Carpinteria. All told, law enforcement seized 114 bales of marijuana weighing in excess of 2,800 pounds from the two vehicles. Smuggling by panga boat endangers the lives of both the smugglers and authorities interdicting the boats and their payloads, said U.S. Attorney Eileen M. Decker. Law enforcement has and will continue to use all available means to curtail this dangerous activity. The 13 defendants, who are named in a criminal complaint filed Sunday charging them with possession of marijuana with the intent to distribute, include: Hector Raul Bernal-Lara, 41; Ricardo Sanchez-Marquez, 36; Daniel Aguilar, 25; Mark Garcia, 23; Susana Tobaldo, 42; Kevin Tes, 22; Josh Rubio, 21; Alfonso Aguilar-Ballestros, 48; Jesus Moreno-Sepulveda, 31; Santiago Galvan-Carrillo, 48; Paul Armenta-Bueno, 34; Bryan Castro, 18; and Daniel Fernando-Huizar, 26. The charges detailed in the complaint carry a maximum penalty of life in prison. A criminal complaint contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in court. U.S. Customs and Border Protection Border Patrol also provided substantial assistance with the enforcement action. CDC adds 4 destinations to interim travel guidance related to Zika virus Washington, DC - CDC is working with other public health officials to monitor for ongoing Zika virus transmission. Today, CDC added the following destinations to the Zika virus travel alerts: American Samoa, Costa Rica, Curacao, and Nicaragua. CDC has issued a travel alert (Level 2-Practice Enhanced Precautions) for people traveling to regions and certain countries where Zika virus transmission is ongoing. For a full list of affected countries/regions: http://www.cdc.gov/zika/geo/index.html. Specific areas where Zika virus transmission is ongoing are often difficult to determine and are likely to continue to change over time. As more information becomes available, CDC travel alerts will be updated. Travelers to areas where cases of Zika virus infection have been recently confirmed are at risk of being infected with the Zika virus. Mosquitoes that spread Zika are aggressive daytime biters, prefer to bite people, and live indoors and outdoors near people. There is no vaccine or medicine available for Zika virus. The best way to avoid Zika virus infection is to prevent mosquito bites. Some travelers to areas with ongoing Zika virus transmission will become infected while traveling but will not become sick until they return home. Some people who are infected do not have any symptoms. Symptoms include fever, rash, joint pain, and red eyes. Other commonly reported symptoms include muscle pain and headache. The illness is usually mild with symptoms lasting from several days to a week. Severe disease requiring hospitalization is uncommon and case fatality is low. Travelers to these areas should monitor for symptoms or illness upon return. If they become ill, they should tell their healthcare professional where they have traveled and when. Until more is known, CDC continues to recommend that pregnant women and women trying to become pregnant take the following precautions: Pregnant women should consider postponing travel to the areas where Zika virus transmission is ongoing. Pregnant women who must travel to one of these areas should talk to their doctor or other healthcare professional first and strictly follow steps to avoid mosquito bites during the trip. Women trying to become pregnant should consult with their healthcare professional before traveling to these areas and strictly follow steps to prevent mosquito bites during the trip. Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) has been reported in patients with probable Zika virus infection in French Polynesia and Brazil. Because we do not know if Zika virus infection causes GBS, research efforts are underway to examine if there is a potential link between Zika and GBS. BBA Aviation to Divest Facilities at Six Airports in Landmark Aviation Acquisition Washington, DC - The Department of Justice announced that it will require BBA Aviation plc, the parent company of Signature Flight Support, to divest fixedbase operator assets (FBOs) at six U.S. airports in order to proceed with its $2.065 billion acquisition of Landmark Aviation. The departments Antitrust Division filed a civil antitrust lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to block the proposed acquisition, and simultaneously filed a proposed settlement that, if approved by the court, would resolve the competitive harm alleged in the lawsuit. The department said that without the required divestitures, the transaction would have created a monopoly for FBO services at three airports and reduced the number of full-service FBO providers from three to two at three others, resulting in higher prices and lower quality of FBO services for consumers. The merger would have subjected general aviation customers at six airports to a monopoly or duopoly for critical fueling and support services, said Assistant Attorney General Bill Baer of the Justice Departments Antitrust Division. Higher prices and lower quality services were the likely result. Todays proposed settlement will ensure that customers at these airports will continue to receive the benefits of vigorous competition. FBOs provide fuel and related support services to general aviation customers, which include charter, private and corporate aircraft operators. Signature and Landmark own or operate full-service FBOs at airports throughout the United States. Signature and Landmark are the only two full-service FBOs at Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) in Dulles, Virginia; Scottsdale Municipal Airport (SDL) in Scottsdale, Arizona; and Fresno Yosemite International Airport (FAT) in Fresno, California. Signature and Landmark are two of only three full-service FBOs at Jacqueline Cochran Regional Airport (TRM) in Thermal, California; Westchester County Airport (HPN) in White Plains, New York; and Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport (ANC) in Anchorage, Alaska. At each of these three airports, the third FBO is much smaller than Signature and Landmark. Under the terms of the proposed settlement, BBA Aviation must divest Landmarks FBO assets at each of the six impacted airports to a buyer approved by the Antitrust Division. BBA Aviation plc is a United Kingdom public limited company headquartered in London. Its subsidiary, Signature Flight Support, a Delaware corporation headquartered in Orlando, Florida, has the worlds largest FBO network and operates approximately 70 FBO facilities in the United States. BBA had worldwide revenues of approximately $2.3 billion in 2014, of which over $900 million were derived from Signatures U.S. FBO business. Landmark U.S. Corp LLC and LM U.S. Member LLC (collectively doing business as Landmark Aviation), are Delaware limited liability companies headquartered in Houston and are owned by investment funds managed by the Carlyle Group. Landmark operates approximately 60 FBO facilities in the United States. Landmark had worldwide revenues of over $700 million in 2014, of which over $500 million were derived from its U.S. FBO business. As required by the Tunney Act, the proposed settlement, along with the departments competitive impact statement, will be published in the Federal Register. Any person may submit written comments concerning the proposed settlement during a 60-day comment period to James J. Tierney, Chief, Networks & Technology Enforcement Section, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 450 5th Street, N.W., Suite 7100, Washington, D.C. 20530. At the conclusion of the 60-day comment period, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia may enter the proposed final judgment upon finding that it serves the public interest. U.S. Department of Education announces guidance to states to help reduce testing Washington, DC - Acting U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. announced new guidance to help states identify and eliminate low-quality, redundant or unhelpful testing. "High-quality assessments give parents, educators and students useful information about whether students are developing the critical thinking and problem solving skills they need to succeed in life," said King. "But there has to be a balance, and despite good intentions, there are too many places around the country where the balance still isn't quite right. We hope this guidance will help restore that balance and give back some of the critical learning time that students need to be successful." The guidance outlines how federal dollars may be used to help reduce testing in schools, while still ensuring that educators and parents have the information they need on students' progress to improve learning. The guidance shines a light on innovative work already happening across the country and provides examples of how states and districts can use their federal funding to explore new strategies for ensuring the use of high-quality, useful and well-constructed assessments, and the elimination of redundant and burdensome assessments. King talks more about the guidance in a video released today. The document builds on an October 2015 announcement by President Obama and a set of principles the Department released, outlining that assessments must be worth taking and of high quality; enhance teaching and learning; and give a well-rounded picture of how students and schools are doing. Last fall, the Council of the Great City Schools released the results of a comprehensive, two-year study on the scope of testing in schools, a report that has helped deepen the nation's understanding of assessments. Some states and districts continue to look for creative ways to decrease testing burden on students and teachers while ensuring that new assessments measure vital skills like writing, problem-solving, and critical thinking. The Department is highlighting some of that work on its Progress blog with posts on strategies being used in Tennessee and in Tulsa, Oklahoma. While this guidance addresses use of federal money under No Child Left Behind during the 2015-16 and 2016-17 school years, the Department will provide further clarification in coming months on how dollars under the newly adopted Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) can be used to support the reduction of unnecessary testing. The new law takes additional steps to support smart, effective assessments and to reduce over-testing, including efforts to encourage states to limit classroom time spent on statewide standardized testing and to strive for continued improvement and innovation in assessments. ESSA encourages a smarter approach to testing by allowing the use of multiple measures of student learning and progress, along with other indicators of student success, to make school accountability decisions. It also includes support for state efforts to audit and streamline their current assessment systems. "As a teacher, you know that information on your students' progress is crucial to tailoring instruction to their specific needs and to understanding whether a lesson has worked. As a school leader, you need tools to ensure that every student is learning and to support the growth of your staff," King said. "And yet, in both roles, you're also always seeking more opportunities for quality instructional time for your students. Good assessments can actually be part of great learning experiences, but simplistic, poorly constructed, or redundant tests just take away from critical learning time, without providing useful information." In his FY16 budget proposal, President Obama called on Congress to provide support to continue and grow this work. The President's budget included $403 million for state assessments to provide additional resources to states to support the effective implementation of assessments that are aligned to college- and career-ready standards that will help ensure that all students graduate from high school with the knowledge and skills they need to be successful in college and the workplace. In his FY17 budget proposal, President Obama will once again prioritize these goals. In addition to this guidance, the Department has also: Former U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission Employee Pleads Guilty to Attempted Spear-Phishing Cyber-Attack on Department of Energy Computers Washington, DC - Charles Harvey Eccleston, 62, a former employee of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), pleaded guilty today to a federal offense stemming from an attempted e-mail spear-phishing attack in January 2015 that targeted dozens of DOE employee e-mail accounts. The guilty plea was announced by Assistant Attorney General for National Security John P. Carlin, U.S. Attorney Channing D. Phillips of the District of Columbia and Assistant Director in Charge Paul M. Abbate of the FBIs Washington Field Office. Eccleston pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to one count of attempted unauthorized access and intentional damage to a protected computer. In his guilty plea, Eccleston admitted scheming to cause damage to the computer network of the DOE through e-mails that he believed would deliver a computer virus to particular employees. An e-mail spear-phishing attack involves crafting a convincing e-mail for selected recipients that appears to be from a trusted source and that, when opened, infects the recipients computer with a virus. Eccleston admitted that he attempted to compromise, exploit and damage U.S. government computer systems that contained sensitive nuclear weapon-related information with the intent of allowing foreign nations to gain access to that information or to damage essential systems, said Assistant Attorney General Carlin. Protecting our national assets from cyber intrusions is one of our highest priorities. We must continue to evolve and remain vigilant in our efforts and capabilities to confront cyber-enabled threats and aggressively detect, disrupt and deter them. This prosecution underscores our commitment to prosecute those who carry out or plan cyber-attacks against our government, whether they are in the United States or in remote locations overseas, said U.S. Attorney Phillips. Thanks to the work of the FBI, this former federal employee was arrested before he could do any damage and he now is being held accountable for actions that could have threatened our national security. Charles Harvey Eccleston is a former U.S. Government employee who, motivated by greed, was thwarted in his attempt to sell information to a foreign intelligence service to enable a cyber-attack against our information systems, said Assistant Director in Charge Abbate. Todays guilty plea is a testament to the dedication of the FBI and prosecutorial team, along with our federal and foreign partners, to relentlessly pursue and bring to justice an individual who sought to misuse his position to betray the country. Eccleston, a U.S. citizen who had been living in Davao City in the Philippines since 2011, was terminated from his employment at the NRC in 2010. He was detained by Philippine authorities in Manila, Philippines, on March 27, 2015, and deported to the United States to face U.S. criminal charges. He has been in custody ever since. According to court documents, Eccleston initially came to the attention of the FBI in 2013 after he entered a foreign embassy in Manila and offered to sell a list of over 5,000 e-mail accounts of all officials, engineers and employees of a U.S. government energy agency. He said that he was able to retrieve this information because he was an employee of a U.S. government agency, held a top secret security clearance and had access to the agencys network. He asked for $18,800 for the accounts, stating they were top secret. When asked what he would do if that foreign country was not interested in obtaining the U.S. government information the defendant was offering, the defendant stated he would offer the information to China, Iran or Venezuela, as he believed these countries would be interested in the information. Thereafter, Eccleston met and corresponded with FBI undercover employees who were posing as representatives of the foreign country. During a meeting on Nov. 7, 2013, he showed one of the undercover employees a list of approximately 5,000 e-mail addresses that he said belonged to NRC employees. He offered to sell the information for $23,000 and said it could be used to insert a virus onto NRC computers, which could allow the foreign country access to agency information or could be used to otherwise shut down the NRCs servers. The undercover employee agreed to purchase a thumb drive containing approximately 1,200 e-mail addresses of NRC employees; an analysis later determined that these e-mail addresses were publicly available. The undercover employee provided Eccleston with $5,000 in exchange for the e-mail addresses and an additional $2,000 for travel expenses. Over the next several months, Eccleston corresponded regularly by e-mail with the undercover employees. A follow-up meeting with a second undercover employee took place on June 24, 2014, in which Eccleston was paid $2,000 to cover travel-related expenses. During this meeting, Eccleston discussed having a list of 30,000 e-mail accounts of DOE employees. He offered to design and send spear-phishing e-mails that could be used in a cyber-attack to damage the computer systems used by his former employer. Over the next several months, the defendant identified specific conferences related to nuclear energy to use as a lure for the cyber-attack, then drafted emails advertising the conference. The emails were designed to induce the recipients to click on a link which the defendant believed contained a computer virus that would allow the foreign government to infiltrate or damage the computers of the recipients. The defendant identified several dozen DOE employees whom he claimed had access to information related to nuclear weapons or nuclear materials as targets for the attack. On Jan. 15, 2015, Eccleston sent the e-mails he drafted to the targets he had identified. The e-mail contained the link supplied by the FBI undercover employee which Eccleston believed contained a computer virus, but was, in fact, inert. Altogether, the defendant sent the e-mail he believed to be infected to approximately 80 DOE employees located at various facilities throughout the country, including laboratories associated with nuclear materials. Eccleston was detained after a meeting with the FBI undercover employee, during which Eccleston believed he would be paid approximately $80,000 for sending the e-mails. The charge of attempted unauthorized access and intentional damage to a protected computer carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and potential financial penalties. Under the advisory federal sentencing guidelines, Eccleston faces a prison term of 24 to 30 months and a fine of up to $95,000. Sentencing before U.S. District Judge Randolph D. Moss of the District of Columbia is scheduled for April 18, 2016. The investigation was conducted by the FBIs Washington Field Office with assistance from the NRC and DOE. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas A. Gillice of the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Julie A. Edelstein of the National Security Divisions Counterintelligence and Export Control Section. Trial Attorney Scott Ferber of the National Security Divisions Counterintelligence and Export Control Section assisted in the investigation of this matter. The Department of Justices Office of International Affairs and the government of the Philippines also provided significant assistance. Smartphone App Linked to Increase in Contraceptive Use in India Baltimore, Maryland - A smartphone app containing motivational videos developed to help married rural women in India better understand contraceptive choices led to a dramatic increase in the number of women using modern family planning methods in just a few months, new Johns Hopkins Center for Communication Programs (CCP) research suggests. The researchers say that women who watched videos were 4.5 times more likely to use modern contraceptive methods than those who did not. The findings, presented Thursday at the International Family Planning Conference in Nusa Dua, Indonesia, show that digital technology can be an effective tool to provide customized information and also address cultural and social barriers that may prevent women in low- and middle-income countries from adopting family planning behaviors. This study shows that mobile technology provides an innovative and dynamic platform for social and behavior change communication, says Sanjanthi Velu, PhD, Asia team lead at CCP, which is part of the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health. It can encourage conversations between women and frontline health workers that are interactive, culturally relevant, and personalized and that lead to increased, sustained use of modern contraceptive methods. As part of a larger communications initiative, CCP developed the app, called Gyan Jyoti, or light of knowledge, for use in the state of Bihar in India under Project Ujjwal, a U.K. aid-funded family planning project led by Palladium. The app is designed for use by ASHAs, community health workers in India, who visit the homes of rural women to promote family planning and other healthy behaviors. The app incorporates a variety of videos about family planning and modern contraceptive methods, including entertaining and educational films, testimonials from happy couples who are using contraception, Q & A videos with physicians and other information that aims to dispel myths and misconceptions. In one district of Bihar, smartphones loaded with the Gyan Jyoti app were given to 14 ASHAs, while in another district another 14 ASHAs were supplied with more low-tech SD cards. Each set of ASHAs regularly visits roughly 1,400 rural women. The ASHAs with the smartphone app were able to customize their family planning counseling, showing videos most appropriate to answer each womans particular questions. Those ASHAs who had the SD card could show the videos, but did not have the benefit of customizing their interaction. The ASHAs using the app were also able to share the films via Bluetooth if the women had the technology, enabling the women to show it to their husbands or mothers-in-law at a later time. The researchers randomly chose 406 women from each district to study in May 2015, five months after the app and the SD cards were made available to the ASHAs. They found that 22 percent of women who were counseled with the app were using modern contraception such as IUDs, oral contraceptive pills and injectable contraception at the end of the study period, while 13 percent of the women were using modern contraception in the district without the app. Seventeen percent of the women who had access to the smartphone app watched some of the videos, while 2.4 percent of those who only had access to the SD card watched the videos. Of the 75 women in the intervention district who were using modern contraceptive methods at the end of the study period, three-quarters of them had interacted with the app. Among the types of modern family planning methods that were chosen were female sterilization (41 percent), injectable (18 percent), hormonal birth-control pills (11 percent), condoms (11 percent) and IUD (4 percent). Women who were visited by an ASHA during the study period were 1.9 times more likely to be using modern contraceptive methods, and more importantly, women who had watched the videos were 4.5 times more likely to be using modern contraceptives, no matter whether they were shown by an ASHA with the app or an SD card. This was most likely because the ASHAs had more interactive and engaging information to share. Visits were up 56 percent in the intervention district compared to 47 percent in the SD card district, the researchers say. Our research shows that there is value in developing targeted mobile platforms that can be customized depending on the needs of each provider and her clients, Velu says. Velu says the Gyan Jyoti app could be adapted for different languages or other types of health information that families may need. It could also be expanded to ASHAs around the country. About the International Conference on Family Planning Held biannually since 2009, the International Conference on Family Planning is a strategic inflection point for the family planning community worldwide. The conference brings together thousands of researchers, advocates, policymakers, and representatives of national and international organizations to disseminate knowledge, celebrate successes, and identify next steps toward increasing access to voluntary, high-quality family planning. Co-hosted by the Bill & Melinda Gates Institute for Population and Reproductive Health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and the National Population and Family Planning Board of Indonesia (BkkbN), the 2016 ICFP is taking place January 2528 in Nusa Dua, Indonesia. News / National by Stephen Jakes The Christian Prophetic Voice of Zimbabwe has condemned illegal eviction of Philip Rankin from their Kingston Deverill farm.In a statement the organisation described the move by Zimbabwean authorities as illegal and immoral."The eviction by gun-wielding police of an elderly Zimbabwean commercial farmer, Phillip Rankin, and his family from their Kingston Deverill farm in the tobacco growing Centenary district of Zimbabwe on Friday January 29 has raised anger in Zimbabwe and the UK," reads the statement."The beneficiary of the farm, Dr Sylvester Nyatsuro, is a wealthy British doctor who is previously from Zimbabwe but has been a British citizen for a number of years and is Senior Partner at a successful medical centre in Nottingham, England."The organisation said Rankin was handcuffed and taken from his farm by the police and the property is now guarded by police officers and the Rankins cannot return to their home, their workers or their tobacco crop.About 20 police officials arrived on Phillip Rankin's tobacco farm in Zimbabwe to evict him on January 29, 2016. Rankin was handcuffed and taken from the property in a police vehicle. The Minister for Health has announced plans to fund fertility treatment in conjunction with envisaged legislation. The aim is to provide public funding for assisted human reproductive (AHR) treatment in conjunction with the introduction of legislation in this area. While fertility treatment is not now provided in the Irish public health service, financial support is available to individuals. For example, tax relief for medical expenses and the cost of certain approved fertility medicines are covered under the Medical Card or Drugs Payment Scheme (DPS). Funding for fertility treatment would be considered in tandem with closing the current legislative gap in this area of healthcare, said Minister Leo Varadkar. Fertility treatments should be funded in such a way that not only maximises efficiency but that ensures equity of access as well, said the Minister. Nevertheless, the provision of public funding for assisted human reproduction must be accompanied by a robust system of legal governance that will promote and protect the health and well-being of patients and most especially the children who will be born as a result of the treatment. In February 2015, the Government gave approval to draft a General Scheme of legislative provisions dealing with a broad range of aspects relating to AHR. Drafting is under way and the General Scheme will be published in the first half of 2016. The aim of the legislation will be to promote and ensure the health and safety of parents, others involved in the process (such as egg/sperm donors and surrogate mothers) and, most importantly, the children who will be born as a result of assisted reproduction. The Department of Health is commissioning an evidence review of international public funding models. The review will inform policy regarding the optimal mechanism for any future public funding of AHR in the State. AHR encompasses in vitro fertilisation (IVF), pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, intra-uterine insemination, intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection and gamete donation. Currently, there are a number of fertility clinics operating in Ireland offering a broad range of AHR services, which remains largely unregulated. Although IVF treatment is not provided by the Irish public health service, there is some support available in that patients who access IVF treatment privately may claim tax relief on the costs involved under the tax relief for medical expenses scheme. In addition, a defined list of fertility medicines needed for fertility treatment is covered under the High Tech Scheme administered by the HSE. Medicines covered by the High Tech Scheme must be prescribed by a consultant/specialist and approved by the HSE High Tech Liaison Officers. The cost of the medicines is then covered, as appropriate, under the Medical Card or DPS. gary.culliton@imt.ie Saolta University Hospital Group will be communicating directly with families in the first instance to provide them with an update on the Portiuncula review process. Portiuncula University Hospital at Ballinasloe has confirmed that it has advised the families concerned in the review of Maternity Services at Portiuncula Hospital that it is now likely that it will be the first quarter of 2016 before the final review is completed. Saolta and Portiuncula have apologised for the delay in completing the review. This is due to the complexity and scale of the work to be undertaken, given the increase in the number of cases (18 in total) being reviewed. In addition to meetings with families, there have been 250 staff interviews carried out involving the 18 cases. As part of the process, families were last month due to be provided with the section of the draft report detailing the individual timeline of the events relating to their case to check for accuracy in advance of final completion of the review. In the letter to families, the Group acknowledged that this is a particularly difficult time of year to deal with issues that no doubt cause you and your family upset and explained that it wanted to ensure that families were kept up-to-date on the work that had been undertaken so far. Regular re-audits at the Maternity Unit at Portiuncula Hospital had confirmed that there was no continuing patient safety concern arising from the issues identified, the Minister for Health, Dr Leo Varadkar, said in the Dail. There had been no negative perinatal outcomes at Portiuncula Hospital since the enhanced monitoring measures were put in place. Saolta and Portiuncula said they regretted any distress that is being caused to the families involved and offers any services that they may require to support them in dealing with the issues that arise. gary.culliton@imt.ie Shashi Tharoor, Cat or Lettuce? UK PM Liz Truss's Resignation Has Twitter Looking for New Contender Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Love Actually might be the go-to Christmas movie for many but a new study has shown that watching the romcom may make women more likely to accept the stalker myth. Julia R Lippman, a researcher at the University of Michigan, found that soppy movies may boast the feel-good factor, but can also dangerously affect our perceptions of normal male behaviour. They studied female reactions to male characters who relentlessly pursue a would-be lover despite rejection in six popular movies. Lippman discovered that those who watched romcoms such as Theres Something About Mary and Management were much more likely to tolerate stalkerish behaviour as it is often portrayed in a misleading positive light. Best and worst romantic movies Show all 20 1 /20 Best and worst romantic movies Best and worst romantic movies Love it: Romeo and Juliet (1968) Franco Zeffirelli, starring Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting Zeffirelli brings spectacle and romanticism. His trick was to treat Shakespeare's play as if it was a Hollywood teen love story and to cast two fresh-faced, young leads (Hussey and Whiting, pictured) as the doe-eyed lovers. REX Best and worst romantic movies Love it: Random Harvest (1942) Mervyn LeRoy, starring Greer Garson, Ronald Colman Post-traumatic stress and romantic obsession collide head on in this wonderfully overcooked Hollywood melodrama. Ronald Colman is the amnesiac English officer, haunted by his memory of the trenches, who somehow contrives to forget that he is madly in love with Greer Garson not once but twice. REX Best and worst romantic movies Love it: The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964) Jacques Demy, starring Catherine Deneuve, Nino Castelnuova This kitsch but delightful romantic musical boasts eye-popping colours and enchanting Michel Legrand music. The storyline is embroiled and dark (this is a small-town tale of misunderstandings and enforced separations) but the film is still full of charm and makes a perfect Valentine's Day confection. The youthful Deneuve has an unworldly beauty. REX Best and worst romantic movies Love it: Les Amants de Pont Neuf (1991) Leos Carax, starring Juliette Binoche, Denis Lavant One of the most expensive French films of its era, this is a big budget epic... about the love affair between two mud-encrusted and homeless but very stylish tramps living on the Paris streets. It's a thoroughly perverse endeavour. Look out for the scene of Juliette Binoche water-skiing down the Seine with fireworks exploding above her. REX Best and worst romantic movies Love it: Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961) Blake Edwards, starring Audrey Hepburn, George Peppard In truth, this isn't a great film. George Peppard (later to star alongside Mr T in The A-Team) is no Cary Grant and the screenplay is bland and evasive by comparison with the Truman Capote novella that inspired it. Nonetheless, the combination of Audrey Hepburn and Henry Mancini's "Moon River" still makes this the perfect Valentine's Day movie. REX Best and worst romantic movies Love it: Casablanca (1942) Michael Curtiz, starring Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman A usual suspect in any list of Valentine's Day films, Curtiz's romantic drama crackles with wit, style and (in the scenes between Bogart and Bergman, right) plenty of erotic energy. It's a film that can be played again and again, like its famous song As Time Goes By, without ever quite losing its allure. AP Best and worst romantic movies Love it: An Affair to Remember (1957) Leo McCarey, starring Cary Grant, Deborah Kerr Director Leo McCarey made some of Hollywood's greatest screwball comedies and yet is best remembered for this super-sudsy romantic weepie, adapted from his own earlier film, Love Affair (1939.) Cary Grant is the man about town. Deborah Kerr (pictured with Grant) is the beautiful woman he meets aboard an ocean liner. REX Best and worst romantic movies Love it: His Girl Friday (1940) Howard Hawks, starring Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell It was an inspired decision by Howard Hawks to tweak his remake of The Front Page and to turn the reporter into a woman. Instead of a buddy movie about a hardbitten editor and his star journalist, we get a wonderfully spiky screwball romance in which the dialogue is delivered at a velocity that makes today's romcoms seem horribly tongue-tied. REX Best and worst romantic movies Love it: L'Atalante (1934) Jean Vigo, starring Michel Simon, Dita Parlo, Jean Dast The brilliant French director brings lyricism, sensuality and intensity to this story about a young married couple on a barge, enduring jealous spats and very tender reconciliations. REX Best and worst romantic movies Love it: A Bout de Souffle (1960) Jean-Luc Godard, starring Jean-Paul Belmondo, Jean Seberg All you need for a good Valentine's Day movie is a girl, a gun and lots of jump cuts. The gamine-like close-cropped Seberg and the rugged Belmondo make the perfect screen couple in Godard's supremely stylish debut feature. REX Best and worst romantic movies It's over: Romeo and Juliet (2013) Carlo Carlei, starring Hailee Steinfeld, Douglas Booth This lifeless reworking of Shakespeare's play lacks any spark. It doesn't even offer the consolation of the original verse (which has been tinkered with by Julian Fellowes to no particular effect). REX Best and worst romantic movies It's over: Runaway Bride (1999) Garry Marshall, starring Julia Roberts, Richard Gere Julia Roberts and Richard Gere combined to fine effect in Pretty Woman but their pairing here is far less successful. Roberts plays a woman who has had multiple engagements but can't bring herself to marry. Gere is strangely cast as the New York journalist who reports on her habit of jilting men at the altar. REX Best and worst romantic movies It's over: Not Another Happy Ending (2013) John McKay, starring Karen Gillan, Stanley Weber This eccentric and facetious Scottish comedy feels very flat in spite of the charming performance by Gillan as an Annie Hall-like novelist with a bad case of writer's block. (Her creativity only flows when she is miserable.) Synchronicity Films Best and worst romantic movies It's over: Sleepless in Seattle (1993) Nora Ephron, starring Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan Norah Ephron was a tremendously witty and acerbic writer but her features tended to come drenched in schmaltz. Sleepless in Seattle shows off her strengths and is well enough played by Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. Even so, it sinks under its own mawkishness. AP Best and worst romantic movies It's over: Did You Hear About the Morgans? (2009) Marc Lawrence, starring Hugh Grant, Sarah Jessica Parker Excruciating romcom that squanders the considerable comic talents of Hugh Grant and Sarah Jessica Parker. They play a New York power couple whose marriage is fraying. After a client is killed, they enter the witness protection programme and head way out west. As Manhattanites, they struggle to adapt to the outdoors life in Wyoming. REX Best and worst romantic movies It's over: You've Got Mail (1998) Nora Ephron, starring Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan A modern-day reworking of the Ernst Lubitsch classic A Shop Around the Corner that simply doesn't deliver. Hanks and Ryan are the email pals who blithely confide in each other without knowing that in "real life" they are sworn enemies. One works for a predatory bookshop chain and the other for a small independent. In today's Amazon age, the film feels very old fashioned indeed. REX Best and worst romantic movies It's over: Ghost (1990) Jerry Zucker, starring Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore In hindsight, this hugely popular romantic drama seems ghoulish and very odd. The scene in which Swayze's ghost helps Demi Moore with her pottery is especially creepy. REX Best and worst romantic movies It's over: Love Story (1970) Arthur Hiller, starring Ali MacGraw, Ryan O'Neal Valentine's Day movies should be uplifting. This one, based on the novel by Harvard Latin professor Erich Segal was one of Hollywood's biggest downers of the Seventies, a terminal-illness melodrama with a lachrymose, dirge-like theme song. REX Best and worst romantic movies For the lovelorn: Blue Valentine (2010) Derek Cianfrance, starring Ryan Gosling, Michelle Williams An anti-Valentine's film, this is a closely focused, brilliantly acted study of a relationship in good times and bad. It's fascinating as a character study but also ultimately very bleak. Too bleak for Feb 14th... AP Best and worst romantic movies For the lovelorn: Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966) Mike Nichols, starring Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton Mike Nichols' film version of the Edward Albee play about a warring couple (Taylor and Burton, below) in imperious, sacred monster mode) stands as a stark warning for young courting couples about what they. REX Remember that scene where Mark (Andrew Lincoln) turns up at Keira Knightley (Juliet)s door with placards declaring his undying love, despite her being married to his best mate? For some she finds it adorable, even running after him to give him a kiss before snubbing him, but in the light of reality, such behaviour could easily fall under the stalker umbrella. Thats before you recall the hugely inappropriate wedding video he shot for them, featuring tons of zoomed in shots of her. On the other hand, women who watched the likes of Julia Roberts thriller Sleeping With the Enemy, which presents such behaviour as the male aggression it is, were much more likely to brand the offending character a stalker. Lippman defines the stalker myth as false or exaggerated beliefs about stalking that minimise its seriousness, which means that someone who more strongly endorses these tends to take stalking less seriously. The problem, she told Global News Canada, is that instincts serve as powerful cues to help keep us safe but the love conquers all tone of romcoms makes people less likely to question what they are watching. Love is great, but so is respect for other people, she says. This is true even when people tell you things you dont want to hear. Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Steven Soderbergh is returning to Hollywood three years after announcing he was retiring from the film industry. Variety reports that the film to have lured the director back to the big screen is Lucky Logan, a heist film starring Channing Tatum. It initially reported, however, that the film would be titled Hillbilly Heist and would costar Matt Damon - both of which are incorrect. After finding festival success with his feature debut Sex, Lies, and Videotape in 1989 (it won the Cannes Palme d'Or), Soderbergh went on to direct a whole range of films - Out of Sight, Ocean's Eleven, Che - before deciding to end his filmmaking career with the psychological drama Side Effects (2013). The director has since steered his efforts towards television. He directed Michael Douglas to award-winning success in HBO's Liberace biopic Behind the Candelabra and has since followed this up with executive producing credits on period medical drama The Knick (he's also directed 20 episodes), Amazon Studios comedy Red Oaks and a small-screen adaptation of his own 2009 film The Girlfriend Experience. Soderbergh has worked with Tatum multiple times before, including films Magic Mike and thriller Haywire. He won a Best Director Oscar for Traffic in 2001. There is no current word on shooting dates. Get our free weekly email for all the latest cinematic news from our film critic Clarisse Loughrey Get our The Life Cinematic email for free Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the The Life Cinematic email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} In Angelina Jolies war film Unbroken, the American prisoner of war, Louis Zamperini, is sent to Naoetsu, a Japanese camp in this sleepy coastal town. Starved and beaten by a sadistic camp guard, he barely survives. Zamperinis story, with its stirring motifs of bravery and survival, was turned into a bestselling book in 2010 and translated into 30 languages. Since it was released in 2014, Unbroken has been screened around the world. Everywhere, that is, but Japan. The film was stopped in its tracks by a right-wing campaign that branded it anti-Japanese. Nationalists call the depiction of Japanese soldiers in the movie racist and say Ms Jolie hates Japan. Now, after over a year of controversy a small independent distributor has stepped in and the film will be shown for the first time in an central Tokyo art-house. Ultra-rightists are threatening to picket the venue using sound trucks vehicles equipped with high-decibel loudspeakers that drown out other noise and shut the film down before it is rolled out to other theatres around Japan. Watch the trailer for Unbroken Jack OConnell plays the role of Zamperini, a long-distance runner who qualified for the 1936 Berlin Olympics and met Adolf Hitler. Before being captured by Japanese soldiers, he survived 47 days adrift on a raft in the Pacific. Japan has produced much of the top scholarship on the war, critical or otherwise, and its film studios have produced a string of anti-war classics. Foreign movies showing mistreatment of POWs, including the British made The Railway Man (staring Colin Firth and Nicole Kidman) have been screened in the country. But reflection, never easy, has long battled official amnesia. In the area around Naoetsu, few seem even aware of the camp or that it has been immortalised in a Hollywood movie. The local library doesnt have a single record of Zamperini. A scene from the film 'Unbroken' (Rex) I dont think people care about something that happened so long ago, says Yukiko Ishida, who runs a coffee shop half a mile from where the camp once stood. Others say they were not even aware that Americans were held in Japanese prisons. Access unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows with Amazon Prime Video Sign up now for a 30-day free trial Sign up Unbroken is hobbled by not including a single sympathetic Japanese character. Its on-screen depiction of the torture of an Olympian is also uncomfortable viewing in a country increasingly disinclined to look at its past, while looking forward to hosting its second Olympics in 2020. Zamperini was one of 30,000 POWs in Japan, of whom 10 per cent died, says Kinue Tokudome, executive director of the US-Japan Dialogue on POWs. People dont know that history, she laments. They must have seen these emaciated Caucasians in the countryside. How could they not remember and talk about it? Some 60 Australians died from disease and mistreatment at the Naoetsu camp from 1942-45. When the war ended, eight guards were tried and executed, more than from any other POW Camp in Japan. Zamperinis tormentor, Mutsuhiro Watanabe, nicknamed the Bird, was never brought to justice, however. A small park marks the spot where the camp once stood. Locals, working with the families of former Australian prisoners, created the monument in 1995. But many of the people who fought to have it built have passed away. Recommended Read more Japan confronts truth about its germ warfare tests on prisoners of war Japans historical amnesia is accelerating under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, says Mindy Kotler, director of the Washington-based think-tank Asia Policy Point. The Abe administration has walked back on every aspect of accountability for the war, she says. Earlier this year, Japans education ministry ordered that school textbooks must reflect the government position on history and territorial issues, watering down references to the war. Mr Abe has already partially satisfied a key demand of his supporters that Japan end the shameful apology diplomacy of the post-war years. Mr Abe has stopped short of offering his own words of remorse and said Japan must not let... generations to come... be predestined to apologise. A panel of experts is probing the verdicts of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East (19461948). The verdicts, which condemned Japans six wartime leaders to death, were based on a poorly constructed perception of history, said Inada Tomomi, a close colleague of Mr Abe. South Korea has responded to Japans textbook changes by announcing that schoolteachers will be given dedicated training on the history of Japans wartime military brothels. In China, schools already study Japanese invasions of the 1930s and 1940s. Unbroken should resonate beyond national borders because its central character embraced reconciliation. Zamperini, who died in 2014, aged 97, later went to Japan to meet his captors. During the Nagano Olympics of 1988, he carried the Olympic torch. Ms Tokudome says there is still some space in Japan to discuss what occurred in the 1930s and 40s but worries that this space may be closing. Young Japanese people, she laments, have very few opportunities to learn about the history that took place in their country. Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter for all the latest entertainment news and reviews Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the IndyArts email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} In autumn 1909, a young lawyer and activist wrote from London to one of his heroes, now a frail old man who would die within a year. "Very eager to engage your active interest and sympathy." The disciple won his idol's support for a campaign of non-violent protest in South Africa. The pair exchanged friendly, admiring letters. "Your work in the Transvaal, which to us seems to be at the end of the Earth, is yet in the centre of our interest," Count Leo Tolstoy told Mohandas K Gandhi from his estate at Yasnaya Polyana. For Tolstoy, delighted to find not just another fan who shared his ideals but a dynamic organiser who might put them into practice, both men had chosen "the same struggle of the tender against the harsh, of meekness and love against pride and violence". For decades, Leo Tolstoy was not just the best-known but the most influential author in the world. Although snuffed out by Soviet brutality after 1917, his principles of non-violent, spiritually driven social revolution spread further and lasted longer than Lenin's doctrine of state terror. Gandhi passed the Count's baton to Martin Luther King, then to a host of good-life movements and peaceable resisters all around the world. Foes who castigate the allotment-tending, jam-making, nuke-scrapping Jeremy Corbyn as a ferocious Bolshevik have got the wrong end of the stout peasant-style stick. He is a pure Tolstoyan. Culture news in pictures Show all 33 1 /33 Culture news in pictures Culture news in pictures 30 September 2016 An employee hangs works of art with "Grand Teatro" by Marino Marini (R) and bronze sculpture "Sfera N.3" by Arnaldo Pomodoro seen ahead of a Contemporary Art auction on 7 October, at Sotheby's in London REUTERS Culture news in pictures 29 September 2016 Street art by Portuguese artist Odeith is seen in Dresden, during an exhibition "Magic City - art of the streets" AFP/Getty Images Culture news in pictures 28 September 2016 Dancers attend a photocall for the new "THE ONE Grand Show" at Friedrichstadt-Palast in Berlin, Germany REUTERS Culture news in pictures 28 September 2016 With an array of thrift store china, humorous souvenirs and handmade tile adorning its walls and floors, the Mosaic Tile House in Venice stands as a monument to two decades of artistic collaboration between Cheri Pann and husband Gonzalo Duran REUTERS Culture news in pictures 27 September 2016 A gallery assistant poses amongst work by Anthea Hamilton from her nominated show "Lichen! Libido!(London!) Chastity!" at a preview of the Turner Prize in London REUTERS Culture news in pictures 27 September 2016 A technician wearing virtual reality glasses checks his installation in three British public telephone booths, set up outside the Mauritshuis museum in The Hague, Netherlands. The installation allows visitors a 3-D look into the museum which has twenty-two paintings belonging to the British Royal Collection, on loan for an exhibit from 29 September 2016 till 8 January 2017 AP Culture news in pictures 26 September 2016 An Indian artist dressed as Hindu god Shiva performs on a chariot as he participates in a religious procession 'Ravan ki Barat' held to mark the forthcoming Dussehra festival in Allahabad AFP/Getty Images Culture news in pictures 26 September 2016 Jean-Michel Basquiat's 'Air Power', 1984, is displayed at the Bowie/Collector media preview at Sotheby's in New York AFP/Getty Culture news in pictures 25 September 2016 A woman looks at an untitled painting by Albert Oehlen during the opening of an exhibition of works by German artists Georg Baselitz and Albert Oehlen in Reutlingen, Germany. The exhibition runs at the Kunstverein (art society) Reutlingen until 15 January 2017 EPA Culture news in pictures 24 September 2016 Fan BingBing (C) attends the closing ceremony of the 64th San Sebastian Film Festival at Kursaal in San Sebastian, Spain Getty Images Culture news in pictures 23 September 2016 A view of the artwork 'You Are Metamorphosing' (1964) as part of the exhibition 'Retrospektive' of Japanese artist Tetsumi Kudo at Fridericianum in Kassel, Germany. The exhibition runs from 25 September 2016 to 1 January 2017 EPA Culture news in pictures 22 September 2016 Jo Applin from the Courtauld Institute of Art looks at Green Tilework in Live Flesh by Adriana Vareja, which features in a new exhibition, Flesh, at York Art Gallery. The new exhibition features works by Degas, Chardin, Francis Bacon and Sarah Lucas, showing how flesh has been portrayed by artists over the last 600 years PA Culture news in pictures 21 September 2016 Performers Sean Atkins and Sally Miller standing in for the characters played by Asa Butterfield and Ella Purnell during a photocall for Tim Burton's "Miss Peregrines Home For Peculiar Children" at Potters Field Park in London Getty Images Culture news in pictures 20 September 2016 A detail from the blanket 'Alpine Cattle Drive' from 1926 by artist Ernst Ludwig Kirchner is displayed at the 'Hamburger Bahnhof - Museum for Contemporary Arts' in Berlin. The exhibition named 'Ernst Ludwig Kirchner - Hieroglyphen' showing the complete collection of Berlin's Nationalgallerie works of the German artist Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and will run from 23 September 2016 until 26 February 2017 AP Culture news in pictures 20 September 2016 A man looks at portrait photos by US photographer Bruce Gilden in the exhibition 'Masters of Photography' at the photokina in Cologne, Germany. The trade fair on photography, photokina, schowcases some 1,000 exhibitors from 40 countries and runs from 20 to 25 September. The event also features various photo exhibitions EPA Culture news in pictures 20 September 2016 A woman looks at 'Blue Poles', 1952 by Jackson Pollock during a photocall at the Royal Academy of Arts, London PA Culture news in pictures 19 September 2016 Art installation The Refusal of Time, a collaboration with Philip Miller, Catherine Meyburgh and Peter Galison, which features as part of the William Kentridge exhibition Thick Time, showing from 21 September to 15 January at the Whitechapel Gallery in London PA Culture news in pictures 18 September 2016 Artists creating one off designs at the Mm6 Maison Margiela presentation during London Fashion Week Spring/Summer collections 2017 in London Getty Images Culture news in pictures 18 September 2016 Bethenny Frankel attends the special screening of Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" to celebrate the 25th Anniversary Edition release on Blu-Ray and DVD in New York City Getty Images for Walt Disney Stu Culture news in pictures 17 September 2016 Visitors attend the 2016 Oktoberfest beer festival at Theresienwiese in Munich, Germany Getty Images Culture news in pictures 16 September 2016 Visitors looks at British artist Damien Hirst work of art 'The Incomplete Truth', during the 13th Yalta Annual Meeting entitled 'The World, Europe and Ukraine: storms of changes', organised by the Yalta European Strategy (YES) in partnership with the Victor Pinchuk Foundation at the Mystetsky Arsenal Art Center in Kiev AP Culture news in pictures 16 September 2016 Tracey Emin's "My Bed" is exhibited at the Tate Liverpool as part of the exhibition Tracey Emin And William Blake In Focus, which highlights surprising links between the two artists Getty Images Culture news in pictures 15 September 2016 Musician Dave Grohl (L) joins musician Tom Morello of Prophets of Rage onstage at the Forum in Inglewood, California Getty Images Culture news in pictures 14 September 2016 Model feebee poses as part of art installation "Narcissism : Dazzle room" made by artist Shigeki Matsuyama at rooms33 fashion and design exhibition in Tokyo. Matsuyama's installation features a strong contrast of black and white, which he learned from dazzle camouflage used mainly in World War I AP Culture news in pictures 13 September 2016 Visitors look at artworks by Chinese painter Cui Ruzhuo during the exhibition 'Glossiness of Uncarved Jade' held at the exhibition hall 'Manezh' in St. Petersburg, Russia. More than 200 paintings by the Chinese artist are presented until 25 September EPA Culture news in pictures 12 September 2016 A visitor looks at Raphael's painting 'Extase de Sainte Cecile', 1515, from the Uffizi Gallery in Florence during the opening of a Raphael exhibition at the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow, Russia. The first Russian exhibition of the works of the Italian Renaissance artist Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino includes eight paintings and three drawings which come from Italy. Th exhibit opens to the public from 13 September to 11 December EPA Culture news in pictures 11 September 2016 Steve Cropper and Eddie Floyd perform during Otis Redding 75th Birthday Celebration - Rehearsals at the Macon City Auditorium in Macon, Georgia Getty Images for Otis Redding 75 Culture news in pictures 10 September 2016 Sakari Oramo conducting the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Chorus and the BBC Singers at the Last Night of the Proms 2016 at the Royal Albert Hall in London PA Culture news in pictures 9 September 2016 A visitor walks past a piece entitled "Fruitcake" by Joana Vasconcelo, during the Beyond Limits selling exhibition at Chatsworth House near Bakewell REUTERS Culture news in pictures 8 September 2016 A sculpture of a crescent standing on the 2,140 meters high mountain 'Freiheit' (German for 'freedom'), in the Alpstein region of the Appenzell alps, eastern Switzerland. The sculpture is lighted during the nights by means of solar panels. The 38-year-old Swiss artist and atheist Christian Meier set the crescent on the peak to start a debate on the meaning of religious symbols - as summit crosses - on mountains. 'Because so many peaks have crosses on them, it struck me as a great idea to put up an equally absurd contrast'. 'Naturally I wanted to provoke in a fun way. But it goes beyond that. The actions of an artist should be food for thought, both visually and in content' EPA Culture news in pictures Culture news in pictures Culture news in pictures To its credit, Andrew Davies's six-part adaptation of War and Peace has allowed the Count's world-view to slide slowly into sight, like a sledge emerging from a snowstorm. The BBC series, which ends on Sunday after harvesting golden reviews, warm online feedback and healthy Sunday-evening ratings, opened its run obscured by a blizzard of trivialising scorn. The canny Davies did little to disperse it. Playing off his reputation as the serial sexer-up of set texts, the screenwriter of Pride and Prejudice, Bleak House, Daniel Deronda and much else diverted the previewers' gaze to his (literal) fleshing-out of Tolstoy's hints about an incestuous liaison between the devilishly sensual Kuragin siblings. Acting the mildly philistine everyman, Davies reported that he had axed the novel's boring essayistic bits but whetted appetites for the drama of boudoir and battlefield. "I took it with me on holiday, and you know what? Once you get into it, it's a page-turner," he matily confided. So the dramatisation began to a braying chorus of (possibly) hungover pundits and columnists. They swallowed Davies's titillating bait about the Kuragins and scoffed at the allegedly soporific stretches of an overlong epic. Several of these privileged boors smugly announced that, of course, they had not read the book. So the War and Peace kick-off displayed British culture in miniature the best and the worst. On the one hand, a far-sighted and high-achieving public broadcaster crafts an ambitious version of a classic work with top-notch acting, resourceful direction (from Tom Harper) and a shrewdly, subtly compressed screenplay despite the writer's diversionary antics. On the other, a mob of well-paid media loudmouths take it as read that this giant fossil of a book needs rescuing from the "worthy but dull" file by dumping the serious stuff and spicing up the bedroom scenes. Only in England would columnists proudly boast about their total incompetence to judge an adaptation of this kind. Playing it by the book: Andrew Davies on set (BBC) Over the past five weeks, Davies's screenplay has gradually come good. True, he can't afford to visualise all the novel's lengthy meditations on life and love, history and destiny. But he can notably via the luminous performances of Lily James as Natasha and Paul Dano as Pierre suggest the way that Tolstoy makes his characters wrestle inwardly with their choices, their characters, their fates. Just as, in this epic on a tight budget, a patch of Lithuanian woodland has to stand in for endless Russian forests and a close-focus skirmish must represent the clash of vast armies, so brief snatches of dialogue or silent musings by candlelight or in the snow have to hint at life-changing inner upheavals. When Natasha throws off her Frenchified airs and graces, and plunges into an ecstatic Russian peasant dance, it not only ranks as a turning-point for her and for the book. To Tolstoy's followers, Russia itself recovers her soul in this scene. Ordinary viewers have responded with more grace and nous than the early pundits. People coming to the story with no prior assumptions have voiced surprise, alarm and shock at the twists of emotion just as Tolstoy planned. When Natasha almost fell into the slimily seductive arms of Anatol Kuragin, the online gasps were nearly audible. "Natasha, have a word with yourself. You'll be in some pervy sibling threesome before you know it," ran a typical tweet. Recommended Read more Viewers freak out over unexpected War and Peace penis shot Don't write off these reversals and cliff-hangers as the hallmarks of a superior soap opera from the 1860s. They relate directly to the (false) assumption that Davies has simply excised the dreary, philosophical chunks of War and Peace. Those sections usually dwell on believes that we act in the short term intending to break the rules of character or history, to rebel against family, time or class, only to find that all along we have been following the dictates of a higher law. Every time Tolstoy's heroines and heroes startle us with a headstrong swerve or impetuous adventure, they belong as much as Napoleon himself, the slave of fate, in Tolstoy's grand scheme. Access unlimited streaming of movies and TV shows with Amazon Prime Video Sign up now for a 30-day free trial Sign up "Each man lives for himself, using his freedom to attain his personal aims," writes Tolstoy in the second epilogue to War and Peace. "But as soon as he has done it, that action performed at a certain moment in time becomes irrevocable and belongs to history". Behind spontaneity, accident and passion lies an order that belongs to the novelist or to God. Just because Davies has cleverly disguised this mechanism does not mean that he has broken it. James Norton as Prince Andrei Laurie Sparham (BBC) In his Lectures on Russian Literature, Vladimir Nabokov notes that: "Many people approach Tolstoy with mixed feelings. They love the artist in him and are intensely bored by the preacher." But, argues the author of Lolita, "it is rather difficult to separate Tolstoy the preacher from Tolstoy the artist it is the same deep slow voice, the same robust shoulder pushing up a cloud of visions or a load of ideas." From the era of Gandhi until now, that "deep slow voice" has mesmerised millions. It buttonholes us not just about lofty, abstract issues but the sort of dilemmas that obsess any teenager. How will I know who to love? Can I trust my deepest feelings? Should I do what I want and break my parents' heart? How should I live my life? Why strive to be good in a world of risk, violence and disaster? How will I ever know the truth? One virtue of the BBC War and Peace is that we see just how young its protagonists are. Tolstoy's youths cherish the sort of earnestness that embarrasses middle-aged hacks. And, by and large, viewers of the BBC series have proved wiser, more receptive and more in tune with Tolstoy than many of its critics. The historian EP Thompson wrote of "the enormous condescension of posterity" towards the past. For an element of Britain's carping commentariat, that extends to one of the greatest novels ever written. Will they brush off their trite put-downs when, in March, ITV screens an adaptation of Anthony Trollope's novel Doctor Thorne? Probably not, since this classic retread comes from the stable of Lord Julian Fellowes of Downton, and boasts a former royal girlfriend Cressida Bonas in the cast. In this country, snobbery tends to trump philistinism. Not that it did much good for Count Tolstoy. The public did not patronise the BBC War and Peace. Only the professionals did that. Although too short, the Davies-Harper dramatisation has captured much of the intimacy that brings Tolstoy so close to his admirers whether MK Gandhi or the latest Sunday-night tweeter. As Nabokov put it: "Readers call Tolstoy a giant not because other writers are dwarfs but because he remains always of exactly our own stature, exactly keeping pace with us instead of passing by in the distance, as other authors do." On television, the walk with Tolstoy ends this weekend. Pick up War and Peace itself, and he may keep you company for months. 'War and Peace' concludes on Sunday at 9pm on BBC1 Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter for all the latest entertainment news and reviews Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the IndyArts email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} From the voice to the gesticulations to the general demeanour - theres a lot of similarities between Bernie Sanders and Larry David, and now the Democratic presidential candidate has just gone right ahead and admitted theyre the same person. David is hosting Saturday Night Live this weekend and some sort of impression of the Bern and/or reference to the Iowa caucus coin toss is a near certainty. I understand Larry David is hosting SNL this weekend - he does a pretty good imitation of you - do you do a Larry David imitation? CNNs Anderson Cooper asked him during a town hall discussion. This is the scoop, Bernie replied, I am Larry David. Elsewhere in the debate, Sanders said he would be delighted to run against Donald Trump as it would mean a surefire win. Trump is, as you know, a well-known scientist - brilliant scientist, he joked. And he has concluded after years of studying the issue that climate change is a hoax brought to us by the Chinese. Now, that shocked me, Anderson, because I thought that he would have thought it was a hoax brought to us by the Mexicans or the Muslims - Chinese I didnt quite get. So I think - and I would love the opportunity, frankly, Im prejudiced - I want Trump to win the Republican nomination. And I would love the opportunity to run against him. I think we would win by a lot. News / National by Staff Reporter President Robert Mugabe has sent a message of condolences to the Malaba family following the death of Reverend Dr Griffiths Malaba who died on Tuesday this week.In his message, Mugabe said the passing on of Reverend Malaba is a terrible blow and great loss to the Malaba family, relatives and friends and all of whom including himself who were privileged to be associated with the late in the course of his life.Reverend Malaba, who succumbed to renal failure, had endured a long battle with hypertension and diabetes."The late Reverend Malaba belonged to the early crop of African scholars who excelled in their education during the colonial days and demonstrated that blacks have the intellectual capacity and acumen which rivalled and even surpassed that of their erstwhile colonisers," said President Mugabe.At independence the late Malaba was appointed one of the first black members of the Public Service Commission and subsequently served as the deputy chair of the Presidential Commission on Education and Training, better known as the Nziramasanga Commission. Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter for all the latest entertainment news and reviews Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the IndyArts email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Despite a series of breakdowns and a couple of flat tyres, the new series of Top Gear is still going ahead as planned. After Jeremy Clarkson ignominiously left the BBC in March 2015 following a filming altercation - with co-presenters Richard Hammond and James May in tow - a new series was confirmed to go ahead equipped with a string of new hosts. Ever since cameras began rolling, however, reports of on-set issues have plagued the series. Below are all the details you need to know about BBC2's reboot ranging from the hosting details (LeBlanc!), on-set issues and how it'll fare against Clarkson's upcoming rival car series. Who's hosting? Chris Evans was first confirmed as the man tasked with replacing the original trio of presenters. Of course, Top Gear isn't a one-man job and on 4 February, it was announced that Friends actor Matt LeBlanc would be joining Evans as co-host. With at least one more person set to be announced, rumours suggest German motor racing driver Sabine Schmitz, Formula One star David Coulthard and automotive journalist Chris Harris could complete the line-up. What are these 'issues' we speak of? Where do we start: ever since news of a reboot surfaced, the reports have not been great. First up, executive producer Lisa Clark - whom Evans had personally drafted - quit, while the BBC boss presiding over Top Gear stepped down. Making matters worse were the claims that Evans was struggling in his new position; one report stated he was finding it difficult to simultaneously drive and talk to the camera - a claim the BBC denied - while a leaked photo of the presenter having a bout of travel sickness found its way onto the web (not ideal for a car show host). Recommended Read more Watch Matt LeBlanc breeze the Top Gear fastest lap record When can we see it? There's no official airdate currently set, but Top Gear is expected to pull up in May (Evans tentatively mentioned Thursday 5 May as a potential premiere date). Purely speculative, this, but it'd be a strange decision to move the popular motoring show from its beloved 8 PM Sunday night slot. Top Gear: Who will join Chris Evans behind the wheel? Show all 7 1 /7 Top Gear: Who will join Chris Evans behind the wheel? Top Gear: Who will join Chris Evans behind the wheel? Jodie Kidd What they call a dead cert: Jodie Kidd will be confirmed as the new May the six-foot-something former model being too lofty to be the new Hammond. But does she want it? Doing the rounds of reality TV contests (Strictly Come Dancing, Celebrity MasterChef, The Jump) suggests a woman in search of a future in television, and assuming that the BBC is eager to rid Top Gear of its blokey image and Evans has said that the new line-up will include a female then Kidd would be ideal: she drives a Maserati, posted one of the fastest laps in the programmes Star in a Reasonably Priced Car and, as a veteran of the fashion industry, has probably encountered her fair share of misogyny before Getty Images Top Gear: Who will join Chris Evans behind the wheel? Guy Martin In retrospect, Channel 4s Speed with Guy Martin looks like an extended audition reel for the Top Gear job, as the former motorcycle racing champ attempted to beat the world speed record for a hovercraft (as well as for a motorcycle on water!), while, like Hammond, Martin is a survivor of high-speed crashes. A television natural, Martins bushy sideburns will appeal to Top Gear fans who still groom like its 1974 Getty Images Top Gear: Who will join Chris Evans behind the wheel? Dermot OLeary Being a safe pair of hands, as Dermot has proved on The X Factor, is one thing but unless the BBC secretly wants to kill off its troublesome export milch cow, then thats the very last thing Top Gear needs. After all, recklessness, along with (lest we forget) some excellent, attention-grabbing motor journalism, is what has amassed fans in more than 200 countries worldwide. And will OLeary really want to crease those impeccable suits? Getty Images Top Gear: Who will join Chris Evans behind the wheel? Philip Glenister The BBC drama Life on Mars, in which a policeman finds himself trapped in 1973, proved that Philip Glenister would be game to imitate James Mays old-rocker denim look. But what has grabbed bookies attention is Glenisters more recent role as presenter of Channel 4s For the Love of Cars, in which old motors are found and restored. Still, it seems unlikely that hell be turning down acting gigs because hes too busy racing Ford Cortinas across the Gobi desert Getty Images Top Gear: Who will join Chris Evans behind the wheel? Steve Coogan Chris Evans would drown if he tried to trade banter with Coogan, a far sharper and funnier man who is also a petrolhead, and has driven around Italy with Rob Brydon. Those are miserable odds in the circumstances Getty Images Top Gear: Who will join Chris Evans behind the wheel? Rowan Atkinson Who says bookies dont have a sense of humour and I mean the odds theyre offering, not a taste for Mr Bean? A wealthy car lover, collector and sometime racer, Atkinson has appeared before as a Star in a Reasonably Priced Car, driving a Ford Kia. His other car is a McLaren F1 Getty Images Top Gear: Who will join Chris Evans behind the wheel? David Beckham Beckham would instantly rid Top Gear of its fashion-dinosaur image but would he be too busy self-grooming in the rear-view mirror to actually put his foot on the pedal? And lets face it, Becks is always more impressive when he doesnt open his mouth. The new Stig, perhaps? Getty Images How will it fare against its Amazon rival? That depends on how loyal fans are to the original presenting trio who Amazon Video snapped up in a "very, very expensive" deal (rumour: 4 million per episode) following their departure from the BBC in 2015. Although Amazon's clout is growing in stature, the untitled series - airing late 2016 - remains a gamble considering Amazon is a subscription service. Combine Top Gear's national treasure status with the fact that BBC2 is broadcast on every TV and it seems likely the revamped series will match the success of its old model. The negative reports can't hurt either, only adding intrigue; a whole new audience could tune in to see how Evans and Joey from Friends will fare together (the most unlikely double act since Sam Fox and Mick Fleetwood presented the Brits in 1989). Will The Stig return? Of course The Stig is returning - it's unknown which racing car driver will follow in the footsteps of Perry McCarthy and Ben Collins in portraying the character, however. It is also unknown which popular segments will remain - although we'll be shocked if fan favourite 'Star in a Reasonably Priced Car' doesn't make the cut. Top Gear will air on BBC2 in May. Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter for all the latest entertainment news and reviews Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the IndyArts email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The former Kids Company chief executive, Camila Batmanghelidjh, told her story in the BBC's thought-provoking programme Camila's Kids Company: the Inside Story. Documentary maker Lynn Alleway took up the charity founder's offer to film her last summer just when a string of allegations of mismanagement were emerging. Alleway then watched as the charity collapsed and the Government stepped in, resulting in Batmanghelidjh stepping down as chief executive. Last week, the Met closed its inquiry into sexual abuse allegations involving the organisation but it was too late the charity was wound up last August. Billed as the "inside story", it quickly became clear that we were unlikely to get that. Calm, collected and full of humour, Batmanghelidjh was a formidable force and a master operator. But a well-intentioned one. Her staff treated her like a divine being. Children loved her like a mother. But the Government who had once thrown money at her suddenly turned. "Everyone thinks that just because I wear funny clothes and have a Miss Piggy bag that I must be unable to run a business," she claimed. There was definitely some truth in her inability to run a business but I don't think it was her appearance hindering her. Wage bills were extortionate, the charity's HQ was luxurious and some questionable decisions were being made about who to help and how. As the film progressed, Alleway became increasingly frustrated by her subject, whose delivery was unnerving. She laughed off all suggestions of mismanagement and seemed to be in denial even as the charity was packed up around her. At no point did Batmanghelidjh admit any responsibility and every time Alleway tried to confront her, she talked her way out of it. Her private swimming pool was "not luxurious" and children living in a 5,000-a-month house "deserved" a better lifestyle. As Alleway's frustration grew, so too did mine at her inability to get a straight answer. At her most animated she asked: "Who is to blame, Camila?" only to be told: "I think it's a collective madness that the media and politicians engaged in." For someone who clearly hates politicians, it's ironic that she would have made a great one. Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter for all the latest entertainment news and reviews Sign up to our free IndyArts newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the IndyArts email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Rare is the charitable organisation nowadays that doesn't have its own podcast. The newest way to make an enterprise look suitably multimedia, these are rarely the ones that climb up the iTunes charts and get listeners chattering on Reddit. They're the ones where some poor sap from marketing is shoved in a broom cupboard with a microphone and a laptop and told to share their wisdom on fundraising, to an audience of precisely no one. Every now and then, however, along comes one with sharp production, a decent budget and a proper tale to tell. A case in point is Amnesty International's newly launched In Their Own Words. The fortnightly podcasts offer first-hand accounts from human rights campaigners and victims of injustice, told through the voice of another. Culture news in pictures Show all 33 1 /33 Culture news in pictures Culture news in pictures 30 September 2016 An employee hangs works of art with "Grand Teatro" by Marino Marini (R) and bronze sculpture "Sfera N.3" by Arnaldo Pomodoro seen ahead of a Contemporary Art auction on 7 October, at Sotheby's in London REUTERS Culture news in pictures 29 September 2016 Street art by Portuguese artist Odeith is seen in Dresden, during an exhibition "Magic City - art of the streets" AFP/Getty Images Culture news in pictures 28 September 2016 Dancers attend a photocall for the new "THE ONE Grand Show" at Friedrichstadt-Palast in Berlin, Germany REUTERS Culture news in pictures 28 September 2016 With an array of thrift store china, humorous souvenirs and handmade tile adorning its walls and floors, the Mosaic Tile House in Venice stands as a monument to two decades of artistic collaboration between Cheri Pann and husband Gonzalo Duran REUTERS Culture news in pictures 27 September 2016 A gallery assistant poses amongst work by Anthea Hamilton from her nominated show "Lichen! Libido!(London!) Chastity!" at a preview of the Turner Prize in London REUTERS Culture news in pictures 27 September 2016 A technician wearing virtual reality glasses checks his installation in three British public telephone booths, set up outside the Mauritshuis museum in The Hague, Netherlands. The installation allows visitors a 3-D look into the museum which has twenty-two paintings belonging to the British Royal Collection, on loan for an exhibit from 29 September 2016 till 8 January 2017 AP Culture news in pictures 26 September 2016 An Indian artist dressed as Hindu god Shiva performs on a chariot as he participates in a religious procession 'Ravan ki Barat' held to mark the forthcoming Dussehra festival in Allahabad AFP/Getty Images Culture news in pictures 26 September 2016 Jean-Michel Basquiat's 'Air Power', 1984, is displayed at the Bowie/Collector media preview at Sotheby's in New York AFP/Getty Culture news in pictures 25 September 2016 A woman looks at an untitled painting by Albert Oehlen during the opening of an exhibition of works by German artists Georg Baselitz and Albert Oehlen in Reutlingen, Germany. The exhibition runs at the Kunstverein (art society) Reutlingen until 15 January 2017 EPA Culture news in pictures 24 September 2016 Fan BingBing (C) attends the closing ceremony of the 64th San Sebastian Film Festival at Kursaal in San Sebastian, Spain Getty Images Culture news in pictures 23 September 2016 A view of the artwork 'You Are Metamorphosing' (1964) as part of the exhibition 'Retrospektive' of Japanese artist Tetsumi Kudo at Fridericianum in Kassel, Germany. The exhibition runs from 25 September 2016 to 1 January 2017 EPA Culture news in pictures 22 September 2016 Jo Applin from the Courtauld Institute of Art looks at Green Tilework in Live Flesh by Adriana Vareja, which features in a new exhibition, Flesh, at York Art Gallery. The new exhibition features works by Degas, Chardin, Francis Bacon and Sarah Lucas, showing how flesh has been portrayed by artists over the last 600 years PA Culture news in pictures 21 September 2016 Performers Sean Atkins and Sally Miller standing in for the characters played by Asa Butterfield and Ella Purnell during a photocall for Tim Burton's "Miss Peregrines Home For Peculiar Children" at Potters Field Park in London Getty Images Culture news in pictures 20 September 2016 A detail from the blanket 'Alpine Cattle Drive' from 1926 by artist Ernst Ludwig Kirchner is displayed at the 'Hamburger Bahnhof - Museum for Contemporary Arts' in Berlin. The exhibition named 'Ernst Ludwig Kirchner - Hieroglyphen' showing the complete collection of Berlin's Nationalgallerie works of the German artist Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and will run from 23 September 2016 until 26 February 2017 AP Culture news in pictures 20 September 2016 A man looks at portrait photos by US photographer Bruce Gilden in the exhibition 'Masters of Photography' at the photokina in Cologne, Germany. The trade fair on photography, photokina, schowcases some 1,000 exhibitors from 40 countries and runs from 20 to 25 September. The event also features various photo exhibitions EPA Culture news in pictures 20 September 2016 A woman looks at 'Blue Poles', 1952 by Jackson Pollock during a photocall at the Royal Academy of Arts, London PA Culture news in pictures 19 September 2016 Art installation The Refusal of Time, a collaboration with Philip Miller, Catherine Meyburgh and Peter Galison, which features as part of the William Kentridge exhibition Thick Time, showing from 21 September to 15 January at the Whitechapel Gallery in London PA Culture news in pictures 18 September 2016 Artists creating one off designs at the Mm6 Maison Margiela presentation during London Fashion Week Spring/Summer collections 2017 in London Getty Images Culture news in pictures 18 September 2016 Bethenny Frankel attends the special screening of Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" to celebrate the 25th Anniversary Edition release on Blu-Ray and DVD in New York City Getty Images for Walt Disney Stu Culture news in pictures 17 September 2016 Visitors attend the 2016 Oktoberfest beer festival at Theresienwiese in Munich, Germany Getty Images Culture news in pictures 16 September 2016 Visitors looks at British artist Damien Hirst work of art 'The Incomplete Truth', during the 13th Yalta Annual Meeting entitled 'The World, Europe and Ukraine: storms of changes', organised by the Yalta European Strategy (YES) in partnership with the Victor Pinchuk Foundation at the Mystetsky Arsenal Art Center in Kiev AP Culture news in pictures 16 September 2016 Tracey Emin's "My Bed" is exhibited at the Tate Liverpool as part of the exhibition Tracey Emin And William Blake In Focus, which highlights surprising links between the two artists Getty Images Culture news in pictures 15 September 2016 Musician Dave Grohl (L) joins musician Tom Morello of Prophets of Rage onstage at the Forum in Inglewood, California Getty Images Culture news in pictures 14 September 2016 Model feebee poses as part of art installation "Narcissism : Dazzle room" made by artist Shigeki Matsuyama at rooms33 fashion and design exhibition in Tokyo. Matsuyama's installation features a strong contrast of black and white, which he learned from dazzle camouflage used mainly in World War I AP Culture news in pictures 13 September 2016 Visitors look at artworks by Chinese painter Cui Ruzhuo during the exhibition 'Glossiness of Uncarved Jade' held at the exhibition hall 'Manezh' in St. Petersburg, Russia. More than 200 paintings by the Chinese artist are presented until 25 September EPA Culture news in pictures 12 September 2016 A visitor looks at Raphael's painting 'Extase de Sainte Cecile', 1515, from the Uffizi Gallery in Florence during the opening of a Raphael exhibition at the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow, Russia. The first Russian exhibition of the works of the Italian Renaissance artist Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino includes eight paintings and three drawings which come from Italy. Th exhibit opens to the public from 13 September to 11 December EPA Culture news in pictures 11 September 2016 Steve Cropper and Eddie Floyd perform during Otis Redding 75th Birthday Celebration - Rehearsals at the Macon City Auditorium in Macon, Georgia Getty Images for Otis Redding 75 Culture news in pictures 10 September 2016 Sakari Oramo conducting the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Chorus and the BBC Singers at the Last Night of the Proms 2016 at the Royal Albert Hall in London PA Culture news in pictures 9 September 2016 A visitor walks past a piece entitled "Fruitcake" by Joana Vasconcelo, during the Beyond Limits selling exhibition at Chatsworth House near Bakewell REUTERS Culture news in pictures 8 September 2016 A sculpture of a crescent standing on the 2,140 meters high mountain 'Freiheit' (German for 'freedom'), in the Alpstein region of the Appenzell alps, eastern Switzerland. The sculpture is lighted during the nights by means of solar panels. The 38-year-old Swiss artist and atheist Christian Meier set the crescent on the peak to start a debate on the meaning of religious symbols - as summit crosses - on mountains. 'Because so many peaks have crosses on them, it struck me as a great idea to put up an equally absurd contrast'. 'Naturally I wanted to provoke in a fun way. But it goes beyond that. The actions of an artist should be food for thought, both visually and in content' EPA Culture news in pictures Culture news in pictures Culture news in pictures The first episode was voiced by the Hollywood star Christian Bale and told the story of Chen Guangcheng, the blind activist and self-taught lawyer from China who has become a leading light for the country's civil rights movement. Guangcheng is a champion of disability as well as reproductive rights. The government's response in China was to arrest him, sentence him to four years in prison and later, following his release, keep him under house arrest. While imprisoned in his home, he and his family endured frequent beatings by their guards. Eventually, Guangcheng escaped, and took refuge at the American Embassy in Beijing. He now lives in the US. As told by Bale, Guangcheng's testimony was grimly thrilling (if there isn't a film in the works, there should be). Bale had his own interest to declare as he and Guangchen are friends. As a postscript the actor told of his attempt to visit Chen in 2011 with a group of journalists, and was set upon by the guards. He recalled: "They were all pulling at my arms and punching, and the cameraman's on the floor and he's getting kicked and then the other journalists are getting pushed around and shoved, and I hear one of them shout 'Christian, get in the car now!'" The next episode, available tomorrow, comes from WikiLeaks whistleblower Chelsea Manning, and is voiced by the actress Michelle Hendley. I've had a listen and I can tell you it's electrifying. A cloud hung over the nation over the weekend with the death of yet another British legend. On Today John Humphrys described the late Terry Wogan as "one of the greatest broadcasters of our age... Radio could have been invented for him". On Radio 2 Chris Evans called his predecessor "supremely assured, unwaveringly confident. And do you know why? Because he never took any of this seriously." Jeremy Vine made the most of the BBC archive, drawing on some wonderful clips including one from Desert Island Discs where Wogan, who was a guest, remarked: "We're not talking to an audience. You're talking to one person and they're only half listening anyway." These moments of collective mourning are sad but they nonetheless bring out the best in radio. They are the times when playlists are ignored and egos are put aside, and when presenters shuffle that bit closer to the mic and open their hearts. In these moments we are all sat together, sharing stories over a cup of tea. Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Lifestyle Edit email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Marc Jacobs How do you top Cher? How about Bette Midler, who gives the former a run in the gay-icon stakes and features prominently in Marc Jacobs' spring/summer 2016 campaign. Jacobs' campaigns have always been personality-led the first, in 1998, featured Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth but the current season is impressive for its variety. "My America" was the ambitious theme Jacobs professed, hence an array of characters as varied as gallery owner Andrea Rosen, actress Christina Ricci, comedienne Sandra Bernhard, RuPaul's Drag Race alumnus Milk, Beth Ditto, and The Divine Miss M in a "Scream Queen" dress. They're all photographed by David Sims, which is the only link in their seeming disparity, bar Jacobs's own relationship with them as friend, occasionally as fan. This campaign isn't impressive for the litany of celebrity names involved a common fashion tactic, signifying the significance and weight of the label, and the megabucks pumped into an advertisement's creation but because they all fit so perfectly into Jacobs' world and evoke his aesthetic and design identity. Vivienne Westwood Spring/summer 2016 ad campaigns Show all 6 1 /6 Spring/summer 2016 ad campaigns Spring/summer 2016 ad campaigns Juergen Teller's campaign for Vivienne Westwood features the gay porn star Colby Keller Spring/summer 2016 ad campaigns Bette Midler features prominently in Marc Jacobs' spring/summer 2016 campaign Spring/summer 2016 ad campaigns Lizzy and Georgia May Jagger return for their third successive Sonia Rykiel campaign photographed by Juergen Teller Spring/summer 2016 ad campaigns Olivier Rousteing recruited the original trinity of Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford and Claudia Schiffer to front his spring Balmain campaign, shot by Steven Klein with a nod to Peter Lindbergh's editorials of the early 1990s Spring/summer 2016 ad campaigns Paco Rabanne's first advertising campaign under its new(ish) creative director, Julien Dossena, is a brave, bold riposte to the It-girls and celebutantes of his contemporaries Spring/summer 2016 ad campaigns The Courreges advertising portfolio reflects how the debut collection by Sebastien Meyer and Arnaud Vaillant was presented It's telling that Juergen Teller can photograph two instantly recognisable yet utterly different advertising campaigns, for two designers Vivienne Westwood and Sonia Rykiel whose aesthetics are diametric opposites. While Rykiel was exporting skinny-sweatered French chic, Westwood was shredding mohair and piercing the Queen's face with a safety pin. Today, while he's shooting rock-dynasty scions for one, the other features the gay porn star Colby Keller, shot in Venice a city that's famously sinking to underline Westwood's protest against politics around climate change. That's a lot to pack into an advertising campaign. The resulting imagery, featuring Westwood herself, her clothes, her husband, Andreas, and Keller's penis, is arresting, to say the least. Sonia Rykiel Sonia Rykiel In the 1970s, Sonia Rykiel made her name as an easy-to-wear, ready-to-wear label focused on real women having a really great time. After pragmatic debut and sophomore collections focusing on daywear, the label's artistic director, Julie de Libran, decided to go out at night. The same idea is evoked by Lizzy and Georgia May Jagger, who return for their third successive Rykiel campaign turn photographed by Juergen Teller. His signature flash-heavy style evokes Antonio Lopez's Instamatic shots of the 1970s, while Georgia and Lizzy are contemporary reincarnations of the era's nightlife queens such as their mother, Jerry Hall, and indeed Rykiel herself, given Lizzy's kinked auburn hair. This campaign works because it's tapping into both brand-specific heritage and universally evocative imagery of a hedonistic Paris 40 years ago. Balmain Balmain Remember when models were super? Olivier Rousteing does, just about. He is only 30, after all, but recruited the original trinity of Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford and Claudia Schiffer to front his spring Balmain campaign, shot by Steven Klein with a nod to Peter Lindbergh's editorials of the early 1990s. Nostalgia has a powerful punch: this campaign perhaps elevates Balmain's collection, which on the catwalk looked flashy, occasionally even vulgar. There is also an aspirational impossibility to it all the glossy imagery, the supermodels' super bodies, the heinously expensive, demandingly contoured clothes that's still seductive. Paco Rabanne Paco Rabanne From supermodels, to no models. Paco Rabanne's first advertising campaign under its new(ish) creative director, Julien Dossena, is a brave, bold riposte to the It-girls and celebutantes of his contemporaries. Still-life photographers Scheltens & Abbenes captured discarded Rabanne clothing here, a glimmer of the label's signature metallic mesh in odd retro-futuristic environments. They're not the easiest campaigns to decipher are they selling us the dress, or the interior? Nevertheless, how long has it been since a fashion campaign actually made you use your little grey cells to figure out what's going on? The remaining imagery is similarly obtuse. There's one where you barely see a sweater slung over a screen in the background. Pretentious. Artistic. Fantastic. Courreges Courreges A picture, they say, is worth a thousand words. But how about just a single word in this case "jacket"? There are two others, "dress" and "skirt", that make up the Courreges advertising portfolio, reflecting how the debut collection by Sebastien Meyer and Arnaud Vaillant was presented. The first 17 looks, you see, were just jackets a focus on the "components" of a wardrobe. Against the jostling imagery of other brands, the reductive simplicity of typography in black on a terribly Courreges shade of optic white has an impact. Minimal input, maximum output. You can't help but feel the late Monsieur Andre Courreges himself (who died only last month, aged 92) would have approved. Quietly, mind. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Prototype passenger pod designs for Elon Musk's proposed 1,000kph 'Hyperloop' transportation system have been revealed. A team of students from the famous Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) were named as the winners of a competition to design prototype pods for the Hyperloop - a conceptual public transit system developed by tech billionaire Elon Musk, which would see levitating carriages shot through a vacuum tube at over 600mph (1,000kph). Now, the winners will have a chance to build and test their futuristic design on a mile-long test track, which is currently being built in California by SpaceX, Musk's private space transport company. The winning pod design, created by a team of postgraduate students from MIT (Pic: MIT) (MIT) Speaking at the awards ceremony in Texas, Musk pointed out that as well as getting their pods up to a decent speed, the the team will also have to try and stop in time. "There will be some foam at the end, so you might recover some pieces of your pod," he said. Musk dreamed up the Hyperloop in 2013, when considering a concept for a "fifth mode of transport." Engineers from Tesla and SpaceX worked on basic designs of the Hyperloop, before putting them out into the world for other teams of engineers and scientists to build upon and improve. As a result, there are currently a number of independent Hyperloop-related companies around the world working on their own concepts and test tracks. However, it might be a long time until you can start riding a Hyperloop to work. The winning pod design was built solely to levitate and go fast - there's currently no room for passengers or cargo. Then again, Elon Musk does has a good track record of turning crazy ideas into reality. If current proposed Hyperloop routes ever make it off the drawing board, we'll likely see the first lines running between major Californian cities like Los Angeles and San Francisco. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Panasonic is known for its TVs, home appliances, microwaves, action cameras and breadmakers. Its a consumer electronics leader. But in some markets, like Japan, its also big in automotive products, even housing. And business-to-business (BtoB) activity. Tony OBrien is the Deputy Managing Director at the Panasonic Systems Solutions Centre, a sector of the Japanese electronics giant that seeks to make the most of the companys wide range of products and services and, now, is aiming to make BtoB a major part of the companys European profile. Panasonic has a portfolio that includes projectors, solar energy, high-capacity data storage and more. It even makes the batteries that power Tesla cars and Gogoro electric scooters. And all of this is relevant to BtoB. I talked to Mr OBrien at a behind-closed-doors session at last months CES in Las Vegas. He spoke about the companys target to make business-to-business earnings higher even than those from consumer electronics, though that is still central to the companys DNA. Panasonic has been working on software for its products for almost 100 years, so is in a strong position to spot how the same problems can repeat themselves in different markets. Take inventory management, for instance. If youre on a plane and youve ordered a gin and tonic, you wont be pleased if youre told theyve run out of tonic. Especially if it turns out that some other mixers have been on board so long theyre entitled to air miles. We can improve the inventory by making it an electronic rather than a paper-based process for a start. But we can go further. We know that French passengers like more wine than German passengers who prefer beer, so knowing the flight destination can help us pick the best inventory for each plane, and customer satisfaction is improved if the right amount of tonic, beer or wine is on board. And thats before you get to the other benefits such as the fuel savings, lower loading costs and stock holding cost reductions that come with better understanding your customer. Where Panasonic is unique, Mr OBrien claims, is that while our primary knowledge is with the consumer, we also have insights into business solutions and, for instance, automotive industries. Gadget and tech news: In pictures Show all 25 1 /25 Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gadget and tech news: In pictures Gun-toting humanoid robot sent into space Russia has launched a humanoid robot into space on a rocket bound for the International Space Station (ISS). The robot Fedor will spend 10 days aboard the ISS practising skills such as using tools to fix issues onboard. Russia's deputy prime minister Dmitry Rogozin has previously shared videos of Fedor handling and shooting guns at a firing range with deadly accuracy. Dmitry Rogozin/Twitter Gadget and tech news: In pictures Google turns 21 Google celebrates its 21st birthday on September 27. The The search engine was founded in September 1998 by two PhD students, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, in their dormitories at Californias Stanford University. Page and Brin chose the name google as it recalled the mathematic term 'googol', meaning 10 raised to the power of 100 Google Gadget and tech news: In pictures Hexa drone lifts off Chief engineer of LIFT aircraft Balazs Kerulo demonstrates the company's "Hexa" personal drone craft in Lago Vista, Texas on June 3 2019 Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures Project Scarlett to succeed Xbox One Microsoft announced Project Scarlett, the successor to the Xbox One, at E3 2019. The company said that the new console will be 4 times as powerful as the Xbox One and is slated for a release date of Christmas 2020 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures First new iPod in four years Apple has announced the new iPod Touch, the first new iPod in four years. The device will have the option of adding more storage, up to 256GB Apple Gadget and tech news: In pictures Folding phone may flop Samsung will cancel orders of its Galaxy Fold phone at the end of May if the phone is not then ready for sale. The $2000 folding phone has been found to break easily with review copies being recalled after backlash PA Gadget and tech news: In pictures Charging mat non-starter Apple has cancelled its AirPower wireless charging mat, which was slated as a way to charge numerous apple products at once AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures "Super league" India shoots down satellite India has claimed status as part of a "super league" of nations after shooting down a live satellite in a test of new missile technology EPA Gadget and tech news: In pictures 5G incoming 5G wireless internet is expected to launch in 2019, with the potential to reach speeds of 50mb/s Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Uber halts driverless testing after death Uber has halted testing of driverless vehicles after a woman was killed by one of their cars in Tempe, Arizona. March 19 2018 Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A humanoid robot gestures during a demo at a stall in the Indian Machine Tools Expo, IMTEX/Tooltech 2017 held in Bangalore Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures The giant human-like robot bears a striking resemblance to the military robots starring in the movie 'Avatar' and is claimed as a world first by its creators from a South Korean robotic company Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Engineers test a four-metre-tall humanoid manned robot dubbed Method-2 in a lab of the Hankook Mirae Technology in Gunpo, south of Seoul, South Korea Jung Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi and Kaptain Rock playing one string light saber guitar perform jam session Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway resembling the giant panda is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A test line of a new energy suspension railway, resembling a giant panda, is seen in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A concept car by Trumpchi from GAC Group is shown at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Rex Gadget and tech news: In pictures A Mirai fuel cell vehicle by Toyota is displayed at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A visitor tries a Nissan VR experience at the International Automobile Exhibition in Guangzhou, China Reuters Gadget and tech news: In pictures A man looks at an exhibit entitled 'Mimus' a giant industrial robot which has been reprogrammed to interact with humans during a photocall at the new Design Museum in South Kensington, London Getty Gadget and tech news: In pictures A new Israeli Da-Vinci unmanned aerial vehicle manufactured by Elbit Systems is displayed during the 4th International conference on Home Land Security and Cyber in the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv Getty With Tesla and others were well known for our batteries but we can use these batteries for energy storage in the utilities sector to manage demand for our customers even more exactly. EDF, which is one of our customers, supplies energy to DHL, also a customer. So we can help EDF be more efficient with DHL instead of running its conveyor belts continuously, we can use our CCTV cameras and our software to turn the belts on and off when the arrival of parcels means theyre actually needed and reduce lost packages into the bargain. But then we can help DHL be more efficient with its customers. We call it completing the value chain. Its almost like Panasonics becoming a consultant, then? Exactly. The most common way of doing things is for someone to present the customer with a system and let them see how it will work for their problem. We do the opposite: analyse the problem and see how we can solve it. Mr OBrien has to increase his sales of these solutions considerably. Much of this increase may come from M2M, that is, machine to machine innovations. This isnt just a vending machine that texts HQ when it needs more Mars bars, though thats important, too. Who wants to run out of Mars bars? Recommended Read more Panasonic introduces breadmaker and microwave to home range Its more that Panasonics comprehensive approach leaves it in pole position to connect every part of the chain, all the way from the customer experience through to management cost reductions. In an airport, the manager and the retailers come to us and ask what we can do to increase efficient passenger throughput but also improve customer experience. Well, Panasonic has the best display products in the market. So while youre waiting at the airport, why cant we entertain you? All well and good, but a company needs the right culture for one sector to talk to each other, which not all tech companies are good at doing. Mr OBrien says theyve addressed this: The technology alone doesnt do it. So the first thing weve done is create one organisation within Panasonic that can call on the total portfolio. The result is much more consultative before we get to the point of Oh, and by the way, heres our system. Not that Mr OBrien rules out the acquisition of other companies when its felt Panasonic has a gap it could fill. We will make acquisitions, though thats not the first priority, and form more strategic alliances. In the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo well be supplying technology. But the IT company Atos will also be supplying technology so why wouldnt we collaborate? We dont compete and have complementary skills. Whats interesting about all this is that Panasonics different divisions will continue to work separately to create best-in-class TVs, projectors and so on, but collaborate to make hardware and knowhow available to each other to serve business needs. Its a neat way to expand out of the low-margin TV business while still supporting the consumer electronics division. Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Lifestyle Edit email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} When Dr Hania Morsi Fadl left her native Sudan for the UK in 1974 to become one of the first people to train as a radiologist, she was unwittingly starting a revolutionary career. Decades later she is at the forefront of the field, and running the only breast cancer clinic in Sudan and the Horn of Africa. As equipment developed and basic analogue x-rays gave way to CT scans and ultrasound, Dr Fadls career grew with the advances. When she decided to hone her expertise, her memories of the devastation that breast cancer caused women in Sudan drew her to specialise in mammography. Dr Fadl worked in the field in London for 20 years, and with the help of the Mo Ibrahim Foundation, her ex-husband's organisation, she opened the Khartoum Breast Cancer Care Centre in 2010 in a country where cancer has risen from the tenth to the second most common cause of death. In a population of over 37million people, cancer kills 5 per cent of people each year. I had all this knowledge and experience, and from my visits to family in Sudan I had seen the problem of breast cancer, said Dr Fadl, explaining that accessing cancer treatment is very expensive in Sudan, and the life expectancy of men is 61 and 65 for women. "One of my relatives, a young lady who had kids, died of the disease in her 40s, and a lot of other friends, too." Since it opened, the state-of-the-art centre has seen over 15,000 women and diagnosed 12,000 cancer cases, including some men. As a non-profit facility, tests and treatments are given there at affordable prices, subsidised, and are sometimes free, depending on the patient. So, while a bilateral digital mammography costs over 200 in London, most patients are charged around 30 at the centre. Dr Fadl opened the cancer centre in 2010 And as the centre is the only one available to women in the Horn of Africa, it is vital that all of its services are under one roof. More than 80 per cent of the Sudanese population live in rural areas or are normadic, which makes disease control difficult. Imagine [if you are poor] you go in one place and have you x-ray to be diagnosed and then the hospital is in a different place. That makes the communications between the team who is treating you difficult. So we do the assessment and we decide what will be the best thing for the lady, and then after that we carry on with her treatment. Its [centralised care is] exactly what I used to do in Charing Cross in London. However, Dr Fadl has also been faced with helping to educate women in a nation beset with conflict and poverty and with a conservative culture. Until recently, public health efforts were generally directed towards tropical and infectious diseases in Sudan. "For developing countries especially, with our customs and traditions, and even more so in the countryside, cancer is a taboo and it is seen as a death sentence." "I realised there is really urgent need to help, to do something." "One woman came in last February and we diagnosed her [with cancer ] but said she can be treated. We kept calling her [to come back] but she wouldnt answer the phone. She came back in July. We asked her where did you go? She said her son and daughter were in their final year at school and they were going to university. She stayed until they finished their exams and then she came for treatment. And of course in 6 months the disease had advanced." Following World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendations that nations where healthcare is sparse should at least help women to become more aware of their bodies, Dr Fadl said that training and awareness-raising projects by the centre and others mean women increasingly visit her with early-stage breast cancer, rather than developed forms which are harder to treat. Health news in pictures Show all 40 1 /40 Health news in pictures Health news in pictures Coronavirus outbreak The coronavirus Covid-19 has hit the UK leading to the deaths of two people so far and prompting warnings from the Department of Health AFP via Getty Health news in pictures Thousands of emergency patients told to take taxi to hospital Thousands of 999 patients in England are being told to get a taxi to hospital, figures have showed. The number of patients outside London who were refused an ambulance rose by 83 per cent in the past year as demand for services grows Getty Health news in pictures Vape related deaths spike A vaping-related lung disease has claimed the lives of 11 people in the US in recent weeks. The US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has more than 100 officials investigating the cause of the mystery illness, and has warned citizens against smoking e-cigarette products until more is known, particularly if modified or bought off the street Getty Health news in pictures Baldness cure looks to be a step closer Researchers in the US claim to have overcome one of the major hurdles to cultivating human follicles from stem cells. The new system allows cells to grow in a structured tuft and emerge from the skin Sanford Burnham Preybs Health news in pictures Two hours a week spent in nature can improve health A study in the journal Scientific Reports suggests that a dose of nature of just two hours a week is associated with better health and psychological wellbeing Shutterstock Health news in pictures Air pollution linked to fertility issues in women Exposure to air from traffic-clogged streets could leave women with fewer years to have children, a study has found. Italian researchers found women living in the most polluted areas were three times more likely to show signs they were running low on eggs than those who lived in cleaner surroundings, potentially triggering an earlier menopause Getty/iStock Health news in pictures Junk food ads could be banned before watershed Junk food adverts on TV and online could be banned before 9pm as part of Government plans to fight the "epidemic" of childhood obesity. Plans for the new watershed have been put out for public consultation in a bid to combat the growing crisis, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said PA Health news in pictures Breeding with neanderthals helped humans fight diseases On migrating from Africa around 70,000 years ago, humans bumped into the neanderthals of Eurasia. While humans were weak to the diseases of the new lands, breeding with the resident neanderthals made for a better equipped immune system PA Health news in pictures Cancer breath test to be trialled in Britain The breath biopsy device is designed to detect cancer hallmarks in molecules exhaled by patients Getty Health news in pictures Average 10 year old has consumed the recommended amount of sugar for an adult By their 10th birthdy, children have on average already eaten more sugar than the recommended amount for an 18 year old. The average 10 year old consumes the equivalent to 13 sugar cubes a day, 8 more than is recommended PA Health news in pictures Child health experts advise switching off screens an hour before bed While there is not enough evidence of harm to recommend UK-wide limits on screen use, the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health have advised that children should avoid screens for an hour before bed time to avoid disrupting their sleep Getty Health news in pictures Daily aspirin is unnecessary for older people in good health, study finds A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine has found that many elderly people are taking daily aspirin to little or no avail Getty Health news in pictures Vaping could lead to cancer, US study finds A study by the University of Minnesota's Masonic Cancer Centre has found that the carcinogenic chemicals formaldehyde, acrolein, and methylglyoxal are present in the saliva of E-cigarette users Reuters Health news in pictures More children are obese and diabetic There has been a 41% increase in children with type 2 diabetes since 2014, the National Paediatric Diabetes Audit has found. Obesity is a leading cause Reuters Health news in pictures Most child antidepressants are ineffective and can lead to suicidal thoughts The majority of antidepressants are ineffective and may be unsafe, for children and teenager with major depression, experts have warned. In what is the most comprehensive comparison of 14 commonly prescribed antidepressant drugs to date, researchers found that only one brand was more effective at relieving symptoms of depression than a placebo. Another popular drug, venlafaxine, was shown increase the risk users engaging in suicidal thoughts and attempts at suicide Getty Health news in pictures Gay, lesbian and bisexual adults at higher risk of heart disease, study claims Researchers at the Baptist Health South Florida Clinic in Miami focused on seven areas of controllable heart health and found these minority groups were particularly likely to be smokers and to have poorly controlled blood sugar iStock Health news in pictures Breakfast cereals targeted at children contain 'steadily high' sugar levels since 1992 despite producer claims A major pressure group has issued a fresh warning about perilously high amounts of sugar in breakfast cereals, specifically those designed for children, and has said that levels have barely been cut at all in the last two and a half decades Getty Health news in pictures Potholes are making us fat, NHS watchdog warns New guidance by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the body which determines what treatment the NHS should fund, said lax road repairs and car-dominated streets were contributing to the obesity epidemic by preventing members of the public from keeping active PA Health news in pictures New menopause drugs offer women relief from 'debilitating' hot flushes A new class of treatments for women going through the menopause is able to reduce numbers of debilitating hot flushes by as much as three quarters in a matter of days, a trial has found. The drug used in the trial belongs to a group known as NKB antagonists (blockers), which were developed as a treatment for schizophrenia but have been sitting on a shelf unused, according to Professor Waljit Dhillo, a professor of endocrinology and metabolism REX Health news in pictures Doctors should prescribe more antidepressants for people with mental health problems, study finds Research from Oxford University found that more than one million extra people suffering from mental health problems would benefit from being prescribed drugs and criticised ideological reasons doctors use to avoid doing so. Getty Health news in pictures Student dies of flu after NHS advice to stay at home and avoid A&E The family of a teenager who died from flu has urged people not to delay going to A&E if they are worried about their symptoms. Melissa Whiteley, an 18-year-old engineering student from Hanford in Stoke-on-Trent, fell ill at Christmas and died in hospital a month later. Just Giving Health news in pictures Government to review thousands of harmful vaginal mesh implants The Government has pledged to review tens of thousands of cases where women have been given harmful vaginal mesh implants. Getty Health news in pictures Jeremy Hunt announces 'zero suicides ambition' for the NHS The NHS will be asked to go further to prevent the deaths of patients in its care as part of a zero suicide ambition being launched today Getty Health news in pictures Human trials start with cancer treatment that primes immune system to kill off tumours Human trials have begun with a new cancer therapy that can prime the immune system to eradicate tumours. The treatment, that works similarly to a vaccine, is a combination of two existing drugs, of which tiny amounts are injected into the solid bulk of a tumour. Nephron Health news in pictures Babies' health suffers from being born near fracking sites, finds major study Mothers living within a kilometre of a fracking site were 25 per cent more likely to have a child born at low birth weight, which increase their chances of asthma, ADHD and other issues Getty Health news in pictures NHS reviewing thousands of cervical cancer smear tests after women wrongly given all-clear Thousands of cervical cancer screening results are under review after failings at a laboratory meant some women were incorrectly given the all-clear. A number of women have already been told to contact their doctors following the identification of procedural issues in the service provided by Pathology First Laboratory. Rex Health news in pictures Potential key to halting breast cancer's spread discovered by scientists Most breast cancer patients do not die from their initial tumour, but from secondary malignant growths (metastases), where cancer cells are able to enter the blood and survive to invade new sites. Asparagine, a molecule named after asparagus where it was first identified in high quantities, has now been shown to be an essential ingredient for tumour cells to gain these migratory properties. Getty Health news in pictures NHS nursing vacancies at record high with more than 34,000 roles advertised A record number of nursing and midwifery positions are currently being advertised by the NHS, with more than 34,000 positions currently vacant, according to the latest data. Demand for nurses was 19 per cent higher between July and September 2017 than the same period two years ago. REX Health news in pictures Cannabis extract could provide new class of treatment for psychosis CBD has a broadly opposite effect to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the main active component in cannabis and the substance that causes paranoia and anxiety. Getty Health news in pictures Over 75,000 sign petition calling for Richard Branson's Virgin Care to hand settlement money back to NHS Mr Bransons company sued the NHS last year after it lost out on an 82m contract to provide childrens health services across Surrey, citing concerns over serious flaws in the way the contract was awarded PA Health news in pictures More than 700 fewer nurses training in England in first year after NHS bursary scrapped The numbers of people accepted to study nursing in England fell 3 per cent in 2017, while the numbers accepted in Wales and Scotland, where the bursaries were kept, increased 8.4 per cent and 8 per cent respectively Getty Health news in pictures Landmark study links Tory austerity to 120,000 deaths The paper found that there were 45,000 more deaths in the first four years of Tory-led efficiencies than would have been expected if funding had stayed at pre-election levels. On this trajectory that could rise to nearly 200,000 excess deaths by the end of 2020, even with the extra funding that has been earmarked for public sector services this year. Reuters Health news in pictures Long commutes carry health risks Hours of commuting may be mind-numbingly dull, but new research shows that it might also be having an adverse effect on both your health and performance at work. Longer commutes also appear to have a significant impact on mental wellbeing, with those commuting longer 33 per cent more likely to suffer from depression Shutterstock Health news in pictures You cannot be fit and fat It is not possible to be overweight and healthy, a major new study has concluded. The study of 3.5 million Britons found that even metabolically healthy obese people are still at a higher risk of heart disease or a stroke than those with a normal weight range Getty Health news in pictures Sleep deprivation When you feel particularly exhausted, it can definitely feel like you are also lacking in brain capacity. Now, a new study has suggested this could be because chronic sleep deprivation can actually cause the brain to eat itself Shutterstock Health news in pictures Exercise classes offering 45 minute naps launch David Lloyd Gyms have launched a new health and fitness class which is essentially a bunch of people taking a nap for 45 minutes. The fitness group was spurred to launch the napercise class after research revealed 86 per cent of parents said they were fatigued. The class is therefore predominantly aimed at parents but you actually do not have to have children to take part Getty Health news in pictures 'Fundamental right to health' to be axed after Brexit, lawyers warn Tobacco and alcohol companies could win more easily in court cases such as the recent battle over plain cigarette packaging if the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights is abandoned, a barrister and public health professor have said Getty Health news in pictures 'Thousands dying' due to fear over non-existent statin side-effects A major new study into the side effects of the cholesterol-lowering medicine suggests common symptoms such as muscle pain and weakness are not caused by the drugs themselves Getty Health news in pictures Babies born to fathers aged under 25 have higher risk of autism New research has found that babies born to fathers under the age of 25 or over 51 are at higher risk of developing autism and other social disorders. The study, conducted by the Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment at Mount Sinai, found that these children are actually more advanced than their peers as infants, but then fall behind by the time they hit their teenage years Getty Health news in pictures Cycling to work could halve risk of cancer and heart disease Commuters who swap their car or bus pass for a bike could cut their risk of developing heart disease and cancer by almost half, new research suggests but campaigners have warned there is still an urgent need to improve road conditions for cyclists. Cycling to work is linked to a lower risk of developing cancer by 45 per cent and cardiovascular disease by 46 per cent, according to a study of a quarter of a million people. Walking to work also brought health benefits, the University of Glasgow researchers found, but not to the same degree as cycling. Getty Dr Fadl hopes that as rates of breast cancer rise worldwide, that awareness-raising campaigns, such as those in the UK which encourage women to check their breasts, will become commonplace in Sudan. "The recommendation of the WHO is to make ladies breast aware. Tell them how to breast self-examine. Your breast is part of your body, you shouldn't be ashamed of it. "We do training and give lectures, we go to schools and universities. Now we get ladies with 2cm cancer and less which is a really marked improvement." Women whose treatment is succesful are also vital in helping to battle the disease, she added. "When they [women] come here [to the centre] they usually bring their mum or a relative, and we try to talk to them as well and tell them 'when you go tell your neighbour and your relatives about us'." "The survivors are ambassadors, it gives a message and people see it with their own eyes. Breast cancer is not a killer. It is not a death sentence. Thousands of women have visited the clinic Asked if any cases in particular have affected her, Dr Fadl fondly recalls the case of a 41-year-old woman who was sixth-months pregnant when she was diagnosed with cancer. We diagnosed her with breast cancer so at 6 months you cant terminate. So, we gave her chemotherapy. "She had a lovely girl. After that she continued with us and we gave her surgery. The daughter is now three, and we [hospital staff] were invited to celebrate her birthday. In a way she is really our youngest survivor. It is so fulfilling. Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Lifestyle Edit email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Everyone has their own perception of the perfect body. It is influenced by a number of trends, changes in culture, and even the availability of food. Artist Nickolay Lamm who brought us the realistically proportioned girls' doll named Lammily, a direct challenge to Mattel's Barbie wanted to see how the male ideal had changed over time. So he collected reference photos for what was considered among Americans to be the perfect man from each decade since the 1870s, then sculpted 3D models. In the late 19th century, for example, the Dad-bod was the perfect-bod. Having a large waist and chubby cheeks was a sign of wealth and social class. As with all generalizations, this will not be perfect for everybody. Lamm's study is only interested in body shape and does not take into account skin tone for example, explaining the whitewash. But the illustrations give insight into how pressures around the male ideal have changed so dramatically over the past couple of centuries. 1870s: Before everyone had easy access to food, obesity represented wealth. (Lamilly (Lamilly) In 1866, a Fat Man's Club was founded in Connecticut, which became popular and spread across the US its members had to weigh at least 200 pounds. Here's a photo of that same club from 1894. (Lamilly (Lamilly) 1930s: By the '30s, food was easier to find, and Hollywood actors created the slim ideal. (Lamilly (Lamilly) Actors like Cary Grant typified the ideal body shape of the time. Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn (Rex Features) 1960s: By the '60s, Americans were tired of the corporate mainstream and authority. (Lamilly (Lamilly) They rebelled, growing their hair long, taking drugs, and not exercising. Rolling Stones singer Mick Jagger performs in front of a crowd of 70,000 (Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images) 1980s: In the '80s, health clubs and working out became popular. (Lamilly (Lamilly) Bodybuilding became a mainstream activity. Arnold Schwarzenegger, the beefcake-turned-actor-turned-Governator-turned man (Getty) 1990s: By the '90s, hypermasculinity was out and the everyman was in. (Lamilly (Lamilly) Brad Pitt in Fight Club typifies the '90s perfect body, according to Lamm. Brad Pitt and Edward Norton in Fight Club (REUTERS/HO Old) After the '80s, men no longer wanted to invest the time to become bodybuilders. (Lamilly (Lamilly) This has continued into the 21st century where the ideal is similar to the 90s. (Lamilly (Lamilly) In 2012, a study from the Institute of Neuroscience used 3D-visualisation software to estimate our preferences for both male and female bodies. (Lamilly (Lamilly) For both sexes, the ideal was lean and muscular. (Lamilly (Lamilly) So, unlike in the 1870s, beer guts are no longer a part of the perfect body. (Lamilly (Lamilly) Read more: ALBERT EDWARDS: China is running out of money The Bank of England is quietly sounding the alarm over inflation Credit Suisse shares fell off a cliff to a 24-year low after the bank posted billions in losses Read the original article on Business Insider UK. 2015. Follow Business Insider UK on Twitter. Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Lifestyle Edit email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} As the Zika virus linked to brain damage in babies spreads across Brazil, the debate on the countrys strict abortion laws has been reignited. Over 4,000 cases of microcephaly which is believed to be caused by Zika, have been reported in babies in Brazil since late 2015. Health officials have urged pregnant women and those trying to have a child to protect themselves from mosquito bites in order to avoid their children being affected by microcephaly. Governments including El Salvador, Colombia and Ecuador have advised women against becoming pregnant until 2018. However in devoutly Catholic Central and South American nations where birth control is hard to acquire and abortion is illegal or extremely restricted, women are concerned about how they can realistically protect themselves and their unborn children without abstaining for sex for years. The Zika virus - in pictures Show all 5 1 /5 The Zika virus - in pictures The Zika virus - in pictures A three-month-old, who has microcephaly, in Recife, Brazil. A rise in microcephaly cases is thought to have been caused by the spread of the Zika virus in affected countries Getty Images The Zika virus - in pictures A mother holds her baby who has microcephaly Getty Images The Zika virus - in pictures A five-month-old baby, who has microcephaly, in Recife, Brazil Getty Images The Zika virus - in pictures A pediatric infectologist examines a two-month-old baby, who has microcephaly, in Recife, Brazil Getty Images The Zika virus - in pictures A baby affected with microcephaly The Vatican has not yet issued a statement on the situation, despite Zika spreading through Catholic countries. However, local religious figures have adressed calls to make abortion illegal. Researchers, activists and lawyers who previously won a Supreme Court ruling to allow abortion procedure in cases of the anencephaly birth defect are now launching a similar case for microcephaly. Reverend Luciano Brito, a spokesman for the Catholic Archdiocese of Olinda and Recife, said Nothing justifies an abortion, the New York Times reported. Just because a foetus has microcephaly wont make us favourable [to changing the law], he said. Reverend Father Frank Pavone, national director of US-based anti-abortion group Priests for Life, said Catholics should not use birth control despite the threat of Zika. That prohibition doesn't change based on circumstances, he told CNN. So couples have a responsibility to live according to the church's teachings in whatever circumstances they find themselves. However, Reverend James Bretzke, a professor of theology at Boston College, said: The polemical approach, that contraception is devious or demonic in origin or the smoke of Satan, may ultimately not be the best pastoral approach. In Catholic Church teaching, some would say it would be acceptable to try to prevent conception in cases like this. The Vatican told the BBC it did not yet have a comment on the situation. Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Lifestyle Edit email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Professor Jacqui Gabb, widely regarded in the UK as an expert in the field of relationships, has shared three of the most important aspects of a strong relationship with The Independent ahead of the publication of her new book. Co-authored with Dr Meg John Barker, the book seeks to unpack the question that couples across the world want the answer to: "What are the secrets to long-lasting love?" Here are three of their "secrets": 1) Communication Professor Gabb suggests that while some couples may find talking at length about an issue can be therapeutic; others are able to communicate in a non-verbal way. "There seems to be an idea of banter in teasing and smaller arguments that many people dont understand from the outside perspective. But this can be a couples way of communicating with one another in a positive way. "However, many other couples can find not talking, and instead doing things like going for a walk or cuddling up in front of the TV, are other positive ways of communicating. Modern lovers: The 'sexual body warriors' and pioneers transforming 21st-century relationships Show all 5 1 /5 Modern lovers: The 'sexual body warriors' and pioneers transforming 21st-century relationships Modern lovers: The 'sexual body warriors' and pioneers transforming 21st-century relationships new.jpg KATE PETERS/INSTITUTE Modern lovers: The 'sexual body warriors' and pioneers transforming 21st-century relationships 5337882.jpg KATE PETERS/INSTITUTE Modern lovers: The 'sexual body warriors' and pioneers transforming 21st-century relationships 5337883.jpg KATE PETERS/INSTITUTE Modern lovers: The 'sexual body warriors' and pioneers transforming 21st-century relationships 5338169_1.jpg KATE PETERS/INSTITUTE Modern lovers: The 'sexual body warriors' and pioneers transforming 21st-century relationships 5337881.jpg KATE PETERS/INSTITUTE 2) Gestures In their extensive study, Professor Gabb and Dr Barker found that gestures as small as making someone a cup of tea in bed could go a long way. "Theres this idea that buying your partner an expensive gift would be more meaningful, Professor Gabb said. That it can help you get away with a past indiscretion. But often the most mundane, simple act can mean the most to someone. Doing the washing up, taking the rubbish out, etc 3) Having a laugh "Not so much about laughing at the same comedy film," Professor Gabb notes, "but more being on the same wavelength when it comes to humour, and sharing a sense of fun. Its that personal knowledge about your partner, a deeper knowledge, and a private understanding of one another. "Sometimes in the middle of an argument theres a need to release the pressure valve and have the capacity to find something amusing." The Secrets of Enduring Love: How to Make Relationships Last (Vermilion) is out now News / Press Release by The Christian Prophetic Voice of Zimbabwe The lawless harassment and eviction of the owners of Kingston Deverill farm in Zimbabwe's Centenary district, Mashonaland Central province, has come to our attention and we, the Christian Prophetic Voice of Zimbabwe, are deeply concerned that lawlessness should continue to cause such suffering to the people of Zimbabwe.Approximately 20 police officials armed with AK-47 rifles arrived at the farm at dawn on January 29, 2016 and proceeded to lawlessly evict the elderly couple, Phillip and Anita Rankin, from their home. Their lawyer, Ms Nyarodzoh Maposa, and their pastor drove out to the farm to assist the Rankins but were denied access to them by the police.The police could not however produce papers authorising the eviction to take place. Despite this, the officers forced their way into the house and loaded much of the Rankins' furniture and other household effects onto police lorries.When Mr Rankin read out Section 74 of the Zimbabwean Constitution, headed "Freedom from arbitrary eviction" which states that "no person may be evicted from their home, or have their home demolished, without an order of court," the officers merely laughed at him.They then handcuffed the barefoot Mr Rankin and drove him around for seven hours on the back of a police armoured personnel carrier, with his lawyer tailing him in another vehicle in order to make sure that he did not disappear.Eventually Mr Rankin was released well after dark without any charge but was unable to return to his home due to the police barring entry.Additionally, the police have stopped all work on the farm and the valuable crops the Rankins have grown cannot be harvested. More than a hundred farm workers and their families will be left without jobs and any means of support if the Rankins are not allowed back.The Rankins have no other home or business or way of making a living and will now have a huge debt to repay if they continue to be prevented from reaping their crops.The beneficiary of the farm is Dr Sylvester Nyatsuro (45), a general practitioner who is originally from Zimbabwe but is now a British citizen. Dr Nyatsuro is senior partner at The Willows Medical Centre in Nottingham and his wife, Veronica, is the practice manager.In October last year, Mrs Nyatsuro came to Mr Rankin's farm with the support of the police - to drop off thugs whose role was to intimidate the Rankins relentlessly and force them off their land.It is significant to note that, in a phone call to Mrs Nyatsuro on January 25, 2016 the UK-based pro-democracy group, Zimbabwe Vigil, was told by her that she was going to Zimbabwe the following day. The eviction of the Rankins took place just three days later.In view of Dr Nyatsuro's credentials and clearly successful career, we, the Christian Prophetic Voice of Zimbabwe, are surprised that a man of his stature in the medical field would also be content to steal a successful Zimbabwean farming operation from an elderly farming couple and in the process, jeopardise his standing as a British citizen and doctor.What makes this illegal farm grab so atrocious is that Mr Rankin is a law-abiding Zimbabwean citizen, born in the country which he loves, and he has no other home to go to. He did not inherit his farm, but bought it legally after our independence. His only crime is that God created him with a white- coloured skin.We, the Christian Prophetic Voice of Zimbabwe, condemn in the strongest possible terms such lawlessness by the Zimbabwe police. The rule of law is fundamental to God's justice and the abandonment of the rule of law will usher in complete dictatorship or anarchy.We call on Police Commissioner Augustine Chihuri to discipline his police officers for carrying out unlawful actions and to allow the Rankins and their workers free and undisturbed access to their homes and crops.We call upon those who claim to be representatives of the Church in Zimbabwe to speak prophetically to our government and to insist on God's rule of law and justice in our county. God will not hear our prayers, no matter how loud, unless we repent and desist from such sins as evicting law-abiding citizens from their homes just because they are white.We would like to point out to the Zimbabwe authorities and to Dr and Mrs Nyatsuro the following Biblical warning: "Woe to those who plan iniquity, to those who plot evil on their beds! At morning's light they carry it out because it is in their power to do it. They covet fields and seize them, and houses and take them. They defraud a man of his home, a fellow man of his inheritance." Micah 2:2.We pray for the day in our beloved country, which has been deeply corrupted by this avaricious and power-hungry regime, when "Every man will sit under his own vine and under his own fig tree and no one will make him afraid." Micah 4:4 Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Stay ahead of the trend in fashion and beyond with our free weekly Lifestyle Edit newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Lifestyle Edit email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Pay attention, because this could be the start of something big. Hyundai has created Genesis a new premium car brand in the mould of Lexus and Infiniti. You might well point out that Genesis is already the name of a premium Hyundai sold in the UK. It wont become known as the Genesis Genesis, though. There are two reasons for this. One is that it would be silly. The other is that for now, Genesis the brand wont be coming to Europe. Hyundai does intend to bring it here eventually. But itll start by getting the name established in China, North America and the Middle East, as well as back home in Korea. Carrying the fight to BMW, Mercedes and the rest is a six-strong range which the company says will be in place by 2020. The first to go on sale is the G90, a 5.0-litre V8 luxury car in the S-Class mould; Hyundai says it will be both stiffer and more refined than the Merc. This will be followed by the G80 and G70, which you can interpet as competition for the E and C-Class, as well as a medium coupe and a brace of SUVs. The latter wont be the only Genesis models with four-wheel drive, as this will also be offered as an option on the G90. Beating the S-Class for refinement takes some doing, but Genesis says it has thrown everything at the job from sound-deadening film on the windows to hollow wheels that kill road noise. And yes, actually, it is extremely quiet on the move. It rides beautifully, too, keeping everything about the road surface at more than arms length. You expect that to be carried over to its handling, but in truth it offers a better combination of chassis balance, steering weight and brake feel than youd ever dare to hope for. Fact is, its just what youd want a big premium saloon to be. Its laden with kit, too, all of it completely convincing. A unique stereo, wide-format touch-screen, 22-way adjustable seats with excellent leather trim its all very classy and crafted to an exceptional standard. Genesis G90 On sale: Now Price: 68,000 (est) Engine: V8, 5038cc, petrol Power: 420bhp at 6000rpm Torque: 383lb ft at 5000rpm Gearbox: 8-spd auto Kerbweight: 2595kg 0-62mph: 5.7sec Top speed: 150mph Economy: N/A CO2/tax band: N/A Really, the only thing that lets the side down is its styling. This doesnt give it anything much in the way of identity, which is what youd think a newcomer in the most excruciatingly conservative corner of the market would need most. Or maybe what it needs most is to be a very good car, and Genesis understands that winning people over will just take time. Its more than a decade and a half since anyone who knows what theyre looking at stopped making Skoda jokes, after all, yet you can still find people who dont get that those jokes are on them now. Hyundai is starting from a much stronger position than Skoda was in when VW took it over, of course. But its aiming much higher with the Genesis brand. To cut to the chase, the car we drove cost the Korean equivalent of 68,000. Thats a big leap of faith, however good the car, when executive motoring is so wrapped up with status. Brand image is a big deal at this elevated level. If Genesis can build that as well as it has built the G90, anything is possible. Yes, Hyundais new offshoot could become part of the premium mainstream, if this car is a sign of things to come. But it wont happen overnight. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} GlaxoSmithKlines chief executive, Sir Andrew Witty, has broken cover to back Britains membership of the European Union, marking a major coup for pro-EU campaigners keen to rally the Citys support ahead of the referendum. Sir Andrew, a close ally of the Prime Minister and a former member of the Governments business advisory board, backed the idea of renegotiating terms with the EU but said it should remain a member. Its better to be in and improving it than to be on the outside and trying to plot a new course, he said, adding that he liked the regulatory certainty and predictability the EU provided. His intervention comes just a day after David Cameron revealed a draft proposal for a settlement with the EU ahead of the in/out referendum expected in June. Sir Andrew is the latest business figure to voice support for keeping the UK in Europe as fears grow about the impact of an exit. Business news: In pictures Show all 13 1 /13 Business news: In pictures Business news: In pictures Flybe collapses Airline Flybe has collapsed. All future flights on the Exeter-based airline have been cancelled leaving more than 2,300 staff facing an uncertain future, and wrecking the travel plans of hundreds of thousands of passengers. The chief executive, Mark Anderson, said: Europes largest independent regional airline has been unable to overcome significant funding challenges to its business. AFP via Getty Business news: In pictures Future product placement will be 'tailored to individual viewers' Marketing executives say that product placement in films and televison shows on streaming services such as Netflix may be tailored to individuals in future. For instance, if data shows that a viewer is a fan of pepsi, a billboard in the background of a shot would host an advert for pepsi, while for a viewer known to have different tastes it could be for Coca-Cola Paramount Business news: In pictures Corbyn wishes Amazon a happy birthday In a card sent to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos on the company's 25th birthday, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn writes: "You owe the British people millions in taxes that pay for the public services that we all rely on. Please pay your fair share" Business news: In pictures No deal, no tariffs The government has announced that it would slash almost all tariffs in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Notable exceptions include cars and meat, which will see tariffs in place to protect British farmers Getty Business news: In pictures Fingerprint payment NatWest is trialling a new bank card that will allow people to touch their hand to the card when paying rather than typing in a PIN number. The card will work by recognising the user's fingerprint NatWest/PA Wire Business news: In pictures Mahabis bust High-end slipper retailer Mahabis has gone into administration. 2 Jan 2019 Mahabis Business news: In pictures Costa Cola Coca-Cola has paid 3.9bn for Costa Coffee. A cafe chain is a new venture for the global soft drinks giant PA Business news: In pictures RIP Payday Loans A funeral procession for payday loans was held in London on September 2. The future of pay day lenders is in doubt after Wonga, Britain's biggest, went into administration on August 30 PA Business news: In pictures Musk irks investors and directors Elon Musk has concluded that Tesla will remain public. Investors and company directors were angry at Musk for tweeting unexpectedly that he was considering taking Tesla private and share prices had taken a tumble in the following weeks Getty Business news: In pictures Jaguar warning Iconic British car maker Jaguar Land Rover warned on July 5, 2018 that a "bad" Brexit deal could jeopardise planned investment of more than $100 billion, upping corporate pressure as the government heads into crucial talks AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures Spotif-IPO Spotify traded publically for the first time on the New York Stock Exchange on Tuesday. However, the company isn't issuing shares, but rather, shares held by Spotify's private investors will be sold AFP/Getty Business news: In pictures French blue passports The deadline to award a contract to make blue British passports after Brexit has been extended by two weeks following a request by bidder De La Rue. The move comes after anger at the announcement British passports would be produced by Franco-Dutch firm Gemalto when De La Rues contract ends in July. The British firm said Gemalto was chosen only because it undercut the competition, but the UK company also admitted that it was not the cheapest choice in the tendering process. Business news: In pictures Beast from the east economic impact The Beast from the East wiped 4m off of Flybes revenues due to flight cancellations, airport closures and delays, according to the budget airlines estimates. Flybe said it cancelled 994 flights in the three months to 31 March, compared to 372 in the same period last year. Britain Stronger in Europe, the pro-EU pressure group chaired by the former Marks & Spencer chairman Sir Stuart Rose, recently won financial backing from Wall Street giants including Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan, while high-profile business leaders such as BAE Systems chairman Sir Roger Carr, WPPs chief executive Sir Martin Sorrell and EasyJet boss Carolyn McCall have also expressed support for Britain staying in. Sir Andrew made his comments as GSK revealed strong sales of drugs last year, despite reporting a pre-tax loss of more than 400m. The company said full-year sales rose 6 per cent to 24bn while committing to paying an 80p dividend for the next two years. Sir Andrew has come under fire from investors including the influential fund manager Neil Woodford for failing to develop the business in line with their expectations. Mr Woodford has described GSK as being like four large companies artificially bolted together and urged it to spin off companies or divisions. It has, for example, a skin treatment unit called Stiefel, a big HIV drugs joint venture called ViiV, a consumer business which makes products such as Ovaltine and Sensodyne toothpaste, plus its backbook of old drugs. Sir Andrew hit back at those suggestions and accused investors of asking the wrong question. Weve created a win-win for shareholders, having a winning portfolio within the business and creating an option where you have a consumer business big enough to fly on its own. If I had to make that call today Id stick with it. But that call isnt one to make today because weve still got a few years to go. It would be odd to make a substantial change today when were on track. Why would you rock the boat? For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Spare a thought for Chris Hill-Scott. The civil servant, now 29, founded a startup called SwiftKey in 2008 with two friends, Jon Reynolds, 30, and Ben Medlock, 26, that just sold to Microsoft for 174 million. But Hill-Scott won't see a penny because two months after the company was founded he sold all his shares - for a bike. Hill-Scott tweeted on Tuesday that the decision to sell was the biggest mistake I ever made before setting his account to private Companies House documents show that Hill-Scott was appointed director of SwiftKeys parent company TouchType Ltd on August 13, 2008 but resigned two months later on October 24. The Times reported that Hill-Scott was disillusioned with the long hours and low pay associated with a start-up. Jon Reynolds (left) and Ben Medlock, who are set to become multimillionaires after their firm was reportedly bought by tech giant Microsoft. (PA) He is reported to have only taken a bicycle as payment for his shares when he left. Those shares are now reported to be worth around 25 million after the business was sold to Microsoft for 170 million. Hill-Scott tweeted on Tuesday that the decision to sell was the biggest mistake I ever made before setting his account to private. The Independent has contacted him for comment. Top 10 paid iPhone apps in 2015 Show all 10 1 /10 Top 10 paid iPhone apps in 2015 Top 10 paid iPhone apps in 2015 328915.bin Top 10 paid iPhone apps in 2015 381790.bin Top 10 paid iPhone apps in 2015 332949.bin Top 10 paid iPhone apps in 2015 285641.bin Top 10 paid iPhone apps in 2015 354137.bin Top 10 paid iPhone apps in 2015 395530.bin Top 10 paid iPhone apps in 2015 395531.bin Top 10 paid iPhone apps in 2015 381791.bin Top 10 paid iPhone apps in 2015 386206.bin Top 10 paid iPhone apps in 2015 395532.bin A spokesperson from SwiftKey told the Times that Hill-Scott left the company on good terms with his friends. Reynolds and Medlock are about to become millionaires after SwiftKey, a predictive text service, was bought by Microsoft. SwiftKey uses artificial intelligence by learning a users writing patterns over time, to better predict the words they might use next. The technology has been used by Stephen Hawking to speed up his computer-generated voice and has been installed on more than 300 million tablets across the world. Hill-Scott became a photographer, taking action shots for BMX magazines, before joining the civil service to improve the Governments use of technology. Sign up for a full digest of all the best opinions of the week in our Voices Dispatches email Sign up to our free weekly Voices newsletter Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Voices Dispatches email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Increasing numbers of teachers are boosting their pupils predicted A-level grades to help them secure offers of places at Britains top universities which in turn are accepting more students who miss their targets, largely to increase their income. Figures from Ucas, the university admissions body, show that 63 per cent of all candidates are now predicted to get at least an A and two B grades at A level up 9 percentage points from four years ago. Yet the data shows that only a fifth of those predicted to score ABB actually achieve those grades a 40 per cent drop from just six years ago. The ploy by teachers has been successful because growing numbers of universities are offering discounts on their conditional offers to prospective students when A-level results are released. This is because the Government decision to lift the cap on the number of places universities can offer has increased competition among the institutions when it comes to signing up students. However, many teachers still reckon they need to bump up their students potential A-level grades to ensure they are noticed and are given a provisional offer by universities. More than half of pupils accepted on predicted A-level results 52 per cent missed their conditional offer grades by one grade or two, another substantial rise on four years ago. Senior academics say controversy over the issue could reignite calls to move to a system whereby pupils apply for their university places after they receive their A-level results. Many teachers believe they need to bump up their students potential A-level grades to ensure they receive offers by universities (iStock) (People Images/iStock) The change was called for by a government inquiry headed by former Vice-Chancellor Steven Schwartz a decade ago but disappeared from the table when universities and schools could not agree to the changes necessary to the education calendar to implement it. The new figures and the trend they highlight were disclosed by Mary Curnock Cook, chief executive of Ucas, at a conference at Wellington College on the future of higher education. University admissions in numbers 63% of all candidates predicted to get at least an A and two B grades at A-levels of all candidates predicted to get at least an A and two B grades at A-levels One in five actually achieve those grades actually achieve those grades 495,940 university applicants in England university applicants in England 52% of candidates accepted on predicted grades miss them by one grade or two of candidates accepted on predicted grades miss them by one grade or two 44% of students being admitted with three B grade passes or lower, compared with 20 per cent in 2011 Ms Curnock Cook said that, in discussions with teachers, she had asked: Surely you wouldnt be over-predicting your students grades last summer? She told the conference: I have teachers coming back to me saying: Actually, yes we would. The offers are being discounted at confirmation time, said Ms Curnock Cook, referring to A-level results day. Its been [caused by] the lifting of the number controls that has increased competition [amongst universities]. You have to hope you can unlock some latent talent [in those taken in with lower grades], said one university source. If you dont take them in, they could be snapped up by a rival and their reputation increases. As well as lower-ranking institutions, high-tariff universities those most selective in their intake are also lowering their entry requirements, with 44 per cent of students being admitted with three B-grade passes or lower, compared with just 20 per cent in 2011. UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA UK news in pictures 27 September 2022 David White, Garter King of Arms, poses with an envelope franked with the new cypher of King Charles III 'CIIIR', after it was printed in the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 26 September 2022 A gallery staff member poses next to a painting by Lucian Freud - Self-portrait (Fragment), 1956 - on show at a photocall for the Credit Suisse exhibition - Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery in London PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2022 Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg in Liverpool before the start of the Labour Party annual Conference which he opened with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II and sang the national anthem PA UK news in pictures 24 September 2022 Handout photo issued by Buckingham Palace of the ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2022 A climate change activist protests against UK private jets while lighting his right arm on fire during the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 Arena in London EPA UK news in pictures 22 September 2022 Woody Woodmansey, Lee Bennett, Kevin Armstrong, Nick Moran and Clifford Slapper attend the unveiling of a stone for David Bowie on the Music Walk of Fame at Camden, north London PA UK news in pictures 21 September 2022 A flock of birds in the sky as the sun rises over Dungeness in Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2022 Flowers which were laid by members of the public in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland are collected by the Hillsborough Gardening Team and volunteers to be replanted for those that can be saved or composted PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2022 The ceremonial procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the long walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the committal service at St Georges Chapel AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 18 September 2022 A man stands among campers on The Mall ahead of the Queens funeral Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers Nathan Collins fouls Manchester Citys Jack Grealish leading to a red card. City went on to win the match at Molineux Stadium three goals to nil. Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 16 September 2022 Members of the public stand in the queue near Tower Bridge, and opposite the Tower of London, as they wait in line to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 15 September 2022 Members of the public in the queue on in Potters Fields Park, central London, as they wait to view Queen Elizabeth II lying in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 14 September 2022 The first members of the public pay their respects as the vigil begins around the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2022 Crowds cheer as King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort arrive for a visit to Hillsborough Castle Getty UK news in pictures 12 September 2022 Crowds line the Royal Mile, Edinburgh, as King Charles III joins a procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles Cathedral following the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II Katielee Arrowsmith/SWNS UK news in pictures 11 September 2022 Members of the Public pay their respects as the hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard of Scotland, is driven through Ballater AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 10 September 2022 Britain's Prince William, Prince of Wales, Britain's Catherine, Princess of Wales, Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Britain's Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, wave at well-wishers on the Long walk at Windsor Castle AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 9 September 2022 King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort wave after viewing floral tributes to the late Queen Elizabeth II outside Buckingham Palace Getty UK news in pictures 8 September 2022 A screen commemorating Britain's Queen Elizabeth II in Piccadilly Circus, London Britain EPA UK news in pictures 7 September 2022 Police officers stand guard after Animal Rebellion activists threw paint on the walls and road outside the Houses of Parliament in protest, in London, Britain Reuters UK news in pictures 6 September 2022 Queen Elizabeth II welcomes Liz Truss during an audience at Balmoral, Scotland, where she invited the newly elected leader of the Conservative party to become Prime Minister and form a new government PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2022 Visitors at the PoliNations garden in Victoria Square, Birmingham, which is made up of five 40ft high tree installations and over 6,000 plants. The PoliNations programme aims to explore how migration and cross-pollination have shaped the UKs gardens and culture PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2022 Undergraduates at the University of St Andrews take part in the traditional Pier Walk along the harbour walls of St Andrews before the start of the new academic year PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2022 The Massed Pipes and Drums parade during the Braemar Highland Gathering at the Princess Royal and Duke of Fife Memorial Park PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2022 Number 12 Company Irish Guards at Wellington Barracks, central London, before commencing their first Guard Mount at Buckingham Palace PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2022 A salmon leaps up the weir at Hexham in Northumberland, despite the drought warnings and low water levels, the River Tyne is still flowing well allowing the salmon and sea trout to head up river to spawn. Every year tens of thousands of salmon make the once-in-a-lifetime journey along the Tyne to spawn, having been out a sea PA Professor Michael Arthur, provost of University College London, said his university had dropped a grade in 9 per cent of admissions. Many universities have seen huge rises in the numbers of students they are enrolling. Professor Arthur said the number of students at his university had soared from 24,000 six years ago to 37,500. Part of the increase was down to mergers with other bodies such as the Institute of Education but at least half was due to a rise in student numbers. However, the number of university applicants from England decreased on the previous year by 0.2 percentage points to 495,940, the new figures show. The number of 18-year-olds applying also fell by 2.2 per cent. Overall the number of university applicants for this autumn has held steady with 593,720 applicants (up 0.2 percentage points on last year) by the time of the January deadline. But the increase was down to a significant rise in applications from the EU up 6 percentage points to 45,220. The figures show that more disadvantaged pupils applied than ever before up 5 percentage points in England, 2 in Scotland and 8 in Wales. Ms Curnock Cook urged students to be bold in their Ucas applications and take advantage of the fact that leading universities were lowering their admissions criteria. Speakers at the conference said parental pressure was partly to blame for teachers upping predictions for their pupils. The UCAS clearing house call centre in Cheltenham (Getty Images) Another teacher said that performance-related pay, which means teachers salary increases depend on the results of their pupils was leading them to predict higher grades. Performance-related pay and performance-related management play a part, they said. It is why you have to be a little bit aspirational. However, it was acknowledged this could be a double-edged sword as failure to achieve the grades could result in teachers being penalised for failing to meet their targets. Ms Curnock Cook also predicted that the number of students taking the A-level route to university would continue to drop over the next four years, Last week Ucas showed that the number of students taking the vocational route through Btecs had almost doubled from 14 per cent in 2008 to 26 per cent last year. Predicted outcomes showed the number taking the traditional A-level route was likely to decline by 25,000 by 2020 while the number with vocational qualifications would go up by 15,000. A Department for Education spokesperson said: "We trust teachers to act in the best interests of their students by giving fair predicted A level grades that accurately reflect their ability. "Distorting grades would be unfair on the pupils involved and could result in universities having to artificially inflate their entrance requirements, rendering it pointless in the long run." For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Martin Shkreli has left the building. Shkreli, the former chief executive of Turing Pharmaceuticals, who gained celebrity for jacking up a little-known drug's price, was excused from a House hearing on drug prices after he refused to answer any questions other than how to pronounce his name correctly, or to confirm that, yes, he was listening. After minutes of refusal to answer questions, during which Shkreli fidgeted, looked away, and appeared to smirk at times, he gave his parting remarks on Twitter: Five minutes were set aside for opening remarks that could shed light on Shkreli's controversial decision to raise the price of Daraprim, a drug for a rare, but severe infection that afflicts people with compromised immune systems. But Shkreli declined to make any. Instead, Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah), chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, began asking him questions about patients affected by the price and remarks he had made previously. Shkreli gave the same composed answer to each question: On the advice of counsel, I invoke my Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination and respectfully decline to answer your question, Shkreli said. Repeatedly. Recommended Read more Martin Shkreli hits back at Ellie Goulding criticism Shkreli didn't come willingly to Thursday's hearing. He was compelled by a subpoena that he threatened to ignore and that his lawyers argued against vehemently. Wearing a slim black jacket, Shkreli sat at the end of a row of witnesses called before the committee with hands folded, fidgeting a bit and smirking at times tics his attorney, Benjamin Brafman, called the nervous energy of the 32-year-old former hedge fund manager, not meant to show disrespect to any member of Congress. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) described Turing as a Ponzi scheme in his opening remarks, saying the research and development that Turing has claimed it is doing to justify its high prices is simply research on which new drugs it could acquire and raise the prices. Shkreli smirked. The hearing is focused on two companies that drove up the price of drugs they didn't invent and after Shkreli's departure, the rest of the witnesses testified. (CNBC) It's not funny, Mr. Shkreli, people are dying, Cummings said. One of the few questions he did answer, asked by Rep. Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.), was whether he had pronounced his last name correctly. When Gowdy told Shkreli he could answer questions without incriminating himself, since they would not bear on the securities fraud charges being brought against him in a separate matter, he said, I intend to follow the advice of my counsel, not yours. Eventually, Shkreli was excused, trailed by a media scrum. The hearing is focused on two companies that drove up the price of drugs they didn't invent and after Shkreli's departure, the rest of the witnesses testified. In addition to Shkreli, Turing's current chief commercial officer, Nancy Retzlaff, testified. Howard Schiller, the interim chief executive of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, another company that has been accused of operating more like a hedge fund than a drug company, appeared. Janet Woodcock, the director of the Center for Drug Evaluation and Research at the Food and Drug Administration, and Mark Merritt, the president of the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association, a trade group that represents pharmacy benefit companies, was also present. Turing and Valeant both turned over tens of thousands of pages of documents. Some highlights were presented in two memos released earlier this week. Although there are fascinating details taken from internal emails that draw back the curtain on the tactics of drug pricing, the main finding thus far is simple: Both the companies strove to maximise profits. There are still thousands of pages of documents for the committee to mine for clues about how to prevent a practice that has been called price gouging. But at least so far, the evidence appears to echo the revelations of a previous Senate investigation of an $84,000 hepatitis C drug. That company, Gilead, also sought to maximise profits, even as its price affected patients' access to the drug. High drug prices hit a nerve with the public and with politicians, but so far, congressional hearings have generated lots of buzz and few solutions. Copyright: Washington Post For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Why are we asking this now? A United Nations panel considering the apparent "unlawful detention" of Julian Assange has reportedly ruled in favour of the Wikileaks founder. Assange was granted political asylum in the Ecuadorian Embassy in London in 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden. He is wanted for questioning over allegations of sexual assault but denies the claims. In 2014, he filed a complaint against the UK and Sweden and said he was being arbitrarily detained in the Embassy as he could not leave without being arrested. The UN, which has been investigating the claim, has not confirmed the report and is due to publish its decision on Friday. Assange says he will voluntarily leave the embassy if it rules against him. Why is he in there? In August 2012, Sweden issued an arrest warrant for Assange over two separate allegations - one of rape and one of molestation. On 19 June 2012 - a month after the UK Supreme Court had ruled he be extradited - the Ecuadorian government announced he had applied for political asylum. On 16 August, they granted his request - and Assange entered the building in central London where he remains to this day. The 44-year-old believes that if he travels to Sweden to answer the allegations, he may be extradited to the US to face trial over the publication of classified US military and diplomatic files. He says he has sought asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy rather than comply with the order. What has he been doing in there? He has now spent more than three years living in the embassy building in Knightsbridge. The embassy has no outside area and he has no access to fresh air or sunlight. He has said he believes it "too dangerous" for him to step out on to the embassy balcony over fears he may be shot. Ecuador has requested that Mr Assange be permitted outdoor exercise without risking his political asylum, a website set up to call for justice for Mr Assange claims, but the UK has reportedly refused. He says the embassy staff are now "like family" - they have lunch together and celebrate each other's birthdays. He lives in a small office room converted into living quarters, with a bed, telephone, sun lamp, computer, shower, treadmill and small kitchenette. The activist has previously mentioned watching Australian TV series The Rake and films such as Argo and Zero Dark Thirty. Why can't he leave? Even if the UN rules in his favour, Assange is likely to be arrested on the spot by British authorities the moment he steps outside the Ecuadorian Embassy building. He could then be extradited to Sweden for questioning. What have people been saying about him? Wiki-chic: Julian Assange with Lady Gaga The website set up to document his 'house arrest' at the embassy - which was on 1,885 days and counting at the time of writing - says it is awaiting formal confirmation of the UN panel ruling. The WikiLeaks Twitter account posted a series of tweets about the UN panel ruling on Thursday, saying it was also awaiting formal confirmation. He has also received regular visits from a variety of high-profile supporters, including Lady Gaga, Eric Cantona, Pamela Anderson, Yoko Ono, Sean Lennon, Maggie Gyllenhaal, John Cusack and rapper MIA. But those who criticise him point to the cost to taxpayers of the Met Police "guarding" him - at least 10m. What happens next? If he wins the UN ruling, he could use it to pressure the British Government to allow him to leave the embassy.He could simply take his chances and leave the embassy, despite the fact he is almost certain to face arrest. He has previously tweeted that if the panel rules against him, he will leave the building and accept being arrested. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Israels former Ambassador to the UK was the subject of several warnings over late-night visits to his official residence, it has been claimed. Married father-of-six Daniel Taub, a 55-year-old Oxford-educated lawyer, served in London from 2011 until last year during which time officials repeatedly raised concerns over security breaches at his home in St Johns Wood, north London. Several sources told the Guardian that Mr Taub returned to Israel after the visits continued. His name emerged following days of speculation in Israel over the identity of a senior Israeli diplomat who had become embroiled in an alleged scandal. Israels Ministry of Foreign Affairs had strongly denied claims that appeared online in Israel on Wednesday relating to allegations of aspects of Mr Taubs behaviour, insisting it had determined that there had been no criminal or disciplinary wrongdoing. The ministry expressed its disgust at the publication of untruthful allegations regarding one of the finest members of its foreign service. It said in a statement: The ministry emphasises that following a thorough investigation by the inspector general of the ministry, it was determined that there had been no criminal or disciplinary wrongdoing and that the issue related to a breach of security protocol. The issue has been addressed and concluded. No Jewish groups were willing to comment on the allegations on Thursday, preferring to adopt a wait and see approach. Israel: From independence to intifada Show all 7 1 /7 Israel: From independence to intifada Israel: From independence to intifada 26973.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26974.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26975.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26976.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26977.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26985.bin Robert Capa/Magnum Israel: From independence to intifada 26986.bin Robert Capa/Magnum The alleged circumstances of Mr Taubs departure emerged amid controversy over whether he should be appointed as the Israeli foreign affairs ministrys chief legal counsel a post for which he is regarded as the leading contender. Israels Prime Minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, has reportedly backed him for that post. After more than two decades spent at the heart of negotiations between Israel and Palestine, including the role of deputy legal counsel for his foreign affairs ministry, the Finchley-born diplomat was considered a cool, unflappable candidate for a high-profile foreign posting. On his arrival in London the Jewish Chronicle called him an almost copperplate ideal Anglo-Jew, having attended Menorah Primary School in north London and then Haberdashers Askes Boys School in Elstree, Hertfordshire. His rise through the Anglo-Jewish establishment continued at Oxford University, where the future Conservative leader and Foreign Secretary William Hague was a contemporary with the pair coming into contact through the Oxford Union, prior to completing his studies at Harvard. He gave up his UK citizenship following his emigration to Israel in 1989 and in the space of a few years was considered an authority on humanitarian law, international organisations and counterterrorism. Mr Taub was involved as an official in both negotiations on the Israeli-Palestinian peace process, in almost every signed agreement throughout the 1990s, and a member of Israels negotiating team in the Israel-Syrian negotiations in January 2000. His time in London was considered a resounding success. Announcing his departure last year, the Israeli Embassy said Mr Taub had overseen the improvement of bilateral trade between the countries in addition to the deepening academic, business and cultural ties. Mr Taub said that it had been an extraordinary privilege to represent Israel in the UK to help deepen the friendship and cooperation. Mr Taub, who was only the second native-born Briton to serve as Israels ambassador to the UK, had formally completed his four-year term in June last year, but applied to extend his posting for another year and told people he would be staying. Israel had other ideas and will be sending Mark Regev, Mr Netanayhus former foreign language spokesman, in his place with his arrival due next month. Mr Regev is already well-known in the UK after numerous appearances in the media defending Israels military action most notably during Operation Cast Lead, the 2008-9 conflict that resulted in 13 Israeli and at least 1,166 Palestinian deaths. Usually when you see me, its bad news, the Australian-born sharp-suited spokesman quipped during one appearance. Praised by hard-line supporters of Israeli governments, he has been vilified for defending the indefensible in numerous high-profile interviews repeatedly calling UN efforts to investigate alleged war crimes by the Israeli army a kangaroo court. Its not difficult to be a spokesman when things are stable, things are good, a British diplomat told the Independent last year following the announcement of his new posting. What Regev brings is the ability to hold the line when there is bad publicity, as has often been the case, of course, with Israel. That experience will be needed once more should evidence emerge to support the allegations surrounding his predecessors departure. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} One of the men initially suspected of being connected to the killing of teenager Stephen Lawrence in Britains most notorious racist murder is on the run from police over an alleged drug-dealing plot. Six other men, from the London area and the North-east of England, have appeared at Wimbledon Magistrates Court, charged with conspiracy to supply controlled drugs after police discovered about 100kg of cannabis. Scotland Yard said that Mr Jamie Acourt, 39, of Bexley, London, had not been arrested but was wanted in connection with the investigation. Mr Acourt was 16 when Mr Lawrence was stabbed to death in south London in 1993. He has been publicly named as a suspect in the past, but has never stood trial. Recommended Read more Met Police in corruption probe over initial Stephen Lawrence inquiry In 2012, nearly two decades after Mr Lawrence was killed, Gary Dobson and David Norris were convicted and given life sentences. The polices inept handling of the case had earlier prompted a public inquiry, which branded the Metropolitan Police as institutionally racist. A spokeswoman for the Met confirmed Mr Acourt was suspected of involvement in the drug plot. He hasnt actually been arrested. Hes wanted in connection with the investigation, which is conspiracy to supply drugs, she said. She refused to comment on unconfirmed reports that Mr Acourt might be in Spain. Police said the six men arrested in connection with the alleged plot were: Neil Stuart, 40, of Eltham, Lee Birks, 54, of Orpington, James Botton, 44, of Greenwich, Jack Vose, 62, of Bexley, who was arrested at an address in South Shields, Paul Beavers, 48, of Backworth, Newcastle, and Daniel Thompson, 27, of South Shields. UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA UK news in pictures 27 September 2022 David White, Garter King of Arms, poses with an envelope franked with the new cypher of King Charles III 'CIIIR', after it was printed in the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 26 September 2022 A gallery staff member poses next to a painting by Lucian Freud - Self-portrait (Fragment), 1956 - on show at a photocall for the Credit Suisse exhibition - Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery in London PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2022 Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg in Liverpool before the start of the Labour Party annual Conference which he opened with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II and sang the national anthem PA UK news in pictures 24 September 2022 Handout photo issued by Buckingham Palace of the ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2022 A climate change activist protests against UK private jets while lighting his right arm on fire during the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 Arena in London EPA UK news in pictures 22 September 2022 Woody Woodmansey, Lee Bennett, Kevin Armstrong, Nick Moran and Clifford Slapper attend the unveiling of a stone for David Bowie on the Music Walk of Fame at Camden, north London PA UK news in pictures 21 September 2022 A flock of birds in the sky as the sun rises over Dungeness in Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2022 Flowers which were laid by members of the public in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland are collected by the Hillsborough Gardening Team and volunteers to be replanted for those that can be saved or composted PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2022 The ceremonial procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the long walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the committal service at St Georges Chapel AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 18 September 2022 A man stands among campers on The Mall ahead of the Queens funeral Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers Nathan Collins fouls Manchester Citys Jack Grealish leading to a red card. City went on to win the match at Molineux Stadium three goals to nil. Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 16 September 2022 Members of the public stand in the queue near Tower Bridge, and opposite the Tower of London, as they wait in line to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 15 September 2022 Members of the public in the queue on in Potters Fields Park, central London, as they wait to view Queen Elizabeth II lying in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 14 September 2022 The first members of the public pay their respects as the vigil begins around the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2022 Crowds cheer as King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort arrive for a visit to Hillsborough Castle Getty UK news in pictures 12 September 2022 Crowds line the Royal Mile, Edinburgh, as King Charles III joins a procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles Cathedral following the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II Katielee Arrowsmith/SWNS UK news in pictures 11 September 2022 Members of the Public pay their respects as the hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard of Scotland, is driven through Ballater AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 10 September 2022 Britain's Prince William, Prince of Wales, Britain's Catherine, Princess of Wales, Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Britain's Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, wave at well-wishers on the Long walk at Windsor Castle AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 9 September 2022 King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort wave after viewing floral tributes to the late Queen Elizabeth II outside Buckingham Palace Getty UK news in pictures 8 September 2022 A screen commemorating Britain's Queen Elizabeth II in Piccadilly Circus, London Britain EPA UK news in pictures 7 September 2022 Police officers stand guard after Animal Rebellion activists threw paint on the walls and road outside the Houses of Parliament in protest, in London, Britain Reuters UK news in pictures 6 September 2022 Queen Elizabeth II welcomes Liz Truss during an audience at Balmoral, Scotland, where she invited the newly elected leader of the Conservative party to become Prime Minister and form a new government PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2022 Visitors at the PoliNations garden in Victoria Square, Birmingham, which is made up of five 40ft high tree installations and over 6,000 plants. The PoliNations programme aims to explore how migration and cross-pollination have shaped the UKs gardens and culture PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2022 Undergraduates at the University of St Andrews take part in the traditional Pier Walk along the harbour walls of St Andrews before the start of the new academic year PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2022 The Massed Pipes and Drums parade during the Braemar Highland Gathering at the Princess Royal and Duke of Fife Memorial Park PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2022 Number 12 Company Irish Guards at Wellington Barracks, central London, before commencing their first Guard Mount at Buckingham Palace PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2022 A salmon leaps up the weir at Hexham in Northumberland, despite the drought warnings and low water levels, the River Tyne is still flowing well allowing the salmon and sea trout to head up river to spawn. Every year tens of thousands of salmon make the once-in-a-lifetime journey along the Tyne to spawn, having been out a sea PA Three men, aged 23, 27 and 41, and a woman, aged 19, were also arrested, but were subsequently released on bail pending further enquiries. In 1998, after giving evidence to a public inquiry into the Stephen Lawrence case, Mr Acourt and a number of others, including Dobson and Norris, were seen clashing with an angry crowd as they left. However, by 2012 Mr Acourt was living in a smart terraced house in Sidcup, Bexley, with his partner and two children. A neighbour said the sharply dressed Mr Acourt was very nice [and] chats with me, adding: I cant imagine he was directly involved [in Stephen Lawrences murder] but if he fell in with the wrong people I am sure he wants to put it behind him. However, in his youth Mr Acourt had allegedly been part of a south London gang that included Dobson and Norris. They called themselves the Krays after the notorious 1950s and 1960s gangster brothers. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Anti-rape campaigners have condemned as irrelevant a finding by a United Nations panel that Julian Assanges lengthy stay in the Ecuadors London embassy amounts to arbitrary detention and called on the Wikileaks founder to surrender to the legal process. Assange, who has lived in two rooms in the diplomatic mission since seeking sanctuary in 2012, appealed to the UNs Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) in an attempt to break the legal deadlock over his efforts to avoid extradition to Sweden to face questioning about a claim of rape. He has consistently denied any assault. Recommended Read more UN rules in favour of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange In a move likely to rankle the Government, which has spent more than 12m on a police operation outside the embassy, the five human rights lawyers on the UN panel are expected to announce that they have found in Mr Assanges favour by deciding he has been unlawfully detained despite voluntarily entering the building three and a half years ago. The Wikileaks chief had argued that his confinement was unlawful because he was being asked to choose between the asylum granted to him by the Ecuadorian government and the certainty of arrest if he left the embassy. Lawyers for Mr Assange said they were still awaiting official confirmation of the WGAD finding due for release this morning but said if confirmed the extradition proceedings issued by Sweden should be immediately revoked and Scotland Yard should announce he no longer faces arrest. Although the UN panels decision is not formally binding on either the British or Swedish governments, his legal team believe it will be difficult for either to ignore and hands him a significant public relations victory. One of his British lawyers said Mr Assange may seek safe passage to Ecuador. In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' Show all 14 1 /14 In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' Julian-Assange.jpg Getty Images In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' Assange2.jpg In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' assange1.jpg In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' assange.jpg In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' westwood-assange.jpg In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' assange.jpg In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' Assange3.jpg In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' Assange3_1.jpg In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' Assange-AP.jpg In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' Assange5.jpg In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' Assange6.jpg In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' Assange-AP.jpg In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' Assange-REUT.jpg In pictures: Julian Assange's 'arbitrary detention' Assange-Still-Vimeo.jpg The Wikileaks chief, who has said he will answer questions from Swedish prosecutors put to him via Ecuadorian diplomats, believes he faces eventual extradition to America to face prosecution over the publication of thousands of US diplomatic cables and military files if he is sent to Sweden. But campaigners said they believed Mr Assange, who faces no formal charge in Sweden, was putting himself above a lawful process after the Swedish authorities said they wanted to question him about an allegation of rape made in 2010. Further allegations of lesser sexual offences against another woman can no longer be pursued after the statute of limitations expired. Joan Smith, chairwoman of the Mayor of Londons Violence Against Women and Girls Board, said: The UN ruling is completely irrelevant. Mr Assange is subject to the same lawful process that the rest of us are and the Supreme Court has found the arrest warrant against him was valid. In my view he has been desperately seeking to avoid submitting himself to this process by claiming there is a plot against him. He should be co-operating with a lawful process. Lawyers for Mr Assange told the UN panel that he wished to clear his name but the Swedish prosecutor had refused unreasonably and disproportionately to question him in London. They also argued that British law had changed since 2012 and were the same proceedings to be brought now any extradition would be unlawful. The Swedish foreign ministry confirmed that the Geneva-based WAGD panel, consisting of academics and lawyers who are asked to present a legal opinion on cases based on existing international human rights rules, had found Mr Assanges confinement amounted to detention and that it was unlawful. Downing Street declined to comment on the finding but insisted that Britain continued to have a legal obligation to put the Swedish arrest warrant into effect. A spokesman added: [Mr Assange] has never been detained in this country, so there is no arbitrary detention. He is avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorian embassy. Scotland Yard announced last year that it was winding down its visible policing operation outside the diplomatic mission after costs reached 12.6m. The Yard confirmed on 4 February that it would still seek to arrest Mr Assange if he left the embassy. Lawyers for the Wikileaks chief said a decision in favour of him would mean British and Swedish actions had been found to be inconsistent with the European Convention on Human Rights. Per Samuelson, one of Assange's Swedish lawyers, said: It is international common practice to follow those decisions. Q&A: Julian Assange's predicament What is arbitrary detention and what is the UN panel publishing this report? Arbitrary detention is any situation in which an individual is confined or imprisoned in a way that is unlawful and infringes their fundamental human rights. The Geneva-based Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) was set up in 1991 and consists of a panel of senior lawyers and academics specialising in international human rights. Many of their previous findings of arbitrary detention involve victims of repressive regimes, including Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar and former Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi. So how could it apply to Julian Assange in Britain? Lawyers for the Wikileaks founder applied to the WGAD in 2014 arguing that the scale, duration and nature of the police operation to monitor him in the Ecuadorian embassy was depriving him of key liberties. They argued that Mr Assange was being pursued and pilloried by the American government and has grounds to fear persecution, adding that he was being wrongly prevented from exercising the right to asylum granted to him by Ecuador. Does this finding have any legal force in Britain? The WGAD is not a court or tribunal and so its formal opinions do not come from a judicial authority. They are therefore not legally binding. But they do represent the findings of impartial UN experts on Britains compliance with international law. Being called out by them is both embarrassing and makes it difficult for the UK to uses its record as leverage with repressive regimes. What will happen next? After nearly four years of expensive deadlock, it is unlikely either London or Stockholm will give up immediately and let Mr Assange walk free. One possibility is a compromise by which Swedish prosecutors question him via Ecuadorian diplomats and then reach a decision whether there is sufficient evidence for a charge. Another is that the Wikileaks founder takes a case to the European Court of Human Rights. In the meantime, the statute of limitations on the rape claim against Mr Assange will only expire in 2020. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Wildlife rescuers have said there is no hope of saving a sperm whale stranded on Hunstanton Beach. The mammal was still alive and breathing when it was beached on Thursday morning but it was expected to die by the end of the day. Coastguards and staff from Hunstanton Sea Life Sanctuary had put a cordon around the whale for its dignity but could do nothing to save it, the British Divers Marine Life Rescue (BDMLR) said. A sperm whale, which washed up on Hunstanton beach in Norfolk, is covered by water as the tide comes in. (PA) Stephen Marsh, the organisations operational manager, told The Independent it was impossible to rescue beached sperm whales because of their size and weight, meaning they cannot be rolled back into the sea. We are just trying to give it dignity and let nature take its course, he said. Its alive at the moment and it might re-float but I doubt it would be in a fit state to swim out into the open ocean. As the tide came back in on Thursday afternoon the whale was partially submergedand could be seen thrashing in the water, although it still appeared to be trapped in the shallows. The whale was alive when it became stranded on the beach in Hunstanton, Norfolk, on 4 February (PA) Hunstanton Sea Life Centre manager Nigel Croasdale told Sky News he was not expecting a successful outcome. Nature will take its course, he added. The water may be deep enough for the animal to swim off. It may drift in the high water and end up becoming beached further along the coastline further this evening. The Coastguard said it was alerted to the 14-metre whale's arrival at 7.30am and said its team had set up a cordon at the "very distressing scene". West Norfolk Borough Council was urging members of the public not to travel to the beach. Fifth dead sperm whale in UK We're aware that another whale has become stranded on Hunstanton beach, a statement said. We're involved in a multi-agency approach to assessing the situation. We're not encouraging people to visit the scene, but if you do, please be mindful of your own safety. Thursdays stranding was the 29th in Europe in the past two weeks, and the sixth in The Wash the North Sea bay between Norfolk and Lincolnshire during that period. Although the deaths have shocked and saddened local communities, as well as whale-lovers around the world, it could indicate growing populations of sperm whales. Dead whales beached on the North Sea coast Show all 8 1 /8 Dead whales beached on the North Sea coast Dead whales beached on the North Sea coast Two dead sperm whales are seen washed up on a beach near Skegness in northeast England. Four sperm whales believed to be from the same pod washed up on beaches in northeast England. Three whales were found on a beach near Skegness and one died on Hunstanton beach AFP Getty Dead whales beached on the North Sea coast 50ft sperm whale beached in Norfolk The dead 50ft (14.5m) young adult male sperm whale beached in Norfolk, which was was part of a group of six spotted in the Wash at Hunstanton, is believed to have been part of a pod that stranded and died in the Netherlands PA Dead whales beached on the North Sea coast 50ft sperm whale beached in Norfolk The dead 50ft (14.5m) young adult male sperm whale beached in Norfolk, which was was part of a group of six spotted in the Wash at Hunstanton, is believed to have been part of a pod that stranded and died in the Netherlands PA Dead whales beached on the North Sea coast 50ft sperm whale beached in Norfolk The dead 50ft (14.5m) young adult male sperm whale beached in Norfolk, which was was part of a group of six spotted in the Wash at Hunstanton, is believed to have been part of a pod that stranded and died in the Netherlands PA Dead whales beached on the North Sea coast 50ft sperm whale beached in Norfolk The dead 50ft (14.5m) young adult male sperm whale beached in Norfolk, which was was part of a group of six spotted in the Wash at Hunstanton, is believed to have been part of a pod that stranded and died in the Netherlands PA Dead whales beached on the North Sea coast 50ft sperm whale beached in Norfolk Two of three dead sperm whales that have washed up on a beach in Lincolnshire, just a day after another was beached in Norfolk PA Dead whales beached on the North Sea coast One of three dead sperm whales that have washed up on a beach in Lincolnshire, just a day after another was beached in Norfolk PA Dead whales beached on the North Sea coast Photo taken from the Twitter feed of the @RNLIskegness of one of three dead sperm whales that have washed up on a beach in Lincolnshire, just a day after another was beached in Norfolk PA Whales used to strand in the UK quite regularly before we started killing them all with whaling, so this could be a sign of population recovery, Mr Marsh said. Officials from Defra are conducting post-mortems on beached whales and investigating what is causing so many to wash ashore in Britain, with a report expected later this year. The latest whale beached just two miles east from where another sperm whale was found in Hunstanton almost a fortnight ago in one of a series of strandings thought to be from the same pod. Three other dead sperm whales were discovered washed up on the Lincolnshire coast, including one that later exploded in Skegness, and another washed up near Wainfleet, Lincolnshire. Dr Peter Evans, director of the Sea Watch Foundation, said this kind of thing happens periodically as sperm whales congregate in social cohesive groups which we call pods and often strand together. They feed principally on squid and what has probably happened is that one or more of the shoals of squid have entered the North Sea from the Atlantic and the whales followed them, fed upon them, and then maybe ran out of food. Other theories say the whales may have come too close to shore while migrating from polar regions to warmer water in search of mates. News / Press Release by Willias Madzimure - PDP International Relations Secretary The People's Democratic Party (PDP) notes the debate raised by the United States Senate Committee Chair on Foreign Relations, Senator Bob Corker's letter, to the Obama administration imploring them to veto any attempt to advance funding to Zimbabwe by the various international financial institutions which they sit on.This comes on the wake of reports that Zimbabwe was very close to securing new lines of credit if it clears its US$1.8 billion arrears to the IMF, World Bank and the African Development Bank (AfDB). The key reason for denying Zimbabwe any financial package is because the ZANU PF government has not undertaken any serious reforms in order to open the democratic space and restore the rule of law in the country.After the reports of this move by the US Senate, there have been frenzied and desperate efforts from the ZANU PF government circles to try and water down the issues raised by Senator Corker. Finance Minister Patrick Chinamasa was quick to try rubbish the recommendations of the US Senate Committee arguing that Senator Corker is out of sync with the true state of affairs in the country.Chinamasa alleged that Zimbabwe was politically stable and they had restored the rule of law. He went on to argue, unconvincingly, that elections were being held in a free and fair manner. It never dawned to him that only an ignorant fool would believe his narrative of which the Americans and the international community are not.What is lost to Chinamasa of course is that his party has continued to be violent as evidenced by various violent clashes which saw members of his party team up with the ZRP to assault opposition members in Harare South last year.He is also oblivious to the recent gutting down of houses belonging to opposition supporters in Mashonaland East, the brutal clamp down of the police on civil servants protesting for bonuses and the indiscriminate assault of residents in Chitungwiza early this year.That human rights activist Itai Dzamara is still missing for almost a year now while the ZANU PF government has displayed total disinterest and even hostility in addressing the matter, seems not to bother Chinamasa at all. The voters' roll of the disputed 2013 elections is still not out almost 3 years after the poll and all these irregularities are normal to Chinamasa.ZANU PF has also been leading large scale demolitions of people's homes and land invasions continue unabated. The land audit and land commission provided for in the Constitution are yet to become a reality as ZANU PF is bent on protecting its top leaders who acquired multiple farms.Outside the political environment, ZANU PF has shown its lack of commitment in creating an enabling environment for investment by remaining stuck with the Indigenization law which is scaring away investors and threatening business viability locally.Furthermore, the Mugabe regime is still saddled by massive corruption which is costing the economy billions and impoverishing the ordinary people to the extent that 75% of the people live on less than a dollar per day. ZANU PF has done absolutely nothing to deal with the scourge of corruption and the country is still ranked among the top 20 most corrupt countries in the world.Diamond mining is still being done behind a dark veil of opaqueness amid indications of heavy security sector involvement. Mining concessions are being granted to the Chinese and Russians without due Environmental Impact Assessments being carried out and thus endangering the environment and communities.It is therefore evident that Mugabe's regime is far from reforming but is desperate for money hence its attempt to hoodwink the international financial institutions into thinking that it is committed to reforms. Giving credit lines to ZANU PF would be akin to supporting a terror group in the mould of ISIS.Any financial aid must be advanced when the government has undertaken reforms to align laws to the new constitution, abide by the rule of law, create a free, fair and credible electoral playing field and above all respect fundamental human rights. The PDP argues that if these basic conditions are not met, any financial package would only prop up a desperate regime to continue its criminal rule. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The founder of a group who has advocated legalising rape on private premises has cancelled plans for meetings following a widespread outcry. Roosh V, whose real name is Daryush Valizadeh, 36, is the founder of Return Of Kings, a group for aspiring self-described "neo-masculinists". The 36-year-old American has published 15 books on how to "pick up women" and posts tips on his website on how to "bang" women. Mr Valizadeh made the announcement on his website: "I can no longer guarantee the safety or privacy of the men who want to attend on February 6, especially since most of the meet-ups can not be made private in time. While I cant stop men who want to continue meeting in private groups, there will be no official Return Of Kings meet-ups. The listing page has been scrubbed of all locations. I apologize to all the supporters who are let down by my decision." Meetings had been planned for Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Newcastle, Manchester, Shrewsbury and London. There were also plans for meetings in Australia, Canada and the USA. UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA UK news in pictures 27 September 2022 David White, Garter King of Arms, poses with an envelope franked with the new cypher of King Charles III 'CIIIR', after it was printed in the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 26 September 2022 A gallery staff member poses next to a painting by Lucian Freud - Self-portrait (Fragment), 1956 - on show at a photocall for the Credit Suisse exhibition - Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery in London PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2022 Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg in Liverpool before the start of the Labour Party annual Conference which he opened with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II and sang the national anthem PA UK news in pictures 24 September 2022 Handout photo issued by Buckingham Palace of the ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2022 A climate change activist protests against UK private jets while lighting his right arm on fire during the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 Arena in London EPA UK news in pictures 22 September 2022 Woody Woodmansey, Lee Bennett, Kevin Armstrong, Nick Moran and Clifford Slapper attend the unveiling of a stone for David Bowie on the Music Walk of Fame at Camden, north London PA UK news in pictures 21 September 2022 A flock of birds in the sky as the sun rises over Dungeness in Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2022 Flowers which were laid by members of the public in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland are collected by the Hillsborough Gardening Team and volunteers to be replanted for those that can be saved or composted PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2022 The ceremonial procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the long walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the committal service at St Georges Chapel AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 18 September 2022 A man stands among campers on The Mall ahead of the Queens funeral Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers Nathan Collins fouls Manchester Citys Jack Grealish leading to a red card. City went on to win the match at Molineux Stadium three goals to nil. Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 16 September 2022 Members of the public stand in the queue near Tower Bridge, and opposite the Tower of London, as they wait in line to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 15 September 2022 Members of the public in the queue on in Potters Fields Park, central London, as they wait to view Queen Elizabeth II lying in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 14 September 2022 The first members of the public pay their respects as the vigil begins around the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2022 Crowds cheer as King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort arrive for a visit to Hillsborough Castle Getty UK news in pictures 12 September 2022 Crowds line the Royal Mile, Edinburgh, as King Charles III joins a procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles Cathedral following the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II Katielee Arrowsmith/SWNS UK news in pictures 11 September 2022 Members of the Public pay their respects as the hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard of Scotland, is driven through Ballater AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 10 September 2022 Britain's Prince William, Prince of Wales, Britain's Catherine, Princess of Wales, Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Britain's Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, wave at well-wishers on the Long walk at Windsor Castle AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 9 September 2022 King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort wave after viewing floral tributes to the late Queen Elizabeth II outside Buckingham Palace Getty UK news in pictures 8 September 2022 A screen commemorating Britain's Queen Elizabeth II in Piccadilly Circus, London Britain EPA UK news in pictures 7 September 2022 Police officers stand guard after Animal Rebellion activists threw paint on the walls and road outside the Houses of Parliament in protest, in London, Britain Reuters UK news in pictures 6 September 2022 Queen Elizabeth II welcomes Liz Truss during an audience at Balmoral, Scotland, where she invited the newly elected leader of the Conservative party to become Prime Minister and form a new government PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2022 Visitors at the PoliNations garden in Victoria Square, Birmingham, which is made up of five 40ft high tree installations and over 6,000 plants. The PoliNations programme aims to explore how migration and cross-pollination have shaped the UKs gardens and culture PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2022 Undergraduates at the University of St Andrews take part in the traditional Pier Walk along the harbour walls of St Andrews before the start of the new academic year PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2022 The Massed Pipes and Drums parade during the Braemar Highland Gathering at the Princess Royal and Duke of Fife Memorial Park PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2022 Number 12 Company Irish Guards at Wellington Barracks, central London, before commencing their first Guard Mount at Buckingham Palace PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2022 A salmon leaps up the weir at Hexham in Northumberland, despite the drought warnings and low water levels, the River Tyne is still flowing well allowing the salmon and sea trout to head up river to spawn. Every year tens of thousands of salmon make the once-in-a-lifetime journey along the Tyne to spawn, having been out a sea PA Mr Valizadeh has written blog posts asserting that rape should be legal if done on private property apparently on the premise that. Less women will be raped because they wont voluntarily drug themselves with booze and follow a strange man into a bedroom However, he has since claimed that it was satire. People who advocate violence against women arent welcome in Australia, the minister said in a statement to Buzzfeed News. In the past people advocating violence against women have had their visa refused or cancelled. Counter protests had been planned in response in many locations. A petition to stop Mr Valizadeh entering Australia received over 100,000 signatures and the Immigration Minister, Peter Dutton, indicated that entry could be blocked for Mr Valizadeh. Other content on the Return of Kings website includes posts such as '5 Reasons To Date A Girl With An Eating Disorder.' Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} World leaders and ministers from more than 70 countries are meeting in London to raise money for Syrian refugees but financial pledges alone will not solve the crisis, charities have warned. David Cameron opened the conference with a pledge of 1.2 billion over the next four years towards the 6.2 billion the UN says it will need in the next 12 months. Other countries not hosting the summit are expected to be less generous still the EU as a whole has pledged 2 billion (1.5 billion). The appeal, which includes a request for 900 million from countries bordering Syria, comes in part because only around 40 per cent was eventually of last years 2 billion target. But regardless of the money, charities say the failure of corresponding efforts to find a political solution to the Syrian conflict and the refusal of other countries to take in refugees themselves will only see the crisis worsen. 'Britain can and should do more' Oxfam analysed whether rich countries were meeting their 'fair share' housing refugees Oxfam has produced analysis ahead of the conference which shows that, while Britain can be commended for the amount of money it has contributed to help Syrians, it falls far short of taking in its fair share of people. The UK has pledged to give homes to 20,000 refugees fleeing the conflict until the end of this conflict a figure which Oxfam says amounts to just 60 people arriving in each of Britains 69 cities per year. Britain can and should do more, said Mark Goldring, Oxfams UK chief executive. The governments announcement to accept more child refugees from the region, while welcome, barely begins to address the problem. Money is not enough In its report, Oxfam also assessed countries' financial contributions. It found Russia had given just 1% of what it should In absolute terms, the UK has provided a greater amount of money towards the crisis than any country other than the US and it also performs well based on its contribution as a proportion of national income. For other countries it is the other way round Australia, for instance, has pledged to take in more refugees than its fair share would indicate. Yet Oxfam says it has contributed just a third of the money it should have given. The charity reserves its strongest criticism for countries that have been directly involved in the military conflict in Syria, without a corresponding effort to help refugees produced as a result. Refugee crisis - in pictures Show all 27 1 /27 Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugee crisis - in pictures A child looks through the fence at the Moria detention camp for migrants and refugees at the island of Lesbos on May 24, 2016. AFP/Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Ahmad Zarour, 32, from Syria, reacts after his rescue by MOAS (Migrant Offshore Aid Station) while attempting to reach the Greek island of Agathonisi, Dodecanese, southeastern Agean Sea Refugee crisis - in pictures Syrian migrants holding life vests gather onto a pebble beach in the Yesil liman district of Canakkale, northwestern Turkey, after being stopped by Turkish police in their attempt to reach the Greek island of Lesbos on 29 January 2016. Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees flash the 'V for victory' sign during a demonstration as they block the Greek-Macedonian border Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants have been braving sub zero temperatures as they cross the border from Macedonia into Serbia. Refugee crisis - in pictures A sinking boat is seen behind a Turkish gendarme off the coast of Canakkale's Bademli district on January 30, 2016. At least 33 migrants drowned on January 30 when their boat sank in the Aegean Sea while trying to cross from Turkey to Greece. Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A general view of a shelter for migrants inside a hangar of the former Tempelhof airport in Berlin, Germany Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees protest behind a fence against restrictions limiting passage at the Greek-Macedonian border, near Gevgelija. Since last week, Macedonia has restricted passage to northern Europe to only Syrians, Iraqis and Afghans who are considered war refugees. All other nationalities are deemed economic migrants and told to turn back. Macedonia has finished building a fence on its frontier with Greece becoming the latest country in Europe to build a border barrier aimed at checking the flow of refugees Refugee crisis - in pictures A father and his child wait after being caught by Turkish gendarme on 27 January 2016 at Canakkale's Kucukkuyu district Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants make hand signals as they arrive into the southern Spanish port of Malaga on 27 January, 2016 after an inflatable boat carrying 55 Africans, seven of them women and six chidren, was rescued by the Spanish coast guard off the Spanish coast. Refugee crisis - in pictures A refugee holds two children as dozens arrive on an overcrowded boat on the Greek island of Lesbos Refugee crisis - in pictures A child, covered by emergency blankets, reacts as she arrives, with other refugees and migrants, on the Greek island of Lesbos, At least five migrants including three children, died after four boats sank between Turkey and Greece, as rescue workers searched the sea for dozens more, the Greek coastguard said Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants wait under outside the Moria registration camp on the Lesbos. Over 400,000 people have landed on Greek islands from neighbouring Turkey since the beginning of the year Refugee crisis - in pictures The bodies of Christian refugees are buried separately from Muslim refugees at the Agios Panteleimonas cemetery in Mytilene, Lesbos Refugee crisis - in pictures Macedonian police officers control a crowd of refugees as they prepare to enter a camp after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A refugee tries to force the entry to a camp as Macedonian police officers control a crowd after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees are seen aboard a Turkish fishing boat as they arrive on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing a part of the Aegean Sea from the Turkish coast to Lesbos Reuters Refugee crisis - in pictures An elderly woman sings a lullaby to baby on a beach after arriving with other refugees on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A man collapses as refugees make land from an overloaded rubber dinghy after crossing the Aegean see from Turkey, at the island of Lesbos EPA Refugee crisis - in pictures A girl reacts as refugees arrive by boat on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees make a show of hands as they queue after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures People help a wheelchair user board a train with others, heading towards Serbia, at the transit camp for refugees near the southern Macedonian town of Gevgelija AP Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees board a train, after crossing the Greek-Macedonian border, near Gevgelija. Macedonia is a key transit country in the Balkans migration route into the EU, with thousands of asylum seekers - many of them from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia - entering the country every day Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures An aerial picture shows the "New Jungle" refugee camp where some 3,500 people live while they attempt to enter Britain, near the port of Calais, northern France Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A Syrian girl reacts as she helped by a volunteer upon her arrival from Turkey on the Greek island of Lesbos, after having crossed the Aegean Sea EPA Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees arrive by boat on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Beds ready for use for migrants and refugees are prepared at a processing center on January 27, 2016 in Passau, Germany. The flow of migrants arriving in Passau has dropped to between 500 and 1,000 per day, down significantly from last November, when in the same region up to 6,000 migrants were arriving daily. Russia, it says, has given just 1 per cent of its fair share of money, while oil-rich Saudi Arabia has given less than 30 per cent. Heidi Allen, a Conservative MP who visited the European frontline of the refugee crisis on Lesbos, told the Independent she would pressure the Government to take in more unaccompanied children who have arrived in Greece and Italy. Aerial footage shows Jordan's refugee camps But she said it was entirely wrong to separate the two issues of financial and asylum contributions. I am immensely proud we have provided more than any other country apart from the US, she said. But if all you do is take, take, take people out of the region then they will never be able to rebuild their country when all this is over. 'This won't stop on the shores of Lebanon' Source: UNHCR. The UN says more than 800,000 Syrians have been registered arriving in Europe since the conflict began - most in Germany, Serbia/Kosovo and Sweden. That's still only around 10% of the numbers in Syria's neighbouring countries Regardless of how much money is raised in London this week, huge numbers of people will continue to flee Syria as the conflict continues and overflow from the region into Europe and elsewhere. Speaking this morning on the BBCs Today programme, Lebanese education minister Elias Bou Saab warned that his country was struggling to cope with two million refugees. This is something that requires urgent help from the world, urgent attention, otherwise we will not see the end of that and it definitely won't stop at the shores of Lebanon, he said. The UNHCR says 4.59 million people have been registered as refugees fleeing Syria, of whom 2.5 million are in Turkey. Jan Egeland, Secretary General of the Norwegian Refugee Council, said: Only an end to the fighting and a negotiated political solution will stop the suffering of ordinary Syrians, which is why it's important that international governments push for agreements in the Geneva Syrian peace talks. But in the meantime, it is imperative that we invest in hope, education and livelihoods for the civilian population and pave the way for a more stable future. Oxfam's Mr Goldring said: "The world is failing the people of Syria. Five years on since the start of the crisis the violence and suffering continues to escalate but the level of funding and support fails to match. Countries must do more to help in Syria, in the region and in resettling the most vulnerable." Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The police force responsible for guarding the UKs nuclear weapons bases and other key military facilities is so overstretched that current staffing levels are not sustainable without risking security, according to an official report. The Ministry of Defence Police (MDP), whose 2,700 officers play a crucial role in protecting the UKs defence infrastructure at more than 120 military sites around the UK, is reliant on officers working excessive overtime to maintain security, it warned. Despite a recruitment drive which began three years ago, the forces headcount only increased by five officers in 2014/15 due to retirements and other departures. As a result, huge amounts of overtime were required to maintain security levels, said the report by the MoD Police Committee, which oversees the force. Figures released last month showed that between 2014 and 2015 the number of unauthorised entries to the UKs military bases almost doubled, rising from 24 incidents to 44. The MoD recorded 1,611 other security breaches in 2015, an increase of around 50 per cent, while the number of thefts or losses of classified material also increased year on year. Last night Labour said the rise in the number of security breaches coincided with the period covered in the report. It warned that morale among MDP officers was extremely low at some military sites and that overwork may have an impact on security. The report added that there could be no absolute assurance that incidents such as the one at the Atomic Weapons Establishment nuclear facility in Berkshire where in 2013 seven people resigned amid allegations of officers sleeping on duty and failing to complete routine patrols would not happen again. David Riddle, the chair of the MoD Police Committee, said the forces results in 2014/15 had been acceptable, but added: This level of performance effect is only achieved with huge amounts of overtime working this is not sustainable without risks to employees and security. Which countries have nuclear weapons? Show all 14 1 /14 Which countries have nuclear weapons? Which countries have nuclear weapons? USA Have nuclear weapons Getty Which countries have nuclear weapons? Russia Have nuclear weapons Getty Which countries have nuclear weapons? UK Have nuclear weapons Getty Which countries have nuclear weapons? France Have nuclear weapons Getty Which countries have nuclear weapons? China Have nuclear weapons Getty Which countries have nuclear weapons? India Say they have nuclear weapons Getty Which countries have nuclear weapons? Pakistan Say they have nuclear weapons Getty Which countries have nuclear weapons? North Korea Say they have nuclear weapons EPA/Rodong Sinmun Which countries have nuclear weapons? Israel Believed to have nuclear weapons Getty Which countries have nuclear weapons? Belgium Nations hosting nuclear weapons Getty Which countries have nuclear weapons? Germany Nations hosting nuclear weapons Getty Which countries have nuclear weapons? Italy Nations hosting nuclear weapons Getty Which countries have nuclear weapons? Netherlands Nations hosting nuclear weapons Getty Which countries have nuclear weapons? Turkey Nations hosting nuclear weapons Getty A year ago MDP officers began patrolling the headquarters of GCHQ, the Governments spy agency in Cheltenham. Mr Riddle warned that the new posting had added extra demand on an already overstretched organisation, and said more recruits were urgently needed for deployment in Portsmouth, where the Royal Navys new aircraft carriers are to arrive this year. An MoD spokesperson said: The MDP force is currently around 95 per cent manned and has recruited 450 officers in the past two years, with plans in place to recruit a further 200 in the next financial year. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A former Israeli ambassador to the United Kingdom allegedly returned home after being warned on multiple occasions regarding security breaches at his official residence in London. The security breaches, according to reports in the Guardian, related to late night visits by individuals to Daniel Taubs London address. The newspaper adds that Israeli authorities had raised the issue repeatedly and Mr Taub returned to Israel after the visits continued. Mr Taub was Israels ambassador to the UK between 2011 and 2015 before he returned to Jerusalem. Originally born in London, he renounced his UK passport when he emigrated to Israel three decades ago. His replacement, Mark Regrev, is set to arrive in the capital in next month. According to the Jewish Chronicle, Israeli media referred to the former ambassador as a senior diplomat serving in Europe after his name circulated on the internet. Referring to claims made online, the Israeli ministry of foreign affairs said it expressed its disgust at the publication of untruthful allegations regarding one of the finest members of its foreign service. Israel: From independence to intifada Show all 7 1 /7 Israel: From independence to intifada Israel: From independence to intifada 26973.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26974.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26975.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26976.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26977.bin Israel: From independence to intifada 26985.bin Robert Capa/Magnum Israel: From independence to intifada 26986.bin Robert Capa/Magnum The ministry emphasises that following a thorough investigation by the inspector general of the ministry, it was determined that there had been no criminal or disciplinary wrongdoing and that the issue related to a breach of security protocol. The issue has been addressed and concluded. Speaking as he left his posting as Israels ambassador to the UK in 2015, Mr Taub said in a statement it had been an extraordinary privilege to represent Israel in the UK. He added: We will head back to Israel confident that these relations, like the wonderful warm friendships we have enjoyed here, will not end when we leave but will last and thrive for many years to come. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Lord Bramall has criticised the Metropolitan Police for forcing him to clear his name over historical claims of sexual abuse. The former chief of the armed forces said the investigation failed to properly verify claims that he was part of a high-profile paedophile ring. Allegations against the 92-year-old D-Day landings veteran were dropped by the Met after a nine-month inquiry that saw him publicly named as a suspect. Lord Bramall, however, was never arrested and has denied all the allegations since he was interviewed under caution in April 2015 as part of Operation Midland the police investigation into historical child abuse allegations. It launched the probe after hearing claims made by a male accuser referred to as "Nick". Speaking to the BBC Lord Bramall said: "I just don't see how them or any policeman could have believed one word of it without corroboration, which he didn't bother to get. It was I who had to prove that I couldn't have done it." Shortly after police cleared the army veteran of any wrong-doing in January, he said to the Times: I think its a terrible thing for someone of my age, with an impeccable record of public service... Only now, very grudgingly, do they say they dont propose to take any action. To have these awful, entirely untrue allegations hanging over ones head, without the police saying there is not a grain of truth in them, is really awful. He added: When [the claims] came out they were so bizarre, grotesque and absurd. I knew there was not one grain of truth in them. I was mystified the police could believe them. In a statement released in January, the Metropolitan police said there was insufficient evidence to bring a prosecution against the highly decorated soldier and former chief of the defence staff. Scotland Yard has faced calls to issue a full apology to Lord Bramall and his family. Additional reporting by PA Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Britain has some of the highest rates of private funding for political parties in Europe, according to an international study which highlights the risk of "policy capture" by powerful donors. The report found that 65 per cent of political party funding in the UK comes from private sources the joint highest of 16 European countries analysed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Britain is also one of only 10 out of 25 wealthy countries with no limit on the size of donations to both political parties and political candidates in elections. The OECD report said that, across the world, increasing concentration of wealth in fewer hands posed a significant threat to political and economic systems warning that, without proper regulation, could allow special interests to exercise undue influence and capture the policy process. Yesterday Conservative MP and chair of the Treasury Committee Andrew Tyrie said that Britain needed a cap on the amounts that could be donated to political parties. Mr Tyrie told BBC Radio 4s World at One programme that there was a risk of both rich donors and unions attempting to use donations to "buy access, influence and honours". "It leaves a stench in the nostrils of the electorate," he said. "There should be a cap on the amount that can be donated." The Electoral Reform Society said OECDs report was a sign of a party funding system that was "completely out of step with most advanced democracies". Katie Ghose, the organisations chief executive, said: "With no cap on donations to parties and no significant public funding, there is a real risk, as this report suggests, of 'policy capture' by big organisations and rich donors." Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Leading figures from Britains main opposition parties are joining forces to secure reform of the voting system by 2021 and will discuss strategy at a conference next week. Pro-reform delegates will gather in the capital on Monday and discuss how to build a broad alliance to achieve proportional representation straight after the next election. The meeting will be attended by Natalie Bennett, the leader of the Green Party; Hywel Williams, the Westminster leader of Plaid Cymru; and Diane James, Ukips Home Affairs spokesperson. Reform-minded Labour MPs including Chuka Umunna, Jonathan Reynolds, and Stephen Kinnock will also attend, as will representatives of the SNP, Liberal Democrats, and grassroots Conservatives. The conference, organized by the Make Votes Matter coalition, will discuss the best way to bring about proportional representation for elections to Westminster. Electoral reform has been off the agenda since the 2011 defeat of the Alternative Vote referendum, but a recent survey by pollsters BMG found support for change practically as high as ever. There has been a flurry of activity from reformers in recent weeks. On Sunday the leaders of the SNP, Green Party and Welsh nationalists called for a pact with Labour and the Lib Dems to achieve electoral reform after the next election. Labour has yet to respond in full to their overtures. The SNP, Lib Dems, Greens, Plaid Cymru and Ukip now all support proportional representation, while Labours position on the subject is also potentially up for review under Jeremy Corbyns leadership. During the Labour leadership contest Mr Corbyn said he was open-minded about voting reform and suggested the system used in Scotland might be extended to Westminster. Some Labour MPs are strongly against electoral reform, however and a change in policy is far from certain. UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA UK news in pictures 27 September 2022 David White, Garter King of Arms, poses with an envelope franked with the new cypher of King Charles III 'CIIIR', after it was printed in the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 26 September 2022 A gallery staff member poses next to a painting by Lucian Freud - Self-portrait (Fragment), 1956 - on show at a photocall for the Credit Suisse exhibition - Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery in London PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2022 Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg in Liverpool before the start of the Labour Party annual Conference which he opened with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II and sang the national anthem PA UK news in pictures 24 September 2022 Handout photo issued by Buckingham Palace of the ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2022 A climate change activist protests against UK private jets while lighting his right arm on fire during the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 Arena in London EPA UK news in pictures 22 September 2022 Woody Woodmansey, Lee Bennett, Kevin Armstrong, Nick Moran and Clifford Slapper attend the unveiling of a stone for David Bowie on the Music Walk of Fame at Camden, north London PA UK news in pictures 21 September 2022 A flock of birds in the sky as the sun rises over Dungeness in Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2022 Flowers which were laid by members of the public in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland are collected by the Hillsborough Gardening Team and volunteers to be replanted for those that can be saved or composted PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2022 The ceremonial procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the long walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the committal service at St Georges Chapel AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 18 September 2022 A man stands among campers on The Mall ahead of the Queens funeral Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers Nathan Collins fouls Manchester Citys Jack Grealish leading to a red card. City went on to win the match at Molineux Stadium three goals to nil. Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 16 September 2022 Members of the public stand in the queue near Tower Bridge, and opposite the Tower of London, as they wait in line to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 15 September 2022 Members of the public in the queue on in Potters Fields Park, central London, as they wait to view Queen Elizabeth II lying in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 14 September 2022 The first members of the public pay their respects as the vigil begins around the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2022 Crowds cheer as King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort arrive for a visit to Hillsborough Castle Getty UK news in pictures 12 September 2022 Crowds line the Royal Mile, Edinburgh, as King Charles III joins a procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles Cathedral following the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II Katielee Arrowsmith/SWNS UK news in pictures 11 September 2022 Members of the Public pay their respects as the hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard of Scotland, is driven through Ballater AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 10 September 2022 Britain's Prince William, Prince of Wales, Britain's Catherine, Princess of Wales, Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Britain's Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, wave at well-wishers on the Long walk at Windsor Castle AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 9 September 2022 King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort wave after viewing floral tributes to the late Queen Elizabeth II outside Buckingham Palace Getty UK news in pictures 8 September 2022 A screen commemorating Britain's Queen Elizabeth II in Piccadilly Circus, London Britain EPA UK news in pictures 7 September 2022 Police officers stand guard after Animal Rebellion activists threw paint on the walls and road outside the Houses of Parliament in protest, in London, Britain Reuters UK news in pictures 6 September 2022 Queen Elizabeth II welcomes Liz Truss during an audience at Balmoral, Scotland, where she invited the newly elected leader of the Conservative party to become Prime Minister and form a new government PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2022 Visitors at the PoliNations garden in Victoria Square, Birmingham, which is made up of five 40ft high tree installations and over 6,000 plants. The PoliNations programme aims to explore how migration and cross-pollination have shaped the UKs gardens and culture PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2022 Undergraduates at the University of St Andrews take part in the traditional Pier Walk along the harbour walls of St Andrews before the start of the new academic year PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2022 The Massed Pipes and Drums parade during the Braemar Highland Gathering at the Princess Royal and Duke of Fife Memorial Park PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2022 Number 12 Company Irish Guards at Wellington Barracks, central London, before commencing their first Guard Mount at Buckingham Palace PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2022 A salmon leaps up the weir at Hexham in Northumberland, despite the drought warnings and low water levels, the River Tyne is still flowing well allowing the salmon and sea trout to head up river to spawn. Every year tens of thousands of salmon make the once-in-a-lifetime journey along the Tyne to spawn, having been out a sea PA A spokesperson for Make Votes Matter said it was important for parties to work together to achieve reform and outline the problems with the current electoral system. Last Mays General Election was the most disproportionate election ever in the UK. Votes per MP elected varied dramatically from party to party, ranging from just over 23,000 votes to almost 4 million, and when 74 per cent of votes dont contribute towards electing an MP, we cannot say we have real democracy, he said. To secure a proportional voting system, all the pro-PR parties and organisations need to find the best way forward together, so we excited to be creating a space to start the conversation. The PR Alliance Building Conference is a historic opportunity to work collaboratively towards creating and implementing an effective strategy to get PR for Westminster by 2021. Katie Ghose, chief executive of the Electoral Reform Society, will also attend the conference. Last year saw over half a million people and five political parties come together to sign and deliver petitions calling for a fair voting system, so this conference is a very welcome next step in the push for a truly democratic voting system, she said. Here in the UK, public support for PR is at an all-time high, with three quarters of the public in favour. Its great to see citizens and leading political figures coming together to work out how best to secure a fair voting system. Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Increasing the amount of aid given to Syrian refugee camps will reduce the number of refugees from the region travelling to Europe, David Cameron has said. The Prime Minister is hosting an aid summit in London today with leaders and diplomats from 70 countries to help raise billion in aid for the war-torn country. Britain is set to double its own contribution of aid to 2.3 billion, ministers say. Mr Cameron said the aid would be well-spent and have an impact on Europes refugee crisis. Using fundraising to build stability, create jobs and provide education can have a transformational effect in the region and create a future model for humanitarian relief, he said. We can provide the sense of hope needed to stop people thinking they have no option but to risk their lives on a dangerous journey to Europe. Around 4.6 million Syrians have been displaced from their homes and are living in neighboring countries but aid from the developed world has been far from free-flowing. A summit held last year in Kuwait raised only half of its intended target, leading to cuts to food aid for refugees in neighbouring countries. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also warned on Wednesday that fewer than five per cent of Syrians living in some conflict areas subject to sieges had been given food aid. David Cameron is hoping to raise aid contributions from other countries (Getty Images) International Development Secretary Justine Greening told BBC News that failing to provide the aid had knock-on consequences for the West. If we look at what all of this means for us in Britain and, of course, more broadly in Europe, weve seen over the past summer the consequences of not providing the kind of support these people desperately need in their own home region, she said. So to those people who say hang on, whats our response to the refugees flowing to Europe?, well, our response has to be, actually, to meet their first choice which is to provide better support, more opportunity, more hope for them and their children in the region thats fundamentally their home. Refugee crisis - in pictures Show all 27 1 /27 Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugee crisis - in pictures A child looks through the fence at the Moria detention camp for migrants and refugees at the island of Lesbos on May 24, 2016. AFP/Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Ahmad Zarour, 32, from Syria, reacts after his rescue by MOAS (Migrant Offshore Aid Station) while attempting to reach the Greek island of Agathonisi, Dodecanese, southeastern Agean Sea Refugee crisis - in pictures Syrian migrants holding life vests gather onto a pebble beach in the Yesil liman district of Canakkale, northwestern Turkey, after being stopped by Turkish police in their attempt to reach the Greek island of Lesbos on 29 January 2016. Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees flash the 'V for victory' sign during a demonstration as they block the Greek-Macedonian border Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants have been braving sub zero temperatures as they cross the border from Macedonia into Serbia. Refugee crisis - in pictures A sinking boat is seen behind a Turkish gendarme off the coast of Canakkale's Bademli district on January 30, 2016. At least 33 migrants drowned on January 30 when their boat sank in the Aegean Sea while trying to cross from Turkey to Greece. Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A general view of a shelter for migrants inside a hangar of the former Tempelhof airport in Berlin, Germany Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees protest behind a fence against restrictions limiting passage at the Greek-Macedonian border, near Gevgelija. Since last week, Macedonia has restricted passage to northern Europe to only Syrians, Iraqis and Afghans who are considered war refugees. All other nationalities are deemed economic migrants and told to turn back. Macedonia has finished building a fence on its frontier with Greece becoming the latest country in Europe to build a border barrier aimed at checking the flow of refugees Refugee crisis - in pictures A father and his child wait after being caught by Turkish gendarme on 27 January 2016 at Canakkale's Kucukkuyu district Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants make hand signals as they arrive into the southern Spanish port of Malaga on 27 January, 2016 after an inflatable boat carrying 55 Africans, seven of them women and six chidren, was rescued by the Spanish coast guard off the Spanish coast. Refugee crisis - in pictures A refugee holds two children as dozens arrive on an overcrowded boat on the Greek island of Lesbos Refugee crisis - in pictures A child, covered by emergency blankets, reacts as she arrives, with other refugees and migrants, on the Greek island of Lesbos, At least five migrants including three children, died after four boats sank between Turkey and Greece, as rescue workers searched the sea for dozens more, the Greek coastguard said Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants wait under outside the Moria registration camp on the Lesbos. Over 400,000 people have landed on Greek islands from neighbouring Turkey since the beginning of the year Refugee crisis - in pictures The bodies of Christian refugees are buried separately from Muslim refugees at the Agios Panteleimonas cemetery in Mytilene, Lesbos Refugee crisis - in pictures Macedonian police officers control a crowd of refugees as they prepare to enter a camp after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A refugee tries to force the entry to a camp as Macedonian police officers control a crowd after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees are seen aboard a Turkish fishing boat as they arrive on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing a part of the Aegean Sea from the Turkish coast to Lesbos Reuters Refugee crisis - in pictures An elderly woman sings a lullaby to baby on a beach after arriving with other refugees on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A man collapses as refugees make land from an overloaded rubber dinghy after crossing the Aegean see from Turkey, at the island of Lesbos EPA Refugee crisis - in pictures A girl reacts as refugees arrive by boat on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees make a show of hands as they queue after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures People help a wheelchair user board a train with others, heading towards Serbia, at the transit camp for refugees near the southern Macedonian town of Gevgelija AP Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees board a train, after crossing the Greek-Macedonian border, near Gevgelija. Macedonia is a key transit country in the Balkans migration route into the EU, with thousands of asylum seekers - many of them from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia - entering the country every day Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures An aerial picture shows the "New Jungle" refugee camp where some 3,500 people live while they attempt to enter Britain, near the port of Calais, northern France Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A Syrian girl reacts as she helped by a volunteer upon her arrival from Turkey on the Greek island of Lesbos, after having crossed the Aegean Sea EPA Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees arrive by boat on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Beds ready for use for migrants and refugees are prepared at a processing center on January 27, 2016 in Passau, Germany. The flow of migrants arriving in Passau has dropped to between 500 and 1,000 per day, down significantly from last November, when in the same region up to 6,000 migrants were arriving daily. She also confirmed the extra Syrian aid spend would count towards the UKs commitment to spend 0.7 per cent of its GDP on aid meaning the money had already been earmarked. The vast majority of refugees from Syria are in countries adjacent to the conflict zone but overcrowding means many are making the journey to Europe. The UK has refused to take Syrian refugees who arrive in Europe under their own steam, however. Despite UK aid for refugee camps near Syria, Mr Cameron has so far declined to visit the one on Britains doorstep in Calais. No refugees are being admitted from that area. Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has however called for the Home Office to be reasonable about the situation and consider admitting people with connections to the UK. The small British programme to take 4,000 refugees a year has instead drawn its targets directly from camps adjacent to the conflict zone. Ministers have previously voiced fears that assisting refugees who make the journey to Europe would encourage more to travel. Other European countries have been significantly more generous in accepting people who have arrived on their shores, however. Germany expects to take a million refugees this year. In contrast to its record with accepting refugees, the UK is one of the biggest donors of aid to the Syrian conflict region. Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Norways prime minister has warned Britain against leaving the EU arguing that the Nordic countrys relationship with Europe would not work for the UK. Erna Solberg said that Norways own arrangement membership of the European Free Trade Area but not the EU itself would not work for Britain. A Downing Street read-out of a meeting between David Cameron and Ms Solberg said she also supported moves to cut regulation within the trade bloc. Recommended Read more France refuses further negotiations on EU deal [Mr Cameron and Ms Solberg] discussed the prime ministers work to win a renegotiated package for the UK in the European Union, the spokesperson said. Prime Minister Solberg said she supported the Prime Ministers work to build a more flexible EU and to cut red tape. She also agreed with the prime minister that Norways position in the European Free Trade Area but outside the EU would not work for the UK. Norway has never been a member of the European Union. In 1972 it voted against joining by 53.5 per cent at a referendum. It again voted against joining in 1994 by 52.2 per cent. Proponents of the so-called "Norway option" say Norway gets access to the European single market, is not a part of the EU's political union, and pays a lower contribution to the EU than it would if it was a member. Critics say Norway has to effectively implement all EU rules, has no say in how they are made, and still contributes a significant amount of money to the EU budget. Ms Solberg is the leader of Hyre, the Norwegian conservative party. Hyre is traditionally the most pro-European of all Norways political parties and advocates the country join the bloc in the long term. The nordic leader is in London for a Syria aid conference hosted by Britain. The Leave.EU campaign said there were many advantages to being in the European free trade area. What has the EU ever done for us? Show all 7 1 /7 What has the EU ever done for us? What has the EU ever done for us? 1. It gives you freedom to live, work and retire anywhere in Europe As a member of the EU, UK citizens benefit from freedom of movement across the continent. Considered one of the so-called four pillars of the European Union, this freedom allows all EU citizens to live, work and travel in other member states. What has the EU ever done for us? 2. It sustains millions of jobs A report by the Centre for Economics and Business Research, released in October 2015, suggested 3.1 million British jobs were linked to the UKs exports to the EU. What has the EU ever done for us? 3. Your holiday is much easier - and safer Freedom to travel is one of the most exercised benefits of EU membership, with Britons having made 31 million visits to the EU in 2014 alone. But a lot of the benefits of being an EU citizen are either taken for granted or go unnoticed. What has the EU ever done for us? 4. It means you're less likely to get ripped off Consumer protection is a key benefit of the EUs single market, and ensures members of the British public receive equal consumer rights when shopping anywhere in Europe. What has the EU ever done for us? 5. It offers greater protection from terrorists, paedophiles, people traffickers and cyber-crime Another example of a lesser-known advantage of EU membership is the benefit of cross-country coordination and cooperation in the fight against crime. What has the EU ever done for us? 6. Our businesses depend on it According to 71% of all members of the Confederation of British Influence (CBI), and 67 per cent of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the EU has had an overall positive impact on their business. What has the EU ever done for us? 7. We have greater influence Robin Niblett, Director of think-tank Chatham House, stated in a report published last year: For a mid-sized country like the UK, which will never again be economically dominant either globally or regionally, and whose diplomatic and military resources are declining in relative terms, being a major player in a strong regional institution can offer a critical lever for international influence. There is an enormous network of discussion and consultation even within EFTA/EEA, on a global and regional level, long before these rules ever get near a statute book. The UK would be an active part of this network, along with over 190 international bodies, a spokesperson for the campaign said. EEA/EFTA representatives participate in over 500 committees and expert groups involved in what is known as decision shaping at single market level. Above EU level, EEA/EFTA representatives have their own seats on many global bodies which we cannot as EU member states. Mr Cameron is today meeting with European Council president Donald Tusk. The pair will discuss what progress has been made convincing other EU leaders of a reform package offered to Mr Cameron by Mr Tusk. This morning it was reported that French President Francois Hollande said the package was a good compromise but that Britain should expect no more concessions. The Conservative manifesto pledged to hold an EU referendum before the end of 2017 though one is now expected to be held as early as this June. The vote will follow a renegotiation of Britains membership of the EU, Mr Cameron said. Eurosceptics have ridiculed Mr Camerons draft deal so far, with some of his own MPs branding it thin gruel and the eurosceptic press describing it as a joke. Sign up to the Inside Politics email for your free daily briefing on the biggest stories in UK politics Get our free Inside Politics email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Politics email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The package of EU reforms offered to David Cameron is non-negotiable and Britain will be offered no further concessions, the French President has said. Francois Hollande warned that there would be no new adjustments or new negotiations to the draft package of measures, which include curbs on migrant benefits and red tape. The warning comes as Mr Cameron meets with Mr Tusk again this morning in London to discuss efforts to get other EU leaders to sign up to the deal a process which is still far from certain. Despite Mr Hollandes refusal to consider further changes, he was positive about the current package, referring to it as a compromise. We want the United Kingdom to remain in the European Union, Mr Hollande told reporters, according to the AFP news agency. The compromise that has been found will likely allow us to find solutions to problems that until now seemed difficult to resolve. But at the European Council there can be no new adjustments or new negotiations. "We have reached a point that should give Britons the reassurances needed while respecting European principles. Mr Hollande made the comments at a press conference after a meeting with Polish prime minister Beata Szydlo, whose support for the reform plan is far from certain. UK news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 UK news in pictures UK news in pictures 20 October 2022 Britains Prime Minister Liz Truss delivers a speech outside of 10 Downing Street in central London to announce her resignation AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 19 October 2022 Salmon leap up Stainforth Force on the River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales as they swim upriver to their spawning grounds during the annual Salmon migration PA UK news in pictures 18 October 2022 Just Stop Oil protesters continue their protest for a second day on the Queen Elizabeth II Bridge, which links Kent and Essex and which remains closed for traffic, after it was scaled by two climbers from the group PA UK news in pictures 17 October 2022 Hundreds of students take part in the traditional Raisin Monday foam fight on St Salvator's Lower College Lawn at the University of St Andrews in Fife PA UK news in pictures 16 October 2022 A protester holds a placard during a march into central London at a demonstration by the climate change protest group Extinction Rebellion AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 15 October 2022 A member of the public drags an activist who is blocking the road during a "Just Stop Oil" protest, in London, Britain REUTERS UK news in pictures 14 October 2022 Germanys Womens double skulls during day one of the World Rowing Beach Sprint Finals at Saundersfoot beach, Pembrokeshire PA UK news in pictures 13 October 2022 Family and mourners arrive at St Michael's Church, in Creeslough, for the funeral mass of 49-year-old mother of four Martina Martin, who died following an explosion at the Applegreen service station in the village of Creeslough in Co Donegal on Friday PA UK news in pictures 12 October 2022 Motorists in Coventry pass trees showing autumnal colour PA UK news in pictures 11 October 2022 A woman and her dog in the the North Sea at Tynemouth Longsands beach before sunrise PA UK news in pictures 10 October 2022 Police officers remove a campaigner from a Just Stop Oil protest on The Mall, near Buckingham Palace, London PA UK news in pictures 9 October 2022 A drummer plays during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, London PA UK news in pictures 8 October 2022 Timothee Chalamet attending the UK premiere of Bones and All during the BFI London Film Festival 2022 at the Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London PA UK news in pictures 7 October 2022 Two young male fallow deer lock antlers in Dublins Phoenix park as rutting season begins PA UK news in pictures 6 October 2022 The Princess of Wales during a cocktail making competition during a visit to Trademarket, a new outdoor street-food and retail market situated in Belfast city centre, as part of the royal visit to Northern Ireland PA UK news in pictures 5 October 2022 Greenpeace protesters interrupt Prime Minister Liz Truss as she delivers her keynote speech to the Conservative Party annual conference PA UK news in pictures 4 October 2022 Prime Minister Liz Truss and Britains Chancellor of the Exchequer Kwasi Kwarteng wearing hard hats and hi-vis jackets, visit a construction site for a medical innovation campus in Birmingham AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 3 October 2022 British artist Sam Cox, aka Mr Doodle, reveals the Doodle House, a twelve-room mansion at Tenterden, in Kent, which has been covered, inside and out in the artist's trademark monochrome, cartoonish hand-drawn doodles PA UK news in pictures 2 October 2022 Erling Haaland celebrates after scoring Manchester City's second goal against Manchester United at Etihad Stadium. Haaland went on to score a hattrick, his third of the season in the Premier League. City beat United 6-3. Manchester City FC/Getty UK news in pictures 1 October 2022 Protesters hold up flags and placards at a protest in London. A variety of protest groups including Enough is Enough, Don't Pay and Just Stop Oil all demonstrated on the day AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 30 September 2022 British Prime Minister Liz Truss, who has not been seen in days, leaves the back of Downing Street after a meeting with Office For Budget Responsibility following the release of her governments mini-budget Getty UK news in pictures 29 September 2022 The Virginia creeper foliage on the Tu Hwnt i'r Bont (Beyond the Bridge) Llanwrst, Conwy North Wales, has changed colour from green to red in at the start of Autumn. The building was built in 1480 as a residential dwelling but has been a tearoom for over 50 years PA UK news in pictures 28 September 2022 Criminal barristers from the Criminal Bar Association (CBA), demonstrates outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, as part of their ongoing pay row with the Government PA UK news in pictures 27 September 2022 David White, Garter King of Arms, poses with an envelope franked with the new cypher of King Charles III 'CIIIR', after it was printed in the Court Post Office at Buckingham Palace in central London AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 26 September 2022 A gallery staff member poses next to a painting by Lucian Freud - Self-portrait (Fragment), 1956 - on show at a photocall for the Credit Suisse exhibition - Lucian Freud: New Perspectives at the National Gallery in London PA UK news in pictures 25 September 2022 Labour leader, Sir Keir Starmer is interviewed by Laura Kuenssberg in Liverpool before the start of the Labour Party annual Conference which he opened with a tribute to Queen Elizabeth II and sang the national anthem PA UK news in pictures 24 September 2022 Handout photo issued by Buckingham Palace of the ledger stone at the King George VI Memorial Chapel, St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle PA UK news in pictures 23 September 2022 A climate change activist protests against UK private jets while lighting his right arm on fire during the Laver Cup tennis tournament at the O2 Arena in London EPA UK news in pictures 22 September 2022 Woody Woodmansey, Lee Bennett, Kevin Armstrong, Nick Moran and Clifford Slapper attend the unveiling of a stone for David Bowie on the Music Walk of Fame at Camden, north London PA UK news in pictures 21 September 2022 A flock of birds in the sky as the sun rises over Dungeness in Kent PA UK news in pictures 20 September 2022 Flowers which were laid by members of the public in tribute to Queen Elizabeth II at Hillsborough Castle in Northern Ireland are collected by the Hillsborough Gardening Team and volunteers to be replanted for those that can be saved or composted PA UK news in pictures 19 September 2022 The ceremonial procession of the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II travels down the long walk as it arrives at Windsor Castle for the committal service at St Georges Chapel AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 18 September 2022 A man stands among campers on The Mall ahead of the Queens funeral Reuters UK news in pictures 17 September 2022 Wolverhampton Wanderers Nathan Collins fouls Manchester Citys Jack Grealish leading to a red card. City went on to win the match at Molineux Stadium three goals to nil. Action Images/Reuters UK news in pictures 16 September 2022 Members of the public stand in the queue near Tower Bridge, and opposite the Tower of London, as they wait in line to pay their respects to the late Queen Elizabeth II, in London AFP via Getty Images UK news in pictures 15 September 2022 Members of the public in the queue on in Potters Fields Park, central London, as they wait to view Queen Elizabeth II lying in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 14 September 2022 The first members of the public pay their respects as the vigil begins around the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II in Westminster Hall, London, where it will lie in state ahead of her funeral on Monday PA UK news in pictures 13 September 2022 Crowds cheer as King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort arrive for a visit to Hillsborough Castle Getty UK news in pictures 12 September 2022 Crowds line the Royal Mile, Edinburgh, as King Charles III joins a procession from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to St Giles Cathedral following the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II Katielee Arrowsmith/SWNS UK news in pictures 11 September 2022 Members of the Public pay their respects as the hearse carrying the coffin of Queen Elizabeth II, draped in the Royal Standard of Scotland, is driven through Ballater AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 10 September 2022 Britain's Prince William, Prince of Wales, Britain's Catherine, Princess of Wales, Britain's Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, Britain's Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, wave at well-wishers on the Long walk at Windsor Castle AFP/Getty UK news in pictures 9 September 2022 King Charles III and Camilla, Queen Consort wave after viewing floral tributes to the late Queen Elizabeth II outside Buckingham Palace Getty UK news in pictures 8 September 2022 A screen commemorating Britain's Queen Elizabeth II in Piccadilly Circus, London Britain EPA UK news in pictures 7 September 2022 Police officers stand guard after Animal Rebellion activists threw paint on the walls and road outside the Houses of Parliament in protest, in London, Britain Reuters UK news in pictures 6 September 2022 Queen Elizabeth II welcomes Liz Truss during an audience at Balmoral, Scotland, where she invited the newly elected leader of the Conservative party to become Prime Minister and form a new government PA UK news in pictures 5 September 2022 Visitors at the PoliNations garden in Victoria Square, Birmingham, which is made up of five 40ft high tree installations and over 6,000 plants. The PoliNations programme aims to explore how migration and cross-pollination have shaped the UKs gardens and culture PA UK news in pictures 4 September 2022 Undergraduates at the University of St Andrews take part in the traditional Pier Walk along the harbour walls of St Andrews before the start of the new academic year PA UK news in pictures 3 September 2022 The Massed Pipes and Drums parade during the Braemar Highland Gathering at the Princess Royal and Duke of Fife Memorial Park PA UK news in pictures 2 September 2022 Number 12 Company Irish Guards at Wellington Barracks, central London, before commencing their first Guard Mount at Buckingham Palace PA UK news in pictures 1 September 2022 A salmon leaps up the weir at Hexham in Northumberland, despite the drought warnings and low water levels, the River Tyne is still flowing well allowing the salmon and sea trout to head up river to spawn. Every year tens of thousands of salmon make the once-in-a-lifetime journey along the Tyne to spawn, having been out a sea PA Ms Szydlo had previously admitted to substantial political differences with Mr Camerons EU reform goals after holding late-night talks with him in December. Public opinion in many central and eastern European countries is strongly against restrictions on migration to Britain as many have substantial migrant populations in the UK. Politicians of all stripes in that region have stressed that any deal must not discriminate against their populations. Mr Cameron also faces opposition to the deal at home as well as abroad. Eurosceptic Tory MPs and newspapers have branded the deal thin gruel and a joke while a poll conducted by Sky News found other two thirds of the public believe it is bad for Britain. The PM pledged hand on heart earlier this week that he had achieved the renegotiation goals set out in his manifesto, but there are in fact substantial shortfalls notably on a failure to totally ban EU migrants from claiming in-work benefits for four years. The Conservatives have pledged to hold an EU referendum before the end of 2017 following the renegotiations, which were hoped to shore-up support for the UK remaining in Europe. That referendum now looks likely to be held as early as this June. News / Regional by Staff reporter MAGWEGWE MP Anele Ndebele (MDC-T) has claimed the Zanu-PF government hates people from Matabeleland, adding the State had a hand in influencing the South African government to deny residence permits to thousands of Zimbabwean immigrant workers across the Limpopo River.Ndebele made the remarks while contributing to debate on the Presidential speech in the National Assembly on Tuesday."I would like to illustrate the love lost between government and the people of Matabeleland. This government does not love the people of Matabeleland," he said."A whole minister of government was sent to South Africa to go and negotiate the illegal stay of our people in South Africa, and South Africa was made to flout their own laws of immigration."The Magwegwe legislator said, previously, South Africa would issue out residence permits to migrant workers who had worked there for five years, but after government sent former Home Affairs Minister Kembo Mohadi to negotiate, the permits were scrapped."Government sent a whole minister to negotiate and thereafter our people became squatters in South Africa. A number of people were not given permits," he said.Meanwhile, Ndebele said the University of Zimbabwe should introduce a financial literacy course for Cabinet ministers to acquaint them with economic issues."Our ministers do not understand the bolts and nuts of our economy. The Auditor General's reports are littered with people stealing from government under the nose of these ministers. They leave things to technocrats, who are permanent secretaries, who sit on boards that are milking our economy," he said before he was heckled by Zanu-PF legislators.Speaker of the House, Jacob Mudenda intervened and ordered the MPs to allow Ndebele finish his submissions."What Ndebele is saying is factual and you must read the AG's report and we, as Parliament, must analyse the AG's reports, which do not reflect good accountability systems in our ministries. Measures should be taken on those reports. We cannot sweep these matters under the carpet," Mudenda said. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Naked from the waist down, the mutilated body was found on the outskirts of Cairo, lying in a ditch beside the road that runs through the desert to Alexandria. Giulio Regeni, a 28-year-old Italian student in Egypt, had met a slow and agonising end. His body showed signs of torture, including stab wounds, bruising, a severed ear and cigarette burns. The student, from Fiumicello in the north-east of Italy, suffered a slow death, said the Cairo prosecutor Ahmed Nagi. Rome is demanding that its experts be allowed investigate the death of Mr Regeni, amid conflicting reports from Egyptian officials about the circumstances of his death and concerns about human rights abuses in the violence-torn nation. Mr Regeni was found in the ditch on Wednesday. He had been studying for an economics PhD when he went missing on 25 January, in what Italys foreign ministry has called mysterious circumstances. Giulio Regeni One of Mr Regenis Egyptian friends said that at the time of his death, he had been seeking contacts for trade union activists to interview as part of his PhD research. His body was discovered after an online campaign to find him was launched. Suspicions of a cover-up by security forces increased after local media quoted a police official, General Khaled Shalabi, as having excluded foul play. He was reported as saying: The first investigations suggest he was the victim of a car accident despite the prosecutors description of apparent torture and the fact that Mr Regeni was found naked from the waist down. Recommended Read more Egypt postpones trial of 739 murderers because cage too small The police account was also contradicted by the Egyptian ambassador to Rome, who promised full co-operation to identify those responsible for this criminal act. The Italian foreign ministrys director general, Michele Valensise, urgently summoned the Egyptian ambassador Amr Mostafa Kamal Helmy. And Italys Foreign Minister Paolo Gentiloni demanded that Italy be allowed to participate in the investigation. We firmly call on Egypt to allow the Italian authorities to collaborate in the investigation in Cairo into the death of our citizen, because we want the truth to come out, he said. We owe it to the family. Reports suggested that a team of Italian investigators was ready to fly to Cairo. The Italian Economic Development Minister Federica Guidi cut short her trade mission to Egypt, and is thought to have urged the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi to intervene in the case. The leading Egyptian human rights lawyer Mohamed Sobhy wrote on Facebook that a remarkable number of national security personnel had gathered at the Zeinhom morgue in Cairo and that he had not been allowed to see Mr Regenis body. Observers say that Egyptian authorities intensified their crackdown on dissent in the run-up to 25 January the fifth anniversary of the uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak fearing large-scale protests. A friend of Mr Regeni told Al-Ahram newspaper that he had received several requests from the student for names of workers rights activists, but that Mr Regeni had promised he would not to seek to meet them on 25 January, given that political tensions would be running high. The friend also claimed Mr Regenis political research had been the main focus when he was questioned by the police following the Italians disappearance. Three days after he had gone missing, the Ahram news website reported that police had arrested dozens of Egyptians and foreign nationals as part of a security campaign in Giza against fugitives and violators. Human rights groups say Egyptians are often detained by police on little evidence and beaten or coerced. Many have disappeared since 2013. Egypt denies allegations of police brutality. Gianni Rufini, the head of Amnesty Internationals Italian division, expressed its solidarity with Mr Regenis family and demanded a rapid, thorough and independent investigation, adding torture was the norm in Egypt. Other local media sources suggested that Mr Regeni may have been the victim of a violent robbery, or a kidnapping gone wrong, or the target of jihadists intent on damaging Egypts efforts to attract tourism and foreign investment. One police source suggested that the killing might have been linked to unspecified events in Mr Regenis personal life. On the evening he disappeared, Mr Regeni reportedly left his flat in the smart el-Dokki area of Giza, part of Greater Cairo, at around 8pm to meet friends at a birthday party in the centre of Cairo. He never arrived. His body was found many miles from both locations, nine days later. A post-mortem examination report will be sent to prosecutors, sources told Ansa news agency. Orders have been given to question Mr Regenis friends as part of the investigation, the prosecution sources added. Mr Regeni spoke good Arabic, and had been in Cairo since October. His research focused on trade unions in Egypt after the 2011 uprising. His parents arrived in Cairo on Thursday and his mother released a very brief statement saying: My grief is felt by the whole of Fiumicello. A spokesman for Cambridge University, where the Italian had been studying at the Department of Politics and International Studies, said: We are deeply saddened to hear news of the death of Giulio Regeni. Our thoughts are with his family and friends. University officials including the Vice-Chancellor and the Mistress of Girton College have been in contact with Mr Regenis family. Ennio Scridel, mayor of Mr Regenis home town, said: Its as though one of our sons had died. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A University of Cambridge student has been found dead in a ditch in Cairo after being tortured and killed. Giulio Regeni, 28, disappeared in the Egyptian capital on 25 January, sparking desperate efforts by friends and family trying to trace him. His body was found nine days later by the side of the Cairo-Alexandria road on the outskirts of the city with multiple stab wounds and cigarette burns. Ahmed Nagi, a prosecutor leading the investigation into his murder, said the cause of death was still unconfirmed but that "all of his body, including his face" had bruises, cuts and burns from cigarettes indicating torture and a "slow death". Another person with knowledge of the case told the Associated Press that Mr Regenis body, which had been identified by his flatmate, was "partially burned". He had been studying for a PhD with the department of Politics and International Studies at Girton College, Cambridge, and was a visiting scholar at the American University in Cairo (AUC). We are deeply saddened to hear news of the death of Giulio Regeni, a spokesperson for Cambridge University said. Our thoughts are with his family and friends. Policemen guard in front of a morgue where the body of an Italian Giulio Regeni is kept in Cairo, Egypt, February 4, 2016. (Reuters) Italy's Foreign Ministry said it has urgently summoned the Egyptian ambassador over the death, seeking maximum cooperation in the investigation. A spokesperson said Italy has renewed its request to launch an immediate investigation including Italian experts, and to have Mr Regenis body returned as soon as possible. Alaa Azmi, the deputy head of criminal investigations in nearby Giza, confirmed bruises and cuts were found but initially claimed the injuries were the result of a road accident. "We have to wait for the full report by forensic experts. But what we know is that it is an accident," he said. In pictures: Cairo restaurant bomb Show all 7 1 /7 In pictures: Cairo restaurant bomb In pictures: Cairo restaurant bomb Members of the Egyptian security stand guard in the restaurant that was attacked near Cairo EPA In pictures: Cairo restaurant bomb Forensic investigators inspect the scene of a petrol bomb attack on a Cairo disco in the Agouza neighbourhood of the Egyptian capital's Giza district In pictures: Cairo restaurant bomb Members of the Egyptian security inspects the restaurant that was attacked near Cairo In pictures: Cairo restaurant bomb An Egyptian forensic member checks the entrance of a nightclub which was attacked in Cairo In pictures: Cairo restaurant bomb People and investigators gather at the scene of a petrol bomb attack on a Cairo disco in the Agouza neighbourhood of the Egyptian capital's Giza district In pictures: Cairo restaurant bomb Onlookers gather at the scene of a petrol bomb attack on a Cairo disco in the Agouza neighbourhood of the Egyptian capital's Giza district In pictures: Cairo restaurant bomb A forensic investigator inspects the entrance of a Cairo disco where a petrol bomb attack took place in the Agouza neighbourhood of the Egyptian capital's Giza district Mr Regenis disappearance came as police launched a crackdown on dissent and protests planned to mark the five-year anniversary of the January 25 Revolution, when Hosni Mubarak was toppled during the Arab Spring. Cairo was described as a war zone during clashes between pro-democracy protesters, police and the armed forces, before Mubarak stepped down and a military junta ruled until democratic elections saw the Muslim Brotherhood take power under President Mohamed Morsi. Mass protests broke out against his rule, following opposition from secularists and the military and former defence minister General Abdel Fattah El-Sisi led a coup detat that led to him being elected as President in 2014. He has since presided over an unprecedented crackdown on both Islamists and secular opposition, while an Isis insurgency in the Sinai Peninsula has been linked to suicide bombings and attacks in Cairo. Additional reporting by AP Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Florida Governor Rick Scott has declared a state of emergency in four counties where nine residents have been diagnosed with the Zika virus. Miami-Dade in south Florida, Hillsborough in Tampa Bay, Lee County in southwest Florida and Santa Rosa County in Florida Panhandle have all been affected under the executive order. However, health officials believe the residents became sick outside the United States. Although Floridas current nine Zika cases were travel-related, we have to ensure Florida is prepared and stays ahead of the spread of the Zika virus in our state, Governor Scott said in a statement on Wednesday. Our Department of Health will continue to be in constant communication with all county health offices, hospitals and the Federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). We know that we must be prepared for the worst even as we hope for the best. The virus is typically spread through mosquito bites but health officials found one case in Texas where the disease was transmitted through sexual intercourse. On Monday, the World Health Organization declared the outbreak a global health emergency. A coordinated international response is needed to improve surveillance, the detection of infections, congenital malformations, and neurological complications, to intensify the control of mosquito populations, and to expedite the development of diagnostic tests and vaccines to protect people at risk, especially during pregnancy, WHO director general Margaret Chan said in a statement after Monday's decision. She added that the committee found no public health justification to restrict travel or trade to prevent the spread of the Zika virus. At present, the most important protective measures are the control of mosquito populations and the prevention of mosquito bites in at-risk individuals, especially pregnant women. Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} An image of a murdered seven-month-old baby and his slain parents has become a stark reminder of the devastation caused by Mexicos desperate war against drugs. The picture, taken moments after the family were shot to death in the city of Pinotepa Nacional, shows the child in a white blood-stained baby-gro lying between his mother and father. Several armed men are believed to have shot and killed the family on Friday evening and the incident appears to be drug-related, according to CNN. The family has been identified as 24-year-old Juan Alberto Pano Ramos, who was carrying the infant, Marcos Miguel Pano Colon, in his arms at the time and Alba Isabel Colon, the childs 17-year-old mother. Seven-month-old Marcos Miguel Pano Colon was killed with his parents in a suspected drugs related shooting Facebook (Facebook) The image has sparked outrage among Mexicans with thousands of social media users calling for authorities to see the devastating picture as a reason for putting a complete stop to the country's prolific gang violence. Many have compared the Mexican baby to Aylan Kurdi, the three-year-old Syrian boy who was found dead on a Turkish beach after drowning in the Mediterranean sea, and who himself became a symbol of the on-going refugee crisis. One Facebook account says: Do you remember the Syrian boy? Do you remember how you came to be indignant and even put a little flag on Facebook? Well, this happened in Mexico, in Pinotepa National to be precise, where drug violence killed this family, including this 7-month-old angel. Some have posted pictures of the executed baby next to the drowned Syrian toddler. The author Octavio Martinez Michel has posted a drawing of the dead baby on top of a picture of the Mexican flag, in an opinion column for website La Silla Rota. (Twitter) Mr Michel said: Is it possible to imagine anything more unjust than the cold-blooded murder of a family carrying a baby in their arms? Prosecutors in Oaxaca told CNN: A rival drug gang from [the neighbouring state] of Guerrero located [the family] and had them riddled with bullets. They added the babys parents are understood to have sold drugs. According to reports, a suspected drugs trafficker was shot and killed in Oaxaca on the same day and authorities believe the dead couple worked for the alleged trafficker. Four people have been detained in connection with the traffickers killing. Formally launched in 2006, Mexicos drug war has continued with few signs the countrys drug cartels are waning in power. Between 2007 and 2014 more than 164,000 people in Mexico were victims of homicide, according to government data, Frontline reports. Data from the University of San Diego estimates over half of all homicides in the country are drug related. A study released this month found drug violence in Mexico is so fierce the life expectancy of men has dropped by several months. In the Mexican state of Chihuahua, male mortality rates between 2005 and 2010 were "3.1 times higher than the mortality rate of US troops in Iraq between March 2003 and November 2006." Sign up to our Evening Headlines email for your daily guide to the latest news Sign up to our free US Evening Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Evening Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Even though she is still healthy and lively, Mrs. Xie has already prepared the clothes she will be buried in. An 86-year-old Chinese woman who lives in Dongshan, a city on China's southeastern coast, Xie has an active life, cooking for friends at the local Buddhist temple and joining in the chants there. Yet she has already bought the pants, shirt, shoes, earrings and purse she will wear after she dies, as well as an embroidered yellow pillow for her head. She had a portrait taken that will be displayed at her funeral. And she wrapped the items neatly in a cardboard box to await her death. Recommended Read more Harvard psychiatrist says three things are secret to real happiness For many people in the West, picking out an outfit for your own funeral might seem sad or macabre. But Xie and her friends see it as a cause for reassurance, even celebration. In a video, Xie shows off her burial clothes to her friends and a visiting researcher, Becky Hsu, an assistant professor of sociology at Georgetown, makes the scene feel almost like a party. Xie's friends laugh as she shows off her outfit, congratulate her on getting a deal on her shoes, and scold her for paying too much for fancy earrings. Its a happy thing, another Chinese woman told Hsu about preparing burial clothes. Everybody does it. I've had mine for more than 10 years! The idea that getting ready for one's funeral can be a happy thing shows just how much ideas of happiness can differ from country to country. And it suggests that creating a definition of happiness that holds true for people around the world a central preoccupation of researchers who study well-being is not as straightforward as it seems. Wealthier countries tend to have higher standards of living, better health care and education, cleaner environments, and more support for families than poorer ones do. (Getty Images) Each year, packs of sociologists and survey workers descend on different countries to ask people about their happiness. Surveys such as Pews Ladder of Life, The World Values Survey and the United Nations' World Happiness Report measure and rank countries in terms of their well-being. One goal of these surveys is to figure out what ingredients make a happy society. Critics say the measure that most countries use to track progress gross domestic product excludes some of the most important parts of human life. GDP doesn't distinguish, for example, between $10 million earned cutting down a rainforest and $10 million earned delivering a new cancer drug. But by paying attention to wellness and happiness, researchers can help guide local and national governments in making policy and adopting the kind of economic development that benefits people most. Often, these surveys suggest that one of the most important components in happiness is actually wealth. Wealthier countries tend to have higher standards of living, better health care and education, cleaner environments, and more support for families than poorer ones do. The map below, from the U.N.'s World Happiness Report, shows that many of the happiest countries, marked in green, are more developed ones. The Geography of Happiness (Global Happiness Report) But wealth is not the only factor: Happiness surveys also try to capture things that common economic metrics overlook, such as a sustainable environment, social progress, personal growth and self-acceptance. There are big challenges with these surveys, however. Measures of happiness that work equally well in countries all around the world are a Holy Grail for sociologists sought after, but rarely found. Critics point out that different surveys tend to produce substantially different, and sometimes surprising, results, and they question whether these measures are really capturing happiness, or something else. All those pieces that come out ... are like, 'Denmark is the happiest country in the world!' And then another piece comes out that is like, 'Colombia is the happiest country in the world! Hsu says. Its hard to tell what the questions are measuring. A question like, How happy are you, from 1 to 5? has a lot of problems. Perhaps the biggest problem is how the concept of happiness varies in different cultures and languages. In English, for example, the word happy can refer to different things. It might mean a fleeting mood you feel when someone surprises you with a gift or you think of friends and family. Or it could refer to a deeper and less malleable state of satisfaction with your life. But not all languages refer to happiness the same way. A paper published in the International Journal of Language and Culture notes that the question, How happy are you? is difficult to ask in many languages, and couldn't even be properly posed in the English of Shakespeare or Chaucer's time. For example, Denmark is often ranked among the world's happiest countries which is something of a mystery to those who have lived among the relatively solemn Danes. Some researchers say the reason is that happiness in Danish is often translated as lykke a term that can describe a kind of everyday well-being that might be brought on by a nice cup of coffee or a slice of bread with cheese. Others argue that the Danish results might be due in part to a cultural reluctance to burden strangers with their troubles. The power of spin: Hula hoop your way to happiness Show all 3 1 /3 The power of spin: Hula hoop your way to happiness The power of spin: Hula hoop your way to happiness 40 Hula-hooping-1-ds.jpg DAVID SANDISON The power of spin: Hula hoop your way to happiness 40-Hula-hooping-2-ds.jpg DAVID SANDISON The power of spin: Hula hoop your way to happiness 40 Hula-hooping-3-getty.jpg Getty Images Other studies suggests that German, French, Polish and Russian speakers use their equivalent terms for happy or happiness to refer to a state that's much rarer than English or Danish terms. Still other research argues that, in many languages, the term for happy involves a much stronger role for luck or fortune than it does in modern English closer to what happy meant in English several centuries ago. In Chinese, there are actually several different terms for happiness, each of which have a slightly different meaning. Hsu and her colleagues are carrying out their own happiness survey in China, with the hope of learning how to better measure happiness not just in China, but in other countries, as well. Their survey focuses on three dimensions of happiness a good mood, a good life and a sense of whether ones life has meaning. Hsu breaks those meanings down in the diagram below, which shows that the English words happy and happiness encompass just part of those definitions. On the right, she maps one of the Chinese words for happiness, xingfu. Unlike the English translation of happiness, xingfu refers not to a good mood, but a good life, as well as a life with meaning. In Chinese, each of these three kinds of happiness can actually be translated as a different word, says Hsu xingfu for a good life, you yiyi for meaning and kuaile for a good mood. By using those three words to ask different questions, researchers may be able to measure dimensions of happiness in Chinese that are often brushed over in English. (Becky Hsu (Becky Hsu) Another common problem with happiness surveys, says Hsu, is that they are heavily influenced by Western social science and particularly economics, which has a relatively individualistic and utilitarian view of human life. For Americans especially, the idea of the pursuit of happiness enshrined in the Declaration of Independence is often related to personal liberty and individualism. Western-made surveys tend to ask about the individual person in isolation, and ignore their relationships even as more and more research today suggests that social relationships are one of the most important factors in a person's well-being. Hsu mentions Pews poll, which asks people to picture their position on a 10-step ladder of life, in which the bottom step represents the worst possible life for them and the top rung is their best possible life. It doesnt make sense and its very individualistic, because youre alone on this ladder! Hsu says of the survey. Where are all your people? (Pew Research Center (Pew Research Center) The Western approach may not necessarily do a good job of capturing happiness in China and other countries where the collective concerns of a family often outrank individual ones. So Hsus surveys have focused much more on social relations asking people who they ate dinner with last night, whether it was fun, and who they have given money to in the past month. The research suggests that family is extremely important to happiness in China even for young Chinese, whose consumerist tendencies and urban lives look similar to those in the West in other respects. It might seem strange, but this focus on the family may help explain why Mrs. Xie and her friends have such strong feelings about the clothes they will be buried in. Because many Chinese have a strong sense of connection with their family members, even ancestors who have passed on, they have different and less negative attitudes toward death, Hsu's research suggests. That greater sense of connection between living and dead family members is one reason that preparing for burial can be a happy event. Hsu points out that Chinese families frequently acknowledge and interact with the dead through rituals that give people a sense of closer connection to the deceased. For example, families visit the tombs of relatives on holidays to pray, and burn paper money, paper clothes, and other things that the dead person needs in the afterlife, as in the video below, which Hsu shot in western China. So death entails more of a sense of continuity with ones ancestors and family members unlike in America, where death is seldom portrayed in such a positive light. For many people in China, a happy life includes having a good death, and that means being prepared even your clothes. Its not that death itself is a good thing, its that it is the next thing, Hsu says. So you can have a good one. You can do it well. Copyright: Washington Post Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The youngest person to ever head the NAACP will endorse Bernie Sanders for president. Former NAACP head Ben Jealous plans to make his announcement before next Tuesdays New Hampshire primary, reps from Sanders campaign told CNN on Thursday. His rival, Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton, is relying on the support of minority voters in the upcoming Nevada and South Carolina primaries. On Tuesday, Mr Sanders gained his fifth endorsement from a state lawmaker in South Carolina. Representative Joe Neal of Richland County said that he's impressed with Mr Sanders' platform to help restore the middle class. He is the candidate that is speaking to the need and situation that confronts middle America today, he said, according to the Post and Courier. It is because of his position on helping the middle class with education and health care, Social Security, those issues that are so important to every day working people in this country. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Donald Trump's campaign plane has been forced to make an emergency landing. Mr Trump was on the way to a rally in Little Rock, Arkansas, when the Boeing 757 made the unscheduled stop at Nashville International Airport. On Tuesday, Mr Trump was beaten into second place in the Iowa caucus by Ted Cruz, dealing an early blow to his presidential ambitions. A spokeswoman for Mr Trump said he finished the journey in a charter aircraft. The Republican front runner was expected to speak at Barton Coliseum in Little Rock to an audience of more than 11,500 supporters, ABC News reports. Mr Trump arrived an hour and a half late, explaining to the crowd it was "rough" getting there, but there was "no way" he would have cancelled his trip. Donald Trump's most controversial quotes Show all 14 1 /14 Donald Trump's most controversial quotes Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Isis: "Some of the candidates, they went in and didnt know the air conditioner didnt work and sweated like dogs, and they didnt know the room was too big because they didnt have anybody there. How are they going to beat ISIS?" Getty Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On immigration: "I will build a great wall and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me and Ill build them very inexpensively. I will build a great, great wall on our southern border, and I will make Mexico pay for that wall. Mark my words." Reuters Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Free Trade: "Free trade is terrible. Free trade can be wonderful if you have smart people. But we have stupid people." PAUL J. RICHARDS | AFP | Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Mexicans: "When Mexico sends its people, theyre not sending their best. Theyre sending people that have lots of problems. Theyre bringing drugs. Theyre bringing crime. Theyre rapists." Getty Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On China: "I just sold an apartment for $15 million to somebody from China. Am I supposed to dislike them?... I love China. The biggest bank in the world is from China. You know where their United States headquarters is located? In this building, in Trump Tower." Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On work: "If you're interested in 'balancing' work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable." AP Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On success: "What separates the winners from the losers is how a person reacts to each new twist of fate." Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On life: "Everything in life is luck." AFP Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On ambition: "You have to think anyway, so why not think big?" Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On his opponents: "Bush is totally in favour of Common Core. I don't see how he can possibly get the nomination. He's weak on immigration. He's in favour of Common Core. How the hell can you vote for this guy? You just can't do it." Reuters Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Obamacare: "You have to be hit by a tractor, literally, a tractor, to use it, because the deductibles are so high. It's virtually useless. And remember the $5 billion web site?... I have so many web sites, I have them all over the place. I hire people, they do a web site. It costs me $3." Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On Barack Obama: "Obama is going to be out playing golf. He might be on one of my courses. I would invite him. I have the best courses in the world. I have one right next to the White House." PA Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On himself: "Love him or hate him, Trump is a man who is certain about what he wants and sets out to get it, no holds barred. Women find his power almost as much of a turn-on as his money." Getty Images Donald Trump's most controversial quotes On America: "The American Dream is dead. But if I get elected president I will bring it back bigger and better and stronger than ever before and we will make America great again." GETTY He told his supporters: "I love Arkansas". The Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) is investigating the incident. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The Afghan presidents ill-fated trip to the countrys tribal heartland began with the best of intentions. It ended, however, in a brawl. Ashraf Ghani, whose war on the Taliban is failing on many fronts, flew south this week from Kabul to Kandahar to appease tribal elders. On arrival at Kandahar, his entourage quickly transferred to helicopters, past a guard of honour, for the short journey to the centre of Afghanistans second-largest city. The road was thought too dangerous. Once within the governors compound, Mr Ghani met the elders, men whose support is vital for his campaign against the Taliban. Underneath chandeliers, and surrounded by pictures of Afghan war heroes, dozens of men, women and children had turned out to see the president. You are my uncles, Mr Ghani told the elders, because my mother is from Kandahar. Haji Sayed Jan Khakrezwal, the 54-year-old head of Kandahar provincial council, joked: Since we are your uncles, you are supposed to be kind to us I hope you brought projects for Kandahar with you. Mr Ghani managed a thin smile. A voice shouted from the back of the room: Mr President, you cant just come here for a few hours then leave us. Flanked by Naseem Sharifi, his head of protocol, the president replied: I am not going anywhere. Mr Sharifi has a long-standing feud with Mr Khakrezwal. It erupted over who could, and who could not, address the president. To shouts of motherf***er Mr Khakrezwal and Mr Sharifi began fighting. The brawl was said to have been started by Mr Sharifi punching the tribal elder on the nose. It was quickly over. President Ghani, who remained calm throughout, was given a turban and the speeches continued. When I go back to Kabul I will deal with him, he said of Mr Sharifi. On Thursday, it was announced that Mr Ghani had indeed dealt with Mr Sharifi - he had been removed from his post. Punching a tribal elder is a big no, said a source close to the presidency. Amid a fierce debate among Afghans, Mr Ghanis dismissal of a long-term ally was seen as brave in some quarters. But his attempt to bring the elders of Kandahar around to his side in the war on the Taliban had almost failed with the first punch thrown. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} When police arrived at the sedate expat bridge club in the Thai resort town of Pattaya, the elderly card players were unconcerned. They laughed among themselves and carried on after all they knew they were doing nothing wrong. However, moments later the 12 Britons and 20 other, mainly Western, foreigners found themselves under arrest and being helped into the back of a police van. It was the start of a thoroughly nasty experience that saw them locked up for 12 hours until the early hours of 4 February. Acting on a tip-off about an illegal gambling ring, about 50 officials, police and even soldiers raided the Jomtien and Pattaya Bridge Club, founded in 1994, on 3 February. Video taken by the authorities showed police striding into the room as the players carried on with their games. One woman smiles awkwardly towards the officials, and as someone reads out the scores a voice can be heard telling police: This is not gambling; this is playing. Police were unconvinced and appeared to believe that money would have changed hands later. They boxed up evidence, including cards, score books and computers, and arrested all 32 players, including the British organiser, Jeremy Watson, 74. The head of the Asia-Pacific Bridge Federation tried to persuade the police that nothing illegal was going on. But the group have been charged with breaking a 70-year-old law barring players from having more than 120 cards. The players were released after paying bail of about 96. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} An American tourist is enjoying his moment in the Icelandic spotlight after accidentally ending up in the wrong part of the Nordic country due to a typing error on his GPS. Noel Santillan, according to reports in the local newspaper Visir, ended up taking the scenic view with his journey coming to an end at Laugarvegur Street in the fishing village of Siglufjorur in North Iceland, instead of Reykjaviks main highway. It was reported that the 28-year-olds error was to type the word Laugarvegur - with an extra "r" - instead of Laugavegur, one of the main roads in the capital Reykjavik, where he had expected to find his accommodation. According to the local newspaper, however, the misunderstanding could have been caused by the fact that the address of Hotel Fron where the American was booked to stay is listed with an extra r on many online booking websites. Mr Santillan from New Jersey explained to the local newspaper that road conditions had been poor due to snowdrift but he had enjoyed the scenery during the drive. He added: I was very tired after the flight and wanted to get to the hotel as soon as possible. Thats why I kept driving. I did enjoy the scenery on the way. Ive never seen anything quite like it. And the horses! Gisli Ulfarsson, the manager of Hotel Fron, told Visir that something like this had never happened before. No, never, adding that he found it curious people would not check the city or town they are going to. He called us last night and I thought this was some sort of joke. I refused to believe he had driven all the way to Siglufjorur. News / Regional by Staff reporter FORMER vice president Joice Mujuru held talks with disgruntled Zanu-PF and MDC members in Harare at the weekend as she steps up efforts to form her own political party following her ouster from Zanu-PF last year.Mujuru is reportedly leading efforts to form the People First (PF) political party ahead of the next general elections which are scheduled for 2018.Leaked photos from the Harare meeting suggest that Mujuru could be secretly setting up structures across the country ahead of the polls.Three prominent Zanu-PF activists Leanord Mathuthu, Tafirenyika Seremani who was suspended last year alongside Andrew Langa and another only identified as Darlington Ndlovu as well as Gwanda Residents Association Chairman Bekezela Maduma Fuzwayo previously with the Welshman Ncube led MDC appear in a group picture taken at the Harare meeting. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Outrage has erupted in France after a language moderator approved changes to the spellings of thousands French words in an attempt to simplify the language. The alterations were approved by the countrys official language moderator, Academie francaise in 1990, but are due to come into effect this year and will be published in school books and dictionaries this September, The Local reports. At least 2,400 spelling changes will be implemented, however the change that has sparked the most fury is the removal of the traditional circumflex accent (^), which will disappear above the vowels "i" and "u" in certain words. The word cout (cost) will lose its accent to become cout, as will s'entrainer (to practise), maitresse (teacher) and, ironically, disparaitre (to disappear). The circumflex will not disappear entirely, however, still being present above the letter "o", in words such as hotel. It will also be kept on certain words like sur, where removing the accent would change its meaning entirely from certain to on top of. Other changes include removing hyphens in words such as week-end, which will change to weekend, and porte-monnaie (wallet). The French onion will also fall under the changes as the i is removed from oignon to become ognon. The modifications will not mean an immediate end to the old spellings. According to Le Monde, publishers will have the option of whether to use the new spellings or not and teachers will not punish students who continue to use the old spellings. Despite this, the changes have sparked outrage in France with thousands despairing of the alterations on social media. #ReformeOrthographe or spelling reform was the top trending Twitter topic in France on Thursday; #JeSuisCirconflexe or I am the circumflex was also shared. Many users argued the changes were dumbing down the French language. One Twitter user said the reforms were a paroxysm of dumbing down, while another claimed: "To simplify, is to become poorer. A language is rich and beautiful precisely because it is complex. Others claimed French spellings should not be made easier for pupils. One user said: We had to learn to write properly, they can too. Politicians have also waded into the debate. The vice-president of Frances far-right Front National party said, the French language is our soul and the Mayor of Nice, Christian Estrosi, dubbed the reforms absurd. It is not all doom and gloom for French traditionalists, however. Under the changes some more modern words will be made to adhere to French grammar rules in an effort to Frenchify words borrowed from the English language. Des misses and revolver will become des miss and revolver and leader will become leaduer. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A poster by Germanys far-right National Democratic Party (NPD) has been ridiculed after being interpreted as calling for the deportation of the German people first. The anti-immigration neo-Nazi party which proclaims to protect the right to a homeland and identity posted a photograph of its new poster on its Facebook page yesterday, according to German news site Deutsche Welle. At the top, the poster carried text saying rigorously deport, followed by the partys slogan our people first, underneath an image of a passenger jet. The two phrases, taken together, led to the party being mocked for its seemingly mixed-message, with it later removing the photo. Earlier in the week, the NPD called for the reintroduction of border police to avert illegal immigration. Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Show all 13 1 /13 Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Women protest against sexism outside Cologne Cathedral on 5 January after the assaults Oliver Berg/EPA Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Women protest against sexism in Cologne following the rash of sex attacks on New Year's Eve Wolfgang Rattay/Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police initially failed to mention the assaults in report the following morning EPA Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police officers patrol in front of the main station of Cologne, Germany AP Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks German far-right supporters demonstrate at Cologne`s train station (Reuters) Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Supporters of anti-immigration right-wing movement Pegida in Cologne, Germany, January 9, 2016. Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police used pepper spray to control supporters of Pegida, Hogesa (Hooligans against Salafists) and other right-wing populist groups as they protested against the New Year's Eve sex attacks on 9 January, 2016 in Cologne, Germany Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police use a water cannon during a protest march by supporters of anti-immigration right-wing movement Pegida in Cologne, Germany, January 9, 2016 Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Police use pepper spray against supporters of anti-immigration right-wing movement Pegida, in Cologne, Germany, January 9, 2016. Reuters Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Artist Mira Moire protests naked in Cologne against the mass sex attacks on New Year's Eve AP Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks A demonstrator holds a sign in German that reads 'No violence against women' during a demonstration in the wake of the sexual assaults on New Year's Eve, outside the cathedeal in Cologne, Germany, 09 January 2016. EPA Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Counter demonstrators hold up a sign reading "Against sexism, against racism" as they protest against a demonstration of the islamophobic movement PEGIDA at the train station in Cologne, Germany, on January 9, 2016. AFP/Getty Images Germany reacts to Cologne New Year's Eve attacks Demonstration by a womens group on Saturday (AP) AP In a statement published on its website, deputy chairman Ronny Zasowk said: The mass immigration has not slowed down, they must be stopped! The security authorities and institutions of a sovereign state must be able to ward off illegal and possibly violent immigration. Yesterday, the German cabinet approved measures to help cut the number of refugees entering the country. Angela Merkel has faced increasing pressure to do so after 1.1 million displaced people entered Germany last year. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A recently hired teacher has lost his job after his school discovered he was caught by police urinating in a bush 11 years ago. Stefano Rho, from Bergamo in Lombardy, had just secured his first permanent postion after 14 years as a supply teacher when the revelation emerged. The decades-old incident resurfaced when the father-of-three was called into the headmaster's office, according to Corriere Della Sera. The 43-year-old's application forms had been returned by the Department of Education because he had wrongly ticked next to the phrase "I do not have a criminal record". In 2005, Mr Rho and a friend had reportedly been caught by policemen late at night urinating in a bush as the pair returned from watching a comedy performane in a nearby village square. It resulted in a verbal warning on the scene and a magistrate-ordered fine of 200 euro fine for public indecency a year later. Mr Rho said: "We didn't appeal it or get a lawyer or anything, it seemed something small that was over and gone." Once he had explained the details of the incident to his headteacher, he was told there were no plans to dismiss him. However, the Italian Court of Audit informed the school that while the crime was not severe enough for disciplinary procedures, not declaring his criminal record was a sackable offence. Mr Rho was dismissed from his position on January 11 - and also lost all the "experience points" he had earned as a supply teacher. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} France avoided greater terrorist carnage in November thanks to the courage of a young woman who tipped off police that she had seen the jihadist leader Abdelhamid Abaaoud living rough on a motorway embankment, it has emerged. Now living in hiding and in fear of her life, Sonia told her extraordinary story in an interview with French radio and TV. She said that Abaaoud had boasted to her that he was one of 90 Isis members including Britons and Germans who had reached the Paris area from Syria without any travel documents. Two days after the terrorist attacks in Paris on 13 November, in which 130 people were killed, the Belgian-born Abaaoud told her he planned further assaults on a nursery school, an office block and a police station in La Defense business district west of Paris. Thanks to Sonia, the second wave of attacks never happened. I said to myself: I have to stop them, she said. She telephoned the 197 emergency tip-off line and gave police the address of the hideout in Saint-Denis, north of Paris, where her friend Abaaouds cousin had taken him. Abaaoud, the cousin and another jihadist died when police stormed the hide-out three days later. Recommended Read more Safe houses used to prepare for Paris attacks revealed Sonia whose name was changed and face and voice disguised for the interview complained that she felt abandoned by the French authorities. I have no social life, no work, no friends, no family. Ive been cut off from the rest of the world, she said. We are doing everything we can for her, said the Interior Minister, Bernard Cazeneuve. And the Paris prosecutors office announced that it was investigating the TV station BFMTV and the radio station RMC for placing Sonias life in danger by interviewing her. In pictures: Paris attacks Show all 25 1 /25 In pictures: Paris attacks In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks French police with protective shields walk in line near the Bataclan concert hall Reuters In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Rescuers evacuate an injured person on Boulevard des Filles du Calvaire AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks French Vigipirate troops mobilize next to Place de la Bastille AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks French soldiers mobilize near to the Place de la Bastille AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Wounded people are evacuated outside the scene of a hostage situation at the Bataclan theatre EPA In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks People react as they gather to watch the scene near the Bataclan concert hall Reuters In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks French police secure the area outside a cafe near the Bataclan concert hall Reuters In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Rescuers workers evacuate victims near the Bataclan concert hall AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks French Prime Minister Manuel Valls and French President Francois Hollande attending an emergency meeting at the Interior Ministry AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Spectators invade the pitch of the Stade de France after explosions were heard outside AP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks A man lies on the ground as French police check his identity near the Bataclan concert hall Reuters In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Police officers man a position close to the Bataclan theatre AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Wounded people are evacuated from the Stade de France in Paris EPA In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Two men evacuate the Place de la Republique square in Paris as a police officer looks on AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Football fans are evacuated from the Stade de France stadium In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks An armed police officer Dan Gabriel In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks The Stade de France is evacuated after reports of an explosion In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks A member of the French fire brigade aids an injured individual near the Bataclan concert hall In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Wounded people are evacuated from the Stade de France in Paris In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Police are seen outside a cafe in 10th arrondissement of the French capital Paris, In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Rescuers assist an injured man on Boulevard des Filles du Calvaire, close to the Bataclan concert hall AFP In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks The scene at a restaurant in 10th arrondissement In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks The Bataclan theatre - where around 100 people are thought be held hostage In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks The Stade de France as it was evacuated In pictures: Paris attacks Paris attacks Forensic experts inspect the site of an attack outside the Stade de France stadium in Saint-Denis AFP In her interview, Sonia said she had been with her friend, Abaaouds cousin Hasna Ait Boulahcen, on the Sunday after the Friday attacks when they received a phone call from a Belgian mobile number. They were told to pick up someone in Aubervilliers, in the north-eastern suburbs of Paris. When they reached a motorway embankment, they were told by the caller to shout the code 1010. Abaaoud emerged from the bushes. He had a woolly hat on, orange trainers, a bomber jacket. I thought it was a homeless person. And he was smiling. He looked nothing like a terrorist, Sonia said. She asked if he had been involved in the attacks two days before. The [cafe] terraces, that was me, Abaaoud said. You killed innocent people, Sonia protested. They werent innocent, Abaaoud replied. Look whats happening in our country, in Syria. Sonia added: He talked about the attacks just like he was talking about going shopping. He was happy. Sonias lawyer, Patrick Baudouin, said the authorities had failed in their duty to help her. She doesnt even have a new identity yet. Her details are easily accessible in her file, he said. The state has not taken all the adequate measures to help this woman who is in real psychological distress. We need to protect her and help her regain some kind of normal life. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A thaw in the Vaticans relations with China appears to be the latest diplomatic breakthrough for Pope Francis in his drive to increase the Holy Sees influence on the world stage. The Chinese foreign ministry said that it had noted an interview in which Pope Francis sent new year greetings to President Xi Jinping, and it called for better relations with the Vatican. Talking to the Asian Times, Francis skirted around sensitive subjects such as human rights and instead expressed his admiration for China. He sent his best wishes to President Xi and the Chinese people before next weeks lunar new year holiday. The apparent breakthrough led to Italian press speculation that Francis might become the first Pope to visit China since the Communist Party came to power. Following the interview, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said: China has always been sincere about improving Sino-Vatican ties We are still willing to have constructive dialogue with the Vatican based on this principle, meeting each other halfway, and keep pushing forward the development of the process of improving bilateral relations. The Chinese acknowledgement might sound like faint praise. However, in the context of the Vaticans diplomatic excommunication by China, they appear remarkably cordial. Leo meets the Pope Beijing severed ties with the Vatican in 1951 after the Communist Party took power. The totalitarian regime resented any outside influences on Chinese society and set up its own church beyond the Popes authority. Relations between them reached a nadir in 2011 when Chinas state-controlled Catholic church announced plans to ordain 10 bishops without Papal approval. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty The Vatican, under the rule of Pope Benedict XVI, responded by excommunicating one of these bishops, Joseph Huang Bingzhang. Branding his ordination as illegitimate, Pope Benedict said he deplored the Communist authorities treatment of the 12 million Chinese Catholics, some of whom are thought to remain faithful to Rome rather than to the state-backed church. Some blame for the row was put on Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Benedicts unpopular right-hand man, who as the Vaticans chief diplomat presided over a disastrous period during which relations with Dublin also went into deep freeze. But Francis appears determined to turn things around. Last year, he scored a major diplomatic coup by helping to restore relations between Cuba and the US, and last month he welcomed Iranian President Hassan Rouhani to the Vatican, after expressing his keenness to help resolve conflicts in the Middle East. Francis is very keen to boost relations between the Holy See and Bejing, said Marco Politi, the veteran Vatican watcher and biographer of the current Pope. The move to improve relations with China was, he said, a key plank in Franciss strategy to bring a unifying and pacifying presence of the Church around the world. Recommended Read more Pope Francis jokes about tequila with Mexican tourist Francis had a sense of history, he said, as well as a geopolitical awareness and his chief diplomat, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, had the diplomatic skills and experience of Far East politics to make a difference. A key stumbling block to better relations with Beijing has been the Vaticans recognition of Taiwan, which Beijing considers a part of China. While he was in South Korea in 2014, the Pope urged China to pursue a formal dialogue to the benefit of both sides. While flying to South Korea, his plane was allowed to cross Chinese airspace, a first for a pope. Also that year, Francis is thought to have sent a private letter to President Xi Jinping, via two Argentinian emissaries with contacts at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. It is believed that he has invited President Xi to the Vatican. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Poland's government has opened a new investigation into the 2010 plane crash in Russia that killed President Lech Kaczynski, the twin brother of the chairman of the country's ruling party. The development could exacerbate Poland's already deeply strained relations with Russia and is likely to deepen the ideological divide within Poland between supporters of the conservative and pro-Catholic government and a segment of society that is liberal and secular. Party leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski and others doubt the findings of state investigations by Poland and Russia, both of which determined that the crash on April 20, 2010, that killed 96 people was an accident resulting from pilot error and bad weather. They have suggested that the crash was instead an assassination, and while their accusations are vague, they have implicated Russian leader Vladimir Putin. The then-Prime Minister Donald Tusk - now head of the European Council - has rejected the theories. Liberal opposition lawmakers say they see no need for a new probe and are satisfied that the crash was an accident. Announcing the new probe Thursday, Defense Minister Antoni Macierewicz said the original investigation was riddled with "mistakes" and "abnormalities." There will be 21 members of the new commission, many of them engineers or other technical experts, and four advisers from abroad. Macierewicz made the announcement in the presence of relatives of people who died in the crash. Behind him a TV screen carried the words: "They are waiting for the truth ... We owe them that." AP For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A woman from Italy could be jailed for up to six years because she does not do enough housework, according to Italian media. The 40-year-old, from Sonnino in the Lazio region, is being taken to court by her husband. He claims that her management of household chores is of a low standard and it has led to the mistreatment of the family, according to a translation of Ill Fatto Quotidiano by The Local. The husband also reportedly said he had been forced to live in conditions with poor hygiene and that his wife rarely cooked. The so-called negligence had taken place for two years. The trial of the woman is expected to take place in October. If convicted, she could be imprisoned for between two and six years. What marriage would be like if we followed the bible In March 2014, campaigners in Italy called for women who worked in the home, and their male counterparts, to be paid a salary in an effort to improve equality and tackle domestic abuse. However, the proposal was not widely supported. Daniela Del Boca, an economics professor at the University of Turin told The Guardian the salary would act as a disincentive to look for a job. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Spanish officials have confirmed a pregnant woman is one of seven people in the country who have been infected with Zika. The Health Ministry said in a statement that the woman had travelled to Colombia and was presumably infected during her trip. Recommended Read more Why everyone is suddenly so terrified about the Zika virus She is believed to be in her second trimester of pregnancy and is currently under medical supervision in Catalonia in the north of the country. The ministry did not release details of the womans identity or the condition of her unborn child. Officials said the number of cases diagnosed in Spain at the moment was too small to spread the virus across the country. Zika, which was first detected in a Ugandan forest in 1947, has been linked to a jump in the number of babies born with Microcephaly across the continent. The Zika virus - in pictures Show all 5 1 /5 The Zika virus - in pictures The Zika virus - in pictures A three-month-old, who has microcephaly, in Recife, Brazil. A rise in microcephaly cases is thought to have been caused by the spread of the Zika virus in affected countries Getty Images The Zika virus - in pictures A mother holds her baby who has microcephaly Getty Images The Zika virus - in pictures A five-month-old baby, who has microcephaly, in Recife, Brazil Getty Images The Zika virus - in pictures A pediatric infectologist examines a two-month-old baby, who has microcephaly, in Recife, Brazil Getty Images The Zika virus - in pictures A baby affected with microcephaly The number of cases of the condition - which can cause babies to be born with abnormally small heads and often suffer brain damage - in Brazil alone has risen from 150 a year to 4,000 in just four months. The virus - spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito which also transmits yellow fever - has led to several South American countries warning women not to get pregnant. The news comes as a research professor based in Catalonia warned Spain could face an outbreak affecting hundreds of thousands of people. Professor Frederic Bartumeus believes the European Tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) is capable of transmitting the disease as well following a study of how the virus is spread in Gabon in 2007. Tiger mosquitos were first recorded in Barcelona in 2004 and are believed to have travelled to Europe from South-East Asia by sitting in stagnant water in lorry tyres. The World Health Organisation has deemed Zika a public health emergency of international concern. Additional reporting by AP For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} On New Year's Day, shortly before lunchtime, a beaming man emerged from the sliding doors at Heathrow Terminal 3 and made a beeline for a young woman in a cherry-red hijab. As her family cooed and shrieked, he squeezed her tight, lifting her clean off the ground before putting her down and planting a kiss on the top of her head. No onlooker could possibly have guessed how painful their separation had been, or how many times that moment had almost been thwarted. The girl offered a glimpse of their journey when she tweeted a photograph of their reunion that quickly went viral. The caption read: "He proposed Dec 2012. Since: besieged, detained, tortured, made refugee for 1.5 years. Today: reunited in UK." Yet that dramatic summary tells only half the story. Although theirs is, in part, a classic tale about the triumph of love over adversity, it is sadly not that simple. It is also about a steely young Londoner who poured herself into mending a man left utterly broken by torture. It is about the devastating impact of the Syrian conflict on millions of people and the guilt of those who manage to escape it. The story begins in 2009, when Syria was just another Arab dictatorship muddling along largely unnoticed by the rest of the world. Razan Alakraa who is also known as Rose Alhomsi now 25, was a pharmacy student from Willesden, in north London. Ahmad Alhameed, now 37, was studying for a medical degree at university in Damascus. Although Razan was born and raised in London, she comes from a large Syrian family. Her parents arrived in Britain in the 1980s but kept in close touch with friends and relatives in Homs, Syria's third-largest city. That circle included Ahmad's family. They saw each other in the summer of 2009, when her family went on their annual summer holiday to Homs. Warm and intelligent, with radiant skin and dark, almond-shaped eyes, it is little surprise that Razan caught Ahmad's attention. He asked her family if she would marry him. She was utterly uninterested. British jets prepare for air strikes in Syria Show all 10 1 /10 British jets prepare for air strikes in Syria British jets prepare for air strikes in Syria A Tornado jet takes off from RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland, as RAF Tornado jets carried out the first British bombing runs over Syria British jets prepare for air strikes in Syria Pilots and ground crew prepare combat aircraft Panavia Tornados at RAF Marham at RAF Marham, UK Getty British jets prepare for air strikes in Syria A Eurofighter Typhoon jet takes off from RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland, as RAF Tornado jets carried out the first British bombing runs over Syria British jets prepare for air strikes in Syria A RAF Tornado arrives at RAF Akrotiri to begin operations in Akrotiri British jets prepare for air strikes in Syria A Tornado jet ahead of taking off from RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland, as RAF Tornado jets carried out the first British bombing runs over Syria, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed. The air strikes were carried out within hours of a vote by MPs in the Commons to back extending operations against Isis from neighbouring Iraq British jets prepare for air strikes in Syria Personnel work on a British Tornado after it returned from a mission at RAF Akrotiri in southern Cyprus British jets prepare for air strikes in Syria Two RAF Tornado GR4's, both with remaining weapons ordnance, approach RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, as they return to the base after carrying out some of the first British bombing runs over Syria British jets prepare for air strikes in Syria A RAF Tornado takes off from RAF Akrotiri, on the Mediterranean island nation of Cyprus British jets prepare for air strikes in Syria A Tornado jet leaving RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland British jets prepare for air strikes in Syria AKA RAF Tornado arrives at RAF Akrotiri to begin operations in Akrotiri, Cyprus. The RAF has sent two further Tornado aircraft and six Typhoons to bolster aircraft now flying sorties to both Iraq and Syria Recounting her story over Viber a mobile app popular with young Syrian activists thanks to its free international phone calls she chuckles at the memory of her response. "I said: 'No way!' I wanted to study," she recalls. "I completely turned it down." They had no more contact for several years. When the protests that swept across North Africa ignited Syria in March 2011, they both found themselves sucked into the vortex of events in Homs. In the early weeks, vast gatherings took over the city's central square. They quickly turned to armed resistance after the army of the President, Bashar al-Assad, opened fire on the demonstrations. As fighting intensified, elegant boulevards once lined with trees were reduced to piles of rubble. By 2012, Razan was spending hours online providing long-distance help to opposition activists in Homs. In her bedroom in Willesden, she would stay up late translating video footage captured by citizen journalists from Arabic to English. She would update social-media accounts and interview doctors in an underground field hospital. What she hadn't realised was that Ahmad was among the team in that hospital. Sometimes, he would be in the same room as those she was speaking to, working away quietly in the background. He never showed up on the videos or pictures she saw from the clinic. She got in touch with him for the first time in years in 2012 after hearing that his father and sister had been killed. She sent a message to say how sorry she was. He replied to say that he had seen all her work. They kept in touch, exchanging messages about the escalating conflict and the ups and downs of daily life. In December 2012, he proposed to her again. "It was a bit of a shock," she admits, even the second time round. In Syria, it is common for couples to agree to marry and then use the engagement to get to know each another. If it doesn't work out they can call it all off. But for Razan it still felt too soon. She wanted to meet him in person, so the following February, she flew from London to meet Ahmad in Lebanon. He was so different from the carefree young man she remembered. He was shocked to see people eating, drinking and laughing in Beirut, the breezy Lebanese capital, while the catastrophic war next door was getting worse by the day. "It was like taking someone out of a very dark area and then putting him in a place where everyone is living their life," Razan remembers. "He was telling me, 'I've carried over a thousand bodies in my arms. How are these people living like this?' It scared me." Reunited front: Razan and Ahmad together after three years apart (David Sandison) But there was a new connection that had not been there three years before. She was touched by his devotion to the Syrian cause. He was someone who could understand her intense connection to a country 2,000 miles from home. She decided to give him a chance, and they were an item from then on. Ahmad returned to Syria. They kept trying to find a date to formalise their engagement. Razan bought a dress in coral pink for the occasion, but they were thwarted by the Syrian conflict's constant tragedies, which included the death of her uncle and cousin. By now, Ahmad was living a double life. In the daytime, he studied for his degree in Damascus. At night, he worked in a field hospital in the suburbs of the capital. He had three mobile-phone numbers and several different identity cards to allow him to pass through both regime checkpoints and those in opposition areas. He lived under constant fear of arrest. To the Syrian government, a doctor treating the injured in opposition areas was as bad as someone carrying a gun. Razan, who was growing more and more in love with him, would call and text him often to check that he was safe. In November 2013, when she was returning from a weekend visit to a friend in the English countryside, Ahmad stopped responding to her messages. When she tried calling, someone answered and then hung up. She grew increasingly alarmed, but friends and family told her not to worry. He must be sleeping, they said. "But I knew it, 100 per cent," she says softly. "I just knew." After a sleepless night, her fears were confirmed. Word reached her that Syria's secret police had come and taken him from his hospital lodgings. "That was it," she says. "Just missing. They just take someone and you have absolutely no idea where they are." Razan was working in a pharmacy but had to carry on as normal. "I would go into work really happy, smiley, dealing with patients. And then go home and just cry. It was so hard." After a month and a half, she finally got word through a network of friends and contacts that Ahmad was alive. He was being held in al-Khateeb, a sprawling underground interrogation centre belonging to the vast Syrian secret intelligence network in Damascus. Almost two years after he was released, Razan still does not know exactly what happened to him during his time there. "He doesn't really tell us in full," she says. "He will give snippets here and there. But I see it in him He's in pain." The terrible stories of torture come out in the most mundane of settings. She noticed when taking him shoe shopping that his feet were different sizes. They had been shattered by beatings and grown back in a misshapen form. Recently, he was sitting at the family dinner table when, out of the blue, he described how they would hang detainees by the neck before kicking a chair out from under them one of several variants on the theme of mock execution that he was forced to endure. A particularly sadistic device involved making prisoners stick their heads through a hole in their cell into the corridor. A passing officer would kick each face as he walked by. Eventually, after five months in detention, Ahmad was released in March 2014. His sister went to meet him and sent Razan a photograph. He was thin, pale, covered in scabies. He couldn't sit properly from the torture. "I didn't recognise him," she confesses. "It was heartbreaking." Ahmad was desperate to stay in Syria but Razan and others persuaded him to flee to Lebanon. He slowly slipped into depression. When she finally got to see him face to face later that year, his character was utterly transformed. She recounts the episode with the calmness and maturity that come from learning to cope with daily trauma, but her words tell the story of a shared future that was falling apart. "He was very angry. Very abrupt," she says. "Talking to me in the same way that they would talk to him. He would say: 'Answer me! Answer me now!' "He wouldn't tell me anything about what was going on. How he felt. It made me really angry. He was treating me in a really scary way. It was like talking to a monster." He was so different from the man she had agreed to marry. Was she about to commit herself to a lifetime of unhappiness with a broken man? Her mother asked her if she was still sure that she wanted to go ahead. Razan said that she could not bear to abandon him. But there were moments of real doubt. At later points, she seriously considered calling it off. She turned for help to Moazzam Begg, a British former detainee at Guantanamo Bay. He claims to have been tortured at the US-run Bagram air base in Afghanistan before being transferred to Cuba, and she hoped he could offer some advice. He told Razan to give Ahmad time and space sometimes, he would just need to be alone. "He really helped me to understand," she says. "His words gave the push to keep trying." In her own words, she "poured" herself into aiding Ahmad's recovery from afar. It was exhausting, and at times made her unwell. But it is not hard to imagine her devoting the same meticulousness to Ahmad that she might apply to preparing for a difficult medical exam. Slowly, he made progress. He learnt to sleep in the dark and without the television blaring in the background to block out the screaming voices in his head. She began to see glimmers of his former self. On top of aiding his physical and mental rehabilitation, Razan also faced a long battle to get Ahmad out of Lebanon. He jumped through endless hoops. They had hoped that he would qualify under a scheme to relocate vulnerable refugees to Europe, but they got nowhere. Ever practical, Razan started exploring other options. As a British citizen, if she married Ahmad she would have the right to bring him to the UK. It wasn't the wedding they had dreamt of, but the couple held a small Islamic ceremony in the Lebanese city of Tripoli in May 2015. Ahmad worked at a hospital in the ravaged city of Homs. File photo (Getty Images) In November, they handed in the necessary papers to the British embassy in Lebanon. There was an anxious wait, cruelly extended by a series of Christmas bank holidays. On 29 December, Ahmad was called in to collect an envelope. Inside his passport was a crisp British visa. He sent Razan a photo. "I just started crying," she says. "I haven't cried in a long time. I think my tears have dried. But I cried and cried and cried. "I have grown so used to things not working out. When the visa came, I wanted to say to him: 'Are you sure it's real?' I was sure that something was going to go wrong." This time, fortune was kind to them. Ahmad booked a ticket to fly to London on 1 January. Razan didn't sleep the night before. Convinced that he would be prevented from leaving Lebanon, she set alarms for 2am and 5am, when he was due to go through airport security and board the plane. But there were no setbacks this time, no twists of fate forcing them back. The reunion at Heathrow airport later that day was beautiful and surreal. Now, he is living with her family in Willesden. It's early days, but he has found a routine. As someone whose professional work includes helping others to quit smoking, Razan is irked by his cigarette habit, but she considers it a future project. Recommended Read more Drone footage reveals destruction of Homs in devastating detail Syria remains a huge part of their lives. Within days of Ahmad's arrival, the two of them were outside Downing Street calling for aid for the besieged town of Madaya. Considering themselves engaged rather than married, they are still sleeping apart. They want to arrange a proper wedding to be held in March. In her spare time, Razan volunteers with a string of charities, and they joke that the guest list will have to stretch to more than 500 names. For the couple, the event will inevitably be bittersweet. The grinding war in Syria will soon reach its fifth anniversary. Between them, they have dozens of friends and family members who are detained, missing or dead. Razan is adamant that their story is not as simple as a tale of adversity with a rosy ending. "It is not just a love story. It really isn't," she insists. "My whole purpose of sharing this story is that there are so many people still in there. Ahmad is so lucky he made it out." But even she can see why their story so touches everyone who encounters it. "It's a bit of happiness despite the pain." For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The leader of an al-Qaeda affiliated terrorist group controlling swathes of war-torn Yemen has reportedly been killed in a US drone strike. Jalal Baleedi was among 12 Islamist militants killed overnight in the south of the country, where the government backed by Saudi-led forces, Houthi rebels, Isis and al-Qaeda are battling for control. One strike killed six men in a car travelling in Ar Rawdah, Shabwa province, a remote desert area where Islamist militants are believed to be operating. The province has been targeted by several drone strikes this year. Yemeni forces regain strategic town from Houthis Another attack hit militants in their car in the coastal Abyan province, killing six occupants said to include Baleedi. Also known as Hamza al-Zinjibari, he was the leader of Ansar al-Sharia, which is an alias for al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). In an interview with the Yemen Times in 2012, he dismissed reports of civilian resistance against his fighters and claimed his groups forced implementation of Sharia Law was honest and fair. We dont fight only with weapons - Allah is always with us, he added. We have nothing to lose; we are ready to sacrifice everything for the sake of Allah. All people know that our battle is against America and the military and its mercenaries who support them. Saudi army artillery fire shells towards Yemen (Getty Images) The US State Department said Ansar al-Sharia was established to attract more followers in an attempt for the group to rebrand itself (and) manipulate people to join its terrorist cause in Yemen. The group has claimed responsibility for a series of attacks killing hundreds of Yemeni soldiers and security forces, as well as suicide bombings, as it continues to fight a bloody insurgency in the countrys ongoing civil war. The group has enabled AQAP to take advantage of the war pitting Houthi militiamen against forces loyal to Saudi-backed President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to grab territory and operate more openly. World news in pictures Show all 50 1 /50 World news in pictures World news in pictures 30 September 2020 Pope Francis prays with priests at the end of a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 29 September 2020 A girl's silhouette is seen from behind a fabric in a tent along a beach by Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 September 2020 A Chinese woman takes a photo of herself in front of a flower display dedicated to frontline health care workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in Beijing, China. China will celebrate national day marking the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st Getty World news in pictures 27 September 2020 The Glass Mountain Inn burns as the Glass Fire moves through the area in St. Helena, California. The fast moving Glass fire has burned over 1,000 acres and has destroyed homes Getty World news in pictures 26 September 2020 A villager along with a child offers prayers next to a carcass of a wild elephant that officials say was electrocuted in Rani Reserve Forest on the outskirts of Guwahati, India AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 September 2020 The casket of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is seen in Statuary Hall in the US Capitol to lie in state in Washington, DC AFP via Getty World news in pictures 24 September 2020 An anti-government protester holds up an image of a pro-democracy commemorative plaque at a rally outside Thailand's parliament in Bangkok, as activists gathered to demand a new constitution AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 September 2020 A whale stranded on a beach in Macquarie Harbour on the rugged west coast of Tasmania, as hundreds of pilot whales have died in a mass stranding in southern Australia despite efforts to save them, with rescuers racing to free a few dozen survivors The Mercury/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 22 September 2020 State civil employee candidates wearing face masks and shields take a test in Surabaya AFP via Getty World news in pictures 21 September 2020 A man sweeps at the Taj Mahal monument on the day of its reopening after being closed for more than six months due to the coronavirus pandemic AP World news in pictures 20 September 2020 A deer looks for food in a burnt area, caused by the Bobcat fire, in Pearblossom, California EPA World news in pictures 19 September 2020 Anti-government protesters hold their mobile phones aloft as they take part in a pro-democracy rally in Bangkok. Tens of thousands of pro-democracy protesters massed close to Thailand's royal palace, in a huge rally calling for PM Prayut Chan-O-Cha to step down and demanding reforms to the monarchy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 September 2020 Supporters of Iraqi Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr maintain social distancing as they attend Friday prayers after the coronavirus disease restrictions were eased, in Kufa mosque, near Najaf, Iraq Reuters World news in pictures 17 September 2020 A protester climbs on The Triumph of the Republic at 'the Place de la Nation' as thousands of protesters take part in a demonstration during a national day strike called by labor unions asking for better salary and against jobs cut in Paris, France EPA World news in pictures 16 September 2020 A fire raging near the Lazzaretto of Ancona in Italy. The huge blaze broke out overnight at the port of Ancona. Firefighters have brought the fire under control but they expected to keep working through the day EPA World news in pictures 15 September 2020 Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny posing for a selfie with his family at Berlin's Charite hospital. In an Instagram post he said he could now breathe independently following his suspected poisoning last month Alexei Navalny/Instagram/AFP World news in pictures 14 September 2020 Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga, former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba and former Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida celebrate after Suga was elected as new head of the ruling party at the Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election in Tokyo Reuters World news in pictures 13 September 2020 A man stands behind a burning barricade during the fifth straight day of protests against police brutality in Bogota AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 September 2020 Police officers block and detain protesters during an opposition rally to protest the official presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus. Daily protests calling for the authoritarian president's resignation are now in their second month AP World news in pictures 11 September 2020 Members of 'Omnium Cultural' celebrate the 20th 'Festa per la llibertat' ('Fiesta for the freedom') to mark the Day of Catalonia in Barcelona. Omnion Cultural fights for the independence of Catalonia EPA World news in pictures 10 September 2020 The Moria refugee camp, two days after Greece's biggest migrant camp, was destroyed by fire. Thousands of asylum seekers on the island of Lesbos are now homeless AFP via Getty World news in pictures 9 September 2020 Pope Francis takes off his face mask as he arrives by car to hold a limited public audience at the San Damaso courtyard in The Vatican AFP via Getty World news in pictures 8 September 2020 A home is engulfed in flames during the "Creek Fire" in the Tollhouse area of California AFP via Getty World news in pictures 7 September 2020 A couple take photos along a sea wall of the waves brought by Typhoon Haishen in the eastern port city of Sokcho AFP via Getty World news in pictures 6 September 2020 Novak Djokovic and a tournament official tends to a linesperson who was struck with a ball by Djokovic during his match against Pablo Carreno Busta at the US Open USA Today Sports/Reuters World news in pictures 5 September 2020 Protesters confront police at the Shrine of Remembrance in Melbourne, Australia, during an anti-lockdown rally AFP via Getty World news in pictures 4 September 2020 A woman looks on from a rooftop as rescue workers dig through the rubble of a damaged building in Beirut. A search began for possible survivors after a scanner detected a pulse one month after the mega-blast at the adjacent port AFP via Getty World news in pictures 3 September 2020 A full moon next to the Virgen del Panecillo statue in Quito, Ecuador EPA World news in pictures 2 September 2020 A Palestinian woman reacts as Israeli forces demolish her animal shed near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank Reuters World news in pictures 1 September 2020 Students protest against presidential elections results in Minsk TUT.BY/AFP via Getty World news in pictures 31 August 2020 The pack rides during the 3rd stage of the Tour de France between Nice and Sisteron AFP via Getty World news in pictures 30 August 2020 Law enforcement officers block a street during a rally of opposition supporters protesting against presidential election results in Minsk, Belarus Reuters World news in pictures 29 August 2020 A woman holding a placard reading "Stop Censorship - Yes to the Freedom of Expression" shouts in a megaphone during a protest against the mandatory wearing of face masks in Paris. Masks, which were already compulsory on public transport, in enclosed public spaces, and outdoors in Paris in certain high-congestion areas around tourist sites, were made mandatory outdoors citywide on August 28 to fight the rising coronavirus infections AFP via Getty World news in pictures 28 August 2020 Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe bows to the national flag at the start of a press conference at the prime minister official residence in Tokyo. Abe announced he will resign over health problems, in a bombshell development that kicks off a leadership contest in the world's third-largest economy AFP via Getty World news in pictures 27 August 2020 Residents take cover behind a tree trunk from rubber bullets fired by South African Police Service (SAPS) in Eldorado Park, near Johannesburg, during a protest by community members after a 16-year old boy was reported dead AFP via Getty World news in pictures 26 August 2020 People scatter rose petals on a statue of Mother Teresa marking her 110th birth anniversary in Ahmedabad AFP via Getty World news in pictures 25 August 2020 An aerial view shows beach-goers standing on salt formations in the Dead Sea near Ein Bokeq, Israel Reuters World news in pictures 24 August 2020 Health workers use a fingertip pulse oximeter and check the body temperature of a fisherwoman inside the Dharavi slum during a door-to-door Covid-19 coronavirus screening in Mumbai AFP via Getty World news in pictures 23 August 2020 People carry an idol of the Hindu god Ganesh, the deity of prosperity, to immerse it off the coast of the Arabian sea during the Ganesh Chaturthi festival in Mumbai, India Reuters World news in pictures 22 August 2020 Firefighters watch as flames from the LNU Lightning Complex fires approach a home in Napa County, California AP World news in pictures 21 August 2020 Members of the Israeli security forces arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during a rally to protest against Israel's plan to annex parts of the occupied West Bank AFP via Getty World news in pictures 20 August 2020 A man pushes his bicycle through a deserted road after prohibitory orders were imposed by district officials for a week to contain the spread of the Covid-19 in Kathmandu AFP via Getty World news in pictures 19 August 2020 A car burns while parked at a residence in Vacaville, California. Dozens of fires are burning out of control throughout Northern California as fire resources are spread thin AFP via Getty World news in pictures 18 August 2020 Students use their mobile phones as flashlights at an anti-government rally at Mahidol University in Nakhon Pathom. Thailand has seen near-daily protests in recent weeks by students demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha AFP via Getty World news in pictures 17 August 2020 Members of the Kayapo tribe block the BR163 highway during a protest outside Novo Progresso in Para state, Brazil. Indigenous protesters blocked a major transamazonian highway to protest against the lack of governmental support during the COVID-19 novel coronavirus pandemic and illegal deforestation in and around their territories AFP via Getty World news in pictures 16 August 2020 Lightning forks over the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge as a storm passes over Oakland AP World news in pictures 15 August 2020 Belarus opposition supporters gather near the Pushkinskaya metro station where Alexander Taraikovsky, a 34-year-old protester died on August 10, during their protest rally in central Minsk AFP via Getty World news in pictures 14 August 2020 AlphaTauri's driver Daniil Kvyat takes part in the second practice session at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmelo near Barcelona ahead of the Spanish F1 Grand Prix AFP via Getty World news in pictures 13 August 2020 Soldiers of the Brazilian Armed Forces during a disinfection of the Christ The Redeemer statue at the Corcovado mountain prior to the opening of the touristic attraction in Rio AFP via Getty World news in pictures 12 August 2020 Young elephant bulls tussle playfully on World Elephant Day at the Amboseli National Park in Kenya AFP via Getty There were unconfirmed reports that Baleedi recently defected to Isis, which is also operating Yemen, and had become the groups new head in the country. AQAP, seen as the deadliest branch of al-Qaeda in the world, has faced ideological competition from the so-called Islamic State, which has siphoned off recruits as it has launched spectacular attacks against Shia Muslim mosques and government targets. The group has claimed credit for several thwarted attacks on US-bound airliners as well as the Charlie Hebdo massacre in Paris, which was carried out by two of its supporters. The US has maintained a drone campaign against the militants, adding to near-daily air strikes by a Saudi-led Gulf Arab coalition, which intervened in the war last March to rout the Iran-backed Houthis and restore Hadi's government. Previous American drone strikes, which normally use Hellfire missiles, have killed some of AQAP's top leaders, including its chief Nasser al-Wuhayshi last June. Additional reporting by Reuters Opinion / Columnist NOW that the opposition monster that rose at the dawn of the 21st Century has in every sense of the word imploded into irreversible self-destruction, it appears Zanu-PF cannot thrive without the once vicious opposing force from Morgan Tsvangirai's MDC.So much accustomed to acute political survival is Zanu-PF that the party seems to no longer have the will and capacity to run its affairs in times of peace, and sadly that includes its mandate to govern the country.Last week, Presidential spokesperson George Charamba denounced what he called "successionists" within the ranks of Zanu-PF in an interview with a local radio station.He described as "little fellas" the people he said wanted to incite unspecified civil servants to work against one of the Vice Presidents, and he warned that the attempt by these people to pretend to be championing the cause of the First Family would soon backfire, and that the "cabal" would soon "come to grief."He denounced the naivety of these "little fellas," whom he said simplistically "think (they) can scale up a political ladder by tweeting," and he also lambasted the same people for manipulating a few headlines through social media in the hope of launching "stupid ambitions."Mr Charamba gave a chilling and revealing warning to these Zanu-PF mischief-makers."But something must give in now. I am having to fend off bad Press from within Zanu-PF not from MDC, but from within Zanu-PF 24/7, from my own fellow party members, yes I am a civil servant, but I am Zanu-PF."So we have the President's spokesperson working day and night to fend off bad Press against the governing party, from within the same governing party, and targeted at the very same party; like a big snake biting its own tail, and trying to fend off the effort at the same time.Ordinarily the State President's spokesperson must have little to do with his boss' party affairs, where another spokesperson is usually mandated to preoccupy him or herself with such matters.In this particular case the spokesperson publicly gives a disclaimer by declaring membership to the party in question, something perhaps not exactly unusual for a person appointed to a position such as Charamba's.It would be news if the man belonged to an opposition party, wouldn't it?Technically, Charamba is expected to be stately in behaviour, feigning apoliticalness, and to represent Mugabe the statesman, not the politician.Clearly it is hard for Charamba to feign neutrality when politicians from President Mugabe's party start throwing spanners in the executive duties of their own party leader, like deriding any of his deputies, and/or frowning upon their efforts to execute their assigned duties.Since Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa was appointed to his current position in ZANU-PF and in Government, there have been unprecedented public efforts to demean and belittle the appointment itself by a section from within the party, as was done by Professor Jonathan Moyo when he told the BBC's Hard Talk programme that the appointment only amounted to the VP being President Mugabe's personal "assistant."Zimbabwe has had the Vice President's post since 1987, and every thinking citizen knows the difference between the country's number two leader, and the Head of State's personal assistant.It is hard to confuse the two, even from the viewpoint of complex semantics from a renowned academician.Many people read disdain and intentional confrontation in the semantics used by Prof Moyo then, and that included the media in Zimbabwe.Although Charamba did not put any names to the people he attacked in his interview, there was one man who was clearly irked by Charamba's utterances, and he responded rather furiously through Twitter.This man was none other than Prof Moyo, fast-establishing himself as the war man against one of President's Mugabe's top most appointees.Charamba seems convinced that a price will be paid for this.The two men have worked together in the past, for better and for worse, and this is not the first time Moyo has attacked Charamba publicly.Both men were strong advocates for the 2013 elections, when a force within Zanu-PF led by the then Vice President Joice Mujuru was reportedly opposed to the election, arguing for a continued coalition governance with Tsvangirai's MDC.The two men fronted the media effort that thrashed the so-called "moderates" from Zanu-PF, and for their sterling efforts they earned themselves the tag "hardliners," coming mainly from an incensed West, through its pliant civic organisations and private media.The election happened, the landslide victory happened, and when the Mujuru cabal hijacked the subsequent election victory to influence the structures of the new government, Prof Moyo and Mr Charamba again led the effort to clip VP Mujuru's wings.At first the efforts were clandestine and subtle, but as 2014 progressed the gloves were off, and we saw the dramatic fall of VP Mujuru and her supporters and cronies.Prof Moyo has in the past clashed with a number of Vice Presidents, and he has been accused of "insubordination," and also of "destroying the party from within."Notably, he clashed with the late Joseph Msika and also John Nkomo, and of course he also publicly helped to fight Joice Mujuru.Prof Moyo was not yet in Government when Vice President Nkomo died in 1999.It is ironic that although Prof Moyo's expulsion from Zanu-PF in February 2005 was officially because of his decision to run as an independent in Tsholotsho, it was widely held that the party decision to disqualify him for the candidacy through a women quota system was punishment for his perceived support for a Mnangagwa vice presidency ahead of Joice Mujuru the previous year.The irony is that Prof Moyo now portrays himself as a bitter opponent of the man whose bidding he so frantically fronted in 2004, and there is a lot of speculation on the reasons for his somersaulting behaviour, or is it the fall out?Well, flip-flopping is not new for Prof Moyo. When he initially coined the concept of "Generation 40" in 2011, he was bitterly opposed to the continued presidency of Mugabe.Today there is a shadowy outfit reportedly going by the same name, and supposedly led by him, which in public unequivocally supports the 2018 candidacy of President Mugabe, while at the same time it is vigorously pursuing the succession politics of the same man in the run up to the same election - vehemently declaring who should, and who should not succeed the party leader.Prof Moyo is talented at agenda setting, as he did with the media part of the revolution during the land reform programme, and with AIPPA as well.His inaugural efforts with the 2000 constitution-making process flopped with the NO vote, but not before the man had established himself as a political guru on the national scene.His IMPI project introduced after he was reappointed Information Minister in 2013 backfired drastically, but Zim-Asset has also been linked to his hand.Currently the man is pursuing what he calls STEM - a promotion of natural sciences in our higher education sector, and he has this ability to make everyone run with his agenda.It is not advisable to personally run with Jonathan Moyo in politics. The man has had too many expendables in his political adventures. When he gets expended himself he has a way of bouncing back, but it is not always the case with those he drags along, like some of his many appointees in the public media, many of whom have ended up worse off than they were before they were elevated by the man.If it is true that there is a rival team to Prof Moyo's perceived shadowy group within Zanu-PF, and the two groups have gone to the extent of wearing rival promotional regalia, then one can justifiably rue the demise of the opposition in Zimbabwe.Zanu-PF is so used to being opposed that it has had to create an artificial but dangerous opposition from within its own ranks, all at the expense of national duty.While Charamba is trying to rein in renegades from his party, the reality on the ground is that mediocrity within some in government leadership has reached alarming levels, and that probably explains why one minister recently made headlines for saying all we need to do in order to industrialise is "pray".Zanu-PF now knows that political dramas can be exciting enough to keep people's focus from their challenges, and as such the party has naturally created an opposition to itself.If by a miracle the country were suddenly to have a rising wave of genuine opposition, the quarrelling forces within Zanu-PF would suddenly put aside their difference and regroup for political survival.But must not the party take peaceful times as an opportunity to focus on developmental issues?This is what the government must be doing as opposed to creating suspense and uncertainty right in the face of an expectant population.This writer desperately hopes for a better Zimbabwe, and takes exception to the treacherous trend of factional politicking within the ruling party.Zanu-PF cannot take people for granted on the mere basis that its power prospects are not under threat.The greatest threat to Zanu-PF's future has never been the opposition. It has always been the people of Zimbabwe. Revolutionaries know this.Organised by the structures of Zanu-PF, the people can demand their right to be governed well.Zimbabwe we are one and together we will overcome. It is homeland or death!-------REASON WAFAWAROVA is a political writer based in SYDNEY, Australia For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Two teenagers have been jailed for kidnapping a Palestinian boy and burning him to death in Jerusalem. The murder of 16-year-old Mohammed Abu Khdeir sparked says of riots in East Jerusalem and the West Bank in July 2014 as tensions reached boiling point and Israel prepared to start a new bombing campaign in Gaza. Two of his killers were sentenced today in Jerusalem District Court but cannot be named because of reporting restrictions. The funeral of Mohammed Abu Khdeir in East Jerusalem in 2014, where there were violent clashes (Getty Images) A 17-year-old boy was jailed for life and a 16-year-old received a 21-year sentence, which Abu Khdeir's family are reportedly planning to appeal. The third convicted murderer, accused mastermind Yosef Haim Ben David, was not sentenced as a plea of insanity continues to be considered. Judges, who heard the case behind closed doors because the convicts were juveniles, dismissed claims by the two teenage boys that they did not kill Abu Khdeir and that Ben David committed the murder alone. Uri Korb, the state prosecutor, told reporters that the punishment reflected the barbaric act that marked a moral nadir. But Hussein Abu Khdeir, the victim's father, told Israel Radio he would appeal the shorter sentence to the Supreme Court. Video: CCTV footage of suspects Abu Khdeir was waiting for friends outside a mosque during morning prayers in Shuafat, East Jerusalem, when he was abducted on 2 July 2014. Surveillance footage showed him being dragged into a car that drove into Jerusalem Forest, where his burned body was discovered just an hour later. An autopsy showed he had soot in his lungs, indicating he had been burned alive after being beaten and forced to swallow petrol by his attackers. The defendants confessed to carrying out the murder as a brutal act of revenge for the killing of three Jewish teenagers in the West Bank, who had been buried the previous day. In pictures: Israeli/Palestinian clashes Show all 10 1 /10 In pictures: Israeli/Palestinian clashes In pictures: Israeli/Palestinian clashes Israeli/Palestinian clashes Israeli security and a Palestinian stone thrower clash in the Shuafat neighborhood in Israeli-annexed Arab East Jerusalem Getty Images In pictures: Israeli/Palestinian clashes Israeli/Palestinian clashes A Palestinian protestor directs fireworks toward Israeli police during clashes in Shuafat neighborhood in Israeli-annexed Arab East Jerusalem Getty Images In pictures: Israeli/Palestinian clashes Israeli/Palestinian clashes An Israeli police officer during clashes with Palestinians in Jerusalem AP In pictures: Israeli/Palestinian clashes Israeli/Palestinian clashes Masked Palestinian protestors take cover as they throw stones toward Israeli police during clashes in Shuafat neighborhood in Israeli-annexed Arab East Jerusalem Getty Images In pictures: Israeli/Palestinian clashes Israeli/Palestinian clashes Israeli army soldiers take positions during clashes with Palestinians in an early morning in the West Bank city of Jenin AP In pictures: Israeli/Palestinian clashes Israeli/Palestinian clashes Palestinians set tyres ablaze during clashes with Israeli police in Shuafat, an Arab suburb of Jerusalem July 2, 2014. REUTERS/Ammar Awad In pictures: Israeli/Palestinian clashes Israeli/Palestinian clashes A Palestinian argues with Israeli border police in Jerusalem on Wednesday, July 2, 2014. AP/Mahmoud Illean In pictures: Israeli/Palestinian clashes Israeli/Palestinian clashes Palestinian protestors gather behind a barrier as they throw stones toward Israeli police during clashes in the Shuafat neighborhood in Israeli-annexed Arab East Jerusalem, on July 2, 2014, after a Palestinian teenager was kidnapped and killed in an apparent act of revenge for the murder by militants of three Israeli youths. AHMAD GHARABLI/AFP/Getty Images In pictures: Israeli/Palestinian clashes Israeli/Palestinian clashes Palestinian youths clash with Israeli Police near to the house of murdered Palestinian teenager Mohammed Abu Khdair, in Jerusalem on July 2, 2014 in Jerusalem, Israel. Ilia Yefimovich/Getty Images In pictures: Israeli/Palestinian clashes Israeli/Palestinian clashes Masked Palestinian protesters throw stones toward Israeli police during clashes in the Shuafat neighborhood in Israeli-annexed Arab East Jerusalem Getty Images Ben David called out the names of murdered Israelis, including Eyal Yifrah and Naftali Fraenkel as the boys beat Abu Khdeir and hit him in the head with a metal bar, the court heard. The Israeli Defence Ministry recognized Abu Khdeir as a victim of hostile action, granting his family the same compensation rights as the victims of Palestinian attacks. His mother, Suha, had called on authorities to treat them the way they treat us, adding: They need to demolish their homes and round them up, the way they do it to our children. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu contacted the family to pledge that the culprits would be prosecuted, calling the murder despicable. Additional reporting by AP For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Women were banned from entering a Starbucks in Saudi Arabia after a gender barrier wall collapsed, it has been claimed. A sign posted on the window of a Riyadh store of the coffee chain, in Arabic and English, reportedly read: Please no entry for ladies only. Send your driver to order. Thank you. One woman who said she was refused service at the cafe wrote on Twitter: Starbucks store in Riyadh refused to serve me just because Im a woman and asked me to send a man instead. Starbucks denied that the store had a ban on women. According to the Arabic language daily newspaper Al Weaam, the countrys religious police the Committee for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice ordered the coffee shops management to ban women from the establishment after it found that a segregation wall inside the store had given way during a routine inspection around a market in the capital city. According to Al Weaam, the stores management told the police that the wall had regularly collapsed because of customer stampedes. Gender segregation is widespread in Saudi Arabia, with women requiring male permission to work, travel, study, marry or even access healthcare. They are also unable to drive or open a bank account, and must be accompanied by a male chaperone on shopping trips. A spokeswoman for Starbucks told The Independent that the store was currently being renovated to construct a wall to accommodate single people and families, in accordance with local customs, due to be completed within the next two weeks. 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Show all 10 1 /10 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In October 2014, three lawyers, Dr Abdulrahman al-Subaihi, Bander al-Nogaithan and Abdulrahman al-Rumaih , were sentenced to up to eight years in prison for using Twitter to criticize the Ministry of Justice. AFP/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2015, Yemens Sunni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi was forced into exile after a Shia-led insurgency. A Saudi Arabia-led coalition has responded with air strikes in order to reinstate Mr Hadi. It has since been accused of committing war crimes in the country. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Women who supported the Women2Drive campaign, launched in 2011 to challenge the ban on women driving vehicles, faced harassment and intimidation by the authorities. The government warned that women drivers would face arrest. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Members of the Kingdoms Shia minority, most of whom live in the oil-rich Eastern Province, continue to face discrimination that limits their access to government services and employment. Activists have received death sentences or long prison terms for their alleged participation in protests in 2011 and 2012. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses All public gatherings are prohibited under an order issued by the Interior Ministry in 2011. Those defy the ban face arrest, prosecution and imprisonment on charges such as inciting people against the authorities. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses In March 2014, the Interior Ministry stated that authorities had deported over 370,000 foreign migrants and that 18,000 others were in detention. Thousands of workers were returned to Somalia and other states where they were at risk of human rights abuses, with large numbers also returned to Yemen, in order to open more jobs to Saudi Arabians. Many migrants reported that prior to their deportation they had been packed into overcrowded makeshift detention facilities where they received little food and water and were abused by guards. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses The Saudi Arabian authorities continue to deny access to independent human rights organisations like Amnesty International, and they have been known to take punitive action, including through the courts, against activists and family members of victims who contact Amnesty. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Raif Badawi was sentenced to 1000 lashes and 10 years in prison for using his liberal blog to criticise Saudi Arabias clerics. He has already received 50 lashes, which have reportedly left him in poor health. Carsten Koall/Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Dawood al-Marhoon was arrested aged 17 for participating in an anti-government protest. After refusing to spy on his fellow protestors, he was tortured and forced to sign a blank document that would later contain his confession. At Dawoods trial, the prosecution requested death by crucifixion while refusing him a lawyer. Getty Images 10 examples of Saudi Arabia's human rights abuses Ali Mohammed al-Nimr was arrested in 2012 aged either 16 or 17 for participating in protests during the Arab spring. His sentence includes beheading and crucifixion. The international community has spoken out against the punishment and has called on Saudi Arabia to stop. He is the nephew of a prominent government dissident. Getty In a statement, the company said: Starbucks in Saudi Arabia adheres to the local customs by providing separate entrances for families as well as single people. All our stores provide equal amenities, service, menu and seating to men, women and families. We are working as quickly as possible as we refurbish our Jarir store, so that we may again welcome all customers in accordance with local customs. In December, women in Saudi Arabia voted in municipal elections for the first time in the countrys history. Nearly 1,000 females also stood as candidates in the elections. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A Saudi military spokesman has said the kingdom is ready to send ground troops to fight Isis in Syria if the US-led coalition agrees. Brigardier General Ahmed Asiri told Dubai-based TV channel Al-Arabiya the country will commit ground troops to the conflict for the first time if its coalition partners agree during an upcoming meeting in Brussels. Saudi Arabia has taken part in the coalition's air strikes since the US began the air assault on Isis in September 2014 Brig. Gen Asiri said: "If there was a consensus from the leadership of the coalition, the kingdom is willing to participate in these efforts because we believe that aerial operations are not the ideal solution and there must be a twin mix of aerial and ground operations". He said they were determined to "fight and defeat Daesh (Isis)" but did not say how many troops his country would send. The kingdom is currently embroiled in the conflict against Iran-allied Houthi rebels in Yemen which is said to be putting strain on the Saudi economy - which has already been battered in a fall in the oil price. In December last year, the Yemen campaign drew criticism from Human Rights Watch who said the war could be breaking international law. Government troops walk past Isis flag in recaptured Syrian town (Getty Images) Saudi Arabia has raised eyebrows for its support of Jabhat al-Nusra, another jihadist group in the region fighting against both Isis and the Assad government - which is backed by Russia and Iran. German intelligence agencies suggested the kingdom was destabilising the entire region with the interventionalist policies pursued by the young branches of the royal family. Asked about the Saudi offer at a briefing, US State Department spokesman John Kirby said while the coalition was generally supportive of members contributing more to the struggle against the terror group he did not want to comment on a proposal he had not seen. In pictures: The rise of Isis Show all 74 1 /74 In pictures: The rise of Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters of the Islamic State wave the group's flag from a damaged display of a government fighter jet following the battle for the Tabqa air base, in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from Islamic State group sit on their tank during a parade in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from the Islamic State group pray at the Tabqa air base after capturing it from the Syrian government in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Fighters from extremist Islamic State group parade in Raqqa, Syria AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping A video uploaded to social networks shows men in underwear being marched barefoot along a desert road before being allegedly executed by Isis Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping Haruna Yukawa after his capture by Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis kidnapping Khalinda Sharaf Ajour, a Yazidi, says two of her daughters were captured by Isis militants Washington Post In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Spokesperson for Isis Vice News via Youtube In pictures: The rise of Isis A pro-Isis leaflet A pro-Isis leaflet handed out on Oxford Street In London Ghaffar Hussain In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters Isis Jihadists burn their passports In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid A man collecting aid administered by Isis in Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid A woman collecting aid administered by Isis in Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis controls Syrian Aid Local civilians queue for aid administered by Isis. Since it declared a caliphate the group has increasingly been delivering services such as healthcare, and distributing aid and free fuel In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces detain men suspected of being militants of the Isis group in Diyala province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Mourners carry the coffin of a Shi'ite volunteer from the brigades of peace, who joined the Iraqi army and was killed during clashes with militants of the Isis group in Samarra, during his funeral in Najaf In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi Shiite Turkmen family fleeing the violence in the Iraqi city of Tal Afar, west of Mosul, arrives at a refugee camp on the outskirts of Arbil, in Iraq's Kurdistan region In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi A photograph made from a video by the jihadist affiliated group Furqan Media via their twitter account allegedly showing Isis leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi delivering a sermon during Friday prayers at a mosque in Mosul. Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi declared an Islamist caliphate in the territory under the group's control in Iraq and Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq Shiite's Al-Qubba Husseiniya mosque explodes in Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq Smoke and debris go up in the air as Shiite's Al-Qubba Husseiniya mosque explodes in Mosul. Images posted online show that Islamic extremists have destroyed at least 10 ancient shrines and Shiite mosques in territory - the city of Mosul and the town of Tal Afar - they have seized in northern Iraq in recent weeks In pictures: The rise of Isis Islamic extremists destroying mosques in Iraq A bulldozer destroys Sunni's Ahmed al-Rifai shrine and tomb in Mahlabiya district outside of Tal Afar In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces celebrate after clashes with followers of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi, in front of his home in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi at his home after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces arrest a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis A vehicle burns in front of a home of a follower of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi after clashes with his followers in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi woman holds her exhausted son as over 1000 Iraqis who have fled fighting in and around the city of Mosul and Tal Afar wait at a Kurdish checkpoint in the hopes of entering a temporary displacement camp in Khazair In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees Displaced Iraqi women hold pots as they queue to receive food during the first day of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, at an encampment for displaced Iraqis who fled from Mosul and other towns, in the Khazer area outside Irbil, north Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria A militant Islamist fighter waving a flag, cheers as he takes part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa. The fighters held the parade to celebrate their declaration of an Islamic "caliphate" after the group captured territory in neighbouring Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters wave flags as they take part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa province Reuters In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters travel in a vehicle as they take part in a military parade along the streets of Syria's northern Raqqa province In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Fighters from the Isis group during a parade with a missile in Raqqa, Syria. Militants from an al-Qaida splinter group held a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria, displaying U.S.-made Humvees, heavy machine guns, and missiles captured from the Iraqi army for the first time since taking over large parts of the Iraq-Syria border In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters during a parade in Raqqa, Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Fighters from the Isis group during a parade in Raqqa, Syria. Militants from the splinter group held a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria, displaying U.S.-made Humvees, heavy machine guns, and missiles captured from the Iraqi army for the first time since taking over large parts of the Iraq-Syria border In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters hold a military parade in their stronghold in northeastern Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria Isis fighters during a parade in Raqqa, Syria In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Syria A member loyal to the Isis waves an Isis flag in Raqqa In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi anti-government gunmen from Sunni tribes in the western Anbar province march during a protest in Ramadi, west of Baghdad. The United Nations warned that Iraq is at a "crossroads" and appealed for restraint, as a bloody four-day wave of violence killed 195 people. The violence is the deadliest so far linked to demonstrations that broke out in Sunni areas of the Shiite-majority country more than four months ago, raising fears of a return to all-out sectarian conflict In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi security forces hold up a flag of the Isis group they captured during an operation to regain control of Dallah Abbas north of Baqouba, the capital of Iraq's Diyala province, 35 miles (60 kilometers) northeast of Baghdad In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq Isis fighters parade in the northern city of Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Volunteers, who have joined the Iraqi army to fight against the predominantly Sunni militants from the radical Isis group, demonstrate their skills during a graduation ceremony after completing their field training in Najaf In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Kurdish Peshmerga troops fire a cannon during clashes with militants of the Isis group in Jalawla, Diyala province In pictures: The rise of Isis Lieutenant General Qassem Atta speaks during a press conference Iraqi Prime Minister's security spokesman, Lieutenant General Qassem Atta speaks during a press conference about the latest military development in Iraq, in the capital Baghdad. Iraqi forces pressed a campaign to retake militant-held Tikrit, clashing with jihadist-led Sunni militants nearby and pounding positions inside the city with air strikes in their biggest counter-offensive so far In pictures: The rise of Isis A police station building destroyed by Isis fighters An exterior view of a police station building destroyed by gunmen in Mosul city, northern Iraq. Iraq's new parliament is expected to convene to start the process of setting up a new government, despite deepening political rifts and an ongoing Islamist-led insurgency. Iraqi President Jalal Talabani issued a decree inviting the new House of Representatives to meet and form a new government In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq Smoke billows from an area controlled by the Isis between the Iraqi towns of Naojul and Tuz Khurmatu, both located north of the capital Baghdad, as Iraqi Kurdish Peshmerga forces take part in an operation to repel the Sunni militants In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An elderly Iraqi woman is helped into a temporary displacement camp for Iraqis caught-up in the fighting in and around the city of Mosul in Khazair In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi Christian woman fleeing the violence in the village of Qaraqush, about 30 kms east of the northern province of Nineveh, cries upon her arrival at a community center in the Kurdish city of Arbil in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraqi refugees An Iraqi woman, who fled with her family from the northern city of Mosul, prays with a copy of the Quran AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Isis fighters in Iraq The body of an Isis militant killed during clashes with Iraqi security forces on the outskirts of the city of Samarra Reuters In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Iraqi civilians inspect the damage at a market after an air strike by the Iraqi army in central Mosul EPA In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Members of the Al-Abbas brigades, who volunteered to protect the Shiite Muslim holy sites in Karbala against Sunni militants fighting the Baghdad government, parade in the streets of the city AP In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis Shia tribesmen gather in Baghdad to take up arms against Sunni insurgents marching on the capital. Thousands have volunteered to bolster defences AFP/Getty In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq crisis A van carrying volunteers joining Iraqi security forces against Jihadist militants. Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki announced the Iraqi government would arm and equip civilians who volunteered to fight AFP/Getty In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters of the Isis group parade in a commandeered Iraqi security forces armored vehicle down a main road at the northern city of Mosul In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq An Islamist fighter, identified as Abu Muthanna al-Yemeni from Britain (R), speaks in this still image taken undated video shot at an unknown location and uploaded to a social media website. Five Islamist fighters identified as Australian and British nationals have called on Muslims to join the wars in Syria and Iraq, in the new video released by the Isis In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Al-Qaida inspired militants stand with captured Iraqi Army Humvee at a checkpoint belonging to Iraqi Army outside Beiji refinery some 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of Baghdad. The fighting at Beiji comes as Iraq has asked the U.S. for airstrikes targeting the militants from the Isis group. While U.S. President Barack Obama has not fully ruled out the possibility of launching airstrikes, such action is not imminent in part because intelligence agencies have been unable to identify clear targets on the ground, officials said In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants attacked Iraq's main oil refinein Baiji as they pressed an offensive that has seen them capture swathes of territory, a manager and a refinery employee said In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants from the Isis group parading with their weapons in the northern city of Baiji in the in Salaheddin province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq A smoke rises after an attack by Isis militants on the country's largest oil refinery in Beiji, some 250 kilometers (155 miles) north of the capital, Baghdad. Iraqi security forces battled insurgents targeting the country's main oil refinery and said they regained partial control of a city near the Syrian border, trying to blunt an offensive by Sunni militants who diplomats fear may have also seized some 100 foreign workers In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group stand next to captured vehicles left behind by Iraqi security forces at an unknown location in the Salaheddin province. For militant groups, the fight over public perception can be even more important than actual combat, turning military losses into propaganda victories and battlefield successes into powerful tools to build support for the cause In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq An injured fighter (C) from the Isis group after a battle with Iraqi soldiers at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis aiming at advancing Iraqi troops at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis group taking position at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Fighters from the Isis group inspecting vehicles of the Iraqi army after they were seized at an undisclosed location near the border between Syria and Iraq In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq One Iraqi captive, a corporal, is reluctant to say the slogan, and has to be shouted at repeatedly before he obeys Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Iraqi captives held by the extremists Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Iraqi captives held by the extremists Sky News In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group force captured Iraqi security forces members to the transport In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group transporting dozens of captured Iraqi security forces members to an unknown location in the Salaheddin province ahead of executing them In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq A major offensive spearheaded by Isis but also involving supporters of executed dictator Saddam Hussein has overrun all of one province and chunks of three others In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Militants of the Isis group executing dozens of captured Iraqi security forces members at an unknown location in the Salaheddin province In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis militants taking position at a Iraqi border post on the Syrian-Iraqi border between the Iraqi Nineveh province and the Syrian town of Al-Hasakah In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis rebels show their flag after seizing an army post AFP/Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Isis militants waving an Islamist flag after the seizure of an Iraqi army checkpoint in Salahuddin Getty Images In pictures: The rise of Isis Iraq Demonstrators chant slogans as they carry al-Qaida flags in front of the provincial government headquarters in Mosul, 225 miles (360 kilometers) northwest of Baghdad. In the week since it captured Iraq's second-largest city, Mosul, a Muslim extremist group has tried to win over residents and has stopped short of widely enforcing its strict brand of Islamic law, residents say. Churches remain unharmed and street cleaners are back at work He said: "I would not want to comment specifically on this until we've had a chance to review it". The United States is scheduled to convene a meeting of defence ministers from countries fighting Isis in Brussels this month. The announcement comes just a day after the UN-led peace talks in Geneva were "temporarily halted" after a major advance by pro-Assad forces disrupted a vital supply line for rebels north of Aleppo. The advance - backed by Russian air strikes - saw the army break a three year siege of two government controlled towns in the area - Nubul and Zahraa - which were previously surrounded by opposition territory. Additional reporting by agencies For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} International leaders pledges of $10bn (6.9bn) for Syrian refugees has been overshadowed by collapsed peace talks and a major escalation of fighting on the ground. The ending of the negotiations in Geneva and a Russian-backed regime offensive to encircle Aleppo raised the spectre of war without end and a continuous stream of refugees in the future. Recommended Read more Syrian peace talks halted as Assad forces advance on Aleppo Diplomatic relations between Russia and Turkey, backers respectively of the regime and rebels in Syrias civil war, also worsened with Moscow accusing Turkey of preparing to invade Syria and the Turkish Prime Minister, Ahmet Davutoglu, claiming that Russian air strikes were paving the way for a siege designed to starve Aleppo, once the most populous city in Syria. Mr Davutoglu had declared in the morning: My mind is not now in London, but on our border, how to relocate these new people coming from Syria; 70,000 people in the camps in north Aleppo are moving towards Turkey, 300,000 people are ready to move towards Turkey. Regime tanks made further advances in the course of 4 February, lifting the siege of two Shia villages by the Sunni rebels and moving towards the main route to the Turkish border. According to reports, 100 rebel fighters and 60 regime troops died during the offensive. As the donor conference closed in the evening, the Turkish Prime Minister said: Another 10,000 refugees have left Aleppo and headed for Turkey while we have been there. Russian planes have been carrying out an air bombardment of Aleppo for the last three days. Civilians, schools and hospitals have been hit. The humanitarian corridor from Aleppo to Turkey is now under invasion of regime forces with the support of Russian warplanes. The plan by the regime and the Russians, Mr Davutoglusaid, was to replicate the siege of the town of Madaya, where dozens of people starved to death, in Aleppo. The news from Geneva has been negative. If the humanitarian corridor gets cut, if the attacks continue, the opposition may not ever return to Geneva. David Cameron was determined to send a positive message from a summit of 60 countries, 30 world leaders and 90 humanitarian groups. The money pledged, he said, will save lives, will give people the chance of a future. That, I think, is a good and vitally days work. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} A teenage girl who was among the first Syrian refugees brought to the UK has launched an impassioned plea for world leaders to ensure childrens futures are not ruined by the countrys civil war. Muzoon Almellehan has been dubbed the Malala of Syria for her campaign to keep girls in school and was introduced by her friend at the Supporting Syria conference. The 17-year-old began by thanking the UK for welcoming her family and allowing them to have a normal life again where they have been resettled in Newcastle. Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai (left) and 17-year-old Syrian refugee Muzoon Almellehan at the 'Supporting Syria and the Region' conference in London on 4 FEbruary (PA) She is attending a local school and hopes to study to be a journalist in the future, but fears for hundreds of thousands of other Syrian children with no access to education. This was Muzoons message to the world: "Girls must get education. Their parents thought they were protecting their daughters but education is the best protection for girls. If a mother is not educated, how can she help her children? If young people are not educated who will rebuild the country? We need education because Syria needs us. Syria needs engineers and teachers and doctors and journalists. Without us who will bring peace? I share the same message as my friend Malala: Education is power. Education is the future. Education makes us who we want to be." The teenager said that although she and her peers have been dubbed a lost generation, they have not lost their love of learning, their dreams for the future or, most importantly, hope. Syria will never be the same as before the war I hope it can be better, Muzoon said. Will you help us? Will you fund the education we need to make our hopes and dreams come true? Abdallah, 12, and Dania, 10, whose school was bombed in Aleppo, sit in a mock up of a destroyed classroom, outside the Houses of Parliament in London (EPA) Her speech in London was watched by dignitaries from around the world, including British MPs, United Nations officials and members of royalty from several Arab states. Opening the conference, David Cameron called on his fellow world leaders to increase aid for Syrian refugees amid fears that a fresh onslaught by President Bashar Assad's forces will drive a fresh exodus from the country. Pledging an additional 1.2 billion of UK aid over the next four years, the Prime Minister said there was a critical shortfall in life-saving aid that is fatally holding back our humanitarian efforts. After years of conflict we are witnessing a desperate movement of humanity as hundreds of thousands of Syrians fear they have no alternative than to put their lives in the hands of evil people-smugglers in search of a future, he added. Mr Camerons speech was followed by national pledges amounting to billions of pounds, but he was harshly criticised on Twitter for calling on a new approach to the humanitarian crisis in Syria. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon speaks as Prime Minister David Cameron (left) looks on during the 'Supporting Syria and the Region' conference in London. (PA) Will we be accepting more refugees? Or stop selling arms to Saudi? one person asked, while others accused the Prime Minister of hypocrisy as the RAF continues air strikes in Syria. Muzoon, whose family was resettled from a Jordanian refugee camp as part of Britains scheme to take 20,000 refugees over five years, said young Syrians were needed to rebuild their country. One day, when I am a journalist, there is a story I want to write, she said. I want to write the story of how all the Syrian children came home to lift up their country. I hope that story starts today . She grew up in Daraa, a city outside of Damascus that was besieged by Syrian government forces after pro-democracy protests in the Arab Spring, before being overrun by rebels and Islamists in February 2014. Her parents took her, her two brothers and sister to Jordan when fighting intensified and they lived in camps there for three years. In pictures: Syria conflict Show all 40 1 /40 In pictures: Syria conflict In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrians carry children amid debris following a air strike by government forces in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian man carries a girl on a street covered with dust following a air strike by government forces in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrians react as they stand amid debris following a air strike by government forces in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian man carries a girl amid debris following a air strike by government forces in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis An injured Syrian man walks out from the rubble of a destroyed building following a air strike by government forces in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian woman makes her way through debris following a air strike by government forces in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis People stand on the rubble of collapsed buildings at a site hit by what activists said was a barrel bomb dropped by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad, in the Al-Fardous neighbourhood of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrian residents stand amid the rubble of destroyed buildings In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian resident grasps a mattress amid rubble in the al-Firdous neighborhood of the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A view taken from Tel al-Sawadi shows a large explosion allegedly at the Wadi Deif Syrian army base in northwestern Idlib on May 14, 2014, which opposition fighters have been trying to capture for more than a year. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Islamist rebels detonated explosives planted in a tunnel under the army base killing or injuring dozens. AFP In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A bullet-riddled parking sign stands amid debris in a deserted street leading into the old city of Homs In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A general view shows abandoned buildings on a deserted square in the old city of Homs after Syrian government forces regained control of rebel-controlled areas In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A military vehicle that belongs to the Free Syrian Army is seen in Al-Amariya district in Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A mosque is pictured through shattered glass in the old city of Homs, as rebel fighters withdrew from the city centre in line with a negotiated withdrawal deal with the government after having held out under tight siege for nearly two years In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Buses carrying Free Syrian Army fighters leaving Homs. Exhausted and worn out from a year-long siege, hundreds of Syrian rebels left their last remaining bastions in the heart of the central city of Homs under a cease-fire deal with government forces. The exit of some 1,200 fighters and civilians will mark a de facto end of the rebellion in the battered city, which was one of the first places to rise up against President Bashar Assad's rule, earning it the nickname of "capital of the revolution" In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrian government forces hold up a portrait of President Bashar al-Assad (L) while others raise the national flag on top of a pole in the old city of Homs In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad run through Aleppo's Bustan al-Qasr crossing after their release by rebels. They were freed as part of a larger deal which saw the last remaining Syrian rebels in central Homs city evacuate their positions and free captives in several locations in northern Syria In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian woman and two children walk past heavily damaged buildings in the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A man carries a wounded girl following a reported bombardment with explosive-packed "barrel bombs" by Syrian government forces in the al-Mowasalat neighborhood of the northern Syrian city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A wounded man sits as he is treated at a makeshift hospital following a reported bombardment with explosive-packed "barrel bombs" by Syrian government forces in the al-Sakhour district of the northern city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Debris rises in what Free Syrian Army fighters and Islamic rebels said was an operation to strike Al-Sahaba checkpoint, which is considered a gateway to Al-Dayf valley, and remove forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar Al-Assad in Maarat Al-Nouman, Idlib province In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Men try to put out fire at a site hit by what activists said was an air strike by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the town of Azaz, north of Aleppo, near the border with Turkey In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Civil Defence members try to put out fire In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Survivors react at a site hit by what activists said was an air strike by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the town of Azaz, north of Aleppo, near the border with Turkey In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Residents queue as they wait to receive food aid distributed by the UNRWA at the Palestinian refugee camp of Yarmouk, south of Damascus In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Belongings of Syrian rebels inside a chapel at Crac des Chevaliers, the world's best preserved medieval Crusader castle in Syria. The village was destroyed in fighting between the government and rebel forces while the castle, listed as a UNESCO world heritage site, also has been damaged over the past two years In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Hosen Sabah, a 16-year-old student is comforted by his mother at a hospital in Damascus. Nosen was wounded by a mortar outside his school, while 14 other students were killed and over 80 wounded In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Free Syrian Army fighter works on a locally made launcher before firing it towards forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar Al-Assad in Mork town In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrian policemen and citizens inspecting the site of a car bomb at the entrance of Moadhamiyet al-Sham neighborhood in rural Damascus. According to Syria's Arab News Agency (SANA), a car bomb explosion has gone off in the countryside of Damascus and initial information say there are casualties, where a car rigged with explosions was remotely detonated at the entrance of Moadhamiyet al-Sham neighborhood in rural Damascus during engineering units it was trying to dismantled it In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Opposition fighters carrying a rocket launcher during clashes against government forces in the Sheikh Lutfi area, west of the airport in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian man helps a woman to make her way through debris following reported air strikes by government forces in the Halak neighbourhood in northeastern Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian man reacts as he carries the body of injured boy following reported air strikes by government forces in the Halak neighbourhood in northeastern Aleppo. According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, at least 33 civilians were killed in the attack In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrian rescue workers carry the body of a woman following reported air strikes by government forces in the Halak neighbourhood in northeastern Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A Syrian woman walks past the burning wreckage of a car following reported air strikes by government forces in the Halak neighbourhood in northeastern Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A man and two children run to a safer place following reported air strikes by government forces in the Halak neighbourhood in northeastern Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A man holds an injured child after, according to activists, two barrel bombs were thrown by forces loyal to Syria's president Bashar Al-Assad in Hullok neighbourhood of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis An injured man talks on a walkie-talkie after, according to activists, two barrel bombs were thrown by forces loyal to Syria's president Bashar Al-Assad in Hellok neighbourhood of Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis A man walks inside a mosque damaged by, according to activists, a barrel bomb thrown by forces loyal to Syria's president Bashar Al-Assad in Old Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Syrians gather at the site of reported air strikes by government forces in the Halak neighbourhood in northeastern Aleppo In pictures: Syria conflict Syria crisis Rebel fighters carry their weapons as they run to avoid snipers loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in the town of Morek in Hama province Muzoon became known for her campaigning at the Zaatari camp, where she went door to door attempting to convince parents to keep their daughters in refugee schools on the site, instead of marrying htem off. Life was not easy but I was lucky because I was in camps where there were schools, because I had parents that believe in education, especially for their daughters - not every girl has parents like that, she said, describing seeing classmates as young as 14 drop out to be married. Malala asked to meet Muzoon during her visit to the camp in 2014, striking up a friendship that continued when she invited her to attend the Nobel Peace Prize ceremony in December of that year as a special guest. After keeping in touch via Skype and email, they met again in Jordan in July last year, before being reunited when Muzoon arrived in the UK in December. As the Geneva peace talks between warring factions in Syria stutter, Thursdays conference focused on education and opportunity for Syrian refugees in reflection of the growing recognition that the fallout from the war will be very long-term. Syrias almost five-year-old conflict has killed an estimated 250,000 people and stoked the spread of Islamist militancy across the Middle East and North Africa. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} David Cameron has pledged an additional 1.2 billion to support refugees fleeing Syria's brutal civil war as world leaders gather in London for talks on the crisis. More than 70 countries will be represented at the conference co-hosted by Britain, Germany, Norway, Kuwait and the United Nations. The UN is appealing for $7.7 billion (5.4 billion) to fund aid operations for the 13.5 million people displaced by the fighting and in need of assistance. It comes after last year's UN appeal for 2.9 billion US dollars (2 billion) was 60 per cent under-funded. Mr Cameron said the latest British contribution - to be delivered over the next four years - will take total UK support since the start of the crisis in 2011 to 2.3 billion and should set the standard for the rest of the international community. The Prime Minister also wants to use the conference to focus support on the neighbouring countries - most notably Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey - which are currently home to 4.6 million displaced Syrians. He argues that providing opportunities to work and access to services is essential to persuading refugees to remain in the region and preventing another mass influx of people into Europe. One of the aims of the conference will be to ensure there are school places for all refugee children in the region by 2017 as well helping the host countries to provide places for their own vulnerable youngsters. Officials said they would also be looking to open up new trade and business opportunities for the host countries - which have been straining under the pressure - so that they will see a boost to their own economies as well as helping the for refugees. Refugee crisis - in pictures Show all 27 1 /27 Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugee crisis - in pictures A child looks through the fence at the Moria detention camp for migrants and refugees at the island of Lesbos on May 24, 2016. AFP/Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Ahmad Zarour, 32, from Syria, reacts after his rescue by MOAS (Migrant Offshore Aid Station) while attempting to reach the Greek island of Agathonisi, Dodecanese, southeastern Agean Sea Refugee crisis - in pictures Syrian migrants holding life vests gather onto a pebble beach in the Yesil liman district of Canakkale, northwestern Turkey, after being stopped by Turkish police in their attempt to reach the Greek island of Lesbos on 29 January 2016. Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees flash the 'V for victory' sign during a demonstration as they block the Greek-Macedonian border Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants have been braving sub zero temperatures as they cross the border from Macedonia into Serbia. Refugee crisis - in pictures A sinking boat is seen behind a Turkish gendarme off the coast of Canakkale's Bademli district on January 30, 2016. At least 33 migrants drowned on January 30 when their boat sank in the Aegean Sea while trying to cross from Turkey to Greece. Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A general view of a shelter for migrants inside a hangar of the former Tempelhof airport in Berlin, Germany Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees protest behind a fence against restrictions limiting passage at the Greek-Macedonian border, near Gevgelija. Since last week, Macedonia has restricted passage to northern Europe to only Syrians, Iraqis and Afghans who are considered war refugees. All other nationalities are deemed economic migrants and told to turn back. Macedonia has finished building a fence on its frontier with Greece becoming the latest country in Europe to build a border barrier aimed at checking the flow of refugees Refugee crisis - in pictures A father and his child wait after being caught by Turkish gendarme on 27 January 2016 at Canakkale's Kucukkuyu district Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants make hand signals as they arrive into the southern Spanish port of Malaga on 27 January, 2016 after an inflatable boat carrying 55 Africans, seven of them women and six chidren, was rescued by the Spanish coast guard off the Spanish coast. Refugee crisis - in pictures A refugee holds two children as dozens arrive on an overcrowded boat on the Greek island of Lesbos Refugee crisis - in pictures A child, covered by emergency blankets, reacts as she arrives, with other refugees and migrants, on the Greek island of Lesbos, At least five migrants including three children, died after four boats sank between Turkey and Greece, as rescue workers searched the sea for dozens more, the Greek coastguard said Refugee crisis - in pictures Migrants wait under outside the Moria registration camp on the Lesbos. Over 400,000 people have landed on Greek islands from neighbouring Turkey since the beginning of the year Refugee crisis - in pictures The bodies of Christian refugees are buried separately from Muslim refugees at the Agios Panteleimonas cemetery in Mytilene, Lesbos Refugee crisis - in pictures Macedonian police officers control a crowd of refugees as they prepare to enter a camp after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A refugee tries to force the entry to a camp as Macedonian police officers control a crowd after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees are seen aboard a Turkish fishing boat as they arrive on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing a part of the Aegean Sea from the Turkish coast to Lesbos Reuters Refugee crisis - in pictures An elderly woman sings a lullaby to baby on a beach after arriving with other refugees on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A man collapses as refugees make land from an overloaded rubber dinghy after crossing the Aegean see from Turkey, at the island of Lesbos EPA Refugee crisis - in pictures A girl reacts as refugees arrive by boat on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees make a show of hands as they queue after crossing the Greek border into Macedonia near Gevgelija Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures People help a wheelchair user board a train with others, heading towards Serbia, at the transit camp for refugees near the southern Macedonian town of Gevgelija AP Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees board a train, after crossing the Greek-Macedonian border, near Gevgelija. Macedonia is a key transit country in the Balkans migration route into the EU, with thousands of asylum seekers - many of them from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq and Somalia - entering the country every day Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures An aerial picture shows the "New Jungle" refugee camp where some 3,500 people live while they attempt to enter Britain, near the port of Calais, northern France Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures A Syrian girl reacts as she helped by a volunteer upon her arrival from Turkey on the Greek island of Lesbos, after having crossed the Aegean Sea EPA Refugee crisis - in pictures Refugees arrive by boat on the Greek island of Lesbos after crossing the Aegean sea from Turkey Getty Images Refugee crisis - in pictures Beds ready for use for migrants and refugees are prepared at a processing center on January 27, 2016 in Passau, Germany. The flow of migrants arriving in Passau has dropped to between 500 and 1,000 per day, down significantly from last November, when in the same region up to 6,000 migrants were arriving daily. Mr Cameron has been pressing for the European Union to agree beneficial trade agreements similar to that which exists between the United States and Jordan which has generated one billion dollars (680,000) in trade for Jordan. With hundreds of thousands of people risking their lives crossing the Aegean or the Balkans, now is the time to take a new approach to the humanitarian disaster in Syria, the Prime Minister said. Today's pledge of more than 2.3 billion in UK aid sets the standard for the international community - more money is needed to tackle this crisis and it is needed now. But the conference I am hosting today is about more than just money. Our new approach of using fundraising to build stability, create jobs and provide education can have a transformational effect in the region - and create a future model for humanitarian relief. And we can provide the sense of hope needed to stop people thinking they have no option but to risk their lives on a dangerous journey to Europe. Among the key figures attending the conference will be UN secretary general Ban Ki-moon, German chancellor Angela Merkel and US secretary of state John Kerry as well as the Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and representatives of Russia and China. Mr Cameron is expected to take the opportunity to discuss his EU reform plan in bilateral meetings with European leaders attending the event, including Belgian prime minister Charles Michel, Greek premier Alexis Tsipras and Slovakia's Robert Fico. PA For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Breaking News email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Mexican food lovers the world over will no doubt be eyeing-up students in the US with envy after news a professor at the University of Kentucky (UK) recently launched an entire college class around tacos. Yes, tacos. Entitled Taco Literacy: Public Advocacy and Mexican Food in the US South, Professor Steven Alvarez - with the UKs writing, rhetoric, and digital studies (WRD) department - has outlined how, in recent years, there has been a steady increase in the popularity and interest around Mexican food, having been heavily featured in TV food shows, travel journalism, trade publications, and cookbooks. Important social justice issues - such as multilingualism, migrant labor, and digital activism - are just some of the issues students will delve into to assess the cultural significance of the food. The course syllabus adds how the scholars signed up to the course will explore the history and networks of Mexican and Mexican-American food and, over the course of 16 weeks, students will be writing about recipes, rhetorics of authenticity, local variations to preparation or presentation, and how food literacies situate different spaces, identities, and forms of knowledge. Those who think the course will be an easy ride, though, can think again. As with all courses, Professor Alvarez has set out key rules which must be followed in order to avoid expulsion, and has detailed what will be required of students in the areas of tardiness, attendance, participation, and late work policies. He said: I do not tolerate tardiness, and I find it disrespectful. If you have problems with the time commitment for this course, I suggest finding another section that better suits your schedule. Excessive tardiness will be noted and will affect your final grade. With four goals in mind, the no-nonsense academic has said students will begin by writing about their own personal connections to the cuisine, and will be required to engage with the history of a particular dish of their preference. They will also engage in academic texts - including Planet Taco: A Global History of Mexican Food by Jeffrey M. Pilcher, and Tacopedia by Deborah Holtz and Juan Carlos Mena. Finally, the class will be required to utilise social media tools and blogs with the aim to have their fieldwork and research published into Mexican restaurants in and around the local area. Speaking with BuzzFeed News, Professor Alvarez described how the course will actually aim to teach more about migration foodways and looking at the South through the prism of food. He added: The course is on food, but its really about the culture around food. The academic also highlighted how there has been a recent surge of Mexicans coming into Kentucky to work in the tobacco industry or on horse farms amid reports of the exploitation of such workers within the tobacco industry. He told the site: Its changing. The way we talk about this change is painful sometimes. Talking about these things through food is a good place to start. Sign up to Simon Calders free travel email for weekly expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calders Travel email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Simon Calders Travel email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Student budgeting is a pain, especially when nearing the end of the academic year and your bank balance slowly dries up before your very eyes. You want to take a trip overseas in the summer, but it seems out of budget; flights are expensive, and to get to somewhere popular for a reasonable price is pretty difficult. However, there are plenty of destinations throughout Europe that are not only kind on the student pocket, but also offer a lot more than you may think: cheap flights, a great exchange rate, and beautiful scenery, so heres a short list of the places you should be considering to take a trip to this summer: 1) Istanbul Maybe not the first destination youd think of, but with cheap flights, an abundance of bars from which you can be cured with a traditional hammam the following morning, Istanbul has a lot to offer. Trips to the Turkish capital come in at just over 60 each way in mid-June. The city isnt expensive either with very affordable hostels, lovely traditional food, and the average price of a beer coming in at just under 3. With lots of history, the city also offers many a landmark to visit - the Hagia Sophia is beautiful when lit up at night. 2) Berlin Although already very popular, the German capital has to make the list. Berlin is a versatile city and has something for everyone. There are plenty of sights to see, the Berlin Wall (obviously), the Brandenburg Gate, and the Reichstag Building just to name a few. The Metro is a great, easy way to get about - just hop on and wonder around. The nightlife is well-known, with plenty of bars around the centre. As well as lots of clubs and a big underground rave scene, Berlin is definitely the place to party. Flights are around 30 each way, so the two-hour trip is well within budget. 3) Hvar Located on Croatias beautiful coast, Hvar is the ideal place in the sun. That clear sea water most are dying to Instagram will be all yours and, although mostly rock beaches, the water and weather eliminate any wanting towards sand. In Hvar, youre spoilt for choice when it comes to bars and restaurants. The nightlife is something notable, and Carpe Diem isnt just a bar, its a party island. Thats not the only island about though - its easy to visit other neighbouring ones and explore more of Croatias lovely coastline. Flying to Hvar can be a little pricier than other options but Croatia, as a whole, is considerably cheaper than the other options of Berlin and Seville. 4) Ljubljana Slovenias capital offers a great mix of nature and city culture; interrailers will have heard of Lake Bled and its charm, which is a convenient 45-minute journey away. The city itself artsy, hip and most importantly, cheap. There are plenty of things to do: parks and museums if youre looking to get a cultured feel for the place, but also lots of places to grab a beer and a bite to eat in the centre. Ljubljana seems to be a staple city for those interrailing throughout Europe. With flights around 100 either way in mid-June, it may seem a bit out of budget but, like Hvar, the cost of living is much cheaper in comparison to other destinations within central Europe. 5) Seville Southern Spain guarantees you good weather and plenty of sangria. Wine-tasting, some tapas, chilled-out bars, Seville offers a getaway if youre looking to take it easy and have some time in the sun. Plaza de Espana exhibits classic Spanish architecture, as well as many other historical buildings within the city, so youre also able to enjoy the scenery. Seville is another alternative to the ever-popular Barcelona and Madrid and, although the flights can be a bit more expensive in comparison to the other two Spanish cities, it gives you somewhere else to explore. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Doctors are no different to the rest of the population in terms of their susceptibility to mental health problems, however in the NHS, a culture exists amongst doctors to hide away their mental health issues. The pressure on doctors to avoid discussing their mental health problems has resulted in a number of high-profile tragic cases. Dr Daksha Emson, who suffered from bipolar affective disorder, killed herself and her baby during a relapse of her disease. Her fear of colleagues and patients finding out about her condition, at a time in her career when she was applying for consultant posts, led to a lack of formal and consistent treatment. Doctors at all stages have to jump through many evaluation hoops and the competition for training and jobs can be so fierce that they avoid any potential negative factors which might hamper their applications. A report from the Department of Health (DHO) in 2008 highlighted this unfortunate situation: doctors may fear that acknowledging the need for help will damage their career prospects or lead to scrutiny of their fitness to practice. Recommended Read more Supporters of EU Out are suffering from Special Snowflake Syndrome Even in medical school, the stigma of mental illness is perpetuated. To monitor student behaviour, some schools have introduced fitness to practice hearings, which instil fear in future doctors. Pastoral care for medical students can be arbitrary when the demarcation between medical staff with disciplinary roles and those with support roles is blurred. In the minds of many doctors, the culture of fear and castigation is perpetuated by the General Medical Councils (GMC) procedures affecting doctors with mental health issues. The main focus of this entity (which consists of six medical and six non-medical members) is to protect the health and safety of the public by registering and monitoring doctors. All doctors with mental health issues are required as part of their registration to notify the GMC. The GMC then makes a decision about whether to investigate or not. Mental health problems are investigated under the same procedures as misconduct and poor performance, and any subsequent fitness to practice processes are required to be declared on application forms for jobs. Sometimes, these hearings can yield positive results, for example by recommending structured support for struggling doctors. However, often those experiencing them describe them as harrowing and punitive experiences, and those who run the gauntlet feel that being investigated creates a stigma affecting them both personally and professionally. Between 2005 and 2013 there have been 28 reported cases of suicides of doctors who had previously been the subject of GMC investigations. One of those who committed suicide was GP Belinda Brewer in 2007, describing the process as threatening and isolating. Recommended Read more The rank classism at the heart of the criticisms of Katie Price There are few formal pathways or specialist services to help doctors with mental health problems. In response to the 2008 DOH report, the Practitioner Health Programme (PHP) was created in London, which is free and confidential, and allows doctors to refer themselves without their GPs being aware. Support groups do exist: The Doctors Support Network was set up by doctors who have themselves had problems, and offers a confidential self-help group for doctors helping each other in the recovery process. The BMA counselling service offers a 24-hour confidential support line for doctors and medical students. With current reports of a sharp rise in young doctors seeking help for mental health disorders, there is a need for an open and frank discussion about mental health in the medical profession. A doctor hiding a mental health disorder is more likely to put their patient at risk than one who is receiving the right support. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Until 2002, when the AKP (Justice and Development Party) came to power, Turkey was doing pretty well in following Kemal Ataturks dictum: peace at home, peace abroad. Admittedly, there were three military coups between 1960 and 1980 to keep Turkey on track, together with a soft coup in 1997. But the country was still a respected member of NATO with prospects - however distant - of EU membership. With the advent of the AKP under the leadership of a former mayor of Istanbul, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, things started to unravel. The AKP presented itself as a Western, reformist, neo-liberal and secular party, and, as late as 2012, 16 EU foreign ministers drooled that Turkey was an inspirational example of a secular and democratic country. But as the deputy chair of the opposition CHP (Republican Peoples Party), Faruk Logoglu, pointed out, their perception of the state of affairs in Turkey was sadly out of focus, and ignored the fact that the AKP government pursued an authoritarian policy of gradual Islamisation, leading to the erosion of Turkish democracy and secularism. Turkeys foreign minister and now Prime Minister, Professor Ahmet Davutoglu, replaced Ataturks dictum with zero problems with neighbours and a grandiose vision of Turkeys role in the world. It was also Davutoglu who inspired Erdogan with neo-Ottoman fantasies. Consequently, Turkey is now at loggerheads with all its neighbours, in particular Syria, and has even managed to alienate Russia after the shooting down of the Su-24 in November. At home, in his pursuit of untrammeled power, Erdogan has provoked a civil war which threatens to dismantle the Turkey Ataturk and his fellow nationalists created. In 2005, Erdogan was hailed as the first Turkish leader to acknowledge there was a Kurdish question, and in 2013, after secret talks with the PKK, their imprisoned leader Abdullah Ocalan called for a ceasefire. In February last year the AKP government and the Kurdish HDP (Peoples Democratic Party) agreed on a 10-point plan to end the conflict, but after the HDP gained 13 percent of the vote in Junes election and threatened to block his plans for an executive presidency, Erdogan disowned the agreement. Prior to the election, there were more than 130 attacks on the HDPs offices, vehicles and supporters, culminating in two bombs at a rally in Diyarbakir, the capital of the Kurdish southeast. A similar attack in the Kurdish border town of Suruc on 20 July, killing 33 activists, reignited the conflict with the PKK, as the government was suspected of having a hand in the attack. Recommended Read more Similarities between Putin and Erdogan have put them at loggerheads The twin bombs at the HDPs rally in Ankara on 10 October, which killed 102 people, reinforced these suspicions, as there were links to the two previous attacks, but President Erdogan claimed this was a collective act, involving ISIS, the PKK, the Syrian intelligence agency, Mukhabarat, and the Syrian counterpart to the PKK, the PYD (Democratic Union Party). However, the PKKs youth wing, the Patriotic Revolutionary Youth Movement (YDG-H), declared autonomy in a number of towns in the southeast and dug ditches and built barricades to repel government forces. Many civilian casualties have been caused by what Human Rights Watch has termed the abusive and disproportionate use of force, where the populations of towns under siege have been left without food, water, electricity and medical help and 200,000 people have been forced to leave their homes. Turkey protests: Erdogan is Turkey's Mrs Thatcher - and he's not for turning either Show all 3 1 /3 Turkey protests: Erdogan is Turkey's Mrs Thatcher - and he's not for turning either Turkey protests: Erdogan is Turkey's Mrs Thatcher - and he's not for turning either 169917998.jpg Getty Images Turkey protests: Erdogan is Turkey's Mrs Thatcher - and he's not for turning either 169906502.jpg Getty Images Turkey protests: Erdogan is Turkey's Mrs Thatcher - and he's not for turning either 169917619.jpg Getty Images For President Erdogan this is a zero sum game until - in his words - the Kurdish militants are finally annihilated. In the November re-election, Erdogan called for Turkeys support in a war on terror, which resulted in the AKP government once again being able to form a single-party government with the support of half the electorate. According to veteran Turkish journalist Kadri Gursel, the credit should go to Erdogan as the architect of an exceptional tactical victory achieved with Machiavellian cunning. The losers are the Turkish people, as Erdogan has cracked down on every form of dissent, calling critics and political opponents traitors and terrorists. The AKP now has 317 out of the Turkish parliaments 550 seats, and a new election could be held to gain the 330 seats needed to hold a referendum on a change to the constitution, giving Erdogan the ultimate power he has so long hankered after. Robert Ellis is a regular commentator on Turkish affairs in the Danish and international press Opinion / Columnist Peace Marangwanda is a UK-based activist. The recent arrest of Zimbabwe's Prosecutor General Johannes Tomana, on accusations of allowing for the granting of bail for two men accused of intending to bomb Mugabe's dairy, brings back the debate over the nine-two year old President's paranoia.This is not the first time that Mugabe has thrown accusations of attempts on his life - accusations that he has always failed to prove.In the early 1980s, Mugabe went on the rampant, sending his North Korean trained Fifth Brigade, to butcher tens of thousands of innocent civilians, mostly Ndebele, after accusing the then leader of the main opposition ZAPU Joshua Nkomo of trying to oust his government and assassinate Mugabe.This led to Nkomo fleeing the country to the United Kingdom, where he sought asylum.However, these accusations against Nkomo were never substantiated, and he was charged.After the 1987 unity accord, Nkomo was appointed Zimbabwe's Vice President, and Mugabe, who was Prime Minister, became the Executive President.As if this paranoia was not enough, Mugabe accused the leader of the current main opposition in Zimbabwe (the MDC) Morgan Tsvangirai of trying to assassinate him in the early 2000s.Mugabe based his accusations on a poorly recorded and frankly funny video, in which Tsvangirai was merely asked by some Canadian consultant what would happen if Mugabe was eliminated.Tsvangirai was arrested, but the State failed in its case, albeit after subjecting him to torture whilst he was still in custody.The latest in the long lost of Mugabe paranoid accusation now includes the expelled Zimbabwe Vice President Joice Mujuru.In 2013, she was accused of plotting to oust Mugabe from the presidency, as well as assassinate him.This led to her subsequent expulsion from ZANU PF and the government.However, more than a year later, she has not been charged for this alleged plot to assassinate and topple Mugabe.So what is going on with the aged Zimbabwean leader?Is he deliberately making these false accusations just so as to silence his opponents, or is he genuinely suffering from paranoia?It is very difficult to know exactly what is going on, but the signs a clear that he has a serious problem that requires urgent help.Paranoia is classified as a mental disorder in which a person has delusions; and abnormal tendency to mistrust others.Is this not a serious cause for concern for all Zimbabweans to have such a president?Zimbabweans have a right to demand that the President undergoes evaluation.As the situation stands today, the country has a very dangerous President, and its dangerous for the people. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The gay cake in Northern Ireland story has its absurdist aspects, no doubt. How could it not when it features Bert and Ernie, heroes of Sesame Street, and speculation about the sexual preferences of what are, after all, some lumps of fuzzy felt. And yet the moral dilemmas presented by the commissioning of this 35 baked product are profound indeed. Unlikely as it may be, it is at a bakers shop in Belfast where conflicting human rights have collided. First, the rights of the gay couple who were discriminated against, according to the courts, when a firm of bakers refused to make their wedding cake for them. The bakers objected to the slogan support gay marriage which was to be iced on alongside an image of the two Muppets and the logo of the QueerSpace organisation, a group that works with lesbian, gay and bisexual people in Northern Ireland, where bigotry against them has been widespread in the past. How to balance their rights against those of the bakers, whose Christian religious beliefs were so strong they could not fulfil the order? They, and a Christian organisation supporting them, are now taking their case to appeal (it has been adjourned for the time being), at yet more expense in time and money. The cost of this 35 cake could eventually top 1m. In cases such as this we should turn to the gay rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, whose wisdom in such situations born, as it is, of the harshest of experiences is invaluable. As he says, we cannot want to create a society where bakers are compelled to make doughnuts, buns and cakes with any lawful message, even if they have a conscientious objection. Should Muslim bakers be obliged to publish cartoons of Mohamed? Or Jewish ones publish the words of a Holocaust denier? Or gay bakers accept orders for cakes with homophobic slurs? Of course not. Time, perhaps, then, to put the gay cake back in the oven. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} As somebody who has taught and researched climate change longer than most of my colleagues, I can assure you that only some Oxbridge academics demand an end to fossil fuel investment (front page, 2 February). Having noted the risk of climate change in your pages in 1992, when only a tiny minority were concerned, I know how controversial or dissenting views can be uncomfortable and this is very dangerous intellectually. The students and others are of course well intentioned, but a consequence of divestment could be suppression of academic free speech or even bullying. The former Vice-Chancellor of Oxford, the ecologist Professor Sir Richard Southwood, once said to me that a university should not take an official position on an environmental topic. His point about the purpose of a university being to foster and present debates is crucial, even when a majority might currently hold a policy-relevant view. Institutionalising a position on a controversial topic is deeply unhealthy for students and staff. In Oxbridge, the tutorial system, and exams, have always encouraged and rewarded scepticism. We owe it to our students and applicants not to make them feel at all uncomfortable in free expression with appropriate defence of positions. Moreover, the hypocrisy of continuing to benefit from fossil fuels in products and activities, while not being prepared to help deliver them to society, should give philosophers something to discuss for years. Clive Hambler Lecturer in Biological and Human Sciences, Hertford College, Oxford If Oxbridge divests from fossil fuels, that will be a good start. But there is much else to divest from, not least the arms trade, if these wealthy institutions are serious about an ethical investment policy. A former Cambridge student recently made a Freedom of Information request for details of the universitys investments. It was refused on the grounds of commercial sensitivity. We are therefore left to speculate that some investments could be linked, for example, to research collaborations including weapons development. Dennis OMalley Cambridge Camerons pick-and-choose Europe In the EU negotiations, the Prime Minister shows himself, as always, striving to have his cake and eat it. His proposals, as far as I can tell, are meant to permit the United Kingdom to pick and choose. He will deign to accept what he likes of the Community; anything he opposes can be vetoed or ignored. Its very much like Google and others deciding when and where they want to pay taxes and how much. The Union is meant to be a co-operative. If each nation is concerned only with self-interest there is not, nor can there be, a Union. This is not a game between them and us. Instead of trying to discover ways to obstruct European policy and spending his time trying to charm allied countries into accepting his position, why doesnt David Cameron devote more time to finding a collective solution to the immigration crisis? That cannot be resolved by one country alone, and a bit of diplomacy, rather than constant opposition, might have positive effects. Larry Johnston Modrydd, Brecon If the UK cannot get any meaningful change in her terms of membership of the EU, how can she get the other 27 members to support her in international negotiations and punch above her weight on the world stage? Robert Edwards Hornchurch, Essex Will someone please give David Cameron a handbag? Dan Dennis Philosophy Tutor, Department for Continuing Education, University of Oxford Tories work for a one-party state Matthew Norman (3 February) is quite correct: this country is sleepwalking into a one-party state. Not only is this despicable government gerrymandering constituencies to ensure its victory in future elections, it is working to disenfranchise many young people, on the specious argument that they are more likely to vote Labour. Anyone who endured the previous 17 years of Conservative government will know how corrupt, self-serving, arrogant, scornful, debased, and incompetent the party becomes when assured of survival. I despair of the future under the type of hard right-wing government now in place; fascism looms on the horizon. Pamela Guyatt Lamerton, Devon I derided the Lib Dem claims that during the Coalition Government they had put a brake on many of Camerons more right-wing policies, but since last May the Tories have shown their true colours. Matthew Normans article highlights the anti-democratic nature of many of these policies: nobbling political adversaries funds (Short money, union opt-in) while brazenly inviting the rich and powerful to donate to the Tories; shrinking the state under the guise of austerity; most insidious of all is the use of statutory instruments as a tool of law-making. As Matthew Norman points out, a one-party state is almost a reality, and I for one do give a damn. Diane Soye Chorley, Lancashire This Conservative leader is no Disraeli Tom Pecks amusing piece (4 February), comparing the staunch anti-EU arm of the Tory party with the full might of the British Empire, jokingly excused Jacob Rees-Mogg for never quite comprehending that it is no longer 1867. There can be no excuse as there is a huge difference. In 1867 there was a Tory leader intent, albeit for reasons resembling a basic fear of revolution, on extending democracy, and with his Reform Act of that year, giving the vote to working-class men. At the first opportunity, Disraeli also extended trade union rights and legalised peaceful picketing with his Conspiracy and Protection of Property Act. Even Rees-Mogg will have realised that in 2016 we have a Tory prime minister, who like his 19th-century predecessor, claims to be supporting One Nation Conservatism, but who is, in fact, attacking the very principles Disraeli propounded. There can be no claims for 21st-century Tory Democracy when we have a prime minister not only reducing numbers of those entitled to the franchise, with his individual registration scheme, but also changing constituency borders to favour his own party. Bernie Evans Liverpool Not all the slaves were black At least, if there is no formal memorial in the UK to the victims of the African slave trade (letter, 30 January), there is genuine acknowledgment, in museums and in our national school curriculum. There is a hidden side to the story. The families of two of my four (white, ethnic British) grandparents lost members, taken from their homes by Barbary slavers in (I believe) the 17th century. Such things do live on in family legend. Not comparable to the industrialised horror that was the Atlantic trade, but not nothing. There is not only no memorial to the Moorish trade in stolen Europeans, which went on for hundreds of years and saw thousands taken into a slavery just as life-destroying as anything in the New World, but little awareness in our curriculum or national consciousness; and uncertain acknowledge-ment by present-day North Africans. In one respect Im lucky: there is nobody (so far as I know) still living privileged lifestyles inherited from the suffering of my family in bondage. Then again, a third family member, evicted during the Highland Clearances (letter, 3 February), was then transported for his consequent vagrancy and indentured as a plantation worker, a white slave, also forgotten, in the West Indies. So maybe, after all, there is someone reading this very letter who is still living off the back of my Scottish ancestor. Sam Butler Fleet, Hampshire What makes gay marriage unique Your leader writer, while trying to be thought-provoking (Its just a 35 cake, not a battleground for gay rights, 4 February), has made an elementary mistake: supporting gay marriage is not analogous to denying the Holocaust, slurring homosexuality or drawing Mohammed. None of these things is necessary for an equal, fair, civil society; gay marriage is. James Hutchinson London W4 Are wind farms a danger to whales? Watching a televised report on the destruction of the whales found dead on the Lincolnshire coast, I spotted, once again, that in the background there was a large off-shore wind farm, not dissimilar to one shown on Norwegian TV, where another pod of whales met their death. Does anyone think there could be a connection? Terry Duncan Bridlington, East Yorkshire Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} David Cameron seems to be planning to conduct his campaign for Britain to remain in the European Union using a series of soundbites that would be more at home on one of those annoying graphics people post on Facebook. Tapping into the irritating vogue for sharing pictures of sunsets with life-affirming quotes about how you should dance like nobodys watching and treat yourself because no one else will, the Prime Minister this week told his MPs that people should do what is in their heart when it comes to deciding how to vote in the referendum. There is a serious reason Cameron is sounding so corny in the Commons. He hinted at it in his remarks to MPs on Wednesday afternoon, stating that members should not take a view because of what their constituency association might say or because they are worried about a boundary review, or because they think it might be advantageous this way, or that way. The Prime Minister and those around him are worried about how Tory MPs particularly those first elected in May 2015 will fare when they tell their associations how they plan to vote in the EU referendum. Specifically, he is worried about those who think Britain should stay in the EU. The Tory grass roots are much more Eurosceptic than the party in Westminster. Many constituency memberships have no active members who are in favour of staying in. Ministers working the rubber chicken circuit of local party dinners have been surprised by the strength of feeling in favour of Brexit. Cameron is well aware that, even if he gets a surprising number of MPs backing his stance in the referendum, he wont take his entire party with him. This doesnt matter that much to someone who plans to step down as party leader before the next election but it does matter to the MPs who go back each week to their constituencies, and who will need to convince those associations to take them on again after the planned changes to constituency boundaries in 2018. Some MPs were threatened with deselection by their associations during the Tory row over gay marriage in 2013, but found that, in the end, they werent actually punished for supporting the legislation enabling same-sex weddings. Those Tories might feel a little less unsettled by the heated debates at their local meetings, but their newly elected colleagues will be experiencing constituency divisions for the first time and on a matter of even greater importance to the Conservative Party than marriage and the family. The old Tory think-tank the Bow Group is also trying to stir up tensions: its chair, Ben Harris-Quinney, this week threatened that Tory members will be unforgiving towards any MP who thinks they can say one thing in an election pledge, and do another when in Parliament. Harris-Quinney does have a point, which is that some Tories will have unwisely over-egged their Eurosceptic credentials when applying for selection in a seat and when campaigning during the election. Some of them will have done this for purely cynical reasons, but others might now be realising for the first time that they just cant quite stomach voting for Britain to leave the European Union. Others are genuinely torn between their loyalty to Cameron, who they know had far more to do with them winning their seat than they did, and their intense dislike of Brussels. The rather paltry deal that the Prime Minister and European Council President Donald Tusk unveiled this week has made deciding even harder. One newly elected MP told me: If youd given me this deal a year ago and asked me what do I think, I would have laughed in your face and said Cameron can do better than that. Now Im feeling a bit stupid because Im actually considering campaigning to stay in. Some Conservatives have decided to delay telling their associations theyre in favour of staying in, using the public meetings on the referendum that most of them are organising at the moment as an excuse, as theyll need to chair those meetings and appear neutral. But this only puts off the pain for a little while. MPs cannot possibly expect to be able to sail through the whole campaign without revealing their position. If nothing else, their colleagues in the Remain camp will be urging them to join in campaigning and they cant hide at home under the duvet all the way to 23 June, when many expect the referendum to take place. Its much easier hiding in Westminster, where most of the Cabinet want to stay in the EU, than it is to confront a constituency association. But many of those Cabinet ministers in favour of remaining in the EU have still made life more difficult for those nervous backbench MPs by spending the past few years making very Eurosceptic comments. Theresa May, for instance, gave a very hardline speech to the Conservative Party conference last autumn that most interpreted as a signal she could only possibly campaign for Out, only to give an even stronger signal this week that she would in fact campaign for In. She and other ministers have marched a lot of Tory troops up the hill, before steaming off in the other direction. Cameron is aware of this risk of cabinet ministers doing a Grand Old Duke of York with Conservative members and, indeed, the country. His colleagues are also concerned that the press will continue to criticise his deal, before begrudgingly saying Britain is still ultimately better off in at the last minute. Both camps in the referendum speak constantly of the need to be civil to one another and protect the party from a damaging long-term split. But that doesnt mean there wont be difficult and bruising local splits between associations and their MPs. The Prime Minister can urge his colleagues to vote like nobodys watching all he likes. In practice, its going to be a lot more difficult than that. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} The bitter truth about the Syrian peace talks in Geneva, suspended by the UN last night, is that even if they eventually culminate in total agreement between all parties the civil war will not be stopped. It might even intensify. Two of the three main armies in the conflict, Isis and the Kurds, who between them control two-thirds of Syrias territory, have not been involved in these talks, now due to resume on 25 February. Isis will never be invited and will continue to fight. The Kurds will continue to resist Isis. In the meantime, Isis will do all in its power to sabotage the talks. An example of that came on Sunday night, when an Isis suicide bomber killed 72 people at Sayeda Zeinab, a revered Shia shrine near Damascus. On Tuesday, the head of the Syrian government delegation to the Geneva talks, Bashar al-Jaafari, called on the opposition represented in the Swiss city to condemn the bombing. They have yet to do so. The reason, of course, is that of the many conflicts nestled together in the Syrian conflagration, the most poisonous is that of the Shia, represented by the Assad government and its Iranian allies, and the Sunnis, whose most violent and fanatical wing is Isis, but who also account for the less extreme of Assads domestic enemies. So striking a deal between the parties whom UN mediator Staffan de Mistura is attempting to persuade to talk to each other in Geneva is a bit like some optimist trying to reunify East and West Germany in the depths of the Cold War. You might salute the attempt, but you would not put money on its success. Recommended Read more Syrian peace talks halted as Assad forces advance on Aleppo And the odds on any kind of a deal lengthened terribly yesterday as Assad and his Russian backers took advantage of Geneva, with the Syrian army launching a major offensive against rebels in the northern city of Aleppo, backed by Russian air strikes. The object appeared to be to encircle the city, cutting rebel supply lines to Turkey. It is deplorable (yet normal) for contending armies to take advantage of pauses and ceasefires and attempted negotiations to strengthen their relative positions, but Assads forces are in a much better position to do so than the rebels. According to the UN, the Syrian government is besieging 187,000 people in rebel-held towns; the rebels by contrast are besieging only two towns, with 12,000 residents. That is the scale of the asymmetry between the sides. The aim of the Geneva talks, as mandated by a UN resolution passed in December, is for negotiations between representatives of the Assad regime and the opposition groups to lead to a new government and elections. But these blood enemies, divided by religious affiliation, embittered by the slaughter of thousands of their kin and the destruction of their homeland, cannot be bullied into sitting down around a single table this is UN moonshine of very dubious value. Nothing is risked by labelling it as such. But from this toxic maelstrom, peace must somehow be conjured. The millions of refugees on the move and the families of the quarter-million killed demand it; this most destabilising of all recent conflicts must be brought to an end. The West must continue to back those it has fitfully supported in the Syrian opposition; and every diplomatic means must be found to oblige Russia and Iran to pressure the Assad regime to rein in its forces, town by town, siege by siege. If the Geneva talks are to make any sense at all, they must make life bearable for those on the ground and quickly. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} In the same week that Google became the World's most valuable company, news emerged of the deal it had carved out with HMRC, under which it 'agreed' to pay just 130m in tax. You and I hand over 20 per cent or even 40 per cent of our income to keep our schools and hospitals in good working order, our roads fit to drive on. Mates' rates at George Osborne's Treasury? An effective tax rate of just 3 per cent. But it's not just Google. Overall, the so-called 'tax gap' costs us 120bn per year (the IFS disputes this figure, and says the actual tax gap is 34bn in a report). That's enough to fund the NHS for the whole of England. And with the NHS creaking and public finances at breaking point, the British public have had enough. Only a third of us believe that most big businesses in the UK pay their fair share of tax. We're not keen on being taken for a ride either: just 6 per cent of us trust companies to provide accurate information on tax paid. At a time when public trust in business is plummeting, tax justice has been called 'the Fairtrade of our times' - a measure by which we tell a good business from the bad. And as with Fairtrade, when co-ops were the first to stock the products, co-operative councillors the first to demand fairtrade procurement, and Labour & Co-operative MPs the first to demand political support, it's the co-operative movement and social enterprises that have once again been ahead of the curve. With so many of us outraged by the Google revelations, yesterday Labour called a debate in parliament to demand answers. Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell savaged Chief Secretary to the Treasury David Gauke for what he called a bizarre, upside down and callous sense of justice and fairness. So how do we fight back against it? One solution is the Fair Tax Mark. Launched in February 2014, its designed to enable those of us unacquainted with the complexities of corporate balance sheets and Annual Reports to easily tell the tax dodgers from those who pay their fair share, and to change our consumer habits accordingly. In order to achieve the Mark, companies have to open their books to a team of experts. It's up to applicants to prove that they are making a genuine effort to be open and transparent about their tax affairs, and that they are paying the right amount of corporation tax at the right time and in the right place. Some of Britain's largest co-operatives have led the way, with Midcounties Co-op, Phone Co-op, Unity Trust Bank and the Co-operative Group the first to achieve the Mark. They've since been joined by transport operator Go Ahead Group, energy company SSE, and high street cosmetics chain Lush, with others scrambling to sign-up. And the rigorous process pays off. Amidst public anger, consumers are increasingly tough on those who make excuses when its their turn to buy the round. Certainly, companies like Co-operative Energy have seen new customers join due to the Mark, and plenty of us have stopped doing business with those who flake out. As Anna Turley put it in yesterdays debate, its high time companies wore fair tax as a badge of pride rather than seeing it as an unnecessary burden. So enough of multinationals treating the British state as if it were a charitable fund to which they can voluntarily contribute. They employ staff educated in state funded schools and treated in NHS hospitals. Their vans drive on taxpayer-funded roads, and they frequently avail themselves of a legal system paid for by you and I. George Osborne once asked us to distinguish between the skivers and the strivers. And through the Fair Tax Mark, thats exactly what well do. So, George, maybe its time to encourage those big business owners to sign up? Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} David Cameron has been frantically trying to convince MPs that his draft deal from the European Union this week actually delivers on the "substantial changes" he promised to make to the UK's relationship with Europe. But irrespective of what deal he gets and whether his party accept it, Britain sees itself as above and also separate from Europe - as if it is doing Europe a favour by sticking around. The argument is framed against a false idea of British exceptionalism, one that suffers from a severe case of Special Snowflake Syndrome. Lets look at the Britain envisaged by UKIP in a post-EU world for instance: A Britain that has confidence, stands proud, projects a national identity based on our Judaeo-Christian heritage, and our tremendous natural resources. This in itself will be exclusionary for any British people who do not easily identify as "native" British. The reference to Judaeo-Christian heritage clearly refers to those who are white and Western European. Those on the left proposinga #Brexit naively ignore that this is what post-EU Britain could look like. Itd be a crass, nationalist, isolationist Britain with little acceptance of people who do not fit the historical mould. British arrogance stems from the fact that the nation has struggled to find its place in the world in the aftermath of the Empire and the World Wars that marred the first half of the 20th century. This period saw the drastic rise of the USA as the dominant imperial power, with the biggest army and the largest share of the world's wealth. Britain's relative importance was grossly diminished, even if it does still hold a seat on the UN Security Council. Simply put, were not such big shots any more - and we could be about to be relegated to the kids table. The simple fact is that Britain is now relatively insignificant in the international arena. The result has been a romanticization of the era when Britain was "great" and a longing to return to this. In reality, of course, it was only the ruling elites - as it is today - who benefited from colonial riches. Ordinary British people, many of whom now support parties like Ukip or the EU Out campaign, werent exactly living the high life. One thing that does bolster the economy and improve ordinary British lives? Immigration. Nowhere is the insecurity over Britain's importance clearer than in the playing up of the "special relationship" with the USA. Cameron nearly wet himself with glee when Barack Obama "sometimes" called him "bro". This identity crisis is why there has been an over-emphasis on how Britain "helped to end fascism, often drowning out realistic criticisms about the fact that the British government continues to collude with some of the world's most authoritarian regimes. Such false arguments were trotted out by the Prime Minister when Vladimir Putin referred to Britain as a "small island" and, lets face it, he was only telling the truth. Many people have been led by simplistic rhetoric and manipulated statistics to blame the EU for their problems, linking immigration from Europe to a lack of jobs and economic instability at home. But if Britain left the EU, these issues may get worse rather than better. Migration from the EU is not causing insecurity; these are structural issues for which neo-liberal economics, supported by and encouraged by our government, is responsible. The EU is grossly flawed but in many ways is a better alternative than an isolationist, racist and delusional Britain that will come out of any #Brexit. Its time for Britain to accept its place in the world - and in Europe. This article was originally published in its longer version at the Consented blog. It has been republished here with permission from the author Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Tomorrow evening, hundreds of men around the world were expected to take part in meetings held in 165 cities, across 43 countries, to meet and learn from a man who once suggested it should be legal to rape women on private property (he said a change in the law would protect women from rape, then later claimed this was satire). In the end the meetings were cancelled because, due to the understandable anger from women and feminist campaigners, this man could no longer guarantee the safety or privacy of the men who want to attend. And yet theres been little public condemnation of the pickup-artist known as Roosh V from men even those who have become so vocal in warning of the dangers refugee men pose to European women. In recent months, disparate groups of men have styled themselves as defenders of European women against the threat of Muslim men: from the European far-right, to Hindu fundamentalists in India, to the British public intellectual and atheist Richard Dawkins. A picture tweeted by the author last week included the caption: Oh look, its the Western feminist movement (with its head in the sand) when it comes to Islam. Such accusations are now commonplace among these groups. Why arent feminists condemning Muslims and Islam, like we are, they ask? But as the secular feminist and ex-Muslim activist Maryam Namazie has pointed out, these groups each have their own agenda, and should not be seen as allies to modern feminists. They focus on womens rights and feminism when it suits them. This is not a defence of the treatment of women by Muslim-majority countries; far from it, for their record on gender rights is heinous. The religious justifications for gender inequality offered by imams in Saudi Arabia and Iran should never be tolerated in Britain. Neither do I believe that refugees or migrants who break the law should be treated softly. However, the repression of women is not, and never was, a uniquely Muslim problem. So to use it as a way to generalise about, and to attack Muslims, isnt just bogus, but political opportunism. However, the repression of women is not, and never was, a uniquely Islamic problem, and so to use it as part of a broader argument against the influence of a single religion or system of thought is entirely bogus. There are more than 60 million women missing in India women who should be part of the Indian population, according to the last census, but whose lives were likely terminated too soon due to gender-specific abortions, the neglect of girl infants, murder and brutal rape. Next to China, India has the worlds largest number of women missing from the national population. Yet weve heard nothing from these same men apparent advocates of womens rights on the plight of Indian (mostly Hindu) women, unless it is perpetrated by Muslim men. In Europe, around 8,000 women a year are trafficked for sex, mostly from Eastern European countries into the West. This form of sexual slavery takes place right under our nose and yet theres little focus on it. In South America, millions of women are now potentially at risk from the Zika virus, and yet partly because of the influence of the Catholic Church, they are denied access to abortion services and, in some places, even contraception. Where is the anger, the public outcry, over that? The global fight for womens rights is ongoing. Men like Dawkins, who join in when they feel it suits their aims, make it even harder for Muslim women in the West to push for greater freedoms when they feel under attack from anti-Muslim bigotry. The irony is that Roosh V who can have no claim to sympathy with feminists or campaigners for womens rights has also used his platform to highlight a culture clash between European populations and migrants and refugees. He says this, while also writing that women today have reduced themselves to sexual commodities a mentality eerily similar to the Saudi mullahs we are told are most deserving of our attention. If someone trying to protect women has no interest beyond what Muslim men do, how legitimate are their concerns? Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the View from Westminster email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} As a British black gay man, February is always a proud time for me. Not only is it LGBT History Month in the UK, but also Black History Month in the USA. The beginning of this month, however, was somewhat different. Like so many other Britons, I stayed up all night to watch the Iowa Caucus in the US, the first stage of the process for candidates to get the nod from their respective parties for the presidential bid. The only woman, of course, was Hillary Clinton. Republicans aside with Ted Cruz beating Donald Trump, I wasnt surprised to see so much hysteria around Hillary from many in the LGBT community. I remember the same thing in 2008. As I scrolled through Twitter, there were tweets after tweets declaring their love for Hills (a nickname shes been given by her most ardent gay fans). One prominent gay rights campaigner wrote that Hillary is giving me LIFE right now; another, I love Hillary Clinton day and night! Soon the hashtag #GaysForHillary was trending. From watching social media, anyone would think that Clinton had been an advocate for gay equality her whole life. This idea further strengthened by her recent endorsement by the Human Rights Campaign in the US, the largest LGBT civil rights organisation. But actually, thats not entirely true. It was only just over a decade ago that Hillary publicly declared she was against gay marriage. She didnt reverse that until 2013. Hardly the LGBT ambassador weve been hoping for. Recommended Read more Supporters of EU Out are suffering from Special Snowflake Syndrome Is it the simple fact that she is a woman, or does this love go deeper? When I watched Barack Obama beat Hillary for the Democratic nomination in 2008, going on to become the first black president of the United States as we all know, I witnessed appalling white racism in the LGBT community towards him for having the audacity to challenge her. Being black and gay, as I am, can be difficult. Racism remains a serious problem in some of the LGBT ranks. This week, we saw the democratic socialist underdog Bernie Sanders come a virtual tie with Hillary in the first national caucus with him at 49.6 per cent and her at 49.9 per cent of the vote. Significantly, 84 per cent of the young people in Iowa voted for him. Yet for many LGBT people, Hillary was the overall favourite. What has the former First Lady, New York Senator and Secretary of State actually done for LGBT people to deserve such adulation? Where are her concrete political credentials? Having been raised by a strong independent white mother myself, along with my ten siblings in a English city in the North, Im all for supporting the cause of better representation of women in politics and for the breaking of glass ceilings like the one at the White House. But Clinton cant be upheld as progressive merely because shes a woman. To do so does all of us a disservice. During this LGBT History Month, as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people, do we forgive and forget Hillarys very recent attitude towards LGBT rights? People do change their minds, after all. Or do we remember that the race to the White House is ultimately a political game in which some candidates have to play a smart House of Cards? Sanders had a long history of supporting LGBT rights before it was cool. Clinton, on the other hand, waited for marriage equality to become mainstream. Until I see real progressive change for LGBT people, rather than spin, I wont be cheering anyone on from the sidelines for global gay issues. Regardless of their gender and regardless of whether its at home or abroad, gay people at the very least deserve someone who was committed to the cause from the start, rather than someone who leapt on the bandwagon when it was convenient. Sign up to our free Brexit and beyond email for the latest headlines on what Brexit is meaning for the UK Sign up to our Brexit email for the latest insight Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy notice Thanks for signing up to the Brexit and beyond email {{ #verifyErrors }}{{ message }}{{ /verifyErrors }}{{ ^verifyErrors }}Something went wrong. Please try again later{{ /verifyErrors }} Now that an outline of a deal between the UK Government and other European Union members states has been published by the EU Council President Donald Tusk, the various different EU referendum campaigns are cranking into gear. The In campaign to remain in the EU has one umbrella body Britain Stronger In Europe, of which I am a spokesperson. The out campaign is split across at least four different groupings, Vote Leave, Leave.EU, Go and UKIP. The referendum will, in part focus on the economy and immigration, but it is far bigger than both those issues: essentially it is a debate about who we are as a people and how we see ourselves in the world. Of course our economy is inextricably linked to the EU due to our membership of the Single Market. Three million UK jobs are linked to our trade with this EU free trade zone and research shows that further development of the Single Market could deliver an additional 800,000 jobs in Britain by 2030. This is not surprising 44 per cent of our exports go to the EU. Recommended Read more Supporters of EU Out are suffering from Special Snowflake Syndrome The various out campaigns are determined to make this referendum about immigration. As we saw during the General Election last year, UKIP is not shy of seeking to set different groups against each other and scaremonger about immigrants regardless of whether they are from the EU; many of the other out groups cite the relationship non EU countries like Norway and Switzerland have with the EU as a model that we could potentially follow if we were to leave. When they do so they fail to mention that both countries in fact have higher migration from the EU to their countries per head than the UK. This points to one of the biggest weaknesses of the out campaigns. They argue that we can leave the EU but continue to have all the benefits. When I asked the former Tory Chancellor of Exchequer, Lord Nigel Lawson, a leading spokesperson for the Vote Leave campaign, recently whether he could name a non-EU member state that was a member of the single market without having to abide by its rules, he conceded he was unable to name one. Instead he argued that we are bigger than Norway and Switzerland and therefore the EU would have to give us preferential access to the Single Market without being subject to the same rules. This is absolute rubbish. The rationale behind Lawsons argument and others who make it, is that we have no influence and regularly get trampled over by our European partners whenever we want to advance the UK position whilst we are in the club, so they say we should take our bat and walk off the field. Paradoxically, they say once we leave those who have trampled over us whilst we were in the club will suddenly agree to all we ask. This makes no sense all. In any case, I do not buy their talking down of British influence in the European Union. The fact is that historically UK Prime Ministers have been able to successfully marshal a majority in the EU Council behind the UK position on things. Our membership of the European Union enables us to stand big on the world stage and - for a medium sized country of around 65 million people - punch well above our weight when we are competing with emerging market economies with populations far greater than our own. And it delivers in so many ways: beyond the economic benefits, co-operating with our partners on carbon emissions, on anti-terrorism and the European Arrest Warrant helps keep our streets and our environment safer. So what this referendum comes down to is whether you have a big or small vision of the UK in the future. We need to be confident enough to recognise that influence is proportionate to the strength of international partnerships in the 21st century. I believe we should stand tall and always look for Britain to exercise the greatest influence abroad so we can deliver the best tangible benefits at home for our people. Continued membership of the EU is a must if we are to do this. Chuka Umunna is Labour MP for Streatham and a spokesperson for the Britain Stronger In Europe campaign Labour leader Joan Burton said her party's plan would create 150,000 jobs by 2018 Election front-runner Fine Gael has come under attack from rivals over its sums after launching a 10 billion euro (7.7bn) package of spending and tax cut promises. Lifting the curtain on its much-vaunted long-term economic plan, the party vowed to focus on job creation, income tax cuts and public sector jobs if returned to power. Taoiseach Enda Kenny pledged to create 50,000 jobs every year between now and 2020 - cutting the unemployment rate from 10% to 6% of the workforce. The new jobs would also entice 70,000 people who fled the country during the economic crash back home, he claimed. The party originally claimed it had 12 billion euro (9.2bn) to work with in its five-year plan. But after critics picked holes in the figures, Fine Gael has admitted it has two billion euro (2bn) less for the pledged spending and tax cuts. It has promised to spend 4.2 billion euro (3.2bn) on public services, including the recruitment of 10,000 new doctors, nurses, gardai, teachers, social workers and other frontline workers. Another 2.5 billion euro (1.9bn) would go towards a rainy day fund in three years time as an insurance policy against future economic shocks. Under the plan, they would also bring in multi-billion euro "targeted improvements" to welfare payments and services for the elderly, disabled, sick and carers as well as tax cuts. But Pearse Doherty, Sinn Fein's finance spokesman, said the economic plans were "watered down" and "all over the place" since questions were asked about their calculations. "It is clear that Fine Gael has been caught out as their figures don't add up," he said. "Fine Gael plans will now give massive tax breaks to the wealthy while imposing additional taxes on the struggling families. "The Taoiseach will benefit by over 12,000 euro (9,200), while minimum wage workers are brought into the PRSI net." Michael McGrath, Fianna Fail's finance spokesman, said Fine Gael's numbers "simply don't add up". "This government has brought the whole issue of broken promises to a new level," he added. Mr McGrath also attacked Mr Kenny for not appearing on a television interview with other party leaders and for limiting questions from journalists during his first press conference of the general election campaign. "This isn't North Korea," he said. On the first full day of the election campaign, the Labour Party committed to a minimum wage of 11.30 euro an hour (8.70). Tanaiste Joan Burton reiterated the promise to have full employment in the country in the next two years and also vowed to create 50,000 apprenticeships by 2021. She said her party's plan would create 150,000 jobs by 2018. In a package costed at 954 million euro (733m) in total, she also pledged to rewrite welfare rules to develop a new Working Family Benefit which would allow low paid working parents to earn at least 12 euro an hour, with qualification for the new system based on people's income rather than the hours they work. Launching its campaign, the Anti-Austerity Alliance/People Before Profit party claimed it was on the cusp of becoming the third largest in Dublin with around a tenth of the vote. Outgoing TD Paul Murphy said: "Change is happening very fast. Sections of the media are not aware of the extent of radicalisation." Eamon Ryan, Green Party leader, ruled out any cuts in the universal social charge because of the state of the world economy. His party would focus on housing, health and transport if elected, he said. Separately, Independent TD Peter Matthews who is standing for re-election in Dublin-Rathdown, said he would continue his campaign despite being unexpectedly diagnosed with oesophageal cancer last month. "With the necessary treatment the cancer is curable, and I expect to be back in full health on completion of treatment over the next number of months," he said. The latest opinion poll in the campaign, by Ipsos MRBI for the Irish Times, puts Fine Gael on 28%, down two points; Fianna Fal on 21%, up two; Sinn Fein on 19%, down two; Labour at 7%, unchanged; and Independents and others on 25%, up two. Opinion / Columnist "To the injustice committed in our name we must not add the injustice of forgetting," so said German historian, Hannah Vogt, who is also author of top-selling book, The Burden of Guilt - A short history of German 1914-1945.He is quoted above writing about the Nazi Holocaust that claimed the lives of six million Jews in gas chambers at Auschwitz, as Adolf Hitler and his Nazi followers attempted to exterminate the entire Jewish population of Europe in the period 1939-45.In the Zimbabwean context, one would tweak his statement to, "To the injustice committed against our own, we must not add the injustice of forgetting."And there are quite many of those injustices. The Gukurahundi genocide that claimed more than 20 000 lives in 1980-87, the murders of MDC supporters and other opposition activists during the past decade and a half, Operation Murambatsvina, Operation Mavhotera Papi and Operation Short/Long sleeves are but a few in a plethora of horrific experiences that Zimbabweans do not have the luxury to forget about.And these should haunt one Zimbabwean political embryo calling itself (which?) People First, led by former Vice President Joice Mujuru. Because of the political desperation that has gripped Zimbabwe of late, I do not write here unmindful of the ire that my article might draw.I know that to some, this might been seen to some as an invitation to trade unprintable profanities and to others as an incitement to throw certain accusations my way. I know there are a number of people who have joined Mujuru's calls to "BUILD" Zimbabwe from the corner of her formation. Some of them are close friends of mine, and they have even tried to lure me into taking certain positions in their formation-under-construction. But I believe there are times when, in pursuit of the need to serve the truth, one has to betray one's friends and former comrades.I have also come across certain people who believe that no-one has a right to discus the merits and demerits of a political outfit unless their are members of that outfit, but as a Zimbabwean, I believe I have authority to discuss anything that has something to do with Zimbabwe, and in its transmutation to a full-fledged party, People First will have everything to do with Zimbabwe the land of my birth. I therefore, need no more authority to write this than the authority of Mxolisi Ncube - a bona fide Zimbabwean citizen who wants to see genuine change dawn on his home country; Mxolisi Ncube - a Zimbabwean journalist under obligation to tell the truth and revisit history even when it burst certain bubbles and deflated certain egos; and Mxolisi Ncube a believer in reconciliation only when it is prefixed with justice.Reading through Mujuru's "Blue-print to Unlock Investment and Leverage for Development" (BUILD) document, I was impressed to come across lines like, "We say no to political intolerance........ We shall repeal POSA and replace it with a modern legislation that is in line with the Constitution....We say no to violence...There is going to be compassionate national and spiritual healing programmes throughout the country addressing trauma emanating from pre and post-Independence conflicts in Zimbabwe... We shall respect and uphold the rule of law by treating all people equally before the law...We want our political leaders to be honest and have integrity and be trust-worthy..."And then I remembered some worrying factors. Among the people that Mujuru hopes to "BUILD" this new Zimbabwe with are the Didymus Mutasas, the Kudakwashe Bhasikitis, the Jabulani Sibandas and the Jim Kunakas of this world - architects of the 2000-13 political violence. All those names as pillars in a formation that hopes to "build" a better country? Are we for real? Are our politicians for real? Is our politics for real? Is Mujuru for real? Is People First for real?"We shall respect and uphold the rule of law by treating all people equally before the law..."Does it mean that, should she win the elections, she will turn against Mutasa et al and order them arrested and tried for their crimes against humanity? Criminals need be arrested and tried for their crimes and "treating all people equally before the law" means that, not so? Or she will give amnesty to all murderers to allow Mutasa and company to go scot free? Dangerous proposition!Obviously, the former Vice President is yet to master the incredible power of credibility and embrace the magical power of reasoning. While she apparently has realised that Zimbabweans have become desperate enough to believe in anything that promises them change of government, she has missed the fact that they have also suffered too much to forget those who took them to hell and back.I have personally interviewed exiled political activists who break down at the mere mention of Mutasa and Kunaka - people who lost their loved ones, homes and even limbs at the instigation of those two. I have also been in contact with some Masvingo residents who survived hell in the hands of Jabulani Sibanda-led war veterans. All those know pain because they lived through pain back then; they live through pain today and will continue to live through pain for as long as those who inflicted pain on them still remain alive and unpunished.There are a number of painful incidents that I personally live through myself and while I am not sure about my ability to forgive, I know for certain that I do not have the ability to forget. To me, the Didymus Mutasa who claims to be eager to "BUILD" Zimbabwe today is until he is punished or pardoned by a court of law, still the same Didymus Mutasa who caused the political terror that anti-climaxed in the death of Christpower Maisiri and other MDC activists in Headlands.Maisiri's death and that of many other opposition activists is an injustice Mutasa and Zanu (PF) inflicted on them and their families. To that injustice we must not add the injustice of forgetting.There is therefore, no gainsaying the fact that for People First to be embraced as a genuine driver of change, Joice Mujuru should declare her wealth and its source; Mutasa should come clean on the injustices he ordered carried out on fellow Zimbabweans during his Zanu (PF) days; Jim Kunaka should tell all about the torture and murders he ordered and executed during his Chipangano days and expose both his accomplices and the bosses under whose command he did all that; Jabulani Sibanda should explain the violent operations he carried out in Masvingo and elsewhere, and Kudakwashe Bhasikiti should confess all the gory operations he ordered carried out against mainly MDC-T members. And all that should be done in a court of law.As I have written elsewhere, there is no way you can hunt with wolves for decades plundering our livestock and then, just because you have lost speed and some of your canine teeth have fallen off, tell us you have realised you are actually dogs and expect us to allow you into our homes. There is no difference between a murderer in Zanu (PF) and a murderer who belongs in the opposition. Both must all be arrested and punished for their crimes.I know that some People First proponents would want us to forget about the past, but to forget, we need to first forgive and to be able to forgive, we need to see justice. Reconciliation without justice has failed, the case-study being the so-called 1987 Unity Accord between Zanu (PF) and PF-ZAPU a unity that Mutasa also benefitted from. And we shall always have memory of that.Spanish scholar and author, Manuel Reyes Mate, in his essay titled, "Does Historical Responsibility Exist?" states that, "... without memory there is no justice because non-remembrance attacks, destroys or breaks up the truth and the existence of the injustice." In that vein, Zimbabweans are not able to erase their bitter memories because they know that once the injustice has been erased, there is no reason for justice."Consequently, if someone takes justice seriously, that is to say, they wish to think of universal justice as something that not only deals with big and significant things, but also with small, insignificant ones, that person has to turn to a memory that does not forget, to divine memory," sates Mate.In a line poignantly directed at the likes of Mutasa, he adds, "Man knows from experience that mankind moves forward by forgetting, and for that reason injustice is repeated."In as much as they would want people to lose memory of the past, People First proponents should always remember that memory is a hermeneutic matter; it consists of considering as highly significant what has been so far granted as insignificant.Memory is justice or, rather, a response to injustice. And memory of all the injustices committed against the poor and vulnerable and acting on those, is what a genuine "People First" movement must show. Traders work at their desks in front of the German share price index, DAX board, at the stock exchange in Frankfurt. Photo: Reuters Declines in banks dragged European stocks lower for a third day, while investors weighed financial results amid concern over global growth. By mid afternoon in Dublin, the ISEQ Overall Index was down 1.38pc or 87.93 points to 6,267.91. The mid-afternoon leaders on the Dublin index included recruitment firm CPL, which increased 0.8pc to 6.20, while insurance group FBD rose 0.5pc to 6.39. On the other side of the board, the laggards included insulation group Kingspan, which was down 3.8pc to 22.60, while speciality baker Aryzta slipped 1.5pc to 42.85. Elsewhere, the Stoxx 600 fell 1.9pc by mid-afternoon in London, as all industry groups except miners fell. It briefly inched into positive territory on three occasions yesterday, but failed to sustain gains. Novo Nordisk and Royal KPN lost at least 1.6pc after reporting worse-than-estimated earnings. A gauge of lenders posted the worst performance in the Stoxx Europe 600 Index, extending its lowest level since 2012. The regional benchmark deepened a drop after US services data missed estimates, stoking concern about a recovery in the world's biggest economy. Anxiety about global growth has resurfaced, after a two-week halt to the market sell-off sparked by China's slowdown and an oil rout. While central bank optimism tempered losses toward the end of last month, the benchmark still had its worst start to a year since the financial crisis. "The extent of the correction is unjustified in a world where economic conditions haven't drastically changed," said Dirk Thiels, head of investment management at KBC Asset Management in Brussels. "Sentiment is still below freezing. But fundamentals look pretty solid if you look under the hood. We've added to our equity positions and will be looking at earnings to trigger a shift." The bar for earnings expectations is getting lower, with analyst cuts to estimates outpacing upgrades by the most since October, according to a Citigroup index tracking the changes. Risk in credit markets also increased. The Markit iTraxx Europe Index of credit-default swaps on investment-grade companies surpassed 100 basis points for the first time since October 2013. Italian lenders led declines in the sector, with Banco Popolare and Banca Popolare di Milano Scarl tumbling 7.6pc or more amid concern over their piles of bad debt. Among other stocks active on financial results, Finnish energy company Fortum Oyj slid 13pc after its quarterly comparable operating profit missed projections. LVMH gained 4.4pc as its fashion and leather-goods sales beat forecasts, while Christian Dior rallied 5.2pc. Syngenta climbed 2.9pc. Enterprise Ireland (EI) is planning to lead at least 20 healthcare firms on a scoping visit to Iran in May in the agency's first market mission to the country since trade sanctions were lifted last month, the Irish Independent has learned. Iran emerged from years of economic isolation when world powers lifted crippling sanctions against the Islamic Republic in return for Tehran complying with a deal to curb its nuclear ambitions. It's hoped that global companies that have been barred from doing business there will be able to tap into the market of almost 80 million people. Enterprise Ireland, which is tasked with boosting the exporting potential of Irish firms, said opportunities for Irish companies over the coming years could be in the hundreds of millions of euro. "There's no real way to measure as there's no quality data to lean on. [But] about 440m in exports goes to the Gulf Cooperation Council states [from EI-backed firms] and that's a population of 47 million," Sean Davis, EI's Dubai-based regional manager Middle East & North Africa, said. "Iran is a population of 80 million and Tehran is approximately the same distance to get to as Kuwait City and it's easier to get to than Oman and Jordan. "The GDP per capita is lower, but we're fairly confident, given the fossil fuel wealth and mineral wealth, that in the next five to ten years it [the financial opportunity for Irish companies] would be significant, in the hundreds of millions. "That's purely an extrapolation based on what EI clients currently do in the Gulf states." Mr Davis said the agency would be targeting the healthcare, financial services and agri-technology sectors in its first push into the country over the coming months. Iran has also courted the aviation sector in recent weeks amid plans to buy more than 100 aircraft from Airbus. Irish-founded leasing company Avolon has already lobbied the Government to reopen Ireland's embassy in Iran. Enterprise Ireland held exploratory meetings in Iran last March in anticipation of the lifting of sanctions and to assess opportunities. The agency said that at the Arab Health trade show in Dubai last week, it had 20 EI client companies in the city involved in an Iran workshop. "That's the first sector we've decided to action on. Off the back of that, we were looking at doing a market visit with a number of clients. That number is to be confirmed but certainly the core 20 from the seminar would be part of that," Mr Davis said. The companies are expected to travel to the Iran Health trade show in Tehran in May. "When we were there some months back, we visited hospitals, we visited labs, and we clearly could identify there were opportunities for our indigenous sector to grow there and there's a massive appetite for goods and services in Iran now," Mr Davis added. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said the lifting of sanctions would see foreign investment turn Iran into an exporter of manufactured goods and ease its reliance on oil exports. President Rouhani travelled to Europe in recent weeks as part of a delegation that included Iranian entrepreneurs as well as the oil and gas minister and other government officials visiting Paris and Rome. EI said interest has been expressed from Irish companies in aviation, healthcare and fintech, although it pointed out that those companies are active and based in the Gulf already. "A lot of our clients would have offices and people in the Gulf," Mr Davis said. "They would be very current on what's happening there. We've had to adopt a steady pace a bit because there are snap back clauses in the sanctions as well, so these sanctions that have been lifted can be very quickly reinstated. It's a process, but so far it has all gone to plan and that gives us the opportunity to move forward." Vodafone Ireland chief executive Anne OLeary. Smartphone customers make up almost two-thirds of the mobile market Pre-tax profits at the Irish arm of mobile phone giant Vodafone declined by 24pc to 60.35m last year. According to accounts just filed with the Companies Office, Vodafone Ireland Ltd's revenues remained flat at 949m. The accounts show that the firm, led by Cork native Anne O'Leary, paid a dividend of 12m to its parent last year following a dividend pay-out of 80m in fiscal 2014. The firm is the market leader in Ireland in relation to mobile phone customers with two million at the end of March last It recorded an 11pc, or 127,000, increase in smartphone subscribers last year. The firm's overall customer base totalled 2.3 million at the end of March. Numbers employed at the firm rose from 786 to 881. The accounts disclose that Vodadone Ireland received 14.6m from rival Three Ireland last year arising from Three Ireland's firm H3G Ireland terminating the companies' network-sharing agreement. The directors state that as a result of the termination of the agreement, "Eudokia Ltd became a wholly owned subsidiary of Vodafone Ireland following the purchase of the remaining 50pc share capital from H3G Ireland". According to the directors' report, "Vodafone Ireland reported another strong year in 2015 in a continuing challenging and competitive operating environment". The directors say that almost 1.3 million Vodafone customers now use a smartphone, making up 65.5pc of the mobile customer base. The profit last year takes account of high non-cash depreciation and amortisation costs of 120.7m. Staff costs last year increased by 7pc to 73.6m. Directors' remuneration increased from 1.33m to 1.41m. The firm incurred an actuarial loss of 74.9m on its pension scheme last year following a 1.4m actuarial loss in fiscal 2014. Meanwhile, the firm has published results for its third quarter of this financial year for the three month period ending December 31. Vodafone Ireland reported revenue growth of 3.4pc, up to 240.4m while revenue in its mobile enterprise business also grew 6.9pc. The increase represent back-to-back quarterly growth for the network. Mobile customers on contract grew by 59,600 when compared with the same time last year and it reported a 126pc increase in the number of 4G devices. Speaking about the quarterly statistics Vodafone Ireland CEO, Anne O'Leary said that performance continues the 'positive upward momentum'. Here are the main business stories from this morning's papers: Irish Independent * Enterprise Ireland (EI) is planning to lead at least 20 healthcare firms on a scoping visit to Iran in May in the agency's first market mission to the country since trade sanctions were lifted last month, the Irish Independent has learned. Iran emerged from years of economic isolation when world powers lifted crippling sanctions against the Islamic Republic in return for Tehran complying with a deal to curb its nuclear ambitions. It's hoped that global companies that have been barred from doing business there will be able to tap into the market of almost 80 million people. * The State has seen 470m wiped off the value of its stake in Bank of Ireland since the group's shares touched 39 cent in early 2014, as the bank's stock continues to slide. The taxpayers' 14pc holding in the bank now has a market value of 1.29bn, compared to the 1.76bn it was worth in 2014. It was also worth close to that higher amount last year. Bank of Ireland shares have fallen about 15pc since the beginning of 2016, declining to just over 28 cent each yesterday. That's 27pc lower than the 39 cent they were trading at in early 2014, just as US billionaire Wilbur Ross started offloading his holding in the group. They were also changing hands at over 38 cent each last March. * Oil giant Shell injected 70m into its Irish unit that's behind the Corrib gas project in recent months as the field prepared to begin delivering gas, new filings show. The Corrib gas field is located 83km off Ireland's west coast in depths of almost 350 metres. Gas began flowing from the field only in the past few weeks - 11 years behind schedule. The Irish Times * The Irish telecoms watchdog, ComReg, has been criticised by Eir's rival firms for taking to long to adjudicate on complaints filed against the former semi-state company. Complaints of discrimination against other networks by Eir have been filed to ComReg and despite Eir admitting to not providing equal access to its network to other companies, ComReg still hasn't ruled on the matter. A compliance update is due to be filed by Eir by the end of March, which is expected to detail the company's progress in complying with regulations. * Vodafone has denied speculation that shareholders would lose out more under its low-cost dealing option than it would if they had used an online option that was previously available to them. On Wednesday Vodafone announced a new scheme that would allow shareholders sell off their shares through a low-cost option. Under the option shareholders with 50 shares or less could sell at no commission. * Small and medium enterprises are finding it difficult to recruit the best available talent due to growing competition from multi-nationals. That's according to a new survey conducted by Hays Ireland and ISME. The survey shows that 38pc of SMEs could hold their own against larger firms in Ireland. Irish Examiner * A Brexit could have a 'huge impact' on large firms' ambitions to set up a base in the North once the corporation tax is cut. According to Neil Gibson, director of the Economic Policy Centre, a Brexit would create added complexity and could slow investment in the North. Mr Gibson said that the consequences would weigh on traders' intentions in the short term. * Clydesdale Bank shares rose by 2.4pc on its London debut yesterday, valuing the British lender at around 1.62bn (2.14bn). The bank, which is currently headed up by former AIB boss, David Duffy, saw its shares priced towards the lower of a 175p to 235p indicative range. The performance of the bank was particularly poignant for investors here as the possibility of an AIB IPO gains momentum. * One51, the plastics and environmental group, has purchased UK-based industrial services firm, H&T Labour and Vacumation Services for an undisclosed sum. The deal will expand One51's Clear Circle Environmental, which will subsume H&T. One51's acquisition follows on from its takeover of Greenway Environmental in September. 'The current problem is that a growing number of potential first-time buyers maintain that revamped mortgage guidelines are making it impossible to get on the property ladder.' Photo: Reuters THERE was a fall in the number of first-time buyers drawing down a mortgage in the final three months of last year. New figures from the banks show that 3,813 new buyers took out a mortgage between October and last December. This was 220 fewer mortgages than in the same quarter in 2014. It was the first time there has been a fall off in the number of first-time buyers in a quarter, when compared with a year earlier, since 2013, according to the Banking and Payments Federation of Ireland. Central Bank lending restrictions, which have hit new buyers hard, have been blamed for the fall-off. Some 8,103 mortgages were drawn down in the October to December period, valued at 1.451bn. This is an increase of 6.9pc on the previous year. But this represents a considerable slowdown on the number of people drawing down a mortgage in the first half of last year. The Central Bank introduced lending restrictions last February, requiring a 20pc deposit for amounts borrowed over 220,000. Goodbody economist Juliet Tennent said: The rules are clearly having the biggest impact on the first-time buyers category. Overall, last year there were 24,134 mortgages issued for house purchases. This compares with the 47,500 transactions recorded on the Property Price Register last year, with the data for 2015 not yet complete. Davy economist Conall Mac Coille said this meant cash buyers still account for close to 50pc of transactions. Meanwhile, figures provided in the Dail to Fianna Fail Michael McGrath show that Longford has the highest level of mortgage arrears. Some 16.83pc of mortgages are in arrears in the county, compared with 8.83pc in Cork, which has the lowest level. International ratings agency Moody's has controversially suggested large numbers of mortgage holders have stopped making repayments in a bid to get debts written off. Banks have in the past suggested that a large number of those in arrears are so-called strategic defaulters - those who make a decision to stop making payments on a debt, despite having the financial ability to make the payments. Now Moody's says in a new investor note that mortgage arrears rose sharply here when rumours of debt forgiveness circulated at the end of 2011, even though general economic developments did not justify such a spike. Irish mortgage arrears are the highest in Europe, the ratings agency said. Moody's said this country was a good example of what it called "recourse regulation". Recourse is the legal right of banks to demand repayments. The ratings agency looked at mortgages that were packaged up and sold to investors, so-called residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS). The Moody's investor note states: "Irish RMBS arrears surged when rumours of debt forgiveness circulated at the end of 2011, even though general economic developments did not justify such a spike. "Regulation introduced in 2013 weakened the recourse nature and introduced the possibility of debt forgiveness, even though underwriting standards have been strict and debt forgiveness has only been used in very limited cases to date." Moody's was making reference to the Insolvency Service of Ireland, which oversees formal debt write-down deals. It was established under the Personal Insolvency Act 2012, which came into force in 2013. The ratings agency said the Irish mortgage market ranks as the weakest in a sample of European markets it looked at in terms of ability of banks to force homeowners to pay mortgages and to repossess a property. It said mortgages in this country display the highest level of what it called delinquencies. Recent figures from the Central Bank show a total of 92,291 residential mortgage accounts were in some form of arrears. This works out at around one- in-eight mortgages. The number of accounts in arrears over 90 days at end September was 65,584. Banks have claimed that up to one in five of those in arrears are strategic defaulters. A charity that helps those unable to repay their debts said banks were exaggerating the extent of strategic arrears. The Phoenix Project's Tom O'Reilly said: "Strategic default is overplayed by the banks to turn public opinion against the people who are not able to pay their mortgage in full." National housing charity Threshold has welcomed plans to introduce an affordable rental scheme for young workers seeking a home in our major cities. The charity said that the proposed scheme, which would see the State pay 30pc of market rent for low earners such as newly qualified nurses and gardai, would allow workers to live close to their jobs and help eliminate long-distance commuting. But chief executive Bob Jordan said the measure was just one among a number needed to improve the rental market. A key measure to ensure stability would be linking rents to the cost of living, a suggestion rejected by the Government, which instead introduced a two-year rent freeze. "We've been highlighting for a number of years the plight of people who don't qualify for social housing or rent supplement but who can't afford market rents," Mr Jordan said. "This pilot scheme is welcome and is targeting a real need out there. In recent years, people on low incomes in retail and services have been driven further and further away from the city, and this will provide them with a real opportunity to live closer to where they work." Details of how the affordable rental scheme will operate have yet to be decided, although some 10m will be made available in 2016 for a pilot project. Based on the average cost of renting a two-bedroom apartment in Dublin, the available funding would secure around 650 homes. Meanwhile, Environment Minister Alan Kelly has announced 10m funding for local authorities to allow them to complete and take over unfinished housing developments. City and county councils have not taken over the running of some 5,600 estates across the country - including 1,500 where applications have been made -because essential services such as roads and footpaths have not been finished to the required standard. A 10m pilot scheme will provide money for works to be completed while also improving co-ordination between local authorities, Irish Water and other stakeholders to allow developments to be handed over. Ryanair, the airline headed up by Michael O'Leary, has reported a 25pc increase in its January traffic as its customer count hit 7.5 million last month. The load factor on flights also grew by 5 percentage points, up to 88pc. The airline's annual traffic grew by 17pc, totalling 102.9 million. Ryanair's Kenny Jacobs said that the numbers reflected the firm's ambition to improve. Ryanairs January traffic grew by 25pc to 7.5 million customers, while our load factor jumped 5 percentage points to 88pc, thanks to Ryanair offering lower fares as part of our load factor active/yield passive policy. "These record monthly numbers and load factors are also due to the continuing success of our Always Getting Better customer experience programme, which continues to deliver stronger than expected forward bookings, traffic and load factors," Mr Jacobs said. NOW that we're into February, many Irish companies are now in the final stages of mapping out their strategic plans for the year ahead, including their recruitment goals for 2016. For many SMEs, this might be a challenge, given vulnerability to the vagaries of the economy. However, with the forecast for further improvement, now is the time for SMEs to be thinking about how they can hire the staff they need to take advantage of the opportunities that will come their way. The results from a new Hays Ireland survey suggests that, unfortunately, 68pc of SMEs rate their own recruitment methods as "average at best". With this in mind, I'm outlining eight areas where SMEs can boost their chances of hiring the right person, the first time. 1 Plan your process You might not have the luxury of a hiring strategy for the year, but it's worth thinking about what you might need in the coming months. A financial quarter of strong sales or profit might be the indicator to consider hiring. Find out if some of the skills you are looking for are present in the business. Then decide if you can set aside the time required to hire someone, and help new hires settle in and get up to speed as quickly as possible. 2 Write a great specification Don't make the mistake of throwing a couple of bullet points on a Word document to solve a current issue. Think about the value any new hire will bring, not just on day one, but also month six and month 12 and year three. There will be subtle differences but it's great to have this vision in mind. 3 Write a great job ad Your job specification is NOT your job ad. Please take some time to write a compelling advert that will attract someone to read it and then apply. Sell your organisation and the role - you're in a competitive environment! 4 Network your job Where are you going to put your ad? Go inside the mind of your ideal candidate and imagine where they'd be looking for a job. Don't underestimate your personal network, share the job with contacts and also your existing staff so they can use their networks. 5 Acknowledge all applications Possibly one of the major bugbears of candidates is that they don't hear back from a company when they've submitted an application. I appreciate and acknowledge that recruitment agencies can be guilty of this too. But if you're an SME operating in a small industry sector or, more pressingly, a small geographic area, your "employer brand" is intrinsically linked to a positive "candidate experience". This is not just people you bring for interview, but everyone who has enquired about the job. 6 Batch your interviews Spreading your interviews around your diary for the next month will hamper a selection process. When you make the decision to hire, plan for your interviews and factor in a day or two when you can do back-to-back interviews. It'll make the choice easier. 7 Get a second opinion It's human nature for interviewers to choose someone they like (this isn't necessarily a bad thing), but it helps to be more objective. If you can use the same questions for every candidate and score them you'll be more impartial. You could get someone else into the process for an independent view. Affirming your thoughts is of value. 8 Make a quick decision I've been shocked at how quickly the employment market is moving since we returned to work after Christmas. If you're going time on a hiring process, try and design it so that you can make a quick decision. Unnecessary delays will almost certainly mean you'll miss out on the candidate you want and your time (and money) could be wasted. No SME I know can afford this. Mike McDonagh is a director with Hays Ireland. The above tips are just a taster from a toolkit, called the Recruitment Roadmap, which Hays Ireland launched today. Opinion / Columnist 'That you may have a clear idea of my objects, I may state that they have more in them than meets the eye. They are not merely exploratory, for I go with the intention of benefiting both the African and my own countrymen. I take a practical mining geologist to tell of the mineral resources of the country, an economic botanist to give full report of the vegetable productions, an artist to give the scenery, a naval officer to tell of the capacity of river communications, a moral agent to lay a Christian foundation for anything that may follow. All this machinery has for its ostensible object the development of African trade and promotion of civilization; but what I can tell none but such as you, in whom I have confidence, is this. I hope it may result in an English colony in the healthy high lands of Central Africa.' To China, Zimbabwe is China's newest colonial harbor while to the United States, Zimbabwe is the United States' newest threat to its US-Africa imperialistic agenda. Cecil John Rhodes succeeded in blocking Boer-Afrikaner influence from crossing further afar off into Cairo from the Cape. Rhodes also blocked Portuguese colonialist interests from crossing over and overshadowing the rest of Southern Africa, from Sofala down to the Atlantic port of Angola. Though Rhodes' mission failed then, China has however, chosen to re-visit Africa's colonial archives and reinstating the statue of Rhodes from the Cape into Harare, but now the new Rhodes is China assuming the incarnate role of Cecil in its modern day imperialistic strategy.Sino-African relations are fast becoming more popular among nationalist regimes of Africa, a move which is soon likely to provoke the US to employ regime change force models tailor made to uproot dominant African regimes. This the US will desperately employ in a despotic bid to maintain US influence on the African continent. The US knows too well that it has over-extracted African resources to the point that their presence on the African soil is greatly antagonized. It now simply means that the US and her empires must therefore turn to other sources of extraction. But where and how is the golden question on the African political table talk. In the global political environment, western empires of old are fast diminishing and shrinking, while the capacity for colonial masters of old to maintain a tight grip on former African colonies is proving to becoming an increasingly costly and impossible venture.China has somehow revamped the colonial methodology which the US has tactically renamed globalization. Because the US has over- extracted a high amount of resources out of Africa, this has led to its recent unpopularity among African regime governments, leading to it fast depreciating ability to survive on the continent. China's colonial approach is somewhat dodgingly temperate. According to its proposed African neo-colonial model, China is extracting little at the moment, allowing the African colony some modicum of self-control as well as sufficient resources to attain partial autonomy and to grow; the empire then gains over a long span of time as a result of the increased resources within the colony that the Chinese empire can extract. Chinese defense and military deals with former European colonies has ignited diplomatic and bureaucratic measures that have further intensified regime confidence and longevity. This has thus given China more room for gradual but uninterrupted increase in extraction. In these and many other ways, as well as in differing combinations of these modes over time and across geography, imperialization simply means the empire's removal of resources from its colonies.It is however difficult to raise critical comments about US-Sino imperialistic agendas in general and the American Dream in particular. For many, it is simply unthinkable to engage in any type of criticism of China and America, given their belief in China and America as the fulfillment of their dreams. Criticism is regarded as tantamount to ungratefulness, rather like vomiting out one's dream and then proceeding to eat back one's vomit. For many Africans, such an attitude is to be without debt of gratitude. The slogan is 'one must take China or America or leave it. This is how many of the African regimes think. African regimes by doing so perceive in their depraved minds that they can repay China or America by accepting their colonial demands for world supremacy without question.The challenge, therefore, is to raise the social awareness of African presidents and the Africans, so that they can come to understand that there African sovereign dreams are being betrayed such that they will never reach their God promised Canaan of their dreams. Colonialism and Christianity like globalization and democracy came to Africa simultaneously. In fact, the two aid each other in ''Christianizing '' and dominating the indigenous peoples. The partnership of colonialism and Christianity is well expressed in one of David Livingstone's letters, discussed by John Kirk:Over the past decade there has been a renewed imperial interest by the US but the US quest has unfortunately been met by setbacks mainly due to the fact that their colonial methodology in contradistinction with China's collaborative approach are devasting to the existence of African freedom parties. The west has come with regime change models while China on the one hand has been bent on collaborating with nationalist regimes in Africa. To the African nationalist regimes China's colonial model is mature and not as radical and demeaning as that of the west. Q: We have 20 staff in our business and provide a private area for staff to prepare their food and eat in comfort. The challenge is that every time I enter this room it is untidy and uncared for. Despite my best efforts I don't seem to be able to get the message across. Help? A: Don't despair! You are not alone in your frustration. Over forty years ago I remember being hugely frustrated by ongoing cardboard, plastic and general debris being scattered around the floors of our shops. It wasn't the customers who were putting it there, but rather staff who were busy merchandising the sections, dropping pieces of packaging as they speedily attended to their work. At all times we had at least two members of staff pushing one metre wide ballroom brushes (from my Red Island Holiday Camp days) around the shop in order to ensure the waste didn't build up. It was a never-ending cycle which hugely frustrated me. We had organised for the manager of one shop to go to America on a fact-finding trip. One of the many things he noticed was that floors were spotless with no sign of staff sweeping. They simply didn't drop litter in the first place. On his return, the first thing the manager did was to gather up the cleaning staff and all the ballroom brushes in the carpark at the back of the shop, where he promptly set fire to all the brushes. The word quickly spread among the staff and with a little encouragement from the manager, the shop was spotless within days as all of the merchandising staff suddenly started to take care not to drop anything and as the floors were always clean. Within two weeks the idea had been adopted by every other manager, and within six months it had spread to every other retailer in Ireland. Sometimes it is about a change of mindset and to create that change you have to do something dramatic to signal you are moving on. Q: We're starting up a home-based bakery business in Dublin, and was wondering if you could provide information or help that would assist in our success. A: Thanks for your email. It is great to hear of a new business starting up. Well done for taking the initiative! I'm assuming you have registered your home kitchen with your Environmental Health Officer and have your insurance in place. If not, do both immediately. There are lots of supports available for a new food business like yours. The Local Enterprise Office (LEO) have a mentor and advice service etc. designed to provide you with support. Contact them as a start point. There is a specific course for food startups like yours called Kick Start Your Food Business in Dublin which will provide you with perfect advice for where you are at. The LEO will give you details of the next course available. You should also join the Dublin Food Chain (it's free) which is the networking and marketing forum for the Dublin food community. They have some great events which bring buyers and sellers together. You will really benefit from these events. Bord Bia also have an annual Foodservice Seminar which focuses on supplying the food service sector (cafes etc.). Bord Bia also have their Foodservice Directory which is free to download and profiles all the key chain cafe operators etc, but it might be a bit soon for you to supply some of these big ones, but I have no doubt you will learn lots from reading the profiles, which set out their needs. That will help get ideas for smaller local cafes to start off. I hope all of the above helps and do start by chatting to the LEO. They are best positioned to help you at this point. Send your small business questions to himself@feargalquinn.ie Niall Mulligan (40), a father of two originally from Fermanagh and now living in Greystones, Co Wicklow, is the founder of Urban Living. The Dublin business provides architect and construction services under one roof for home improvement projects. "I have 15 years of experience in construction and wanted to do something like this for a long time. I finally took the plunge two years ago. We opened up in 2014 but it was last summer that things really took off. Urban Living is a retail store - you can walk in off the street into our office in Ranelagh in Dublin - and get architect and construction services in one place. However, we can also offer either service on its own, if the client prefers to use their own builder or architect. We mainly serve the home improvement and extensions market, anything from attic conversions to interior design to exterior work. Homeowners generally don't know where to begin when it comes to finding an architect or builder for those kinds of projects. In rural areas, everyone tends to know a local builder or can find one easily by word of mouth. But young, city-dwelling professionals don't have those contacts. That's where we come in. It is one of the reasons we are based in Dublin and will expand in built-up city suburbs. My vision is to have several easily accessible, high street branches where the general public can walk in off the street if they need any building work carried out. The business employs two architects and two project managers as well as me. We sub-contract out some tasks, like electrical work, but our project managers are always on site supervising everything. January was really busy. Like exercise, people are obviously motivated to start working on their homes at the turn of a new year. The Home Renovation Incentive Scheme rolled out in the last Budget, which offers tax relief on lots of home improvement work, has helped business too. I hope to expand in south Dublin, staying in the busy suburbs. Then I'd like to move into Manchester and the south of England. I worked there for a long time and know the market well. My wife and I funded the business entirely with our own savings. It was very tough at times in terms of cash flow and I was tempted several times to go back to working for someone else. But we held on and things are going great now. It happened for real this morning, after sort of happening in after-hours trading in thE US last Monday night. Yes, Alphabet, the budding conglomerate formerly known as Google, passed Apple to become the world's most valuable company, as measured by stock-market capitalisation. At the close of trading, the market caps were $531bn for Alphabet and $524bn for Apple. Congrats, Larry Page and Sergey Brin! As changings-of-the guard go, this one doesn't feel all that epochal. Apple has been behind Google before - the last time was six years ago, when neither was in the top spot - and it could conceivably jump ahead of it again soon, given how much more volatile its stock price has been. The bigger news may actually be that Facebook passed Berkshire Hathaway and Exxon Mobil this week and broke into the market-cap top five for the first time. Alphabet, Apple, Microsoft, Facebook and Berkshire Hathaway are the market-cap leaders as of this week, with different trajectories that brought them there. In other words, these are the five companies that stock-market investors deem to have the most valuable combination of present earnings and future prospects. Which got me thinking: How good have investors been at assessing the most valuable corporations' prospects in the past? And a very different list led the way on American markets a decade ago: Exxon Mobil, General Electric, Microsoft, BP and Citigroup. Oil was hot then (Royal Dutch Shell was No 6), and now it's not. But it presumably will be again. As for General Electric and Citigroup, what investors didn't get in 2006 was that the worst global financial crisis in 75 years was coming, and it would be especially tough on banks such as Citi and bank-like entities such as GE Capital. I was also curious how the top five from March 2000 - the apex of the tech-stock boom - had done. Remember NTT Docomo? It's still Japan's biggest wireless operator. But in 2000 it was widely seen as the future of mobile. Its i-mode service, launched in 1999, was the first truly successful effort to bring the internet to mobile phones. Some of its innovations (emoji!) are still with us today, but it was Apple and Google that ended up making the mobile internet ubiquitous, not NTT Docomo. NTT Docomo has had the steepest fall, but Cisco and Intel weren't far behind. Only Microsoft has come close to making up its losses since March 2000. That was a time of unique investor overconfidence, but all of the 2006 top five except Microsoft are worth less now than they were a decade ago, too. Meanwhile, the Standard & Poor's 500 Index is up 50pc since February 2006, and it's up 25pc since March 2000. I haven't assembled enough data points to draw any strong conclusions, but money manager Rob Arnott of Research Affiliates did the necessary digging back in 2005, sifting through market data from 1926 through 2004. He found that 76pc of the time the largest-cap company as of January 1 underperformed the average stock over the next 10 years. Of the 10 companies with the highest market caps, 68pc went on to under-perform the average stock over the next decade. Making it near the top of the market-cap list is a sign that your company has been very successful, but it also appears to be a sign that investors have gotten too enthusiastic about you. OK, I take back the congratulations. So sorry this had to happen to you, Larry and Sergey! You should be able to tough it out, though. (Bloomberg View) Seed funding for Irish tech startups is in sharp decline, new industry figures from venture capital companies show. The figures show that early-stage startup money has fallen by a third in Ireland over the last year. Seed funding here dropped from 66.8m to 43.8m between 2014 and 2015, according to figures recorded by the Irish Venture Capital Association. And the investment ratio has fallen by over half (58pc) in the last five years. Investors say that the decline in seed financing is down to lack of State-backed seed funds. "Very simply, the existing seed funds have run out of money," said Regina Breheny, director general of the IVCA. "The seed funds have been winding down for the last couple of years." She said that venture capitalists expected to see an upturn in seed funding activity in coming years due to a 65m Enterprise Ireland allocation for such early stage startup investment. This State-backed money is expected to be matched by private investors, she said. However, the decline in early-stage funding here comes at a time when overall investment in Irish-registered tech firms is soaring. Completed IVCA figures show that 522m was ploughed into tech and biotech companies here by investors last year, a 30pc rise on the 401m invested in 2014. In all, angel and venture investment has almost doubled in Ireland over the last five years. Business software continues to dominate tech investment in Ireland, with 26.5pc (127.9m) of all the venture capital taken in last year. There were also more individual investments in business software startups, with 53 of the 125 Irish funding rounds last year allocated to startups and companies that develop software. But on a per-investment basis, individual biotech and pharmaceutical-related technology investments were larger than any other type of tech activity. The average pharma-biotech funding round in Ireland was 8.8m in 2015, followed by financial tech (7.6m per round), environmental tech (6.9m) and telecoms (6.8m). Individual investments in electronic components companies here averaged 4.9m, while medical devices firms saw 4m per funding round. Despite being the biggest overall tech activity sector here, business software recorded a lower per-investment figure of 2.4m. After software, medical tech firms attracted the most overall funding here last year with 75.3m in venture capital. Financial technology came next at 68.1m, although this includes a 45.5m investment in Circle which is a US-based company that 'reversed' into Ireland for financial reasons. A small number of strong funding rounds say pharma and biotech firms take fourth place overall in the investment league table with 61.6m. Meanwhile, environmental tech companies got 54.8m and telecoms and communications startups snagged 47.8m. In terms of individual investment rounds, software was responsible for almost one in two venture and angel funding rounds in Ireland last year. Medical technology and devices came next, with 19 separate investments and then financial technology rounds, with nine funding rounds. Environmental technology, telecoms, communications, electronic components and biotech companies all got between seven and eight individual investments each. One area of growth has come from international venture capital firms investing in Irish firms. International investor cash now counts for 46pc of venture funding into Ireland, a big jump on 2014 (33pc). Five years ago, international funding represented just 17pc of Irish VC activity, the IVCA figures show. The external funding trend is typified by companies such as the Dublin-based chip design firm Movidius, which raised 38m in a single funding round from a mixture of Irish and international investors last year. Intercom, a communications software company that was founded by Irish engineers and which has its largest base in Dublin, also attracted over 30m of international funding last year. According to the IVCA, 18pc of the funds last year were raised by eight Irish companies who went directly abroad, mainly to Silicon Valley. This is up from 13pc in 2014. "This is a growing phenomenon and further validation of the calibre of the Irish technology sector," said Regina Breheny, director general of the IVCA. The figures again showed the growing dominance of Dublin as a region attracting venture capital, with a majority of the funding going to Dublin-based startups and tech firms. They also confirm the gulf in funding between male and female-led firms. An Irish Independent analysis of the first 10 months of 2015 showed that less than 3pc of venture capital goes to startups with a female founder and only 0.6pc of funding goes to tech firms with a female chief executive. It also showed that the average investment round for a VC-funded tech firm in Ireland with a female chief executive was 591,000, ten times less than the average funding round (5.46m) to a company with a male chief executive. Of 415m raised by Irish tech firms last year, just 2.3m went to female-led companies while 10.9m went to startups with at least one female co-founder during the period. Despite rising numbers of female tech founders in Ireland, the research shows a lack of female participation in top executive roles. Of 88 companies to receive venture capital funding in Ireland last year, just four list a female chief executive while 12 list a woman as a co-founder. Of the four firms run by a female chief executive, all were founded solely by women. The IVCA records figures provided by venture capital firms with operations in Ireland. A small number of Irish-registered companies are included which 'reversed' into Ireland for financial reasons and which have smaller bases here than in other countries. The Boston-based virtual currency firm Circle, for example, is listed in the 2015 figures as having attracted a 45m investment round. A spokesman for the IVCA said that such firms are still included in the figures for continuity but represent a small minority of tech firms listed. "The results show increased interest by overseas investors in the Irish tech sector which is a tribute to the calibre of its entrepreneurs and technology capabilities," said Brian Caulfield, chairman of the IVCA and a partner at venture capital firm Draper Esprit. "The Irish venture capital community continues to be the main source of funding for Irish innovative SMEs both through direct investment and as the local lead investor for international syndicate investors." Lenovo Group plunged in Hong Kong trading yesterday after quarterly revenue declined for the first time in more than six years on stalling demand for phones and computers. Shares fell 10pc in their biggest decline in two years. The world's largest PC maker said revenue dropped 8pc in the three months ended December, but cost cuts delivered a surprise rise in net income. Lenovo is relying on cutting $1.35bn (1.23bn) from annual costs and eliminating 3,200 jobs to shield its earnings from intensifying smartphone competition and a shrinking market for PCs. While it's expanding into other businesses, it still gets more than half of revenue from a market that Intel last month warned was off to a "soft" start in 2016 amid tepid economic growth. "The current fiscal quarter is the usual PC and mobile industry low season, and we expect mid-teen decline in sales on quarter-over-quarter basis," Joseph Ho, an analyst at GF Securities Brokerage, said. The cost cuts helped Lenovo increase net income 19pc to $300m in the third quarter. That compared with analyst estimates for earnings to fall to $242.5m. Its smartphone division also broke even on an operational basis for the first time since Lenovo bought the Motorola brand from Google in 2014. However, if charges including those related to the deal were taken into account, the business would have had a pre-tax loss of $30m. Chief executive Yang Yuanqing, inset, is trying to grab greater market share in the US and Europe this year, pivoting away from intensifying competition back home. The smartphone division should stay profitable in fiscal 2017 after the summer US launch of its "'Tango" augmented-reality phone and a lower cost structure help it gain market share globally. (Bloomberg) Eipic is a new six-parter from TG4, starting tonight at 10pm. Five teens in a boring small town occupy the closed-down post office, with plans of launching a revolution for youth, for art, for themselves, for the country as it faces into the 1916 centenary. Here are ten reasons why you should tune in: 1. Its a musical-comedy literally, the cast break into song sporadically which if nothing else is unique in Irish television. Writer Mike OLeary has spoken of ground-breaking and genre-defining work with a uniquely Irish twist on this most universal of stories growing up. 2. OLeary has good form: hes written for E4s black-comedy superhero seroes Misfits, and the Irish-German kids movie Ghosthunter: On Icy Trails. 3. Tonights first episode, which weve seen, is pretty damn good. Not all of it works, but the laughs are big and frequent, and it lays a solid groundwork for the rest of the series. 4. The show has got that rather surreal vibe which you tend to find on TG4 productions. Its not to everyones taste, but personally I love it, and its a refreshing change from the more traditional type of drama RTE makes. OLeary says he aimed for something that should look like TV drama penned by Flann OBrien on the Monday after Electric Picnic. 5. Michael Collins makes sporadic appearances. Yes, that Michael Collins. But is it really him, or just our hero Sully dreaming/hallucinating/projecting? All, I suspect, will be revealed in due course Expand Close Rebels: Cian O Baoill, who plays Oisin, and Fionn Foley as Sully in the forthcoming TG4 series, Eipic / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Rebels: Cian O Baoill, who plays Oisin, and Fionn Foley as Sully in the forthcoming TG4 series, Eipic 6. It takes the mickey out of social media, especially that YouTube sensation/getting famous for doing nothing side of it. Which is obviously a good thing. 7. The kids perform Irish-language versions of songs by, among others, The Smiths, FKA Twigs and The Jam. And I think LCD Soundsystem too. 8. One of the characters dads wears an eye-patch which is cool enough and, with his curly hair and constant air of nervous tension, reminds me of Dr Jacobi from Twin Peaks which is even cooler. Video of the Day 9. It takes a skewed view of the whole 1916 thing, which is very welcome given that we will assuredly be bored into exhausted submission by all the dreary official and mainstream commemorations of that seismic time. As a way of paying homage to the rebellion that founded this country, Eipic is genuinely revolutionary. 10. Its on TG4, therefore its almost certain to be worth your time. Catch Eipic Thursdays 10pm on TG4. 'Don't Tell the Bride' - Enda tries to get Colin Farrell to record his bride-to-be's wedding invite The groom on tonight's episode of 'Don't Tell the Bride' goes to extra lengths to secure a surprise for his bride-to-be. Enda (25) is planning a Hollywood-themed wedding for his fiancee Lisa (23) and hijacks Colin Farrell on the red carpet of The Lobster premiere in Dublin in an effort to secure a special message for her. He wants Colin to record her invitation to her own wedding, the planning of which falls completely to Enda, who has just three weeks to pull his ambitious plan together. However, time on the red carpet is jam-packed for stars as they try to negotiate media and fans and Enda is up against it if he's to nab Colin for the 60 seconds required. Enda and Lisa met in a Wexford nightclub in 2012 and moved in together shortly afterwards. Although Lisa's expecting a venue fit for a "queen", Enda is planning to hold their reception in a field. There's also a helicopter involved. And some giant Oscar statues... Don't Tell the Bride airs Thursdays on RTE2 at 9.30pm Postcard from Una Whelan to Peter Paul Galligan referring to success of Sinn Fein in by-election. Remarks that she was given a button from the tunic worn by Joseph Plunkett at his execution. Front of the postcard depicts Countess Markievicz arriving at Lib It is perhaps predictable to focus on the figure of Constance Markievicz when considering the role of women in the Irish Revolution. Markievicz was one of the most identifiable and iconic female revolutionaries of the period. To her supporters, she was selfless and principled; she had foregone a life of comfort and opulence in order to champion the causes of labour and republicanism; and she had suffered for it. To her detractors, and there have been several, she has been denigrated both for her gender and her class. She has been singled out as the aristocrat who descended from the gentrified world of her youth and hogged the limelight, posing as a diva among Dublin's poor, both during the 1913 Lockout and in the 1916 Rising. Constance Markievicz has posed a challenge both to her contemporaries and to later biographers: she is anomalistic among Ireland's leading revolutionaries both in terms of her class and her gender. Born in London to the prominent Anglo-Irish Gore-Booth Family of Lissadell, Co Sligo, Constance was the eldest of five children. Her prowess in horsemanship is something still celebrated at Lissadell today with photographs demonstrating her equestrian ability on display. Underlining the position of the Gore-Booths in society, at 19 Constance made her debut in high society being presented to Queen Victoria. A grand tour of the continent deepened Constance's interest in art and, despite parental reluctance, at 25 she entered art college in London. Student life exposed her to new ideas. The historian Senia Paseta notes how, when she returned to Sligo from London, Constance founded the Sligo Women's Suffrage Society. Art also brought new people into her life. In 1898, further study in art brought her to Paris. There she met a fellow art student, a member of the Polish nobility, recently widowed with a young son but, at 25, six years her junior. Casimir Dunin-Markievicz married Constance in 1900 and, after a difficult birth, their only daughter, Maeve, was born in 1901. Like her step-brother Stanislaus, Maeve spent much of her infant years being reared by her grandmother and a governess at Lissadell. Once Constance's political life took off in 1908, Maeve was left almost permanently in the care of Lady Gore-Booth. Interestingly, the charge of being a 'bad mother' has been levelled at Markievicz by many of her detractors. However, it is interesting that Constance herself was raised by a governess for much of her youth and the same criticism has not been levelled at her parents. Equally, among the Easter rebels, none of the fathers who went out knowing the risks of their struggle have had the same criticism hang over them. Consider Connolly, Ceannt, Mallin, and MacDonagh. All left behind bereaved wives with young families. It speaks to the preconceptions of gender and motherhood both then and now that this criticism has stubbornly adhered to Markievicz's legacy. A variety of explanations and turning points have been identified in Markievicz's political awakening: the Boer War, encountering suffrage in London, the Anglo-Irish literary revival, encountering Russian oppression on two summers home with Casimir, the list goes on. Underlining her rejection of her background and her dual commitment to feminism and nationalism, around 1908 Markievicz joined Sinn Fein and Maud Gonne's Inghinidhe na hEireann. In 1909, alongside Bulmer Hobson, she founded Fianna Eireann, a republican boy-scouts organisation. Its members, mostly boys from Dublin's most economically deprived neighbourhoods, developed a deep personal devotion to their Chief Scout, Madame Markievicz, and she actively encouraged their harassment of the rival Baden Powell Scouts and Boys' Brigade members. Markievicz had added socialism to her expanding range of political interests when she joined the Women's Workers Union in 1911. Arrest that year for anti-monarchist activities was followed by experience of police violence during the 1913 Lockout. Further eschewing the preconceptions of her gender, she later became one of the only women to take a full command and combat role in the Irish Citizen Army. In 1916 itself, Markievicz has been criticised for the killing of an unarmed policeman and for taking credit for the actions of the Irish Citizen Army around St Stephen's Green when it was Michael Mallin and not her who was in command. On the latter charge, it should be borne in mind that Mallin had tried to avoid detection as garrison commander when his unit surrendered. He had four young children and his wife was pregnant with a fifth. It is a compelling theory that Markievicz's highly theatrical surrender may have been calculated to detract attention from him. When Mallin's daughter was born four months after her father's execution, her mother christened the child Mary Constance. It is unnecessary to go through the well-worn but nonetheless remarkable story of Markievicz from 1916 through to her election as the first female MP in British history to the crowning achievement of being granted one of eight cabinet portfolios when De Valera announced the first Republican cabinet in April 1919. As Minister for Labour, Markievicz's ministry was no mere window dressing. With a staff largely comprised of women and an office that prided itself on never having been discovered, the Ministry of Labour proved highly successful in dealing with arbitration cases and related industrial relations issues. This was at a time when other departments of the revolutionary government were coming in for harsh criticism for inefficiency and disorganisation. So what place does Constance Markievicz have in Irish history? All revolutions are subjected to retrospective mythologisation. Likewise, all states and nations craft their foundation narratives. Think of America's 1776, of France's 1789, of Russia's 1917, and of the cultural and civic importance of Germany's unification in 1870 and of its re-unification in 1990. Foundation narratives do not have to be triumphs, nations can be forged through adversity. Ireland's 1916 was transformed from defeat into a triumph of failure. This has created two 1916s, one historical and one which is theatrical, elegiac, mythic. The former can never fully be recovered, the latter can never fully be unravelled. What does all this have to do with Constance Markievicz, the daughter of aristocrats who turned on her own class and died a pauper? I would argue that, in assembling Ireland's foundation narrative out of the rubble of 1916 and all that followed, Markievicz presented a unique opportunity for the myth makers. Certainly there had been women casualties of the Rising, they numbered among the wounded and the dead but, out of these, no martyr was found. Borrowing from the French national tradition, what the Easter 1916 story needed was a Joan of Arc, a Liberty storming the barricades, ideally immortalised in some sort of Hibernicised Delacroix painting. They found it in a rebel Countess. Markievicz was perfect in many ways. She had been handed down a death sentence; she had been dramatic in her surrender and arrest; and she had been a leader of men. Unlike the women of Cumann na mBan who had been consigned to the roles of cooks, nurses, and messengers, she was an equal and not a subordinate. However, this was only half the reason Markievicz best fit the bill. She had also died relatively early on, in 1927, before the paint had dried on the canvass of Ireland's "four glorious years." Roy Foster has recently examined the lives of revolutionary women after independence. Eclipsed behind Markievicz were a host of other women activists, among them Kathleen Lynn, Margaret Skinnider, Hanna Sheehy Skeffington, and Madeleine ffrench-Mullen. One who is worth examining briefly here is Jennie Wyse Power. Ten years Markievicz's senior, Wyse Power was a veteran of the Ladies' Land League, she campaigned in the first Sinn Fein by-election of 1908. Before the Rising, she ran a vegetarian restaurant on Henry Street which became a focal point for all shades of advanced politics in the city. Indicating the proximity of Jennie Wyse Power to the leadership of the IRB, it was in her restaurant that the leaders of the Rising signed the Proclamation. After independence however, Wyse Power lived on. A leading pro-treaty Cumann na mBan member, she became a Cumann na nGaedheal senator in 1922 but broke from the party in 1925. As an independent senator, she railed against economically and gender-regressive legislation including the hotly-debated 1927 Juries Bill. She lived on until the 25th anniversary of the Rising in 1941. Constance Markievicz became valuable to propagandists because she was dead. Unlike Lynn, Skinnider, Sheehy Skeffington, or ffrench-Mullen, she could not speak back and pose awkward questions about what the revolution had achieved in terms of gender equality. After 1927, Markievicz was exactly where those who crafted the mythologised 1916 wanted her - she could be seen but not heard. Dr Conor Mulvagh is a lecturer in Irish History at the School of History at University College Dublin (UCD) with special responsibility for the Decade of Commemorations. He is the author of 'Irish Days, Indian Memories - VV Giri and Indian Law Students at University College Dublin, 1913-16', which launches today. Dr Mulvagh is co-ordinating Globalising the Rising, a conference taking place in UCD tomorrow and Saturday, February 5th and 6th, which will consider the impact and legacy of 1916 on global political systems: www.ucd.ie/centenaries/events-calendar Snapshot Constance Markievicz Born: Constance Gore-Booth, 4 February 1868, London Educated: Slade School of Art, London; Academie Julien, Paris Affiliation: Irish Citizen Army/IRB/Cumann na mBan Career: Painter, activist, MP, Minister for Labour Died: 15 July 1927, Sir Patrick Dun's Hospital, Dublin THE wholly suspended sentence imposed on a Norwegian man who raped his girlfriend multiple times while she slept was unduly lenient, prosecutors have argued in the Court of Appeal.. Magnus Meyer Hustveit (25), formerly of Leo Street, North Circular Road in the capital, had pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to one count of rape and one count of sexual assault committed against his 28-year-old girlfriend between 2011 and 2012. He was given a wholly suspended seven year sentence by Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy on July 13 2015. Hustveit, whose former partner Niamh Ni Dhomhnail waived her right to anonymity so that his identity could be published, returned to his native Norway after he was given the suspended sentence. Counsel for the DPP, Mary Rose Gearty SC, told the Court of Appeal this morning that the suspension of Hustveit's seven year sentence was unduly lenient. Citing a former Chief Justice of Ireland, Ms Gearty said it was not easy to imagine circumstances which would justify a non-custodial sentence for rape. MscGearty said the victims trauma was increased by suggestions that she lied about her medical conditions. Hustveit had instructed his lawyers to cross examine her in relation to what she said about the symptoms she suffered, Ms Gearty said, when the disclosure of medical information was not forthcoming. It made matters so much more distressing for her, Ms Gearty said, and lead one to question whether Hustveit was "filled with remorse" and had taken "responsibility for what he had done, as had been submitted on his behalf. Ms Gearty said this case was unusual in that it combined a sleeping victim and a relationship. Ms Gearty said the betrayel of trust was extraordinary. Counsel submitted that the judge erred by not aknowledging that this range of behaviour and class of conduct merited a lengthy period of custody. Coupled with that was the judge's flawed understanding of the law, Ms Gearty said. He operated on the basis that that if the conviction comes from of the mouth of the accused, he could take one of the most serious offences on the statute book and eradicate any custodial element. The Court of Appeal reserved judgment to a date in March. A jury has acquitted a man of assaulting a garda following a trial in which the accused claimed gardai had danced on my head. Stephen Tuohey (25) was alleged to have punched, kicked and spat at Garda John Santry in his cell where he was being held for another matter for which a prosecution was dropped. Gda Santry told the jury that Tuohey attacked him after complaining about his clothes being taken from his. Mr Tuohey of Inglewood Drive, Dublin had pleaded not guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to assaulting a peace officer in Blanchardstown Garda Station on the morning of June 25, 2011. The jury took just over a hour to return a not guilty verdict following the two day trial. Today Mr Tuohey gave evidence in his defence and denied being aggressive towards Gda Santry and banging his cell door. He admitted blocking the viewing hatch of the cell with paper and his mattress but said this was to get the officer's attention so he could exercise his right to a phone call. He said that when Gda Santry came to get him to bring him to court, he asked the officer about the runners he had been wearing when brought in. Mr Tuohey told defence counsel Kieran Kelly BL that Gda Santry responded that he didn't F-ing know. He said the garda threw him back into the cell and pushed him against the wall before going to hit him. He said he was thrown on the bed platform before Gda Santry took off his tie and started hitting him with it while saying get up and fight me. Mr Tuohey said he replied no, I'm not stupid. He said other gardai then came in and the assault continued, although he couldn't see who was doing what to him. He said someone was digging him in the ribs while another twisted his hand. He said that one garda was dancing on my head and that he thought he was going to die. Mr Tuohey said that he was then held up by two gardai while Gda Santry gave him a final punch to the ribs. He said he was taken out of the cell and that Gda Santry said to him I've a can of pepper spray with your name on it. Mr Tuohey said he made a statement about the alleged attack for his solicitor to be passed onto the Garda Ombudsman but that he never heard anything more. Under cross-examination from prosecuting counsel Derek Cooney BL Mr Tuohey denied being aggressive in any way, shape or form to Gda Santry. Danced on your head? Danced on your head?, Mr Cooney said. I suggest to you that your story is absolutely nonsense and doesn't make any sense whatsoever. Mr Tuohey denied this was the case. The main exhibit in the trial was a few seconds of CCTV footage from the hallway outside the cell. There is no CCTV footage of inside the cell. The prosecution claimed the footage showed Mr Tuohey becoming aggressive towards the garda and Gda Santry putting him back in his cell for safety reasons. It stated that this was when the garda was attacked. The defence claimed the footage instead showed Gda Santry becoming aggressive to Mr Tuohey and getting up in his face before throwing him into the cell and beating him. Bernard Quigley arriving at Sligo Circuit Court, to be sentenced for the robbery of a Bank of Ireland ATM in Tubbercurry, Co. Sligo in 2014 A 43-YEAR-old unemployed man linked to the theft of an ATM machine through an advert on donedeal.ie has been jailed today for seven and a half years. More than 43,000 worth of damage was done to the Bank of Ireland in Tubbercury, Co Sligo, It took a jury yesterday just 51 minutes to find Bernard Quigley guilty on three charges related to the raid in the early hours of January 29, 2014. The trial had lasted 18 days and Quigley was found guilty on three charges; of criminal damage, possessing a stolen digger and theft of an ATM containing 124,300. Gardai recovered the machine and its contents in a fast-moving investigation at the time after a member of the public followed the three-man gang involved in the raid. Today Detective Sgt Tom Colsh told a sentencing hearing how gardai traced Quigley, of Branchfield, Drumfin, Co Sligo, through an advertisement on the website donedeal.ie for a low-loader trailer detectives believed had been used in the raid. One picture showed Quigleys own car on the back of the trailer and DNA from the accused was later found in three different locations relating to the crime, said DS Colsh in his evidence to Sligo Circuit Court today. Judge Francis Comerford praised gardai and members of the public who had helped the investigation. During the raid the ATM was ripped from the wall of the bank and had to be put on a trailer twice after it initially fell off. Witness Paul Murphy had told the jury how he jumped out of bed, got into his car and had followed the raiders until he had been threatened on a rural road outside Tubbercurry. The gang then abandoned the ATM at Carrowneden, Coolaney. The judge said Mr Murphys information and public spirit had helped gardai in their investigation and the recovery of the ATM. The judge said the raid had been pre-meditated and pre-planned and an aggravating factor in the offence was the fact Mr Murphy had been threatened after the theft. It was an attack on the orderly conduct of an Irish town, said the judge. Quigley, whose previous convictions were for minor road traffic offences, was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison for the theft of the ATM, with the last two years suspended for two years. He was also given concurrent sentences of seven and a half years for criminal damage to the bank, with the last two years also suspended, and four years years for possession of the stolen digger used to rip the machine from the front of the bank. The judge said he believed Quigleys role in the event was an aberration set against his life to date. The sentences were back-dated to August 2014 when father of six Quigley was remanded in custody. Two of his daughters wept at the back of the court as he was led away. The court was told the investigation into the raid is continuing. A 30-year-old man has been found not guilty of the murder of a grandfather by reason of insanity. Dragos Nica had pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to the murder of Michael Gannon (pictured right) as he babysat his two grandchildren at Mourne Park, Skerries, Co Dublin on November 14, 2013. The trial heard Mr Nica, who is originally from Romania, believed Mr Gannon's daughter Jade had poisoned him. The jury heard Mr Nica, who has lived in Ireland for 19 years, claimed he woke on the morning with a numb finger and that his upper arm was "bubbling up". The accused said: "I was freaking and panicking but I was going to take it out on the world." That evening Mr Nica armed himself with a knife before going to Jade's house next door to his own. Mr Gannon was babysitting there and, when he opened the front door, Mr Nica stabbed him to death. Prosecution counsel, Patrick Treacy SC said: "Nobody is in anyway trying to downplay (what happened). However, two psychiatrists agree with each other that at the time the stabbing of Mr Gannon took place, Mr Nica was suffering from an acute psychosis of schizophrenia." The jury returned a unanimous verdict of not guilty by reason of insanity. Mr Justice Tony Hunt said Mr Nica was in need of in-patient care and committed him to the Central Mental Hospital to appear in court again on February 15 following examination by a medical officer. A father-of-five should not be sent to Britain to face charges that he sexually assaulted a girl over 20 years ago when he was 13 years old, his legal team told the High Court today. The 34-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is wanted by Liverpool Magistrate's Court to face two charges that he sexually assaulted a girl between January and June of 1994. The girl was six years old at the time. Speaking for the wanted man, Patrick McGrath SC said that he lives in Dublin and has five children and plays a role in all their lives. In those circumstances, he said the 20-year delay in issuing the arrest warrant was a breach of his client's rights and he should not be sent abroad to face trial. Mr McGrath also said that the evidence provided by the British authorities to the court would not be enough to bring him to trial in Ireland. Therefore it would not be fair to extradite him without grounds for believing he has a case to answer. John Fitzgerald BL, speaking on behalf of the State, said the delay in bringing the case can be explained by the fact it took 17 years for the girl to go to the authorities, something that is not unusual in such cases. The further delay was due to difficulties in locating their man. Mr Fitzgerald also rejected the claim that there was insufficient evidence, saying that it is up to the British authorities to put the man on trial, not the Irish High Court. He said Ireland has a "shared human rights standard" with the British and that the High Court has to trust that the authorities over there will act appropriately. Justice Tony Hunt said he would make a judgment on Thursday March 3. A very very nasty man who tried to bite a garda and told him he had the virus has been jailed for five months. Noel Kinsella (41) has 98 previous convictions including threatening to spray blood, burglary, robbery, false imprisonment, endangerment, car theft and road traffic offences. Judge Patrick McCartan described Kinsella as a very very nasty man before imposing a five month sentence. The offence of obstruction carried a maximum sentence of six months. Kinsella of St Anthony's Road, Rialto, Dublin had denied the charges of the assault causing harm to Garda Ross Mannix and to obstructing the garda at his home on November 11, 2013. Last month a jury at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court acquitted him of the assault charge but found him guilty of obstruction. Luigi Rea BL, defending, told the court that his client was a father of one who was anxious to put a history of drug abuse behind him. The court heard that Gda Mannix approached Kinsella to carry out a drug search. Kinsella ran and the garda, who knew Kinsella, chased him to his home. Gda Mannix told the trial he caught up with Kinsella but the accused kept trying to get away. Kinsella got into his house and fell in the front door with the garda on top of him. Kinsella shouted I have the virus and made biting motions at the garda's leg, Gda Mannix told the trial. He said that during the struggle he hit his hand against something and this caused a painful fracture which left his hand in a cast for weeks. At his sentencing Judge McCartan said that the garda would not have suffered the injury he did if Kinsella submitted to the search as he was obliged by law to do. As a result of this the garda suffered a serious injury. He (Kinsella) struggled with a view to avoid being searched, the judge said. He added that while no drugs were found on Kinsella when the search was finally carried out, he was carrying a sizeable amount of money for which he had little or no explanation. Children from non-religious families are still being discriminated against in Irish schools, it has been claimed. A UN body on childrens rights has called on the Government to take urgent action to end the way Irish schools can discriminate against children on religious grounds. The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) said there was a need for concrete measures to increase the number of non-denominational or multi-denominational schools and to change the law to eliminate discrimination in school admissions. A report from the committee published today also calls for reform of the Leaving Certificate with a view to reducing the stress caused to children, as well as a raft of other changes in areas including education, health and civil rights. The recommendations on religion will add to pressure on the next Government to address the dominant role of the Catholic Church in Irish education. The Catholic Church runs more than nine in 10 primary schools and the law allows them to prioritise admissions in a way that will protect their ethos - most evident in the way they give priority to children who have been baptised The Government is already facing a groundswell of demand for an end to the so-called baptism rule and it has become an election issue. Groups advocating change say there is no place for it in modern, multi-cultural Ireland, and that it leaves many parents unable to enrol their children in the nearest primary school if they havent been baptised. There is also anecdotal evidence that many parents, who are not practising Catholics, baptise their children solely for the purpose of gaining entry to their local school. The UNCRC report is one of a series addressing issues concerning the rights of children. The last one relating to Ireland was published in 2006. The report welcomes a range of measures taken in Ireland in recent years for the benefit of children, but expresses concern that Irish schools continue to practise discriminatory admissions policies on the basis of the childs religion. It is also critical that children are not ensured the right to effectively opt-out of religious classes and access appropriate alternatives to such classes. The UNCRC report follows a recent public hearing attended by Childrens Minister James Reilly. Welcoming the findings in relation to religion and schools, April Duff, Chairperson of Education Equality, said the status quo is unsustainable. Many parents who are non-religious, or who practice minority religions, are unable to get their children into local schools and immediate action is needed by the incoming government to address this pressing human rights issue. EQUATE is another group advocating for change and its executive director Michael Baron said once again a UN Committee is recommending to the Irish Government that serious reform is needed in how our schools operate and I believe that the time has come for them to do something about it. Could it be fourth time lucky for the AAAs Mick Barry? Photo: Mark Condren Anti-Austerity Alliance challenger Councillor Mick Barry believes water charges and austerity policies will prove the defining issues of General Election 2016. He was 1,700 votes off taking a seat in Cork North Central in 2011, but local opinion polls have indicated his support has soared since then. Cllr Barry ran under the United Left Alliance (ULA) banner in 2011 and, despite predictions he might prove a dark horse for a Dail berth, was ultimately eliminated after the seventh count. Now, he is the hot favourite to exploit Labour's discomfort after a high-profile role in Cork's anti-austerity and, in particular, anti-water charge campaigns over the past five years. Few have been as high-profile at Cork protests over austerity policies since 2008. Anti-Austerity Alliance (AAA) officials believe that Cllr Barry is finally poised to reap his reward. "The polls I have seen so far are certainly very encouraging, but you just don't know," he said. "The only poll that matters is the one on election day and a lot can happen between now and then." However, the statistics bode well for the councillor who was once jailed for his role in the anti-bin charge campaign. He contested his first General Election in Cork North Central in 2002 and garnered a meagre 936 votes. In the 2007 General Election, he pushed his vote up to 1,700 and, by the 2011 election, it had soared to 4,803. Even political opponents acknowledge that the AAA official is a formidable constituency worker. Fianna Fail's Billy Kelleher and Sinn Fein's Jonathan O'Brien are likely to take the first two seats, with Dara Murphy, a high-profile minister and former Lord Mayor, further expected to hold for Fine Gael. There will then be a dog-fight of epic proportions for the fourth and final seat between Labour's veteran TD and Junior Minister Kathleen Lynch, Cllr Barry and Sinn Fein's second candidate, Councillor Thomas Gould. Labour will be heavily dependent on a good transfer from Europe Minister Dara Murphy, but it remains to be seen just how many votes he will be able to offer his Coalition partners. Labour will also be praying for a much better result than it had in the 2014 Local Government elections, when it failed to return a single councillor to Cork City Council as its vote collapsed. It was the first time in history the party failed to get a councillor in City Hall. But Ms Lynch, who lost her Dail seat in 1997 and then won it back in 2002, has vowed to prove the early opinion polls wrong. She also boasts a very loyal party organisation. Councillors Barry and Gould can both count on the prospect of heavy transfers from a number of left-wing candidates likely to exit the field as the hunt for the final seat intensifies. Sinn Fein will have to manage its vote extremely carefully while also hoping Jonathan O'Brien has sufficient transfers for his running mate. However, Sinn Fein remain quietly confident. PREDICTION: One Fianna Fail, one Fine Gael, one Sinn Fein and one for the AAA. Tanaiste Joan Burton's pledge to introduce universal free GP care by 2020 has been dismissed by Fine Gael. Just hours after the launch of the election campaign, Ms Burton took a swipe at Health Minister Leo Varadkar after he said such a proposal was not realistic in such a timeframe. And the pair also clashed over whether they have spoken to each other about the issue of training extra doctors to cover the extension of free GP care, which is currently in place for under-sixes. The row has undermined the Coalition's bid to portray itself as the only stable option. FIne Gael sources have said Ms Burton's plan would require an additional 2,000 GPs to be hired. "How is the Tanaiste going to do that when we have a doctors shortage already?" said a source. Speaking at the Labour Party's election campaign launch, Ms Burton, pictured right, stood by her proposals and suggested that Mr Varadkar was displaying a lack of ambition. "Why don't we actually train up more GPs? We've some of the smartest, best educated young people in Europe," Ms Burton said. "I think the answer to that is to ask Leo Varadkar a question; why don't we train up more GPs?" Asked why she was raising her concern with Mr Varadkar's position onlyyesterday, Ms Burton said: "I've had the conversation about health with the minister on numerous occasions." And her deputy leader Alan Kelly added: "I can assure you the Tanaiste had that conversation and I can assure you she did ask all those questions." But hours later, at Fine Gael's first election event, Mr Varadkar insisted he did not meet the Tanaiste to discuss her concerns over free GP care. "I don't recall having a meeting with her about [it] or having discussed it with her. But given that I see her nearly every week, it is quite possible, but I certainly have no recollection of a meeting," he said. The minister, pictured right, said Fine Gael's health policy, which now does not include universal free GP care, is "both ambitious and realistic". "There is no point in being realistic if you are not ambitious," he added. He said the health service trains 160 GPs a year - about the same amount that retire each year. Mr Varadkar said the next Government will have to hire 500 more GPs just to "stand still". "It is up to the Labour Party to demonstrate how they would train the additional GPs to deal with the additional demand," he added. Mr Varadkar said he did not believe Ms Burton's comments were down to constituency rivalry in Dublin West. Taoiseach Enda Kenny refused to get into what he called "economic jargon which the vast majority of people don't understand" when asked how his party will fund their election promises. The Fine Gael leader needed Finance Minister Michael Noonan to intervene as he struggled to outline plans for a so-called rainy day fund. Mr Kenny repeatedly tried to dodge questions about Fine Gael's financial projections by saying they would launch their much-hyped Long Term Economic Plan today. He said the media were trying to make "economic arguments" when "what we want to do is say to the people that we can't have this kind of resource unless you have clarity and ability". It was a bad opening day of campaigning for all the main party leaders with Sinn Fein's Gerry Adams refusing to acknowledge questions about allegations his friend Thomas 'Slab' Murphy is a mass murderer. Asked repeatedly about his relationship with the convicted tax dodger, Mr Adams replied: "He isn't to my knowledge standing in the election, is he?" When it was pointed out that his friend is facing a sentencing hearing at the Special Criminal Court later this month, Mr Adams said: "Thanks for that." Tanaiste Joan Burton landed herself at the centre of a row with Health Minister Leo Varadkar after claiming to have met him to discuss recruiting more doctors in order to fulfil her party's promise to deliver free GP for all over the term of the next government. However, her constituency and Cabinet colleague later said he could not recall any such meeting - despite a specific warning from the hierarchy in Fine Gael for candidates to avoid clashes with Labour. At Fianna Fail's campaign launch Micheal Martin said an apology for the economic crash made after the last election "stands" but didn't say if he would repeat the apology if criticised by people he meets on the campaign trail. Instead he deflected the question describing how voters are unhappy about the health system and homelessness crisis and how his party's key priority is to "change how society is going and not to have people waiting on the never, never for whatever Enda Kenny defines as a stronger economy." Senior Fine Gael sources admitted they were disappointed with Mr Kenny's first big outing of the campaign. His day was carefully planned from the moment he arrived in the Dail at 9.30am to announce that the election would take place. He used Twitter to give the actual date of polling before travelling to Aras an Uachtarain to complete the formalities with President Michael D Higgins. At a press conference in Dublin city centre Mr Kenny said the country was facing a "stark" choice between the existing Coalition and an alternative government. "I will protect and reinforce Ireland's position as the right place to bring investment, the right place to start a business, the right place to enjoy economic growth and to create those all-important jobs from which to bring the benefits of investments in public services and the further employment of people," he said. But when pressed further on how Fine Gael will fulfil its spending promises and have money left over for a rainy day fund, Mr Kenny struggled before eventually turning to Mr Noonan for help. The Finance Minister said Fine Gael's economic calculations on the fiscal space "which seem to confuse people" were produced by the Department of Finance. "What it really means is that the amount of resources which the next government will have to spend in excess of what they hold in the 2016 budget in the period from 2017 to 2022 and it will be divided between income tax, USC, tax reductions and spending," he said. Mr Noonan added that 2.5bn would not be allocated for spending on any specific project meaning it would be at the government's disposal in the event of an economic shock. Mr Kenny yesterday said he would participate in a series of debates on RTE and TV3. "Let me assure you that a list of requests would go from here to the door so whatever is agreed between the parties and the broadcasters we'll be very happy to participate in the debate. Why wouldn't I?" he said. Clash Meanwhile the Irish Independent has learned that the Coalition parties are on course for another clash today. Ms Burton will today say that her party can guarantee "a job for everyone who wants one by 2018", even though Fine Gael has said 2020 is a more realistic date. She will also announce Labour Party plans for 50,000 new apprenticeship places and a hike in the minimum wage to 11.30. Fine Gael will launch its Long Term Economic Plan while Fianna Fail will set out its plan for what it sees as a "fairer economy". Fine Gael will watch the votes being counted in Dublin Central with a real sense of trepidation. The party knows that its candidate running in the former stomping ground of Bertie Ahern and Tony Gregory could become the most high profile casualty of the General Election. Transport Minister Paschal Donohoe's political career is in serious doubt - and it's something he does not need reminding of. "At different points in recent times, I was asked would I consider moving constituency," Mr Donohoe said, citing the effects of the boundary changes. "I said 'No, this is where I am, these are the people I want to represent'. But yeah - there's going to be tough competition on the ballot paper," he added. The three-seat constituency produced two Government TDs in 2011 but the chance of such a repeat is close to nil. The fate of Mr Donohoe is likely to rest on whether he can finish ahead of his Coalition colleague, Labour Party TD Joe Costello. Mr Costello's profile has diminished somewhat since he was sacked by Tanaiste Joan Burton as junior foreign affairs minister. He could also suffer dearly as a result of his party languishing in the opinion polls. But Mr Costello's work ethic sets him apart from many of his rivals in the constituency, which is still suffering from issues such as unemployment and a chronic housing shortage. The prospect of Fianna Fail winning a seat here is a long shot. The party has selected former councillor Mary Fitzpatrick as its sole candidate. Many feel that this is a case of 'last chance saloon' for Ms Fitzpatrick, who was unsuccessful in the European elections. One candidate who is all but certain to retain her seat is Sinn Fein deputy leader Mary Lou McDonald. While her political judgment has been questioned in terms of her unwavering loyalty to Gerry Adams, there is no doubt Ms McDonald is Sinn Fein's leader-in-waiting. Dublin Central voters have often turned to Independent candidates - and there is no reason why 2016 will be any different. Sitting TD Maureen O'Sullivan, who was closely aligned to the late Tony Gregory, will be in contention again this time around. However, there is a serious risk that a crowded field of Independents and left-wing candidates could cause trouble for the quietly spoken deputy. And Noel Gregory, the brother of the late Tony Gregory, has thrown his support behind Ms O'Sullivan's rival, Christy Burke. Mr Burke's profile has soared as a result of his successful tenure as Dublin's Lord Mayor. But he is also feeding into the same vote pool as Councillor Cieran Perry, who has the backing of left-wing TDs Paul Murphy and Joan Collins. The Social Democrats are fielding Councillor Gary Gannon, an inner-city native who has impressed since being elected to the council in 2014. Workers' Party Councillor Eilis Ryan, Diana O'Dwyer of AAA/PBP, Ian Noel Smyth of the Green Party, Renua's Jacqui Gilbourne and Cormac McKay of Direct Democracy Ireland complete the field. PREDICTION: McDonald, Donohoe, Burke. SINN Fein deputy leader Mary Lou McDonald has refused to stand over her claim that Thomas Slab Murphy is a good republican in a move that will heap pressure on her party leader Gerry Adams. But Ms McDonald today finally confirmed that her party manifesto will commit to the abolition of the Special Criminal Court. For the third consecutive day, Sinn Fein leaders have been challenged over their relationship with Murphy, who was described as a mass murderer on a BBC Spotlight documentary this week. The programme broadcast an interview with a British soldier who alleged that Murphy committed and ordered murders on behalf of the IRA. Murphy is a former IRA leader and faces up to five years in prison for tax fraud. At a press conference in Dublin, Ms McDonald repeatedly declined to stand over her and Mr Adamss claim that Murphy is a good republican. I have told you that Tom Murphy, like everybody else is accountable to the courts, the Dublin Central TD said. Tom Murphy, like everybody else, has to pay their taxes. That is the position. The courts will deal with that matter. And I have nothing further to say on it. Asked earlier whether she is comfortable that Murphy was described as mass murderer by a soldier who served in the North, Ms McDonald replied: This issue has arisen many times. Ill put on the record what I have said before and that is every citizen is absolutely obliged to pay their taxes. There are exemptions, there are no ifs buts and maybes on that score. And on the issues pertaining to Tom Murphy, the courts will decide that. I understand that its up for consideration on Friday, so thats a matter for the courts. It was put to Ms McDonald that Mr Adams is not being accountable by refusing to take questions on his relationship with Murphy. Well, we are in the course of an election campaign. Tom Murphy is accountable to the courts Mary. That is who he is accountable to , and we are accountable to the electorate. The controversy over Murphy was reignited after the programme aired an interview with Colonel Richard Kemp, who worked in intelligence at the UKs cabinet office and who served several tours in the North. Col Kemp claimed that soldiers who served in South Armagh were long familiar with Murphy and the IRA unit he led. We were briefed on the main IRA terrorists operating in south Armagh. Thomas Murphy was one of the main people on that list, in fact, as we understood it, he was the head of the Provisional IRA in south Armagh, Col Kemp said. We did not believe that he was necessarily the trigger man, the one who would actually position the bombs or pull the trigger of a sniper rifle, but we did know that he was the one that sent those people out to commit murder on behalf of the IRA. I think Thomas Murphy will be remembered and I certainly will remember him for being a mass murderer, he killed and ordered the killing of many people, he added. Meanwhile, in a development that has been described as alarming by Fianna Fail, Ms McDonald confirmed that Sinn Fein will commit to abolishing the Special Criminal Court in its election manifesto, which is due to be published next week. We have long had a position and I think its a universally accepted democratic norm that people have fair procedures and jury trials, thats our position, she said. Simon Harris, in 2011 the Dail's new and youngest TD, got to propose Enda Kenny for office as Taoiseach. By now he is Junior Finance Minister, increasingly supportive of his boss Michael Noonan, and often defending the Government with his slick, fast-talking style. The third of three Fine Gael TDs returned in Wicklow last time, he could well be a poll-topper this time. But he must also deliver locally for the party in order to assure a first-string job should Fine Gael be returned to Government. Much is expected of him in this campaign. Jan O'Sullivan of Labour arrived at Leinster House in 1993 as a Senator and a long-time political associate of the late Jim Kemmy. There is no doubt that this vastly-experienced politician faces a struggle to hold on in four-seat Limerick City. But she must also front up for her beleaguered party, arguing that, against the odds, it delivered school building and refurbishment during its term in office. Education is big with would-be Labour voters. Labour activists argue that this is a good story well worth telling with some enthusiasm and vigour. They will also want to see her field nationally. Michael McGrath, Fianna Fail's dogged finance spokesman, has to face up to Finance Minister Michael Noonan, who is the cornerstone support of Fine Gael arguments that it has put the economy back on track. Fianna Fail will look to the chartered accountant to challenge Government on the detail of promises of tax cuts, spending increases and debt repayment. But he also has the tightest of local battles in Cork South Central. This is a five-seater reduced to four and all competitors are household names locally and nationally. All in all, no great pressure here either! Sinn Fein activists have many constituency contests to watch with keen interest. Perhaps keenest of all is the new merged five-seat Donegal constituency, where the party already has two high-profile deputies, Pearse Doherty and Padraig MacLochlainn. Both are talented Dail performers and proven vote-getters. Doherty has worked hard as finance spokesman. Now they face the task of copper-fastening their party's hold on Donegal, once shared by Fianna Fail and Fine Gael. They must show that talk of delivering a third seat is not a longshot. But if Cllr Gary Doherty joins the outgoing duo, bonfires will blaze for days. Watch also for the ubiquitous and versatile AN Other. There is no cop-out involved here. At the time of writing, we don't have a name or names. Almost all general elections have thrown up surprise winners, who during the campaign captured their local voters' imagination, and won their support in unexpected numbers. Several times, these surprise local winners also gained national notoriety. This in part explains why so many diverse Independent candidates field in increasing numbers in a triumph of hope over political reality. Take a random flick back over elections past. In the 1980s, there was Dublin Independent Tony Gregory. The 1990s brought Clare Labour TD Moosajee Bhamjee and Independent Jackie Healy-Rae. Independent TD Michael Lowry has categorically denied that he has ever benefited by even one euro from payments received from businessman Denis OBrien, saying the people of Tipperary were sick to the teeth of the allegations. Deputy Lowry said the transactions mentioned in a report by the Moriarty Tribunal in 2011 had been completely and totally blown out of all proportional. In Tipperary, and Ireland in general, there is a generally sense of decency and fairness amongst the public, and [they] have made up their own mind over these issues and know that I did not, contrary to the impression created, benefit one euro from any transaction that I had, he told Newstalk Breakfast. Continuing, he said: I did not accept the findings of the Tribunes, neither do my legal team because they were not based on facts or evidence. The Tribunal findings are the opinion of one man, and have no basis in law. The Tipperary peoples attitude to the Tribunal is that they are sick to their teeth of it, theyre listening to it, theyre reading about it, Ive been involved [with it] over 20 years and what I can see from the Tribunes is that many legal people became professional millionaires out of the receipts they received from the Tribunal. The second and final report from the Moriarty Tribunal found that, during his time as Communications Minister, Mr Lowry assisted businessman Denis O'Brien in acquiring a lucrative mobile phone licence in the mid-1990s which, ultimately, made Mr O'Brien one of the richest men in Ireland. The Tribunal concluded "beyond doubt" that Mr Lowry gave "substantive information to Denis O'Brien, of significant value and assistance to him in securing the licence". The report also listed a number of payments received by Mr Lowry from the businessman totally some 447,000 (586,000) during this period. Asked directly about these payments on Newtalk earlier today, Mr Lowry replied: Never, Never Moriarty Tribunal set out a series of payments for which I absolutely got no benefit from. The Independent TD said that he had been hugely encouraged by the support he had received in Tipperary, saying it was a very satisfying to know that he had people standing behind him when under pressure. And Ive been under pressure for my years but always whenever I come back to my own people in Tipperary they always rally behind me and give me renewed confidence. It would have been easier to just quit and walk away after [the Moriarty Tribunal] but Im not a loser, and I didnt believe that I should give in or be hounded out of politics. Its the people of Tipperary that will judge me and in three weeks time they will have another opportunity to vote for me or not to. Sinn Fein Leader Gerry Adams TD during the party's response to the calling of the election outside government buildings, Dublin. Photo: Gareth Chaney Collins Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams was asked if he was the "fella from Belfast" while out on the campaign trail today. The party leader visited Finglas this afternoon to meet with fellow Sinn Fein candidates Dessie Ellis and Cathleen Carney Boud. With the General Election only 22 days away Mr Adams is visiting several constituencies. During his tour of the town passing cars shouted "go on Gerry", while one constituent remarked, "is that the fella from Belfast?" Adams had earlier visited Drogheda in his own constituency and Mulhuddart, in Dublin before arriving at the offices of Mr Ellis. During the brief tour of Finglas village, the Louth TD met with the constituents posing for photos and taking questions. He sat with Ballymun resident Linda McGrath outside of Costa who asked: "What are you going to do for us Gerry?" Adams retorted, "What would you like me to do?" Ms McGrath said she wanted more modular housing, like the examples seen in Poppintree in Ballymun. Adams replied, "We'll shake on social and affordable housing." The Sinn Fein leader even shared a chip with some school children passing by. He also stopped in a Quiznos Sub and a fishmongers en route to the statue of Dick McKee in the village. The Labour Party has struck first on the first full day of the election campaign with a commitment for workers to earn at least 11.30 euro an hour. With economic plans dominating, Tanaiste Joan Burton reiterated the promise to have full employment in the country in the next two years and she also vowed to create 50,000 apprenticeships by 2021. The minimum wage increased to 9.15 euro at the end of last year but the Labour leader said it is realistic to commit to a further two euro-an-hour increase despite opposition from business. The Tanaiste said her party's plan would create 150,000 jobs by 2018. In a package costed at 954 million euro in total, she also pledged to rewrite welfare rules to develop a new Working Family Benefit which would allow low paid working parents to earn at least 12 euro an hour, with qualification for the new system based on people's income rather than the hours they work. "Behind every job is a person or family benefiting from recovery in their own lives," Ms Burton said. Other initiatives set out by Labour at the Boann Distillery in Drogheda included creating 15,000 manufacturing jobs over the next four years, another 10,000 places through the JobsPlus programme which gives employers grants when they hire someone who has been long-term unemployed, and keeping corporation tax at 12.5%. The Tanaiste also reiterated Labour's childcare plan which was unveiled last month, including an immediate cap on creche costs at 4.25 euro an hour which would come down to two euro an hour by 2021. Tanaiste Joan Burton said that voters don't want Ireland to become Greece or Spain and will vote for Labour. She dismissed a drop in the party's support in this morning's opinion polls, saying "it looks like we'll have a poll every third day." Ms Burton said that voters will realise they "want stability" and then choose to return to this Government. "They won't want a situation like a Greece or Spain where we won't be able to form a Government," she said at the launch of her party's jobs plan this morning. Labour (7pc) and Fine Gael (28pc) this morning is too small to make the next Government. Ms Burton also spoke about the confusion surrounding the fiscal space, calling it "a fancy term for the Government's ability to spend money." Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin played down the idea of supporting a minority government, as suggested by his former cabinet colleague Dermot Ahern this morning. When asked about the possibility of support a minority government, as proposed by former Fianna Fail MinisterDermot Ahern, he played down the idea. "I read the article that Dermot Ahern wrote this morning - there will always be opinion columnists and people writing articles, but what's important to me is that the people have a choice. "They can choose between a Fine Gael led government which will look after the wealthiest in society, and a Fianna Fail led government that will be fairer and create a more decent society. "The underlying mood among the electorate is one which says we want change and we believe we have a choice," he said. Speaking outside Waterford University Hospital he said he prefers to focus on what people tell him on the door-step rather than rely on opinion polls. "Opinion polls will come and go. "Of all political leaders I've knocked on more doors than anyone else in the last four or five years. "There's a terrible tenancy to ignore the fact that the people haven't voted at all yet, they have three weeks to make up their mind," he said. Mr Martin referred to BBC having to apologise in the aftermath of the General Election in Britain in 2015, as they had relied on polls too heavily in their coverage, and added that in America it is widely believed that polling has lost all credibility. "No matter what the polls say the people are sovereign at the end of the day," he said. The energetic TD then hit the road, and began canvassing with local candidate Mary Butler in the Viewmount housing estate on the outskirts of Waterford City. Moving at a lively pace they shook hands and shared plenty of smiles with home-owners as they spoke to residents. One woman who did not wish to be named told Mr Martin that her husband, who suffers from alzheimer's, has been refused a medical card three times. He listened to her for several minutes as she relayed her frustration at the medical card system. "Send me on his details and we will look into it," he said. Another Viewmount resident, Patrick Walsh (63), quizzed Mr Martin on Fianna Fail's position in relation to water charges. "So you're going to abolish the water charges but are you going to do it for definite or will we have to pay for it in the future?" he asked. Mr Martin reassured him that if Fianna Fail are in government there will be no water charges for the lifetime of the next government but after that "we'll have to look at it again." "He's the first leader to call to my door and it's very much appreciated, he's welcome here any time, he comes across very well," Mr Walsh said. During a walk-about in Waterford City Centre Mr Martin was greeted warmly by shoppers and only had to contend with one instance of heckling when a man advised him to "Get back to Dublin and tell that Enda Kenny he's a clown." Next up was the seaside town of Dungarvan where Mr Martin visited a pub, a chemist and a shopping centre. He declined an offer of a photo with a life sized Mickey Mouse who was greeting customers outside a fast food restaurant. "Come over to me and we'll have a photo," Mickey said. "You're all right thanks," said Mr Martin firmly. Adam McCormack was described as a model student who will be sorely missed Hundreds of people turned out to honour a "one-of-a-kind" teenager who died in his sleep last week. Adam McCormack (15) passed away suddenly at his south Belfast home last Friday. Expand Close Family and friends gather at the funeral of Adam McCormack / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Family and friends gather at the funeral of Adam McCormack Hundreds of people joined the funeral service at Milltown Baptist Church to say goodbye to the young Breda Academy pupil and to support his mum Lynn, dad Gary, sister Jourdan and brother Matthew. School friends wept and held each other as they remembered the unique sense of humour that made him special. Leading the service, Pastor William Warren said that Adam loved to laugh and that the family wanted the day to be a celebration of his life. Jourdan spoke on behalf of the devastated family and described him as a much loved brother, son and uncle. She told the congregation how they loved playing jokes on their mum together, and how Adam cared for his young niece and nephew. She said:"The memories I have I will never forget. You were taken far too soon. You had your whole life ahead of you. You will never be forgotten. We love you loads. Sweet dreams." Expand Close Family and friends gather at the funeral of Adam McCormack / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Family and friends gather at the funeral of Adam McCormack His cousin David said: "I see today as less of a funeral and more of a celebration of the life of Adam. He was witty and loved by everyone. If there was just one word I could use to describe it, it would be 'unpredictable'." He said he and Adam attended a youth group at the church called Dreamscheme. His friends and family said Dreamscheme was something that Adam really enjoyed and he looked forward to it every week. David added: "If there was one thing that Adam loved, it was the company of his friends and family. The thought of going to Dreamscheme without him and the fact that we can't go down to our Nanny's and torture her is heartbreaking." His cousin Lauren added: "Adam really was one of a kind. I am so glad I had the privilege of growing up with him. When our Nanny used to babysit us, the first thing David would ask was if she was minding Adam too, and if she was, we knew we were in for such a fun morning. "Everyone knows there was never a dull moment with Adam." Dreamscheme leader Andy McCormick told Adam's friends and relatives about his sense of fun, but also of his honest and reliable side, as he said he always owned up when he did something wrong. Vice principal of Breda Academy Richard Massey spoke on behalf of the staff and students at the school where Adam was a Year 11 pupil. He said Adam was a caring boy, and shared a letter from a parent about how Adam had helped their child, who was lost on their first day of school. He also explained how Adam had grown in confidence in recent years and enjoyed having fun with everyone, including his teachers. Breda Academy pupils have created a memorial tree at the school with messages in tribute to their friend, and the school has also opened a book of condolence. Breda Academy was closed yesterday as a mark of respect and to allow staff and students to attend the funeral. Hundreds of pupils turned out in their school uniform and formed a guard of honour as the funeral cortege made its way to Roselawn Cemetary for a committal service. Pastor Warren said: "So many people have been touched by Adam's life and so many people have been affected by his sudden passing. On behalf of the family, I would like to thank everyone for their prayers and support." A notorious thug who was charged with the infamous 'canal murders' over a decade ago attended a secret pub meeting with suspects in the Kenneth O'Brien murder case. O'Brien received one gunshot wound to the head before being dismembered with a chainsaw. Expand Close The coffin of Kenneth OBrien is taken from the chuch of St. Matthew in Ballyfermot. Photo: Tony Gavin / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp The coffin of Kenneth OBrien is taken from the chuch of St. Matthew in Ballyfermot. Photo: Tony Gavin His torso was recovered over a fortnight ago from the Grand Canal, near Ardclough, Co Kildare, while his head and limbs were discovered in follow- up searches at Sallins. The Herald can reveal that Mark Desmond, also known as the 'Guinea Pig', attended a secret pub meeting last weekend with two brothers who are among the suspects in Mr O'Brien's murder. Desmond (40) - who was charged but never convicted of a double murder in which the two victims were dumped in the Grand Canal - was spotted in the company of the west Dublin brothers. They are described by sources as being heavily involved in the distribution of drugs in the west Dublin area over the past decade, but have managed to evade serious convictions. Sources have also revealed how the pair are being considered as suspects by investigating gardai, and that Kenneth O'Brien may have been murdered over financial issues regarding the sale and supply of drugs in west Dublin. One of the siblings was previously arrested in relation to a multi-million euro cocaine bust, during which the National Drugs Unit targeted a drugs factory. However, he was never convicted of the offence. The siblings are believed to have been friendly with the 'Guinea Pig' since their youth. Desmond met both suspects at the west Dublin premises for around half an hour. Monitoring Gardai are monitoring the movements of the men since Mr O'Brien's murder. This is the first sighting of Desmond in the capital for a number of months. The investigation into the brutal murder is continuing, with two garda officers flying to Australia to inquire into Mr O'Brien's life during his three years there before returning home to west Dublin last month. Detectives believe the gang wanted the victim's body parts to be found so that a grim message would be sent out to anyone tempted to cross them. Gardai are probing whether Mr O'Brien had been either laundering their cash or providing them with money for their sophisticated trafficking network when a dispute broke out. Detectives are now satisfied that Mr O'Brien's murder was well planned and his killers did not panic when they dumped his remains at different locations in the Royal and Grand Canals. "In all probability, this gang knew that this man's remains would be found quickly, and those responsible for the murder don't seem too bothered about this," a source said. "The belief is that they wanted to send out a sick message to their rivals or anyone else that might think of ripping them off. O'Brien was used by this criminal network because he was a clean pair of hands and was very much under the garda radar." Meanwhile, Ballyfermot native Desmond has been based in Co Sligo for the past number of months and was acting as a 'heavy' for a local drugs gang. Originally from Lally Road in Ballyfermot, he gained national notoriety when he was arrested and charged with the murders of Darren Carey (19) and Patrick Murray (20). The men's bodies were discovered in the icy water of the Grand Canal in early 2000. However, the charges were sensationally dropped by the Director of Public Prosecutions just days before the trial. A woman has made a heartfelt appeal to the public after she lost her much-loved engagement ring in Dublin. Catherine McNally was enjoying an overnight stay in the capital with her husband when she realised the ring was gone from her finger on Wednesday evening. The couple bought the antique ring when they got engaged in New York four years ago. Catherine said she was shocked when she looked down and realised the ring was gone. "We were away for the night and got the 10.35am train from Belfast Central to Connolly Station in Dublin," she told Independent.ie. "We walked through Trinity College and up Grafton Street and we dropped our bags off at the Dean Hotel on Harcourt Street. "We then went to Fallon & Byrne. I've rang all these places and they're all helping but they haven't found it," she continued. "We met friends for a drink at the hotel that evening and when I looked down I felt it in the bottom of my stomach. "I think I may have lost it on the walk to the hotel because it was cold and I was putting my hand in and out of my pockets." Catherine has contacted gardai about the missing ring but is asking for anyone who may have seen it to hand it in to the nearest station. "My husband proposed to me in New York four years ago," Catherine said. "We walked past this beautiful shop and we bought the ring and he proposed. The ring means so much to me. "Then we were blessed by this priest walking by so I'm thinking, please, the ring has to show up now!" The ring has a ruby stone surrounded by diamonds on a gold band. Catherine is sharing a photograph of the ring with her daughter Daisy in a bid to find it. Hope: John and his wife Tracy who underwent chemotherapy for stage 3 breast cancer in the US at the same time as him At 15 minutes past midnight, Laura Malay carries the red dragon into the room and unleashes it on the woman lying in the bed. There will be little mercy. Laura is a specialist oncology nurse, a pleasant motherly redhead who claims to have Irish roots, like every other American I've ever met. Though Laura's case is stronger than most, and she has a photo album to prove it - memories of a family trip to Ireland, including pictures of the ancestral headstone in a graveyard in Kerry. The red dragon that Laura carries is a bag of doxorubicin. It's a chemotherapy drug that gets its nickname from its colour, and from its notoriously harsh effects on the body. Other nicknames include "the red devil" and, slightly more worrying, "the red death". The room is a hospital room on the 10th floor of New Hanover Regional Medical Center in Wilmington, North Carolina, not far from where I used to live before moving back to Ireland last February. It's October now and I'm back for a visit, though it's anything but a holiday. The 10th floor is the cancer floor, and the woman lying in the bed is my wife. It wasn't supposed to be like this. We had plans. In February of 2015 I moved back to Thurles, Co Tipperary after five years in America. My wife, Tracy, is American, and for a while after we married it made more sense to live there. But I had health issues, and we always knew that one day we'd have to come back. Without health insurance, long-term treatment in the US was out of the question. Tracy stayed behind to tie up the loose ends of our old life - giving her notice at work, getting rid of the house, selling the car, giving away most of what we'd owned. After that there was just one thing to do before she left to come join me - she needed to have surgery to remove a thyroid tumour. We were obviously concerned but all indications suggested it was really nothing to worry about. And it wasn't. The tumour was benign, and Tracy was good to go. Except Except she'd had a CAT scan prior to surgery, and something else had shown up - a mass in her right breast. Her doctor said it was probably nothing, but a mammogram was ordered. The biopsy took place on a Friday, and it was a very long weekend while we waited for the results on Monday. But despite the anxiety, we were fairly confident that everything would be fine. Many times over that long weekend, Tracy said, "I really think this is going to be nothing." Then the doctor called on Monday - and it was something. Exactly one week before she was due to finally move to Ireland, Tracy was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer, a particularly aggressive form of the disease. Chemo and a double mastectomy was the only option. She is only 45 - a year younger than me. Unspeakably devastating news, made all the worse by the fact that Tracy would now have to remain in the US for treatment. She was stuck there and I was stuck here, unable to go back, at least not for any length of time. But my health was stable enough for a short visit to be there when treatment began. And that's where Laura comes in. I stay with Tracy until she's through her first treatment, and despite the fact that she's unwell, we make the most of the short time we have together. We go to the beach, we go to the movies, we go to dinner. Making memories we hope will last until we see each other again. Whenever that might be. I return to Ireland at the end of October, and I promise to be back for Christmas. But I'm only home a few days when I start to feel under the weather. Constantly exhausted, breathless when climbing the stairs. And out of nowhere, chest pains. Within an hour I'm in A&E at Tallaght Hospital, where I learn that the reason for my symptoms is severe anaemia. Urgent blood transfusions are called for. After several invasive and undignified procedures (never believe them when they say that three colonoscopies in a week is "not that bad"), a CAT scan reveals a mass in my colon. The doctors are hopeful it's nothing suspicious, but a biopsy is ordered. Like Tracy's, my biopsy is on a Friday, and it's a long weekend while we wait for results. But again, despite the fear, we can't help but think, "This is really going to be nothing." If only because both of us having cancer at the same time would be utterly ludicrous. Then the doctor comes around - and despite our finest logic, it's something. It's cancer. Plasmablastic lymphoma, a rare and aggressive form of non-Hodgkin's. And I learn within a few days that it's already at stage 4. As Christopher Hitchens said about his own terminal cancer, "The thing about stage 4 is, there's no stage 5." My reaction to this news is strange, though. Where Tracy's diagnosis had left me devastated, feeling like my own heart had been ripped out and our life torn to pieces, this just leaves me numb. Cold. Distant from the thing, as if it can't possibly be happening. That it's unreal, that somehow someone is playing a great big cosmic joke. My wife and I have cancer? At the same time? At the one time in our lives when we can't be together to help each other through it? That's surely a joke. And joking about it is often the only thing that gets us through, a dark game of one-upmanship, our dread played out as a contest. "My cancer is worse than yours." "I don't think so. Mine is a billion times rarer." "Chemo is sending me into early menopause." "Yeah, well my beard fell out." "Poor thing. Try being a woman with no hair." "My doctor told me I only have a 50/50 chance." "So did mine. Join the club." "I'm stage 4, I beat you by one. I win!" "Whatever." "Don't be mad. I love you so much I got sympathy cancer." "Please" Of course that can only work for so long. Then the breakdowns come. The tears, the anger, the panic, the utter despair. The long lonely nights apart when the terror of it all crashes down on our heads - the overwhelming fear that our lives have been irreparably shattered and we'll never be able to put them back together. As I write I'm still in Tallaght Hospital, going on three months now. The same dragon that was set loose on my wife now hangs over my head on a drip pole, bleeding into my arm, doing its great and terrible thing. Mine is unleashed every 21 days by a wonderful specialist haematology nurse named Roisin Gill. Not a redhead, but 100pc pure Irish. No photo album needed. Tracy, meanwhile, continues her treatment at home in the US. The new plan is that she will move here in April when she finishes, though in truth it can be hard to be hopeful about that. It's not easy to hope, to plan, and to dream when your dreams have already been crushed in the cruellest of ways. And when the harsh reality is that we don't know if we have a future at all, let alone a future together. Yet we do hope. A desperate hope, perhaps, a hope that frequently sounds like a cry for just one more chance, despite the odds. But hope all the same. It just wasn't supposed to be like this. Brendan Keenan: 'Better laws and foreign money needed to overcome worrying homes shortage' There is a district in Belfast known as the Holy Land. Not because of its religiosity, but because the streets - Jerusalem Street, Damascus Street and so on - are called after places in that region. Once, there were others; Little Crimea, India, and so on. Seemingly, houses were built so quickly for the city's huge expansion in the 19th century that it was too much trouble to think up original names. They eventually gave up altogether, so far as names were concerned. The Shankill area got First Street, Second Street etc, all the way up to Tenth. Premium Dan O'Brien Opinion While we catastrophise about Covid, we ignore risk of running out of cash We Irish view the world in an increasingly strange and unhealthy way. We catastrophise about Covid in a way other European countries do not. We focus on how bad the effects of the virus could get, on how many more restrictions might be imposed by Government and how helpless we are in the face of the virus. A business school is a university-level institution that confers degrees in business administration or management. Such a school can also be known as school of management, school of business, school of business administration, or, colloquially, b-school or biz school. A business school teaches topics such as accounting, administration, strategy, economics, entrepreneurship, finance, human resource management, information systems, logistics, marketing, organizational psychology, organizational behavior, public relations, research methods and real estate among others. www.collegevaluesonline.com Types There are several forms of business schools, including school of business, business administration, and management. Most of the university business schools are faculties, colleges, or departments within the university, and teach predominantly business courses. In North America, a business school is often understood to be a university program that offers a graduate Master of Business Administration degrees and/or undergraduate bachelor's degrees. In Europe and Asia, some universities teach only business. Privately owned business school which is not affiliated with any university. Top Online Business Degree Video Notable firsts 1819 - The world's first business school, ESCP Europe was founded in Paris, France. It is the oldest business school in the world and now has campuses in Berlin, London, Madrid, Paris, Torino, and Warsaw. 1855 - The Institut Superieur de Commerce d'Anvers (State funded) and the Institut Saint-Ignace - Ecole Speciale de Commerce et d'Industrie (Jesuits education) were founded in the same year in the city of Antwerp, Belgium. After almost 150 years of business education and rivalry between catholic and state education, the successors of both institutions have merged in 2003 to the University of Antwerp. 1857 - The Budapest Business School was founded in the Austrian Empire as the first business school in Central Europe. It is the oldest public business school in the world. 1868 - The Ca' Foscari University was founded in Venice. It is the oldest business school in Italy and one of the oldest in the world. 1871 - The Rouen Business School recently merged with Reims Management School under the name of NEOMA Business School. Rouen Business School is the second oldest French business school. 1871 - The ESC Le Havre was created ( now Ecole de management de Normandie). Created the same year than Rouen Business School it is also the second oldest French business school. 1881 - The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania is the United States' first business school. 1898 - The second oldest business school in the U.S., the Booth School of Business is founded to offer practical business instruction. 1898 - The University of St. Gallen established the first university in Switzerland teaching business and economics. 1900 - The first graduate school of business in the United States, the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College, was founded. The school conferred the first advanced degree in business, specifically, a Master of Science in Commercial Sciences, the predecessor to the MBA. 1902 - The Birmingham Business School of University of Birmingham is the United Kingdom's first business school. Originally established as the School of Commerce in Birmingham, United Kingdom. 1906 - The McGill School of Commerce was founded as part of McGill University in Montreal, Canada, eventually developing into the Desautels Faculty of Management. 1906 - The Warsaw School of Economics (SGH) was established as the first university in Poland dedicated to teaching commerce and economics. 1907 - ESSEC Business School in Paris, which was later the first Business School outside North America to be accredited by the prestigious AACSB (main and most famous association to accredit schools of business) in 1997 1908 - Harvard Business School was founded at Harvard University. It was the first program in the world to offer the Master of Business Administration degree. 1909 - Stockholm School of Economics was founded on the initiative of the Swedish business sector and is the oldest business school in Sweden. Hanken School of Economics was established the same year in Helsinki, Finland. 1919 - Babson College was the first business school founded to focus solely on entrepreneurship. Every graduate receives a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. 1936 - The Norwegian School of Economics (also known as NHH) is the oldest business school in Norway. 1946 - The Thunderbird School of Global Management, then called the American Institute for Foreign Trade, was the first graduate management school focused exclusively on global business. 1949 - The University of Pretoria in South Africa founded the oldest business school in Africa. In January 2008 the Graduate School of Management was formally replaced by the Gordon Institute of Business Science. 1949 - XLRI - India's oldest business management school is founded. 1953 - IISWBM is the first institute in India to offer an MBA degree. 1954 - The Faculty of Management Studies (FMS), University of Delhi is among one of the oldest business schools in India. 1955 - The Institute of Business Administration, Karachi was the first business school to be established outside North America to offer an MBA degree. 1991 - The IEDC-Bled School of Management was the first business school to offer an MBA program in Eastern Europe. 1994 - CEIBS (China Europe International Business School) was the first business school in China to have received funding from a foreign government, namely the European Commission. 2015 - The Daniels College of Business was the first business school to launch a challenge-driven MBA program. www.bestvalueschools.com Degrees Common degrees are as follows. Associate's degree: AA, AAB, ABA, AS Bachelor's Degrees: BA, BS, BBA (Bachelor of Business Administration), BBus (Bachelor of Business), BCom, BSBA, BAcc, BABA, BBS, BMOS and BBusSc (Bachelor of Business Science) Master's Degrees: MBA, MBM, Master of Management, MAcc, MMR, MSMR, MPA, MISM, MSM, MHA, MSF, MSc, MST, MMS, EMBA and MCom. At Oxford and Cambridge business schools an MPhil or MSc, is awarded in place of an MA. Doctoral Degrees: Ph.D., DBA, DHA, DM, Doctor of Commerce (DCOM), PhD in Management or Business Doctorate (Doctor of Philosophy), Doctor of Professional Studies (DPS) www.uww.edu Use of case studies Some business schools center their teaching around the use of case studies (i.e. the case method). Case studies have been used in graduate and undergraduate business education for nearly one hundred years. Business cases are historical descriptions of actual business situations. Typically, information is presented about a business firm's products, markets, competition, financial structure, sales volumes, management, employees and other factors affecting the firm's success. The length of a business case study may range from two or three pages to 30 pages, or more. Business schools often obtain case studies published by the Harvard Business School, INSEAD, the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, the Richard Ivey School of Business at The University of Western Ontario, the Darden School at the University of Virginia, IESE, other academic institutions, or case clearing houses (such as The Case Centre). Harvard's most popular case studies include Lincoln Electric Co. and Google, Inc. Students are expected to scrutinize the case study and prepare to discuss strategies and tactics that the firm should employ in the future. Three different methods have been used in business case teaching: Prepared case-specific questions to be answered by the student. This is used with short cases intended for undergraduate students. The underlying concept is that such students need specific guidance to be able to analyze case studies. Problem-solving analysis. This second method, initiated by the Harvard Business School is by far the most widely used method in MBA and executive development programs. The underlying concept is that with enough practice (hundreds of case analyses) students develop intuitive skills for analyzing and resolving complex business situations. Successful implementation of this method depends heavily on the skills of the discussion leader. A generally applicable strategic planning approach. This third method does not require students to analyze hundreds of cases. A strategic planning model is provided and students are instructed to apply the steps of the model to six to a dozen cases during a semester. This is sufficient to develop their ability to analyze a complex situation, generate a variety of possible strategies and to select the best ones. In effect, students learn a generally applicable approach to analyzing cases studies and real situations. This approach does not make any extraordinary demands on the artistic and dramatic talents of the teacher. Consequently, most professors are capable of supervising application of this method. History of business cases When Harvard Business School was founded, the faculty realized that there were no textbooks suitable to a graduate program in business. Their first solution to this problem was to interview leading practitioners of business and to write detailed accounts of what these managers were doing, based partly on the case method already in use at Harvard Law School. Of course the professors could not present these cases as practices to be emulated because there were no criteria available for determining what would succeed and what would not succeed. So the professors instructed their students to read the cases and to come to class prepared to discuss the cases and to offer recommendations for appropriate courses of action. The basic outlines of this method are still present in business school curriculum today. www.bestvalueschools.com Other approaches In contrast to the case method some schools use a skills-based approach in teaching business. This approach emphasizes quantitative methods, in particular operations research, management information systems, statistics, organizational behavior, modeling and simulation, and decision science. The leading institution in this method is the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University. The goal is to provide students a set of tools that will prepare them to tackle and solve problems. Another important approach used in business school is the use of business games that are used in different disciplines such as business, economics, management, etc. Some colleges are blending many of these approaches throughout their degree programs, and even blending the method of delivery for each of these approaches. A study from by Inside Higher Ed and the Babson Survey Research Group shows that there is still disagreement as to the effectiveness of the approaches but the reach and accessibility is proving to be more and more appealing. Liberal arts colleges in the United States like New England College, Wesleyan University, and Bryn Mawr College are now offering complete online degrees in many business curriculae despite the controversy that surrounds the learning method. There are also several business schools which still rely on the lecture method to give students a basic business education. Lectures are generally given from the professor's point of view, and rarely require interaction from the students unless notetaking is required. Lecture as a method of teaching in business schools has been criticized by experts for reducing the incentive and individualism in the learning experience. www.topmanagementdegrees.com Executive education In addition to teaching students, many business schools run Executive Education programs. These may be either open programs or company-specific programs. Executives may also acquire a MBA title in an Executive MBA program within university of business or from top ranked business schools. Many business schools seek close co-operation with business. www.bestvalueschools.com National Accreditation There are three main accreditation agencies for business schools in the United States. ACBSP, AACSB, and the IACBE. In Europe, the EQUIS accreditation system is run by the EFMD. www.topmanagementdegrees.com Global Master of Business Administration ranking Each year, well-known business publications such as The Economist, Eduniversal, U.S. News & World Report, Fortune, Financial Times, Business Week and The Wall Street Journal publish rankings of selected MBA programs and business schools that, while controversial in their methodology, nevertheless can directly influence the prestige of schools that achieve high scores. Academic research is also considered to be an important feature and popular way to gauge the prestige of business schools. 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Get Rich Click!: The Ulti.. 10 Powerful Ways to Build.. Get these at Amazon.com * amzn.to is official short URL for Amazon.com, provided by Bitly Source of the article : here Premium What will it take to unite Ireland? Opinions are divided There are those for whom Northern Ireland is a geographical fragment of the UK holding true to empire on its western flanks, and those for whom partition is a century-old wrong that must be overturned. Somewhere in the middle are the persuadables people willing to accept either unity or union, so long as the justification is logical. One way or another, the unity conversation is in the air. History is very important as it records the actions of people. It is an account of the behaviour of people and their interactions with each other. It is also an excellent indication of what certain political groups and ideologies will deliver if elected. Political groups that have enjoyed the run of the tax take and the decision-making process of Ireland since the bloody foundation of this State will, I am sure, point to emerging groups and Independents as not having the wherewithal to "run the country". One thing we can be sure of from the Fianna Fail and Fine Gael-led governments, based on the evidence of the past, is that the management of the HSE will remain untouched. Neither government, despite many ministers, have changed the personnel at the top. This despite evidence that our waiting times are the worst in Europe - worse than Greece even. This despite the head of the HSE having admitted to having , in his own words "no plan". So, people of Ireland, you either consider the factual evidence of history and vote for those who haven't delivered a HSE that sees our pensioners being beaten in nursing homes, our elderly being dumped on trolleys like cattle waiting for the slaughter, and our children's very existence and right to peace and protection in one of the heaviest-taxed states in Europe being left in the hands of suspected paedophiles. Or you choose to elect people who have delivered all of this to the detriment of the general public. It's funny how we keep harking back to the heroes of 1916 and the War of Independence but our history books are so empty of heroes in the political field since the foundation of our country. Dermot Ryan Athenry, Co Galway Don't blame outsiders Diarmuid O'Flynn blames those in Brussels and Frankfurt for Ireland's woes (Irish Independent, Letters, February 1). There are a number of questions to be asked before we start blaming foreigners for what happened to this country. Why did the decision to enter the eurozone not receive a bigger challenge by those in a position to know the risks? Why was Ireland one of the very few members of the eurozone to go bust? Why were increases, which equalled a tripling of bank lending and a tripling of government spending, not challenged during the boom? Why were the ordinary people of this country not better informed of the risks of what was happening during the boom? A Leavy Sutton, Dublin 13 Steps to reverse rural decline Rural Ireland is on its knees and people have been talking about it for years. Meanwhile, nothing of substance has been done about it. After closure of rural post offices, local shops, pubs, schools, garda stations and public transport now comes what appears to be the final straw - local surgeries are under threat. We are now told that the economy has turned, with unemployment levels down. This is not having the desired overall effect. Yes, tourism is up. The Wild Atlantic Way is hailed as a success but most tour operators bus the visitors to the key attractions, eg, Cliffs of Moher, Glendalough, etc, while the nearby towns and villages are bypassed on route back to an ever-busy Dublin. As someone who hails from a rural village in the west of Ireland which was once thriving, I have traced this sad decline over the last 30 years. This a major socio-economic crisis facing Ireland. A real and comprehensive government strategy is required. A commitment, not a promise. Firstly, let's not fool ourselves, this is all about money and people will not live in a rural community for sentiment alone. They need a real job in a sustainable business. They need money and a future. They need a real reason to locate there, to put down roots, start a family and send their children to the local school. The Government should immediately implement a comprehensive tax policy to reward every indigenous employer who creates a sustainable job in rural Ireland. They do it for multinationals. Workers in these companies should get an additional tax break on their salary, providing more money in their pocket to spend in the local community. A further tax break should be provided on the purchase of their home. This should be strictly controlled to ensure that it is their home and not an investment. The benefits of this would be twofold and immediate: 1. It will bring real investment, new life and energy into rural communities, reversing decades of decline. Local affordable housing in comparison to the still prohibitive costs of even a modest house in Dublin will attract people to make the big necessary step. 2. The more this succeeds, the less pressure on the housing market in Dublin, allowing people to buy affordable, decent-sized homes. Of course, not everyone will want to live in the countryside but a solution is not beyond the wit of the Government. With the election around the corner, wherever you live, now it the time to tell canvassers that your vote will depend on their plans for rural Ireland. Or else, stop paying it lip service and just shut it down. Kevin McDermott Dublin 6 Music out of time The recent 'Ar Son Na Poblachta' programme on RTE (Tuesday, February 2) gave a good reminder of how Easter 1916 was commemorated 50 years later in 1966. However, the programme was undermined by basic errors in the choice of music. Music is often used on archive video to create a period mood and, naturally, 1960s pop music appealed to the production team, to illustrate the public mood of Easter 1966. However, my enjoyment of the programme was spoiled when I heard a brief excerpt of what sounded like 'Nights in White Satin' by the Moody Blues, which was not released until 1967, or was it 'A Whiter Shade of Pale' by Procol Harum, which was released in 1968? Unfortunately, these would have been unknown to anybody in April 1966, who was taking part in the 50th anniversary commemoration of the 1916 Easter Rising. I also heard 'Monday Monday' by the Mamas and Papas but this first registered in the pop chart in May 1966, a few weeks after Easter. Russell Padmore Ballybofey, Donegal An aircraft belonging to Daallo Airlines is parked at the Aden Abdulle international airport after making an emergency landing following an explosion inside the plane in Somalia's capital Mogadishu. Photo: Feisal Omar/Reuters A burning man was reportedly sucked out of a hole in a plane apparently caused by a bomb, forcing the aircraft to make an emergency landing in Mogadishu. An explosion and fire blew a gaping hole in the commercial airliner, with the pilot later saying he thought it was a bomb. An aviation expert who looked at photographs of the hole in the fuselage said the damage was consistent with an explosive device. There were reports that an unidentified elderly man, engulfed in flames, was sucked out of the hole in the fuselage of Flight D3159. Eyewitnesses on the ground reported seeing his charred body fall to Earth. Injured Mohamed Hassan, a police officer in the town of Balad, 18 miles north of Mogadishu, said residents had found the dead body of an old man. Somali aviation official, Ali Mohamoud, said only two people were slightly injured as 74 passengers and crew of the plane were evacuated after the plane made a safe landing. Local radio reported the plane was on fire when it landed. It was not certain if all the passengers were accounted for. The plane, operated by Daallo Airlines and headed to Djibouti in the Horn of Africa, was forced to land minutes after taking off from the Mogadishu airport, said Mr Mohamoud. "I think it was a bomb," said the Serbian pilot, Vladimir Vodopivec, who was quoted by Belgrade daily Blic. "Luckily, the flight controls were not damaged so I could return and land at the airport. Something like this has never happened in my flight career. We lost pressure in the cabin. Thank god it ended well," the 64-year-old pilot said. Awale Kullane, Somalia's deputy ambassador to the UN who was on board the flight, said on Facebook that he "heard a loud noise and couldn't see anything but smoke for a few seconds." When visibility returned they realised "quite a chunk" of the plane was missing, he wrote. ( Daily Telegraph London) Dublin teenager Ibrahim Halawa, who is on hunger strike in an Egyptian prison today, has said fellow inmates are being tortured and crucified. The 19-year-old has told a caseworker from human rights organisation Reprieve that some prisoners were being tied up naked in a crucifix position in the prisons halls. Others had been electrocuted using pools of water to increase the pain. Ibrahim's sister Somaia told the Herald yesterday that his latest letter to his family in Dublin alleges that experimental torture is being carried out at the prison. He said he was regularly beaten with rubber bars, and was singled out by one senior guard for particular abuse. "Some prisoners were tied naked in a crucifix position in the prison's halls, while others had been electrocuted, using pools of water to increase the pain," he said. He alleges that he had been stripped naked, sexually assaulted, whipped with metal chains and walked upon, and he said he has been held around the clock in a windowless cell with no natural light or fresh air A spokesperson for Reprieve said: "He wakes up every morning to the screams of other prisoners being tortured. He says this is worse than any beating he has received." In a letter that was smuggled out in November, he said: "This is a place where experimental torture is practised. This is a place where once you are in there is no way out." Words will never do justice to what happens in Egyptian prisons." Being in a mass trial will never grant me my freedom." "I am not protesting for better conditions but to be released," he said. I really want to thank everyone who has supported me, because it is your help that will get me released. MayaFoa,the directorof the death penalty tracking team at Reprieve, said: Ibrahim Halawa has been through a horrifying ordeal arrested and tortured as a child, held in deplorable conditions for over two years and now faced with the threat of a mass death sentence." The latest reports of the torture meted out in his prison are deeply shocking,and its utterly clear that his trial alongside 493 other prisoners has precious little to do with justice. Ms Foa called on the governments of Ireland and the UK to fight tirelessly for Ibrahims release. The body of a missing Italian student has been found with signs of torture, including multiple stab wounds and cigarette burns, on the outskirts of Cairo, an investigating prosecutor has said. Giulio Regeni, a 28-year-old graduate student , went missing in the Egyptian capital on January 25, the fifth anniversary of the uprising that toppled long-time autocrat Hosni Mubarak. His body was found on Wednesday along the Cairo-Alexandria Road in the October 6 suburb in western Cairo and was positively identified by his roommate, said the prosecutor, Ahmed Nagi, who leads the investigation team on the case. Mr Nagi said the cause of death was still under investigation but said "all of his body, including his face" had bruises, cuts from stabbings and burns from cigarettes. He said it appeared to have been a "slow death". Another person with knowledge of the case told the AP that the body was "partially burned". An employee at Cairo's central morgue confirmed that Regeni's body was brought there. Italy's Foreign Ministry said it has urgently summoned the Egyptian ambassador over the death of the student, seeking maximum cooperation in the investigation. The ministry said in a statement on Thursday that Italy renewed its request to launch an immediate investigation and include Italian experts. The statement also requested that the body be returned to Italy as soon as possible. The deputy head of criminal investigations in Cairo's twin province of Giza, Alaa Azmi, said Regeni's body was found on Wednesday morning with "bruises and cuts". An initial investigation showed it was a road accident, he said, adding that the preliminary forensic report had not mentioned any burns. "We have to wait for the full report by forensic experts. But what we know is that it is an accident," Mr Azmi said. The University of Cambridge lists Regeni as a student of its Department of Politics and International Studies. Regeni's body was found following an online campaign searching for him after he went missing. The Egyptian authorities had intensified a crackdown on dissent ahead of the January 25 anniversary, with police raiding apartments in downtown Cairo seeking signs of plans for organised protests and checking people's social media accounts. Egypt has seen years of upheaval since Mubarak's ouster in 2011, ending with the election of former defence minister Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi as president in 2014, after he led a 2013 military ouster of Islamist president Mohammed Morsi amid massive protests against his rule. Following Morsi's ouster, el-Sissi launched one of the harshest crackdowns in years, jailing of thousands of Islamists and scores of liberal, pro-democracy activists. In addition, Egypt has been battling a local Islamic State affiliate in the northern Sinai Peninsula, where Islamic militants stepped up attacks on security forces after the military ousted Morsi in 2013. While mainly contained in northern Sinai, militants have carried out a series of attacks in more central parts of the country, including the bombing of the Italian Consulate in Cairo and the kidnapping and beheading of a Croatian oil surveyor who was working in the capital in August last year. Inmates on death row facing an imminent execution use more positive than negative words in their final statements, according to new research. In a new paper, Frontiers in Psychology, researchers Dr. Sarah Hirschmuller and Dr. Boris Egloff examined the emotional language used by prisoners, minutes before their executions, in the US state of Texas. Comparing positivity in these last words with those who contemplated death and attempted or actual death by suicide, the psychologists found that the inmates on death row were much more likely to display positive emotions as they faced their impending executions. The report, they add, contributes to the growing literature suggesting elevations in positive language as coping strategy for the immense threat of death. In order to test this theory the researchers worked with a database of 407 inmates last words between 1982 and 2015 all of which are available on the Texas Department of Criminal Justice website. Using the popular terror-management-theory (TMT) a framework used to examine human reasoning in a situation of threat or uncertainty the authors attempted to investigate how inmates on death row seek to make sense of what is about to happen to them. Initiatively, one might imagine that thoughts of ones own death should evoke fear and anxiety as death may be associated with a broad range of frightening aspects, the authors of the report write. They add: Without any doubt, the psychological terror felt in the situation of self-decided death by suicide is extreme. However, there may be one situation where individuals face an even greater amount of terror: directly before death by execution. This situation is characterized by a complete absence of controllability and a maximal subjection to powerful others who have the right to end ones life. The report concludes: Considering real deaths by both execution and suicide, it remains an important task to further investigate why individuals facing execution use an even greater number of positive emotion words. Psychologists, taking account of the perspectives of death row inmates, victims, and society as a whole, should continue to shed light on individuals immediate coping with human mortality reflected in their words before death. The psychologists claim that their research offers new insights into how individuals cope with the imminent real-world salience of mortality Donald Trump's campaign plane was forced to make an emergency landing in Nashville, Tennessee after reporting engine problems. Mr Trump was on the way to a rally in Little Rock, Arkansas, when the Boeing 757 made the unscheduled stop at Nashville International Airport. Thank you @billoreilly & @KarlRove. Ted Cruz should be immediately disqualified in Iowa, with each candidate moving up one notch. Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 4, 2016 This is the Cruz voter violation certificate sent to everyone, a misdemeanor at minimum. pic.twitter.com/tMav17UGkf Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 4, 2016 A spokeswoman for Mr Trump said he finished the journey in a charter aircraft. he Republican front runner was expected to speak at Barton Coliseum in Little Rock to an audience of more than 11,500 supporters, ABC News reports. Mr Trump arrived an hour and a half late, explaining to the crowd it was "rough" getting there but there was "no way" he would have cancelled his trip. He told his supporters: "I love Arkansas". The Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) is currently investigating the incident. Earlier, Trump had accused Ted Cruz of fraud in the Iowa caucuses. In attacks posted on his official Twitter account yesterday, Mr Trump said "either a new election should take place or Cruz results nullified" in Monday's Iowa contest. The billionaire businessman was placed second behind the conservative Texas senator. A previous Trump tweet accused the Cruz campaign of telling Iowa voters that Ben Carson was quitting the race so he could steal Mr Carson's votes. Meanwhile, Rand Paul who has bowed out of the race said he will now turn his full attention to his Senate re-election campaign in Kentucky. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who was placed third among the Republicans in Iowa, said he will try to persuade some of Rand Paul's supporters to redirect their support to him, despite the stark differences the two have on foreign policy. Both men were elected to the Senate during the rise of the conservative tea party in 2010. Rubio is trying to be the Republican establishment's preferred alternative to Trump or Cruz. Meanwhile, an anonymous US politician has put forward Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize in one of the most unlikely nominations since that of Soviet strongman Josef Stalin in 1947. The nominator, likely to be a Republican senator or congressman - both of whom are eligible - submitted the nomination only days before the deadline of February 1. The nomination praised the way Trump's bellicose foreign policy ideology functioned as "a threat weapon of deterrence against radical Islam, ISIS [Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant - Isil], nuclear Iran and Communist China", citing "his vigorous peace-through-strength ideology". Kristian Berg Harpviken, director of Oslo's Peace Research Institute, which publishes an annual prediction of the likely prize-winner, confirmed that he had been sent a copy of the Trump nomination letter last week. "I have committed not to reveal the identity of the nominator, but what I can say is that the nominator has shared a copy of his nomination letter directly with me, that the nominator has a position which gives him the right to nominate, and that I consider it valid." Mr Trump has seen support among Republican voters soar to 40pc this year as he outrages liberals with his calls to ban Muslims from entering the US, describes Latino Americans as "rapists", and pledges to "beat the s---" out of Isil with indiscriminate carpet bombing. "When you get these terrorists, you have to take out their families," Mr Trump said in December, when asked about his approach to tackling Isil in Syria and Iraq. Mr Harpviken described a Trump prize as "entirely unlikely", arguing that the reason put forward, which appeared to be "about the necessity of confrontation rather than anything else" would not convince the five-member committee. His shortlist of the 11 most likely winners was this year headed by US surveillance whistleblower Edward Snowden. Mr Harpviken argued that surveillance oversight reforms in the US, and a vote in the European Parliament calling on member states to "drop any criminal charges" against Mr Snowden made his chances of winning the award greater this year than in either 2014 or 2015, when he was also nominated. Mr Harpviken's second tip is the duo of Ernest Moniz, the US energy secretary, and Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of the Atomic Energy Organisation of Iran for their part in the Iran nuclear deal. The third most likely winner in his opinion was the duo of Timoleon Jimenez, head of Colombia's FARC guerrillas, and Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos, for their part in peace talks to end the long-running Columbian civil war. The winner will be announced in early October. Adnan Syed, 35, who is serving a life term in prison after being convicted of murdering his 18-year-old ex-girlfriend in 1999, is shown in this still image from video footage as he is brought into Baltimore City Circuit Court in Baltimore, Maryland February 3, 2016 A man convicted of the murder of his girlfriend 15 years ago who became the subject of widely popular podcast Serial, suffered an injustice of epic proportions, his lawyers said, as they argued for the case to be reheard. Adnan Syeds high school girlfriend Hae Min Lee was murdered on January 13, 1999 strangled and buried in a shallow grave. In 2000 he was found guilty of her killing and sentenced to life in prison. Expand Close Adnan Syed in 1999 / Facebook Twitter Email Whatsapp Adnan Syed in 1999 The case had been closed for years when producer of the podcast Sarah Koenig, a former Baltimore Sun reporter, started looking into the case in 2014, drawing millions of listeners each week so many that it shattered Apples iTunes stores record for downloads, with 76 million to date. Syed, now 35, was on Wednesday seen for the first time in almost 16 years as he went before a judge, smiling at the rows of supporters and family members sitting inside the courtroom. Now sporting a full bushy beard and a taqiyah Muslim skullcap the Baltimore-born man was dressed in a pale blue prison jumpsuit, with his legs in chains and wrists in handcuffs. And he listened intently as Justin Brown, his defence lawyer, summarised his case for a retrial namely that a key witness who says she saw Syed in the library at the time of the murder was never called to testify, and that telephone records that placed Syed at the burial site were inaccurate. Ms Koenig, the creator of the podcast, was seated on the front row to hear Mr Brown spell out why he, like the reporter, felt that Syed had been let down by his then-lawyer Cristina Gutierrez. She died in 2004, having had her licence to practice law revoked by consent - in 2001, suffering from increasingly debilitating health problems including memory and vision loss. Her health was failing. She was unable to manage her family life. Her business was coming unwound, said Mr Brown. In her prime she was one of Baltimores best, but by 1999 there was a decline. Her failure to call Asia McClain, a former classmate who said she spotted Syed at a library the day Lee was strangled, was evidence of that decline, said Mr Brown. As a result of the wheels coming off the bus, the most important piece of evidence slipped through the cracks. He also argued that mobile phone records which the prosecution said located Syed at the park where Lees body was buried were unreliable, despite being seized on as a key indicator of guilt. There is one big problem with that, he said. That evidence is false. It should never have been brought to trial, and used to determine this mans fate. Telephone company AT&T faxed over instructions to the police on how to read the list of phone calls they provided, stating that: "Outgoing calls only are reliable for location status. Any incoming calls will NOT be considered reliable information for location. Yet the jury were not given AT&Ts note. If that warning had been "properly raised at trial" by Syed's previous lawyer, Mr Brown said, "much of, if not all of, the cellular evidence would have been rendered inadmissible." But Thiruvendran Vignarajah, the deputy attorney general, wrote that it was preposterous to suggest that Syed received inadequate counsel. He defended Gutierrezs work, saying it was easy for Mr Brown to smear the reputation of defence attorney s from the comfortable position of hindsight. And he said that the conviction should stand. Retired Circuit Judge Martin P. Welch has said the hearing will take three days, before he decides whether to reopen the case, having listened to members of the original defence team speak and fellow students speak on behalf of the new defence. The prosecution are calling no new witnesses. He was convicted by a jury of his peers, who established beyond doubt that Mr Syed strangled her with his bare hands, said Mr Vignarajah. The motive his possessiveness, as reflected in diaries; his conduct afterwards; forensic evidence linking him to the vehicle, to the burial site, was simply overwhelming. He was convicted because he did it. And nothing Ms Gutierrez could have said would have convinced the jury otherwise. Telegraph Media Group Limited [2022] - T. S. Eliot Thoughts After Lambeth "The World is trying the experiment of attempting to form a civilized but non-Christian mentality. The experiment will fail; but we must be very patient in awaiting its collapse; meanwhile redeeming the time: so that the Faith may be preserved alive through the dark ages before us; to renew and rebuild civilization, and save the World from suicide." Pope Francis drinks a traditional mate drink offered to him by Argentinian United Nations soldiers during his weekly audience in St Peters Square at the Vatican. Photo: Max Rossi/Reuters The Chinese government yesterday issued a statement saying that it had "noted" an interview in which Pope Francis sent Lunar New Year greetings to President Xi Jinping. Beijing also called on the Vatican to be flexible in creating conditions for better relations. It is thought that the diplomatic overture may be the precursor to a thaw in relations. The Vatican, which has had no formal diplomatic ties with Beijing since shortly after the Communist Party took power in 1949, has been trying to improve its relationship with China and its state-sanctioned Catholic Church. The main point of contention between Beijing and the Vatican is which side should have the final say in the appointment of bishops. Another stumbling block is the Holy See's recognition of Taiwan, which Beijing considers a renegade province. While he was in South Korea in 2014, the Pope urged China to pursue a formal dialogue to benefit both sides. While flying to South Korea, his plane was allowed to cross Chinese air space, a first for a pope. In the interview in the 'Asia Times' this week, the Pope did not mention difficult subjects like human rights, expressing his admiration for China and sending his best wishes to Mr Xi and China's people ahead of next week's Lunar New Year holiday. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said he had "noted the relevant report". "China has always been sincere about improving Sino-Vatican ties, and have made many efforts in this regard," Mr Lu said. "We are still willing to have constructive dialogue with the Vatican based on this principle, meeting each other half way, and keep pushing forward the development of the process of improving bilateral relations. We also hope that the Vatican can take a flexible, pragmatic attitude to creating conditions for improving ties." Mr Lu did not elaborate. South Korea has warned of "searing" consequences if North Korea doesn't abandon plans to launch a long-range rocket that critics call a banned test of ballistic missile technology. The South's rhetoric about unspecified harsh consequences comes less than a month after North Korea's defiant fourth nuclear test and as diplomats at the UN work on strong new sanctions against the North. North Korea yesterday informed international organizations of its plans to launch an Earth observation satellite on a rocket between February 8 and 25, and if North Korea's past patterns are any clue, angry warnings by its neighbours and Washington probably won't dissuade a coming launch. The launch declaration, which is meant to warn civilians, shipping and aircraft in the area about the rocket and falling debris, follows North Korea's disputed claim on January 6 to have tested a hydrogen bomb, the country's fourth nuclear test. A launch would be seen as a snub by North Korea of its only major ally, China, whose representative for Korean affairs landed in the North for talks yesterday. South Korean and US officials said the launch would threaten regional security and violate UN Security Council resolutions that ban the country from engaging in any ballistic activities. "We warn that if North Korea proceeds with a long-range missile launch, the international society will ensure that the North pays searing consequences for it as the launch would constitute a grave threat to the Korean Peninsula, the region and the world," senior South Korean presidential official Cho Tae-yong said in televised remarks. In Washington, Daniel Russel, the top diplomat for East Asia, said the US was tracking reports of the North's planned launch. He said a launch that uses ballistic missile technology would be another violation of a UN ban and strengthens the argument for the international community to impose "real consequences" on North Korea for destabilising behaviour. He called for the imposition of tough additional sanctions. Russel said a launch "would be an unmistakable slap in face to those who argue that you just need to show patience and dialogue with the North Koreans but not sanctions," in an apparent reference to China. China urged restraint over North Korea's announcement of its launch plans, and expressed scepticism over the US calls for tough new sanctions. "We hope all sides show restraint and take prudent action to avoid any moves that may increase the tensions on the (Korean) Peninsula," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said at a regularly scheduled news briefing. Russia, a member of long-stalled six-nation talks on North Korean nuclear disarmament, said in a statement that the North "is displaying glaring disdain for generally recognised norms of international law" by violating UN Security Council resolutions, and urged it to "realistically assess all negative consequences of such shortsighted moves." WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will leave the Ecuadorian embassy in London, where he took refuge in June 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, and accept arrest on Friday if a UN panel investigating his case rules against him, he said in a statement. Assange, 44, is wanted in Sweden for questioning over allegations of rape in 2010 which the Australian denies. "Should the U.N. announce tomorrow that I have lost my case against the United Kingdom and Sweden, I shall exit the embassy at noon on Friday to accept arrest by British police as there is no meaningful prospect of further appeal," Assange said in the statement posted on the Wikileaks Twitter account. "However, should I prevail and the state parties be found to have acted unlawfully, I expect the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me." Assange fears Sweden will extradite him to the United States, where he could be put on trial over WikiLeaks' publication of classified military and diplomatic documents, one of the largest information leaks in U.S. history. The U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention is currently considering a request for relief by Assange, who argued in a submission that his time in the embassy constituted arbitrary detention. Assange argued that he had been deprived of his fundamental liberties, including lack of access to sunlight or fresh air, adequate medical facilities, as well as legal and procedural insecurity. Assange made international headlines in early 2010 when WikiLeaks published classified U.S. military video showing a 2007 attack by Apache helicopters that killed a dozen people in Baghdad, including two Reuters news staff. Later that year, the group released over 90,000 secret documents detailing the U.S.-led military campaign in Afghanistan, followed by almost 400,000 internal U.S. military reports detailing operations in Iraq. Those disclosures were followed by the release of more than 250,000 classified cables from U.S. embassies. It would go on to add almost three million more diplomatic cables dating back to 1973. Since his confinement, WikiLeaks has continued to publish documents on topics such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership, one of the world's biggest multinational trade deals, which was signed by 12 member nations on Thursday in New Zealand. A spokesman for Assange could not immediately be reached for comment. Lennart Jansson, the Charge d'Affaires at the Swedish embassy in Canberra, declined to comment on the announcement. George Bingham, the only son of missing peer Lord Lucan, arriving at the High Court in London with wife Anne-Sofie Foghsgaard. Photo: Nick Ansell/PA Wire Lord Lucan, the British aristocrat who vanished without trace 42 years ago after the murder of his children's nanny, has officially been declared dead by London's High Court, allowing his son to inherit the title. The dapper, moustachioed peer disappeared hours after Sandra Rivett was found bludgeoned to death in his house in central London in 1974. A car he was using was later found at Newhaven on the English coast with a length of lead piping. The fate of Richard Lucan, a gambler and socialite known as 'Lucky', has intrigued people ever since and there have been reported sightings across the world, including in Australia, India, the Netherlands and South Africa. The High Court in London declared him dead in 1999 but the law at the time did not allow his only son, George Bingham, to inherit his title. Yesterday, Bingham used new legislation to successfully apply for a death certificate to be issued. "My own personal view, and it was one I took I think as an eight-year-old boy, is he's unfortunately been dead since that time," Mr Bingham, now Earl of Lucan, said outside court. "In the circumstances, I think it's quite possible he saw his life at an end, regardless of guilt or otherwise. Being dragged through the courts and through the media would have destroyed his personal life, his career and the chances of getting custody of his children back. "That may well have pushed a man to end his own life but I have no idea," he added. Mr Bingham expressed his sympathy with Ms Rivett's son, Neil Berriman, describing Ms Rivett as a "lovely lady". Mystery He added: "Our family has no idea how our own father, my father, met his own end and whether he did so at his own hand or the hand of others on that fateful evening. It is a mystery, and it may well remain that way forever. "I would ask, with a very quiet voice, for everyone to consider a person did die here in terrible circumstances, and a family lost a father. "We, none of us, know actually what happened, nor will we ever. And as a British person, I still prefer to consider a person innocent until proven guilty in a court of law." One of numerous theories about what became of Lucan, pictured left, was that he shot himself and was then fed to tigers at the zoo of his friend, John Aspinall. Aspinall said in 2000 that Lucan had weighted himself down with a stone and drowned himself in the English Channel. Mr Berriman said he bore no ill feeling towards Mr Bingham but hoped the mystery would be explained with the help of new evidence in the next year. "There is no getting away from the fact that whatever happened that night, Lucan is guilty of something in my eyes," he said, without giving details of the evidence he referred to. A gaping hole in the plane forced it to make an emergency landing. (AP) The head of the airline whose jetliner was damaged by an explosion shortly after take-off from Somalia says investigators have found what appears to be residue from explosives on the plane. Daallo Airlines CEO Mohammed Ibrahim Yassin told The Associated Press from the carrier's corporate office in Dubai that it is too soon to say a bomb was to blame. He said the airline has temporarily suspended its operations in the Somali capital following the incident but hopes to restart them soon. The Airbus A321 was carrying 74 passengers when an explosion blew a hole in the fuselage. One passenger remains unaccounted for, though residents in a town north of Mogadishu have found the body of a man who may have been sucked from the plane. Giulio Regeni went missing in Cairo on the fifth anniversary of the uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak A vehicle belonging to the Italian ambassador is parked outside Zeinhom morgue, where Giulio Regeni's body is being held. (AP) The body of a missing Italian student has been found with signs of torture, including multiple stab wounds and cigarette burns, on the outskirts of Cairo, an investigating prosecutor has said. Giulio Regeni, A 28-year-old graduate student , went missing in the Egyptian capital on January 25, the fifth anniversary of the uprising that toppled long-time autocrat Hosni Mubarak. His body was found on Wednesday along the Cairo-Alexandria Road in the October 6 suburb in western Cairo and was positively identified by his roommate, said the prosecutor, Ahmed Nagi, who leads the investigation team on the case. Mr Nagi said the cause of death was still under investigation but said "all of his body, including his face" had bruises, cuts from stabbings and burns from cigarettes. He said it appeared to have been a "slow death". Another person with knowledge of the case told the AP that the body was "partially burned". An employee at Cairo's central morgue confirmed that Regeni's body was brought there. Italy's Foreign Ministry said it has urgently summoned the Egyptian ambassador over the death of the student, seeking maximum cooperation in the investigation. The ministry said in a statement on Thursday that Italy renewed its request to launch an immediate investigation and include Italian experts. The statement also requested that the body be returned to Italy as soon as possible. The deputy head of criminal investigations in Cairo's twin province of Giza, Alaa Azmi, said Regeni's body was found on Wednesday morning with "bruises and cuts". An initial investigation showed it was a road accident, he said, adding that the preliminary forensic report had not mentioned any burns. "We have to wait for the full report by forensic experts. But what we know is that it is an accident," Mr Azmi said. The University of Cambridge lists Regeni as a student of its Department of Politics and International Studies. Regeni's body was found following an online campaign searching for him after he went missing. The Egyptian authorities had intensified a crackdown on dissent ahead of the January 25 anniversary, with police raiding apartments in downtown Cairo seeking signs of plans for organised protests and checking people's social media accounts. Egypt has seen years of upheaval since Mubarak's ouster in 2011, ending with the election of former defence minister Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi as president in 2014, after he led a 2013 military ouster of Islamist president Mohammed Morsi amid massive protests against his rule. Following Morsi's ouster, el-Sissi launched one of the harshest crackdowns in years, jailing of thousands of Islamists and scores of liberal, pro-democracy activists. In addition, Egypt has been battling a local Islamic State affiliate in the northern Sinai Peninsula, where Islamic militants stepped up attacks on security forces after the military ousted Morsi in 2013. While mainly contained in northern Sinai, militants have carried out a series of attacks in more central parts of the country, including the bombing of the Italian Consulate in Cairo and the kidnapping and beheading of a Croatian oil surveyor who was working in the capital in August last year. Regeni's disappearance and death came at a time when authorities and media close to the security services have often depicted foreigners as plotting against Egypt. At the same time, human rights groups have accused police of being behind the disappearances of Egyptian activists and suspected Islamists, a claim police have denied. Before January 25, security officials said they had been gathering intelligence for months on young pro-democracy activists and foreigners. News of Regeni's death also prompted Italy's economic development minister, Federica Guidi, to cut short a visit to Cairo and return home. Mr Guidi had been heading a delegation of 60 business people in Cairo, aimed at finding new areas of economic commerce and to help more Italian companies set up business in Egypt. Most of the delegation returned as well. An Italian newspaper accused Egyptian security forces of being behind the killing. "The strong suspicion is that Giulio Reggeni, the 28-year-old student who loved Egypt, was killed by Egypt ... by the system, by the security apparatus of an uncertain Egypt of today," read a page-one commentary from Il Sole 24 Ore, a business daily. A migrant fits boots on to her child as refugees and migrants wait to continue their journey towards western Europe from the Macedonia-Serbia border at a transit camp in the village of Presevo. Photo: Darrin Zammit Lupi/Reuters Children now make up more than a third of the migrants making the perilous sea crossing from Turkey to Greece, the UN has announced. The statistics were revealed as it emerged that two babies drowned off the Turkish coast on Tuesday. For the first time since the start of the migrant crisis in Europe, there are now more women and children crossing the border from Greece to Macedonia than adult males, according to UN children's agency Unicef. The figures emerged as Europe struggles with its biggest movement of people since the Second World War. More than a million people fleeing war, violence and poverty, risked life and limb to reach its shores last year. "Children currently account for 36pc of those risking the treacherous sea crossing between Greece and Turkey," Unicef spokeswoman Sarah Crowe said, adding "children and women on the move now make up nearly 60pc" of those entering from Macedonia. The figures mark a significant shift since June, when 73pc of migrants were adult males and only one in 10 were under the age of 18. Marie Pierre Poirier, Unicef's special co-ordinator for the refugee and migrant crisis in Europe, said women and children were even more vulnerable to the dangers of trying to travel to Europe. "It means more are at risk at sea, especially now in the winter, and more need protection on land." Underlining her point, the International Organisation for Migration (IOM) said on Tuesday that one in every five who drowned last month while trying to sail from Turkey to Greece was a child, with minors accounting for 60 of the 272 deaths. A total of 330 children have died in those waters over the past five months, many of them just metres from shore, the organisation said. The drownings continue a grim trend that accelerated last year when nearly 4,000 people died trying to reach Europe by sea. The plight of children was brought home last year when the body of Syrian toddler Alan Kurdi was found washed up on the shore of the Greek island of Lesbos, horrifying the international community. The bodies of two more babies were recovered by the Turkish coastguard in the Izmir province on Tuesday, along with seven dead adults, just days after another 37 people drowned off another part of the coast. On Tuesday, the EU urged Greece to check the flow of asylum seekers to its shores, using measures such as improved security checks, or risk having border controls imposed with other members of the Schengen zone. Greece responded by saying the army will do more to help police and port authorities deal with the new arrivals. The IOM said that almost 62,200 migrants and refugees entered Europe through Greece in January, most of them from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq - close to a third of them unaccompanied minors. Europol warned that young people arriving alone were particularly vulnerable to exploitation, abuse and trafficking. It added that more than 10,000 unaccompanied children who had registered after arriving in Europe over the past 18 months to two years had disappeared. Ms Crowe said European mechanisms for protecting children had not worked. "[This] is really a failure of child protection systems across the region", she said. The United Nations struggled to fan peace talks into life yesterday but in Syria fighting raged as Damascus, aided by Russian airstrikes, pressed on with a major onslaught against rebels. UN envoy Staffan de Mistura announced the formal start two days ago of the Geneva negotiations, the first attempt in two years to negotiate an end to a war that has killed 250,000 people, driven a huge wave of refugees and empowered Isil. But both opposition and government representatives have since said talks have not even begun. "It seems the first phase of preparations (for talks) will take a much longer time than expected," government delegation chief Bashar al-Ja'afari said yesterday. "The official discussions did not take off yet, unfortunately. We are still discussing how to proceed." Mr Ja'afari said the government was still unclear on who it would be negotiating with from the fragmented opposition side. Mr de Mistura said on Tuesday the process could collapse but it was essential to get it going. "If there is a failure this time after we tried twice at conferences in Geneva, for Syria there will be no more hope. We must absolutely try to ensure that there is no failure," he said. The opposition's chief coordinator Riad Hijab, who diplomats say is a unifying figure for the disparate rebel side, has arrived in Geneva. But the opposition cancelled a meeting with Mr de Mistura on Tuesday, accusing Russia of putting the process at risk with an "unprecedented" bombing campaign on Aleppo and Homs. "The level of confidence between both sides is close to zero," Mr de Mistura said. Commonly Violated Workplace Laws Trending News: The Surprisingly Common Ways Your Employer Screws You Over Why Is This Important? Because it's surprisingly easy to be taken advantage of. Long Story Short Via WTOP, U.S. News & World Report has a list of five ways employers may try to get one over on you, despite being against the law. They're all pretty common, and your employer may not even realize they're illegal. Long Story The relatively cushy status of the American worker is a big reason why some people argue that we no longer need labor unions. Years ago, those unions fought for some of the protections we enjoy now, including the 40-hour work week and child labor laws. We're a little healthier and more sane for it, but that doesn't mean your employer won't attempt to squeeze more out of you in ways that violate labor laws. Washington's WTOP recently published a U.S. News & World Report list of the five most common violations, and they're all pretty familiar. If one of these things hasn't happened to you, you probably haven't been in the workforce very long: Forbidding Salary Discussions: This is a big one. I once worked at a place where this was considered a "fireable offense," and I bet you have too. Unfortunately, from a legal perspective this just isn't true for most workers. Discussing pay is a big part of how workers organize, and thus preventing it is a form of union-busting. Dish about your salary all you want. Pretending you're not an "exempt" employee (when you really are): Being an "exempt" employee means that you're not eligible for overtime pay. The law was originally meant to protect production level workers, ensuring they got paid overtime for their work while executive, managerial, administrative and professional workers were exempt from the overtime requirements. The classification depends both on the nature of your job and how much you make, and until recently the salary threshold for being exempt was super low. President Obama recently raised the threshold to just over $50k per year, however, meaning a lot more people now qualify for overtime pay. Do some research and see if you qualify the next time you're asked to stay late. Asking (or even allowing) you to work off the clock: Simply put, it's illegal to do work you're not getting paid for as a non-exempt employee. It's actually illegal for you to do it of your own volition, and it includes things as simple as answering emails after you've clocked out. Using independent contractors like employees: If you're following the current backlash about "gig" employers like Uber, you're familiar with this concept. It's fine for an employer to contract labor to offset some costs but if the employer dictates when, where and how the contractor works (thus removing the "independent" part), the government says they're employees and must be handled as such. That means paying the contractor's payroll taxes, something true independent contractors usually have to do on their own. Taking action when you complain about work on Facebook: Similar to no. 1, punishing you for griping to friends and coworkers about your job on social media effectively limits organization, making it illegal. Workers have the right to come together to discuss working conditions, even if all they want to do is complain. There's a difference between complaining and making malicious, false or bullying statements, however. The latter are not protected under the law. This all gets more complicated if you work in a state with "at-will" employment, meaning employers can terminate you at any time for any reason not protected by law. That means that while they can't fire you for talking about your salary with your coworkers, they can (and will) be on the lookout for another reason any reason to show you the door. Plenty of people get let go for "poor performance" when there's really something else afoot. None of these things are as simple as they seem, so do your research before raising an issue with your manager. The article says that bringing violations to your manager's attention is probably the best course of action, provided you frame your intentions as being helpful it's possible that your supervisor isn't even aware that what he's asking is illegal. Thus concludes today's example of why it's important to know your rights. Own The Conversation Ask The Big Question Can I really bring this up with my boss without getting canned? Disrupt Your Feed This is why it's important that we maintain strong labor unions. Drop This Fact The earliest recorded strike occurred in 1768 when New York journeymen tailors protested a wage reduction. SHARE NIKIE MAYO/INDEPENDENT MAIL Taylor Jones, Anderson County emergency services director (standing), talks about the importance of being prepared for natural disasters and threats of violence. Joey Nimmer, Anderson County Board of Education administrator, listens. NIKIE MAYO/INDEPENDENT MAIL Taylor Jones, Anderson County emergency services director (standing), talks about the importance of being prepared for natural disasters and threats of violence. Joey Nimmer, Anderson County Board of Education administrator, listens. Related Photos Winter weather By Nikie Mayo of the Independent Mail Anderson County officials encouraged area business leaders Thursday to have plans for responding to disasters or acts of violence. County officials who spoke at the Anderson Area Chamber of Commerce monthly Toast 'n Topics breakfast meeting also touted their abilities to work together during emergencies. "We don't look at boundaries, and we don't look at lines," said County Administrator Rusty Burns. "We just do what we need to do, especially in times of need." Taylor Jones, the county's emergency services director, said this area's "No. 1 vulnerability" is ice storms. An ice storm in February 2015 coated the Upstate with a quarter-inch to a half-inch of ice, and more than 20,000 homes and businesses were left without electricity and heat. Jones said his agency and other partners can offer classes to businesses to teach their staffs how to respond to natural disasters, sudden health emergencies or threats of violence. They plan to offer such a class to dozens of workers from Techtronic Industries in just a few days, including some employees who are coming from other parts of the country to Anderson just for the class. "Always be prepared; always know your surroundings," Jones said. "Always, always have a plan. Sometimes that plan may be as simple as running." Burriss Nelson, the county's economic development director, said assuring safety is crucial to his team landing new business prospects. "It's not my job to protect Anderson County, but it is my job to sell it," Nelson said. "I can't do that if it's not safe here." Nelson and Burns told the story of being in competition with another area to lure the same, unidentified company. When company officials visited their potential location outside Anderson County, one of their workers was beaten, Burns said. Anderson County ultimately landed that company, Nelson said. Jones also took time to defend Anderson County law enforcement's use of tools and responses that are sometimes described as militaristic. "When the bad guys carry AK-47s and tear gas, you have to plan for these things," Jones said. "So yes, the response can be seen as militaristic." Sheriff John Skipper said his deputies train on a regular basis to face threats from nature and from people. "Are we prepared?" he asked. "I'm comfortable we are. Nothing is 100 percent, because there are always going to be things that go differently than you expect. But we know how to make adjustments." Follow Nikie Mayo on Twitter @NikieMayo Be prepared Ice storms are the top threat to the region, according to Anderson County emergency services officials. What can you do to be ready? Ahead of the storm, test your alternate heat sources, such as kerosene heaters, to make sure they are working properly. Install a carbon monoxide detector. Carbon-monoxide poisoning is deadly. Make sure you have a car charger for your cellphone, so that power loss wont make you lose your ability to communicate with others. Have enough food and water for at least 72 hours, and preferably enough for a week. Have extra blankets in your house and vehicle to help you keep warm. Source: Taylor Jones, Anderson County emergency services director FRANCES PARRISH/INDEPENDENT MAIL Rona Kirby home-schools three of her children at their Anderson home. From left, Jack, 8; Lander, 9; and Reagan, 10, work on a geography lesson at their dining room table. SHARE FRANCES PARRISH/INDEPENDENT MAIL Posters of maps and presidents, along with other instructional items, adorn the walls in a front room dedicated to schoolwork in Rona Kirbys home in Anderson. By Frances Parrish of the Independent Mail Dodie Barr was driving home one day more than 15 years ago in Dallas when she heard something on the radio about three initiatives planned in the local school district. One was to teach students to phonetically spell without correcting them. Barr envisioned students learning to spell the word cat K-A-T. "I didn't want to raise someone who thought K-A-T was correct," she said. That day, she decided she wanted her then as-yet unborn son to be educated another way. Private school was too expensive, so Barr did research about home schooling and liked what she saw. When she moved to South Carolina, her oldest child, Robby, was in kindergarten, and even though she moved halfway across the country, she decided to stick with the decision to home-school that she had made before her son and daughter were born. Even though the lines between school and home were blurred as she home-schooled her children, Barr never had any problems making the distinction between being a mother and being a teacher. "I did work hard to make sure school was not about sitting down all day and doing worksheets," Barr said. She did not teach her children on her own. When Robby, now 19, and Darbie, now 17, were younger, Barr enrolled them in an enrichment cooperative that supplemented what the children were taught at home. Enrichment co-ops offer classes such as foreign languages, physical education and music that supplement what parents who home-school teach. But because the co-ops are funded by the community, they are limited in terms of the courses they can offer each year. As her children got older, Barr enrolled them in a more structured home-school co-op. Structured co-ops meet at least once a week to provide core classes and give students an opportunity to learn in a more regulated environment. Other parents such as Barr have wanted more involvement in their children's education. In the last decade, the numbers of home-school groups, legal associations and conventions have grown, illustrating the rise in popularity nationwide in the alternative method of schooling. Ignite Family Academy, a structured co-op in Easley, has more than doubled in size to 42 students since its first year in 2014. Classical Conversations, a co-op in Anderson County that serves 362 home-schooled students, has expanded from its original location in the city of Anderson to four other sites in Clemson, Easley, the city of Anderson and Powdersville in the last five years. There are several other home-school associations and co-ops in Anderson, Pickens and Oconee counties. Nationwide, the number of home-schooled children grew rapidly beginning between 1985 and 1990 all the way up to 2010, said Michael Smith, president of the Homeschool Legal Defense Association. Since then, the number of home-schooled students has continued to increase between 4 percent and 7 percent each year. Home-schooled students today make up about 3.5 percent of school-age children in the United States. Without one centralized home-school accountability group existing in the nation or in South Carolina, an exact number of home-school students is not readily available. Parents find many reasons including religious and academic to home-school their children. "When I first started home schooling 16 years ago, a lot of people did it for religious reasons," said Ann Hazelwood, home-school parent and founder of the co-op Choice, based in Anderson. "Now I think it's that people want to control education." But some parents home-school to play a bigger role in developing their child's character. "I wanted to be the major player in forming my children's character," said Rona Kirby, director of Classical Conversations in Anderson. "We deal with other issues besides math problems." In a public school, children are in classes eight hours a day, away from their parents, and most issues get resolved with the involvement of teachers and principals. Kirby said she wanted the chance to be able to teach her children moral lessons as well as academics. Other parents have decided to home-school because of bullying in public schools, or frustrations with issues such as use of the Common Core curriculum in public schools. But home schooling has its challenges as well. Because they are not held accountable by one specific organization, such as the South Carolina Department of Education, funding for home-school co-ops come from the community. " Darbie Barr said being educated at home has not hindered her academic growth in any way, but gave her chances to excel. By age 16, she had done so well in her dual credit courses at Southern Wesleyan University that she was hired as a teaching assistant, teaching some lessons to college students. After graduating from home schooling, she applied to Clemson University and is considered a sophomore in her first year of college because of the number of college credits she already has earned. She plans to graduate in three years and work to earn her master's degree in chemical engineering her fourth year of college. "I feel like had I gone to public school, I would have enjoyed it, but I wouldn't have had the academic possibilities," she said. Follow Frances Parrish on Twitter @frances_AIM Photos by Kirk Brown/Independent Mail Starr chiropractor Gregg Battersby (left) has filed a series of lawsuits related to his 2013 arrest on indecent exposure charges that were later dropped. He appeared at a hearing Thursday before Judge Lawton McIntosh. SHARE Anderson attorney J. Kirkman Moorehead is representing a woman that Starr chiropractor Gregg Battersby is suing for slander. Judge Lawton McIntosh listens to an attorney during a hearing involving a slander suit that Starr chiropractor Gregg Battersby has filed against two former patients who accused him of indecent exposure. By Kirk Brown of the Independent Mail Starr chiropractor Gregg Battersby was back in an Anderson courtroom Thursday continuing his legal battle over a 2013 arrest on indecent exposure charges that were later dropped. Battersby is pursuing a slander suit against two former female patients and Anderson attorney Tom Dunaway. He also is suing Anderson County Sheriff's Office deputies Michelle Hendrix and Greg Williamson and former sheriff's investigator Stan Ashley in federal court. And he said he is appealing last month's dismissal of another lawsuit against Sheriff John Skipper. Deputies arrested Battersby in August 2013 and charged him with two counts of indecent exposure. The charges, which stemmed from allegations made by former patients Jan Morton and Carrie Neal, were dropped by the 10th Judicial Circuit solicitor's office in April 2014. His state chiropractic license was suspended from August 2013 to August 2015. "I lost my livelihood for two years," Battersby said in an interview Thursday. "I should never have been charged. I should never have been suspended." Battersby represented himself at Thursday's hearing, explaining afterward that "I know the case better than anybody." Judge Lawton McIntosh delayed ruling on Battersby's motion to exclude his 2006 conviction on a public indecency charge in Ohio from the slander suit. McIntosh also rejected Battersby's request to remove Morton's attorney, Anderson lawyer J. Kirkman Moorehead, from the case. Battersby said he wanted to call Moorehead as a witness to support his claim that Morton has repeatedly changed her story about the allegations that led to his arrest and the suspension of his state license. McIntosh told Battersby that he can use other sources "to attack this lady's credibility." "You haven't come anywhere close in the ballpark" to meeting the legal threshold for removing an attorney, McIntosh told Battersby. Morton, Neal and Dunaway did not attend Thursday's hearing. Morton and Neal could not be reached for comment. Battersby said Thursday that he is suing Dunaway for making slanderous comments about him to an insurance company. Dunaway said he represented Neal in a dispute over a bill with Battersby. . Dunaway denied that he has slandered Battersby. "I always thought the truth was a complete defense," he said. In his federal suit, Battersby is alleging that Hendrix, Williamson and Ashley violated his civil rights by arresting him without due process or probable cause. Ashley, who is one of three candidates challenging Skipper in the June Republican primary, did not return a phone message. Skipper said he was "pleased" that a judge dismissed Battersby's suit against him last month. He said he is confident that Battersby's appeal will be denied. Battersby said he has resumed treating patients at his home-based office. Follow Kirk Brown on Twitter @KirkBrown_AIM SHARE By Charlie Bauder/WNEG AM-603/Special to Independent Mail A Stephens County man is charged in a child pornography investigation. Stephens County Sheriff Randy Shirley said Brian Keith Yost, 51, of Rock Creek Road in Toccoa was charged this week with four counts of sexual exploitation of children. Shirley said deputies worked with Georgia Bureau of Investigation agents to serve a search warrant around 7 a.m. Tuesday at a residence on Rock Creek Road. "During the search warrant, GBI agents seized a computer, and the search warrant stemmed from an ongoing investigation that was being conducted by the GBI regarding child pornography," the sheriff said. "The homeowner was not there, the suspect was not at home; but it was quickly found out where he was working, and he was arrested on the job in Covington, Georgia." Yost remained in custody Thursday afternoon at the Stephens County Jail. Its consolidated core operating profit of Rs. 805.68 crore for the quarter, declined by 73.82% yoy and 55.99% qoq. Operating profit margin for the current quarter at 2.87% contracted by 628 bps yoy and 338 bps qoq. For nine months ended December 31, 2015, the company reported consolidated net profit of Rs. 164.44 crore, declining by 90.6% yoy. Its consolidated revenue for the period stood at Rs. 87,644.04 crore, registering decline of 17.19% yoy. The company's core operating profit stood at Rs. 5,410.41 crore, recording decline of 50.78% yoy. Operating margin for the current period at 6.17% contracted by 422 bps yoy. On standalone basis,Tata Steel reported standalone net profit of Rs.425.82 crore for the quarter ended Q3FY16, registering decline of 51.65% yoy and 83.12% qoq. The companys standalone revenue stood at Rs. 9,063.88 crore, down by 8.42% yoy and 4.9% qoq. It's standalone core operating profit of Rs. 1,498.11 crore for the quarter, declined by 24.33% yoy and 19.52% qoq. Operating profit margin for the current quarter at 16.53% contracted by 348 bps yoy and 300 bps qoq. For nine months ended December 31, 2015, the company reported standalone net profit of Rs. 4,197.35 crore, declining by 25.38% yoy. Its standalone revenue for the period stood at Rs. 27,688.67 crore, registering decline of 11.11% yoy. It's core operating profit stood at Rs. 5,048.37 crore, recording decline of 39.39% yoy. Operating margin for the current period at 18.23% contracted by 851 bps yoy. Tata Steel Ltd (Q3 FY16): Recovery looks bleak: Tata Steels Q3FY16 consolidated results were quite weaker than IIFL estimates due to an operating loss in its European division and pressure on steel prices in domestic market. Steel prices fell 7.8% qoq, offsetting the impact of higher volumes and increase in contribution from FAMD division . On standalone basis, raw material costs decreased on a qoq basis due to lower consumption of purchased iron ore and pellets. However, this was marginally offset by increase in purchase of HR coils and wire rods. Contribution from the FAMD division increased as all mines are operational; however contribution to operating profit was lower due to subdued prices . Tata Steel, Indian multinational steel-making company, reported consolidated net loss of Rs.2,127.23 crore for the quarter ended Q3FY16. However, it had reported net profit of Rs.157.11 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year and Rs. 1,528.71 crore in the preceding quarter. The companys consolidated revenue stood at Rs. 28,039.02 crore, down by 16.63% yoy and 4.32% qoq.Its consolidated core operating profit of Rs. 805.68 crore for the quarter, declined by 73.82% yoy and 55.99% qoq. Operating profit margin for the current quarter at 2.87% contracted by 628 bps yoy and 338 bps qoq.For nine months ended December 31, 2015, the company reported consolidated net profit of Rs. 164.44 crore, declining by 90.6% yoy. Its consolidated revenue for the period stood at Rs. 87,644.04 crore, registering decline of 17.19% yoy.The company's core operating profit stood at Rs. 5,410.41 crore, recording decline of 50.78% yoy. Operating margin for the current period at 6.17% contracted by 422 bps yoy.On standalone basis,Tata Steel reported standalone net profit of Rs.425.82 crore for the quarter ended Q3FY16, registering decline of 51.65% yoy and 83.12% qoq. The companys standalone revenue stood at Rs. 9,063.88 crore, down by 8.42% yoy and 4.9% qoq.It's standalone core operating profit of Rs. 1,498.11 crore for the quarter, declined by 24.33% yoy and 19.52% qoq. Operating profit margin for the current quarter at 16.53% contracted by 348 bps yoy and 300 bps qoq.For nine months ended December 31, 2015, the company reported standalone net profit of Rs. 4,197.35 crore, declining by 25.38% yoy. Its standalone revenue for the period stood at Rs. 27,688.67 crore, registering decline of 11.11% yoy.It's core operating profit stood at Rs. 5,048.37 crore, recording decline of 39.39% yoy. Operating margin for the current period at 18.23% contracted by 851 bps yoy.Tata Steels Q3FY16 consolidated results were quite weaker than IIFL estimates due to an operating loss in its European division and pressure on steel prices in domestic market. Result Highlights: (Rs. in crore) Reported Results IIFL Estimates Variance (%) Consolidated Revenue 28039.02 26414 6.15 Consolidated Net Profit -2127.23 -676 NA Bloomberg estimated the companys consolidated net profit at Rs. 805.43 crore. Management Comments: Mr T V Narendran, Managing Director of Tata Steel India and South East Asia, said: "Steel markets in India have been affected by depressed international steel prices and predatory imports. Tepid demand among steel consuming sectors has further exacerbated the problem. Despite all these challenges, we continue to operate at full capacity and delivered 10.3% volume growth over last year. However, the quarter saw a sharp decline in steel prices which has impacted our margins. To realign ourselves with the new market realities, we are sharpening our focus on effective management of costs. We also continue to invest in our marketing franchise and in increasing the share of value added products. During the quarter, we have dedicated the Kalinganagar steel plant to the state of Odisha. We expect to commence the commercial production by end of this fiscal year. Our South East Asian operations is stable despite the flood of cheap imports in the region. We continue to be focused on cost savings and on increasing downstream sales & exports. I am also happy to mention that Tata Steel has won the 'Prime Minister's Trophy for the best Integrated Steel Plant' in the country for the year 2013-14. Dr Karl-Ulrich Kohler, MD & CEO of Tata Steel in Europe, said: Growing European steel demand continues to be undermined by a flood of imports into the region. Chinese steel shipments into Europe leapt more than 50% last year, while imports from Russia and South Korea jumped 25% and 30% respectively. The European steel association has identified that Chinese steel is being exported at prices below the cost of production. This unfair trade is undercutting domestic producers and harming the European steel industry which employs many thousands of people and is at the foundation of much of the regions cutting-edge innovation. Thats why we are calling on the European Commission and national governments to speed up and strengthen action against unfair trade. This perfect storm caused the deterioration of our financial performance in the last quarter and led to us announcing restructuring in the UK where our operations also face higher regulatory costs. These changes will continue to be a core focus in a bid to improve our competitiveness and enable us to concentrate on supplying higher-value products to customers. Making our customers more successful is key to our long-term differentiation strategy. With another 30 new product launches this year, we are making progress. Mr Koushik Chatterjee, Group Executive Director (Finance and Corporate), said: "The current business conditions for the global steel industry are extremely challenging with confluence of elevated imports across regions, currency headwinds and depressed market sentiments affecting Tata Steel Groups profitability. We are witnessing significant unfairly priced imports into countries like the UK, India and South East Asia which has disrupted the pricing discipline in most markets. The Tata Steel Group has embarked on significant cost rationalisation program including fixed cost reduction, right sizing of manpower, productivity management and enriching the product mix across all geographies. These programs are expected to enhance the sustainable profitability profile of the Company. The Company has also undertaken significant portfolio restructuring and will continue to pursue the same in the future During the quarter, we successfully refinanced US$1.5 billion of debt which has given us further flexibility and extended tenure while reducing costs. Our liquidity remains strong at `18,600 crores apart from the undrawn project finance facilities at Kalinganagar. The Group's leverage remain stable despite the ongoing capex of `8,800 crores in 9M FY'16, largely towards our Kalinganagar Project in Odisha. Stock Commentary: Tata Steel Ltd ended at Rs. 226.15, up by 2.15 points or 0.96% from its previous closing of Rs. 224 on the BSE. The scrip opened at Rs. 224.75 and touched a high and low of Rs. 228.5 and Rs. 219.15 respectively. A total of 13610011(NSE+BSE) shares were traded on the counter. The current market cap of the company is Rs. 21755.23 crore. The BSE group 'A' stock of face value Rs. 10 touched a 52 week high of Rs. 393.25 on 04-Feb-2015 and a 52 week low of Rs. 200 on 29-Sep-2015. Last one week high and low of the scrip stood at Rs. 258.5 and Rs. 221.5 respectively. The promoters holding in the company stood at 31.35 % while Institutions and Non-Institutions held 38.79 % and 29.86 % respectively. The stock traded above its 200 DMA. a leading enterprise software provider on Cloud, Mobile and Tablets, today announced the signing of a multi-year Cloud HCM deal witha joint venture between Dewan Housing Finance Corporation Ltd. (DHFL), Indias second largest private sector housing finance company and Prudential International Insurance Holdings, Ltd. (PIIH), a fully owned subsidiary of Prudential Financial, Inc. (PFI), a financial services leader headquartered in the U.S. DPLI will be the first customer of Ramco to be hosted on Microsoft Azure platform.Ramco HCM on Azure will support DPLI in aligning all HR information system in order to integrate its HR processes such as recruitment, talent management, payroll and benefits, time and leave management, and ESS for its 2500+ strong workforce, in India.Commenting on this association, Anoop Kumar Pabby, Managing Director and CEO, DHFL Pramerica Life Insurance said,DPLI has witnessed continued success through relentless commitment for best-in-class offerings and we are taking this further through our Digital strategy. In order to digitalize our internal HR processes, we chose Ramcos HCM solution after a thorough evaluation as they offer a comprehensive, flexible, cloud hosted and mobile enabled best-in-class HCM platform. With Ramco HCM hosted on Microsoft Azure cloud, DPLI will witness an HR transformation and support our workforce on focusing on business critical operations.Commenting on the win,said, Our complete, yet refreshingly simple HCM has been garnering good traction across markets. The success of the product and its usability led to Ramco winning the coveted award for Best HR Software in APAC. I am glad to see the momentum continue as we add one of the leading Insurance majors, DHFL Pramerica Life Insurance to our clientele.While HR software is a horizontal offering cutting across multiple verticals, our strong footprint in the BFSI sector and ability to offer latest technology features on Cloud and Mobile has helped us win this strategic deal. We look forward to growing our presence on the Azure platform by offering clients a compelling joint value proposition, added, Aggarwal.Trusted by 350+ global customers, Ramco HCM & Global Payroll with Time & Attendance is compliant with statutory and taxes across 40+ countries and has partnerships with providers in Europe & Americas to totally cover Payroll for 108 countries, globally. Multi-country Payroll, Mobility, and Intuitive user experience are driving the product to add on an average two new customers a week. With a comprehensive coverage of APAC, Middle East and Australia, Ramco Global Payroll covers countries such as Hong Kong, Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, India among others in APAC; all of GCC and Egypt, Nigeria, Ghana, Sudan, Republic of S. Africa, in Middle East-Africa; Australia, New Zealand, United States and UK. In one of the latest top management hires by IDFC, Mr. Anoop Bhaskar joins IDFC Asset Management Company (AMC) as Head of Equities with effect from Feb 5, 2016.Anoop has been associated with the domesticindustry for more than two decades covering the entire gamut of equity research and fund management. His previous assignment was with UTI Mutual Fund as Head of Equity. Earlier to this, Anoop has been associated with Sundaram Asset Management, Templeton Asset Management and Shriram Financial Services Ltd.Speaking on his appointment, Vikram Limaye, Managing Director & CEO, IDFC Ltd. said, We are delighted to have Anoop Bhaskar on board. Anoops expertise will definitely be a growth driver for IDFC AMC and will help us in delivering value to our investors. His in-depth knowledge and rich experience would be value-add in building the equity franchise of the organization.Anoop Bhaskar, Head Equities, IDFC AMC said, IDFC as a firm commands respect and recognition in every area that it has forayed into. This includes the mutual fund industry as well. IDFC AMC has some great products and I look forward to joining the team and building the franchise.Anoop holds an MBA with specialization in Finance from the University of Pune. OnMobile Global Ltd has been awarded extension deal of Ringback Tones with Telefonica owned Vivo in Brazil. The company has informed BSE that it has secured a oneyear extension for its Ringback Tone offering with Vivo, the largest telecommunications company in Brazil. As per this agreement, OnMobile will continue to provide its flagship Ringback Tone offering to Vivos 80 million mobile subscribers for another year.OnMobile Global Ltd is currently trading at Rs. 133.8, up by Rs. 3.4 or 2.61% from its previous closing of Rs. 130.4 on the BSE.The scrip opened at Rs. 133.4 and has touched a high and low of Rs. 135.2 and Rs. 132.8 respectively. So far 730272(NSE+BSE) shares were traded on the counter. The current market cap of the company is Rs. 1429.51 crore.The BSE group 'B' stock of face value Rs. 10 has touched a 52 week high of Rs. 140.8 on 01-Dec-2015 and a 52 week low of Rs. 62 on 16-Mar-2015. Last one week high and low of the scrip stood at Rs. 139.9 and Rs. 119.5 respectively.The promoters holding in the company stood at 46.54 % while Institutions and Non-Institutions held 7.89 % and 45.57 % respectively.The stock is currently trading below its 50 DMA. Somali Airplane Lands With Gaping Hole In Fuselage Trending News: Plane Forced To Land With Massive Hole. Was A Bomb To Blame? Why Is This Important? Long Story Short Long Story Because this should help your fear of flying. Or really increase it.A plane with dozens of passengers on board narrowly averted disaster when an explosion created a gaping hole in its fuselage shortly after taking off from Mogadishu airport in Somalia. The plane managed to land safely, though there are conflicting reports that one passenger may have died.It doesnt get much closer to disaster than this. The Daallo Airlines Airbus 321 had just departed Aden Adde airport in Mogadishu, Somalia when, at 11,000 feet, something blew a hole in its starboard fuselage. The cabin quickly filled with smoke and the screams of panicked passengers, according to witnesses. But instead of ripping apart in mid-air, the plane landed safely back in the capital minutes later. Its believed at least one passenger, a man in his 60s, died after he was sucked out of the six-foot-by-three-foot hole. A charred body was found by residents of a town about 18 miles north of Mogadishu. Two other passengers were hurt. Footage taken from inside the plane shows a group of passengers seated in the back of the cabin, apparently calm, some wearing oxygen masks, as it descended following the blast. The planes captain told the Associated Press that he believes that if the breach occurred at a higher altitude, everyone aboard would likely have perished. He adds that he thinks the blast was caused by a bomb something that a source close to the investigation also told CNN. Thats not being confirmed by anyone in Somalia, where the investigation is ongoing. There are fears that the Islamist group Al-Shabaab was behind the blast, but neither it nor any other group has claimed responsibility. Flights in and out of Mogadishu were suspended on Tuesday. Own The Conversation : Is Al-Shabaab trying to get some attention in a crowded Islamist extremist field?: The Mirror speculates, in its best British-tabloid way, that a flight delay may have saved the plane from destruction. So dont get mad the next time your plane is running late.: Al-Shabaab is pretty bad news: Last month an attack on a beachfront restaurant in Mogadishu left 17 dead and dozens wounded. Hansa Cequity, Indias first customer marketing company has released today its latest report on Impact of Loyalty Programs on Consumer Behaviour. The report highlights the increasing number of members enrolling in a loyalty program in the retail sector followed by banking and e-commerce. The report was released at The Loyalty Summit held in Mumbai on February 3and 4, 2016.As per a nation-wide survey conducted by Hansa Cequity to rank more than 75 loyalty programs (carefully chosen to represent nine diverse sectors) age has been a significant factor especially in the airline, health and beauty and fuel loyalty program enrolments. Airline and fuel loyalty programs were more popular among the higher age group (4659) whereas health and beauty sector loyalty programs have high penetration in the 1824 age group. The survey also revealed that respondents of age group 60 and above have higher penetration index in the hospitality and jewellery loyalty programs.Interestingly, 78% respondents of this survey also were the members of at least one loyalty program. Moreover, over half of the respondents belonged to one or more customer loyalty programs of competing businesses. The survey also revealed that the respondents had a good understanding of the purpose of a customer loyalty program.In addition it was found that though membership to these loyalty programs did influence the purchasing behaviour positively but the basic facilities like parking, store ambience, staff behaviour etc. are far more important. The most critical factors in achieving customer loyalty were product quality (73%) and variety of choices (58%), followed by prices and discounts (51%) and store ambience (38%). Consumers were influenced to join and use the customer loyalty programs mainly by the rewards and benefits offered. Furthermore, it was found that customers tend to favour programs offering instant gratification in terms of either discounts or points redemption.Commenting on the survey findings for the report, said, In India, currently mobile and digital is driving the proliferation of loyalty programs. As the research reveals, the challenge for companies is not to entice customers to a loyalty program but engage and build an experience for them. It is imperative for companies should adopt a more customer experience-driven model in order to retain the edge of differentiation in its loyalty program. Companies need to move away from a one-size-fits-all approach and opt for more analytics-driven, contextual marketing approach.Adding to the same,, Customers today exhibit a more polygamy behaviour towards loyalty programs. Consumers are now viewing loyalty as a relationship with a brand and not just as a way to get returns. To develop a robust loyalty culture in the market brands need to look at assigning its loyalty program to a senior level evangelist who will not only own but also drive it. When business mogul and founder of the RushCard, Russell Simmons, arrived in Flint early Monday morning to deliver cases of bottled water door-to-door, he did so with a minimal amount of fanfare. Flanked by a handful of local reporters and several staff members, Simmons and his affable team carried case after case of Aquahydrate to eager and desperate residents. In total, Simmons and his team delivered 150,000 bottles of water to cardholders of the prepaid debit card, and students at Flint Southwest Academy. Simmons partnered with Sean Diddy Combs and Mark Wahlberg (owner of Aquahydrate) to launch a relief campaign for victims of the Flint water contamination crisis. The campaign includes a pledge of 1,000,000 bottles of water to the people of Flint. However, the congenial mood became increasingly somber as citizen after citizen recounted horrific stories of how the contaminated water has and continues to affect their health and compromise an already fragile quality of life, and how the elevated lead levels in the water threaten the lives of their children. My heart breaks for the people of Flint, who are being deprived of the most basic of necessities clean drinking water, said Simmons who hugged one teary resident as she shared her struggle regarding the health of her three-year-old son and one-year-old daughter. My three-year-old cant talk and my baby has been having (violent) seizures, said one distressed mother. The extent of the water problem was appallingly evident, when 24-year-old Nakeyja Cade turned on her kitchen faucet to demonstrate how shamefully ineffective the state supplied faucet filters are, as supporters looked on in horror. Cade filled a small glass with tap water and placed a lead measurement device in the glass. The reading of 185 parts per billion in the filtered water sample far exceeds the 15 parts per billion level set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for safe drinking water. This is the third filter Ive put on, and I just put this one on two weeks ago, but none of them have worked, explained the distraught mother. The lead filters distributed to residents and businesses in Flint have a National Safety Foundation International certification to treat water with up to 150 parts per billion of lead, although no amount of lead consumption is considered safe. Unfiltered water collection samples collected since late December have had readings reported as high as 4,000 parts per billion of lead contamination. This is environmental racism and Gov. Rick Snyder should be hauled out of here in handcuffs. This would never have happened in Beverly Hills, said an outraged Simmons, who implored all parents to have their children tested immediately for lead poisoning. This has to do with sending less fortunate and people of color less services. They were voters who did not vote for this governor, so they are less important to him. Simmons and his small but dedicated band of workers visited each modest home with water donations, and Simmons offered thoughtful, but provocative words of encouragement. I didnt know that things were this bad until two weeks ago. I just read in the New York Times yesterday that the water filters were working, said an emotional Simmons. The Def Jam co-founder and ultra-successful business magnate is using his celebrity to encourage other public figures to put their status to work by making donations to the residents of Flint and elevating awareness of the severity of the water crisis in Flint. I know celebrities like Game, who donated 500,000 bottles of water and Puffy who donated a million bottles of water. Will Smith has made donations and I called Khloe Kardashian who wrote a check and tweeted about whats going on here to her 40 million followers. And more people need to know. Simmons also chastised local corporations who operate locally, but have done little to help alleviate the nearly unbearable burden placed on the backs of residents. He challenged larger corporations and service providers to step up to the plate and do their part to bring some measure of relief to their customers, mentioning Time Warner on more than one occasion. You pay a cable bill and utility bills. They should respond to your needs and contribute to the relief effort, Simmons told several residents during his visit. Following the door-to-door water dropoffs, which were later joined by renowned civil rights attorney Benjamin Crump, who represented the families of Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown, and Real Housewives of Atlanta star Phaedra Parks, Simmons and Crump discussed with residents plans to file a class action lawsuit to hold parties involved in the water poisoning disaster accountable and to seek to make the victims of the water crisis whole. Crump said one of the items they would insist immediate rectification of is the replacement of lead pipes and infrastructure improvements. This is way worse than Watergate, Crump said. People didnt die from Watergate. These are our childrens lives at stake. Both Crump and Simmons vowed to petition U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch to investigate which elected officials should be held responsible for the water crisis scandal. After a brief visit to Flint Southwestern Academy, where Simmons urged students to take nutrition seriously and to use critical thinking in deciding what types of food and beverages they should avoid, he noted that Flint was essentially a food desert, and again urged corporations to develop comprehensive plans for addressing nutritional needs in the community. Before returning to his door-to-door delivery schedule, Simmons attended a rally at First Missionary Baptist Church where a standing room-only crowd awaited and where he was joined by a contingency of pastors and congregations from Detroit, including Rev. David Bullock, Bishop Edgar Vann and Baltimore pastor Jamal Bryant. Prior to departing for Detroit Metropolitan Airport, Simmons spent time with residents and fans to listen to more of their concerns, and briefly interjecting a little lighthearted fun as he hugged residents and posed for selfies with fans. Im here, because I have to be, Simmons said as he departed, but Ill be back with more help. On Tuesday, February 2, following Simmons visit to Flint on Monday, the Federal Bureau of Investigation announced it would join the criminal investigation into Flints water crisis, according to Gina Balaya, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorneys Office in Detroit. Balaya announced that federal prosecutors in Michigan are working with a multi-agency investigation team on the Flint water contamination matter, including the FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, the EPAs Office of the Inspector General and the EPAs Criminal Investigation Division. President Barack Obama has declared a state of emergency, a regional Environmental Protection Agency official has stepped down and an outraged public is demanding the resignation of Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder. Though the truth about the water in Flint, Michigan, came out at a slow trickle, theres been a flood of fallout, and the response has been swift. The problem began in April 2014, when a cost-cutting measure switched the source of Flints water from Lake Huron, where Detroit gets its water, to the Flint River. Though the water from the river wasnt initially tainted, its chemistry was different from the lake water, which led to the corrosion of the citys pipes, releasing lead into the water. The water source has since been changed back, but the protective seal inside the pipes has worn away, so the water is still unclean. Health officials estimate 9,000 Flint children have lead poisoning, and though other residents including adults and children of every age, formula-drinking babies and unborn children of pregnant mothers might not have enough lead in their bodies to qualify as having lead poisoning, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says there is no safe amount of lead in the bloodstream. Indys drinking water According to an article in the journal titled Environmental Health Perspectives, the most recent estimate (published in 1990) said across the U.S., more than 3.3 million water service lines and 6.4 million line connections were made of lead, and that doesnt include the water service lines that run from public lines into private homes. At Citizens Energy Group in Indianapolis, which provides water to hundreds of thousands of central Indiana homes and businesses, compliance monitoring for lead is reported every three years, per state regulations. The most recent reported lead data, which was collected in 2012, found the water in compliance with lead regulations. Citizens tests its drinking water much more often approximately 120,000 times each year, according to its website for contaminants including pharmaceuticals, algae, lead and more. There are also in-line water monitors that continuously measure water quality. But the utility cautions the water quality could vary from customer to customer. It is possible lead levels at your property may be higher than at others in the community as a result of materials used in your plumbing, the website reads. If you are concerned about elevated lead levels in your water, you may wish to have your water tested. The CDC says lead in water has no smell or taste and cannot be seen, so the only way to know if your tap water is contaminated is to have it tested. Lead can be found in some metal water taps, interior water pipes, or pipes connecting a house to the main water pipe in the street. Lead found in tap water usually comes from the corrosion of older fixtures or from the solder that connects pipes. When water sits in leaded pipes for several hours, lead can leach into the water supply, the CDC says. In the case of a widespread water crisis like the one Flint is facing, contingency plans are in place. John Erickson, from the Indiana Department of Homeland Security (IDHS), said local jurisdictions would take the lead, but IDHS would be available to assist with arranging shelters, food and water sources for residents. IDHS does have resources for water, such as tankers and other types of vehicles that could carry potable water to an area of need, Erickson said. IDHS and other sources also have water purification systems. Help on the way In the wake of the growing crisis in Flint, many high-profile celebrities have gotten involved; Mark Wahlberg, Sean Diddy Combs, Wiz Khalifa and Cher have each donated water. But in Indianapolis, several groups have mobilized as well to lend a helping hand to the residents of Flint. Brent Lyle is one local man who felt moved to act. Id just seen too many stories on the news about what was going on there and about how it was continuing to get worse, Lyle said. Its people not unlike me or my friends or family, or people who live in our city. Lyle said hes collected more than 100 cases of water, several donations of hand sanitizer and baby wipes and monetary donations. My PayPal has been dinging every couple hours, and weve got email commitments from people saying theyre raising funds in their office, he said. One major donation: A semi-truck will haul the supplies to Flint. Originally, Lyle had planned to drive the donations to Michigan himself. Donations will be accepted through Feb. 9 and can be dropped off at the Madam Walker Theatre Center, Studio B, MLK Community Center or to 100 Black Men of Indianapolis. Paypal donations can be made to IndyLovesFlint@gmail.com. Lyle said he suspects helping Flint will be an ongoing effort, beyond this one collection drive. Lyle said the response to the water collection drive has been better than he imagined. That says to me that we are a community of caring people. Thank you, and God bless America. This sentiment has been the farewell line of many a stump speech from politicians with a variety of religious backgrounds, and as we inch closer to the first official faceoff of the 2016 presidential primaries the Iowa caucuses candidates are pushing their messages increasingly harder. One result of that push has been seeing Republican front-runner Donald Trump espousing his Presbyterian faith in an attempt to gain the favor of evangelical Christian voters, calling the Bible his favorite book and quoting two Corinthians during a speech at a university. But in a country built on the merits of keeping personal faith beliefs out of public-sector decision-making, why does religion still figure so prominently in political campaigns? Amanda Friesen, a Ph.D. who teaches in the Department of Political Science at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI), has a particular interest in how religion and politics intersect. Friesen said though there is variability, evidence shows ones religious affiliation can influence their political affiliation and even their likelihood of civic engagement. There are a few ways to think about that. Religion can play a role when it comes to identity, so if you are a Catholic and, lets say youre Irish-Catholic, you belong to a group identity that can lead you to be affiliated with a certain political party, Friesen said. The other piece can be sometimes peoples religious beliefs lead them to have certain political ideology. Add race into the mix, and the formula becomes even more complex. Friesen said if a voter comes to a choice between voting in line with their faith or voting in line with their ideology, the latter tends to win out. If you think about African-Americans and Latino/Hispanic Americans, theyre sometime just as religious and just as conservative theologically as white Christians, but they will align with the Democratic Party because of other issues that are important to them, she said. Those groups have a lot invested in getting Democratic candidates elected because Democrats have traditionally been more empathetic to concerns that affect (minority) communities. Data from the 2012 Presidential Election, pitting incumbent Barack Obama against Republican opponent Mitt Romney, showed a clear racial divide in preferences among Protestants. Romney was more highly favored (by a small margin) among all Protestant voters, and he kept that slight edge among white mainline Protestants. But looking just at voting white evangelical Protestants shows a huge difference Nov. 3, 2012, polling numbers show 75 percent of white evangelical Protestants favored Romney, compared to just 18 percent for Obama. The inverse is true to an even stronger degree with Black Protestant voters, who leaned toward Obama 92 percent of the time and Romney 3 percent of the time. Friesen said its not simple to nail down exactly how all the factors of ones identity come into play at the polls, but during primary season its especially clear that ideology matters. When looking at a slate of candidates with the same or similar religious beliefs such as the 2016 Republican slate voters must turn to ideology to find what differentiates the candidates from one another. But then in the case of Donald Trump, a candidate with plenty of ideology to go around is now backtracking to fill in the faith blanks. Whats interesting about that is Donald Trump has been a household name for 20 years or so, and I dont know if in any of that time anyone wouldve said, Donald Trump is pretty religious, God is really important to him. Now hes in Iowa, talking about being Presbyterian, Friesen said. Still, Friesen reiterated ideology tends to trump faith, saying if the voter didnt already agree with Trumps ideas, the fact that hes highlighting his religious affiliation is unlikely to sway the vote. And if Trump hadnt come out as a devout Presbyterian, (supporters are) going to find a way to make an excuse around (the lack of demonstrated faith), because he expresses beliefs that they agree with. Friesen said she saw similar trends in voting numbers for Mitt Romney, who is a Mormon. Most evangelical Christians consider the Church of Latter-day Saints a type of cult and not a part of the general Christian protestant tradition, yet many of them were willing to vote for him. Perhaps more important than what faith tradition a candidate follows is that they follow a faith tradition at all. Americans are very uncomfortable voting for an atheist they would rather vote for a Muslim, Friesen said. There is this fear of a person who doesnt have a belief system, even though we want people to be able to separate their beliefs from what is the best thing for policy or the country. Another major role organized religion plays in politics is in mobilizing communities to act. Religious institutions are able to educate members on candidates, organize events and more. Church also plays a role in connecting people to like-minded individuals who might then encourage political involvement. Friesen said people who belong to a church and are active in their faith communities are more likely to be engaged in the overall community, including in political realms. Presidential candidates faiths Republican Party Jeb Bush Roman Catholic (converted from Episcopalian) Ben Carson Seventh-day Adventist Chris Christie Roman Catholic Ted Cruz Southern Baptist Carly Fiorina Christian Jim Gilmore Methodist Mike Huckabee Southern Baptist John Kasich Anglican (converted from Catholicism) Rand Paul Presbyterian (converted from Episcopalian) Marco Rubio Roman Catholic Rick Santorum Roman Catholic Donald Trump Presbyterian Democratic Party Hillary Clinton Methodist Martin OMalley Roman Catholic Bernie Sanders Jewish In a land far, far away, in parts of the world considered uninhabitable for most, lie the prettiest of settlements known to man. From a volcanic crater in Japan to a hill-top monastery in India, from the oasis town of Peru to the molehill of Australia, natives in these parts of the world have survived by adapting themselves to their natural surroundings, completely hidden from the rest of the world. Welcome to paradise. 1. Aogashima, Japan wikipedia Located in the Philippine sea and administered by Tokyo, Aogashima is perhaps the only inhabited volcanic island there is. Living on this 8.75 sq. km island is nothing short of magic. Even though the last proper volcano that erupted here was in the 1780s, living on this island means a constant threat to life. Currently, it's home to 170-200 people. 2. Monemvasia, Greece Monemvasia Municipality On a small island off the east coast of the Peloponnese lies Monemvasia. Only 947 sq. km, this little settlement is hidden away behind a massive rock face in Laconia in Greece. Apparently, the island was separated from the mainland in 375 AD because of an earthquake. But to make commuting easy, locals made a small walkway for easy access to the mainland. 3. Phugtal Monastery, India Alamy Oh, the beauty of India! The Phugtal Monastery or Phugtal Gompa is one of the most secluded monasteries in the world. Founded in the 12th century and made from mud and timber, it is located at the entrance to a cave on a cliff face in the south-eastern Zanskar region in Ladakh. It is also known to be one of the only Buddhist monasteries that can still be reached by foot. A stone tablet at the monastery is a reminder of the stay of Alexander Csoma de Koros at Phuktal between 1826-1827. 4. Isortoq, Greenland Matthieu Paley/ Corbis/ Nat Geo Creative What I'd give to be here! Cut off from the rest of the world, in peace and tranquility, located literally in the middle of nowhere, this little village town has a population of only 64 people! Back in the day, the Inuit inhabitants would have to rely on only meat for food since the harsh conditions wouldn't allow for any green to grow. Times have changed now with a supermarket in the locality offering a variety of things. They even have a heliport now! 5. Gasadalur Village, Denmark Olaf Kruger/ Corbis Located on the west side of Faroe Islands, the village of Gasadalur looks exactly like a scene from Game of Thrones. Only 16, very lucky, residents get to enjoy this stunning beauty of mother Earth. 6. Huacachina, Peru Corbis/ Deddeda Huacachina is a small oasis town in the barren desert of southwestern Peru. The palm trees and a serene lagoon has put this place on every travel lover's bucket list. The 96 residents running small businesses would welcome you with open arms in this surreal part of the planet. 7. Undredal, Norway Atlantide Phototravel/ Corbis If I were to pick a place that looks more like a set of a Disney movie and less like an actual township, it'd be Underdal in Norway. Famous for its brown goat cheese and goat sausages, this little town hosts more goats than humans. That's right, there are 100 people and 500 goats in Undredal. Although a road connection has been made now, Undredal, right until 1988, was only accessible by boat. 8. Furore, Italy Alamy Furore just looks like a picture from an artist's imagination. Located on the breathtaking coast of Amalfi, Furore is an Italian village with colourful houses decorated with murals. An interesting story behind the colours - for the longest time, Furore was hidden from the eye of the traveller. Nobody knew about the beauty that existed. It started being dubbed as the 'village that doesn't exist'. Following these claims, the mayor of the town ordered the houses to be painted in bright, vibrant colours so that the beauty of the village could be spotted from the coastal road. 9. Coober Pedy, Australia Alamy For those wondering where the village is, it is under the massive mole hills you see in the picture. The Aussies really know how to deal with things down under. They built an entire town concealed underground with a population of 1700-odd people. This was done to deal with the unbearable heat in Australia. Alamy Coober Pedy is also known as the 'opal capital of the world' because of the precious opals that are mined there. The name Coober Pedy comes from the Aboriginal term - kupa-piti which funnily translates to 'white man's hole' in English. 10. Tristan da Cunha, Saint Helena Alexey German/ Oceanwide Expeditions Tristan da Cunha is definitely the most remote village on this list, and also perhaps the most remote settlement known to mankind till date. The only way to reach this gorgeous place is by a six-day boat journey from South Africa, or as a part of an unforgettable month-long cruise through the South Atlantic Ocean. This group of islands is 2000 kms away from Saint Helena, 2,400 kms from South Africa and 3,360 kms from South America. Basically, right in the middle of the ocean. 300 people reside at the foot of Queen Mary's Peak, who farm for a living, and are totally cut-off from the world's bullshit. Lucky. 11. Anonymous village on the bank of Niger river, Mali imgur We won't be shy to admit that we know nothing about this place. We don't know what it's like, we don't know how many people live here, heck, we don't even know its name. All we know is that it exists, it is on the bank of the Niger river in Mali and that it puts you in a dilemma - should we call it Earth porn or poverty? chronicletodaynetwork Don't we just love actor Siddharth's no-nonsense attitude? He doesn't mince words and speaks his mind. So much so that at a recent event he urged the national media to take note of the southern part of India. The socially aware actor received the 'Indian Of The Year' award and he used his acceptance speech to speak about what concerns him the most today. "On behalf of all of my volunteers... I have a certain request to the national media. This is the 'Indian Of The Year' award. Please remember, we are part of this country. Give us the same importance you give the rest of the country, because if you don't, unfortunately, they're going to stop respecting the national media." This isn't my award to win or keep. See it as a thanks to the volunteers. This for all our bravehearts. #ChennaiMicro @RJ_Balaji #NDTVIndian Siddharth (@Actor_Siddharth) February 2, 2016 Siddharth along with RJ Balaji was at the forefront during the disastrous Chennai floods to help the people. The duo created the hashtag #ChennaiMicro and sought volunteers on every possible social media handle, to come forward and help as fast as possible. Rest we all know how his hard work led to safeguarding several lives, despite his own house, getting inundated. Siddharth used the award platform to vent out his heart in the bold and touching speech. The man of strong convictions sought everyone to take note of the things that matter to the southern part of the country too. He even talked about the issue of global warming. "At the very outset I clearly am not the rightful owner of this award. I came here this evening, because I represent Chennai, Cuddalore and Kancheepuram as a faceless hero, one of those many many faceless heroes who helped the people when the floods hit us. I have been credited with creating hashtag #ChennaiMicro with my friend RJ Balaji which led to one of the fastest volunteer gathering in the history of Indian disasters. And we used the social network to the best we could. We are very happy that we could at that time when we had the resources to do so. I am here today to tell you that what this has taught us is this time it took us about ten hours to get our volunteers ready. When next time this God forbid happens going by whats happening with global warming, its going to happen quite periodically and to all of us. We will be prepared in a better way and we will be able to do stuff faster. And it also gives me great happiness to tell you that Indian patriotism, Indian compassions is very much alive. Todays youth of the median age of 26 is definitely bothered about the state of this countrys affairs. On behalf of all of my volunteers in Chennai, Cuddalore, Kancheepuram, Tamil Nadu, the rest of the south, I have a certain request to the national media. This is the Indian of the year award. Please remember we are part of this country. Give us the same important you give to the rest of this country. Because if you dont, unfortunately, they are going to stop respecting the national media. So its very important you verbalize, vocalize national support that includes every single state and every union territory of this country. Thanks for having me here. Cheers. " - Siddharth Siddharth and many others have time and again pointed out at the shockingly scant coverage of the disaster the mainstream national media carried out, at a time when its support was the most vital thing required. The Range De Basanti actor's words were the most gracious way to hold a mirror up on the process of news reporting in India. He stood up for the Southern Indian community and the nation took note of it. Well said Siddharth! In one of its biggest arms haul in the recent years the Delhi Police arrested one person and recovered over 50 pistols and 100 cartridges from a car. The Hindu The consignment was recovered hidden in a specially made cavities in the car. Savinder Kumar, a resident of Meerut has also been arrested in connection with the incident. Times of India Police said he was running a mobile arms shop which delivered weapons at clients doorsteps. Modus Operandi Kumar took orders from potential clients like criminals and gangs in NCR, western UP and Haryana through WhatsApp and Imo. These consignments were delivered by Kumar directly at their doorsteps. Payment Kumar was 'flexible' when it came to method of payment. Clients could make the payment in 'hard cash, by hawala or even online transfer. Weapons Kumar had a wide range of weapons which he promised to deliver. These include an AK-47 rifle which was priced at Rs 1 lakh, double-barrel gun at Rs 40,000-Rs 45,000 and even a combo-pack of a .32 bore pistol and two magazines for Rs 35,000. India Today/ Representational Image Factory Police said Kumar had set up a 'factory' in Dhanbad, Jharkhand, with the help of local manufacturers and assembled and supplied weapons on demand. Google Maps Kumar told police he had delivered at least six similar consignments in the past one-and-a-half years. These included at least 400-500 pistols and "combo packs". The incident involving a Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru on Sunday night could have been prevented had the city police not left the girl at the mercy of the mob. Karnataka's home minister G Parmeshwara on Thursday said that a police patrol vehicle passing by the north Bengaluru area on Sunday night had reached the spot while the mob had gathered, but decided to leave just one policeman there. One India "Hundreds of people had gathered in the area. A message received by the police said that four occupants of a Wagon R car were stopped by the mob. Jamal Ibrahim, an MBA student from Jain University, and his friends were being attacked by the mob. At this time our Hoysala patrol vehicle was passing by. The vehicle dropped one policeman at the spot and took Ibrahim to hospital," home minister said during a briefing. The situation did not appear critical to them The Tanzanian girl who was among Ibrahim's friends left behind was thrashed and allegedly stripped by the mob. Defending the decision to leave the students behind and deploy only one policeman at the spot, the minister said that the situation did not appear to be critical. He, however, admitted that the driver, Ismail, was taken to hospital because he had been beaten up by the mob. The minister also brazenly revealed the girl's name before the media, unmindful of legal curbs against identifying sexual attack survivors. All You Needed To Know About The Tragic Event In Bengaluru Parmeshwara disclosed that it was not the policeman but an Iranian student who rescued the girl from the mob. Regretting the incident, the minister, however, said the girl was neither stripped nor paraded naked. Reading out from the girl's statement, the minister said, 'Only her top was torn off." The statements by the minister come in the backdrop of allegations of the foreign students' spokesmen that the police had failed to contain the situation. The minister though said he is waiting for a probe report on the incident to take action. The failure to deploy riot police in the area for nearly an hour after the accident that triggered the violence, the abandoning of three foreign students to fend for themselves and the failure to register a suo motu case though a police team had seen the woman being attacked are among the major bunglings by the city police. When questions were raised about these faults, the minister said: "All these will be revealed in the probe report and if yes, we will take actions against officers." However, no timeframe was given for the submission of this report. In what could be an alarming fallout of air pollution, top cancer doctors say they have noted a significant rise in lung cancer among non-smokers in recent years. Roughly one in every five persons diagnosed with the disease does not smoke, they said. mikespinstripe "Till about a decade ago, less than 10% of all lung cancer patients were non-smokers. This percentage has now gone up to around 20%, which is significantly high. Rising pollution levels may be playing a role," said Dr P K Julka, professor of oncology at AIIMS, on the eve of World Cancer Day. Pollution is a real threat Dr Vinod Raina, director of medical oncology at Fortis Memorial, affirmed the trend. "The link between lung cancer and air pollution is a conjecture but it is being seen in studies conducted worldwide. Further research is needed to prove the cause and effect relation between the two," he said. Dr Randeep Guleria, professor and head of pulmonology division at AIIMS, recounted a case to underline the trend. "A few years ago, I diagnosed a young woman in her late 30s with lung cancer. She was a non-smoker. Throughout her treatment, she kept saying, 'Why me?' Such cases are becoming more common now," he said. "The role of air pollution in metros such as Delhi as a risk factor cannot be ruled out," Guleria added. TOI According to figures released by the Delhi Cancer Registry, lung cancer cases have shown the highest spurt among all cancers afflicting men, going up from 14 cases per 1,00,000 population in 2008 to 15.5 per 100,000 population in 2010. Delhi Cancer Registry data shows lung cancer cases have been increasing among women too from 4.2 cases per 1,00,000 population in 2008 to 4.6 in 2010. DCR, which compiles data from all big hospitals in Delhi, is yet to release data beyond 2010. While the data is based on cases in Delhi, doctors said it represents a wider trend because a significant number of cancer patients being treated in city hospitals are from outside. In 2013, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), the specialised cancer agency of the World Health Organisation (WHO), classified outdoor air pollution as carcinogenic. It issued a statement saying there was sufficient evidence that exposure to outdoor air pollution causes lung cancer and increases risk of bladder cancer. huffingtonpost Particulate Matter (PM), a major component of outdoor air pollution, was evaluated separately and also classified as carcinogenic by IARC the same year. "The predominant sources of outdoor air pollution are transportation, power generation, industrial and agricultural emissions, and residential heating and cooking," the IARC stated. According to Dr Nitesh Rohtagi, a senior medical oncologist at Max hospital in Saket, persons suffering from cough for more than three weeks, or prolonged pain in chest or bone, should see a doctor immediately. "Smoking still causes nearly 80% of all lung cancers. Smokers should quit the habit to reduce the risk for themselves and their families since passive smoking can also cause the disease," he said. "Outdoor air pollution, meanwhile, increases the risk of cancer for us all. The South East Asia Region has 14 of the world's top 20 polluted cities, making clear the need for governments to tackle the issue with a sense of urgency," said Poonam Khetrapal Singh, WHO Regional Director for Southeast Asia on the eve of World Cancer Day. UN Panel Rules Julian Assange Detention Is Arbitrary Trending News: After UN Ruling, Is US National Security At Risk? Why Is This Important? Because this is yet another obstacle for governments that are just dying to lock the renegade journalist up. Long Story Short The UN's Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has declared that Assange is indeed being arbitrarily detained by British authorities. Assange had previously announced that if the panel ruled against him, he would give himself up to police. Long Story The Wikileaks founder has been holed up inside Ecuadors London embassy for three-and-a-half years now, and no one can blame him if hes getting a little cabin fever-ish. But it isnt so bad that hes willing to surrender. BREAKING: Sweden's foreign ministry: UN panel concludes that Assange's detention is `arbitrary' The Associated Press (@AP) February 4, 2016 #BREAKING UN panel's ruling has no impact on Sweden's Assange investigation: prosecutor AFP news agency (@AFP) February 4, 2016 Hes been facing rape charges in Sweden since 2010, but he fears that the Brits will extradite him to the US, where hes being investigated under espionage laws for publishing secret military and diplomatic documents charges that could, reports CNN, lead to the death penalty if he is convicted. The panels decision isnt legally binding though, and the UK says it will still arrest Assange if he leaves the embassy that hes been living in since June 2012. The 44-year-old Australian-born Assange says the lack of fresh air and sunlight have taken a toll on his health. However, the British government says Assange isnt being detained since he chose to skip bail and hide out in the embassy. They say they have a legal obligation to extradite him to Sweden to face the rape charge. The UN panel is expected to make the formal announcement on Friday. Own The Conversation Ask The Big Question: Will the Assange saga ever come to an end, one way or another? Disrupt Your Feed: Man, but the Ecuadoreans have to be sick and tired of having this guy moping around. Drop This Fact: Scotland Yard pulled their active surveillance on the embassy last October, having spent, they say, over 12-million. But they do have plans to arrest Assange if he steps outside the diplomatic compound. In a shocking case of insensitivity, a panchayat in Uttar Pradesh's Bareilly has allegedly let a rapist get way without facing law. PTI/ Representative Image This after a local panchayat convened to 'look into the matter' asked the rapist to touch the feet of the victim. What is even more bizarre is that, it was the police officials who 'referred' the case to the panchayat. The incident happened on January 28, when the 30-year-old victim, a widow, was working with a MNREGA project in the forested area in Meergunj. She was dragged into an isolated spot and raped by one of the supervisors. The accused, Rohtash also threatened to kill her if she reported the crime. Despite the threat, the victim went to the Meergunj police station, where the officials refused to accept her complaint, and instead informed the village pradhan. Screengrab The pradhan who convened a panchayat right outside the police station, where Rohtash was ordered to touch the woman's feet. The panchayat then declared that the rapist was pardoned and told the victim to remain silent about the incident. She however raised the issue with the SP, who has ordered a probe into the matter. The incident in Bareilly once again shows how insensitive our system is towards rape victims and how easily a parallel judicial system can subvert the law of the land. Here are three other instances when rape victims were denied justice by kangaroo courts and those responsible to deliver justice. Rapist trashed with shoes as 'punishment' The incident happened in Todalpur village in UP in December. Two men who were accused of raping a girl were asked to pay Rs 5 lakhs as fine. But one of the accused refused to pay the fine. The panchayat then asked the victim to smear his face with ink and beat him up with shoes as punishment. Victim asked to marry her rapist In last February a rape victim in Varanasi was advised by the 'community elders' to marry her rapist. The girl however defied the order and got her rapist arrested. Mumbai police forces minor gang rape victim to marry rapist In 2013 Police officials in Mumbai's Amboli made a 13-year-old girl who was raped by two men for nearly six months, marry one of her rapists. The minor victim who became pregnant delivered the baby of her rapist. The Italian cruise ship, Costa Concordia, sank four years ago after it hit the rocks off the coast of Tuscany. February marks the month when the disaster occurred and claimed 32 lives on-board. The captain of the ship, Franceso Schettino, was found guilty of manslaughter after he abandoned the sinking ship, and was later sentenced to 16 years in jail. After it was towed to the island of Giglio for scrapping purposes, German photographer Jonathan Danko Kielkowski decided to capture a rare insight into the wrecked ship. For his upcoming book Concordia, Jonathan took a dive and went on-board the cruise vessel to forever preserve its haunting beauty, revealing how the staircases and elevators still stand tall amidst the spoils. #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 #7 Australian church leaders on Thursday said they would offer sanctuary to asylum seekers facing removal to a remote Pacific detention camp, vowing to defy the government's harsh immigration rules. 1.bbci The asylum seekers, who were brought to Australia from Nauru mostly for medical reasons, number more than 260 and include 37 babies born in the country and 54 other children, advocates said. The Anglican dean of Brisbane, the Very Reverend Peter Catt, said the churches were reinventing the "ancient concept of sanctuary" by opening facilities such as St John's Cathedral in Brisbane to the asylum seekers. Catt told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation the concept of sanctuary was not tested under law, "but my hunch is that if the authorities chose to enter the church and take people away, it would probably be a legal action". He added: "So this is really a moral stand and it wouldn't be a good look, I don't think, for someone to enter a church and to drag people away." Asylum seekers, including children, who try to reach Australia by boat are sent to off-shore detention centres in Papua New Guinea and Nauru, where they can be held indefinitely while refugee applications are processed. They are blocked from being resettled in Australia even if found to be genuine refugees. Many of the asylum seekers brought to Australia from Nauru are being held at Wickham Point, a secure facility near Darwin in northern Australia. The high court ruled Wednesday the detention of asylum seekers on Nauru did not breach domestic law, meaning the potential refugees could be returned there in the coming days. Across Australia, thousands of people protested on Thursday against the possible off-shore transfer of the asylum seekers, carrying signs reading "(Prime Minister) Malcolm Turnbull #LetThemStay". Australian Churches Refugee Taskforce's Misha Coleman admitted it would be difficult to move the detained asylum seekers to the sanctuaries but said if they were, the cases would be managed "in a very sort of confidential way". Immigration minister Peter Dutton said the churches had the right to their opinion but were not above Australian law. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull defended the tough measures on deterring asylum seekers, saying "one child in detention is one child too many". He added: "Our goal is to reduce that (number of children in detention) to zero but the key element in doing so is ensuring that people do not get on people smugglers' boats and put their lives at risk," Turnbull told parliament in Canberra Thursday. The Church Is Taking On The Government The churches' stance came as the nation's human rights chief said children being held at Wickham Point suffered high levels of mental illness. Human Rights Commission head Gillian Triggs said a medical team led by the government-funded body found that "34 per cent of the hundreds of children we visited had severe to moderate mental illness compared with two percent for children in the Australian community". Of the children aged over eight previously held in Nauru, 95 percent were assessed as at risk of post-traumatic stress disorder, the report released Thursday said. "These children, most of whom had spent months in Nauru, are among the most traumatised we have ever seen in our 50 years of combined professional experience," Elizabeth Elliott, one of the paediatricians who accessed the children in October last year, added in a statement. Those interviewed told doctors of thoughts of suicide and self-harm, while others had already self-harmed, the report said. UN Warns Australia Of Human Rights Violations "Hell is a hot place and it was hot in Nauru. In hell you have no quality of life. In hell you have people tormenting you," a father of a two-year-old and two-month-old said of his fear of being sent back. Nauru's government hit back at criticism of the camp's conditions. Justice minister David Adeang said in a statement that asylum seeker families were "safe, well-supported and treated with great respect". The United Nations human rights agency warned on Wednesday Australia was at risk of violating its obligations under international law if the asylum seekers were transferred to Nauru. Canberra says the policy is necessary to prevent the deaths of asylum seekers at sea. Follow us on india born google search chief amit singhal to leave the company Washington: India-born Amit Singhal, the longtime chief of Google's Internet search business, will leave the company on Feb 26 and be replaced by the head of the technology giant's artificial intelligence (AI) business. With John Giannandrea, currently a vice president of engineering, taking Singhal's place, Google is merging its research efforts with search, an indication of the priority of machine learning inside the company. Singhal, a 15-year Google veteran, was named "Google Fellow" in 2006 for his engineering work on the early search engine. In recent years, he has led the aggressive push for Google to improve its search results on mobile. "Search is stronger than ever, and will only get better in the hands of an outstanding set of senior leaders who are already running the show day-to-day," Singhal wrote in his retirement message on Google Plus. "My life has been a dream journey," he wrote. "From a little boy growing up in the Himalayas dreaming of the Star Trek computer, to an immigrant who came to the United States with two suitcases and not much else, to the person responsible for Search at Google, every turn has enriched me and made me a better person." "It fills me with pride to see what we have built in the last fifteen years. Search has transformed people's lives; over a billion people rely on us," Singhal wrote. "Our mission of empowering people with information and the impact it has had on this world cannot be overstated. When I started, who would have imagined that in a short period of fifteen years, we would tap a button, ask Google anything and get the answer. "Today, it has become second nature to us. My dream Star Trek computer is becoming a reality, and it is far better than what I ever imagined," Singhal said. Giannandrea, who joined Google in 2010, led Google's machine learning efforts, applying the technology to products such as image recognition for Google Photos search and the smart reply for Google Inbox. "Machine intelligence is crucial to our Search vision of building a truly intelligent assistant that connects our users to information and actions in the real world," Google said. Latest Business News Follow us on revealed how katrina and ranbir managed to ignore each other New Delhi: Actors Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif are no longer Bollywood's most loved couple. The year 2016 started on a bad note for them as they ended their seven-year-long relationship. Since reports started doing rounds about their split, the actor duo have refrained from addressing questions about it in the media. Comparatively, it is easier for Ranbir since he has no movie promotions to attend like Katrina. It has been seen that during the promotions of Fitoor', Kat has avoided answering personal questions. As it turns out, Katrina has not only succeeded in avoiding questions on Ranbir. Yesterday, the actress managed to dodge Ranbir too. The former flames were present at the Auto Expo in Delhi at the same time. While Ranbir was there at 11:20, Katrina at 12:20, suggested media reports. Ranbir, who flew in from Barcelona to attend the event, stayed put in the motorbike section while Katrina engaged herself at the other side of the venue. Some media reports also suggest that the organisers were given strict instructions not to let them pass by each other. This action by the two somewhat contradict their previous encounters post their break-up. A few weeks ago, they resumed shooting for their upcoming movie Jagga Jasoos'. Insiders revealed that Ranbir and Katrina had gone about their work with a very professional attitude. They did not let their personal bitterness stall the filming. However, their actions at the Auto Expo reflect that it may be easy for them to shoot together. However, being seen together publically at an event is a different ball game altogether. Definitely, a bitter break-up! Latest Bollywood News Follow us on what salman khan accuses sanam teri kasam team for using a song from tere naam New Delhi: Bollywood superstar Salman Khan is quite famous for his candid nature. The actor shares a great sense of humour and we just love it. However, his recent statement left everyone confused. We all know how Salman encourages new talent in the industry. But in his recent tweet, the Sultan' actor has accused the director of an upcoming movie Sanam Teri Kasam' for lifting a song from his movie Tere Naam'. He tweeted, Directors of my film Lucky n Sanam Teri Kasam churaud my song from Himesh. lovely song Had selected it for Tere Naam However, the actor seems to be joking around, he has also praised the track for the movie starring Harshvardhan Rane and Mawra Hocane. Well, both Tere Naam' and Sanam Teri Kasam' shares the same music director Himesh Reshammiya. So, we wonder what he has to say on this. Currently, Salman is busy shooting for his forthcoming movie Sultan' opposite Anushka Sharma, in which he'll be seen playing the role of a wrestler. Latest Bollywood News Follow us on can t silently watch slaughter of democratic process sc on arunachal New Delhi: The Supreme Court today said it could not remain a mute spectator in the face of a slaughter of democratic processes, taking a strong note of a submission contending that all decisions of the Governor are not open to judicial review. The apex court's observations came while examining the powers of Governors in wake of the constitutional crisis in Arunachal Pradesh. "If democracy is slaughtered, how can the court remain silent?" a five-judge Constitution bench headed by Justice J S Khehar responded to the counsel for a BJP MLA of Arunachal Pradesh who cited the powers of the Governors to suggest that courts cannot "review" all the decisions of the Governor. The bench, meanwhile, has summoned dispatch records with details of correspondences of Arunachal Pradesh assembly from October till date. The court has asked for the records to be submitted before it on February 8, after it was not satisfied with documents produced by an official of the assembly. The bench, also comprising Justices Dipak Misra, M B Lokur, P C Ghose and N V Ramana, wanted to ascertain certain communications between the office of Assembly Speaker Nabam Rebia and Governor J P Rajkhowa on issues like convening or advancing assembly session and disqualification of rebel Congress MLAs. Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, appearing for some rebel Congress lawmakers, supported the Governor's decisions saying that summoning the assembly session cannot be termed "undemocratic" and does not frustrate "democratic process". Rather, locking out the assembly building and shying away from it are undemocratic acts. "It is not compulsory for the Governor to take aid and advice of the Chief Minister and his council of ministers in summoning the assembly session," he said, adding that certain constitutional schemes empower the Governor to act on his own in "exceptional" and "special" circumstances. By summoning assembly session, the Governor is "simply setting in motion the democratic process", the lawyer said and asked how it could be termed illegal by those who lost majority support and shied away from the House. He said that the locking up of the assembly building was not a "simple and democratic" act. The court would resume hearing tomorrow on a batch of pleas filed by Rebia and other Congress leaders against the Gauhati High Court order in the case. Earlier, the bench had said that Governors are political appointees and their actions are open to judicial review as nowadays even judges are considered for such an assignment. Yesterday, BJP MLA Tage Taki had questioned the delay on part of the Congress in moving the Gauhati High Court against the Governor's decision to advance the assembly session. If such a "grave" mistake was committed by the Governor then why did the then ruling party allow the matter to "precipitate" further and move the court at the last minute, senior advocate Vikas Singh, appearing for Taki, had said. The Nabam Tuki government, which had initial support of 47 MLAs in 60 member house, allegedly lost the confidence motion by 33 votes in the assembly session held in a community hall in the state capital of Itanagar. The bench is also examining the authority of the Governor as to whether he can advance the assembly session without the aid and advice of the Chief Minister and his council of ministers. Congress party, which has 47 MLAs seats in the 60-member assembly, suffered a jolt when 21 of its lawmakers rebelled. Eleven BJP MLAs backed the rebels in the bid to upstage the government. Later, 14 rebel Congress MLAs were disqualified. The Governor then called assembly session on December 16 in which Deputy Speaker revoked disqualification of 14 rebel Congress MLAs and removed Rebia from the post of Speaker. This sitting was held in a community hall. The court is also considering fresh pleas against imposition of President's Rule in the state and would hear them on February 8. (With PTI inputs) Latest India News Follow us on activities of hafiz saeed matter of grave concern pak must act against him mea Islamabad: India today termed the activities of Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed as a matter of grave concern, saying that it was for Pakistan to rein in the banned group leader. The comments by the Ministry of External Affairs comes in the backdrop of Saeed, the alleged mastermind of the 26/11 Mumbai attack, lauding the lethal Pathankot fiasco and also threatening India of more terror assaults. "Hafiz Saeed is globally-designated international terrorist. His claim that his many front organizations are carrying out charitable work is not even a fig leaf, MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup said today. "He indulges in terrorist activities and terrorist financing. It should be a matter of grave concern to everyone that terrorist like Saeed and his associates continues to enjoy the freedom to indulge in their activities," he added. Asserting that it was up to Pakistan to rein in Saeed, the MEA also noted that Pakistan had imposed a ban last year on the media coverage of militant groups like the JuD and LeT but contrary to that ban, the electronic media was showing Saeed's speeches. Asked about the status of Indo-Pak Foreign Secretary-level talks, Swarup continued to maintain that no mutually convenient date has been agreed upon between the two countries. National Security Advisors of India and Pakistan as well as the Foreign Secretaries are in touch with each other, he said, adding while the NSAs have been discussing the Pathankot terror attack investigation by Pakistan government, the two foreign secretaries are in touch on the dates issue. Addressing a rally of around one thousand people on Wednesday in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir, Saeed had expressed pride over the Pathankot attack and warned of more terror attacks on India. "You have only seen one attack on Pathankot. Matters could easily escalate," Saeed had said. He alleged that Indian troops were committing "genocide" on Kashmiris and added "don't they have a right to carry out Pathankot-style attacks for their defence?" Saeed, in the rally yesterday, also lauded Kashmiri militant leader Syed Salahuddin, who heads the United Jihad Council (UJC) that had claimed responsibility for the January 2 Pathankot attack. (With PTI inputs) Latest India News Follow us on arrested ex major general son was collecting bomb blasts info ats Panaji: Intelligence Bureau on Wednesday grilled son of a former Major-General of the Indian Army arrested against the backdrop of ISIS threat after he was found loitering suspiciously at Vasco railway station near here. The man, identified as Sameer Sardana (46) hailing from Dehradun is a Hindu who Practises Islam, police said. Sardana had been gathering information about bomb blasts which have taken place across the country in the past, a senior police official said today. The ATS and Intelligence Bureau, which have been interrogating the 44-year-old chartered accountant, cracked the password of his laptop which he had refused to divulge during questioning, the official said on condition of anonymity. "(However), we have not been able to link him to any terror plot as per the investigations that have taken place till now. But inquiries are on," the official said. Anti-Terrorism Squad is also questioning him. We have not found anything related to terror at least till now," Inspector General of Police, Sunil Garg told reporters here. He was apprehended by the police and ATS on Tuesday. A chartered accountant by profession Sardana has been associated with leading MNCs like Accenture and worked in Hong Kong, Malaysia and Saudi Arabia, Sardana. He was held by the police in Goa after he was found "wandering suspiciously" at the Vasco railway station. Police found five laptops in his possession and have sent them to cyber crime cell for examination. The police have also confiscated the five passports and four mobile phones that he was carrying with him. Sardana was booked under section 41 of the CrPC which deals with preventive arrests. According to police, Sardana was living in a railway dormitory, 35 kms from here, since January 22 and has been extending his stay. He was questioned after he was constantly seen sitting on railway platform and busy on laptop for hours together, police had said. Goa Police are on alert after the letter purportedly written by ISIS, threatening to kill Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, was received on January 13 by the state secretariat, which was handed over to the ATS. Police had detained a Syrian, a Nigerian and a Yemeni last week for overstaying and they were probed from the terror angle. Latest India News Follow us on tanzanian woman assault 5 arrested rahul seeks report from karnataka cm Bengaluru: Karnataka Police have arrested five persons in the case related to the Tanzanian woman who was allegedly attacked and molested in Bengaluru following a road accident. Five persons have been arrested so far related to the incident, will ensure justice is done, Karnataka chief minister Siddarmaiah told reporters today. Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi has also sought report from the Karnataka government on the incident immediately, party general secretary Digvijaya Singh said. Rahul Gandhi asks Karnataka Govt to explain and send report immediately, Singh said in a series of tweets on Thursday. Strongly condemn incident with Tanzanian lady in Bangalore. Police must act strongly against the culprits, Singh, who is in-charge of party affairs in Karnataka, said. Earlier Police launched a massive manhunt to nab the suspects. "We have registered a case of riot and arson against the accused on victim's statement in which she reported of being assaulted in a mistaken identity by a mob on the outskirts of the city," city police commissioner N.S. Megharik told reporters here on Wednesday. Denying reports in a section of media that the victim was also molested, Megharik said the African woman had admitted being only assaulted by a frenzied mob after her three male friends deserted her at Soladevanahalli where the car in which they were travelling was burnt. "The incident occurred because the mob mistook the victim's car being involved in a road mishap on same night (January 31) when a 20-year-old drunken Sudanese national (Mohammed Ahad Ismai) ran over a woman fatally. We arrested him after he was rescued from a raging mob," Megharik said. Police did not register a case soon after the road mishap and the mob attack, as the victim was not in the city for two days since Sunday. "We have formed special teams to trap the culprits and render justice to the victim who declined to file complaint against the accused fearing attack again. The victim's friends told police that on Sunday the furious mob had pulled them out of their car, assaulted them and molested her in which her clothes were torn. The alleged hate crime took place a short while after a Sudanese man mowed down a woman in the same area on Sunday night. The mob also thrashed for about an hour three male students travelling with the Tanzanian woman and torched their car, said Hassan, one of the victims. When a concerned bystander tried to cover her with a T-shirt, he too was beaten," reported The Deccan Chronicle. When a concerned bystander tried to cover her with a T-shirt, he too was beaten. When she attempted to board a bus and escape, the passengers of the bus threw her back into the arms of the mob. Meanwhile, the city-based Tanzanian youth association decided to seek its embassy's help in registering an assault case and booking the culprits. Earlier in the day, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj described the attack as "shameful" and expressed deep pain over the Sunday incident on microblogging site Twitter. "We are deeply pained over the shameful incident with a Tanzanian girl in Bengaluru. I spoke to the chief minister Karnataka. He informed me that a criminal case has been registered and four accused have been arrested," Sushma Swaraj tweeted. The minister sought a report from the Karnataka government and asked Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to ensure safety of foreign students. This is not the first time those viewed as outsiders by some local residents have faced attacks in the city. In March last year, four African students were badly injured in a scuffle after some locals objected to them entering a bar. More than 30,000 people from the Northeast fled Bengaluru in August 2012 after a handful of attacks sparked rumours of a larger conspiracy. Latest India News Follow us on obama visits us mosque says attack on islam is attack on all faith Washington: US President Barack Obama in his first visit to an American mosque as president declared that attacks on Islam were an attack on all faiths in what is seen as a move to counter rhetoric from Donald Trump and other Republican presidential candidates that have alienated Muslims. Inserting himself into a debate that has ricocheted in the presidential campaign, Obama told parishioners at a mosque outside Baltimore that he'd heard from young Muslims worried they'll be rounded up and kicked out of the country. He said Muslims, too, are concerned about the threat of terrorism but are too often blamed as a group "for the violent acts of the very few." "We've seen children bullied, we've seen mosques vandalized," Obama said, warning that such unequal treatment for certain groups in society tears at the nation's fabric. "That's not who we are." For Muslim advocates, Obama's visit was a long-awaited gesture to a community that has warned of escalating vitriol against them that has accompanied the public's concern about the Islamic State and other extremist groups. Although Obama has visited mosques overseas, he waited until his final year in office to make such a visit at home, reflecting the issue's sensitive political implications. In this year's Republican presidential campaign, Donald Trump has called for banning Muslims from the U.S. temporarily and Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio warned of "radical Islamic terrorism." Muslim-American advocacy groups have warned of growing antagonism that has followed recent attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, California, by those purporting to act in the name of Islam. "We have to understand: An attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths," Obama said. He said it fell on all Americans to speak up. For Obama, the visit reflected a willingness to wade into touchy social issues that often eluded him earlier in his presidency. For years, Obama has fought incorrect claims that he's actually a Muslim and was born in Kenya, beliefs that polls suggest remain prevalent among many Republicans. Obama, a Christian, was born in Hawaii. Obama, acknowledging that uncomfortable chapter in his own story, noted that Thomas Jefferson had also been accused of being a Muslim. "So I was not the first," Obama said to laughter from a hundred or so Muslims who gathered for his speech. "No, it's true. Look it up." Obama challenged Hollywood to start casting Muslims in roles "that are unrelated to national security." Drawing a parallel with African-Americans' struggle for broad societal acceptance, he noted, "there was a time when there were no black people on television." With no plans to ever again appear on a ballot, Obama faces less pressure to avoid political controversy, and seemed to relish the possibility that his visit would raise eyebrows among some of his most entrenched critics. Ahead of his visit, White House officials acknowledged the visit could spark controversy but suggested that would help make his point about ignorance and religious bias. Still, the president was pointed in acknowledging that concerns about violence emanating from some corners of the Islamic world were not ill-founded. He denounced what he called an "organized extremist element" twisting selective Islamic texts in a way that ends up reflecting negatively on the overwhelming majority of law-abiding Muslims. "It is undeniable that a small fraction of Muslims propagate a perverted interpretation of Islam. This is the truth," Obama said. He added, "It's real. It's there." But Obama said suggestions that Islam is at the root of the problem only play into terrorist propaganda, weakening U.S. national security as opposed to strengthening it. He said IS and other extremist groups are desperately working to legitimize themselves by masquerading as religious leaders and holy warriors. "We must never give them that legitimacy. They're not defending Islam," Obama said. "The vast majority of the people they kill are innocent Muslim men, women and children." Ahead of his speech at the suburban Islamic Society of Baltimore, Obama met with Muslim university chaplains, community activists and public health professionals to discuss religious tolerance and freedom. Among the participants was fencer Ibtihaj Muhamma. The White House said she'll make history at the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympic Games as the first United States Olympian to compete in a hijab. Nearly half of Americans think at least some U.S. Muslims are anti-American, according to a new Pew Research Center poll released Wednesday. Two-thirds of Americans said people, not religious teachings, are to blame when violence is committed in the name of faith. However, when respondents were asked which religion they consider troubling, Islam was the most common answer. "We never thought that when we held our first prayers in the small room nearly a half a century ago that we would be hosting the president," said Muhammad Jameel, the mosque's president. "Today is a new starting point. It is also a continuing journey a journey steeped in American history and tradition. (AP) Latest World News Follow us on brazilian judge bans publication of adolf hitler s autobiography Brasilia: A Brazilian judge has banned the publication of Adolf Hitler's autobiography 'Mein Kampf' (My Struggle), ruling that it "incites intolerant practices" of social and religious groups against the Jews. Alberto Salomao Junior, judge from Rio de Janeiro Court of Justice, on Wednesday said in the ruling that the book, instigating racism and discrimination, was against the law of Brazil, Xinhua news agency reported citing a press release. According to the ruling, any publishing house violating the verdict will be fined 5,000 reals ($1,280) for each day the book reaches the public. However, the judge granted a five-day period for book shops and their legal representatives to consider whether to lodge an appeal before the ruling becomes permanent. Even after it becomes permanent, the ruling is applicable only in the state of Rio de Janeiro. 'Mein Kampf', written by Adolf Hitler in 1925, elaborates on the ideology which he used to rule Nazi Germany. The notorious book attracted public attention at the end of 2015, when it was published in Germany for the first time since the end of Second World War. Two Brazilian publishing houses have decided to publish a new version of the controversial book, which has already hit book shelves in the South American country. Latest World News Follow us on committed to peaceful just resolution to kashmir issue nawaz sharif Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Thursday said that Pakistan is committed to a just and peaceful resolution of the Jammu and Kashmir dispute; one which is based on UN resolutions. Pakistan reminds the international community of its responsibilities in the matter and urges it to fulfil its promise made to the people of Jammu and Kashmir 68 years ago, the premier said in his message on Kashmir Solidarity Day being observed yesterday. In his address, Sharif noted that peace in the region would remain elusive until the resolution of the Kashmir dispute in accordance with the will of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. Sharif further spoke about the support of Pakistan to the people of Indian-occupied Kashmir. The government and the people of Pakistan reiterate their continued and steadfast political, moral and diplomatic support to the people of Indian-occupied Kashmir in their heroic struggle for their inalienable right to self-determination, he said in his address. According to Sharif, India continues to deny the people of Jammu and Kashmir their rights which the international community had raised 68 years ago. Sharif also took a shot at India saying India refused the rights of the Kashmiris by refusing to implement the UN Security Council resolutions on Kashmir. The valiant people of Indian-occupied Kashmir had rendered unmatched sacrifices in their just struggle, he said, adding that Indian brutalities and atrocities had failed to deter the people of Kashmir from their cause for freedom from Indian oppression. Sharif further said that the people of Pakistan and freedom-loving people across the world saluted the Kashmiris for their courage, bravery and persistence in facing the worst kind of human rights abuse, violence and suppression by Indian security forces. India, on its part, has repeatedly stressed that any dialogue on Kashmir will only revolve around the area which India believes is under the illegal occupation of Pakistan. "When you say what it is that India is going to discuss or what is it discussing, it is really, if you ask most Indians, and what is our position it is the part of that state which is still under the control of Pakistan," former Indian High Commissioner to Pakistan T C A Raghavan had said said during a lecture at the Centre for Security Studies, a private think-tank in the Pakistani capital. Latest World News Follow us on adarsh scam cbi gets maha governor s nod to prosecute ashok chavan Mumbai: In a move that could spell trouble for Ashok Chavan, Maharshtra Governor Vidyasagar Rao today gave a go-ahead to Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to prosecute the former Maharashtra chief minister in connection with the Adarsh Housing scam. CBI had last month approached the Governor seeking permission after it reportedly got 'fresh evidence' against Chavan in the case. Questioning the governor's decision, the former Maharashtra chief minister said, "The issue is still pending in Supreme Court, how can they can do this?" Earlier, Governor K Sankaranarayanan had denied permission to CBI to prosecute him. Chavan was among the 13 people chargesheeted by the CBI in the Adarsh scam in July 2012. Though other accused, including top IAS officers and office bearers of Adarsh Housing Society, a 30 storey high-rise in Colaba, were arrested, Mr Chavan's prosecution requires permission from the Governor. Follow us on smriti irani likely to get z plus security report New Delhi: The security cover of Human Resource Development Minister Smriti Irani is set to be upgraded following escalated protests against her in the aftermath of the suicide of the Hyderabad University Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula last month. Irani, who is already entitled to Y security category as a cabinet minister, will be guarded by 20 security men at any given point of time under the new scheme. "There have been reports that her security was found to be inadequate due to the sudden protests by students, and some miscreants may take advantage of these protests and try to harm her," The Hindu quoted a Home Ministry official as saying. With her inclusion in Z category, Irani will join the elite list of ministers like Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Road Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari and Ministers of State Kiren Rijiju and Jitendra Singh, who enjoy the highest security cover. National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and BJP president Amit Shah are also in the list. VIP security is said to be a prestige issue for several politicians, with many visiting the office of Mr. Rajnath Singh to request for it. Two committees decide on the security level. One is the Protection Review Group and the other is the Security Categorisation Committee. Both are headed by the Home Secretary and include officials of the Intelligence Bureau. Follow us on national herald case sonia rahul move supreme court New Delhi: Congress president Sonia Gandhi and party vice-president Rahul Gandhi moved the Supreme Court on Thursday against a Delhi high court decision that turned down the the pleas for exemption from personal appearance in the case in the trial court in connection with the National Herald case. The trial court had on June 26 last year summoned all the above accused to appear before it on August 7, 2014 on Swamy's complaint. The Congress leaders had, thereafter, on July 30, 2014, moved the high court which had stayed the summons on August 6 last year. On 7 December 2015, the Delhi High Court ordered Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and five others to appear in person before the trial court on 9 December. They did not appear in the court and, on their lawyers' request, the trial court ordered them to appear before him in person on 19 December. He disallowed their request for exemption from personal appearance.On 19 December 2015 the Patiala House court granted bail to all but one and ordered them to appear in the court on the date of next hearing 20 February 2016. The summons was issued on a complaint by Bharatiya Janata Party ( BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy, who alleged that both had cheated and created a breach of trust in the acquisition of the now-defunct National Herald by Young Indian Limited (YIL). The case relates to the Indian National Congress granting an interest-free loan of Rs. 90.25 crore (USD 13 million) to Associated Journals Limited (AJL), owner of the National Herald newspaper which was established by Jawaharlal Nehru in 1938. It was alleged that the loan was either not repaid or repaid in cash, which is in violation of Section 269T of the Income Tax Act, 1961. A closely held company, Young Indian, was incorporated in November 2010 with a capital of Rs.5 lakh (USD 7,400) and it acquired almost all the shareholding of AJL and all its properties (alleged to be worth Rs.5000 crores (USD 740 million). Swamy filed the case alleging criminal misappropriation by both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. By Casey Houser, Contributing Writer Share inContact, a developer of contact center software, has announced the hire of Randy Littleson as its newest chief marketing officer. Littleson comes to the position as a CMO with a lifetimes worth of industry experience 25 years with various software companies where he has witnessed the ins and outs of marketing trends. Most recently, he has propelled Flexera Software with his innovative ideas as a lead marketer. Now he will have that chance in the realm of contact centers. He noted that he is excited to take the new position and hopes to move the company forward in the years to come. I am thrilled to join inContact at this crucial time when the company is poised to take significant steps forward, Littleson said. inContacts direct business, combined with current and future partner collaboration, will propel inContact towards truly dominating the cloud contact center solutions industry. Marketing for inContact will likely inform future clients about how its contact center software can provide a personalized workplace experience for all involved. For contact center managers, workforce optimization tools can give them the power to schedule employees for in-house and remote work as the days and seasons ebb. The core of the contact center infrastructure then gives those employees the tools they need to communicate over multiple channels on a reliable inContact telecommunications network. It appears that Littleson has a reputation to uphold. inContact notes in its announcement that Littleson has proven himself at companies such as Interface, InstallShield, and Palindrome. At those companies and at Flexera, he has acted in prominent positions as a marketing executive and has even shaped the corporate development of his peers. This position promises to bring out his best but also demand his best. That ultimate potential will undoubtedly have an impact on how inContact shows itself to the public from here on out. That public will certainly be watching, and perhaps its competitors will be watching even more intently. Edited by Kyle Piscioniere Were excited to announce that indmin.com is now part of fastmarkets.com. A new look and an improved experience means you can still stay ahead of this fast-moving market with price data, news and market intelligence right here on Fastmarkets. Discover more than 2000 prices, news and analysis in primary and secondary metals markets. We cover base metals, industrial minerals, ores and alloys, steel, scrap and steel raw materials. If you already have a Fastmarkets account, youll still have uninterrupted access to your markets by logging in with your current details. Location: South Africa, Zambia and Tanzania Logistics: This mission will begin at Mining Indaba in Cape Town and travels to Zambia and Tanzania to meet mining company representatives with EDC management in a B2B program. Message: The purpose of the SE Africa road trip is to bring 8-12 Canadian mining supply and service companies to Mining Indaba to carry out a comprehensive B2B program to engage mining buyers. The mission also includes EDC managed visits to Zambia and Tanzania to meet mining buyers. A Canadian Government GOA subsidy for 50% travel expenses is available to participants. Program: Mine visits will include mining companies explaining their programs and also presentations by Canadian mining supply and service companies to explain their value. Country briefings and receptions are also included in the program. In New Hampshire, TV Station Partners With Interest Groups That Push Candidates on War and Austerity By Lee Fang February 03, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " The Intercept " - A New Hampshire television news network owned by a former Republican candidate for Senate is working closely with conservative interest groups that are pressuring presidential candidates to take more aggressive positions on use of military force, entitlement reform, and tax cuts. One group, Americans for Peace, Prosperity, and Security, was formed last year on behalf of military contractors to hold events in early primary states with the explicit goal of pushing the candidates to support military engagement abroad. And while local television stations regularly work with non-partisan, non-ideological groups to host and broadcast events such as candidate debates, the NH1 News network, owned by Bill Binnie, has gone a step further, providing its on-air talent to press the candidates on issues championed by its interest group partners. Binnies NH1 News network, which operates WBIN-TV and includes over a dozen radio stations, also hosts a special interview series called Fiscal Fridays on behalf of Fix the Debt and the Concord Coalition, two groups bankrolled by billionaire Pete Peterson. Both groups encourage candidates to adopt the recommendations of the Simpson-Bowles commission which in practice translates into pushing for corporate tax cuts and reductions in Social Security and Medicare. Binnie, who amassed a fortune in plastic and manufacturing, did not respond to a request for comment. Binnie has said he began building his media empire after his failed 2010 Senate campaign. His television station caused a minor uproar in 2013 when it suspended its nightly news broadcast in favor of a celebrity gossip show called OMG! Insider. Marco Rubio appeared at an NH1/APPS forum at the University of New Hampshire in Manchester last week. The candidate discussed his opposition to receiving Syrian refugees, the war against ISIS, and other foreign policy-related issues. APPS was the official host, while NH1 was the media partner for APPS and for this great series, said NH1 News anchor Paul Steinhauser, who moderated the event. Steinhauser kicked off the forum by asking Rubio a question provided to him by APPS honorary chairman Mike Rogers the former chairman of the House Intelligence Committee-turned-CNN national security contributor about how he would respond to reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin had ordered the assassination of former KGB operative Alexander Litvinenko. Chairman Rogers wants to know how you would reassert the U.S. and how you would kind of stymie Vladimir Putin if you were in the White House, Steinhauser said. Rubio responded that he would boost the defense capabilities and back more missile defense programs. The Fiscal Friday program, which began in October of last year, was billed as a forum for critical information about the nations budget. But Fix the Debt has come under fire for promoting only a narrow set of policies. Fix the Debt organizers are given talking points that encourage activists to ask about tax reform that must include reducing corporate rates and entitlement reforms that raise the eligibility age and reduce benefits. When Martin OMalley appeared on the program, NH1 News Steinhauser pressed the former Maryland governor on whether his idea of tax reform would include lowering the corporate tax rate. Similarly, when Chris Christie appeared on the Fiscal Friday program, Steinhauser noted that other Republican candidates had proposed killing off entire federal agencies, and asked if he would do the same. During both programs, neither candidate was asked about debt-reduction strategies that fall outside the Peterson networks comfort zone, such as a financial transactions tax. The Peterson network has also flooded Iowa and New Hampshire with television ads promoting its vision of debt reduction through entitlement cuts and tax reform. Records show the Peterson groups have purchased advertising on Binnies WBIN-TV. Timothy Karr, the senior director of strategy at Free Press, a media watchdog, says this is not the first time hes seen a television station company use the public airwaves to promote a narrow agenda during a presidential election. In 2004, Sinclair Broadcasting Group, a media company owned by a Republican donor, aired Stolen Honor, an election-year movie designed to tar Democratic candidate John Kerry. For Binnies television network, Karr says, Its not really a new phenomenon but a blatant brand of influence peddling that station owners believe they can engage in with impunity. Lee Fang is a journalist with a longstanding interest in how public policy is influenced by organized interest groups and money. He was the first to uncover and detail the role of the billionaire Koch brothers in financing the Tea Party movement. February 03, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " Reuters " - Relatives of a man shot dead by law enforcement officers after taking part in the armed occupation of a U.S. wildlife refuge in Oregon have accused the FBI and state police of covering up the circumstances of his death last week. In a statement issued on Tuesday, family of Robert "LaVoy" Finicum called the shooting "unjustified" and said the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Oregon State Police were "seeking to manipulate and mislead the media and the American public about what really happened." The FBI declined to comment beyond directing attention to an aerial video of last Tuesday's shooting that it released two days later and posted online. The agency has contended the video shows Fincium outside his truck making a move for a gun in his coat pocket as he was shot to death by state police. The confrontation occurred on a snow-covered roadside after Finicum and others were stopped by police en route from the refuge to the town of John Day, Oregon, where they had planned to speak. Finicum's relatives said they believe officers opened fire before he left his truck, and that he was shot before he lowered his hands in what they said was a reflex to being shot. They demanded release of any footage that may have been recorded by police body cameras or dashboard cameras, any audio recordings relating to the shooting, and close-up images of Finicum's truck. A statement on Tuesday from the Deschutes County Sheriff's Office that said it was leading an investigation into the shooting. State police did not immediately reply to a request for comment. Finicum, 54, a spokesman for the group that seized buildings at the remote Malheur National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 2, was shot dead shortly after the arrest of protest organizers Ammon Bundy and Ryan Bundy and several others. The deadly encounter unfolded moments after Finicum sped away from law enforcement officers who had just taken the Bundy brothers into custody, then tried to run a police roadblock, plowing into a snowbank and narrowly missing an FBI agent. Finicum can be seen raising his hands as he emerged from his vehicle, then turning as he apparently flails his arms and then falls to the ground, but his precise movements are difficult to discern from the video. In their statement, his relatives said they had reached their conclusions about the shooting after speaking with Shawna Cox, who they said was in Finicum's vehicle and was arrested at the shooting scene. Cox was released from custody by a Portland judge on Friday to await trial on a charge of conspiracy to impede federal officers. Lets End Torture in U.S. Prisons Survivors call solitary confinement living death. By John Kiriakou February 03, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " OtherWords " - Solitary confinement is exactly what it sounds like. A prisoner is kept in a small cell usually 6 feet by 10 alone, for 23 hours a day. For one hour a day, he or she may be taken into a small cage outside, with the opportunity to walk in circles before being taken back in. Even the outdoor cage can usually be opened and closed remotely. The idea is to keep the prisoner from having any human interaction. Those whove been through it call it a living death. The United Nations calls it torture. The practice is widespread in the United States. And until recently, it was applied even to juveniles in the federal prison. In January, President Barack Obama banned solitary confinement for federal inmates under the age of 18. He also ordered new limits on the amount of time prisoners of any age can be caged up alone. These are great steps forward for human rights in the federal prison system. But they wont help most of the prisoners currently in solitary, who languish in lower jurisdictions. State prison systems across the country use solitary confinement as a way to destroy people. These prisoners routinely experience intense anxiety, paranoia, depression, memory loss, hallucinations, and other perceptual distortions, philosophy professor Lisa Guenther noted in The New York Times. Many Americans think that solitary is reserved for the worst and most dangerous criminals. In most cases, thats simply not true. Solitary is used not for the safety of inmates or prison guards, but as a punishment and as an expression of power by guards. For example, a prisoner can be sent to solitary for insolence or for investigation. What does that mean? Anything the guard wants it to. Talk back to an officer? Solitary! Take more than 15 minutes to eat your meal? Solitary! An anonymous source accuses you of gambling? Straight to solitary. When an inmate is sent to solitary, the prisons internal investigators are supposed to begin an inquiry into his or her behavior. Theyre given 90 days to do it, after which the prisoner should be released back to the prisons general population. But in fact, the investigators can renew the 90-day solitary period for a full year. Thats an entire year living in a small gray room the size of a walk-in closet with no human contact. It would make just about anybody crazy. Even when prisoners are fortunate enough to have an attorney or family members who can press prison authorities on their behalf, the prison can simply transfer them to another facility where the whole solitary count starts over again. That really is torture. Obamas policy change is a great start. But most prisoners will get no benefit from it unless state prison systems follow suit. Oil Price Treachery: Are the Saudis Blackmailing Putin for Concessions on Syria? By Mike Whitney February 03, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " Counterpunch " - Heres what you need to know about the Syria peace talks: Four of the most powerful militias currently operating in Syria have been excluded from the negotiations. The Islamic State (ISIS), Jabhat al Nusra, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) and the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG) have all been banned from the talks. What this means is that even if all the delegates agree to a ceasefire, its not going to matter. The fighting is going to continue. Everyone in the Obama administration already knows this, which is why we think the peace talks are a fraud designed to conceal Washingtons real objectives. (More on this later.) The meetings that were supposed to begin on Friday, did not actually start until Monday following a series of diplomatic miscues over the weekend. As it happens, the main Syrian opposition groups, most of who operate under the aegis of the High Negotiations Committee, refused to come to Geneva until Russia met their demands concerning humanitarian relief, prisoner release and stopping the bombing of enemy positions. Not surprisingly, the matter wasnt settled by Moscow caving in to the HNCs demands, but by Kerry bending-over-backwards to placate the group by making a number of commitments that hell never be able to keep. What commitments? According to Reuters: In separate comments before heading to Geneva, Assad al-Zoubi, (chief negotiator for the HNC) said U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry gave assurances by phone to the HNCs leadership, saying Washington supported a U.N.-backed political transition period without Assad, a bone of contention among warring parties. (Reuters) Naturally, the media has tried to sweep this story under the rug saying that there was no quid pro quo between the State Department and the opposition, but that seems very unlikely. Heres more background from Tass news service: The Syrian opposition is ready to begin the negotiations in Geneva without any preconditions, Salem al-Muslad, a spokesman for the delegation of the High Negotiations Committee supported by Riyadh that has arrived in Switzerland has told reporters. According to him, the delegation will demand providing humanitarian access to Syrian cities, releasing prisoners and rendering humanitarian assistance. He noted though that those were not preconditions. These are not our preconditions. (Syrian opposition ready to begin talks in Geneva without preconditions, Tass) Lets get this straight: Demanding the release of prisoners and humanitarian assistance, is a precondition regardless of what Muslad says. This hair-splitting mishmash is simply designed to confuse the public about concessions Kerry apparently made in private. And, if the Reuters report can be trusted, then Kerry also promised that Assad would not be part of the transitional government. Thats a promise Kerry will never be able to keep since Russia, Iran and Hezbollah flatly reject the idea. In fact, the current war is largely a battle between those who support regime change and those who dont. Moscow doesnt, and it has deployed its military assets to Syria to defend that principle. In any event, the actual peace talks did not begin until Monday when members of the HNC arrived in Geneva and held their first two hour-long meeting with UN special envoy Staffan de Mistura. Members from the Syrian governments delegation, led by Syrian ambassador to the UN, Bashar al-Jaafari, were not present at the meeting nor will they be in the future. They refuse to be in the same room with members of the anti-regime opposition. Instead, they plan to be in another part of the building where theyll get regular updates from couriers shuttling back and forth between their suite and the conference room. The obvious hatred between the members of the rival groups suggests that a breakthrough is improbable at best. Its worth noting, that the Saudis created the HNC to lump the many disparate militias operating in Syria under one pretentious-sounding moniker that lends legitimacy to the roving bands of Sunni militants that most people consider terrorists. The whole scam is another shining example of public relations run amok. For example, the HNC does not view Jaish al-Islam and Ahrar al-Sham as extremist groups even though both organizations are committed to overthrowing the existing, secular government and replacing it with an Islamic regime that will enforce Sharia law. Naturally, the western media goes along with this sham because the HNCs strategic aims coincide closely with those of the US. But the fact is the HNC is basically a terrorist umbrella organization whose ultimate goal is to topple Assad and replace him with a compliant stooge wholl do whatever hes told by his foreign puppetmasters. On Monday , following his meeting with the HNC delegation, de Mistura issued a statement that reiterated the primary policy objective of the Obama State Department; to stop the blistering Russian-led military offensive and declare an immediate ceasefire to save as many US-backed jihadists as possible. Heres a blurb on the topic from an article in Al monitor: Declaring the official beginning of the Syrian peace talks, de Mistura said it was now up to the 20-member International Syria Support Group (ISSG) to begin parallel discussions on a Syria cease-fire I am reminding International Syria Support Group members of what they actually indicated, that when talks start, they themselves would start helping in ensuring there would be a discussion about an overall cease-fire in the Syrian conflict, de Mistura said. (Syrian opposition finally agrees to join Geneva talks, al Monitor) So implementing a ceasefire is the UNs top priority as it is Washingtons. But why would Putin agree to a ceasefire now just when the Russian-led coalition is making great strides on the battlefield, the wars momentum has shifted in his favor, and the jihadist militias appear to be on the ropes? He probably wont agree to a ceasefire nor will he agree to have Assad be removed by force of arms. But he might be willing to ease-up on his current military offensive and even allow the US to retain captured territory in eastern Syria (that could be used for future pipeline corridors) if he thought that Russia would benefit from the deal. But what sort of deal would that be and what would it involve? Oil. It would involve oil and, ultimately, oil prices. What if the Saudis, acting on behalf of their friends in Washington, offered to cut back production so prices began to rise and Russias economy started to rebound? Would that be an offer that Putin would consider? Maybe, after all, the combination of sanctions and plunging oil prices has pushed the Russian economy into a deep slump. Its only natural that Putin would want to put an end the pain and get the economy back on track. But what do the Saudis want in return, thats the question. Check out this clip from an article in Mondays Wall Street Journal: It remains within Saudi Arabias ability to foster at least a partial recovery in crude prices on its own. A sharp rally in prices last Thursday morning was based on comments from Russias energy minister that the Saudis might get the ball rolling on 5 per cent output cuts. That was quickly refuted and oil gave up much of the gains. Russian overtures that include political and military concessions might break the logjam and persuade the Saudis to take the lead on production cuts. (Oil-price poker: why the Saudis refuse to fold em, Wall Street Journal) There are three points in this excerpt that need clarification. First, the WSJ confirms what the so called conspiracy theorists have been saying from the beginning, that is, that the Saudis have ability to foster a recovery in crude prices on its own. In other words, the plunging prices are not simply market driven, but the result of deliberate manipulation via oversupply. The Saudis have the power to change this. Second, the Saudis DID tell Russias energy minister that they were considering 5 percent output cuts. And then they lied about it afterwards when they talked with the media. (which sent prices back down.) Was the quick about-face designed to get the Russians thinking about how much they need the Saudis to lift oil prices? Of course, it was. They wanted the energy minister to pass-along the message to the Kremlin bigwigs so theyd start to whet their appetites for those juicy oil revenues. The Saudis are trying to weaken Moscows resolve and pave the way for a compromise. Thats whats really going on. Third, Russian overtures that include political and military concessions might break the logjam and persuade the Saudis to take the lead on production cuts. Ah ha! So the author admits that if Russia agrees to political and military concessions, then the Saudis will implement production cuts. But are the Saudis really acting on their own behalf in this matter or has someone else put them up to it, someone like Uncle Sam, for example? This same theme popped up in Brookings working paper last year by author F.Gregory Gause 3. Heres what he said: The question remains whether negotiations, or even agreements, on oil questions might lead to enough improvement in the atmospherics of regional relations that security issues like the Syrian civil war might become amenable to negotiations among Riyadh, Tehran and Moscow (Sultans of Swing? The Geopolitics of Falling Oil Prices, F. Gregory Gause, Brookings Institute) Hmmm? In other words, if Putin is willing to make concessions on Syria, then maybe all his oil problems will just go away. Sounds a lot like blackmail, doesnt it? Heres Gause again: Washington should be ready to make an effort to expand them (the negotiations) beyond oil issues to include regional crisis spots like Syria. This can only be done through cooperation with Saudi Arabia, which will have to make an oil deal contingent on some geopolitical concessions from Bashar al-Assads allies as well. So the author is admitting that the only way Washington is going to be able to force Putin into making the geopolitical concessions they want, is by using Saudi oil for leverage. Is this the strategy behind Geneva, to use the fake peace talks to put a gun to Putins head and see if hell cave in? Syria: 'Negotiations' Over Insurgency's Northern Supply Route Concluded By Moon Of Alabama February 03, 2016 " Information Clearing House " - " Moon Of Alabama " - Good news from Syria. The battlefield 'negotiations' over the insurgency's supply route to the north were successfully concluded. After nearly four years the siege on Nubl and Zahraa has been lifted. The northern supply route from insurgency held areas in Aleppo province and Aleppo city to Turkey has been severed. Update (12:45 am): A Syrian author in Aleppo just tweeted: Edward Dark @edwardedark This is the beginning of the end of jihadi presence in Aleppo. After 4 years of war & terror, people can finally see the end in sight #Syria End-update Map by SAA Reporter - bigger, HD version - different map showing a larger area While fire control over the supply route was achieved yesterday there were still Jabhat al-Nusra forces holding the village Muarrasat al Khan. Those forces were destroyed today with a two pronged attack by the Syrian army coming from east and Hizbullah fighters coming from the besieged Nubl and Zahraa area in the west. Those fighters had earlier arrived by helicopter. At least four higher commander of Nusra and other groups where killed during the fighting. They Syrian army will now continue the offensive to widen and secure the new corridor. There is now only one supply line left between the insurgents in Idleb and Aleppo province and Turkey. It leads north-west from Idleb city along the M45 motorway and crosses at Bab al Hawa to the Turkish city of Reyhanli (map.) It is some 40 kilometers west of Aleppo city and Russian air superiority make the road dangerous to use. The Russian air force will take care that no major traffic is able to use the crossing. Over the next months the current offensive should also have reached that border zone and seal all other potential crossing venues. Russia made clear that there will be no end to the war until the border is under full Syrian government control: "The key point for the ceasefire to work is a task of blocking illegal trafficking across the Turkish-Syrian border, which supports the militants," [Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov] said. "Without closing the border it is difficult to expect the ceasefire to take place." The Russian air strikes will continue until the terrorist organizations are defeated. Additional progress was made by the Syrian army today in Latakia. East of Aleppo the army took the village As Sin and has nearly surrounded a contingent of Islamic State fighters at the Aleppo power plant. In Homs province the already surrounded large insurgency held area of Rastan will soon be split in two. In the south new attacks were launched to widen the supply corridor to Daraa. The moral of the Syrian army has remarkably increased and victory begets victory. I expect the campaign to continue at the current pace. The insurgency in north, south and west Syria is faltering on all fronts and their lack of new supplies will soon lead to more decisive defeats. After the insurgency is mostly destroyed it will be time to take serious care of the Islamic State in Deir Ezzor and Raqqa in east Syria. In preparation of that move the Syrian YPG Kurds, with Russian support, are planning to take the rest of the northern border with Turkey from the Islamic State. A Wyoming man who celebrated his 103rd birthday yesterday has vowed to lose his virginity before his death, claims the family of the century-old man. After blowing out the 103 candles on his birthday cake yesterday, the old man reportedly told his family his desire to get laid for the first time before ending up six feet under. Lets just say it took us by surprise, admits his niece, Laura Atkins. We did not expect this at all! But when he told us, we gave ourselves the mission to do everything in our power to fulfill his wish, she told local reporters. He has done so much for us and our community, we may as well help him dip his wick once in his life acknowledges his great-nephew, Anthony Atkins. Mission impossible The family has faced several obstacles since the beginning of their quest for a sexual partner for the old man. In Big Horn, weve got tons of horny women, but escorts dont grow on trees! says with a laugh 24-year-old Johnny Atkins. There is only one prostitute in town, but she just wont have sex with the old geezer, even for $200, she wont give him a blowjob he admits, visibly annoyed. Over $600 for an escort A woman from the region has proposed her services after hearing about the unusual demand on social networks. There is a woman living out in Owl Creek, a few hundred miles out of here, but shes charging us 600$ and that doesnt include transportation, lodging and food, claims another family member. And we dont know how long the sex is going to last, over $600 for 30 seconds of pleasure is a heck of a price to pay! he acknowledges. But hey, we dont really have a choice! he adds. Were just afraid the old mans heart wont survive the banging, but hey, its a risk worth taking, he admits with concern. 103-year-old Barnum Atkins never married after being ordained a priest and finally pastor of the Saint John the Baptist Church for over 53 years, from 1926 to 1979. Worldnewsdailyreport Former Chief Security Officer to late Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha and Chief Executive Officer of Al-Mustapha Peace, Unity and Development Initiative, APUDI, Major Hamza Al-Mustapha (rtd), eased the transportation challenges confronting students of the University of Abuja as he donated a fleet of 10 transit buses to the institution. Al-Mustapha, who made the donation on Wednesday during the signing of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the APUDI Institute for Peace Studies (APIS) and University of Abuja, noted that the transport scheme was not for profit-making, but cushion the hardship and suffering of the average students who had to shuttle between the two campuses of the university on daily basis. According to the former CSO, the University Management would shoulder the responsibility of managing the scheme, with a view to ensuring prudence and durability, even as he assured that in due course, APIS would provide bigger buses with larger capacities. Speaking further, Mr. Al-Mustapha said the signing of the MoU between the two institutions marked the beginning of friendship and services that would provide strong and enduring leadership and foundation for the younger generation and generations unborn. While expressing confidence that the MoU would advance the capacity and quality of training of APIS and University of Abuja, the retired army major stressed that it would also help to promote a corruption-free society. On his part, the Vice Chancellor, Prof. Michael Adikwu said while it was one thing to sign an MoU and another to make such functional, he urged the key players to be up and doing and make it work. While harping on the importance of local contents to drive the MoU, Prof. Adikwu identified the areas of collaboration between APIS and University of Abuja as skills acquisition; peace and security studies; corruption studies; knowledge exchange and fertilisation of ideas. The Chairman, Presidential Committee on Northeast Initiative, Lt.-Gen. Theophilus Danjuma (retd.), has said that over two trillion naira will be required in the short-term to rebuild areas devastated by the Boko Haram insurgency. Danjuma made the statement at the opening of a two-day security seminar, organised by the Alumni Association of the National Defence College, in Abuja on Wednesday. Conservative estimates put the cost of the short-term intervention of the reconstruction of the region at over two trillion naira. He said the rebuilding of the region would require the cooperation of all, considering that the magnitude of destruction was beyond the means of the federal or state governments. Danjuma said rebuilding the Northeast would demand maximum cooperation and resources, especially in the most affected states of Adamawa, Borno and Yobe. Rebuilding the Northeast is one of the biggest and most complex challenges that Nigeria is facing today. To hold government or any one agency alone responsible for this task is to underestimate the enormity of the problem. The task would involve massive reconstruction of physical infrastructure, much of which have been totally destroyed and, of course, the more challenging one, which is the rebuilding of peace and social cohesion, he said. Danjuma called on Nigerians and friends of Nigeria to support the initiative of the Federal Government to rebuild the region. He gave an assurance that the various platforms established by government for the reconstruction of the region would be carefully managed to check embezzlement of resources. Danjuma said the various initiatives under his chairmanship would deploy the best strategies in ensuring that the expectations of the victims of the insurgency and donors were met. The rebuilding of the Northeast requires considerable planning and coordination. It is largely in response to this that the president has set up the Presidential Committee on the Northeast Initiative to, among other things, oversight and harmonise the functions of the various entities engaged in the Northeast. This task, we must discharge transparently and accountably so that our country is not embarrassed by fresh allegations of corruption in the management of the Northeast reconstruction, he said. Danjuma, however, warned that the war against Boko Haram was not yet over, stressing that a lot was still required to prevent the spates of suicide bombings in the country. Earlier, the Minister of Defence, retired Brig.-Gen. Mansur Dan-Ali, described the destruction caused by the insurgency as monumental and one that required the attention and intervention of all Nigerians. He said the ministry was concerned about the plight of displaced persons as well as the conduct and welfare of troops in the area. Dan-Ali blamed the present state of the war against insurgency and the resulting effect on displaced persons to the endemic corruption that plagued the procurement of the necessary equipment to prosecute the war. He expressed hope that the present initiative by President Muhammadu Buhari, aimed at reconstructing the region, would yield the needed results. In his opening address, the President of the alumni association, retired Brig.-Gen. Jonathan Temlong, said the seminar was an attempt by the association to put into perspective the issue of rebuilding the Northeast. He described the rebuilding of the Northeast as a complex process and the living condition of displaced persons as chaotic and de-humanising. He said Borno had the highest number of internally displaced persons totaling over 1.6 million as at October 2015, with over one million others taking refuge in Cameroon, Chad and Niger Republic. The participants in the seminar were drawn from civil society organization, traditional institution, development partners and security agencies. (NAN) The former Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ekiti State, Dr. Temitope Aluko, has denied knowledge of the issuance of a warrant for his arrest by an Ado Ekiti Chief Magistrates Court or any court for alleged perjury. An Ado-Ekiti Chief Magistrates Court on Tuesday ordered the Ekiti Police Commissioner to arrest Aluko for perjuring himself during an interview on a Channels Television programme Politics Today, where he made some damning revelations about the 2014 governorship elections in the state. Dr. Aluko said the rushing to the court by Governor Ayo Fayose and his cronies was part of a grand plan to hold him down and poison him after two attempts have been made on his life in the last 96 hours. He also revealed that he had uncovered an alleged plot to set his houses in Ekiti ablaze since his interview just as he defended his integrity while in the employ of the Ekiti State University (EKSU). Speaking in a telephone chat Wednesday night with The Nation, Dr. Aluko insisted that he made the revelation on the Ekiti governorship poll as a patriotic Nigeria who wants democratic structures strengthened. He drew the attention of Nigerians to the fact that Fayose and his henchmen are just attacking the messenger and not addressing the message. Responding to allegations of perjury, Aluko explained that the revelations he made on Sunday happened before the June 21, 2014 poll as against what he told the elections tribunal as PDP scribe in Ekiti after the conclusion of the polls. Aluko said: I was not in court and I am not aware of any court order. In fact, they have made attempts on my life twice in the last 96 hours and if they are now talking about warrant of arrest, maybe it is to try their ability to bring me down so as to be able to poison me. Nigerians should know that these people are just attacking the messenger they are not addressing the message. The document (witness statement on oath) taken there (tribunal) was signed by the Secretary of the party (PDP) and that was in guiding the interest of the party. It was talking about Saturday, June 21, 2014 election while I am telling the story before June 21, 2014 election and there is no conflict about my position. One was talking about June 21, 2014 election, that day, Saturday while Dr. Temitope Aluko is now telling Nigerians about what happened pre-Saturday, June 21, 2014. I am now telling Nigerians what transpired before the election. So, I stand by what I said. I dont know why they are making attempts on my life. By their rushing to the Magistrates Court, it is still part of their funny doings. I have nothing to be afraid of as a patriotic Nigerian, I owe it a duty to tell Nigerians what transpired so that we can deepen our democratic structures. I am not aware of any warrant of arrest. It is only the guilty that are afraid, resorting to self-help. All these moves are pointing to a sinister objective because Dr. Tope Aluko is talking about the pre-June 21, 2014 election day and it is separate from the PDP State Secretarys position of June 21, 2014 election day. The information available to me indicates that they are planning to set my houses in Ekiti ablaze and if anything like that happens, people should know whom to hold responsible. Reacting to Fayoses media aide, Lere Olayinkas allegation that he (Aluko) was collecting money from gubernatorial aspirants using his position as the PDP secretary, Aluko said the allegation was in bad taste. The family of late Angolan rebel leader Jonas Savimbi are suing the makers of Call of Duty over his depiction in the best-selling video game. Three of Savimbis children accuse Activision Blizzard of defamation by representing him as a barbarian. They are seeking 1m ($1.1m; 0.75m) in damages. Activision said the depiction was rather favourable. Savimbi founded the Unita movement, waging a long civil war with the Angolan government. Angola became a Cold War battleground, with Unita backed by the US and the apartheid government in South Africa, while Angolas ruling party was supported by the Soviet Union and Cuba. The rebel leader was eventually killed in clashes with state forces in 2002. In the last years of the Angolan war, Jonas Savimbi became a symbol to the outside world for everything that was wrong in Angola. Although its difficult to separate the truth from the propaganda and the Heart of Darkness stereotypes that stick to many African conflicts, Savimbis reputation is based on some confirmed incidents. Suspected witches were burnt alive at Savimbis headquarters in the early 1980s. Fred Bridgland, Savimbis previously admiring biographer, later wrote a horrifying tale of the murder of the Chingunji family who had fallen from grace with Savimbi. Yet the Angolan civil war lasted for 27 years and both sides committed acts of brutality. It would be wrong to pin everything on one man, who is still remembered with awe by many who lived under the rule of Unita, and admired by a generation that has grown up since the war. BBC. Transport Minister Rotimi Amaechi says the main focus of the Federal Government is to revamp the Rail System to make transportation easy and accessible to all Nigerians. Speaking to reporters on Thursday at the Government House in Oshogbo, the Osun State capital, the minister said he was in the state to assess some Federal Government road projects embarked upon by the Osun State government in line with the directive of the Federal Executive Council. According to him, other sectors in the Ministry of Transport such as maritime, road and aviation would also be given due attention. He said that the Federal Government, having successfully reached an agreement with the Chinese government, would soon embark on the construction of Lagos-Kano rail line. The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on Wednesday received draft constitution of the party, with the assurance that it will ensure inclusiveness for women and youths in highest decision making level of the party. Also former Deputy Senate President, Alhaji Ibrahim Mantu, who is a member of the committee, said the draft constitution will plug all loopholes exploited for manipulation in the party. But court acclaimed national chairman of the PDP and erstwhile political adviser to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Ahmed Gulak, described the action of the NWC as illegal. The NWC had setup a 50-man committee to review the partys constitution as part of the re-building process of the PDP. Acting national chairman of PDP, Uche Secondus, while receiving the draft amendment from the chairman of the committee and legal adviser of the party, Victor Kwon, said the draft document will be distributed to all the states and organs of the party to study and make their inputs where necessary for the development of the party ahead of the convention. Secondus, who said the PDP is the first to review its constitution after failing at the 2015 general elections, challenged the governing All Progressives Congress, APC, to follow cue and capture the interest of the people for popular leadership. Speaking at the presentation of the draft constitution, Mantu said once the constitution of the party is done rightly, I have no doubts in my mind that the PDP will soon regain its long glory. Please keep this, anything you do, if there is transparency, if there is openness, the good Lord will always be with you. Where you give an assignment and you want to achieve something else, like others are doing, it will not get anywhere. The PDP definitely after it might have adopted this constitution we are going to have the best of constitution any political party in Nigeria because we have brought a lot of experience to bear. We were the ones doing some of the wrong things, so we now know where we were wrong and we now know where to correct them. So, this constitution is a document of a born again people. Nigerians by the grace of God will enjoy this constitutions because we have blocked all the place for any manipulation, no room for any manipulation. No way for manipulations anymore. In his reaction, the spokesman for the Gulak faction, Bernard Mikko, said the NWC under the leadership of Secondus is acting illegally. Mikko, recalled the December 2015 ruling of an Abuja High Court, which barred Secondus from occupying the national chairmanship position, saying today, another motion for stay of execution filed by Uche Secondus challenging the judgment of the FCT High Court was also struck out at the Court of Appeal in Abuja presided over by Hon. Justice A. A Adumein. With this development of serially disobeying a subsisting order of the court, Secondus has placed himself above the law of the land and should be held accountable. The Senate yesterday met behind closed doors with Service Chiefs, where they were briefed on the security situation in the country. The two-hour meeting, chaired by Senate President Bukola Saraki, was attended by Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu; Senate Leader Ali Ndume; Majority Whip, Francis Alimikhena; Chairman, Committee on Navy, Isa Hama Misau and his colleague in the Committee on Air Force, Duro Faseyi. Chairman of the Committee on Defence, Ahmed Lawan, was absent. The Chief of Defence Staff, General Gabriel Olonishakin, led the Chief of Army Staff, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai, Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ette Ibas and Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadiq Abubakar to the meeting. Speaking to reporters shortly after the meeting, Ndume said: We have been briefed properly but these are security issues; we cannot really disclose any of it. Unlike before, the Senate was not abreast or updated on the efforts they are making; now; we have very full, honest, open and transparent discussion on the activities. This is a security meeting that we just had; it will be wrong for me to disclose the details. We are satisfied because we have never had this kind of briefing before; we are part of it now; we know what the problem; we know what the challenges are, he said. A source privy to the discussion between the Senate principal officers and service chiefs said the latter complained that their vote in the 2015 supplementary budget had not been released, thereby hampering their ability to fund their operations. The need to continuously increase service personnel and the hindrance posed by the slow procurement process. The service chiefs, according to the source, stressed the need for the review of some laws governing their operations so as to make them able to respond to emergency situations in the Northeast. Also discussed were the need for regional support for the fight against insurgency in the Northeast by the neighbouring countries, resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in their traditional homes, intelligence gathering and sharing among the various agencies and mobilisation of the international community, particularly through inter-parliamentary efforts in support of the fight against terrorism in Nigeria. In response to the concerns, the senators reportedly assured the military chiefs that they will fast track the request for the review of the laws being complained about by putting them on the priority Bills list. They also promised to take up the release of funds with the Ministry of Finance immediately. The committees on Defence, Finance and Appropriations have been mandated to ensure that the issues raised by the Service Chiefs are taken care of in the budget. Two suspected U.S. drone strikes killed 12 Islamist militants overnight in southern Yemen, residents said on Thursday, including a top al Qaeda commander who may have been the new leader of Islamic State in Yemen. One strike killed six men in a car traveling in al Rawda city in Shabwa province, a remote desert area where al Qaeda militants are believed to be operating. The province has been targeted by drone strikes this year. Another attack hit militants in their car in the coastal Abyan province, killing six occupants including Jalal Baleedi, a powerful field commander who is suspected of leading al Qaeda attacks on the Yemeni state. As fighting in the country has intensified amid nine months of civil war and a military intervention by Gulf Arab states, Baleedi is believed to have recently defected from Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and become the chief of Islamic States Yemen branch. AQAP has taken advantage of the war pitting Houthi militiamen against forces loyal to Saudi-backed President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to grab territory and operate more openly. The group has claimed credit for several thwarted attacks on U.S.-bound airliners as well as the deadly assault on the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in January 2015. But AQAP, seen as the deadliest branch of al Qaeda in the world, has faced ideological competition from Islamic State, which has siphoned off recruits as it has launched spectacular attacks against Shiite Muslim mosques and government targets. The United States has kept up a drone campaign against the militants, adding to near-daily air strikes by a Saudi-led Gulf Arab coalition, which intervened in the war last March to rout the Iran-backed Houthis and restore Hadis government. Reuters. The Board of Trustees (BOT) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has waded into the leadership crisis in the party, saying it will now nominate a candidate for the position of national chairman from the North-east to complete the tenure of Ahmadu Adamu Muazu. The PDP North-east caucus was to elect a candidate from the zone, and thereafter present him to the National Executive Committee (NEC) of the party on Tuesday, but has failed to do so, allegedly due to differences between the only two PDP governors (Gombe and Taraba) in the zone. Addressing a press conference in Kaduna on Wednesday, the PDP BoT Secretary, Senator Walid Jibrin, said with the continuous postponement of the zonal meeting by the North-east caucus, it has become imperative that the board intervenes. Subsequently, Senator Jibrin said the BoT would meet next Monday to review the logjam over a suitable replacement for Muazu as national chairman, and go ahead to recommend such a person for appointment into the position. While the PDP governors called on the acting national chairman, Prince Uche Secondus to hand over to the national secretary, Prof. Wale Oladipo pending the appointment of a substantive chairman from the North-east, a former political adviser to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Ali Gulak, has proclaimed himself the national chairman of the party. Reacting to the intractable crisis surrounding the national chairmanship position of the former ruling party, the BoT scribe warned that the PDP cant bounce back in 2019 if its identified impunities are not stopped. He also vowed that members of his board will not allow personal ambition to destroy the good name of the party. The impunities and self-centeredness as pointed out by Senator Ekweremadu led Committee must stop if the party is to take over the mantle of leadership in 2019, he said. Jibrin continued: It is very disappointing and embarrassing that the North-east zone cannot present any person for the national chairmanship of the party to replace Alhaji Adamu Mu azu, who has since resigned even, if it is for one day. The North-east zone has been postponing the special zonal meeting to produce a suitable candidate to be brought before the national caucus, BOT and the NEC for approval. We shall not allow anybody or group of people with personal ambition to destroy the party. We must realise that we are now in opposition having ruled the country for 16 years. We must therefore exhibit effective and objective opposition. The constitution of the party must always be followed strictly with any culprit to be disciplined no matter how highly placed, he said. Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, yesterday sought the support of the United Arab Emirates in tracking looted funds and repatriating corrupt persons taking refuge in that country. Magu hinged his call for support on intelligence available to the EFCC that the UAE was considered a safe haven by Nigerian corrupt politicians. The EFCC boss made the comment when he met with the United Arab Emirates Ambassador to Nigeria, Mahmud Muhammad Al- Mahmud, on Wednesday in Abuja. The session came barely two weeks after President Muhammadu Buhari signed a Mutual Legal Assistance agreement with UAE on the repatriation of stolen funds and extradition of indicted officials. A statement by EFCCs Head of Media and Publicity Mr. Wilson Uwujaren quoted Magu as saying: The fight against graft requires the support of all, most especially the international community. I have come to seek your support and cooperation just as we had in the case of Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, James Ibori, among others, to get the mission accomplished. The acting EFCC chairman said the Federal Government was poised to recover the nations commonwealth looted and laundered in foreign countries just as he stressed the need to strengthen existing relationship between Nigeria and UAE with a view to tackle corruption in Africa. On his part, Al-Mahmud pledged that his country would support Nigerias anti-graft war. He said: No country can be an island without the support of others. Nigeria and the UAE signed six agreements to enhance bilateral relations between them on the sidelines of the 2016 World Future Energy Summit, which held in Abu Dhabi. The National Secretary, All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Mr Labaran Maku, on Thursday urged the Federal Government to monitor the utilisation of monthly allocations by state governments. Maku made the appeal in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) at his country home in Wakama Village of Nasarawa-Eggon Local Government Area, Nasarawa State. Maku, who was APGA`s governorship candidate in the state during the April 11 polls, said the action was imperative due to alleged misapplication of the allocations by some state governors. Given the downturn in the price of oil in the international market, it is important that every state gives priority and invest its resources in sectors viable enough to generate money in future. It is time that the federal government advise and monitor the state governments on how to prioritise and use the little resources that are coming to the state on things that would better the lives of the vast majority of the people, he said. He advised state houses of assembly in the country to ensure that budget proposals presented by governors captured projects from their respective constituencies before giving their approval. The former Information minister also advised the Nasarawa State Government to stop the ongoing airport project in the state and channel the money to better the welfare of workers. Maku appealed to the government to generate employment opportunities for the youths. According to him, given the high rate of poverty and unemployment in the state, building an airport should not be the priority of the government now. The N17 billion embarked for the airport project should be used to support agriculture, rural infrastructure, skill acquisition and build cottage industries among others to generate employment. If not for the few people going for pilgrimage exercise to Mecca and Jerusalem, which is 98 percent government sponsor, how many people can afford to travel by air in the state, he added. The APGA scribe noted that airports built by other state governments such as Benue and Plateau were most times not functional, with no passengers and no means of generating revenue. He therefore advised the state government to renovate the existing air strip in Lafia and stop the ongoing N17 billion airport project. (NAN) The Movement for the Actualization of the Sovereign State of Biafra, MASSOB, Thursday, asked the Federal Government to quickly conduct a referendum in the south-east geopolitical zone as a precursor to secession or be confronted with a total shutdown of socio-economic activities in the region and beyond. The group also vowed to unleash its potent force towards making Nigeria ungovernable especially through civil disobedience, if its stance was not heeded by the Federal Government. MASSOB Director of Information, Samuel Edeson, who made this position known in a statement in Enugu, said We shall use everything at our disposal to fight Nigeria Government especially through civil disobedience. He also said MASSOB would call for sit at home in all Biafra land and Lagos. MASSOB will drag former president Olusegun Obasanjo to the International Crime Court, ICC, for all the atrocities he committed against Biafra since 1970. The massacre of Odi people, the Tiv, Jukum and the massacre of MASSOB members in Aba, Okigwe and Onitsha including the killing of six Igbo traders in Apo, Abuja. MASSOB will be taking her campaign to United States of America, United Kingdom, France and China embassies in Abuja. MASSOB, therefore, calls on all people of old eastern region, Delta, parts of Kogi and parts of Benue States to support the referendum that would soon take place in Biafraland. Our freedom is non-negotiable, the statement said. The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), says it is collaborating with the Ministry of Justice and other government agencies to address the menace of cybercrime, financial fraud and other cross border crimes in Nigeria. Speaking on Thursday at the fourth day of the maiden annual conference on combating financial fraud, cybercrime and cross-border crime in Nigeria, held in Abuja, the Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, Prof. UMar Dambatta stated that the rapid growth and development of telecoms sector and its impact in Nigerias economic development and national security required such conferences to enable NCC critically articulate its policies and enlighten the general public on its mandate. Speaking on the theme: Sanctions and Enforcement of Legal & regulatory Measures in the Telecommunications Industry: Improving Nigerias Investment Climate, Dambatta said that the theme could not have been discussed in a more appropriate environment than the conference, with galaxy of learned men and industry regulators. Cyber crime is done through the instrumentality of technology. Since we regulate the telecom sector, we ensure that our regulations help the enforcement agencies track all the criminals. We actually have all the policies we need, what remains is the enforcement. Every policy that needs to be made had been made by government. What is required now is for all the parties concerned to work together to achieve the desired result, Dambatta said. He condemned the delay in the trial of suspects in cybercrime cases. You dont investigate crime six months after, time is of the essence when it comes to issues of crime. People should try to report these crimes and go to the right agencies. We can assist law enforcement agencies, but you dont report crimes to NCC as some people do because we have different mandates, he said. Teachers at Matshitsholo High School, Ulundi, SA, arrived yesterday morning only to be confronted by angry parents threatening to bury them alive in coffins because they are lazy and selfish. The parents said they came to show the teachers how serious they are about their childrens education. One of the parents said: They are no better than ghosts, so we will bury them alive According to Daily Sun SA, the parents are demanding the immediate removal of the teachers. They said the teachers are expected to be teaching pupils during school hours, but instead use the time to rest or take care of personal matters. You are putting the future of our children at risk, said the parents. Worried parent Mthembeni Sokhela, 47 told Daily Sun there is an ongoing fight at the school between teachers who belong to the National Teachers Union (Natu) and those who have joined the South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu). I went to this school recently and found Sadtu teacher sitting under a tree. When the principal, a Natu member, told him he was supposed to be in class, the teacher told him to go there himself, said Sokhela. He said the parents believe this is why the pass rate at the school had dropped. In 2014 and in 2015 only four pupils passed. How can children pass when teachers just sit around and still get a full salary every month? asked Sokhela.. A worried grade 11 pupil shared her frustration with Daily Sun. Our teachers are selfish and theyre gambling with our future. We find ourselves caught in the middle of something that has nothing to do with us. Most of the times we are just sitting around because teachers refuse to come to class, she said. SGB chairman Zweni Mbatha said: The situation is very tense. Angry parents threaten to bury the teachers alive if the department does not take action. KZN Education spokesman Sihile Mlotshwa said the matter has reached their office. The MEC was due to hold a meeting at these school but had other commitments. She has sent a task team to meet the parents. We promise that a satisfying solution will be found, said Mlotshwa. KZN Sadtu deputy secretary Dolly Caluza said: We distance ourselves from speculations that the misunderstanding between teachers at this school is union-motivated. We will try our best to support the school. Natu deputy president Allen Thomson also denied that the ongoing fight has anything to do with the unions. It started in 2014 when teachers reported the principal for mismanagement. Ever since then he has been provoking them in every possible way, Thomson said. Thomson appealed to the community to stop threatening teachers with coffins. Source: Metro Naija Ubong Edet, a 23-year-old has been murdered after reportedly having marathon sex with his cousins girlfriend. According to Vanguard, Ndifreke Joseph Clement, whose girlfriend was molested, reportedly killed his cousin and went to report himself at the police station, saying that he has been having sleepless nights and traumatic experiences after the incident. which happened about six months ago. Clement, who hails from Itu local government area of Akwa Ibom state was said to have handed himself over to police at Ikot Akpan Abia, Uyo, reporting that he slashed his cousins throat after beating him to coma because he (Edet) slept with his girlfriend. I cannot remember the exact date now, but it occurred in a night in August 2015 in the one room apartment we shared. On that day, I returned from work to meet the door locked. I knocked on the door and waited for over five minutes before my cousin could come to open the door. When I went into the room, I saw my girlfriend weeping and blood running from her nostrils. I asked her what happened and she said Ubong beat, wounded and forcefully had sex with her. But after opening the door for me, Ubong went away and did not come back until very late in the night. When I asked him why he did what he did to my girlfriend, he started punching me and I retaliated. We fought for a very long time before I could subdue him. I then picked my cow-butchering knife and cut his throat, carried his dead body and dumped it in the bush very close to the house and threw the knife into the pit toilet. I have brought myself to the police even when nobody knew that I killed him. I have come to plead for forgiveness because since I killed my cousin, I no longer have peace of mind. I am always disturbed in my mind and dream, the 22-year-old told newsmen. Confirming the incident, the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), ASP Cordelia Nwawe, informed that the suspect would be arraigned for the court to decide whether he had any right to take the life of another person. Only yesterday, a report emerged that Grace Utum, a worker with Arik Air, has gone missing after paying a visit to her lover in Ojodu Berger area of Lagos state. Utum had reportedly left her Ikeja office for the house of her lover, Ihuoma Amelogu, on January 1, 2016 and her whereabouts have since been unknown. Source:Naij The Presidency on Wednesday urged leaders of the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) to rise above petty partisanship and stop misleading Nigerians with blatantly false propaganda and misinformation to serve ulterior motives. Reacting to an article entitled: Seven Months After, Presidents Change Agenda Scorecard written by Idayat Hassan, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Malam Garba Shehu, said it is very mischievous to attribute to President Muhammadu Buhari promises he didnt make during the campaign, and now hold him accountable for them. Any honest advocacy for democracy, he said, should not include distortion of facts and a misrepresentation of what the president had promised to deal with during the campaigns. According to the presidential spokesman, it is misleading to invent issues to suit ones political bias and prejudice and then turn around to blame Buhari for not attending to those issues within ones mischievous and chimerical deadline in order to play down the significant aspects of what the president has accomplished within those seven tough months. He said that the CDD leaders cannot objectively serve the cause of democracy if they are primarily preoccupied with negativity and cynicism, constantly looking for something to condemn rather than appreciating the areas of progress made by President Buhari within those seven months. He noted that anybody or any group that focuses on negativity at the expense of objectivity would never see any good in the appreciable and significant progress made by the president. Shehu insisted that no sincere and fair-minded Nigerian would refuse to recognise the courage of President Buhari to take on corruption in a country where impunity was once celebrated. According to the Senior Special Assistant, within seven months, President Buhari has successfully blocked the leakages for corruption, saying as a result of these efforts, the Nigerian Customs Service has quadrupled its revenue base to incredible level within seven months, something they didnt achieve in years. Doesnt the President deserve credit for this and other efforts to confront the monster of corruption? Shehu asked. On the economy, Malam Shehu said it is wrong to blame Buhari for the falling oil prices in the world market, a challenge which has made the president lay greater emphasis and priority on economic diversification. He recalled that President Obama of the United States had inherited an economy in crisis, something he didnt bargain for, and that it would be unfair to blame him for not fixing it in seven months. He further pointed out that President Buharis experience is a double whammy because he inherited an economy in crisis on account of declining oil revenues and an economy also ravaged by incredible and large-scale corruption. He said: He is making good strides towards improving governance, by tackling corruption. To-date a good number of persons believed to have collectively stolen billions from the taxpayer have been arrested, and are facing the courts; we are working with our allies across the world from Britain and America to France and Germany to China and UAE to source, locate and repatriate misappropriated funds. So far, an escrow account has been opened for money that is being returned. This is the only the start: the return of stolen funds is important, but it is just as critical to ensure those who seek to steal realise that no longer will there be such impunity in Nigeria. Only by ending belief in such licence we can we fully institute the rule of law. A few hours from now, the President addressed the European Parliament upon their request. As the Italian Prime Minister said a few days ago at the Aso Rock Villa, Abuja. President Buharis war against corruption and terrorism has become a template for Africa and the rest of the world. It is amazing to see here at home, some individuals are not prepared to give these successes the recognition they deserve. The latest CDD episode is a shocking reminder to their failed attempt to hold the President to one hundred promises in one hundred days, which disastrously crashed on the head of the proponent. The elevation of the act to a new high of 220 promises is a knee-jerk reaction that seeks to play to the galleries and score cheap points against the President. This is a clear case of solution looking for problem, he stated. Leaders of the All Progressives Congress in Rivers State on Wednesday requested a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari to address the partys state of affairs and its political fortunes in Rivers state. The Rivers APC leaders, who were led by the governorship candidate in the 2015 general elections, Dr. Dakuku Peterside, made the request during a meeting with the APC National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, at the partys national secretariat in Abuja. At the meeting, Mr. Odigie-Oyegun expressed shock over the Supreme Courts judgment on the Rivers State governorship election and assured that the national leadership would give necessary support to ensure successes in the forthcoming re-run elections in the state. The APC national leadership has not neglected party leaders and supporters in Rivers State. The state has always been in the front burner of discussion and decision in the party. There is obviously something fundamentally wrong in Rivers State which needs to be investigated and addressed. Your visit have had a sober effect on me. This meeting will kickstart urgent actions to address what went wrong. As of today, there are attempts being made by INEC to bar us from elections in Anambra and other states. We must address these issues. I still find the judgment on the Rivers State governorship election totally astonishing. There is something fundamentally wrong in the Judiciary. We have lost very important resource-rich states to the PDP. No matter how crude oil prices have fallen, it is still the most important revenue earner for the country. I will take up your request to facilitate a meeting with the President. We will do that as soon as possible and also make it clear that there are problems which as a party, we must address, Mr. Odigie-Oyegun said. Speaking on behalf of the delegation, Mr. Peterside said: It will interest you to know that many of our members, supporters and sympathisers are still at a loss to see us work as orphans. We have a herculean task explaining to them that we actually form government at the centre. It is like, we lost the elections. To an overwhelming majority of them, the only indication that we might be part of government at the federal level is because our leader and Director General of the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign which led to a peoples revolution that defeated the former ruling party, and former Governor of the State, Chubuike Rotimi Amaechi is a Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. The concerns of our members are re-enforced by the fact that more than eight months after APC has formed government at the Federal Level, notable PDP chieftains and members who spent state resources to work assiduously against us (APC) are still occupying strategic federal government positions, dispensing patronages to PDP members to the disadvantage and chagrin of APC members. The former House of Representatives member reported that as a result of the unflinching support party leaders and members gave President Buhari and the APC, they have been exposed to undue attacks and hatred and internal discriminations. He said, We are called all sorts of names including being branded as traitors and almost live like outcast in our communities and environmentsEven today, we are not out of danger as we are killed, molested, maimed and insulted. Mr. Peterside also said security infrastructure that were skewed against the APC before and during the 2015 elections were still working against and frustrating APC activities in the state. The partisanship against us was and is still enormous, he added. Peterside also said the Independent National Electoral Commission is structured to disfavour the APC. It (INEC) was put in place by the leadership of the last administration to perpetually protect its interest, he alleged. We are all witnesses to how some of these actors found it convenient to annul results which were favourable to APC but upheld all those favourable to PDP under the same circumstances in the recently concluded governorship election in Bayelsa State. Meanwhile, politically speaking Rivers and Bayelsa States are in the same sub-zone of the South South geo-political zone. What has been put in place is to marginalise us and our members feel nothing is being done to change these structures to, at least, give us a fighting chance in neutrality. On the Rivers State rerun elections scheduled for March 19, Mr Peterside said, The issues of the re-run elections are paramount in our mind. We have 22 seats in a House of 32-man membership. Winning all 22 seats will give us 23 seats and that will enable us produce the Speaker of the House. Also, that number is more than the proverbial two-third. Furthermore, there are 12 House of Representatives seats and all 3 Senatorial Seats to be contested for. Presently, the Party does not have a two-third majority in any of the chambers of the National AssemblyNow the opportunity to up the partys numbers in these chambers has come and we expect that the Party will do all that it takes to win all 12 House of Representatives and 3 Senate Seats. Even if this may not give it the needed two-thirds but it will make the party to have a robust majority such that it wont struggle to have its programmes and plans that require parliamentary inputs to be easily implemented to achieve its set goals and core mandate. There is no gainsaying that Rivers State occupies a strategic political position in the politics of Nigeria. The delegation comprised APC governorship candidate for Rivers state, Dakuku Peterside and running mate, Asita Honourable; Rivers state APC Chairman, Davies Ikanya; member of the APC Board of Trustees (BoT), Sam Sam Jaja; Senator Magnus Abe and several Rivers state aspirants and Rivers state APC stalwarts. Syrias army and its allies have broken a three-year rebel siege of two Shia towns in northwest Syria, the government and rebel groups said, cutting off a main supply route to nearby Turkey. The breakthrough comes after days of rapid military gains north of the major city of Aleppo, with Russian air strikes playing a key role in the advance. The two towns of Nubul and Zahraa, with an estimated 60,000 population, are connected to the border by areas under the control of Kurdish militias that provided access. The Levant Front rebel said the siege was broken after three days of legendary resistance by the revolutionaries facing the Russian military machine, and after more than 500 raids by Russian air planes, Reuters news agency reported. Syrias state news agency SANA reported on Thursday mass celebrations in the streets of Nubul and Zahraa welcoming army troops and celebrating the breaking of the siege. The Al-Manar television station of Lebanese militia Hezbollah broadcast what it said was exclusive footage of Syrian government and allied fighters entering the towns. The channel showed crowds embracing soldiers and militiamen who fired into the air as they arrived. The two towns had been besieged by rebels since 2012, and reaching them had long been a goal of the government, which has also sought to sever key rebel supply routes into Aleppo from Turkey. On this day in 2009, the chairman of African Union (A.U.) at the time, Libyas Muammar Gaddafi, while speaking on democracy in Africa said that multi-party democracy in Africa always leads to bloodshed He was speaking at the A.U. summit in Ethiopia, where he went on to explain that Africa was essentially a tribal environment, and that political parties themselves became tribalised, which led to further bloodshed. He concluded that the best model for Africa was his own country, where opposition parties are not allowed. Also on this day in 1822, Free American Blacks settled in Liberia, West Africa. The first group of colonists landed in Liberia and founded Monrovia, the colonys capital city, named in honor of President James Monroe. The federal government has blamed the repeated insurgent attacks on villages in northeast Nigeria on poor intelligence gathering by locals. Secretary to the Government of the Federation, David Babachir, who went on an on-the-spot assessment on the insistence of the President was accompanied by the Minister of State for Health, Foreign Affairs and that of Power. The Federal Government expressed belief that if locals begin to play surveillance and intelligence gathering roles, such attacks could be averted. Over 50 people were said to have been killed in the attack by insurgents. They also burnt almost everything in sight. The Borno State Deputy Governor, Usman Durkwa, expressed worry about the level of devastation and despair insurgency has brought upon people of the state. The state emergency agency had since began the construction of temporary shelter for the now homeless and displaced Dalori villagers. Acting chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu yesterday gave assurance that with the present political will, there is no reason for the commission to fail in its campaign against corrupt officials. Mr. Magu said with the EFCC receiving the much needed political backing, the anti-graft campaign will be intensified. He made this known when members of the House of Representatives Committee on Financial Crimes, led by its chairman, Rep. Kayode Oladele, visited the commissions permanent site in Abuja. In response to a question on the ongoing fight against corruption, Magu said what you need is the very strong political will in fighting corruption and you can see that everybody is supporting us. So I used to tell my boys that you have no reason to fail this time around. Even though there are a lot of things outstanding, but we would go ahead and intensify the fight. In his remarks during the visit, Rep Oladele said the lawmakers would work towards providing enough funds for the permanent site of the EFCC to be completed this year. On the ongoing process to amend the EFCC Act by the House, Chairman of the committee said there was no plan to curtail the powers of the anti-graft agency by the green chamber but rather, it was working to strengthen the agency. The lawmaker also lamented that the EFCC pays about N200 million as rent every year, saying the amount makes it even more imperative to ensure completion of the permanent site. The project coordinator, Dickson Otitijo, told the visiting members that paucity of funds was responsible for the slow pace of work on the project, which he said has reached 65 per cent completion. Its been six months since Windows 10 hit the rails, and 200 million people (or so, depending on how you count) have taken the plunge and now run the last version of Windows. Theres no question Windows 10 is the future for Windows users. But theres room for doubt among those who are holding out for something a bit better than the Windows 10 we have now. There are plenty of good reasons to stick with Windows 7, if it works for you and you arent enthralled with the idea of learning a new operating system. But the push to Windows 10 has taken on a new urgency from Microsoft without as much urgency in rounding out the feature set most die-hard Windows users want from Windows 10. Heres a look at what Microsoft should do to make Windows 10 more palatable to those who are still sitting on the fence. Consider it a checklist of sorts: Once Microsoft commits to addressing these concerns, youll know Windows 10 is finally legit. If Windows 10 is in your future, its the least you should expect from the worlds largest software company. By Matthew Russell Lee UNITED NATIONS, November 24, 2014 -- In the small world of journalists covering the UN from within, Stewart Stogel stood out as combative, dogged, critical, unique. He staked out Kofi Annan outside his UN-provided Sutton Place townhouse; he shouted questions at diplomats entering the Security Council while others mouthed, Hello, Ambassador. On November 24 the UN's Media Accreditation and Liaison Unit announced: It is with great sadness that my office just learned that U.N. correspondent Stewart Stogel passed away from complications of diabetes. Stew was a veteran journalist who had been covering the United Nations, its Secretaries-General and the activities of the Member States for many years. He worked for several media outfits and his stories appeared on ABC News, Press TV and NBC News but also in Newsweek, The Miami Herald, The Washington Times and World Net Daily. He was 60 years old. Often, those Stogel was covering including in Mount Vernon where he lived, would try to undermine his connections to the above-listed publications. The UN itself made Stogel re-apply for credentials and, according to him, did not make his work easier. Inner City Press and the new Free UN Coalition for Access offers a few anecdotes, links and Rest in Peace wishes. In 2008 UNICEF's Ann Veneman agreed to essentially rent out the UN's North Lawn to an event by Madonna, or really, Gucci. Stogel registered to cover it; Inner City Press investigated it from outside. Ultimately many in the UN stepped away from the flawed event. But Stogel kept digging, even as a public relations firm tried to complain against him. His story is here. Stew Stogel was a working journalist. He will be missed. Stogel in his reporting on the UN had a love - hate relationship with some in UN Security: some were sources, others went after him. He reported critically on UN Security official Bruno Henn - who, Inner City Press today reports in Stogel's spirit, has been acted in the most recent Department of Safety and Security promotion / demotion exercise - and was known for his reporting on a so-called riot last time the UN changed catering contractors, as it is slated to do again on December 31, click here for that. Stogel likewise had a love - hate relations with the Accreditation unit: he liked and was liked by some. Another Stogel story, in 2010, involved the reduction in journalists' access at the UN Security Council, citing then French ambassador Gerard Araud, who had been growing increasingly frustrated with unwelcomed ambush interviews. Precisely the kind of blacklisting which BuzzFeed faced this year from the UN World Health Organization, and which when the Free UN Coalition for Access asked UN spokesman Dujarric about, Dujarric said the UN doesn't do, Stogel faced from Dujarric's predecessor. Also in 2010, even while accredited through other media, Stogel joined the campaign for bloggers' rights at the UN, writing to the same UN office which eulogized him that ICP is reporting that the media/accreditation status of bloggers is still being debated within DPI. Why? Ban Ki-moon is now in office more than three years and this question still remains? The White House addressed the issue of bloggers more than 6 years ago, yet at the UN it is still debated? Why? It becomes an important issue because of the repeated confrontational positions DPI has taken with press especially since Ban Ki-moon arrived. DPI has taken the outrageous position of contacting various news organizations and occasionally 'advising' them on who to assign to cover the United Nations. It is tradition going back more than 50 years of accrediting news organizations, not individuals. The Organization has often used credential accreditation as a "political" pressure tactic to retaliate for news coverage it took exception to. This is a department that is quite literally spinning out of control. How long will this continue? Grain Futures Defend Technical Support Blue Line Futures - 18 minutes ago Corn has bounced off of the lows of the pattern, remaining in a sideways pattern. Attention will be shifted towards South America with the US getting close to 50% harvest. What will be the costs looking... Livestock Markets Continue to Trend Higher Blue Line Futures - 19 minutes ago Livestock markets have been a bright spot this week with the cattle complex and lean hogs moving to the upside. With the recent up-move, is the live cattle trade overdone? Oliver Sloup, Vice President... Crude Modestly Higher on Hopes China Will Ease Pandemic Restrictions Barchart - 57 minutes ago Nov WTI crude oil (CLX22 ) on Thursday closed up +0.43 (+0.50%), and Nov RBOB gasoline (RBX22 ) closed down -0.44 (-0.17%). Crude oil and gasoline prices Thursday settled mixed. A weaker dollar (DXY00... CLZ22 : 84.84 (+0.38%) RBZ22 : 2.4696 (-0.45%) DXY00 : 112.883 (-0.09%) Nat-Gas Prices Sink on a Rebuild of U.S. Inventories Barchart - 1 hour ago Nov Nymex natural gas (NGX22 ) on Thursday closed down by -0.104 (-1.90%). Nov nat-gas Thursday tumbled to a 6-1/2 month nearest-futures low after weekly EIA nat-gas inventories rose more than expected,... NGX22 : 5.338 (-2.27%) Sugar Prices Moderately Lower on Larger Sugar Output in India Barchart - 1 hour ago March NY world sugar #11 (SBH23 ) on Thursday closed down -0.26 (-1.39%), and Dec London white sugar #5 (SWZ22 ) closed down -10.90 (-2.02%). Sugar prices Thursday extended this week's losses, with NY... SBH23 : 18.39s (-1.39%) SWZ22 : 527.90s (-2.02%) Cocoa Prices Push Higher on a Weak Dollar Barchart - 1 hour ago December ICE NY cocoa (CCZ22 ) on Thursday closed up +20 (+0.87%), and December ICE London cocoa #7 (CAZ22 ) closed up +16 (+0.83%). Cocoa prices Thursday posted moderate gains as a weak dollar sparked... CCZ22 : 2,328s (+0.87%) CAH23 : 1,901s (+0.64%) Grains higher despite mixed export sales Banghart Properties - Thu Oct 20, 12:33PM CDT Grains higher this morning. Weekly export sales came in better than expected for soybeans, while both corn and wheat came in fairly disappointing Dahn America360 Storage II DST, which is sponsored by self-storage operator Dahn America360 LLC, has purchased My Attic Self Storage in the Houston suburb of Tomball, Texas, for $11.2 million. The facility will be branded as Mini U Storage Tomball. It was purchased from The Milestone Cos., a commercial and residential development company. The property at 11950 Spring Cypress Road comprises 82,854 rentable square feet of storage space in six buildings. Built in 2007, it contains 626 units, 400 of which are climate-controlled. The property offers truck rental as well as packing and moving supplies. This is a very competitive time in our industry, said Bob Bradley, executive vice president in charge of acquisitions and development. Self-storage is an attractive asset class, and we continue to pursue opportunities throughout the country. We are very active in the national marketplace and look forward to expanding the Mini U Storage brand in both current and new markets. Dahn recently acquired properties in Boynton Beach and Bradenton, Fla.; Crowley, Texas; and Vacaville, Calif. John Arnold, Bill Bellomy and Michael Johnson of commercial real estate firm Bellomy & Co. represented both buyer and seller in the transaction. The company specializes in the self-storage industry and has offices in Austin, Houston and Lubbock, Texas. Based in Irvine, Calif., Dahn America360 develops and manages self-storage real estate investments. A division of Dahn Corp., the company and its affiliates have acquired, developed or sponsored more than 6.5 million square feet of storage under the Mini U Storage brand name. It currently owns 33 facilities consisting of nearly 2.2 million square feet and 20,000 units. Self-storage owner Mike Whaling, who operates Airport Mini Storage in the Mount Hope community of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, complained to city planners this week that illegal storage operations are infringing on his business and costing the municipality tax revenue. Whaling told officials storage businesses have launched on rural land disguised as hobby farms, according to the source. The alleged illegal operations are paying lower property taxes and charging customers less because they dont have as much overhead, he argued. "It really shouldn't be up to a neighbor to complain, Whaling said during a recent planning-committee meeting. It should be up to the city officers to notice when something is not right, and enforce the bylaws that are already in place." Although bylaw director Marty Hazell said the city has been trying to target illegal businesses in the Mount Hope area for a year and a half, prosecution can be challenging without sufficient evidence. Hamilton officials have cited more than 24 people connected to illegal operations, but enforcement efforts have been mixed. Some illegal operators have since complied with bylaws, while others remain under investigation or are waiting to go before the court, Hazell told planners. A case can take up to two years before its heard in court, he said. Whaling has urged the city to take a more aggressive approach toward illegal businesses since 2005. In addition to Mount Hope, he believes there are hundreds of unlawful operations in the Hamilton communities of Ancaster, Dundas and Flamborough. Taken together, Whaling told city officials they could be missing out on millions of dollars in tax revenue. It just really irks you when you see that happening, he said. Mayor Fred Eisenberger agreed the city probably needs to do more to combat illegal businesses, even suggesting the city should consider hiring summer interns to look for possible violators, the source reported. He instructed city staff to report back later this year on any progress. Sentinel Self Storage has purchased its first Pennsylvania property, Depository Self Storage in Spring City, for more than $5 million. The seller was a private partnership that had developed and managed the facility for more than 25 years. The property at 25 Mennonite Church Road is just off Wampler Drive near Pennsylvania Route 724 in East Vincent Township. Situated on nearly 7 acres, the facility opened in 1987 and consists of 19 buildings, 566 storage units and 134 vehicle-parking spaces. An additional five structures have been approved for construction. The property also has a communication tower. The seller was represented by Chuck Shields, a self-storage investment specialist with Beacon Commercial Real Estate LLC and a broker affiliate in New Jersey and Pennsylvania for the Argus Self-Storage Sales Network. Family owned and operated since 1989, Sentinel Self Storage is based in Wilmington, Del. It operates facilities in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Philadelphia-based Beacon offers property leasing, maintenance, management and sales. Its project-management division, CenterPointe, provides build-to-suit projects, modifications to existing facilities, and property development and construction. Argus is a Denver-based network of real estate brokers who specialize in storage properties. Formed in 1994, the company has 36 broker affiliates covering nearly 40 markets. For most fund managers, company research doesnt stop when they reach the end of an analysts notes. As clients demand rigorous due diligence, managers strive for direct communication with company leaders. Corporate access provided through conferences, nondeal road shows, one-on-one and small group meetings has traditionally been bundled under sell-side brokerages research offerings, which clients pay for through trading commissions. However, regulators in Europe have been more closely scrutinizing these payments. Back in December 2014 the European Securities and Markets Authority published technical advice on the European Commissions second Markets in Financial Instruments Directive, with recommendations for regulating trading. In an effort to promote greater transparency, MiFID II, as it is known, includes proposals to unbundle payments for investment research from dealing commissions. Since corporate access has traditionally fallen under the umbrella of research, anxiety mounts as brokerages and fund managers wait to see where the regulations currently scheduled to take effect in January land on corporate access and research. The role of corporate access in MiFID II is not yet 100 percent clear, says Dawn Singleton, head of European corporate access at Deutsche Bank in London. What is clear though is that corporates still do want to meet with key shareholders and investors. Which firms do the best job of arranging such get-togethers? To find out, Institutional Investor asks money managers that vote in the All-Europe Research Team survey to indicate which brokerages excel at setting up meetings with the regions top executives. This year we received responses from 969 investors at nearly 500 institutions that collectively manage an estimated $4.5 trillion in European equities. Leading this years iteration of Europes Top Corporate Access Providers is Bank of America Merrill Lynch, which rises from second place after adding one team position, bringing its total to 25. UBS follows an identical path, up one rung after picking up one spot; its now No. 2, with a total of 23 positions. J.P. Morgan Cazenove also advances one level, to third place, even though its total holds steady at 20, its advance propelled by losses sustained by last years winner, Deutsche Bank. The German financial services firm falls to fourth place after losing nearly a quarter of its positions, leaving it with 19. Morgan Stanley, which shared the No. 4 spot with J.P. Morgan Cazenove last year, slips to fifth place after its total declines by three, to 17. Click on the Leaders in the navigation table at right to view the full list of 16 firms that earn a spot on this years roster, including two entities that didnt appear last year: Jefferies International and Societe Generale. The increased scrutiny on corporate access payments is nothing new for sell-siders with clients in the U.K. Two years ago that nations Financial Conduct Authority passed regulations prohibiting the buy-side firms it oversees from using dealing commissions to cover the costs associated with arranging for corporate access. According to FCA estimates, these costs accounted for nearly 500 million ($770 million) of the total 3 billion collected in commissions in 2012. Most of the major sell-side firms are working with clients affected by the original FCA rules on unbundling, says Simon Greenwell, director of Europe, Middle East and Africa research at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in London. I think everybody is coming to terms with the more rigorous, transparent reporting process. The FCA now requires fund managers to submit separate payments for corporate access, whether they are funded through client research accounts or the investors own pocket. While many sell-siders have feared that less money will be available for corporate access and research, Greenwell notes that demand rages on. One of BofA Merrills most popular events is its annual Banking & Insurance Conference; last years was held in late September in London and drew more than 1,200 investors eager to meet over 130 corporate officials 70 percent of whom were CEOs, he reports. UBS has been increasing the number of events it sponsors, according to Pilar Rocafort, London-based head of EMEA corporate access and consumer specialist sales. Clients always want to see company managements to see how the company is thinking about its strategy and how the trends in the sector are changing, she explains. The banks flagship event for the region is the UBS European Conference in November in London. Over two days UBS hosts two tracks of thematic panels on Europe, emerging markets, innovation, growth and macro financials, and covering such key issues as financial technology in the U.K., income inequality, cybersecurity and health care. The firm also hosts interviews with participating CEOs and CFOs in a fireside-chat format. On average, some 100 companies are represented each year, with a strong showing from the C-suite, Rocafort says. Clients are most enamored by UBSs trips and events that revolve around a hot investing theme, like Britain exiting the European Union, health trends or the ailing energy sector, she notes. These junkets include meeting with leading industry chiefs as well as third-party experts. It gives them an additional angle to what they hear from companies, to form an investment thesis, she says. Since the introduction of the FCA regulations and MiFID II proposals, many brokerages have taken steps to add value to their corporate access offerings by guiding meetings and events with their own research insights. The most important thing about corporate access is the provision of the research services around that access, says Jonathan Jayarajan, deputy head of EMEA company research at Deutsche Bank in London. Our customers engage with our analysts, look at our models and are prepared with research on the company. Some of the hottest days on Deutsche Banks calendar are its Global Consumer Conference in Paris and German Corporate Conference in Berlin both held in June, he points out. Although the MiFID II final regulations are unknown they are due later this year, but there is already talk of a possible delay, and nothing like the FCA rules is expected to gain traction outside Europe relationships between the buy and sell sides are already changing. The one thing that Im convinced is going to happen is there will be much greater scrutiny and much more demand in terms of record keeping of what youre paying for and why youre paying for it, says BofA Merrills Greenwell. I dont think thatll just be for European managers. I think its a global phenomenon. The quest to turn big data on cargo shipping into winning trading strategies would not be possible if not for recent advances in satellites, microprocessing and analytics. One of the pioneers in the field is Peter Mabson, president of Cambridge, Ontariobased exactEarth, founded in 2009 by Canadian space hardware manufacturer COM DEV International. In 2005, Mabson, then a COM DEV technology and business development executive who had built the payloads for hundreds of satellites over the previous two decades, stumbled across this new thing, AIS, which he describes as sort of a GPS for ships. Officially known as the Automatic Identification System, AIS is made up of radio transponders on large seafaring vessels that several times a minute automatically transmit data about a ships identity, position, course and speed. Mabson recalls, It was fascinating that, coincidentally, new microprocessors could at the same time make satellites cheaper and smaller to put into space. The satellites allow commercial and government observers to pick up the signals of vessels far out at sea rather than relying only on land-based monitors that typically lose track of ships more than 50 miles from shore. The problem for exactEarth was how to identify individual ships from AIS signals of tens of thousands of vessels. For Mabson the solution was a combination of launching small, microwave ovensize satellites 500 miles above Earth to record these AIS signals and then having the satellites fire all those jumbled-up signals back to a large processing center in Toronto. He adds that the secret sauce that makes it all work is a massive engine full of algorithms that detangle the signals. Over the past six years, exactEarth has collected 6.5 billion data sets that track the movements of the worlds commercial shipping fleet. It sells the full set to government entities and on a case-by-case, sometimes limited basis to commercial buyers, hedge funds and commodities traders. The company currently has eight satellites in orbit and plans to add dozens more over the next two years. Mabson has competitors in the satellite AIS space race. Rochelle Park, New Jerseybased Orbcomm, which started about the same time as exactEarth, launched 11 new satellites in December aboard a SpaceX Falcon rocket. Spire Global, a San Franciscobased company started in 2012, in September launched four Lemur-2 satellites that can do both maritime monitoring and atmospheric measurements. Picture-taking satellites are also proliferating. One such provider is San Franciscos Planet Labs, founded by three former officials of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The company already has 40 small satellites in orbit, which it is using to build historical patterns on everything from agriculture yield predictions to the lengths of shadows of liquid energy containers. The satellite companies clients include Louisville, Kentuckybased Genscape and Londons IHS Maritime & Trade, analytics firms that combine other data sources with AIS signals. At Genscapes Vesseltracker headquarters in Hamburg, computers show maps of large and small regions of the globe with hundreds or thousands of dots, each representing a vessel. As an analyst hovers a cursor over a dot, a photo of the vessel pops up with dozens of lines of identification, including location, size, name, owner, speed and destination, plus the estimated time of arrival. Genscape, whose clients include Scott Borgersons CargoMetrics Technologies, also uses historical commodities prices, port logs of cargo and 2,000 land-based AIS sensors. If we see a ship that ten of the last 12 times went to the same port carrying the same cargo, we can make assumptions validated by history, says Genscape CEO Matthew Burkley. Shipping executive Oleg Mitnik has become the centre of a bizarre case involving hitmen, an estranged wife, an angry father-in-law and the FBI, with a life insurance policy playing a pivotal part, the New York Post has reported.Mitnik is currently battling his estranged wife Ronit Potik Mitnik for custody of their teenage kids in the Manhattan Supreme Court, which has had to up security in the courtroom.Tensions are said to be running high due to the $20 million divorce battle going on between the pair, and the involvement of Ronits father Anatoly Potik.Mitnik was apparently attempting to remove his wife as a beneficiary from his multi-million dollar life insurance policy, a source said, which is what he believed set his father-in-law off.Potik had arranged for an associate Boris Nayfeld and a partner, Boris Kotlyarsky to kill Mitnik, but unbeknownst to Potik, the pair had met with Mitnik and revealed the father-in-laws plan.The would-be hitmen offered to spare Mitniks life if he coughed up the higher fee of $125,000.Mitnik agreed to hand over a $50,000 cheque as a down payment to cancel the hit and in the meantime turned to the FBI.The executive, who runs Newark freight-shipping company TRT International, has now hinted that others might be implicated in the alleged murder plot too.The FBI told me not to say anything. There are more charges coming, Mitnik said.The two hitmen have been arrested on extortion charges and Anatoly Potik was also arrested on a charge of murder for hire.The parties are due in court in April. Allianz has consolidated its position as the most valuable insurance brand in this years Brand Finance Global 500 ranking.Holding the pole position for three consecutive years, it has become the only insurer to be included in the Top 50 of the worlds strongest brands in 2016.The Groups brand value increased by 8.1% from 17.2 billion euros to 18.6 billion euros as a result of strong premium growth, and put Allianz at number 43 among the top 500 global brands (up from 44place in 2015).In the 2016 ranking, Brand Finance recognised Allianz resilience in a challenging environment and the Groups strong financial performance driven by its flagship brand, customer centricity and digital by default approach.This made it also one of the most brand driven financial services companies in this years ranking.Christian Deuringer, head of global brand management at Allianz, said: This excellent ranking shows that our flagship brand strategy as well as our clear focus on the customer and on digitalisation are building trust and resonating with our clients around the globe.We would like to thank them for their growing loyalty.Apple, Google and Samsung Group were the top three most valuable brands of 2016.The age of automation is upon us.With technological advances set to affect up to 45% of all work activities in the United States, professionals in the insurance industry can expect significant disruption in the way they do business, a new report from the McKinsey Global Institute finds.According to the analysis, as many as 25% of full-time insurance positions could be consolidated or replaced in the next 10 years. The most at-risk positions include those in operations, administrative support, IT and product development, marketing and sales support.Based on a study of Western European insurers, those in the operations space comprise 46% of the industry workforce currently that could drop to 33% by 2025.Similarly, administrative support is projected to fall from 18% of all insurance jobs to 10%; IT from 15% to 12; and marketing from 21% to 20%.Insurance agents are not left out of that technological revolution. An earlier version of the analysis published in December suggests 60% of tasks currently performed by sales agents could be automated.Claims adjusters are similarly vulnerable, as technological advances more fully keep up with customer expectations.Advancements in risk modeling have also made underwriters vulnerable, with up to 35% of tasks capable of being done by machines. A similar report out of the University of Oxford and Deloitte showed a 66% chance of the underwriting role being consolidated.Researchers assessed roles for how much creativity and empathy is required against the level of set-processes and algorithms that could be implemented.To meet these challenges, insurers will need to source, develop, and retain workers with skills in areas such as advanced analytics and agile software development; experience in emerging and web-based technologies; and the ability to translate such capabilities into customer-minded and business-relevant conclusions and results, McKinsey said in the report.The authors added that insurance professionals will need to rethink their priorities right now, including retraining and redeploying existing talent, identifying critical new skills to insource and retuning value propositions in the scramble to attract new talent.The first waves [of competition] are already hitting the beach, McKinsey said.A tech-powered startup from MIT is looking to disrupt the auto insurance sector, and brokers in particular, with an online marketplace that relies on robot recommendations to deliver quotes.Insurify, led by CEO and co-founder Snejina Zacharia, an MIT Sloan Fellow and former director of business development at Gartner, is currently available in 30 US states and has partnered with 82 carriers in real-time, claiming more than any other online platform for car insurance shopping.With a tech-heavy focus, Insurify said it uses uses predictive modeling and advanced analytics to simplify the shopping experience, facilitated by Evia (Expert Virtual Insurance Agent), a patent-pending virtual insurance agent that delivers a quote after the customer texts a photo of their license plate.Although avatars and robo-advice are not new technologies, the text-based approach to quoting is a new spin.Zacharia said that in todays US$160bn car-insurance market, shopping for insurance is still a laborious, confusing, and frankly, painful process.Insurify makes it easier, first with Insurify.com, a recommendation engine that allows drivers to quickly and easily find the cheapest insurance policy for their needs, and second with Evia, a patent-pending virtual agent that will literally take all the thinking out of shopping for car insurance, through text messaging.The company takes a data-driven approach to coverage and carrier recommendation through RateRank, a proprietary software that analyzes patterns and matches each users risk profile with the best and most affordable insurance carriers and coverage for their unique profile.Although price is one the most important drivers for switching insurance, people also care about reviews, discounts, customer service, and benefits, Zacharia said. She claims Insurify is the only platform which helps consumers make qualitative and quantitative insurance decisions and recommends the carriers which are the best match for the consumer. Both of these functions are traditionally carried out by a broker.The company has financial clout as well, having just announced a US$2m seed funding round, led by Rationalwave Capital Partners. The New Year is a perfect time to reflect on how we have been running our agencies and restructure it to the way we should be running it. Business plans and sales and marketing plans are essential to proper agency management, and are now often necessary to receive preferred status with carriers. Likewise, insurance companies are developing plans for how they want to run their business for the New Year. The current market conditions are rather ambiguous. It seems that the hard market is on its last legs, but the uncertainty of political changes and issues like mold, asbestos and terrorism make it difficult to guess at long term trends. New challenges will impact how agencies are run. Insurance companies will tend to leave options open, which means less loyalty to the agents and brokers. So, what can the typical independent agent and broker do in order to succeed? What are the basic ingredients to a well written sales and marketing plan? Know thyself The best starting point is to first define the agencys personality. The personality of an agency is the book of business and it will in turn define what to look for from the various markets and the selection of new markets to represent. For example, a large urban agency that sells only very large commercial accounts will have different expectations than a small town agency that sells all lines of insurance. Start by finding out what the split of business is along each line: personal, commercial, life, group benefits and program business, etc. Then calculate the average size of account for each line. Also, how much of the agency business comes from the top ten accounts? Finally, analyze the distribution of business and identify the top five industries. List the breakdown of the current book of business by line of business, top ten accounts and key industries. Calculate the current percentage of the overall book for that line of business. Is the mix of business healthy for the agency? This is a judgment call for the owners. Niche selling is usually more profitable, however, it is also riskier. If the agency has a lot of small accounts, the procedures in place for selling and servicing them are critical in order to make a profit. It is important to distance oneself from the book of business and objectively ask the question is this book valuable enough the way it is or should its composition be changed? If it needs to be changed, what should the agency target? This depends on the expertise of the producers and service staff, as well as the appetite of the firms current markets. Write down those future targets next to the current composition. This thought process is what separates the entrepreneur from the average person. How much can you grow? It is important to review the new sales for the agency overall and for each producer. An experienced producer in a typical agency should generate at least $30,000 to $50,000 in new commission dollars each year, depending on their size of book. For large firms with large accounts, the amount would be much higher, maybe even $100,000 in new commissions. The hit ratio of each producer needs to be determined. Hit ratios less than 25 percent to 33 percent costs the agency a lot of time and money. The technique of producers with low hit ratios needs to be checked and adjusted. Often, the producer fails to pre-qualify the prospect. Sometimes producers just are not approaching businesses that match up with the products the agency has expertise in writing, nor markets that are competitive for those classes of business. Use the successful producers as a model. The agency may have tremendous sales, however if there is loss of business through attrition, much of the effort for new sales is wasted. Calculate the attrition rate for the agency and each producer. The goal should be around 10 percent or less attrition for the typical property/casualty insurance agency. Higher attrition rates are usually an indication that the business the agency writes is transient and either the clients are price shopping or not good risks. When writing a sales and marketing plan, list the current overall hit ratio, average new business produced and the average book of business in the agency. Write next to those numbers the target for 2004. Below that list write two or three actions that need to be accomplished to reach those goals. Market relations If the current uncertainty in the marketplace continues, the carriers will be making a lot of changes, such as tightening up on underwriting or pulling out of certain markets. Todays agent or broker needs to have a clear understanding of what the carriers can do for them and how this fits into the overall agency plan. Run a list of all of the carriers with volumes, commission rates (or commissions), loss ratios and contingents received. Analyze how the agencys book of business stacks up with the existing markets. Compare all the carriers and their products against what the agency has with the top ten industry groups the agency writes. Some of the questions that should be asked include: Will volume commitments be met and how will it be done? Are there new markets the firm should seek out? Is the volume spread too thick or too thin? Is the agency maximizing profit sharing agreements? In the sales and marketing plan also list the five most important markets (not necessarily the largest) and the agencys volume with them. Write realistic agency production goals for 2004 next to those numbers. Next, list one or two markets that you do not have, but feel the agency could use. Write down next to those names the date you will approach them. Finally, list two or three markets that the agency has outgrown and should get rid of. Take responsibility Agents and brokers are dependent upon insurance companies for the insurance products that the agency sells. A strong relationship with the carriers is imperative. The key to any good relationship is communication. Agencies must have a well-organized plan to communicate with each carrier. Some insurance companies communicate better than others do, so the independent agent needs to take full responsibility to ensure a dialogue occurs. Agencies need to take a proactive approach to managing company relations. Good relations cannot be allowed to stagnate, and weak relations must be built up. Agency owners need to evaluate which companies they should do business with to meet their needs for competitive, responsive markets. Both parties need to grow, and relationships of the past may no longer meet the needs of today, especially if either party has targeted certain classes of business that arent of interest to the other. Resources should not be wasted on maintaining relationships with carriers that offer little benefit to the agency. Companies continue to limit the number of agencies they do business with, often to better utilize their resources and to reduce costs. Take action So how does an agency keep the communication open with its markets and perhaps become a preferred agent? Create a process that makes it easy for management to focus on company relationships. The first step is to assign an individual or two from the firm to each carrier as that carriers relationship manager. Responsibilities for the management of the firms top carriers should be divided up among the owners and/or a key non-owner producer or CSR, depending on whom has the best relationship with each carrier. Overall carrier relationship management should always be a major focus for all owners; however, dividing up the duties with others in the firm will ensure that the steps are implemented. A specific action plan should include job assignments, planned visits, information and data to communicate, and a budget to implement the plan. Keep in mind that it takes time and money to nurture a successful company relationship. Its important to keep track of the plan and make sure it is followed. Even a strong relationship will eventually die if it is neglected. The collection and presentation of information and data is a significant step since it will set the tone of the communication. Agencies that are prepared and well informed will create an immediate interest in the company representatives, since unfortunately, most agencies fail to do their homework. Stop by to say hello Take the sales and marketing plan directly to the insurance company representative. Set an annual meeting to discuss agency goals and future opportunities. In this annual meeting, the agency principal in charge of markets and the relationship manager for that carrier should meet face to face with the regional vice president or branch manager of each contract company and the main underwriter assigned to the agency. There are three objectives for this meeting: 1) inform the companys management about the current status of the agency and future plans; 2) find out where the company stands now and its plans for the future; and 3) discuss how the agency and the company can do more business together in the future. There should be follow-up meetings to discuss progress on the agency-company game plan on at least a quarterly basis. Both parties need to be open and frank. The agency sales and marketing plan should be reviewed and discussed at the meeting. Reasonable goals and commitments for future business need to be established. Relay the highlights of the meeting back to the agency staff. Plan ongoing carrier schmoozing activities to enhance the relationship. It is easier to develop a relationship if parties meet often, and social visits are especially effective. The whole agency needs to be involved with fostering good relations with the markets. Ask the companies to fill out a report card on the agency in order to identify the carriers perceptions of the firm. Discuss what the firm can do to improve the existing relationship and to write more business. Determine how the agency can take advantage of the value-added services offered by the carriers, such as financing, training, etc. Now, more than ever before, it is extremely important for insurance companies and owners of agencies/brokerages to build partnerships that are responsive to the business plans established each year by each party. Building improved relationships needs to be a two-way street. It is easy to get this relationship-building program underway and it really works. Responsibilities for this program must be shared and communication needs to be flowing within the firm, within the carrier and between each other. Improved communication and a focus on improving relationships will save time and will make both parties more money, guaranteed. Agencies without a sales and marketing plan are totally reactive to their environment and have little control over their future. Firms that incorporate an annual planning process tend to be more efficient, more profitable and highly valued businesses. The choice is yours. Take the time to plan ahead and be successful or be at the mercy of the winds of change. Bill Schoeffler and Catherine Oak are partners in the international consulting firm, Oak & Associates, based in Northern California. They can be reached at (707) 936-6565 or by e-mail at bill@oakandassociates.com. Visit the Web site at www.oakandassociates.com. Topics Carriers Agencies The Pennsylvania Insurance Department has created a new one-stop shop webpage to make information on private market flood insurance more accessible to Pennsylvania homeowners and renters. In announcing the new webpage, Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Teresa Miller said Pennsylvania homeowners, who may be facing steeply rising premiums under the the National Flood Insurance Program, may be unaware that they can get private market flood coverage in many cases at substantial savings as compared to the NFIP coverage. The new webpage is available by going to www.insurance.pa.gov, and clicking on Flood under Top Pages. The page lists flood coverage available to Pennsylvania homeowners and renters. For most Pennsylvanians trying to buy individual flood insurance coverage, especially for their homes, the National Flood Insurance Program run by the federal government was thought to be the only option, Miller said. Miller said that with premiums for the NFIP rising, and re-drawn Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) maps placing many properties in flood zones that had not been there before, she is committed to finding ways to help consumers identify lower cost coverage. My goal is to make sure Pennsylvanians can find good coverage at affordable prices, and this one-stop website will help homeowners and renters be able to do this, Miller said. The new webpage lists several surplus lines producers selling flood coverage in Pennsylvania, as well as a number of Pennsylvania licensed insurers that have started to write the coverage, though licensed insurers typically provide coverage for only a very limited market at this time. The webpage also has a link to the NFIP, which may remain the only option for high risk properties. The webpage also lists the type of coverage written by each licensed insurer. Miller last month testified before a Congressional subcommittee in support of proposed federal legislation that would help facilitate the entry of additional carriers into the private flood insurance market. She said at least five surplus lines carriers sold flood insurance to homeowners in Pennsylvania in 2015, and have written nearly 1,000 policies. Topics Flood Homeowners Pennsylvania Cambria County, Pennsylvania, Assistant District Attorney Heath Long could not prove that a young man was texting when he careened his pickup into another, killing a grandfather and his teenaged granddaughter. What we did know is a very short period of time before he called 911, he received a text, Long said, but we could not show that he read it. Long could show that the defendant texted earlier during his drive from a few miles down the road, and had crossed the center line before the crash. Prosecutors accepted a plea deal for two counts of involuntary manslaughter and one of texting while driving. Pennsylvanias anti-texting law has yielded thousands of citations in almost four years since it was enacted, but crashes involving cellphones numbered 922 and claimed 10 lives in 2014, PennDOT statistics show far fewer than motorcycle crashes that killed 186 people, but roughly the same number of deaths as crashes involving deer. About 1.2 million car crashes in 2013 involved drivers talking on phones, according to the National Safety Council, and at least 341,000 involved text messaging. Long, who has spent about two decades prosecuting car crash cases, said distracted driving cases are among the most difficult to prove. Phone records take months, even years, to produce, he said. Police can have difficulty in catching drivers texting, and the Pennsylvania law does not encompass the myriad uses of modern phones such as using GPS, taking a selfie or talking on the phone. Sometimes, its just an accident, and sometimes, an accidents a criminal offense, Long said. Its hard for someone who has just lost a loved one to know the difference. Sometimes its hard for us to determine the difference. Allowable Exceptions Mt. Lebanon police Lt. Duane Fisher has spent more than two decades in emergency services and law enforcement. He suspects distracted driving is as much of a safety hazard as drunken driving. People are sending messages, playing games, looking up stuff, reading their email, Fisher said. Its just like driving around with a laptop computer. People wouldnt do that, so why would people do that on your cellphone? Police in Western Pennsylvania are challenged in trailing a suspected texting driver because of quick changes in municipal boundaries on main roads, Fisher said. And someone holding a phone is not necessarily texting, which is what the law spells out as a crime. You have to watch a vehicle for a little bit in order to determine whether or not theyre committing an infraction, he said. Use it as a GPS or to access a phone call those are allowable exceptions. Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Adam Reed said that although its difficult to quantify the extent to which the anti-texting law has been a deterrent, state police issued 387 texting-while-driving citations in 2015, up from 268 in the year before. Our troopers are getting better at looking for it, knowing the indicators of a driver that is, maybe, texting and driving at the same time, Reed said. Fisher said it would be easier to police distracted drivers if the state banned hand-held cellphone use. Fourteen states have such a ban, according to the Governors Highway Safety Association. Nobody really thinks about using their cellphones as being that criminal, Fisher said. Thats a paradigm we have to change. Many Distractions Changes to driving laws dont come easily, said state Rep. Kathy Watson, R-Bucks County, who spearheaded efforts to ban texting five years ago. Before that, she spent eight years muscling through a package of teen driving safety laws. One safety measure limited the number of passengers a scientifically proven distraction, Watson said who can accompany a driver younger than 18. She expects phone laws to take a similar path over time. The reason teen driving finally passed is we got to a point where people understood the scientific premise, she said. They were willing to vote for it. A mobile device can cause visual, manual and cognitive distraction, said Amelia Acker, assistant professor at the University of Pittsburghs School of Information Systems. She has researched the phantom ring, or phantom buzz phenomena, when people reach for their phones, thinking they heard a notification. Youre anticipating a text; youre anticipating responding, Acker said. All of that affects our vision and our reactions to actually driving. Even hands-free technologies can be distracting. A study from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety examining in-vehicle information systems used for phone calls and music found drivers skills were impaired for 27 seconds after completing tasks. PennDOT data show 59 crashes occurred in Pennsylvania because of hands-free devices in 2014, resulting in one death and 46 injuries. Although Watson believes the anti-texting law has played a role in reducing crashes, she sees plenty of texting drivers on the Pennsylvania Turnpike during her trek to and from Harrisburg. Im thinking, `Come on, folks. Were doing 70 miles per hour. Are you crazy? she said. Avoidable Actions AAA has found that 78 percent of drivers say distracted driving is a serious threat and 84 percent say its unacceptable. Still 36.1 percent admitted to reading a text or email while driving 30 days before the survey. We say its a `Do as I say, not as I do attitude that prevails, said Theresa Podguski, director of legislative affairs with AAA East Central. The National Safety Council says cellphone-related crashes are under-reported because many cannot be proved. Some drivers may consider the penalty fees and fines totaling $153.50 in Pennsylvania small enough to be worth the risk. Others think they might not get caught. Still, Podguksi said, AAA aims to combat distracted driving by making it a priority in education campaigns, especially among teenagers. Shannon Botts, 31, of Highland Park does not know if the teen driver who crashed head-on into her and her husbands SUV five springs ago was texting. Her husband saw the driver looking down and honked and screamed out the open windows in an attempt to get the boys attention. Botts was seven months pregnant and went into labor two days later. Her daughter Emerson, 4, spent a month in the neonatal intensive care unit. It was never 100 percent that the other driver was using his cellphone, but the police said it was very likely, Botts said. The kid didnt even try to brake or swerve. Thats what led them to assume he was texting. Botts works at Edgar Snyder and Associates law firm, where she and her colleagues hear tragic crash stories daily. She keeps her phone stored while driving. Emerson, a little spitfire, tells other people in cars to put away their phones. We always say, `Accidents happen, that theyre something you cant avoid, Botts said. But things like this texting and driving, drinking and driving those are avoidable. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Auto Law Enforcement Pennsylvania Flood Re, the UKs new flood reinsurance scheme, has successfully secured a 2.1 billion ($3 billion) multi-year reinsurance program. Flood Re, based in London, will begin operating in April. In an oversubscribed second phase of the tender process, Flood Re successfully bound the additional capacity required to complete the placement, the organization said in a statement. The three-year program is one of the five largest natural peril reinsurance deals struck globally and the second biggest in Europe, Flood Re said. (The non-for-profit Flood Re will be funded through a levy on all policyholders. The scheme will enable insurers to pass on the flood risk element of home insurance policies, although commercial properties are currently excluded.) The second phase saw 45 entities offer capacity to meet the required amount to complete the program, with 38 of those parties ultimately securing a share of the placement. In phase one, which concluded in late 2015, some of the industrys leading reinsurers collectively offered nearly 1.29 billion ($1.9 billion) of multi-year coverage with leaders Munich Re and Swiss Re contributing very significant support. Securing 2.1 billion in annual protection is an important milestone towards Flood Re being ready to accept policies for flood risk households, commented Brendan McCafferty, chief executive of Flood Re. The reinsurance program has been significantly oversubscribed and we are pleased by the strong demand from the reinsurance market. This is an innovative solution that demonstrates the thought leadership only found in the UK insurance industry, McCafferty added. Although the reinsurance process has now been completed on time and ahead of planned budget, there is still a lot of work to be done. We are testing our systems with insurers to ensure they work effectively and will also continue to work closely with the financial regulators to obtain the authorisation we need to operate, he said. The reinsurance placement process was conducted with the assistance of reinsurance broker Guy Carpenter. Charles Whitmore, head of Property Solutions Group, Guy Carpenter, said: The reinsurance market has proved incredibly supportive of Flood Re from the outset, acknowledging both the opportunity and the level of professionalism running through the whole process. As a result the final placement was relatively straightforward with the worlds largest reinsurers providing the majority of the capacity. Source: Flood Re Related: Topics Flood Reinsurance Market New Markets A fast-burning fire destroyed or damaged at least a half-dozen commercial buildings in a small southern Minnesota community before firefighters brought it under control on Feb. 3, city officials said. Stubborn winds from a storm that created blizzard-like conditions in the region fueled the fire on Main Street in the Watonwan County community of Madelia, a city of about 2,300 southwest of Mankato. The fire took out about two-thirds of the businesses on one side of Main Street, city administrator Jane Piepgras said. There were no immediate reports of injuries. Were an older community and these businesses share common walls. It went fast, Piepgras said. A furniture store, a dentist office, a restaurant, an insurance agency and hair salon are among the businesses lost in the fire, city officials said. A lot of peoples livelihoods changed overnight, Madelia Mayor Mike Grote said. The fire apparently was ignited by an explosion in one of the businesses about 3 a.m., Grote said. Firefighters from surrounding communities helped battle the blaze with temperatures in the teens. Tanker trucks hauling water to Main Street from area municipalities were hampered by icy and snow-covered roads as well as by curious onlookers who temporarily blocked access, Grote said. Fire crews used an excavator to knock down at least one building to try to stop the blaze from spreading. Firefighters had the massive fire under control in about five hours, city leaders said. We had a wonderful business district. Its going to have a big impact on the community, Piepgras said. The area is dealing with the aftermath of a powerful storm that closed highways on Feb. 2. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Minnesota XL Catlin has introduced a new insurance policy to help mid-size companies in the U.S. respond and recover from incidents of workplace violence. According to Denise Balan, Americas Head for XL Catlins Crisis Management insurance business, an act of workplace violence can result in employee injury, business interruption and reputational damage. XLs Act of Workplace Violence and Stalking Threat Insurance combines expense reimbursement with access to crisis management consultants. The Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) estimates that nearly 2 million American workers are victims of workplace violence each year, with still more cases going unreported. According to OSHA, workplace violence is the second leading cause of work-site deaths in the US. Our policy is specifically designed for mid-size institutions and businesses, especially those involved in higher education, hospitality, manufacturing and healthcare facilities. These particular sectors have seen their share of violent acts, said Balan. In fact, according to the US Bureau of Labor statisticsthe workplace violence rate within the healthcare industry is more than three times greater than the rate for all private industries. Additionally, mid-size businesses do not typically have easy access to crisis management resources. This policy offers both coverage for expenses and access to our risk management consultancies to help handle a crisis situation should it arise. With liability limits up to $25 million, XL Catlins Workplace Violence and Stalking Threat insurance covers expenses related to public relations counsel, psychiatric, medical or dental care, employee counseling, temporary security measures, and rehabilitation expenses, personal accident, legal liability and business interruption expenses. XL Catlins coverage includes legal liability coverage to address legal expenses or lawsuits that can result from an incident. A special endorsement is also available to provide the company and its employees coverage for an off site incident, an act of workplace violence that may occur at a client or vendors facility for instance. XL Catlins Crisis Management insurance business provides businesses with product recall, product contamination, kidnap, ransom & extortion, and terrorism coverages, among others The XL Catlin insurance companies offer property, casualty, professional, financial lines and specialty insurance products globally. Topics USA Commercial Lines Business Insurance New Markets AXA XL XL Catlin today announced the promotion of Anne Marie Elder to the role of chief underwriting officer of Marine for the Americas region. Elder, who previously held the position of senior vice president and chief underwriting officer, Inland Marine in North America, assumes the role formerly held by Richard DeSimone. DeSimone, who joined XL Catlin in 2011 to help build its North America Marine capabilities, retired from the company on December 31, 2015. In her new leadership role, Elder now reports to Lee Meyrick, XL Catlins chief underwriting officer for Global Marine, in London. Elder joined XL in 2011 as senior vice president and chief underwriting officer, Inland Marine. She is a graduate of the United States Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, New York where she earned a commission as a Naval Officer as well as an unlimited tonnage USCG Third Mates license. She is part of the Transportation Committee of the Inland Marine Underwriters Association and currently is chair of the groups New England Advisory Committee. She also has served on the board of the American Institute of Marine Underwriters, and holds the Associate in Marine Insurance Management designation. Topics Underwriting AXA XL A water utility company in Arkansas is urging a federal regulatory agency to uphold fines and new safety requirements for Exxon Mobil Corp. regarding an oil spill in Mayflower. In a letter to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Central Arkansas Water said Exxon Mobil doesnt understand the weight of the situation. Central Arkansas Water spokesman John Tynan said Exxon Mobil is also using various tactics to evade federal regulations. Exxon Mobil spokesman Christian Flathman declined to comment on the letter in an email to the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. But Flathman said subsidiary Exxon Mobil Pipeline Co. doesnt have immediate plans for submitting a remedial work plan, a necessary step to resuming the pipelines operation. In the meantime, we will continue to ensure that the maintenance and any future operation of this pipeline remains in compliance with U.S. Department of Transportation regulations, Flathman said. The companys Pegasus pipeline, which was built in the 1940s, cracked open in March 2013, sending heavy crude through Mayflowers Northwoods subdivision, drainage ditches and Lake Conway cove. The pipeline safety administration fined Exxon Mobil more than $2.5 million in October after ruling the company had committed nine violations dealing with safety practices. The federal agency also ordered the company to modify its safety program to adequately identify risks. Exxon Mobil appealed. Central Arkansas Water has asked the safety administration to reject the appeal, saying the agencys fines and orders are already woefully inadequate. The majority of the 850-mile-long pipeline has stayed shut down since the spill. Central Arkansas Water has repeatedly urged Exxon Mobil to move the pipeline if it is to be restarted. More than 13 miles of the pipeline lies in the Lake Maumelle watershed, which provides drinking water for more than 400,000 Arkansas residents. Related: Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics USA Legislation Energy Oil Gas Arkansas Georgia Insurance Commissioner Ralph Hudgens announced the arrests of six Colquitt County residents and a Clayton County woman involved in a staged insurance fraud ring. A joint investigation by Hudgens Insurance Fraud Division and Fire Investigation Unit revealed the suspects staged numerous fires, residential burglaries and automobile vandalisms with the sole intent to commit insurance fraud for financial gain. Arrested and booked into the Colquitt County Jail were Ricky Lewis Forrest, 26, KaNaya McGee, 35, Diana McGee, 55, Cachea Jones, 25, Shikia Latimore, 21 and Lvariaus King, 24, all of Moultrie, Georgia. Also arrested and being held in the Clayton County Jail is Doris Ann Buie, 49, of College Park, Georgia. The investigation revealed that between January 2013 and December 2015, the suspects staged more than 24 incidents and received claim settlements from Allstate, Assurant, GEICO and Georgia Farm Bureau insurance companies totaling $392,000. Each suspect is facing numerous charges including first degree arson, insurance fraud, theft by deception, identity fraud, forgery and making false statements. Not only did these individuals endanger the lives of others by setting fires, they also committed insurance fraud, a crime that costs Georgians thousands of dollars each year, Commissioner Hudgens said. Im proud of the work done by my office, the Moultrie Fire Department and Colquitt Countys law enforcement professionals to bring these individuals to justice. Insurance fraud is a felony with a penalty of two to 10 years in prison or a fine of up to $10,000. Firstdegree arson is a felony with a penalty of five to 20 years in prison and/or a fine of up to $50,000. Source: Georgia Department of Insurance Fraud Topics Fraud Georgia Tornadoes touched down in Mississippi and Alabama as thunderstorms swept through the area Tuesday, while a powerful snowstorm buried parts of Colorado and Nebraska in more than a foot of snow before crawling into the Upper Midwest. Greg Flynn, spokesman for the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, said a confirmed tornado was reported just before 3:30 p.m. in eastern Newton and Lauderdale counties, largely rural areas in the eastern part of the state. Lauderdale County Sheriff Billy Sollie said the storm damaged homes, toppled trees and knocked out power. In Alabama, the National Weather Service in Birmingham reported a confirmed large and destructive tornado on the ground near the city of Aliceville, about 45 miles west of Tuscaloosa. Minor injuries were reported. Several counties were opening community safe rooms for people to take shelter as storms moved through the area, where unseasonably warm weather was being forced to mix with cold air pushed in by the storm front creating blizzard conditions in the Plains, said Greg Carbin with the National Weather Services Storm Prediction Center. The combination of snow in one part of the country and severe thunderstorms in another isnt unusual when a powerful system moves across the country, Carbin said. February can feature some exciting dynamics in the atmosphere, Carbin said. This system weve had our eye on since it was in the Pacific. The weather system that blew in from California steadily dumped snow on the Denver area Monday and continued overnight. Heavy snowfall and powerful winds on Tuesday knocked out power, prompt schools and businesses to close, and triggered flight cancellations across a swath of states from Colorado to northern Michigan. Tornado watches were issued for parts of Mississippi, Tennessee and Alabama, while blizzard and winter storm warnings remained in effect from Nebraska to northern Michigan. Parts of major interstates were closed in eastern Nebraska, South Dakota, Colorado and Kansas throughout the day. Greg Dial with the National Weather Services Storm Prediction Center said warm air from the Gulf of Mexico kept the snow at bay farther south and was bringing unusually high winter temperatures to many states. The temperature in Evansville, Indiana, for example, was forecast to peak at 69 degrees on Tuesday. ___ Josh Funk reported from Omaha, Nebraska. Associated Press reporters also contributing to this report were Colleen Slevin in Denver; Dirk Lammers in Sioux Falls, South Dakota; Heather Hollingsworth in Kansas City, Missouri; and Nelson Lampe and Margery Beck in Omaha, Nebraska. Copyright 2022 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Windstorm Colorado Mississippi Alabama Nebraska RSA Insurance Group has announced a new seven-year deal with IT provider Wipro Ltd, which will implement its infrastructure across RSAs offices in the UK, Ireland and Scandinavia. Wipro, chosen out of 20 bidders over the last 10 months, will provide its services for mainframe, mid-range, storage and cloud in addition to a multilingual service desk for RSA employees. We are delighted to partner with Wipro to provide our IT infrastructure needs across UK, Ireland and Scandinavia, said Darren Price, Group CIO of RSA, in a press release. Throughout the selection process, Wipro was a front runner because of its technical excellence and customer centricity. This partnership is a major step forward in our group technology strategy enabling us to provide a market-leading, agile, affordable and secure infrastructure platform which supports profitable growth and enables our digital future. Join ITR and TMF Groups tax experts at 2pm CET (1pm GMT) on November 15 as they discuss how finance leaders are increasingly faced with doing more with less, and how CFOs should adapt. Voglio esortare tutti gli uomini e le donne di buona volonta in tutto il mondo, a realizzare in ogni citta, in ogni diocesi, in ogni associazione, unopera di misericordia. Lo dice papa Francesco nel videomessaggio, presentato oggi, per liniziativa Be Gods Mercy promossa da Aiuto alla Chiesa che Soffre, campagna internazionale di raccolta fondi che durera dal 17 giugno al 4 ottobre per la realizzazione di numerose opere di misericordia in tutto il mondo. Uniniziativa che il Papa ha voluto promuovere, accompagnandola con un suo messaggio video, in cui inviata a realizzare assieme ad Acs in ogni luogo del mondo, opere di misericordia durature, che incontrino le tante necessita di oggi. Noi uomini e donne abbiamo bisogno della Misericordia di Dio dice il Papa nel videomessaggio, proiettato durante una conferenza stampa -, ma abbiamo anche bisogno della nostra misericordia; abbiamo bisogno di tenderci la mano, di accarezzarci, di prenderci cura luno dellaltro e di non fare cosi tante guerre. Francesco spiega di avere davanti a se il dossier preparato da Aiuto alla Chiesa che Soffre, che e unOpera Pontificia, per realizzare opere di misericordia in tutto il mondo. Affido ad Aiuto alla Chiesa che Soffre questo compito aggiunge e confido che lo portera avanti nello spirito ereditato da padre Werenfried van Straaten, che a suo tempo ebbe la visione di realizzare nel mondo questi gesti di vicinanza, di prossimita, di bonta, di amore e di misericordia. E per questo, dice ancora, invito tutti voi a realizzare in tutto il mondo, insieme ad Aiuto alla Chiesa che Soffre, opere di misericordia che siano durature, una struttura per le innumerevoli necessita che ci sono oggi nel mondo. Vi ringrazio per tutto quello che fate conclude Francesco -. E non abbiate paura della misericordia: la misericordia e la carezza di Dio. E arrivata lufficialita, dopo una giornata di voci rincorrenti: per il triennio 2018-2021 sara lemittente Sky a godere dei diritti televisivi per trasmettere, in esclusiva assoluta, le partite non solo delle prossime edizioni dellEuropa League ma anche quelle della massima competizione continentale, la Champions. Un pacchetto da favola per il quale la tv satellitare di Rupert Murdoch avrebbe messo sul piatto unofferta giudicata piu congrua di quella presentata dalla concorrente Mediaset. A dare lannuncio dellaffare concluso e stata la stessa Sky che, in un comunicato, ha spiegato che il nuovo format sviluppato dalla UEFA ci consentira di portare ai nostri abbonati un prodotto rivoluzionario per il calcio europeo in Italia. Per la prima volta la UEFA Champions League e la UEFA Europa League saranno insieme in unesclusiva offerta integrata, che permettera agli appassionati di seguire fino a 7 squadre italiane, mai cosi tante prima dora, impegnate nelle sfide con i migliori club europei. Sky: Rafforzata leadership Anche il livello tecnico dellofferta sara altissimo ed e ancora lemittente a rivelare i dettagli: Continueremo a fare innovazione, trasmettendo le partite piu importanti anche in 4K HDR. Questofferta senza precedenti rafforza la posizione di Sky come leader della programmazione sportiva in Italia ed e anche un altro passo importante di sostegno al calcio italiano. Insomma, per i prossimi tre anni, sara unegemonia totale quella della satellitare sul calcio europeo, avendo mantenuto il pacchetto Europa League (gia sua esclusiva) e affiancandola a quello ancor piu appetibile della Champions League ad appannaggio Mediaset dal 2015 al 2018. Sfida Serie A Ora la sfida fra i due colossi delle trasmissioni sportive si spostera sui diritti televisivi della prossima Serie A, per la quale si e ancora in attesa di un nuovo bando che, come annunciato dal commissario della Lega, Carlo Tavecchio, avra le stesse caratteristiche del precedente, andato pero a vuoto: solo una delle offerte presentate per i cinque pacchetti, infatti, superava la soglia minima richiesta dalla base dasta. Niente di fatto, quindi, anche in virtu della stessa Mediaset che, in sostanza, ha disertato il bando (giudicato inaccettabile) non presentando alcuna offerta. La battaglia, anche in questo caso, sara sulle esclusive: del resto, dopo essersi vista scivolare via una componente importante come la Champions, sulla Serie A Mediaset dara sicuramente battaglia. Un ottobre da sogno per Antonio Conte: lex ct della Nazionale italiana, attualmente alla guida del Chelsea, nelle ultime quattro gare di Premier League ha collezionato solo successi, conditi da 11 reti segnate e addirittura nessuna incassata. Numeri da record che non sono certo passati inosservati alla Federazione inglese, la quale ha conferito al tecnico leccese lambito premio di Manager del mese. Unavventura oltremanica iniziata in sordina, quella di Conte, pur a fronte di tre vittorie nelle prime tre gare di campionato. A far vacillare, anche se solo per un momento, le certezze del patron del club londinese, Roman Abramovich, i risultati conseguiti tra la 4a e la 6a giornata, coincisi con un pareggio sul campo dello Swansea City e, soprattutto, con le due pesanti sconfitte subite dal Liverpool, sul terreno casalingo di Stamford Bridge, e dallArsenal. In particolare, la debacle interna coi Reds, aveva irritato non poco il numero uno russo, poiche occorsa proprio nel giorno della sua 250esima partita da presidente della societa. Come detto, solo un momento. Dopo lincontro dellEmirates, il tecnico salentino cambia modulo, adottando un piu equilibrato 3-4-3 e inserendo elementi di corsa come lo spagnolo Pedro. Una svolta totale perche, di li in poi, il Chelsea inanellera solo e soltanto vittorie: 2 gol allHull City e al Southampton in trasferta, 3 ai campioni dInghilterra del Leicester e 4 allo United in casa, con un meraviglioso numero zero nella casella delle reti subite. Un fantastico poker, ottenuto tra l1 e il 29 ottobre. Un cambio di marcia sbalorditivo, confermato dal 5 a 0 rifilato ai toffees dellEverton nel primo match di novembre, e una scalata che, man mano, ha portato i blues al secondo posto in classifica, a soli 2 punti dal Liverpool capolista. E allora, non poteva mancare il riconoscimento di migliore allenatore del mese, ottenuto surclassando tecnici del calibro di Jurgen Klopp (Liverpool), Arsene Wenger (Arsenal) e Mark Hughes (Southampton). Tanta, ovviamente, la soddisfazione: E un grande onore e voglio condividerlo con i giocatori e con la societa ha dichiarato Conte sul sito ufficiale della Premier League -. E la prima volta che lavoro in un altro Paese, con una cultura diversa, e portare la propria filosofia non e facile, ma ora sono contento di questa scelta. A completare la festa, la premiazione del fantasista belga, Eden Hazard, come miglior giocatore di ottobre. Due risultati importanti per il club, ottimo incentivo per la rincorsa al trono dei campioni, occupato dal Leicester di Ranieri. Il prossimo appuntamento per l11 di Conte sara al Riverside Stadium, tana del Middlesborough neopromosso. Il tempo di festeggiare e gia finito. Normally, a bond is a very simple investment instrument. It pays interest until expiration and has a single, fixed life span. It is predictable, plain, and safe. On the other hand, the callable bond can be seen as the exciting, slightly dangerous cousin of the standard bond. Callable bonds have a "double life." They are more complex than standard bonds and require more attention from investors. In this article, we'll look at the differences between standard bonds and callable bonds. We then explore whether callable bonds are right for your investment portfolio. Key Takeaways Callable bonds can be called away by the issuer before the maturity date, making them riskier than noncallable bonds. However, callable bonds compensate investors for their higher risk by offering slightly higher interest rates. Callable bonds face reinvestment risk, which is the risk that investors will have to reinvest at lower interest rates if the bonds are called away. Callable bonds are a good investment when interest rates remain unchanged. Callable Bonds and the Double Life Callable bonds have two potential life spans, one ending at the original maturity date and the other at the call date. At the call date, the issuer may recall the bonds from its investors. That simply means the issuer retires (or pays off) the bond by returning the investors' money. Whether or not this occurs depends on the interest rate environment. Consider the example of a 30-year callable bond issued with a 7% coupon that is callable after five years. Assume that interest rates for new 30-year bonds are 5% five years later. In this instance, the issuer would probably recall the bonds because the debt could be refinanced at a lower interest rate. Conversely, suppose that rates moved to 10%. In that case, the issuer would do nothing because the bond is relatively cheap compared to market rates. Essentially, callable bonds represent a standard bond, but with an embedded call option. This option is implicitly sold to the issuer by the investor. It entitles the issuer to retire the bonds after a certain point in time. Put simply, the issuer has the right to "call away" the bonds from the investor, hence the term callable bond. This option introduces uncertainty to the life span of the bond. Callable Bond Compensation To compensate investors for this uncertainty, an issuer will pay a slightly higher interest rate than would be necessary for a similar noncallable bond. Additionally, issuers may offer bonds that are callable at a price above the original par value. For example, the bond may be issued at a par value of $1,000, but be called away at $1,050. The issuer's cost takes the form of overall higher interest costs, and the investor's benefit is overall higher interest received. Despite the higher cost to issuers and increased risk to investors, these bonds can be very attractive to either party. Investors like them because they give a higher-than-normal rate of return, at least until the bonds are called away. Conversely, callable bonds are attractive to issuers because they allow them to reduce interest costs at a future date if rates decrease. Moreover, they serve a valuable purpose in financial markets by creating opportunities for companies and individuals to act upon their interest-rate expectations. Overall, callable bonds also come with one big advantage for investors. They are less in demand due to the lack of a guarantee of receiving interest payments for the full term. Therefore, issuers must pay higher interest rates to persuade people to invest in them. Usually, when an investor wants a bond at a higher interest rate, they must pay a bond premium, meaning that they pay more than the face value for the bond. With a callable bond, however, the investor can receive higher interest payments without a bond premium. Callable bonds do not always get called. Many of them end up paying interest for the full term, and the investor reaps the benefits of higher interest the entire time. Higher risks usually mean higher rewards in investing, and callable bonds are another example of that phenomenon. Look Before You Leap Into Callable Bonds Before jumping into an investment in a callable bond, an investor must understand these instruments. They introduce a new set of risk factors and considerations over and above those of standard bonds. Understanding the difference between yield to maturity (YTM) and yield to call (YTC) is the first step in this regard. Standard bonds are quoted based on their YTM, which is the expected yield of the bond's interest payments and the eventual return of capital. The YTC is similar, but only takes into account the expected rate of return should the bonds get called. The risk that a bond may be called away introduces another significant risk for investors: reinvestment risk. An Example of Reinvestment Risk Reinvestment risk, though simple to understand, is profound in its implications. For example, consider two 30-year bonds issued by equally creditworthy firms. Assume Firm A issues a standard bond with a YTM of 7%, and Firm B issues a callable bond with a YTM of 7.5% and a YTC of 8%. On the surface, Firm B's callable bond seems more attractive due to the higher YTM and YTC. Now, assume interest rates fall in five years so that Firm B could issue a standard 30-year bond at only 3%. What would the firm do? It would most likely recall its bonds and issue new bonds at the lower interest rate. People that invested in Firm B's callable bonds would now be forced to reinvest their capital at much lower interest rates. In this example, they would likely have been better off buying Firm A's standard bond and holding it for 30 years. On the other hand, the investor would be better off with Firm B's callable bond if rates stayed the same or increased. A Different Response to Interest Rates In addition to reinvestment-rate risk, investors must also understand that market prices for callable bonds behave differently than standard bonds. Typically, you will see bond prices increase as interest rates decrease. However, that is not the case for callable bonds. This phenomenon is called price compression, and it is an integral aspect of how callable bonds behave. Since standard bonds have a fixed life span, investors can assume interest payments will continue until maturity and appropriately value those payments. Therefore, interest payments become more valuable as rates fall, so the bond price goes up. However, since a callable bond can be called away, those future interest payments are uncertain. The more interest rates fall, the less likely those future interest payments become as the likelihood the issuer will call the bond increases. Therefore, upside price appreciation is generally limited for callable bonds, which is another tradeoff for receiving a higher-than-normal interest rate from the issuer. Are Callable Bonds a Good Addition to a Portfolio? As is the case with any investment instrument, callable bonds have a place within a diversified portfolio. However, investors must keep in mind their unique qualities and form appropriate expectations. There is no free lunch, and the higher interest payments received for a callable bond come at the cost of reinvestment-rate risk and diminished price-appreciation potential. However, these risks are related to decreases in interest rates. That makes callable bonds one of many tools for investors to express their tactical views on financial markets and achieve an optimal asset allocation. Betting on Interest Rates When Opting for Callable Bonds Effective tactical use of callable bonds depends on one's view of future interest rates. Keep in mind that a callable bond is composed of two primary components, a standard bond and an embedded call option on interest rates. As the purchaser of a bond, you are essentially betting that interest rates will remain the same or increase. If this happens, you will benefit from a higher-than-normal interest rate throughout the bond's life. In this case, the issuer would never have an opportunity to recall the bonds and reissue debt at a lower rate. Conversely, your bond will appreciate less in value than a standard bond if rates fall and might even be called away. Should this happen, you would have benefited in the short term from a higher interest rate. However, you would then have to reinvest your assets at the lower prevailing rates. The Bottom Line As a general rule of thumb in investing, it is best to diversify your assets as much as possible. Callable bonds are one tool to enhance the rate of return of a fixed-income portfolio. On the other hand, they do so with additional risk and represent a bet against lower interest rates. Those appealing short-term yields can end up costing investors in the long run. There's no disputing the fact that Google (GOOGL) reinvented the way the world accesses information. The company has a whole host of apps and tools that many consumers use on a daily basis, from its search engine and Gmail to Google Drive, its file storage service. The market now knows Google's parent company as Alphabet. But many people aren't aware of how the corporation ushered in this change. Keep reading to find out the reasons why the company's management decided to make the switch from Google to Alphabet. Key Takeaways Known around the world, Google abruptly renamed itself Alphabet in 2015, making Google a subsidiary. As a parent company, Alphabet allowed Google to expand into domains outside of internet search and advertising to become a technology conglomerate. The company now runs a lesser risk of antitrust violations and is also better able to account for income streams from various subsidiaries. Google to Alphabet Google's leadership gave Wall Street formal notice of its intentions to become Alphabet, a technology conglomerate by announcing a new parent entity that would unite its widening interests and product lines. Apart from Google's core search business, there are a number of companies (or "Other Bets") that make up Alphabet. They span a diverse array of industries, including robotics, life sciences, healthcare, and anti-aging. In a blog post announcing the move, former chief executive officer (CEO) Larry Page said the new entity would help the company take a long-term view and improve the transparency and oversight of its actions. The new entity, he wrote, was an alpha-bet (Alpha is investment return over benchmark), which we strive for! Not much changed for investors in the reorganization. According to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing, each Google share was swapped for one Alphabet share. The change had minimal consequences on the company's bottom line and on its direction. That then begs the question: Why did Google change its name to Alphabet? The Wall Street Effect When it debuted on the stock market, Google became Wall Street's darling. Its market capitalization increased by $27.2 billion, giving it a market cap bigger than that of Ford (F) and General Motors (GM) on its very first day of trading. That number was based on the market's assessment of the company's search business and turned out to be largely correct as Google's prowess in search powered its fortunes over the years. The arrival of the social media brigade, however, blindsided Google. Even as the company was coping with competition from Meta (META), formerly Facebook, the disintermediation of web search into mobile apps further eroded Google's bottom line. Google's foray into social media was pretty much a disaster. Perhaps the thinking was that Google could pioneer other industries, just as it started the search industry. But the absence of numbers related to the cost and operational expenses of Google's new or acquired ventures made Wall Street nervous. The company's chair defended the moon shots to investors at the shareholder meeting in 2015. The move was intended to help allay the market's fears by streamlining operations and providing investor visibility into the operations of Alphabet's new ventures and acquisitions. It helped Alphabet prove to investors that it can deliver profits even as it explores new markets and avenues for future profits. The company's stock price jumped in record numbers after chief financial officer (CFO) Ruth Porat spoke about transparency in the company's 2018 earnings call. In Alphabet We Trust Through reorganization as a conglomerate, the move also lessens the glare of antitrust scrutiny on Alphabet. This is because each company within the Alphabet umbrella makes products for a different industry. Bunching all of them together under the search engine umbrella would have invited greater attention from regulators due to the unique nature of Google's business. With the new corporate structure, Alphabet can always argue that each company within its organization operates independently of the search engine. However, less obvious was the consolidation of power to be held by the two founders, versus the shareholders. The new entity was to be structured in a way that Page and Sergey Brin hold the majority of the voting rights, without the majority of the stock. This was done in order to prevent the company from drifting away from its vision due to pressure from investors to perform financially. Inventing a New Company Within a Company Google's founders, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, have always had a healthy disregard for the impossible. They imbued this thought process into their company's DNA, making Google a fount of innovation within Silicon Valley, where innovation is a byword instead of a buzzword. But many of Alphabet's attempts at innovation have, in fact, flopped. The company's attempts to reinvent itself as a hardware and Internet of Things (IoT) player have also come under constant scrutiny by the media and Wall Street. Page, who returned as CEO in 2010, lashed out against the criticism, calling for a safe place for innovative companies to carry out experiments at Google I/O in 2013. The separation between search, Alphabet's main business, and other companies provides the company with a safe place to carry out experiments. Each company within the Alphabet umbrella is headed by a CEO, who reports to the Alphabet CEO, who allows the respective head to determine the best course of action without worrying about the effect on the search engine cash cow. It also avoids negative public relations (PR) through direct association with the search engine business, which makes money by inferring user interests. For example, Google's acquisition of the home security company Nest raised privacy concerns. The Bottom Line According to the author of Google's ten commandments, Larry Page and Sergey always had a bigger picture of technology's role in the world. Larry's vision was always to be something like General Electric (GE), and Google was only his first proof-of-concept, he is quoted in the New York Times. The reorganization was Page and Brin's attempt to streamline operations to focus energies on new ventures and evolve Google from a one-trick pony to a conglomerate. Lockheed Martin Corporation (LMT) is a global leader in defense-related products. Formed after a merger of Lockheed Corp. and Martin Marietta in 1995, the company's largest customer is the U.S. government, which in 2021 represented 71% of net sales. Headquartered in Bethesda, Md., the company employs roughly 114,000 workers and generates almost $67 billion in revenue annually. Lockheed Martin makes the F-35 fighter jet, with the U.S. government being the largest contract. Several other countries have also lined up to place orders. On June 18, 2017, Reuters reported that Lockheed reached a $37 billion deal with 11 different countries (including the U.S.) for sales of 440 F-35 fighter jets. In late August of that year, it was awarded a long term contract worth up to $8 billion with the U.S. government. Key Takeaways Lockheed Martin is a defense company with substantial contracts with the U.S. military. 71% of Lockheed's revenue comes from the U.S. government. In addition to fighter jets, the company makes cargo jets, hypersonic missiles that travel one mile per second, and space capsules for NASA. Lockheed's main competitors include Boeing, BAE Systems, General Dynamics, and Raytheon. Beyond fighter jets, Lockheed Martin is also experiencing increased orders for its C-130 cargo planes. With its $9 billion purchase of Sikorsky Aircraft from United Technologies Corporation (UTX) in 2015, Lockheed Martin also witnessed an increase in sales of its Black Hawk helicopters. In 2018, it received two large orders ($928 million and $480 million) for hypersonic missiles from the Air Force. It received a $4.6 billion order for Orion space capsules from NASA in 2019. Lockheed Martin competes with several other aerospace and defense companies at home and abroad. Boeing Company Boeing Company (BA) generates more than twice Lockheed Martin's revenue, but just over one-third comes from defense contracts. The century-old aerospace company is one the worlds largest, and a leading manufacturer of commercial and government aircraft. It is also heavily involved in advanced technology solutions for defense, space, and national security. On the defense side, it manufactures fighter jets, helicopters, and the B-52 bomber. BAE Systems Plc. BAE Systems Plc. (BA.L) is a British defense contractor that generates more than $20 billion in annual revenue, of which the vast majority comes from defense contracts. The company manufacturers naval ships and submarines for governments around the world. It produces military aircraft and guided weapons systems as well. Raytheon Co. As the worlds premier missile builder, Raytheon Co. (RTN) is one of the biggest beneficiary of increased tensions around the world. Countries in the Middle East, Asia, and Europe are ramping up their defenses with Raytheons Patriot missile system, but domestic sales are growing as well. The company also builds a variety of other types of air-to-air, air-to-surface, and surface-to-surface missiles. General Dynamics Corporation General Dynamics Corporations (GD) history dates back to the late 19th century as a naval producer for the United States and a variety of other countries. The company is considered a diversified manufacturer of defense systems, technology, aircraft, and marine systems. Although it stopped production of F-16 jet fighters, the company's fighter-bomber is still considered the workhorse of air forces around the world. The company is also one of the largest contractors for the Virginia-class nuclear attack submarine and Zumwalt-class destroyers. Initial public offerings (IPO), the first time that the stock of a private company is sold to the public, got a little crazy in the dotcom mania days of the 1990s. Back then, investors could throw money into just about any IPO and be almost guaranteed killer returnsat least at first. People who had the foresight to get in and out of these companies made investing look easy. Unfortunately, many newly public companies such as VA Linux and theGlobe.com experienced huge first-day gains but then ended up disappointing investors in the long run. Soon enough, the tech bubble burst, and the IPO market returned to normal. In other words, investors could no longer expect the double- and triple-digit gains they got in the early tech IPO days simply by flipping stocks. Nowadays, there is once again money to be made in IPOs, but the focus has shifted. Rather than trying to capitalize on a stock's initial bounce, investors are more inclined to carefully scrutinize its long-term prospects. Key Takeaways It is difficult to sift through the riffraff and find the IPOs with the most potential. Learning as much as you can about the company going public is a crucial first step. Try to select an IPO that has a strong underwritera major investment firm. Always read the prospectus of the new company. Be skeptical if a broker is pitching an IPO too hard. Waiting until corporate insiders are free to sell their company shares, the end of the "lock-up period," is not a bad strategy. 1:54 IPO Investing Tips Participating in an IPO Firstly, to get in on an IPO, you will need to find a company that is about to go public. This is done by searching S-1 forms filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). To partake in an IPO, an investor must register with a brokerage firm. When companies issue IPOs, they notify brokerage firms, who, in turn, notify investors. The largest U.S. IPO to date remains that of Chinese internet company Alibaba, which in 2014 raised $21.8 billion. Most brokerage firms require that investors meet some qualifications before they participate in an IPO. Some might specify that only investors with a certain amount of money in their brokerage accounts or a certain number of transactions may participate in IPOs. If you are eligible, the firm will usually have you sign up for IPO notification services to receive alerts when new offerings pop up that match your investment profile. Should you decide to take a chance on an IPO, here are five points to keep in mind: 1. Dig Deep for Objective Research Getting information on companies set to go public is tough. Unlike most publicly traded companies, private companies do not usually have swarms of analysts covering them, attempting to uncover possible cracks in their corporate armor. Remember that although most companies try to fully disclose all information in their prospectus, it is still written by them and not by an unbiased third party. Search online for information on the company and its competitors, financing, past press releases, as well as overall industry health. Even though good intel may be scarce, learning as much as you can about the company is a crucial step in making a wise investment. On the other hand, your research might lead to the discovery that a company's prospects are being overblown and that not acting on the investment opportunity is the best option. 2. Pick a Company With Strong Brokers Try to select a company that has a strong underwriter. We're not saying that the big investment banks never bring duds public, but, in general, quality brokerages are more likely to be associated with quality. Its important to exercise extra caution when selecting smaller brokerages because they may be willing to underwrite any company. For example, based on its reputation, Goldman Sachs (GS) can afford to be a lot pickier about the companies it underwrites than a much smaller, relatively unknown underwriter can. One positive of boutique brokers is that, because of their smaller client base, they make it easier for the individual investor to purchase pre-IPO sharesalthough this, as mentioned below, may be a red flag, too. Be aware that most large brokerage firms will not allow your first investment to be an IPO. Usually, the only individual investors who get in on IPOs are long-standing, established, and often high-net-worth customers. 3. Always Read the Prospectus We've mentioned not to put all your faith in a prospectus, but you should never skip perusing it. It may be a dry read, but the prospectus, which can be requested from the broker responsible for bringing the company public, lays out the subjects risks and opportunities, along with the proposed uses for the money raised by the IPO. For example, if the money is being deployed to repay loans or buy the equity from founders or private investors, it may be worth giving the IPO a miss. This isnt an encouraging sign and tells us the company cannot afford to repay its loans without issuing stock. Generally speaking, money that is going toward research, marketing, or expanding into new markets paints a much better picture. In addition, one of the biggest things to be on the lookout for while reading a prospectus is an overly optimistic future earnings outlook. Over-promising and under-delivering are mistakes often made by those vying for marketplace success, so its important to read projected accounting figures carefully. 4. Be Cautious Skepticism is a positive attribute to cultivate in the IPO market. As we mentioned earlier, there is always a lot of uncertainty surrounding IPOs, mainly because of a lack of available information. Consequently, you should always approach them with caution. Thats particularly the case if your broker recommends an IPO. When this happens, it tends to indicate that most institutions and money managers have graciously passed on the underwriter's attempts to sell the stock to them. In this situation, individual investors are likely getting the bottom feed, the leftovers that the "big money" didn't want. If your broker is strongly pitching a certain offering, there is probably a reason behind the high number of these available shares. This should also serve as a reminder of another important point: its difficult for the average investor to acquire shares in a decent company about to go public. Brokers have a habit of saving their IPO allocations for favored clients, so, unless you are a high roller, chances are you won't be able to get in. Even if you have a long-term focus, finding a good IPO is difficult, as they exhibit many unique risks that make them different from the average stock. 5. Consider Waiting for the Lock-Up Period to End The lock-up period is a legally binding contract, lasting three to 24 months, between the underwriters and company insiders that prohibits investors from selling any shares of stock for a specified period. Take, for example, Jim Cramer, known from TheStreet, formerly TheStreet.com, and the CNBC program "Mad Money." At the height of TheStreet.com's stock price, his wealth on paperin TheStreet.com stock alonewas in the dozens upon dozens of millions of dollars. However, Cramer, being a savvy Wall Street vet, knew the stock was way overpriced and would soon come down along with his personal net worth. This overvaluation was noted during the lock-up period, though, meaning that even if Cramer had wanted to sell, he was legally forbidden to do so. Only when lock-ups expire, are the previously restricted parties permitted to sell their stock. In theory, waiting until insiders are free to sell their shares is not a bad strategy because if they continue to hold stock once the lock-up period has expired it may be an indication that the company has a bright and sustainable future. During the lock-up period, there is no way to tell whether insiders would, in fact, be happy to take the spot price of the stock. Let the market take its course before you take the plunge. A good company is still going to be a good company and a worthy investment, even after the lock-up period expires. The Bottom Line Successful companies regularly go public, yet sifting through the riffraff and finding those with the most potential is no easy task. That isnt to say that all IPOs should be avoided, though. Some investors who bought stock at the IPO price have been rewarded handsomely by the companies in question. Just keep in mind that when it comes to dealing with the IPO market, skeptical investors with their fingers on the pulse are likely to see their holdings perform much better than those who are trusting and ill-informed. A staunch believer in the value-based investing model, investment guru Warren Buffett has long held the belief that people should only buy stocks in companies that exhibit solid fundamentals, strong earnings power, and the potential for continued growth. Although these seem like simple concepts, detecting them is not always easy. Fortunately, Buffet has developed a list of tenets that help him employ his investment philosophy to maximum effect. Key Takeaways Warren Buffett is noted for introducing the value investing philosophy to the masses, advocating investing in companies that show robust earnings and long-term growth potential. To granularly drill down on his analysis, Buffett has identified several core tenets, in the categories of business, management, financial measures, and value. Buffett favors companies that distribute dividend earnings to shareholders and is drawn to transparent companies that cop to their mistakes. Alison Czinkota / Investopedia Buffett's Investing Style Buffetts tenets fall into the following four categories: Business Management Financial measures Value This article explores the different concepts housed within each silo. 1:38 What Is Warren Buffett's Investment Style? Business Tenets Buffett restricts his investments to businesses he can easily analyze. After all, if a company's operational philosophy is ambiguous, it's difficult to reliably project its performance. For this reason, Buffett did not suffer significant losses during the dot-com bubble burst of the early 2000s due to the fact that most technology plays were new and unproven, causing Buffett to avoid these stocks. Management Tenets Buffett's management tenets help him evaluate the track records of a companys higher-ups, to determine if they've historically reinvested profits back into the company, or if they've redistributed funds to back shareholders in the form of dividends. Buffett favors the latter scenario, which suggests a company is eager to maximize shareholder value, as opposed to greedily pocketing all profits. Buffett also places high importance on transparency. After all, every company makes mistakes, but only those that disclose their errors are worthy of a shareholders trust. Lastly, Buffett seeks out companies who make innovative strategic decisions, rather than copycatting another companys tactics. Tenets in Financial Measures In the financial measures silo, Buffett focuses on low-levered companies with high profit margins. But above all, he prizes the importance of the economic value added (EVA) calculation, which estimates a companys profits, after the shareholders stake is removed from the equation. In other words, EVA is the net profit, minus the expenditures involved with raising the initial capital. On first glance, calculating the EVA metric is complex, because it potentially factors in more than 160 adjustments. But in practice, only a few adjustments are typically made, depending on the individual company and the sector in which it operates. Economic Value Added = N O P A T ( C I W A C C ) where: N O P A T = net operating profit after taxes C I = capital invested W A C C = weighted average cost of capital \begin{aligned} &\text{Economic Value Added}= NOPAT-(CI \times WACC)\\ &\textbf{where:}\\ &NOPAT = \text{net operating profit after taxes} \\ &CI = \text{capital invested} \\ &WACC=\text{weighted average cost of capital}\\ \end{aligned} Economic Value Added=NOPAT(CIWACC)where:NOPAT=net operating profit after taxesCI=capital investedWACC=weighted average cost of capital Buffett's final two financial tenets are theoretically similar to the EVA. First, he studies what he refers to as "owner's earnings." This is essentially the cash flow available to shareholders, technically known as free cash flow-to-equity (FCFE). Buffett defines this metric as net income plus depreciation, minus any capital expenditures (CAPX) and working capital (W/C) costs. The owners' earnings help Buffett evaluate a companys ability to generate cash for shareholders. Value Tenets In this category, Buffett seeks to establish a company's intrinsic value. He accomplishes this by projecting the future owner's earnings, then discounting them back to present-day levels. Furthermore, Buffett generally ignores short-term market moves, focusing instead on long-term returns. But on rare occasions, Buffett will act on short-term fluctuations, if a tantalizing deal presents itself. For example, if a company with strong fundamentals suddenly drops in price from $50 per share to $40 per share, Buffett might acquire a few extra shares at a discount. Finally, Buffett famously coined the term "moat," which he describes as "something that gives a company a clear advantage over others and protects it against incursions from the competition." Buffett realizes that not all investors possess the expertise needed to set his analytical tools in action and advises newer investors to consider low-cost index funds over individual stocks. The Bottom Line Buffett's tenets provide a foundation on which he rests his value investing philosophy. But applying these tenets can be difficult, given the data that must be cultivated and the metrics that must be calculated. But those who can successfully employ these analytical tools can invest like Buffett and watch their portfolios thrive. Even if youre not in the job market right now, you should pay attention to the growing pressure on employees to sign non-compete agreements. You might be confronted with a new non-compete form by your current employer when receiving a raise or promotion. Or you might be asked to sign one in order to get severance if you're fired. More businesses are requiring non-competesand enforcing themeven for non-corporate, non-executive jobs as a yoga instructor, camp counselor or office intern. Employers who don't use non-competes should consider whether they should start doing so. It's free and easy to download lawyerly wording right off the internet. However, research has shown that non-competes limit job mobility, accelerate talent flight and discourage venture-capital investments in areas that enforce them. Key Takeaways A non-compete agreement, or a covenant not to compete, is a contract that companies ask employees to sign to protect their corporate interests. Violations can mean facing possible litigation. A traditional non-compete stops an employee from working for a competitor in a certain geographical area for a certain amount of time after leaving the company. A non-solicitation agreement prevents an employee from poaching customers, contracts or other employees from the company that first hired them. A confidentiality agreement stops an employee from spreading information that the employer wants to keep private, such as product formulations or marketing plans. Job Offer Paired With Non-Compete Don't sign and accept on the spotthough chances are you will be tempted. Ask for a copy of the agreement to review while you think about the job offer and your starting date. You'll probably feel some pressure, but try to resist it. Technology sector recruiters Winona Search Group put this observation on its blog: "As a candidate, you generally don't have the bargaining power that the employer has when it comes to non-competes. General objections to signing non-competes can end up being red flags for employers." Your response should be reasonable and informed, not a blanket "no." "Which is why we talk the candidate through it," says Bryan Crigler, Winona Search Group's president. "We have legal support to review and evaluate the document and advise on particular situations." Often you can get a custom-tailored contract that works better for you. Do You Need a Lawyer? Not necessarily. If you feel you understand whats at issue and are not confused by the wording of the document itself, and the contract seems fairly balanced, you may decide to sign on the line and hope for no problem. But first, read the tips below, and be sure to keep a copy of whatever you sign, because you may need it if, for instance, you are considering changing jobs, or if the company that hired you is merged into another firm. Or if you are laid off. Covenants Not to Compete A "covenant not to compete," or non-compete contract, is governed by state rather than federal law. In general, they cover three aspects: Traditional non-competes prohibit the employee from joining competing businesses identified either by name or description, during a specified period of time and within a defined geographical area. Non-solicitation agreements bar approaching customers, poaching employees and/or wooing suppliers of the former employer. Confidentiality agreements (non-disclosures) prohibit using or revealing information the former employer wants to keep private, which may be product formulations, client lists, marketing plans, or some other proprietary information. It's clear that what employers are worried about is protecting their businesses. But a non-compete may go too far in what it bans. Generally, a court's view of what is reasonable will rest on these five points: Potential harm to the employer. The employer has to establish this, not you. A specified time period. In the eyes of the court, three to six months for a yoga instructor might be reasonable, but as much as two years or even five years could be seen as appropriate for a key executive. Prohibited territory. Up to 10 miles away might be fine for a hair salon, but a three-state area could be acceptable for a sales manager. Impact on the employee. Will it deprive the employee of making a living or force a relocation in order to use their experience and skills? Some state courts weigh this point more heavily than others. Florida lawan outlier in thisprohibits even considering it in deciding non-compete cases. Interests of the general public. A covenant that severely stifles competition to the point of creating a monopoly might not be acceptable. Courts will not honor provisions they deem "unreasonable"a point you may make in negotiation. There is, however, wide variation state to state and even in what individual courtrooms enforce, so unless you have expert advice, it's safer not to expect this to protect you. Non-compete contracts are often more restrictive for mid-to-upper level employees, but even a beginner can suffer by signing a broadly restrictive contract and should consider negotiating to narrow the terms. Negotiating Your Contract First, focus on what you want to accomplish. If the employer is a local small business and you are talking with the owner, ask about where the non-compete document came from. Did a lawyer prepare it for the business or was it downloaded from the internet? If it's a one-size-fits-all online form, discuss it point by point in the spirit of working out an agreement to your mutual benefit and eliminating excess baggage. To do that, of course, both parties have to know what their benefits or disadvantages are. Try to determine what the company's real concerns are. A competitor hiring you away to pirate their client list, perhaps? A non-solicitation clause can cover that worry without the additional scope of the document. Is it that you'll leave to go to a competitor taking business secrets with you? Suggest that you sign a non-disclosure agreement but without the geographic limitation. Or you might argue to shorten the time period, for instance, by pointing out that with your student loans, you can't afford to be out of work for six months, but a six- to eight-week period seems fair. Try to add a sentence saying that if you are laid off through no fault of your own, the agreement no longer applies. Contracts work two ways, binding both parties. Ask for assurance in the document that as you gain experience with the company, you will regularly be considered for raises and promotions, so that you are not stuck at your entry-level salary, trapped by a non-compete. Do not be reluctant to stick to plain language rather than legal-sounding terms you may not understand. If the employer is a large corporation, chances are the document was prepared by a big-time legal department, but you can still make your case to the human resources officer or a company lawyer. And remember, it helps in any negotiation to know at what point you are willing to walk away from the deal. Another time to consult an attorney: If you're asked to sign a non-compete as a condition of getting severance when you're being terminated. In fact, it's useful to get legal advice before signing anything during a layoff or termination. The situation is, of course, even more delicate if the non-compete shows up when you're being offered a raise or promotion. Some states require that you receive something extramore vacation, for exampleif you're asked to sign such a clause when you're already an employee of a company. In that situation, too, it's worth taking the papers home and consulting an attorney before you sign. Bruce Springsteen will play Dublin on May 27 and 28 with another date possible of May 29. The concerts will take place at Croke Park, the headquarters of the GAA, as part of The River Tour 2016. Springsteen has a huge Irish following and this will also be an opportunity to research his Irish roots as he has often spoken of doing. If previous visits are any guide hotels will up their prices hugely for the weekend and Dublin will be awash with Boss fans. Springsteen has Irish roots through his paternal grandmother Martha O'Hagan. She married Springsteen's grandfather, Anthony Springsteen, who was of Dutch ancestry, in 1899. Springsteen discussed his Irish roots during his Ellis Island Medal award in 2010. Read more: Bruce Springsteen shows his Irish roots as ancestors hail from Ireland! It turns out that Martha's great grandmother, Ann Garrity, hailed from County Westmeath. Garrity left Ireland in 1852, five years after the famine devastated much of Ireland. In his speech at Ellis Island Springsteen thanked the Irish side of his family the OFarrells, Garrity and McNicholas clans and stated his wife Patty who is also part irish and he had continued the great Mid-New Jersey tradition of Irish and Italians marrying.. His Irish grandmother settled in the town of Freehold, NJ where Bruce himself was born 65 years ago. Springsteen went to the Catholic St Rose of Lima School, where he was taught by Irish nuns. It had a lasting impact on him. Some of his later music reflects a Catholic ethos and includes a few rock-influenced, traditional Irish-Catholic hymns. In a 2012 interview, he explained that it was his Catholic upbringing rather than political ideology that most influenced his music. He noted in the interview that his faith had given him a "very active spiritual life," although he joked that this "made it very difficult sexually." He added: "Once a Catholic, always a Catholic." Mullingar Town Council and Westmeath County Council have now invited The Boss to visit his Irish roots. Read more: Bruce Springsteen fronts U2 instead of Bono at World Aids concert (VIDEO) A spokesperson told the Irish Mirror paper: I was delighted to hear Bruce Springsteen has roots here. I look forward to welcoming him to his ancestral home. Springsteen book author Greg Lewis told the paper: Family and roots are something that are important to Bruce and you can see it in the music. His wife Patty actually has roots in Belfast as well so there is a big connection with both of them. The books other author, Moira Sharkey, also revealed that the Boss had ordered a copy of the book for himself. Boruch Len went to Ireland for sight-restoring surgery. The country wound up inspiring his vision as a photographer, too. Heres his story, as well as some of the photos he took there. To see more of his work, visit his websites here and here. To see more of his photos from Ireland, click here. Since I was a kid, I've seen the world through a different lens. Ive been told I was nuts. Now I'm making a life through my way of seeing, and suddenly, I have "vision". My goal is to let the camera show what my eyes see, my heart feels and my mind believes. I was born in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1971. After first picking up a camera at the age of 8, I fell in love with photography and the ability to manipulate light. After having my camera and gear stolen at 19, I unfortunately put photography aside for the next 20 years. I have worked in the trades and real estate field hands-on for the last 25 years and have been an artist and craftsman with wood for even longer. About six years ago, I jumped back into photography with both feet and have since been working in different areas of commercial photography including corporate headshots, real estate, aerial photography, product and industrial photography, incorporating all the precision, skills and knowledge I have gained in the trades, real estate and my artistic endeavors, and I am currently enrolled in an intensive photojournalism course to gain a new perspective. I have been exceptionally blessed to have worked with and photographed landscapes, people, pets, places and events in numerous countries, including South Africa, Israel, Ireland, Germany and about 15 States in the USA (and counting). I have always felt a connection with Ireland and have wanted to visit ever since I was a child. When I finally got the opportunity to visit for the first time two and a half years ago, it was a bittersweet journey. I had laser vision correction done in the USA about 15 years ago, and unfortunately, I ended up being a statistic. I had great vision for about six years, until my vision started to deteriorate. Rapidly. It took about six more years of testing to come to a conclusive diagnosis of ectasia, which is basically the same thing as keratoconus (which occurs naturally), but is caused by laser vision correction gone bad. Keratoconus is a progressive eye disease which causes changes in the shape of the cornea and can cause a very serious decrease in the quality of vision, often requiring corneal transplant.At the time of my diagnosis, there were no other FDA approved options in the USA. I was told that my only option was to undergo corneal transplant surgery. I had heard of an experimental surgery called corneal cross linking which would stabilize my corneas by creating new links in the corneas, thereby negating the need for corneal transplants. Unfortunately, most doctors in the USA recommended against it at the time, plus, those who said they would do the surgery hadnt done enough of them to make me feel confident or secure. My health insurance plan wouldnt cover the experimental surgery and the doctors were charging a fortune to basically experiment on me. My eye sight had gotten so bad there were days that I couldnt recognize my wife from 15 feet away. As a professional photographer relying on my sight for everything, I needed to do something fast. I started doing research and found out that corneal cross linking had been performed countless times in Europe for over 10 years already. All of my research brought me to a clinic in Dublin called the Wellington Eye Clinic, and a doctor by the name of Dr. Arthur Cummings, an Irish eye surgeon who is an international authority on the study and treatment of keratoconus and ectasia. In addition to pioneering current developments and surgery for the disease, he also invented a new treatment called SimLC, for which he was nominated for a National Health Award in Ireland in 2011. So, off to Ireland I went, not being able to see a bloody thing. Here I have the opportunity to visit the most magical country in the world, a country that I have always been drawn to, and I couldnt see it. I was operated on by Dr. Cummings and his staff, and within a few days I was seeing well enough to start taking photos again. Over the next two years, my vision continued to improve, but due to the severity of my condition before the surgery, Dr. Cummings had warned me that I may have to come back for a follow-up surgery. I traveled back to Ireland in August of last year to undergo the next set of surgeries to help improve my vision. As a huge plus, at least this time, I was able to see well enough to travel and photograph extensively, and got to re-experience the warmth and hospitality of the Irish. To say that any part of Ireland is my favorite, would be the same as saying that one of my eight children is my favorite. I just cant do it. If forced to choose, I would either say Dublin and/or County Clare. Or, more truthfully, that I havent seen enough of Ireland to really tell. Each time I would go to a new place, I would find such beauty there, that for many reasons, each place could be my favorite. And I keep imagining what magic could be just around the next corner. I found Ireland inspiring in so many ways. This is a country that was torn apart by famine, politics and war, and you could easily imagine a land of discontent and strife, with hate and negativity permeating to the core. But the exact opposite is true. The country is beautiful, the people positive, warm, caring, upbeat, helpful, mischievous, fun, and very easy to get along with. Ireland inspires me with its rich and long history, its customs and traditions, but, most importantly, its soul. There really is a magic that you feel in the air. I cant wait to go back again. Ireland truly is everything I dreamed of and more. A foster home in which dozens of vulnerable children and young adults were placed over 30 years is to be the center of a commission of investigation into sexual abuse. A whistle-blower has told Health Minister Leo Varadkar that the foster home in Irelands southeast was never properly assessed by the Health Service Executive (HSE) while young people with intellectual disabilities were placed in it between 1983 and 2013. The whistle-blowers memory of how one victim was treated called Grace by the Irish media is a disturbing report. He said she was twice brought to the hospital with breast and thigh bruising before she was returned to the foster home which she first entered as an 11-year-old in 1983. The whistle-blower, a HSE worker at the time who has since left the organization, reported that he could not persuade bosses to take legal steps to end the girls placement in the home. Eventually, when the HSE ignored warnings that it could be prosecuted if the girl remained in the foster home, her birth mother was contacted. When she heard of the injuries to Grace she traveled to the area to insist the HSE remove her daughter from the foster home. Three inquiries have been held into the alleged abuse at the home, and a separate Garda (Irish police) inquiry is ongoing. Read more: Florida diocese calls Irish priest who reported pedophile colleague a liar Now ministers have decided the next government will hold a commission of inquiry into what happened at the home. Meanwhile, at least one government minister has led calls for resignations in the HSE of those who mishandled allegations of abuse of the children. Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney said that those who failed to adequately protect the most vulnerable children should be offering their resignations. Another, Junior Health Minister Kathleen Lynch, admitted that many of the managers who were in place when allegations surfaced remain in their posts and no sanction has been handed out, despite the clear failings in care. She also admitted on Monday night that she has not yet seen the contents of two HSE-sponsored reports into the allegations of abuse, despite the fact they were completed in 2012 and 2015. She insisted the HSE was precluded from sharing the reports with her because of ongoing Garda investigations. The HSE confirmed that people remained in the foster care home, even after a woman was removed. HSE Director General Tony OBrien admitted his organization was meant to deliver an apology to Grace over the failings in her care last week but it did not happen because of a breakdown in communication. The announcement of an Irish election for late February will be made this week, kicking off an intense three-week campaign that contrasts greatly with the 18 month American presidential marathon. The amount of money spent will be miniscule in comparison too. About $10,000 is the maximum amount for any Irish candidate which would buy you 10 seconds or so in the local UHF station in Big Flats, Wisconsin. Television political broadcasts are free and each party will have funds they raised, usually in the $400,000 range for the bigger parties on posters, newspaper ads, and election material. The short duration is merciful too, based on the British system, which allows for a short, sharp campaign where debates between party leaders are usually the only game changer. Read more: Irish general election is called by Taoiseach for February 26 The Irish election seems both predictable and unpredictable on this occasion. For the first time the Irish government may feature the two traditional main parties, Fianna Fail and Fine Gael, which have never been in government together in 90 years. The prospect of a coalition between Fine Gael and Fianna Fail has been discussed far and wide and is the bookmakers choice for the next government. That combination would finally lead to the left/right alignment long the normal in Europe. The opposition in such a case would be Sinn Fein, Labour and various smaller left independent parties. Whoever his partners are, there seems little doubt that Enda Kenny will be back as taoiseach, but who will accompany his party in government remains the intriguing factor. There is only one way that Kenny could be kept out of power: if Fianna Fail and Sinn Fein joined together in coalition which would give them about 40 percent combined, and bring other independents in. Alternately, despite the expected low number of seats for Labour which has acted as the mudguard for Fine Gael in government and absorbed much of the blame for steep welfare cuts, they could re-form a government with Fine Gael and any number of independents, but it would be a far from secure one. Independents are notoriously riven with different factions that dont get along, all little emperors in their own fiefdom. There is also a question if Labour will stay out of power if their numbers are very low and try to build the party back up from opposition. So the only obvious factor we know is that Kenny is very likely to be the future leader of the Irish Republic. Who will accompany him into office is the real brain teaser of this election. Of course like the Iowa and British election polls, there is no guarantee the polls will provide an accurate snapshot. Given the vagaries of polling, the usual Irish reticence to reveal too much and the confused political landscape, there is a through the glass darkly sense about this election. A whopping $72 million (66m) jackpot won by a lucky Irish punter last weekend has yet to be collected because the lottery company wont have enough cash for another few days. The Irish winner shared a $145.5 million (132m) jackpot in the EuroMillions lottery with a French ticket holder last Friday night. Dublin lotto chiefs said that because of the huge amount of the win, they were not saying where the Irish ticket was bought, but rumor swept the country that it was purchased in the fishing village of Kilmore Quay, Co. Waterford, population 500. Irelands National Lottery chief executive Dermot Griffin told RTE that the money still needs to be lodged in his companys bank account. He said it has to be collected from other countries and it could be this weekend before it is lodged. Meanwhile, he said his office had one phone call claiming the prize. He didnt know if it was a lone winner or a syndicate. One person rang the center. Naturally when you become a multimillionaire it takes a bit of getting use to, but we're there to help them and we'll be in contact with them over the next few days, Griffin said. We spoke to one person on the phone, but again it could have been a syndicate or a family syndicate or they could be on their own, we just don't know. We congratulated the person in question and we gave them some advice, to sign the back of their ticket and to keep their ticket safe. The money still needs to be collected from the other countries. The jackpot is pooled of course, so it will certainly be the end of this week before the money arrives in Ireland and we can pay it out. So this person has plenty of time to decide when it suits them to come in and collect the money. The latest windfall is Irelands eighth major EuroMillions win. The biggest was in 2005, when Limerick woman Dolores McNamara scooped more than $126.8 million (115m). The New York Daily News headline said it all on Tuesday: Dead Clown Walking, with a picture of a moron Donald Trump with a clowns red nose after his shocking defeat in Iowa. Meanwhile, the New York Post led with Cruzified, with a glum and tired looking Trump staring off the page. For Post owner Rupert Murdoch, it was a long awaited take down of a hated rival who had dissed Murdochs Fox News and the final debate because of what he claimed was biased by panelist Megyn Kelly. 'Dead clown walking': New York tabloids skewer Donald Trump's Iowa loss https://t.co/8q97IY7uu3 pic.twitter.com/8XhwRqAnDy Business Insider (@businessinsider) February 2, 2016 In fact Trumps refusal to do that debate came back to haunt him. Iowans who decided during the final week went overwhelmingly against him. But back in Trumps native city, the whoops of joy could be heard. Welcome to New York, where the one-time hometown hero and fawned over gossip magnet was reduced to tabloid titter as gleeful New Yorkers looked on. Donald Trump calls for new election: "Ted Cruz didn't win Iowa, he stole it." https://t.co/dunFD1Msx9 pic.twitter.com/RhnBdvOY6D Chicago Tribune (@chicagotribune) February 3, 2016 Liberal New York had been awaiting this day, but was surprised it had come so soon. The hatred of immigrants, the desire to close American borders to Muslims, the saber rattling about massive bombing of Syria had all reduced Trump from local and national celebrity to comparisons with Hitler in his early days. Ashamed New Yorkers who knew Trump as a moderate Republican for decades with quite mainstream views were disgusted. However, according to the polls, the GOP followers had seemed to be eating it up. But like the British election polls, the pollsters had it spectacularly wrong, showing Trump leading by an average of seven points heading into the Iowa caucuses. Trump seemed to have defied the laws of political gravity, using only an air game, flying in on his Trump jet and speaking to big rallies, and no ground game which involved knocking on doors, making phone calls. In contrast, Senator Ted Cruz was doing the very opposite, visiting all 99 of Iowas counties, putting a huge workforce on the ground and spending endless days in Iowa. Yet the polls showed him slipping. But the result quickly proved that old ways were best. The reality is that Iowans were not impressed by the aeronautics. The caucuses proved that there is a line between celebrity gawking and actual political support. What many Iowans suspected was that Trumps massive crowds were drawn by star-struck locals as much as political backing. Folks in Iowa don't meet many celebrities other than the John Deere tractor salesman. Trump was a space oddity, a deus ex machina dropping from the skies on their cornfields and wheat fields, a magnificent man in a flying machine. But he was too exotic a creature with too many flip flops for the homespun Iowa rural population which embraces their God and their guns in almost equal measure. Of course Trump can still come roaring back, but the inevitability factor is now gone. Had he won Iowa and then New Hampshire he was likely unbeatable for the nomination. Senator Marco Rubios close third finally gives the establishment someone to wrap around with funding and support. Defeat was never a word in Trumps dictionary and it comes harder for him than any other candidate, given his obsession with winning. He is now at the point where he needs badly to win in New Hampshire or the great cloak of inevitability will become a tattered garment. In May of last year a Belfast County Court ruled that Ashers bakery had acted unlawfully when it refused to decorate a cake for a Belfast gay rights organization. This week a Belfast court will finally hear a legal appeal over the ruling. Clearly Ashers owners Colin McArthur and his wife Karen are going to pursue their so-called gay cake scrap to the predictably bitter end. Only now its not so much a scrap as a rainbow frosted death match. For a company that excels at crafting sweet buns, theres a surprisingly sour aftertaste to this on-the-surface rather clear-cut tale of point counterpoint. Christians are scripturally called upon to lead by example, but this scripturally inspired cake company has taken a distinctly 2016 approach to the sharing of the Good News, by lawyering up instead. In fact the conspicuously Christian bakers have just called in the biggest of big guns. Professor Christopher McCrudden of Queen's University, one of Northern Ireland's top legal experts, will join them in court on Wednesday. McCrudden has been enlisted for the team led by David Scoffield, Queens Counsel. A Professor of Human Rights and Equality Law at Queen's and the William W. Cook Global Law Professor at the University of Michigan Law School, he was Professor of Human Rights Law at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of Lincoln College, Oxford. He studied law at Queen's, Yale University and Oxford University. Now hes in a bun fight over gay rights. If you live long enough you really do get to see everything. The premise driving the conflict is increasingly bitter and scattershot on both sides. Ashers claims they are being forced to compromise their Christian principles and endorse a message that their faith rejects. But gay activists counter that Ashers is not being asked for an endorsement or a blessing at all, instead they are simply being asked to decorate a cake for another paying customer in the manner he chooses. The message on the cake is the gay rights groups, and no one elses. Certainly the growing standoff has hit a nerve. Last March, before the ruling, Belfasts Waterfront Hall was filled to capacity, in fact it was literally overwhelmed, when thousands of evangelical Christians turned up, anxious to protect their Biblically ordained right to refuse to decorate gay peoples celebration cakes. They could have been ministering to the poor and the sick, they could have been sheltering the homeless, or even have been praying for peace. Instead they were fighting over two Sesame Street characters on a frosted confection. Read more: Irish bakers should not be forced to bake cake supporting gay marriage What Our Lord would make of where his flock have found themselves now, or rather where they have pitched their battle tents, no one knows. To the outside world the standoff looks irritating or absurd. From the outside it looks like an evenly matched battle between an immovable object (evangelicals) and an unstoppable force (gay rights), but that impression would be wholly incorrect. In the biblical parlance that Colin McArthur and his wife Karen might appreciate, its actually a David and Goliath struggle and in this case theyre Goliath. Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK that has not passed a law to introduce same-sex marriage. This is a direct consequence the theocratic mindset of fundamentalist Christians within the wider unionist parties. One such group is the Christian Institute, which raced to offer the McArthurs their advice, political support and legal assistance. The current law in Northern Ireland supports Colin and Karens marriage and denies all gay people the same legal courtesy. There is no equality. Indeed, the unionist political parties that have lent their support to the scrap are alone in the UK and the wider island of Ireland in their vehement opposition to gay equality. Many of the Christian groups supporting Ashers have requested a so-called conscience clause be introduced into Northern Irelands equality legislation. But this is just a thinly veiled attempt to copper fasten or roll back advances made by the gay community. In practice it will be the cooties clause and its target will be gays. Veteran gay rights leaders have bigger buns to bake, however. This week longtime LGBT activist Peter Tatchell surprised many when, writing in The Guardian, he reversed course and decided that Ashers should be allowed to refuse service to gay customers. Surprising many, Tatchell wrote that the finding of political discrimination against Gareth Lee, the man who ordered the Support Gay Marriage cake sets a worrying precedent. Tatchell continued: This raises the question: should Muslim printers be obliged to publish cartoons of Mohammed? Or Jewish ones publish the words of a Holocaust denier? Or gay bakers accept orders for cakes with homophobic slurs? If the Ashers verdict stands it could, for example, encourage far-right extremists to demand that bakeries and other service providers facilitate the promotion of anti-migrant and anti-Muslim opinions. It would leave businesses unable to refuse to decorate cakes or print posters with bigoted messages. In my view, it is an infringement of freedom to require businesses to aid the promotion of ideas to which they conscientiously object. Discrimination against people should be unlawful, but not against ideas. So there you have it. Its not a wee bun its a Pandoras box. And the best thing to do with those, history teaches, is leave them unopened. Ashers may well win the next round. But the truth is that just like the Irish peace process, there can actually be no winners in this unseemly cake scrap, which is so placid on the surface and so intolerant underneath, until both sides learn to live and let live. Bruce Springsteen is set to play Croke Park in May, it has been confirmed. The Boss will play the Dublin venue on Friday, May 27, with some reports saying a second gig on the Saturday will also be confirmed. Fianna Fail has ruled out propping up Fine Gael, and said it was aiming to get the Coalition out of office. Ex Justice Minister Dermot Ahern has suggested that his former party might support Fine Gael on key issues. One of Joan Burton's constituency rivals says she hopes to be the candidate who "takes out" the Tanaiste's seat. Ruth Coppinger said her reception on doorsteps in Dublin West leads her to believe the Labour leader's Dail seat is at risk. Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin has hit out at the Taoiseach for insulting the electorate by sending the Health Minister out to fight his battles for him. Mr Martin took a personal swipe at Enda Kenny ahead of a speech delivered to party members in Dublin tonight. He said Mr Kenny was ducking and diving and running away after he was the only main party leader not to appear on RTEs Six One news tonight. He said he was taken aback that Mr Kenny had not appeared on the programme. The idea that we pick and choose our battles, the idea that we pick and chose the interviews we do, we pick and choose the debates we do, the ducking and diving and running away. All of that says to me that this is designed not to have a proper debate, not to have proper engagement with the public about the issues, and its not good enough. He also singled out media star Health Minister Leo Varadkar, claiming the Irish health system has deteriorated further under his time in the Department. Mr Martin said: They put all the blame on James Reilly and handed the Department to their media star and things have got even worse. The highest overspend in the history of the health service and desperate attempts to keep lists under control until after voting is Fine Gaels record. On Saturday one half of the Government announced free GP care for all as on the way and on Monday the other half was forced to admit it cant be done. Their policies on health are a shambles and causing immense harm, he told supporters. Speaking to party members in Swords Mr Martin said Fine Gaels five Budgets gave priority to the wealthiest. It is Labour ministers who recently described Fine Gael as Thatcherite and Tory. This is nothing compared to what they want to do in the future. Just like the Tories showed a mild face in their last election but followed it with deeply unfair policies this is what Fine Gael is offering. Ten men have been convicted of committing sexual offences against a teenage girl in Rochdale. The complainant walked into a police station shortly after widespread media coverage of the 2012 convictions at Liverpool Crown Court of nine Asian defendants for grooming white girls for sex in the town. She told officers that from the age of 14 she had been repeatedly sexually groomed by a large number of men from the Rochdale area. She also said that hundreds of men would ring her up wanting her to go out and have sex with them. Thursdays convictions can be reported following the conclusion of two trials at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court. Opening the prosecutions, Neil Usher said the victim was an extremely vulnerable young woman who has endured a very difficult home life. He said: Some of this grooming was successful to the extent that as a child, and a vulnerable child at that, she on many occasions agreed to engage in sexual activity with a number of the older men. She told the police that there were other occasions when she had not agreed to have sex with some of the men, some of whom had nevertheless then gone on to have sex with her against her will. Afraz Ahmed, 33, of Oswald Street, Rochdale, was found guilty of various sexual offences, including rape, conspiracy to rape and sexual activity with a child, in relation to five underage victims. Choudry Ikhalaq Hussein, 38, of Mayfield Terrace, Rochdale, was convicted of rape, sexual activity with a child and conspiracy to rape. Rehan Ali, 27, of Cleethorpes Avenue, Blackley, and Kutab Miah, 35, of Ramsey Street, Rochdale, were both found guilty of rape and sexual activity with a child. Mohammed Dauood, 38, of Leyland Road, Burnley, was convicted of offences in relation to two victims including rape, sexual activity with a child and sexual assault. Abid Khan, 38, of Whitney Road, Liverpool, and Mohammed Zahid, 54, of Croxton Avenue, Rochdale, were found guilty of sexual activity with a child. David Law, 46, of Colmanhay Road, Ilkeston, Derbyshire, was convicted of conspiracy to rape, while another defendant, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was convicted of rape and attempting to abduct a child in relation to three victims. A tenth defendant, Mahfuz Rahman, 29, of HMP Garth, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to three counts of sexual activity with a child. He was jailed last September for five-and-a-half years. Three men were acquitted in the two trials. The remaining defendants will be sentenced at Minshull Street Crown Court on April 7 and 8. Alison Cartmell, Senior Crown Prosecutor from CPS North West Complex Casework Unit said: These offenders have been convicted of a wide range of child sexual exploitation offences against young girls. They deliberately targeted the girls because of their youth and their vulnerability at the time, and in many cases groomed them by plying them with large amounts of alcohol or by pretending that they were offering genuine friendship before sexually abusing them. On a number of occasions the victims were subjected to violence or threats. One victim, an extremely vulnerable young girl with a troubled home life, was sexually exploited in some way by each one of these offenders. She has shown tremendous courage and determination in facing up to her abusers and giving evidence at court during two trials. The bravery of all the victims in reporting what happened and providing evidence during the trials has enabled us to bring strong prosecution cases and to bring these offenders to justice. Supporting them has been a key priority of the CPS and police throughout this prosecution, and we have put in place various special measures at court to help support them, such as giving evidence through a video link to the courtroom. This case sends out a clear message to those who abuse and exploit children in this way, that tackling these crimes remains a priority for the CPS and police and we will continue to bring offenders to trial. We take these cases extremely seriously and I hope these convictions will provide other victims of sexual abuse with confidence to come forward and report the abuse to police. In the short term it would create added complexity, and could slow down the flow of investment in the first couple of years, according to Neil Gibson, director of the Economic Policy Centre at the University of Ulster. He gave evidence to the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee of MPs at Westminster which is investigating the impact of any UK exit from the EU on the North. An exit vote would weigh on traders considerations in the short term, I would not underplay the impact on Northern Ireland, having made its biggest policy choice... in the first two years not much is happening. There would be added complexity under a new arrangement... they were not able to fully articulate how that would look. In the short run just the particular timing of that would have different implications. It would be a factor in those firms decisions. If there were to be an exit vote, the ability to make those positions clear would be absolutely paramount, to happen almost immediately, because otherwise it would have a huge impact. As part of last years Fresh Start political deal, the date for a tariff reduction in the business levy in the North, to 12.5%, will be April 2018, matching the rate in the Republic in an effort to compete for investment. Currently the rate is 20%. Advocates of a lower rate of tax on business profits point to a potentially transformative impact on the Norths economy. Business leaders envisage tens of thousands of new jobs. But critics claim reducing the local rate so significantly from the UKs would damage public spending, as it would see the Treasury cut an estimated 300m (396m) off the Stormont executives annual funding from London to offset the loss in revenue. It could also help encourage businesses in the UK to relocate. The chancellor of the exchequer has announced that the UK-wide rate will come down to 18% by 2020. While narrowing the gap would mean less of a reduction in UK Treasury funding known as the block grant, it would also diminish the advantage for Northern Ireland over the rest of the UK in attracting big businesses to invest. Economist Eamonn Donaghy has recently suggested the cost of implementing the lower rate of tax could be as little as 100m per year by spreading the early years costs, so the impact on the block grant would be much lower than initially forecast. Meanwhile, Ian Paisley said an electronic surveillance system operating on the border would not change if Britain exited the EU. Every vehicle number plate is read and the number of crossings noted to protect security, according to the North Antrim MP. The senior Democratic Unionist said: The current Northern Ireland border is not a soft border, the border is an electronic border. Every vehicular movement on the border, every single person movement on the border, is electronically recorded. Opponents of Brexit have raised concern about the reintroduction of physical barriers between the North in the event of a withdrawal from the EU. The lenders shares were priced towards the lower end of a 175p-235p indicative range, which some analysts had considered aspirational given recent falls in share markets. The sale of shares in the bank will also be watched closely here, as the outgoing government had pledged to an initial 25% in AIB if it were returned to power after the election. However, the turmoil of global stock- markets in the last few weeks has raised the first questions about the prospects for IPOs this year. Last week, UK chancellor George Osborne cited economic responsibility and turbulent markets for his decision to postpone a further sale of shares in Lloyds Bank owned by the British government. National Australia Bank, which bought Clydesdale in 1987, had earlier said it would sell 25% of the unit in the IPO and float the rest to its shareholders. Clydesdale, which traces its roots to Victorian Glasgow, was expected to begin trading on Tuesday, but the listing was postponed as the bank had to update its listing prospectus after a request for more information from an unnamed rating agency. Clydesdales Mr Duffy said yesterday the lender may consider joining bidders for Williams & Glyn, the British consumer bank put up for sale by Royal Bank of Scotland, as the unit draws interest from an increasing number of other banks. There has been a request for us to participate in a review of what proposals they have for their Williams & Glyn structure, Mr Duffy said. Well look at it in a purely agnostic context to understand what it is. Only after we understand what that particular bank is would we ever consider whether were going to proceed, he said. RBS said last month it would sound out potential buyers for Williams & Glyn, which has about 300 UK branches, after receiving a number of approaches. Britains largest government-owned lender must spin off the Williams & Glyn unit by the end of 2017 to meet EU state-aid rules related to its 45.5bn (60bn) bailout crisis. Like others out there, we would be viewed as a consolidation candidate, Mr Duffy said. Spains Banco Santander is preparing an offer for Williams & Glyn, while billionaire Richard Bransons Virgin Money has also signalled interest, Sky News reported. Secure Trust Bank is also mulling an offer, according to The Sunday Times. Agencies and Irish Examiner staff The 1 Gigabit-per-second fibre broadband network is retailed locally to local householders and businesses by Bbnet, Kernet, Permanet and Ripplecom, with other service providers likely to offer the service also. The network was launched last week by at Ballyseedy, Co Kerry, by Taoiseach Enda Kenny who said much of rural Ireland has been lagging behind for too long. The North Kerry launch is part of the Governments National Broadband Plan to deliver high speed broadband to all non-commercial rural areas by 2020. According to enet, construction and activation of its fibre broadband network in North Kerry cost 650,000. Communications Minister Alex White has said the procurement process for state intervention to provide high quality, high speed broadband to all premises in Ireland that may not be served through commercial investment was launched in December. Members of the public can insert their Eircode, and/or address, or scroll through the high speed broadband 2020 map to see if commercial providers are either currently delivering or have plans to deliver high speed broadband services by the end of 2016 to their area, or if they are in the target areas for the proposed state intervention (expected within five years of contract awards). The national broadband plan target is 85% of addresses in Ireland having access to high speed services by 2018, through the combination of commercial investment and State intervention. Providing reliable high speed broadband to every premises in the Intervention Area will support employment in farming, micro-enterprises and Governments regional enterprise policies, said Mr White. It is envisaged that access to high-speed broadband coupled with the measures being introduced under the national digital strategy will maximise growth potential in rural areas by encouraging businesses to make better use of the internet so that they can reach wider markets, grow their business and create jobs. Last year, Ashers Baking Company, run by the McArthur family, was found to have discriminated against a gay customer for refusing to bake a cake with a pro gay marriage slogan. Two days had been set aside for the appeal but proceedings at Belfasts High Court were dramatically halted after it emerged the regions attorney general, John Larkin, wanted to address any potential conflict between the local equality legislation and European human rights laws. Northern Irelands Lord Chief Justice Declan Morgan, who was due to hear the high-profile case with two other senior judges, expressed frustration but said the case could not go ahead at this stage. He said: It is most unfortunate this issue has arisen only two days before this hearing. Although we have all tried to see if we could proceed with the case given the amount of work that has been done. It seems to us that it is simply not possible to do that without running into some risk of fairness in the hearing. We are not going to proceed with the hearing today. A lawyer representing Mr Larkin told the court the attorney general wanted to address the devolution issue and to explore whether there were any incompatibility issues between the local laws and the UKs obligations under the Human Rights Act. Adjourning the case until May, Chief Justice Morgan told the packed courtroom it was important that the case progressed to hearing expeditiously. The Northern Ireland Equality Commission, which monitors compliance with the regions anti-discrimination laws, took the landmark legal action on behalf of Gareth Lee, a gay rights activist and member of the LGBT advocacy group Queer Space. It was heard at Belfasts County Court over three days last March. Mr Lee had wanted a cake featuring Sesame Street puppets Bert and Ernie with the slogan Support Gay Marriage for a private function marking International Day Against Homophobia in May 2014. He paid in full when placing the order at Ashers Belfast branch, but two days later the company phoned to say it could not be processed. District Judge Isobel Brownlie found Ashers directly discriminated against Mr Lee who had been treated less favourably, contrary to the law and ordered them to pay agreed damages of 500. Judge Brownlie said religious beliefs could not dictate the law. At the appeal, Mr Lee sat in the front row of the public gallery of the Nisi Prius courtroom beside representatives of the Equality Commission. Three rows behind were Ashers directors Karen and Colin McArthur with their son Daniel McArthur, the firms general manager, and his wife Amy. Simon Calvert from the Christian Institute, which has garnered public support and financial backing for the bakers, was also present as were Democratic Unionist MLAs Paul Givan and Edwin Poots, a former Stormont health minister. The hearing, which lasted less than an hour, was dominated by complex legal argument around how the so-called devolution issue could be handled. As the coalition party launches its long-term economic spending plans today, it faces questions over floating the idea of a phantom economic reserve fund to voters. Mr Noonan, who first mooted the idea last week, was forced into an embarrassing U-turn yesterday and conceded that Fine Gael would not be specifically allocating it as part of the partys 12bn planned spend over the next five years. As disagreement continues about how much fiscal space or spending power the next government has, Taoiseach Enda Kenny also tried to shut down debate on the matter by declaring he would not be getting into economic jargon here because the vast majority of people dont actually understand. Fine Gael is expected to face accusations today of hitting the lower paid, as it unveils proposals to bring people earning as little as 13,000 a year into the PRSI net. Such a scenario could see people earning as little as 250 a week paying PRSI for the first time. Senior party sources insisted this would offset proposed cuts in USC for all workers and result in extended dental and maternity benefit for workers. Every single taxpayer will be better off under the proposals, the party will say. The party will outline today how it wants to spend 12bn on tax cuts and on public services with an estimated 30:70 split between the two areas. Any talk of a rainy day fund would come from the public sector spend, but would not be specifically allocated under the plan, said sources. For more election news, analysis and general banter join us HERE Mr Noonan said: If in 2019, theres some kind of unexpected shock and our growth rates are going down, well have money we can spend, for example investment in capital, so that we can keep people at work and keep demand up in the economy. The key to it is that we are not going to allocate it in advance because we dont want to fall into the traps other governments fell intoWe will see how circumstances go and we will have the fallback position if things go wrong. As the gun was fired yesterday on what will be one of the shortest general election campaigns ever, Mr Noonan moved to blame confusion over spending available to the next government on his officials, saying figures were based on Department of Finance projections, which were independent of the presiding minister. One Labour minister last week had accused Fine Gael of changing their tax figures on a daily basis. Health Minister Leo Varadkar told RTE last night he did not agree with the Fiscal Advisory Councils conclusion that just 3.2bn was available to spend over the next five years. He also said he did not want to get into figures. Fianna Fail said that officials with the council and the department needed to clarify confusion about the figures. Taoiseach Enda Kenny yesterday used Twitter to announce the election date on Friday, February 26, after seeking permission from the president to dissolve the Dail. While facing opposition accusations of hiding from the media, his officials have stressed that he will be participating in a number of live televised debates and will be available to the press daily during the campaign for questions. Nearly 500 candidates are competing for 158 seats across 40 constituencies and party leaders will be campaigning nationwide over the next few weeks. Elsewhere, Labour today will announce its jobs promises for the next five years, with a commitment to create 150,000 new jobs by 2018 and 50,000 new apprenticeships and training places costing 131m by 2021. For more election news, analysis and general banter join us HERE The Boeing 787-800 Dreamliner was crossing over Ireland around 2.20pm when the crew informed air traffic controllers of their issue. The crew had been in contact with controllers at the Irish Aviation Authoritys North Atlantic Communications Centre at Ballygirreen at the time. The pilot issued a Pan Pan distress call, which is not as serious as a May Day alert, and reported they had detected a smell in the cabin. WHEN an actor plays a cult character like Walter White in the hit series like Breaking Bad, its a hard thing to live down. So when Bryan Cranston enters the room to promote his portrayal of the real life eccentric Dalton Trumbo, Got any drugs? is probably the last thing he wants to hear. Still, the 59 year-old multiple Emmy winner is well used to it and sniggers in an oh-so-familiar deep-voiced way, I might be able to set you up with some! A genial man who is straight postured and looks far younger than hunched-over Walter a portrayal based on his father Cranston, a non-smoker and relative clean liver, chain smokes while playing the 1950s black-listed Hollywood screenwriter. At the typewriter, in the bathtub or even while eating, Cranston notes with disgust. I thought that smoking was really part of who he was and what killed him eventually. Its what created that raspy voice and the affectation of the cigarette holder really makes a statement. So I thought Id smoke herbal cigarettes so I wouldnt have any nicotine going in and Id be fine. But I was still ingesting smoke and I was like, Oh my god!. It was awful! POSITIVE ENERGY The brimming energy Cranston possesses serves his movies well. Invariably hes the team leader on set, and he likes to create a fun magnanimous mood. I like having a set thats friendly where everybody respects each other. We do the thing, we have a few laughs and then we go home. I dont like assholes. Where does all that manic energy come from? Im crazy, he responds in a light voice as if confiding a secret. Cranston concedes there was a little craziness in Walter White, who was pushed against the wall in his own mind when he found out he was dying. Rather he says, there was a wild eccentricity in Trumbo, a communist who defied the 1950s ban imposed by the House UnAmerican Activities Committee to write the screenplays for Roman Holiday, Spartacus and Exodus under a pseudonym. Trumbo couldnt even claim credit when he won Oscars for Roman Holiday and The Brave One and for a period was driven into poverty and spent 11 months in prison. He went to jail not because he committed a crime but because he didnt respond in a way the committee wanted him to, Cranston says. Incredibly, we have heard little about the man, until now as seasoned comedy director Jay Roach (the Austin Powers trilogy, Meet the Parents) gives the writer his due. Cranston wanted that all-important first leading role after his hit series to be special and his portrayal as Hollywoods unsung hero fits the bill. He has been nominated for a best actor Oscar for his efforts. Its a sweet little movie which has a really important message and thats what captured my attention, he says. When I first read it I thought this is about embracing someone elses opinion you may not agree with. Were living with that now, regarding sexual orientation or whatever, there are social issues that will always come up that we may not personally agree with but thats not the point. The point is allowing that other person to have a voice and, as Trumbo says to John Wayne, We both have the right to be wrong. Wayne, Edward G Robinson and a gutsy Kirk Douglas all played prominent roles in Trumbos life, as did Hedda Hopper, the right-wing gossip columnist who was out to get him. Trumbo joined the American Communist Party but the truth is he was not a communist, he was a socialist, says Cranston. He loved being rich. But he didnt know how to handle money. Hed give it away or hed spend it. He loved the newest typewriter, I need it, the newest car lets get it, lets buy a ranch, lets build a lake. He had big thoughts, big ideas and big debt. Helen Mirren and Cranston in Trumbo. One of the films most enduring images is of him writing in the bathtub. He had a bad back from abusing himself for so long. He thought, Ive got to soak my back so I can continue writing but I dont want to waste that time. So thats why he set up the whole thing so he could soak his back and work. He was still smoking and answering the phone. At the time Trumbo was at the height of his powers and in many ways he was a workaholic. Cranston recognises some comparisons with himself. I work hard and I work a lot. His real interest was the work and Im a bit like that. They are also big family men. Trumbo adored his daughter Nikola (Elle Fanning) as Cranston dotes on his daughter, Taylor, 22, his only child with his actress wife Robin Dearden whom he met on the 1980s series Airwolf. FAMILY ISSUES The seemingly cool Californian speaks little about his early life. In a recent issue of Playboy he explained how he was an introvert in school due to a bad situation at home. My father disappeared when I was 11, and I didnt see him again until I was 22. My mother was an alcoholic. His father Joe was an aspiring actor and former amateur boxer who died in 2014. Understandably Cranston is a little guarded these days after playing one of TVs most beloved anti-heroes. Im still negotiating fame though Im not very comfortable with that in the sense that Im more comfortable when Im working, he says. When Im not working and at home I have a far less tendency to go out. Ive become a little more reclusive. I just find the conversation different. If we met on the street and we were waiting for a bus and we were talking about the weather or something I now long for that conversation. In an airport I mainly look for older people and sit by them. They have less of an opportunity of recognising me. Despite probably this one and only drawback, Breaking Bad created a huge range of opportunities for the actor. I greatly appreciate that, he says of his film roles in the likes of Argo, Godzilla, Rock of Ages, Total Recall, Contagion and Drive. He is not keen to return to Walter White. If he were ever to revisit a character it would be Hal from Malcolm in the Middle, the series that is getting a rerun on Comedy Central. It would be fun to play that adorable, sweet and clueless guy who is afraid of everything, he says. Cranston will soon appear with James Franco in In Dubious Battle, based on John Steinbecks tale of fruit workers fighting for their rights in California; and the duo also collaborate on studio comedy Why Him?. He teams up with Roach again for the HBO movie All the Way where the actor reprises his 2014 Tony-award winning role as Lyndon B Johnson. Its clear from the amount of good projects hes being offered that Cranston is at the height of his powers. Trumbo is in cinemas tomorrow Launching today, as an executor sale, is a site of 4.74 acres just off the Model Farm Road and at the city end of the Killumney road, next to St Olivers Cemetery. It has planning for 27 houses, but one sites being retained by the vendors. The planning, recently topped up and good until 2021, is spot-on for the location, allowing for 16 large detached homes, and 10 more will be 1,460 sq ft four-bed semi-ds. Previous comparable developments of larger homes in the vicinity include Hayfield, done by Ruden Homes, Hill Farm, and Limeworth. This offer, with agents Trevor McCarthy and Joe McCarthy of Irish and European has a current planning and design very suitable for todays market, with strong demand for the type of house to be built, they say, expecting interest from a range of local builders/developers, including those with out of town funds and backers, as a number of prime Cork residential site sales in recent times have gone to non-traditional buyers. The location of the site is fantastic, says Trevor McCarthy, noting its easily accessed off the Killumney road, the Model Farm Road, the Carrigrohane road and the south ring road network/Ballincollig bypass. He doesnt give a firm asking price, noting they are selling by way of formal tender, but likely values will be in the region of 2m-plus: at that sum, it equates to a little over 400,000 per acre, or 76,000 per house stand. Services are to hand, and the land being sold comprises a level field currently in farming use, right alongside St Olivers Cemetery on the Killumney Road on the citys western fringes, close to hospitals, colleges, and Ballincollig Town Centre, and employers like EMc and VMWare. It comes as one of the more development-ready sites as a carrot for builders keen to get on site and to get selling, and will have a Part V element. The original planning was granted back in 2011, and was recently extended to an application by architects Doyle McDonagh Nash, valid to May 2021. The mix includes 10 four-bed semis of 1,460 sq ft, three four-bed detacheds of 1,840 sq ft, six six-bed detacheds ranging from 2,800 sq ft to 3,200 sq ft, and seven five-beds, of 2,050 to 3,284 sq ft. The ultimate price paid for this 4.74 acres will be keenly watched . Meanwhile, the Construction Industry Federation today hosts a Cork Breakfast Briefing on the viability of new builds across the range of the housing sector and locations, being addressed by expert Frank Ryan of DTZ Sherry FitzGerald. It comes as recent Cork land sales are as diverse as 46 zoned acres at Kerry Pike, with FPP for 139 units bought by OFlynn Construction for 4.25m via Irish and European, for receivers KPMG, close to 100,000 an acre. The Eir site at Corks Ballintemple is currently selling via Lisney for close to 4m for 5.1 acres, a high of 800,000 an acre, with lapsed planning for 140 units, mostly apartments. The top bidder there is understood to be from out of Cork, as was the purchaser via DTZ of six acres at Cleve Hill, Blackrock Road, where Bridgedale Homes/Oaktree Capital paid 3m for low-density, up-market scheme on six acres with planning now sought for 30 units. DETAILS: Irish and European 021-4277606 The proposal had been to change use of 500sq m of the premises at St Patricks Quay, formerly in use by PJ OHea, to car parking ancilliary to the Gresham Metropole hotel, bought last year by Philip Hotel Holdings Ltd. In plans submitted to the city council, permission was sought by Metropole Operators Ltd for the changes, to provide 43 parking spaces and replace glazing and an existing pedestrian entrance with a roller shutter door for a proposed new vehicle exit. But the council deemed the change would represent under utilisation of a prominent site in a city centre area zoned for retailing. It also said additional city centre parking would undermine a transport policy aimed to encourage reduced use of private cars. A small but prime-location Cork city centre premises has been cleared for change from office to cafe use. Robin Powers plans last September were to provide a ground-floor servery and first-floor seating at St Patricks Buildings, previously occupied by financial services before its present vacant status. The corner building is on the junction of St Patricks Street and Grand Parade, and will be very near the two main entrances to the Capitol Cinema redevelopment on which work was recently started for developer John Cleary. Following the response of the applicant before Christmas to requests from Cork City Council for further information, permission has been granted subject to seven conditions that include a restriction from use for hot food/fast food takeaway. Plans to extend one of Corks busiest conference centres have been lodged with Cork City Council. In the past 10 days, DHAL Ltd submitted the application to change the first floor kitchen and store room at the Clayton Hotel Silversprings centre to meeting rooms, as well as making internal refurbishments. It is also proposed to replace the main entrance porch and make other changes to the west elevation, and to provide a new public entrance to the rear eastern end of the centre. Cork City Council has asked for further information in relation to an application for a new Vision Express opticians outlet on St Patricks Street. The application last November from Paul Litchfield related to 38 St Patricks Street, formerly in use as a fashion store between Marlboro St and Cook St, where a refit of the retail unit was proposed. A further information request has also been made in relation to changes to a unit of the nearby Opera Lane, where a new Specsavers store is planned, plans having been submitted to the same local authority in November for new illuminated external signage. YOU would know theres a general election in the air, because TDs attendance for votes in the Dail has dropped significantly in recent months. On average, 43% of TDs have failed to show up for each division in the Dail chamber, since they returned to Leinster House after the summer holidays, last September. An analysis by the Irish Examiner of the voting record of all 166 outgoing TDs, over the lifetime of the current Dail, shows that an increasing number of deputies is less likely to turn up for votes with every year that passes since they were elected in 2011. The absentee rate from Dail votes has risen consistently, from just 21.5%, in 2011, to 39.9%, in 2015. Since they returned after the Christmas holidays, approximately half of all TDs have failed to cast a vote for each of the 23 divisions called in January, with the Dail sometimes struggling to find a quorum of 20 deputies. Over the six sitting days of the Dail in January, nine TDs have failed to show up for any vote: independent TDs, Michael Lowry and Eamonn Maloney; Renua Ireland leader, Lucinda Creighton and her party colleague, Billy Timmins; Fianna Fails Willie ODea; Labour TDs, Eamon Gilmore and Willie Penrose, and Fine Gael TDs, James Bannon and Tony McLoughlin. In contrast, seven TDs had a perfect attendance record over the same period, despite the impending election: the Government chief whip, Paul Kehoe, and Fine Gael deputies, Dinny McGinley, Jim Daly, Joe Carey and Derek Keating, and Labour TDs, Emmet Stagg and Robert Dowds. For more election news, analysis and general banter join us HERE Even allowing for TDs having switched to election mode since the Christmas break, the attendance record of many has waned considerably since last summer, with 62 TDs failing to show up for more than half of all votes. Since September, former Labour, and now independent, TD for Dublin South West, Eamonn Maloney, has missed 96% of votes, followed by former tanaiste, Eamonn Gilmore, who has missed 95% of votes. Another independent TD, Michael Lowry, didnt cast a vote in 93% of Dail divisions over the same period. Over the lifetime of the current Dail, the controversial Tipperary TD has missed more votes than any other politician, with the exception of Taoiseach Enda Kenny, whose absence from the chamber is excused because of government business. Mr Lowry has recorded a non-attendance rate of almost three out of every four votes since 2011. The three Renua TDs Lucinda Creighton, Terence Flanagan and Billy Timmins have each been absent for over 80% of votes since last autumn. Another of the countrys newest political parties, the Social Democrats, also has one of the poorest attendance rates. Its three TDs collectively missed 57.5% of all votes. Of the four larger parties, Sinn Fein TDs are the most regular voters in the Dail, being absent for just 22% of all votes over the lifetime of the current administration. At 29%, Fine Gaels absentee rate was marginally better than its coalition partner, Labour, whose TDs missed 31% of all votes. Fianna Fail deputies failed to show up for 38% of votes, on average, with the figure rising to 49% last year. TDs who served the full term of the 31st Dail have been eligible to cast a vote on 959 occasions over the past five years. Unlike in previous parliaments, no arrangement existed, in the outgoing Dail, whereby opposition parties offered Government ministers and TDs a pair to facilitate anyone away on official State business, because of the size of the Fine Gael-Labour coalition majority. Government backbenchers know they face little sanction from party whips if they skip a vote, because the Governments majority is assured. The Ceann Comhairle, Sean Barrett only casts a vote in the event of a tie. The best attendance rate in the past five years was recorded by Cork South Central TD, Jerry Buttimer, who missed less than 4% of all votes, narrowly ahead of his Fine Gael colleague from Galway, Sean Kyne, who missed just under 5% of votes. Other TDs who were diligent for the vast majority of votes include Sinn Feins Sandra McLellan, Fine Gael TDs Joe Carey, Bernard Durkan, and Dan Neville, and Labours Sean Kenny. Commenting on the figures, David Farrell, professor of politics at UCD, said they provided more evidence of the weakness of the Dail and how it was treated as an irrelevancy by many politicians. Its unfortunate, but unsurprising. So much of what is wrong with our political system is based on the lack of accountability of the Government, said Prof Farrell. He claimed the increasing absentee rate by most TDs showed their frustration at how the Dail just rubber-stamped Government decisions. For more election news, analysis and general banter join us HERE I have long disliked the policies that operated down the years with huge sums of money being allocated to foreigners who did not have any emotional stake in the country. They came to reap the harvest of IDA grants but, having received the maximum amount, took the first plane back to Europe or to a low cost economy and forgot about the Irish people. It is well known that many enterprising Irish people who approached the IDA for State aid were refused and those with an address at Dusseldorf, Paris or Amsterdam were facilitated in every way. We must reverse that attitude and give our Irish entrepreneurs all the backing needed to get started and grow and compte. We should concentrate on industries that derive raw materials from within the State. Why is it that we import 80 million worth of chipped potatoes when we have the finest climate in the world to grow potatoes. Many of our supermarkets sell frozen chips imported from Holland, Belgium and Canada. Our fishing industry could employ ten times more workers if properly operated and if we fought for it on the European stage instead of opening it up to the supertrawlers from overseas. We are only skimming the surface as far as the fishing industry is concerned. We must do more about smoking, marinating and canning. We are falling down in our commitment to the fishing industry. The Dutch and Norwegians are cashing in on that valuable industry while we stand idly by. So let us cast our nets and reap the rewards for the benefit of Ireland and its people. Cllr. Noel Collins St. Judes Midleton Co. Cork According to the Washington Post, Santorum was scheduled to appear yesterday evening on Fox News Channel, where an aide said he will make two major announcements. According to several national Republicans familiar with his plans, he will discuss his decision to end his 2016 campaign and he will likely make an endorsement of one of his GOP rivals. Santorums pending departure from the race comes after a disappointing finish in Mondays Iowa caucuses, where he faced stiff competition for the support of the religious conservatives who four years ago were his base. Santorum becomes the third Republican to bow out of the crowded 2016 field since Mondays Iowa contest, with Senator Rand Paul and former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee also dropping out. Meanwhile, Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump, accused rival, Ted Cruz, of stealing victory in the Iowa caucuses and called for another vote, or nullification of Cruzs win. Trump, who finished second, behind Cruz, lit up Twitter, saying the outcome was tainted, because the Cruz campaign had spread misinformation about Trumps stand on Obamacare and an erroneous report that Ben Carson was dropping out of the race. Trump had gone into Mondays caucus voting ahead of the Texas senator by five percentage points in a key poll, but Cruz won, four points ahead of the New York billionaire. Twitter was abuzz over Trumps accusations. Several social-media users tweeted screengrabs of an alleged deleted tweet from Trumps official account, in which he said Cruz illegally stolen the vote. Based on the fraud committed by Senator Ted Cruz during the Iowa caucus, either a new election should take place or Cruz results nullified, Trump wrote. In another tweet, Trump said Cruz had lied about Trumps opinion of President Barack Obamas healthcare programme. And, finally, Cruz strongly told thousands of caucusgoers (voters) that Trump was strongly in favour of Obamacare and choice a total lie! he said. Carissa Etienne made the comments in Uruguay while attending an emergency meeting of health ministers from Latin America. Health officials in the US state of Texas said that a patient there acquired Zika through sex with an ill person who returned from Venezuela, where the virus was present. The Zika virus is usually spread through mosquito bites. Etienne says the Texas case has not been discussed at the summit. However, she wants to see a formal report on the case and study it further. She said: Obviously it would bring a new dimension to the Zika problem. The Texas case came just days after the World Health Organisation declared an international public health emergency. The virus, linked to severe birth defects in thousands of babies in Brazil, is spreading rapidly in the Americas, and Who officials expressed concern that it could hit Africa and Asia as well. Zika had been thought to be spread by the bite of mosquitoes of the Aedes genus, so sexual contact as a mode of transmission would be a potentially alarming development. The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed it was the first US Zika case in someone who had not travelled abroad in the current outbreak, said the centres director Tom Frieden on Twitter. However, the centre has not investigated how the virus was transmitted. After this case, the centre advised men to consider using condoms after travelling to areas with the Zika virus. Pregnant women should avoid contact with semen from men exposed to the virus. The Dallas County Department of health said that the person was infected through sexual contact with some- one who had travelled to Venezuela. The person infected did not travel to the South American country, county health officials said. The Texas Department of State Health Services was slightly more cautious in its assessment, saying in a statement: Case details are being evaluated, but the possibility of sexual transmission from an infected person to a non-infected person is likely in this case. County authorities said there were no reports of the virus being transmitted by mosquitoes in the Texas county. Previously, international health officials had noted one US case of possible person-to-person sexual transmission. However, the Pan American Health Organisation said more evidence was needed to confirm sexual contact as a means of Zika transmission. The medical literature also has one case in which the virus was detected in semen. The virus has been reported in more than 30 countries and linked to microcephaly, in which babies have abnormally small heads and improperly developed brains. The American Red Cross asked blood donors who have travelled to Zika virus outbreak areas such as Mexico, the Caribbean, or Central or South America to wait at least 28 days before donating. However, the risk of transmitting the virus through blood donations remained extremely low in the continental US, the disaster relief agency said. The Who has said the virus could infect four million people in the Americas. It said it has launched a global response unit to fight the mosquito-borne virus. Most important, we need to set up surveillance sites in low- and middle-income countries so we can detect any change in the reporting patterns of microcephaly at an early stage, Anthony Costello said in Geneva. Dr Costello is Whos director for maternal, child and adolescent health. Twenty to 30 sites could be established worldwide, mainly in poor countries without robust healthcare systems, Costello said. Brazil is the country hardest hit by Zika. In an address to a joint session of Brazils Congress, President Dilma Rousseff said her government will spare no resources in mobilising to combat the mosquito that transmits the virus. With no vaccine or treatment for Zika, efforts to curb its spread have focused on eradicating mosquito breeding sites. Brazil, which has more than 4,000 suspected cases of microcephaly that may be linked to Zika, is scheduled to host the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro in August. Rousseff also said Brazil and the US will enter a partnership to develop a Zika vaccine as soon as possible. The seventh earl of Lucan disappeared after the body of Sandra Rivett, nanny to his three children, was found at the family home at 46 Lower Belgrave St in central London on November 7, 1974. Here are some of the countless theories about what became of the aristocrat: His wife said at the time of the incident that her husband admitted committing the crime and had said it was a mistake. It has also been reported that she believes he jumped to his death off a ferry leaving Newhaven, East Sussex. The first reported sightings of him occurred soon after the murder. In January 1975 he was supposedly spotted in Melbourne, Australia, and five months later he was apparently in Cherbourg and St Malo, France. He was apparently spotted in Cape Town, Mozambique and then Bulawayo. Police in Cape Town went so far as to check fingerprints on a beer glass, reputedly held by the peer. Scotland Yard asked Barbados police to investigate a report in 1978 that a British resident there was sending money to the peer in South America. He has also been reportedly sighted on an ex-Nazi colony in Paraguay, at a sheep station in the Australian outback, backpacking on Mount Etna and working as a waiter in San Francisco, and one couple reported seeing him in a private hospital in Johannesburg in 1995. There were even claims that he fled to India and lived life as a hippy called Jungly Barry. In 1987, journalist Sally Moore published Lucan Not Guilty, a book that claimed an intruder murdered the nanny and attacked his the peers wife. An ITV drama based on John Pearsons book The Gamblers claimed the mans high-rolling friends, who included James Goldsmith and John Aspinall, spirited him out of the country after the murder. In 2007 the hunt for him was focused on the small New Zealand township of Marton after claims that he may have been living in a car there. In 2012, his brother Hugh Bingham said he was sure the missing peer fled to Africa following the nannys murder. But he subseuently said he was unsure if his sibling was alive or dead. In Dead Lucky, former senior Scotland Yard detective Duncan MacLaughlin said that Lucan fled to Goa where he lived a hippy lifestyle as Barry Halpin until his death in 1996. Some say he was held to ransom by the IRA or shot himself and asked that his remains should be fed to the tigers at the zoo in Kent, which belonged to Mr Aspinall. Asia Malaysian Politician Ousted After Criticizing Prime Minister The son of former Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad resigns as leader of a federal state, saying he was ousted for criticizing Prime Minister Najib. KUALA LUMPUR The son of former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad resigned as the top leader of a federal state Wednesday, saying he was ousted because he had criticized Prime Minister Najib Razak over a US$700 million financial scandal. Mukhriz Mahathir said he had lost majority support in the Kedah state assembly following a party bid to remove him as chief minister. Mahathir has been leading calls for Najib to step down, and Mukrizs ouster was seen as a continuing purge of critics in Najibs government. The prime ministers office in a statement said Mukhriz lost majority support because of a lack of confidence in his leadership and concerns that better preparations were needed for the party to retain the state in general elections due in 2018. Mukhriz, however, warned that the ruling Malay party was now at its weakest point, tainted by scandal-ridden state investment fund 1MDB and more than $700 million that was channeled into Najibs personal bank accounts. The attorney general last week cleared Najib of any criminal wrongdoing, saying most of the money in his accounts was a private donation from the Saudi royal family and that Najib had returned most of it. Authorities in Switzerland, Singapore and other countries are still investigating 1MDB for possible graft, and two former Malaysian officials also have challenged the attorney generals decisions. Scandal after scandal, we cant take it all. Its too much for us. This is traumatizing all of us, Mukhriz said. 1MDB is mired in 42 billion ringgit ($10.1 billion) in debt and has been selling its assets to clear its books. Najib, who formed 1MDB in 2009, became embroiled in the scandal after documents were leaked last year suggesting that money deposited into his accounts may have come from entities linked to 1MDB. Burma Huge Blaze Razes Hundreds of Homes in Shan States Namhsan A massive fire tore through northern Shan States Namhsan on Thursday, reportedly destroying over 200 homes. MANDALAY A massive fire tore through northern Shan States Namhsan on Thursday, reportedly destroying over 200 homes. According to local eyewitness, including those who lost their homes, the blaze burned out of control as authorities struggled to gain access down narrow streets. Locals said the blaze broke out at a home used to store green tea leaves on Thursday afternoon. The fire engines could not [reach the affected area] but everyone helped the firemen extinguish the fire as much as they could. All of the houses were built from pinewood so the fire easily devoured them, said Maung Kyaw, a local administration officer in the northern Shan State town. According to local authorities, fire engines from Kyaukme, Hsipaw and other nearby towns were on their way to the scene at time of publication, while a temporary shelter for displaced persons was opened at the towns monastery. A full story will follow when more information becomes available. Burma Candidates Put Forward for Parliamentary Standing Committees Burmas respective parliamentary speakers on Thursday recommended members for two standing committees: the Draft Bill and Public Accounts committees. RANGOON The Upper and Lower House speakers of Burmas new Parliament assigned leadership positions and proposed candidates for membership on Thursday for two parliamentary standing committees. The speakers respectively announced the 15 recommended members for the public accounts and draft bill committees, for each chamber. A military MP was appointed to each committee, unlike the practice in the previous Parliament, where four military MPs were assigned as observers. House speakers explained that the Draft Bill Committees main responsibility is to scrutinize proposed bills before they are introduced to Parliament, while the Public Accounts Committee monitors government expenditures. Phyu Phyu Thin, a National League for Democracy (NLD) Lower House MP from Rangoons Mingalar Taung Nyunt Township, confirmed leadership appointments to The Irrawaddy for the Lower Houses Draft Bill Committee. Tun Tun Hein of the NLD was approved as chair, while Steven, a re-elected MP in Shan States Kengtung Township and member of the Union Solidarity and Development party (USDP), was appointed as the secretary. Steven previously served on draft bill, ethnic affairs and peace implementation committees in Burmas first Parliament. Lower House NLD MP Khin Htay Kywe of Moulmein in Mon State, the re-elected Ba Shein of the Arakan National Party (ANP) and Khin Maung Win and Kyaw Soe Lin, both of the NLD, were suggested as Draft Bill Committee members. According to Phyu Phyu Thin, who was re-elected in 2015, those selected to serve on the Draft Bill Committee are mostly lawyers. Phyu Phyu Thin acted as a member of the Planning and Finance Development Committee in the Parliament after Burmas 2012 by-election. She recalled that the Draft Bill and Public Accounts committees were among the busiest. In an NLD-dominated Parliament, she also speculates that most committees will be more active than they were able to be in the past. Aung Min, an NLD Lower House MP from Irrawaddy Divisions Zalun Township, was appointed as chair of the Lower Houses Public Accounts Committee, while Khin Maung Than, of the NLD and representing Taunggyi in Shan State, was appointed secretary. The other proposed committee members are largely from the NLD. Procedures were similar in committee selection in the Upper House. Than Soe, an Upper House MP from Rangoons Constituency No. 3 representing the NLD, confirmed that Zaw Min, also of the NLD and from Constituency No. 6, was appointed chair of the Upper Houses Draft Bill Committee. Dr. Myat Nyana Soe, who was a member of the same committee in the previous Parliament, was appointed as secretary. Regarding the Upper Houses Public Accounts Committee, Than Soe said that Saw Than Htut, an Upper House NLD MP from Karen States Constituency No. 2 was appointed as chair, while the position of secretary was designated as Dr. Sai Seng Kyauk San of the USDP from Shan States No. 6 Constituency. Also a proposed member of the Upper House Public Accounts Committee himself, Than Soe said that all committees responsibilities and terms of authority are defined by the Constitution, but added that current members will have to revisit previous committees work and procedures. Htoot May, an upper house MP from the ANP and hopeful member of the Upper House Public Accounts Committee, confirmed that some prominent names were on the suggested list of members, including womens rights advocates Susanna Hla Hla Soe and Shwe Shwe Sein Latt, both of the NLD. On Friday, both Houses will finalize membership in the draft bill and public accounts committees. Speakers will also announce lists of recommended members for the remaining two standing committees: the Hluttaw Rights Committee and Governments Guarantees, Pledges, Undertakings and Vetting Committee. The Lower House has a total of 25 parliamentary affairs committees and a legal affairs and special case assessment commission, while the Upper House has 20 parliamentary affairs committees, as well as commissions for finance and legal affairs. Burmas Parliament convened this week for the first time since the NLD won a majority of seats in Novembers general election. Burma Even Without Puppetry, Suu Kyi Presidency Could Have Strings Attached Beyond her own ambitions, it is clear that the electorate overwhelmingly favors Suu Kyi as the countrys leader. So is it possible? On Wednesday, Aung San Suu Kyi urged patience with her party, the National League for Democracy (NLD), as reporters prodded her on who would be appointed to key government postsincluding the presidency. The trouble with Suu Kyis silence on the matter is that speculation has swiftly filled the void, and rumors now run rampant that The Lady, as she is affectionately called, is negotiating with the military to allow herself a shot at the job. Article 59(f) of Burmas military-drafted Constitution disqualifies anyone with a foreign spouse or children from becoming president, effectively barring Suu Kyi because her two children are British nationals, as was her late husband. The clause is viewed as a deliberate attempt to sideline her. As the NLD assumed a majority in the Union Parliament this week, following a landslide win in the Nov. 8 election, party patron Tin Oo remarked that the popular chairwoman, Suu Kyi, should be the president, vowing to act as a stepping stone to her ascension. Other party members, speaking to The Irrawaddy on condition of anonymity, said that a motion to suspend the prohibitive article was already in the works. While Suu Kyi has already made clear her intention to rule above the president, she will need one of two titlesPresident or Foreign Affairs Ministerto secure a role in Burmas most powerful political body: the National Defense and Security Council. But beyond her own ambitions and power plays, it is clear that the electorate overwhelmingly favors her as the countrys leader. So is it possible? According to Ko Ni, a lawyer and a key legal advisor to the NLD, it would be difficult, but not impossible. The new Parliament will first need to form a drafting committee to draw up the amendment, and then the bill would need to be approved and signed by the president. The proposal would have to go through the steps in accordance with existing law, Ko Ni said, overcoming all the requisite hurdles built into Burmas executive structure. Nonetheless, where theres a will theres a way. The debate over suspending 59(f) gained traction shortly after the election, when former MP Thura Aung Ko, a member of the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), raised the issue in a December parliamentary session. Others involved in the movement argue that there is precedent: in 1959, Burmas legislature approved a constitutional amendment to clause 116 of the countrys first charter, allowing the late Gen. Ne Win to become prime minister. Others say that the precedent proves a legal possibility, but that the militarys stronghold over the legislature would make the plan unlikely without serious backroom deals that might be viewed unfavorably. Because the military still holds 25 percent of parliamentary seats, it would need to be convinced to back the measure in order to secure the 75-plus percent majority needed to amend the clause. Its a tall order, even for a party that won nearly 80 percent of contested seats nationwide. Because of the guaranteed military bloc, the NLD only holds 59.3 percent of total seats. Hitting the mark would require not only seeking out at least some military support, but also that of smaller parties. Even the biggest ethnic partiesthe Arakan National Party (ANP) and the Shan Nationalities League for Democracy (SNLD)account for only about 5 percent of Parliament combined. The USDP makes up another 6 percent, roughly. Because of the high threshold needed to suspend or amend parts of the charter, theories have begun to emergeoften in the form of rumors on social mediathat backroom deals are being made between Suu Kyi and Burma Army Chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing. Political analyst Yan Myo Thein suggested that some sort of deal would have to be made to entice the military to hand over the presidency. But what form might such an agreement take? On Suu Kyis end, Yan Myo Thein recommended adding a condition to 59(f), instead of suspending it entirely. Instead of removing the article, this would simply create an exemption for Suu Kyi, which might be easier to achieve. Such exemptions already exist in the charter, for example, Article 121(j) exempts defense services personnel from a constitutional ban on civil service members serving as lawmakers. As for what the military might want in return, its anyones guess. Khin Zaw Win, director of Tampadipa Institute, said he had heard rumors that the NLD might consider trading off a few important state and divisional chief minister posts in exchange for the presidency, a theory thatwhile not implausibleremains unsubstantiated. We are hearing all sorts of rumors about bargaining for four chief ministers: Rangoon, Arakan, Shan and Kachin, Khin Zaw Win said, adding that, if true, it would not be a worthwhile tradeoff; the mandate given by the electorate doesnt include cutting deals like this. Burma Human Rights Commission Criticizes Forced Relocation of Squatters The Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC) urges authorities to relocate squatters by more humanitarian means after large-scale evictions. RANGOON The Myanmar National Human Rights Commission (MNHRC) has urged authorities to relocate squatters by more humanitarian means after large-scale evictions were carried out recently in Rangoons Mingaladon Township and Mandalay Divisions Pyin Oo Lwin. In a statement released Wednesday, the MNHRC advised authorities to increase awareness of such evictions among affected households through the release of statements and prior warnings. The commission also recommended that transportation be provided to those who are ordered to vacate, in addition to social assistance. About 500 households were demolished in Kon Ta La Paung village in Rangoons Pyinmabin Industrial Zone on Jan. 26. In Nyaung Ni village in Pyin Oo Lwin, Mandalay Division, the Burma Army evicted more than 150 people from 28 households. Authorities claimed that the villagers were trespassing on property owned by the military. In both cases, temporary shelter, food and health care were promised to the displaced, but MNHRC reported that no such provisions were made; now those whose homes were demolished are reportedly living on roadsides, facing water shortages and again looking for vacant land on which to set up dwellings. Among them are pregnant women, children and the elderly. MNHRC also reminded squatters to respect the rules and regulations determined by the government regarding relocation. On Thursday morning, when contacted by The Irrawaddy, MNHRC Vice Chairman Sitt Myaing confirmed the commissions position as laid out in the statement, but did not provide further comment. Htun Htun Win, a new National League for Democracy (NLD) legislator now representing Mingaladon Townships Constituency No. 2 in the Rangoon Division parliament, told The Irrawaddy that the squatters are Burmese citizens and that the authorities should not ignore their needs. We will solve [this problem] the best way we can during our governments term, Htun Htun Win said. Some hope that subsidized housing could address the problem of homelessness in urban centers. Earlier this month, the regional government in Rangoon put out a call for applicants to lease apartments for 30,000 kyats (US$24) per month at Bandula Housing in South Dagon Township. The offer attracted applications from hundreds of people who do not currently own property. According to local media reports, demand for the apartments is much higher than the number of available rooms. Burma More Arrests Reported over Alleged Armed Group Ties in Arakan State Authorities in Arakan State are continuing to arbitrarily arrest civilians on suspicion of links to the Arakan Army, according to several local sources. RANGOON Authorities in Arakan State are continuing to arbitrarily arrest civilians on suspicion of links to the Arakan Army, according to several local sources, with the latest detainee a landowner from Taungup Township who was released on Wednesday evening. Speaking to The Irrawaddy on Thursday, Aung Tin Moe said he was arrested on Monday in Taungup Townships Ma-Ei town by military personnel who quizzed him over suspected ties to the Arakan Army which has recently been engaged in clashes with government troops. They asked me what I have been doing since university age to this year, said Aung Tin Moe, who owns a teak plantation in Ma-Ei town. He said he was detained by army personnel and held in neighboring Ann Township until his release on Wednesday evening. A friend of Aung Tin Moe, citizen journalist Tun Tun Naing, has also claimed he is wanted by authorities in Kyaukphyu Township. I dont know exactly why they are trying to apprehend me. I have heard that they [the Burma Army] suspect me because I was a childhood friend of Col. Nyo Tun Aung, he said, referring to the vice chief-of-staff of the Arakan Army. Last month, the chair of a local civil society organization and two other men were detained in Leik Kha Maw village, Kyaukphyu Township, on the grounds of their alleged links to the ethnic armed group, according to eyewitnesses. Relatives of the detained men, one of whom is Maung Aye, the chair of the Kyaukphyu Rural Development Association, said they were originally being held at Kyaukphyu Prison. Tun Lwin, coordinator of the Kyaukphyu Social Network, a separate organization, said he went to a military office in Zaytiya village in Kyaukphyu Township, along with six monks, to enquire about the detainees. They told us all they did was arrest the suspects according to orders, Tun Lwin said. The trio have since been moved to an undisclosed location, according to Tun Lwin, who criticized authorities for arresting civilians on spurious grounds. Other arrests were also reported last month. Taungup Township administrator Lu Maw said local police arrested two alleged Arakan Army soldiers found in possession of 50 walkie-talkies near the towns outskirts on Jan. 9. On Jan. 21, two Arakanese men were also detained in the capital Sittwe by army personnel, according to local media. Another Sittwe resident was reportedly detained a few days later. The Irrawaddy phoned Arakan State security and border affairs minister Htein Linn on Wednesday but was unable to make contact. In March 2015, fighting broke out between the Arakan Army and the Burma Army near Kyauktaw Township in what was believed to be the first time in a decade that ethnic Arakanese armed rebels in the region had clashed with government troops. The following month, at least 20 people were detained under Burmas Unlawful Association Law for their alleged links to the armed faction. The latest skirmishes broke out in Kyauktaw Township on Dec. 27, with at least 200 civilians forced to flee their homes. The Arakan Army is not recognized by the government and has been excluded from the ongoing peace process between Naypyidaw and other ethnic armed organizations. Burma NLD Patronage May Offer Shwe Mann Political Lifeline Given his close ties to Suu Kyi, speculation has mounted over whether Shwe Mann will be handed an influential political position under the new government. NAYPYIDAW When news of his removal from the top post of the ruling party broke last August, most observers assumed Shwe Manns political career was all but over. The former generals fortunes took another hit when he lost in his native constituency of Phyu in Pegu Division in Burmas general election on Nov. 8. However, following the National League for Democracy (NLD)s decisive electoral victory, Shwe Mann has seldom been far from the media spotlight. As outgoing parliament speaker, he attended the opening session of both houses of the legislature this week as well as a training session for NLD lawmakers on Tuesday. He also confirmed on Friday that he arranged the surprise meeting between NLD chairwoman Aung San Suu Kyi and ex-dictator Than Shwe in early December. Although he is no longer in power, U Than Shwe is still influential to some extent. So I arranged a meeting for them for the good of the country and the people, Shwe Mann told reporters in the countrys capital. Given his close ties to Suu Kyi, cultivated during his time as parliamentary speaker, speculation has mounted over whether Shwe Mann will be handed an influential political position under the NLD. Sources close to Shwe Mann suggested to The Irrawaddy this week that the former speaker may be awarded a non-ministerial position, perhaps as head of the Constitutional Tribunal or as chair of the Union Election Commission (UEC). According to official government protocol, the positions are ranked number eight and nine respectively in terms of seniority, with the presidential position occupying first rank. [Suu Kyi] is eyeing the UEC chairmanship for U Shwe Mann, said a high-level official with the UEC. It would be good as he is a man of fairness and does things right. The commission is currently chaired by former general Tin Aye, but he will leave the post when the current governments term ends in March. While the NLDs top leadership appears behind the partys embrace of Shwe Mann, a more formal arrangement may send ripples through the partys ranks. As the former number three in the previous military junta, Shwe Mann would not be easily accepted by many who endured years of persecution. Shwe Mann is alleged to have played a role in planning the assault on Suu Kyis motorcade at Depayin in 2003, during which dozens of her supporters were clubbed to death by regime-backed thugs. NLD central committee member Win Htein admitted to The Voice Daily last week that Shwe Manns past was cause for concern, in part, as there are more than 100 [former] political prisoners among NLD MPs. We have to take their feelings into consideration, he told the local outlet. Another source in the incumbent government said Shwe Mann would make a good fit as head of the Constitutional Tribunal, given his past dealings with the charter in Parliament. The NLD may send him to the tribunal as they are desperate to fix the charter, the source said. The charter of the nine-member tribunal, headed by former Supreme Court director general Mya Thein, stipulates members should be legal experts. Shwe Mann holds a degree from Burmas Defense Services Academy and, according to his official parliamentary bio, was trained as a High Grade Pleader, with the right to practice law. Human Rights Ma Thandar: The NLD Will Put People at the Center of Decision-Making Ma Thandar, the widow of murdered journalist Par Gyi, is a newly elected NLD MP and she spoke about her partys approach in the new Parliament. NAYPYIDAW Less than two years ago, Ma Thandar, a well-known human rights activist who has been imprisoned, lost her husband. The death of Par Gyi, a journalist, while in military custody in 2014 remains mired in controversy and conspiracy. On Monday, Ma Thandar, who has fought tirelessly but in vain to uncover the murky circumstances of her husbands death, turned up for the opening of Burmas new Lower House, as an elected member. Her face covered with yellow thanakaa traditional make-upand her body swathed in the colors of the National League for Democracy (NLD), the MP for Ein Ma Township in Irrawaddy Division, her home town, is a favorite of journalists for her friendly and outspoken manner. Ma Thandar recently spoke to Myanmar Nows Htet Khaung Linn and Thin Lei Win about her hopes, fears and plans as new NLD MP. What is your feeling at this moment as a first-time parliamentarian? I remember my colleagues who together strived for democracy; I appreciate their sacrifices. I expected to reach this goal with them. Along with this feeling and the awaiting challenges for us, we do not feel too happy. We understand we have many responsibilities for the country and people. People voted for us not because of our popularity, but because of their strong resentment against the outgoing government [President Thein Seins quasi-civilian cabinet]. We have to remain very careful in this situation. Do you mean people voted for the NLD as it was the only option they had to bring about change? [The people] have many options for change. However, they have more confidence in the NLD because of its survival through many years of oppression by the previous regimes. They also have more trust in the NLD and our leader Aung San Suu Kyi than the newly elected representatives. It puts pressure on us [new MPs] to do our best for the country. Our faults will impact our party first, and our leader second. So we will have to keep up our policies, and maintain checks and balances on the government. Last years elections were the first free and fair vote since 1962 and Burma now has a democratically elected Parliament, apart from the armys control over 25 percent of seats. Can we say Burma has reached democracy? We can say it is the dawn of democracy. The light is not shining down on us yet. Theres still a lot we need to do. Previously, people were not placed at the center of decisions. So [the authorities] didnt inform the people. They didnt listen to people; it was top-down. The NLDit is also mentioned in our manifestois going to put people at the center of the decision-making. Thats very democratic. However, the public has a lot of dreams. We do too, because we were oppressed for so long. So I worry that people could become upset when they are not realizing their dreams a lot quicker [under the new government]. But because we are putting people at the center, we would inform the public and consult with them and listen to what they have to say and what their needs are. Then we will discuss matters in Parliament and make decisions. During the previous Parliament most laws were proposed by the government and few were based on the peoples will. How does the NLD hope to change that this time? Id use our party manifesto to talk about the partys stance. There are lots of strategies on youths and farmers, and all that. There are provisions for forming independent studentsand farmersorganizations. We canvassed for votes using that manifesto. We need to keep our word. We need to enact laws that will benefit the people, whether they are farmers or students. With a farmer and not the bureaucrats at the table, we would know if a law is beneficial to them or notSo you need to get diverse viewpoints. What this means is that we will have to start with the voices of the people. It might take time, but it would be comprehensive. How do you feel about the level of womens participation in Burmas politics, now that the number of female MPs has increased? Compared to the 4 or 5 percent [the previous number of female parliamentarians], it is an increase, but in reality the current 13 percent is still low. The female population in Myanmar is quite high, so why are only 13 percent of women in Parliament? I think thats quite few. The lack of female participation in politics is an issue that needs to be analyzed. Why are there so few opportunities for women to get involved in politics? I dont think we should be satisfied saying there are now women in Parliament. We should not stop; we should try even harder to get more female parliamentarians like us who will work on it. Do you think its directly related to the stance of the womans family; does their financial situation and attitudes towards womens roles influence participation in politics? Its related to both finances and yi kyay hmu [traditions and culture]. Its not that separate. Culture is something we really need to safeguard, but some traditions that are not in tune with the times and should be discarded. There are many people and families who do not accept women getting involved in politics. As they have to deal with and work with many people, and be out and about at all times. It happens even in educated circles. As long as you cannot overcome these views, there would be few womennot only in the political arena but also in terms of economic participation. In Burma, many women are still dependent on their husbands economically. Does that limit their involvement in politics? I dont want to separate between politics and economy. A woman earning an income is like a woman in politicsyou are out of the house all the time. If you are allowed to participate fully in the economy, then I think you will also participate in politics. I see them as two sides of the same coin. If you can relax this whole attitude that women must be stay-at-home housewives, then youll see women take part in the economy, politics and social affairs. Are you pleased that the interim chairperson who oversaw the opening of the Lower House and the swearing in of the speaker was a woman MP? I am pleased with thatA chairperson is the one that manages the whole meeting and is powerful. Showing that a woman can do this job means a lot to us. Women are usually very thorough. Men have their own strengths and women have theirs too. If you can fully utilize both sets of strengths, it would be perfect and the country would develop. Welcome! You are invited to join Catherine Rivard as she embarks on a journey from imagination to reality as a linguist with Wycliffe Bible Translators in Papua New Guinea Queues form around Singapore to deposit money on 'auspicious' Li Chun SINGAPORE - Scores of people braved the queues forming at banks and cash deposit machines across the island on Thursday (Feb 4) for a shot at improving their fortunes in the new year. The practice of banking in money on Li Chun, which some believe can help grow their wealth and ensure good luck, has caught on in recent years. Also known as Farmers' Day, Li Chun traditionally falls on Feb 4 each year. Joining the winding queue at the DBS Bank in Bedok Town Centre at around 11am, Madam Teo Eng Lee was seen specially clad in a red blouse for the occasion. "I'm a traditional person. By doing this, I hope each year will be better than the previous one. I've done this for about three years now and my life has been smooth so far," said Madam Teo, who is self-employed. The 58-year-old, born in the Year of the Dog, shared that she chose to come at 11am to coincide with her "auspicious" time period. Her family of 10 will also be depositing money at various times of the day, depending on which zodiac signs they belong to. According to different charts circulating online, there are four two-hour windows for people to bank in their cash. For instance, one such chart by shipping company 65daigou claims that those born in the Year of the Ox, Rabbit and Monkey should deposit their cash between 3pm and 4.59pm. Earlier on Thursday morning in Bedok, people were spotted queuing as early as 3am - there was a 3am-4.59am window - to bank in their cash. Retiree Madam Choo, 75, and her husband Michael Lim, 78, were among the early birds at the DBS and UOB bank branches in Bedok at around 10.30am and had to queue for only about 10 minutes. Madam Choo told The Straits Times that she had heard from friends about the practice some years ago and decided to try it out last year and thought the year went by quite smoothly. Mr Lim added: "Chun is the start of spring. I deposited money today because I believe it will give me prosperity for the new year. It's like hoping for a good harvest." Ms Charlyn Tan, a 36-year-old sales administration executive, started queueing at DBS Bank with her colleague, Ms Wong Yen Nee, 29, at around 11.30am. Ms Tan said they expected to wait 45 minutes for their turn. Both had checked for their auspicious timings and brought a specific amount of money based on their zodiac signs for extra luck. "There's no harm in trying. It's not very difficult to do and it's also a good habit to save money," said Ms Tan. Others, however, could not understand the hype over Li Chun. Polytechnic student Lim Jian Hui, 20, who said he found it unusual that there was a queue to deposit money, was made to wait 45 minutes instead of the usual 15 minutes. He had heard about Li Chun from his mother but does not believe in it. "It's just a superstition and I don't think it works. I will probably avoid going to the bank on this day next year to avoid the queue." Some banks, aware of the popularity of the practice, were prepared for the onslaught. A spokesman for United Overseas Bank said the bank had added more staff and services to cope with high demand: "Longer queues were seen at our cash deposit machines after 3pm, as it was the auspicious timing to usher in the year of the Monkey. "To ensure that our customers had a good customer experience, we catered for extra manpower at our branches, and also ensured that cash deposit machines were serviced and emptied to accommodate the extra volume of cash deposits. "There were also special seated queues for pregnant women, the elderly and disabled." Thursday, February 4th, 2016 (10:00 am) - Score 5,368 Pure fibre optic ISPs Gigaclear and Hyperoptic have offered a unique insight into the current challenges with rolling out new ultrafast broadband infrastructure across the United Kingdom, not least in regards to the difficulties of going up against a state aid supported BT and the question of whether or not to separate Openreach. The comments, which have only just been made public, were officially given last month as part of an Oral Evidence session for the cross-party Culture, Media and Sport Committee inquiry into UK digital infrastructure. In attendance at the event were Matthew Hare (CEO of Gigaclear), Dana Tobak (Managing Director of Hyperoptic) and Scott Coates (CEO of the Wireless Infrastructure Group). The debate itself touched on a multitude of topics, although some of the most interesting exchanges involved those that shed light upon BTs dominance in the state aid fuelled Broadband Delivery UK programme, the costs of deploying new infrastructure, frustrations with business rates (aka the so-called Fibre Tax), the challenges with gaining access to use Openreachs physical cable ducts / poles and the question of whether Ofcom should separate BT from control of their national infrastructure arm (Openreach). Gigaclear, which is focused upon deploying a 5000Mbps (5Gbps) capable Fibre-to-the-Premises (FTTP/H) network into remote rural areas, kicked things off by revealing a bit more about their usually demand-led business model (except in BDUK support deployments where they follow a general roll-out). The operator also noted that they intended to raise about 90 million worth of capital this year (a combination of debt and equity) and were already halfway there. Matthew Hare (Gigaclear) said: Our costs are just under 1,000 per property we pass, so our business case is very much based on how much revenue we can generate off that capital investment in order to make a return for our investors. The operating costs of a pure fibre network are considerably less than a copper network because you do not run electricity down a fibre network, therefore when it comes in contact with water it makes no difference at all, it quite happily runs. It is much more robust and of course the technology is modern. Some of the copper network is well over 100 years old, it is just very old, and I know that having seen some of you have rural communities in your constituencies, obviously you know that people literally experience that when it rains their broadband gets worse. However Gigaclear noted that their estimated costs dont always work out as planned. For example, in Kent they originally forecast a cost of 784 per property passed, but it ended up costing them about three times that level, which was largely due to contractors who did poor quality work and this required an expensive fix (we saw some examples last year of shallow trenches etc.). Matthew also took responsibility and admitted that some of the problems were our fault. At this point the conversation turned more towards the Governments state aid supported Broadband Delivery UK project, which has seen most of the related contracts being gobbled up by BT as part of the aim to make superfast broadband (24Mbps+) services available to 95% of the UK by 2017/18. Gigaclear has also picked up a few much smaller Phase 2 BDUK contracts (e.g. Gloucestershire here, Essex here and Berkshire here) and no doubt they hope to grab a few more in the future. Matthew Hare (Gigaclear) said: About a third of the work we do this year in 2016, about a third of the properties we pass will be those that are supported by a grant from BDUK. Two-thirds will be still our commercial investment, where we expect it to be just under 1,000 a property. In the BDUK areas, our costs are considerably higher. If you said that it is roughly 50% more expensive in those areas to build out the footprint that we are proposing to do, that is roughly correct, then you can net off that the value of the grant that we are going to be getting. Our business case, unlike other operators, presumes that we are going to achieve over five years that 60% of those properties will take a pure fibre service from us, either directly or via another operator using our network. So the utilisation that we are expecting of fast broadband is much higher than the assumptions made by other operators. Matthew noted that some local authorities, such as Kent, had been more helpful than others by de-scoping areas from their BT/BDUK coverage plans when Gigaclear confirmed their intention to upgrade through private investment. That has not been the case in other areasso, the second or third network we built was in Rutland and we were almost instantly overbuilt by Rutland County Council and BT with a fibre to the cabinet service, said Matthew. Matthew Hare (Gigaclear) said: My own village in Oxfordshire, Stanton Harcourt, when we told them we were going to build Stanton Harcourt, a year later a BDUK-funded cabinet turned up a year after we had gone live. What is the current guess for BDUK? It cost 38,000 a cabinet. That is 38,000 of money that has been spent in an area that already had ultrafast broadband, where they could have spent that 38,000 in one of the many other villages in Oxfordshire or rural areas in Oxfordshire where they have no upgrade at all. Gigaclears experience is by no means unique, with B4RN (e.g. Dolphinholme in Lancashire) and other alternative network operators often reporting similar experiences. In some examples weve witnessed situations where councils have even been made aware of such plans, often prior to an Open Market Review (OMR), and yet for whatever bureaucratic reason theyve still chosen to allow an overbuild. In this sense Matthew called for any future BDUK Phase 3 funding scheme (this will focus on improving connectivity for the final 5% of UK premises) to ensure greater transparency of coverage, so that altnet operators can easily identify where they can safely invest. I think it would give a much, much better outcome to consumers, whether they are residential or business, if there was complete clarity on what the plan was, even though that plan will clearly change from time to time. But it is not going to change that much in most places, added Matthew. At this point Hyperoptics Dana Tobak chimed in to add that BTs hybrid-fibre FTTC (up to 80Mbps) deployment is a short-lived asset and we would be best served by upping our vision to focus on rolling out pure Gigabit capable fibre optic connectivity (FTTH/P). Mind you if BT did start to focus upon FTTP then that might shrink Hyperoptics niche and make it harder for them to grow. Tobak was also asked about the challenges with gaining access to BTs cable ducts and poles, such as via the somewhat unpopular Physical Infrastructure Access (PIA) product that altnet ISPs often detest due to awkward costs, administrative processes and other restrictions (cant use it for business lines etc.). Dana Tobak (Hyperoptic) said: I know that the evidence given was that there was no industry demand for duct access, which I think is not true. BT has set up an industry group to allow the voice of potential customers; those voices are quite loud and we sit on that table as well. Having access to infrastructure that exists potentially has the opportunity to lower costs, although in the current form it is a very serial process, almost as if you are going through primary school, each and every grade, to get to secondary school. There is no parallel path being taken and it seems like the process was created five years ago potentially to meet a regulatory requirement, but not to make it easy for customers. Another great example from that is that in order to submit your plans you need to send it in e-mail, you are not allowed to give it in any other form. Last year those e-mails could only be up to a maximum of 10 Meg, which limited the size that your plans could be, and we had an issue earlier this year where although we are not allowed to have macros enabled, the form that you were given had macros enabled and you were required to use the form that was given. So this is not a process that is being designed in order to help end customers. Dana was then asked about the often raised question of business rates (tax) on fibre optic lines, which are set by the notoriously complicated Valuation Office Agency (VOA). We usually hide under the desk whenever this one pops up, for fear of brain melt while attempting to read one of the VOAs many perplexing documents. Even ISPs find them hard to understand. In this case the committee were interested in the way taxation can be done and whether it can either enable or inhibit infrastructure rollout. This is often a hot topic among ISPs and so we will include Danas full reply. Feel free to skip it if the word tax brings you out in a cold sweat. Dana Tobak (Hyperoptic) said: We would be in the [scheme] that would pay per metre of fibre. There are two elements to the current approach to the fibre tax that are difficult. One is the rateable value, which is that they have determined the rateable value based upon a survey that was done somewhere in the 10 to 15 years ago range. For example, in London the current minimum rateable value is 3,000. You can get rent a circuit from BT for cheaper than that. That is public information, it is a regulated product, but yet the regime is still based upon pricing from the past. That works very well in an asset that is increasing, but when you have an asset that is decreasing in rates specifically, that is an inappropriate mechanism. The other part is that the tax that you pay is based upon the contiguous length of your network. What we would look to do in the urban areas is look to connect to buildings or look to connect up a street, in which case it would be a very short distance. Under the current regime, for example, a link that connected two buildings that basically goes across a road would cost us 1,500 a year just in the taxes associated with that. We have been having a discussion ongoing for about a month now with the Valuation Office with respect to one link, I think it is about 500 metres, and how much they would charge us for it. That was using the passive infrastructure access, so that was through the PIA duct programme, and we are still waiting for what our tax obligation would be. The difficulty of course is in a model where we might look to do more of that, whether it is through civils or through duct access, it is nearly impossible to build a business model or commit infrastructure spend when we do not know how much we are going to have to pay. Finally the meeting came to the endlessly vexed question of whether or not Openreach should be split from BTs control. At this point we were particularly interested to see what Gigaclear and Hyperoptic had to say, not least because some arguments have suggest that an independent Openreach might focus on FTTP/H and attract investment away from smaller commercial players, which could risk disadvantaging altnets that have only just found a modest foothold. Despite those concerns we note that Dana favoured separation and suggested that Openreach would perform better and from our perspective we would appreciate that. On the flip-side Matthew was a bit more divided: It will probably be slightly better for us from a competitive point of view as a company if they remain part of the BT group because they will maintain their poor performance and underinvestment. [But] from a country point of view [i.e. not in Gigaclears interest] my view would be that an independent Openreach would be much better. Scott Coates from the WIG concluded, There is absolutely no doubt, certainly in our view, that an independent infrastructure company will receive more investment and it will be easier for all the players in the market to access that infrastructure. If you separate out the ownership from one retail player it will be serving all of the customers fairly and evenly in the market. In an entirely separate development we note that Vodafone has today accused BT of loading unnecessary costs on to Openreach, which is supposed to be a functionally separate business. Jeroen Hoencamp, Vodafone UKs CEO, told the FT it was unacceptable that BT loads its Openreach unit with inappropriate costs from other parts of its business, which it expects to be paid for by the rest of the industry and passed on to customers. Vodafone naturally wants to see BT and Openreach being split, although theyre perhaps more self-interested in the business than consumer advantages of such an outcome. Ofcom are currently looking into this issue, although with the current structure it may be difficult to avoid some cross-over due to the technical complexity of how BT Group functions. In some areas it may even make service provision more expensive if resources couldnt be shared. Thursday, February 4th, 2016 (9:04 am) - Score 1,655 As the United Kingdom continues to fight over the coverage of so-called superfast broadband, where download speeds must be greater than 24Mbps (0.024Gbps), Singapore has decided to up its game even further by offering home customers of Singtel a 10,000Mbps (10Gbps) FTTH package! The new service, which somewhat puts the UKs plan to shame, will be delivered over Singtels Next Generation 10GPON (Gigabit Passive Optical Network) platform. On the other hand Singapore is a fundamentally very different market, being effectively one big city-state where the commercial model is much easier to make and any public funding will reach many more people in a shorter space of time. At the same time there are at least some UK providers that can already deliver Gigabit capable broadband packages, albeit with very limited coverage, such as B4RN, Hyperoptic and Gigaclear. In fact the latter is about to start trials of a new 5,000Mbps (5Gbps) service (here). Sadly the national UK picture is rather less impressive. Mr Goh Seow Eng, Singtels MD of Consumer, said: We made a commitment to our customers to bring them the best network innovations, the very latest technologies for work and play. We recognise that residential customers are using greater bandwidth and requiring faster speeds for their online activities. Our 10Gbps Fibre Home Bundle will offer households the fastest fibre broadband experience in Singapore. The service itself will cost S$189 a month (around 92), which obviously pegs it as a high-end premium product, and subscribers will receive the following. Singtels 10Gbps Fibre Home Bundle * 10G Optical Network Router (ONR) * Wireless Dual-Band AC router * NLT installation up to S$235.40 and Singtel * weekday installation worth S$90 * 4G Mobile Broadband 500MB * 24 Month Contract * Complimentary WiFi Mesh Dual Pack worth S$240 Its all very impressive, although in order to get the most out of it youd need computer kit that can actually run at 10Gbps (forget about WiFi). The reality for consumers in Singapore is also one where what is advertised and what consumers can actually use is more of a challenge. Certainly you wont find many domestic Internet content services that could even come remotely close to needing or being able to fully harness a 10Gbps connection, let alone 1Gbps. Heck even finding services that can gobble all of a 100Mbps link is still difficult for the vast majority of people in normal usage environments. At 10Gbps the limits of both ISP network capacity and international network congestion would also become an even greater barrier. Never the less the thirst for speed does occasional overrule practical logic and if you can beat your rivals to the marketing punch then why not. Mind you for the more modest consumer Singtel will give you a 1Gbps unlimited home service for just 24 per month, which is more akin to what we see from B4RN in the United Kingdom. We note that prices for 1Gbps have come down quite a bit in Singapore since more operators began competing over the same service option in 2013/14. Most other ISPs now have a similar package, but Singtel are the first to do 10Gbps. It will be a long time before we see that on a national scale in the UK. A very.. long.. time. The Human Factor: 5 Security Blunders People Keep Making One of the funniest events Ive ever been to was a talk given by a Microsoft executive at the companys Mountain View facility, years ago. About halfway through the talk, his PC, which was showing the PowerPoint presentation, flashed a notice that in one minute it was going to initiate a patch process. There was nothing anyone could do, apparently, to stop this. Right on schedule, sixty seconds later, the huge screen went black and the speaker had to wing most of the rest of his talk while the audience laughed at his expense. Im sure Microsofts IT department got an ear full when he got back to Redmond. But the reasoning behind such a practice is generally to make sure that a critical patch that addresses some vulnerability is in place quickly. Back then, we had hours, if not days, to respond to an attack. Currently, we have something less than 15 minutes, which means we generally need the strongest defense we can muster in place before the attack takes place, and old operating systems are particularly vulnerable. It is highly likely that a successful national-level attack will be most successful on a down-level version of iOS, Android or especially Windows, because of the combination of high numbers and relatively high vulnerability. Vendors clearly have a financial reason to get everyone on current versions of operating systems, because it reduces support costs. And there is a very real reason for the users to upgrade aggressively because of the security risk. Eventually, I expect this will be required by law. Microsoft just moved Windows into this decade by putting in place a more aggressive upgrade process this week for Windows 10. Rather than complaining, like many are, I think it is well past time for this move. I think the griping is likely because Microsoft focused on the what and kind of left out the critical parts of the why. Lets talk about why this is actually a good thing. Its Not ITs Fault: More Institutional Insanity One of the big mistakes that Microsoft made with Windows in the 1990s was to pivot away from users, who drove Microsofts success through Windows 95, and toward enterprise IT, which drove much of the firms strategy after Windows 95s launch. What is still fascinating to me is that Microsoft beat IBMs OS/2 by focusing more on users and then, after winning, not only adopted IBMs strategy but basically rebuilt OS/2. Can you imagine any race where the winner decides after winning that the losers strategy is the one they must adopt? It even put guys out of Digital, a company that failed against IBM, in charge of much of the process. And here is the real kicker: We praised Microsoft for it. It was like we all collectively got stupid. It should have been no surprise, then, that both Apple and Google, by focusing on the user, were able to carve into Microsofts dominance and pretty much take over the market. Though I think it is kind of amazing that Google came up with the enterprise-focused Chrome OS, and Apples big new product is an iPad designed for IT. The idea of putting old operating systems on new products was actually not user driven but IT driven, because IT wanted the simplicity of one platform across all products. Look at user-based products like smartphones, smart TVs and tablets. They never get an old OS on a new product; the OS and the product are wedded and updates are pushed through, whether you want them or not. OS Upgrades: Like Helmets and Seatbelts Now, if you put aside safety, it is easy to argue that a user-focused company should let users run whatever version of the OS they want to run. But we have to consider security now. Much like we force drivers of cars to wear seatbelts and drivers of motorcycles to wear helmets, we have to force operating system upgrades because current code is now a critical part of being able to both better protect against malware attacks and more rapidly deploy patches to better respond to them. Much like IT wanted the same OS on all products in order to make systems easier to manage, a vendor needs everyone at the same code level if it is going to push out a response to a zero-day exploit quickly. The more fragmented the code, the harder it will be to assure that a patch can be pushed out in a timely manner. I am kind of surprised that Microsoft isnt making this argument more forcefully, but I can imagine a time, likely after a cyber attack, when it may be illegal to run a down-level OS, much like it is illegal to drive without a seatbelt or helmet, or to drive while using a personal technology device. Wrapping Up: A Future of Forced Upgrades The world has changed a lot since we first saw PCs. Now we are surrounded by smart devices that automatically get updates whether we want them or not, largely because of a combination of bug fixes and constantly changing security exposures. Recently, the GSA began to put in place policies that force all U.S. government suppliers to aggressively assure all parts of their business from the citizenship and background of workers to the source and content of their software. This will quickly trickle down to every company that is in the supply chain of these firms. But it is very likely that in the next decade, we will face a security problem of national if not global proportions and that will force laws, and vendor liability, that will make keeping platforms current not only more acceptable but potentially illegal to avoid. So two takeaways this week. First, aggressive operating system upgrades will likely eventually be driven by law, and second, adapting a strategy from the firm you just beat is not a policy that results in success. Rob Enderle is President and Principal Analyst of the Enderle Group, a forward-looking emerging technology advisory firm. With over 30 years experience in emerging technologies, he has provided regional and global companies with guidance in how to better target customer needs; create new business opportunities; anticipate technology changes; select vendors and products; and present their products in the best possible light. Rob covers the technology industry broadly. Before founding the Enderle Group, Rob was the Senior Research Fellow for Forrester Research and the Giga Information Group, and held senior positions at IBM and ROLM. Follow Rob on Twitter @enderle, on Facebook and on Google+ Reimbursing physicians for consulting with and monitoring Medicare patients at home could yield significant savings, according to a new study spurred by recently proposed legislation. Medicare fee for service (FFS) already allows reimbursement for telehealth services provided to patients at rural area health clinics, but not from the patient's home. A new bill that has bipartisan congressional support would expand Medicare reimbursement of telehealth consultations and remote patient monitoring (or RPM for the chronically ill) with fewer restrictions from current geographic and service location requirements. The bill, Creating Opportunities Now for Necessary and Effective Care Technologies (CONNECT) for Health Act, is expected to save the federal government $1.8 billion over 10 years, according to Avalere Health, a consulting firm based in Washington, D.C. The telehealth market is expected to reach $6 billion by 2020,according to InMedica, a division of IMS Research. Current law limits telehealth reimbursement to certain clinical sites and rural areas, bans patients from storing and forwarding information to physicians (i.e., via electronic medical records, email and other communications technology), and doesn't reimburse telehealth services from physical or occupational therapists. By removing the latter restrictions, the CONNECT Act would broaden healthcare and reach patients who struggle with access, reducing costs for in-office visits, legislative sponsors of the bill have said. The American Medical Association (AMA) has thrown its support behind the CONNECT Act, saying it will "greatly" improve access to quality care while maintaining patient safety. "This legislation has the potential to remove barriers to new healthcare delivery models that promote coordinated and patient-centered care. Importantly, the bill aims to maintain high standards whether a patient is seeing a physician in an office or via telemedicine," said AMA President Steven Stack. "Telemedicine can strengthen the patient-physician relationship and improve access for patients with chronic conditions and limited access to quality care. The AMA's guiding principles on telemedicine seek to foster innovation while promoting quality care," Stack added. has promptly shut down one of the first apps to take advantage of new ad-blocking capabilities in Samsungs browser. Rocketship apps, which makes Adblock Fast, shared with The Next b a nastygram from the ay Review that details a violation of Section 4.4 of the ay Developer Distribution Agreement: Hi Developers at Rocketship Apps, I reviewed Adblock Fast, com.rocketshipapps.adblockfast, found that it violates section 4.4 of the Developer Distribution Agreement. This particular app has been disabled as a policy strike. st as a reminder, youve agreed to follow the ay Developer ogram licies additional enforcement could occur if there are further policy issues with your apps. If youve reviewed the policies feel this rejection may have been in error, please reach out to our policy support team. One of my colleagues will get back to you within 2 business days. I appreciate your support of ay! Best, [Redacted] ay Review The rule says developers cant build apps that interfere with other applications. This seems like a selective interpretation, given that Rocketship apps is using an official A from Samsung in order to implement the blocker. Additionally, a similar plugin for Samsungs browser is still listed in the ay Store even though it does the exact same thing. Often these decisions get reversed. That could happen here, or it could be the beginning of a general crackdown on ad blockers by . ll definitely keep an eye on how this develops. The story behind the story: The bulk of s business still comes from advertising revenue, so its not tremendously surprising the company wouldnt be too cool with ad blockers. The company brought in $74.5 billion in revenue in the last quarter, driven primarily from its core advertising business. th so much at stake, the company wont be embracing ad-blocking anytime soon. Microsoft has begun to deliver the Windows 10 upgrade to eligible Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 PCs through Windows Update, making good on an October announcement. A company spokeswoman confirmed that the Windows 10 upgrade is reaching customers' systems. More than three months ago, Terry Myerson, the executive who leads the operating system and devices group, said that the Windows 10 upgrade would be pushed to users via Windows Update, the primary maintenance service for its OSes. At the time, Myerson said that the upgrade would first appear under the "Optional" section in Windows Update, then later transit to "Recommended." The difference is more than labeling: In Windows Update, "Optional" is supposed to be just that; customers must explicitly check the box for an item for it to automatically download and install. "Recommended" items, on the other hand, will be retrieved and installed unless the user has changed the default settings of Windows Update. In the past, Microsoft has issued updates and upgrades in that two-step process under which bits first appeared under Optional, then after a month or more -- a span Microsoft used to digest diagnostic data from affected PCs to ensure things worked as expected -- the same update shifted to Recommended, and reached the majority of users. It's unclear whether Microsoft is following the plan it laid out in October: While several prominent bloggers who focus on Microsoft -- including Paul Thurrott and ZDNet's Mary Jo Foley -- said that the Windows 10 upgrade had been deployed as Recommended in Windows Update, there was no explicit evidence that that had, in fact, begun. But the Windows 10 upgrade has appeared under Windows Update's Optional list, according to Josh Mayfield, the creator of GWX Control Panel. The free utility made Microsoft's Get Windows 10 (hence "GWX") upgrade reservation app go away, purged the system of upgrade files, and blocked the automatic upgrade. Mayfield maintains a multiple-PC pool of test machines to monitor how Microsoft promotes Windows 10. Yesterday, he confirmed that the upgrade showed up under Optional on both Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 PCs. "As we saw over the summer, it's listed as an 'Optional' update but automatically selected to install, unlike other updates in that category," said Mayfield in an email reply to questions Tuesday. Mayfield was referring to events that began in mid-September at the latest, when users noticed "Upgrade to Windows 10 Home" or "Upgrade to Windows 10 Pro," in Windows Update. Those items appeared in the Optional section of Windows Update's listing of available patches and fixes. Normally, updates pegged as Optional will not download to a PC -- whether automatically or in a manual check -- until the user has ticked a box. But according to users' reports at the time, Windows Update itself checked the "Upgrade to Windows 10" optional update as eligible for download and installation. Users with Windows Update set to automatically retrieve and install updates -- the norm, and the setting recommended by Microsoft -- or who did not examine the optional update list, were then served with the Windows 10 upgrade, whether they wanted it or not. Microsoft quickly issued a statement saying that the checking of the upgrade's Optional item "was a mistake." Mayfield contended that Microsoft has done the same this week by automatically checking the Windows 10 upgrade box. Under those conditions, it mattered not a whit whether the upgrade was listed under Recommended or Optional: The result would be the same. For the vast majority of users, the upgrade would download -- if it wasn't already on the PC, having been pre-loaded under a long-running campaign to place the bits on customers' devices -- and the installation process would begin. Microsoft has said that users could decline the Windows 10 upgrade once installation began, but has declined to say whether the upgrade starts in all cases, detail how the user authorization process is to play out, and whether -- after a customer declines the upgrade -- it presents itself again later. The company has been little help when asked to clarify exactly what began this week for the Windows 10 upgrade on Windows 7 and 8.1 devices. "We are committed to making it easy for our Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 customers to upgrade to Windows 10," Microsoft said in a statement forwarded by the firm's spokeswoman. "We updated the upgrade experience today to help our customers, who previously reserved their upgrade, schedule[d] a time for their upgrade to take place." In a follow-up email, the spokeswoman did not directly answer questions Computerworld posed, including whether the Windows 10 upgrade was being placed in Recommended, Optional or both. "This is rolling out in a phased approach which is why you are seeing different reports," she said. Mayfield noted that as far as he can tell, Microsoft has honored the registry settings it had earlier said would block the appearance of the Windows 10 upgrade on PCs powered by Windows 7 and 8.1. Those registry tweaks -- made by crafting a Group Policy that could be distributed to large numbers of machines -- were spelled out in a support document revised last month. That means Mayfield's GWX Control Panel will stymie attempts to place the Windows 10 upgrade in Windows Update, as the tool was designed to do. Previously, Mayfield had warned that might not be the case if Microsoft again changed the rules, an increasingly common practice for the company, which, for example, repeatedly issued a Windows 10 reservation app to users who had managed to uninstall it. "If GWX Control Panel reports 'No' for 'Are Windows 10 Upgrades allowed?', then the Windows 10 upgrade doesn't even appear as an option in the Windows Update control panel," Mayfield reported. Those who download and install GWX Control Panel can block the Windows 10 upgrade from appearing by clicking "Disable Get Windows 10 app," and then clicking "Prevent Windows 10 Upgrades." Earlier this month, Microsoft said that it would expand Windows 10 upgrade distribution to include all systems running Windows 10 Home and Windows 10 Pro -- even domain-joined Windows 10 Pro machines in businesses -- that receive their security patches directly from Windows Update. It was also unclear today whether Microsoft is serving the upgrade to domain-joined PCs, which were originally exempt from the push, or only to consumers and commercial systems not connected to a network in which administrators use Active Directory to set access rights. GWX Control Panel can be downloaded from Mayfield's website free of charge, although he accepts donations from appreciative users. Most of the excitement at Mobile World Congress this month will be about 5G, which won't officially exist until 2020. But vendors will also be showing off new ways to speed up the networks people are using now. That means more than 4G, because while LTE gets a lot of press, older services are more common than you might think. Just over half of the world's mobile subscriptions (51 percent) are for 2G service only, according to Tolaga Research analyst Phil Marshall. Almost one-third are limited to 3G, while only 15 percent are 4G. Even in 2020, only 48 percent of subscriptions will be for 4G. Some users are stuck on a slower network because they haven't upgraded to a faster phone, and some of those 2G-only subscriptions are for connected machines that don't need any more speed. But there are a lot of mobile users who could use a performance bump even before 5G comes along. The companies addressing that vast global audience at MWC will include Ericsson and Nokia, two of the world's largest network equipment makers. Ericsson says it can double the performance of 3G WCDMA networks without replacing equipment at cell sites. A new software enhancement it calls Flow of Users gives subscribers a better way of sharing the local site's capacity, Ericsson says. Among other things, it controls how many devices are active on the network at a given time so there are never too many trying to share the cell. That means every user gets higher speed when they're on the cell and can also get off it sooner, making room for the next device in line. Flow of Users usually speeds up service by about 50 percent, and it's part of a set of technologies that can double the average download speeds of 3G networks. A download speed of 2Mbps (bits per second) is typical for 3G, and new enhancements can take that as high as 4Mbps, Ericsson says. The technology is coming in the second quarter of this year. For sites that don't even have 3G yet, Ericsson will be introducing a way for mobile operators to roll it out on existing 2G equipment. What's new is a hardware component called Ericsson Intelligent Antenna Sharing. By reusing most of their 2G gear, carriers can cut the cost of deploying 3G by more than 60 percent, the company says. 4G is getting faster, too. Both Ericsson and Nokia will show off ways they can boost the capacity of LTE networks with new antenna technology and ways of combining multiple frequency bands. Mobile operators can't always get a single band with all the spectrum they need, but with carrier aggregation, part of LTE-Advanced, they can put separate bands together. Carrier aggregation has already led to demonstrations of gigabit-speed LTE. Ericsson has shown 1Gbps with Australian carrier Telstra using five different bands ganged together. Now the company says it can go even faster and do it with just three bands, partly by using antennas that send out multiple streams of data over multiple paths. Those capabilities will also come out in the second quarter. Nokia says it will not only tie two frequency bands together but also let mobile devices use bands from different cells. The Finnish company has demonstrated 4.1Gbps speed with China Mobile and Qatar-based carrier Ooredoo. Like Ericsson, it will be at MWC with more advanced forms of carrier aggregation and beamforming. There will be a twist to one Nokia launch at the show: Most headline-grabbing mobile speeds are for downloads, but Nokia will be combining multiple bands for uplinks. This will let carriers triple the typical speed from the phone up to the network, reaching 150Mbps. High-resolution selfies and cat videos will hit the Internet that much faster. Google is said to be working with Qualcomm to design servers based on ARM processors, which would be a significant endorsement for ARM as it tries to challenge Intel's dominance in data centers. Google will give its public backing for Qualcomm's chips at an investor meeting next week, according to a Bloomberg report Wednesday that cities unnamed sources. If the chips meets certain performance goals, the report says, Google will commit to using them. It would be a big vote of confidence for both ARM and Qualcomm, but if history is a guide then it's too early to say how significant the news really is. ARM won't be the first x86 alternative that Google has rallied behind, and it's unclear if the last effort has come very far. Google A test server board developed by Google with an IBM Power8 processor Two years ago, Google made a big show of support for IBM's Power processor. It was a founding member of IBM's OpenPower initiative, which allows companies to design and build Power servers for use in, among other things, cloud data centers like those run by Google. Google even showed a Power server board it had designed itself. "We're always looking to deliver the highest quality of service for our users, and so we built this server to port our software stack to Power," a Google engineer said at the time. But there's been little news about the partnership since. Google hasn't revealed whether it's using Power servers in production, and last year it made only vague statements that it's keeping its options open. Google is secretive about the technologies it uses, and it might well have plans to use both ARM and Power, but public endorsements don't tell us much, and in the case of ARM it's likely even Google doesn't know for sure. The search giant could have several reasons for showing support for non-x86 architectures. Google probably does want to test Qualcomm's server chips, just as it tested IBM's, to see if a different architecture can shave costs off of running its vast infrastructure. A show of support from Google encourages development of the ecosystem as a whole, including tools and software, which will be important if Google decides to put a new architecture in production. Such statements also serve to pressure Intel, giving Google some price leverage and pushing Intel to develop new, more power-efficient parts -- something Intel has done since the ARM threat emerged a few years ago. There's been a lot of debate about whether "brawny" cores, like Power, or "wimpy" cores, like ARM, are more efficient for cloud workloads. It depends partly what workloads you're talking about, and there are also costs to consider like porting software. Urs Holzle, who's in charge of Google's data centers, once published a paper on the topic titled "Brawny cores still beat wimpy cores, most of the time." But that was in 2010, and the ARM architecture has evolved a lot since then. James Niccolai A test version of Qualcomm's ARM server chip, shown last October Qualcomm disclosed its plan to sell ARM server chips in October, joining rivals like AppliedMicro. It showed a test chip with 24 cores running a Linux software stack, but it still hasn't said when a finished product will go on sale. Derek Aberle, Qualcomm's president, told investors last week that shipments would begin "probably within the next year or so." But he suggested significant sales are still "out a few years." A vote from Google could do a lot to boost its chances. But it's also hard to know where all of this will end up. The only sure thing is that the processor business is a lot more interesting than it was a few years ago. Library bond unanimously approved Voters waited in line for 45 minutes Tuesday to participate in an eight-minute meeting that resulted in the unanimous approval of a $600,000 bond to help renovate the North Road... Ferryboat business told to halt operations The ferryboat company operating from the municipally owned docks at East Ferry is illegally using that space, according to correspondence mailed to business owner Bill Munger. Town Administrator Jamie Hainsworth... A DOGGONE NEW BUSINESS A former business that used to clean peoples clothes is reopening as a groomer to tidy up the fur of those peoples four-legged companions. The defunct laundromat at the McQuades... What is a Jew? Israeli museum attempts an answer JERUSALEMI was on a short visit to Israel and spent time with a friend with whom I have been engaged in a 30-year argument. Elli... When anti-Semitism rears its head, we must be ready to fight it Anti-Semitism is a force that is persistent as well as pernicious. When it occurs, it must be fought both by being confronted in real time... Since 2004 Ce4Less has been an approved provider of social work ceus by the Association of Social Work Boards (aswb.org), through the Approved Continuing Education ACE program. Social workers should contact their regulatory board to determine course approval. What is the difference between Social Work CEU courses and CE credits? The term CEU (continuing education unit) cannot be used to refer to credits earned from ASWB-approved providers. It is simply a matter of terminology. A CE credit for Social Workers is granted on a one credit per one contact hour basis; CEUs, on the other hand, grants one CEU for every ten contact hours. So, if you are used to thinking "Social Work CEU" just substitute "Social Work CE credit". Different state boards have different continuing education requirements. There can also be confusion regarding terms such as home study, distance learning or independent study. To find out what the social work CE requirements are for your state board, just check out the "Find Your Board Requirements & Accreditations" tool above. To see how our home study courses work, you can try our free ethics and boundaries course based on the NASW Code of Ethics. If you are looking for NASW CEs, also check the accreditation information and you will likely see that your social work board accepts courses from ASWB providers. Virtually every state board which accepts NASW continuing education also accepts ASWB CEs. How Do I Take Social Work CE Online? Many Social Workers choose to try out our free ethics course as a way to get a feel for our continuing ed courses. This involves downloading the course material and a copy of the post test. You can then circle the answers for the post test as you read through the CE materials. When you are ready, simply go online, enter your answers, and with a passing score, you can immediately print your certificate of completion. If you are a Social Worker who needs more than a few CEs, you would benefit from our Unlimited Courses option. For only $74.99 you have access to all of our continuing education courses for 1 year from the date of purchase. Give us a try and you will find that earning your Social Worker CEs online from Ce4Less.com is much easier, convenient, and cost effective than attending seminars. We have the classes you need for license renewal. We are the leading online (or homestudy) continuing education provider for busy Mental Health Professionals. M. Lys Hunt, MSW, LICSW has been practicing social work for over 20 years and is licensed in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. She earned her Masters Degree from the Boston University School of Social Work and completed a post graduate fellowship at Boston Childrens Hospital. Her clinical work specializes in the areas of mental health and child and family welfare. She has been a consultant and planner of continuing education for social workers, psychologists, marriage and family therapists, and counselors for over 12 years. US President Barack Obama is taking tech education to a higher level by allotting $4 billion of his 2017's budget for rebooting of the computer education through the "Computer Science for All" initiative. Obama has announced last weekend that the budget is geared towards ensuring that all kids, with special attention to girls and minorities, will be getting the chance to learn the science of computer through his Computer Science for All initiative. Computer Science for All is a three-year initiative that would provide a bdget for all states to train their teachers about computer science, equip classrooms with necessary equipment, and develop classroom materials that would make learning the subject easier. The initiative only lacks the approval from the Republican-led Congress. "In the new economy, computer science isn't an optional skill -- it's a basic skill, right along with the three Rs," Obama said as he announced the plan in his weekly radio address. "9 out of 10 parents want it taught at their children's schools." As of present, only a quarter of K-12 schools offer computer science, with 22 states not considering it as a ticket to achieving a diploma, Obama said. "The initiative is just the latest to help bridge a well-documented tech education gap. In the fewer than 15 percent of all high schools that offered any Advanced Placement computer science courses in 2015, only 22 percent of those who took the exam were girls, and only 13 percent were African-American or Latino students," The White House said. Another part of Obama's plan is to send $100 million directly to school districts to aid in launching several computer science programs. In addition, Obama's plans also include the spending of $315 million in existing funds by the National Science Foundation and the Corporation for National and Community Service on teacher training over a five-year period, which is expected to commence this year. Part of the president's plan also is to call for support from lawmakers, governors, mayors and business and tech leaders. Microsoft has already expressed their willingness to be a part of this initiative. Company president Brad Smith has reportedly told reporters that Microsoft is launching a campaign for their computer science education programs. Westar Energy, a dominant electric company, is planning on deploying unmanned air force in the war on power outages. After obtaining a rule exemption from the Federal Aviation Administration, Westar Energy is serious in using two remote-controlled aerial drones to help in the company's line of work. The drones will search for remote transmission line breaks, storm damages and wind turbine blades inspection. "The abilities with these systems are endless," said Jason Klenklen, supervisor of transmission maintenance and one of Westar's two drone-qualified pilots. "You name it, it can be done with them - anything from aerial inspection of wind turbines to shooting pictures for our communications department." The company is having two quad-copter-style machines that are about 2 to 3 feet across, including the propellers, with a weight of 5 to 12 pounds. They cost around $5,000 to $15,000. However, Klenklen emphasized that these drones are not toys. Meaning to say, if one of the drones' parts get broken, they have to be reported like an actual plane crash. "It's not fun and games when you're doing this stuff," Klenklen said. "It's all seriousness when it comes down to flying them." Despite the inexpensive cost of the drones, the company is still going to spend much as they are going to acquire high-quality sensors and cameras that can help them in having a close-up inspection of utility towers and lines. "It's safer for all involved," Klenklen said. Under current FAA regulations, Westar's drones are only allowed in remote areas and only those who are members of the technical team are allowed to be within 500 feet of the drone when it's in use. "Say there was somebody camping under the line or something like that; we cannot fly over them," Klenklen said. Under requirement from FAA is that commercial drone pilots are to have licenses. These licenses are the same license when piloting a manned aircraft. Most of all, the drones should always be in the line of sight of the operators. Since the biggest challenge has been lifted, Klenklen hopes that the rest of the process can now be done and accomplished in weeks and not months. Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have only been married for 17 months and now sources close to the couple are saying that they're "done". Online reports have recently indicated that the famous celebrity couple have been having marital problems for a while now but it has recently escalated and have become dramatic for both couple. Prior to their marriage, Jolie and Pitt have been together for quite a long number of years that most have even lauded because of the tough expectations in the industry. During their partnership, they have had children of their own as well as adopted children - Maddox (14), Pax (12), Zahara (11), Shiloh (9), and the twins Knox and Vivienne (7). Recently, it has been reported that it may have reached the boiling point. Due to their demanding careers, their time apart has affected their marriage. Pitt is currently shooting a film in Los Angeles while Jolie is working on First They Killed My Father in Cambodia. Are the couple planning on separating their children, too? Sources close to the couple have revealed that they are planning to remain civil for the kids but they won't remain married in the near future. "Brad is ready to move on to the second phase of his life and that no longer includes Angelina", stated the Inquisitr through the website's online post. It was not clear as to why Brad is moving on but news have indicated that it may involve Selena Gomez. Pitt was reported to have had his eye on Gomez for quite some time after being spotted at a party. There has been no official reports for comments coming from either Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie to deny or acknowledge these allegations. However, it was clear that the couple has had their fair share of marital problems when Jolie revealed so in an exclusive interview. Some people yearn for traveling somewhere exotic or new. To start fresh and live in a new place is something expats do. If you're thinking of working abroad, there are 5 top destinations expats go to. In a survey from HSBC, it has been found that European countries like Sweden, Switzerland and Germany are the top 3 destinations for people that relocate for career growth. Out of 21,950 respondents, these are the top three countries that were known best for fostering career growth when it comes to work-life balance, income and job security. Switzerland. The country is known for Zurich and Geneva but it's also known for expats that relocated due to high compensation and stable job security. Sweden. Expats living in Sweden didn't only move for the country's chocolate. The country boasts of its comfortable work and life balance. In the survey, 72% of the expacts have enjoyed living in Sweden. Germany. The income is high in this country's work culture with expats earning over $90,000 annually. Russia. Russia isn't only flexible when it comes to its ballerinas. It is also a popular destination for career development where 62% of expats recommend the country to acquire new skills and work fulfillment. Singapore. This was the only Asian country to make the top 5 list and expats agree that this is one of the best places that has better earning prospects. These are only five out of the many countries available for relocation and work around the world but majority of surveyed expats agree that earnings, livability, career growth and job security are the major factors they consider when working abroad. Unless you're only doing it for the strudel and the views of the Alps, then you may want to consider these five destinations. Just remember to plan carefully and map out what your five to ten year goal plans are. A team of professors, led by Professor Ali Javey of UC Berkeley, have developed a wristband prototype that measures sweat and analyzes its biomarkers to monitor body health. He and his team have developed an integrated system that selectively and simultaneously measures the chemical components of sweat and transmit the data wirelessly to a smartphone. The sensors would collect information regarding glucose, lactate, sodium and potassium levels and calibrate this data based on temperature of its wearers. It is important that this happens in real time because the lactate and glucose sensors' responses can vary with differences in temperature. Since sweat is physiologically rich, this, according to Professor Ali Javey, makes the bodily fluid excretion a valuable fluid to integrate into devices with non-invasive wearable sensors. Professor Javey's team consulted with colleague Professor George Brooks, also from the University of California, Berkeley. Professor Brooks was awed by the invention because the levels of metabolites and electrolytes such a device would mention are vital to a person's health. Studying the effects of exercise on the human body typically requires blood samples. With this new invention of Professor Javey's, the process has the potential to become non-invasive. "Someday it may be possible to know what's going on physiologically without needle sticks or attaching little disposable cups on you," Professor Brooks expresses. The device was explained in the Jan. 28 issue of the journal Nature, and it was tested on many volunteers as they took part in indoor and outdoor activities of up to an hour; activities like bike riding or running on trails. The wireless printed circuit, with silicon components bought off the shelf, is adjacent to the sensors. The team of researchers used 10 chips to take measurements from the sensors, intensifying the signals and adjusting for temperature variations. An app was also developed to send the data from he sensors to smartphones. This device can be fitted onto wristbands or headbands. The band can also be adjusted to monitor and analyze other bodily fluids apart from sweat, and can be used to monitor people with injuries or illnesses. A few professors at UC Berkeley have objected publicly to digital monitoring that the administration claims is for security reasons after a hacking breach was discovered in the computer network of the UCLA medical center last summer in July 2015. The attack potentially threatened the confidential information of 4.5 million patients. The monitoring system was initiated by Janet Napolitano, the president of the University of California. The system consisted of hardware and software in the university's data centers that would monitor data traffic like websites visited, and attempt to discover intruders to the system. Ms Napolitano has also been the former secretary of Homeland Security for the Obama administration. The security program was put in place with little consultation with the faculty and staff, a fact that does not sit well with some professors at UC Berkeley. The dissatisfaction of faculty over this privacy issue might be particularly poignant because of where it is happening: aside from being a top producer of computer science talent, Berkeley has a history as significant structure of the free speech movement that took place in the 1960s. While it may be a commonly known truth that Corporations monitor employees' digital activity, American universities do it differently. Jeffrey MacKie-Mason, the university librarian at Berkeley thinks it is a "pretty settled point that universities go out of their way not to monitor students, faculty and staff." While he admits that security can sometimes overtake privacy, he still thinks an informed discussion is necessary. And he is not the only one: other professors have publicly denounced the method in which this security was carried out initially, particularly citing the lack of transparency. They are protesting specifically to the lack of shared governance and lack of information about, for example, what data is being collected. The professors are worried that the stored private data could lead to traffic logs, that were previously being deleted, to be subpoenaed in court. It could also place restrictions on freedom of academic research on topics that some might consider controversial, like Satan worship. The office of the administration believes that privacy can take second place to security concerns. In a Jan. 19 letter from Rachael Nava, chief operating officer of University of California system to the entire Berkeley faculty and others, Ms Nava stressed the seriousness of the threat they are facing. She also regretted not being able to reveal certain details that would clear up misunderstandings, because the lawsuits regarding the security breach last summer prevents the president's office from disclosing those details. Email Links to our top local news stories of the day, Monday through Saturday. TWO FOLKS: Lowland Hum, composed of Daniel and Lauren Goans, will open for Bombadil at 9 tonight at Krankies, 211 E. Third St. The band has been touring throughout the U.S. since August in support of their sophomore album, Lowland Hum, which includes the popular singles, Odell and Olivia. In September, the band signed with San Diego indie label, Randm Records. Lowland Hum performs updated folk songs that range from the intensely personal in Odell to the globally political in War is Over, all harmony-driven and laden with guitar and keyboards. In order to accommodate the different ways people process information, the duo incorporates visual elements that frame the performance area, hand-bound lyric books and essential oil burners. Admission is $10. Doors open at 8 p.m., and Bombadil will play at 10 p.m. Plugged In Thomas Content offers insight on changes in the world of energy, climate change and efforts to build a greener economy. SHARE By of the Alliant Energy Corp. said Wednesday it has increased the size of the power plant its planning to build near Beloit and has moved to allow other utilities and cooperatives to buy stakes in the project. Madison Gas & Electric Co. and two electric cooperatives would become co-owners of the natural gas-fueled power plant that Alliant is planning to build in the next few years. MG&E would buy 50 megawatts of power from the plant. The Riverside Energy Center would cost $700 million to build and would generate up to 700 megawatts of electricity, Alliant said. Thats up from a 650-megawatt project that has been discussed in filings with state regulators. The state Public Service Commission is expected to decide the fate of the project this spring. Customer groups haven't questioned where the power plant is needed but want the state to place a "hard cap" on how much ratepayers have to pay for Riverside. In addition to MG&E, Alliant also has offered ownership stakes to Adams-Columbia Electric Cooperative and Rock Energy Cooperative, for a total of up to 55 megawatts. According to Alliant, recent construction proposals its received indicate that the Riverside modernization project will be able to achieve greater output than previously expected without increasing the cost to build it. It was that development that prompted Alliant to find other investors in Riverside, the company said. The project was the subject of a high-profile fight last fall when the states largest utility company was fighting Alliant. WEC Energy Group, parent of We Energies in Milwaukee and Wisconsin Public Service Corp. in Green Bay, questioned whether Wisconsin needed a new source of greenhouse gas emissions and said customers would see savings if Alliant bought power from We Energies power plants. After spending billions on new fossil-fuel plants in Oak Creek and Port Washington, We Energies has enough power to meet its own needs so that it doesnt foresee needing to add another power plant before 2024. But WEC Energy dropped its protests in December, after reaching a deal that would allow the Green Bay utility to buy up to 200 megawatts from the power plant. Alliant would be then be given an option to buy a stake in any new power plant the Green Bay utility builds in the years ahead, under their deal. Welcome to Line Danci Read more [...] SHARE By of the BluDiagnostics, a Madison start-up that helps women with fertility problems, has raised $1.2 million of debt funding from 14 investors, according to a filing with federal securities regulators. The company makes an app, called the BluDiagnostics Fertility Finder, that helps women with fertility problems. It analyzes hormones found in saliva and displays the results. BluDiagnostics was formed in 2015 by Katie Brenner, a postdoctoral fellow in biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. It raised $600,000 of the money in January, when it said it was trying to raise $800,000. That goal has been amended to $1.2 million, according to the recent filing. The company earned a high profile among Wisconsin's start-ups in 2015, winning the Wisconsin Governor's Business Plan Contest, the Doyenne Group's 5x5x5 competition and the Pressure Chamber contest organized by the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce. Campaign to replace I-794 with surface street ramps up Bray Architects is moving its headquarters from the Third Ward to an industrial building in Walkers Point that will be converted to offices as part of a mixed-use development. Credit: Bray Architects By of the A vacant Walker's Point neighborhood industrial building, part of a mixed-use development site, will be converted into the new headquarters for a growing Milwaukee architectural firm. The one-story, 10,300-square-foot building, at 829 S. 1st St., was sold to 829 LLC, a group led by Matthew Wolfert, president of Bray Associates Architects Inc., according to state real estate records posted Thursday. Bray now leases space at 173 N. Broadway in Milwaukee's Historic Third Ward. The firm also has a Sheboygan office. The company will team up with Craft Development LLC to renovate the Walker's Point building and will use around 7,500 square feet. The remaining space will be leased to other office users. "We have had our eye on Walker's Point for quite some time," Wolfert said in a statement. "We are committed to Milwaukee, and this building is a perfect fit for our current and future needs." Renovations and site improvements have already begun and are scheduled to be completed by May. Bray's work includes several new schools throughout Wisconsin, such as Marquette University High School's new Henke Center, Port Washington High School and Hartford Union High School. Bray also designed the new Oak Creek City Hall and Public Library at the Drexel Town Square development. Wolfert's group bought the Walker's Point building from Federal Real Estate Holdings LLC for $600,000. The property includes a 17,850-square-foot lot. The building is part of Federal Manufacturing Co.'s former operations near the northeast corner of S. 2nd and W. Walker streets. The properties were left vacant in 2014 when Federal Manufacturing moved to its new Pewaukee facility. Developer Dan Katt in August announced plans to redevelop the properties into a mixed-use project known as Federal Commons. Katt's preliminary plans included converting the building sold to Wolfert's group into a 10,500-square-foot office development. Katt, who operates Craft Development, in December began renovating another one-story former Federal Manufacturing building, 838 S. 2nd St., into a 6,000-square-foot event space known as South Second. That building is west of the property sold to Wolfert's group Saz's Hospitality Group is leasing the property and will serve as the exclusive caterer. The venue, which will accommodate up to 350 guests, is scheduled to open April 1. That $1.02 million project is being financed by Bank Mutual, with a secondary $389,000 loan from Milwaukee Economic Development Corp., a nonprofit business lender. Katt also has proposed a 40-unit apartment building, with four to five stories, to be built on a vacant lot at 822 S. 2nd St. That site is just north of the banquet venue. Facebook: facebook.com/JSBusiness Twitter: twitter.com/TomDaykin Mary Louise Schumacher Art City An online journal about visual art, the urban landscape and design. Mary Louise Schumacher, the Journal Sentinel's art and architecture critic, leads the discussion and a community of writers contribute to the dialogue. SHARE Ruth DeYoung Kohler JMKAC Posed in Eugene Von Bruenchenhein's home, not long after his death in 1983, are, from left, his widow Marie; Ruth Kohler, director of the Kohler Arts Center; and Phil Martin of the Wisconsin Arts Board. Journal Sentinel files Ruth DeYoung Kohler, who has guided the John Michael Kohler Arts Center to an international reputation for expertise in the work of folk, self-taught and vernacular artists, has announced she's stepping down from her post. Kohler, director of the Sheboygan arts center since 1972, will turn her attention toward establishing an Art Preserve, which is being called the world's first major indoor-outdoor museum dedicated to the study and preservation of artist-made environments. Such art environments are generally made by individuals who refashion an entire home or yard into a multifaceted work of art over the course of many years or decades. The most known example in Wisconsin is the home of the late Mary L. Nohl in Fox Point, what is sometimes called the "Witch's House," a site currently being preserved by the Kohler Arts Center. For many years, Kohler took an interest in artists such as Nohl and Eugene Von Bruenchenhein, who might have been otherwise lost to history and who have since become more broadly accepted into the larger art world canon. This research culminated in an important exhibit, "Sublime Spaces & Visionary Worlds" in 2007, which showcased the collection of 30 artist-made environments. It was accompanied by a 450-page book and an academic conference. In more recent years, the Kohler Arts Center has been in the middle of international art world debates about broadening definitions of art. For instance, when Massimiliano Gioni directed the Venice Biennale in 2013, a premier international exhibition of contemporary art, he consulted with the Sheboygan arts center and included work from its collection, which includes rare elements from 30 artist-made environments. Acknowledging Kohler's new role, the arts center's board of directors has named her director of strategic initiatives and director emeritus. The Art Preserve will include a conservation lab and exhibition galleries. The plan is to break ground on a semirural site near the arts center next year and complete the preserve by 2020. The board will conduct an international search for a new director. In the interim, it will work with the center's management team of Amy Horst, deputy director of programming; Kelley Renzelmann, deputy director of operations; and Cynthia Echols, chief advancement officer. Saoirse Ronan (right) is nominated for Oscar for her performance in Brooklyn. Credit: Kerry Brown By of the Here's a guide to what's on the big screen in the Milwaukee area. It doesn't include listings for movies opening next Friday but holding Thursday night screenings, including "Deadpool," "Zoolander 2" and "How to Be Single." As always, all theater information is subject to change. Check with individual theaters for updates. Airlift Not rated (some violence). 124 minutes. Playing:Mayfair Mall. After Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait strands tens of thousands of Indian nationals in the country, an Indian expat leads an effort to get his countrymen to safety. Drama, based on a true story. In Hindi and English, with English subtitles. Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip PG (some mild rude humor and language). 92 minutes. Playing: Oak Creek Budget. In the fourth live-action/computer-animated movie inspired by the novelty-song-turned-cartoon characters, Alvin, Simon and Theodore hit the road to stop Dave (Jason Lee) from marrying his girlfriend and kicking them out. Anomalisa R (sex, nudity, language). 90 minutes. Playing: Oriental. Feeling thwarted by the mundane nature of his life, an author meets an unassuming woman who gives him hope. Charlie Kaufman ("Being John Malkovich") tells an extraordinarily ordinary human tale using stop-motion animation. With voices by Jennifer Jason Leigh, David Thewlis. Oscar nominee for best animated feature. Art & Architecture in Cinema: Goya Visions of Flesh and Blood Not rated. 100 minutes. Playing: Ridge (Thu. only). Film explores the paintings of Spanish master Francisco Goya, including a recent exhibition of his portraits shown at the National Gallery in London. The Big Short R (pervasive language, some sexuality/nudity). 130 minutes. Playing: Fox-Bay, Hillside, Mayfair Mall, North Shore. An eccentric money manager, a young Wall Street banker, an activist hedge fund operator and a former banker bet against the 2000s housing boom in this comedy, based on Michael Lewis' bestselling book about the economic collapse. With Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling, Steve Carell, Brad Pitt. Five Oscar nominations, including best picture, director (Adam McKay), supporting actor (Bale). The Boy PG-13 (violence and mature themes). 97 minutes. Playing: Hillside, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, Ridge, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore, Southgate. A woman takes a job as a nanny and finds out her charge is a life-size doll that's the spitting image of the 8-year-old boy lost in a fire 20 years earlier. Bridge of Spies PG-13 (some violence, brief language). 141 minutes. Playing: Oak Creek Budget. A lawyer who defended a Soviet spy is called on to negotiate a swap of said spy for a U.S. pilot of a spy plane shot down over Russia. Steven Spielberg's based-on-a-true-story thriller, with Tom Hanks and University School of Milwaukee alum Mark Rylance. Six Oscar nominations, including best picture, supporting actor (Rylance). Brooklyn PG-13 (brief sexuality, brief language). 112 minutes. Playing: Downer, Hillside, North Shore, Ridge, Rivoli/Cedarburg. Saoirse Ronan as a young Irish woman in the 1950s who comes to America and falls in love, only to be called back to Ireland and question where her true home lies. Nominated for three Oscars, including best picture, actress (Ronan). The Choice PG-13 (sexual content, some mature themes). 111 minutes. Playing: Hillside, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore, Southgate. A couple succumb to their chemistry, marry and start a family, only to have a tragedy force one to make a decision that will affect them both. Romantic drama based on a novel by Nicholas Sparks, with Benjamin Walker, Teresa Palmer. Daddy's Home PG-13 (language, crude and suggestive content). 96 minutes. Playing: Hillside, Majestic, Menomonee Falls, Ridge, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore. Stepdad Will Ferrell and birth dad Mark Wahlberg try to outdo each other in winning their kids' affection. The Danish Girl R (nudity, some sexuality). 120 minutes. Playing: Mayfair Mall. Eddie Redmayne plays an artist in 1920s Denmark who becomes a transgender pioneer, with help from a supportive wife played by Alicia Vikander. Four Oscar nominations, including best actor (Redmayne), supporting actress (Vikander). Dirty Grandpa R (pervasive crude sexual content, nudity, language, drug use). 102 minutes. Playing: Hillside, IPic/Bayshore, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore. A lewd, crude oldster tricks his straitlaced grandson into taking a raunchy road trip in the hopes of liberating them both. With Zac Efron, Robert De Niro. The 5th Wave PG-13 (violence, language, teen partying). 112 minutes. Playing: Hillside, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, Saukville, South Shore, Southgate. When aliens begin a plan to take over Earth, a girl (Chloe Grace Moretz) joins an armed force training to take them on. Fifty Shades of Black R (strong crude sexual content, some nudity, pervasive language). 92 minutes. Playing: Hillside, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore, Southgate. "Fifty Shades of Grey" gets spoofed by Marlon Wayans, with Wayans as Christian Black, a businessman with particular tastes who takes a girl on a journey of, um, discovery. With Kali Hawk, Mike Epps. The Finest Hours PG-13 (intense scenes). 116 minutes. Playing: Avalon, Hillside, IPic/Bayshore, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, Rosebud, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore. An oil tanker is ripped in half during a killer storm, and a small Coast Guard boat sets out to rescue the survivors. Based-on-a-true-story drama, with Chris Pine, Casey Affleck. (Showing in 3-D at Avalon, Hillside, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, Rosebud, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore; showing in IMAX 3-D at Mayfair Mall.) 45 Years R (language, brief sexuality). 93 minutes. Playing: Downer. Best actress Oscar nominee Charlotte Rampling and Tom Courtenay play a couple about to celebrate their 45th wedding anniversary, but when the body of his former lover is found 50 years after she fell off a mountain, his wife begins to question everything from her husband's past to their future. Ghayal Once Again Not rated (violence). 135 minutes. Playing:Mayfair Mall. After a long stretch in prison, a man finds success as an investigative journalist, and comes to the defense of four teenagers who accidentally record a murder tied to a political heavyweight. Indian action-movie sequel, in English and Hindi, with English subtitles. Goosebumps PG (scary creature images, some rude humor). 103 minutes. Playing: Oak Creek Budget. A teenager falls for the girl next door, but gets on the bad side of her father "Goosebumps" author R.L. Stine (Jack Black) when he accidentally lets loose all of the monsters in Stine's books. Hail, Caesar! PG-13 (some suggestive content, smoking). 106 minutes. Playing: Hillside, IPic/Bayshore, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Oriental, Ridge, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore. Coen brothers comedy about a movie studio fixer who, when the star of a big prestige picture is kidnapped, enlists studio talent to help get to the bottom of it. With Josh Brolin, Scarlett Johansson, Channing Tatum, Ralph Fiennes, Alden Ehrenreich, Frances McDormand, Jonah Hill, Tilda Swinton. The Hateful Eight R (violence, language, a scene of violent sexual content, some nudity). 168 minutes. Playing: Mayfair Mall. In Quentin Tarantino's latest revenge-ish Western, a bounty hunter known as "The Hangman" (Kurt Russell) is ferrying a prisoner (Jennifer Jason Leigh) when the pair find themselves holed up in a mountain shack with six other unsavory types. Three Oscar nominations, including best supporting actress (Leigh). Hotel Transylvania 2 PG (some scary images, rude humor). 90 minutes. Playing: Oak Creek Budget. Sequel to the 2012 animated hit, with Drac a proud but confused grandfather of a half-human baby who's hoping his young grandson will be able to follow in his wing-steps. With voices by Adam Sandler, Selena Gomez, many others. The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 PG-13 (violence, some thematic material). 136 minutes. Playing: Ridge. Katniss Everdeen and friends take the rebellion to the Capitol in the final chapter in the blockbuster action series, based on the second half of the third book in Suzanne Collins' trilogy. With Jennifer Lawrence, Donald Sutherland, Liam Hemsworth, Josh Hutcherson. In the Heart of the Sea PG-13 (brief violence, thematic material). 122 minutes. Playing: Oak Creek Budget. In 1820, the whaling ship Essex battles a mammoth whale with what seems to be a desire for revenge. Based on the tale of the whaling ship whose fate inspired Herman Melville's "Moby-Dick." Directed by Ron Howard, with Chris Hemsworth. Ip Man 3 PG-13 (martial arts violence, brief language). 105 minutes. Playing: Ridge, Southgate. The martial arts master who trained Bruce Lee returns to do battle with, among others, an American developer with quick fists played by Mike Tyson. Third movie in the series, with Donnie Yen as the title character. In Cantonese and English, with English subtitles. Jane Got a Gun R (violence, some language). 98 minutes. Playing: Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Ridge. Western starring Natalie Portman as a woman defending her homestead against some outlaws with the reluctant assistance of a former beau (Joel Edgerton). With Ewan McGregor. Joy PG-13 (brief language). 123 minutes. Playing: Ridge, Oak Creek Budget. Best actress Oscar nominee Jennifer Lawrence plays a woman who sets out to do something for herself and her family and, despite them, pulls it off. Drama based on the story of Joy Mangano, the real-life Long Island mom who invented the Miracle Mop. Directed by David O. Russell, with Robert De Niro, Bradley Cooper. Kung Fu Panda 3 PG (mild rude humor). 95 minutes. Playing: Fox-Bay, Hillside, IPic/Bayshore, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore, Southgate. Po, that free-spirited martial-arts panda, has just taken over the role of instructor when he has to face off against an evil bull that has absorbed the powers of other masters in the spirit realm. Animated sequel with a voice cast including Jack Black, Seth Rogen, Angelina Jolie, J.K. Simmons, Kate Hudson. (Showing in 3-D at Hillside, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore, Southgate.) Les Miserables PG-13 (suggestive and sexual material, violence, mature theme). 158 minutes. Playing: Majestic (Sun., Mon., Wed. only), Ridge (Sun., Mon., Wed. only), South Shore (Sun., Mon., Wed. only). Sweeping, sprawling 2012 adaptation of the beloved stage musical based on Victor Hugo's novel of injustice, faith, directed by Tom Hooper's rendition and sung live throughout by its cast, including Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Eddie Redmayne and Oscar winner Anne Hathaway. The Martian PG-13 (some language, brief nudity). 142 minutes. Playing: Majestic, Oak Creek Budget. A crew aborts its mission to Mars, leaving behind an astronaut believed dead in a massive storm. Only he's not dead, and as he fights for survival and to let the world know he's alive his crewmates and NASA grapple with the realities of rescue. Directed by Ridley Scott, with Matt Damon as the spaceman left behind. Nominated for seven Oscars, including best picture, actor (Damon). Minions PG (rude humor). 91 minutes. Playing: Hillside (Fri.-Sun. only), Majestic (Fri.-Sun. only), Menomonee Falls (Fri.-Sun. only), North Shore (Fri.-Sun. only), Ridge (Fri.-Sun. only), South Shore (Fri.-Sun. only), Southgate (Fri.-Sun. only). Those little yellow, gibberish-speaking characters from "Despicable Me" get their own animated movie a prequel, in which they seek a supervillain to follow. Mustang PG-13 (mature themes, sexual content). 97 minutes. Playing: Times. In Turkey, five teenage sisters are, for all purposes, imprisoned in their home, facing a future of housework and being married off to men of their parents' choosing unless they can find a way to rebel. In Turkish with English subtitles. Oscar nominee for best foreign-language film. The Oscar Nominated Short Films: Animation Not rated (some mature themes). 86 minutes. Playing:Oriental. Program includes the Russian tale "We Can't Live Without Cosmos"; "Bear Story," from Chile; "Prologue," a tale of two ancient warriors made in Britain; "World of Tomorrow," an American sci-fi tale in which a girl sees the future, darkly; and "Sanjay's Super Team," a Pixar short about a first-generation Indian American blending his family's spiritual roots with his superhero obsessions. The Oscar Nominated Short Films: Live Action Not rated (some mature themes). 107 minutes. Playing:Oriental. Live-action short film nominees in this program include "Ave Maria," in which nuns at a convent on the West Bank try to help a family of Israeli settlers, even though the nuns have taken a vow of silence and the Israelis can't use the phone on the Sabbath; "Day One," in which an Afghan-American woman joins the U.S. military and, sent to Afghanistan, must bridge several cultural gaps; "Shok," in which two young boys in Kosovo in 1998 must make some life-or-death decisions; "Stutterer," about a man in an online relationship who's worried about how his speech impediment will change things once he meets his connection in person; and "Everything Will Be Okay (Alles Wird Gut)," a German drama about a father and daughter taking a fateful journey. The Peanuts Movie G. 94 minutes. Playing: Oak Creek Budget. Charlie Brown, Snoopy and friends are back in this computer-animated installment, fighting familiar fights, including Charlie's sports-related futilities and Snoopy's duel with the Red Baron. Point Break PG-13 (violence, some sexuality, language, drug material). 113 minutes. Playing: Oak Creek Budget. Remake of the 1991 Keanu Reeves-Patrick Swayze action movie, about an undercover cop who infiltrates a crew of calculating extreme-sports bank robbers. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies PG-13 (violence, gore, brief suggestive material). 108 minutes. Playing: Hillside, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore, Southgate. Big-screen adaptation of Seth Grahame-Smith's parody mashup of zombie fightin' and Jane Austen's beloved novel "Pride and Prejudice," in which prideful Elizabeth Bennet is a shrewd zombie-killer, wrestling with her feelings for the dashing and deadly Mr. Darcy. With Lily James, Sam Riley. The Revenant R (violence, some gore, a sexual assault, language, brief nudity). 156 minutes. Playing: Avalon, Fox-Bay, Hillside, IPic/Bayshore, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore. An explorer and hunter in the American wilderness of the 19th century, left for dead by his companions after being attacked by a bear, sets out for revenge. Historical drama by Oscar-winning director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, with Leonardo DiCaprio as the woodsman and Tom Hardy as his former pal turned target. Nominated for 12 Oscars, including best picture, director (Inarritu), actor (DiCaprio), supporting actor (Hardy). Ride Along 2 PG-13 (violence, sexual content, language, some drug material). 101 minutes. Playing: IPic/Bayshore, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, South Shore, Southgate. Kevin Hart and Ice Cube are back brothers-in-law-to-be, now and back on the case when they're sent to Miami to track down a drug kingpin. Sequel to the 2014 action comedy, directed by Tim Story, co-stars Olivia Munn, Ken Jeong. Room R (language). 118 minutes. Playing: Majestic, Oriental, Saukville, Showtime. A woman and her young son make a universe for themselves in a tiny space, but liberation offers challenges of its own. Based on the bestselling novel of the same name, with Brie Larson as the protective mother and Jacob Tremblay as her son. Four Oscar nominations, including best picture, director (Lenny Abrahamson), actress (Larson). Sisters R (pervasive crude content and language, drug use). 118 minutes. Playing: Oak Creek Budget. Tina Fey and Amy Poehler play a pair of 40-something sisters who find out their parents are selling their childhood home and decide to give their past a send-off with one last, wild house party. Spectre PG-13 (violence, some disturbing images, sensuality, language). 148 minutes. Playing: Oak Creek Budget. After receiving a blast from his past, James Bond sets off on his own to break a mysterious crime organization that could be the source of all of his troubles. No. 24 in the franchise, with Daniel Craig as 007 and Christoph Waltz as his nemesis. Spotlight R (some language). 128 minutes. Playing: Downer, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls. Journalists at The Boston Globe dig into the story of a priest facing accusations of sexual abuse and discover a bigger conspiracy within the Catholic Church and Boston's power elite. With Michael Keaton, Kenosha native Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams, John Slattery, Liev Schreiber. Six Oscar nominations, including best picture, director (Tom McCarthy), supporting actor (Ruffalo), supporting actress (McAdams). Star Wars: The Force Awakens PG-13 (fantasy/action violence). 136 minutes. Playing: Hillside, Majestic, Mayfair Mall, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore, Southgate. Thirty years after the events of the first "Star Wars" trilogy, the rebellion is in trouble, a dark organization called the First Order is on the rise, and old warriors are in the fight. The seventh movie in the series has some new faces, including Daisy Ridley, John Boyega and Adam Driver, and some old friends, including Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher. Nominated for five Oscars. (Showing in 3-D and IMAX 3-D at Mayfair Mall.) 13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi R (pervasive combat violence, gore, language). 144 minutes. Playing: Hillside, Majestic, Menomonee Falls, North Shore, Ridge, Saukville, Showtime, South Shore. When the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya, is attacked, a unit of former military men turned private security contractors for the CIA has to decide whether their mission includes rescuing the diplomats. Action movie based on a bestselling account of the attacks, directed by Michael Bay. Written and compiled by Chris Foran. For more on the movies, go to jsonline.com/movies. THEATER GUIDE Avalon(Neighborhood Theater Group): 2473 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., (414) 539-6678 Downer(Landmark): 2589 N. Downer Ave., (414) 962-3120 Fox Bay(Cinema Grill): 334 E. Silver Spring Drive, Whitefish Bay, (414) 906-9999 Hillside(Marcus): 2950 Hillside Drive, Delafield, (262) 646-7300 IPic/Bayshore: 5800 N. Bayshore Drive, Glendale, (414) 963-8779 Majestic(Marcus): 770 N. Springdale Road, Brookfield, (262) 798-4099 Mayfair Mall(AMC): 2500 N. Mayfair Road, Wauwatosa, (888) 262-4386 Menomonee Falls(Marcus): W180-N9393 Premier Lane, Menomonee Falls, (262) 502-9070 North Shore(Marcus): 11700 N. Port Washington Road, Mequon, (262) 241-6180 Oak Creek Budget(Marcus): 6912 S. 27th St., Oak Creek, (414) 761-7469 Oriental(Landmark): 2230 N. Farwell Ave., 276-5140 Ridge(Marcus): 5200 S. Moorland Road, New Berlin (262) 797-0889 Rivoli/Cedarburg: W62-N567 Washington Ave., Cedarburg, (262) 377-1010 Rosebud(Neighborhood Theater Group): 6823 W. North Ave., Wauwatosa, (414) 763-7975 Saukville(Marcus): 350 S. Riverside Drive, Saukville, (262) 268-9455 Showtime(Marcus): 8910 S. 102nd St., Franklin, (414) 425-2600 South Shore(Marcus): 7261 S. 13th St., Oak Creek, (414) 768-5960 Southgate(Marcus): 3330 S. 30th St., (414) 672-5111 Times(Neighborhood Theater Group): 5906 W. Vliet St., (414) 763-1763 Hip-hop duo Macklemore & Ryan Lewis perform at the Raves Eagles Ballroom on Friday. Credit: CJ Foeckler SHARE By of the Every Thursday at 8 a.m. on WYMS-FM (88.9), RadioMilwaukee program director Jordan Lee and I talk about shows to see, local music you'll love and more on "TAP'd In." But in case you missed it on air, you can hear the latest episode below. This week Jordan and I look ahead to three different live music highlights happening in Milwaukee this weekend, starting with Macklemore & Ryan Lewis at the Rave's Eagles Ballroom Friday. The independent hip-hop duo became surprising stars thanks to huge hits like "Thrift Shop," and also generated plenty of polarizing opinions along the way. We also talk about the fourth annual Mitten Fest, taking place outside Burnhearts, and make the case for why you should spend your Saturday freezing outside listening to live music. And then there's the third annual Milwaukee Gospel Jubilee at Turner Hall Ballroom Friday night, once again raising money for Progressive Community Health Centers. Check out our Sound Check session with one of the groups on the bill, the Voices of Faith. This image provided by Mini USA shows a still from the companys Super Bowl 50 Defy Labels ad spot featuring tennis star Serena Williams, one of several celebrities featured in Mini USAs Super Bowl spot. Credit: Associated Press By of the Most of the ads scheduled to run Sunday during Super Bowl 50 are already online. That means they're just like any other television programming: available to watch when you want, not when they air. It also means some already are targets for criticism. An ad for Apartments.com, in which Jeff Goldblum sings the theme from "The Jeffersons" while being hoisted on a piano above a high-rise, includes a glimpse of rapper Lil Wayne on the roof of the building, grilling with a man dressed as the first U.S. president. "Wait a minute," Goldblum says. "Is that George and Weezy?" as in, George and Louise Jefferson, from the popular sitcom. TMZ.com reported this week that some have criticized the spot because it has the rapper, whose nickname is Weezy, cooking for George Washington, a slaveholder. Odder than that is the NFL's "Super Bowl Babies" spot, inspired by "data" that suggests that, nine months after a Super Bowl victory, winning cities see a rise in births. In the ad, people young and old all born nine months after a Super Bowl sing a rewritten version of Seal's "Kiss From a Rose." The 1967 "Super Bowl Babies," of course, wear Packer green and gold. Here are 20 of the ads running during Super Bowl 50 that are available online. Celebrities Kia:A man in beige steps into his walk-in closet and discovers it's actually a Walken closet where actor Christopher Walken talks him into following a more colorful path. Squarespace:Comedians Key and Peele as their sportscaster characters Lee and Morris talk up the values of using the website company to launch your dreams. Budweiser:For Anheuser-Busch's obligatory "drink responsibly" spot, Helen Mirren gives a no-nonsense lecture: "If you drive drunk, you simply put are a shortsighted, utterly useless, oxygen-wasting, human form of pollution....So stop it." Mini USA:Expectation-busting notables from Serena Williams ("it's a chick car") to 6-foot-11-inch Hall of Fame pitcher Randy Johnson ("it's a small person's car") check out the new Mini. Skittles:Steven Tyler uses the candy and his shattering falsetto to "rock the rainbow." Bud Light:Seth Rogen and Amy Schumer launch a political party based on something everyone loves: beer. "America has seen the light," Schumer says in one speech. "And there's a Bud in front of it," Rogen adds. Shock Top:Comic actor T.J. Miller trades trash talk with an orange-slice beer-tap handle while downing Anheuser-Busch's wheat beer. T-Mobile:Rapper Drake is oddly cheerful about all the changes a bunch of cellphone company executives want to make to his song something, apparently, T-Mobile would never do. Hyundai I:Everything's awesome, and dreamy, in Ryanville, where every guy looks like actor Ryan Reynolds and your car knows when to stop even if you're distracted. Hyundai II:Kevin Hart lets his daughter's new beau use his Hyundai because the vehicle's Car Finder will let him keep tabs on everything that happens on their date. Snickers:Appleton native Willem Dafoe joins the roster of grouchy celebs as the "before" to Snickers' better-mood "after." In this one, Dafoe is Marilyn Monroe, irritated by making the billowing-skirt scene in "The Seven Year Itch." Animals (and Vikings) Budweiser:A Clydesdale goes into a grocery store and talks a very confused guy into buying a 12-pack of Bud instead of a microbrew. Heinz:Wiener dogs, dressed in hot dog costumes, run across a field toward people dressed as ketchup bottles. All to Harry Nilsson's "Without You." Honda:A flock of sheep croon Queen's "Somebody to Love" which they learned from the cool sound system of their owner's 2016 Honda Ridgeline. Doritos:A pack of dogs will do anything to get into a store to buy some Doritos, including the old dogs-standing-on-each-other's-shoulders-dressed-as-a-human trick. Death Wish Coffee:The small New York coffee company, which boasts that its brew is the strongest, won a free Super Bowl ad in a contest run by Intuit QuickBooks. From the ad, it seems their coffee tastes like...Vikings. Back to the future Avocados from Mexico:A museum in space includes displays of inexplicable Earth wonders, from Scott Baio to avocados from Mexico. LG:Liam Neeson is an emissary from the future, out to safeguard...a new giant glass-screen TV from LG. Pokemon:Young people from around the world inspire each other with their skills, leading up to a Pokemon master entering the arena. Acura:The new Acura NSX gets a turbocharged boost from "Tron"-like visuals and Van Halen's "Runnin' With the Devil." Vote for a winner Vote for your favorites among these Super Bowl commercials at jsonline.com/tv. You can find the videos online at jsonline.com/tv as well. Bob Birmingham, 90, of Greendale holds a picture of himself when he was a World War II nose gunner and bombardier in a B-24. Credit: Mark Hoffman By of the Bob Birmingham was in the back of his B-24 bracing for impact when he heard the last two engines quit and the pilot tell everyone to jump. That's when he realized his parachute was not clipped to his harness. He had forgotten it in the nose turret. Eyes wide, he began running along a very narrow catwalk over the open bomb bay doors to retrieve the one item he needed to live. Seeing the panic-stricken Birmingham, the pilot grabbed a spare chute from the radio compartment, clipped it on and "I rolled out. It was almost instantaneous," Birmingham, 90, recalled this week at his Greendale home. It was also the event that, more than a half-century later, would land Birmingham in a documentary on Swedish television a documentary showing here this month. It was Jan. 17, 1945, in the final months of World War II, and Birmingham's fifth bomber mission. He had celebrated his 19th birthday five weeks earlier. It was a time when fresh-faced teenagers like Birmingham were forced to grow up in a hurry. He didn't attend his graduation ceremony at Pius XI High School; he was drafted during his senior year. His diploma was mailed to him. He chose the Army Air Corps because he wanted to be a pilot. "But the Army tells you whatever they want. They send you where they need you," Birmingham said. "They needed gunners. I found out my whole class was told they'd become pilots and we were all gunners." What turned out to be Birmingham's last mission was to bomb an oil refinery in Hamburg. He was the nose gunner and bombardier, with orders to release his plane's bombs when he saw the lead plane the only aircraft with a valuable Norden bomb sight drop its payload. But the sky was black with smoke from exploding anti-aircraft shells and Birmingham couldn't see. Moments after he flipped the toggle switch to drop the bomb load, Birmingham felt a big bump and the sound of two of the B-24 Liberator's engines cut out. An anti-aircraft shell had shot through the open bomb bay door and lodged in a fuel tank. It didn't explode, but fuel was leaking. With only two working engines, Birmingham's plane fell behind the rest of the squadron as it turned back to England. All of a sudden, they were alone over Germany, a slow-flying duck vulnerable to any German fighter pilot. The crew knew they couldn't return home, so they headed north with the hope of making it to German-occupied Denmark or neutral Sweden. For 21/2 hours they flew, their hearts in their throats, jettisoning anything that wasn't essential, including all the guns, to lighten the load. They finally reached Sweden as the captain prepared to crash-land. But at about 2,000 feet, the last two engines quit and the pilot gave the bailout order. As soon as Birmingham tumbled out, he reached for the rip cord. Except he couldn't get his thick-gloved hand into the handle. Over and over he tried to grab and pull on it as he plummeted toward terra firma. Finally, he tore off his glove and pulled. A few seconds later, he landed in a tree, about 30 feet from the ground, unharmed. When the B-24 crashed, villagers flocked to the site. Among them was 10-year-old Nils Nilsson, who hopped on his bicycle to see the American airmen. Decades later, Nilsson's son Jan-Olof, who grew up hearing the stories of the hundreds of Allied airmen who crash-landed into Sweden, tracked down Birmingham and the rest of the crew. He wrote two books in Swedish and filmed a 2014 documentary featuring Birmingham, "Lucky Strike: When the Americans Came to Our Village." "Sweden was totally isolated during the war because we were neutral. It was like the world coming to the village," Jan-Olof Nilsson said. "These guys dropping down from the sky was so spectacular. They had chocolate and chewing gum they gave to the kids. They taught the girls how to jitterbug." Birmingham, who was detained in Sweden until the end of the war, is still a bit amazed that he is in a documentary shown on Swedish television. The subtitled film will be screened Feb. 13 in Greendale as a fundraiser for the Greendale Veterans Memorial. Birmingham and Nilsson will attend the screening. "I'm 90 years old, and I'm in a movie," said Birmingham. IF YOU GO "Lucky Strike: When the Americans Came to Our Village" will be shown at 1:30 p.m. Feb. 13 at St. Alphonsus Community Room, 6060 W. Loomis Road, Greendale. Tickets are $25, and are available at the Greendale Visitors Center, 5602 Broad St.; Greendale Public Library, 5647 Broad St.; and Broad Street Coffee Co., 5635 Broad St. ABOUT THIS FEATURE This Is Us is a recurring feature in the Green Sheet, with stories on the people, places and things reflecting the spirit and heart of our community. SHARE By of the A person who called in a bomb threat to the Manitowoc County Sheriff's Office Wednesday night proclaimed, "Justice for Steven Avery," a reference to the convicted killer at the center of a Netflix documentary, according to Manitowoc police. A bomb-sniffing dog was brought to the scene, however no explosive devices were found and the sheriff's office, courthouse buildings and the surrounding area were deemed all clear, police said. The Netflix documentary series "Making a Murderer" has renewed debate over Avery's guilt in the killing of 25-year-old photographer Teresa Halbach in 2005 in Manitowoc County. Avery, now 53, was sentenced to life in prison for Halbach's death. He had previously been released from prison after 18 years for a rape that DNA evidence showed was committed by another man. SHARE By of the A 17-year-old described by prosecutors as one of the most prolific carjackers in Milwaukee who "absolutely terrorized the community" was sentenced Wednesday to eight years in prison. Dante Scott of Milwaukee was the fourth person convicted in adult court of taking part in a dizzying spree of armed robberies and carjackings in 2014. The crew, known as the Hot Boys, was responsible for "urban terrorism," said Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Dennis Cimpl, who also gave Scott six years of extended supervision. "The public is up in arms," Cimpl said. "It's not stopped despite the fact that the Hot Boys are all in prison....Every day, I pick up the newspaper or see on TV another stolen car, another police chase (or) kids dying in cars." Scott's lengthy history of police contacts began with a battery in September 2011 when he was 13. It continued through last week, when police overheard him on a jail phone call threatening to cause fights at the Milwaukee County Jail, where he currently was housed, and Lincoln Hills School for Boys, where he had spent time last year. In another jail phone call detailed in court, Scott told his mother: "They givin' (expletive) who doing carjackings and armed robberies, this (expletive) plead to two years in, four years out. And it's Cimpl's sentence." Cimpl, in fact, had sentenced Scott's three co-defendants to between eight and 14 years in prison. Scott apologized for his actions in court. His attorney, Russell Dennis Bohach, said Scott needed time to develop and mature. The court also heard about Scott's background: He is the second oldest of six children. He has a low IQ, struggled in school, was bullied and began smoking marijuana when he was 13. In 2006, his 13-year-old neighbor, Candace Moss, was killed shot in the chest when a group of teens opened fire on a man in retaliation for a prior shooting and hit her instead. After her death, Scott developed sleep problems and had a hard time sitting still, according to court reports. Scott was first placed on probation in June 2012 after he was found delinquent of disorderly conduct while armed with a BB gun, according to the risk assessment. Several times that year, Scott was linked to stolen cars through other suspects or his fingerprints, but didn't pick up any new charges. He also was taken to the mental health complex on an emergency detention order after threatening to kill police officers. In September 2013, when Scott was at Lad Lake residential treatment center, he threatened to shoot a staff member and was disruptive during class. He was charged in that case and went before Cimpl, who at the time was a judge in Children's Court. "I dismissed that case on Oct. 16, 2013," Cimpl said Wednesday. "Why did I dismiss it? Because mom came down and said 'Judge, I'm getting him out of Milwaukee.'" Cimpl said Wednesday that had he known the details of Scott's prior brushes with the law, he would have questioned why the teen hadn't been charged in those crimes before dismissing that case. "That's the way your whole career has been," Cimpl told Scott on Wednesday. "They never charged you with it because the district attorney's office has a policy which is frankly the right policy they don't charge somebody unless they can prove it beyond a reasonable doubt." Scott was sent to Texas to live with his grandmother but he returned to Milwaukee by the following spring. In May 2014, his fingerprints were found on a stolen vehicle, but no charges were filed. Later that month, he was charged with disorderly conduct after threatening to kill Milwaukee officers inside the District 4 police station. He was placed on probation in July 2014 in that case, which was heard by another judge. That month, police found his fingerprints on another car. When it comes to stolen cars, prosecutors have said they need to prove the thief knew the car was stolen and prove the car was driven in the jurisdiction of the court. Finding the thief with the keys or matching fingerprints to a suspect is useful evidence, but not enough to secure a conviction on its own, according to prosecutors. In court Wednesday, Cimpl highlighted what he perceived as the failure of systems police, prosecutors, probation and courts to communicate with each other about Scott. "We can't do anything when we don't have the information," Cimpl said. However, a Milwaukee police spokesman said Wednesday that information about Scott and other offenders on county probation was shared during collaborative meetings that included representatives from county level juvenile probation and the Milwaukee County district attorney's office. SHARE By of the Milwaukee election officials are seeing an unexpected surge in early voting for the Feb. 16 spring primary. More than 400 people cast ballots in the first three days of early voting, which began Monday. That number is typically closer to about 30 people, said Neil Albrecht, executive director of the city's Election Commission. There were 150 people who voted Monday, 76 on Tuesday, 90 on Wednesday and 86 on Thursday, he said. "We just don't usually see this level of voter interest in early voting in a spring primary," he said. The spring primary in the city of Milwaukee includes the mayor's race, where incumbent Mayor Tom Barrett faces three challengers, and seven of the 15 Common Council races. It also includes races for the state Supreme Court and Milwaukee County executive. Despite the apparent explosion of interest in early voting, there's also been some confusion around it. Albrecht said the state's voter ID law, which took full effect this year, has some voters unsure about what they need to do to be able to cast their votes. "If early voters represent any sampling, we know there is a good amount of voter education that needs to be done," he said. Early voting continues for the primary until Feb. 12. This week, state election officials launched a campaign to educate Wisconsin residents about the voter ID law, which requires voters to show photo identification at the polls. The state's voter ID law is now in effect after the last of a string of lawsuits was resolved. The website for the campaign is BringIt.Wisconsin.gov, and voters can call a toll-free number, 866-VOTE-WIS, for more information. People can also check out MyVote.Wisconsin.gov to find out whether they are currently registered to vote, where to vote and what will be on the ballot. "Voter ID is back and voters need to be prepared to bring their IDs to the polling place," said Kevin Kennedy, director and general counsel of the state Government Accountability Board. "The campaign's message is that most people already have the ID they need to vote. If they don't have one, they can get a free ID for voting at the (Division of Motor Vehicles) even if they don't have some documents like a birth certificate." Anyone who doesn't have an acceptable photo ID to vote should start taking steps immediately to get one, he said. There are some exceptions to the photo ID requirement, such as for absentee voters who are active-duty military or who have difficulty getting to the polls because of age, illness, infirmity or disability. Wisconsin's voter ID measure was passed in 2011 and was in place for one election a low-turnout primary in February 2012 before it was blocked by a judge. The law remained blocked as four challenges to the law two in state court and two in federal court were considered. In 2014, the state Supreme Court and U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the law and in 2015 the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the issue, allowing the law to be implemented. Patrick Marley of the Journal Sentinel staff contributed to this report. Photo ID to vote Voters who have moved or changed their names need to re-register to vote. Those wishing to register to vote need to bring a proof of residence document, as Wisconsin law no longer allows a "corroborating witness" to provide proof of residence. Documents that can be used as proof of residence include a current and valid Wisconsin driver's license or ID card, real estate tax bill or receipt for the current or previous year, utility bill or bank statement. Other proof of residence documents that may be used can be found here. Members of the public comment at the Jan. 11 meeting of the Wisconsin Public Records Board in Madison, at which the board rescinded changes it made in August in state policy for retaining so-called transitory records. Credit: Michael Sears By The last six months have been a roller coaster for Wisconsin's open records law. After the Legislature's failed attack on the law over the Independence Day holiday, August brought a new threat. A little-known state board expanded the definition of "transitory records," which can be immediately destroyed. Once this action was revealed, there was an impressive outcry from the public and that change was dialed back last month. But there still is cause for concern. The state Public Records Board sets retention schedules for state and local government records. Retention is important if records aren't retained, they can't be requested and obtained by the public. State law makes retention the rule, and records can be disposed of only if the Public Records Board grants permission. The board's mandate is to "safeguard the legal, financial and historical interests of the state in public records." But in 2010, the board made the questionable decision to allow immediate deletion of some correspondence. Such "transitory records" were deemed of such temporary value as to not require any retention. State agency employees could simply delete these records after they were created, without any further oversight. On August 24, 2015, the board held a meeting and expanded the transitory records category. Now it included not just correspondence, but other documents such as "interim files" and "recordings used for training purposes." The board's meeting notice and minutes contained no indication of this change, later prompting the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council to file an open meetings complaint with the district attorney. The day after the new definition was passed, the Walker administration notified the Wisconsin State Journal that records it previously requested already had been destroyed as "transitory." News outlets then reported the Public Record Board's actions, and the reaction was swift. Critics said the change undermined the records law and the public's right to know, inviting abuse. They pointed out that records the board defined as "transitory" were actually of significant public interest. There were also concerns that whole categories of electronic communications would be deleted as "transitory." The Public Records Board was flooded with nearly 1,900 emails. Fortunately, the board listened. At a meeting in January, it rescinded its August decision to expand the definition of "transitory records." But the danger has not passed. The old, 2010 definition of "transitory records" is still in place. Records custodians can still immediately delete some correspondence. Comments from board members in January suggested they are resistant to eliminating this category, despite state law suggesting that no records can be instantly deleted. Board President Matt Blessing said the issue would be revisited at a future meeting. The board next convenes on March 7. Another positive step is a bill being circulated by Democratic lawmakers that would create penalties for destroying public records. As Assembly Minority Leader Peter Barca observed, "There's no recourse if agencies destroy records." The bill would shore up existing provisions in the law that deter premature destruction of public records. Let's hope one or both of these potential fixes advance. Otherwise, Wisconsin's weak records retention requirements will continue to undermine the public's right to know. Christa Westerberg is an attorney at Bender Westerberg LLC in Madison, and co-vice president of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council. Credit: Journal Sentinel files SHARE By Last fall, I listened as a mother named Cary Dixon told her family's story at a forum I convened in West Virginia. It was heartbreaking. Cary's adult son has struggled with a substance use disorder for years, and she described the pain that families like hers have gone through. "We dread the next phone call," she said. "We don't take vacations for fear of the next crisis. We come back from vacations because there's a crisis." Cary and her family are far from alone. As the use of prescription drugs has increased over the past 15 or 20 years, so has their misuse as well as the wreckage caused by other opioids such as heroin. In fact, four in five heroin users started out by misusing prescription drugs, and then switched to heroin. As a consequence, between 2002 and 2013, the rate of heroin-related deaths in America nearly quadrupled. More Americans now die of drug overdoses than they do in motor vehicle crashes. In Wisconsin, overdoses claimed 853 lives in 2014 alone. This crisis doesn't discriminate. It touches everybody men and women, young and old, rich and poor; urban, suburban and rural alike. It affects the coal miner or construction worker who takes pain medications for a work-related injury or the doctor who writes them the prescription. Yet for too long, the stigma of addiction has discouraged too many Americans from seeking and receiving the help they deserve. With no other disease do we expect people to wait until they're a danger to themselves or others to self-diagnose and seek treatment. So we need to address this disease as we would any other through effective prevention and treatment. We need to educate ourselves, our family members and our communities about the dangers of prescription drug misuse as well as the availability of treatment and the hope of recovery. And we need to make sure every American seeking treatment can get it. That's why I've directed my administration to address this crisis. We've been working with communities to prevent and treat substance use disorders, pursue effective law enforcement strategies, reduce overdose deaths and support those in recovery. And in October, I announced plans to train more federal health care workers who prescribe opioids, identify barriers to good treatment, and rally support from outside of government to help address this epidemic. But we need to do more to help families like Cary's. That's why the budget I'm sending to Congress includes $1.1 billion in new funding to stop the opioid overdose epidemic funding to help every American seeking treatment get the care he or she needs. It will help states such as Wisconsin expand their treatment capacity and make services more affordable. My budget will continue to support education, prevention, drug monitoring programs and law enforcement efforts to keep illegal drugs out of our communities. And finally, it will improve access to the overdose-reversal drug naloxone so that we can save more lives. These are common sense steps steps to help Americans get the treatment they need, support law enforcement already stretching their resources and support families and communities ravaged by this disease. I'm encouraged by the bipartisan support we've seen from leaders across the country on this issue, and I expect Congress to act. Because rather than keep spending billions of taxpayer dollars on overly long prison sentences for nonviolent drug offenders, we can save money, improve public safety and achieve better outcomes by focusing on getting treatment to those who need it. This is a crisis that could touch any of us. These kids are our kids. These folks are our parents; our brothers and sisters; our neighbors and friends. We should treat them that way. We should take on this issue for their sake. And if we do that, we'll not only help our loved ones, we'll help strengthen our families, our community, and our entire country. Barack Obama is president of the United States. We Energies doubles rate increase sought for residential customers We Energies is seeking a 13% increase in residential electric rates in 2023, about twice the increase it is seeking for large industrial energy users. Prompted by the death of Madison Kiefer, a Journal Sentinel investigation found that prescription drugs were involved in 70% of the fatal overdoses in the Milwaukee area. The paper has also found that - although more than 600 people in the Milwaukee area died from prescription drugs from 2002 through 2009 - fewer than a dozen area physicians were disciplined by the state for their prescription writing. Reddit Email 720 Shares By IMEMC | Israeli planes have reportedly sprayed chemical substances on farmlands across the besieged Gaza Strip, killing off the crops in the already impoverished Palestinian territory. Several farmers informed that Israeli planes had sprayed their lands with pesticides, in the area between (Kissufim, and Srij) east of al-Qarara village, northeast of Khan Younis, according to Al Ray correspondence. Witnesses pointed out that the Israeli occupation aircraft were spraying pesticides inside the border fence, and were hovering on low level . The continuing Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip is putting the lives of people at risk, taking a heavy toll on the enclaves agriculture sector. Farmers are struggling to meet growing demands of 1.8 million Gazans who are living in the tight grip of the Israeli siege. They face many challenges due to shortages in farming equipment and more importantly, approved pesticides. Due to the decline in production and Israels ban on the entry of basic commodities, Gazan farmers have resorted to the use of banned chemical substances to maximize crop yield. This poses a serious health hazard to both farmers and their consumers. Meanwhile, the United Nations has expressed concerns over the excessive use of toxic pesticides by Gaza farmers. Many medical experts in Gaza are worried about a rise in the number of registered Gazan cancer patients, especially in the agricultural areas. They warn that children are more susceptible to diseases, such as leukemia, than adults in such regions. Related: Israeli Army Admits Destroying Crops in Gaza The Gaza Strip has been under Israels blockade since June 2007. The crippling siege has caused a decline in living standards as well as unprecedented levels of unemployment and unrelenting poverty. Israel launched its latest war on the Gaza Strip in early July of last year. Nearly 2,200 Palestinians, including 577 children, were killed in Israels 50-day onslaught. Over 11,100 others including 3,374 children, 2,088 women and 410 elderly people were also injured. Via IMEMC - Related video added by Juan Cole: RT: Gaza to be unlivable by 2020 Reddit Email 0 Shares By Juan Cole | (Informed Comment) | President Obama spoke Wednesday at a Baltimore mosque in an explicit pushback against the hatred for Muslims being promoted by billionaire real estate developer Donald J. Trump and others among the Republican presidential candidates. Trump has scapegoated all Muslim-Americans for the violence committed by a tiny fringe. He has called for Muslims to be excluded from coming to the United States from abroad, and said he would look into closing all US mosques. All Christians are not tagged with the killings at Planned Parenthood, but because Muslims are a minority about whom there is much ignorance in the US, the trope of collective guilt hasnt been immediately rejected by most Americans. I hope that Obamas speech will change that. Obama slammed Trumps rhetoric as inexcusable and said it had no place in the United States: And of course, recently, weve heard inexcusable political rhetoric against Muslim Americans that has no place in our country. No surprise, then, that threats and harassment of Muslim Americans have surged. Here at this mosque, twice last year, threats were made against your children. Around the country, women wearing the hijab just like Sabah have been targeted. Weve seen children bullied. Weve seen mosques vandalized. Sikh Americans and others who are perceived to be Muslims have been targeted, as well. Threats were made against their children . Anybody listening to that who has children of their own, or nieces and nephews etc., should get chills on hearing those words. They are a sign of a society beset by thugs. Obama pointed out that American Muslims are our physicians and our community leaders. In fact, there are about 800,000 active physicians in the US and 20,000 of them are Muslims, or about 2.5 %. Obama went on to root American Islam in American history. He pointed out that many (as many as 20%) of African slaves brought to this country were Muslims, and they built the United States. We have some Arabic documents about their experiences written by some of them in their American exile (some had been elite in places like Senegal or Mali or Nigeria before being kidnapped). The president might have added that some significant number of the Hispanic settlers in the Southwest were Spanish of Arab/Berber and Muslim heritage. Although their families or they themselves were coerced into converting to Catholicism, they often kept some secret Muslim beliefs and rituals. We know about historical persons of this sort right from the 1500s. I was born in Albuquerque, N. M., a major American city with an Arabic name (likely al-Barquqi or the owner of an apricot orchard). Heres another fact: Islam has always been part of America. Starting in colonial times, many of the slaves brought here from Africa were Muslim. And even in their bondage, some kept their faith alive. A few even won their freedom and became known to many Americans. And when enshrining the freedom of religion in our Constitution and our Bill of Rights, our Founders meant what they said when they said it applied to all religions. Back then, Muslims were often called Mahometans. And Thomas Jefferson explained that the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom he wrote was designed to protect all faiths and Im quoting Thomas Jefferson now the Jew and the Gentile, the Christian and the Mahometan. (Applause.) Jefferson and John Adams had their own copies of the Koran. Benjamin Franklin wrote that even if the Mufti of Constantinople were to send a missionary to preach to us, he would find a pulpit at his service. (Applause.) So this is not a new thing. Ive been pointing to texts like those for years. It is clear that the Founding Fathers simply had nothing against Islam and Muslims, as Enlightenment deists, and that in fact it was an important case for them in their imagination of the expansion of liberty. That is why Franklin says even if. It is true that there were no Muslim signers of the Declaration of Independence or of the Constitution, but that was because they did not form part of the British landholding elite of the Thirteen Colonies, not because they werent here and productive. in the mid-1700s, Muslim slaves from West Africa taught the Europeans in the Carolinas how to better grow rice innovated in ironsmithing, and introduced the swept earthen floor. They were not recognized as free citizens in the Constitution written by the landholding white elite, but they made an enormous contributions to the health and well-being of that society. They are a key part of the peoples history of the United States. The silly Glenn Beck riposte about the US having gone to war against the Barbary Pirates doesnt deserve an answer. The Founding generation of Americans knew the difference between fighting some corsairs and fighting a whole faith. That is, before the last decade most American political figures of any weight knew what prejudice and stereotyping are. Obama went on to point to the long history of Muslim worship in the US: Generations of Muslim Americans helped to build our nation. They were part of the flow of immigrants who became farmers and merchants. They built Americas first mosque, surprisingly enough, in North Dakota. (Laughter.) Americas oldest surviving mosque is in Iowa. The first Islamic center in New York City was built in the 1890s. Muslim Americans worked on Henry Fords assembly line, cranking out cars. A Muslim American designed the skyscrapers of Chicago. In 1957, when dedicating the Islamic center in Washington, D.C., President Eisenhower said, I should like to assure you, my Islamic friends, that under the American Constitution and in American heartsthis place of worship, is just as welcomeas any other religion. Ive visited the mosque in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, perhaps the oldest one in continuous operation. I met a resident of Dearborn once of Lebanese Shiite extraction whose ancestor came to the US in the 1880s. The man went out west and became a cowboy. We dont usually think about the Lebanese Shiite cowboys. Of course, many cowboys were African-Amrericans, and some of those of Muslim background, who contributed their own specialized knowledge to that craft. As I mentioned in Engaging the Muslim World , Eisenhower saw Muslims as key partners in the Cold War and was unhappy when pilgrimage to Mecca fell off, so that the US State Department actually gave money to improve the railroad to Mecca. Obama roundly condemned Islamophobia and fear-mongering against Muslim Americans. Perhaps that is the most important thing he could do as president, simply to say that prejudice and discrimination are wrong and to tell the Muslim-Americans that they are an important and accepted part of the American fabric. Some of them are parents, and they talked about how their children were asking, are we going to be forced out of the country, or, are we going to be rounded up? Why do people treat us like that? Conversations that you shouldnt have to have with children not in this country. Not at this moment. And thats an anxiety echoed in letters I get from Muslim Americans around the country. Ive had people write to me and say, I feel like Im a second-class citizen. Ive had mothers write and say, my heart cries every night, thinking about how her daughter might be treated at school. A girl from Ohio, 13 years old, told me, Im scared. A girl from Texas signed her letter a confused 14-year-old trying to find her place in the world. These are children just like mine. And the notion that they would be filled with doubt and questioning their places in this great country of ours at a time when theyve got enough to worry about its hard being a teenager already thats not who we are. Were one American family. And when any part of our family starts to feel separate or second-class or targeted, it tears at the very fabric of our nation. (Applause.) Its a challenge to our values and that means we have much work to do. Weve got to tackle this head on. We have to be honest and clear about it. And we have to speak out. This is a moment when, as Americans, we have to truly listen to each other and learn from each other. And I believe it has to begin with a common understanding of some basic facts. And I express these facts, although theyd be obvious to many of the people in this place, because, unfortunately, its not facts that are communicated on a regular basis through our media. Obama did not name Trump, but he was stepping into the breach with all his personal charisma and charisma of office to be the anti-Trump. It was an important moment in American history, and one that historians will long note and analyze. It will not end the current wave of Islamophobia, but it is the lengthiest and most thoroughgoing speech ever given by an American president about the importance of Islam and of Muslim-Americans to the United States. Above all, it was a decent speech, which restored some decency to our public discourse at a time of casual racism and unchallenged fascist sentiments being spouted by lesser men, by demagogues and psychopaths, who threaten our society with division and the creation of second-class citizens and a new Jim Crow. Obama is a symbol of how we got past the original Jim Crow. We will not be dragged back to that, no matter how many billions proponents of such reactionary politics may have. Related video: The White House: The President Speaks at the Islamic Society of Baltimore Cenk Uygur and John Iadarola | (The Young Turks Video Report) | Now that Bernie Sanders knows that people will show up and vote for him in large numbers, the attacks from the mainstream and right have begun. But it turns out that his ideas are incredibly popular. Cenk Uygur and John Iadarola (ThinkTank), hosts of the The Young Turks, break it down. . . Bernie Sanders wants a political revolution. And most Americans think one might be necessary, according to a new poll conducted by Morning Consult and Vox. Fifty-four percent of respondents to our online poll which reached a sample of 1,884 registered voters nationally from Friday, January 29, through Sunday, January 31, 2016 agreed that a political revolution might be necessary to redistribute money from the wealthiest Americans to the middle class. Just 30 percent said they disagreed. Liberals and liberal-leaning demographics were most likely to agree with the statement. But majorities of independents, white voters, evangelicals, and even Tea Party supporters in our sample agreed too showing that redistribution may no longer be a dirty word in American politics. Of course, keep in mind that responses to a poll statement in a vacuum may differ quite a bit from how people will feel after hearing political debate and messaging from both sides. Jeffery Daniel Locklear, 37, formerly of 623 McCharles St. in Dalton, was convicted Wednesday by a Whitfield County jury for the offenses of rape, aggravated child molestation, child molestation, aggravated sexual battery, sexual battery and incest. The jury was selected on Monday and the trial began on Tuesday with Superior Court Judge William T. Boyett presiding. Assistant District Attorney Keely Parker prosecuted the case along with Assistant District Attorney Bryan Rayburn. Locklear was represented by Dalton attorney Jerry Moncus. The jury of six men and six women deliberated for approximately an hour before returning its unanimous verdict in mid-afternoon Wednesday. The evidence showed Locklear committed sexual acts against a 10-year-old child and blood relative over a period of several months beginning in January of 2015. Detective Ronnie Morris of the Whitfield County Sheriffs Office began investigating the case in May of 2015 after the child disclosed the abuse to a school counselor. After an investigation, an indictment was returned by the Whitfield County Grand Jury in October 2015. Detective Morris, the school counselor and a Department of Children and Family Services case investigator all testified. During the trial, the jury viewed a video of an interview of the victim conducted by Melissa Wells, a trained child forensic interviewer. The interview was conducted at the Green House Child Advocacy Center in Dalton. In the interview, the victim detailed the multiple acts committed against her. Additionally, the jury heard from a sexual assault nurse examiner, who testified that she could not rule out sexual assault after examining the victim. The child victim also testified. Locklear did not testify on his own behalf nor did he call any witnesses. Prosecutors said, "Sexual assaults against children are always difficult to prosecute. As is often the case, there were no witnesses other than the child victim nor was there any definitive medical or other physical evidence. Detective Morris conducted a solid investigation with assistance from other agencies and that allowed us to present a compelling case to the jury. Ultimately though, child predators are only held accountable when the jurors chose to believe the child victim. We are grateful to the jurors in this case who clearly took their responsibility seriously and held the defendant accountable for his crimes." Locklear has been in custody at the Whitfield County Jail since his arrest in November of 2015, and will remain in custody pending sentencing, which has been scheduled before Judge Boyett on Friday, March 11. Locklear faces life sentences for rape, aggravated child molestation, and aggravated sexual battery with a minimum of 25 years to be served without parole and the possibility of life without parole on the rape. On the other charges, the maximum sentences are 20 years on child molestation, 50 years on incest, and five years on sexual battery. NEWSLETTER Sign up Tick the boxes of the newsletters you would like to receive. Just Drinks Daily News The top stories of the day delivered to you every weekday. Just Drinks Weekly News A weekly roundup of the latest news and analysis, sent every Monday. Just Drinks Magazine The industry's most comprehensive news and information delivered every quarter Nestle has confirmed plans to acquire the remaining shares in Israeli food firm Osem Investments in a deal worth ILS3.3bn (US$840.5m). The worlds largest food maker, which owns just short of 64% of Osem, plans to buy out the remaining 36.3% of the business. Nestle is paying ILS82.50 per share for the stake. The move will also see Osem delist from the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. Nestle has a long history of investment in Osem, dating back to 1995, and looks forward to continue to partner with the Osem management to develop the company, Nestle said in a statement on its website. Nestle did not comment when asked by just-food how the deal would enhance its business. The transaction is subject to approval of Osems minority shareholders. Osem operates out of nine factories in Israel. It makes pasta, salad dressings and ice cream under the Nestle and other brand names. Chattanooga Police arrested two men Wednesday in the 4700 block of Jersey Pike. Police observed three individuals in black Chevrolet Monte Carlo smoking marijuana. An officer approached the vehicle and detained the individuals. Further investigation revealed that the occupants were armed. Cadarrius Sales, 21, was arrested for possession of controlled substance and possessing a firearm with intent to go armed. David Pollard, 20, was arrested for possession of a controlled substance and possessing a firearm with intent to go armed. It wasnt lost on me for a minute that when bully expert Paul Coughlin was here earlier in the week, there was another group that also needed to hear him speak. Coughlin told our educators, our pastors and our citizens that all it takes to stop a bully is the courage to confront one. Over the weekend I recognized courage when Chattanooga Police Chief Fred Fletcher, in an open video, told gang members in Chattanooga they will be caught and prosecuted. "If you are a member of a gang, listen to me; we will pursue anyone that aims to harm our community, the chief said. We have talented officers and partners with very special skills and you will receive their full attention." I was so impressed I dropped Fletcher an email, telling him how much I appreciated his message and its vow. Early Sunday morning he wrote me back a sincere but painful email: My people and I are as offended and tired of this violence as is the community. I attended a prayer walk yesterday with many of my officers in response to Monday's murder. As I was driving away from the vigil I drove up on a double shooting in the middle of the street, it read. My people continue to serve and work and fight the violence as hard as they can even when it seems to be insurmountable - maybe BECAUSE it seems insurmountable, he added. I am proud of them beyond words. I know you know this: chronic exposure to this endless violence takes a toll on my people as much as anyone. And they do it for $20 an hour. They are my heroes. Heroes indeed! Before churches finished morning services, a five-year-old boy called 911 to say his mother and her boyfriend had been killed by a dude and that the child was all alone. By Monday night a tape of the childs call had gone viral and soon became a headline on every news website in the nation. On Tuesday, Marquel Beech, 26, was shot on McCallie Avenue and then came yesterday when a daylight flurry of bullets on Wednesday morning caused several cars to crash, snarling and endangering hundreds of people on Brainerd Road. The shooter(s) drove from the scene. About the same time, an unrelated shooting was taking place on Tunnel Boulevard. How do we stop such madness! The same way we stop a bully and it is roundly believed if any witness could gather his or her courage and tell police what they saw and shared any information they had, we could drastically reduce gang-related absurdity. Unbelievably, gang shootings are black-on-black and the black community acts like this doesnt ever happen. Where is the NAACP, the Urban League? To say that isnt what we do or that isnt our mission is to be an accomplice! Fear of retaliation is so prevalent not even the victims will cooperate with the police department or the sheriffs office and, due to that lack of courage, our police chief leaves a prayer walk last Saturday for a murder victim to literally drive into a shoot-out 15 minutes later. This isnt the wild, wild west! Bullying, now a priority in Chattanooga with a new emphasis at every school in our community, is not as serious as murder but until the good people in our black community band together and cooperate with our police, we will have unlimited shooting and tragic sorrow continue in our city. And what makes it even worse is that many good people see relatives or friends die because the good people would rather remain silent than soon cry tears for their neighbors and loved ones. It makes no sense at all. It may be Chattanoogas gang activity has reached the level of Operation Bite Back. That is what a task force in Mississippi was called after a girl was gang-raped and burned alive in tiny Panola County in December of 2014. This is a quiet, rural area in northwest Mississippi but evil found its way there. It involved seven law enforcement agencies and three different SWAT teams. Agents listened to over 20,000 telephone calls and studied gangs like the Black Gangster Disciples, Vice Lords, and Sipp Mob. After 10 months of hand-in-hand investigations, a concerted raid at 4:30 in the morning late last fall collared 17 different gang members with some association in the gruesome murder. When the gangsters were behind bars, the calls started and, as the number of people who were, or knew, witnesses grew, it enabled the county district attorney to say, This is not over by any stretch of the imagination." Mustering up courage is not hard when you realize it is the right thing to do. Not even the coldest heart can bear hearing that five-year-old voice say I am all alone. Can you imagine the mind image that child will carry as the last time he saw his mother? If you know anything about Saturdays gunfight in the street, the double murder on Sunday morning, the shootings on Tuesday or Wednesday of this week, I pray youll have the courage to call the Chattanooga Police Department or the Hamilton County District Attorneys office. If well work together, Ill guarantee you we will save lives. * * * Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the LORD your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you. Deuteronomy 31:6 royexum@aol.com The Chattanooga markets best in advertising, as chosen by the AAF Chattanooga panel of judges, will be honored Saturday, Feb. 20 at The Camp House at the AAF Chattanooga American Advertising Awards celebration. The event recognizes and showcases the areas "outstanding advertising creative work" for the previous year. The event begins at 6:30 p.m. with cocktails and passed hor doeuvres, followed by the presentation of awards. Judges chose winners from 338 online, broadcast and print entries from agencies, businesses and individuals doing business in the Chattanooga market as well as college students. Tickets for the gala event are $60 for members of AAF Chattanooga, $70 for non-members and $30 for student members. Tickets may be purchased in advance by visiting www.ChattanoogaAddys.com or by emailing info@chattanooga.com. The Chattanooga competition is sponsored by the AAF Chattanooga, a member association comprised of advertising and media professionals. Proceeds from the American Advertising Awards help support the AAF Chattanoogas educational programs, public service projects, student scholarships and proactive government relations efforts. For more information contact Brittany Lloyd, American Advertising Awards chair, at 423-266-5879 or brittany@dynamicdisplays.org, or visit www.chattanoogaaddys.com. The Association for Visual Arts in Chattanooga presents an exhibition celebrating the photographic medium. The opening reception will be held Friday from 5:30-8 p.m. at the AVA Gallery. The exhibition will be held until Feb. 26. This intimate group show consisting of four artists from the Southeast will include a variety of styles, subject matter and methods. The artists featured in this exhibit are John Allen, Ryan Hoover, Farron Kilburn, and Michael Largent. John Allens work, captured with a color pinhole camera, depicts the dark, claustrophobic spaces of caves in an exploration of descent and solitude. Ryan Hoover takes an interdisciplinary approach, using a variety of time-based and non-time- based processes and techniques, both analog and digital. Farron Kilburn describes herself as a careful observer of the world. Interested in social justice, her photos come from her time in Havana and confront the tension between living under an old, crumbling regime with little access to the outside world and celebrating a lively culture and rebellious people ready to burst into the rest of the world. Michael Largents works are part of a recent series combining the randomness of action photography with a systematic approach to the post-production process. AVA Gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. The candidates running for Hamilton County Criminal Court judge and Hamilton County assessor of property emphasized Thursday their experience in, qualifications for, and expectations of the jobs. With early voting starting Feb. 10, the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce hosted a morning forum at Pucketts Grocery and Restaurant on W. Aquarium Way. Dave Flessner, business editor for the Times Free Press, umpired the public discussion. Over the span of an hour he asked a series of questions to both sets of candidates to illuminate their thoughts on certain issues. The candidates for Criminal Court Judge, Division 2 spoke first. In the running are Criminal Court Judge Tom Greenholtz, prosecutor Boyd Patterson, and assistant public defender Mike Little. Judge Greenholtz, now in his fifth month as Criminal Court judge, stated Chattanooga has been cited as one of the most dangerous cities in Tennessee. He said he took the crime rate seriously and was committed to ending this revolving door of crime. He believes many crimes in the city like theft and vandalism result from drug addiction. One solution he offered was Drug Court the program designed to give a defendant addicted to drugs a chance to sober up and not go to jail. Its a program that fundamentally changes lives, Judge Greenholtz said, acknowledging 93 percent of people who graduated from the program stayed out of court. Which is a good thing for the judge because sentencing is the toughest thing (he does). He said he must know why he is sentencing before he decides how to sentence. He gave the example of a first time offender. If that person is a good person, he said, it would likely be unwise to send him or her to prison, as it could make matters worse. Then again, he said if he is dealing with a reoffender, putting that person in prison for a while might be the best thing to keep the public safe. But Judge Greenholtz wants to keep the reoffender cycle from starting. Pairing offenders up with mentors, or sentencing them to specialty courts like Drug Court and Veterans Court are possible ways to ensure this, he said. As a prosecutor for the last 12 years, attorney Patterson understands criminal motive and believes his experience has been the best teacher to qualify him as judge. Having worked thousands of cases, he believes the root cause of crime partially stems from illiteracy. Lack of education and job training, he said, also result in crime. He stated young males make up the majority of offenders. Therefore, his solution to cut crime off at its roots is to bombard the males with opportunities to learn, earn, and engage in positive social settings outside of crime. A judge must know the law and use discretion when sentencing someone, he said. Because a prison sentence would not suit every offender, attorney Patterson stressed judges must know how to dish out punishment depending on the crime and motives of the defendant. Regarding reoffenders, he said 15 to 20 percent of criminals committed approximately 60 percent of crimes. And because repeat offenders often followed a leader, when law enforcement brought in the head of the snake, attorney Patterson said he would cut it off. Attorney Little agreed lack of education resulted in crime, but also lack of upbringing. Parental supervision and spiritual guidance, he believes, play a big role in keeping people out of Criminal Court. He discussed alternate sentences to prison like probation, Drug Court, and community corrections. But, he said, the law ultimately mandated a sentence. Attorney Little grew up in poverty and worked his way through law school. As a defense attorney, he did not cater to the wealthy. When representing a defendant, he needed to step in the prosecutors shoes to see both sides. He spent the last 25 years in criminal law and believes this time prepared him for the position as Criminal Court judge. I want this community safe, and as judge I will do that, he said. The three GOP candidates for assessor of property took the stage after the Criminal Court Judge candidates stepped down. Sterling Jetton, Commissioner Marty Haynes, and Randy Johnston make up the Republican candidates for the county position that sets the appraised value on Hamilton County property. Whoever is nominated will run against Mark Siedlecki of the Democratic Party. Commissioner Haynes has worked in private business for 35 years. He plans to bring his business experience to the office by offering quick and simple solutions to save taxpayers dollars. One solution is having a competent staff. Commissioner Haynes, who has experience in hiring, said he would work with his staff to guarantee they properly appraised properties. If elected, this would be Commissioner Haynes fulltime professional endeavor. He said it would mark a career change for him one he is highly capable of because of his background in business. He mentioned Bill Bennett, who recently announced his retirement after holding the property assessor seat since 1994. Mr. Bennett has private business experience and served on the County Commission, too, Commissioner Haynes said. Randy Johnston, who has worked in the assessor of propertys office for 31 years, said this was a tough job where one benefited from "knowing the field." He started out as an appraiser and has since worked his way up to residential property supervisor. For over 20 years he has also owned a small successful business. He said appraisal values affected taxes, which could upset residents. But, he said, anyone who ever came in irate left happy after speaking with Mr. Johnston. He pushed for transparency by offering more online information. This would result in more people calling less about their appraisals, he said. He targeted accessibility as another key factor to let people know what was going on. "Youll have my cell phone number," he addressed the public. "I have nothing to hide, nothing to run from." With his experience in business and in the property assessors office, he believes he is the best candidate. "I can do this job. I love this job. I dont dread going in," he said. Rev. Jetton, the senior pastor at Shelter Church and longtime employee of the assessor of property, learned leadership skills when he served in the Army. As property assessor, he plans to cross-train employees to increase their overall knowhow and skills. On the topic of the appraisal process, he said location, location, location absolutely affects the value of property. He wants people to be able to go online and check out their property value. He also wants to install GPS devices in each appraisers vehicle. We all get lazy, he said. He thinks the GPS devices would increase safety, fuel efficiency, and time management. MINDEN Rex Havens defines comedy as something quite simple. Humor is whatever an audience tells you is funny, the comedian said in an interview from his home in Chicago. If the audience doesnt like what you are doing, you have to go back and redo it. You keep working on it until it does get a laugh. Havens often finds humor in the differences between men and women. I explain to women that 90 percent of male humor follows a formula, and it is this: Misfortune to someone else, short of death equals very, very funny, Havens said. Men love to laugh at somebody elses embarrassment, whereas women are more supportive and more kind in their general sense of humor. Central Nebraska audiences can experience more of Havens humor during Love & Laughter, a dinner and show at 6:30 p.m. Feb. 13 at Minden Opera House featuring his theater-style show Everything I needed to Know, I Learned From My Wife. The meal will be catered by Country Catering. Tickets are $35 per person. I always try to remember my anniversary with my wife, Sarah, Havens said. I remember the anniversary of the first day we met, anniversary of the first time we danced, anniversary of the first time we kissed and the anniversary of the first time we made love. Its not hard because it was all the same day. After the laughs die down, Havens adds: I tell the audience Im just kidding because we didnt dance until later. Im old-fashioned. I think you should get to know somebody before you dance with them. Thats just the way I was raised. Havens, 63, progressed through life starting as a college professor before attending law school and working as an attorney. Hes been making a living in comedy for 20 years. Havens holds a warm spot in his heart for Kearney. When he started out as a comedian, Havens performed in Kearney at The Fireside, a bar that burned years later. I was just dumb and naive, he said. I wanted to do everything right so I got there about four in the afternoon to check in. I didnt have my glasses on when I walked in, but in the distance I saw, oh, maybe 10 people gathered around a table and a girl was dancing on the table. Havens thought it was just college kids celebrating early in the day. I thought they were really getting carried away at 4 in the afternoon, he said. Thats when Havens noticed that the woman wore very little clothing. He finally realized the venue was a strip bar. Billing himself as a clean comedian, Havens works hard to appeal to a wide variety of audiences. There are comedians out there who say that if youre doing a clean show, youre selling out, he said. Ive never agreed with that. I look at it like a musician being able to play in more than one key. I get hired by some clients and they want a suggestive or racy show but most dont. Most of the clients want a G-rated or a PG-13 rated show. Omaha took an important step in 2015 when it created an organization called the Municipal Land Bank. The Land Banks mission is to take abandoned properties and convert those eyesores and danger zones into viable properties ready for resale and development. At the time Omaha created its land bank, the city counted more than 3,000 sites as unfit and unsafe, with more than 700 houses on the demolition list. That clear public need was a key reason why the Nebraska Legislature voted 47-0 to approve legislation enabling the Land Banks creation. It was unclear what the disagreement was between some board members and the organizations first executive director. The key need is for the Land Bank to proceed strongly. The need for action is why such a wide range of Omaha groups and individuals have come forward to support the land bank concept from the start. Just last week the Legislatures Urban Affairs Committee heard testimony supporting a set of tweaks to the land bank statutes put forward by Sen. Heath Mello, who developed the original legislation in 2014. Omahans, from neighborhood associations to business leaders to city officials, are right to have high hopes for the Land Bank and its work. Now is the time to move forward. Omaha World-Herald School choice, public school spending, and property tax relief continue to be hot topics around Nebraska so here is my perspective as a public school administrator. School choice, accountability: School choice is already alive and well in Nebraska, and has been for decades. We have folks who already choose home schooling. We also have outstanding parochial schools in numerous communities. Many of our public schools, in fact, help support our parochial colleagues and students in numerous ways, to include student services, specialized course offerings, staff development, inclusion at assemblies and within community initiatives, and transportation, to name a few. Nebraska also offers option enrollment for families to pick and choose what public school district they want to attend. One choice we dont offer would be charter schools. Charter schools are not public schools. Their chief source of funding is the same as public schools, but they are not held to the same standards. While the state Department of Education often has some oversight, their day-to-day operations are governed by a private board instead of publicly elected officials, such as the boards that serve public schools. Having privately run schools supported by public funds is concerning to many. Charter school supporters across the country use the same playbook. First, they embed the message that public schools are failing. Next, they work to further starve public schools through vouchers and tax credits. Well, Nebraskas public schools arent failing. We have a 90 percent graduation rate one of the nations highest and the highest average ACT score for the 17 states that have 80 percent or more of their kids taking it. Critics of public schools say that we as school leaders dont want school choice. Of course we do, thats why school choice has been present for decades in this state. It helps ratchet up accountability. We already deal with more accountability than any organizations Im aware of. Public school spending: Every now and again, we are the target of scare tactics from organizations that want you to believe public schools spend, spend, spend with very little return on investment. Well, here are some facts: - Total school district disbursements of all funds grew by only an annual average of just 3.5 percent from 2003-2014, according to the Legislatures August 2015 fiscal office report. During the same span, students educated in Nebraskas public schools increased 8.16 percent from 284,181 to 307,398. - The percentage of children living in poverty increased from 34 percent to 45 percent, and this caused added expenses for many schools for before- and after-school programming as well as expanded summer offerings. Property tax relief: School spending is not the cause of high property taxes. How we fund public education is the culprit. LB958 is being pushed for tax relief as it would limit spending by schools, cities, counties and community colleges. It would cap aggregate statewide growth of agricultural land to 3 percent and would require many decisions about spending to be taken to a vote. Sounds great, right? However, lets look at the whole story using data from the Open Sky Policy Institute. If LB958 was in place this fiscal year, it would cause a massive revenue shortfall between $99 million to $144 million, just for K-12 schools. There is no mechanism to replace the lost revenue, so districts that had levy authority left would be forced to raise their levies to recoup the lost dollars, which would severely negate any property tax relief. However, dozens of districts that are already operating at the $1.05 levy maximum would have no ability to make up their lost revenue and theyd have to consider cutting programs. LB958 would not bring property tax relief in numerous areas, but it could severely damage school offerings. Is that what we want or are those unintended consequences? A better approach to true property tax relief would be to address how Nebraska funds schools so we can improve upon our rank of 49th in the United States for the percent of K-12 education funded by the state. Mike Lucas is superintendent of York Public Schools. Hey listen up wise guys, the home of former mob boss and notorious Chicago gangster Al Capone is up for sale. As the listing states, "This was AL CAPONES Chicago Home WOW". Wow, indeed. There's really not much to look at, and there aren't any interior photos in the listing. However this piece of Chicago history can be had for only $225,000. The red brick Grand Crossings home was built in 1908 and has three bedrooms on each floor. Capone and his family moved into the home way back in 1923, before he was known for terrorizing the city. According to DNAinfo, the current owner has been living in the home since 1963 when she purchased it for $29,500. The home looks like it could use some work, but maybe there's some buried treasure hiding somewhere on the property that will pay for the repairs. 7244 S Prairie Ave Chicago, IL 60619 [Redfin] Al Capone's former Chicago home hits market for $225,000 [Daily News] Al Capone's Former Home in Grand Crossing for Sale [DNAinfo] Daniel Burnham's famous Chicago credo of "make no little plans" is set to receive a slight caveat as the Commission on Chicago Landmarks seeks to clarify and amend the guidelines of the Michigan Avenue Historic District through the introduction of a maximum building height limit. The framework of rules protecting the stretch of the Michigan Avenue streetwall between Randolph and Roosevelt became a hotly debated topic when a wave a new towers was unexpectedly proposed for the South Loop in the second half of 2015. According to the Commission on Landmarks' upcoming agenda, new construction between 8th and 11th street -- where most of the South Michigan Avenue's buildable lots are located -- may now bridge but not exceed the height of structures located in the core of the district and the highrises at southern edge of Grand Park. Using the 818-foot Legacy at Millennium Park to the north and the planned 880-foot Rafael Vinoly-designed tower for 113 E. Roosevelt to the south as visual brackets, the latest amendment to the district's guidelines would see new tower height in this area capped between 400 and 900 feet. This latest development is certainly consistent with a January 11th rumor that Helmut Jahn's supertall at 1000 S. Michigan was going to be cut from its proposed height of 1001 feet down to something in the mid 800-foot range due to concerns raised by Landmarks. The same rumor was confirmed later that day as an individual representing the globally-renowned architecture firm acknowledged that the design was going back to the drafting table and would ultimately emerge shorter. Ideally the city would have proactively issued an amendment to the rules before firms like JAHN sunk resources into designing its tower, but there was no way of predicting the South Loop's 2015 explosion of proposed plus 500-foot towers. Another highrise proposal that falls within the amended 8th to 11th street sub-area is Hartshorne Plunkard Architecture's Essex Inn tower located at 800 S. Michigan. First presented to neighbors along with 1000 S. Michigan at a public meeting in late October, 2015, the 605-foot-tall residential tower does conform to the amended height parameters of the district but it may have seen a redesign since its initial unveiling. According to new renderings posted by the development watchers at SkyScraperPage, the tweaked Essex Inn tower will retain its signature lower level stilts but see a redesigned facade that changes texture as it rises to address the 340-foot roofline of the historic 1927 Hilton Tower located just to the north at 720 S. Michigan. It's unclear if this potential change was an independent design decision by HPA or a compulsory move mandated by Landmarks to reference the historic streetwall. An illustrated copy of the new Michigan Avenue Historic District guidelines can be viewed here with the new construction amendments for 2016 located on numbered page 36 (page 44 of the PDF file). The Commission on Landmarks will meet today at City Hall, 121 N. LaSalle, in Room 201-A at 1:30. The amended Michigan Avenue Historic District guidelines is the first item on the meeting's agenda. Commission on Chicago Landmarks February 2016 agenda [PDF] Helmut Jahn Tower May Lose Supertall Status With Height Cut [Curbed Chicago] The Fuse Has Been Lit for the South Loop's Next Big Building Boom [Curbed Chicago] FILE -This file artist rendering released Sept. 17, 2015, by the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art shows the proposed museum in Chicago. On Thursday, Feb. 4, 2016, a federal judge in Chicago is expected to rule on whether a Chicago nonprofit group can move ahead with a lawsuit seeking to stop "Star Wars'" filmmaker George Lucas' plan to build a $400 million museum on the shores of Lake Michigan. (Lucas Museum of Narrative Art via AP, File) Restaurant Where Men's Rights Group Planned Meetup Has Called The Cops By Mae Rice in News on Feb 3, 2016 9:51PM Balagio Ristorante's Amore room (photo via Facebook) Mens rights activists plan to meet up in the parking lot of a Homewood restaurant on Saturdayand the restaurant owners arent happy about it. In fact, theyve called the police for assistance with the situation. Mike Galderio, Jr., who owns Balagio Ristorante with his dad, said the police promised to send a couple squads, essentially for security. I dont know why out of the whole state of Illinois, weve been named [as a meetup location], said Galderio, Jr. "What kind of scares me... is that people just assume were a part of it. As we noted Tuesday, there are two Chicago-area meetups planned as part of the "International Meetup Day, an event organized by Roosh Valizadehs loathsome Return of Kings blog. The Homewood meetup is slated to start in Balagio Ristorantes parking lot at 8 p.m., and then, by 8:20 p.m., move to a second location. Were a family business, Gaulderio, Jr. said. "90 percent of my workers are women. I have a mom. I have a stepmom. I have three sisters. It's sickening." A quick recap of the most abhorrent views espoused by Return of Kings community: Validazeh himself condones rape on private property, and a cursory look at the blog turns up a post calling feminism institutionalized man-hating, a post endorsing an app called TrampAdvisor, and plenty of Trump endorsements. Galderio, Jr. handt heard of the mens rights movements until Monday. That day, an unnamed woman called the restaurant to let them know that a meetup was planned for their parking lot. Its hard, because we are open for business [that night], Gaulderio, Jr. said. We do have some functions going on. The local high school has a dance Saturday night, and teens will be stopping by the restaurant beforehand, he said. The restaurant will also be hosting Cancer Supports annual pre-Super Bowl poker game that night. He added that though it could be hard to distinguish between regular customers and patrons there because of the meetup, he would refuse service to anyone who he knew to be involved with the meetup. 6 Found Dead In Gage Park Home, Possibly Stabbed To Death By Rachel Cromidas in News on Feb 4, 2016 9:47PM Gage Park, via CPD Six people, including a child, were found dead in a Gage Park home on the Southwest Side Thursday. At least one was stabbed to death, according to the Sun-Times. The child appeared to be between 10 and 12 years old, according to interim police chief John Escalante, and two of the adult victims were elderly. Escalante said the scene did not indicated that the Gage Park community was under threat, according to the Sun-Times, but patrols were being added to the neighborhood anyway. In a press briefing he said the victims were four men and one woman, in addition to the child, and the scene would be investigated by the medical examiner shortly. Police checked on the home, on South California Avenue, around 1 p.m. Thursday, after one resident did not show up for work Wednesday or Thursday, according to Escalante. Authorities say police officers could see a body in the home from outside, and went inside to find the six residents dead with "signs of trauma" on their bodies. Death investigation underway. 57th and California . Interim Superintendent is on scene pic.twitter.com/a6hedmJSEY Chicago Police (@Chicago_Police) February 4, 2016 Neighbors told the Sun-Times that a woman with two sons and her parents had lived in the home for several years, and that they typically keep their curtains openbut the curtains were all closed Wednesday. A neighbor also noticed a grandfather's van parked on the street that hadn't been moved all day Wednesday. Loathsome Men's Rights Meetups Cancelled Over 'Safety' Concerns By Mae Rice in News on Feb 4, 2016 3:03PM Photo of the tunnel by the Morse Red Line stop, near where the Rogers Park Return of Kings meetup was scheduled to take place (via rwchicago on Flickr) The gross mens rights blog that planned two Chicago-area meetups as part of its International Meetup Day, prompting widespread outrage and plans for feminist counter-protests, has cancelled all meetups planned for Saturday. Roosh Valizadeh, the founder of the blog in questionReturn of Kingssaid the following in a Wednesday post on the blog: I can no longer guarantee the safety or privacy of the men who want to attend on February 6, especially since most of the meetups can not be made private in time. While I cant stop men who want to continue meeting in private groups, there will be no official Return Of Kings meetups. The listing page has been scrubbed of all locations. I apologize to all the supporters who are let down by my decision. This will come as a relief to the Homewood restaurant Balagio Ristorante. To the owners horror, one meetup was scheduled to occur in their parking lot. This full-blown cancellation comes after Return of Kings declared a state of emergency on their message board. Originally posted publicly, the declaration cited concerns about media attention and impostors, and laid out a numbered list of new forum rules, including one forbidding jokes about sexual assault. Now, visitors cant read that full post without first logging in, though a red bar at the top of the login screen still says, The Forum Is In A State Of Emergency: Extra rules apply during the worldwide attack against our international meetup day. In closing, it is crazy hubris that Valizadeh thought heone guycould ever guarantee the safety or privacy, let alone both, of men at meetups across the world. Before moving on to specifics concerning the days market movements, wed like to clear up a fashionable theory about sovereign wealth funds (SWFs) and the falling prices of equities. The general notion is that petro-states are drawing down their SWFs to plug gaping holes in budgets. (In fact, they are borrowing to do so.) But lets say for a moment that the SWFs were being sold off. Petro-states account for approximately 60% of global managed SWF assets. The funds allocate 16% of their holdings to equities, or so the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute estimates. This equates to a total stock exposure of less than 1% of global market cap. Now, lets suppose that the SWFs of petro states apportion their holdings roughly geographically. That means any one of the three major economic regions would account for only 0.33% of global market cap. Next wed have to suppose that all sales were at a serious loss. Draw your own conclusions on the effects of sovereign funds. Before crude oil surged, Asia and Europe experienced a sharp sell off that only Shanghai avoided although it, too, fell. Europe was in too foul of a mood based on banking, pharma and telecom struggles to snap back as crude oil rose right at sessions close. Crude rallied furiously in time to buoy U.S. equities today. At 3:30 in New York, West Texas is up 8.50% and Brent North Sea has risen 7.50%. Natural gas did not share wholeheartedly in the rally, moving up only about of a percent. Gold continued its rally, jumping 1.25% while silver blasted off to rise 2.85%. Gold hit three-month highs on Wednesday, carried along by slower U.S. services sector growth and a weaker U.S. dollar. Investors were looking for shelter from the volatility storm. The services sector slowed to a near two-year low in January, suggesting that economic growth weakened further at the start of the first quarter. Indeed it did, but the sector is still expanding and note needs to be taken. The sector is still very robust, especially given the month being measured January. The falling dollar is intriguing for the gold trade we are in, the price of crude, and for future potential upward movement of equities pricing. The buck was down 1.75% today against the euro, 1.85% against the yen and off 1.3% paired with the British pound. This will be good for American exports, tangible and intangible, which have been suffering with a stronger currency since the Fed raised rates (and before when the hike was being anticipated). The stumbling of the services sector in January, for instance, can largely be attributed to a terrible currency imbalance, especially with Europe. The modest rise in the yield of 10-year U.S. Treasuries would suggest that not all safe havens are created equal. Gold and silver seem to be exerting a strong gravitational pull on those seeking safety. For those who would like a deeper analysis with detailed buy and sell recommendations, I invite you to try our daily video newsletter. Simply use the link at the bottom of this report to sign up for a free trial. Wishing you, as always, good trading, Gary Wagner thegoldforecast.com SHARE By Kitsap Sun Staff PORT ORCHARD A 34-year-old Port Orchard man has been sentenced to more than 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to charges of drug dealing and firearm violations in two separate cases. Joseph Ryan Oddo pleaded guilty to a series of crimes from 2013, including possessing a stolen firearm, delivery of meth and other crimes. He also pleaded guilty to crimes from 2014, including possessing a stolen firearm, possession of meth and other crimes. He was sentenced to 127 months in prison Jan. 25 by Kitsap Superior Court Judge Kevin Hull. The maximum sentence was listed as 120 months, but the firearm crimes run consecutive and total 127 months. SHARE By Ed Friedrich of the Kitsap Sun BREMERTON A group of influential developers, real estate agents, property owners and business people has crafted recommendations it believes can improve Kitsap Transit's chances of operating a successful fast ferry program. The Kitsap Passenger-Only Ferry Task Force, which has been quietly meeting for a year, distributed its findings during a Kitsap Transit study session Jan. 19. Member Steve Sego spoke again during a continuation of the meeting Tuesday. He said he was disappointed in the draft business plan the agency released in October 2014. "I shook my head," he said. "I was so darn sad because it was a great idea that had a lot of value. I asked (transit Executive Director John Clauson), 'Why are you proposing such a bare-bones program?'" The draft plan and task force proposals evolved independently to become quite similar. The group concluded the schedule was too skimpy and commuter-oriented to receive sufficient support. Hearing the same response from the public, Kitsap Transit more than doubled peak-season trips, including nights and Saturdays. It's limited to six commuter round trips the rest of the year. The task force said a local sales tax increase of 3 cents on a $10 purchase was needed to adequately support the operation. Kitsap Transit bumped its plan from 2 cents to 3 cents when it beefed up the schedule. The task force recommended placing the proposition on the November ballot. Clauson has suggested Nov. 8, and the board is operating on that assumption. The task force proposed creating a ferry district of communities likely to be served by the ferries. Kitsap Transit also mapped one out, but it wasn't embraced by the board Tuesday. "I concur and support what I sense is the transit board's likely vote to make it a countywide election," said Sego, co-owner of Waterman Mitigation Partners and of Central Dock LLC, which manages the Port Orchard Public Market. "That's perfectly acceptable. We were just trying to organize around users." The latest transit plan molded by public opinion corroborates the task force's findings, Sego said. The group is contemplating how to get support from Seattle and King County, which would benefit from the ferries. Sego told the board Tuesday that the group suggested participants for stakeholder meetings and provided input on a survey performed by Kitsap Transit consultants. Board member and Poulsbo Mayor Becky Erickson likened the activities to powerful Seattle property owners and developers pressing for the Alaska Way Viaduct to be removed and replaced with a tunnel. Nobody else expressed alarm. "They were providing input as far as suggestions, like anybody else," said Clauson, who never met with the group. "They were not directing our consultants." In addition to Sego, the group of 12 movers and shakers includes Ben Anderson of Art Anderson Associates; real estate agent Gary Anderson; former Bremerton Mayor Cary Bozeman; Coreen Haydock Johnson, Sego's business partner; Chuck Henderson, who works with developer Ron Sher; developer Wes Larson of Sound West Group; property owner Judy Mentor Eagleson; Jon Rose of Olympic Property Group; Guy Stitt of AMI International; former Bainbridge Island Mayor Alice Tawresey; and real estate agent Sonny Woodward. Some would stand to benefit from a successful fast ferry program that brings new residents and business to Kitsap, but Sego deflected that as motivation. They're just volunteers who see the potential of fast ferries and want to make sure it happens, he said. "I don't benefit from this, and I don't have a political agenda," Sego said. "It's truly about what I think is a great opportunity and a lot of people, if informed, would agree with that." The group says it would consider creating and funding an election campaign, depending on the final plan. Kitsap Transit can provide information about the plan but can't promote it. "That's entirely up to the community," Clauson said. "If they want to put together campaigns for or campaigns against, that's something everybody in the community is welcome to do." County Commissioner Ed Wolfe, who also is transit board chairman, believes two previous ferry propositions failed because benefits to the entire county, not just riders, weren't explained well. "If (the task force) wants to take this on and help to get it through, I'm behind them," he said. "Not just them but any group or individual." Northwestern Police Lieutenant Accused Of Making Child Porn By Mae Rice in News on Feb 4, 2016 9:32PM Ronald Godby, 53, has been charged with manufacturing and possessing child porn, as well as grooming (Mount Prospect Police Department) A lieutenant in Northwestern University's police force has been charged with making and possessing child pornography, as well as grooming. Ronald Godby, 53, allegedly took lewd pictures of a girl twice, the Tribune reports: once when she was 13, and again when she was 17. The latter shoot took place at the photography studio in Godbys Mount Prospect home. Godby later contacted the girl, still 17, on Snapchat and asked her to do a third photo shoot, and sent her an electronic image of his penis, as the Tribune puts it. The girl told her classmates about Godbys advances, and they told a teacher, who reported Godby to the authorities. In a factually different report, the Sun-Times says that police began to investigate Godby due to an explicit image of the 17-year-old he posted on Snapchat. Now charged with multiple felonies, Godby has been placed on administrative leave and banned from campus, Northwestern officials told reporters. According to Godby's photography website, he often shot shows put on by high school students in Arlington Heights, though district officials are adamant they never hired him. Jennifer Delgado, a District 214 spokeswoman, said in a statement obtained by the Tribune that Godby "has not been hired by the district to shoot photos of students or events. He is a parent who has taken photographs at public events and practices at school." When detectives told Godby that they would execute search warrants on his Mount Prospect home, he said, If you have enough for a search warrant, I'm [expletive], according to court documents obtained by the Tribune. Godby's lawyer, Robert Callahan, doesnt even claim his client is innocent. Instead, he told the Tribune: "The charges are egregious, but [my client] wants the opportunity to answer them in court." The bio on Godbys photography website now reads as horrifying.I specialize in model and dance images, reads the second sentence. LARRY STEAGALL / KITSAP SUN filE North Mason PACE Academy teacher James Taylor helps student Tyler Smith in November 2014 with an assignment. SHARE By Arla Shephard BELFAIR When North Mason School District's alternative high school opens in a new building in the coming weeks, it will be known as James A. Taylor High School. The North Mason School Board has approved renaming the former PACE Academy, along with portions of the new North Mason High School. The North Mason High School auditorium will be named after former North Mason High English and drama teacher Toni M. Smith, while a new plaza that has yet to be built will be named after Alfred Snell, who donated the land for the district's secondary campus. The alternative high school will be named after Taylor, who taught in the district for 42 years, including 15 years at PACE. Taylor died in June. "He was a renaissance kind of guy," PACE Principal Anne Crosby said. "He knew more than I probably will know in my lifetime. He could put together a plan for a student and follow it through to graduation and would keep in touch after graduation. He was magic. He was a huge loss." As the opening of the new North Mason High School approached in September, other community members expressed interest in seeing portions of the school named after people who had made significant contributions to the district, NM Principal Chad Collins said. School district policy dictates that building and grounds may be named be after "distinguished individuals that have served our local community in education." Smith taught high school for more than 35 years, primarily at North Mason. She died in 2003, and her family and community members created a nonprofit in her name to collect money to build an auditorium that would have been adjacent to the high school. When North Mason voters rejected the bond measures in 2006 and 2009 to build a new high school, the efforts to build a new auditorium fell through as well, Crosby said. "The separate auditorium never happened, but I think people in the community were still supportive of the idea of naming something after her," she said. Alfred Snell donated 10 acres in 1955 and an additional 44 acres in 1960 for the district's secondary campus, which includes Hawkins Middle School, North Mason High School and the district's administrative buildings. The Alfred Snell Plaza will greet community members as they approach the entrance to North Mason High School after the old Hawkins Middle School is torn down. The plaza will include a flag pavilion with the American flag, the state flag and the North Mason High School Bulldog flag, as well as a plaque to Snell. The district will likely undergo the naming process again once Hawkins Middle School opens in the former high school building, with a new gymnasium that will need a name, Collins said. PACE Academy is now housed in the former high school annex building and is expected to move to its new building sometime after President's Day weekend, Crosby said. The alternative school has already begun using its new name and will hold a ribbon-cutting in the spring to celebrate the new building and name. Collins said he learned a lot about the high school's history through the naming process. "I've lived in this community for nearly 20 years, and I learned about some amazing folks that have helped make this school district the place to be and made a positive impact in the lives of many students," he said. "It is clear to me that Toni M. Smith and Alfred Snell were special people." Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Say Goodbye To Parking On Logan Square's Boulevards, Unless You're There For Church By Mae Rice in News on Feb 4, 2016 6:58PM Logan Square/via SFMo Starting Wednesday morning, workers from the Chicago Department of Transportation began removing the signs that allowed for free parking along the four-lane main drags of Logan and Kedzie Boulevards during select hours. Churchgoers will still be able to park along those stretches during services, though, according to Paul Sajovec, a spokesperson for Ald. Scott Waguespacks officethere just won't be any signage about it. The parking signs are coming down, specifically, on Logan Boulevard between Western Ave. and Logan Square, and on Kedzie Boulevard between Logan Square and Palmer Square, Sajove said. (Parking was, and remains, permitted on the service roads that run in front of the boulevards homes.) The idea... is not to prevent churches from being able to park on the Boulevard as they have for decades, Sajovec told Chicagoist. Instead, Ald. Waguespack's team hopes that once the signs are gone, Logan Square can return to the [parking] process that was in place before the signs being installed. That is, an unofficial process in which churchgoers can park on the boulevards during services, Sajovec explained. In exchange for this extralegal privilege for their congregations, churches place cones out and have volunteers make sure everyone park in an orderly fashion, and leave promptly after the services. Because church-goers park and leave basically all together, Sajovec added, it minimizes two problems: the problem of random stragglers parking on the boulevards and leaving their cars there beyond the permitted parking hours, and the more serious problem of drivers hitting lone parked cars because normally, [a boulevard lane is] a travel lane, not a parking lane. The parking signs first went up along the boulevards in 2011, when the boulevard segments in question fell in the 35th ward. That wards then-alderman, Rey Colon, passed a City Council ordinance legalizing free boulevard parking during certain hours without any public review, the Tribune reported. Back then, residents were worried about losing the boulevards feeling of airiness to gridlock and traffic hazards, the Tribune reported. Their feelings don't seem to have changed much since: Sajovec said that a recent local referendum on removing the boulevard parking signs, pushed for by Logan Square Preservation, passed with flying colors. Based on that referendum and conversations with the churches, Waguespack submitted an ordinance that allowed for the parking signs removal in July of 2015, Sajovec said. SHARE Photo submitted Zack Flack, right, in the 2012 Martin Luther King Day Parade in Sevierville. He was one of the parades founders. The Rev. Zack Flack Zack Flack on the day of his consecration as a bishop in the Church of God Sanctified in 2012 Photo submitted By Rebecca D. Williams The Rev. Zack Flack of Knoxville, 83, has been preaching all his life. While he no longer has an official pulpit, he still has plenty to say about his Christian faith. "To whom much is given, much is required," Flack said, quoting the Bible. "The main thing you have to realize is where your gift comes from. It comes from God. You make a choice of who you are in life and how to accomplish what you can do. "I was born Nov. 30, 1932, here in Knoxville, Tennessee, during the time of the Great Depression. I was born at home, as most children years ago were, at 606 Condon Street," which is today where the World's Fair Park stands. He was the youngest of the 16 children of Rosa McMickens and George Herbert Flack Sr. "There were a lot of us! You had a lot of fun; you never got lonely or complacent. You were taught to be disciplined and productive. You were taught how to work and be focused and listen to your elders. It was like a little army. Not like today. You were told what to do and how to do it, and you didn't question why. "My father saw to it that we had running water in the house, but the bathroom was outdoors. I remember we were the first on Condon Street to have electric lights. I must have been five or six." Flack's father was a fireman for the Southern Railway. His paternal grandfather had been a slave, brought from South Africa in the early 1800s. His paternal grandmother was white, Irish. And on his mother's side, Flack said there were Cherokee, black and Irish ancestors. "So, I'm a duke's mixture! You look at people and don't know who they are or where they've come from. I'm a man of color, but I had a white grandmother. The body is just a shell for the spirit," he said. "God made all mankind. The color of your skin has nothing to do with who you are. That's the way I see it." Even as a child, Flack said he preached. "My mother wanted me to be a doctor, but I hated that. At an early age, I loved people and church. When we played, I would line up the other children and preach to them," he said with a laugh. He attended McMillan Elementary School, Green School through eighth grade and then Austin High School. "I didn't finish high school because the Korean War broke out, and I wanted to be a part of that," he said. He enlisted in the Army and went to Korea with a cavalry unit. "That's something I don't like to remember. War is a horrible thing," Flack said. "I was never physically injured, but like most soldiers, I can't remember very much. They call it post-traumatic stress now, but then they called it 'shell shocked.'" Flack returned to Knoxville, re-entered Austin High to graduate and then went to Knoxville College, graduating in 1958 with a degree in religion and theology. He excelled in German and tutored the language to others. He can also speak Spanish and Japanese, he said. "Languages come easily to me. When I went to Knoxville College, it was a beautiful place, an A-rated college. The very best teachers and professors were there, and when you left KC, you could go anywhere in the world and succeed," he said. "Now it's in ruins, and it grieves me so. It helped mold my life." While in college, Flack began preaching at his home church, Patton Street Church of God, on Sundays. To support himself, he worked at UT Hospital in central services. "You didn't get paid (for preaching) at that time. Back when I came along, most ministers worked another job," he said. One Sunday, Flack was preaching when he noticed a pretty teenage girl in church with her mother. "She and her mother had come from Cuba," he said. "Castro was going to overthrow the government, her mother knew that, and they fled Cuba and came to the U.S. She couldn't speak English at all. Someone invited her to the church. God put us together; we fell in love," he said. He and Ana Gonsalez were married in 1960. They have six children, 11 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. The Flacks moved from Knoxville to Waukegan, Ill., in 1965, where Zack Flack worked at Outboard Motor (Johnson) Corp. Ana Flack worked for many years as a Spanish language interpreter in schools. "The North wasn't as integrated as I thought it was. I worked on the floor as a laborer, swept the floors. They kept me out of the office," Flack said. "Finally I got a job in the office. The boss would talk to me, but a lot of times the guys wouldn't. One day I was sitting at my desk, and I heard change falling on my desk. A man looked at me. He said, 'This is for you. This is how much I'm sorry for the way we've treated you.' He was an Irish guy. He always treated me very nice, and we became very close friends. He said, 'Flack, you're part of me. You're Irish.' I said, 'Yes, my grandmother's Irish!' I went to the St. Patrick's Day Parade and wore green." On the weekends, Flack preached at New Hope Church of God on the West Side of Chicago. "I was inspired by God to leave here and go there, sort of like Abraham. It was a very rough area, high crime. The Black Panthers were there. I was under tremendous stress," he said. "There were gang members; my life was threatened; all those things affect you as a minister. I remember a minister was killed and propped up in his car with his arms folded over his Bible. It was nothing to pull a body out of a garbage can. One woman was decapitated. Growing up in Knoxville, I'd never experienced anything like that. "Of all of my deacons, only two didn't carry guns. That was a big shock. It was just more than I could deal with. I think things were worse in Chicago than in Korea. At least in Korea I was in a trench," he said with a laugh. Flack's health began to fail. He had three heart attacks and four strokes in his 50s. "One day, I collapsed and died in the pulpit," he said. You can see him tell the story of what happened before he was revived at www.KnoxNews.com. In 1991, Flack had his fifth stroke at the age of 58. "I took disability. I couldn't do anything. I had to learn to walk again. Ana had to put my clothes on me." They moved back to Knoxville while he recovered. He became an avid exerciser and even today goes to a gym regularly. By 1996, Flack was well enough to preach again, this time at Boyd's Creek Church of God Sanctified in Sevierville. "The good Lord let me know I was ready. I served there about 19 years," he said. In 2012, Flack was consecrated as a bishop in the Church of God Sanctified, and when he retired recently, he was named pastor emeritus of Boyd's Creek. "I want to be remembered as a lover of God and of people. And not only that, I am a servant of the people," said Flack. "This life will soon be past, and only what you do for Christ will last. Regardless of what I've done, it's for him. The greatest part of our time will be on the other side, not this side." "In My Lifetime" runs every month and profiles interesting people over 70. If you know someone with a fascinating story, please contact features@knoxnews.com. Guo Weimin: Ladies and gentlemen, friends from the press, good afternoon! Welcome to this State Council Information Office briefing. Recently, Chinese economic development has received much attention both at home and abroad, so that different voices and opinions start to be heard. To help you understand the matter better, we are very pleased to have Mr. Xu Shaoshi, chairman of National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) here with us today. He will brief you on China's economic and social development in 2015 before taking your questions. Now, I hand over to Mr. Xu Shaoshi. Xu Shaoshi: Ladies and gentlemen, friends from the press, good afternoon! I am very pleased to attend this press conference today and have a chance to meet you all. I would like to digress from the main topic just for a moment. Since the traditional Chinese New Year, the Spring Festival that marks the start of the Year of the Monkey, is drawing close, I would like to take this opportunity to offer everyone my greetings. I wish you all good health, happy work, and harmonious family in the year to come. At the same time, I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your attention to China's economic and social development. It is you and your continuous efforts to write reports that make the whole nation, and even the whole world, gain an understanding of China's economic and social development. I also thank you for your constant attention and support, as well as your understanding of the work regarding development and reform. It is thanks to you that the NDRC's work has become better known to the public. Therefore, I would extend my appreciation to the press on this occasion. Now I will brief you on relevant matters from four perspectives, and then, I will take your questions. As you all know, the Chinese economy has entered the period we call the new normal, characterized by three core values: 1) change in growth speed, 2) optimization of structure, and 3) shift of powerhouse. If one reviews China's economy, he should review it from the perspective of the new normal. Hence, I will brief you on the condition of the Chinese economy largely from the perspective of the new normal. First, China's growth rate changed but nonetheless remains within a reasonable range. In the past year, as you know, the economy was stable in general with progress and improvement made in regard to this stability. As the major indices of macro-adjustment show, the Chinese economy featured four "stable" elements in 2015. 1) The economic growth rate remained comparably stable. GDP expanded 6.9 percent, meeting the requirement set at the beginning of the year that the growth rate should be around seven percent. Compared with other economies in the world, China's growth rate remained in the forefront. Based on IMF data, China's economy contributed more than 25 percent of world growth, so that it remains a major engine of global economic development. 2) Employment remained stable. As you also know, last year's goal for urban employment was 10 million new jobs; in fact, we created 13.12 million jobs. Neither the surveyed unemployment rate nor registered unemployment rate was high, so that it is fair to say employment remained relatively stable. 3) Income growth remained stable. National per capita disposable income increased 7.4 percent, 0.5 percentage points faster than GDP growth. Our original goal was to synchronize income growth with GDP, but, in fact, it outpaced GDP growth by 0.5 percentage points. Urban and rural per capita dispensable incomes both rose. Urban dispensable income last year reached 31,195 yuan (US$4,763), and that for rural residents reached 11,422 yuan (US$1,744), the fold difference was narrowed to 2.73. 4) Prices remained stable. The CPI grew only 1.4 percent throughout the year, which can be deemed mild growth. This is the first point of my briefing. Although China's growth rate did change, it still remained within a reasonable range. Second, economic transformation and upgrading was accelerated and structural optimization yielded positive results. If you review the entire economic situation, you should take note not only of the short-term growth and fluctuations, but also the economic structural transformation and the overall quality and efficiency of the economy. The structural optimization was embodied in the following four aspects. 1) The structure of demand continued to improve. This improvement can be summarized in one sentence: consumption contributed more than investment did. The total retail sales of consumer goods rose by 10.7 percent, and as a result, consumption contributed 66.4 percent to economic growth, up by 15.4 percentage points the year before. Consumption of tourism, information, culture and health services continued to expand rapidly. Fixed-asset investment increased 10 percent last year, of which 64.2 percent was private investment. In general, in the structure of demand, consumption outweighed investment, which represented a major change. 2) Industrial restructuring kept advancing. A key factor here is that the tertiary industry now surpasses secondary industry. The service sector accounted for 50.5 percent of GDP, the first time to go beyond 50 percent. The transformation to a service-led economy from the previously industry-led one has become more obvious. The added value of high-tech industries increased 10.2 percent year on year, greatly outpacing traditional industries. 3) The regional structure is more coordinated and balanced. Regarding the development of fixed-asset investment and above-scale industry, in general, the central and western regions outpaced eastern areas. As we are carrying out the "Belt and Road Initiative," the Coordinated Development of Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei, as well as the Yangtze River Economic Belt, we have created many comprehensive reform pilot areas, urban new districts, and science-technology demonstration areas. These new platforms and new starting points have facilitated the central and western regions to grow relatively fast. Therefore, in general, eastern, central, western, and northeastern areas developed in an improved coordinated and balanced way. 4) There is an increasingly optimizing urban-rural structure. As you have seen the statistics, China's urbanization based on regular urban population reached 56.1 percent in 2015, meaning that 770 million people now live in cities. The proportion was 1.33 percentage points higher than the previous year. The actual rural income grew 0.9 percentage points faster than that for urban residents. As I mentioned just now, the urban-rural income gap was narrowed to 2.73; in 2014, the figure was 2.78, 0.05 percentage points higher. If there is another prominent sector to highlight it would be the energy structure, where there was much progress achieved in energy saving and emission reduction. In 2015, the consumption of non-fossil energy in the overall energy structure reached 12 percent, up by 0.8 percentage points from the year before. Coal consumption dropped 1.6 percentage points. Throughout 2015, carbon intensity per GDP unit fell 5.6 percent. Xu Shaoshi: Then, the conversion of the driving force for China's economic growth speeds up and new drive mechanisms for economic growth are accumulating.They are mainly relevant to the following factors. First, deepeningreform in an all-round way effectively releases the energy of market entities. Since this government came to power, a three-pronged measure has been employed involving streamlining administration and delegating power to lower levels, striking a balance between centralization and decentralization, and optimizing services. In particular, business system reforms further stimulate the vigor of market entities. In 2015, the number of newly registered enterprises in China averaged more than 12,000 a day. Reforms in foreign investment and the overseas investment examination and approval system achieved sustained progress. Foreign investment and overseas investment are filed for on-line recording. Reforms of the fiscal and taxation, finance, price and state-owned enterprises are being effectively promoted. All of these create a good institutional and market environment for the conversion of the driving force. Xu Shaoshi: Second, a new boom of grassroots entrepreneurship and mass innovation has been effective in stimulating creativity in the whole society. Friends from the media know we released the guiding principles for Internet Plus, which means the integration of the Internet and 11 industries. And these industries have implemented a structural transformation through IT technology. Under the Internet Plus appoach, grassroots entrepreneurship and mass innovation, various incubators and innovative bases have developed rapidly. Under grassroots entrepreneurship and mass innovation, there is another supporting platform comprising group innovation, crowd-outsourcing, crowd-funding and crowd-supporting, which forms a integrated system to advance innovation and entrepreneurship to play an important role in formation of new drive mechanisms. Third, new industries, new modes and new format are becoming new economic momentum. The Beidou Navigation Satellite System is now in widespread use. New industries such as new energy car, robot and mobile Internet have developed rapidly. Strategic industries including integrated circuits, ocean engineering equipment and medical instruments are advancing to the high end. The added value of the high-tech sector increased by 10.2 percent, up 4.1 percentage points for industrial enterprises above designated size. The online retail sales are close to four trillion yuan, up 33.3 percent. Xu Shaoshi: Fourth, opening to the outside world effectively expands the economic developing space. The construction of the "Belt and Road" initiative and international productivity cooperation increase exports of capital and production. The 49 counties along the "Belt and Road" have benefited from direct investment of almost US$15 billion, up 18.2 percent. International energy-producing and equipment manufacturing cooperation are moving forward at a fast pace, creating new space for the country's economic development. Xu Shaoshi: And then, China's economic development is characterized by strong inner support, elastic space and risk-resisting ability, and has capacity and conditions to keep a good momentum and situation. The central government now calls for two major directional and guidance requirements, a new normal stage and new conception in the county's economy. The new conception comprises innovation, greening, coordination, openness and shared development which formed in the Suggestions made at the Fifth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee. Now, we focus on the new normal in the economy and carrying out and developing the new conception. Our confidence comes from an objective evaluation of China's developing condition. Firstly, we have solid material foundations. Through the reform and opening up in the last three decades, China has established a complete industrial system. Now, the output of over 220 major industrial products ranks first in the world. A fairly sound transport system has begun to take shape. In 2015, China operated 207 airports, total mileage of railways reached 120,000 kilometers including high-speed railways of 19,000 kilometers.The number of ports with operating berths has reached 6,800. The country's total highway mileage now has surpassed 4.5 million kilometers including expressways of 120,000 kilometers. We also have vast coffers of foreign-exchange reserves and substantial savings. Therefore, our material foundation is solid. Secondly, China boasts a huge potential in market demand. 1.3 billion people, 900 million in the labor force, over 70 million in market entities, 680 million mobile Internet users, 1.3 billion cell phone users and 390 million 4G network users; all of these bring huge market volume and size wherein lies our great economic potential. Moreover, the new urbanization on which we are pressing ahead has tremendous market and investment potential. Xu Shaoshi: Then, there is a tremendous space for regional development. With the increasing spread of express railways, expressways, airports, ports and information infrastructure penetrating the central and western areas, interregional factor circulation becomes more convenient, and regional and comparative advantages are better developed to bring new points and growth levels. And then, the quality of factors of production is going up. Every year over seven million college graduates enter the labor market. The proportion of young people receiving higher education is close to the average level of the OECD countries. Enterprises pour more money into research and development and the capability in innovation undergoes continuous improvement. All of these elements create good conditions for enhancing the quality and efficiency of economic growth. Finally, China has accumulated rich macro-control experience. We have properly dealt with international and internal challenges and risks over the years. Macro-control insisting on proper spacing, effective orientation and accurate control insures the economy and society maintain smooth performance. Xu Shaoshi: On the whole, in new normal stage, economic growth has undergone changes, but the scope remains reasonable. China's demand, industrial, regional, urban and rural structures and even energy structure are improving steadily, and new economic drive mechanisms are germinating. Therefore, in new normal stage, growth variation, structure optimization and conversion of the driving force have all made gratifying progress. Xu Shaoshi: In 2016, the world's economy is still in a period of in-depth adjustment, slow recovery and low speed growth, while the international financial turbulence is intensifying and commodity prices keep seeing dips. Also,unstable and uncertain elements are increasing, which will affect China's economic development via various aspects. China is going through aphase of the "three period superimposed" (China's economic growth is in a speed shifting period, a structural adjustment pains period, and a stimulus policy digestion period), and the pressure of economic downturn still exists and has even increased to a certain extent. There are difficulties for enterprises' operation, and in some areas, the risks are still piling up. In society, there are problems such as unstable expectation and low confidence. However, we have capabilities and resources to tackle these problems and challenges according to the central government's "Five in One" overall arrangement of socialist economic construction, political construction, cultural construction, social development and ecological civilization, as well as the "Four Comprehensive" strategic layout including plans to comprehensively build a moderately prosperous society, comprehensively deepen reform, comprehensively advance the rule of law and comprehensively strengthen Party discipline. We will actively guide the economy's "new normal" period, implement new concepts for development, especially with the five policy pillars brought by the central government, notably, a steady macroeconomic policy, precise industrial policy, flexible microeconomic policy, affirmative reform policy, and the underpinning social policy. pParticularly, the Central Economic Work Conference proposed that while making a modest expansion of aggregate demand, the efforts should be strengthened to work on structural reform, especially the structural reform of the supply front. We must accomplish five major tasks, which are cutting industrial overcapacity, destocking, de-leveraging, lowering costs and improving weak links. We will seriously implement the central government's policies, decisions and arrangements, and have total confidence to overcome difficulties and make sure the economy operates in a reasonable scope. I have introduced these situations. Now, I would love to take questions from you. GuoWeimin: Mr. Xu has made a detailed introduction. Now, we open the floor for questions. Please identify your news organization before asking questions. Phoenix TV: We'd love to ask Mr. Xu regarding China's economic growth rate.Over the past year it was 6.9 percent, which was the lowest in the past two decades. However, authorities continued to stress that China's economy isn't suffering a free fall. As the nation's macro-control department, how does the National Development and Reform Commission view the 6.9 percent growth rate? Xu Shaoshi: Thank you. This is the issue everyone is concerned about. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, people not only paid close attention to the fourth industrial revolution, but also to the entire operation of the Chinese economy. I just talked about this issue. The 6.9 percent growth rateactually represents an outstanding performance among all the countries in the world. However, we have to look at it comprehensively. An increase rate of 6.9 percent should be considered by putting it in the major context of the "new normal." First, the 6.9-percent rate is in accord with growth expectations. We previously determined an anticipated growth rate goal for 2015 at around 7 percent. So, 6.9 percent is inside the reasonable scope. We also have to look at it from another angle, as China's economy has grown constantly for more than three decades; the scale is more than US$10 trillion. Due to this calculation, as long as the GDP grows one percent, it will be equal to the 1.5 percent growth observed five years ago, and to the 2.6 percent growth seen 10 years ago. Economic growth goes through cycles and the Chinese economy has maintained medium-high speed growth and entered the medium-high level, which is in accord with the economic development laws. I also hope everyone will look at the 6.9 percent in the context of the "new normal." Second, the 6.9 percent growth rate was realized under the circumstance that the world economy is going through in-depth adjustment while both the economy and trade have seen low-speed growth. We should say we have made a great effort. The world has not yet shaken off the profound impacts of the financial crisis, and both world trade and the world economy have grown at a very low speed.The developed economies are witnessing double speed development. The United States' economy is relatively better, but its growth rate in the fourth quarter was only 0.7 percent while its full year growth was at 2.4 percent. The Euro zone and the entire EU's growth were just a little more than 1 percent, and couldn't even reach 2 percent. Japan's economic growth was no more than 1 percent. So, even the developed economies are seeingdouble speed development. The new rising economies are developing separately. Those with better economic structures will efficiently deal with the current fluctuation in the financial market and the price drop of commodities. However, those with unfavorable structures will encounter big difficulties. So, we see different situations. Under the circumstances, the Chinese economy will naturally be affected, because the Chinese economy has integrated into the global economy. Our foreign trade in the past full year, calculated in the U.S. dollar, has seen a drop of 2.8 percent in exports and a 14.1 percent drop in imports. The imports and exports in total dropped 8 percent, which has everything to do with the global market. However, even with this situation, we still managed to get 6.9 percent growth. I can say we made great efforts and this was not so easy to achieve. Third, the 6.9 percent growth rate was achieved in the context of speeding up industrial transformation and upgrade. The traditional dynamics are weakening, but the new dynamics are developing. During the process, when old and new dynamics are shifting, the 6.9 percent growth rate is very hard to maintain. So, my general feeling is, as long as the employment is sufficient and the commodity price is stable, we will not pursue the so-called high speed. The 6.9 percent growth rate represents a great performance. National Broadcasting Company (NBC): Recently there have been reports questioning the credibility and accuracy of China's economic statistics. Why should we believe China's economic statistics? In particular, I am concerned about the latest employment figures given the relative slowing down economy. What is the latest employment situation in China? Xu Shaoshi: Thank you for your questions. Questioning China's statistics is a matter that has existed for a long time both at home and abroad. Let me put it this way. Facts over the years have proved that, even though there are questions, doubts and criticisms about the statistics, the reality of overall steady economic growth in China has shown the numbers are credible. There are two more aspects of the case I can mention. The first is that the statistical method China currently adopts is the internationally used statistical and accounting one. Moreover, we have comprehensively drawn on the advanced experiences of handling international GDP statistics. We cannot say we are perfect, but we have drawn on a lot of valuable experiences. Since last year, we have officially adopted the International Monetary Fund's SDDS (Special Data Dissemination Standard) that is widely used in many countries around the world. Measured by established international methods and standards, China's GDP statistical accounting has both a solid foundation and a reliable system to guarantee the figures. Xu Shaoshi: The second aspect is that international authoritative organizations, including the UN Statistical Commission, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, have all recognized China's statistics, particularly in regard to GDP accounting, and they have also quoted China's statistics in their own work. As for the employment statistics you just mentioned, our registered urban unemployment rate was 4.05 percent last year, and our expected target this year is below 4.5 percent. The unemployment rate surveyed in 31 cities and towns was not high. Last year an additional 13.12 million jobs were created in cities and towns, and the number of college graduates seeking work stood at about 7.5 million. There are many other ways to look at this. Just now, I said that, after the reform of commercial system, the number of newly registered enterprises reached 12,000 per day. The number of newly registered enterprises was 4.43 million last year. Just think about it. If there are three people in one enterprise, how many jobs will there be? And you can see that, currently, there is rarely if at all in China that the employment issue causes social conflict or even affects social stability. We welcome suggestions so that we can further improve our statistical accounting. Guo Weimin: If you want to know more about the employment situation, in the future we can arrange relevant officials from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security to give an introduction. Some interviews can also be arranged if necessary. Now you may continue to ask questions. China Central Television: It is known that the investment increase slowed down a little bit last year, but we cannot ignore the key role that investment plays in the whole economy. Chairman Xu, can you tell us what kind of fixed-asset investment policies will be adopted or what kind of situation will be created in 2016 to deal with the downward pressure on the Chinese economy? Xu Shaoshi: Thanks for your concern regarding investment. We have a basic sense about investment and consumption. Investment plays a key role in economic growth, while consumption plays a fundamental part. As the country is speeding up its industrialization and urbanization, the demand and space for investment is huge. So, what problems need to be reflected on? For a long time we have been stimulating economic growth with investment and the input of various resources. To make investments more effective, we need to establish the guideline of offsetting weakness and adjusting structure. It is very important and must be observed. To offset weakness and adjust structure, we have to answer three questions. First, what should we invest in? What are the weaknesses and when should we use the increase of investment to advance structural adjustment? You may have realized that the National Development and Reform Commission initiated several important investment project packages. We have encouraged 11 investment project packages and six consumption projects. Our country adopted three development strategies, namely, the Belt and Road Initiative, the Coordinated Development for the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei Region, and the Building of the Yangtze River Economic Belt. We have also exerted great efforts to drive international capacity cooperation. To sum it up, our investment focuses on the four aspects previously mentioned, and could be presented as 11+6+3+1. Investment priorities include affordable housing, grains, water conservancy, railway development in the central and western region, scientific and technical innovation, energy conservation, environmental protection, ecological construction, education, medication, and cultural causes. Poverty alleviation has become another priority in recent years. These are the areas where we want to invest, offset weakness and adjust structure. Second, who will be the investors? Currently, governmental investment is not huge, and the annual budgetary investment for the National Development and Reform Commission is about 500 billion yuan, far less than the over 50 trillion yuan of social fixed-asset investment. So, we must figure out who the investors will be. Our funds will be used to offset the weakness in the areas concerning the public's well-being, and channel social funds to these areas through the reform of the investment and financing circulation system. Public-Private-Partnership, a kind of government franchise, is a good example to guide social funds. Third, how should we invest? The reform of the investment and financing circulation system is speeding up these years, involving the government, banks, enterprises, and society. The term "enterprises" refers to state-owned ones, and "society" refers to the private economy and other non-governmental investors. The four sides make joint efforts to boost investment. The three major investment objects are infrastructure construction, manufacturing, and real estate. Investment in infrastructure construction increased by 17 percent last year. Meanwhile investment in the other two areas saw little growth. To help investment play a key role in economic growth, this year we will better use governmental funds and attract more social funds through the reform of the investment and financing circulation system. Thank you. Bloomberg News: You mentioned this year's economic downward pressure will increase, while people are concerned even more about the worst situation. How do you assess the present economic situation and how far is the worst case? This year we talked a lot about the supply-side reform, deleverage and cleaning up zombie enterprises. You just mentioned the unemployment rate targets a figure below 4.5 percent, so will these reforms affect the target? What is your comment on the increased corporate defaults? Xu Shaoshi: You raised three questions: one is about the economic growth, the second is about supply-side reform and the third is about corporate debt and operation. This year's economic downward pressure still exists. You can see it from last year's statistics. Growth was 7 percent in the first and second quarters, 6.9 in the third one and 6.8 in the fourth. In the first quarter of each year, the amount of economic growth usually is not large, and the level of activity of the micro economy is relatively low. Why? We have two holidays for New Year's Day and the Spring Festival, as well as February being a shorter month. All parts of the country need to sum up last year's work and deploy for this year. Moreover, concrete construction projects in northeastern and northwestern areas are suspended due to cold weather. So, we feel relatively big pressure in the first quarter of this year. Of course, there is a similar situation every year. Xu Shaoshi: However, we have also systematically analyzed the demand-side and supply-side situations, as well as the state of the world economy. We felt that the downward pressure did exist, enterprises did encounter big difficulties in their operations, risks in some fields accumulated and, in particular, as I just mentioned, we have problems of unstable expectations and lack of confidence. However, we are constantly introducing macro-control policies. You may have noticed that the People's Bank of China yesterday announced it lowered the minimum down payment for first-time homebuyers and for the buyers of second homes. This could release fresh demand. First homes are in great demand, while second ones are for improving the quality of life. So, we have many policies in the toolbox enabling our economy to operate within a reasonable range. Xu Shaoshi: Supply-side reform is a major deployment based on reality as the economy has entered the new normal. While we moderately promote expansion of aggregate demand, we will use reforms to promote structural adjustment, correct distortions in production factors allocation, expand effective supply and improve supply quality to better meet the public need. Xu Shaoshi: We have five key tasks for the current and coming period, namely to reduce overcapacity, reduce inventories, deleverage, lower costs and shore up weak growth areas. Regarding overcapacity, we will start from the steel and coal industries as these two have encountered outstanding problems in overcapacity. Regarding zombie enterprises, different places need to define the scope and adopt concrete measures based on their own situations. The central government will also have some support policies to promote the resolution of overcapacity and disposal of zombie enterprises. In regard to reducing stockpiles, the key is to cut the real estate inventory, especially in third and fourth-tier cities. The PBC's announcement of yesterday is positive in promoting this. We are encouraging new citizens to purchase houses, promoting the construction of affordable housing and especially focusing on the policy of monetization settlement. Monetization means the government does not necessarily need to build affordable houses for the people who are qualified to buy them. The government will purchase the existing commercial houses and allocate them to the people who are in need of affordable houses or residents facing shantytown rebuilding. We will deal with real estate inventory through a series of measures. Deleverage mainly refers to financial deleveraging. We will safely handle it from the viewpoint of both the financial system and individual enterprises. As for lowering costs, we have been investigating and formulating plans. Institutional transaction costs, in particular, unreasonable charges and some heavy burden on enterprises will be lowered. And shoring up weak growth areas, as I just mentioned, will mainly be dealt with through increasing the intensity of investment to adjust structures. The supply-side structural reform will be a key task in the future, covering three main aspects: to resolve overcapacity, to transform and upgrade traditional industries and to support and cultivate newly emerging industries. Xu Shaoshi: And then, there is the issue of corporate default. When an enterprise goes through very hard times in its operations, some banks will suspend its loans, resulting in even greater difficulties for the enterprise. There are accounts receivable and payable. When the capital flow meets problems, the accounts receivable cannot call in debts and the accounts payable cannot be dealt with, corporate defaults will appear. I believe local governments will be able to adopt many measures to handle these problems. However, I think some individual and small amounts of breach of contract will be useful to remind everyone to be concerned about risks. Voice of Economy, China National Radio: Our government has more than once stressed that the vitality of market should be released by streamlining administrative procedures. However, in reality, the issues awaiting for approval by the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) have, based on our observation, not been significantly reduced. Therefore, my question is, what powers did you delegate last year and in what areas? How will you take the further steps to keep on streamlining administrative procedures, delegating powers, taking appropriate controls and improving your service for further profound development? Xu Shaoshi: Thanks for your close attention to the NDRC, which is an incentive for us to carry out our tasks. We have been making efforts to streamline administration, delegate powers and improve our service. Please allow me to tell you about those in detail. First, we have abrogated all the non-administrative approvals; second, we have cut 50 percent of the administrative approvals and have delegated considerable powers; third, after two amendments to the administrative regulations, we abolished 76 percent of examinations for scrutinizing enterprise investments; fourth, we overhauled the approvals of foreign and offshore investments, so that 95 percent of foreign investments and 98 percent of offshore investments can now be filed online. Last year, we also rectified the catalogue of industries open to foreign investment, deleting 50 percent of the restrictions, and reducing 40 percent of the restrictions in relation to stake-holding proportions. We have loosened considerable control over foreign investments. We should both delegate powers and improve our service for better supervision and management. Therefore, the present tasks, briefly, are first, adequate delegation of powers as there are still scope to streamline the administration; second, better services and supervision. We are presently working on two lists and four platforms. The two lists refer to powers and duties, which has been released inside the NDRC. As to when the lists will be released to the public, we need to follow the unified instruction of the State Council. After the official announcement, public and market entities can gain easier access to supervising the administrative procedures of NDRC. The four platforms include one online approval and monitoring platform. You know we launched a portal web of administrative services last year and called it the 1.0 edition. Last June, we created a web connecting 16 ministries and administrative commissions to streamline a total of 32 approvals into two-and-a-half procedures.Investors can log onto the website to follow the approval procedures of their applications, which can be automatically sent to the 16 ministries and administrative commissions after NDRC approval. The enterprises can follow the process of the approvals online. The approval from the NDRC is restricted to 50 working days, including 30 working days of the assessments from intermediate agencies and 20 working days for NDRC internal scrutiny. The website, established not simply for monitoring but also to offer services, has spread to provinces, cities and counties since the end of last year The second platform is established for sharing information. The information we have collected from 37 ministries and local authorities totals 200 million pieces. The shared information basically focuses on violators of tax regulations, discredited persons from listed companies, discredited entities in the commercial and industrial sectors and persons subject to legal enforcement. With the website in full swing, discredited persons are prohibited from traveling abroad, purchasing first-class tickets on planes and trains or continuing to take primary charge of enterprises. The website will expand in the next phase to cover the security of production, environmental protection and pharmaceutical and food safety,and joint punishments and rewards will both be available online. The third platform is for the transaction of resources. By the end of this year, the website will be available with information on land transfers, transactions of mining properties, governmental purchases and contracted projects. The fourth platform is the price monitoring website-12358. Every year, it receives more than 600,000 complaints related to price issues. The platform is interconnected with the central, provincial, city and county-level governments for the monitoring of the entire market. Therefore, we need to improve our service and consolidate our supervision with the two lists and four platforms. Besides, we'll comply with the requirements of the central government to streamline administrations, delegate powers, appropriately loosen and tighten our controls and improve our services. The media is welcome to monitor us. Guo Weimin: Are the four websites already working? Xu Shaoshi: The four platforms are in operation. Three platforms are fully connected and the fourth, working for the transaction of public resources will be fully operational across the country by the end of this year. Guo Weimin: This represents elevation of governance system and capacities. As Mr. Xu has just said,media supervision is welcomed, as it is important for us to keep a close eye at the operation of those issues. Now let's return to more questions. Reuter: George Soros says a hard landing for China's economy is inevitable. How do you respond to this? And what kind of unemployment problem will arise due to China's supply-side reform addressing overcapacity? Xu Shaoshi: Ihave also noticed the argument that a hard landing for China's economy is inevitable, which has caused some concern within the international financial community. But looking back, I found this is not the first time we have heard such worries, especially since China's economic growth in the post-financial crisis era fell from a double-digit to a single-digit since 2011. The growth rates in 2013 and 2015 were 7.4% and 7.3% respectively. Xu Shaoshi: Since the 2008 financial crisis, the growth rate of China's economy certainly has been slowing down. For quite a while, there has been this argument about a possible hard landing. As Isaid in my opening remarks today, China has a relatively solid foundation, large market demand, vast regional space, improved quality in the factors of production and ever richer experience in macro control. These five features may answer your question. More importantly, the economic operations over the past few years have proved, and will continue to prove in the years to come, that such fears are groundless. Of course, there are many concerns about China's economy. One is that it is acting as a drag on the global economy and market. I think this is unfounded. First, China enjoys a 6.9% economic growth, remaining among the world's best performers. China's total imports still rank second in the world. Despite an7% fall in imports and exports last year, China's import of goods increased. Last year, the import of crude oil increased 8.8%, iron ore and concentrates grew 2.2%, material and chemical fertilizers grew 16.6%, natural and synthetic rubber grew 15.3% and agricultural product imports also witnessed certain growth. It is fair to say that China is driving development of the global economy. Xu Shaoshi What's behind the relatively sharp drop in imports? It has something to do with the price decline in some bulk commodity goods. An increase in import volume combined with a drop in price can produce a decline in overall values. China has not been dragging the global economy down, but actually supporting its growth instead. Moreover, China's growing outward direct investment, US$ 127.6 billion, was up 10% in 2015 over the previous year, and that also contributed to the global economy. China is still a major driving force for global development. It accounts for almost 15% of the global GDP and contributes over 25% of its growth, a share that surpasses the United States, according to statistics from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank. Therefore, I think it is unfounded to say that China's economy may face a hard landing and that it acts as a drag on global economic growth. Xu Shaoshi: I just said that the supply-side reform focuses on cutting excess industrial capacity, reducing inventories, deleveraging, cutting productioncosts and shoring up weak growth areas. And cutting excess industrial capacity relates to your question. As I said just now, our efforts to reduce overcapacity start from the steel and coal industries. To be honest, there will be some pressure on employment as we need to find new jobs for those laid off in this process. Several provinces where the coal industry accounts for a relatively large share of their overall production, like Shanxi Province and Heilongjiang Province, may face much pressure. Then, take Hebei Province, whose steel industry occupies a large share of total productions; it began to reduce overcapacity three years ago and has witnessed big drops in production of both steel and concrete. From May 2013, under the State Council's direction, the NDRC no longer approvedany new production facilities in the four industries ofsteel, concrete, sheet glass and electrolytic aluminum. After the State Council issued a guidancenotice inOctober 2013, the reduction of overcapacity got underway in many places in an orderly manner. Some places dogged by overcapacitygathered much experienceand wereable to deal with problems like job replacement, corporate debt and bank loans rather smoothly. These efforts have become more intensive compared to the past years. AsI said just now, the government has more policy measures to support the efforts. More importantly, local governments will prudently deal with the issues of job replacement, corporate debt and bank loans. Thank you. China Daily: Just now you mentioned the issue of resolving backward production capacity. My question is about production capacity "going overseas". Last year, 2015, was the first year of international cooperation in production capacity, with it, and cooperation in equipment, becoming a hot topic. Mr. Xu, could you please give us an introduction of related situation and is there any new plan for 2016? Xu Shaoshi: Thank you for your questions. As we all know, in 2013 President Xi Jinping put forward the building of the "Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road", which is widely called the "Belt and Road Initiative". During the Boao Forum for Asian Annual Conference in March last year, the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Commerce jointly issued the Vision and Actions on Jointly Building Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road, which has been translated into various languages. We are now actively promoting the "Belt and Road Initiative" in accordance with the central government's plans. International cooperation is important part and platform in building the "Belt and Road." Their purposes are the same both to promote pragmatic cooperation and achieve mutual benefits and win-win results. International cooperation in production capacity is actually based on a fundamental consideration. That is, China does have the advantage of surplus productive capacity. Our production capacity, involving iron and steel, cement, flat glass and electrolytic aluminum, is not outdated. It conforms to the standards and rules and is comparatively advanced. At the same time, we have sufficient equipment and construction ability. The equipment we have produced also has great potential. Moreover, we have big construction scale and high speed in operation, so our construction ability is strong. Third, we have an advantage of high quality with low cost. The cost of our equipment and construction is generally lower than that of other enterprises and we can also work faster. Xu Shaoshi: From the current global situation, developed countries just need to update, transform and improve their infrastructure facilities, while developing countries need to vigorously promote industrialization and urbanization and thus have a great demand for productive capacity especially in the manufacturing industry. So, there is good synergy. Particularly in building the "Belt and Road," the initiative and country's development strategy are mutually and tacitly coordinated. So, both the "Belt and Road Initiative" and international cooperation in production capacity conform to current global economic development demands. Last year, we strengthened bilateral and multilateral cooperation and opened up the third-party market. We signed memoranda or agreement for cooperation in production capacity with the 17 countries. We signed similar "Belt and Road" documents with more than 20 countries. We also conducted multilateral cooperation with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), the European Union, the African Union, and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States to promote international cooperation in production capacity. At the same time, we reached a consensus with some countries and some transnational corporations to open up the third-party market. So, we made great progress last year. We have strengthened our financial support. As we all know that, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) was established, the Silk Road Fund was established, and some bilateral and multilateral cooperation funds also have broad prospects for development. All these have boosted international cooperation in production capacity. Xu Shaoshi: Capacity cooperation saw three breakthroughs in the last year. One was in rail cooperation. The high speed railway from Jakarta to Bandung in Indonesia, with a projected speed of 250 to 300 kph, is one of the latest examples. China and Indonesia formed a joint venture to build this railway and will basically complete it by the end of 2018 for operations to begin in 2019. The second project is the China-Laos railway, on which work started on Dec. 2, 2015. It has a length of 470 kilometers. The third railway involves China-Thailand cooperation, and was initiated in late December 2015. With a length of nearly 800 km, it will run from NongKhai to Bangkok. The fourth project is the Hungary-Serbia of over 300 km. Each country will be responsible for about 150 kmin collaboration with China. The work on the Serbian section has already begun. The high-speed railway between Moscow and Kazan is now in the phase of geological survey. In South America, the Twin Ocean Railroad Connection project from Brazil to Peru has already started survey work in cooperation with China. Of course there are some more railway projects, including the western express railway in the United States. So we say railway projects were a significant progress for the last year, especially the China-Laos and China-Thailand railways. These are very important projects for building the Pan-Asia rail network on the Indo-China Peninsula. In the future, you can go southward from China's Kunming to Moding/Boten and to Vientiane; when you reach Vientiane, you can cross the river to NongKhai and then to Bangkok. Now Malaysia and Singapore are planning to build a 500 km high-speed railway that will go as far as Thailand in the north and reach Singapore in the south. If this railway also starts construction, before long, Indo-China Peninsula will be well-connected. The second breakthrough was nuclear cooperation. China's nuclear enterprises worked with EDF (Electricite De France) to build nuclear reactors at Hinkley Point in southwest England. There will be three stations and one of them will use the Hualong One nuclear reactor designed by China, which means a Chinese nuclear reactor with our own proprietary intellectual property rights can connect to the British power grid. We have also signed deals with Argentina on heavy water reactor and pressurized water reactor, which is a major progress. The third breakthrough is about capacity, epitomized by the strong performance of steel and cement exports. This year, we will keep promoting national strategy in conjunction with other neighboring countries under the "Belt and Road" initiative, in order to advance international capacity cooperation. From energy to information, to transportation, to industrial agglomeration zones, to the industrial chain and industrial belt, we should give overall consideration to international capacity cooperation. We will also strengthen financial support. We believe the "Belt and Road Initiative" will move forward vigorously and in an orderly way. International capacity cooperation will not only benefit parties involved, but will also give us one more way to resolve excess capacity. Thank you! Financial Times: I would like to understand the relation between fixing overcapacity and unemployment. Is it safe to call unemployment caused by fixing overcapacity a new round of layoffs? What's the key to the issue? Who can make a difference? The local governments or vocational training centers? Xu Shaoshi: Thank you for your question. It is very natural that you would pay attention to this issue, and it is actually a concern for our work. The first thing we think about is social stability while fixing overcapacity, especially the employment of workers. After years of reform, Chinese enterprises have become more involved in the market than ever before. Registration and recruitment in private enterprises is quite flexible, and they grow or die following market rules, which is very different from the acquisition and reorganization of the late 1990s. What I want to convey is, in the iron and steel industry and mining industry, state-owned enterprises and private enterprises represent two halves. Lots of private enterprises don't seek the government's opinion on management or bankruptcy. The real problem happens to some state-owned enterprises. Some of their regular employees or contract workers may face layoffs if their enterprises need to fix overcapacity. As mentioned just now, the central government will work on supporting policies and local governments will be capable of dealing with the issue, and we will never allow it to deteriorate into a mass incident that undermines social stability. Thank you. Wenhui Po: My question is: has the marked slowdown in China's economy since last year affected foreign investment in the country? Is there a massive withdrawal of funds by foreign investors? What measures will the government take to continue to attract foreign investment and improve the investment climate? Xu Shaoshi: Thank you. This is an issue of wide concern. With the slowdown of the Chinese economy and the rising cost of production factors over the past two years, some companies, especially those in the processing trade, began to transfer their business activities to the central and western part of the country, and even to Southeast Asian countries. This certainly gave the impression that foreign funds are withdrawing from China. This is particularly obvious in the Pearl River Delta. The inflow and outflow of foreign investment coincides with the current situation of the Chinese economy. However, rather than declining, foreign investment in the country has actually increased. We absorbed US$ 126.27 billion in non-financial investment last year, up 5.6% compared to 2014, which is a relatively high growth rate in the past few years. According to the World Investment Report 2015 released by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), transnational companies are still bullish about the Chinese market in regard to the period from 2015 to 2017. Take the Qualcomm company as an example: it is transferring some of its advanced technologies to China with a large amount of investment as it wants to produce chips in the Gui'an New Area in Guizhou Province. This is one illustration to back up the statement that foreign investment in 2015 increased rather than fell. Xu Shaoshi: As China further opens up to the outside world, the momentum for foreign investment will remain strong. First, in terms of opening up, we are carrying out experiments in four free trade zones. The level of openness there is very high, including in the finance sector. And we will continue to increase openness in service sectors like finance, healthcare, culture, telecommunications, and logistics. Second, we will continue to deepen reform of the management system for foreign investment. As I said earlier, after amendment to the Catalogue for the Guidance of Foreign Investment Industries, the number of encouraged industries grew over 50% and the number of industries where foreign investment is somewhat restricted fell 40%. Up to 95% of foreign investment projects have been filed in online archives. Therefore, the investment climate has improved greatly. We will continue to build a better institutional and market environment in order to maintain the good momentum for foreign investment. Thank you. Beijing News: Faced with much downward pressure on China's economy, the government has taken many policy measures to stabilize growth. Some say that the measures seem to be not so effective. What's your opinion about it? Xu Shaoshi: This is also a matter of some concern. In my opinion, we should see it from the perspective of the "new normal." First, faced with a complex domestic and international situation, China managed to keep its growth at a reasonable level of 6.9% in 2015. Does this reflect the effectiveness of our macro-control policies? I think it does. Second, we need to break away from conventional thinking. We are more familiar with our traditional macroeconomic policy to boost investment and drive growth. However, today, strong stimulants can no longer be utilized to create an economic rebound, and our macroeconomic policies should focus on range-based, targeted, discretionary and precise regulation. As you know, we have introduced structural tax reductions and cut fees across the board; in terms of financial policies, China has cut interest rate five times, reduced the bank reserve ratio across the board four times,and even reduced the bank reserve ratio in regard to certain banks five times. This kind of targeted regulation has produced a positive outcome. From another perspective, China's macro control no longer rests only on fiscal and monetary policies, but represents a combination that includes overall planning, industrial policies and pricing policies. I think it has played a positive role in boosting economic growth. If you still think it is ineffective, I suggest you try to think from another perspective and you might come to a different conclusion. Thank you. Guo Weimin: Thank you for your patient and detailed introduction today, Mr. Xu. Thank you everyone for coming. This is the end of today's conference. SHARE Scott Walter Eiswert By Jamie Satterfield of the Knoxville News Sentinel The case of a military widow whose husband committed suicide after the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs misdiagnosed his post-traumatic stress disorder is testing Tennessee's stringent medical malpractice laws and highlighting what a federal judge called the laws' "seemingly unfair" results. The VA and the James H. Quillen Veterans Administration Medical Center in Mountain Home, Tenn., have conceded Greeneville veteran Scott Walter Eiswert was misdiagnosed and in 2008 committed suicide. The efforts of the National Guardsman's widow, Tracy Lynn Eiswert, to hold the VA and the Quillen doctors accountable have failed solely because of a few paperwork errors that ran afoul of Tennessee's medical malpractice laws. U.S. District Judge Ronnie Greer tossed out Eiswert's case in 2013, which he called a "seemingly unfair result" of "procedural hurdles" the Tennessee Legislature created over the past few years to make it tougher for residents to sue medical professionals and facilities. The 6th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals came to the widow's rescue earlier this year, questioning whether those laws were indeed as unforgiving as they appeared. The appellate court asked the Tennessee Supreme Court to consider whether the laws required "strict compliance" with no room for error or "substantial compliance" with wiggle room for minor filing mistakes. In a recently-released opinion, the 6th Circuit revealed the state's high court refused to answer that question because of at least one other paperwork error Greer did not address in his ruling. Rather than declare defeat for the widow, the 6th Circuit is now sending the case back to Greer with a twist. The court is drawing a legal road map for Greer, citing specific cases he should consider that could favor the widow. "On remand, we note several decisions which may inform the analysis of the unresolved issues," the opinion stated. All of those cases were decided by Tennessee's Supreme Court after the widow's lawsuit was dismissed and have poked legal holes in the "strict compliance" requirements of the state's medical malpractice laws. Greer has not yet set any new hearings in the case. The facts surrounding Scott Eiswert's death are largely undisputed in court records. Eiswert, 31, joined the National Guard in 2001. In 2003, he was called to active duty and sent to Iraq, where he served for two years before his honorable discharge in November 2005. In those two years, Eiswert reported he and his fellow soldiers were under constant threat from roadside bombs and car bombs, that he was on the phone with a soldier friend at the moment that soldier was killed in an explosion and that he witnessed an explosion that killed 93 civilians, many of them children. Eiswert began to suffer insomnia, agitation, anger and other symptoms of PTSD from the moment he returned home to his wife and children. He initially sought private counseling and was diagnosed with PTSD. When he lost his insurance, he turned to the VA and the Quillen facility for help and in May 2006 specifically filed for PTSD treatment. According to court records, VA doctors never reviewed Eiswert's records from a prior private facility and labeled his PTSD as depression. For two years, the VA denied Eiswert care for PTSD and instead prescribed him various antidepressants, which the soldier complained were not helping. In February 2008, Eiswert didn't show up for an appointment. A worker at the Quillen facility phoned him, but the line was busy. A month later, a clinician called Eiswert and drew a strange response. "He states he was honorably discharged, does not wish to take any medications and respectfully states he did not know about the appointment today or he would have called," according to a note in the court file. "He does not wish any further appointments." Less than two months later, Eiswert shot himself. SHARE Attorney Robert Vogel has formed the Vogel Mediation Group at 101-106 Sherlake Road By Jamie Satterfield of the Knoxville News Sentinel KNOXVILLE The Tennessee Supreme Court on Thursday ordered a one-year suspension of a Knoxville attorney who had sex with a pill-addicted woman he represented in a federal drug case. The high court already had rejected a 30-day suspension that a panel of three fellow lawyers meted out for attorney Robert Vogel for his months-long sexual relationship in 2012 with the girlfriend of a major pill supplier who was facing hefty mandatory penalties in U.S. District Court. Vogel had been appointed to represent her. In an opinion released Thursday by Justice Jeffrey S. Bivins, the court decided Vogel should be suspended from the practice of law for a year. "Upon our review of the entire record and the applicable law, we conclude that Mr. Vogel's misconduct necessitates a greater punishment than that imposed by the panel," Bivins wrote. "Most concerning to the court is Mr. Vogel's misconduct with regard to (his client) as it involved a sexual relationship with a highly vulnerable client." Records from the state Board of Professional Responsibility show and Vogel does not contest he asked the woman for sex while brokering a plea deal for her. She agreed but soon asked to end the encounters. Vogel "begged" her to continue, those records showed. She again agreed but later persuaded another pill addict facing legal trouble to serve as a substitute. Vogel was caught by his wife having sex with that woman in his office. Vogel later blamed an addiction to sex, for which he said he received treatment and continued to attend counseling and support group meetings. His attorney, Julie Rice, argued before the state Supreme Court last year the client was not a vulnerable victim but a woman willing to use sex to get out of trouble. Rice noted the woman also told authorities she had sex with her U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration handler, Agent Bethel Poston, who has denied the claim and has been cleared of any criminal wrongdoing. In its Thursday opinion, the high court rejected Rice's argument. "(The woman) was, as the panel described, a 'young, drug-using, court-appointed client who was under federal indictment for drug-related charges,' " the opinion stated. "This is particularly egregious in this case in light of the questionable consensual nature of the sexual relationship, given (the woman's) uncontroverted reluctance to continue to engage in sexual relations with Mr. Vogel." Federal authorities later learned about the misconduct and brought it to the attention of Chief U.S. District Judge Tom Varlan and filed a complaint with the state board. Varlan appointed attorney Stephen Ross Johnson to the woman's case, and Varlan, citing the coercive nature of the misconduct by Vogel, granted her probation. SHARE Knox County Schools bus No. 114 was involved in a wreck Wednesday, Feb. 3, 2016, on Cedar Bluff Road that sent 12 students from Cedar Bluff Elementary to a hospital with minor injuries. (MICHAEL PATRICK/NEWS SENTINEL) By News Sentinel Staff KNOXVILLE Authorities now say 14 children suffered minor injuries in a crash involving a Knox County school bus Wednesday afternoon. The crash was reported about 3:30 p.m. at the corner of North Cedar Bluff and Dutchtown roads, according to a Knox County E-911 dispatcher. Bus 114, serving Cedar Bluff Elementary School, was traveling south on Cedar Bluff when it turned left, struck a car and ran down an embankment, according to the Knox County Sheriff's Office. Initial reports varied on the number of students injured in the crash. According to the latest update from the KCSO, six children were taken by ambulance to East Tennessee Children's Hospital and five students to the University of Tennessee Medical Center. The remaining three injured students were not transported by ambulance. At least two children were picked up by their parents, Rural/Metro Fire Chief Jerry Harnish said at the scene. The driver of the car also suffered minor injuries, the sheriff's office said. The bus driver was not hurt. Neither driver's name has been released, and no charges have been filed. Approximately 75 students from Cedar Bluff Elementary School were aboard the bus at the time of the crash, according to Knox County Schools spokeswoman Melissa Tindell. More details as they develop online and in Thursday's News Sentinel. TVA's Bull Run Fossil Plant, on the Clinch River near Oak Ridge, is shown here on July 23, 2014. (MICHAEL PATRICK/NEWS SENTINEL) SHARE By Hugh G. Willett OAK RIDGE Concerned residents and environmental activists gathered at the Oak Ridge Civic Center on Wednesday for a public meeting to review alternatives for disposing of coal ash at TVA's Bull Run fossil plant. The meetings are part of a public input process TVA is holding on 11 coal ash impoundments that would be closed by an April 17, 2018, Environmental Protection Agency rule. Activists gathered outside the meeting, including members of Statewide Organization for Community eMpowerment, with scrawled chalk messages in large block letters on the sidewalk reading "Coal Ash Is Dangerous" and "Protect Our Water." SOCM activist Todd Waterman lives a few miles from the Bull Run facility. He said he's concerned TVA was trying to close the disposal facilities "on the cheap." "We don't want another Kingston calamity," he said, referring to the 2008 Kingston Fossil Plant coal ash spill that dumped millions of cubic yards of coal ash into the Emory River. TVA's original charter includes protecting the environment as well as producing energy, he said. Following a short video presentation, about two dozen people in attendance were encouraged to ask questions and submit written comments about the draft of the environmental impact statement. More than a dozen TVA staff members were posted around the room in front of charts and maps describing the location and operation of the federal agency's fossil fuel plants and disposal facilities. Skip Markham, TVA director of permitting and compliance, said he was pleased with the turnout. He said most people at the meeting were expressing general concern about the closure process. He said he also fielded questions about TVA's activity in the area of renewable energy. Two methods for closing the coal-ash impoundments at the fossil plants are being considered. One is to close the impoundments in place and cap them; the second is to remove the material. Some attendees expressed concerns about both alternatives. Oak Ridge resident Taylor Prince said keeping the ash at the current sites could be courting another disaster, while removing the ash might create unintended consequences for other parts of the country. Prince also said he was suspicious of TVA's plan to close a large number of disposal units in just three years. He said the plan allows the agency to avoid federal scrutiny under EPA rules that will take effect in the future. Oak Ridge resident and microbiologist Kaela Odell said she would like to see more environmental testing. She said she learned more from SOCM activists at the meeting than from the TVA experts. Odell also said she is concerned that most of TVA's plans are regulated by Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation rather than the federally controlled EPA. The next forum will be 5:30-7:30 p.m. Thursday at Roane County High School Maryville College senior Brittany Miller shows off a tattoo of a phrase from the schools alma mater on her back Wednesday. Students and alumni are participating in an alma mater tattoo project. (AMY SMOTHERMAN BURGESS/NEWS SENTINEL) SHARE Maryville College alumnus Ben Wicker shows a tattoo of a phrase from the schools alma mater Wednesday. Students and alumni are participating in an alma mater tattoo project. (AMY SMOTHERMAN BURGESS/NEWS SENTINEL) Maryville College junior Alyssa Hughes shows a tattoo of a phrase from the schools alma mater on her ankle Wednesday. Students and alumni are participating in an alma mater tattoo project. (AMY SMOTHERMAN BURGESS/NEWS SENTINEL) Maryville College alumni and students, left to right front row: Nicole Wicker, Alyssa Hughes, Jenna Hunt, and back row: Ben Wicker, Evy Linkous and Brittany Miller have tattoos of different phrases of the schools alma mater. Students and alumni are participating in an alma mater tattoo project. (AMY SMOTHERMAN BURGESS/NEWS SENTINEL) By MJ Slaby of the Knoxville News Sentinel MARYVILLE When Nicole Wicker looks down at her foot, she sees a tattoo that reads, "And true." It's a reminder to be true to herself and true to the part of her that Maryville College helped develop, she said. Maryville College was where she earned her education, formed strong friendships and met her husband. The 2003 alumna said the people on campus helped to make her the person she is now. A group of Maryville alumni decided to permanently illustrate the college's impact on their lives with tattoos that together form the lyrics to the alma mater. Wicker's husband, Ben Wicker, also a 2003 graduate who currently works at the college, came up with the idea. He learned about community tattoo projects more than a decade ago, and the idea stuck with him. So in September he started "the MC Alma Mater Tattoo Project" via Facebook as an alumni-driven idea not as an official Maryville College project. There are 39 participants, a mix of students and alumni, each adorned with a phrase from the Maryville College alma mater. The chorus lyrics are repeated three times among participants to represent the number of times those lyrics are sung. "This place is so picturesque that it's hard to visually represent in a tattoo," Ben Wicker said. "But the alma mater has a strong meaning." Jenna Hunt, a sophomore, said she decided to join the project because Maryville College has already had a strong impact on her life, as did Alyssa Hughes, a junior. Hughes said each time someone notices her "Hail to Maryville!" tattoo offers an opportunity to tell the story. Ben Wicker chose the phrase "Wake the echoes" as a nod to the history and natural beauty of the campus and school. About half of the participants have their tattoos done, and Ben Wicker plans to create a photo display of the finished tattoos. People have asked him, "Why tattoos, aren't your diploma and education enough?" He said the project allows tattoos to be an expressive art form of the college's impact. Seniors Evy Linkous and Brittany Miller have been friends since their freshman year and decided to join the project together. Linkous, who wrote about the project in the school newspaper, "The Highland Echo," said she liked the subtle meaning behind the tattoo. Miller said her tattoo's link to Maryville College and her career goals made it something she wanted permanently. "With this, I've never had any second thoughts or doubts. I'm OK with it on my body forever," Miller said. She said all Maryville College alumni are connected through experience, but the project forms another group within that larger one. "Now I have this connection to a small group," she said. SHARE By Mamie Kuykendall of the Knoxville News Sentinel KNOXVILLE The bodies of two men killed last week in a fiery car crash on Skyline Drive have been identified and funeral services planned, according to Jarnigan & Son Mortuary, which received the bodies Tuesday. Both men will be buried Saturday. The men were killed Jan. 27 when their vehicle struck a utility pole and caught fire about 10:35 p.m. in the 3200 block of Skyline Drive, according to the Knoxville Police Department. Beal Bournem, owner of Jarnigan & Son, identified the pair as DeShawn Tate, 26, and Santana Griffin, 35. Police have not released the pair's names, saying the bodies were badly burned, and have not said who was driving when the crash happened. The vehicle was traveling at high speed when it went off the right side of the roadway, according to police. The vehicle spun out of control, hit the pole and caught fire, according to police. Funeral services for Griffin will be 10:30-11:30 a.m. in Jarnigan's Chapel, 2823 Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. Tate's services will take place 3:30-4:30 p.m. at Foster Chapel Baptist Church, 2101 Ault Road. More details as they develop online and in Thursday's News Sentinel. SHARE Ernest Gaines' "A Lesson Before Dying" will be the focus of a series of book discussions, lectures, performances and a book drive during the Big Read, a six-week program presented by the Knox County Public Library and its partners. The series of events kicks off at noon Friday at the Knox County Public Defender's Community Law Office and continues through March 13 with more than two dozen events. The novel offers a painful yet inspirational tale of institutional injustice and personal redemption. Set in Southern Louisiana in the late 1940s, the story centers on the friendship between an uneducated young black man named Jefferson, who is jailed for a murder he didn't commit, and Grant Wiggins, a college-educated native son of Louisiana, who once taught Jefferson at a plantation school. The novel has a long history of championing social justice and remains relevant to the nation's cultural and political issues today. The Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest, which aims to encourage reading for pleasure and enrichment by providing residents an opportunity to read and discuss a single book in their community. The grant for the Big Read 2016 was awarded to the Friends of the Knox County Public Library. "Any time we are able to bring the community together to discuss big issues, we win," said Knox County Mayor Tim Burchett. "The Big Read is a great opportunity to do that through the lens of a book. I'm excited that we are able to partner with so many great organizations to make this happen." A full schedule of events is available at www.knoxlib.org/bigread. Amelia Parker, left, voices comments during a public meeting to review design details for streetscape improvements to Magnolia Ave. on Thursday, Jan. 21, 2016. (ADAM LAU/NEWS SENTINEL) By Megan Boehnke Megan.Boehnke@Knoxnews.Com 865-342-6432 The first time city officials heard negative feedback on the plan to upgrade a six-block section of Magnolia Avenue was two weeks ago at a public meeting, Bill Lyons, deputy to Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero, said Wednesday. Over the past nine years, going back to early conversations about the future of the East Knoxville corridor, residents and business owners "virtually, if not completely, bought into or supported" upgrading the street, said Lyons, the city's top policy official. Lyons' comments came the day after six residents told City Council members they wanted the city to halt the plan which calls for overhauling the corridor between Jessamine and North Bertrand streets over fears it would lead to gentrification. Other protesters sat in the audience during the council meeting with signs reading "Black Lives Matter" and "Support all areas of the city." Two weeks before that, the city held a public meeting on the plan at the John T. O'Connor Senior Citizen's Center attended by about 70 people, many of whom said they worried new development would push out black businesses and culture. Many of the frustrations expressed at Tuesday's City Council meeting and at other recent forums extend beyond the city's $6 million to $8 million plan to overhaul Magnolia Avenue with raised medians, bike lanes, bus pull-offs and new lighting, landscaping and sidewalks. Lyons said Rogero is committed to engaging with the community over issues like economic disparity, violence, educational opportunities and other concerns raised by residents at Tuesday's meeting and at other recent community forums. "The schedule is such that the streetscape came up in the midst of that, but in no way does that meeting on the streetscape detract from all the rest of it it's just a different track," Lyons said. The hope, Lyons said, is that by investing in the infrastructure along Magnolia Avenue, the city would attract private investment, leading to more jobs. "We've heard a lot about retail leaving the area, and we want to set an environment where more retail can be there, retail that can service the area and others," Lyons said. "We're also especially sensitive to African-American businesses, supporting the loan program for the Urban League and any other mechanism we can." Construction for the first phase of the streetscape is under consideration for the mayor's next budget proposal. Meanwhile, he said, the city is open to ideas from the public such as honoring local black leaders through markers, a suggestion mentioned at Tuesday's meeting. SHARE Almost 40 years ago, President Jimmy Carter committed a massive blunder that has resonated around the world. In January 1979, he threw the Shah of Iran under the proverbial bus because he thought the Shah was a despicable leader and that the religious leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, was a nice, peaceful man, just like religious leaders in the United States. How wrong he was, and since then the Iranians have slaughtered Americans and sponsored terrorism around the globe. Carter was naive and so were his advisors, except for Zbigniew Brzezinski. Ultimately Carter's decision committed Persians to a tyrannical, religious Islamic government. Since 1979, there has been a major war between Iraq and Iran, 241 Americans killed in the Beirut bombing of 1983, many Americans killed in Iraq during the 2003-2006 period by Iran-trained mercenaries, and they have seized British and American sailors. The Iranians typically execute 700 people a year and imprison, if not kill, any dissenters. Hamas and Hezbollah are both supported and armed by the Iranians. The Iranians were immeasurably better under the Shah, and the Middle East would be more peaceful under that system today. President Barack Obama has now signed a nuclear agreement with Iran that frees up $100 billion in funds to its government. What do you think the Iranians will do with that money, create peace in the Middle East or design and build more missiles that can reach Europe and the United States? Our current administration is making the same blunder that the Carter administration made, thinking that if you are nice to them, they will be nice to you. Ask the British who cheered Neville Chamberlain when, in 1938, he came home from a Munich meeting with Hitler, saying there would be "peace in our time." Richard M. Osborn, Knoxville SHARE I feel compelled to reply to the author of the letter "Confederate vets lacked equal status." He continues to write erroneous information concerning the War Between the States. It seems he does not have a correct grasp on history. His first assertion was that Confederate soldiers did not receive a pardon when a law was enacted to give them the same burial privileges as Union soldiers. Soldiers through the rank of major and sailors through the rank of lieutenant were pardoned when they swore allegiance upon surrender. Higher-ranking officers, politicians, diplomats and some others who supported the Confederacy had to apply for pardons. This was first imposed by President Abraham Lincoln in 1863 for prisoners if they would not go back into combat. President Andrew Johnson signed 13,500 of these during his presidency, and he was no friend of the South. Applications for Jefferson Davis and Robert E. Lee were lost or hidden for many years and finally signed by Presidents Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford, respectively. In reference to his statement on burial in Arlington National Cemetery, most were reburied in Confederate Circle in 1906 because their graves were not being maintained. There are some buried at other locations. On four occasions New England states threatened to secede, and during the War of 1812 they did not send troops because the war hurt their trade. Rhode Island threatened once because the ending of slavery in the area was a large loss of revenue. Rhode Island, New York and Virginia insisted on a clause to allow them an out if the new country did not work out for them. Regarding his statement on the decisions by Justices Joseph P. Bradley and Salmon P. Chase, these took place in 1869 and 1871, after the war. The flag issue would come under the First Amendment. Sam Miller, Oak Ridge The Chinese government is planning to build a batch of comprehensive national laboratories, according to Bai Chunli, President of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). Bai said this at the opening ceremony of the International Seminar on National Laboratory Management on Tuesday. It was attended by thirteen national lab directors from China and seven other countries, including the U.S., Germany, the U.K., Sweden, Italy, Japan and Singapore. They exchanged experiences of building and managing national laboratories. In his speech, Bai said it is one of Chinese government' s priorities to build national laboratories into a cornucopia of the best talents from home and abroad. In recent years, the Chinese government has made a series of policies about the scientific and technological system reform, so as to implement the innovation-driven development strategy. According to Ding Hong, one of the speakers and Chief Scientist of Beijing National Laboratory for Condensed Matter Physics of CAS, part of the plan features the building of three scientific facilities and five interdisciplinary research platforms. The three scientific facilities are Synergetic Extreme Condition User Facilities, Beijing Advanced Photon Source and Earth System Simulator, and the five platforms focus on accelerator technology, clean energy, materials genome, environment science and brain science. "It is very important to build several comprehensive national laboratories." Ding said, "compared to laboratories of a single discipline, comprehensive national laboratories can undertake more large-scale scientific projects and interdisciplinary research projects, for example new energy, materials genome and brain science." As a national research institute, CAS boasts more than 65,000 researchers and 80 percent of the country' s large-scale scientific facilities, including the world' s biggest radio telescope and Shanghai Synchrotron Radiation Facility. You are here: Home China's Internet regulator said Thursday it banned hundreds of websites and accounts with illegal content including pornography, gambling, terrorism and others. The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) said the banned websites included a platform for illegally trading firearms, some that fabricated rumors or distorted history, and illegal recruitment of students of foreign education or fake degree certification. Accounts fabricating information about the stock and property markets were also banned. The CAC asked the public to inform them about illegal content. As the Spring Festival approaches, rumors about food safety, public health and transportation are on the rise. South Korea's trade minister asked the heads of the country's large business groups Thursday to ramp up investment to prop up flagging exports and help the economy overcome challenges at home and abroad. Asia's fourth-largest economy is grappling with plummeting exports amid low oil prices and a Chinese slowdown. South Korea's exports plunged 18.5 percent in January from a year earlier, marking the largest on-year drop in more than six years. "We will mobilize all resources and means to revive exports and domestic demand," Trade Minister Joo Hyung-hwan said in a breakfast meeting with the heads of the top 30 conglomerates in Seoul, including Samsung Group and Hyundai Motor Group. "With your efforts, our economy will be able to get on the right track earlier than expected. We want you to invest to create world-leading industries and develop innovative technologies." Joo told the participating businessmen that the government is ready to remove all hurdles that have hindered their efforts to raise investments and create more jobs. The government will carry out structural reform in labor and financial sectors to steer South Korea's economy into a high value-added industry and find a new growth engine, the minister noted. He added that he will hold the minister-business meeting regularly to share their economic views. On top of plunging exports, South Korea's domestic consumption, which had shown tepid signs of recovery, seemed to lose steam in January, with the country's consumer price index growing less than 1 percent for the first time in three months. On Wednesday, the government came up with a set of pump-priming policies to rekindle consumer confidence and exports. It plans to pour a combined 21 trillion won into the economy in the first quarter and extend a consumption tax cut program on passenger cars, which was set to finish at the end of December, to June to bolster domestic demand. (Yonhap) The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has launched an anti-dumping investigation into imports of Korean automotive batteries to look into whether their prices were set below fair market prices, a Seoul-based trade promotion agency said Wednesday. The GCC of six Gulf Arab states has been investigating since Dec. 31 after Middle East Battery Company of Saudi Arabia accused Korean companies of setting the prices of lead-acid battery for vehicles below the level sold in the domestic market, the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA) said. The member countries of the GCC are Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Oman. If the GCC imposes a tariff on Korean goods after the probe, it could deal a blow to Korean manufacturers because Middle East is a major export destination following Asia, Europe and North America. GCC nations imported US$367.94 million worth of car batteries in 2013, and the amount rose to $393.39 million in 2014. Korean car batteries account for 18.7 percent and 8.1 percent of the market share in the UAE and Saudi Arabia, respectively, the KOTRA said. (Yonhap) South Korea's defense and chemical conglomerate Hanwha Group agreed with a Chinese online lender Thursday to establish a joint venture in an effort to tap deeper into the global financial technology. The group's IT arm, Hanwha S&C, said it will establish the 50-50 joint venture with Dianrong in Singapore by the end of the month. In November, Hanwha and Dianrong signed a memorandum of understanding. The venture will focus on the fintech industry, which refers to a new type of information technology businesses linked with financial services. Hanwha said the joint venture will open an affiliate in South Korea in March and kick off an online loan marketplace around August, which refers to a platform that connects lenders and borrowers. The company added it will hire 30 experts from the fintech industry for the new affiliate. The online loan platform for the South Korean company will focus on establishing a fintech ecosystem in which startups and financial firms can create a synergy effect, Hanwha added. "We aim to obtain know-how through strategic alliance with leading firms (in the fintech industry)," Hanwha said. Established in 2012, Shanghai-based Dianrong is one of the leading fintech firms in China, which operates peer-to-peer lending services. Dianrong currently has around 2,500 employees and 30 branches in China. Dianrong was established by Soul Htite, co-founder of the U.S.-based peer-to-peer lending firm Lending Club. The combined amount of loans processed through Dianrong and Lending Club is estimated at 15 trillion won (US$12.4 billion), Hanwha added. (Yonhap) SK Innovation Vice Chairman Chung Chul-khil, right, is briefed about SK Global Chemical's Shanghai office, Thursday. He said the nation's biggest petrochemical company will expand its presence in China with mergers and acquisitions, and partnerships. / Courtesy of SK Innovation By Park Si-soo SK Innovation, Korea's biggest petrochemical company, said it will expand its presence in China with mergers and acquisitions (M&As) of competitive chemical firms there and strategic partnerships. "Many people doubt China's sustainable growth," said SK Innovation Vice Chairman Chung Chul-khil, Thursday. "But still it is the world's biggest petrochemical market with many opportunities available." He made the remarks during a visit to the Shanghai office of the company's affiliate SK Global Chemical. He visited the office with SK Global Chemical CEO Kim Hyung-kun and other executives in charge of the China affiliate. Chung cited the Wuhan Naphtha Cracking Center, a joint venture made possible by SK Innovation's partnership with China's Sinopec in 2014, as a model case which his company will emulate to ensure SK's further expansion. The cracking center went online in February 2014, producing nearly 2.5 million tons of ethylene and other petrochemical products annually. The plant reported 147.6 billion won in operating profit in its first year of operation and 465 billion won last year. "We should strike partnerships for our more success. It will give us additional growth momentum," Chung said. He expressed the need for "structural reforms" to the company's business portfolio. "To ensure sustainable growth, we should shift our focus from general purpose to value-added chemical products," he said. He also stressed the importance of improving the company's corporate culture, business practices, technologies and personnel management. The vice chairman added that the company will become aggressive in M&As. "We will be active in taking over small-but-strong chemical companies in China and elsewhere," he said. Chung is conducting an on-site inspection of the cracking center in Wuhan today. Hwang Jin Dan is gaining popularity among heath-minded seniors, emerging as a best-selling premium product for the Korea Ginseng Corp. It is made from 6-year-old ginseng, whose quality is graded as being in the top 2 percent. / Courtesy of KGC By Park Jin-hai The Korea Ginseng Corp. (KGC) has been enjoying brisk sales of its premium red ginseng products at home and abroad. The best-selling "Hwang Jin Dan," priced at over 600,000 won for a luxury box, is highly popular in the premium product segment. The chewable rolls use six-year red ginseng roots whose quality is ranked top 2 percent, carefully screened by ginseng quality inspectors whose careers run over 20 years. Product sales topped 50 billion won in just three years after a 2012 launch, according to the company. The KGC attributes its popularity to the newly rising "active seniors" aged 50 and older, who are more healthy-minded and deep-pocketed, accounting for 43.6 percent of all health supplement sales. "Despite the longstanding slump in domestic consumption, people have become more concerned about their health and wellbeing," said Chea Woong-sik, spokesman for KGC. "It was first launched as a premium gift for the holidays, but now we see more senior customers purchasing them for themselves." Red ginseng is widely regarded as an energy booster and is one of the most sought-after holiday gifts, despite its relatively high price. The rolls, sold in individual easy-to-carry packages, also contain deer antler imported from New Zealand. Deer antler is used in a wide variety of Oriental medicine products and is believed to promote blood circulation. The Seoul-based firm also said the product is also gaining more popularity among foreign tourists, especially those from China. "Chinese customers tend to like the fact that all 290 ingredients contained in Hwang Jin Dan have been under more than seven safety inspections," said the official. The company, the nation's biggest red ginseng maker with a 70 percent market share, posted 737 billion won in sales as of the third quarter of last year, up 15.7 percent year-on-year. The firm exports products to nearly 60 countries, including China, Taiwan, Hong Kong and the United States. Hanmi Pharm posts record sales of 1.32 trillion won By Park Si-soo Korean pharmaceutical companies are making their way into overseas markets after being inspired by Hanmi Pharmaceutical's multi-billion dollar deals with foreign drug makers last year. Backed by the deals, Korea's No.1 drug maker by assets on Thursday reported record high sales of 1.32 trillion won ($1.1 billion) last year, up 73 percent from the previous year, while its operating profit also swelled to 212 billion won from 34.5 billion won. Its two smaller rivals Chong Kun Dang and Daewoong Pharmaceutical successfully moved into Japan and the United States, respectively, last month, giving their peers hope that they would be able to follow suit as soon as they develop competitive products or technologies. The government appears to be active in supporting their outward expansion by easing regulations and funding their research and development. Recently, the health ministry and 10 financial companies jointly began the "Global Healthcare Fund" of 150 billion won ($124.6 million) to help pharmaceutical companies, medical device makers and hospitals seeking overseas expansion. Analysts and market insiders welcomed such supportive action. But they said this campaign will come to fruition only when this is implemented long-term and consistently. Noting that it used to take 10-15 years to develop an innovative drug or pharmaceutical technology, they said that should this supporting campaign be short, all resources put into it will be wasted eventually. They added that the government will have limited ability to fund R&D in the private sector. Thus, what is more important than direct funding by the government is creating an ecosystem in which pharmaceutical companies feel comfortable to carry out long-term R&D without worries about financial shortfalls. "Developing a new drug is a long-term race, which used to take at least ten years," an industry insider said. "A great amount of money as well as visible and invisible resources are put into the work. I wholeheartedly welcome the government's support. But what's more important than is putting the policy into practice consistently and for the long-term." To that end, he said bureaucrats should drop their typical attitude of favoring projects that bear fruit in the short term. "This is not the problem of only bureaucrats. Policymakers of major lenders share this attitude," he said. "When we fail to showcase expected output, I would say, within the short period of time they set, they won't extend our loans and will stop offering new financial support. Without money, we can do nothing." Another insider called on the government to promote the creditability of clinical tests conducted domestically. "Korean pharmaceutical companies have an extremely meager presence in the global market because they have exported virtually nothing over the past century," he said. "Due to this poor track record, regulators of major markets don't trust the results of domestic clinical tests. This makes it difficult for domestic drug companies to enter foreign markets." In March 2014, the health ministry reached a "homologation" agreement with its Ecuadorian counterpart, the first accord of this kind, under which Ecuador recognizes results of clinical tests conducted in Korea and vice versa. Experts say the government should try to strike similar deals with North American and European countries. By Park Jin-hai BMW Korea, battered for a recent series of vehicle fire cases, announced the results of its investigation on Thursday as well as a set of measures to improve vehicle safety. The company's German headquarters and the National Forensic Service have been investing the causes of 10 individual accidents, in which BMW vehicles caught on fire between July and December. "The investigation concluded that the causes could not be identified, because most vehicles were all burned out," said the company in a statement. "However, feeling the moral responsibility and the need to reduce customer inconvenience, we have given full compensation to four out of five customers, who have been receiving after-sales services at our official service centers." The remaining one person had separately resolved the issue with an insurance company previously. The fire company says the remaining five car owners are suspected of using unauthorized car parts and getting repairs through private car repair centers, rather than official service centers. For those, the company said it declined compensation. The company said the principle will apply if similar cases may arise. BMW Korea said it will begin a nationwide technological safety campaign, called "BMW Meister Lab," dispatching nationally certified technicians to service centers run by its dealers, so customers can receive repairs and alleviate safety concerns. Along with it, the company will also disclose information related to vehicle repair during the first half of this year. "As a premium German carmaker, we will strengthen the safety standards and apply them immediately," said BMW Korea CEO Kim Hyo-joon in a statement. "By establishing technological assistance and active compensation measures for possible accidents, we will reinforce the customer satisfaction system." By Kim Jae-won Institutional investors have increased their short selling, a tactic to profit from plunging stocks, on the Seoul bourse, hurting many retail investors and drawing protests from them, analysts said Thursday. However, they said the short selling is a long-established investment plan and is not the main factor behind recent weak stock prices. The amount of short selling reached 7 trillion won ($5.8 billion) on the main bourse in January, accounting for 7.33 percent of all trading, up from 5.54 percent a year ago, according to the Korea Exchange (KRX). Short selling is the sale of a security that is not owned by the seller, but that is promised to be delivered. A seller must close the short by buying back the same number of shares and returning them to his or her broker. If the price drops, the seller can buy back the stock at the lower price and make a profit on the difference. If the price of the stock rises, he or she has to buy it back at the higher price, and loses money. Institutional investors pick big chips suffering from poor performance and bad rumors for their targets for short selling, because their prices are expected to drop sharply in the near term. Many retail investors are bleeding on the growing short selling by institutional and foreign investors, analysts said. Celltrion, the largest chip by market cap in the tech-savvy minor KOSDAQ, has been one of major targets of the short selling. Upset by institutional investors' "excessive" short selling, thousands of individual investors in Celltrion are moving to brokerage houses that do not provide short selling services. They are protesting against securities firms only offering such services to institutional investors. But, analysts said that it does not make sense to accuse short sellers of causing the fall in stock prices. "Short selling is not a key factor for low stock price because investors are obliged to buy back shares eventually," said Lee Jong-woo, head of IBK Securities' research center. "I think a few companies sensitive to their stock prices point the finger at investors, attributing their low prices to short selling." Celltrion declined to comment on the issue, saying it was inappropriate to comment on the collective action of its retail investors. Chairman Seo Jung-jin said a few years ago that he would sell the company, saying the company was always being targeted for short selling by institutional investors. Analysts said that the regulator needs to allow retail investors easily access to short selling services to let them compete fairly in the market. "The problem is that institutional investors can borrow stocks at low costs while individual investors have to pay high fees to get such a service," said Hwang Se-woon, a senior analyst at the Korea Capital Market Institute. "If retail investors can bet on short selling at the same level as institutional investors, they may not complain about it too much." Affiliates of Samsung Group have also been targeted by institutional investors' short selling. Samsung Heavy Industries, a shipbuilding subsidiary, topped the list of short selling trading portions to all trading for the last year at a 17.53 percent, followed by Hotel Shilla, a hotel chain of Samsung, which marked 16.95 percent, according to data from the KRX. Shares of Hotel Shilla plunged 8.7 percent to 65,100 won on Jan. 29 when institutional investors bet on short selling worth 22.7 billion won. Its shares have dropped 40.7 percent to 68,800 won on Wednesday from three months ago. Never letting go [By Jiao Haiyang/China.org.cn] Recently, the International Monetary Fund announced "historic reforms" in its governance. In reality, changes have barely begun. During the global crisis of 2008 and 2009, advanced economies could no longer contain the devastation. As a result, the old G7 club of Western powers was surpassed by the G20, which includes both advanced and emerging economies. In turn, Washington and Brussels pledged to accelerate governance reforms in international organizations, such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Last week, these reforms entered a new era, according to the organization. "I commend our members for ratifying these truly historic reforms," Christine Lagarde said. The French managing director of the IMF stated that the reforms would ensure that the institution is better able to meet its members' needs in a rapidly changing global environment. But how does the IMF reflect the international community? Asia's fractional power The IMF's recent reforms will increase its quota resources (the capital of its member contributions), which will almost double to a total of US$659 billion and thus enhance the organization's ability to respond to crises more effectively. These reforms are said to enhance the voice of the emerging and developing countries as more than 6 percent of quota shares will shift to emerging markets and developing countries. In turn, Brazil, China, India, and Russia will join the 10 largest members of the IMF, along with the major advanced economies of the United States, Japan, and the core European countries of France, Germany, Italy, and the UK. Nevertheless, these "historic reforms" will not challenge the bargaining power of the advanced economies. The U.S. will continue to dominate 18% and other advanced economies 25% of the IMF quotas. In contrast, the quotas of the BRICs countries, the large emerging economies of China, India, Brazil and Russia, amount to a combined 10%, which is less than a fourth of the combined share of the major advanced economies. Regionally, the IMF reflects the dominance of advanced North America and Western Europe, at the expense of emerging Asia. Follow China.org.cn on Twitter and Facebook to join the conversation. By Yoon Ja-young Lee Dong-geol KDB Chairman and CEO Former Shinhan Investment vice chairman Lee Dong-geol will head the state-run financer Korea Development Bank (KDB), the Financial Services Commission (FSC) said Thursday. President Park Geun-hye will officially appoint him. "Having served at a bank and securities company as well as the association of securities dealers and university, Lee has vast experience and knowledge in the financial industry," the FSC said in a media release. "Based on his experience in banking and investment banking, he would be the right person to lead corporate restructuring by KDB and add vitality to the economy. That's why we recommended Lee as a KDB chairman." After KDB Chairman Hong Kyttack was named as a vice chief of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), the market has been speculating who would be the state-run financier's next chairman. According to the KDB Act, the FSC chairman recommends a candidate to the president, who has the right to make the official appointment. Among several big names, Lee has been named as the most probable candidate. Born in Daegu in 1948, Lee started his career at Hanil Bank in 1970. After joining Shinhan Bank in 1987, he held top posts in the Shinhan Financial Group, including in the bank, capital and securities arms. Lee led a group of financial industry figures who announced their support for President Park during the 2012 election. Binh Ki-beom, a professor at Myongji University, said the KDB chairman should improve effectiveness in policy financing. "KDB is a state-run bank which is in charge of supporting medium sized firms as well as large businesses," Binh said. "The chairman should focus on enhancing effectiveness of policy financing." He said the chairman was likely to face more challenges like Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering during his term. The troubled shipbuilder will receive more than 4 trillion won in public funds. "The chairman will have to exercise wise judgment in injecting public funds into ailing companies," he said. By Yoon Ja-young The country's finance minister said that there is no plan to set a supplementary budget for now. "A supplementary budget should be set when it is necessary but it will come as a burden in the end. We are currently not in a situation in which a supplementary budget is necessary," Strategy and Finance Minister Yoo Il-ho told reporters, Thursday. The government had announced economic stimulus measures Wednesday, which include injecting an additional 21.5 trillion won ($17.4 billion) in the first quarter. The government expects that it will pull up the economic growth rate by 0.2 percentage point. The general reaction of the market, however, is that it doesn't seem sufficient to give a meaningful signal to economic players. Hence, some economists estimate that the government might have to resort to a supplementary budget when the short-term stimulus loses steam. "The economic growth rate this year is likely to fall short of 2.8 percent. As it seems to be difficult to attain the over 3 percent growth target of the government, there will likely be further key rate cuts by the central bank as well as micro stimulus measures," said Suh Dae-il, an analyst at KDB Daewoo Securities. The minister said that the government has no plan to cut oil taxes either. As the government announced plans to suspend consumption taxes on passenger cars until June to prop up domestic demand, it has been suggested that the ministry should consider cutting oil taxes as well. "The consumption tax cut is effective and is something we can manage. Consumption taxes can be cut and raised again, but it is difficult to raise the oil tax once it is slashed," he said. There have been complaints from consumers that retail gasoline prices aren't falling despite the plunge in global oil prices as the tax takes a huge portion. Regarding the key rate, he said that it will be left to the central bank. The finance ministry has the right to send its vice minister to the monetary committee meeting of the central bank to give its opinion, but Yoo said it has no plan to do so for the meeting scheduled for Feb. 16. The central bank has been maintaining the key rate at the historically low 1.5 percent, but there has been speculation that it may consider cutting it further with major economies such as Japan trying to depreciate its currency to boost consumption and export. Han Young accounting firm's headquarters building in Yeoido, southwestern Seoul. By Choi Kyong-ae Korea's financial regulators have taken disciplinary measures against Han Young accounting firm for violations in auditing Kyeryong Construction, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) said Thursday. The Securities & Futures Commission, an organization under the wing of the FSC, ordered Han Young to pay 30 percent of the total auditing fees it was supposed to receive to a compensation fund set up by the Korean Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Han Young was also barred from doing any more auditing for the construction company for two years as part of its penalty, the FSC said. "Han Young's audit of the balance sheet of Kyeryong Construction was flawed," an FSC official said. "It failed to make a thorough analysis on cash flow, capability to repay debt and delayed payments for the builder's construction projects." One accountant who participated in the audit of Kyeryong was barred from auditing the company for three years and ordered to take a 12-hour job training class. Another was given an audit ban of one year and a six-hour class, the official said. A spokesman for the accounting firm said the company will make efforts to prevent a recurrence. Kyeryong Construction was fined 19.5 million won ($16,000) and its chief executive was recommended to step down to take responsibility for the flawed audit. For two years from January 2016 to December 2017, the FSC will send a designated auditor to the construction company. "Kyeryong Construction underreported the amount of delayed payments from its clients in its bottom line from 2010 to 2013," the official said. "Moreover, the company failed to make an exact analysis of its business partners' payment capabilities." Kyeryong Construction posted a net loss of 7.96 billion won in the third quarter ending Sept. 30, 2013, shifting from a net profit of 1 billion won in the first quarter of the same year, according to the FSC. The number of counterfeit South Korean banknotes declined 22.4 percent in 2015 from a year earlier, the central bank said Thursday. In 2015, the number of counterfeit bills found came to 3,031, compared to 3,907 in the previous year, according to the Bank of Korea (BOK). Of the total, 50,000-won bills made up 67.3 percent, marking a 44.8 percent on-year spike. The central bank explained the increase came mostly from one large single case where a person was caught with 2,012 fake 50,000-won bills. The number of fake 10,000-won bills exposed dropped 71.1 percent on-year to 269 last year while the number of fake 5,000-won bills found also dropped 53.4 percent to 707. Currently, the 50,000-won bill is the highest denomination. With a cut in the sheer number of fake bills, the number of counterfeit bills found in every 1 million banknotes in circulation also dropped to 0.7 in 2015, compared with 0.9 in the previous year. The figure is significantly lower than those of other major countries, the BOK noted. Between July 2014 and June 2015, the number of fake bills found in every 1 million banknotes came to 27.9 in Australia and 128.5 in Britain, it said. (Yonhap) By Chung Ah-young Traditional markets might be one of the best places to understand the culture of the regions where you are traveling. For the upcoming "Seollal" or Lunar New Year's Day on Feb. 8, the Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) introduced "Traditional Markets Selling and Buying Fun," markets in six regions that best represent the unique cultures of some popular tourist destinations around country. Traditional Markets in Gwangju Songjeong Market in Gwangju Malbau Market is a quintessential traditional market in Gwangju, southwest of Seoul. Opening every five days, the market sells fresh agricultural items from vendors from Damyang, Gokseong and Suncheon in South Jeolla Province that are not easily available in other regions. The market, where some 20,000 people visit a day, is famous for its "Grandma Alley," in which elderly vendors sell their vegetables and herbs they have grown themselves at affordable prices. Songjeong Market is a flea market that also opens every five days and sells fresh seafood, among other things. It also features a 40-year-old blacksmith workshop that produces and sells various kinds of agricultural tools. At the workshop, a skillful blacksmith uses traditional methods to create made-to-order tools. The market also has various restaurants that offer Cambodian, Thai and Chinese cuisine to cater to foreigners who live in the region near the Pyeongdong Industrial Complex where migrant laborers work. Yangdong Market is renowned for its time-honored shops and for its merchants who joined the Gwangju Uprising Chun Doo-hwan's brutal crackdown on demonstrations against his military junta on May 18, 1980. First opened in 1910, the market is considered one of the first department stores in the region, selling a wide range of items, from food and furniture to clothing and accessories. Despite the emergence of larger department stores in recent years, the market continues to operate, housing 680 shops. Gangneung Jumunjin Seafood Market Jumunjin Seafood Market in Gangneung Established in 1936, Gangneung Jumunjin Seafood Market in Gangwon Province is located next to Jumunjin Port, which is large enough to accommodate up to 500 fishing boats. The largest seafood market in the region features both dried and freshly caught seafood and a sashimi center in which people buy fish as well as eat. At the market, visitors can enjoy various types of fish and other seafood at affordable prices, in particular squid, mackerel, pollock, pike and crab. This month is the peak season for blowfish. The market also hosts a variety of events, such as the Blowfish Festival and Squid Festival. Travelers should visit the market at dawn to enjoy a spectacular view of the boats that are returning from fishing. Gyeongju Seongdong Market Gyeongju Seongdong Market in North Gyeongsang Province offers an eat-all-you-can buffet with more than 20 kinds of side dishes for only 5,000 won. / Courtesy of KTO Gyeongju Seongdong Market is a very accessible traditional market, located just across Gyeongju Station in North Gyeongsang Province, which was once the capital of the Silla Kingdom (57 B.C.-A.D. 935). Back when it was located in the center of Gyeongju City, the market was a small discount market that sold clothes, tools and snacks at low prices. Since moving to its current site in 1971, the market has grown into the city's signature marketplace, housing more than 600 shops with 800 merchants. Visitors recognize the market by its symbol large octopuses that hang in front of a fish shop at the market. As part of the Confucian traditions in this region, people serve an octopus during ancestral rituals and family events, as it symbolizes the Confucian scholars. Finally, the market has a famous "buffet alley," in which tiny restaurants offer an eat-all-you-can buffet with more than 20 kinds of side dishes for only 5,000 won. Jeonju Nambu Market and Youth (Cheongnyeon) Mall Jeonju Nambu Market in North Jeolla Province has a night bazaar, which opens on Fridays and Saturdays. Once called the "kitchen" of the people in Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, Jeonju Nambu Market is very popular among visitors seeking affordable home-style food. To keep pace with the large discount stores that have opened in recent years, the market opened Youth (Cheongnyeon) Mall in 2012. Housing some 32 shops, which range from restaurants and bars to handicraft stores, coffee shops, galleries and board game rooms, the mall began as a platform for young entrepreneurs, to help address the low employment rates. Now, the mall has become the market's hotspot, catching the attention of visitors with the shops' creative interiors and exteriors. From murals to posters with catchy phrases, the shops are gaining their popularity with a clear message of their unique services. The night market, which opens at 6 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, is another must-visit for travelers. The market features some 35 mobile vendors selling their various foods and handicrafts. Youth Mall at Jeonju Nambu Market in Jeonju Jeju Sehwa Folk Market Sehwa Folk Market on Jeju Island Jeju Sehwa Folk Market is located on Sehwa Beach, renowned for its white sand and sapphire-blue seawater, in the northeastern part of the resort island of Jeju. The flea market, which opens every five days, turns the tranquil, picturesque area into a hustle-and-bustle tourist spot. Vendors at the market sell various kinds of fresh fish and fruits, as well as pets, such as cats, rabbits, dogs, turtles and ducks, and agricultural tools, which are rarely available in other markets. The nearby Jeju Women Divers (Haenyeo) Museum offers a glimpse of the island's unique culture and history. "Haenyeo" refers to the women who dive into the ocean water to gather various shellfish and seaweed. . Onyang Hot Spring Market Onyang Hot Spring Market in Asan Onyang in Asan, South Chungcheong Province is home to some 10 hot springs. Until the 1960s and 1970s, it was a popular honeymoon destination. The birth of Onyang Hot Spring Market is attributed to these hot springs. The market has some 500 stores and 300 stalls selling fish, livestock products, clothes and other items. The opening of the Onyang Oncheon Station in 2008 has turned the market into a popular cultural and tourist destination by making it more accessible to the growing number of visitors. Onyang is currently accessible via subway line No. 1 from Seoul, which is recommended for a one-day travel course. The cafe Yuyujajeok has also received good feedback from the market visitors, as it provides a place for market vendors to host radio programs for children and other people. After enjoying the hot springs, travelers can visit other attractions, such as the Hyeonchungsa Shrine, Oeam Folk Village and Sinjeong Lake. By Kwon Mee-yoo Artist Lee U-fan Artist Lee U-fan said he is the biggest victim of the recent forgery scandal involving his works. Lee, 80, released a statement through his attorney Choi Soon-yong Tuesday saying he has never seen any of the fake paintings. "The paintings suspected of forgery had been out of my hands for some 30-40 years and I have no idea who owned them through what channel," Lee said in the statement. Lee attended a press conference unveiling the label he designed for the Chateau Mouton Rothschild 2013 vintage last week, but declined to comment on the issue and his official statement came a few days later. Lee is one of the best-known living artists of Korea for his "dansaekhwa," or Korean monochrome paintings, as well as "Relatum" rock and metal sculptures exploring the relationships of material objects. Born in South Gyeongsang Province in 1936, Lee studied painting at the College of Fine Arts at Seoul National University for two months before moving to Japan. There, he set the basics of the Mono-ha, or School of Things, in the 1970s using simple objects based on conceptual art. He held a solo exhibit at the Guggenheim Museum in New York in 2011 and at Versailles in 2014. Lee is one of the most expensive Korean artists his painting "From Line No. 760219" was sold for $2.16 million at Sotheby's auction in New York in 2014. However, the news of forgeries of his work surfaced last year and the auction prices of his works suffered in 2015. Rumors of fake paintings have surfaced recently as Lee's earlier works are rare and auctioned off at higher prices. In October 2015, police raided a gallery in Insadong on suspicion of selling a forged Lee painting. Last month, the certificate of authenticity for Lee's "From Point No. 780217," which was sold for 490 million won ($407,620) at K Auction in December 2015, turned out to be fake and the genuineness of the painting itself is also questioned. Lee's paintings have serial numbers, and duplication of the serial numbers was one of the reasons for the suspicions. "I worked in studios in Japan, Korea and France and went back and forth among them for a long time and some of the works have different sequences in the numbering system," the artist said. "There could be overlapping serial numbers, but only a few of them." Lee added that he is preparing for a catalogue raisonne, a comprehensive list his work which will provide criteria to assess authenticity. South Korea is planning to build a national railway system by 2025 that can link Seoul with most cities in two hours, the government said Wednesday. The third national railroad development plan aims to upgrade existing rail lines so they can accommodate high-speed trains and open new railroads that can handle semi-high speed rolling stock, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport said. The semi-high speed lines can be used by trains with top speeds of up to 250 kilometers per hour, compared to more than 300 km/h for local bullet trains. The ministry claimed that the entire project could cost 74.1 trillion won, with 53.7 trillion won coming from the central government and the rest being financed by regional administration and the private sector. The 2016-2025 plans, which will be finalized in the first half, could connect most midsize regional cities, such as Gangneung, Sokcho and Andong, along the country's east coast within a couple of hours of the capital city. Gangneung and Sokcho in Gangwon Province is more than 200 kilometers east of Seoul while Andong is 268 km southeast of South Korea's largest urban center. At present, it takes over five hours to reach Gangneung from Seoul by train and way over three hours to get to Andong. In addition, the goal is to connect most cities within the country by a high-speed rail line so it would only be a short two-hour trip between them. The ministry said if all goes according to plan, 85 percent of the country's population can benefit from a high speed train service in the next decade, up from 51 percent at present. Besides this, the government's plan calls for extending the Korea Train Express line from Gwangju to Mokpo, the country's southwestern region, and opening new bullet train services from Suwon, Incheon and Uijeongbu, near Seoul. It, moreover, envisions the building of the Great Train eXpress connecting downtown Seoul with satellite cities such as Ilsan and turning Korea Train Express's Suseo station into a new hub for rail travel. (Yonhap) A military aerobatic team will attend an air show in Singapore later this month to show off their flying skills and promote South Korean-made aircraft, the Air Force said Thursday. The Black Eagles team of 75 members, including nine pilots, will depart from South Korea on Sunday and arrive at Singapore's Changi Airport on Wednesday after making stops in Taiwan, the Philippines and Brunei, the Air Force said in a press release. After training, the team will put on four performances with nine T-50B trainer jets and three C-130 transport aircraft during the Singapore Airshow 2016 set for Feb. 16-21. Ranked among the world's top three air shows, the biennial event is attended by large numbers of aerospace and defense industry officials from around the world. "As the Black Eagles perform three-dimensional, advanced maneuvers, we expect to not only show the world the excellence of our T-50 range of aircraft but also help the T-X trainer jet project designed for export to the U.S.," the Air Force said. At a ceremony marking the team's departure in Wonju, southeast of Seoul, Air Force Chief of Staff Jeong Kyeong-doo encouraged the participants, asking them to raise the global status of South Korea and its air force through a memorable performance. The Black Eagles will be taking part in the air show for the second time following their first attendance in 2014. (Yonhap) North Korean leader Kim Jong-un chaired a joint meeting of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea's central committee and the Korean People's Army Committee in Pyongyang, Tuesday and Wednesday, the Korean Central News Agency said. Delegates to the meeting, ahead of the party's key congress scheduled in May, discussed how to strengthen the party. At the congress, the first in decades, Kim is expected to unveil policies and conduct a major reshuffle. Meanwhile, Pyongyang has notified U.N. agencies that it will launch an "earth observation satellite" between Feb. 8-25, which South Korea and the U.S. see as a disguised test of a long-range missile. Local network KBS disclosed Wednesday a recording by purged senior North Korean official Ri Yong-ho saying, "Firing a satellite is the same as firing a rocket weapon. Putting a nuclear warhead on that rocket means we can fire it to the continental U.S. That's why we remain confident." By Jhoo Dong-chan The Seoul Metropolitan Government (SMG) has been ordered to compensate Hyundai Development Company for financial losses incurred from the delayed bridge remodeling project promoted by former Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon. The Seoul Central District Court ruled Thursday that the SMG should pay 417 million won to the constructor after the company incurred losses because the remodeling, which was a part of Oh's "Han River Renaissance Project," has been delayed. In 2010, Oh said the city would connect Yeouido in the Han River with Ara Waterway in Gimpo, Gyeonggi Province and beyond the West Sea to improve business and tourism in the metropolitan area. The SMG first started to renovate Yanghwa Bridge to allow larger cruise ships to pass under it, widening the gap between its bridge towers from 42 meter to 112 meters. The SMG invested 46 billion won in the renovation. However, after this was met with severe public criticism regarding the project's profitability, the renovation was temporarily suspended in June 2010. But the SMG resumed the renovation in September that year, and the Seoul Metropolitan Council slashed the total construction budget for 2011, and the construction was halted and resumed several times. Oh's successor, Park Won-soon who was inaugurated in October 2011, stopped much of the Han River Renaissance Project, citing a lack of economic validity and social consensus, but the remodeling continued because the work had almost been completed. On completion of the project, Hyundai filed a damage suit against the SMG in 2013, demanding it compensate the company with 1.8 billion won for losses incurred from the delayed construction. The court ruled in favor of the company but set the compensation at 417 million won. China is not alone in preparing to celebrate the Year of Monkey. China's "Monkey King" symbolizes a deeper cultural connection with its biggest neighbor, India. India is not just home to the world's largest number of monkeys but also has a monkey god, Hanuman, as the central character of one of its mythological stories and part of everyday cultural narrative. The Year of the Monkey should, therefore, offer China and India more avenues to address the arduous task of deepening mutual understanding and trust. For instance, the two neighbors signed a memorandum of understanding on co-producing films during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Beijing in May 2015 and Xuanzang was their priority project. The film is scheduled for a joint release to celebrate the Lunar New Year. Xuanzang, the famous Tang Dynasty (618-907) monk, returned from a 17-year pilgrimage to India in 629 AD with 657 volumes of Buddhist scripture. His pilgrimage was first fictionalized as Journey to the West during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) marking the revival of consciousness about the ancient Silk Road connecting China with India. In the Journey to the West, Sun Wukong, or the Monkey King, protects Xuanzang during his journey to India along with three other characters, Zhu Wuneng (or Zhu Bajie) the Pig, Sha Wujing (or Sandy) and Bailong, a dragon prince who acts as Xuanzang's steed, a white horse. Follow China.org.cn on Twitter and Facebook to join the conversation. By Kang Seung-woo Military analysts questioned whether the country's missile defense system can effectively intercept North Korean missiles or their debris straying over South Korean territory, Thursday. Earlier in the day, the Ministry of National Defense said the military would use its Patriot Advanced Capability (PAC)-2 low-altitude missile defense system to shoot down any North Korean long-range rocket that came into South Korean airspace. Pyongyang is preparing to launch an Earth observation satellite between Feb. 8 and 25, but it is widely believed to be a cover for a long-range ballistic missile test because the technologies are almost identical. "First of all, we will only be able to destroy a North Korean missile or its debris if they are in the sector where the defense system is located," said Kim Dae-young, a senior research fellow at the Korea Defense and Security Forum. "Currently, the PAC-2 batteries are deployed in some places of the capital area and near airports." Park Hwee-rhak, Dean of the Graduate School of Politics and Leadership at Kookmin University, echoed Kim's view. National Assembly Speaker Chung Ui-hwa bangs the gavel to approve the "One-Shot" bill aimed at facilitating corporate restructuring after a vote during a plenary parliamentary session, Thursday. / Yonhap Assembly passes One-Shot' bill after months of sparring By Kim Hyo-jin After months of parliamentary wrangling, parties in the National Assembly passed a bill Thursday establishing laws that reduce legal restrictions on corporations and provide them with tax cut incentives. The "One-Shot" bill was passed with the support of 174 of 223 present lawmakers during a plenary session at the National Assembly. Twenty-four lawmakers voted against the bill while 25 abstained. Under the new law, the government will ease regulations and provide tax cuts for companies that realign their business portfolios. It also supports mergers and acquisitions by simplifying the legal procedures. Saenuri Party lawmaker Rep. Lee Hyun-jae proposed the bill with 26 fellow lawmakers in July 2015 amid worries that legal restrictions and high taxes were burdening Korean firms seeking to reorganize their businesses and aggravating their global competitiveness. It was one of many economic bills that the ruling party submitted in an effort to back President Park Geun-hye's drive to revitalize the sluggish economy. However, the bills were left pending for months while the main opposition Minjoo Party of Korea (MPK) voiced concerns about the bill's content, worrying that conglomerates could take advantage of the eased rules to expand their businesses. The opposition party said it changed its stance on the One-Shot bill in an effort to normalize the National Assembly, but other economic bills need more discussions. The passage of the One-Shot bill is expected to spur inter-party debates on whether to approve other pending bills, party officials said. Meanwhile, National Assembly Speaker Chung Ui-hwa asked parties to conclude talks by Feb. 12 on redrawing the electoral map for the upcoming election scheduled for April 13, Rep. Lee Choon-suak, MPK vice floor leader, told reporters after meeting with the speaker. If the parties fail to reach an agreement by the date, Chung said he will put his proposal for redrawing constituency boundaries to a parliamentary vote on Feb. 18 or 19 before the ballot is open to overseas residents. Chung has been under increasing pressure from Cheong Wa Dae and the ruling party to exercise the authority to table the bill for a vote without bipartisan agreement. The parties are facing growing public concern about undecided constituency boundaries with only about two months left before the general election. The talks have been stalled for weeks while the parties trade barbs over economy-related bills proposed by the ruling party and pushed by the presidential office. The MPK has criticized the Saenuri Party for trying to bundle the issue of redrawing the electoral map in with pending economic and labor bills. The Saenuri Party feared that it could lose a bargaining chip if it agrees with the MPK on redrawing the constituency map first. The labor bills, devised to reform the rigid labor market, drew strong opposition by the MPK and the labor sector, expressing concerns over the unstable status of the non-regular workers. The opposition particularly took issue with the contents of the bill that will increase the number of industries permitted to temporarily dispatch workers to other enterprises. By Jun Ji-hye The U.S. special forces, trained to target North Korean weapons of mass destruction, have arrived in South Korea for a joint drill with the Special Warfare Command here, according to military officials, Thursday. The United States Forces Korea (USFK) said the troops belong to the 75th Ranger Regiment and the 1st Special Forces Group, key elements of the country's special ground operations. The 75th Ranger Regiment is one of the most elite units in the U.S. tasked with destroying key facilities as well as conducting air assault and rescue operations. The regiment has participated in various operations against terrorists in Iraq and Afghanistan. The 1st Special Forces Group, mainly operating in the Pacific region, has been carrying out anti-terrorism operations in Asia. The dispatch of these units comes amid growing tension over the North's projected plan to launch a long-range rocket between Feb. 8 and 25, just weeks after its fourth nuclear test conducted on Jan. 6. It is rare for the USFK to disclose the dispatch of special forces and their training plans. Observers say the rare press release from the USFK is apparently intended to send a warning message to Pyongyang. The USFK said the joint training is to increase alliance special operations readiness and capability on the Korean Peninsula. "Throughout 2015, U.S. air, maritime and ground Special Operations Forces (SOF) conducted combined training and joint complex training events with their ROK special operations partners in the rugged terrain and off the waters of the Korean peninsula," the USFK said in a release. Sustaining rotational U.S. special operations forces in Korea strengthen the alliance by ensuring a high level of ready, flexible, and agile combined special operation forces and enables the USFK to leverage SOF capability to deter regional asymmetric aggression, and maintain peace for the Korean people, it added. Follow Jun Ji-hye on Twitter @TheKopJihye South Korea will announce the size of its humanitarian aid to help war-torn Syria at an international donors' conference in London, Seoul officials said Thursday. The exact amount placed for this year will be released at the Supporting Syria and the Region Conference in London on Friday, according to the Prime Minister's Office. Lee Suk-joon, a lead officer for government policy coordination at the prime minister's secretariat, left for London on Wednesday as a chief delegate, the officials said. Seoul's pledge came as Syria has been affected by a civil war for the past five years, leaving millions of refugees. The South Korean government has donated a total of US$23.45 million to Syria between 2012 and 2015, according to the office. Participating countries at the donor conference plan to provide an accumulative US$9 billion this year. South Korea is the first country in the world that has transformed into an aid donor from a recipient nation. (Yonhap) By Gwynne Dyer "Europe has forgotten that history is fundamentally tragic," said Manuel Valls, the French prime minister. "If Europe can't protect its own borders, it's the very idea of Europe that could be thrown into doubt. It could disappear not Europe itself, not our values, but the European project, the concept we have of Europe, that the founding fathers had of Europe." The European Union 28 countries and 500 million people is not really going to disappear just because it cannot agree on how to deal with one or two millon refugees. But one of the great symbols of its unity, the Schengen Treaty that allowed its citizens to move around without passports or border checks, is being suspended, perhaps forever. Schengen doesn't cover every single EU country. The United Kingdom and Ireland remain outside the Schengen Zone, and Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria and Cyprus, all new EU members, are still waiting to join. Switzerland, Norway and Iceland are part of the Schengen Zone although they are not EU members. But it does include over 400 million people. It is a remarkable achievement. You could get into your car in Portugal and drive all the way to Finland via Spain, France, Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia without ever once having to show a passport or identity card. There would not even be anybody in uniform standing at the frontier to wave you past, just a sign by the side of the road saying "Welcome to (Country X)". Or rather, that was the situation until last month, when Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Austria re-imposed passport checks at their borders, ports and airports even for travellers arriving from other Schengen Zone countries. France acted even earlier, declaring emergency controls on its borders after the terrorist massacre in Paris in November. So now fully half of the EU's citizens (counting the UK and Ireland) live behind real borders again. The new border controls are alleged to be temporary measures, which the Schengen Treaty permits for a maximum of six months in the face of some unspecified emergency. But the refugee emergency is not going to fade away by next July, and the threat of terrorism will persist for the foreseeable future. That's why the European Commission is now examining how the legal framework of Schengen can be fiddled to allow a further two years of controls on the EU's internal borders. Nobody doubts that they will find a way to do that but a great many people doubt that the passport-free zone, once suspended for that long, will ever come back. This is happening not because Germans fear French travellers or Swedes fear Danes. It's happening because none of them believe that the EXTERNAL borders of the Schengen Zone are properly controlled. Even in freeezing January weather 35,000 refugees entered the EU last month, and it looks set to be another million-refugee year. And two of the men who carried out the Paris attacks crossed from Turkey to Greece (a Schengen member) as refugees. You can't call that a secure external frontier. The three countries that took in 90 percent of last year's refugees, Germany, Austria and Sweden, have all blamed Greece for letting so many refugees in and failing to document them properly. "Greece has one of the biggest navies in Europe," said the Austrian interior minister, Johana Mikl-Leitner. "It's a myth that the Greek-Turkish border cannot be protected." The Greeks quite reasonably ask what their big navy is supposed to do. Sink the refugee boats? As for the failure to register all the refugees properly, they point out that at peak flow last autumn more than ten thousand were arriving each day. They didn't have enough officials and equipment to cope with such numbers: forty fingerprint machines running non-stop around the clock can only deal with about 4,000 people a day. There is even talk of suspending Greece from the Schengen Treaty for two years, but a better solution would be to give it the people and resources needed to document everybody who comes in and to turn back those who have no right to come in. It's not just a question of screening out possible terrorists, although that must be done better if confidence in Schengen is to be restored. In practice, Greece (or EU officials operating in Greece) would also have to decide AT THE BORDER who is really a genuine refugee they are obliged to admit, and who should be returned immediately to Turkey. The brutal truth is that most of the people crossing from Turkey into Greece, including the Syrians and Afghans who come from war-torn countries, are "asylum-shoppers". They were already safe in Turkey, which is sheltering almost 2 million Syrian refugees and spending billions of dollars a year on them. But life in the camps in Turkey is hard, so they are moving on to seek asylum in richer countries with better facilities. There is no obligation for Europe to take them all, and the Schengen Treaty will die if it does. But the European Union itself will soldier on without it, at least until and unless the euro currency collapses when the next recession hits. Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force "Oosumi" carries PAC-3 missile interceptors as the amphibious assault ship sails through Seto Inland Sea off Kure, Hiroshima Prefecture, western Japan, Thursday, to prepare for a planned rocket launch by North Korea. Less than a month after its purported H-bomb test, North Korea announced Tuesday it is planning a rocket launch as soon as next week. / AP-Yonhap By Jun Ji-hye The Ministry of National Defense said Thursday that the military was ready to shoot down a North Korean rocket or its debris if they enter South Korean territory. "The military is strengthening its air defense posture to intercept the North Korean missile or its debris that could fall on our land or in our waters," spokesman Moon Sang-gyun told a press briefing. "In proportion to the level of the possible damage, South Korea will take action under its right of self-defense." The military has put its Patriot Advanced Capability (PAC)-2 surface-to-air missiles into combat mode to guard against the possibility of a North Korean missile landing in South Korean territory, he said. Moon added that the interceptor operations will be conducted under the ROK-U.S. joint defense system, indicating that the United States Forces Korea's PAC-3 missiles could also be mobilized, if necessary. The remark came two days after Pyongyang notified the International Maritime Organization (IMO) of its intention to launch an Earth observation satellite called "Kwangmyongsong" between Feb. 8 and 25. It is widely believed that the reclusive state is using the launch as a cover for the test-firing of an intercontinental ballistic missile with a range of more than 10,000 kilometers, given that the technologies for both are almost identical. The notification added fuel to already mounting tension in the wake of the North's fourth nuclear test on Jan. 6. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon wants North Korea to call off its planned long-range rocket launch, his spokesman said Wednesday. "The secretary-general believes that it is important for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea to refrain from using ballistic missile technology and to work for peace and stability on the Korean peninsula," U.N. spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters. North Korea has informed international organizations it will launch an earth observation satellite between Feb. 8-25, confirming widespread concern it is readying for a banned long-range rocket launch just weeks after its fourth nuclear test. The North has long argued its rocket launches are aimed at putting satellites into orbit, claiming it has the right to the peaceful use of space. But Pyongyang is banned from such launches under U.N. Security Council resolutions as it has been accused of using them as a cover for testing intercontinental ballistic missiles. Experts say long-range rockets and ICBMs are basically the same with differences only in payloads. South Korea has urged North Korea to cancel the planned launch, warning that Pyongyang will "pay a harsh price" if it goes ahead with the plan. The U.S. also denounced the North's move, saying it shows the need for "real consequences" for such provocative acts. Even China, which has provided the North with economic aid and diplomatic protection, expressed "serious concern," saying that Pyongyang's right to the peaceful use of space is now restricted by U.N. Security Council resolutions, and urged the North to exercise restraint. (Yonhap) The United Nations has released US$8 million in emergency funds for underfunded aid operations in North Korea amid rising tensions over Pyongyang's plans to launch a long-range rocket in violation of U.N. resolutions. "Humanitarian needs must be kept separate from political issues to ensure minimum living conditions for the most vulnerable people," Tapan Mishra, U.N. resident coordinator for the North, said in a press release, according to the U.N. website. "The commitment and support of the international community is vital. Protracted and serious needs must be addressed," he said. The fund is aimed at enabling "life-saving assistance for more than 2.2 million people who are the most vulnerable and at risk of malnutrition," the U.N. said. North Korea has long been under international criticism for putting its scarce resources into its nuclear and missile programs when its people suffer from hunger. The impoverished nation has relied on foreign aid to feed the population since its economy was devastated in the mid-1990s. The already-high tensions on the Korean Peninsula in the wake of the North's Jan. 6 nuclear test rose even higher this week as Pyongyang unveiled its plan to carry out a long-range rocket launch between Monday and Feb. 25 in violation of U.N. resolutions. North Korea says its rocket launches are aimed at putting satellites into orbit, claiming it has the right to the peaceful use of space. But Pyongyang is banned from such launches under U.N. Security Council resolutions as it has been accused of using them as a cover for testing intercontinental ballistic missiles. (Yonhap) North Korea could face stronger sanctions if it goes ahead with a long-range missile launch, an official said Thursday, the latest in a series of pressure on Pyongyang to call off the plan. North Korea has informed U.N. agencies that it will launch what it claims is a satellite between Feb. 8 and Feb. 25. "If North Korea launches a long-range missile, it could face stronger sanctions from the international community than the ones in place as the launch is a clear violation of the U.N. Security Council resolutions," presidential spokesman Jeong Yeon-guk told reporters. He did not elaborate. In New York, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged North Korea to call off its planned rocket launch. South Korea warned Wednesday that North Korea will pay a harsh price if it goes ahead with the rocket launch. North Korea has long been under an array of U.S. and U.N. sanctions for its ballistic missile and nuclear tests. Still in defiance of sanctions, North Korea has repeatedly pledged to launch a series of satellites as part of its space development program. South Korea, the United States and other regional powers view the North's satellite launch as a cover for testing its ballistic missile technology, which is banned under U.N. resolutions. Experts say a rocket can carry either a satellite or a warhead, so the technology used in launching a satellite could be diverted for military purposes. (Yonhap) You are here: Home Flash China welcomed Malaysia's new visa policy towards Chinese tourists on Tuesday. State Councilor Guo Shengkun told Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi that China is ready to work with Malaysia to implement the new visa policy. Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak said on Jan.28 that the country will grant visa exemptions for Chinese tourists as a measure to boost tourism. Visas will not be required for Chinese tourists to Malaysia for a period of no more than 15 days beginning from March 1 to Dec. 31, 2016. Guo, also Minister of Public Security, called on the two sides to enhance cooperation in protecting the safety and legitimate rights of citizens, institutions and businesses of both countries. The two countries should make joint efforts in fighting transnational crime and terrorism in order to maintain national security as well as create good conditions for economic development, he added. Zahid said Malaysia would like to strengthen cooperation with China in law enforcement, security and other fields so as to make greater contribution to bilateral cooperation in various areas. Pyongyang is readying to launch a long-range missile at its Dongchang-ri base in the northwest, according to the Defense Ministry, Thursday. Ministry spokesman Moon Sang-gyun did not provide details, saying he was neither able to confirm nor deny a report from Japan's NHK that a mobile launcher loaded with a ballistic missile was seen moving along the east coast. NHK television, citing unidentified diplomatic sources, reported Thursday that it had been "confirmed that a mobile launch pad in North Korea's eastern coastal area was on the move" and that a ballistic missile was on the launch pad. Other media reports said the North was expected to complete loading the liquid-fuel on Sunday. The communist state notified U.N. agencies Tuesday it would launch an "earth observation satellite" between Feb. 8-25. Seoul and Washington see the launch as a disguised long-range missile test. The ministry spokesman said South Korea would intercept any North Korean missiles and debris that fell on South Korean land or sea territory. The military is boosting air defense readiness, he said. Seoul and Washington have deployed equipment to detect and trace North Korean missiles. By Yi Whan-woo Citizens who recently suffered property damage from bundles of propaganda leaflets that fell from balloons sent by North Korea are not receiving financial compensation. Citing the law on inter-Korean relations or public safety, related ministries said Thursday that they have no legal grounds to compensate them for the damage and have no plan to ask Pyongyang to bear responsibility for the consequences of the leaflet campaign. The claim comes after the police and military received a series of reports concerning bundles of anti-South Korea leaflets, which caused damage, including the smashing of a water tank on a rooftop and led to the partial collapse of a car roof. The authorities said the leaflets, mostly found in Seoul and northern Gyeonggi Province, were initially contained in balloons released from the North's side of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). They then left damage on private properties when they dropped from the sky at high speed in a lump after balloons blew up for uncertain reasons. "Pyongyang's leaflet propaganda campaign is related to psychological warfare and I believe any related issues should be addressed to the defense ministry," said an official at the Ministry of Unification on condition of anonymity. The official cited that the leaflets are critical of President Park Geun-hye as well as her administration and also advocates North Korea's latest nuclear test on Jan. 6. Pyongyang has been flying anti-Seoul leaflets across the border to counter the Park government's resumption of propaganda broadcasts against the Kim Jong-un regime at the DMZ since Jan. 8. "Please note it was a rare move for North Korea to launch an airborne propaganda campaign. And it's my understanding that our ministry does not have policies over indemnifying losses of those who suffered from such campaign," the unification ministry official said. Ministry of Defense spokesman Moon Sang-gyun said that his ministry is "carefully reviewing" the cases. "I believe North Korea is continuing to carry on its leaflet propaganda campaign and we're still discussing how to cope with it and take relevant measures," said Moon during a media briefing. "I can't give any further details." An official from the Ministry of Public Safety and Security said "There is currently no law that allows those victimized citizens to receive compensation from the government." "I first need to make clear that our ministry is not responsible for inter-Korean dialogues and therefore we can't ask Pyongyang to take responsibility for damages caused here," an official said, asking not to be named. The official also said the Article 4 of the Federal Civil Defense is not applicable to the damages caused by free fall of the leaflets, which are powerful enough to destroy 20-centimeter-thick car frame. The article stipulates that the whole nation or specific regions can be declared in a state of emergency on a central or local governmental level. It also states that the authorities must take relevant measures to counter such emergency situation, including financial aid for victims. "And in this case, it's too early for the central government to declare the nationwide state of emergency because the incidents only involve part of the country," he said. "Also, not whole Gyeonggi Province suffered from Pyongyang's airborne propaganda and the provincial government may not want call state of emergency throughout the region. On Feb. 2, a lump of 30,000 leaflets were found on a rooftop of a residential building in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. It apparently smashed a water tank located on the rooftop, causing the water supply to be cut at the building for hours. On Jan. 14, the police received an emergency report that a lump of 10,000 leaflets crushed a top of a car and its windows in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. A U.N. panel of experts is expected to recommend fresh sanctions against North Korea to a Security Council committee next week, sources said Thursday. The recommendations will be included in the panel's annual report to the Security Council committee monitoring sanctions on Pyongyang, the sources said. The committee, in turn, is expected to propose sanctions to the council in early March, the sources said. The Security Council swiftly condemned the North's Jan. 6 nuclear test and has since been working on a new sanctions resolution. Adding to the international outrage, the North unveiled its plan this week to conduct a banned long-range rocket launch. The Radio Free Asia has reported the panel of experts plans to recommend sanctions against two main agencies responsible for the North's nuclear and missile programs -- the Munitions Industry Department of the North's ruling Workers' Party and the State Space Development Bureau. The panel is also expected to recommend sanctions against senior North Korean officials, such as Pak To-chun, a former secretary of the Munitions Industry Department; Ri Man-gon, director of the department; and Ri Pyong-chol, a deputy director of the department, the report said. So far, the Security Council has adopted six resolutions, six presidential statements and two press statements with regard to the North's nuclear and missile programs. Of the six resolutions, four included sanctions against the isolated nation. Chinese cooperation is key to putting together and implementing any meaningful sanctions resolution, as it is one of the five veto-holding permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and the main provider of food and fuel for the impoverished North. Beijing has condemned the North's nuclear test, but has been lukewarm about calls for stern responses. Analysts have long said Beijing fears that pushing Pyongyang too hard could lead to its collapse, instability on its border with China and the untimely emergence of a pro-U.S. nation. (Yonhap) By Park Moo-jong The headline, "Smile of Korea, World to Korea," is the catchphrase of the 2016-2018 Visit Korea Year (not Visit Korea Years?). The Visit Korea Committee, a foundation under the Ministry of Culture and Sports, is launching the "K Smile Campaign" (K stands for Korea) under the slogan, "When Korea smiles, the world smiles." The committee says that the campaign is a "nationwide friendly campaign which aims to create Korea as a place to revisit by welcoming foreign visitors with our kindness and smile." The campaign, which will kick off officially on Feb. 12 in Myeong-dong Street, downtown Seoul, certainly proves that we, Koreans, are mostly unsmiling. In short, we look too serious in the eyes of people from abroad. It is not that easy to see Koreans smile not only at foreigners on the streets, subways elevators or elsewhere, but at their fellow citizens as well. Why? A silly joke goes: "Smiles make eye wrinkles." Indeed, we have such an old saying, "Who can dare spit on a smiling face?" The English versions may be, "A soft answer turns away wrath," or "Good words are good cheap." In a city with skyscrapers and high-rise apartments, citizens have to use elevators several times a day, unless they don't have the slightest idea of using stairs for a workout. The trademark scene in any lift here would testify to the serious facial expressions of Korea. At any bustling multi-story building, when an elevator arrives at the first floor during morning rush hours, passengers have difficulty getting out, blocked by those who are trying to get in. There are few smiling faces. Scenes at subway stations are no different. Inside the elevator, passengers seldom look at each other, talk or smile, especially if they are total strangers. What they do is look up awkwardly at the lighted numbers that indicate its location or look down at their smartphones with earphones. Speaking frankly, from time to time, I felt suffocated by such a tough atmosphere during the ride, short though it was. Many people might have had the experience of riding lifts with foreigners during their overseas trips, who said hello or hi with smiling faces. Even in apartment elevators here, neighbors seldom exchange greetings, as if they are engaged in a silence contest, showing the height of ever expanding individualism. It is needless to say that foreigners, particularly, Westerners, smile when they meet others anywhere, except maybe for sad occasions such as funeral services. The situation here is not different on the streets. I have met many Korean-Americans who have visited Seoul for the first time in many years, who complained that they felt a tense atmosphere on the streets, as the pedestrians seemed to be too busy and aggressive. Few Koreans say "sorry" or "excuse me," when they bumped into foreigners by accident. A U.S. tourist quipped that Koreans must be skilled gamblers, judging from their "poker faces." Even he asked why Koreans looked so angry. In truth, Korea is a still a "tough" country for foreign tourists, particularly from the West. There are few people who can speak English, even if the "global" language is taught for more than 10 years at various levels of school. People are not so kind, at least outwardly, if judged by their expressionless faces. Back in the late 1970s, our then leaders apparently felt an urgent need to change the serious faces of Koreans and launched a pan-national campaign: "Let's Smile." Citizens carried, voluntarily or reluctantly, a yellow "smile badge" on the left of their chest. Alas, nearly 40 years have passed and little has changed as seen in the launching of a similar movement, the "K Smile Campaign." Campaign organizers say that we need to make smiling a daily routine. Easier said than done! Who does not want to smile and laugh? How will the people be happy, if there is not a lot they can laugh or smile at? Maybe the Koreans of today were born expressionless. But what's going on in this part of the world of late that does not allow people to "smile" as campaigners wish. Experts warn that the economy is showing signs of entering a long dark tunnel, although it is not a cave with no end. How about politics? Politicians appear not to be interested in the economic difficulties or the people's livelihood, being obsessed only with their own political interest, namely with their chances to join the next-term National Assembly in the upcoming general election in April. And the top priority of the "so-called" political leaders is to seize the chance to get the ticket to the next presidential election slated for Dec. 19, next year. Betrayal is a piece of cake in the political arena. Today's friends are tomorrow foes and vice versa. Ordinary people lament that the Republic of Korea of today has few leaders whom the people can trust and respect. Nevertheless, we Koreans are proud of having made miracles from the ashes of the internal war (1950-53) to the admiration of the world. We have the very decisive "can do spirit." There is nothing that is too late to do. It goes without saying that anywhere in the world the smiles of local people make foreign guests feel at home despite being away from home. One easy thing we can do is smile and say hello to other passengers in elevators. I'd like to sing "I see us and foreign visitors shaking hands, saying how do you do" in "What a wonderful Korea," as in, "I see friends shaking hands, saying how do you do." in Louis Armstrong's (1901-1971) song, "What a wonderful World!" Smiles are also good for our health, according to medical doctors. "Laughter brings happiness." Ssangyong Motor Co, owned by India's Mahindra & Mahindra, plans to unveil the long body version of its popular Tivoli sport utility vehicle next month, an industry source said Thursday. "The exact launch date has not been determined but the long body version of the Tivoli will likely hit the market before the end of next month," the source told the English division of Yonhap News Agency. The Tivoli is one of Ssangyong Motor's most popular models whose sales started early last year. It was the first new model the automaker brought to the market since it was acquired by the Indian conglomerate back in 2011. He declined to elaborate on other details including what would be its official vehicle name. The long body version is expected to appeal to customers who want more luggage space than the Tivoli small-sized SUV. Last year, Ssangyong Motor sold nearly 64,000 units of the Tivoli at home and abroad, the best annual performance ever among its vehicle models. As for the new Rexton SUV, the source disputed some media reports that it will be launched within this year, saying that it will not hit the market until early next year. (Yonhap) NK missile launch to leave Seoul with no choice South Korea would find itself with no other choice but to close down the Gaeseong Industrial Park, if and after North Korea launches a rocket to deploy a satellite, which is easily converted to an inter-continental missile, and would be in direct violation of the United Nations resolutions. Of course, it would be a difficult decision because the industrial park started as a flagship inter-Korean joint venture in the early 2000s at the height of the "Sunshine" policy of reconciliation and now represents just about the only significant link between the two estranged Koreas. Despite that, at stake are the lives of over 500 South Koreans who still remain at the factory town on the North Korean border, about 20 percent fewer than before the North's alleged H-bomb test on Jan. 6. About the same number of South Koreans makes the daily visit to take care of 120 factories staffed by 54,000 North Korean workers. In other words, about 1,000 South Koreans could end up as hostages in the North, as Pyongyang defies calls by the international community and presses ahead with preparations for the launch. The hostages would give the North a big advantage over the South, when the situation gets aggravated and the two sides get entangled in a standoff. For instance, the town is so heavily militarized that a daring rescue operation appears next to impossible. Second, Seoul can no longer call for tougher international sanctions that would target the North's cash flows, while subsidizing the North on the side. The North receives about $100 million annually in wages for workers and fees for the use of the land. U.S. neocons, who were in power during the George W. Bush administration, claimed that the money was used by the North for the development of missiles and nuclear bombs. Plus, the Korea Electric Power Corp. (KEPCO) has provided millions of dollars in free electricity to the city for more than just the needs for the factory town. Third but very important, closing Gaeseong is the only "pressure point" that the South can use to make the cash-strapped North feel the pain. The tours to Mt. Geumgang, another showcase inter-Korean cooperation project, had been put on hold for years after a South Korean tourist was shot to death. In January, the South resumed propaganda broadcasts across the Demilitarized Zone after the North's nuclear test but without success, embarrassing the government for its lack of effective means to punish the North. At that time, the government rejected calls for the Gaeseong closure. Now, the United States, which is still vacillating in the middle of its presidential campaigns, and China, which remains protectionist for its troublesome client state, would likely take heed and form a more united front about sanctions, if Seoul decides to close Gaeseong. The risk is that the North may react cantankerously, or take it in stride. Or closure would leave the firms stranded. Tens of billions of won were given to the firms in 2013, when the North closed it for five months before it was reopened. Seoul Semiconductor workers produce light-emitting diode (LED) products at its manufacturing facility in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, in this 2015 file photo. / Courtesy of Seoul Semiconductor By Lee Min-hyung Seoul Semiconductor, the nation's leading light-emitting diode (LED) manufacturer, is seeking to expand its footprint in the global LED industry by focusing on its core competency in developing related technologies. Earlier this week, the company stated in a regulatory filing that its operating profit surged 1,684 percent to 45.6 billion won ($37.9 million) in 2015 from the previous year. Overall performance in the LED market has remained sluggish in recent years, due to the global economic recession and a supply glut by Chinese manufacturers. But the company said its yearly sales also improved, jumping 7.7 percent to 1.11 trillion won from the previous year. This is the second time that the company topped one trillion yearly sales since it was established, it said. The company attributed the robust growth to increased sales from its patented LED products _ including ultra violet LED (UV LED) and Wafer Level Integrated Chips on PCB (Wicop) LED products. In 2012, the company launched the Wicop LED series, which does not require packaging, as opposed to conventional LEDs. Seoul Semiconductor has since identified Wicop as one of its next-generation revenue sources, as the new LED does not need packaging parts such as lead frames or gold wire. The company previously said the new LED technology helps streamline assembly processes for LEDs, thereby increasing manufacturing efficiency and reducing production costs. "Our key technologies such as Wicop, Acrich and nPola have driven our robust growth last year," an Seoul Semiconductor spokesman said. "We aim to diversify our revenue streams by launching more innovative products with our core capability in developing LED-related technologies." The company said its LED sales for monitors nudged down last year, but increasing LED demands for television, smartphone and lighting systems has driven its overall sales growth. Rising demand for daytime running lights for vehicles have also boosted its sales performance during the period, it added. Seoul Semiconductor is ranked fourth in terms of the global LED market share as of third-quarter in 2015, according to U.S.-based market researcher IHS. The company held some 6.3 percent of share during the same period, up from 5.6 percent in the first quarter of last year. The company is currently holding some 12,000 patents regarding LED manufacturing technology, it said. Seoul Semiconductor has accelerated efforts to find next-generation growth engines in recent years. In particular, Seoul Viosys, the UV LED-making affiliate of Seoul Semiconductor, is seeking to generate more profits by mass-producing UV-LED products for wider use. UV LEDs are now gaining traction globally due to its outstanding performance in sterilization and purification. Last year, the company formed a partnership with U.S.-based UV LED manufacturer Sensor Electronics Technology (SETi) in a move to commercialize the Korean company's "Violeds" technology. Seoul Viosys is pushing to expand the technology to be used for everyday life including home appliances such as refrigerators and washing machines. Meanwhile, Seoul Semiconductor is holding four overseas branches including the U.S. and China. In 2016, the company is planning to diversify its business portfolio ranging from IT devices to lighting fixtures. By Kim Yoo-chul LG CNS, the system integration affiliate of LG, said it has agreed with the Malaysian government to export its advanced transportation technologies to be used in the mass rapid transit (MRT) stations of the Southeast Asian country. The deal is calling on LG CNS to supply its proprietary intelligent smart transportation systems to 31 MRT stations in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur and feeder bus lines connecting the capital to metropolitan cities. The monetary value of the deal was about 12 billion won, the LG affiliate said in a statement. "The Malaysian government is investing more to construct smart transportation systems," LG CNS spokesman Jang Hyuck said. "Transport is a core part of Malaysia's economy, allowing passengers to travel from one region to another and delivery of services. LG CNS hopes our technology could help Malaysia's transportation system reduce traffic problems." The Korean company defeated its chief Japanese, German and Spanish rivals for the deal, though the company didn't specify which companies had been competing. Under the system, information on the location and speed of buses will be transmitted to control centers via its fleet management system (FMS), helping officials at the centers to deliver real-time data using wireless telecommunication technology to alert drivers to the fastest and most effective routes. Meanwhile, passengers using MRT and feeder connecting bus lines can also use an automated fare collection (AFC) system thanks to the agreement between the two parties, said the statement. In 2012, CNS's plan to build telecom infrastructure in the first phase of the MRT was approved in that country, for a price tag of 140 billion won. Its smart transportation systems are currently being used in integrated systems for high-speed trains in Korea and AFC in transportation networks operating in Seoul and the surrounding metropolitan region, as well as those in the capital cities of Colombia, New Zealand and Greece. "LG CNS watches transportation markets in countries in the region and South America," said the spokesman. Demand for smart transportation systems is growing as major cities across the globe develop. According to research firms, a majority of the 1,063 smart cities around the globe, each with a population surpassing 500,000, are growing at a rate faster than the global average. They say this opens up new market opportunities for industry players to grow their businesses in the smart city environment. Investments in advanced infrastructure facilities for smart city services are forecasted to reach $30 to $40 trillion over the next 20 years. Smart transportation is a core segment in the development of city infrastructure. The smart transportation market was estimated to be worth $46.72 billion in 2015 and is projected to reach $138.76 billion by 2020, according to industry sources and research firms. Flash The United Nations said Wednesday that more than 20 of its agencies are coordinating efforts in response to the outbreak of Zika virus in the Americas and the challenges posed by the neurological disorders associated with the Zika virus. A researcher in Gorgas Commemorative Institute of Health Studies (ICGES), responsible for diagnostic Zika cases in Panama, makes tests at a laboratory of the institute, in Panama City, capital of Panama, on Feb. 3, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua] Farhan Haq, the deputy UN spokesman, told reporters that following the declaration by Margaret Chan, the director-general of the World Health Organization, that microcephaly and other neurological disorders associated with the Zika virus constitutes a public health emergency of international concern. On Tuesday, the deputy UN secretary-general, Jan Eliasson, convened a high-level UN system meeting to address the challenges. "More than 20 different UN agencies and departments were represented," Haq said at a daily news briefing here. "Participants discussed how the UN system, under the leadership of WHO, will help affected countries to address the challenges posed by the neurological disorders associated with the Zika virus." "They emphasized the need for robust community mobilization, accelerated research and clear and coherent messaging," Haq said. Earlier Wednesday, WHO voiced concern over a report that the Zika virus had been sexually transmitted in the United States and called for further investigation into the mosquito-borne virus linked to birth defects. "The first known case of Zika virus transmission in the United States was reported in Dallas, Texas on Tuesday by local health officials, who said it likely was contracted through sex and not a mosquito bite," Haq said. WHO added that further investigation is needed to understand the conditions and how often or likely sexual transmission is, Haq said. Flash The Chinese influence in Tanzanian soil is increasingly becoming big and bold. This can be seen after the Asian nation built two ultra-modern primary schools in Tanzania. The schools have been built in Tanzania's University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) and University of Dodoma (UDOM) campuses. China built the two schools under the Sino-Africa Friendship Primary Schools Project worth 3.23 million U.S. dollars. The schools are fully furnished with all modern teaching and learning facilities, and students enrolled in those schools will have chance of learning Chinese language and culture from Standard One to Standard Seven. Speaking at the inauguration the project Monday, charge d'affaires from the Chinese Embassy in Dar es Salaam, Zhang Biao, said the project is part of the Chinese efforts to support to Tanzania's education sector. "China is aware of Tanzania's endeavor to enhance education and develop its human resources. China will continue to provide support in this important sector,"said the Chinese official. "Not far from where I'm standing, the construction of a modern Library and Confucius Institute are about to start with the assistance of Chinese government and more will be followed, such as the construction of Kagera Vocational Training College and the rehabilitation of the National Institute of Transport,"he added. Dr. Leonard Akwilapo, Deputy Permanent Secretary with Tanzania's Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Vocational Training (MESTV), lauded China for extending its support to Tanzania's education sector. "China remains and will continue to remain as Tanzania's closet and true friend. These have been seen in different arena, like what we see today," Akwilapo said. He said the project will help in improving education status in the country as the newly built schools have all the required teaching and learning facilities. "We believe this modern-built classrooms will help the students to get quality of education that can benefit their future and the country at large," Akwilipo said. "These schools came at the time when the University of Dar es Salaam and University of Dodoma have started offering courses in the Chinese language through a new Confucius Institute," the official said, encouraging more Tanzanian students to embrace the Chinese language courses The project came at the time when the MESTV already picked six secondary schools for a special program for students to learn Chinese language starting this year. Already 12 Chinese language teachers from China have completed a teaching methodology course on how to teach the subject in the six selected secondary schools. Flash At least 15 workers were killed and over 20 others wounded when a Saudi-led airstrikes struck their cement factory in Yemen's northern province of Amran on Wednesday, officials and witnesses said. They said the airstrike hit the main gate of the factory while workers were queue near the factory's gate to receive their monthly salary. "So far, 15 workers were killed after the airstrike hit the scene while more than 20 others were critically hurt and brought to the hospital," a medic in Amran hospital told Xinhua. The cement factory in rebel-held Amran province, about 60 km north of the capital Sanaa, has been targeted by a series of airstrikes and the factory had stopped operating. Tribal sources and residents said nearly 40 villagers were killed or injured when three airstrikes hit the village of Al-Jubara tribe in Kutaf region on Wednesday. Elsewhere in the outskirts of the capital Sanaa, tribesmen and local council officials said a family of nine members traveling on a car to flee the ongoing intensified ground battles in Nihm district were all killed in an airstrike Wednesday afternoon. The Saudi-led coalition started almost daily air strikes on Houthis and their allied forces' targets in Sanaa and other cities in March 2015. More than 6,000 people have been killed in ground battles and airstrikes since then, half of them civilians. You are here: Home Flash An Egyptian appeals court on Wednesday annulled 149 initial death sentences against the members of the banned Muslim Brotherhood group over killing policemen in 2013. This file photo taken on June 22, 2012 shows thousands of supporters of Muslim Brotherhood presidential candidate Mohamed Morsi packing Cairo's landmark Tahrir Square on June 22, 2012 to denounce a power grab by the ruling military, as the nation nervously awaited the results of the first post-Mubarak presidential election. [Photo/Xinhua] The court's ruling came after it has accepted an appeal submitted by the defendants and ordered a retrial. In February last year, Giza criminal court sentenced 188 people to death over charges of murdering 11 police officers in Giza's Kedrasa police station in 2013. The murder incident, referred to as "Kerdasa massacre," dates back to Aug. 14, 2013 when dozens of supporters of ousted Islamist President Mohamed Morsi stormed the main police station in Kerdasa district of Giza governorate. Eleven policemen and two civilians were killed in the incident. The assault took place shortly after police forces cracked down on two main sit-in camps of pro-Morsi protesters in Cairo and Giza governorates. Morsi was removed by the military in July 2013 after mass protests against his one-year rule. In September 2013, police forces attacked Kerdasa, a stronghold of Islamists, and arrested 188 people who faced accusations of murder, terrorism and damaging public property. A number of the Muslim Brotherhood members, including high ranking officials, were sentenced to death. However, the sentences have not been carried out and can be appealed. Since Morsi's overthrow, hundreds of his supporters have been handed lengthy jail terms and death sentences after speedy trials. Lancaster, Depew natives awarded RIT scholarship funding A School of Performing Arts that opened this year at the Rochester Institute of Technology is offering nonmajors in that field more opportunities to continue their performing passions in college.... LHS students receiving scholarships from Baldwin Wallace University Three students from the Lancaster area were among over 700 students who earned scholarships at Baldwin Wallace University this fall. The school has a long history of scholarship support from... Sri Lanka destroyed a haul of 359 illegal elephant tusks confiscated by the Sri Lanka Customs during a ceremony held at the Galle Face in Colombo yesterday (26). The multi- million dollar worth consignment of blood ivory which had originated from the African Continent was confiscated by the customs in 2012. In keeping with a government decision the illegal elephant tusks were destroyed today in the presence of state officials, international conservationists and the general public. The event was held to coincide with the International Customs Day. During the event a symbolic religious observance was held as a last right for the elephants killed for their tusks. A first day cover with a set of seven postage stamps was also issued today. Members of the Maha Sangha, religious dignitaries, Hon. Ministers including Gamini Jayawickrama Perera and Ravi Karunanayake, Director General of CITES John Scanlon, tri forces commanders, members of the diplomatic corps, state officials and a large number of school children were also present at the occasion. Courtesy: www.news.lk The seven-year effort to produce a documentary on the late Tom Bradley reaches a new height this month with airings on PBS channels across the country. PBS SoCal will air Bridging the Divide: Tom Bradley and the Politics of Race, tonight at 8 p.m. Bradley served as mayor of Los Angeles for five terms, from 1973 to 1993, following the most racially inflamed LA political campaigns of my lifetime (and, not coincidentally, the elections with the highest voter participation.) As producers Lyn Goldfarb and Alison Sotomayor show, Bradley was an alumnus of UCLA and the LAPD who sat on the City Council from South LA when he ran citywide for the first time in 1969, just four years after the destructive and deadly Watts Riots. Incumbent mayor Sam Yorty did everything he could to scare white voters with threats of black militants and white communists taking over the city, and he survived in 1969. In the replay four years later, Bradley won with the first effective citywide coalition of liberal white voters, blacks and Latinos. He didn't face a major challenge to reelection until his final term. A taste of the 1969 race: "Bridging the Divide: Tom Bradley and the Politics of Race" airs at 8 p.m. tonight on PBS SoCal. It began running Feb. 1 on PBS stations across the country, after premiering at last year's Los Angeles Film Festival. The film is narrated by actress Alfre Woodard. Columnist Bill Boyarsky wrote last year that "the excellent new documentary, 'Bridging the Divide: Tom Bradley and the Politics of Race,' tells the terrible story of race relations in Los Angeles, particularly the way a racist police department brutalized African Americans and white property owners kept blacks, Latinos, Asian Americans and sometimes Jews out of segregated neighborhoods. It relates this through the life of Bradley, the five-term African American mayor who brought the city together, as King Arthur sang in Camelot, 'for one brief shining moment,' and then saw it crumble in fire and death during the 1992 riot." Previously on LA Observed: Tom Bradley film looking for money PRESS RELEASE The West Fears Qualitative Improvement in Russian Military Feb. 3, 2016 (EIRNS)Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu held a teleconference with the leadership of the Russian military on Tuesday to review the progress of Russian military modernization programs. The proportion of modern equipment in the Aerospace Forces has now reached 52 percent, with further deliveries of Su-35 fighters and Su-34 bombers, and Ka-52 and Mi-28N strike helicopters. They also discussed the resumption of production of Tu-160 strategic bombers (13-16 are currently in service), the implementation of automated planning systems and programs to improve the manning of the armed forces in general, among other things. The Russian Defense Ministry statement on the meeting makes it all sound so prosaic; it is anything but. Military analysts in the West have taken note of the qualitative improvement of the Russian armed forces, to include the development and capabilities that have no analogue in Western military forces. Russias submarine fleet is now particularly feared, much more so than during the Cold War, when the Soviet union had a lot more submarines. NATO submarines are seeing "more activity from Russian submarines than weve seen since the days of the Cold War," Royal Navy Vice Adm. Clive Johnstone, commander of NATOs Maritime Command told IHS Janes. Johnstone added that NATO submarines are encountering "a level of Russian capability that we havent seen before." The submarines the Russians are building are much better than anything they had before. "Through an extraordinary investment path not mirrored by the West," Russia has made "technology leaps that [are] remarkable, and credit to them," Johnstone said. As such, modern Russian submarines "have longer ranges, they have better systems, theyre freer to operate." And its not just the hardware. The Russian navy has also invested in the professionalism of its manpower, an investment seems to have paid offNATO has "seen a rise in [Russian Navy] professionalism and ability to operate their boats that we havent seen before," Johnstone said. "That is a concern." Johnstones comments follow, by days, an article in the Jan. 31 London Independent, which reported on the "shock" felt by Western military leaders who expected Russias military deployment to Syria to fail in short order, but instead have watched the Russian military sustain a complex operation at a high operational tempo for four months now. Russian military jets have, at times, been carrying out more sorties in a day in Syria than the US-led coalition has done in a month," The Independent reported. At the heart of Christopher Sorrentinos stunning new novel is a storyteller. To writer Alexander Sandy Mulligan, John Salteau is an Ojibway man who tells native tales to children at the Cherry City public library. But to newspaper reporter Kat Danhoff, the storyteller is Jackie Saltino, a bagman who made off with close to half a million dollars from the local Indian casino, Manitou Sands. They may both be right. The book opens with Mulligans first-person account of his life in Michigan, a place he has ostensibly retreated to in order to leave behind an extremely messy divorce in New York City and complete a novel that is under contract but far from finished. It seemed right to him, right and just, that a gifted person should flee from the distractions and temptations of the big city, flee from the difficulties of a complicated personal life, to make art in self-imposed exile, working from the provinces. Advertisement In the language of recovery, this is called pulling a geographic: an attempt to elude ones problems by picking up and starting over somewhere new, and judging by Mulligans stiff, overly formal prose, he knows it. If anything, Mulligans problems worsen in Michigan. He takes up smoking, drinks too much, eats badly, and goes on long walks on the wintry lakeshore, To show myself that I was someplace real. Then Danhoff turns up and shows him a good deal more than he bargained for. They meet at the library where Salteau/Saltino plies his trade. Mulligan inserts himself into the reporters story by lying about his relationship to the storyteller as casually as he might drop a character into a scene. Suddenly the novel switches to third person and moves back in time so that the reader learns what brought Danhoff to Cherry City and get her perspective on her encounter with Mulligan. Naturally, the two versions dont quite sync up, and the reader is cast into the role of detective to sift through whats really happening between this unlikely pair. Like Mulligan, Danhoff is no stranger to bad breakups and seems on the verge of leaving her second husband back in Chicago. Shes deliberately coy about her upbringing, so much so that its practically her moral code: I think that every day you should do one thing that youll never tell anybody about.... Every single day, to remind you that youre free. To be free. She is diligent in her pursuit of the story despite not being particularly ambitious, and she exudes a kind of listless availability that attracts men that are as adrift in the world as she is. Just needed her phone, her laptop, a wallet full of cards, and she could begin a new life this afternoon if she wanted. Nothing had to tie her to a place or to a past. She knew that. Personal history was a string of numbers. The days of the orally preserved reputation were over. For Danhoff, thats probably a good thing as she makes reckless decision after reckless decision. Skin against skin, the foundation of every crude hope since the origin of time. The novels fascinating but unusual structure is a bit like doubling down in a game of blackjack: When the player doubles the wager the dealer initiates a second bet as part of the same hand. Sorrentinos twinning of his protagonists narratives raises the stakes, and it works; if Sorrentino is the dealer, the reader is the eye in the sky, the all-seeing camera, a half-step ahead of Mulligan, the author who has lost the thread. But The Fugitives is neither an experimental high-wire act nor a plodding whodunit but something in between, an entirely new kind of novel with exceptional interior monologues animated by deception, double-dealing and a doomed affair that lends an air of existential dread to the story: it never occurred to me to rue the day, as the saying has it. Yet to rue the day doesnt even begin to cover it. One would have to rue every day, every one that came before and every new one as it arrives and all those to come in anticipation. Only in death is there time to rue life as fully as life deserves. Once the novel moves into high gear, Sorrentino adopts an omniscient point of view and assembles New York mobsters, Ojibway hit men, literary agents and a noble newspaper editor named Nables, who may be the only person with integrity in the entire novel, to propel the story to its spectacular finish. In The Fugitives each ruse escalates to something ruinous. An illustration: Danhoffs editor, Nables, arranges the filing cabinets in the bullpen in such a way so as to form a crude office that, from the inside, resembles a coffin, foreshadowing the demise of the very principles to which he has dedicated his life. For Danhoff a lifetime of lying about where she comes from isnt enough to budge her from her unsustainable position that Identity was a trap. The Fugitives serves as a cautionary tale for anyone considering the implications of getting married, having an affair, writing a novel, or moving to the country in the service of ones art. Or it would if Sorrentinos electric prose and mordant wit didnt tap into the secret desire we all have from time to time to shed our skin and start over. Ruland is the author of the novel Forest of Fortune. :: The Fugitives Christopher Sorrentino Simon & Schuster: 336 pp., $26 When Raymond Chandler left Los Angeles in 1946, decamping with his elderly wife for the calmer environs of La Jolla, he did so because he had become fed up with the city. Once a place that that had captivated his imagination and made him the writer that he was, he said Los Angeles had finally become nothing but a tired old whore. Hed always had a love-hate relationship with L.A., but after a few years in the movie business Hollywood did him in, and he fled the city like a cat on fire. Chandlers ghost haunts Jean Steins West of Eden: An American Place. It tells the stories of five families or individuals, all extremely rich and most very famous, who pursued their dreams in Los Angeles: the Dohenys, the Warners, Jane Garland, Jennifer Jones and the Steins (as in Jules Stein, founder of MCA and Jean Steins father). As with her previous book, Edie, about Andy Warhols muse, Steins method is to construct a narrative entirely from oral interviews, an approach that lends the book a kind of Rashomon quality: The subjects are viewed from various angles by those who either knew them intimately or are well equipped to comment on their lives. We feel, as readers, that we are listening to voices more than reading a text. Its like being at an insiders cocktail party where the most delicious gossip about the rich and powerful is being dished by smart people, such as Gore Vidal, Joan Didion, Arthur Miller and Dennis Hopper. The result is a mesmerizing book. Advertisement Jennifer Jones in Duel in the Sun (1946). (Los Angeles Times / Los Angeles Times) Its been said that the story of L.A. is really the story of three things: oil, real estate and the movies. Stein covers them all, with the Dohenys representing oil; Jack Warner, Jennifer Jones and Jules Stein the movies; and Jane Garland real estate (where her father, William Garland, made much of his fortune). But theres a fourth story to be told about L.A., and thats the story of the visual artists who put the place on the map in the 1960s, and that story gets its moment in West of Eden as well and in a completely fresh way in the section dealing with Jane Garland. Garland was a young, wealthy schizophrenic woman confined to a mental facility whose psychiatrist came up with the idea of hiring young men to squire her about so she might experience what life would be like for someone her age and means if she were not so seriously sick. The guy hired for the job was aspiring young artist Ed Moses, along with his friends Walter Hopps, John Altoon and Craig Kauffman. This in itself is wildly funny and strange. But its easy money for the artists, and they rather like Jane, whose mother, a former Miss Cincinnati who once had aspirations to act but instead married money, cant deal with her troubled daughter. Jane is strange for sure but intriguingly so, and her artist-tenders lark about happily with her, taking turns spending nights at the Garlands posh Malibu beach house, getting loaded and taking her to Disneyland and trying not to act too alarmed when she dumps her food on the floor in restaurants and does handstands wearing a dress and no underwear. One of Chandlers recurring themes was that of the rich family who ends up with the damaged or spoiled child. That story is a constant thread in Steins book, whether its the unresolved Ned Doheny-Hugh Plunkett murder-suicide tale or the story of Bob Simon, Norton Simons son (and Jennifer Jones stepson), who killed himself in a closet above where his pregnant wife was sleeping. And then theres Jones daughter, Mary Jennifer, who one day simply walked off the roof of a 22-story building. These are the offspring who cant gut it out, as one person says, in the face of powerful fathers and indifferent mothers. The exception is Stein herself, who not only seems to have led a rich life but produced two accomplished daughters, Wendy and Katrina vanden Heuvel, the former an actress and producer, the latter the editor and publisher of the Nation. Jack Warner with his daughter Barbara in 1950. (Los Angeles Times / Los Angeles Times) The wives of the rich in these tales often dont fare much better than their troubled children. Some end up living in lavish bedroom suites as recluses, like Mrs. Jack Warner. Others form obsessive attachments to their therapists (one of whom, Milton Wexler, figures large in these tales) or take up an interest in the occult. Some simply eat themselves into muumuu-land. Each of the five sections in West of Eden begins with not just a name Doheny, Stein, et al but also the addresses where these families lived, as if to signal that in Los Angeles, for the wealthy a house isnt just a house, its more like a family member. Chandler understood this well, how the Beverly Hills mansions and Malibu beach houses are the intimate signifiers that later turn into the sepulchers, often with lingering power. David Geffen bought Jack Warners house for $47 million, Rupert Murdoch reputedly snagged the Steins for a mere $7 million, both men hoping perhaps to acquire not just some nice real estate but a part of the mojo of the former owners. As Geffen tells Stein, buying Warners house and all its contents felt like an homage to an idea about the way people lived in Hollywood. I got caught up in the whole gestalt, he says ruefully perhaps the same gestalt that sent Chandler fleeing. Jack Warners house in Los Angeles. (Los Angeles Times / Los Angeles Times) As Steins acknowledgments suggest, she seems to have known everyone worth knowing, and she collected the interviews in this book over many decades. As an editor at the Paris Review and Grand Street, shes lived a literary life, which she was first introduced to by Gore Vidal at age 19 (their mothers were close friends, both spectacular lushes). Steins own voice is hardly heard in West of Eden, even though shes intimately connected to many of her subjects (she does offer sharp little observations here and there like the one about attending the lavish birthday parties of her friend Barbara Warner, or the subtle recollections of her own family life). What shes clearly good at is drawing out stories from others and then assembling them into a powerful collage. Edward L. Doheny and his wife Estelle in 1926. (Los Angeles Times / Los Angeles Times) Some sections of the book are more compelling than others. The Doheny murder-suicide tale feels a bit old despite Richard Rayners illuminating comments, whereas the lesser-known story of Jennifer Garland is particularly moving for the way it depicts the schizophrenic and her kind young artist-tenders. The Warners make fascinating reading: Jack comes off as the venal man he was said to be (not even his descendants can find many kind words for him). The section devoted to Jennifer Jones is especially strong for its depiction of her marriages to David O. Selznick and later Norton Simon, thus connecting the realms of movies and art in Los Angeles via the life of one rather eccentric actress. West of Eden is compulsively readable, capturing not just a vibrant part of the history of Los Angeles that uniquely American Place Stein refers to in her subtitle but also the real drama of this town, as reflected in the lives of some of its most powerful players. :: West of Eden: An American Place Jean Stein Random House: 350 pp., $30 Freeman is the author of several novels and The Long Embrace: Raymond Chandler and the Woman He Loved. Her memoir, The Latter Days, will be published by Pantheon in June. In The Lost Time Accidents, John Wray combines literary fiction and far-out scientific theory for a narrative of a lovelorn exile from time. The book sounds a little like Kurt Vonnegut and nothing like John Wray. Which is sort of a problem. These days, writers have brands. Nicholas Sparks pens love stories. Elena Ferrante is a pseudonymous chronicler of modern Italian life. David Mitchell writes smart fiction with a fantastic twist. But Wray is all over the place. Its not that hes not acclaimed: Wray is a recipient of the prestigious Whiting Writers Award, has been a Guggenheim fellow, and was named one of Grantas best young American novelists. Advertisement Yet hes hard to pin down, which makes developing a following difficult. Heres a quick tour through his previous books: Austrian-born Wray set his debut novel, The Right Hand of Sleep (2001), where he was born. Its the 1930s, and after a two-decade absence in the Ukraine, a man returns to his town in Austria. What awaits him is entanglement in a love triangle and, of course, the terrible lead-up to WWII. Decades earlier and an ocean away, Canaans Tongue (2005) is set on the Mississippi River circa 1850. A young man named Virgil falls in with a preacher who is actually the leader of a gang of thugs. Think Cormac McCarthy meets Flannery OConnor in a tale rich with dialect, based partly on a famed outlaw who crossed paths with Mark Twain. In 2009s Lowboy, Wray shifted yet again, this time to contemporary New York. The bifurcated tale is told by a schizophrenic teen riding the subways, convinced he must save the world, and the mother and police officer who are trying to find him. Sometimes, its hard to figure out where the narrative thread lies. And thats not unlike Wrays literary career. His work, like his latest protagonist, is unstuck in time. What to expect of his next book? Something not much like his last. carolyn.kellogg@latimes.com A Chicago entrepreneur who already owns one of that citys daily newspapers is now the largest shareholder in Los Angeles Times owner Tribune Publishing after making a $44.4-million investment one that could bolster the companys planned bid for the Orange County Register. Michael Ferro, through his firm Merrick Media, bought 5.22 million newly issued shares of Tribune Publishing stock, giving him a 16.6% stake in the company, which also owns the Baltimore Sun, the Chicago Tribune and several other daily newspapers. The investment makes Ferro, who also owns the struggling Chicago Sun-Times, the largest Tribune shareholder. It more than doubles the amount of cash Tribune Publishing has available to expand its Southern California footprint by purchasing the Register and the Riverside Press-Enterprise from bankrupt Santa Ana publisher Freedom Communications. Advertisement One of Tribune Publishings key growth strategies is to purchase more newspapers in its existing markets and combine operations to cut costs. Last year, it bought the San Diego Union-Tribune, and adding Freedoms newspapers to its portfolio would strengthen its position in the Southern California market. An attorney for Tribune Publishing said this week that the company is in advanced stages of putting together an offer. Tribune Publishing Chief Executive Jack Griffin said that Ferros investment bolsters our ability to actively be in acquisition mode. Its no coincidence that the Ferro deal comes less than two weeks before a deadline to submit initial bids to purchase Freedom, said media industry analyst Ken Doctor. They have a very clear deadline coming up and they didnt have the money, he said. Tribune Publishing also said it is suspending dividend payments indefinitely, which will preserve cash by saving about $18 million a year but that contributed to a selloff of Tribune stock. Shares fell by as much as 30 percent Thursday morning before rebounding by days end to close down $1.02, or 11%, to $7.98. Hamed Khorsand of Woodland Hills research firm BWS Financial, one of the few analysts who follow Tribunes flagging stock, said investors will not only lose dividend income but also see their Tribune Publishing holdings diluted by the Ferro deal. No part of this is friendly to investors, he said. Still, Khorsand said Thursdays moves put the company in a better position to bid for the Register. He said the companys balance sheet, with about $41 million in cash and $400 million in debt, already looked lopsided and loans to buy Freedom would have indebted the company further. Another bidder could have said Tribune doesnt have the balance sheet to support business in the long term, Khorsand said. Ferro, 49, a Chicago tech entrepreneur and philanthropist, said on a conference call Thursday that hes putting his personal and business reputations on the line, and that hes committed to Tribune Publishing for the long term. I have no intention of ever selling my stake, he said. As part of the deal, Ferro replaces Eddy Hartenstein, a former Times publisher, as non-executive chairman of the Tribune Publishing board, the company said Thursday. Hartenstein will retain a board seat. Whether Ferro can help turn around the publishing companys fortunes remains to be seen. In 2011, his company Wrapports bought the Chicago Sun-Times, a smaller rival of the Chicago Tribune that has continued to face difficulties under his ownership with declining circulation and cutbacks. Facing the same challenges as newspapers around the country, the paper fired its photographers in 2013 as a cost-saving measure and has also scrapped local business news coverage in favor of content from USA Today. The Sun-Times weekday print and online circulation in the final quarter of last year was 43% lower than in the same quarter in 2013. Ferro on Thursday said the Sun-Times is in a very healthy position. In 2014, Wrapports sold 38 daily and weekly newspapers serving Chicago suburbs to Tribune Publishing for $23.5 million a deal that Griffin said ultimately led to Ferros investment in Tribune Publishing. Ferro has given up operational duties at the Sun-Times. Ferro has had success as an entrepreneur and investor. Before his foray into publishing, he founded Click Commerce, a business software developer he took public in 2000, then sold in 2006 for $292 million. His stake at the time of the sale was about $65 million. His most notable recent payday came last year, when IBM acquired Merge Healthcare, a medical imaging technology company in which Ferro had invested in 2008, for $1 billion. Ferro and his private equity firm, Merrick Ventures, earned a reported $190 million. A Chicagoan with little profile outside of that city, Ferro said Thursday that he was humbled to be sitting in Tribunes headquarters and excited to be associated with the Los Angeles Times, which he called the crown jewel of Tribunes holdings. This is both a large financial investment for me and a personal investment, Ferro said. I couldnt even sleep last night. His investment comes about six months after an expression of interest by Los Angeles billionaire Eli Broad in buying the Los Angeles Times and the San Diego Union-Tribune from Tribune Publishing. That overture wasnt pursued because company executives said they believe the California papers are a key part of Tribune Publishings strategy. Subsequently, Austin Beutner, a prominent Los Angeles businessman close to Broad, was dismissed after one year as publisher of The Times over differences with Griffin. Shares in Tribune Publishing have lost about 69% of their value since they began trading publicly in mid-2014. Ferro bought in at $8.51 a share, a 5.5% discount to Tribune Publishings closing price Wednesday, the day the deal closed. Ferro displaces Los Angeles investment firm Oaktree Capital Management as Tribune Publishings largest shareholder. Oaktree saw its 17.9% stake shrink to 14.9%, though the company last year filed documents that indicate it plans to slowly sell its Tribune shares. james.koren@latimes.com Times staff writer Michael Hiltzik contributed to this report. Congress tried to show it feels Americas pain over high prescription-drug costs by calling Martin Shkreli to account Thursday. Shkreli is the former head of Turing Pharmaceuticals, currently out on $5-million bail after being charged with securities fraud and conspiracy. He became the face of Big Pharma greed after jacking up the price of a one-of-a-kind infection medication by 5,000%. Shkreli clammed up Thursday by citing his 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination. He did tweet, however, that lawmakers are imbeciles. Advertisement Join the conversation on Facebook >> I dont think Ive ever seen the committee treated with such contempt, fumed Rep. John Mica, a Florida Republican. Politicians can skip the phony outrage. Shkreli may be the poster boy for drug-industry rip-offs, but hes by no means alone. Pharmaceutical companies are crawling with profit seekers preying on the sick, and Congress has done nothing to fix that. I had an interesting chat the other day with Dinesh Ghiya, a Whittier pediatrician who wanted me to know whats going on with Cortisporin-TC Otic Suspension, an ear drop thats used to treat whats commonly known as swimmers ear. A vial used to cost about $6, Ghiya said. I got some for a patient recently and it was a lot more. I called my pharmacist and was told that the price will probably go up again this year. He said he treats dozens of local kids with Cortisporin every summer. There are cheaper generic alternatives available, but pediatricians often prefer the brand-name original because its formulated thicker and doesnt drip out of the ear. Basically, it works better. If kids cant afford Cortisporin, that can mean pain, excruciating pain, Ghiya said. If the infection goes deeper into the ear, it can mean surgery. I asked Ghiya why the cost of Cortisporin has risen so much. I dont know, he replied. Because it can. The answer is actually more troubling and illustrates multiple problems with the U.S. healthcare industry, including unwarranted markups as a result of repeated corporate acquisitions and the slimy practice of ducking U.S. taxes by relocating abroad. Unlike the drug for parasitic infections Shkreli cashed in on, which is more exotic in nature, Cortisporin couldnt be more banal. That a remedy for something as ubiquitous as kids ear infections can become a profit center speaks volumes about what healthcare consumers are up against. Cortisporin was originally developed by Glaxo Wellcome and was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1975. Its been around since the dawn of time, said Robert Hamilton, a Santa Monica pediatrician. Theres nothing complicated about it. As best as I can tell, Cortisporin originally cost just a few bucks for a 10-milliliter vial, which is about a months supply and sufficient to treat even the most stubborn ear infection. Sarah Spencer, a Glaxo spokeswoman, said Cortisporin has been on the market for so long, no one at the company even remembers how much it used to cost. We no longer own the medicine, she noted. Indeed, Cortisporin has had a decidedly tumultuous life considering how mundane it is. Glaxo sold the U.S. rights to Monarch Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of King Pharmaceuticals, in 1997. Ten years later, King sold Cortisporin to JHP Pharmaceuticals. JHP Pharmaceuticals was acquired by Par Pharmaceutical in 2014. Last year, Par was acquired by the drug company Endo International for a hefty $8 billion. Endo underwent its own transformation in 2014, changing its name from Endo Health Solutions and moving from Pennsylvania to Ireland to avoid paying millions of dollars in U.S. business taxes. Rajiv De Silva, Endos chief executive, said at the time that strategic acquisitions will play a key role in maximizing our growth potential and creating value for Endo International shareholders. Thats pharma-speak for were going to buy other drug companies and mark up the price of their meds so we can make a lot more money. Heather Zoumas Lubeski, Endos senior director of corporate affairs, told me that the company is committed to providing top-quality products to patients to improve lives and believes its pricing is rational and appropriate. Regarding Cortisporin, she said, Endo has taken price increases in line with market conditions and competitor product pricing. Pharmacists say otherwise. Benjamin Khorsandi, a Santa Monica pharmacist, said he could recall that only a few years ago, Cortisporin was selling for about $10. Last year, he said, the price surged to about $100, and now its going for double that. Greg Avale, a Century City pharmacist, confirmed Khorsandis experience. Cortisporin is selling for $195, he said. The generic version costs $144. Remember, were talking about a drug thats been around more than 40 years. It doesnt fight cancer. It wont cure hepatitis. It helps kids get over ear infections from summertime swims. It blows my mind, said Ben Kadkhoda, a Brentwood pharmacist. It seems like all the brands go up in price at least once a year. Why? Because they can. Which is exactly what Dr. Ghiya said. I understand people who insist that you cant have price controls for prescription meds. It would stifle innovation, they say, and undermine research into new treatments. Theres something to that. But then there are the Cortisporins everyday drugs that have been around forever but that keep going up in price for no better reason than because a new owner figures he can wring more profit from it than the last guy. What to do? Heres a start: Allow Medicare/Medicaid to negotiate drug prices with manufacturers. This is how other developed countries keep drug prices at reasonable levels. Its nuts that we prohibit our biggest public insurance system from applying the same market muscle. Instead, were stuck with an imbalanced playing field where a guy like Shkreli can fleece consumers and then smirk and giggle his way through what should have been a public flogging. Its not funny, Mr. Shkreli, people are dying, admonished Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Md.). Like that has anything to do with maximizing growth potential and creating value for shareholders. David Lazarus column runs Tuesdays and Fridays. He also can be seen daily on KTLA-TV Channel 5 and followed on Twitter @Davidlaz. Send your tips or feedback to david.lazarus@latimes.com. MORE FROM DAVID LAZARUS Dont expect this award to help you enter college Wireless-only phone users have become a one-stop shop for scam callers Why is the UC system investing in a payday lender accused of trapping people in perpetual debt? Representatives of the United States and 11 other Pacific Rim nations on Thursday formally signed a sweeping free-trade agreement reached last fall, setting in motion what is expected to be a hard battle for approval in national legislatures, none more contentious than in the U.S. Michael Froman, President Obamas chief trade negotiator, beamed as he walked onstage during a signing ceremony in New Zealand, but back home it is looking increasingly unlikely that a congressional vote on the deal will take place by summer. Major presidential candidates continue to pan the accord and even leaders of the GOP, the party of free traders, have shown only lukewarm support for what Obama has made his top economic priority in the second term. I have some problems with the agreement, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) told reporters Tuesday, reiterating comments he has made since the text of the accord was released in November. With both the Democratic candidates for president opposed to the deal and a number of presidential candidates in our party opposed to the deal, it is my advice that we not pursue that, certainly before the election. Advertisement NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >> And some would argue that its not fair to the voters for them not to consider what you might do after the election, he added, suggesting the possibility of a congressional vote during the short lame-duck session in November and December. The Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement was concluded last October in Atlanta after more than five years of negotiations. The accord would be the largest regional trade pact in the world, binding together economies that make up nearly two-fifths of global economic output by eliminating duties on thousands of goods and setting uniform rules on intellectual property, labor rights, the environment and other areas affecting trade and investment across borders. So far, only Malaysia has ratified the agreement. Representatives of Mexico and Australia indicated Thursday that it would be months, possibly year-end, before debate would be concluded and a final vote taken up by their respective lawmakers. The other countries are Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and New Zealand. Some nations will be waiting first for action in the U.S., where vehement opposition to the deal from Democratic lawmakers and many others has cast doubts about whether the Obama administration can bring the agreement to implementation. Obamas hopes for enacting the legacy-making accord have been complicated by presidential campaign politics -- free trade is hardly a populist issue -- and more recently by the stormy global economic climate and the possibility of an economic slowdown in the U.S. The economy is going to grow more slowly; everybodys ratcheted down their forecasts, said Peter Moroci, a University of Maryland professor and former chief economist at the U.S. International Trade Commission. It makes it more difficult to sell that thing, he said of the trade accord. When people arent doing well economically, theyre more fearful of change. In recent weeks Froman and other Obama administration officials have been working on Capitol Hill and across the country to highlight what they see as the significant overall economic gains for the country in expanding foreign markets for American-made goods and services. Obama has argued repeatedly that the Pacific pact is also critical in strengthening American political leadership in the face of a rising China. U.S. business groups have been generally slow and somewhat reserved in their endorsement of the deal, though that may soon change. In the weeks ahead, the chamber will be ratcheting up its advocacy for the TPP, said John Murphy, senior vice president for international policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Organized labor and other opponents of the partnership, including various health, environmental and consumer groups, have been campaigning hard against it for months. Were definitely mobilizing now, said Thea Lee, deputy chief of staff at the AFL-CIO. She wouldnt say whether the labor group was targeting certain lawmakers, as it did last year during a fight over a fast-track trade bill vote. Obama narrowly won that battle, enabling him to wrap up the Pacific trade negotiations and to present the accord to Congress for a straight up-or-down vote, with minimal delay and no amendments. Analysts say Obama isnt likely to submit the Trans-Pacific Partnership as legislation to Congress until he is confident that it will be approved by both chambers. The president is also expected to wait until the International Trade Commission, an independent federal agency, releases an assessment of the deals economic effects. That report is due by May 18. See more of our top stories on Facebook >> A study by the Peterson Institute for International Economics, a private think tank, has estimated that the trade pact would boost annual real incomes of Americans by $131 billion, or 0.5% of U.S. economic output, by 2030. But another study, by researchers at Tufts University, found significantly smaller income gains to the U.S. and said that the Pacific trade accord would likely lead to employment losses and increases in inequality. For key GOP lawmakers, whose support is seen as critical for securing enough votes to ratify the accord, the issues come down to a handful of interests, including tobacco companies access to special tribunals to settle disputes, longer periods of intellectual property protections for drugmakers, and greater flexibility for financial institutions in where data can be stored. Many Democratic lawmakers opposed to the Trans-Pacific Partnership say the accord falls short in providing adequate protections for workers, consumers and the environment. William Reinsch, president of the National Foreign Trade Council, a pro-trade group representing scores of multinational firms, doesnt see any of the GOP concerns as insurmountable. I think these are problems that can be addressed, but its going to take some time to work through them, said Reinsch, a veteran of Washington trade wars. He added, however, that the administration still has a huge fight on its hands: The thing new this time around is that opponents are much better organized than they have been historically -- and theres more of them. Staff writer Lisa Mascaro in Washington contributed to this report. Follow me on Twitter @dleelatimes ALSO As Clinton seeks to break the glass ceiling, many young feminists shrug Viacom CEO Philippe Dauman becomes chairman, succeeds Sumner Redstone Trial delayed for Enrique Marquez Jr., accused of supplying 2 guns in San Bernardino attack If a top executive of a publicly held company suffers a serious medical problem, what should the company tell the world and how soon? Its vital knowledge for the companys stockholders, employees, customers and suppliers. But theres also the executives right to privacy to consider. The debate is being played at out Viacom Inc. and CBS Corp., where the mental competency of 92-year-old Sumner Redstone, the executive chairman of both companies, has been called into question. Advertisement Thats prompted some institutional investors to seek more disclosures about Redstones condition. CBS announced Wednesday that Redstone had resigned as its executive chairman and was named its chairman emeritus. Two other examples: United Continental Holdings Inc. said last month that the airlines chief executive, Oscar Munoz, had a heart-transplant operation after suffering a heart attack in October. And Michael Pearson, chief executive of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc., has been on medical leave since late December after being diagnosed with severe pneumonia. Steve Jobs long battle with cancer, and Apple Inc.'s limited disclosure about the condition of its co-founder before he died in 2011 at age 56, also fueled the debate. We asked securities expert Keith Bishop, 58, a partner at the law firm Allen Matkins in Irvine, to explain the issue. Heres an edited excerpt: When a top executive has a major medical setback, why dont companies immediately announce it? There may be concerns about legality and privacy. If the CEO has not authorized the disclosure of personal information, the company may find itself in trouble if its releasing information. Theres no blanket exemption from all privacy laws in the federal securities law. That is, theres no specific obligation under the federal securities laws to disclose the health condition of executives. If a company chooses to disclose the health condition they may be in violation of other laws, like the American With Disabilities Act or other privacy laws. You dont check your privacy at the CEOs door. Do companies resist saying anything only for legal reasons? Theres sensitivity to that persons situation. Or if the person has expressed a desire that this not be publicized, as fellow human beings, theres reluctance. It is fundamentally a really delicate situation for companies to face. In todays culture, where so many celebrities are willing to put everything out there in terms of their personal lives, maybe people feel like these CEOs have the same publicity motivations. But they have families, their own personal zone of privacy and may not be looking at that same level of full exposure. Its very difficult to divorce the human element from this. Who normally makes the decision about what to say publicly, especially if the CEO is debilitated in some way? Usually it would be the board of directors. Theyre going to discuss a disclosure framework. But there will probably be input from the companys lawyers, the companys PR people and the CEO to the extent he or she is able to participate. Are there Securities and Exchange Commission rules that govern all this? Dont they require disclosure of material information about a company? Companies dont have an obligation to disclose information just because its material. Under the SEC rules there are certain things they are required to disclose, like certain types of material litigation, but there is no health-of-the-CEO disclosure requirement. Just because its material doesnt trigger an automatic duty on the part of a company to disclose the information. But companies may fall into a duty to disclose in other ways. A company may choose at first to remain silent but if it comments and says the CEOs health is fine and the company knows its not fine, thats going to be a legal problem for the company. If an executive is diagnosed with a major illness, do the stockholders have rights to know about it? I dont think just because there is a diagnosis, which the company becomes aware of, that it triggers an automatic duty to disclose the illness. A stockholder might want to know that, but there are a lot of things a stockholder might want to know that the company does not have an obligation to disclose. Redstone is a controlling shareholder of Viacom and CBS. If the sick executive also is a major stockholder of the firm, does that change any of this? Legally I dont think it changes anything. From the stockholders perspective, I get it. If the CEO is also a major stockholder, I might be wondering whats going to happen to those shares if he or she passes away. But as a lawyer I dont think it changes the legal analysis. james.peltz@latimes.com Twitter: @PeltzLATimes ALSO In the West, skyscrapers are reaching for new heights As Clinton seeks to break the glass ceiling, many young feminists shrug L.A. County man wants judge to declare him winner of $63-million Lotto jackpot In a surprise shake-up at one of the worlds most revered dance institutions, Benjamin Millepied said Thursday that he will resign his position as the director of dance at the Paris Opera Ballet after a little more than a year, citing personal reasons and his desire to devote himself entirely toward artistic creation. After careful consideration, I have decided to end my position as director of dance at the Paris Opera, the star choreographer said in a statement that he posted to his Twitter account Thursday. He added that he is leaving for personal reasons only. See more of Entertainments top stories on Facebook >> Advertisement In the statement, Millepied alluded to the administrative burdens that come with leading one of the worlds most prestigious dance companies. My job as director of dance currently requires such a commitment that it largely precludes what is essential in my eyes artistic creation and expression, he said . Millepied said that he wishes to devote himself 100%" toward creative work, but added that he intends to stay with the company until the end of the current season, which concludes this summer. On Thursday, Millepied attended a news conference in Paris with Stephane Lissner, director of the Paris Opera. The company said that dancer Aurelie Dupont would succeed Millepied starting in August. During his time at the Paris Opera, the French-born Millepied has maintained strong ties to Los Angeles, where he and his wife, actress Natalie Portman, lived before he joined the company in 2014. He has remained at the head of L.A. Dance Project, the art collective he co-founded in 2012. The company, based in downtown L.A., performs modern and contemporary works, often presenting newly commissioned pieces by noted choreographers and dancers. It has toured internationally in addition to appearing at local venues including the Music Center and recently at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts. It remains unclear whether Millepied and Portman, who have a young son, will return to the United States or remain in France. The couple met during the making of the movie Black Swan, on which Millepied served as choreographer. Earlier this week, Paris Match published a story that Millepied was rumored to be stepping down, setting off a frenzy of speculation in the French media. The 38-year-old Millepied is a former dancer with the New York City Ballet, where he rose to the rank of principal. He was considered by many as a bold choice for the venerable Paris Opera Ballet, a company noted for its tradition and somewhat old-fashioned ways. In his brief time there, Millepied has sought to modernize the institution, making forays into digital platforms to reach new audiences. It marked the first time that Millepied had led a major dance company. I am sure I will discover all the complications of it once I start, he told The Times shortly after his appointment was announced in 2013. Twitter: @DavidNgLAT ALSO: Benjamin Millepied to return to L.A. for Dance Project performance Andrew Garfield to star in Angels in America in London Review: L.A. Dance Project delivers mesmerizing debut at the Wallis Review: Natalie Portmans Jane Got A Gun is a straight shooter, despite checkered past In December 1969, millions of Americans watched the televised drawing for the Vietnam draft. Diana Amsterdam tries to capture the impact of that dread event in her new play, The Dodgers, at the Hudson Mainstage Theatre. As an exercise in nostalgia, The Dodgers is richly evocative. Dramaturgically, however, it contains holes as big as an armored personnel carrier. See more of Entertainments top stories on Facebook >> Advertisement Director Dave Solomon keeps the tone low-key yet consistently dynamic, while his gifted young performers struggle and often succeed in making sense of their murky motivations. Asher Grodman plays Mick, an about-to-be-drafted youth whos frantic to find a draft dodge. Eric Nelsen is Chili, a jokester who emerges, somewhat arbitrarily, as the moral center of the piece, and Jared Gertner is an eminently draftable poor boy. Corbin Bleu seems oddly underplayed as Simon, the rational voice amid the habitually stoned chatter, while Emma Huntons strident performance as the fanatical anti-war activist Jane seems misplaced in this otherwise realistic construct. In the standout turn of the production, fetching Talisa Friedman plays Patti, a cheerfully promiscuous innocent about to have her illusions shattered. Michael Carnahan and Ann Beyersdorfers detailed set a rural commune in the dead of a Northeastern winter is extraordinary. The snug, funky hippie haven is where the plays young heroes gather to make love, create music and smoke plenty of pot. Jen Schriever and Ben Greens lighting, Diablo Sound and Alex Mackyols sound, and, especially, Ann Closs-Farleys wacky period costumes are essential contributions to a triumph of theatrical design. But an abrupt feel-good ending has us wondering why Chili hasnt intervened to save Mick and spare Patti from humiliation. Its just one of many baffling shortcuts in this colorful but imperfect play. The Dodgers, Hudson Mainstage Theatre, 6539 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles. 8 p.m. Fridays; 3 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 3 p.m. Sundays. Ends Feb. 28. $34.99. (323) 960-7712. www.plays411.com/thedodgers. Running time: 1 hour, 45 minutes. Follow The Times arts team @culturemonster. The idea for one of the most ambitious collaborations to date between China and Hollywood didnt come from an embassy office in Washington or Beijing, or from a power lunch in Beverly Hills, but from a bunch of Bruce Lee fans brainstorming in the San Fernando Valley over a decade ago. We were just trying making a movie about kung fu cause we liked kung fu, said Kung Fu Panda 3" director Jennifer Yuh Nelson, who served as head of story on the first Kung Fu Panda and has shared directing duties on the last two films. We never thought of it as a business decision. With China set to become the largest film market in the world by 2017, if it wasnt a business decision at first, it is now. Kung Fu Panda 3" is the first movie to be animated in both English and Mandarin, and the first coproduction between Glendale-based DreamWorks Animation and its Shanghai-based venture, Oriental DreamWorks. Advertisement See more of Entertainments top stories on Facebook >> The most ardent audiences for the films about a pudgy panda named Po have been in China, and the latest installment, which opened simultaneously in the U.S. and China on Friday, is no exception: The well-reviewed movie (80% on Rotten Tomatoes) made a respectable $41 million domestically in its opening weekend but a far more impressive and record- breaking $58 million in China, where its release was timed to the Chinese New Year. The directors behind Kung Fu Panda 3 discuss the challenges and beauty in creating a Mandarin and English version of the film. Not only did they like the first movie in China, but they said it felt very Chinese, Yuh Nelson said. That was a huge shock to us. We didnt even expect anyone to see it there. So when everyone else started trying to find content for China, we just kept doing what we were doing. Domestically, audiences in several markets, including at L.A.-area theaters in Monterey Park, Tustin and Puente Hills, have had the option of seeing the movie in either language. For Yuh Nelson and her co-director, Italian-born Alessandro Carloni, the dual languages added a layer of complexity to the $140-million production, and Chinese crews brought a new level of authenticity. Though animated movies are commonly dubbed in many languages, Kung Fu Panda 3" is fully animated in Mandarin, with the characters movements synced to deliver the Chinese dialogue properly. Translators had to tackle linguistic dilemmas such as Pos signature nonsense word catchphrase, Skidoosh Zou-ni in the Chinese version, which, loosely translated, means Charge! Not only did they like the first movie in China, but they said it felt very Chinese. Jennifer Yuh Nelson, Kung Fu Panda 3 co-director With the latest movie, which was written by Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger, the filmmakers expanded the story of Po, the unlikely kung fu warrior voiced by Jack Black, into new visual and spiritual territory. In Kung Fu Panda 3, Po, who was raised by a goose, finally meets his birth father and gets a chance to see where he comes from, a lush and misty mountain town called Panda Village, where plump, lazy bears lead happy lives of dumpling eating and ribbon dancing. Though the first two films were grounded in practical kung fu or as practical as kung fu practiced by a panda can be this one has sequences set in the spirit realm and deals with the Chinese concept of chi, or life force. On the first movie, which came out in 2008 and earned $215 million domestically and $416 million overseas, the American filmmakers relied on the Internet and books for their research into Chinese culture, but this time they had access to hundreds of Chinese artists who politely informed them when they went wrong. One characters costume combined elements of different dynasties a fashion no-no. Another left chopsticks sitting on the bowl, also a faux pas. Kung Fu Panda 3" made $41 million domestically in its opening weekend but a far more impressive and record-breaking $58 million in China. Pictured are co-directors Alessandro Carloni, left, and Jennifer Yuh Nelson. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times) Teng Huatao, a TV and film director in China, came aboard as consulting director to helm the Chinese language version of the film. Among his tasks was directing Jackie Chan, who has voiced the part of a monkey kung fu master in the English versions of the films and takes on an additional role as Pos father in the Mandarin version. Chan speaks Mandarin with a pronounced Hong Kong accent, which he enlisted a voice consultant to help him lose for the Mandarin version. Eventually, I asked the consultant to stop coming, because I wanted the audience to recognize Jackies voice and I was worried that if he was too concentrated on his pronunciation, he would not focus enough on conveying the emotions, Teng said. On her first trip to meet the Shanghai artists, many of whom were fresh out of college, Yuh Nelson got an indication of how seriously they took the endeavor when the crew all showed up in traditional Chinese ceremonial outfits. While making the movie, artists from the two crews intermingled often during brainstorming, a group from Oriental DreamWorks embedded in Glendale with a translator, and during production, the two crews connected daily via video conference. Yuh Nelson, whose family immigrated from South Korea to California when she was 4, said she found a point of cultural connection in the popularity of Korean pop music and movies in China. I think they were a little disappointed that I wasnt Chinese, Yuh Nelson said. But the fact that I was Asian meant that they found a point of similarity. As animators, Yuh Nelson and Carloni are a study in contrasts she is soft-spoken but direct and excels at kinetic action scenes. Hes gregarious, with a knack for expressive characters. They found that artists in China and English speak a certain universal language, however, communicating easily via visuals. The Chinese crews brought suggestions, like the toys the baby pandas in the movie might play with, and they had questions for their American colleagues. They wanted to know, Why do Western audiences find anything about China interesting? said Yuh Nelson. They were completely mystified. They thought it would be so alien for us, we wouldnt understand it. They were also curious to learn a formula for humor, Yuh Nelson said, a question she struggled to answer. In some cases, the English language humor just couldnt be replicated. Admiring his father clad in armor in one scene, Po says in English, Wow, I think I just peed a little! In the Chinese version, he says, You look too handsome! Times staff writers Julie Makinen and Nicole Liu contributed to this report. When Gordon Waller, half of the 1960s folk-rock duo Peter & Gordon, died in 2009, his former partner issued a modest statement to the press: I am just a harmony guy, and Gordon was the heart and soul of our duo. This weekend, Peter Asher will bring his British Invasion tribute show to Laguna Beach. And hes more than happy to be the harmony guy again, at least for a number or two. Waller, whose vocals with Asher pushed A World Without Love and other hits up the chart half a century ago, will duet with his old partner through video segments. According to Asher, that decision wasnt just motivated by nostalgia it also stemmed from knowing that, in some cases, there was no substitute for his boyhood friend. Some songs, you can get away with just by being sure Gordons notes are there, Asher, 71, said by phone. But there are some where the quality of his voice is what makes it work. Advertisement For the show, which will run two nights at the Laguna Playhouse, Asher will have help from another Gordon as well: Craig Gordon, the president and executive director of the Laguna Concert Band, who lined up Asher and his four-man combo to play alongside the 70-piece orchestra. In each of the last two years, the band performed a similar concert with Lee Rocker of the Stray Cats. As a child in the 60s, Craig Gordon regularly listened to the duo on the radio possibly, he recalled, as often as the Beatles. When Asher performed in October at the Coach House in San Juan Capistrano, Gordon stopped by to see the show, then contacted Ashers management to arrange a collaboration. At the Laguna Playhouse program, the orchestra will play 60s tunes for the first half, with Asher and his band joining in the second half. The symphonic setting gave Asher who has performed in recent years with his band or simply with sideman Albert Lee the challenge of adapting his old hits to a more lavish style, which appealed to him. Were doing songs Ive done before, obviously, Asher said. But they all sound like theyve never sounded before, hopefully in a good way. Like some of rocks other famous duos the Everly Brothers, Simon and Garfunkel, Chad and Jeremy Peter & Gordon were renowned for tight harmonies. As far as Asher was concerned, he and his partner played distinct roles in that vocal blend: Ashers reedy tenor supplied high contrast while Wallers gravelly baritone provided the foundation and often the solos on chestnuts like Woman and True Love Ways. Given the mythos that has grown around the 60s music scene, any retrospective show might summon an awestruck crowd. Asher, however, is more connected to that history than the average hitmaker who last cracked the top 40 in 1967. As the brother of actress Jane Asher, who dated Paul McCartney for several years, he had access to original Lennon-McCartney compositions that the Beatles didnt record. He has said that he was the first person to hear the Fab Fours breakthrough U.S. smash, I Want to Hold Your Hand, after its authors finished writing it. He was among the first executives at Apple Records, the troubled record label that the Beatles formed in 1968, and in the decade to come, he won fame as a manager and producer for artists such as James Taylor and Linda Ronstadt. Asher even has a connection, perhaps, to one of the most famous parodies of the British Invasion. Its been claimed that his bespectacled, red-banged appearance inspired Mike Myers look for the title character in the Austin Powers movies. He also provided a song for the animated film Madagascar 3: Europes Most Wanted and served as musical supervisor for Steve Martin and Edie Brickells stage musical, Bright Star. His story is just so huge, said Gordon that is, Craig Gordon, who jokingly added, Dont confuse the two, please when Ashers late partner came up. The Laguna program will also feature clips from The Ed Sullivan Show, photos from Ashers personal collection and footage of Peter & Gordon reunion shows recorded shortly before the latters death. For one member of the concert band, the Playhouse gig with Asher will be a reunion as well. Brian Cameron, who plays saxophone, shared a bill with Peter & Gordon in 1964 at the Riverside Municipal Auditorium. The events poster, still in Camerons private collection, contains a photo of his band, the Emperors, under a larger shot of the headliners. The Laguna Beach resident has only vague memories of the show itself, but the hysteria of the crowd well-documented in footage of the Beatles and other bands of the time sticks with him. About the only thing I remember is we were onstage, and we were probably before Peter & Gordon came on, Cameron said. And I remember the stage being littered with all sorts of things the kids threw up. calendar@latimes.com :::::::::::: Peter Asher with the Laguna Concert Band Where: Laguna Playhouse, 606 Laguna Canyon Road, Laguna Beach When: 7 p.m. Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday Cost: $50 to $100 Info: (949) 497-2787 or www.lagunaplayhouse.com Jenna Fischer has turned in the drab pencil skirts and cardigans for a yellow prison jumpsuit. Three years after ending her nine-season run as everyones favorite receptionist on The Office, Fischer returns to NBC in the daffy dramedy You, Me and the Apocalypse. As the title hints, the sci-fi series centers on a an eclectic group of characters (which include Rob Lowe as a priest and Megan Mullally as a white supremacist convict) around the world whose lives intersect in unexpected ways as they struggle with the impending apocalypse after a comet is predicted to hit Earth. Advertisement Fischer plays Rhonda, a librarian who finds herself in prison and the unlikely sidekick to Mullallys Leanne. The miniseries is a co-production from NBC and Britains Sky 1 network. After debuting in the U.K. almost four months ago, it is now its second week into its stateside launch. The series airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on NBC. The Times spoke to Fischer this week during a break from her filming of a guest arc on Mysteries of Laura. (Shell also soon appear on Lowes Fox series, The Grinder). Read on to see what she had to say about her initial impression of You, Me and the Apocalypse, and her thoughts on how her statements regarding The Offices Jim and Pam spun out of control. Tell me, Jenna, that when you hear a premise like the one for You, Me and the Apocalypse, the initial reaction is,um, what? -- am I right? Right? I had taken a long break because after The Office I did some off-Broadway theater in New York. Then I got pregnant with my daughter and took a long maternity leave, you know, to enjoy that time with her. Then I sort of put the word out that I was looking for work and I got sent this script and I read it and I remember telling my husband, this is the weirdest show Ive ever read but I love it. He asked me to explain it to him, so I started to well, theres this guy, but he also has an evil twin; then theres this priest at the Vatican and an Italian nun; I play a convict, but I didnt really do it; then theres a white supremacist convict who shackled herself to my leg. My husband was like, what are you talking about? This is the wackiest thing Ive ever heard. It was like how you meet somebody at a party and you have a small conversation with them and you cant stop thinking about them I got a little crush on this show. I have to admit, it was hard for me at first. You dont strike me as a Rhonda. I know, it was a little weird. Ive been identified as Pam for so many years, so it was weird to be called another character name. It was always weird when I would be doing movies and I would play someone whose name wasnt Pam or Jenna. So, yeah, Rhonda. The show is an hour long did it feel any different? Or not so much since its broken up and you dont have to worry about serving as background? This was far less work than The Office. The nature of how we produced those shows, we were in every scene. We worked about 12-13 hours each day because even if you werent speaking in a scene, you were seen in the background. It was a heavy work week. But with this show, because there are so many people and so many different stories that if you werent shooting your storyline, you had time off. It was very often that I only worked one or two days at a time. And also, I would have weeks off at a time. When they were shooting all the scenes at the Vatican, Im not there. I had something like five weeks off to just be in London and enjoy my family. When I was younger and single and not a mother, I would pick work that was most exciting to me on a creative level. Well, now, for me, the first filter is, is this a healthy, exciting choice for me and my family, and then is it an exciting, creative opportunity. On first meeting, once we realize why shes in prison, Rhonda seems very in keeping with what people identify you with. But I imagine that might change? Yeah, as the series goes on, shes going to do a lot of things that I dont normally get cast to play. Im going to do a lot of illegal and immoral things because its the end of the world and when the world is going to end, reasonable people do unreasonable things when they have a goal. And my goal is very intense: I want to see my son and my husband before we all die. And Im willing to do anything to make that all happen. I get to do stunts and be in shootouts. I take someone hostage at one point. I never get asked to do stuff like that because no one wants to see Pam doing that! So it was fun. And Im traveling with a bad influence, a person who is very wishy washy about law breaking. So shes going to rub off on me a little bit. There are actually going to be times when Megans character is going to be the voice of reason. I want some fan fiction that features Rhonda and the cast of Orange is the New Black. Ive never seen Orange is the New Black, but I read the book. I read the book when I got cast in this show because its such a perfect handbook to explain what prison might be like for a person like Rhonda. Rhonda is trying very hard to follow the advice of that book not aligning with a group thats too extreme. Shes not doing very well, is she? Im trying to figure out who is the Red in this show. I need my Red. I also wonder, if this was in the same universe as The Office, how would the folks at Scranton react? Like, you know Dwight is so ready for the apocalypse. Oh, this is right in Dwights wheelhouse. Im certain he has an underground bunker. But Im also certain that, like, Michael is not wanting us to leave work. Hes somehow wanting us all to be contained so we can all be best friends when the end of the world comes. Would you want to know if the end was imminent? I dont think I could handle it. Its so hard to say. I think yes, I think I would. Because I think I would want to be with the people I love the most at the very end. If there was any circumstance where, for whatever reason, you dont want to grab that cup of coffee or drop your kid off at school, if the world is going to end in two hours. So, yeah, I think I would want to know so we could all be together. Do you find that you think about it more since being on the show like, what you would do? You know what makes me think more about it is my son is really into space and science. We took a tour of the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena and learning a lot more things about the asteroid belt and dwarf planets and various moons and gravity and gravitational pull and like, why doesnt the moon fall on us Oh, see, all that stuff freaks me out when you really stop to think about it. But its so fascinating and you just keep reading and searching all night long. Exactly! I think this idea that a meteor could come to Earth that it is possible, its kind of freaky if you think about it too much. Theres the possibility that this could come for a second season, right? Its not a limited series. Yes, theres definitely the opportunity for a second season there may not be an opportunity for the world to exist in that second season, but theres definitely room for more seasons. And I have to ask, because I saw your appearance on Watch What Happens Live, and I did not understand why your statements about John Krasinski and the Jim-Pam relationship became this huge thing. Were you surprised by how that became such a thing? Oh my gosh. Right? I dont really want to talk about that anymore because I just it was strange. Ive been asked what I thought about the chemistry so many times. People are always very curious about the chemistry between John and I and the love story between Jim and Pam. All I was trying to say is the love that all the viewers felt at home between Jim and Pam, we felt it too. Everyone on set felt it. We knew that we had something special that Jim and Pam were something special. Thats all I was really trying to say. Its so funny because I did an interview with Terry Gross on NPR and I answered the question the same way and I did a talk show when The Office wrapped and I answered the question the same way, so I dont know what happened this time. Its hard to explain how actors can make it look a certain way but then in real life, its not that way. And so I was just trying to say how it was possible. Because you really do put yourself into the role, but its not your real life at the same time. Its a hard question to answer in one sentence because its complicated. But, yeah, the words I chose to explain it were easily misconstrued. Well, when we ask you for a revival of The Office in 10 years, you can put it all back to use because you know well be asking for it. That would be so cute. It might be the Cece and Philip show. You know, when was in London, we didnt have a television. We had Netflix. Remember that Dinner Party episode? Michael has this teeny, tiny television set mounted in his living room. I got to London and in my trailer they had mounted a teeny, tiny television set up on the wall just like in Dinner Party. I took a picture of it and I sent it to the cast of The Office. I was like, Guys, Its Dinner Party in real life! We were all making jokes about the episode in this big group email. So when I went home that night, I was like, I gotta Netflix that. So I watched it, and it was like so weird and powerful to me. As I was watching it, I was thinking, I cant believe thats really me. I cant believe I was there. Its just so funny and it brought back so many memories of us cracking up behind the scenes. So I too, catch old episodes of The Office. And now Im hoping this lightning in a bottle thing can happen again. I mean, Im on a show with Rob Lowe and Megan Mullally. I tweet about TV (and other things) here: @villarrealy The beer fanatics are already congregating in California Wine Country. The first Friday in February traditionally marks the release of Russian River Brewings world famous Pliny the Younger. Its maybe the most storied beer in the world, with a mythology thats almost as grandiose as the proclamations about its character and quality. For the two weeks following Plinys yearly debut, people will line up for hours in front of the Santa Rosa brewpub just to snag a taste, and as the limited supply of kegs are shipped to Russian Rivers preferred accounts, beer lovers across California scramble and squabble for a glass. But what is a Pliny, and is it really worth all of the hype and fervor? Here are a few answers to the most frequently heard inquiries about Pliny the Younger. Advertisement So, its another IPA? Yeah, Pliny the Younger is a creation of Russian River Brewings owner and brewmaster Vinnie Cilurzo. Its widely considered to be the first commercial triple IPA, and its the bigger sibling to the brewerys equally lauded Pliny the Elder double IPA (another style that Cilurzo is credited with inventing when he was brewing at the now shuttered Blind Pig brewpub in Temecula). A double IPA (also known as an imperial IPA) is like a beefed-up IPA: more hops, more malts and more booze. A triple IPA pushes the alcohol content even higher (usually north of 10% alcohol), and typically features an eye-watering punch of American hop flavors (like citrus, pine and tropical fruit). The magic in the best triple IPAs is how they remain quaffable by balancing the intense hop bitterness with an assertive alcohol presence. Where can I get a bottle? Pliny the Younger is a draft-only offering from Russian River, brewed just once a year. Besides the Russian River brewpub (which is crowded on an average day and becomes downright thronged with beer lovers during February), a very limited number of kegs are sent out into the world. Thankfully, Los Angeles has a fair number of bars that typically get a keg of the golden elixir, and many of them hold special events to handle the madness that comes with the beer. Social media is your best ally when looking for a place to score some Pliny. Some of the usual suspects in the L.A. beer industry that receive kegs of the beer include Beachwood BBQ (they hold a charity raffle each year for a pint of the beer), Blue Palms Brewhouse, Mohawk Bend, The Daily Pint, 38 Degrees, Lucky Baldwins and Fathers Office. The kegs sent down to L.A. usually start getting tapped toward the second half of February and into March. Why is it so rare? Why dont they just make more of it? The official line from the brewery is that Pliny the Younger is simply too difficult and too time consuming to brew more than once a year. Its also an extremely expensive beer to make with a tremendous amount of raw materials (malt and hops particularly) going into each batch. Why is Pliny so popular? Is it really worth the hype? Back when Russian River first brewed Pliny the Younger in 2005, it was unique. Nothing else came close in volume of hop character, intensity of flavors or craftsmanship. It was a revelation at a time when American craft brewing was really beginning to push the boundaries of experimentation and innovation, and sampling Pliny the Younger quickly became a rite of passage for beer aficionados. The second question is a bit tougher. The beer enjoys a perfect 100 score on BeerAdvocate and RateBeer, and while it is unimaginably excellent, it isnt as unparalleled in the beer world as it once was, and it certainly wont change your life. What else is comparable to Pliny the Younger? Craft beer fans are even more crazy for hops than they were back in 2005, and many other breweries have started to catch up to Pliny the Youngers flavor profile and sheer hop assault. Locally, El Segundo Brewing Co. makes its own lauded triple IPA called Power Plant, and bottles of that brew will be released at the tasting room and sent to retailers around Los Angeles on Friday. Beachwood Brewing in Long Beach also cooks up its own triple IPA this time of year, and Hops of Fury hits just about every hoppy note you could ask for. The beer is available now, for a limited time. Knee Deep Brewing Co. in Auburn makes, and bottles, three different triple IPAs; keep your eyes open for fresh bottles of Hoparillo, Simtra! and Hop Shortage Triple IPA. Who is this Pliny character anyway, and whats the right way to say the beers name? The Pliny pair were Roman authors and thinkers who lived in the 1st century. The Elder Pliny was an influential naturalist who was killed when Mount Vesuvius erupted in AD 79, and the Younger was his nephew and a renowned man of letters and a Roman senator (he survived the eruption). Typically youll hear the beer pronounced ply-knee, though if you spend any time in line waiting for a pour of the eponymous beer, youll no doubt hear some well-meaning know-it-all tell you that the correct pronunciation is plini rhyming with mini. While technically that pronunciation is correct, the brewers themselves ascribe to the more populist pronunciation. Any way you say Pliny, its bound to get beer fans talking. ALSO: Three great Mexican restaurants in El Sereno 6 satisfying soup recipes for chilly winter nights Survey: 70% of millennials say they would date a mixologist Elected officials are demanding swift action and increased oversight at the Port of Los Angeles following disclosure that a second major shipping company has been allowed to skirt requirements to reduce harmful diesel emissions. Port officials failed to require two large terminal operators, TraPac and China Shipping, to comply with air quality improvement measures the city adopted years ago, including mandates that massive cargo ships shut down their diesel engines and plug into shore-based electricity while at the docks. Instead, a high percentage of those vessels have been allowed to leave their engines on, spewing exhaust over homes, businesses and schools in nearby San Pedro and Wilmington, where residents live within hundreds of feet of the TraPac terminal. Health studies have shown people who live near the port complex have increased asthma rates and the regions highest cancer risk from air pollution. Advertisement TraPacs failure to meet the requirement is a huge breach of faith, said U.S. Rep. Janice Hahn (D-Los Angeles), who as an L.A. City Council member helped negotiate the shore power requirement as a condition for allowing TraPac to expand operations at the city-owned port in 2009. Hahn renewed a call she made two months ago for independent oversight of the port after The Times reported that port officials had secretly given China Shipping permission to ignore the shore power mandate. Its clear the port cannot police itself, Hahn said Wednesday morning. Port Executive Director Gene Seroka, a former shipping executive appointed in 2014, has said construction work at the port and last years labor trouble kept many TraPac ships from using shore power. The work slowdown left ships waiting in the water outside the port for weeks, forcing shipping companies to charter additional vessels to clear inventory piling up on docks in China and elsewhere. Those vessels were not equipped to plug into shore power and had to be allowed to leave their diesel engines running when they arrived at U.S. ports, Seroka said. China Shipping has said many of the vessels using its terminal also were not equipped to use shore power. The failure to tap into electrical power is a lightning rod for criticism because cargo ships enormous diesel engines are a huge and obvious source of pollution you can hear them running, smell the exhaust and see it billowing from the giant smokestacks. Kathleen Woodfield is one of the San Pedro residents who led the years-long fight, including a drawn-out lawsuit and countless administrative meetings, to win environmental concessions from China Shipping and TraPac. Woodfield said port officials had to know for years that the shore power requirements werent being met, and shes shocked by their pervasive flouting of the clean-air measures. I was in those negotiations; they were exhausting, she said. I cant tell you how much it hurts to find out it was just wasted, that a handful of people behind closed doors decided to take our victories away. Statewide, ocean vessels release nearly twice the smog-forming nitrogen oxides as all the automobiles in California, according to state emissions inventories. Each container ship that idles its engines while docked instead of plugging in spews an extra ton of nitrogen oxides, more pollution than 40,000 cars release each day, according to emissions data from state and federal environmental regulators. Between them, TraPac and China Shipping account for about a third of the cargo moving through the Port of Los Angeles, making them valued customers for a port that competes with other seaports, including the adjacent Port of Long Beach. In a written statement on Tuesday, Mayor Eric Garcetti said the port has been meeting or surpassing its overall clean-air goals in recent years. But he added that it is clear we have more work to do at both the TraPac and China Shipping terminals to further improve air quality for our city and in particular the neighborhoods that surround the harbor. Garcetti said he has directed Seroka to work quickly. The mayor did not say what he instructed Seroka to do. On Wednesday afternoon, Seroka issued a statement saying, We agree that regular public reporting of compliance is needed. City Councilman Bob Blumenfield, who chairs the committee that oversees the port, said he is extremely concerned and plans to question port officials at a public hearing this month. In the mid-2000s, as the city moved to expand the terminal used by China Shipping, local residents sued and won a settlement requiring the port to impose strict new environmental measures on the company, including significant increases in the use of shore power. After initial public disclosure of China Shippings failure to comply fully, Seroka announced a review of TraPacs compliance with similar clean-air mandates. Details of that audit, released last week under the California Public Records Act, show that ships plugged into shore power at the TraPac terminal 53% of the time in 2015, far below the requirement of 80%. The port also failed to ensure that all yard equipment at the TraPac terminal ran on the cleanest available diesel engines by 2014, as required in the firms expansion agreement with the city, the audit found. TraPac officials could not be reached for comment. jack.dolan@latimes.com tony.barboza@latimes.com ALSO In the West, skyscrapers are reaching for new heights How a Lincoln High teacher gets all his students to pass the AP Calculus exam As Clinton seeks to break the glass ceiling, many young feminists shrug California, Oregon and the federal government are working on a way around congressional barriers to the removal of hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River. The states, the U.S. Interior Department and the owner of the dams, PacifiCorp, announced Tuesday that they have agreed in principle to pursue removal through the federal dam relicensing process. The move comes after a complex deal to decommission four hydroelectric dams and restore portions of the historic salmon river fell apart when Congress failed to act on a crucial piece of the pact by a Dec. 31 deadline. Advertisement Republican members of Congress and local elected officials have argued against dismantling private utility facilities that are the source of property taxes and provide electricity to rural customers in Northern California and southern Oregon. In the original Klamath deal, struck in 2010, PacifiCorp agreed to the dam removal because it would have cost the company an estimated $400 million to meet state water-quality standards and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commissions relicensing requirements. Under the tentative new agreement, the parties would amend the dam-removal piece of the 2010 pact so it does not have to go before Congress. But they would retain funding and other provisions that cap PacfiCorps costs and call for California to use state bond money to help pay for decommissioning. For the first time, we have all the key parties on dam removal shoulder to shoulder going to FERC to request decommissioning, said Rep. Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael), whose congressional district includes the lower Klamath. I think everybody is motivated to get this done, Huffman said. The administration sees this as an important piece of unfinished business. The oldest of the dams was built nearly a century ago. The structures block historical salmon spawning grounds on the upper Klamath and also create stagnant pools of water that breed toxin-producing algae. The agreement in principle sets a target date of Feb. 29 for the parties to sign an amended dam accord. Some provisions have yet to be worked out, including issues of liability should problems arise during decommissioning. Interested in the stories shaping California? Sign up for the free Essential California newsletter >> Most dam removal projects go through FERC, PacifiCorp spokesman Bob Gravely said. The scale of what were talking about in Klamath is big, Gravely said. Its a lot more complicated than most other dam removal projects. So its by no means a done deal. But were committed to trying to find a way to do it. Farm, tribal and environmental interests have feuded over water for decades on the Klamath, which flows from southern Oregon through Northern California to the Pacific Ocean. Other elements of the original agreements were intended to end many of the fights by spelling out water allocations for irrigators and wildlife refuges and settling water-rights disputes. The new deal does not address those lingering issues. But in a statement, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell called it an important initial step as we work toward a comprehensive set of actions to advance the long-term progress and sustainability for tribes, fisheries and water users across the Klamath Basin. Twitter: @boxall ALSO Several more possible Zika cases in L.A. County Fire at Roosevelt High School in Boyle Heights investigated as arson L.A. leaders want someone overseeing oil operations in the city full time The former chief of police at the Port of Los Angeles pleaded guilty Wednesday to federal charges of tax evasion and providing a false statement to the FBI. Ronald Boyd, who previously oversaw the police agency at one of the nations busiest seaports, also admitted to a misdemeanor count of failure to file a complete income tax return in 2011, according to his attorney, Vicki Podberesky. As part of the plea deal, prosecutors agreed to drop the federal corruption charges that alleged Boyd, 58, hid his business ties to a software developer he was helping to win a contract at the port, according to a spokesman for the U.S. attorneys office in Los Angeles. Advertisement On the day he was scheduled to go to trial, the Torrance resident entered his plea before U.S. District Judge R. Gary Klausner. Boyd, who once worked as the valet to singer Ray Charles, faces up to 11 years in federal prison at a sentencing scheduled for July 25. Interested in the stories shaping California? Sign up for the free Essential California newsletter >> His attorney said that sentencing guidelines call for a lighter prison term of 21 to 27 months. He also owes about $520,000 in restitution for the tax evasion charge, Podberesky said. I think its a fair resolution, Podberesky told The Times. It clearly represents that Chief Boyd did not act with any corrupt intent. Boyd retired from the Port of L.A. on Nov. 29, according to a spokesman for the port. In April, Boyd was indicted and accused of defrauding the city by means of bribery and kickbacks and providing confidential information about the port to a software company that was developing an app called PortWatch. The application was designed to help port workers, city officials and nearby residents share information about possible criminal activity. The indictment alleges that Boyd helped PortWatchs developer tailor its responses to the Port of Los Angeles contract proposals; edited the companys contract with the port so that he, as police chief, would be responsible for overseeing the progress and development of the application; and met with then-Los Angeles City Atty. Carmen Trutanich and then-Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa regarding PortWatch. But the indictment alleged Boyd never informed city and port officials that his firm, BDB Digital Communications, had an agreement with the same company to receive a share of revenue from a similar app that was in development, MetroWatch. An unidentified company executive made it clear to Boyd that the partnership depended on the company being awarded the PortWatch contract by the city, the indictment alleged. Attorney Podberesky insisted that no bribe was offered and that Boyd never accepted one. We strongly feel and know that there was no fraud committed by the chief, Podberesky added. The charge of making false statements stemmed from the police chiefs interview with FBI agents. According to the indictment, Boyd told federal investigators that he had no financial stake in MetroWatch and that the company he helped form to partner with MetroWatchs developer was actually created to sell body armor. See more of our top stories on Facebook >> In his plea agreement, Boyd admitted that he lied to the investigators when he said he had no financial stake in MetroWatch, according to the the U.S. Attorneys office. The tax evasion count stemmed from the failure to disclose his total income on his tax returns from 2007 to 2011, his attorney said. The income that was not disclosed came from the owner of a company that did business with the the Port of L.A., American Guard Services, prosecutors said. The misdemeanor count was related to his failure to file taxes in 2011 for the Torrance-based security company that he had an ownership interest in, At Close Range Inc., Podberesky said. In his plea agreement, Boyd admitted to not filing taxes on the company from 2007 to 2011, prosecutors said. After Boyds plea deal was announced, the assistant director in charge of the FBIs office in L.A., David Bowdich, said in a statement that such actions by public officials erode the publics trust in government. Law enforcement officials at all levels have an obligation to uphold the law and remain loyal to the citizens they swore to serve, Bowdich said. For breaking news in California, follow @MattHjourno. ALSO L.A. County man wants judge to declare him winner of $63-million Lotto jackpot Ex-treasurer for O.C. congressman charged in alleged $300,000 embezzlement scandal After Police Commission rules LAPD shooting violated policy, family urges criminal charges The trial for Enrique Marquez Jr., the man accused of supplying two rifles used to kill 14 people in the San Bernardino terror attack, has been pushed back until this summer. Marquez had been scheduled to go on trial on Feb. 23, but U.S. District Judge Jesus Bernal this week approved the postponement at the request of both prosecutors and defense attorneys, according to court papers. On Dec. 2, Marquez was working when Syed Rizwan Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, stormed into the Inland Regional Center and carried out the deadliest terrorist attack on U.S. soil since Sept. 11, 2011. Advertisement NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >> But prosecutors have alleged that he and Farook plotted in 2011 and 2012 to carry out attacks at Riverside City College and on the 91 Freeway. Marquez is also accused of committing marriage fraud and making false statements in connection with his weapons purchases. Federal prosecutors and Marquezs defense attorneys sought to postpone the trial until July 19, citing work on other cases and the voluminous evidence. The request to postpone the trial, filed Jan. 29, said the case is so unusual and so complex that it is unreasonable to expect adequate preparation for a trial in late February. The case features a large body of evidence, including thousands of pages of investigative reports and more than 500 hours of audio and video recordings, the lawyers wrote in court papers. According to a complaint filed by prosecutors, Marquez bought two rifles for Farook as they prepared to carry out possible attacks in 2011 and 2012. For about $740, Marquez bought a Smith & Wesson rifle, and months later purchased a second rifle for about $760, according to the complaint. Prosecutors allege that when purchasing the guns, Marquez said he was the buyer of the guns and thus concealed the fact that the guns were actually for Farook, according to the complaint. Marquez, who met Farook about a decade ago when they were neighbors in Riverside, also allegedly purchased smokeless powder used in pipe bombs that were left in the conference room where the Dec. 2 attack occurred, according to court papers. The explosives never detonated. FULL COVERAGE: Terror attack in San Bernardino >> In the months leading up to the San Bernardino attack, Marquez had told friends he planned to join the U.S. military. He told investigators that he had abandoned the terror plot with Farook and distanced himself from his former neighbor sometime in 2012. The marriage fraud charge stems from his 2014 nuptials to Mariya Chernykh, a Russian national whose sister is married to Farooks older brother. Marquez said in immigration papers that the two lived together, but records show Chernykh lived in Ontario while he lived in Corona. He also told authorities that he received payment to marry Chernykh. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges filed against him. If convicted of all counts, Marquez faces up to 50 years in prison. For breaking news in California, follow @MattHjourno. ALSO Earthquake: 3.5 quake strikes near Lost Hills, Calif. Parents at L.A. elementary school file petition for charter status 2-year-old reunited with mother after he was found walking alone in South L.A. China has built a two ultra-modern primary school in Tanzania. The said schools were under the Sino-Africa Friendship Primary Schools Project worth 3.23 million U. S. dollars. The schools have been built in Tanzanias University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM) and University of Dodoma (UDOM) campuses. The schools are very convenient for learning since its fully furnished with all modern teaching and learning facilities. Students enrolled in those schools will have a chance of learning Chinese language and culture from Standard One to Standard seven. According to a Chinese Official, Zhang Biao, during the inauguration of the project, the two ultra-modern primary schools project is part of the Chinese efforts to support Tanzanias education sector. "China is aware of Tanzania's endeavor to enhance education and develop its human resources. China will continue to provide support in this important sector, said the Chinese official. He added that the construction of a modern Library and Confucius Institute are about to start with the assistance of Chinese government and more will be followed, such as the construction of Kagera Vocational Training College and the rehabilitation of the National Institute of Transport. Dr. Leonard Akwilapo, Deputy Permanent Secretary with Tanzania's Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Vocational Training (MESTV), thanked and praised China for extending its support to Tanzania's education sector. According to Akwilapo, China remains and will continue to remain as Tanzanias closet and true friend. These have been seen in different arena, like what we see today," he added The project will be a great help in improving education status in the country as the newly built schools have all the essential teaching and learning facilities. "We believe this modern-built classrooms will help the students to get quality of education that can benefit their future and the country at large," Akwilipo said. "These schools came at the time when the University of Dar es Salaam and University of Dodoma have started offering courses in the Chinese language through a new Confucius Institute," the official said, encouraging more Tanzanian students to embrace the Chinese language courses. With these, the influence of China is indeed increasingly becoming big and bold in Tanzanian soil. The natural gas leak in Aliso Canyon continues to reverberate in Sacramento, where air pollution officials are proposing new rules to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from oil and gas facilities. The state Air Resources Board is considering rules establishing new monitoring requirements for natural gas storage sites, quarterly inspections for leaks and needed repairs and a prohibition on venting and flaring. The rules revision has been underway since 2014, though it has received renewed attention after the Southern California Gas Co. well began leaking near Porter Ranch. The well has released 80,000 metric tons of methane since Oct. 23, and the amount continues to grow. Advertisement FULL COVERAGE: Porter Ranch gas leak>> The leak prompted the temporary relocation of thousands of households in Porter Ranch and the surrounding communities. People have complained of headaches, nausea, dizziness and nosebleeds, symptoms that probabbly are caused by the odorants added to the methane. The purpose of the new regulations is being able to detect these emissions in an early phase so we know as soon as possible that theyre happening and if something does happen, there is a responsibility to look at the emission reduction side of it as well, said Elizabeth Scheehle, branch chief of the Oil and Gas and GHG Mitigation Branch. The Air Resources Board could take up the draft proposal as soon as May. The gas leak is also leading a new effort to reform the state Public Utilities Commission. Assemblyman Mike Gatto (D-Los Angeles), chairman of the Utilities and Commerce Committee, said he is proposing a constitutional amendment to reorganize the PUC. The people of California are deeply concerned by the CPUCs failures in recent years, he said in a statement. You have folks in the Bay Area justifiably concerned after a pipeline explosion, Orange County worried about nuclear waste, Sacramento and the Central Valley on edge with oil trains, and of course, Angelenos deeply concerned after a gas leak. An amendment would require approval by two-thirds of the state Assembly and Senate, and the issue would then go to California voters. See the most-read stories this hour >> Twitter: @TheCityMaven MORE ON THE PORTER RANCH GAS LEAK L.A. County files criminal charges over Porter Ranch gas leak No, the gas leak hasnt turned Porter Ranch into a ghost town Feinstein, Boxer to call for federal review of Porter Ranch-area gas leak Just days before the dawn of the Year of the Monkey, David Pham walked out of a Wells Fargo bank in Little Saigon past tubs of purple holiday orchids clutching $500 in crisp bills. He spread them out across his palm, satisfied. When we give lucky money as a gift, it has to be new, Pham said. The newness is part of the beginning of another year. If its old and wrinkled, its not special. Join the conversation on Facebook >> Advertisement Pham, who owns a financial services firm in Westminster, will mark the Lunar New Year Monday by presenting the li xi in traditional red envelopes to youngsters in his inner circle as well as to clients. In the run-up to the celebration the biggest of the year for many in the Vietnamese and Chinese communities here banks stock millions of dollars worth of new bills to fill their customers needs. At the Wells Fargo and a Bank of America branch on Bolsa Avenue in the heart of Orange Countys Little Saigon, immigrants streamed in and out all afternoon, leaving with stacks of $50, $20, $10 and $2 bills (the most popular request). I like to have plenty of $2 bills people like to collect it, said Pham, who planned to mail some money gifts to folks out-of-state to wish them safety and prosperity in the coming months. Paul Lai, a manager at the BofA, said he ordered three shipments of $2 million each in January to make sure there would be enough new bills to meet the demand. By contrast, he said, the bank orders $200,000 to $300,000 in new bills for casual gift-giving at Thanksgiving, and about $500,000 for Christmas. Its a huge challenge for us for when they deliver the bills, he said. It takes three hours for employees to sort and count the packages before putting money away in our vault. In the weeks before Tet, as the Lunar New Year is known in Vietnamese, Lai works six days a week, supervising a staff of 17. No one is allowed to schedule a vacation before mid-February. David Pham holds up part of the $500 in crisp new bills, many of them in two- and five-dollar denominations, that he got from a Wells Fargo branch in Westminster. Gift bills need to be crisp, to represent newness, for Lunar New Year. (Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times) Little Saigon is a magnet for Vietnamese around the world who return to be with family during the holiday, Lai said. They get off the plane or even Xe Do Hoang a regional bus service and the first thing people do is head to the bank, he said. Then there are those with plans to go to Vietnam, some of whom want to take up to $10,000 to help finance extended families. I always change money weeks ahead, said Son Ly, who had lost his job as a restaurant cook and was selling Tet decorations. He stood outside the Thai Son grocery on Bolsa Avenue, surrounded by sticky rice cakes, red and gold lanterns and pots of mums and gladioluses. He also was hawking the red money envelopes, $1 for a packet of 6. All the traditions of the homeland, I will keep, he said, noting that he had more than 20 children to give money to plus a few elders. The newness makes a difference, said Linh Pham, a teacher at Coastline Beauty College in Westminster. She had just been shopping at Trai Cay Ngon, a local fruit seller, where she bought cherimoyas to place on an ancestral altar. You should see their faces when they open the envelope and see old money, Pham said. They frown and theyre asking why you didnt take the time to prepare. Thats so true, said her friend Ricky Tran, an engineer from Seattle who had just moved to Southern California. These are like blessings. Theyre part of what you share from your good intentions to someone who you want to make happy and do well. With Tran was family friend Maria Huynh, who at 90 rules as matriarch over nine children and their assorted children and grandchildren. Asked about Lunar New Year spending, she chortled: Theyre the ones who have to be gifting me Im old, I dont have money left. anh.do@latimes.com Twitter: @newsterrier ALSO Chinese New Year meals in L.A. arent strictly traditional Ring in the lunar new year with a barrel of monkey merchandise Chinese New Year: Las Vegas dazzling displays for Year of the Monkey The nations growing Latino electorate long has been described as a sleeping giant, with lots of potential to impact elections, but a bad track record of turning out to vote. In Iowa this week, it appears the giant woke up. As part of a record turnout of voters in Iowas presidential caucuses Monday, more Latinos voted than ever before. Thats according to an analysis of exit polls by the League of United Latin American Citizens, a Latino organization that launched a voter registration drive in Iowa last summer in response to Donald Trumps disparaging remarks about immigrants and Mexicans. Advertisement The group estimates that 10,500 to 13,000 Latinos attended the caucuses, based on exit poll data indicating Latinos made up about 4% of Democratic caucusgoers and 2% of Republicans. By comparison, only around 1,000 Latinos voted in the 2012 caucuses, and 2,500 in 2008. The analysis should be taken with a grain of salt. Exit polls have a margin of error, and the potential margin grows substantially when analyzing a subset of the data, such as the Latino vote. Moreover, the turnout is still tiny. Iowa has an estimated 169,000 Latinos, less than 6% of the state population. Official turnout data from the caucuses wont be available until Iowas Democratic and Republican parties release lists of those who voted. Latino advocacy groups had predicted a record turnout in response to successful voter registration and caucus education drives, and widespread concern about some of the Republican presidential candidates comments. LULAC, a nonpartisan Latino advocacy group, launched its voter registration drive in July after Trump vowed to build a wall on the southwest border and referred to Mexicans as rapists and drug dealers. The organization convinced 10,000 people to sign pledge cards saying they would vote, said Joe Enriquez Henry, who led the registration campaign. Several Democratic and Republican campaigns also did registration drives targeting Latinos. Henry says he believes Trumps comments helped push Latinos to attend the caucuses, and played a role in Trump losing on Monday despite leading in earlier polls. Henry said some voters who identify as Democrats decided to attend Republican caucuses so they could vote against the businessman and reality television star. We had a lot of people saying that they were going to caucus with the Republicans, Henry said. There was a lot of crossover. Henry says his organization is looking to replicate its voter registration campaign in other states ahead of the November election. This mobilization needs to continue, he said. Follow me on Twitter: @katelinthicum MORE ON CAMPAIGN 2016 As Clinton seeks to break the glass ceiling, many young feminists shrug Far from the Mexican border, candidates keep immigration at forefront Skelton: Californias primary might matter, but the odds are against it A federal grand jury indictment unsealed Thursday charges Ammon Bundy and 15 other people involved in the standoff at an Oregon wildlife refuge with a single count of conspiracy to impede officers of the United States even as four of those charged remain at the refuge, refusing to surrender to FBI agents who surround them. The indictment, by a grand jury convened in United States District Court in Portland, Ore., comes more than a week after Bundy and others were arrested during a traffic stop three weeks into their armed occupation of the nearly 200,000-acre Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in the high desert of eastern Oregon. Join the conversation on Facebook >> Advertisement On Jan. 2, Bundy led a protest in Burns, Ore., over the prison sentences handed to two ranchers who had set fires that spread to federal land. Later the same day, he and a small armed group took over the remote refuge, which is about 30 miles southeast of town. Bundy and others said they would not leave until the federal government transferred the refuge to local control an idea local leaders opposed and legal experts said was implausible. According to the indictment, the defendants occupied the refuge by force while using and carrying firearms. They brandished and carried firearms on the premises of the refuge and prevented federal officials from performing their official duties by force, threats and intimidation. It also notes that the occupiers refused to leave and threatened violence against anybody who attempted to remove them. But the three-page indictment also recounts events beginning months earlier. On Oct. 5, it says, two of those charged traveled to Harney County, where the refuge is located, to warn the Harney County sheriff of extreme civil unrest if certain demands were not met. By November, defendants and conspirators recruited and encouraged other individuals, known and unknown to the grand jury, in person and through social media and other means of communication, to participate and assist in the above described conspiracy. From November until the end of January, the indictment says, defendants went to Harney County to intimidate and coerce residents in order to effectuate the goals of the conspiracy. The charge, a felony, carries a maximum six-year prison sentence as well as potential fines. Rural Harney County and Burns, its largest city, have been on edge. For weeks after the occupation began, law enforcement kept its distance, allowing occupiers to come and go from the refuge and visit places in town. Then, on Jan. 26, Bundy and others were arrested during a traffic stop north of Burns. One occupier, Robert LaVoy Finicum, 55, was shot and killed by state police during the incident. Members of the Idaho Three Percenters patriot group gather Jan. 31 at the site where Robert LaVoy Finicum was shot and killed by federal agents. (Matt Mills McKnight / Getty Images) In court appearances after the arrests, lawyers for some of the protesters have argued that they were conducting traditional acts of civil disobedience a notion that federal judges involved the case have rejected. While the number of people occupying the refuge rose to several dozen in the initial weeks, many people fled or were allowed to leave by authorities in the hours and days after the Jan. 26 arrests. Just four have remained since late last week David Fry of Ohio, Jeff Banta of Nevada and Sandy and Sean Anderson, a married couple from Idaho. All were charged in the indictment unsealed Thursday. Since Bundys arrest, he has called on the four holdouts to stand down and leave the refuge peacefully. Before Thursday, the four had said in a series of interviews and video broadcasts online that they would not leave unless they were assured that they would not be charged. Oregon Public Broadcasting reported Wednesday that the four now have access to just a single working phone, which was provided to them by the FBI for negotiation purposes. See the most-read stories this hour >> The refuge has been closed since late December, after federal workers began reporting threats and suspicious activity. In Burns, several hundred people gathered on Monday both in support and in opposition to the occupation. Other wildlife refuges nationwide have been placed on alert, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service said Thursday. Were not able to provide any specifics at this time, but can confirm that due to the evolving situation in eastern Oregon, all Service stations are on alert and being advised to take appropriate caution, Gavin Shire, a spokesman for the agency, said in an email response. The Associated Press reported that additional officers have been sent to the Klamath Basin National Wildlife Refuge Complex on the Oregon-California border, Ash Meadows National Wildlife Refuge in Nevada and Modoc National Wildlife Refuge in Northern California. In addition to Bundy and the four holdouts at the refuge, those indicted include Bundys brother Ryan Bundy, Jon Ritzheimer, Joseph OShaughnessy, Ryan Payne, Brian Cavalier, Shawna Cox, Peter Santilli, Jason Patrick, Duane Lee Ehmer, Dylan Anderson and Kenneth Medenbach. A spokeswoman for the U.S. attorneys office in Portland said Cox and OShaughnessy had been released from custody while all others remain in custody. Another defendant, Peter Santilli, who ran a livestream broadcast from within the refuge, has a hearing scheduled late Thursday at which he is expected to seek release. Folllow @yardleyLAT on Twitter. ALSO Two charged with murder in the Montecito Heights killings of two teens Prosecutor details how Virgina Tech students allegedly plotted stabbing of 13-year-old girl Michigan officials were warned of link between Flints water and Legionnaires disease, emails show Coming of age in the Jim Crow South, Rosanell Eaton was one of the first African Americans to register to vote in her rural corner of North Carolina. After riding for two hours to the county courthouse on a mule-drawn wagon, the granddaughter of a slave was forced to take a literacy testreciting the preamble of the U.S. Constitutionbefore she could vote. Seventy years later, the 94-year-old is at the center of a new struggle as the lead plaintiff in a federal lawsuit to overturn North Carolinas voter identification law, which requires most voters to show an approved form of photo ID at the polls. Advertisement SIGN UP for the free Essential Politics newsletter >> While supporters of the new law, which came into effect January, say it provides a bulwark against potential election fraud and is a minor administrative hassle that applies equally to all, critics contend that it disproportionately burdens African American and Latino voters, and that Republican legislators intentionally drafted it to obstruct minority voting. The six-day trial wrapped up Monday, but U.S. District Judge Thomas Schroeder, an appointee of President George W. Bush, is not expected to hand down a verdict before voters go to the polls for the states March 15 presidential primary. The outcome is likely to affect upcoming elections in North Carolina, a Republican-dominated state where electoral results have been narrowly contested in recent years. It also offers a national test case for how federal courts will define voter rights protections after the 2013 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Shelby County vs. Holder, that struck down a key part of the 1965 Voting Rights Act. More than 30 states have passed laws requiring voters to show some form of identification at the polls. In North Carolina, Republican legislators adopted one of the strictest laws in the nation just a month after the Shelby decision. The law not only mandates a government-issued photo ID, but shortened the time allowed for early voting, ended preregistration for 16- and 17-year-olds, and eliminated same-day registration. However, just before the law was due to be challenged in federal court in 2015, legislators abruptly loosened the voter ID requirement, allowing residents without government-issued photo ID to cast a provisional ballot if they filled out a form claiming a reasonable impediment, such as lack of proper documents, transportation problems, family obligations, work schedules, illness or disability. The question is whether the new law, as modified, imposes a significant burden on minority voters. Attorneys representing the state NAACP argue that the reasonable impediment form is vague and that election officials have failed to educate the public on the amended photo ID requirement or offer clear guidelines and training to precinct officials and poll workers. With only six weeks before the primary, many details remain unclear. For example, should voters check a box indicating they cannot provide photo ID because of transportation problems if they have access to a car once a week? What about if they live near public transportation? Or have a relative who has a car? Such uncertainty, amid an official process that threatens criminal prosecution for making false statements, is intimidating, critics argue. Having to sign the reasonable impediment form produces real fear, attorney Penda Hair told Judge Schroeder. Its not just imaginary. And overcoming that fear is a burden. Eaton, who has voted in every election since the 1940s and helped to register more than 4,000 people to cast their own ballots, said the struggle to obtain ID is a hurdle that might prevent some from exercising their right to vote. Its going to be difficult, they may get discouraged, and they dont have the money to pay people to wait all day, she testified in a videotaped deposition. Its just a lot of headache in it. Throughout, critics of the new law have questioned why stringent photo identification requirements are needed at all: Voter fraud is exceedingly rare. North Carolina officials made just two referrals of cases of voter impersonation fraud out of 35 million votes cast in primary and general federal elections between 2000 and 2014, according to Lorraine Minnite, an associate professor of public policy at Rutgers University who testified as an expert witness in the trial. Their claims of fraud were fraudulent in and of themselves, the Rev. William J. Barber II, president of the North Carolina NAACP, said of the states case in a conference call Tuesday. Its a very smooth way of trying to continue to hold on to the solid South through election and voter suppression and trickery. Those challenging the law contend that the lingering effects of centuries of racism in North Carolina, with African Americans and Latinos experiencing higher rates of poverty and lower rates of education and health, mean that each stage of the photo ID process imposes greater hardship on minority voters. Not only are they less likely to possess an official photo ID, but it is harder for them to obtain one. In order to fulfill the photo ID requirement, Eaton said she had to drive more than 200 miles and make more than 10 trips to correct her identification because the name on her drivers license, Rosanell Eaton, is not an exact match of the name on her voter registration card, Rosanell Johnson Eaton, a combination of her maiden and married names. Attorneys for the state, however, argued that the state does not, in fact, require Eaton to correct the name on her identification. According to instructions posted recently on the website of the state Board of Elections, the name appearing on the photo ID must be the same or substantially equivalent to the name on the voters registration record. Acceptable differences include omission of one or more parts of the name, ordering of names and use of a former name, including maiden names. Thomas A. Farr, a private attorney representing the state, argued in court that attorneys for the plaintiffs had engaged in sheer speculation without demonstrating that the new law would have a disproportionate impact on turnout results based upon race. Where is the evidence of any voter whos been intimidated from voting for any reason thats been put on during the course of this case? he asked the judge. As more states tighten voting laws, legal experts say that both sides often face challenges in coming up with adequate evidence. On the state side, the reason that they cant come up with evidence of voter fraud is thats not the real motivation for these laws, said Richard Hasen, a professor of law and political science at UC Irvine, who specializes in election law. In general, Hasen said, the real motivation is to make it harder for those likely to vote Democrat to vote. The reason plaintiffs have trouble is because there do not appear to be a huge number of people who lack ID, cant get the ID and actually want to vote. Jarvie is a special correspondent. ALSO Democrats set for first one-on-one debate Latinos attended Iowas caucuses in record numbers, group says Far from the Mexican border, 2016 GOP presidential candidates keep immigration at forefront Pharmaceutical chief Martin Shkreli refused to testify Thursday in an appearance before U.S. lawmakers over severe price hikes for a drug sold by a company that he acquired, yet even without answering questions managed to leave them infuriated. Shkreli appeared to smirk throughout his hourlong appearance, and moments after it ended, insulting tweets began to appear under his official Twitter account calling the lawmakers imbeciles. Shkreli, widely scorned for hiking the price of a long-established and potentially lifesaving drug by more than 5,000%, exercised his 5th Amendment right against self-incrimination when he went before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. Advertisement See more of our top stories on Facebook >> Four times the brash entrepreneur and former hedge fund manager who has been unapologetic about the price hikes, intoned before the committee, On the advice of counsel I invoke my 5th Amendment privilege against self-incrimination and respectfully decline to answer your question. Lawmakers erupted in anger. Rep. Elijah Cummings of Maryland, the top Democrat on the committee, told the 32-year-old Shkreli to wipe the smirk off his face. I call this money blood money ... coming out of the pockets of hardworking Americans, he said, as Shkreli sat through the lecture. I know you are smiling, but I am very serious, sir, Cummings said. I truly believe you can become a force of tremendous good. All I ask is that you reflect on it. No, I dont ask, I beg that you reflect on it. Shkreli was dismissed less than an hour into the hearing, but not before Chairman Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-Utah) shouted down a request by Shkrelis attorney to speak. Lawmakers, instead, took turns denouncing his conduct and attitude. Minutes after Shkreli walked out of the room, on his official Twitter account appeared the message, Hard to accept that these imbeciles represent the people in our government. It could not immediately be confirmed if those tweets were written by Shkreli. Cummings, attributing them to Shkreli, boiled over. There are very real issues for people with compromised immune systems, he thundered as he asked Turing executive Nancy Retzlaff to interpret the messages on Shkrelis Twitter account. Shkreli faces separate criminal charges of securities fraud in connection with another drug company he owned. The lawmakers had summoned him to answer for the decision that made him infamous: raising the price for Daraprim, the only approved drug for a rare and sometimes deadly parasitic infection. Shkreli, who pleaded not guilty after his arrest in December in New York, has been free on $5 million bail. He walked into the packed hearing room well before the session began and met the crush of cameras. Even a few members of the House panel were swept up in the curiosity and snapped Shkrelis photo on their cellphones. Also appearing before the lawmakers was Turings chief commercial officer and the interim chief executive of Canadas largest drugmaker, Valeant Pharmaceuticals. Documents from Valeant and Turing show they have made a practice of buying and then dramatically raising prices of low-cost drugs given to patients with life-threatening conditions, including heart disease, AIDS and cancer, according to excerpts released this week by the House panel. The two companies executives insisted they were committed to ensuring that cost isnt a deterrent for patients who need the drugs. With Shkreli mum, it was up to Retzlaff to defend the Daraprim price increase. She said about 3,000 people are treated by Daraprim, and only 25% are covered by commercial insurance. She added that the overall impact of the drug on the budgets of commercial health plans is very, very small. Documents show how executives at both companies planned to maximize profits while fending off negative publicity over the price hikes. Presentations by Turing executives, part of the trove of documents obtained by the panel, show that as early as last May, the company planned to turn Daraprim into a $200-million-a-year drug by dramatically increasing its price. Turing bought the 60-year-old drug from Impax Laboratories in August for $55 million and swiftly raised its price. Shkreli said in an email to one contact: We raised the price from $1,700 per bottle to $75,000. Should be a very handsome investment for all of us. But anticipating a possible backlash, the company warned in an internal memo that advocates for HIV patients might react to the price hike. Valeant likewise identified revenue goals first and then used drug prices to reach them, committee staff said in a memo. It said Valeant believed it could repeatedly raise the prices of Nitropress and Isuprel without repercussions because theyre administered by hospitals, which are less price-sensitive than consumers. Valeant used patient assistance programs to distract attention and justify its price hikes, according to the memo. ALSO Virginia Tech murder suspects left few clues to possible motives Judge rules Bill Cosby sexual assault case in Pennsylvania can proceed Antiabortion activist charged in Planned Parenthood video case turns herself in Eager to regain lost ground with voters here, Hillary Clinton pivoted off stepped-up attacks on her record by rival Bernie Sanders into a forceful defense of her progressive credentials. Clintons push to define her record on her own terms, and to persuade voters she has done substantially more than Sanders to advance the legacy of progressives, dominated a nationally broadcast town hall here Wednesday and set the tone at campaign events leading up to it. While still considered the front-runner nationally, the former secretary of State is trailing by double digits here in several recent polls in part a reflection of what Clinton called New Hampshires neighborly spirit toward Sanders, a senator from Vermont. Advertisement I was somewhat amused today Sen. Sanders set himself up to be the gatekeeper on who is a progressive, Clinton said at the town hall during which she and Sanders fielded questions separately. By his definition, Clinton said, some of the nations politicians most admired by liberals would also not qualify, including President Obama and the late Sen. Paul Wellstone of Minnesota, who was a revered progressive voice in the Democratic Party. I dont think its appropriate that if Planned Parenthood endorses me, or the Human Rights Campaign endorses me, they are thrown out of the progressive wing and put into the establishment, Clinton said. The town hall, broadcast by CNN, was a warm-up of sorts before the two candidates clash head-to-head at a last-minute debate scheduled in New Hampshire for Thursday night. As Clintons campaign works to set expectations low in New Hampshire, cautioning a loss there would hardly be catastrophic, it is also furiously trying to lay the groundwork for a comeback in a state that is prone to big swings in voter opinion right up until voting day. About 100 campaign workers from Clintons headquarters in Brooklyn, N.Y., have been dispatched to New Hampshire to help. Clinton found herself in a position largely unfamiliar to her this campaign: playing catch-up, with the narrative of the final week before New Hampshires Feb. 9 primary being driven by Sanders, who has lately been unrelenting in raising doubts about her record on liberal causes. Sanders bluntly told town hall moderator Anderson Cooper that there were major issues on which Clinton is not progressive. I do not know any progressive who has a super PAC and takes $15 million from Wall Street, he said. Thats just not progressive. He then listed times when Clinton had to decide on key issues and she was not on the side of liberals, including her support for the war in Iraq and her initial reluctance to criticize an international trade deal reviled by organized labor. The key foreign policy vote of modern American history was the war in Iraq, Sanders said. The progressive community was pretty united in saying, Dont listen to Bush; dont go to war. But as Sanders accused Clinton of forsaking progressive values at times, he found himself asked by a septuagenarian woman in the audience to explain how his unyielding ideology was going to play in Washington, where nothing gets done without compromise. Sanders talked about his success in working with Republicans on legislation, but also suggested his agenda might require taking control of Congress away from Republicans, a heady goal. Another voter in the audience reflected the anxiety of some Sanders supporters when he expressed skepticism that the senator was better equipped to defeat the Republican nominee in a general election. Sanders delivered an energetic rebuttal, pointing to the large numbers of new voters he is drawing to the polls, and noting Democrats win elections when turnout is high. The town hall also touched on an issue Sanders rarely talks about on the campaign trail: his faith. Sanders is Jewish, but has said he has little involvement with organized religion. Asked by Cooper whether faith plays a major role in his life, Sanders said it did. I would not be here tonight running for president, he said, if I did not have very strong religious and spiritual feelings. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, accompanied by former President Bill Clinton and their daughter Chelsea Clinton, arrives onstage at her caucus night rally at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. (Andrew Harnik / Associated Press) In describing his faith, Sanders steered clear of traditional theological issues and focused, instead, on social justice. My spirituality is that we are all in this together. When children are hungry, when veterans sleep out in the street, it affects me, he said. The 74-year-old senator was also asked whether his age would make it unlikely he has the endurance to serve more than one term. Thank God Im in good health, Sanders said. If I am fortunate enough to win the general election and we do well, yes, I would like to run for reelection. If elected, Sanders would be the oldest person to win the presidency in U.S. history. Clinton, for her part, has been in this position in New Hampshire before. She came into the state behind in the polls in 2008 after losing to then-Sen. Barack Obama in Iowa. She proved resilient then, ultimately winning the state. The town hall reflected the doubts of Democratic and independent voters she still has to overcome. Voters questions to her were more pointed than those Sanders faced, including whether she would rule out future military interventions abroad she would not and how she could withstand the attacks to come from Republicans. Clinton struggled to explain the six-figure speaking fees she commanded from universities and corporate giants after leaving the State Department. Well, thats what they offered, she said of $675,000 she received from Goldman Sachs. When pressed, she said other former secretaries of State had received similar compensation, and insisted it didnt influence her views on Wall Street reform. Like Sanders, Clinton also addressed how she would deal with Congress. She said she had learned to take criticism from Republicans seriously but not personally, and would continue to work to maintain voters trust. I know that I have to really demonstrate as clearly as I can who I am, what I stand for, what Ive always done, she said. Ive always been guided by the same values, Ive always listened to people, and Ive always worked as hard as I could to produce results for people. Twitter: @evanhalper @mikememoli Trump hammers hard on illegal immigration at New Hampshire town hall Donald Trumps pledge to run a more understated campaign for president came to an abrupt end Thursday in a gusher of heated rhetoric on illegal immigration at a town hall in New Hampshire. The Republican billionaire from New York raised his voice and salted his remarks with profanity as he responded to questions in the packed 19th century town hall of this quaint New England community. A woman from Southern California was booed after telling Trump that immigrants in the country illegally do work that no one else wants to do, and for a lot less. Who told you to be here, Bernie? Trump asked amid a wave of jeers, referring to Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont. This is a Bernie plant. Another woman yelled that immigrants were the backbone of the country. Are illegal immigrants the backbone of our country? I dont think so, darling, Trump responded. People that came to this country legally, and they worked their ass off, and they made the country great -- thats the backbone, Trump said to a burst of cheers. After losing the Iowa caucuses on Monday, Trump told NBC he would be more understated and statesman-like. But he did not shy from vulgarity at the Exeter town hall. Trump told the crowd that thousands of veterans die while waiting for medical care, saying no politicians going to solve it. I was going to say theyre full of ..., but I wont say that, Trump said to laughter. No its true. ... I wont say it, but they are. But I wont say that, because its too controversial, let me tell you, and of course its not politically correct. When I talk about anchor babies, right? he continued. Thats where somebody comes over, walks across a line, has a baby, now we take care of the baby for the next 85 years, OK? ... You try having an anchor baby in Canada. He lowered his voice, adding, Well, theres one anchor baby in Canada. The crowd groaned and laughed at his mocking of rival Ted Cruz, the Texas senator whose Canadian birth to an American mother, according to Trump, might disqualify him from the presidency. Try having an anchor baby in Mexico, Trump said. You know what theyll do to you? Theyll laugh at you. We are the stupidly run country. We have leaders that are incompetent, and were going to end it. With the New Hampshire primary just five days away, Trump largely avoided talking about his rivals. But he castigated Jeb Bush, who he said supported Common Core educational standards and spent too much on his campaign. He also lamented sanctuary city protections for immigrants in the country illegally when Bush was governor of Florida. For decades, city officials in Los Angeles have taken a hands-off approach to oil and gas drilling, allowing companies to operate and even expand near homes and schools with little scrutiny. Now faced with increasing pressure from community and environmental groups, elected officials are beginning to step up their oversight of roughly 1,000 active wells within the city limits. They have a lot more to do. This week City Council President Herb Wesson called for immediately hiring a full-time expert to oversee drilling operations and coordinate agencies responsible for regulating exploration and extraction. Mayor Eric Garcetti told the Times his office is already interviewing candidates for the job. The city had a petroleum administrator in the 1960s, 70s and 80s whod been responsible for addressing issues related to oil extraction. But the position has gone unfilled in recent decades, leaving no coordination in City Hall on oil and gas issues, no tracking of past oil drilling permits and no follow-up on conditions imposed on oil operations to protect their neighbors. Yet, community groups say, the city continued to rubber stamp plans to drill new wells and expand operations with no environmental review and inadequate safeguards for the neighborhood, particularly in low-income and minority communities in South L.A. and Wilmington. Last year, Youth for Environmental Justice, the Center for Biological Diversity and South Central Youth Leadership Coalition sued the city for violating the California Environmental Quality Act.. They also allege officials let oil companies in predominantly black and Latino communities operate with dirtier, noisier equipment and fewer protections than the city required for operations in predominantly white communities in West L.A. Advertisement Even city staff in a 2014 Planning Department report acknowledged there was significant room for improvement in the way L.A. regulates oil and gas activity. The department urged the City Council to hire a technical expert to advise city officials on better ways to permit and regulate oil operations to protect communities. Yet community groups are still waiting for the city to act. Wessons proposal to hire a new oil administrator is a good first step, but its only a first step. The massive gas leak in Porter Ranch has forced city leaders to confront the tremendous risks of having oil and gas operations in urban areas. But there are many neighborhoods in L.A. that have been suffering because of the citys hands-off approach. That cannot continue. The city has a responsibility to its residents to properly evaluate and regulate oil and gas wells. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook A single block from the famous Venice boardwalk and near Golds Gym, theres a newly vacant 3.5-acre lot. For decades, it was a bus yard. It would be a good spot for a lavish beach pad or fancy condo development. Maybe the head of Google Venice, catty-corner across Main Street, would snap up a unit within Wi-Fi range of work. But if Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Bonin has his way, Metro will forgo the chance to sell this real estate gold mine to the highest bidder. Instead, it will build affordable housing. Of course it will take years before the first tenants move in, what with the inevitable NIMBY outcry and the often-abused environmental review process. The California Coastal Commission will have its say too, even on an asphalt lot where buses once parked. Advertisement Citywide, its no secret that the rent is too damn high. Its been rising faster than inflation for years, vacancy rates are low and, on average, Angelenos spend almost half their income on housing. In this fantastically expensive city, Venice is among the priciest neighborhoods. On Abbot Kinney Boulevard, once Americas coolest street, gentrification has reached the point where luxury clothing boutiques are being priced out by still more exclusive boutiques. Little wonder that Bonin is eager to put a dent in the problem. But his plan, though better than nothing, is wildly inefficient. Theres an opportunity cost associated with building affordable housing where millionaires want to live. Factoring in the value of land so close to the boardwalk, these will be fantastically expensive apartments to create. Why not sell to a developer and use the money to build many more units a half-mile inland? The Argonaut, a Venice Beach newspaper, put the larger philosophical question to L.A. County Supervisor Sheila Kuehl. Is it better to spread affordable housing construction throughout the region, reporter Joe Piasecki asked, or to focus on neighborhoods where land is cheaper? I suspect this project ... will ultimately house more savvy young renters with rich parents than working class families. Thats who most wants to live in todays bourgeois Venice. She sided with the former on the grounds that its better to have mixed-income areas than isolated enclaves of rich and poor. Otherwise whole swaths of the city are totally out of reach, she told Piasecki, and theyre usually the most desirable swaths beach access, green space, all the kinds of things that make life better. To a point I agree. A busboy at the restaurant Gjusta shouldnt have to commute from Inglewood. But is he really better-served living on the block where he works, rather than a 15- or 20-minute bike ride away, given that the bahn mi at his place of employment runs $16, the last cheap Mexican joint just got priced out of the neighborhood, and even taco trucks are getting steep? Putting rent aside, the cost of living in Venice is sky high. Thats why I suspect this project, if it comes to fruition, will ultimately house more savvy young renters with rich parents than working-class families. Thats who most wants to live in todays bourgeois Venice. One small affordable-housing development cannot alter the neighborhoods trajectory, but that doesnt mean ever more rapid gentrification is inevitable. If eight-story apartment buildings were allowed on Venice Boulevard west of the 405; if they rose up on Venices stretch of Lincoln Boulevard too, displacing the auto repair shops and carwashes; if homeowners could legally rent their alley garages to lower-income tenants; and if developers werent forced to set aside so much land for parking, rents would come down. And enough non-rich people would live here to sustain a diversity of businesses to serve them. But the Venice residents who fight over what gets built in the area dont want that future. Insofar as theyre able, they want to preserve a low-rise community of beach bungalows; and adjacent neighborhoods want to preserve their charm too. Who can blame them? Its lovely here. Lets just be straightforward about the trade-off. Tiny, symbolic projects are not going to make the Westside of Los Angeles cheaper. Only significant changes to its aesthetic, its density and its transit will do that. Preservation or affordability: pick one. Conor Friedersdorf is a contributing writer to Opinion, a staff writer at the Atlantic and founding editor of the Best of Journalism, a newsletter that curates exceptional nonfiction. Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook It was the fourth time in two days last week that a young black person was killed by other blacks in South Los Angeles. It didnt make much of a news splash. Like the 16-year-old girl and 20-year-old man at 81st and Avalon, like the 17-year-old boy at 83rd and Main Street, Gerrik Thomas shooting death, on Jan. 25, was to everyone other than his family, friends and the LAPD, just another L.A. killing. Thomas, 21, had gone to the market to buy a soda. As he walked back to his great-grandmothers blue-and-white house eight doors down from the corner of West 54th Street and 9th Avenue, he was hassled maybe asked, threateningly, Where you from? by two males about his age driving by. He didnt answer; he called his mom. Moments later, according to police, at the corner, in front of the M & J 100% Hand Car Wash, the car stopped. The two guys got out. One grabbed Thomas, and the other shot him in the head. Thomas was pronounced dead at California Hospital. Why isnt [Gerrik Thomas] excessive and unnecessary death a story? Why are the community, the hashtag leaders, the media and the politicians mostly silent? Advertisement There will be no protest marches organized in Thomas memory. No downtown streets will be blocked; the entrances to the Harbor Freeway will remain open. No angry citizens will demand the arrest, trial and conviction of those responsible for his killing. I get the outrage when a cop kills an unarmed civilian, I get the fury when a video shows what looks like an unnecessary, excessive police shooting. But what I dont get is why Gerrik Thomas death barely signifies. Why isnt his excessive and unnecessary killing a story? Why are the community, the hashtag leaders, the media and the politicians mostly silent? Join the conversation about this story on our Facebook page >> Is it that Thomas death is acceptable? Does it just come with the territory in South Los Angeles? Ive been writing about gang killings in Los Angeles for well over 25 years, and I know these deaths are not acceptable to the families on Grape Street, on Success Avenue, on Brynhurst Avenue. Their pain is as deep as it gets. I know the answer is no to the question Reggie Sims, gang interventionist at Jordan Downs, asked about the lack of uproar over the killing of his son several years ago: Just because he was shot by another black kid, that makes it OK? Ive heard that question from at least 100 different relatives of the slain. By way of an uproar, Ill tell you a bit about Gerrik Thomas. If you ask 20 of his friends and family about him, every one will say something about his smile. Some might describe the tattoo on his right forearm Demicha his mothers name. Others will talk about how he took the bus to work as a security guard near the airport or at Los Angeles County Museum of Art. About how respectful he was. That he went to Daniel Webster Middle School and Crenshaw High. That he dreamed of being a doctor and was enrolled at Los Angeles Trade Tech to learn nursing. But all of them will bring up his smile. Who would do this to him? asked his friend Shonda Smith, staring at dozens of murder candles set on the sidewalk where he was shot. He wasnt the type of kid to even have the slightest confrontation with anyone. He was a good kid. A nice lovable young man. And that smile of his. His smile would brighten a whole, gloomy day. I cant believe it that hes gone. Even when Gerrik had a rough day, when I could tell something was bothering him, he still had that beautiful smile of his, said his great-aunt Karon Stinson. She was on the porch of his great-grandmothers house two days after his death. Granny, in a wheelchair, agreed about the smile, in her whisper of a voice. LAPD homicide Det. Christopher Barling, head of the 77th Division squad, said Thomas was not a gang member; he had no record. It is unfortunate that when a killing happens south of the 10 Freeway, it is often assumed the victim was a gang member. On Thursday, Demicha Lofton-Thomas, Gerriks mother, posted a statement on Facebook. This is some of it: On Monday, January 25, 2016, at 6:30, my biggest fear came to reality. My son Gerrik Thomas was the victim of a violent crime. [He] had just called my phone at 6:24 and said that a dude banged on him. I talked to him for a couple minutes not knowing it would be the last time Ill ever hear [his] voice. At 6:33 I received a call ... I heard all the crying in the background.... I felt it in my heart. My stomach started to hurt. My legs were getting weak like they were going to collapse. Anyone with information about Thomas killing can call the Criminal Gang Homicide Division anonymously: (323) 786-5100. Thomas family has set up a Go Fund Me account to help with his funeral expenses: www.gofundme.com/long-live-gerrik. If you havent figured it out for yourself, Gerrik Thomas life mattered. Michael Krikorian is the author of the novel Southside. www.krikorianwrites.com. Twitter: @makmak47 Hoy: Lea esta historia en espanol Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook To the editor: On the same day the Los Angeles Times ran its front-page article U.S. to urge partners to do more to fight Islamic State amid complaints from Pentagon, the New York Times also ran a front-page piece, Terror Threats Thaw Budgets Across Europe. The reports show together that although the U.S. may think it has taken an international lead in fighting Islamic State, Europe is actively fighting the group on its own home ground. The elephant in the room is the U.S. culpability in unwittingly creating the breeding ground for Islamic State by crushing Iraq and changing the political landscape in the Middle East. For that, we have the George W. Bush administration to thank. The U.S. is quick to criticize and meddle by asking the international community to do more, while dismissing that those countries are already fighting the havoc of our creation. The U.S. should continue to take the lead in trying to defeat Islamic State and stop complaining to allies who did not budget for our foreign policy mistakes. Advertisement William Goldman, Palos Verdes Estates Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion and Facebook Rep. Juan Vargas was on the dais at the National Prayer Breakfast on Thursday morning as President Obama addressed what has become a must-attend event for many politicians. For the San Diego Democrat, though, it's so much more. The former Jesuit missionary has barely missed the weekly prayer meetings held by members of Congress since he was elected, and Vargas said he was excited to bring so many people together in prayer as co-chairman of the event. Occurring yearly since 1953, the National Prayer Breakfast brings together thousands of politicians and religious leaders for a morning of prayer and testimonials. More than 3,400 people attended and heard from Obama and guest speakers MGM Television President Mark Burnett and his wife, actress and producer Roma Downey. Classical singer Andrea Bocelli sang twice. Obama began with a passage from 2 Timothy, "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind," and spoke about using faith to overcome fear. CSPAN2 broadcasted the president's remarks, which began at 5 a.m. Pacific time. Before the breakfast, Vargas sat down with The Times to discuss why it means so much to him. Faith makes him a liberal Vargas, who studied to become a priest for nearly five years, called himself a Matthew 25 Christian, referring to a series of parables told by Jesus on how to live. He recited Matthew 25:35-40. "You have to look at what Jesus said. What does he do in his public ministries? Well, my gosh, he goes around healing the sick and lame and helping the poor," Vargas said. He said he tells colleagues, "I get the hallelujah part, I'm all for hallelujah, I'm right there with you, but what about that other part? That part is so central to who Jesus is." Bringing people together Vargas said members of Congress who rarely sit down together are forced to at the National Prayer Breakfast. "Here we all sit, as Democrats, Republicans, Congress members, senators, and for that short moment of time we're all together, we're unified," Vargas said. "We're praying for the president, we're praying for the nation, we're praying for the world. That spirit is one that I wish we had all the time. We don't, but I wish that we did." SIGN UP for our free Essential Politics newsletter >> Less rhetoric Every Thursday morning, 30-40 members meet for an hour of prayer and stories about their faith. Discussing such personal topics means there is less room for rhetoric the rest of the week, Vargas said. When he asks members to pray for immigrants in the country illegally, he said he notices a drop-off in how often colleagues use the terms "anchor baby" or "illegal." "It's hard to pray with someone on Thursday and then attack him or her on Friday," Vargas said. Who attends the meetings isn't widely advertised, and members don't talk publicly about what is said. Vargas said the meetings change how he looks at and reacts to other members, even those with very different politics. "I've learned so much about some of my colleagues at such a deep level, it's surprising," Vargas said. "I have some people on the Republican side that I just love. I know their story now. They've told me something very important about themselves and I respect that." In his term and a half in Congress, Vargas said he's missed just one his staff knows not to schedule meetings or interrupt on Thursday mornings. "That's a sacred moment for me. I want to go and get together with my colleagues and pray for the country," Vargas said. Several state legislatures, including California's, offer similar weekly prayer meetings and hold a special breakfast to hear from the governor. A presidential tradition Every president since Dwight D. Eisenhower has addressed the breakfast. "It's a tradition that we hope that no president breaks," Vargas said. "It's important that we get together, both sides, and pray and pray for our nation and peace and the world." Obama's comments at last year's breakfast drew ire from some in the evangelical community. Talking about Christians' reaction to violent Muslim extremists, Obama said, "And lest we get on our high horse and think this is unique to some other place, remember that during the Crusades and the Inquisition, people committed terrible deeds in the name of Christ. In our home country, slavery and Jim Crow all too often was justified in the name of Christ." sarah.wire@latimes.com Follow @sarahdwire on Twitter Read more about the 55 members of California's delegation at latimes.com/politics This article was originally published at 3:05 a.m. 8:32 a.m.: Updated to include Obama's remarks and new details from the event. Good morning from the state capital. Im Sacramento Bureau Chief John Myers with this mornings Essential Politics. Political power in the state Capitols modern era has been largely shaped by the ticking clock of term limits, a steady fade of political influence from almost the moment a legislator's bags are unpacked in Sacramento. The strict term limits system imposed by voters in 1990 was supposed to bring about more accountability and less entrenched power in the state Senate and Assembly. In reality, it simply transferred the entrenched power to lobbyists, interest groups, even staffers. Those unintended consequences were at the heart of 2012s successful Proposition 28, extending legislative term limits to 12 years. Now, we're about to see the first leader who really gets to take that power out for a spin: Assembly Speaker-Elect Anthony Rendon, the Democrat from Lakewood who gets the gavel on March 7. OUR CHAT WITH RENDON The mindset of the members will change, said Rendon about the new era of legislating, during a wide-ranging conversation with The Times Sacramento bureau on Wednesday morning. We profiled the man behind the title last month. In his chat with us over a cup of coffee, Rendon made it clear he sees the new term limits as the beginning of a long-term recalibration of political power between the branches of government. Theres a culture, he said, of the Legislature being secondary to the governor. Changing that will take time, and Rendon agreed no big shifts are likely until after Gov. Jerry Brown leaves office in three years. And speaking of Brown, how does the new Assembly leader see the road ahead? Everybody in this town has given me advice on how to deal with the governor, said Rendon. He laid out what he learned about Brown after helping lead negotiations over a new state water bond in 2013 and 2014: Never go to him with an incomplete idea, and Dont explain why, explain how. Rendon also confirmed something widely discussed around Sacramento, as Melanie Mason reports: He doesnt plan to carry any legislation as Assembly speaker, a throwback to the days of the legendary Willie Brown. By the way, dont forget that you can always get a quick fix of the latest California political news on our Essential Politics news feed. PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION: BREAKING UP IS HARD TO DO Meantime, Mason and Jeff McDonald report on a must-watch piece of legislation introduced on Wednesday in Sacramento: an effort to dramatically reshape the power and portfolio of the California Public Utilities Commission. The quasi-independent agency has been at the center of controversy now for several years, after everything from the deadly 2010 gas explosion in San Bruno to investigations related to the agencys handling of the San Onofre nuclear plant and the commission's former president, Michael Peevey. CLINTON AND SANDERS MAY BE SINGING 'CALIFORNIA, HERE WE COME' Lots of presidential news to report, and one of particular note is news of a potential Democratic presidential debate in the Golden State this spring. As Chris Megerian and Kurtis Lee report, Sen. Bernie Sanders said in a national TV interview that the Democratic National Committee has its eyes set on a debate in California, possibly in May. Think fast: when was the last California presidential debate? The answer: Jan. 31, 2008, when Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton squared off at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles. As for the current state of affairs, find our coverage of Wednesday nights Demcoratic town hall here and track Thursday nights official debate on Trail Guide. 2016 LIGHTNING ROUND Our team in New Hampshire is tracking every detail on Trail Guide: Sen. Rand Paul ending his presidential bid to focus on his Senate reelection campaign; former Sen. Rick Santorum calling it quits and endorsing Sen. Marco Rubio; and Sen. Ted Cruzs spat with Ben Carson. Mike Memoli reports that for the state celebrating the 100th anniversary of its presidential primary, Donald Trumps bravado has given rise to an uncomfortable argument: New Hampshire itself may have as much to lose as any of the candidates, should his double-digit lead hold until the Tuesday primary. Evan Halper examines Clintons struggle with millennial women, in part because shes not a feminist icon for most of them. In 2008, Clinton avoided putting women's issues at the center of her campaign. Despite addressing women's rights, and more fully embracing the historic nature of her candidacy, shes not sticking with this voting bloc, he writes. Cathleen Decker details how a pledge by Republican leaders that this campaign would be sensitive to the concerns of Latinos and other immigrants has been thoroughly cast aside in favor of claims that are often exaggerated by candidates. She writes that on Wednesday, Cruz used the exact language in talking about those immigrants as Californias then-Gov. Pete Wilson used in a famously controversial ad during his 1994 reelection campaign. Kate Linthicum has the numbers on a group claiming high participation from Latinos in the Iowa caucuses. BIPARTISAN, FOR THE MORNING Sarah Wire sat down with San Diego Rep. Juan Vargas to talk with the Democrat about his role as co-chairman of Thursday morning's national prayer breakfast. Vargas, who studied to become a Jesuit priest for nearly five years, called himself a Matthew 25 Christian, referring to a series of parables told by Jesus on how to live. He recited Matthew 25:35-40. He also opened up on a weekly prayer meeting among lawmakers in Washington, saying it gives them a respite from rhetoric, even if a brief one. "Here we all sit, as Democrats, Republicans, Congress members, senators and for that short moment of time we're all together, we're unified," Vargas said. "We're praying for the president, we're praying for the nation, we're praying for the world. That spirit is one that I wish we had all the time. We don't, but I wish that we did." TODAYS ESSENTIALS Final numbers are in for how much was spent lobbying state government in 2015. And the top industry, in spending, is local governments across California. Yes, government lobbying government with taxpayer dollars. George Skelton devotes his Thursday column to everyone's favorite political parlor game these days: Will California come into play in the race for the White House? Patrick McGreevy reports on the latest law on California's books: an extension of time for local governments to make decisions on how their own medical marijuana ordinances. Rep. Mike Honda donned a referees uniform between votes Wednesday and officiated a Super Bowl bet between Democratic Reps. Diana DeGette (Colo.) and Alma Adams (N.C.) DeGette pledged to provide bison burgers and local beer if the Carolina Panthers win and Adams pledged barbecue and local beer if the Denver Broncos win. Honda, whose congressional district is hosting Sundays Super Bowl, offered to chip in California wine and beer to the winner as well. And an editorial sidebar: Your humble newsletter author is a North Carolina native and thus will be wearing his Panthers jersey this Sunday. LOGISTICS Miss yesterdays newsletter? You can find it here. Did someone forward you this? Sign up here to get Essential Politics in your inbox daily. And keep an eye on our new politics page throughout the day for the latest and greatest. And are you following us on Twitter at @latimespolitics? Please send thoughts, concerns and news tips to politics@latimes.com. Gov. Jerry Brown on Wednesday gave cities and counties more time to develop local regulations on the commercial growing of medical marijuana, amid concern that a March 1 deadline had many rushing to ban cultivation. Last year, Brown signed into law a system that will regulate, license and tax those who grow and sell medical cannabis. But a mistake in the bills drafting set a March 1 deadline for cities to either adopt stronger rules or face living with the state restrictions that allow cultivation. As a result, nearly 100 cities have banned commercial cultivation, the sale of marijuana or both -- mostly in recent months -- according to industry officials. Advertisement Interested in the stories shaping California? Sign up for the free Essential California newsletter >> Among those that have enacted cultivation bans are Burbank, Pasadena, Thousand Oaks, Yorba Linda, Long Beach and Newport Beach. Some counties have also banned cultivation. On Wednesday, Brown signed a bill that eliminates the deadline. The governor supports allowing local municipalities a reasonable amount of time to come up with regulations that work for their communities, said Deborah Hoffman, a spokeswoman for the governor. Eva Spiegel, a spokeswoman for the League of California Cities, said the action would allow local officials to revisit the issue and potentially make changes in their ordinances. Supporters of medical marijuana urged cities to act. We are calling for locals to repeal the bans in favor of meaningful land regulations that will enact the statewide licensing standards in order to protect public safety, the environment and patients rights, said Ellen Komp, deputy director of California NORML, a cannabis legalization group. ALSO County supervisors move to halt commercial marijuana cultivation Ex-treasurer for O.C. congressman charged in alleged $300,000 embezzlement scandal Democratic lawmakers, L.A. County board urge Gov. Brown to stand behind Coastal Commission chief When a magnitude 6.0 earthquake hit Napa in 2014, an earthquake alert system gave researchers in San Francisco about eight seconds of warning before the shaking began. Just last month, 30 seconds of warning reached downtown L.A. before the ground shook from a magnitude 4.4 quake centered near Banning. Despite these successes, the early warning network is stymied by a lack of funding that has delayed full rollout of the system. The White House this week highlighted advances of the system by bringing together top scientists, politicians and emergency managers in Washington who marveled at how it could give residents as well as emergency officials and businesses precious seconds of warning before a devastating quake. Advertisement But behind the cheerleading, state and federal officials are battling over who should pay for the system, which uses hundreds of sensor stations embedded in the ground to monitor earth movement. Congress and President Obama have kicked in about half the annual $16-million cost to operate the system. But federal elected officials say state governments in California, Oregon and Washington should also cover some of the operating costs. Those states have so far refused, with some officials saying the warning system should be a federal program. In 2013, a California law instructed the Governors Office of Emergency Services to identify sources of money for the system, such as federal funds, revenue bonds, local funds and private grants but not the states general fund. More than two years later, the office has not produced a report identifying the financing. Tina Curry, deputy director of the Office of Emergency Services, said her office is continuing the search. H.D. Palmer, deputy director for the California Department of Finance, said this week that the states policy is to not use money from the general fund for the early warning system. State governments in Oregon and Washington also have not committed funding to the warning system as part of their annual budgets. Attention has focused on California because the state represents so much of the nations seismic risk. We really need the state of California to embrace this financially, said Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank). The cost of the system pales in comparison to the fact that we can save lives with the system. Across the West Coast, the system has about 650 stations contributing to the early warning system, but 1,000 more are needed. A lack of sensors in the northern reaches of California means, for instance, that San Francisco could receive delayed warnings if an earthquake started near Cape Mendocino and barreled south to the Bay Area. Scientists this week unveiled a new prototype for the warning system, which more government agencies and companies can now use for testing. Eventually, they plan to bring the warning system to mobile phones, computers and televisions. See more of our top stories on Facebook >> The warnings would allow elevators to automatically open at the next floor before shaking arrives, tell surgeons to halt surgery, and slow down trains to decrease the risk of derailment. In Japan, one factory has figured out a way to secure noxious chemicals between the time a quake warning is issued and when the actual shaking arrives. The total cost of building the system is $38 million, plus the $16 million a year to operate it. Officials said that if they could secure full operating funds, they could have the system going in as little as two years. The system this week received a $3.6-million grant from the Palo Alto-based Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, bringing their total contribution to about $10 million. But that money is going toward further development of the system, not operations on a regular basis. Among the foundation-funded projects is studying how to put seismic sensors on the ocean floor along the Cascadia subduction zone. That area west of Californias North Coast, Oregon and Washington is capable of producing a magnitude 9 earthquake and tsunami that could wash away coastal towns, destroy U.S. Highway 101, obliterate 100 bridges and kill as many as 10,000 people. Officials also announced this week that a branch of Amazon.com Inc. is providing a grant to better identify large earthquakes hitting the Pacific Northwest. Intel Corp., meanwhile, has launched an effort to rally private businesses to help develop and maintain the warning system. These efforts were announced Tuesday at a summit held by the White Houses Office of Science and Technology Policy, which gave high-profile backing to the early warning system. Still, this help only goes so far. We have a feasible plan on the table. But if people dont want to fund that, then we just have to go back and see what could be done for less, said John Vidale, director of the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network. Is it really worth cutting the corners like that? Other countries have developed earthquake early warning systems after devastating quakes killed thousands of people. Mexico City has had a system since 1991. After the 1995 Kobe earthquake killed more than 5,000 people, Japan moved forward on a nationwide system that now sends alerts through TVs, computers and cellphones. When the magnitude 9 earthquake hit east of Japan in 2011, many people in Tokyo, 200 miles away from the epicenter, had 30 seconds of warning that the shaking was coming. Similar warning systems exist in Taiwan, Turkey and China. The early warning system works on a simple principle: The shaking from an earthquake travels at about the speed of sound through rock slower than the speed of todays telecommunications systems. That means it would take more than a minute for, say, a 7.8 earthquake that starts at the Salton Sea to shake up Los Angeles 150 miles away. Seismic sensors stationed at the Salton Sea would detect the first shaking waves in as little as five seconds and blast a warning throughout Southern California. In this scenario, Palm Springs would have 20 seconds of warning; San Bernardino, 45 seconds. What people keep saying is everywhere else, you have to kill 10,000 people before people realize, Maybe we ought to implement the [early warning system], whatever it costs, Vidale said. Until that happens, its not real to a lot of people. A few California officials have been open to changing California policy to allow general fund money for the early warning system. In 2014, Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and then-state Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima), who championed the early warning system, suggested that the Legislature make an emergency appropriation to fund the system. In Oregon and Washington, state officials said they are doing their part. A spokesman for Oregon Gov. Kate Brown, a Democrat, pointed to the states purchase of 15 seismometers for nearly $700,000 in 2015 and the hiring of a state resilience officer to oversee seismic safety. This is direct evidence of Oregons recognition of seismic safety as a regional issue and willingness to work with other states to prepare the West Coast as best we can, said Chris Pair, the spokesman. A statement provided by the office of Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, said lawmakers have provided about $400,000 annually for seismic monitoring efforts at the University of Washington, some of which has indirectly supported work on the early warning system. To fully operate the system, more federal funding will be needed, the statement said. John Schelling, who oversees earthquake, tsunami and volcano programs for Washington state, said the state could consider more funding once the system has moved beyond the prototype. If this continues to be tested and assessed for actual operational implementation in Washington, then I think its appropriate to see where funding could be applied, Schelling said. At this weeks White House summit, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell said completing the system on the West Coast is crucial because it then could be expanded to other states. Japan is ahead of us, China is ahead of us, Turkey is ahead of us, Mexico is ahead of us. Jewell said. There is no reason we cant do this. rosanna.xia@latimes.com Twitter: @RosannaXia ron.lin@latimes.com Twitter: @ronlin Hoy: Lea esta historia en espanol ALSO State legislators call for drastic overhaul of Californias utility regulator After Texas stopped funding Planned Parenthood, low-income women had more babies An Iowa caucus yields scrums, bribery and cajoling: The only thing people get excited about here The state of Texas sustained campaign against Planned Parenthood and other family planning clinics affiliated with abortion providers appears to have led to an increase in births among low-income women who lost access to affordable and effective birth control, a new study says. The analysis, published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine, documents a significant increase in births among women who had previously received birth control at clinics that no longer get state funding. The researchers, from the Population Research Center at the University of Texas at Austin, say their findings offer a sneak peek of what may happen in other states that have cut funding to Planned Parenthood. Advertisement Join the conversation on Facebook >> Lawmakers in Arkansas, Alabama, New Hampshire, Louisiana, North Carolina and Utah have enacted policies to keep public funds out of Planned Parenthood clinics. Ohio is expected to be the next state to follow suit. These laws definitely had a real impact on women, said study leader Joseph Potter, a sociologist at the university. Its not like there is a large, over-capacity of highly qualified providers of effective contraception out there just waiting for people to show up, he said. The first blow to Planned Parenthood and other family planning clinics in Texas came in 2011, when lawmakers cut family-planning grants by 66% across the state. The money that remained was directed toward community health centers and county health departments that provide more comprehensive care. This dramatic cut in funding was responsible for the closure of 82 family-planning clinics in the state, researchers said. About one-third of them were affiliated with Planned Parenthood. News reports at the time suggested the move was motivated, at least in part, by a desire to keep money away from groups that might refer women to abortion clinics. Of course this is a war on birth control and abortions and everything thats what family planning is supposed to be about, then-state Rep. Wayne Christian, an East Texas Republican, said in 2011. The states federally funded Medicaid program was not allowed to steer funds away from Planned Parenthood clinics. So in 2013, the state ditched it and set up the state-funded Texas Womens Health Program, which could legally withhold funds from any clinic affiliated with an abortion provider. It was exclusively Planned Parenthood that was hit by that, Potter said. Though only 23 of the 254 counties in Texas had a Planned Parenthood clinic before 2013, they served 60% of the states low-income women of childbearing age, according to the study. The researchers make the case that the 2013 policy change made it more difficult for these women to get access to reliable birth control. Without it, they were more likely to get pregnant and have babies. They began by comparing contraceptive use before and after Texas cut funding to Planned Parenthood and saw a sharp decrease in the use of long-acting reversible contraceptives in the counties that had been served by a Planned Parenthood, the study authors wrote. These included intra-uterine devices, or IUDs, which prevent sperm from fertilizing an egg for up to 10 years, and matchstick-sized implants that are inserted under the skin and release hormones to halt ovulation for up to three years. They also saw that demand for hormone injections, which prevent ovulation for three months at a time, fell sharply in counties that lost their Planned Parenthood clinics. In the three months before funding was cut, there were 1,042 pharmacy and medical claims for IUDs, implants and birth control injections. In the three months after the cuts were implemented, that number fell to 672. That represents a decline of nearly 36%, according to the study. These trends were not seen in counties that hadnt had a Planned Parenthood, the study authors wrote. Next, the researchers examined the consequences of these changes in birth control use. They focused on hormone injections, since they wear off more quickly. Among women in Planned Parenthood counties who got the shots in the last three months of 2011, 57% got a follow-up shot in the first three months of 2012, when the clinics were still operating. A year later, among women who got a birth control shot in the last three months of 2012, 38% got a follow-up shot in the first three months of 2013, after the clinics in their counties had closed. Meanwhile, women in counties that didnt have a Planned Parenthood in any of those years saw a slight uptick in injectable contraception use, from 55% at the end of 2011 to almost 59% at the end of 2012. Without that reliable form of birth control, pregnancies increased and more babies were born, the study authors found. Over 18 months, the proportion of these women who gave birth to a child rose from 7% to 8.4% in counties that lost a Planned Parenthood. Meanwhile, in counties that hadnt been served by a Planned Parenthood, the proportion of low-income women who had used hormone injections and then had babies fell from 6.4% to 5.9% over the same 18-month period. The researchers calculated that the relative increase in births was 27% for women who lost access to Planned Parenthood. Many of these births were probably unplanned, since the increase was only seen in counties where women faced new hurdles in access to contraception, the study authors wrote. To see such a large increase in such a short time was surprising, said graduate student Amanda Stevenson, the first author on the paper. It takes a while for the shot to wear off, and then waiting time to get pregnant, and the pregnancy itself. The study doesnt prove that the change in Texas policy was directly responsible for the increase in births, the researchers noted. But after making it more difficult for women to get safe, reliable birth control, women switched to less reliable contraceptive methods, or skipped them altogether. The result is dozens of additional babies born to some of the thousands of women who had been served by the shuttered clinics. This new research shows the devastating consequences for women when politicians block access to care at Planned Parenthood, Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood of America, said in a statement. Politicians have claimed time and again that our patients can simply go to other health care providers and tragically thats not the case. Dr. Hal C. Lawrence III, executive vice president of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, said hes not surprised that reduced access to long-acting reversible contraceptives would result in an increase in childbirth. These birth control methods are among the most effective ways of preventing unplanned pregnancy, he said. Cutting funding to clinics makes birth control inaccessible for many low-income women, inevitably driving up rates of unintended pregnancies with all their attendant costs and concerns. Do you love science? So do I! Follow me at @DeborahNetburn and like Los Angeles Times Science & Health on Facebook. ALSO Scientists 3D-print a brain to learn the secret behind its folds Why doctors are swiping C-section babies with their moms microbiome CDC to younger women: Better take your birth control before you drink that glass of wine Jane Fulton knows that some Orange County residents are struggling to support their families in an area where wages may not cover basic living expenses. After paying for rent, groceries and car registration and insurance, some people have little left for unexpected expenses, like attorney fees if disputes arise. Enter Fulton, an energetic 77-year-old who has practiced law in the state for 50 years. Advertisement Since 2014, Fulton, with the pro bono help of a few other lawyers, has provided free legal advice to clients embroiled in civil matters including child custody, divorce, bankruptcy, wills and trust, and landlord-tenant disputes. The Orange County public defenders office handles criminal cases. With seed money, Fulton established Seaside Legal Services in a Laguna Beach office she has occupied since 1979. Fulton declined to give the donors name or the amount of the start-up money, but said the Kling Family Foundation agreed on a yearly financial donation to keep the nonprofit going. The Tustin-based foundation specializes in private grants. Fulton, who operated a private practice and represented clients for the Los Angeles County public defenders office, focusing primarily on family law, considers the startup her third act. I was a lawyer for money, an artist for no money and now a lawyer for no money, Fulton said in her upstairs Forest Avenue office recently. It occurred to me the more I talked to people in town that people were falling out of the middle class because of legal fees. People cant afford go pay $350 an hour. Fultons latest endeavor grew out of personal experience. She moved to Laguna 38 years ago, but three years ago rising rent costs drove her to move into an apartment on the citys outskirts near the 73 Freeway. Fulton, who is not married and does not have children, drives a 1982 Volkswagen van and has never owned her own house. She helped shuttle homeless people before the city opened the Alternative Sleeping Location in Lagunas Act V parkling lot in 2010. The rents are just staggering, said Fulton, a plein air painter who retired from law in 2000 and attended Scottsdale Artists School in Arizona. I used my 401(k) to pay for arts school and painted full time until 2008, when the bottom fell out [of the economy]. Ive always painted. I thought it was appropriate to go to art school if I was going to further my career. Fultons landscape paintings hang on walls inside the office, though she is considering selling some of them to help pay additional staff for an increasing case load. Tom Davis, a Laguna Beach attorney who specializes in civil litigation, didnt hesitate when Fulton asked him for free help six months ago. Davis and Fulton met several years ago when the two represented clients on opposing sides of a case. I love her passion and what she does in the community, Davis said in a phone interview. Its a really important project to work on. Access to the legal system is expensive, reserved for the wealthy. Fulton says she has seen 50 to 60 clients three-quarters of them Laguna Beach residents since establishing Seaside. Clients may make multiple appointments, still at no cost. Fulton doesnt have a specific income threshold that clients must fall below in order for her, or one of her colleagues, to work with them, but she discusses a persons income and financial situation during the first meeting. If youre making $75,000 a year with two kids and one of those kids has a medical need that costs $25,000 a year, see what happens? Fulton asked rhetorically, indicating the extra $25,000 could push a familys budget into the red. Fulton cited research by Amy Glasmeier, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology professor, who, with two assistants, gathered wage and living expense data from federal and state sources for counties across the United States in 2014. The research indicates that annual salaries for workers in some professions in Orange County do not cover basic expenses, such as food, child care, housing and transportation. For example, a family with two adults and one child needs to make at least $46,965 a year to cover living expenses. On average, workers in the food service and building/maintenance industries make between $20,000 and $25,000 a year, the study said. Fulton modeled Seaside after the Public Law Center in Santa Ana, which has offered free legal services to low-income residents and other nonprofits in Orange County for 34 years. This is not an original idea, Fulton said, adding that her nonprofit focuses on the southern Orange County population. I have never worked harder or with more joy, Fulton said, adding that financial donations are welcome. Prospective clients must call (949) 494-9411 to make an appointment. Andersen and Lincoln elementary schools put this competition in the can. Andersens Eiffel Tower of donated cans was named the most creative structure and Lincolns 2,963 cans collected were the most in the fourth annual Canned Food Castle Competition. In the two-week contest, students at five Newport Beach schools held a food drive and built structures out of the cans and boxes they collected. Eastbluff, Harbor View and Newport Coast elementary schools also participated. The donated goods will be given to charitable organizations including Share Our Selves in Costa Mesa and Families Forward, based in Irvine. Newport Beach police Officer Gary Clemente, the competitions judge this year, visited all five campuses to see their creations, and declared the winners Friday. The best part of judging the competition was getting to meet the students and parents that were involved with this program, Clemente said. I was afforded the opportunity to create an open dialogue about some of the issues low-income families in Orange County experience on a daily basis, like homelessness and not having enough food to eat. I couldnt think of a better message to teach these students and schools. The can creations included the Seven Wonders of the World at Newport Coast and Yodas face at Harbor View. The Andersen students used their cans to pay their respects to Paris following the recent terrorist attacks there. They built a likeness of the Eiffel Tower with a peace sign at the foot of it. We chose the Eiffel Tower as a symbol of honor and support for all those affected by this senseless tragedy, Andersen parent Christina Hahne said. It was a collaborative effort by the children to promote a peaceful world community for all of us. Gina and Rod Guerra opened up their 1927 Paul Williams-designed La Canada Flintridge home for a recent Hillsides donor party. The Guerras warmly welcomed guests alongside Annette Ermshar, benefit chair for the Feb. 27 gala benefit that will be held at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. NEWSLETTER: Stay up to date with whats going on in and around your neighborhood >> Ermshar, a passionate music lover, planned an exceptional evening for party guests by inviting Lyndon Johnston Taylor, principal second violinist of the Los Angeles Philharmonic, to play three musical selections, accompanied by pianist Jeong-Ah Ryu. Lyndon Johnston Taylor, principal 2nd violin for the Los Angeles Philharmonic and pianist Jeong-Ah Ryu perform at the recent donor party for Hillsides. (Photo by Jane Napier Neely) (Hand In / La Canada Valley Sun) It was a breathtaking performance in a beautiful setting. In comments before the performance, Taylor, who attended the Juilliard School in New York, said that he was thrilled to be playing two Fritz Kreisler pieces that were written to be played in an intimate setting just as they were that evening. He also played Nocturne in C# Minor by Chopin-Milstein. Guests were served an array of savory passed hors doeuvres prepared by chefs from Pasadenas Bistro 45, owned by Deborah and Robert Simon, who were last years gala chairs. The party hosts provided wines from their private collection. Jacob Maarse Florists donated flowers for the evening. La Canada Flintridge residents Dr. Henri and Donna Ford, longtime supporters of Hillsides, attend its donor party. (Photo by Jane Napier Neely) (Hand In / La Canada Valley Sun) Hillsides upcoming gala, Symphony of Dreams, is the largest fundraiser of the year and will feature many unique musical highlights. Ermshar is a Pasadena-based clinical psychologist who specializes in neuropsychology and forensic psychology. She is active in the local music community and an accomplished pianist and vocalist. KNBC television newscaster Fritz Coleman will be the master of ceremonies at the Feb. 27 gala. Some of the local residents attending the donor party included Dr. Henri Ford and his wife Donna, Dee and Mark Martinez, Dr. Steve Nishibayashi and Mary Dee Hacker. -- As weve seen so dramatically and seemingly endlessly on the national scene, 2016 is a political year. And locally we have some seats to be decided, including one in the state Assembly representing our area that will soon be vacated by Mike Gatto. Forums and meet-and-greets are underway, and last week just such party was held in La Canada to introduce candidate Andrew Blumenfeld to invited guests. The hosts were Brent and Marion Kuszyk. Brent Kuszyk and Blumenfeld have a common interest public education. Kuszyk is a new member of the La Canada school board, having been seated at the end of last year when Blumenfeld left the local board to seek state office. -- JANE NAPIER NEELY covers the La Canada Flintridge social scene. Email her at jnvalleysun@aol.com with news of your special event. Allen Lunds passion for trucking and transportation goes way back to a time when, as a boy of 6 or 7, he grew accustomed to watching the world unfold before him from across the dashboard of his fathers 18-wheeler. He accompanied his dad on occasional trips and soon found himself traveling on long, cross-country stretches that gave him an up-close look at the industry and the different people and relationships that made it tick. NEWSLETTER: Get the latest headlines from the 818 straight to your inbox >> I loved it, he recently recalled in an interview. I wanted to be the best at the earth-moving business and trucking. I wanted to be the best machine operator. In the decades that followed, Lund would accomplish those things and more. Last Friday, the Allen Lund Co. marked its 40th year as a transportation broker based in La Canada Flintridge. What began with a handful of employees and a head full of ideas about integrity, fairness and customer service has since grown into a national company with 30 locations and more than 400 employees working with thousands of shippers and carriers to arrange for the transport of dry, refrigerated and flatbed freight. Additionally, the company offers Transportation Management System software to help businesses coordinate their own ordering information systems with warehouses or distribution centers. During a tour of the Angeles Crest Highway headquarters sons and employees David and Kenny Lund, who grew up in Glendale, shared their memories of the early days of the family business and aspects of their fathers formula for success. David Lund, ALC VP Sales & Operations, left, and his brother Kenny Lund, Allen Lund Company VP Support Operations, right, in the sales office of their building on Angeles Crest Highway in La Canada Flintridge on Friday, Jan. 29, 2016. (Raul Roa / La Canada Valley Sun) I remember answering the phone, Hello, this is the Lund residence, recalled David Lund, who works alongside younger brother Eddie as a vice president of sales. You had to be very polite, because there were guys calling us at all hours of the night. The drivers would call at 1 in the morning; theyd call collect, added Kenny Lund, vice president of support operations. It was a 24/7 business it still is. Decorating several long interior hallways are framed images of each city in which Allen Lund Co. has opened an office, with tiny brass plaques displaying the year of establishment. Los Angeles, 1976. Atlanta, 1978. San Francisco, 1985. San Antonio, 1987. Denver, 1990. Minneapolis, 1994. Detroit, 2001. On Tuesday, the company officially announced it had just opened its newest office in Greenville, S.C. We dont necessarily pick a town and open up there, Kenny Lund explained. Its more like we decide on the right people, rather than the right place. A clear focus on people, and building relationships and reputations one person at a time, predominates at the Allen Lund Co., and several long-tenured employees will attest to that. Among them is Tracey Lewin, who came to the company in 1989 looking for temporary office work and never left. Lewin started in the accounting department and now manages the sales office at the companys headquarters. She recalled her first meeting with Allen Lund 27 years ago. I walked in with my resume. He took it, looked at it and threw it over his shoulder. He said, I dont care about this, lets talk. And he hired me, Lewin said. (Now), this is what I lovingly refer to as my accidental career. Lewin said she appreciates how her job brings something different each day and enjoys the mutual respect among employees, great benefits and going the extra mile (no pun intended, she laughs) for customers. Its very family oriented, she added. Ive always felt like an extension of the Lund family. We take care of each other. The family feel present throughout the company headquarters may stem, in part, from the fact that every single employee undergoes training in La Canada and is invited to a family dinner at one of the Lund households. It may also may be due to the fact that three generations of the Lund family work there. In addition to Allen and his three sons, son-in-law Steve Doerfler is the chief financial officer. Another son-in-law, Kirk Peterson, pilots the company plane, while grandson Kevin Peterson works in logistics. Everyone is put to work, real work, assures David Lund, whos changed light bulbs and painted offices in the past. Just as Allen Lund was attracted to his own fathers line of work, so too have his sons developed a sincere interest in the Allen Lund Co.s operations. For me, it was a natural progression, said David Lund, who went from part-time to full-time status right out of college. I have pretty much worked for my dad my entire life. Its a true family business why would you want to do anything else? Kenny Lund, who taught business classes at St. Francis High School for three years after graduating from college, credited his father and mom Kathie for instilling in him a fascination for business. Our parents showed us the value of hard work, but also the importance of providing value and doing a job with integrity, he said. So going into business was always seen as a fun thing. It was not looked on as drudgery. Although most employees would agree the companys namesake his ethics, personality and beliefs is deeply ingrained in the business and, therefore, crucial to its success, Allen Lund himself has a slightly divergent belief. Its not me, its all these great people, he said. We do not have a product, so our people are the product. Its only these good people and the service we provide. -- Sara Cardine, sara.cardine@latimes.com Twitter: @SaraCardine A mob attack against a Tanzanian woman in Indias high-tech capital has renewed questions about racism in the country, particularly against African immigrants. The Tanzanian student was apparently pulled from her car, stripped and sexually assaulted in the city of Bangalore on Sunday night, authorities said. Police on Thursday arrested five people in connection with the incident, the Karnataka state Chief Minister K. Siddarmaiah told reporters. The 21-year old university student in business management told police that a mob pulled her out of a car and set it ablaze. Later, she told police, she was beaten, molested, stripped and paraded naked. Advertisement Join the conversation on Facebook >> Authorities said the reported attack stemmed from a collision a short time earlier in the same area in which a Sudanese driver, allegedly drunk, struck and killed an Indian woman with his car. Angry residents had set his car afire and beat him before he fled. The incident involving the Tanzanian student occurred after her car traveled along the same street while the mob was out. Officials have sought to dispel allegations that what happened with the Tanzanian woman was racially motivated. Karnataka state Home Minister G. Parmeshwara, at a news conference, said it was just a response to the earlier accident. The woman has told authorities that a police constable witnessed the attack against her but did not intervene. Bosco Kaweesi, legal advisor to an African student association, told reporters in Bangalore, She tried to enter a bus, the passengers pushed her outside. She tried to get an auto-rickshaw, they refused to take her. And she was running up and down when she actually had no clothes on. Right now we are scared of every Indian around us, the Tanzanian student told the India Today news channel. There have been previous cases of attacks and anger directed by Indians against African immigrants in the country, many of whom are university students. In October 2014, in the capital New Delhi, three young African men were beaten at a metro station by a mob that chanted Victory for Mother India, according to news reports of the incident that were posted on YouTube The three men -- identified in news reports as from the West African nations of Gabon and Burkina Faso -- climbed atop a police post as the mob pursued them with sticks. They were eventually rescued when a police officer reached the scene. Comments posted online accused the men of misbehaving with women on the train and included racist descriptions of them. Earlier that year, a minister in the Delhi government, Somnath Bharti, called for a late-night raid against a group of Nigerian women who were driven out of their homes and accused of being prostitutes and drug dealers. Some allegedly were forced to urinate in public for drug testing. In 2013, in the coastal tourist haven of Goa, residents put up sign boards that accused Nigerian migrants of being drug dealers. Say No to Nigerians, Say No to Drugs, the signs said. A minister in the state government called Nigerians a cancer and was forced to apologize. The incidents betray not just a latent hostility toward blacks, who are relatively rare in India, but also the expectation among Indians that the majority is like-minded and prejudicial attacks will not be punished, said sociologist Satish Deshpande. It is not limited to race or color, Deshpande said in an interview. The mob is confident that society will back you after an attack on homosexuals, minorities or blacks. And it extends to the police as well. Police tend to go with the popular sentiment. Parth M.N. is a special correspondent. Times staff writer Shashank Bengali contributed to this report from Kolhapur, India. ALSO Indias Supreme Court says it will reexamine gay-sex ban A boys life in Afghanistan: Anti-Taliban fighter at 9, dead at 12 Chinese company lived the high life -- until it all came crashing down As Britain debates whether to leave the European Union, leaders across the continent are trying to avoid a potentially devastating split. The country has long had an uneasy relationship with the rest of the 28-member bloc, having used its status as an economic powerhouse to keep its currency the pound sterling while all other members except Denmark now uses the euro or are shifting to it. Proponents of a departure argue that Britain would save billions in membership fees, regain full control of its borders and free small- and medium-sized businesses from restrictive EU laws. Advertisement NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >> They have been gaining political power, to the point that in 2013 Prime Minister David Cameron pledged that if he won another term in office he would hold a referendum asking whether the country should remain in the EU. The promise was an attempt to win over the more hard-line, Euroskeptic elements of his Conservative Party at a time when the UK Independence Party was gaining ground and campaigning on a staunchly anti-EU platform. The referendum could be held as early as this summer. Cameron wants Britain to remain part of the union, as long as key reforms can be made. To that end, he has been negotiating for months with the EU to reshape Britains role. On Tuesday, the president of the European Council, Donald Tusk, presented a draft text of a deal. Among its most controversial provisions is one that would allow Britain to withhold in-work benefits from EU migrants who have been there for less than four years. It also states that Britain is not committed to further political integration into the European Union. Any deal would have to be approved by all EU nations, which could happen as soon as Feb. 18 at a summit in Brussels. With a sense that a clock is ticking down, the union is feeling growing unease that a crucial member could exit and that the consequences could be dire. Brexit as a British departure has been dubbed would damage the unions economic and political power and potentially lead other countries to reassess their own membership. In France, Marie Le Pen, leader of the far-right National Front Party, has already announced plans for a similar referendum if she wins her countrys 2017 elections. The immediate issue facing European leaders is how to offer Britain enough concessions to avoid a breakup without seriously undermining the union. Germany, the largest member of the EU, is a key leader of the effort to keep the union intact. But the current proposal is already being challenged by members in Eastern Europe. Poland has been especially vocal in its opposition of any deal that would restrict benefits for migrants. Cameron is scheduled to travel there on Friday to try to secure its support. Konrad Szymanski, Polands Europe minister, recently summarized the dilemma: We cant accept discrimination but then how does Cameron offer something for people who are against migration? In his letter to members of the European Council, Tusk described the process to date as difficult and said there are still challenging negotiations ahead. Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed, he wrote. Cameron has said the draft deal offers substantial change. Join the conversation on Facebook >> He said he has negotiated to ensure that Britain is not disadvantaged because it does not use the euro, and to give national parliaments the ability to block EU legislation. He also wants the EU to trim bureaucracy that his government says is damaging to UK businesses. Im not arguing, and I will never argue, that Britain couldnt survive outside the EU, Cameron said Wednesday in the House of Commons. The question is not could Britain succeed outside the European Union, it is how will we be most successful how will we have the most influence on the rules that shape the global economy and affect us. The best answer to those questions, he said, can be found within a reformed European Union. Debate over Britains future in the EU has been heating up in anticipation of the Brussels summit and the referendum. Nigel Farage, leader of the UK Independence Party, called the draft deal really rather pathetic. Those in the exit camp have begun to amp up their rhetoric, but the campaign still lacks a big hitter who can galvanize public support. There were signs that London Mayor Boris Johnson would be their man, but so far he has declined to chose sides, saying he wants to see the final agreement first. Within the ranks of Camerons government, Cabinet members have also remained tight lipped about their views on the deal on the table or how they intend to vote. They too are not expected to make their opinions known until a deal is reached. The referendum looks likely to take place in June, but the timing has not been set. The first ministers of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland wrote a letter to Cameron saying that the referendum will distract them from devolved elections taking place in their respective countries in May. At least one issue appears to have been settled. After much debate, all sides finally agreed on the wording of the referendum: Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or leave the European Union? Boyle is a special correspondent. ALSO British law expands definition of domestic abuse to include psychological harm Global health agencys declaration signals new phase in battle against Zika virus British explorer Henry Worsley dies after getting within 30 miles of finishing solo Antarctic trek A Vatican commission on clerical sex abuse gathered Thursday for a private screening of Spotlight, the Oscar-nominated film about abuse by Boston priests, even as Pope Francis came under fire for failing to act on the crisis. The extraordinary screening was held on the eve of a three-day meeting by the commission, and was shown in the same church residence in central Rome where Francis then Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio stayed before his election as pope in 2013. The film is extremely worrying about the cover-up of abuse in the Catholic Church, and I think it would be a good moment for the pope to see it, said Peter Saunders, a British anti-abuse campaigner who is a member of the commission. He was abused by a Catholic priest as a child growing up in London. Advertisement NEWSLETTER: Get the days top headlines from Times Editor Davan Maharaj >> Francis set up the abuse commission in 2014, appointing clergy and abuse survivors as members, and handing leadership to Cardinal Sean OMalley, who took over the Boston archdiocese after the Boston Globe exposed rampant abuse by priests events portrayed in Spotlight. The commission was charged with finding ways to better protect children from abuse by priests. The pope was not reported to have been at the screening, which was closed to reporters. The Vatican has not officially commented on Spotlight, but Vatican Radio praised it last fall as honest and compelling. Last year, Francis also set up a new Vatican tribunal to prosecute bishops accused of covering up for abusive priests. Saunders, however, said he believes Francis good intentions were undone by his appointment last year of Chilean Bishop Juan Barros to the diocese of Osorno in Chile, despite very credible accusations that Barros covered up for a predator priest, Father Fernando Karadima, who was punished by the Vatican. Last May, Francis told a group of Chileans to ignore Barros critics, who include survivors of abuse by Karadima. Think with your heads and do not be led by the noses by the lefties who orchestrated this whole thing, Francis said. Francis has said phenomenally damaging and painful things about survivors, said Saunders. People in Chile now see the commission as a laughingstock, and I cannot pretend the commission means anything unless he sacks Barros. Marie Collins, a Irish abuse survivor and fellow panel member, has also criticized the Barros appointment. After Francis disparaging remarks about lefties, she tweeted that she was discouraged and saddened by what he said. In an interview last month with the National Catholic Reporter, Collins said it was wonderful the church had become more humble under Pope Francis, but added there was still resistance in the Vatican to fighting abuse. Saunders said he had met the pope in October and asked him to attend the commission meeting, which will be held Friday through Sundayin Rome. It will be outrageous if he doesnt attend, and I will say so it will be the end of the honeymoon for Pope Francis, he said. Looking ahead to the three-day commission meeting, which follows two held last year, Saunders said he was not optimistic the experts would be able to change the way the church handles abuse. The last meeting in October was a non-event. I was told that Rome was not built in a day, but the problem is that it takes seconds to rape a child, he said. Kington is a special correspondent ALSO U.S. pledges nearly $1 billion for Syrian refugee crisis Mob attack on Tanzanian woman renews concerns about racism in India WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has been arbitrarily detained for three and half years, U.N. panel says The Obama administration wants to enlarge the U.S. military presence in eastern and central Europe next year by stockpiling heavy weapons, armored vehicles and other military equipment across the region, a substantial expansion of U.S. efforts to counter a resurgent Russia. The proposed $3.4-billion initiative will permit the Pentagon to keep the equivalent of a 4,000-soldier armored brigade in the region at all times on rotational deployments, though no troops will be formally based there, officials said. We asked for the amount we think well need to counter the Russian challenge in Europe, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter told reporters Wednesday during a visit to a naval weapons research facility in China Lake, north of Los Angeles. Advertisement See more of our top stories on Facebook >> The proposal, part of the Pentagons $583-billion budget request, must be approved by Congress. The administration is expected to unveil the budget next week. The administration also plans to double spending for the battle against Islamic State. American aircraft have conducted so many airstrikes in Iraq and Syria since mid-2014 that the Pentagon is running out of smart bombs and missiles; it will seek $1.8 billion next year to buy 45,000 more. But in a speech Tuesday, Carter listed Russia as the primary threat to U.S. interests, citing President Vladimir Putins annexation of Crimea and military operations in eastern Ukraine that potentially threaten the Baltic nations. Were reinforcing our posture in Europe to support our NATO allies in the face of Russias aggression, Carter told the Economic Club of Washington. We havent had to worry about this for 35 years, and while I wish it were otherwise, now we do. The Pentagon plans to construct or refurbish maintenance facilities, airfields and training ranges in seven European countries: Bulgaria, Estonia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Romania. All are members of the NATO alliance. Except for Germany, all were under Soviet domination during the Cold War. Germany was divided into two countries, one pro-West and the other aligned with Moscow. Many of the seven have pressed NATO and the U.S. for a greater presence since Russian forces seized Crimea in 2014 and began backing pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine with weapons and troops. Russia has boosted defense spending dramatically over the last decade to modernize its military. It has used some of the new weapons, including ship-launched cruise missiles, to support its intervention in Syria on behalf of the countrys embattled president, Bashar Assad. Pentagon officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss parts of the plan that have not been made public, conceded that several thousand U.S. troops spread across seven countries could not hold back the Russian Army should it decide to invade. The expanded U.S. presence is meant to signal Moscow that the U.S. would come to the aid of its allies with additional forces in case of war and to reassure allies of American backing, the officials said. It would take at least seven NATO brigades, including three with tanks and other armored vehicles, backed by artillery and combat aircraft, to prevent Russian forces from the rapid overrun of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia, according to a study released this week by Rand Corp., a Santa Monica-based policy analysis organization. Russian forces could reach Estonia and Latvias capital cities in less than 60 hours, the study estimated. Such a rapid defeat would leave NATO with limited options, all bad, the study said, noting that putting seven brigades in the region while not enough to mount a sustained defense ... would fundamentally change the strategic picture as seen from Moscow. Estonia is the only NATO member other than the United States that last year spent at least 2% of its gross domestic product on defense, NATO said last month. None of the money requested by the White House is earmarked for Ukraine, which is not in NATO. The Pentagon has sent troops to train with Ukraines armed forces and provided the government in Kiev with nonlethal equipment. But the administration has stressed it does not plan to go to war in Ukraine, and is relying on economic sanctions and diplomatic pressure to deter Russia from further involvement. In a 1997 agreement meant to prevent a return to Cold War tensions, NATO and Moscow pledged not to station large numbers of forces on each others borders. Pentagon officials say the proposed expansion does not violate that pledge because the troops will rotate in and out to multiple locations, even though the effect will be a constant presence. During the Cold War, U.S. European Command stationed more than 200,000 U.S. troops in Germany and other NATO countries. It now has about 65,000 troops, including two combat brigades of about 3,500 soldiers each. The Army has designated a brigade based at Fort Stewart, Ga., parts of which will rotate to Europe every year. But the forces envisioned for eastern and central Europe will come from other Army units, the officials said. ALSO A boys life in Afghanistan: Anti-Taliban fighter at 9, dead at 12 Signing of Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal opens up tough battle in U.S. Each side in Syria peace talks blames the other for causing temporary pause The tightly packed throng of journalists shouted and jostled, straining to grab the attention of United Nations special envoy Staffan de Mistura at the start of much-anticipated talks aimed at ending the long-running civil war in Syria. Finally, a correspondent for Syrian state TV, Elissar Moualla, emerged victorious from the scrum. Mr. De Mistura, I want to ask about the list of terrorists, she said in halting English, adopting the Syrian governments favorite term for anyone who has taken up arms against it. Did you decide who are the terrorists? Advertisement See more of our top stories on Facebook >> Moments later, the voice of James Bays, diplomatic editor for the English-language outlet of the Al Jazeera network a fervent supporter of the Syrian opposition boomed across the hall. What, he wanted to know, was De Misturas message to Damascus ally, Russia, which was bombarding groups that want to come here for peace talks? As the talks aimed at resolving Syrias nearly five-year conflict got fitfully underway, new bare-knuckled battles were breaking out in the genteel hallways of the U.N.'s Palais des Nations and not just between rival delegations. The media often seemed to be spoiling for a fight too. In the short time that the talks lasted less than a week before a pause was declared Wednesday the sessions brought a measure of decidedly un-Swiss-like chaos to the U.N. The first days of the negotiations, which no one except De Mistura seemed to believe had actually begun, saw the unruly media borrow freely from tactics more often found in the schoolyard. News organizations generally sympathetic to one side of the conflict or the other most often occupied opposite ends of the press stakeout area inside U.N. headquarters, seeking safety in numbers as they bombarded officials with questions, often prefaced by rambling mini-speeches. To the left, journalists from state-run Syrian news media would stand in a conspiratorial clump with generally pro-Damascus outlets, such as the Lebanon-based Al Mayadeen and Al-Manar networks, the latter the official channel of Hezbollah, the Lebanese group whose militiamen fight alongside the army of Syrian President Bashar Assad. To the right gathered the correspondents and producers from Al Jazeera and Saudi news channel Al Arabiya, both de facto state news outlets for countries that have given financial and weapons support to the rebels seeking to topple Assad. They were joined by media representatives from pro-opposition outlets based in Syria, apparently itching for the chance to confront the perpetually scowling Syrian government representative, Bashar Jaafari. Floating between them were correspondents representing Kurdish channels from Iraq and Syria. The media rivals eyed each other suspiciously from across the room. They would tally the number of times an official called on one side or the other, bristling at any hint of bias. They fed easy questions to those on their side of the conflict but laid pitfall queries for anyone on the other side. They kvetched about rival journalists. Get to the question? declared one government reporter under her breath when a correspondent for Radio Smart, an opposition outlet, said he was from liberated Syria. Occasionally, open warfare broke out: At a news conference Tuesday, an opposition reporter snapped at the correspondent from the Hezbollah news outlet, complaining that only pro-government media had been allowed to ask questions. Moualla, the Syrian TV correspondent, was heckled at an earlier news conference by an Al Arabiya journalist for asking why the opposition delegation included a hard-line Islamist rebel group that had been implicated last year in the placement of captive hostages in cages as human shields against government bombardment. What about Madaya? the Al Arabiya correspondent shot back at her, referring to the Damascus suburb besieged by pro-government forces, where residents have reportedly suffered from malnutrition and even starvation. Cameramen sometimes found their shots obscured by a rival who refused to move away in time. The rival delegations only amplified the hostilities, scheduling news conferences in different locations apparently calculated to conflict with those of the other side. It became a common sight to see elegantly dressed TV presenters and weary producers scurrying with heavy camera equipment across the manicured lawns of the U.N. where signs admonish passersby not to feed the peacocks to get the latest opposing declarations. Meanwhile, the oppositions massive media support team, with professionals from a Washington-based public relations firm, the British Foreign Office and the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, helped coordinate a steady flow of interviews with various opposition spokesmen well into the night. The Syrian government contingent struggled to keep up. The frantic shuttling and the lack of real news left most journalists in a state of exhausted frustration; one correspondent compared the peace talks to the movie Groundhog Day, where Bill Murrays character is doomed to relive the same day over and over. Farah Atassi, a member of the opposition High Negotiations Committee, seemed to recognize the media chaos when she was pointedly pressed for a definitive answer on what exactly her side planned to do. The committee had arrived late to the talks and frequently threatened to walk out. After half a dozen interruptions of her answer, she abruptly stopped and smiled. So you guys are playing at being journalists with me now? Bulos is a special correspondent. Times staff writer Patrick J. McDonnell contributed to this report. MORE WORLD NEWS Will Britain leave the European Union? Chinese company lived the high life -- until it all came crashing down Looking for another sign of a weakened China economy? Try the rent-a-foreigner market For the last three and half years, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has lived in the Ecuadorean Embassy in London to avoid arrest and extradition to Sweden to face sexual assault accusations. A United Nations panel is expected to announce Friday that his time there amounts to arbitrary detention because he has been unable to exercise his right to political asylum, which Ecuador has offered him. British authorities have said they have a legal obligation to arrest Assange if he steps out of the embassy. Advertisement The ruling by the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, which is not legally binding, appears to be primarily a public relations triumph for Assange. The decision was first reported Thursday by the BBC and later confirmed by Swedens foreign minister. Assange has been holed up in the embassy since 2012, when he claimed asylum after Sweden issued a warrant for his arrest based on testimony from two women there who say he sexually assaulted them. He has not been charged and denies the claims. Sweden has since dropped much of the case but still wants to question him about an alleged rape. For Assange, the case has always been about more than the sexual assault allegations. He fears that Sweden or Britain would turn him over to the U.S. for prosecution on espionage charges stemming from WikiLeaks massive release of classified documents in 2010. As the news broke Thursday, his supporters expressed hope that the standoff could finally be brought to an end. For me, Julian Assange is somebody who has challenged power and actually been detained by power, his friend Vaughan Smith told reporters. Im really pleased that there is a potential resolution and I hope that the British and Swedish authorities will respond accordingly. But neither Sweden nor Britain indicated any change in their positions on the case. The working groups view differs from that of the Swedish authorities, a spokeswoman for Swedens Foreign Ministry said. We have been consistently clear that Mr. Assange has never been arbitrarily detained by the U.K. but is, in fact, voluntarily avoiding lawful arrest by choosing to remain in the Ecuadorean Embassy, a spokesman for the British Foreign Office said. Britains Metropolitan Police said in a statement that because a European arrest warrant was still in place and an allegation of rape was outstanding, it has a legal obligation to arrest Assange if he leaves the embassy. The U.N. panel took up the case after the Australian-born Assange filed a complaint against Sweden and Britain in 2014. He argued that being confined to the embassy was not his choice and that he was unable to get to Ecuador. He also claimed that being forced to live in roughly 320 square feet without sunlight or fresh air had taken a significant toll on his mental and physical health. The panel has previously ruled against countries with poor human rights records, which could make Fridays ruling awkward if Britain and Sweden decide to ignore it. The two governments were made aware of the decision in January. Assange released a statement Thursday on Twitter saying he would accept arrest by British police on Friday if the U.N. panel ruled against him. But if the panel ruled in his favor, he wrote, he expected the immediate return of my passport and the termination of further attempts to arrest me. Assanges legal team has said it will hold a news conference in London on Friday after the official report has been published. Boyle is a special correspondent. On 29 January US President Barack Obama and Brazils President Dilma Rousseff discussed via telephone their concerns over the spreading Zika virus and the need to collaborate regarding efforts to tackle the problem. The two leaders agreed on the need to advance research and to develop better vaccines and technology to combat the mosquito-borne virus. According to a White House press release, The leaders agreed to continue to prioritize building national, regional, and global capacity to combat infectious disease threats more broadly. On 1 February the Director General of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Dr Margaret Chan, convened an emergency committee to discuss the issues Latin America and the Caribbean are facing in combating the Zika virus. In a press release issued after the meeting, Chan said The experts agreed that a causal relationship between Zika infection during pregnancy and microcephaly is strongly suspected, though not yet scientifically proven. All agreed on the urgent need to coordinate international efforts to investigate and understand this relationship better. End of preview - This article contains approximately 657 words. Subscribers: Log in now to read the full article Not a Subscriber? Choose from one of the following options GOP presidential candidate Donald Trump may be the man of the polls, but Marco Rubio has focused his battles on another man -- Ted Cruz. Rubio avoided attacking Trump on Wednesday and focused on attacking Cruz instead. Both Latinos won more than half the vote in the recently concluded Republican Iowa caucuses. Despite various polls and predictions, Senator Ted Cruz garnered 28 percent of the vote and Senator Marco Rubio got 23 percent. Both presidential hopefuls exceeded expectations and votes for any other Latino candidate in previous elections. Trump has once again been running his mouth, this time focusing his sights on Ted Cruz. He complained of a "fixed" election in Iowa, claiming that Cruz's supporters spread rumors about some of the presidential candidates in order to garner support, Fox News Latino reports. Rubio declined to comment on Trump's accusations, saying that he "had no idea" what Trump was talking about. Instead, he addressed Cruz's alleged spreading of rumors against presidential candidate, Ben Carson. The Florida Senator has refused to target Trump. Though the former host of "The Apprentice" continues to lead the polls while the others are at war for a close second, Rubio said that he has no reason to attack Trump, at least not yet. He said that Trump has not outlined any actual policy details as of yet. He added that he rarely focuses his battles on Trump and instead focuses more on talking about what he would do when he is president. In a report with Today, Rubio went on to say that he has to make an "uphill climb" to victory, but he refuses to acknowledge Donald Trump as the man to beat. He said that Cruz was the one who was the "clear frontrunner." Rubio has called Trump "a good entertainer." He added that while Trump was clearly a "funny guy," he said that voters will choose someone who takes The White House and the presidency seriously. He added that running for president isn't about telling people what you are going to do, it is explaining how you are going to do it. Both Latino candidates have defied expectations during the Iowa caucuses. Cruz and Rubio have a bitter rivalry going on and Rubio went on to address that during the interview, saying that Cruz's supporters have aired edited campaign footage to sabotage him. But Rubio says he will continue the fight. "I think people know the truth," he said. 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Argentina has returned thousands of stolen cultural heritage items to Ecuador and Peru. According to the Peruvian Foreign Affairs Ministry, Argentina has handed over a total of 4,150 cultural artifacts to Peru. The move marks the biggest amount of cultural items recovered thus far, Andina news agency reported (via Peru this Week). "We are doing something unusual, really special," former Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner said during a ceremony at the National Museum of Fine Art in Buenos Aires last year, as reported by BBC. "It is an honor and a pleasure to restore the cultural wealth of countries such as Ecuador and Peru in a world where such wealth has so often been taken away." The artifacts were returned to Peru on Jan. 28 of this year, Peru this Week reported. The handover was made after the signing of the Agreement for the Protection, Conservation, Recovery, and Return of Stolen or Illegally Exported or Transferred Cultural, Archaeological, Artistic, and Historical Property. Speaking more about the artifacts' recovery, Fernandez de Kirchner said last year that "the world we live in is one in which great powers fight to control the cultural riches of other people. One can see in the great museums of the world pieces from Greece, Syria, Egypt, Asia and even Latin America, and which have not been returned," Times of India reported. She continued that "just as they should with medicinal patents (using indigenous plants), countries that hold onto cultural riches and refuse to give them back, at least should pay some kind of royalty to the countries they are from, since they were made by cultures other than their own," the news outlet added. The cultural items' recovery has a positive effect on Peru's bilateral relations with Argentina, Peru this Week noted. The exchange also symbolizes the Chancellary and Cultural Ministry's commitment to regain illegally exported items. The archaeological artifacts, which are deemed to possess significant historical value, include items such as pre-Colombian goods, textiles, wood, metals, pottery, organic fiber, and bone remains. 3,898 of the recovered items were seized from art collectors and traffickers in Buenos Aires in 2000, Peru this Week added. In September 2015, Argentine authorities apprehended two separate contraband traders attempting to transport historic artifacts and stolen artworks across the Argentina-Uruguay border. The suspects were captured by the Argentine customs agency, or AFIP, in different vehicles at a customary border crossing, InSight Crime reported (as translated from Clarin). They were carrying ancient books, paintings, weapons, and musical instruments, among other items. 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The remains of Chilean poet and diplomat Pablo Neruda will soon be back to its tomb after a state judge decided it was time for him to come home. According to TelSUR, Chilean Judge Mario Carroza ruled that Neruda's remains should be returned to his tomb in Isla Negra, a small town located about 120 kilometers from Santiago. The judge decided that the Nobel Laureate would be returned home since "all forensic examinations have been completed." "There is only one pending analysis remaining to be done and it is genomic one to identify possible viruses or bacterias that could have caused his death at the clinic where he died," he stated. Furthermore, a report from Fox News Latino cited an order from the judge indicating that "bone samples (be kept) in reserve" per recommendations from international expert Angel Carrecedo. Neruda, a poet known to his family as Ricardo Eliecer Neftali Reyes Basoalto, will be going back to his home town on April 26. Three years ago, his remains were exhumed to determine whether or not he was assassinated during the brutal dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet between 1973 and 1990. The Nobel Laureate's death on September 23, 1973 has been stained with malice since it happened, just 12 days after Pinochet overthrew the country's Socialist government under then-president Salvador Allende via a deadly coup that killed about 3,200 people. According to Tico Times, the Chilean poet and diplomat had been planning to leave the country for Mexico to lead those who opposed Pinochet's regime, despite his illness. He died at the age of 69. His death records initially stated that he died of advanced prostate cancer, but doubt arouse that he was actually poisoned. This is why his remains were exhumed -- in an effort to be examined again, per order from judge Carroza. In November, a statement from the Chilean Interior Ministry cited by TelSUR revealed that it is "clearly possible and highly likely that a third party" may be responsible for the poet's death. After tests were made, Spanish forensic experts from the University of Murcia who examined the remains found massive amounts of Staphylococcus aureus infection, a bacteria-caused contamination that does not naturally occur, per a statement from Chilean Interior Ministry cited by Tico Times. This solidified suspicions of the poet's relatives back in October that he was indeed murdered by injecting a highly aggressive, penicillin-resistant bacterium. More detailed test results are due for release next month. 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The LG G5 phone is coming a day prior to the highly anticipated Mobile World Congress (MWC) and many are psyched to see if the company indeed built it with the rumored "Magic Slot." According to Techno Buffalo, the Korean company has revealed its plans to launch their new flagship phone via a Tweet. While the post appears to have been removed prior to the writing of this article, the tweet featured in the outlet's February 3 report appears to identify February 21st as the scheduled release date of the new smartphone. The tech news outlet further noted that aside from revealing the date of the launch, the cited tweet also highlights the photo-snapping capabilities, which presumably have been improved. "The Korean company confirmed the date through its social media channels on Wednesday, making some not-so-subtle references that photography will be a major focal point," the report read, adding that invitations were also sent out to members of the media. Aside from Twitter, LG also posted over Facebook, claiming that it is "time for some play," directly mentioning the host for this year's MWC and the same date -- February 21st. Time for some play! With new friend comes new fun.Excitement begins at Barcelona on February 21st.#LG #LGG5 #G5 Posted by LG Mobile on Wednesday, February 3, 2016 However, this does not give any clue on whether or not the new flagship device will sport the so-called "Magic Slot" that is rumored to be a new feature in G5. According to rumors circulating this January cited by The Verge, the LG's new flagship phone will sport a never-before-seen design that includes a new accessory slot at the bottom of the device. First revealed by tech leaker Evan Blass of Venture Beat, the new 5.3-inch device is rumored to boast a hardware expansion feature, thanks to the "Magic Slot," where hardware modules will presumably be attached. Apparently, this Magic Slot will allow users to "add" different types of hardware, like cameras (action, 360 VR, or "party") as well as an audio amplifier or a physical keyboard. It is also said to sport a dual display with the same 1440 x 2560 QHD resolution, the second one which is called the "ticker," according to Evan Blass. It appears to be similar to that of the larger 5.7-inch V10. See image posted over Twitter below. Furthermore, Venture Beat claims that the new LG phone will feature dual-lens cameras, both in front and in the back, allowing snappers to capture clear wide-angle shots at about 135 degrees. Like its predecessor, the G5 will be powered by a 3GB RAM and 32GB worth of internal storage, matched with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 chipset and Android Marshmallow. What do you think of this new phone? Tell us via the comments section below. 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Good news to lovers of tequila. Recent studies have shown that the boozy drink is actually good for your health. The old adage may say that "an apple a day keeps the doctor away," but an even better idea may be "A shot of tequila a day keeps the doctor at bay." While the boozy drink is a popular favorite at the local bar or at festivities like Cinco de Mayo, few people are aware of the surprising health benefits of tequila. Here are 5 reasons why taking that extra shot of tequila is actually good for your health. 1. Tequila can help people lose weight. Perhaps one of the most surprising health benefits of tequila is that it can actually help one regulate or even lose weight. Care 2 Healthy Living says that the agave plant, which is used to make tequila, contains agavins, a natural type of sugar. This sugar is known to help control one's weight as it produces a hormone that can make the stomach feel fuller for longer. 2. Tequila fights cholesterol. Another reason to lift up that glass and say, "Salud!" is that it can help the body break down the fat in one's food. This means that it is easier for the fat to be absorbed. The fat breakdown makes it easier for the body to eliminate it. It also reduces bad cholesterol in the body. 3. Tequila is a natural pain reliever. Many Mexicans believe that tequila can be an effective reliever for pain. Studies have shown that drinking tequila can dilate the blood vessels, which leads to better blood flow. Drinking a shot of tequila can also cure mild headaches and muscle strains. 4. Tequila can help cure colds. Tequila has long been regarded to be a medical cure in Mexico. Back in the 1930s, Mexican doctors used a concoction of lime juice and tequila to battle the common cold, Elite Daily says. 5. Tequila can help prevent the risk of osteoporosis. The agave plant may help the body absorb calcium which protects against osteoporosis. Research showed that mice who were given agave fructans had less calcium in their feces, and had a 50 percent increase in protein that helps in the buildup of bone tissue. Next time you want to hit up that glass of Don Julio, go ahead. A shot of tequila can indeed go a long way! But remember, the best way to reap the benefits of tequila is to drink it slowly and having it neat. Chances are it will taste even better this way, anyway. 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Most third and fourth graders concern themselves with balancing school and play -- if they finish their homework early, maybe their parents will give them an extra hour to watch television or play with friends. For 10-year-old Wasil Ahmad, however, things aren't quite that easy. At nine, his father was killed by the Taliban. With his uncle wounded and unable to fight, he learned to fire a gun and had become a celebrated Taliban killer -- in the summer that he joined the anti-Taliban army, he was credited with gunning down six insurgents. Still, he decided to go back to school and enter the fourth grade in the fall, which is what any child should be doing at that age, anyway. Unfortunately, he didn't enjoy school for too long. According to The New York Times, the Taliban announced on Monday that they assassinated the child with two bullets to the head in Tirin Kot City, just a few months after leaving the militia and enrolling in fourth grade. His death made national headlines and served as a reminder that in the midst of war, both the government and the insurgents use children as soldiers in their war. The United Nations said that in 2014 alone, there were 68 cases of children -- some of them girls -- being recruited to join the war as combatants. However, in the first half of 2015 alone, the UN Mission in Afghanistan already documented 1,270 child casualties, 320 deaths, and 950 injuries. Speaking with the Los Angeles Times, Wasil's uncle, Abdul Samad, mentioned that the child was not a member of the Afghan Local Police or any other formal fighting force. As a child in a war-torn country, he was doing what anyone in the same situation would do. Samad said, "He had to take up arms. He was defending his home, his family." By Samad's account, Wasil picked up an AK 47 rifle when his father was killed in battle against the Taliban, saying that he wanted revenge. Taught by his uncle to shoot, the 10-year-old learned to fire shotguns, pistols, and other heavy weapons, even getting behind the wheel of a police pickup at some point. It wasn't until last summer that his abilities came to the test when his home in Khas Uruzgan district was sieged by the Taliban. He was said to have single-handedly shot six Taliban fighters in two months, a great feat at his young age, considering that in the years of fighting, Wasil's father managed to kill only 13. News outlets are calling Wasil Ahdmad a war hero, but others say his death was tragic; which side do you agree with? 2015 Latin One. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Mexican High School Teens Using Marijuana, Drugs Have Increased to More Than 17 Percent media@latinoshealth.com By Czarina Malleta Feb 04, 2016 05:25 AM EST A recent drug use survey revealed that up to 17.2 percent of middle and high school teens have used drugs, according to an article from The Washington Post. Marijuana was the most frequent drug that was used, according to the survey. The statistics came out after Mexico opened a formal debate regarding policies about the use of marijuana. There were five public debates that started in Cancun. Interior Secretary Miguel Angel Osorio, who raised his support for medical marijuana, attended the meeting. There were 160,000 students interviewed in the survey which revealed that 10.6 percent used marijuana. There were 5.8 percent who claimed they sniffed glue and 3.3 said they took cocaine. The survey also showed that there were 18.6 male users and 15.9 female users. A report from Latin Post claimed that Hispanic youths are more likely to take marijuana, ecstasy, cocaine and other drugs compared to other ethnic groups. There were more than 54 percent of Latino teens who reportedly used drugs, which is more than African American teens at 45 percent and white teens at 43 percent. Marijuana has been a popular choice because it is believed to be "mild and non-addictive." The report added that young Latinos tend to indulge in drugs more than other groups because they are exposed to the substance and abuse in their community. Consequently, Hispanic parents also tend to be more aware of the consequences of using drugs at a young age. A staggering 94 percent of Hispanic parents said that they would immediately take action if they discover that their children are using drugs. The number is significantly higher compared to other parents of other races. The legalization of marijuana is still under debate, but it has been revealed that the legalization in some parts of the US is already making Mexican drug cartels lose their profits. "The loosening of marijuana laws across much of the United States has increased competition from growers north of the border, apparently enough to drive down prices paid to Mexican farmers. Small-scale growers here in the state of Sinaloa, one of the country's biggest production areas, said that over the last four years, the amount they receive per kilogram has fallen from $100 to $30," Deborah Bonello for the Los Angeles Times reported. The use of marijuana for recreational purpose was legalized in Alaska, Oregon, Colorado, Nebraska, Washington and the District of Columbia. It could be legal soon in other states like California, Nevada, Minnesota, Maine and New York. Subscribe to the latinos health newsletter! Running Outside vs. Treadmill: Which Is Better? media@latinoshealth.com By Czarina Malleta Feb 04, 2016 05:33 AM EST When it comes to exercising, running is the popular choice. However, is there a difference between running outdoors and doing it on a treadmill? Running is one of the best ways to lose some weight and keep fit but aside from the physical benefits, it's also a great way to keep every part of the body healthy. Active published an article about the many benefits of running like improving health, preventing disease, boosting confidence, relieving stress and eliminating depression. Now that the benefits of running are established, the next move is to choose whether you will stick to running outdoors or on a treadmill. While both are beneficial, there are some slight differences in the results. Effort BBC journalist, producer and presenter Michael Mosley weighed these two options. Those who prefer running outdoors claim that it uses more energy. This is due to the wind resistance, which you don't get when you are inside the gym. However, gym fans say this is not true. In a study done by Exeter University, they gathered male runners and divided them equally to run outdoors and on the treadmill. What they found in the study is that runners who prefer exercising on the treadmill can compensate on the extra effort of running outside by setting their treadmill to a 1% gradient. Speed It turns out that when you are running on the treadmill, you overestimate the pace you are going. A study from Singapore that asked volunteers to run outdoors and match its speed on the treadmill concluded that when people use the treadmill, their pace becomes slower. Scientists explained that although runners think they are going fast on the treadmill, running indoors doesn't give a visual hint of how fast you are actually going. Well-being It is obviously better for the well-being to run outdoors, close to nature, than to use a machine inside a confined space. A study concluded that doing exercises outdoors generally promotes a greater feeling of being revitalized. People who ran outdoors said the results give them decreased depression, tension, anger and confusion. They also said that they enjoyed it more and will likely do it again. There is also a higher chance of being exposed to sunlight, which gives a natural dose of Vitamin D. Conclusion There are clearly more advantages in running outdoors than in using the treadmill. However, choosing between the two still depends on the person's ability and lifestyle. For those who are just starting to run, the best advice is to pick one that you would enjoy and something that will likely fit the schedule. Subscribe to the latinos health newsletter! Zika Virus: Latin America Needs $8.5 Million for Global Health Emergency Fund media@latinoshealth.com By Staff Writer Feb 04, 2016 05:30 AM EST The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) announced this week that an estimated $8.5 million in funds is needed to combat the Zika virus outbreak. The Zika virus, which is linked to the influx of babies being born with unusually small heads or microcephaly in Brazil, is rapidly spreading through the Americas. "We are mobilizing resources and estimate that we'll need $8.5 million to adequately help our members respond to this," said PAHO director Carissa Etienne, as reported by Fox News. Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff has declared war on the Zika virus and the mosquitoes that carry them. The outbreak is now considered a global health emergency by the World Health Organization (WHO). President Rousseff announced that the national mobilisation day will be on Saturday where the military and state employees will be combating the Zika mosquito carrier, Aedes aegypti in places where they breed in homes and offices. "All of us need to take part in this battle," she said in a TV address to the nation, as reported by BBC. "We need help and good will from everyone. Collaborate, mobilise your family and your community. "I will insist, since science has not yet developed a vaccine against the Zika virus, that the only efficient method we have to prevent this illness is the vigorous battle against the mosquito." Ms. Rousseff added that resources have been released to fight the mosquitoes. She also released words of comfort to mothers and would-be mothers in her address. "We will do everything, absolutely everything in our reach to protect you. We will do everything, absolutely everything we can to offer support to the children affected by microcephaly and their families." WHO Director-General Margaret Chan declared the outbreak an emergency even though some things about the disease are unclear. She declared the Zika outbreak "a Public Health Emergency of International Concern," in a press release. She justified it is taking immediate coordinated action as the alert for the disease is in the same category as the Ebola. There is no current vaccine, treatment or reliable diagnostic test for the disease which further spurns the concern. "A coordinated international response is needed to improve surveillance, the detection of infections, congenital malformations, and neurological complications, to intensify the control of mosquito populations, and to expedite the development of diagnostic tests and vaccines to protect people at risk, especially during pregnancy," she said. However, there are no travel and trade restrictions for the disease. She advised for people in affected areas to take protective steps to avoid getting bitten especially at-risk groups and pregnant women. Subscribe to the latinos health newsletter! Zika Virus News: No-Pregnancy Advice Contradicts Catholic Church Doctrine media@latinoshealth.com By Czarmecin Feb 04, 2016 05:33 AM EST The Zika virus outbreak has led the government in Latin America countries to advise their people to hold off pregnancy. Is this move threatening the Roman Catholic teaching about procreation? Latin America is facing a huge challenge with the Zika Virus outbreak. The number of newborn children with microcephaly continues to grow. There are studies linking the Zika virus to the newborns' condition, which prompts the government to encourage their people to avoid getting pregnant in as much as possible. Per Yahoo! News, in Colombia, the Minister of Health and Social Protection advised couples to wait until July 2016. Meanwhile, El Salvador officials recommend to wait until 2018. These moves are obviously out of line of the Catholic Church's teaching. The church is encouraging the people to procreate. In fact, they do not support the use of contraception such as condoms or pills. The teaching of the church notes that the union of spouse achieves two ends of marriage -- the good of the spouse themselves and the transmission of life. Therefore, the natural occurrence of pregnancy when couples have a sexual intercourse should not be avoided. Now, the Zika virus outbreak is testing the people's position again on birth controls. CNN reported that the current situation in Latin America is not only causing medical problems as it is also creating a theological conundrum among the Roman Catholics. "I've never seen this advice before, and when you hear it, you think, 'What are the bishops going to do?'" said Rev. John Paris, a bioethicist and Catholic priest at Boston College. Daniel Ramirez, an assistant professor of history and American culture at the University of Michigan and an expert on Latin American religious culture, believes that the situation will "present a lot of problems for the bishops to sort out." "They're going to have to really thread a fine theological needle here," Ramirez added. In Latin America, most people's attitudes follow the laws of the Catholic Church. However, they are slowly detaching from the beliefs of the church. In a 2014 Pew Research Center survey, 66 percent among Latin American countries believe that Catholics should use birth controls. Moreover, while the Latin America remains strict when it comes to anti-abortion laws, they did some adjustments based on their current predicament. In Brazil, abortion is always illegal but one judge made an exception for microcephaly, The New York Times reported. The church, however, remains stern on their stand against abortion. "Nothing justifies an abortion," said Rev. Luciano Brito, a spokesperson for the Catholic Archdiocese of Olinda and Recife. "Just because a fetus has microcephaly won't make us favorable" to changing the law. At the time, the church remains mum whether the Zika virus outbreak affects their pro-life teaching. Subscribe to the latinos health newsletter! Gene-Therapy Technique News: Panel OKs Creation of Embryos with DNA of 3 People media@latinoshealth.com By Czarmecin Feb 04, 2016 05:39 AM EST A panel of experts agreed that creating an embryo from three different people is okay. The controversial gene-therapy technique involves three individuals, a mom, dad, and an egg donor. The process replaces an embryo's energy-producing mitochondria with healthy mitochondria from the egg of the donor. This aims to prevent the transmission of diseases caused my mutations in mitochondrial DNA, NPR reported. According to PBS, only mothers pass on the mitochondrial DNA to her children. It encodes a mere 37 genes. The defective gene leaves the cell without energy resulting to blindness, seizures, muscle degeneration, developmental disorders and even death. The severity varies. The scientists estimate that 1 in 5,000 children inherit some degree of mitochondrial disease. This condition is difficult to treat but, with the gene-therapy technique, this can be avoided. "It's unlikely we'll find any cure once the child is born already with these mutations," said Dr. Shoukhrat Mitalipov of Oregon Health & Sciences University. "The best way is to prevent it." Mitalipov produced five healthy monkeys using the technique and approached FDA to consider the studies for humans. On Wednesday, 12-member panel, assembled by the National Academics of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine, released a 164-page report outlining their plans on how to ethically pursue the controversial research. "The committee concludes that it is ethically permissible," the panel said in the report. However, there is a long list of conditions that need to be met. Scientists would need to perform a thorough preliminary research in the laboratory and try it on the animal sample to make sure that it is safe. In the first attempts of pregnancy, researchers should only implant to male embryos because they are incapable of passing mitochondrial alterations. As said earlier, only the females pass the mitochondria DNA to their offsprings. So, as part of safety measures, the experiment will try the male babies first. Food and Drug Administration requested the report in response to the applications from two groups of scientists in New York and Oregon to conduct the experiments. Both groups aim to help women deliver healthy babies, even if they come from families plagued with genetic disorders. The FDA emailed that panel and praised their "thoughtful work." They stressed that they will review the recommendations but noted that, currently, the federal budget "prevents the FDA from using funds to review applications in which a human embryo is intentionally created or modified to include." The researchers are hopeful that this will be pursued. "Mitochondrial DNA disease can be extremely devastating, and for the women who are at risk of passing it on to their children, they have no other option by which to pursue having a child that's genetically related to them," said Jeffrey Kahn, a bioethicist at Johns Hopkins University. Subscribe to the latinos health newsletter! Eggs Are Best For Filling Up Kids at Breakfast: Study media@latinoshealth.com By Czarmecin Feb 04, 2016 05:45 AM EST A new study, published in the journal Eating Behaviors, suggests that breakfast with egg is more filling than cereal or oatmeal. For parents out there who are confused what to prepare for their kids on breakfast, you do not need to wonder anymore. Give them eggs and you will keep your kids fuller for a longer time. Yahoo News! reported that giving children a protein-riched breakfast like eggs make them feel fuller for hours over the grain-based breakfast such as cereal or oatmeal. The researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing examined the best breakfast that will keep children fuller longer. They recruited 40 children with ages 8 to 10. They asked the children to eat one of the three 350-calorie breakfast that includes eggs, cereal and oatmeal. The experiment lasted for three weeks, CTV News reported. The children consume all the breakfast and played with the researchers afterwards. During lunchtime, they were allowed to eat as much or as little as they wanted. In the morning, they were asked with questions like, "How hungry are you?" and "How much food do you think you could eat right now?" The children's food consumption in the remainder of the day was recorded in a food journal by their parents. After three weeks, the researchers examined the results and found out that those children who ate eggs for breakfast (scrambled eggs, whole-wheat toast, diced peaches, and one percent milk) ate less at lunchtime. Thereby, reducing their energy intake by 70 calories, roughly equal to a small chocolate-chip cookie and a percent of child's daily caloric needs. The study notes that eating more than the caloric needs regularly, even by a small amount may result in weight gain that could lead to obesity. The researchers note that, although protein-rich egg breakfast made the children feel fuller for longer and eat lesser at lunchtime, the protein-rich meal only affected what the children consumed at mid-day and not later on in the day. Despite eating less at lunchtime, the children did not report less hunger, which surprised the researchers. "I'm not surprised that the egg breakfast was the most satiating breakfast," said Tanja Kral, lead author. "What does surprise me is the fact that, according to the children's reports, eating the egg breakfast didn't make them feel fuller than cereal or oatmeal, even though they ate less for lunch," she added. "We expected that the reduced lunch intake would be accompanied by lower levels of hunger and greater fullness after eating the high protein breakfast, but this wasn't the case." Subscribe to the latinos health newsletter! Zika Virus: WHO Voices Concern Over Report That Infection Can Be Transmitted 'Through Sex' staff@latinoshealth.com By Monica Antonio Feb 04, 2016 06:00 AM EST The World Health Organization (WHO) has raised its concern regarding a recent case in Dallas, Texas, where the Zika virus has been transmitted through sexual intercourse, Reuters reports. According to the publication, WHO said that the possibility of the Zika virus being transmitted through sex needs to be investigated. The said Zika virus case in Texas was first reported on Tuesday. Also, WHO announced that the mosquito-borne disease can spread in other regions like Asia and Africa. WHO's Europe Chief, Zsuzsanna Jakab, said on Tuesday, "Now is the time for countries to prepare themselves to reduce the risk to their populations." "A number of travelers infected with Zika have entered Europe, but the disease has not been transmitted further, as the mosquito is still inactive. With the onset of spring and summer, the risk that Zika virus will spread increases," he added. Meanwhile, regarding the possibility of the Zika virus being contracted through sex, WHO announced that the Dallas, Texas report is only the "second mooted case of sexual transmission." According to Chron, the first one happened in 2008 from a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) researcher, who traveled to Senegal and infected his wife. The publication further noted that the Zika virus in the researcher's semen was isolated during the Zika outbreak in French Polynesia. WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl told Reuters, "We certainly understand the concern. This needs to be further investigated to understand the conditions and how often or likely sexual transmission is, and whether or not other body fluids are implicated." Hartl further said, per USA Today, that considering that the Zika virus is primarily transmitted through the Aeges mosquito, one of WHO's main concern is to eradicate it as well as the places where they reproduce. "Health authorities need to take action to destroy the mosquito and its breeding sites, and individuals can take actions to protect themselves personally," Hartl said as quoted by the publication. Jakab also said that WHO's global response team has called for a meeting to discuss the sexual transmission of the Zika virus. The organization has also set up a team to investigate more about the matter. The CDC has already implemented travel advisories to advise those, especially pregnant women who are traveling to Zika-infected locations, to take precautionary measures as Zika can lead to a birth defect called microcephaly. Precautionary measures include wearing long-sleeved shirts and pants, applying repellents, staying indoors or in air-conditioned facilities and more. Subscribe to the latinos health newsletter! In his statement during the recent G-20 Summit in Turkey, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed his country's willingness to build a refugee camp in Northern Syria, Trend News Agency reports. Currently, Turkey has several refugee camps that house at least 300,000 displaced Syrian refugees. President Erdogan's commitment to building an additional refugee camp is intended for the Syrian refugees residing in Turkey and other millions that are all over Turkey's territories. In his statement about the project, Erdogan said, "This issue was discussed with the Russian and U.S. presidents during the recent G-20 Summit in Turkey." Meanwhile, according to UN News Centre, Erdogan has also escalated his plea to the United Nations (UN), asking for their support in resolving the Syrian refugees crisis and the Middle East's woes on peace. On Sunday, Jan. 31, Erdogan arrived in Chile where he gave a lecture at the headquarters of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). Erdogan expressed his country's interest in joining the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) to seal Turkey's spot in the trade business between Latin America and the Caribbean. ECLAC Executive Secretary Alicia Barcena has lauded the Turkish leader's eagerness to expand in the region, saying that it's a sign that they are interested in what the Latin America region can offer. In 2009, Chile went ahead on signing the FTA with Turkey, making them the first country in Latin America to sign deals with the Middle East country. Erdogan also cited his country's current relationship with Latin America and the Caribbean, implying that they have surpassed their diplomatic missions in the region compared to 2009's six missions. He also added that the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA) has also opened several offices in Colombia and Mexico. Turkey and Latin America's trade relationship has also strengthened in the past decade. Trade revenues increased from $1 billion in 2000 to a staggering $10 billion in 2014, according to Barcena. She also cited how the Turkish economy is gaining strength, hitting marks above the "world average" record. The Turkish president also said that with over two million Syrian refugees living within Turkey's territories, he is pleading to the international communities to act on the crisis. Turkey is one of the founding members of the UN and in the Latin America region and is an Observer of the Organization of American States (OAS). Republican Sen. Rand Paul decided to suspend his run in the Republican presidential primary race and will instead focus on getting re-elected for a second term as a U.S. senator in Kentucky. Paul announced Wednesday that he is ending his 2016 hopes for the White House days after he earned only one delegate and just 4.5 percent of support in the Iowa Caucus Monday night. "It's been an incredible honor to run a principled campaign for the White House. Today, I will end where I began, ready and willing to fight for the cause of Liberty," the libertarian-minded senator said in a statement, according to Politico. "Across the country thousands upon thousands of young people flocked to our message of limited government, privacy, criminal justice reform and a reasonable foreign policy. Brushfires of Liberty were ignited, and those will carry on, as will I." According to sources close to Paul's camp, it became increasingly clear that the senator did not have a viable path to winning the Republican nomination while fund-raising was becoming extremely difficult, reports CNN. Meanwhile, polls show Paul, the son of former Texas representative and 2012 Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul, was struggling to gain traction in New Hampshire in the days leading up to the state's primary. Some polls show him currently ranking in ninth place in the Granite State. On the other hand, his father won 23 percent of the vote in New Hampshire back in 2012. Another insider close to Paul's campaign in New Hampshire told ABC News that some "some of the staff found out yesterday" that Paul was ending his bid, while "the rest found out this morning. Obviously people here at the office are disappointed, but we think his message will continue to resonate with the freedom movement in the Republican Party." Cesar Vargas, an immigrant-rights activist and recipient of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, was finally sworn as a lawyer in New York after a lengthy court battle. On Feb. 3, Vargas was officially sworn in Brooklyn and recognized as the first DACAmented lawyer across New York -- four years after he passed his state bar exam. Vargas, however, initially denied the opportunity to become a lawyer due to his immigration status. Born in Mexico, Vargas came to the U.S. when he was five years old and eventually worked and graduated from the City University of New York (CUNY) School of Law and passed the New York bar exam in 2011. Since 2012, however, Vargas had his bar admission denied since he was an undocumented immigrant. That same year, President Barack Obama announced DACA, a deferred action program offering temporary protections for select immigrant youths. In February 2013, Vargas was approved for DACA, but despite the program, it took a few more years for courts to grant his dream to become a lawyer. Last year, a five-judge panel unanimously ruled in favor of Vargas. Describing the day as "surreal," Vargas said he can officially tell his mother that he's a lawyer, although she always has said he's already been a lawyer in her eyes regardless of the circumstances. "We did it. We really accomplished something great because we opened the door to not just the legal profession but for other professions to really aspire to whatever you want to be - your dreams," Vargas told Latin Post. According to Vargas, his legal battle showcased that a major change is not possible or done by one person, but through the support of many including his professors, attorneys and elected officials. For Juan Cartagena, president and general counsel of LatinoJustice PRLDEF, which represented Vargas, Feb. 3 marked a historic day on many levels and hopes the New York State Judiciary's decision follows throughout similar cases across the country. Vargas told Latin Post that fellow undocumented immigrants who may want pursue their dreams have to "step out of the shadows." "There are amazing people who are there to support you," Vargas said. "You just need to make sure that you tell your story, tell your story that regardless of where you're born, you can be anything and that you're an American." Fellow immigrant rights activist and DREAMer Erika Andiola, who has stood by Vargas' journey to become a lawyer, said Vargas has helped change the lives of many people by disclosing his immigration status and challenging New York, whereas he could have instead went to a different state to live his dream. Andiola told Latin Post, "Just witnessing the fact that he would do that and the courage to do that, knowing he would wait many years to get a license, was just incredible to see and now witnessing the results that it's not just him that gets this type of opportunity to be a DREAMer-licensed lawyer [and] that they opened the door for so many other DREAMers." "I do have the dream of going to law school one day and at least I know that if anything, I am from Arizona, but I know that if I ever move to New York I'll be able to become a lawyer thanks to what Cesar paved for the rest of us," Andiola added. Along with Andiola, Vargas is currently helping with Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders' presidential campaign, but he does want to utilize his legal profession to represent clients, including Central American children who have no legal representation and be there just as there were people for him. __ For the latest updates, follow Latin Post's Politics Editor Michael Oleaga on Twitter: @EditorMikeO or contact via email: m.oleaga@latinpost.com. The Obama administration released a new report Tuesday citing data that shows illegal immigration has sharply declined in the month of January. According to the U.S Department of Homeland Security, the number of illegal crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border dropped by 36 percent from December to January. This indicates that there were less migrants attempting to cross the southwest border. Meanwhile, there has also able been a significant decline in the number of undocumented children and families who were apprehended at the border. "In January 2016, apprehensions of unaccompanied children declined by 54 percent compared to the month before, and apprehensions of those in families declined by 65 percent in the same period," reads the report. As a result, only 3,113 unaccompanied migrant children were apprehended at the southern border in January, compared to 6,786 in December. Plus, 3,145 members of families were caught last month, compared to 8,974 at the end of 2015. According to Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh C. Johnson, the government's controversial deportation raids are helping to decrease and deter the number of undocumented immigrants crossing the border. Since the raids began on Jan. 2, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has apprehended 121 undocumented immigrants of mostly mothers and children who recently crossed the border. So far, 77 of those immigrants have already been deported. Pro-immigration advocates, however, say it's premature to draw a connection between the administration's raids and the drop in illegal border crossings. They argue that migration at the southwest border tends to die down in the winter and pick up over the summer. They also note that it's unlikely that news of the raids has reached Central American countries. "The time it takes a refugee to travel from Central America to the United States precludes making any connection between the raids and the number of people who have arrived since the raids," said Jonathan Ryan, executive director of the San Antonio-based Raices immigrant legal advocacy group, reports the Los Angeles Times. Still, Johnson defended the raids and vowed to continue them. "While the one-month decline in January is encouraging, this does not mean we can dial back our border security efforts," he said in the statement. "Our borders are not open to illegal migration." "If someone was apprehended at the border, has been ordered deported by an immigration court, has no pending appeal, and does not qualify for asylum or other relief from removal under our laws, he or she must be sent home." As for refugees fleeing ongoing violence in El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, Johnson said the Refugee Admissions Program is being expanded "to help vulnerable men, women and children in Central America." Intel is one of the cornerstones of Silicon Valley, which famously has a diversity problem. Intel, not surprisingly, is not very diverse. But the company has been pushing for action on diversity, and its latest report -- though showing halting progress within its own workforce -- is setting a standard for the industry with its depth and transparency. On Tuesday, Intel released its annual diversity report covering 2015, and as with every technology company's report, there are signs of progress amid an obvious wealth of persistent problems. But compared to most of Silicon Valley, Intel is doing more and making headway towards a more diverse workforce. It starts with transparency and setting measurable goals, which Intel previously set itself apart from the rest of the industry when CEO Brian Krzanich announced at CES 2014 that Intel was committed to reaching full representation of underrepresented minorities in the company by 2020. Intel's 53 page diversity report issued this week, meanwhile, was definitely an example of outstanding, in-depth transparency. On the path towards "#Parity2020," the hashtag created to publicize Intel's impressive goals, 2015 showed some progress. According to Intel's report, 43.1 percent of its hires in 2015 were either women or minorities such as Latinos or Blacks, which edged over the goal it set of 40 percent. The company also reported that the number of women at Intel was 5 percent up from the year prior, at 13,299 in 2015 compared to 11,836 total in 2014. The proportion of women in technical positions grew as well, though only by about one percent over the previous year. In total, there's a lot more progress to be made, as about 75 percent of the company's employees are men. The representation of Latinos and African Americans in Intel improved as well, and Intel remains on the higher end of Latino representation (compared to Silicon Valley in general), with about 8.4 percent of its workforce being Hispanic. But representation of minorities at Intel grew by much smaller margins compared to other accomplishments in diversity at the company last year. The overall number of Latinos in technical jobs, for example, grew by a little over 100 employees total -- from 3,533 in 2014 to 3,670 Hispanic tech employees. The number of Black tech workers increased by 71 total over the previous year. Besides percentages and numbers of underrepresented employees, Intel reported in more depth about other issues surrounding diversity. For example, Intel proudly reported it was able to achieve 100 percent gender pay equity for all of its female employees at all levels of the company in the U.S. Another topic that Intel included in its transparency report is retention, which is a big issue with Silicon Valley companies and especially female employees. Intel, like the industry it is a part of, admitted it has a big retention issue. Unlike many tech companies, Intel is working on creative retention strategies, including putting community-building and retention responsibilities on all employees. As Laura Weidman-Powers, the CEO of minority STEM education non-profit CODE2040, told USA Today, with that focus, Intel is thinking more broadly than the diversity and retention systems that other Silicon Valley companies employ. "A lot of companies set up a buddy system -- somehow they make it the responsibility of other African American folks at the company to increase retention," she said. "It's kind of a hidden task for African Americans that they're not paid for." Even with a long way to go until full representation, and a few diversity figures that underperform compared to some of its peers, Intel continues to lead the industry in diversity because of the deep, honest appraisal it makes of its own progress, and the full emphasis and energy it puts towards solutions. "I think there's two ways to think of company culture -- as reflective or aspirational," she told Wired. "If a culture is more aspirational, it's easier to pick a north star and say, 'If we're not there right now, it's not wrong -- it's just a process.' It feels like Intel is adapting more of that mindset." For the first time during his tenure, President Barack Obama paid a visit to an American mosque on Wednesday where he delivered an impassioned speech condemning Islamophobia. During his speech, the president focused on religious tolerance and unity in wake of growing anti-Islamic sentiment following ISIS-inspired terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino last year. "An attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths," Obama said at The Islamic Society of Baltimore, which has around 3,000 congregants, reports NBC News. "We have to be consistent in condemning hateful rhetoric," he continued, "none of us can be bystanders to bigotry." The president thanked attendees in the packed auditorium at the mosque, which also runs a school, summer camp and health clinic, for standing up against terrorism. He added that the religious extremists have given a "hugely distorted impression" of their faith. At other parts of the speech, he recited passages from the Quran and assured American Muslims that they are a crucial part of America's fabric and future, reports The New York Times. "Let me say as clearly as I can as president of the United States: you fit right here," he said. "You're right where you belong. You're part of America too. You're not Muslim or American. You're Muslim and American." He also commended Muslims for being "some of the most resilient and patriotic Americans" in the country in spite hateful rhetoric being promoted by Republican leaders and Islamophobic attacks across the nation. "You're not Muslim or American - you're Muslim and American. Don't grow cynical," Obama urged. "Don't respond to ignorance by a world view saying you must choose between your faith and your patriotism. Don't believe you must choose between your best impulses." Before giving his address, Obama participated in a round-table discussion with Muslim community leaders. Prominent Muslim politicians and athletes were also in attendance, including fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad, who will become the first American to compete in a hijab at the 2016 Summer Olympics. According to reports, Latinos are the fastest growing demographic in the U.S. converting to Islam. As of now, there are about 150,000 Islam converts among the Latino community in the U.S., reported California newspaper the Press-Enterprise. Latin American health officials agreed to have an emergency meeting against the Zika virus outbreak Wednesday, Feb. 3. The meeting was held in Montevideo, Uruguay, participated by 14 health officials including Brazilian Health Minister Marcelo Castro. According to Yahoo!, the focus of the meeting is for everyone to work full force against the virus and to brainstorm about the ways on how to control the mosquito population. Castro said that now is the time for Latin American officials to "exchange information, make alliances, and discuss what coordinated action we can take to control this epidemic." Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said that her government is willing to do everything and offer "all resources" available to help fight the outbreak. She also vowed to the families of those infected babies that the Brazilian government will help them in every way they can. "My entire government is working on fighting this emergency, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff said. "We will partner up with the U.S. government, with President [Barack] Obama ... in order to develop as quickly as possible a vaccine for the Zika virus," she added. As reported by the Voice of America, treatment for Zika has yet to be made. But there are already a number of pharmaceutical companies around the globe that are working on it. Bharat Biotech, an Indian drug company, said that it was already developing the world's first Zika vaccine which is now ready to be tested on animals. On the other hand, Sanofi, a French pharmaceutical giant, announced that the company's research for the Zika vaccine has begun. As a part of the plan to eliminate the Zika virus-carrying Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes, the Brazilian government has sent out more than 500,000 personnel to inform and advice people about the disease and to clean the mosquitoes' breeding grounds. "This virus, which only recently arrived in Brazil and Latin America, no longer is a distant nightmare but a real threat to all Brazilians' homes," President Rousseff said. But unfortunately, the Zika "nightmare" is not just in Brazil but is already present across the Americas. In fact, Zika cases have already been reported in America's 26 states. Carissa Etienne, the head of the Pan American Health Organization, said that what worries the ministers of the affected states is how fast the virus infections have spread. She also shared how her organization is willing to help fight against Zika. In fact, it has recently provided $850,000 to countries which have been affected by the virus. After the Iowa Republican Assembly showed how former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum fared on the presidential race, the once aspiring U.S. presidentiable finally quits the race and throws his support to Florida Sen. Marco Rubio. On Monday's Iowa assembly, Santorum placed last among the presidential hopefuls, garnering only one percent of the total votes, CBS News reports. In January, Santorum ditched Fox News' prime time debate. Instead, he attended a fundraising event hosted by Donald trump. Santorum's presidential bid is said to be quite the battle after realizing that the last he ever served public office was in 2012. As for him endorsing Rubio, he said on Fox News as quoted by CBS News, "He's a tremendously gifted young man, and he's a leader, he's a born leader. He is the new generation and someone that can bring this country together, not just moderates and conservatives, but young and old." In 2012, according to CNN, Santorum was able to clinch the Iowa assembly, landing second in the most number of delegates. However, his eventual failure to retain that momentum led to him quitting the race. With his declining stats, he said that his family is with him when he said that the only possible way now for him to achieve his campaign's goal is to renounce his bid. Despite Santorum quitting the race, he has not let go of his advocacies and his "socially conservative views." Instead, he allotted more time on addressing his plans such as reviving the American manufacturing that fits perfectly with his ideas on foreign policies. On his Twitter account, Santorum also confirmed his withdrawal from the race, saying, "So thankful & grateful for your support. Just not our year. So today please join me in supporting @marcorubio". Previously, Marco Rubio was asked by CNN's Dana Bash on what he felt about Santorum's endorsement wherein he said that he hasn't spoken to the Pennsylvania senator. He also added "I think he's fantastic." So thankful & grateful for your support. Just not our year. So today please join me in supporting @marcorubio pic.twitter.com/VhgHo9trNp Rick Santorum (@RickSantorum) February 4, 2016 Rick Santorum's Twitter announcement was later acknowledged by Rubio. The Florida senator re-tweeted the message with an accompanying reply, "I have tremendous admiration and respect for @RickSantorum, and I am excited to have him on our team." I have tremendous admiration and respect for @RickSantorum, and am excited to have him on our team. https://t.co/oJPAoBkgHZ Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) February 4, 2016 On Tuesday, Santorum held a press conference at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where he said as per another CBS News report, "We made a decision over the weekend that while this presidential race for us is over for me, and we will suspend our campaign effective today, we are not done fighting." Yoko Ono is calling for peace and love across the world. The 82-year-old artist is using her work to spread the word against violence as she brings her participative-performance exhibit "Tierra de Esperanza" or "Land of Hope" to Mexico City. According to a report from Fox News Latino, Ono attended the opening of the exhibit at the Museum of Memory and Tolerance telling the crowd, "I have come here to bring world peace." The collaborative nature of the exhibit is in full display throughout the whole show with the tourists given the freedom to put stamps for peace on maps of the country or the world. One part of the "Land of Hope" urges visitors to put broken plates back together, while another showcases a white telephone in a labyrinth. There are also certain displays that train the spotlight on women and the effects of violence against them. Ono's latest exhibit is in response to the constant violence in Mexico. The Fox News Latino report revealed that the country has seen over 100,000 people dead or missing due to drug-related violence in the past 10 years. In an interview with the Economist in relation to a retrospective of her work "Yoko Ono Lumiere de l'aube" (Light of dawn), the artist addressed the question of bringing her message of light and peace beyond like-minded individuals. "Light will hit us all," Ono explained. "Some already are in the light. The rest of the human race will be in the light a bit slower. That's alright." Although the famous artist will turn 83 years old in a few weeks time, her career is still moving forward at full force. During her birthday on Feb. 17, Ono is slated to receive the Inspiration Award at the NME Awards in Austin, Texas, according to a report from Music Week. NME's editor-in-chief Mike Williams praised the artist's significance in the industry through the decades in an official statement from Music Week. "Yoko Ono's influence on modern culture is undeniable," Williams said. "As an icon and a rebel, her revolutionary ideas and concepts have subverted cultural norms and boundaries, and she shows no sign of slowing down even as she turns 83. Yoko is a truly amazing inspiration who we're honoured to welcome to the NME Awards with Austin, Texas this year." In a statement of her own, Ono expressed her appreciation at the recognition saying, "Thank you, NME for this great honour. I accept this as your encouragement for me to keep making my 'Sound of Music' I love you!" After initially showing that he took his Iowa caucus defeat in stride, Donald Trump's pent up anger can no longer be contained and has now unleashed a flurry of attacks to Ted Cruz in Twitter. The Donald is now accusing Ted Cruz of stealing his Iowa caucus victory and added that the Texas senator did illegal things, therefore his win should be nullified. Cruz's victory at the Republican caucuses upset a lot of people, as many analysts saw Trump as winning it in the state. The reason analysts thought so is because for months and even just days leading up to the caucuses, Trump was leading Cruz in the polls. Trump took to Twitter to express his displeasure and said, "Ted Cruz didn't win Iowa, he stole it. That is why all of the polls were so wrong and why he got far more votes than anticipated. Bad!" Ted Cruz didn't win Iowa, he stole it. That is why all of the polls were so wrong and why he got far more votes than anticipated. Bad! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) February 3, 2016 But it did not stop there, as it's just one of the many tweets the billionaire candidate has sent to the Cruz camp. In addition, Trump mentioned that Cruz's actions during the Iowa caucuses were a bit shady and straight up called it a "fraud." He further explained his accusations and mentioned Ben Carson, another Republican presidential candidate. Trump mentioned the controversy wherein Cruz apologized to the retired neurosurgeon for saying that he already withdrew from the race, therefore influencing the decision of some voters. Business Insider reported that Rep. Steve King, a known Ted Cruz supporter, tweeted that "Carson looks like he is out. Iowans need to know before they vote. Most will go to Cruz, I hope." Trump alleged that the tweet posted by King was read by some of Carson's voters and believed he is indeed quitting the presidential race, which led them to cast their vote to Cruz. As for Cruz, he apologized to Carson and expressed regret over what happened, adding that his campaign team should have promoted Carson's statement of denying the rumor -- something his camp directly caused. In a related report by USA Today, Trump further expressed his disdain for the senator and called him a liar. Trump said that although he said that he was hesitant to call him as such, he really believes that Cruz lied. During an interview, the mogul-turned-politician even said that what Cruz did to the Carson camp was a total disgrace. But for Cruz, he dismissed his rival's claim and called it as just another "TrumperTantrum." The New Hampshire primaries seems more favorable to Trump as of press time, he still leads over Cruz 33 to 11, Real Clear Politics reported. Pope Francis, who will be visiting Mexico on Feb. 12 to Feb. 17, is urging the citizens to rally together in the face of violence and corruption. According to a report from Fox News Latino, the pope talked to Mexico's Notimex news agency ahead of his visit to express his thoughts for the people in the country and his plans to join them in prayer for the resolution of the many issues in the world. "I'm going to go to receive the best in you, and to pray with you that the problems of violence, corruption and all that you know is happening may be resolved," he said before pointing out that the Mexico that's plagued with drug trafficking and violence is not the one its patron saint Virgin of Guadalupe envisioned for the country. The country has long been struggling with corruption and cartel violence, which have already killed over 100,000 people in the last 10 years, according to a report from Channel News Asia. "Of course I don't want to cover up any of that," Francis clarified in the Fox News Latino report. "On the contrary, I exhort you to fight every day against corruption, against trafficking, against war, against division, against organized crime, against human smuggling." While he is planning to address the plight of the men and women of Mexico, Francis revealed that he is not promising to be "one of the Three Kings" bringing all the solutions to the problems of the citizens. Instead, he is seeking to be one with the faithful. "I'm going as a pilgrim, seeking for the Mexican people to give me something," Pope Francis said. "I'm not going to pass the collection plate, don't worry, but I'm going to seek the richness of faith that you have, I'm going to seek to become infected with the richness of faith that you have." The pope will spend five days in Mexico, according to the report from Channel News Asia. He is set to reach out to many of the poor communities in the country including celebrating Mass with the indigenous community in Mexico's poorest state Chiapas. Also among his plans is to speak with young people in Morelia, capital of the Michoacan state that's known for its rising number of violence. Finally, Pope Francis will conclude his visit with a Mass in Ciudad Juarez, a town that used to have one of the world's highest murder rates. Just days after the peace talks regarding the Syrian civil war started, the UN announced its suspension and delaying it for a later date. According to BBC, the Syrian government and the opposition failed to agree on a common ground, with the Syrian government accusing the opposition of being manipulated by countries such as Qatar, Turkey and Saudi Arabia. However, Syria's opposition, also called the High Negotiations Committee (NHC), blamed the Syrian government over the failure of the peace talks and vowed not to participate until everything is settled. In his statement, NHC's chief coordinator Riad Hijab said, "The whole world sees who is making the negotiations fail. Who is bombing civilians and starving people to death." UN's special envoy Staffan de Mistura insisted that the peace talks has not been declared a failure and will resume on Feb. 25. With several conditions cited at the Geneva peace talks, the opposition asked for the cease on siege warfare as well as the release of captives. Though the Syrian government didn't directly oppose the request, they stalled time by requesting supporting information. Amid the supposed negotiations, the situation on the ground has not improved as Syrian military continues their siege, getting support from Russian bombers so the government can reclaim rebel-held territories. The U.S. and Russia's participation on airstrikes has also caused tension and contributed to the peace talks' unsuccessful deliberation. State department spokesman John Kirby downplayed the allegation saying, "It is difficult in the extreme to see how strikes against civilian targets contribute in any way to the peace process now being explored." Another BBC report says that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's supporters have also taken the limelight by battling those who didn't agree with his reign. The entry of the Islamic State in the scene added to the tension, displacing at least 250,000 families in the region. The war in Syria has driven thousands of families from their own homes with a UN spokeswoman confirming hundreds who fled from Hayan, Rityan, Bayanoun, Hariyatan and Anadan. Basma Kodmani, a representative of the opposition and a member of the umbrella group said that the government's apparent attack on Aleppo merely states that they are not in for any type of negotiation. She said that they are only trying to send the message: "There is nothing to negotiate. Just go home." The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights confirmed the allegiance of Russia by commanding airstrikes to back the siege. The Colombian government is set to ask the United States for millions of dollars in additional aid as it nears a historic peace deal with the country's Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The negotiations could end South America's longest-running guerrilla conflict. Colombia already receives about $300 million each year in U.S. aid. However, President Juan Manuel Santos will try to persuade President Barack Obama to raise that commitment to an annual $500 million for the next 10 years, the McClatchy newspaper group's Washington bureau reported. Santos Needs to Sway Fiscally Conservative GOP The Colombian leader is also trying to win over support in the Republican-controlled Congress, even though many financially conservative GOP heavyweights have suggested cuts to U.S. foreign aid. Santos is expected to argue that the United States has already sent important sums to his country during the last 15 years and that investment will be wasted without additional funds to establish lasting peace. According to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Colombia "is not a typical aid recipient." The federal body is focused on addressing "the historic neglect of rural [areas]" that it says has fueled a parallel economy of drug trafficking, extortion, illegal mining, and other problems. US Funds to Support Development, FARC Demobilization If USAID were to receive additional funds tagged for Colombia, the money would likely be used to pay for regional development, and to demobilize and reintegrate some 7,000 FARC guerrillas into civilian life. Michael Shifter, the president of the Inter-American Dialogue research center in Washington, warned that signing a deal would be much easier -- and less costly -- than actually transforming Colombian society. "Even if everybody is on board with these peace agreements, the tricky part is to implement them," he said. "To implement them is very costly and difficult." The peace deal between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) will take center stage on Feb. 4 as President Barack Obama is set to host his Colombian counterpart, Juan Manuel Santos, at the White House. The two leaders will mark the 15th anniversary of the so-called Plan Colombia, an effort to fight Colombia's drug cartels, as well as FARC rebels, Agence France-Presse reported. Under the initiative, the South American country receives about $300 million per year in U.S. aid. The plan launched by President Bill Clinton and continued by President George W. Bush is often viewed as a bipartisan success story, and Mark Feierstein, the National Security Council's director for Western Hemisphere Affairs, praised the effort as trailblazing. "The (Santos) visit recognizes one of the premier foreign policy successes for the United States," Feierstein said. Effort Controversial With Colombians, Human Rights Groups But groups such as Human Rights Watch have said that Plan Colombia also incited violence and contributed to the militarization of the country, the Irish Times reported. And in Colombia itself, the effort has been frequently criticized for allegedly deepening the drug war and making the internal conflict even bloodier. Washington Office on Latin America senior associate Gimena Sanchez-Garzoli said in the view of lots of citizens, it was not the plan that led to peace in the South American country. "For many Colombians directly affected by the conflict, Plan Colombia is shorthand for a never-ending war," Sanchez said. Santos to Ask US to Take FARC Off Terror List In anticipation of a final peace deal, nevertheless, Santos is expected to ask Obama on Feb. 4 to take FARC off the U.S. terror list and to accept that some key rebels may never be extradited to the United States. Bernard Aronson, the U.S. envoy to the peace process, meanwhile, noted these suggestions were in the realm of the possible. "(FARC) has fundamentally changed -- given up violence, given up weapons, is no longer hostile to U.S. citizens or interests -- then that designation can be reviewed," Aronson said. Light-powered spacecrafts sound too good to be true but the technology is exactly what's being developed in NASA. With plans to launch a solar sail in 2018, the space agency is leading the charge to less expensive and more sustainable travel within -- and maybe even -- beyond the solar system. According to a report from National Geographic, NASA is designing a small space probe with solar sails that are entirely powered by sunlight. The $16 million probe dubbed the Near-Earth Asteroid Scout is headed towards the 1991 VG asteroid, a destination that's 2.5 years away even at the projected speed of 63,975 miles per hour relative to the sun. Eventually, it may even achieve greater speed than a spacecraft with a conventional chemical rocket. Les Johnson, the Technical Advisor for NASA's Advanced Concepts Office at the Marshall Space Flight Center, explained the concept saying a chemical rocket has a powerful thrust, but burns up fuel through time. "A sail wins the race in terms of final velocity because it's the tortoise and the hare," Johnson said. "Since the sail doesn't use any fuel, we can keep thrusting as long as the sun is shining." Solar sails are propelled by photons from the sun, which bounces off the sails and transfers the momentum to the spacecraft, pushing it forward. The idea has been around since Soviet rocket pioneers Konstantin Tsiolkovsky and Friedrick Tsander conceptualized the theory in 1924, but NASA only invested in the technology in the late 1990s. The agency was able to translate the theory into reality in 2010 when they successfully sent a sail-propelled satellite in space for 240 days. The breakthrough truly came around with the development of electronics and the emergence of small, lightweight technology, since the power of sunlight can only achieve very high acceleration with very little mass. "You couldn't imagine building a small enough spacecraft that didn't require a ginormous sail," Johnson pointed out. "With the advent of smart phones and the miniaturization of components, we're now able to make really lightweight, small spacecraft, which makes the size of the sail more reasonable." The NEA Scout is only one of 13 science payloads that are set to hitch on the inaugural flight of the Space Launch System (SLS), a megarocket that will be replacing the space shuttle and eventually send Orion to Mars. According to The Verge, while NASA seems to be gearing up for major advancements in the near future, a congressional committee recently pointed out that the agency's Journey to Mars lacks a clear plan, also citing funding and need for more technological advancements as other obstacles. Finding a place to stay in Argentina is not just stressing but also dangerous. That's why most of the foreigners who had visited the place would often complain about their demoralizing experiences. Some of them would say that they have wasted so much time. Other would say that most of their money was spent in a worthless search. Some would even testify their experiences where they were asked to pay inflated rates because of their accent. When Valeria Pasmanter, an Argentinian who used to work in AIESEC, an international NGO that generates "work exchange programs for students abroad," learned about how these foreigners view her country she decided to offer them the comfort they need. That was when she started her own business focused on "promoting positive exchange experiences." The idea of her business started when Pasmanter heard that most of the international students catered by AIESEC were having a hard time looking for a place to stay in Argentina. In 2008, she decided to launch the Spare Rooms Buenos Aires Company, which served as an intermediary between tourists and landlords after she had lost her job. According to The Next Web, launching her business was difficult. Due to privacy and security concerns, Pasmanter had a hard time convincing landlords to open their rooms for her business. But she didn't lose hope instead she persuaded them even more. As the result, the company is now managing more than 300 rooms and planning to branch out to other cities as well. After almost seven years in the business, Spare Rooms Buenos Aires has grown into a startup that people, especially foreigners, trust. "Each person who has stayed in a room is a great success for us! Work that we like is a success for us. To help other people to find a place to sleep, in which they feel comfortable is a success for Spare Rooms Buenos Aires," Valeria Pasmanter shared in Story Exchange. To Valeria Pasmanter, the person who has greatly influenced her was her father. It was her dad who taught her how to focus and be responsible in life in order for her to grow and be successful. "My model is my dad. He, through his daily example taught me the culture of work, responsibility and to be devoted to one single thing and focus on it. My dad is the one who grew up poor and he built a medium company," she shared. Colombia may be one of the most beautiful countries in Latin America, but it does not eliminate the fact the country is filled with heart-stopping ghost stories. The country is surrounded by beautiful architecture and picturesque landscapes, but some places are said to be haunted. Inside the walls of the most beautiful pre-colonial mansions and colorful streets are spirits that linger as they'd long for peace. Despite rumors that these places are filled with restless souls and angered spirits, they are still flocked with travelers that are willing to find out the back story of the ghost infested pleaces. Listed below are a few places in Colombia that are said to be haunted: La Candelaria Located in the city of Bagota, La Candelaria is said to be one of the most haunted places in the city. One of the most popular buildings that is said to house wandering spirits is the Museo de Bagota, wherein the restless souls would haunt the guards at night. Locals would also testify and share their personal experiences. Some residents stated that they were able to hear horrifying screams and cries coming from the empty building past midnight. One of the locals, Fernando Rojas, stated that he was able to see mysterious balls of lights dancing around the museum halls as per the Oddee website. La Bruja Also known as "The Witch" La Bruja was once a jail that was turned into a restaurant. The eerie establishment is also located in Bagota. Diego Gomez, the restaurant's manager shared that a medium once told them that there are two ghosts (Maria and Alfredo) living in the restaurant. The manager narrated one of the incidents wherein he was attacked by Alfredo. Gomez stated that he felt something thrust his face on the sofa leaving him out of breath, he then added that he saw Alfredo staring at him with anger while pressing on his neck. University of Antioquia Located in one of Colombia's most beautiful cities, Medellin, the spooky university was once a home to a group of Franciscan monks, but many believed that it is filled with playful spirits. The security guards, cleaners and even the students stated that a soul of an old friar would roam around the auditorium at night as if he's praying for the building. Colombian Service Intelligence Though part of the establishment was already turned into a residential area, some of the former building's features still remained intact. Residents would openly share ghost stories that most of them experienced. The prison cells can still be seen and as well as the torture chambers. La Candelaria residents believed the residential property is one of the ghost infested areas in the city. People can hear chains being dragged and loud wails at night. They were also able to witness objects that would voluntarily change places without being touched. Many tourists find Costa Rica to be an impressive country. People who have already been here cannot forget their experience because the place is simply full of beautiful sceneries and the trip was never boring for the loads of things to do while on vacation. Likewise, with Costa Rica's lush rainforests, pristine beaches and amazing sights, tourists have a lot to learn and experience through the endless adventures that can be tried and enjoyed. Whether you are returning for another Costa Rican getaway or it is your first time to navigate the country, there is no doubt that you will be presented with new adventures each day as you set out to explore. Get a taste of its culture with these fun and thrilling activities to do: 1. Chocolate tours Costa Rica is one of the world's best sources of cacao. Puerto Viejo and some parts of the Caribbean are still the region's biggest cacao producers. See the cacao plantations by joining a chocolate tour. You can hike through the cacao forests and taste the various types of chocolates being produced in the farms. The best places to go for this sweet tour are the Playa Chiquita's ChocoRart organic cacao farm, Puerto Viejo de Sarapiqui's Tirimbina Rainforest Center, La Iguna Chocolate Farm, Finca Kobo and Bribri Reservation. During the trip, you will witness how the cacao are being harvested and made into chocolate in the traditional manner. 2. Visit the Arenal Volcano National Park This park is one of the most popular tourist spots in Costa Rica. It offers lots of outdoor activities to do, so it is a crowd drawer. What's more, the Arenal Volcano National Park boasts of beautiful views and close encounters with the wildlife. While in the vicinity, you and your family can try out variety of things including hiking, boating, ziplining, bird watching, hot spring dipping, canyoning (rappelling down from up to 200 meter waterfalls) and many more. 3. Navigate through the Caves at Barra Honda National Park Caving is a favorite activity in Costa Rica so you must try it. There are a few places to enjoy this activity -- first, not far from the Arenal Volcano Park, there is the Venado Caverns. If you are a novice in cave exploration, this is the perfect location for you. Inside the cave, you will see stunning stalactites and stalagmites which were formed thousands of years ago. On the other hand, for more experienced cave explorers, the Barra Honda National Park is the right choice. Navigate through the 250 meters deep limestone caves and see amazing stalagmites and big rock formations. 4. White Water Rafting Have fun in the waters of Rio Pacuare by daring a white water rafting experience along the Costa Rican canyons. There are various classes of the rapids and you can choose the best according to the level of thrill you would like to have. 5. Check out the Ostional Wildlife Refuge Costa Rica is know for "arribada," a spanish term which means "arrival by sea." This is what the Ostional Wildlife Refuge is called because hundreds of olive ridley sea turtles come here to lay thousands of eggs. During the arribada, female turtles lay their eggs by the seashore. This nesting place for turtles is the largest in the world so you can't miss it when you come to this region. Finally, for that unforgettable trip in Costa Rica, try all of these suggstions if you can. Definitely, these activities will make your tour extra worthwhile. For other ideas on exploring Costa Rica, check out the clip below! Colombia has recently decided to extend its nationwide gun ban rule until the end of 2016, with the intention to minimize the number violent deaths. Currently, the country is doing its best to spread peace. InSight Crime revealed that on Jan. 19, 2016, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos announced that the executive decree that bans the carrying of firearms in public places will continue until the end of 2016. An article on El Pais also stated that, previously, the ban was supposed to last from Dec. 23, 2015 to Jan. 31, 2016. According to BBC Mundo, this is the first time that Colombia has issued a nationwide prohibition in the carrying of firearms. Bans were only limited to particular regions and such periods were also much shorter before. The president also stated that the previous ban resulted in a reduced number of homicides. Luis Carlos Villegas, Colombian Minister of Defense, reported that homicides dropped by 13 percent compared to the same period the year before. 82 percent of violent deaths in Colombia involved a firearm. Villegas said that there are two main problems that will be addressed by the gun ban. First, it will reduce homicides originating from arguments. The country has issued 400,000 possession permits and 500,000 carry permits for guns. The executive order means that all carry permits will be reverted to possession permits. There are only certain instances when individuals are allowed to bring firearms in public. Based on the same report by InSight Crime, Jorge Restrepo, director of the countrys Center for the Study and Analysis of Conflict, speculates that the extension of the executive order will lower the use of firearms in homicide cases by about 20 percent throughout 2016. The nationwide gun ban is expected to make Colombia safer. Currently, the country is safer and less violent compared to any period in the last decade. Homicide rates have been continuously going down since 2002. In 2002, the rate was 69 per 100,000, which dropped to 25 per 100,000 in 2015. Colombian security forces are also expected to be more vigilant to prevent people from violating the decree during the year. The Colombian government is in the last phase of peace negotiations with the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia, a guerrilla group. If the peace deal is successful, the FARC will surrender their weapons and move into politics. The year-long gun ban will be useful in ensuring the security of FARC members and join the peace process. More updates and details on Colombias gun ban are expected soon. Lubbock, TX Short-Term Housing Location Revitalized Missionary Agent Evolves Smithlawn Home Into CaprockCasa.com TurfTrek LLC Chief-Officer Shawn Daniel Revives Lubbock, TX Maternity Cottage Into Top Airbnb Rental Contact: Shawn Daniel, 806-241-8862, s@dan3.me LUBBOCK, Texas, Feb. 4, 2016 /Christian Newswire/ -- The Smithlawn Maternity Home of Lubbock, TX was started in 1960 by Christians recognizing a need for specific ministries to provide a safe haven for young women with "unplanned pregnancies." Funds raised allowed Smithlawn to build the first cottage style facility in the nation. It contained two cottages spanning 20 acres hosting 32 residents. It was a calm and neutral environment, allowing its patrons to consider all options while dealing with a "crisis pregnancy." Live-in house-parents provided daily care during their stays. Christian counselors along with social-workers assisted the expectant mothers as they made a decision that would impact the rest of their lives and lives of their babies. Licensed by the State of Texas, local physicians provided necessary care for the residents. Smithlawn also worked with individuals and groups that chose to live at home or off-campus who'd offer additional counseling and medical attention. People of any race, religion, and circumstance were accepted. Confidentiality was maintained and the organization served more than 30,000 expectant mothers in its history. The mission and the Ministry's ideology lives on, only, it's now set on a variety of people and lifestyles. TurfTrek LLC Chief-Officer Shawn Daniel is a person who has gone above the call of what most people doubted as nothing more than a "pesky cause" or at best, a "money-pit" operation. After a total investment of nearly 100,000.00 United States Dollars, he announces the full-fledged physical facility facelift and official website rebrand which is now titled, "Caprock Casa." The repurposed 5400 sq. ft. ranch-house is completely remodeled. Updated floors and bedroom furnishings plus bathrooms and showers are among the major revisions citable. His now semi-SaaS enabled website which includes functionality for handheld and mobile devices such as the Amazon Kindle Fire, Apple iPad, and virtually all modern cell-phone models has one of the easiest to use interfaces designed. Highlights of Caprock Casa offerings include: Nightly, Weekly, Monthly stays (Standard rental types are supported with discounts for long-term interests) (Standard rental types are supported with discounts for long-term interests) A best value in Lubbock, TX (Fully equipped rooms, private bathrooms and showers and free Wi-Fi throughout the entire property) (Fully equipped rooms, private bathrooms and showers and free Wi-Fi throughout the entire property) Exceptionally clean and in order (Highly sanitized, regular upkeep) (Highly sanitized, regular upkeep) Quiet, safe, roomy atmosphere (The house has served travelers of Texas, Europe, and as far away as Africa) (The house has served travelers of Texas, Europe, and as far away as Africa) 10 minutes away from everything essential (Airport, South Plains Mall, Texas Tech, and Covenant Medical Center are all within driving distance) Despite monetary hardships, like missionaries before him, Shawn accepts and appreciates all forms of aid and acknowledgement, regardless of how small or large, without quandary. The most essential information needed to educate oneself about the Caprock Casa home is available via the official website and social media locations provided. Anyone may place their booking inquiries instantly. Help Shawn keep the spirit of Smithlawn alive and visit his beginning TurfTrek adventures now. Related Link: www.caprockcasa.com About Caprock Casa/Shawn Daniel/TurfTrek LLC: Caprock Casa is a short-term housing location in Lubbock, TX which provides nightly, weekly, and monthly stays. It is a Shawn Daniel stewardship licensed by TurfTrek LLC. Its amenities include free Wi-Fi and a complimentary Coffee/Cider Bar with no additional or hidden costs associated. Contact: Caprock Casa 517 76th St. Lubbock, TX 79404 USA Shawn Daniel s@dan3.me +1 (806)241-8862 Rick Santorum decided to endorse Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio after he ended his own bid for the White House on Wednesday. However, it appears the former Pennsylvania senator has no idea what Rubio accomplished as a U.S. senator. After failing to gain traction in the 2016 race and finishing second-to-last in the Iowa caucuses on Monday, Santorum announced on Fox News that he is dropping out of the GOP primary election. Santorum said he and his family decided the best way to achieve his campaign's goals was to drop out of the race and support a candidate who shares his values and has a better shot at winning the Republican nomination. "We decided that we wanted to find a candidate that really espoused the values that we believed in, someone who really focused their campaign on trying to help ... those who are struggling on the margins," Santorum said during an appearance on "On the Record With Greta Van Susteren." "That's why we decided to support Marco Rubio." He went on to describe the Florida senator as a "new generation" leader and "someone that can bring this country together." Santorum also said Rubio -- who had a strong third-place finish in the Iowa caucuses -- is the best candidate to revive the middle class and combat ISIS. However, despite praising Rubio as a natural "born leader" on Wednesday, Santorum fumbled when asked to name one of Rubio's accomplishments while serving as a Florida senator for the last five years during his appearance on MSNBC Thursday morning. "Morning Joe" host Joe Scarborough repeatedly asked Santorum to name just one of Rubio's accomplishments, but he couldn't. "He's been in the Senate for four years," Scarborough said. "Can you name his top accomplishment in the Senate -- actually working in the Senate doing something that tilted your decision to Marco Rubio?" "If you look at being in the minority in the United States Senate in a year when nothing got -- four years where nothing got done, I guess it's hard to say there are accomplishments," Santorum said in response. "I mean, tell me what happened during that four years that was an accomplishment for anybody? It was complete gridlock." Scarborough shot back that Republicans have controlled Congress for the past two years and asked what Rubio has achieved since being part of the majority. "Joe, look, the Republicans have been in the majority for one year and one month, of which, as you know, he was running for president primarily," Santorum said. "The first four years he was in the minority, and nothing got done. And by the way, what happened this year under the Republicans?" Scarborough continued to press Santorum, asking him to "list one accomplishment. Just one. Just one that Marco achieved. Maybe a bill that he wrote. Maybe a moment in a committee." "OK, Marco Rubio was, No. 1, the speaker of the Florida House, which is not something that's a minor deal," Santorum said. "I mean, he was elected by his colleagues to be the speaker of the House. No. 2, yeah, he spent four years in the United States Senate being frustrated like everybody else that nothing got done, and then you can't point to him and say well nothing got done and therefore he has no accomplishments." Santorum went on to accuse Scarborough of making a "bogus" argument. "It's actually not a bogus argument," Scarborough said. "Let me ask the question one more time: List one accomplishment that Marco Rubio has achieved in four years in the United States Senate. It doesn't even have to be a passed bill." "Well, I know he included something that went after the insurance companies in the most recent omnibus. I know that he fought for that to stop bailing out insurance companies," Santorum said. "That's one thing that I'm familiar with that I just saw recently, but - and again, he was on the campaign trail and accomplished that. "The bottom line is there isn't a whole lot of accomplishments, Joe, and I just don't think it's a fair question." Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio seized the opportunity to criticize President Barack Obama's speech condemning Islamophobia during his historic trip to an American mosque on Wednesday. During his speech, the president denounced the growth of anti-Islamic rhetoric in the country, which is primarily being recited by Republican leaders and 2016 candidates like Donald Trump. "An attack on one faith is an attack on all our faiths," Obama said at The Islamic Society of Baltimore, which marked his first visit to a mosque in the U.S. "We have to be consistent in condemning hateful rhetoric. ... None of us can be bystanders to bigotry." The president also thanked attendees in the packed auditorium for standing up against terrorism, adding that religious extremists have given a "hugely distorted impression" of their faith. At another part of the speech, he assured American Muslims that they are a crucial part of America's fabric and future. "Let me say as clearly as I can as president of the United States: You fit right here," he said. "You're right where you belong. You're part of America too. You're not Muslim or American. You're Muslim and American." In response, Rubio slammed the president's speech on religious tolerance and unity, calling it divisive and claiming that it is a distraction from the real problem plaguing America: radical Islam. "I'm tired of being divided against each other for political reasons like this president's done," the Florida senator said during a campaign stop in Dover, New Hampshire, on Wednesday. "Always pitting people against each other," he said pointing to Obama's speech as an example. "He gave a speech at a mosque. Oh, you know, basically implying that America is discriminating against Muslims." According to Rubio, Obama's focus on intolerance is distracting Americans from fighting religious extremism and terrorism. "Of course there's discrimination in America, of every kind. But the bigger issue is radical Islam. And by the way, radical Islam poses a threat to Muslims themselves," he said. Listen to Rubio's attack on the president's speech below: New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo nominated a Latina to become the Empire State's next secretary of state, taking on a role currently held by a Latino. Cuomo named Rossana Rosado to succeed current Secretary of State Cesar Perales, since the latter previously announced his retirement. Rosado, a graduate from Pace University, has an extensive history in journalism and media, having served as publisher and CEO of El Diario, the oldest Spanish-language daily newspaper in the U.S. At El Diario, she previously was the first Latina to serve as its editor in chief. She also worked for broadcast media with WPIX as their producer for public affairs programming, and was later promoted to public service director. In 1992, she worked with then-Mayor David Dinkins and Rudy Giuliani as their vice president for public affairs at the Health and Hospitals Corporation of New York City. "Rossana Rosado is a respected, intelligent leader with the experience New York needs to lift up working families and expand opportunity," Cuomo said in a statement. "From becoming the first woman to serve as editor and publisher of the largest Spanish-language newspaper in the country, to championing reentry initiatives, to her work as an award-winning producer, Rossana brings a depth and diversity of experience that is second to none." "I am confident Rossana will be a force for positive and lasting change in communities across the state, and I am proud to welcome her to this administration," Cuomo added. In response to the nomination, Rosado said she's honored to serve the position of secretary of state. Acknowledging Cuomo's agenda to bring "justice, opportunity and equality" for all New Yorkers, Rosado said she looks forward in helping him accomplish that mission. "While New York is built on diversity and difference, we are one state, working together towards a common goal of lifting up the marginalized and the vulnerable to create a brighter, stronger future for all," said Rosado. Perales, who will be nominated to the Empire State Development Board, thanked Cuomo for having served as secretary of state since 2011, recognizing the tenure as a high point of his career. "I would also like to recognize the immense contributions of Cesar Perales, who over the past 40 years has dedicated himself to the greater good," said Cuomo. "Cesar embodies everything this state stands for: justice, integrity, pride, compassion, and he is truly one of New York's finest public servants. I wish him all the best in his well-earned retirement." __ For the latest updates, follow Latin Post's Michael Oleaga on Twitter: @EditorMikeO or contact via email: m.oleaga@latinpost.com. Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio continues to attract endorsements from current and previous congressional lawmakers, and his latest endorsement comes from a Pennsylvania senator who opposed Rubio's comprehensive immigration reform bill. Rubio's Advantage, According to Toomey Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Penn., announced his endorsement of Florida's junior senator. According to Toomey, he called Rubio last week stating he's willing to provide the Cuban American with any help possible to become the next U.S. president. "I'm endorsing his candidacy and am very optimistic about his prospects," Toomey said on Wednesday during an appearance on CNN. "We face a huge national security crisis, obviously emanating from the Middle East. There is tension all around the world. I think Marco has demonstrated a clear understanding. He's done the hard work, he's very knowledgeable, thoughtful, he's a smart guy. He's demonstrated the leadership. ... Domestically, I think we've sometimes have a crisis of confidence, and Marco has an extraordinary ability, I think, to communicate and to inspire people. I think he's going to be a really strong leader." In response to fellow Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush's criticism that Rubio and Ted Cruz haven't made a "tough decision" in their lives, Toomey said the Florida senator made tough decisions on retaining the National Security Agency's monitoring protocol and foreign policy. In a race against Cruz and Donald Trump, GOP candidates who have also dominated news headlines, Toomey said Rubio is the strongest candidate to compete against Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. Immigration Differences Toomey also spoke about his differences on the Senate's 2013 comprehensive immigration reform bill (S. 744), which included more border security and a pathway to citizenship for immigrants already in the U.S. While Rubio co-sponsored and voted for the bill, Toomey voted against it. Although the bill passed the Senate, S. 744 was never picked up for debate or vote in the House of Representatives. The Pennsylvania senator said he did disagree with Rubio about the bill, but acknowledged Rubio has changed his stance on handling immigration reform legislation. "[Rubio] has come to the conclusion that's not the right way to go forward and so we're in agreement, now, on how to go forward," said Toomey. "I think many of the other candidates in this field have also changed their minds over various aspects of immigration reform because it's a tough, complicated, difficult issue but I think Marco is absolutely right, he understands nothing can happen unless we can convince the American people we have security on our borders and that we can keep dangerous people out of this country. Marco understands that and he's right." On June 27, 2013, S. 744 received 68 votes in favor and 32 against. Voting in favor, with Rubio, were former 2016 Republican presidential candidate Lindsey Graham, 2008 Republican presidential candidate John McCain and current Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. Fellow Latino Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., also voted in favor of the bill. __ For the latest updates, follow Latin Post's Michael Oleaga on Twitter: @EditorMikeO or contact via email: m.oleaga@latinpost.com. A new poll released on the same day President Barack Obama made an historic visit to a Maryland mosque on Wednesday reveals that nearly half of the U.S. population believes that "at least some" Muslims in the country have anti-American sentiments. According to a recent Pew Research Center poll, 49 percent of those surveyed think Muslim Americans harbor negative feelings about the country they live in. Of those 49 percent, 11 percent said "most" or "almost all" Muslims were anti-American. In contrast, 42 percent said they believe that "few" or "no" Muslims harbor ill feelings towards the U.S. Meanwhile, another 46 percent of respondents think Islam is more likely than other religions to encourage violence, while 49 percent admitted to being "very concerned" about the rise of Islamic extremism in the U.S. The Pew study, which was conducted between Jan. 7 and 14, also reveals a strong partisan divide in the public's perception of Islam. Over half of Democrats say "just a few" Muslims in the country are anti-American, while a whopping majority of Republicans believe anti-Americanism is a prominent problem in the nation. Americans are also divided over how the next president should discuss Islamic extremism. The poll said 50 percent of respondents think the next U.S. president "should be careful not to criticize Islam as a whole," while 40 percent disagreed, saying the commander-in-chief should speak bluntly, "even if the statements are critical of Islam as a whole." The views are also split according to party lines as 70 percent of Democrats think the president should use caution compared to 29 percent of Republicans. Meanwhile, 65 percent of Republicans said the next president should be frank about Islamic extremism. The Pew survey also found that 60 percent of Americans believe there to be "a lot" of discrimination against Muslims in the United States, and 76 percent think discrimination is growing. Plus, the survey revealed that white evangelicals are more likely than other Christian sects to say Muslims in the United States are anti-American. They are also the least likely to know a Muslim on a personal level. Android 6.0 Marshmallow will be released to some of the most recent Samsung devices. Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge phones in South Korea are now getting the latest Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow update. Samsung devices are getting hit with Marshmallow. The Hoops News reported that Samsung Galaxy Note 5 devices are expected to get upgraded to Android 6.0 Marshmallow before February ends. It will reportedly be followed by Samsung Galaxy Note 4 units in either March or April. A leaked Samsung Android 6.0 update guide surfaced online, showing Samsung will roll out the update to eligible Galaxy devices in 3 phases. Aside from the Galaxy Note 5 and Note 4, the devices that have been approved to receive Marshmallow during Phase 1 are the following: Galaxy S6, S6 Edge, S6 Edge+. Note Edge, and S5. Devices waiting for approval are the Galaxy Alpha, Tab S2 9.7", and Tab S2 8". Devices approved for the Marshmallow update in Phase 2 are the Galaxy A8 and Galaxy Tab S 10.5. The Galaxy A5, A3, E7, E5, J7, J5, J2, and Tab S 8.4 are pending approval. For Phase 3, the Galaxy Tab A 9.7 and Tab A 8 join the list of devices waiting for approval. It seems that the Galaxy J1, Note 3, and S4 will not be updated to Marshmallow. The following Samsung Galaxy devices are estimated to get Android 6.0 Marshmallow during Q1 2016: Galaxy Note 5, Note Edge, Note 4, Note 4 Duos, Note Edge, S5, S5 NEO, S5 LTE-A, and S6 Duos. Inquisitr reported that the Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge units in South Korea are currently receiving Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow update. Lawyer Herald stated in a previous report that the Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow update will be arriving to Nexus, HTC, Sony Xperia, and Xiaomi devices. It was reported that the Nexus 5, 5X, 6, 6P, Nexys 7 (2013), Nexus 9, and Google Pixel C tablet are receiving OTA updates for Android 6.0.1. Users expect various new features in Marshmallow, such as a fingerprint unlock function and Doze. Rumors say that Google will release Android 6.1, the next expected update, on or prior the 2016 I/O developers conference. Arabia has overturned Palestinian poet Ashraf Fayadh's death sentence. However, the court upholds the conviction, claiming that Fayadh has committed apostasy and should be sent eight years in prison with 800 lashes over 16 sessions. BBC News reported that Ashraf Fayadh denied the charges and claimed that another man had made false accusations against him. The death sentence of Fayadh caused a global outcry among hundreds of actors, artists, and writers asking for his release. Last year on November, Fayadh was initially sentenced to death by a court in Abha, a Saudi city located southwest. According to CNN, Fayadh was charged in a series of blasphemy related to his poems. Abdulrahman al-Lahim, Fayadh's lawyer, said the defense planned to appeal the court's decision, saying Fayadh is not guilty of any charges and should be freed. Al-Rahim also said that the court in Abha ruled that Fayadh should have to issue an announcement of repentance in official media. According to Amnesty International, the poet was arrested in August 2013 after a Saudi citizen alleged that he was spreading blasphemous ideas and was promoting atheism. He was released the next day but rearrested in January 2014. Fayadh was then charged with apostasy or the renunciation of religious belief. A Middle East researcher at Human Rights Watch, Adam Coogle said that instead of beheading Ashraf Fayadh, the Saudi court has ordered a lengthy imprisonment and flogging. Coogle insisted that the officials of Saud must immediately intervene to vacate this unjust sentence, as reported by The Guardian. Hundreds of artists, actors and writers, including actor Helen Mirren and British poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy, have appealed for his release. There was about more than 60 international arts and human rights group have launched a campaign calling on Saud officials and western governments to save him. Saudi Arabia's strict code of Islam mean the crimes of armed robbery, drug trafficking, rape, murder, and apostasy are all punishable by death. In 2015, Saudi Arabia executed 153 people. According to a conclusion brought about by a United Nations panel, the arrest of a community police leader (Nestora Salgado) was deemed as a form of illegal detention. Nestora Salgado's arrest was found to be illegal, according to a United Nations panel. This new announcement comes as good news to her family, friends, and supporters who all hope that she could be freed. Salgado, a resident of Renton Seattle and who's native is Mexico, was arrested in August 2013 after people who were detained by her group claims that they have been 'kidnapped.' Salgado was known to lead a community police force that could be seen as a vigilante style way of enforcing peace and order. Salgado's ways gained her quite a number of supporters, including international crime watch groups. Salgado's group aims to protect members of the community from organized crime and corruption. In 2013, a federal judge cleared Salgado from kidnapping charges but other charges related to the case has kept her behind bars since then. The International Human Rights Clinic at Seattle University Law School has been eyeing and working on Salgado's case at the United Nation's Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in Geneva, Switzerland for two years, ABC reports. A decision from the five-member panel, which was relayed to Salgado's lawyers on Tuesday, was reached in December. The decision states that her arrest was "arbitrary" and stated that Mexico should free her and compensate Salgado for violating her human rights. It has been reported that while in prison, Salgado was denied access to clean water and contact with her family. While the ruling does not take effect in Mexico, the decision could increase the pressure to release Salgado. Thomas Antkowiak, the law clinic's director, said that this decision could be seen as a "breakthrough." "This is a very important channel for political pressure: We have an impartial international panel that says she's detained illegally. I think it's kind of a breakthrough. We've been in ongoing negotiations with the government in Mexico, the federal government mainly, and those have gone nowhere. We're hoping this is going to inject new life into those negotiations," said Antkowiak, in a report by CS News. Call to Pray for Australia -- National Day of Prayer and Fasting - Sunday 7 February 2016 Inspired by President Abraham Lincoln from the USA Contact: Wesley Leake, 61-418-225-212; Warwick Marsh, 61-418-225-212; Dr Graham McLennan, 61-427-003-549; www.nationaldayofprayer.com.au CANBERRA, Australia, Feb. 4, 2016 /Christian Newswire/ -- The Australian National Day of Prayer and Fasting will take place on Sunday 7 February 2016. It is a day for Australian Christians and churches from all denominations to unite together to pray and fast according to 2 Chronicles 7:14 for revival and transformation for Australia. We invite you watch a LIVE 6 hour webcast for the National Day of Prayer & Fasting. Although the webcast of the Australian National Day of Prayer & Fasting is on Sunday 7 February 2016 it can be viewed from 5:45p.m. Saturday 6 February 2016 East Coast Time (New York) to 11:45p.m. on Saturday night. See YouTube promo: www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-1x3xJDOnk Wesley Leake from the Prayer Day Team said, "We have a vision for Australia where our children can play safely in the streetsWe believe the Judeo-Christian ethics and values that our nation is built upon are the source of Australia's national prosperity and we want to preserve them for future generations." Warwick Marsh from the Prayer Day Team said, "Australia's Constitution, written in 1901 says, 'Humbly relying on the blessings of almighty God.' Sadly we have strayed far from our Judeo-Christian foundations." Dr Graham McLennan, head of the National Alliance of Christian Leaders and part of the Prayer Day Team said, "We have been inspired by President Abraham Lincoln in the midst of the chaos of the Civil War called for a National Day of Humiliation, Prayer and Fasting on the 30 March 1863. His proclamation read, 'And whereas it is the duty of nations as well as of men, to own their dependence upon the overruling power of God, to confess their sins and transgressions, in humble sorrow yet with assured hope that genuine repentance will lead to mercy and pardon 'It behooves us then, to humble ourselves to confess our national sins, and to pray for forgiveness.' "We are also thrilled to announce there will be a significant contribution of Australia's First Nation Peoples at the National Day of Prayer & Fasting. This year's 40 Days of Prayer & Fasting, 10 February 20 March 2016, is being led by Australia's First Nation People. Each day a devotion and a story will be shared on YouTube from an Indigenous Christian leader. Australia's Aboriginal people will be sharing their love for Jesus and the transforming power of the Holy Spirit. The theme scripture is from Hebrews 12:2, "Looking unto JESUS, the author and the finisher of our faith." Wesley Leake: 61 418 225 212 Warwick Marsh: 61 418 225 212 Dr Graham McLennan: 61 427 003 549 www.nationaldayofprayer.com.au Share Tweet by Auckland, New Zealand is a really pleasant city. Theres nothing spectacular about Auckland. Its not the worlds most beautiful city. Its not the most exciting city on Earth. Theres nothing that screams out at you that you cant miss. But Auckland, New Zealand is a really pleasant city to be in because its just thatpleasant. I first went to Auckland back in 2003 as my first stop on a long journey around New Zealand. My friend Jake and I spent about a week or so in Auckland staying at a hostel called Auckland Central Backpackers or the ACB. It was there that we formulated our plan of attack for New Zealand. Its funny each time I go back to Auckland I always make sure to pop into the ACB just to bring back some fun memories. Since 2003, Ive popped in and out of Auckland for a night or two several times. When you explore the South Pacific, you often find yourself overnighting in Nadi, Fiji or Auckland, New Zealand, as theyre basically the 2 airport hubs of the Pacific. Each time I think its a great place for a night or two but other than walking around theres nothing that really grabbed me. After spending my last night of the cruise doing a fantastic caviar tasting, I sailed into Auckland from Tauranga this past trip with Azamara Club Cruises on the Azamara Quest cruise ship, I saw Auckland in a different way than I ever did before. At sunrise with the water in front of it, Auckland never looked so beautiful. I filled my day up the same way I always do in Auckland, I walk around checking out the Viaduct, Queen Street and go up the Sky Tower. Ive actually done the Sky Jump before and I wish I had digital photos of that experience from nearly 13 years ago. Its a very similar to the Skyjump Las Vegas at the Stratosphere. This time I was able to have dinner with an old friend from New York who now lives in Auckland and she took me to a real local area that I never wouldve visited on my own. We ate at a place called Blue Breeze in the Ponsonby neighborhood of Auckland. Its a bit out of town but has great views of the city proper. Its a trendy area much like Paddington in Sydney or Collingwood in Melbourne with nice restaurants and shops. While it was great to catch up with an old friend it also illustrated the value of knowing locals in a city. Everyone always says, I like to meet locals and really explore a place but few people actually ever do it. So when you get that chance, dont pass it up, as that would be like coming to New York City and only visiting the touristy places like Times Square and the Empire State Building. So while Auckland will never blow you away, it reminded me of a very important lesson that we often forget. Its always better with locals showing you around. That aside, Auckland, New Zealand is a really pleasant city. Sharing is caring! Feb 3, 2016, 2:05pm ET Engine failures prompt Honda Civic recall The issue is said to involve piston pin snap rings, either missing or installed improperly. Honda has reportedly issued a stop-sale order for 2016 Civics equipped with 2.0-liter engines. The company is preparing to recall the vehicles due to a potentially missing or improperly installed piston pin snap ring, which can lead to a stall condition or complete engine failure. "All affected units will require use of a borescope to inspect the four cylinders to confirm correct piston pin snap ring placement," the company wrote in a message to dealers, according to excerpts posted on CivicX forums. "Vehicles exhibiting any concerns with piston pin snap ring placement may require replacement of damaged pistons, piston pins or rings, or other related engine components." Sufficient quantities of replacement parts and inspection borescopes are currently unavailable. American Honda expects to launch its customer notification program by mid-March, sending letters to approximately 34,000 owners. The Japanese automaker has had a few engine problems in recent years. Certain Accord sedans and CR-V crossovers are prone to excessive oil consumption due to worn rings, while separate recalls have addressed engine failures in the Accord, CR-V, Pilot and Odyssey. Feb 4, 2016, 2:18pm ET Google's autonomous cars head to Washington The company is now testing its Lexus RX450h fleet in three cities. Google has announced plans to expand its autonomous vehicle testing to Kirkland, Washington. The trial program will now be operating in three cities simultaneously, including Austin, Texas, and Google's home town of Mountain View, California. "After self-driving 1.4 million miles, we're ready to give our cars more experience driving new environments, traffic patterns, and road conditions," the company wrote in a blog post. The small city appears to be a sensible choice for autonomous vehicle testing in a more challenging environment, as both Mountain View and Austin are both dominated by sunny, dry days. Kirkland annual rainfall is near the US average, and the city could give Google engineers a chance to try the tech in light snowfall. The program will center around Google's fleet of heavily modified Lexus RX450h crossovers, which serve as test platforms for autonomous driving software. The company has not mentioned if its smaller driverless cars -- a two-seater designed in-house -- will also be headed to the shores of Lake Washington. Feb 4, 2016, 3:07pm ET Marchionne on Ferrari SUV: 'You have to shoot me first' The company has warned of waning growth, sending shares plummeting to below IPO pricing. Ferrari chairman Sergio Marchionne has voice vehement opposition to the thought of an SUV adorned with the Prancing Horse marque. As the company warns of waning growth following its spinoff from former parent Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, the executive has flatly rejected following Lamborghini and Bentley into the fast-growing SUV segment. "You have to shoot me first," he said, as quoted by Bloomberg. Notably, Marchionne in 2014 replaced long-serving chairman Luca di Montezemolo following a public dispute over the brand's growth potential. The veteran wanted to keep annual shipments capped at just 7,000 units, however Marchionne argued that production could hit 9,000 units without threatening exclusivity. After the Italian automaker split from FCA, the company suggested there would be even more room for growth. Marchionne suggested Ferrari's founder "had a clear view that we produce one car less than the market demands," a number the current chairman views as 10,000 units by 2020. The predictions may have been overly optimistic, at least in the near term, as Ferrari now expects its growth rate to fall from six percent in 2015 to three precent in 2016. If the forecast proves accurate, the brand will sell approximately 7,900 vehicles this year. If the growth rate is sustained at three percent for the following four years, the company could fall slightly short of its 9,000-unit target by the end of the decade. Spied: Porsche Panamera shooting brake Feb 4, 2016, 2:19pm ET Porsche will build a shooting brake version of its all-new Panamera. Porsche is moving forward with a shooting brake variant of its next-generation Panamera sedan, and we have the spy shots to prove it. An all-new Porsche Panamera is due out for the 2018 model year, and it looks as though a four-door sedan won't be the body style heading to dealer showrooms. Following the blueprint of the 2012 Sport Turismo concept, Porsche is planning to build a shooting brake derivative of the new Panamera. Spotted here for the first time while undergoing shakedown testing in Europe, it's clear that the Panamera shooting brake will utilize a sloping roofline similar to that of the Mercedes-Benz CLS shooting brake. Although not the roomiest configuration, the Panamera shooting brake should offer a significant cargo advantage over its sedan counterpart, giving those with families an alternative to the automaker's SUV models. Like the sedan, the Panamera shooting brake will be offered with a wide range of powertrain choices, which should include a hybrid and at least one diesel. A top spec Turbo model is also expected. It remains to be seen, however, if Porsche will offer the Panamera shooting brake, or whatever it ends up being called, in the United States. Wagons traditionally haven't sold well here, and the Cayenne has done well as Porsche's family hauler. Whatever the case, look for Porsche's Panamera shooting brake to go on sale sometime next year. Feb 4, 2016, 12:46pm ET VW hires outsider to replace US general counsel Former general counsel David Geanacopoulos has been appointed to serve as executive VP of public affairs. Volkswagen Group of America has announced a leadership shakeup in its legal department, hiring an outsider to serve as general counsel. US citizen David Detweiler has been appointed to serve as executive vice president and general counsel. He is said to have started practicing law in New York 20 years ago, though his most recent work involved a position at international firm Clifford Chance in Frankfurt, Germany. The incoming top attorney succeeds David Geanacopoulos, a former DC lawyer who joined VW in 2003. Geanacopoulos will keep his seat on the board of directors and "continue to serve on the company's top executive team dealing with the diesel emissions matter." His formal title is now executive vice president for public affairs and public policy. "Our Company has asked David to continue to help us continue to make things right in the diesel emissions matter, and now to help us begin to rebuild the trust we have lost," said VW of America chief executive Michael Horn. "David's years of experience in Washington will help the Company establish a new course in its relationships with regulators, elected officials and the public." Previous rumors suggested VW had been in talks with former FBI director Louis Freeh to help manage the emissions scandal, however the move was reportedly met with resistance from company union leadership. A trial is on hold for a man accused of fatally stabbing a customer in an Allentown barbershop as the victim was getting a haircut last year. Eugenio Hernandez-Andino's defense attorney raised questions about his client's competency and requested a mental health evaluation, Lehigh County First Assistant District Attorney Steve Luksa said. Last month, Judge Maria Dantos ordered Hernandez-Andino be sent to a state hospital for treatment. The 44-year-old Hernandez-Andino is accused of arguing with Jose Reyes-Espinosa on Jan. 22, 2015, inside the Washington Barber Shop, 1129 Hamilton St., and then stabbing Reyes-Espinosa. Luksa declined to discuss Hernandez-Andino's mental health diagnosis. Defense attorney John Baurkot could not be reached for comment. Competency is different than an insanity defense, or arguing a defendant has diminished capacity and cannot assist attorneys with their defense, Luksa said. Hernandez-Andino is being held in Lehigh County Jail without bail while he waits for an open bed at a state hospital, and then must undergo treatment before determining if he can ever be competent for trial. "It won't be measured in a matter of days or weeks, but literally in months," Luksa said. "It kind of puts everything on hold." Hernandez-Andino said the stabbing was revenge for a group attack from 2009, but that the meeting with the victim was purely by chance. Hernandez-Andino told police that in 2009 the victim and six other men assaulted and stabbed him at North Eighth and Chew streets. Hernandez-Andino told police he was coming by the shop to pick up a key from one of the barbers, Juan Garcia, Allentown police Detective Stephen Milkovits testified at the preliminary hearing. When Hernandez-Andino walked in, Reyes-Espinosa was on the phone and said something along the lines of, "The big dummy's here now," Milkovits said. Witnesses testified that's when the two men began arguing, the argument turned physical and Hernandez-Andino stabbed the victim. Hernandez-Andino reportedly told police that "he wanted to teach (the victim) a lesson." Hernandez-Andino told police the victim pushed him first and he threw the knife back into the barbershop before he fled. Officers found Reyes-Espinosa, of the 200 block of South Madison Street, bleeding profusely from multiple stab wounds. He was pronounced dead on arrival at Lehigh Valley Hospital in Salisbury Township. Sarah Cassi may be reached at scassi@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahCassi. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. Emanuel Torres Emanuel Torres (Courtesy photo) Emanuel Torres said he's tired of running from police, from responsibility. The man identified by Bethlehem police as a member of the Latin Kings street gang who goes by the name "Chino" was sentenced Thursday to one to three years in state prison. The 25-year-old Bethlehem man locked himself in an apartment on July 25 at 1167 E. Third St. in Bethlehem when police came after him with a felony warrant. He tried to escape by breaking through the drywall into a neighboring apartment. He gave up after a four-hour standoff. He pleaded guilty Friday to criminal trespass for breaking through the wall and to illegal possession of a gun during the standoff. Defense attorney Rory Driscole said the standoff served as a wake-up call for Torres. "He relayed to me that he's got to stop," Driscole told Northampton County Judge Jennifer Sletvold. "It's getting him nowhere." "I'm done with the lifestyle," Torres said. "I'm not doing it any more. I'm getting too old for this." Torres said he wants to be around for his sons, ages 9 and 2. Driscole said Torres suffers from bipolar disorder, which contributes to his behavior. Torres also pleaded guilty to reckless endangerment and criminal mischief in an unrelated case. Those sentences will run concurrent to the ones from the standoff. Rudy Miller may be reached at rmiller@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @RudyMillerLV. Find Easton area news on Facebook. A teenager banned from Northampton Community College has been charged with criminal trespass after returning to the campus the same day, according to police. Shafeeq Jihad Ahmad, 18, of Philadelphia, on Wednesday was told by an NCC staff member he is banned from entering a campus residence hall in Bethlehem Township. Ahmad showed up again shortly after 10 p.m. Wednesday and was found by college staff member in the residence hall parking lot, according to court records. Police searched Ahmad and found him in possession of Alprazolam, a prescription drug used to treat panic and anxiety disorder. Police said he did not have a prescription for the medication. Ahmad is charged with defiant trespass and possession of a controlled substance. He was arraigned Thursday before District Judge Douglas Schlegel, who set bail at $1,000. In lieu of bail, Ahmad was taken to Northampton County Prison. The judge ordered he stay away from the college, refrain from drugs and alcohol and enroll in Pretrial Services. The judge allowed 10 percent of $1,000 bail if Pretrial Services approved it. Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow her on Twitter @pamholzmann. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook. Laois is a destination where investment can lead to jobs, as was proved last week when Quintessential Brands announced 20 new jobs and an investiment of 4million at First Ireland Spirits in Abbeyleix. Laois is a destination where investment can lead to jobs, as was proved last week when Quintessential Brands announced 20 new jobs and an investiment of 4million at First Ireland Spirits in Abbeyleix. This investment will make them the largest employer in Abbeyleix and see the output of the plant double to approximately two million cases or 24 million bottles per year. Just one year after Quintessential Brands acquisition of First Ireland Spirits, this significant investment reinforces the spirits companys commitment to Abbeyleix, and will transform its operations in Ireland to meet its ambitious growth plans. First Ireland Spirits was established in 1993 and currently employs around 50 people. There is currently planning permission pending with Laois County Council to build four wine storage tanks, a cream storage tank, a skim storage tank, a water storage tank and a high fat storage tank. The planning application also includes the provision of a new office accommodation prefab at their site in Tullyroe on the Mountrath Road in Abbeyleix. The council are expected to make a decision on the planning application in the next week. Quintessential Brands co-founder and Director, Warren Scott said the investment was part of their strategy to develop Abbeyleix as the home of Irish Cream. This investment is part of our ongoing strategy to develop Abbeyleix as the home of Irish Cream, boost our production capabilities, build a premium Irish brand portfolio and expand our contract manufacturing business in Ireland. Anna-Marie Delaney, Director of Services at Laois County Council: We are delighted to support Quintessential Brands investment in Abbeyleix and welcome their ambitions for the business and for the town with the creation of new jobs and opportunities for County Laois. First Ireland Spirits today produces and sells Irish cream liqueurs, Irish country creams and Irish whiskey liqueurs across 35 markets worldwide for some of the worlds largest retailers and drinks companies, The portfolio of brands produced by First Ireland Spirits includes OMaras, Feeneys and The Dubliner. Services in Portlaoise Hospital could be downgraded as a result of last weeks report into the hospital published by the Health and Information and Quality Authority. Services in Portlaoise Hospital could be downgraded as a result of last weeks report into the hospital published by the Health and Information and Quality Authority. The county is now faced with the same downgrading of services it was faced with in the summer of 2011 when over 10,000 people marched in support of saving the hospital. Hiqas damning report, which was commissioned following the deaths of five babies at the hospital, claimed there was not enough volume of major surgery cases to ensure that the service remained safe. Linking with the Coombe Hospital in Dublin appears to have stabilised issues in the Maternity Department. Surgical services do not have the volume of major cases to ensure consistency in that service. It remains a risk. The structures in place do not ensure a safe service, there is not enough throughput of cases to ensure consistency, said Mary Dunnion, a member of Hiqas investigation team. Speaking at the Irish Nurses and Midwives Organisation annual conference in Trim. the Minister for Health, Leo Varadkar said that services which do not have enough patients to support them will be discontinued. This was reiterated by the Director General of the HSE, Tony OBrien, over the weekend, despite saying the HSE had no agenda to downgrade the hospital at last Fridays press conference. Complex surgery, particularly colorectal surgery, will be moved to St James Hospital, and patients with higher risk pregnancies will be transferred to the Coombe Hospital. The intensive care unit, which, the Hiqa report claims does not meet standards may also be removed from Portlaoise. According to the report, the ICU is not fit for purpose. The HSEs performance review in 2014 concluded that a 24-seven emergency care service at the hospital was not clinically sustainable. The surgical services at Portlaoise Hospital are not currently structured to ensure the delivery of safe surgery, the report also said. In conclusion, the report said there was insufficient acute and elective surgical presentations to ensure surgeons maintain the necessary competencies and expertise. Last Friday, the head of the Dublin Mid-Leinster Hospital group Dr Susan OReilly, outlined the HSEs future plans for the hospital. This included enhancing the hospitals day care capacities to do more day surgeries and electives procedures , such as endoscopies. She said the hospital just needed more recovery space and day ward which is being planned. Dr OReilly said there had been big strides in the Maternity Department and she was excited about their collaboration with the Coombe. Enterprising Manorhamilton students, cousins Linda and Clare Dolan, are hoping to make their mark internationally with their eco-friendly odourless cow manure fuel briquettes - MURE. Linda (17) and Clare (16), both fifth year students at St Clare's Comprehensive, Manorhamilton, first came to media attention in the Leitrim Observer in May 2015 when they were honoured at the Youth Entrepreneur of the Year Awards organised by Foroige. Their business, MURE, set up through the Foroige Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (FNTE) programme has led to pair being selected to represent Ireland at the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship's global showcase to be held in New York this March. MURE's aim is to reduce global warming as our product is renewable and made out of a completely natural resource, - cow manure, explained Linda to the Leitrim Observer last year. 'Your Effluence is our Affluence' is our business motto. Both Linda and Clare come from farming backgrounds and they came up with their innovate cow manure briquette after they realised the amount of cow manure that was not being utilised on farms. A year long scientific study carried out by the girls in conjunction with St Clare's and the Sligo Institute of Technology on the MURE briquettes revealed that their product was more efficient that its peat counterparts. We compared the calorific values of our MURE briquettes to peat briquettes and it showed that ours has a higher calorific value and has a longer burning time, said Linda. And the question of odours from the cow manure briquettes? Linda acknowledged that convincing customers that the product is odour free has been a major challenge, but the products are odourless, making them an excellent alternative to conventional briquettes. The cousins are hoping to take their product worldwide and the showcase in New York is sure to be a major step forward in their bid to get international recognition for their product. February 4 is World Cancer Day - Coalition Priorite Cancer au Quebec invites the Quebec government to do more MONTREAL, Feb. 4, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - Coalition Priorite Cancer au Quebec takes the opportunity on this February 4th, as we celebrate World Cancer Day, to urge the Quebec government to do more for the fight against cancer. "We need a real cancer control plan accountable to the whole population," declares Coalition president Nathalie Rodrigue, T.M. The theme for World Cancer Day 2016 is "We can. I can." The Coalition reiterates how cancer is the leading cause of death in Quebec and that the number of cancer diagnostics is expected to rise by more than 35% over the next 15 years. The Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon, presents a significant message: "We must do more to end the many tragedies that cancer inflicts. About one third of cancers can be prevented, while others are curable if diagnosed and treated early. And even when cancer is advanced, patients should benefit from palliative care." While recognizing the interesting announcements recently made by Quebec's Health and Social Services Minister, including the creation of cancer committees within each institution as well as new investments into palliative care, the Coalition's president is asking the Minister to tackle the issue of access to care and services. "Recent surveys of cancer patients all show that access to services remains generally more difficult in Quebec than elsewhere in Canada and other industrialized countries. That is where the challenge lies," claims Mrs. Rodrigue. In fact, the Coalition will soon be presenting Minister Barrette the report and recommendations resulting from the Forum on the governance of the fight against cancer which was held last September 15 to provide various solutions to improve the management of the fight against cancer. About Coalition Priorite Cancer au Quebec Coalition Priorite Cancer au Quebec was founded in 2001 to assist, protect and give a voice to people affected by cancer (patients, survivors, informal caregivers and their families), to support cancer-related community organizations and health professionals, and to help organize the fight against cancer. Coalition Priorite Cancer au Quebec was founded in 2001 to protect and give a voice to people affected by cancer (patients, survivors, informal caregivers and their families), to support cancer-related community organizations and health professionals, and to help organize the fight against cancer. Thanks to the many organizations and individuals in its ranks, the Coalition has close to 2 million members. The final report resulting from the Forum on the governance of the fight against cancer is available (in French only) at http://fr.calameo.com/read/0012859275d231c952b19 SOURCE Coalition Priorite Cancer au Quebec Communique envoye le 4 fevrier 2016 a 07:23 et diffuse par : Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities represent a growing proportion of the UK. In 2010 they made up a total of 14% of the population and 8% of the voters. Yet at the last general election the majority (52%) of BAME voters cast their ballot for Labour not the Lib Dems. In fact over two thirds 67% of the black community voted Labour, with 38% of the Asian community voting Conservative. Lib Dem opposition to the Iraq war in 2003 won the party a legion of new supporters, many from BAME communities, who felt let down by Labours march to war. The result was that in the 2005 general election the Lib Dems polled 16% from ethnic minority voters, with support particularly high amongst Pakistani voters amongst whom they polled 25%. Fast forward a decade and Lib Dem support among BAME voters in 2015 had collapsed to just 4%. Its clear that the Party urgently needs to address this, and find neat innovative ways to appeal to BAME voters whose trust has been lost perhaps because of lack of engagement and lack of attention at the top of the party. The Conservatives can, in part, credit their strong 2015 general election performance to the support of a million BAME voters. Perhaps part of the explanation is the growing number of Conservative MPs from ethnic minority backgrounds (they currently have 17). Contrast that with the Lib Dems, not a single one of the partys MPs is from a BAME community. The party must find ways to select more high-quality BAME general election candidates ahead of 2020. It is also simply not good enough having eight peers from a BAME background. Lib Dem HQ must do everything within its powers to encourage BAME candidates to stand, providing opportunities and skills to equip candidates with everything they need to contest winnable seats. Whats more we need a leadership team at LDHQ and around Tim who are young, diversified and vibrant and who can engage communities across the country effectively. Even if our MPs dont look and sound like an ethnically diverse United Kingdom, the rest of the party has to. Another challenge is about where the party targets its election resources. The Lib Dems historical support base (areas like the South West and the Scottish Highlands) has lower than average populations of BAME voters. The party must more effectively focus money and resources taking on Labour in its heartlands, particularly in the inner cities where Lib Dems have traditionally struggled to win and hold on to parliamentary seats. The first and second generations of many immigrant communities have voted Labour all their lives: it will require ongoing, continuous engagement and cultivation to persuade them to shift to their next alternative allegiance. Whats more, when we do engage them we should be proud of defending our record in Government: reminding people what we achieved and, crucially, what cuts the Lib Dems stopped from taking place. Of course, any discussion of how Lib Dems can win back BAME support must also consider policy. Were still at the start of a long period during which Lib Dem policy groups will begin discussing and debating those issues that the party will go into the next election fighting on. It would be easy to say lets focus on BAME voters but the party must be attentive to the similarities and distinct interests of different communities. But one thing which surely unites many BAME communities as well as liberals is the way that Western governments should respond to the challenges of extremism, public sector cuts and the emerging humanitarian refugee crisis. You only have to look at the US and the inflammatory comments being made by Republicans in the partys nomination race for a presidential candidate to see how vulnerable Muslim communities are to the actions of extremists, often thousands of miles away. Here in the UK the Lib Dems have a moral duty to stand up for Muslim communities and to ensure their support and solidarity with the Muslim community is unwavering. We have a proud tradition welcoming and encouraging people to our shores from around the world embracing the value and importance of economic migration and the benefits it brings. We must also continue to stand up and offer support to those people fleeing persecution from around the world. As Lib Dems develop policies for 2020 these must be front and centre finding a balance between compassion, common sense and ensuring we bring supporters from across all communities with us. Lib Dems need to take a look at ourselves and decide what sort of a party we want to be, and if we want to truly represent the UKs minority communities. Assuming the answer is yes, and then there is much work to be done. That work must start now. * The author is a banking professional and a Kingston Lib Dem Member Just about every government in the world, except (UKIPs favorite) Russia, has expressed a view that it hopes Britain remains in the EU. This includes Commonwealth countries and allies in North and South America, Africa and Asia. President Obama intervened again this week by advising David Cameron in a phone call on Tuesday that the US sees Britains interests as best served in the EU rather than outside. Of course, the White House will fully expect that this information will become public knowledge and will hope that it will have a positive impact on the prospects of an IN vote. Barack Obama is probably more widely respected by the British public than any leading UK politician at the moment. Obama & IN or Putin & UKIP who do you trust? Euractiv reported the phone call. * Antony Hook was #2 on the South East European list in 2014, is the English Party's representative on the Federal Executive and produces this sites EU Referendum Roundup. WE recently received the news that Limerick City and County Council has secured 4.5 million in EU funding, much of which will be spent to revitalise OConnell Street from the Denmark Street junction as far as the Barrington Street junction. The local authority will match fund the European grant resulting in approximately 8.2m worth of investment. Talking to people on the street as well as local businesses there is some scepticism in relation to the news. Some comment on the fact that they have heard it all before in various guises down through the years. Other are concerned at how plans will affect traffic movement, availability of parking and retail trade in the city centre. Limerick is blessed to have one of the finest examples of Georgian architecture running through the heart of the city. In a fast changing world we are presented with a number of options. Do we continue to treat our city as large town on the western periphery of Europe? Do we ignore European best practice by continuing to treat the car as the major factor around which we design our city? Or do we take the opportunity to be ambitious, to think creatively and to develop a plan that leads to the creation of a truly European city in terms of how we live, work and play. Limerick was a city that in many ways missed out on the Celtic Tiger period of Irish history. At a time when a building boom was taking over the country our city centre suffered. All the talk was of the doughnut effect and large out-of-town retail developments causing a decline in our city centre. In some senses we can now see this period as one that now presents us with huge opportunities. Retail investment is now improving in the city. Investment is happening. All the talk is of creating a city centre where job creation, living and smart, sustainable initiatives play a key role in the future development of the city. The OECD claims that 70% of the worlds population will be living in cities by the year 2050. Yet a recent Limerick Leader report highlighted the fact that the population of Limerick city centre has been in stagnation since the 1980s and has risen by just 1% since 2006. Our key stakeholders are now committed to a plan that will make Limerick city the heart of a thriving region. The fact we got things wrong in the past is exciting to me. We have a unique opportunity to take the many aspects of what makes a city thrive by day and night and to develop a plan where the Limerick of the future is a best practice example in a European context. This may seem ambitious but why not be ambitious? The population of Ireland is expected to grow by over 400,000 by 2030. Imagine if Limerick city was to attract just 10% of this population growth? The development of OConnell St will play just one small part in the overall development of Limerick as a quality destination. We are correct to keep a wary eye on how the plan develops but we must also be open to the challenge of doing things with ambition, creativity and with our childrens future in mind. Keep building offices and companies will come It was refreshing to read the latest figures released by the IDA which show the job creation that has been seen across the various Irish regions. Foreign Direct investment is growing in all regions and that is contributing to the overall strong national performance. Limerick saw a total of 40 site visits organised by the IDA in 2015 putting us pretty much on a par with Galway and Cork as the highest receivers of site visits outside of Dublin. The job creation statistics for the Mid West region as delivered by the IDA show a total increase of 6.7%. The recent opening by Uber in the city centre at Thomas Street as well as major investment from Regeneron and others puts us on firm footing for 2016 in terms of attracting further investment. The priority now must be to complete or develop new turnkey office facilities in the city centre if we are to exploit the opportunities the IDA are presenting. A YOUNG man who is accused of robbing a number of students while they were walking to school has apologised for throwing a bottle of Coke at a judge. Clyde Keogh, aged 20, of Ballyclough Avenue, Ballinacurra Weston, is charged with three counts of robbery and one count of attempted robbery relating to incidents which happened on the morning of January 25, last. Opposing a bail application last week, Detective Garda Enda Haugh said it will be alleged that Keogh threatened to stab a 15-year-old boy at Athlunkard Street at 7.55am and that around ten minutes later, he threatened to stab another student, who was walking in the same area. Det Garda Haugh said it will be further alleged that a 13-year-old boy was threatened by Keogh that he would be shot if he didnt hand over his mobile phone. After he was refused bail, Keogh threw a bottle of coke in the direction of the presiding judge Marian O'Leary. While, she was not struck by the bottle, Judge O'Leary expressed her dissatisfaction that Keogh had been able to have something which was being capable of being used as a missile in court. She asked that asked in future prisoners not be allowed to have such items in their possession when appearing before the court. During a review of the case yesterday morning, solicitor Darach McCarthy said his client wished to apologise for his actions last week. Appearing before the court via video link from Limerick Prison,Keogh said:Your Honour, Im sorry for throwing Coke in the courtroom last week. My apologies, I lost the head. Sergeant Donal Cronin said investigations are continuing and that a file is being prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions in relation to the matters and he requested an adjournment of the case to facilitate the completion of the file. Judge OLeary granted the application and Keogh was remanded in continuing custody until February 16, next. She refused an application made by Mr McCarthy to have the defendant produced in person before the court on the next date. AFTER a bumper year in 2015, in which over 100,000 people passed through the gates of King Johns Castle for the first time, Shannon Heritage is looking forward to further growth over the next twelve months. The tourism body which operates tourist attractions in the region as well as sites such as the Cliffs of Moher and Malahide Castle has announced that it saw an increase of over 8% in visitor numbers in 2015. Overall, the body, which falls under the control of the Shannon Group, saw seven day time and four evening attractions across Clare, Dublin, Galway and Limerick draw 692,000 visitors last year, with day visitor attractions up over 11%. Included in that was a 22% increase year on year in visitor numbers at King Johns Castle, with over 104,000 visits to the site. The increased number of visitors coming through Shannon Airport has undoubtedly been a major factor in our gains, said John Ruddle, Shannon Heritage CEO. Mr Ruddle also said that added-value initiatives developed by Shannon Heritage for the Irish domestic market had helped boost numbers. Our Irish visitors are hugely important to us and we really value the great customer loyalty they have shown over the years by returning to our sites year after year. The body is to open a new 7m GPO Witness History centre in time for 1916 Rising centenary celebrations, which Mr Ruddle hopes will also boost visitor numbers. As a Shannon Group company, these results show a solid performance and centre set to open at the GPO in Dublin at Easter, this year is shaping up to be another year of positive growth. FOUR members of the same family have pleaded guilty to charges relating to a violent incident at a busy petrol station during which a man sustained serious head injuries. Jimmy Casey, aged 37, Simon Casey, aged 35, Terry Casey, aged 22 and Francis Casey, aged 23, who all have addresses at Clonlong Halting Site, Southill had been due to go on trial at Limerick Circuit Court this week. However, when they were arraigned this Wednesday afternoon, each of them admitted engaging in violent disorder at Springfield Filling Station, Croagh on November 23, 2014. The brothers also pleaded guilty to assaulting Michael Stokes, causing him harm, at the same location on the same date. Previously, Limerick District Court, was told that Mr Stokes, who lives in County Waterford, was attacked and left in a ditch by the defendants who alighted from a car which pulled into petrol station at around 2.30pm. Mr Stokes required hospital treatment for serious head injuries, which were sustained during the assault, which gardai believe related to a drugs debt owed by relatives of Mr Stokes. Investigating gardai previously stated the parties met by chance at the filling station and that the assault, which was caught on CCTV, was a message to ensure the debt was paid. The defendants first appeared in court shortly after the incident and the matter was formally sent for trial at the Circuit Court late last year on the instructions of the Director of Public Prosecutions. After the defendants entered their guilty pleas, Michael Collins BL, instructed by State Solicitor Aidan Judge, said a Nolle Prosequi was being entered in the case of their father Paddy Casey. Noting the charges were being withdrawn, Judge Tom ODonnell formally discharged the 60-year-old from his bail conditions. Jimmy, Simon, Terry and Francis Casey were remanded on continuing bail until May 6, next for a sentencing hearing. THE High Court has refused an appeal to prevent the 100m Horizon Mall development in Limerick from going ahead but has maintained the extant ruling that the mammoth development must be constructed by this August. A 74-page judgment was handed down this Thursday morning by Ms Justice Caroline Costello, following a judicial review taken by two companies behind the Crescent Shopping Centre in Dooradoyle against An Bord Pleanalas decision to grant planning to the development last year. While Belfast based developer Suneil Sharma can proceed with the development, the court did not extend the life-span of the permission. Both parties have 21 days to appeal the ruling. It follows a four-day hearing at the High Court last year. At that time senior counsel Eamon Galligan, acting on behalf of Mr Sharma and his company, Regional Retail Property Development and Trading Ltd, urged the court to recognise that over 35m has been invested in the project - excluding land costs - to date. Mr Sharma acquired the partially built development from Liam Carrolls Zoe company in 2011. Company accounts for Mr Sharmas firm - seen by the Limerick Leader - show that Danske Bank hold a charge over the companys assets relating to loans advanced amounting to nearly 41m. The commercial viability of the company is dependent on securing planning permission, finance to develop the shopping centre and secure tenants to generate future cashflows. The directors believe that this is achievable in the long term, state the accounts. The plans for the site were granted planning permission on six successive occasions by the former Limerick County Council, but later objected to and refused by the recently amalgamated Limerick City and County Council, when Mr Sharma sought to amend his plans. While An Bord Pleanala allowed it to go ahead, they set a deadline of August 2016 for completion - the same deadline previously set out by Limerick County Council. The revised plans by Mr Sharma saw a decrease in the gross floor area, but an increase in the retail area, to make it more commercially viable and to facilitate the completion of the development. But senior counsel for the Crescent shopping centre, Garrett Simons, instructed by Arthur Cox, argued that the revised plans for the site should have been submitted as a standalone new application, rather than revisions to an existing planning permission. The revised plans - down from 73,142 metres squared to 63,712 metres squared were to include two major anchor tenants, as well as 37 smaller outlets, down from 75 units previously. If built, it will include Limericks first Marks & Spencer and its largest store outside of Dublin. However, much doubt has been cast that a development of that size could be completed in seven months. - For more see Mondays Limerick Leader We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. We and our partners use data for Personalised ads and content, ad and content measurement, audience insights and product development. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. If you would like to change your settings or withdraw consent at any time, the link to do so is in our privacy policy accessible from our home page. Legionnaires' disease, a sometimes-deadly respiratory disease thought to be spread only through contaminated water, mist, vapor or soil, also may be transmitted between people, a new report of a single case in Portugal suggests. The evidence from the case shows that "person-to-person transmission of [Legionnaires'] was the most plausible explanation" for how the woman in the case became sick, said Dr. Ana Correia, the lead author of the case report and a physician at the Northern Regional Health Administration in Porto, Portugal, in an email to Live Science. Correia emphasized that, even if other cases confirm that person-to-person transmission of Legionnaires' disease happens occasionally, that type of transmission is likely very rare. Each year, between 8,000 and 18,000 people in the United States are hospitalized with Legionnaires', according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The disease is caused by a type of bacteria called Legionella. Symptoms usually develop two to 10 days after a person is exposed to the bacteria, and tend to worsen over time without treatment. A person with Legionnaires' may initially experience loss of appetite, headache and high fever, and go on to develop a cough with phlegm or blood, as well as chest pain and confusion. The disease can develop into a fatal form of pneumonia. [5 Things You Should Know About Legionnaires' Disease] About 5 to 10 percent of people infected with Legionnaires' die, according to the World Health Organization. The rate can be higher (up to 80 percent) among people who have weakened immune systems. The disease was first identified in 1977, after an outbreak of pneumonia among attendees of an American Legion convention in Philadelphia. The Legionella bacteria that cause the disease grow best in warm water, such as in plumbing systems, decorative fountains and cooling towers. People can be exposed to Legionella by breathing in contaminated water droplets, breathing in drinking water (having it go down the "wrong pipe") or, in uncommon cases, through working with contaminated soil. In late 2014, there was a large outbreak of Legionnaires' in Vila Franca de Xira, in western Portugal, with 334 cases and 10 deaths. Ninety percent of the people infected lived within about 2 miles (3 kilometers) of a cooling system, which was later found to be contaminated with the bacteria. Correia and her co-authors looked at two cases from this outbreak, of a man and his mother. The man was a 48-year-old maintenance worker who worked at the cooling tower complex that was later found to be contaminated, and was among the first cases identified in the outbreak. His illness began in mid-October 2014, and he developed severe respiratory symptoms, including a strong cough. During this time, he stayed with his 74-year-old mother for 8 hours before being admitted to a hospital. The man's mother had no previous health issues but developed symptoms of Legionnaires' in late October, and was admitted to the same hospital as her son in early November. They both died the mother on Dec. 1, 2014, and the son on Jan. 7, 2015. Gene sequencing of the bacteria from urine samples from the mother and son revealed they had the same strain of L. pneumophila bacteria as other people in that outbreak. The samples were sequenced weeks apart to avoid cross-contamination. As far as the researchers could tell, the woman had remained in Porto, about 186 miles (300 km) from Vila Franca de Xira, during the outbreak, according to the paper. She had never been to Vila Franca de Xira, and no other cases of Legionnaires' were reported in Porto. The mother and son lived in a home with small rooms that had no ventilation or air conditioning. Water samples from the home all tested negative for Legionella. Taken together, all of the evidence points to the likely conclusion that the mother was infected directly through contact with her son, the researchers wrote in their report of the case. Experts had previously hypothesized that Legionnaires' could be transmitted from person to person, but this appears to be the first time evidence from an actual case has supported this hypothesis, they said. The U.S. has seen recent small outbreaks of Legionnaires', including one in New York City in 2015. And although the disease is still rare, the CDC reported a near tripling of U.S. cases of Legionnaires' between 1998 and 2012. The agency said the increase could be explained by the aging of the population, aging plumbing or changes in climate. It could also reflect increased diagnostic testing and reporting. The CDC currently says on it's website that a person with Legionnaires' "is not a threat to family members, co-workers or others." "All previous evidence indicates that Legionnaires' disease is contracted via inhalation or aspiration of contaminated water droplets from an environmental source, and proper maintenance of these sources is critical for disease control," CDC spokeswoman Kristen Nordlund told Live Science in an email. "Although we did not participate in review of these data, this interesting report suggests that person-to-person transmission may be possible in rare circumstances." Correia said she thought this measured response was a good idea, and stressed the need for caution when evaluating this research. "We still think that the odds of person-to-person-transmission of LD are so small that, for the moment, we don't consider [it] necessary to change the information available to the public," Correia said. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Originally published on Live Science. This micrograph reveals the morphology of a Taenia solium tapeworm scolex (head region) with its four suckers, and two rows of hooks. An adult tapeworm attaches to the small intestine by using the suckers and hooks located in its head region, or scolex. Tapeworms are flat, segmented parasites that can grow from 4 to 28 inches (10 to 71 centimeters) in length. Typically, they attach themselves to a host's intestinal walls and feed off the host's food. The medical term for a parasitic infection of tapeworms in humans is taeniasis. Taeniasis can develop into cysticercosis, which is an infection of the tissue. Tapeworms belong to a large taxonomic class of flatworms called Cestoda, and more than 1,000 species have been identified. An adult tapeworm's body consists of a head and neck, and a chain of segments called proglottids, which grow and produce eggs, according to the Mayo Clinic. Adult tapeworms can live for up to 30 years in a host. Causes Tapeworm infection is caused by consuming an infected intermediate host (such as a pig) or by consuming infected fecal matter. Animals contract tapeworms from consuming prey, such as rabbits and rodents, that are infected with cysts filled with the eggs internally. Once the prey is consumed, the digestion allows the eggs to populate the intestine. (Trichinosis, also an infection caused by eating undercooked meat, is caused by roundworm parasites.) Melanie Eldridge, an assistant professor of biology and environmental sciences at the University of New Haven, explained that a tapeworm's lifecycle consists of a mammal consuming the eggs (or cyst), the eggs hatching into larval forms within the intestines and the larval forms burrowing through the intestines into other tissues where they develop into cysts. Humans or animals then consume the cysts and the cysts matures into a tapeworm. The worm then sheds eggs through the loss of body segments in the feces of the host and the lifecycle is complete. Each body segment can contain up to 100,000 eggs. An adult Taenia scolium, the pork tapeworm. Humans become infected by ingesting raw or undercooked infected meat. (Image credit: CDC) Species that can affect animals and humans include tapeworms in the Taenia genus. Different types of Taenia are associated with different types of meat. Taenia saginata is the beef tapeworm; Taenia solium is the pork tapeworm; and Taenia asiatica is the Asian pork tapeworm.Dipylidium caninum mainly infects dogs and cats, while Echinocococcus granulosus, which infects people and livestock, is rare in the United States. Taenia species are longer than Dipylidium species; they can grow up to 1 yard (nearly a meter) in length. The most common tapeworm species we see in dogs and cats is Dipylidium species, which is contracted from consuming an infected flea," said Taylor Truitt, a doctor of veterinary medicine of the Vet Set and Petsmile. "While fairly innocuous in older dogs and cats, large infections in puppies can cause nausea, vomiting, and in serious cases intestinal blockage. The Echinococcus species of tapeworm is a rare, but it can be fatal to humans if consumed through infected meat. On very rare occasions the eggs have been ingested through the accidental consumption of infected dog or coyote fecal material, said Truitt. This species is one of the many organisms that can be present in the water found in streams; therefore, it is never recommended that anyone drink untreated water, no matter how pristine it looks, added Eldridge. Conditions Tapeworms generally inhabit the intestines of humans and animals. They have a series of hooks (or suckers) on one end that they use to attach to the intestine to get nourishment from the host. For the most part, having intestinal tapeworms is harmless. Larval forms of some tapeworms can leave the intestines and reach other body sites such as the muscles, eyes and brain. One tapeworm that does this is Taenia solium, Donald C. Lehman, an associate professor of medical laboratory sciences in the University of Delawares College of Health Sciences, told Live Science. When this tapeworm is found in tissue other than the intestines, it is called cysticercosis. This can be a possibly deadly form of tapeworm infection. The tapeworm forms what is called a cysticercus, a larva that consists of a fluid-filled sac nestled in the tissue of the host. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), cysticercosis is caused by unintentionally eating fecal matter from a person infected with intestinal tapeworms. It is a myth that cysticercosis by eating undercooked pork, though undercooked pork can cause intestinal tapeworms. Symptoms Taeniasis typically has very mild or nonexistent symptoms in humans. Some tapeworms are small and when few are present, the patient might not have any symptoms. Larger tapeworms can produce symptoms such as abdominal discomfort, obstruction, diarrhea, weight loss and anemia. An adult Taenia saginata, the beef tapeworm. The ruler at the bottom is about 11.5 centimeters (4.5 inches) long. (Image credit: CDC) Cysticerci, the cysts caused from a larval infection, have different symptoms depending on where the cysts are located. Cysts in the muscles typically do not cause symptoms, though those infected may be able to feel lumps under their skin. Cysts in the eyes may cause floaters or blurry or disturbed vision, swelling or detachment of the retina. An infection of the brain by cysticerci is called neurocysticercosis, according to the CDC. Symptoms of cysticerci may not become apparent for months or even years. The symptoms vary depending on the location of the cysticerci and their size, though the most common symptom is epilepsy. In fact, this is the most common cause of adult-onset epilepsy in the world, said Lehman. T. solium is the cause of 30 percent of epilepsy cases in many endemic areas where people and roaming pigs live nearby, according the World Health Organization. Other symptoms of cysticerci include abnormal behavior, disequilibrium and visual problems. Observing a pet is usually the best way to see if they have tapeworms. Tapeworms are easy to see in dogs as they leave the anus [in what resembles] moving pieces of white rice. Some dogs will scoot their rear on the ground, but scooting is more commonly associated with anal sac problems, said Truitt. Cats infected with tapeworms will often vomit or lose weight, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Treatment Tapeworms must be diagnosed and treated by a medical professional. Intestinal tapeworms are simple to diagnose. To determine if you or a pet has tapeworm, ultimately a stool sample taken to a medical professional is the best method of diagnosis, said Eldridge. Once diagnosed, intestinal tapeworms are easily treated with antiparasitics. Cysticerci is a little more difficult to diagnose and treat. Diagnosis may require blood tests and/or imaging studies through MRI or CT scans. Anti-parasitic drugs combined with anti-inflammatory drugs are the most common treatment. Surgery may be required to remove the tapeworms and fix the damage caused by the parasite in those that are not helped by anti-parasitic and anti-inflammatory drugs. Additional Resources Researchers analyzed Michelangelos hands in portraits of him, such as this one by Jacopo del Conte. Michelangelo defied the painful arthritis that riddled his hands in the last 15 years of his life by carrying on working until his last days, a new study suggests. The study relied on analysis of portraits of Michelangelo as well as on historic documents. "There are no spectroscopic or X-ray images available, and for this reason, the careful observation of the portraits is the only method available today to interpret hand deformities," an international team of researchers wrote in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine. Michelangelo's David at Risk From Weak Ankles The team included Davide Lazzeri and Manuel Francisco Castello, both specialists in plastic reconstructive and aesthetic surgery at the Villa Salaria Clinic, Rome, Donatella Lippi, director of the department of History of Medicine at Florence University, Marco Matucci-Cerinic, director of the division of rheumatology at Florence University, and George M.Weisz at the University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia. In particular, three paintings, which depict the artist between the ages of 60 and 65 show his left hand bearing signs of osteoarthritis, a painful joint disorder which today affects 9.6 percent of men and 18 percent of women aged over 60. "A study of Michelangelo's biography and letters indeed supported the diagnosis of a degenerative osteoarthritis, possibly ruling out other possible diseases," lead author Lazzeri told Discovery News. Is This the First Self-portrait of Michelangelo? Several organic, psychological and behavioral disorders, ranging from lead intoxication to Asperger's disease, have been attributed to Michelangelo. A large correspondence with Lionardo di Buonarroto Simoni, Michelangelo's nephew, reveals that the artist suffered from "gout," a general term of the period which included all arthritic conditions. But according to the researchers, no signs of inflammation and no evidence of tophi, the small lumps of uric acid crystals that form under the skin of people with gout, could be detected in the artist's hands. Lazzeri and colleagues estimate that Michelangelo (1475-1564) likely began experiencing the first symptoms of the disease between 1547 and 1553, when he worked on the Deposition, or Florentine Pieta. The extensive hammering and chiseling carried out during Michelangelo's younger years was likely responsible for the deformed hands in later life. The disease progressed until his final, and unfinished work, the Rondanini Pieta. Michelangelo's David Holding Secret Weapon? By that time, the hands that carved David, designed St Peter's basilica and painted The Last Judgment in the Sistine Chapel, were twisted into deformed protrusions. Michelangelo was unable to write, and could only sign his letters. Nevertheless, the master was seen hammering up to six days before his death on Feb. 18, 1564, three weeks before his 89th birthday. According to the researchers, osteoarthritis affecting the small joints of Michelangelo's left hand can be first detected in a portrait by Florentine Mannerist painter Jacopino del Conte (15101598). Dated 1535, the painting depicts Michelangelo when he was over 60. He looks tired and older than his age. His left hand is shown hanging, with apparent signs of a non-inflammatory articular disease. The second painting by Daniele Ricciarelli, better known as da Volterra, is dated 1544 and is probably a copy of del Conte's work. Does Knuckle Cracking Cause Arthritis? The third portrait, by Pompeo Caccini, was painted in 1595, 36 years after Michelangelo's death, and shows the artist's left hand in a claw-like posture. Interpreted by contemporary historians as suggesting the artist's left-handedness, all three paintings "show Michelangelo's hand to be affected by degenerative arthritis," the researchers concluded. "Michelangelo's difficulties with tasks such as writing may have resulted from stiffness of the thumb and the loss of the ability to abduct, flex and adduct it," Lazzeri and colleagues wrote. Mona Lisa May Conceal Second Portrait They noted that the swellings at the base of the thumb and the swellings of the smaller joints of the thumb and index are not gouty in origin and can be interpreted as osteoarthritic nodules. "The diagnosis of osteoarthritis offers one plausible explanation for Michelangelo's loss of dexterity in old age and emphasises his triumph over infirmity as he persisted in his work until his last days," Lazzeri said. "Indeed, the continuous and intense work could have helped Michelangelo to keep the use of his hands for as long as possible," he added. According to Francesco Galassi, a researcher at the Institute of Evolutionary Medicine at Zurich University who has long worked in the field of pathography, the study is "somehow interesting" but caution is needed. Fly Found With Da Vinci Princess Spurs Mystery "While this new diagnosis is certainly very charming, personally I don't believe this is ever going to make Michelangelo's a closed case," Galassi told Discovery News "Focusing on one anatomical district doesn't disentangle the conundrum of Michelangelo's bodily ailments, an enigma not inferior to that of his immortal genius." Originally published on Discovery News. The pressure sensors wrap around and conform to the shape of the fingers while still accurately measuring pressure. A new transparent, bendable pressure sensor could be incorporated into a pair of latex gloves and one day help doctors check women for breast cancer, without requiring X-rays, researchers say. Doctors often touch and feel patients' bodies, applying small amounts of pressure with their hands, when assessing patients' health. For instance, any hard spots or lumps may be a sign of abnormalities such as tumors. In fact, doctors may rely heavily on their "tactile feeling" of a patient's body to figure out whether the person may have cancer, said study senior author Takao Someya, a professor of electrical engineering at the University of Tokyo. Pressure sensors could help doctors analyze their patients' health with greater precision than is possible with their natural sense of touch, the researchers said. "Tumors are normally more rigid than breast tissue, so we can input that data to a sensor-attached glove," Someya told Live Science. However, because human bodies are generally soft, sensors that touch bodies must be soft too, in order to work well. But so far, pressure sensors that are soft have been vulnerable to bending, and these devices could not distinguish their own bending from the variations in pressure in the object they were supposed to measure, the researchers said. "Many groups are developing flexible sensors that can measure pressure, but none of them are suitable for measuring real objects, since they are sensitive to distortion," study lead author Sungwon Lee, also of the University of Tokyo, said in the statement. [10 Technologies That Will Transform Your Life] Now, the scientists say they have developed an ultrasensitive transparent pressure sensor that can accurately detect pressure even when the sensor is distorted to an extraordinary degree. The researchers made the sensor from composite fibers containing graphene, which are sheets of carbon just one atom thick, and carbon nanotubes, which are carbon pipes only nanometers (billionths of a meter) in diameter. They took meshes of these pressure-sensitive, 300-to-700-nanometer-wide fibers and embedded them in thin, light, transparent, elastic plastic sheets. When this flat sensor is bent, the nanofibers can shift around in the spaces inside the mesh, so their sensor capabilities do not change much even when the sensorsare bent to an extreme degree. However, the sensor can still respond when compressed by pressure. Even when the pressure sensor is stretched and deformed, the device still measures the pressure distribution accurately. (Image credit: 2016 Someya Laboratory) In experiments, the device successfully measured pressure even when it was placed on the soft, movable 3D surface of a balloon that researchers pressed their fingers into. In addition, when the scientists wrapped their sensor around an artificial blood vessel made of plastic and filled with water, they found that "it could detect small pressure changes," as well as how fast the pressure was changing, Lee said in the statement. The researchers noted that it was too early to suggest that pressure-sensitive gloves could replace mammography, which uses X-rays to diagnose and locate breast tumors. Still, one day, "the new sensors may offer easy and painless monitoring of tumors without exposure to radiation," Someya said. This new sensor could also make robots sensitive to pressure, Someya said. "Imagine that you are shaking hands with a robot that has soft skin," Someya said. "Currently, there is no pressure sensor that accurately works" once it is bent, he said. If the pressure sensor malfunctions, shaking hands with such a robot could be very dangerous, since the robot might end up accidentally crushing a person's hand. In the future, the researchers want to design a stretchable pressure sensor that can accurately detect pressure even when the device is stretched, Someya said. The scientists detailed their findings online Jan. 25 in the journal Nature Nanotechnology. Follow Charles Q. Choi on Twitter @cqchoi. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Originally published on Live Science. At least 45 boxes filled with archaeological treasures have been returned to Italy after they were hidden in a Geneva warehouse by a disgraced British art dealer, Swiss authorities said. Swiss investigators suspect that tomb robbers illegally dug up most of these antiquities at ancient cemeteries in central Italy's Umbria and Lazio regions, where the Etruscan civilization thrived 2,500 years ago before the rise of Rome. The Etruscans are particularly famous for producing beautiful sarcophagi, or coffins, carved with reclining life-size human figures. The Italian Carabinieri Art Squad first came to Swiss authorities in March 2014 with information about one of these sarcophagi that might have been stolen during an illegal excavation and deposited in Geneva's Ports Francs, or Free Ports, the Geneva Public Prosecutor's Office said in a statement last month. A search, led by Claudio Mascotto of the Public Prosecutor's Office, brought authorities to a warehouse, where they found not one but two of these terra-cotta sarcophagi among dozens of other artifacts, including bas-reliefs, painted vases, frescos, statue heads, busts and other votive or religious pieces. [See Photos of the Stolen Archaeological Treasures] The objects, which were officially handed over to Italy in mid-January, were to be unveiled in Rome this week, the U.K.'s Telegraph reported. Because Swiss authorities don't publicly disclose the names of the parties in such legal proceedings, the statement only revealed that these objects were deposited in the warehouse space by "a former high-profile British art dealer, whose name has been linked in the past to the trading of several looted antiquities throughout the world." Many media outlets were quick to link that description to Robin Symes, a dealer accused of selling illicit Italian antiquities to Western art institutions, such as the Getty Museum in Los Angeles, which has been forced to return many of these objects. Christos Tsirogiannis, a forensic archaeologist and researcher who studies the illicit antiquities trade at the University of Glasgow's Trafficking Culture project, said he actually recognized some of the Etruscan antiquities when the Swiss authorities published photos of the trove. Tsirogiannis has access to a photo archive that was confiscated by authorities from Giacomo Medici, a notorious Italian dealer who was convicted for antiquities trafficking in 2004 and was one of Symes suppliers. (Symes and Medicis involvement in the black market for antiquities was documented in Peter Watson and Cecilia Todeschini's 2006 book "The Medici Conspiracy (opens in new tab)," published by PublicAffairs.) Tsirogiannis showed Live Science photos of the heads from the two Etruscan sarcophagi in separate images from the Medici archive. He noted that the photos released by the Swiss authorities shows these heads attached to the two sarcophagi, as if they had never been broken. "I am not aware if the Carabinieri made the match, or whether they are repatriating the sarcophagi just because they are Etruscan and found in the Geneva warehouses of Symes," Tsirogiannis said. The 1973 UNESCO Convention made it illegal to import, export or transfer ownership of cultural property. Switzerland signed this agreement in 2003, and this case is not the first time the nation has acted on that convention to return illegal antiquities to other countries. Henri Della Casa, a spokesman for Geneva judicial authorities, said antiquities found in the Geneva Free Ports were returned to Turkey last year and that other cultural property investigations are ongoing. "The public prosecutor is very happy with the conclusion of these proceedings and is very satisfied to have handed back these remains to Italy," Della Casa said. The Geneva Free Ports have become popular storage spaces among art collectors because of the high security and lack of taxes and duties. The Italian antiquities in the latest case had been stored there for more than 15 years, and they were registered under the name of an offshore company, Swiss authorities said. But Artnet News reported that changes in regulations for the Free Ports that went into effect this year should make it more difficult to hide illicit antiquities in Swiss warehouses. Some of these changes include a six-month cap on the storage of objects intended for export and a new requirement to disclose the contents of crates moving in and out of the duty-free warehouses. Follow us @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. More than 100 years ago, American sociologist W.E.B. Du Bois was concerned that race was being used as a biological explanation for what he understood to be social and cultural differences between different populations of people. He spoke out against the idea of "white" and "black" as discrete groups, claiming that these distinctions ignored the scope of human diversity. Science would favor Du Bois. Today, the mainstream belief among scientists is that race is a social construct without biological meaning. And yet, you might still open a study on genetics in a major scientific journal and find categories like "white" and "black" being used as biological variables. In an article published today (Feb. 4) in the journal Science, four scholars say racial categories are weak proxies for genetic diversity and need to be phased out. [Unraveling the Human Genome: 6 Molecular Milestones] They've called on the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine to put together a panel of experts across the biological and social sciences to come up with ways for researchers to shift away from the racial concept in genetics research. "It's a concept we think is too crude to provide useful information, it's a concept that has social meaning that interferes in the scientific understanding of human genetic diversity and it's a concept that we are not the first to call upon moving away from," said Michael Yudell, a professor of public health at Drexel University in Philadelphia. Yudell said that modern genetics research is operating in a paradox, which is that race is understood to be a useful tool to elucidate human genetic diversity, but on the other hand, race is also understood to be a poorly defined marker of that diversity and an imprecise proxy for the relationship between ancestry and genetics. "Essentially, I could not agree more with the authors," said Svante Paabo, a biologist and director of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany, who worked on the Neanderthal genome but was not involved with the new paper. "What the study of complete genomes from different parts of the world has shown is that even between Africa and Europe, for example, there is not a single absolute genetic difference, meaning no single variant where all Africans have one variant and all Europeans another one, even when recent migration is disregarded," Paabo told Live Science. "It is all a question of differences in how frequent different variants are on different continents and in different regions." In one example that demonstrated genetic differences were not fixed along racial lines, the full genomes of James Watson and Craig Venter, two famous American scientists of European ancestry, were compared to that of a Korean scientist, Seong-Jin Kim. It turned out that Watson (who, ironically, became ostracized in the scientific community after making racist remarks) and Venter shared fewer variations in their genetic sequences than they each shared with Kim. Assumptions about genetic differences between people of different races have had obvious social and historical repercussions, and they still threaten to fuel racist beliefs. That was apparent two years ago, when several scientists bristled at the inclusion of their research in Nicholas Wade's controversial book, "A Troublesome Inheritance" (Penguin Press, 2014), which proposed that genetic selection has given rise to distinct behaviors among different populations. In a letter to The New York Times, five researchers wrote that "Wade juxtaposes an incomplete and inaccurate account of our research on human genetic differences with speculation that recent natural selection has led to worldwide differences in IQ test results, political institutions and economic development." The authors of the new Science article noted that racial assumptions could also be particularly dangerous in a medical setting. "If you make clinical predictions based on somebody's race, you're going to be wrong a good chunk of the time," Yudell told Live Science. In the paper, he and his colleagues used the example of cystic fibrosis, which is underdiagnosed in people of African ancestry because it is thought of as a "white" disease. [The Best Genealogy Software for Tracing Your Family Tree] Mindy Fullilove, a psychiatrist at Columbia University, thinks the changes proposed in the Science article are "badly needed." Fullilove noted that by some laws in the United States, people with one black ancestor of 32 might be called "black," but their 31 other ancestors are also important in influencing their health. "This is a cogent and important call for us to shift our work," Fullilove said. "It will have an enormous influence. And it will make for better science." So what other variables could be used if the racial concept is thrown out? Paabo said geography might be a better substitute in regions such as Europe to define "populations" from a genetic perspective. However, he added that, in North America, where the majority of the population has come from different parts of the world during the past 300 years, distinctions like "African Americans" or "European Americans" might still work as a proxy to suggest where a person's major ancestry originated. Yudell also said scientists need to get more specific with their language, perhaps using terms like "ancestry" or "population" that might more precisely reflect the relationship between humans and their genes, on both the individual and population level. The researchers also acknowledged that there are a few areas where race as a construct might still be useful in scientific research: as a political and social, but not biological, variable. "While we argue phasing out racial terminology in the biological sciences, we also acknowledge that using race as a political or social category to study racism, although filled with lots of challenges, remains necessary given our need to understand how structural inequities and discrimination produce health disparities between groups," Yudell said. Follow Live Science @livescience, Facebook & Google+. Original article on Live Science. Local News, Business & Finance, Health & Wellness, Press Releases, Seasonal & Current Events By Long Island News & PR Published: February 04 2016 Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone invites residents interested in healthcare careers to a recruitment drive Thursday Feb. 11, 2016. Hauppauge, NY - February 2, 2016 - Suffolk County Executive Steve Bellone invites residents interested in healthcare careers to a recruitment drive Thursday Feb. 11, 2016. Suffolk County is the home to many talented workers, the County Executive said. When companies are in need of people with skills, they know they can find right here. All Staff Healthcare Agency is recruiting to fill 17 Certified Nursing Assistant positions. Certified Nursing Assistants feed, bathe, groom and assist patients with dressing. Candidates must have New York State CNA Certificates. The job fair will run from 9 a.m. until noon Feb. 11 at the Suffolk County One Stop Employment Center, 725 Veterans Memorial Highway, Hauppauge. The Suffolk County One-Stop Employment Center is a cutting-edge endeavor which brings together both employers and job seekers, providing a comprehensive, one-stop approach to job search. Staffed with employment professionals from several private and public entities, the Employment Center functions as a full service human resources facility. The center supplies the job seeking customer with all the tools necessary for a self-directed or staff-assisted job search, and provides employers with facilities and workforce support. Equipped with state of the art computers, fax machines, phones, and copiers, the Employment Center also maintains job banks and specializes in job clubs, job fairs, employability and computer workshops and focus groups. Employment Center visitors are able to accomplish many tasks, whether it be to create and edit their resume, navigate the Internet for their job search. Employers may interview prospective employees on-site. School & Education, Local News, Press Releases By Long Island News & PR Published: February 04 2016 U.S. Air Force Gen. Darren W. McDew, Commander, U.S. Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM), visited the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) at Kings Point. Gen. McDew speaks with Midshipman 1st Class Blair Roberts and Midshipman 1st Class Michael Babowice during his tour with Lt. Fionna Boyle, U.S. Navy, and Superintendent, Rear Adm. James A. Helis, USMS. Kings Point, NY - February 2, 2016 - U.S. Air Force Gen. Darren W. McDew, Commander, U.S. Transportation Command (USTRANSCOM), visited the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA) at Kings Point yesterday. Located at Scott Air Force Base, Ill., USTRANSCOM is the Department of Defenses single manager for global air, land and sea transportation. It was a great honor to have General McDew visit U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, said Rear Admiral James A. Helis, Superintendent. His outspoken support of the U.S. Merchant Marine highlights the significant role that merchant mariners play in supporting our military and keeping Americans safe. McDew began his visit addressing the Regiment of Midshipmen, faculty and staff. Citing the successful deployment of troops and materiel for Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm 25 years ago, he emphasized the importance of the maritime industry to our National Defense and his concern about the reduced number of U.S.-flagged ships operating today. He said, you are one of the most powerful assets we have. Addressing the midshipmen, he said, I want to thank you for choosing to put that uniform on, for choosing to put yourself through what youre putting yourself through, and then leave here and take on a job in this profession. He continued, you chose something bigger than yourselves. You chose a future that serves others, and I thank you for that. My biggest concern is can we still do it? Do we have that strength in the maritime industry to get done what we need to get done? McDew asked. I need your help. The General took questions from a dozen midshipmen and faculty on a range of issues including leadership development, industry trends, joint-service challenges, and recruitment and retention of merchant mariners. After the assembly in Ackerman Auditorium, McDew visited the full-mission bridge and engine simulators and barracks. He spoke directly to midshipmen who shared their experiences as students, members of the regiment and as future officers. Band Company Commander, Midshipman 1st Class Blair Roberts said, to listen to General McDew speak and to have the opportunity to meet with him was a remarkable opportunity. I appreciate the vested interest that TRANSCOM has in the Merchant Marine Academy, and I am thankful for the support that General McDew has for the Regiment of Midshipmen. School & Education, Press Releases By Long Island News & PR Published: February 04 2016 Last month, the Green Vale 5th grade performed the classic play Fiddler on the Roof a formidable task due to its length. Old Brookville, NY - February 3rd, 2016 - Last month, the Green Vale 5th grade performed the classic play Fiddler on the Roof a formidable task due to its length. However, the students handled the challenge with both enthusiasm and conviction entertaining the audience of fellow students, faculty members and parents. Practice began in December under the direction of 5th grade teachers Meg Leonard, Kathleen Pries and Lindsay Werner. Choral Director Jessica Chen directed the music, while the Chairperson of the Visual Arts Department DeeDee Copp created the environment, and crafts teacher Lizzie Wright assisted with production. With 46 students in this years 5th grade, Fiddler on the Roof gave us more than enough characters and songs to highlight each student, Mrs. Pries said. The plight of the Jewish people in Russia in 1910 prefaced our study of their experience in Europe during World War II. We study this period of history in 5th grade also by reading Number the Stars by Louis Lowry. About The Green Vale School The Green Vale School, located in Old Brookville, Long Island, is an independent school specializing in Early Childhood through Middle School situated on a 40-acre campus on the doorstep of New York City. Green Vale has been providing students with an uncommon core of academic excellence and character development since 1923 inspiring students to excel, to lead and to care. Nassau County, NY - February 3, 2016 - Nassau County Executive Edward P. Mangano today announced the schedule for the 2016 Spring Lifeguard Instruction Courses at the Nassau County Aquatic Center. Information for Lifeguard Instruction Course is as follows: Registration starts: Sunday, February 7th at 9:00 a.m. Pre-Test: Sunday, February 14th at 9:00 a.m. Class day and time: Sundays from 9:00 a.m. 1:00 p.m. Dates: February 28th April 17th (no class on 3/27) Cost: $250.00 (includes class/book/materials); $6.00 class registration fee (due when signing up for pre-test) Details: Participants must be at least 16 years old before the last date of the class. Registrants must pass a pre-test in order to participate in the class. Pre-test requirements are listed below. Registration is first come, first serve. Class size is limited to 10 spots. A Nassau County Leisure Pass is required at the time of registration. After 10 spots are filled, a waitlist will be formed to fill in any pre-test failures. There is no fee to be placed on the waitlist. The $250 fee to be paid before the first class starts but only after passing the pre-test. No absences are permitted. Registration and program fees are non-refundable. Pre-test requirements: Swim 300 yards continuously using only these strokes in the following order: 100 yards front crawl using rhythmic breathing and a stabilizing propellant kick; 100 yards of breaststroke using a pull, breathe, kick and glide sequence; and 100 yards of either front crawl using rhythmic breathing or breaststroke. These 100 yards may be a mixture of front crawl and breaststroke. (Note: There is no time requirement for this skill. The participant must show only that he or she can swim 300 yards using the above strokes without stopping). Starting in the water, swim 20 yards using front crawl or breaststroke; surface dive to a depth of 7-10 feet of water, retrieve a 10-pound object, return to the surface, and swim 20 yards back to the starting point with the object and exit the water without using a ladder or steps, within 1 minute, 40 seconds. The time is complete once the participant has exited the water and is standing up on the pool deck. Tread water for 2 minutes using only your legs. Candidates should place their hands under their arm pits. All schedules are subject to change. Centrally located in Eisenhower Park on Merrick Avenue in East Meadow, the Nassau County Aquatic Center is one of the premier swimming facilities in the country. Built in 1998 for the Goodwill Games, it serves the general public as well as competitive swimmers. The Aquatic Center regularly hosts college and local high school competitive swimming and diving meets and has hosted scores of Olympians, including Michael Phelps. For a detailed listing of class offerings, please call the Aquatic Center at: (516) 572-0501 or visit the Nassau County Parks, Recreation and Museums website. Looking to stay up to date about all of the news stories and local headlines that are important to Long Islanders? We've rounded up the top coverage for all of the important topics from multiple sources around Long Island, so you can be sure you've got the most recent update on the top stories for Long Island. Have an idea for a news story? Email us at news@longisland.com Columnists Press Releases Jihadists on social media claim Jalal Balaidi, also known as Hamza al Zinjibari, was killed in a US drone strike last night. A senior al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) leader may have been killed in a US drone strike that was launched in southern Yemen last night. Several fighters were reportedly killed and jihadists on social media claim that one of them was Jalal Balaidi, a prominent AQAP field commander. Balaidis purported death has not been confirmed by either AQAP or the US. In 2014, the US State Department offered a $5 million reward for information leading to Balaidis whereabouts. Foggy Bottoms Rewards for Justice listing for Balaidi notes that he has served as a regional emir for AQAP since 2012 and was responsible for multiple governorates. In 2013, Balaidi was involved in planning attacks on Western diplomatic officials and facilities in Sanaa using explosives. State explained that AQAP had surveilled diplomatic personnel in preparation for the attacks. According to Reuters, Balaidi was killed by a drone strike as he was traveling in a car with two others in [the] coastal Abyan province. AQAP controls populated areas in Abyan, including Zinjibar, which is the provincial capital, and the nearby town of Jaar. In December, AQAP released a propaganda video celebrating its liberation of Jaar, which the jihadists have renamed Waqar. Residents featured in the video praised AQAPs victory, saying the al Qaeda branch has brought stable governance to the area. AQAP controls territory in Yemen, including Jaar, under the name Ansar al Sharia, which is merely a political and paramilitary front for the group. Most of the AQAP fighters shown in the video had their faces obscured in front of the camera. However, Balaidis face could be seen as he greeted and congratulated his fighters on their success. A screen shot of Balaidi from the video can be seen above. Citing media reports and some analysts, Reuters reports that Balaidi may have recently defected from AQAP to become the chief of Islamic States Yemen branch. But The Long War Journal has not seen any real evidence indicating that this is true. The Islamic States Yemen province has suffered from a leadership crisis and the group did not advertise Balaidis supposed defection, as it most certainly would have given his high-profile status within AQAP. In addition, the AQAP video from Jaar in late December shows that he was leading al Qaedas forces during its most recent offensives. Balaidi has been prominently featured in AQAPs propaganda. In August 2015, for instance, AQAPs Al Malahem Media Foundation released a lengthy interview with Balaidi, who discussed the jihadists war against the Shiite Houthi rebels and other related matters. His interview was translated by the SITE Intelligence Group. Balaidi explained that AQAP has been training the Sunni youth in its camps, and has been able to train thousands of Sunnis thus far. We do not exaggerate when we say thousands of Sunnis, because this matter is clear and everyone knows it, Balaidi said, according to SITEs translation. Praise be to Allah, these trainings and these camps have bore fruit, and also the arming of the sons of the Sunnis, for they were able to affect the reality of the fronts, and were able to change the progress in the battlefields, by the grace of Allah, Balaidi claimed. He was most likely referring to the AQAP offensive that began in early 2015. The al Qaeda branch has seized several cities and towns since then. Balaidis responsibilities on behalf of AQAP have been far-reaching. He has served as a field commander in the Yemeni provinces of Abyan, Bayda, Hadramout, Lahj, and Shabwa, according to The Yemen Times. He is also said to be the head of Ansar al Sharia in Abyan province. If his death is confirmed, then Balaidi is the first senior AQAP leader killed by the US in a drone strike in Yemen this year. The US killed several AQAP leaders in airstrikes last year, including Nasir al Wuhayshi, AQAPs co-founder and emir. Wuhayshi also served as al Qaedas general manager and was a protege of Osama bin Laden. While a number of top AQAP leaders have been killed in US airstrikes, their deaths have not prevented the organization from taking advantage of the turmoil in Yemen. In addition to Zinjibar and Jaar, AQAP controls Mukallah, which is the capital of the Hadramout province, as well as the town of Azzan. AQAP also likely controls other territory and operates throughout the country. Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of FDD's Long War Journal. Thomas Joscelyn is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Senior Editor for FDD's Long War Journal. Are you a dedicated reader of FDD's Long War Journal? Has our research benefitted you or your team over the years? Support our independent reporting and analysis today by considering a one-time or monthly donation. Thanks for reading! You can make a tax-deductible donation here. Luton is a large town, borough and unitary authority area of Bedfordshire. Luton and its near neighbours, Dunstable and Houghton Regis, form the Luton/Dunstable Urban Area with a population of about 258,000. Luton is home to Championship team Luton Town Football Club, London Luton Airport and The University of Bedfordshire. You can find us on Facebook and Twitter. For all the latest news from Luton sign up to our newsletter here. India must put quality control at the centre of its policies on IP filing if it doesnt want to deal with a mess of its own making later Marie Claire newsletter Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox! Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Thank you for signing up to . You will receive a verification email shortly. There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again. By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions (opens in new tab) and Privacy Policy (opens in new tab) and are aged 16 or over. The Oscar nominee says she's a little nervous about her upcoming fitting and dishes about last year's gorgeous gown Jennifer Lawrence doesn't seem too concerned about whether she'll win an Oscar on Sunday night. (After all, she already has one of those at home.) Instead, the American Hustle star says she's just worried that her dress might not fit. The best supporting actress nominee, 23, opened up to Deadline about her red-carpet preparations. 'Im trying to go back to that place where dress fittings seemed exciting,' she said. 'Ive had one fitting here in Atlanta and I think I have the final fitting on the day of the awards. So I just hope it fits.' Since Jennifer has already snagged the Golden Globe and the BAFTA awards for her American Hustle performance this season, it's starting to seem more likely that she might pull a rare Oscar repeat on Sunday. (She won best actress last year for The Silver Linings Playbook.) Only five actors have ever won back-to-back Oscars, and J.Law would be the youngest by far. Yes, it could be a very big night for Jen - and she's going to need a very amazing dress Got a tablet? You can now download Marie Claire magazine straight to your iPad, Kindle (just search the store for 'marie claire magazine'), Nook or Google Nexus. Even better? Get your hands on our March issue now for the special price of just 2.49. Western Australia-China rates hit near 17-year low; owners explore laying-up ships. Freight rates for capesize bulk carriers on key Asian routes should remain flat next week as the Lunar New Year holiday in China will curtail chartering activity, shipbrokers said on Thursday. Capesize rates from Western Australia to China hit a near 17-year low on Wednesday after Rio Tinto fixed a capesize ship at a rate of $2.85 a tonne, said a Shanghai-based capesize broker. But the prevailing rate for the route has been around $3 per tonne this week, Reuters chartering data showed. "I've heard owners expect the market to go up, but so far there is no sign of that happening," the Shanghai broker said. "China will be quiet next week so I don't expect many fixtures," the broker said. There were no reported fixtures this week from Brazil and just a handful of charters from Australia to China by Rio Tinto and Fortescue Metals Group, Reuters freight data showed. "The market will be dead next week. Charterers, owners, brokers will all be on holiday," said a Singapore-based capesize broker. China has a week-long holiday, while other markets including Hong Kong will be closed for several days. The capesize market remained over-tonnaged with daily earnings about 50 percent lower than daily operating costs leading owners to idle ships, brokers said. "Owners are exploring the opportunities for laying up tonnage but so far few ships have actually been laid up," Norwegian ship broker Fearnley said in a Wednesday note. Idled ships have a full crew onboard and are available for charter, but laid-up vessels have a skeleton crew and some shipboard systems are shut down. "It is estimated that cold lay-up will cost around $1,500 per day for a standard capesize. Rates are currently below $4,500 which is why cold lay-ups over the coming months will doubtless become more commonplace," a report by ship valuation firm VesselsValue said on Tuesday. Capesize charter rates for the Western Australia-China route slipped to $2.88 a tonne on Wednesday, the lowest since June 1999, from $3 per tonne last week. Rates for the Brazil-China route nudged up to $5.56 a tonne on Wednesday, the highest since Jan. 14, against $5.46 a tonne a week earlier. Panamax rates for a North Pacific round-trip voyage fell to $1,959 per day on Wednesday, near the lowest since January 2009, compared with $2,118 per day a week ago. "There is no light at the end of the tunnel. The market has been subdued all week," said a Singapore-based panamax broker on Thursday. Freight rates for smaller supramax vessels were unchanged from last week. "The market can only go one way. And as such we may see upward movements on the back of seasonal demand, but it is unlikely to be sustainable," the Fearnley note said. The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index dropped to a new all-time low of 303 on Wednesday, against 337 the same day last week. Reporting by Keith Wallis Crowley Maritime Corporations tanker escort and docking services group in Valdez is celebrating over seven million man hours and more than six years since logging its last Lost Time Injury (LTI). In addition to this remarkable number, the company announced that it had not had an OSHA recordable case in over two million man hours while performing tanker assist and escort work for Alyeska Pipeline Service Company. In 2015, the company logged over one million man hours while safely escorting 236 tankers through Prince William Sound, transporting 185 million barrels of oil in one of the harshest environments in the world. Weve partnered with Alyeska Pipeline Service Company for more than 25 years to provide the safest, most comprehensive spill prevention and response services available for tankers traveling through Prince William Sound, said Rocky Smith, Crowleys senior vice president and general manager, petroleum distribution and marine services. This achievement is a testament to the keen focus on safety our professional mariners and Valdez shore side support team displays. They are relentless in their pursuit of zero harm to people, property and the environment. In Valdez, Alaska, Crowley personnel and tugs help protect the environment through a contract with Alyeska Pipeline Service Company's Ship Escort/Response Vessel System (SERVS). As part of this commercial partnership the company provides tug escorts for tankers traveling through Prince William Sound to and from the Valdez Marine Terminal, assuring safe passage, even under the most extreme winter weather conditions. They also provide secure docking and undocking operations at the oil product loading terminals. In 2015, Crowley continued its support of SERVS by planning and supervising classroom and field training exercises for the spring and fall fishing vessel training program. This training involved over 400 boats and 1,700 attendees, who gained familiarity with the equipment, tactics, and resources needed to quickly and professionally respond to an oil spill incident in Prince William Sound. Crowleys nearshore response barge 500-2, and company-owned tugs visited the communities of Cordova, Whittier, Seward, Homer, Kodiak and Valdez in further support of the training. Additionally in 2015, Crowley tug Endurance provided transportation and accommodation for the Prince William Sound Traveling Health Fair - a community outreach program supported by Alyeska to inform local communities about oral hygiene, nutrition, physical fitness, depression/suicide awareness and emergency preparedness. The program is driven by numerous dedicated individuals including nine very enthusiastic coordinators and educators who joined Endurance and her crew for the eight-day initiative. DNV GLs Maritime CEO Knut rbeck-Nilssen recently met with Konstantin Palnikov, Director General of the Russian Maritime Register of Shipping (RS), at the RS head office in St. Petersburg to sign a bilateral framework agreement for cooperation between both class societies During the talks, DNV GL and RS expressed satisfaction at the positive experience of cooperation in dual classification of ships. As of today, about 20 ships are in dual RSDNV GL class. The two companies discussed prospective areas of further cooperation that would enable them to effectively complement each others unique competencies. Priority cooperation areas include ensuring compliance of ships with the requirements of the Polar Code, rendering of relevant expert assistance to stakeholders, and developing interpretations of the Codes provisions building on RS and DNV GLs experience. The talks also touched upon cooperation aimed at improving technical standards for the safety of gas-fuelled ships. The new framework document sets out the general procedure for delegating authority in cases where one society performs surveys of ships classed by the other, and lays down general terms and conditions for cooperation in the area of dual classification of newbuildings and ships in service, surveys of materials and equipment for ships. Kolkata, 3rd Feb, 2016: Industry leaders, corporate heads, policy makers and senior executives took part in the very first road show which served as a run up to the Maritime India Summit16. Maritime India Summit is being organized by the Ministry of Shipping at Bombay Convention and Exhibition Centre, in Mumbai. Honble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has kindly consented to inaugurate the Summit on 14 April 2016. This event will comprise of an Investors Summit and an Exhibition. The Investors Summit will be held on 14 - 15 April 2016 whereas the Exhibition and Demo Sessions have been planned for three days i.e. 14 - 16 April 2016. Republic of Korea has consented to be a partner country for the MIS 2016 and the Summit will have participation of the delegation of maritime companies and Government officials from South Korea. Government of India has also invited Governments of 30 other maritime nations to attend the Summit Echoing the governments resolve to become one of the top Maritime business destinations in Asia, Honorable Minister of Shipping, Road and Transport Shri Nitin Gadkari said, A strong maritime sector will create economic growth and jobs. Realizing this potential is duty towards the nation. I am committed to bring the sector into focus; to achieve our goal of Port led economic development The roadshow witnessed active participation from the members of the shipping ministry as well as from various industry bodies. Shri Abhishek Chandra (Deputy Secretary, Ministry of Shipping) made a detailed presentation at the Kolkatta Roadshow as a run up to the upcoming Maritime India Summit. Additionally the Dy. Chairman, HDC, Kolkata Port Trust, Shri Manish Jain who was present at the road show, said This is an excellent opportunity for us to show case the new upcoming projects along the Bengal coast line and draw the attention of potential national/international investors to build maritime infrastructure in eastern India, to International standard. I would like to urge all domestic/international investors, shipping lines, experts from this part of the country to avail this opportunity and participate in Maritime India Summit 2016 slated to be held at Mumbai for three days i.e. 14-16 April, 2016. The event ended on a buzzing note as corporate leaders shared ideas with the speakers and peers over a networking lunch. Press release- A month after celebrating its 30th anniversary, the Marseille-based Port Community System operator MGI has been welcomed as the newest member of the International Port Community Systems Association (IPCSA). MGI (Marseille Gyptis International) becomes IPCSA's 28th member and the association's second member based in France. Nearly 30 ports in France and overseas have implemented the Cargo Community System AP+, MGIs and SOGETs flagship product since 2005 including Mauritius, Benin, Togo and New Caledonia. Coinciding with its 30th anniversary in December 2015, MGI launched Ci5 (Cargo intelligence 5), its new flagship software solution designed to succeed and build on AP+. The number 5 in the name stands for the five modes of transport (air, rail, road, ocean, waterways) and also the five continents. We are really proud to say that we have 30 years of experience, and we look forward to bringing that experience to IPCSA, said Dominique Lebreton, MGIs Projects, Auditing and Marketing Director. We are delighted to be part of IPCSA for several reasons. Firstly, the voice of the Port Community System is often not heard at national or international level. Being a member of IPCSA is an opportunity to be stronger with our partners, to address challenges we face in terms of regulation, and to lobby where necessary. Secondly, we can share best practice information between Port Community System operators. It is important for us to have feedback and to bring our own experience in the way we run similar processes in the logistics area. Thirdly, we are in the process of taking a new system to the market with the vision to provide door-todoor services to our customers. We want to exchange with our IPCSA partners how information on cargo, tracking and tracing, etc., can be passed between PCSs in different countries. MGI is already working with IPCSA member Portic, of Barcelona, to exchange real time information on the departure and arrival of ships moving between Marseille and Barcelona, to provide more accurate forecasting of a ships arrival and enable better planning in the port and logistics process, he added. What we see today, and the vision that we have, is that we cant sit alone in a geographical area; our customers want more information on their cargo all along the logistics chain. The innovation we put into Ci5 is going that way, to be really open and send and receive information from port to port. IPCSAs ongoing work to create a track-and-trace service encompassing all members ties neatly in with MGIs vision, he said. The challenge today is to ease the way we exchange information on the reception of cargo, the departure of ships and the tracking of goods. Certainly we will be in competition with the other PSC operators when a port is looking to set up a PCS; but there is a time for competition and a time for collaboration. In another innovative project, MGI is working with Ningbo Port to secure container export flows from the port of Marseille-Fos to the Chinese port. The project enables Chinese consumers to scan a QR code on the product purchased to confirm its origin. This service is particularly aimed at confirming the authenticity of luxury and high-value products, such as French wine. The exporter adds the QR code when the goods are being prepared for shipment; Ci5 will transmit the information that is available in the QR code, such as departure port, export declaration confirmation from Customs, arrival port and container number. In the future, believes Dominique Lebreton, Port Community Systems will move increasing from B2B operations to B2B2C, offering information to the exporter and directly to the final consumer as well as those directly involved in the supply chain. A huge amount of data is fed into a PCSs database and at times it isnt really well used. So PCSs need to be focused on business intelligence and strategic activity management, to deliver a smooth flow of cargo, he said. Richard Morton, Secretary General of the International Port Community Systems Association, said: MGI brings to IPCSA 30 years of experience and a strong track record in innovation and we look forward to benefiting from MGIs knowledge and expertise in our strategic working groups. IPCSA has continued to expand rapidly since it was founded as a European association in 2011; we now have nearly 30 members around the world, providing representation in each of the five UN Regional Commission regions. This enables us to address the needs of members on a regional as well as international basis. In addition, we now have consultative status at the International Maritime Organization, giving us an important platform for representing the needs of our members at the highest level. Diana Shipping Inc. has signed, through three separate wholly-owned subsidiaries, three Memoranda of Agreement to acquire from a related party three Panamax vessels for an aggregate purchase price of $39.8 million. These vessels are the m/v Sunshine, a 2010 built Panamax dry bulk vessel of 75,700 dwt, the m/v Manzoni, a 2013 built Panamax dry bulk vessel of 75,403 dwt and the m/v Infinity 9, a 2013 built Panamax dry bulk vessel of 77,901 dwt, all built by Jiangnan Shipyard (Group) Co., Ltd. The delivery of the vessels to the buyers is expected by the end of March 2016. The company has agreed to acquire the vessels from entities affiliated with Semiramis Paliou and Aliki Paliou, each of whom is a family member of the companys Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Semiramis Paliou is also a director of the company. The transaction was approved unanimously by a committee of the Board of Directors established for the purpose of considering the transaction and consisting of the companys independent directors and each of its executive directors other than Semiramis Paliou and Simeon Palios. The agreed upon purchase price of the vessels was based, among other factors, on independent third party broker valuations obtained by the company. Consummation of the purchases is subject to the company obtaining bank financing from the sellers existing lenders for substantially all of the purchase price of the vessels, thereby resulting in little or no current cash outlay on the part of the company. Diana Shipping President, Anastasios Margaronis, commented, The company is excited about the opportunity to acquire these modern, high quality vessels on very attractive terms. Not only has the company been able to negotiate the purchase of these vessels at distressed prices not seen during the past 15 years, but we believe that our strong balance sheet and attractive credit risk will enable us to negotiate extremely favorable financing terms with the current lenders to finance 100 percent of the purchase price that will be non-amortizing for two years. By preserving available cash, the company will maintain its strong balance sheet to weather the continuing downturn in the dry bulk market and to fund future vessel acquisitions throughout the eventual market recovery, consistent with the companys long term strategy. Over the roar of the wind, a voice yelled contact front! Without hesitation, Sgt. First Class Yusuke Irie of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Forces Western Army Infantry Regiment Scout Sniper program sprinted to get on line and provide firepower. Surrounded by the sounds of gun fire and yelling, the soldiers alternate seamlessly between providing cover fire and bounding backward. Once out of sight and safe from enemy fire, United States Marine Sgt. Mason Wilhelmy, a pre-scout sniper instructor, 1st Marine Division Schools Pre-Scout Sniper Course, called out cease fire, cease fire and signals the soldiers to gather around him. The soldiers of the JGSDF conduct break contact maneuvers in addition to reviewing other essential skills in a condensed scout sniper course instructed by Marines from 1st Marine Division Schools during Exercise Iron Fist 2016 on Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif., Feb. 1. Iron Fist is an annual, bilateral amphibious training exercise designed to improve the Marine Corps and JGSDFs ability to plan, communicate, and conduct combined amphibious operations. Conducting a break contact maneuver properly is a vital skill for a scout sniper unit as they operate with fewer members limiting the available firepower and resources. During a break contact maneuver, the unit members alternate between providing cover fire and moving toward a location where the unit cannot be observed by the enemy and fired upon. A break contact maneuver it similar to fire-and-maneuver, since we [scout snipers] operate in a small unit, instead of advancing toward the enemy we are bounding backward tactically, to break contact with the enemy. said Sgt. Robert Murphy, pre-scout sniper instructor, 1st Marine Division Schools Pre-Scout Sniper Course. The course held for the JGSDF scout snipers during Iron Fist is a condensed version of the course Marines participate in when becoming a scout sniper. Throughout the course, the JGSDF soldiers review subjects of marksmanship, weapon manipulation, communication, camouflage and break contact maneuvers. This training will help increase their [JGSDF soldiers] ability as a unit to not only be effective but to communicate with one-another as they maneuver, said Murphy. A scout sniper units role in an amphibious assault, for instance the assault at the conclusion of Iron Fist in late February, is much different than that of a typical infantry unit. By inserting a scout sniper unit before the initial amphibious assault, a unit is capable of gathering and relaying information and eliminating key enemy targets, said Wilhelmy. The units may also be positioned to provide over watch and fire support for friendly forces who are conducting the amphibious assault. Since the first Iron Fist in 2006, the scout sniper course has provided the opportunity for the Marine Corps and JGSDF to conduct bilateral training while sharing knowledge and experiences with service members from different cultures. Annual Training like [Iron Fist] is beneficial to continue to not only build a strong relationship between the U.S. and Japan, but to also enhance each others operational abilities, said Murphy More Media U.S. Marines and Japan Ground Self-Defense Force Soldiers conducted a live-fire mortar range aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif., Feb 1, 2016. The training event was a part of Exercise Iron Fist, the largest bilateral exercise conducted by I Marine Expeditionary Force, which is aimed at improving the combined amphibious operation capabilities of the U.S. and Japan. The goal is to conduct basic fire training in preparation for the live-fire training scheduled at Twentynine Palms, said JGSDF Maj. Tomotake Nagamura, company commander with the Western Army Infantry Regiment. Throughout the days training event JGSDF soldiers established their mortar and observation positions, acquired their targets, and dropped quick and accurate indirect-fire on top of them. Nagamura explained, that in order for infantry units to conduct fire and maneuver, it is important to coordinate accurate fire in accurate timeframes making this kind of training extremely important. While the JGSDF soldiers conduct similar training in their home nation, the range aboard Camp Pendleton offers a new environment for them to test their skills. One of the most beneficial factors of this training area is that compared to Japan, our forward observers were able to observe [targets] over a much greater distance, said Nagamura. Just as we have conducted similarly in our home country, we believe we were able to accomplish the same kind of training in a quick and efficient manner [at Camp Pendleton]. While the Marines at the range were acting as safety officers and not actively participating in the training, it still allowed them to observe and learn from the allied nation. It was a lot of fun to watch these guys, said 1st Lt. Andrew Owens, 81mm mortar platoon commander, 1st Battalion, 4th Marine Regiment. They are very proficient, very impressive, very organized, and you can tell each of them knows their jobs very, very well and it was a real privilege to watch them today. As a part of the first phase of training events for Exercise Iron Fist, the skills shared at this exercise will be built upon in larger-scale training events conducted by the U.S. Marines and JGSDF soldiers in the second and third phases of Iron Fist. This is also important so the United States Marine Corps, and Japan Ground Self-Defense Force can establish trust between each others skills, added Nagamura. Over the course of Exercise Iron Fist, JGSDF soldiers and U.S. Marines of all ranks and occupations will be able to share their skills and abilities with one another to strengthen bonds between the two militaries. Its all about relationships, said Owens. As long as we keep strong relationships with our allies [and] learn how they train, they get to see how we train [and] we can become a stronger team. We are always trying to learn we all have our own tactics, techniques and procedures that make us good at our jobs, and we will be looking to incorporate some of the things they did here today to make us better at what we do. More Media Scootere eller motorsykler er ofte unge menneskers frste mte med trafikken som sjafr. I flge SSBs statistikk fantes det rundt 163,000 scootere i Norge ved utgangen av 2018. Dette kommer i tillegg til 160,000 tyngre motorsykler og 27,000 kjrety av typen lett motorsykkel. Man kan trygt si at nordmenn liker a kjre rundt pa tohjulinger. Mange sliter med a spare opp penger til sitt frste kjrety. Dette er bankene fullstendig klar over. Og det finnes veldig mange norske banker som nsker a gi ut MC-lan til unge mennesker. Problemet er bare at ikke alle vet hva de gar til. I denne artikkelen skal vi gi deg en oversikt over de ulike typene MC-lan. Vi skal ogsa forklare hvorfor det kan vre en fordel a velge lan uten sikkerhet nar du kjper scooter eller motorsykkel. Hvorfor kan det vre en ulempe a ta opp motorsykkel lan med egenandel og sikkerhet? Dessverre er det slik at de fleste banker ber deg om a stille med en viss egenandel for a finansiere MC. Ikke bare ligger det et krav om oppsparte midler. De samme bankene vil ogsa ta scooteren eller motorsykkelen din i pant hvis du misligholder lanet. I realiteten betyr det at banken tar fra deg kjretyet ditt hvis du ligger et par maneder bak pa nedbetalingen. Dette kan vre en lite heldig situasjon a ende opp i. Heldigvis finnes det en lsning for deg som nsker a fjerne den risikoen. Uten egenandel ma du sikte deg inn pa et forbrukslan Alle forbrukslan kommer uten sikkerhet. Det vil blant annet bety at banken ikke bryr seg om hva du skal bruke pengene pa. De har heller ingen myndighet til a innkreve motorsykkelen din hvis lanet blir misligholdt. Passer et slikt lan ogsa for de mellom 18 og 23 ar? Ja, det gjr det. Det er kun et alderskrav for a ske forbrukslan: at man har fylt 18 ar. Deretter er det ogsa krav om at du ikke har noen betalingsanmerkninger. I tillegg ma du kunne vise til en fast inntekt. Dette kan vre inntekt som enten baserer seg pa en fulltidsjobb, deltidsjobb, stipend fra studier eller sttte fra NAV. Banken bryr seg kun om at du har dokumentasjon pa at penger kommer inn pa kontoen din hver maned ikke hvor de kommer fra. Derfor er et forbrukslan ogsa et godt alternativ for unge voksne. Hvilke andre fordeler er det ved a ha MC-lan uten sikkerhet? Det handler faktisk ikke kun om risikoen for a bli fratatt motorsykkelen. Her er noen andre gode argumenter for a ta opp forbrukslan: Det er utrolig tidsbesparende. Du slipper nemlig a vente pa at banken skal gjre en verdivurdering av kjpsobjektet. Du kan fa et lan som finansierer 100 % av motorsykkelen. MC-lan med sikkerhet har ofte et krav om at du skal ha en egenandel pa mellom 30 og 50 %. Alderen eller tilstanden til sykkelen har ingenting a si. Det betyr ogsa at du kan sjekke bruktmarkedet etter et godt kjp. Pengene kommer direkte inn pa din konto, og du kan disponere dem akkurat som du vil. Pa generelt grunnlag er det ikke anbefalt a lane mer enn det sykkelen koster. MC-lan uten sikkerhet: hva har du lrt? De fleste banker som tilbyr MC-lan vil prve a fa til en avtale hvor du laner med sikkerhet i kjretyet. Dette er ikke alltid en fordel. Risiko for a miste sykkelen ved et misligholdt lan, krav om minst 30 % egenkapital og en langvarig godkjennelsesprosess. Dette er bare noen av grunnene til at det i mange tilfeller vil vre bedre a bruke et forbrukslan nar man skal kjpe MC. Husk at du br ta vare pa kjretyet ditt pa best mulig mate. En motorsykkel er ikke en forbruksvare. Du vil, etter all sannsynlighet, ha mulighet for a selge den i fremtiden. Derfor er det viktig at du sender den pa reperasjon nar det trengs, skifter deler nar de begynner a bli slitte og holder sykkelen innendrs pa vinterstid. Les mer om MC lan med og uten sikkerhet pa Billigeforbrukslan.no MC-Lan eller hos Gjensidige. With the 2016 presidential race in full swing, top fundraisers are predicting that candidates and advocacy groups will spend a whopping $5 billion dollars on the 2016 campaignmore than doubling the 2012 haul of $2 billion. Ahead of the primaries, Democratic and Republican hopefuls are jockeying for position as the wealthy elite carefully vet candidates and decide who to back. Unchecked campaign spending is nothing new for American voters who are sick and tired of seeing elections decided long before they enter the voting boothby the Koch Brothers, the Walton family, Sheldon Adelson, and a handful of other billionaires and corporate lobbies. In a surprisingly candid moment, Republican presidential hopeful Donald Trump summarized the problem while campaigning in New Hampshire, saying, He [Jeb Bush] raises $100 million, so what does $100 million mean? $100 million means he's doing favors for so many people, it means lobbyists, it means special interests, it means donors. Who knows it better than me? I give to everybody. They do whatever I want. It's true. Just how out of control is this spending? Unlike previous elections, the vast majority of this money is flowing into super political action committees, or super PACs, which are groups campaigning for a particular candidate or set of policies. Unlike regular PACs, which have been around since the 1940s and are subject to some Federal Election Commission (FEC) spending limits, there are no limits on the money super PACs can raise and spend on behalf of a particular candidate, party, or political issue. The Center for Responsive Politics, which tracks federal campaign contributions, reports that, A new type of PAC was created after the US Court of Appeals decision in Speechnow v. FEC in 2010. These PACs make no contributions to candidates or parties. They do, however, make independent expenditures in federal racesrunning ads or sending mail or communicating in other ways with messages that specifically advocate the election or defeat of a specific candidate. There are no limits or restrictions on the sources of funds that may be used for these expenditures. Through the first half of 2015, $400 million had been raised by these groups and others, marking the fastest fundraising start to any presidential contest. Most of these donations went to Republican candidates, including a substantial $11.3 million dollar donation made to several GOP contenders by Robert Mercer, Co-chief Executive of Renaissance Technologies. What About Hillary and the Democrats? Not to be outdone, Hillary Clinton was the recipient of several large donations as well, notably $1 million from George Soros and another $1 million from award-winning Hollywood director Steven Spielberg. This is in keeping with polling data that shows Clinton is the favored candidate among millionaires. According to a CNBC poll released in May, 53% of American millionaires said they would vote for Hillary. As far as corporate donations go, big oil has already poured $150,000 into pro-Clinton PACs as have financial giants such as Morgan Stanley with $132,923, JPMorgan Chase & Co with $99,503, and Bank of America with $93,759. All of this before the Iowa caucus, meaning more large donations are yet to come. Clinton entered 2016 with some $100 million in her campaign war chest. This demonstrates yet again that the Democrats, while rhetorically presenting themselves as friends of the American worker, are in fact bankrolled and controlled by finance capital and the superrich. It follows that the Democratic Party is not the lesser of two evils as it is commonly presented, nor is it an actual party. It is a fundraising machine used by a segment of the ruling class to carefully vet candidates amenable to their policies. Those who challenge this overarching mandate with modestly progressive policies (e.g., Cynthia McKinney and Dennis Kucinich) are driven out as pariahs or relegated to positions of irrelevance within the party. Bernie Sanders, a self-described populist progressive, stands apart from the other candidates due to his many years as an independent socialist. He has awakened millions to political activity, especially the youth, with a platform that includes free college education, forgiving student debt, and a $15 per hour minimum wage. Unlike his competitors, the fiery Sanders, a supporter of Scandinavian-style socialism, has largely relied upon grassroots funding from more than 2.3 million individuals, many contributing small sums of just $10, $20, or $50. He enters 2016 with roughly $40 million. Despite this broader base of support, Sanders has received far less media exposure than other candidatesTrump has 23 times the coverageeven though he has lit up the campaign trail with record-breaking crowds at public events, including 25,000 attendees at a single rally in Boston. He has already come under pressure from the party machinesee the recent DNC voter information debacleand the better he does in the early caucuses and primaries, the more relentless the pressure will be. He has already moderated some of his positions as he seeks to prove to the party leadership that he is electable and will stay within certain limits safe for the party and the capitalist system. Sanders popularity has sent a shock through the Clinton camp, but it is still Hillarys nomination to lose, given her commanding financial lead. This is yet another example of how US elections are contested only among members of a small oligarchy who spend billions for social media experts, pollsters, advertising, and other promotions to heavily influence the outcome of elections. Opinions and attitudes of the working class majority are an afterthought at best and historically have had a statistically insignificant impact on the outcome of elections or actual policy. (See the illuminating Gilens and Page study for more data on this point). Which Way Forward? With the US electoral system clearly dominated by the ruling class, its no surprise that the majority of Americans are fed up with the status quo. Some hold their nose and choose the lesser of two evils in the voting booth, while millions more simply dont vote, knowing instinctively that it is a pointless exercise in determining which candidate, or party, will start imperialist wars abroad while carrying out vicious austerity at home. The good news is that most people are already awakened to the colossal problem at hand. Regardless of political affiliation, or participation in elections, Americans largely reject the status quo, with 84% saying that money has too much influence in politics. With elections flooded with, and controlled by money from from big business, the salient question is, of course, which way forward? What reforms, if any, can fundamentally change US politics to create a truly transparent, fair, and democratic electoral system? Amend the Constitution? Move to Amend, a grassroots activist coalition with more than 300,000 online supporters, is in favor of a constitutional amendment stating, money is not speech, and human beings, not corporations, are persons entitled to constitutional rights. They correctly point out that the institutions of the bourgeoisienamely the Supreme Courthave consistently sided with the rights of corporations over the rights of living, breathing human beings. The precedent of corporate personhood was established as far back as 1886 in the case of Santa Clara County v. Southern Pacific Railroad. Since then, numerous Supreme Court decisions, including Buckley v. Vallejo (1976), Citizens United v. FEC (2010), and McCutcheon v. FEC (2013) have expanded the rights of campaign donors, making elections an unfettered auction house where candidates and policy are sold openly to the highest bidder. Amending the US Constitution along these lines is improbable at best and reflects a strategy that views the state as class-neutral, i.e., an impartial arbiter that governs fairly and accurately reflects the opinions and attitudes of society. In reality, the state is a tool of the bourgeoisie used to subordinate the working class to its will through its police, prisons, congress, and courts, including the US Supreme Court. Petitioning bourgeois institutionswhich are firmly in the hands of the ruling classis an ineffective exercise because the working class does not determine how the state is run and has very little influence on the legislation governing society. Thus, overturning previous Supreme Court decisions, amending the constitution, or passing a slew of new campaign finance laws to reverse course is highly improbable, if not impossible, given the current alignment of power. Its Much More than Just Supreme Court Decisions The problem is of course much larger than special interest money and a handful of Supreme Court decisions. In fact, the simple act of voting, which is supposed to be an inalienable, uncontroversial bourgeois democratic right is actually quite difficult, if not impossible to exercise for large segments of the population. For example, laws that bar or delay ex-felons from voting prevent more than 5.85 million mostly black Americans from casting a ballot. Additionally, voter ID laws in many states create a financial hardship for innumerable potential voters. According to the ACLU, voter ID laws overwhelmingly hinder black people, the elderly, students, and people with disabilitiesto exercise their fundamental right to cast a ballot. Once at the polls, hundreds of thousands of people in mostly lower income voting districts may face long waits. No, this is not impatient millennials complaining about a twenty minute wait. Were talking 5, 6, 7, or more hours just to pull a lever, or press a button. In the 2012 election, some Florida voters waited eight hoursan entire working dayjust to cast their ballot. Who can blame someone for turning away given these absurd conditions? An analysis conducted by Ohio State University Professor Theodore Allen and The Orlando Sentinel concluded that more than 200,000 voters in Florida gave up in frustration without voting in the 2012 election because of the long waits. Throw in the anachronistic and reactionary electoral college and uncontested gerrymandered districts and you get a more complete picture of how voting in its current form is virtually meaningless or impossible to exercise for millions of Americans. When all else fails, voters can count on voting machines to break, malfunction, miscount, or lose their votes altogether. (Remember Bush v. Gore 2000 and the debacle in Ohio that led to thousands of lost votes in 2004!). Forty-three states will use voting machines that are at least 10 years old in the 2016, many perilously close to breaking down, according to the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU Law. In short, its not one, two, or three unfavorable Supreme Court decisions that must be overturned, its an enormous number of hurdlessome larger than othersat the state and federal levels that must be rolled back in order to create, fair, easy, equal, transparent, and accessible voting in the US. The working class cannot reform what it does not control, and cannot control what it does not own. The first step toward controlling our destinies is to secure genuine representation for the working class. To achieve this we must fight for an independent, mass workers party organized by the labor movement, which must break its longtime unholy alliance with the Democrats. Lacking a class-based understanding of how society is structured, groups like Move to Amend correctly identify only part of the problem and make the mistake of lumping labor unions into the same category as corporations, which they believe must be subject to the same campaign finance restrictions, stating, Our perspective is that no artificial entitiesnon human beingsshould have rights spelled out under the Constitution. This includes unions and nonprofit corporations. We unequivocally disagree. Spending restrictions on the labor movement would substantially curtail the working classs fight against corporate and oligarchic domination of elections and policy. Restrictions on the labor movement mean restrictions on the only meaningful bulwark against austerity and reaction. In this regard, the labor movement would be further restricted in its ability to fight draconian legislation that cuts public spending for education and important social programs, as well as reactionary laws against workers, the poor, immigrants, and refugees. Furthermore, restricting corporate lobbying (if such a thing is possible under capitalism) would not end the principle antagonism between capitalist class and working class, which is the fundamental contradiction built into capitalism, which Marxists seek to end. The labor movement is at low ebb and has been crippled by decades of pro-capitalist class collaboration. Reenergizing it through an independent political party is, of course, not a panacea in and of itself, but rather a first, necessary step toward that end. How a Labor Party Can Challenge the Status Quo So-called third parties have long been considered a wasted vote, or a spoiler in close elections. However, the composition of political parties, and their policies, are a reflection of the class balance of forces in society. As the late writer Gore Vidal opined, the US has one property party with two right wings: Democrats and Republicans. This assessment is correct for a given historical period, but as objective material conditions change so do the number and composition of political parties in society. Toward that end, third and even fourth parties played a consequential role in politics as this country grew and changed after independence from the British Empire in 1776. Given mass voter dissatisfaction with the abysmal policies of the Democrats and Republicans, who are organically incapable of showing a way out of the crisis of capitalism, the objective conditions are ripe for breaking the stranglehold of the two parties that have dominated politics since the Civil War. Aside from a handful of eccentrics like former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura, few independent candidates have garnered much attention or support in recent elections. This boils down to a lack of union support and organic links to broad layers of the working class. Although only 10% of US workers are unionized, labor unions still wield power through their endorsements, funding, and importantly, through their large concentration in key US industries such as education, telecommunications, utilities, shipping, and transportation. Despite their numerically weakened position at present, unions still have enormous potential clout. For decades they have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into electoral politics, mostly to Democratic candidates. In the 2012 election cycle alone, SEIU gave $25.8 million, the United Auto Workers gave $13.8 million, and the Carpenters and Joiners Union gave $11.9 million to Congressional and Presidential races. Imagine the impact that money would have if labor broke from the Democrats and we ran our own candidates for office. Union halls, workplaces, and college campuses would be electrified if people saw truly independent candidates running on a working-class program in local, state, and national elections. It would be a game changer. Critics will be quick to protest: Building a labor party in the US was tried several times before and failed! Indeed, most recently, Tony Mazzocchi and a handful of labor and socialist activists tried in the mid-90s to establish a labor party. It garnered some support, but failed in part because the economic conditions were more favorable at that time, and above all because it failed to win broad union support and had a limited electoral strategy. With Obama and the supposed left wing of the Democratic Party exposing themselves as a party of austerity, people are quickly losing patience. Similarly, the union rank and file is growing increasingly impatient with the ossified union bureaucracy, which is running out of deals to strike with the ruling class as economic conditions continue to stagnate and fester years after the great recession of 2008. The Objective Conditions are Favorable These conditions have a clear impact on the attitudes of Americans. A majority of US adults58%say a third US political party is needed because the Republican and Democratic parties do such a poor job representing the American people. Congress has an abysmal 13.2% approval rating, while nearly 80% think the US is still in a recession, despite the near-constant drumbeat from economists and pundits to the contrary. It makes sense, then, that 47% of voters say that they would vote for a socialist, with an astounding 70% of young voters (ages 1829) saying they would support a socialist candidate. All of this clearly demonstrates that the tectonic plates of society, while seemingly motionless, are most assuredly moving beneath the surface, poised for a colossal shift. Nature abhors a vacuum, and necessity is the mother of invention. We are at the beginning of the beginning in terms of seeing a viable mass workers party emerge. Occupy, the Wisconsin union uprising, Moral Mondays, Fight for $15, and Black Lives Matter are the early stirrings of something much larger. We shouldnt underestimate the challenges ahead, but neither should we be timid or overly cautious in our pursuits. A sober appraisal of the political landscape shows a disillusioned, restless, and frustrated working class that is beginning to question and challenge the way its always been. No matter who wins the 2016 presidential elections, the future will look very different from today. Armed with a genuine socialist program that challenges the economic and political rule of big business, the working class can and must elect its own leaders and begin to wage a concerted struggle for the revolutionary transformation of society. If you like this article, please subscribe or donate today! Source: Bernie, Billionaires, and PACs: Campaign Finance and the 2016 Presidential Election The Iowa Caucus results are in. Bernie Sanders, who identifies himself a socialist and calls for a political revolution against the billionaire class, was defeated by Hillary Clinton by a mere 0.3%far less than the statistical margin of error. One year ago, Clinton was set to cruise unopposed to the Democratic Party nomination. Sanders was portrayed as an irrelevant protest candidate and trailed her by 50 points. If you agree with the analysis produced by the US Marxists on the situation in the USA, please support our campaign to acquire offices in NYC! Millions of American workers and youth are desperately looking for a way out of the bleakness of American capitalism and, with no labor party alternative , Sanders has filled the vacuum. In spite of the Clinton and Democratic Party machine and the millions they receive from big business, Bernie Sanders reformist, left-populist message has gained an echo from many workers and youth, as indicated by the fact that he has received millions of dollars in contributions averaging just $27 per person. We have explained many times that the Democratic Party is neither democratic nor a party in the usual sense of the word. It is a massively corrupt capitalist electoral machine with no unified program and no democratic internal organizational structures through which the rank-and-file can hold its leaders accountable. The vast majority of voters merely self-identify as Democrat or Republican, as there is no standard criteria for membership. Although many workers vote for the Democrats and are encouraged to do so by the labor leaders (more often than not as a lesser evil), the unions are seen merely as another special interest, almost akin to lobbyists, and there is no formal or organic connection between them and the party. This is democracy? The truth is that Sanders may have actually won the vote in Iowa, even though the way delegates are allocated to the different precinct caucuses was skewed against him. Apparently, the Democratic Party machine mismanaged many caucuses and when the numbers did not add up, they resolved this with a coin toss, mostly in Clintons favor. This is literally what the so-called democratic process in the pre-nomination contest has been reduced to. As reported by The Atlantic, Coin flips are a longstanding feature of the Democratic caucuses, and games of chance actually have a long history in deciding close electoral contests in the US And their use underscores the fact that even small shifts in individual precincts can have an outsized impact in a race as tight as this one. Furthermore, when one drills into the demographics of caucus attendees, it is obvious that the deck was heavily stacked going in. The Iowa Caucus Project, an independent organization of Drake University, dedicated to research on the caucuses, provides a deep look at the types of people who participate in the caucuses at the outset. First and foremost, those who are closest to the party are more likely to participate , and half are 45 or older. Sanders, who only became a Democrat during the race, won a dominating 84 percent of the under-30 vote. It was also noticeable that amongst those who said they were participating in caucuses for the first time, Sanders beat Clinton 59% to 37%. If we look at the vote by household income , we can also see that the richer the household, the more likely it was to vote for Clinton. In households with an income below $30,000 a year, Sanders beat Clinton 57% to 41%, while amongst those making over $100,000 a year, Clinton beat Sanders 55 to 37%. This shows that Sanders has managed to enthuse particularly the youth, the poorer and new participants. But going into the primaries, Sanders had to fight an uphill battle against the Democratic Party apparatus. Iowa has more than 3.1 million people, but fewer than 180,000 participated in the Democratic Caucuses. The Democratic Partys thumb on the scale The opening shots rang out in October of 2015, as vice chairwoman of the Democratic National Committee, Representative Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, went on television calling for more debates . This would have favored Sanders, who has not been given nowhere near as much airtime on the mainstream media outlets. Her rationale was, to give the American people the opportunity to hear from these presidential candidates, to listen to what theyve got to say, to hold them accountable for their views and their positions. The Democratic Party apparatus response to Ms. Gabbards call was to promptly uninvite her from attending the first debate. Ms. Gabbards own comment on the incident hardly requires supplementary commentary: Its very dangerous when we have people in positions of leadership who use their power to try to quiet those who disagree with them When I signed up to be vice chair of the DNC, no one told me I would be relinquishing my freedom of speech and checking it at the door. Later, as a result of ongoing DNC vendor technical error s, Bernie Sanders national data director, Josh Uretsky, was able to improperly access campaign data from the Clinton campaign. Although the Sanders campaign promptly fired Uretsky, its access to the DNC national voter filean invaluable document upon which campaign operations hingewas frozen. The story took a strange twist when it was revealed that Uretsky was recommended by the DNC itself and the DNC provided the data logs that show access to the Clinton and not the Sanders campaign. An unnamed advisor for Sanders went so far as to insinuate that the incident was arguably conspiratorial: I dont know how you can more centrally connect this thing than those two entities, [and] here we are being attacked by both of those entities when, in fact, they recommended this guy to the campaign. The debacle climaxed on December 18 as the Sanders campaign filed a lawsuit against the DNC itself! Faced with this, the campaign petitioned the bourgeois state for assistance in combating the apparatus potential conspiratorial conduct. It then responded by appealing to its supporters to raise funds with an email which highlighted the improper conduct of the party: "The reality is that the huge turnouts that we've had at our meetings, our strong fundraising, our volunteer base, and quick rise in the polls have caused the Democratic National Committee to place its thumb on the scales in support of Hillary Clinton's campaign." One million dollars were raised in just one day, showing the enormous support for Sanders. This should serve to show the real nature of the capitalist Democratic Party. On the day of the caucuses, Sanders campaign warned of alarming signs that Hillarys camp might be up to foul play . USA Today has asked whether the correct winner was called, the Des Moines Register reported on precinct scrambles to report Sanders win , and Sanders camp criticized the state party for failing to collect votes . Some have even insinuated that fraud may have been involved . In the end, Sanders camp has admitted that the actual result may never be known . Even if Sanders ekes out a victory in a majority of the upcoming caucuses and primaries, unless he absolutely commands the lead, which is increasingly unlikely, he has to face up to the most undemocratic aspect of the entire selection process: the superdelegates. These superdelegates are unelected and seated automatically, based on their status as current or former party leaders or elected officials. These delegates account for approximately 30% of all delegates at the party congress. They serve as a safety check to ensure the party remains firmly under the control of the apparatus, while still giving the illusion of democratic input by party supporters. This means Sanders could win more delegates than Clinton in the various state primaries and caucuses and still lose the nomination. Based on a recent AP report , Clinton has already pocketed the vast majority of the super delegates. Sanders campaign manager believes that based on the Sanders strong showing so far, superdelegates will change their minds and come over to him. This could be categorized as delusional, at best. What would happen if Sanders became the nominee and then went on to win victory in the general election? He would be hard-pressed to implement even the most modest of his progressive proposals. In conditions of capitalist crisis his program, however moderate, cannot be implemented. The US ruling class cannot allow the introduction of adequate parental leave, universal single-payer health care, free college tuition, a living minimum wage, etc. And if he doesnt toe the line and fall into place, as we have explained before, he would be forced to battle the entire ruling class, something he himself seems to recognize as he has explained the need to build a political movement. However, such a movement cannot be created inside the capitalist Democratic Party. He would only be able to count on relatively meagre resources inside an extremely hostile organization. Tsipras in Greece, at least had his own party and still he was forced to capitulate as he was not prepared to break with capitalism. This is an important lesson. Should he not win the Democratic nomination, he could still run as an independent, though he will have lost many months playing by the DNCs rules, instead of building an independent electoral machine and working to break the unions from the Democrats. If he follows through on his promise to call for a Clinton vote if she wins the nominationa call for the status quo after months of calling for revolutionthis will only further disillusion and confuse millions of workers and young people. No matter what happens, the pressures building within the Democratic Party will stress it in ways that are hard to predict, and we can say with confidence that the days of the Democrat-Republican duopoly are limited. The Democratic Party machine working against Sanders goes back a long way. It was originally built as a party of slave-owners and unimaginably corrupt party machines (like Tammany Hall), which after the Civil War was transformed into a party of Jim Crow segregationists. After the massive labor upsurge in the 1930s, it cynically morphed into the progressive friend of labor by passing the New Dealwhich, far from being socialism, was a series of programs designed to save capitalism from itself. How can one have illusions in the same party responsible for the forced internment of Japanese and German Americans, the Vietnam War, NAFTA, and the enforcement of Taft-Hartley, not to mention the financing of Islamic fundamentalists such as Osama Bin Laden, and the deportation of the highest number undocumented workers in history? If youre a worker and you want a better life for yourself, your family, and your class you cant fight for it through the Democratic Party. The coming years hold many bitter lessons in store. Many workers and young people, who have flocked to Sanders because they want fundamental change, will learn from this experience and will be searching for genuinely revolutionary ideas. Starting with the advanced layers, we will continue to cut through the fog and confusion fomented by the ruling class and their media. Our task is to patiently explain that the program put forward by Sanders, and which has generated such enthusiasm, can only be achieved by breaking with capitalism and implementing a socialist transformation of society. By patiently explaining of the ABCs of Marxism, our analysis of the crisis of capitalism, and the need for a socialist revolution, many will be attracted to the ideas of the IMT . In the aftermath of Iowa, which has confirmed Sanders enormous support, it is to be expected that the Democratic machine and the capitalist media will step up their campaign against him. It will become clear to many that the Democrats cannot serve as a vehicle for fundamental changefor truly revolutionary change. That a candidate describing himself as a socialist, exposing the fact that American politics is rigged by big business and calling for a political revolution is attracting huge crowds and massive support , even in traditionally conservative parts of the country, shows the potential that exists. However, those who imagine that the Democrats can be a vehicle for the change so many people want and need will find only disappointment. Even before he formally announced his candidacy, Socialist Appeal warned that you cannot use the Democratic Party to provide workers with the party they need. It was a mistake for Sanders to lead those fed up with the status quo back into the Democratic Party, which, like the Republicans, is a party of, by, and for big business, linked closely with the state. The potential that exists can only be realized in the form of a class-independent labor party based on the unions, fighting for a socialist program. Although the exact trajectory of this path cannot be predicted in advance, it is along these lines that the third American revolution will be victorious. We invite you to join us and support us in our efforts! Source: Socialist Appeal jayash1.jpg Robert "Jay" Ash, Jr., Massachusetts secretary of Housing and Economic Development, speaks Thursday at the Delany House in Holyoke. (JIM KINNEY/ THE REPUBLICAN) HOLYOKE -- Anytime Gov. Charlie Baker and his cabinet discuss a grant program or new education initiative, officials focus first on Holyoke and other cities where the state has taken control of the school systems. Jay Ash, Massachusetts secretary of Housing and Economic Development, discussed Holyoke and its school system Thursday during the question-and-answer period following his breakfast speech to the Human Service Forum, a trade group of local nonprofit agencies, their supporters and their contractors. The breakfast drew 130 people to The Delaney House. Though he is not the state education secretary, Ash spoke K-12 education including vocational high schools and community colleges in terms of providing a workforce for economic growth. In answering a question, he spoke not only of the special attention that schools in Holyoke, Lawrence and now Southbridge receive following state takeovers, but also of the limitations of state action. "Now, it's not a magic wand," Ash said. "Frankly, the turnaround is not going to happen unless the community buys into the process. It is not about power or control or losing power or control. We all need to be the adults in the room for our kids." He speaks from experience. Before joining the Baker administration last year, Ash was city manager in his native Chelsea from 2000 to 2014. Boston University ran the Chelsea School system for 25 years, having come in at the Chelsea's request. Holyoke did not invite the state to take control of its school system. But the state declared Holyoke schools in 2015 as chronically underperforming. The state has instituted a turnaround plan. The question came from breakfast attendee Michael Moriarty, president of the Olde Holyoke Development Corp. Baker appointed Moriarty in September to the state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education. Moriarty asked specifically about using Holyoke, Lawrence and Southbridge as laboratories for new education initiatives. Moriarty said he was satisfied with the answer, even though Ashe offered no specifics. Ash described how his Boston office looks out over Kendall Square and the city's Seaport District, which are two of the fastest-growing high tech centers in the country. Ashe was instrumental in bringing the General Electric headquarters to the Seaport District. "If all I do is look out my office window, I think the Massachusetts economy is going great guns," Ash said. "But we know that's not the case." He went on to describe how the Baker administration is focused on economic development in the state's older industrial cities like Holyoke and Springfield. He said he had speeches lined up later Thursday in Orange and Athol. Ash, a Democrat in the Republican Baker's administration, also spoke of the state's success in reducing homelessness, cutting the population of homeless families in hotels by 50 percent and the shelter population by 12 percent. "We are sending them back to their communities, back to their friends and their family and back to you folks in the nonprofit social services sector who are their support system," Ash said. Matt LeBlanc FILE - This is a Sunday, Jan. 15, 2012 file photo of Matt LeBlanc as he arrives at the 69th Annual Golden Globe Awards in Los Angeles. The BBC said Thursday Feb. 4, 2016 that former "Friends" star Matt LeBlanc will be joining the broadcaster's popular "Top Gear" program, presenting the revamped car show with British TV presenter and DJ Chris Evans. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, File) (Matt Sayles) Massachusetts native Matt LeBlanc will join the BBC's "Top Gear" reboot as a presenter, the show announced on Thursday. LeBlanc will host the popular British car show alongside the show's host and producer, Chris Evans. LeBlanc, who grew up in Newton and is known for his role as Joey in "Friends," will appear on the show in May. Though LeBlanc is only joining as a host now, this is not the star's first appearance on "Top Gear." Leblanc set a speed record on the show's "Star in a Reasonably Priced Car" segment in 2012. The new cast, the website announced, is not yet complete. In the release about LeBlanc, the show promised an update on additional cast members in the near future. For more information, visit topgear.com. BOSTON - Just months ago, attorneys for Boston City Hall were still in the trenches, fighting a legal battle to block Wynn Resorts' construction of a $1.7 billion casino in neighboring Everett. In filings, attorneys for the city of Boston called the Massachusetts Gaming Commission's process that awarded the Eastern Massachusetts casino license to Wynn, instead of Mohegan Sun's Suffolk Downs proposal, "corrupt" and "irreparably tainted." A Wynn attorney accused city officials of a "reckless disregard for the truth." At one point last year, a federal prosecutor referred to the city of Boston's civil lawsuit against the Gaming Commission as "vicious." Boston Mayor Marty Walsh's multiple exchanges with casino mogul Steve Wynn have been well-documented. But as CommonWealth magazine editor Bruce Mohl noted after the Gaming Commission voted to approve the agreement between the city of Boston and Wynn Resorts, which includes an end to the legal fights, the tone on both sides was a happy one, brimming with positivity. "Was the lawsuit and the lengthy delay here, was it a mistake on the city's part, or is this the goal you were aiming for all along, to get more money out of Wynn?" Mohl asked O'Flaherty after the commission's vote on Thursday morning. Boston Mayor Marty Walsh during a news conference regarding climate change, in Boston, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2014. "Mayor Walsh and his administration is focusing on moving forward," said Eugene O'Flaherty, the city of Boston's corporation counsel. "But talk a little bit about what led up to this change," Mohl said in response. "Our relationship with Mr. Wynn is based on the future and not the past, and I think the agreement and what you see today is reflective of that," O'Flaherty said. "So was the lawsuit a mistake?" "Uh, we're focused on moving forward." "Do I take that as a no answer, or a no comment?" "You can take it any way you like," O'Flaherty responded. Another reporter, from the Boston Globe, pointed to the city's lawsuit was against the Gaming Commission and the city's attorneys' allegation that the process, in which Wynn received the Eastern Massachusetts license, was "corrupt." "We're not focusing on the past," O'Flaherty said. The reporter tried again, noting the city's previous allegations were not against Wynn but the Gaming Commission. Did the city want to take the corruption allegation back? "No, I think my representations to the commission and on the record were we appreciate their hard work," O'Flaherty said. "Any time that you introduce gaming to a state in our union, it is bound to be rife with controversy. But as with all controversy it's up to the parties to negotiate what we think is a just settlement and that's what we did in this particular instance." O'Flaherty, a former Massachusetts state representative, added, "I commend anybody that participates in public service. I appreciate the work that they do on a daily basis and the city of Boston, and the mayor in particular, wants to move forward in this matter." Oklahomans trend conservative, yet theyve embraced free, universal early education Oklahoma has fully funded 4-year-old preschool for every child, regardless of family income, since 1998. by Lillian Mongeau Full Story: http://hechingerreport.org/why-oklahomas-public-preschools-are-some-of-the-best-in-the-country/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+HechingerReport+%28Hechinger+Report%29 *** Early Edge Montana Montana is currently one of eight states without a publicly funded pre-kindergarten option for four year-olds. http://earlyedge.mt.gov/ There are many ski towns in the West that offer all the same features as the big ones but are only known to locals. Red Lodge, Montana http://www.redlodge.com/ is one of the best examples, as it boasts short lines, low prices, and laid-back people (in addition to great powder, of course). Red Lodge is an hours drive from Billings, Montanas largest city. Full Story: http://usatravel.about.com/od/Plan-Your-Trip/fl/Ski-Town-Spotlight-Red-Lodge-Montana.htm Democratic Gov. Steve Bullock http://governor.mt.gov/ spoke to a crowd of Bozeman business people Wednesday about the state governments new website aimed at easing the entrepreneurial process in Montana. The Montana Business Navigator http://business.mt.gov/navigator is a website where entrepreneurs begin by facing a reality-check set of questions, instructions on drafting a business plan, tools for conducting market research and links to the federal Small Business Administrations mentorship network. "Were blessed in this state to have a good business climate, a great place to raise our kids, really quality public schools, and all those are factors that are making not only Montanans want to stay here, come back here, but people from other states look at us with envy," Will Price of Bozemans Next Frontier Capital By Troy Carter Chronicle Staff Writer Full Story: http://www.bozemandailychronicle.com/news/politics/governor-in-bozeman-to-encourage-web-based-toolkit-for-entrepreneurs/article_36445383-8bc6-5b01-8314-292f6cd39df9.html U.S. Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) and Senator Angus King (I-Maine) have filed an amendment to a wide-ranging energy bill to prevent state regulators from unduly altering state net metering policies. The amendment to the Energy Policy Modernization Act (S.2012) would add new language to PURPA, a landmark 1978 energy law, to require that state regulators include the benefits of distributed solar in any change to net metering valuations. The Reid-King amendment would further prohibit regulators from retroactively changing net metering arrangements for existing customers. Full Story: http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/net-metering-protection-becomes-a-national-issue-in-congress?utm_source=Daily&utm_medium=Newsletter&utm_campaign=GTMDaily We have got used to Google as a massive global success story. But sometimes the detail is more interesting than the top line. On February 1 an announcement by the firms holding company Alphabet gave investors their first real insight into the relative performances of its different parts. And it revealed a lot about a section of the operation of which we previously knew very little the large number of investments into technologies that are some distance from the core businesses. Full Story: https://theconversation.com/google-big-bets-on-future-tech-are-sign-of-an-empire-bidding-for-immortality-54133 *** Four problems the revamped Google should tackle now its free to innovate https://theconversation.com/four-problems-the-revamped-google-should-tackle-now-its-free-to-innovate-45997 (Many thanks to Kemble Fletcher for sharing) From October through December of last year, Marion saw five new businesses open while two closed their doors. In addition, other local businesses have either moved to new and better locations in Marion or are seeking to expand. That was part of the regular economic development report given by the Marion Business Association to the Marion City Council on Tuesday. MBA President Forest Loftis read the report to council. From October to December, five new businesses opened in Marion, according to the MBA report. They are Polar Freeze and Better Life Health Spa, both located on North Main Street. Chance of Sprinkles opened its new building on Rutherford Road and Shucks Pearls reopened for the season on South Main Street. And Justice for All opened its doors at the corner of North Main and West Court streets. Ribbon-cutting ceremonies were held by the MBA for And Justice for All, Better Life Health Spa and the expansion at Moondoggys. During that same time, two businesses in Marion closed. They were Goathead Games and Quality Used Cars. Three businesses moved to new locations. Salon 103 and Blue Ridge Outdoors moved to the McKinney building on North Main Street. Dart Sign & Trophy moved further down South Main to the old Jongs Express building. The MBA received nine business opportunity inquiries during those three months. They include the upcoming Marion Comic Con event, a possible mead tasting room in the downtown and an Internet-based business. During that time, Mission Health held a ground-breaking ceremony for the new $37 million McDowell Hospital. New business permits were issued for the Pepperonis Pizza in the McKinney building on North Main Street and the second Waffle House for Marion on Sugar Hill Road. Three commercial properties were sold. Loftis reported the firm hired to recruit a new movie theater for Marion is still seeking investors and remains committed to the project. Auto Tech Collision Center received a building reuse grant and will use this money to take over the old Marion Equipment site on Rutherford Road. Loftis said the Mountain Glory festival, the Tailgate Market fall festival, the Marion Christmas parade, Melodies on Main and the New Years Eve celebration were all well attended. Even though Mountain Glory and the fall festival were held in rainy weather, both of those events drew lots of people to the downtown. Loftis said the New Years Eve celebration was the best one ever and the 10-foot doughnut was a huge hit. The City Council said they appreciated hearing this quarterly report from the MBA. It shows there is a great deal going on in Marion, said Mayor Steve Little. Also, the City Council honored Kelly Huffman as the Citizen of the Month for February. The McDowell Trails Association presented a check of $4,400 to the city for the resurfacing of the Peavine Trail. In other business, the Marion City Council: Approved the interlocal agreement with McDowell County regarding the cleanup of the Drexel Heritage site. The agreement states the site would be jointly owned by the city and the county and they would share in the local cost of removing the massive amounts of debris. Even though the effort got a $500,000 grant, City Manager Bob Boyette said the cleanup could cost $750,000. Once it is cleared out, the site would be marketed for industrial projects. Held a public hearing about application for a Community Development Block Grant. Approved the advertisement of the citys delinquent 2015 real property taxes on Wednesday, April 6. Approved the contract with the Asheville firm of Gould Killian CPA to perform the 2015-2016 audit. Heard an appeal of a civil citation which was issued for code violations at 37 Morris Ave. The civil citation was issued because of the garbage and unsightly conditions around the home. Gary Westmoreland, owner of the property, said he has been seeking to have the tenant evicted but this process takes time. Council agreed to waive the fine and asked Westmoreland and his family to keep city officials informed on their progress with eviction. They own the land but they are not in charge of the process, said Little. Commended city crews for their work in clearing the streets and responding to Winter Storm Jonas. Chicken will be the best-positioned protein due to its low price position in times of pressure on consumer spending power but rises in production costs and the long-term impact of COVID-19 threaten to disrupt the sector, according to Rabobank. Abbott landed CE Mark approval for its FreeStyle Libre Flash glucose monitoring system to be offered to kids 4-17 years old in the European Union. The system consists of a patch that is stuck to the back of the upper arm that samples the blood and measures glucose. A device that looks kind of like a smartphone is then used to capture readings from the patch. The monitor makes finger pricks essentially unnecessary, even to calibrate the device, a major difference from existing continuous glucose monitors. A single patch can be worn for up to two weeks, through showers, swimming, and other activities. A new one is then placed after the two weeks expire. Parents will benefit from not having to do pin pricks, waking their kids up, and bribing them to put up with the painful regular sampling. Flashback: Abbott FreeStyle Libre Flash Continuous Glucose Monitoring System Product page: FreeStyle Libre Flash Press release: Abbott by Robert Heavrin , Columnist, February 3, 2016 When over 100 million people shush each other and edge up on their seats during commercial breaks on Superbowl Sunday, they will expect to be entertained. Anything less than a guffaw or awe will be disappointing. There's one ad I will be eagerly waiting to gauge audience reactions toward: Colgate's #EveryDropCounts commercial, which will ask tooth brushers to conserve water by turning the faucet off while brushing. There's nothing groundbreaking about this tipI think my grandmother told me about it when I was sixbut it is awe-worthy that Colgate is spending an estimated $5 million to not introduce a dazzling new feature or product line, like many of it's fellow advertisers in the biggest of all mass-marketing venues. Leveraging a Mass Audience to Resonate with Niche Group As Seth Godin says in his book We Are All Weird: The Rise of Tribes and the End of Normal, mass is dead and we are increasingly breaking off into smaller tribes with unique attitudes and needs. While ravenous conservation enthusiasts are growing in number, they are still a small tribe. Let's call them Tree Huggers. Many Tree Huggers believe conservation should be shouted from rooftops. While Colgate's ad may fall flat with the majority of this mass audience, which finds other issues more pressing, it will likely strike a chord with those Tree Huggers who want sustainability and conservation to be a mass concern. Using a Malleable Brand Positioning to Convey Authenticity Altruistic Superbowl ads have been done beforethink last year's Bank of America (RED) and Chevrolet's World Cancer Society spotsbut something separates Colgate's #everydropcounts commercial: relevance to brand position. I've not been involved in developing any of these brands' positions. However, Colgate appears to have very adeptly formed a brand position around caring that can be flexed to be believably-on-brand whether they are promoting teeth care, providing your family with care, or urging you to care for the planet. Moving Beyond Portfolio Management to Address Sustainability Niche I'd bet many Tree Huggers are brushing with Tom's of Maine, rather than Colgate. This is likely the reason why Colgate-Palmolive owns Tom's of Maine, as a way to reach the natural and sustainable tribe. Now, Colgate-Palmolive is using its mass brand, Colgate, to speak the language of a niche group. Could this signify the emergence (or help create) a cross-category table stakes of sustainability? Will a brand's minimum right to play in a category go beyond only addressing a minimal category need (i.e., cleaning teeth for toothpaste, transportation for automobiles), but also include being made and used in a way that does not harm the environment? Establishing a New Kind of Green Leadership While it may not do it overtly, Colgate's ad will undoubtedly do many of the things other brands aim to do with their Superbowl commercials: increase brand familiarity and build/reinforce their brand positioning. On top of that, Colgate is establishing itself as a new type conservation leader. I've previously observed two types: Brands who have been built from the ground up to speak directly to the hard-core green consumer tribe that demands 100% sustainable products (e.g., Tom's of Maine) Huge companies (like Colgate-Palmolive) that are quietly trying to greenize every aspect of their business, perhaps even mentioning it on an obscure sustainability page on their website. For a mass commodity-producing brand like Colgate to step up and try to push a niche concern onto the masses, even in a tiny dose, is groundbreaking. And it's not just a hey, we make green products to fit your green needs, it's hey, we want you to change your behavior. Wow. by Karl Greenberg , February 3, 2016 Scion was launched in 2003 ostensibly as a laboratory to explore new dealership models and vehicle customizing where sharp angled cars were tabula rasa for car customizers. Toyota announced on Wednesday that the business is folding its tents and rolling over to the Toyota, with cars like the new iM, and FRA becoming Toyotas. Commenting on the brief life of the brand, auto consultant Jim Sanfilippo suggested that Scion was not driven by U.S. marketers, but that it came in from overseas as an idea driven by the lack of passion younger Americans had for Toyota, which no longer had a performance car and had discontinued the Celica. And it was a way to experiment with no-haggle pricing. It was an experiment to run in the showroom, with minimal product investment. Whats not to like? And, at that time, they got the attention of the industry because Toyota was the most formidable brand, given that the Big Three at the time were adrift in a big way. advertisement advertisement They had tapped Manchester, England-based design shop Attik to create a dark, anarchic campaign for the cars with a Hot Import Nights aesthetic. Says Sanfilippo: The initial marketing was brilliant, but these were low-margin vehicles. And, while the brand launched with radically designed vehicles, particularly the breadbox-on-wheels xB, it boxed itself into a corner, design-wise, and its cars soon lost their edge, literally. I dont know if you can sustain cool, but you have to be on product. You have to be on the edge all the time. And then the demographic results started coming in, and it was clear that the cars were not being purchased by younger people. The average age of the Scion owner had reached the high 40s by 2013. And as Sanfilippo points out, this was before Big Data, so insights were not coming from listening to social media, which may have had a lot to do with the drifting aesthetic of the brand. It is hard to sustain the need for authenticity, and in a way, it is very reminiscent of Saturn: they let it die skipped product cycle and let it die. And then came the threat of new vehicles perhaps inspired by the xB, such as Kias Soul -- an instant hit, partly because of the Hamster campaign that drove it, via Los Angeles-based David & Goliath. Suddenly Scion wasnt so new any more. Here we are in 2015, and cars no longer relevant, and there is an existential threat is from small SUVs from brands like Mazda and Honda. Its a very solid decision on Toyotas part because they are now revisiting performance. And theres nothing wrong with that [FR-S roadster, based on Subarus BRZ] being a Toyota. Edmunds analyst Jeremy Acevedo says there are several issues impinging on Scions right to exist, not the least of which is that they are chasing a market niche that doesnt exist today. Younger people arent buying cars, especially new cars. They are dragging their feet committing to the new car market, especially with ride sharing as a new option. He notes that only about 12% of new-car buyers are Millennials, and that 58% of new vehicles sold last month were trucks vans and SUVs. Nothing fits that bill in Scions stable. by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, February 3, 2016 aimClear Founder Marty Weintraub seems to have uncovered what he calls "the greatest ranking algorithm gap in years, allowing marketers to literally buy their way into Google search results with paid content." While publishers are not breaking any rules, this loophole in Google's guidelines allows advertorial content to index in Google News, Weintraub insists. Search results for specific keywords that aimClear often uses to describe its business -- such as "psychographic targeting," on Mashable or Search Engine Journal, among others -- suggest otherwise. Yes, the advertorials serve on Google Web and Google News. In fact search on keywords that any brand, such as Lean Cuisine, uses to describe itself to see if they have advertorials running in Google News. The credibility of the publishers help the advertorials to post high in the rankings on both Google Web and Google News. It's a big deal for a publisher to get an article to publish on the home page of Google News, but apparently advertisers are able to buy their way onto the front page based on the credibility of the publisher. advertisement advertisement Perhaps, as he says, it all comes down to the "no-follow" or "do-follow" rule, code within the content on the Web page that tells the search engine what to index. Google's guidelines say that someone cannot pay a publisher for a page that houses "do-follow" links. "If you could, why mess around with SEO when you can just buy it?" Weintraub says. "You just need to include a do-follow link in the native content." Advertorials, also known as native content, are prohibited from indexing in Google News, and the engine has made it clear they can and will delist the publication from search results. Publishers are breaking Google's rules with paid content. While Google does not allow advertorial pages with paid links, there is nothing in guidelines that says if the advertorial content includes no-follow links it cannot index. The publisher takes responsibility to remove them. The wording in Google's guidelines is somewhat convoluted. You cannot have a paid editorial page that includes do-follow links appear in Google News, but Google does allow advertorials to index in Google Web search when the links are made no-follow. Weintraub explains here, including detailed guidelines and FTC disclosure rules. Internet privacy (or lack of privacy) is on everyone's minds -- even tech honchos' minds. Internet privacy (or lack of privacy) is on everyone's minds -- even tech honchos' minds. This week at the American Magazine Media Conference, Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel said the following: "There is creepy advertising, and there is advertising that doesnt know you at all. Our goal is to make a Snapchatter feel understood. And after you understand them, do your best to make an ad relevant to them." Spiegel has mentioned not wanting Snapchat to creep users out before. At last year's Cannes Lions Festival, he reiterated the sentiment to an audience of mainly brands and agencies, many of whom were probably already skeptical about Snapchat's lack of measurement that could inform ads. advertisement advertisement There's clearly more need for tech leaders to make their positions clear about the issues of ad blocking and Internet privacy. A Pew Research Center study posted last month found the words creepy, Big Brother and stalking regularly in answers to a question about customer profiling -- not the most flattering terms. So in the spirit of total transparency, here's what other tech CEOs have said about privacy, beginning with Steve Jobs. The Apple creator made a pro-user public stance on privacy at the D8 Conference in June 2010: Privacy means people know what they're signing up for. In plain English, and repeatedly, that's what it means. Ask them. Ask them every time. Make them tell you to stop asking if they get tired of your asking them. Let them know precisely what you're going to do with their data," Jobs said. by Wendy Davis , Staff Writer @wendyndavis, February 3, 2016 Six Democratic senators, including presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, are criticizing broadband providers' "troubling and questionable" billing practices. "A lack of competition in the market has left many Americans without robust options when purchasing cable and broadband," states the letter, signed by Sens. Ron Wyden (Oregon), Al Franken (Minnesota), Bernie Sanders (Vermont), Ed Markey (Massachusetts), Jeffrey Merkley (Oregon) and Elizabeth Warren (Massachusetts). "Given the power big corporations have over American consumers, the need to stop unfair billing practices and ensure affordable cable and Internet services for all Americans is all the more important." The lawmakers call particular attention to Comcast's cable modem rental fees, which now come to $120 a year. The company has long faced complaints by consumers who say Comcast has charged them rental fees even after they purchased their own modems. advertisement advertisement Sanders and the other lawmakers say they are "troubled" by these complaints. "Many consumers report having to call and remedy this problem throughout several billing cycles," the lawmakers write. "In fact, customer help board found online at Comcast's Help and Support Forum contain complaints about this exact problem." The lawmakers ask the FCC for more information, including whether regulates incorrect equipment fees. For all the lawmakers' rhetoric about the lack of broadband competition, Sanders and the others are focused on a problem that isn't likely to prove controversial. After all, few people are going to argue that a company has the right to send incorrect bills. Notably, today's letter doesn't address a topic with far-reaching policy implications -- providers' use of data caps. Comcast, for instance, recently unveiled Stream -- a $15 a month online video service that doesn't count against consumers' data allotments. Currently, some Comcast subscribers in test markets can only consume 300 GB of data a month before they're charged overages of $10 per 50 GB. Net neutrality advocates argue that this billing structure gives consumers an incentive to choose Stream over Netflix, Amazon or other competing over-the-top services. by Thom Forbes @tforbes, February 4, 2016 Bob Elliott, half of the comedic Bob and Ray team and a deadpan skewer of both Madison Ave. and the media it supported and that also supported them died of throat cancer at 92 Tuesday in his home in Cundy's Harbor, Maine. Elliott and Ray Goulding, who died at 68 in 1990, were among the drollest and most inventive pop-culture satirists of their generation as writers, producers and actors, writes Adam Bernstein for the Washington Post. Mr. Elliott also was the patriarch of a comedy family that included his actor-writer son, Chris Elliott, and a granddaughter, actress-comedian Abby Elliott, both former cast members of Saturday Night Live. advertisement advertisement Bob and Rays primary target was radio itself, Dennis McLellan writes for the Los Angeles Times. As Elliott told the New York Daily News in 1992: Our original premise was that radio was too pompous. That included advertising blather that was inevitably filled with hyperbolic claims and empty promises. A typical bit of theirs was called The Bob and Ray Overstocked Warehouse, in which Mr. Elliott announced, deadpan: We have 124 full cases of canned corned beef, which are clearly stamped San Juan Hill, 1898. If you do not find this corned beef all you had hoped it would be, just leave word with the executor of your estate to return the remaining unopened cans to us, recall Peter Keepnews and Richard Severo for the New York Times. The teams ersatz advertisements included exhortations on behalf of the Monongahela Metal Foundry (Steel ingots cast with the housewife in mind), Einbinder Flypaper (The flypaper youve gradually grown to trust over the course of three generations) and Height Watchers International, Keepnews and Severo write, Sketches ranged from the Bob and Ray Mystery Tune (winners received $18 in cash, plus a free breakfast at Rudy's House of Dry Toast) to the call-in opinion program Speaking Out (I think the Prince of Wales should be a civil service job), writes the LATs McLellan. And they poked fun at commercials, with sponsors such as Cool Canadian Air (Packed fresh every day in the Hudson Bay and shipped to your door.) The team was also adept at poking holes in windbags and self-important authorities and newscasters. Elliott [drew] laughs as sportscaster Biff Burns This is Biff Burns saying this is Biff Burns saying good night and goofy man-on-the-street reporter Wally Ballou, writes Mike Barnes for The Hollywood Reporter. The latter always came on air following some static with the entry line, ly Ballou. Elliotts experts included Darrel Dexter, the Komodo-dragon expert, from Upper Montclair, New Jersey, in a skit transcribed in a 90th birthday profile by Joshua Rothman in The New Yorker thatcites their tremendous impact on todays comic sensibility. Rothman quotes from a 1982 profile in the same magazine by Whitney Balliett that referred to Bob and Ray as a surrealistic Dickensian repertory company, which chastened the fools of the world with hyperbole, slapstick, parody, verbal nonsense, non sequitur, and sheer wit, all of it clean, subtle, and gentle. The duo's partnership began at a local Boston station, where Elliott, a disc jockey, and Goulding, a news announcer, began bantering on air between records, Chris Erikson writes for the New York Daily News. In 1946, that sparked an afternoon show, which in turn led to a popular show on NBC. Over the years, they took turns serving as the straight man, interviewed each other, made fun of everyday life and often mocked their medium, as Barnes writes. They were a perfect partnership, in fact, whose mutual respect for each other oozed through their wry repartee. I like jokes, but Ray and I, we never did jokes, Elliott said in a 2011 interview with the Archive of American Television. We werent in that line of humor. We each contributed our own kind of observations. Im glad to have people look at, and laugh at, and respect, and get some creative juice out of what we did by observing, Margaret Lenker recounts for Variety. A collection of 238 of their radio sketches can be heard on the Internet Archive. An appearance on Johnny Carsons Tonight Show features a performance of their Most Beautiful Face Winner skit. There is also an Official Bob & Ray Websitewith both mp3 files for sale and pointers to additional free downloads of their material. Laugh a little, whydoncha? by Erik Sass @eriksass1, February 4, 2016 Meredith Corp. has been one of the biggest exceptions to the trend of media companies divesting publishing properties to focus on their more profitable broadcast TV businesses -- but that may not last. The womens interest publisher is considering splitting its broadcasting and publishing units, according to CEO Stephen Lacy, who shared the news in an interview with Bloomberg Television this week. Lacy said Meredith could proceed with a split in partnership with another media company, rolling up its broadcast TV properties or magazine division with another company while the remainder becomes an independent company. The news comes just a week after Meredith agreed to terminate a planned merger deal with Media General, allowing the latter to be acquired by Nexstar, following a bidding war. advertisement advertisement A number of media companies have completed similar multi-step deals recently. Back in 2014 E.W. Scripps and Journal Communications completed twin spinoffs and mergers, consolidating their broadcast properties and newspapers in two separate companies. The list of media companies separating publishing from broadcast TV assets in recent years also includes Tribune Co., which split into Tribune Media and Tribune Publishing, and Gannett Co., which created TEGNA for its broadcast TV properties, while the newspaper continue under Gannett Co. In 2012, Media General sold its newspapers to Berkshire Hathaway to focus on broadcast TV, and in 2014 Time Warner spun off magazine publisher Time Inc. Meredith isnt necessarily committed to a strategic divestment of its print properties, however. Lacy noted the company also has a big war chest for acquisitions in areas including media and advertising technology, telling Bloomberg: We have a lot of dry powder -- about five deals are in the works. Finding good and creative deals is really where we are focusing our attention. As noted above, Meredith may have been planning on a spinoff following the planned Media General merger, which would have created one of the countrys biggest local broadcast TV groups. However, Meredith found itself effectively outbid by Nexstar, which offered $2.3 billion, including more cash and a bigger share of future broadcast spectrum sales for Media General shareholders. Meredith eventually agreed to break off the merger agreement in return for $60 million in cash; it also retains the right to bid for individual Media General properties. Researchers conclude there is no proof that low-level radiation from medical imaging such as X-ray and computed tomography scans causes cancer. They say it is time to throw out an unproven, decades-old theoretical model that has led many people doctors and regulators included to believe otherwise. Share on Pinterest The researchers say the model that is used to estimate the potential cancer risk of low-level radiation from medical imaging machines such as this CT scanner is wrong and should be abandoned. Writing in the American Journal of Clinical Oncology, the researchers describe how the linear no-threshold model (LNT) first proposed over 70 years ago is used to estimate cancer risks from low-dose radiation, such as medical imaging. But say James Welsh, a radiation oncology professor in the Stritch School of Medicine at Loyola University, Chicago, IL, and colleagues risk estimates based on the LNT model are only theoretical, and, as yet, have never been conclusively demonstrated by empirical evidence. They say persistent use of the LNT model by regulators and advisory bodies leads to unfounded fears and money being wasted on unnecessary safety measures. As a result, many doctors are averse to recommending and using the most appropriate imaging procedures for their patients, and many patients are unnecessarily scared to undergo them. Model ignores that human body repairs low-dose radiation damage The LNT model maintains there is no safe dose of radiation no matter how low the dose. It says you can work out the cancer risk of very low-dose radiation exposure by simply continuing in a straight line from the well-established, undisputed effects of high-dose radiation. But such a model ignores the fact that the human body is able to repair damage caused by low-dose radiation something that has evolved over millennia in humans and other organisms that are continually exposed to naturally occurring radiation in the environment. The authors note: We are literally bathed every second of every day in low-dose radiation exposure due to natural background radiation, exposures that vary annually from a few mGy to 260 mGy, depending upon where one lives on the planet. They go on to explain how no associated health effects as a result of being exposed to this background radiation have been documented anywhere in the world. In fact, people in countries like the US are living longer than ever likely because of improvements in medical care that involve exposure to radiation from diagnostic equipment e.g. X-rays or computed tomography (CT) scans at doses well below those of the background radiation. In their paper, the authors describe how they revisited the studies from over 70 years ago that led to widespread use of the LNT model. Cancer death rates in the UK have fallen by nearly 10 per cent1 over 10 years according to the latest analysis released on World Cancer Day by Cancer Research UK today (Thursday). This now means that in 2013, 284 out of every 100,000 people in the UK died from cancer - around 162,000 people. A decade ago this was 312 in every 100, 0002. The rate of cancer deaths has fallen, and this is largely due to improvements in detection, diagnosis and treatments. Without these research-led advances, the rate of cancer deaths would undoubtedly have risen. Further encouraging news is seen in the narrowing gap between men and women's cancer death rates. Men's death rates have fallen by 12 per cent from 397 for every 100,000 in 2003 to 349 per 100,000 in 2013. This compares to an eight per cent drop in women - falling from 259 per 100,000 women in 2003 to 240 in 2013. This equates to around 85,000 men and 77,000 women dying from cancer each year in the UK. Four cancers - lung, bowel, breast and prostate - cause almost half (46 per cent) of all cancer deaths in the UK. The combined death rate for these four cancers mirrors the overall fall, dropping by around 11 per cent over the last 10 years, from 146 people per 100,000 in 2003 to 131 people per 100,000 in 2013. But it's not all good news. For some cancers, such as liver and pancreatic, the rates of people dying from the disease have increased over the last decade3. As the population is growing and more people are living longer - and cancer is primarily a disease of old age - the total number of cancer deaths has increased. Around four-fifths of cancer deaths occur in people aged 65 and over, and more than half occur in those aged 75 and older. Globally, there are an estimated 8.2 million deaths from cancer - 4.7 million in men and 3.5 million in women. Sir Harpal Kumar, Cancer Research UK's chief executive, said: "Today, one in two of all people diagnosed with cancer survive their disease for at least 10 years. Cancer Research UK's ambition is to accelerate progress so that three in four survive cancer by 2034. Today on World Cancer Day it's important to remember that even though the death rates are falling, the overall number of people dying from cancer is expected to increase. This is because the population is growing and more of us are living longer. Too many people are still being diagnosed with and dying from cancer, not just here in the UK but around the world. "We're increasing our efforts into key areas of research such as how to achieve earlier diagnosis, and how best to manage cancers which are currently hard to treat. Our scientists are developing new tests, surgical and radiotherapy techniques, and drugs. It's important to celebrate how much things have improved, but also to renew our commitment to saving the lives of more cancer patients. Together we can all do something to reduce the impact of this devastating disease." Cancer Research UK is urging people to show their support for World Cancer Day by wearing a specially designed Unity Band, available from all Cancer Research UK shops and online. Everyone can take a small action to be a part of the generation that transforms the lives of millions who are affected by cancer. The Unity Band represents strength in unity. By wearing the band this World Cancer Day people are not just showing their support but uniting with the nation to make a difference. For more information about World Cancer Day visit http://www.cruk.org/worldcancerday As the US FDA approves nasal Narcan, researchers at Britain's National Addiction Centre warn against using poorly-tested drug delivery systems. Naloxone hydrochloride is a medication that can reverse the effects of an opioid overdose. First responders (peers, family, police, etc.) may prefer nasal sprays to injectable naloxone, which has led to widespread use of improvised naloxone kits with atomisers for nasal delivery of the drug. On 18 November 2015, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a nasal naloxone product to replace those improvised kits. In a debate paper published online today by the scientific journal Addiction, top researchers at the National Addiction Centre at King's College London criticise the extensive use of improvised nasal naloxone kits without testing and without regulatory approval. Improvised nasal naloxone kits were first introduced in the early 2000s in the absence of licensed non-injectable products, and today they continue to be used in the US (where improvised kits are still in circulation in the community) and also in an increasing number of countries where nasal Narcan has not yet been approved. The authors point out that there isn't enough information available on improvised nasal naloxone kits to warrant this level of acceptance. Improvised nasal kits consist of standard naloxone syringes (developed and licensed for injection), to which a nasal atomizer is attached. The formulation is not concentrated, as naloxone syringes are only commercially available in concentrations of up to 1mg/ml. The single pharmacokinetic study published on non-concentrate naloxone showed that only 4% of naloxone is absorbed when administered nasally. Clinical trials on improvised nasal naloxone kits are underway, but no data on levels of naloxone absorbed have been published. Lead author Professor John Strang says, "We are attracted to nasal naloxone as a concept, but we are concerned that improvised nasal sprays have been accepted by the treatment field without the sort of testing that would be demanded if a new drug delivery route were proposed for treatment of other populations. We wouldn't accept untested improvised nasal adrenaline/epinephrine for treating emergency allergic reactions. So why are makeshift nasal naloxone kits good enough for people with opioid dependence?" Strang also points out that we also haven't considered how reliably nasal naloxone works in opioid users whose nasal mucosa may be damaged from drug snorting, or obstructed by vomit during overdose. Ambulance-based studies indicate that between 9 and 26% of opioid overdose victims fail to respond to nasal naloxone. Strang says, "It's one thing to use nasal naloxone in a hospital or from an ambulance, where a doctor or paramedic can administer naloxone by injection if the nasal dose doesn't work. But these nasal naloxone kits, whether FDA-approved or not, are designed to help caregivers save overdose victims on the spot, so they need to be reliable. More data are needed to understand how reliably nasal naloxone reverses opioid overdose in the community. With a naloxone spray now licensed (in the U.S. only) and licensed naloxone injections available internationally, clinicians should either prescribe the long-established injection naloxone or, in the US at least, the newly-approved naloxone nasal spray. They should not prescribe untested, improvised nasal sprays for which absorption remains unknown, probably poor and likely vary variable." It's well known that peanuts can cause severe reactions in people who are allergic, but research suggests that the risk of developing a life-threatening reaction could be higher for those allergic to cashews. Now scientists have come up with a fast and simple method to purify the three main cashew allergens to help better grasp how they work and their effects on people. Their report appears in ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. Allergies to tree nuts and peanuts can cause mild symptoms, such as hives and itchy eyes. But some people who are allergic experience anaphylaxis, a life-threatening reaction that includes shortness of breath, swelling, dizziness and other symptoms. Scientists have identified three proteins associated with cashew allergies, but no one had isolated them with a high degree of purity or characterized them. Doing so, however, would help identify which specific allergen people react to, how the proteins might cross react with other allergens and potentially how to treat the allergy. Harry J. Wichers and colleagues decided tackle this challenge. The researchers used three different methods -- precipitation, ultrafiltration and gel filtration chromatography -- to purify the three main cashew allergens. They then identified the proteins' subunits. Additionally, testing found a difference in how allergens bound to immunoglobulin E, an allergen-binding antibody, in Dutch children and American adults, shoring up previous suggestions that geography and age can play a role in allergies. Researchers say further studies can build on these results to analyze allergen structure, cashew varieties and the stability of proteins during processing. UC Davis researchers have developed a way to use the empty shell of a Hepatitis E virus to carry vaccines or drugs into the body. The technique has been tested in rodents as a way to target breast cancer, and is available for commercial licensing through UC Davis Office of Research. Hepatitis E virus is feco-orally transmitted, so it can survive passing through the digestive system, said Marie Stark, a graduate student working with Professor Holland Cheng in the UC Davis Department of Molecular and Cell Biology. Cheng, Stark and colleagues prepared virus-like particles based on Hepatitis E proteins. The particles do not contain any virus DNA, so they can't multiply and spread and cause infections. Such particles could be used as vaccines that are delivered through food or drink. The idea is that you would drink the vaccine, and after passing through the stomach the virus-like particles would get absorbed in the intestine and deliver vaccines to the body. But the particles could also be used to attack cancer. Stark and Cheng did some tinkering with the proteins, so that they carry sticky cysteine amino acids on the outside. They could then chemically link other molecules to these cysteine groups. They worked with a molecule called LXY-30, developed by researchers at the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, which is known to stick to breast cancer cells. By using a fluorescent marker, they could show that virus-like particles carrying LXY-30 could home in on breast cancer cells both in a laboratory dish and in a mouse model of breast cancer. Results of the study are published in the journal Nanomedicine. Information about licensing the technology can be found at: https://techtransfer.universityofcalifornia.edu/NCD/24218.html. So perhaps one day, cancer patients might drink their medicine and UC Davis-designed virus-like particles carrying anticancer drugs will home in on their target. Thousands of blood cancer patients are missing out on essential care every year according to a report released today (Thurs 4 Feb) by blood cancer charity Bloodwise. The findings, published to mark World Cancer Day, show that every year nearly 5,000 blood cancer patients in the UK do not get the specialist nursing support which many other cancer patients receive as a matter of course. The report, Clinical nurse specialists: the case for support in blood cancer, highlights how for two common types of leukaemia, almost 1 in 5 patients have no clinical nurse specialist (CNS) to support them. This is significantly lower than in other areas such as breast, lung, and gynaecological cancer, where more than 9 out of 10 patients access such specialist care. Consequently, Bloodwise is urging NHS commissioners and the government to improve access to clinical nurse specialists so that all blood cancer patients have a named contact. Being able to contact a dedicated nurse specialist can transform a cancer patient's experience. As well as helping them to navigate the complicated NHS system, nurse specialists are able to provide life-changing emotional and psychological support. Having one key person to liaise with is especially paramount for blood cancer patients, who often describe feeling isolated and "different" to solid tumour cancer patients. Katie Ruane, who has leukaemia, says: "The difference it has made knowing my clinical nurse specialist is there cannot be put into words. I didn't think that being able to send a text or email at any time would make a big difference, but it really does. Getting a smile and a hello from her in clinic, knowing she cares, is a truly wonderful thing." Diana Jupp, director of patient experience at Bloodwise, adds: "Patients tell us that having a clinical nurse specialist improves their cancer journey enormously - it is the single most important factor in a positive experience of care. However, we know that access to clinical nurse specialists is highly inconsistent and that patients in some parts of the UK have no access at all. With increasing numbers of people living with and beyond blood cancer, this lack of provision has to change. "We want to work alongside the NHS, health professionals and all organisations in the blood cancer sector to ensure patients get the support they need." To help bridge the current gap in provision, Bloodwise has launched a telephone and email support line for anyone affected by blood cancer - 0808 2080 888 or email support@bloodwise.org.uk.. In July 2015 the Independent Cancer Taskforce identified the importance of clinical nurse specialists and highlighted the need for the workforce to keep pace with the growing number of people affected by cancer. Bloodwise is urging the government and NHS to: Galen Ltd. has announced that Penthrox, a new, hand-held inhaler, which brings rapid pain relief to adult trauma patients1, is now available in the UK. The innovative pocket-sized inhaler delivers an analgesic medicine quickly to accident victims and trauma patients attending emergency departments. Known as 'The Green Whistle' in Australia and New Zealand, Penthrox has helped emergency medicine professionals treat patients quickly and effectively for many years. Its launch in the UK will signal the first new advance in emergency pain relief in over a decade. Penthrox contains methoxyflurane, a pain relieving medicine, which is delivered via the inhaler to provide fast, effective pain relief within 6 - 10 breaths1, 2. Over the last 10 years, overall Emergency Department attendances in the UK have increased by 36%3,4. More than 75% of patients present to the Emergency Department in pain*5. This increase in patient attendances is creating a challenge for Trusts to hit the 4 hour admission/ discharge target times, and has contributed to a high profile crisis in UK Emergency Departments. Current pain management methods, such as intravenously delivered medication, can cause significant delays in getting analgesia to patients and could be contributing to the crisis. The Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM) acknowledges that ''pain is commonly underrecognised, under-treated and treatment may be delayed6.'' The RCEM Best Practice Guidelines recommend that patients in moderate to severe pain should be given pain relief within 20 minutes of arriving at an Emergency Department6, however few are managing to achieve this. "Treatments such as IV analgesia or gas and air can be cumbersome to set up and take time to administer. Penthrox is easy to use and relieves pain quickly, freeing up healthcare professional time for a more efficient service and a better patient experience. Its availability in the UK is an important step forward in the emergency relief of acute pain", said Dr. Justin Kirk-Bayley, Consultant Intensivist and Anaesthetist at the Royal Surrey County Hospital in Guildford, Surrey. Alongside its use in Emergency Departments, Penthrox can also be used in a variety of pre-hospital settings by appropriately trained persons, such as paramedics. "It is fast-acting and provides relief quickly," commented Joe Emery, a paramedic and Clinical Quality Manager at the South East Coast Ambulance Service (SECAmb) where Penthrox has recently been evaluated. "We have been able to help badly injured patients in serious accidents much quicker and control their pain on their way to hospital. The benefit for the patient is obvious but by enabling us to get the patient's pain under control quickly we can work more efficiently." Galen's Managing Director, David Bennett, commented: "We are delighted to be able to bring this innovative product to the UK. At a time when UK Emergency Departments and Ambulance Trusts are experiencing significant pressures we are excited about the potential of Penthrox to improve service efficiencies as well as patient care." Penthrox has been studied in the UK in the STOP! study, a randomised, double-blind, multicentre, placebo-controlled study of 300 trauma patients in the Emergency Department conducted at 6 sites in the UK2. Time to first pain relief was within 10 breaths for 84.6% of patients in the methoxyflurane group2. Methoxyflurane reduced pain severity significantly more than placebo (p<0.0001) at all timepoints tested. Penthrox was well tolerated, with the majority of side effects being mild and transient2. One 3 mL bottle of Penthrox provides pain relief for 25 - 30 minutes when used continuously, and up to 1 hour with intermittent use1. About Penthrox: Penthrox is licensed for emergency relief of moderate to severe pain in conscious adult patients with trauma and associated pain. Penthrox should be self-administered under supervision of a person trained in its administration, using the handheld Penthrox Inhaler1. Before administering Penthrox, healthcare professionals are advised to ensure they have read and fully understood the SmPC and educational materials. Penthrox educational materials and training on its administration are available from Galen on request. The Zika epidemic is still in its initial stages, and its long-term consequences are unknown. In due course, as the results of research on the virus emerge, some of the facts mentioned above could prove incorrect. The best we can do currently is to prevent mosquito bites to stop transmission where possible. Please complete this form and we'll send you a personalised information that is requested You may use this for your own reference or forward it to your friends. Please use the information prudently. If you are not a medical doctor please remember to consult your healthcare provider as this information is not a substitute for professional advice. Introduction In late November 2015, the "Upcoming Syria" movement was established in Istanbul. This is the first 'Alawi movement that opposes the Bashar Al-Assad regime in Syria. The movement's founders claim that for years, Assad tied the fate of the 'Alawi sect with his own in order to guarantee its loyalty, despite the fact that not all of its members supported him. The new movement aspires to collaborate with the Syrian revolution so as to ensure the 'Alawis' safety and their part in the future social and governmental makeup of the country. Upcoming Syria has received the support of Assad's rival Turkey, and of the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces, which aspires to show that it represents all Syrian sects, thus alleviating minority fears regarding the post-Assad era in the country. Concurrently, recent Arab media reports claim that officials in the 'Alawi sect have been in touch with various regional countries such as Turkey and Israel in an attempt to obtain guarantees for the safety of the sect in the period after Assad. The establishment of the first 'Alawi oppositionist organ and the reports on efforts by sect officials to secure the 'Alawis' safety in the post-Assad era do not take place in a vacuum. Back in 2014 there were early signs of bitterness and criticism towards the regime within the 'Alawi sect, which were expressed on social media and also in articles published by 'Alawi writers.[1] Another expression of this disillusionment can be seen in the August 2015 'Alawi protests that took place in the Latakia and Tartus areas. It should be mentioned that, despite the current wave of discontent, it appears as though the 'Alawi sect and the Upcoming Syria movement do not constitute a real threat to the regime; rather, it seems that Assad has thus far managed to contain the criticism emanating from his own sect and maintain its low profile. It should also be mentioned that it is difficult to estimate what portion of the sect is loyal to the regime and what portion opposes it. However, these are still undoubtedly significant developments. This report will discuss the Upcoming Syria movement and additional signs of displeasure with the Assad regime among members of the 'Alawi sect. 'Upcoming Syria' - The First 'Alawi Opposition Body On November 21-22, 2015, the founding conference of Upcoming Syria - the first group of 'Alawi political oppositionists - was held in Istanbul. The conference opened with the singing of the movement anthem, titled "A Free Homeland Unites Us." The movement is headed by 'Alawi oppositionists who live outside of Syria, some of whom are members of the National Coalition for Syrian Revolutionary and Opposition Forces. Aspiring To Create 'Alawi Leaders And Add 'Alawi Voices To The Revolution The movement's founder is Fouad Hamira, one of Syria's most prominent drama writers, who has a journalism degree from Damascus University. Hamira was arrested by Syrian security forces in mid-2013 after criticizing the regime. After his release he was exiled to Jordan and moved to Paris in December 2014.[2] Fouad Hamira at the founding conference of the Upcoming Syria movement in Istanbul (image: Facebook.com/UpComingSyria, November 21, 2015) Alongside Hamira, the movement is also led by Raghda Hassan, a writer and member of the outlawed Syrian Communist Labour Party, who served as an advisor for the head of the National Coalition's interim government. Hassan, who is in charge of the movement's public affairs, was arrested by Syrian security forces in the 1990s for her membership in the Communist Labour Party. In 2010, upon her release from prison, she left for Beirut, briefly returned to Syria, and ultimately moved to Turkey.[3] The movement's spokesman is 'Oubab Khalil who, until recently, managed the National Coalition's Washington office.[4] Upcoming Syria logo ( Facebook.com/UpComingSyria, November 17, 2015) On the eve of the founding conference, the movement launched a Facebook page announcing the conference and the movement's goals, which also featured a promotional video.[5] According to Fouad Hamira, he had been working to establish the movement since the onset of the revolution in 2011,[6] and it seems that its establishment at this point came in response to the increasing international efforts to solve the Syria crisis. The movement's leaders describe it as an 'Alawi body meant to produce new leaders for the sect and to shape its political position, but stress that it is open to all Syrians. Speaking at the founding conference, Hamira addressed 'Alawis and expressed a desire "to refute the lie of the Bashar Al-Assad regime and convince them... that toppling [this] regime would first and foremost benefit the 'Alawis."[7] Hamira said further that one of the movement's goals was "to produce new leaders for the sect after the Assad family spent fifty years emptying the sect of its leaders, including its religious leaders, whom it transformed into its intelligence agents. We strive to create a cadre of new leaders and prepare them for the post-regime phase... We hope we can bring new added value to the Syrian revolution."[8] According to him, "it is this regime and many of its supporters that brought about the [current] violence in Syria, and it is the role of all of us to convene here against those who still cause the death of Syrians. Therefore, the [Upcoming Syria] current calls on all to unite their political views and formulate realistic and unified positions of the Syrian oppositionist voice. The current's doors are open to all Syrians so that we can iron out our differences and later reach an agreement on presenting a political solution to the revolution. This regime will not be toppled by any particular sect or party... We have common values that we must share with all political forces and blocs that strive to find a solution for [the sake of] Syria and all Syrians."[9] Raghda Hassan said at the conference: "This current was established to redefine the political view of the 'Alawi sect, to provide an answer to the common question on the Syrian street regarding the absence of the 'Alawi voice from the revolutionary arena, and to be the address for members of the 'Alawi sect involved in revolutionary action."[10] On another occasion she said: "We belong to the 'Alawi sect in terms of society and culture, but politically, we belong to any national Syrian plan that protects the multiculturalism and richness of the Syrian identity. Any solution that does not accept the revolution's goals as a fundamental condition cannot be legitimate after the extremely heavy price that the Syrian people has paid and continues to pay."[11] 'Alawi Sect Must Correct The Historic Mistake Of Supporting The Assad Regime The closing statement of the conference condemned the Assad regime and its allies and called for reviving the original Syrian revolution and establishing a civil, democratic and pluralistic state. The statement reads: "Some Syrians who are members of the 'Alawi sect called to establish the Upcoming Syria current so that it would be a voice from the heart of the 'Alawi sect - [a voice] that does not presume to represent [the sect] but rather addresses it out of an understanding of its feelings and interests, and which attempts to correct the historic injustice done to the social, ideological, and political makeup of the sect in order to reformulate its ties with Syrians around it. In light of this, the current stresses the following: "1. 'Alawis are a fundamental component in the Syria fabric that - like the other sects in the Syrian people - aspires to be liberated from tyranny and hopes to live in dignity and liberty. However, a number of objective and subjective factors have motivated members of the sect to become fuel for the war [machine] of the Assad regime and its allies... against Syrians demanding freedom, justice, and equality. These factors include: "a. The method of marginalization and disrespect for [people's] intelligence that was employed by the Assad regime and its allies against the Syrian people in general and the 'Alawi sect in particular has led to the sidelining of the role of the important leaders and political, ideological, and even religious sources of authority in Syrian society as a whole and the 'Alawi sect in particular. This has caused Assad, his allies, and interested parties alongside him to become the sole source of authority for the sect on all levels, causing the sect to be perceived as sheltering in the shadow of the Assad regime against any threat to its interests or existence. "b. For over fifty years, the Assad regime and its allies have manipulated the sectarian, tribal, and familial ties in Syrian society, and have exploited them to realize the interests [of the regime] and [ensure] legitimacy for it to remain [in power]. As a result, [the sense of] belonging and national awareness [of citizens] was damaged, leading to a sense of persecution [among various sects]. The 'Alawi sect was harmed the most from this devastating action since [the regime] intentionally tied [the 'Alawis'] interest and continued existence to Assad remaining in power. "c. The increasingly sectarian discourse among extremist factions in the armed opposition played a crucial role in motivating the majority of the sect to count on the Assad regime, not in order to defend him but rather out of the self-delusion that he was protecting [the sect's] existence, its life, and its survival. Many of them felt as though the Assad regime protected them and that its ouster meant their destruction, or at the very least, their marginalization. "d. The sectarian discourse that insists on portraying any Sunni as a legitimate son of the revolution and any 'Alawi as a legitimate son of the regime merely serves Assad and his allies and distorts the image of the revolution on the local, regional, and international levels. "All this, as well as other factors and circumstances, led some members of the 'Alawi sect to make this mistake [of relying on Assad]. It should be stressed that admitting a mistake does not mean returning to the past, but rather preparing for a new stage meant to correct the path and the positions with the help of all Syrians. This admission is a chance to examine the reasons and conditions that led to this mistake and its results, in order to formulate true solutions for the problem, and to attempt to bring the sect back from its dependence on Assad and his allies. Assad To Blame For Current Situation; We Strive For A Unified, Civil, Pluralist, Democratic State "2. Based on the above, we in the Upcoming Syria current stress that Assad and his regime bear responsibility for the state of destruction, ruin, and death the country has reached. They are chiefly responsible for the military chaos and for the foreign intervention in all parts of the country, and Assad is the one who 'invited' violence by insisting on security and military solutions, and was initially responsible for the escalation of sectarian action as a result of his sectarian crimes, whose intended purpose was to bring us to the current state. "3. The Upcoming Syria current regards any foreign presence on Syrian soil to be clear and open occupation, whether [it is an actual presence of] military forces or [is achieved] by assisting [various] forces [in Syria] that are alien to the country, its residents, the goals of its revolution, or anything Syrians aspire for in their homeland. "4. We cannot regard anyone who carries weapons against the oppression and crimes of Assad as a rebel. Furthermore, Syria must not become [divided into] influence zones [ruled by] chaos, weapons, or warlords. Therefore, it is the duty [of Syrians] to regain [control] of the moral compass that caused the outbreak of the revolution and define in detail [the necessary] revolutionary action, in order to distance and set it apart from criminal action. "5. In order to prevent further deterioration of the state into sectarian war, whose buds are clearly showing, and in order to prevent Syria from becoming the arena for a struggle between Islamic schools, ethnicities, or sects, we in the Upcoming Syria current strive to restore the [original] goals of the revolution which are: Establishing a civil, pluralist, democratic state; rejecting all partition plans;[12] ensuring the unity of [Syria's] territory and people; and ensuring the Syrian identity as a criterion for national belonging."[13] Founding conference of the Upcoming Syria Stream (Source: Qasioun.net, November 21, 2015) No To Negotiations; Syrian Regime Will Be Toppled Only By Military Means Ahead of the negotiations that are scheduled to in late January 2016 in Geneva between regime and opposition delegations, Fouad Hamira wrote, in an article that presumably reflects the position of his movement, that the only way to oust the Assad regime is by defeating it militarily: "The claim that [we can] negotiate with the Assad regime about its own downfall is silly. If the regime is willing to go, why has it been destroying the country for five years? And why has it killed about a million Syrians? Obviously, the regime will not negotiate its own downfall, especially considering that it is not being forced to negotiate on this basis [and] following the [military] achievements it has made recently with Russian and Iranian help... "The opposition has two [options]: allowing the out of the question - or follow the principles of chess and not negotiate about the fate of the king. We are convinced that the regime... will never enter negotiations, under any heading, that will lead to its downfall. Therefore, the only remaining option is to act to topple it by military means. The Assad regime insists on taking the path of Qadhafi [i.e., fighting to the death], and this is what the opposition must realize. Bashar Al-Assad will be toppled only in the same way Qadhafi [was toppled]. "We realize that the international community is pushing for a political solution, but the opposition must convince it, by diplomatic means, that there is no choice but to topple the regime militarily. [The opposition must also convince it] and that the responsibility for ending all the tyrannical [measures taken by] the regime in its war against the Syrians rests with the Syrian people alone. I hope the opposition's slogan from now on will be 'no to negotiations,' and that everyone will realize that the toppling of the regime will not come about through negotiations but only by defeating it on the battlefield."[14] The Current Is Close To The National Coalition But Has Not Joined It So far, the Upcoming Syria movement has not officially joined the National Coalition, but there seem to be close ties and cooperation between them. The movement needs the coalition's recognition because Western elements still regard the latter as the main representative of the Syrian opposition, and Hamira has in fact expressed willingness to join the coalition providing that his movement has "a decisive role in political decision-making and its presence is not of secondary [importance]."[15] It should be mentioned that before the movement's founding, Hamira directed harsh criticism at the National Coalition for excluding the 'Alawi sect, yet expressed a willingness to cooperate with it. In April 2015, he said: "The 'Alawi sect in Syria is caught between the flames of the regime, which is not defending it, and the flames of its [non-'Alawi] compatriots, who do not accept it... I condemn the actions of the Syrian opposition, [both] the armed and the political opposition, that has not extended its hand to help [the 'Alawis], even though 80% of them do not support Bashar Al-Assad... The 'Alawis are not represented in the revolutionary bodies and nobody is encouraging them to [join them]." He added: "The 'Alawis must now have a correct understanding of the revolution, and the opposition must open up channels of communication with the 'Alawis... Had it been up to the ['Alawi] sect, it would have crushed Bashar Al-Assad, but [it is unable to do so because] it is besieged by the opposition."[16] At the same time, the National Coalition and its backer, Turkey, need the Upcoming Syria movement. They consider its establishment a moral achievement - especially ahead of the possible renewal of the political process, and in light of claims that the National Coalition does not represent all Syrians, and also given the fears for the fate of minorities in Syria, especially the 'Alawis, in case the Assad regime collapses. These considerations underlie Turkey's support of the Upcoming Syria movement, as expressed by its hosting of the movement's founding conference in Istanbul. The conference was attended by senior figures from the National Coalition, including its chairman, Khaled Khoja. In his speech at the conference, Khoja underscored the importance of the new 'Alawi movement, saying: "The challenge facing us Syrians, of building our national identity, has become one of our most important challenges and struggles. This [Upcoming Syria] current, and the other political blocs and civil society organizations, are meant to build this identity, which the dictatorial barbaric regime caused us to lose... This blessed conference enriches the Syrian opposition. A piece of the mosaic was missing, but now [the mosaic] will be complete thanks to the presence of this important sect, the 'Alawi sect... There is a regional and global inclination to accelerate the political process. We are facing a complicated political process that will take place in parallel to the ongoing military situation on the ground. Hence, we wish to unite the political forces and the political stance of the opposition at large. The founding of this current [reflects the] rapprochement [between us] and the fact that we share [similar] political views..."[17] The Coalition's secretary-general, Yahya Maktabi, likewise welcomed the movement's founding, calling it "an important step in the face of the upcoming challenges and hardships," but clarified that "the [Upcoming Syria] current has yet to submit an official request to become part of the National Coalition."[18] National Coalition Chairman Khaled Khoja (left) with Upcoming Syria founder Fouad Hamira at the movement's founding conference (image: tahrirnews.com, November 22, 2015) Opposition Members Criticize The Current's Founding In contrast to the National Coalition, which welcomed the founding of the Upcoming Syria movement, other opposition members harshly criticized the movement and its leaders. 'Alawi Syrian oppositionist Habib Salah accused Fouad Hamira of collaborating with the Syrian regime and of attempting to perpetuate the 'Alawi rule in Syria in the era following Assad. In an article he published, he wrote of Hamira: "[He] is actually a mercenary! A son of the regime! He does not represent anyone!... Fouad Hamira is not interested in the Syrian problem! He is depraved, from a national and revolutionary point of view, and a hedonist on the social level!..." Salah explained that the founders of Upcoming Syria feared that Assad's downfall would harm the 'Alawi sect and were trying to provide an 'Alawi alternative in order to preserve the sect's privileged position.[19] Jihad Makdissi, the former spokesman for the Syrian foreign ministry, who defected, came out against the founding of an 'Alawi opposition current in a post on his Facebook page. Addressing Hamira, he said: "Your intentions are good, my friend... but the minority... cannot by itself assure the [other] minorities, either by [holding] a conference nor by [founding] a new current!... The Syrian struggle must remain a struggle for rights, duties, honor and full citizenship, not a struggle of sects and groups."[20] Oppositionist journalist and activist Ahmad Salal, who lives in Paris, wrote in a similar vein in an article titled "An 'Alawi Current without 'Alawis," which was posted on an oppositionist website. He too came out against the founding of a separate 'Alawi oppositionist stream, and called on 'Alawi intellectuals to formulate national, rather than sectarian, plans. He stated that, contra to Hamira's claims, most 'Alawis cooperate with the regime against the Sunni majority.[21] Reports: 'Alawi Figures Attempting To Obtain Guarantees For Day After Assad Concurrently with the establishment of the 'Alawi oppositionist movement, recent reports in the Arab media claim that prominent 'Alawi figures are holding contacts with Turkey and Israel in an attempt to obtain guarantees for the day after Assad's ouster. On November 9, 2015, a few days before the renewal of the talks in Vienna on a political settlement in Syria, the oppositionist Syrian website Orient News reported that the 'Alawi Syrian poet Adonis, along with representatives from the 'Alawi Council,[22] held Russian-brokered meetings with Israeli officials in Israel, followed by meetings with Turkish officials in Turkey. The report claims that the meetings were meant to obtain guarantees regarding the 'Alawi sect if it agreed to relinquish power in Syria, and to secure the future of relations between the 'Alawis in Syria and in Turkey.[23] According to a November 22, 2015 report in the London daily Al-Arab, 'Alawi officers and high ranking officials were in touch with international and regional elements, and stressed to them that the 'Alawis do not oppose Assad's stepping down at the end of the transitional phase in order to enable a reconciliation with the other sects. The daily cited "an 'Alawi source living in London" as saying: "We are willing to relinquish Assad in return for guarantees that prevent revenge against the sect after he steps down... We support him stepping down after the formation of a transitional government." The source added that only a minority in the 'Alawi sect still insists that Assad remain in power, out of its own narrow interests. According to the source, many 'Alawi youths were killed in the fighting in recent years, and therefore the majority of the sect supports a political solution that will end the bloodshed and protect the 'Alawi minority, even if this requires Assad to step down.[24] It should be noted, however, that these reports rely on biased sources and are meant to portray the Assad regime as losing its grip on its own sect. 'Alawis Protest Against The Regime In Latakia, Tartus As stated above, signs of bitterness and criticism of the regime within the 'Alawi sect appeared as early as 2014, due to the heavy price 'Alawis paid for their association with Assad and because the regime took their support for granted. This displeasure was expressed on social media and in articles published by 'Alawi writers. In August 2015, the criticism even escalated to widespread protests in Latakia and Tartus - 'Alawi cities that are considered regime strongholds. The protests were triggered by reports that Hassan Al-Sheikh, an 'Alawi Syrian air defense colonel, had been murdered by Bashar Al-Assad's cousin Suleiman.[25] The Al-Sheikh family demanded the execution of Suleiman Al-Assad, and, in an attempt to alleviate tension, regime media reported that he had been arrested. However, subsequent reports of his release sparked protests in Latakia on August 6. Al-Arabiya TV reported that after 'Alawi religious leaders intervened and told the Al-Sheikh family that the sect's interests and security came before their own demand for justice, the victim's brother recanted his accusations against Suleiman Al-Assad, bringing the protests to an end.[26] On August 10, 2015, at the height of the Latakia protests, 'Alawis also launched protests against the regime in Tartus, demanding to break the siege laid by ISIS on the Kweiris airbase in the Aleppo area and rescue the protestors' relatives and retrieve the bodies of the dead.[27] Families of soldiers besieged in Kweiris demonstrate outside the office of the Tartus governor (Image: Alsouria.net, August 22, 2015) The regime did not remain apathetic in the face of these protests, especially since the siege of the airbase was a military and morale defeat for the Syrian army. After fierce efforts, the regime managed to break the siege and rescue those trapped in the airbase on November 10, 2015, thus meeting the protester's demands. * Dr. M. Terdiman is a research fellow at MEMRI. Endnotes: [1] See MEMRI Special Dispatch No. 5702, Syrian 'Alawis Slam Assad Regime For Its Treatment Of 'Alawi Sect, April 2, 2014. There is good news for people now as scientists in UK have found a new technique to combat cancer. This technique is called mito-priming wherein they would get the tumour cells addicted to drugs that would kill them in minutes. This technique was invented as a research tool in an attempt to understand how cancer cells die. According to the research papers, BH3-mimetics is a promising set of cancer drugs that are developed to kill the tumour cells by targeting a family of proteins BCL-2. BCL-2 proteins function to keep the cancer cells alive. Thinkstock/Getty Images The BH3-mimetic anticancer drugs are not yet in clinical use, but they show promising signs for clinical trials at a later stage, especially in the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukaemia. Mito-priming can be used to rapidly screen for new BH3-mimetics and other anti-cancer drugs, and should improve ways to kill cancer cells. It can also be used to rapidly define the potency and specificity of BH3-mimetics," said Stephen Tait who is the lead author of the paper. He further added, Finally, the technique will allow us to understand how drug resistance occurs thereby allowing us to prevent this from happening in the first place. There is currently a lot of interest in targeting BCL2 proteins in the fight against cancer and there will be new therapies emerging in the future. Thinkstock/Getty Images Tait thinks that the cells in this state are very sensitive to the inhibition of protective BCL-2 function by BH3-mimetics, and hence, die within a few minutes of drug addiction. The Mito-priming technique was developed by producing equal amounts of toxic and protective BCL-2 proteins in cells. These scientists are from the Beatson Institute in Glasgow which is funded by the Cancer Research UK and is closely associated with the Glasgow University. H/t- PTI In the last ten days, Delhis municipal structure has come tumbling down. With what started as a minor strike for non-payment of salaries to the MCD staff, it has now blown up into a full-fledged fight between the Municipal Corporation and the Delhi Government. From a neutral point of view, it is very clear that an administrative matter has turned completely political within a week. While the blame game is on, what baffles me as a Delhiite is how the capital of the nation cannot afford to pay its governmental staff? Piles of garbage outside localities, stinking smell inside school premises and hospitals due to a lack of proper disposal personnel shows the real picture of Incredible India. Its the common man who has to bear the brunt of these strikes which are totally avoidable. Twitter Aesop once said, We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office. In the past one year, there have been four strikes by municipal workers in Delhi to demand timely payment of their salaries. When the government cheats its employees not once but thrice, you know what Aesop said was right. This time it has blown up into a stinking political battle and it shows the plight of a common man no matter what the case, governments, be it the BJP-ruled MCD or AAP, are more concerned about scoring points over each other rather than finding a permanent solution to these problems. The Municipal Corporation of Delhi is not exactly a model organization and this mess clearly indicates that its incompetent and in shambles. What it learned from three earlier strikes will forever remain a mystery because ever since then, its trifurcation accountability in the organization has dipped to a new low. On the other hand, the Delhi Governments holier-than-thou attitude hasnt helped one bit. If the government knew that MCD was in a financial crisis then, why did they not take any steps after the last strike? The government must understand that people can see through the optics of cleaning garbage while the staff strikes. We dont need that, we just want that the workers dont have to beg every four month for their hard-earned salaries. The garbage cleaners are aam aadmi too, you know? In order to clean up the mess, the government now must make sure that stringent steps are taken to monitor the financial health of MCD. It is the responsibility of the elected counselors to make sure that the sanitation workers and staff have been compensated before they draw-up their salaries. One of Googles most influential people is also one who has stayed out of the limelight over all the years the company became a behemoth. Amit Singhal, an Indian from Jhansi, was until now the head of Googles core business of Search. He now leaves the company, after working for 15 years, to do philanthropic work. Reuters Now is a good time to make this important life change, he said. Things are in amazing shape. Search is stronger than ever, and will only get better in the hands of an outstanding set of senior leaders who are already running the show day-to-day, he wrote in a blog post announcing his retirement. At Google, Singhal was responsible for leading the team of Google Search and looking after the way it runs, especially on mobile in recent years. Since joining in 2000, he has won the Google Fellow award meant for the most talented engineers in the company. Reuters Singhal will be handing over the keys to Google-company Alphabets chief revenue-earner John Giannandrea, a research and machine-learning executive, who had been responsible for Googles Knowledge Graph. This is the bit of information on the right-hand side of the search page that saves you from clicking any link when you search something on Google. Giannnandreas appointment is being seen as a push by the company to its artificial intelligence technology by many experts. Not unexpectedly, Googles stock price dropped by five percent on the news and the company ceded the worlds most valuable brand title back to Apple. With a market cap of $500 billion compared to Apples $534 billion, Google has some more catching up to do once again to take the coveted title back. You can read Amit Singhals complete retirement letter here. Deputy Foreign Minister Dimitris Mardas met at the Foreign Ministry today with the Bulgarian Ambassador to Athens, Emilia Ivanova Kraleva. During the meeting, which took place in an excellent atmosphere, the collocutors focused on issues of common interest, based on the priority of further expanding bilateral cooperation in various sectors. Special reference was made to the need to upgrade the existing cross-border infrastructure of the two countries, as well as to effective cooperation, including within the framework of the EU, on cross-border water issues. BAD AXE Jake Aymen, a Bad Axe High School student, has been chosen as one of two students who will be part of the 54th annual United States Senate Youth Program that will be held March 5-12, 2016 in Washington, D.C. Aymen, of Port Austin, was chosen among students from across the state to be part of the group of 104 student delegates who will attend the programs 54th annual Washington Week. The United States Senate Youth Program was created by Senate Resolution 324 in 1962 and has been sponsored by the Senate and fully funded by The Hearst Foundations since inception. The impetus for the program as stated in Senate testimony is to increase young Americans understanding of the interrelationships of the three branches of government, learn the caliber and responsibilities of federally elected and appointed officials, and emphasize the vital importance of democratic decision making not only for America but for people around the world. Each year this extremely competitive merit-based program brings 104 of the most outstanding high school students two from each state, the District of Columbia and the Department of Defense Education Activity to Washington, D.C. for an intensive week-long study of the federal government and the people who lead it. The overall mission of the program is to help instill within each class of United States Senate Youth Program student delegates more profound knowledge of the American political process and a lifelong commitment to public service. In addition to the program week, The Hearst Foundations provide each student with a $5,000 undergraduate college scholarship with encouragement to continue coursework in government, history and public affairs. Transportation and all expenses for Washington Week are also provided by The Hearst Foundations; no government funds are utilized. Aymen attends Bad Axe High School and serves as the National Honor Society president. He is the treasurer and an executive board member for both the Student Council and Interact, in addition to serving as captain of the Quiz Bowl team, a 4-H camp counselor and a Mayors Youth Council member. He volunteers for Clothe-A-Child, Senior Ball, the blood drive and is a Red Cross certified lifeguard. He maintains a 4.1020 average while taking six AP and Honors Courses this year courses this year. CARO Trooper Paige Kinneberg from the Michigan State Police Caro Post has been recognized for her effective patrol and investigative efforts by being awarded the Cpl. Samuel A. Mapes Award. Troopers assigned to patrol duties were eligible to earn this award based on patrol and investigative felony arrests. This annual award recognizes those members who excel in looking past the traffic stop, identifying more serious crimes and for investigations whose outcome is closed by a felony arrest. The award is named in honor of Cpl. Sam Mapes, one of the departments early pioneers in criminal patrol and investigation. On May 1, 1927, Mapes was patrolling alone on Highway 23, east of Sturgis, when he stopped two suspicious westbound vehicles at the same time. After briefly conversing with one of the drivers, Mapes determined the vehicles were rum running. It was obvious to the driver his load was going to be seized and he was going to be arrested, so he offered Mapes a bribe of $300 to let him go. Mapes refused and asked a passing motorist for assistance. While asking the motorist to go to Sturgis and summon assistance to help bring in the vehicles, one of the suspects pulled a gun, walked up behind Mapes, fatally shot him, took his service weapon, and fled. The suspect was arrested by Michigan State Police troopers and Illinois police officers in Chicago after an intense investigation, chase, and rolling gun battle. The suspect was returned to Michigan, tried, convicted and sentenced to life in prison without parole. Mapes was the seventh Michigan trooper to die in the line of duty, and he was awarded a Citation of Valor for his actions and integrity. During prohibition, public corruption was rampant and there was low public regard for police officers. Mapes refusal to accept a bribe, at the cost of his own life, significantly improved the departments image. Kinneberg, along with other troopers from across the state, attended an awards ceremony at the Michigan State Police Training Academy on Jan. 28. Mapes Award recipients from each post from every district were honored for their hard work and dedication to their patrol and investigative cases. This award is not given for any single investigation; rather, it is awarded annually to the top 5 percent of troopers in each district for their outstanding performance of duty and personal commitment to excellence associated with their proactive criminal patrol and criminal investigations, states a news release submitted to the Huron Daily Tribune. UPPER THUMB Sheridan Pawlowski and Jesse Vogel have been selected to represent the North Huron and Ubly FFA Chapters, respectively, at the State FFA Convention in March. Each is in the top three and will participate in the Stars of Michigan Program in hopes of becoming the next State Star Farmer and State Star in Agricultural Placement. To receive this honor, seniors from across the state filled out the tedious, 34-page application including the Star Battery and the State FFA Degree. This application is a combination of essay questions, learning outcomes and financial and inventory records for the students Supervised Agricultural Experience (SAE) project. A committee of experts at Michigan State University compared the applications and selected the top six individuals in each of four areas for an onsite interview. The onsite interview included speaking with the administration, the FFA Advisor, the student, and the parents. The interview included a trip to each of their farms to see their projects in action. The committee then reconvened to select the top three individuals for each category. On Jan. 5 the top individuals, their parents, and advisors met at AgroLiquid Fertilizers world headquarters in St. Johns for an intense interview with a panel of three judges. The result of this interview will be presented at the State FFA Convention on March 10. On stage with the students will be their parents, FFA advisor, and the administrators of their schools. Pawlowski, daughter of Brian and Tricia Pawlowski of Filion, is a senior at North Huron School. Her SAE is owning and caring for several beef cattle on her familys farm. She started her project by helping care for cattle and eventually showing a feeder calf at the Huron Community Fair. From there, she received a heifer from the Sweet Heifer program and began to grow her herd. Sheridan Pawlowski enjoys not only raising her animals but showing them also. She shows at the local fair and around the state. She plans to continue raising cattle and one day hopes to own enough cattle to supply high-quality show calves to young members wanting to show. Vogel, son of Gene and Rochelle Vogel of Minden City, is a senior at Ubly High School. His SAE is placement on his family farm, Vogel Family Farms. He works entirely in Organic Crop Production. He is responsible for working and planting fields, combing and drying crops, cutting, bailing, and wrapping hay bales, weed control, and machinery maintenance, repair and fabrication. Jesse Vogels career goal is to partner with his father and one day take over the farm when his father selects to retire. HURON COUNTY On the heels of a record sugar beet crop, Michigan Sugar Co. has described how it will invest more than $125 million across its four facilities, including its Sebewaing plant. At its recent annual shareholder meeting in Bay City, Michigan Sugar emphasized economic growth and partnership with local communities, while outlining key policy priorities in the coming year. At the forefront was the news that the grower-owned cooperative is going to invest the sizeable amount into its four plant locations in Bay City, Caro, Croswell and Sebewaing, as well as its agricultural department. We are on track to keep becoming more efficient and advanced by the year, said Mark Flegenheimer, CEO of Michigan Sugar. When Michigan Sugar does well, were able to create good jobs across Michigans Thumb, invest in our facilities, and boost the local economy in communities weve called home for more than 100 years. According to Ray Van Driessche, director of Community and Government Relations for Michigan Sugar, over the next five years, $57 million will go to the Croswell plant for facility upgrades. Around $50 million will be spread across the other three facilities for various capital improvements, while about $20 million will go toward the companys agricultural department for new equipment. Van Driessche said prior to its latest announcement, Michigan Sugar has made about $150 million in capital investments over the last decade. The growers have been very good about reinvesting in the facilities, trying to upgrade them and putting new efficiencies in place, Van Driessche said. Growers are used to reinvesting in their farms as they have income coming in, so when it comes to reinvesting in the facilities, theyre very good at doing the same thing. Flegenheimer credited the companys nearly 1,000 growers for embracing modern technology and best practices to continue boosting yields. Total production during the 2015 growing season topped 5 million tons and yield also set a new record at 31.6 tons per acre. To handle the record crop, Michigan Sugar will employ more than 2,300 local full- and part-time workers at the peak of production and processing. Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Robert Neller acknowledged to lawmakers on Tuesday that female Marines who fared poorly in recent gender-integration study did not have the infantry experience of the male Marines they competed against in the effort. Senior military leaders testified at the Senate Armed Services Committee on the progress of bringing women into direct-action, combat-arms jobs such as the infantry. Much of the hearing focused on the controversy surrounding the findings in a 1,000 page study that emerged last fall from the Marine Corps Ground Combat Element Integrated Task Force. The effort showed that gender-integrated units made up of men and women did not perform as well as all-male units. All-male units demonstrated higher performance levels than gender-integrated units on 69 percent of tasks evaluated. Gender-integrated teams performed better than their all-male counterparts on two of the 134 tasks, the study said. All-male squads also had a "noticeable difference in their performance of the basic combat tasks of negotiating obstacles and evacuating casualties." But Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, a Democrat from New York, criticized the Marine study, calling it "fundamentally flawed." "The design of this research was very flawed," she said. "First of all, female Marines were screened for the basic physical fitness test and were competing in a large part with male Marines who had years of experience and training and many had combat positions. "All we really know from the study is that groups who had the right training and more training did better," she added. "We don't actually have data that can be used because these women did not have the same training and experiences as those who had been doing it for a long time." The effort compared the performance of units with inexperienced female Marines -- fresh out of training -- against units made up of experienced male infantrymen, while focusing on speed and accuracy when engaging targets with multiple weapons systems, Military.com reported in October. "I think it would be unfair to any of those Marines particularly those females who participated in the [GCEITF] to say they weren't trained," Neller said. The female Marines that participated in the effort were first sent to the MOS schools for infantry, artillery and armor, he said. The women were then formed into the ground combat task force for four months of preparatory training, where they trained with men and developed the skills that they needed do this evaluation, he said. Gillibrand argued that "four months doesn't compare to the years that a lot of these units have been working together, doing this MOS." None of the Marines had ever served in the test unit before, but Neller did concede that males in the all-male units did have more experience in combat arms jobs such as infantry. "It is fair to say -- I will agree with you -- that their experience in these MOSs was probably not up to the level of their male counter parts," Neller said. The first two female soldiers to graduate U.S. Army Ranger School experienced a similar challenge. First Lt. Shaye Haver and Capt. Kristen Griest completed the grueling, 62-day infantry course in August. Haver, an Apache pilot, and Griest, a military police officer, struggled at first with passing the graded infantry patrols. The female Ranger candidates did receive several days of training on how to lead patrols during the Ranger Training Assessment Course at the Army National Guard's Warrior Training Center at Benning. But Ranger School students who come from infantry, armor and Special Operations Command units have a higher graduation rate compared to other MOSs, Ranger School officials say. The two largest groups that feed Ranger School are second lieutenants from the Infantry Officer Basic Leaders Course and members of the 75th Ranger Regiment, Benning officials said. The lieutenants have just completed 17 weeks out of the Infantry Officer Basic Leaders Course, which is focused primarily on the tactics techniques that an infantry platoon leader is expected to know and understand and be able to execute when he gets to his first unit of assignment. Similarly, Rangers from the Ranger Regiment serve 18 months to 24 months training on infantry tasks, even though they are a special-operations unit. The senior leadership at Ranger School and the Maneuver Center of Excellence agree on one point: If male students had an advantage over females in this gender-integrated Ranger course, it had less to do with physical strength and toughness and more to do with the on-the-job experience that most male students have acquired serving in infantry roles. Committee Chairman Sen. John McCain, a Republican from Arizona, asked if Neller thought this study was "fatally flawed." "I do not," Neller answered. "We have had this study peer reviewed by numerous groups." McCain asked "So you think it was a legitimate study?" "Within the time we had, yes chairman," Neller said. -- Matthew Cox can be reached at matthew.cox@military.com. Four years ago during the final debate between President Barack Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney, Obama famously laughed off Romney's contention that the Navy had too few ships. "We also have fewer horses and bayonets," Obama retorted, implying concern about surface ship numbers was outdated. "The question is not a game of battleship where we're counting ships. It's 'What are our capabilities?'" That exchange would never take place today, said Rep. Randy Forbes, a Republican from Virginia and chairman of the House Armed Services' Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee. Speaking to a group of reporters Tuesday, Forbes said this year's slate of presidential contenders and the public at large are more keenly concerned with national defense and the Navy, in particular, than they had been in elections past. "Go back to 2008. Did you really hear anything about the Navy? Did you really hear anyone talking about national defense?" he said. Referring to Romney's shipbuilding concerns, "nobody's pooh-poohing that today," he said. After years of discussing the impact of budget caps on defense capabilities, shoring up military spending is now a staple talking point for the Republican presidential contenders. Democratic frontrunner Hillary Clinton has also sounded hawkish, saying at a November debate that ISIS "cannot be contained. It must be defeated." Forbes said he also saw an increased interest and concern about defense and the size of the Navy from the public. A lawmaker colleague from Texas, he said, had confided that on a recent trip to his district, defense had been among the top two topics raised at every town hall meeting -- for the first time in memory. "They've seen people being lined up and beheaded. They've seen ISIS attacks around the globe. They see things happening in Paris, they see things happening in US," Forbes said, referring to the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS. "The public is getting, one, that national defense is hugely important, and two, that the world is a lot more global than maybe even they thought and what we do in one part of the world does really impact what happens here at home." And when it comes to global presence and fight, Forbes said, attention turns to the Navy. "If you see some of the votes we've had on keeping 11 carriers, on funding for the military, on the Sea-Based Deterrence Fund, three or four years ago, we wouldn't have won some of those funding fights. These votes were overwhelming as they came in," he said. "I do definitely think there's a change. Candidates are not only talking about national defense. Almost to a person, they're talking about the Navy and the importance of rebuilding the Navy." The outlook of the sea service in coming years will be made clearer next week with the release of the Pentagon's budget request for fiscal 2017, which begins Oct. 1. For the Navy, one key point of contention has been the future of its Littoral Combat Ship and Frigate program. In December, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter ordered the Navy in a memo to reduce its LCS/frigate buy by 12 ships and down-select to one builder by fiscal 2019. The memo contends that the Navy has overemphasized ships while paying too little attention to weapons and aircraft. Forbes called the situation a false choice, saying the Navy needed enough money to address ship scarcity that might limit capability in a future fight and still be able to pay for other programs. "Here's the problem we're looking at, we need to be able to say this one-third, one-third, one-third allocation we've always used, maybe we don't need to do that anymore," he said. "And everyone at the Pentagon agrees, that's an arbitrary allocation that you have. So I think that's a false choice, kind of a Sophie's choice you have there." -- Hope Hodge Seck can be reached at hope.seck@monster.com. Follow her on Twitter at @HopeSeck. The Marine Corps has long had the fewest female members of any of the military services, but Commandant Gen. Robert Neller said Tuesday he's working to change the demographics. Speaking before the Senate Armed Services Committee to discuss the integration of women into combat roles, Neller said he was exploring ways to bring more women into the service. In the Marine Corps, fewer than eight percent of active-duty troops are women. "I directed our recruiting to look at increasing the number of women in the Marine Corps to 10 percent," Neller said. If successful, that initiative would bring the Marine Corps closer to the Navy, with 18 percent female troops in its active force, and the Army, 14 percent female. It's a more modest goal, however, than the one set by Navy Secretary Ray Mabus, who said last year he wanted one in four new recruits in the Navy and Marine Corps to be female. Pressed for specifics, he said the recruiting figure was "a floor" and he would like to see an even higher number of female recruits. It could be years, though, before the Marine Corps makes any progress toward the 1-in-10 goal. A Marine Corps recruiting official, who requested anonymity in order to speak freely, said some numbers had been discussed for female accessions, but no decisions had yet been made. Other factors beyond recruiting will also affect the demographic makeup of the Corps, the official said, including long-term retention of female Marines and projected attrition over time. "As you're growing the force, are you incentivizing female Marines to stick around," the official said. "It's not just, 'go recruit more females.'" Currently, the official said, Marine recruiters do not have any goals or quotas regarding female accessions. While everything remains "pre-decisional," the official said senior Marine Corps brass were discussing their approach to the new goal now. "It's not something that is a quick process," the official said. "These things take several fiscal years to execute." The Marine Corps is now waiting on final approval of its plan to open previously closed ground combat jobs to female troops. In that plan, first obtained by Christian Science Monitor and reviewed by Military.com, officials say they estimate 200 female Marines will successfully enter ground combat jobs every year, making up fewer than 2 percent of all Marines in those jobs. -Hope Hodge Seck can be reached at hope.seck@monster.com. Follow her on Twitter at @HopeSeck. Air Force Gets Its Own Combat Dive Badge After Using the Navy's for Years Air Force officials said there is a notable distinction between Navy divers and their divers, which was a key reason for... The senior U.S. commander in Afghanistan on Tuesday rejected lawmakers' comparison of that nation's forces with those of Iraq, where an army built and trained under American tutelage collapsed when confronted by Islamic State militants. "The Afghans are fighters, they have a different sense of pride, I think, of nationalism in their country," Army Gen. John Campbell told a House Armed Services Committee. "In Iraq, it was about Sunni, Shia, Kurd issues. In Afghanistan, they see themselves, although of different tribal affiliations, [as] one Afghanistan force fighting for their country, fighting for their survival." He added, "They will not do what happened in Iraq based on what's coming from their heart, from Afghanistan, to protect their country." When militants affiliated with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS, alternately called ISIL and Daesh, swept into north and western Iraq in 2014, the largely Sunni Iraq army in the region in some cases fled without a fight. Campbell, a four-star general who is also scheduled to meet this week with the Senate Armed Services Committee, is expected to retire soon. Army Lt. Gen. John "Mick" Nicholson has been nominated by President Barack Obama to succeed Campbell. Campbell said the Afghan government and its security forces made progress last year, notwithstanding there are areas held or influenced by either the Taliban or ISIS. "The units we have on the ground throughout the country report that of the 407 district centers, 8 are under insurgent control," he said. "We assess that another 18 are under what we call insurgent influence." Another 94 district centers could be considered "at risk" of insurgent control or influence at any given time, he said. But Campbell said the numbers also make clear that about 70% of the inhabited parts of Afghanistan are under government influence or government control. With some 9,800 troops now serving in Afghanistan, a number slated to drop to about 5,500 by the end of 2015, some lawmakers expressed concern the U.S. is headed for a repeat of Iraq, where following the withdrawal of American troops from the country in 2010 the government grew increasingly sectarian and security forces failed to stand up against ISIS when it advanced on the country. Campbell did tell Congress that the U.S. needs to make a solid commitment to Afghanistan's military and its economy if the mission is to succeed. "Now more than ever, the United States should not waiver on Afghanistan," he said, calling the military and economic assistance a "crucial investment" intended to achieve U.S. goals of securing the U.S. and positioning it well in a region long a source of terrorism and instability. Campbell said U.S. and partners are now developing five-year vision for Afghanistan in order to affect long-term plans and "avoid a year-to-year mentality." At the same time, U.S. assistance will go beyond the five-year plan to at least 2024, he said. The U.S. currently pays about $4.1 billion annually to cover the security forces -- salaries of police and army, equipment and ammunition, he said. He said it's not likely Afghanistan economy will be able to cover these costs until about 2024, he said. -- Bryant Jordan can be reached at bryant.jordan@military.com. Follow him on Twitter at @bryantjordan. Army and Marine Corps leaders swapped pledges with members of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday not to cave to political pressure and relax ground combat skill requirements so that more women will qualify to serve in infantry, armor, and special forces units. Certainty that such pressure will come, and need to be resisted to protect combat effectiveness, was expressed both by senators and witnesses during the first congressional hearing held to review how Army and Marine Corps plan to open all ground combat jobs to women. No senator on the committee suggested Congress should block the Dec. 3 order from Defense Secretary Ash Carter to open the most brutal jobs in the military to women who meet gender-neutral standards for each skill. Indeed, the clear consensus was that no woman should be denied access to any military job based solely on gender. But many on the committee echoed in some way the caveat for supporting of full gender integration that Gen. Mark A. Milley, Army chief of staff, declared in his opening statement. Gender integration will "sustain or improve the overall readiness [and] capability of the force -- if, and only if, we maintain and enforce rigorous combat-readiness standards, we remain a merits-based, results-oriented organization, and we apply no quotas and no pressure. We cannot compromise combat readiness and effectiveness for any reason whatsoever." "One thing is inviolate," said Navy Secretary Ray Mabus. "Standards can never be lowered for any group or for any job." Gen. Robert B. Neller, commandant of the Marine Corps, echoed that point but also warned the unknowns of full gender integration are many. "I have concerns about retention. I have concerns about injury rates. I have concerns about propensity to reenlist [and] career progression. I have concerns about what's going to happen if the [women] numbers are low, because they probably will be at the beginning," Neller said. Neller and Milley also emphasized that despite an April deadline to begin full integration of women into ground combat jobs, it could take years, perhaps even a decade, to complete if the services proceed with the care needed to ensure no lapse to fighting effectiveness or unit cohesion. That go-slow approach resonated with senators who have some military experience. It was three years ago that then-Defense Secretary Leon Panetta announced that every military job would be opened to women who could qualify unless, after a period of study, a strong readiness case could be made to grant job or unit exemptions. Since then the Army and Marine Corps worked to assess the physical and readiness impacts of integrating women into their ground elements, relying in part on special field studies. The Army study simulated tasks to determine gender-neutral standards for each military occupational specialty based on physical tasks. A Marine Corps task force on gender integration went farther, simulating a combat environment with men and women Marines living and working together. More than 400 women volunteers received combat skill training and became part of mixed-gender squads, teams and crews. Their performance under combat-like conditions was tracked for five months against male-only units. By almost every measure -- speed, firing accuracy, incidence of injury, physical endurance - all-male units performed better. Within a day of receiving the 1000-page Marine Corps report last September, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus gave a newspaper interview to criticize the study as flawed, focusing too heavily on average performance of women and too little on capabilities of outstanding female Marines. Marine Corps leaders defended the study and requested that some frontline ground combat skills and units be exempt from gender integration. In December, Carter rejected the request, ordering all services immediately to draft plans to implement gender integration across all skills. At the hearing Mabus was upbraided committee chairman Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and several colleagues. The service studies "demonstrated that biological differences between men and women can have implications when it comes to the sustained physical activities involved in combat," said McCain. "Rather than honestly confront these realities, some have sought to minimize them." McCain tagged Mabus are the lead critic, saying he disparaged the study, and even questioned the caliber of women Marines who participated, within a day of the study's release and without having read it. Sen. Daniel Sullivan (R-Alaska.), a Marine Corps Reserve infantry officer, joined in berating Mabus, saying the secretary and not Marines had an agenda. Sullivan also attacked Mabus for ordering Neller on Jan. 1 to develop a plan to gender integrate recruit training by Jan. 15. Sullivan called it "an outrageous and ill-advised order" impossible for the Corps to carry out. "It was not only possible but the Marines met that," Mabus told him, explaining he got a full briefing by January 14th. When Sullivan asked Neller his opinion of the order, Neller had to contradict Mabus, saying the briefing on the 14th wasn't a plan to shift to gender-integrated training but an explanation of current basic training and why Marines want to continue to train men and women recruits separately. McCain told Mabus he "complicated the whole situation for those of us who fully support the integration of women in the military." Five days earlier, Mabus had another setback. Defense Secretary Carter, in announcing a series of family support initiatives, announced a doubling of maternity leave, to 12 weeks, for Army and Air Force women. Navy and Marine Corps women also will get 12 weeks maternity leave, but that would be six weeks less than they are allowed now. Last year Mabus grabbed the lead on this issue, granting new moms in Navy and Marine Corps 18 weeks of maternity leave back to last January. Air Force announced in December it would follow the Navy's lead -- until Carter set 12 weeks maternity leave for all services, an unusual benefit rollback. Sailors and Marines currently pregnant or who become pregnant within 30 days of Carter's policy change will still be eligible for the full 18 weeks. "We're glad we enabled a conversation for the entire Department of Defense on this very important topic, and now all service members will receive 12 weeks of maternity leave," said a Navy spokesman. Send comments to Military Update, P.O. Box 231111, Centreville, VA, 20120, email milupdate@aol.com or twitter: Tom Philpott @Military_Update The Veterans Affairs Department is attempting to learn if it has a financial right to a Hepatitis C drug it says was developed under the leadership of a former agency senior scientist. Pressed by lawmakers in Congress, department officials are also trying to find out if the former scientist with the VA Medical Center in Atlanta unfairly benefited from his work there by developing the drug with agency resources and then sold it and his company in 2011 for $11 billion. "We are going to make sure that we get to the bottom o of this with all the fact with the external reviews we set in place and the internal reviews," VA Under Secretary for Health Dr. David Shulkin told the House Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman on Wednesday. Committee Chairman Rep. Jeff Miller, a Republican from Florida, last week accused the company that now owns the drug -- Gilead Sciences of California -- of price gouging the country. During Wednesday's hearing, however, Miller and other lawmakers focused on Dr. Raymond Schinazi, the recently retired senior VA scientist in Atlanta who they believe discovered the drug and possibly failed to go through the proper steps to ensure the department could assert a financial interest in its commercial sale. "If, in fact, it is found that it was a [VA] employee that did, in fact, discover the drug I think it's important that this committee really try to get to the bottom of it," Miller said. Schinazi worked for the VA part time for 33 years before retiring on Feb. 1. He also works for Emory University in Georgia and has owned several companies. In late 2011, he sold Pharmasset -- a family business -- to Gilead Science for $11 billion. When the sale went though he made more than $440 million. That was on top of the $45 million he earned the previous April when his shares of Pharmasset climbed by 38 percent in a single week, Forbes magazine reported at the time. In an email to Military.com on Wednesday, Schinazi said all his work with the drug occurred at Pharmasset. "To the best of my knowledge the VA had no role" in its development, he said. "In fact, I did not even have any chemistry labs and chemical staff [at VA] to make the drug during that time period." He also said he told VA, along with Emory, about his stake in Pharmasset. Schinazi was not at the hearing on Wednesday, and Miller and other lawmakers noted the scientist put in for retirement on Jan. 21, the same day that Miller requested VA to have Schinazi, Shulkin and other VA officials to attend the hearing. His retirement became effective on Feb. 1, two days ago, and some lawmakers believe Schinazi retired abruptly to be out of the VA before the hearing -- an allegation Schinazi denied to Military.com. "I never received the letter or was asked by the VA to attend this meeting," he wrote in the email. "I decided to retire from the VA well before all this. My labs are now based at Emory University and I am now 65 years old." He added, "If I was invited to DC I would have attended and participated even as a non-VA employee. I can always defend my reputation well." Shulkin called the drug, alternately called Sofosbuvir and Solvaldi, "truly a miraculous new drug" for treating Hepatitis C, which afflicts thousands of veterans, especially those who served in Vietnam. By law, the VA has the right to assert a financial interest in science and technology developed by its employees and using VA resources and funding. When it does, commercial sales of a product or medicine put money back into the VA budget. The Hepatitis C drug is estimated to be worth billions annually on the commercial market. At the same time, the VA is currently paying an estimated $40,000 for an eight or nine week course of the drug for veterans, even though in other counties, including Egypt, the same treatment cost about $900. --Bryant Jordan can be reached at bryant.jordan@military.com. Follow him on Twitter at @bryantjordan. Every year around this time, the good people of Michigan consume ungodly amounts of paczki, a traditional Polish jelly doughnut that was originally designed to use up a household's lard and sugar in advance of the first day of Lent. There's a reason it's called Fat Tuesday. One paczek can pack anywhere from 400 to 700 or more calories, and has about as many grams of fat as a Big Mac. But really, on Paczki Day, who's counting? Paczki Day is Feb. 9 this year, and we've got a list of some of our favorite Paczki Day destinations. If we've missed your favorite, let us know in the comments. Metro Detroit The New Martha Washington Bakery (10335 Joseph Campau Ave., Hamtramck) -- Sandy Bakic, whose family has been making some of Detroit's most popular paczki for decades, says this is her favorite time of year because "it's the time when everyone who comes into the shop is happy!" The bakery will be open from 5 a.m. Monday to 9 p.m. Tuesday, selling paczki for $15 a dozen. Tringali's Italian Bakery (29100 Schoenherr Rd., Warren) - Get your traditional Polish or non-traditional cannoli or cappuccino cannoli-filled "Italian paczki" at Tringali's. You can order in advance by calling (586) 777-9010. New Palace (9833 Joseph Campau Ave., Hamtramck) -- Another popular metro area paczki stop, New Palace offers some twists to the paczki, filling some of them with two or three custards and jellies at once. They open at 3 a.m. on Fat Tuesday. Dutch Girl Donuts (19000 Woodward Ave., Detroit) -- Dutch Girl is open 24 hours a day, but on Paczki Day, there's almost always a long line. Iversen's Bakery (22441 Michigan Ave., Dearborn) -- This year, the bakery will have raspberry, lemon cream, custard and chocolate cream, and opens at 6:30 a.m. Lazybones Smokehouse (27475 Groesbeck Hwy. Roseville) Polish pre-lenten pastries at a barbecue restaurant? Only if you want maple bacon paczki. And I have a feeling you might. Pre-order by calling (586) 775-7427. Sister Pie (8066 Kercheval St. Detroit) switches from pie to paczki on Paczki Day. Look for non-traditional flavors like dark chocolate tahini rye. Celiac Specialties (1928 Star Batt Dr., Rochester Hills) Even those who are avoiding gluten, whether because of Celiac disease or otherwise, can partake of Paczki day thanks to the gluten-free paczki at Celiac Specialties. 248-860-0680 Give Thanks Bakery & Cafe (225 S Main St., Rochester) Check out the lighter, baked paczki at Give Thanks. Pre-orders accepted through Friday afternoon, and the shop opens at 7 a.m. on Tuesday. Sweetheart Bakery (19200 Kelly Rd., Harper Woods) -- This Detroit favorite will have 13 flavors for Fat Tuesday this year. You can preorder yours by calling 313-839-6330. Paris Bakery (28418 Joy Rd., Livonia) This family-owned Polish Bakery has an entire section of its website dedicated to paczki, and it shows in their product. Friends rave about the paczki here. The bakery will open at 6 a.m., and there will be live music all day long. Donut Villa (5875 W. Vernor Hwy, Detroit) -- Donut Villa opens at 5 a.m. to sell their popular paczki. You can preorder by calling 313-849-4752. Avalon Bakery (422 W Willis St., Detroit) You can pre-order this famed bakery's paczki online. Avalon's paczki are baked, not fried, and are made with organic flour. Heritage Bakery (37458 5 Mile Rd., Livonia) This bakery brags that their paczki are made "entirely...100%...totally from scratch! You wont find any "bag mix" paczki here!" The bakery opens at 5 a.m. on Tuesday. Peteet's Famous Cheesecakes (13835 W. 9 Mile Rd. in Oak Park, and 6548 Orchard Lake Rd. in West Bloomfield) Peteet's is your source for the non-traditional cheesecake paczki, and even liquor-infused margarita paczkis. Both locations open at 6 a.m. on Fat Tuesday. Ann Arbor area Pastry Peddler (619 Packard St.) -- The bakery advises ordering in advance 734-929-2976 if you want a dozen or more, but they do anticipate having individual paczki for sale Tuesday morning. The Lunch Room Bakery & Cafe (2200 Fuller Ct.) The North Campus area location of Ann Arbor's beloved vegan restaurant is serving up vegan paczki starting at 8 a.m. on Tuesday. They are taking no advance orders, and the cafe expects the paczki to sell out quickly. Dexter Bakery (8101 Main St., Dexter) -- Call ahead if you want to make sure to get your hands on them: 734-426-3848. Otherwise, the bakery opens at 5 a.m., and most paczki are gone by 11 a.m. Angelo's (1100 Catherine St.) -- If you want to try the paczki from Dexter Bakery but don't want to make the short drive to the west, you can pick some up at Angelo's On The Side. You can call ahead and reserve a dozen at 734-663-7222. Busch's Fresh Foods Market (multiple locations) -- Multiple friends listed Busch's as their favorite place to buy Fat Tuesday paczki. The regional grocery chain makes paczki in a central kitchen in Clinton and distributes to all of the local stores. Weber's Inn (3050 Jackson Rd, Ann Arbor) -- Place your order by calling 734-794-2400. Argus Farm Stop (325 W. Liberty) -- Argus will be selling paczki from tasty Fenton bakery Crust on Tuesday. The store opens at 7:00 a.m., and the paczki sell out quickly, so don't delay. Big City Small World Bakery (500 Miller Ave) -- This Water Hill neighborhood shop, imports their paczki from the East Detroit Bakery in Eastpointe. You can order ahead by calling 734-668-7688, or stop in early (they ran out by noon last year) on Monday or Tuesday. Produce Station (1629 South State St.) -- The Produce Station is bringing in paczki from the famed Paris Bakery in Livonia. Order in advance by calling 734-663-7010. A limited number of individual paczki will be available Tuesday. Benny's Bakery (111 W Michigan Ave, Saline) -- Located in the heart of Saline and best known for their decorated cakes, tasty doughnuts and special Saturday pretzels, Benny's has also become famous for their annual paczki output. The bakery opens at 5:30 a.m., and paczki often sell out by 8 a.m. You can preorder by calling 734-429-9120. Dimo's Deli & Donuts (2030 W Stadium Blvd, Ann Arbor) -- A couple of years ago, I stood in line for nearly half an hour for Dimo's paczki, made in-house and beloved by many of my friends, and it was worth every minute. Sweeter and messier than some, the Dimo's paczek has a pastry that stands up well to the sweetness. Zingerman's Bakehouse (3711 Plaza Dr. Ann Arbor) -- Though they are the priciest paczki in town, Zingerman's Bakehouse has no trouble selling out their special paczki production run every year. My friend Emily, to whom I turn for all of my Polish food information needs, tells me that "none will ever stand up to my mom's homemade, but I have to admit that Zingerman's were the best I've tasted." Emily says the secret is in the flavorful dough and the homemade fillings. Flavors include raspberry preserves, chocolate pudding, sweet ricotta cheese, rose hip jam and lemon cream. Order in advance at 734-761-2095. Dom's Bakery (1305 Washtenaw Ave, Ypsilanti) -- Several friends swear that Dom's Bakery makes the best paczki in the area. "Dom's. Dom's. Only Dom's," according to my friend Bobby. Paczki are available now through Tuesday. Achatz Handmade Pie Company (Traver Village Shopping Center, 2643 Plymouth Rd.) -- It's not a traditional paczki in the Polish tradition, but Achatz's baked brioche paczki have some serious fans. Filled with custard or the chain's popular Michigan Four Berry pie filling, Achatz's paczki can be preordered for in-store pickup here. Plum Market (multiple locations in southeast Michigan) -- Plum Market is carrying six flavors of paczki from New Palace Bakery in Hamtramck in all Michigan locations this year. Lev's Bakery (124 E Chicago Blvd., Tecumseh) This hometown Tecumseh Bakery is in full paczki production mode, and will have paczki Monday and Tuesday from "4:30 am until we run out for the day, so set your alarm clocks!" Grand Rapids Sandy's Donuts (2040 Leonard St., Grand Rapids) -- Seven flavors of paczki are on offer at Sandy's. Preorders can be made at 616-453-4259. Marge's Donut Den (1751 28th St. SW, Wyoming) -- Marge's opens at 4 a.m. to sell 12 flavors of paczki. You can preorder by calling 616-532-7413. Kalamazoo Mackenzies' Bakery (527 Harrison St.) - Available on Monday and Tuesday, you can get your paczki starting at 6 a.m. 269-343-8440. Sarkozy Bakery (350 E. Michigan Ave.) -- Sarkozy Bakery has been practicing all week for Paczki Day. You can preorder by calling 269-342-1952, or get in line at 7:30 a.m. Sweetwater's Donut Mill (Three locations: 2138 Sprinkle Road; 269-388-4613, 3333 Stadium Drive, 269-372-3636; 2807 Capital Ave., Battle Creek, 269-979-1944) -- Paczki order sheets are now available at all three Sweetwater's Donut Mill locations, and each order receives festive Mardi Gras beads. The bakeries will also be offering Fat Tuesday-themed doughnuts along with the paczki. Carey's Cakery and Bake Shop (116 N Centerville Rd. Sturgis) This family run bakery is taking preorders until 6 p.m. on Sunday ((269) 651-5361. "We are normally open 8-5 but will be here super early for orders. We are also offering free delivery for Sturgis and a fee for outside of town. Bay City Krzysiak's House Restaurant (1605 Michigan Ave., Bay City) -- Check out Krysiak's House annual Paczki Polka Palooza Party, a fundraiser for the Salvation Army. The festivities include live music, breakfast, and, of course, paczki. Stop by between 5 a.m. and noon Tuesday. Phone orders can be placed at 989-894-5531. Barney's Bakery (421 S. Van Buren St.) -- Founded in 1929 by Barney Zielinski, they've been using the same recipe for paczki ever since. You can preorder by calling 989-895-5466. The bakery opens at 5 a.m. on Fat Tuesday. Elaine's Bake Shop (1590 S. Euclid Ave.) -- Phone orders are accepted at 989-893-4970, with walk-ins welcome when the shop opens at 5:30 a.m. on Fat Tuesday. Saginaw Butter Crust Bakery (6181 Dixie Hwy., Bridgeport) -- Butter Crust won our Michigan's Best poll for the best doughnut in Saginaw. The bakery opens at 6 a.m. on Fat Tuesday. Flint area Donna's Donuts: (1135 West Bristol Rd., Flint) -- Donna's is a Flint staple -- a place to get doughnuts all year round, but things pick up when Fat Tuesday rolls around. Call 810-233-5618 to place your orders in advance. The bakery opens at 4 a.m. Jablonski's Baker's Corner (5518 E Atherton Rd, Burton) -- Call 810-742-4330 to place advance orders. Jablonski's opens at 7 a.m. Crust (104 W. Caroline at River St., Fenton) -- Seriously delicious baked goods can be found at Crust, and their paczki are very well-loved. Phone orders will be accepted until Sunday morning at 810-629-8882. Crust will open at 6 a.m. Tuesday morning, and will have live music and Paczki production demos throughout the morning. Clare Cops & Doughnuts (521 N McEwan St., Clare) This popular doughnut stop ships paczki across the country. Cops & Doughnuts will open at 4 a.m. on Tuesday. Jackson Hinkley Bakery (700 S Blackstone St., Jackson) -- Hinkley's won MLive's search for Michigan's Best Doughnut, and their paczki bring the crowds. The bakery will be open at 5:15 Tuesday, and you can call in your advance orders at 517-782-1122. European Bakery (622 Page Ave., Jackson) - this long-standing family-owned bakery, which has been in business since 1913, will open its doors at 6 a.m. Tuesday. 517-787-5726. Jessica Webster covers food and dining and life and culture for MLive. Reach her at JessicaWebster@mlive.com. You also can follow her on Twitter and on Google+. Joshua Wade Joshua Wade approaches the podium to give a public comment at an Ann Arbor school board meeting on Wednesday, March 11, 2015. (Melanie Maxwell | The Ann Arbor News file) An Ann Arbor resident is appealing a decision to dismiss a gun lawsuit against the University of Michigan. Joshua Wade filed a lawsuit in June against U-M for not granting him a waiver allowing him to carry a weapon on campus. He applied for the waiver in September 2014. The school's policy only allows military and law enforcement agents to carry weapons on campus. In November 2015, Michigan Court of Claims Judge Cynthia Stephens granted the university's motion for summary disposition, dismissing the lawsuit. She ruled "the state Constitution grants the university the autonomy to promulgate its own firearms regulation," according to the opinion. Wade's attorney, Steven Dulan, filed an appeal with the Michigan Court of Appeals in December. The university filed a brief Jan. 26, and Dulan said he is still reading through it. The next step in the appeals process is oral arguments, he said, which are not yet scheduled. U-M has no comment beyond the brief, said Spokesman Rick Fitzgerald. Wade was involved in a gun controversy within Ann Arbor Public Schools in 2015. He openly carried a gun into Pioneer High School in March. The Board of Education then enacted policies that ban guns from schools. In response, Michigan Gun Owners filed suit against the district; a Washtenaw County judge also threw out the lawsuit, stating school districts are not a unit of government as defined in the preemption law. The organization has appealed the decision. Lindsay Knake is a cops and courts reporter for The Ann Arbor News. Follow her on twitter or contact her at 989-372-2498 or lknake@mlive.com. Police have arrested one man involved in an armed robbery near Eastern Michigan University. Ypsilanti police were called to an armed robbery and home invasion about 9:40 p.m. Feb. 3 in the 700 block of Washtenaw Avenue, according to a release. The location is about two blocks south of the university. A 23-year-old Ypsilanti man told police he was robbed at gun point by multiple suspects after they entered his home. Police believe six men from the Ypsilanti and Belleville area, ages 20 and 21 years old, were armed with bats and handguns when they stole digital items, money and suspected marijuana from the location. At least one individual is believed to be an acquaintance of the victim. The victim was not injured in the incident. One subject in the area was interviewed by the police and lodged at the Washtenaw County Jail pending review by the prosecutor. Police continue to investigate the other suspects involved. Those with additional information regarding this case are asked to contact Lt. Deric Gress at 734-482-9847 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-SPEAKUP (773-2587). Darcie Moran covers cops and courts for MLive and The Ann Arbor News. Email her at dmoran@mlive.com or follow her on Twitter @darciegmoran. UM diag protest Protesters in the University of Michigan Diag. (Darcie Moran | The Ann Arbor News file) A group of women's rights supporters is protesting a possible "neomasculine" group meetup Saturday in Ann Arbor. 'Legal rape' blogger Roosh Valizadeh had organized a series of meetups across the world at 8 p.m. Feb. 6, including at Nickel's Arcade in downtown Ann Arbor. Although his group now has made these meetings private, activists from Southeast Michigan are responding with a protesting rally at 7 p.m. Saturday in the University of Michigan Diag. Valizadeh runs a blog called Return of Kings" for "heterosexual, masculine men," according to the website. "ROK aims to usher the return of the masculine man in a world where masculinity is being increasingly punished and shamed in favor of creating an androgynous and politically-correct society that allows women to assert superiority and control over men," the website states. While the Return of Kings' website says the meetups are canceled, another post states the meetups are private because of organized protests against the meetups. Other Michigan meetups locations were planned for the Lansing River Trail, The Mall at Partridge Creek in Clinton Township and Elizabeth Park in Rochester Hills. Regardless of whether the meetups go on, the Women's Rights Awareness Rally will continue as scheduled. The women's rights rally aims to spread a "positive, peaceful message of equality and social justice for all people in order to let society know that misogyny and sexism will not be tolerated in any way," according to a Facebook event. More than 630 people say they are attending the rally. University of Michigan and Ann Arbor police are aware of the meetup and are monitoring the situation. Detroit activist Lauren R., an event organizer, said the rally organizers are concerned for the safety of the rally-goers, and have made it the top priority. "A lot of people who plan to attend the rally have expressed feeling a lot safer knowing we will be on U-M campus and that there will be a lot of support for them there," she said. The U-M Division of Public Safety and Security is aware of the Return of Kings meetup and is working with Ann Arbor Police to monitor the situation. There is no known criminal activity tied to Return of Kings, the university said in a statement. "While one of this university's core values is the freedom to speak freely, the university does not share the same views as the group organizing a 'meet up' for like-minded men," the statement continued. "We remain committed to providing a safe, welcoming and respectful campus environment where our community can live and learn without fear of hostility or reprisal based on who they are or what they believe." For anyone seeking emotional support, the U-M Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Center's confidential Crisis Line is available 24 hours a day at 734-936-3333. Lindsay Knake is a cops and courts reporter for The Ann Arbor News. Follow her on twitter or contact her at 989-372-2498 or lknake@mlive.com. Related: DEQ blames contractor for latest delay on updating dioxane standards The company responsible for a dioxane plume spreading through the Ann Arbor area has submitted a new quality-assurance project plan to the state of Michigan, outlining how it intends to monitor and track the pollution. But the public might not get to see the plan, which identifies the methodologies Pall Corp. will use to test for dioxane in the groundwater and analyze the data, because the document is considered, at least as of right now, "confidential," according to the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. That was a source of consternation at this week's meeting of the Coalition for Action on Remediation of Dioxane. DEQ officials sat down with local officials and residents to discuss the situation at length on Tuesday. "So, right now, their plan to protect our waters of the state from their dioxane is secret?" asked Roger Rayle, co-founder and chairman of Scio Residents for Safe Water, who has been tracking the issue for decades. The plume, which originated from the Gelman Sciences site on Wagner Road, now covers an area that's more than three miles long and more than a mile wide, inching closer to the Huron River, Ann Arbor's primary drinking water supply. The plume was first discovered in the 1980s, but its origins trace back to the 1960s. Pall acquired Gelman Sciences years ago and is now responsible for the plume spreading in multiple directions from the Wagner Road site. Pall is continuing to do some cleanup to reduce the concentrations of dioxane in the groundwater, but many local officials and residents don't believe the company is doing enough. The new quality-assurance project plan from Pall, which the DEQ requested in early 2015, was submitted to the DEQ in late December. Dan Hamel, a DEQ environmental quality analyst and the state's day-to-day project manager for the Pall-Gelman plume site, said the new plan, what's known as a QAPP, came to the DEQ stamped as "attorney-client privileged." He said DEQ officials are now asking Pall to clarify why the company believes the plan should be treated as confidential. "But we have received it. We have started our review of it and have been in contact with Gelman," Hamel said. Hamel said the plan is basically a lengthy document that outlines the procedures and methodology used by Pall for investigations and field work, the type of statistical evaluations that are done, and procedures and methodology for lab analysis of different soil and groundwater samples tested for dioxane. The consent judgment from Washtenaw County Circuit Court regarding the plume cleanup established some years ago that Pall could designate certain information about the plume as confidential, DEQ officials said, but they aren't sure why the quality-assurance project plan should fall into that category. "As it stands right now, it has been identified as confidential, and that is allowed in the consent judgment by the court," Hamel said. "What other documents have been kept secret by the DEQ over the years?" Rayle asked the DEQ officials. Bob Wagner, the DEQ's Remediation and Redevelopment Division chief, said the DEQ has to follow the consent judgment from the court and it is what it is. "We are litigants," he said. "We are under the court." He added, "It's not about us trying to hide the ball. We have an obligation to the court to follow the court's orders and its rules. We are currently checking to see whether this actually meets those requirements or whether it can be released." Mitch Adelman, district supervisor for the DEQ's Remediation and Redevelopment Division, said he expects to hear back from Pall in the next week or two. "We'll see what they say," he said, suggesting the DEQ might be able to release portions of the plan while it has discussions with Pall about the other portions, if Pall is claiming certain portions are proprietary. Rayle sees it as an attempt by Pall to hide information from the public. He said Pall hasn't been forthcoming with other information and the company cut off public access to its information database about five years ago. Farsad Fotouhi, Pall Corp.'s vice president of global health, safety and environmental engineering, said via email on Tuesday the company shares all of the data it collects each month with the DEQ, Washtenaw County, Scio Township, the city of Ann Arbor, and Rayle's citizen group. "Although not required to do so by the consent judgment, Gelman provides the data to each in digital/electronic format," he said. "Gelman has also helped the DEQ and the city create electronic databases into which the data can be downloaded each month. These databases allow the interested parties to create data graphs, charts, etc., that they can use to analyze the tremendous amount of data Gelman collects and to confirm that the cleanup objectives are being met." Fotouhi said the DEQ has provided the city, Rayle's group and the public with direct access to the database the DEQ maintains using the plume data. "Gelman also provides quarterly reports that analyze the data collected in the format requested by the DEQ (e.g., the quarterly reports typically include isoconcentration and potentiometric surface maps based on the data collected over the last quarter. These maps depict groundwater contaminant concentrations and groundwater flow patterns). All of this data and information is available to the public," he said. Fotouhi added, "Gelman recognizes that there is a great deal of public interest in the cleanup and Gelman has gone to great lengths to make its cleanup program the most transparent program in the state in terms of data sharing. Any claims to the contrary are simply untrue." Fotouhi didn't respond to followup questions about the quality-assurance plan being considered confidential or whether Pall has used attorney-client privilege as a tactic to keep certain information related to the plume from being released publicly. "The company has a history of trying to keep things secret, like when they tried to copyright their data," Rayle said. Adelman noted the state took issue with that and prevailed. Hamel said Pall has its own lab and conducts the analysis that people are able to see through the DEQ's database. "Those procedures and that laboratory information is identified in the QAPP, so everybody knows what those are and how things are done," he said. "And then also in the QAPP there is an identification of contingencies, if things don't fall within the range. For example, if there's a problem with the laboratory analysis." Adelman noted the DEQ maintains a website dedicated to data about the Pall-Gelman plume where it posts documents for public viewing. "We put stuff on there that they don't claim is confidential or proprietary, so that's the difference," he said. One of the citizens tracking the issue, Dan Bicknell, president of Global Environment Alliance LLC, said a quality-assurance project plan is generally prepared for every cleanup before the first sample is taken. "The fact that it's been 30 years and they don't have a quality-assurance project plan for this is very abnormal," he said. DEQ officials said they asked Pall for the plan, which they described as a compilation of existing pans and project documents, to better manage the plume going forward, citing changes in DEQ staff as one reason for needing it. Wagner said the DEQ wanted a single plan to encompass the whole project, so that every field methodology and every laboratory methodology, with data quality objectives, are described in full so it's all comprehensive. "And that's where we're trying to get, so I think we're taking the right path," Wagner said. Bicknell raised concerns there currently are no agreed-upon sampling frequencies for monitoring wells. "There's no clear, concise agreement on what monitoring wells are going to be sampled and when," he said. "There's no clear, concise agreement on the methodology to sample for dioxane. Those are two big, important things." Wagner responded by saying that's where the DEQ and Pall are going, and those are elements of the new plan. Hamel interjected and pointed to agreed-upon groundwater monitoring plans from 2011. He said Pall has since asked several times, including this past year, to change the monitoring plans, and the DEQ is now evaluating Pall's request to do less sampling of some monitoring wells, and more of others. With few exceptions, Hamel said, Pall is still following the monitoring plans approved in 2011. Hamel said it's true that Pall cut off access to the company's real-time information database so even the DEQ can't access it anymore. Rayle said he believes that was because he looked at the database back when it was still accessible and pointed out discrepancies in the data. DEQ officials believe they're still getting the data Pall is required to submit under the consent judgment, though. "Actually, you're not, because you don't have the well data," Rayle argued. "You don't have their latest well data. There are maps and cross-sections that show wells and details about wells that are not in your database. They're not in the city's database, and they're required to submit to the city whenever there's a change." DEQ officials said it might not be in the format Rayle wants, but they are still getting that data. Hamel said Pall did send over a data table that included new wells the company installed in 2014. He said that database has been imported into the DEQ's database, but he acknowledged there are gaps in the data to be addressed. Rayle argued taxpayer money shouldn't be spent recreating data that Pall already has but isn't providing. "The bottom line is we never got a database that included everything they're putting out there," Rayle told DEQ officials. "Their consultants or their staff are using a different set of data to create these documents that you see ... but you don't have that data, we don't have the data, the city doesn't have the data." Adelman said the questions about Pall's database were among the factors that led to the DEQ's request for a quality-assurance project plan that includes information about how Pall is managing the data in its database. "So, that's what this quality-assurance project plan, in part, is meant to address -- what are the processes they're using to assure precision and accuracy in the data upon which decisions are made," Adelman said. Rayle said he's still concerned not all stakeholders are using the same database. He believes it would make sense for everyone to the same data. "Right now that's not possible," he said. "There are at least three or four different versions of the data." Adelman responded, "In an ideal world, I'd have to agree with that. Unfortunately we're not living in an ideal world." Under the law of the land in Michigan, Wagner said, everyone the DEQ deals with can submit data and maps and cross-sections in any format they choose. "There is no requirement and there is no law that we can force them to put it into an Excel spreadsheet or an access database, or a GIS layer," he said. Hamel said he receives data from Pall monthly based on its sampling and he imports that into the DEQ's database that's posted online. Rayle said he regularly downloads that data provided by the DEQ and extracts the data tables, which he then corrects for errors to match up wells with data. He said he then sends the DEQ notes about the anomalies he finds. DEQ officials acknowledged their staff is limited in the time it can put in on the project, and they're appreciative of the citizens and local officials who are helping to keep a watchful eye on the plume and closely tracking the data. "We're doing the best we can," Adelman said, noting there are huge quantities of data to manage. "Hey, this is the 21st century," Rayle said. "We can actually do this." DEQ officials noted the department is working on updating webpages that are out of date and fixing broken links. Ryan Stanton covers the city beat for The Ann Arbor News. Reach him at ryanstanton@mlive.com. It's hard out here for a governor. Facing continued pressure to resign over the Flint water crisis, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder has been publicly heckled while trying to dine out in Ann Arbor, he's been the subject of criticisms written in chalk on downtown sidewalks, his face is on wanted posters plastered around multiple cities, and then there's the protests. Dozens of protesters demonstrated once again Wednesday night outside the embattled governor's personal condo in downtown Ann Arbor. Protest organizer Jan BenDor of Michigan Rising said they're planning to continue holding weekly protests outside the Main Street loft condo the governor and his wife moved into this past year. The Snyders had been living in a gated community just outside the city before deciding to make the move downtown. "We're just hoping to keep this situation in the public eye," BenDor said of the Flint water crisis. "Often even the worst tragedies just disappear after a week or so of concern, and this is a long-term horrible thing that has happened in our state. So, we want to make sure everybody keeps helping with this." The condo's window blinds were closed Wednesday night, and it wasn't clear that anybody was home, but protesters still chanted loudly. "Arrest Rick Snyder! Make him drink the water!" they yelled as they marched along Main Street. "Jail the nerd!" they chanted in unison multiple times. "No more procrastination! We want incarceration!" The protesters didn't channel all of their energy into anger and frustration toward the governor, though. They also handed out fliers informing passersby how they can help the residents of Flint, with suggested charities to support. "We're encouraging people to donate to the FlintKids.com website for the long-term health care of the poisoned children," BenDor said. "And we are also encouraging donations to some other agencies that are doing uniquely good work." The flier also directs people to a CrowdRise page for a charity for Flint residents called Crossing Water. Ann Arbor resident Susan Fecteau was among those protesting. She's also behind the anti-Snyder sidewalk chalk messages seen around downtown. "You enjoying your clean water up there, Rick?" read one of the messages written on the sidewalk right outside the governor's window Wednesday night. Fecteau said she's been out chalking just about every day for weeks now and she's been watched and photographed. She's not sure who's doing it, but somebody has been wiping away her messages after she leaves, but she keeps going back. She said Wednesday's protest was about making sure people are fully aware of what has happened in Flint. She said people need to take back their government. "People need to to get educated about it, and understand that when we vote guys in like this, this is what happens, this is the result," she said. "And I've been stunned as I've been talking to people. I'm surprised people still don't know what has happened. People don't understand about the emergency manager law. They don't understand about FOIA and that he's FOIA-proof." Not everyone was happy with the protest, though. Paula Porter, an employee of the Four Directions store on the ground level under the governor's condo, came out and confronted the protesters. She questioned whether what they were doing was constructive or effective. "I'm on their side, but I'd prefer they go to Flint," she said. "I've lived in Flint. Go spend time in Flint, get things done." Porter said she doesn't think the governor is going to care much about what protesters outside his condo have to say. A city police officer was on the scene at one point responding to complaints that people were stuffing fliers into one or more mail slots. Dave Murray, a spokesman for the governor, said in response to the protest that Snyder is focused on the people of Flint, not politics. "He's making sure Flint residents are getting the assistance they need as we move forward, addressing issues related to health, education and infrastructure," he said. "Today the governor discussed his $30 million proposal to bring relief to Flint residents who have been paying for water they cannot use to drink or cook with. This is on top of the $28 million our partners in the Legislature approved last week to provide immediate relief and the $9 million approved in October. "People across our state, from both sides of the aisle, are coming together to help the people of Flint." Ryan Stanton covers the city beat for The Ann Arbor News. Reach him at ryanstanton@mlive.com. The analyzation and cleanup of Water Street contamination is behind schedule. In early November, the Ypsilanti City Council approved a $50,000 contract with its environmental consultant, AKT Peerless, to test the site's soil and analyze 20 years of environmental records to determine what cleanup is needed. During council proposed business at the council's Tuesday night meeting, Council Member Brian Robb requested an update, noting the contract stated AKT would "bring us deliverables within four to six weeks." About 12 weeks have passed. Council Member Pete Murdock asked why the process is running behind schedule. "It isn't going forward in the amount of time that we had hoped," he said. Beth Ernat, Ypsilanti's economic development director, explained that the city is waiting on responses to Freedom of Information Act requests sent to the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA has some of the records on Water Street cleanup that the city doesn't have. "We're still waiting for responses on FOIAs," Ernat said. "We need to update all of our files and gather information that's missing before we do any sampling. And we need to make sure we're not doing anything redundant and targeting the areas that need to be studied." The AKT contract includes funding for examination of city, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality, and EPA records. The money will also cover up to 70 new shallow-ground soil borings. The examination of records and testing is being done in response to Michigan State Housing and Development Authority concerns about contamination on the site. Its environmental manager, Dan Lince, wrote in an October letter to the city that MSHDA's assessment of Water Street environmental records indicates that the land on and around a proposed $12 million, 80-unit affordable housing development, Riverwalk Commons, is still contaminated from over 100 years of industrial and commercial use. The letter stated evidence of PCBs, PNAs, VOCs and several metals, including lead, arsenic, cadmium and mercury, and Lince wrote that contamination levels appear to be 10 to 40 times what state and federal regulations permit. He also stated that "contamination boundary lines" delineating contaminated areas aren't accurate, and parts of the site outside that marked land are just as, if not more, contaminated than the Riverwalk site. Those issues could affect the affordable housing project. A delay or cancellation would be a problem because Water Street debt is pushing the city toward insolvency, and it needs the property redeveloped to stabilize its budget. Developer Herman & Kittle expected to break ground next year. But MSHDA loans are part of the project's financing package, and Lince previously told The Ann Arbor News the authority fears it could be held liable if the property is discovered to be contaminated and harming residents in the future. However, Lince also said he is eager to make the project happen. The city believes it can gather the environmental records to show the property is not as contaminated as MSHDA believes, and the additional soil collections will fill in any missing information gaps. City officials and council members were upset with MSHDA's letter, labeling it "overreaching and absurd." Ernat previously said the assessment was premature, and based off a draft report and incomplete data on the property. Tom Perkins is a freelance reporter for The Ann Arbor News. BAY CITY, MI -- A Vietnam War veteran and his wife are facing felony charges they sold heroin to fund their own habits. At 5:47 p.m. Friday, Sept. 18, officers with the Bay City Department of Public Safety's VIPER Unit executed a search warrant on the home of William E. and Mary L. Awad in the 1200 block of 26th Street. Both Awads were home at the time, as was their 4-year-old granddaughter, who they were babysitting, court records show. Police searched the home and seized an uncapped hypodermic needle containing fluid, a digital scale, two metal spoons containing cotton filters, suspected drug records, a sliced-up magazine, cellphones and cash, court records show. The search was the result of an investigation into William Awad, 61, reportedly selling heroin from his home, court records show. After police read them their Miranda rights, both Awads agreed to speak with the officers, court records state. "Me and my wife both use heroin off and on," William Awad told police, according to their reports in court documents. "We don't use every day like most people. People call me looking for heroin, and I will take orders and go to Saginaw to get it." Awad added he does not have a driver's license and gets someone else to drive him to Saginaw for the purchase. In exchange, he gives the driver a hit of heroin and some gas money, he told police. Awad went on to say he's been selling heroin for the past two or three months and has only about four customers, court records show. He said he makes a buy in Saginaw every three days, paying $80 to $90 for a half-gram. "I don't make any money off selling heroin because I use it," he continued, police reports state. "I am a disabled veteran from the Vietnam War and get $4,000 per month from my disability. Mary and I were just talking today about not doing this anymore." Mary Awad, 51, told police both she and her husband use heroin, but she denied selling it. "I used this morning at around 10 a.m. just prior to our granddaughter coming over," she told police, according to court records. "It was not good stuff so I wasn't high by the time she got to our house." She added she never went with her husband to Saginaw to buy heroin. She said she only started using heroin a couple of months prior to manage pain resulting from a broken hand, court record show. Police noted the hand in question was not swollen or covered when they spoke with her, court records show. Authorities issued warrants for the Awads on Friday, Jan. 15. They were both arraigned in Bay County District Court on Monday, Feb. 1, with each facing one count of possession of less than 25 grams of a narcotic or cocaine. The charge is normally a four-year felony, but they're both charged with a second offense enhancement, doubling the maximum potential penalty to eight years imprisonment. The Awads are represented by Bay City attorney Matthew L. Reyes. "We're still gathering the facts, but as I understand it, there was no heroin found during the search of their home," Reyes said. "I think at the end of the day, they'll be found not guilty." BAY CITY, MI -- The Rev. Paul Scott Hammer, who served as pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Bay City for 20 years, died Tuesday, Feb. 2, at his home in Bear Lake. He was 74. The cause was cancer, said Susan Hammer, his wife of 52 years. The pastor was diagnosed with Hodgin's lymphoma four years ago, she said, and spent the last three and a half years in remission. Hammer came to Bay City in September 1976 and spent the next 20 years as the pastor of First Presbyterian Church, 805 Center Ave. From there, he moved to Cincinnati, where he spent the next nine years of his career. He retired to Bear Lake in Northern Michigan, just south of Traverse City. "It was a really good congregation in Bay City and he really loved that beautiful church," his wife said. "We have really fun memories from Bay City." Hammer lived for the outdoors, his wife said. He was an avid bow hunter and fly fisherman. In addition to his wife, he is survived by three daughters, Elizabeth Davidson, Deborah Mikula and Sarah Konecny; seven grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews. A funeral service is scheduled for noon Saturday, Feb. 6, at St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, 8190 Lincoln Road, in Beulah, Michigan. Susan Hammer is asking those in Bay City who wish to remember her husband by making a contribution to First Presbyterian of Bay City's SOAR and More campaign. DETROIT, MI -- It was a niche business. Federal authorities say a married Michigan couple, Elizabeth and Arthur Rathburn of Grosse Pointe Park, rented out human heads infected with HIV and other diseases for use in medical research and training. The couple won't be able to spend much time together in the months to come. They've been indicted on federal charges stemming from their body-part business, freed on $10,000 bonds and ordered to avoid contact with one another as part of their conditions of release. The FBI has been looking into the couple's macabre business since at least December 2013 when agents conducted a secretive raid at a warehouse on Detroit's east side near the Grosse Pointe Park border. Officials set up heated blue tents outside the warehouse where they transported various evidence in bright-colored trash bags. Arthur Rathburn, 62 and Elizabeth Rathburn, 55, ran International Biological, Inc., which procured donated human bodies, dismembered them, and provided parts to medical and dental professionals for a rental fee, according to federal prosecutors. The husband and wife at times got body parts at a discounted cost, when they came from people who died of infectious diseases, investigators allege. And they're accused of renting out those parts without notifying clients of the infections, according to an indictment unsealed in Detroit federal court. Both are charged with nine counts of wire fraud. Arthur Rathburn is also charged with transportation of hazardous materials and making false statements to the U.S. government. Arthur Rathburn worked as the coordinator of the University of Michigan's anatomical donation program from 1984 to 1990. According to the book "Body Brokers: Inside America's Underground Trade in Human Remains," author Annie Cheney alleged that Rathburn was a morgue attendant at the U-M Medical School, who "supplied body parts to the American Association of Clinical Anatomists and other organizations until he was caught and fired." Michigan's Corporations, Securities and Commercial Licensing Bureau permanently revoked Arthur Rathburn's mortuary science license in April 2014 and fined him $10,000. The state agency at the time refused to say if their investigation stemmed from the 2013 FBI raid at the Rathburn warehouse. The recent indictment says officials during their investigation intercepted eight human heads, one of which came from a person who died of bacterial sepsis and aspiration pneumonia, that were wrapped in trash bags and piled into a camping cooler for delivery via Delta Cargo in February 2012. Federal investigators accuse Arthur Rathburn of falsely telling the government that the heads were embalmed, and that a pool of blood found at the bottom of the cooler was Listerine. In another case, the couple's company provided body parts to the American Society of Anesthesiologists for an October 2012 conference in Washington D.C. Federal agents later seized records from the company that listed the body parts as having tested positive for both HIV and Hepatitis B, prosecutors alleged. And the American Society of Anesthesiologists provided the government a Sept 25, 2012 form in which International Biological asserted "all specimens have been tested negative for HIV, Hep A, B & C. The couple could face up to 20 years in prison. "This alleged scheme to distribute diseased body parts not only defrauded customers from the monetary value of their contracts, but also exposed them and others to infection," said U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade in a statement. "The alleged conduct risked the health of medical students, dental students and baggage handlers." Detroit FBI Special Agent in Charge David Gelios said the case is a consequence of the "poorly regulated willed-body-to-science industry." The couple has been ordered to appear before U.S. District Judge Paul D. Borman for a status conference at 3 p.m. Feb. 9. Card DEARBORN -- A week after police shot Janet Wilson of Detroit while she tried to flee officers near Fairlane Town Center mall in Dearborn, her family is calling for the release of more information on the incident, and for help burying the 31-year-old. State Police Lt. Michael Shaw, whose agency is conducting a third-party homicide investigation, said Wilson caused a disturbance at the mall, disobeyed police orders to stop her vehicle and nearly hit an officer when they pinned her Chevrolet HHR in along nearby Hubbard Road. Police won't say how many times they shot Wilson. The Wayne County Medical Examiner said "multiple" times. One of the officers also suffered a minor injury. "They gunned my auntie down; she didn't have a weapon," said Cassie Bass, Wilson's niece. "She didn't have a criminal record ... You're not going to sit here and slander my auntie's character. "Kym Worthy, where are you? ... This is a murder ... If I was a murderer I would be behind bars underneath the jail." Donate to family and help with funeral costs Wilson's sister, two nieces and brother-in-law spoke to media from outside the Dearborn Police Department Wednesday. They were joined by Malik Shabazz, a civil rights activist and leader of the New Black Panther Party in Detroit. Also present was Southfield-based attorney Vince Colella, who intends to represent Wilson's family if civil action proves necessary. "It'd be irresponsible for me to speculate on that," Colella said. "But if there were shots fired into the vehicle before it started to advance toward this officer who was allegedly injured, then that would be excessive force." Dearborn police have killed two suspects during pursuits since Dec. 23. The first was mentally-ill 35-year-old Kevin Matthews of Detroit, who police say struggled with a Dearborn police officer in the backyard of a home prior to being shot multiple times. The Dearborn police officer followed Matthews, who was on foot, across the Dearborn border into Detroit. Detroit police are conducting that homicide investigation. State police say they'll turn their investigation into Wilson's death over to Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy's office when they are finished. "We're going to hear from one side, that's the state boys," Shabazz said. And "they're going to be favorable" to the police. State police say there is video and audio evidence, but haven't commented on what portions of the incident were recorded. There are multiple cameras inside and outside of the Fairlaine Town Center mall. Dearborn police vehicles are equipped with dashboard cameras and the officers wear body microphones. If they were justified, police "wouldn't mind flashing the video across the world," said Talia Bass, another of Wilson's nieces. "She didn't like confrontation, not at all. She was on her way home. She was trying to leave." Relatives say Wilson was still grieving the death of her father, who died this past summer; and a boyfriend, whom "she buried two months ago." They don't know if the grief over those deaths contributed to the alleged disturbance involving mall security guards. A woman in the mall's security office Wednesday said she could not discuss the matter and referred MLive to Michigan State Police. She also refused to offer basic information, such as the private security company's name. An online job opening for a security position at the mall from 2015 is listed under Universal Protection Services. A dispatcher in the security office had monitors with views from numerous cameras around the premises. "Goofy," "funny," and "full of life" are adjectives family used to describe Wilson. Shabazz and Colella said they hoped to speak with police representatives following the press conference Wednesday. MLive couldn't immediately confirm whether that meeting happened. Police did provide a podium for Shabazz and the family to speak from. "We need a change in policies," Shabazz said. "It's a new day, and we need a new way to deal with human beings, to deal with people who are confused, to deal with black folks, to deal with Latino people, to deal with poor white people, to deal with people who have mental challenges." The family has not completed funeral arrangements and is asking the public for financial help to pay for Wilson's burial, which they hope to have this weekend. There were at least 1,205 police-involved killings in the U.S. in 2015, according to Killed by Police, a private organization that tracks police killings, both justified and unjustified. DETROIT, MI -- As of early Thursday morning, Michigan Department of Corrections, U.S. Marshals and Detroit police continued their search for a teen parolee who escaped custody Wednesday afternoon. MDOC spokeswoman Holly Kramer said 19-year-old Rowvontae T. Walker, who was handcuffed at the time, walked out the rear door of a parole office at 5300 Lawton in Detroit. He was there for questioning in connection with a Detroit carjacking. Walker spent two years in prison for an unarmed robbery and was released on parole in September. "Our first priority is to find and return this parolee to custody," MDOC Director Heidi Washington said in a statement. "We are asking for help from the public to contact the police or to call 911 if you have information that would assist in the investigation." The public is asked to lock their vehicles, homes and not to approach Walker if they see him. He described as a 5-foot-10, 160-pound black man with a mole on the right side of his face and tattoos on his right forearm, lower-right arm, back and chest. Updates from MDOC are available on the agency's Twitter page. . FLINT, MI -- State health officials are moving forward in the investigation of rashes possibly associated with Flint's water crisis. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) is working to develop a plan to better understand rashes that have been reported by some Flint residents, according to a news release from the Joint Information Center. In recent weeks, MDHHS and the United Way 211 Information Line have received a number of calls with questions and concerns about rashes possibly associated with Flint water. Officials said rashes are common in the general public and there are a number of known causes. Investigators will work to identify and rapidly respond to new causes of illness as they emerge, according to the release. MDHHS has been actively monitoring trends in rash illnesses in Genesee County and said it has not seen evidence of an increase compared to prior years. However, in an effort to proactively respond to reported rashes, MDHHS is developing a plan to conduct structured interviews with members of the public who report current rashes that may be related to exposure to Flint water in their homes, according to the release. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, and the Environmental Protection Agency are providing technical assistance to MDHHS in this effort. "Flint residents are understandably worried about the effects of skin exposure to water in their homes, and it's absolutely necessary we follow up directly on their concerns," said Dr. Eden Wells, chief medical executive with the MDHHS in a statement. "While the science currently tells us children and adults can bathe in the water, we are committed to identifying any potential health risks so we can provide information to and protect families in Flint." MSHHS will start asking health care providers to report cases of current rashes possibly associated with Flint water exposure. Those people will be contacted and interviewed by MDHHS personnel. Investigations will also involve testing home water samples of those with active rashes, according to the release. This testing will be different from other routine water sampling and testing being done by the Michigan Department of environmental Quality or the EPA in the city. These tests will look for a concentration of metals and other water quality factors that may be associated with the reported rashes, according to the release. MDHHS is already actively responding to rash reports. Last week, Flint residents who have recently reported rashes were interviewed at their homes by a team from MDHHS. Water samples from the homes were also collected for analysis. Flint residents who have concerns about rashes are encouraged to visit their primary care physician. Information reported by health care providers is an important part of creating a better understanding of the characteristics of these rashes, according to the release. People with questions can also call the United Wat 211 to be connected with health information specialists to answer their specific concerns. Amanda Emery is a police reporter for MLive-Flint Journal. Contact her at aemery@mlive.com or 810-285-0792. Follow her on Twitter or Facebook. MT. MORRIS TWP., MI - A Michigan woman has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor gun charge after she was arrested in front of the White House with a purple pistol. April DeBois was scheduled to go to trial Thursday, Feb. 4, but instead pleaded guilty to one count of having an unlicensed firearm stemming from the Nov. 20, 2014, Washington, D.C., incident. DeBoise, 24, was sentenced to time served. She served a week in jail following her arrest. U.S. Secret Service officers spotted DeBois in a crowd of protesters outside the White House shortly after President Barack Obama finished a national address on immigration with what appeared to be a purple handgun in a holster on her waist. The officers escorted DeBois from the crowd and removed the 9-millimeter semi-automatic pistol. DeBois admitted to telling officer it was her gun and it was licensed in Michigan. However, Washington, D.C. law required a local firearm registration to possess the firearm in the nation's capital. Her attorney, Lula Hagos, could not be reached for comment on the case. [February 04, 2016] SpiderCloud Wireless to Showcase Solution for Small Enterprises, LTE in Unlicensed and 5G Ready Cloud RAN Architecture at Mobile World Congress 2016 SpiderCloud Wireless, Inc., the leading provider of scalable small cell systems, today announced the line up of innovations and new products that the company will showcase at Mobile World Congress (MWC'16) taking place February 22-25 in Barcelona, Spain. At this year's MWC, SpiderCloud will showcase new products and innovations including: Small Cell Solution for Small Enterprises and Retail Locations that utilize the same portfolio of dual-band 3G/LTE (News - Alert) and Carrier Aggregation capable enterprise small cells available to medium-to-large enterprises and venues. that utilize the same portfolio of dual-band 3G/LTE (News - Alert) and Carrier Aggregation capable enterprise small cells available to medium-to-large enterprises and venues. LTE-U and LTE-LAA capable small cells that combined with SpiderCloud's Services Node and Self-Organizing Network (SON) technology, offer the industry's first unlicensed LTE solution for large public venues. that combined with SpiderCloud's Services Node and Self-Organizing Network (SON) technology, offer the industry's first unlicensed LTE solution for large public venues. Cloud RAN Architecture for LTE, LTE-Advanced and 5G, that offers scalable capacity, superior performance, software defined deployment of applications on mobile edge, front-haul flexibility and spectrum agility. for LTE, LTE-Advanced and 5G, that offers scalable capacity, superior performance, software defined deployment of applications on mobile edge, front-haul flexibility and spectrum agility. Mobile Edge (News - Alert) Computing Enablers that allow partners to build MEC applications on SpiderCloud's platform. ACS, a pioneer and leader in the integration of solutions and applications into the world of Mobile Edge Computing, will showcase SpiderCloud's MEC platform at Intel's (News - Alert) stand. "Small cells, operating in licensed and unlicensed spectrum, will be essential to delivering the promise of LTE and 5G. Because small cell technology is ideal for offering gigabit bandwidth and ultra-low latency with Wi-Fi like economics, mobile operators will increasingly turn to small cells for network architectures that shift baseband to the edge. The benefits are substantial, and include flexible deployment of applications - in the cloud, or at the mobile edge," said Ken Rehbehn, Principal Analyst at 451 Research. "With these new 2016 products, SpiderCloud continues to advance its leadership," said Amit Jain, vice president of product management and marketing. "Our focus is to upport our customers' immediate and future needs, with support for unlicensed spectrum, flexible radios, Mobile Edge Computing, multi-operator RAN and more." SpiderCloud Wireless will be at MWC'16. Meet the company at CS85, next to the Hall 4 entrance to conferences and keynotes. SpiderCloud's products are also on display at the Small Cell Zone (7F61). To request a meeting, send an email to [email protected]. ACS, with its client and carrier ready integrated offering, will demonstrate VoLTE Unified Communications (News - Alert), presence enabled digital media, Local IP Access (LIPA), fixed mobile convergence, Mobile Video Capture and content caching. The demonstration showcases enterprise IT integrating their applications and creating a seamless, mobile user experience. This demonstration will be at Intel (Hall 3 D30). SpiderCloud executives are speaking at MWC'16. Tuesday at 11.00 am: Mike Gallagher CEO Interview with Mobile World Live TV Tuesday at 11.30 am: Art King, Director of enterprise services & technologies, presents "Case Studies" at Small Cell Zone in Hall 7 (7F61) Tuesday at 1:30 pm: SpiderCloud and iBwave present at Small Cell Zone in Hall 7 (7F61) Commercial since June'14, the Category 5/6/VLAN Ethernet-powered dual-band Radio Node (SCRN) supports 3G+LTE and LTE+LTE configurations. The Services Node (SN) controls Radio Nodes, and is a control point for the small cell system. One system of 100 Radio Nodes (200 sectors) adds capacity and coverage for up to 1.5 million sq.ft. of office space. To learn more about SpiderCloud E-RAN, visit https://youtu.be/dcYbHSCPSAM. SpiderCloud Wireless is the first company to offer mobile operators a highly scalable small cell system for LAN deployment of reliable mobile services indoors for enterprise customers of any size. Customers and Channel Partners include America Movil, Cisco, NEC, Telcel, Verizon, Vodafone (News - Alert) UK, Vodafone Netherlands, Warid Telecom and leading mobile operators across several continents. About SpiderCloud Wireless SpiderCloud Wireless develops breakthrough, small cell network platforms that allow mobile operators to deliver unprecedented cellular coverage, capacity and smart applications to enterprises. SpiderCloud Wireless is an ISO 9001:2008 certified company that is based in San Jose, California and is backed by investors Charles River Ventures, Matrix Partners, Opus Capital and Shasta Ventures. For more information visit www.spidercloud.com and follow SpiderCloud on Twitter http://twitter.com/spidercloud_inc. SpiderCloud Wireless is a registered trademark and SmartCloud a trademark of SpiderCloud Wireless, Inc. 2016 SpiderCloud Wireless, Inc. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160204005169/en/ [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ] 04.02.2016 LISTEN David Bowie s wife Iman put on a brave face walking the family pooch Tuesday in NYC. Its the first time Imans been seen in public since Bowie passed away last month from cancer. She tooled around her Soho neighborhood and, gotta say she looks amazing. Hard to believe shes 60 dogs cute too. In David Bowie's will he disperses Bowie's $100 million fortune among his family and a couple of employees. Bowie's wife, Iman, will receive half of his fortune, as well as the apartment the two shared in Manhattan's SoHo. A pair of New York lawyers will pay Iman from a trust four times a year, but she can ask for additional funds to support her health, education and maintenance, . Duncan Jones, Bowie's 44-year-old son from a previous marriage gets 25 percent (about $25 million); his daughter with Iman, Alexandria Zahra Jones, will get the same, though through a trust, since she's only 15. Lexi also inherited Bowie's mountain retreat in upstate New York. The rest of Bowie's estate was divided up among two of his staffers: Duncan's onetime nanny, Marion Skene, received $1 million, and Corinne Coco Schwab, Bowie's longtime personal assistant (whom The Telegraph credits with saving Bowie's life, a reference to his wild days during the 1970s), received $2 million. Schwab also inherited Bowie's stock in a company called Opossum Inc., which, in another deliciously Bowie-esque twist, is something of a mysterious entity. It's unclear what Opossum does, and Bowie's New York-based lawyer did not return a call seeking comment on the issue. -TMZ 04.02.2016 LISTEN Hip-life grandpapa Reggie Rockstone has hinted that the recent public reconciliation between dreaded dancehall enemies Shatta Wale and Samini is part of a project intended to ensure a peaceful election this year. Rockstone told Adom News in an exclusive interview that "we all know how bad the Samini and Shatta Wale situation was but we thought this is an important year for them to bury the hatchet and now that they have we will use that to tell our politicians that if these two can then they also can." He said Samini and Wale's reconciliation will form the basis of the theme for the peace project, which is "Leadership by Example". According to Rockstone, on the back of the Samini-Wale reconciliation, a selected group of top celebrities include VVIP, Sarkodie and others will be put together to embark on a peace walks across the country in the course of the year. "We will use the occasion to bring the youth and our politicians to the realization that this is the only country we have and so no matter what happens in the election there must be peace," he said. Rockstone noted that the peace walks will culminate in massive peace jams in every region they find themselves in, to give the youth a chance to celebrate peace with their favorite celebrities. "Ghanaians should also expect some peace songs and collaborations between Samini and Shatta to drive home the message," he said. He urged Ghanaians not to pretend that all is well, because the kind of intense politicking on the airwaves can translate into chaos if no conscious effort is made to ensure the sustenance of the peace in the country now. "I have been watching CNN and I see what is happening in other African countries that took their peace for granted - I don't want my country to show up on CNN for the wrong reasons so myself and my colleague celebrities are committed to securing the peace before, during and after the elections," he said. Sanitation According to Rockstone, as part of the peace walks across the country, there would be a sanitation project, where the celebrities will get into the choked gutters and communities and embark of heavy clean up exercises. "Myself and my colleagues at VVIP have already started the sanitation project in collaboration with Zoomlion and other waste management companies in the country and we have gone almost everywhere cleaning the country," he said. Rockstone said the sanitation project is intended to make cleaning waste hip and attractive to the youth, adding that a lot of young people join them because they get to take selfies with celebrities as they help clean the country. Meanwhile, during the forum, Chairman of the Zoomlion and Jospong Groups, Dr. Joseph Siaw Agyepong, lauded Rockstone and his colleagues for composing a sanitation song and getting into the gutters to embark on sanitation exercises. He was even more excited that Rockstone is leading celebrities to ensure the sustenance of peace in this election year, to ensure that after the elections, the environment would still be conducive for businesses to thrive and for the youth to get jobs to do. 04.02.2016 LISTEN Kumawood actor Kwaku Manu has observed that the annual Kumawood Akoben Film Festival & Awards (KAFFA) is a big waste of time and resources. The actor in an interview with Big Shark on Kumasi-based Metro FM disclosed that he decided to dissociate himself from the awards because it lacks credibility. According to him, their awards are empty and pointless, adding that the entire award scheme is a waste of time and resources and cannot be compared to other international awards. Kwaku Manu, who did not show up at the events ground, told Big Shark that it will be unfair for the award organisers to give five awards to one person at a time. He expressed his displeasure at the organisers for consistently showing gross disrespect to other actors. Kwaku Manu cautioned that they should either improve on their organisation or stop wasting people's time and resources on mere medals and plaques. -seancitygh shatta Wale 04.02.2016 LISTEN Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection in Ghana, Nana Oye Lithur, celebrated her 50th birthday with a party. At the party, she sang and performed Shatta Wales Kakai, to the admiration of guests. Shatta Wale who was happy about the ministers gesture took to his Facebook page to commend the latter for her love. In his post he spoke about his love for the minister and also apologized for not showing up at the ceremony adding that he was absent because, he was not aware of her birthday bash. Read post GOD BLESS HON. NANA OYE LITHUR ( MINISTER FOR GENDER, CHILDREN AND SOCIAL PROTECTION) I LOVE YOU SOO MUCH AND I REALLY ENJOYED YOUR PERFORMANCE..MADAM KAKAI,I REALLY APOLOGISE FOR NOT BEING THERE CUZ NO ONE TOLD ME ABOUT YOUR BIRTHDAY BUT I STILL SUPPORT YOU AND LOVE YOU MUMMY. Dancehall artiste Shatta Wale has applauded Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Nana Oye Lithurs performance of his hit song Kakai. The performance of the song by the minister was the highpoint of a plush 50th birthday bash held last Saturday. The party was at the Labadi Beach Hotel in Accra and was attended by family and friends. Some of the guests at the bash included her husband, Tony Lithur; Dzifa Abla Gomashie, Deputy Tourism, Culture and Creative Arts Minister; and Nana Adwoa Awindor. Nana Oye Lithur, dressed in a glittering gold spaghetti jumpsuit and backed by two dancers, sang and performed Shatta Wales song to the delight of the numerous guests in attendance. Her well-rehearsed performance was so good that one of the guests told Myjoyonline.com in pidgin English, she force waaaa. The dancehall artiste, born Charles Nii Armah Mensah Jnr, who aplogised for not attending the plush party, said he really enjoyed the Ministers performance. Shatta Wale even called the minister, Madam Kakai. He posted on Facebook: GOD BLESS HON. NANA OYE LITHUR ( MINISTER FOR GENDER, CHILDREN AND SOCIAL PROTECTION) ...I LOVE YOU SOO MUCH AND I REALLY ENJOYED YOUR PERFORMANCE..MADAM KAKAI,I REALLY APOLOGISE FOR NOT BEING THERE CUZ NO ONE TOLD ME ABOUT YOUR BIRTHDAY BUT I STILL SUPPORT YOU AND LOVE YOU MUMMY.. a#NOTIME Watch Nana Oye Lithurs Kakai performance below: Follow me on Twitter: @delaXdela and Instagram: citizendela Story by Ghana | Myjoyonline.com | Ernest Dela Aglanu (Twitter: @delaXdela / Instagram: citizendela) FULANI HERDSMEN IN TROUBLE: POLICE, SOLDIERS TO FLUSH THEM OUT OF AGOGO Security personnel have been deployed to Asante Akyem in the Ashanti Region to flush out nomadic Fulani herdsmen following tension between residents of the area and the herdsmen. PRESIDENT CUTS SOD FOR KASOA INTERCHANGE As Akuapems and other mourners mourn the departure of the Okuapehene, Oseadeeyo Addo Dankwa III, to join his ancestors, Parliament and people from all walks of life continue to pay tribute to the late chief. PARLIAMENT PAYS TRIBUTE TO OKUAPEHENE President John Mahama on Wednesday cut the sod to signal the official commencement of work on the Kasoa Interchange. MAD MAN KILLS GIRL; EATS BODY WITH KENKEY A 14-year-old girl, Docia Ama Adufo a primary 4 pupil of Akyem Asafo Presby Primary School in the East Akim Municipality of the Eastern region met her untimely death when Yaw Akoto, a 35-year-old mentally deranged man, allegedly butchered her. 4 YEMENIS GRABBED WITH FAKE PASSPORTS AND VISA Four Yemeni nationals have been hauled before an Accra circuit court for allegedly entering the country with fake French passports and visas, thereby concealing their real identities. AGOGO CHIEFS GO WILD ON FULANI Members of the Asante Akyem Agogo Traditional Council (ATC) say the coutnrys security agencies have been adamant in dealing with the menace by the Fulani herdsmen in the town and its surrounding communities. REDUCE TAXES ON IMPORTS BUSINESSES CRY OUT Businesses involved in importation at the countrys ports are demanding a significant reduction in taxes on imports in tandem with levels in neighbouring Ivory Coast and other members of ECOWAS. EXERCISE FISCAL RESTRAINT - DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS CAUTIONS GOVERNMENT Worried over mounting fiscal pressures on government at this years general elections beckon, Ghanas development partners have warned government to stay within budget. KORLE BU STAFF DRAG MANAGEMENT TO COURT The Senior Staff Association of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital in Accra, has sued the management of the hospital at an Accra High Court for initiating processes to sanction them. KASOA INTERCHANGE PROJECT BEGINS President John Mahama on Wednesday cut the sod for the construction of the Kasoa interchange project describing it as a transformational project which would transform the area and positively impact the lives of people. 5 ARMED ROBBERS JAILED 180 YEARS Five armed robbers have been jailed a total of 180 years by the Tarkwa Circuit Court, for robbery in the Wassa Amenfi District of the Western Region, two weeks ago. A combined team of police and military personnel will Thursday begin a month long operation to end over 12 years of Fulani invasion in parts of Ashanti Region. The team, which will be led by the Ashanti Regional Security Council, will start the operation at Agogo, where a farmer was gunned down by the nomadic herdsmen recently. Three patrol teams were deployed to the town Wednesday morning led by the Konongo Divisional Commander. Military vehicles are also patroling the town with policemen armed to the teeth. John Kudalor (IGP) The Inspector General of Police (IGP), John Kudalor, and heads of other security agencies in the country will also be in the Ashanti Region Thursda in a bid to quell tensions in Agogo and to find a lasting solution to the raging security threat posed by the herdsmen. Tempers flared in the Agogo township after the gun-wielding cattle herders shot and killed 25-year-old David Atiah in front of his mother. David was trying to prevent the cattle from eating crops on his mothers farm. Since 1997, Agogo residents have clashed with the nomads whose cattle encroach and destroy their farms. The nomads have also raped, killed and maimed residents who have confronted them in the past. The Agogo Traditional Council says the latest fatal shooting incident would be the last straw, vowing to take on the violent nomadic cattle herders if the latest operation fails. The Councils threat follows the failure of similar effort, Operation Cow Leg, to end the nefarious activities of the cattle herders. File Photo 04.02.2016 LISTEN The year 2000 still holds horror for me, and perhaps for most of my friends who were equally sad for a horror visited on us while in the Junior High School. Our Maths teacher a man full of terror, venom and feared in the school due to his heightened use of the cane, stormed our class, and asked us to stand up. Our charge wed invaded the silence in the school, and as punishment, wed all be given six lashes. The Terror in Canning: I could still see the watery eyes of Marjorie my sitting partner, who lifted her multicolored handkerchief to hold her tears from dropping, but they did anyways. My right hand was not spared the outpour of her tears as I could almost taste it. It was salty. The muscles on her forehead betrayed her fears, as she was terrified. One after the other we walked to the Math teacher, who had this victorious look on his face, and received what was due us amidst fear and horror. The sound of his cane was horrifying. At the end of the ordeal, most of us suffered some degrees of injuries due to the manner the teacher went about the whole thing. He caned us as though, a giant trudging on an ant. He was merciless. I suffered a cut on my right hand that my colleagues christened it public watch. Often when someone needed to know the time of the day, I was the first point of call. Austin what says the public watch? they would ask. Then wed all laugh so loud to shame the horror visited on us by our fellow man. 16 Years on, the Craze is still strong: Sixteen (16) years forward, our teachers in both public and private schools still hold on to this craze as though their lives depend on beating these innocent students. On Wednesday, 3 February, 2016, I walked into a female teacher of Epinal Schools, CP Kasoa, busily beating a male student for reporting late to school. As though not enough, there were other teachers encouraging this lady to be ruthless. Give it to him, harder, and stand well, were some of the cheers I heard them shout. Stupidity of Thinking Small: This brought to mind the way we feel when, with our supposedly huge body, we pounce on a cockroach. We trash it under our feet thinking our confidence would be magnified by killing it. That doesnt happen. We have, for years, been delusional in our thought. Always engaging, in what I called, vain thinking. We have deceived ourselves, and still do. These teachers of Epinal Schools, have the same aura about them. They are deceiving their conscience by engaging in an act that abuses the rights of others. Who deserves to be canned? Theres no crime ever committed by these students to deserve such inhuman treatment. What we may be oblivious to is how were contributing to the dwindling confidence and creativity of these students. Were creating more people after our kind to treat others the same way we did to them. Were also, consciously or unconsciously, driving more of these students outside the school to be dropouts. In such a time when countries are encouraging their students to take education serious with creative state interventions meant to empower them, were discouraging our students with such disincentive actions as canning. Whats is worse is that major stakeholders such as the Ministry of Education (MoE) and Ghana Education Service (GES) are quiet on this issue. Nobody deserves to be canned. Today, were advised to desist from abusing the rights of animals. How much more our kind? Our nation needs to wean itself from this madness. We need to get this debate off the ground started. If we want to reap the full measure of benefits due to the Ghanaian education system, we need to get this issue resolved. Ghanaian students do not need to be treated as though they do not matter in the country. They dont deserve to be visited with terror and horror. They are partners of the education system, and require, as of rights, to be treated with dignity and respect. In the manner a business man would treat his partners, these students also deserve much more of that. We can do more than getting the debate started. We need to uproot and ban canning from the system. Restoring the dignity of Mankind: We need to restore the dignity of these students. Teachers in the country must acknowledge that their students deserve the same measure of respect they require. If they are cracking the whip, then the Ministry of Education (MoE), Ghana Education Service (GES), and their affiliated bodies need to also crack the whip on these schools. They need to make canning, and its related activities unappealing for teachers and school owners. The responsibilities of MoE, and GES should go beyond policy making. They need to get involved in the day to day administration of these schools to streamline their activities. Any school caught encouraging canning should have its certificate revoked. Again, teachers found engaging in this inhuman act should be prosecuted to discourage others from doing same. We need to be more to these students; teachers, friends, fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, and mentors. They need to see something in us that goes beyond teaching. Let us draw them closer to us, via our actions, and conversations, and allay their fears of tomorrow. The foundation to our collective future resides in some of these little acts of hope. We all never negotiated for the wrong things in life. Let us endeavor to become more to others, to receive more. We can do better. For more on Kwabena Brako-Powers please visit his blog on: www.brakopowers.blogspot.com or www.brakopowers.com. Please do share your comments with me. I am interested in learning from you as you learn from. Nairobi, February 4th, 2016 Kenyas ICT Cabinet Secretary Joe Mucheru has lauded Airtel for its commitment to support e-learning in Schools by providing free internet connection to schools in Kenya through the companys Free Internet for Schools Program. The Information Cabinet Secretary was speaking yesterday at Machakos Boys High School in Machakos County, Kenya where he launched the program to connect 23 schools to the free internet under the program. The launch event was also attended by Principal Secretaries Eng. Victor Kyalo (ICT & Innovation) and Sammy Itemere (Broadcasting & Telecommunications), Machakos County ICT Minister Hellen Kiilu among other top government and education officials from the County. Speaking during the launch of the program at the school, the Cabinet Secretary said access to the Internet is very important in the current education system as it gives students the opportunity to have access to unlimited amount of information available online. I am very pleased to be launching this program in Machakos County. I would also like to appreciate the fact that Airtel is making tremendous contributions in the integration of ICT in the Education sector in Kenya through this program. In our times, we did not get to use Internet when we were schooling. As the world continues to change, more and more schools all over the world are turning to the Internet for learning resources. This is what Airtels FREE Internet for Schools program is giving our own students here in Kenya. With this privilege, I want to urge students to continue using the free connectivity constructively in order to be successful in their education, said Joe Mucheru. The 23 schools connected today in Machakos County join another 167 institutions and 250,000 students in 31 Counties across Kenya as beneficiaries of the Airtel FREE Internet for Schools Program. The program is intended to reach 1million students in all Counties across the country by the end of 2016. Speaking at the same event, Airtel Kenya CEO Adil El Youssefi explained to the Cabinet Secretary that the company is committed to the program that it launched in 2014 as it seeks to ensure that more and more students are able to leverage on educational information that the internet provides. Adil said, The high speed Internet connectivity that we continue to provide through our Airtel FREE Internet for Schools program guarantees students limitless new educational opportunities. We strongly believe that through our program, we are giving learners the freedom to connect to the world of information, helping them to learn better and open up a new world of opportunities for their future. The Airtel CEO told the Cabinet Secretary that Airtel remains committed to the development of Information Technology in Kenya and empowerment of the Kenyan youth with knowledge and skill required to achieve their potential and thrive in this global age. SURGEWEB ICT CABINET SECRETARY JOE MUCHERU AND AIRTEL KENYA CEO ADIL EL YOUSSEFI OFFICIALLY LAUNCH THE AIRTEL FREE INTERNET FOR SCHOOLS PROGRAM AT MACHAKOS BOYS HIGH SCHOOL. 04.02.2016 LISTEN Introduction Most nonimmigrant visas (NIV) with few exceptions are refused under section 214 (b) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). A refusal under 214 (b) is a finding by the officer that you failed to show sufficient ties to justify your entitlement to a nonimmigrant visa. What is section 214 (b)? Section 214 (b) is a provision in the INA. It states that any visa applicant is presumed to be an immigrant unless they can satisfy the consular officer that they are entitled to a NIV classification under section 101(a) (15) of INA. Thus to qualify for a nonimmigrant visa, you must prove that you are entitled to nonimmigrant status and that your intended activities are consistent with the status you are applying for. For example, to qualify for a B visa, you must show that the purpose for which you seek the visa is consistent with the activities provided for under section INA 101 (a) (15) (B) relating to business, tourism or medical treatment. So in essence, section 214 (b) does not constitute a separate ground of eligibility. You must either prove that you qualify under a nonimmigrant visa classification under section 101 (a) (15) or you will be deemed to be an immigrant under 214 (b). Section 214 (b) and Ties The most common ground for refusals under section 214 (b) is that you failed to satisfy the consular officer that you have sufficient ties. In considering whether you have ties, the officer will consider your employment, business, financial connections, close family ties, social or cultural associations and any other factor that will induce you to return to your home country. 214 (b) is much more than ties While a failure to show sufficient ties is the most common reason for a refusal under 214(b) there are other reasons that may make you ineligible to receive a visa under 214(b). Thus if you fail to satisfy the consular officer that you meet the standards required by the particular visa classification, you will be refused under INA 214(b) regardless of your financial situation or ties. For example, the consular officer will refuse your application notwithstanding your ties if they are not satisfied that you will maintain B visa status by engaging in unauthorised employment. What can I do if I am refused under section 214 (b)? A refusal under section 214 (b) is not permanent. This means that you may reapply at any time after your refusal. The determination that you do not qualify for a B visa can be made only on the basis of the facts existing at the time of your visa application. The law requires consular officers to give full consideration to any evidence presented by you to overcome a refusal under 214 (b). Thus, the fact that you could not prove that you qualify for a visa at one time would not preclude you from subsequently qualifying for the visa by showing a change in circumstances. Unfortunately, a number of people may be unable to show sufficient ties and may not qualify for a B visa regardless of the number of times they reapply. What must I consider if I wish to reapply? You may reapply against a 214 (b) refusal if you can demonstrate additional evidence of ties or a change in circumstances. The law does not set any time limit within which you may reapply. However, consular officials generally presume that to enable you establish a change in your circumstances, there has to be a reasonable time between your previous refusal and your reapplication. In considering whether to reapply, you must consider whether you explained your situation accurately at the interview. You must also assess if the consular officer overlooked something in your application. Finally, you must consider whether there is any additional information you can present to establish your ties. If your answer to any of these is a negative, then your chances for success in your reapplication may be relatively dim. Emmanuel Opoku Acheampong Disclaimer: This article only provides general information and guidance on US immigration law. The specific facts that apply to your matter may make the outcome different than would be anticipated by you. The writer will not accept any liability for any claims or inconvenience as a result of the use of this information. The writer is an immigration law advisor and a practicing law attorney in Ghana. He advises on US, UK, and Schengen immigration law. He works part-time for Acheampong & Associates Ltd, an immigration law firm in Accra. He may be contacted on [email protected] 04.02.2016 LISTEN Former Deputy Ashanti regional minister Joseph Yammin has advised Ghanaian actress Yvonne Nelson and others involved in the organisation of the famed dumsor must stop vigil to now embark on a dumsor thanksgiving vigil as well. Since their vigil had no political undertones as they claim back then but rather for the common good, it will only be fair to also organize a thanksgiving event now that the President has dealt with the dumsor situation. Joseph Yammin who was speaking exclusively to rawgist.com was full of thanks to the President for ensuring that power rationing, popularly called dumsor in Ghana has ended. I told them that dumsor will not be a campaign message for any party in this years elections, now we can be thankful to the President for living up to his words and ensuring that what was the biggest problem for Ghanaians and investors is now a thing of the past, Yammin said. He says a lot more is being done to ensure the country has a lot more power installed so the country does not hit rock-bottom again as long as the power situation is concerned and cautioned against trying to score political points from national crises like power. It will be recalled that rapper, Sarkodie, actress Yvonne Nelson and others championed a vigil; dumsor must stop on Saturday May 16, 2015 to put pressure on the government to find solutions to the power crisis which is affecting businesses and households. In the wake of that demonstration, Mr. Yammin, on a morning show programme on Kumasi based Ultimate radio asked that architects of the vigil to also plan a dumsor thanksgiving vigil thanking the President once the situation is resolved. A hotelier has called on the government to come out with incentives to help improve the hotel industry in Ghana. According to James Amarkah, Managing Director of Golden Beam Hotel at Nhyiaeso in the Ashanti region, the skyrocketing cost of maintenance of hotels and multiple taxes imposed on them is gradually crippling their business. Mr. Amarkah made the call during the Accra launch of the hotel at the Conference Tuesday. He indicated that the hospitality industry had become highly competitive thus Ghanaian hoteliers needed support from government to make the hospitality industry attractive and affordable. The Golden Beam General Manager underscored the need for government through the Ministry of Finance to review the Ghana Revenue Authority tax on hotels to help grow the industry. He also appealed to the Ghana Hoteliers Association to intensify efforts at enhancing the dignity of its members as well as maintain good and high standards in the hostel industry. Mr. Amarkah explained that the hotel derived its name from the prestigious cash crop, cocoa, which has sustained the Ghanaian economy. Golden Beam Hotel has been structured to give you a feel of a home. Its business but yet homely and friendly ambience is complimented by a highly trained team. Golden Beam Hotel we treat you as our personal responsibility he stressed. He urged everyone who visits Kumasi to make Golden Beam hotel their preferred destination. Meanwhile, the hotel has already carved a name for itself and is gradually worming itself to become the preferred destination for both business and leisure guests as well as organisers of very important functions. The lush 51-room hotel is located 15 minutes drive from the Kumasi Airport, five minutes away from both the VIP station and the famous Kumasi Central Market, with a fire station just two minutes away. The 2014 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey (GDHS) has identified the Ashanti Region as the leading region with the highest neonatal mortality rate in the country, recording 42 deaths per 1000 live births. According to the Ashanti Regional Newborn Coordinator, Dr Rita Fosu Yeboah who disclosed this at a Regional Dissemination of Rapid Health Facility Assessment in Kumasi on Tuesday, most of the deaths were due to three factors: Infection, prematurity and asphyxia. Asphyxia is lack of oxygen, and birth asphyxia happens when a baby's brain and other organs do not get enough oxygen before, during or right after birth. Neonatal mortality refers to the probability of a baby dying within the first month of life. Other factors Dr Yeboah said majority of the health staff also needed to upgrade themselves to update their knowledge on new diseases and how to handle them to prevent these deaths and called for continuous training for the health staff, particularly midwives. Besides that, she said, only 24 out of the 54 health facilities in the region had a place designated for newborn babies and most of the facilities did not have adequate equipment to take care of the newborns. She said most of the big facilities did not have cots and incubators to help pre-term babies to survive. Dr Yeboah said there was the need for all stakeholders within the health sector to devote more attention to neonatal issues to reduce neonatal deaths the country. According to her, if all the children should die before their first month, 'how can the human race survive?' She thus welcomed the partnership between PATH, a US-based non-governmental organisation, and the Ghana Health Service to assist health facilities within the region to make every baby count. GHS Director The Deputy Ashanti Regional Director of Health, Dr Kwasi Yeboah-Awudzi, also underscored the need to improve on the neonatal mortality rate. He said although the nation was performing well, the same could not be said about the Ashanti Region, which is lagging behind. PATH is partnering the GHS to implement the 'Making Every Baby Count Initiative' (MEBCI) in four regions in the country to reduce neonatal deaths in their facilities. The implementing regions are Ashanti, Eastern, Volta and Brong Ahafo. PATH The Deputy Director in charge of Fields Operation under MEBCI, Ms Suzanne Dawson, said the project was a five-year programme which started in September 2013 and PATH would be supporting the GHS to deliver on its programmes on newborns. She said the objective of the programme was to ensure that by the end of the project in 2018, 90 per cent of newborn babies delivered in the targeted facilities would survive. Security personnel have been deployed to Asante Akyem in the Ashanti Region to flush out nomadic Fulani herdsmen following increased tension between residents of the area and the herdsmen. The deployment by the Ashanti Regional Security Council (REGSEC) is to prevent the already tense relationship between the residents and the herdsmen from escalating into violence. Two indigenes have been reportedly killed this week on their farms. The tension has also resulted in the movement of some Fulani herdsmen from Agogo in the Ashanti Region to Begoro in the Fanteakwa District in the Eastern Region following threats by the youth of the area that the nomads should leave. REGSEC This sentiment was also the major highlight of a press conference held by the Ashanti REGSEC which blamed the recent violent clashes, some resulting in death, between the indigenes of Agogo and the herdsmen on inflammatory statements made by leading members of the area. It said before the recent press conference organised by the Agogo Youth Association on January 26, 2016, 'there was relative peace and calm in the area'. It said, however, that the inciting statements by the Communications Director of the National Democratic Party (NDP), Mr Ernest Owusu Bempah, and the Member of Parliament (MP) for Asante Akyem North, Mr Kwadwo Baah Agyapong, calling on the people to arm themselves against the herdsmen worsened the situation. Addressing a press conference in Kumasi Wednesday following developments in the area, the outgoing Ashanti Regional Minister, Mr Peter Anarfi Mensah, called on opinion leaders in the affected communities to refrain from issuing inciting statements meant to provoke people into taking the law into their hands. He said the duty of the REGSEC was to maintain law and order and especially to protect lives and properties, irrespective of people's nationalities. Aftermath He said following the said press conference, the youth of the area had led a series of attacks on the herdsmen in and around Agogo, leading to the killing of a number of cows and injuries to both indigenes and herdsmen. According to him, the menace was not restricted to Agogo but also Drobonso, Ejura, Kumawu and parts of the Eastern Region. He said the youth had launched unrelenting attacks on herdsmen in the area, irrespective of whether they were resident cattle rearers or nomads, since that fateful press conference. He denied the allegation that the REGSEC had been slow in responding to issues relating to the atrocities committed by the Fulani herdsmen under the perception that some of the cattle belonged to some powerful and influential people in society. Begoro concerns Some concerned residents of Begoro have called for measures to halt the activities of the herdsmen who are reportedly making moves to resettle in the Begoro area after being threatened by the youth of Agogo. A middle-aged man who gave his name as Brobbey Owusu recounted that a few years ago the herdsmen, with their animals, caused a lot of havoc, including raping women on their farms. He suggested that fodder banks be established in the Afram Plains where the herdsmen and their animals could be confined. Others also hold the view that the Fanteakwa District Security Council (DISEC) needs to be up and doing to prevent the bloodshed that has characterised the nomads' stay in Agogo. The route Information gathered by the Daily Graphic indicates that the herdsmen use routes from the Kwahu South Afram Plains District to get to the Begoro area. When reached on telephone, the District Chief Executive for Fanteakwa, Mr Abass Mohammed Sbabe, said he was in a meeting with the outgoing Eastern Regional Minister in Koforidua. However, an official of the assembly said the DISEC would soon meet to find a solution to the issue. Fulani leader But a leader of the Fulani Community in Ghana, Chief Alhaji Iddrisu Mohammed Bingle, called for restraint on the part of the indigenes of Agogo and the Fulani community. 'The two sides should not take the law into their hands but exercise maximum restraint so that we can find an amicable solution to the problem,' he said in a telephone interview with the Daily Graphic from Kasoa in the Central Region. He said together with others, he was planning a meeting with all the Fulanis in the Agogo area to find a lasting solution to the problem. 'If the solution is for them to leave the area, we will engage them to do that; we can have lasting peace. Ghana is big enough to contain all of us,' he said. According to him, there were currently more than 5,000 Fulani herdsmen in Ghana a figure he indicated was an estimation, given that there were others who entered the country on the blind side of the leadership of the Fulani community. The nomads arrive from Nigeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali and Cameroon. Alhaji Bingle said a way out of the recurrent clashes was for chiefs who gave out their lands to the nomads to zone their areas, clearly indicating where the Fulanis could graze their cattle and where indigenes should farm. 'Some of the chiefs are to blame because the Fulanis don't come through the back door. The chiefs allocated lands to them without informing their subjects. If they point out where each side can work, we will not have these tense situations,' he said. The blame Fulanis are widely known to originate from Northern Nigeria. Although there are Fulanis who settle and live modern lifestyles, for others the culture is to lead their animals to graze an activity that breeds conflict between the nomads and indigenous communities in Ghana and other parts of West Africa. Alhaji Bingle blamed the current tension on Mr Agyapong for inciting the youth of the area against the Fulani community. Background In January last year, the Ashanti REGSEC reactivated 'Operation Cow Leg' in Agogo and its environs to check the activities of nomadic Fulani herdsmen whose cattle had been destroying farms. It was also to ensure that cattle from other regions, particularly the Eastern Region, did not stray into the area for grazing. Fact Sheet 1- On January 11, 2016, a traditional priest, Okomfo Kwasi Badu, was shot by a Fulani herdsman on his farm at Kowireso. 2- On January 26, 2016, the MP for Asante Akyem North, Mr Kwadwo Baah Agyapong, and Mr Ernest Owusu Bempah, the Communications Director of the National Democratic Party, called on the youth to arm themselves against the Fulani. 3- They also called on the residents to defy the orders of the traditional council to attend a meeting until the herdsmen were evacuated from the area. 4- Following the press conference, there have been clashes between the residents and the herdsmen, leading to the killing of cattle and injuries to some people. Accra, GHANA The new U.S. Ambassador to Ghana, Robert P. Jackson, has presented his credentials to President John Mahama and officially taken up duties as ambassador. Speaking from the ceremony at Flagstaff House on February 3, Ambassador Jackson thanked President Mahama for the warm welcome to Ghana and highlighted the U.S./Ghanaian partnership in four key areasdemocracy, prosperity, security and health. Ambassador Jackson expressed the U.S. commitment to deepening that partnership further. In looking at prosperity and economic growth, its clear that addressing the energy issues through Power Africa and the Millennium Challenge Compact will take us a long way. In addition, I believe that our investments in agriculture and our partnership in education will also ensure that we can build opportunities for Ghanaian youth. Speaking further, Ambassador Jackson underscored the U.S. collaboration with Ghana on armed forces training and on programs to address HIV/AIDS, malaria, nutrition, food security, terrorism, and trafficking. Ambassador Jackson also noted the November elections in both Ghana and the United States. This is a unique year for our democracies. In November, your country will vote. Twenty-four hours later, my country will go to the polls. And in both cases, Im confident that we will continue the tradition of peaceful, credible elections, he said. I feel that its worth restating that the United States interest is only in the credibility of the election. Its up to the people of Ghana to decide their future. We look forward to working with the Electoral Commission and civil society to assist in supporting those elections. In closing, the ambassador recalled President Obamas themes from his 2008 visit. We believe, as the president of the United States said, that our successes are mutually tied and our partnership is indispensable. Ambassador Jackson served as the U.S. Department of States Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for African Affairs from 2013 to 2015. From 2010 to 2013 he was the U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Cameroon. Ambassador Jacksons previous overseas assignments include: Deputy Chief of Mission and Charge dAffaires, a.i., Rabat, Morocco Deputy Chief of Mission and Charge dAffaires, a.i., Dakar, Senegal Political/Economic Counselor, Abidjan, Cote dIvoire Political-Military Officer, Lisbon, Portugal Chief of the Political Section, Harare, Zimbabwe Political/Economic Officer in Bujumbura, Burundi Consular/Economic Officer in Montreal, Canada He has also served in Washington, D.C., as the Director of the Office for the Promotion of Human Rights and Democracy; as the Country Officer for Zimbabwe, Botswana and Nigeria; and as the Coordinator of the Entry-Level Officer Training Program and Deputy Director of the Orientation Division at the Department of States Foreign Service Institute. Ambassador Jackson is joined in Ghana by his wife, Babs. Prior to joining the U.S. Foreign Service in 1982, Ambassador Jackson taught French and English as a foreign language at the Institute Montana in Zugerberg, Switzerland. He had previously taught English and American Civilization at the University of Clermont in Clermont-Ferrand, France. Ambassador Jackson earned his M.S. in National Resource Strategy from National Defense University, his M.A. in International Affairs from the George Washington University in Washington, D.C., and his B.A. in Government and Legal Studies from Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine. Ambassador Jackson speaks French and Portuguese. AMB. JACKSON'S CREDENTIAL CEREMONY 3 04.02.2016 LISTEN South Koreans drink more liquor than anywhere else on the planet, according to an upcoming documentary on Al Jazeera. 101 East: South Koreas Hangover travels to Seoul to experience the nightlife in this work hard, party harder culture, as well as the fallout after closing time. Presenter Steve Chao explains, The government estimates one and a half million Koreans are alcoholics thats twice the worldwide average Americans consume on average about three shots of hard liquor a week. Russians six. Here in South Korea, people per week down a total of fourteen shots South Koreans drink seven million bottles of Soju every night. The drink of choice in South Korea, Soju is a fermented-rice spirit with an alcohol content of 20 percent. With the cost of policing drunks and medically treating them topping 20 billion US dollars last year, 101 East: South Koreas Hangover asks whether the cap can be put back on the Soju bottle. South Koreas Hangover screens on Al Jazeera English on 7 February 2016 at 1830 CAT on 101 East, Al Jazeeras multi-award-winning weekly current affairs programme focusing on a diverse range of stories and investigations from across Asia and the Pacific. Watch the promo: . For more information, visit http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/101east/. 04.02.2016 LISTEN The wanton dissipation of the countrys resources, abuse of office, massive corruption, dishonest behavior, gross disrespect for the ruled as well as deliberate acts which erode the work of constitutional bodies and others, make President Mahama a perfect candidate for impeachment. It is doubtful if Ghanas 1992 Constitution truly protects all citizens. We have a President who sat in the 4th Republic Legislature for twelve years or so and yet has very little respect for Parliament. Unfortunately for us, he is an expert in circumventing the work of the body he once belonged. Ghana is bleeding and may soon collapse but those who find it difficult to accept the fact that the economy is being poorly managed, are President John Dramani Mahama and his ruling National Democratic Congress. Of course, with things going from bad to worst, some of their supporters are complaining bitterly. If all the arguments by the Minority should be taken seriously then the obvious conclusion is that, the NDC government is destroying the economic, political and social foundations of the nation. So what is preventing it from initiating impeachment proceedings against the President? After all, its collaborations with the Majority in the interest of our people have not been appreciated. And that was why the President boldly accused them of sleeping whilst bills were being considered. Is the Minority in Parliament unaware that majority of Ghanaians support its boycotts and walk outs? What did it make of the massive participation of a cross-section of the public in last years demonstration? Why is it worried about the small section of the population including the Rented Press who make ugly noises on its constitutional rights? Did it not promise everyone that the demonstrations would be sustained? You might think I am posing too many questions to our hardworking honourable members but this is legitimate. I quite remember Deputy Minority Leader Dominic Aduna Bingab Nitiwul sharply reacting to the Presidents uncomplimentary remarks. He categorically told Ghanaians about the uncooperative stance the Minority would adopt to render parliamentary work extremely difficult. So far, we have seen glimpses of their threat but how sure are we that inertia would not set in. Artcle 69 (1 & 2 ) of the1992 Constitution clearly spells out steps for the removal of the President. The Majority would not support a Minority move and therefore the two-thirds majority of votes required is not possible. However, a mere initiating of an impeachment against a sitting President will be historic and put future presidents on their toes. The Minority ought to know by now that implementing the recommendations of the Constitutional Review Committee is not in the interest of President Mahama. Therefore he is doing everything to ensure things remain as they are. He is comfortable with the almost unlimited Executive powers. Excuse me, but what is the relevance of this provision? There is a strong case for removing John Dramani Mahama as President because he is a perfect candidate for impeachment!!! Article 69(1) states that the President can be removed if he is seen: (a) to have acted in willful violation of the oath of allegiance and the presidential oath set out in the Second Schedule to, or in willful violation of any other provision of this Constitution; or to have conducted himself in a manner Which brings or is likely to bring the office of President into disrepute, ridicule or contempt; Prejudicial or inimical to the economy or the security of the State; or to be incapable. Article 69(2) also states: For the purposes of removal from office of the President, a notice in writing signed by not less than one-third of all the members of Parliament, and stating that the conduct or physical or mental capacity of the President be investigated on any of the grounds specified in Clause (1) of this article, shall be given to the speaker who shall immediately inform the Chief Justice and deliver the notice to him copied to the President. Obviously, the framers of the 1992 Constitution foresaw a time when there would be a President who qualifies to be impeached. Now the question is: Have we reached that bridge? Like many others the answer is an emphatic YES. Should we cross it? Again the answer is YES. The mismanagement of the economy has resulted in the deaths of many Ghanaians. Workers have been retrenched, marriages are breaking up daily, the number of children outside the school system outnumbers those in school. Parents have lost control over their children who are compelled to eke a living for themselves. People who are despaired resort to suicide. Strangely, at the other side of the coin is a President who speaks condescendingly to his citizens and openly says he is not obliged to listen. He and his ruling class are busily amassing wealth and fortunes at the expense of the people. The NDC has conveniently become an official mouthpiece for the Electoral Commission that has lost its independence. Let a government department or agency be exposed of a wrongdoing and the ruling party would quickly rush to its defense. The vibrant Civil Society Organizations and individuals who are sending out clear signals with respect to the bottomless pit President Mahama and his party have thrown us into, give some confidence to Ghanaians that something good is coming. Now if the Minority will not act, it must brace itself to taste the wrath of the people. A time is coming when it would be made to face the same type of music that has been composed for those in government. Geneva: Massive plunder of the worlds fisheries is destroying entire fishing communities, Kofi Annan said today at the launch of a new global initiative aimed at stemming illegal fishing. In a video message to the first International Conference of the Fisheries Transparency Initiative (FiTI), Mr Annan, the chair of the Africa Progress Panel , welcomed the initiative and underlined the importance of global collective action to halt shadowy practices in ocean fishing across the globe. The Fisheries Transparency Initiative is a high-level response to calls by the Africa Progress Panel and other influential voices for greater impetus to be given to tackle illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing, which Mr. Annan says has reached epidemic proportions in Africa. The initiative aims to increase political will and international cooperation to improve the governance, transparency and accountability of the fisheries sector. The 2014 Africa Progress Report, Grain, Fish, Money: Financing Africas Green and Blue Revolutions found that Africa is losing billions due to illegal fishing. West Africa alone is estimated to lose at least US$1.3 billion a year. This activity by trawlers from all over the world operating in African waters, is according to Mr. Annan, organized theft disguised as commerce that demands a strong, long-term international effort to combat it. Fisheries are among the most vital resources on the planet. The ocean off West Africa is one of the worlds richest fishing grounds, providing as much as a quarter of West Africans with their livelihoods. The Africa Progress Panel calls for a multilateral fisheries regime that applies sanctions to fishing vessels that do not register and report their catches It also calls on governments around to world to ratify the Port State Measures Agreement, a treaty that seeks to thwart the poachers in port from unloading their ill-gotten gains. The Panel also recommends regulatory reforms including processes to make fishing permits more transparent. Above all, Mr Annan says, international coordination is essential: This challenge is far greater than any single country can handle effectively on its own. It is also much more than just a problem for Africa. Global collective action is especially needed to nurture transparency and accountability. Better fisheries management could increase the global catch by 20 percent, bringing more jobs, better food and nutrition security, and more social and political stability too. James Asare Adjei, AGI president 04.02.2016 LISTEN Almost all applications for funding from members of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) to the Export Development and Agricultural Investment Fund (EDAIF) were last year rejected which stopped them from raising funds to carry out their operations. James Asare Adjei, president of the Association of Ghana Industries, who disclosed this Tuesday in Accra during an SMEs Stakeholder Conference organised by the Ministry of Private Sector Development and Private Public Partnership and the Trade Ministry, said Apart from the fact that the funds are unavailable, we also have only short term support. The AGI needs only GH20 million to improve the lot of its members. Short term credit Research carried out by AGI indicates that about 80 to 85 percent of all credit to businesses in general was within three to 12 months duration. So medium to long term credit virtually do not exist. So if you want to retool, expand or bring on board technology, then definitely you wouldn't be able to take credit 12 months to import equipment, which in itself will take six months to get here. Now you need about three months to test-run before you start production by which time the loan would be due for repayment while you have not actually started production with the funds you took. According to him, SMEs were borrowing at 35 percent while some multinationals were accessing credit at between 19 percent and 20 percent. There are a number of credit facilities which exist which are cheaper in our economy. You see, we don't lack the availability of cheaper sources of credit. There is EDAIF, MASLOC, Italian Fund, YES, YEA, and etc These are all sources of credit that I know were set up with the SME in mind. But the challenge has been their operations. If the banks have their money to sell at 35 percent, why will they come and take yours and sell it at 12.5 percent? So the challenge there would be so many bottlenecks put in the application processes such that cheap funding would be difficult to access, Mr Adjei said. EDAIF exhausts funds BUSINESS GUIDE learnt that SMEs were unwilling to access such funds because of the demand for collateral. . Last year, Ghana recorded a trade deficit of $4 billion because SMEs lacked the funds to produce and export. Venture Capital challenged Osman Sulemana, CEO, Venture Capital Trust Fund, which is supposed to help SMEs said, We are supposed to get about 25 percent tax revenue from the National Reconstruction Levy. In 2006, it was repealed We are now challenged. Also, he said his outfit had invested close to about GH15 million but we are not getting any returns on that. I have had discussions with His Excellency the President on the need to have the Venture Capital recapitalized. Our full job is to support SMEs and if we don't have the support, we cannot do much. Meanwhile, Ekow Afedzie, Deputy MD of Ghana Stock Exchange, has called on SMEs to access the Ghana Alternate Market (GAX) to raise medium to long-term loans. By Samuel Boadi A 13-man contingent of the Patriotic Ambassadors for Peace (PAP), a new volunteer group in the NPP, paid a courtesy call on the Party's flag-bearer, Nana Akufo-Addo at his Ringway Estate Office in Accra on Wednesday, February 3, 2016. The purpose of the meeting was to officially outdoor PAP to the flag-bearer and to assure him of the Group's voluntary support in the 2016 electioneering campaign. In the presentation, the National Coordinator of PAP, Katakyie Kwame Opoku Agyemang, outlined PAP's objective, which is to bring peace in the NPP, bridge the class gap, and more importantly canvass for votes for Nana Akufo-Addo and NPP Parliamentary Candidates to win power in 2016. Again, the flag-bearer was briefed on PAP's intended activities, which is to embark an outreach programmes in some selected orphan constituencies in Upper West, Ashanti, and Greater Accra Regions, using megaphones, local information centres, flyers, and personal contacts to preach the vision of Nana Akufo-Addo to the electorate. "We'll preach your good message of building a society of equal opportunities, where no child would go hungry to bed or leave school because of poverty", Katakyie re-echoed Nana Addo's patriotic words. The PAP executives presented three (3) specially designed PAP T-shirts to the flag-bearer so that he could become a PAPer himself. Later, the participants were asked to introduce themselves individually stating their positions in PAP and NPP, as well as, their constituencies. The National Coordinator expressed his heartfelt gratitude and that of the Group to Nana Addo for consuming 30 minutes of his time. According to Katakyie, PAP's membership now stands at 200 in all the 10 regions and abroad and that, each of them had already arisen for the crucial change this year. On his part, the NPP flag-bearer praised the leadership of PAP for the great vision. He stated; "I am so impressed with this particular visit, especially by a Group that is being led by Katakyie himself; and since the youth would be the direct beneficiaries of my presidency, God willing, it is a blessing that PAP had been outdoored at this crucial time". This attracted an applause from the members. Nana Addo further stressed the need for volunteerism in this year's campaign and charged Katakyie to liaise with Mr. Andrew Kwasi Frimpong, the National Volunteer Coordinator in the NPP Campaign Team to streamline PAP's activities. He further advised that his doors were fully open for more of such visits and that, PAPers should never hesitate to approach him when the need arises. Nana Addo reiterated his determination to bring hope to Ghanaians by implementing the right programmes and policies when elected as president. He expressed shock at the bad management style of president Mahama in spite of the abundant resources at his disposal. Nana Addo thus appealed to the Ghanaian voter population to trust and give him the mandate this time around so that together, we could build a prosperous nation devoid of greed and corruption. Present at the meeting was Mr. Francis Asenso-Boakye, Political Assistant to Nana Addo. ...Signed... Katakyie Kwame Opoku Agyemang (National Coordinator - 0202471070) Andy Oppong Amoako - Director of Organisation Gladys Ofori - G/Accra Coordinator Philanthropist, Daniel Amoateng has donated to inmates of the prison at Roman ridge. The donations formed part of his philanthropic activities and also a decision to spend his birthday with the inmates. At the prison, Daniel Amoateng had a tour of the facility while interacting with the juvenile offenders, some of whom had been sentenced to a maximum of three to five years for offences of defilement, theft and armed robbery. Daniel Amoateng who is also the founder of the Daniel Amoateng foundation, was touched by their stories upon interaction with the inmates prayed and encouraged them that they have great destinies, but should try to make the best out of where they find themselves. In an interview with yen.com.gh, philanthropist, Daniel Amoateng whose philanthropic activities spans from Liberia and Sierra Leone noted that as a people we are experts at calling on different organizations to come to our aid but we forget to help our own. Citing the words of Martin Luther King Jnr, Mr. Amoateng explained that forgetting to help our own as a nation is the ultimate tragedy. What would be remembered at the end of the day is not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends. So if we forget to help our own then that is the ultimate tragedy and it is not what the enemies would do to us, he reiterated. He added that, this forms the basis for his decision to spend his birthday with the inmates who he considers to be great people with great future and destinies, adding that it is only when you have a great destiny that the devil will fight you As part of his visit to the prison, Daniel Amoateng presented items worth thousands of Ghana cedis to the inmates and the correctional centre. The items presented include bags of rice, boxes of oil, boxes of detergents, packs of toilet rolls, boxes of disinfectants, boxes of tin fish and some can drinks. Presenting the items to the Commander in charge of the Centre, Mr. Amoateng noted that he is pleased to support them but this is just the beginning of lots of thousands and billions to come. The Commander at the centre applauded Daniel Amoateng and his team for their kind gesture and for remembering the centre. As part of the donation, Mr. Amoateng also presented an undisclosed amount of money to the Chairman of the Prisons council, Rev, Stephen Wengam to support Project Efiase. According to him, the donation is to support the recent reforms to change the phase of the prisons. He noted that he believes his thanksgiving to God for adding another year to his life is to share to the needy and less privilege in society. On his part, Rev. Wengam expressed appreciation of the council to Daniel Amoateng and called on corporate Ghana and Ghanaians living abroad to also emulate the example of Mr. Amoateng and support Project Efiase, as the prison could be everyones second home. Rev. Wengam also called on the prison ambassadors to be up and doing and help bring support to the prisons. Daniel Amoatengs visit was accompanied by movie director Pascal Amanfo and actors Timothy bentum and Emelia Brobbey. The Chief of Army Staff Major General Poku Adusei has assured the armed forces will do all within their powers to flush out Fulanis from the Agogo area. According to him, the military will stand by the regional Security Councils decision to move the nomads from the community in order to instill peace and tranquility. The nomads have been at loggerheads with the locals following the killing of over three people recently in the area. There is an uneasy calm in Agogo following the latest development. The outgoing Ashanti regional minister and chairman of REGSEC Peter Anarfi-Mensah has assured the people of Agogo and its environs that the security is on red alert to restore calm. The regional security is using this medium to assure residents, farmers and herdsmen of Agogo and its environs of their maximum protection and appeal to them to cooperate with the regional Security Council to achieve lasting peace in Agogo and its environs, Anerfi said at a press conference on Wednesday. Addressing chiefs and people of Agogo Wednesday, the CAS who is on a visit with the IGP to area said the security agencies will need the help of the residents to succeed in the operation. I assure you that we are fully in support of the decision that has been taken by the regional Security Council. We will do everything possible to ensure that they succeed with measures that have been put in place to resolve the matter. But we are urging you to support the government in this direction. It is sad that these things are happening but they have already happened, We wish that nobody died but we can't change things now. So far, we have brought in a number of security officials to start the operation and when I get to Accra, whatever we need to do to resolve this issue permanently; we will. We will try to implement the 2011 court ruling which says the Fulanis who are not from here must be moved out, he noted. 04.02.2016 LISTEN Dear Yumzaa, I received your warm felicitation with a lot of admiration to your style of write up. It shows great potential in you and certainly Insha Allah, you are a promising Star to Tolon, Dagbon and Mother Ghana. Unfortunately, your letter was spiced with malice and garnished with propaganda. Misrepresentation of facts and issues made the entire letter mischievous and mockery to this NDC adminstration. If it was to be Madagascar, you would have been charged of second degree felony punishable to death by starvation from water. Yumzaa, Just as you were on your way to Accra for your errands, Aunty Asabea from Akyem Pabi had to also rush her little boy Kofi to St Dominic's hospital at Bodua(Akwatia). It took them 45 minutes before they had a taxi, no fuel in the only ambulance in the entire district because Ghana Ambulance service is yet to defray their debt with Universal Oil and also taxi drivers has vowed never to patronize the road from Suhum-Asamankese then to Akwatia because the road is now a death trap and unmotorable. Aunty Asabea further complained that, she had to spend GHC500 for treatment because the life saving NHIS introduced by NPP has been collapsed was not operational. She had buy everything including paracetamol because none of the drugs prescribed for her was covered by the policy. This is what the poor folks in our rural communities are going through. Yumzaa, before I got to the office yesterday to start my days activity, I was late and could not join the company's bus. I paid GHC2.40p for less than 10km journey. I still remember in 2013 when we were paying 0.50p to work, today transport fares have galloped from 0.50p to 2.40p within 3 years of Mahama-Amissah led administration. In fact this clearly shows how lives have been "touched" in our communities. Yumzaa, can you believe Mr Nunfam has removed two of his ceiling fan blades leaving one, his reason been that, the more the blades of the fan the higher it consumes electric current. Don't call this ignorance but its as a result of the wanton increase in utility tarrifs. Just yesterday, the GHC100 power I bought about 8days ago got finished. How can I consume GHC100 of power withing 8days? Even if I am using heater to cook "aduwa" in commercial quantity it can't consume this amount. That's NDC and JM for you. Currently I am married to borehole. Yes the borehole behind my bungalow is free and I need to get use to it because I can no more pay for my water bills. Don't mind those who say it's normal because they still live with their parents and they don't know what it means to pay utility bill. Yumzaa, for the past year we have been buying a pound of beef for GHC12, just last Sunday when I went to buy some ingredient's for my usual "barima kwaen", you wont believe Nzo Shamsu sold a pound of beef to me for GHC14, so instead of buying 2 pounds, I bought 1 and half pound but the increase in prices of goods and services has not reflected in increase in my salary and emoluments. You see the true definition of better Ghana? Yumzaa, facts and figure have it that, funds for Suhum - Apedwa, Nsawam to Amasaman project was secured by peerless Kufour. Yumzaa, have you forgotten that humble Agya Atta on the 19th of July 2012 was forced to drive on that rough stretch all in the name inspecting the work which lead to his death because of its bad stage? The Suhum-Apedwa road has caused several miscarriages even to an extend students who by mistake get pregnant will travel along that road for safe abortion instead of buying drugs or seeing the doctor. Yumzaa, are you aware that Zaideen, Kamil, Nana and all their colleagues across the whole country after finishing school of hygiene for 2 years now have not been posted to serve their country. Sylvia, Krobea, Obaaya as nurses have worked for 8 months without salary, Dotsey, Tsatsu, Senyo, Dorvlo, and Atsu are still unemployed after the completion of their HND programmes. This has led to the formation of unemployed graduates association. This is unprecedented in the history of mother Ghana. Yumzaa, Finally mpirbi Arahanatu, Npag Dangana and mma Sheitu are all complaining that they can no more get access to "Sinapia" loans. hmm Yumzaa, Can u believe the working capital of Fati Jahima in her charcoal business has collapsed? Yes Fati Jahima has planned switching to Nyongbeika because of the hardship we are facing currently. Yumzaa, Most finally, NDC Youth groups that visits their MPs are alleging that now the bread for their breakfast at the honourable MPs house has decrease in size and weight can you believe one -man -one plate is now 3 men one plate at Hon Haruna's place? Yes things are hard and I implore you to kindly engage the youth to bear with the MPs in this trying moments. Thanks so much my brother. May Allah deliver us from the shackles of this clueless JM-Amissah led administration. Yours Tolon Brother, Saadat Ablayi Nabila 04.02.2016 LISTEN How gullible can Ghanaians be to trust such desperate people to entrust them with national administration? Has Ghana run out of leaders? The desperation is all over their faces to test the sweetness power. They so badly want power that, they dont care who they go to bed with. They say in politics they are no permanent enemies nor morals but the majority Ghanaians are not politians but people needing basic essentials to survive and enjoy their freedoms. So why should we allow vultures, criminals, drug dealers, manipulators, schemers, and power hungry people to lead us!?. When will we,Ghanaians say no to shameful people like Nana Addo who cannot tell that his time is up? Nana Addo has eaten more than what God allotted for him in an ordinary life time of a person. Ask Nana Addo how many Countries he has visited for pleasure and work. Ask Nana Addo how much he has gotten from the Ghanaian government both legal and illegal. Ask Nana Addo how many women he has had legally and illegally. What more does this old man (Nana Addo) wants before he can really say enough, let the young people come and enjoy also. How many people are striving to have even 10% of what Nana Addo has had from this Country. Surely I must be dreaming of the waste kind of selfishness of man because you cant have a better example than this. Look at the handshake of Nana Addo and Dr. Bawumia. One can smell the hypocrisy both men have, but since they are determined to get power and loot Ghana once more, as they had done in the past, they can openly express their devious acts of embracing each other when we all know they are not friends. I would rather go to jail than hold back to call these people looters because Nana Addo is indeed a smooth criminal who has stolen from Ghanaians otherwise he would account how he got rich. The arrogance and corruption tendency of Nana Addo is very clear in the minds of Ghanaians inspite of the inept and compromised Drill ship deal. Nana Addo should have also been made to explain what role he played in the drill ship saga. These people are very lucky because the system is so powerful that civil servants watch these people loot the Country but they cant stand in Court to narrate everything. They only complain to others on how evil is done at the expense of poor Ghanaians. Yes, I am not powerful to evidently outline the corruption of these criminals so that they could rot in jails, but I know much less as they do that they have stolen from Ghanaians. On this one (corruption) I make no exception of other Ndc members, people like Betty Mould Iddrisu and others know what they did with Woyome at the Attorney general ministry. Actually is by mercy of President Mahama that such people should still be in government. Ibrahim Hardi,contact 0208235615,Email;[email protected] Joint teams of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent (SARC) have managed to deliver food and hygiene items for more than twelve thousand people in the besieged town of Moadamiyeh near Damascus. Medicines and other medical items were also distributed for about 10,000 people. The teams were given access to the town yesterday. Thousands of people waited for hours on the edge of the buffer-zone separating the warring parties, where the food deliveries were made. Moadamiyeh is one of the many towns that is under siege in Syria. People in besieged areas count every day of their life as a bonus. They have so little to survive on. They want us to bring relief regularly and thats what we are continuously asking for, the ICRCs head of delegation in Syria, Marianne Gasser, who led the team which entered Moadamiyeh. What we have seen on our way into town only shows how desperate the people are in Moadamiyeh. They are hungry and they need us. Unconditional aid must be allowed to reach people in all the besieged and hard-to-reach areas in Syria, she said. With an estimated population of around 50,000, more aid is needed in the town. The ICRC and SARC are hoping to bring morein during the coming days. The latest food supplies will only last for around three weeks; the medical supplies for three months. The population of difficult to access area, Al Tal, in Rural Damascus, began receiving ICRC-provided food and hygiene kits on 2nd February. They were delivered by the SARC. The supplies included food for 17,500 people, hygiene kits for 3,500 families and 25 metric tons of other food items meant for the collective kitchen which provides cooked food for about 6000 people per day. Discussions are ongoing to bring more relief to besieged Madaya in Rural Damascus and Foua and Kafraya in Idlebgovernorate. The ICRC has repeatedly called for continued and unimpeded access to these and other besieged areas and for all sieges to be lifted. The Supreme Court has dismissed a suit filed by embattled High Court Judge, Justice Paul Utter Dery. Justice Dery had prayed the court to declare as null and void a petition filed by Tiger Eye PI, which was calling for his removal for allegedly engaging in a corrupt practice. According to him, the petition should be declared null and void because the publication of Tiger Eye's Petition to the President in the media, as well as the public screening at the Accra International Conference Centre (AICC) of the evidence (video), and the Judicial Council's naming of the Judges involved in the 'Bribery Scandal' in a press release on September 11, 2015, contravened Article 146 (8) of the 1992 Constitution and therefore unconstitutional. But the seven member panel that dismissed the suit said despite the breach of the provisions of confidentiality clause by the petitioner for the removal of justices, there was no provision for annulment of the processes as remedy to the matter. The justices also indicated that the action by the Chief Justice could not be said to be unconstitutional as she has given the applicant an opportunity to prove his innocence to the committee set up to investigate the issue. 04.02.2016 LISTEN Agricultural policies aimed at alleviating poverty in Africa could be making things worse, according to research by the University of East Anglia (UEA). Published this month in the journal World Development, the study finds that so-called green revolution policies in Rwanda - claimed by the government, international donors and organisations such as the International Monetary Fund to be successful for the economy and in alleviating poverty - may be having very negative impacts on the poorest. One of the major strategies to reduce poverty in sub-Saharan Africa is through policies to increase and modernise agricultural production. Up to 90 per cent of people in some African countries are smallholder farmers reliant on agriculture, for whom agricultural innovation, such as using new seed varieties and cultivation techniques, holds potential benefit but also great risk. In the 1960s and 70s policies supporting new seeds for marketable crops, sold at guaranteed prices, helped many farmers and transformed economies in Asian countries. These became known as green revolutions. The new wave of green revolution policies in sub-Saharan Africa is supported by multinational companies and western donors, and is impacting the lives of tens, even hundreds of millions of smallholder farmers, according to the studys lead author Dr Neil Dawson. The study reveals that only a relatively wealthy minority have been able to keep to enforced modernisation because the poorest farmers cannot afford the risk of taking out credit for the approved inputs, such as seeds and fertilizers. Their fears of harvesting nothing from new crops and the potential for the government to seize and reallocate their land means many choose to sell up instead. The findings tie in with recent debates about strategies to feed the world in the face of growing populations, for example the influence of wealthy donors such as the Gates Foundation, initiatives such as the New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition, and multinational companies such as Monsanto in pushing agricultural modernisation in Africa. There have also been debates about small versus large farms being best to combat hunger in Africa, while struggles to maintain local control over land and food production, for example among the Oromo people in Ethiopia, have been highlighted. Dr Dawson, a senior research associate in UEAs School of International Development, said: Similar results are emerging from other experiments in Africa. Agricultural development certainly has the potential to help these people, but instead these policies appear to be exacerbating landlessness and inequality for poorer rural inhabitants. Many of these policies have been hailed as transformative development successes, yet that success is often claimed on the basis of weak evidence through inadequate impact assessments. And conditions facing African countries today are very different from those past successes in Asia some 40 years ago. Such policies may increase aggregate production of exportable crops, yet for many of the poorest smallholders they strip them of their main productive resource, land. This study details how these imposed changes disrupt subsistence practices, exacerbate poverty, impair local systems of trade and knowledge, and threaten land ownership. It is startling that the impacts of policies with such far-reaching impacts for such poor people are, in general, so inadequately assessed. The research looked in-depth at Rwanda's agricultural policies and the changes impacting the wellbeing of rural inhabitants in eight villages in the countrys mountainous west. Here chronic poverty is common and people depend on the food they are able to grow on their small plots. Farmers traditionally cultivated up to 60 different types of crops, planting and harvesting in overlapping cycles to prevent shortages and hunger. However, due to high population density in Rwandas hills, agricultural policies have been imposed which force farmers to modernise with new seed varieties and chemical fertilisers, to specialise in single crops and part with archaic agricultural practices. Dr Dawson and his UEA co-authors Dr Adrian Martin and Prof Thomas Sikor recommend that not only should green revolution policies be subject to much broader and more rigorous impact assessments, but that mitigation for poverty-exacerbating impacts should be specifically incorporated into such policies. In Rwanda, that means encouraging land access for the poorest and supporting traditional practices during a gradual and voluntary modernisation. Green Revolution in Sub-Saharan Africa: Implications of Imposed Innovation for the Wellbeing of Rural Smallholders, Neil Dawson, Adrian Martin and Thomas Sikor, is published in World Development. The Supreme Court has dismissed a suit brought by Justice Paul Dery seeking to quash impeachment proceedings against him. The court said even though there is some merit in his argument, the matters in issue are too weighty to be ignored simply on the basis of technicalities. Justice Dery is one of 12 High Court judges accused of trading justice for money. Journalist Anas Aremeyaw Anas and his Tiger Eye PI which collected evidence against the judges petitioned the president to remove them from the Bench. The Chief Justice Georgina Theodora Wood initiated impeachment proceedings against the judges. Justice Dery has been filing cases upon cases against his removal. He brought a case at the Supreme Court arguing that Anas and Tiger Eye PI breached the constitution by publishing the contents of the audio-visual recordings which formed the basis for the petition against him. He further stated that the Chief Justice also breached Article 146 of the constitution by writing and making public letters relating to the proceedings. The relevant Article states that " All proceedings under this article shall be held in camera, and the Justice or Chairman against whom the petition is made is entitled to be heard in his defence by himself or by a lawyer or other expert of his choice." Justice insisted that the publication of the letters and contents of the videos constituted a clear violation of this provision. To that extent, he asked the Supreme Court to declare the petition against null and void and to effect. He also wanted the proceedings of the Chief Justice to be stopped. In its ruling Thursday, the Supreme Court agreed that it was wrong for Tiger Eye PI to publish the contents of the evidence. It, however, held that the investigation touched the integrity of the judiciary and could not be stopped because of the technical issues raised by Justice Dery. The highest court of the land, Joy News Kwakye Afreh Nuamah reported, maintained the Chief Justice was empowered by law to lead the process of the investigation. It, therefore, refused Justice Dery the reliefs he was seeking. His lawyer, Nii Kpakpo Samoa Addo, told Afreh Nuamah after the ruling that they were not disappointed. He said they were satisfied that they established the fact that it was wrong for Tiger Eye to publish the audio-visual recordings even before the Chief Justice made a prima facie finding against the embattled judge. They are expected to bright further cases to court. The ruling party, National Democratic Congress (NDC) says it does not believe Ghanaians consider the opposition New Patriotic Party (NPP) as an alternative party to form the next government. Deputy General Secretary of the NDC, Koku Anyidoho asserts there are clear indications the NPP's Flagbearer, Nana Akufo Addo and his Running Mate, Alhaji Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia have run out of ideas and policies to counter the good policies of President John Dramani Mahama. Commenting on Akufo Addos description of the president as Ogu Adwuma to wit loosely: destroyer of businesses, Koku Anyidoho told Okay Fm's Kwame Nkrumah Tikese on the "Ade Akye Abia" Morning Show that such an offensive remark can only be expected from a presidential candidate who has no campaign message for Ghanaians and alternative policies for the country. The NPP 2016 Flagbearer, at a conference organised by the party in the Ashanti regional capital, Kumasi, with a view to mobilising support from the Zongo communities in Kumasi ahead of the election in November, said Ghanaians were looking up to the NPP to win the 2016 elections decisively and govern this country with honesty and competence so that prosperity could be generated for the people. It is our duty in the NPP to work tirelessly this year to lay bare the facts of widespread corruption, manifest incompetence and increased poverty before the Ghanaian people. They must have no doubt about the compelling necessity of saying goodbye to Ogu Adwuma John Mahama and his government, no matter the juicy inducements that are going to be offered to them by unscrupulous and corrupt politicians, Nana Addo said. But in a sharp riposte, Mr Anyidoho pointed out that the upcoming elections will not be based on huge electronic bill boards displaying images of candidates nor on the path of propaganda and lies that the NPP intends to use to convince Ghanaians to vote for them. Even if Ghanaians decide not to vote for the Mahama administration, there is no alternative government to emerge from the NPP because Nana Addo and Bawumia have no messagethere is nothing for them to do again after all the good job President Mahama is doing.they have not come out with an alternative policy should Ghanaians vote them into power on November 7, 2016, he stated. 04.02.2016 LISTEN The Minister in charge of the Dominion House Christian Centre (Glory Assembly), at Fiapre, near Sunyani, Rev. Sarah Adjei, has advised politicians and Ghanaians in general to be circumspect in their utterances as the country prepares for general election in November, 2016. She said election is not a time for war, conflict or confusion, but only a period to choose a leader and lawmakers for the people. Rev. Adjei maintained that retaining or changing a government of the nation should not plunge the country into chaos and anarchy. The Reverend Minister was speaking to Suncity Radio after a Graduation Service at her church on Sunday. She explained that politics of insults has not done any good to any nation and Ghana is no exception. She, therefore, urged Ghanaians to go about the November general elections with all decency and decorum, and accept the outcome in good faith. Lets go about the election with orderliness, so that the Good Lord would give us leaders fit for the nations growth and transformation, she advised. Eighteen Pastors, comprising 10 females and 8 males, passed out successfully after one-year Theological studies at the Dominion House Bible School. Rev. Sarah Adjei, who doubles as the Director of the school, urged the Graduands to go out and be faithful and humble servants in the Lords vineyard and make positive impact on society. 04.02.2016 LISTEN More people are donating to a one Ghana cedi campaign initiated by an NGO, BY foundation. The project seeks to raise funds to support all the humanity projects of the Foundation. The modus Operandi of the project is to appeal to individuals, famous people in the society to donate just one Ghana cedi note to support the project which seeks to raise funds to help deprived communities and individuals in the society. The project will be carried out throughout the country to appeal to the conscience of wealthy men in the society to support humanity. BY foundation will post pictures and video of individuals and organizations, including government departments who will donate to the course. The project is part of the Foundations effort to support the deprived and less privileged in rural communities BY Foundation introduced a project dubbed one Ghana cedi campaign to solicit for funds to support deprived persons in the society. The foundation is non-governmental organization (NGO), non-profit making established in the year 2011 and finally registered and incorporated in 2014 with the Registrar Generals Department. The foundation had since been engaged in projects and activities like the environmental issues, gender and development, climate change etc. B.Y. Foundation is a humanitarian organization whose aim is to improve the well- being of people affected by poverty in our society; we have been fighting global poverty and defending the dignity of people around the world since inception. B.Y. Foundation currently works in poor and developing countries, helping millions of the worlds poorest people find routes out of poverty. We are there to provide life-saving assistance when disaster strikes, and to help people rebuild their lives afterwards. And we are there to work alongside poor people and communities on long-term programmes to deliver lasting change. Our programmes and our policy work tackle the underlying causes of poverty so that people can become self-sufficient. IMAGE(1).JPEG IMAGE(3).JPEG In a move that will likely upset Biotechs long-term plans for Africa, the African country Burkina Faso has abandoned genetically modified Bt Cotton crops in order to phase out inferior quality GM crops for non-GM crops. The biotech industry has been claiming that Bt cotton would be an ideal crop for poor farmers, stating, Bt cotton varieties have been adopted by commercial and smallholder farmers in several developing countries, including China, South Africa, and India, all the while singing the crops praise. But a different tune has been developing, exposing the GM crops to be a bad investment. In fact, the UKs environment minister has claimed that GM crops are necessary to help address hunger in developing countries, and that it would be immoral for Britain not to help developing countries to take up GMOs. The US has had a similar stance, as has the UN and WHO. Countless small-scale farmers in Africa would disagree, though. African farmers and civil society have repeatedly rejected GM crops, and asked their governments to ban them. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has been actively pursuing Africa for GM crop testing, as well, dumping grant money where they can find a foothold. But a new briefing published by Brian Dowd-Uribe, Assistant Professor in the International Studies Department at the University of San Francisco and Matthew A. Schnurr, Associate Professor in the Department of International Development Studies at Dalhousie University, describes exactly why GM cotton and other crops are not what Africa needs at all. The professors briefing describes the rapid decline of Burkina Fasos cotton crop following the introduction of GM Bt cotton. At the time, Burkinabe cotton was renowned for its high quality, the product of a highly successful non-GM breeding program founded by the French government and spanning 70 years. In just a few years, since Bt GM cotton has been introduced, farmers have experienced high yields, but of a substandard cotton product. Previously, before Bt cotton, African cotton had a high ginning ratio (the percentage of the desired cotton fiber per unit weight of cotton delivered to the factory) and long staple length. This is now absent from the Bt cotton harvested. The ginning ratio remains well below the 42% achieved by non-GMO cultivars. For Burkina Fasos farmers, it has become clear that focus on yields alone are not the defining factor of a crops success. The yield in Burkina Faso was high with Bt cotton; in the most recent growing season, it produced over 700,000 MT of cotton, while neighboring Mali produced only 500,000 MT. Yet within a few months, Malis entire product had been sold on the international market, while most of Burkina Fasos languished awaiting export. One high-ranking official lamented: What is the point in being the top producer if you cant even sell your cotton? For these reasons, the country will slowly phase out Bt cotton, even while Monsanto tries to introduce new strains of Bt cotton into Africa. Burkina Faso companies plan on reduce the amount of Bt cottonseed on the market from 53% in 2015/16 to 30% in the 2016/17 growing season, with the goal of a complete return to non-GM cotton in time for the 2017/18 season. 04.02.2016 LISTEN A woman has revealed how she told police where to find one of the lead Paris attackers, Abdelhamid Abaaoud. She described how she was with Abaaouds cousin when they met the killer two days after the 13 November attacks in which 130 people died. Abaaoud told her he was proud of what he had done and claimed that some 90 others had travelled from Syria and were still in the Paris area. He and his cousin both died when police raided their flat days later. The woman, identified only as Sonia, told French radio station RMC she was with Abaaouds cousin, Hasna Ait Boulahcen, when her friend received a phone-call telling her to get a car to pick someone up. The two women went together to an industrial area of Aubervilliers, in the Saint-Denis area of northern Paris. After Boulahcen had called out a special code, 10-10, Abaaoud emerged from a bush wearing a sun hat, orange trainers and bomber jacket. He was smiling too, he didnt look like a terrorist at all, she said. Sonia describes how Boulahcen cried out Hamid, youre alive. What are you doing here? and how he tells her he needs a place to stay for 48 hours. Abaaoud, a Belgian national, was well known to French authorities before the Paris attacks and had been given a 20-year jail sentence in absentia months earlier for recruiting for so-called Islamic State (IS) in Syria. He was thought to have joined IS in 2013. French Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve has implicated him in four out of six Islamist attacks that were foiled in France in 2015. In her interview, in which her voice is heavily disguised, Sonia describes engaging Abaaoud in conversation: Sonia: Were you involved in what happened on the 13 November? . Abaaoud: The cafe-terraces was me. Sonia: But you killed innocent people. Abaaoud: No, they werent innocent. You should see whats happening to us in Syria. During the car journey, Abaaoud then tells the women how he and others came back to France from Syria without official documents. As many as 90 people Syrians, Iraqis, French and English people had travelled to France and were scattered around the Paris area, he tells them. Having told his cousin to find him a hideout and spare shoes and clothes, Abaaoud then jumps out of the car and Sonia describes how she told Boulahcen to contact police. Boulahcen refuses, explaining he has to finish his job and then he will leave. Chillingly, Sonia says more attacks were to come, at a shopping centre, a police station and a nursery in La Defense business district in Paris. Abaoouds exact words, she says were: Some of the attacks were botched and Im here to make sure there wont be any more that are botched. She then describes phoning the emergency number given out by the French government for information about the attackers. Police raided the hideout on 18 November, killing Abaaoud, Hasna Ait Boulahcen and a second man, identified last month as Chakib Akrouh, another Belgian Moroccan, who was 25. In her account, Sonia explains she came forward because she feels abandoned by the authorities and lacking necessary protection. Police told her to change her name and town, but because she still has the same identity card Sonia complains that she is unable to find work. And because she has not been given police protection, she worries for her life. -bbc Sorry, we can't find the content you're looking for at this URL. 04.02.2016 LISTEN In the middle of the Baltic Sea, a chilly east wind blows across a former Cold War frontier. After more than 20 years of strategic irrelevance, and thanks to increasingly unpredictable Russian behaviour, Gotland is back in the spotlight. It is the latest chapter in the islands long military history, and one returning soldier is thrilled. Its almost a dream come true, says Lt Col Stefan Pettersson. After a decade in civilian life, Pettersson is back in uniform, preparing to take command of the Swedish islands defences. As he scans the snowy landscape where he and his colleagues used to train, he is still pinching himself. I always had a dream to come back as an officer and to do it here on Gotland and establish a new unit, its perfect, he tells me. The new Gotland battlegroup, expected to take shape by the end of next year, will number 300 full and part-time soldiers. The former barracks have long since been turned into local government offices. In a frigid, air-conditioned warehouse, deep in the forest, 14 German-made Leopard tanks are already waiting for their crews to join them. Its all a far cry from the 15-20,000 military personnel who were stationed on Gotland at the height of the Cold War, but officials say reinforcements can be sent in quickly if needed. Febrile atmosphere You are in the middle of Nato on one hand and Russia on the other, Pettersson says. Gotland is in the middle of this. And while this doesnt yet represent a return to Cold War realities, it does refer to an increasingly febrile Baltic atmosphere. Swedish officials say Russian military aircraft frequently infringe Swedish airspace. In 2014, the country was transfixed for a week by reports that a Russian submarine was lurking in the shallow waters of the Stockholm archipelago. What we can see is that there are more exercises, more military activities in the Baltic Sea, Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist tells me. We can also see more proactive activities, flying close to our aircraft. Its one thing to see what the Russians are doing, but what does it all mean? No-one in Sweden believes that Russia would launch an unprovoked attack on a country outside the former Soviet Union, but Moscow is seen as increasingly unpredictable. Did we understand, before it happened, the annexation of Crimea? Did we understand that they were very close to starting something in Eastern Ukraine? says Michael Byden, Supreme Commander of Swedens armed forces. This is one of the great challenges right now: what are they up to and why do they do it? Some analysts believe Russias behaviour has more to do with shoring up Vladimir Putins domestic support than probing Swedish defences. . But whatever the rationale, its already prompted the Swedish government to boost defence spending and shift the militarys focus to regional security after two decades in which international operations took precedence. It has also triggered a lively debate about whether Sweden should join Nato. Opinion polls conducted last year showed, for the first time, almost half of all Swedes were in favour of joining Nato , with a slightly smaller number opposed. This represents a sharp recent increase. In 2012, fewer than one in five Swedes were in favour. Russian behaviour only partly explains the sudden jump, says Jacob Westberg, who lectures in strategy at the Swedish Defence University in Stockholm. The first factor is an increased awareness of the sad state of the Swedish armed forces when it comes to defending Swedish territory, he says. Weak defence In December 2012, the former chief of staff triggered consternation with his admission that Swedens military could only defend itself for a week in the face of an attack. This resulted in a dramatic debate, Westberg says. Is it true? Could it be this bad? And it was. Military chiefs are still embarrassed by the 2013 Russian Easter incident , when six Russian aircraft carried out a simulated attack on Stockholm, and the Swedish air force failed to scramble any of its jets. Sweden already cooperates closely with Nato members. Its forces are more interoperable than many alliance members. In 2011, Swedish Gripen jets participated in the Nato-led intervention in Libya. But a country which hasnt fought a war since 1814 and which prides itself on a tradition of neutrality and non-alliance is reluctant to take the logical next step. Despite its close relationship with Nato, Jacob Westberg says the country is pursuing a free-riding strategy. We are letting the security of our own country be dependent on other states ability to deter Russia from further aggression, he says. During the Russian Easter incident, it fell to two Danish jets, operating as part of Natos Quick Reaction Alert, to scramble from a base in Lithuania. Until Sweden is fully integrated in a collective effort to defend the Baltic region, Westberg says, Stockholm wont be seen as a fully reliable partner. Back in Gotland, one of Stefan Petterssons former colleagues, retired colonel Joakim Martell, calls the governments renewed attention on this strategic island a good start. But a man who spent fifteen years of his military career in Gotland says Sweden needs to go further. Its also important to have a more strategic view on the island as part of the security network were connected to, he says. To be quite clear, that is part of the Nato network that Sweden should be connected to more than we are today. -bbc 04.02.2016 LISTEN The Odumase District Pastor of the Church of Pentecost, Pastor Isaac Amankwah Junior has cautioned the so-called Prophets who have been predicting the outcome of the November 7th Presidential Election to put a stop to the unwarranted prophecies. He has subsequently warned Ghanaians to beware of those prophets since their actions have the potential to plunge the country into political turmoil. Pastor Amankwah Junior was preaching the sermon at Odumase to round-off a week-long prayer festival dubbed: Direction 2016 organized by the Odumase District of the Church of Pentecost in the Brong-Ahafo region. The man of God urged Ghanaians to keep the peace in the run-up to November general election and thereafter. He further asked Ghanaian to keep on praying to ensure that the country had peaceful and successful elections for everyone to continue to live in peace and enjoy the fruits of his or her labor. Pastor Amankwah underscored the need for the Electoral Commission (EC) and the ruling government to ensure that the 2016 elections become free, fair and transparent for the sake of national unity and cohesion. According to him, free, fair and transparent election is one of the benchmarks of every democratic society and warned voters to eschew double voting. The man of God said it is only when there is equal level playing field for all political parties that could bring sanity into the elections and urged the Electoral Commission to ensure that the contesting parties have equal opportunity. He asked Ghanaians to have faith in God since he is in full control of the nation and would give Ghanaians a leader comes November 7th this year. Pastor Amankwah called on the youth not to allow themselves to be used as agents of violence, but channel their energies and might towards a profitable venture. From Michael Boateng, Odumase The outgoing Ashanti Regional Minister, Mr. Peter Anarfi-Mensah has assured that the Regional Security Council (REGSEC) is not sleeping on the Agogo crisis. Briefing the media on the growing Agogo insecurity issue, the Minister, who is the chairman of the REGSEC, said that in their quest to mitigate the issue, REGSEC has directed the Ashanti Regional Police Command to take all necessary steps to engage leaders of the various stakeholders in Agogo and other communities to bring the situation under control. The death of Okomfo Akwasi Badu, a fetish priest of the paramount chief of Agogo, Nana Akuoko Sarpong, David Attea and one unknown Fulani, all pertaining to escalating farmers-Fulani herdsmen fracas that has led to uneasy calm in Agogo in the Asante Akyem North of the Ashanti Region. The Minister said REGSEC shall respond appropriately to any fallout from these security operations adding that, the Council has also introduced swift action to deal with any infraction of the law in the area. We have to note that in the cause of performance per our duty as REGSEC, we cannot allow the Fulanis as foreigners to be the target for attacks, he indicated, adding we need to protect them as well; they are members of Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) and their protection is equally paramount, so we have to find a safe way for them to leave the area. Our target is to get rid of them from the area and we have to find a safe way for them to leave. Therefore, those of you who think the military and police must move and harass or kill them, it's not our target. On the way forward, the outgoing Ashanti Regional Minister indicated that REGSEC has immediate, short and long security terms to tackle the Fulani menace once and for all, adding that the immediate one starts from today, with security officers deployed to Agogo to augment the local security on the ground and will end in March 2016, and that the time would be extended if the need arises. According to the REGSEC head, the short term is from now to the end of the dry season and indicated that an earlier warning system to detect time of arrival and movements of these nomadic Fulanis. They are coming in and going out unpredictably. You cannot predict them. The only issue constant is that you will see them at the onset of every dry season flocking into Ghana, notably November, December and there about, he told the media. It becomes very difficult for us to predict that is why we are putting early warning systems at the various entry point of the Region by strengthening and intensifying the patrolling of the area. Minister Anarfi-Mensah assured residents of Agogo and its environs of maximum protection by REGSEC and appealed to them to cooperate with the REGSEC to achieve lasting peace for Agogo, Drobonso and other areas. He advised opinion leaders to refrain from inciting people by taking the law into their own hands. The Minister admitted that the issue of Fulani herdsmen is not only associated with Agogo, but also Drobonso and its environs have experienced an influx of Fulani herdsmen during the harmattan season, revealing that the fertile stretch of land along the Afram river have become a source of fodder for Cattle during the dry harmattan season, under the stewardship of these Fulani herdsmen. According to him, the area stretches from Konongo, Agogo, Ejura and portions of the Afram plains in the eastern Region. From Richard Owusu-Akyaw, Kumasi 04.02.2016 LISTEN Melcom Care Foundation, a charity branch of Melcom Group of Companies, has donated cash, two digital television sets and office furniture to the Ghana Nation Fire Service (GNFS), Takoradi, and the Institute of Financial and Economic Journalists (IFEJ). The donations were part of the One Stop Shop Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to encourage organizations that their contributions are impacting on society positively. Presenting the donations, the Melcom Group of Companies' Director of Communications, Mr. Godwin Avernogbo, indicated that the One Stop Shop was supporting institutions and groups, especially IFEJ, because they want to encourage journalists who have specialized in financial reporting and analysis. Melcom is in business and as business people, we are interested in growing media and supporting specialization in financial and business reporting, he said. He said Ghanaian journalists must make efforts to specialize in areas that are relevant to the growth of the economy and should go beyond just reporting the news to making analysis. We are looking forward to the time when business news will no longer only be a platform for advertising brands, but become a segment of news that would throw the searchlight on bottlenecks in the business facilitation process such as exports, imports, duties, clearing of goods, manufacturing, distribution and energy supply, etc. He also said over the years, they have been cooperating with the GNFS, Accra, but wanted to extend a similar gesture to other outlets in the regions. We want to appreciate the Ghana National Fire Service for the efforts they make in keeping the incidence of destruction of life and property by fire to the minimum. To those who doubt this, we say, ask yourself what the state of the nation would have been in view of the spate of fires nationwide in 2015, without the Fire Service's intervention. The IFEJ received a donation of a 14 inches digital television and the GNFS received cash of GH2500, office furniture and 32 inches digital television. The Takoradi Station Officer, Emmanuel Acherefi, thanked Melcom for the support and advised citizens to be watchful of things that would ignite fire outbreaks during the dry season. He said the harmatan weather can easily cause fire. Thus, he charged parents to be watchful over their wards, so that they don't play with matches and fire crackers. The President of IFEJ, Lloyd Evans, also thanked Melcom and said the donation will be given as an award to this year's Financial and Economic Best Journalist. By Bernice Bessey 04.02.2016 LISTEN A member of the Ashanti Regional Election Taskforce of the ruling National Democratic Congress (NDC) and ex-deputy National Coordinator of GYEEDA, Alhaji Alhassan Tapsoba, has, once again, jumped to the defence of the Ashanti Regional Police Commander, DCOP Nathan Kofi Boakye, following criticism by some Members of Parliament (MPs) over his threat to arrest the MP for Agogo, Kwadwo Baah Agyemang. The tough-talking Police Commander came under a barrage of criticism from some MPs, particularly, those on the side of the Minority, after issuing a threat to cause the arrest of the Agogo MP, who he accused of inciting residents against Fulani herdsmen operating in the Agogo community. The action of DCOP Kofi Boakye followed what he said was the deliberate incitement of the youth of Agogo to take arms against Fulani herdsmen, who are allegedly terrorising residents of the community. The legislators, however, faulted the police boss for publicly threatening a Member of Parliament, and even contemplated dragging him before the Privileges Committee to answer questions. Subsequently, there are reports of threats against the decorated Police Commander, a situation which has compelled some leading members of the NDC to jump to his defence. Speaking to The Chronicle in an interview, the former GYEEDA Coordinator said the treatment being meted out to DCOP Kofi Boakye was highly unfair, contending that the Ashanti Regional Police boss was only doing his job as an enforcer of law and order. He said they would resist any attempt to use DCOP Kofi Boakye as a scapegoat, insisting that as a police boss, DCOP Kofi Boakye has done enough to ensure peace and safety in the region. He argued that as a Police Commander, his job was to ensure security for all persons in Ghana, irrespective of their nationality, and therefore, any attempt to intimidate him for executing his duty was unfair. Alhaji Tapsoba, who openly condemned some members of his party for calling for the transfer of the Police Commander, warned of dire consequences for the security of this country, if the police are not allowed to execute their task without any interference. According to him, he wondered why the public had refused to condemn the MP, Kwadwo Baah, who is constantly creating an atmosphere of insecurity in the Agogo community. He said not only was the MP inciting the youth to attack the Fulani herdsmen, he was also encouraging them to show gross disrespect to the Paramount Chief of the Agogo Traditional Council, Nana Akuoko Sarpong. Why should the public gloss over the unacceptable attitude of a whole MP who continues to show gross insubordination against traditional authority, he questioned. Alhaji Tapsoba further asserted that the MPs action was politically motivated, alleging that he had picked intelligence of a plot by the opposition party to prevent people of northern descent living in the Agogo community from participating in the upcoming limited registration exercise. As a member of the election taskforce of the NDC, our checks indicate that if the youth carry through their action, lots of innocent voters will be affected, because some of these people have family members who are legitimate Ghanaians, Alhaji Tapsoba alleged. He, therefore, warned members of the ruling party from joining the dirty campaign of the NPP and other selfish individuals to smear the hardworking Police Commander. From Issah Alhassan, Kumasi Nairobi (AFP) - When driver service Uber launched in Kenya's tech-savvy capital, it was eagerly welcomed by many in Nairobi. But the taxi app has faced a violent backlash from traditional cab drivers angry at the new competition, with Uber drivers and cars attacked. "A car came in front of me, blocked my access from the exit. A few guys came out and stabbed my left tyres, both of them, front and back," said Martin, an Uber driver, who like many asked only to be indentified by his first name. "I understand their frustration, but like in any normal business, competition has to be allowed to progress." Launched in San Francisco in 2009, Uber now boasts of operating in 400 cities across 68 countries, and says on its website it "delivers food and packages, as well as people, all at the push of a button." Some visitors to Kenya might be surprised at seeing people tap on a smartphone to order a cab, followed by a driver bouncing down the often potholed or even dirt roads a few minutes later. But the East African nation has a thriving tech start-up scene, including the enormously successful M-Pesa mobile money transfer system which allows clients to send cash with their cellphones. - 'Barbaric acts' - With formal registered taxis few and far between outside major hotels or airports, people previously relied on a handful of telephone numbers of private taxi drivers to pick them up. In a city famed for sometimes nightmarish traffic jams, an online service that can see a driver arrive within minutes had a ready and willing market, proving popular immediately. But that also made others angry and triggered some violent reaction. Another Uber driver, Victor, described how a colleague was dragged out of the car, beaten, and had his phone and cash stolen. "Most of Uber drivers are kind of scared. During the day, there are not such incidents, it's safe," Victor said. "It is only at night that you are getting intimidations, threats, all those crazy happenings." Uber does not employ drivers or own vehicles, but instead uses non-professionally licensed contractors with their own cars, allowing them to run their own businesses. Traditional taxis remain fiercely opposed. "Some of these taxi drivers are operating as hooligans... They rob you, they beat you up, they vandalize the car," another Uber driver said. Kenyan police say there have been multiple reports of violence but insist they are taking action. "We have received numerous complaints from Uber taxi drivers complaining how they are being harassed by these other drivers and even assaulted," police spokesman Charles Owino said. "This is a matter we are taking very, very seriously." Kenya's Interior Ministry has issued a "strong word of caution to those behind the attacks that such barbaric acts cannot and shall not be tolerated." - 'Join the technology' - Uber, valued at over $50 billion, and operating in five African countries -- Egypt, Morocco, South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya -- has tried to calm the opposition. "We have been engaging with taxi associations since last year to find a way that we can partner with them," said Uber spokeswoman Samantha Allenberg. "We do not feel that it should be about Uber or taxi - but rather Uber and taxi." But taxi drivers say they won't back down, issuing an ultimatum ending on next Wednesday to the government to shut down Uber, or they will block roads in Nairobi -- already congested with hours long traffic jams at the best of times. Job Nzioka, senior member of the Kenya Taxi Cab Association, denies his members have been involved in attacks. "Those are lies," he said, dismissing reports Uber cars have been smashed up, and saying the taxi drivers in his association would not engage in violence. "They are disciplined -- because we also have our way of disciplining our guys when they go out of the way," he added. Uber drivers say they will not give up, and that it is the traditional drivers who should adapt. "It's very hard to fight technology," said Daniel, a driver. "It is here: it is changing things, it is making things become efficient. "The only way to survive with the coming of new technology is to join the technology." 04.02.2016 LISTEN The Africa Center for International Law and Accountability (ACILA) has urged member states of the African Union (AU) to concentrate on preventing international crimes from occurring and, if they occur, prosecute persons who commit these crimes to avoid prosecution by the International Criminal Court (ICC). To this end, African states and not the ICC, hold the key to solving the perceived problem of targeting of African leaders by the ICC. In a statement signed by Mr. William Nyarko, Executive Director of ACILA, he explained that ICC operates on complementarity, meaning that the ICC only steps in as a court of last resort when states are unable or unwilling to prosecute persons for international crimes, notably genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. This also means that a state may ratify the Rome Statute, which set up the ICC, and not have to worry about having its leader or citizen appearing before the ICC if the state takes steps to prevent international crimes from occurring or prosecutes its citizen when these crimes are committed, he said. The statement came following a decision by the African Union to back Kenyas call for the withdrawal of member states from the ICC. It was not the first time that a call to boycott the ICC had been made, but it was the first time that the AU as a body had backed such a call. South Africa and other African states had earlier threatened to withdraw from the ICC. Commenting on the perceived targeting of African leaders by the ICC, Mr. Nyarko said that while it is true that the majority of cases that the ICC had prosecuted involved African leaders, however, the facts do not support the charge of targeting by the ICC, noting that an examination of the charge of targeting should take into account the frequency of international crimes on the continent, whether African states were able or willing to prosecute alleged perpetrators, and who referred the cases to the ICC. He said that out of the nine situations prosecuted by the ICC, African leaders themselves referred the majority of these cases to the ICC, an indication that African states were unable or unwilling to prosecute these alleged perpetrators, sometimes for obvious security reasons. Considering that the three ways that the ICC becomes seized of a case, including state referral, proprio motu by the ICC prosecutor, that is, the prosecutor acting on information, and a referral by the United Nations Security Council, the preponderance of referrals by African states themselves is very significant in challenging the viability of the issue of perceived targeting by the ICC, he added. On the oft-repeated issue about why former President George Bush, Prime Minister Tony Blair and Vice-President Dick Cheney had not been brought before the ICC while African leaders were before the ICC, Mr. Nyarko said that the counter argument is that the crimes that some African leaders had been prosecuted were not committed by Bush, Blair or Cheney; they were allegedly committed by Africans, noting that if Bush, Cheney, or Blair had committed the crimes in Africa and African leaders had been prosecuted instead of Bush, Cheney or Blair, then the issue of targeting would become viable. He said that the fact that Bush, Blair, or Cheney had not been brought before the ICC for their alleged role in the Iraqi invasion does not mean that Africans should not be brought to trial at the ICC, adding that the US had not ratified the Rome Statute and a referral by the UN Security Council will be vetoed by the US. All lives matter, but in the end, we, Africans, must take care of our own problems and not be detained by what allegedly occurred in Iraq to prevent us from acting to stop impunity on the African continentWe need to provide victims assurance against impunity and we can do this by prosecuting people either through our own domestic courts or continental courts. Mr. Nyarko, however, regretted that in many instances when Africa had to act, it had failed to do so, citing several cases, including the genocide in Rwanda, Darfur, Central African Republic, Uganda, and now Burundi. The African Union has indicated that it will establish a continental criminal court to prosecute international crimes currently within the jurisdiction of the ICC, but while welcoming the idea, critics doubt that the proposed court would be effective since African leaders had already given themselves immunity from prosecution while they are in office, a clear violation of international criminal law where no immunity is available. The Abudu royal gate has petitioned President John Dramani Mahama to grant them access to the Gbewa Palace to perform the final funeral rites of their late chief, Naa Mahamadu Abdulai IV. This follows an ultimatum they issued few weeks ago threatening to enter the Palace by force if government fails to give them the go ahead. The Abudus have always argued that their late chief, Naa Mahamadu, was legitimately enskinned and his final funeral rites must be performed at the Gbewa Palace in Yendi. The other side of the Dagbon Chieftaincy divide, the Andanis also issued a counter threat daring the Abudus to enter the palace and bear the consequences of their action. These threats have triggered some tension in the area especially because the two families have a history of a bloody war. Security was beefed up in the area to avert a repeat of the 2002 massacre which led to the beheading of the overlord of Dagbon Ya-Na Yakubu Andani and the killing of some elders. The Abudus hit the streets of Yendi in the Northern region, Thursday, to register their displeasure at how things are being handled. Joy News Hashmin Muhammed reported that the group presented a petition to the Yendi District Chief Executive, Isah Zakaria. He received the petition and promised to pass it on to the President. Bangui (Central African Republic) (AFP) - The UN's troubled mission in Central African Republic announced seven new claims of sex abuse by peacekeepers Thursday, the latest in a barrage of allegations of troops assaulting the civilians they are supposed to protect. The fresh allegations, which include five involving minors, come just days after claims surfaced of French and EU troops in the restive country sexually abusing children, sometimes in return for food or money. CAR is struggling to recover from sectarian violence that exploded after a 2013 coup, pitting mainly Muslim rebels against Christian militias, but international peacekeeping efforts have been undermined by the string of sex abuse claims. A statement from MINUSCA, the UN's stabilisation mission in CAR, said it had "identified seven new possible victims of sexual exploitation and abuse in Bambari," a city in the country's central region. MINUSCA said the new cases were brought to its attention by researchers from Human Rights Watch. A UN probe "found sufficient initial evidence that five of the victims were minors and had been sexually abused and that one adult had been sexually exploited", the statement said. The soldiers involved are from the Republic of Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the mission said, adding that the two governments have been asked to launch investigations. In a response to the sex claims, the United Nations said Thursday that it would repatriate 120 peacekeepers from the Republic of Congo. - Soldiers sent home - The "repatriation will occur after an investigation is carried out; in the meantime the soldiers will be confined to barracks," MINUSCA said, noting the claims date from September to December last year. The UN has already asked the Democratic Republic of Congo to send home its peacekeepers from CAR after they failed to meet UN standards. Only last week, the UN rights chief Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein reported new cases involving French and EU troops said to date back to 2014 but to have only come to light in recent weeks. Two girls said they were raped by soldiers from the EU's EUFOR mission, while two others said they were paid to have sexual relations with other EUFOR soldiers, the UN said on Monday. The four were aged between 14 and 16 at the time, and three of the girls told UN investigators that they believed their abusers were from Georgia. Some 150 Georgian soldiers were deployed with the EUFOR contingent, which at its peak counted some 700 soldiers sent to Bangui to help restore order. Georgia vowed to "do everything possible to ensure that those individuals committing such crimes are held responsible." UN staff have also interviewed a girl and a boy, aged seven and nine respectively, who were allegedly abused in 2014 by soldiers from the French Sangaris force. The girl said she had performed oral sex on French soldiers in exchange for a bottle of water and a sachet of cookies, the UN said. The new cases bring to 29 the number of cases of sexual abuse involving peacekeepers from the UN mission in CAR. Last month a hard-hitting report found the United Nations had grossly mishandled allegations of child sex abuse in CAR. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon fired the head of the 10,000-strong MINUSCA force last year over the mounting number of cases, but the allegations have continued to surface. We attempted to send a notification to your email address but we were unable to verify that you provided a valid email address. Please click here to update your email address if you wish to receive notifications. Otherwise, you may click here to disable notifications and hide this message. IVA Struggling with debt? Compare your debt options and write off up to 80% of your unsecured debts from 80 per month Get Started for free What is an IVA? With an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) you can make affordable monthly payments towards a percentage of your debt for 5 years. At the end of the 5 year plan, your remaining debt will be completely written off. Benefits of an IVA Here is a list of the cost common advantages of an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA): Affordability You will only be asked to pay back what you can afford, with allowances taken into account for food, bills, entertainment, travel, childcare and others. You may be sacrificing certain essential costs at the moment. With an IVA they are budgeted for so they will no longer be neglected No upfront costs When you set up an IVA, there are no upfront costs whatsoever. This means that you can put a debt solution in place today without spending a penny You have a finishing line Do you feel like there will be no end to your debt problems? With high interest costs and charges, the balances of your credit accounts may not reduce as you need them to. With an IVA you will become totally debt free at the completion of the IVA (usually 5 years). You can use this as an opportunity to change your financial life, for good Confidential Your IVA is not advertised in the London Gazette or local newspaper. It is your decision whether you would like to disclose it to other people or not No more contact from creditors When you are in an IVA, your creditors will no longer have the right to contact you or refer the debt on to debt collectors/bailiffs. This is a great benefit for most people as it will take away the stress caused by constant calls/texts/emails and home visits Stay in your house Unlike some debt solutions, an IVA will allow you to stay in your current home. This is even the case if the property has a mortgage or is owned outright Your pension An IVA does not have an impact on your pension. You will not have to surrender your pension or withdraw money from it to pay into your IVA Risks of an IVA Here is a list of the cost common disadvantages of an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA): Equity Release If you own your property and it has value, you may be asked to release the equity in the property Credit Rating If you have a perfect credit rating, this will be damaged and you will not be allowed to take out more debt whilst in an arrangement You must keep up with repayments If you do not keep up with your monthly repayments, there is a risk you will be made bankrupt Who qualifies for an IVA? There is no office guidelines to who qualifies for an IVA. It is a legally binding, Government legislation designed to help all people. Generally speaking, insolvency practitioners (IP) will look at your situation if they think the IVA proposal they submit is beneficial to both yourself (the debtor) and your creditors. This often restricts people to a certain criteria which you will have to meet: Over 5000 worth of unsecured debt You must have 2 or more creditors of 2 or more lines of credit Must live in England, Wales or Northern Ireland Must be insolvent Must be willing to pay at least 70 per month into their IVA Must have some type or types of regular income What debts can I include in an IVA? You can include a wide range of unsecured debts within your IVA. These include: Credit card debt/credit cards Loans/loan debt Payday loans Council tax arrears HMRC debt Overpaid benefits Catalogues Gas and electricity arrears Overdrafts/overdraft debt Water arrears Income tax arrears Debts to friends and family Other unsecured debts Note: If you are a resident of Scotland, you will need to apply for a Scottish Trust Deed (legally binding). Speak to our advisors for Scottish Debt Advice. What debts cant be included in an IVA? Secured loans Your mortgage (if you still live in the house) Car finance (if you still have the car) Rent arrears for your current property Court fines/Police fines Hire purchase arrears (if you still have the product) Log book loans (if you still have the vehicle that the debts are secured on) Student loans Other secured debts What does I.V.A stand for? IVA stands for Individual Voluntary Arrangement. It is a formal way to consolidate your debts into one affordable monthly repayment, resulting in the debtor becoming debt free at the end of their payments. Can I apply for an IVA online? Use the IVA Calculator to check your eligibility Prepare your IVA proposal and apply for your IVA. When your IVA is accepted, your creditors can no longer contact you. Pay 60 low monthly payments. After 5 years, you are out of your IVA and completely debt free. Will an IVA affect my employment? In most occupations, your credit rating or credit scoring is not a factor and it may never have been checked in the past, it may also be likely that it is not checked in the future either. There is no law to tell you that you must advise your employer that you have entered an IVA or that you owe money. They will not be notified by your insolvency practitioner. If you wanted to keep it a private matter, in most cases this would be absolutely fine. With some roles such as financial advisors, solicitors or bank workers it may make up part of your contract to advise them of changes like this. In these situations we would advise to inform your employers of your intentions before you enter into any arrangements. This way there will be no nasty surprises for you later down the line. More often than not, we find that your employer would not be concerned by your IVA and that it would not affect your employment status. An IVA is a formal solution and could affect some employments, such as if you were a solicitor or accountant for example. We would always recommend that you receive approval from your employers that your job isnt affected before you sign up for anything. Will an IVA impact my partner? There are certain situations where you may not want to involve your partner at all in your IVA proposal due to personal reasons. Insolvency Practitioners are very aware of these circumstances and can operate solely via telephone and email and at your convenience, so rest assured that your matters can be kept completely private. If the debts which you are looking to place into your IVA are in joint names, then this would be different. Your IP would look to place all of your debts into an IVA, including joint debts therefore you would have to inform your partner of your plans. If your debts are solely yours, then there would be no negative impact on your partner, their credit score would remain unaffected and they would not be entered onto any registers or be tainted in any way. Will an IVA affect my credit score/credit file? Whilst you are in your arrangement, you will not be able to get any credit. An IVA will stay on your credit file for 6 years, so 12 months after a typical IVA. When this time has passed and your monthly payments have ended, you will be able to rebuild your credit rating. What proof will I need to apply for an IVA? Proof of ID Passport/driving license/birth certificate/utility bills/national insurance identification/credit agreement Bank statements 3 months bank statements with all transactions displayed Proof of income 3 months payslips/P60/proof of benefits How long does it take to set up an IVA? Your initial call will only last around 5-10 minutes. The IVA process will be explained to you and you will be told what further information you will need to provide to proceed with your IVA proposal. Once you have returned the required information, an IVA will usually take between 7-14 days to get into place. You will be protected from creditors within this time, your advisor will provide you with documentation via email. How long does an IVA last? Most IVAs will last for a length of five years. The i v a will remain on your credit file for a period of six years and is placed on the Insolvency Register for that period. You can work out what date it will be removed from your credit file, it will be six years from the start date of the IVA term. So if the IVA started on 1 January 2000, it should be removed from your credit file six years from that date, which would be 1 January 2006. When you apply for an individual voluntary arrangement your Insolvency Practitioner (IP) will tell you if you qualify for an IVA, how long it lasts, how much it costs and provide you with any other debt advice which you may need. How much will debt advice cost for an Individual Voluntary Arrangement? The advice cost for individual voluntary arrangements is free of charge. Your I.V.A company will tell you if you qualify for an IVA. They will talk to you about your different debts, provide you with free debt advice and check if your creditors are likely to approve your proposal for your IVA for debt. How does an IVA affect your life? By taking out an IVA you may affect your overall financial position. You will not be allowed to take out credit for 6 years. You will struggle to get a mortgage or remortgage your existing property. It also may affect any future increase in earnings or windfalls you may receive, as these will need to be paid to your insolvency practitioner. Your insolvency practitioner will take control of your debts for this period, they will deal with all of your creditors and this is legally binding. That means you will not be allowed to take out any more debts whilst in the IVA. Once the plan is completed, any debts which you accrue will be managed by yourself. Your ability to take out further debts in the future will not be impacted once the IVA has completed. What is the IVA protocol? The I.V.A protocol is a voluntary set of guidelines which your Insolvency Practitioner (IP) can sign up for which improves the efficiency of Individual Voluntary Arrangements. When you apply for debt advice, it is important that you understand the steps of the debt solution, so you can decide whether or not the solution is the best one for your circumstances. How do I know if creditors will accept my IVA? Generally speaking, most creditors will approve voluntary arrangements for unsecured debt. But some debts can not be included within one formal debt solution. Your Insolvency Practitioner will tell you how likely it is that your creditors will be willing to accept your proposal, based on the voting creditors. Can I pay in one lump sum? There are occasions when you may be eligible for a debt solution which is payable in a one off lump sum as a final settlement to your creditors. This is usually when the money is being gifted from some one else, or you have received inheritance or a windfall for example. With a one-off lump sum payment, the advice is usually the same as when you normally apply for an IVA. You wouldnt have to make regular payments into the solution, your IP can provide you with more advice on one off lump sum solutions for your debts. Your IP will provide you with more advice on the debt IVA and explain what is IVA to you. Who regulates the debt industry? At present the debt industry is not regulated. Some Insolvency Practitioners offices choose to sign up to the Insolvency Practitioners Association (IPA) or register with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). You can contact the IPA using the contact details or email address on their website. Your creditors do not regulate the debt industry and your creditors will not be able to impact any decisions which the IPA or FCA make. In our experience, the regulators will take assertive action on any advisers or businesses which do not comply with their strict codes of practice. To check if a person is regulated by the FCA, enter their name into the search box in the FCA website. Should I use a debt charity? There are thousands of companies which provide debt help in the UK. You may be looking for an alternative to a private company. You should know that charities usually pass their fee charging products to sister companies which charge fees and disbursements, just like private companies. So what you initially thought was a good option, on further analysis could be different to what you originally thought. Charities do have their part to play though. They can help you if you have a problem with your bank accounts, maintenance arrears, living costs, credit reference agencies, child support arrears, bankruptcy, assets, accountancy issues, mortgages, creditor issues, insurance providers, mobiles, your bank account, rates arrears, PAYE contributions or if you want to work out your expenditure. They can make sure that you speak to an adviser or supervisor and look at proposals to offer your lender. A petition has started with the possibility of a debate in parliament about how charities represent themselves and their services. Which charities help with debt? You can contact Money Advice Service, National Debtline, Step Change, Shelter or a combination of the three. Charities are particular useful for a low debt level under 1,000. If the debt is high (such as a debt value of 10,000 or more) you would usually seek an assessment from a professional adviser. If you do decide to use a charity to guide you, make sure you check their charity number and the registration number on their website to make sure you are content that their team can answer your questions in the right ways. A lot of clients of charities have a minimum debt level which does not meet the basis for an IVA, so you could always chat to a charity that is happy to act on your behalf for low debt levels. Although an I.V.A could be the answer to your debt problem, its important to understand the monthly payment so call us on our free phone number. Anyone customers can receive expert feedback on their rights from debt charities, if they cant help they will usually point you in the director of firms which help with IVAs. We are homeowners, will lenders see my proposal differently? In some cases yes. In the majority of cases, if you are a homeowner you will not need to remortgage or take out any additional finances that will effect your property. You will need to sign a additional restrictions which remove your ability to take out additional credit tied to your property, which is something that is restricted once you are in an i.v.a. There are exceptions to this, such as when you have a lot of equity in your property/properties. If you own half of a property and another party owns the other half, only your equity will be affected. If you are landlord and you are in a position of equity, your IP may review your trading position or business to make sure the figures in question are in order. This is usually the case if you have two or more properties, as sometimes the equity can be used to form a repayment to your creditors. But this usually depends on the amount of value built up in your properties. Banks and building societies will not change the terms of your mortgage as long as a contribution is still being made for the duration of your arrangement. Your mortgage payments will be added to your expenses and accounted for within your budget, as long as you can provide evidence that you can afford to continue to make payments into your mortgage for duration of the plan. LOOKING FOR HELP? 100% Confidential. Thousands Helped. No upfront fees business Godrej to buy majority stake in Kenya's Canon Chemicals Adi Godrej, Chairman, Godrej Group says Canon Chemicals has strong market share in Kenya market, particularly in the petroleum jelly segment, and Godrej already has 4,000 employees there in the Darling business. you are here: business Bajaj Auto Q3 beats estimates, profit up 4.7% on other income Revenue declined 1.6 percent to Rs 5,565 crore in quarter ended December 2015 compared to Rs 5,657.2 crore in year-ago period due to lower sales volume growth. February 04, 2016 Syria's Enemies Seek Face Saving Escalation Measures Russia Accuses Turkey of Preparing to Invade Syria The Russian military said Thursday that it has "reasonable grounds" to suspect that Turkey is making intensive preparations for a military invasion of neighboring Syria. Images of a checkpoint on the border between the Turkish town of Reyhanli and the town of Sarmada in Syrian taken in late October and late January show a buildup of transportation infrastructure that could be used for moving in troops, ammunition and weapons, spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said in an English-language written statement. He said these were among growing signs of "hidden preparation of the Turkish armed forces for active actions on the territory of Syria. ... A Turkish Foreign Ministry official said the ministry would have no immediate comment. The Russian high command press briefing (vid with English subtitles) includes the pictures of the border post. Turkey yesterday prohibited a Russian reconnaissance "Open Skies Treaty" flight over the Turkish-Syrian border zone. There are dozens such flights per year over Russia by NATO and over NATO countries by Russia. This is to my knowledge the first time such a flight, which had earlier been requested and accepted, is blocked by the guest country. The Russian military spokesperson snarked: It is to be reminded that the Russian Defence Ministry has intensified all kinds of intelligence in the Middle East region. Thats why, if someone in Ankara thinks that the prohibition of Russian observer flight allows to hide something, it is unprofessional. The decisive Syrian government victory yesterday cuts off the foreign supported insurgents in Aleppo and Idleb from they supply sources in Turkey and deprives them of their fuel supplies. In reaction to that victory the supporters of the insurgents and terrorist in Syria are likely to increase their efforts. The negotiations in Geneva failed over the Syrian victory and the Saudis had already promised that such a failure would lead to an increased support. The Saudi Defense Ministry declared today that Saudi ground forces could take part in action in Syria. It is doubtful that the Saudis have a real capability to do so. But the Saudis and others will now again shower the insurgents and Jihadis in Syria with money and new weapons. A Turkish invasion could add momentum to such a move. Such an invasion would come at the Syrian-Turkish border between Azaz and Jarabulus that is currently under Islamic State control. The Syrian YPG Kurds plan to take that area with Russian help and to seal the border. Turkey does not want that to happen. Its well working lines of communication with the Islamic State must be kept open. So is a Turkish invasion of Syria in preparation? My guess is yes. But will it really happen? My guess is no. NATO will restrain Turkey from such a misguided adventure. It could mean war with Russia and no European NATO country would like that to happen. Without NATO backing the Turkish military is unlikely to follow the order for such a move. The Russia revelation of the Turkish preparations is increasing the deterrence against such a move. It also means that Russia would react harshly against a Turkish invasion and surely Russia has demonstrated by now that it has the means to do so in decisive ways. But even while Turkey is unlikely to send its army it may use a proxy force to capture more Syrian territory. The Zionist lobby in Washington DC in form of the Washington Institute is advising Turkey to invade Syria by proxy to keep the Kurds away from the border zone: The most effective way to monitor the Azaz-Jarabulus border area would be to ensure that the Syrian side is filled by forces friendly to Turkey, or at least opposed to IS. One possible such group would be the Syrian Turkmens, who are ethnically related to Turks and are being trained by Turkey as a fighting force in northwestern Syria. ... [T]he Turkish armed forces has modern artillery with an effective range of twenty to twenty-five miles, UAVs, and other means to protect its clients administering a prospective safe zone. These "Turkmen" had occupied northern Latakia where they are just being kicked out by the Syrian army and its supporters. They consist of Turkish "Grey Wolf" fascists, Turkish Islamists and Chechen and Uhigur Islamist mercenaries. They are controlled by the Turkish secret service MIT. The whole plan has a logical flaw. If, as the Washington Institute lobbyists claim, it is desirable for Turkey to monitor or seal the border from Islamic State infiltration why can't this be done on the Turkish side of the border? Why does this necessitate an illegal invasion by proxy of Syria? I find no plausible answer to that last question. The lobbyists also skip over the question of potential retaliation. If Turkish artillery fires into Syria then Syria and its supporters are legally justified to fire back by whatever means are needed. A few Russian cruise missiles could easily take care of those Turkish artillery battalions. What would then follow? Neither the Turks nor the Saudis nor the U.S. nor Israel have given up on their "regime change" war on Syria. But their proxies have taken serious losses and are likely to lose the fight. While we can expect some new attempts of escalation I expect that these will be mere face saving moves. It just takes some additional time until the reality will sink in and until some other issue can be found to distract from their inevitable retreat. Posted by b on February 4, 2016 at 19:35 UTC | Permalink Comments Western Piedmont Community College will host a pottery demonstration by North Carolina potter Ronan Peterson on Friday, Feb. 5 from 1-4 p.m. in the Professional Crafts: Pottery Studio on the main campus at 1001 Burkemont Ave. The free demonstration is open to the public. During the demonstration, Peterson will demonstrate wheel-thrown altered potter and decorating techniques as well as discuss his personal experiences as a studio potter. An exhibition of Petersons artwork will follow at 5:30 p.m. at the Hamilton Williams Gallery located at 403 East Union St., in downtown Morganton. Peterson received his B achelor of A rts degree in A nthropology/ F olklore at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1996. His interest in folklore led him to Western North Carolinas John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown where he began taking ceramics classes. Later , he entered the Penland School of Crafts as a core student in a two-year intensive work exchange program where he studied with a number of internationally known artists and craftspeople. Peterson is a full-time studio artist living and working in Chapel Hill. His ceramics studio, Nine Toes Pottery, produces highly decorative and functional earthenware vessels. His work is drawn from processes of growth and decay in the natural world and translated into a ceramic comic book interpretation of both real and imagined phenomena. Petersons work has been featured in both Ceramics Monthly and Clay Times magazines. His pottery is in permanent collections of the North Carolina Pottery Center in Seagrove and the Governor Morehead School in Raleigh. Recent exhibitions include solo shows at the Kiln Gallery in Fairhope, Alabama, Mudfire Gallery in Atlanta, Georgia, and Charlie Cummings Gallery in Gainesville, Florida. Peterson has taught at local craft centers and ceramics studios throughout the Southeast including Penland School of Crafts and Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts. To view more of his work, visit www.ninetoespottery.com. For more information about this event or pottery classes, contact Courtney Long, WPCC professional crafts coordinator, at 828 448-3552. Investors in venture capital trusts last year saw investments rise an average of 9%, whilst fundraising inflows reached 429 million, the fourth highest year on record. VCTs met investors demands for income, with an average yield of 8.6% across all trusts at the end of the year. Technology VCTs were the best performing in 2015, with impressive average gains of 26%. The generalist sector also made good gains with an average return of 10%, according to the Association of Investment Companies. Stuart Veale, of ProVen VCTs said that positive performance was driven by a number of companies with the digital media and online retail sectors. Disruptive technology is fast growing, online platforms are replacing physical contact with customers, he noted. Private investors are turning to VCTs in ever greater numbers, attracted by the sectors strong historic performance, including regular tax-free income, enhanced by the initial 30% income tax relief. Potential in Consumer-Based Technology Businesses Veale was not the only investor to spot the potential in technology-related businesses. Tom Thorp, director of the Foresight Group said consumer-facing technology was an area the company would be looking to invest in. Software services, for example, is a sector full of potential he said. Small and medium-sized enterprises now want to build their own apps so they can control their own online presence rather than build websites. SMEs can go now online in minutes and gain exposure to a wide range of audiences, gaining tangible return in a cost-effective way, he concluded. Is Brexit a Risk to Future Returns? A referendum on whether the U.K. should leave the EU or leave, so-called Brexit, is widely expected to be held in June this year. Paul Jourdan, manager of Amati VCTs, thinks that even the UK leaves the EU, the consequences will be moderate, and it will not prohibit foreign businesses investing in the UK. "We continue to see it as a low probability that we leave the EU. However, as far as the VCT legislation is concerned, which has been heavily reshaped by Brussels in 2015, I think it is wrong to expect that a vote in favour of Brexit would mean that the difficult aspects of the new rules would be unwound. It may happen that way, but I doubt a future UK Government would want to into enter a dispute with EU trading partners over this particular legislation," Jourdan said. Jourdan said that UK was still a great investing environment for investors and entrepreneurs. I cant think of anywhere better than the UK for investing in growth companies. And a good growth company will lead to a better return for investors, he concluded. Focus Switch to Capital Growth Investment Under the new rules, VCTs will no longer be able to invest in management buy-outs, a transaction where a companys management team purchases the assets and operations of the business they manage. Jourdan said that while management buy-out businesses would be affected, investors should not be worried as the new rules would not affect them and the products remain simple for the user. Tom Thorp, Director of Foresight Group thinks the change will bring a healthy balance to VCT investments portfolio. Capital growth often has a steeper growth curve than a management buy-out. When you bring more growth capital opportunities in the portfolio, you are spreading the risk across a large number of companies, he said. So for investors perspectives, for dividend potential it could be greater, because you do have that blended growth capital deals in your portfolio. Investors Be Wary of Risk While the high returns on offer are attractive, investors should keep in mind that VCTs are a high risk investment product because of the nature of the companies they invest in. Micro-cap businesses and start-ups are more likely to default then their larger company peers. Similar returns are achievable by investing in the UK smaller companies investment trust sector, with less volatility although without the tax benefits. The top 20 UK small companies closed-end funds have an average 9% annualised five years return. Top performer Oryx International Growth (OIG), for example, has a 21% annualised five year return, according to Morningstar Direct Data. With the federal government just weeks away from the release of its first budget, Vancouver mayor Gregor Robertson put up 20 locations as part of his bid to win a new tranche of funds for affordable housing. The city parcels, which are collectively worth $250 million, have been identified in the wake of the Liberals statements that social housing has become one of their main concerns for infrastructure outlay this year. The federal government has previously vowed to spend approximately $60 billion in new infrastructure over the next decade. The municipal land offer was the largest ever made by Vancouver, and the locations are planned to be the cornerstones of a $500-million federal housing project creating up to 9,000 jobs, spread over five years. Robertson, who would join 18 other mayors later this week in a pre-budget meeting with federal cabinet ministers in Ottawa, said that heightened construction in the city and its subsequent impact on the local and regional market can help with the national economys attempts to recover from its prolonged slump. Particularly with the economic wobble, weve looked at opportunities to create as many jobs as possible, Robertson told The Globe and Mail. It is geared for putting people to work building affordable housing and responding to the governments concerns on the economy, Robertson added. The 20 sites in Vancouver include new development areas like East Fraserlands, Downtown Eastside, and the north shore of False Creek. The citys Affordable Housing Agency has already been in talks with contractors to construct 3,500 social housing units, with 500 of these slated to be built within the year. Along with cheaper units for locals, the project will create versatile housing aimed at addressing the recent arrival of thousands of Syrian refugees in Canadian shores. Reminder: As of February 15th, min. down payment will increase for new insured mortgages on homes > $500,000 pic.twitter.com/hGW9v1qE3Y CMHC (@CMHC_ca) February 3, 2016 The government's newest down payment requirements are about to go into effect, and one advocacy group says the pending rule change miss the mark.Starting February 15, the minimum down payment for insured homes over $500,000 will increase.(Finance) Minister Morneau made it clear that the measure was principally aimed at the elevated housing prices in the Vancouver and Toronto areas. Yet, the new rules may not slow the price escalation in the two markets, Wendell Cox, chair of housing and affordability for the right-leaning Frontier Centre for Public Policy, writes in a position piece entitled Canadas New Federal Mortgage Rules: Right Diagnosis, Wrong Medicine?.Cox says the new rules dont address the underlying issues currently plaguing the Canadian housing market, arguing house prices in Vancouver and Toronto will continue to rise faster than household incomes.He argues the government should be addressing skyrocketing land-use costs. That would address the issue at the builder level and not the individual buyer level.He notes that building a house in Vancouver costs a mere 25% more than it does in Edmonton and yet homes costs 300% more on the west coast.The difference is land values, which have been pushed up in Vancouver by land use regulations that make building detached housing exceedingly expensive, Cox writes. Much of the problem can be tied to provincial and metropolitan land use policies.Despite Ottawas rightful concerns and good intentions, the solution is in Vancouver and Toronto, not Ottawa. It took a while, but it seems one of the products often blamed for contributing to the housing collapse is back. A California-based credit union has announced the release of its 100% financing mortgage product. We were seeing too many people interested in home loans, who were qualified in every way, and either didnt have enough money saved up, had to tap into their retirement accounts, or needed to borrow from a family member for the 20% down payment required for a conventional mortgage loan, San Francisco Credit Union said on its website. It said the product was launched in response to sky-high rent rates. Its not that people cant afford to make a house payment (look at the amount of rent thats being paid!), it was the lack of funds or access to the size of down payment that is typically required. We wanted to find a solution to this growing problem and help our community, the credit union said. The loans, which are being branded as POPPYLOANs, are available to anyone working in San Francisco or San Mateo County and the home must be in one of the nine Bay Area Counties. Loans are available up to $2,000,000 and private mortgage insurance is not required. However, the credit union does charge a $1,200 origination fee as well as an additional loan-to-value fee up to 1%. This fee is based on the total loan amount. For example, if your loan amount is $600,000, and your LTV is 94%, then your total Origination Fees would be $1,200 plus 0.75% of the loan amount or $4,500 for a total of $4,200, it said. 100% financing is still a rarity, but with one credit union hopping on the trend, will more originators embrace them? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section. The next session of the Texas Legislature is a year away, but legislative committees are at work on interim charges before they head to Austin. The Houses Energy Resources Committee took the opportunity to head west and hear testimony on issues impacting the Permian Basin oil patch. Committee Member Tom Craddick, R-Midland, told fellow committee members Wednesday he was pleased to help coordinate their visit. Were proud of this regions long history of not only powering Texas but the United States. Its important that my House colleagues recognize the value of the Permian Basin not only from an energy, but a tax-revenue standpoint, he said. Committee Chairman Rep. Drew Darby, R-San Angelo, said the hearing at the Petroleum Museum would focus on three of the committees primary charges: the impact of declining oil and gas prices on the Texas economy, increasing penalties to combat oilfield theft and oversight of the Railroad Commission. Oil prices and the economy Jumping into the economic impact, committee members heard from Amarillo-based economist Karr Ingham and James LeBas, a tax analyst and fiscal consultant for the Texas Oil & Gas Association. Ingham said his goal was to offer the committee a realistic picture of the states oil and gas economy, beginning with the fact the industry has shed tens of thousands of jobs since oil prices peaked at just over $100 a barrel in June 2014 and has sunk to below $30. Last months posted price of $23 a barrel was pretty alarming and does not encourage investment, he said. The impact of job loss ripples well beyond the direct industry jobs lost, Ingham told committee members. With companies cutting spending by 60 to 70 percent, that ripples out to service companies and other parts of the industry supply chain and even beyond to restaurants and auto dealerships, where oil company employees once spent their healthy paychecks. The current downturn is far different from that of the 1980s, and the downstream sector is adding jobs as the upstream sector sheds them, Ingham said. Neither will prevent the Texas economy from experiencing downward pressure in terms of employment and revenues, he said. When Darby asked if there was any good news in his testimony, Ingham said that there will be a recovery at some point. But recovery cant be expected until production falls significantly enough to absorb the current oversupply and oil in storage is drawn down, he said. LeBas cautioned committee members that the states tax system is very dependent on oil and gas, with estimates that the state collects $34,000 per industry job per year in taxes. We need oil and gas if were going to have a prosperous Texas. Without oil and gas, there are reduced severance taxes, reduced highway funding, reduced education spending, no rainy day fund and no SWIFT fund for water projects, he said. (SWIFT stands for State Water Implementation Fund for Texas.) Steve Pruett, chief executive officer of Elevation Resources, told the committee that, essentially, the only drilling being done today is obligation drilling in order to hold onto leases or acreage. Continued improvement in efficiency, drilling a well, completing a well and producing a well are the main reason why Permian Basin production has not yet fallen off, he said. But the sharp decline in drilling activity will help self-correct the oversupply, he said. Meanwhile, Pruett said he is very concerned about 2016 as regulators increase their scrutiny of banks and their oil and gas lending, which will result in tighter or decreased credit for operators. Midlander William Wallace, founder and president of Wallace Petroleum Investments, said that the spring redetermination of bank loans and their oil- and gas-related collateral is a very serious matter. If oil prices dont improve by fall, you could see a wave of bankruptcies, he said. He urged committee members to think outside the box to help the industry. He suggested tapping the rainy day fund which he pointed out is comprised of severance taxes paid by the industry for loans to companies. Wallace also questioned why the oil and gas industry is the only industry to pay a severance tax. I love Michael Dell. Hes done a lot for Round Rock and its economy. But he doesnt pay a severance tax. And I dont understand that, he said. He said that beyond low oil prices, the industry is being harmed by rising fees charged by the Railroad Commission as it tries to maintain its budget amid a sharp decline in permits and rising insurance costs. These are ideas born of desperation, Darby said of Wallaces comments. We are charged with the responsibility of looking at options and how we can make them work. Thats why were here. Your story is being played out all across this region and the state, and we need to recognize that and figure out ways to help. Oilfield theft The growth in the states oil production in recent years provided more opportunity for oilfield theft, said James Mutrie, general counsel for RSP Permian. But in good times or bad, he said theft remains a problem. Current theft provisions work reasonably well when it comes to equipment that can be tracked through serial numbers, he told the committee. The real issue is oil theft, he said. The theft of oil is very difficult to prosecute. When its stolen, its often commingled and difficult to prosecute because its difficult to prove its your stolen oil. Mutrie told the committee his company was the victim of oil theft, catching unauthorized trucks on its leases. That has resulted in additional expenditures for security measures such as equipment to identify trucks and capture photographs of their license plates. A company reporting a theft has to deal with numerous agencies such as the local sheriffs offce or police department, the Department of Public Safety, the FBI and even the Internal Revenue Service which can be confusing, he said. Mutrie called for more resources to help prosecute theft and said increasing penalties could serve as a deterrent. Clete Buckaloo, regional security manager for Anadarko Petroleum, told the committee that with oil at $100 and now at $30, theft has not and will not stop. A thief is a thief. He detailed at least two recent incidents of attempted theft of Anadarkos oil and even its water. He praised the Permian Basin Oilfield Theft Task Force as a tremendous benefit to the region. Buckaloo also praised legislative efforts to pass HB 3291, which would have made anyone caught recklessly possessing, purchasing, moving or selling oil and natural gas without proper state permits a second-degree felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Gov. Greg Abbott vetoed the bill in June. Legislators plan to send him an anti-oilfield theft bill next session. Mike Peters, corporate security manager for Lewis Energy, told the committee it looks like much of the theft can be attributed to organized crime, even organizations with ties to Mexican cartels. Even an individual with their own truck is part of a network, he said, because he requires someone to buy stolen equipment or someplace to offload stolen oil and where it can be uploaded to a buyer. RRC oversight Craddick addressed the oversight of the Railroad Commission, pointing out that the vast majority of its operating budget comes from fees paid by the industry and, with the downturn, those fees have fallen sharply. Other agencies are funded out of general appropriations, he said. This is an issue well have to face. He said that next year the agency will undergo its third sunset review in as many legislative sessions. Unless there are problems found and Craddick said there havent been the review will cause the agency to spend a lot of time and money. The Sunset Commission has gotten away from why it was started, which was to determine whether state agencies should continue. It shouldnt be a place for everyone to attach their bills at the end of the session, he said. Darby praised the members of his committee for making the trip to Midland for the hearing and those who testified at the hearing. We heard a lot of good information and information we needed to hear. How we respond will determine the future direction of the state, he said.a NEW YORK (AP) A sexually transmitted case of Zika in Texas has scientists scrambling to understand how much of a risk infection through sex is for the usually mosquito-spread illness. Experts still stress that mosquitoes are the main culprit in the Zika epidemic menacing Latin America and looming over the United States. Mosquitoes would be the great river of transmission, while sexual transmission is going to be akin to a mountain stream, said Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease expert at Vanderbilt University. But the Texas case has spurred more discussion about additional ways in which Zika and other illnesses, commonly thought to be carried only by mosquitoes, might be spread. Other types of transmission can be hard to spot in the midst of outbreaks in which many mosquito-borne infections are occurring, noted Dr. Ali Khan, a former disease investigator for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its very hard to parse this out in the middle of an epidemic, said Khan, now dean of the University of Nebraskas college of public health. Discerning something like sexual transmission would have to occur in a place where an outbreak was not raging, he said. Thats what happened in Dallas. The current Zika epidemic is on track to cause millions of infections in Latin America and the Caribbean, but no transmission was reported in the United States until the Dallas case this week. Health officials said a person there who had not traveled to an outbreak area was infected. An investigation concluded the person caught the virus through sex with a person who had recently returned from Venezuela, where Zika infections have been growing. Officials released few details about the case, except to say both patients have recovered. But it wasnt the first to raise the possibility of sexual transmission of the virus. A Colorado State University researcher, Brian Foy, picked up the virus in Africa and apparently spread it to his wife back home in 2008. More recently, it was found in one mans semen in Tahiti. Now, in the wake of the Dallas case, were all kind of scrambling in the scientific community how best to tackle this and how best to research it, said Foy. Most people infected with Zika experience, at the most, only mild symptoms. But mounting evidence in Brazil has suggested a connection between the virus and babies born with brain defects and abnormally small heads. The Zika epidemic and possible link to microcephaly cases in Brazil prompted the World Health Organization to declare a global emergency on Monday, calling the virus rapid spread and its apparent link to the birth defect an extraordinary event that poses a threat to the rest of the world. WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic said Wednesday that the Texas sexual transmission case is obviously a concern. We need to know more about how likely this is to happen. We also have to understand whether there are other human-to-human transmission routes, such as blood transfusion, such as mother-to-child transmission, he said. Perhaps a bigger worry than sex is what dangers may lurk in blood donations from people who have been in Zika outbreak areas, said Dr. W. Ian Lipkin, a Columbia University infectious diseases researcher. I would raise caution that any blood used in pregnant women should be tested for the presence of Zika virus, something that currently doesnt happen, Lipkin said. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration says there are no approved tests for routine screening of blood donations for Zika virus, but it is looking into the issue. Zika virus usually remains in the blood of an infected person for a few days but it can be found longer in some people, the CDC says. This week, the Red Cross said they are asking travelers to Zika outbreak countries to wait at least 28 days before donating blood. On Wednesday, Canadian health officials announced that people who have travelled outside of Canada, the continental United States and Europe will be ineligible to give blood for 21 days after their return. Canadian Blood Services says it is implementing the waiting period to mitigate the risk of the Zika virus entering the Canadian blood supply. Meanwhile, the CDC said it will issue guidance in the coming days on prevention of sexual transmission of the Zika virus, focusing on the male sexual partners of women who are or may be pregnant. Its a tall order, because so much is unknown about sexual transmission and Zika, experts said. How long is someone infectious? How long does the virus live in the sperm? Does it only spread if the first person is suffering symptoms? Foy said that in his case, he didnt begin to experience symptoms until after he and his wife had sex. Its completely black box right now in terms of how little is known about the risk of sexual transmission, Foy said. As worrisome as possible sexual transmission may be, experts stress that mosquitoes will continue to be the far greater concern. The bugs inject virus right into the blood stream an extremely efficient way of spreading dangerous germs through the body. The mosquito is the deadliest animal on the planet, Schaffner said. Associated Press reporters Jamie Stengle in Dallas and Jamey Keaten in Geneva contributed to this report. CRYSTAL CITY, Texas (AP) The mayor and almost every other top official in a tiny South Texas city are under federal indictment, accused of taking kickbacks from contractors and someone trying to set up illegal gaming rooms. The U.S. attorneys office in San Antonio announced Thursday that it had arrested most of the leadership of Crystal City. On Tuesday, District 1 Councilman Jeff Sparks summed up what has become a public relations mess for the city of Midland. He said hes never received more emails on any city issue than he has regarding Ubers decision to leave Midland. Most of them in favor of Uber? we said. All of them, he said. Another sign of the enthusiasm Uber supporters are showing for the transportation network companys return is that more than 1,300 people, as of Wednesday afternoon, had signed an online petition calling for the City Council to Bring Uber back to Midland. Uber is a ride-sharing company based in San Francisco that provides an alternative to taxis and public transportation. Someone wanting a ride can go to the Uber app on their phone and schedule a pickup. Many have said its preferable based on quality of service, including the time it takes to be picked up. It certainly brings a 21st century feel to transportation requirements for a community, and that inevitably might be the Midland City Councils biggest problem with this controversy. Midland Mayor Jerry Morales is on a mission to make Midland a world-class city. There is nothing wrong with that goal; however, in todays technological age, can a world-class city exist without Uber? We dont know the answer to that question because we dont have all the information. In its statement, Uber was too general in saying regulations make it difficult for us to provide you the level of service. We hope Uber will do a better job of explaining to the community what regulations are too onerous. Does Uber object to having to submit a list of drivers, as taxis and limos are required to do? Do they object to fees incurred through doing business in Midland, and if so, specifically what fees? Knowing where we have fallen short can help determine what a solution might be. For instance, maybe a pickup fee at the airport should no longer be required. Is that alone really standing in the way of Uber operating in Midland? We think not. But all we have to go on is the citys word about the discussions it allegedly had with Uber and concessions it made in December to an ordinance that would allow Uber to operate in Midland on terms that both sides agreed to. Then on Monday the day new regulations went into effect -- Uber sent out messages to its customers saying that city of Midland practices forced it to pull out of our city. We would like to hear more from Uber. It has a reputation of butting heads with local government to get its way, according to a Texas Tribune report, and honestly there is nothing wrong with that. They have every right to take their ball and go home if they object to the regulations in cities where they do business or are considering doing business. Uber has drawn a line in the sand, and as Sparks knows and a petition shows, they have plenty of support. But it sure would help if our community had a more concrete idea what Uber objects to because then we can make a more informed decision on if and how much our representatives are falling short in making Midland as world class a city as it can be. Get ready to buy tissues in bulk, because this film is an instant tearjerker. On Wednesday (Feb. 3), Warner Bros. Pictures finally released the official trailer for the film adaptation of Me Before You. The film stars Game of Thrones actress Emilia Clarke and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay actor Sam Claflin in this romantic drama. To get a taste of what's to come, check out the first full trailer below. Me Before You tells the story of two characters with two completely different personalities and views on life. Will Traynor (Claflin) was an adventure-seeking successful young man, before a motorcycle accident left him a depressed, wheelchair-bound quadriplegic. After losing her beloved job in a cafe, Louisa Clark (Clarke) is soon hired to be Will's caretaker for six months. Despite getting off to a rocky start during the beginning of her employment, the two soon find common ground. As Louisa tries to show Will the fun he could have despite his handicap, the two form a strong bond that no one would expect. The story isn't your average love story though. Will is hiding a major secret that could change everything. A photo posted by Me Before You Movie (@mebeforeyouofficial) on Feb 2, 2016 at 8:28am PST The 29-year-old Mother of Dragons was instantly drawn to her character, after devouring the best-selling novel while on the set of Genisys. The storyline of the book moved her to tears. Clarke instantly connected with Louisa and fought hard to convince the director she'd be perfect for the role. "Actors cannot invest too much in auditions. It's too heartbreaking if you don't get it," Clarke told USA Today. "But this one I was like, 'I'm doing it.' I was madly into it. Every fiber of me felt like someone had written me down." The novel was originally written by Jojo Moyes in 2012 and a sequel titled, After You, was published in 2015. It was adapted by screenwriters Scott Neustadter and Michael H. Weber. Thea Sharrock is the appointed director of the film. Me Before You is scheduled to open in theaters this spring on June 3, 2016. Watch the official movie trailer below: 2015 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Four Tet has dropped a new remix, dubbed the "club version" of "Seesaw," his collaboration with Jamie xx and Romy. The original version appeared on Jamie xx's debut solo album In Colour. The London-based producer, born Kieran Hebden, explained on Twitter: "This is another version I did last year to DJ with ... different drums and mix and arrangement," Pitchfork reports. Jamie and I made seesaw in 2013. This is another version I did last year to DJ with... different drums and mix and arrangement. Four Tet (@FourTet) February 3, 2016 The remix of "Seesaw" places greater emphasis on the synths and adds a club-ready bassline. While rearranging the track's production to make the it hit harder --and presumably mix into the producer's DJ sets more fluidly -- he manages to keep Romy's dreamy vocals at the center of the song. The remix premiered on Annie Mac's radio show on BBC Radio 1, but you can listen to it below: As Thump points out, different versions of "Seesaw" have been floating around since Jamie xx and Four Tet rolled out the track on an Australian radio station in February 2014. The track was not formally released until it appeared on In Colour. The remix follows Hebden's release of two collaborative tracks: "Mothers," the eight-minute shuffling house track created alongside Australian producer Designer and "Disparate," the six-minute tribal-influenced track co-produced by U.K. bass artist Champion. Additionally, Hebden's collaboration with Katy B and Floating Points on "Calm Down" is featured on Katy B's album, due out in April. Considering Hebden's penchant for remixing collaborations that feature his production work, Four Tet fans can likely expect some new takes on "Calm Down" in the coming months. Four Tet and Jamie xx have a number of individual tour dates coming up, including several international festival stops. Additionally, both artists are playing a show together at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado this June alongside Chromeo, followed by headlining sets at Governors Ball Festival in New York. 2015 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. While we're all very aware that Taylor Swift hates games when it comes to emotions and relationships, mobile apps are okay in her book! The "Bad Blood" songstress is teaming up with Glu Mobile, the company behind Kim Kardashian and Katy Perry's own mobile games, for her own app for smartphones and tablets. This announcement was made this week on Swift's official website, so we don't have a name or and more details, but we're sure fans are ready to purchase it in the app stores right now. You can check out more buzzing news coverage from Music Times right here! Swift and Glu are coming together to "develop a new one-of-a-kind mobile game for smartphones and tablet devices." This might not be a ton of detail, but it is surely a great announcement for fans to stat anticipating their next app store purchase, don't you think? Glu is also working with Britney Spears on her own mobile app. Read our previous coverage on that here. As Swift's official announcement points out, she won a 2015 Emmy award for Best Original Interactive Program for her "American Express Unstaged Taylor Swift Experience" app, which was released in late 2014. This interactive app gave fans the opportunity to explore her "Blank Space" music video in a completely 260-degree, immersive musical adventure. Hopefully her new mobile game will be just as groundbreaking! For now, we'll just have to wait for more details, but we can expect to start playing this mobile game in 2016, according to Swift's website. Late last year, Katy Perry released her own mobile game. You can read our previous coverage on that here! Considering Perry and Swift haven't always been on the best of terms in the past, Taylor's new app could be more fodder for the feud fire this year. 2015 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Sarkodie should have been bigger than ... Gov. Rick Scott has directed the state's surgeon general to declare a public health emergency in four counties with confirmed cases of Zika. Currently a total of nine travel-related cases of the Zika virus have been identified in Florida, including two cases in Hillsborough County. Zika is a mosquito-borne illness that has been linked to birth defects in Brazil. The World Health Organization recently declared a global public health emergency in response to the spread of the virus. Under the executive order, which Scott signed Wednesday, State Surgeon General Dr. John Armstrong is directed to declare a public health emergency in Miami-Dade, Hillsborough, Lee and Santa Rosa counties. "Although Floridas current nine Zika cases were travel-related, we have to ensure Florida is prepared and stays ahead of the spread of the Zika virus in our state," Scott said, adding that the state Department of Health will continue to be in communication with county health clinics, hospitals and the Centers for Disease Control. The executive order also authorizes the Commissioner of Agriculture to issue a mosquito declaration in the affected counties, with special attention paid to residential areas, and directs the Florida Department of Health to make its own determinations as to resources and information needed to fight the spread of Zika. Flagler County cancer patients could soon see some relief from traveling outside of the county to see the doctor. Florida Hospital Flagler is now expanding their cancer unit to help reduce the patient commute. Visiting the Florida Hospital Flaglers care center is Theresa Marchesanis daily routine. She has breast cancer and most of her appointments are spent in the centers radiation treatment machine. It lasts anywhere from 10-15 minutes, said Marchesani. Like Marchesani, dozens have to make the trip to the hospitals cancer center every day. Cancer takes up so much of your time it takes up so much of your life it seems like cancer takes center stage, said Marchesani. Soon there will be two of the machines that techs use now to serve patients. The hospital is set to begin a $4.5 million construction project on a new vault that will look much like the one it has now. Doctors said it will allow for shorter, safer treatments with fewer side effects. Currently the now the hospital serves about 40 patients a day but once the area is complete it'll add 2,000 additional square feet and will be able to serve more people. There's more demand for cancer services in our county, said Dr. Luis Carrascosa. A demand, Dr. Carrascosa said keeps their unit busy. Historically a lot of people had to travel long distances to receive good cancer, said Dr. Carrascosa. When you're sick and you're not feeling well and getting into a car having to deal with traffic and to have it so close in the area that you live in it makes a world of a difference, said Marchesani. A huge difference for Marchesani who said she's traveled miles in the past. She said the expansion will be a blessing to all local cancer patients. I'm seeing the finish line basically and to make that easier that's great, said Marchesani. The new true beam machine the hospital is getting will be the only one serving Flagler, Volusia, and St. johns counties. The hospital said construction should be completed by the end of the year and will begin early spring. GET OUR APP Our Spectrum News app is the most convenient way to get the stories that matter to you. Download it here. Save my cousin. Thats my blood man. My first blood," began witness James Annestor. Annestor said he helped wrestle a gun away, as three men were shot at a tax refund office in Brevard County Wednesday afternoon. Homicide agents and crime scene investigators with Brevard County Sheriff's Office are investigating. It happened around 1:45 p.m. at TTC Tax Refund Business located at 1383 Clearlake Road in Cocoa. I got very emotional because he dont bother anyone. Hes very laid back," added Tameshia Pratt, who knows one of the men who were wounded. Deputies are still trying to figure what lead up to the shooting. However, they are not searching for any suspects. So theyre hopeful someone who they know was involved in the shooting will tell them what happened. I heard him call me, say, 'James help,' so I ran in there and helped him," Annestor shared. Annestor said the whole scene was chaotic. Get the gun out his hand," Annestor recalled. "My cousin was holding the gun like this and I had to keep the muzzle away from me, my cousin and the guy so," Annestor said, as he acted out what happened. Deputies said Brevard County Fire Rescue transported two of the victims to local hospitals and the third was treated at the scene. Investigators said one of them is in critical condition and the two men had non-life-threatening injuries. The names of the victims have not been released. Youre going to be pretty strong, when you see theres a gun going off right by your head," Annestor explained. The Sheriffs Office said the shooting incident appears to be isolated. Investigators said everyone involved in the shooting has been identified. Anyone with information is asked to call Crimeline at (800) 423-TIPS (8477). Palm Bay city leaders are expecting a large crowd Thursday night to both support and oppose a measure designed to protect members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. Supporters claim the Human Rights Ordinance protects the LGBT community from being discriminated against in the workplace, public and at home. "You could have your wedding in your backyard, and Monday morning, your landlord legally evicts you because he doesn't want to rent to a gay couple," said Bill Rettinger, who has been with his partner for 32 years. "Is that right?" Rettinger has spent months pressing the Palm Bay City Council to approve the ordinance to ensure gays wouldn't be fired from their jobs or evicted from their homes because of their sexuality. But opponents, including Councilman Harry Santiago, said the rights of the LGBT community are already guaranteed. "I believe those rights are protected by federal or state laws," Santiago said, adding that his main concern about the ordinance is that it allows transgender people to use whichever bathroom they feel most comfortable with. "This ordinance would allow men to use the women's bathroom men who are still anatomically male to use the women's bathroom without being checked or without being hindered at all," Santiago said. "And I find that to be a concern a great concern for the safety and welfare of women and especially children." Santiago said he is afraid some men will use the ordinance to access a women's bathroom to take photographs or cause harm. Rettinger said that's fear-mongering. "We're human just like everybody else and those kinds of actions would disgust us the same as it would disgust any other person," he said. "We'd be the first people to stand up and take action against it." Religious leaders in Brevard County are also concerned they would have to follow the rules of the ordinance, which would go against their religious practices. Councilwoman Michele Paccione, who introduced the ordinance, said she plans to amend the ordinance to exempt religious institutions. Palm Bay would be the first city in Brevard County to approve the Human Rights Ordinance. It has already passed in several other Central Florida communities. The Palm Bay City Council meets at 7 p.m. City staff is expecting a large crowd, so doors to the council chambers will open at 6:15 p.m. "Once the council chambers are at capacity, attendees can still participate in the meeting in the City Hall courtyard," officials said. Three years after Susan Hurt launched Plainviews Snack Pak 4Kids program after seeing a hungry fourth grader scraping crumbs off the cafeteria floor, the successful effort to fight weekend hunger among elementary students is being expanded to serve students in high school with hopes to eventually include middle school campuses. Theres a tremendous need to provide food to these hungry children during the 66 hours they are away from school each weekend, explained Terra James, a volunteer who is helping launch Shack Shak at Plainview High School. Speaking Wednesday to freshmen, sophomores and juniors at PHS, James explained that Snack Pak 4Kids volunteers now fill about 600 bags each week for Friday distribution to students who otherwise might not have enough to eat on weekend. The program is now being extended to the upper grades, she explains, in a student led, student run program that will launch March 1. Plainviews Snack Shak is patterned after one at Amarillo Tascosa High School that began three years ago. Five Tascosa students with the schools FISH Club (Friends In Service for Hunger Club) outlined the program during a PHS assembly Wednesday. Also attending was Dyron Howell of Amarillo, who lunched Snack Pak 4Kids in his own kitchen 5 1/2 years ago. The program is now in 40 school districts across the Texas Panhandle, and is helping feed 7,000 hungry kids each weekend. Snack Pac started in my kitchen as an effort to serve 10 kids after I saw a Nightline program on the Back Pack Buddies program in Bowie, Howell told PHS students. It started after a teacher saw a student licking their plate because they didnt have enough to eat at home. If students go hungry over the weekend when theyre away from school and the food they received through the free and reduced price lunch program, Howell said, They will not be prepared to learn on Monday. And we have found about 90 percent of the kids we spend home with Snack Packs share them with their siblings. The students from Tascosa added that their program was formed with three goals in mind. We wanted to use technology and not force our follow students fill out paper forms. As a result, they can fill out their menus using a smartphone, computer or tablet. We wanted it done with dignity and respect, and total anonymity, with brand new, first class products. And we wanted to be part of our own solution. Snack Shak is now active in every high school in Amarillo as well as Dalhart and will be in place in Dumas by the end of the month, the Tascosa students said. Howell said in Amarillo, after recipients fill out their menus volunteer students use the personalized menus to pack bags on Tuesday. They are delivered to teachers, counselors and other staff members who quietly and privately make sure the recipients receive the bags on Friday. Only those trusted individuals know any individual recipient. In Plainview, the recipients anonymity will be ensured by the use of lunch account ID numbers instead of names on all forms and bag labels. Eligibility will be on the honor system, which has proven successful in Amarillo. Applications for students wanting to help pack the bags are now available at in the PHS counselors office, for those who have the heart to want to help out. James said the first packing date is March 1, in the book room inside the ISS Building, north of the main campus. Deadline for volunteers to submit applications is Feb. 17, with a mandatory volunteer meeting Feb. 19. Once the menus go live, those interested in receiving a bag from Snack Shak can use their lunchroom ID to fill out a menu and select a teacher to handle deliveries. No one will ask them any questions, or know their identity, she explained. Like Snack Pak 4Kids, it will be funded by donations. To help with its startup, Happy State Bank announced a $2,000 donation at Wednesdays assembly. In an earlier program, James said 70 percent of Plainview elementary students receive either free or reduced price lunches. We expect Snack Shak to serve about 50 students this semester, with it eventually growing to 100-plus. Currently it costs about $144 per Snack Pac recipient each year in food products. Theyre elementary students, she said. It will probably cost about $300 a year for the older students, simply because they each a lot more. After meeting with legal counsel, Petersburg's City Council may be overhauling and adding new ordinances to their government statutes after a dispute arose questioning the purchasing powers of the City's mayor and city manager last month. In a special meeting Jan. 19, the Petersburg City Council voted to seek legal counsel concerning the legality of Petersburg Mayor Darin Greene's and City Manager Ronald Heggemeier's decision to transfer and spend city funds for a project known as the Community Center Remodel without the council's approval. Though construction was already under way, the renovation of the 54-year-old building was immediately halted until a decision was made by the council. The majority of council members felt the mayor and the city manager were not justified in their actions to use city funds to go ahead with the project without first gaining a city council vote of approval. Greene argued since he was the mayor and the city's Chief Financial Officer as such, he could move the money budgeted for the City of Petersburg as he saw fit. From that time, approximately $46,129 has been spent or has been obligated for materials and installation at the center, not including the price for total bathroom or floor renovations. It was said the total project could have exceeded $60,000 once completed. On Monday, Petersburg representatives meet with attorney Matthew Wade of the Underwood Law Firm to seek his advice on the matter. In brief, Wade stated that despite the disapproval of the mayor's or city manager's decision to proceed with the project, there were no current city ordinances that stated how much a mayor could or could not spend without council approval. "Looking over the ordinances, there isn't a specific outline on exactly - when your spending money -what limits of authority you've given the mayor. I can't find anything that says this is the limit before you have to come before the council" Wade said. "Right now, it's difficult to say if anybody grossly exceeded their authority." Wade stated that the absences of ordinances like these are common in smaller communities like Petersburg. However, whatever the size of the city government, Wade said it was a state law that all purchases over $50,000 have to go out for bid and require city council approval. Wade suggested that if they city council wished, they could write ordinances limiting the spending limit of the mayor. "It's however you want to do it," Wade said. So if the council wanted to limit the mayor to a $5,000 limit before seeking council approval, it could. Everything was at the council's discretion. Greene said a spending limit too low could impede government efficacy. However, Wade said the limit could be set at whatever the council approves. Originally, Wade said, $5,000 had been set as a line-item in this year's budget for repairs to the community center. One council member suggested that if purchases are over the designated line-item amount, that could be grounds to present it the council. However, no motion was made. Wade also suggested the installation of an Accounts Payable list that the council could review every month. This way, the council could see where each city check was going. Renovations to the center included overall structure improvements, upgrades to utilities, removing floors believed to contain asbestos, removing areas of black mold, fixing leaks, electrical issues and renovating bathrooms to meet current accessibility codes. Greene said the electricity issues were so bad, electrical arches were found in the structure. But council members felt the funds could have been spent in other areas such as supporting Petersburg's EMS and Fire Service. In another agenda item during Monday's special meeting, council members discussed policies and procedures relating to expenditures on the Petersburg Community Center, including establishing guidelines, caps and limits relating to the project. Wade presented blank resolutions to the council allowing them to write in any caps to spending limits for the mayor and to the renovation project. Wade also suggested that if the council was dissatisfied with the purchases of materials for the renovations, they could ask the city manager to return items and try to recoup some of the money. Currently, the center is unusable because of the construction. Council members seemed to agree they needed to do what they can to re-open the center before the spring. It was suggested that each council member read the itemized list of materials for the renovation and discuss what is not needed or what can be changed out for something cheaper. One example included the purchase of a more affordable stove compared to the $3,500 stove on the list. In other agenda items, Wade told the Petersburg City Council they could create a priority list of projects or needs that could be taken care of if money frees up in the budget. Also, all money and projects from the Petersburg Economic Development Corporation must be presented to the City Council for approval. And since the PEDC is funded by the City, a presentation of an activity report is also required to the City Council at a frequency they agree on. Lastly, the council discussed possible action on establishing performance standards for review and evaluation of the city manager. Wade said a system was already in place, but submitted a template council members could use in their evaluation of city managers. The last city manager evaluation was conducted in 2014. City Council member Justine Turner suggested the council hold another evaluation in the near future since one was not performed in 2015. The council said they wanted to review items on the supply list before moving on with any motions concerning ordinances. The council will hold another meeting next week. MERIDEN Members of the city manager search committee held their first meeting Wednesday to get organized and bring into focus the scope of the committees role in selecting a new city manager. They established a rough timeline for selection, got a broad idea of the type of candidate to search for, and determined the role other search panels would play. As one of their first orders of business, members of the seven-person committee with only City Councilor Bob Williams absent unanimously selected Brian Mahon, local attorney and probate judge, as chairman. Mahon then asked City Manager Lawrence J. Kendzior, who has announced he is retiring this summer, what the committee should be looking for in a candidate. Kendzior and Personnel Director Caroline Beitman are serving as ex-officio members of the search committee. Kendzior laid out four key areas in which candidates should be qualified: budgeting and fiscal management; city department knowledge; ongoing city project management; and personality compatibility. Whoever is in the position does need to have some knowledge of budgeting, capital improvement planning; the financial end of things is very important, Kendzior said. The good thing is the city, particularly for a town with somewhat limited resources, is in very good fiscal position. We have good financial policies in place, but you need someone to follow through with them. Another area that needs to be addressed, Kendzior said, is reviewing and getting down to the nuts and bolts of the operations of individual departments in City Hall. You should be looking for someone with some training and experience in that background, Kendzior said. The city manager also acknowledged the amount of ongoing and future development in the city. Were either doing or on the cusp of doing somewhere around $250 million worth of projects in the city center, Kendzior said, listing the new transit center, the Hub park, 24 Colony St., downtown city-owned parcels, Mills Memorial Apartments, and planned development at 177 State St. as some of those projects. Were going to have somewhere around 600 residential units and well over 100,000 square feet of commercial space in our city center, so theyll need to know economic development because were going to have an enormous opportunity here and now its going to need to be executed, Kendzior said. What you need is someone whos going to keep these projects on track and keep them going forward. Finally, Kendzior said, youre going to want someone with the kind of personality that would work here, in Meriden. Thats when the real judgment on intangibles comes in. The city has also issued a request for proposals from professional recruiting firms. Although the position will be advertised, the firm would help reach further to find qualified candidates. Some members of the committee who had served previously on the search committee to replace outgoing City Manager Roger Kemp in 2005 expressed some concern based on unpleasant dealings with the 2005 recruiter. Some suggested meeting with other Connecticut municipalities that have selected new managers recently to learn about their experiences with recruiting firms. Bids are due Feb. 18, after which point city staff will have a better idea of who applied and the cost of the contract. Under the resolution passed by the City Council last month, the search committee has discretion over how much is spent searching for a new city manager. No limit was set in the resolution. This is a very important decision youre making, so you need the resources you should have to ensure we have good choices to make, Kendzior said. Along those lines, the proposed starting salary of $160,000 annually for the position is higher than Kendziors current salary. The amount is based on a state salary survey and will help ensure qualified candidates apply, Kendzior said. We have a pretty good idea of what this needs to be, otherwise you wont get the kind of applicants you want, he said. Mahon also asked for clarification of the committees status under the Freedom of Information Act. Longstanding City Council practices that played a role in forming the committee were recently called into question under FOIA law. There is an exemption in the law for executive level search committees, which the city manager search committee can be considered. The exemption exists to protect the identity of candidates who may not have notified their current employers of their application to a new job. Though at times the committee will meet privately, as provided by that exemption, Kendzior and members of the committee said the intent is to meet in public as often as possible. Henry Suzio said, I think the consensus of the committee is to keep it as transparent as possible. Mahon added, We want to be as open as we can within the parameters of the law. Its expected that the city managers position will be advertised at the end of this month, and resumes can begin to be reviewed in April. A panel of city staff will be selected to weed through the initial receipt of resumes, disqualifying those that are unsuitable. In April, city staff and members of the committee will compile a list of current city and town managers in similar municipalities to serve as a technical panel for the second review of candidates. That panel will recommend qualified candidates to the search committee, which is expected to conduct its interviews and site visits in May. Final approval of an applicant will need to come from a majority vote of the full City Council. Based on the timeline established at Wednesdays committee meeting, the hope is to make an offer in June in order to have cross-over time with Kendzior before his retirement. mcallahan@record-journal.com 203-317-2279 Twitter: @MollCal More and more of these operations are to fix hernias. Photo: Intuitive Surgical. Intutive Surgical's stock has had a very good run over the past 20 months, returning almost 45% compared with the S&P 500's 5%. Much of that has to do with the fact that the company's daVinci Xi machine is being used for more and more "General Surgeries" in the United States. In years past, prostatectomies and hysterectomies were the core procedures that accounted for well over half of all instances in which the daVinci was used. But those operations peaked, plateaued, and -- in the case of benign hysterectomies -- shrank. That's why the growth in "General Surgery" in the United States has been so important: Growth of General Surgery at Intuitive Surgical Create column charts What four short years ago accounted for just 4% of all procedures has ballooned. More than one out of every five daVinci procedures now falls in the "General Surgery" category. Though management opted not to break out specifics for what "General Surgery" means, listening to the conference calls makes it clear that hernia operations -- specifically ventral and inguinal hernias -- have been the major growth driver. That leads to an interesting question: Just how big is the opportunity with hernia operations? What's the total addressable market? The Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract estimates that there are 750,000 inguinal hernia procedures performed in the United States every year. The Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons estimates, "Approximately 350,000-500,000 ventral hernia repairs are performed each year in the United States." If we combine these two, we get a low-end estimate of roughly 1.1 million procedures per year just for these two types of hernias. That's a ton, considering that in 2015, Intuitive Surgical's machines performed approximately 652,000 procedures in total. But let's not get ahead of ourselves. Intuitive will probably never capture 100% of this market. And if the daVinci becomes more prevalent in addressing hernias, it will face tighter scrutiny from governing bodies. That's exactly what happened with benign hysterectomies, as key opinion leaders began to vigorously question the efficacy of using the daVinci. Management has already acknowledged this, saying in the company's most recent annual report: "It is difficult to estimate the timing of and to what degree da Vinci hernia repair procedure volume will grow in the future. We expect a large portion of hernia repairs will continue to be performed in different modalities of surgery." That last sentence is key, as it should squash any dreams investors have that hernia repair will lead to tremendous growth overnight. For comparison's sake, U.S. prostatectomies topped out this year at 66,000. In 2010, the CDC estimated that 138,000 prostatectomies occurred in the U.S. If the 2010 figure is held stable, this assumes a 48% market penetration. Benign hysterectomies topped out in 2013, with 150,000 daVinci procedures. At the time, the company estimated that the total market was 250,000 -- representing 60% penetration. But if we're thinking about what the total addressable market really is for hernias, I suggest we take as conservative an approach as possible. Let's assume "a large portion of hernia repairs" means that, at most, one-third of these procedures will occur with the use of a daVinci -- or 363,000 procedures. What does this mean for the company? Last year, there were 140,000 "General Surgery" procedures in the U.S. for Intuitive. If we assume that half of these were for ventral and inguinal hernias, that means that there's still lots of room for growth: If Intuitive were to reach the 363,000 threshold mentioned above, it would mean a quintupling (5x) of hernia operations. Even if only a fraction of this benchmark were achieved, it could add over 100,000 procedures per year. That's a big deal, when there were 652,000 procedures total for the company in 2015. But I can't stress enough that these are just my own estimates. It's possible that the total addressable market for such hernias is even lower than I've stipulated -- and that there are actually more hernia operations occurring than my numbers assume -- meaning less room for growth. But there's a more important overlying message here: Intuitive's future is based on the fact that as doctors get more opportunities to test the daVinci on new procedures, it will become more helpful in improving patient outcomes, and hospital economics. Even if the number of hernia operations "only" doubles before plateauing, it will represent a significant win for investors, the company, and patients. The next billion-dollar iSecret The world's biggest tech company forgot to show you something at its recent event, but a few Wall Street analysts and the Fool didn't miss a beat: There's a small company that's powering their brand-new gadgets and the coming revolution in technology. And we think its stock price has nearly unlimited room to run for early-in-the-know investors! To be one of them, just click here. The article How Big Is Intuitive Surgical, Inc.'s Opportunity With Hernia Operations? originally appeared on Fool.com. Copyright 1995 - 2016 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Vincent Corbett grew up in Wichita, Kan. as the eldest of eight children. Almost every summer his parents would load the family into their 54 Plymouth station wagon or 56 VW bus for long road trips around the country. He moved to the Bay Area in 1977, where he lived and worked for Fidelity Roof Company until 2007, first as a roofer and later as operations manager. He now works part-time teaching roofing to apprentices around the Bay Area, leaving his summers free to travel. My ride, the Yellow Bird, is 50 years old this year. I like to say it does not look a day over 40. It is a 1965 Ford F100 pick up, and its the first four-wheel vehicle I have ever owned. All my previous vehicles have been motorcycles, my latest being a 1973 Motoguzzi with a sidecar. Sadly, the Yellow Bird came into my life when my best friend Albert died in a motorcycle accident in Southern Mexico in 1984. His family, who I am eternally grateful to, bequeathed it to me after I went through a lot of hoops to get it out of Mexico and back to the U.S. Since then, it has been my faithful companion on many roofing jobs and long journeys. The beginning of the millennium found us in Costa Rica. Central America was a multi-border crossing adventure and headache, but we survived with a few bribes and only minor mechanical difficulties. Over the years, the Yellow Bird has gone through some transitions including three rebuilt six-cylinder 240 cubic inch engines. The shifter is now on the floor, instead of the original three-on-the-tree. The current engine has about 100,000 miles on it and was installed in 2006 in Elko, Nev. At the time, I was on my way east on Highway 80 when the previous engine blew. I had to abandon ship at a brand new shop that had just opened. I returned a month later by train from Emeryville to pick the Yellow Bird up. The new engine is a keeper, as it does not burn oil. I am now 70 years old and hopefully this one will last as long as I do, with a little luck and TLC. My mechanic friend, Ken of David Brothers in Berkeley, has been a great help to me, always going the extra mile by repairing existing parts. He also has a truck of about the same vintage as mine, which he will occasionally use for parts. A reliable online source for aftermarket parts is MACs Antique Auto Parts, where I recently purchased a window regulator and a hood hinge, both of which Ken installed. The last few summers I have driven the Yellow Bird back to Wichita, Kan. where I grew up, to get body work done. I get a friendly price from Discount Autos, the body shop there. In 2013, they replaced my rusted roof skin, doing a beautiful job for about $2,000. I called it open-cab surgery. I sometimes call my rig the Yellow Bird RV. Shortly after I got the truck to California in 1985, I built a camper for it. The camper has an operable skylight and two side windows. Recently I was having difficulty reinstalling hinges on the camper door and wondered if it was worth the trouble. The following week my brother in Kansas helped me figure it out and yes, it was worth the trouble. Once, while idling at a stoplight, a girl in a nearby theater line came running toward the truck. She asked if she could take a photo of the Yellow Bird saying, this is the coolest truck in the whole world! I must say, I quite agree with her. Attention Bay Area drivers Were looking for more submissions to the bi-weekly My Ride feature. We want to know what you drive and why. Send story ideas to cars@sfchronicle.com with the subject line My Ride. NASA scientists say we're going to be alright. But, yeah, it could be close shave. Discovered in 2013, the 100-foot-diameter asteroid called 2013 TX68 buzzed us two years ago at a distance of 1.3 million miles. However, on March 5 the thing could zip by at a distance of 11,000 miles. The agency says that's it's best guess since it hasn't been tracking it for very long. A misogynistic group that planned to hold hundreds of rallies around the world, including seven in Texas, announced late Wednesday that it had cancelled the events after international criticism from thousands, including government leaders. Return of Kings, a group and blog founded by Daryush "Roosh" Valizadeh, who has promoted the legalization of rape in posts online, announced on its website late Wednesday that the "165 meetings in 43 countries" had been cancelled. In Texas, meet ups were planned for San Antonio, Austin, Dallas, Houston, El Paso, Denton and Nederland. Convicted killer Christian Bautista received a life sentence Wednesday for murder after emotional testimony from the parents and older brother of Lauren Bump, the woman he brutally stabbed to death in 2013. The unanimous decision came after jurors heard emotional testimony this morning from the parents and older brother of Lauren Bump, 24, who was visiting San Antonio while on holiday from school in Arkansas when she was killed while out for a run at O.P. Schnabel Park on the Northwest Side on Dec. 31, 2013. BROWNSVILLE A Border Patrol agent with alleged ties to the Gulf Cartel and two of his alleged accomplices pleaded not guilty Thursday to capital murder charges in the grisly beheading death of a Honduran immigrant last March. Joel Luna, a 30-year-old U.S. Border Patrol agent who had been assigned to a checkpoint in Hebbronville for the past six years, was arrested in November and charged in the death of Jose Francisco Rodriguez Palacios Paz, 33, whose headless, mutilated body was pulled from the waters off South Padre Island. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate Convicted killer Christian Bautista has tattoos that point to affiliation with the Mexican Mafia, a Bexar County Sheriff's Office gang expert testified at the sentencing portion of his trial Wednesday morning. And a Bexar County detention officer testified that a shank a handmade sharp weapon was found in Bautistas prison-issued jumpsuit while he was in jail in 2014. RELATED: Weapons found in Texas prisons Bautista was released from prison Oct. 29, 2013, after serving time for aggravated robbery, just two months before Lauren Bump, 24, was killed. He was arrested and charged with the murder in January 2014 and a jury here convicted him Tuesday. Gang expert Nick Rocha told the jury that, based on answers Bautista, now 31, gave to questions as he was placed in custody, he has an affiliation with the Mexican Mafia. RELATED: Gang tattoos in the Bexar County Jail Mexican Mafia has a blood-in, blood-out mentality, Rocha testified. You cant jump on and off that ride. Click through the gallery above to learn more about the Mexican Mafia Rocha noted the gang has a long history at the Bexar County jail, and that when new inmates come in, officials ask them for affiliations to ensure rivals are kept apart to avoid violent encounters. RELATED: Alleged killers roommate testifies he had a combat knife The prosecution showed several tattoos on Bautista's stomach, including the number 13, which is often connected to the Mexican Mafia, Rocha said, because m is the 13th letter of the alphabet. Bautista also has a large image of an Aztec warrior on his back with the word Soldado in large letters above it. Bump was visiting San Antonio while on holiday break from school in Arkansas. The jury took 20 minutes to decide that Bautista killed her, stabbing her 27 times on a trail at O.P. Schnabel Park on the Northwest Side on Dec. 31, 2013. RELATED: Witness who found jogger's bloody body on trail believed it was part of horror movie set He received a life sentence Wednesday for murder after emotional testimony from the parents and older brother of Bump. It took jurors 20 minutes on the fifth day of the trial to convict Bautista, 31. RELATED: Christian Bautista stared down, blew kisses at women in courtroom ezavala@express-news.net Twitter: @elizabeth2863 This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate CRYSTAL CITY Federal agents arrested the Crystal City mayor, city manager, two council members and a former council member in early morning raids Thursday on bribery charges connected to a gambling venture and unnamed contractors doing business with the city. Federal officials said they arrested City Manager James Jonas, who also is a San Antonio lawyer, Mayor Ricardo Lopez and city councilmen Roel Mata, Rogelio Mata and Gilbert Urrabazo, the former councilman. Businessman Ngoc Tri Nguyen of Keller was also arrested. FBI agents were seen entering the city hall in Crystal City, located about 120 miles southwest of San Antonio near the Mexican border, this morning and were removing boxes of documents. RELATED: Border Patrol: South Texas city councilman admitted to smuggling immigrants to San Antonio An indictment released by the U.S. Attorney's Office accuses Jonas of facilitating and accepting bribes in exchange for helping Nguyen establish 8-liner gaming rooms in areas of Crystal City. The indictment alleges some of the bribes came from at least two contractors, who are not named or charged in the indictment. Nguyen was arrested in North Texas and was to have his own initial hearing in Fort Worth. Jonas and Urribaza were arrested in San Antonio, and were to be initialed by U.S. Magistrate Judge Henry Bemporad. RELATED: Small town's attorney was paid big-city dollars Officials said city hall in Crystal City would not be open to the public on Thursday. It would reopen Friday, the FBI said. FBI spokeswoman Michelle Lee could not provide details of the joint operation, which included support from the San Antonio Police Department, the Texas Rangers and Customs and Border Protection. Lee said the agencies were conducting searches on several properties. Officers were seen at a home and business in San Antonio owned by James Jonas. The Express-News has reported on concerns over Jonas, who earns more than $200,000 in the tiny town, and discrepancies in the town's books. We want our town back. Its been a long time. We know crooked things are going on with these people in office, doing whatever they want to do, spending all our money. Its going to take us years to get back on track, said Richard Rivera of Crystal City, a spectator standing outside city hall this morning. County Commissioner Mike Acosta, who lives near the temporary house that Jonas sometimes occupied on 12th Street, said he was awakened at 5:30 a.m. by the federal officers. I heard a banging on doors, and people shouting FBI. They knocked in the door, but Jonas wasnt home, unfortunately, he said. Its a sad situation because it affects every single elected official in the city and county. It gives us all a bad image. The county is not involved but we get the bad publicity, he added. But, he said, he had little sympathy for the city officials who were arrested. RELATED: Crystal City council recall election stalled They dug their own graves. They were supposed to represent the public, he said. Jonas, a former high powered Republican lobbyist who fell on hard times after the end of the Bush administration, was hired in 2012 as city attorney, despite having no experience. He later became city manager, and was paid $216,000 a year, three times what those two positions had cost the city before his arrival. Much of that money went to support his acknowledged $12,000 a month in child support obligations. Jonas said he was worth the money because he was doing multiple jobs, and because he was bringing a vision to uplift the low-income city that has long had a reputation for backwardness. Its not ego. Its mission. Forces bigger than me brought me here, and it will take forces bigger than me to get me out, he said last fall. gcontreras@express-news.net Twitter: @GManInFedLand jmaccormack@express-news.net A South Texas police chief and a former police officer have been charged in connection with the theft of marijuana from the department's evidence locker. Sullivan Police Chief Miguel Martinez and former Sullivan police officer Angel De La Mora were arraigned Tuesday on charges of theft by a public servant, abuse of official capacity and possession of marijuana stemming from the alleged incident in May 2015, according to online jail records. SAN ANTONIO A woman accused of a hit-and-run crash that left her husband, a San Antonio police officer, in a coma on New Years Eve was transferred from Webb County Jail to San Antonio Wednesday afternoon. Diana Marileen Lopez, 26, faces a charge of failure to stop and render aid, according to the San Antonio Police Department. According to the Crockett Police Department they executed a search warrant on the home of Adrian Harold Pounders, 47, on Sunday after a traffic stop in the area lead authorities to his residence. There was credible suspicion that Pounders had a large amount of illegal drugs in the home. According to news outlet KYTX-TV upon entry into the home investigators uncovered methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia inside. Pounders was quickly arrested and taken into custody, facing possession charges. Hes now in Houston County custody. This is a carousel. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate A 15-year-old girl was found dead at an industrial site Tuesday in Alice, Texas, after being missing for a few days, and police believe she may have died from a fall. Details are still scarce in the ongoing investigation, but an initial autopsy report indicated Aydia Benavides suffered head trauma from a possible fall from a silo at the industrial site in the 2100 block of Industrial Boulevard in Alice, about 45 miles west of Corpus Christi, Lt. Jason Childers said Wednesday in an interview. Police received a call at 11:30 a.m. Tuesday regarding a deceased girl, later identified as Benavides, found on the property of a former oilfield company. Alice Police Chief Rex Ramon told the Alice Echo News-Journal Benavides body was discovered by three Baker Hughes employees. RELATED: Affidavit: Man forced 15-year-old girl into prostitution at San Antonio motel Benavides was transported to the medical examiners office in Corpus Christi, where an autopsy will be performed, according to Kiii News. She was reported as a runaway on Friday by her mother, having last been seen at Alice High School at about noon that day, Childers said. He said police believe she fell from a silo at the industrial site where her body was found, and that she died at the scene. There was no sign of a struggle, but more information is expected to come from the autopsy. RELATED: Reward offered for details in shooting death of Texas State University student An Amber alert was not issued in this case, Childers said, because her case did not fit certain criteria that needed to be met for one to be issued. Such criteria includes an abduction or kidnapping, and knowledge of imminent risk of bodily injury or other harmful factors. A woman alleging to be the victims stepmother posted a statement on Facebook, describing Benavides as her beautiful angel. RELATED: Affidavit: Men filmed rape of 15-year-old, took selfies and posted to Facebook Our babygirl is now our guardian Angel and even though she was taken from us in such a senseless way we will always carry her with us in our hearts, the woman said on Facebook. A GoFundMe account has been setup by someone to cover funeral expenses. twhite@mysa.com Twitter: @tylerlwhite The only thing missing from Marco Rubios victory speech Monday night was the victory: In Iowas Republican caucus, Rubio finished not first, not second, but third. Was he expecting a bronze medal? Overall, it was a long evening that offered too many declarations of triumph I counted four and too little clarity about what either party ultimately wants in a presidential nominee. The war between insiders and outsiders rages on, and there is no reason to believe it will end anytime soon. So this is the moment they said would never happen, Rubio began, ignoring the fact that every recent poll said his third-place finish would almost surely happen. He went on to give a hopey-changey speech that was strikingly similar to one Barack Obama gave eight years ago, also in Iowa, the difference being that Obama really won. Rubio made an obligatory dig at the president but instead should have sent him a royalty check. Rubio was trying his best to upstage the genuine winner on the Republican side, Ted Cruz, whose victory speech was notable for its 32-minute length. At least he, unlike anyone else, had genuine reason to crow. Iowa was always thought to be friendly turf for him, with evangelicals and hard-right conservatives dominating the GOP electorate, but final polls showed him neck-and-neck with Donald Trump or perhaps even trailing. Cruz emerged as the clear victor, 28 percent to 24 percent. Cruz went on so long that the cable networks cut away to Hillary Clinton, who strode out with her family in tow to claim victory over Bernie Sanders without actually uttering the words I won. The closest she came was saying that I stand here tonight, breathing a big sigh of relief. At the time, however, her razor-thin lead was shrinking to mere tenths of a percent. There it remained. Sanders proclaimed the outcome a virtual tie and declared it a big win for the political revolution he seeks to foment. Clinton was finally declared the apparent winner, 49.8 percent to 49.6 percent not exactly a mandate. I heard one genuine concession speech. Donald Trump gave brief remarks in which he graciously congratulated Cruz, thanked the people of Iowa. Trump is a numbers guy; he looked at the results, saw that Cruz had more votes and conceded. But other candidates and commentators preferred to focus instead on expectations what they said would happen versus what did happen. Rubio finished third but came close to overtaking Trump for second; therefore, among the expectations crowd, Rubio is seen to have performed better than Trump, although in the real world he did not. Of course, the expectations people might have concluded instead that for a blustery billionaire who had never before run for office to finish second in the Iowa caucuses, beating a host of experienced campaigners, exceeded any reasonable expectation. But the world of expectations is nothing if not arbitrary. Clintons campaign aides characterized Iowa as a tailor-made state for Sanders, meaning that Clintons apparent win defied expectations; this ignores the fact that three months ago polls showed her 20 points ahead. And Sanders said he had fought the powerful Clinton political machine to a draw, which of course beat expectations. Lets focus for a moment on reality. Cruz was the nights big winner, but his party is still in the middle of a food fight. If you add his vote share to that of Trump and Ben Carson, you see that 61 percent of Iowa voters chose outsider candidates who are broadly unacceptable to the GOP establishment. In recent election cycles, Iowa voters have favored candidates who were much more conservative than the party mainstream. This year was no exception. On the Democratic side, the Sanders rebellion is certainly not halted. A party in which such a familiar and experienced figure as Clinton can be fought to a tie by a self-proclaimed democratic socialist is a party divided. My sense is that the Democratic Partys splits are more easily reconciled than the GOPs. But for Democrats who want to worry, here are some numbers to consider: Almost 180,000 Iowans participated in the Republican caucuses, an all-time record. Meanwhile just 171,000 caucused on the Democratic side, far fewer than the record of nearly 240,000 in 2008. My expectation is that passion will be important in November. eugenerobinson@washpost.com A victory for Texas Sen. Ted Cruz a win for Hillary Clinton by the slimmest of margins over Bernie Sanders, .3 percent. Iowa spoke. The countdown to Texans doing some speaking begins. Speaking? More like shouting. Texas will provide the lions share of delegates to be awarded on Super Tuesday March 1 (or candidates voted on and delegates awarded later in some instances). So, Texans simply must do better than the 11.09 percent turnout for Republicans and 4.52 percent turnout for Democrats in the 2012 presidential primary in Texas. It makes no sense for so small a percentage of voters to determine the states choices for nominees in either party. Texas will be among 13 other states (plus American Samoa) voting in Super Tuesday primaries or caucuses on March 1. More delegates will be at stake than any other time in the nations 2016 primaries. And Texas will be providing the most 155 of the 632 delegates up for grabs in Republican contests that day, 252 of 1,007 that day for Democrats. The delegates are awarded proportionally by both parties according to how votes, depending on the party, go in senate districts, congressional districts and statewide votes. Democratic candidates must reach a threshold of 15 percent of the vote to get delegates, Republican candidates 20 percent. Coming up is the New Hampshire primary on Tuesday and South Carolinas primary on Feb. 20. Texas will likely see a narrowing of the GOP field by March 1. But its clear, because even a winnowed GOP contest is likely to remain heated, Texas will count big in the nations nomination process. This is a good thing. Cruz will be counting on winning big in his home state. But other candidates still in the race are not likely to take a Cruz win for granted. And Texas voters will be the better for it if they dont. It boils down to Texas having a large say in the direction of the GOP. After Iowa, observers were seeing a three-man race Cruz, Donald Trump and Florida Sen. Marco Rubio. That makes two first-term senators one who was instrumental in a government shutdown (Cruz) and a billionaire businessman who has never held public office. But its also likely that some establishment figures besides Rubio will still be vying for votes on March 1 perhaps Jeb Bush, who can claim Texas roots. It will be an open primary, which means that any registered voter can vote in any partys primary. And Texas will also be a test also for Bernie Sanders. Can he mobilize the young voters he needs to upset Clinton here and elsewhere? She does better among older voters. Texas does not have a history of turning out large numbers of young voters. If that changes, Sanders will have made a difference. The biggest way for Texas to make a difference is for as many of all registered voters as possible turning out. The last day to register was Feb. 1. At issue is whether Texas will demonstrate weak democracy or a more vibrant variety. The stakes are high. Re: Why Castro? Your Turn, Monday: The reader asks, What qualifies Julian Castro to be on the vice presidential ticket? I ask, What qualifies Donald Trump to be on the presidential ticket? He has no political experience. Lydia Gonzales No religious tests Re: Judson strong ally of Jewish community, Avi White, Other Views, Jan. 28: Avi White criticizes columnist Brian Chasnoff for chastising Jeff Judson in his race against Speaker of the House Joe Straus. White does not speak for the vast majority of San Antonio Jews, who are ardently committed to the principle of the separation of church and state. I regret that Judson has made religion a major issue in his campaign. Our Constitution guarantees that there be no religious test for public office. For the record, Straus is a lifelong member of Temple Beth-El. Members of his family have been associated with our temple for at least five generations. However, that fact is irrelevant in Joes role as a government leader. Candidates should be judged on the basis of their qualifications for the position, not on their religious identity or beliefs. Rabbi Emeritus Samuel M. Stahl, Temple Beth-El Speak, Christians I am appalled and dismayed at the low information voter response regarding the Texas House District 121 race. I found particularly interesting the letter to the editor that quoted Martin Niemoller about First they came for the Socialists because, note, it doesnt mention Christians (Return to darkness, Jan. 29). Well, I think it is time for Christians to realize that to remain silent means they can and are coming for you next. Of course, it is a very serious decision to vote against a man with the most powerful position in the Texas House of Representatives and this is precisely the reason we must vote against him. Joe Straus has the power to appoint all House committees. And, therefore, he has the power to set the legislative agenda for our entire state! Note what legislation was not put forward in his last term: Legislation banning sanctuary cities was never granted a hearing. The Senate passed school choice Senate Bill 4, but the House refused to give it a hearing And tell me why Mr. Judson expressing a Christian worldview is anti-Semitic? Is it inappropriate to let the voters know your foundational philosophy? Is it not up to the voters to determine if that philosophy is what they want represented for them in the House? It seems to me that the editorial staff of your newspaper and those supporting Straus are the anti-Christians. Lee Ann Crockett There is a choice Re: Poor choice, Your Turn, Jan. 24: I, too, was born in Texas. I served 30 years in the military. I love my country. But to vote Democrat is to be a socialist. I, too, resent Ted Cruz and the loudmouth. Therefore, think Marco Rubio. He also is running for the big office. Joe F. Monaco Domestic problem I once asked some well-educated and experienced people this question: What is the biggest and most important problem facing our nation today? One person answered, ISIS. No, I replied, it is not ISIS. Another answered, nuclear war. No, I replied, it is not nuclear war. A third answered, it is the national debt of $13 trillion. No, I replied, it is not the national debt of $13 trillion. My answer was: The biggest and most important problem facing our nation today is the absence of fathers in the home. Bob Guinee, pastor, Potters Home Ministries Reform drug laws Re: Penn the messenger, not villain, in this El Chapo ballad, David G. Ramirez, Opinion, Jan. 24: I agree with Mr. Ramirez that El Chapos capture will not end the trafficking of illegal drugs into the U.S. I wish, however, he had emphasized that the criminalizing of illegal drugs (as alcohol once was) results in economic incentives that give rise to criminal organizations that profit from supplying drugs prohibited by the Controlled Substances Act of 1970. Having taught English as a second language in Puebla and Monterrey in the 60s and later in the 80s as a visiting professor at UNAM in Mexico City, I have been deeply saddened by the violence that has devastated the civic, cultural and economic life of several areas of Mexico, causing residents to fear for their lives, the loss of livelihoods, kidnappings and extortion. Reforming our punitive drug laws through legislation that adopts a humane public health approach could help resolve many of the problems associated with drug dependence and addiction in the U.S. This also means that profits from contraband drugs, particularly marijuana, would no longer be available to enrich a hugely profitable shadow economy funding organized crime in Mexico. Joseph Dunwoody Checklist of sins Re: Preserving religious freedom is a continuing battle, Dan Patrick, Other Views, Jan. 2: Dan Patrick advocates preserving this freedom for Christians. Nowhere does he defend the religious freedom of Muslims or anyone else. If he believes it is OK to put In God We Trust on police cars, would he also support the right to display Allah Be Praised? He also seeks to protect the right of Christians to use religious freedom to refuse to do business with a person whose lifestyle violates their religious principles. A troubling aspect of this religious freedom is that it is practiced only in relation to gays and gay marriages. In Galatians, Paul lists many behaviors, including adultery, idolatry, hatred, wrath, strife and drunkenness, and yet none of these is ever given as the reason for refusing to bake a cake or cater a wedding. It seems that these Christians could more completely practice their religious freedom by creating a checklist of sins, then refusing to do business with anyone guilty of even one of them. Charles R. Allen February is I Love to Read Month in Manitoba as schools place a renewed focus on encouraging a love of reading in their students. They are joined by a number of community groups and organizations that also plan special reading events during this month. Reading is one of the fundamental building blocks to learning. It is the most basic way in which we acquire information. The ability to read at a high level helps set the stage for academic success in other areas and is important to success outside of school and in the workforce. The importance of reading has been the focus of a number of media reports in recent years as tests conducted across Canada have shown that Manitoba students are not doing as well in reading as those in other provinces. Of course, this is a significant concern as it hurts the ability to learn generally but also negatively impacts the quality of life of those who struggle to read. While the education system looks for ways to make improvements to literacy ability, parents are also encouraged to foster reading at home as well. Regular reading at home and talking about what your children have read helps to build the love and proficiency of reading. Once again this year, I look forward to visiting elementary schools in my constituency and donating books to their school libraries for students. If you have children in your home who are just learning or developing in their reading skills, take the time to encourage and participate with them in reading, not just this month, but every month. Posted on 02/04/2016, 11:00 am, by mySteinbach Enumeration begins today for Manitobas 41st general election, set for April 19, 2016. As required by Manitobas Elections Act, eligible voters are identified through enumeration. The voters list is essential for administering the election. Beginning today and continuing until March 7, approximately 3,000 enumerators in the provinces 57 electoral divisions will go door-to-door to collect the names of eligible voters for the voters list. Having your name on the voters list makes it easier to vote on election day. How to identify Enumerators: Enumerators will visit homes wearing a yellow Elections Manitoba vest. Look for their Photo ID badge, which includes their name, position and photo. Manitoba residents are eligible to vote if they: are Canadian citizens; are at least 18 years of age on or before election day; and have resided in Manitoba for at least six months immediately before election day. Enumerators will request the name, address and phone number of all eligible voters in the household. (Voters are not required to provide phone numbers if they do not wish to do so.) This information, compiled for use during the election, will also be given to the candidates and registered political parties. Enumerators will also request eligible voters date of birth and gender to help create an accurate and reliable permanent voters list for Manitoba, for use in future elections. This information will be treated as confidential and kept secure it will not be given to candidates or registered parties. Voters are encouraged to provide this information, but can choose not to. Voters will receive an enumeration record that indicates where to vote on election day and provides contact information for their returning officer. Enumerators also carry applications for homebound voting. Voters (and their caregivers) who are unable to go to a voting place due to a disability can apply to vote in their home. If personal security is a concern, voters can apply to have their name omitted from the voters list through the personal security voting option. Landlords are reminded that the law requires them to provide enumerators access to apartment buildings and condominiums. For more information, members of the public can call Elections Manitoba at 204-945-3225, toll-free at 1-866-628-6837, visit the Elections Manitoba website. Author Ellen Byron joins us again for Crafty Thursday to show us how to make grid gris bags just for fun. Ellen wrote Plantation Shudders, a mystery set in Louisiana, and seeing how Mardi Gras is this Tuesday it's a fitting time to make them. Gris gris bags are a sort of good luck talisman according to voodoo legend, but I'll let Ellen tell you more. During my first visit to the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, I wandered into the Heritage section and happened upon Voodoo Priestess Ava Kaye Jones, who was making and selling gris gris bags. Since this particular priestess took credit cards, I bought myself one blessed for romance, my priority at the time. from The Island of Salvation Botanica and Magical Pharmacy, New Orleans A gris gris bag is defined as "an amulet consisting of a bag containing one or more magical items. It is a 'prayer in a bag', or a spell that can be carried with or on the host's body." from The Island of Salvation Botanica and Magical Pharmacy, New Orleans Ever since purchasing that initial bag at JazzFest, I cant return to Louisiana without buying myself a new one. In recent years, with college expenses looming for our high school sophomore, Ive switched my focus from romance to prosperity. Heres a bag I purchased on a recent NOLA visit. But if youre interested in possessing your own gris gris bag, you dont have to book a ticket to the Big Easy. Theyre actually quite simple to make. Im going to demonstrate by making another one for prosperity. (You cant have too many of those!) Here are some of the materials you'll need: INSTRUCTIONS: 1. Cut about an 8 square of fabric. (It doesnt have to be exact.) Usually prosperity bags are made with green fabric, but since I already have one in green, Im going for the gold this time. 2. Place a small collection of prosperity-associated talismans, semi-precious stones, herbs, and other items in the center of the fabric square. I used a gold dollar, sprinkles of nutmeg and basil, some jade and green-glass beads, black-eyed peas, and lentils. All of these are associated with good fortune in various cultures. 3. As youre making the bag, follow the advice offered by Jude Bradley & Chere Dastugue Coen, the authors of a great resource book, Magics in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets: Be clear on what prosperity means to you as you create your bag. Imagine, in your world, how your success will manifest and be recognized, and embrace the feelings that will come with it." 4. Tie up the bag since my fabric is gold, Im using green as the tie color and trim any excess fabric. 5. Either pin the bag to a discreet location inside your clothing, or keep it somewhere close to you. I keep mine in my purse. Magics in the Bag details other steps to take into consideration when making a gris gris bag, like chants, candle colors, and days of the week that align best with a particular focus. But I like to keep things simple. Occasionally Ill hold my bag, close my eyes, and visualize a positive result. Sometimes Ill even say a silent mantra, sort of like when you wish on a star. Do these bags work? Who knows? But if you believe that what we think has the power to affect change, then maybe they do. And sometimes, no matter how old we are, its just fun to believe in magic. Here's Ellen's bio: Plantation Shudders: A Cajun Country Mystery, as Debut Mystery of the Month. Book two in the series, Body on the Bayou, will be available in September. TV credits include Wings and Just Shoot Me; shes written over 200 magazine articles; published plays include the award-winning Graceland. Ellen is the recipient of a William F. Deeck-Malice Domestic Grant. Visit Ellen and sign up for Cajun Country Newsletter at Ellen Byron is a native New Yorker who loves the rain, lives in bone-dry Los Angeles, and often writes about Louisiana, where she attended Tulane University. The Library Journal chose her first novel,, as Debut Mystery of the Month. Book two in the series,, will be available in September. TV credits includeandshes written over 200 magazine articles; published plays include the award-winningEllen is the recipient of a William F. Deeck-Malice Domestic Grant. Visit Ellen and sign up forat http://www.ellenbyron.com/ The Clock Is Ticking on Yahoo as We Know It Motherboard No Alcohol for Sexually Active Women Without Birth Control, C.D.C. Recommends New York Times. Scott: This Sounds Like a Zero Population Growth Initiative! Moi: Whoever at the Times found photo for the article deserves a prize. Look at the obviously hungry look in the guys eyes. TPP TPP gives no ground for legal disputes: Robb Sky News. 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